Focus on a Family:The Pollack-Johnson's

By Jamie Polson

Linda, Jamie, and Bruce Pollack-Johnson

Project Learn School ( PLS) has lots of family members who live all over Philly. Bruce and Linda Pollack-Johnson are two members who live in East Mt. Airy. They are the parents of this reporter and have been in the PLS community for 17 years.  How they first heard about this magical school, was from their neighbor Danny Miller ( who works for NPR), and whose daughter Karin, went to PLS. Bruce and Linda were looking for a place for their oldest son Ben.  Once they saw PLS they knew it was the right place for their family.

     Many parents of PLS students, devote their time to help run the school.  The jobs they do are called Co-oping jobs.  It is necessary for each family to do a co-oping job.  Some of these jobs include, helping in a classroom, taking out the trash, shoveling the front stairs and sidewalk when it snows, and working on a committee, like the Administrative Committee.    

     Bruce is a co-oper on PLAC (Project Learn Administrative Committee)  which is the planning committee for the PLS Town Meeting.  He is also, the current treasurer of PLS. Bruce said that being treasurer is, “stressful for me, but that’s just who I am.”  Bruce loves PLS, that's why he works so hard to make it a better place.  Bruce will not be treasurer next year, because his son will be graduating in June.  Bruce is also a math professor at Villanova University.  He enjoys working at Villanova where he teaches, does research, writes articles for journals and is an advisor for math students at Villanova. Some of Bruce’s hobbies include:  biking, singing with family and friends, tennis,  games such as Boggle, juggling, candlepin bowling, running, and running a coffee house.

    Linda is an Italian translator for written documents, and interpreter for spoken word at CHOP and other area hospitals.  She enjoys sewing, knitting, swimming, biking, arts n’ crafts, cooking, reading, and traveling.  Linda grew up in Roxborough and said “ When I was a kid all my friends lived in Mt. Airy, so when I was old enough to buy a house I moved to Mt. Airy.”  Linda’s co-oping jobs are that she counts the box tops that are collected from the community, and drives kids on field trips.

 Bruce and Linda said, “After 17 years we’ll really miss the Project Learn community because we've known them for so long, they're  like family.  We know that we don’t have to dress up or anything for you guys because you know us well enough.”  Project Learn  will miss Bruce and Linda and it won’t be the same without them.