Lamplighter Winter 2017

lamplighter

THE ALLEN-STEVENSON SCHOOL

Winter 2017

Leadership 2017-2018

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 Alexandra Wallace Creed Paquita Y. Davis-Friday Kerianne Flynn Kenneth M. Garschina Stephanie Drescher Gorman George Hall Monica Keany Peter B. Kellner ’84 Alexander Klabin Michael S. Klein Rashida La Lande Daniel Lascano Jamie Magid ’91* Greg Mondre Metin Negrin Lara Oboler Anupama Poole Liz Steinberg* Jay Wilkins Jim Wilson *member ex officio

Trustees Emeriti Marian R. Bicks Jane Phillips Donaldson Richard N. Foster D. Ross Hamilton John J. Hannan Susan B. Hirschhorn 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 deF. Millard Richard C. Perry '70 Joe L. Roby Andrew P. Steffan Leonard A. Wilf

Alumni Council

Executive Committee Jamie Magid ’91, President Alfred Burger ’87,Vice-President Tom Zipser ’99,Vice-President Alex Klaris ’06,Vice-President Alumni Annual Fund Alfred Burger ’87, 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 James Burge ’17 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 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 Van Furniss ’91 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 Ian Henderson ’17 John C. Henry Jr. ’84 Ryder Henry ’17 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 Addeson Lehv ’18 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* Eric Rosas ’06 Berton Rose ’97 John Rose ’90 Louis Rose ’86* Henry J. Rosenwach ’04 Alex Ross ’17 Eric E. Rothstein ’81* 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

Parents Association

Liz Steinberg, President Bethan Willis,Vice-President Shilpa Gupta, Co-Treasurer Christina de Marval, Co-Treasurer Audrey Rasch, Class Representatives Coordinator Mase Kerdel-DeMarco, Communications Coordinator

School Leadership Team David Trower ’95, Headmaster Lower School Stephen Warner, Lower School Head Jennifer Zimmermann, Assistant LS Head, 1st & 2nd Grades Kristin Filling, Assistant LS Head, 3rd Grade Lauren Pemberton, Director of After School, K Specialist Middle School Kimberly Kyte, Middle School Head Ben Neulander, Assistant MS Head Upper School Steven Cohen, Upper School Head JP Jacquet, Assistant US Head

Winnie Barnes, Director of Organizational Initiatives Hydee Bressler, Director of Finance & Operations Casper Caldarola, Director of Communications Katy Duckworth-Schachter, Director of Development Susan Etess, Director of Admissions, Enrollment & Financial Aid Anne Meyer, Director of Learning Resources Jennifer Vermont-Davis, Co-Director of Community Life + Diversity

lamplighter THE ALLEN-STEVENSON SCHOOL

Director of Communications Casper Caldarola

Associate Director of Communications Sarah Woods Contributing Writers Rich Alifano Stacy Donovan JP Jacquet Samara Spielberg David Trower h’95 Jennifer Zimmermann Photographers Ben Neulander Harrison Schneider ‘19 Louisa Wells Sarah Woods Designer Mase Kerdel-DeMarco Cover photo of the unicorn mascot at Founders Day 2017 by Louisa Wells Back cover photo of Young Alumni Day 2016 by Louisa Wells

Winter 2017

Headmaster’s Message

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Around A-S

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Welcome New Members of Our Community

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Features:

Responsive Classroom Enhances Community and Learning for Lower School Boys

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Leadership: Establishing Muscle Memory Through Thought and Practice

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Team Activities Build Community in Sixth Grade Give My Regards to Broadway Let’s Get Moving

New Faculty Mentor Program Designed and Initiated

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Faculty Grants and Staff

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Closing Exercises

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News

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Alumni Spotlight, Events and News

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Did You Know?

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Annual Giving Report 2016-17 Corrections

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.

We regret the following omissions: - Esi and Destafhino Bracey, Parent - Michelle Demko, Faculty & Staff Giving - Landon Hilliard, IV ’76, a 31-year consecutive donor to the Schrade Family Music Fund - Catherine Meckler, Parent - Jodi and Luke Sarsfield, Headmaster’s Circle, Francis Bellows Allen Society ($50,000+) - Lauren Sclafani and Ralph Weisgerber, Parent 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.

Drumroll please…

To celebrate Allen-Stevenson’s 135th year, we held a contest to name our Unicorn mascot. Launched on Founders Day, the contest was open to the entire Allen-Stevenson community—students, parents, alumni, parents of alumni, trustees, faculty and staff (past and present). The mascot paid a surprise visit to the Founders Day Assembly to encourage everyone to participate. The boys were very enthusiastic!

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The Unicorn is one of the most famous of the fabulous beasts. The mascot of the School is known for being decent and pure. A fleet and mighty warrior, the Unicorn exemplifies the fortitude of character and strength of conviction that the School seeks to give every Allen-Stevenson boy.

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We received well over 150 submissions. Some funny (Fluffy Duffy), some competitive (Buckley), some a little expected (Allen, Stephen) and some with a respectful nod (Kersey, Cole). One name encompassed all the attributes of our Unicorn: strong, kind, inspiring, and a little magical too.

The name most favored was Robby, in honor of Mrs. Robelyn Schrade-James. She was our beloved Lower School Music Teacher from 1989-2014. Robelyn brought strength, kindness and creativity to everything she did at Allen-Stevenson, and has forever left an imprint.

Join us in officially welcoming Robby to the Allen-Stevenson family.

Mr. Trower teaching a class in the early 1990s

Announcing the unicorn naming competition

M E S S A G E

Remember the words of the musician who was asked which was greater, knowledge or wisdom. “Without knowledge,” he answered, “I could not play the violin. Without wisdom, I could not play the music.”

—American author, Kent Nerburn, in Simple Truths: Gentle Guidance on the Big Issues in Life The theme of this Lamplighter is the continuum of change and continuity. Here we highlighted some of the new units we are putting into the educational program, to show what is innovative as well as how these elements build on what we have done in the past. Usually what we do from day to day is a means to accomplish something more important. However, when it comes to curriculum, my preference is often to favor evolution over revolution and to experiment or to pilot programs before adopting them entirely.

Allen-Stevenson’s mission statement captures this continuum when it refers to the “enlightened traditional” approach we take in educating our boys to become scholars and gentlemen. Good learning is a process of many moving parts over time. I usually explain the concept of “enlightened traditional” by noting that we care about what Allen-Stevenson has taught in the past and always want to think about how best to educate our boys to prepare them for their futures. Nerburn’s illustration associates gaining wisdom with the acquisition of knowledge, and vice versa, but both are critically important dimensions of good learning.

As you may know, every five years independent schools go through an accreditation process designed to help them become nimble and stronger. Organized by NYSAIS, the New York State Association of Independent Schools, this process includes a comprehensive self-study that is followed by the arrival of a visiting committee of educators and administrators from schools all over New York State. The evaluation is based on our own standard, as articulated in the mission statement. Accreditation is a useful, challenging and exhilarating process, but one that takes a great deal of energy and thought from all administrators, faculty and staff.

Our four-day visit took place in March 2017, and our Visiting Committee was composed of 14 members. In preparing the self-study, I had

encouraged our faculty and staff to be totally honest in what they wrote. So our report about Allen-Stevenson was direct, even intense, in appraising the School. When we received the committee report in June, we were eager to see how our peers from across the State had reacted to our work. Along with many thoughtful suggestions, the Committee’s report concluded as follows: The Allen-Stevenson School is a remarkable place, steeped in tradition, responsive to the present and focused on the future. There is genuine adherence to its mission to educate boys in foundational and transformative ways. The Visiting Committee experienced a school ambitious in its educational goals, positive in its relationships, and driven by the expectations of robust learning and an ethic of care.

Because Allen-Stevenson’s style of decisionmaking is reflective and analytical, its thorough self study provided the Visiting Committee opportunities for honest and deep discussions about present realities and possible directions. The school is in the midst of an impressive array of curricular initiatives, building projects, and philanthropic support.

At this historical time of growth, there are issues to be resolved in the next few years.

We feel that the school has the people, alignment of purpose, and momentum to meet its goals with great success.

Whether the goal is the violin or the music, or both, we want to increase both knowledge and wisdom as we educate Allen-Stevenson boys.

This issue features articles drawn from many aspects of Allen-Stevenson’s educational program. There is a mix of ideas from academics, athletics and the arts, as well as pieces that speak to leadership, character and social-emotional learning. There are also articles about opportunities we give faculty and staff, both new and seasoned, to grow professionally and personally. On behalf of all of us, I am grateful to everyone who has contributed to the preparation of this issue of the Lamplighter. We certainly hope you’ll enjoy it.

Fortiter et Recte!

David Trower h’95 Headmaster

Winter 2017

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H E A D M A S T E R ’ S

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In & out of the classroom >

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Enensa Thomason’24 with Tara Parsons

Third Graders Learn to Problem Solve When Building Cranes

The Third Grade boys in woodshop with teachers Dr. Rob McCallum and Ms. Tara Parsons have designed their own cranes on paper and just embarked on the construction phase. “This is quite a challenging project for them, as they ultimately have to include a number of components in their cranes, such as a pulley, caboose, swivel point, and optional hydraulics,” said Rob McCallum.

The project begins with research on various types of cranes, as well as learning how the hoist works, noting that some cranes have hydraulics, while others do not. Rob McCallum went on to

Third graders plan their crane designs.

say, “The boys get really excited when they realize that we can create our very own hydraulic system.”

drilling and adding a piece of dowel. Understanding that the whole base doesn’t swivel is also conceptually challenging.

Throughout the project, the boys learn how to collaborate and teach each other requisite skills. “We post a chart on the wall for students to indicate when they have completed a particular step. That way, when a boy is beginning to work on a specific stage and is stuck he knows to whom he can turn for assistance.

The boys who are teaching also learn a lot by having to explain how they worked something out,” said Tara Parsons.

The next stages will include the caboose, the boom and then the pulleys. The final test for their cranes will be to see if they can pick up a bucket of paint without the whole thing tipping over.

“A number of the boys want to add a wrecking ball, so I’ve gently encouraged them to add it underneath a hook,” said Rob McCallum.

After sawing wood to form the base, the boys can add additional wooden pieces to shape the crane aesthetically.

For example, one boy is creating a boat crane, so he had to add a couple of triangles to form the prow of the boat.

Translating their drawing into an actual object is not easy.

Creating the swivel point is quite a feat too, as it requires

Rob McCallum explained, “After completing the project, my hope is that the boys really understand basic engineering concepts and have developed skills in problem-solving by finding a way to improvise if something isn’t working.”

George O’Connor points to his Olympians drawings

Poseiden! Zeus! Hera! Athena!

An excited group of fifth grade boys could be heard calling out the names of Greek gods and goddesses as graphic novelist George O’Connor, writer and illustrator of Olympians, pointed to a series of vivid comic drawings on a screen at the front of the room.

The boys were absolutely captivated throughout the time that Mr. O’Connor described in detail some of his Olympians books, explaining why he chose a particular Greek god or goddess, how he decided to draw them and why he included particular elements in an illustration.

The boys are currently studying Greek mythology in class and then writing their own version of a Greek myth.

Their passion for Greek mythology seems to be deep as was demonstrated by their knowledge of the gods and their powers during Mr. O’Connor’s visit.

Describing his love for drawing as early as Third Grade, Mr. O’Connor asked

the boys who amongst them likes to write and who likes to draw. Many hands went up!

He went on to describe where this interest has taken him today. “I have the coolest job in the world. I get to do both, and travel around the world and talk about it,” he said.

Mr. O’Connor did explain that it isn’t all straight forward. He talked to the boys about writer’s block. Then, he walked the boys through his drawing process, beginning by showing them a pencil drawing of a cover, letting them know that his steps include learning from his mistakes, which might include throwing something away and starting all over again. “Every time you draw you get better.

Rather than erase what you draw put it aside and make another version.” He tasked the boys with going home and taking out five pieces of paper, then coming up with an idea in their mind that they want to draw. He told them to have someone time them for one minute for each drawing and to use a pen so they are not tempted to erase.

He said that they probably wouldn’t finish the first time.

Do it a total of five times and he said by the fifth time the

drawing will be way better than the first.

At the conclusion of his presentation, Mr. O’Connor signed some of the boys’ sketchbooks, chatting with them about their ideas and of course, the many facets of the Greek gods and goddesses!

To read more about Olympians and George O’Connor go to http://olympiansrule.com.

Seventh Graders Create Spanish Skits Based on Archetypal Teachers and Students The Seventh Grade just completed a unit based on the Señor Wooly video “Sé Chévere”—“Be Cool.”

“The video is about a chill teacher who allows the kids in his class to do whatever they want,” explained seventh graders Oliver Schneider and David Peart. “The teacher doesn’t care about teaching and encourages other teachers to do the same.”

“It’s also similar to School of Rock,” said David.

After watching the video the class talked through the story, in particular discussing what attributes make up the classic archetypal good teacher and bad teacher. They then did the same for a good student and a bad student. Using newly acquired Spanish vocabulary, the boys went on to create their own characters, making sure to include one good and one bad teacher and one good and one bad student.

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Graphic Novelist George O’Connor Thoroughly Captivates Fifth Graders

For the final step of the project, the boys were placed in small groups to work together on producing their own skits based on the scenario that there is a new person at Allen-Stevenson.

The boys could decide whether this person was a student, a teacher, a principal, a maintenance person, etc. They had to come up with an original plot to show how this person integrates into their community. The skit could be

Lincoln Williams performing in his Spanish skit

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In & out of the classroom >

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larger than life and funny.

And of course, the performance had to be in Spanish and memorization was encouraged.

Spanish Teacher Stephen Krawec said, “The boys were really engaged with this assignment. I think that they really appreciate the opportunity to step into others’ shoes and elevate certain archetypes and stereotypes to a comedic level. The boys are able to use their experiences and knowledge of the world to breathe life into these characters and subsequently

blow them out of proportion, all completely in Spanish. Not only is it a great way for them to apply their new grammar and vocabulary in a project-based environment, but they also have to polish their presentational speaking, which is a really important transferable skill for our boys.”

Celebrating 135 Years of Allen-Stevenson Allen-Stevenson is celebrating its 135th year of educating boys and inspiring them to become scholars and gentlemen. Throughout the year, we will find opportunities to mark this occasion. Here are some fun photos from different decades in the School’s history.

See if you can spot a few familiar faces and guess the decade.

Joe Baynes and Monica Matthew

SAGE Dining Services® Cooks for A-S

A new addition at AllenStevenson this year is a partnership with SAGE Dining Services. SAGE brought in a new Chef/Co-Manager, Mr. Joe Baynes, to work alongside Ms. Monica Matthew and with her incredible staff.

Established in 1990, SAGE is the leading food service provider for independent schools and colleges throughout North America.

SAGE's unparalleled expertise in nutrition, sustainability, and culinary trends produces exceptional dining experiences that delight the senses. SAGE provides our school community with customized, delicious, dietitian-approved meals, cooked from scratch using fresh, locally sourced ingredients. Using the best ingredients, like: • Fresh fruits and vegetables • Fresh salads and housemade dressings • Whole-grain breads, bagels • House-roasted and nitratefree sourced deli meats • Trans-fat free oils and MSG-free seasonings • Antibiotic- and hormonefree milk • Antibiotic-free chicken • Cage-free, Certified Humane® eggs • Vegetarian and vegan options So far, so yummy!

Headmaster David Trower with Alex Gellert ‘79, P’14, ’16, ’18

After college, Alex pursued a career in advertising eventually landing a job at Scali, McCabe Sloves. In 1999, he joined Merkley + Partners as CEO where he remains today. Over the years he has worked on a variety of accounts including MercedesBenz, Arby’s, Nutella, Chase, Ralston-Purina, and countless other accounts.

He is the author of the book, How to be Your Own Phone Company, which was a consumer guide to the 1984 breakup of AT&T. Alex is also a board member of the Johnny Mac Soldiers Fund, an organization that provides scholarships for college for children of military personnel who have died while on active duty.

Alex and his wife, Jean, will celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary next September.

Beyond all this, Alex takes the greatest pride in his three children: Alexander ’14, Andrew ’16 and Aidan ’18— all of who are Allen-Stevenson graduates…and for the most part scholars and gentlemen.

S P E E C H B Y A L E X G E L L E RT ‘ 7 9

Good Morning. Students, faculty, staff, administration and Mr. Trower, it is my great honor to be here today as your Founders Day speaker. This is a daunting task for me for two reasons: First, I feel the pressure to live up to the tradition of the many excellent Founders Day speakers who have come before, and second because I was a student at Allen-Stevenson over 40 years ago and frankly my memory is just not that good. In fact, it was suggested to me that I could just make things up to have a good speech. And believe me I thought about doing just that.

But there is one giant flaw in that plan and he is sitting right there (point to Mr. Kersey). Mr. Kersey is the only remaining teacher at A-S who was here when I attended the school. Now, I could still try to completely make things up and hope his memory is worse than mine. But he seems pretty sharp to me so I think I best stick to the facts I remember. However, before I start, let’s give him a round of applause for nearly 50 years of teaching and for remembering most of it!

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Founders Day >

Alex is a graduate of the class of 1979 from Allen-Stevenson.

After that he attended boarding school at Middlesex and then went on to graduate from Hobart and William Smith Colleges in 1986 with a double major in Art History and Economics.

I bring what I hope is a unique perspective on Allen-Stevenson because I have been a student, a parent and a trustee of the School. In fact, in 2012, I was an alumnus, a trustee and a parent in each of the lower, middle and upper schools. So, I have covered a lot of bases. The privilege of being part of AllenStevenson from so many different groups has really helped shape me into the person I am today. It is the view of A-S from these various perspectives that I am going to use for my talk today and I think provides lessons for all of us.

Let’s start with something that happened when I was a student here. In eighth grade, some of us misbehaved in gym class. I am not sure I remember the exact offense, but I know it was

Third and fourth graders made toothpick marshmallow sculptures

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Founders Day

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Second and seventh graders make pop-up birthday cards

something that we had been asked to stop doing repeatedly and we simply ignored the teacher. I know that would never happen today…right eighth graders? The teacher became so frustrated that he marched us into a closet where they stored basketballs, shut the door, and locked us in with a pad lock.

Shocking, right? Can you imagine that happening today? Let’s have a quick show of hands of how many of you would be OK with that? But before we judge that teacher, let’s look at it from his perspective. He was just so darn frustrated with us. He had asked and asked us to behave and we simply were not listening. He needed to do something bold to get our attention and let us know he was serious. I can assure you the sound of a combination padlock clicking shut on the outside of a door gets your attention pretty quickly. We sat in that closet for over an hour and reflected on how we ended up there. Beyond letting us know that he was mad, the time “locked up” gave us a chance to think about the teacher’s perspective and his frustration. We certainly weren’t saints all the time after that, but we understood better the frustration we could cause as a group, and it made us better listeners. From then on, we were able to see a little better how a teacher viewed kids that didn’t listen…and it made us better people.

Now, I want to tell you a story from when I was a parent. For this, I’d like to single out Ms. Sklow who was the advisor to all three of my boys in their final year in eighth grade. At each of their final conferences in the spring, Ms. Sklow would offer each of them some parting advice for the first days of High School. For Alexander, she encouraged him to speak up more and have more presence. For Andrew, she asked him to think about first impressions, and to show his serious side first before his more “fun” side. For Aidan, she wanted him to stand on his own and not just follow in his brothers’ footsteps. In each

Finally, as a trustee, we faced many important and serious issues regarding the future of the school. I’d love to share a real story from a trustee meeting with you, but then Mr. Trower would race down here and yank me off the stage. As they should be, trustee meetings are kept private. What I can tell you is that we often don’t agree in trustee meetings. In fact, we have had many, many healthy debates. What is certain is that everyone debating has the best interest of the school at heart. And most of these discussions end with us all coming to the best decision we can because we listen to each other, and respect our differing opinions. That can only happen if you can truly understand why and how someone has the opinion they do. It requires you to listen carefully, put yourself in someone else’s shoes and understand where they are coming from.

These examples have taught me a valuable lesson for my job and for life: It is always important to be able to understand another person’s perspective and how he/she got there. Too often in life, we only see things the way we want to or the way that we think is right. But, I think it is critically important for each of us to be able to understand where someone else is coming from and to be respectful of another person’s point of view. It is why “respectful” is one of the core words of Allen-Stevenson and is in the floor when you walk in each morning.

I think too often we think of respectful as being polite towards others…and that certainly is one of its meanings. But I would encourage you to also think of it as a way to understand how other people view a situation differently than you. I hope it makes each of you more empathetic to another person because empathy is a powerful way to bring people together

And this goes well beyond my experiences at Allen-Stevenson.

I run an advertising agency with many different types of clients. At its most basic, our job is to make people want to go out and buy something they don’t necessarily need. To do that effectively, we need to be able to “get in their heads” and understand what touches them. Understand what connects with them. And understand what motivates them. Recently, we did a commercial for our client Mercedes-Benz. The commercial is the story of a young man who makes his father drive him

Julian Kashef's origami heart for Hearts for Hearts

Julia Kunin assists with card making through a blizzard to the movie theatre for a date. When he gets to the theatre there is no one there and he thinks that the snow has prevented the young girl from showing up. At the last second, the Mercedes drives through the snow and the kids go in to watch the movie. The commercial was very successful because it taps into a lot of truths. It taps into parents wanting to support their children. It taps into overcoming hurdles. It taps into young relationships. It taps into hope. And it taps into doing the right thing.

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case, Ms. Sklow’s advice was spot on. I do not believe that she could have given such insightful advice if she hadn’t put herself in their shoes and really thought about how each one experienced school and life each day. Her ability to understand each child’s behavior as a “child” rather than as a teacher makes her a better person and better at her job.

I hope you can see how that commercial can only happen if we all understand the perspective of different people, have empathy for others, and try to support them.

And the same is true for the stories I have told about Allen-Stevenson.

By the end of my ball closet experience, we had empathy for the teacher. I know Ms. Sklow had empathy toward my boys.

And the trustees truly have empathy for each other. Empathy and being able to see the perspective of others is one of the greatest gifts that Allen-Stevenson gave to me. And that perspective serves me every day with my family, friends, clients and strangers I meet on the street. The gift of understanding a different perspective is a great lesson to learn in a school, a city, a country and the world that gets smaller every day. SO, here’s what I want each of you to do after I am done: Pick one person in your life—a friend, an adult, a sibling, anyone— and spend a few minutes trying to understand something you disagree on from their perspective. Really try to see it their way. I think if you do this, it will be the start of a skill that will help you in your careers and more importantly in life.

Thank you.

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Welcome

WELCOME NEW TRUSTEES

Elizabeth Steinberg

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Elizabeth Steinberg graduated from the University of Wisconsin at Madison with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. Liz received a master’s degree in Special Education from the Bank Street Graduate School of Education in New York. Liz then taught for ten years at the Gateway School, a special education school for children ages 5-12. At Gateway, Liz was the head teacher for a class of second, third and fourth graders. In addition, she supervised Gateway’s NYSAIS accreditation process.

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Recently, Liz has served as Vice President of the PA at Allen-Stevenson and as Class Representative at both Allen-Stevenson and The Spence School. Liz has also been a strong advocate for diversity initiatives at school, participating on committees and in seminars and conferences on the topic.

Liz resides in New York City with her husband Michael, daughter Kate (age 11), son Zachary ’23 and puppy Sadie.

Jay Wilkins

Jay Wilkins is a Senior Managing Director of Harvest Partners, a New York-based private equity fund with $4 billion of capital under management. At Harvest, Jay is primarily responsible for leading the firm's investments in the healthcare industry. Prior to Harvest, Jay was a senior investment professional at DLJ Merchant Banking Partners and North Castle Partners. He started his career in the investment banking division of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette.

Jay and his wife, McCartney, both graduated from the Peabody College of Education at Vanderbilt University with honors.

Jay majored in Human & Organizational Development, and McCartney majored in Special Education and Elementary Education. McCartney taught at The Allen-Stevenson School from 2005-2014, most recently as the Learning Specialist for the Upper School.

Prior to Vanderbilt, Jay attended The Haverford School, a K-12 private preparatory school for boys in the Philadelphia area.

Jay has served as a member of the Board of Trustees of Haverford for the past seven years and serves on the Development Committee and the Capital Campaign Leadership Committee. Jay also served as a founding member of the Steering Committee for the Park Avenue Christian Church Day School to steward its separation from the Church in 2013.

Jay and McCartney have one son, Jack ’25.

Jim Wilson

Jim spent nearly three years as Chief Operating Officer for TouchTunes Interactive Networks, which was sold to Searchlight Capital in 2015. Prior to TouchTunes he was CEO and Board Member for Paris-based Atari, SA (ATA) and its US subsidiary, Atari, Inc., which he sold to Alden Global in 2013.

Previous roles include Executive Vice President / General Manager at Sony Wonder, Executive Vice President of Global Studios at Vivendi Universal Games and President of Universal Studios Interactive. He began his career at Arthur Andersen & Company and has also held various marketing and business development roles at Universal Studios and Disney.

He earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and is an alumnus of Loyola University in Maryland.

Jim is a co-founder, advisor and Board Member of g-dii Enterprises, an HR technology company.

He has been a board member of the Forestdale Foster Care Agency and championing the cause of the First Star Charity for Children as a recent Honoree.

Jim and his husband Ricky have three boys at Allen-Stevenson, Ethan ’24, Liam ’26 and Oliver ’26.

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Jim Wilson is the founder and President of Premion, now a division of TEGNA, focused on the streaming video business.

He has spent more than 20 years in executive management roles and building businesses in digital media, technology and entertainment.

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Welcome (cont.)

WELCOME NEW SIBLINGS & LEGACIES

Carter ’27 and Cameron ’25 Burkoth

Dechen ’22 and David ’27 Diggs

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Mack ’25 and Jack ’27 Brayman

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Beckett ’27, Lleyton ’23 and Nicholas ’22 Hutfilz

Parker ’27 and Sebastian ’24 Kopp

Arda ’27 and Kaya ’24 Karakaplan

Lucas ’26 and Jack ’27 Lee

Andreas ’24 and Christian ’27 Loucopoulos

Brayden ’24, Shiva ’27 and James ’25 Poole

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Jake ’25 and William ’27 Mondre

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Ryder ’23 and Ryan ’27 Rasch

Kip ’27 and Chris “Kip” ’96 Hamilton

Thomas ’25 and Bobby ’23 Wholey

James ’27 and Jamie ’91 Magid

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W E L C O M E N E W F A C U LT Y A N D S TA F F

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Welcome (cont.)

If you could do another job for just one day, what would it be? “Professional soccer player in Europe!”

—Brian Alifano

Assistant Teacher, promoting literacy and language skills in a classroom setting for children with social and emotional issues.

Emily will be assisting our coaching staff again and participating fully as an Athletics Associate.

Brian Alifano, Athletics Associate M.S. in Sports Management, Georgetown University, Georgetown, Washington, D.C.

B.A. in Communications and Media Studies, King’s College, Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania Brian joins us having interned for Major League Soccer, the National Hockey League, and the Women’s National Basketball League. He has also coached The Long Island Rough Riders soccer program for youth on Long Island. We are very pleased to have another Alifano joining our Athletics Department.

S P OT L I G H T S

Steven Cohen, Head of the Upper School

Q: What is your vision for the Upper School as the new head of this division?

A: I want to make the Upper School a true Middle School. These are not miniature high school students. They are young boys who are learning to be the kinds of students they will be when they are in high school.

We want to ensure they have the skills to tackle greater challenges later on and develop their inner resources so they can meet those challenges.

Q: Is there something in particular you feel you bring to this role?

A: One of the best single pieces of advice I ever received was from

David Kersey, when he hired me as a teacher, some number of years ago. He said, “Just be fair.” This has served me well and is always at the back of my mind when I deal with both teachers and boys.

Emily Alletto, Athletics Associate B.A. in Sociology, Purchase College—State University of New York

Emily returns to us having spent last winter working part time for our school assisting our Athletics coaches. Prior to her part-time job at A-S she was working at Brightside Academy as an

Q: Can you describe something you would like to add to the Upper School?

A: We are trying to expand our elective classes. I would like to introduce an alumni lecture series, with an alumnus coming in for a half an hour to an hour to share their particular interest or career.

That way the Upper School boys can meet boys who were boys here, and at the same time broaden their idea of what possibilities are out there for them.

B.A. Trinity College in International Studies with Honors

and helping them to realize their great ideas.

Joe has over 17 years of professional experience in

Q: Is there something you want to highlight about the Upper School this year?

A: I want to stress that my door is always open. Not only do I want to hear when we are doing things well, I also want to hear about any concerns. One of the reasons we spun off the Secondary School Counselor position from the responsibilities of the Head of the Upper School is so that anyone who wants to share issues related to the Upper School can do so without the unwarranted fear that it will in any way affect the secondary school process. I want to emphasize that it is important that we receive constructive feedback in the Upper School.

Katy Duckworth-Schachter, Director of Development

Q: What are you most excited about in your new role?

A: I’m looking forward to supporting the wonderful faculty we have

Joe Baynes, Sage Dining, Food Service Director Associate of Occupational Studies, Culinary Arts, The Culinary Institute of America

Katy comes to us as the Director of Development having served most recently in this same capacity at The Perlman Music Program in New York City and Shelter Island. She has managed a Development team of four over the past five years to raise operational support and

Aidan Fennelly, English Teacher B.A. in English (Honors); Minor: International Relations, Lehigh University Mr. Fennelly began teaching through Teach for America, the highly selective national teacher corps of recent college graduates and professionals who commit two years to teach in high-need public schools. He taught English at several charter/public schools in New York and New Jersey, including Barringer Academy of the Arts and Humanities, Newark Collegiate Academy and, most recently, the Pave Academy Charter School in Brooklyn.

capital gifts from individuals and foundations. Prior to The Perlman Music Program, Katy worked from 2005 to 2012 at her Alma Mater, Trinity College in Hartford, CT where her responsibilities included Director of Annual Giving and Director of Alumni Relations. With her husband Elijah, Katy has two young sons, the elder of whom started at Christ Church Day School this fall.

Q: What excites you most about joining Allen-Stevenson?

A: It is truly an honor for me to be at such a prestigious school with a

wonderful and rich history. It’s particularly exciting being at A-S now as we transform our campus with modern, expanded spaces to support our evolving program of Academics, Arts and Athletics.

Q: What appeals to you about working in an elementary school?

A: Our school community is just the best—the boys, faculty, staff,

alumni, parents, and grandparents —the whole happy, joyful place!

The energy and enthusiasm of our boys and their teachers is infectious.

Q: What aspects of development do you enjoy?

A: My favorite part of being in development is building relationships—

I really enjoy getting to know people, hearing their stories, and finding common ground.

Q: You bring a wealth of experience to the Development team. Can you please describe this?

A: I’ve been in development for 12 years. I started working at my alma

mater, Trinity College, in two capacities—both as alumni director and annual fund director. As part of the latter role, I was involved in a successful $300M comprehensive campaign that addressed facilities, endowment and operating funds.

Maya Jourieh, Athletics Associate

B.A.in Psychology & English CUNY, Hunter College Maya started working for us on a consulting basis as an Assistant Track Coach last October. So we are very pleased to have her joining us as a fulltime Athletics Associate. Maya has also been a volunteer for the Children’s Special Olympics and for the Staten Island YMCA instructing children in Tae Kwon Doe. She is currently pursuing her masters at Queens College in Science, Physical Education and Human Movement Studies.

Robin Keats, Middle School Mathematics Teacher B.A. in performance from The Berklee College of Music; M.S.in Education from The Bank Street College Robin has spent the past year teaching 6th Grade Mathematics at The School at Columbia University. Prior to this last year he taught MS Mathematics at both The Little Red School House & Elizabeth Irwin High School, where he was also involved with curriculum development for students seeking enrichment.

Robin has been both a math and music tutor for many years giving private lessons to children ages 8 to 17 years. His own instrumental expertise includes bass, guitar, piano, and drums.

Winter 2017

culinary arts and management. He has worked with Sage Dining Services since 2013. Prior to coming to Allen-Stevenson, Joe was Food Service Director at Solomon Schechter of Westchester in White Plains, NY, where he oversaw daily food preparation for 900 students at two sites, as well as managing all in-house catered events. Joe was the Executive Chef at The Rye Roadhouse in Rye, NY, for five years where he hired, managed and trained a staff of 15 cooks and servers. Joe has been featured in Westchester Magazine and won Best Meat Loaf in the magazine’s, Best of Westchester 2012!

For the last five years I was Director of Development at The Perlman Music Program, which was run by Toby and Itzhak Perlman and based on Shelter Island. This small music school for musically gifted children ages 12 to 18, is designed to support these young virtuosos when they are at a critical point in their musical career.

Q: Do you have any specific plans for the Development Office?

A: We have a great little team and we work in a collaborative manner.

My hope is that we can do our part to inspire our community to make Allen-Stevenson their first philanthropic priority.

Q: What can you say about getting to know the A-S Community?

A: I am a parent of two boys, Campbell (3) and Griffin (1), and have

been taking lots of notes from the more seasoned parents here at A-S! Everyone has been incredibly helpful and has welcomed me into the community with open arms. There is such warmth at the School—and a great sense of humor amongst the folks here too.

Q: Can you describe what appeals to you about the Building Project?

A: It is incredible to have this opportunity to be a part of a project that, when completed, will be perhaps the best elementary school facility in New York City—all with a singular footprint in the heart of the Upper East Side.

Q: Tell me a little bit about yourself.

A: My husband, Elijah, and I keep busy with work and our two young

boys - and the fun chaos that is life with toddlers. I love being involved in my neighborhood and sit on the board of the Sutton Place Parks Conservancy. We like to escape the city as often as we can and spend (too) many long hours in the car on weekends with antsy kids in the backseat!

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N E W F A C U LT Y A N D S T A F F ( C O N T. )

Welcome (cont.)

Teacher M.S. in Teaching, Curriculum and Instruction, Fordham University Graduate School of Education, B.A., Summa cum laude, Hispanic Language and Literatures Stephen has been teaching Spanish for the last several years in NYC at PETALs, a Girls Prep Lower East Side MS; the Harlem Link Charter School; and as a NYC Corps Member of Teach for America. Prior to that, he was a Visiting Research Assistant at the Benemérita Universidad de Puebla, Mexico.

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Stephen Krawec, Spanish

S P O T L I G H T S ( C O N T. )

Jean-Pierre Jacquet (JP), Assistant Head of Upper School; Director of Secondary School Counseling M.A. in Organization and Leadership with a focus on Private School Leadership and Administration from Klingenstein Center for Independent School Leadership, Columbia University. A.B. as a Government concentrator with a focus on International Relations and Global Development, Harvard College

JP comes to us with a wealth of experience in education, most recently at the Berkeley Carroll School in Brooklyn, where he served as Upper School Dean of Students, Senior Class Dean and teacher of various electives. Prior to that, he served as the Associate Director of Bronx Planning for the NYC Department of Education; and as College Guidance Counselor, History Teacher, and various coaching positions at the University School in Hunting Valley (Cleveland), Ohio.

Q: Why are you excited about joining Allen-Stevenson?

A: I believe in the Mission of the School—that it helps to develop boys

so they are ready for the future.

I went to a 7th to 12th grade all boys’ school myself and I felt that it really helped me to grow as a person, and was instrumental in forming my vision of masculinity. I still think about that today as a professional, a father, and a human being.

Q: What appeals to you about working at an all boys’ school?

A: I enjoy teaching boys, and at this age there is a wonderful energy

level. Seventh, eighth and ninth graders are also good natured, playful and genuine, which is fun to be around…and refreshing!

Who or what inspired you to become a teacher?

"It’s funny —I promised myself in the 10th Grade that I would never become a teacher because I hated waking up early. It was not until I was well into college that I started reflecting on the incredible teachers I had.

They listened to me, guided me academically and personally, and always pushed me to be a better student and, more importantly, an empathetic person.They inspired me to become a teacher myself, so I could build trusting, impactful relationships and hopefully leave a positive, lasting impression on my students.

I want my students at A-S to know me as their advocate, their sounding board, and someone they can trust will

hold them accountable for being the best version of themselves.”

—Stephen Krawec

Cate Martin, Third Grade

Teacher MA English Literature, University of Saint Andrew’s, Scotland. MAT College of Charleston, Charleston, SC Cate has relocated to Park Slope in Brooklyn, New York, from Charleston, South Carolina, where she was a First and Second Grade

Q: As Assistant Head of the Upper School, what do you see as your role?

A: I’m excited to be working with Steve Cohen, Head of the Upper School. We started our planning for the year over the summer and I can already see what a great resource Steve is for me as I adapt to this role. I agree with Steve’s philosophy that in a well-established Upper School it is important that I am here to continue to incentivize people to do their best work and to know when to step out of the way. I will leverage off what is already in place.

Q: How will you apply your previous experiences?

A: This is a second career for me. Previously, I worked in finance as an equity research analyst. I feel that this experience has helped me to be able to think about how a particular organization is influenced by all of its parts. Here at Allen-Stevenson we are also an entity with goals – a mission – and we have to take into consideration the many different pieces that make up our School.

Q: What are your goals for the Secondary School Process?

A: I see this as a process that applies to both the families and the boys.

It is a wonderful opportunity to think about what is best for the next step, with each boy mapping his own individual path. A portion of the boys come in with some background idea of what they want, others don’t, so the experience is very different for each of them.

What is your favorite travel experience? “I took 6 months off in 2009 and travelled around the world with my best friend. We went to 6 out of 7 continents, with my highlights being Machu Picchu in Peru, Morocco, Mozambique, India and New Zealand. While in Nairobi I volunteered as a kindergarten teacher in a slum…and that’s when the light-bulb went off about what my life’s work should be.” —Cate Martin

Violetta Nicholas, Human Resources Generalist B.S. in Business and Information Systems, University of Phoenix, AZ B.S. in Business and Financial Accounting, Yerrevan State University, Armenia For the last fifteen years, Violetta has worked in Human Resources for two companies in New York City as a human resources administrator and controller.

Prior to that, she worked for four years as a fiscal services specialist in the General Accounting Office of the State of Arizona.

This process is a chance for the boys to practice being introspective.

They can ask themselves “What has gone well? What has not?” They can also think about what they need from an environment to make sure they are learning and growing. The more they reflect, the better the fit is. The fit is the most important piece in the process. Having this opportunity to reflect also means they will feel more comfortable making choices about how they grow and learn in the future. I like that this all ties in to the School’s Mission.

Q: How will you be involved with the Ninth Grade?

A: I was fortunate to get to go on the 9th grade leadership trip at the

beginning of the school year. As we move through the year I will be helping to shape the 9th grade leadership curriculum with Samara Spielberg, the grade’s advisor. In addition, my role overseeing Secondary School Counseling means I will be helping the ninth grade boys as they apply out.

Q: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

A: My wife, Dr. Mary Breda Morrissey, and I have four kids—an almost 4

year-old and 2 year-old triplets. I wrestled in high school and college, so when I have the time, I try to go to wrestling open mat sessions.

Samatha Koss, Director of Alumni Relations

B.A. in Creative Writing, Hamilton College Samantha comes to us with over six years of active volunteer experience with the Development and Alumni Relations office at Hamilton

What is a cause that you care deeply about? "Recently, my husband and I were introduced to the Syria Supper Club, which organizes events that support Syrian refugee families who have migrated to the United States and are living in the NYC Metropolitan area.

Anyone looking to help can host a dinner event in their homes (or at any facility, e.g. community center, church, temple or school), inviting guests of their choice, who will be treated to fabulous traditional Syrian dishes prepared by the refugee families. We were very impressed by the quality

and variety of the food they prepared. Guests make donations that go entirely to assist the Syrian families who are trying so hard to assimilate. I believe these events allow food and hospitality to become the catalysts for change.” www.syriasupperclub.org —Violetta Nicholas

Winter 2017

reading teacher in The Summerville Elementary School.

She has experience with the Voyager Reading Program, Fountas & Pinnell Leveled Literacy Intervention, and OrtonGillingham. Additionally for the 2012-2013 school year she was awarded Rookie Teacher of the Year in the Summerville Elementary School.

College, where she has managed event planning, annual fund relationships for graduates from the 1980s and 1990s, and regional activities throughout the Northeast Corridor. Her professional experience from 2003 through 2017 as a project specialist for Aptmetrics, where she managed projects with numerous Fortune 100 and 500 companies, included strategic planning, project coordination, and human resources consulting.

Q: What excites you most about joining Allen-Stevenson?

A: I’m particularly taken with the School’s Mission as well as the people who make up the community. Everyone has been incredibly welcoming.

I also feel that everyone believes in the mission and they really “walk the talk.”

Q: What appeals to you about working in a school?

A: “What’s not to love?” Ever since I was a summer camp counselor at a zoo during high school, I knew I wanted to be around kids.

There are so many surprising moments that remind me what I’m doing is different than what most people get to do in their career. A few months ago, I took part in a “project” to find a boy to wear the unicorn mascot outfit. Who else could say their job involves finding a dry cleaner that can handle a unicorn head? I’ve also sat in on a Lower School music class, I watched Mr. America, and I’ve simply been able to enjoy the madness of the boys walking through the halls or storming the stairs.

I’m really passionate about connecting with our alumni. They lived this too, and I can connect for them what is happening at the School now to what they experienced in their past. The other day, I toured the School with an alumnus and his daughter. He got to show her his name up on the walls of the gym, and they got to meet Art and Woodshop Teacher Rob McCallum who was making plastic box cutters for the young boys to use. The School is undergoing massive physical changes right now,

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N E W F A C U LT Y A N D S T A F F ( C O N T. )

Welcome (cont.)

Helen Ong, Executive Assistant

Annette has been a teacher of biology, chemistry, physics and mathematics for many years. Most recent experience includes serving as a mathematics teacher and director of the summer school at the Horace Mann School in Riverdale, New York; Academic and Leadership Development, Manager of Recruitment and Retention at Beginning with Children; and Assistant Principal at the Family Life Academy Charter School.

to the Headmaster B.A. in English and Fine Arts, cum laude, Amherst College Trinity College Study Abroad Program, Oxford University

Helen comes to A-S with much administrative experience, having served as the Human Resources Director at the Greenwich Education Group in Riverside, Connecticut; Assistant to the Head of Admissions and Enrollment at the Whitby School in Greenwich, Connecticut; and

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running her own international executive search firm, Clifford & Company in Philadelphia, New York and London for fifteen years. She has also been active as a parent volunteer at the Hotchkiss School for the last fifteen years, in addition to several other organizations.

S P O T L I G H T S ( C O N T. ) and the technologies used in classrooms might be different now, but the core of the School is still the same as the one this alumnus remembered; the curriculum remains centered on the 3A’s and a number of faculty members he knew continue to work at the School today.

Q: How do you think your past experiences help you in this role?

A: I’ve served on the Alumni Council of Hamilton College, which is

already helping me to frame out our own Alumni Council at AllenStevenson. For Hamilton, I’m in charge of the Northeast Corridor Regional Affairs program, planning events that appeal to a wide range of ages and interests, including work on a committee that is focused on young alumni engagement.

Q: Tell me a little bit about your interests.

A: I’m a trained chef with a Culinary Arts degree from the Culinary

Institute of America. Baking is a particular passion for me. I also read a lot, with a tendency toward science fiction and fantasy. Currently, I’m reading The Young World by Chris Weitz ’84. One of my regrets is that I didn’t learn to play an instrument, though I do sing!

Q: Do you have a message for the Allen-Stevenson alumni?

A: I’d love to hear from all alumni. Do you have any news to share?

Ideas for an alumni event? A new job? Moved to a new city? A birth or adoption? Met up with some A-S alums? Give me a call, send me an email, or stop by 78th Street—I’d love to take you on a tour of the building!

Annette Perez, Middle School Mathematics Teacher M.S. in Education (School Administration and Supervision), College of New Rochelle. B.A., concentration in psychology with a minor in mathematics, New York University Lauren Pemberton, Kindergarten Specialist; Director of Alligator Soup

M.S. in Early Childhood Education at Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia. B.S. in Interdisciplinary Studies, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia Lauren has served as a Kindergarten Lead Teacher and Third Grade Lead Teacher at the School of Columbia University, as well as a Second Grade/Third Grade Lead Teacher at the Newsome Park Elementary School in Newport News, Virginia. In addition, she has been a workshop facilitator, cofacilitating family workshops at the School of Columbia and working with NYSAIS at various workshops.

Q: What are you most excited about in your role at Allen-Stevenson?

A: I was at my previous job for 12 years, so it is exciting to be in a

different school environment and to use my skills as an experienced teacher and program director in a new setting.

Q: What do you think you bring to the Lower School at A-S? I think I bring a fresh perspective. I have a lot to learn and I can’t wait to collaborate with teachers on new ways to meet the boys’ needs. It is wonderful to be working with people who are open to new approaches.

The Lower School teachers and Stephen Warner, Head of the Lower School, are eager to try new things and I am excited to bring what I know about best practices to the kindergarten team. I’ve taught in a co-ed school and I’m eager to experience how boys, when they are by themselves in a school environment, go about learning.

Vickram joined Allen-Stevenson’s Maintenance Department in early October. Vickram is a carpenter by trade, and has worked on a large number of construction projects. For the past seven years, he worked with IJZ Construction.

Vickram moved to New York City in 2001 from Guyana. He and his wife, Rangeeta, have three kids.

Nicholas Schroth ‘10, Athletics

Associate B.A. in Classic Civilizations, Boston University, Boston, MA Nick has taught in the Boston public school system and worked as a camp counselor at Trinity Day Camp in New York City in the summer. He has also been a tutor to children with social and emotional issues. We are very happy to have an Allen-Stevenson alumnus join our Athletics Department.

Q: What are your plans for working with the kindergartners on

reading?

A: This position has never been full time, so my goal is to hear from teachers to see what their needs are and then offer my support. The idea is that together we meet the needs of all the boys. Right now I am in the midst of doing some co-teaching lessons around Responsive Classroom practices, which is a new initiative in the Lower School.

This past summer, all of the Lower School teachers read The Power Of Our Words, by Paula Denton. This book focused on how our words as teachers can help shape a positive learning community. The coteaching lessons that I have done, have given me the opportunity to work with the classroom teachers to establish classroom rules and expectations with the help of the students. As I get to know the students more and have ongoing conversations with classroom teachers, I hope to begin working with boys both in and out of the classroom in small groups. Some of the aspects my small group work will focus on are phonics, phonological awareness and reading. My work with the boys will be an extension of what they are already doing in their classroom.

Q: Do you have any plans for the after school program, Alligator Soup?

A: The Allen-Stevenson program is already so rich with its range of

offerings. In the last few weeks I have had an opportunity to check in on classes and to observe the work that the boys are doing in their afterschool classes. In all of my visits, the boys are engaged and teachers really give the boys a chance to take ownership of the work that they are doing. My plan is to maintain an already well-designed program. I want to ensure that classes offered tap into the boys’ interests. I will continue to pop into classes and talk to the boys about their experiences in Alligator Soup, making sure it meets all of their needs.

Winter 2017

Vickram Persaud, Maintenance

Q: What do you enjoy most about working with kindergartners?

A: I enjoy their willingness to take risks. Many of them are not afraid of trying something new, failing and trying again. Sometimes that can be hard for kids, but I believe that’s when I come in as a teacher, to help facilitate a growth mindset way of thinking.

Seeing a child have that light-bulb moment when things come together is really exhilarating to watch. “Everything is a big moment at this age!”

Just snapping their pants is an accomplishment.

Q: Do you have a funny story to share about working with little kids?

A: My first year teaching kindergarten, after switching from 3rd grade,

I was doing a shoe study with the class as part of a math investigation.

We visited a children’s shoe store where we talked to the owner about how sizes are determined and who wears what size shoes. One boy asked, “Well, what about grandmas and grandpas? What size shoe do they wear?” After asking some clarifying questions, it was apparent that he thought their feet just kept growing and never stopped. It’s those types of moments that have made me pause as a kindergarten teacher and enjoy the world through a kindergarten lens.

Q: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

A: I am originally from Virginia. I moved here 14 years ago to teach at The School of Columbia. I never saw myself in a big city, but can’t imagine living anywhere else right now. My husband, daughter and I currently live in Queens.

I’ve always known that I wanted to be a teacher. From a young age I taught my dolls, stuffed animals, mom and dad, and on a good day my older brothers would oblige me.

I enjoy time with family and I have recently begun getting back into running races. I am scheduled to run the Queens Half Marathon in November. Hanging out in the front yard with friends and family, and just catching up on life is a perfect day for me!

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Volunteers

“I'm modeling the behavior I want Zach to emulate in his life.”

—Liz Steinberg P’23 S O M E O F O U R M O S T D E D I C AT E D VOLUNTEERS Meet your Executive Committee 2017-18:

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This year’s Executive Committee is made up of six extraordinary volunteers. They have been at Allen-Stevenson for a combined total of 30 years, and have volunteered a combined total of 25 years.

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They have worked on or chaired the following committees and held these other positions: Book Fair Class Rep CL+D Event Panelist Executive Committee Hospitality International Festival Library School Store Toy Drive Some of the reasons they volunteer are: getting to know, working with and making great friends with parents from grades they would not have had a chance to meet otherwise; their sons seeing them contribute to their school; making some unexpected friendships which have further cemented their families connection to the A-S community; interacting with the boys in one-on-one situations is very memorable; meeting and becoming friends with parents, some of whom have become close friends.

“What has touched me is the heart of the true A-S role models our parents, faculty and staff - who are Truly thoughtful, Truly good, Truly Allen-Stevenson.” —Audrey Rasch “Other than some laughable complaints like the hand dryer being too loud in the toilets to scrambling the used uniform bins to find last minute blazers for a boy who has forgotten one, it has been an absolutely wonderful experience. One that I will remember and cherish for years to come...”—Shilpa Gupta

“Once, I was substituting in the Library for my son’s class when he was in Third Grade. His pal was the line leader as the class entered the room. With an expression of surprise and joy on his face, he stopped in his tracks and disappeared around the corner. I heard him say “Nicholas, I have a surprise for you,” and he reappeared and escorted Nicholas to my desk with big smiles. It was a little moment, but it melted my heart.”

—Christina de Marval Liz Steinberg, President Bethan Willis, Vice-President Shilpa Gupta, Co-Treasurer Christina de Marval, Co-Treasurer Audrey Rasch, Class Representatives Coordinator Mase Kerdel-DeMarco, Communications Coordinator Thank you for thinking, strategizing, planning, organizing, designing and being so welcoming to all Allen-Stevenson families, boys and faculty and staff. Allen-Stevenson would be a different school without our Parents Association.

Shilpa Gupta, Mase Kerdel-DeMarco, Bethan Willis, Liz Steinberg, Christina de Marval, Audrey Rasch

MEET THE ANNUAL FUND CHAIRS & C A P TA I N S On Tuesday, October 17, 25 volunteers gathered in the Dining Room with Headmaster David Trower h’95 to kick-off the annual fund year. These Class Captains lead the School’s fundraising efforts by reaching out to fellow parents to make personal connections, encourage participation in the Annual Fund, and thank donors for their support. The goal is 100% parent participation!

Chairs Erika Greff P’18, ’20, Kimberley Hutfilz P’22, ’23, ’27, and Scott Parrot P’24, ’26 led an engaging

discussion about the philanthropic community at AllenStevenson, and the vital role the Annual Fund plays in bridging the gap between tuition income and School’s operating costs— ensuring the best experience for our boys.

The Annual Fund is Allen-Stevenson’s fundraising priority, and key to its success is our dynamic peer-to-peer fundraising culture. We applaud the work of our volunteers and thank everyone in the A-S community for their generosity to our School.

The Annual Fund year is July 1—June 30 and our goal in 2017-2018 is $2.5M.

The 2017-18 Class Captains

Erika Greff, Scott Parrot and Kimberley Hutfilz

Features Enlightened and Traditional, Change and Continuity. Allen-Stevenson strives to strike the right balance for the boys and faculty. We don’t change the curriculum for change sake. We look at skill sets needed for the future. We take advantage of new space opportunities and during our building project use our

building community solve problems as a group developing leaders

current space differently. On the following pages, you will read articles about how the Lower School is in a new way, how sixth graders , how the Upper School is

, how our Theatre Department has reimagined

the winter musical, how parkour has become part of our language during gym time, and how we support new faculty and welcome them to our community. Each program is developed and executed

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to maximize impact and success.

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R E S P O N S I V E C L A S S RO O M E N H A N C E S C O M M U N I T Y A N D L E A R N I N G F O R L O W E R S C H O O L B OY S

By Jennifer Zimmermann, Assistant Head for Curriculum & Teaching Grades 1 & 2 “Good morning Miles.” “Good morning Russell.” “Good morning Benoit.” “Good morning Miles.”

Handshakes, greetings and smiles travel around the circle in 2D’s Morning Meeting. Every boy is greeted, and often, later in the meeting, he will get to share something about himself. The day is beginning with recognition of all of the boys in the 2D community, setting the stage for other discussions of classroom and community throughout the day. “The idea behind this is to begin each day with every boy being acknowledged by his teacher and his peers,” explains Sophie Dwyer. “We have been enjoying settling into this routine and are eager to try out greeting each other in different languages!”

Scenes like this are playing out all over the Lower School this fall, as the faculty is weaving parts of the Responsive Classroom approach into many parts of our day.

Responsive Classroom was begun as the Northeast Foundation for Children in 1981 by a group of teachers at the Greenfield Center School in Greenfield, MA. It has at its foundation six Guiding Principles (see sidebar on page 23) that inform the work of teachers and school leaders. Primary among them is the firm belief that teaching social-emotional skills is critical to academic success. Responsive Classroom practices are being implemented in many schools around the country, including many independent schools in New York City.

Stephen Warner, Head of the Lower School, decided to explore the Responsive Classroom approach last year: “When I was a classroom teacher, I realized that children in my class learned best when I

1B boys start the day with an energizer.

Guiding Principles

2. How we teach is as important as what we teach.

3. Great cognitive growth occurs through social interaction.

4. What we know and believe about our students— individually, culturally, developmentally—informs our expectations, reactions, and attitudes about those students.

5. How we work together as adults to create a safe, joyful, and inclusive school environment is as important as our individual contribution or competence.

6. Partnering with families— knowing them and valuing their contributions—is as important as knowing the children we teach.

Sophie Dwyer and her class greet each other

spent time working to build a classroom community.

When I learned about Responsive Classroom’s approach of combining academic and socialemotional skills to create an environment where students can do their best learning, I decided to connect with colleagues in other schools who were using this approach.” Soon afterwards, Lower School teachers spent their professional development day in January with trainer Gail Lunetta. She led us through a number of activities and games to model the approach. Many teachers were positive in their response to the PD Day, and were inspired to learn more. Over the summer the Lower School faculty read a Responsive Classroom book, The Power of Our Words, and when we returned to school, reflected on how the language we use can be streamlined and improved to help the boys learn better. Three Lower School teachers attended a four-day Responsive Classroom training over the summer in order to immerse themselves in the approach and others are attending workshops in this upcoming school year.

Later in the day, a somewhat sleepy group of first graders is gathered on the rug in 1B. Genevievre Broche, their teacher, says, “Let’s do a round of Alive, Alert, Awake, Enthusiastic to get us ready to work.” The boys, led by Ms. Broche, embark into a complex song with movements connected to words that, indeed, wakes everyone up and gets their neurons firing. It also puts a smile on every boy’s face. Ms. Broche commented, “Incorporating Energizers (songs and games such as this one) and quick brain breaks throughout the day resets the tone of the room and the level of engagement of our students. These shared songs and movements also work to drive a joyful, connected classroom.”

Many Allen-Stevenson teachers feel that Responsive Classroom amplifies an approach already practiced at Allen-Stevenson: that social-emotional growth, engaging academics, and teachers who know their students well create an environment where boys and learning thrive.

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1. Teaching social and emotional skills is as important as teaching academic content.

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TEAM ACTIVITIES BUILD COMMUNITY IN SIXTH GRADE

By Sarah Woods, Associate Director of Communications The Sixth Grade has been spending time together in the gym taking part in Cooperative Group Learning (CGL) activities. Once a week, all the sixth graders convene to participate in exercises that encourage them to interact with a group of boys that isn’t necessarily made up of their close friends, and at the same time have some fun. Each activity is designed to foster problem solving, cooperation, communication, and team building.

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Assistant Head of the Middle School and Sixth Grade Teacher Ben Neulander explained that the boys take great pleasure in being outside their normal classroom environment together. They interact with each other very differently in a new setting. He overheard a boy say, “I feel like I REALLY know some of the people in my class now, even though I’ve known them for awhile,” which seems to be a consistent sentiment.

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Coming up with the different CGL activities is a cooperative effort. Various staff members contribute clever ideas that they’ve seen incorporated elsewhere or that they think will appeal to this age group. An example of one CGL activity has ten boys begin by standing on a tarp. They are required to flip the tarp over, but aren’t allowed to step off it to flip it.

“While the boys attempted the tarp activity, frustration began to build. I overheard one boy say, ‘Wait! Let’s stop and think about this before going any further,’” said Mr. Neulander. “It was fascinating to see leaders start to emerge.”

“Devising strategies and not rushing at something that is challenging is a learned skill. And in a group situation, at the end of the day, it’s all about compromise and consideration for others,” explained Mr. Neulander.

L E A D E R S H I P : E S TA B L I S H I N G M U S C L E M E M O RY T H RO U G H T H O U G H T A N D P R AC T I C E

By JP Jacquet, Assistant Head of Upper School & Director of Secondary School Counseling My high school wrestling coach often said, “practice makes permanent... not perfect, but permanent.” I have taken that statement to heart and I believe these words of wisdom are particularly relevant in the study and practice of leadership. Our Ninth Grade Leadership Course

Sixth graders work together to flip the tarp

is an opportunity for our oldest students to mentally and physically engage with leadership concepts as each young man pursues his respective path of development.

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Ninth graders problem-solving on their Leadership Trip

This year’s journey began at school but quickly relocated to the Horace Moses Scout camp in western Massachusetts. The three day experience explicitly established the mental and physical nature of leadership, yet also unearthed the paradoxical truth that leadership development is simultaneously a group and solitary endeavor. Daily requirements quickly established the importance of teamwork. Some tasks were vital to survival such as meal preparation, while other tasks (like the group tightrope walk depicted in the caption) were purposefully created innovative challenges. One consistently reaffirmed theme in these activities was the importance of teamwork and group participation. But interestingly each boy was given the space and opportunity to reflect on his own participation and engagement with each group activity. The trip provided many opportunities for each student to realize the importance of his own thoughts and actions to the success of the group.

The camping trip served as a diving board from which the class dove into a larger pool of leadership study. The next phase focused on acknowledging and learning about different leadership styles. We used materials from the WE organization to learn about four types of leaders: • • • •

Green Leaders bring people together and focus on group dynamics.

Yellow Leaders push groups into action and focus on obtaining the goal.

Red Leaders analyze situations and focus on creating a plan.

Blue Leaders imagine big ideas and focus on inspiring others.

The students took surveys to identify which type(s) of leader they were. They have also selected a real life figure, assigned their subject a leadership color(s) and presented on their findings.

These presentations provided students an opportunity to provide peer feedback, while also reflecting on their own presentations.

As the year moves forward the recurring cycle of purposeful action and reflective feedback will remain a constant theme both in and outside of the class. The boys will continue to hear another one of my favorite mantras: feedback is a gift. I deeply believe we should all be grateful recipients and generous donors of feedback. Each young man will be given opportunities to decide on how he wants to grow as a leader. Written and verbal self-reflections will be hallmark assignments that help each boy tap into his own introspective nature, while peer and teacher feedback will provide tangible external progress reports. The end goal is that each student will have experienced a deep systematic and personal exploration of leadership, which will help drive his future thoughts and actions. I thank the boys for their past and future efforts during our journey through the study of leadership.

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Features (cont.)

G I V E M Y R E G A R D S T O B R O A D W AY. . .

By Stacy Donovan, Theatre Director

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Allen-Stevenson Middle and Upper School students are Broadway bound! For the first time ever, the annual winter musical will be a Broadway Musical Revue, which we are calling Boys, Broadway and Beyond! We in the music and theatre departments are very excited about creating a musical revue that focuses on great guy numbers in the American musical theatre canon, and we are even more thrilled to be offering a musical theatre curriculum to our students.

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Musical Theatre is considered one of the few indigenous American art forms and including it in the Allen-Stevenson curriculum is long overdue.

Opening on September 12, 1866 and running for a record breaking 474 performances at the 3,200 seat Niblo’s Garden on Broadway, The Black Crook gave life to the American musical form. Musical theatre in America has often informed itself by American society. George M. Cohan’s Little Johnny Jones (1904) depicted the immigrant experience. After World War I, the arrival of the Jazz Age brought Shuffle Along to Broadway bringing African American work to the general public. In 1927, the ground breaking Showboat, adapted from Edna Ferber’s novel, confronted racial issues head on. The Depression inspired Of Thee I Sing (1931), which poked fun at political campaigns and was the first musical to win the Pulitzer Prize. 1937 brought to Broadway, Pins & Needles, a production of the International Ladies’ Garment Workers.

In the 1940s, Rogers and Hammerstein were the golden boys of musical theatre and are credited with bringing character development and original dialogue to their stories. All of their songs were extensions of a character, not just plot devices. The greatest example of this is in the musical Carousel, where the character Billy finds out he is having a child. The song is aptly called “Soliloquy” and follows the character’s journey as he considers having a son only to realize it might be a girl.

The next significant influence in American Musical Theatre is Stephen Sondheim. Sondheim musicals use song to comment on the action of a story rather than to further character development. Eventually, his shows would take on the term “sung through” because there was so much more music than dialogue within them. Andrew Lloyd Weber took the “sung through” musical to an extreme with Les Miserables and several other successful shows. 21st Century musicals use a variety of forms and even fuse forms to tell their stories. Shows such as Rent, Wicked, Spring Awakening, Come From Away and Hamilton are a new breed of American musical exciting audiences with new structure, storytelling techniques, and more often than not, attacking socioeconomic issues head on. It is an incredibly exciting time in musical theatre history.

Our musical theatre revue will feature numbers from shows of many eras including: West Side Story, Into The Woods, Hamilton, Godspell, Oliver, Les Miserables, Smokey Joe’s Café, Hairspray and many more. Students working on the show will explore a rich curriculum in musical theatre and will have the opportunity to sing, dance and act for this ground breaking production. In addition, the show will take place in site-specific locations throughout the School. This will be an innovative and exciting theatrical experience for our students and our community.

All students in the Fifth to Ninth Grade may participate in the show. Boys in grades six through nine may audition for solos and lead roles. Performance dates are March 13 & 14 at 6:00PM and March 15 at 2:00PM. We look forward to seeing you at the show!

Activities at the 92nd Street Y

LET’S GET MOVING

By Rich Alifano, Director of P.E. & Athletics

Throughout the year our boys will use this space and will be introduced to the parkour movements. Parkour, a form of movement originally founded by the French Special Forces, is also described as the act of movement from point “A” to point “B” using the obstacles in your path to increase efficiency. It is often referred to as “free running” and has been described as a way of looking at any environment and believing in your heart that there is no obstacle in life that cannot be overcome.

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This year as part of our P.E./Athletics Program we are introducing our Middle and Upper School boys to parkour. This has been made possible through our partnership with the 92nd Street Y and the use of their Gymnastics Studio in the Sky or “GSITS.”

At the Y, under the guidance of experts in parkour and gymnastics, our boys will roll, run, leap, spin, balance, as they challenge themselves to overcome a variety of physical and mental challenges. As a result, they will have fun, and develop confidence, mental and physical strength, and a real sense of accomplishment.

“I like creating my own path and finding a different way to get from point A to point B. It’s just a fun thing to do and I am glad it’s part of our P.E. Program.”—Noah Katz, 8th grader “I really like the area where we do parkour, and I also like the tumbling track.”

—Dylan Bird, 4th grader

“It’s really awesome, I like Coach Ish’s group because we do forward rolls, jumps, running up walls and vaults.”—Xander Goodman, 4th grader “I like the tumble track and the balance beams and Coach Julio is really nice.”

—Zac Schwartz, 2nd grader

In our Lower School, boys have been introduced to the WonderFit curriculum at the 92nd Street Y.

The WonderFit curriculum teaches children how to make physical activity a way of life. In the GSITS space our boys use the sprung floor, high bar, uneven bars, balance beams, and the tumble track with vault.

There are opportunities for every child to be successful and for each boy to build his confidence and self-esteem.

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N E W F A C U LT Y M E N T O R P R O G R A M D E S I G N E D A N D I N I T I AT E D

By Samara Spielberg, Spanish Teacher, 9th Grade Advisor and Head of the Faculty Mentorship Program Teaching is one of the most demanding professions. Never does a teacher leave at the end of the school day with nothing to do or think about. Aside from the countless hours spent creating lesson plans and tweaking these lesson plans, writing assessments and grading said assessments, there are many other obstacles to overcome: how to communicate effectively with administrators, how to collaborate with peers, how to communicate with parents, and who to go to for advice. And then there’s the real reason they are at school, which is to deal with the emotional and social needs of students and to help them to become well-rounded, selfactualized individuals

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There are so many things to do, it’s no surprise that new teachers tend to feel “overwhelmed” and “unsure” in their first few years teaching at a new school. Bearing all this in mind, a formal, well-structured mentorship program seemed necessary. Having this would mean that we could model and scaffold, helping the new teachers to become increasingly more independent and capable. They would be encouraged to take risks and when they made mistakes, we would talk to them about how that would make them better in the future. All this is important to help new teachers so they can be their best selves for our boys.

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While Allen-Stevenson has assigned mentors for new faculty in the past, there has been no true formal program in place. So, starting from scratch by defining what a mentor is seemed to be the number one priority. These individuals would welcome new hires to the community and introduce them to the culture of the new school. In addition, mentors would help to identify the talent in the school, deciding who would be the best person to go to for assistance with regards to different needs.

Next, addressing what obstacles we faced in creating a successful mentorship program at Allen-Stevenson had to be considered. First, we needed a head of the mentor program who could tend to the “academic,” “social” and “emotional” needs of the new teachers, with the help of the mentors. The head could create necessary workshops and facilitate meetings throughout the year, and serve as a liaison between mentors and mentees, as well as new hires and the broader Allen-Stevenson community.

“Being a mentor for the first time has been very educational for me too. It has reminded me of the excitement and uncertainty one faces when learning about a new institution.

And, just like we teach the boys, I’m encouraging my mentee to ask questions—all the time.”

Meghan Wall, Learning Specialist

Setting the stages for introducing, running and evaluating the program, with clear timetables and goals completed the planning. Each mentee is given a single mentor. The entire group will meet several times throughout the year and all mentees can see all mentors.

We are already off to an excellent start with the program, with regular meetings amongst mentoring pairs and an introductory group session before school started. Mentors are embracing their roles, thoughtfully guiding and supporting our new faculty members.

Meghan Wall at the first Faculty Mentor Program meeting

Stephen Krawec, new 7th Grade Advisor and Spanish Teacher, said, “The mentor program has given me the opportunity to assimilate to Allen-Stevenson at a really comfortable pace. Being a new faculty member at a school can be overwhelming, considering the large number of new systems, structures, names, room locations, and expectations to learn. However, my mentor has helped me ease into my role here and make the transition as seamless as possible; A-S feels like home now.”

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Addressing the steps of the process was also important. Questions to be considered included: How should a mentor be chosen?; How does one get buy-in?; What is the time commitment for mentors?; What to do if the mentor/mentee relationship is fractured in some way?; and How does one involve the greater community?

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F A C U L T Y G R A N T S & S TA F F

The Kellner Great Teacher Award was initiated

by a gift from George and Bicky Kellner, parents of Peter ’84. It recognizes outstanding achievement by an Allen-Stevenson

teacher. The 2017 recipient of the award was Kindergarten

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Teacher Alice Heminway.

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“It was an honor to receive the Kellner Great Teacher award this past spring. I feel extremely fortunate to be surrounded by so many smart and creative educators who inspire me to constantly improve my teaching. The School has been an important presence in my life for the past 15 years, supporting me both professionally and personally.

Allen-Stevenson has given me so much over the years and for all these things; the mentors, the friendships, and the opportunities, I am deeply grateful.”

—Alice Heminway, Kindergarten Teacher

The first Riklis

Grant was established in 1999 by Marcia

Riklis, a former trustee and mother of David Hirschfeld ‘ 99, to provide one teacher an opportunity for professional and/or

personal renewal. The original award was established through the Betty and Pinhas Riklis Faculty Fund.

In addition, over the last 18 years, members and former

members of the Board of Trustees have contributed 181 more Riklis-Inspired Grants. Teachers can apply for projects, trips

or other experiences that they believe will provide such special opportunities. Last year’s recipients were:

Lorenzo Bellard—Fourth Grade Teacher The Riklis Grant provided me an opportunity to take a trip that I had thought about doing, but honestly never really thought I would take.

This summer I went to the Seychelles Islands off the eastern coast of Africa with my wife. It is a small Creole nation that boasts a very diverse population of people due to its geographic location. A former French and English territory the language spoken is a mix of both.

While there I was able to take an island tour of the main island Mahe. My trip was both relaxing and educational. On the island I visited a number of the top 10 beautiful beaches in the world, ate delicious food, and visited the ruins of a former school that educated freed slaves’ children. My travels also included a visit to the nation's tea making plant and museum where I was able to see first hand how the tea leaves were dried, shifted, and bagged. I spoke with a number of the native people on the island and got a first hand glimpse of the political changeover that was taking place in the country.

There was an unplanned bonus during my stay in Seychelles as well. Our hotel was host to the annual African Nations Ambassadors Conference. We saw throughout our weeklong stay a number of ambassadors who presented many of the countries of Africa. The people of Seychelles were welcoming and genuine and it is a trip I will never forget and would do again in a heartbeat. I am grateful for the grant and would like to extend a thank you to Allen-Stevenson and those who made the grant possible.

Jon Burgos—Athletics Associate

This summer the Riklis Grant allowed me to take a trip to Ecuador to visit my family and travel the country a bit more. My parents are originally from Ecuador and most of my extended family still lives there. This was only my second time visiting; the first time was when I was a sophomore in college. My main goal for this trip was to see at least one thing I hadn't seen on my last trip, and spend time with my family—particularly my grandmother whose health has begun to decline. Growing up my parents divorced, making family life rather fractured. I've learned that family is an important part of a person’s being, and it's something I've sought to stay connected to. I was able to spend my birthday in Ecuador, and many of my relatives were able to come out for the party at my grandmother's house. I know it meant a lot to me, and definitely meant a lot to my grandmother to be able to share that experience.

Aside from spending time with family I set out to experience the outdoors. Ecuador boasts many natural wonders and on my last trip I experienced the Galápagos. This trip I stayed on the mainland and traveled to Banos. En route, we passed the Cotopaxi Volcano—Ecuador's second highest summit. Banos is a small town that is home to thermal mineral springs that are said to have regenerative healing qualities. A quick drive up a mountain leads you to the Casa Del Árbol, commonly known as "The Swing at The End of the World," a tree house with a swing that goes over the side of a cliff. It overlooks one of Ecuador's other volcanoes The Tungurahua. Thirty minutes out is the Pilón del Diablo, a descent that leads you to one of Ecuador's most powerful waterfalls.

I was fortunate enough to experience all of these sites, as well as experience Ecuador's Independence Day during my time there. All of this was made possible through the generosity of

Clarissa Crowley—Learning Resource Specialist

The Riklis Grant allowed me to enjoy two uninterrupted weeks of respite and professional rejuvenation on Grindstone Island in The Thousand Islands in Clayton, NY. I reconnected to my surroundings with daily yoga practice and running along the many nature trails on the island. I also volunteered to take care of 12 adorable chickens, collecting their eggs each morning and ensuring they had enough food and water throughout the day. Most importantly, and much appreciated, I was able to spend many hours each day reading a variety of books and listening to various podcasts that afforded me professional and personal growth and rejuvenation.

I read books on executive functioning in the classroom and about teaching to the "whole-child." I was finally able to finish a book called, Thinking Differently: An Inspiring Guide for Parents of Children with Learning Disabilities that I have been reading on-and-off for a year now. This area of investigation allowed me to take a different perspective toward education and the way in which I facilitate and engage young learners.

It also allowed me, a person with no children of my own, to think outside of myself and explore how parents might feel in regards to the learning process and best practices to foster an informative and supportive school community. Further, I read books from the Newbery Challenge list, and upon arrival of the boys I was quickly rewarded when seeing these books in their hands. I am now able to purposefully comment and thoughtfully engage in discussions around these popular books. Lastly, I am continuing to read the historical fiction novel, All the Light We Cannot See and the health/medicine guide, Gut: The Inside Story of Our Body's Most Underrated Organ, readings that I was able to start during my time on Grindstone Island but that I have not yet finished.

Additionally, I listened to several notable podcasts. One was a series on emotions from NPR's Hidden Brain. The presenters talked about the way our own experiences shape how we interpret feelings and emotions. For example, what I know as physical pain might be different than what someone else knows as physical pain, and that things that are painful for me might be increasingly more (or less) painful for others. I have always placed high importance on emotions as they are connected to teaching and learning, and this experience allowed me to reflect differently on my response to situations and the way in which I present information, both in my professional and personal life.

As I continue to seek and cherish my time at The Thousand Islands, receiving the Riklis Grant allowed me to dedicate

uninterrupted, goal-oriented time for reading though a variety of texts. It helped me to facilitate reflection upon my practice and to prioritize instructional goals. I appreciate the time I was given and am happy and proud with the way in which I used it.

Thank you very much for this opportunity.

Antonio D’Itri—Athletics Associate

The Riklis Grant is for enrichment, and recharging. That's exactly what my family was afforded this summer. After spending a year of 4:00am wake ups and returning home sometimes past 9:00pm working three different jobs, I was able to stop everything and solely focus on just my family.

My wife, Elpida, and I were able to take our son, Leonidas, on numerous hiking trips all over New York. We were able to share with him our love and respect for nature that we spent our childhoods experiencing. I was also able to give my wife a much deserved break from raising our son. This allowed me to see him first thing in the morning, go for runs with him in the park, and read to him every night before bedtime.

He was my training partner throughout the summer. As a father, I've become so much more motivated in life, and the urge to be the best husband, father, teacher, and athlete has reached new heights. They were also able to come with me to all my Obstacle Course Races, and were there to witness when I qualified for both the US Championships and World Championships. Goals I never thought were possible before my family.

What the Riklis truly gave us as a family was a chance to go to Italy and Greece and reconnect and introduce Leonidas for the first time to his extended family, with whom we are still very close. Each of our heritages is unbelievably important to us. He was able to experience traditional Italian folk dancing, Greek island life, and of course the food. Over this last month our family has shared so much love with each other, even though at 15 months he may not remember, the impression he left on the entire family was something we will all cherish and speak about for his entire life.

Allen-Stevenson and the Riklis Grant are 100% to thank for all the beautiful, wonderful and memorable experiences we shared this summer. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. To let me see my son first thing in the morning, spend all day with him, and then be the last one to say goodnight and I love you is priceless. My family and I could not be more grateful. I'm more than refreshed, energized, and inspired to teach our boys this year.

Sophie Dwyer—Second Grade Teacher This summer, my family took a trip to Montreal to visit my extended family. I have several aunts, uncles, and cousins who live there. We are unable to see most of them on a regular basis, and as a result, my children (ages 5 and 3) had no relationship with their extended family.

That changed this summer. We spent a week together, at my aunt and uncle's house, with other family members coming and going. My son and daughter were immediately glued to my godson's side (they are second cousins). They adored him from

Winter 2017

the Riklis Grant, which I was lucky enough to receive. Working at Allen-Stevenson and being in Ecuador evoked similar feelings of being part of something bigger, something important. While I'm still relatively new to A-S, I've embraced everything about it wholeheartedly and it motivates me to work harder because we are like a family.

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Features (cont.)

the beginning, and spent a week attempting to play ping pong, swim in the pool, ride roller coasters, and walk side by side throughout the city.

The bond they formed immediately was remarkable and heartwarming.

Over the course of the week, we explored different neighborhoods together, went to an amusement park, wandered around the botanical garden, and had multiple family meals together. My children cried when we packed to return to New York, and are eagerly planning a return trip to Montreal to see our family.

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Thank you again for helping to establish a new familial relationship across multiple generations. This love that my children now feel, both for and from relatives they hadn't previously known, is priceless.

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Peter Fletcher—Technology Teacher

The Riklis Grant gave me the opportunity to have an unusual adventure with my son Oliver. I am a big fan of cooking show competitions and an avid runner. Somehow these two have become one as I now tend to run on a treadmill watching Diners, Drive Inns and Dives, Best Things I Ever Ate, and Chopped.

Often while I am running, I imagine myself making my way around a city, making pit stops as I taste food at different restaurants. Along the way, I meet people, learn about a new city, and taste great food. The city I chose to have my food adventure in was Portland, Oregon. I saw a number of restaurants while I was running on the treadmill featured on the Food Network.

Along the way we ate delicious tacos at Por Que No, incredible donuts at Blue Star, and mouth watering fried chicken at The Country Cat. I wrote a letter to the owners Adam and Jackie Sappington of The Country Cat a few weeks before the trip, asking if we could meet. They were both featured on the show Chopped. Adam and Jackie were very gracious, chatted with us and we took some pictures. While in Portland we also enjoyed The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, Alpine Slides, Portland Zoo, and Mt. Hood. I am grateful to have received the Riklis Grant. A big thank you to the Board for giving me and my son the opportunity to try some tasty food and learn about a great city.

Julia Kunin—Art Department Chair I would like to thank the Riklis Foundation, David Trower and The Board of Trustees for their generous gift of a Riklis Grant. I am very grateful this funding gave me the opportunity to broaden my art making goals during my summer trip to Hungary. When I go to Hungary, I make arrangements to work with experts at factories and private studios and research new techniques. I pay for food, housing, art materials, transportation, and the crating and shipping of my artwork. The Riklis grant helped tremendously towards that effort. It paid for some of my art materials and for my transportation to Hungary.

This summer I worked in a huge studio that used to be part of the Zsolnay Porcelain factory, but is now run by the University of Pecs Art Department, in Pecs, Hungary. I had a Fulbright at the University of Pecs in 2013, and have since developed wonderful friendships with the faculty and students there. As a result, the ceramics department was incredibly generous in allowing me to work at the University free of charge. I was able to create four significant multi-part ceramic wall sculptures, as well as continue to develop a lamp project that I've been working on for Ralph Pucci International.

In addition to working in clay, I also worked in an enamel factory in Bonyhad, Hungary. The factory, called Ema-leon, has been in existence since 1900. They produce pots and pans, as well as shelving units, lamps and other enameled steel objects.

I first found out about the factory when I saw an artist's minimalist enamel piece that had been made in the 1970's.

I inquired about it, and was told that it was made in an artist workshop during socialist times in Hungary. Two summers ago, my Hungarian was fluent enough that it enabled me to contact the factory, and inquire about doing some work there. They were very welcoming, and so began my experiments in enamel.

Last year I made several test pieces, and this year I was able to make more finished works which I call drawings, works made on flat pieces of enameled steel. This summer I made several enamels: A series of five pieces, two diptychs, and two larger pieces.

I was fascinated to find out this summer that the socialist government in Hungary during the ’60s and ’70s encouraged artists to create their projects in factories. One of the reasons that I love working in the factory environment, such as the Zsolnay Porcelain factory and Ema-leon, is that I am surrounded by highly skilled craftspeople whose work I have tremendous respect for. Being in the enamel factory has given me the opportunity to observe experts, and to ask them for advice. In addition I am surrounded by projects in process and finished works that inspire me. I have also been able to make lasting friendships with people at the factory.

Working daily without interruption provides me with invaluable time to think, time

Working in a foreign country provides constant challenges, and requires a lot of logistical coordination. I am very thankful to my friends and colleagues in Hungary for their help all along the way, and I am very grateful to have received a Riklis Foundation Grant which helped make this experience possible.

My summer was phenomenal.

Here is the website with some of my lamps: https://www.ralphpucci.net/lighting/Julia-Kunin/collection

Natalie López—Spanish Teacher Traveling to Spain this summer was truly a memorable and enriching experience.

Spain developed a love and appreciation for my native tongue and pushed me to pursue teaching Spanish as a second language. Returning to Spain this summer, gave me the opportunity to enrich my knowledge, cultural experience, and continue expanding my language skills as an educator. In just a few weeks, I immersed myself in the everyday life, explored cities such as Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia, and spent each day getting to know Spain's artistic diversity.

This Grant gave me the opportunity to widen my cultural understanding of Spanish society and a reminder of the importance of acquiring a second language in today's world, a concept I would like to instill in my students. Thank you Mr. Trower, the School Leadership Team and the Board of Trustees for this opportunity.

Ashley Train—Kindergarten Teacher I traveled to Greece and visited Europe for the first time. During my trip I learned so much about Greek culture, history, traditions, and most importantly I learned many new things about myself. I learned that I have the ability to be more spontaneous, free spirited, and truly mindful.

During my trip I had the ability to be entirely present, leaving behind the stresses and distractions of New York City. I felt free to enjoy each moment and completely immerse myself in Greek culture and explore new people with different perspectives of the world. I am so thankful for the opportunity to have spent a summer learning about me and a new place in our world, that I may not have been able to see otherwise.

The Parents Association introduced the PA

Special Staff

Grant last year. It is designated for rest, renewal and

professional development for staff in the following non-teaching departments: admissions, business, communications, food

services, maintenance, nurse, security and technology. The PA Special Staff Grant 2016-17 Recipients were: Marty Appel, Chris Brazee, Hector Macias and Christaline Wilkins.

The theme of the Grant’s first year was definitely family.

Chris Brazee and his wife were expecting a baby and Christaline, Marty and Hector wanted to spend more time relaxing with family. Each used the funds to make the time spent with family a little more special.

Aleeza Meir—Music Teacher

I was the lucky recipient of one of this year's Riklis Grants, and used it for a music retreat during the summer. I spent a few days in a quiet place in Massachusetts, practicing, writing, reading, walking by the ocean, and planning a big concert for this past November.

Hector Macias and his wife, Maria Jimenez and daughter, Daniella

I am very grateful to AllenStevenson for such generosity in providing me with the means to make this retreat happen. It was exactly what I needed, and came at exactly the time that I needed it.

Marty Appel with his wife, Annalita

Christaline Wilkins

Winter 2017

to create and opportunities to take risks in my work. In addition to working in the studio, I was able to visit some exciting art exhibitions in Budapest, including one at the Ludwig Museum about The Pecs Workshop, a collective that was active in the 1970s. It was a wall piece made in that collective that first inspired me to explore enamel.

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News

Lamplighter

Third Grade Teacher Chris Brozyna and his band, Memory Loss, continue to support the Wounded Warriors Project by donating all proceeds from each performance.

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With torrential rains hitting Citi Field, a group from A-S including several teachers, a staff member and an alumnus decided to challenge themselves during the Spartan Sprint Obstacle Course race. Jumping over 8 foot high walls, climbing up 20-foot ropes, and carrying 30 to 50 pound sand bags, while climbing up and down the Citi Field stadium steps, were no match for the A-S Team. Kim Weber, John Zufall, Jon Burgos, Daniel Terry ‘10 (Dr. Mary Terry’s son), Mary Leonard, Brad Grimmer, and Tony D’Itri (who competed in the Elite Division before running with the team in the open division) all completed a grueling, challenging, but absolutely invigorating race. Along with the teachers, over 25 students also ran in the Spartan Kids race. All competitors earned the title of Spartan! Aroo! Aroo!

JoAnn Corsillo, Controller, welcomed her second grandson, Jonathan Joseph, on July 20.

He joins his big brother Nicholas at home with his parents.

Susan Etess, Director of Admissions and proud grandma, is pleased to share that alumnus Andrew Zimmerman ‘00 and his wife Elana, welcomed Axton Zane Zimmerman on May 3. He weighed 6 lbs and 5 ounces.

Theatre Director, Stacy Donovan and her company, Improbable Stage, debuted their adaptation of Titus Andronicus last June. That Which Remains ran for 14 sold out performances at IRT Theater in the West Village. For Theatre Scene, critic Darryl Reilly calls the show, “ ...a sizeable work... that director Stacy A. Donovan has surmounted with artistic supremacy. It’s a small-scale spectacle.” In addition to Miss Donovan, Allen-Stevenson teachers, Ryan Castro and Sarah Misch were members of the cast and our own costume designer, Elizabeth Van Buren, designed the costumes for the show. For the full review go to http://www.theaterscene.net/ plays/that-which-remains/ darryl-reilly/

Stephen Warner, Head of Lower School, and Jesse Montero, Kindergarten Associate Teacher, ran the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C. on Sunday, October 22. Both AllenStevenson educators were excited to run a race in our nation’s capital.

Randolph Schrade ‘76, the maestro of the A-S Instrumental program performed as soloist, along with Christopher James ’05 and Lynelle James, in the Berkshires this summer. Two different critics were present and hailed the "gorgeous rendering" of a Massenet Meditation for cello and piano.

Randolph was singled out for his approach akin to the late pianist and scholar Charles Rosen for his "thorough understanding of the structure and intention of the music" unfolding for the listener "through penetrating certainty and compelling character."

Lynelle and Christopher were lauded for their finger busting brilliance and powerhouse performances of Bach, Liszt and Paganini. Chris, an A-S alumnus, played the cello and trumpet in the school orchestra, was recognized for his virtuosity, and Lynelle for her amazing dexterity as she brought down the house with Liszt's “Mephisto Waltz.” To read a review, go to http://www. .inthespotlightinc.org/ and search for Randolph Schrade.

Closing Exercises

Mr. Proctor's message to the boys was to “stay childish.” He talked about the importance of staying in touch with the child within...“he is your essence, spirit and personality and best guide to the path to fulfillment.” He told the boys that he has said “yes” more than “no” in his life, and that there are “no bad choices, as long as you’re true to yourself.”

Upper School Head Mr. Kamsler opened his speech by saying it was difficult to speak on this occasion because this was also his own graduation. He remarked that he has been “blessed by devoted faculty” and being “a teacher was the best decision I ever made.” He told the boys to “never give up, to always follow your passions and that it is never too late to make a change.”

Headmaster David Trower h'95 announced the recipients for the Riklis Grants, this year’s Kellner Great Teacher Awardee Kindergarten Teacher Alice Heminway, the newly-created PA Special Staff Grant awarded to Marty Appel, Chris Brazee, Hector Macias and Christaline Wilkins, and gave a huge thank you to Neal Kamsler who is leaving the School after 22 years.

He closed by reading a poem from the A-Z Files titled, “Stick to the Path” by Thomas Harris.

Daniel Simmons ‘18

Also speaking at the ceremony were: Mark Greene, President of the Board of Trustees, who asked the boys to “please stay connected and involved with the School” and Zac Omar '17 who in his Class of 2017 Farewell speech said the “past few years have been the best of my life.”

Musical performances were featured throughout the ceremony.

The chorus delighted everyone as they sang a number of favorite songs from the year. The instrumental soloists were incredible and included: Alex Smith '18 playing “It's a Wonderful World” on the French Horn; Jake Silpe ’18 playing “The Swan” (from Carnival of the Animals) on the cello, Santiago Vargas Machado ’18 playing “Andante, Allegro” (Sonata in C Major) on the flute; and Daniel Simmons ’18 playing “Romanze” on the viola.

Awards were presented to the following boys during the morning:

Desmond Cole Fortiter et Recte Award—Kush Malhotra '18 Charles E. Horman Award—Thomas Harris '18 Athletic Award—Alex Smith '18 The Robby Zuckert Honor—David Porges '18 Alumni Medal—Addeson Lehv '18

Certificates were given to all the boys who were graduating.

Congratulations!

Winter 2017

The Upper School held its Closing Exercises on June 7. The featured speaker was Phil Proctor ’55, an actor, voice actor, and a founding member of the Firesign Theatre, whose love for the stage started at Allen-Stevenson, performing in the annual Gilbert & Sullivan operettas. He went to Riverdale Country School and then Yale University. While at Yale, he honed his comedic skills by contributing to The Yale Record, a campus humor magazine. He’s been working in Hollywood since the '60s, lending his talents to more movies, TV shows, commercials, and video games than could possibly be listed here. Some of his characters include: the drunken monkey from Dr. Doolittle; Dr. Vidic from Assassin's Creed; the Chef in Spirited Away; Charlie in Monsters, Inc.; Sea Horse Bob in Finding Nemo; and Howard in Rugrats.

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Closing Exercises (cont.)

S P E E C H B Y P H I L P RO C TO R ’ 5 5

Thank you, Headmaster Trower, distinguished faculty, parents, family and friends—and “Good morning, fellow kids!”

And I mean that sincerely, because at the ripe old age of 76, if I have any message to impart to you today, it’s this: stay childish —stay childish as long as you can, and stay in touch as long as you breathe with the child within—honor him—listen to him. He is your essence, your spirit, your personality, and in many ways, your best guide on your pathway to fulfillment.

Lamplighter

You’ve all been given this one special life. It’s a privileged one, and it’s yours—your gift alone. And no matter what you confront on your way to success, be it your relationship with parents, siblings, bosses, soulmates, partners or “the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune”, it’s up to you—or as Hamlet says: “To be or not to be.” So be it.

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I, for example, was dropped into this world in 1940 in the small, Midwestern town of Goshen, Indiana, of Amish and Irish parentage with an inherited ability to hear and repeat music, dialects and languages. You could say I was born as a natural sugar-cured ham, endowed at the time, with a sweet disposition and good taste in my choice of relatives.

Iolanthe. Who among you have suffered a similar fate, huh?

C’mon, hands up! Well, all I can say is this: it doesn’t hurt to express your feminine side and to realize that on the greater stage of life, we must embrace our differences, because in the end, love really is the answer.

It was a great time to be at school. The classes were small and almost everything took place in one building. The cafeteria you still eat in today was the morning assembly hall, the gymnasium, our rehearsal space, the place where we learned tap and formal dancing and the site of numerous physical exhibitions, awards ceremonies and fund-raising carnivals. And that little stage was regularly transformed to accommodate all kinds of performances, from concerts, to elaborate Christmas chorales, and even several G&S productions.

As today, we had wonderful teachers who nurtured us in mind, body and spirit. In second grade, I was tutored in reading by Ms. Green, dragged into mathematics by Mr. Wagner, who later married my first-grade teacher, Miss Summerbean—that’s right, Miss Summerbean—a teacher as pretty as her name, and my first crush!

I was introduced to Shakespeare which we read aloud, by Mr. Benchley who also played piano for our G&S productions, and alone in the cozy library upstairs, my imagination was sparked by the works of the science-fiction master, H. G. Wells.

An unlikely character named Ben Stinchfield, who also looked like his name, was always dressed to perfection in a three-piece suit with a hankie in his pocket, sporting a pince-nez on his aquiline French schnoz. He ran study-hall with an iron fist and taught a conversational French class where he dubbed me, Monsieur Le Bavard—or in English—“Mr. Chatterbox.”

To this day, I don’t know why…

But actually it wasn’t until I turned 8 that I first performed publically in a production of The Pied Piper Santi Vargas Machado ‘18 of Hamelin on the little stage downstairs next door, where I played a Town Elder; and I can remember to this day standing atop a fake wall, looking down at my classmates dressed as mice, scrabbling at the feet of Peter Monroe who, being the tallest in our class, was cast as the Piper. And at that moment I thought to myself, “This is fun. I gotta figure out how to do this for the rest of my life.”

Well, as luck would have it, I was in the right place at the right time, and before I knew it, a young teacher named Stanley Gauger showed up to instruct us in the art of music, and he soon formed what was to become the celebrated AllenStevenson School Chorus and Orchestra, in which I sang and played second fiddle, and being a “boy soprano”, I eventually got to play female leads in the annual Gilbert and Sullivan shows: Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance and Phyllis in

Jake Silpe ‘18

Phil Proctor ‘55

And once, we even got to meet one of the founders of the school Mr. Stevenson himself, a self-effacing man of great grace and charm.

But most of all, being small and flexible, I Alex Smith ‘18 experienced the thrill of standing on the top of human pyramids and demonstrating my gymnastic skills— we called it “tumbling”—at exhibitions in the gym under the guidance of Mr. Baker, an ex-Marine with a brush cut who also ran Camp Black Point, where I spent many an idyllic summer on beautiful Lake George in the Adirondacks, learning how to swim, paddle a canoe, hike mountain trails, sleep under the stars—and clean out the latrine. Many of the counselors were from the faculty, so Tom Waters, another beloved English teacher, read us a chapter of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain every night before lights out…

And back at school, I was elected to the Student Council and once had to discipline a freckle-faced lad named Michael Eisner for chewing gum in class. Yes, Michael Eisner, the future head of Walt Disney Studios, for whom I later worked for decades adding voices to animated features from Beauty and the Beast to Toy Story and Monsters, Inc. and Finding Nemo and most recently, Inside Out.

And here are a few pictures of some of the characters I’ve voiced that you might recognize. (Holds up pictures) And I’ll be happy to sign and pass a bunch of these out later if you wish.

Finally, I was off to Yale, which I attended from ‘58—‘62, and in my Freshman year, much to my surprise, I was chosen to travel through the Soviet Union with the Yale Russian Chorus, blending my talents for languages and singing in an unforgettable summer that took me from Berlin to Warsaw, Leningrad, Moscow, Lvov and Kiev in the Ukraine, and sailing the Black Sea from Yalta to Sochi—with 40 Yalies and two celebrated masters of jazz, Dwike Mitchell and Willy Ruff, who happened to be black. In 1959, the Russians had never seen black men before, and they would try to touch them to see if their color rubbed off. Well Dwike and Willy tolerated this with grace and good humor and then played the first jazz concert ever in the legendary Pushkin Theatre in Leningrad.

Winter 2017

Anyway back then, just like you, I had to leave Allen-Stevenson for high school—in my case, Riverdale Country School in the Bronx—where I lived in the on-campus dorm and continued my pursuit of theatre, languages, singing and acting. I soon learned that I had to make some hard choices. Should I play the violin in the pit orchestra or sing the lead on stage in a musical where I had to kiss a pretty girl?

Silly question…

Back in New Haven—where incidently, I just attended my 55th class reunion—I performed in plays and musicals in the Dramat with the likes of Sam Waterston, Marcia Rodd, Joan Van Ark, John Badham, Peter Hunt and the legendary Austin Pendleton who wrote two musicals I starred in, with lyrics co-authored by Peter Bergman, a guy I later reconnected with on his radio show in LA, leading to the formation of the 4-man Firesign Theatre with whom I collaborated to create groundbreaking Grammy-nominated comedy albums for over 50 years!

And that’s why I greeted you with “Good Morning, Fellow Kids”—a line from one of our records, where I portrayed a character called “Principal Poop.”

But whatever career you feel attracted to by your talents and your natural instincts, you already have a great head start, thanks to the dedicated teachers in this excellent, ever-evolving school, who have challenged you and encouraged you to uncover and express your own unique abilities—and having been where you are once myself, I can promise that you will achieve the best success in life if you determine to remain brave, curious, open, honest and young always in mind and spirit!

I have been silly all my life, and I have been greatly rewarded for it. And whatever path you choose, go for it—say yes more than no—because being children of God, as we all are, in a universe that we share, but dimly understand—there are no bad choices as long as you remain true to yourself.

So, fellow kids, go forth, follow your dreams…and prosper. It’s up to you. Thank me, and I’m welcome.

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Closing Exercises (cont.)

CLASS OF 2017 SPEECH B Y Z A C A RY O M A R ’ 1 7

Lamplighter

Good morning, parents, family members, faculty, and staff, and welcome to the 134th closing ceremonies of The AllenStevenson School. I feel privileged and honored to be representing the graduating classes of 2017 and 2018. I am sure that many of you have plans to celebrate this special day, so I will do my best to keep this short.

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As you look upon all of those graduating, I am sure that you would see nothing but happiness, and excitement to begin the next step in life. But, while we may be excited to move on, these past few days have given us the chance to look back on not only how we have impacted the school, but on how the school has impacted us. I know I for one have created memories that will last a lifetime. And while these days may be happy, the ninth grade trip to Washington, D.C. just a week ago has really made me think about all that I will be leaving behind. Along with learning that Mr. Kamsler is quite the bowler. Although I have not been at A-S since Kindergarten like many of my fellow graduating students, these past years have been the best of my life.

The school year of 2016-2017 has been especially different, with athletics during the day, that noisy construction, and of course, who can forget beating Buckley for a change. But on a more serious note, the staff and the students you see in this room have done so much, and worked so hard to improve this school in any way they can. For example, this year, the GSA or Gay Straight Alliance was established here, BOCAS, Boys of Color at Allen-Stevenson has increased its size tremendously, and there has been a significant growing interest in students traveling to Costa Rica for the annual community service trip hosted by our wonderful Spanish department. These are just some of the countless ways Allen-Stevenson strives to be the best.

Zacary Omar ‘17

This year has been full of excitement, joy, successful athletic teams, academic programs in which we have learned so much, and music programs that continue to impress me during every concert. While this year has been one of the best, sadly, we must say goodbye to Mr. Kamsler, who after decades of working at Allen-Stevenson will be moving on to the Oliver Scholars Program.

I think I speak for everyone here when I say congratulations, and we wish you luck in your future endeavors. Someone else who will be leaving Allen-Stevenson is Middle School Math teacher Mr. Harris who is retiring and will be moving back to Alabama. Mr. Harris has always been very special to me, because as my first math teacher at Allen-Stevenson, he showed me around the school, and helped me assimilate into the community. Even to this day, if I see him in the hallway, I'll walk over to him, he'll give me a high five, and we will talk for a few minutes before I head off to class. And I think that captures what Allen-Stevenson is all about, a kind, and welcoming community.

But, while we are all upset that they will be leaving, we will be welcoming someone new to the Allen-Stevenson community by the name of Mr. Jacquet, who will be the new Assistant Head of the Upper School. And the new Upper School Head will be Mr. Cohen. I just hope that you can master “All Right Gentlemen” before the next school year.

I think we can all agree that our time here has had its fair share of ups and downs. But one thing is for certain, for everybody here graduating this is no longer a school, but instead, our home.

I felt I had the need to add in a little something for those staying for ninth grade. I remember last year, my classmates and I who were staying for ninth grade felt saddened that our friends would be leaving. But, if I were to say one thing to those staying for ninth grade, cherish this last year that you will have at Allen-Stevenson, because when it comes time for you guys sitting up here, you will wish to do it all over again. The ninth grade for you will be amazing, full of great teachers, lunch out once a week, and a field trip to Washington, D.C. at the end of the year. Just make sure to do well on your Facing History, or you might have to stay back.

In conclusion, I would like to leave off on one final note. As said by Mark Twain, “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream.

Discover.” So, for the graduating classes of 2017 and 2018, I challenge you to do just that. To explore. To dream. And to discover. Thank you, and congratulations to the graduating classes of 2017 and 2018.

ONGOING SCHOOLS Allen-Stevenson students are always well served in the secondary school application process. The goal of the process is to find the right “match” for every boy. Each boy should be looking for the school that would best serve his needs as he moves onto high school, inspiring him to grow and develop into the best possible student and person. For some boys that is a boarding school, for

others a day school with a campus, and for others a more urban setting. Some of the factors that boys consider when looking at schools are size, location, academic program, extracurricular

offerings, and approach to teaching. Our boys are known for their wide range of interests and their willingness to contribute to a wide variety of school activities. As such they are highly sought after by ongoing schools. Below is a list of schools that last year’s graduates are attending.

We extend our heartfelt congratulations to the Classes of 2017 and 2018 as they take this next step in their academic careers.

They are attending the following high schools, among others: Day Avenues Berkeley Carroll Bronx Science Brooklyn Tech Columbia Prep Dalton Dwight-Englewood Eleanor Roosevelt Elisabeth Irwin Fieldston Friends Seminary Grace Church Hackley Horace Mann Kew Forest LaGuardia Loyola NEST+M Packer Poly Prep Ranney Regis Rye Country Day Riverdale Stuyvesant Trevor Day Trinity

Boarding Andover Berkshire Canterbury Choate Cushing Deerfield Exeter Hill Hotchkiss Hun Kent Lawrenceville Millbrook Milton Northfield Mt Hermon Peddie Putney Salisbury St. George’s Suffield Taft Westminster

College

After celebrating with the class at the Back to 78th Street Party in June, we’ve learned that the graduates of the Class of 2014 are attending the following colleges, among others.

Babson College Barry University Bentley University Brown University Colgate University Dartmouth College Duke University Emory University Georgetown University Harvard University

Michigan State University Middlebury College New York University Northwestern University Parsons School of Design SUNY Albany University of Chicago University of Southern California (USC) University of Wisconsin

If you are a member of these classes and have not updated the Alumni Office about where you are attending high school or college, please send us an email at alumni@allen-stevenson.org.

Winter 2017

High School

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Closing Exercises (cont.)

UPPER SCHOOL HONORS 2016-2017 Daughters of the American Revolution

Tunney Creative Writing Award

Society of Colonial Wars

Mary B. Helm Award

Sebastian Ross ’19

Luke Jovanovic ’19

Mayflower Compact Award Benjamin Forman ’19

History Award David Trower and Kush Malhotra ‘18

William Palmer ’18 David Porges ’18

Addeson Lehv ’18 Nicholas Simonian ’18

Bradford A. Warner Shop Award

Upper School Head’s Award

William Palmer ’18 Zachary Rahaman ’18

Lamplighter

Mathematics Prize Science Award

David Agbato ’17 Kilin Tang ’17

Francis Keally Art Award

Francis Keally Gilbert & Sullivan Award Steven Cohen and Thomas Harris ‘18

Spanish: William Clark ’18 Jack Greff ’18 David Rosen ’18 Nicholas Simonian ’18

Facing History & Ourselves Award of Distinction

Conrad Dobbs ’17

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Akanimo Umanah ’17

Grey Holmén ’18 Santiago Vargas Machado ’18

Kilin Tang ’17 Akanimo Umanah ’17

7th Grade: Ty A. Katz Christopher A. Khazaneh Grant M. Pinkos 8th Grade: George E. Hall Zachary N. Rahaman

Chorus Prize

Grey Holmén ’18 Kush Malhotra ’18

William L. Landis Drama Prize Grey Holmén ’18

Stanley D. Gauger Music Prize

Grey Holmén ’18 Jake Silpe ’18 Santiago Vargas Machado ’18

Special Independent Award Billy Dransfield and Alex Smith ‘18

Daniel Simmons ’18

Coaches’ Award

Maxwell Esterson ’18

Phil Proctor ’55 and Addeson Lehv ‘18

Rookie Award

Luke Jovanovic ’19

Dance Award

Grey Holmén ’18

Wellness Award

Nicholas Simonian ’18

Public Speaking Prize David Trower and David Porges ‘18

James Wlodarczak ’19

William A. Hanway Memorial Prize David Agbato ’17

Jamia Jasper, from DAR, and Sebastian Ross ‘19

Class of ’19:

Robert Scarborough P’19 and Luke Jovanovic ‘19

Henry T. Adkins IV, Federico M.G.E. Arengi Bentivoglio, Sebastien L. Cheese, Julian V. Corcoran, Nicholas W. Creed, Jackson C. Deans, Benjamin T. Forman, Ethan J. Fowler, Duke S. Garschina, Austin T. Greene, Ford H. Holmén, Henry C. Jaffe, Luke E. Jovanovic, Noah P. Katz, Ty A. Katz, Christopher A. Khazaneh, Dylan Kleinberger, Holden W. Lipton, Eric A. Lozado, Alexander L. MacLennan, Beckett F. McKee, Kiran S. Mediratta, Benjamin A. Nayman, Omotola A. Olorode, Grant M. Pinkos, H. Sebastian Ross, Harrison S. Schneider, Nelson A. Spiegel, Gregory R. Stone, Charles G. Susser, John H. Tinker, Ethan J. Wasserberger, Jordan A. Wasserberger, Alex H. Wilf, James S. Wlodarczak, Jaden C. Yablon

Class of ’18:

Tara Parsons and Conrad Dobbs ‘17

Ryan A. Bird, William S. Camp, William E.B. Clark, Oliver L.W. Copplestone, Maxwell C. Esterson, Jack P. Greff, Justin F. Grier, George E. Hall, Grey A. Holmén, Jack W. Klein, Addeson B. Lehv, Kush Malhotra, Harry G. Niles, Jonah M. Nir, David R. Porges, Jonathan D. Poss, David L. Rosen, Neilesh Shrotri, Jake R. Silpe, Daniel J. Simmons, Nicholas J. Simonian, Kai H. Stevens, Santiago Vargas Machado, Lucas M. Villamil

Class of ’17:

David A. Agbato, Conrad E. Dobbs, Kilin Y. Tang, Akanimo A. Umanah

Honor Student

Randy Schrade ’76 and Daniel Simmons ‘18

Thomas Harris ’18

Robby Zuckert Honor David Porges ’18

Athletic Award

Alexander Smith ’18

Alumni Medal

Addeson Lehv ’18

Riklis & Faculty Development Grant Recipients

Lorenzo Bellard, Jonathan Burgos, Clarissa Crowley, Tony D’Itri, Sophie Dwyer, Peter Fletcher, Julia Kunin, Natalie Lopez, Rob McCallum, Aleeza Meir, Tara Parsons, Ashley Train

Kellner Great Teacher Award Alice Heminway

Student Council President Conrad Dobbs ’17

Alumni Secretary Class of ’18:

Zale Peart and Addeson Lehv

Class of ’17:

Alex Ross and Thomas Triedman

MIDDLE SCHOOL PRIZES–2016-2017 Bradford A. Warner Award Aarav Gupta ’21 Daniel Gall ’21

Kilin Tang ’17

Anthony G. Couloucoundis II Memorial Award

Kush Malhotra ’18

Adam and Elan Benjamin Memorial Award

Desmond Cole Fortiter et Recte Award Grey Holmén ’18, Michelle Demko and Santi Vargas Machado ’18

Charles E. Horman Award

Tony D’Itri and Nicholas Simonian ‘18

John Fallon ’20

Dylan Collins ’21

Kilin Tang ’17, Jeffrey Herschenhous and Akanimo Umanah ’17

Winter 2017

Honor Roll:

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Alumni Spotlight

C H R I S TO P H E R P E R S L E Y ’ 8 8 From a chat with Sarah Woods, Associate Director of Communications and Samantha Koss, Director of Alumni Relations What about your time at Allen-Stevenson influenced you the most?

Lamplighter

When I was in Eighth Grade, some of my classmates were in science lab watching the Challenger take off when the awful tragedy occurred. They actually saw it happen on TV. I was in math class and learned about it shortly afterwards. I was devastated, especially as there was a teacher on board. Our math teacher had us write a piece describing our feelings about the tragedy instead of giving us math homework that night.

This was hugely impactful to me. He made being thoughtful a priority that day over learning math… demonstrating that we should look beyond the academics.

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I think my desire to be in education started at that moment, and this was one of the reasons that I went back to teach at Allen-Stevenson. This incident also reminded me that I was part of a community and needed to give back to that community. It took me a bit of time to get comfortable with that as a young boy. In Ninth Grade, I was elected Student Council President and the council put together a talent show fundraiser, did a March of Dimes walk, and service work in Central Park. At the end of the school year, I was awarded the Alumni Medal. Honestly, I didn’t know the award existed. I just wanted to help our community. I remain so honored to have won it.

Is there a particular person who impacted your life?

Billy McBride, who was my Ninth Grade Advisor, football coach, and basketball coach at Allen-Stevenson. He was the first black man I had come across in my educational experience. He was so professional and so giving of himself. He also helped me to become more comfortable with myself and ultimately who I am today. I realized that the School was as much mine as everyone else’s.

Billy and I were recently featured in a Dove Men+Care campaign together that focused on father figures in one’s life.

Billy McBride was very much one of those for me and I wanted to pay tribute to him. Reconnecting has been wonderful.

We’ve discussed future collaborations such as a workshop for educators. Billy has also talked about wanting to tell his life story, and I may well take a crack at it!

Billy McBride and Christopher Persley ‘88

Are there other influencers in your life?

My mom has had a huge influence on my life. She always pushed me to work hard to be the best student and person I could be. She made so many sacrifices for me. She researched better educational opportunities and came across Prep for Prep, which I attended before Allen-Stevenson. At AllenStevenson, I felt as if I could be myself for the first time.

When I was teaching at Allen-Stevenson I felt the same way.

I taught English for six years from 1995 to 2001. I even taught Latin for a year, and was a coach and a homeroom teacher.

I had a couple of mentors who were instrumental in my teaching career and my time as a student at A-S. My official one was David Kersey, Head of the Upper School at the time, but John Pariseau was also someone who always looked out for me and gave me much needed support and advice.

During my second year of working at Allen-Stevenson, several boys of color reached out to me about finding an outlet to talk about their experiences. I came up with the idea of a group, which was the forerunner of BOCAS. I presented it to US faculty, and it took some convincing as it was seen as forced segregation. But when I explained that it was a support group, we were able to set up weekly meetings. The boys’ stories were eye opening for the faculty. It empowered some kids in ways they might not have been otherwise. On a professional note, this is what led me to being a Director of Diversity at another school.

Christopher Persley ’88 with his daughter, Camilla

After teaching and being a Diversity Director for a number of years, I decided to apply to a grad school program for independent school administration. While attending the first summer of the program, my wife and I had a newborn at home.

Throughout the program, I was often told that I would have to make many sacrifices if I was to be a part of a school’s administration. One of those sacrifices would be time with my family.

So, I left my job to stay at home with my daughter, Camilla.

I decided to document this experience. I thought it might be short-lived. From the first day as a stay-at-home dad I began writing about what it was like to be a father, not having had one in my life, and how not having one around actually influenced my life. People began to write to me about my blog postings. I didn’t really think it would have an impact, but it did. Some of my thoughts were posted on sites for dads groups and other parenting websites. So, I decided to revamp my blog into a website. I wrote more pieces, and even conducted interviews with people who offered advice for my daughter.

Magazines such as Real Simple and Family Circle began to reach out, as did Good Morning America, The Today Show, MSNBC, and some sites such as The Scene and Mic.com.

To think, this began as a way to document things so that Camilla could come back to it and learn about my experience as her dad. This was all so unexpected!

For years, parents have asked me questions as an educator and now, I’m sharing parenting advice on sites like Lifehacker.com.

I’m broadening my reach. I’m passionate about parenting, and I like to think I’m a lifelong learner. Desmond Cole talked about the importance of this. I’m not comfortable being called an expert, but I am happy to chat about something I love.

Winter 2017

What led you to establish The Brown Gothamite?

After school every day I ask Camilla if there was something new and interesting she learned that she didn’t know before.

Sometimes, she asks me this question. So, I try to make sure that I have an answer. It’s important that I evolve as a parent and person.

What piece of advice do you have for an A-S boy?

To my future A-S alums, I challenge them to make sure they are true to themselves. If they find themselves drifting away from who they are, they should remember to bring themselves back.

I also want them to make sure that they are advocates for change and position themselves this way.

What advice do you have for A-S dads?

Remember to be involved and engaged. It is more than taking your child to school; it’s knowing what your child is doing and how they are interacting with others. Ask them questions and have a deeper connection with your child. You want them to come to you with their questions. You don’t have to have all of the answers, but you should be the one to whom they turn to most often.

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Our Alumni Community in Action EVENTS 2016-2017

Back to 78th Street: Class of 2014

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June 5 marked the return of the Allen-Stevenson Class of 2014 to 78th Street. At a party in celebration of their achievements since leaving Allen-Stevenson, happy classmates gathered in the Assembly Hall with parents and faculty to reconnect and toast their next adventures.

44

Ms. Matthew and her amazing kitchen team catered the event, serving elevated versions of some of the boys' favorites from their days at A-S. Mr. Kersey gave the class a warm welcome, and all enjoyed the opportunity to visit their beloved elementary school.

”

Jamie Magid '91, Phil Proctor '55 (this year’s speaker at the Upper School Closing Exercises) and other members of the council enjoyed breakfast with the graduates before conducting a short ceremony where each of the boys received their alumni pin.

By Dr. Mary Terry

In September, both fifth grade classes traveled to Washington, Connecticut to spend the day at Waldingfield Farm with owner and alumnus Patrick Horan '85.

As part of their study of Plants and Food Security for All, boys had researched many aspects of sustainable, local farming practices in contrast to industrial

farming and shipping of vegetables. They got to see this new knowledge in action by helping Farmer Patrick and his hands harvest hundreds of delicata, acorn and butternut squash!

In the coolness of the brand new barn after the heat of the fields, the boys listened to Farmer Patrick tell the history of his family’s farm, one of the oldest working vegetable farms (1730) in the state, and how they have

worked to combine the latest sustainable practices with the farm’s colonial, environmental friendliness. Boys also had a lively Q & A with their new farmer friend about pesticides, bees, carbon and water footprints, "green" manure and late blight.

To fill out their learning on the question of food security, fifth graders and Farmer Patrick have agreed that donating a generous share of butternut and delicata squash to the All Souls Friday Lunch Program—to be transformed into soups and hearty, warm side dishes for the guests there—is the appropriately sustainable thing to do!

Winter 2017

The Allen-Stevenson Alumni Council welcomed the newest classes of alumni to the Alumni Association at the New Alumni Breakfast on Wednesday, June 7, preceding the Upper School Closing Exercises.

Fifth Grade Boys Experience Local Organic Farming: A Day of Science in a Natural Classroom

”

New Alumni Breakfast

”

45

alumni NEWS

Call for class reps! Are you a class representative for your graduation year? Or are you interested in becoming a representative for your class. If so, we’d love to hear from you! Please reach out to Samantha Koss, Director of Alumni Relations, at skoss@allen-stevenson.org.

1962

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Jack Salomon '62 and his wife Ann have been participating in several of the New York City Red Bull Theater's Shakespeare Intensive Workshops. He sent along a fantastic picture of himself from a rehearsal of Macbeth, bloody fake daggers and all.

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Jack Salomon ’62

Erik Cliette, Class Representative Evan Goldfischer, Class Representative Eric Rothstein, Class Representative Andrew Vogelstein, Class Representative

Hans Wydler, Class Representative

Matt Penn '81 is excited about his brand new A-S varsity jacket.

You can order one for yourself from the school store!

Dr. Evan Goldfischer '81 just published Practice Management for Urology Groups: LUPGA’s Guidebook. He was the Editor in Chief and an author.

Doug Parker ’62 reports that this past June he retired from my position with NYC government and moved to San Diego.

He’s already gotten together for lunch with classmate Lynde Selden ‘62. He’s taken a few flight lessons hoping to regain currency, not having flown for about six years, and says it's almost always perfect flying weather down here.

1963

Maurice Hakim - mch-123@comcast.net James Whitlock - jowhitlock@gmail.com

Bill Walker '63 and his daughter Chloe spent a weekend in NYC and stopped

by Allen-Stevenson for a tour.

Bill enjoyed showing his daughter his old alma mater, and especially pointing out his A-S Athletic Award!

Thanks for visiting!

1981

Matt Penn ’81

Bill Walker ’63

1986

Christopher Goodman '86 sent along some great pictures.

Christopher Goodman ’86

In July, Chris attended the wedding of Blake Davis '86 to Eliza Nordemann, and sent along a picture of the happy couple.

Congratulations Blake and Eliza! Chris also got together with Andy Mercy '85 this summer. We love to see the smiles of 4 A-S boys!

1987

Congratulations to Alfred Burger ’87 who received the Society of General Internal Medicine’s 2016 Award for Excellence in Clinician Education.

Alfred Burger ’87

Pierre Bonan, Class Representative David Herzberg, Class Representative

Geoff Feder '89 and his company, Feder Knives, are the talk of the town at Edible Hudson Valley this summer. Geoff even has an A-S patch on his welding jacket! What a scholar and a gentleman!

1990

Harlan Goldberg ’90

Harlan Goldberg '90 welcomed a second child, Gabriel Everett Goldberg, on November 1, 2016. He says he has not slept since then—we hope you can get in a few naps, Harlan!

1998

Alex & Mike Faherty ’98

Twin brothers, Alex Faherty '98 and Mike Faherty '98, were recently featured in Forbes.

The article discusses Faherty— the clothing company they started with their mother, Ninie Norris, and Kerry Faherty, Alex’s wife. Just in time for your fall shopping!

2002

Alexander Melnitzky, Class Representative Alex Shipper, Class Representative

Michael Weiss, Class Representative

2003

Paul Alshooler, Class Representative

1992

Charles Socarides '92 will be performing this winter in 20th Century Blues, a new play by Susan Miller. Previews began in November at the Signature Theatre in NYC, and the show will run through January 28th.

Tickets are available now!

1996

Tristan Howard '96 and Sadie Bass got married in October at the Metropolitan Building in Long Island City. His fellow A-S classmate Owen Strock '96 was his best man!

Alex Ingram, Class Representative Reed Katz, Class Representative

PJ Mancuso, Class Representative

Charles Socarides ’92

Paul Alshooler '03 and Katie Giuseppone were married in October. Paul also reports that he has purchased MWNY, the company he has been working at for the past 5 years!

2004

Charlie Domash, Class Representative Tim Johnson, Class Representative

Tristan Howard ’96

Henry Rosenwach, Class Representative

2005

Adam Donaldson, Class Representative

2006

Eric Rosas, Class Representative

Winter 2017

1989

Geoff Feder ’89

Paul Alshooler ’03

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alumni NEWS

2007

Alessandro Santoro, Class Representative

2008

Basil Anderson, Class Representative

2009

John Hersey, Class Representative

2010

Theodore Agbi, Class Representative

Lamplighter

Khalid Taylor, Class Representative

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Adam Centeno '10 has been very busy at Binghampton University. Wanting to connect with the community, Adam has been interning in local schools through the Broome County Promise Zone. His commitment to the community and its students led him to the newly formed Broome County Student Adam Centeno ’10 Board of Advisors, established

by Broome County Executive Jason Garnar to generate ideas for improving local resources for students and young people and make it a place where they want to live and work, a key goal of the Southern Tier’s leadership. Read more about Adam's inspiring work in an article penned by Harvey Stenger, the president of Binghamton University.

Way to go Adam!

2011

Ethan Leff, Class Representative

Daniel Wayland ’11, the Brown Daily Herald’s arts and culture critic recently wrote an opinion piece about the unpatriotic history of the American Flag. You can find the article here: http://www.browndailyherald.com/2017/10/03/wayland18-5-unpatriotic-history-american-flag-1/.

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

Matthew Schnitzer, Class Representative Matthew Wayland, Class Representative

Jackson Baker ’13, a Jackson Baker ’13 sophomore at UPenn, recently visited the School while dropping off his brother, Cameron ’26, who is in the first grade.

2014

Andrew Galant, Class Representative David Goldberg, Class Representative

Elijah McNally, Class Representative

Sebastian Stern, Class Representative

2015

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

2016

Kai Cedeño, Class Representative

Andrew Gellert, Class Representative Jared Zelman, Class Representative

2017

Alex Ross, Class Representative

Thomas Triedman, Class Representative

2018

Addeson Lehv, Class Representative Zale Peart, Class Representative

We are excited to share this year’s A-Z Files with you, the fifth volume! Not only does this edition have some of the best student and alumni work ever showcased, but to mark the milestone the editors have included a piece of Zach’s writing at the end of the journal.

With the latest publication we feel like the A-Z Files has truly become a part of the greater Allen-Stevenson community, ensuring Zach’s lasting place inside the School’s walls.

We are always looking for contributions to the next edition of the A-Z Files. If you're interested in submitting a short story, poem, or photographs, please reach out to Samantha Koss.

And if you'd like to help maintain the A-Z Files, you can donate to the Zach Levy Memorial Fund by following the link below. https://secure.diamondmindinc.com/allen-stevenson/

Under the Gift Details, please select other and type: Zach Levy Memorial Fund.

Kerim Eken ‘00 & Jon Klebanoff ‘00

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. If you are interested in joining or starting an affinity group, please reach out to Samantha Koss, Director of Alumni Relations, skoss@allen-stevenson.org.

ALUMNI COUNCIL SEEKING N O M I N AT I O N S for the Ron Rolfe '60 Distinguished Alumni Service Award The Distinguished Alumni Service Award, the highest accolade reserved solely for alumni of The Allen-Stevenson 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 Allen-Stevenson Code in their daily lives through service to their community, nation, or school.

Winter 2017

S P OT L I G H T: T H E A - Z F I L E S The A-Z Files is a literary magazine created in memory of Zach Levy '00.

NETWORKING EVENTS BUILD CONNECTIONS AND O P P O RT U N I T I E S

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.

LOOKING FOR ALUMNI

From time to time, alumni come to the School to share an interest or skill in conjunction with something the boys are studying or discussing.

If you are interested in volunteering your time in this way, please reach out to Samantha Koss, Director of Alumni Relations, skoss@allen-stevenson.org.

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PLANNED GIVING

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An Allen-Stevenson Legacy

50

There may be no more meaningful gift than that made through a bequest or legacy. Such gifts, representing a lifetime of experience, testify to one’s deepest beliefs, concerns and affections. Donors help secure the longterm financial health of the School through gifts that come in the future or over a period of years.

“In order to continue the tradition of providing such a strong foundation for young men, Allen-Stevenson needs and is deserving of our ongoing support. I am ever grateful for what Allen-Stevenson has given to me, and I am pleased to have supported the school with a planned gift as part of my estate plans.”

—Victor Lyman ’58

To learn more about how you can support Allen-Stevenson through a planned gift, visit www.allen-stevenson.org/plannedgiving or contact Katy Duckworth-Schachter, Director of Development, at 212-933-5214.

LOST ALUMNI IN REUNION YEARS

The Alumni Council is looking for mailing addresses and contact information for the following alumni who are celebrating reunions this year. Please help us ensure your classmates receive the invitation to Alumni Reunion Weekend by contacting Samantha Koss, Director of Alumni Relations, at skoss@allen-stevenson.org.Thank you!

1953 Mr. Francis T. Keally, Jr. Dr. Bertram S. Nayfack, Jr. Mr. Stanley Wells Stillman 1958 Mr. James McCormack Hedges Mr. Eric J.G. Hess Mr. Richard Lewis Hirsch Mr. Michael McCormick Mr. Jeff V. Pallister Mr. Michael Sierstorff Mr. Michael Ward Mr. Leo G. Wollemborg 1963 Mr. Safwat Badawi Mr. Jerome Delaney Mr. Hamed Fahmy Mr. Michael Garroway Mr. John Lyon Morrisey, Jr. Mr. John Seasongood Stern Mr. Christopher Stevenson Mr. David Porter Whitney 1968 Mr. M. Aladdin Abdel-Ghani Mr. James Watson Aubrey Mr. Michael Westcott Brown Mr. Dominick Buonanno Mr. Thomas David Cook Mr. Taylor H. Daniels Mr. Anthony Northon Leonard Mr. Joseph Peter Meersman, Jr. Mr. Michael B. Moore Mr. Michael Brewster Morgan Mr. Henry Morse Mr. Peter Adlai Nasht Mr. Anthony Clyde Robe

1973 Mr. Gerald Grant Allen, Jr. Mr. Frederick Talmadge Bell Mr. Samuel P. Bush, II Mr. Charles Vickers Carter Mr. Michael Joseph Dunsmore Mr. Darly G. Edwards Mr. Halsey B. Frank Mr. Nicolaas Groeneveld Meijer Mr. Gregory Hood Mr. Michael Ian LaMay Mr. Nicholas Lomasney Dr. Christopher Robert Mascott Mr. William D. Sarno Mr. Wilfredo William Soto Mr. Michael Roger Stone Mr. Stephen James Unwin 1978 Mr. Richard C. Halder Mr. James Edgar Hendrix, Jr. Mr. Matthew P. Miller Mr. Glenn Lee Pride, Jr. Mr. Carlos Prado Salgado, Jr. Mr. James F. Sheehan Mr. Barney Sloan Mr. Erik Van Leight Mr. David Zaloom 1983 Mr. Joseph F. Clark Mr. Peter Davis Mr. Langdon McEvoy Doty Mr. Benjamin Paul Grossman Mr. Randolph Grossman Mr. Scott M. Matthews Mr. Timothy W. Murray Mr. Clifford Rachlin Mr. Alexander Simpson Mr. Joshua Eliot Summit Mr. Jesse Tenney Mr. Patrick Wolfert Mr. Januszek Worowski

1988 Mr. Brandon Shelton Chason Mr. Alexis Duntor Mr. Andrew James Keane Mr. Henrik Clates Ljung Mr. Khashayar Sohrabi Long Mr. John Paul Myers Mr. Michael Peter Pressman Mr. Harry Michael Rothman Mr. Theoharis A. Salonitis Mr. Philip Jay Savadian Mr. Dana N. Volpe 1993 Mr. Angus McDougall Caithness Mr. Victor Harris Mr. Giorgio Merati-Foscarini Mr. Denton Praeger Mr. Charles Scott Mr. Orlando Semprit Mr. Terrell Wilson 1998 Mr. Dimitri Ashil Mr. Adam Anthony Atenasio, II Mr. Thomas Belsky Mr. Benjamin F. Greene Mr. Thomas Edward Quigley Mr. Alessandro Ravagnan Mr. Cagney Lorin Reed Mr. James Alexander Stair 2003 Mr. J. Lucas Loeffler Mr. Enrique Pellejero Mr. Julian M. Sampedro Mr. Eugene Seki 2008 Mr. Eliezer Nel Ayala Mr. Alonzo Ortiz Mr. David Lawrence Samuel Mr. Keith Steven Thaw-Babus 2013 Mr. Elias Franklin Baldino

Winter 2017

1948 Dr. John Jay DuBois Mr. David N. Ecker Mr. Eugene Holman, Jr. Mr. George McClellan Joyce Mr. Gervais Ward McAuliffe, Jr. Mr. Michael A. McIntosh Mr. José Machado Prentice Mr. George Olney Sackett Mr. Robert W. Sizer Mr. John P. Whitney

51

Lamplighter

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

If you’d like to submit information for our spring issue, please email it to Casper Caldarola.

52

Art is in my blood. I have been working at Hirschl & Adler Galleries for nearly 18 years, a company that is 65 years old and that my father has owned and run for the past 50. I grew up in a family of passionate collectors and avid art enthusiasts. Dinner conversations as a child eschewed politics and were instead punctuated by colorful tales of exciting new inventory and sales to museums and celebrities. I have tried to pass along my great love of art and antique furniture to my children (James, 10 and Kate, 6). We travel often and visit galleries and museums to instill in them a passion for art, to teach them how to develop an opinion, and perhaps even to cultivate a third generation of Hirschl & Adler?! One can dream!

One of the best aspects of my job is that my work is other people’s leisure time pursuit. Clients and friends of the gallery are always happy to talk about art, debate the merits of one artist or another, and examine individual pieces together. I especially love welcoming school groups to the gallery, and always relish the reactions that the kids have to what they are experiencing.

Elizabeth Feld Herzberg P ’22 (James) Owner and Managing Director HirschlAndAdler.com

sometimes feels like an increasingly impersonal city.

One thing we love about AllenStevenson is that the boys and their families are made to feel that the process is personal. Mel’s lives by the motto that life is personal and we feel very lucky that our business and child’s school share that belief.

Most of us have experienced a sense of wonderment when gazing up at the night sky into the vast universe in which we live.

I’ve always been fascinated by space. When I was younger, my Grandfather would point out individual stars and planets to me and differentiate the constellations. I was captivated; I wanted to reach out and touch them. I had a fleeting dream of becoming an astronaut.

When the opportunity arose for civilians to travel to space, I wanted to go more than anything.

My husband, Jim, made that dream come true by giving me the gift of becoming Virgin Galactic Pioneer #281. There are fewer than 700 of us in the world. We will travel six at a time in a spaceship on a suborbital flight 100 meters above the Earth.

That’s 62 miles!

I have gone through several cycles of space training. The Zero-G flight experience was the most fun. Aboard a modified Boeing 727, specially trained pilots flew the plane in aerobatic maneuvers known as parabolas. We felt true weightlessness and were able to practice skills we will need in the zero gravity environment in space. I’ve also traveled to the National Aeronautic Space Training and Research Center (NASTAR) to prepare for G-Force tolerance.

Participating as a pioneer for the future of space travel is a legacy I am proud to leave for our son, Declan, and I think it is important for our future. Sometimes when astronauts travel to space they experience something called the Overview Effect. Looking back on our small planet in the limitless universe, we can see that the borders we have between us are invisible, and the atmosphere that protects our planet is fragile.

Hopefully I and other Future Astronauts can use this experience to motivate the next generation of entrepreneurs and innovators about the importance of taking care of our planet and living on it as one human race.

Kerianne Flynn P’24 (Declan) Astronaut in training

I felt I had a personal connection to the restaurant industry from a very early age. My earliest recollection of this feeling was when I was around 10 years old.

There was a restaurant on Third Avenue between 76th and 77th Streets (currently Atlantic Grill) named Jim McMullen’s and that was my favorite spot. It wasn’t so much the food that attracted me, although I recall my dad loving their chicken pot pie, and it wasn’t the décor, although I remember liking the exposed brick and Reggie Jackson’s bat hanging above the bar, or the service, although I enjoyed watching the wait staff fly in and out of the kitchen as I went to the restroom, rather it was the energy of the place. The place had an incredible buzz I found intoxicating. However, it wasn’t just the buzz. It was that the buzz was accompanied by a smile.

My career has been a long and varied one, starting with my education at Cornell University where I studied hotel and restaurant management, followed by years of working for some of New York’s top restaurant groups and opening ventures of my own.

It culminated with the opening of my first Mel’s in 2010 in Morningside Heights. My goal was simple, open an approachable neighborhood joint, with a great buzz accompanied by a smile.

So I opened a place that had great comfort food, a great craft beer list, in a cool and fun atmosphere, serviced by friendly people. Mel’s is a place you can hang out with buddies and watch the ball game, have a laid back neighborhood date, or grab dinner with your family. It was everything I wanted in a place, and thankfully what other people wanted too.

In 2015, I decided to bring Mel’s a little closer to home and open one just a few blocks from our apartment. Its proximity to AllenStevenson has made it even more special, as it has given us the opportunity to hold a number of school related events, which our family truly relishes. The goal of Mel’s was to bring the neighborhood spot back to what

Please ask for me if you happen to stop by, I would love to say hello.

Steven Kay P’26 (Dean) Mel’s Burger Bar

I am a native Harlemite! I was born in Harlem, my parents met and fell in love in Harlem, and I have dedicated my entire career to growing families and educating the children of Harlem.

I am currently the Principal of Storefront Academy Harlem, a tuition-free independent school in Harlem, and before that I worked in several charter schools in Harlem. I have dedicated my life to supporting the educational attainment and social and emotional development of at-risk youth. To say that I value education would be a gross understatement. For me, education has made all the difference in my life, turning what could have been an ugly life trajectory into one of hope, achievement and ultimately success. I want no less for my own three children now.

I recently joined the A-S family, because from the moment I walked through the blue doors I felt an incredible sense of humility from the staff and a laser-sharp focus on building boys from the inside out.

Education and care go hand in hand at A-S as they do in my own home. I'm proud to be a new A-S mom and can't wait to see the young man my son grows into as a result of getting a top-notch education in a place where “everyone knows his name.”

Cheers!

Alexis Thomason P’24 (Enensa) Principal, The Children’s Storefront

THERE ARE MANY WAY AYS TO BE A BOY B Y... ...AND THE ANNUAL FUND SUPPORTS THEM ALL

The Annual Fund supports all aspects of an Allen-Stevenson education, from Kindergarten through Ninth Grade. Just as our boys grow each year, your gift enhances the Allen-Stevenson experience and supports the myriad opportunities that encourage boys of all ages to become Scholars and Gentlemen.

Make your gift today!

WAY WA AY YS S TO GIVE

• Give securely online: www w..allen-stevenson.org/give • Return the envelope in this issue to give by check or credit card.

•T To o makkee a stock gifftt, please contact Shoguffaa Alpar in the Development Offffice at 212-606-0890.

• Please check to see if your employer will match your gifftt.

Corporate matching gifftts prro ovide a wonderffuul opporrttunittyy to increase the impact of your gifftt.

GIVING LEVELS

HEADMASTER’S CIRCLE

Francis Bellows Allen Societtyy 1883 Societtyy Fortiter et Recte Founder Luminary Beneffaactor Patron

$50,000 and above $35,000-$49,999 $25,000-$34,999 $15,000-$24,999 $10,000-$14,999 $5,000-$9,999 $3,500-$4,999

LAMPLIGHTERS

QUESTIONS?

Please contact: Katy Duckkw worth-Schachter Director of Development 212-933-5214 kduckkw worth@allen-stevenson.orrgg.

(Alumni Categories) Scholar Gold Club Blue Club Unicorn Plaayyer

$1,500-$3,499 $500-$1,499 $250-$499 $100-$249 Up to $99

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

Save the Date!

Non-Profit Organization U.S.Postage Paid New York, NY Permit No. 757

ALUMNI REUNION WEEKEND March 9-10, 2018

Come celebrate with your fellow A-S alums as we celebrate the 135th anniversary of the School!

Classes of 1948, 1953, 1958, 1963, 1968, 1973, 1978, 1983, 1988, 1993, 1998, 2003, 2008, and 2013 will be celebrating milestone reunions in 2018. Contact the Alumni Office for details!

www.allen-stevenson.org/reunion