Bfs spring 2014 newsletter web

BROOKLYN FRIENDS SCHOOL NEWSLETTER

VOL. 10, NO. 2 SPRING 2014

Portraits of Young Friends

Students Reflect on the BFS Experience CRUNCHING NUMBERS AND CHARTING A COURSE What’s college life like for Janna Joassainte ’13? Remembered at BFS for her awe-inspiring multiple talents – Janna excelled at mathematics, dance and basketball, scoring her 1,000th career point during the final game of her BFS career last year – she is continuing her passions at Amherst College.

J

anna Joassainte ’13 is hurtling toward the end of her first year at Amherst College, one of New England’s famed Little Ivies, and says college life has been “wonderful.”

Adjusting from the cacophony of Brooklyn to a quaint, pastoral campus in the hometown of Emily Dickinson was “very easy and much needed,” she said. “My favorite fall class was Intro to Calculus, because I love Mathematics.”

She also remains intent on playing basketball despite a freshman year setback. “I didn’t make the women’s varsity team this year,” she said. “However, I am training several days of the week to make sure I’m healthy and ready for tryouts come November.”

Meanwhile she’s planning to join some dance clubs on campus this semester to continue another of her passions that first sprang to life at BFS. She is active in the college’s Black Student Union and Multicultural Center, and started her own club to gather

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like-minded students who want to join her in attending the annual White Privilege Conference coming up this March.

A close second to Calculus this fall was her English class, Having Arguments, a course in debate and public discourse. In one particularly memorable session, Janna recalled, “We had a debate about capital punishment and it led to some extremely heated arguments after class finished.” And therein, perhaps more so than her passion for numbers and hoops, is a hint of her most singular dream for her future. “I intend to be a math major,” she explained, “but my ultimate goal is to be a Supreme Court judge.”

A MASTER OF STARTUPS From organizing Quaker Meetings to a 21st century retooling of the old campus coffee house concept, Jake Reiben ’13 is making connections at Bowdoin College.

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acob Reiben ’13 was actively engaged in BFS’ student government and served as a student ambassador for the Admissions Office. Now toughing out his first winter at Bowdoin College in coastal Maine, he’s found warmth in those same community-minded pursuits.

“I desperately missed Quaker meeting,” he said. “With the help of another student I was able to start a Quaker meeting group at Bowdoin — it was the first time this had

happened there in 30 years. Eighteen students showed up to the first event, and town members and faculty have joined meetings since then. It has truly been remarkable.”

A natural community builder, Jake also received funding and space to start a campus coffee house with a modern twist. Intended to link budding entrepreneurs, students will book tables online reserved for a specific discussion topic of their choosing in order to discuss the matter with their peers. “Anything from feminist matters to social media ideas,” Jake explained.

Academically this young BFS alumnus has immersed himself in Africana Studies courses, which Jake explains, “is a combination of African and African-American/African diaspora communities studies.” Coursework includes studying African history, slave narratives, abolitionist movements, and the works of 20th century authors ranging from civil rights leaders like W.E.B. DuBois to novelists like Ralph Ellison.

“We explore how these men had different views of what it meant to be black, and how race would be important in the future,” he explained. Jake has become a man obsessed, and went on at length about the topic. “This interdisciplinary department has been an amazing means to further explore questions raised at the White Privilege Conference which I attended senior year. At the same time, I’m continuing to pursue my curiosity about American history that IB History of the Americas introduced me to.”

During junior and senior year at BFS Jake also excelled in his IB Art course with an

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THIS IS THE BEGINNING in a series of portraits of BFS young alumni, seniors, and juniors. Read more on the Brooklyn Friends School website, brooklynfriends.org/portraits

Message from Head of School Dr. Larry Weiss

The Joy of Teaching

I

n the midst of a year made especially busy by our Upper School building project, the NYSAIS Self-Study and the Accreditation Team Visit, and the organizational phase of a major capital campaign, I have found special

pleasure and challenge teaching a section of the 11th grade “Theory of Knowledge” course that is required of all students completing the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program.

As an administrator, I have always been committed to teaching as an ideal way of really getting to know some of the students for whom I am responsible as well as developing a genuinely collegial relationship with the faculty. This commitment led me to teach a year-long elective in East Asian History at Horace Mann during my seven years there as Head of Upper School and a year-long Chinese language course for the six years as Head of School at Saint Ann’s.

Teaching the year-long “Theory of Knowledge” course this year has been especially stimulating. “TOK,” as it is known, introduces students to the fields and subfields of the Humanities, Social Sciences, and Natural Sciences that they will encounter in their post-secondary educational endeavors.

The Theory of Knowledge course asks students to consider the criteria by which knowledge can be evaluated and communicated – the “ways of knowing” that can vary in different disciplines – or “areas of knowledge” as they are called in the course.

Students are asked to think about variations in different cultural and religious contexts that can affect how knowledge

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Theory of Knowledge seeks to inform

a focus on problem-solving in respect to contemporary issues of international import. It also requires students to complete a variety of written and oral analytical presentations that emphasize depth of research and clarity of communication.

Among the sources of energy and inspiration that I find necessary to do a good job presenting such challenging material is my strong belief that even the finest Upper School programs in which I have participated in my 40 years of teaching have left many highly intelligent and motivated graduates significantly unprepared to decipher the undergraduate course catalogue

that greets them in the first days of their freshman orientation at college. In all likelihood, they have never encountered in their high school studies such disciplines as anthropology, sociology, geography, political science, philosophy, linguistics, or regional area studies, among others. The sub-fields of psychology and many of the scientific and humanities disciplines are similarly unfamiliar. They are consequently at a substantial disadvantage when asked to order wisely from the extensive four-year academic smorgasbord in front of them.

Theory of Knowledge seeks to inform the prospective undergraduate about the contours of academia in an engaging and participatory manner. To assist highly motivated, idealistic, and articulate BFS students in the early steps of this lifelong learning journey is truly a source of great personal challenge and pleasure.

In friendship,

the prospective undergraduate about the contours of academia in an engaging and participatory manner. is defined and communicated.

In a manner that is consistent with the overall philosophical construct of the IB program, the course emphasizes a global perspective, cultural relativism, and

Words in italics are “ways of knowing”

TO LEARN MORE ABOUT the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program at Brooklyn Friends School, visit our website, brooklynfriends.org/ib

2 Brooklyn Friends School Newsletter SPRING 2014

AROUND THE SCHOOL UPPER SCHOOL

A Winter Surprise With all due respect to T. S. Eliot, in schools, February, not April, is the cruelest month. In an effort to introduce a break into the grind that winter can be, the upper school faculty decided to bring back an event from two years ago: minimester.

The idea was to offer a number of daylong field trips using one of our most valued educational resources at Brooklyn Friends – New York City and all its amazing opportunities – the City as a classroom.

The upper school takes dozens of fantastic field trips throughout the year, but the goal for minimester was to allow teachers to go beyond their areas of classroom expertise and to share their other passions and scholarly pursuits. The plans were set in place with one major change from the previous minimester: the date would be a surprise! So Wednesday, February 5 was chosen, and the students were told only two days prior to the big event.

The headlines that Wednesday sum up Mother Nature’s opinion of our date choice: “Snow and Ice Storm Wreaks Havoc across Tristate.” Undeterred, all of the groups ventured out into the slush- and ALL ABOARD FOR MINIMESTER

lA

Day in Harlem

l Yoga and Philosophy l Active in NYC l Chelsea

Art Galleries City with Glass l The Judicial System l Post-Racial Freedom l Theatermania l Exploring Chinatown l India in NYC l Flushing Meadows Park l Skate, Then Eat lA

snow-filled city and had some unforgettable experiences.

Students were given an incredible slate of 12 choices ranging from Yoga and Philosophy, to Exploring the Judicial System, to Post-Racial Freedom: From Abolition to Stop & Frisk.

The trips were researched and developed by faculty so that they could share with our students why they love teaching and living in New York City. With the help of public transportation and waterproof outerwear, upper school students could be found walking all around city including locales such as Harlem, Lincoln Center, Chelsea, Chinatown, our very own Downtown Brooklyn, and Prospect Park.

The trips included visits to art galleries, the Lower Manhattan African Burial Ground, museums, Chelsea Piers, a yoga studio, the Plymouth Church and Abyssinian Baptist Church, and the world famous boxing site - Gleason’s Gym. Meals ranged from homemade pancakes to delectable vegan, Chinese and Indian cuisine.

Our intrepid students and faculty all returned a little colder and wetter but with a much greater appreciation for the wonderful range of opportunities that are available every single day in our city classroom. Upon reflection, students offered a lot of positive feedback. One junior stated, “Minimester was a really cool experience, I got to try things that I’ve never done before.” A 9th grader shared, “I didn’t know what to expect with the weather slowing us down; however, getting active with friends helped make my day.” Our overarching goal of providing access to neighborhoods and institutions in NYC through new, engaging, and challenging experiences was authentically accomplished.

In a few weeks, there will be a detailed entry in the US Blog

Students getting hands-on experience with glass and bead making during a minimester workshop led by science teacher Travis Merritt. The group explored how glass can be used for functional as well as artistic purposes at the UrbanGlass studio on 647 Fulton Street in Brooklyn.

giving more details about all of the trips – please look for it on the US Parent Portal.

– Bob Bowman Head of Upper School

MIDDLE SCHOOL A Concern for Mental Health

As part of the Brooklyn Friends focus on pre-teen and adolescent development, Middle School students select a topic for a “day of concern” every year.

On this day, students choose an issue/area of concern that they would like to shine a light on, while also gathering information about the topic. This year the students selected Mental Health.

I was quite pleased with the choice, as across the nation we are seeing increasing numbers of adolescents experiencing mental health issues.

To help us address this topic, Hillary H. Myerberg, Clinical Social Worker from the Martha K. Selig Educational Institute, spoke with grade 5-8 students at an extended collection on the topic, “Understanding Mental Illness.” Her focus was on three key areas – stress, depression, and anxiety. Mrs. Myerberg explained that stress is not always a negative or unhealthy thing; it can also be quite positive when it drives you to achieve your goals.

On the other hand, unrealistic pressure and expectations can negatively impact our thoughts, feelings and behavior, keeping us from achieving our goals.

Mrs. Myerberg spoke of the common sources of stress for adolescents, such as doing well in school, fitting in and making friends, feeling different, over-scheduling or taking on too many activities, and fear of making mistakes or being seen

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as a failure. The last stressor is particularly troubling to me because the only way our children can learn to become resilient is to experience and learn how to deal with failure.

In discussing anxiety and sadness, Mrs. Myerberg explained that we all experience periods of time when we are sad, and that it is okay to feel this way. However, extended periods of sadness or depression should be addressed. Anxiety and depression are characterized by feelings of irritability and anger, trouble with focusing or concentration, a constant state of worry, inconsistent sleep patterns, increased tension and being withdrawn. In adolescents, peer relationships and peer pressure can be a positive thing, but they can also lead to stress, anxiety, and depression.

So, how can our children best

manage these conditions? Students who feel well, do well, so it is important for us to keep our children healthy. They should have plenty of rest, eat well, and establish healthy lifestyle habits.

A few ways that we adults can help – set realistic expectations for our children, collaborate with teachers, model stress management techniques, practice problem solving and relaxation skills, and know what resources are available for additional support.

– Barry Davis Head of Middle School

LOWER SCHOOL

Let the Games Begin!

Since early February, 25 BFS fourth graders and four faculty coaches have been meeting every Tuesday afternoon to problem-solve, test, imagine, and create as they prepare for the first

Lower and Middle School students recently participated in the “Hour of Code,” part of the annual, nationwide Computer Science Education Week

The “Hour of Code” is a national effort to introduce computer programming to students and expose them to potential careers and opportunities that a background in programming affords.

Our students had a great time programming with Scratch, Tynker and other popular coding sites. They will continue learning programming in engaging ways during Technology classes in all divisions.

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ever Brooklyn Creative Problem Solving Cup! This competition, sponsored by Destination Imagination and hosted by Berkeley Carroll School is on May 3, 2014 and is for Brooklyn independent schools only.

Destination Imagination (DI), an organization that grew out of the well known program, Odyssey of the Mind, encourages teams of learners to have fun, take risks, focus and frame challenges while incorporating science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

Here’s how it works: Leading up to the competition, the teams (each team can have a maximum of 7 members) are given a challenge that involves a building component. Teams work for weeks to create and develop a solution to the problem. Additionally, the teams must come to the competition having created a song/skit and must prepare to participate in an “instant challenge” in which they have 5-8 minutes to collaborate and solve an open ended problem presented to them on the spot.

BFS will enter four teams into this friendly competition.

The teams have been working with their dedicated coaches, Yvette Kahan (LS Science Teacher and DI School Leader), Caroline Segarra (LS Learning Specialist), Jane Vongvorachoti (LS Physical Ed Teacher, and competitive athlete), and Kevin Cooney (MS Science Teacher) to develop their project and practice problem- solving skills for the instant challenge.

This is serious business for our 25 4th graders, who have made an earnest commitment to this challenge. Every team member must attend each practice session and commit to the full day of competition on May 3. If membership changes after the roster is declared, the team’s score in competition will be negatively impacted.

BFS is really excited to be part of this competition! The DI organization will provide the judges.

Our kids will bring their inge-

nuity, creativity and problemsolving skills to the event. The coaches will be there to guide (although, when it’s “go time,” the coaches are not permitted to be in the same room as their students). Of course, our parents will be there to cheer us on! It promises to be an exciting day – we can’t wait!

– Jackie Condie Head of Lower School

PRESCHOOL

Working Together, Teachers Talk, Listen and Learn The Family Center, Preschool and Lower School may be separated by geographic distance (Family Center is a self contained program) or may operate as autonomous divisions within the school (Preschool and Lower School). Still, there are significant ongoing efforts to unify the BFS early childhood program through faculty professional development.

This academic year, we have expanded on earlier initiatives to share the collective knowledge of our early childhood educators, bringing teachers together to share best practices in emergent literacy, mathematics, and socialemotional development.

Lower School Learning Specialists Ellen Cookson and Caroline Segarra and Lower School Math Coordinator Jonathan Edmonds recently prepared and presented literacy and math workshops for family center, preschool, and kindergarten teachers.

In the emergent literacy presentation, teachers shared practices that highlighted how emergent literacy is fostered in their classes in an age appropriate manner. Ellen and Caroline presented research confirming that literacy is a multi-sensory skill that develops almost from birth. Emergent literacy blossoms as children are read to and also through their own experimentation processes. As teachers shared their respective practices,

pared her to be a support to her students when they faced loss in their own lives. Sara Soll shared her wonderful book collection and read to us, and Dr. Bruce Arnold facilitated this conversation with sensitivity and care.

– Maura Eden Head of Preschool

FAMILY CENTER

A Patch of Color Brightens a Dreary Winter Kindergarten children are using techniques described in the Emergent Literacy faculty workshop that emphasized literacy as a multi-sensory skill.

the flow and sequence of emerging literacy and the richness within each of the programs became evident.

For the math portion of the program, Jonathan encouraged teachers to seek patterns in children’s play. In the early years such patterns are embedded in the routines and the flow and sequence of the day. So much of the school day can be “translated into patterns” – the rhythms of songs, the predictable and repeating patterns within books, even the order of mealtimes. As children become older, in kindergarten, they learn to record and represent their discoveries on paper. They start to find errors in their predictions by internalizing the rhythms and sounds of the pattern as they chant it and “catch” any mistakes when the flow is broken.

The social-emotional domain was addressed at a coffee hour for teachers in the Family Center and Preschool entitled “Life Cycles and Loss: Addressing the changing continuum of life - helping children with issues of separation, loss and death.” Led by Sara Soll, Family Center Director, and Dr. Bruce Arnold, Consulting Psychologist, this forum was devoted to the difficult questions that children might pose – literally questions of life and death. These topics are not discussed comfortably in our adult culture, let alone on an early childhood level.

Here is where the diversity of our faculty enriches our practice.

One of our teachers shared that while growing up in Trinidad, she had been exposed to the rituals around death frequently. Though it was sad to experience loss, her childhood encounters had pre-

The cold, snowy, winter weeks have been full of indoor explorations for children in the Family Center. “Color and Shape” weeks, in which a particular shape or color is incorporated into classroom activities, played out in many different ways. We had snacks to match; art activities that explore that color or shape fully; water tables filled with color; and “shape hunts” to discover where these shapes are

Family Center children joined together this winter to create a colorful Community Shape Mural at the Center’s front window.

found around the school.

At the same time that the children were exploring color and shape, the Assistant Teachers were working together on new ways to bring all the classes together as a group. The teachers soon began planning to have classes create a “Community Shape Mural.”

One cold morning, the front of the Family Center became a classroom. Long pieces of sticky paper were hung in the window at the children’s level. Each class was assigned a shape to cut and bring to the project. In three rounds, a small group of children from each class came together and began to fill the sticky paper with shapes. Of course there was conversation about what shape they were placing, what color it was, and whether it was a big one or a little one. The young girls and boys worked alongside each other, mingling with children from other classes who might have been familiar by sight, but weren’t someone they had actually interacted with.

They compared shapes as they made choices and tried to find matching shapes to place next to each other. Together they watched the sticky paper fill with bright colors and familiar shapes. By the time the third round finished, the long banner was beautifully filled.

Even in a small program like the Family Center, it takes deliberate planning to bring classes together. We want this to happen because there is much to be gained at this time of year for children and teachers. Classrooms are very settled and the children have a clear sense and identity with of their particular class. They are also ready to expand those boundaries, and this project started by our wonderful Assistant Teachers is just one example of how this can happen.

The shape mural is still hanging in the window since that day, and no one really wants to take it down.

– Sara Soll Director of Family Center

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Jasper Shapiro ’03 is currently attending Florida Atlantic University in order to receive his BA in Urban Design. After graduating, he plans to get his MA in Urban Design and Landscape Architecture, which will allow him to focus on Urban Planning and architecture. Keep up the good work!

ALUMNI/AE CLASS NOTES

by Lekeia Varlack ’99 Would you like to be listed in the next edition of Class Notes?

We would love to hear from you! Feel free to call, write or stop by the alumni office. We can be reached at 718-852-1029, ext. 208, lvarlack@brooklynfriends.org 1950s It has been a wonderful journey working in the arts for Michael Kahn ’55. Beginning his career Off-Off Broadway, he has been the Artistic Director of The Shakespeare Company in Washington, DC since the mid 1980s.

Michael’s portfolio is packed with artistic accolades including contributing to The New York City Michael Kahn ’55 Opera, curating the Shakespeare in Washington celebration, and launching a Masters of Fine Arts program with George Washington University to help cultivate young actors for classical theater.

1970s The reviews are outstanding for Deadly Outbreaks: How Medical Detectives Save Lives Threatened by Killer Pandemics, Exotic Viruses, and DrugResistant Parasites by Dr. Alexandra Levitt ’71. This “scientific thriller” highlights the role of medical detectives in solving cases and saving lives. It

Zak Van Buren ’95

6 Brooklyn Friends School Newsletter SPRING 2014

has been described as “... an important addition to science literature.” Dr. Levitt has been a health scientist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention since 1995 and has said that one of her goals for this book is to inspire young people to consider careers in public health.

1990s If you watched this year’s 52nd Grammy Awards, then you’ve seen the work of Angelia Jenkins de Salcedo ’94. Positioned as the Talent Coordinator, Angelia adds to her already impressive resume of work done for major networks such as Nickelodeon, MTV and TVLand.

If you are a sports enthusiast, you might have seen the segment titled Superfan featured on NBC Sports. The piece showcases Zak Van Buren ’95 and his undying support for the Manchester City soccer team.

Good to see his love for the sport has not dwindled since his days on the BFS soccer team!

Ife Vanable ’99 is continuing her studies at Princeton working towards a Master’s degree in Architecture; she is set to graduate this year. She is also

Cindy Molina-Howell ’00 (photo by Gretchen Howell)

preparing applications for a Ph.D. program to further pursue her passion in architecture. All the best, Ife! 2000s Congratulations to Cindy Molina-Howell ’00 on the exhibit of the poetry and photography that is featured in her debut book, Untangling.

More of her works and future projects can be seen at cindy molinaphotography.com Congrats, Cindy!

Support alum Garrett Bradley ’03 and see her first feature length film, Below Dreams, debuting at the Tribeca Film Festival this spring. Garrett has made 24 short films and is the recipient of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association Award, Lynn Weston Fellowship, Motion Picture Association of America Award, Mary Pickford Award, and several academic fellowships. She also worked on the Emmy nominated film, Flag Wars.

Below Dreams was honored by the Independent Filmmaker Project and was selected for their 2013 Narrative Lab. The film is described as “A poetic journey following the lives of three young adults as they navigate the streets of New Orleans in pursuit of employment, stardom, and unconditional love.” Sounds like a film that shouldn’t be missed!

Filmmaker Matthew Gentile ’08 sat down with the Bridge Film Festival blog to discuss how BFS influenced his career in film.

He attended Connecticut College, where he got his B.A. in Film Studies and English and studied abroad at the FAMU Film School in Prague. He now attends the American Film Institute in Los Angeles where he’s pursuing a Master’s Degree in Directing. He’s currently putting the finishing touches on his latest project, Liberty House, and making plans for after graduation. We are looking forward to seeing more projects from Matthew!

New class agent Ryan Ladouceur ’09 has been building an impressive resume since graduating from the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor’s degree in Anthropology. He currently lives in Manhattan where he works in financial reporting for a subsidiary asset management firm under Prudential.

In Memoriam Barbara Stearns ’35 Arthur Schantz ’59 John Metz ’62

Upcoming

Alum Events

SAVE THE DATE

JUNE 7, 2014 Alumni Day Including a celebration of former teacher Dick Begelman

alum

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PROFILE

NIEL ISBRANDTSEN RISING

Niel Isbrandtsen Rising pictured with one of her 13 great grandchildren.

N

iel Rising ’43 was born in her family home near Prospect Park, Brooklyn, in 1925. At around the age of five her family moved into a seventh floor apartment at 35 Pierrepont Street and she entered the BFS Kindergarten, following literally in the footsteps of her brothers Jakob Isbrandtsen ’39 and Walter Isbrandtsen ’34. “We all entered at the same time...I attended BFS for 14 years, including two years in Kindergarten, and all in the same building at 112 Schermerhorn Street,” she said. “I walked with my two brothers every day, rain, shine or snow, and never missed a day of school.

We had our throats looked at every morning

by Nurse Veit.” The nurse may have been looking for signs of diphtheria, an upper respiratory illness that in the 1920s had killed tens of thousands in the US, the majority of them children.

“I was never a good student,” Niel admitted, “but I loved school. The lower grades had recess up on the roof and in a gym that had a very low ceiling. There was a small, concrete outdoor play yard and we attended Quaker meeting every Wednesday.” All of that physical activity must have gotten her interested in sports because she became a dedicated school athlete. “I was on the field hockey team in the fall and basketball team in the winter,” she said, “in the very low

ceiling gym. I was captain several times or co-captain.” In the spring she played tennis.

“BFS had playing fields in the middle of Brooklyn. We had to take a bus to get to them and often got back to school after dark.”

Additionally, some parents requested that their children attend “First Day School” on Sundays. “I had no choice in what school I attended, but never once questioned my parents choice,” she said. “If I didn’t behave at any time my parents threatened to send me to Packer, an all girls school,” which seemed to her at that age a fate worse than death. She rattled off many names of teachers she considered influential to her development: Miss Cornelia Jaggar, Mr. Warren B. Cochran, Mr. Benedict, Miss Bowers, Miss Conrad, Benjamin Burdsall, Mrs. Heath, Miss Craig.

In 1939 her parents bought a magnificently large six-story brownstone at 87 Remsen Street, a piece of Brooklyn history built in 1889. She pointed out that the brownstone, today subdivided into co-op apartments, was the tallest in the area and boasted 10-foot ceilings and mahogany, birdseye maple, oak and walnut paneling. According to Niel, the man who had built it, New England manufacturer Eben J. Knowlton, had it designed for his sick wife who was homebound. “He made

the inside as beautiful as possible for his wife.

The interior had a mosaic floor entrance and sliding pocket doors dividing three rooms on each floor. The staircase was paneled with oak walls and had oak filigree at landings.”

93-year-old Eben Knowlton died in the house in 1938. A year later Niel’s family took up residence there. “It was a wonderful neighborhood,” Niel said. “A fine, close knit group of residents and we could walk to wherever we needed to go and be safe.”

They spent their summers in Brightwaters, NY where she met her future husband, a summertime neighbor and family playmate named Albert E. Rising, Jr. By sophomore year the US was deeply involved in WW II, and BFS, like the rest of the world, felt some of the impact. The school answered the Quaker call to social action. “I organized a work force that used to fold bandages for the wounded,” Niel recollected, “and we also made up and sent care packages to the soldiers overseas.” Such projects to aid soldiers had a personal resonance for her.

“I had two brothers [the aforementioned BFS alums Jakob and Walter] in the services so I was interested in what the service men needed and would like to have. The teachers were also interested to help in the war effort, except for one, Miss Conrad, who was a pacifist and liked to believe it was never happening or shouldn’t happen.”

After graduation, during the height of WW II, Niel attended the University of Vermont for one year but her heart lay elsewhere. “I rode my bicycle from Burlington to Brooklyn that June and got married that summer of 1944,” she said. “That was the end of my academic career.” The long bicycle trek was a whim, “just something that came to mind at the end of my freshman year. I loved all kinds of challenges.” She and her friend Pat made the journey in five days. “I remember being very thirsty on the way so we stopped at a farm and asked the farmer for some water. He replied, ‘I have something better,’ and brought us milk that he had just milked from his cows. That went over like a ton of bricks.”

During the war her husband Al headed a research lab at the Naval Aeronautics Lab at the Navy Yard in Philadelphia, PA. “Al was in the Navy and worked on the arresting hook on aircraft carriers,” she explained. The hook was the device that caught fighter planes as they landed. A Ph.D. student in metallurgy at Yale, “he was commissioned to determine why an arresting hook would break, causing the landing pilot to go right off the carrier deck, plane and all, and into the sea.” Al had

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contnued

enlisted in the Navy while he was still in grad school. “The Navy allowed him to finish his doctorate before having to report for duty.”

When the war ended she and Al set about rearing “four productive children, two boys, two girls” born over the course of a decade. “Each graduated college, graduate school, and one completed his Ph.D.,” she boasted. “Each of my children had two children and now I have 13 great grandchildren.” When she wasn’t busy raising four kids she helped her husband run her family’s business, Isbrandtsen Oil and Gas, an oil and gas exploration company started by her father. “The company drilled and operated oil and gas wells in Michigan, Louisiana and Colorado.” After Al died in 1997 she continued to operate it for several more years before retiring. Today instead of looking for oil and gas she explores gardening, antiques and local historical societies where she lives year-round in the winterized summer home of her mother-in-law in Brightwaters.

Did a Friends education influence her after she left BFS? “Quaker values are the basis of our family values,” said Niel. “All of my four children attended Friends Academy Quaker School in Locust Valley on Long Island.”

Her heartfelt advice to the 21st century generation of Brooklynites attending the school today: “Follow the Quaker doctrine and values of simplicity, honesty, kindness and humbleness.”

– Jeffrey Stanley

THE GLITTERING PRIZES, 2014 Edition

C

ongratulations all around to the Brooklyn Friends students who had a great showing in the 2014 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. Six gold key prizes, 13 silver key prizes, and 10 honorable mention certificates have been awarded to 18 BFS students (grades 7 to 12).

Gold key winners advance to the national round of Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. This is a remarkable achievement for the prize winners, their teachers, and for all the students from BFS who had the ambition and courage to submit their work.

GOLD KEY in Writing Daniel Dorticos (poetry) Elinor Hills (short story) Clara Siegmund (flash fiction) SILVER KEY in Writing Amanda Becker (flash fiction) Annabel Forward (poetry) Kali Hough (poetry) Anna Emy (personal essay) Sam Miller (poetry) Giovanna Molina (two keys, for flash fiction and dramatic script) Fiona Sharp (poetry) Clara Siegmund (poetry)

GOLD KEY in Art: Anna Emy Elinor Hills Sarah Murray Elinor Hills (for her portfolio)

SILVER KEY in Art Anna Emy Sarah Murray Elinor Hills Hildi Gabel HONORABLE MENTION in Art Anna Emy Jillian Feinberg Elinor Hills Sarah Murray

I have layers beneath me that will forever go undiscovered hidden emotions in the depth of my soul they hide because they are afraid they are afraid of nothing except themselves Annabel Forward ’18, Scholastic Silver Key “Bona” by Elinor Hills ’14, from her portfolio

NEWSLETTER “EXTRA”

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Jackie Condie

8 Brooklyn Friends School Newsletter SPRING 2014

HONORABLE MENTION in Writing Asca Akiyama (poetry) Daniel Altschuler (poetry) Eve Bromberg (personal essay) Sam Miller (poetry) Tyler Roberts (poetry) Olive Wexler (poetry)

READ MORE ABOUT life at Brooklyn Friends School online at brooklynfriends.org/extra. Some of the articles you will find on the BFS website are listed below: A Fish Story – A teaching tool and a thing of beauty, the new 75-gallon aquarium is a welcome addition to fourth floor science labs and classrooms.

Art Meets Science – Learn how a group of IB Physics students helped solve a functional problem for our third graders’ woodworking class.

The Modern Library: Books, Blogs, and Apps – Librarians Kathy Hartzler and Christina Karvounis preside over an inviting library that preserves the joy of reading and storytelling while bringing young students into the digital domain.

20 Questions with Jackie Condie – Lower School Head Jackie Condie is celebrating her 25th year at BFS this academic year. In this interview, she reveals why she ran her fourth and final New York City Marathon, what led her to attend college in Utah, and how her first exposure to Quakerism was at a Jewish summer camp in the 1970s. (Pictured)

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emphasis on photography. He is still pursuing photography at Bowdoin, taking darkroom and color photography. He maintains ties to BFS, stopping in earlier this school year for Young Alums Day, an annual event organized by the BFS Alumni Office and College Counseling Office.

FILMMAKER, ATHLETE, POET A leader on a human rights mission to South Africa, a Bread Loaf poet, runner, and now documentary filmmaker, multi-talented senior Elinor Hills ’14 has just received a National Scholastic Gold Metal.

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enior, BFS Merit Scholar and lifer Elinor Hills ’14, has a lot on her plate these last months of her life at BFS. Last spring she attended the prestigious New England Writers Conference on the scenic Bread Loaf campus of Middlebury College. “My English teacher, Sidney Bridges, was the person who initially prompted me to apply,” she said. “I was accepted for a sample of poetry and I was put in a group for poetry that was lead by Marjorie Ryerson.” The supportive workshop environment got Elinor over her fear of openly sharing her work, explained the young poet.

Never one to sit still, this IB Visual Art student also spends a lot of time snapping pictures, and had work on display at last spring’s IB Art Show at the school. She is currently preparing for her senior year art show.

“Much of my photography is of either my family or my experiences in South Africa.”

The photographs were entered into the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards this academic year, and Elinor won a Gold Key for her photography portfolio. She will be honored in the NYC regional awards and will receive national recognition in June.

“One big project this year was writing my Extended Essay for the IB Diploma program,” she added. “I wrote my essay on the role of women in the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. While it was a lot of work I did enjoy being able to look very in-depth at a text that I found interesting outside the classroom and working closely with an adviser.”

Despite the hectic schedule, Elinor has found time to keep running this year, too.

She has continued on the school’s track team, and tried her feet at soccer this past fall. “We

had a successful season this year,” she said.

“The experience of participating on more of a team sport than track was very rewarding.”

Outside of school Elinor has merged her love of art with her ongoing passion for South Africa in the form of a short documentary. The purpose of this work-in-progress, she explains, “is to give a voice to the students I have worked with there.” She is also an avid guitar player.

Elinor has plans to major in either sociology or international studies. “Particularly I’m interested in stratification within school systems – both internationally with my work in South Africa and more locally,” she said. “I also hope to be able to pursue visual art and music in college.”

SCHOLAR OF SPANISH, MATH & POLITICS From student government to dance to a sociological study, Wesleyan-bound Tyler Clarke ’14 has dipped her fingers in, and excelled at, just about everything the school has to offer, setting the bar high for future student leaders.

“I

can feel the end and I cannot wait for graduation.” Upper School Student Vice President Tyler Clarke ’14, who entered BFS in seventh grade, voiced a familiar senior year sentiment as she wraps up her high school career at BFS. Known to her classmates and teachers as a natural leader and a role model for students in lower grades, she will surely be missed.

One element of life at BFS she’ll miss is “having those tight-knit relationships with the teachers that started teaching me when I was a freshman. They’ve watched me grow and our relationships also grew.” A case in point, “I love speaking to my Spanish teacher solely in Spanish and understanding just as if it was English,” said the Club Latino CoPresident. She is also a Student Ambassador for the Admissions Office helping to welcome new students, and she is completing a CAS project with senior Adam Ginsberg ’14 that focuses on artificial social constructs and spreading awareness in the Upper School of this widespread, and often unconscious, sociological grouping phenomenon.

Tyler, a committed dancer well before she came to BFS, is captain of the Panthers Supreme Dance Team and a member of the Varsity Volleyball Team. Outside of school

she is a Prep for Prep adviser, working closely with fifth and sixth grade students of color to help them prepare for, and gain admission to, independent schools.

What is her least favorite part of senior year? “Leaving BFS, because over the past six years I’ve really grown comfortable in this environment and this place really feels like home now. The people here are so welcoming and I’m really going to miss this community.”

Tyler is headed to Wesleyan University in September. Deciding on a major is still some time off, “but I love math and Spanish,” she said, “So maybe something along those lines with political science.” She also hopes to continue her passion for dance.

WHIZ KID An IB Physics and IB Biology student, Raphael Tenazas ’14 was a Rockefeller University science intern this past summer.

“M

y father turned me on to science – he took me often to the New York Hall of Science when I was young,” recalled Raphael Tenazas ’14.

This science student who entered BFS at the age of four “continued to love science through Middle and Upper School, and when I heard about an opportunity to take two sciences I jumped right on it.” A BFS Merit Scholar, Raphael decided to spend his final year of high school taking not one but two IB science classes, Biology and Physics.

But science is Raphael’s passion, so much so that he spent this past summer as an intern at Rockefeller University. Interns observe research scientists at work in the lab and participate in their research. “I worked in a neuroscience lab where I investigated the connections between facial expressions and emotion,” he explained. “Specifically, I used an MRI machine to detect metabolic activity in muscle as opposed to electric activity.”

Raphael is eagerly waiting to hear from colleges both on the East Coast and the West Coast. Wherever he winds up, he intends to major in electrical or computer engineering, “but it very well could change as I begin to take classes.”

Meanwhile the 12th grader remains actively involved with Model UN and waits graduation day while deciding on a fall wardrobe – sweaters or shorts.

— Jeffrey Stanley

SPRING 2014 Brooklyn Friends School Newsletter 9

PAYING TRIBUTE TO POP

ART

There’s more than meets the eye in the student paintings of rubber duckies, lipsticks, and household cleansers that hang in the stairwells and corridors of Pearl Street this year. 7th and 8th graders in Visual Art Teacher Tina Piccolo’s Painting class are immersing themselves in the profound “Pop Art” movement from the 1950’s and ’60s.

by Jeffrey Stanley

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hey say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

A key component of pop art was taking mass-produced objects and not only copying – but glorifying – them yet again as paintings. Such art gained popu-

larity in the 1950s and ’60s as many painters turned away from classical subjects and abstract expressionism to depict items from popular culture. Andy Warhol’s iconic Campbell’s soup can series is a prime example along with

Roy Lichtenstein’s paintings inspired by comic books.

What better way to pay tribute to the Pop Art movement than for students to create their own unique art in that brash style in the studio while also

learning about it in an academic setting. A spot-on pastiche of Pop Art – the creations of Visual Arts Teacher Tina Piccolo’s 7th and 8th grade Painting students – is currently on display in the Pearl Street stairwells.

The Middle School years are all about skill building and learning how to draw and paint representationally, explains Tina. BFS students learn the conventions of depicting the three dimensional world on a flat surface. For the Pop Art class, Tina created a staged set of still lifes in her 3th floor studio classroom consisting of such items as a Brillo pad box, a rubber duck, a bottle of Johnson’s Baby Powder and other mass produced arts and crafts created for mass consumption. Students then used viewfinders to observe and frame their own unique elements of the staged set to reproduce as original acrylic paintings.

Creating the illusion of threedimensionality on a flat surface isn’t as easy as it might seem at a glance. “The students practiced drawing and painting these mundane objects in ‘extraordinary’ ways by different techniques of paint application and by making them much larger than life and centrally focused in their compositions,” said Tina. “They also practiced mixing and matching color to describe the illusion of volume in form as well as methods of depicting shiny surfaces.”

Tina, a graduate of Cooper Union with a master’s degree from Brooklyn College, stresses that students learn not only technique in her classes, but art history as well. Aside from Warhol and Lichtenstein, students were exposed to the works of Claus Oldenburg, Wayne Thiebaud and others. “We also discussed why consumer and mass produced objects became the visual culture of this period and how mundane objects became the subject of glorified imagery.”

Teacher Tina Piccolo (left), the staged set, and students working on the Pop Art curriculum

10 Brooklyn Friends School Newsletter SPRING 2014

SEIZING THE DAY

to Celebrate Black Agents of Change

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he 19th annual BFS Black History Celebration on Feb. 7, 2014 was a joyous and purposeful event. Sponsored by the Parents and Teachers Association (PAT), it brought the community together to recognize historical Black agents of change and to inspire our students to become change-makers as well.

Whether they participated in one of the afternoon workshops or stayed through the evening’s dance party, the 250 students, parents, and faculty attendees had a fantastic time.

With the theme of “Black Agents of Change,” the event was filled with fun and educational activities for all.

The celebration kicked off with an afternoon of diverse workshops for young children, teens and adults. NY1-TV host (and BFS parent) Errol Louis led a discussion on the history of Black journalism. Full Force Dance and CUMBE directed three full-capacity dance workshops in the gymnasium. Science teachers Blake Sills and Margarita Alonso led a workshop on Dr. Charles Drew (1904-1950).

A physician and surgeon, Dr. Drew was a black agent for change in the medical profession as the inventor of the blood bank.

This year, a service-learning component was incorporated into the workshops. Community members participated in a schoolwide collection of personal items for homeless individuals. Two Upper School students, Hildi Gabel and Meledi Montano, visited some Lower School classrooms during the week leading up the celebration to talk with students about homelessness and why the collection boxes had been placed on each floor of the building. Then, on Friday, they read the story Uncle Willie and the Soup Kitchen to the Lower School students who attended the workshop. The students then helped to sort donated toothbrushes, toothpaste, chapstick, and socks into care packages, and drew supportive cards. Our 9th graders will deliver the packages in early spring as part of their service learning experience with the Youth Service Opportunities Project.

As always, one of the highlights of the evening was the family dinner with a multicultural menu inspired by changemaker-chefs Marcus Samuelsson and Sylvia Woods. For

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1). Guest artists Akoko Nante. 2). Panthers Supreme Dance Team. 3). Volunteer leaders (from left) Sharon Carew, Metasebia Hailu, Kay Wilson-Stallings, Suzannah Tartan, and Co-chair Raymi Ramseur.

4). Co-chair Monifa Bandele with TV journalist Errol Louis. 5). Middle and Upper School jazz musicians.

the fourth consecutive year, Head of School Larry Weiss served as the official mac and cheese server.

The evening’s program in the meetinghouse was joyful and inspired. Readings and performances by our own agents of change – BFS students of all ages – filled the stage. The Panthers Supreme Dance Team presented a piece inspired by Misty Copeland. Bianca Rhea ’15 read the words of the celebrated poet and writer Maya Angelou.

The Middle School Jazz Band played Duke Ellington’s “Take The A Train,” and senior Sayeed Joseph ’14 wrote and played his own jazz composition in tribute to John Coltrane.

Throughout the program, students presented “Did you know?” facts about historic Black agents of change. The special guest performers were the Akoko Nante Ensemble.

A New York based Pan-African percussion and vocal group, the band rocked the meetinghouse with their soulful, rhythmic, and jubilant sounds.

Before heading home, the crowd gathered for a dance party in the Pearl Street Lobby, led by DJ Squid. What a night – we can’t wait for next year!

Emily Cowles PAT Liaison and Special Events Coordinator

SPRING 2014 Brooklyn Friends School Newsletter 11

Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage

PAID S. Hackensack, NJ Permit # 79

Address Service Requested Vol. 10, No. 2, SPRING 2014 The Newsletter is published four times a year for BFS families, faculty, alumni/ae and friends.

Joan Martin, Editor 718.852.1029 brooklynfriends.org

A BENEFIT FOR FINANCIAL AID

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OIN US ON THE EVENING OF TUESDAY, APRIL 29, 2014 for a great party in support of the Brooklyn Friends School financial aid program at Brooklyn Bowl in Williamsburg. The BFS Spring Bowl will feature silent and live auctions, food by Blue Ribbon, dancing to the Dexter Lake Club Band and DJ Lumumba, and, of course, bowling with friends!

There’s an exciting new addition to this year’s event — the Spring Bowl Online Auction. Launching on April 14 and running through the event on April 29, a selection of fabulous auction items will be available for bidding online.

The Spring Bowl’s online, silent and live auctions feature something for every interest. Fantastic seats at one of our great city’s many sporting venues? We have them. Incredible after school and summer activities and camps for your child? We have those too.

You’ll also find your favorite fashions as well as access to some of New York’s best restaurants and night life. Don’t forget the relaxing get-a-ways at luxury hotels and bed-and-breakfasts. These categories and many, many more are all part of the Spring Bowl auctions.

Purchase tickets, make donations in support of the event and join the Spring Bowl Online Auction by going to www.brooklynfriends.org/springbenefit