Members of the Mount Union Trojans baseball team pose after winning the 2019 PIAA Class 3A state championship. Nicholas Imperioli, pictured on the far left, served as a volunteer coach that season.
By SAYDE WISE | Journalism Student, Mount Union Area Senior High School
Mount Union, Pa. — Nicholas Imperioli is this month’s Alumni Spotlight for being a beloved coach and teacher to the Mount Union community. From the time he was a student, Mr. Imperioli made lasting impressions on the people around him and continued to do so throughout his career in education and athletics.
Former student Curt Whitesel recalls having Mr. Imperioli as his 11th-grade speech teacher. “We had a blast writing and presenting speeches to our class. He had a way of critiquing our speeches using comedic anecdotes,” stated Mr. Whitesel. Mr. Whitesel believes that he was overprepared to give speeches in his college courses, and he gives that credit to Mr. Imperioli.
During Mr. Whitesel’s 12th-grade year, Mr. Imperioli continued to make learning engaging by encouraging students to act out scenes from the books they were reading. Mr. Whitesel explained, “Most high school students don’t appreciate Shakespeare, but Nick had a way of teaching the material, so it became fun for all of us. Nick brought education to life.” Mr. Imperioli recognized how students learned best and incorporated different teaching techniques to keep his classes interesting.
One specific memory Mr. Whitesel recalls occurred when his class was reading Macbeth. Mr. Whitesel remembers Mr. Imperioli acting out scenes and using accents, humor, and various voices in attempts to keep students engaged in the reading. Although Mr. Imperioli made his classes captivating, students still had to exhibit hard work to earn a good grade.
Mr. Whitesel also observed how Mr. Imperioli connected with each of his students. He asked about their interests, sports, and always made sure to never isolate anyone in his classroom. “He never talked you out of what you believed; he just held you accountable for having faith in your own beliefs,” Mr. Whitesel remembered.
After Mr. Whitesel finished high school, the connection he shared with Mr. Imperioli did not end and instead grew into a lasting friendship. They attended college football games and played golf together. Mr. Whitesel’s wife, Emily, was close with Mr. Imperioli’s family, and they attended gatherings together as well. “I never grew tired of having conversations and just talking to Nick. He had a memory like no other, just simply remarkable,” Mr. Whitesel stated.
Another person Mr. Imperioli spent much of his time with was Jeffery Vogus, with whom he coached baseball for 18 years. Mr. Vogus’s favorite memory is the 1988 state championship, which was his first year coaching baseball. “Although it was all new to me, for Mr. Imperioli and Mount Union baseball it had been a long time coming. They had been so close so many times, and it finally happened,” Mr. Vogus said.
Mr. Vogus was entirely new to the area when he was hired to teach at Mount Union. Later, he applied for the assistant coaching position. Mr. Vogus admitted that Mr. Imperioli was initially wary of hiring him because he had no prior knowledge of him. “I didn’t play baseball in Mount Union or any surrounding area,” he explained. As the year progressed, Mr. Imperioli noticed that Mr. Vogus knew what he was doing when it came to sports.
Although they sometimes had disagreements about calls that were made, they always resolved them. Their biggest difference was how they handled their players. Mr. Vogus believes that they shared the same mindset—“I want my players to get better, because I want to win”—but they did not always show it in the same way. Mr. Imperioli preferred to address issues of disrespect or attitude immediately, while Mr. Vogus focused on de-escalating situations.
According to Mr. Vogus, Mr. Imperioli’s coaching style consisted of wanting players to “do the things they do better than anyone else.” He liked to practice skills with his athletes until they became second nature. He spent his time analyzing losses and figuring out how to better his team, showing just how dedicated he was to the game. Mr. Vogus went on to explain how Mr. Imperioli became his teaching mentor as well, selflessly helping him in every situation. Mr. Vogus knew better than to take that for granted, and their friendship was far greater than anyone could have known.
Mr. Imperioli not only made long-lasting impressions on his fellow teachers, but also on his players and students. Former student Mark Hobbs would go as far as to say, “He taught with more passion than could ever be measured on that kind of scale.” Mr. Hobbs wholeheartedly believes that Mr. Imperioli was one of the most dedicated high school teachers in the country.
Mr. Hobbs knew that Mr. Imperioli’s class was going to be a challenge, and that was what he liked about it. Mr. Imperioli had a love for Shakespeare, but according to Mark Hobbs, that is an understatement. “If you told him he could teach Shakespeare or coach baseball, I would not want to make a bet on what he would pick,” he explained. Mr. Imperioli not only exhibited this passion in the classroom, but also on the field. Mr. Hobbs remembers how Mr. Imperioli would “recite a couple lines of Shakespeare as if it were the final nail in the coffin.”
Mr. Hobbs stated that Mr. Imperioli helped prepare him not only for college, but most importantly for life. He elaborated, “It was a pleasure to know him as a friend.” Mr. Whitesel would agree that he is deeply missed. “He was such a hero. They say everyone is replaceable—Nick is the exception.”
This article was published as part of Ms. Dimoff’s Journalism class at Mount Union Area Senior High School.
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