“Larry is a very kind, caring and generous individual. He always looks out for the underdog...he creates a caring, supportive environment for all of his students.”
- Susan S. Nichols
Larry Pierce ’82 received his B.S. in Physical Education from Lyndon State College in 1982. He went on to earn a master’s degree in education from Cambridge College in 1996.
While a student and basketball player at LSC, Larry and his teammates set a national scoring record for the most points scored in one half of a game (92 points) during the 1980-81 season. The following season, Larry was 16th in the nation in scoring, as well as captain and MVP of the team. During his final college game, Larry scored 39 points in a win over Plymouth State College.
When reflecting on one of the most memorable highlights of his collegiate basketball career, Larry recalls: “We had lost a game to Franklin Pierce by 72 points, 2 days prior...LSC fans filled the stands to see this elite team that had beaten us. We ended up beating Franklin Pierce!” Larry scored 33 points in this game to lead his team to victory.
Larry works as a physical education teacher at Douglas Elementary School in Douglas, Massachusetts, where he has been employed since 1986. He has refereed high school basketball since 1982 and college basketball since 1988. Larry also officiates high school soccer and volleyball. He has served as a volunteer basketball coach in his community and is known for going the extra mile to ensure that young students get into college.
Though he had many challenges throughout his years in college, his biggest battle has been the one he had with cancer, this past year. Larry was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in March of 2005. He went through many bouts of chemotherapy and was out of work for almost a year. Today Larry is cancer free and feeling great! He has been very busy renovating a camp he bought on Clearwater Lake in Maine, and is back at school, teaching physical education full- time. He is honored that so many of his good friends and family could make their way back to Lyndon to help him celebrate this important distinction.
Larry, his wife Kim, and their children Megan and Ben live in Jefferson, Massachusetts.
