Ashley Hall Perspectives | 2013 Strategic Plan

Perspectives

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SPECIAL EDITION

A s h l e y Ha l l S t r at e g i c P l a n 2 0 1 3

avigating the Now...

Charting Our Course Toward Tomorrow

Board of Trustees 2013-2014 OFFICERS Chairman – Dr. Joseph (Jerry) G. Reves Vice Chairman – W. Scott Parker Secretary – Heidi Ward Ravenel ‘74 Treasurer – Hugh C. Lane, Jr. Members-at-large Ann W. Dibble ‘70 Randolph J. Friedman Kenneth W. Harrell Brett Hildebrand Laurie Arnold Host ‘73 Elizabeth Rivers Lewine ‘54 Elizabeth Powers Lindh ‘67 Janet Pearlstein Lipov Kevin W. Mooney Anne Tamsberg Pope Barton A. Proctor Lee W. Richards Emily Molony Swanson John E. Thompson Malcolm M. Rhodes - Past President Trustees Emeriti Mary Agnes Burnham Hood Martha Rivers Ingram ‘53 Patricia T. Kirkland Karen Jenkins Phillips ‘79 J. Conrad Zimmerman, Jr. Head of School Jill Swisher Muti

172 Rutledge Avenue Charleston, SC 29403 www.ashleyhall.org

Perspectives The magazine of Ashley Hall

SPECIAL EDITION Strategic Plan Issue EDITOR Catherine Newman GRAPHIC DESIGN Julie Frye Design, LLC CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Nick Bozanic Sarah Evans Stephanie Hunt Stephanie Tecklenburg

Table of Contents 2 Headlines

Jill Muti 4 A Decade of Renewal

PhotoGRAPHY Anne Jervey Rhett Photography Anna Murray PHOTO

10 Cardinal Points: A Moral

Compass for Learning

ADMINISTRATIVE TEAM HEAD OF SCHOOL Jill Muti

17 Ashley Hall Strategic Plan 2013: Navigating the Now,

Charting the Course for Tomorrow

Assistant Head of School for Academic Affairs Dr. Nick Bozanic ASSISTANT HEAD OF SCHOOL FOR FINANCE AND OPERATIONS Audrey Tamekazu Assistant to the Head of School Elizabeth Gordon Executive Assistant to the Head of School Amy Thompson

Director, K - 4 Lois Ruggiero | Pardue Hall

32 2 Morehead-Cain Scholars: Caroline

Lowery ’12 and

Rossi Anastopoulo ’13

Director, 5-6 Catherine Neel | Lane Hall

36 Loyalty Fund

Director, Pre- P - Pre K Dana Van Hook | Ross EEC

Director, 7-12 Mary Schweers | Jenkins Hall Director of Admission Amelia Jenkins Director of Athletics Frances Slay

40 Advancement

Director of Facilities Fred Reinhard

42 Ashley Hall On The Road

Visual Arts Coordinator Rebecca Stone-Danahy Performing Arts Coordinator Todd Christopher Director of Technology Kevin Bourque Director of Institutional Advancement / Director of Communications and Marketing Catherine Newman International Programs Coordinator Jeff Dionne Dean of Students Kelly Wood

43 Alumnae Weekend 53 Class Notes

P Headlines Dear Ashley Hall Family,

To characterize the transformations that have occurred at

Ashley Hall over the past ten years as a “renaissance” (see p.5) is to invite a re-examination of what that word truly implies. As a term applied most typically to events transpiring in Europe between, broadly speaking, the 14th and 17th centuries, the Renaissance, with a capital “R,” encompasses, in the words of Walter Pater, “a many-sided but yet united movement, in which the love of the things of the intellect and the imagination for their own sake, the desire for a more liberal and comely way of conceiving life, make themselves felt, urging those who experience this desire to search out first one than another means of intellectual or imaginative enjoyment, and directing them not merely to discovery of old and forgotten sources of this enjoyment, but to the divination of fresh sources thereof – new experiences, new subjects of poetry, new forms of art.” Pater’s understanding of the Renaissance informs the sense in which we use the term more generally to describe any deliberate renewal of an intellectual, emotional, and aesthetic commitment to cherished traditions and a reassertion of those values in forms and by means appropriate to the present age.

It is indeed the case that the revitalization of the Ashley Hall campus and community has taken its driving energy from a renewed commitment to the school’s founding mission and an ever more confident assertion of the values embedded in that mission – values which we identify as Hallmarks of the Ashley Hall student: Intelligent, Creative, Collaborative, Discerning, Compassionate, Purposeful, and Worldly. The innovations in curriculum and teaching methods, the physical changes in the design and lay-out of the campus, the introduction of new co-curricular programs, indeed all of our efforts over the past ten years that have contributed to this sustained, organic metamorphosis have

urposeful

arisen out of that “love of the things of the intellect and the imagination” that compels and prefigures the engendering of fresh sources of enjoyment.

We are truly and justly proud of these achievements.

But we sense, too, that as Pater elsewhere says of the Italian Renaissance, it was “in many things great rather by what it designed or aspired to do than by what it actually achieved.” Obviously, Pater does not mean to imply that this tremendous explosion of creative energy and intellectual discovery was deficient in real accomplishments. He suggests instead that the European Renaissance set the stage for the even more profound discoveries of succeeding centuries.

Similarly, Ashley Hall has determined by its past decade of growth and renewal a direction for the future – we have charted the course ahead. That course is described in this special issue of Perspectives devoted to presenting in some detail our Strategic Plan for the next several years. With the way ahead mapped out, we can move forward into the future with confidence that we will realize more fully still the intentions which have governed our journey thus far. As we embark on this next reach of our voyage, we would do well to recall and take to heart the words of the great Renaissance philosopher Giovanni Pico della Mirandola: “Let a certain holy ambition invade our souls, so that, not content with the mediocre, we shall pant after the highest and (since we may if we wish) toil with all our strength to obtain it.”

PQV!

Jill Muti Head of School

With the way ahead mapped out, we can

move forward into the future with confidence that we will realize more fully still the intentions which have governed our journey thus far.

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A Decade of Renewal

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o r l d ly

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hat has happened at Ashley Hall over the past several years might best be described as a renaissance, a resurgence of the institution’s vital energies directed towards a renewed commitment to the school’s founding mission to “produce an educated woman who is independent, ethically responsible, and prepared to meet the challenges of society with confidence.” While the most visible and striking sign of this rebirth is the transformation of the campus itself by the construction of the Rivers Library, the Mercedes Erixson and F. Adelbert Hoshall M.D. Science and Math Center and the Dining Commons, as well as the new play areas and the renovation of Lane Hall and the Elizabeth Keith House for the Humanities, the inward transformations manifested in programmatic initiatives have been and continue to be profoundly significant.

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rucial to this revitalization of campus life has been the implementation of a Professional Development and Evaluation process designed by the faculty to encourage the creative thinking that will yield innovative strategies for addressing the mission’s principal objectives: the intellectual, ethical, emotional, and physical well-being of all Ashley Hall students. Both individually and collectively, teachers have taken advantage of this Professional Development program to investigate potential avenues for curriculum enrichment. These investigations have lead, in turn, to the introduction of the Reggio-Emilia approach in the Ross Early Education Center and to the implementation in Jenkins Hall of Harkness Table discussions as the basis for a Humanities curriculum based on primary sources– just two examples of the ways in which Ashley Hall seeks to deepen student engagement with their own learning and to acquire thereby greater confidence in their academic capabilities and in

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their social interactions with others. These curricular innovations have led inevitably to new approaches to assessing student performance – specifically the recently introduced Oral Defense Project which requires of Humanities students in grades eight through eleven both a formal written research essay synthesizing content from two or more subject areas and an oral presentation before a panel of teachers selected to examine her command of the subjects chosen for her project. This practice prepares students for the required Senior Thesis or the Senior Project elective in their final year at Ashley Hall. Similarly, the success of the STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics) program in Lane Hall has led to the introduction of a more interdisciplinary approach to these subjects in Jenkins Hall. Faculty in Pardue Hall have used their Professional Development opportunities to enrich virtually every component of their curricula, from Responsive Classroom morning meetings to Lucy Calkins Reading and Writing strategies to more

purposefully integrated science instruction at every grade level.

Also arising out of faculty Professional Development proposals have been fundamental innovations in the foreign languages curricula, most notably an emphasis on living language acquisition based on engagement with real-life materials rather than prescribed textbook levels.

The adaptation of the Oral Proficiency Interview as the standard of assessment for all students measures each individual’s progress toward authentic fluency in her chosen language. Ashley Hall’s Classics curriculum has established itself as unique in the region by virtue of its having over the past several years incorporated ancient Greek into the long-established Latin program.

Since the inauguration of the Ashley Hall strings program and the applied lessons opportunities, as well as the subsequent opening of the Carolina Strings Academy, student participation in formal musical training has increased tremendously, so much so that there is now cello instruction available as well as violin, piano, and guitar. Over the past eight years, student involvement in all of the performing arts has increased as have performance opportunities.

Attention to the students’ physical and emotional wellbeing has also given rise to significant transformations in programs addressing these concerns. A recalibrated Physical

Education program insures that every student will develop personal exercise routines that will be sustainable throughout their lives, while an expanded athletics program now offers students opportunities to participate on competitive golf, lacrosse, andequestrian teams. Complementing these programs, the Personal Awareness and Wellness Series (PAWS) provides students with weekly sessions devoted to issues affecting their emotional, social, and physical health. PAWS, which is directed

by Ashley Hall’s counselors and the Dean of Students, with active participation by student leadership, has already attracted national attention, having been featured in a recent issue of the National Association of Independent Schools Journal.

Supplementing these programs and integral to the daily life of

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ver the past eight

years, student involvement in all of the performing arts has increased as have performance opportunities.

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ew Faculty Broaden the International Studies Program

Jeffrey Dionne comes to Ashley Hall via Japan, where he spent 13 years teaching English as a Foreign Language at the Showa Women’s University Junior and Senior High School in Tokyo, a school of 1,200 students.

At Showa Dionne also directed a study abroad program called the Boston Mission, which entailed bringing 270 students each year to Boston for an 11-day student-centered research project.

As Ashley Hall’s new International Studies Program Director, Dionne is eager to use his international experience to help the school’s global reach mature and diversify.

“It’s an exciting time to come into this program. While Ashley Hall is 104 years old, the inbound international studies program is only in its third year. The new International House is a wonderful asset for all Ashley Hall students and a fundamental initiative of the school,” says Dionne, who brings his wife, a photographer and Japanese native whom he met during graduate school, and young daughter to Charleston with him.

Dionne’s goals include attracting a more diverse mix of inbound students and expanding the options of outbound international programs for students and faculty. A graduate of Clark University in Massachusetts and Lesley University, where he earned his Masters in elementary education, Dionne is also the developer of PikiFriends, a safe, free online social network used by middle and high schools worldwide as an aid for ESL education and for promoting digital citizenship and social awareness.

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the school is the Food Philosophy which governs the selection and preparation of healthful, nutritious, and appetizing meals offered to students, faculty, staff, and guests in our recently opened Dining Commons.

Perhaps the most exciting new development at Ashley Hall has been the growth of our International Studies Program.

In a little more than three years, Ashley Hall has built a boarding program for international students that will, by the school year 2014-15, welcome some twenty-four resident international students. But the International Studies Program reaches more deeply into the curriculum through the offering of elective courses designed to acquaint Ashley Hall students with those global issues most cogent to their preparation for participation in the affairs of the world beyond Ashley Hall.

At the same time, student travel opportunities have expanded greatly, as have travel-study programs for Ashley Hall faculty.

In 2013 Ashley Hall welcomed a new Director of International Programs, Jeff Dione, and an Assistant Director, Aubrey Groves, who will also offer a course in Mandarin Chinese as well as serve as a member of the seventh grade Humanities team.

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recalibrated Physical Education program insures that every student will develop personal exercise routines that will be sustainable throughout their lives, while an expanded athletics program now offers students opportunities to participate on competitive golf, lacrosse, and equestrian teams.

Everything accomplished in the past several years has had its origin in the determination of faculty, staff, and students – indeed, all Ashley Hall constituents – to commit themselves to those core values expressed in the school’s mission statement and in our Ashley Hall Hallmarks – those qualities we seek to cultivate not only in our students but in everyone belonging to the Ashley Hall community: Compassionate, Collaborative, Creative, Intelligent, Worldly, Discerning, and Purposeful.

These same criteria apply equally to the newly designed Strategic Plan, itself an organic continuation of the past decade’s signal achievements and a promise to the future that we will not falter in our determination to live up to our mission and so continue to foster in every student who enters Ashley Hall pride in her own personal accomplishments and in this community of which she is an integral part.

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Aubrey Groves’ grandfather was among the first American businessmen in China in the 1980s and was there during the Tiananmen Square uprising, so she grew up with an interest in East Asia as a young girl.

However, it was a love of Japanese cartoon characters, or Anime, that shaped her decision to study Chinese as an undergraduate at Davidson College (Japanese wasn’t offered) and then to pursue a masters in East Asian Studies at Duke.

She has taught English in Japan before returning to graduate school.

Additionally Groves has twice spent time studying in China, once during her University career and once for professional development. The Austin, Texas native comes to Ashley Hall to serve as Assistant International Studies Program Coordinator following four years on the faculty at Tabor Academy in Massachusetts, where she taught Mandarin.

“Studying a foreign language and culture has had such a profound effect on my life,” says Groves. “I wish I’d had that opportunity when I was younger, and I’m delighted to be able to help grow this program and give that opportunity to Ashley Hall students.”

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mind body heart soul

Cardinal Points: A Moral Compass for Learning

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ong before “holistic” or “integrated” were buzzwords for everything from medicine to education, Mary Vardrine McBee was on to something. She knew that a well-educated woman was also, inherently, a well-rounded one. The school she founded was based on the belief that independence, ethical character, societal awareness and confidence were central parts of being an “educated woman.”

Today Ashley Hall remains true to Miss McBee’s vision and values, as evidenced by the school’s new strategic plan that will take the founder’s mission well into its second century.

The four directional components of this strategic plan – mind, body, heart and soul -- reflect key aspects of the school’s mission statement, and serve as the coordinates, if you will, guiding Ashley Hall’s faculty and students into a future that continues to view education as a holistic, integrated and multidimensional enterprise. A future where teachers instill the independence, confidence, ethical integrity and social awareness that Miss McBee espoused by engaging the mind, inspiring the heart, igniting the soul and exercising the bodies of young girls and women. Here’s how four faculty members today are turning this “strategic plan” into classroom reality.

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mind Andrea Muti – Speaking Your Mind

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t would be easy to assume the “mind” part of the mindbody-heart-soul matrix would be a no-brainer at an academic institution. Of course girls will use their minds as they learn, so we can just cross that one off the list, consider it a done deal, then focus on beefing up the extra-curricular body-heart-soul angles, right? Well not so fast, says Andrea Muti, who teaches classics in Jenkins Hall and is the faculty champion for Ashley Hall’s Oral Defense Project.

The Oral Defense Project is a semester-long research project that challenges girls in grades 8 through 12 to take an abstract concept, something like “revolution” or “love,” and use that concept as an intellectual touch-point from which to do further research and make connections between their regular academic subjects. The Jenkins Hall student who chooses to study revolution, for example, would delve deeper into her history curriculum to explore the concept of revolution related to the Arab Spring, perhaps; and then in her French class examine the French Revolution; then in Classics study Aristotle’s reflections on “revolution.” Once students get a sense of these connections, they then craft a thesis proposal. Students in grades 8 – 10 participate in a modified version of the project, which was originally designed for seniors.

“Students present their proposals to their three subject area teachers, and if these teachers approve their proposal, they become mentors of those students and work with them throughout the first semester to suggest new readings and sources,” explains Muti, a native of Italy who based the Oral Defense Project off the national examination system there. The project culminates with the girls making an oral presentation of their thesis in front of their mentors and fellow students and responding to questions, not unlike a graduate school dissertation defense. Students are graded by each mentor/subject area teacher, and their grade counts as 50 percent of the semester exam in that subject.

“Students present their proposals to their three subject area teachers, and if these teachers approve their proposal, they become mentors of those students and work with them throughout the first semester to suggest new readings and sources.”

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“I love it when I see that light bulb go off with a girl who finally gets the feel of a stroke and swims the length of the pool, when you see that sense of relief and confidence, that smile that says ‘oh yes, I can do this!’”

The project encourages students’ minds not only to absorb new information, but to broaden as they consider fresh aspects and dimensions of the same topic from different perspectives. “The fact that students have to create connections and that these connections are the result of their critical thinking and research requires original scholarship,” says Muti. “We ask them to be creative. We ask them to choose an argument that they deem interesting, and finally we ask them to develop it by exploring and creating connections.”

This high-level critical and creative thinking and being able to “own” a subject enough to articulate and defend it in an oral presentation also cultivates confidence and presence of mind—traits that will benefit girls interviewing for college admission or future jobs. “We want to hear their voice, we want to know what they think about certain arguments and how those arguments should be interpreted,” Muti says.

The Oral Defense Project is yet another method by which Ashley Hall teaches girls to not only cultivate their minds, but to speak them clearly as well.

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body Maggie Laney - Diving In

“Girls tell me all the time that swimming is one of their

favorite classes,” says Ashley Hall’s Director of Aquatics, Maggie Laney. “People love to jump in the pool; it’s fun, it’s refreshing, all your cares melt away.” As a life-long swimmer, Laney understands why Ashley Hall girls love the pool – she finds swimming very therapeutic herself. But as an educator, she also knows that the pool can be more than a freestyle or backstroke classroom, it’s an effective lane for learning important life lessons, often with a little splash of math and science and social studies as well.

The research is unequivocal, Laney points out—the more that students participate in physical activity, the better their brains work. Kids (and adults) who exercise benefit from improved memory recall, clearer focus and ability to concentrate. “Our

Physical Education curriculum is designed to engage our students in regular physical activity, to help them understand that physical activity is the foundation for a healthy, productive life, and to ensure they begin healthy habits that will last a lifetime,” says Laney, who has a degree in Elementary Education as well as a Masters in Health, Wellness and Exercise Science.

She and her PE colleagues have developed a curriculum that introduces students to a variety of activities, from swimming to archery to dance and yoga as well as more traditional PE activities. In the EEC and Pardue Hall, students have swimming class once a week, and after sixth grade, aquatics is incorporated as part of a rotating PE curriculum. In the Upper School, a new “Live.Eat.Play” elective emphasizes fitness and nutrition, as well as teaches emotional health coping skills.

“Our goal is that the girls will find an activity that they enjoy. We give them the tools to develop lifelong fitness habits, and hope that what they will take away, more than anything, is that physical activities like swimming can be fun, or else they won’t continue to do it later in life,” says Laney. Athletic proficiency is less an emphasis than overall wellness and being physically active. In Jenkins Hall if girls are not participating in a team sport, the school requires that they participate in some physical activity three times a week.

Ashley Hall’s 25-yard indoor pool and aquatics program is a centerpiece of the broader health and wellness education program. The aquatics curriculum incorporates fitness and cardio components as well as basic stroke techniques and lifetime safety skills. “In Charleston we are surrounded by water, so first and foremost we want all students to be good, competent swimmers and to be safe in and out of the water.”

In addition, aquatics classes complement academic disciplines whenever possible: math skills get a workout as girls count yardage in increments of 25; solar system relays and a whirlpool-making contest transform the pool into a science

lab; history comes alive as elementary classes studying Native Americans use the pool to paddle around in canoes.

But for Laney, nothing beats the reward of watching a student who was previously a non- or not strong swimmer finally make it across the pool. “Swimming is very much about mind over matter,” notes Laney. “I love it when I see that light bulb go off with a girl who finally gets the feel of a stroke and swims the length of the pool, when you see that sense of relief and confidence, that smile that says ‘oh yes, I can do this!’”

heart Maida Libkin –The Heart’s Song

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tage fright is one of the few things not in Maida Libkin’s impressive repertoire. As a composer, piano player, director, producer, performer and, along with her husband Bill Schlitt, creator of some of Charleston’s most memorable and beloved productions (a perennial Piccolo Spoleto favorite, for one), Maida relishes the stage. She loves the magic of connecting with characters and with audiences, the power that drama has to tap into creative energy and foster a meeting of the minds and hearts.

As a young girl, Maida went to performances often with her family. Her brother was bitten by the stage bug early on after seeing a play with their mother – he is now the Director of Theater for Penn State. “For me it was more of a long, slow development, but I do remember an ‘A-ha’ moment at the Royal Shakespeare Company, watching Measure for Measure and shortly thereafter standing in the church where Shakespeare was buried. I knew then that I’d devote my life to the performing

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“The nature of drama is that it involves heightened emotions. Theater is so intense and so wonderfully collaborative that anyone giving themselves to the process ends up engaging at the heart level, and you can’t help but be transformed by that.”

arts,” says Libkin, who joined the Ashley Hall faculty six years ago to oversee the Jenkins Hall drama program and direct the Swing Choir.

Libkin shares her passion for performing while staging two to three large-scale performances a year – often a contemporary play in the fall and a Shakespeare piece and/or a musical in the spring. She also loves teaching a drama elective as a co-curricular tool that helps students discover how their heart can begin to open in surprising ways, where they risk becoming vulnerable on the stage or through telling their story. “The heart of theater is ultimately storytelling. It’s always, always, always about the story, and I’ve discovered that the best way to access the girls is through their own storytelling,” says Libkin, who created a teaching tool/warm-up exercise called “Weekend Report” to nurture this. The girls stand in a circle and speak

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in a prescribed way to tell a brief story. “It might just be what they did that weekend, sometimes it’s a very personal account of their hopes, fears, dreams,” says Libkin who uses the exercise to teach communication and presentation skills, such as good posture, making eye contact and listening with full attention.

“The nature of drama is that it involves heightened emotions. Theater is so intense and so wonderfully collaborative that anyone giving themselves to the process ends up engaging at the heart level, and you can’t help but be transformed by that,” Libkin believes. “By being part of a creative, transformative process we tap into the heart of the matter. If we only teach facts and equations in school, we’re missing the point,” she adds. “Students learn better when they are fully engaged, and the Arts foster this.”

soul Kelly Wood – Soul Food

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s any Jenkins Hall junior or senior (or their parents) will tell you, the college search process is not for the faint of heart. Those last two high-pressure years are busy with college tours, application essays, SATs and more than enough worry and stress. But to Kelly Wood, who has served as Dean of Students for 7th through 12th grade and head of the counseling department for the last 12 years, the college search begins long before that.

“Our counseling department has been able to set up a very proactive approach to emotional health, and the school is committed to making sure that time in the academic schedule is devoted to this,” says Wood, who was initially hired to develop Ashley Hall’s wellness program which now culminates in Jenkins Hall with the PAWS Program (Personal Awareness Wellness

Series) which she designed in collaboration with Amanda Murrell, Ashley Hall’s College Counselor. From first grade on, the concept of empathy is taught, as are coping skills. “We teach the girls to take ownership of what they do and say, and to be aware of how that impacts their classmates and others,” says Wood. She and her fellow counselors have regular class time with the girls, with planned topics for discussion. “But often things just pop up, either related to what’s going on in the world or in personal situations,” says Wood. “What is unique about Ashley Hall is that we have the opportunity, time, ability and skills to give students the time and attention they need in a particular moment.”

Ashley Hall’s PAWS program launched in 2010 and has garnered national attention for its innovative coalescing of three existing programs (the school’s wellness program, college counseling and advisory programs). A recent article in Independent School Magazine featured PAWS and its groundbreaking work, the goal of which is to nurture a sense of self-discovery and awareness that will help the girls navigate the college and career choices that lie ahead and help them make choices that bring them personal fulfillment. “We help each girl try to discover what helps her relax in times of stress, what makes her happy and ultimately what kind of work she needs and wants to do,” says Wood. “The earlier she can do this self discovery and awareness, the better.”

Unlike some other faculty members who can gauge their teaching effectiveness by test scores, Wood looks to less tangible, less quantifiable measures. “It’s hard to pinpoint where exactly it comes from, but I know our girls have a confidence that I think is rare,” she says. “They’ve been given permission to have their own thoughts and feelings and have been taught

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how to articulate them, but also to really listen to others and show respect and empathy. They learn to care about others, here in Charleston and all over the world.” These qualities become clearly evident in the upper level girls’ Harkness Table discussions, notes Wood, and are also part of the success of the Philanthropy Council, a student-run board that considers and approves proposals for charitable initiatives. “Our girls work together to decide what the school will embrace and stand for.”

As for that college search – it’s still never without stress and worry, but because Ashley Hall encourages girls to look inward before looking at campuses, because people like Kelly Wood believe the soul is more important than the SAT, that college pressure and stress is hopefully a little lighter. “Our girls know

“We help each girl try to discover what helps her relax in times of stress, what makes her happy and ultimately what kind of work she needs and wants to do. The earlier she can do this self discovery and awareness, the better.” they’re going to find their place in the world,” says Wood.

“They’re happy people. There’s a confidence about them that’s really lovely.”

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In April of 2013, Pardue Hall students participated in A Day Without Shoes and held a bake sale to raise money to buy shoes for children in Bangladesh.

avigating The Now...

Charting Our Course Toward Tomorrow

STRATeGIC PLAN

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N a v i g a t i n g t he n o w ~ C h a r t i n g O u r C o u r s e T o w a r d T o m o r r o w A s h l e y H a l l S t r at e g i c P l a n 2 0 1 3

Ashley Hall Strategic Plan 2013

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Navigating the Now ~ Charting Our Course Toward Tomorrow

ver the past several years, beginning even before the completion of the previous Master Plan, the Ashley Hall community has been engaged with patient, painstaking discussion, involving all constituencies, focused on assessing the current state of the institution and preparing to address the future needs of the school. Strategic Positioning exercises were a first step toward defining present circumstances and establishing criteria for assessing both our achievements and our shortcomings. Ever mindful of our mission, the Board of Trustees endorsed five criteria for evaluating programs: Clarity, Intensity, Authenticity, Inclusivity, and Quality. The faculty, for its part, identified seven Hallmarks of the Ashley Hall student – an educated woman who is independent, ethically responsible, and prepared to meet the challenges of society with confidence: Compassionate, Collaborative, Creative, Intelligent, Worldly, Discerning, Purposeful.

These results provided a stable frame of reference within which to conduct subsequent conversations regarding both existing and new programmatic initiatives and to begin preparations for the next stage of strategic planning.

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1. An expanded and more fully defined International Studies Program 2. Construction of a new Performing Arts Center 3. Health and Wellness programs and facilities 4. Renewed and enriched commitment to faculty recruitment and retention 5. Restructuring of the Board’s governing policies and financial strategies to insure proper stewardship of the institution as a whole and the

implementation of the Strategic Planning necessary to realize these objectives.

With the approval of the Board, the Vision 20/20 objectives served to provide an outline for a new, provisional Strategic Plan. This initial draft, after careful and critical review by the Executive Committee of the Board, was revised to achieve greater precision of focus and to emphasize the interconnectedness of the various elements contained within the plan as a whole.

What follows is a formal presentation of the Strategic Plan.

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N a v i g a t i n g t he n o w ~ C h a r t i n g O u r C o u r s e T o w a r d T o m o r r o w

Having established this context, we engaged constituents – Faculty, Staff, Students, Parents, Alumnae, the Board of Trustees, and community leaders – in lengthy discussions designed to clarify from multiple points of view a vision for the future. This process, called Vision 20/20, asked each constituency to describe their vision of Ashley Hall in ten years and what they saw as their role in helping to achieve this. Analysis of the data from Vision 20/20 yielded the following comprehensive objectives:

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VISION 20/20 SETTING OUR SIGHTS

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N a v i g a t i n g t he n o w ~ C h a r t i n g O u r C o u r s e T o w a r d T o m o r r o w

getting Our Bearings MIND BODY Heart Soul

Ashley Hall produces an educated woman who is independent, ethically responsible, and prepared to meet the challenges of society with confidence.

In order to fulfill our mission, we must be attentive at all times to the mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual nourishment of each and every student entrusted to us.

Our academic programs, our pedagogical methods, our faith in and commitment to the understanding that intellectual growth is the foundation for ethically responsible behavior inform all our efforts to strengthen our students’ minds, to insure that they mature steadily in intelligence and discernment.

Our PAWS program, our Physical Education curricula, our competitive team sports, and the carefully prepared, nutritious meals all serve to encourage the physical well-being of our students of all ages and provide ample evidence of our understandings that mental health is inseparable from bodily health.

Just as our minds and bodies undergo transformations over time, so do our emotions. Providing students with healthily productive outlets for the expression of their feelings is essential to their overall well-being. It is to provide such outlets for self-expression that we are committed to a comprehensive arts program, allowing students opportunities to exercise their talents in writing, theater, music, dance, and the visual arts. Such avenues encourage creativity and collaboration even as they enlarge the individual’s capacity for compassionate understanding of others.

If the human spirit is the subtlest of our distinguishing attributes, it is also, perhaps, the most vulnerable. Everything we do to nourish our students’ minds and hearts and bodies contributes as well to the strengthening of the spirits. But we provide as well a common sense of community which alleviates that sense of isolation which can be so damaging. Through community service, we further foster that sense of belonging to and participating in a life beyond the narrow confines of the individual self. Here too we encourage collaboration, compassion, and a heightened awareness of our vital role as citizens in the world beyond the walls of Ashley Hall.

It is from these four cardinal points – Mind and Body, Heart and Soul – that we take our bearings as we prepare to chart our course toward the future of Ashley Hall and strengthen our resolve to meet the challenges of society with confidence.

22 Ashley Hall Strategic Plan 2013

Having gotten our bearings and determined the direction which we must take, we set about charting a course that would best enable us to reach our destination – that is, to realize more fully the vision which guides all our undertakings. The refinements recommended by the Strategic Planning Committee of the Board identified three salient points which would, by virtue of their prominence, keep us steadily on course:

The International Studies Program Performing Arts Health and Wellness The specific objectives for each of these areas and the rationale for focusing on them are provided in the detailed presentation of the Strategic Plan that follows. Complementing and sustaining these three primary objectives are three additional and essential components of the plan, which are also clarified in the description that follows:

Enrollment Professional Development Governance and Finance

25 Ashley Hall Strategic Plan 2013

N a v i g a t i n g t he n o w ~ C h a r t i n g O u r C o u r s e T o w a r d T o m o r r o w

CHARTING OUR COURSE

A s h l e y H a l l S t r at e g i c P l a n 2 0 1 3

Ashley Hall Strategic Plan 2013

N a v i g a t i n g t he n o w ~ C h a r t i n g O u r C o u r s e T o w a r d T o m o r r o w A s h l e y H a l l S t r at e g i c P l a n 2 0 1 3

A

International Studies Program

shley Hall will acquire property adjacent to the existing campus and adequate to accommodate twenty-four boarding students from diverse countries and cultures, together with attendant staff. Ashley Hall will provide English as a Second Language instruction appropriate to these students’ needs, in order to insure their full integration into the school’s academic and social offerings. This boarding program will be supervised by an International Studies Program Director, who will also administer other components of a more comprehensive International Studies Program, including foreign travel opportunities for students, faculty, and other constituents, collaboration with our faculty in sustaining our existing language immersion programs in France and Spain, and assisting faculty in developing curriculum supportive of our intention to engender in our students (and the entire Ashley Hall community) a more ‘worldly’ perspective on “the challenges of society.”

Governance and Finance The Board will locate and secure the property for this project and oversee all necessary renovations.

The Board’s support of new Professional Development opportunities will open potential avenues for funding from corporate and private donors who share a commitment to global education.

Enrollment Expansion of the International Studies Program will increase enrollment in a sustainable manner, establishing a specific number of resident foreign students distributed throughout grades nine through twelve. It will also permit us to address issues of diversity and global awareness in a much more strategic fashion through purposeful recruitment aligned with curricular objectives. The presence of these students on campus will bring to the life of the school cultural riches which will enhance the intellectual, aesthetic, and social development of all our students – as well as faculty, parents, and the greater Charleston community.

Professional Development As Ashley Hall’s International Program expands to embrace more – and more diverse – students from around the globe, our faculty must become more conscious of cultural nuances and more capable of addressing our international students’ needs.

Professional Development opportunities which will enable our teachers to study abroad, to collaborate with teachers in other countries, to acquire working knowledge of critical languages, and to acquire understandings which will enable them to encourage in all Ashley Hall students those qualities of mind and practice we value , most especially Compassion, Intelligence, Collaboration, and Worldliness.

26 Ashley Hall Strategic Plan 2013

HEALTH AND WELLNESS

A

shley Hall will construct a new athletic facility for competitive team sports on the site of the existing Ogier Street parking lot. In addition to a gymnasium and ancillary facilities (showers, changing rooms, etc.), there will be a parking garage built below the facility. This construction will allow for renovation and refitting of current athletic facilities on campus (including the pool and dance facilities) to provide spaces for life-long fitness classes and personal training to complement our PAWS program and to provide for a variety of health and wellness offerings to enhance our Physical Education curricula. In addition, the Johns Island athletic grounds will be refurbished to provide a competition-grade track and a lacrosse field.

Governance and Finance The Board will manage the building and renovation projects, planning the scope and sequence of construction and overseeing design at all stages. Financing for these projects will require coordination with Institutional Advancement and the cultivation of both existing and new corporate and private sources of revenue.

Enrollment Competitive athletics have a long and distinguished history at Ashley Hall. A very high percentage of students in grades four through twelve participate annually in such activities. As our enrollment increases, so do the demands on our facilities. It is also to be expected that a commitment to improving our competitive ‘edge’ will attract new students to the school. At the same time, in order to provide appropriate physical fitness and wellness programs for all of our students, we need to devise facilities that will allow for the introduction of innovative programming.

Professional Development As a single-gender school, Ashley Hall has a very clear and specific responsibility to address the health and wellness requirements of girls and young women. To do so, our Physical Education and Counseling faculty must be committed to an understanding of those needs and to the development and implementation of programs designed to address them. Faculty and staff must be afforded professional development opportunities that will encourage such curricular and programmatic initiatives.

27 Ashley Hall Strategic Plan 2013

28 Ashley Hall Strategic Plan 2013

Governance and Finance The Board will plan and manage the scope and sequence of construction. Financing for these projects will require coordination with Institutional Advancement and the cultivation of both existing and new corporate and private revenue sources.

Enrollment As parents, students, and educators become increasingly aware of the manifold ways in which participation in the arts strengthens students’ academic performance, a rich, varied, and vigorous arts program attracts more and more applicants.

Ashley Hall’s reputation in arts education and its signal successes have proven this to be true. But our successes have also placed strains on existing facilities and performance spaces. Moreover, as our students become more dedicated and engaged, they have looked elsewhere for the opportunities Ashley Hall cannot at present provide. A new Performing Arts Center will address that need, even as it will enhance Ashley Hall’s position as a leader in this field.

Professional Development The expansion of our performing arts programs and the increase in the number of students participating in them has placed new demands on our faculty. Given the range in ages of students involved in music, theater, and dance, for example, teachers must be constantly expanding repertoire and investigating new methodologies. In order for these instructors to retain their own performance skills – which greatly enhance their instructional authority – instructors must also have opportunities to demonstrate their own command of the arts they profess. It is vital, therefore, that all arts instructors have access to appropriate professional development opportunities.

29 Ashley Hall Strategic Plan 2013

N a v i g a t i n g t he n o w ~ C h a r t i n g O u r C o u r s e T o w a r d T o m o r r o w

shley Hall will construct a new Performing Arts Center. This venue, designed to provide an acoustically precise hall suitable for a variety of performance options – including theatrical, musical, and dramatic – will have a seating capacity of approximately 350-400 persons. In its architectural design – both exterior and interior – this hall will complement the existing campus buildings, reflect the ambience of the Sottile Thompson Recital Hall, and provide an example of functional and aesthetic principles consistent with the highest artistic and educational standards. In addition to providing a professional setting in which our students will be better able to develop their talents, this arts center will be a venue for and an attraction to the wider Charleston community. Construction of the Performing Arts Center will allow for renovation and refitting of existing teaching spaces to accommodate the growth of Ashley Hall’s arts programs.

A s h l e y H a l l S t r at e g i c P l a n 2 0 1 3

A

PERFORMING ARTS

N a v i g a t i n g t he n o w ~ C h a r t i n g O u r C o u r s e T o w a r d T o m o r r o w A s h l e y H a l l S t r at e g i c P l a n 2 0 1 3

PORT OF CALL Realization of this Strategic Plan will transform an already outstanding school into a position of even greater prominence in the community, the state, and the region. But we know that for a thriving educational institution such as Ashley Hall, there is no final destination. So we might think of this plan as just one more reach of our endless journey, a navigating toward our next port-of-call, a place that in the collective vision of our constituents looks something like this: With a healthy and sustainable enrollment consistent with our determination to remain a ‘midsized’ independent school (and with substantial waiting lists of students hoping for admission for each division), Ashley Hall flourishes as a center for learning and personal growth. The exceptional quality of this special place gains in stature and presence by the foundation of an integrated International Studies Program, gathering students from around the world to take up residence on Ashley Hall’s campus, thereby making possible daily engagement with diverse perspectives, cultures, customs, and languages.

The new Performing Arts Center provides a setting for students to present their talents to the greater community, thereby showcasing our commitment to the arts as an integral component of any complete academic program. A new competitive gymnasium on Ogier Street, as well as refurbished sports facilities on Johns Island and women’s fitness programs introduced through our Physical Education curricula, insure that student athletes are able to compete on a “level playing field” with their peers from other schools, and will afford all students access to activities which will strengthen their resolve to pursue lifelong and life-prolonging physical fitness. All of these curricular and co-curricular programs thrive under the guidance of a faculty as diverse and self-directed as the students they are devoted to serving, and they, in turn, enjoy the unstinting support of parents, alumnae, and administrative staff. Undergirding this entire enterprise, the Board of Trustees exerts its energies and influence to achieve for the institution the financial resources and communal affiliations necessary to secure Ashley Hall’s future welfare and thereby sustain our efforts to “produce educated women who are independent, ethically responsible, and prepared to meet the challenges of society with confidence.”

In short, each component of this visionary agenda is driven by programmatic momentum, accelerated by the achievement of the previous Master Plan. Moreover, every feature of this envisioned community is organically interrelated with every other feature. The whole is a living, breathing, dynamic organism fed by the collective energies of all constituents and by the renewable resource of eager students for whom Ashley Hall is a true Alma Mater.

30 Ashley Hall Strategic Plan 2013

31 Ashley Hall Strategic Plan 2013

32 | The magazine of Ashley Hall

W

o r l d ly

We are Ashley Hall!

2 M orehead -C ain S cholars C aroline L owery ’12 and R ossi A nastopoulo ’13 T

he soccer field used to be where Caroline Lowery ’12 and Rossi Anastopoulo ‘13 passed the ball off to one another, where they worked in tandem to score wins for Ashley Hall.

Now the two scholar-athletes and former teammates share a new playing field, so to speak, at the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, where both scored an impressive win by being named Morehead-Cain Scholars. The Morehead-Cain is the oldest and most prestigious merit scholarship in the nation, and top students from around the world compete to earn a four-year full-ride to UNC and generous stipends for summer travel, research, internship and service opportunities, as well as entrée to the elite Morehead alumni network and the internship/career opportunities it offers. It’s a coup for any school to have a Morehead Scholar among its graduates, and for two years in a row, Ashley Hall has been proud to be one of those schools.

While Caroline and Rossi won’t be playing soccer for UNC, both are using their Morehead-Cain Scholarship opportunities to explore passions and interests first sparked at Ashley Hall. Caroline, a Tarheel sophomore working on a double major in business and classics with a minor in Latin, spent her second summer as a Morehead-Cain Scholar teaching Cvics and Government at Shanti Bhavan, a school in Tamil Nadu, India. The school’s students come from the lowest castes in rural villages across India and are given a fully-funded education, with graduates going on to land competitive jobs at companies such as Goldman Sachs and Ernest & Young. “The Morehead experience so far has been 100 times more than what I expected,” says Caroline. “Never did I imagine I’d find myself in India teaching History and Indian Government. And I’ve never had more respect for my Ashley Hall teachers, like Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Kennerty.

Things I shrugged off as a student I now see in a different light. You really want your students to do well and succeed, especially in a school like Shanti Bhavan where the stakes are

“My

so high. These children are given one chance to get out of extreme poverty. Success is not optional for them — it is their and their families’ only hope for a better life.”

While she was in India, Caroline remained tuned in to the campus buzz in North Carolina – literally. This past spring semester she won a grant to start a beehive at Hope Gardens in Chapel Hill, a garden that provides fresh produce and now, thanks to Caroline, honey, to people transitioning from homelessness. “I’d check-in on my hives via Skype. So I guess I was helping pollinate Chapel Hill from the other side of the world,” she laughs. Her interest in beekeeping and studying the role of bees in agriculture was nurtured through an internship at a Maryland bee laboratory during her junior year at Ashley Hall and was also the subject of her Senior Project. “The fact that Ashley Hall encourages and supports students to apply for an internship as a Junior really helps prepare you for something like the Morehead,” says Caroline.

“My advice to every Ashley Hall girl is to take advantage of every opportunity. If you are remotely interested in something, pursue it, explore it.”

advice to every Ashley Hall girl is to take advantage of every opportunity.

If you are remotely interested in something, pursue it, explore it.”

Worldly | Compassionate | Discerning |

33

“I

think the fact that Ashley Hall allowed me to pursue so many different

paths and have a variety of experiences – from playing on the tennis, soccer and basketball teams, to singing in the choir, to being president of the athletic association—was hugely important.”

Like Caroline who spent the summer after her Ashley Hall graduation hiking in Alaska, Rossi began her college experience this past summer far from Chapel Hill, hiking the rugged and remote trails of the Sierra Nevada range on a three-week Outward Bound program. She returned to Charleston just one day before heading to start college in Chapel Hill. “I was nervous – the closest thing I’d done to wilderness backpacking was spending 10 days sailing on the Spirit of South Carolina through the Ashley Hall program, which I loved. The Outward Bound experience is a great transition from high school to college and definitely not something I think I would have done had it not been for the Morehead,” says Rossi, who chose backpacking from 20 – 30 other outdoor leadership opportunities, a required experience for first year Morehead scholars.

Each summer during the four years of college, scholarship recipients are given the funding to pursue their own interests in four consecutive areas: outdoor leadership, public service, inquiry and exploration, and private enterprise. In addition, they receive an $8,000 “Discovery Fund” to be used for educational opportunities.

Rossi first set her sights on the Morehead-Cain Scholarship after Caroline won it in 2012. “When Caroline told me about everything the scholarship included, I thought ‘Holy Cow, that’s really amazing.’” Rossi then told Amanda Murrell, Ashley Hall’s college counselor she would like to be nominated.

She also applied to 12 other schools but had her sights firmly set on winning her place as a Morehead-Cain Scholar. “The Morehead was the only definite college goal I set for myself. If I won it, I knew I’d take it,” she says. But the application process, once a student is nominated, is arduous, and if a student advances to become a Morehead finalist, the interview process is equally intense.

“A lot of what they want to see is the range of things you are interested and involved in and at what depth,” Rossi says.

“I think the fact that Ashley Hall allowed me to pursue so many different paths and have a variety of experiences – from playing on the tennis, soccer and basketball teams, to singing in the choir, to being president of the athletic association—was hugely important.” When she wasn’t competing for an Ashley Hall team or working on her Senior Project or studying, Rossi

34 | The magazine of Ashley Hall

would relax by trying out new baking recipes, and sharing her tips for lightening up recipes on her healthy baking blog, A Baking Girl, which averages 200 hits a day (www.abakinggirl. com – check out Rossi’s Greek Yogurt Cheesecake recipe, the #3 hit on Google if you search “yogurt cheesecake”).

While she’s yet undecided about what her college major will be (possibly political science), Rossi is sure about one thing, or rather a million and one. “I know I’ll want to do a million and one things once I get there,” she says. “I have so many interests and ideas. The beauty of the Morehead is that any door I want to open, I can just pick it, and they’ll help open it.” For her service experience next summer, Rossi is already eyeing a school that uses baking as a form of therapy for mentally and physically disabled kids in Bulgaria and Greece. Just as she did at Ashley Hall, she’s taking all the ingredients given to her and creating something new and wholesomely satisfying.

Morehead-Cain Scholars

Caroline, with some of her students at Shanti Bhavan in Tamil Nadu, India, in the summer of 2013.

Rossi’s Greek Yogurt Cheesecake GREEK YOGURT CHEESECAKE adapted slightly from Eat Live Run FILLING 2 cups fat free plain Greek yogurt 1/2 cup sugar pinch of salt 2 eggs 1 vanilla bean (seeds scraped out) or 2 tsp vanilla extract 1 T cornstarch optional: sliced strawberries for garnish Preheat oven to 350F. In a blender or food processor, combine the eggs, sugar, yogurt and vanilla. Blend until smooth, then add cornstarch and pinch of salt and blend again.

Pour filling into crust in a 10 inch springform pan, and bake for 35 minutes.

When the cheesecake is done, it will still be jiggly in the center but will have a “done” look to it. The edges of the cake will start to pull away from the sides of the pan.

Make sure you don’t overbake.

SIMPLE GRAHAM CRACKER CRUST from Chocolate Covered Katie 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 10 sheets of graham crackers) 3 tablespoons almond milk In a food processor, process crackers into fine crumbles. Add milk and process again to combine. Pour now-sticky crumbs into a prepared 10 inch springform pan, and smush down very firmly with your hands or a sheet of wax paper. You don’t need to pre-bake the crust; just pour the filling straight in.

Worldly | Compassionate | Discerning |

35

Thank you for your support of the 2012-2013 Ashley Hall Loyalty Fund!

Ashley Hall can't thank you enough for your support of the 2012-2013 Loyalty Fund Campaign. Each donor, volunteer and community member has made my first year at Ashley Hall an incredible experience.

Because of each of you, we were able to exceed our goal of $725,000 and raise $814,536!!! The 2012-2013 unrestricted total of $623,023 is more than any other year we have on record. In addition to this, $170,000 was raised to provide scholarships for Meeting Street Academy students.

Your gifts have greatly enhanced Ashley Hall and impacted each and every student. Thank you!!!

Top 5 Alumnae Class Participation 0%

25%

Class of ‘63 100%

50%

75%

100%

75%

100%

$10,929

Class of ‘12 95% $14,002 Class of ‘78 73% $45,208 Class of ‘58 63% $5,094 Class of ‘83 61% $16,825

Top 5 Parent Class Participation 0%

25%

50%

Class of ‘16 85% $47,277

Sarah Evans Director of the Loyalty Fund and Donor Relations

Class of ‘22 83% $26,023 Class of ‘24 83% $15,994 Class of ‘28 83% $1,800 Clss of ‘21 81% $9,836

A special thank you to the 2012-2013 Loyalty Fund Chairs:

Caroline Welch ’89, Willie and Isabelle ’24 West

LF Chair: Caroline ‘89 and Willie West 1909 Chair: Alice and Mike White Current Parent Chair: Susan and Rich Leadem Alumnae Chair: Helen Ann Harper ‘89 Parent of Alumnae Chair: Trish McGuinn Grandparent Chair: Sissy Hope Hewitt ’67 Faculty/Staff Chair: Mary Schweers

Thank you

to the 2012-2013 Members of The 1909 Society!

The 1909 Society is Ashley Hall’s leadership giving group and recognizes donors who make a gift of $1,909 or more. The 1909 Society is Ashley Hall’s oldest giving society and is the heart of the Loyalty Fund, contributing 65% of the overall total. Founded in 1984, marking Ashley Hall’s 75th anniversary, The 1909 Society is open to anyone and offers special benefits and perks.

Founders’ Circle $10,000 +

Anonymous Esther Hoshall Beaumont ’53 Gay and Tom Butz Diane and Robert Carr Donna and Randy Friedman Ainsley and Jeff Goldstein Mela ’67 and Paul Haklisch James G. Kenan Croft and Hugh Lane Mr. and Mrs. G. R. Query M. Ann Riopel ’83 Melissa and Keith Sauls Emily and Steve Swanson Wayland H. Cato, Jr. Foundation Inc. Marion ’61 and Wayland Cato

Head of School’s Circle $7,500-$9,999 Jeannie and Ken Harrell Elizabeth Rivers Lewine ’54 John M. Rivers, Jr. Elephare Dwelle Zimmerman ’40*

Trustees’ Circle $5,000-$7,499

Anonymous (2) Christine and Bill Aylward Hiroko Yanagida and Frederick Baker Ceara Donnelley and Nate Berry Kendra Charles-Garrett ’77 and William Garrett Helen and Bob Clement Lisa Darden ’74 Ann W. Dibble ’70 Michel and Bryan Faliero Maggie DeLaney Hark ’53 Caroline and Philip Horn Laurie ’73 and George Host The Dr. William H. Huger Trust Scholarship Given in Memory of Arthur Postell Jervey Chad H. Drayton, Jr. Joe Gilchrist Alice Neyle Jervey Fern Karesh Hurst ’64 Elizabeth Powers Lindh ’67 Jan and Larry Lipov Christine McConnell and Richard McBride Piper Parker Moffatt ’70 Colleen and Kevin Mooney Rosalie and George Orvin Anne ’78 and Scott Parker Karen ’79 and Mark Phillips Chalmers W. Poston Dorothy A. Poston Martha Gregg Price ’60 Marian and Bart Proctor Lenna and Brooks Quinn Judy and Fred Reinhard Jenny and Jerry Reves Caroline and Malcolm Rhodes Judy Webber Ross ’53 Sodexo Julia A. Forster and John E. Thompson

Alice and Mike White Hastings E. Witt ’22

Benefactors’ Circle $3,000-$4,999

Anonymous American Paint & Paddle Co. & American Promotional Products Lynda and Jules Anderson Gene E. Burges ’64* Angie ’89 and Costa Chakeris D. Louisa Shingler and R. Brad Creger Kelley and Robert Crews Alice ’61 and Mike Gaines Louise ’78 and Penn Griffen Jane and Tom Hardy Kathleen C. Hay ’06 Mariana ’77 and David Hay Mariana R. Hay ’09 Llewellyn ’54 and Phil Kassebaum Susan and Rich Leadem Barbara and Michael Moody Rhett Ramsay Outten ’82 PalmettoPride Mary B. Ramsay ’98 Heidi ’74 and Arthur Ravenel Lucy and Dauer Stackpole Heather Aldret and Jay Thompson Caroline ’89 and Willie West Elizabeth ’63 and Jerry Witt

Patrons’ Circle $1,909-$2,999 Anonymous Claire and James Allen Dot Porcher Amis ’58 Barbara ’54 and Archie Baker The Bank of South Carolina Nella G. Barkley Tricia ’77 and Bill Barrett Caroline G. Bevon Jennifer and Rob Black Lynn ’78 and Robert Brooke Betsy Gilbreth Clawson ’55 The Coastal Community Foundation of South Carolina Vereen ’51 and Dick Coen Mrs. William H. Cogswell III Miss Ray ’59 and James Coker Evie ’81 and Stephen Colbert Maureen and John Corless Betty T. Corte * Amy and Mike Cox Rebecca Longmire Crowley ’63 Jane and Harold Davis Sheppard H. C. Davis, Jr. Emmie ’70 and Robert Dawson Ann and Tom Eason Brian P. Ellis Mary and Turner Fabian Mandy ’60 and George Geils Bonnie and Teddy Gilbreth Sonja and Bert Golinski

Marion ’54 and Ken Goodman Cathy and Harry Gregorie Derrill ’51 and Ben Hagood Cynthia Strickland Harton ’71 Susan and Tracy Harvey Mary Ann and Henry Hay Rebecca ’78 and Daniel Herres Greg G. Holmes Bernie and Bobby Hood Amy E. Jenkins ’82 Cindy Hay Johnson Scottie and Robert Johnson Sue Rogers Johnson ’59 Liane and Jamie Kerr Marnie and John Kerrison Trish and Tommy Kirkland Katharine and Dan Krueger Shea ’85 and John Kuhn Sebrina and Chris Leigh-Jones Cynthia and Robert Lowery Elizabeth Barone Luzuriaga ’80 Margaret and Ian MacDonald Theresa Messina and Jeff Mann Yassi and Graeme Marshall Kiffin Maurice ’71 Jane and Barclay McFadden Tracey and Keith McLoughlin Phoebe and David Mendez Susan Smith Miller and Gregg Miller Ginny ’74 and Tom Murphy Jill and Lorenzo Muti Kathy and Pete Nistad Julie and Jim Paquette Melaina ’73 and Clarence Pate Libby Perry Angie and Carl Pierce Anne and Mason Pope Joan ’48 and Edwin Poulnot Carol Schall Ragsdale ’46 Sally ’54 and Ralph Robinson Sara Beth and Sam Rosen Bobbie Gail ’54 and Herb Rothschild Del Schutte Carrie and Vijay Singh Kaye and T. Scott Smith Janie and Tony Skatell Margaret and Pierre Sovey Shana and Bobby Stockton Amie L. Tedeschi ’89 Laurie and John G. Thornhill Sally Schall Van Allen ’38 Andi L. Volpe Patience Davies Walker ’51 Claudia and Duane Wayman Elsa C. Caire and Rusty B. Wolfe Denise and Robert Wyndham Harriett and Joe Yarbrough Anita G. Zucker * Deceased

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37

Ashley Hall

Loyalty Fund 2013-2014

mind body heart soul

he 2013-2014 Loyalty Fund Campaign has officially begun!

This year’s goal is $755,000 to help enhance programmatic initiatives, maintain and improve facilities, upgrade technology, provide financial aid and allow for professional development.

Ashley Hall provides an experience and environment that nurtures and stimulates students: mind, body, heart and soul.

38 | The magazine of Ashley Hall

This comprehensive education provides the foundation for our girls to become well-rounded adults who are intelligent, discerning, compassionate, collaborative, purposeful, creative and worldly.

Make your gift today to the 2013-2014 Loyalty Fund Campaign!

Every gift, no matter the amount, makes a difference; make your gift for the 2013-2014 Ashley Hall Loyalty Fund today!

Giving is easy: • Mail your check using the envelope enclosed • Give online: www.ashleyhall.org/give-online.php • To give by phone, to set-up monthly pledge

payments or for gifts of securities: Call Ann

Barnett, Director of Data Management and

Online Services, 843-720-2856

Thank you for your continued support of Ashley Hall!

If you have any questions regarding the Loyalty Fund, contact Sarah Evans, Director of the Loyalty Fund and Donor Relations, at 843-965-8547 or evanss@ashleyhall.org.

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39

179 Rutledge Avenue Join us inside

O

Ashley Hall’s

Newest Addition

n Tuesday, April 30, 2013, Ashley Hall acquired 179 Rutledge Avenue, a home and large property directly across Rutledge Avenue from our campus. The historic property includes three city lots and an outstanding Charleston Single House complete with carriage house totaling 11,223 square feet of new facility space. It is a transformative legacy purchase.

The acquisition of this property, which will enlarge Ashley Hall’s campus footprint by ten percent, was made possible by private donations. Please join us in thanking our generous donors, the members of the Board of Trustees and our Head of School for their foresight, and everyone else whose devoted efforts brought about the successful negotiation and closing on this property.

Be a part of this legacy property!

Renovations of the main building are estimated to cost between $1.5 and $2 million and are scheduled to be completed in August of 2014. Upon renovation the main house will provide a new home for 24 international students, offer additional classroom space for Upper School Humanities and provide a gathering place for students, alumnae and parents.

For more information on how you can be a part of shaping Ashley Hall’s future, contact Catherine Newman at newmanc@ashleyhall.org or 843-720-2886

40 | The magazine of Ashley Hall

179 Rutledge Avenue DONORS

Thank you to our generous supporters!

Donors listed are through 6/30/2013

$250,000 + Anonymous (2) Emily and Steve Swanson $100,000-$249,000 Donna and Randy Friedman Croft and Hugh Lane Elizabeth Rivers Lewine ’54 Jan and Larry Lipov John M. Rivers, Jr. Elizabeth S. Williams ’34

$50,000-$99,999 Laurie ’73 and George Host Karen ’79 and Mark Phillips Heidi ’74 and Arthur Ravenel

$25,000-$49,999 Carrie and David Gabriel John C. Mettler Edwin S. Pearlstine The Ramsay Family Kathleen C. Hay ’06 Mariana R. Hay ’09 Mariana Ramsay Hay ’77 Anna Outten ’13 Caroline Outten ’16 Rhett Ramsay Outten ’82 Mary B. Ramsay ’98 Jenny and Jerry Reves $10,000-$24,999 Beth and Larry Burtschy Marion ’61 and Wayland Cato Lisa Darden ’74 Michel and Bryan Faliero Caroline and Philip Horn Fern Karesh Hurst ’64 Trish and Tommy Kirkland Elizabeth Barone Luzuriaga ’80 Colleen and Kevin Mooney Melissa and Keith Sauls Barbara and J. Conrad Zimmerman, Jr.

$5,000-$9,999 Nella G. Barkley The Henry M. Blackmer Foundation Polly N. Blackmer Sarah Chamberlain Cam ’65 and Johnny Stuhr

$1,000-$4,999 Mary W. Anderson ’68 Patience Davies Walker ’51

Up to $999 Thomas E. Thornhill

D i r e ct o r o f I n s t i t u t i o n a l A d va n c e m e n t , A s h l e y H a l l Dear Ashley Hall Family, I am extremely excited to take on this new role for Ashley Hall. Over the nine years I have been back at the school, I have witnessed the extraordinary renaissance the school has undergone. I deeply believe in the mission of our school and interacting with the amazing young women that make-up our student body energizes and renews my commitment every day. As the new Strategic Plan is introduced to our Ashley Hall family, I look forward to getting out and spending time with our different constituencies and sharing our vision. Additionally, Ashley Hall has a legacy of successful fundraising campaigns, as demonstrated by the recent announcement of the successful completion of our Centennial Campaign.

It is an honor to step into this role that helps to shape the future of our school.

Best regards, Catherine Newman Director of Institutional Advancement

Catherine Newman began her new role as Director

of Institutional Advancement for Ashley Hall on July 1, 2013. She grew up on Johns Island and attended Ashley Hall through the 9th grade. She holds a BA in English from the University of South Carolina. Catherine has been with Ashley Hall’s Office of Institutional Advancement for 9 years and has served as the Director of the Loyalty Fund and Alumnae and Donor Relations, Director of Marketing and Communications, and as the Assistant Director of Institutional Advancement.

Her work on the Centennial Campaign and redesign of Perspectives magazine are two of her proudest accomplishments at the school. Outside of the office, she is passionate about conserving our natural environment and is a volunteer for greyhound rescue. She also proudly claims to be a Purple.

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41

Ashley Hall

ON THE ROAD

New York

Atlanta

Orlando

Columbia Washington

T

Chicago

Nashville

Greenville

o introduce the new strategic plan and discuss plans for 179 Rutledge, Jill Muti, Head of School, and Ashley Hall’s Alumnae Office are traveling to areas with larger alumnae groups. Look for us in a city near you soon.

Invitations will be mailed to alumnae in these areas.

42 | The magazine of Ashley Hall

office of alumnae relations

April 18-20, 2013

172 Rutledge Avenue Charleston, South Carolina 29403

Centennial Campaign Celebration

On Thursday evening of Alumnae Weekend, Campaign

1

Co-chairs Hugh C. Lane, Jr. and Elizabeth Rivers Lewine ’54 welcomed over one hundred campaign donors and guests on senior lawn. Board Chairman, Dr. Jerry Reves, and Head of School, Jill Muti, were joined by Karen Jenkins Phillips ‘79, Rossi Anastopoulo ’13, and Shannon M. Laribo ’11 for the program thanking all of the donors for exceeding the $12 million campaign goal by over $2 million. Guests enjoyed cocktails and hors d’oeuvres after the program.

2

4

3 1 Martha Rivers Ingram ’53, Charles Corley, Elizabeth Rivers Lewine ’54, Cynthia Simmons Corley ’57 2 Hugh C. Lane, Jr., Elizabeth Powers Lindh ’67, Henry C. Lindh 3 Board Chairman, Jerry Reves, Shannon M. Laribo ’11, Head of School, Jill Muti, Rossi Anastopoulo ’13 4 John E. Thompson and Head of School, Jill Muti

5

5 Carol Schall Ragsdale ’46, Sally Schall Van Allen ’38

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43

Friday Evening Silent Auction and Alumnae Party

Hosted by the Alumnae Board and chaired by EB Ravenel ’89, Auction Chair and Party Chair, Marion Thomas Gilchrist ‘83, this year’s Silent Auction and Alumnae Party was one to remember. Torrential rain and coastal flooding could not keep the hundreds in attendance from having a great time! The newly established Alumnae Scholarship Fund raised more than $12,000 from the event. The Alumnae Scholarship Fund was created by the Alumnae Board to provide tuition support for a new legacy student who demonstrates outstanding character and financial need.

The first recipient was chosen for the 2013-14 school year.

1

2

3

44 | The magazine of Ashley Hall

office of alumnae relations 172 Rutledge Avenue Charleston, South Carolina 29403

4

5

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1 Margie Davis Barham ’86, Tucker Cecil ’83, Weiza Geer Walters ‘83 2 Class of ’78 class members: Front: Therese Trouche Smythe, Weezie Small Griffen, Martha Pearce Armstrong, Rhonda Pearlman Ponder Back: Hope Geer Colyer, Elaine Meyer Bergmann, Anne Darby Parker, Lynn Burris Brooke, Biz Rivers Heyl 3 Elizabeth Felder McDermott ’84 and Paige Canaday Crone ’83 4 Susan Applegate Herrmann ’58, Llewellyn Hood Kassebaum ’54, Topsy Herrin Barone-Thompson ’54, Sue Hagood Overton ’54 5 Ann Bell Smith ’63, Elizabeth Johnston Witt ’63, Becky Longmire Crowley ’63, Gigi Rice Greene ’63 6 Molly B. Waring ‘02 and Rachel C. Burriss ’02 7 The Blue Plantation Band

Purposeful | Discerning | Intelligent

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Non-Profit Org. US Postage

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office of alumnae relations

Charleston, SC Permit No. 1309

172 Rutledge Bloody Mary andAvenue Charleston, South Carolina 29403 Mimosa Reception

The McBee House second floor terrace and MacDonald Drawing Room played host to a memorable setting for this year’s Alumnae Bloody Mary and Mimosa Reception. Guests inside McBee House reminisced over yearbooks and old photos recounting fond memories and friendships.

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46 | The magazine of Ashley Hall

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office of alumnae relations 172 Rutledge Avenue Charleston, South Carolina 29403

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7 10 1 Jamye Horres Hurteau ’91, Cashion Drolet ’97, Dolly Lockwood Lipman ’82 2 Elizabeth S. Williams ’34, Louise Rodgers Dougherty ’46, Chance Stevens Scrantom ’46 3 The fun-loving Class of 1978 4 Francie Voigt Geer ’63, Arden Howard Small ‘63 5 Class of ’03 Members: Mary M. Crawford, Katherine E. Anderson, Becky N. Grantham, Laura S. Ferri 6 Lucia Harrison Jaycocks ’63, Penny Davies Walker ’51 7 Mary Tinkler ’98, Cashion Drolet ’97 8 Esther Hoshall Beaumont ’53, Joanna Swain Cawley ’52 9 Class of ’83 members: Julie Miles Walters, Allison Calhoun Roberts, Elizabeth F. Gay, Paige Canaday Crone, 8

Marion Thomas Gilchrist, Caroline C. Lesesne

10 Hope Geer Colyer ’78, Weiza Geer Walters ‘83

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Ashley Hall Alumnae Awards Luncheon

Alumnae Board President, Jayme Horres

Hurteau ’91, welcomed an audience for the Alumnae Awards Luncheon that was the largest and most diverse in Ashley Hall history. Student, Alex des Francs ’13, shared how her Ashley Hall experience has shaped her life. Alumnae Board Loyalty Fund Chair, Cashion Drolet ’97, recognized leaders in Loyalty Fund participation by class and amount. This year’s alumnae participation was over 27%, which is well above the national average. The top participating reunion classes were 1983, 1958, and 1953. The most dollars raised were from the classes of 1953, 1983, and 1978. Many thanks to all alumnae who participated in the Loyalty Fund this year, and for making it such a resounding success.

Jill Muti presented a special award this year to Anne Ford Melton ’53 for her tireless efforts as Class Agent for the Class of 1953 and for working 40 years ago with Miss Pardue to begin what has become Ashley Hall’s annual Alumnae Weekend. The Class of 1953 is also the first class to ever celebrate 60 years at Alumnae Weekend!

Alumnae Board Vice President, Cornelia Jones Graham ’87, congratulated this year’s award winners, Esther Hoshall Beaumont ’53, Alice Voss Gaines ’61, and Kathy Vansant Bates ’65 for their accomplishments and achievements. The prestigious Dewar Gordon Holmes Award was given to Betsy Walker Grimball ’77 for her service to Ashley Hall.

Special thanks to Alumnae Board members Mary LeMacks Scarborough ’77 and Rhett Ramsay Outten ’82 for designing the beautiful centerpieces for each table at the Alumnae Awards Luncheon.

48 | The magazine of Ashley Hall

Dewar Gordon Holmes ’26 Award

The prestigious Dewar Gordon Holmes award honors an alumna who has demonstrated dedicated volunteer service to Ashley Hall. Mrs. Holmes was known for her high standard of service and played a pivotal role in the organization of the Ashley Hall Foundation upon the retirement of Miss McBee. Mrs. Holmes served as secretary of Ashley Hall’s Board of Trustees for over thirty years and gave countless hours to the School in her roles as faculty member, alumna, mother, and grandmother.

2013 Award Recipient Betsy Walker Grimball ‘77 This award is unique and very special to Ashley Hall alumnae, because it honors an alumna who has proven through years of service a commitment to do whatever is requested of her to support and further the mission of Ashley Hall. Ashley Hall is proud to recognize Betsy for her many years of loyal service and dedication to the school.

Marth Rivers Ingram ’53 Excellence in the Arts Award

Martha Rivers Ingram ’53 Excellence in the Arts Award honors an alumna who has been recognized by her peers for outstanding work in the performing or visual arts. Mrs. Ingram has spent much of her life devoted to the arts and is well known for her support for and contributions to the arts community. The guiding force behind the creation of the Tennessee Performing Arts Center, Mrs. Ingram has also served on the boards of renowned arts organizations such as the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C. and Spoleto Festival, USA. 2013 Award Recipient Kathy Vansant Bates ’65 Kathy Vansant Bates ’65, an accomplished watercolor artist, is honored for her abilities as well as her contributions to organizations supporting the arts. Kathy is known for her floral and botanical paintings and has been awarded many honors in juried competitions.

Her work was recently included in an issue of American Art Collector magazine. Kathy previously served as treasurer of the Ridgewood Art Institute in Ridgewood, New Jersey.

While in New Jersey, Kathy received various awards including the Award of Excellence from the New Jersey Watercolor Associate Members Juried Show. We are happy to have Kathy back in Charleston where she is a member of the Charleston Artists Guild as well as the Mt. Pleasant Artists Guild.

Fern Karesh Hurst ’64 Community Volunteer Award

Crandall Close Bowles ’65 Professional Achievement Award

2013 Award Recipient Esther Hoshall Beaumont ’53 Former librarian Esther Hoshall Beaumont ’53, has spent the past 14 years devoting herself to a myriad of community activities in Northern Virginia. The Fern Karesh Hurst ’64 Community Volunteer Award recognizes her outstanding dedication to helping others.

After Esther’s retirement in 1999, a friend urged her to join the King’s Park Library Board.

And that’s where her career as volunteer extraordinaire began.

Esther had previously served as Librarian for the Fairfax, Virginia, public library system, of which the King’s Park Library was a part. During her time on that board, she has spent so many hours pricing donated materials for the semi-annual sales that she earned silver level recognition under the official Presidential Volunteer Service Award.

In 2000, she became a docent at a branch of the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Leesburg, Virginia, where she served until its closure in 2011. She is now awaiting the opening of a new Discovery Center on the Capitol Mall in 2014, so that she can once again interpret history for visitors.

In 2001, the local hospital network of INOVA asked for volunteers to become home visitors to former hospital patients who were socially isolated due to medical issues. After five years with this group, Esther was named INOVA Home Visitor of the Year. She continued to serve until the program was terminated in 2010.

Since 2002, she has driven home-bound elders to medical appointments, first with the Fairfax County Area Agency on Aging’s Volunteer Service to Seniors (later renamed Human Services Volunteer Transportation) and then with The Shepherd’s Center. She has extended her commitment to include companion shopping. Earlier this year Esther started designing a system for the Fairfax-Burke Shepherd’s Center to match clients and drivers more efficiently.

2013 Award Recipient Alice Voss Gaines ’61 Originally from St. James, Minnesota, Alice Voss Gaines graduated from Ashley Hall in 1961 and went on to study at DePauw University in Indiana, Exeter University in Devon England, and graduated from the University of Minnesota in 1965 with a B.S. in elementary education.

Her agricultural career began in 1989, when her father died and she took over her family’s farms in South-Central Minnesota. As a third generation landowner and farmer, environmental stewardship was ingrained. Her corn, soybean, alfalfa, wheat and beef cattle operation endeavors to stay on the cutting edge of the technology of genetics, advances in equipment, and sound management practices in order to preserve her family’s land for generations. Alice spends much of her days reading and researching the latest ideas and science of agriculture and how to maximize both environmental and economic success.

Alice participates in various voluntary government conservation programs; uses minimum tillage practices where possible; uses variable rate technology for crop fertility on all her farmed acres; and uses variable rate seeding. She also recently installed a Solar PV system on the home farm in St. James so that much of the power used on this square-mile farm is generated on-site. In addition to the solar project, she installed a geothermal heat source system for the farm’s main house for both heating and cooling. Working closely with the agronomists with Crystal Valley Co-op, the local Soil and Water Conservation District, Farm Service Agency, and Natural Resources Conservation Service, Alice firmly believes that with diligence and informed management, farmers, the environment, and the country will benefit.

Fern Karesh Hurst ’64 Community Volunteer Award honors an alumna who exhibits outstanding volunteer and community service. In addition to serving as an Ashley Hall trustee, Ms. Hurst has served on the Goucher College Board of Trustees, the National Jewish Center for Leadership and Learning Board and the University of Pennsylvania Board of Overseers for the Graduate School of Fine Arts. She is also a Past President of the Jewish Woman’s Foundation of New York.

Crandall Close Bowles ’65 Professional Achievement Award honors an alumna who has achieved significant accomplishments in her profession. Mrs. Bowles is the Chief Executive Officer of Springs Industries, one of South Carolina’s most prominent businesses and the second-largest Fortune 500 company in the state. Mrs. Bowles’ leadership skills helped propel her from her initial position at Springs Industries as a financial analyst to her current position as CEO.

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Ashley Hall Alumnae Awards Luncheon

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Reunion Class Chairs

Thank you to our generous Reunion Class Chairs for helping make Alumnae Weekend 2013 so special for everyone who attended!

1953 1958 1963

1968 1973 1978

1983 1988

1993 1998 2003 2008

Anne Ford Melton Martha Zeigler Tucker Beautsie Robertson Zahrn Anne Miller Moise Penny Hawk Wilson Vicki Hewitt Causey Jeanne Griffin Hill Biz Rivers Heyl Julie Miles Walters Helen Davis Britton Kelli O’Malley Shively Dorothy Lancaster Sarah H. Lundquist Katherine E. Anderson Caroline C. Howell

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L

iving a Life of Legacy ~ The Class of 1953

It has been 60 years since the

Class of 1953 donned their white gowns, picked up their red roses, and prepared to say good-bye to their time as students of Ashley Hall. In those 60 years, this amazing close-knit class has stayed connected with each other and with the school and committed to supporting the school that brought them together. Listed below are just a few of the achievements and contributions of the Class of 1953.

Front row: Shirley Orvin Munn, Esther Hoshall Beaumont, Jan Gestefeld Moore Back Row: Lucia Manos Morfesis, Elise Mehrlich Gutwald, Anne Ford Melton, Liz McGraw Severance

The Class of 1953: d Initiated the tradition of Alumnae Weekend

Reunions at Ashley Hall with their 20th Reunion

in 1973. d Held consistently both the highest amount given

and highest percentage of class participation to

the Loyalty Fund. d

Funded, collaborated on, edited and published McBee House a Narrative Tour Conducted by Ian MacDonald, the definitive resource on the history of the McBee House.

d Served on the Alumnae Association Board,

spoke at Women in Leadership events, and led the

school as members of the Board of Trustees. d

Given leadership gifts. Three members of the class have made leadership gifts to past campaigns and have buildings named for them and their families: The Mercedes Erixon and F. Adelbert Hoshall M.D

52 | The magazine of Ashley Hall

Science and Math Center, the Rivers Library, and The Ross Early Education Center.

d

Received the Fern Karesh Award for Community Service, the Crandall Close Bowles Award for Professional Achievement, and Ashley Hall’s highest alumnae award, The Dewar Gordon Holmes Distinguished Alumnae Award for service to Ashley Hall.

This special class’s service to the school over the last 60 years goes beyond what we list here, and Ashley Hall is eternally grateful. Additionally, beyond Ashley Hall these women have had real and positive impacts on the communities in which they live and work. The Class of 1953 is a wonderful example of the women that Ashley Hall is bound by her mission to produce: Educated, Independent, Ethically Responsible, and Prepared to Meet the Challenges of Society with Confidence!

Ashley Hall alumnae

we want to hear from you!

Class Notes ’52 Tommie Thompson Hayes reports that she is a 10 year stroke survivor!

‘53 Anne Ford Melton has had 6 of her Naturescape poems selected for publication in a hardcover coffee table book. The book, Celebration, is by the photographer Nye Simmons of Knoxville, TN, and commemorates the 25th anniversary of The Blue Ridge Parkway.

‘54 Inge Silber Crocker volunteers at the Denver Hospice assisting their Clinical Managers organize their offices. Also, she has several clients that she helps keep their homes organized. Since the death of her husband in August, she wanted to consolidate and make her life simpler and this April she moved. She is planning to come to her next reunion of the Class of 1954!

‘63 D’Anna Fortunato is presently teaching as Voice Professor at the New England Conservatory in Boston, MA, a position that she has held for the last 20 years. D’ Anna continues to perform as well, touring to colleges around the USA to give Master classes and recitals. She most recently participated in a week-long Fall Residency at Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA. Other engagements this spring included a reprise of her portrayal of Chef Julia Child in Lee Hoiby’s monologue opera Bon Apetit as a benefit for Music at Eden’s Edge Chamber Music Organization. She originally performed this at the Smithsonian Institute to celebrate the installation of Julia’s Kitchen.

Ms. Fortunato’s present and former students are performing internationally as soloists with such opera companies as the Metropolitan Opera, Covent Garden, La Fenice, and many other Regional American Companies.

55 th Reunion

Class of 1958 Front row: Nancy Siegling Fortiere, Rhoda Woods Reyner, Joan Hitt Algar Back row: Dot Porcher Amis, Sonya Pettersen O’Malley, Martha Zeigler Tucker, Susan Applegate Herrmann, Carolyn Halloran Cunha, Genie Martin Benson, Helen Winton Watson

Please send updates, announcements and news notes to tecklenburgs@ashleyhall.org or online at ashleyhall.org/alumnae.php.

‘67 Annie Bailes Brown and her husband, Bill, have just returned from visiting their son Bailes and his wife who have just had their 5th grandchild - a boy named Abel! They live in Manhattan which is MUCH too far from South Carolina! They will be at Edisto a lot this summer and hope to see Ashley Hall friends.

‘68 Laura Meeks Festa suspects that it may be so for others as well, but Possunt Quae Volunt is in her office, both at home, and at work, helping her still connect purposeful compassionate volition, with intentional action. Her husband, Dan, is an ordained PCUSA pastor serving the Central Presbyterian Church congregation in Pine Bluff and she is at the University, loving the joys of learning daily. She has done significant public advocacy for everything from the health of Arkansas and South Carolinian children, to grant writing, to collaborating on Psychiatric and Mental Health Interventions for children who have lost parents in all kinds of unfortunate, destructive circumstances. She serves on the Committee on Preparation for Ministry at the Presbytery level currently and is on the Arkansas Nursing Association Board. She was privileged to serve on the founding Board of Camp Comfort that intervened with the children afflicted with parental loss in the collapse of the Twin Towers and other catastrophic situations. Laughter defines her and Dan’s joys, thankfulness defines their days, and they hope for all present at the 45th great pleasures and

Collaborative | Purposeful | Compassionate |

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wards South Carolina, and stopped over for a quick visit with Robbin Brackett ‘75 in Greenville, SC.

alumnae HIGHLIGHT

Harriet Stimson Gatter and husband Steve, are living in Charlotte, NC. Harriet recently started her own business, Accounting Support, LLC. Melaina Clement Pate and her husband, Clarence, recently enjoyed a wonderful trip to the Dordogne region of France where they stayed for a couple of weeks and traveled.

Pictured above are Mary Luke Chapman ’61, Georgia Hansen Lucas Barnett ’60, Alice Voss Gaines ’61, and Eleanor Hastie Parker ’61 at a birthday surprise party for Alice in Greensboro, NC, last March.

look forward to seeing folks at the 50th!

They have so many more blessings than would be their fair share, and thus they are grateful, day to day, for God’s providence and wondrous love that defines their journey!

‘73 Ansley Hassell Boggs had two daughters get married in Charleston a month apart in the spring! It was wonderful to be with her parents and 5 sisters & their families.

Her older daughter’s reception was on Wadmalaw Island, and it brought back so many wonderful memories and felt like “home”! Her husband retired after 43 years of teaching art at Converse, so he looks forward to making art full time, primarily metal and marble sculpture. She just finished her 33rd year of teaching at Converse and still loves it! She is also studying and being coached in voice-over, and hopes to go to New York soon to make her demo at a studio with which she’s been working. She received the Elizabeth O’Neil Verner Award 2013 for Arts in Education at Converse College.

Beth Wier Tal and the The Class of 73’s “REUNION” really began this past December when she, always the winner of coming from the longest distance away

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to get here, came from Israel for a visit along with husband Oded, and their four daughters. Eva Ravenel ’73 and Melaina Clement Pate ’73, hosted a wonderful party at Eva’s house. Also present for the festive gathering were classmates Renee Greene, Meta Grimball Frasch, Claudia Poulnot de Mayo, Anne Thornhill Weston, Mary deSaussure Cutler, Harriet Stimson Gatter, Tina Edwards Mayland, Dale Poulnot, Mary Helen Trouche Dantzler, Vicki Hewitt Causey, Lee Davis Perry, and Beth Ogier Barnwell. Beverly Stoney Johnson ’74 and Lese Corrigan ’74 also attended.

Vicki Hewitt Causey, a grandmamma now to 1 year old Lydia, just returned from a driving trip to Virginia where she stayed for a few nights in Richmond. Vicki says she enjoyed doing some genealogy research while in the area and even found the grave of a 17th c. ancestor! She also enjoyed a visit to Williamsburg. After that, Vicki drove across Virginia and spent a night with Cathy Rumble Lively ’73 in her beautiful home near the top of a mountain just outside the town of Nellysford.

Then, in pursuit of a “bucket list” interest in seeing the area where the Hatfields & McCoys had their feud up in West Virginia and Kentucky, Vicki says she “took the long way home” before turning back to-

Meta Grimball Frasch and the Class of ‘73 had a wonderful time celebrating their 40th reunion in April! The class party was great FUN as Meta and her husband, Charlie, hosted at their home on James Island.

Debbie J. Lee recently moved to Honolulu after 23 years in Washington state. She wants to know if any AH alums are living in Hawaii and says hello to Beth Mappus Stone ’73.

Cathy Rumble Lively and her husband, Bob, drove across country to visit her daughter, Elizabeth Boatwright, (recruiter for YELP.com) in Scottsdale, AZ. They spent a couple of days in Natchez, MI exploring Rosalie, a mansion in the Rumble family now owned by the DAR. Santa Fe, Oklahoma City, and Knoxville were a few other destination points on their way back to Nellysford, VA (just outside Charlottesville). The Livelys enjoy the beaches along the coast and recently had the fabulous opportunity to slip down to Sloop Point Plantation, the home of Elise Koch Hollingsworth ’73 and her husband, Bob. Everyone had a grand time!

Tina Edwards Mayland just returned from the “trip of a lifetime” and “achieved 5 things on her bucket list” in her travels to the Far East and such countries as Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and China!

Dale Poulnot ’73 joined her for a couple of weeks on the trip and they had loads of fun.

‘74 Beverly Stoney Johnson and husband, Joe, are currently getting a “mountain fix” in their home for the summer in Flatrock, NC.

‘93 Mary Atmar Owings Bradley is a Pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist practicing in Charleston.

She just formed her own business, Seaside Speech Therapy, last year. She currently resides in Mt Pleasant with her husband, Daniel, and their 3 children, Liza (10), Ella Merritt (7), and Will (3).

‘97 Elizabeth A. Reid earned her Juris Doctorate in 2005 from the University of Georgia School of Law, and spent the next four years practicing in the international lending and debt finance practice groups of major international law firms in Atlanta, GA, and San Francisco, CA. She accepted a scholarship to return to school in 2009, earning a Master of Arts in International Policy Studies and Arabic from the Monterey Institute of International Studies.

She then moved to Amman, Jordan, where she was the recipient of a U.S. State Department Critical Language Enhancement Award and Fulbright Fellowship to research the illicit trade in antiquities and the looting of archaeological sites in Jordan. She currently is a Legal Advisor for the Middle East and North Africa at the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law, based in Amman, Jordan. She would love to connect with any alumnae in the region, and is happy to speak with anyone planning to visit!

50 th Reunion

Class of 1963 Front row: Elizabeth Barkley Ravenel, Elizabeth Pritchard Bowles, Mozelle DePass Griffith, Donna Berry Santo Back Row: Francie Voigt Geer, Ann Taylor Cover, Elizabeth Johnston Witt, Jaquelin Stevenson Bennett, Anne Miller Moise, Bettina H. Rounds, Effie Taylor Ellis, Margaret Wilcox Garrett, Gail Townsend Bailey, Arden Howard Small, Susan Davis Willingham, D’Anna Fortunato, Lucia Harrison Jaycocks, Ann Bell Smith, Becky Longmire Crowley, Beautsie Robertson Zahrn, Gigi Rice Greene

45 th Reunion

‘00 Jennie Hood and Ryan Dell Emerson were married on February 23, 2013 at St. Philip’s Episcopal Church in Charleston, SC. A reception followed at The Carolina Yacht Club.

‘02 Crystal Adams Strickland and her husband welcomed a baby boy, Joseph Julian Strickland III, on April 13, 2013.

‘03 Lydia Levinson Handsfield recently passed her final oral exams to become a board certified Radiation Oncology Physicist, a process several years in the making. She is now a full Diplomat of the American Board of Radiology.

Lydia is working as a Faculty Research Scientist at the University of Virginia’s

Class of 1968 Front row: Helen Paul Royal, Ellen Munt Bloxsom, Penny Hawk Wilson Back row: Mary Neale Berkaw, Mitten Wilson Brown

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40 th Reunion

Cancer Center in Charlottesville, Virginia. Her husband, Geoff, is in his 5th year in a bio-medical engineering Ph.D program at UVA. ‘04 Olivia Andrews de Zavala and her husband, Victor, welcomed a baby girl, Victoria Grey Zavala Andrews, on April 2, 2013.

Katie M. Hubler is the the Mergers & Acqusitions Analyst for SCBT. ‘05 Anne Seabrook Hutson and Samuel Robert McEwen, Jr., were married on April 27, 2013 at St. Phillip’s Church in Charleston, SC. A reception followed at the Sea Island Yacht Club in Rockville. Annie and Rob reside in Charleston.

Class of 1973 Front row: Caroline Myers Bailey, Mary deSaussure Cutler, Eva R. Ravenel, Amy Worthington Boucher Back Row: Mary Helen Trouche Dantzler, Ginny L. Snipes, Elise Koch Hollingsworth, Susan James Mayer, Melaina Clement Pate, Martha N. Parker, Vicki Hewitt Causey, Cathy Rumble Lively, Heidi Speissegger Whaley, Beth Ogier Barnwell

35 th Reunion

Anne Frances L. Rhett and Justin Daniel Boulware were married on May 18, 2013 at St. Philip’s Church in Charleston, SC. A reception followed at The Carolina Yacht Club. The couple will reside in Charleston.

‘06 Elissa G. Bostain has been back in Charleston for a year after finishing her Masters of Architecture at Clemson. She is working at Liollio Architecture as an Intern Architect.

Ellen Elaine Neff married Fleetwood S. Hassell, Jr. on May 4, 2013 at First Scots Presbyterian Church in Charleston, SC. A reception followed at The Carolina Yacht Club.

Amanda C. Waters and Ellison Caldwell Livingston IV, both of Charleston, were married on March 2, 2013 in Summerall Chapel, The Citadel, in Charleston. A reception followed at the William Aiken House.

Class of 1978 Front row: Biz Rivers Heyl, Martha Pearce Armstrong, Lynn Burris Brooke, Ann Baker Thomas Back Row: Therese Trouche Smythe, Hope Geer Colyer, Jeanne Griffin Hill, Rhonda Pearlman Ponder, Elaine Meyer Bergmann, Virginia Webb Harrison, Anne Darby Parker, Kathy Rentiers Dewey, Mary Green Stone, Weezie Small Griffen, Linn Lesesne

56 | The magazine of Ashley Hall

‘09 Derrill T. Hagood was awarded the Ferguson-Blair Publishing Institute Scholarship from the College of William & Mary. Derrill will be attending Columbia University’s Graduate Publishing Program.

alumnae HIGHLIGHT Danielle Feerst, class of ’12, spends her days like many other college sophomores. When she is not working on prerequisites or navigating internships, she is spending time on one of her hobbies.

Feerst, a Psychology major at Tufts, has developed a mobile app that helps those with Autism use new technology to learn.

Developing a company, Autism Sees, and working on Autism learning related programs has led her from San Francisco

Claire E. Kruse graduated Magna Cum Laude from Wake Forest. She has also been accepted to Columbia University where she will enter the Masters in Social Work Program in the fall.

Tory Q. Corless graduated from Georgetown University in May, Cum Laude, with a degree of Bachelor of Arts in Women’s and Gender Studies with a minor in Sociology. She will be working in the Boston inner city schools in the fall.

‘10 Lauren D. Smith, a member of The Belmont Abbey College women’s track and field team, broke her own school record in March at the UNC Charlotte 49er Invitational. There were over 40 school repre-

to Washington, DC. Throughout her journeys, Feerst has focused on understanding how those with Autism learn and working towards integrating user friendly solutions in bridging the gap. Marrying a 21st century understanding of new technology and passion for helping those who learn differently, Danielle has lived up to the Ashley Hall motto of Possunt Quae Volunt. You can visit her web site at: http://autismsees. com.

sented in the three day event, including 11 NCAA Division I teams. She broke her record in the 100m Dash, when she sprinted to a 12.87, breaking her previous school record of 13.00 set in 2011. She finished 42nd overall out of 79 athletes and 13th against non-Division I runners.

Lauren also ran her personal best in the 200m Dash (27.74) as well as a best 400m split in the 4 x 400m Relay.

Lauren has also been recognized for excellent academic performance by being placed on the Dean’s list for both semesters in her junior year.

Scholars program. She also did economics research at Clemson University with a full time professor through a program with Clemson’s Calhoun Honors College, upon her matriculation to the university.

This summer, she travelled to Lansing, Michigan for ten weeks to participate in the SROP-Beacon Program. Approximately 20 people were accepted to this program.

During this program, she worked to develop an automatic facial recognition program. (Ideally when completed this program will be able to automatically select, separate, and identify the faces of people in photographs and videos).

‘12 Cecilia Prentice was named a Dixon Fellow and has also been named a finalist for Clemson University’s Dixon Global Policy Deaths

30 th Reunion

‘47 Peggy Tomlinson McGill

May 16, 2013 ‘49

Sara Jean Zehe Darby June 29, 2013

‘54

Deborah Backus Durham April 18, 2012

‘59

Julia Elizabeth Chitwood April 16, 2012

‘61

Linda Still Miller Thursday, April 25, 2013

‘65

Mary Buckingham Wilson, MD June 23, 2013

Class of 1983 Front row: Marion Thomas Gilchrist, Cathie R. Jones, Elizabeth Johnson Sheehan, Caroline C. Lesesne Back Row: Elizabeth F. Gay, Paige Canaday Crone, Allison Calhoun Roberts, Julie Miles Walters, Sallie Conner Lesemann

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25 th Reunion

20 th Reunion

Class of 1988 Anne Lachicotte Munson, Kelli O’Malley Shively, Helen Davis Britton, Catherine M. Newman

Class of 1993 Front row: Mary Atmar Owings Bradley, Elizabeth Garrett Ryan, Becky B. Sheftall Back Row: Caroline Wilson Sanders, Katharine Phillipps Bair, Heather F. Lyman

15 th Reunion

10 th Reunion

Class of 1998 Meghan Ford Norvell, Kathy Dollason Hughes, Mary Tinkler, Sarah H. Lundquist

Class of 2003 Front row: Jamilah N. German, Laura S. Ferri, Lacey Brigman Finch, Becky N. Grantham Back Row: Alex A. Glasgow, Katie P. Clifton, Margaret Lee McEaddy, Katherine E. Anderson, Tanishah N. Nellom, Mary M. Crawford, Cameron L. Widman, Stephanie N. Brennan

58 | The magazine of Ashley Hall

“I feel so blessed that in my life I have been able to do what I wanted to do, so to give someone else that chance is great.”

Planning her gift now for the future of her school Donor Profile: Eva R. Ravenel ‘73

F

or Eva Ravenel ’73, Ashley Hall has always been a foundation for her past, present and future. It’s the place from which many of her life’s connections have set forth: when she first enrolled as a student in the sixth grade, her mother, Louise Rodgers Dougherty ’46, and cousins had come before her; as an alumna, her lifelong school friendships led her to return and serve on Ashley Hall’s Alumnae Association board, volunteer for gala committees, and give her time to the school whenever she can. Today, her daughter, Eva Ravenel ’15, carries on the family’s legacy as a current Ashley Hall student.

It is this lifelong foundation that led Eva to extend her Ashley Hall legacy even further by making a planned gift. As she began planning her will, she says, “I knew it was something I always wanted to do, so I thought why not do it now?”

With the actual foundation in mind, she decided to designate the school’s physical plant as the main beneficiary of her gift. “Ashley Hall is a wonderful school and

is something that needs to continue forever and ever.

It’s such a big advantage for Charleston to have such a good girls’ school here. But if you have a sagging physical plant, it’s harder to keep it going. The school must have a strong foundation,” she says.

Eva credits her Ashley Hall friendships for not only keeping her so connected to the school, but for adding value to life as a whole. “Everyone in the world needs connections. Whether you give time or money, it’s a connection. It’s not fun to be in a pool by yourself!”

By giving to Ashley Hall, she hopes her own legacy will allow others the chance to build upon their own foundation for opportunity and happiness. “I see how good the single sex education was for me, my cousins and so many other girls. My daughter has thrived there,” she says. “I feel so blessed that in my life I have been able to do what I wanted to do, so to give someone else that chance is great.”

I am Ashley Hall.

To learn how you can make a planned gift to Ashley Hall, contact Catherine Newman at newmanc@ashleyhall.org or 843-720-2886.

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