Friends and family  came to honor former Warren Hills Theatre Director and Drama Arts Teacher Clifford Platt in early November with a  plaque that was hung on the wall outside of the auditorium. 

According to his obituary, Clifford Platt was born on June 26, 1955. Platt earned a Bachelor of Arts  degree from Bloomfield College and a master in Art Therapy from New York University. Before becoming a teacher at Warren Hills, Platt worked as an actor and performed and directed in regional theater at venues including Edison Valley Playhouse and Villagers Theater. 

Platt was a teacher at Warren Hills Regional High School for 18 years. He was a very active character  and made a huge impact on all of his students. 

Former student  and current Warren Hills staff member, Scott Esposito (Class of 2008), played a part in gaining board approval for the installation of the plaque.

         “Mr. Platt was an amazing man,” he said.  “He always made students a priority, which should always be in the mind of a teacher.” 

Another Warren HIlls alumna, Emma Kaiven, (Class of 2020), also had wonderful things to say about her former teacher. 

“Mr. Platt provided a safe place for everyone within the Drama Club. He always said his room was a judge-free zone where you are welcome to make mistakes.” she said. “He had the ability to spark a passion within everyone that entered his classroom.”

When asked about her fondest memory of Platt, Kaiven recalled the night before the final performance for Fiddler on the Roof. 

“Before each show, we always had a prayer circle and each grade would say some nice words about their experience with the show,” she said. “The last night was for the seniors and everyone became super emotional. I was in the dressing room fixing my makeup when Mr. Platt walked in and asked me what I was doing back there. I replied that I had been crying and had to fix my makeup and he said, ‘Oh don’t cry’ and gave me a hug. He told me to break a leg.”

Another Warren Hills alumna,  Lianna Johnson, (Class of 2019), remarked on Platt’s contribution to the school 

“He was able to have an individual impact on so many students,” she said, “and as a result, he positively changed the lives of so many people.”

When asked how Platt should be remembered, Johnson replied:  “He should be remembered as a great teacher, who was warm and kind and funny, who was passionate about his students and theater  and who somehow managed to be both wonderfully larger- than-life and refreshingly approachable.”  

 On the night of the plaque’s installation, Warren Hills Librarian Margaret Devine gave a speech paying tribute. 

              “Mr. Platt was, and is, a legend, a rock, an inspiration, and more importantly, a ‘teacher’ to anyone who was lucky enough to listen to him and learn his many lessons of kindness, humility and creativity,” Devine said. “Cliff was a gentle soul, an ever-so- humble artist, a gifted teacher, and a steadfast friend and mentor to his colleagues, students and their parents.”