Ross Freeland, Beloved ETHS Teacher and Coach, Passes Away

EVANSTON, IL - Ross Freeland, an Evanston Township High School teacher and baseball coach, passed away on Monday. He was 41.

The loss of Freeland, a member of the Wildkit family since 2003, has caused deep sadness at ETHS. Colleagues remember him as a dedicated mentor and a leader who modelled hard work.

“The Evanston Township High School family is deeply saddened by the loss of one of our staff members,” the school said in a statement published online. “His dedication as an educator, baseball coach, and mentor made a profound difference in the lives of many youth and families in the Evanston community and beyond, including his work at Camp Highlands for Boys during the summer.”

Freeland first came to ETHS in 2001 as a substitute teacher and joined the math department two years later.

Dale Leibforth, chair of the school’s math department, refereed to Freeland and “an exceptional teacher, colleague and friend.”

“He always displayed the true heart of a Wildkit, with courage and grace, and will have a lasting impact on all of our lives,” Leibforth said.

Freeland was also an assistant baseball coach on the Wildkits’ baseball for for nine years.

“Coach Freeland is and will always be the heart and soul of Wildkit baseball program,” ETHS’ Head Baseball Coach Frank Consiglio said. “He embodies with his whole being what we all aspire to be. Kindness, honesty, and fairness are traits that Coach not just talked about, but exhibited every day of his life.”

ETHS Athletic Director Chris Livatino remembers Freeland as “a genuine role model for all of his students, baseball players and fellow teachers and coaches – not just on how to play baseball or solve math problems, but on how to live a meaningful life.”

“He led by example with the deepest of integrity and care for the kids he worked with and the adults he taught and coached alongside. He modelled hard work, personally leading the players through off-season conditioning workouts no matter how he was feeling right through this past winter.”

California-born, Freeland earned a BS in Systems Engineering from the University of Virginia and an MS in Industrial Engineering from Northwestern University, according to his obituary.

A visitation will be held on Thursday, March 17 from 5-8 p.m. at Wenban Funeral Home, 320 Vine Ave. in Lake Forest. Make contributions to the Ross Freeland I’m Third Camp Highlands Fund or the Evanston Township High School Baseball Boosters.

The ETHS Student Services Department is providing grief counseling for students and staff members.

Photo courtesy of Evanston Baseball