Roger Roth came to Msgr. McClancy in 1959 from Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in Corona, Queens. It was one of the new expansion schools the Diocese of Brooklyn had erected in 1956. He was the only one of a large group of male friends from his street and surrounding streets in Corona to attend a Catholic High School. Although he did not immediately recognize the wisdom of his parents in guiding his choice of schools, he soon found himself in an educational setting totally different from his past experience, one which would set the tone for the rest of his life. While at McClancy he settled down into the established educational routines of the lay teachers and the Brothers of the Sacred Heart. While studies were structured and difficult, Roger found the self discipline he lacked in organized sports. He joined the track team as a freshman where he met new friends with the same goals as he. Under the guidance of new coaches Jack Flynn (Freshman coach) and Harry Howell (Varsity coach) he excelled as a sprinter. In his four years as a track team member he was part of a group of runners who under the guidance and tutelage of Coach Harry Howell brought Msgr. McClancy into the forefront of high school sports in New York City, perhaps the toughest city arena for sports in the nation.
A graduate of St. John’s University, BS, and Hofstra University, MA Roger commenced service with the New York City School System in 1967 as a teacher and soon became a representative of the United Federation of Teachers. Working from the Queens UFT Borough Office, his responsibilities included contract enforcement, grievance procedure, salary issues, representing members in front of the Chancellor’s hearing officers at the Office of Labor Relations at the notorious 110 Livingston Street, arbitrations, political lobbying and political action.
He is now semi-retired. He has been married to wife Susan for 40 years as of this May 15th, 2011. He has two sons, Robert and Christopher, two daughter-in-laws, Shannon and Kellianne, respectively and 3 grandchildren, Melanie, Nicholas and Juliet.