Strength | Winter 2019

STRENGTH The Magazine of Annie Wright Schools | Fall 2019

From Strength to Strength IN THIS ISSUE

GOODBYE MR. SULLIVAN, HELLO MR. GUADNOLA NEW BUILDINGS, INITIATIVES & PROGRAMS SNEAK PEEK OF NEW POOL & GYM YEAR IN PHILANTHROPY

FALL

2019

A NEW ERA From Strength to Strength Building. It was what Annie Wright Schools’ founders were all about. Building a city. Building businesses and institutions to serve it. And most importantly, building community. Sure, building actual buildings was a part of that, but these were a means to an end: in Annie Wright’s case to provide the facilities to educate future generations and fulfill the promises of the “City of Destiny.”

Today is no different. Annie Wright Schools are still building community, focusing on serving students and families from the South Sound and around the world, creating a hub of learning excellence and an anchor in a city with a rich and storied history. Programs address holistic needs of students and focus on strong foundations, real-world problem solving, community connections and profound experiences both in and out of the classroom.

Facilities, including new structures and outdoor spaces, facilitate and enhance these programs. Resources, especially world-class faculty, inspire active and exciting learning.

At the same time, Annie Wright celebrates a historic moment in our 135-year history. The student population has grown to more than 600 students, new structures for learning and play have changed the face of our campus, and academics are thriving, with a razor sharp focus on teacher excellence and student-centered programs. A new Head of Schools, promoted from within, will consolidate this progress and continue the momentum. Read on to see some of these historic developments as we usher in a new era, continuing to move forward from strength to strength.

CO NTENTS

6

A Decade of Transformative Leadership

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24

Form, Function & Fellowship

New Nature Play Space: A Breath of Fresh Air

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28

Jake Guadnola ’90MS Named Next Head of Schools

Tacoma Mayor Officially Opens New Upper School for Boys Building

Introducing Baishan AWS

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22

29

Sneak Peek at New Gym & Pool

A History of Boys at Annie Wright Schools

Annie Wright Hosts Inspirational Conference for Educators

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See You Later: Upper Schools Adopt Late Start

34

Annie Wright Zeroes in on Math

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36

Upper School for Girls Debuts Artist Laureates

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Homegrown (s)Electives 5Athletes, 48 DON O R S R A I S E D $ 4 8 4Program ,621 Annie Fosters Inquiry & Impact Wright Style

ALUMNIAnnual

Report

Philanthropy

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46

Smart About Smartphones

Lower School Performs The Jungle Book

Student Spotlight: Community Activist Nadine Gibson

GRANDPARENTS

FACULTY AND STAFF

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IB Gets More College Kudos

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PARENTS

Class Notes

OTHER

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Alumni Weekend 2020

Editor

Christian G. Sullivan, Head of Schools Susan Bauska, Associate Head of Schools & Director of Upper School for Boys Sandra Forero Bush, Assistant Head of Schools Jake Guadnola ’90MS, Director of Upper School for Girls Clare Wagstaff, Director of Middle School Ann Dicks, Director of Lower School Melanie Aamidor, Director of Finance and Operations Jeff Barber, Director of Residential Life Rex Bates, Director of Business Development Mike Finch, Director of Athletics Jennifer Haley ’89, Director of Advancement Alicia Mathurin, Director of Auxiliary Programs

Lisa Isenman

Board of Trustees Michele Cannon Bessler, Chair Jim Defebaugh, Vice Chair Kelly Givens, Secretary David Overton, Treasurer Percy Abram Sally (Peterson) Atherton ’66 Cathy Close Stephanie Cook ’88 Robert Crist Jeffrey Davis Laura Edman Tony Escobar Judith (Yengling) Forkner ’63 Janelle Guirguis-Blake Lisa Hoffman Sarah Kaiser ’93 Marjorie Oda-Burns ’66 John Parrott Merritt (Klarsch) Pulliam ’92 Pamela (Hyde) Smith ’63 Marilyn Strickland Aliya (Merani) Verali ’96

Graphic Designer Emily Simonelli

Photographers Oona Copperhill Lisa Monet Photography

Contributors Sally (Peterson) Atherton ’66 Rex Bates Susan Bauska Michele Bessler Sebastian Bush, Class of ’23 Grace Finch Annie Green Julia Henning, Class of ’21 Lisa Isenman YoungSeo Jo, Class of ’20 Gabrielle Krieger, Class of ’21 Madeline Mancuso Adrienne (Ottum) Peterson ’04 Christian G. Sullivan Emily Weston

STRENGTH | FALL 2019

Senior Leadership Team

Submissions Strength is published annually by Annie Wright Schools’ communications office. Submissions of story suggestions, articles and photos are always welcome by emailing communications@aw.org. Please submit class notes and photos to aw.org/connect or alumni@aw.org.

Annie Wright Schools 827 North Tacoma Avenue Tacoma, Washington 98403 P: 253.272.2216 F: 253.572.3616 www.aw.org

From the Head of Schools Dear Annie Wright Community, The sheer heft of this amazing edition of Strength is testament to all that has happened at Annie Wright over the last year.

Most apparently, the conclusion of the construction of the additional gym, new swimming pool, new academic building and the additional parking have forever changed our school. The resources now available to our students, families and the community in general have increased exponentially. The program, teaching, and aesthetics have always been world class. Now we have a well-resourced, coherent campus to match.

Nonetheless, as I write my final Strength letter as Head of Schools, I am struck now more than ever that the essence of Annie Wright is not the beautiful campus or buildings.

The essence is not even the program. Over the decades, the program and model of education at Annie Wright have changed appropriately with the times. Rather the essence of Annie Wright remains the people, and the relationships among them.

When I toured the school in September 2009 as a prospective parent and candidate for the Head of Schools position, I was struck by the community’s kindness and collegiality. Of course, the program was extremely important, but the truth is, excellent opportunities exist at many independent schools. Lisa and I were impressed by the coexistence of high standards and a nurturing atmosphere, and wanted that for our children. A decade later, it appears that many other parents want that for their kids too. The school now has 605 students as opposed to 400, with waiting lists in most grades.

I believe that these families have voted with their feet not because of the beautiful buildings and campus, but because of the people: caring, professional teachers and administrators, great friends for their children, like-minded peer parents, and, while they remain in the background, trustees that care deeply for this institution.

Over the last 135 years, Annie Wright has continued to thrive as different students, families, teachers, administrators, heads and trustees have passed through our hallowed spaces. As Lisa, Lexy ’17, Matthew ’15MS and I move on to the next stage of our lives, we do so confident in the knowledge that Annie Wright will continue to go from strength to strength. I believe that Jake and Stacey Guadnola will be amazing leaders for the next era.

They know Annie Wright and the community intimately, they are school people through and through, and they love this community. The timing is perfect for Jake to become Annie Wright’s first internal appointment as Head of Schools.

While my family and I are moving to the East Coast, know that Annie Wright and Tacoma will be forever in our thoughts and more importantly, in our hearts. We feel blessed that we have been immersed in Annie Wright for a decade. I feel so lucky that I have been surrounded by so many extraordinary people that have made a difference in the lives of kids, families, the school and this community. We will stay connected forever.

Christian G. Sullivan Head of Schools, July 1, 2010–June 30, 2020

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A Decade of Transformative Leadership

by MICHELE BESSLER, CHAIR OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

After ten years of transformative leadership, Head of Schools Christian Sullivan is moving to a new role as Head of School at Bullis, an independent K-12 school outside of Washington, DC, beginning in July 2020.

I speak for the entire Board of Trustees when I express our sorrow at his leaving and gratitude for his service. We are deeply cognizant of the strength and stability he has brought to our institution, which has become a premier independent school on the West Coast largely due to his leadership. Unanimously and with full hearts, we wish Christian, Lisa, Lexy ’17 and Matthew ’15MS well as they move to the East Coast.

Christian has been a visionary changemaker for Annie Wright Schools. Enrollment is at a historic high of 605, a five-day boarding option now optimizes the culture of domestic and international students, an extensive journeys program has become a seamless part of the Middle School experience, and a year-round Preschool program serves the needs of a range of families. The school implemented the Primary Years Programme and Middle Years Programme of the International Baccalaureate.

The inquiry-based IB education, held in high esteem nationally and internationally, has become the pedagogical backbone of our curricula, bringing a defining rigor and consistency to our academics.

We will miss Christian’s boundless enthusiasm and willingness to engage everyone in the community, from the smallest three-year-olds to alumnae in their ninetieth decade. We will likely never again have a Head of Schools sing the Alma Mater solo in all school chapel! It has been our great fortune to have a Head who could wield a strong hand without ever losing his sense of humor or empathy for all whom he served. And we fully expect that he will bring to Bullis the same kind of energy and vision that have transformed Annie Wright into the institution we know today.

Both Christian and Lisa will be greatly missed. Lisa has enriched Annie Wright as both an educator of inestimable high standards and as a mentor; in her role in communications, she has ensured the integrity of our Annie Wright message with care. We are also grateful for her graceful and intelligent service as partner to a Head of Schools.

“We will miss Christian’s boundless enthusiasm and willingness to engage everyone in the community.”

During his tenure, Christian and the Board led two strategic plans; the first is entirely fulfilled, and we are well on the way to fulfilling the second. These initiatives include prioritizing an institution-wide commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion; strengthening our athletic programs throughout the school; growing the endowment to its current level of $27 million; opening an Upper School program in Qingdao, China; creating a boys’ Upper School division; and building an all-weather sports field, a third gymnasium with a competitive swimming pool, and a new academic building to house the Upper School for Boys.

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Annie Wright is in a place of cultural, programmatic and organizational strength. An exceptional community, world class faculty and staff, a Board of Trustees focused on long-term success, robust finances, and an internationally recognized standard of academic rigor all­­ ensure the success of Annie Wright Schools. Now, with a smooth transition process in place, we will continue our momentum, moving from strength to strength.

clockwise from top left: Christian Sullivan at lunch with Preschool 4-5, in the Bamford Commons, at the opening day coffee, at Lexy’s graduation and on crosswalk duty

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Focus & Fun

by Rex Bates, Director of Business Development Christian Sullivan and I met in New York shortly after he was appointed Head of Annie Wright Schools. As a former Trustee and Board Chair and current fundraiser, I wanted to get a measure of the man who had been selected to address the many challenges which the school faced. Little did I know that dinner was the start of a decade long friendship and that I would learn so much from this born leader.

Over the years I learned from Christian: If you are still on a green card, you will want to have your entry permit with you when you leave the country.

Otherwise you will have to talk your way through the border in Tijuana.

In any restaurant, there is always a better table than the first one you are shown.

Positive thinking will heal a fracture in your back.

Pouring on a little British accent and charm can sometimes get you a room upgrade.

It is best not to do a five mile walk in flip flops­—even if your dog pulls you most of the way.

And most importantly, never leave home without your MURSE! Christian and his dog, Freddy, arrived in Tacoma in early July 2010, followed shortly after by his wife, Lisa, and their kids, Lexy ’17 and Matthew ’15MS. He immediately immersed himself in the business of Annie Wright, and together with Mary Sigmen, the new Director of Finance and Operations, was astonished to find a $1 million operating deficit. He met this blow with single-minded focus and determination, and by September, he had a manageable and balanced budget. I have come to know that focus and determination well­—whether at school, on the golf course, or trying to fit a day of sightseeing into a couple of hours between fundraising meetings.

Under Christian’s leadership, Annie Wright is on a roll: ten straight years of operating surpluses; the highest enrollment in history; two new buildings; a new soccer field and playground for our youngest students; renovated dorm rooms; the new Upper School for Boys; and millions poured into our aging buildings. It was also

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Murses unite! Rex Bates, Angela Bates, Lisa Isenman and Christian Sullivan visit Hanoi’s One Pillar Pagoda in 2017.

with Christian’s guidance and inspiration that the school was able to expand its footprint and open the first Annie Wright outpost in Qingdao, China.

My wife, Angela, and I will particularly miss spending time with the Sullivans. Together, primarily on school business, we have travelled to China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Hong Kong. We have also enjoyed active and relaxing days at our place in Mexico. Together we have seen the pandas in Chengdu, the beauty of Ha Long Bay, the poverty of an orphanage in Laos, and the amazing students of Jay Pritzker Academy in Siem Reap, Cambodia. We learned to make egg rolls in Hanoi and savored soft shelled crab in Hong Kong, all while conducting countless meetings with parents and raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for the school.

What we will miss most about Christian and Lisa, however, is the deep sense of caring they have for the faculty, the students and their families. They have become part of our history, and the halls of Annie Wright will seem a little emptier in their absence.

As difficult as it will be to say goodbye to our friends, Angela, Gabrielle ’12, Amber ’11MS and I all wish Christian, Lisa, Lexy and Matthew much success in their new endeavor. And I have no doubt, no matter where we are in the world, our friendship will endure. Bullis School is getting the best!

Over the course of the past 22 years, Rex Bates has been a parent, Trustee, Board Chair, faculty member, administrator and major donor to Annie Wright Schools.

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Join us for a fun and casual night including a delicious fresh crab dinner, drinks, raffle, live and silent auctions, live music, dancing and more!

Thank you to our sponsors.

Visionary Sponsor

Inspired Sponsors

Thank you to the Browne family for their generous in-kind support of Family Night and Gator Gala.

Jake Guadnola ’90MS Named Next Head of Schools

On November 18, Annie Wright Schools’ Board of Trustees announced their unanimous decision to install Jake Guadnola ’90MS as the next Head of Schools, beginning in July 2020.

“Jake’s proven leadership record, student-centric educational philosophy and unparalleled passion and loyalty to the institution and to the greater Tacoma community make him a uniquely qualified and conclusive choice,” said Michele Bessler, Chair of the Board of Trustees. “With enthusiasm, we are thrilled to unanimously support Jake as the next Head of Schools.”

After graduating from Grade 8 in Annie Wright’s first class of Middle School boys (see a photo on page 23), Jake went on to Bellarmine Prep and then Pomona College, where his successful basketball career led to his induction into the college’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2008. Pursuing his entrepreneurial drive after college, he co-founded a California-based audio compression technology company that was subsequently bought by Intel.

Jake returned to his beloved hometown of Tacoma in 2000 and launched his 20-year career at Annie Wright, serving in a range of roles over the years including English & Humanities Teacher, Basketball Coach, Director of College Counseling, Director of Summer Programming, Interim Director of Admissions, Assistant Director of Upper School, and most recently, Director of Upper School for Girls.

These two decades of service to the school were only interrupted by his master’s in education at Harvard University from 2002 to 2003.

“Annie Wright Schools have played a profound role in my life, both personally and professionally, and it is a sincere honor to be named Head of Schools,” Jake said. “Working with this dedicated faculty and inspired Board of Trustees, I will ensure we remain a student-centered institution, one that positively impacts the lives of children.”

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Gus, Jake, Stacey and Luke Guadnola

During Jake’s tenure, the Upper School for Girls nearly doubled in size, and retention reached more than 92%.

Jake also created models for revenue generation, evolved signature programming, oversaw IB programming and led a number of innovative student-centered initiatives, including, just this year, a late start schedule to address adolescent needs for sleep and exercise.

“Jake is a thoughtful, creative and innovative leader with experience in a wide range of educational roles,” said Head of Schools Christian Sullivan. “While I am sad to leave Annie Wright, I am cheered that this exceptional school will be under his strong leadership.”

Jake’s wide and varied interests (he is, among many other things, an inventor, an entrepreneur, a gardener, an athlete, a cook and an outdoorsman) have inspired his commitment to help students discover and nurture their individual passions. In addition, his professionalism,

empathy and sense of fun have fostered strong connections with colleagues, parents and students.

Jake’s wife, Stacey, Director of Philanthropic Engagement for the Greater Tacoma Community Foundation, worked alongside Jake for several years at Annie Wright, most recently on the Senior Leadership Team as both Director of Admissions and Director of Philanthropy. Stacey remains an active parent, volunteer and champion of the school.

Their sons, lifers Gus (Grade 5) and Luke (Grade 3), are actively engaged in all areas of school life.

Christian Sullivan is working closely with Jake to recruit Jake’s successor as Director of Upper School for Girls and said he is optimistic about the caliber of candidates for this position. An announcement of this appointment will follow in 2020.

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Jake and Zach Hansen co-hosted many years of the annual Lip Sync competition. Strength magazine has spared readers the photograph of Jake and other merry male faculty in tights.

Gravitas in Tights

by Susan Bauska, Associate Head of Schools & Director of Upper School for Boys My first hire 20 years ago as a new administrator at Annie Wright was a 23-year-old “kid” to whom I had decided to give a courtesy interview. I mean…what choice did I have?

He was in the first group of boys to go through the Middle School here; he was (apparently) a big deal athletically, although his star turn in AWS Middle School basketball predated my tenure at the school; and his mother used to work here. So, I felt I sort of HAD to let him come in to interview to become my replacement as college counselor —and he sold me within the first few minutes I observed him interacting with students.

That first hire is about to become my final boss.

Much has been written and will be written about Jake Guadnola’s contributions to Annie Wright; in many ways, his work in the Upper School for Girls has been transformative. But rather than elaborate on the obvious— that Jake loves this school, that he is well qualified to become Head, that he understands at a deep level many facets of both the business and the program sides of this school; that he never stops imagining how AWS can be even better—I think it’s imperative that I bring up men in tights.

In the fall of 2000, Jake (and another young English teacher named Zach Hansen) joined an Upper School of excellent, largely middle-aged teachers, all of whom cared deeply for their students, their subject matter and their craft. Teachers and students worked hard, but the sudden

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infusion of two teachers still in their twenties disrupted the status quo. The Upper School suddenly became, in addition to a place of serious learning, a base for truly serious fun.

It did not take long for faculty pranks to take hold: classrooms and offices often disappeared—turned into a campsite (complete with s’mores, sand and tent); buried under balloons; encased in plastic wrap down to the smallest pencil. Jake’s office even became a barnyard, populated with live goats. Dances, flying pizza, Jake dressed as the Angel of Death chasing a misbehaving student (from another school) down the sidewalk, Gotcha!, the Murder Mystery, more recently Annies versus Gators, and—most memorably of all — Lip Sync, an event Jake remembered from his mother’s days at the school and which he brought back in spectacular fashion. It may well have been the first lip sync when a band of Merry Men took to the stage and, to the mixed horror and delight of the audience, cast aside their breeches to reveal a shocking array of…men in green tights.

Jake Guadnola brought playfulness, fun and anticipation of the unexpected to the Upper School for Girls. He proved that rigorous academics can exist side-by-side with hallway dance parties. Certainly, he has mellowed (just a bit) from those early days of creative zaniness, but with all the serious business of running a school which he is soon to encounter, he will undoubtedly find ways to leaven the requisite gravitas with heavy doses of humor and fun. And that innate sense of balance may, in the end, prove one of the greatest recommenders for his success as Head of Annie Wright Schools. Just so long as he leaves the green tights in the drawer.

Susan and Jake worked together for 14 years in the Upper School for Girls, including as Co-Directors.

New Buildings & Spaces gym & pool Upper School for Boys building nature play space

Sneak Peek at New Gym & Pool Tucked discreetly between the Kemper Center, built in 1986, and James Memorial Field, refurbished as an all-weather practice and competition space in 2017, is the new athletic building. The exterior blends seamlessly with the current gym. The interior dazzles new entrants with its beautiful light-filled gym and full-length pool.

The new gym, attached by a vestibule to the Kemper gym, has entrances on both west and east sides to best accommodate current students and visiting teams.

Built to provide additional opportunities for sports and play for all Annie Wright students at times that are developmentally appropriate, the space boasts gleaming wood flooring, north-facing floor-to-ceiling windows,

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modern seating and exceptional lighting. See more photos of the new gym on pages 40–41.

Below the gym, sparkling in aqua and white with blue and gold accents, is the new 25-yard swimming pool.

While the school is sad to retire its beloved, nearly 100-year-old pool, the new pool will offer year-round opportunities for all students, from developing comfort and security in the water to serving the needs of competitive swimmers. Annie Wright is also committed to sharing this space with the community outside of school hours, especially with low income families who would otherwise not have access to a pool.

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Form, Function & Fellowship

New Upper School for Boys Spaces Build Community

by L IS A I S E N M A N, C O MM U NIC ATIO NS D IR EC TOR & EN GLI SH T EACHER In late August, Annie Wright’s new 26,500 foot Upper School for Boys building opened for the 2019-20 school year. Situated on the southeast corner of campus between the main entrance on North Tacoma Avenue and the Tacoma Lawn Tennis Club, it combines traditional elements of the original 1924 building with modern architecture including wood and steel accents and strategically placed windows to maximize natural light.

The building, designed by the Seattle-based architecture firm Mithun and built by Absher Construction, primarily serves as the academic hub for the Upper School for Boys division, now in its third year. Flexible classrooms and breakout spaces, wide hallways and open stairways, state-of-the-art science labs, student lounges, and a large windowed gathering area dubbed the Atrium provide comfortable and inspirational places for boys to learn, engage and connect.

greater natural energy. It even has a great space for our beloved ping pong table for ‘brain break activity’ that characterizes how we teach boys in the USB.” While all academic classes remain divided by gender for Grades 9-12, the new building has already become a valuable space for the community. Middle School design classes meet in the new Idea Lab, filled with tools, supplies and inspiration to imagine and execute creative solutions to real-world challenges. Faculty members from every division meet in the new building to collaborate, share ideas, set academic policies and learn from their peers. Journalism students meet in news and yearbook rooms for optional after-school co-ed activities. The Atrium, with its light-filled views and flexible furnishings, is alive on any given day with students working independently or in groups, a gathering of all Upper School boys and their teachers, a Board of Trustees meeting, or after hours, community partners such as the Pierce County YWCA, whose board meetings have moved there temporarily during construction of their new affordable housing project.

“During the design process, we were inspired by the history and context of this institution and campus and, even more so, by the passionate involvement of the staff and students of Annie Wright,” said Mithun architect Nathaniel Smith.

“We are thrilled to see how this building has passed “From start to finish, there has been a lot of heart invested from our hands to the students and faculty of Annie Wright in shaping this building and landscape, and we are Schools,” Smith said. “As construction wraps up and thrilled with the result! The building conceptually weaves classrooms fill, we reflect on how great partnerships fueled tradition and innovation. There is a connective link through the creation of this learning laboratory that will serve materials and detailing to the history and traditions generations of students.” of Annie Wright, together with a welcoming portal to the future-facing aspirations of the school.”

Established in 2017 with just Grade 9, the Upper School for Boys, which is adding a grade each year, initially used Associate Head of Schools and Director of Upper School classrooms on the third floor of the main building and for Boys Susan Bauska, the founding director of the rented space in downtown Tacoma. Next year will be the division and creator of its program, provided significant first with students in Grades 9-12 and the first to graduate input into the design. “The space, with classrooms and Upper School boys, the pioneering Yellow Tie Class of nooks of many shapes and sizes, invites movement, 2021. While the modern spaces, beautiful murals, modular imagination and flexibility, all qualities that engage learning, furniture and sense of openness are exciting and novel, particularly in adolescent boys,” she said. “The wide the real reward comes with a full, humming, purposeful hallways do not follow straight lines (just like many of and inspired population of Anne Wright Upper School boys. our boys!). The building is flooded in natural daylight, which research indicates promotes greater mental acuity and

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Tacoma Mayor Officially Opens New Upper School for Boys Building

by YO U N G S E O J O , C LA S S O F ’20 & S E BA S T IA N B USH , C LA SS O F’23 Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards addresses students, parents, trustees, faculty, staff and alumni at the opening ceremony for the Upper School for Boys building in September.

In a pivotal moment for Annie Wright Schools and the two-year-old Upper School for Boys program, the community celebrated the official opening of the boys’ new academic building on September 6, 2019, with Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards officiating.

The decisions to establish an Upper School for Boys and to construct a new building were finalized at the end of 2016 and officially announced in January 2017.

Construction began in the summer of 2018.

The original program included 16 boys in a rented space in downtown Tacoma. The school now has 59 students, over a dozen teachers, and the new academic building.

Head of Schools Christian Sullivan spoke about what the new building represents. “Yes, we are all here to celebrate the opening, but it is not actually about the bricks and mortar,” he said. “In the end, it’s about the student experience and our further hope that the lives they lead will be upright and productive.”

Sullivan thanked the people involved in the process during the opening speech: Absher Construction Co., Mithun architectural firm, long-time community partner Columbia Bank, the donors who raised over $25 million in over five years for a variety of projects and the endowment, and the city of Tacoma.

He especially expressed gratitude toward the families that entrusted their children into the newly established program.

Dr. Michele Cannon Bessler, Chair of the Board of Trustees, commented on the growth of the Upper School for Boys along with the rest of Annie Wright Schools. “We worked carefully to consider, philosophically and practically, the notion of educating high school boys,” she said. “We serve Tacoma, and it has been a compelling story to watch Annie Wright Schools work along with Tacoma to grow together from strength to strength.”

Victoria Woodards, Mayor of Tacoma, gave the final speech before the official ribbon cutting. “This school is really about community. We have public schools in Tacoma that do an amazing job educating our young people, but we also have private schools, like Annie Wright, who offer a different kind of education,” she said. “When we talk about what makes Tacoma so successful, it’s the fact that we have something for everyone, so that no matter what the need is for your child, you can get that education in Tacoma.”

Woodards went on to express gratitude for the community formed around Annie Wright. “More people will consider Tacoma as their home because of places like Annie Wright,” she said. “I am extremely grateful for the community that you have raised, not just on this campus but in this city.”

Woodards had the whole school count down with her as she cut the ribbons, marking the opening of the new building.

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New Building Bolsters Best of Both Worlds

by Sally (Peterson) Atherton '66 On September 5 I had the honor and privilege of attending, in my roles as alumna and trustee, the official opening of the Upper School for Boys (USB) building. It was an exciting event that marked the culmination of many years of planning for a new program and facility that offer a distinct educational asset to the South Sound.

The enthusiasm of the currently enrolled boys and other students throughout the schools, of Associate Head of Schools and Director of the USB Susan Bauska, of Head of Schools Christian Sullivan, and of the faculty, staff, and the members of the Board of Trustees who were in attendance, was infectious. The boys, for their part, are excited about being part of the first cohorts of Yellow, Red and Green Ties (with Blues to follow next year). Like what must have happened so long ago at the beginning of Annie Wright Seminary, they have the opportunity to write their own constitution and rules of governance and to begin their own traditions, just like the many that remain today, such as hiding and searching for the spade and May Day. As many of you are aware, when the creation of the USB was announced, some alumni, students, parents, teachers and members of the community voiced concerns that this would mark the end of single gender education in the Upper School at Annie Wright. This is definitely not the case. Although the USB is on the campus, classes for boys in the USB are completely separate from classes for girls in the USG. Since both share the same campus, there are opportunities for activities and social interactions outside of school hours, and there are designated spaces in each building that are open to both boys and girls during specific non-academic times. Students who are enrolled at AWS in the Upper School therefore have the best of both worlds— the opportunity for a single gender education together with the opportunity to mature into responsible members of the community and world made possible by being at Annie Wright.

I invite any of you who is in the area to come for a visit so that you too can experience the excitement of the new USB building while also discovering that the AWS that we know and love is still there and going strong.

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Excerpts from Opening Ceremony Student Speeches Nina Doody, Blue Tie Class of ’20, Upper School for Girls student government president My name is Nina Doody and I am a senior five-day border from Mukilteo, Washington. As a Blue Tie, I am part of the last truly all-girls class at Annie Wright. I am incredibly proud and honored to be part of this community at this point in time. This building is not only architecturally beautiful, but also serves as an extension of our community, which many say is the strongest element about Annie Wright.

When watching this building going up from my dorm window last year, I always wondered what it was going to actually look like. Needless to say it exceeded my expectations...and I am happy there are no more construction meetings or equipment operating at 6:30 am.

When I started as a freshman at Annie Wright just three years ago, things looked fundamentally different. During

my freshman year we were introduced to the idea of adding a boys’ school. There was an array of opinions, but I was all for the idea, because it simply made sense. I didn’t see why we shouldn’t educate boys in our Upper School since we welcome them in Lower and Middle Schools.

It made sense for them to continue their education with Annie Wright Schools through high school.

It was definitely a risk. There was no building. There was a plan but nothing was set in stone. I was planning to go to another school across town, but after hearing about the boys’ school, my family and I decided because of my great experience from the previous 11 years that we trusted that Mr. Sullivan and Ms. Bauska could pull something together that would be amazing.

As a student who is passionate about business, I was intrigued by the institutional change over the course of my time here. Change is what you make of it, and our community has embraced the change with an open mind and heart. Seeing this institution change rapidly was exciting, and it was frankly stunning to watch conversations turn into reality over three years.

In 9th grade the 16 of us had rented rooms downtown and two and a half rooms in the attic of the main building.

Despite not having a permanent space, the experience we were given was like no other. In a sense, the 16 of us who were there in September 2017 built a school.

Annie Wright is rooted in tradition, and I am excited for the traditions to come with the Upper Schools for Boys. It is not always easy to to disrupt long standing traditions or mindsets, but as time progresses, traditions have a need to flex with the current needs of society. This building is just one example of this.

“As a student who is passionate about business, I was intrigued by the institutional change over the course of my time here. Change is what you make of it, and our community has embraced the change with an open mind and heart.”

Thank you all for being here today to welcome a community into a new space where tradition is evolving to address innovation, collaboration, and the needs of our greater community. And once again, congratulations to the boys and their families for making this special day in history.

Carter Nelson, Yellow Tie Class of ’21, Annie Wright Schools lifer and pioneer of the Upper School for Boys My name is Carter Nelson I am a Yellow Tie in my junior year of high school in the Upper School for Boys. I started here in Preschool, and this is my 14th year at Annie Wright.

Along with some of my closest friends, Chai, Connor, Ian and Parker, I became part of the first class of the Upper School for Boys.

During the next two years we would have other chances to help build our school. Through our Architecture & Design class we traveled to Seattle to visit Mithun, the architects for the Upper School for Boys building, and gave input into what we wanted in the building, which means that it is a school built for the students, how the students wanted it.

Today the USB is thriving as a community. We started with only five returning students and today there are around 60 of us. Still we don’t see the forming of cliques like at most schools, but instead we are all one big family.

On top of that the academics are amazing. Our juniors are starting the IB Diploma Programme, and throughout the rest of the boys’ division, students are being challenged but enjoying learning at a high level. With that Ms. Bauska and Dean of Students Jeremy Stubbs were able to give us an amazing faculty. All students have great connections with their teachers and can have conversations with them about things not even related to school.

This year we are entering our new building, and I think I can speak for everyone in saying it is a perfect learning environment, including devoted places for students to work outside of the classroom, two modern science labs and tons of natural light. Throughout the building we have what we need and what we want in a school environment.

As I am an ambassador, I often tour prospective families or teachers around our school, and I always say that my favorite part of my experience here is our community.

While the opening of this building shows that the school continues to separate boys and girls for academics in Upper School, I know that we will continue to grow this strong community.

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A Timeline of Boys at Annie Wright Schools

1886

1892

1930s

1949

Washington College for Boys Opens Two years after the opening of Annie Wright Seminary, founders John Adams Paddock, the first Episcopal Bishop of the Washington Territory, and Charles B. Wright, President of the Northern Pacific Railroad, open a brother school, Washington College, in Tacoma. The building opens with 65 day and boarding students.

The Great Depression Forces Closure The Great Depression of 1892 forces many boys to leave school to go to work, causing Washington College to close. Its endowment is transferred to Annie Wright Seminary and the building sold to Tacoma Public Schools.

Boys Attend Kindergarten Annie Wright Kindergarten classes begin to accept to boys.

Annie Wright Becomes an Earthquake Haven Boys in elementary school attend Annie Wright temporarily after an earthquake damages nearby Lowell School. A small detached building on 10th Street, which has since served as a pottery studio and a science lab, accommodates them. The boys’ division is named Charles Wright School.

It moves to University Place and becomes independent of Annie Wright in 1957.

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2021

The first Upper School for Boys commencement exercises honor the pioneering Class of ‘21.

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1990

2017

2019

Lower School Becomes Co-Ed Boys enroll in all Lower School grades.

Boys Attend Annie Wright through Middle School Annie Wright Middle School graduates its first group of boys, including future Head of Schools Jake Guadnola, far right.

Upper School for Boys Opens The Upper School for Boys, a separate division in Annie Wright Schools, opens with 16 Grade 9 students, using rented space in downtown Tacoma.

New Building Houses USB A new Upper School for Boys academic building, incorporating both historic and modern elements, opens on the southeast corner of campus on North Tacoma Avenue.

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New Nature Play Space: A Breath of Fresh Air

by ADRIENNE (OTTUM) PETERSON ’04, PRESCHOOL TEACHER Nestled in the heart of the Lower and Middle Schools, with stunning views over the new all-weather field and beyond across the Puget Sound, is a special outdoor space. Surrounded on three sides by Annie Wright’s iconic brick walls, the area, bisected by a path for Middle Schoolers to travel from one wing to another, was transformed last summer into an imaginative natural play space and outdoor classroom.

This initiative was faculty-led, the brainchild of a Curriculum and Practice group called Play Spaces.

Focusing primarily on the needs of Annie Wright’s youngest students, but considering the need for all students to play and learn outside, we challenged ourselves to determine how we could meet students’ needs in our play spaces and update them to reflect the latest research and the International Baccalaureate’s enhanced Primary Years Programme.

We spent our Monday meetings dedicated to designing an environmentally and economically sustainable natural play space. Our goal-setting led to a commitment to construct an explorative and enticing outdoor space philosophically in line with Annie Wright Schools’ mission, which enhances the student experience, addresses the needs of the whole child, maximizes students’ year-round outdoor play, and utilizes and repurposes current outdoor space. Our meetings were packed with engaging conversations, and we felt excited and hopeful that our group could implement positive change for our students.

The effects of recess are compelling. Studies on physical movement for young students show easier school adjustment, enhanced cognitive performance and improved classroom behavior. With the importance of recess as a given, we generated and discussed questions such as: How can we improve current play spaces?

What spaces on campus are available? And how can we improve recess and outdoor learning on campus?

The area between the Lower and Middle School wings, an extension of the Lower School playground with a rarely used artificial putting green, needed love, and it emerged as a perfect spot to reimagine in the most studentcentered way. We conducted research and observed our own students’ behaviors and needs, and these shaped our goals for a space to play.

”Studies on physical movement for young students show easier school adjustment, enhanced cognitive performance and improved classroom behavior.”

The need for increased outdoor learning led to an outdoor classroom using natural colors and materials. Lower installations for safety, natural climbing structures for appropriate risk-taking, and a place to dig and explore address the needs of our youngest students.

Thanks to a tremendous fundraising effort as part of the 2019 Gator Gala Fund-a-Need led by Annie Wright parents Wendi Cook, Stacey Guadnola and Katherine Steuart, our dream became a reality. Generous donors in our community provided the resources we needed to completely revamp this space.

The reward: fourth graders enthusiastically gathering in the outdoor classroom for collaborative exercises, preschoolers imagining sharks in the blue waters, and all of the exciting and imaginative adventures to come.

Adrienne (Ottum) Peterson ’04, an Annie Wright lifer, teaches Preschool 3-4 at Annie Wright Schools. She led the Play Spaces Curriculum and Practice faculty group and currently leads the School Culture Curriculum and Practice group.

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Summer@Annie Wright offers inquiry-based adventures, where we aim to balance fun with learning so that students can spend their summer exploring, making friends and gaining new skills.

Day & Specialty Camps June 15–August 14

Summer Learning Program July 6–August 14

• Full-day options, 7:00 am—6:00 pm • Half-day options • Weekly field trips offered • Counselor-in-Training program for Middle School students • Specialty camps led by AWS faculty, professional athletes & community leaders • NEW IN 2020: lowered pricing!

• Residential and day options • Two-week sessions for international students • Weekly and day sessions for domestic and local students • Daily engaging classes include: language arts, robotics & coding, history, speech & debate, visual arts, as well as sports and activities

Open to boys & girls, ages 3-14 from ANY school

More details, pricing & registration will be available in January 2020 at www.aw.org/summer

New Initiatives & Programs Expansion Leadership Academics Arts Athletics Activities

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the Baishan campus in Qingdao, China

Director of Business Development Rex Bates speaks at the opening ceremony last August.

Introducing Baishan AWS Annie Wright Schools Partner with Baishan School in China Annie Wright Schools have partnered with the Baishan School to offer our unique program to high school students in Qingdao, China. Baishan AWS launched last August with Grades 9 and 10 and will add Grade 11 in 2020 and Grade 12 in 2021.

Director of Business Development Rex Bates and Chair of the Board of Trustees Michele Cannon Bessler traveled to Qingdao for the opening. “When I walked into the school and immediately saw five girls in Annie Wright uniforms, I realized this was finally happening!” said Bates, who had worked on building the partnership for several years.

Alumnae Serena Yu ’14 and Amy Hou ’18 also attended the opening festivities and talked with the new students about Annie Wright traditions (see pages 58–59).

Qingdao is a port city on the west coast of the Yellow Sea, facing the Korean peninsula, with a population of around nine million. Named China’s most livable city by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, it is roughly equidistant between Beijing and Shanghai. Like Tacoma, Qingdao enjoys stunning natural beauty, surrounded by mountains and overlooking the ocean.

The new Director of Baishan AWS, Bob Hinman, is an experienced educational leader with more than 15 years of administrative experience, mostly internationally, using

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the IB curriculum. His student-centered philosophy is a strong match for both the Annie Wright and Baishan cultures. “At Baishan AWS, we are working hard to establish the foundations of a sustainable Annie Wright program in China,” he said. “We are developing a climate of student-centered learning and cultivating individual interests and talents. We are proud of our kids; they have had to adapt to a new school, in a new language, and live in a dorm setting, and they have managed this transition well.”

Annie Wright and Baishan, the oldest private school in China’s Shandong province, have had a close relationship for more than two decades, since an exchange program began in 1996. “The philosophical and educational match between the two schools inspired this partnership,” said Head of Schools Christian Sullivan. “The 2016 Strategic Plan included the vision statement ‘Annie Wright Schools will be internationally recognized as educational leaders.’

We are proud that this partnership provides international access to an Annie Wright education and simultaneously benefits our school in myriad ways.”

In addition to offering parallel curricula, the schools provide exchange opportunities to further Annie Wright’s mission to prepare students for a global society.

Annie Wright Hosts Inspirational Conference for Educators On a beautiful fall day, Annie Wright Schools welcomed more than 1,200 educators from across the Pacific Northwest for the annual Northwest Association of Independent Schools (NWAIS) conference. The theme of this full-day professional development event on October 11 was “Bridging Research and Reality: The Science of Teaching and Learning.”

Dr. Jo Boaler, the Nomellini-Olivier Professor of Mathematics Education at Stanford University, kicked off the morning with her keynote presentation “A Mathematical Mindset Approach, Limitless: Learn, Lead and Live Without Barriers.”

Educators spread out across campus to attend hourlong workshops, 10-minute “Spark Sessions,” affinity groups with peer educators and special interest groups to share knowledge and ideas covering a range of topics including teaching techniques, neuroscience, motivational psychology, inclusivity, multiculturalism, wellness, building a culture of inquiry and more.

“The Fall Educators Conference captures so much about the spirit of our schools and the people in them,” said NWAIS Executive Director Mark Crotty. “They are committed

to constantly improving their craft and are generous in sharing — all for the benefit of young people in general. It’s amazing that this year we had 1,275 people registered for the conference, which is roughly one out of every three NWAIS educators.”

Hosting this conference and providing opportunities to all Annie Wright faculty to lead and participate directly addressed two threads of the school’s 2016-21 Strategic Plan: Annie Wright Schools in Tacoma, The Region and the World, and Excellence in Teaching.

“Annie Wright Schools’ hosting was key to the event being so fabulous,” Crotty said. “The entire team there was superb. We could not have done it without the time and care from the custodial, maintenance, IT, business office and head’s office teams. Also, 13 Annie Wright presenters led or facilitated 20 sessions!”

NWAIS is a nonprofit association that provides accreditation, professional development and support services to over 110 schools in Alaska, British Columbia, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

Educators from across the Pacific Northwest filled the Kemper Gym and overflow area in the Kemper Theater for the NWAIS Educators Conference keynote presentation by Stanford Professor Jo Boaler.

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See you Later Upper Schools Adopt Late Start

Well rested students are happier students.

Annie Wright Upper Schools now begin their academic day at 9:15 am Tuesday through Friday.

Beginning this academic year, Annie Wright Upper Schools adopted a new late start four mornings per week.

The goals of this schedule change, based on research into adolescent health, are to increase opportunities for sleep and exercise. While some local schools have looked into a later start, and student and parent groups in the Tacoma public school system have advocated for it, Annie Wright is the first to make it happen.

According to a policy statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics, which recommends a start time of 8:30 am or later, “A substantial body of research has now demonstrated that delaying school start times is an effective countermeasure to chronic sleep loss and has a wide range of potential benefits to students with regard to physical and mental health, safety and academic achievement.”

After polling Upper School families last spring, Annie Wright administrators found overwhelming support for the new schedule, which delays the academic day from an 8:00 am to a 9:15 am start. Students who play after-school sports or submit an approved daily exercise plan may sleep in or use the first hour of the day for a study hall. For students who prefer to exercise in the morning, the school offers a range of options for group or personal workouts from 8:00 to 8:45 am.

Teachers still arrive at school before 8:00 am to supervise students, help with homework and attend meetings. To make up for lost academic time, the day ends ten minutes later­­­—at 3:10 pm—before students move on to activities and sports.

“The research is overwhelmingly clear,” said Director of Upper School for Girls Jake Guadnola. “Teenagers need more sleep. They also need more exercise. With this schedule, we will accomplish both. I believe it will fundamentally change the way school (and life) feel to our students.”

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“Research tells us that well-rested boys who engage in regular physical activity do better academically AND lead healthier, happier lives­—what we all want for our students,” said Director of Upper School for Boys Susan Bauska.

According to a comprehensive study by the Washington, DC-based National Sleep Foundation, only 9% of 9th–12th graders get an optimal amount of sleep on school nights, and those who don’t are more likely to be irritable, fall asleep at school and feel depressed. By taking a holistic and student-centered approach, Annie Wright Schools are directly addressing this epidemic.

IB Gets More College Kudos Colleges and universities are increasingly recognizing the rigor and superior standard of an International Baccalaureate education.

Last May a law passed requiring all public universities in Washington to give college credit to students who earn at least a 4 out of 7 on each of their IB exams. This means that IB Diploma holders can earn a year’s worth of credits.

Eight out of 47 Annie Wright Class of ’19 graduates enrolled in public universities in Washington. The law is also retroactive for 2018 graduates.

Many public and private colleges and universities nationally and internationally also grant credit for IB exams. Two graduates from the Class of ’17, for example, will graduate a year early, in 2020, after receiving a full year’s worth of credit for their IB courses at Annie Wright.

Annie Wright is the only school in Washington and one of fewer than 20 schools in the country that offers the full continuum of IB programming: the Primary Years Programme (PYP), Middle Years Programme (MYP) and Diploma Programme (DP).

Jaskiran Pental ‘19, a freshman at the University of Washington in Seattle, earned college credits for all six of her IB courses.

# of comprehensive & rigorous exams needed to earn an IB Diploma

Last Year’s Diploma Programme Results AWS PASS RATE

92%

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WORLD PASS RATE

77%

AWS TOP SCORE

43 out of 45 WORLD AVERAGE

30 out of 45

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Smart about Smartphones Every morning Upper School boys leave their phones in cell phone parking stations (according to tie color), as part of Annie Wright’s cell phone policy that acknowledges there is a time for electronic communication…and that time is NOT during academic classes.

Smartphones are here to stay, and parents are scrambling to figure out how and when to allow their children to use them. Concerns among the Annie Wright community prompted the school to set a goal of helping families and the community navigate how to handle internet connected mobile devices last year.

This goal is personal to Head of Schools Christian Sullivan.

“I was concerned about my own smartphone usage,” he said, “and over the years, I became more and more anxious about my own children’s usage. The more I read about the issue, the more I came to believe that the school has a role to play in educating our entire community about health and wellness issues related to smartphone use, including the problem of addiction.”

Mr. Sullivan, administrators and counselors investigated research, met with groups of parents from every division and provided a number of resources from experts to help parents navigate this thorny issue. They also reviewed and revised in-school rules. Finally the school published a set of school policies and suggested parent guidelines, along with relevant articles and a list of further resources, for the community.

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A sample of recommended Parent Guidelines: Follow American Academy of Pediatrics recommendations for appropriate amounts of daily screen time.

Keep devices in neutral areas of the home, not in bedrooms.

Do not allow smartphone or device use during homework time, dinner, family time, etc.

Engage in frequent discussions about internet safety and habits/usage.

Set restrictions on internet site accessibility and apps, and monitor usage.

Encourage your kids to manage conflict offline.

Create a family media plan­­—one that you as a parent personally uphold and model.

In-School Cell Phone Usage Policies LOWER SCHOOL Based on recommendations of experts, Annie Wright Schools recommend that Lower School students do not have a cell phone or other smart device, and there is no need to bring one to school. If a Lower School student brings a cell phone or smart device to school, it must remain in his or her backpack while on campus (including after school). Students are to use the office phone if they need to contact their parents. A teacher must both provide permission and supervise any cell phone or smart device use, which must be for a school-related task.

MIDDLE SCHOOL All cell phones and smart devices remain in backpacks or lockers while on campus (including after school).

Students may use laptops, cell phones and smart devices for educational purposes only, and only with express permission and supervision from a teacher.

Students are to use the office phone if they need to contact their parents.

UPPER SCHOOLS Cell phone and smart device usage is prohibited in all areas of campus except student lounges 8:00 am–4:30 pm. Teachers may grant exceptions for educational use.

BOARDING DEPARTMENT Boarders are allowed to use their phones in the dorm outside the academic day and at residential activities, with the exception of study hall and phone-free events such as dorm group dinner. The residential faculty will support requests from parents/guardians to collect phones, computers, tablets, wearable tech, etc. overnight. The residential faculty reserves the right to collect and hold devices any time student use becomes problematic.

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Annie Wright Zeroes in on Math Beverly Brown Excellence in Teaching Award recipient Emily Weston is the new all-school math coordinator, leading program, curriculum, evaluation and professional development efforts.

At the beginning of the 2018–2019 school year, a task force convened to tackle a lofty goal. Their charge: to audit Annie Wright’s math curricula from Preschool to Grade 12 and to make concrete recommendations to bolster the entire math program. A team of outside consultants visited math classes and interviewed teachers and students in every grade the following October.

Incorporating the consultants’ findings, the task force presented the following recommendations in December: Update the school’s mathematics scope and sequence.

Implement a three course sequence of Algebra, Geometry and Statistics to better prepare students for Pre-Calculus.

Establish more sections in the Middle School and Upper Schools that reflect levels of mastery and that promote differentiation.

Review current assessment practices in all four divisions.

Provide more professional development opportunities in math instruction school-wide.

The task force and consultants also strongly recommended creating a new three-year all-school math coordinator position to lead program, curriculum, evaluation and professional development efforts. After a comprehensive

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search, Annie Wright’s own Emily Weston, who holds a master’s in education with a math endorsement from Pacific Lutheran University and has been teaching math in the Upper School for Girls for 12 years, was by far the most compelling candidate. In addition to mentoring math teachers in every division, Weston led Curriculum and Practice faculty groups in both teaching math and developing teacher leadership.

She also helped implement the IB Diploma Programme in the Upper School for Girls and has seen hundreds of students through successful completion of the IB diploma.

In 2017 she won the Beverly Brown Excellence in Teaching Award.

Any student who has taken a class with Weston knows she oozes passion for math teaching and learning. “I want students that are both innately good at following the algorithms and those that are not to see the beauty in mathematics that I see,” she said. “I want them to understand that math is not just about numbers, equations, algorithms and graphs; it is about exploring, playing, understanding, risk-taking, explaining and communicating.”

Strength: Why are you passionate about math education?

Q&A With All-School Math Coordinator Emily Weston Strength: What are the most exciting aspects of your new role?

Weston: First and foremost, I’m eager to combine my passion for Annie Wright and my passion for math education to help build a stronger math learning community here. I look forward to spending my time working with faculty members to help them build a deeper mathematical understanding so that they can better plan for meaningful instruction. I also anticipate finding ways to ensure all students have an opportunity to develop and deepen their understanding of mathematics.

Strength: What does a typical day look like for you?

Weston: I am thrilled that I am able to take on the new role of All-School Math Coordinator and remain a classroom teacher. I teach a section of math in both the Upper School for Girls and the Middle School. I also spend a significant amount of time observing math learning at our school and talking to teachers and students. Over the course of the year I will work with Middle and Upper School teachers to create our new three-year integrated math sequence that we will fully roll out in the 2020-2021 academic year. I also spend plenty of my time reviewing our current program and researching ways to improve it. I have some pretty lofty goals for my first year in this role, so I will surely be busy.

Weston: I loved math growing up, and I have always been comfortable with numbers. In school I was really good at doing what the teacher told me and following the rules. It wasn’t until I started working with students myself that I truly developed a deep understanding of mathematical concepts and a deep appreciation for math’s beauty. As an educator, I want students that are both innately good at following the algorithms and those that are not to see the beauty in mathematics that I see.

When math is taught through conceptual understanding, meaningful discourse and engaging tasks, students develop their analytical thinking, problem solving skills and a better understanding of our ever-changing world.

Strength: How will this role help teachers?

Weston: We kicked off this school year during our in-service week with an all-school math workshop, where all teachers of math from Preschool to advanced calculus worked in the Great Hall doing math together. It gives me goosebumps thinking about how vibrant the conversations were about mathematical concepts and pedagogy. I’m bringing expert trainers in to work with our teachers.

We’ll collaborate more than ever, and there will be more professional development opportunities specific to math.

These opportunities, along with a clearer purpose and more coherent scope and sequence, will help our already talented teachers be even better math teachers.

Strength: What does success look like during your three years?

Weston: There are many items on my to do list that I cannot wait to tackle and resolve. The big picture, however, is to develop our school’s math culture where math is seen as a powerful tool to help us understand the world, communicate our ideas and build our capacity for great things. If I can walk away after three years knowing that I’ve made our great community even better by building a stronger math program and developing an engaged math learning community, then my heart will be full.

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Upper School for Girls Debuts Artist Laureates

by GABRIELLE KRIEGER, CLASS OF ’21

The Artist Laureate program is an initiative in the Upper School for Girls that accepts two visual artists from each grade and gives them an opportunity to create and show a collection of art. The program’s first exhibit took place on November 14 in the International Baccalaureate Visual Art Gallery in Klarsch Hall, with artists each taking five minutes to discuss their vision and process.

According to Director of Upper School for Girls Jake Guadnola, the laureate program was created to address high demand for visual arts opportunities. “USG students can’t seem to get enough of our visual art offerings—the IB course is oversubscribed and the visual art (s)Elective is our biggest,” he said.

Last spring, laureates went through a rigorous application process, which included submitting a concept statement, a description of the primary medium and a portfolio of previous work with written explanations. Over the summer, the program provided the accepted students with a $200 budget for the art materials they needed.

Laureates also got the chance to meet with established artists in the community. “Through conversations with local, professional artists, they gained insights into art as a career,” Guadnola said. These artists included Chandler O’Leary, an illustrator and lettering artist in the Tacoma community, and Melissa Weinman, a painter and art teacher that works and exhibits across the United States.

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The artist laureates used their new materials and inspiration from professionals to create four to five pieces over the summer, focusing their collection around the exploration of a concept or medium.

Junior Katherine Christensen said she appreciated the push this program gave her. “You have to pick a concept and explore it consistently, then produce polished, finished products,” she said. Other laureates also expressed their gratitude for the motivation and independence the program inspired.

Based on the success of this pilot program, Guadnola is introducing a music laureate program beginning this spring. Students, individually or in groups, may apply in one of three categories: performance, composition, or combination (performance and composition). The winners will meet with professional musicians, receive a $200 stipend and produce one to three works for performance.

Exerpts from Artist Laureate Statements 1. “These pieces are a part of a larger story that I’m developing that explores themes of adventure, existentialism, hubris and a sense of powerlessness at the hands of greater forces.”

-Michelle Foster, Class of ’20 2. “My intention was to bring people a sense of tranquility when they see my pieces.”

-Emma Len, Class of ’22 3. “I wanted to explore the connection between poetry and art...

Both aim to record feelings that are too brief for people to catch or too vague for people to feel.”

-Cynthia Ning, Class of ’22 4. “My paintings feature robots in the place of human beings.

They are artificial in their environment and show the disconnect between humans and the natural world.”

-Emil Haedt, Class of ’21 5. “Most of my works revolve around my perceptions of the world: the frantic work mode in urban cities, collective lack of confidence, the imperfections of the world versus the perfection of art, and the interrelationships among people.”

-Qiuyu Chen, Class of ’20 6. “My goal was to challenge unrealistic representations of women and bring attention to the harmful expectations we put on females.”

-Katherine Christensen, Class of ’21

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Lower School Performs The Jungle Book Twenty-nine Lower School students from Kindergarten to Grade 5 presented Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book on November 1 and 2. The story was adapted for young actors, using Kipling’s original language, by Maggie Knott and Scott Campbell. Campbell, the AWS Kemper Theatre Manager, directed and designed the production.

“The Jungle Book is an excellent story for young artists to perform on stage,” said Campbell. “While the language is quite formal, the animal characters are very accessible.”

The production provided many age-appropriate learning opportunities for students involved. The cast learned how to artistically collaborate, move on stage, project their voices with clear diction and have empathy for the characters they created. Most importantly, the students had fun telling the story by doing the job of actors.

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The youngest students in Kindergarten to Grade 2 learned how to control their bodies on stage, with the goals of promoting personal safety, understanding theatrical narrative and process, and being personally accountable for their performance — both on and off stage. Older students in Grades 3-5 portrayed the main characters in the story­— offering them the opportunity for leadership and artistic expression. The entire company experienced and understood what it means to be a principled collaborator, an essential trait in the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme.

The Jungle Book also provided backstage leadership opportunities for students in Annie Wright’s Middle and Upper Schools, cementing its success as an all-school endeavor.

W I N T E R P L AY

WINTER MUSICAL

S P R I N G P L AY

Much Ado About Nothing

High School Musical

Moby Dick

December 13—14, 2019 Grades 8-12

February 26—28, 2020 Grades 8-12

April 23—25, 2020 Grades 6-9

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Homegrown Athletes, Annie Wright Style

by LISA ISENMAN, COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR & ENGLISH TEACHER

Older students gain leadership roles and younger students gain role models in Annie Wright’s K–12 athletics program.

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While student athletes across the country are forgoing school sports to venture into elite club opportunities, even from the youngest ages, Annie Wright Schools are finding ways to keep them close. Never afraid to be counter-cultural, the school is offering an alternative or complement to club programs, showing that we believe young students need opportunities to play a range of sports, and students’ needs should come first.

By offering a number of competitive opportunities from as early as Kindergarten, with practices and games right at school, students can explore a variety of sports, save time, build skills, learn teamwork, take risks, celebrate victories and weather defeats. In the safest of environments, they develop sportsmanship and passion, mentored by teachers and coaches who truly care about them.

According to Director of Athletics Mike Finch, specializing too early is neither healthy, nor productive. “Research suggests that by specializing in a single sport prior to the age of 16, a child’s body becomes one-dimensional and more prone to severe injuries come competitive play in high school and college,” he said. “Additionally, the child is more likely to burn out and lose interest in that sport. At AWS, we provide our Lower School and Middle School students with a wide range of recreational and competitive athletic experiences so that their bodies and minds are prepared for a range of athletic opportunities in Upper School.”

Providing a strong and varied athletics program at school offers so many other benefits. In the Annie Wright community, young athletes have built-in role models, and older athletes develop leadership skills. Upper Schoolers and alumni help coach and mentor their younger counterparts, and school-wide celebrations honor participation in a common sport. In addition, younger students cheer on their older schoolmates in soccer, volleyball, basketball and more, in matches right at their own school.

Elevating athletics also demonstrates Annie Wright’s overall commitment to excellent programs. While health and fitness have always been integral to the Annie Wright experience, a culture of athletic competition, and of winning, has grown precipitously, especially since Finch joined the school three years ago. The results are compelling. Over the past year Annie Wright athletes have qualified for state competitions in basketball, cross country, track, tennis and golf, and the athletics faculty firmly believe a state team win is in our near future. Read on for more specifics.

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New in Athletics In the last year, a culture of opportunity and excellence has resulted in winning performances in both team and individual sports. Upper School girls’ basketball and soccer teams won a record number of season games, and an exceptional volleyball team, comprising mostly freshmen who are on the up-and-up, made it to districts.

Varsity athletes represented Annie Wright in state basketball, cross country, track and golf competitions.

Upper School boys inaugurated cross country, track, soccer, basketball and tennis teams last year, and this year a freshman became the first-ever Upper School boy to qualify for a state competition.

From Kindergarten, the Lower School now offers a range of soccer and basketball teams for girls and boys, as well as lacrosse for girls and coed flag football. Middle Schoolers continue to compete strongly in our league, and the Middle School volleyball team has been undefeated for two years.

Most importantly, students are participating at record levels. Last year 63% of students from Kindergarten to Grade 12 played team sports at school. Go Gators!

1. Since the late 19th century and the days of middies and bloomers, athletics have been essential to the Annie Wright experience.

2. More than 60 Lower School girls played lacrosse across five teams last year.

3. In November, freshman tennis player Jake Oie, pictured with coach Nate Jones, became the first Upper School boy to earn a place in a state championship.

4. Basketball player Juliana Walker, a junior, leads the entire nation in scoring, averaging 36 points per game over the past two seasons.

5. Alumna Anna Haddad ‘19, four-time league champion for cross country and track last year and school record holder in the 1,600m and 3,200m, now runs for MIT. 6. Last spring, the Grades 3 & 4 flag football team earned second place in state, and the Grade 6 team (pictured) made it to the state semi-finals.

7. Senior Kaitlin Tan, the #2 recruit in the Pacific Northwest, officially signed to play tennis at D1 powerhouse Boston University. Kaitlin plays for the school team and coaches younger students.

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(s)Electives Program Fosters Inquiry & Impact

by A N N I E G R E E N , D EA N O F STU D ENTS , U P P ER SCHOOL FOR GI RLS Passion. Experiences. Belonging. Impact. Over the past five years, these values have shaped the (s)Elective Program (formerly “Activities Program”) into one of the Upper School’s most distinguished offerings.

The (s) is for signature, as each after-school elective extends distinctive opportunities to engage student passions beyond the classroom. Sometimes, way beyond the classroom. We’ve ushered groups to experience a simulated border crossing in southern Arizona. Others recently engaged in travel journalism in Cambodia and Vietnam. Visual Art students traveled to Santa Fe, New Mexico, in appreciation of Native art craftsmanship and influence. Another group absorbed the longstanding impact of colonialism while strolling the corridors of Havana, Cuba.

This list goes on, and will continue to do so. By the end of the 2019–20 school year, this newly redesigned program will have transported students across more than 15 cities in 10 states and 6 different countries. Fun, yes. And also, purposeful. The trips are custom-designed by the faculty advisor—with input by their student leaders—in order to deepen skills, broaden contexts, extend perspectives toward international mindedness, and explore the relationship between a field of interest and real-world impact.

Speaking of impact, the (s) also denotes a service-based twist. (s)Elective teams design and engage in an “impact project,” often in partnership with a local non-profit.

Whether organizing and facilitating a mayoral forum, planning a book drive for foster youth, or advocating for local business bureaus to support eco-friendly practices, students routinely connect having a passion with making a difference. These endeavors uphold Annie Wright’s mission statement in cultivating responsible citizenry and realize a core component of the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme called CAS (Creativity, Activity, Service). I’ve come to recognize initiation and collaboration as key ingredients of responsible, impactful citizenry, and the (s)Elective programming invests in these just as another space would a high level math skill.

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In my mind, readying and empowering our students to take meaningful action beyond our walls is about as important as it gets.

The impact within our community has also been palpable. (s)Elective student groups design t-shirts to wear on Fridays, treat one another to year-end picnics and special gatherings, and present about their shared experiences during Upper School Chapel or other forums.

In this space, I see cross grade level mentorship demonstrated in authentic and powerful ways. I hear groups identifying themselves as teams, if not families, which is no surprise given the four hour weekly commitment these students make to one another and their advisor after school. Accordingly, the (s)Elective spaces have become places where students find “their people,” regardless of age, background or nationality.

”In my mind, readying and empowering our students to take meaningful action beyond our walls is about as important as it gets.”

Currently, two of the eight (s)Elective offerings are open for members of both Upper School divisions: the school newspaper Inkwell and Visual Arts. This is a strategic choice to honor both the school’s commitment to single gender programming and the intention to curate optional cross-divisional involvement outside academic instruction.

So far, so good! But again, no surprise. When people gather on the basis of interest, personal investment, and making a difference beyond the self, good things tend to happen.

To me, the (s) clearly stands for special. This extraordinary programming is for remarkable young adults, many of whom are ready to take on the world using their passions or interests. And, at least for now, with each other, one unforgettable experience at a time.

Journalism students visited the Angkor temples in Cambodia last March.

I think my biggest goal is to make people question and think.

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Student Spotlight: Community Activist Nadine Gibson

by JULIA HENNING, CLASS OF ’21 Nadine Gibson, in just her first year of high school, is already an award-winning student activist. She has advocated for organizations across Tacoma and gained strong ties with Mayor Victoria Woodards. Her work has won awards, and most recently, she received the Star of Destiny award from the Tacoma Historical Society.

Gibson identifies strongly as an advocate for others. “I’ve always been an outspoken person, and I’m always game to point things out and speak out,” she said. Her most prominent advocacy began in Tacoma after moving to the city in 7th grade. She said that both Tacoma and Annie Wright Schools opened up doors and connections for her.

Since then, Gibson has become an advocate for communities of people of color and the queer community in and around Tacoma. Additionally, Gibson is able to identify and advocate for issues beyond specific groups.

“While there is a plethora of topics and causes of things that I speak up for, I think my biggest goal is to make people question and think,” she said. “Rather than pushing my personal agenda, I would rather let people speak for themselves, question authority and question the systems that we live by.”

This concern for others and her ability to question have been praised by many including Alicia Mathurin, Director of Auxiliary Programs at Annie Wright. “If there is anything or anyone who is being treated unfairly, she has a voice for it,” Mathurin said.

Gibson learned about the Legislative Youth Advisory Council in Tacoma in 7th grade at a youth action fest at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. After she finished the application, she found that she was a year too young to be a part of the council, but her mom encouraged her to submit the application anyway. When Gibson was accepted into the program, the board thought her application had a typo with the wrong grade. When she told them it was correct, they accepted her anyway.

Gibson has worked alongside the mayor of Tacoma, Victoria Woodards, since Woodards took office in 2018.

“I kept getting involved with the community and our paths just kept crossing and we would recognize each other,” Gibson said. Woodards offered more opportunities and connections to Gibson as they got to know each other.

Gibson believes Woodards was involved in the nomination for her most recent award from the Tacoma Historical Society, along with members from the Black Collective, a volunteer leadership organization that addresses issues affecting the black community of Tacoma and Pierce County. The mayor presented Gibson with the award at the Historical Society dinner in September.

Despite the prestige of the award, Gibson has remained humble. “I don’t think it’s the awards that push her to go harder,” Mathurin said. “It’s the personal stories, and when she hears about communities that are being marginalized, that’s what makes her go. When she received this most recent award, she just asked ‘you want to go to this dinner?,’ and she just plays this like it’s not a big deal to her, because it’s not why she’s doing it. She waited until the week of to even invite people.”

Nadine spoke about the power of youth in the activism community. “Right now, we’re in an interesting time with our history as humans,” she said. “Youth are at the forefront more than they’ve ever been in history and I think it’s interesting to see where this will lead.”

Annie Wright has provided many of these opportunities for Gibson to engage with the community, including connecting her to the mayor and the Black Collective. “The first platform where I ever really met Mayor Woodards, who would inspire me to approach so many opportunities, was in the Great Hall,” Gibson said. “I learned about the Black Collective through Annie Wright because in 7th grade one of the founders of the collective came and spoke about his activism in the Puget Sound area. Both of these monumental moments for me were fostered

by Annie Wright. It was really up to me to cultivate these opportunities and take advantage of them and direct where they would lead me. Annie Wright has opened up a field of opportunity for me to jump in.”

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2018-2019 Year in Philanthropy by the Numbers REVENUES

Thank you to all of our donors and volunteers who make Annie Wright Schools thrive. Your generosity and commitment are Annie Wright’s strength.

$1 7,612,918 TUITION & FEES

$1,044,922 FUNDRAISING ACTIVITIES FOR OPERATIONS

$935,551

TOTA L REV ENUE S

$20,372,620

ANCILLARY ACTIVITIES

$779,229 ENDOWMENT & TRUST DISTRIBUTIONS

EXPENSES

$10,156,672 PAYROLL & BENEFITS

$5,381,632 OPERATING EXPENSES

$3,204,543 FINANCIAL AID & TUITION REMISSION

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TOTA L EXP ENSE S

$18,742,847

Annual Giving 548 DONORS RAISED $484,621 GRANDPARENTS

FACULTY AND STAFF

OTHER

ALUMNI PARENTS

Alumni Donors by

TIE COLOR 20. 72%

22. 52%

27. 93%

28. 83%

$101,000

IN SPONSORSHIP

$444,331

$174,132

FOR THE NEW NATURE PLAY SPACE

330

Including $18,000 from our “Grand Match” by grandparents

GATOR GALA

FUND-A-NEED

GROSS REVENUE

Auction Events

For the full Annual Philanthropy Report, including donors and levels of giving, please visit www.aw.org/annual-report.

Annie Wright Schools’ financial year ran from July 2018 to June 2019.

GUESTS

$27,564

GROSS REVENUE

300+

GUESTS

FAMILY NIGHT

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GATOR S GIVE Gators Give is an opportunity to support what you love most about Annie Wright Schools.

New this year, in an effort to make your participation more meaningful to you, we invite you to choose how to support the school by directing your gifts to Arts, Athletics, Scholarships or Teachers.

You can also make an unrestricted gift to the strength of Annie Wright Schools.

Your generosity is our strength. Thank you!

Learn more and make a gift at www.aw.org/give Questions about ways of giving or the impact you can make?

Philanthropy Director Grace Finch would love to hear from you.

Contact her at grace_finch@aw.org or 253.284.8604.

Class Notes

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1940s note: Some of these class notes appeared in alumni newsletters earlier this year.

Grace (Rexroth) Seaman ’48 & Diane (Rexroth) Keller ’50 Sisters Grace and Diane, active alumnae with a continuing legacy at Annie Wright, established the Jessie Allison Rexroth scholarship in honor of their mother. Rhiannon Simmonds ’19, a scholar, athlete and singer, was the 2019 recipient and is a first year student at Scripps College.

Grace and Diane’s young cousin Kepler Stanley-Hunt, Class of ’23, continues the family legacy by attending Annie Wright Upper School for Boys.

1950s Jacquelin (Bonamy) Kintner ’52 A few days before she passed away on November 26, 2018, Jackie mailed in a class note that said she was the proud great grandmother of 10 great grandchildren.

Shirley Anderson ’52 Last February Annie Wright Schools received an inheritance of Shirley’s entire percussion collection, featuring more than 100 instruments ranging from small whistles to orchestral car horns to a four octave marimba to a Thai Gong. In November, percussionists from Symphony Tacoma performed for students in chapel using some of the instruments, demonstrating the wide range of sounds and capabilities. This performance was a wonderful celebration of this unique gift to the AWS community by an alumna who supported the school throughout her life.

An Undergarment Pick-Me-Up A remembrance from Betty Lou (Ervin) Broderick ’53 Brilliant sunshine made for a beautiful but steamy May Day last May. When Class of ’53 alumna Betty Lou (Ervin) Broderick heard how one senior nearly fainted, she shared that she had the unofficial role of bearer of the smelling salts in the Annie Wright choir. During chapel she would listen for a “thump and a bang,” cues that a student had fainted, and come to the rescue with a tube of smelling salts stored discreetly in her bra.

Cordelia (Hartwell) Puttkammer ’57, Diane (Hibbard) Vadnais ’57 & Patricia (Pierce) Layden ’57 Classmates Tricia, Cordie and Diane enjoyed lunch together at Diane’s lovely island home last March.

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Susan (Rooney) Baldwin ’59 Susan corresponded with history teacher Jeff Freshwater, whose aunt, Nancy Freshwater, was in Susan’s class at Annie Wright. Jeff shared some of Susan’s remembrances with his students. Here are some excerpts: We all filed into chapel twice a day. I used to gaze out the window during the alma mater when we sang something about “…yonder mountains, where our glances fall…” wanting to be up in the mountains. On Sundays we always walked ten blocks in heels, hats and gloves to church.

Before church our attire was inspected (no sleeveless dresses) as we filed past. In those days, we were not allowed out of the school, except to Rosie’s on the corner (chaperoned), and Saturday morning for shopping downtown. Even doctor’s appointments required hats and gloves and a chaperone.

In the winter some of us went skiing up at White Pass, which was our favorite, but sometimes to other areas.

(Crystal Mountain did not exist yet.) We never knew to which area we would be going, in order to foil any attempts to meet up with boys.

1960s Lynn (Beaty) Sealey ’61 Lynn’s husband Rand celebrated 50 years in the wine industry in May at the Foundry Vineyard Gallery in Walla Walla with a party for his wine newsletter subscribers and wine makers from around the state. Lynn serves as president of Art Club, which was founded by pioneer women in 1898 and has nearly 50 members. She also serves on the Mokuhanga (a form of traditional Japanese woodblock printmaking) Project Space board at Whitman College.

Gay (Thomson) Fruehling ’61, Gundl (Primus) Haskell ’61 & Sally (Rooney) Morbeck ’61 Class of ’61 friends Gay, Gundl and Sally had lunch together in Sun Valley, Idaho, last year. Photo courtesy of Lynn (Beaty) Sealey ’61.

Sally (Peterson) Atherton ’66 & Deborah (Kass) Hubbard ’68 Sally and Deborah provided students with personal insights for their research about Annie Wright’s history for the Grade 4’s annual History Exhibition last spring. Sally, an Annie Wright trustee, later attended the opening of the new Upper School for Boys building in September. Read her reflection on the event on page 20.

Betty Lou (Ervin) Broderick ’53

Cordelia (Hartwell) Puttkammer ’57, Diane (Hibbard) Vadnais ’57 , Patricia (Pierce) Layden ’57

Susan (Rooney) Baldwin ’59

Gay (Thomson) Fruehling ’61, Gundl (Primus) Haskell ’61 and Sally (Rooney) Morbeck ’61

Sally Atherton ’66

Deborah (Kass) Hubbard ’68

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Lydia (West) Fleming ’69 Lydia regretfully missed her 50th reunion in June but sent in the following update: “I’ve lived in Montana for the last 45 years. We live on a small place nestled up against the Mission Mountains and protected by a conservation easement, because it’s also home to a fairly large population of grizzly bears! My husband, John, taught middle school and driver’s education for 40 years, and I was a middle school secretary; we are now both retired. My passion besides my family is sewing, and I work at a little coffee and gift shop nearby where I sell some of the things I make. We have three sons: Louis, 38, a smokejumper for the US Forest Service in Missoula, Will, 36, a police officer in Great Falls (his wife, Brandi, is a nurse and they have a little boy named Bennett) and Ian, 32, a nuclear scientist in Los Alamos (his wife, Brenda, is a graphic designer and they have three little people: Daphne, Donna, and Eli).”

Hurlaine “Hurley” (Johnson) Hamilton ‘69 Hurley (center) returned to campus on May 18 for a tour with her sister Julie, son Chase, daughter-in-law Martha, granddaughter Taya and niece Emily. Hurley’s brother, Charles Johnson, attended Annie Wright as a “pottery shed boy” during the mid 1950s. Hurley and Julie shared many stories of fun and shenanigans during their time at school Hurley’s grandmother, Helen (Demarest) Hurley ’26, was May Queen in 1926. Hurley (second from right) and her family found Helen’s May court photo in the Great Hall. Helen, who went on to serve on the Board of Trustees, started school in the original 1884 building near Wright Park and was in one of the first classes to graduate from the current campus.

Former AWS Librarian Celebrates 100th Birthday In 1919, the year Congress passed the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote, former Annie Wright Schools librarian Ines (Spade) Silins was born in Moscow, Russia.

Surviving first the Russian Revolution and then World War II, she arrived with her mother and daughter in Tacoma in 1950. Shortly after, she married Mintauts Silins, whom she had met in a refugee camp in Germany. In 1960 she went to college to study library science and went on to work as a librarian at Annie Wright for more than 30 years, finally retiring in 1994. Ines celebrated her 100th birthday with family and friends last May. Happy birthday Ines!

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1980s Susanne Essen-Cline ‘83 Susanne and Cynthia Roberts ‘81 dropped by AWS in March 2019 while on their way out to the beach. Susanne, visiting from Texas, was in town for a wedding. She and Cynthia reconnected on Facebook several years ago and have been in touch ever since.

Deirdre (Allen) Timmons ‘84 Deidre released a memoir about battling brain cancer, “Brain Candy,” in February.

Veronica Sauer ’86 After a corporate career, Veronica is following her passion for creating art, focusing on portraits of people she admires drenched in color. She exhibited several pieces, including this vibrant Jimi Hendrix, at Ledger Square Law in Tacoma last year.

Lee Skinner ‘86 A leading scholar of Latin American literature, Lee moved in July from her position as associate dean of faculty and professor of Spanish at Claremont McKenna to head Tulane University’s Newcomb-Tulane College, the academic home for all Tulane undergraduate students. Lee earned a bachelor’s degree in comparative literature from Brown and a PhD in Spanish from Emory. In addition to her administrative role, Lee also joined Tulane’s faculty in the department of Spanish and Portuguese.

Adrienne (Fort) Nestor ’86 Adrienne toured Annie Wright with her daughter in November while visiting colleges nearby. She connected with schoolmate and Upper School Admissions Director Laura Bales.

Sarah Bolland-Wicker ’85MS Sarah interned with Annie Wright’s Advancement Department earlier this year while studying Human Services at Tacoma Community College. Sarah attended AWS 1978–85.

Hurlaine “Hurley” (Johnson) Hamilton ’69 and family

Hurley finds her grandmother’s May Day photo in the Great Hall.

Ines (Spade) Silins

Veronica Sauer ’86

Lee Skinner ’86

Adrienne (Fort) Nestor ’86 (right) with Laura Bales ’85

Alumnae Laura Bales ’85 and Maddie Mancuso ’05MS Join Annie Wright Schools’ Advancement Team Laura Bales ’85, Annie Wright’s new Upper School Admissions Director, moved back to the area in 2017 after ten years in Singapore. With more than three decades of experience in a variety of senior advancement roles including college admissions, fundraising and communications, Laura brings her passion for education to her alma mater. Laura’s sons, Eli Dugan (Class of ’21) and Seth Dugan (Class of ’23), are pioneers of the Upper School for Boys. Laura succeeds fellow alumna Alyssa Harvey ’06’, who left the position after the birth of her daughter.

Maddy Mancuso ’05MS, in the newly created position of Advancement Associate, has worked at her alma mater in several roles, including teaching assistant, substitute teacher and admissions associate. In her new role, Maddy supports admissions, philanthropy (including the annual auction events) and alumni relations.

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Mr. Timson Returns!

Beloved Upper School science teacher Jim Timson, who taught at Annie Wright Schools 1974–2009, returned as a substitute for fellow award-winning teacher Donald Sidman, who took a few weeks of paternity leave last January and February. Mr. Timson said he was delighted to learn first-hand that Annie Wright students are as eager and engaged as ever. It was great to have you back, Mr. Timson!

1990s Sonia (Morales) Rodriguez True ’92 Sonia, a family and personal injury attorney based in Yakima, recently became the first Latina board president of the United Way of Central Washington.

Gillian Wood ‘98 & Chrissy Henderson ’98 Chrissy catches Annie Wright classmate Gillian on the flying trapeze.

Brendan Touhy ’96MS In November, tenor Brendan Touhy starred as Nemorino in Tacoma Opera’s The Elixir of Love. He was joined by several Annie Wright music faculty members, including voice instructors Ryan Bede, Micaela Derouin and Kristen Keymont. Music teacher and orchestra director Stuart Hake was principal cellist in the orchestra.

2000s Helin Räägel ’00 Helin, an exchange student from Estonia during the 1999–2000 school year, came back to visit Annie Wright last year. Dr. Räägel is a biocompatibility expert for Nelson Laboratories in Salt Lake City.

Katelyn Mancuso ’01MS Katelyn started her own aesthetics business, Skinplicity by Katelyn Kristine, three years ago in North Tacoma’s Jade’s Salon and Day Spa. Her services include waxing, sugaring, customized facials, dermaplaning, lash lifts, and brow and lash tinting. “I started this business because I have a passion for people,” she wrote. “My goal is not only to provide an amazing service but to make every client feel comfortable and confident.”

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Mari Nomoto ’02 Mari visited Annie Wright with her mother. “It was my first time visiting the PNW since my graduation from Lewis & Clark College in 2006, and we had a blast!” she wrote.

“The campus was so beautiful...I didn’t cherish it enough when I was there. I now appreciate my parents for sending me to AWS! My update: I work in Marketing at Medtronic, a medical device company headquartered in Minneapolis, and I’m enjoying it very much so far. I shall come back again to the PNW before another decade!”

John Tinsley ’01MS Congratulations to John and his wife Katie on the birth of their beautiful baby daughter, Sienna Wilder Tinsley, born February 3, 2019.

Alyssa Harvey ’06 After two years of grad school, I earned a Masters in Organizational Leadership with a concentration in Servant Leadership from Gonzaga University last May. My love of education and teaching informed my time as a graduate assistant in Theory and Development as well as my capstone, which examined reforming higher education to include those without undergraduate degrees. In July, I stepped away from my position as Upper School Admissions Director at Annie Wright, and am enjoying time with my daughter while she is beginning to explore the world around her.

Sarah (Gann) Squiers ’07 Sarah and her husband Galen were delighted to announce the birth of their daughter Reagan Rose Squiers, born December 4, 2018. Reagan Rose joins big sister Devynn. Sarah and Kaitlyn Ugelstad ’08 are currently on a rec volleyball team, “Gator Dreams,” with current AWS faculty members Nate Jones, John Hunt, Kelli Sams and Kyle Price.

Stephanie Dowling ’05MS Stephanie got married to Nick Truckey on May 25 in Sayulita, Mexico. She had ten bridesmaids, five of whom are Annie Wright alumnae: Alesha (Beckel) Pavolka ’04MS, far left; Alexandra Dowling ’03MS (4th from left); Samantha Dowling ’07MS (5th from left); Chelsea Price ’05MS (5th from right); Marissa Whitman ’05MS (4th from right); and Madeline Mancuso ’05MS (2nd from right).

Mr. Timson Returns!

Gillian Wood ’98 & Chrissy Henderson ’98

Brendan Touhy ’96MS

Helin Räägel ’00

Katelyn Mancuso ’01MS

Mari Nomoto ’02

Alyssa Harvey ’06

Stephanie Dowling ’05 with her family

Stephanie Dowling ’05 with her bridesmaids

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Madeline Mancuso ’05MS Maddy, who has served in various capacities at Annie Wright over the past five years, recently joined the advancement team in a full-time permanent position.

Read more on page 55.

Madeline Scott ’09 Madeline competed at the Arnold Sports Festival in Columbus, Ohio, in March and set a new American record in the squat, with 416 lbs. She actually broke her own existing American record!

Jingjing Ni ’11 Jingjing visited AWS last summer with her parents. It was her father’s first time on campus. She provided this update: “After AWS, I attended Georgia Tech for a BS in Industrial Engineering and an MS in Operations Research. Since college, I have been working at The Home Depot HQ in Atlanta first as a senior analyst and now a data scientist on space optimization team. My job responsibilities are to develop and scale data science capability to optimize in-store space and improve space productivity.”

Leslie Bauska ’13 Leslie, who visited Annie Wright in May, poses with her former little reading buddy, fellow Yellow Tie Chai Kwa (Class of ’21), a pioneer in the Upper School for Boys who grew significantly taller than his mentor!

Beatrice Ionescu ’13 Beatrice, who was an exchange student in Annie Wright’s Yellow Tie class of ’13, is co-founder and chief technology officer of Stockholm, Sweden-based imagiLabs, which creates tools and a community for creative coding specifically for girls 12–16. Their imagiCharm and app, which can be customized through programming via mobile phone, make coding engaging, fun and relevant to teenage girls.

Margaux Arntson ’14 The Tacoma Athletic Commission named Margaux Arntson the Dick Hannula Female Amateur Athlete of the Year for 2018. Margaux played varsity volleyball for four years at Annie Wright Schools and then at Claremont McKenna College, graduating in 2018. She was named D3 all-American first team, and her Claremont-Mudd-Scripps volleyball team won its first ever division title in November 2017.

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Victoria “Tori” (Smith) Klinewski ’14 Tori married Matthew Klinewski in Raynor Chapel on June 29.

Avery Cederstrand ’11MS Avery, pictured with his Grade 5 teachers Malcolm Davidson (“Mr. D”) and Jan Buennagel (“Mr. B”), returned to his alma mater in September for the official opening of the Upper School for Boys building.

Serena Yu ’14 & Amy Hou ’18 Amy Hou ’18 and Serena Yu ’14 helped celebrate the opening of Baishan AWS, in Qingdao, China, last August.

Both graduates participated in opening festivities, observed classes and talked with the new students about Annie Wright traditions.

Shannon Bailey ’15 Shannon graduated from Pacific Lutheran University with a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and currently works for Washington State University Foundation in biographical records.

Yuhe “Cocoa” Gu ’15 Cocoa designed lighting, sets and props for dozens of performances during her time at the University of Wisconsin. Through the Chinese Theatre Club, she helped inform new Chinese theatre viewers about the process of producing theatre. During college she studied and worked in public policy, with a focus on educational policy research.

Sara Pelster ’15 In March Sara was offered a marketing position at CliftonLarsonAllen LLP in Los Angeles. Sara said she appreciated her summer internships at Annie Wright and believed that the work she did with events and the donor database helped her to stand out as a candidate.

Genevieve Grant ’17 Genevieve, who finished two years at Sciences Po in France, entered the next stage of her dual BA program in the fall and is majoring in sustainable development at Columbia University.

Madeline Scott ’09

Leslie Bauska ’13

Margaux Arntson ’14

Victoria “Tori” (Smith) Klinewski ’14

Avery Cederstrand ’11MS

Serena Yu '14 and Amy Hou ’18

Yuhe “Cocoa” Gu ’15

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Five Decades of Alumnae Connect with Annie Wright During the week prior to May Day and commencement, alumnae spanning five decades gathered with the Class of 2019 to share treats, stories and favorite traditions. Holly Bamford Hunt ’89, Stephanie Cook ’88, the Rev. Elizabeth Appling ’63, Laura Bales ’85 and Madeline Mancuso ’05MS look through yearbooks. Also in attendance were Deborah (Kass) Hubbard ’68, Jennifer Haley ’89 and Kate Dorr ’96.

Rachel Holland ‘18 Rachel returned to work in the AWS Philanthropy & Alumni Relations Office last summer as a development assistant. She returned to Bryn Mawr College in the fall as a sophomore.

Maggie Wang ’16, Bella Eisenhart ’17, Emma Verbovski ’17 & Rachel Piatok ’18 Members of the Business and Robotics activities visited alumnae while on a trip to Boston earlier this year. Highlights included getting an inside look at Boston University’s campus with Maggie Wang, discussing how to navigate the transition between Annie Wright and college with Rachel Piatok, and completing an escape room with Emma Verbovski, Bella Eisenhart and Rachel Piatok.

Maggie Wang ’16, Bella Eisenhart ’17, Emma Verbovski ’17 & Rachel Piatok ’18

Josie Trueblood ’15MS Josie, who has been in bands since second grade at Annie Wright, headlined with her band Josie Trueblood and The Boypack at the new McMenamins in Tacoma on June 8 in the Spanish Ballroom.

Josie Trueblood ’15MS 60

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IN

Memoriam Left: Lois (Parker) Simonson ’38 (center) with Chimie Yuthok ’74 (left) and Poppy Bushnell ’74 (right) at an alumni cocktail party in Seattle in 2014; Right: Kay Bishop on graduation day in 1960 with headmistress Ruth Jenkins

Lois (Parker) Simonson ’38 | 1920–1919 Lois (Parker) Simonson ’38 was born in Portland, Oregon.

After attending Annie Wright for high school, she graduated from the University of Washington. She married Henry T. Simonson, whom she met at the University of Washington, in 1943, and they enjoyed 68 years of marriage until his death in 2011. Lois and Hank lived in the Windermere neighborhood of Seattle with their three children, welcoming the neighborhood kids to their backyard pool, which continued to be the favorite gathering place for their children and grandchildren many years later.

Lois volunteered many hours at Children’s Hospital and remained a loyal and connected Annie Wright alumna throughout her life. She loved skiing and travel and was an accomplished golfer, playing regularly until the age of 85. She later took up painting, creating beautiful watercolors of nature settings. Lois is survived by her daughters, Susan Nathane (Bob) and Nancy Viviano (Ron), four granddaughters and seven great-grandchildren.

Martha (Hastings) Piwonka ’55 | 1937–2019 Martha (Hastings) Piwonka ’55 was born and grew up in Ferndale, Washington. She attended Annie Wright Schools, Stanford University and the Harvard Business School.

Before retiring to Ferndale, she was Assistant University Registrar at The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa.

Martha was active in the Assistance League of Bellingham and the Bellingham Festival of Music. She is survived by her husband, Thomas; sons William and Matthew of Portland, Oregon; daughter Antonia Piwonka-Corle, of Boulder, Colorado; and seven grandchildren. Martha was a loyal donor to her Annie Wright class scholarship, and her family continues to make regular gifts in her honor.

Kay Bishop ’60 | 1942–2019 Kay Bishop ’60, an Annie Wright Schools alumna and former Trustee 1993-99, was born in Portland, Oregon, to Charles Kay Bishop and Eloise Conner Bishop. She was raised in Washougal, Washington, where her father managed the Pendleton Woolen Mills plant, and came to Annie Wright as a boarder. After college at Oregon State University, she moved to San Francisco to work for the Emporium-Capwell company. Kay was active in her church and a world traveler. In addition to Annie Wright she served on several boards including the Cheetah Conservation Society and the Girls Chorus of San Francisco. Kay remained an active alumna and donor until close to her death.

Lois (Parker) Simonson ’38

Ann Gowen Combs ’52

Susan Holman-McCoy ’66

Marilyn (Muckey) Walter ’44

Jacquelin (Bonamy) Kintner ’52

Sophie Brotsky, Class of ’22

Norma (Ainsworth) Brady ’45

Blenda (Enkema) Jeffry ’53

Ralph Dickman, former Trustee,

Lois (Lund) Jeffords ’46

Patricia (Wolfe) Kauffman ’55

parent & grandparent

Helen (Breskovich) Keckemet ’47

Martha (Hastings) Piwonka ’55

Beckie Krantz, parent & former

June (Rowe) Milette ’48

Helen (Klinkert) Van Volkenburg ’56

director of development

Flavia (Gierin) Roach ’50

Kay (Thompson) Enbom ’58

Susan Manger, former faculty

Linda (Andrews) Mordhorst ’51LS

Kay Bishop ’60

Mary Waldo, former faculty

Betty (Ackerman) Smith ’51

Mary (Thompson) Turnbull ’64 61

SAVE T HE DAT E

Alumni Weekend

September 24–26, 2020 We are excited to welcome Annies from around the country and world to Alumni Weekend 2020, which will take place next fall, on October 2 and 3.

This timing will provide opportunities for alumni to see firsthand your alma mater’s exciting changes and enduring traditions, attend school events, and most importantly, connect with classmates and schoolmates from your Annie Wright days. While we welcome all alumni, we particularly encourage the 10th reunion Class of ’10, the 25th reunion Class of ’95, and the 50th reunion Class of ’70 to join us.

New for 2020, Alumni Weekend will also celebrate all years with the same tie color as the senior class. Next fall the senior class will be...YELLOWS! So bananas, starfruit, pineapples, grapefruit and all you other yellow fruit, please join your fellow yellows at Alumni Weekend 2020.

Weekend highlights

Thursday, September 24 Opportunities to attend events on campus.

Stay tuned for details.

Friday, September 25 Cocktail party, 6:00–8:00 pm in the Bamford Commons

Saturday, September 26 Memory sharing service, 9:30–10:30 am in Raynor Chapel Champagne brunch, 10:30 am–12:00 pm in the Great Hall

Stay tuned for further event and hotel information. Specialized tours and individualized class events, with opportunities for family gatherings, are available and encouraged. Contact Maddy Mancuso at maddy_mancuso@aw.org or 253.284.8603 to help plan your class reunion.

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Lost Your Yearbook?

Are you looking to replace your copy of The Shield? Our alumni office has limited extra copies of certain years.

Please contact Maddy Mancuso at maddy_mancuso@aw.org or 253.284.8603 to see if we have the one you want. She would be happy to ship it to you. Digitized versions of yearbooks are also available online at www.aw.org/yearbooks.

ENJOY!

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827 North Tacoma Avenue Tacoma, Washington 98403

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Students applying for Grades 9–11 are invited to attend Scholar Search. This is your chance to get to know Annie Wright Schools, our two Upper School programs (one for boys and one for girls), and for us to learn about you too. Best of all, this is the only time in the year that we award merit scholarships to attend the Upper Schools at Annie Wright, and attendance at Scholar Search means you’re eligible for these awards.

Throughout the visit you'll meet other students, explore our beautiful campus and interact with our exceptional faculty.

You’ll get to know current students and potential future classmates. You'll visit classes and attend a not to be missed evening event.

ARCH

Friday, February 7, 2020 11:00 am to 9:30 pm

Scholar Search is free of charge, but preregistration is required and space is limited.

Visit www.aw.org/US-Admissions or contact Laura Bales at laura_bales@aw.org or 253.284.8601