FWCD Falconer - Fall 2013

F o r t

Fort Worth Country Day 4200 Country Day Lane Fort Worth, Texas 76109-4299

Volume 5, Issue 1 Fall/Winter 2013

Address Service Requested

SAVE THE DATE!

Close out FWCD’s 50th with a party for the decades.

Come as you were or who you wanted to be in high school!

Saturday, March 29, 2014 7 p.m.

American Aero Hangar at Meacham Field

W o r th

C ount r y

D a y

CONTENTS Volume 5, Issue 1 • Fall/Winter 2013

26

36

14

features

CAMPUS NOtES

4

Living History

The fifth-generation in his family to go to war, history teacher Bill Arnold ’86 uses his military experience in the classroom and beyond to educate and engage students.

2 3 6 8

14 Middle School Launches 1:1 iPad Program

All FWCD Middle School students started school this year with a new school supply: the Apple iPad.

26

C ountry Daze: Memories from the Class of 1967

A true FWCD Original, Bill Curtis ’67 shares memories of Fort Worth Country Day in its infancy. On opening day in 1963, new friends and the chance to build an academic legacy lay ahead.

36

S tudents Get a Glimpse of Life in the ’60s at “Looking Back” Day

The FWCD community had a “gas” as it celebrated the School’s official birthday on September 9—the very day 50 years ago that the first 210 students set foot on campus.

44

Homecoming Highlights 50th Anniversary in Grand Style

Homecoming was truly a fun-filled week packed with celebratory events and activities for all Falcons, including the FWCD Authors Reception, Alumni Art Show Reception, Alumni Awards Dinner, Friday night Homecoming football game and its pre-game extravaganza, a former faculty/staff reunion and 10 reunion celebrations.

Cover photo © Glen E. Ellman

Message from the Head of School Faculty Faces FWCD Hosts 120 Preschool Educators On Campus Lower School Student Council. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Red Ribbon Run. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Book Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Carnival 2013 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Fluency and Writing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 11 Halloween 12 Grandparents’ and Grandfriends’ Day 14 Middle School School Debate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Sky Ranch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Wonder-ful News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Veterans Day. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 18 Upper School Harnessing Creativity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Cowtown Brush Up. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 A Study in Government. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 FWCD Scholars. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 Student Photographers Honored. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 LSU Representatives on Campus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Annual College Day . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Be part of their legacy.

4 22 Performing Arts

TMEA All-State Orchestra. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Winter Ballet Concert. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Orchestra Accolades. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Musical Year on Campus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 A Musical Fusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Music to Our Ears. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Our Town. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Almost, Maine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 35 FWCD Headmasters Past 42 Founding Families Reception 49 Five Falcons Inducted into FWCD Athletics Wall of Fame 50 Athletic News

Roar and Score to the Championship Game . . . . . . . . . . 50 Cross Country Honors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .50 Livingston Named Scholar Athlete of the Week. . . . . . . . 51 Battle of Bryant Irvin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Teaching the Same Lessons 50 Years Later. . . . . . . . . . . . 52 53 A Summer of Treasures to Benefit Breakthrough Students 55 Alumni News

Homecoming/Reunion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Alumni Art Show. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Alumni Awards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 Alumni Authors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 62 Class Notes 64 FWCD’s Beloved Jean Webb 66 Board Spotlight

The Peter A. Schwartz Legacy Society Fort Worth Country Day established the Peter A. Schwartz Legacy Society to honor and recognize those individuals who have made planned or estate gifts to Fort Worth Country Day. Schwartz Legacy Society Members Dr. and Mrs. Keith Argenbright Dr. and Mrs. John Burk (Stephanie Steves ’77) Mr. and Mrs. Geoffrey C. Butler H’98 Mr. and Mrs. John R. Clay Mr. and Mrs. Bronson C. Davis Ms. Tori Adams H’10 and Mr. Jim DuBose ’75 Mrs. Peggy Field Mr. and Mrs. Randy Gideon (Beth Runyon ’78) Mr. and Mrs. John Grant (Bobette Withers ’69) Mr. and Rev. Carl Haag Mr. and Mrs. Joe Halbach Mr. and Mrs. Robert E. Havran

Mr. and Mrs. Jim Hubbard Mr. and Mrs. Todd Kelly ’81 Dr. Chuck Kraus Mr. and Mrs. George W. Pepper Mr. and Mrs. Evan D. Peterson Mr. Kelly Ryan ’76 Mr. and Mrs. Scott W. Sankary ’86 Mr. and Mrs. James C. Taylor Mr. and Mrs. Michael S. Waltrip Dr. Shannon Sweeney Wright ’74 Ms. Mary Wysong and Mr. Michael Haney

Contact Sandra Tuomey, director of advancement, at 817.302.3223 or sandra.tuomey@fwcd.org for more information.

44 2012-13 Annual Report 68 Message from 2012-13 Board of Trustees President 69 Financial Report 70 Fwcd Fund

FWCD Fund Donors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Faculty and Staff Participation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Alumni Class Participation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Grandparent Honor Roll. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Honoring Class of 2013 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Honor Tribute Gifts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Memory Tribute Gifts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Restricted Funds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Falcon Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Supporting CAST . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Breakthrough Donors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

70 76 77 79 82 82 83 84 86 87 87

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Snap here to access Fort Worth Country Day’s website.

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http:/ / gettag.mobi A sincere effort has been made, in editing this publication, to honor every donor. It is possible, however, that names have been inadvertently omitted or incorrectly listed. If such an error has occurred, please contact the Advancement Office at 817.302.3204 so that we may correct the record.

Message from the Head of School

Lisa Koger

This Falconer is chock full of great stories and information—but it merely scratches the surface! Each academic year, I am amazed at how quickly time passes and brings us to the end of the fall semester. This year, Fort Worth Country Day opened its doors to 1,117 students with 17 new faculty and staff members joining our ranks.

This academic year has been defined by technology. Our Middle School students hit the ground running on Head of School Evan D. Peterson with day one as they came to school with Lower School’s Principal of the Day their newest school supply: the Apple Paxton Stimson ’22 iPad Mini or the iPad version 2.0 or later. The School’s 331 Middle School students are part of FWCD’s new one-to-one iPad program. You can read more about how this program transforms learning on page 14. Middle schoolers aren’t the only students using technology: Eleven of our Upper School students are taking the very first Malone Schools Online Network (MSON) courses offered through Stanford University. Taught by experts in their fields, the courses allow students to interact with students from across the country in a virtual classroom. Our Lower School students are in the mix as well, using iPads and computers in their classrooms, but their main point of focus this year involves reading fluency and the writing process.

Excitement has been at an all-time high as a result of our 50th anniversary. The events have been spectacular and nonstop. This issue highlights some of our latest events: “Looking Back” Day on September 9; the Founding Families reception; and Homecoming 2013, which was a dazzling success, complete with fireworks and guests of honor Edgar “Ted” Sanford H’98, Geoff Butler H’98 and Graham Brown, former FWCD headmasters.

The 2012-13 Annual Report is included within this issue. Thank you to those who support Fort Worth Country Day through financial gifts. Whether your contribution aided the FWCD Fund, Falcon Club or Supporting CAST, your thoughtfulness allows the School to advance and prepare the next generation of leaders in our community. Speaking of support, we continue to work behind the scenes on our 50th anniversary capital campaign, to which everyone will eventually be asked to pledge their support. Under the leadership of Jeff and Laura Bonnell ’88 Alexander, and with 100 percent participation from the Board, we are in the initial planning phase and will keep you apprised along the way.

We have an abundance of good news. Please help us share this news broadly. FWCD is a remarkable place thanks to each of you. May you have a happy and healthy 2014!

Sincerely,

Evan D. Peterson Head of School

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Volume 5, Issue 1 Fall/Winter 2013 Administrative Team Evan D. Peterson . . . . . . . . . . . . . Head of School Steve Stackhouse . . . . . . Assistant Head of School Tom Mitchell . . . . . . . . . . Chief Financial Officer Joe Breedlove ’78 . . . . . . Director of Breakthrough Frank Gendusa. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Athletic Director Rob Hereford. . . . . . . . . . . Head of Upper School Barbara Jiongo. . . . . . . . . . Director of Admission Shari Lincoln. . . . . . . . . . Head of Lower School John Stephens. . . . . . . . . . Head of Middle School Sandra Tuomey. . . . . . . . Director of Advancement Steve Uhr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Director of Technology Shannon Rossman Allen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Editor Lisa Koger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Art Director Contributors Shannon Allen Paige Farris Chisholm ’87 Rachel Donahue Yolanda Espinoza Mary Lou Hilliard Mel Hurst Barbara Jiongo Shilo Mancini Renee Pierce Sandra Tuomey Lisa Wallace The Falconer is published biannually for Fort Worth Country Day families and friends by the Advancement Team. Opinions represented may not necessarily be the position of the Board or Administration. Fort Worth Country Day has an institutional commitment to the principles of diversity. In that spirit, FWCD does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, creed, color, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability or national origin in admissions, the administration of its educational policies, financial aid, athletics and other school-administered programs.

Send Falconer comments to shannon.allen@fwcd.org or 817.302.3244.

Postmaster: Send address changes to Falconer: Fort Worth Country Day 4200 Country Day Lane Fort Worth, Texas 76109-4299 © FWCD

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FACULTY

Faces

Fort Worth Country Day opened its doors on August 19 to 1,117 students—377 in Lower School, 331 in Middle School and 409 in Upper School. The FWCD faculty team is up to the challenge of educating these young minds, with 14 new faculty members joining the ranks this academic year. Go to fwcd.org/newfaculty for details on this talented group.

Trey Blair Assistant Head Of Lower School

Photos by Glamourcraft

Hester Burdman Sixth-Grade Mathematics

Lauren Cunningham Upper School Art/Art History

Jordan Hampton ’01 Upper School Math

Jonathan Hinton Middle School Band Director

Daniel Lancaster Upper School English

Amanda Malone Second Grade

Lynn McBroom Kindergarten Assistant

Ravi Pillalamarri Upper School Math

Sherri Reed Upper School Science

Sarah Akhtar Smith ’91 Kindergarten Associate

Nina Sport Middle School French/Spanish

Andrew Thomas Upper School History

Pamela Thomas Third-/Fourth-Grade Music

Fall/Winter 2013

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3

Living History History teacher brings students into the battle

By Martha Deller Reprinted with permission from the Business Press

Bill Arnold was just 26 years old when he cut short a long-planned military career and took a job teaching history at his alma mater––a choice he and his wife felt was more conducive to raising a family.

Ten years later, he was in Iraq commanding a Marine Scout platoon fighting to retake the city of Fallujah. Operation Phantom Fury, a six-week battle in late 2004, is considered the bloodiest––in sheer numbers of U.S. and coalition troops and Iraqi insurgents killed and injured––waged

by U.S. ground forces since Hue City, Vietnam.

Arnold’s seven-month combat assignment, requiring him to leave behind his Fort Worth Country Day students and his own three children, was a challenging if predictable outcome of his decision to join the Marine reserves in the wake of the 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, D.C. “We hit the ground in early September 2004 and were heavily engaged with the enemy virtually the entire time we were there,” he recalled recently in a telephone interview from France, where he led 13 students on a World War II history tour of the battlefields of Normandy.

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Arnold, now 45, returned to civilian life in 2005, but still has vivid memories of Fallujah.

As traumatic as it was, Arnold believes the experience made him a better teacher, just as his teaching experience made him a better leader of the 28 Marines he brought home after his unit completed its mission.

Arnold’s charges and colleagues––civilian and military––obviously agree. Since his return, he has received several education and service awards, most recently the Bayard H. Friedman HERO Award for the most outstanding North Texas history teacher.

Former U.S. Speaker of the House Jim Wright, who nominated Arnold to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1986, was among those toasting Arnold during the presentation last spring by the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History and Score a Goal in the Classroom.

Ironically, Arnold lost the West Point appointment due to a slight hearing loss.

Instead, an ROTC scholarship paid his way to Virginia Military Institute, where he met his future wife, Debby.

Their attraction to each other was “like a lightning bolt,” Arnold said, but the couple had to wait two-and-a-half years to wed––until Arnold’s 1990 graduation ––because of ROTC rules banning cadet marriages.

Commissioned a second lieutenant, Arnold trained Marines at Camp Pendleton and 29 Palms bases in California for four years, then kept his promise to Debby to reconsider a military career. He left the Marines as a captain and with a toddler in tow, the Arnolds returned to Fort Worth, where Bill began teaching history and coaching football, baseball and other sports at Country Day. His love of history, his mother Ann Arnold Packer’s teaching career and his military background instructing Marines combined to convince Arnold he had a knack for the job. His students and supervisors thought so, too.

Head of School Evan D. Peterson, who was hired as Upper School principal the year Arnold graduated, returned after 10 years at other schools to find Arnold excelling as an eight-year veteran teacher.

After observing Arnold with students in the classroom and on the field, Peterson

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recalled, “I thought, ‘this kid is a young star. He’s going to be great.’”

a learning experience that he would share with them––if and when he returned.

Over 19 years, Arnold has coached four sports, taught eight different history classes, led history and service trips to France and Ecuador and worked short stints in admissions and advancement to gauge his aptitude and desire for an administrative career.

“Each day is an adventure,” he told students. “Life should be lived on the offensive, not the defensive. While I’m there, I’m going to learn about the people, the history, the terrain––everything I can.

God forbid I die, but when I come back, I’ll share my experiences.”

But everything changed for Arnold after September 11, 2001, the day three civilian airplanes commandeered by al-Qaida terrorists crashed into the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., killing thousands. Hundreds more died when passengers and crew diverted a fourth hijacked plane bound for the U.S. Capitol, sending it crashing into a field in rural Pennsylvania.

As a wave of patriotism swept over the U.S., Arnold again considered joining the Marine reserves, an option he had pushed aside previously because of coaching conflicts. This time it was his wife’s idea, he said.

Grateful that his men escaped serious physical wounds, Arnold conceded that many, himself included, suffered emotional trauma.

“When you emerge from combat, you feel bulletproof, like you can take on the world,” he said. “But it’s hard to move from one world to another so quickly. World War II veterans had time to decompress aboard the troopship. We flew home with blood still on our uniforms. You gradually start to be affected by what you saw, smelled and felt over there.”

Bill Arnold ’86 was honored with the Bayard H. Friedman HERO Award for the most outstanding North Texas history teacher in May by Score a Goal in the Classroom.

As they watched news coverage of the attacks, Debby remarked, “Dang it, you’re a good officer.

You need to go back in. Your nation needs you.”

Two years after he assumed command of the Marine Reserves’ 4th Tank Battalion in Amarillo, the unit was deployed to Iraq. By then he had been promoted to major.

After breaking the news to his wife and children (the kids ranged in age from 3 to 11), Arnold informed Peterson, who arranged substitutes to handle Arnold’s classes. Peterson led what would have been Arnold’s second student trip to France.

At a school assembly before his departure, Arnold told students that he didn’t know how long he’d be gone but that he intended to make his first trip to the Middle East

Fall/Winter 2013

“It was a very, very, very violent military siege of a city – something you don’t see in modern times,” Smith said. “Human beings are not meant to be stressed like that. While others were falling apart, he never lost his cool. He was steadfast all the way through it.”

Arnold fulfilled that promise, a testament to his character, according to Marine Sergeant Michael Smith, a Virginia-based federal law enforcement officer who was Arnold’s second in command in Fallujah.

Smith depicted Arnold as an exceptional yet humble leader whose intelligence and bravery under fire saved the lives of the Marines assigned to protect regimental commander Colonel Michael Shupp.

In a letter written for the HERO award ceremony, Smith described a November 2004 battle in which Arnold ordered his men to push forward into an enemy ambush, personally firing his tankmounted machine gun as anti-tank rockets narrowly missed his vehicle.

Peterson said Arnold’s quieter demeanor suggested that the young teacher was struggling with his war experiences. So Peterson wasn’t surprised when Arnold declined a promotion to Upper School principal to reconnect with his children and his students.

Gradually, Peterson said, the popular teacher reverted to his previous outgoing personality.

Senior Kyle O’Brien said that before Arnold’s deployment, he knew him mostly as his friend Robert’s dad. Now, he said, Arnold is a favorite teacher who brings history alive, challenges students to think and encourages them to pursue their passions.

In a Modern Problems course Arnold created, he helps students understand that regardless of politics, being president is tough, foreign policy is not clear-cut and citizens should study the facts before jumping to conclusions, O’Brien said.

Continued page 6 FALCONER

5

Living History continued And as he considers the necessity of choosing a college, O’Brien said, he appreciates all the more Arnold’s advice to freshmen to research colleges they might want to attend and to set goals to get there and succeed.

“As freshmen, you don’t think about what your grades will mean three years from now,” O’Brien said. “He told us high school is not just a sprint, it’s a marathon.”

Arnold says his Marine service enhanced his sense of responsibility for his students’ success or failure.

“We as teachers have a responsibility to have energy, intellect and enthusiasm,” he said. “Just like in coaching, one kid needs a pat on the back, another needs a kick in the butt. The art is figuring out which needs what. If I give 100 percent to motivate the kids, they’ll succeed. I learned that in the Marines.”

Arnold also learned the grim reality of war, something he said it’s hard to get across to young people who romanticize it. Although he was the fifth generation in his family to go to war––from a great-great grandfather in the Civil War to his father in World War II––Arnold was not prepared for the experience.

“The more graphic it sounds, the more they want to go,” he said. “I’m proud of my service, but there’s no joy that people were killed––Marines or Iraqis. I just wish I had a video camera on my Humvee so the nation could see what I saw.”

Arnold said that while he hopes his children will never have to go to war, he has neither encouraged nor discouraged them on the subject of military service.

“Debby and I believe that a career choice is a personal decision, and we provide reasoned guidance only,” he said. “I believe it would be a mistake for me to pressure them. I do hope they will choose a professional career that makes them happy, as well as one that serves humankind.”

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FWCD Hosts 120 Preschool Educators On Campus Fort Worth Country Day hosted 120 preschool educators from 15 different schools on campus for a two-hour Continuing Professional Education (CPE) workshop titled “The Write Start Begins with Playing Right” presented

by Sue Khammar, OTR/L, a licensed occupational therapist (OT) and founder of Cowtown Pediatrix Clinic, LLC. Khammar, an FWCD parent, has been an OT since 1991. She works in a variety of settings, which led her to open her own practice. Khammar’s specialty is sensory integration. She helps families get to the root cause of underlying developmental issues impacting their child’s performance at home and at school.

Khammar reached out to FWCD when she learned last year that one of the School’s kindergarteners would most likely be confined to a wheelchair. She spoke to Barbara Jiongo, director of admission, and told her she would help in any way necessary, which paved the way for her to serve as the student’s OT and an aid in his classroom. While helping in the classroom, Khammar saw other students who could benefit from OT related to the core. With encouragement from the kindergarten team and Aimee Jenkins, summer enrichment director, Khammar created two classes for entering kindergarteners and first-graders. She titled the classes “The Write Start.”

When Jiongo learned of these summer offerings, she not only recommended them to entering new students, but she also asked Khammar if she could develop a program for preschool educators about the importance of play in building the muscles and core necessary for fine motor work in kindergarten. Thus, “The Write Start Begins with Playing Right” presentation was born. The program

was the creative, cumulative effort of Khammar and FWCD’s admission team, most notably Stacey Cherry Hardwick, admission intern; Jiongo; and Lucy Biggs, retired kindergarten teacher.

Head of School Evan D. Peterson welcomed the preschool teachers and directors to FWCD and thanked them for their commitment to education and teaching the next generation of leaders.

“Together, we can help educate all children in the Fort Worth community,” he said. “I invite you to pay it forward because the future of this country and Fort Worth is dependent on what we do now.”

The two-hour program was divided up into education, OT games, and prize drawings with Biggs to keep attendees alert and on their toes. Khammar’s PowerPoint presentation focused on the brain, the core and the natural order of things, periphery/hand function, four essential bases, what to look for and resources. Every 15 minutes or so during the presentation, Khammar would “break” so the room could participate in OT-related games, such as a ball overunder or ball side-side relay, pool noodle partner tennis with a balloon, animal pass relay up and down, and add-a-line.

The games also served as tools that the preschool teachers could bring back to their schools. “The games support gross motor skills, sequencing, coordination and more,” Khammar noted.

The core and play were a central focus throughout the presentation because “preschool is all about the core,” Khammar said, “and children develop best through play.” The core muscles— abdomen and back—act like the trunk of a tree in keeping the body upright and

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Lisa Koger

stable as a person sits, stands, runs, walks and carries out daily tasks. Muscles around the shoulders and hips are also considered part of one’s core.

“Core development happens from the center of the body out to the periphery— arms and legs,” Khammar said. “The same is true for the periphery; the development happens from the shoulders to fingers; hips to toes. Speech is even part of the core, and, of course, balance, movement and stability.”

She related how the core helps with holding a pencil and that poor handwriting is not always a fine-motor problem. Strengthening the core with exercises, such as the monster, crab and wheel barrow walk; chair and wall pushups; pushing and pulling activities;

Fall/Winter 2013

monkey bars; planking; and more, can help a child’s core grow stronger and, in turn, affect the student’s gross-motor ability in a positive way, which ultimately sets them up for “The Write Start.”

Classroom activities, such as working on an assignment on the floor, writing on a vertical surface like a whiteboard and taping an activity to the underside of a table, all work different core muscles as well.

This is the third time FWCD has hosted a CPE program on its campus for preschool teachers and directors. “This is the largest group we have ever hosted, telling us the topic was definitely of high interest and need. In addition to our guests, FWCD kindergarten teachers and assistants

participated in the program as well,” Jiongo said. “Cynthia Reyes commented that she incorporated some of Sue’s recommendations for movement and core into her lesson plans the following day.”

Preschools represented included Arlington Heights United Methodist Preschool, Genesis Weekday Christian Preschool, Reading Friends of Aledo, Reading Friends of Fort Worth, UCC Weekday School, Montessori School on Camp Bowie, Fort Worth Montessori, First Presbyterian Day School, Kinderplatz of Fine Arts, Trinity Episcopal Preschool, First United Methodist Preschool, Playhouse Academy, Fort Worth Museum School and McKinney Bible Church Early Learning Center.

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LOWER

School

Red Ribbon Run The Lower School commemorated Red Ribbon Week on October 25 through activities centered around saying “No to Drugs” and “Yes to being Healthy” through music and exercise. In guidance class throughout the month, students learned about how to “respect their bodies” by eating a healthy diet, drinking plenty of water, exercising, getting a good night’s sleep and practicing personal hygiene on a daily basis. The Lower School choir performed a music program followed by a Fun Run with the third- and fourthgraders.

Lower School Student Council representatives for the fall semester were recognized at morning assembly on September 21.

First Grade: Mariel Brumley, Vivian Haddaway, Charles Portwood and Benton Warrick Second Grade: Alice Carlile, Nicholas Charette, Sadie Thompson and Arden Weeks Third Grade: Ben Blahitka, Ryan Milliorn, Lauren Mitchell and Maddie Warren Fourth Grade: Maddie Darner, Jazmine Gomez, Evelyn Richey and Patrick Sheats

The primary goals of the Lower School Student Council are to provide leadership opportunities for its members and to serve the School and greater community through service projects. This semester, representatives sponsored the Lower School’s annual change and book drives benefitting children and organizations in the greater Fort Worth community.

Lisa Parker

Lower School Student Council

Fourth-graders George Soye, Ethan McBee, Robert Lydick and Sawyer Parker

Save the Date, Pardner!

Kindergarten Rodeo January 23 and 24 8

FALCONER

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Third-Grade Book Characters Reading came to life for third-graders as they presented their traditional Book Character Assembly in the fall. Students spoke—in character—about their adventures in the books of their choice and encouraged the audience to learn more by reading the book themselves. Some highlights included Harry Potter, Madeline and Percy Jackson.

Third-graders Nicolas Medaris, Madelyn Warren and Temi Fabuyi (front row); Abbie Klein and Sutton Howard (back row)

In this project, students chose a book and dressed up as their favorite book character for what is typically their first solo performance in front of an audience.

The opportunity provides students with a chance to explore themselves and their book characters, as well as delve more deeply into their most beloved books as they gain confidence in their oral reading and an opportunity to perform.

The Sweet Sammies Cookie Walk was back by popular demand. “Who doesn’t love a cookie? And they’re even better when you win them,” Senter said. The Carnival Committee purchased 75 dozen cookies for this year’s walk—yes, that’s 900 cookies! Winners took home a bag of three delicious cookies; flavors included chocolate chip, sugar with sprinkles and M&M.

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Above: Fourth-graders Lauren Thompson, Mary Elizabeth Mitchell and Caroline Barlow

Right: Carnival King Patrick Sheats ’22

With all this game-playing and bouncing, families were bound to get hungry. “Our generous friends at Central Market once again donated all of the food to this year’s Carnival,” Wade said. “Because the Central Market Food Truck was so overwhelmingly popular last year, we decided to provide all pre-made grab-and-go items.”

Tamara Roberts

A long-standing tradition at Fort Worth Country Day, Carnival is the Lower School family event of the fall and Drive-In Movie: Carnival 2013 did not disappoint even with the threat of rain!

This year’s chairs, Heather Senter and Laurie Wade, planned an evening to rival all past Carnivals, which included a 30-foot outdoor movie screen located in front of the goal post at the north end of the field, along with a collection of 1960s vintage cars to add to the décor. Many of the “old favorites” were back: Tex Striker, putt putt, ping pong fishy, lollipop tree, tattoos, face painting and more. There was also an inflatable obstacle course, a giant inflatable slide and a bounce house for children 5 and under, and inflatable Twister.

Tamara Roberts

Drive-In Movie: Carnival 2013

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LOWER SCHOOL

Fluency and Writing The Lower School has two main focuses this year: building reading fluency and getting students excited about writing. Both concentrations are a continuation or “next steps” of the division’s curriculum development in language arts. “We’ve been working on both of these areas for several years,” said Shari Lincoln, head of Lower School. “As our students grow and move to the next grade level, we are constantly building on their skills and strengthening our instruction as teachers.”

The reading fluency curricula allows for a common language as students learn more about what fluency is and how it sounds. They are learning that expression and volume, phrasing, smoothness and pace are all part of fluency. “Phonetics and comprehension have been a focus in the past, now it is time to add fluency,” Lincoln shared. “An important part of fluency is repeated reading.”

Students are practicing their reading fluency in fun ways. Activities such as Readers Theater, where students read from a script, rehearse repeatedly and perform for their peers and family members, aid in the students’ growth as well as help them become more confident.

One of the division’s traditions—the Book Character Program (see page 9)—is a natural tool for building fluency, as students read and reread their lines for the final performances.

A new activity, “Wednesday Surprise,” created by Teresa Hoppe, Lower School learning specialist, and Sara McCullough, Roach Family Lower School Primary Chair and second-grade teacher, is further inspiring students to read aloud. “Wednesday Surprise” was adapted from a research paper the pair completed for a reading practicum they took together last fall at Texas Wesleyan University. It was inspired by one of McCullough’s professors who read Eve Bunting’s book titled The Wednesday Surprise in a course; it incorporates research McCullough came across about a sign-upto-read activity. Bunting’s book is about a young girl named Anna and her grandmother’s surprise for Anna’s father’s birthday. After receiving his gifts, Anna’s father is given the greatest gift of all: the gift of Anna’s stories read aloud by his very own mother.

McCullough and Hoppe presented this activity to Lower School faculty in mid-August at the FEC In-Service Training and provided steps for implementing “Wednesday Surprise” in their classrooms.

“Motivation can have a significant impact on students’ reading habits,” they said. “ ‘Wednesday Surprise’ gives students a reason to read and an authentic purpose for oral reading, rereading and practice reading. Research shows that repeated reading is an important component in building fluency.”

Lincoln added: “We are exploring a variety of ways to make repeated reading fun. Our goal is for students to exclaim, ‘Wow! I’m a better reader now than five readings ago!’ This will also have a tremendous impact on comprehension.”

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Reading Fluency

Taylor Rozanski ’26 and Lower School Families big sister, Michelle Pham ’22

The Writing Process The writing process has been a focus of the Lower School Curriculum Committee for a number of years. As a result, a progressive K-2 and grades 3-4 writing process was devised to grow better writers and introduce students to the same verbiage so that as they matriculate, they build on their experiences.

The K-2 process highlights prewriting (think it), drafting (write it), read it, revising and editing (fix it), and publishing (share it). The grades 3 and 4 process is a bit more in-depth, yet shares many of the same concepts: prewriting, drafting, conferencing for content, revising for content, editing, publishing, and presenting and/or celebrating.

Lower School faculty focus on class time and space for writing, as well as build opportunities into the day for students to write more often. Their ultimate goal: to help students build a writing toolbox and develop a stronger “writing stamina.” Each grade team is concentrating on two large writing genres this year. Joni Heinzelmann, third-grade teacher, and Karen Davis, fourthgrade teacher, took a two-week writing course for teachers at Texas Wesleyan University this summer. In the course, they “lived” the writing process each day and accumulated wonderful ways to integrate writing into the program. The pair presented a workshop for FWCD faculty at the FEC In-Service Training as well as continue to serve as resources to the faculty.

An important writing process distinction involves teachers modeling and sharing their own writing. “This is a risk that we ask our students to take—putting their creative thoughts out there for all to see and hear—so it is important that our teachers model the way and take their own writing risks,” Lincoln said. “This collective process helps students get to know one another and their teachers, plus it builds community and trust. Our end goal is for students to feel comfortable creating and sharing.”

fwcd.org

Halloween at FWCD

Front Row: Alyssa Hughes ’20, Chloe Gilpin ’19, Eden Harveson ’19, Riley Hammett ’19, Meredith Mitchell ’19, Lexa Brenner’ 18, Lilli Aitelli ’21, Alexa Merritt ’21, Perrin Williams ’21, Abby McGehee ’21.

Back Row: India Turner ’20, Claire Nolan ’20, Darlene Ignagni, Karen Curella, Emily Frantz ’21, Tara Finn, Hester Burdman, John Stephens, Bree Stubbs, Janie Garrett, Andréanne Annis, Laura Terry Photos by Lisa Koger

Eleanor Holm ’26

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Nathan Charette ’26

Junior Victoria Truong

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Grandparents’ and Grandfriends’ Day Kindergarten, Lower School and Middle School celebrated a time-honored tradition at Fort Worth Country Day in November: Grandparents’ and Grandfriends’ Day. Between the two days, approximately 650 grandparents and grandfriends visited the School. Jean and John Roach serve as grandparent chairs this year.

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Grandparents’ and Grandfriends’ Day provides an opportunity to foster a greater connection to the School for FWCD grandparents and grandfriends. The day provides them a glimpse into the life of Fort Worth Country Day students.

Jean Roach, Emily Davis ’26 and John Roach

James Henry, Graciela Fuller ’26 and Jorge Navarrete

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Alex Nolan ’23, Sean Nolan ’19, Elysia Nolan ’18, Pat Nolan, Bob Blouin and Marge Blouin

Lynn Fisher and Mason Hill ’21

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Brandon Oakes ’23 with Beverly Oakes

fwcd.org

MIDDLE

School

Fifth-Grade Fun at Sky Ranch NCAA Monetary Compensation Debate The Middle School debate team hosted Trinity Valley School on Wednesday, November 6, for its first debate of the season. The resolution: Students participating in the NCAA should receive monetary compensation.

TVS argued for the affirmative—that the NCAA should pay athletes, while FWCD argued for the negative—that athletes should not be paid. The FWCD team came away with the win!

Speakers for FWCD included opening and top speaker winner Katherine Faulkner ’19; Diego Casanova ’19, who provided the rebuttal; Finn Connor ’18, who was responsible for cross examination; Alexandra Galloway ’19, who took the audience question and answer portion for the team; Will Thomas ’19, who provided the closing; and Rebecca Galloway ’19, who handled the note-taking for the debate.

The debate team also comprises eighth-graders Wyatt Allsup, Michael Chan, Nikhil De, Matthew Dickerson, Nicholas Epperson, Harrison Sapienza and Ana Katarina Stein Vrbanic.

Sky Ranch in Van, Texas, is a much cherished tradition among FWCD fifthgraders for the past eight years. In October, students spent two days and one night engaged in classes like Limnology, the study of inland waters; and Fishing, which covers hook safety, knotting, casting and bait selection.

“During the fishing class, students caught a lot of fish and a few turtles,” noted Laura Terry, Middle School math teacher. “They also dissected a fish!”

In their downtime, students enjoyed swimming in two pools, sliding on a waterslide, having fun with friends in their cabins, playing Nukem, and bouncing on the giant Jumping Pillow. Students and teachers also played a game of Clue, where the teachers dressed up and acted out the characters answering yes and no questions.

Wonder-ful News!

Sixth-graders Will Tuomey and Ben Alexander have drawings featured in the special collectors’ edition of Wonder, written by R.J. Palacio. The boys are pictured with their teacher, Darlene Ignagni. Last year, Ignagni’s class submitted a set of homemade cards and hand-written messages to the book’s author. Will and Ben’s illustrations were chosen for publication in the collectors’ edition. Wonder chronicles the life of 10-year-old Auggie Pullman, a young man with several genetic abnormalities, who dreams of being “ordinary.”

Will and Ben also autographed their illustrations in a copy of the book, which is housed within the Moncrief Library.

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Middle School Launches 1:1 iPad Program

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fwcd.org

MIDDLE SCHOOL Mason Middle School students hit the ground running on the first day of school.

John Stephens, head of Middle School, hosted an assembly in the Amon G. Carter Foundation Commons that focused heavily on digital citizenship related to the division’s new one-to-one iPad program. The 331 Middle School students then broke into their advisory groups to take part in an iPad “boot camp” that highlighted the “toolkit” of apps that were chosen for the 2013-14 academic year.

Last year, Fort Worth Country Day began looking at the number of students who owned a personal learning device such as an iPad or tablet. The School found that 79 percent of FWCD Middle School students already owned such a device, with 31 percent having multiple devices. Since it was time to upgrade Middle School computers, the School chose to require a portable tablet device for students. In April, Stephens informed families of the new requirement and that the iPad version 2.0 or later or the Apple iPad Mini was the device of choice.

“In the next few years, teachers will be teaching in very interactive classrooms, and our delivery method will be a blended program,” said Evan D. Peterson, head of School. “The use of technology will not be an ‘add-on’ to our curriculum, rather it will be embedded in all that we do. Traditional textbooks will give way to online electronic books used as primary and secondary sources. Outside activities, such as class-specific and divisional trips, will complement our classroom curriculum.

Formal education will take place as much outside the classroom as inside.”

While this year’s one-to-one program for iPads is focused in the middle grades, Lower School students are reaping the benefits of these devices in their classrooms and within select subjects, such as foreign language. As of November 18, the iPad program within the third-grade launched, which means that all teachers K-3 have now been trained on how to utilize them as an extension to their classroom. The fourth-grade and ninth-grade teachers will be trained this summer so that next academic year, there will be an iPad program in grades K-9.

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For this year’s launch, Middle School faculty spent the summer acclimating themselves to the iPad and its many functions and endless apps. In August, the School brought in the Tech Chicks— Anna Adam and Helen Mowers—for professional development. Adam and Mowers are widely known throughout the state for their digital tips on curricular integration, and they podcast regularly for educators about using technology in instruction to engage students inside and outside the classroom. The Tech Chicks spent time with faculty, walking them through the toolkit and providing leads on engaging apps for future use.

It was at that point that I realized technology was moving us forward.

Amanda Whalen Science Teacher The toolkit (see sidebar listing) was discussed and used on Monday, August 19, immediately following the Middle School opening assembly as students broke into their respective advisories. Many teachers chose to team up to cover the material.

Killian Naylor, English teacher, and Jackie Rains, English Department chair, worked together to ensure that students had each of the apps, and that they could log into the Falcon Portal, as well as access their Google Drive accounts and create folders for each class.

The Responsible Use Plan (RUP) was a main point of focus in the classroom.

Bullet by bullet, teachers went through the students’ responsibilities and discussed what they are agreeing to when using their iPads in class. Each student also signed the RUP. “There is an incredible amount of enthusiasm for this program from both the students and the teachers,” Stephens

noted. “The teachers are eagerly embracing the many possibilities with these devices, which will expand education beyond the walls of the School.”

With the design of the program, an emphasis was placed on Pat Bassett’s six C’s of 21st-century learning: creativity, character, critical thinking, communication, cosmopolitanism, crosscultural competency and collaboration.

“These qualities describe what many believe schools should be teaching students,” Stephens said. “All of our Middle School lessons will be viewed through the lens of these skills.”

While technology will create new learning opportunities during the school year, some tried-and-true FWCD traditions are getting “facelifts” to remain in the curriculum. Case in point: The leaf project created by Sharon Foster H’05.

“I inherited the leaf project after Sharon retired,” said Amanda Whalen, science teacher. “It had been a seventh-grade tradition throughout Sharon’s time at Country Day. I scaled it down a bit to keep it confined to our beautiful campus and specifically, native Texas trees.”

The traditional and original project consisted of students collecting leaf samples from around campus, identifying the trees, creating proper botanical labels and pressing/mounting their specimens with labels.

“A few years ago, a student presented me with a phone app called Leafsnap. The app could identify trees from pictures of leaves,” Whalen added. “It was at that point that I realized technology was moving us forward. Christine [Spikes] and I worked together to reinvent the leaf identification project. It morphed into something completely different, yet still contains the information we felt was essential to the original project.”

The new project began with the research of assigned Texas trees and the creation of a wiki with proper identifying information, as well as the GPS coordinates of where students found the trees on campus. The best wiki for each tree was then linked into a QR code, and signs were created and FALCONER

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Michael Palumbo Photography

MIDDLE SCHOOL

The Middle School iPad Toolkit Google Drive Cloud On The Economist World in Figures Calculator# Voice Dictation Notability YouTube Quizlet ActivEngage iBooks iTunesU iMovie Photon Flash Browser for Kids myHomework (student planner)

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placed by the correct tree. At this point, the students became adventurers and were tasked with the duty of hunting down each tree based on its GPS coordinates, much like geocaching. Once the tree was located, students scanned the code and uploaded the identification information to their phones or iPads.

While excitement for the iPad program is at an all-time high, there is some apprehension as well. Teachers will not always be the foremost authority on technology and these apps. Today’s students are digital natives—they do not know a world without technology and gadgets.

“The stakes are high for educating these kids, but we are up for the challenge,” Stephens said. “Digital citizenship and tech-free time will be key in our teaching.

We want to make sure our students are

using their iPads for educational purposes.”

To that end, Rains and Naylor both had their students create a folder within their iPads for games and social networking apps. “We want you to put those all together in one folder and then push it to a separate tablet page,” Naylor told her students. “There should be no temptation whatsoever.”

Spikes added: “It’s not about iPads, it’s about developing skills to prepare students for something that hasn’t even been created yet. The iPad is just a device that links us to other resources and tools, but the real thinking and learning is still happening within our students. Technology is bringing much more of our world into the students’ learning process. I’m excited to see what the students do with it!”

fwcd.org

MIDDLE SCHOOL

HHHHHHHHHHHH

FWCD Honors Veterans The Fort Worth Country Day community paid tribute to and honored the nation’s heroes on Veterans Day through the annual Veterans Day celebration that is planned and hosted by Middle School seventh-graders. November 11 marked the seventh year that FWCD seventh-graders have produced the observance, noted Tara Forrest, Middle School history teacher.

This year, 42 veterans were in attendance. Forrest’s students planned the program, hosted and executed the tribute, and introduced and interviewed veterans throughout the Middle School. “The program speakers were the veterans related to the seventh-graders; however, the guests of honor are past attendees, relatives, neighbors and friends of current Middle School families, as well as friends who have been invited by other veterans,” Forrest shared. “We send out an all-call to FWCD faculty, staff and families during fall conferences, and the word just spreads. The seventh-graders are to be commended for an outstanding tribute!”

The program began at the flagpole in front of Moncrief Library with the raising of the flag, the Pledge of Allegiance, the singing of the National Anthem, and a Veterans Day reading. Veterans and their families then passed through the Flag Arbor that was formed to lead to the FWCD Scott Theater for the formal program. Many of FWCD’s own faculty members, parents and grandparents were honored.

Head of School Evan D. Peterson welcomed students, guests and veterans, and shared a story of his own father’s military journey.

“My father passed his story on to me through treasured medals, certificates, photographs and badges,” he said. “These items represented his commitment to his country.”

John Stephens, head of Middle School, expressed his gratitude to veterans for what they have done for our country. “Middle School students are in a developmental stage. Right now, it is all about ‘me,’” he noted. “Today is a tangible, powerful reminder that there are things much bigger than ‘self.’ Thank you for your service and your sacrifice.”

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Gary Christensen and Anthony Ceplecha ’21

Special veteran speakers included Frank Bumstead, grandfather to Bass Bumstead ’19. He gave the welcome on behalf of the veterans; James Massey, grandfather to Stella Finley ’19, spoke of the history of Veterans Day; Chad Fletcher, great uncle to Finley, spoke about his first Veterans Day; Frank Newton, grandfather to Riley Hammett ’19 and Richard Varnell, grandfather to Virginia Sanders ’19, addressed the role of core values; and Paul Decker, grandfather to Merrick Decker ’19, provided a patriotic reading of “America the Beautiful.”

Fredrick Disney, great grandfather to JaneAnn and Jackson ’19, was the featured speaker. He spoke about his time as a POW at Stalag Luft III. The FWCD Middle School band, orchestra and choirs all performed patriotic musical interludes to commemorate the day.

For Forrest and her students, this day was a labor of love. “Seven years ago, I heard the statistic that America is losing her WWII veterans at a rate of 1,000 per day. That statistic was staggering to me,” she said. “I thought of what my dad’s service during WWII and the Korean War meant to him and to our family, and I immediately started wondering if we could get enough veterans connected to our School community to come to campus and share their stories on a more personal level.”

Later, she envisioned the “Flag Arbor” down the sidewalk for the veterans to walk through. Over the years, the observance has evolved. “It’s gotten better and better,” Forrest noted.

“We’ve added keynote speakers, the performing arts, and the students now produce a CD of the day’s activities to give to each veteran as a thank you. It is truly an honor for us to be able to honor our veterans in this way. The privilege of meeting these brave heroes and hearing their stories is so worthwhile and important to us all.”

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UPPER

School

A Study in Government

Harnessing Creativity Students in Lauren Cunningham’s painting, drawing and printmaking courses had the unique opportunity to draw an animal in perpetual motion, as FWCD parent Olivia Potts brought her horse, Moonpie, and pony, Elliott, onto campus for a special art event.

“My students have been learning to draw accurate proportions using the fundamental skill of sighting,” Cunningham said. “We have spent a lot of time drawing still-lifes of inanimate objects, but I wanted students to experience working with a live model. Horses are great subjects because they have such accentuated musculature and a majestic presence.”

Cunningham’s students first practiced drawing horses from photographs. They were then challenged to draw an animal that is never still. “The lesson was about flexibility and patience as much as it was about learning to see,” she said. “These are important life skills.”

Cowtown Brush Up Upper School students and faculty/staff teamed up with the City of Fort Worth and Habitat for Humanity in October to help paint homes in the community. The Cowtown Brush Up is a volunteerdriven effort to help restore homes in need of exterior paint.

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Hannah Kelly ’14 and Patrick Gordon ’14 both were selected to attend Texas Bluebonnet Girls State and Texas Boys State this past summer.

Kelly attended Girls State at the Texas Lutheran University campus in Seguin, Texas. Texas Bluebonnet Girls State was organized as a National Americanism activity in 1937 by the American Legion Auxiliary. This mythical 51st state learnby-doing program introduces city, county and state government to the participants, as well as involves them in political parties and legislative sessions. The citizens of Texas Girls State have opportunities to run for office, author legislation and vote. Kelly was elected county clerk. The program is designed to educate the leaders of tomorrow in the duties, privileges, rights and responsibilities of citizenship.

Gordon attended Texas Boys State at the University of Texas at Austin. Boys State is among the most respected and selective educational programs of government instruction for high school students and is a participatory program where each student becomes a part of the operation of his local, county and state government. Boys State has been a program of The American Legion since 1935. Participants are exposed to the rights and privileges, the duties and the responsibilities of a franchised citizen.

The training is objective and practical, with city, county and state governments operated by the students elected to the various offices. Gordon was elected chief justice of the Supreme Court. fwcd.org

UPPER SCHOOL

FWCD Scholars National Merit Semifinalists Fort Worth Country Day announced its five National Merit Semifinalists on September 11. Seniors Jack Livingston, Kathy Hwang, William Nober, Hannah Kelly and John Callaway were among the 16,000 Semifinalists announced nationally. These academically talented FWCD students have an opportunity to continue in the competition for the 8,000 National Merit Scholarships worth more than $35 million that will be offered in the spring.

Approximately 1.5 million juniors in 22,000 high schools entered the 2014 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2012 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of semifinalists, representing less than 1 percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state. The number of Texas semifinalists is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.

Seniors Jack Livingston, Kathy Hwang, William Nober, Hannah Kelly and John Callaway were among the 16,000 Semifinalists announced nationally.

Commended Students Twelve Fort Worth Country Day seniors were named Commended Students in the 2014 National Merit Scholarship Program. A Letter of Commendation from the School and National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC), which conducts the program, was presented to Elizabeth Lindsey, Sarah Harrison, Ally Barber, Emily Jackson, Clinton Harlin, Matthew Leonard, Ricky Rodriguez, Dan Sun, Ryan Hunt, Robbie Stackhouse, Malcolm McDonald and Jesse Tipton.

Approximately 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation were recognized for their exceptional academic promise.

While these students do not continue in the 2014 competition for National Merit Scholarship awards, they placed among the top 5 percent of more than 1.5 million students who entered the 2014 competition by taking the 2012 Preliminary SAT/ National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.

Seniors Elizabeth Lindsey, Sarah Harrison, Ally Barber, Emily Jackson, Clinton Harlin, Matthew Leonard, Ricky Rodriguez, Dan Sun, Ryan Hunt, Robbie Stackhouse, Malcolm McDonald and Jesse Tipton.

National Hispanic Recognition Scholars

Five Fort Worth Country Day seniors were selected as 201314 National Hispanic Recognition Program (NHRP) Scholar or Honorable Mention recipients. Nic Klein, Krista Madrid and Ricky Rodriguez were honored as NHRP scholars.

Jazmine Monreal and Adam Sanchez were honored as NHRP Honorable Mention recipients. This year, the NHRP recognized approximately 5,300 Hispanic/Latino students selected from a pool of more than 259,000 who took the 2012 PSAT/NMSQT/ PAA.

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Jazmine Monreal and Adam Sanchez were honored as NHRP Honorable Mention recipients. Nic Klein, Krista Madrid and Ricky Rodriguez were honored as NHRP scholars.

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FWCD Student Photographers Honored as Editor’s Choice in The New Leslie Blake ’15, Emily Wilkinson ’14 and Madelyn Luskey ’15 each had a photograph highlighted as Editor’s Choice in The New York Times “My Hometown” Photography Contest. A story and link to a photo gallery appeared on the front page of The New York Times online edition on September 19 and remains on Lens, the Times’ photography blog.

Last spring, Kendall Davis, art fundamentals/photography teacher, learned of the contest, which asked high school students to help create a 21st-century portrait of the country by photographing their communities. Davis chose to give her three photography classes a “My Hometown” assignment. During the last two weeks of school, she worked with the students who opted to enter the contest with their assignment image or another photograph from their portfolio.

By Madelyn Luskey ’15

“The best example of my hometown is my family. The young girl in the photograph that was highlighted as Editor’s Choice is my little sister, Valerie [Class of 2022]. She means the world to me, and I couldn’t imagine home without her,” Blake said.

“Since this was a national competition, I wanted to really choose a photo that would hit home and be unique, so I immediately thought of the Fort Worth Stock Show and ran with the idea,” Wilkinson shared. “Quite honestly, I think I was very lucky that I happened to be photographing when my subject fell off his horse.”

Luskey also chose to depict Country Day. “This photo of Carlyle [Rascoe, Class of 2015] depicts the private school academic environment in Fort Worth,” she noted. “As the [NYT] caption states, we do drive ourselves crazy with the amount of pressure we, as students, are put under. Sometimes the emotions displayed in Carlyle’s face perfectly depict a Country Day student’s emotions.”

By Leslie Blake ’15

By Emily Wilkinson ’14

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Emily Wilkinson ’14, Leslie Blake ’15, Kendall Davis and Madelyn Luskey ’15

fwcd.org

UPPER SCHOOL

York Times

More than 3,000 students in 45 states participated, submitting 4,289 images that document what makes their towns unique.

Blake, Wilkinson and Luskey’s images were part of an interactive feature of 145 Editor’s Choice photographs. In total, there were 416 images submitted from the state of Texas.

Davis said she received a “generic” email announcing that the show was online. “I was going through the Editor’s Choice photographs and thinking ‘wow, this is amazing stuff; we really need to step up our game,’ when I landed on Leslie’s photo,” she noted. “I was so excited, and I kept looking through the show, finding Madelyn and Emily as well! I could hardly contain my excitement for them.”

When Davis searched the Texas section of the slide show in its entirety, she found other Fort Worth Country Day students represented as well: Mary Barber ’15, Leslie Blake ’15, Connor Cassady ’15, Sarai Dominguez ’15, JT Hodnett ’14, Nic Klein ’14, Darby Loth ’14, William Nober ’14, Alexis Palko ’15, Reign Parker ’14, Quentin Pinto ’15 and Shelby Sanford ’15

Pedro Cobos, Trée George, Evan D. Peterson, Dr. King Alexander and David Kurpius

LSU Representatives Visit FWCD Dr. King Alexander, president and chancellor of Louisiana State University (LSU), visited FWCD in August along with members of the university’s admission staff, including David Kurpius, associate vice chancellor of enrollment management; Trée George, assistant director of recruitment; and Pedro Cobos, admission counselor. While the purpose of Dr. Alexander’s visit with FWCD’s College Counseling team was largely focused on LSU’s recruitment efforts in the greater Fort Worth area, the timing of his trip had a little something to do with the August 31 football matchup between the LSU Tigers and the TCU Horned Frogs at AT&T Stadium.

Lens presents the finest and most interesting visual and multimedia reporting—photographs, videos and slide shows. A showcase for Times photographers, it also seeks to highlight the best work of other newspapers, magazines and news and picture agencies; in print, in books, in galleries, in museums and on the Web. To view the "My Hometown" slide show, visit lens.blogs.nytimes.com and search My Hometowns.

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The “My Hometown” Lens blog is searchable by state and photographer.

Many of the images will be archived at the Library of Congress in the Prints and Photographs Division.

Juniors Laura Catherine Wilson and Megan Meadows stopped by The University of Mississippi booth.

Annual College Day FWCD welcomed representatives from 218 colleges and universities from across the country and around the world for its annual College Day event in September. FWCD juniors and seniors participated in College Day in the Round Gym with juniors and seniors from All Saints’ Episcopal School, The Oakridge School and Trinity Valley School, as well as several Breakthrough juniors and seniors. The College Counseling Office hosts the event.

This year was a record-breaking year for the number of colleges and universities represented.

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PERFORMING

Arts

Cellist Stephen Chang ’17 earned a seat in the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) All-State Philharmonic Orchestra. Chang is the first strings student at Fort Worth Country Day to attain this honor. The All-State audition process for high school string students ultimately leads to qualification in one of three All-State Orchestras that perform at the annual TMEA Clinic/Convention: String Orchestra, Philharmonic Orchestra, and Symphony Orchestra. Chang was one of 16 cellists chosen and is 8th chair in the Philharmonic Orchestra. The clinic and concert take place February 12-15, 2014,

in San Antonio. Chang will represent Region 7, which covers all high schools in Fort Worth.

“This is a high honor for Stephen, his family and Fort Worth Country Day,” said Rex Bozarth, director of orchestras. “This is a competitive process that requires a great deal of dedication. Stephen is a very high-achieving student. I look forward to attending the conference and concert with him in February.”

TMEA sponsors the Texas All-State audition process to promote students’ dedication to their musical knowledge and skill and to encourage TMEA member directors to support their students in this development. All-State is the highest honor a Texas music student can receive. More than 1,500 students are selected through a process that begins with over 55,000 students from around the state vying for this honor to perform in one of 13 ensembles (bands, orchestras, and choirs).

All-State students participate in three days of rehearsals directed by nationally recognized conductors during the annual state TMEA Clinic/Convention. Their performances before thousands of attendees bring this extraordinary event to a close.

Glen E. Ellman

TMEA All-State Orchestra

Winter Ballet Concert The annual Winter Ballet Concert showcased amazing talent on December 5 and great flexibility from the FWCD community. With ice forecasted for Friday, December 6, the School opted to move the performance. When ice threatened the Thursday night performance, Lower, Middle and Upper School students put their best foot forward and gave performances that will long be remembered. Director of Ballet Carrie Cheng was proud of her students’ resiliency. “We were in and out within an hour,” she shared. “They performed beautifully.”

Orchestra Accolades Five FWCD orchestra students earned a seat in the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) All-Region Orchestra: Stephen Chang ’17, 1st chair, cello; Logan Lawrence ’15, 1st violin section, are in the Upper School All-Region Orchestra. Nicholas Epperson ’18, concertmaster; Michael Chan ’18, 1st violin section; and Nikhil De ’18, 2nd violin section are in the Middle School All-Region Orchestra. All five students will participate in the All-Region Clinic and concert on January 24-25, 2014, at Western Hills High School.

Epperson also earned a chair in the Texas Private School Music Educators Association (TPSMEA) All-State High School Orchestra. The honor is exceptional in that Epperson is still in middle school. He will participate in a clinic and concert in San Marcos on January 23-25, 2014.

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Stephen Chang ’17, Logan Lawrence ’15, Nikhil De ’18, Nicholas Epperson ’18 and Michael Chan ’18

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PERFORMING ARTS

Musical Year for FWCD Students 2013 is turning out to be a very musical year for Fort Worth Country Day. The world-renowned Texas Boys Choir (TBC) performed musical selections in three separate concerts in December, and, in October, the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra came to the School to perform for Middle and Upper School students.

“It is always exciting when such renowned artists visit our school,” said Robert Stovall, director of fine arts. “Through programs like these, we hope to inspire within our students a great love for the arts beyond performing in school. We want them to become true patrons of the arts.

For Christine Derber, Thomas M. Ryan Distinguished Teaching Chair in Lower School, the Texas Boys Choir holds a special place in her heart. “I used to be heavily involved with the Texas Boys Choir when my sons Jonathan and Joel Nesvadba ’00 were members from 199296,” she said. “I also did some adjunct teaching for them and was a parent representative on their board. I have been a fan of the choir for years.

“The Texas Boys Choir is one of the best boy choirs in the country,” she continued. “They have received two Grammy Awards. Igor Stravinsky named them ‘The Best Boy Choir in the World’ after they sang his Symphony of Psalms.”

The TBC performances were made possible through a grant from Fort Worth Country Day’s Supporting CAST, a funding group that supports curriculum-driven enrichment for K-12 visual and performing arts students. Supporting CAST ensures resources to enhance the overall education experience for students. An anonymous donor made a gift to the FWSO to bring the symphony performances to Fort Worth Country Day.

The value of such an experience is immeasurable. “Seldom do you see a symphony orchestra travel to a school to perform,” Stovall added. “It is easier for the musicians to perform in the concert hall, but FWSO seeks to reach a wider audience. In this instance, we hope our students have enjoyed the symphony performance so much that they find another performance to attend and continue to foster a love of the performing arts.”

Fall/Winter 2013

A Musical Fusion The merging of Upper School choir and the advanced theatre course is proving to be beneficial to students involved in musical theatre, choir and advanced theatre. “Melodee [Halbach] and I balanced the pros and the cons related to the marriage of the choir and advanced theatre classes and really couldn’t come up with any cons,” said Robert Stovall, director of fine arts/Upper School choir teacher. “The fusion of these classes simply allows students to experience more fine arts, whether their passion is choir, theatre or both.”

Students involved in the class are juniors and seniors and have the opportunity to participate in both choir and theatre classes, as well as perform in choir concerts and audition for plays and musicals.

“It gives students a chance to take advantage of two fine arts classes in the same period and to truly hone their skills so they are prepared for the musical and more confident in their singing abilities,” Stovall said. It also helps him to continue to rebuild the choir program, which currently comprises 42 students.

“The biggest advantage for the theatre students is the opportunity to learn to read music and improve their singing abilities,” Halbach said. “In three months, we have seen—or rather heard—significant growth. So far, it hasn’t affected the advanced acting curriculum; the students have stepped up their efforts to cover the material.”

Other plusses to the merge include additional performance opportunities that allow students to practice their craft whether it be a vocal performance in a concert setting or a performance on stage. “The students’ talents were being contained,” Stovall said, “and Melodee and I felt it was time to let them truly shine.”

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PERFORMING ARTS

Music to Our Ears Six Upper School choir students were selected to the Texas Private School Music Educators Association (TPSMEA) Region II All-Region Choir: Michael Wittman ’14, 3rd chair bass, mixed choir; Jazmine Monreal ’14, 36th chair, 1st soprano, treble choir; Mary Claire Ekstrom ’14, 27th chair, 1st alto, treble choir; Kenzie Knox ’15, 18th chair, 1st soprano, mixed choir; Akailah Warner ’15, 30th chair, 1st alto, treble choir; and Hasan Shah ’16, 24th chair, tenor 1, mixed choir. Wittman, Knox and Shah placed high enough in the audition to advance to the TPSMEA All-State round of auditions, which took place Friday, November 4. All five students will participate in the TPSMEA All-Region Clinic and Concert in mid-January.

Michael Wittman ’14, Jazmine Monreal ’14, Mary Claire Ekstrom ’14, Kenzie Knox ’15, Akailah Warner ’15 and Hasan Shah ’16

Choir student Lexa Brenner ’18 was the only Fort Worth Country Day student selected to the Texas Private School Music Educators Association (TPSMEA) Middle School All-Region Choir. She competed with students from Houston, Austin and the Metroplex. As a result of her selection, Brenner will participate in the TPSMEA Middle School All-Region Choir and Concert, date to be determined.

FWCD Eighth-Graders Perform Our Town Eighth-graders took audiences back in time—to Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire, in 1901—for their fall play, Our Town. Written by Thornton Wilder, Our Town chronicles the daily lives of the Gibbs and Webb families in a picture perfect American town before urbanization. The audience witnesses the interactions of young Emily Webb and George Gibbs, as their friendship grows into love, and they are married. The play takes a tragic turn when Emily dies in childbirth. At her funeral, Emily is unsettled as she realizes she is now among the dead and unsure about her new role. She longs for one last day and returns to earth to the morning of her 12th birthday, despite warnings from her fellow dead. Emily’s “resurrection” brings a heightened awareness to life, and she finds it painful to watch the living take their lives for granted. In the end, she discovers that the living understand very little about death and even less about truly being alive.

“This show was the first play produced on the Fort Worth Country Day campus in 1977,” said Melodee Halbach, director of theatre. “Previous to that, all the shows were musicals.

Our next show is the Upper School musical Bye Bye Birdie, which was the first musical produced at FWCD in 1970. Both productions are the FWCD Theatre Department’s contributions to this milestone 50th anniversary year!

“It has been a great experience for us all,” she continued. “I am proud of all these young actors and our technical crew, and appreciate the support through the process.”

Eighth-graders Jack Stephens, Dilan Nana and Lauren Newton

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To celebrate the 75th anniversary of Our Town in 2013, The Thornton Wilder Family generously made available artwork for FWCD’s use in conjunction with this production of Our Town.

fwcd.org

PERFORMING ARTS

Fall/Winter 2013

Back row: Mary Geren ’15, Sawyer Stratton ’15, Connor Reese ’15, Kassadi Smith ’15, Spencer Pergande ’17, Jack Carvalho ’17, Thomas Mullins ’17, Casey Hammett ’15, Coleman Walker ’15, Mary Grace Roach ’15, Olivia Darrow ’16 and Natalie Bracken ’05 Middle Row: Branson Nelson ’16, Michael Wittman ’14, Ally Barber ’14, Carson Bennett ’14, Mary Claire Ekstrom ’14, Katherine Haley ’15, Kristin Robinson ’16 Front row: Katherine D’Souza ’16, Kenzie Knox ’15, Kennedy Smith ’15, Eleni Michaelides ’15, Matthew Lee ’16, Amanda Stephens ’15

Glen E. Ellman

This year’s fall play was Almost, Maine, written by John Cariani. Natalie Bracken ’05 directed an ensemble cast of 22 student actors. “This show beautifully explored the magic of falling in love,” Bracken said. “It seamlessly melted together the mundane of everyday life with a touch of whimsy, creating an atmosphere where anything is possible. As a cast, we have explored the different ways you can love someone and the vulnerability of letting go and accepting love. I think all audience members can see a bit of themselves reflected in the characters.”

Set in the town of Almost—in Maine— the play showcases Fort Worth Country Day Upper School students and their acting range. “Last year, we did Pride and Prejudice in the fall. It was a period piece with a dialect. This year, I wanted to expose the students to something more contemporary,” Bracken said. She also feels that the subject—falling in and out of love—is something FWCD high school students can relate to.

The play was developed at the Cape Cod Theater Project in 2002 and received its world premiere at Portland Stage Company, where it broke box-office records and garnered critical acclaim.

Almost, Maine opened off-Broadway in the winter of 2005-06 at the Daryl Roth Theatre and was subsequently published by Dramatists Play Service. To date, the play has been produced by nearly 2,000 theater companies in the U.S. and by more than 12 companies internationally, making it one of the most frequently produced plays of the past decade.

With no leads in the show, all 22 actors are equal. “That is one of the reasons I was drawn to the show,” Bracken said.

“Everyone is crucial.” What surprised people about this year’s play? Almost, Maine not only featured acting—it also had music and dancing. “Kristin Robinson [’16] composed all of the music for the show and played it live onstage,” Bracken said.

Glen E. Ellman

Upper School Fall Play: Almost, Maine

Kennedy Smith ’15 and Carson Bennett ’14

The staging was impressive as well. “We wanted the theater to feel like a winter wonderland,” she shared. “We painted the floor with a snow effect and created platforms with wood decking. We also incorporated panels of fabric that hung down from the ceiling to create a magical atmosphere. Much of the show took place outdoors in Northern Maine so the costumes were all thick winter clothes!”

Bracken most enjoyed getting to know the new faces this year. There were five members of the cast making their FWCD acting debut. “It was rewarding to watch them grow and to see the other members of the cast welcome them with open arms,” she said. “Also, there was an incredible amount of collaboration on this show. Over the summer, Kristin and I communicated almost daily as we created the music for the show. It was rewarding to tap into her musical talents. My favorite rehearsal was the first time we put the entire show together. It was exciting to watch the acting, dancing and music all fit together.”

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Country Daze:

Memories from the Class of 1967

Story by Dr. Bill Curtis ’67 Photos by Bill Bahan ’67 and Dr. Bill Curtis ’67

Fort Worth Country Day opened as a pastoral haven for learning during one of the most turbulent and defining decades in American history. The 1960s were an explosion––on college campuses, in the arts, on the streets, among the generations and in some distant Southeast Asian country. Yet, on opening day in 1963 all this was far away. New friends and the chance to build an academic legacy lay ahead.

We joined the opening of the Fort Worth Country Day School filled with the excitement and innocence of the 1950s. We never worried much about the Cold War or nuclear holocaust, and the great challenges of the 1960s were still gestating. Astronauts had started orbiting the earth, the Russians had pulled their missiles out of Cuba, and a couple of weeks before school started a minister from Montgomery, Alabama, had spoken about his dream before a lot of people at the Lincoln Memorial. Yet, as Headmaster Peter A. Schwartz recalled in his memories of the founding year, the only question we asked at a gathering of ninth-graders before opening day was whether we would field a football team. Based on our won-lost record, that was still a valid question when the Class of ’67 graduated.

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Opening Day On September 9, 1963, all 210 new students and many of their parents gathered in the cafeteria, one of three buildings comprising FWCD, to officially open the first school year. Mr. Schwartz welcomed us with some inspirational remarks and then introduced Mr. Alexander Everett, a very proper Englishman who would teach us Latin and soccer, with greater success at the latter.

He gave a formal introduction with a deliberate pronunciation of the five words comprising our new alma mater as if this were an event being watched globally. Goodbye Mr. Chips had arrived where the West begins.

Each morning, we would meet in the cafeteria for some spiritual inspiration and a few announcements before heading to classes. The classes our first day didn’t seem too different from those the year before in public schools. That would change, but not so much the first year.

One big difference was uniforms. Uniforms? ... really? … in Texas? Mercifully, the words ‘nerd’, ‘geek’, and ‘dork’ had yet to enter the lexicon.

Most classes took place in what is now the Upper School Science Building, which today is expanded from its original footprint. The School fwcd.org

Upper School Building Some initial members of the Class of 1967 – Front row: Lenore Grady, Gail Connell, Marilyn Lewis. Back row: Cass Hook, Bill Bahan, Charlie Geren, Warren Binion, Charles Clemens, Bill Landreth, Rick Shelton, Pete Thompson, Philip Norris, Mr. Allen David Allen

comprised nine grades, 10 classrooms, 210 kids and lots of lockers. Class change was an academic traffic jam where you hoped not to step on a first-grader. Thankfully all the pre-teens were removed to the new Lower School building the following year.

The Campus In the beginning, the campus was lots of acres covered by not much. In addition to the aforementioned cafeteria and classroom buildings, there was a small administration building that housed a couple of classrooms, several offices and a makeshift bookstore. When more classrooms were needed as the student body grew, a portable building was added next Fall/Winter 2013

to the administration building, half of which became the art center. On the hill above the three buildings was a flagpole. To its side, across a dry creek-bed, was the lone parking lot.

Enough area had been cleared down the hill from the buildings to provide a few athletic fields, although ‘cleared’ did not imply ‘de-rocked’ or covered with grass. In the middle of what passed for a football field was a wide depression with a sprinkler head in the middle that was wrapped in burlap bags during games. Rising a couple of feet in the air just off the field on the 50-yard line was a sprinkler pipe that we covered with the scorer’s table during games. Well out beyond the athletic fields was a stagnant pond that provided excellent FALCONER

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specimens for biology classes. Most of the campus looked more like a prairie than today’s manicured landscape.

The only way onto campus was Country Day Lane which formed a loop by the three original buildings. The loop was bisected by a dry creek that ran down from the hill above the School and passed by the cafeteria on its way down to the Trinity.

Before it crossed under the upper part of the loop the creek formed a deep ravine that became the perfect lunchtime hideout for upper-class smoking … until Mrs. Alann Sampson decided to find out why her history scholars so enjoyed trekking beyond the loop.

Mr. Schwartz and the Paragraph Mr. Schwartz radiated command from the day we stepped on campus. He was never too overbearing and was always quick with a smile. Yet, his standards and expectations were high. Even so, Mr. Schwartz’s remarks on the founding of FWCD indicated that he was well aware of the wide spectrum in talent of the entering classes. His patience was often tested, but not his devotion to our growth.

During the first year, Mr. Schwartz taught Ancient History to ninth-graders. After the first test, he was dismayed with our inability to form a sensible paragraph.

He expected improvement. We wondered how? After hearing his stern remarks about the King’s English, we asked if he would teach us the arcane secrets of paragraph-making. He replied, “Alright, get lunch and be back here in 20 minutes flat.” He spent the remainder of lunch at the blackboard showing us the structural elements of simple paragraphs. This was probably not how he envisioned spending his lunch periods when he agreed to become headmaster. Yet he gladly accepted this chore to place another brick in the foundation of an academically elite school.

Early Academics Perhaps more than any other class, science signified that FWCD was going to be different. Conducting and reporting experiments in science labs was new for most of us. Under Mr. Maurice Salminen biology was demanding—chemistry and physics even more so. We heated agar-

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Bob Adams

agar in flasks until they exploded and had swordfights with meter sticks in physics.

We developed soon-to-be obsolete skills, such as calculating with slide rules (look it up in Wikipedia). Nevertheless, Mr. Salminen sparked enough interest in science to form both a Science Club and a Pre-Med Club. With Mrs. Sharon Foster H’05 building the Middle School science program, FWCD established a pipeline for budding scientists. Several in the Class of ’67 entered science or medical careers, and Mary McKinney ’67 was elected best fencer.

With the early inclusion of Mrs. ClaireLise Knecht H’06 and Mr. Bob Adams on the faculty, foreign language grew from being a requirement to becoming a signature strength of FWCD. Language

Peter A. Schwartz

Pre-med Club: George Kline, Ward Howard, Rick Shelton

fwcd.org

schools consisted of grades 7 to 9. A short mention in the Star-Telegram described this game as a “titanic defensive struggle.” Since I weighed only 125 pounds, I started the game at safety. Halfway through the game an injury forced me to take over at middle linebacker. A quarter later one of our defensive tackles got hurt so I moved down to tackle. When your defensive tackle weighs 125 pounds, it seems a stretch to call the game a “titanic defensive struggle.”

Falcons huddle during first game, 1966 – Back row: Kent Farman, Bill Landreth, Thad Smith, Rick Shelton. Front row: Greg Settle, Harris Worcester, Rob Gordon, Pete Thompson. Calling the play: Bill Curtis

labs were installed in fall 1964. With little background in language training, the courses were a struggle for many in the early classes. One member of the Class of ’67 set records for futility in French unmatched in FWCD history. He is currently a senior executive in a French software company.

And then there was math. Mr. Allen David Allen was a fine math teacher and a very nice person … too nice. We put chalk dust on the white padding of his chair, placed an insect bomb in his desk drawer and threw erasers across the room while he was turned away proving theorems on the board. Nevertheless, he suffered us with a smile, especially after he became the first faculty recipient of a surprise birthday party during class. The ’new math’ was the new fad in 1963. Fortunately, it is now the long-buried old fad that forced many of us to make up at least a year of math while taking calculus in college. Perhaps we should have thrown fewer erasers.

The First Football Game Mr. Schwartz made it clear that FWCD was focused on academic excellence.

Athletics would at all times be a secondary pursuit. The subordination of athletics Fall/Winter 2013

Mr. Schwartz made it clear that FWCD was focused on academic excellence. was reinforced when we learned our locker room would be the basement underneath the cafeteria, a cavernous expanse in which we were not the only raw meat.

Fortunately, midway through that first fall, FWCD constructed a small portable locker room with showers and a coach’s office just down the dry creek from the cafeteria.

After inspecting the uniforms provided by the School, several of us went out and bought our own helmets.

Since most of the team were ninth-graders, and all ninth-grade boys save one were on the team, our first game was against Forest Oak Junior High School on the east side of town. In ancient times before the advent of middle schools, junior high

At the beginning of the fourth quarter, we were only down 12 to 6. Both teams sent in their second strings. We started making first downs and believing the possibility of a tie. To catch them off guard we called a reverse where the tailback fakes the ball to the fullback, then spins around and hands it to the wingback streaking past. Well the seventh-grader playing tailback faked the ball to the fullback, spun around and handed the ball to the first person streaking past, who unfortunately was the opposing defensive tackle, a chubby lad who waddled 70 yards to push the score to 18-6, while the rest of the team was still blocking and blocking and blocking and wondering where our wingback was. This single play best characterized our 0-3 record the first season.

With the exception of a 4-2 record our sophomore year, our results in football were dismal. Coach Don Hammer, an ordained minister, would become so frustrated with our performances that he would occasionally begin his halftime speeches by yelling, “Brethren!” Since Kent Farman’s ’67 father was a sportswriter for the Star Telegram, press reports usually cast us in a more favorable light than Coach Hammer’s halftime remarks.

Although we were small and fast, during our first three years we ran the old single wing formation (look it up in Wikipedia) best suited for large, muscular teams.

Even so, fueled by the brilliance of Bill Landreth ’67 and the speed of Rick Shelton ’67 and George Kline ’67, one Friday night in Muenster, Texas, we scored five touchdowns in six touches of the ball, all but one being longer than 60 yards … and still lost by 2 points. So much speed and so much promise, lost in the archaic alignments of our ancestors.

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Our Worst Day Our short first football season was now over. On the Friday before Thanksgiving, Marilyn Lewis went to hear the president speak in downtown Fort Worth. We were all jealous because she got to skip class.

After morning classes we headed for lunch.

A few of us who finished early were leaving the cafeteria when a mother making an early pick-up yelled at us from her car window, “Oh my God, the President has been shot!”

We gathered around her car listening to the radio and praying when the announcement came across, “President Kennedy is dead.”

We stood dumbfounded, some crying, and no one knowing what to do. There are a few times when you know the truth, and can’t accept it, and pray it’s wrong, and can’t understand how it could happen, and know it won’t go away, and fear something is never going to be the same. Near tears, I walked across the road, up the hill, and lowered the flag to half-mast.

A pall descended on the country. The glamour, the eloquence, the youthful exuberance that the Kennedy’s brought to the 1960s had died 35 miles away. It was the end of innocence. President Kennedy’s assassination was only the beginning of a decade that would be rocked by the civil rights movement; the war in Vietnam; two more assassinations; demonstrations and violence on college campuses; disillusionment with government; and inter-generational conflict over sex, drugs, fashion and feminism. We wouldn’t feel the full impact of these conflicts until

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1968, a year after we graduated. Yet, with President Kennedy’s assassination we knew the idyllic world of our 1950s childhood was ending.

The British Are Coming! The British Are Coming!

The 1960s were not all gloom and conflict. Scientific progress exploded with the growing power of computers. The arts were bursting with creativity not seen for generations.

Nowhere was this creativity more evident than in music and in 1964 the Beatles accomplished what had eluded the British Army for centuries—they successfully invaded America. Hair got longer, dresses got shorter, and dancing got shakier. Our own Cass Hook ’67 could pass for one of the Beatles, which stressed FWCD’s imaginary grooming code. Jane Dewell’s ’67 red Austin-Healey suggested our British affinity was more than just musical.

Our immersion in Anglophilia was complete when Mr. Schwartz rejoined the teaching faculty by offering British history our senior year.

While “grease” or “cool” might have been words for the 1950s, “groovy” and “far out” were words for the 1960s. Dancing was becoming more like calisthenics.

While Elvis might still be “The King,” John Lennon claimed the Beatles were more popular than Jesus. Heavy metal, acid rock, and the drug culture were off in the future.

The mid-60s were a transition between the “beat,” free-spirited generation of the ’50s

and the cultural/ generational conflict that tormented America after we entered college.

We watched all this at a distance on TV. We embraced the music, but we were not the rebellious sort. The Class of ’67 was not short on strong opinions—Chip Doss ’67 on conservatism, Brett Connell ’67 on double standards, Greg Settle ’67 on any topic—but these were mostly grist for lunchtime debate. FWCD was secluded from much of the unrest growing in the country. We had four years to learn and enjoy being young. Times were exciting and life was good.

Read All About It The first issue of the blandly titled Ft. Worth Country Day Newspaper was published under the editorship of Cass Hook ’67 on November 27, 1963. By the second issue on December 20 it had been renamed Country Day Digest. Four issues chock-full of scintillating news, including fwcd.org

a society column, had rolled off the mimeograph machine (look it up in Wikipedia) by April 1964.

In fall 1964, Diana Bonelli ’67 took over editorship of the student paper and changed the name to The Falcon Quill. Along with managing editors Gage Fender ’67, Dick Gibbe ’67, Harris Worcester ’67 and Jack Edmondson ’68, Diana produced three issues on glossy paper that had the feel of a real newspaper. Beginning with the 1965-66 academic year, The Falcon Quill expanded to four issues per year. Not to be outdone by the Upper School, Ms. Virginia Curtis’s 1965-66 fifth-grade class produced its own newspaper called The Falconette under the editorship of Tom Leatherbury ’73. The Falconette took a step beyond The Falcon Quill with paid ads to support class activities.

How We Became the Falcons During the first fall, we lacked a mascot.

Since Trinity Valley had chosen the Trojans as their mascot, we joked about becoming the Greeks, mythical conquerors of the Trojans. One faculty member proposed our School cheer could be, “Eeck, eeck, a Greek.” The momentum behind Hellenization soon waned.

By late fall 1963, Mr. Schwartz decided we should hold a pep rally before one of the games, and he wanted an animal present as a temporary mascot. Mike Murphy ’69 offered to bring his pet falcon.

During the rally, Mike’s falcon buzzed the airspace above the School and returned on command. The falcon was such a hit Mr. Schwartz decided shortly thereafter we would forevermore be the “Falcons.”

The Country Day Digest published in April 1964 displays a Falcon on the cover and calls the soccer team “the Falcons.”

Murphy’s bird had started a tradition.

When Diana Bonelli ’67 took over the student newspaper the following academic year, she renamed it The Falcon Quill.

Continuing the Falcon theme, Darcy Walker ’67 and Bill Bahan ’67 titled the first student yearbook Flight ’67. All this begs the question, why was FWCD’s literary magazine named The Scorpion?

To further complicate the nomenclature surrounding this game, under the coaching of Mrs. Royce Willey the girls played a form of British football called “speedball.”

When speedball season ended, they played hockey, which looked like speedball but with a smaller ball that you whacked with a stick. Unfortunately the girls’ results our final season more resembled the boys’ results in American rather than British football.

Thank Heavens for Soccer British Football Many of us had played YMCA-sponsored soccer in elementary school, where kicking the ball past any part of the backline scored a point, and a ball sent between two flags in the middle of the backline scored three.

No longer. We now had nets and a proper British coach.

Mr. Everett imposed the old British 5-32-1 alignment and scolded us endlessly to hold our positions. We became as good at British football as we had been poor at American football. We had winning records

Steve Geis (#68) watches Bill Landreth (#44) “have it in!”

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our final three years and only lost one game our sophomore year. To accentuate our local version of the British invasion, Mr. Everett did not exhort us to “Score!” but rather to, “Have it in!” And “have it in” we did, often enough to be one of the best teams in Texas.

1967 FWCD Cheerleaders – Front row: Nancy Mason ’67, Lisa Laughlin ’69, Gail Widmer ’69.

Back row: Sharon Stripling ’68, Cynthia Thomas ’67, Becky Scott ’67

Flog ’em Falcons There were several less-recognized athletic successes in the early years. On May 13, 1966, six girls forming our first swim team won FWCD’s first athletic trophy in the medley relay at the Texas State Outdoor Championships held in Burnet. As of this writing, Cynthia Thomas ’67 is still winning competitions. Randy Shiner ’67, Warren Binion ’67, Andy Shields ’69, and a few others formed a winning tennis team. Olive Penn ’67 competed in barrel racing at the annual Fat Stock Show.

Several in the Class of ’67 would letter in college athletics: Bill Landreth ’67, George Kline ’67, and Rob Gordon ’67 in soccer, and me in baseball.

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By our junior year, FWCD had formed a cheering squad. Nancy Mason ’67, Becky Scott ’67, Cynthia Thomas ’67, Sharon Stripling ’68, Lisa Laughlin ’69 and Gail Widmer ’69 stirred up enthusiasm among the Falcon faithful. However, I only remember hearing them once. After I missed a tackle one of the coaches yelled, “Get with it, Curtis!” Then I heard my best friend Bill Riley’s ’67 cheerleader girlfriend yell through a megaphone, “Get with it, Curtis!” Riley should’ve kept better control of his girlfriends.

At the pep rally before our final game at Greenhill, six members of the football team dressed up as Greenhill cheerleaders in our version of La Cage aux Falcon. Then Philip Cranz ’67, Bill Riley ’67, Cass Hook ’67, and Pete Thompson ’67 performed a karate-inspired Fatman and Falcon routine.

Unfortunately, we drew only enough inspiration from these performances to force a tie with Greenhill. Maybe our cheerleaders should have been yelling, “Have it in!”

The Arrival of Tawny Although the first year was academically challenging, nothing had prepared us for the year two arrival of Mr. William Skinner Kilborne, Jr. “Tawny” Kilborne had developed his own theory of English grammar, and we would be the first class forced through it. That was the easy part. English classes had usually consisted of little more than reading a few short stories, memorizing a poem, writing some short essays and learning something about gerunds that you never remembered. Suddenly, we were reading lots of short stories and having to define, spell and use correctly every word we read unless we were reading Shakespeare. I still remember some of these valuable words such as tintinnabulation, which is one more than ninetinabulation or two times fivetinabulation.

Compared to anything we had experienced before, English class was Dante’s Kilborne’s Inferno. We were writing 500-word themes almost weekly, and they would come back marked with hieroglyphics such as “IIQ.” Paul Stouffer ’68 ended his satire of Joyce Kilmer’s Trees in the first edition of The Scorpion, FWCD’s literary magazine, with

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“Essay tests I can redeem, but only God can pass a theme.” Most on the football team were hoping to catch Tawny alone behind the gym after practice someday. Yet after Tawny, term papers in college were a breeze. Funny how that works.

Having once captained the Yale debate team to victory over the Oxford University team, Tawny decided FWCD should aspire to its own rhetorical glory. He conscripted a number of us to argue whether Truman should have fired MacArthur, whether Red China should be admitted to the United Nations, and whether pornography should be censored. The captain of the debate team developed a reputation for taking sick days to prepare his debate speeches.

FWCD’s teams were remarkably successful, losing only one debate in two years, and that by a close split-decision.

Bill Curtis’67 does the Heisman pose

There were lighter moments with Tawny.

When we read Shakespeare aloud in class, he would stand in front of the room with a copy of the play in one hand and a copy of a book called Shakespeare’s Bawdy in the other. Every so often, he would remark, “Well I’m certainly not going to interpret that double-entendre.” You follow much more intently when something naughty may be hidden between the lines.

Tawny’s impact ran deep and occasionally confronted us with uncomfortable changes afoot in the country. During an English class our senior year, a classmate strongly

criticized Martin Luther King, Jr., for continually stirring up trouble. When the student finished, Tawny stood quietly waiting to see if anyone would respond.

After a long silence, Tawny began lecturing us on how Dr. King was raising issues fundamental to the Bill of Rights and speaking up for people long mistreated.

He ended by assailing us with, “I find it disturbing that not one of you spoke up in his defense.” I don’t know how anyone else felt, but without his using the word, I realized I had just been called a coward.

The memory of this class lasted beyond all others.

Mr. Schwartz Realizes He’s Not in Kansas Anymore During our junior year Coach Hammer scheduled a football game against St. Johns School in Houston. They agreed to only play their second string and no seniors.

Before the game Mr. Schwartz told us that even though FWCD deemphasized athletics, this game was important for giving us visibility among the better private schools in Texas. By the end of the first half, we were playing well and led 12-7.

Not willing to lose to this upstart from Cowtown, St. Johns played some of their leviathan starting backs in the second half.

The slaughter was on, and we lost 27-12.

The Monday after we returned from Houston, Mr. Schwartz gathered the football team into a corner room and chewed us out for losing so badly. We tried to raise the issue of St. John’s second half ringers, but he was hearing none of it.

While his criticism stung, we were quietly delighted that he finally realized FWCD was in Texas. Athletics were now in the curriculum.

Curtains Up! Light the Lights!

In fall 1965, FWCD formed a Dramatics Club, which on December 17 presented FWCD’s first serious theatrical performance, A.A. Milne’s The Ugly Duckling. Budding thespians from the Class of ’67, such as Nancy Reid, Diana Bonelli, Bill Riley and myself spent a month or so rehearsing with other members of the cast and delivered a single performance in the cafeteria. The play was rolling along when the female lead, who had performed flawlessly during fwcd.org

FWCD Christmas concert, December 1967

rehearsals, forgot one of her lines. Not a problem since throughout our rehearsals Rick Shelton ’67 hid beneath the stage with a script to whisper up forgotten lines … only he had now fallen asleep during the live performance! The two actors on stage stared nervously at each other for silent moments until Jack Edmondson ’68 uttered that immortal theatrical filler, “You don’t say!” The laughter from the audience woke Rick and the forgotten line rose from beneath the stage. FWCD theater was born.

Under the direction of Mr. Tom Ryan the FWCD music program started early the first year with a Christmas concert featuring three choruses with singers from all grades. Later, Messrs. Jack White and Cleve Redus initiated a music program across the Lower and Middle schools and sponsored choirs that presented annual concerts. The Upper School formed a folk singing group our junior year. The Class of ’67 had several capable musicians.

Dick Gibbe ’67 played a mean banjo and both Charles Clemens ’67 and Cynthia

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Thomas ’67 were skilled guitarists. But without a band, Harris Worcester ’67 could find no outlet for his cornet.

From the early years the amalgamated FWCD choirs produced annual spring programs. Mr. Robert Balch directed FWCD’s boffo spring performance in 1967, For You a Song. Six footballers were shanghaied into the chorus, less because of the quality of our voices than because we were the only available options lower than tenor. We mostly rehearsed the show in segments since choirs from different grades were rarely available simultaneously. When the curtain rose and the segments were finally integrated, the three-hour length prompted The Falcon Quill to title its review, “For You A Song and A Song and A Song ….”

Y’all the People During the first fall, Mr. Schwartz established a Student Council of the Upper School. Rick Shelton ’67, Pete Thompson ’67, Gail Connell ’67, Bill Landreth ’67, and others helped Mr.

Schwartz keep the pulse of the student body. This arrangement gave way the second year to a Headmaster’s Council with rotating members that was primarily an advisory group that organized occasional events. During our junior year Messrs. Schwartz, Salminen and Kilborne worked with the Classes of ’67 and ’68 to design a student government for the Upper School. The new Student Council began operation in fall 1966.

Mrs. Sampson was asked to sponsor the new Student Council and having taught us the intricacies of American governance the previous year, she decided we should have a proper constitution. Ward Howard ’67 became the first Student Council President, Rob Gordon ’67 became vice president of the senior class, and we drafted a constitution to make it all legal. The major accomplishments of the new Student Council were probably organizing dances, proms and selecting speakers for the graduation banquet. The Tea Party would love us; we established representation without taxation.

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Chronic Senioritis For better or worse, the Class of 1967 were seniors for four years. Well, all except John Robinette ’66 who joined the class late with a sweet deal that let him graduate a year earlier than the rest. Johnny we hardly knew ye. Perennial seniority was a blessing in every facet of School life except athletics where for several years we were usually playing seniors from other schools.

We were guinea pigs in experiments with School policies and practices. Yet, as with most senior classes, we got away with more shenanigans than would be tolerated from lower classes.

In fall 1966, Mr. Schwartz decided we should be granted a Senior Room in the newly built Sid Richardson Gymnasium as a reward for bearing the stresses of seniority for four years. It was a haven from the boredom and incarceration of study halls.

He placed strict guidelines on behaviors that were forbidden in the Senior Room.

Fortunately, these guidelines were never formally extended to football and soccer trips.

Subsequent classes would be remembered for their academic, athletic or artistic prowess. Even though 10 percent of the Class of ’67 were National Merit Scholarship Commendation Winners, we are probably better remembered as the class with a great personality. Yes, valedictorian Darcy Walker ’67 went to Wellesley College, salutatorian Harris Worcester ’67 went to Princeton University, and there

were other quality colleges to which we matriculated, but laying the cornerstone of FWCD’s academic reputation would be left to future Falcons. Nevertheless these personalities thrived, becoming scientists, executives, medical professionals, judges, lawyers, oilmen and the like. One of our original 1963 group even became a congressman, but please don’t hold it against us since he transferred out a couple of years before we graduated.

In concluding his memories on founding FWCD, Mr. Schwartz wrote, “It would be hard to assess the contribution to the School by this first class—the Class of 1967—that for four years provided student leadership, set the tone of the school in work and conduct, and set an example of meeting the new and unexpected with poise and dignity.” Wow! Forget everything I wrote before this paragraph.

On June 3, 1967, we graduated. Ahead of us lay 1968, which some journalists would describe as a “crack in time.” The Tet offensive in Vietnam, Russian tanks in Czechoslovakia, student riots at the Democratic Convention, race riots in the inner cities, the assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Senator Robert F. Kennedy—all coming at a mind-numbing pace. Innocence was gone.

What remained was how FWCD prepared us to handle it.

Gail Connell and Becky Scott in the Senior Lounge Gregg Settle and Harris Worcester lift Dick Gibbe

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FWCD Headmasters Past In the last issue of Falconer, Founding Headmaster Peter A. Schwartz and Edgar “Ted” Sanford H’98, FWCD’s second headmaster, were highlighted.

In this issue, Geoffrey Butler H’98 and Graham Brown, the School’s third and fourth headmasters respectively, are highlighted. Current Head of School Evan. D. Peterson will be featured in the Spring/Summer issue.

Geoffrey Butler (1987-96) Geoffrey Butler H’98, the School’s third headmaster, came to Fort Worth Country Day from Memphis, Tennessee, where he had served as headmaster at St. Mary’s Episcopal School.

He had his work cut out for him. He arrived in the middle of the oil bust, and enrollment had declined. Many families were struggling to make ends meet and pay tuition. Butler’s first charge was figuring out how to run the School while staying committed to its loyal families in an economic downturn.

His first move was to expand the School’s half-day kindergarten program to full days and build a new facility dedicated to these young learners. Butler and the Board of Trustees came up with a campus master plan that worked despite the economic situation.

When the kindergarten building was completed in 1991, enrollment quickly grew from 60 to 80 kindergarteners housed in four classrooms. This growth required the addition of a section to the Lower School. By 1992, enrollment for the entire school recovered, reaching 915 students, an all-time high.

Other advancements under Butler’s leadership included creating an after-school program for students, which helped accommodate Fall/Winter 2013

working-parent families. He also added the William A. and Elizabeth B. Moncrief Library and Technology Center and the Paul W. Mason Middle School, and established an Honor Code for students. Retaining his predecessors’ commitment to hire the top teachers, Butler continued to supplement teacher salaries from the Faculty Bonus Trust to remain competitive. His view: The quality of the teacher determines the quality of the educational experience.

In honor of Butler’s leadership, the kindergarten building was named the Geoffrey Butler Kindergarten in 1996.

Graham Brown (1996-2001) Graham Brown, the School’s fourth headmaster, continued to move Fort Worth Country Day forward.

During Brown’s tenure, the U.S. Department of Education recognized the Upper School as a Blue Ribbon School, a School-wide health and wellness program was introduced, and computers were placed in selected Middle and Upper School classrooms.

During this time, FWCD grew to be a 100-acre campus, as property along the north and eastern boundaries was acquired, and an aggressive landscaping program beautified the campus.

Under Brown’s leadership, the sciences flourished: The Upper School science center and Lower and Middle School science labs were completed, and the Lower School “Space Lab” was unveiled.

Students enjoyed a resurgence in the choral music program, as well as the start of the School’s lacrosse program. Additionally, the FWCD core values and principles of action were adopted.

In 1997, the School established Club Viginti, which recognizes faculty and staff who have given 20 or more years of service to FWCD. As of the 2012-13 academic year, there are 56 members who have been honored for their dedicated service.

Brown was present to celebrate FWCD’s 35th anniversary in 1998 with the return of all former headmasters and past Trustees.

Later that year, Trustees Plaza was built to honor FWCD Board of Trustees members.

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Students Get a Glimpse

of Life in the ’60s at “Looking Back” Day Fort Worth Country Day students had “a gas” on Monday, September 9, as they celebrated the School’s official birthday. The daylong event included “fab” activities and “groovy” educational sessions that gave them a sense of what life was like when the School opened its doors 50 years ago.

Thomas Dickerson ’20 gets help from Tricia Franks with his macrame project.

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FWCD’s Reading Council, co-chaired by Debby Jennings, head librarian/ department chair, and Andréanne Annis, Middle and Upper School French teacher, was charged with putting the event together and spent more than two years in the planning stages. They were supported by Julie Diamond, Dina Paul and Jenny Westermann, parent chairs. The council’s ultimate goal was to commemorate the day that the very first FWCD students set foot on campus 50 years ago and to honor those first 210 students in grades 1-9.

To start the day, students were given “outta sight” tie-dye T-shirts to wear as soon as they arrived and then ushered out to the field near the tennis courts for a special “FWCD 50” photo, comprising students, faculty and staff.

“Psychedelic” Opening Ceremonies Frasher Hudson Pergande ’81 and Cynthia Rimmer Prince ’87, 50th anniversary co-chairs, served as MCs for the day’s opening ceremonies.

Prince showed off her “cool” ’60s lingo, while Pergande translated for the audience. They gave a heartfelt “shout-out” to the ladies in archives— Claire-Lise Knecht H’06, Jody Price and the late Jean Webb H’01—who helped to make the day a true trip down memory lane. Knecht, also an FWCD original faculty member, took center stage as she led the room in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Head of School Evan D. Peterson set the day’s tone for students. “The ’60s were a time of change, a time of turmoil, a time of hope,” he said. “All of this played into the life of this school. The Fort Worth Country Day of 1963 opened its doors to 210 students on 10 acres of land. Today, we have 1,117 students, 237 employees and facilities on 104 acres. FWCD provides a quality education like no other in the country.”

Peterson evoked the Founding Trustees and Families, who would be honored for their trailblazing vision at a reception later that evening in the Lou and Nick Martin Campus Center. “These women and men had a hope, a dream,” he noted. “They wanted the best education for their children.

Fifty years later, the Founders’ vision lives on through our alumni, parents, faculty, staff, Trustees and students who continue to make the FWCD experience an exceptional one.”

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Tom McDermott (top left) celebrated “Looking Back” Day with Lower and Middle School students sharing his music and stories.

Charles Hubbard (above), retired FWCD math teacher, addressed segregation in the 1960s.

Andrea Davis Pinkney (left) read excerpts from her book Sit In: How Four Friends Stood Up

By Sitting Down. Sit-In was an all-School “read” for this celebratory day, and students wrote essays based on a time they stood up themselves or saw others stand up for their beliefs.

Peterson urged students to be proud Falcons. “Stand up, look a person straight in the eye and say, ‘I go to Fort Worth Country Day, the best school in the country’,” he instructed students to say when asked where they go to school.

Annis and Jennings closed the ceremony, providing an overview of the day’s events and encouraging students to have fun and learn about the events and movements that made up the 1960s.

In addition to FWCD faculty, four special guest presenters were on campus providing interesting and thought-provoking sessions.

They were: Andrea Davis Pinkney spoke to Lower and Middle School students about her book, Sit In: How Four Friends Stood Up By Sitting Down. Pinkney is an award-winning author of fiction and nonfiction for children and youth. Sit In won the Jane Addams Book Award and the Carter G. Woodson Award for historical works for young people. She lives in New York City with her husband, Brian, who illustrated Sit In, and their two children. Pinkney’s newest book, representing the 1963 March on Washington, is Martin and Mahalia: His Words Her Song.

Brian illustrated this book as well.

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Charles Hubbard spoke to Middle School students on segregation in the 1960s. Hubbard is a retired U.S. Air Force Lt. Colonel, having served 24 years. He taught math at FWCD for 14 years and was a Key School teacher for 13 years.

Tom McDermott shared music and stories with Lower and Middle School students. A storyteller, author and musician, McDermott entertains audiences with his musical performances. His books include Otis Steele and the Taileebone and The Ghouls Come Haunting One by One! McDermott received the John Henry Faulk Award and is a touring artist with the Texas Commission on the Arts.

Dr. Suzanne Lewis returned to FWCD and spoke to Upper School students about the Kennedys. Last year, Dr. Lewis retired from FWCD after 35 years of teaching. She served as the head of the School’s History Department for 20 years.

Her interests include wars as watershed events in history, particularly WWII and the Civil War, as well as political history in the U.S. In the 1960s, Dr. Lewis marched against the Vietnam War while a student at The University of Texas.

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“Neato” Activities By 9:30 a.m., students were on their way to various educational and activity sessions.

Kevin Ford, Upper School math teacher, played Password with students. “We first viewed a short clip from the television show—in black and white, no less—in order for them to see how the game was played. I then introduced the rules we would use for our games,” he said. Two teams of two students played against each other. A flipchart was used in conjunction with the Promethean Board to display the secret word. Teams alternated with one member providing a one-word clue to his/ her team partner who would hopefully say the secret word. “I volunteered to present because I always enjoyed the game shows that were aired as I grew up, and I enjoy using the Promethean Board with the students and saw a way to incorporate both,” Ford noted.

Christine Derber, Thomas M. Ryan Chair for Distinguished Lower School Teaching, contributed a session on the Beatles to fifth-graders. Students watched the original Ed Sullivan Show where the Beatles were first introduced to an American audience.

“The students enjoyed the music and knew some of the songs,” Derber said.

“They were puzzled as to why the girls in the audience were screaming! They also

FWCD Essay Winners Jackie Rains, English Department chair and a member of the FWCD Reading Council, announced the “Looking Back” Day writing contest winners during opening ceremonies. Students in grades 3-12 read Sit In: How Four Friends Stood Up By Sitting Down by Andrea Davis Pinkney and then were given a prompt: “Write about a time when you or someone you have observed stood up for what is right.” Each grade level chose the best piece. The winners were: Grade 3: Mary Caroline Warrick, Grade 4: Kate Martin, Grade 5: Kaylie Graves, Grade 6: Claire Guthrie, Grade 7: Alexandra Galloway, Grade 8: Catherine Cravens, Grade 9: Sarah Jane McDonald, Grade 10: Tekleab Beyene, Grade 11: Casey Hammett, Grade 12: Kelly Hall The winning pieces were published within the Alumni Art Show catalog, which is available on the 50th anniversary website at fwcd.org/50

Natalia Avila ’17, Robert Schofield ’15, Chuck Corder ’15, Mason Beasley ’15, Tedros Samson ’16 Rebeca Avila ’15.

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Bill Arnold ’86 highlighted American military involvement in Vietnam.

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get a peek into what life was like when our School was established. The amount of planning and collaboration that this fun event required was extensive. I am pleased to be a small part of creating such a memorable celebration.”

The Middle School hosted a Fashion Show.

Seventh-graders from Middle School history teacher Tara Forrest’s advisory presented one-minute skits based on famous people from the 1960s. Mixed in were various eighth-graders who modeled vintage clothing donated by alumni and outfits from Harris Costumes. “Middle schoolers were able to ‘see’ famous folks from Neil Armstrong to the Beatles. A groovy time was had by all!” said Lynette Burleson, Middle School English teacher.

Senior Patrick Gordon assists kindergarteners John Hereford, William Runyon and Henry Murphey

Jackie (Alex Gibbs ’18) and Jack Kennedy (Samuel DeRobertis ’18) stroll the catwalk in the “Looking Back” Day fashion show.

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enjoyed the commercials for Pillsbury and Anacin pain medication.”

The confusing, yet relevant topic of the Vietnam War and the draft lottery were front and center in a session by Bill Arnold ’86, Upper School history teacher. He began with a map orientation of Southeast Asia, then traced the major developments that shaped Vietnamese history between 1945 and 1964. The group then discussed American foreign policy during the Cold War, specifically as it applied to the containment of Communism in Asia.

Arnold also highlighted American military involvement in Vietnam, including deployment and casualty statistics from 1963-73 and the effect that waning public support had on the war effort after 1969.

He concluded the session by explaining why the U.S. has a draft and how the Selective Service System managed the draft lottery in 1969 and 1970.

Art was also a focus of the day. Holly Clifford-Waters, Middle School art teacher, presented spin art and Spirographs, popular art activities in the 1960s. “The kids were mesmerized by the designs they were able to create,” Clifford said. “The day was a great opportunity for students to learn a bit of the School’s history and

Natalie Bracken ’05, ballet and theatre teacher, loved the day’s events and activities.

She presented American Bandstand, where students learned to “twist,” “monkey,” “pony,” “jerk,” “mashed potato,” “swim” and “hully gully” to some of the popular songs of the decade.

Shari Lincoln, head of Lower School, watched her students interact with Upper School students who served as guides for the day, leading the groups to their various sessions. Sixty-nine juniors and seniors worked in K-4 classrooms, art rooms, the gym, library and the Fischer Dining Pavilion to help make the day extra special for the littlest Falcons. Sharon Hamilton, Upper School science teacher, organized this volunteer effort.

“Truly, the best part of our special 50th celebration was the time our lower schoolers spent with our Upper School friends,” Lincoln noted. “The day captured what is best about FWCD: the wonderful relationships that connect us to each other.

We are one large family. The Upper School students danced, played games, created crafts, hugged and held hands with our little ones. How does it get any better than that?”

The food for the day also had a ’60s theme.

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Last Band Standing performed for for the “Looking Back” Day. Pictured above are Jonathan Hinton, Andréanne Annis, Cynthia Rimmer Prince ’87, Jenny Westermann, Julie Diamond, Frasher Hudson Pergande ’81 and Joe Breedlove ’78

and Tang in the water spa stations. The day’s festivities concluded with a street party in front of the Peter A. Schwartz Administration Building and Moncrief Library, complete with live music by Last Band Standing and SAGE providing scrumptious cupcakes with whipped icing.

While the event was a community-wide program for FWCD students, there was one alumna who returned to campus to take part in some of the activities. Tori Olin Ross ’72 flew in from Nashville to take part in the evening’s Founding Families Reception and to meet the author of Sit In and hear her presentation. Ross, a children’s librarian, has stayed connected to FWCD over the years attending class reunions, but knew the 50th anniversary was something she did not want to miss.

“I wanted to honor my parents and all those who made this school,” she said.

Ross was on campus that very first day of school 50 years ago as a fourth-grader; her sister Sarah Olin Grace ’68 was an eighth-grader. While her memories of that first day are not vivid, her first memory of FWCD involved the assassination of President John F. Kennedy about two months later. She recalls being ushered to the cafeteria. “I can still picture this day in my mind,” she said with tears in her eyes. She also remembered watching space launches in the classroom on black-andwhite televisions.

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When asked what keeps her connected to FWCD, Ross said: “We were a class of 32 students. You got to know everyone.

We were like family.” Ross was greatly influenced by her French teacher, ClaireLise Knecht H’06 and Robert Adams, the yearbook sponsor. She attended college at Vanderbilt University and now regularly visits her sisters, Grace and Carla Olin Holmgren ’75, in Fort Worth.

Bracken summed up what the day meant to her: “I have spent 17 years of my life growing up as a student and now a teacher on this beautiful campus we call home.

The Fort Worth Country Day family has truly shaped me into the person I am today. I feel that ‘Looking Back’ Day was a wonderful way to honor our School’s past and look forward to its continued impact on our students’ lives in the future.”

Jeremy Henderson leads the conga line of his fellow third-graders, with Jack Stewart and Ethan Jordan.

Frank Gendusa taught the Upper School students dance moves of the ’60s.

Kindergarten class of Caroline Corpening Lamsens ’99

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Standing: Alison Robinson, Sharon Hamilton, Debby Jennings, Andréanne Annis, Lisa Wallace, Lynette Burleson, Chuck Maddux; Kneeling: Julie Diamond, Killian Naylor, Jackie Rains, Tammy Wolford, Teresa Hoppe, Jenny Westermann

FWCD’s 50th Anniversary Commemorative Book There was no plot of land. No buildings. No faculty, headmaster nor even a name.

Fort Worth Country Day began as an idea.

And so begins Fort Worth Country Day’s commemorative book, which highlights the School’s first 50 years.

Be on the lookout for information regarding sales and distribution in the coming months! Details about the book will be available at fwcd.org/50 and through the 50th anniversary e-newsletter.

You won’t want to miss out on purchasing this keepsake piece.

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FWCD Honors Founders and Original Faculty Photos by Sharon Ellman

Bill Landreth ’67 and Gail Widmer Landreth ’69

O.P. Leonard, Jr. H’13; Betty Claire Dupree McKnight H’13; Ed Bass; and Patricia Schutts H’13

Fort Worth Country Day’s golden anniversary gives the School the opportunity to honor the true Founding Families of FWCD: the students, parents, donors, teachers and staff whose vision made FWCD a reality. This year has served as a time to reminisce, reconnect and reflect on special Country Day memories, as well as pay tribute to a school that makes a difference in the lives of so many.

On the evening of September 9—the exact date of the very first day of school 50 years ago—FWCD Founding Families and Founding Faculty came together to celebrate the School’s storied history at the Founding Families Reception. The evening recognized Founding Trustees, Original Faculty and those trailblazing families who are considered the Founding Families of FWCD. “We would not be here today if it were not for the forward-thinking Trustees,” said Martha Schutts Williams ’70. “Equally important to the founding of the School are the faculty who were with us that first year. We all know that teachers are what make the school!” Three of the School’s Founding Trustees were present: Betty

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Claire Dupree McKnight H’13; O.P. Leonard, Jr. H’13; and Patricia Schutts H’13. Four Original Faculty were present: Claire-Lise Knecht H’06, Olive Pelich, Alann Sampson and Evelyn Walraven.

The highlight of the evening was a 50th anniversary video that celebrates the School’s five decades from the perspectives of current and former faculty, Trustees, students, alumni and Founding Families.

Kit ’70 and Charlie Moncrief

Evelyn Walraven, Alann Sampson, Claire-Lise Knecht H’06, Evan D. Peterson, Olive Pelich and Shannon Young Ray ’80

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Janie Beggs ’70, Emily Schutts Dunleavy ’71 and Judy Beggs Clement ’71

Parker Schenecker ’80, Joe Breedlove ’78 and Edmund Schenecker ’79

Sam and Isabelle Hulsey

Frasher Hudson Pergande ’81, Martha Schutts Williams ’70 and Cynthia Rimmer Prince ’87

Nancy Leonard; Martha Oswald ’99; O.P. Leonard, Jr. H’13; and Adelaide Hallum ’08

John McClung ’73 and Jim Stouffer ’73

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Homecoming Highlights 50th Photos by Sharon Ellman

Fort Worth Country Day’s Homecoming week was packed with celebratory events and activities for all Falcons, including the FWCD Authors Reception, Alumni Art Show Reception, Alumni Awards Dinner, Friday night Homecoming football game and all its extravaganza, a former faculty/staff reunion and 10 class reunions. The week was even more festive because of the School’s 50th anniversary. Frasher Hudson Pergande ’81 and Cynthia Rimmer Prince ’87, 50th anniversary co-chairs, along with Sue Cutler Christie ’84; Stephanie Dike; Lori Brumley and Jennifer Berry Anderson ’87, Homecoming chairs, created events that appealed to the entire community.

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h Anniversary in Grand Style

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Friday was a truly spectacular day as the School hosted the largest Homecoming ever! “Friday and Saturday events provided a great opportunity to celebrate 50 great years, reconnect with old friends and supporters, and to commemorate the wonderful things that happen at this school every day,” said Evan D. Peterson, head of School. Friday began with a Homecoming kickoff breakfast in the Fischer Dining Pavilion, hosted by SAGE Dining Services.

Parents were invited to join their students for a morning smorgasbord of scrambled eggs, biscuits and gravy, breakfast meats, waffles, cereal, breakfast breads and beverages.

Falcon Alley was a huge hit with Falcons of all ages. A few of the main attractions were fun bounce houses for the kids, photo buttons for memory making, delicious food truck fare and festive tables where alumni and families could catch up with one another.

Lower School “Captain-for-a-Game” raffle winners were paired with senior captains for a special “insider’s” look at the Homecoming football game. Lower School winners were kindergarteners Frankie Leoni and John Hereford, firstgraders Jack Cipperman and Braden Baker, second-graders Jack Bradford and

FWCD band members: Michael Jacobson ’16, Robert Schofield ’15, J.R. Torres ’15, Alexander Chieffalo ’16, Isaac Narett ’17, Bastian Wood ’15 and Mason Beasley ’15

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Marco Olmos, third-graders Davis Moten and Jordan Cyprian, and fourth-graders Mason Cheng and Peyton Randolph. The evening’s captains were all senior players: Robert Arnold, Will Belton, Carson Bennett, Michael Bowman, Campbell Boswell, John Callaway, Bryan Garvey, J.R. Gideon, Patrick Gordon, Matt Leonard, Jack Livingston, Kyle O’Brien, Philippe Roberge, Caleb Rooker, Ben Sankary, Robbie Stackhouse, Tyler Steele and Jesse Tipton.

Continued on page 48

James Chilcoat ’12, a student at the University of Texas at Austin, sang the National Anthem.

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Top left: Seniors Mary Claire Ekstrom, Hannah Kelly, McKenna Breedlove, Alden Griffin, Maddie Jiongo, Robbie Stackhouse, Dalton Dry, Will Belton, Jack Livingston and Kyle O’Brien were announced as the Homecoming court at the all-School pep rally on Friday prior to the football game.

Top right: Graham Brown, Geoffrey Butler H’98, Edgar “Ted” Sanford H’98, and Evan D. Peterson were presented 50th commemorative footballs signed by the current FWCD football team at the end of the first quarter.

Left: Fourth-graders Anna Hooton, Foluke Fabuyi, Kaylee Chisholm, Madeleine Milliorn, Catherine Belton

Sharon McAlpine Davis ’04 and Jackson Davis ’03

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FWCD cheerleaders perform

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Lower School “Captain-for-a-Game” raffle winners were paired with senior captains; from left: Mason Cheng ’22, Michael Bowman ’14, John Hereford ’26, Bryan Garvey ’14, Frankie Leoni ’26, Jesse Tipton ’14 and Carson Bennett ’14.

A jumbotron was rented for the occasion.

Throughout the game against the Trinity Valley Trojans, the screen featured fun facts and interesting FWCD information; videos; and on-field timeout, quarter and halftime activities.

Bill Arnold ’86, Upper School history teacher, kicked off the game paying tribute to FWCD veterans. “Fort Worth Country Day has a long and proud legacy of national sacrifice,” he said. “Over the past 50 years, Falcons have served the United States with distinction in nine combat theaters and 12 peace-keeping operations in over 30 countries around the globe as commissioned officers, enlisted personnel, government advisers, politicians, negotiators, inspectors and emissaries.”

After the presentation of colors, James Chilcoat ’12, a student at the University of Texas at Austin, sang the National Anthem.

A very special part of the evening involved acknowledging the School’s four living headmasters: Edgar “Ted” Sanford H’98, Geoffrey Butler H’98, Graham Brown and Evan D. Peterson at the end of the first quarter.

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Also following the first quarter, the No. 1 undefeated 1978 football team was honored in conjunction with its 35th class reunion. This group accomplished a feat that all teams strive for: perfection. The team finished with a 10-0 season and a Texas Independent Schools Conference Championship and the coveted SPC Championship. Students within this group were also SPC and Texas Independent Schools Conference Champions in basketball and track, therefore earning the title of “Super Great 78.”

Halftime festivities included the announcement of new Athletics Wall of Fame inductees (see page 49) and the introduction of the Homecoming court.

Throughout the game, fireworks colored the night sky any time the Falcons scored a touchdown—which was a lot. The final score: Falcons 40, Trojans 14.

The evening ended with an all-School pizza party and a colorful fireworks display to celebrate Fort Worth Country Day in true 50th anniversary fashion!

Seniors Hannah Kelly and Will Belton were crowned queen and king during halftime.

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Sharon Ellman

Five Falcons Inducted into FWCD Athletics Wall of Fame

Five alumni from the Class of 2008 were honored for their accomplishments in collegiate athletics during halftime of the Homecoming football game on Friday, October 28. These Falcons lettered in a varsity sport at their college or university.

Davy Wright attended Texas Christian University, where he was a utility player for the Horned Frog Baseball team for five years.

Wright played first and second base, short stop and catcher during his time with the team, and enjoyed a trip to Omaha in 2010 for TCU’s first College World Series appearance.

Taylor Foreman played women’s basketball for one year at Whittier College. The next three years, she spent at the University of Texas at Austin. While in Austin, she served as ride director for Texas 4000, a cycling group, and completed the world’s longest bicycle ride – from Austin to Anchorage.

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Ben Eppstein attended the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he was a Yellow Jacket cheerleader for four years. In 2010, Eppstein was awarded the most-improved distinction.

Jake Berman attended Davidson College, where he played baseball for four years. He was twice honored both Play of the Week and as Player of the Week in 2012. He led his team in homeruns that same year.

Brian Alexis attended Texas Christian University, where he was a member of the winningest football class in school history.

Alongside his Horned Frog teammates, he appeared in five college football bowl games, including a Rose Bowl victory against Wisconsin in 2011.

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ATHLETIC

News

Roar and Score to the Championship Game

In 2011, the Falcons played St. John’s School in Houston in the championship game, losing in double overtime. In 2012, the Falcons played St. John’s again in the semifinals, losing in double overtime once again. This year, they faced the number one seeded St. John’s team in the first round. The Falcons took the field determined that their third time facing St. John’s would be a charm.

It was—the Falcons avenged their previous losses, beating St. John’s 1-0 to advance.

The Falcons then faced The Hockaday School in Dallas in the semifinals. In their two previous match ups this season, the teams tied, and Hockaday won in overtime. In a hard-fought game on both sides, regulation time ended with the score tied at zero. After two sudden-victory overtimes, the game was still tied at zero, which

Lisa Wallace

Field hockey capped off its season, earning a spot in the coveted SPC Division I championship game. In an intense back-andforth game, the Falcons fought hard, but came up short losing 1-0 to Casady School in Oklahoma City. While it wasn’t quite the ending the team wanted, they had much to be proud of over the course of their season.

meant the game would be decided in strokes. The strokes were tied at 1-1, and Falcon goalie Elizabeth Wilkinson ’14 stopped the shot by Hockaday. With one player left to take a stroke, the Falcons could win the game or throw it into another round of strokes.

Lauren Wagner ’14 stepped to the line and nailed it! Falcons win!

The huge crowd of Falcon fans rushed the field to help the team celebrate!

Cross Country Honors

George Rodriguez

Cooper Baird ’15 and Melody Rodriguez ’15 earned an invitation to compete at the U.S. Association for Track and Field Junior Olympics Cross Country Championships in San Antonio, Texas on December 14.

Both runners ran a 5K at the Southwestern Association USATF Championship to qualify. Rodriguez finished first in the 1718 year old women’s division with a time of 20:48 and Baird finished second in the 17-18 year old men’s division with a time of 17:03. Baird also competed at the Foot Locker South Regional on November 30 in Charlotte, North Carolina. He finished 137th in the Championship division with a time of 16:08 in the 5K. Baird finished 39th on December 14.

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ATHLETIC NEWS

Senior Jack Livingston Named Scholar Athlete of the Week Senior Jack Livingston was an Inside High School Sports’ 2013-14 Scholar Athlete of the Week in October. His segment aired on NBC on Saturday, October 26, and Sunday, October 27.

Livingston is a true FWCD 3 A’s scholar— showing promise academically, athletically and artistically. A National Merit Scholarship Semifinalist, Jack is a member of the Cum Laude Society and has been on the FWCD High Honor Roll since he was a freshman.

Throughout Upper School, his commitment to learning has been significant. He earned the National Spanish Exam Silver Medal as a freshman and junior and the National Spanish Exam Gold Medal and FWCD Mathematics Undergraduate award as a sophomore.

Livingston has been a member of the FWCD Honor Council for four years and now serves as its president. He is the FWCD student body vice president and has been a Link Leader since his junior year.

Livingston has used his athletics talents to play basketball and football throughout his Upper School career and serves as the

varsity basketball captain this year. A piano student at the Arlington Heights Music Academy, he earned a “Superior" rating for 10 consecutive years and advanced to statelevel competition in the Texas Federation of Music Clubs Junior Festival Competition Piano Solo in grades 9-11 and was rated “Outstanding” those same years in the

State Junior Festival Competition. He played keyboard, xylophone and chimes in the FWCD Upper School band and played keyboard in the School’s jazz combo. In his spare time, Livingston volunteers as a pianist at Cook Children’s Medical Center on the weekends and occasionally gives lessons to patients.

Football Brings the Battle of Bryant Irvin Trophy Home

Sharon Ellman

The varsity football team ended its season with a thrilling Homecoming victory over Trinity Valley School to bring the Battle of Bryant Irvin trophy home. With 18 seniors leading the way, the Falcons beat the Trojans 40-14. To cap off the victory and in celebration of the school’s 50th anniversary, the team and fans celebrated under a spectacular fireworks display. (See story on page 44.)

Seniors Robbie Stackhouse, Ben Sankary and Robert Arnold celebrate the victory.

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Teaching the Same Lessons 50 Years Later

By Paige Farris Chisholm ’87 When Fort Worth Country Day opened its doors 50 years ago, the founders’ goals were to integrate academics with athletics and the arts. In 1963, FWCD started with football as its only competitive sport; the few others, like field hockey, soccer and speedball were part of a PE program before they became varsity sports in later years.

Over the course of 50 years, several sports have been added as the School has grown.

FWCD now offers 24 sports for boys and girls: baseball, basketball, cheerleading, cross country, field hockey, football, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track, volleyball and wrestling. The irony of FWCD’s sports evolution is that while the facilities have changed, the underlying themes of athletics have stayed the same.

There are several families currently at Country Day where one or both parents are alumni and played athletics. This fall, 64 seniors participated in a sport. Of those 64 players, 21 are legacy students, meaning they have a parent who attended FWCD. In honor of the School’s 50th anniversary, a few of our alumni are sharing their thoughts on FWCD athletics—then and now.

’05, Richie ’07 and Bryan ’14. Richard’s favorite part of athletics involved being on teams with his classmates and friends.

A highlight of his career was finishing his senior year with a championship in football and soccer, the first championships for boys’ sports.

his players to wear long pants during a game. The biggest difference in athletics now he believes involves the fields. In the 1970s, the School was still trying to convert pastures to playing fields, and the teams would pull weeds, gather grass burrs and pick up rocks.

Richard says that what he appreciated about athletics in the late ’60s and early ’70s is the same for his kids today.

“Athletics give our children the opportunity to represent their school and to learn about teamwork, to achieve a common goal successfully,” he said. “They also learn the life lessons that sports can teach you, such as winning with class and dealing with adversity in an appropriate way. They have an opportunity to work hard and compete at a high level with coaches and trainers who truly care about their players and what the School represents.”

John Boswell ’78 is married to Elizabeth Steele Boswell ’81; they have had four children attend FWCD: Lowell ’07, Elizabeth ’10, Campbell ’14 and Fontaine ’14. One of John’s favorite memories is beating St. Mark’s in football for the first time in School history. The win capped off an undefeated season. Some of his other favorite memories have been in recent years, as he’s watched his own children celebrate championships with their friends and classmates.

Richard Garvey ’72 has had four children attend FWCD: Kathryn ’03, Chad Ohl

David Ekstrom ’75 has had three children attend FWCD: Pierce ’08, James ’10 and Mary Claire ’14. One of his favorite memories includes playing at Oklahoma City Casady on a day when it was about 25 degrees with a north wind of about 30 miles an hour. To his recollection, this was the only time Colonel Rocky Rosacker H’00 allowed

While the facilities have improved, the uniforms have become fancier and the number of sports has increased, the basic underlying themes of the athletic program have stayed the same. Athletics provides an opportunity for lifetime friendships to be made. The athletes learn life lessons that will serve them well as an adult. FWCD provides an opportunity for all students to participate, be competitive and create memories that will last a lifetime.

John Boswell ’78

David Ekstrom ’75

Richard Garvey ’72

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Who says 13 is unlucky?

For Breakthrough Fort Worth, the 2013 summer proved to be full of wonderful gems to benefit its participating students.

The program went into summer celebrating its 20th year on the Fort Worth Country Day campus, as well as applauding the accomplishments of its newest sixyear program graduating class. At the inaugural Breakthrough Seniors Dinner in May, students were highlighted for their growth in the program, academic and extracurricular achievements at their high schools, plus college acceptances that included prominent schools like Purdue University, Spelman College and Fort Worth’s own Texas Christian University.

Breakthrough executive director Joe Breedlove reflected on the event: “When you factor in the students’ social development in the program, a special event like the Seniors Dinner is the perfect catalyst to commemorate their long-term achievements in the program. Many students cite the Fancy Meal luncheon as one of their earliest and favorite memories in the program. Having a dinner that celebrates their growth, incorporates their parents and mirrors a cherished activity is really the most appropriate culmination I can imagine to commend their time in the program.”

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2013: A Summer of Treasures to Benefit Breakthrough Students Fancy Meal Fancy Meal is also a top highlight of the 2013 summer session. Led by event co-chairs Nikki and Mark Blahitka and Anne and Orlando Carvalho, this year’s Fancy Meal luncheon raised record support.

No one is happier about the achievement than Anne and Nikki, who worked tirelessly to make it a success. Through their efforts, the event raised more than $62,000 to fulfill the students’ participation in the event and their summer needs for the program.

When agreeing to take on the role of co-chairing the event, Anne and Orlando were especially moved by the program’s dual focus on academic and life development.

“Breakthrough enables students to have unlimited opportunities through education and life experiences such as Fancy Meal,” observed Anne, who feels strongly that the program’s comprehensive approach will best prepare the students for college and life choices. “Along with Nikki and Mark, we are thrilled that the event was such a success, especially in its purpose to provide for the students.”

Co-leader Nikki readily agrees. “Helping lead this event afforded Mark and I the opportunity to learn more about the program, and our increased awareness made me realize what an honor it was to be part of the students’ summer participation and provide for their learning needs,” she related. “I think it’s one of the most fabulous community programs that this School offers, and I’m proud to not only support the program but also to have had a leading role in promoting it to and educating other families about it.”

Her promotion of the program garnered a first-time “Moms for Fancy Meal” shared table for the event, bringing together seven Middle School family mothers to collectively host a table. “Our Falcon friends and moms were as inspired and proud as Anne and I were to support the kids,” Nikki added. “I’m sure they would agree with us that having the chance to meet and talk with the students, hear about their values and dreams made the experience of being at Fancy Meal super special.”

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Celebrating Breakthrough Champions Day are (top row) Jasmine Quezada; Nicole Masole; Event Co-hosts and JLFW Team Members Tamara Albury, Emily Hill and Kathryn Gilpin; Joe Breedlove ’78; Rudi Flores; Shannon Young Ray ’80; and Megan Boschini.

(Bottom row) Erik Guijarro, Karen Olivo, Octavio Aguayo, Anay Silva, Stephanie Martinez, Alessandra Carrasco and Eric Mosely

Great Test Scores

Junior League of Fort Worth In preparing the students for the Fancy Meal event and enhancing their training in several leadership activities, a gemstone in the Breakthrough support family shined bright. The Junior League of Fort Worth (JLFW) supported the students’ summer session with both financial and important volunteer support.

Taking on a special coaching role, JLFW team members aided Breakthrough student teachers in promoting Clubs (electives) for the students; plus they served as practice guests in the students’ Mock Fancy Meal rehearsal event and helped host the program’s annual visitors event, Breakthrough Champions Day. The high point of their summer involvement was the team’s interactive presentation to the middle school students, which included an open discussion about the importance of community involvement and its benefits to both the region and their own personal development. “The Junior League presentation provided great insight into the world of community service and the idea of giving back,” remarked Breakthrough middle school coordinator Rudi Flores. “As our students continue to grow and attend college-preparatory high schools, we cannot overlook the value or importance of community service in their leadership learning journey. We’re thankful to the Junior League for helping our students understand how to get involved locally.”

Wrapping up the summer, the JLFW team also helped with the students’ annual Celebration event, a family show-and-tell activity that highlights the students’ learning achievements. The team members were pleased to view the students’ Presentations of Learning poster gallery and see for themselves the variety of work and impressions the students had.

“Breakthrough provides students with opportunities that aid in the realization of their academic achievement,” said Tamara Albury, Junior League project team leader.

“The look of pride on the faces of the parents and students [at the event] warmed the heart. The program transforms the lives of students as they adapt it from a summer program into a foundational framework for their life’s academic and personal success.”

Another nugget in Breakthrough’s summer was revealed in the results of Breakthrough’s pre- and post-summer testing for students. Essay writing for seventh-graders showed a 55 percent improvement. Chemistry scores showed the biggest jump with a 70 percent increase. Geometry scores flourished at a 40 percent rise in scores. New this year was a reading comprehension score that reflected 89 percent comprehension for ninth-graders at the end of the summer.

“Summer 2013 was a great year for student achievement,” remarked Nicole Masole, Breakthrough program director.

“We saw growth from pre-assessment to post-assessment in all four subjects, math, science, literature and writing, and we are incredibly proud of the work of our students and teaching fellows.”

Only in its third year, testing has become an invaluable tool for student placement at the beginning of the summer, as well as in assessing the students’ progress as they go into the school year. Equally important, it aides the staff in evaluating the young teaching fellows’ effectiveness and identifying areas to improve training.

Breakthrough students Sol Cruz and Gabi Palomo Godinez

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News

Homecoming/ Reunion Alumni from the classes of 1968, 1973, 1978, 1983, 1988, 1993, 1998, 2003 and 2008 celebrated reunions during Fort Worth Country Day’s Homecoming.

Reunions took place at local restaurants and alumni homes. Those who gathered were excited to reconnect and share their latest news—and join in on all the 50th anniversary festivities.

Share your latest news with FWCD today. Email Mary Lou Hilliard, alumni relations and special events coordinator, at marylou.hilliard@fwcd.org.

Class of 1978 (front row): Dee Kelly, Ricky Baker, Kim Vincent Dale, Elizabeth Beier, Beth Runyon Gideon, George Young, Michelle Miteff Purvis, Joe Breedlove, Susan Steed Barnett, Mindy Willis Hanzik and Susan Ryan; Back row: Mike Goodrich, Kay Anderson Genua, Kathy Stoddard Torrey, Janet Maberry Dickerson, Myra Matthews Buis, Ned Fleming, Ben Fortson, Scott Nowlin and David Sanford.

Class of 1993: Billy Bob Wise, Eve Ettinger Shulman and Kelly Lanier Tierce

Class of 1993: Ashley Williams Baker, Sally Thurman Alban and Victoria Wollmann Wise

The Class of 1998: Melanie Genius MacFarlane, Anita Bangale, David Knight, Holly Price Green, Derek Atkinson, Lara Berman, Charles Persons, Amar Johnson, Erin Banks, Ryan Craft, Heather Plane, Ashley Rae Aguilar, Katherine Clay, Kelly Decker and Carter Tatum

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Art Show Highlights Alumni Talent Letty Waltrip views the artwork of John Holt Smith ’87 titled Wildflower Oculus #7.

For 50 years, the arts have been infused into life at Fort Worth Country Day. The arts program has grown richer over the years, providing students with a foundation of the concepts and methods connected to their craft, as well as an outlet to express themselves. While the arts have evolved over time, the one constant in the program is the commitment to the development of skills, imagination and creativity of every student.

Creativity was bountiful in the Alumni Art Show, sponsored by the 50th Anniversary Committee and Fort Worth Country Day’s Visual Arts Department, with 41 artists representing 55 pieces of work. The show, which ran September 2 until October 31 featured works in the Sid W. Richardson Visual Arts Center, the Peter A. Schwartz Administration Building, the Lou and Nick Martin Campus Center, and the Amon G. Carter Foundation Commons within the Paul W. Mason Middle School.

When planning for FWCD’s milestone year, Frasher Hudson Pergande ’81 and Cynthia Rimmer Prince ’87, 50th anniversary co-chairs, wanted every aspect of the campus included

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in the celebration. With the School’s focus on the “3 A’s,”—academics, arts and athletics—it became important to devote an event to the arts at Fort Worth Country Day. Alumni artists were invited through pushpages, newsletters, the Falconer, word-of-mouth and more to send one piece of artwork to the School that represented their artistic process.

As a result, the Alumni Art Show featured framed photographs, drawings, prints, collages, painted canvases, ceramics, sculpture and fine art jewelry.

Rebecca Bell, Lower School art teacher, served as the show’s curator. “Rebecca was perfect for the job,” Pergande noted. “She decided the flow of the show and arranged pieces thematically. Her attention to detail was amazing as she mapped out the square footage so each piece had ample room.”

Bell added: “My portion of the curatorial process was to determine placement of the artwork and oversee the installation of the show. The process of placing the artwork started with understanding the environment and addressing any issues that arose. We did not require artwork fwcd.org

ALUMNI NEWS to conform to a predetermined theme, which allowed for a variety of subject matter and media. I chose to group pieces together that contained similar visual elements and place pieces in a way that would highlight each artist’s work. My goal was to provide the viewer with a logical transition between the works as they move throughout each space.”

Callie Vincent, registrar at the Amon G. Carter Museum of American Art, catalogued all the FWCD work. She professionally registered each piece and ensured that the artwork was cared for prior to its installation. She also created the artists’ nameplates, which in addition to the artist’s name, highlighted the name of the piece and its medium. “We were so lucky to have Callie work with us on this,” Pergande added. “Callie and Rebecca’s combined professionalism really helped to elevate the show.”

For Bell, this project was rewarding as she was able to glimpse how FWCD alumni have incorporated art into their daily lives.

“One of the things I love about Fort Worth Country Day is the emphasis that is placed on the arts,” she said. “In curating the 50th anniversary Alumni Art Show, I was able see how this emphasis has influenced the lives of FWCD graduates.”

Some of the pieces were created while the artists were FWCD students, while others

were new pieces created after graduation.

For example, James Arno’s work, a large ceramic vase-like piece, was left to FWCD after his graduation. It was placed in the ivy area outside of Ceramics/Visual Arts Teacher Jerry Mahle’s room. “When the artwork was excavated about 12 small lizards ran out of it,” Pergande noted.

A special edition of a Prism-like publication, the School’s literary and arts magazine, was produced for the Alumni Art Show Reception on October 24. The

piece was produced by Lisa Wallace's Yearbook Ads class with Kennedy Stovall ’15, serving as catalog designer, and Sydney Phillips ’15, Jack Sankary ’16 and Katelyn Tierney ’15, taking on the roles of design assistants. The catalog highlighted each of the artists’ works as well as the September 9 Looking Back Day Sit In student essay winners (see page 38).

To view the online art catalog, visit fwcd.org/50.

Edgar “Ted” Sanford H’98 with his painting Locomotive #416.

Reid Rothenberg ’06, Mary Rabalais Collins ’83, Lisa Carrington Voight ’92, Melissa Thompson Deufel ’82, Jillian Blackwell ’08, Stephanie Steves Burk ’77, Lydia Cutter ’74, Blaine Smith ’80, Edgar “Ted” Sanford H’98, June Van Buskirk H’09 and Stephen Eisner ’76

Photos by Lisa Koger

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50th Anniversary Adds a Special John Thompson ’93, Alumni Association president, served as MC of the Alumni Awards Dinner on Thursday, October 24. “Our Alumni Awards honor alumni and honorary alumni worthy of accolades in many areas, from service to the Country Day community to excellence in their respective fields,” he said.

“This year’s Alumni Awards are particularly special because our school is celebrating its 50th anniversary.”

Distinguished Alumnus Preston “Pete” Geren III ’70 was honored as the 2013 Distinguished Alumnus. Geren’s committed service to both his country and the Fort Worth community has earned him a profound degree of respect. He is president of the Sid W. Richardson Foundation, a foundation that provides grants to educational, health, human service and cultural nonprofit organizations in Texas.

Prior to joining the foundation, Geren served in the Department of Defense (2001-09) as special assistant to the secretary of defense, acting secretary of the Air Force, under secretary of the Army and secretary of the Army. He served four terms as a U.S. congressman, 12th District of Texas (1989-97), and was formerly an assistant to U.S. Senator Lloyd Bentsen.

Geren is a director of Anadarko Petroleum Corp. and Texas Capital Bank and a member of the oversight board of the Cancer Prevention Research Institute of Texas. A lawyer and former business executive, he has held leadership positions in numerous civic, educational, business and philanthropic organizations in Texas.

He earned a Doctor of Jurisprudence at the University of Texas School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts in History from the University of Texas at Austin. He studied architecture at Georgia Institute of Technology before transferring to UT.

A Fort Worth native, Geren is married to Beckie Ray Geren, and has three daughters, Tracy, Annie and Mary ’15, and one granddaughter, Laurie.

Jean

Webb Service to Alma Mater Cynthia Rimmer Prince ’87 and Frasher Hudson Pergande ’81, co-chairs of the FWCD 50th anniversary celebration, were honored with the 2013 Jean Webb Service to Alma Mater award. These women have dedicated the last five years to making certain Fort Worth Country Day celebrates its 50th anniversary in truly grand style, and not just once but for an entire year. The thoughtful preparation, selfless giving of time and resources, meticulous planning and creative vision of these two alumnae led to an unparalleled celebration of 50 years of excellence in education.

Their labors have shown extraordinary and lengthy service to their alma mater.

Prince and Pergande have numerous things in common: both hold master’s degrees and are heavily involved in charitable pursuits in the Fort Worth community. During their time at FWCD as students, Pergande and Prince were involved in athletics, lettering in varsity sports including soccer, field hockey and tennis. Both women have served as Alumni Association president and both have been involved with the Parent Faculty Association.

Through giving back to their FWCD community, both women have found an environment that continues to foster personal growth.

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ALUMNI NEWS

Touch to Annual Alumni Awards Honorary Alumni

Service to Humanity

George Ann Carter Bahan; Priscilla Holland Johnston; O.P. “Paul” Leonard, Jr.; Betty Claire Dupree McKnight; and Patricia Schutts, founding members of the FWCD Board of Trustees, were awarded 2013 Honorary Alumni status. Bolstered by dedication to their children and the George Ann Carter Priscilla Holland Bahan Johnston community, the founding members of the Fort Worth Country Day Board of Trustees embarked on a journey that founded this school and shaped the lives of countless individuals over Betty Claire Dupree Patricia Schutts O.P. “Paul” Leonard the past 50 years.

McKnight

There was no land, no buildings, no faculty, not even a name when a group of young Fort Worth mothers who sought the benefits of a college-preparatory school much closer to home gathered and, over coffee, an idea was born. This creative group included Betty Claire Dupree McKnight, Priscilla Holland Johnston, Patricia Schutts and George Ann Carter Bahan.

After months of discussion, these determined women decided it was time to move forward, and a formal meeting with 18 others, including Paul Leonard, Jr., was called in November 1961. Following that first meeting, the group set about creating “a school of real academic excellence” and things moved quickly. Approximately two years later, Fort Worth Country Day opened its doors on September 9, 1963, to 210 students in grades 1-9.

Joe Breedlove, Jr. ’78, executive director of Breakthrough Fort Worth, was honored as the 2013 recipient of the Service to Humanity award.

If you have been involved with Fort Worth Country Day, it is likely that you know Breedlove. After he graduated, Breedlove attended Texas Christian University, where he played football and ran track. He returned to FWCD in 1982 as a member of the faculty. Four years later, Breedlove worked as a personal trainer for professional athletes, including Martina Navratilova and the Swedish Davis Cup team, among other notable athletes. In 1991, he heard the Falcon call once again and returned to the School to serve as head track coach. Over the course of Breedlove’s 28-year career at Country Day, his involvement with the School and the Fort Worth community has been nothing short of epic.

Breedlove has coached athletics for all 28 years of his FWCD tenure, including serving as athletic director for six of those years. He serves on community boards, including the TCU Black Alumni and Board of Partners for the Leadership Institute, Lena Pope Home, Chapel Hill Academy and the Breakthrough Fort Worth Advisory Committee.

It is Breedlove’s involvement with Breakthrough Fort Worth for which he was honored. This program, which provides academic enrichment and college-bound services for high-achieving public middle school students from under-served backgrounds, has had enormous impact on Fort Worth youth. Every summer for the last 20 years, Breakthrough Fort Worth has offered programming with the purpose of empowering students with the skills needed to succeed in rigorous college-preparatory high schools and upon graduation, enter college.

Falcon Star Lydia Cutter ’74, photographer and fine arts representative, was honored as the 2013 Falcon Star. She began her career as a fine art photographer in Dallas at DFW Home & Garden magazine, where her talents helped bring many of the area’s diverse cityscapes into focus. When the magazine closed in the late ’80s, Cutter began building a freelance business, specializing in interiors and architecture, which she grew in Dallas; Phoenix; and the Washington, D.C., area until 2011. Most recently she has put down roots in the Las Vegas, Nevada, area, where she enjoys shooting for clients and represents local artists for the Phoenix Art Group in Las Vegas.

Cutter credits several former FWCD faculty for introducing her to some of the areas that ultimately led to her successful career in photography and fine art: Don Welch’s science elective, where she was introduced to photography and the dark room; Evelyn Siegel’s ability to bring out the elegance and fun of fine art; and Anne Robinson and Tawny Kilborne’s encouragement, which helped her build confidence in her own work.

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Alumni Authors Kickoff Photos by Lisa Koger

Alexandra Teague ’93

Susan Stevens Crummel

Donna Poye Rubin

Mary Tavener (Tav) Holmes ’72

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Homecoming week started off strong with FWCD authors. Debby Jennings, FWCD head librarian/department chair; Teresa Crafton, technology librarian; Carol Wamsley, library assistant; and Tammy Wolford, Lower School librarian, put together a daylong event for students showcasing the talents of four FWCD authors: Susan Stevens Crummel, Donna Poye Rubin, Mary Tavener (Tav) Holmes ’72 and Alexandra Teague ’93.

Crummel taught Upper School math for 20 years at FWCD. The author of 17 children’s books, she engaged Lower School students with stories of how she and her sister, Janet, began working together as author and illustrator.

Crummel wrote some of her books while an FWCD Upper School math teacher, but, after a yearlong sabbatical and 31 years of teaching, she decided to retire to become a visiting author.

She encouraged students to immerse themselves in the writing process. “If you can act like your character, you can write like your character,” she explained as she read excerpts from Help Me, Mr. Mutt, a book of letters from various animals who have some human-sized problems. Mr. Mutt, a dog himself, then provides some insight into their issues. This book earned the sisters the 2010 Texas Bluebonnet Award and a Time Magazine Top 10 children’s book listing for 2008. It also was nominated for several state book awards.

Crummel pointed out how Janet likes to “hide” things in her art and help readers draw conclusions about the books, and she highlighted how their real-life pets inspire their books. Find a Cow Now features Crummel’s cattle dog, Houdini; The Great Fuzz Frenzy, which actually happened (at least the tennis ball part falling down a hole) features Violet, Janet’s Labrador retriever who loves to play catch.

Rubin is a former FWCD teacher, who taught first grade for 19 years. She read her

book, Log Cabin Kitty, to kindergarteners and first-graders in the Lower School Atrium. Dressed in prairie attire, Rubin brought along her friend Miss Pepper (a stuffed cat), the narrator of her book.

Inspired by more than 50 field trip visits to the Log Cabin Village in Fort Worth while teaching at FWCD, Rubin wrote the book to give students a glimpse into the pioneer days. Log Cabin Kitty leads students through the Log Cabin Village. In her presentation, Rubin also shared real-life artifacts, including dinner and school bells, a cornhusk doll, whittled wood, herbs and candles, and highlighted facts about pioneer life.

Students were engaged throughout the presentation through Miss Pepper’s kitty ditty: “I’m a Log Cabin Kitty, and I’m sitting mighty pretty. I live in a village from a long time ago.” By the middle of the presentation, the students were singing along and didn’t even know they were getting a history lesson.

Holmes graduated with an MA and PhD from the Institute of Fine Arts at New York University. She has worked as a curator, teacher and author in the field of European art. Holmes has published three picture books based on works of art. She spoke to students in grades 4-6, specifically focusing on her book, A Giraffe Goes to Paris. She shared with students that artwork inspired her to write children’s books. A Giraffe Goes to Paris chronicles the true story of a giraffe named Belle from the perspective of Atir, Belle’s Sudanese caretaker, and their 500mile journey together to Paris. Illustrated with artifacts and paintings from the 19thcentury and Jon Cannell’s artwork, Belle’s story comes to life for readers.

The art of writing was also a focus throughout Holmes’ presentation. “Keep journals,” she said, “never throw anything away. You may want to use it later.” She spoke about how accuracy is important to her books because they are based on true stories and how real art plays into each

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ALUMNI NEWS

Homecoming Week picture book she’s authored. “My writing is accompanied by images, not just a picture, but rather artifacts.”

Teague earned an MFA from the University of Florida and was a 2006-08 Stegner Fellow at Stanford University and 2011 National Endowment for the Arts Fellow. She is currently assistant professor of poetry at the University of Idaho. Her poetry collection is titled Mortal Geography.

Teague spoke with students in four Upper School AP Literature courses.

Students were assigned to read selected poems—“Adjectives of Order,” “Referral,” “Two Drafts Written After a Fight,” “Language Lessons,” “Choose-Your-Own Adventure Poem” and “The Heartland”— all from Mortal Geography prior to the class meeting.

Always drawn to poetry and the formal capacities of the poem, Teague wrote “Language Lesson” about a kindergarten FWCD memory—she was here through fourth grade. The poem takes an unexpected turn at the end, and students shared their thoughts and feelings with her regarding the twist in the 14-line poem.

She shared a bit of her editing process, showing students an earlier draft of “The Heartland,” and they posed questions about why she made the types of changes she did. Students were most interested in her personal story and why she chose poetry. “I’ve always loved writing,” she said. “I thought I would write novels.”

While in college, she enrolled in a poetry class because she was wait-listed in a creative writing class. She has never turned back. Her poetic influences include Elizabeth Bishop, Phillip Larkin, Anne Sexton, Larry Levis and Gabrielle Calvocoressi. She is drawn to different poetic devices and techniques, enjoying the balance among them, as well as the ability she has to make conscious choices

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Pete Geren ’70, Mary Tavener (Tav) Holmes ’72 and Becky Geren

about these same techniques and devices at the revision stage.

An evening reception had a delightful ambiance of old and new, as alumni and current and former faculty visited and reminisced about Country Day memories, its campus and the many evident changes.

Approximately 60 attendees filled seats and enjoyed a laugh-filled presentation by the four authors, all of who related that they took a winding road to their writing careers. While Jennings and the library team regularly schedule visiting authors to speak to FWCD students, she admitted that this presentation was particularly special. “It was such a treat to host authors this year who are part of the FWCD community and were able to share their passion for books with another generation of students,” she said.

FWCD Authors Highlighted in Moncrief Library A static FWCD authors display within the library began October 1 and includes more than 20 FWCD authors: Bill Curtis ’67, J.R. Edmonson ’68, Mike Dunigan ’70, Eve McMahon Gaddy ’72, Mary Tavener (Tav) Holmes ’72, Robin Kittrell Laughlin ’72, Quentin McGown ’74, Clay Perkins ’81, Russell Lutz ’86, Hyatt Bass ’87, Brooke (Boo) Lively ’88, Jon Bonnell ’89, Jennifer Gaines Drez ’90, Lisa Carrington Voight ’92, Alexandra Teague ’93, C.D. Dickerson III ’94 and Neil Patrick Stewart ’96

Faculty: Susan Stevens Crummel, Tara Henderson Forrest, Donna Poye Rubin, Jonathan Shipley, June Van Buskirk H’09 and Mike Vincent

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CLASS

Notes

To submit information for Class Notes and Alumni News, contact Mary Lou Hilliard, alumni relations coordinator, at marylou.hilliard@fwcd.org or 817.302.3292.

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1990s Lilliana Vazquez ’98 released her first book, The Cheap Chica’s Guide to Style: Secrets to Shopping Cheap and Looking Chic, on November 5, 2013. The founder of cheapchicas.com, Vazquez is a style expert who is changing the way women shop cheaply and chicly. She is a contributor to the Today show, Access Hollywood, E! News and the Rachael Ray Show, and has made more than 500 appearances on NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX, E!, Bravo and The Style Network. Vazquez has also been featured in the pages of magazines such as Elle, Lucky, Glamour, InStyle, Teen Vogue and Marie Claire. For more information, visit CheapChicas.com or LillianaVazquez.com.

Kelly Decker ’98 and husband Olyn Poole welcomed baby boy Thomas West Poole on July 25, 2013.

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2000s

Merrick Rutledge Bean ’02 and husband Ryan Bean welcomed Landry Austin Bean, 7 pounds 3 ounces, to their family on October 11, 2013.

Kate Strickland ’04 and Andy Jennings got engaged October 26, 2013, before the TCU/ University of Texas game. Kate attended The University of Texas and then graduate school at TCU. She is a clinical therapist at Cook Children’s Medical Center. Andy attended Midwestern State University. He is a certified financial examiner for the State of Texas Department of Insurance. They plan to wed next fall.

Meredith Ruth Nieswiadomy ’06 married Thomas Breckinridge Ray, Jr ’06 on June 15, 2013, in Fort Worth. The ceremony took place at Saint Patrick Cathedral and a reception followed at River Crest Country Club. Falcons in the wedding included Whit Richardson ’06, Thomas Duggins ’06, Tim Seiber ’06, Garrison Taylor ’06, Brice Taylor ’06, Sarah Nieswiadomy ’08, Peter Ray ’10, Katie Nieswiadomy ’11, Carson Ray ’13, Megan Ray ’13, Taylor Ray ’13, Mary Geren ’15, and Evelyn Young ’25.

The couple graduated from Saint Louis University, where Meredith received a Doctorate in Physical Therapy, and Thomas received a Bachelor’s in Business Administration with a concentration in finance. They reside and work in Fort Worth.

Thomas Burk ’08 rode in the Mongol Derby, a 1,000-kilometer horse race through the Mongolian steppe, which took place in August. According to an abcnews.go.com article, “Thirty competitors from around the world raced through hailstorms, downpours and oppressive heat in August all on the backs of 800 wild Mongol horses.” Burk is a risk management analyst at AGL Resources in Houston, where he has worked since graduating from Tulane University in 2012.

“I think if there’s one thing I’ve learned about working in risk… it’s that you got to take it when you can,” he said in the ABC news article.

Meredith Hudgens Cunningham ’04 and husband Brian Cunningham, welcomed Charlotte Camille Cunningham to their family on July 17, 2013. fwcd.org

CLASS NOTES He began the race with a severely injured shoulder, yet still attempted to ride. The best horse he rode throughout the race was a stallion named Adrian Beltre. After a tumultuous five days, Burk was bucked and twisted his shoulder. His ride ended on day five, as he did not want to risk further injury. Burk was one of five Americans to participate in the race, considered the longest, toughest race in the world. This year marked the race’s fifth year. The starting line was in Mongolia’s vast wilderness, where it is believed man rode a horse for the first time 4,000 years ago.

Jay Stouffer III ’09 was commissioned a second lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps on July 26 at the University of Oklahoma in Norman. Stouffer was awarded a four-year NROTC Marine Option scholarship and reported to the University of Oklahoma in August 2009. He completed his first class officers training in July 2013 at U.S. Marine Corps Officer Candidates School in Quantico, Virginia. Stouffer holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology with a focus in criminology.

After the commissioning, he reported to The Basic School at the Marine Corps Base in Quantico.

Class of 1984: Julia White Wade, Liz Stapp Fleischer, Sherry Pounds, Ashley Smith Rupp, Stephanie Sumner Brentlinger and Annette Dickerson Matteson.

Katy Swartz ’09, a student at Smith College, was awarded a Fulbright U.S. Student Program Scholarship to Bulgaria for an English teaching assistantship, U.S. Department of State and the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board announced recently.

Swartz is one of more than 1,700 U.S. citizens who is traveling abroad during the 2013-14 academic year through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. Recipients of Fulbright grants are selected on the basis of academic and professional achievement, as well as demonstrated leadership potential.

2010s

Shree Bose ’12 was named one of “The World’s 50 Smartest Teenagers” by TheBestSchools.org.

Stouffer invited Frank Gendusa, FWCD athletic director, to attend his commissioning ceremony. At the pinning ceremony that followed, Stouffer chose his parents to pin the gold bars, the insignia of a second lieutenant, to his uniform. Following the pinning, Gendusa gave Stouffer his first salute as a second lieutenant, and, in keeping with tradition, Stouffer presented Gendusa with a silver dollar.

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TheBestSchools.org selected the teens on the basis of a variety of weighted factors, including overall academic excellence, IQ, and most importantly, their impact in a given field. Bose was chosen for her work with the cancer drug Cisplatin. Shree is in her second year at Harvard, studying molecular biology and planning to continue on to medical school.

Taylor Smith ’12 was part of the University of California at Los Angeles’ National Championship Women’s Soccer team. UCLA advanced to the finals against Florida State on December 8 in Cary, North Carolina.

The Bruins won the game in overtime, 1-0.

Smith had two shots on goal in the game, one hitting the crossbar, the other hit the side post. This is the first national title for women’s soccer at UCLA.

Send in your news for Class Notes!

Contact Mary Lou Hilliard, alumni relations coordinator, at marylou.hilliard@fwcd.org or 817.302.3292.

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FWCD’s Beloved Jean Webb Fort Worth Country Day lost its beloved “walking encyclopedia” when Jean Webb H’01 passed away June 18, 2013. She’d been living with leukemia for many years and, in early spring suffered a number of complications related to the disease. Her husband, Bill, and their two children, Simone Webb Thomas ’79 and Victoria Webb Walker ’84, were by her side when she passed. Jean and Bill had been married 55 years.

Born in Port Arthur, Texas, in 1935, Jean graduated with honors from Graham High School in Graham, Texas, and earned both a BS and MEd from North Texas State University (now University of North Texas). From the moment she set foot on Fort Worth Country Day’s campus in 1966, Jean was immersed in the life of Fort Worth Country Day. She actually found FWCD because she was looking for a school for Simone.

With eight years of teaching experience already under her belt, she was hired by Founding Headmaster Peter A. Schwartz and taught both third and fourth grade.

She spent her entire FWCD teaching career—28 years—committed to the students and parents in the Lower School.

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“Jean was as much a part of Country Day as Country Day was a part of her,” said Evan D. Peterson, head of School. “If someone wanted to know anything about the history of the School or the School families, all they had to do was to ask Jean. She knew everyone and how they were connected to her school.”

Frasher Hudson Pergande ’81 was a student in Jean’s third-grade class in 197172. “I remember her perfect penmanship,” she said. “My capital cursive Ts and Fs never looked quite like hers. I remember she ran a tight ship—lots of rules. But what else are you going to do with 23 girls in your class?”

Simone told a story at the Alumni Awards Dinner in October about how Schwartz called Jean’s reference, the principal of Greenville School in Dallas, to ask if he should hire her. “The principal told Mr. Schwartz that, if Mrs. Webb would agree to come back to work at Greenhill, he would personally send a cab every day to Fort Worth to pick her up!” she shared.

“So began her lifelong devotion to Country Day.”

Fast forward to May 1981 when Frasher graduated, and her life was still touched by Jean. “She had saved two of my third-grade assignments and mailed them to me as a gift,” Frasher said. “I still find it remarkable that she held onto those assignments for nine years and mailed them to me the week of my graduation. Do not think for a moment that she only did this for me! I know for a fact that she did it for every one of her classes. Jean Webb had a heart of gold and obviously a lot of storage room!”

Jean gave of herself—to her students and their families—morning, noon and night.

“After school, she stayed in her classroom waiting for us to finish our afterschool sports, then in the evenings, she was on the phone talking to parents about their children,” Simone recalled. “After that, she graded papers and prepped for the next day, often not going to bed before

FWCD, along with its faculty and families meant everything to Jean, but above all else, she loved her students. “Teaching students how to learn was more important to her than students knowing their facts,” Victoria said. “She spent as many hours outside of the classroom as in the classroom working on lesson plans, creating new ways to reach her students and talking to parents.”

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midnight. The next morning she was up early and ready for a new day with her students and their abundant enthusiasm and boundless energy! What they didn’t realize was that she was the one with the most enthusiasm and energy!”

In 1994, Jean retired from the classroom, but remained connected to the School by working within its Development Office.

She coordinated special events and alumni relations on a part-time basis and was a wealth of information for both parents and alumni. She remained in the Development Office until August 2001. “This was the perfect position for her because she loved to throw parties, and she knew all of the alums from the last 35 years!” Victoria said.

In her “retirement year,” she was awarded an FWCD honorary degree for her steadfast service to the School. An alumni award was also established in her name: the Jean Webb Service to Alma Mater award.

This honor was created in recognition of Jean’s 35 years of service to FWCD students and alumni. Bestowed annually at the Alumni Awards Dinner during Homecoming week, the award honors the alumna/us who has shown extraordinary and lengthy service to alma mater—the product of love and loyalty. It is a special honor to receive, and Jean enjoyed presenting the award herself.

Though officially retired, Jean could not leave Fort Worth Country Day. She remained a campus volunteer and later worked tirelessly—and with great vision— to build the FWCD Archives with her friends and colleagues Claire-Lise Knecht H’06 and Jody Price. “There are only a few people who have been at Country Day as long as mother,” Simone and Victoria said. “Jean, Claire-Lise and Jody were the dream team to spearhead Country Day’s archives project.”

Claire-Lise will long remember her devoted friend, who was like a sister to her for over 40 years. “Jean was always there to advise and encourage me. I truly admired her as a colleague. She was always full of energy, enthusiastic and ready to tackle any task,” she said. “She was a leader ‘par excellence.’ Our daughters loved Jean as their third-grade teacher. She inspired Fall/Winter 2013

Anne-Lise [Knecht Woods’ 85] to become a teacher. I wish that everyone could have a friend like Jean.”

Jody recalls Jean’s commitment to excellence when establishing the Archives.

“Everyone knows Jean was an organizer and her love for CDS was evident by her years of dedicated service,” Jody said.

“She was adamant we go the extra mile in establishing the best Archives we could.

I will miss our talks when we all met on Mondays. But more than that I will miss her; I will miss my friend who was a caring person and was more interested in your problems than her own. I will miss our times together both at school and away. Country Day has lost its fiercest warrior. Oh, how she loved this school.”

agreed for two reasons: we had five years to plan and we had our incredible archivist, Jean Webb, to consult,” Frasher said. “Jean was like a walking, talking history book.

If you had a question about FWCD, she either knew your answer or knew where to find your answer.”

Jean’s stories, her smile and her vivid School memories will certainly be missed. “Fort Worth Country Day would have existed without Jean Webb,” Frasher said, “but it would not have been the same, nor would it have been as well documented.”

In addition to being the go-to person for all things FWCD history related, Jean was a valued member of the 50th Anniversary and 50th Anniversary Commemorative Book committees.

“When Cynthia Prince ’87 and I were asked to co-chair FWCD’s 50th anniversary, we

Jean celebrates her retirement in 2001.

Ondrej Skorpel, a foreign exchange student from Prague, visited Jean in early 2000.

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BOARD

Spotlight Laura Bonnell Alexander ’88 is managing director at First Southwest.

Specializing in public finance, she provides structuring expertise, credit and cash flow analyses, reviews legal documentation and oversees the general processing of financings for local governments and various nonprofits. Laura is a member of the Government Finance Officers Association, the National Association of College and University Business Officers, and the Texas Ballet Theater Board of Governors.

Laura earned a BA in Mathematics from the University of Richmond and an MBA and MA in Education from Stanford University. Laura previously served as a math teacher at FWCD, and she and her husband, Jeff, are co-chairs of FWCD’s capital campaign—Then, Now, Forever. They are proud parents of two Falcons: Kate ’22 and Ben ’20.

Brent Clum is CFO of MorningStar Partners, an entity he helped to found following the $41 billion merger of ExxonMobil and XTO Energy. He left his position as senior vice president and treasurer of XTO Energy in late 2010. He currently serves as chairman of the Finance and Audit Committee of Rangers Baseball Express, the holding company for the two-time American League Champion Texas Rangers.

Brent serves on a number of nonprofit boards, including Junior Achievement of the Chisholm Trail, the Longhorn Council of the Boy Scouts of America, Casa Mañana and is on the Finance Committee of the Susan G. Komen Foundation. He also serves on the advisory board of Baylor University’s Hankamer School of Business. A CPA and CFA, Brent earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Baylor University, with majors in finance, accounting and marketing, and an MBA from the Harvard Graduate School of Business. At Fort Worth Country Day, Brent served on the Finance Committee in 2007. He and his wife, Karla, have two Falcons: Jonny ’13 and Kathleen ’18.

Randy Eisenman ’93 is a founding partner of Satori Capital, a multi-strategy investment firm founded upon the principles of Conscious Capitalism. Prior to co-founding Satori Capital, he spent 10 years at Q Investments, a multi-billion dollar private investment firm where he launched and led the firm’s private equity business and served as a partner for seven years. While at Q Investments, Randy founded Handango to capitalize on the emerging mobile applications market.

Based on his leadership at Handango, Randy was named Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of The Year for 2004. Randy began his career as a financial analyst with Goldman Sachs in the Principal Investment Area. He is actively involved with Young Presidents Organization, Cook Children’s Health Foundation Board of Trustees, and TCU’s Entrepreneurial Program Advisory Board. Randy earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Texas where he graduated with high honors from the Business Honors Program. Randy has two FWCD students: Avery ’26 and Aidan ’25.

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Scotty MacLean is the lead attorney/owner of MacLean Law Firm, P.C. From 1993-2011, he served as attorney/partner of Jose, Henry, Brantley, MacLean & Alvarado, LLP. His civic and professional activities include memberships in the Texas Bar Association and American Association of Justice. Scotty has been recognized as a Super Lawyer in Texas Monthly Magazine and Best Lawyer(s) in Fort Worth in Fort Worth, Texas magazine. He previously served on the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra Board of Directors and currently holds the position of second vice president on the board of River Crest Country Club. He earned a BA in Political Science from the University of Oklahoma and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from Texas Tech University.

Scotty and his wife, Pepper, have two students at FWCD: Mack ’18 and Turner ’15.

Louella (Lou) Martin serves as president of Four Star Ranch and LBM Investment. She has served as chairman of the United Way and the Opera Ball, as well as on the executive board of Texas Wesleyan University, where she received an honorary doctorate degree in 2004. A member of Jewel Charity Ball board since 1965, Lou also served as an active member and volunteer for the Woman’s Board of Cook Children’s Medical Center for 36 years. Lou is a past board member of the Botanical Research Institute of Texas, Fort Worth Garden Club, Rotary Club of Fort Worth and The Woman’s Club of Fort Worth. She is a fourth-generation member of the First United Methodist Church.

Lou serves on the executive board of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, as well as the boards of the Van Cliburn Foundation and Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, and is chairman of the Tiffany Circle for the American Red Cross of Fort Worth, A graduate of Paschal High School, she attended Christian College in Columbia, Missouri; University of Texas at Austin, where she pledged the Tri-Delta sorority; and Texas Christian University. She and her husband, Nicholas, have 19 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

Bonnie Petsche is vice president of Alan & Bonnie Petsche Holding Co., LLC. She currently serves on Cook Children’s Medical Center Board of Trustees, Cook Children’s Home Health Board of Trustees, Cook Children’s Health Care System Facilities Committee and Cook Children’s Health Foundation Development Committee. She was a founding board member of the Fort Worth/Arlington chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and is currently involved in work to promote medical research supporting the development of artificial pancreas technology. At Fort Worth Country Day, Bonnie has served on the Parent Faculty Association board and in several volunteer capacities, including as a room representative and with the FWCD Fund, the School’s annual fund. Bonnie and her husband, Alan, have four children. Two are FWCD alumni—Alec ’13 and Kate ’11—and two are current Falcons—Julia ’20 and Eric ’16.

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