Photo by Victor Beck ’20 | Dean Kobs ’20 plays guitar on Manresa for magis retreatants.
By Victor Beck ’20
Dean Kobs ’20 has been chosen as one of the three Class of 2020 Man of the Year Finalists.
Despite being a National Merit Scholar, spring distinguished student, Vinyl Club president, Magis leader, proficient artist and superb student musician, Dean Kobs ’20 at his core is a friend.
When told he was a finalist for Man of the Year, Kobs was surprised to hear the news.
“I was pretty surprised, all my friends said they voted for me, but I wasn’t really expecting it. I don’t really see myself as someone that a lot of people would vote for something like that,” said Kobs.
Kobs highlighted this year’s Fine Arts Extravaganza concert as being a pivotal point for him at Brophy.
“I’ve been doing FAE every year by myself, but this year I joined forces with Bennett Fees and we did it together and it was such a good time seeing my friends there cheering me on and supporting me,” he said.
Kobs describes art and music as being the core of his identity.
“I play guitar every day, and just recently started working on my own stuff, writing my own songs and really trying to tie in all the things I enjoy together. I had an idea of writing this song and creating these characters in a band, and I designed the cover art for the single and it’s going to come out on Apple Music and Spotify soon.”
Kobs added, “I also want to create an animated music video for it. I love to combine everything I can do into something. That gives it the most potential to create something even bigger.”
Ms. Deborah Kauffman is Kob’s current Advanced Placement English teacher, and said that the best thing about him is his energy and enthusiasm.
“Dean is like a vitamin loaded smoothie, he walks into the class, cool, smooth and sharp, and always eager to learn,” Ms. Kauffman said.
She said that Kobs always comes to class ready to take on the day and embrace any lesson she has in store.
“He’s one of those wonderful people who looks at the world and says, ‘there’s opportunity out there when can I grab it.’ That’s how Dean looks at classes, that’s how Dean looks at school, I think that’s how he looks at life,” said Ms. Kauffman.
Nathan Kobs ’20 is his twin brother, and said that he was impressed by Dean’s confidence. He also said that he was thankful to Dean for helping him overcome his struggles with social anxiety.
“I have had some issues in regards to social anxiety over the last few years and Dean really helped me out this year. He basically told me how much he cared about my overall well being and how upset it made him that I wasn’t very happy. This really showed me how awesome of a twin and person Dean really is,” he said.
Nathan Kobs ’20 also said he appreciates the unique way Kobs cheers him up when he’s feeling down.
“Every single day, Dean finds ways of cracking me up, whether it’s through the dumb little catchphrases we yell across the house to each other or him showing me something funny he saw on his phone. If I’m having a rough day, week, whatever, I can always count on Dean to cheer me up.”
At Brophy, Max Allen ’20 is one of Kobs’s oldest friends. He identifies Kobs as a truly gifted artist and friend.
“He is a great artist and he has always been very determined. He takes his work as an artist seriously and he is always trying to get better and learn. I have always respected how hard he has worked and it’s inspiring to see one of your friends do this,” Allen said.
Allen said that Kobs is wise beyond his years and is excited to see the great things he does in the future.
“Dean has a great presence and maturity about him and he carries himself as if he was much older than 18. I am excited to see what his future holds,” he said.
Kobs will attend the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, this fall.
