Ken Hause served as a faculty member at CRMS from 1961-1980. He and his first wife Adele raised their four children there, three of which became students. One of their children, Heather Froelicher worked on campus and sent her two children, Weaver and Eric, to CRMS. This culminated in three generations of the Hause family active on campus and acting as contributors for over sixty years, the majority of the school’s existence. It all began when Ken met Adele – also an honorary member of the CRMS community  – in high school through the Colorado Mountain Club where they both learned to love adventure and the outdoors. CRMS was a natural destination.

In 1967, Ken Hause created “The Beast,” an iconic sculpture that has greeted boarding students on the CRMS campus for almost six decades. Some of you may remember the wielded structure as you walked from the Wellness Center, formerly the Main House, past the woody pasture, and toward the pond. It is mythical, whimsical, powerful, and meticulously constructed. It is a beast. Some say all art is autobiographical and, while the meaning of this statue is up for debate, one thing is clear. It demands curiosity from its viewers. Ken Hause has left his mark.

He taught math, world religion, and humanities, and somehow was able to blend these seemingly disparate disciplines into a singular philosophical view. From his perspective, the world both physical and metaphysical was meant to be explored with the passion and curiosity of a child. 

He taught students through applied mathematics and physics how to take flight with balsa airplanes and how to create suspension bridges with the organized strength of popsicle sticks. He took kids into the mountains with sparse belongings to explore survival skills, always with a wink and a nod to the Buddha noble truth of suffering. He taught students how to build drums and how to beat on them, unencumbered. He took them through hip-deep snow to telemark unknown powder. He taught students how to understand and embrace the theory of chaos. His students left with more than just knowledge. They left with more than the ability to learn. They left with curiosity. They left with desire. They left in hot pursuit of the great beyond.

After Ken left CRMS, he married his second wife, Laurie Hause, also a past member of the CRMS faculty. The two of them taught at the Albuquerque Academy for many years. When Ken retired, he became a devoted watercolor painter, one of many artistic pursuits during his life time. On July 18, 2020, he passed away in Albuquerque at the age of 85 surrounded by his family, his loving friends, and his art.