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news SUMMER 2017
Little Red School House & Elisabeth Irwin High School | lrei.org
news SUMMER 2017
IN THIS ISSUE 3
ABOUT THE COVER
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THE SELF-STUDY PROJECT FOR TENURED TEACHERS AT LREI
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FROM OUR PRINCIPALS
10 STUDENT VOICE: IDENTITY, EQUITY, ACTIVISM 11 LREI TRACK AND FIELD PLACE 6TH IN STATE TOURNAMENT 12 DEAR MISS IRWIN 13 CONGRATULATIONS CLASS OF 2017! 14 LREI IN THE WORLD 15 LREI SENIOR CAPTAIN DUO LEAVES HISTORIC MARK ON BASKETBALL PROGRAM 16 GRADUATION 2017 18 A CONVERSATION WITH THE AFTERSCHOOL DEPARTMENT HEADS 19 LREI IS FEATURED IN NEW YORK MAGAZINE’S REASONS TO LOVE NEW YORK 20 REUNION WEEKEND 2017 21 2017-2018 NEW TRUSTEES 22 ACCOMPLISHMENTS 24 CLASS NOTES 26 2017-2018 ALUMNI CALENDAR 27 LREI STORYLAB
COVER ART LREI: A School in History, Script by Onaje G-S. ’20 and Mark Silberberg, with Harrison K. ’18. Original material provided by Nick O’Han and Mark Silberberg. Art by Onaje G-S. ’20, Lettering by Harrison K. ’18. LREI NEWS DESIGN By Katelyn Baker CONTENT EDITOR Peter Martin, Director of Communications PHOTOGRAPHY Peter Martin, Steve Neiman, Darren Ornitz, Myrna Suarez, and LREI Community LREI NEWS welcomes reader submissions. Send your article suggestions and photos to our Director of Communications, Peter Martin at pmartin@lrei.org.
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To view the entire graphic novel, please view: https://www.lrei.org/page/ we-are-lrei/history
Letter From the Director Dear LREI Community, Summer greetings to all. There are two distinct worlds in our buildings during summer break. There is Summers at LREI, our truly excellent summer camp, cool even when the temperature is not, and there is summer at LREI, hot and muggy, and surprisingly busy. “Busy? During the summer,” you may ask. Yes, we are busy reviewing the year that was and planning for the school year to come. In the LREI News you will find comments on and photos of important moments from the ’16-’17 school year, chief among them is Commencement and our annual Alumni Reunion Weekend. These traditional events are essential, celebrating the achievements of our graduating students and welcoming back generations of graduates to remind us of from whence we came. Annual events and traditions are important to life at LREI. Some traditions are longstanding (farm trips, for example) and some are relatively young (Fours home visits and our new version of the eleventh grade long trip). Some traditions are academically focused and quite lengthy, our seventh grade Colonial Museum fits this bill. Some are much shorter or crisper, but no less important. Think about our annual Founders Day assembly which celebrates the school’s origins—only 45 minutes long but so hugely important to the community. Traditions allow us to measure our growth, like a family marking the door frame, recording their child’s height. “When I go to the farm, I will be this old!” Traditions allow us to reconnect to what is important to the community, to make public what brings us together, to revel in our heritage—participating in the Pride March, doing service on the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, or building a city out of blocks. There are so many other traditions worth noting, though too many to be comprehensive. I think among the students’ favorites are the second grade trip over the Brooklyn Bridge, the annual Field Day, and activities that bring older and younger buddies together. Offering opportunities to measure our achievement, giving us moments when we can focus on the community’s values, and offering opportunities for the community to come together and enjoy each other’s company, LREI’s traditions inspire us, challenge us, and connect us—all of us, generations of us. Please enjoy this year’s LREI News, and join me in celebrating all of the successes of the past school year. There are many. Who knows, maybe this year was the first year of a new tradition! We will have to wait and see. Wishing you all the best,
ABOUT THE COVER The cover of this year’s magazine was born out of two simple mission-focused questions: 1) How might we share the school’s rich history in a more engaging way as part of our accreditation self-study document? 2) How might we do this in a way that puts our students at the center of this work? To move from idea to action, I worked with Onaje ‘20 and Harry ‘18 to take a textual narrative of the school’s history and bring it to life as a graphic novel. As Onaje, who did the illustration, reflected: When I was first given the opportunity to depict the history of LREI, I felt the pressure of the whole school and its history on my shoulders. From forming the plot pyramid with Harry to deciding the race and gender of made up characters, I kept imagining someone who held LREI close to their heart criticizing my depiction of its story. Half of the battle was mental. Art wise, the
struggle was really about having fun with the fundamentals. I used watercolor to give the comic the traditional, home-like feel I thought it deserved. LREI and its history is a nostalgic subject for me so I wanted to share that with others. Another element of this comic I took very seriously was the colors. Every page was carefully planned out to best connect the story with an emotion. This mindset produced pages that I believe could stand on their own and tell a story. It also gave it the cinematic look I aim for when drawing. Now that I have finished the comic, as an artist would, I criticize every aspect of it. However, I’m still proud of the ambition, determination and creativity it took to make it. In thinking about his role, Harry observed: My involvement with this project was different than that of most projects I’ve done because I didn’t come up with the project
and I didn’t have any real control of it. I was brought on to help because I understood the medium of graphic novels. So I helped to write the script and give Onaje a sense of how to pace and lay out a comic. When Onaje was done with the illustrating, the final story was different from the one that I had helped to write. This created some challenges for the lettering as the illustration layouts were done. I had to adjust the script accordingly and move some captions around, generally a faux pas, but necessary in this instance. Ultimately, I was able to finish the story. I’m now handling the production elements for printing the graphic novel, which we hope to do in the fall. This student work is a perfect example of the LREI mission in action. Mark Silberberg Director of Learning & Innovation
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Realistically I know that there are other real-world factors beyond my teaching (school/life workload of students etc.) but I am committed to expanding the time I spend in an inspirational, example-setting role. I created my own arrangement for the group, which I used as a teaching/ inspiration vehicle. I am more committed than ever to take up this quest again in the fall.” —Matt McClean
As a child or adult, thoughts may race through our mind on a daily basis. Feeling these thoughts on paper can be very powerful and insightful for all.”—Natasha Hernandez
MICHELLE BOEHM FROM OUR DIRECTOR OF LEARNING & INNOVATION, MARK SILBERBERG
THE SELF-STUDY PROJECT FOR TENURED TEACHERS AT LREI To ensure ongoing growth and development, every five years tenured teachers at LREI are asked to engage in a formal self-study in which they examine their goals, strengths, and needs as teachers. Coordinated by Director of Learning & Innovation Mark Silberberg, this year “in reflection” balances individual work with the support of a cohort of colleagues. The self-study process seeks to develop, expand, and sustain each participant's commitment to progressive pedagogy and reflective practice. It also provides an opportunity for faculty members to focus on a “gnawing question” about their practice and growth as a teacher, person and member of the LREI community. While a significant portion of this work is personal, the process provides colleagues with a cohort of peers who are able to provide each other with support and encouragement. This periodic exploration of practice allows participants to reevaluate their needs as learners and teachers and to
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think about an area(s) in which they would like to grow personally and professionally. It also provides an opportunity for participants to reflect on the arc of their teaching career/practice at LREI and to engage in a discovery process that aligns with their professional goals. Additionally, the process also provides a space for each participant to affirm and/or reignite their passion/spirit/purpose as an educator. A primary goal of the self-study process is to strike the right balance between creating an authentic and personally relevant path for doing the work of a self-study and establishing a way for the group members to provide real support for each other. The goal is a process/experience that: is energizing and affirming for the participants, • allows each individual to push themselves to expand/refine their practice, • encourages participants to take a risk with their learning (as they ask their students to do each day), • helps each teacher to find a meaningful way to record/tell the story of their learning, and • energizes participants about their future learning/growth. •
MIDDLE SCHOOL MATH TEACHER
Michelle focused on creating more authentic opportunities for formative assessment. Formative assessment provides feedback that is given while a particular learning cycle is in process, the learner (and teacher) to better monitor progress towards achieving particular learning goals. As part of this process, Michelle commented that: It has taken some serious practice and patience to control the urge to quickly correct thinking. Weighing in at the right time is a skill. I have had to force myself to pause and have even said out loud to students, “I’m going to stop talking. Your turn.” Aside from giving students opportunities to learn from each other, I need to continue to find new and interesting ways to assess their understanding and to set aside time for them to respond to feedback. This must happen in a timely manner and can certainly include more formal peer feedback. I introduced two iPad apps, RECAP and Educreation, as ways for students to communicate understanding. The important part of this was making sure I gave the students enough opportunity to use the apps so they could have an informed opinion about using them. It was interesting to see the app preference of each student. They very much valued the immediate feedback I was able to give them because they were able to quickly identify a lack of in-depth understanding. This [self-study] reflection is not about offering a conclusion to a year-long focus. Rather, it will serve as a frame for the work that I will continue to do so that the students in my classes can mature into the best math thinkers they can be.
NATASHA HERNANDEZ SECOND GRADE TEACHER
For her self-study, Tasha looked at her own structures for social-emotional care and how they relate to social-emotional learning in her classroom. This led to an examination of the structures that learners need to feel safe, to feel empowered to make good choices, and to respect others within their classroom community. As part of this study, she examined what she was already doing in the classroom and then investigated additional practices and activities she could incorporate as well. Parallel to this investigation was her reflection on how these classroom structures can also support the social-emotional wellbeing of the teacher. As Tasha notes: One activity that stood out to me as very powerful was one that also helped me keep things in perspective in my own life. We asked the children to draw balloons and then reflect on the things that made them frustrated and can be hard to let go of. They visualized these frustrations as balloons and placed them inside their drawings. During the activity, we also discussed ways to express and manage these feelings of
disappointment, anger, fear, etc.. As a child or adult, thoughts may race through our mind on a daily basis. Feeling these thoughts on paper can be very powerful and insightful for all. We then shared strategies we could use to help us work through our frustrations. For example, we can’t control the things other people say, but we can control what we say to others and how we say it to them.
SUZANNE COHEN SEVENTH GRADE HUMANITIES TEACHER
In reflecting on her work as a teacher at LREI, Suzanne decided to help her students understand and engage with current events for the purpose of navigating the contentious presidential election of 2016. Her self-study focused on connecting history to current events in a meaningful way. Looking back over the year, Suzanne observed that: In the process of engaging in this work, I have become more self-reflective and adaptive in my teaching practice and curriculum. As a teacher, this is something I always try to do—adapt and change according to student need and interest—however, it can be easier to rely on things I’ve done in the
past, making only minor modifications and adjustments along the way. This year, I used this self-study as a way to push myself to not only modify curriculum, but to work toward making more substantive changes. I also now see the benefit of getting more student feedback as I go. Even when students seem to be motivated by and enjoying the curriculum, student feedback allows for individual, nuanced responses. I will continue to look for ways to incorporate this feedback into my teaching. With a slight change of focus, my students eagerly engaged in uncovering the hypocrisy and contradictions in our everyday world: they relished learning the ways in which the democracy they have spent a year learning about—the one they learned that was grappling with ideas of pluralism, tolerance, equality, and freedom—is the same democracy that has always been layered with hypocrisy, racism, intolerance, and sexism. As a result of the self-study work, my students have better insight into how history repeats itself and have a stronger desire to be active agents in stopping this cycle. For me, uncovering these connections and contradictions is the entry point for middle school student engagement in the democratic process.
LREI NEWS | Summer 2017 5
PATI STOLLEY LOWER SCHOOL PE TEACHER
management is entirely self directed and flexible, which is both good and bad. Good because it allows me to time research projects and booktalks with teachers around their schedules and move across grades according to the needs of the curriculum. Bad because it can be a challenge to set priorities and do long term planning when the schedule frequently changes. I do think the new middle school schedule, with a regularly scheduled Big Time and Independent Reading period, will help me see students in grades for which I am not an advisor more frequently.
Pati explored the idea of what teamwork looks, sounds, and feels like in her classes. She wanted to explore the question of what it means to be a supportive teammate. As part of the self-study, she created a curriculum that examined the range of emotions and behaviors that arise from game play in the gym and coordinated this with an ongoing study of character and good sportsmanship in the third and fourth grades. Pati reflected that: By unraveling the mantle of courtesy, I found that the heart and soul of cooperation is sharing, trying to understand another’s point of view, tolerance, and treating others as you would want to be treated. My students and I discovered that “people like to be around others who are nice to be with” and “when people are nice to each other they are happier and feel more comfortable.” One way I integrated emotional intelligence into every lesson was through the practice of reflection. Students discovered that making connections and thinking about how their actions affect performance is an excellent way to learn. To help my second graders engage in this kind of higher level thinking, which reinforced and deepened their learning, I asked them to embark on a yearlong study of what makes a good or lousy partner. The children’s sharing sparked conversations about the value of their work and effort, and how as a community we can cherish and support this effort.
PEGGY PELOQUIN HIGH SCHOOL DANCE
MATT MCLEAN
AND LIFE SKILLS TEACHER
MUSIC TEACHER AND BAND DIRECTOR
Peggy focused her self-study on the redesign of core elements of the 9th and 10th grade curriculum. This involved an examination of the integration of social emotional awareness through mindfulness and meditation, expanding the social justice curriculum and creating a more inclusive sexual education component of the curriculum. In engaging in this work, Peggy was mindful of the challenges that arise as one simultaneously implements curriculum, reflects on its redesign and balances these demands with the many other professional and personal demands that are part of the work of being a teacher at LREI. As Peggy noted: The interconnection of school and life is essential. I am grateful for the communities that I have been supported by and view all of life’s circumstances as an opportunity to experience what is means to be human. This self-study has been a time for reflection that reveals to me tremendous gratitude for my time at LREI and the excitement for the opportunity for a path to growth.
Matt was particularly interested in using the self-study as an opportunity to explore his long-running quest to find solutions that transform traditional instrumental music ensembles into more progressive-based environments. He focused on one aspect of this quest that was centered on developing pedagogies that offer a “differentiated learning” experience for his students. As he suspected, this quest went beyond the pedagogy to include his overall teaching approach: In reflecting on my teaching practice there is a disconnect in how I think I am inspiring my students and the response from them when I offer this kind of opportunity that requires a certain amount of passion and time commitment. Realistically I know that there are other real-world factors beyond my teaching (school/life workload of students etc.) but I am committed to expanding the time I spend in an inspirational, examplesetting role. I created my own arrangement for the group, which I used as a teaching/ inspiration vehicle. I am more committed than ever to take up this quest again in
I have always believed in the idea of using content as a vehicle to teach students larger concepts, help them develop skills related to the discipline they are studying, and to cultivate sound habits of mind as learners. However, it has always been harder to put this idea into practice than it has been to agree with it in theory; that is, until our curriculum redesign process provided me with a new framework for thinking about this work.”—Michael Thandi
MICHAEL THANDI LOWER SCHOOL SCIENCE TEACHER
For his self-study, Michael looked at how the curriculum redesign process that he has engaged in over the past few years has impacted not only his curriculum, but his philosophy and approach as an educator. The goal of the redesign process was to develop, in conjunction with the middle school science teachers, a set of core scientific principles to use as the foundation that guides and connectes the lower and middle school science curricula to help educate students for a more sustainable future. In the midst of the process, Michael noticed that, in addition to the curriculum changing and evolving, his approach to designing curricular experiences to help students achieve the desired learning outcomes was changing and evolving as well. As Michael noted: I have always believed in the idea of using content as a vehicle to teach students larger concepts, help them develop skills related to the discipline they are studying, and to cultivate sound habits of mind as learners. However, it has always been harder to put this idea into practice than it has been to agree with it in theory; that is, until our curriculum redesign process provided me with a new framework for thinking about this work. One of the major outcomes of our redesign process was organizing student experience around “The Natural Laws.” This helped me make the practical application of using content as a vehicle feel more accomplishable. My goal was to have
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students develop a profound understanding of each of the laws by constructing meaning around the individual concepts relating to the law. As a result, the concepts themselves become the essence of the curriculum, and the content emerged a vehicle to help teach these underlying core ideas. Working with this framework, I was able to adapt and customize the content based on my students’ interests and choices. I believe that this has led to a more successful learning process.
JENNIFER HUBERT SWAN MIDDLE SCHOOL LIBRARIAN
Jen studied the work journals she kept during her first 5-6 years at LREI, and compared them to this year’s journal and library department annual reports to assess how her job has changed. She reviewed some examples of current “best practices” to identify the significant ways the role of school librarian has evolved. In looking back over her year “in reflection,” Jen observed that: The main component that has affected my schedule in terms of making my focus more internal (meetings, Advisory) instead of external (conferences, library field trips, Pratt student visits) is being an advisor. There are many benefits to being an advisor. It allows me to connect with students and families in a deeper and more meaningful way, and it is an enjoyable part of my job that I would never want to give up. But it does take away from planning/collaboration time and I would like to spend more time, in the other grades’ classrooms. My time
MIDDLE/HIGH SCHOOL
the fall. I want to more carefully craft the expectations of the project so that they are in alignment with our obligations as an ensemble. Additionally, I learned some important lessons about the ways in which my teaching approach gave students the false impression that this was “just an experiment” and not a core part of our ensemble experience.
ILEANA JIMÉNEZ HIGH SCHOOL ENGLISH TEACHER
Ileana used the self-study as a lens to reflect on her work over the past 13 years at LREI as a designer of feminist pedagogy and practice and on her work connected to a variety of school-based social justice and activist initiatives. She also examined the arc of her blogging on her site, Feminist Teacher, and other published writing in both academic journals and book collections as well as her regular speaking at conferences, schools, and universities. Ileana reflected that: The LREI tenured faculty self-study gave me the opportunity to ask the following questions: what do I need to write next? What seems most pressing? I want to see how my #HSfeminism work is part of the larger narrative of how LREI has shaped the lives of students and their activism both within
and outside of the school. Throughout the self-study year, I wrote a piece for another collection on youth sexualities and continued journaling about how I can engage in a separate stand-alone project that will likely be a memoir about feminist teaching. For this reason, I have continued the work of the self-study into the summer and have been writing, journaling, and reading various texts, including feminist memoirs and theory, to inform this larger long-term project. This year’s cohort of teachers also played a crucial role in helping to define the structure of the self-study process for the cohorts that will follow. While the critical work of the self-study was individual, the group was there to provide support and encouragement as needed. Whether focused on some aspect of practice, curriculum, or an action-research project, the group affirmed that the self-study is fundamentally an exercise in reflection, where the specific focus of each teacher’s project provided the medium through which their reflection took place. This self-study lens allowed participants to explore how their prior and current work as teachers at LREI continues to transform them as learners and educators.
My students and I discovered that ‘people like to be around others who are nice to be with’ and ‘when people are nice to each other they are happier and feel more comfortable.”—Pati Stolley
LREI NEWS | Summer 2017 7
FROM OUR PRINCIPALS Reflections on Citizenship at LREI
LS Citizenship with our Principal, Elena Jaime
ELENA JAIME LOWER SCHOOL This was a year in which the democratic process took center stage in our country. Students across the Lower School grappled with the meaning of citizenship - within our own community and in the greater community. Our fourth C, citizenship, is defined as meaningful and respectful participation in communities of all kinds. From the Fours to the fourth grade, students discussed the responsibility that each individual had to the collective to which they belonged their families, their classrooms, the school, and the city. In the fourth grade, the students explored the particular responsibility
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that adults exercised during this election season, studying the election process and reflecting on the meaning of democracy in our country. They learned about the issues being discussed in the political discourse and thought about the connection between the values that were being represented in the particular platforms of the two presidential candidates and their own values. They learned about the electoral college, both as
mathematicians and political scientists. They studied the history of the Voting Rights Act, and the obstacles that people of color faced in accessing their right to vote. The morning of November 8th, was marked by anticipation and excitement in the fourth grade. The students were broken up into small groups and assigned locations across New York City. Their goal was to gather exit polling data from a number of polling sites. A student reflecting on the experience, shared, “On Election Day, I went exit polling. I walked to PS 41 in Greenwich Village. I was an interviewer. Interviewing was great because you’re not asking who they voted for (you can), you’re asking really specific questions like ‘What issue is most important to you.’” I had the privilege of joining one group as they visited the site at St. Anthony. The students confidently approached the voters with the hope of developing a sense of the tapestry of issues that resonated for New Yorkers during the election. For the fourth graders, the act of participation involved listening to the thoughts and beliefs of members of the community. One student, in fact, defined democracy as people’s thoughts being represented by a person they [the people] chose. The journey of the fourth graders during this study, investigating the issues, debating the ideas, fact-checking, and going out into the community to listen to the ideas of others represented true citizenship in action.
ANA CHANEY MIDDLE SCHOOL In a collaboration between their art and humanities classes, each eighth grader is invited to conceive, design, and build a scale model of their own monument or memorial. This follows the annual trip to Washington, DC, in which they visit and learn to ‘read’ existing monuments. Students select a person or idea that is especially meaningful to them and then design a physical structure to tell a symbolic story. The list of studentdesigned memorials and monuments have included memorials to 9/11, to refugees, survivors of cancer, and drunk driving, monuments to personal heroes such as parents, grandparents, President Barack Obama or Sadako Sasaki, and to groups of people like the Little Rock Nine, or the Nez Perce tribe. Others created monuments to ideas, like music or national equality, and to movements, like Black Lives Matter, or the Montgomery Bus Boycott. The monuments are an opportunity for students to clarify and express their values, and to use the principles of design to draw others in and inspire awe, admiration, or sadness. For
one eighth grader, the water in their monument falling over a statue’s face allows the viewer to see their own reflection. In another monument, a cracked and weathered stone path is meant to symbolize hardship and struggle. In another, the location at a busy intersection communicates how victims of abuse are sometimes hidden in plain sight. The final and most important moment of this project is a gallery-walk for students among each others’ completed memorials. They read classmates’ artist statements, and ‘read’ the monuments themselves, absorbing and critiquing the use of symbols. They also become members of their own commons, citizens in a microcity of their own making, wandering among each others’ structures, appreciating with the same solemnity they display at life-size monuments in the Capitol what their classmates care most about. It is an exercise in empathy and civic life.
HS Citizenship with our Principal, Micah Dov Gottlieb
MICAH DOV GOTTLIEB HIGH SCHOOL Citizenship is about meaningful, respectful participation in communities of all kinds: personal, local, global. Citizenship includes a sense of how to engage (lead, follow, challenge) in any one and all of them. An active student government can be a positive model for how to participate in the larger democratic society. It provides the chance to test the waters as a candidate or to carefully select a candidate you’ll vote for based on their platform and experience. The high school’s government underwent a transformation this past year. As a group, they decided
MS Principal, Ana Chaney
To view the full video, please visit: https://www.lrei.org/monuments
that the current roles of the executive branch - President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer – were not reflective of the work they wanted to do within the community. After a thorough process to articulate the needs of the student body and how to best address them - History Teacher Ann Carroll, presented a new slate of roles, as well as a refined election process. • President • Vice President for Communication • Vice President for Programming • Vice President for Social Justice • Junior Representative The goal is to have clear communication between student government and student body; to have more specific input into programming of high school assemblies, morning meetings, events, and special programs; to be more purposeful in coordinating the social justice work within the high school and beyond, and to include someone from a younger grade for both a different perspective and a smoother transition for the next year. Student government wanted a more inclusive process to help promote student voice for all, and to make LREI the best place to learn. At an assembly where candidates spoke about why they wanted to run and what they would bring to the office, the spirit was positive, supportive, and engaging. Each candidate presented solutions that represented themselves and are aligned with the values of LREI. What was especially validating about this change in the organization of the roles and responsibilities of the Student Government was the largest turn out of candidates in recent memory. Citizenship is not defined only by those elected into office, but by all those involved in the process. In this way, we all win!
LREI NEWS | Summer 2017 9
FROM OUR DIRECTOR OF EQUITY AND COMMUNITY, DR. SANDRA “CHAP” CHAPMAN
STUDENT VOICE
Identity, Equity, Activism
Children need a voice. Even our youngest students need to be able to consider their beliefs, values, and opinions and then have a platform to practice articulating these ideas Voicing one's thoughts, particularly around issues of diversity and equity, provides students with an opportunity to reconsider their opinion or affirm their points of view. This practice is not only important at the individual level, student voice also shows its strength in more collective perspectives, and when taking action within the context of learning and education. After a year of conversations and explorations of personal identities, human diversity, and ways that unfairness and injustices impact individuals, third grade students reflected on their multiple identities. As a form of activism, the students were asked to reflect on their own multiple identities and to share the story of who they are with their classmates. We looked at a form of poetry called, I Am From poems. Students were then asked to use affirming words to name themselves. An excerpt from two students’ poems follow. LREI’s Four Cs, critical thinking, creativity, courage, and citizenship guide the
Student Voice with our Director of Equity and Community, Dr. Sandra (Chap) Chapman
many opportunities for students to find and amplify their voices. There were countless examples throughout the year to recall both at the individual and the collective level. Fours and Kindergarten students share their voices through the monthly self-portraits they draw, fine-tuning the details of their eye shape, hair texture, skin color, and other defining facial features. The eighth grade social justice curriculum engages students in activism, perhaps working alongside local organizations addressing the discrimination experienced by marginalized groups in the city. Their teachers do not determine the social justice working groups; students create groups after considering the issues that matter to them. This year’s student-led High School diversity day was, as the students wrote, intended to be a revolutionary one! The students wanted their community to address systems of oppression and named, in their description of the day, that “racism, sexism, classism, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, and religious-based bigotry” are issues they grapple with internally and externally. Co-facilitated by two seniors, #ItHappensHere was born. These two
A THIRD GRADE POEM EXPRESSES IDENTITY: Who I Am
I am tofu covered in soy sauce, baguette dipped in coffee, and chocolate milk that you get at fast food restaurants. I am the panda, lazy and funny, the petal, kind and quiet, and the eagle, protective and sometimes low tempered.
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powerhouse young women wrote, “We believe that the first step in fighting systems of oppression is acknowledging that “It happens here!” Acknowledging how we influence and perpetuate these systems in our everyday lives at school and at home became the foundation for doing this work together as a community. We want to acknowledge these systems and create solutions that make LREI a place of true social justice and liberation. For these reasons, we invite everyone to share their voices during sessions whether you are a leader or a participant. #ItHappensHere promises to be a transformative and powerful experience for everyone.” In addition to the curricular projects and yearly programs, we have a number of student affinity groups; Students of Color, Asian students, Latinx students, gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, genderfluid, queer and questioning students, and adopted students. These forums are another example of student voice. When given the opportunity to amplify their beliefs, values, and experiences during presentations and assemblies, the LREI collective community is transformed. It's revolutionary!
RACE: Bi-racial
My mom is from the country of Persian cats. My dad is from the country of double-decker busses. One from Asia, one from Europe. I got born in the country with the flags star-spangled. That was my poem of how I came to be.
HIGHLIGHTS
LREI Track and Field Place 6th in State Tournament Eight LREI Student-Athletes named All-State, Anna F. ’20 wins steeplechase!
LREI track and field team capped off a spectacular 2017 campaign with 17 competitors in 14 events in the NYSAIS championships. Eight runners earned All-State Honors, including Anna F. earning the third event victory in school history. At the end of the meet when the results were read over the loudspeaker, the team finally heard the outcome of their hard work and dedication: sixth place overall in NYSAIS-- an incredible achievement for such a relatively small team in a sport that rewards big teams. The greatest accomplishment of this year’s seniors (Pilar, Zoe, Logan, Carson, and Davis) will be the legacy that they leave behind. At the end of the meet, a team composed entirely of ninth graders took to the track for the 4x400. In what could be a very
lonely moment, these ninth graders knew they had all the support they could need. They had trained hard right alongside older student-athletes and knew their training had prepared them. The ninth graders had learned everything that “their seniors” could teach them. Dakota led off and put the team in contact. The team cheered. Emily made a big surge. Their teammates yelled louder. Sophie held form in her second 400 of the season. Everyone tried to catch their breath. Bay chased down two girls ahead of her. When the girls’ 4x400 placed nineteenth, the whole team erupted with excitement. Pretty cool. Everybody was deeply happy that they knew the great enthusiasms that come with devotions of a season of track and field.
• In the first race of the day, Anna F. ’20 was victorious in the Steeplechase. • In the 3200, Jared S. ’19 and Damian P. ’19, both ran strong races in their first NYSAIS Track Championships, and set Personal Record times • In the 3000, Pilar O. ’17 and Logan C. ’17 both had strong results to complete their NYSAIS Track Championship careers. Pilar O. earned all-star honors and Logan C. earned a Season Best time. • Amari F. ’19 capped off a season of huge improvements by showing off his big finish in both the 400 and 200. • Davis S. ’17 finished his senior campaign with a 10-second improvement, and the gratitude of his teammates. • In the 400 meter, Rachel M. ’18 added to LREI’s tradition in the event by placing 4th for the second year in a row, and earned LREI’s 4th All-State placing in the last five years. • In her final individual race at LREI, Zoe Z. ’17, racing the 1500, the signature event of the meet, ran a brilliant tactical race to place 5th and earned individual All-State honors. • In the Boys’ 4x800, LREI’s crew of distance runners committed their efforts to the team goal of making All-State in a relay race. • In the Girls’ 4x800, Zoe Z. ’17 and Pilar O. ’17 have been members of the 4x800 for four consecutive years and have improved LREI’s placing every year, beginning with 9th in their freshmen year. Zoe Z. will finish her career as a 5-time All-State finisher, Pilar O. as LREI’s most decorated athlete, with 8-time All-State honors.
LREI NEWS | Summer 2017 11
CONGRATULATIONS CLASS OF 2017!
OUR DIRECTOR’S REFLECTIONS ON FOUNDERS DAY
Dear Miss Irwin...
Please let me introduce myself. My name is Phil Kassen. When the high school opened it was named after you, giving us a very long name which we have since condensed to LREI. I thought to write today as it is the eve of Founders Day, a day when we celebrate the school, it founding and its future and, well, when we celebrate you! Each year on Founders Day, the whole school gathers together. Much as was done in your day, when we are together, we sing. We will sing and talk, and then the “big event” will take place. Each year, we perform a play about the founding of the school - about how you created a progressive public school which was then closed by the City but was saved when the school community came together to fund the future. This performance is the highlight of the day. To be truthful, for some, the highlight is that we give everyone ice cream to commemorate the famous meeting in the ice cream parlor where the parents hatched their plan to create a private school. Founders Day is an important day in the life of LREI. The assembly is so very much fun, but more importantly, the day is essential for us as it reminds us of from whence we came, about the founding of the school and your work in creating a powerful laboratory for progressive educational practice. We celebrate the founding of a school, that puts children and childhood at its center, without giving way on high expectations for student achievement. We celebrate a school that connects the classroom to the world, still accomplished in ways initiated by you, Miss Irwin. For example, with our youngest students, we use blocks to teach a variety of concepts and to truly build the world in the classroom. (Some believe that there are blocks in the classrooms that may have been there when you were in the school, the same for the blocks on the roof.) We often rebuild the world on a large scale - restaurants, Lenape villages, Colonial museums and Egyptian tombs. We connect the school to the world by going out into it - we take many trips, hundreds each year, some around the corner,
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LREI Class of 2017 Matriculation List
and others around the world. On behalf of school kids everywhere, thank you for inventing school trips. We also connect the classroom to the world through the arts - singing, painting, building, and acting - which are as integral to our program as they were when you started the school. We spend significant time during Founders Day thinking about another way the school is connected to the world. We ask ourselves, how can we help students to feel the power of being involved citizens, to develop the skills that allow them to participate and to be thoughtful, decent, and just people? This is not separate from the commitment to the world as an academic exercise, they are part and parcel of a progressive education, as you know. Recently, I have been reading the collected writings of your successor, Dr. Randolph “Rank” Smith. I don’t know if you ever met him. In a lengthy note to the parents in December 1943, he wrote of the type of school he would want for his children. (N.B. Rank used phrases we see as biased today. I chose to leave them in to be historically accurate.) For just as successful happy living must have its emotional base, so it must have its contemporary social content. This second question might be put something like this: Does this school steadily help children extend the range and variety of people with whom they can feel at home; those from the “wrong side” of the railroad track, as well as those from the “right”: in short, does it take its democracy seriously pledging allegiance to the constant need for safeguarding and
extending democracy through all aspects of our social, economic, and political life? Later in the same piece, he wrote, “I would like for my youngsters, therefore, the chance to go to a school where teachers would help them have richly human experiences helping build democracy in world-important terms.” If it has not come through clearly enough, we think about you and your goals quite often and are just so very grateful for your efforts. We try to use our heritage, your work, and the work of your immediate successors, guides towards our brightest future. We ask ourselves if you would recognize the school; if you would be proud of the somewhat bigger “Little Red School House” as a worthy successor to your school? I hope and feel confident that you would. I wonder what you would suggest we do next. How do we teach for the future when the world is changing so rapidly? (I am sure that you thought the same thing, though I imagine you would find the pace of change today to be dizzying.) To use one of our favorites of your comments about the school, as the school grows, making room for new coats, how to choose the best new larger coat? Thank you again for the foresight and effort that went into creating “your experiment.” It is still such a vital, hopeful place. With admiration,
LREI Class of 2017 proudly stands together in front of 40 Charlton
All 32 of 65 students (49%) who applied through a non-binding early process were admitted to at least one of those institutions.
New Schools (As of 2014): California Institute of the Arts Mount Holyoke College Spelman College The Juilliard School Columbia-Juilliard Exchange The Peabody Institute at Johns Hopkins University University of St. Andrews (Scotland) University of Southern California – School of Cinematic Arts and Thornton School of Music Wake Forest University Worcester Polytechnic Institute
USC’s Thornton School of Music accepted only 7 vocalists; one is from LREI!
21 of our 65 seniors applied Early Decision. Of the 21,18 were accepted. (85% acceptance rate).
Columbia’s Juilliard Exchange program accepted only 15 students; one is from LREI!
LREI IS PROUD TO HAVE A POSSE SCHOLAR (TRINITY COLLEGE) AND TWO FINALISTS, QUESTBRIDGE MATCHES, (COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY – SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING).
Babson College Bard College (2) Barnard College Bennington College Boston University (2) Bowdoin College Brown University Bryn Mawr College California Institute of the Arts College of Charleston Colby College Colgate University Colorado College Columbia University (2) Columbia University/Juilliard School Duke University Franklin & Marshall College (2) George Washington University Hamilton College Hofstra University Indiana University at Bloomington (2) Ithaca College Lehigh University Lewis & Clark College Loyola University New Orleans Macalester College The New School New York University (3) Occidental College Pennsylvania State University Pitzer College Princeton University (2) Rochester Institute of Technology Savannah College of Art and Design School of Visual Arts Skidmore College Smith College (2) Stony Brook University Trinity College Tulane University (2) University of Michigan University of Rochester University of Southern California (4) University of St. Andrews Ursinus College Vassar College (2) Wake Forest University (2) Wesleyan University (2) Williams College
LREI NEWS | Summer 2017 13
LREI IN THE WORLD
On the far left, Sadie S. ’17 and far right, Isabella B. ’17
Hannah Silverman, ’12
Hannah Silverman, LREI class of 2012, studied psychology at Brown University (class of 2016). She is currently working as a research assistant at Columbia University Medical Center. At Columbia, Hannah works with the Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer’s Disease and the Aging Mind. She sat down to tell us about LREI's impact on her life after graduation. My friends at college were incredulous when I shared stories about my experiences at LREI. "You had a class on masculinity?!” "Hannah, didn’t you call teachers by their first names at the Little Red Wagon School?" They were surprised to learn that I hadn’t been subjected to the stereotypical “Gossip Girl” social antagonisms or the sleepless nights so often associated with prep schools. The idea that I had taken elective courses before setting foot on a college campus was a complete novelty to them. At LREI, teachers are allowed to shape courses around subjects they are passionate about — particularly the electives that students take in junior and senior years of high school. In my Economics and Society class, we studied the economic crash of 2008 and the subsequent Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street movements, holding a debate in front of the entire school. In my class on American conceptions of masculinity, we read novels, plays, psychological theory, research, and journalism. Classes outstretched the bounds of their departments. This multidisciplinary approach to education guided me in my choice of courses at college. I studied psychology, but often had to search outside my department for classes that were the most meaningful to me: A German studies class on Freud; a history class on psychiatry; a writing class on the experience of illness. The individuality of LREI's classes is mirrored in its students. At LREI, people have a kind of aggressive ease with themselves. On the last night of the Ramapo class trip, during the second week of ninth grade, one of the new students (after performing at the talent show) thanked our grade for making him feel so welcomed, so quickly. Being weird is appreciated, or sometimes even embellished, in hopes of getting a rise out of a teacher. That same student, three
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years later, did a final project in our Anatomy and Physiology class about poop. I found that at college, acquaintances tended to express similar, restricted images of themselves — “nice” or “competent” — but were hesitant to go beyond that surface level. At LREI, there is not a prototype. People genuinely want to know you as an individual, which leads to a more creative and affectionate community. I am grateful to LREI for having taught me both how to learn and how to work within a community. In my current job, I research a form of dementia that affects people's emotions, behaviors, and social cognition (Frontotemporal Dementia). It is multidisciplinary work. On top of the organizational and administrative aspects, I have been able to write, engage in background historical and scientific research, and conduct cognitive testing and interviews with patients and their families. Beyond this, my small group of colleagues and I are constantly discussing our ideas, collaborating, and jumping in to help with each other's projects. I value support over competition, due in large part to my experiences at LREI. Recently, a friend and I discovered that we both include a brief stop at LREI in the tours we give of New York City. We don’t go inside, only indicate the brick outline within which significant moments of our lives unfolded. Our friends are amused, or occasionally annoyed (“Do we really have to walk through the rain to see this, Hannah?”). How could they truly understand? The building has expanded, classes have cycled through, teachers have retired. A view from the outside is the closest we can come to giving physical representation to what was really an experience: one that shaped us into who we are now, and who we will be as we continue move through the world.
LREI SENIOR CAPTAIN DUO LEAVES HISTORIC MARK ON BASKETBALL PROGRAM Sadie S. ’17 and Isabella B, ’17 have been friends since fourth grade. The origin of their bond is a unique one; stemming from an election they conducted as part of the curriculum. Unlike the majority of the group, Isabella, also fondly known as “Bella,” voted for Senator John McCain. “I didn’t want Bella to be alone with her vote so I voted for McCain as well,” Sadie explains with a smile. “Bella has always been supportive of me, I felt the need to reciprocate.” A presidential term later, their eighth grade intramural basketball team went undefeated, culminating in a championship, the first of several they would share, including four consecutive high school titles. Three state tournament appearances and three consecutive undefeated league seasons later, the varsity basketball captains are amongst the winningest athletes in LREI history. Success didn’t come easily, but valuable playing time aided in the development of both student-athletes. The summer prior to ninth grade, Coach Luis Hernandez determined
both girls were not only ready to be on the varsity team, but were potential starters. “That first year, there were so many missed layups and turnovers for us,” Bella recalls. “However, the learning experienced served us well. We matured quickly and adjusted to the speed of the varsity level game.” Often defending the opponent’s tallest player, the self-proclaimed “momma bear” of the team has been known to defend her teammates if an opponent becomes overly physical with any other Knights players. “I’ve always preferred to be in the middle of the action,” the forward explains, “Sadie has helped me become more cool-headed. I’ve always admired her sense of calm on the court, and I’ve incorporated that into my game.” Unlike Bella’s physicality, Sadie’s presence is more likely to be found on the perimeter. As the point guard, Sadie takes pride in controlling the tempo and anticipating when and where her teammates will cut to the basket. Given the Knights undersized four-guard offense, success is predicated on
“After eight years of playing together on the hardwood, the two have developed a chemistry that has elevated both of their games.”
unselfish play. When the two best players are also the most unselfish, winning results follow. After eight years of playing together, the two have developed a chemistry that has elevated both of their games. The benefit of this intangible connection has been instrumental. As recent graduates, the two won’t be teammates next fall, but their friendship is sure to continue. With a passion for psychology and human behavior, Sadie will attend Brown University in Providence, RI. She intends to continue her basketball career on Brown’s club team. Bella will attend Penn State University in State College, PA; where she will take classes in sports management, and will continue to refine her corner jump-shot. The two will return to LREI’s campus on Friday, December 15th for their first Alumni Basketball game!
LREI NEWS | Summer 2017 15
The last four years have been in this beautiful community, and suddenly next year, everything’s going to change. But even though we’re going to be far away from each other, we will have LREI with us for the rest of our lives...If things get rough and one of us sends an email that says ‘hi everyone, sorry to bother, but I’ve lost my notebook, phone, and my sense of direction,’ who will respond? Knowing this class, someone will. And in the years to come, we will continue to tell each other our stories.” – Eliana Cohen-Orth ’17
Look at the stage – how did we get here? They (seniors) are all grown up. While their eyes still look at the world with wonder, it’s also with a critical lens, healthy skepticism, and their unique perspective. And their hands, no longer small, will be grasping for a diploma today, held high with pride and joy.” – Micah Dov Gottlieb, High School Principal
2017 GRADUATION
“Love and Justice, Truth, Hope – these are my wishes for you seniors. Not wishes actually, but my promises to you. In fact, they must be our promises to each other, each and every day. If we are to flourish as a people, each of us must commit ourselves to each other, to these promises. We must fulfill our promises, if our society is to fulfill its promise…I want you to be active and knowledgeable. Learn about the issues, go to lectures, read, ask questions, campaign, convince, combat ignorance wherever you find it. You will find that inaction is more work than participation, ignorance harder to foster than knowledge.” – Phil Kassen, Director
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Each graduating class has contributed something to the community that affects the school dynamic…I am so impressed with how passionate and driven my classmates are. They haven’t created a dynamic, they are dynamic…I was inspired and challenged by my peers as much as I was by my teachers, which means we were taught extremely well.” – Alex Gonzalez ’17
I wish more than anything that we were sending you (Seniors) out into a country that felt more compassionate and optimistic. You are being planted on the front lines, and with that comes a certain responsibility…whenever you doubt your strength, or question your purpose, path, or potential – whenever you are tempted by apathy, cynicism, cruelty – when you face your personal storms, remember you were nourished here with love, laughter, justice and a healthy dose of the claustrophobia induced by growing up in the LREI family.” – Ann Carroll, High School Humanities Teacher
You’ll go off to explore; you will leave us behind / you’ll build companies, art works, but keep this in mind / As in second grade, build your block cities with passion / But don’t cry too hard, when down they come crashin’ /…You learned much in 12th grade; you found many a passion /Whether classic music, sign language, or fashion / But my lesson from 12th grade – and never forget it / Is to vote every time; if you don’t, you’ll regret it.” – Amy Zimmerman, Chair of Board of Trustees
LREI NEWS | Summer 2017 17
From left to right: James, Denzel, Ellie
FROM OUR DIRECTOR OF AFTERSCHOOL AND SUMMER PROGRAMS, CARI KOSINS
A Conversation With the Afterschool Department Heads Afterschool Department Heads oversee and coordinate activities for their respective age groups. This year Ellie Goudie-Averill will be the coordinator for the Reds (Fours and Kindergarten), Denzel Johnson will be the coordinator for the Oranges (First and Second Grades), and James Miner will be the coordinator for the Blues (Third Grade through Middle School). All three have worked with the Afterschool and Summer Programs in various capacities for many years. ELLIE (REDS) received her MFA in Dance Performance
The Afterschool Program forms a unique subset of the LREI community. We have a core group of students who spend a lot of time together in the program and really get to know each other.” – James
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from the University of Iowa and began working at LREI in 2007, teaching ballet in the Afterschool Program. Over the years she has worked in the Summer Program as an Associate Counselor, the Head Counselor for the Nearly Fours, and as a Movement/Dance Specialist. She has spent the past few years in Philadelphia and Kansas teaching dance and performing at various venues. Most recently, she served as the Associate Director of Dance at the Lawrence Arts Center in Kansas. She is excited to be moving back to New York City in August.
Denzel (ORANGES) received his BA in Sociology from Seton Hall University and began working at LREI nine years ago as a Junior Counselor in our Summer Program. Since then, he has filled the roles of Associate Counselor, Head Counselor, and is now the Age Level Coordinator for the 6/7s. He has worked in the Afterschool Program for the past three years and has most recently served as the Reds Department Head.
What draws you back to LREI? The community. It feels like a family. The culture of the Afterschool and Camp communities pushes me in a positive way. I know I have to bring my best self as a teacher to each moment. I’ve spent a lot of time recently teaching young adults and I miss being with young kids. Also, the nature of Progressive Education draws me back.
What do you enjoy most about working in the Afterschool Program? I really enjoy the freedom of choice that we can give students. Students are empowered to make many choices throughout the Afterschool day. Choice Fridays, my favorite day of the week in the Afterschool, is a space where students can grow and learn about themselves and others, while making a choice about how to spend their afternoon. All ages come together to hear about the choices for the afternoon such as gaga, mat blaster, an art project, cooking project, or creating our own carnival on the roof!
What do you most enjoy about working in Afterschool? It is a time of day that is more for relaxing, creating, and for longer conversations. In Afterschool we can allow things to meander - to get a little more tangential and then come back to what we’re working on. I like that feeling, that freedom. That freedom allows for more open-ended, progressive approaches to projects and activities. I think it’s what makes time spent in Afterschool so exciting for many students.
When you think about Citizenship and Community, what comes to mind in relation to Afterschool? I truly believe that one of the best things we do as an Afterschool Program is create community - not only with the students, but among the teachers of Afterschool. This mirrors the strong community we create and share with students. Students take part in planning activities, sharing ideas, and are responsible for cleaning up materials and spaces. This is important as it leads to a feeling of ownership and respect.
Reasons to Love New York; Right Now, More Than Ever. December 15, 2016
James (BLUES) received his BA in Sports Management from Springfield College in Western Massachusetts and then spent his first five years in New York City, working with the Programming Department at Battery Park City Parks Conservancy. As the Ballfield Coordinator and Programming Leader, he was responsible for managing and scheduling usage of the athletic fields, as well as leading recreational sports programs throughout Battery Park City. He began working at LREI in the fall of 2015 as a substitute teacher in the Lower School. In 2016, he joined LREI full time as a Head Counselor for our Summer Program, and as a Department Head for the Blues. What do you like most about working in the Afterschool Program? I most enjoy the social dynamic created during Afterschool time. After a busy day of school, students have the opportunity to talk with each other and teachers in a free and open format. Sometimes, students like to discuss their school day (e.g. recess, homework, field trips, friends). Often, we talk about music, books, sports, video games, hobbies, movies etc. It’s fun to learn about shared interests that we may not have known about if we didn’t have the opportunity to simply talk. When you think about Citizenship and Community, what comes to mind in relation to Afterschool? The Afterschool Program forms a unique subset of the LREI community. We have a core group of students who spend a lot of time together in the program and really get to know each other. They have opportunities to socialize with students in different grades and practice collaboration, advocating for their ideas, and working things out if a conflict comes up. This past school year students in the Blues really enjoyed competitive games. Kickball, dodgeball, and people hunt (or hide and seek) were among the favorites. I think what made these games so enjoyable for students was the balance created by the individual personalities of our community. In any competition you need a team leader just as much as you need a team player. You need someone to make you laugh just as much as you need someone to empathize with your struggles. Every member of our community seemed to embrace their role in creating this social balance that bound us together, and made our time together fun.
LREI is Featured in New York Magazine’s Reasons to Love New York, at No. 2: Because Even Our Protesters Are Precocious. It’s a Sunday afternoon, and outside the Greenwich Village Stumptown, the dissidents have assembled. They have rosy cheeks and glossy hair, and four of the five are tenth-graders at Little Red School House, a progressive private school where, in the throes of citizen despair during a first-period class on 3-D art (“It’s like sculpture therapy”), Claire Greenburger, Leilani Sardinha, and Loulou Viemeister had decided that something had to be done. It was the Thursday after Trump had been elected. “I saw all of my teachers cry,” says Claire. The three girls reached out to friends Jane Brooks and Bennett Wood (who goes to Calhoun but had met Loulou at a “social-justice camp” in Vermont), and by Friday they had created a Facebook page titled “NYC School Walkout Love Trumps Hate,” calling for kids to walk out of class and storm Trump Tower at 10:30 a.m. the following Tuesday. “We thought there would be a couple hundred kids,” says Jane. Then Occupy Wall Street linked to the page. Suddenly, thousands of people were “interested.” “We were like, Oh my God, what is happening?” says Claire. “By Monday, everyone was talking about it.” That included the school administration, which insisted the protesters get their parents’
permission. “My dad told the vice-principal, ‘She doesn’t need my permission. This is civil disobedience!’ ” says Loulou. “He was like, ‘I’ll pick you up from jail tomorrow.’ ” “My dad handed me a lawyer’s phone number,” adds Jane. Despite the fact that it was raining and frigid, the protest pen near Trump Tower was filling up by the time the organizers arrived. “Bennett and I ran into the street and were like, ‘Okay, everyone, into Fifth Avenue,’ ” Loulou explains. “The police didn’t really know what to do,” Claire says, grinning. Leilani agrees. “It was completely illegal.” The NYPD started guiding traffic away as the throng marched all the way to Washington Square Park. Says Claire, “It went better than we could have ever imagined.” Not that the protest was perfect. “In the events that we’re planning in the future, more diversity would be cool,” says Jane, aware of the irony of the walkout’s being planned mostly by a crew of privileged kids. Nor do they harbor illusions of what a protest can accomplish. “We’re not going to change the fact that Trump is president.” But they take heart in the fact that among millennials, Hillary Clinton won by a landslide. “Watch yourself, Trump,” Jane says. “Because we’re voting next.” —Alex Morris, NY Magazine
LREI NEWS | Summer 2017 19
2017-2018
LREI teacher, Adele de Biasi Pelz, takes a photo with her former students in front of 40 Charlton.
NEW TRUSTEES I am very proud of our Board of Trustees - a group of 35 men and women with vastly varied experiences and talents, but united in our common passion for LREI’s mission. Please join me in welcoming our newest trustees.— Amy Zimmerman, Chair, Board of Trustees ALEJANDRO MONTOYA ’08 Alejandro Montoya was born in Flushing, New York. He graduated from LREI in 2008. Upon graduating from LREI, Alejandro went on to major in Urban Studies at Vassar College ’12. Alejandro began his career in Hotel Operations at the Crowne Plaza Times Square. He then transitioned to Education and became a Business Operations Manager with Success Academy Charter Schools for three years. Realizing school operations and education reform were truly his passion, he accepted a role as the Director of School Operations with Brooklyn Laboratory Charter School. Alejandro is excited to serve on the LREI Board as a Trustee.
REUNION WEEKEND 2017
JANE BELTON
The 32nd Annual Alumni Reunion took place on June 2-3, celebrating classes ending in “2” and “7.” This year, the class of 1967 celebrated their 50th Reunion.
The weekend began on Friday afternoon, with a lunch for alumni from the classes of ‘49 and ‘50 and their spouses in the Alumni Archives Room. The group reunites every year to reminisce and share news about their lives. This year, the LREI Student Government stopped by and had a lovely time talking about how the school has evolved over the last six decades and how it has remained the same in many ways. In the courtyard, we held an ice cream party to thank the class of 2016 for having the highest participation rate in the Alumni Matching Gift Challenge, which took place March 13-17 and raised $22,218 for the school. Students from the class of 2016 made sundaes and reconnected with former classmates, current LREI students, and teachers. LREI parent and archivist, Yukie Ohta runs an archiving session with the Smith brothers, Peter ’57 and Kent ’59
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Later in the evening, alumni, as well as current and former faculty and staff, gathered on the Charlton terrace for a lively cocktail party. On Saturday, Nick O’Han, former LREI history teacher and school historian, led a walking tour of Greenwich Village. The tour highlighted locations frequented by Elisabeth Irwin and LREI’s connection to this vibrant neighborhood. The tour was followed by an archiving session, led by LREI parent and archivist Yukie Ohta and long-time LREI teacher and 2017 Honorary Alumna, Adele deBiasi Pelz. Alumni identified photos for the school’s archive. Carol Levine Paasche ‘55 brought in her personal photo albums to add to the archive. This year’s Distinguished Alumna, Sara Fishko '67, presented audio and video excerpts from her work on “The Jazz Loft” story. She discussed the process of developing the story from research to radio to film. Sara is a radio journalist and filmmaker and is a frequent contributor to WNYC’s and NPR’s magazine shows, with features appearing in Morning Edition, All Things Considered, Studio 360 and On The Media. Director Phil Kassen gave a tour of the expanded high school facilities. Familiar spaces brought back fond memories, and alumni learned how the new spaces serve the current curriculum. Reunion weekend culminated with a reception for all alumni in the courtyard. Alumni Council President Tamar Gargle Krakowiak ‘88 welcomed everyone in attendance. Our Distinguished and Honorary Alumnae were presented with awards, both sharing heartwarming memories of their time at LREI. Alumni of all ages enjoyed catching up with old friends and teachers and taking pictures with Elisabeth Irwin in the photo booth! Photos can be viewed at lrei.org/photos.
We can truly pride ourselves in being a community of learners that is steeped in a rich and meaningful tradition of mutual respect and unwavering support. The excitement that I feel with new generations coming through the doors motivates me to be my best self, always aware of and open to innovation and new ideas.” – Adele de Biasi Pelz
Jane began teaching high school English at LREI in 2005. She loves working with high schoolers for their energy, creativity, and openness to new ideas. In the past, she has served many roles at LREI, including Honor Board Coordinator, faculty supervisor to the literary magazine, participant in the 2016 Summer Innovation Institute, and member of the Senior Project Committee. She currently teaches 9th Grade English as well as 11th and 12th Grade English electives. Before coming to LREI, Jane taught Latin and Creative Writing at the Rye Country Day School and Creative Writing at NYU, where she received her Master’s of Fine Arts in Creative Writing. She holds a B.A. in Comparative Literature and Classics from Brown University. Her fiction has been published in The Saint Ann’s Review and her translation work has appeared in Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window, published by Cambridge University Press. When she’s not teaching, Jane enjoys writing, reading, swimming, yoga, and playing with her two young sons, Henry and Eddie.
DANIELE DOLIN Daniele is a current parent at LREI and has 2 children at LREI, Jett, in 6th grade, and Ziva, in 3rd grade. Daniele is PA co-president for the upcoming school year. Daniele graduated from Bryn Mawr College where she majored in History. She is a Urologist and trained at New York Medical College and St. Vincent’s Hospital. She enjoys running, playing tennis, and spending time with family and friends.
Read excerpts from the weekend’s speeches here and access full remarks at lrei.org/reunion
LREI NEWS | Summer 2017 21
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ACCOM PLISHMENTS On campus at LREI in 2016-2017
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1. Director Phil Kassen proudly leads a
9. Transgender and Non-Binary inclusion
brigade of LREI citizens during the 2017 NYC Pride March.
assembly 2017 - Inspiring panel of students lead a discussion of transgender identity, inclusion, and education.
2. A complete photo gallery of our MS
production, “Peter Pan” can be viewed at lrei.org/photos. 3. MS Robotics Champs! So proud of our
program. 8th grade team: Champions, 5th/6th grade team: first place - Core Values award. 4. Founders Day 2017: In our packed
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Thompson Gym, Suzanne plays the role of Elisabeth Irwin. To view the full gallery of images, please visit lrei.org/photos. 5. MS Trips: Students stand together
in Spain. Other destinations included China and France.
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6. Award-winning documentary
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11. The LREI community was pleased to
have Gloria Steinem visit Ileana Jiménez’s HS feminism class at Charlton. “If I had been able to take this class, I would have saved thirty years off my life.” 12. Historic Evening for our Varsity Track
program. Among the highlights, Girls placed 6th in NYSAIS as a team. Anna F. won the Steeplechase. Girls 4x800 - 2nd. Rachel M. 4th/400. Zoe Z. 5th/1500. Pilar O. 7th/3000 13. Chelsea Clinton visited the lower
7. Activism at work in Washington D.C.
14. HS production of “The Laramie
8. Moisés Kaufman, award winning
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Season and Playoff Champs, culminating in third consecutive NYSAIS postseason bid.
filmmaker and educator, Whitney Dow presented “Facing Whiteness” at our ideas Speaker Series. as demonstrated by LREI students.
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10. Girls Varsity Basketball - Regular
theater director, playwright and Artistic Director of Tectonic Theater Project, discusses the role theater will play in this time of tremendous technological innovation at our ideas Speakers Series.
school and discussed the value of empowering young people. Project” - Documentary theater centered around the murder of college student, Matthew Shepard.
LREI NEWS | Summer 2017 23
CLASS NOTES Since retiring from the Air Force and flying commercially for American Airlines, Stanley Adelman ’38 has been living in a retirement home with his wife Jill. Ann Sickels Mathews ’40 enjoys spending
her time reading. Margaret Colt Domini ’40 writes, “It sounds
as if Little Red is still a lively, diverse, energetic place.” As a former Connecticut public school teacher, she hopes to see that same energy in public schools. Nancy Deutsch ’40 is married with two
daughters and lives in North Carolina. Aaron Brill ’45 is still employed and now
lives in retirement center near the University at which he works. He was married in 1950, widowed in 2012, and partnered in 2014. William Katz ’45 has been been researching
Carl Josephson ’47 is a retired architect,
though still interested in the profession. He is married and the father of a daughter born in 1954 and a son born in 1982.
and The Art of Controversy. Victor joined friends from the Class of ‘49 for their annual meeting at reunion this year. Stephen Earl ’51 has been running his own
In 2016 Jane Martin ’47 was a fellow at the MacDowell Colony in Peterborough, NH where she finished her book, We Were the Lucky Ones: Remembering Progressive Education. Her book will be published this year. Anne McWilliams ’49 is married with
three daughters, six grandsons, one great grandson, and three great-granddaughters.
company since 1962. Astrid Beigel ’54 is living in Los Angeles.
Although retired, Susan Friedman ’54 is a mentor at Alexandria House in LA; a halfway house for abused, trafficked, homeless women and their children. Hugh Anthony Lifson ’55 had a solo exhibit
Dr. Michael Sperber ’49 is a psychiatric
consultant to the NeuropsychiatryBehavioral Neurology Service at McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA. He bikes 3-4 days a week along the North Shore in Beverly, MA, where he lives.
and writing about the massive Indigenous resistance at Standing Rock against the Dakota Access Pipeline. He is the author of Black Indians: A Hidden Heritage.
Joel Mandelbaum ’50 teaches music at
Lyn Campbell MacFarlane ’46 is keeping
Victor Saul Navasky ’50 and his wife Anne
busy by volunteering and writing. She has one grandchild in graduate school and one grandchild who recently got married.
have four grandchildren. Over the years, he has published many books and articles, including Naming Names, Kennedy Justice
Queens College. His new album with Leonard Lehrman was released this year by Ravello Records.
at the Hudson River Gallery in Iowa City, IA in the fall of 2016. Alyce Assael ’56 is still painting.
Since leaving high school teaching nearly 20 years ago, Peter Smith ’57 has been an adjunct at Green Mountain College, a small liberal arts/ environmental college, teaching courses in wildlife ecology, mammalogy, and thoroughly enjoying it. He lives in Vermont and has two children and two granddaughters. Barbara Martinsons ’57 spends half the year
in Tucson and the other half in the Catskills with Larry, her partner of 35 years. In Tucson,
FEATURED ALUMNUS: EDWARD SCHOENBERGER ’57 Edward Schoenberger ’57 retired from the United Way of the Bay Area (UWBA), in June 2012, following 48 years in the public, educational, nonprofit, and philanthropic sectors. In 1982, he started at UWBA in the County Operations Division; served as the President of the Northern California Council for the Community from 1994-2004 (UWBA’s community service/planning partner at the time); and headed UWBA’s 211 program until 2012. He spends his retirement with his five wonderful grandkids, who live next door to him in San Francisco. Ed played a major role planning the 60th anniversary reunion for his class this year. Ed reflected on a historic moment with his teacher Bob Leicester: “On June 18, Tuesday, Bob welcomed us to school holding up that day’s NY Times with the top of the page headline: “US SUPREME COURT, 9-0, OUTLAWS SCHOOL SEGREGATION.” “Remember the date, yesterday, June 17, 1954. It marks a day you, your children and future generations will remember as the day the United States said discrimination based on race is wrong.” [...] I never forgot that image of him with the Times in his hand urging us to take this stuff - an otherwise offhand Monday in spring - seriously. As tough as the road has been, I think he was right in calling out June 17 as a key date in American history; in reminding us that significant events are at hand, even while we are going about our everyday routines; and to keep our eyes and ears open.”
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Barbara works with the University of Arizona to build a college program in a local state prison and mentors people coming out of prison. She has one child and one grandchild. Don Coburn ’57 retired in 2016 from the
Superior Court of New Jersey and is now living in Monterey, MA. and Westborough, MA. He was just elected to Monterey’s Planning Board and Finance Committee. He and his wife Ellen have two sons, Jeff and Jim, and two grandkids, Beckett (age 7) and Myles (age 4). Don recalls the impact that former Director Randolph Smith had on the school: “Perhaps we owe the most to Dr. Smith, who gathered in our great teachers…. I liked his assembly-talks, and still recall, though somewhat dimly, the metaphorical story of the square peg inserted in a round hole. Sometimes it simply means someone who is unsuited for a particular job. But it can also mean an especially individualistic person who may not fit in a cultural niche, but nonetheless has much to benefit society because of his or her individualistic nature. Dr. Smith emphasized the latter meaning, describing how much stronger a chair or table might be with that method of construction.” Hope Niman Prosky ’57, LREI alumna and
alumni parent, is an educator and college professor who enjoys singing. Some of the highlights from her experience at LREI include the following: respect for diversity and a proactive stance for all people; the ability to fight fiercely for injustice and the underdog; the ability to read critically and appreciate good literature; self-respect and the strength of character to be different; to be proud of being an independent, non-conformist; and having friends with synonymous feelings and a passion for truth.” Judith Adelson ’57 shares that she “loved
learning because of Little Red...class discussions in which all opinions were accepted, our noncompetitive learning environment and academically the wonderful way that we learned about other countries, peoples and civilizations through food and music and personal stories.” She received a Master’s in Special Education. After teaching for a few years, Judith started her own practice, where she worked with adolescents and college-aged kids for 45 years.
In Memoriam
Alice Cowan-Krause, Alumni Parent
William Lulow ’62 celebrated the birth of
his granddaughter Haylie Emma Glickmann on March 17, 2016.
John Murray, ’47 Commander David Lamb, ’48
Ann Giles Benson ’63 celebrated her 50th
Richard Cohen, ’53
wedding anniversary and her retirement in September 2016.
Carol Brandon Sherman, ’61 Stefan Grotz, ’65 Charis Conn, ’77
Martin Richter ’57 works in the apparel
industry and serves on the Advisory Board at NYU Langone Medical Center. He has also served as a co-editor of a local Long Island newspaper. He has three adult children and eight grandchildren. Michael Vandow ’57 is retired from SUNY
Cobleskill as an Emeritus Professor. Ruth Nagashima Braunstein ’57 has two
children and lives in Arizona. She spends her time volunteering at the Phoenix Unitarian church, the Phoenix Art Museum, and recording for Sunsounds radio, a station for the blind and sight-impaired. She is also learning how to weave.
Peter Orris ’63 is the Chief of Occupational
and Environmental Medicine at the University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences System. He is also voluntary attending physician at Stroger Hospital of Cook County. His daughter is a political adviser who worked on the Obama campaign, and is now working in Chicago. His son recently graduated and is working for the Evanston-Skokie public school system. Vittorio Maestro ’64 is Editor Emeritus
of Natural History, which until 2002 was published by the American Museum of Natural History and is now independent. Emeritus or not, he is editing a special “epidemics” issue of the magazine for the upcoming centenary of the great 1918-1920 Spanish flu pandemic. Vittorio is also a member of the Alumni Council.
Steve Max ’57 has been working as an
organizer and trainer at the Midwest Academy since 1973. He is also the VP of Democratic Socialists of America and works on organizing skills and internal education. He and his wife Lynn are board members in their local Democratic Club and continue to be very involved in politics. Judith I. Ogull Kennedy ’58 and her husband
George are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary this year. Virginia Segal Shipley ’59 is getting
The daughter of Linda Spector ’68, Hannah Rachel Jacobson Blumenfeld, was married on March 19, 2016, at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, in Washington, DC. Bo Tep ’70 is retired, gardening,
traveling, studying wisdom, traditions, mind, consciousness. Steven Korff ’72 was featured in the New
York Times for his world-renowned Japanese ceramics collection.
remarried. Barbara Martinez ’74 is celebrating 40 years
In September, Robert Fishko ’61 and his wife hosted a Reunion dinner for the class of 1961 at their home.
of marriage with her husband, David. She is the proud mother of an illustrator son and journalist daughter.
John Robbins ’62 and his wife Sue are
In September, Seth A. Mitchell ’74 and his wife, Betzy Torres-Mitchell, will celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary.
celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary this year. He has been partially retired for five years. He works part-time and divides his time between California, Australia and France.
Lael Locke ’57 has one daughter and lives
Stephen Bonime ’62 retired in 2013 from
in Chatham, NY. She is currently heading a zoning review and sitting on the board of a nonprofit that owns and operates a single-screen movie theatre. She enjoys traveling and acting.
the NJ Law and Education Empowerment Program, an after-school college-prep program in Newark. He has been married since 1969 and has a son, daughter and three grandchildren.
Ronald Balter ’76 was the 2016 winner of the
initial Mary M. Russo-John Sciortino Award, in recognition of outstanding contribution to the practice of law in the field of Worker’s Compensation, from the New York State Bar Association’s Tort Insurance and Compensation Law Section. (Continued on next page)
LREI NEWS | Summer 2017 25
Susan Bernstein ’82 is married with two sons. Ayoka Wiles ’92 was married in 2014 and has
Tufts 100K New Venture Competition in social impact track to launch an education tech start-up.
Cornell University on May 28, 2017.
resourced families in NYC for almost 50 years. LREI is one of the schools in New York that offers their facilities to GO Project and makes their mission possible. Going into my senior year of college, I was honored to serve as the Internship Coordinator for one of GO’s new sites, The Avenues School. There I guided a group of 14 interns through the same ups and downs that I faced when I was in their shoes and was a part of an incredible support staff. It was awesome! GO has pushed me to pursue my Masters in Teaching thanks to a graduate program that my school, Bard College, offers.”
Eliza Versegi ’14 is looking forward to
Emilio Picayo ’16 spent his summer
two children, Adzua and Kofi. Nell Jocelyn ’08 graduated from culinary arts Matt Cipriano ’96 was married in 2005. His
schools in February 2017.
son was born in 2014. Matt is on the LREI Alumni Council.
Dinayuri Rodriguez ’13 is a Mellon
Dana Nicole Peterson ’03 completed
Mays Undergraduate Fellow (MMUF) at Wesleyan University.
graduate school in 2012, got married in 2015, and earned tenure with the NYCDOE in 2016.
Surayya Imani Diggs ’13 earned a BS from
Analisa Cipriano ’05 married LREI teacher
Peter Heinz in June 2016. Analisa is on the LREI Alumni Council. While at Tufts University, Philip Ellison ’05 won several awards including the President’s Award for Civic Leadership, Africana Center Rising Leader Award, and first place in the
graduating college in 2018.
interning at WPLJ 95.5 radio station and working at Big Gay Ice Cream.
Emmett Dienstag ’14 shares that, “From
2012-2014 I spent every July as an intern at the GO Project. This educational organization provides additional Saturday schooling and a month long summer program for under-
Andrew McLaren (Former LREI Director)
is enjoying retirement. He spends his time doing woodwork, teaching ESL, volunteering, playing racket games, and cooking.
2017-2018
Alumni Calendar SAVE THE DATE! LREI on the Road LREI is planning to visit the following locations over the next few years: Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington D.C., Boston and Florida. Contact alumni@lrei.org for more information.
9/18
Alumni Council Meeting 6:30 pm Alumni Room at 40 Charlton Street
11/6
Alumni Happy Hour Location TBD
11/27
Alumni Council Meeting 6:30 pm Alumni Room at 40 Charlton Street
12/15
Alumni Basketball Game 6:00 pm Thompson Sreet Gym
1/8
Alumni Council Meeting 6:30pm Alumni Room at 40 Charlton Street
1/15
MLK Service Day 272 Sixth Avenue
3/12
Alumni Council Meeting 6:30 pm Alumni Room at 40 Charlton Street
5/7
Alumni Council Meeting 6:30 pm Alumni Room at 40 Charlton Street
6/1-6/2
Reunion Weekend 2018 Celebrating classes ending in “8” and “3” 40 Charlton Street
StoryLab is LREI’s ongoing oral history project, modeled after the popular NPR-supported StoryCorps. It is a popup radio booth where alumni can record memories of their time at LREI. CAROL LEVINE PAASCHE ’55 AND SUSAN TODER ’55 talk about memorable field trips at LREI and the role that trips played in their learning. “[Field Trips] were a very important part of our time here. The trips bonded people in our class. You had friends here but when you went on trips you were living with them, you went on the bus with them, you were trekking into coal mines with them, or whatever. So the trips were very, very important and cemented relationships and, I think, formed some new ones and we learned so much on trips. For us, it united not only the students with each other, but also the faculty that came along.”
TOM HURWITZ ’65 sings the old LREI anthem and talks about the history of LREI schools colors. “To you, EI High our faith will not deny and err to hold the red and gold aloft to the shining sky, forever we stand, on us you can rely, to be true to your name forever, Elisabeth Irwin High”
JANE WHELAN SULLIVAN ’72 started at LREI in the Fours, going all the way through and graduating in 1972. She shares her experiences with various teachers - including Mark Bledstein who is still teaching! - and receiving a progressive education. “In 1958, that was obviously a very different time, that was when I started in the Fours and there was one rule which was that the girls had to wear pants and it was because they wanted them to play freely and they didn’t want them to have to worry about their dress. That was one very real example of the progressive nature of LREI.”
stupid and he urged you to express it and made sure nobody made fun of you. (...) I had him for a class when I was a senior, it was a class on Man and Society, or something like that but that was a career turning class for me and I ended up going into psychology and childhood development and got a Master’s in counseling and then went into teaching and taught for 30 years in early childhood development and psychology. And I do give Bob Leicester credit for making me feel that it was ok to go into something that I was really interested in.”
SUSAN TODER ’55 AND CAROL LEVINE PAASCHE ’55 discuss the impact of a progressive education, emphasizing the relationships they had with their teachers and classmates as a highlight of their learning experience. They enjoyed the “small classes, calling teachers by first names, being able to talk to teachers outside of classroom and feeling, for the most part, that a teacher was a friend. Not someone way up above but someone that you could approach and talk to.”
SUSAN TODER ’55: “At [my elementary school] it was about how fast you could finish your workbook but when I came here it was a 90 degree difference in terms of educational philosophy and the way teachers taught and the way they respected the students (...) The best class that I had (...) they taught typing in eigth grade (...) Nowadays that everything is keyboard oriented, it’s a piece of cake. I can’t even remember when I didn’t know how to type.”
SUSAN KLAW ’67 shared a memory about a blackout in the city during her time at LREI. She lived on Charlton Street near school and her father, a member of the board of trustees, invited many LREI teachers to sleep at her house because they were stranded at school.
CAROL LEVINE PAASCHE ’55 reflects on her favorite teacher, Bob Leicester. “He was the best teacher I had anywhere, for me, because he knew how to be fair to everyone in the class. He knew how to support you when you had a question that you thought was
Do you have an LREI story to share? Contact us at alumni@lrei.org or 212-477-5316, ext. 291 to schedule a recording session.
LREI is starting an affinity group for alumni educators. If you are interested in participating, please send an email to alumni@lrei.org
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LREI NEWS | Summer 2017 27
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CENTENNIAL! 3 Years Away!
2020-21: 100 Years at LREI How would you like to celebrate our centennial? Communicate with us now via email at centennial@lrei.org or call 212-477-5320.