Distinguished Service Award: Rachel Bebchick Naggar ’92

members,” she recalled. “I told her I would love to be reconnected with the School in a more tangible way. I was already coming back to the U.S. fairly often because my girls were in school there, and I realized I could probably time my trips so I could attend most, if not all, of the Board meetings.” In her 11 years serving on the Board of Trustees, Ishizuka only missed one meeting, because it occurred right after the devastating 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

When Ishizuka joined the Board in 2010, she made an immediate impact as a member of the Advancement, Finance and Investment Committees. She additionally served on the Committee on Trustees and Executive, Executive Compensation and Facilities Committees and led the Head of School Search Committee before succeeding Kazanjian as Chair of the Board in 2017.

As Board chair, Ishizuka oversaw the strategic plan process that culminated in the Vision 2025: Enriching and Extending The Dana Difference plan. “Throughout that process we had the opportunity to think creatively about how we can achieve our goals, and it was clear that the School needed to be more ambitious about fundraising. “We asked the question, ‘How ambitious can Dana Hall be (with our fundraising), to elevate our school in a truly meaningful way?’ This was a critical step for laying the foundation to realize what we all want for Dana Hall.”

Ishizuka also led the Board during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. “At the outset, this pandemic was a significant challenge that seriously disrupted the rhythm of Dana Hall and its community. However, what comes to my mind when thinking of those early days is not necessarily about the uncertainty and disruption, but more importantly, the understanding, compassion and care exhibited by many in the community who clearly wanted to help the School. The pandemic brought out the best of Dana’s virtues and strengths,” she said. Under her leadership, the Board demonstrated its commitment to community, equity and inclusion (CEI) by instituting annual CEI training for all Board members and creating a Board-level CEI committee. Ishizuka is excited about all that is happening at Dana Hall now, and is eager to see the Classroom Building project and related fundraising efforts come to fruition. She is still an active volunteer and a member of the Steering Committee for the School’s capital campaign.

“The amount of time and thought that Marcia put into all aspects of leading the Board was astounding,” said Head of School Katherine Bradley. “She was always very conscientious about soliciting and including all voices. She understands the importance of policy and procedure, and she instituted consistent systems for a number of board responsibilities. I am so grateful for her leadership, partnership and friendship.”

With her Board commitments now behind her, Ishizuka is looking toward resetting, regrouping and reenergizing. “I am focusing my attention on what I want to do and how I want to do it. I’m trying to take time out for myself. I’m actually pretty bad at it,” she admitted. “It’s not easy for me to sit still and not do much. So I am working on improving my new skill of taking time for myself.” She now dotes on her grandson and spends most of her time in Connecticut.

THE CONNECTOR

Whether with fellow alums at Dana Hall or in fundraising for breast cancer research, Distinguished Service honoree Rachel Bebchick Naggar ’92 brings people together.

Rachel Bebchick Naggar ’92 is a connector — one of those people who is skilled at bringing others together.

She’s done that as the 1992 Class Correspondent, a role she’d held since her graduation, along with countless other Dana Hall volunteer assignments. She’s done that while at Brandeis University as the orientation coordinator, one of the biggest leadership opportunities for students, where she welcomed incoming freshman and helped forge new lifelong friendships. And she’s done that for Team Sheila, a group named in memory of her mother that has raised more than $250,000 for breast cancer-related organizations. It’s what she does; it’s in her DNA.

In April, Naggar was honored with the 2022 Distinguish Service Award at Reunion Weekend. “This validates how much the School has meant to me,” Naggar said. “This award is not so much about my career, but it’s about the things that are important to me as human — and that’s giving back.”

Supporting the Mission

Her interest in learning from and helping others was fostered at Brandeis University when Naggar was a sociology major. As a student, she got involved with event planning and orientation, which led to a job in the Alumni Relations department post-graduation. From there, she moved onto corporate marketing and then ran the marketing department at a Boston-area speakers’ bureau.

When life led her to New Jersey, she decided to combine two of her passions in the Garden State: marketing communications and the education field. Former Dana Hall Head of School Blair Jenkins connected Naggar with Kent Place School in Summit, N.J., where she started as a parental leave replacement and was quickly hired full-time. There, she has led the girls’ school’s Communications Office for 19 years. “I’m happiest when I believe in the mission of something,” she said. “I’m creatively fulfilled and allowed to evolve here, and evolve the school.”

Paying it Forward

When she wanted to honor her mother’s breast cancer battle with a team named in her honor, Naggar wasn’t thinking beyond that year’s Susan G. Komen Greater NYC Race for the Cure in Central Park. They gathered a group of about 10 family and friends and raised a couple thousand dollars. Then three years later, Naggar herself got the call: She’d been diagnosed with Stage 1 breast cancer. That’s when Team Sheila really took off, expanding to nearly 50 people and raising close to $30,000 that year.

“She’s still the strongest woman I’ve ever met in my life,” Naggar said of her mother, Sheila Bebchick. “I can’t imagine that while she was suffering herself, her daughter was diagnosed.”

Along with raising funds, Naggar began sharing her story to help others survive and thrive, talking with those who are newly diagnosed, their caregivers and fellow survivors. Komen has recognized Naggar and Team Sheila with the Greater NYC CoSurvivor of the Year Award, the Stronger Than You Think Award and the SUPER Squad Award.

A few years ago, Team Sheila shifted its fundraising focus and now supports breast cancer-related lymphedema (BCRL) research Alumnae Council President Lee Ferguson Frechette ’81, P16, 22 (right) presented the Distinguished Service Award to Rachel Bebchick Naggar ’92 during the Reunion luncheon. at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), where 100% of the proceeds go directly to Dr. Alphonse Taghian’s BCRL Program at MGH. It’s a way for Naggar and her father, Les Bebchick, to honor a place where Sheila received so much of her treatment as well as the doctor who was an instrumental member of her care team. With Dr. Taghian as her partner, Naggar hopes Team Sheila fundraising will be a part of ground-breaking research to make improvements in the treatment of patients with breast cancer.

“I want breast cancer to end with me,” Naggar said. “I don’t want my kids, my daughter, anyone to think about it. I’m the fourth generation in my family [to be diagnosed], but hopefully I’ll be the last.”

Do Anything for Dana

Along with her three decades of service as a Class Correspondent and her current position on the Alumnae Council, Naggar has been a tireless Dana Hall volunteer: from planning Class of 1992 Reunions and encouraging classmates to support the Dana Fund to speaking at She Sails, serving on the Alumnae Association Board and mentoring Girls Summer Leadership Program participants. When it comes to Dana Hall, she’s always up for the challenge.

“It’s easy to say yes to volunteering,” Naggar said, “and I can’t think of a better place to give back than to the place that helped build the foundation of my life. It’s been a true collaboration and partnership after graduation. I feel incredibly touched and honored and seen.”