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Lamplighter Spring 2016

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lamplighter

THE ALLEN-STEVENSON SCHOOL

Spring 2016


Leadership 2015-2016

THE ALLEN-STEVENSON SCHOOL

Board of Trustees

Mark I. Greene, President Ronald S. Rolfe ’60, President Emeritus Joshua Harris,Vice President & Treasurer Lisa Pagliaro Selz, Secretary David R. Trower h’95, Headmaster Dana B. Cowin Alexandra Wallace Creed Paquita Y. Davis-Friday Kerianne Flynn Kenneth M. Garschina

Alumni Council

Executive Committee Jamie Magid ’91, President Alfred Burger ’87,Vice-President Van Furniss ’91,Vice-President Tom Zipser ’99,Vice-President Alumni Annual Fund Van Furniss ’91, Chair Thomas Zipser ’99,Vice-Chair Alex Klaris ’06,Young Alumni Chair Theodore D. Agbi ’10 Charles W. Allen ’91 Paul E. Alshooler ’03 Basil L. Anderson ’08 Andrew Arias ’92 Zach T. Axelrod ’95 Neil E. Bader ’79 Jackson Baker ’13 Anthony P. Bonan ’93 Pierre A. Bonan ’89 Robert B. Buehler ’78 Robert D. Burge ’76* Andrew A. Burger ’59 John T. Carr III ’76 Kai Cedeño ’16 Erik A. Cliette ’81 Brooke B. Connell ’86 Blake T. Davis ’85 Charles Domash ’04

Parents Association

Alexander G. Gellert ’79 Fredda Goldberg* Stephanie Drescher Gorman George Hall Monica Keany Peter B. Kellner ’84 Alexander Klabin Michael S. Klein Daniel Lascano Paul A. Leff Jamie Magid ’91* Metin Negrin Lara Oboler

Dang T. Phan Anupama Poole

Adam J. P. Donaldson ’05 Maurice F. Edelson ’78 Kerim Eken ’00 Hugh Esterson ’15 Alexander C. Faherty ’98 Jason M. Farkas ’97 Michael Feinberg ’84 Andrew Galant ’14 Alexander G. Gellert ’79 Andrew Gellert ’16 David Goldberg ’14 Harlan E. Goldberg ’90 Evan R. Goldfischer ’81 Christopher S. Goodman ’86 Michael H. Grady ’91 Christopher J. Hallows ’87 Christopher W. Hamilton ’96 Schuyler Havens ’88 Michael W. Hedges Jr. ’77 John C. Henry Jr. ’84 Cannon Lyell Hersey ’92 John B. Hersey ’09 David W. Herzberg ’89 David R. Hirschfeld ’99 Patrick D. R. Horan ’85 Tristan Howard ’96 C. Andrew Hughes ’98 Alex A. Ingram ’03 Andrew A. Janko ’95 Jasper H. Jarecki ’12 Clinton V. P. Johnson ’79

Timothy Johnson ’04 Stephen H. Judson ’76 William H. Judson ’78 Devon Kalsi ’15 A. Reed Katz ’03 Cameron A. Koffman ’12 Kenneth LaFreniere ’90 Dean I. Landis ’78* Teddy Landis ’13 Ethan A. Leff ’11 Davis Lister ’15 Hale Macdonald ’13 Paul J. Mancuso ’03 Brian A. Margolis ’75 Colin McCabe ’90 Timothy C. McCabe ’94 Kenneth J. McCauley ’93 Elijah McNally ’14 Alex Melnitzky ’02 Liam R. Millhiser ’96 Ross R. Millhiser IV ’94 Max Morris ’13 Richard C. Perry ’70* Christopher Persley ’88 Vincent Peterson ’74 Matthew Petrillo ’02 Philip N. Pilmar ’01 Roger Raines ’80 Harlan Reinhardt ’83 Marc N. Rice ’84 Ronald S. Rolfe ’60*

Fredda Goldberg, President Kimberley Hutfilz,Vice President Kate Krieger and Shilpa Gupta, Co-Treasurers Bethan Wills, Class Representatives Coordinator Advisory Alison Bird Kelly Hensley Heather Khazaneh Kim Many Cristina Roig Morris Vivian Queen Paula Simmons

*member ex officio

Trustees Emeriti Mildred J. Berendsen Marian R. Bicks Jane Phillips Donaldson Richard N. Foster D. Ross Hamilton John J. Hannan Susan B. Hirschhorn

Administrative Team

Karen T. Hughes John R. Hupper '40 E. William Judson Robert J. Katz George A. Kellner David H. Koch Robert Liberman '58 Thomas H. Lister Peter de F. Millard Richard C. Perry '70 Joe L. Roby Andrew P. Steffan Leonard A. Wilf

Eric Rosas ’06 Berton Rose ’97 John Rose ’90 Louis Rose ’86* Henry J. Rosenwach ’04 Eric E. Rothstein ’81* Dean E. Sanborn ’61 Alessandro M. Santoro ’07 Matthew Schnitzer ’13 Yoshiki Shimada ’75 Alexander B. Shipper ’02 Denton A. Smith ’94 Wesley Stanton ’92 Sebastian Stern ’14 Jake Taub ’12 Khalid A. Taylor ’10 Michael Tiedemann ’86 Andrew W.Vogelstein ’81 Noel E.Volpe ’85 Alexander von Furstenberg ’85 Mark Wasserberger ’82 Simon D. Wasserberger ’85* Matthew Wayland ’13 Michael Weiss ’02 Dewey S. Wigod ’77 Hans L. Wydler ’81 Clifton G.York ’78 Jared Zelman ’16 Andrew E. Zimmerman ’00* *President Emeritus

David R. Trower h’95, Headmaster Susan Etess, Lower School Head Kimberly Kyte, Middle School Head Neal Kamsler, Upper School Head Winnie Barnes, Director of Strategic & Learning Initiatives Anne Russo Meyer, Director of Learning Resources Richard Alifano, Director, P.E. and Athletics Hydee Bressler, Director of Finance & Operations Casper Caldarola, Director of Communications, Co-Director Community Life + Diversity Michelle Demko, Music Department Head Ronnie R. Jankoff, Director of Admissions David Smith, Director of Development Andy Zevon CCA.CCT.CNE, Director of Technology


lamplighter THE ALLEN-STEVENSON SCHOOL

Director of Communications Casper Caldarola

Associate Director of Communications Sarah Woods Contributing Writers Rich Alifano Rev. Timothy Cogan ‘49 Fredda Goldberg Freddy Gonzalez ‘01 Major Christopher Hallows ‘87 Anthony Kapp William “Tawny” Kilborne ‘51 Bill Lanigan ‘62 Ethan Leff ‘11 John Loengard ‘49 David Trower H’95 Jared Zelman ‘16

Spring 2016

Headmaster’s Message

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Around A-S

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Randy Schrade ‘76, Jaison Spain ‘97, Harry Whitney ‘09 Patience

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Spring Benefit

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Fathers Dinner

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Team Sports

PA: Letter from Fredda Goldberg

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Cover Story: A-S Features

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Current Alumni Dads

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A-S Alumni

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Photographers Nancy Mitchell Al Pereira Lisa Meloni Ragusa

A-S News

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Alumni Events and News

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Designer Mase Kerdel-DeMarco

Did You Know?

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Front cover photo is from a 2016 performance of Gilbert & Sullivan’s Patience taken by Nancy Mitchell. Back cover photo is from a 1971 performance of Gilbert & Sullivan’s Patience.

The Allen-Stevenson School admits students of any race, color, religion, nationality, or ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the School. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, or sexual orientation in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, employment policies, financial aid program, or any other programs administered by the School.

The Lamplighter is published biannually by The Allen-Stevenson School and is sent to alumni, parents, and other friends of the School.

Printed on paper containing 20% post-consumer recycled content.


message

H E A D M A S T E R ’ S

M E S S A G E

Ev’ryone says that life is a journey

Ev’ryone says there’s so much to know Maybe it’s true that life is uncertain Maybe it’s true we learn as we go

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***

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Ev’ryone says that life is a myst’ry

Ev’ryone says we get what we give

Maybe it’s true we’re in this together Maybe it’s true we grow as we live.*

During his years in Lower School, every Allen-Stevenson boy has learned to sing this wonderful song, An Adventure! For me its lyrics absolutely capture the spirit of this Lamplighter, which collects the reflections and stories of many of our alumni. Thanks to all those graduates who have been willing to share their adventures and achievements and to articulate how Allen-Stevenson inspired them. What these accounts have in common is an appreciation for the opportunities Allen-Stevenson afforded each student. For many the imprint came through teachers in that unique bond that often builds over time. For others the influence came from the subject matter or the routines of school or the camaraderie of classes, casts and teams. For each person, however, AllenStevenson offered a great variety of significant experiences and exceptional opportunities that somehow led to his own adult identity, commitment and vocation.

* An excerpt from An Adventure! By Teresa Jennings, Music K-8, Volume 14, Number 3, © 2004 Plank Road Publishing, Inc.


A year ago, in a previous issue of the Lamplighter, I was invited to reflect on my quarter-century as Headmaster. Here is how I concluded: “Being the leader of any human entity is complicated, often difficult work. But I have usually seen this job as a privilege, in that Allen-Stevenson is a venerable institution—already 132 years young—that looks forward, helping to carry boys, adults and even whole families safely into the future.” This crucial responsibility gives us great satisfaction. Thanks for your continuing help and interest. Fortiter et Recte!

David Trower h’95 Headmaster

Spring 2015

We call this foundation the three As: Academics, Athletics and the Arts. They are like a three-legged stool that provides many ways to be a boy, many ways to be successful, many ways to become a man. Since 1883, Allen-Stevenson has provided such possibilities for generations of boys, and we expect to continue to do so for generations to come. Our current building project—hence the photo of me with a sledge hammer!—will support this educational program magnificently. You can find out more about the project on the School’s website.

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around A-S In & out of the classroom

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Interviews with Sarah Woods

>

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Randy’s class picture (second row, second from left)

Randy Schrade ’76, Director of Orchestras

I remember talking to my parents about which elementary school I would go to and how it was without question the happy, smiling, laughing, slightly rough and tumble Allen-Stevenson that appealed to all of us. I’m pleased to say that AllenStevenson is still that school today, and the main reason why teaching here brings such joy. At the same time there are new opportunities that make education very exciting for a wider range of abilities. My first foray into music at Allen-Stevenson was rooted in family. My father was my first grade music teacher when he stepped in to run the music department while Music Department Head, Stanley Gauger, took a year’s sabbatical. My mother taught me second and third grade music after taking the job as the Lower School Music Teacher in 1969. While at A-S she wrote the School

Song and other festive, seasonal songs written just for the occasion, always highlights of any Lower School program. I think that it was the combination of studying piano with my father and the appeal of studying the cello, with an ear toward playing in the orchestra under Stanley Gauger that sealed the deal. This combination would fuel my studies at Manhattan School of Music, Collegiate and later Yale University and School of Music.

Around Fourth or Fifth Grade, I began to hear music from the inside out as an orchestral player. I heard how the world was connected and could connect better; gradually realizing this could be my calling. What interested me in particular was that music, and especially the orchestra, served as a kind of microcosm of the School. You had teachers playing in

Conducting this year’s US orchestra

the group sometimes, including Mr. Kersey having a go at it on cello! Allen-Stevenson was atypical in that you got to know your friends in multiple settings, since almost everyone was involved in a wide range of activities. Fellow orchestra players were also on the soccer team with me or on the stage when we performed Gilbert & Sullivan, or in a play with Mr. Kersey or Mr. Landis. It wasn’t about being a prodigy in one area, it was about being connected in many ways, and you could choose to delve deeply into what you loved most. After high school, I went on to Yale where I continued to pursue music, in particular music theory. I realized that music theory was my window into the world of music and felt drawn afresh to music "in the large." In 1990 Desmond Cole asked me to be Music Head, and currently I am the


Randy conducting

If I look back at my time at Allen-Stevenson, I’d say that Stanley Gauger raised a "musical garden" which is amazing to tend to this day. Two other teachers who made life very interesting were Bill Landis and John Pariseau. Bill taught English, football,

theater and anything else that was necessary. He was, as Richard Perry ’70 said when he dedicated the Assembly Hall, the "To Sir With Love" teacher you are lucky to have once in a lifetime, sometimes a bit rough around the edges but more often than not loveable and a jack-of-alltrades. Sure, he may have fallen asleep in a class or two, but we respected him so much that we would keep on reading as if nothing had happened. He was equally comfortable on stage acting a part in Gilbert & Sullivan or coaching a football game in the rain. They didn't cancel easily in those days either. There were also a number of other teachers involved in the School’s extracurricular activities beyond teaching core classes. Those were different days, the Wild West some would say. A-S refused to close during that famous blizzard that shut down the rest of New York City in the 80s. I love that I am able to follow on in like, albeit a more age appropriate and modern manner, currently working with select Middle School boys in a new elective with some of my colleagues. We are helping the boys build instruments in the woodshop…real instruments from diverse materials. Yes, it is still that school…open to new ideas, where boys can be boys, with time to daydream, to dream their own dream and where teachers can still be jacks-of-all-trades, if they so desire.

Jaison on the baseball team

There are many ways to be a boy, and I think A-S has embraced this truth more than any private school in New York that I am familiar with and frankly more than in many regions of the country. Our secret lies in the collective will to make all things possible when we believe in them. It is a kind of moral imperative.

Jaison Spain ’97, Director of the Landis Assembly Hall & Coach When I was a student at AllenStevenson I wanted to try everything. I did it all while I was here—Chorus, G&S, Orchestra, sports teams. I pushed myself to be better because I was at AllenStevenson. I know that would not have been the case somewhere else. There were also opportunities to try things that just wouldn’t have been available to me at another school. I feel lucky to have played hockey, performed on stage numerous times, sung in a chorus and played several instruments! As a professional musician and part-time actor, I am grateful to Allen-Stevenson.

Spring 2016

Director of the Orchestras and Lesson Program at AllenStevenson. After Stanley Gauger left in 1986, the music program experienced severe attrition. There was no unity of vision or purpose in transition and a handful of students were taking lessons. I was given the opportunity to start basically from scratch and think about what I’d like for the program, what will build it fortiter et recte! With only eight students showing up to the first meeting, we had to start building all kinds of routines, mixing ages that first year from Second Grade through Ninth Grade in the old music room. It was tiny but it was home base when we rehearsed and I oversaw the program grow into the mighty oak that it is today. We were bursting out of the music room by the time the School built a new space for the department, which now includes the Landis Assembly Hall and Roby Music Suite. In the meantime I split the orchestras into a Middle School and an Upper School, with introductory ensembles in Grades 3 and 4 (the Junior Orchestra). Sometimes I find the idea of merging the two again appealing, but space and other commitments don’t really allow for this and there are pros and cons either way.

When the chance arose for me to work at the School, I

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around A-S In & out of the classroom (cont.) >

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Jaison with the maidens

was thrilled! It is definitely a surreal experience. My supervisor, Michelle Demko, is my previous fourth grade music teacher. I work with David Kersey on the plays; he was my history and Shakespearean drama teacher. I assist Randy Schrade ’76, who taught me in Orchestra when I was a boy. I’ve also had to adjust to calling these individuals by their first names now that we are colleagues. Being a mentor to the boys has meant a lot to me. I love seeing the “spark” when a boy gets it suddenly. Observing their reactions is priceless. Some boys may not fully appreciate their school experience at the time, but when I say they will come back one day and tell me how much they miss the

place…funny enough…they do. And they say, “Thank you for pushing me!”

I am fortunate that many of the boys like coming to me for help because they know that I was a student here, not that long ago. It is useful to be able to give examples from my time at Allen-Stevenson. I can say to the boys that I had to wear green tights and wings. And they say, “Oh,

really?” For some of the boys this is helpful. I can explain that stepping out of one’s comfort zone will help them to grow. I can let them know that it has carried me far in life. When I’ve tried out for professional acting parts, I have been expected on occasion to do something I am not naturally comfortable with, but I always remember that I was a maiden in a G&S production and thus, I know

Jaison in The Mikado


Harry on the football field

Harry in G&S

I’ve come to appreciate that the boys are watching everything we as teachers do. During G&S rehearsals, they might say something like, “I can’t believe I’m singing with my football coach!” I say to them, “This is AllenStevenson. Just like you as students, teachers are encouraged to get involved in what they enjoy, and the schedule allows for it.”

Harry Whitney ’09, Coach Working as a coach at AllenStevenson, my alma mater, has given me an unbelievable appreciation for teachers. I feel very lucky to have the chance to work alongside the excellent team of coaches here, assisting with skating, hockey, lacrosse and football. I try to emphasize to the kids I coach that they are students first, but Allen-Stevenson wants them to pursue other interests, whether that be art, music, theater or sports, allowing time in the schedule for all of these if they wish. Learning from experience, I can help the boys understand that embracing athletics and the other extracurricular activities will help them to succeed academically.

I particularly enjoy assisting with the Lower School Skating Program, which, beginning in First Grade, gives the boys the chance to learn to skate, and over the next couple of years to develop the skills necessary for playing hockey. We are the only school in New York City that offers this type of skating program. And of course, because we teach the boys to skate at such a young age, the School is able to build a robust hockey program in the Middle and Upper Schools…a program that gave me the chance to travel to schools and facilities outside the city, which was very exciting! Our Football Program also offers something unique with its ongoing rivalry between Allen-Stevenson and Buckley. This long and storied rivalry led to the creation of the East Side Classic game and the awarding of a beautiful silver cup that symbolizes the spirit of healthy competition and the rich rivalry between the two great schools. In fact, I helped raise the victory cup

Harry coaching

for the Unicorns my last two years. It’s an amazing feeling! I’m hoping to share in another cup win as a coach. Working with one of my childhood mentors, Assistant Director of Athletics and Lacrosse and Football Coach, Billy Dransfield, who inspires in his players a strong work ethic, has been hugely educational. His emphasis is not on winning but about enjoying the sport and putting the most one can into each and every practice and game. In fact, Allen-Stevenson has many great teachers who know how to get the best they can out of their students, and I’m very fortunate to be back at Allen-Stevenson working with them and helping to grow the next generation of scholars and gentlemen.

Spring 2016

I can take on most anything that is thrown my way. This year I was able to teach the boy playing the part of The Duke in Patience how to sing falsetto. It was very special. I encouraged him and told him that while it is a challenging part, if he continues to work hard it is definitely possible. I can say, “I did it myself, so I know.”

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Patience >

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This year’s Gilbert & Sullivan production of Patience was a musical and visual delight! The opera is a satire of the “aesthetic” craze that was in vogue in England in the 1870s and ’80s. As David Kersey explained to the A-S boys at the matinee, “Here at AllenStevenson we are trying to graduate both soldiers and poets.”

The boys embraced their roles, whether they were dragoons, maidens or one of the leads, incorporating humor artfully. Performing with a live orchestra consisting of many of the School’s talented instrumental teachers provided a wonderful opportunity for these thespians.

The leads were: Colonel Calvery— Leo Rose ’17

Major Murgatroyd— Daniel Simmons ’18 Duke of Dunstable— Jordan Woods ’17

Reginald Bunthorne— Grey Holmén ’18

Archibald Grosvenor— Santiago Vargas ’18

Mr. Bunthorne’s Solicitor— Jake Silpe ’18 Lady Angela— Jackson Deans ’19

Lady Saphir— Luke Jovanovic ’19

Lady Ella— James Wlodarczak ’19 Lady Jane— Ford Holmén ’19

Patience— Gregory Stone ’19

A-S alumni enjoyed the dress rehearsal during Reunion Weekend, and viewers from far and wide were able to enjoy the Wednesday night show via Livestream. Thank you to Musical Director Michelle Demko, Director and Technical Director Stacy A. Donovan, Choreographer Kristina King, Costume Designer Elizabeth Van Buren, Production Manager Jaison Spain ’97, Production Assistant David Kersey h’98 and Costume Coordinators Annie Clark and Amy Henry. Congratulations to the cast, crew and orchestra for providing Allen-Stevenson with such enchanting entertainment!


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Gregory in the role of Patience

Spring 2016

Tech team

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around A-S Lamplighter

Spring Benefit >

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Allen-Stevenson traveled Back to the Future on April 13 at the PA Spring Benefit. Held at the beautiful Edison Ballroom, the family event featured activities from many decades, including 1960s crafts, 1980s arcade games, a larger than life Lite-Brite, Mad Scientist experiments, and an exhilarating Virtual Reality booth. A highlight of the evening was the 1990s Hip Hop Breakdancing performance, which had the crowd breaking it down on the dance floor.

Special thanks to PA President Fredda Goldberg and all of the PA Benefit volunteers, especially Event Chairs Kerianne Flynn, Amy Lambroza and Michelle Marra, Fundraising Chairs Valerie Bruce, Tracey Dubner, Erika Greff and Paula Viscogliosi, Volunteer Chair Monica Keany, and Teachers Treasures Raffle Chairs McCartney Wilkins and Karin Dando-Haenisch. With more than 700 people in attendance, the event raised over $330,000 with the proceeds supporting financial aid and scholarships at AllenStevenson.


Spring 2016 11


around A-S Lamplighter

Team Sports >

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Fall Season

Neither rain nor field closures could stop the AllenStevenson boys from having another successful fall season. It was an exceptionally wet season and our coaches needed to adjust practices almost daily. The boys worked hard whether in the gym, town-centers, or on Randall’s Island. All their hard work led to a successful season for each team. Sixth Grade Soccer started the season with twenty-eight boys. Led by Coach Peduto, they developed a strong sense of teamwork and a better understanding of positioning and strategy. As a result, the team finished with an undefeated season and high expectations for next year.

6th Grade Soccer Blue

6th Grade Soccer Gold


6th Grade Football

Varsity Soccer

Similarly, the Varsity Soccer team finished a fine season with wins over Browning, Trinity, Fieldston, and Dalton. With eight starters returning to join a talented group of rising sixth graders, the team looks poised to have a fabulous 2016 season. The J.V. Soccer team finished the season with two big wins over Collegiate and Dalton. The boys used the techniques and game strategies they learned from Coach Parra to build a cohesive group. This was a group of boys who enjoyed playing together and felt great pride in their accomplishments this season. While our Football teams struggled for wins this season, they all learned to compete and work hard in games and practice. The Sixth Grade Football team had a very nice victory over Green Vale and hopes to build upon that for next season.

Varsity Football

Spring 2016

JV Soccer

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Team Sports (cont.) >

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Winter Season

This winter we saw our largest roster size for the Basketball teams in the past ten years. We had 42 boys in the Upper School and 19 in the Middle School spread out amongst five teams. It was exciting to have so many boys interested in basketball and at the same time extremely challenging for coaches and players. Regardless, our coaches worked hard throughout the season to teach the game in smaller blocks of time and to players with a broad range of skills and experience. By the end of the season, each player walked away knowing more about the game and enjoying their experience. Our Wrestling team also saw the largest roster size in years. The boys approached the season with great enthusiasm and preparation. They wrapped up the season at the King of the Ring tournament with 3 first place finishes, 1 second place, and 2 thirds. The Hockey team put together another good season. The team finished with a record of 5 wins and 5 losses, with an exciting overtime win against The Harvey School. The boys are poised to build upon their success and look forward to next season.

MS Wrestling

Varsity Wrestling

JV Basketball

JV Basketball


JV Baseball

Varsity Basketball

Varsity Baseball

MS Hockey

Varsity Lacrosse

Varsity Hockey

Varsity Track

Spring 2016

JV Basketball

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Fathers Dinner >

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David Trower with guest speaker Stephen Murray

Over 125 fathers, Upper School boys, trustees, and faculty and staff attended the annual Fathers Dinner, a tradition since 1951. Stephen Murray, Head Master of the Lawrenceville School, was the guest speaker sharing several stories, both funny and personal, that summed up some of his beliefs about education.

Mr. Murray talked about how schools like Allen-Stevenson and Lawrenceville allow creative energy and confidence to thrive. Through the telling of a touching story, he made the point that simple, caring intervention can make all the difference in the life of an adolescent. He went on to talk about the recent campus protests and strife at places such as Princeton, Yale and the University of Missouri. While Lawrenceville’s campus has not had a lot of unrest or

controversy, he said that, "as a faculty we have been working hard to stay current with the issues, reading articles on hidden bias and subtle racial profiling that goes on all the time." As one of his colleagues said, "Never underestimate the role you play simply by being involved and available." His last story was a personal one that took place during a hike with his son that resulted in a powerful teaching moment. Mr. Murray said, "With a young person on the edge of a significant challenge, there is a time to hold back, and there is a time to push forward. Judging when and how to intervene is what good teaching and

mentoring is all about. Those judgments are only effective when the adult has taken the time to build trust, when he or she has communicated a deep sense of caring and empathy for the learner." Mr. Murray closed by saying, "I love this work we do and I think what ties these stories together is that in one way or another, they are all about love and trust and the close rapport we build with young people in a school environment. •We build enduring, close relationships with young people; •We nurture and encourage their creativity; •We provide opportunity and hope; •And we find those critically important moments to push them beyond what they think they can do. And that to me is what it is all about."


At Allen-Stevenson, we have a lot of drives: Food; Toys; Halloween Candy; Books; Coats, Hats and Mittens; and many more. They are all important to our community and we fully support them. They give parents a great opportunity to explain to their children where the items go, what it means to give back and what their family beliefs might be about charity. Unfortunately, sometimes for the child it can end at the explanation and not truly resonate. That is why there’s nothing better than getting our hands dirty—literally and not so literally! Last year the Parents Association brought in a company to help our boys actually build bicycles with their own hands for children who have never owned a bicycle before. The bikes were donated to children from the Boys and Girls Club of America. The children came to A-S thinking they were there to do charity work and to their surprise they received brand new bikes built by our boys. Our boys were just as excited to give them the bikes as the kids were to receive them.

I believe it’s because they got their hands dirty building them. In January, when we brought in Stop Hunger Now, which is an organization that packages meals to serve children in schools in over 30 countries, we raised over $9000. This was three times our goal and that gave us the opportunity to package almost 30,000 meals. That is not a typo. Yes, 30,000 meals! With the help of many little kids and parents who arrived early, we unloaded over 10,000 lbs of equipment from the trucks, set up stations and constructed boxes for shipping. As many more parents and children arrived, the fun began. We scooped, poured, weighed, and packed. Scooped, poured, weighed, and packed. Rice everywhere, tired feet, gongs ringing every 2500 meals completed, cheers by all, everyone still forging ahead excited to reach our goal. And we did! Once we finished and our coach was so proud, he explained that there are over 22,000 people a day dying from starvation around the world, many of them children, and how these little packages of food will help so many children eat every day. Yes, the children understood that, but actually packaging them, being there, being tired and getting their hands dirty...That’s something they will never forget.

Spring 2016

Getting Our Hands Dirty By Fredda Goldberg, PA President

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A-S Features

anecdotes, interviews

quotes impacted shaped On the following pages you will find and

from Allen-Stevenson alumni describing how the School and

their lives. Some of the reflections describe

journeys by alumni that unfolded after leaving A-S and brought them to where they are today.

Whatever the story, you will see that Allen-Stevenson helped in some way to build their characters, assist in their careers or leave lasting memories and friendships.

E VA N G O L D F I S C H E R ’ 8 1

Lamplighter

Director of Research, Premier Medical Group Dr. Goldfischer is a board certified urologist and fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He has published extensively and lectured both nationally and internationally on kidney stone disease, minimally invasive surgery, and male and female sexual dysfunction.

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Q&A with Sarah Woods, Associate Director of Communications How did Allen-Stevenson influence your life?

I have been to many schools – Philips Exeter, Tufts, Cornell, the University of Chicago – but Allen-Stevenson provided the most wonderful education of all. It is an incredibly warm and nurturing environment. It has the right value system, with a balance of academics, arts, sports, etc. It provides a chance for everyone to shine! During my career there have been many moments where I have been influenced by the strong core values and ethics that became part of me during my nine years at Allen-Stevenson. I’m a urologist, and unfortunately, many doctors are as much concerned about the business of medicine due to the current governmental reforms that are being imposed upon physicians rather than the practice of medicine itself. My group has thus far resisted joining a large hospital system, and we are doing our best to stay independent so that we can practice ethical medicine and put patients first. My wife and I started a charity six years ago call Premier Cares Foundation to raise money for patients in the Hudson Valley that are having difficulty paying their medical bill. We are proud that we have raised over $750,000. I’m not afraid to stand up to go against the grain and not follow trends, and I credit Allen-Stevenson for instilling that in me. In English class at Allen-Stevenson, Alan Schroeter would read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, and one quote in particular has stuck with me to this day: “Right is right, and wrong is wrong, and a body ain’t got no business doing wrong when he ain’t ignorant and knows better.” It is my guiding principal for life and in medicine.

Did your Allen-Stevenson classmates or a particular classmate make a difference in your life?

To this day, I am in touch on a very regular basis with half a dozen of my classmates. They are some of the greatest friends in my life. We immediately pick up our conversations where we left off last time. We bonded over many happy times as we all grew up together in New York City in the 1970s. We also grieved together when one of our classmates, Anthony Couloucoundis, died in our Sixth Grade, which in some ways began our loss of innocence.

Evan’s Letter from the Editor


Did the era in which you attended Allen-Stevenson and the location of the school shape your life?

The 70s was a crazy time in New York City. The city was bankrupt, crime-ridden, gang-filled and filthy. Allen-Stevenson was a safe place to me for so many reasons. There were areas on my walk to school that made me nervous. I was also dealing with the divorce of my parents and Allen-Stevenson provided a place in which I could escape. I would come in early to help set up the Orchestra chairs and I would hang out after Field at Micon’s pizza with my friends. On the weekends, David Kersey was holding Saturday Club. I remember the Ninth Grade Lounge. At 6:50AM, we would wait for the doors to open and head straight there. For a number of us, it was a place we could go to get out of our houses and get work done, or just simply listen to Led Zeppelin and The Doors.

What were some of the classes and activities you remember from your time at Allen-Stevenson?

I was very involved while I was Allen-Stevenson. I was on the student government, editor of the newspaper and yearbook, and played on multiple sports teams. I learned public speaking at Allen-Stevenson and went on to be President of the Debate Society at Exeter. The annual science projects laid the groundwork for my interest in science, and ultimately, my career in medicine.

My love for the arts began at Allen-Stevenson. I played the violin and gained an appreciation for music. There used to be tickets donated by a family for box seats at the Met. The School held a lottery for the Saturday tickets. I saw three or four operas a year this way. I maintain an opera subscription to this day because of this experience. I still love G&S and have told my family today that they have to love it too!

A 1959 graduate of the Seminary, Rev. Cogan ministered for over 40 years as chaplain, teacher, pastor and colleague at several parishes in New York and Massachusetts, and then at Grace Church School, Trinity School, and Princeton University before becoming School Minister and Head of the Theology Department at Brooks School in North Andover, MA, where he retired in 2002. This is a partial recollection of a wonderful boyhood in New York in the late Forties, roller-skating to school on Park Avenue. "What I remember most of all was daily graded homework assignments and class work: homework— 10 sentences from Latin to English, 10 sentences from English to Latin out of Ritchie's First Steps in Latin; and then 3 Latin-English and 3 English-Latin, graded by Huber Clark immediately so that when we came up from lunch in the gym Mr. Clark could call us to his classroom to practice the errors we had made by using his famous notebooks until we got it right. During lunch we had to keep one hand below the table unless we were cutting meat, while Mr. Clark paced up and down the table, tapping the uncalled for hand as it appeared where it shouldn't - then he would eat his solitary lunch all alone at the far end of the gym in his grey suit with the chalk marks on the side pockets. It was said he could have been a professional baseball player but chose to teach Latin - he did 100 chin-ups on his classroom door after lunch every day. After 3 weeks he said to me, "Cogan, do you want to learn Latin mentally or physically?" "Mentally, sir!" was the reply. Sequel is that he told us to take the Beta section of the Secondary School Boards (8th graders from other schools took the Alpha), on which I must have done well because I was put in Latin 2A at Exeter the next year with the smartest 10th graders, then took Latin 4 the next year, being the first Lower Middler in the history of the academy ever to take Latin 4 (the only academic "success" I ever had)...another story A-S boys tell of being better prepared than everyone else when they went to high school. Mr. Clark was a hero I held in awe, the best teacher I ever had!”

Spring 2016

Evan’s Memories from the yearbook After nine years at Allen-Stevenson, there’s no doubt that when you leave, you leave behind a piece of yourself. When you walk back through the doors on 78th Street, you pick up the piece that you left. The memories come washing back.

R E V. T I M O T H Y C O G A N ’ 4 9

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A-S Features (cont.)

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F R E D DY G O N Z A L E Z ’ 0 1

Musician Freddy Gonzalez currently freelances with numerous bands around New York City, while leading his own band as Freddy Fuego. He has shared the stage with artists such as Brian McKnight, MC Hammer, Buju Banton, Talib Kweli, Dead Prez, De La Soul, Bootsy Collins, Fred Wesley, and Delfeayo Marsalis to name a few. Allen-Stevenson is where I first learned how to play the trombone, as well as perform in the Orchestra, Philharmonia, and the Chorus. Teachers like Mr. Sullivan, Ms. Demko, Mr. Schrade and Mrs. Schrade-James were influential in helping me establish my musical foundation, and always encouraged me to strive for more. Other than the lessons and performances provided by the School, they personally opened their doors and offered their free time for extra lessons (trombone, flute, piano, voice) outside of school as well. Learning about all types of music was very inspiring for me at a young age because their passion was so contagious, and their joy for teaching became my joy for music. What was most beneficial about Allen-Stevenson was that I had a multi-faceted education. Other than music, I learned how to become a better student from teachers like Mr. Kersey, Mr. Kamsler, Mr. Persley, and Señora Wilkis. The lessons we learned in the classroom always called for critical thinking and analysis - not only understanding the material but also being able to apply it to everyday life. Coaches like Mr. Wiseman, Mr. Chimelis, and Mr. Zufall challenged me every day on the field, and taught me how to achieve victory, as well as how to bounce back from a tough loss. Because of the small class sizes, Allen-Stevenson became a fraternity. I grew up right before everybody had cell phones, so we had many less distractions, and spent more time talking with each other than texting. I will never forget when we were allowed to leave the building for lunch in Ninth Grade, and the nine of us would sit around Mr. Cohen's round table sharing our stories from the day. We built strong bonds as we helped each other study for tests, prepare for concerts, and practice for a big game vs. Buckley. I wouldn't be where I am today without my start at Allen-Stevenson, and although it's been fifteen years since I graduated, it always feels like home when I visit. It's great to see most of my old teachers still there, and passing on important lessons to the next generation of Unicorns.

Freddy Gonzalez on the trombone

I grew up right before everybody had cell phones, so we had many less distractions,

and spent more time talking

with each other than texting.

—Freddy Gonzalez ’01


M A J O R C H R I S TO P H E R H A L L OW S ’ 8 7

that I will never forget

included going down to Wall Street and watching the

NY Mets ticker tape parade in 1986.

—Major Christopher Hallows ’87

Major Hallows (right) on tour

The support and encouragement that I received from this School gave me not only a great educational foundation, but more importantly it gave me the life skills that made me successful today, both personally and professionally. During the graduation speech I gave at Closing Exercises in June 2014, I shared with the boys some of what I learned and experienced while at Allen-Stevenson. Most importantly, I told them, “I think what I cherish most about Allen-Stevenson was not just what we learned at the School, but how we learned! We learned to think critically. We learned that it is essential to examine issues from all sides. We learned the importance of diversity, to listen and respect other people’s perspectives and opinions and not to rush to the simplest of conclusions. Thinking critically is such an important skill in life. In Iraq and Afghanistan, military leaders are regularly faced with ‘wicked problems.’ A gentleman by the name of Horst Rittel, who was a systems analyst, came up with the concept of a wicked problem. In a nutshell, it is a problem where there is no definitive solution. You are faced with either bad or less than good options and there is no opportunity to learn by trial and error. Therefore, it is absolutely imperative that as a military leader that you can think critically, to examine these types of problems from all angles, listen to those people who have different opinions, analyze the facts and data, and most importantly think about the 2nd and 3rd order effects of those different possible outcomes. All of you have learned to think critically while you have been at Allen-Stevenson.” Growing up in the 1980s during the Ronald Reagan years, I certainly developed strong patriotic feelings for our nation. The teachers at Allen-Stevenson and my parents instilled in me the values of being honest, trustworthy, and to stick up for those individuals who needed to be protected. So even though I did not know I wanted to be a Soldier when I was young, now reflecting on my time growing up in NYC and attending A-S, it comes as no surprise that I joined the Army and made it a career. Like many students who have attended A-S, I also look back and fondly recall all the extracurricular activities that A-S provided. Those activities helped to make me a well-rounded individual later on in life. A couple of specific activities that I will never forget included going down to Wall Street and watching the NY Mets ticker tape parade in 1986. I am also very glad to have participated in the Allen-Stevenson Centennial celebrations. That was a very fun year to be at the school. I have so many wonderful memories of all my time at Allen-Stevenson…it was and is such a special place! I always love going back and visiting A-S because even though the school has been remodeled and certain teachers have come and gone the spirit of the School and mission of making boys into scholars and gentlemen has remained the same! I still keep in touch with many of my old classmates and I look forward to seeing them for our 30th Reunion next year.

Spring 2016

A couple of specific activities

Army Officer Major Hallows is the Bravo Company Commander of the 1st Ranger Battalion in the U.S. Army. He has received numerous awards and decorations throughout his career, including seven Bronze Star Medals, one of which was for Valor, as well as two Meritorious Service Medals.

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A-S Features (cont.)

W I L L I A M “ TAW N Y ” K I L B O R N E ‘ 5 1

Mr. Kilborne is a retired English teacher, department chair, and headmaster. He is also a writer— of plays (eight published), of song lyrics within musicals (over 100), of essays (including several lead articles) and of poems, with awards in all categories. Asked if his life had a guiding principle, he replied with a rhymed couplet: “I lean against the wind with all my weight. I’ve never known a better way of standing straight.”

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During World War II, the Allen-Stevenson faculty was a mixed bag. Qualified young male teachers were hard to find. There was a popular song at the time sung by Jane Froman, “They’re Either Too Young or Too Old.” Allen-Stevenson’s headmaster must have resonated to the lyric.

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On the one hand there was Dr. Simboli, a truly great teacher. He would announce that he would tell us the story of Christopher Columbus, and he would take a month to do it. He knew how Columbus’s men dressed, what they ate, how they worshiped, how they drank; and our assignment, every day was to write down in our own words the segment of the story he had told. I wrote more for Dr. Simboli than I wrote for Daily Themes at Yale. And I learned from him what a great career being a teacher could be. On the other hand, there was Mr. Stomola. He did not teach a subject; he managed study hall. If a boy talked, he would kick him out, literally. As the boy walked out of the study hall toward the hallway where a huge dictionary was open and on display, he would kick him hard to help him on his way. I was always quick off the blocks in track, and when he ordered me out, for talking, I knew just when to accelerate. He ended up flat on his back—an Allen-Stevenson memory I will always cherish. At Allen-Stevenson I learned a valuable lesson. I wanted to be an opera singer, but I couldn’t get a part in HMS Pinafore, so I learned that maturation consists in large part of discovering your limitations. And I remember more people from Allen-Stevenson than from either my prep school (Westminster) or my college (Yale). Mr. Kilborne recited one of his song lyrics “As We Grow Old, We Understand,” which appeared in Head Over Heels, published by Samuel French, at this year’s Alumni Reunion. (See page 38 of the Alumni Reunion pages for the poem.)

William “Tawny” Kilborne now and then


BILL LANIGAN ’62

Texas suited me, and I plied a young architect’s trade for a couple of years before venturing out into the field construction business. I specialized in sitework and heavy concrete construction. But, as things happen, I was beguiled into the real estate development business, built several buildings, amassed what seemed at the time a lot of money, and then crashed in spectacular fashion as one after another of the city’s banks (including mine) succumbed to the scrutiny of the Federal Government. Properties that had been financed suddenly weren’t, lenders began asking uncomfortable questions about immediate repayment, and much property changed hands, rather quickly as I recall.

For ten years I consulted with large corporations, solving their real estate problems, and eventually enrolled at the Art Institute in 1966 to learn what this new digital funny business was all about. Well, I evidently learned a few things – I was asked to teach as an adjunct in 1998; then full-time in 2000; then became a department chair in 2003; and now, since 2012, as Director of Design.

And so this is what happens when you stick a small boy into an un-elevatored building in the East 70s for eight or nine years surrounded by well-educated men and women who ask interesting questions about unfamiliar things…such can be the rewards of a misspent Manhattan youth.”

Student at the Berklee College of Music After leaving Allen-Stevenson, Ethan Leff attended Cushing Academy, and went on to develop his talents at the Berklee College of Music, where he is studying drums, and has an active performance career as a drummer, audio engineer, sound technician and consultant. I attended Allen-Stevenson from 2001 to 2011 and remember shaking hands with many different teachers over those ten years. I worked very hard in my studies, spending hours and hours writing papers for teachers such as Mr. Haarmann and Mr. Kersey. Throughout my time at A-S I was fascinated with music. I started by taking clarinet lessons, and around the same time I began to play the drums, ultimately playing in the A-S orchestras. Music became my passion. Now I study music in college. A number of teachers influenced me during my time at A-S. Teachers such as Mr. Schrade, Ms. Schrade-James, Mr. Haarmann, Mr. Kersey, Ms. Donovan, Ms. King and Mr. Cashdollar come to mind. I had a great time with them as well as others. I really feel that there were different kinds of influences from all the teachers —the music ones more obvious.

Spring 2016

“My journey...indeed, it has been such. As for Houston, I had the good fortune to exit graduate school shortly after the formation of the OPEC Oil Cartel, which effectively collapsed the U.S. economy in every state except, well, you can guess. So, after scores of resumes and frantic pleas to family and friends, I landed a job in Houston, then a busy regional city coping with the advent of unheard sums of money, and badly in need of professional help to man the decks of the city’s ships of commerce.

ETHAN LEFF ’11

Ethan playing the drums

Bill Lanigan is an architect and artist active in Houston, TX. He received his professional training at The Harvard Graduate School of Design after being awarded his bachelor's degree in visual studies at Harvard College. Since 1998, Mr. Lanigan has taught all aspects of visual imaging, using traditional and digital media, along with architectural design and technology subjects, at The Art Institute of Houston, where he now holds the position of Director of Design.

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A-S Features (cont.)

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Ethan working on his Facing History art project

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Mr. Haarmann, Mr. Kersey, and Mr. Cashdollar as academic teachers assigned a lot of work in class and wanted the best from all their students; and while Mr. Haarmann and Mr. Kersey were extremely serious in class, I was motivated to do my best in their classes. I really enjoyed studying history with Mr. Kersey (and Ms. Sklow). I had Mr. Kersey in sixth, seventh, and ninth grades. Mr. Kersey had two different class modes—either a lecture or a discussion. I liked both because it allowed for two different styles of learning. I remember a day in Seventh Grade when I was hurrying to write a paper for Mr. Kersey. Mr. Cashdollar was my adviser on the project. I went to his office and he could tell that I was in a big rush to finish the project. He sat me down in the Learning Resources Center on the fourth floor and said something to the effect of…you’re more interested in the finished project than you are in the journey. This has resonated with me since then. In life if you are living for some end result, it might get boring really fast. If you live life for the journey instead, then you have really lived. I have thought about this often as I spend many hours each day in a practice room playing drums, focusing on the journey. This makes the end result that much more gratifying!


I’ve always felt that Allen-

Stevenson taught me that I

could learn and gave me the

independence to decide what it was I wanted to learn.

—John Loengard ’49

JOHN LOENGARD ’49

Photographer John Loengard was a senior at Harvard when LIFE magazine asked him to photograph a freighter run aground on Cape Cod. The assignment kicked off Mr. Loengard’s long association with the magazine. In 2005, American Photo magazine identified Mr. Loengard as “One of the 100 most influential people in photography.” My recollection of Allen-Stevenson is one of individuality. Mr. Stevenson, who interviewed me in 1940 for the First Grade, is the only man that I’ve seen wear spats. (They were a light tan.) Throughout my eight years in the school I felt responsible for my own choices. “You can learn Latin physically or mentally,” was Mr. Huber Clark’s summation in the Seventh Grade, and he did pull an unprepared student by the hair out of his chair. Sure, that sounds like subjugation, but to my mind the attitude of Clark and the school was one that fostered independence, not freedom, which is an entirely different coin. I became fascinated with photography in 1945 and in 1947 was one of the ones who started a photographic club; not that I recall any details about what we did, but I have continued with that interest through today. I’ve always felt that Allen-Stevenson taught me that I could learn and gave me the independence to decide what it was I wanted to learn.

Mr. Loengard on the Student Council

Spring 2016

Mr. Loengard visiting A-S

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A-S Features (cont.)

MARIO M. MULLER ’77

Artist An artist, father, curator, husband and writer, Mario Muller wears many hats in the art world. As a painter and sculptor, he is the recipient of numerous public and private commissions, the latest of which is an MTA commission for twelve Glass Windscreeen Panels in the Bronx. He writes cultural criticisms, movie reviews, and essays, and advises institutional and private clients on the contemporary fine art scene. An Interview with Anthony Kapp, Alumni Director

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I’ll speak very bluntly. My time at Allen-Stevenson wasn’t always easy. Perhaps it was that I was a student during a macho era where the focus seemed to be on competitive sports, almost like a fraternity on a small scale, with me, the artist on the fringe of the social scene. That aside, I had a great education.

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To this day, I still think about things I learned in Fifth Grade that some of my contemporaries didn’t get until they were sophomores in college. I specifically remember reading texts in Mr. Nichols’ history class like From Vienna to Versailles, by L.C.B. Seaman, and The Guns of August, by Barbara Tuchman, to give us a fuller understanding of the core roots of World War I, with an emphasis on interpretation rather than a chronological narrative of the facts. It almost seems freakish looking back, to have read these texts at such a young age, but it was fantastic to be exposed to them. To be taught up to rather than down to is something I believe made AllenStevenson unique. I survived socially at A-S because of art, and my art teacher Mr. William Holdsworth. He had wavy white hair, wore horn-rimmed glasses, and was an extraordinary illustrator. His books were published by Farrar Straus and Giroux! He’s not talked about often these days, but he produced some unbelievable projects for us to do as kids. I would sneak off to the art room whenever I could to work on projects, and considered myself his “big buddy.” The darkroom was also a hot spot for great creativity. It was such a magical experience, to have control over the images in an analog way which we are losing as we embrace more and more technology. I am fortunate to have studio space at my son’s school, where I teach several art classes, and have the opportunity to bridge the use of technology with more traditional techniques. It is truly special to see the twinkle in a child’s eye when they realize creativity has no limits. For me, art at AllenStevenson was extraordinary, and I owe Mr. Holdsworth a great deal for seeing that spark in me and helping to lay the foundation for the person I am today. Mr. Muller is represented by Mary Ryan Gallery in New York and Rudolph Blum Fine Art in Houston, TX. His website is MarioMuller.com.

Mario and his son, Wolfgang


Hiram today

H I R A M R AT L I F F ’ 8 1

Pastor, New Tabernacle Church, NYC Before becoming senior pastor at New Tabernacle, Hiram Ratliff worked as the assistant director of Promise I and II and Community Pride afterschool programs, and also served as supervisor of the Crisis Intervention Program at the Harlem Children’s Zone.

Were it not for Allen-Stevenson, I would not be where I am today. It was the foundation of my education and provided an amazing opportunity for me. Having mentors like Mr. Pariseau, Mr. Kersey and Mr. Julian pushing me to be all that I could be was very encouraging and made me accountable. As a religious man, I also believe that someone bigger gave me the chance to benefit from an education at AllenStevenson, and then at York Prep and in college at Hobart and William Smith afterwards. My advice to a current Allen-Stevenson student would be: Take advantage of it all. I believe it is the best education to help you achieve what you want as you go forward in life. It was hard to see at the time, but it definitely paid off for me. Stay strong and focused and be brave. That’s where the ‘Fortiter et Recte’ comes in.

Hiram then

It was challenging coming from Harlem to attend Allen-Stevenson on the Upper East Side. I was traveling back and forth when crime was high and the sale of crack was everywhere in my neighborhood. The public schools were greatly affected by this. I was lucky to be attending a private school, though I can’t say this was easy. Being seen in my neighborhood in a tie and jacket was a true tale of two cities. I definitely felt that I fit in more at Allen-Stevenson where I was always welcomed. Allen-Stevenson was and still is my family. I started in First Grade and feel lucky to have gone through school with so many special people. In the Sixth Grade we lost our classmate Tony Couloucoundis. It taught us a lesson about life being short, and bonded our group. I see this a lot as a pastor. Death is bonding.

My advice to a current

Allen-Stevenson student

would be:Take advantage of it all.

—Hiram Ratliff ’81

Likewise, I think sports are bonding. I was fortunate to play football, soccer and basketball while I was at Allen-Stevenson. I enjoyed the rivalry with Buckley and playing teams like Browning and Collegiate on a regular basis. Many lessons and friendships from those sporting days have stayed with me.

Spring 2016

An Interview with Sarah Woods, Associate Director of Communications

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A-S Features (cont.)

Hiram on the football team

As a pastor of the New Tabernacle Church (www.newtabchurch.com), I’ve put into practice the many values taught to me at Allen-Stevenson. I see the church as a key part of the community, focusing on community issues. My church has a community outreach day and a crisis intervention program. We also bring in role models to speak to teens on a regular basis.

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As a social worker, I am involved with Harlem Children’s Zone and other nonprofits so that I can give back to the neighborhood from which I came.

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At present, I am working on a book that tells my life story in relation to the clergy. I look at how God uses different people at different times. Because Allen-Stevenson played a key part in my life, it is obviously featured.

JARED ZELMAN ’16

Jared Zelman is a freshman at Friends Academy, and also serves as a class representative on the Allen-Stevenson Alumni Council. How did Allen-Stevenson influence your life?

My six years at Allen-Stevenson helped me grow into the conscientious student I am today. My first year at A-S we learned addition with Mr. Duncan, and only six years later our class was learning how to use Pascal’s triangle to determine an equation’s most factored form. Time really did fly. However, my life at A-S was not solely focused on academics, but also included an education on how to be a well-rounded gentleman. Allen-Stevenson brought me up with the same values I utilize today: hard work, integrity and generosity. These ideas have and continue to act as important guidelines in my life, making me a happier person. A-S gave me the opportunity to indulge in the arts and participate in organized athletics as well, which was an invaluable and unforgettable experience. Altogether, the opportunities and crucial knowledge Allen-Stevenson gave me will forever play an important part in my life and continue to impact me for many years to come.

Jared on the trumpet


Jared at the Science Festival

A plethora of teachers will go on to have a longlasting influence on my life. However, Mrs. Robelyn Schrade-James has a special place in my heart. Although Mrs. Schrade-James passed away in early 2015, her vivacious character and inspiring teaching will forever affect me. To everyone in our AllenStevenson community she was not looked at as just a teacher, but also as a role model. Despite being terminally ill, I was never able to catch a glimpse of her face without a smile on it. Her everlasting happy attitude was something out of fairytales and something I try to replicate everyday of my life. With this uplifting personality she invoked her love for music and inspired me to play trumpet for six years, participate in our chorus and perform in the school plays. Despite the fact that we are not graced by her presence any longer, her positive spirit and happy nature will live on to inspire all.

Were there any subjects you studied at Allen-Stevenson that left a huge impression on you and why?

“If I were to pick a subject that left a huge impression on me it would have to be lunch.” These are nearly the exact words I said when asked this question during my third grade interview. However, after spending a few years at Allen-Stevenson I think my new, and arguably improved answer, would be history. Since my first history class at A-S to my last, I was always interested and excited to learn more about the curriculum. Although some classes may have felt like a drag at times, history always was a breath of fresh air and gave me a chance to feel like I was a pilgrim or a knight who oddly lived on the Upper East Side. To this day I enjoy diving into our world’s history and entertaining myself with our incredibly interesting, yet true past.

Did your Allen-Stevenson classmates or a particular classmate make a difference in your life and how?

Possibly the most valuable product of my life at Allen-Stevenson is the friends I made along the way. At A-S we were all friends. There were no cliques like the “nerds” or “jocks” that you typically see portrayed in the movies. We were molded into diverse gentlemen that did not consist of one identity but as a medley of intelligence, humor, athletic skill and kindness. Nearly every day of our lives have been spent together and during these many years we have become like brothers. Overall, my classmates have surrounded me with positive energy and scholarly morals and have had a pivotal influence on my life and the person I am today.

Spring 2015

Which Allen-Stevenson teacher or teachers inspired you and how?

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A-S Features (cont.)

Alumni Dads immerse

sons

Allen-Stevenson currently has 24 fathers who also

attended Allen-Stevenson. They are now in the special position of seeing their

themselves in the A-S culture and enjoy many of the same traditions.

Nothing stays exactly the same and it’s fun to reminisce about old times. What has changed? What is the same? Casper Caldarola, Director of Communications, spoke with some of these dads and learned what it’s like to come home again.

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Robert Burge ’76 James ’17 20th Century Photographs, Ltd.

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Alfred Burger M.D. ’87 Milo ’24 Associate Program Director/ Clinical Educator Beth Israel Medical Center

Nikolas Dando-Haenisch ’82 Caleb ’17, Nolan ’20 Principal, Grimshaw Architects P.C.

Marcel Deans ’91 Jackson ’19 Founding Principal,Victory Collegiate High School

Casper Caldarola: How did you feel bringing your son for the initial admissions visit and tour? Did it stir up any memories?

David Herzberg ’89: As you can expect, I was very proud walking James ’22 into Allen-Stevenson for his admissions visit, but more memorable was how excited I felt. I had butterflies in my stomach and was quite emotional about it! I could envision myself running through the halls, and up and down the stairs, and I distinctly recalled the energy of the School from the days when I was a student.

Ron Rolfe ’60: I was proud to have Dare ’18 visit the school and hoped that he would have the same reaction to it as I have had over my many years of service to the school. He did.

Marc Sholinsky ’89: I remembered meeting Mr. Cole, my Headmaster, when I was interviewed during my admissions visit. Going on the tour with Ryan ’24 I couldn’t believe how much the School had changed physically, yet at the same time how things were very much the same. I knew right away Allen-Stevenson was without question the right spot for my son.

Kris Harris ’95: I knew Ben’s ’24 experience would be totally different than mine. I started A-S in the Seventh Grade, not Kindergarten. I constantly think about how everything is backwards now, and that the main door and the service entrance have switched places! Marcel Deans ’01: While entering A-S in the Sixth Grade as I did

is very different than applying for Kindergarten, Jackson's ’19 admissions process brought back memories of sitting with Jessie Lee Hayes and Missy Fenner in their first floor admissions office. While it was extremely late in the admissions process, they decided to find space for me after completing a writing prompt that asked me to create a fictitious vacation advertisement, highlighting all the aspects that would persuade would-be vacationers to purchase. While I’m not sure if my writing blew them away, I remember vividly engaging them in my work through a barrage of semi-personal inquiries around their vacation experiences, eliciting some horror stories to guide my writing along, and right into an acceptance letter early in the summer of 1987.

Chris Goodman ’86: It seems like ages ago that I brought Xander ’23 and Henry ’25 in, but it was nice to feel comfortable from the very beginning. I think A-S has that feeling for most people who visit as well.

Nikolas Dando-Haenisch ’82: The return did not lend itself to the ex-

pected connections between old spaces and old memories. Instead, the visit and tour became one of mutual discovery—where Caleb ’17 and Nolan ’20 first encountered the wonderful culture of the School and where I found its rich mix of music, arts and academics reconstituted in the new classrooms, hallways and performance areas.


Alex Gellert ’79 Alexander ’14, Andrew ’16, Aidan ’18 CEO, Merkley + Partners

Robert Burge ’76: It is very hard for me to compare Allen-Stevenson of the 60s and 70s, and now, as I feel like I have been a continual part of this close knit community for almost 50 years; first as a student, then an alumnus, then a President of the Alumni Association, then as a Trustee, and for the past decade as a parent. I feel as if I have never left! Alfred Burger ’87: That spirit immediately brought me back to 1986,

Kris Harris ’95 Ben ’24, Sidney ’26 Counselor, Bronx International High School

David Herzberg ’89 James ’22 Senior Partner, Gramercy Funds Management LLC

Kevin Koplin ’84 James ’23 Partner, Barton LLP

Ian Peck ’83: Allen-Stevenson was always a welcoming environment even when I attended, albeit more formal then, and that same warm feeling was there when I brought Jesse ’22 and James ’23 for their tours and interviews. I was also impressed at how much bigger and nicer the building had become after the major renovation and expansion. Kevin Koplin ’84: I was amazed at the tremendous changes to the

building over the past 40 years and how much smaller it was back then but at the same time felt so large. The first townhouse was acquired while I was in school and in its basement was where we got to use the computers -- PET Commodores that used cassette tapes to upload and save the software. Our gym served triple duty in that it was also our lunchroom and the auditorium. I'm excited to see how the second townhouse will further enhance the school.

Casper: Are any of your teachers still at Allen-Stevenson? If so, what have you told your son about him or her?

Alex Gellert ’79: It’s not what I told Alexander ’14, Andrew ’16 and

Aidan ’18 about Mr. Kersey, it’s what I told Mr. Kersey. I told him that he couldn’t go anywhere or retire until he taught all three of my boys. I like the multi-generational teaching. His “obligation" to me will be done at the end of this year, but I hope he stays for many more generations of A-S boys.

Alfred: Ms. Meyer was my reading teacher when I first started at Allen-Stevenson. I have vivid memories of going up to the 3rd floor to sit in her room and work on reading and writing. It was always special because she would give stars and other stickers for a job well done. I always left thinking that I had learned how to do something new and something special.

Chris: David Kersey of course. Both of my boys are looking forward to

studying American History with him along with other things. He was and is a great teacher and person. A little known fact is that he was our ice hockey coach in the early 1980s. We would often have to wake him up in the old teachers’ building on East 77th Street to get him on the bus for early Saturday morning travel games. He would bark at us from the bench because he did not skate. It was a little bit like the “Bad News Bears” meets “Slapshot.”

Marc: Kim Kyte was my first teacher at Allen-Stevenson, and as it turns out, my first grade class was her first class of students at A-S! Kris: Mr. Kersey and Mr. Cohen are still two of my favorite teachers of all time. I learned so much and grew to trust them tremendously while I was a student. Ms. Demko, Dr. Terry, Mr. Amplo, Ms. Wilkis, Coach Zufall, Mr. Warner, Ms. Matthew and many others are still here and inevitably what I tell my kids is that these were my first "great" teachers. Of course I wish Ms. Steffan, Mr. Holt, and Ms. Borenstein were still around, but some things change.

Spring 2016

Christopher Goodman ’86 Xander ’23, Henry ’25 Executive Director, Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management

and my own youth. The idea that Milo ’24 could be part of this community was a truly exciting moment for me. Many memories flashed in my mind as we visited the school. Saturdays spent in the old gym playing dodge ball, kick the can and floor hockey. Eighth grade history class with Mr. Pariseau and reading The Spoils of Time, by CV Wedgewood. Art fairs where I had the pleasure to hang my work were particularly special, as I did not consider myself to be a gifted artist. The Assembly Hall, large choruses singing Green Grow, plays and musical recitals; Latin with Mr. Cole and all of my great homeroom teachers. Each floor brought forth memories and, with each memory, I felt another reason why I wanted Milo to attend Allen-Stevenson.

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A-S Features (cont.)

Ian Peck ’83 Jesse ’22, James ’23 CEO, Art Capital Group

Nikolas: Caleb, Nolan and I were all truly fortunate to have the benefit of Mr. Kersey¹s enduring presence. We all have learned greatly from his combination of serious teaching and witty insight—be it in history or in the performance arts. David: Mr. Kersey was my 7th grade history teacher and happily he is

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Ron Rolfe ’60 Andrew ’05, Dare ’18 Retired Partner, Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP

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Marc Sholinsky ’89 Ryan ’24 Vice President, Goldman Sachs

still at the School. As a student I really connected with him, and have kept in touch with him over the years through alumni. Early on during James’ Kindergarten year, I had the chance to introduce him to Mr. Kersey, and now, four years later, every time he sees Mr. Kersey he smiles at him and knows that Mr. Kersey knows who he is! This makes James proud, and I have a feeling it makes Mr. Kersey smile too.

Casper: What is the most significant change you’ve noticed at Allen-Stevenson since your days as a student?

Nikolas: Realistically, the most significant change has to be the role of technology. The electronic modes by which the boys learn, communicate and share their work has transformed much about the nature of their lives as students. That said, it is a testament to the rigor and diversity of the School's pedagogical approach that the fundamental character of the School has only grown stronger. Kris: It seems the School has made a conscious and public decision to focus on diversity and innovation. I'm proud coming back to a school that is progressive and not so completely steeped in tradition that it can't change for the better.

Marc: The most significant change is how much nicer the facilities are now versus when I attended. I still remember the lunchroom, gym and auditorium being one and the same. Now there is a separate spot for all three!

David: The School seems so much more thoughtful with respect to the Mitchell Spiegel ’82 Nelson ’19, James ’21 Managing Director, Global Credit Advisers

education of a young boy and the manner in which the boys learn how to be “a scholar and a gentleman.”

Alfred: The heart of the School, and what I cherish most from my time there has not changed at all – the spirit and the commitment of the School to making the Allen-Stevenson boy a true contributor to society. The boys continue to be taught that they are an integral part of a community and they learn how to be responsible in it and responsive to it. Kevin: What makes A-S so amazing are caring and dedicated teachers guiding all around great boys. That hasn't changed.

Chris: Obviously the physical plant is completely different. Most

importantly, A-S has improved at every level while keeping all of its good qualities. One thing I would like to see more of is athletic championships!

Ian: The students now are much more diverse in terms of their

backgrounds and level of sophistication. The food is also much better now than back in the day!

Casper: What does your son say about attending your alma mater?

Marcel: Jackson recently admitted that he understands why we knew

A-S was the best place for him to spend his formative adolescent years. His mother and I trusted the School, which Mr. Trower and his faculty have masterfully cared for and nurtured since my days walking through


Chris: Both Xander and Henry are very proud to attend the same school that I did and they tell me how much they love it here. I remind them that when I went to A-S we never closed when it snowed, we played dodgeball with real dodgeballs, and running the reservoir was mandatory several times a year!

Mitchell Spiegel ’82: After Nelson joined the soccer team and had the team picture taken, I said that we would now be in the A-S sports record together and that if he had a son one day who attended A-S, his son could look up both his father and grandfather. He thought that tradition was pretty cool.

Ron: I think that Dare believes he is following a family tradition since my older son, Andrew ’05, also attended A-S. He is proud to be a part of that.

Kevin: I do know that James ’23 gets a kick out of using the screen near

the nurse’s office to see team photos of me from my days on the soccer, baseball, and wrestling teams.

Nikolas: My sons wonder why they do not get to go on the roof as much as I did?! Alfred: Milo is very proud to attend the same school as his father,

uncles, grandfather and great uncle. He feels a connection to the School like it is his new home. He is always curious about the differences in our school experiences. He wonders why I didn't start Allen-Stevenson in Kindergarten. I told him unfortunately, there was no Kindergarten in 1978. He asks me if the lunchroom offered both the hot bar and salad bar at lunch. He wonders how I carried my skates to school on field days.

Alex: I think my boys think I studied by candlelight in one room! But

seriously, my sons are surprised by how much more expansive their facilities are than they were in my day. When I try to explain that the cafeteria, auditorium and gym were all the same space, they can hardly believe it.

Casper: Is there one experience you had at Allen-Stevenson that you hope your son does too?

Chris: There are many I would like them to have including the creation of lifelong friendships. Four of my groomsmen attended AllenStevenson and I am good friends with many more. I am the Godparent to a classmate’s daughter and both of my boys have my classmates as Godparents. These deep relationships are rare for a school that ends in the Ninth Grade and speaks volumes about the environment that continues to exist here.

Kris: I'm really looking forward to the extra-curricular activities for my sons -- going to cheer them on at Randall's Island, and watching them perform in G&S or an Upper School play. My father and I really bonded going to the father-son dinners and I hope my sons enjoy going with me as much as I enjoyed going with my father. Ron: I had a very close relationship with my teachers. The caring of the faculty, then and now, is what makes Allen-Stevenson special; that and the fact that the boys are happy at school with each other and with their teachers. That is critical.

Kevin: My classmates were a great bunch of boys who helped to make

my time at A-S so special. We've remained close despite being spread out all over the US and not having the luxury of email or Facebook for the bulk of those post-A-S years. I hope that James' classmates will help him make his years here special and that they will develop lifelong friendships, too.

Nikolas: Both boys have pursued an involvement in the orchestra, individual music instruction as well as Gilbert & Sullivan and dramatic performances. The manner in which the School is able to weave the performance arts into the curriculum has always formed the core of my most memorable experiences.

Ian: More than anything A-S is about the amazing staff and faculty. The former headmaster Desmond Cole was a great fan of mine and really gave me the confidence that carried me forward in life. I hope my sons find a similar mentor and fan amongst the dedicated faculty and A-S family. Marcel: I hope A-S becomes a home away from home for Jackson—

one where he develops a deep connection with and a desire to see it blossom into a place where more young men, like himself, embrace the value of being a scholar, a gentleman as well as develop an uncanny humility, that will serve him well beyond his years here.

David: I hope that my son makes his own incredible experiences. Life is

very different today, and I want him to find his own interests and paths to take at Allen-Stevenson.

Casper: Do you have any additional thoughts about having your sons at your alma mater?

Mitchell: It is special having both of my sons go to the same school I attended. I can relate to many of the academic, social and athletic experiences they are going through. I feel fortunate that the tradition can continue! Kris: I'm pretty sure I'm the first Prep alum to have a son at AllenStevenson and I just want Joe Ayala ’86 to eat his heart out. That's a joke, but it is also a source of pride.

Robert: My son James ’17 recently spoke with Ronnie Jankoff, Director of Admissions, about his desire to give tours in his free periods to prospective A-S boys and their parents. I was especially pleased that this generation of boys is equally enthusiastic about advocating for and showing off Allen-Stevenson as the alumni are about sending their children to A-S.

Marc: I hope my son looks back on his years at A-S as fondly as I do.

While many people talk about their high school days and college years, the days I remember best were those spent at A-S.

Nikolas: It's their school now so I hope they make the best of it!

Ian: Just a warm sense of pride in seeing them develop and grow, and

knowing that they are at such a special place makes me feel that I have given them the same tools and skills that I received to make the most out of life.

Alex: I have always believed that A-S is a family, but you really feel it when your children attend. It is something very meaningful.

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these halls, would give Jackson the opportunity to access a pathway towards success, however he decides what that word means for him.

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News

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Equinox Rockefeller Center. Students and parents who were also there included: Sebastian Ross ’19, Fritz Ross ’20, Lara Ross, Grant Pinkos ’19, Will Pinkos ’21, Steve Pinkos and Jennifer Pinkos.

Chris Brozyna, Third Grade Teacher, and his rock band, Memory Loss, continue to raise money for the Wounded Warriors Project by doing benefit concerts in the northern Connecticut area.

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Venesha Cashdollar, Learning Specialist, Meghan Gelling, School Nurse, and Sarah Luposello, Fourth Grade Teacher, participated in Cycle for Survival on behalf of Team Grant, which is named for Grant Pinkos, A-S sixth grader, on March 5, at

Clarinet, Oboe and Bassoon Teacher Jill Collura became Jill Collura Welborn on October 25, 2015, when she married the love of her life, Billy Welborn. Did they meet by pure chance or did fate pull them together as each one followed their love of adventure, travel, nature, and hiking? After a 2011 New Year's resolution of "doing something everyday that I normally wouldn't do" Jill followed her passions in life and signed up for a 12-day Peruvian trek on the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. Little did she know her life would never be the same! This was the first time Jill camped in her life and she was under the stars of the southern hemisphere in Peru. Also, her first time doing any significant hiking, and her first time on land over 4,000 feet elevation (Cusco is at 12,000 ft., Machu Picchu 8,000 ft. and

the highest point of the trek was over 15,000 feet.) It was here that Jill and Billy met, bonded, and fell in love. The rest is "history" or rather is in the growing volumes of Shutterfly albums made of their adventurous trips together. Many meetings are seemingly by chance, but Jill counts herself blessed when one such "meeting" touched her heart and soul.

Susan Lukas, Upper School English Teacher, is a grandma again! Liam Lukas Phillips was born on December 2, 2015, to Carly Lukas and Alex Phillips. He is Susan’s fifth grandson!

Sarah Luposello, Fourth Grade Teacher, Jesse Montero, Kindergarten Associate, and Erik Resurreccion, First Grade Teacher, completed the NYC Marathon in November 2015. They are extremely grateful to all the A-S supporters who came out to cheer them on. And the running continues, with Jesse completing the Disney World Marathon in January and Sarah training to run in three half marathons this spring— NY Half, More Half and the Brooklyn Half. Congratulations runners!

Jaison Spain ’97, Assembly Hall Director and Coach, married Ami (pronounced Omeee) Katsumata on March 30, at the Mishima Shrine in Japan. They met in 2009 at one of Jaison’s rock band shows opening for Talib Kweli and Idle Warship. Jaison and Ami have been together for almost 7 years. Much happiness to the newlyweds!


Alumni Reunion 2016

W I N E A N D D I N E AT 5 8 3 P A R K A V E N U E “Good memories and great friends,” Liam Millhiser ’96 remarked of the reunion dinner on March 11, summing up his feelings after spending the evening reconnecting with his classmates at the Wine & Dine Reunion Dinner hosted by Louis Rose ’86 at 583 Park Avenue.

Dinner commenced with the recitation of a poem by William “Tawny” Kilborne, Jr. ’51, who was celebrating his 65th reunion with several of his classmates. He wrote “As We Grow Old” as lyrics for a musical entitled Head Over Heels, once reviewed “A confection” by the New York Times. The faculty delighted in making their way around the room recounting stories with the boys they’d helped shape into Scholars and Gentlemen. Russell Patterson ’43 represented the 1940s with gusto, while several members of the Class of 2006 jabbed with coaches and their favorite teachers.

David Kersey h’98 and David Trower h’95 honored faculty members Michelle Demko, Randy Schrade ’76, Andrew Bowman, Tom Verchot and Rich Alifano for their 25 years of service to the School, and presented them with Tiffany apples as a token of the Alumni Council’s appreciation for their dedication to Allen-Stevenson. The celebration continued on Saturday, when alumni brought their families to 78th Street to visit their alma mater. Several Upper School boys led tours of the building, while the Athletics department facilitated an alumni vs. faculty basketball game in the gym. Others relished the chanced to witness one of the final rehearsals of Gilbert & Sullivan’s Patience before the show opened on Tuesday.

Spring 2016

211 alumni, spouses, faculty and guests attended the event, which included a cocktail hour on the balcony overlooking the ballroom lit up in Allen-Stevenson Blue & Gold, followed by a steak dinner at long tables donned with candelabras where alumni were seated by decade.

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Alumni Reunion Weekend

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( C O N T. )

David Trower h’95, Rich Alifano, Michelle Demko, Tom Verchot, Randy Schrade ’76, and Andrew Bowman (not pictured) were honored for their 25 years of service to the School.

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583 Park Avenue was the perfect backdrop for the evening’s festivities. “I am grateful that so many alums were able to come and

create an evening of great conversation, reminiscing, laughter, new connections, friendships and a reminder that A-S is still an important part of our lives and will be forever."

—Louis Rose ’86


Spring 2016

The Class of 1951 hadn’t come together since the spring of 1950.

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The Class of 1976 had a great turnout at the reunion, picking up right where they left off 40 years ago.


As We Grow Old By William Kilborne, Jr. ’51

Husband As we grow old, we understand That love is walking hand in hand, Friendly games of gin, Caring where you’ve been, Nothing very grand. As we grow old, we understand.

It’s knowing how to make you smile, It’s being quiet for a while, Sensing while you’re still That you always will Go the extra mile. It’s knowing how to make you smile.

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Young love flares like a Roman candle, Shooting stars that will disappear, But a love that is not too hot to handle Can bring warmth to our lives year after year.

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The sun is setting in the west. The time is precious we have left. Days are grains of sand Running through the hand, Spilling happiness. As we grow old, we understand.

Wife When we are old and getting gray, When we hold books three feet away, When we can’t recall What occurred at all Even yesterday… What was it I was going to say?

When no one seems to speak out loud, When voices vanish in a crowd, Fingers start to shake, Fragile bones may break And the back is bowed, Well, still the spirit dares to be proud.

I know that love does not come easy. One must work at it day to day. You don’t have to do anything to please me. Be yourself, be with me, and that’s okay. Husband A better man I’ll never be.

Wife And that is quite all right with me. Husband and Wife Let us face the fact That the final act Is about to start. Let’s not go into it apart.

The world is not a wonderland And love is not a big brass band, Just a melody Played for you and me, Nothing very grand. As we grow old, we understand.

Alumni Reunion

( C O N T. )

“The class reunion was a unique experience for me. I'd never attended a school

reunion before, and was unprepared for the combined feelings of strangeness and delight.There we were, having last seen each other as children, and now meeting as men on or just over the threshold of ‘seniority.’ It was truly childhood's end

and its return at the same time.Thanks to A-S for bringing us together in such a beautiful space, surrounded by other classes having their own weird and wonderful experiences of reconnection. I can't wait for the ‘hundredth.’”

—Richard Thomas ’66

An impromptu game of dodgeball on the roof with the Class of 1966, and an alumni v. faculty basketball game rounded out Saturday’s festivities.


teachers and coaches brings you back to a simple time.Those were some of my/our

favorite and most formative years and I'm happy I got to spend them with everyone there.” —Liam Millhiser ’96

Spring 2016

“Being around all your old classmates,

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Our Alumni Community in Action EVENTS 2015-2016

October 9 was Founders Day, the chance to celebrate the School’s birthday. This year AllenStevenson is 133 years old.

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Gathering in the gym, Headmaster David Trower explained to all the boys, faculty and staff the significance of a beautiful antique desk he had before him that belonged to Mr. Allen, who founded the School in 1883. He told the boys that the number of students has grown from 3 that first year to 416 today, asking them to look around to get a sense of our community today.

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To mark this special occasion, an alumnus also speaks and this year the School welcomed Max Brockman ’03. Max is currently a writer for the HBO series GIRLS. Max described some of his memories of being a student at Allen-Stevenson, which he said he remembers pretty clearly. He told some amusing stories that demonstrated just how lucky he felt he was to be at a place like Allen-Stevenson where he was “encouraged to tackle assignments from unorthodox angles that, on the surface, seemed to stretch the boundaries of what could charitably be considered academia but really harnessed creativity in ways that informed the person I would eventually become.” He said, “I learned to be a person at this school.”

Alumni Return for Young Alumni Day and the Alumni/Parent Hockey Game

November 24 was a busy day at Allen-Stevenson, with members of classes 2013-2016 returning to the schoolhouse for Young Alumni Day and the Alumni Basketball Game, and alumni hockey players gathering at Chelsea Piers for the Annual Alumni/Parent Hockey Game with Coach Phil Amplo. The events were the perfect way to celebrate all that is special about Allen-Stevenson before breaking for the Thanksgiving holiday.

”

Max Brockman ’03 speaks at Founders Day


Stuart Jakub ’94 and his team from Zachy’s Wine & Liquor, facilitated an evening of wine tasting, while Hardings offered drink specials and hors d’oeuvres which kept the conversations between old friends flowing late into the night. David Kersey remarked that, “much of the conversation had to do with graduate school and working late at the office. Roommates or living at home, questions of careers, MCATs and LSATs: all, it seemed, spoken with a careful confidence, and easy optimism.”

For more information on AllenStevenson’s Young Alumni Council, contact Alex Klaris at alexklaris@gmail.com.

Mr. Kersey visits Palm Beach, Los Angeles and San Francisco to Reconnect The cities of Palm Beach, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, for those of us who go on living in New York City, are its equal in their own wonder. My good fortune was to visit all three cities this winter for reunions with alumni from as long ago as 1949 and as recent as 2008. In Palm Beach with its perfect palms and grand homes hidden behind hedges talk at the gathering was impressive for the clarity with which men my age or older remembered their School, teachers and classmates, as it was after the war. This from Tawny Kilborne ’51: “The writing we did in Dr. Simboli’s class was better than the work I did in Yale’s famous daily themes course!” Los Angeles was something else altogether—the Hollywood sign from my hotel window—lunch in

hip Venice Beach followed by an evening gathering in perfectly groomed, movie-starred Hancock Park and again more memories of 78th Street, some grown mythic with time. This from Zak Penn ’83: “In the speech contest, Goldstein’s was about the Scopes Trial and it ended with him pulling out a banana and taking a bite of it, which got a huge laugh. I remember being frustrated that he finished first (think I came in second) because I thought his cheap theatrics trumped my speech, though in retrospect it's exactly the kind of the thing I would've done, and it was probably more jealousy that I didn't think of it first. In fact, I ran for student offices at Trinity by doing ridiculous comedy routines, so perhaps it was my inspiration. Next time you see Adam Goldstein tell him he inspired me.” And finally an evening at the St. Francis Yacht Club, just up the bay from the Golden Gate Bridge. When we arrived the bridge was shrouded in fog with only its booming basso foghorn to signal its presence, but as alumni from all sides of the bay arrived, we began to see its amber lights stretching north across the strait to Marin County, and above it across the clouds—a rainbow. “We see them all the time,” Kitty Lee wife of Pang Lee ’90 assured me. I was delighted to catch up with Pang and his travels—from his birth in Hong Kong to New York’s Chinatown, Allen-Stevenson, Exeter, MIT, Penn Law School, then back to Hong Kong, to San Francisco, and soon with Kitty and their three children off to Shanghai. He was quick to remind me that he was still a New York City boy. I like to think that is true of all the men I met—all Floridians and Californians now, but many still up to date on the woeful record of the New York Knicks and the irresistible tunes of Broadway’s Hamilton.

Spring 2016

Hardings Restaurant and Bar, owned by Nightingale alumna Jill Halberg, was the setting for a lively joint event between AllenStevenson and NightingaleBamford alumnae.

The first of what Young Alumni Chair Alex Klaris ’06 hopes will be many more joint gatherings between A-S and NBS, the event drew a crowd of 75 young professionals, almost equally split between the two schools. Relationships forged during the Sixth Grade Play, more than a decade ago, seemed to pick up right where they left off.

”

A-S and NBS Young Alumni Gather for Wine Tasting

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alumni NEWS

1951

1962

1955

1966

Bob Freedman, Class Representative

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The Class of ’51 brought together four members of our class for the annual Alumni Reunion: Tawny Kilborne, Ken McIntosh, David Luria and Bob Freedman — a group that had not been all together in one place since the Spring of 1950. Two of the group brought their wives, and a wonderful time was had by all. Food was good, speeches were brief, music was low, and as advertised, there was mostly time to talk and catch up with each other's lives.

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Currier 1973

John O. Field writes to say, “The glow of my little grandson offsets the frigid gloom of winter in New Hampshire. Greetings to all.”

Bill McKee writes to say, "I was so happy when Ted Pearson, Jr. sent his wedding photo! Congratulations! We all thought we were the only one. Guess not!"

1959

Andy Burger, Class Representative

1960

Ron Rolfe, Class Representative

1961

Dean Sanborn, Class Representative

Richard Sills has recently published “Christmas Story,” a retelling of The Night Before Christmas, which is available on Amazon and at Barnes & Noble.

Yazbek 1975

Justin Klein was recently named Chair of the Board of Trustees at Pomfret, where he attended after leaving Allen-Stevenson. A longstanding member, he has served in numerous positions on Pomfret’s board, was co-chair of the Campaign for Pomfret in the Philadelphia area from 1986 – 1989, and was one of his class leaders for his 50th reunion. His class at Pomfret currently holds the record for the largest class gift raised.

Richard Thomas will be in San Diego this spring, doing a play at the Old Globe Theater. He’ll be playing Jimmy Carter in a second production of a new play by Lawrence Wright entitled Camp David, about the Camp David accords. The play was originally premiered at the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. in 2014.

1970

Richard Perry, Class Representative

1973

Tom Currier is in the midst of his fourth tour with Dave Davies of The Kinks, drummer Dennis Diken of The Smithereens, and Tom's long time band mate from The Jigsaw Seen, guitarist Jonathan Lea. The tour is in support of the release of "Rippin' up New York City,” a live album recorded at City Winery in New York in November 2014. Regarded as the one of the greatest guitarists of all time, Dave Davies changed the course of music by inventing guitar distortion through slashing the speaker cone of his amplifier to create the raucous sound in The Kinks' 1964 hit "You Really Got Me". When not on tour, Tom teaches music privately, swims open water marathons, and spearheads the craft of building masterfully as a real estate developer.

Thomas Schiller writes to tell us that he is now working as a Senior Analyst at Keirnan Group Holdings in Alexandria, VA.


Peyton 1978

1974

Vinny Peterson, Class Representative

1975

Yoshi Shimada, Class Representative

David Yazbek played with his band, and special guest Norbert Leo Butz, at SubCulture in New York City. David is a recording artist, vocalist and pianist known for his thrilling live performances and irreverent style, and Norbert is one of Broadway's most versatile stars, having earned Tony Awards for his roles in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and Catch Me If You Can.

1976

Robert Burge, Class Representative John Carr, Class Representative

Stephen Judson, Class Representative

Charles Ashdown, Gregg Beldock, Bill Boyce, Robert Burge, John Carr, Conway Cliff, Robert Deutsch, Stephen Judson, Keene Miller, Andrew Roffman, Randy Schrade and Marc Silver gathered with several of their spouses at the elegant 583 Park Avenue for their reunion on March 11. Robert says, “After 40 years apart, it was a real pleasure to pick right up where we left off. There was a lot of affection in the room. Classmates that could not attend, Robert Benjamin and Landon Hilliard, sent best wishes, and Tim Leonard shared a film clip from Field Day in 1975, which was an amazing real-time look back at what it was like to be a kid at A-S in the 70s.

Ubinas 1978

1977

Michael Hedges, Class Representative Dewey Wigod, Class Representative

David Hilliard owns The Lodge At Old Trail, a senior living community situated in the middle of the vibrant multi-generational community of Crozet, VA. The lodge offers myriad options for living well, staying engaged and aging gracefully. David recently hosted an event at the lodge featuring fellow A-S alumnus, Christopher Rowland. Christopher, the Washington Bureau Chief and Assistant Managing Editor of The Boston Globe, led a discussion about politics and the upcoming 2016 election.

1978

Bob Buehler, Class Representative

Maurice Edelson, Class Representative William Judson, Class Representative Dean Landis, Class Representative Clifton York, Class Representative

Matthew Peyton shared this picture of Kaye's Luncheonette that stood for years on the southeast corner of Lexington Avenue at 78th Street.

Luis Ubinas is included in an oral history collection entitled Just Kids from the Bronx by Arlene Alda, published earlier this year. The vivid oral histories in the book reveal what it was like to grow up in the place that bred the influencers in just about every field of endeavor. Luis remembers, "At the cost of twenty-five dollars a year, which was an enormous amount for my mother to come up with, I got to go to the Allen-Stevenson School on the East Side. That was a seminal moment in my life." The book is available on Amazon.

1979

Neil Bader, Class Representative

Alex Gellert, Class Representative

Clint Johnson, Class Representative

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Hilliard 1977

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Jackson 1980

alumni NEWS

1980

Roger Raines, Class Representative

Musa (Stacey) Jackson was recently featured in Uptown magazine for the influence he's had in Harlem with his company, Musa Jackson Productions, "creating experiences and connecting dots that support him having one foot in the old Harlem and the other in the new." Jackson's career has spanned modeling to screenwriting to producing.

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Paul Weitz accepted the Golden Globe award for Best Television Series - Musical or Comedy onstage with the cast of Mozart In The Jungle last month. The win for the Amazon series of which Paul is the creator beat out Netflix's Orange Is the New Black, Hulu's Casual, and HBO's Veep and Silicon Valley.

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1981

Erik Cliette, Class Representative

Evan Goldfischer, Class Representative Eric Rothstein, Class Representative

Andrew Vogelstein, Class Representative Hans Wydler, Class Representative

Evan Goldfischer is Chairman of the Board of Premier Cares Foundation, a charity he founded with his wife Julie to help patients with prostate and colon cancer.

1982

Mark Wasserberger, Class Representative

1983

Harlan Reinhardt, Class Representative

Weitz 1980

Bush 1984

1984

Michael Feinberg, Class Representative John Henry, Class Representative Marc Rice, Class Representative

Jonathan J. Bush, Jr., Athenahealth CEO, was the subject of a Boston Globe article in January for saving the life of a stranger on the streets of San Francisco. "Bush, who once worked as an emergency medical technician in New Orleans, came upon a man who had collapsed on the sidewalk here and used the cardiopulmonary resuscitation techniques he had learned to help revive him. Bush said he applied mouth-to-mouth breathing while another bystander applied chest compression until paramedics arrived," the article stated.

1985

Patrick Horan, Class Representative

Alexander von Furstenberg, Class Representative Simon Wasserberger, Class Representative

Patrick Horan hosted the Allen-Stevenson fifth grade boys at Waldingfield Farm in October. He spent the day with the boys, teaching them about organic vegetable farming, as part of their Plants and Food Security for All unit of study in science class. While there the boys spent the day harvesting hundreds of pounds of winter squash, which they had helped to plant as seeds in the spring of their fourth grade year. The boys also had the chance to discuss the particulars of local and organic vs. conventional farming, and learned about the business of providing food for east coast communities. Our thanks to Patrick!

1986

Brooke Connell, Class Representative

Chris Goodman, Class Representative Louis Rose, Class Representative

Michael Tiedemann, Class Representative

Bill Konigsberg is the recipient of the 2016 Stonewall Young Adult Literature Award from the American Library Association for his book The Porcupine of Truth. Michael Tiedemann and his wife Ariel welcomed their son, Roman, on October 4, 2015. They live in downtown Manhattan and are in constant contact with Chris Goodman, Anthony Woods, James Gleacher, Patrick Burke, and Brooke Connell of the Class of 1986.


Knopp 1990

1987

1992

Christopher Hallows writes to say, “As always, I am glad to see A-S flourishing! I have no doubt that 2016 will be another great year for the school. We are enjoying our time in Colorado Springs and doing a lot of skiing. I will deploy to Afghanistan for another tour in February.”

Wes Stanton, Class Representative

Alf Burger, Class Representative

Chris Hallows, Class Representative

1988

Schuyler Havens, Class Representative

Christopher Persley, Class Representative

1989

Pierre Bonan, Class Representative

David Herzberg, Class Representative

1990

Harlan Goldberg, Class Representative Ken LaFreniere, Class Representative Colin McCabe, Class Representative John Rose, Class Representative

Geoff Knopp has co-founded Bullz-i with Eric Due and George Caliendo. Bullz-i strives to answer the question, "Mobile devices connect people to the world, but is there a better way to connect people to their mobile devices?" They have recently launched a new product called THE RiNG, a slim, round aluminum attachment that adheres to the back of your phone, device or case, which rotates 360 degrees to give you a full range of motion when using your device, and also works as a stand that tucks away when not in use.

1991

Charles Allen, Class Representative Van Furniss, Class Representative Mike Grady, Class Representative

Jamie Magid, Class Representative

Andrew Arias, Class Representative

Cannon Hersey, Class Representative

1993

Anthony Bonan, Class Representative Ken McCauley, Class Representative

1994

Tim McCabe, Class Representative

Ross Millhiser, Class Representative

Denton Smith, Class Representative

Nick Schutt is currently filming a pilot order of Citizen, a supernatural drama he created, wrote and directed with Alfonso Gomez-Rejon and Josh Pate for Hulu. The show is described as a fresh take on the hero origin story bending elements of magical realism and gritty vigilantism set against the backdrop of a "supernaturalized" Los Angeles.

1995

Zach Axelrod, Class Representative

Andrew Janko, Class Representative

1996

Chris Hamilton, Class Representative

Tristan Howard, Class Representative Liam Millhiser, Class Representative

About the recent Alumni Reunion dinner, Tristan Howard said, “It was a truly fantastic event. Not only did I get to see a number of my old classmates, but got to spend a lot of time with the teachers that helped make my time at A-S so memorable. It was great to be able to celebrate my 20th reunion, and recognize 25 years of service from some of my favorite teachers, like Michelle Demko and Randy Schrade ’76. Hoping even more people turn out for the next one!”

1997

Jason Farkas, Class Representative Berton Rose, Class Representative

Spring 2016

Horan 1985

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Kumar 1999

alumni NEWS

1998

Andrew Hughes, Class Representative

1999

David Hirschfeld, Class Representative

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Tom Zipser, Class Representative

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Bali Kumar was named a 2016 Fellow of The New Leaders Council of Los Angeles. NLC is a non-profit organization that works to recruit, train and promote young progressive leaders in business and industry. Bali is an attorney at Proskauer Rose LLP, where he practices labor and employment law. Aside from his client commitments, Bali serves as the co-chair of the Proskauer Black Lawyer Affinity Group, serves on the Proskauer Diversity Steering Committee, and sits on the board of directors of The Associates’ Committee, a non-profit organization. Max Warncke returned stateside in February after being on ships like the Tanker Maersk Michigan for work. His mother, Maggie, writes, “He had a great time in St. Petersburg, Russia. It was his Allen-Stevenson education that enhanced his experience.”

2000

Kerim Eken, Class Representative

Andrew Zimmerman, Class Representative

2001

Philip Pilmar, Class Representative

Freddy Gonzalez is currently playing trombone on a world tour with Alejandro Sanz, after wrapping up a Spanish tour last fall. This comes on the heels of completing a Master's degree in Scoring for Film, Television, and Video Games at Berklee College of Music's satellite campus in Valencia, Spain.

2002

Alexander Melnitzky, Class Representative Alex Shipper, Class Representative

Michael Weiss, Class Representative

Gonzalez 2001

Agbi 2008

2003

Paul Alshooler, Class Representative Alex Ingram, Class Representative Reed Katz, Class Representative

PJ Mancuso, Class Representative

2004

Charlie Domash, Class Representative Tim Johnson, Class Representative

Henry Rosenwach, Class Representative

2005

Adam Donaldson, Class Representative

2006

Eric Rosas, Class Representative

Alex Klaris has left Nickelodeon for a new position at Hulu as a Sales Planner. Our best wishes to him in his new role.

2007

Alessandro Santoro, Class Representative

2008

Basil Anderson, Class Representative

Theophilus Agbi is the recipient of an Exchange Fellowship at Amherst College that allowed him to travel to École Normale Supérieure in France to study French legal thinking. Theo will be taking courses in public and private French Law. About the experience, he says, "For me this fellowship is a chance to explore a whole new subject matter that is the fusion of two areas that normally are kept apart in my life." Lex Corwin graduated from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon in May. After graduation he embarked on a 7 week trip that included visits to Cuba, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Croatia, and Scotland. In September, Lex moved to Southern California to work in acquisitions for a real estate development firm. He is looking forward to his next visit to A-S.


Randolph 2013

Cohen 2015

2009

2014

John Hersey has launched a fundraising campaign for Pencils of Promise (PoP), an NPO that builds schools and provides educational resources in Ghana, Guatemala, and Laos. PoP currently builds a new school in one of these countries every 90 hours.

2010

Theodore Agbi, Class Representative Khalid Taylor, Class Representative

2011

Ethan Leff, Class Representative

2012

Jasper Jarecki, Class Representative

Cameron Koffman, Class Representative Jake Taub, Class Representative

2013

Jackson Baker, Class Representative Teddy Landis, Class Representative

Hale Macdonald, Class Representative Max Morris, Class Representative

Andrew Galant, Class Representative

David Goldberg, Class Representative Elijah McNally, Class Representative

Sebastian Stern, Class Representative

Elijah McNally starred in the Trinity School production of Musical Comedy Murders of 1940.

2015

Hugh Esterson, Class Representative Devon Kalsi, Class Representative Davis Lister, Class Representative

More recently, Simon Cohen's new song, which he made with Tom Tyger, called “ Axe," went to number 11 on Beatport. This is iTunes for electronic dance music. He was hoping to break into the top 100, so they were pretty excited.

2016

Kai CedeĂąo, Class Representative

Andrew Gellert, Class Representative Jared Zelman, Class Representative

Benjamin Edelson recently won first prize after playing the horn in the final round of the 92Y Concerto Competition. He will be performing the complete Strauss Horn Concerto No. 1 at an upcoming concert with the 92Y School of Music Orchestra. Trevor Jensen is first chair violin and concertmaster of the Stuyvesant High School Orchestra. He is a freshman.

Matthew Schnitzer, Class Representative Matthew Wayland, Class Representative

Brandon Randolph was featured in the New York Post on February 13 for his success on the basketball court. The article titled "Waiting Game" highlighted Brandon's patience as he waited for his growth spurt, and the hard work he put in to developing his skills as a guard. Today, Brandon has 15 scholarship offers, from the likes of Louisville, St. John's, Marquette, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest and many others. James Stevenson was elected president of the student government at Lawrenceville and Nick Silber, Lawrenceville pitcher, will be taking his ninety mile-an-hour fastball to Rice in Houston next year.

Legacy Admissions

We are delighted to note an increase of interest in Allen-Stevenson among alumni who have sons of school age. Because of this, the School has developed a policy to handle Legacy Status: alumni may request an early admissions decision although Legacy Status does not mean an automatic or guaranteed acceptance. Alumni who are interested in applying their sons for Kindergarten 2017 should call the Admissions Office before June at 212-606-0884.

Spring 2016

John Hersey, Class Representative

Edelson 2016

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THERE ARE MANY WAYS TO BE A BOY…

…AND THE ANNUAL FUND SUPPORTS THEM ALL.

The Annual Fund supports all aspects of an Allen-Stevenson education and impacts each boy and every grade. We are grateful to the parents, alumni, grandparents, parents of alumni, faculty, staff, and friends who choose to support our boys and our School each year through gifts to the Annual Fund. Just as our boys grow from Kindergarten to 9th Grade, your gift grows the legacy of philanthropy at Allen-Stevenson and means that our School will continue to grow, thrive, and educate boys of all ages to become Scholars and Gentlemen.

PLEASE SUPPORT THE ANNUAL FUND BEFORE JUNE 30, 2016

www.allen-stevenson.org/give

QUESTIONS?

Contact Anthony Kapp, Associate Director of Development, at 212-933-5240 or akapp@allen-stevenson.org.


Tuesday, May 10

Alumni Council Meeting 6:30pm Library

Thursday, May 19

Alumni Dodgeball Game 6:00pm - 8:00pm Gym

Monday, June 6

Networking Events Build Connections and Opportunities Are you taking advantage of the vast network of alumni who have careers in everything from finance, real estate and medicine to the arts, the movie business and architecture? Allen-Stevenson boasts alumni affinity groups for all professionals and at every level, whether you are just starting your job search, or seeking to expand your knowledge after years in your field.

Back to 78th Street Party for the Class of 2013 6:00pm - 8:00pm Landis Assembly Hall

Contact one of our organizers to learn more about upcoming events:

New Alumni Breakfast & Closing Exercises Lincoln Paine '74, speaker Dining Room / Gym

Geoff Sanders ’92 gsanders@alum.mit.edu

Wednesday, June 8

Alumni in Advertising, Marketing & Digital Media Alumni Attorneys Group

Fred Isquith ’97 freddy.isquith@gmail.com

Alumni in Architecture & Design

For more information about these events or to RSVP, please contact Anthony Kapp Alumni Director 212-933-5240 or akapp@allen-stevenson.org.

Kerim Eken ’00 kerimeken@gmail.com

Nikolas Dando-Haenisch ’82 nikolas.dandohaenisch@grimshawarchitects.com

Alumni in Entertainment

Christopher Moscato ’98 chrismoscato@yahoo.com

Alumni in Finance

Larry Glassberg ’93 lglassberg@maximgrp.com

Alumni in Real Estate

Simon Wasserberger ’85 simon.wasserberger@ ll-holding.com

Don’t see your field represented? Learn how to start an affinity group by contacting the Alumni Office at alumni@allen-stevenson.org.

Alumni Council Seeking Nominations for the Ron Rolfe '60 Distinguished Alumni Service Award The Distinguished Alumni Service Award, the highest accolade reserved solely for alumni of The AllenStevenson School, recognizes outstanding alumni who are pillars in their chosen field, and have shown exceptional civic leadership or made significant contributions benefitting their community, nation or school. The award was established in 2014, and named for Ronald S. Rolfe ’60 in recognition of his unwavering commitment, leadership and service to education. The award aims to recognize exceptional individuals who exemplify The AllenStevenson Code in their daily lives through service to their community, nation or school.

Please nominate your peers by submitting a written nomination to alumni@allen-stevenson.org. All nominations should include biographical and other pertinent information about the nominee. Letters supporting nominee achievements are strongly encouraged.

Spring 2016

Calendar Alumni Events

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In Memoriam Lewis M. Dabney III '46 of Talbot County in Easton, MD, died

Lamplighter

peacefully at his home on the Miles River on December 22 surrounded by his family.

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Born in Dallas in 1932, the son of Lewis M. Dabney Jr. and Crystal Ray Ross, Lewis and his brother, Ross, moved to Washington as young boys while their father was practicing law at the Securities and Exchange Commission. They later moved to New York City, where he attended Allen-Stevenson and spent his high school years at the Millbrook School. He graduated from Swarthmore College in 1953, and received a doctorate from Columbia University in 1965.

He began teaching English at Smith College in 1966. Lewis and his wife, Sarah Pettibone, both taught English as Fulbright Scholars at the University of Goteborg in Sweden for two years before Dabney returned home to teach at Vassar College. After six years at Vassar, Dabney and his family moved to Laramie, Wyoming, where he taught at the University for thirty-five years. During his tenure at the University, he briefly was the Director of the American Heritage Center and worked on various books at the Institute for Advanced Studies at Princeton University, Yale University and the National Humanities Center. Lewis wrote a number of books, including the authorized and definitive biography, Edmund Wilson: A Life in Literature, published in 2005.

Exuberant and deeply discerning, Lewis quoted Shakespeare, Yeats, Faulkner, Twain and Dickinson with equal authority and sang jazz songs, spirituals and Gilbert and Sullivan with equal joy. He and his wife, Sarah were beloved for their abundant entertaining, abiding friendships, generosity of spirit and verve. Lewis was deeply committed to teaching and forged long friendships with students and colleagues. He inspired devotion and friendship in unlikely places. Often it was the person he met in everyday life who remembered him vividly. Neighbors and ordinary acquaintances responded to his generous spirit with pleasure, even amazement. Lewis is survived by his wife, Sarah Pettibone Dabney; his two children, Lewis M. Dabney IV and Elizabeth Dabney Hochman and three grandchildren, Catherine Hochman, Caroline Hochman and Lewis M. Dabney V.

John Angelo '56, the New York financier who co-founded

investment powerhouse Angelo, Gordon & Co. and was its chief executive, passed away January 1 after a long battle with cancer. The Allen-Stevenson community remembers John fondly.

After leaving Allen-Stevenson, John went on to Riverdale and St. Lawrence University. He began his finance career in 1966 working on the bond floor of the New York Stock Exchange, which led to his eventual recruitment to the arbitrage desk at Bear Stearns. He worked at L.F. Rothschild, where he became a partner in 1975 and later vice chairman of the board, before founding Angelo, Gordon & Co. with Michael Gordon, who said, "John was one of the most forward-looking people I have known, and a driving force in achieving success for our clients and for us." Angelo Gordon went on to become a major player in distressed-debt and real-estate investing, while also running a private-equity business that has acquired midsize companies ranging from the Japanese-food restaurant chain Benihana to niche lenders.

On the 40th anniversary of his graduation from Allen-Stevenson, John returned as graduation speaker. He spoke of growing up in a "nicer and kinder" New York City, the never-ending stairs of the A-S schoolhouse, football on Randall's Island, Stanley Gauger's orchestra, and the lifelong bond he formed with classmate Michael Eisner '57, whom he called his closest friend. He told the story of a monumental matchup with Buckley when Michael, as quarterback, called an unexpected play which resulted in a series of handoffs between some of the world's future top players in business and education, including Lewis Bernard '56, John Ernst '56 and John Field '55, before the ball landed in his hands and the game was lost. The moral of his story: "Expect the unexpected, keep it simple, and stay in touch with your Allen-Stevenson friends." We are honored to have stayed in touch with John over the years, and to count him as one of Allen-Stevenson's closest friends and supporters. John is survived by his wife, Judy, and their three children: Jack, Jesse and Kate.


19, 2016, after a long illness, which he never let define him. Ian maintained a wonderful attitude and strong sense of determination throughout. He is survived by his loving wife, Jennifer Livingston. He is also survived by his parents, Gerald and Judith Adler, his sister, Marlo (Evan) Feldman, Jennifer's parents, Andrew and Anne Livingston, Jennifer's sisters, Julie (Jeffrey) Echt, Karen (Craig) Lewis, and eight nieces and nephews, all of whom loved and adored him greatly.

Ian was the Senior Director of Healthcare at Marwood Group, where he was responsible for overall healthcare strategy and policy for the past 15 years. His family, Allen-Stevenson classmates, many friends and colleagues shared a mutual admiration for Ian's loving, generous and genuine character. Ian received a Masters of Public Administration in Healthcare Financial Management and Policy from New York University and a Bachelor of Science degree from Skidmore College. Contributions in Ian's name may be made to the LeukemiaLymphoma Society and The Bone Marrow Foundation.

William Thurston Sargent, Jr. '98, beloved son of William T. Sargent and Julie T. Sargent, died tragically on January 25. He was 33. Will was born in New York City on November 6, 1982. He attended the Allen-Stevenson School, the Berkshire School in Sheffield, Massachusetts, and Lynchburg College in Lynchburg, Virginia, where he joined the Sigma Mu Sigma fraternity. From a young age, Will had a larger than life persona that overflowed with intelligence and foolery, as evidenced by his being voted "wittiest" in the Ninth Grade and "class clown" in high school. He was known for frequent and spontaneous performances featuring song, stand-up comedy and performance art.

Will was a gifted entertainer whose outgoing manner and edgy physicality also helped him excel as an athlete. He played varsity football and lacrosse in high school and represented his home town as a member of the New York City lacrosse team that competed in the 2000 Empire State Games. Will loved playing pick-up basketball in Central Park, ice hockey at Chelsea Piers, and throwing a football on Randall's Island, where Allen-Stevenson held athletic games and practices. An avid outdoorsman, he also loved skiing, fishing and hunting. Will's thirst for adventure led him to places like Alaska, Spain and an Outward Bound trip through Chile. His favorite destination was his family's home in Hyannis Port, Mass., where he had a loyal contingent of lifelong friends. An aspiring entrepreneur, Will began working in sales at hospitality software company Revinate in 2012. The following year, he traveled to the company's Amsterdam office to train members of its European sales team. An artist at heart, Will was endlessly creative, writing songs, playing the guitar and singing for friends and family. Will also had a unique and instinctual sense of fashion that combined traditional elegance with casual preppiness. On a dance floor, his graceful presence felt reminiscent of an earlier era. Will loved delicacies like Scottish salmon and caviar but was also known for his sweet tooth. He had particular weaknesses for Nutella, meringue cookies, and the jingle of an ice cream truck. He will be deeply mourned by his parents, adoring sister, Kimball Gardner Sargent, and many loving aunts, uncles and cousins. Will's family asks that donations be made in his name to the Allen-Stevenson School Athletic Department.

Spring 2016

Ian Adler '87 passed away on February

51


Did You Know? is a column that highlights our many interesting parents.

If you’d like to submit

information for our next issue, please email it to Casper Caldarola.

Lamplighter

I am a native New Yorker that came to the modeling and acting profession via a somewhat non-traditional route. I was an Assistant Buyer, selling clothes at Bloomingdale’s before I started wearing them as a career. Before my freshman year at NYU’s Stern School, I modeled for a swimwear company, and continued that part-time through graduation as a way to help finance my education. And after a year or so in the management training program at Bloomingdale’s, I was recruited right on the sales floor and back into modeling after being spotted by a photographer’s agent, while working in women’s sportswear.

52

Growing up in an entrepreneurial home, I wanted to be everything from a surgeon to an actress to a detective. Along the way, I graduated from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, worked in construction development, then the banking industry, and eventually went to Cardozo School of Law. I worked my way up to become a partner in a litigation firm, but later left my 20-year law practice to become a literary agent. I founded the Liza Royce Agency in 2011.

I have always had a strong sphere of influence from friends in the publishing industry, and had been searching for something creative to do for a long time after my children were born. Besides, when you come from an entrepreneurial family and are a perpetual student who loves to keep learning, it’s in your blood to take risks and try new things!

LRA’s goal was, and remains, to represent authors in all stages of their careers, from the most established to those developing their craft, as well as debuts. LRA welcomes strong voices and plot driven works, from picture books through adult projects, fiction and non-fiction. Our inaugural books became available in stores January 2013. Our first was an Edgar nominee, another was an Indie Next Pick, and two others were optioned for film. LRA’s success began right out of the gate. Here’s to more great books! Website: www.lizaroyce.com / Twitter: @lizaroyceagency

Liza Fleissig P ’17 Founder/Literary Agent, Liza Royce Agency

I soon found myself living in Europe, modeling and building my portfolio. Soon after my return to New York, I signed with the Wilhelmina Agency and began my career. My career has spanned over 25 years, put me in great countries and locations, numerous catalogs, editorial publications, advertisements and national commercials. I really enjoyed working regularly and directly with top designers including Tommy Hilfiger, Michael Kors and Derek Lam. To this day, I love this work and am currently represented by Bella Agency and Innovative Artists. My husband Clarence and I love the vibrancy of New York and feel blessed and fortunate to be raising our children in this amazing city.

Aischa Mitchell P ’22 Model

Jumping off bridges, crashing cars, and being set on fire are all in a day’s work for me. I’m often asked why I would choose to do these things for a living. But how boring would movies and television shows be without people like me? I love being a stunt actor. I knew at an early age that I wanted to entertain people. I couldn’t picture myself doing anything else. I had stars in my eyes when I attended Harbor Junior High School for the Performing Arts in Harlem and Talent Unlimited High School on the Upper East Side. When I booked my very first job as the lead in a Burger King commercial, those stars turned into fireworks. For over three decades, I have enjoyed very interesting and diverse roles in commercials, movies and television shows. Besides making people happy, part of the attraction for me is that no two jobs are ever the same, I get to meet and work with all types of people, and I travel.

I have put the knowledge and experience that I acquired over the years to good use by starting my own independent film company, Derrick Simmons Film Works. My passion for arts and entertainment has inspired me to write, direct and produce my own films. I also visit schools to talk with kids who are interested in pursuing a career in this industry. My own sons, Derrick ’15 and Daniel ’18 have done stunts in movies already. I’m proud to know that I’ve inspired them to step out of the box and be open to possibilities.

Derrick Simmons P ’15 and ’18 Stuntman

During the global financial crisis, I was living with my wife and two small children in Tokyo, heading cross-border Japanese mergers and acquisitions for an investment bank. I was concerned that if the bank where we held most of our cash went under, we would lose our deposits. The quickest solution was to spread cash across many banks, so that we could benefit from more FDIC deposit insurance. Online banks, which have lower operating costs, were also paying significantly higher rates than our regular brick-and-mortar bank.

It took too long to manage my portfolio of online savings accounts manually, so eventually I built a model. I realized that if we could automate this solution, many more people would benefit. The company I founded, MaxMyInterest, has developed a fully-automated technology solution to help individuals and their financial advisors optimize their yields on FDIC-insured cash in the bank. Our members are now earning approximately 1.00% on their cash, ten times the national average of 0.10%. Max is working with registered investment advisors, wealth managers, family offices, and individuals, and is offered as an employee benefit. We’re also proud that Max members can donate some or all of the incremental interest they earn directly to Robin Hood, New York’s largest poverty-fighting nonprofit.

I feel fortunate that I’ve had the chance to start this company with a great team. We’re helping people earn more on the cash portion of their portfolios without sacrificing safety or liquidity.

Gary Zimmerman P ’24 Founder & CEO, MaxMyInterest


Save the Date!

ALUMNI REUNION WEEKEND March 10-11, 2017

Classes of 1952, 1957, 1962, 1967, 1972, 1977, 1982, 1987, 1992, 1997, 2002, 2007 and 2012 will be celebrating milestone reunions in 2017. Contact your Class Representative or the Alumni Office for details. Weekend festivities will include: Private parties for milestone reunion classes All-Alumni Party Open House Rehearsal of Gilbert & Sullivan Alumni & Faculty Basketball Game and more!

www.allen-stevenson.org/reunion

If you are interested in serving on the Reunion Planning Committee, or helping with your Class Party, contact Anthony Kapp at akapp@allen-stevenson.org.


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THE ALLEN-STEVENSON SCHOOL 132 East 78th Street, New York, NY 10075-0381

Non-Profit Organization U.S.Postage Paid New York, NY Permit No. 8048


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