A crowd of upperclassmen gathers in the lobby of Samuel Phillips Hall for a class picture. Amidst the chatter of his students, Mohammad Harba, Instructor in Arabic, smiles.

After the picture, all the students line up to say their last heartfelt goodbyes to their teacher.

This bittersweet farewell followed Harba’s announcement this past Friday that he would be stepping down from his position as the Instructor in Arabic.

“[At Andover] I was given the opportunity to work...