alumni at large TEACHING PRINCIPLES | Melissa Kim ’97 Melissa Kim ’97 is no stranger to new frontiers— personal or professional. As a third grader, she crossed her first frontier when her father moved the family from Seoul, South Korea, to Yardley, Pennsylvania, to pursue his postdoctoral work and give his daughters more life choices Kim found herself immersed in a new culture and in a new language. When Kim became principal two years ago of Washington, D.C.’s 800-student Alice Deal Junior High, she encountered Melissa Kim ’97 with two students at Alice Deal Junior High School in another frontier. “There are a Washington D.C., where Kim is principal. lot of women principals at the elementary level, but not at support the teacher’s lesson.” the middle school and certainly not many Asian It was while working at Shadd Elementary women principals,” Kim said. “I don’t have a School, also in D.C., that Kim saw how dedication, network like that. I’ve always been the only Asian high expectation, and teamwork can change kid doing something.” educational experiences for children. Shadd had Her example as a minority woman doing performed miserably for nine consecutive years professional work is a powerful one for the when the superintendent shut it down and hired all immigrant and minority children in her hallways, new staff—including Kim. she says. She firmly believes many underprivileged “The whole school culture from top to bottom kids struggle because they don’t see role models was a mess,” Kim said, and the new staff teamed in leadership positions. up to turn things around. In Kim’s five years at She is shouldering impressive burdens for a Shadd, test scores went up and parents became 31-year-old educator. As Alice Deal’s principal, she more involved. It was no mystery how the staff has plenty to contend with just to run the school. made Shadd work, Kim says, and she has taken But beginning this summer, she also has to those lessons with her. manage a two-year, $43-million renovation that “I think the difference is that the teachers went will transform her school from a traditional grades in with a shared purpose. There was the fact that seven to nine junior high into a contemporary we all wanted to be there. We put in long hours, grades six to eight middle school. cried together, yelled and screamed together. We As a sociology major at Colby, Kim wasn’t sure went into the community. On Saturday we would she wanted to work in education as her father had go in and pick up students and take them to done. International business sounded interesting, basketball games.” and she got a serious job offer senior year. But she The attitude towards learning was, “We’re not also had done a student practicum in a “dynamite” going to let go of you ’til you get it,” Kim said. “It Waterville fifth-grade classroom. was a beautiful thing.” Kim decided she could have an international She earned her master’s in educational business career later and went off to work in the administration while at Shadd and then launched Washington, D.C., schools with Teach for America. her administrative career through a program called “I was going to do it for a few years, but it hooked New Leaders for New Schools at Washington’s me,” she said. Capital Hill Cluster School. Ten years later Kim has held positions in Eventually Kim would like to be an urban several D.C. schools and in Arlington, Virginia, prior superintendent where she can set direction for to taking over Alice Deal in the city’s Tenleytown an entire school district. In preparation, she section. commutes to the University of Pennsylvania for Although she earned her stripes in the executive doctoral classes. classroom, Kim says she prefers the greater reach Meanwhile she still enjoys running a school. she now has as an administrator. “As a principal I “It’s a lot of fun still. It’s challenging, certainly,” she impact many more students and families by being said. a teacher for the teachers,” she explained via eAnd when things get tough? Kim reminds mail. “I still love teaching students as well. When herself, “You didn’t choose it because it’s easy.” I go in to observe classrooms, I often jump in and —Julia Hanauer-Milne
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’90 and Beth Hermanson Kinsley had their second baby, Louisa, in February 2006 (their son, Johnny, is 3). They live in Scituate, Mass., where she was recently made senior counsel at Goodwin Procter LLP. Y Siobhan McCloskey is a second-year law student at Vermont Law School in South Royalton (which she says has rugby parties that make her nostalgic for Colby). “I love living up in Vermont with my two dogs and am also taking care of five horses in my spare time. I would love to hear from any Colby alums in the area. I can be reached at smccloskey@vermontlaw. edu.” Y Sarah Burditt McDougall moved to Bend, Ore., with her husband and cat last summer and loves the endless variety of outdoor activities and microbrews. She spent a weekend in Sedona, Ariz., with Annie Mahoney, Kristen Mobilia, and Laura Thompson. Sarah adds that Janine Deforge Olson and her family headed to Europe for a couple of weeks during a recent job transition, and that Lael Hinman Stanczak and her family live in Singapore. Sarah also gets regular photos from Jason and Amy Duncan Kirkfield, who “have the cutest twins!” Y Amy Kraunz and her husband, Marcus Brown, live in L.A. and welcomed another redhead earlier this year: daughter Arden Skylar Kraunz-Brown Y Susan Krolicki Newmeyer had a daughter, Alice, on October 13, 2006, and took a six-month maternity leave (“an odd experience”) from Johnson & Johnson. Y Speaking of all these new moms and dads, Doug Morrione still lives and works in N.Y.C. and just released a new children’s video series for toddlers, called Jack the Cuddly Dog. He’s inviting all new parents to check it out at www.jackthecuddlydog. com. He recently finished shooting for the second episode while hiking across the Grand Canyon and filming coal trains in New Mexico with Soren Peters ’97. Doug sees Suzanne Furlong Kiggins often in N.Y.C. and encourages folks to check out her original paintings at www.royalmagpie.com. Y Those are this quarter’s personal, academic, and professional achievements. Happy 2007, and best wishes to all 1993 mules! —Krista Stein
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In November 2005 Alyssa Schwenk married Ray Adams in Southampton, N.Y. Alyssa is an attorney in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps. In