The Tartan Fall/Winter 2017

A MAGAZINE OF GLEN URQUHART SCHOOL

THE TARTAN FALL/WINTER 2017

Celebrating

Contents Message from the Head of School........................................... 1 Kristie Gonzalez, A New Face in Admission............................. 2 Meeting of the Minds................................................................. 4 NYC Exploration......................................................................... 8 Events@GUS ........................................................................... 10 Report of Giving....................................................................... 12 Place-based Education........................................................... 16 Alumni Profiles Erik Moxcey ’83.................................................................... 17 Linda Nyemba ’05................................................................ 19 Simon Mcintosh ’08............................................................. 20

2017–2018 BOARD OF TRUSTEES Officers Carl Graves P’19, ’20, President Bob Carroll P’17, ’20, Vice President Sallie Pottle P’15, ’19, Vice President Lisa Sandouk-Romanelli P’13, ’19, Vice President Steve Todd P’20, ’24, Treasurer Emily Collins P’14, ’17, Clerk David Liebmann, Head of School, Ex-Officio Members Andrew Brown P’21 Lise Carrigg P’19, ’26 Daryl Colden P’17, ’19 Melanie D’Orio P’20 Susan Tsao Esty P’18 Philip Furse P’16, ’17, ’18, ’20 Kenneth Grant P’13, ’20 Jodi Llacera Klein P’19 Peter Mason David Patch P’16, ’19, ’23 Zara-Marie Spooner Jackie Swansburg Paulino ’98 Patricia Landgren P’17, ’24, Parents’ Association Representative Lynne Warren, Life Trustee, Founder

Join the conversation, share your pics, follow GUS! Facebook and Instagram @glenurquhartschool Twitter @gustartan

The GUS fourth and fifth grade chorus take a break from rehearsal in the Johnson Gallery in the lower school. The chorus performs at Grand Friends Day and at many other school events and celebrations.

Tartan Editor: Judith Klein P ’95, ’00, ’04 Director of Marketing + Communications: Joanna Murphy Scott Design: Graphic Details, Inc. Printing: Cummings Printing Every effort has been made to ensure that the information in The Tartan is accurate. Please direct any errors to the editor at jklein@gus.org.

The Tartan is published for alumni, parents, and friends of Glen Urquhart School. Please send address changes and other communications to Martha Delay, Director of Advancment, at: Alumni Relations, Office of Advancement Glen Urquhart School 74 Hart Street Beverly Farms, MA 01915 978-927-1064 ext. 117 mdelay@gus.org Glen Urquhart School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, religion, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy, disability, mental illness, military status, genetics or sex or any other classification protected under applicable law.

Message from the Head of School Like many of you, I have walked many times over the brass plaque at the entrance to the Lower School building engraved with the head of a boar and the names of the Class of 1983: Toby Bent, Nick Carter, Gillian Harper, Erik Moxcey, Mark Ndlangamandla, and Alexandra Nichols. These six boys and girls comprised the first graduating class of the newly named Glen Urquhart School, until then called North Shore Middle School. They completed ninth grade, as this was a time when GUS, like many other Massachusetts independent schools, offered what is now considered the first year of high school.

I began to wonder, in the midst of our 40th anniversary year, what became of the pioneering six. For clues, I started to search through GUS records and, yes, to Google. Some are hard to locate (though we’ll keep at it!), but we’ve been able to reconnect with others. Gillian Harper Ice is a professor of social medicine and biological anthropology at Ohio University. Toby Bent is working in technology in Minnesota. Nick Carter, after earning a PhD from MIT in computer science, taught for a time and is now doing research.

Class of 1983 graduate Erik Moxcey is an animator on shows such as The Simpsons and Family Guy. He was visiting New England recently, and we were pleased to host him at GUS for a talk with students, including some illustration lessons that weren’t so far removed from his yearbook doodles of yore. What I loved most about hearing Erik was how he pursued his dreams after GUS. In so many ways, he embodies the mission of the school: “explore your intellect and develop your imagination” and “discover the best within yourself.” Erik and his classmates are doing just that.

After Erik graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design, he made a film that included the first GUS head of school, Harry Groblewski. Harry passed away in 2012, and we learned that his wife, Isabella, a beloved GUS art teacher, died this fall. Our condolences go out to the Groblewskis, including their son and former faculty member, Tom, and his wife, Cindy Bush, and their children, Alex ’10, Amanda ’12, and Nick ’12. A memorial service was held at GUS on November 12.

The foundations laid in 1977 by Lynne Warren, enjoyed by the first GUS students, and enhanced by educators like the Groblewskis, are still strong and enduring.

At this time of great change in the world, GUS remains true to its mission and philosophy. And we remain a community of which all alumni, past parents, and faculty can be very proud.

We hope to hear your GUS story. Come share it with us.

40 + Forward,

David Liebmann Head of School

SAVE THE DATES JUNE 8+9 for our All-Class Reunion and 40th Celebration!

Details at www.gus.org/40-forward

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Kristie Gonzalez A New Face in Admission Glen Urquhart felt like the right fit to Kristie Gonzalez even before she walked through the front door.

In fact, our new director of admission was helping to design the website at another school when she took a look at the GUS site and became more than a little intrigued.

A colleague confirmed her first instincts and told her emphatically, “That is your school.”

Head of School David Liebmann and the hiring committee concurred, and Gonzalez came on board in July. “I’m so excited to be here,” she says. “I really believe this is how children should learn.”

I really believe this is how children should learn.

“They should access learning in a safe, interesting way.” She noticed right away that “kids come here and they are excited to be here. They also come here and care about each other.”

When she first brought her second grade son Liam to visit, “I peeked out and saw [him] playing Gaga Ball with some kids. I heard some kids say, ‘Let him have the ball, He’s the new kid’.” She wasn’t surprised when Liam asked his mother at the end of his visit, “When can I come back?”

Stepping into the shoes of longtime Director of Admission Leslie Marchesseault has been eased by the “incredible help” Leslie has offered. “She has done such a great job with this school,” says Gonzalez. “I don’t think I will ever want to replace someone like Leslie, but I want to build on what she has done. We are different people with different strengths and I hope to build on my strengths. There is a certain warmth about Leslie that everyone appreciated. She did a really great job of counseling people through what can be a

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very stressful experience. I do hope to continue providing that.”

Gonzalez’s goal is “to help GUS be more GUS. This is what good education is. It is clear that theme teaching that ties writing, math, history, and reading together helps kids gain deep understanding. Every school is using project-based learning now but it’s what this school was founded on. What is the science behind what we do? What kind of thinker does that produce? GUS graduates think deeply and want to understand subjects thoroughly. They want to learn because they are not forced to fit into a certain pigeonhole and are allowed to make choices about what they pursue.”

Gonzalez wants to share what GUS is doing “without being boastful, to define what we do and how we do it.” Making sure that everyone internally and externally knows the message and how to share it is a top priority. That way, she believes, everyone will grow to understand “what we are and who we are.” Gonzalez is excited to partner with the “incredible teachers and administrators” to “come up with ways to have people know about us.”

As for immediate plans, Gonzalez hopes to make the admissions office a resource for our community. “I want our Open Houses to offer more community engagement,” she explains, “to be more like a fall fair and invite preschools here.”

I want our Open Houses to offer more community engagement, to be more like a fall fair and invite preschools here.

Kristie Gonzalez and her family.

She also wants to utilize the power of word of mouth.

“I want to help people be ambassadors for us. We have a wonderful community here who want to be respectful and are sometimes reluctant to be loud and proud. I hope to encourage them to speak out more about GUS.” In addition, Gonzalez wants to offer herself as a resource for parents of children in early education settings, helping them find the right fit for children—“to talk about admission as finding the best fit.”

Listening to Gonzalez, it is difficult not to be infected with her enthusiasm for GUS. “Let’s be proud of who we are and say it loudly,” she repeats. “We are the best kept secret and that’s not a good thing for a school to be. But those who know about us can’t stop talking about how great we are.”

With Gonzalez on campus, there are sure to be more people who know just what GUS is all about!

For admission information, go to www.gus.org/admission.

The Back Story...

Kristie Gonzalez grew up outside Philadelphia and attended Benchmark School and Shipley School before going to Middlebury College where she majored in American Literature and minored in Elementary Education. She met her husband, Eric McCollom, at Middlebury.

He now teaches English at Pingree School.

In addition to Liam, they have a four-yearold son, Andrew, and a dog named Mattie “who looks like a bath mat.” Before coming to GUS, Kristie was director of admissions at Sant Bani School, worked in advancement at Nashoba Brooks School, admissions and advancement at Middlebury, and as a teacher at Brookwood School and the Bixby School in Colorado.

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Meeting of the Minds A Conversation Between GUS Head of School and Founder Part One

Head of School David Liebmann sat down with Glen Urquhart School Founder Lynne Warren for a long conversation on the eve of the school’s 40th anniversary of providing children with an education like none other on the North Shore. Mrs. Warren recalled coming to the North Shore as a young mother and an educator full of creative ideas, insights, and perspectives on how children learn. Her philosophy developed from experiences as a young child at different public and independent schools, as a student of art and education at Wheelock College, and as a teacher who mentored children in a variety of classrooms, from inner city to suburban, special education to art, public to private.

In her new community, she was happy to find Notre Dame Children’s Class in Wenham, which offered an interdisciplinary, inventive program for young children, but only through second grade. After that, area schools seemed woefully traditional, unexciting, and all but ignoring the beautiful natural environment as a classroom. Her solution? Start her own.

North Shore Middle School was born in 1977 in a classroom at St. Margaret’s Church, expanding grade by grade and moving three more times until it reached its present location, included grades kindergarten through nine, and became Glen Urquhart School.

What follows are excerpts from Lynne and David’s conversation. More will appear in the next issue of The Tartan.

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Q: Other schools have followed Glen Urquhart’s lead and replicated many aspects of the GUS curriculum. What makes GUS remain ahead of the curve in providing this kind of education?

DL: I think lots of schools are doing pieces of what we do, but we have coherence in a way that they can’t come close to.

Everything ties together here because of the themes, because of the developmental spiral, because of the way we teach and learn here. Coherence means that things are never taught out of context. So it’s not one-off here—let’s do this field trip and then never do anything like that again, or let’s do this project and never do anything like that again. We’re always building on prior knowledge, and that building helps kids understand the world as it grows around them. And I think that’s really important to the life of this school.

So much of what we do is also interdisciplinary, so there are connections between science, literature, history, art, and mathematics. That’s deliberate and by design from the very early days of the school, and that’s really important for the learning of the children—to give them that coherent vision of the world.

LW: Much as we go from the student out, we also think from the institution out, from the classroom out, from the teachers out. We are always being introspective about that process.

And there are subtleties to the Glen Urquhart philosophy. For example, our black books. You just can’t replicate how our

black books guide both a child’s verbal and visual literacy. And visual literacy is important because that comes first in the child’s milestones when he begins to look at his world and is able to copy or to make a statement about it. In the early years, in their black books, as they draw and represent their world, they’re learning to draw—to put in details, to tell what they see. And when they come to fourth grade, then they’re beginning to start to draw to learn, so we want their observation skills heightened.

Visual learning is something that’s a subtlety that we’re always working on. As they go to sixth grade, it becomes important again as we develop their cultural literacy so that when they’re in a museum or when they are out in the field, they would say, “Oh, gee, that looks Roman.”

have the content. We have two consultants. And we know a place in Maine where our teachers could go to train in order to make this viable. And I think that it’s something that our peer schools would not have, so we would have something special to offer.

Many people ask us, does this bother you that they’ve replicated your philosophy and child-centered approach? Just the opposite. We feel proud that our values and our childcentered education is respected by others, and more children now share in that.

Q: Articulating the strengths of the Glen Urquhart philosophy and curriculum is often challenging, even for enthusiastic parents and alumni. What would you tell them to say to their friends and colleagues about the way Glen Urquhart teaches children?

It was always our message that attracted parents. And we are always asking ourselves what is important for the education of present day students that will inspire our philosophical values and the need-to-know information for Glen Urquhart students.

This introspective institutional thinking has served us well throughout the years and has enhanced and enriched our educational program, attracting families and enabling GUS to remain ahead of the curve.

LW: What I’d say to them is to share their experience through their child—from them out, from their child out. Our parents have always been our strongest advocates and best marketers by sharing their GUS experiences with others. They don’t need to use educational terms or jargon. Just say, “You know, my child loves to go to school. She’s so excited. In first grade they each received a chrysalis, and they watched it, and the butterflies came out. Then they let them go free. And they made a butterfly in art and it was beautiful, and then someone came and gave a talk on butterflies. And this year a garden club member came in and made some seed balls with them that they’re going to throw in the marsh next year to plant host

One new idea—I’m going to give you examples—is an environmental one, and one is a multicultural one. A bio-shelter is a timely and cutting edge project. We have the plans. We

And then the other one is a multicultural educational idea—a puppetry spiral that would go K through eighth and would bring in the arts and literature and puppets from different cultures and times, such as the shadow puppets of Indonesia and ancient puppets of Greece and Egypt. The arts and literature are a wonderful way to introduce students to the rich diversity of multicultural traditions, thus broadening their global world views.

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plants—milkweed for the monarchs. And my daughter just can’t wait to get to school each day.” Sharing something like that is what encourages interest, and also asking them if they would like to visit the school and, if so, facilitating that process.

DL: And I would add that one of the brilliant things that came from the founding era of the school is that the school and the campus are what I call a kid-sized village. The buildings are children’s scale and the campus is a child’s scale. And they come to school happy every day and they leave tired and happy. And that’s really important.

There’s a lot of anxiety among some parents about whether or not children are going to be prepared for a really competitive secondary school and be able to get into a really competitive college and have a successful life. But parents who come to GUS value childhood; they value the special, magical years of childhood, and they don’t want to lose that for their kids. So they know that we’re going to teach them to read and write and do math and science well, and they trust the school implicitly in that way. But they also know that childhood is protected here, and kids can really be kids. That makes the school really special and unique.

Q: What keeps the same GUS themes and the same iconic projects year after year from growing stale? And what is the pedagogical and other value in continuing these traditions?

LW: Beginning in kindergarten with blocks, we’ve always encouraged children to experiment with space, particularly with three-dimensional space. We do a lot of drawing and working in other dimensions, but three-dimensional space is very important. Iconic traditions of building the skyscraper and the lighthouse help them do that, as did Penny Randolph’s “Monument to an Idea,” a three-dimensional project, and her

Mark Twain-inspired “Mask Project,” illustrating each student’s “everyday persona” shown to the world, along with their “private persona,” which Twain referred to as the “Dark Side of the Moon,” on the reverse/inside of the mask, another threedimensional creation.

The teachers developed the skyscraper and the lighthouse three-dimensional building projects as activities to enhance their City and Seagoing Vessels units and provide students with opportunities through hands-on building with the concepts and reasons for why and how people invented these structures.

When students study cities and use blocks to create a model city, they run out of space and realize the need for the skyscraper was a human innovation to accommodate more people. They learn that building in the earlier mode, where the hard part of the building was on the outside, could only go so high, and the wooden beams could only last so long. The students then learn that, with the use of iron and eventually steel beams, builders replicated what skeletons do in their bodies with the hard parts and strong parts inside and the softer other parts outside, building internal skeletons out of iron, like the Flatiron Building in New York in 1903. Then elevators came along, something the children understand from their study of simple machines begun in kindergarten.

So the third graders understand that skyscrapers happened because of the innovations in building and the need for space.

When you ask them to build a three-dimensional skyscraper, you give them tools and guidance so that, by using their agegroup abilities, they can have success in modeling why this was possible. That was the original idea of it, bringing new information and three-dimensional work together in a creative project. But teachers should feel free to teach the same concepts in different ways, both for the skyscraper and for the lighthouse, because the intrinsic pedagogical value is in the concepts that cause them to be.

Q: David, you come to Glen Urquhart with a strong background in outdoor education. Lynne, you always envisioned blurring the lines between indoor and outdoor education at GUS. What new ideas are on the horizon for expanding the experience of students in terms of their outdoor learning?

DL: My interest in the outdoors is creating what E.O. Wilson calls biophilia, a love for the living environment. This is the one planet we have, and we have to take care of it responsibly, so I want kids to have biophilia—and I think we do a good job of that here. We develop a sense of appreciation for the natural world here through ever-widening circles.

We have a fantastic campus—23 acres—half of which is what I call built environment. The other half is woods and wetland and

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campus pesticide—and herbicide­—free. We do totally organic turf treatments now, and that helps preserve the bee population that we get our honey from but also all the pollinators on site, and it’s safer for the children.

LW: When my co-founder and husband, David, and I first toured the Glen Urquhart property and were considering it for the school’s site, I was inspired by its diverse landscape, its agricultural and horticultural history, lovely and student-scale building with arches and cupolas, and its rows of greenhouses.

More unusual were the remains of its architectural style European gardens, including pergolas and classic style temples, a series of fish ladders, and the fact that is was in the midst of the Chubbs Brook watershed.

nature trail. The kids are out on the nature trail at least every week, if not every day, and they’re out on recess twice a day, so they’re out in the woods building forts and on the playground. My hope is to get kids out even more.

I think it’s important for them to find their space and find a place on campus that they love. I talked to an alum who said one of his fondest GUS memories was going out into the wetlands and coming back covered in mud. That sense of playing in nature develops as an adult into appreciating nature. So if you have a well to draw on as an adult of experiences as a child in the natural environment, then you understand why you need to take care of it, why you’re responsible for it, how it’s limited and such a precious resource.

My hope, as a property that used to have dozens of greenhouses on it, is to take our one remaining 7,000-squarefoot greenhouse and really bring that back to life and have kids in there in the winter doing a lot more growing.

Sustainability is so important for us as a school, because we do use the natural environment as a classroom, so I want to really make sure kids understand why it’s important to protect and conserve resources. It’s a 10-minute walk from the ocean. Climate change and global warming, sea level rise— those are all really relevant issues for kids today. I know Beverly’s working on a plan—a resilience plan to say if and when sea level changes, how is the city going to adapt to that?

Well, these kids are going to be the leaders of those opportunities and those efforts. And so 10, 20, 30 years from now, they need to know how to address those challenges, and so that kind of teaching and learning is really important to us.

We have two active beehives—not only because it’s neat to have bees and honey, but we’re teaching about pollinators starting in first grade. We’re teaching about protecting the landscape. So one of the initiatives that we undertook last year is to make the

Many wonderful possibilities presented themselves, some of them already realized through our themes’ indoor/outdoor classroom projects such as the third grade ponding activities, fifth grade nature trail project, and sixth grade Native American studies.

Our athletics program and fields—woods, too, for cross-country skiing—have laid claim to the land and, of course, recess and the fun of “Recess Happenings” which occurred now and then, for example, using solar chargers, enjoying a “Bubble Fest,” or watching the sun warm a long, black balloon and cause it to rise.

The earlier mentioned Bio Shelter would also provide a wonderful new component to our outdoor/indoor educational model and take our dedication to teaching environmental science into the future. Balancing our greenhouse food project program with the GUS tradition of the K–8 landscape program and with our third and fifth grade Blue and Green Crews­­—these activities round out our science education program’s use of our campus, and David has addressed nearby resources such as the ocean. The remaining domains to be further tapped are the opportunities to involve students in researching the history of the property and study the watershed and in restoring the vestiges of the gardens where we always envisioned a poetry garden because there is a certain mood about the past that pervades these places. They also are a place for outdoor concerts. Recorders sound beautiful in the woods! Poetry, music, sylvan spaces are wonderful “affective” types of experiences for children. One more idea that has been with me for a long time is to create a Roman Garden with the Latin classes near the temple at the end of the Cedar Allée.

I think that all of these kinds of things would imbue our outdoor education with the arts, with the sciences, and with what David is talking about—a natural love and reverence for the outdoors, for nature and wild places—because our students were able to experience them from multiple perspectives while at GUS. Part Two of this conversation will appear in the next issue of The Tartan.

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NYC Exploration The Eighth Grade Experience The 27 boys and girls stand facing the photographs on the walls of the building on Ellis Island in New York Harbor.

Each face belongs to someone who entered the harbor on a boat coming from another country. Some came just a few decades ago; others came at the beginning of the last century and before. Some came from Europe; others from South America and the East—Middle, Far, and Near. Some were children; others old men and women. The boys and girls, all eighth graders from GUS, will each pick a face and create a fictional narrative about the person, imagining what that person’s story might be.

This activity is an important piece of their study of immigration and their yearlong interdisciplinary theme, “Where am I Going?”

It is also part of the annual eighth grade trip to New York City, a pilgrimage that involves the place-based education that has always distinguished a Glen Urquhart education, along with some fun, and even a kind of rite of passage for this group of GUS “seniors.” The purpose and goal of the New York City journey is “multifaceted,” according to eighth grade humanities teacher Jeffrey Bartsch.

During the entire year, the eighth grade teachers “give the students a grounding in the humanities’ topics—in geography, civics, poetry, literature, history, anthropology, and politics related to American history and current events,” he explains.

They are completing the spiral begun in second grade when the theme was “Where do I Live?” At that time, the students considered their family and neighborhood. “In 8th grade,” Bartsch explains, “they are more mature and ready to think about the larger community and moving to the larger world.”

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Thus, they study immigration, the nuances of the American Dream, and the American Revolution up until 1776, “following John Adams’ idea that the Revolution occurred before the war and the war was just the war,” Bartsch says. They read the founding documents such as the Constitution, and talk about democracy. We are “seeding their future learning in an age-appropriate way,” he explains.

Going to Ellis Island, where a quarter of Americans can trace their family’s entrance to the United States, makes the history concrete for the students, Bartsch believes. They walk along the same steps as new Americans did and view the documents that marked the immigrants’ arrival, so they can picture themselves in their place.

Bartsch created the assignment to choose a photo of an actual immigrant and imagine his or her journey seven years ago as part of the NYC trip. The pictures were taken by a guard or functionary and most are anonymous. The students are encouraged to find a face that fascinates them. Sometimes there are visual cues; sometimes there is a little information about them—perhaps where they are from or if they had family. Students are asked to imagine their home of origin and childhood, their trip over, their reaction to seeing the Statue of Liberty, their feelings about leaving Ellis Island, where they might have moved to and settled. They are expected to find a real ship they might have traveled on, given their real or imagined nationality. Students do all their research while in NYC, including from primary documents they see at the Tenement Museum on the Lower East Side, but write their papers when they return to school. Some view it as a creative writing assignment; others as a history project, Bartsch says. Papers range from three pages

to 35. “I grade on the creative language and empathy and their understanding of the immigrant experience overall.”

Ellis Island and the Tenement Museum are only two destinations that extend the students’ classroom studies. Their visits to the 9/11 Memorial and Museum and the United Nations also relate closely to their theme and serve to expand their understanding.

At the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), their visit is related to the annual White Shirt Project, a tradition that has every eighth grader choose a contemporary artist to study and create a piece that reflects that artist’s work. Upper School art teacher Dawn Southworth and Bartsch work together, the latter helping students research their artists and prepare a one-minute speech to deliver in front of their peers. “Doing the biography and research helps them come up with better work,” Bartsch believes. “Giving the speeches,” he adds, “helps them prepare for their longer presentations at the end of the year at Evening with the Graduates and aids them in developing their voices and speaking for themselves.” At MoMA, Bartsch has the students engage in a scavenger hunt to make sure they see important pieces.

Finally, the students go to Broadway, this year to see School of Rock. Perhaps this is the fun part, but musical theater is also part of American history, a genuinely American art form, forged originally primarily by Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe.

So, yes, School of Rock is part of their humanities study too.

EIGHTH GRADE NEW YORK CITY TRIP Dates: October 18–21, 2017 Transportation: Chartered bus to and from NYC; walking and subway in city Hotel: Manhattan Hotel in Times Square Highlights: Broadway Play (School of Rock) Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum Lower East Side Tenement Museum Museum of Jewish Heritage Museum of Modern Art NASDAQ - Stock Exchange United Nations General Headquarters

In addition, it will inspire them as they get ready to perform this year’s eighth grade musical, Mary Poppins Jr. later in the year.

The eighth grade trip includes many activities and destinations, but Bartsch’s favorite part is “walking the children down the street and pointing things out to them.

Their responses and their questions are great.”

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EVENTS@GUS GAIN@GUS

SUMMER PROGRAM 2017 GAIN@GUS welcomed 34 promising scholars in grades 4–7 from the towns of Beverly, Lynn, and Swampscott last summer. Four GUS alumni served as interns for the eighth year of GAIN. Thanks to one and all for another successful summer! As GAIN@GUS Founder Leslie Marchesseault says,

Only five weeks in the summer … It doesn’t seem like enough time to make a difference, but from my vantage point, it makes a world of difference for many of our GAIN@GUS students.

Learn more about GAIN@GUS at www.gus.org/gaingus.

Former Trustee Thank You Head of School David Liebmann welcomed back to campus a group of former trustees in late September for a breakfast update on the state of the school and to thank them for their years of stewardship and service.

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Pictured Left to Right: Jay Wallace P’04 ’06 ’07, Bill Quigley P’00 ’06, Bruce Shaw, Walter Riley P’02 ’05, Joan Rosenthal P’12, Babette Loring P’92 ’94 ’97, William Lundregan P’82 ’84, Richard Tadler P’05 ’09, Shelley Grody P’03, Don Hodgman P’94 ’97, Karen Cady P’03, Marfy Hodgman P’94 ’97, Head of School David Liebmann, President of the Board Carl Graves P’19 ’20, Jody King P’11 ’13, Martha Burnham P’16.

Teeing Up the FUNdraising AT THE WILD BOAR CLASSIC

Golfers enjoyed a warm autumn afternoon at the 17th Annual Wild Boar Classic Golf Tournament on October 11. Eighteen foursomes enjoyed the Donald-Ross designed course at the Essex County Club in Manchester-bythe-Sea, and raised much-needed funds for financial aid, faculty professional development, as well as other important GUS program initiatives.

Many thanks to hard-working Wild Boar Committee members Annie Barton, Martha Delay, Eric D’Orio, Carl Graves, Kristian Kristensen, Chris and Holly Shepherd, and Jackie Swansburg Paulino for their excellent organization of the event. Particular thanks to our “Wild Boar Sponsor,” Vesta Partners, and “Castle Urquhart Sponsors,” the D’Orio Family, SULLCO, Inc., Webster Bank Sponsor and Specialty Finance Group.

Top Left: Scott Poirier, Kirk Forsyth P ’25, Tom Barth, Carl Graves P ’19 ’20 Middle Right: Kevin Carey P ’07 ’08, Annie Barton, Gretchen Forsyth P ’25, Kathy Bertagna P ’10 ’12 ’15

SUMMER@GUS CAMP EXPERIENCES

Director of Auxiliary Programs Nancy Hartmann and her dedicated staff welcomed more than 175 campers from 28 different North Shore communities to the Glen Urquhart School campus for eight weeks of summer fun. From focused enrichment courses in fashion design, coding and robotics, comic book art, fencing, and more, to weekly day camp sessions with nature explorations, games, music, art, drama, daily swimming, and weekly themed “fun day” celebrations, the SUMMER@GUS program grew in both size and popularity!

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Thank You GUS Community!

We are grateful for the many ways families and individuals have participated in and enriched the life of the school. From engaging in volunteer opportunities, both on and off campus, to supporting our kids and programs and holding leadership positions on the board of trustees and the parents’ association, your efforts and generosity are always inspiring!

THE GUS FUND URQUHART CIRCLE $10,000 and above Bob and Brooke Carroll Tim and Emily Collins Carl Graves and Julia Mahoney-Graves Joan and Steve Rosenthal Jon and Marit von Tetzchner SUSTAINER’S CIRCLE $5,000–$9,999 George and Paulette Balich Art and Paula Blume Mike and Rollyn Bornhorst David Cancel and Lise Carrigg Francee Healy Thomas and Mollie Hoopes Caleb and Bronwyn Loring Greg and Sallie Pottle David and Laura Quirk FOUNDER’S CIRCLE $2,500–$4,999 Rick and Martha Burnham Daryl Colden and Kristin Tallman Eric and Melanie D’Orio Philip and Donna Furse Brian and Sherri Garvey Kenneth Grant and Carolyn Paczkowska Mark and Trish Landgren Dan and Leslie LeVan Dan and Jennifer Mayer David and Deirdre Patch Grant Proops and Tamah French Jeffrey and Sheara Brand Seigal Steven and Joyce Tadler Anonymous Margaret Wigglesworth TARTAN CIRCLE $1,000–$2,4999 Mark and Christine Barry Andrew Brown and Anita Meyer Clare and Michael Byrne Sydney and Shaun Clarke 12 The Tartan Fall/Winter 2017

Susan Coolidge Louis Culot and Chelsea Mack Josh and Christy Doxsee Leslie and Kevin Ferriter Heidi and Craig Gorton Heather and Jonathan Greeley Brehon and Kathryn Griswold Thomas Gschwendtner and Stephanie Kermes Loren Kessel and Alison Gibbs Oliver Klein and Jodi Klein David Liebmann Guy and Leslie Marchesseault Nikki and Brian Miller Amy and Gordon Morrison North Shore Friends Penny and Evan Randolph Don Romanelli and Lisa Sandouk-Romanelli Jeremy and Ellen Schiller Davis and Louise Van Winkle Alec and Anne White FRIEND’S CIRCLE Up to $999 Leif Akerley ’06 Harry and Marcia Aptt Zander Auerbach Sarah Bailes Melissa Bain ’08 Jake Bartlett ’87 Annie Barton Tom and Christine Baxter Abigail Benfield ’15 Andrew and Suzanne Benfield Amy Billings Kathleen Birkeland John and Britton ’92 Bistrian Joshua Blatt ’93 Katie Blynn Mary John Boylan Eva Bramesco ’04 Bre-Anne Brandt Mr. and Mrs. Clinton Brown Daniel and Kristin Brown Kathryn and William Brown Elliott Buck Rick and Martha Burnham Elaine Byrne Jackson Byrne ’15

Michaela Byrne ’09 Olivia Byrne ’10 Ware Cady ’03 Alison Cady Martin Lindsay Calef ’99 Peter and Lisl ’86 Warren Joe and Lisa Caruso Jake Cavanaugh ’96 Kathryn Clark Maggie Clark Patty Clark Charlotte Collins ’14 Dylan Comb ’03 Emily Corbin ’09 Jay and Jennifer Cornforth Evan Cross ’90 Robert Cuozzo and Carolyn Hughes Holly Curtis Emilie Cushing Fred and Bonnie Delay Martha and Michael Delay Andrew DesBois ’02 Pamela Deschamps Margery Dimond Melissa Dimond and Gretchen Putnam Chris and Laura Doyle Chris Draper Charlie and Liz Dunne Jessica Duryea Bruce Emerson Cory Emerson ’04 Mike Emerson ’06 Becca Feldman ’90 Vincent and Meghan Fennell Julie Finn Michael and Kerry Foraste Gretchen Forsyth Rocky and Jane Forsyth Mary Ellen Frechette Paul and Maria Freedberg Jim Gardner and Lesley-Mottla Gardner Michael Geringer and Nicole Moses Simon Glass and Susannah Ketchum Glass Eddie Gomez and Suzanne Mitchell

Chandlee Gore Dennis and Deborah Grubbs George and Mary Harrington Danielle Harrington Charlie Hay and Joanne Crerand Evan Heymann ’99 JP Hitesman ’98 Lisa Hoopes ’05 Amy Hoopes ’08 Timothy Hoopes ’14 Joan Hudak ’04 Melodie Jeffery-Cassell Eben Johnson ’01 Robert Johnston and Wendy Rubin Iwo and Meah Kadziela Jane Kelley Courtney Kelly ’01 Nick ’91 and Lisa Kent Hyunjim Kim and Seehoon Oh Anna Rose-King ’00 Jeff and Ilda King Alexander and Emily Kontos Tom and Sarah Kotwicki Ken and Marisa Krall Kristian and Katrina Kristensen Megan Lagasse ’99 Alexandra Lane ’06 Dave and Candi Lane Jack and Maggie Leonard Alex Levin ’03 Jamie and Tori Macmillan Kyle Marchesseault ’91 Andrew Marchesseault ’97 Tim and Lisa Marciano Dan and Jennifer Mayer Cheryl Mazer Katie McCarthy Pam McCoy Dan McCullough and Kim Trudel Madeline McElroy ’04 Dianne McGaunn Phebe McKelvey ’08 Chrissie McNiff Twombly ’89 Laurie McNiff Twombly ’84 Lea Miner Miller ’82 Merlin and Carlotta Miller Sean and Ava Monahan Loren Morgan ’14 Luke Morgan ’15 Thomas Moriarty and Kathleen Johnson Laurie Nardone James and Susan Nelson Perry Nelson and Kristin Grubbs Ray Novack

GUS 2016–2017 REPORT OF GIVING

Sean and Roberta O’Connor Tanya O’Malley Sean and Melody O’Neill Rachel Obremski Sanford Paek Jess Cavanaugh Palm ’99 Tim and Elaine Palmer Eric and Charlene Patey Tom Peckham and Ellen Petersen Duncan Peckham ’15 Lauren Peltz ’99 Forrest and Natalie Perkins Adam Portnoy ’86 Marnie Potish Carson Pottle ’15 Andrew Preston Henry Pynchon ’99 Tom and Marian Quin Nicholas and Carol Richon Beth Riley Johan and Kelly Rostad Cassie Rotman ’00 Jon Roy Cori Russo Dan and Laura Rutledge Sydney Rutledge ’11 Denny and Heather Ryus Simone Salvo ’04 Sean Scanlan Marc and Marlene Schaedle George and Coreen Scharfe Ruth Scheer Molly Seamans ’93 Adam Seigal ’00 Meghan Short ’04 Jo Slavitz Andrew Smith ’90 Christopher and Kathy Smith Roger Smith and Emily Weissblum Smith Stan and Jody Smith Louis ’88 and Ann Somma John Soursourian and Judith Klein Zara-Marie Spooner Patrick Stephens ’03 Andy and Anne Stevens Peter and Carol Stewart Peter and Susan Stokes Ben Strauss ’01 David Strouss Marcia Strouss Sam Strouss ’04 Ed Sullivan Andy Swansburg ’07 Jacquelyn Swansburg Paulino ’98 Justin Swansburg ’06 Barbara Sweeney Richard and Elaine Tarbox Verdun Thaemert and Victoria Rolf Bill and Sandy Thoms Tom and Joyce Tsao Yeshe Tungkhar ’93 Maureen Twombly Katie Ventimiglia ’01 Gentiana and Christopher Watts Kristen Weber Matthew and Rebecca Welnak Mike and Candy Wheeler

Sarah Willeman ’95 Curt Wilson John and Amberly Wood Sophie Wyke ’08 Julie Wyman Alen Yen and Cheryl Tivey Jim Zaremba and Tom Daniel Kelly Zaval ALUMNI Leif Akerley ’06 Melissa Bain ’08 Jake Bartlett ’87 Abigail Benfield ’15 Britton Bistrian ’92 Joshua Blatt ’03 Eva Bramesco ’04 Jackson Byrne ’15 Michaela Byrne ’09 Olivia Byrne ’10 Ware Cady ’03 Jake Cavanaugh ’96 Charlotte Collins ’14 Dylan Comb ’03 Emily Corbin ’09 Evan Cross ’90 Andrew DesBois ’02 Cory Emerson ’04 Mike Emerson ’06 Becca Feldman ’90 Rafer Gardner ’16 Emma Harrington ’15 Madeleine Harrington ’16 Evan Heymann ’99 JP Hitesman ’98 Lisa Hoopes ’05 Amy Hoopes ’08 Timothy Hoopes ’14 Joan Hudak ’04 Eben Johnson ’01 Courtney Kelly ’01 Nick Kent ’91 Anna Rose King ’00 Megan Lagasse ’99 Alexandra Lane ’06 Alex Levin ’03 Kyle Marchesseault ’91 Andrew Marchesseault ’97 Madeline McElroy ’04 Phebe McKelvey ’08 Christine McNiff Twombly ’89 Laurie McNiff Twombly ’84 Lea Miner Miller ’92 Loren Morgan ’14 Luke Morgan ’15 Jess Cavanaugh Palm ’99 Duncan Peckham ’15 Lauren Peltz ’99 Mckenzie Perkins ’14 Adam Portnoy ’86 Carson Pottle ’15 Henry Pynchon ’99 Cassie Rotman ’00 Sydney Rutledge ’11 Simone Salvo ’04 Molly Seamans ’93 Adam Seigal ’00 Meghan Short ’04 Andrew Smith ’90

Louis Somma ’88 Patrick Stephens ’03 Carson Stevens ’05 Ben Strauss ’01 Sam Strouss ’04 Andy Swansburg ’07 Justin Swansburg ’06 Yeshe Tungkhar ’93 Katie Ventimiglia ’01 Lisl Warren ’86 Sarah Willeman ’95 Sophie Wyke ’08

Thank You, Alumni!

Your amazing response to the “Mean Well. Speak Well. Do Well. Alumni Challenge” set a historic, new record in giving + participation!

WILD BOAR CIRCLE (gifts from graduates of the Class of 2000 + younger) Leif Akerley ’06 Joshua Blatt ’03 Eva Bramesco ’04 Ware Cady ’03 Charlotte Collins ’14 Dylan Comb ’03 Emily Corbin ’09 Andrew DesBois ’02 Cory Emerson ’04 Michael Emerson ’06 Emma Harrington ’15 Amy Hoopes ’08 Lisa Hoopes ’05 Timothy Hoopes ’14 Joan Hudak ’04 Alexandra Lane ’06 Alexander Levin ’03 Madeleine McElroy ’04 Phebe McKelvey ’08 Loren Morgan ’14 Luke Morgan ’15 Sydney Rutledge ’11 Simone Salvo ’04 Meghan Short ’04 Patrick Stephens ’03 Benjamin Strauss ’01 Samantha Strouss ’04 Andy Swansburg ’07 Justin Swansburg ’06 Katherine Ventimiglia ’01 Sophie Wyke ’08 ALUMNI PARENTS Andrew and Suzanne Benfield Mary John Boylan Elaine Byrne

Jay and Jennifer Cornforth Robert Cuozzo and Carolyn Hughes Holly Curtis Charlie and Liz Dunne Bruce Emerson Jim and Lesley Gardner Charlie Hay and Joanne Crerand Francee Healy Ken and Marisa Krall Dave and Candi Lane Guy and Leslie Marchesseault Tim and Lisa Marciano Cheryl Mazer Merlin and Carlotta Miller Laurie Nardone James and Susan Nelson Sanford Paek Tom Peckham and Ellen Petersen Andrew Preston Tom and Marian Quin David and Laura Quirk Beth Riley Johan and Kelly Rostad Dan and Laura Rutledge Denny and Heather Ryus Marc and Marlene Schaedle Jeffrey Seigal and Sheara Brand Seigal John Soursourian and Judith Klein Andy and Anne Stevens Carol and Peter Stewart Peter and Susan Stokes David Strouss Barbara Sweeney Bill and Sandy Thoms Mike and Candy Wheeler Alec and Anne White Margaret Wigglesworth Curt Wilson FORMER TRUSTEES Martha Burnham Clare Byrne Susan Coolidge Maria Freedberg Suzanne Gomez Mitchell Brehon Griswold George Harrington Tom and Mollie Hoopes Jane Kelley Judith Klein Dan LeVan Tori Macmillan Joan Rosenthal Wendy Rubin Stan and Jody Smith Marcia Strouss Ed Sullivan Richard Tadler Joyce Tadler Marit von Tetzchner FACULTY + STAFF Cheryl Arsenault Sarah Bailes Jeffrey Bartsch Annie Barton Amy Billings Fall/Winter 2017 The Tartan 13

Kathleen Birkeland Katie Blynn Bre-Anne Brandt Elliott Buck Lindsay Calef Eliza Calkins Patty Clark Maggie Clark Sydney Clarke Joanne Crerand Emilie Cushing Martha Delay Christy Doxsee Chris Doyle Laura Doyle Chris Draper Jessica Duryea Bruce Emerson Julie Finn Gretchen Forsyth Mary Ellen Frechette Kristie Gonzalez Danielle Harrington Melodie Jeffery-Cassell Sarah Kotwicki Tom Kotwicki David Liebmann Katie McCarthy Pam McCoy Ray Novack Emily Rabinovitz-Buchanan Beth Riley Jon Roy Cori Russo Dawn Southworth Carol Stewart Sandy Thoms Julie Wyman Kelly Zaval CURRENT GRANDPARENTS + GRANDPARENTS OF ALUMNI Harry and Marcia Aptt George and Paulette Balich Mr. and Mrs. Clinton Brown Fred and Bonnie Delay Pamela Deschamps Margery Dimond Rocky and Jane Forsyth Nat and Jodi Gorton Dennis and Deborah Grubbs Jeff and Ilda King Jack and Maggie Leonard Caleb and Bronwyn Loring Forrest and Natalie Perkins George and Coreen Scharfe Ruth Scheer Richard and Elaine Tarbox Tom and Joyce Tsao Davis and Louise Van Winkle 2016–2017 PARENTS Grade 8 Andrew and Suzanne Benfield BG and Kat Brown Bob and Brooke Carroll

14 The Tartan Fall/Winter 2017

Daryl Colden and Kristin Tallman Tim and Emily Collins Robert Cuozzo and Carolyn Hughes Philip and Donna Furse Simon Glass and Susannah Ketchum Glass Eddie Gomez and Suzanne Mitchell Mark and Trish Landgren Tim Moreland and Lisa Marciano Sean and Roberta O’Connor Heidi Paek Andrew Preston Grant Proops and Tamah French Tom and Marian Quin David and Laura Quirk Johan and Kelly Rostad Michael and Heather Ryus Jon and Marit von Tetzchner Curt Wilson Kent and Laura Wosepka Grade 7 Joseph and Elizabeth Caruso Shaun and Sydney Clarke Melissa Dimond and Gretchen Putnam Philip and Donna Furse Brian and Sherri Garvey Loren Kessel and Alison Gibbs Tom and Sarah Kotwicki Kristian and Katrina Kristensen Gordon and Amy Morrison Jeremy and Ellen Schiller Christopher and Kathy Smith Grade 6 Michael and Rollyn Bornhorst Daniel and Kristin Brown BG and Kat Brown David Cancel and Lise Carrigg Daryl Colden and Kristin Tallman Michael and Martha Delay Kevin and Leslie Ferriter Michael and Kerry Foraste Michael Geringer and Nicole Moses Craig and Heidi Gorton Carl Graves and Julia Mahoney-Graves Oliver and Jodi Klein Daniel and Jennifer Mayer Sean and Ana Monahan Sean and Melody O’Neill David and Deirdre Patch Greg and Sallie Pottle Nicholas Richon and Carol Hong Richon Don Romanelli and Lisa Sandouk-Romanelli Roger Smith and Emily Weissblum-Smith Danielle Harrington Darren and Maureen Twombly Kristen Weber Curt Wilson

Grade 5 Bob and Brooke Carroll Shaun and Sydney Clarke Eric and Melanie D’Orio Philip and Donna Furse Michael Geringer and Nicole Moses Simon Glass and Susannah Ketchum Glass Kenneth Grant and Carolyn Paczkowska Carl Graves and Julia Mahoney-Graves Thomas Gschwendtner and Stephanie Kermes Jonathan and Lucy Loring Thomas Moriarty and Kathleen Johnson Perry Nelson and Kristen Grubbs Eric and Charlene Patey Grant Proops and Tamah French Jo Slavitz Steve and Linda Todd Grade 4 Michael and Rollyn Bornhorst Michael and Martha Delay Jonathan and Heather Greeley Alexander and Emily Kontos Tom and Sarah Kotwicki Andrew Brown and Anita Meyer Brian and Nikki Miller Perry Nelson and Kristen Grubbs Sean and Roberta O’Connor Darren and Maureen Twombly James Zaremba and Tom Daniel Grade 3 Mark and Christine Barry Thomas Bernardi and Christine Baxter Kathy Clark Joshua and Christy Doxsee Craig and Heidi Gorton Chandlee Gore Kristian and Katrina Kristensen Jonathan and Lucy Loring Sean and Ana Monahan Tanya O’Malley Verdun Thaemert and Victoria Rolf

Danielle Harrington Alen Yen and Cheryl Tivey Grade 2 Arthur and Paula Blume Nick ’91 and Lisa Kent Brian and Nikki Miller Gordon and Amy Morrison Timothy and Elaine Palmer David and Deirdre Patch Jeremy and Ellen Schiller Louis ’88 and Ann Somma Grade 1 Thomas Bernardi and Christine Baxter Michael and Rollyn Bornhorst Rachel Obremski Chandlee Gore Iwo and Meah Kadziela Mark and Trish Landgren Jonathan and Lucy Loring Steve and Linda Todd John and Amberly Wood Kindergarten Arthur and Paula Blume Louis Culot and Chelsea Mack Joshua and Christy Doxsee Vincent and Meghan Fennell Kirk and Gretchen Forsyth Sehoon Oh and Hyunjin Kim Nicholas Richon and Carol Hong Richon Matthew and Rebecca Welnak James Zaremba and Tom Daniel

PARTICIPATION BY GRADE FOR FY17 GRADE 8

56%

GRADE 3

65%

GRADE 7

30%

GRADE 2

53%

GRADE 6

60%

GRADE 1

64%

GRADE 5

68%

KINDERGARTEN 50%

GRADE 4

60%

GUS 2016–2017 REPORT OF GIVING

RESTRICTED GIFTS THE TADLER GRANT

Thanks to the initiative, foresight, and generosity of former trustee Richard Tadler and his wife, Donna, one or two GUS teachers are selected each year to participate in extraordinary professional development opportunities. Recipients choose activities they are passionate about and then return to GUS to share their experiences with the GUS community.

Richard and Donna Tadler GAIN@GUS SUMMER PROGRAM FUND

Special thanks to the following individuals, foundations, and corporations for their support of this vital summer academic enrichment program, serving children (at no cost to their families) from the cities of Beverly, Lynn, and surrounding areas.

Tim Malarkey and Stephanie Morgan Kyle ’91 and Marisa Marchesseault Nikki and Brian Miller Steven and Paula Mollov Will and Sandy Phippen Steve and Joan Rosenthal Peter and Carol Stewart Steve and Linda Todd Tom and Joyce Tsao Alan and Jenifer Wall Alen Yen and Cheryl Tivey

Clare and Michael Byrne David Cancel and Lise Carrigg Tim and Emily Collins Eric and Melanie D’Orio Charlie and Liz Dunne Rich and Caroline Fitzpatrick Simon Glass and Susannah Ketchum Glass Grantham, Mayo, Van Otterloo, & Co., LLC Charlie Hay and Joanne Crerand The Highland Street Foundation GAIN@GUS SCHOLARSHIP FUND

The GAIN@GUS Scholarship Fund supports the summer program’s commitment to enroll a percentage of qualified students in Glen Urquhart School. This scholarship provides tuition for an eligible GAIN@GUS student to attend Glen Urquhart for grades six through eight.

Steve and Linda Todd Charlie and Liz Dunne

Alen Yen and Cheryl Tivey

GIFTS IN KIND Daniel and Jennifer Mayer David and Laura Quirk

THE THISTLE

GUS Endowment, a perpetual source of support, is essential in sustaining the school’s mission. Each year a portion of the endowment is paid out as an annual distribution to support the school’s budget, while any appreciation is retained in the endowment so it can grow and bolster the school in all kinds of economic weather.

THE RAYMOND NANCE FUND

The Raymond Nance Fund was established in honor of Raymond C. Nance and his fifteen years of service to Glen Urquhart School as head of school. The fund is dedicated to strengthening the faculty and expanding the program so that GUS remains a leader in educational innovation.

Michael and Clare Byrne Karen Cady Tim and Emily Collins

Hurdle Hill Foundation Tim Malarkey and Stephanie Morgan

THE NORTHRUP-WARREN NATURE FUND

Named after founding students Molly Northrup ’86 and Lisl Warren ’86, this fund endows the study, interpretation, and preservation of the natural resources located on the Glen Urquhart campus.

THE AUGUSTUS P. LORING LIBRARY FUND

The Loring Fund was established in 1986 to honor past grandparent Augustus P. Loring. Mr. Loring’s firm belief that the strength of an educational institution is reflected in its library led to the establishment of this fund to strengthen our school and to pay tribute to his lifetime dedication to education. The income from this fund is used to acquire books for the GUS Library.

Peter and Babette Loring THE KELLY STOTZ WYCKE FUND FOR SCIENCE

Established in 1999, this fund is dedicated to the memory of a loving parent who expressed a strong desire and commitment to enhance science education for GUS students.

THANK YOU, VOLUNTEERS! SOCIETY

The Thistle Society recognizes the deep loyalty within the GUS community. Named after the national flower of Scotland, this society celebrates donors who make annual gifts for 10 or more consecutive years.

Michael and Clare Byrne Rick and Martha Burnham Patty Clark Tim and Emily Collins Brehon and Kathryn Griswold Leslie and Guy Marchesseault Jeffrey and Sheara Brand Seigal George and Mary Harrington Thomas and Mollie Hoopes

ENDOWED FUNDS

Dan and Leslie LeVan Cheryl Mazer Laurie Nardone Beth Riley Don and Lisa Romanelli Roger Smith and Emily Weissblum Smith Michael and Candace Wheeler

Special thanks to the cadre of enthusiastic volunteers who supported the school this past fiscal year. GUS is a stronger and more vibrant place thanks to the optimism and dedication of the following: ADVANCEMENT COMMITTEE Lise Carrigg Emily Collins Melanie D’Orio Tamah French Mollie Hoopes Jodi Klein

Trish Landgren David Patch Sallie Pottle Joan Rosenthal Jackie Swansburg Paulino ’98

WILD BOAR GOLF CLASSIC TOURNAMENT COMMITTEE Brian Kelley Carl Graves Kristian Kristensen Eric D’Orio Holly Shepherd PARENTS’ ASSOCATION OFFICERS Tamah French, Co-chair Sherri Garvey, Treasurer Trish Landgren, Co-chair Jessica Lewis, Secretary

Place-based Education Curriculum conversations with David Sobel David Sobel, professor of education at Antioch University and author of PlaceBased Education: Connecting Classrooms and Communities, visited GUS in August to facilitate conversations about the place-based education that has defined our curriculum since the founding of the school. He was impressed with what he heard and saw.

It’s rare to find a school like Glen Urquhart that takes such full advantage of the natural and cultural resources in Beverly, Cape Ann, and the wider world of New England. This conscious attention to connecting students with their places helps them become active citizens and preservers of their natural and cultural heritage.

To read a first-person narrative about place-based education at GUS, go to www.gus.org/place-based-education-gus.

16 The Tartan Fall/Winter 2017

Alumni Profile

Erik Moxcey

GUS Class of ’83!

What was it like to be one of the first Glen Urquhart students?

“Amazing,” according to Erik Moxcey who entered what was then called North Shore Middle School in 1980 as one of a handful of students in the seventh grade. “I was in the local public school in Topsfield which was great, but I was always kind of a daydreamer and not necessarily conforming to the typical student in the elementary public school system,” he explains, speaking from his office in Los Angeles where he is a storyboard artist and revisionist for the animated TV series, Family Guy. “My parents knew Isabella and Harry Groblewski and Harry became headmaster of North Shore Middle School around this time. He talked to my parents about this new school and about the founder, Lynne Warren. He said the school was focused on the individual and was more nurturing and would allow me to seek my inspiration and be supported for my art since I wasn’t learning in the typical liberal arts fashion. This sounded great to my parents.”

When Erik began in seventh grade, that was the highest grade in the school, but the next year an eighth grade was planned, and a ninth grade after that with six students in the first graduating class of 1983. “It was super cool because we were always the oldest!” he recalls. “We were so fortunate—the six of us—to know each other and our teachers so intimately. We had a feeling of being treated as such individuals.” When Erik started, the school still met in a church, and the students would walk over to the new property and see the

greenhouses and the buildings they would soon move into on Hart Street.

After GUS, Erik went to Proctor Academy for high school where he focused on his art and developed his interest in film and writing feature scripts. Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) came next. “Once I got to RISD, I really found my environment. I didn’t have to worry about anything except studying and making art, especially film,” he says. “I learned more by just being exposed to other talented students who were making art. It set the foundation for how important it is to find your own voice and just do your own thing.” But he still credits that state of mind going back to what he learned and developed at Glen Urquhart.

During his time at RISD, Erik worked on scripts, even co-writing with Harry Groblewski a story concerning societal class prejudices about a janitor and a businessman trapped in an elevator together. He attended several summer film workshops in Rockport, Maine, inspired by teachers like Janet Roach (a writer for John Huston) who encouraged him to tell stories of depth and meaning. Los Angeles soon beckoned and, after a short stint with a computer animation game company, Erik passed the character layout test for The Simpsons after three attempts and had a job on one of the most popular shows of the decade. “The Simpsons Fall/Winter 2017 The Tartan 17

Follow your dreams...

Erik Moxcey visited...

Erik Moxcey visited GUS on September 28 with his wife and young son and met with upper school students. He shared memories of his years at GUS, drew some of his favorite characters, and encouraged the students to follow their dreams and stay true to what is really important to them.

Toby Bent, Nick Carter, Gillian Harper, Erik Moxcey, Mark Ndlangamandla, Sandy Nichols.

SAVE THE DATES JUNE 8+9 for our All-Class Reunion and 40th Celebration!

Details at www.gus.org/40-forward

18 The Tartan Fall/Winter 2017

really taught me how to draw,” Erik says. “This was a time in the animation industry when they would spend a lot of time with you showing you how to draw in perspective, constructing characters on model, creating dynamic poses, backgrounds, etc.

Working on The Simpsons was great; it was like getting paid to go to college again for illustration, which was not my major at RISD. I eventually moved up to storyboarding on the show where you are actually composing and setting up shots, which I loved because now it was more related to live-action filmmaking.” Next came Rugrats, Rocket Power, As Told By Ginger and then Family Guy, where Erik has been for the past 13 years. What he likes best about his job are the other artists. “There is a great talent pool there,” he says, “and it is not appreciated or acknowledged by production as much as it should be. They make the show look good, even when the writing is less than par.”

While his “day job” might be the envy of many, Erik’s primary focus is still on creating his own ideas for live action films. He is working now on a pilot for a live action television series and developing other spec script ideas. “Film is really an emotional medium, more than an intellectual one. Most stories that become great movies are emotional stories. What are the films you really remember? Profound scripts. Inspiring ones. I was inspired by films like Harold and Maude, Dead Poet’s Society, or It’s a Wonderful Life. Ultimately, my goal is to inspire and make some kind of a difference with relevant issues. Otherwise, what are you doing here?”

He prides himself on keeping his own voice and advises young artists and writers to “listen to their voice inside.” But good writing also takes practice. “I write a lot of bad stuff and them come up with ideas that inspire me and that’s what keeps me going.

You work out every day and you get stronger,” Erik says. “It’s the same with writing.”

What does he see in his future? About to turn 50 and celebrate his tenth wedding anniversary, Erik would welcome a return to the East Coast with his wife Aldenir and three-year-old son, John Winston, who was named both after Erik’s middle name and one of his idols, John Winston Lennon. “I’d love for Johnny to go to Glen Urqhuart!”

Alumni Profile

Curiosity Leads Her Way Linda Nyemba ’05 Linda Nyemba talks at such a rapid pace as she describes her work in social media that you feel as if you need running shoes on your brain to keep up with her. After a few minutes, it is clear why this 26-year-old has achieved so much so soon.

After graduating from GUS in 2005, Linda went to the Putney School in Vermont and then to the University of Chicago where she majored in film and media. When President Obama’s former campaign manager David Axelrod came to the university to form the Institute of Politics, Linda was introduced to the power of digital media. Her senior thesis, influenced by her study of communications guru Marshall McLuhan, concerned how social media can affect the way people interpret the news. Following graduation in 2013, she had the opportunity to work in Washington, DC at The New Republic, the staid old magazine that was newly committed to entering the digital age.

“I was fascinated with the challenge Chris Hughes and his team had to transform the magazine, yet maintain its heritage,” Linda says.

From there, the moves came fast and furious. Linda moved to New York City to work for The Atlantic magazine and then to The Economist, before making the leap to Berlin to work remotely in 2015. She was hired in 2016 by Absolut in Stockholm to help their Malibu and Kahlua products on digital branding before returning stateside to work for Hillary Clinton’s campaign in Brooklyn, on the digital advertising team creating the narrative and mobilizing voters through social media. When the campaign ended, Linda returned to Berlin to work for Tech Open Air, Europe’s leading interdisciplinary technology festival. That ended in July 2017 and she is now consulting for Smart Valor.

Based in the Swiss Crypto Valley, Smart Valor is a blockchain startup “set to reinvent private banking while building on the Swiss legal framework,” according to Linda.

Along with helping them host their first ICO Summit in Zurich, she will be establishing their social marketing and communication foundation.

What excites Linda is the challenge of learning new industries and determining how to apply digital media to tell their stories. When she tackles a new project, her task is to become a brand storyteller, “to translate our message and our story on different platforms,” she explains. To achieve success, several questions need to be answered. What are the different things that need to be talked about?

What sort of content should be used?

Who is engaging with the platforms being used? The message needs to communicated differently via Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or a website, and depending on the audience. Linda says she takes a hands-on approach to each project, doing a lot of the writing and working alongside web developers and graphic designers, and keeping an eye on analytics to assess the success of initiatives. “You have to have an understanding of analytics—to know how your stuff is doing,” she says.

“This work requires you to have a wide understanding of all the moving parts.”

So how did she get so far so fast?

“That’s a good question,” Linda says, taking one of the few pauses in our conversation. “Well, I’ve always identified people I wanted to work with. I even emailed one person for a year. If you really want something, it requires you to know how to network and how to build relationships.”

“I allow curiosity to lead me. I’ve been in roles and people say, why would you leave this role. I could have stayed for three or four years, but I seek new things out.” continued on page 21

Fall/Winter 2017 The Tartan 19

Alumni Profile

On the Trail(s)

with Simon Mcintosh ’08 Simon Mcintosh’s first trip to Mongolia was during the summer following his freshman year at the University of Vermont. His father, involved with the Mongolia Ecology Center after a 40-year career with the US National Park Service, asked Simon to be a wilderness expert and guide a team making maps in Hovsgol National Park using handheld GPS trackers. “Other than being a competent outdoorsman, I didn’t have any skills, but I was out there with a GIS (geographic information system) technician, a trails expert, a couple of Mongolian guides, and Center staff.”

Simon entered college thinking he would study history and become a teacher. That idea didn’t last long. After his summer in Mongolia, he switched to environmental studies, particularly focusing on policy and protecting lands.

Acquiring the hard skills involved in geospatial technology, that is, the modern tools used for mapping the earth, became a priority and then he became interested in presenting the information in a readable and appealing manner after the data is collected. He learned GIS “stuff” and how to use the data and, after spending his junior year with Semester at Sea in the South Pacific, it was time to undertake his thesis. He decided to return to Mongolia for two months during the summer and “commit to a project that would have some impact on the country.”

The goal was to map the region west of Hovsgol National Park surrounding the Darkhad Valley where the Tsaatan “reindeer people” live. Going out on six- to 10-day expeditions on horses and motorcycles, he and his team found a spiderweb of roads, not all of which made it onto their final map. “I would go out and talk to people with our local guides and my partner, Orkhon (she works for Mongol Ecology Center and was our contact there),” Simon explains. “The land is so fragile, and it is so hard for things to grow, that it was easy to see where people travel. We would travel the routes and see what was in use. We had a series of meetings with park officials and other interested officials to dicuss which roads would be printed on the maps. Once these roads are on maps, they are the ones that will be maintained and known about.”

20 The Tartan Fall/Winter 2017

Simon remembers arriving at the encampment of a group of reindeer herders during one expedition on horseback in the Mongolian wilderness.

It was an eight to ten-day trip, he recalls, and “I was sick of being on a horse” even though the land was “incredibly beautiful with rolling spiky mountain tops.” Simon and his fellow travelers “never felt more welcomed” than they did by the Tsaatan who offered them milk tea (the milk was from the reindeer!) and a place to sit in their teepees. As they drank, the travelers could view hundreds of reindeer roaming around the remote area. While Orkhon would translate some of the conversation, the Tsaatan, “who like to catch up when they see each other,” chattered on and on about family and other matters with the Mongolians in Simon’s party. Simon, though he couldn’t understand their words, was well aware when they were speaking about him. “They would look at me or there were a few too many giggles.

I could pick up on the social cues,” he says, chuckling himself.

Another time, Simon and his team were in the teepee of a herder when a terrible windstorm with hail “came out of nowhere.” The team’s tents collapsed completely, but the Tsaatan teepee stood firmly and the occupants stayed warm and cozy inside, almost oblivious to the outside weather. “Our tents were rubbish compared to theirs,” Simon says. “Their tents traditionally were made of reindeer pelts with 12–15 foot poles. Now they use canvas cloth which is cheaper and they can sell the pelts for more. There is a hole in the ceiling to let out smoke. It can be freezing outside with frost on the ground, but inside the people are in tee shirts with their shoes off.”

For Simon, determining which roads made it onto the final map involved factors beyond current usage. For example, there were six mountain passes that could take cars over the mountains. To choose one over another for the map might have a positive economic impact on a village because of increased tourism. To choose another might have a negative ecological impact on the nearby swampland. Ultimately, Simon took an unpopular stand about one route. Though they could pave a road on the lakeshore and through a swamp near a large town, he instead suggested a southern route that would be ecologically better and bring economic benefit through tourism to a small community even though it necessitated a longer route. The key talking points of Simon’s thesis were translated into Mongolian and sent to the Minister of the Environment. “She read it and found it interesting,” says Simon. “It is moving its way around and is posted on the website.”

Simon graduated from UVM last May and headed out to California to work as the Volunteer Program Assistant for the Yosemite Conservancy, a seasonal position that ended in October. What’s next? At press time, Simon wasn’t sure.

He set a goal for himself of traveling to all seven continents before he turns 25 and he’s 24 now. He doesn’t count Antarctica—“too far and too hard to get to”—but counts Asia and the Middle East as two continents—and he hasn’t visited either yet. As for returning to Mongolia, he doesn’t dismiss the idea. “I do miss it. It is spectacularly gorgeous and the people are so willing to work with you, but if I return it will be in a different capacity.”

GUS gave me a solid foundation in everything I needed to know…

When he looks back on his years at Glen Urquhart—he spent sixth, seventh and eighth grade at GUS—Simon feels it was an influential period in his life. “That time formed me a lot. I didn’t really have an identity before that. Glen Urquhart gave me a solid foundation in everything I needed to know—the social skills to thrive, to be happy. I had two best friends—the three boys from Beverly. We called ourselves the Beverly Triangle.”

For the record, the other two angles of the triangle were Daniel Terner and Sam Rich.

Reminisce + Reconnect GUS Alumni: tell us where you are and what you are up to! And come for a visit when you are in town! Please go to www.gus.org/community/alumni-contact-form

LINDA NYEMBA ’05: cont. from page 19

We were always doing things outside the classroom that were cultivating our curiosity…

Linda credits many influences with helping her become a self-starter. “My parents instilled in me a sense of independence. That has been really valuable to me. I learned that at Putney and the University of Chicago, too.” Linda believes that Glen Urquhart also broadened her outlook as a young child. “GUS definitely had a nurturing aspect to it,” she recalls. “We were really privileged with lots of opportunities that others don’t have in their curricula. We were always doing things outside the classroom that were cultivating our curiosity instead of just sitting around and talking about a particular subject. We learned that there’s more outside the classroom with activities like the trip to Mystic and the eighth grade trip to New York. Those are things that I’m sure had an effect on me.”

Fall/Winter 2017 The Tartan 21

Glen Urquhart School 74 Hart Street Beverly Farms, MA 01915 978-927-1064 | gus.org

GUS TRIVIA! 1

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for our All-Class Reunion and 40th Celebration!

Details at www.gus.org/40-forward

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Answers at www.gus.org/40-forward Across 1 Teacher who started teaching kindergarten in 1988 4 Thanksgiving tradition 7 Summer academic enrichment program 8 Percent of students whose classes utilize the Nature Trail 9 Spring all-school celebration 11 Trust and 13 Scottish location for Highland Games 14 Holiday gifts for teachers 17 Anniversary of GUS

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4th grade project Builders of the first GUS playground 8th grade overnight destination Administrator and teacher who literally/figuratively ‘opened doors’ for kids + their families 25 Eighth grade project Down 2 4th grade overnight destination 3 Scottish clan 5 Last third of motto 6 Largest number grades GUS ever had

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First third of motto First head of school “A glen is said to be a ...”

Legions of grads credit her with their writing ability Original name of GUS property 3rd grade project Longest serving head of school Original product grown in greenhouse Beloved math teacher who favored ear muffs