Summer 2014 Magazine

MAGAZINE | SUMMER 2014

International Week! see p.15

Contents SUMMER 2014

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THE HILL STORIES

HIGHLIGHTS BY GRADE

ALUMNI NOTES

Congratulations to the Class of 2014!

“Because I’m graduating from Flint Hill, I have an unquestionable confidence in myself to be who I am, and know that whatever I choose, I can be successful.”

–Corey McCarten

Visit www.flinthill.org/fhs/commencement-2014/ for a photo gallery of the commencement ceremonies and to watch interviews with graduates.

headmaster’s

message

John M. Thomas

Dear Flint Hill School Families, Last year was a year filled with active participation, engagement and ultimately, leadership from everyone. Even with my busy schedule, I always work to find time to stop, observe and reflect on all that is happening here.

And every time, I am always amazed by the poise and manners, the growth and development, and the creativity and collaboration of our students and faculty.

Whether it is walking on the Upper School Campus or Lower and Middle School Campus, I sense the momentum that is such a big part of the experience here. I am truly impressed by everything our great Huskies are able to accomplish.

All of these achievements ultimately come down to three major pillars of life at Flint Hill: RELATIONSHIPS The personal, direct, cordial and committed relationships that students, faculty and parents develop is what makes our school so unique. They are positive, sincere, and ongoing. We care about each other and we care about doing what is right. We are there to learn together, to cheer our students on to great accomplishments and help dust them off when things don’t go well. Bottom line: our relationships help foster the “grit,” perseverance and resiliency that are such a part of our program.

BALANCE There are opportunities galore for our students. Whether it is the Lower School “Market Days,” the Middle School “Makers Class,” or the Upper School “Senior Projects,” our students have a wide array of opportunities to help them discover more about themselves and their own interests along the way. Flint Hill offers a program that is truly focused on the process of learning—the “how” and “why” of learning—and we are dedicated to nurturing each student’s personal and academic growth.

INNOVATION Innovation continues to thrive at our school. When we crafted our vision statement, we were clear in stating that we respect and seek the best of traditional and contemporary education. We are very aware that the world is changing around us. All that is happening in our classrooms, in our studios and on our fields is a reflection of the global world. And much of it comes down to our comfort level with using the technology that is emerging rapidly on a daily basis, exploring new ways to learn and teach and promoting an active sense of creativity in how we communicate and share our learning. It is our responsibility to conscientiously find ways to be innovative, creative, and to excel in everything that we do.

As you look through the magazine, you will see an enormous amount of activities that have engaged our students. We had a phenomenal Senior class who led us by setting a tone of sincerity, good humor and above all, leadership. I hope you will be as amazed as I am when you see all that our great students and faculty have accomplished throughout their time with us.

Enjoy the magazine! I look forward to seeing you on campus.

Sincerely, John M. Thomas Headmaster

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A Press Pass into Class WJLA-Channel 7 interviewed students for a story about ipped learning. Read more on p. 18.

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Tuskegee Airmen Visit In February, the Black Student Union brought members of the Tuskegee Airmen to campus. It was a sobering presentation as these veterans of World War II spoke of their sacrifice and reward of service. They also addressed the challenges of diversity and overcoming obstacles. “I loved how these heroes were so focused on spreading a positive message about life in general to the Flint Hill student body instead of glorifying themselves and their wartime accomplishments,” said Caira Blackwell ’15, one of the students who facilitated the visit. “Their humility and grounded perspective on their situation during, before and after the war amazed me.”

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Active from 1940-1952, the Tuskegee Airmen were the first AfricanAmerican aviators to serve in our Armed Forces, and they demonstrated that service during World War II. The members worked in artillery units, flew planes, and helped train other members of the elite group. Major L. Anderson, William T. Fauntroy, Jr., Edward J. Talbert, Jr., and Dr. Ivan Ware, whose ages ranged from 80 to 90, sat before the student body in their signature bright red blazers, ready to discuss their war stories and life experiences.

Throughout the program, all the men stressed the importance of having a goal and a plan to achieve the goal.

Fauntroy, the 80-year-old “baby” of the group, even shared that despite segregation and discrimination, he never strayed from his dream of

being a pilot. He also joked that WWII ended because he was ready to fight off the enemy. “I was so ready to fly in the war, but then everyone decided to quit,” he said. “I guess they heard I was coming.”

“I see their visit as only the beginning of deepening Flint Hill’s appreciation of diversity and legacy,” said Misha Wooden ’15. “I don’t think we realize how drastically the actions of our predecessors have affected our lives and futures.” The hope is that more activities like the Airmen’s visit will be planned. “These gentlemen are role models, the type that I don’t think many of our students have seen before,” said Headmaster John Thomas. “They continue to demonstrate to the world a sense of courage, sacrifice, service, and patriotism.” Their visit included

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a more intimate time for questions and advice giving in the library conference room after their more formal presentation in the gym.

“Their visit had a greater impact on the student body than any excerpt from a history book,” Caira said.

“Members of BSU, in particular, commented on how they had never stopped to think about how the actions of leaders such as the Airmen have contributed to today. I know, for me, I’m able to understand the importance of bettering my education and pursuing my dreams no matter what obstacles are in front of me.”

This article was in collaboration with a piece written by Gabrielle Turner ‘15 for the FHSView, Flint Hill’s student newspaper. Read the paper online at www.fhsview.com

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Learning Economics Up, Down, and Sideways On January 16, several students taking AP Economics attended the 22nd Annual Greater Washington Economic Conference—Up, Down, or Sideways: Where is the Economy Heading in 2014? Some of the topics were: The Outlook for the U.S. Economy in 2014 and Beyond; Rising Interest Rates; Obamacare; and The Outlook for New Homes Construction in 2014. The students also participated in networking activities, giving them a chance to engage in conversation with industry experts from Bloomberg Businessweek, GMU’s Center for Regional Analysis, Cardinal Bank, the Washington Business Journal, and the DC Chamber of Commerce. “The experience allowed them to see how the theoretical economics that we’re teaching is being discussed in the real world,” said Economics teacher Lucas Ames. Mr. Ames and the students were grateful to Flint Hill parent Marilyn Wertzberger, who made the arrangements for the students to attend.

Latin Lauds Congratulations to our students on their successful outcomes with the National Latin Exam. More than 154,000 students from 18 countries took the exam in March. Here’s a look at the students’ achievements: 164 = Total who took the exam (84 Upper School + 80 Middle School) 121 = Scored better than national average (73 Upper School + 48 Middle School) 39 = Gold medals (30 Upper School + 9 Middle School) 22 = Silver medals (17 Upper School + 5 Middle School) 4 = Perfect paper award 2 = Maureen O’Donnell Oxford Classical Dictionary award 2 = Carter Stubbs Drake Goad Book award 1 = Perfect paper certificate on the introductory exam

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Students Raise Nearly $10K to Fight Hunger On Saturday, February 22, the 4th annual Empty Bowls fundraiser brought in nearly $10,000—the highest amount so far for this event— to benefit DC Central Kitchen, a nonprofit hunger-relief organization.

Led by the Upper School Clay Club, approximately 900 bowls were made and sold for $15 each. “The students’ leadership was instrumental to making this event successful and ultimately making a real difference in the lives of others. In preparation for the event, they spent many weekends and after school hours in the ceramics studio,” said Ceramics teacher Julia Cardone.

Central Kitchen to give a bowlmaking workshop on its premises, as well as to volunteer in the kitchen.

“This project was about more than just making bowls,” said Madison Oliver ’14, a key coordinator of the event. “We are giving back to an organization that deserves the community’s help.”

From the beginning of the school year, Clay Club members hosted several bowl-making workshops on both of Flint Hill’s campuses, collaborating with faculty and staff, the Parents’ Association, a Middle School art club, and other Upper School clubs including the Classics Club and Literary Magazine. The students also spent a day at DC

The day of the event was a celebration of community and giving—DC Central Kitchen provided soup for lunch; a silent auction offered additional opportunities to raise money; a student musician played the guitar; and guest artist David MacDonald, who traveled from upstate New York, gave pottery demonstrations.

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Bonjour Messieurs President Fourteen students in the French program attended the official state visit ceremony in honor of French President François Hollande, held on the South Lawn of the White House. Sophomore Arman Azad ’16 took the opportunity to exchange a few words with the French president and even snapped a selfie showing President Obama and President Hollande in the near background. “It was so great to see the students use their French language skills outside of the classroom, especially in this kind of once-in-a-lifetime setting,” said French teacher Annie Broche.

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Dog Sledding in Maine In January, a team of 12 from Flint Hill traveled to Lake Umbagog in Maine, for a unique dog sledding trip. Activities included winter camping, cross-country skiing, chopping wood to cook their evening meals, and cutting 12” holes into the frozen lake to get their drinking water.

A Choir Shout Out Congratulations to all the Flint Hill students who participated and were recognized at the District XII Honor Choir in November. More than 700 area students auditioned. The following students were acknowledged for their achievements: Hailey Corkery 2nd highest score in her voice part Courtney Ebersohl a perfect sight-reading score WoMEn’S CHoir: Hailey Corkery–Soprano II Olivia Hernandez–Soprano II Hailery Scherer–Soprano II Sonia Schmidt–Alto MixED CHoir: Courtney Ebersoh–Soprano I Lili Jalaie–Soprano II Jack Lovelace–Tenor I Jack Jenet–Tenor II Conner McBride–Tenor II Arman Azad–Bass I

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State Department Visitors Observe Teaching Methods On Thursday, April 17, dignitaries from Samoa, Thailand, and Vietnam spent time at Flint Hill’s Upper School to learn about the use of video lessons, also known as vodcasts, as an approach to teaching in today’s digital age. The campus was one of the first stops for the visitors—guests of the State Department—who were on a five-city tour of the United States: Washington, Pittsburgh, Boston, Salt Lake City, and San Francisco. The overall purpose of the group’s U.S. visit was to meet with educators, researchers, and educational technology experts to get an overview of current trends in digital education and assess how new technologies are impacting teaching and democratizing learning.

Flint Hill School was asked to participate because of the visitors’ interest in the “flipped classroom” and our school’s experience and reputation as a leader in this type of instruction. The group observed the application of flipped learning in a chemistry class and a ceramics class. They listened to presentations from teachers of math, economics, and biology on how they plan, produce, and implement vodcasts into their lessons. They also engaged in informal discussions, trading questions and answers over lunch with various members of the faculty and school administration. “Sharing knowledge with colleagues from different nations enriches us as a school community and we’re proud to be a part of a global effort to strengthen education,” said Headmaster John Thomas.

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Celebrating Our International Community Music, dance, food, and a fashion show were part of the ďŹ rst International Festival, held on the evening of Saturday, April 5, at the Upper School campus. The festival expanded from events of previous years to more fully celebrate the 105 nations represented by our Flint Hill families, faculty, and sta. Students were a key part of the festival, sharing their cultural heritage and talents through performances that included: Bollywood-style dancing, playing guitar and singing a Ukranian song, and giving a taekwondo demonstration.

In February, International Week was celebrated school-wide with various activities ranging from trivia

questions; loud-speaker announcements in foreign languages; special guests, including a professional dance company performing traditional South African dances; and, in the Lower School, the opportunity for students to wear traditional clothing from their own heritage or from a country special to them.

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Check out the performances on our YouTube channel: youtube.com/flinthillhuskies

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Arts Jam 2014 In the spring, Flint Hill returned to the George Mason University Center for the Arts Concert Hall for the fourth time with a cast and crew of 136 students for a music and dance performance, “Arts Jam Traditions,” featuring the Percussion Ensemble, Orchestra, Concert Choir, Jazz Band, Symphonic Band, Jazz and Modern Dancers, and the Major Minors a cappella group. All new staging made this year’s concert exciting, lively, and focused on creative collaborations.

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A Press Pass into Class “Tech for Tots,” an Associated Press story featuring our Transitional Kindergarten students and their use of technology in the classroom, was published in USA Today on December 2, and various other newspapers. “We see the iPad as a device to create and connect,” said Lower School Director Sheena Hall, who explained that the students use the technology in a variety of ways, including to: create books, Skype with pen pals globally, practice spelling, and work with some math and science lessons alongside pencil and paper. Maria Demetriou, parent of a TK student and a Second Grade student, was also interviewed and added, “The more they can get their hands on [technology] and learn it, the easier it’s going to be for them in the future.” The article was also accompanied by a video segment, which aired on television and online news programs nationally—in Tampa, Detroit, and Salt Lake City—and internationally in Canada and Africa.

At the Upper School, a producer and videographer with WJLA-Channel 7 visited a chemistry class to interview teacher Kim Duncan and students Kendyll Hicks ’16 and Jake Walsh ’16 for the story, “Students in Oakton Take on ‘Flipped Learning’.” The previous evening, the crew stopped at the Pawlow family’s home, where siblings Michelle ’16 and Brian ’15 shared their experience with studying video lessons that Ms. Duncan assigns as part of “flipped learning.” The story aired on February 4, a day in advance of national Digital Learning Day, and remains archived on WJLA.com.

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Designing Campus Solutions Architectural floor plans, color palettes, fabric swatches, and drawings of furniture are not a typical part of a high school student’s class presentation. However, in Design Thinking, it’s the norm. The course, introduced in fall 2013, focuses on research, collaboration, and real-life application of solutions for areas-ofneed on campus. January marked the end of the semester-long class, and for their final group projects, the students offered their ideas to enhance the user experience in the Upper School library. Some administrators, faculty, and staff were in attendance to ask the students questions after their presentations and to take their suggestions into consideration.

“Many of the ideas sparked conversations, and the students’ recommendation for small conference rooms is an area where the school is going to work to include more,” said Dean of Faculty Emily Sanderson, who taught the class.

For fall 2014, Mrs. Sanderson says she hopes to guide students more in understanding themselves as members of a group, which is a main principle in the process of design thinking. “It took several projects for students to let go of their own ideas and work with the ideas and objective observations of others.

My main takeaway for next year is the power of students learning the value of empathy in solving problems through design thinking.”

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The Washington Nationals offered its summer baseball camp for the first time at Flint Hill in July.

Summer on the Hill To discover more about our programs, visit www.flinthill.org/summer Online registration for next year will be available in early 2015.

In July, teachers Fred Atwood and Leslie Viente took nine students— rising juniors and seniors, and two recent graduates—on a three-week ecological trip to Ecuador. Highlights included: the cloud forests in the Andes, the Amazon rainforest and the Galapagos Islands.

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Taking Stock of Investments The “Fantasy Stock Market” game, played in AP Macroeconomics class, started in October and continued into the spring, at which time Senior John Benn’s wise investment in United Airlines brought him the win with an overall return of 24.98%. “He caught the airline stocks low and rode a nice wave up,” said teacher Lucas Ames.

Commission and having a corporate photo taken. Progress for each company’s performance was charted and displayed on the hallway wall, which served as the official market board.

In the end, more than half of the students earned returns better than the Dow Jones Index, and all learned basic finance principles like diversification, interest rates, and risk as well as the idea of beta (or momentum) as a means of picking

At the beginning of the game, each student formed a fictitious investment company—naming and registering it with a mock Securities and Exchange

Bookends In both Global Art History and AP Psychology classes, students were assigned to create their own books—learning the subject matter while developing a better understanding of how to communicate key messages to others. The psychology students worked together in groups, writing children’s books to explain how the brain functions. Meanwhile, each student of Global Art History wrote a volume of work, consisting of 12 chapters covering topics from prehistoric cave art to digital and performance art.

Although the final books from each class were very different in style and content, the outcome for all of the students was a honing of their research and writing skills, which will benefit their many future writing assignments.

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the best stocks for a short-term game.

“It’s these underlying principles that really help make economic thinking relevant,” said Mr. Ames. One student who would agree is Matt Kennedy ’14, who will begin studying business at Villanova this fall. “My decision to study business in college was without a doubt cemented after this year’s AP Macroeconomics class with Mr. Ames.” Scaled-down versions of the game are also played in the Introduction to Economics class.

Faculty Activities Upper School Learning Specialist Sonya Atkinson serves as board member of the DC-area International Dyslexia Association. She presented three workshops this past year on assistive technology for students with special needs.

Upper School history teacher Debbie Ayers was selected to attend The Choices Leadership Institute at Brown University in July. The topic—Turkey: Exploring Current Challenges.

Learning Center Director Susan Biggs is on the Editorial Advisory Board for Attention Magazine, the national publication of CHADD—Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.

Upper School chemistry teacher Kim Duncan received the Chemical Society of Washington’s 2013 Leo Schubert Memorial Award, which “recognizes an outstanding teacher of high school chemistry in the Washington, D.C. area.” She also gave a presentation about Flipped Learning at the Mid-Atlantic Association of International Baccalaureate World Schools Summer Academy.

Upper School French teacher Robin Goldstein spent part of the summer teaching French to high school students at the Alliance Française-D.C. branch.

Fourth-grade teacher Rachel Hinnant traveled to Haiti in May for her fourth year developing curriculum for a local school’s summer program.

Head Outdoor Sports Coach and IT Support Associate Lynda Hoag developed and organized the 2nd Annual Outdoor Programs Workshop in April in partnership with the Virginia Association of Independent Schools (VAIS).

Percussion ensemble teacher Greg Holloway performed in “Ella Fitzgerald: First Lady of Song,” at MetroStage in Alexandria, Va. Upper School history teachers Taylor Johnson and Maureen McGinnis and sixthgrade teacher Rachel Marrion traveled to Uganda under a Byrnes Grant to share their expertise with schools there.

Upper School math teacher Barbara Joost traveled to Namibia and South Africa to work in two different Catholic schools for seven weeks. She made a similar trip several years ago. This latest excursion of service was shared with a traveling partner, her youngest daughter.

Upper School science teacher Alex Lester participated in a Fab Lab training in Minnesota.

Last November, Upper School Learning Specialists Shannon McCarty and Silvia Moore presented at the CHADD International Conference.

Modern Language Department Chair Jill Moore served as a mentor through an American Council of Teachers of Foreign Language program during the last school year. The mentoring program is designed to help language teachers early in their careers.

Second-grade teacher Kate Peterson was accepted for a fellowship with the Klingenstein Summer Institute, which is part of Columbia University’s Teachers College.

Dean of Faculty and Director of Online and Blended Learning Emily Sanderson presented at the VAIS Annual Conference on the topic of Online and Blended Learning.

Lower School Learning Specialist Jeanine Schwartz gave two presentations at the March 2014 area conference for the International Dyslexia Association. Her presentations were titled: (1) Early Signs of a Reading Disorder: The Importance of Early Identification and Intervention and (2) Apps to Reinforce Elementary Reading and Writing Skills.

Upper School computer science and robotics teacher Mike Snyder hosted a webinar sponsored by the Virginia Society for Technology in Education.

Grades TK-6 Language Arts Department Chair Joey Starnes presented at this year’s National Council for Teachers of English Conference.

Upper School math teacher Molly Tanner presented at the STEM Think Tank Conference in Nashville, Tenn. this summer.

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Friday, May 9, 2014

Grandparents & Special Friends Day More than 260 grandparents and special friends enjoyed a heartwarming and entertaining day on the Lower/Middle School campus. They watched student performances, spent time in the classroom and shared lunch with the students.

Thank you to the many parents who volunteered throughout the morning by serving breakfast and assisting our delightful guests. Many thanks to the event’s Chairs Tina Rafalovich and Robin Ennist. Make plans now to attend next year on May 8, 2015.

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Looking Back— 24 Years At Flint Hill

by Pat Birkholz, First Grade Teacher I started teaching at Flint Hill School in 1990 when the Lower, Middle, and Upper School were all housed together in the Academic Building on the East Campus.

And although we felt like we were elbowto-elbow and knee-to-knee, we all sensed that we were instrumental in creating something very special and distinctive.

We were indeed a family—the faculty, staff, and students of grades K-12—all striving for not only academic excellence, but to create a caring community where each student is valued for his and her uniqueness.

Now in 2014, and with ample elbow room, the mission continues and flourishes.

It has been a great pleasure to see many former students return to my classroom, either as buddies to my First Graders or, simply, just to pay a visit to a former teacher. How great it is to hear many of them gleefully saying, “I remember when…!” Watching students graduate, some even returning to Flint Hill to become members of the faculty, speaks volumes. The mission continues. And as I retire from teaching, I can say that it has been a privilege to be part of such an innovative school for twenty-four years.

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highlights

TK To commemorate the 2014 Winter Olympics, students built ski jump courses—taking into account the angle and height of their designs on a ski jumper’s performance.

by grade TK

K Students taught their visiting parents some of the math lessons they had been learning in class.

1 After weeks of preparation, students performed a puppet show in Spanish for the entire Lower School.

They narrated a few classic fairytale stories, played musical instruments to provide sound effects, and did the puppeteering work.

2 As they created penguins in art class, students learned about how and where the animals live as well as their changing environment.

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3 To learn about different states of matter, students engaged in a science experiment to create “oobleck,” a mixture of cornstarch and water that when combined, have properties of both a liquid and solid.

4 Students raised money for the international hunger relief effort Stop Hunger Now by hosting a flea market at school on a Saturday. Their fundraising effort resulted in the packaging of 12,060 meals.

5 Working in groups, students built ancient Mesopotamian city-states,

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integrating eight cultural universals into their civilizations: food supply, social structure, government, religion, arts, technology, writing, and economics. In a modern-day twist, many built their city-states using Minecraft.

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6 Applying principles of engineering, students designed insulated containers to protect an egg from cracking when dropped from a distance of several feet.

7 In Makers class, students learned about electronics design by taking apart and rebuilding mechanisms such as a pinball machine.

8 While reading the book Things Fall Apart, set in 1890s Nigeria, students learned more about the country’s culture and history through a presentation by Flint Hill parent Chima Eze, who is Nigerian.

9 In Modern European History class, students were given a memorable assignment to write and perform rap songs about Imperialism.

10 For Gatsbyfest, students celebrated the literature and culture of the 1920s.

11-12 Studying stellar classification, students in Astronomy class plotted stars on a graph according to temperature and luminosity.

11-12 Biology students simulated how kidneys process blood and filter out waste by using dialysis tubing to collect data on the direction that salt and water flow relative to one another.

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I Got In! Flint Hill School prepares graduates for a world of unlimited opportunities.

At the Upper School, the diverse offering of academic courses, clubs, and sports provides students with many ways to explore and discover interests that they continue to pursue in college. “At Flint Hill, you’re definitely encouraged to follow your own passion, your own path, and your own desires. There’s really no boundary to where you can go,” said salutatorian Carlin Pierce ’14, who will attend Georgetown University.

This past spring, as one student announced the news of being accepted to top choices MIT and UVA, another weighed the reasons for selecting Georgetown over Harvard. The West Coast called to one senior who selected Stanford over Columbia University and Washington University. For another whose sights were always set on one particular place from the very beginning, getting into the Rhode Island School of Design was the clear choice.

The selection of a college is unique to each student, and few of our recent graduates share the reasons and inspirations behind their decisions to choose the places where they will attend in the fall of 2014. flint hill magazine

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MADISON OLIVER United States Naval Academy I’ve wanted to be in the military since I was in middle school, but I never thought it was possible. Then, at the beginning of high school, I learned about the Naval Academy— a place where you are trained to be a naval officer, but you still get a college education first. When I visited at the end of my junior year and in the middle of this school year, I found that I liked the rigor of life at the academy and really enjoyed the sense of community among the students.

I have had many teachers at Flint Hill who were either in the military themselves or had family in the military. They, along with my friends, other teachers, and advisors, made everything—joining the Navy and attending the Naval Academy—seem possible, and encouraged me in the application process and in making my college decision. The College Counseling office was very supportive too. Many of my applications were due early, so my college counselor (Mr. Kane) helped me in the summer and at the beginning of the school year by reviewing my applications and giving me feedback on my essays. Another counselor (Ms. Ratzel) even helped me with my physical test.

Plans to major in: Chinese language.

I would also like to study other languages such as Spanish and Arabic at least briefly.

THOMAS DOYLE University of Virginia My college search began a lot earlier than most high schoolers in that I knew I wanted to play baseball at the next level. It was just a matter of finding the right program that met my academics and was the right baseball program for me. After many visits to primarily Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) schools, I narrowed my decisions down to UNC, Chapel Hill and UVA. After much thought and stress, my parents and I thought UVA was the right choice for me to reach my full potential as a young adult and reach my highest potential on the baseball field. During the process, I was looking for a college that was not huge, yet not so small where you know everyone on campus. UVA fit perfectly. On top of that, the academics are fantastic and, if baseball does not work out for me, I know I can use my degree from UVA to help me succeed in the business world. As of now, I have not fully decided my major, but I am very interested in sciences and hope to pursue a career in either environmental or geography sciences.

Flint Hill has given me the opportunity to access all the knowledge I will need to succeed in college and later on in life. All the teachers at school truly care about your well-

being, not just academically but also just you in general. Two teachers who truly helped me senior year to prepare for the endeavors I will face in college are Mrs. Krug and Mr. Ifft. They were determined to make their students better, whether you wanted to be or not. Every student looks back at the end of the year and never regrets taking their class, because they truly mastered the subject.

CLARE JESSEY Rhode Island School of Design I ultimately chose to attend the Rhode Island School of Design, because it has a high reputation as an art university, and after doing a six-week summer program last year, it became obvious to me that I could fit into the community; be it the location—Providence—the people, or the curriculum. I remember saying to myself, “I could call this a second home.”

Plans to major in: Industrial Design. I have always had a fascination with how things work.

What excites me about Industrial Design is that an idea I have in my head can become reality, from sketches on paper to mock models to a final and new product. My goal is to improve the standards of daily life and to give people a unique experience when they use one of my products. In my opinion, Industrial Design makes life easier because it’s always finding solutions to problems that people experience. A good example of this is OXO Good Grips. Their goal is to help people be more comfortable while holding a common tool, like an ice cream scoop. With research and creative ideas, they design a grip to make it easier to use, not only for people who might have difficulty holding an ice cream scoop, but with improved functionality for everyone. I have always loved to help people, and I find it cool that this aspect could be part of my major.

MAKENA MURUGU Lafayette College It is a smaller school (student-to-teacher ratio being 11:1) with graduate-level facilities readily available to me. Their approach to learning as a liberal arts school is unique, I think, and that is evident via their core program. The location is not too far from home and in a suburban setting, which I like.

It’s a 10-minute walk to downtown, while still having an actual campus. Aside from the full out-of-state tuition they offered me, they are also providing me with books, travel, and a $2000 stipend once I complete the college’s Summer Program to Advance Leadership (SPAL) for leaders of STEM—science, technology, engineering, and math. The program starts July 6, and I’m super excited to get an early start. I’ll be able to move in earlier than others too!

Flint Hill’s teachers have helped me to communicate and solidify my needs as

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a student. Therefore, I was more than comfortable choosing the right school for me. Flint Hill allowed me to visit Columbia University last summer for a LeadAmerica Conference—an opportunity that would have otherwise been unavailable. The teachers have wanted me to succeed, and I try my best to make them proud. I appreciate the resources that I have been able to utilize these last four years. The college counselors are amazing and with you every step of the way—so long as you’re willing to make that first step towards your future. I am comfortable with myself as a person and student, and that'll be important in the real world, I'm confident that Flint Hill has prepared me in the best way possible.

Plans to major in: Chemical Engineering MATTHEW KENNEDY Villanova University Throughout the college process, Villanova was always one of my top schools. However, when it came time to make my decision, it was clear Villanova was the place for me. It is a smaller school, but not too small, with around 6,500 students, allowing me to establish strong relationships with my professors and peers. Additionally, I feel that the strong reputation of the Villanova School of Business will provide me with many opportunities after graduating.

Flint Hill played a significant role in my admission to Villanova. As a young freshman, I needed the push and structure that the teachers provided for me in order to succeed.

As I progressed through high school, the different classes available to me allowed me to seek further understanding in fields I thought I could pursue later in life. Ultimately, my decision to study business in college was without a doubt cemented after this year’s AP Macroeconomics class with Mr. Ames.

Plans to major in: Business AKUA NYARKO-ODOOM Stanford University My top three schools are pretty similar in the caliber of the education they provide.

Reputation was not as important to me; I was more concerned about choosing a school that would comfortably fit my own interests. All of my schools place an emphasis on learning for the sake of learning. Nevertheless, some factors that separate Stanford from the others include the diversity of the community, the community support itself, research opportunities, and its campus vibe.

Stanford provided more major options than my other schools. It also had a wider breadth of interdisciplinary programs. I can combine

many of my interests into one major, allowing me to gain more from my college experience in just four years. I like the idea that I have the option to pursue a double major, minor, co-term, or secondary major. It is strong in almost all major fields of study, which is extremely beneficial, should my interests lie outside of the sciences.

Flint Hill opened a world of amazing opportunities to me that I wouldn’t have otherwise received had I attended another school. There are many ways for students to become involved in the community, as well as in those outside of our school, and Flint Hill has put an emphasis on taking advantage of those opportunities. Clay Club has definitely made an impact on me and my time at Flint Hill. It combined two of my interests that ultimately became my passions: ceramics and service. In a way, it prepared me for life beyond Flint Hill and college. I am well prepared to start a service project that focuses on bringing people together, across differences, in addition to raising funds for those in need.

Major: Either Biology or Human Biology, but I am keeping my options open.

ALFRED PARDOE University of Otago The University of Otago was suggested to me by a teacher who knows a lot about the school, me, and my interests. I took my time looking at schools from England, Canada, the USA, and one school from New Zealand. I knew I wanted to make an experience out of my college years and explore the world, and I knew I wanted to be an international student.

I visited both Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand and came back with a lot to think about. Both trips and school visits were fun and exciting. I went alone, as I wanted the full experience of being away from family. In the end, Otago felt like a new place and a new culture; the perfect place for a new experience.

From mid-way Junior year, around the time we start having to think about our college choices, until about October of Senior year, I was set on taking a gap year. I told everyone my plan to travel the world and then later settle into a college, but I would first have to apply to schools so I knew I had somewhere to go after that year. The first semester of my senior year changed my whole mind-set. I had Dr. Zack Krug as my biology teacher and for a semester elective class called “Evolution Of The Biosphere,” singly the coolest class I had ever taken. I owe my decision to go to Otago almost purely to Dr. Krug, who suggested it,

explained it, and ranted positive messages about it. Above all, his teaching in Biosphere class helped me know what I wanted to do, which Otago had for me. The college counselors were very helpful for my unusual, and sometimes annoying situation, and will continue to be a massive help as I move against time to grab a spot for the semester starting in July.

Plans to major in: As of now, I am registered as an Anatomy major, minoring in Religion. However, with my internship being in coding, physics, and exoplanets, there is a distinct possibility I will change my major to Physics.

ELISE MCDONNELL Georgetown University Because both of my parents are alumni, I wanted nothing to do with Georgetown at first, but as I embarked on my college search, it seemed that every school I saw just was not right. I later realized that it was because all of those other schools just were not Georgetown.

As I sought to figure out why that was, I realized that what all of those schools were missing for me was a sense that my experience there could be truly meaningful and that those places would give me opportunities to use my education to help others. I chose Georgetown mainly because of its emphasis on being a school family and its overall drive to educate students in a way that enables them to be capable of helping others matched what I felt was important for success, personally. Georgetown was the only place I felt did not have any falseness to it; there were no indications that the incredible experience they offered me was a marketing technique. The integrity of a school and the dedication they showed to their students—both while attending school and after graduation—was what I really focused on, and with Georgetown, the pride that the university took in its students and the amount of pride that their alumni had in being a Hoya struck me.

I also was glad that I could receive an education that was multidisciplinary, and was not narrowed to just one field or subject.

As a student in the college, I will be taught about Religion, History, English, Math, and Science in ways that I have never experienced, while also being able to fulfill my requirements with classes that have an entirely different approach to each subject.

I felt that the emphasis on being a part of a family at Georgetown was really the driving force behind the pride that everyone felt. Being able to experience this and leave my own mark there is incredibly exciting for me, and I can’t wait to start this fall.

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Plans to major in: The Performing Arts, while pursuing being a premed and eventually attending medical school to become either a physician or surgeon.

MARIA BARZEGAR Duke University I chose Duke University because, first of all, coming out of a smaller high school, I knew that I didn’t want a school that was too large.

And I definitely knew that I wanted a school with rigorous academics, since I have always loved learning and being challenged with the things I love. When I first visited Duke, there was such an ambiance about the campus and an energetic sports craze among the students and faculty that I knew Duke was the place I wanted to spend my next four years. I think above the academia, sports charisma, and size, truly the community and unity in the community are what made Duke my dream school.

I think that Flint Hill prepared me in countless ways to get into Duke and prepared me for college and life in general. Of course, the academically rigorous AP courses I have taken have challenged me mentally. But more than anything, I would owe my audacity to try new things—whether joining a new club I’ve never been in, a team for a sport I’ve never played, or getting involved in community service that sparks a new passion—to Flint Hill. Flint Hill truly is a place where so many opportunities are available to create and personalize your path and find your passions.

If it weren’t for the convenience and energy of all the things going around at Flint Hill, I probably wouldn’t have found my different passions or, perhaps, might not have had the courage to try!

Plans to major in: Biochemistry

CLASS OF 2014 WERE ACCEPTED TO: Appalachian State University* Auburn University Babson College* Barnard College Barry University Bates College* Baylor University Bellarmine University Blinn College Boston College Boston University* Brandeis University Brown University* Bryant University Bryn Mawr College Bucknell University* Carlow University Case Western Reserve University Christopher Newport University* Clemson University* Coastal Carolina University Cochise College* College of Charleston College of the Holy Cross College of William and Mary* Colorado State University* Columbia College Chicago Columbia University* Cornell University Dalhousie University Dartmouth College DePauw University Drew University Drexel University* Duke University* Duquesne University* East Carolina University Eckerd College* Elon University* Emory University* Fairfield University Fairleigh Dickinson University Fashion Institute of Technology Fishburne Military School* Flagler College Florida Institute of Technology Florida Southern College Florida State University Fordham University Full Sail University Furman University George Mason University* Georgetown University* Georgia Institute of Technology* Gettysburg College Guilford College Hampton University Harvard University High Point University* Hofstra University* Indiana University at Bloomington* Ithaca College James Madison University* Johns Hopkins University Lafayette College*

Lehigh University* Longwood University Louisiana State University Loyola University Maryland Loyola University New Orleans Lynchburg College* Manchester University Maryland Institute College of Art* Marymount University Massachusetts Institute of Technology McGill University* Miami University, Oxford* Michigan State University Middlebury College* Mills College Morehouse College* New York University North Carolina State University* Northeastern University Northern Virginia Community College Loudoun Campus* Northwestern University* Old Dominion University Parsons The New School for Design Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts* Pennsylvania State University, Harrisburg* Pennsylvania State University, University Park* Pepperdine University Pratt Institute Princeton University Purdue University* Queens University of Charlotte* Quinnipiac University Radford University Randolph College* Randolph-Macon College Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Rhode Island School of Design* Rochester Institute of Technology* Rollins College Rutgers University* Santa Clara University School of the Art Institute of Chicago* School of Visual Arts Shenandoah University Skidmore College Southern Methodist University Stanford University Stony Brook University Swarthmore College Syracuse University Temple University Texas A&M University* Texas Christian University* Texas Woman’s University The American University in Cairo* The Catholic University of America The George Washington University* The Ohio State University The University of Alabama The University of Arizona The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill The University of Scranton The University of Tampa* The University of the Arts

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Towson University Tufts University Tulane University United States Naval Academy* University at Buffalo The State University of New York University of California, Los Angeles* University of California, San Diego University of California, Santa Barbara* University of California, Santa Cruz University of Colorado at Boulder* University of Connecticut University of Delaware University of Denver University of Florida* University of Illinois at Chicago University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign University of Kentucky* University of Mary Washington* University of Maryland, College Park University of Massachusetts, Amherst University of Massachusetts, Boston* University of Miami* University of Minnesota, Twin Cities University of Mississippi University of New Hampshire University of North Carolina at Greensboro University of North Carolina at Wilmington University of Ontario Institute of Technology University of Oregon University of Otago* University of Pennsylvania* University of Pittsburgh* University of Rhode Island University of Richmond University of San Diego University of San Francisco University of South Carolina* University of Southern California University of Tennessee, Knoxville* University of Vermont University of Virginia* University of Washington University of Wisconsin, Madison University of Wyoming* Vanderbilt University* Villanova University* Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University* Wake Forest University* Washington and Lee University Washington College* Washington University in St. Louis West Virginia University Westminster College Westmont College York College of Pennsylvania * Indicates schools chosen for final attendance by graduating seniors.

Seniors Say, “Farewell” In early May, on Senior Day, soon-to-be graduates looked back at their time at Flint Hill School; said “thank you” to friends, family, teachers, coaches, and other staff; and gave advice to underclassmen. Sitting on a bench in the Upper School Commons, and in the brief two minutes given, they spoke words that will echo in the school’s hallways and hearts of many for years to come. Here are a few of those speeches: ALANA SUTER Vanderbilt University Doing a speech in front of the whole school didn’t seem likely for me when the only suggestions on my report cards are to speak up. But then I thought of all my time at Flint Hill and wanted the chance to tell all of you how precious it has been. My best teachers in my 13 years of schooling have been here, and I have the most supportive friends ever sitting right next to me. High school has a lot of ups and downs, and I’m very happy that they’ve been on my side for the whole journey. A little advice for all of you nonseniors; I hope you take the opportunity to play as many sports as possible here. The bonding of a team is a feeling that cannot be substituted, and this is coming from a girl who can barely throw a ball. A quick shout out to my tennis girls—I love you all so much! Lachlan, I hope you survive without me. You’ll be the one left in charge, which is really scary. Please, please, please bring your backpack to school and swimsuit to swim meets, especially when they’re in Richmond. I know you think I’m a bully, but I really do care about you and wish you the best. Everyone else, please enjoy your sacred time here.

I’ll miss seeing all your faces on a dayto-day basis. And lastly, good luck next year seniors!

BRUCE BRIGLIA University of Virginia I believe one of the most important things in life, and something that has kept me sane during my time in high school, are my friends. I realized after having a tough freshman year, that you need good people around you who you can talk to or vent to and especially, goof around with in life.

You have to have these people surrounding you, and I know that I will always have a friendship with the people next to me and at this school. There is one special person who I feel the need to thank, and that man is Eric Tang. Through the thick and the

thin, he has always been there for me.

Whether it was in Calc or Physics, he has helped me stay on top of my work and helped me through those blood, sweat, and tear-filled hours of AP sets and webassigns.

This year, I think I would have had a mental breakdown without him to help me understand what a triple integral is. If you don’t know Eric, I recommend you meet him in the next few months before he goes off to Duke to cure cancer. I’d like to say: thanks Eric, for bringing in Sour Patch Kids and not complaining when I eat threequarters of the bag, for being patient when I ask you the same question three or four times, and when I accuse you of being wrong even when you’re right. Everyone at this school is amazing, and I know there are plenty of Eric Tangs here, so I recommend you try your hardest every day to be someone like Eric, because I know he makes me and everyone around him a better person, and I’m going to miss him and all of my friends so much next year.

Next, I’d like to thank everyone I’ve played football and baseball with and my coaches too, because playing sports at Flint Hill has been one of my favorite things here. I have so many amazing memories when it comes to Flint Hill sports, and I know that the teams I’ve played on will stick in my memory forever. To my brother, I know you don’t like criticism, and I know you hardly ever listen to me, but you’re so funny and such a smart kid that I hope you will realize that you’re not always right, because I think you will do great things in High School and in life, and I’ll miss you so much next year.

The last thing I want to say is that my time at Flint Hill has been amazing. While I’m excited for the future, I know I will always be proud to have been a Husky, and I might have to visit my not-so-little-little brother sometimes and check up on everyone. Thank you to everyone, and congratulations Class of 2014.

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KYLIE HEAL Indiana University at Bloomington I can’t tell you how blessed I feel and how much I appreciate growing up with you guys. And I can readily say I am proud to be a part of the Class of 2014. I am proud to call every one of you a member of my class. We have been a part of each other’s lives for the past four, eight, and for some, over 10, years. And today, in one single day, we finally move on. I wouldn’t trade my high school experience for anything else. Everything that has happened to us, everything that we have been through, has made us into who we are today. And it’s these experiences, these life lessons that we will take with us into the next step of our lives.

KASANDI MULAA University of Pittsburgh This has been an incredible four years at Flint Hill. Looking back on my experience here, I would not change a single thing, and I am so proud to be a part of the Class of 2014. At the end of my 8th grade year, I made the decision to come to Flint Hill.

People here embraced me from the very beginning, and I am forever grateful for that. There have been good times, there have been bad times, but in the end the good outweighed the bad. I have learned many important life lessons here, the most important one being not to dwell on a negative situation, but to take responsibility and turn it into a positive one. The teachers here have propelled me to think beyond the surface and go out of my comfort zone, and because of that I have changed for the better and grown as a person.

PAUL HOLLAND Wake Forest University There is no possible way for me to ever sum up my years here at Flint Hill, but here's the advice I have for you all based on my incredible experience here. Make the extra effort. Talk to anyone and

everyone you can. Visit your teachers after school, not necessarily for help, but to see how they are, to get to know them. They will absolutely blow your mind. The teachers here are some of the most interesting, charming, and intelligent individuals I have ever met and to whom I wholeheartedly dedicate any of my success. I truly could not have done it without them.

VICTORIA FLAGG University of Virginia I just wanted to say something about the people here. They taught me to stop and take the time to talk and help others or do something that’s not part of your routine.

It really does matter how you act on a daily basis and what you do, because that determines your character more than how you react to big things that only happen once a year. There are always going to be things you need to do, so you might as well take the time out of your schedule to do something that will benefit yourself or others around you. What you do daily really does define you. And it’s not that one particular action will mold you or change how people perceive you, but doing something repeatedly will. Be conscious of your actions because they’re more influential than you think. I learned that everyone has something to say that is applicable to your life; you just have to give them the chance to say it. So my advice would be this: be mindful of how you spend your time, and accept how others spend theirs. Know that everything you do defines you and people take notice of your actions.

Listen to the people around you because I learned everything I just said from them.

Different people will have different effects on your life, so be open to all of them.

COLE HERDMAN Purdue University My three years at Flint Hill have been memorable. Coming in as a new student, not really knowing what to expect, was scary. It wasn’t long before upperclassmen, who I didn’t even know at the time, were coming up and talking to me. These students later on became some of my best friends in high school; and this really exemplifies what the Flint Hill community is about. Throughout my time here, I have accomplished many things—sports, academics, clubs—but the thing I will always remember about my time here is the friendships I made and the people I met. These guys will always be close to me, and I’m going to miss them in the upcoming years. I’d like to thank all the teachers and coaches who had an impact on me during

my time here. My message to the lower classmen is to not take anything for granted. Your time in high school is fun but way too short. Enjoy every moment.

COURTNEY WILEY College of William & Mary I want to start out by saying, “appreciate high school.” You don’t realize how much it means to you until your senior year, at least for me. My advice to everyone is to take advantage of your opportunities here. Seriously, Flint Hill is unlike any other high school, and being involved with all there is to do here is so worth it. Take time to really get to know people, because the friendships you make you will cherish for the rest of your life. To my soccer girls!

I love you all! Paige, Kath, and Jaclyn, this season was the best because of leading it with you. Flint Hill is an accepting place.

Don’t be afraid to be yourself here, and make the most of your four years.

JAKE SHEVLIN University of Virginia For those who don’t know me very well, I transferred to Flint Hill my sophomore year. My decision to come here was impulsive, made with only a few weeks left of summer. As I stand before you, toward the end of my time here, I can honestly say that it was the best decision I’ve ever made.

Switching schools can be daunting, but I quickly learned that Flint Hill is uniquely welcoming. Many of you in my class don’t realize what an impact you had on me, right from the start. From the girl who braved a seat next to the new kid on the bus ride home from field studies, to the guy who later admitted thinking that he might as well learn my name since we had four classes together. The Class of 2014 immediately eased my mind that I would make real and lasting friends. I arrived grateful for things many of you take for granted, like the fact that your hot dogs don’t bounce four feet and your teachers actually know your names. Even better, they really know who you are. As grateful as I felt right from the start, I still didn’t get it when I watched my first senior speeches, shocked that anyone would be sad when summer was right around the corner.

Now that I’m in their place, I understand how hard it is to leave. If I could deliver one message, it would be to worry less about the details, and appreciate the big picture. We can all get caught up in the stress of homework and exams, or the disappointment of a loss, but it’s really important to step back and look at this place and the people in it, and be grateful.

Here connections are discovered, thoughts

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are traded, and incredible memories are made. We attend one of the greatest schools in the country, filled with the most talented teachers, the friendliest students, and the best looking seniors.

I love this school so much that I even convinced my favorite person to come here—my sister Caroline. I know that all of you will be as caring and supportive of her as you have been of me. There is nobody who deserves it more. Caroline, I love you and will miss you more than words can say, but I know we will remain close even when we’re apart. It’s easier to leave knowing that you are in such a great place. I wish the best for each of you, and in the timeless words of the great American philosopher, Ron Burgundy, “You stay classy, Flint Hill!”

CHRISTINA VOHRA George Mason University I know that whenever I look back at my time at Flint Hill, the thing that will stand out to me will be the people I have met.

What makes Flint Hill so special is the community we have. I am pretty sure there is no other place where you can leave a Macbook Air and an iPhone on a table and not worry about anyone taking it.

I personally would like to think that Flint Hill students will always have a special bond, because we have all grown up in the same environment of trust and respect.

I have made so many different friends throughout my three years at Flint Hill, and each one of them has impacted me, and I feel so fortunate to have met so many incredible people. Not only have I made lifelong friends, but I have also had teachers who helped me grow as a person. Flint Hill has amazing teachers who will go out of their way to ensure that every student has a chance to succeed. Coming from one of, if not, the largest high school in Virginia, I can tell you what a change Flint Hill was.

Flint Hill makes an effort to make sure every student feels known and appreciated.

Flint Hill is not just a student body, but a family, and I am going to miss not only the Class of 2014, but also every other student and teacher. I am proud to say that I was a Husky! Congratulations Class of 2014, we made it!

NICOLAS TOMLINSON-JUSTE Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts I enjoyed everything about my time at Flint Hill, and I will always cherish the things that I have learned. To my mom, you have done more than I can think of, and I love you.

alumni news and stories

Felix van der Vaart ’12 transferred to Georgetown University over the summer and was able to compete for a walk-on spot for the baseball team as a pitcher earlier in the year. Felix earned his spot on the squad, making him the only knuckleball pitcher in Division-I baseball and one of a handful to ever play Division-I. The knuckleballer pitched a lot last season, netting the second most appearances on the team and pitching the most games as a reliever. Opposing batters were stifled by Felix’s knuckleball—hitting only .213 against him, which was tops for the Hoyas. (photo credit: Georgetown Athletics)

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Upcoming Alumni Reunions For more information, contact Kavon Akhtar at kakhtar@inthill.org OCtOBEr 25 Homecoming OCtOBEr 25 Falcon Reunion NOVEMBEr 28 Alumni Turkey Bowl NOVEMBEr 28 Class of 2009: 5-year Reunion APrIL 24-25 Reunion Weekend

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alumni news and stories Send your class notes for the Winter edition of the magazine to Kavon Akhtar at kakhtar@flinthill.org. Deadline is November 1.

David Meredith ’70 attended Southern Methodist University in Dallas after graduating from Flint Hill. He spent 25 years in Dallas and in 1995, transferred to the Atlanta area where he continued to work for Pitney Bowes Credit Corp.

He is loving life in Atlanta today where he lives with his wife, his wonderful stepdaughter and two beautiful granddaughters.

Eve (trow) turek ’74 recently had one of her landscape photographs selected as the Gold Medal winner for Landscape in the inaugural World Photographic Cup. The World Photographic Cup was created as a joint effort between PPA, the largest nonprofit photographic association in the world, and The Federation of European Photographers (FEP). FEP represents 33 member associations in 29 European Countries and is Europe’s leading professional photography association. Eve’s photograph of a tree line in Lake Mattamuskeet on a foggy January morning was chosen out of thousands of submissions to earn the Gold medal. Visit eveturek.smugmug.com to see more of Eve’s photography.

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Juan Sierra ’80, a former exchange student from Colombia, is so happy to have had the opportunity to spend his senior year at Flint Hill.

He sends his love to his former classmates and looks forward to coming back to campus and meeting up with his former soccer teammates.

Juan and his family are doing well in Colombia. tony Bryan ’96 received his doctorate from The University of Arizona in 2011 and is currently working at the Oak Ridge National Lab in Knoxville, Tenn. His wife Amy (Vickers-Smith) Bryan ‘96 joined him there last summer. Tony and Amy relocated after living in Tucson, Ariz. for 12 years.

Ginny-Len Hazel ’99 was married to Kevin Potter on July 12, 2014 in The Plains, Va. Following the ceremony, family, friends and fellow classmates celebrated at Huntley Hall, the home of Ginny-Len’s grandparents Anne and Til Hazel.

Originally from Medford, Ore., Kevin received his degree in aeronautics from the University of North Dakota.

Both newlyweds are pilots; GinnyLen flies for JetBlue Airways and Kevin flies for ExpressJet Airlines, operating as United Express.

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From Left to Right: Drew Hazel ’00, Suzanne Hazel ’01, Blaire russell Austin ’99, Lucy Decher, Ginny-Len Hazel ’99, Nancy Wilson, Alix Hazel ’01, Danielle Gause ’01, Sean Sharifi ’00, thomas Green ’99, Lydia russo ’06 Alix Hazel ’01 completed the Boston Marathon on April 21, 2014.

She qualified for the race in the Paris Marathon on April 7, 2013.

Ellen turner ’01 ran her first marathon when she completed the Goofy Race and a Half Challenge during the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend, January 11 and 12, 2014.

Participants in the Goofy Challenge run the half marathon on Saturday and the full marathon on Sunday. Ellen is currently training for even more races, including the 2014 Marine Corps Marathon.

After more than six years at Google and YouTube, Dev Sethi ’02 accepted an opportunity to help launch The Whistle network, a small sports media company focused on distributing sports video content.

Dev was named the Head of Partner Operations, responsible for business development and managing the company’s strategic partnerships with athletes, leagues, brands and sports creators.

Anjali Singh ’02 married Scott Code in New York on September 8, 2013.

Anjali resides in New York where she works to legislate and advocate to improve better outcomes for the city’s children and youth. The Boyer sisters (Khalan ’01 and tess ’08) were both in attendance to celebrate the big day with Anjali.

Justin Bonomo ’04 has been a star in the professional poker world for quite a while now, first as an online player, and now tournament play.

Over the past two years, the cards have been very kind to Justin; CardPlayer Magazine recently featured him on its cover.

Kara (Emery) Brooks ’04 has accomplished a lot recently—she received her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center, became a licensed Virginia attorney, and got married to Joe Brooks on May 17, 2014. Becoming an attorney was the result of four long years attending evening classes while working during the day. Kara is excited to havea profession for which she is passionate and a new husband to share it with.

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Elena Plionis ’04 just celebrated two years of working at the Warrior Transition Unit at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. In November 2013, Elena also participated in National Novel Writing month, writing 30,000 words in just one month. In her free time, Elena has picked up rock climbing and recently helped Mary Pilger ’04 celebrate her wedding in May. For the past five years, Sean Clark ’05 has been studying mathematics at the University of Virginia. He recently finished his doctorate and is moving to Boston for a postdoctoral appointment as a Research Instructor at northeastern University. Sean has also been invited to visit the Max Planck Institute for Mathematics in Bonn, Germany in 2015. While at UVA, Sean taught many sections of Calculus I and II, as well as Financial Mathematics. He even taught some fellow Flint Hill alumni.

Sean has published seven peerreviewed papers and produced a thesis entitled, “Quantum Supergroups and Canonical Bases.”

Sean also recently had the opportunity to spend five months at Academia Sinica in Taipei, Taiwan as a visiting researcher.

James Kremer ’05 is finishing his doctorate in microbiology and molecular genetics from Michigan State University. This summer, he will be giving talks at conferences in Greece and South Korea about beneficial microbes and how they can improve the innate immune system of plants. In the fall, James will be a visiting scientist at the Max Plank Institute in Germany to work on sustainable biotechnology development using “good bacteria” and to research how plants and bacteria communicate. James is grateful for the excellent biology classes at Flint Hill taught by Fred Atwood and Fred Chanania that inspired him to choose this career path.

Philadelphia, New York, and Washington metropolitan areas, including a recent performance at the Black History Museum for a fundraiser in support of Alexandria County Public Schools. To keep up with Nikki’s (“Sis” is her stage name) upcoming show schedule or to see past performances and hear original music, you can follow her at “itzkingsis” on all social media outlets (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc.). Join us in supporting Sis on her future endeavors! For bookings, please contact kingsisofdc@gmail.com.

Holly Hicks ’07 graduated from The University of Tampa with a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science with wetland depletion training. Holly is currently pursuing a master’s degree in instructional design and technology at The University of Tampa, with hopes of pursuing a job in science curriculum development.

Erik Odelstierna ’06 is happy to announce his marriage to Christina Napoli, which took place on Friday, June 6, at the Talamore Country Club in Ambler, Pa. Christina is a pediatric nurse at Children’s Hospital Oakland and Erik is a senior associate at PwC. The couple lives in San Francisco, California.

While continuing to work in the field of historic preservation, Nikki Mills ’06 has taken time to pursue her first passion of music and vocal art, and recently won first place in the “Showtime at the Apollo!” competition at Harlem’s historic Apollo Theater. She was invited back for a second performance and is hoping to be voted back for a third in the fall of 2014. Nikki sang in Flint Hill’s a cappella group Major Minors for three years, and notes the initial audition as the moment when she realized that “…other people actually do enjoy hearing me sing!” She has performed at many venues in the

wedding party included Lauren Eskew ’07 and Michael Joyce ’04. The newlyweds now live in uptown Charlotte, N.C., where Caroline works as a second grade teacher and Chris works for Bank of America as a hedging analyst for the corporate investment group.

Jen Green ’07 is currently at the University of San Diego working on her master’s degree in curriculum and instruction. She spent this past semester teaching math and literacy to first- and second-graders on a parttime basis. In the fall, Jen will be teaching full-time. She is set to earn her credential for multiple-subject elementary classroom instruction in December 2014 and complete her master’s degree in May 2015.

Caroline (Joyce) Grier ’07 married Chris Grier on April 12, 2014 at Trump National Golf Course in Potomac Falls, Va. Their beautiful

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Brian Lainoff ’07 is currently working at the Global Crop Diversity Trust in Bonn, Germany. The Crop Trust works to ensure the conservation and availability of global crop diversity forever.

Brian moved to Germany with the Crop Trust from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization in Italy last year. Perhaps the biggest highlight of the Crop Trust is the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, which is found on a remote island in the Svalbard archipelago near the North Pole. Built 150 meters into a mountain, the Vault currently protects more than 820,000 different types of crops for safekeeping for the future. Brian is working in Communications and Fundraising to help the Crop Trust secure funding

for the long-term conservation of this crop diversity. Brian, who was a standout pitcher at Flint Hill, is also playing in the German Professional Bundesliga Baseball League for the Bonn Capitals.

summer’s CMT Awards. The band toured with Hunter Hayes last spring and has supported Blake Shelton during his headlining arena/stadium tour this summer.

Steve Lederer ’07 received his first screen credit for a feature film as a foley editor on “Veronica Mars” in March 2014. Steve has also edited for TV shows “Castle,” “Devious Maids,” “Glee,” “The Originals” and “Revenge.”

Since joining Scooter Braun Projects in December 2011, Nano tissera ’07 has been growing his client list exponentially.In addition to The Wanted and their worldwide success (4 million singles sold in the United States and a worldwide #1 hit), Nano discovered and signed Nashville country duo Dan + Shay.

Unknown and with a handful of songs, he signed the act to SB Projects in June 2013, in which they secured a record deal with Warner Music Nashville the following month.

The band’s first single, “19 You + Me” reached #11 on the Billboard Country Music charts and their debut album “Where It All Began” debuted at #1 on the Billboard Country Music Album charts. The band was featured on “Good Morning America” and “Ellen” and performed during this

After working on various NBCUniversal shows such as “SNL,” “Late night with Jimmy Fallon” and “NBC news” in the prestigious post-graduate NBC Page Program, Kathy Chun ’08 has finally landed her dream job with Bravo and Oxygen Media. She is currently a program planning coordinator, supporting the executive vice president of program strategy for Bravo and Oxygen Media.

Her department is responsible for deciding when to air Bravo and Oxygen shows based on strategic tactics and overseeing the production process for upcoming new shows on both networks. She is pictured with Giulianna Rancic, the host of “E! News” during the NBCUniversal Upfront, an annual event where upcoming shows for all the NBC Universal cable entertainment channels (E!, Bravo, Oxygen, USA, etc.) are announced and celebrities from each network attend.

Lyndsey Marcus ’08 recently completed her thesis to graduate with a master’s degree in English literature from the University of Virginia. In the fall, Lyndsey will start as a fifth- and sixth- grade language arts teacher at the Highland School in Warrenton, Va.

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Michael Freedman ’06 and his father, Bruce, recently traveled to Central America and climbed to the summit of Ixtaccíhuatl (17,160 ft.) and Pico de Orizaba (18,491 ft.), which is the highest mountain in Mexico and third highest in North America. At this altitude, oxygen levels are less than half of their sea-level concentration.

Pico de Orizaba is the second most prominent volcanic peak in the world after Africa’s Mt. Kilimanjaro, which Michael and Bruce climbed in August 2013. In June 2014, this father-son duo climbed to the summit of Mt. McKinley (Denali), the highest point in North America at 20,320 ft.

For this excursion, they traveled directly onto the Kahiltna Glacier at the base of Mt. McKinley.

Catherine Schlegel ’08 graduated from James Madison University in May. In March, she and a group of friends embarked on a 17-hour road trip to New Orleans for Mardi Gras.

She had an amazing time enjoying jazz performers, Cajun food and the sheer number of people that flooded the streets. Her favorite part of the trip was enjoying King Cake!

Catherine shared that she will cherish this memory for the rest of her life because it taught her to be spontaneous and enjoy America’s culture.

Logan Frederick ’09 graduated from Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. in 2013 with a bachelor’s degree in geoscience. While at Skidmore, she played for the Women’s Basketball team for four years and served as a firefighter for the Maple Avenue Fire Department. She is currently living in Salt Lake City where she is pursuing a doctorate in hydrology at the University of Utah and is in the process of joining a Utah fire department.

Chelsea Overholt ’09 moved to England in September 2013 to pursue her master’s degree at Durham University, a top 50 business school in the world, and fulfill her dream of playing professional volleyball. After seven months of rigorous training in preparation for England’s National Title match, Chelsea and her teammates from Team Durham were set to face Team Northumbria, a team that has upheld a perfect record for two consecutive years with the help of its power-house roster consisting of top American athletes and Great Britain Olympians. Chelsea’s team prevailed, winning a 3-2 nail-biter and being crowned England National Champions for the first time in Team Durham history.

In addition, Chelsea will graduate in September with a master’s degree in business management.

Chris Peterson ’09 recently graduated from Middlebury College, where he finished his college lacrosse career.

Chris played in 15 games during his senior season, notching 5 goals and 3 assists.

John Stertzer ‘09 is currently in the midst of a great season with Real Salt Lake. The talented midfielder has fully recovered from a 2013 shoulder injury, and worked his way into a starting position for a very talented Major League Soccer squad.

Zach Ayers ’10 just finished his senior year at James Madison University. While earning his degree, Zach also began picking up a number of freelance front-end web development projects in addition to his role as a web developer for the Office of Technology and Design at JMU. Zach also served as a resident advisor on campus and as the chapter president of JMU’s National Residence Hall Honorary. Recently, a website he designed and developed in the fall received national recognition.

CUMCUpward.com was awarded first place in the solo category for Interactive Multimedia in the BEA Festival of Media Arts national competition. BEA is the gold-standard national competition for university programs focused on media and media design. There were more than 1,300 entrants across all the various categories and sub-classes.

Lauren MacGuidwin ’10 recently graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown University with a major in psychology and a minor in theology.

In September, she will start as an account strategist at Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, Ca. (Pictured with Elise ’12, Mike ’08, and youngest brother Mark).

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Audrey Dotson ’11 finished her junior year playing for Bucknell’s Women’s Basketball team. Audrey led the Bison in points (16.1/game), rebounding (6.9/game), blocks (1.5/game), field goal percentage (48%) and free throw percentage (82%). Audrey’s amazing year led to her being named second team All-Patriot League.

ratna Gill ’11 just finished her sophomore year at Harvard, where she studies environmental economics and Latin.

She continues to sing with the Harvard Opportunes and work for a sustainable development start-up on campus.

Last fall, Ratna was featured in a film made by Harvard Student Agencies on the college admissions process, and last spring, her company (Sense & Sustainability) was invited to South Korea to help plan K.E.Y. Platform 2014, a conference on innovation and sustainability in business. The event convened business leaders from across East Asia, including Samsung, LG, Hyundai, KIA, Baidu and Sharp.

Ratna’s team was awarded a Green Carpet Award from the Harvard Office for Sustainability for its role in the

conference. At the end of her sophomore year, Ratna participated in a book tour for “The Opposite of Loneliness,” a book published by her favorite author and friend Marina Keegan, who graduated from Yale in 2012 and died in a car crash just days later. She considers this her most important accomplishment of the year. This summer, Ratna worked as an Economic Policy Intern for the Environmental Defense Fund in Boston.

Emily Hall ’11 just finished her third season on the Gettysburg College softball team as the starting third baseman. She had a great year hitting, she finished with a .424 batting average, 30 RBI, .545 slugging percentage and a .482 on base percentage. Emily has been doing just as well in the classroom. She was recently name to the All-Centennial Conference Academic Honor Roll.

Outside of Gettysburg College, Emily has been working at the Psychiatric Institute of Washington-The Center for the second summer in a row, where she spends time observing clinical sessions including expressive therapy, knowledge and skills, and psycho-

therapy for both in-patient and partial hospital, as well as attending rounds and treatment planning on a daily basis.

Natasha Chadha ’10 will officially be attending Columbia’s Teachers College this fall to pursue a master’s degree in the Department of Arts and Humanities with a specialization in teaching English. She is extremely excited for this opportunity.

tyler Lewris ’11 started his college career as a lacrosse player at Tufts. He then transferred to the University of Virginia in 2012, and in addition to switching schools, the very talented Lewris switched sports. Last spring, he earned a spot as a walk-on wide receiver for the 2014 UVA football team.

Alex Long ’12 had a great sophomore season at Davidson College, playing guard for the Davidson Women’s Basketball team. Alex played in all 32 games and started in 7 of them.

Jared Busby ’13 just completed his freshman year at Clemson University, where he is majoring in environmental science with a concentration in natural resources and economic policy, and a minor in political science. Outside of his studies, Jared recently pledged the Alpha Sigma Phi fraternity. Jared was also appointed to the Clemson University Student Government Sustainability Committee and appointed as the director of facilities and fundraising sub-committee.

He will retain those positions and responsibilities during his sophomore year.

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Shortly after graduating from Flint Hill, Sarah Kim ’13 moved back to her home country, South Korea, for college. She is currently majoring in English literature and is loving the education experience. Even though the school system is drastically different from her Flint Hill experience, she is ready for everything. She writes in to say how much she misses Flint Hill, the teachers and her fellow alumni, and promises to visit the United States soon.

John Curtis ’13 has started his career in communications and can be seen on the Elon Local News.

Hannah Donegan ’13 had an amazing freshman year for the Connecticut College Women’s Lacrosse team. Her terrific play earned her the NESCAC Rookie of the Year, given to the most impactful first-year player in the conference. Hannah lead the Camels in points with 20 goals, 5 assists, 33 draw controls, and 24 ground balls—an unbelievable start for her lacrosse career.

Kasey Kettle ’13 recently finished his freshman year at Virginia Military Institute (VMI). It was a busy year for Kasey. He went through rigorous training in the Army ROTC program

and played college lacrosse, all while staying on top of his academic classes as a biology major. The first year midfielder had a strong season and is excited for his sophomore showing.

One of his favorite highlights from the season was beating Air Force at home and being part of the first VMI lacrosse team in school history to defeat a service academy.

Jerrod reed ’13 is truly enjoying his experience at Frostburg State University. With a lot of hard work and dedication, Jerrod made the basketball team, a feat that has made his freshman year very memorable.

Sara Schlegel ’08 and Kristin Staffo ’07 helped plan a tremendous event in New York. On February 28, John Thomas hosted a reception for New Yorkbased alumni. The event was a huge hit, with more than 35 alumni attending to reconnect, reminisce and meet up with former faculty members Doug MacLeod and Kay Maddox! The school hopes to make this venture an annual event.

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Jessica rush ’13 was invited back to Nashville to continue her career as a singer and songwriter and was able to record three new original songs.

alumni gatherings

The Class of 2008’s 5-year Reunion was a great success! The day after Thanksgiving, more than 50 alumni reunited at Whitlow’s in Arlington, Va. Thanks to Ashley Sprano ’08, ryan Creegan ’08 and Ben Keaton ’08 for helping organize the big event!

The Flint Hill Turkey Bowl was an impromptu gathering, spearheaded by John rehberger ’09, Chris Peterson ’09 and Chris nelson ’10, that pitted two teams of alumni against each other on Flint Hill’s turf. With 20 alumni in attendance, the former Flint Hill football players may have started a new alumni tradition at Flint Hill. Be on the look out for next year’s Turkey Bowl. As for the game, Team Howard defeated Team Rehberger by the score of 52-42, with Aaron Bell ’08 taking home MVP honors.

The D.C.-Area Happy Hour at O’Sullivan’s in Arlington was a big success, with alumni coming to catch up with faculty members Kim Duncan, Taylor Johnson, Andy and Maddie Krug, and Rico Reed!

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Saturday, April 26, 2014

Springfest After a long winter, Springfest was a welcome opportunity to be outside, cheer on the spring sports teams and participate in the 1st Flint Hill Husky 5K / Fun Run. Thank you to the 5K / Fun Run Chairs Brooke Johnson and Sarah Talley.

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Parents’ Association Golf Tournament Despite the rainy weather, 124 golfers and 26 Husky Sponsors contributed to a fun day and raised money for the Parents’ Association Endowment Fund for Financial Aid in honor of Sally Hazel.

Thank you to Pam Snyder and Abbey Ayanian for their help with organizing the tournament and special thanks to the event’s Chairs Jon Peterson, Taylor Chess and Mike Shevlin.

Start practicing your swing now for next year’s tournament on May 28, 2015.

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spring athletic

wrap-up Five of our teams qualified for their respective state tournaments at the end of the season, and the baseball and boys lacrosse teams ended their seasons with conference titles

BASEBALL Flint Hill won the Mid-Atlantic Athletic Conference, going undefeated in the regular season and the MAC tournament. At the VISAA State Tournament, we were seeded #6.

In the quarterfinals we beat #3 St. Christopher’s School and lost in the semi-finals. The overall record was 21-8. Senior leaders on the team leaders included Bruce Briglia ’14, Josh Crummer ’14, reid Frazier ’14 and tommy Doyle ’14, who signed to pitch for the University of Virginia.

Tommy was also named VISAA Division I Co-Player of the Year.

BOYS TENNIS Flint Hill won against St. Stephen’s and St. Agnes School, Bishop Ireton and Paul VI Catholic High School.

Those wins helped qualify the team in the VISAA State Tournament as Quarterfinalists, seeded at #8.

Leading the play included Arnav Boppudi ’17 and Corey McCarten ’14.

BOYS LACROSSE Nick Peterson ’14 led the team in scoring and Drew Fellows ’14 shored up the goalie position.

We finished 2nd in the Mid-Atlantic Athletic Conference regular season due to a loss against The Potomac School. However, in the conference tournament, we defeated the Panthers on their home turf with a score of 13-7 to win the tournament title.

GIRLS LACROSSE Teamwork and determination describe this year for the girls lacrosse team. We finished 3rd in the Independent School League Conference and qualified for the VISAA State Tournament as #5 where we defeated #4 St. Anne’s Belfield School in the quarterfinal matchup. Katherine Doyle ’14, Catie Chess ’14 and Lizzy Schwien ’15 provided outstanding leadership as captains of the team. Katherine was named to the US Lacrosse High School All-America Team.

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TRACK & FIELD At the VISAA State Championships, Gabrielle turner ’16 came in 7th in the 800meter run while our 4x400 meter relay team had a 5th place showing.

The relay team consisted of Bryan Calhoun ’16, raynal Singh ’14, Deondre Wooden ’16 and Darron Coley ’15.

Darron also placed 4th in the 400-meter dash and 5th in the 200meter dash. A few weeks earlier, he set a new school record in the 800-meter with a time of 1:57:97.

SOFTBALL Flint Hill finished 2nd in the Independent School League AA Division and qualified for the State Tournament, seeded #7.

We won against rivals National Cathedral School and The Potomac School. Leaders included Lizzy Schofield ’14 and juniors Monica Brendsel ’15, Brittany deCamp ’15 and Michelle Abt ’15.

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MAGAZINE | SUMMER 2014

BOARD OF TRUSTEES 2014-2015 Mr. Otis D. Coston Jr., Chairman Mr. Nelson A. Carbonell Jr., Vice Chairman Mr. Richard J. Hendrix, Treasurer Mr. John M. Thomas, Secretary BOARD MEMBERS Gen. John R. Allen, USMC (Ret.) ’71 Mr. Steven C. Anderson Mr. John M. Beatty Sr. Mr. Randall W. Byrnes Mrs. Jacqueline M. Copeland Mr. William C. Fleeson ’03 Mrs. Sarah D. Hazel Mr. Edward H. Kennedy Mr. John M. Kudless Mrs. Lisa R. Lisker Mrs. Sarah L. Merten Mr. Gary D. Rappaport Mrs. Liza Wright Renner Ms. Lucia Anna Trigiani TRUSTEES EMERITI Mr. John T. Hazel Jr. Founding Chairman Emeritus Sister Martha Carpenter, O.S.F. Mr. Edward R. Carr Mr. John M. Dowd The Honorable Johanna L. Fitzpatrick Mr. Paul C. Kincheloe Jr. Mr. Michael C. McCarey Mr. William N. Melton Mr. Norris E. Mitchell The Reverend Edwin M. Ward EDITORIAL TEAM Angela Brown, ambrown@flinthill.org Tim Mitchell, tmitchell@flinthill.org Jackie Viteri, jviteri@flinthill.org MAGAZINE DESIGN kaze design

FLinT HiLL SCHooL 3320 Jermantown Road Oakton, VA 22124 703.584.2300 www.flinthill.org

Flint Hill School is a transitional kindergarten through 12th grade independent school.

our sincere

thanks The Flint Hill Annual Fund has had another record-breaking year, raising more than $1,250,000, thanks to the support of our generous community of donors!

The Annual Fund touches every program and every person at Flint Hill. Each year, gifts to the Annual Fund drive the mission of Flint Hill forward by supporting our academic programs, faculty, athletics, fine arts and financial aid.

Thank you for your commitment to our school. to make your gift, please contact the Development Office: 703.584.2356 or go online at www.flinthill.org/support The Flint Hill Annual Fund year runs from August 1 to July 31.

Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage

PAID Permit No. 293 Merrifield, VA 3320 Jermantown Road Oakton, VA 22124

Save the Date!

HOMECOMING Friday & Saturday, October 24 & 25, 2014 Bonfire - Powder Puff Game Football, Soccer and Volleyball Teams Compete - Food - Games for kids.

HOLIDAY SHOPPES At FLINt HILL Saturday, November 15, 2014 10:00am-4:00pm Free Admission Upper School Campus Dozens of vendors offering jewelry, housewares, clothing, accessories, menswear, gourmet items and more!

PArENtS’ ASSOCIAtION GALA “A Night in Oz” Saturday, March 7, 2015 6:30pm-12:00am Westfields Marriott in Chantilly The evening includes dinner, dancing and a silent and live auction.