The Steps of Caedmon Spring 2023

A LETTER FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL

Dear Caedmon Community,

This year’s issue of The Steps of Caedmon captures a much more familiar school —although, following a pandemic, can anything ever be “familiar” again?

Even with the familiar, though, there must be change, and the magazine describes how a new food service is keeping our tummies satisfied and our bodies healthy. The Steps of Caedmon also takes a look at our extensive digital marketing efforts—social media is one of the key sources for “getting the word out” about our marvelous school. The Fifth grade Class of 2023 have also put together their own class magazine full of fun facts and brain challenges, and it’s excerpted in these pages, as is a newspaper written by our Fourth graders.

In addition, an alum profile updates us about 2016 alums Alex and Terrence Fuller, and there is an article about the Fifth grade admissions process, when our graduates move on to their next academic adventure. Our mission statement is unequivocal—our students are creative, capable, and courageous Highly sought-after, they matriculate to the finest independent and public middle schools in New York City. It’s an active process, to be sure. But ask a Fifth grade parent about it and they will tell you it is profoundly gratifying to see their child display such maturity and self-direction. The joy of finding the exact right-fit middle and upper school for their child is often spoken of as a true gift of attending The Caedmon School. A Sixth grade admissions director told us that her team “always asks to read the Caedmon folders first, because they are always so interesting and fun.”

The Steps of Caedmon also provides the opportunity to recognize the generous giving that happens at this school. Like other independent schools and not-for-profit organizations, Caedmon could not exist without generous financial gifts. We count on our Caedmon parents, teachers, grandparents, alums, and staff to give generously, and as you can see in the magazine, that’s just what they do: we are overwhelmed with gratitude. The Caedmon Trustees start in September with a commitment from all of them to donate—and we depend upon the entire community to follow their lead.

As always, a well-deserved shout-out goes to the many people who volunteer at Caedmon. A special thank you also to the CFA Co-Presidents, Michelle Gramer and Nancy Virdi, and to the CFA Class Reps and their organizer Rob Polsky, who keep all of us “in the know.” As always, the editor of this magazine, Dan McNerney, has taken the time to capture our school.

Please enjoy The Steps of Caedmon and display it proudly for friends and relatives to notice. Every child here has a very unique, distinguished story, and we relish experiencing those stories as they unfold each year.

With gratitude and admiration,

Matthew Stuart

A LETTER FROM THE BOARD PRESIDENT

In June, my son’s Caedmon career will culminate with his graduation, and my term as president of the Board of Trustees will come to an end. I am proud of my son’s achievements at Caedmon, and I am proud, too, of Caedmon’s achievements during my years as president. These are the ones about which I am most proud:

Caedmon opened for in-person learning in September 2020. In September 2020, after three months of Covid-imposed lockdown, and three more months of summer “vacation,” our children returned to the schoolhouse squealing with joy. We were one of the very few schools in the city that opened their schoolhouse every day that school year, for which we can thank Mr. Stuart’s unapologetic optimism guided by a Health Advisory Team that included brilliant medical professionals and the school’s remarkable nurses. I was privileged to participate on this team—not to provide any answers, but to help frame the questions.

Caedmon has operated in the black during each of my years as president of the Board. Caedmon’s financial position has been strengthened by a group of trustees who have lent their business acumen and common sense to the school’s financial oversight. These trustees have worked with the administration to develop realistic budgets, and to keep our spending within our means. This discipline will benefit Caedmon for years to come.

Caedmon completed its most successful capital campaign ever. Caedmon owes its financial stability not only to sound business practices, but also to the $2.75 million raised by the Campaign for Caedmon to support teacher salaries, for a capital project, and to enhance our investment portfolio. As I look forward a few years, I surely hope that another capital campaign will enable Caedmon to further improve its physical plant, to fine-tune its rich curriculum, and to make itself even more attractive for admission and retention.

Caedmon is stronger today than it has ever been. When I became president in early 2020, I wanted to help make Caedmon a stronger institution. This goal was achieved because my colleagues on the Board contributed their time, judgment and personal financial support. We enhanced financial oversight, improved the school’s governance, and enriched the process for identifying and selecting new trustees, including both Caedmon parents and professionals who work at other schools. We have good reason to be proud of the job we have done.

My colleagues on the Board honor the ideal that we are all a part of something that is bigger than any one of us alone, and they enable us to celebrate a community that gives back because it sees its future in its children.

Best regards,

Jamie Stecher, President, Caedmon Board of Trustees

BACK TO THE LUNCHROOM: CAEDMON REOPENS ITS LUNCHROOM WITH A NEW CATERING COMPANY

Caedmon has opened its doors to a new food service company this year. Cater to You, founded in 1987 by Kathryn and Anthony Trentacosti, is a school dining company that prides itself on its progressive approach. Striving to ensure that children have fresh, healthful food to eat for lunch, it also views sustainability as a crucial value. All the food that the company serves is antibioticfree; eggs are from certified-humane and pasture-raised hens; and fish, when it’s on the menu, has been responsibly harvested. On a similar note, menus are based on what is seasonally available, and Cater to You’s staff makes efforts to cut down on food waste through methods that include recycling and composting.

Winstead Catering, Caedmon’s previous dining company, was a valued partner of the school’s. It provided lunch and snacks to Caedmon students from the 2005-06 school year onwards and gracefully handled the challenging 2020-21 and 2021-22 years, when all meals were served in the classroom as part of Caedmon’s Covid protocol. As Chief Financial and Operations Officer Dave Carty explains, however, the expenses of food service are such that it’s best to put it out to bid every few years, a practice that helps to ensure a school gets the best combination of quality and pricing. Caedmon, deciding to pursue this course last year, created a list of five food service providers, and in December of 2022, each was

asked to submit a bid by completing a Request for Proposal (RFP). Three of the five providers were selected as shortlist candidates, and their food was sampled by the members of a Caedmon task force assembled from the school’s administrative cabinet. Early in April, the task force decided unanimously that Cater to You had the winning combination of value and food quality.

The reopening of the dining room for lunch this year has been a likely factor in the greater variety of the meals— now there’s room again for a salad bar, as well as for sandwiches of various kinds for those who don’t like the hot meal of the day, which always has a vegetarian option alongside a meat main course. Additionally, as Mr. Carty notes, the school has rescinded its no-pork policy while still being sensitive to the needs of its diverse community by ensuring that a meat other than pork is also available on any day pork is served, and relaxed its fish ban so that tuna can be served (in plastic-wrapped sandwiches), two more decisions increasing the number of options on the menu. And neighboring the various sandwich offerings is a prepared specialty salad of the day. Separately from all this, the salad bar typically provides two different greens for making one’s own salad, and it also contains fresh fruit and yogurt along with salad ingredients such as carrots and cucumbers, chicken, turkey, and cheese. For students who would like something more along the lines of breakfast, a toaster handled by kitchen staff is available for toasting bread and bagels. And Cater to You offers an alternative to plain water that has proved very popular, agua fresca, a fruit-infused water which has been served in flavors such as watermelon, pineapple, and strawberry.

All this food is put together by the four-person Cater to You team working at the school: head chef Milena Jimenez, sous-chef Gilad Avital, prep cook and server Stacey Garcia, and prep cook/utility person Melinda Singh. A great deal of work is involved—Chef Milena reports that she and her staff arrive at the school by 6:15 AM at the latest to begin making lunch, and she’s full of praise for her coworkers, noting in particular how much time Ms. Garcia spends just planning the daily prepared salad and the dressing that goes with it. Fourth grade homeroom teacher Rose Kory echoes Chef Milena’s praise of Ms. Garcia, saying that she goes “above and beyond” by even taking time to prepare little lunch boxes for the fourth grade classroom’s resident guinea pigs.

The hard work of the Cater to You staff has been well received. “We’re impressed by the quality and variety of

the food we’re getting,” Mr. Carty remarks, explaining that the school has conducted surveys about the food, and that the feedback has been very positive. Beginners teacher Nora Beard confirms this assessment, saying that “the soup is really good, and [the chefs] share the recipes if you ask!” Elaine Fitzgerald, also a Beginners teacher, raves about the coffee, which “is amazing—always fresh and never bitter!” And science teacher Adam Schlessinger comments, “I like the variety of the sandwiches, which have some neat twists on them!” But the final word should go to the students. In the excerpted interviews that follow, students in the Early and Elementary Programs offer their thoughts on this year’s lunch, homeroom teacher Mrs. Rama adding some detail to expand on the comments of the youngest students sharing their views with The Steps of Caedmon

STUDENT LUNCH REVIEWS

MADELEINE PARRY (Third Grade)

They do different styles of food, and so far, on holidays, they have food for the theme. If you don’t like what they’re serving for the hot food, you can always get something at the salad bar. My mom usually tells me to have a vegetable each day, so if I don’t like what they’re serving I can always go to the salad bar. I like how they have the agua fresca—I don’t like all of them, but it’s great that they serve something else besides plain water…For Halloween we had pizza because it’s a special occasion. Sometimes they’re creative and they make new combinations of food that you wouldn’t normally make.

PENELOPE BARBER AND LUKASZ BALON (Lower Level)

Penelope: It’s really good. I like it because it’s homemade. I like the chicken noodle soup. There’s variety. They have a salad bar—it has yogurt, sauces, pink onions, fruit mix. They have [a place] where you can get lunch if you’re vegetarian. My favorite agua fresca was probably the cucumber and lime.

Lukasz: It’s really good because I love the tomato sauce and the broccoli, and today’s lunch—it was zucchini and broccoli. You always see me take some fruit—grapes are my favorite one. Today I took strawberries and blueberries. My favorite meal was the bread and cheese and you dipped it in the tomato sauce—it was so good!

EMERSON YOUNG, SOPHIA OCHMAN, AND CARTER FURST (Early Program)

What are your favorite foods served at lunch this year?

Emerson: Tomatoes, cucumbers, soup, bagels!

Sophia: Bagel, bagel, bagel! Bagels, tomatoes, and cucumbers. One time I liked the sandwich with cheese in it. I like the pizza—we only have it on the pizza days.

Carter: I like grapes, chicken, turkey, corn!

Majlinda Rama (Emerson, Sophia, and Carter’s homeroom teacher): My class all eat the vegetables. They all eat the bagels. The soup this year has been really popular—they really like the soup. They like chicken, sloppy joes. They like it when they introduce a different theme or culture. They really like the holiday meals. Here the chef asked me what my favorite Albanian dish is, because she wants to introduce students to more cuisine. It was interesting to see the chef willing to bring a different culture to the kitchen.

WYATT ELLIS AND CHASE FORDE (Kindergarten)

Wyatt: Pasta! I like the after lunch [the meal served after the hot main course]—bagels and bread, sandwiches, and the salad bar.

Chase: I like the bowtie pasta and I like some jelly sandwich and I like different kinds of pasta—the chefs and the lunch captains are doing a good job!

Spreading the Word: Caedmon’s Digital Marketing

How do independent schools attract new families in today’s world? How do they get the word out about themselves when word of mouth is much less of a thing? We’re now in the third decade of the 21st century, and the marketing landscape has undergone enormous change, especially in the last ten years, most of it driven by social media and other applications of the internet. A good map of the terrain will mark off new features such as Instagram and TikTok, Twitter, YouTube, and, above all, Google, which is overwhelmingly the most popular of search engines. As Ali Foresi, Caedmon’s Director of Communications, puts it succinctly, “Google is how people go about finding us these days.”

Acknowledging these facts, Caedmon has begun working with Little Foxes, an agency that specializes in the digital marketing of schools and colleges, to advertise itself to parents looking for an independent school for their young children. In a way, this turns out to be a story—one of several—about Caedmon’s strides towards becoming a true 21st century school. It begins with Caedmon’s Chief Financial and Operations Officer, Dave Carty. Mr. Carty, who has served on its board since 2002, has seen the Hoboken-located Stevens Cooperative School make great improvements in its marketing and communications strategy over the years. When he learned, soon after taking up his new position as the school’s CFOO, that Caedmon had a similar interest in strengthening its marketing and communications, he suggested a team-up with Little Foxes, which has been responsible for pushing forward much of the positive change occurring at Stevens. The administrators and Caedmon board members who would be working with them were impressed by what the Little Foxes team had to say when they first met with them, and as a result the group was brought in around August of 2021 to increase the precision and coverage of Caedmon’s digital communications.

The marketing efforts with which Little Foxes is helping Caedmon fall into three main groups. Of these, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the best known. For those unfamiliar with the term, SEO refers to practices that maximize the likelihood that one’s website will turn up in a Google search. Typically, these practices involve incorporating highly searched keywords into the website’s meta descriptions—the descriptions of the site’s pages, written in HTML code, which are translated into summaries of a website’s content underneath the website URL on a search engine results page (SERP). The work Little Foxes does in this area is primarily concerned with ensuring that people outside of Caedmon’s parent body can easily come across the school’s recently revamped website if it has content that would be relevant to them. Mrs. Foresi explains that she works directly with an SEO specialist at Little Foxes, Amanda Klotz, changing metadata in the website along lines indicated by Ms. Klotz so as to increase the odds that the website turns up in Google searches pertaining to New York City elementary and pre-K education.

A Zoom meeting with Little Foxes

In addition to fine-tuning the website for Google searches, Little Foxes also helps Caedmon with Search Engine Marketing (SEM) and Social Media Marketing (SMM). SEM, as its name suggests, concerns paid advertising on Google and other search engines—it’s marketing which arranges for ads to turn up on search engine results pages when certain keywords are entered for a search. SMM, on the other hand, is a matter of advertising that appears on social media. So far, Caedmon has done very targeted SMM, confining it to Facebook and Instagram, the platforms currently most popular with the school’s community. In these cases, advertisements for the school appear in the Instagram or Facebook accounts of people who have recently done Google searches for the school or, more generally, for an independent pre-K/elementary school in New York City. Viewers who engage with the ads, becoming followers of Caedmon’s Facebook or Instagram accounts, additionally gain access to the organic content posted there, material which can help them to form a more detailed picture of a Caedmon education. And because this year the school has formed a three-person team dedicated to putting up video and other content on these digital platforms, their potential to inform viewers outside the Caedmon community has increased.

Some digital marketing has also been conducted through other venues, not qualifying as either SEM or SMM. Informational videos about the school uploaded to YouTube are one example. Director of Admissions

Jennifer Tarpley-Kreismer, who has been involved in developing a number of these, has found that they have proved quite popular: “How do we attract folks to Caedmon who may never have heard of us or who heard of us but didn’t quite understand who we were?” she asks. “Our videos have been really key. They have a phenomenal percentage of people who watch them all the way through. That has been great for brand awareness.”

Little Foxes currently holds meetings every month with a Caedmon team comprising Mrs. Tarpley-Kreismer, Mr. Stuart, Mrs. Foresi, Mr. Carty, and Caedmon trustee Garret Leahey, whose job at Google gives him a deep understanding of the information Little Foxes presents. At these meetings, marketing strategies for the coming

month are discussed, and there are detailed reviews of the performance data gathered by Little Foxes in regard to Caedmon’s marketing and its organic website traffic. The goal, as always, is constant refinement of communications strategy so that families with Caedmon-age children can be made aware of the school’s existence or better informed about what it has to offer. Reflecting on the work being done, Mr. Carty remarks, “I had heard the line about this school used to be, ‘Caedmon is the best-kept secret.’ And I was talking to Matthew, and we both said, ‘We can’t be the best-kept secret. We have to be so well known that we have people beating a path to our door!’”

The Little Foxes dashboard, which is reviewed at meetings with the group

CAEDMON’S PLACEMENT PROCESS

“This school looks like it would be a great fit for my child, but it ends in fifth grade and I don’t think we can handle doing another round of applications!” That’s the kind of thought that keeps some parents from enrolling their children at Caedmon. But is the middle school application process really as stressful as it seems? Viewing that question from another angle, does applying to middle school have any positives for the children who are involved in the process? And are there benefits to attending a school with an exclusively pre-K and elementary student body?

Caedmon emphasizes to applicant parents that it is a school centered on young children—the absence of students in middle and high school ensures that the environment is tailored to younger students, allowing them to be themselves, without the influence of older peers. The children are given a space in which to thrive, where they can discover their passions, and the school’s progressive atmosphere develops their independence and

The process of applying starts with meeting about where you see your child potentially going and where you think they might fit and the school also contributes with where they think your child might fit. It’s comforting to know that I know my child, the school knows my child, and the school knows other schools where my child might go.

— Meredith Woodruff (Caedmon teacher and alum parent)

their love of learning. As explained by Head of School Mathew Stuart, Caedmon is about “[g]etting kids to love school. This school is a place only devoted to setting up that foundation in a child. Any worry or any influence

Mr. Stuart and Mrs. Mehdi meeting with Upper Level parents

from adolescents, from middle school, high school, we don’t have.” By the time Caedmon children reach fifth grade, it becomes possible to make a decision about which middle school they will attend which is deeply informed by knowledge of who they are as learners, and they get to play a large role in the choice of their next school.

In addition, parents have no guarantees that they won’t have to deal with applications again until college if they do place their child in a K-12 school. Sometimes it gradually becomes clear that a school is not the right fit, and sometimes children decide that they want to attend a different school once they reach their middle school or high school years. If that happens, however, it isn’t always the case that parents will receive support with the transfer process from their child’s current school. Caedmon alum parent Helen Cantwell comments about this, “If you do transfer out, would you rather go through this process with a lot of support and positivity or do it without support? [At Caedmon, the process] is planned, supportive, and full of positivity.” The transfer process begins as early as third grade, when it gets brought up in conversation as children prepare to take the ERB CTP-5 test, their first standardized test at Caedmon. The process begins in earnest in April of fourth grade, when parents are invited to hear from a panel of admissions directors from middle schools. Mr. Stuart and assistant head Mrs. Mehdi also meet at this time one-on-one with parents to discuss their child and the schools they have it in mind for them to attend. The parents are

Matthew was great. He was amazing. We sat with him several times just to get a sense of where the kids would thrive. He had a really good sense of who they were and just gave us some good suggestions. Some very good communications—some very good emails starting in fourth grade, maybe even third grade. They were appropriately timed, asking us to put together a brag sheet, to ask, who is your kid? The UL teachers and Matthew did a great job preparing them for interviews.

— Gretchen Kocica (alum parent)

encouraged to conduct some research over the summer, and then they reconvene with Mr. Stuart in September for a follow-up talk. Throughout the fall, fifth graders prepare for the Independent School Entrance Exam (ISEE), a standardized test used in admissions to independent schools, studying for the exam during school hours and also having the option of taking Caedmon’s ISEE prep class in the school’s after school program. During the school day, moreover, they take a transfer process class every other week with Mr. Stuart and Mrs. Medhi, learning about interview dos-and-don’ts and various other points connected with school visits and applications. And each student gets to do at least one mock interview in school, meeting with certain teachers or administrators for that purpose.

Throughout October, November, and December, as students make visits to schools and they and their parents complete applications, Mr. Stuart is available to discuss any concerns that may arise. In December, parents share their finalized list of schools with Mr. Stuart, Mrs. Mehdi, and Ms. Bonet, and Ms. Bonet then assembles a recommendation packet for each student that is sent out to the schools on the student’s list. The packet, which is very comprehensive, includes report cards from June of third and fourth grade, a graded writing sample chosen by the student and the fifth grade homeroom teachers, CTP-5 test scores from fourth grade, and recommendation forms completed by Mr. Stuart, the student’s fifth grade

Mrs. Mehdi and Mr. Stuart discussing placement with the fifth grade

I think it’s good because then you get to explore other schools and it’s the student’s choice to choose the school they want to [attend]. In the future when you have to get a job like an office job, you’ll have to apply for it and you’ll have to have interviews, so this is very good to help you throughout life!

— Kyle Yuen (Upper Level student)

homeroom teacher, and, if requested by a particular school, a specialist teacher as well. During the month of January, Mr. Stuart and Mrs. Mehdi are on the phone with admissions officers, advocating for the students; and when admissions letters arrive in early February, fifth graders can often make additional visits to the schools from which they’ve received acceptances if they need more information to reach a decision. For independent schools, parents and students must make a decision by the first Tuesday in March. Caedmon also provides guidance to parents applying their children to New York City public schools, which have a longer process extending into April: if a child attends Caedmon, the neighborhood public schools in district 2 (Caedmon’s district) are available for them to attend, even if they don’t live in the area.

Describing her experience with all of this last year, Lower Level teacher and recent alum parent Meredith Woodruff says that “it was seamless, it was well-organized. The timing was spot-on, the check-ins were helpful and gave good guidance. There was a logical progression. There was support and feedback.” And Helen Cantwell, whose twins Lila and Caroline now respectively attend Trinity and Brearley, remarks that the transfer process “was a very positive experience—well-organized, substantive for the kids. We appreciated how honest it was—there were realistic expectations for kids. [The process] taught kids how to interview, how to think about big, hard questions.” William Dabbs, Class of ’22 and now at Horace Mann, agrees, noting that “the transfer process class was really helpful. They gave me examples of what interviews would be like.” He also says that the decision to attend his current school was his own, and he reflects, interestingly, that what may have been the most difficult part of it all was how long he had to wait between receiving his acceptance letters and notifying his classmates of his choice: “It was longer than expected…It’s like not sharing grades for a really big assessment!”

The independence and responsibility William enjoyed in this process seem typical for Caedmon students. Helen Cantwell stresses that it was her daughters who made the decision to attend different schools, and that this choice “emerged out of being a Caedmon student. Being at Caedmon allowed us to see what kind of students [Lila and Caroline] were. They could have gone to the same school but they chose not to.” Similarly, Gretchen Kocica, mother of Karolina (’16) and Veronika (’22), says that her daughters, who both attend Trevor, picked the school themselves, and she remarks that children applying to middle school “have to have input. They need to own it and feel 100% about it.” She also believes that the independence and decision-making fostered by the transfer process helped to prepare Karolina for college applications, with which she has been busy this year as a high school senior; about this process she says, “I’m much less involved—they know what to do! This is her [Karolina’s] decision.” And of Veronika, now in sixth grade, Mrs. Kocica observes that “Caedmon taught her to be confident, to be a self-advocate, and she’s been doing amazing.”

What about Caedmon students currently going through the transfer process? Sitting down to talk about it towards the end of the fall term, two of them, Andrew Dele-Michael and Kyle Yuen, had much to say that chimes with the observations made by alum parents and recent alumni like William Dabbs. “It’s been going well,” Andrew says of the experience. “It has a lot of steps to it—essay writing, tours, interviews, and the [ISEE] test. The interviewing process I’ve come to like—you meet a brand new person, and even if it’s just for 20 minutes, they get to know a lot about you and you get to know a lot about the school.” For his part, Kyle notes that the transfer process “can be stressful— it’s also really fun at the same time, looking at all these schools that you wouldn’t have heard about if this process didn’t exist. Touring the schools—especially during school hours—you get to see the real inside of the school as opposed to what people say!” Both students share the view that the transfer process is not an add-on to their learning but an educational experience in its own right, one through which they have acquired new skills and been introduced to new concepts. “You get to learn about time management,” Kyle observes, adding that “on verbal reasoning [on the ISEE] you have very little time.” And Andrew explains, “All this test prep—in the last three months I’ve learned so many things, like algebra. My reading comp has gotten so much better, and I’ve definitely gotten better on my essay writing, especially timed essay writing!”

A Snapshot of the Year

Caedmon Celebrates 60 Years!

CAEDMON FIRST OPENED ON SEPTEMBER 10, 1962 AND ITS FIRST LOCATION WAS A SINGLE CLASSROOM IN ST. JOSEPH’S SCHOOL ON 420 EAST 87TH STREET

1ST MONTESSORI SCHOOL IN NEW YORK CITY AND THE 2ND MONTESSORI SCHOOL IN THE US

THE FOLLOWING YEAR, THE SCHOOL OPENED A SECOND LOCATION AT ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST SCHOOL ON

56TH STREET AND 1ST AVENUE

CAEDMON MOVED TO ITS PRESENT BUILDING IN THE FALL OF 1969

CAEDMON HAS HAD 10

HEADS OF SCHOOL OVER THE COURSE OF ITS HISTORY

ACTRESS HELEN HUNT

AND TELEVISION JOURNALIST

CHRIS CONNELLY

ARE CAEDMON ALUMNI

The 2022-23 school year marks Caedmon’s 60th anniversary! In celebration of this milestone, here are some facts about the school and its history…

CAEDMON BEGAN ITS AFTER SCHOOL MUSIC PROGRAM IN 1990, WHILE ITS DISCOVERY CAMP HAD ITS START IN 2009

THE FIRST UPPER LEVEL

MUSICAL,

THE CAEDMON SCHOOL SONG,

ONCE ON THIS ISLAND , WAS PERFORMED IN 2008, AND IT WAS DIRECTED BY THEN HEAD OF SCHOOL GREG BLACKBURN AND THEN CAEDMON PARENT TREY ANASTASIO, THE LEAD GUITARIST OF PHISH

WAS WRITTEN BY THE FACULTY AND STUDENTS UNDER THE DIRECTION OF FORMER MUSIC TEACHER JIM ZIMMERMAN IN 1984

4,000

CHILDREN HAVE ATTENDED CAEDMON THERE WAS A 6TH GRADE AT CAEDMON UNTIL 2003

“WHEN I GO TO SCHOOL,”

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT

To judge from their efforts in these areas, Caedmon students in the older grades seem to be enthusiastic about making newspapers and magazines. In the next three pages we present pdf samples from the publications they have been working on at select times during the school day. A group of this year’s fourth graders, continuing an interest of theirs that dates back to when they were in Lower Level, have created a class newspaper, The Caedmon Daily. Unsurprisingly, the focus of this publication has

been the classroom’s beloved guinea pigs, Bella and Sparky, who sadly died this past winter, and new addition Biscuit (the articles were written before the arrival of Biscuit’s companion, Dorito). Meanwhile, the entire fifth grade has been developing a class magazine with the online design tool Canva; on pages 18-19 we include a trivia and games section from the fifth graders’ initial effort—they are considering the possibility of making another, highly revamped magazine as an end-of-the-year project.

Above: The journalists in this year’s fourth grade who developed The Caedmon Daily

Right: The fifth grade, which jointly produced the magazine excerpted on pages 18-19.

Caedmon Conservationists

It is common to see Caedmon alumni living out the school mission as they matriculate through their remaining school years and into their professional and personal adult lives. In particular, “the natural curiosity of each child, which is the foundation of academic achievement” is frequently exemplified in the pursuits taken up by Caedmon alumni as they follow their passions.

When they were students at Caedmon, Class of 2016’s Terrence and Alexandra Fuller became fascinated by the science lab’s pet lizard. Their early interest in biodiversity and environmental conservation later blossomed through their high school’s Global and Environmental Certificate Program, culminating in a service trip to Costa Rica.

The current 12th graders, who will both attend Boston College this fall, recapped their Costa Rica adventure to

The Steps of Caedmon and highlighted the thread that ties Caedmon’s approach to learning to the amazing achievements that lay ahead of them.

The Steps of Caedmon: When did this trip take place?

Terrence and Alex: Last summer, in 2022, we traveled with Smithsonian Student Travel to Costa Rica for an environmental studies trip. We went to multiple locations, such as Escazu, Tortuguero National Park, La Selva Research Station, and San Jose. Our favorite location was Tortuguero, where we spent the longest time during our trip.

How and why did you get involved?

At our current boarding school, Loomis Chaffee, there is a program called the Global and Environmental Studies

A school where the Fullers taught during their trip to Costa Rica

Certificate Program (GESC). For the GESC, we undergo many assignments, projects, and courses related to global and environmental factors. We completed the class work, but we still had to do an experiential educational experience. We chose to help with turtle and wildlife conservation in Costa Rica. We always loved turtles, so it was a huge interest of ours. Also, there is a huge issue with turtle egg poaching and this was something that we wanted to learn more about, as well as ways to combat the problem.

What were your two or three biggest takeaways from the experience? What did you learn most? What surprised you?

The trip was amazing, and we learned so many valuable lessons that we will continue to implement in our lives. The first major takeaway from this trip would be the importance

of wildlife conservation and how this is an issue that concerns everyone worldwide and not just people with nature in their backyards. Even though we live in New York City, these issues are pressing and very important. Another takeaway would be to immerse yourself in new communities and cultures. When we were in Tortuguero, we taught 1st through 3rd graders about wildlife conservation. We had an amazing time, and it was rewarding to teach others this important information. In return, we had a great cultural exchange, and the children taught us some of their games, showed us their work, and also gave us suggestions on where to go in their town.

How did your Caedmon elementary experience influence your interest in travel and world cultures?

Caedmon alumni have a love of traveling, trying new things, and bettering the world around us. Growing up, one of our favorite classes was Science, where we learned about animals, the environment, and much more. We remember how we had a class bearded dragon that we were mesmerized by. The hands-on learning approach cultivated at Caedmon became a strength in Costa Rica when we got to help with the turtle egg laying process. We actually got to hold the turtle eggs while counting them to keep track of the total eggs on the beach to make sure the turtle conservation center was aware when eggs were being poached. The self-directed activities and interests that Caedmon allowed us to partake in grew our love for turtles at the time. We asked our science teacher if he could teach us more about turtles and he explained the difference between the various species and more. This interest continued from Caedmon and is probably the reason why we ended up going on this amazing trip and learning experience. Moving forward, we plan to continue using these skills that Caedmon taught us to continue to explore the world [and] different cultures, and examine environmental and global issues.

Class of 2016 alums Terrence and Alex Fuller in a recent photo

Terrence and Alex in their fifth grade year at Caedmon

Philanthropy Support

2021-2022 PHILANTHROPY DOLLARS RAISED

162 families

60 faculty and

ANNUAL FUND DOLLARS RAISED BY CONSTITUENCY/ NUMBER OF DONORS

186 Donors

28 New donors

36% donors who gave a gift of $100 or less

19% of gross tuition revenue awarded for financial assistance

36 match challenge gifts, raising a total of $69,824

With Deep Gratitude

Thanks to all who helped us surpass our Annual Fund goal, raising $360,000. Every gift makes a difference and contributes to what we can accomplish together.

We are grateful to our awesome community of parents, board members, alum parents, grandparents, and friends for their support this past year.

This year was Caedmon’s first ever match challenge, wherein an anonymous donor pledged to match up to $25,000 for every dollar raised within one week’s time. Our supporters stepped up and not only met this challenge but exceeded it, gifting a total of $44,000.

At Caedmon we value not only monetary giving but those who give of their time and talents. Bravo to our Family Association for marching on through a challenging year. Although our in-person events were tempered, we managed to hold our main event, the Spring Benefit—Caedmon in the 1960’s—in person. Thanks go to all who volunteered for wonderful family events.

It is with deep gratitude for this community’s support of Caedmon that we share this report and our thanks for the generosity of our donors.

With deep gratitude,

Cindy Rodriguez Director of Development

THE ANNUAL FUND 2022

1962 FOUNDERS’ CIRCLE $20,000+

Anonymous

Ethan and Jenna Dabbs

Moreen McGurk and Family

HEADS’ CIRCLE $15,000+

Ejim and Andrea Achi

John Modzelewski and Jennifer Rodburg

Jamie Stecher and Becky Diamond

LEADERSHIP CLUB $10,000+

Joseph and Becky Hartswell

James and Mary Yellen

CAEDMON PARTNER $5,000+

Anonymous (2)

Eliot and Michelle Knudsen

Joseph Kramar and Jaymie Sullivan

Garret Leahey and Tanya Benenson

Joan Lonergan

Jinsong Liu and Xiaozhou Yang

David and Jody Stern

Matthew Stuart and Phillip Pena

Kiery and Marie Tuttle

Sarves and Pansy Verma

Eric Yuen and Patty Ng

Samuel and Kara Zanger

BENEFACTORS’ CLUB $2,000+

Anonymous (2)

Takumi and Tsukasa Arakaki

Elliot and Ashley Blanchard

Abiola and Adebola Dele-Michael

Alejandro de Ramon-Laca and Juana Galindez

Richard Froom and Kelly Riggle

Victor Gill and Amanda Lewis

David and Samantha Goldring

John Goodson and Merisa Dzau

David and Jill Grazioli

Steven Horwitz and Nicole Marshall

Thomas and Gretchen Kocica

Amos Ladouceur

Frederic Lotti and Pamela Codo-Lotti

Dale McComb and Ashleigh Bischoff

Matthew and Fang McDermott

John McGoldrick and Dana Rubinstein

Isao Okano and Renata Clemente-Okano

Sergio and Maria Pereira

Robert Polsky and Emily Prager

Mark Racanelli and Helen Cantwell

J.R. and Cindy Rodriguez

David Toberisky and Martha Hanson

Chetan and Vaishali Vig

Pei Wang and Tao Ling

Bradley Wasserman and Jennifer Capla

SPONSORS’ CLUB $1,000+

Anonymous

Gustavo Benchimol and Clara Gaspari

Tom Bubeck and Roberta Chevlowe

Crissy Cáceres

Brendan Costello and Diane Kwon

Michael and Anne D’Ausilio

Chris and Nevin Djoganopoulos

Noam Elharar and Daniella Sade

Jonathan and Daphne Ferdinand

Ronald Gee and Rose Ugarte-Gee

Freda Gimpel

Keith Gooberman and Brena Cascini Gooberman

Dinesh and Malini Goyal

Michael and Michelle Gramer

Konrad and Lisa Gruson

Hugh Hill and Julia Gorodetsky

Richard and Janine Hoffman

Neil and Hillary Hohmann

Anjali Kampschulte

Wayne Kawarabayashi and Moon Kim

David and Liz Kleckner

Jonathan O’Hara

Anurag Poddar and Nancy Virdi

Claudine Portella

Simon Prosser

Marilou Reventar

Nicholas and Kim Romano

Larry Rosenberg and Jessica Bloom

Eric Rosoff and Liza Sacks

Fred Rosoff

Joshua and Sara Shulman

Brett and Randi Singer

Todd and Jennifer Stone

Robert Nelson-Sullivan and Julie Mangan

Brian and Gina Swerdloff

Matthew and Allison Van Dusen

Lipeng Zeng and Ai Zhang

Michael and Betsy Zuppone

PATRONS’ CLUB $500+

Susan Austin

Nathan Bruker and Colleen Quilty Bruker

Maan Bsat and Faten Baassiri

David Carty

Rohit Chandwani and Serre-Yu Wong

Suzanne Charity

Elliot Charen and Alexandra Snyder-Charen

Erica Corbin

Colin and Kelly Court

Christopher Dawson and Lauren Iovino

Michael DiCintio and Marisa Shockley

Miles Dorch and Alina Arias

Gerald Flattmann

Jason Ford

Mark and Allison Foresi

Michael Giglio and Alyssa Rohdie

Frank Jessie

Peter and Gwenn Kapner

Alan and Randi Kahn

Robert and Barbara Kaufman

Cheng Lee and Angelika Kogler-Lee

Christopher and Katisha Liu

Gregory Maskel and Gabriela Pereira

Saniya Mehdi

Carl-Alain and Farida Memnon

L.J. Mitchell

Robert Nachtrieb and Alessia Falsarone

Robert and Sonya Neis

Werner and Souha Nikowitz

Richard and Rebecca Parry

Sean and Lucia Perkins

Juliana Pereira

Scott and Rebecca Potolsky

Jeffrey Sacks

Manuel Schmidt and Christiane Fashek

Craig Stinebaugh and Stephanie Lofgren

Jelle and Kathy Westra

Byron and Erica Whitmore

Friend Anonymous

Jenni Arcieri

Ivica Arsov and Dragana Nesic

Kristina Bakker

Mumin Berisha and Majlinda Rama

Henry Besanceney and Rosanna Ragone

Susan Bonet

Peter Bregman and Meredith Woodruff

Walter and Vicky Caban

Laura Capote

Alex and Caroline Castro

Herbert Charles and Shellette Henry

Inten Chen and Leslie Bernstein

Irving Cuevas and Irma Ramos-Cuevas

Neil and Kesha Desai

Thomas Denzler

Carol Jordan-Dorch

Elaine Fitzgerald

Paula Flatow

Robert and Sherli Furst

Claribet Garcia

Andrew and Brittany Green

Michael and Sheri Halsband

Heather Halverson

Marlon Jimenez and Johanna Burgos

Nick and Robyn Kajon

Tim Kau and Stephanie Chun

Peter and Diana Keenan

Daniel Keller Jr.

Susan Kelly

Rosemary Frisaro-Kessler

Nick Kessler

James and Beatrice Lattimore

Shixin Liu and Qiulei Hu

Suzanne Lynch

Jelecia McGregor

Dan McNerney

Melvin Morillo

Gary Nestler and Anna Winderbaum

John Oakes and Carin Kuoni

Lisa Oberstein

Richard and Leticia Ochman

Katie Parker

Richard Petrosky and Dana Bradley

Stephanie Power

Robert Ritchie and Amy Chow

Julio Rodriguez III

Ritendra and Rima Roy

Robert and Dee Dee Scarborough

Adam Schlessinger

Mark Schuman and Julie Williams

Arnab Sen and Swati Karkun

Martin Sherlock and Christine Spinelli

Norris Siert

William Silverman and Leslie Patterson

Bryan Storti

Ivonne Storti

Jennifer Tarpley

Jonathan and Jennifer Vaughan

Vikram and Stephanie Venkatraman

Richard Vollkommer and Emily Chapin

Mary Beth Vrazel

David and Monique Wakeling

Elizabeth Ward

Ziyao Wei and Yang Gao

Charles Yang and Sandra Smith

IN-KIND

Jonathan Perle and Jill Gluskin

Trustees

Susan Austin

Crissy Cáceres

Helen Cantwell

Erica Corbin

Jenna Dabbs

Adebola Dele-Michael

Jason Ford

Freda Gimpel

Michael Gramer

Joseph Hartswell

Kimberly Joyce-Bernard

Garret Leahey

L.J. Mitchell

Rebecca Parry

Kelly Riggle

Jamie Stecher

Kiery Tuttle

Chetan Vig

Charles Yang

Eric Yuen

Kara Zanger

Grandparents

Carol Jordan-Dorch

Robert and Barbara Kaufman

Sergio and Maria Pereira

Fred Rosoff

Jeffrey Sacks

Alum Parents

Ivica Arsov and Dragana Nesic

Henry Besanceney and Rosanna Ragone

Tom Bubeck and Roberta Chevlowe

Walter and Vicky Caban

Elliot Charen and Alexandra Snyder-Charen

Suzanne Charity

Thomas Denzler

Chris and Nevin Djoganopoulos

Gerald Flattmann

Michael Giglio and Alyssa Rohdie

Neil and Hillary Hohmann

Alan and Randi Kahn

Peter and Gwenn Kapner

Nick and Robyn Kajon

Wayne Kawarabayashi and Moon Kim

Peter and Diana Keenan

David and Liz Kleckner

Robert and Sonya Neis

Gary Nestler and Anna Winderbaum

Werner and Souha Nikowitz

John Oakes and Carin Kuoni

Richard Petrosky and Dana Bradley

J.R. and Cindy Rodriguez

Nicholas and Kim Romano

Ritendra and Rima Roy

Robert and Dee Dee Scarborough

Mark Schuman and Julie Williams

Arnab Sen and Swati Karkun

Martin Sherlock and Christine Spinelli

Brett and Randi Singer

Craig Stinebaugh and Stephanie Lofgren

Todd and Jennifer Stone

David Toberisky and Martha Hanson

Jelle and Kathy Westra

Michael and Betsy Zuppone

In-Kind Donors

Jonathan Perle and Jill Gluskin

Alum

Daniel Keller Jr.

Juliana Pereira

Julio Rodriguez III

Friends

Frank Jessie

Amos Ladouceur

James and Beatrice Lattimore

Lisa Oberstein

Stephanie Power

Simon Prosser

Marilou Reventar

Norris Siert

Ivonne Storti

Organizations

Assured Guaranty

Bank of America

Benevity Community Impact Fund

Goldman Sachs

JP Morgan Chase Bank

Mitsubishi Financial Group

Neuberger Berman Group LLC

New York Life

Piper Sandler

S & P Global

Winstead Catering

W.P. Carrey Foundation

CAEDMON IN THE 1960’S BENEFIT (Includes Underwriting and Live, Reverse, and Silent Auction)

LEADERSHIP CIRCLE $10,000+

Jamie Stecher and Becky Diamond

Joseph and Rebecca Hartswell

Nicolle Wallace

CAEDMON PARTNER $5,000+

Richard Froom and Kelly Riggle

Michael and Michelle Gramer

David and Jill Grazioli

BENEFACTORS’ CLUB $2,000+

Elliott and Ashley Blanchard

Ethan and Jenna Dabbs

David and Jill Grazioli

Konrad and Lisa Gruson

Tim Kau and Stephanie Chun

Frederic Lotti and Pamela Codo-Lotti

Dale McComb and Ashleigh Bischoff

Matthew Stuart and Phillip Pena

Kiery and Marie Tuttle

Eric Yuen and Patty Ng

Samuel and Kara Zanger

SPONSORS’ CLUB $1,000+

Anonymous (2)

Maan Bsat and Faten Baassiri

Nathan Bruker and Colleen Quilty Bruker

Michael and Anne D’Ausilio

David and Anne Fass

Ronald Gee and Rose Ugarte-Gee

David and Samantha Goldring

Keith Gooberman and Brena Cascini Gooberman

Dinesh and Malini Goyal

Andrew and Brittney Green

Kenneth Hightower and Casey Grillo

Richard and Janine Hoffman

Thomas and Gretchen Kocica

Joseph Kramar and Jaymie Sullivan

Antonin and Ines Marcus

Carl-Alain and Farida Memnon

Rob Polsky and Emily Prager

Simon Prosser

Douglas and Akiko Swett

Pei Wang and Tao Ling

Byron and Erica Whitmore

James and Mary Yellen

Mark and Torrey Young

PATRONS’ CLUB $500+

Martin and Lucia Biely

Elliot and Ashley Blanchard

Steven Horwitz and Nicole Marshall

Robert and Jessalyn Keywork

Shixin Liu and Qiulei Hu

Saniya Mehdi

Stephanie Messing

Robert Nachtrieb and Alessia Falsarone

J.R. and Cindy Rodriguez

Gregory and Veronika Spektor

Chetan and Vaishali Vig

FRIEND

Takumi and Tsukasa Arakaki

Susan Austin

Gustavo Benchimol and Clara Gaspari

Maan Bsat and Faten Baassiri

Crissy Cáceres

David Carty

Erica Corbin

Colin and Kelly Court

Abiola and Adebola Dele-Michael

Jason Ford

Freda Gimpel

Marleine Hofmann

Peter and Gwenn Kapner

Susan Kelly

Nick Kessler

Rosemary Frisaro-Kessler

David and Elena Friedman

Garret Leahey and Tanya Benenson

Brian and Laura Markovich

John McGoldrick and Dana Rubinstein

L.J. Mitchell

Isao Okano and Renata Clemente-Okano

Richard and Rebecca Parry

Anurag Poddar and Nancy Virdi

Larry Rosenberg and Jessica Bloom

Jennifer Tarpley-Kreismer

Mary Beth Vrazel

David and Monique Wakeling

Byron and Erica Whitmore

A sincere thank you to the Caedmon teachers who, along with their students, created magnificent works of art. The pieces they made have contributed greatly to our Benefit’s success.

TEACHER EXPERIENCE DONORS

Jenni Arcieri

Susan Kelly

Jacob Meyers

Bryan Storti

NOTE: In compiling our list of donors, every effort is made to be accurate. If your name has been omitted or listed incorrectly, please let the development office know and accept our sincere apologies.

Head of School

Matthew Stuart

Assistant Head of School/ Director of Early Childhood

Saniya Mehdi

Director of Elementary

Jelecia McGregor

Elementary Student Learning and Support

Heather Halverson

Development

Cindy Rodriguez

Finance

Dave Carty

Communications

Ali Foresi

Admissions

Jennifer Tarpley-Kreismer

After School and Alumni Development

Andrew Kagan

Board of Trustees

Susan Austin

Crissy Cáceres

Erica Corbin

Jenna Dabbs

Adebola Dele-Michael

Jason Ford

Freda Gimpel

Michael Gramer

Joseph Hartswell

Garret Leahey

Dale McComb

Farida Memnon

L.J. Mitchell

Rebecca Parry

Emily Prager

Kelly Riggle

Manuel Schmidt

Jamie Stecher

Katie Taylor

Kiery Tuttle

Chetan Vig

Charles Yang

Torrey Young

Eric Yuen

Kara Zanger

Caedmon Family Association

Co-Presidents

Michelle Gramer

Nancy Virdi

416 East 80th Street

New York, NY 10075

caedmonschool.org