Holding Serve at Love

Faye Kirschner (’67) has been an educator for nearly 50 years – teaching at all grade levels from pre-kindergarten through higher education – so it is no surprise that she has chosen to support future generations of students pursuing their education at Georgia Southern University.

The health and physical education teacher has been an annual donor for years and is a member of the University’s Legacy Society, which honors alumni and friends who have included a bequest for the University in their will or listed it as a beneficiary in a trust, retirement account or life insurance policy. The Savannah native said giving back to the University is more than a simple show of gratitude. “What could be more rewarding than helping a deserving student benefit from my donation,” she noted. “Georgia Southern is a marvelous place and I want to do everything that I can to help it grow.”

Kirschner earned an Associate of Art degree in Teaching from Armstrong Junior College in 1965. She then transferred to Georgia Southern College to complete a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education and Health and Physical Education in 1967. In addition, in 1971, the alumna received a Master of Education in Health and Physical Education from the University of Georgia. “I had a great time at Southern and I decided I would keep up with its programs and support it in any way that I could.”

The veteran educator retired from the Savannah-Chatham County Public School system after 30 years, but she did not give up her career. For the last 20 years, she has been on the faculty at Armstrong State and explained, “I love teaching and I am having too good a time now to stop doing something I have always wanted to do.”

The competitive runner and tennis teaching pro spent many years coaching all sports (boys and girls) in middle and high school. Today, in her spare time, Kirschner gives private and semi-private tennis lessons and has won several state tennis tournaments, even earning two No. 1 rankings in Georgia for women’s singles – one in 45 Singles and the other in 50 Singles.

Nominated twice for the Greater Savannah Athletic Hall of Fame and inducted into the Jewish Educational Alliance Sports Hall of Fame in 2001, Kirschner said she has no plans to slow down, as she races in 5k, 8k, 10k, 15k and half marathon races in Savannah and surrounding states. “Maybe I will retire if I ever make plans to go to the French Open because I will need two weeks off to go to Paris,” she said. “I have done a lot over my lifetime… playing sports, mentoring and teaching. Working with people is what I love and why I enjoy helping students achieve their potential.” – Sandra Bennett