As Hathaway Brown marks its 140th anniversary, we look back in
GRATITUDE & CELEBRATION
his year, Hathaway Brown proudly celebrates its 140th anniversary. The spark that inspired our Five Founding Girls to champion for better educational opportunities and first lit the HB lamp of learning in 1876 has now burned enthusiastically through three separate centuries. To commemorate the occasion, we pored through the archives, gathered historical tidbits, and created a compendium of memories for you to enjoy. (See Lasting Legacy, page 14) This year also marks the end of my HB tenure, and this is the final letter I’ll write to you as Head of School. After having the privilege of leading this incredible school for the past three decades, it’s hard to believe that I officially will be “graduating” alongside the Class of 2016 in June. I’ve spent nearly half of my life at HB. I am humbled by the trust you have placed in me all these years and I am beyond grateful for the experience. An HB education is designed, in the words of our mission statement, to inspire girls to achieve their utmost potential and rise boldly to the challenges of their times. I decided a long time ago that if that was what we were going to ask our students to do, it was only right for me to make the same demands of myself. I would not be who I am today without HB. This school community of students, parents, alumnae, faculty, administrators, and trustees has helped me to conjure up all sorts of new and exciting (and sometimes crazy, seemingly unrealistic) ideas and actually make them a reality. For that, I sincerely cannot thank you enough. Nothing that has been accomplished at HB during my tenure has been done by one person alone. It was all of us, working together, who reimagined the very essence of school. We knew that the best way for girls to learn to navigate the world they’d be entering would be to put them directly in it. And through our signature Institute for 21st Century Education, we’ve been able to do just that. Since the establishment of the Science Research & Engineering Program in 1998, we’ve added 10 additional Centers to the Institute, and we’re giving girls chances to delve deeply into one or more areas of interest, including global citizenship, writing, business, leadership development, civic engagement, and creative arts. No other high school in the country allows students to design their own education in this way, nor does anyone else
offer the type of passion-producing experiential opportunities that HB girls have at their fingertips. So many of you have embraced the ideals of lifelong learning that define HB, and you’ve helped us to continually improve and further extend our city of learning. While our bucolic Shaker Heights setting has not changed since 1927, HB’s campus is dramatically different from the way it was when I arrived here in 1987. Through dozens of campaigns, we’ve added entirely new facilities and carefully preserved the stately historic architecture that is so much a part of our identity. From the moment of our founding, we’ve envisioned HB as an educational environment unlike any other, and it is your philosophical and philanthropic support that continues to make it all happen. When you find yourself in the position I find myself in now (both as an English teacher about to close a missive, and as a man about to retire from the best job anyone could ever have), there’s an overwhelming desire to arrive at a grand conclusion; to tie everything up with a bow. But the HB story is an exquisite openended narrative. It began well before my time and it will continue well after. So this is not in any way an ending. As we celebrate our 140th anniversary and welcome Fran Bisselle as our 14th Head of School, we’re embarking on an exciting new chapter in the life of HB. I can’t wait to see what’s in store. With great respect and pride, I raise a toast to my adoptive alma mater on the occasion of her milestone birthday, and I wish her well as we both head off into that thrilling future, where so many great possibilities are yet to be encountered. To help guide my path, I’m turning for inspiration—as I always have—to my old friend William Shakespeare, who reminds us, “We know what we are, but know not what we may be.” With boundless appreciation,
PHOTO BY JAMES DOUGLAS STUDIO
T
looking ahead
PHOTO BY SHANNON AHLSTRAND
School Staycation
HB’s summer programming includes something fun for everyone At Hathaway Brown, campers from preschool-age through college have an array of options to create their own summer adventures filled with fun, learning, and memories to last a lifetime. This year, the flagship Broad Horizons day camp welcomes preschoolers through fifth graders, while the all-new Broader Horizons day camp will give girls entering grades six through eight opportunities to try exciting activities including Whirly Ball, laser tag, and zip lining, to name a few. Hathaway Brown is known for offering a host of athletics, academic, and adventure programs each June, July, and August, many of which are coed, and this summer is no exception. With dozens of programs to choose from, whether your camper is interested in cake decorating, stand-up paddle boarding, foreign languages, fossils, or anything in between, HB’s got it covered.
Especially for this summer, thanks to the upcoming Presidential election and the fact that Cleveland will host the Republican National Convention in July, Election Camps will be offered for middle and high school students interested in learning more about America’s political process. With thoughtful instruction, special activities, speakers, and more, these camps are sure to enlighten the next generation of voters. For your budding performer, Hathaway Brown Theatre Institute will again provide top-notch training opportunities in drama, dance, and music. Participants have the chance to earn roles in full-scale productions, and they have a great time. HB offers flexible scheduling options to meet busy families’ needs. Visit www.hb.edu/summer or call 216.320.8796 ext. 7173 to learn more and register today.
... FROM THE EDITOR
In battleground Ohio, it’s hard to ignore any Presidential election. The eyes of the nation have been focused on the Buckeye State this year especially, as Gov. John Kasich took to debate and town hall stages to campaign for a shot at the Oval Office. And in late July, untold numbers of politicians, political watchdogs, members of the media, students, and visitors from around the country and across the globe will descend upon Cleveland for four days for the Republican National Convention. It’s a thrilling time in Northeast Ohio, and already full-time Republican Party staffers have relocated to the region to make preparations for the convention and all that it entails. Construction in the city is at an all-time high, as hotels and office spaces are being built, Public Square is getting a fresh facelift, and roadways and bridges are being rerouted and repaved. The convention presents a terrific chance for locals to show off all of the progress that’s been made here in the last decade or so. The Cleveland 2016 Host Committee is calling upon residents to volunteer as greeters and ambassadors for our guests. Corporate and individual citizens are making their homes and businesses available for delegations and event planners to use before, during, and after the convention, and transportation providers are expanding their offerings. Area restaurants, attractions, and cultural organizations are preparing for the influx of visitors as well, adding hours and personnel in anticipation. At Hathaway Brown, we’re watching all of this very closely and finding ways for our community to be involved in the excitement. Faculty and students of voting age have been encouraged to explore summer volunteer and internship opportunities, both with the Republican Party-affiliated Committee on Arrangements and with the non-partisan Host Committee. Teachers throughout all school divisions are focusing on our democracy, and students are learning about the candidates and holding mock elections. We’re also hosting two unique Election Camps for middle and high school students this summer. Programs will feature coursework, politically-themed special activities, and face time with government officials and community leaders. Numerous HB families and alumnae are affiliated with convention planning in a variety of
ways, and we’re talking with them about the experience. We’re also looking forward to seeing HB alumnae who are now working for national media outlets when they come home to cover the proceedings July 18-21. Several HB graduates are elected officials or hold government jobs, and we hope even more of our students become enthusiastic about the process and set their sights on running for office. As I write this, it’s anybody’s guess who will be the eventual Republican nominee for President, and it will be interesting to witness all of the twists and turns still to come along the campaign trail. No matter your political leanings, it’s easy to see what a boon this convention is to Cleveland, and what a great opportunity it presents for learning and engagement.
We’d love to hear from you! Share your thoughts with HB. Letters to the editor may be sent to publications@hb.edu or to the school’s mailing address. We welcome feedback through our social media channels as well. Find us on Facebook under Hathaway Brown School or send us a tweet at @HathawayBrown.
PHOTO BY SHANNON AHLSTRAND
conventional wisdom
Kathleen Osborne Editor Vanessa Butler Art Director
This past summer I successfully summited the Matterhorn, a mountain in the town of Zermatt, Switzerland. I had spent a semester of my sophomore year studying and climbing there, and decided to return two years later to climb it with two of my semester-abroad classmates. I need to climb like I need to breathe. The moment when I’m in between reaching for one rock and letting go of another, everything comes into focus. I climb because that moment lets me see the aspects of my life that are important, and those that are not. It cleanses me of everything that is not utterly necessary and significant. When I finally manage to reach the top, I’ve already begun to envision my next goal, and I find strength in myself that I didn’t know I had. – Clara Butler ’16
Reena S. Goodwin Digital Editor Amanda Seifert Associate Editor
administrative team: William Christ Head of School
Sue Sadler Assoc. Head of School & Director of Upper School
Sarah Johnston Assoc. Head for Enrollment Management
Sharon Baker Director of Middle School Director of Early Childhood
Mary Rainsberger Director of Advancement
Katherine Zopatti Director of Primary School
alumnae relations team: Dana Lovelace Capers ’86 Director of Alumnae Relations
Erin Reid Advancement Coordinator
19600 North Park Boulevard Shaker Heights, Ohio 44122 216.320.8785 If you’d like to cancel delivery of HB magazine, please email publications@hb.edu.
QUOTABLE
Parents: If your daughter is not receiving this magazine at her permanent address, please notify publications@hb.edu so that it may be mailed directly to her.
HB
Jane Brown
3
index
alumnae featured in this issue Nancy Swegler Anthony ’71 – Alumnae Weekend 2016, pg. 51 Morgan Austin ’15 – Up for Debate, pg. 8 Alyssa Bryan ’13 – National Notice, pg. 11 Caroline Campbell ’98 – National Notice, pg. 11 Lily Datta ’90 – Annual Fund Update, pg. 76 Athena Haloua ’14 – Minding Their Business, pg. 40 Reem Rahim Hassani ’84 – Minding Their Business, pg. 40 Amy Hollinger ’05 – National Notice, pg. 11 Ruth Strong Hudson ’27 – Lasting Legacy, pg. 14 Genevieve Mathieson Kilmer ’96 – National Notice, pg. 11 Catherine Koch ’10 – Formula for Success, pg. 6 Laney Kuenzel ’08 – National Notice, pg. 11 Torrey McMillan ’90 – Minding Their Business, pg. 40 Ruth Crofut Needham ’31 – Lasting Legacy, pg. 14 Amy Saltzman Porter ’01 – Formula for Success, pg. 6 Anne Hammerstrom Stark ’01 – Formula for Success, pg. 6 Katherine Barr Hollingsworth ’96 – Alumnae Weekend 2016, pg. 51 Dorothy Stearns Hornickel ’17 – Change on the Horizon, pg. 24 Libby Seidel Stineman ’03 – Teaching in Concert, pg. 39 Minding Their Business, pg. 40; Adelaide Cobb Ward ’51 – Alumnae Weekend 2016, pg. 51 Laura Main Webster ’91 – Teaching in Concert, pg. 39
contributors If you’d like to become a contributor to HB magazine, please email kosborne@hb.edu or call 216.320.8785.
Shannon Ahlstrand Contributing Photographer
Shannon Ahlstrand is a Westlake, Ohio-based photographer who lived and worked in New York City and Washington, D.C. before moving to Greater Cleveland 10 years ago. Her diverse background includes stints in speech pathology, event planning, and engagement management. As a professional photographer, Ahlstrand brings this breadth of experience into her focus on the human experience and the relationships she builds with clients. She has traveled the world, worked with a diverse palette of personalities, and she understands the power that photography has to compel us. See more of her work on Instagram at @shannonahlstrandphoto.
Madi Brady ’16
Minding Their Business – page 40
Hathaway Brown senior Madi Brady is enrolled in the school’s Center for Business & Finance and the Global Scholars program, which is facilitated by the Center for Global Citizenship. During her time at HB, she has studied international relations, traveled to Cambodia, and she now is a member of the executive team that operates the Hath Caff, a student-run café housed in the all-new Upper School Learning Commons. In addition to her regular coursework, she is writing a thesis paper that focuses on the pollution impact of the Olympics, which she will present to a panel of faculty at the end of the school year. She also is a member of the senior council for Gold Key student ambassadors and she is co-chair of the 2016 Carnival raffle committee. Away from school, Madi volunteers her time at the Achievement Centers for Children and she plays tennis.
HB.edu/magazine
The contents of this publication—with the exception of Class News for privacy reasons—are posted online. To maximize your experience, we’ve made a wide array of additional content related to the featured stories available as well, including videos, photo galleries, and Internet resources.
contents Cover Story
14 Lasting Legacy As Hathaway Brown marks its 140th anniversary,
we look back in gratitude and celebration
News from North Park
9 HB Highlights Features
8 Up for Debate HB’s Speech & Debate program helps girls discover
and use their voices
12 Innovative Spaces HB unveils new IDEA Lab and Learning Commons
HB
32 Greater Than the Sum of its Parts Integrated mathematics curriculum reconfigures the traditional teaching approach as it connects concepts across fields of study
5
34 Pride of Discovery Innovative Project-Based Learning approach to
Early Childhood education keeps students involved and informed in fun new ways
40 Minding Their Business
Students gain real-world finance, operations, and work experience at the all-new Hath Caff Upper School café
Locker Room
30 Leading the Charge
Athlete Leadership Program strengthens Blazer culture
31 The Year in Review Recap of Blazer Fall and Winter Athletics Class Notes
50 42 42 75 76
Photos from Alumnae Weekend 2015 A Note from the Alumnae Office Alumnae News Brides, Babies, Memorials Annual Fund Update
pg.
14
See anyone or anything you recognize? Tell us about it: Letters to the Editor may be sent to publications@hb.edu or to the school’s mailing address.
The SREP leadership team helped me figure out how to choose a research endeavor that was tied to a family friend’s illness and thereby begin to understand the bench-to-bedside trajectory. The experience no doubt shaped my pursuit of training in clinical medicine and also my academic training in anthropology; though I ended up being a medical doctor and a social scientist rather than a bench scientist, the development of my research inquiry skills originated with the SREP. Amy Saltzman Porter HB ’01, AB PRINCETON UNIVERSITY; MD/PH.D. HARVARD UNIVERSITY; PEDIATRICS RESIDENT, CLEVELAND CLINIC
Working in a Cleveland Clinic lab in high school exposed me to the excitement of scientific discovery and laid the foundation for me to develop a true passion for research. I attribute so much of what I have done and the opportunities I have been afforded to the SREP program. It helped me reach my highest goals and set me on the path I’m on today. Catherine Koch HB ’10, BS MIT; MARSHALL SCHOLAR; MSc OXFORD UNIVERSITY; MD/PHD CANDIDATE AT HARVARD MEDICAL SCHOOL AND MIT
While other girls had ballet or violin or another traditional extracurricular activity that they excelled at, mine was being able to investigate phenomena in a research setting. There is probably no other high school in the world where I would have been able to realize my potential. Because I was not the perfect student with exceptional grades, without the SREP, quite frankly I probably would have fallen through the cracks elsewhere. Kyra Sedransk Campbell HB ’03, BS MIT; PH.D. UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE; U.S. PATENT-HOLDER FOR AN ARTIFICIAL MITRAL HEART VALVE; ROYAL SOCIETY-EPSRC DOROTHY HODGKIN RESEARCH FELLOW AT IMPERIAL COLLEGE, LONDON
Catherine Areklett ’17 analyzes the chiral properties of liquid crystals in the Physics Department at CWRU. PHOTOS BY JASON MILLER
HB 7
Formula for Success
HB’s signature Science Research & Engineering Program unlocks high school girls’ innate potential By opening the doors to laboratories that students otherwise might not be able to enter until college or graduate school, the Science Research & Engineering Program at Hathaway Brown is bridging the divide between the traditional high school curriculum and the real world. Since 1998, more than 500 girls have participated in the SREP, earning placements in innovative research settings, working directly with practicing scientists, contributing to cutting-edge research in numerous fields, authoring and co-authoring scholarly articles published by leading scientific journals, and winning unparalleled recognition in prestigious national and international awards competitions. HB is proud to partner with such outstanding institutions as Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals, the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, and NASA Glenn Research Center in this pioneering and well-regarded initiative.
F
rom Knitting to Young Politicians, there are dozens of extracurricular clubs and activities designed to appeal to Hathaway Brown Upper School girls’ diverse interests. One of the most popular programs is Speech & Debate, which has more than 60 participants in grades 9-12. In terms of size and achievements earned, HB has one of the strongest teams in the state.
Habig was tapped by Head of School Bill Christ to establish the Speech & Debate program at HB in 2005. He had been a policy debater himself at Saint Ignatius High School and Case Western Reserve University, and he began coaching at SIHS when he was a freshman in college until he joined the faculty at HB. In addition to overseeing this successful program, Habig is an eighth-grade history teacher, chair of the Middle School history department, and director of HB’s summer programs. He also holds the Ann Corlett Ford Chair in History. With a regular season that includes one- or two-day tournaments each weekend from October through January, state and national tournaments in February and March, and after-school practices for 13 different events, supervising the Speech & Debate program is quite a commitment. Habig thoroughly enjoys it though, and says he wouldn’t have it any other way. “I know how important this activity was to my own intellectual development, and I want to give that same experience to others,” he says.
Program participants have racked up several notable accomplishments in recent years. In 2013, three HB students advanced to the finals of the International Public Policy Forum after engaging in written and oral debates against schools from more than 25 countries and 30 different U.S. states. More than 20 girls have qualified for the state tournament for the last three years. HB has had students advance into the state semifinals in Extemporaneous Speaking for three consecutive years, and into the finals of Congressional Debate for four consecutive years at the Ohio High School Speech League state tournament. In 2015, Morgan Austin ’15 advanced to the final round of Congressional Debate at the National Speech & Debate tournament in Birmingham, Ala. In February, four HB debaters qualified for the 2016 National Speech & Debate Association competition, which will take place in Salt Lake City this June. Isha Lele ’18 (who qualified for the second consecutive year), will represent the school in Congressional Debate. The team of Julia Sabik ’17 and Margaret Broihier ’17 will participate in Policy Debate competition, and Gigi Protasiewicz ’17 will compete in Lincoln-Douglas Debate. Gigi was the undefeated debater at the National Qualifiers, and she had the opportunity to debate in front of a live audience in the High School Debate Championship at The City Club of Cleveland in March, where she finished victorious.
PHOTOS BY SHANNON AHLSTRAND
Now in its 11th year, HB’s Speech & Debate team recently was designated a member of the “200 Club” by the National Forensics League. According to program advisor Jason Habig, “Every time an HB student competes in a speech or debate event—win or lose—she earns points for herself and for the school. These points advance the student into different levels of accomplishment. HB is one of only 13 schools in Ohio to have more than 200 ‘members and degrees’ and most of the other schools with the designation are large public schools that have many more total students competing. In the history of our program, HB students have earned more than 42,000 points, and since you earn three points for losing a debate and six points for winning it, that gives you a sense of how much speaking and debating has been going on at HB for the last decade.”
Speech & Debate is set up at HB in such a way as to allow every student to compete at the level to which she is able. Some students take part in tournaments only a few times a year, and others compete each and every week during the season. “It is a perfect activity for anyone who wants to do something competitive, but isn’t necessarily into athletics,” Habig says. “It is also a great way for students to develop specific skills, including research skills, public speaking skills, and critical thinking skills. To me, though, the biggest benefits of doing Speech & Debate are those that are less obvious. I find that Speech & Debate teaches students to be more organized, to be better listeners, and to be more concise in their writing and speaking.”
Z O E S O LT ’ 1 7 , S E L F - P O R T R A I T
Making HerStory Each March, fourth-grade students commemorate Women’s History Month by completing indepth projects on Notable Women, for which they research and spotlight great female leaders throughout history. In a new twist to this tradition, teachers have encouraged the girls to reach out to the women who are helping to shape the world we live in today. Students have done this with typical HB girl confidence and panache—and those Notable Women are reaching right back.
And Kahjin Yap ’24, fascinated by fashion, wrote to iconic American designer Eileen Fisher, who was so taken by her letter that she invited our HB correspondent and her dad to spend a day at her company headquarters in Irvington, NY. While she was there, Kahjin asked lots of questions, toured the lab store, and presented her Notable Woman with a handmade colorful collage of Eileen Fisher quotations that she had found in news stories. “After meeting Eileen, everything that I’ve read about her now really makes sense,” Kahjin says. “It has also inspired me to work harder and stay passionate to my goals, even when things are tough. ... One of my favorite quotes from Eileen is, ‘Life-fulfilling work is never about the money. When you feel the passion for something, you instinctively find ways to nurture it.’”
Artistic Accolades Hathaway Brown students fared extremely well in the 2016 regional Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. In the Writing portion of the competition, HB Upper School girls set a new school record, earning 132 Gold Key, Silver Key, and Honorable Mention designations. This number represents more than half of all winning work submitted by ninth through 12th-grade students in Northeast Ohio this year. HB students were awarded 19 Gold Keys, 46 Silver Keys, and 67 Honorable Mentions, and several students were recognized multiple times in multiple writing categories, including poetry, memoirs, critical essays, and fiction. In the Art portion of the competition, 24 HB students earned 30 awards for their work in photography, printmaking, mixed media, illustration, ceramics, and architecture. The Cuyahoga County Regional Scholastic Art and Writing Awards program is overseen by the Cleveland Institute of Art, and the winning work in all categories was displayed in the new Reinberger Gallery at CIA in January. In March, three HB students were awarded national medals for their work: Lina Ghosh ’17 (American Voices Medal/Personal Essay), Kacey Gill ’16 (Gold Medal/Personal Essay); and Catherine Areklett ’17 (Silver Medal/Critical Essay).
Stay Connected
Shortly before Thanksgiving, HB students, parents, faculty, staff, and administrators “Stuffed the Bus” to help families in need. Members of the Upper School Senate were honored to deliver an impressive 5,320 pounds of donated nonperishable items to the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, which provided 3,000 meals to the hungry during the holiday season. We are so grateful for the kindness of our entire school family, and for the support of Precious Cargo, which contributed the use of a school bus for this important initiative.
In August, Hathaway Brown unveiled HBlog, the school’s new platform for stories from students, staff, faculty, community members, and beyond. HBlog is your source for faculty interviews and insights, details about interesting events and programs, and insider information about school culture and traditions. Bookmark hb.edu/blog and follow HB on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest for regular updates and glimpses into school life.
HB
RAEA PALMIERI ’17, SCHOLASTIC SILVER KEY
For example, Tori Margulies ’24 contacted Indira Nooyi, the CEO of Pepsi Co. who grew up in India and shared an important leadership lesson: “While I did have to adjust to life in America when I came here for school and work, I learned it was also important for me to be myself.”
9
PHOTO BY JASON MILLER
MERIT ROLL Ten Hathaway Brown seniors have been chosen as National Merit Finalists for their high scores on the preliminary SAT, which is double or more than double the number of Finalists at any other CCIS school. Less than one percent of high school seniors across the country are part of this prestigious list. HB’s 2016 National Merit Finalists are Caroline Jobson, Anna Lietman, Maaryah Malik, Isabella Nilsson, Kavya Ravichandran, Kelsey Rich, McKenna Ritter, Aarathi Sahadevan, Nitya Thakore, and Claire Xu. Congratulations also are in order for the seven members of the Hathaway Brown Class of 2016 who received Letters of Commendation in recognition of their outstanding academic promise, based on their Preliminary Scholastic Achievement Test scores. This year’s HB National Merit Commended Students are Olivia Asmar, Kacey Gill, Olivia Leslie, Alexandra Margulies, Sophia Richards, Evie Schumann, and Molly Sharpe. To learn more about the National Merit Scholarship Program, visit www.nationalmerit.org.
Helping Hands Honored HB’s Middle School GROW (Girls Reaching Others Worldwide) Foundation members were nominated for Volunteer Group of the Year at New Avenues to Independence, Inc. and invited to be guests of honor at the community service organization’s holiday ball. Created in 2000, GROW inspires girls to develop an early interest in Girls Reaching Others Worldwide philanthropy. The foundation’s goal is to encourage and support learning in connection with service. Members meet regularly throughout the school year to raise money and award grants to organizations and institutions in the Greater Cleveland area and beyond.
G. R .O.W.
HIGH HONORS HB seniors Olivia Asmar, Halle Leneghan, and Kavya Ravichandran were named semifinalists in the prestigious 2015 Siemens Competition in Math, Science and Technology for their multiyear original research projects completed through the school’s signature Science Research & Engineering Program. These three students are the only Siemens competition semifinalists from Northeast Ohio. Kavya has worked for four years on her research in the Case Western Reserve University Department of Biomedical Engineering. The research she submitted to Siemens is on the topic of “A Nanomedical Approach for Targeted Thrombolysis,” focused on rapid thrombolysis achieved through site-targeted delivery of treatment. Halle and Olivia worked as a team at NASA Glenn Research Center for the past four years on “The Effect of 1.5 Years of Space Exposure on the Optical Properties of Spacecraft Polymers.” The samples, analyzed for total and diffuse reflectance and transmittance, had been exposed to increased solar radiation while mounted on the exterior of the International Space Station. The analyses conducted by Olivia and Halle are for use by NASA and private companies such as Space X as they design long-duration spacecraft. Kavya also was named one of 40 finalists in the country in the Society for Science and the Public’s Intel Science Talent Search competition. She is the only student in the state to be recognized by both the Siemens Foundation Competition and Intel STS for her work this school year. The Intel STS is one of the nation’s most prestigious math and science competitions and rewards rigorous original research conducted by high school seniors. Kavya has been recognized for her work in Case Western Reserve University’s Department of Biomedical Engineering, where she is helping to develop a targeted therapy for heart attack, stroke, and other vascular diseases. She worked in the laboratory of Dr. Anirban Sen Gupta under the mentorship of post-doctoral fellow Dr. Christa Pawlowski. In March, Kavya traveled to Washington, D. C. for additional judging. While she was there she had an opportunity to visit the White House, and at a special gala awards ceremony headlined by Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson, she recieved a Third Place Medal of Distinction and a $35,000 prize. This is the highest honor ever to be earned by an HB student at Intel STS.
NATIONAL NOTICE Five members of the Hathaway Brown Class of 2016 are among the candidates under consideration for the 2016 U.S. Presidential Scholars program. Kavya Ravichandran, Kelsey Rich, Aarathi Sahadevan, and Nitya Thakore have been selected as nominees for their outstanding academic achievement, and Isabella Nilsson has been nominated based on her accomplishments in creative writing. Participation in this program is by invitation only. Students do not apply individually to the program, nor do their schools nominate them. Kavya, Kelsey, Aarathi, and Nitya were identified for the program based on their high ACT and SAT scores, and Isabella was nominated by the National YoungArts Foundation after excelling in the organization’s creative writing curriculum during National YoungArts Week, which took place in Miami in January.
Established in 1964, the United States Presidential Scholars Program was created by Executive Order of the President to recognize and honor some of our nation’s most distinguished students graduating from high school. The Scholars represent “excellence in education and the promise of greatness in young people.” Hathaway Brown is proud to be the alma mater of five U.S. Presidential Scholars: Alyssa Bryan ’13, Laney Kuenzel ’08, Amy Hollinger ’05, Caroline Campbell ’98, and Genevieve Mathieson Kilmer ’96.
HB
These students now have the opportunity to be among a small number of American high school seniors who are named Presidential Scholars. Of the pool of roughly 4,000 candidates, approximately 800 students will be named semifinalists, at which point the U.S. Presidential Scholars Commission will further review the students’ qualifications and up to 161 will be named U.S. Presidential Scholars. All Scholars are honored for their accomplishments through the National Recognition Program, held in June in Washington, D.C. The U.S. Presidential Scholars are guests of the U.S. Department
of Education, and they enjoy an all-expenses-paid trip to the nation’s capital to meet with government officials and educators. To commemorate the achievement, the Scholars will be greeted by the President of the United States, and they will receive special Presidential Scholars Medallions at a ceremony sponsored by the White House.
11
PHOTOS BY KEVIN REEVES
Shakespearean Storm On February 19 and 20, Upper School students staged a reimagined version of The Tempest, giving the classic play by William Shakespeare a futuristic twist. Rather than taking place on an island after a shipwreck, the action happened on a faraway planet as the stars twinkled above HB’s four-story glass-enclosed atrium. The show was dedicated to our own resident Shakespeare scholar, Head of School Bill Christ.
MAIN PHOTO BY KEITH BERR;
TOP LEFT BY SHANNON AHLSTRAND
innovative spaces HB unveils new IDEA Lab and Learning Commons
W
BY R E E NA S . G O ODW I N
hen it comes to innovation in education, the writing is on the wall—literally—at Hathaway Brown. In the fall of 2015, the school completed a number of significant updates to its facility, including the construction of a year-round turf playing field, IDEA Laboratory, and Upper School Learning Commons. Planning for these spaces began as far back as four years ago, and construction was completed this year thanks to the foresight of the Board of Trustees and the generosity of donors, parents, alumnae, and other friends of the school.
BOT TOM RIGHT BY KEITH BERR; CENTER INSET BY SHANNON AHLSTRAND
It’s an effort that the school has made to ensure that students partake in “collaborative and connective learning, as opposed to learning in isolation,” explains Sue Sadler, Associate Head of School and Director of HB’s Upper School. More recently, too, Upper Schoolers enrolled in the school’s Center for Business & Finance opened a completely studentrun cafe in the Learning Commons called the Hath Caff (read more in Minding Their Business on page 40). “It’s giving girls a way to engage in entrepreneurial thinking for years to come, says Sadler. “These are the same Business & Finance students who also are thinking about how they can use the IDEA Lab to manufacture a product that they could market and sell.” The IDEA Lab—whose acronym stands for Innovation, Design, Engineering, and Art—is a hub intended to spark innovative thinking and encourage students to imagine, design, and build. The lab is equipped with the latest software, hardware, and fabrication tools. It features 2D and 3D computer controlled machines, including 3D printers, a laser cutter, a mill, a router and more, all housed in a cohesive, safe, and natural learning environment within the building’s Primary School. From
Using the technology in the IDEA Lab, studying together in the Learning Commons, and engaging with customers in the Hath Caff all give students valuable real-world skills and experiences. “This transforms what students are learning in school into a potential life activity,” Sadler says. “The girls can translate what they’re doing here into any kind of pursuit.” The impetus for the completion of these enhanced learning spaces on campus was the Board of Trustees’ approval of HB’s new Strategic Plan, which went into effect in January 2015. Among the directives outlined in that plan was Strategy #4: Optimize Our Campus for 21st-Century Learning. Modernizing these physical spaces enhances and supports the school’s educational mission and programs, and faculty and students have access to comfortable and inspiring settings that help them to perform at their best. The construction upgrades have already improved and enriched the learning environment and student outcomes by maximizing interdisciplinary collaboration among departments and divisions, and energizing and showcasing the spirit of innovation for which HB is known. “We were already teaching and learning this way,” says Sadler. “Now the facility really embodies the philosophy.”
HB
On any given school day, up to 70 students gather around Learning Commons workstations, which were designed with teamwork in mind. In this reimagination of the Martha Frohring Geisel Library on the second floor of HB’s Classic Building, bookshelves have been lowered so that the space feels more inviting, moveable furniture can be staged for individual or group learning, and tables and wall space nearby are covered in special paint that allows them to be written on with dry-erase markers so students can really visualize their notes and ideas.
toddlers to teenagers, students across all disciplines have utilized the space in inventive ways, inspiring them to consider careers in science and in engineering.
13
Compiled by Amanda Seifert
As Hathaway Brown marks its
140 ANNIVERSARY th
we look back in gratitude & celebration
it all began in a highly unlikely place: the all-boys Brooks Military School in downtown
How proud they would be—those early students, teachers, and supporters of the institution that would become Hathaway Brown—if they could see us today. We are abundantly grateful for the incredible legacy of education, empowerment, and progress for young women that they first established in 1876.
HB
Cleveland, 140 years ago. At the time, quality education for girls was practically nonexistent. After what likely took some serious convincing, the principal of Brooks agreed to allow Dolly Glasser, Grace Fay Hooker, Clara M. Lyon, Carrie M. Smith, and Carrie A. Tisdale to take classes there in the afternoons, once the boys had gone home for the day. This seemingly small gesture led to the establishment of a separate all-girls school the following year.
15
DID YOU KNOW? In 1894, a school sophomore became the first HB student to receive an alumnae scholarship to complete her studies
DID YOU KNOW? The first edition of Hathaway Brown’s yearbook, Specularia, was printed in 1893 The Hathaway Brown Alumnae Association was established in 1900 The first HB Magazine, then known as The Hathaway-Brown Magazine and published by the Alumnae Association, was printed in 1906 and was sold for 50 cents per copy
1876—Late 1800s
1910s
Just 11 years after the end of the Civil War, a school dedicated solely to the education of girls is established in Cleveland, Ohio. The Brooks School for Young Ladies and Misses serves students in three divisions: ages 7-11 (Preparatory), 11-15 (Intermediate), and 16-20 (Collegiate).
As the school continues to grow, so do the extracurricular activities available to students. Numerous clubs and interest groups become increasingly popular, including basketball, mandolin, theatre, and dance.
Over the next decade or so, the school will be sold, move locations, and change names a number of times, due in large part to the fact that headmistresses left work after being married, as was customary during the era. One such headmistress, the much beloved Anne Hathaway Brown, leads the school from 1886 to 1890 and gives it its name. She adopts the motto that continues to direct HB’s work: Non Scholae Sed Vitae Discimus, or “We Learn Not For School, But For Life.” She also chooses HB’s school colors of brown and gold—meant to signify that the school is rooted in the earth, but reaching for the sun. When Anne Hathaway Brown marries, she sells the school to Mary Spencer, who decides not to change the name, which was hyphenated at the time (and remained that way until 1945).
Early 1900s College acceptances increase under the nine-year leadership of Cora Canfield, who was hired in 1889 by Anne Hathaway Brown to teach Latin. In 1907, the school moves from a small building on the increasingly congested and crime-ridden Euclid Avenue in Cleveland to a new, state-of-the-art building constructed a bit farther away from the bustle of downtown, on East 97th Street.
During World War I, students find many ways to volunteer and support worthy causes, including knitting for the Red Cross, which allows them to raise enough funds to support 10 orphaned French children.
1920s After several years of discussion and controversy, the East 97th Street campus closes in 1927, and Hathaway Brown relocates to its current site at 19600 North Park Boulevard in Shaker Heights. The names of previous influential heads of school Mary E. Spencer and Cora E. Canfield are engraved above the doorways that flank the main school entrance. At Miss Raymond’s insistence, the school motto also is engraved on the building’s façade, as it had been at HB’s former location. At the time of the move, Shaker Heights is considered to be “out in the country”—a great distance from downtown Cleveland. Although it is a somewhat risky move, Shaker Heights developers Oris and Mantis Van Sweringen convince school officials to bring HB to this new, more rural setting by donating the land as a gift. Nearly 70 families and friends of the school donate funds in a capital campaign that helps to make the move a reality. Mary Raymond now has a brand new facility where she can expand upon her progressive ideas for educating girls.
1930s DID YOU KNOW? HB’s oldest living alumna is a member of the Class of 1931
Mary Raymond shepherds the school through the Great Depression, aided by faculty who agree to salary cuts. The school perseveres, and students are encouraged to involve themselves in the international peace movement. May Day, already a longstanding HB tradition, is celebrated in 1933 with the theme “How to Down the Depression.” After 40 years at HB—27 of them spent as headmistress—Mary Raymond retires in 1938. A young, highly educated teacher named Anne Cutter Coburn is hired to succeed her, embarking on three decades at the school’s helm.
HB T H R O U G H T H E D E C A D E S
HB
Miss Spencer never marries, and as the school’s impressive leader for 12 years, she increases HB’s stature in the community and provides much needed continuity.
Mary E. Raymond, a highly respected Hathaway Brown English teacher since 1898, begins a lengthy, celebrated tenure as headmistress after the sudden death of Cora Canfield in 1911.
17
1940s
1950s
College acceptance is becoming more competitive, and Miss Coburn raises academic standards and prioritizes college preparation. Since she has only a very small administrative team, Miss Coburn essentially acts not only as Head of School, but she also oversees admission, college counseling, finance, alumnae relations, and fund-raising initiatives.
With the Cold War raging, HB students are continually encouraged to think on a broad, international scale and to be educated about world issues. They study such topics as communism, even though doing so is considered taboo at the time. This is due in part to Miss Coburn’s passion for international law and foreign policy. She emphasizes for students how fortunate they are to have the freedom of speech that is denied to their European counterparts.
World War II greatly affects HB students and faculty members, all of whom cut costs and make sacrifices as necessary. Students volunteer where possible, including at local hospitals, helping in the midst of a nursing shortage.
DID YOU KNOW? Hathaway Brown’s Blazer athletes have earned numerous tournament trophies through the years, including 15 team regional and 5 individual state championship crowns
See anyone or anything you recognize? Tell us about it: Letters to the Editor may be sent to publications@hb.edu or to the school’s mailing address.
1960s Against the backdrop of much political turmoil in the United States and abroad, Miss Coburn rules with a decidedly conservative viewpoint. Nevertheless, students are urged to be worldly thinkers. A student exchange program is created, and 1966 marks the first year an African-American student enrolls at Hathaway Brown.
Change and transition abound, with new heads of school installed every few years. Students demand strengthened curricular and extracurricular offerings, and as a result, they begin to have opportunities for discussing more controversial political topics, and they are able to focus on specific areas of academic interest, and be further challenged intellectually. Title IX is passed in 1972, paving the way for the establishment of girls’ athletic conferences and further formalizing sports and physical education programs for young women at HB and in schools across the United States. Some established school traditions begin to be re-examined. As of the mid-1970s, May Day is no longer celebrated and May Queens are no longer named.
HB
Environmentally charged events of the ’60s include the defeated Clark Freeway proposal, which would have created an eight-lane highway through Shaker Heights, close to the north end of HB’s campus. The infamous fire on the Cuyahoga River in 1969 moves students at HB, Laurel, Hawken, and University School to collect 13,000 signatures on a petition and present it to the U.S. Congress Committee on Public Works in Washington, D.C.
1970s
19
Anne Cutter Coburn’s tenure at HB ends upon her retirement in 1968. The following year, the Upper School demerit system is retired as well.
DID YOU KNOW? HB’s current Primary School building — then called Raymond Hall — housed boarding students until 1971
HB T H R O U G H T H E D E C A D E S
1980s The school focuses on developing girls’ self-confidence and giving them the intellectual tools to succeed in professional life. Enrollment hovers around 400 students and the endowment reaches $5.1 million. A new era in HB athletics is heralded with the completion of the new gym, and interscholastic competition is strong in field hockey, tennis, volleyball, basketball, lacrosse, and softball. Bill Christ is hired in 1987 to lead the school, beginning a generative tenure that will span 29 years.
1990s Under Mr. Christ’s leadership, sweeping changes are implemented and the school continues to advance in its facilities, academic offerings, and finances. The Prime Link building is completed in 1991, ensuring that all four divisions of the school will remain on one campus. By 1998, an ambitious 10-year, $50 million capital campaign is launched, and the goal ultimately is reached, then surpassed by $12 million. Service learning and multicultural programs are expanded, along with programs in foreign languages and the arts and sciences.
2000s The transformational construction of the Jewett-Brown Academic Center is completed in 2001, adding a new four-story atrium to the center of campus, and the Carol and John Butler Aquatic Center is opened shortly thereafter. The groundbreaking signature Institute for 21st Century Education is created, ensuring experiential learning opportunities for students both within and well beyond HB’s Upper School classrooms. The Institute is a constellation of sophisticated real-world programs emanating from 11 distinct Centers: The Aspire Program, the Center for Business & Finance, the Center for Civic Engagement, the Center for the Creative Arts, the Center for Global Citizenship, the Center for Leadership & Well-Being, the Center for Multicultural Affairs, the Osborne Writing Center, the Science Research & Engineering Program, the Center for Sustainability, and the Center for Technology & Invention.
DID YOU KNOW? HB students have received 160 semifinalist and finalist designations in the prestigious Intel STS, Intel ISEF, and Siemens Competitions
HB 21
TODAY Approximately 6,145 students—generations of women—have been graduated from Hathaway Brown School since it was established in 1876. HB remains filled with an excitable energy brought about by constant innovation, and recent construction projects have included a state-of-the-art IDEA Lab, a collaborative work space dubbed the Learning Commons, a student-run café, and a new year-round turf playing field. HB stands as a proud pioneer in many facets of education for girls, and the school’s ever-evolving programming prepares students to confidently navigate the world beyond our doors. As we celebrate 140 years of Hathaway Brown, we also mark the close of Bill Christ’s remarkable tenure, and welcome another exciting era with our 14th Head of School, Dr. Mary Frances Bisselle. Learn more about HB Today on page 28. SOURCES: Learning for Life, The First 50 Years of Hathaway Brown School: 1876 to 1926, by Virginia P. Dawson; The First Hundred Years: Hathaway Brown School 1876-1976, by Ruth Crofut Needham ’31 and Ruth Strong Hudson ’27; Tradition and Transformation: A History of Educating Girls at Hathaway Brown School, 1876-2006, by Virginia P. Dawson and Mark D. Bowles
HB T H R O U G H T H E D E C A D E S
Mary A. Springer
Mary E. Salisbury
Frances Fisher
Anne Hathaway Brown
Mary E. Spencer
Cora E. Canfield
Mary E. Raymond
Help HB celebrate its 140th anniversary! Please consider making a $140 gift to the Annual Fund by using the envelope inside this issue.
CHARTING THE COURSE
Mary E. Raymond Hathaway Brown’s 7th Head of School 1911–1938
W
hen she was hired to teach English in 1898, Miss Raymond’s diminutive stature and plain dresses belied the brilliance of her intellect. Students carried her insights on Shakespeare, Chaucer, and the English Romantic poets to college, where they were often disappointed that instruction did not measure up to Miss Raymond’s standards.
Moving the school to Shaker Heights in 1927 gave Miss Raymond greater opportunity to implement her ideas on progressive education. “Our larger spaces,” she wrote, “… tend to freer methods, and developing in the students more and more the ability to take care of themselves and plan their own work and use of time.” She encouraged girls to delve into subjects that interested them and advocated letting them
experiment in a variety of fields, including science, history, music, theatre, and sports. Miss Raymond carried the school through the Depression. Even after she and her faculty accepted a 15 percent cut in their already low pay, the trustees were hardpressed to meet expenses. Through this difficult time, Miss Raymond continued to command the affection and respect of her faculty and students. When she retired at the age of 70 in 1938, she had completed 40 years at Hathaway Brown.
HB HEADS OF SCHOOL
Anne Cutter Coburn
William E. Harris
Edward McEachron
Bancroft F. Greene
Margaret Madden
H. William Christ
Mary Frances Bisselle
HB
Miss Raymond was born in 1867 in Royalston, a small village in western Massachusetts, where her family had lived for generations. She graduated from Wheaton Seminary in 1886; she then enrolled at Smith College, earning a B.S. in
1891. After receiving her B.A. in psychology at Radcliffe, Miss Raymond returned to Smith, where she received her master’s degree in philosophy in 1897.
23
Anne Cutter Coburn Hathaway Brown’s 8th Head of School 1938-1968
W
hen Anne Cutter Coburn became the head of Hathaway Brown in the fall of 1938, she set out to reverse the decline in enrollment and standards the school had experienced during the Depression. From a high of more than 400 students in 1929, enrollment had fallen to just below 300. Rejecting the ideas of progressive education championed by Miss Raymond that were now considered out of date, she insisted on more discipline, including supervised study halls. Born and raised in Weston, Mass., Miss Coburn had graduated cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Smith in 1921, earning a master’s degree in government from Radcliffe in 1924. After teaching history and English at several private schools in Massachusetts, she became principal of Miss Sayward’s School in Overbrook, Penn., where she served for eight years, until her college friend Dorothy Stearns Hornickel ’17 recommended her to Hathaway Brown’s search committee. Miss Coburn made raising academic standards, which she felt had slipped, her first priority. At the same time, she made sure the school’s finances remained sound. She abolished the separate “history/science” track, and made the curriculum the same for all students in a particular grade. Girls were placed in higher or lower sections of classes based on academic performance. Miss Coburn instituted mid-year exams and stricter grading policies, with the result that fewer students made the honor roll. French
became part of the Primary curriculum, while religion was required in the Upper School. Often a “smiley” or “frowney” face rather than a formal memo was sufficient to keep the administrative wheels of the school turning. Miss Coburn had one challenge never faced by Miss Raymond—the regulatory demands of local and state authorities. At first she saw accreditation as a threat to the independence of private schools. She did not want to submit to requirements that might compromise academic standards and the prerogative of private schools to choose who attended and what they learned. Rather than a set of arbitrary standards, such as teachers’ qualifications, number of days in the school year, facilities, and number of books in the library, she wanted Hathaway Brown judged on the scores of its students on college entrance exams, its record of college acceptances, and the strong academic records of its graduates in college. Nevertheless, one of her proudest achievements was winning accreditation by the State of Ohio in June 1961. Miss Coburn’s retirement in 1968 marked the end of the traditional girls’ school—an institution run by a powerful headmistress, dedicated female teachers, and influential female trustees and advocates. At the end of the decade, the school hired its first male head, and its first male faculty members. At about the same time, Yale and Princeton opened their doors to women, and Vassar opened its doors to men. The girls’ school universe had changed forever.
Mary E. Raymond and Anne Cutter Coburn profiles excerpted from Tradition and Transformation: A History of Educating Girls at Hathaway Brown School, 1876-2006, by Virginia P. Dawson and Mark D. Bowles
PHOTO BY JAMES DOUGLAS STUDIO
CHANGE ON THE HORIZON
L
ooking back on the last three decades, Bill Christ is overcome with an enormous sense of gratitude. “As I have said more than once, I don’t think anyone has gotten more out of a Hathaway Brown education than I have,” he told the school community in a letter announcing his impending retirement in July 2016. Mr. Christ came to HB in 1987 as a young English scholar who had been tapped as HB’s 13th Head of School. “The Board’s courage and confidence sparked an utterly transformational moment for me,” he says. “This has not been a job; here I discovered my life’s work and was summoned to a vocation that unleashed more passion and imagination than I ever knew I had.”
H. William Christ Hathaway Brown’s 13th Head of School 1987-2016 by Kathleen Osborne
A member of the Leadership Cleveland Class of 1992, Mr. Christ is a magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Washington and Lee, and he holds a master’s degree in English literature from the University of Pennsylvania. In 2005, he was designated one of 20 Outstanding Independent School Heads in the United States by Columbia University’s Klingenstein Center for Independent School Leadership. He has been actively engaged in numerous national and international educational organizations, as well as community agencies in Greater Cleveland, and he was named one of the area’s Most Interesting People by Cleveland Magazine. Under his leadership the student body and the number of full-time faculty has nearly doubled. HB has gone from a distinguished school of 479 students—mainly young women hailing from Cleveland’s east side— to an outstanding institution with a national reputation for innovation, serving 850
To fulfill HB’s potential as a world-class institution, Mr. Christ realized very early on that he would have to do more than add to the school’s rolls. Through the years, he has surrounded himself with some of the brightest minds in a variety of fields, culling from them important wisdom and best practices. “When I first got to know HB, I was filled with admiration for the quality of the school, and the history of one of Cleveland’s most long-standing academic and cultural institutions,” he says. “I also was impressed with the faculty. They were warm, very dynamic, incredibly knowledgeable and charismatic. They loved the girls in their care and they were passionate about teaching. I saw them as a powerful resource—they were the primary reason I came here. I knew immediately that we could help HB grow and aspire to become an even more impactful version of itself, and that’s just what we did.”
HB
TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERSHIP
Mr. Christ, who had been serving as a school administrator at the all-girls Agnes Irwin School in Philadelphia, arrived at HB as an energized and energizing leader—a man determined that the venerable institution would be a vanguard of education in the United States. Nearly 30 years later, his enthusiasm has not wavered.
students from 83 different cities and towns in Northeast Ohio. But that hasn’t stopped him from forming relationships with the members of the school community. Always ready to offer words of encouragement and appreciation, Mr. Christ is genuinely interested in getting to know the alumnae, students, parents, teachers, and friends of HB. In fact, a highlight of the school year is the senior celebration poem he delivers at the annual Winterfest ceremony that denotes the close of the fall term and the start of Winter Break. With his upbeat delivery and sometimes acrobatic turns of phrase, he acknowledges all of the members of the 12th grade class by name and offers humorous and poignant observations about each young woman. When he first began this tradition, there were 30 or so names he had to work into his rhyme scheme, and now that number hovers near 100. This year, after he shared his final senior poem, the Class of 2016 surprised him with a poem of their own. The girls—many of whom have known Mr. Christ since they were kindergartners or younger—all contributed memories and stories that described what he has meant to them, then invited him to be their commencement speaker.
25
Under his leadership the student body and the number of full-time faculty has nearly doubled. HB has gone from a distinguished school of 479 students—mainly young women hailing from Cleveland’s east side—to an outstanding institution with a national reputation for innovation, serving 850 students from 83 different cities and towns in Northeast Ohio. Perhaps his most notable achievement at HB’s helm is Mr. Christ’s visionary establishment of the Institute for 21st Century Education, which reimagines the traditional academic architecture and allows students to explore their passions and expand their real-world skills in a variety of disciplines. “We discovered that the best way to blow the doors off school was to combine traditional academic excellence with powerful experiential learning opportunities. That was the missing link,” he says. “Girls always have done well in school; that wasn’t the problem we were trying to solve. We wanted to give girls the opportunity to learn about the real world by putting them in the real world in a thoughtful, sophisticated way. When you create a better world for girls and women, you create a better world for everyone.” The Institute is comprised of 11 distinct Centers, running the gamut from civic engagement to business and finance. Participation in the Centers is voluntary, and those enrolled have the opportunity to earn special diploma designations not often seen on high school transcripts. One of the most popular choices for beyond-the-classroom learning is the Science Research & Engineering Program, which matches students with practicing research scientists at world-class facilities including University Hospitals, Cleveland Clinic, Case Western Reserve University, and NASA Glenn Research Center. Nearly one-third of HB high schoolers take part in the program, which gives them the chance to contribute to the kinds of
projects they normally wouldn’t be exposed to until college or even graduate school. A full 90 percent of girls in grades 9-12 also participate in the school’s Center for Global Citizenship, which immerses them in the cultures of countries around the world through innovative international curricular programs, language study, and complementary coursework. The Osborne Writing Center, which regularly brings in New York Times bestselling authors to work with students in small group settings, also is a considerable draw. The Institute has gained quite a reputation in academic circles. In the last year alone, nearly three dozen public and private schools from around the country have sent delegations to HB to study its methods. Mr. Christ’s bold, deliberate approach has been instrumental to the school’s steady advancement, even during times of broader economic turmoil. He has overseen three extraordinarily transformative capital campaigns. From 1998-2008, he championed the Vision for Leadership in the 21st Century campaign, which raised more than six times the amount that had been contributed to the school’s highest grossing campaign to that point. Since 1987, HB has exponentially expanded its footprint in the region and beyond. In brick-andmortar terms, 95,000 square feet of learning space has been added to the school’s Shaker Heights campus, with upgrades including a four-story Graham Gund-designed glass atrium at the center of it all, along with a natatorium, year-round turf playing field, and state-of-the-art design and engineering
laboratory. And the school is now enjoying its strongest endowment in history, with $53.5 million as of June 2015. At the 2016 Global Forum on Girls’ Education—which welcomed more than 900 community leaders and girls’ school educators from 23 different countries to New York City this February—the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools unveiled a brand new award named in the HB Head’s honor. Beginning next year, the H. William Christ Educator Prize will annually be given to a man or woman who has demonstrated commitment to extraordinary teaching, program design, and curricular innovation in an NCGS member school. “The Christ Educator will be an individual whose teaching efforts have been noted as innovative by his or her peers and institution,” said NCGS Executive Director Megan Murphy. “The recipient will reflect the creative excellence, cutting-edge programming, entrepreneurial teaching, and collaborative design in his or her teaching that have characterized Bill Christ’s own leadership style as the quintessential ‘educator’s educator.’” As he embarks on the final few months of his HB career, it is clear to see that it is in fact true that Bill Christ has gained a lot from his Hathaway Brown education. But the school has gained even more from his leadership.
Find additional 140th Anniversary resources at www.hb.edu/magazine.
PHOTOS BY SHANNNON AHLSTRAND
“Fran Bisselle embodies the ideals of visionary leadership, commitment to excellence, and joyful engagement that define the HB experience,” Paul Matsen, HB board president, said in his announcement. Dr. Bisselle holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Boston College; an M.A. in Liberal Studies with a concentration in
In a letter to the HB community, Dr. Bisselle said, “It is a tremendous honor to become Hathaway Brown’s 14th Head of School. HB’s 140-year commitment to high
academic achievement and to educating young women to become independent thinkers who value character and public service, and who are confident to be creative and socially conscious is closely connected to my core beliefs.” A graduate of the esteemed Klingenstein Head Fellowship program at Columbia Teacher’s College, Dr. Bisselle serves on several high-profile boards of trustees, including as a New England Association of Schools and Colleges commissioned board member for the last five years, and as a trustee for the National Association of Independent Schools—which provides services and oversight for more than 1,800 schools in the United States. She also is the currently installed president of the Vermont Independent Schools Association. One of 15 siblings with 11 sisters and with two teenaged daughters of her own, Dr. Bisselle “knows and understands girls,” Matsen says. She herself was a lifer at Merion Mercy Academy, a K-12 school for girls located outside of Philadelphia. She’s also an avid athlete who played Division I college field hockey, and she runs marathons and plays ice hockey, tennis, and golf. We look forward to Dr. Bisselle’s formal installation at HB and the fresh perspective she brings to this important role.
HB
athaway Brown’s Board of Trustees in October appointed Dr. Mary Frances Bisselle to succeed Bill Christ as HB’s Head of School, with a term of service to commence July 1, 2016. Mr. Christ is retiring after three decades of leading the school.
History from Wesleyan University; and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies with a concentration in Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment from the University of Vermont. She has served for the last nine years as Head of School at Maple Street School, a K-8 independent school in Manchester Center, Vermont. Maple Street was established by bestselling novelist and Academy Award-winning screenwriter John Irving and his wife, Janet. Dr. Bisselle took the reins at Maple Street from the school’s founding director and she ushered the school through an economic downturn and saw enrollment increase by 20 percent during her tenure. Her career has included positions as a classroom teacher, dean of students, coach, dorm parent, educational consultant, and teaching fellow. She has been a member of the faculty and administration at The Taft School in Connecticut, and she developed and redesigned the curriculum for the Master of Arts in Teaching degree at the University of Vermont. She also spearheaded the project to establish the all-girls Camp Dudley at Kiniya, an overnight camp in the Adirondacks affiliated with the 130-yearold all-boys YMCA Camp Dudley.
27
100+
OHSAA Division: II
Partnerships with Greater Cleveland organizations Faculty Members
123
1:1
16-ACRE
campus with aquatics center, turf field, IDEA lab, visual performing arts spaces, and working television studio
8:1
All Girls K–12 Co-ed Early Childhood Co-ed Infant & Toddler Center
100% of graduates attend
students of color
Established:
of HB students are awarded Financial Aid
Technology Program
33%
Student-Teacher Ratio
34%
four-year colleges
855
83
Students
1876
$53.5M
Families from Northeast Ohio communities
Endowment
FOUR DIVISIONS: Early Childhood (ages 2 ½ to 5) Primary School (K – 4) Middle School (5 – 8) Upper School (9 – 12)
HB BY THE NUMBERS
Hathaway Brown is a member of the National Association of
Independent Schools, the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools, the
Ohio Association of Independent Schools, the Cleveland Council
of Independent Schools, the Global Education Benchmark Group, and is a founding member of the World Education Alliance.
HB 29
Spotlight on Swimming The 400 Free Relay team received All-American consideration, as did Mary Motch ’16 for 100 Back, and Julia Armitage ’16 for 500 Free. Mary and Julia have committed to participate next fall in NCAA Division I swimming for the College of William and Mary and for Brown University, respectively. In addition, the team qualified for the National Interscholastic Swimming Coaches Association (NISCA) Scholar Team Gold Award for having a cumulative GPA over 3.75. Julia Armitage ’16, Olivia Leslie ’16, and Kelsey Rich ’16 qualified as Academic All Americans.
Follow all HB sports on Twitter @HBAthletics
LEADING the Charge Athlete Leadership Program Strengthens Blazer Culture
The Blazer Athletics program is about much more than playing sports. Leadership, teamwork, perseverance, discipline, and good sportsmanship are a few of the overarching values encouraged throughout each sports season, on and off the playing field. Hathaway Brown’s recently implemented Athlete Leadership Program aims to strengthen these existing values and build on them by offering special opportunities for team captains to creatively explore and develop their individual leadership skills and styles while honoring the responsibilities, risks, and rewards of leadership. The program provides a supportive forum in which team captains expand their leadership skills and share the challenges and rewards of their experiences. With special meetings, lunch seminars, and alumnae mentor discussions, the girls have heightened awareness of the essential skills needed to navigate a successful leadership platform. Regardless of whether HB athletes continue playing sports beyond high school, the lessons they’re learning can be applied to all areas of professional and personal life. They’re seizing the opportunity to be trailblazers and difference makers—to leave a lasting imprint at HB and beyond.
BASKETBALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF JOSHUA GUNTER / CLEVELAND.COM FALL SPORTS PHOTOS BY SHANNON AHLSTRAND
THE YEAR IN REVIEW
BASKETBALL –
Varsity Basketball finished the regular season with a record of 12-10 under first-year head coach Mike Coreno. They were the #3 seed for the OHSAA Division II District tournament and came away with the crown after a close game with St. Vincent-St. Mary, and they made it to the state Final Four. JV Basketball had a great season filled with learning, improvement, and fun. They ended the year with two in the wins column, along with plenty of great memories.
SWIMMING & DIVING – Swimming & Diving – The Blazers finished their season
at the C.T. Branin Natatorium in Canton ranked fourth in the state in the OHSAA Division II Swimming & Diving Championship. The Varsity team, which earned the title of District Runner-Up, qualified six swimmers for States. Throughout the season, these scholar-athletes broke several school records in individual races and relays. Highlights of the culminating competition include the relay team of Mary Motch ’16, Julia Armitage ’16, Maggie Cha ’17, and Molly Paine ’17 placing fourth in the 200 Medley Relay. Cha, Armitage, Paine, and Motch also placed fourth in the 400 Free Relay; and Cha and Armitage took third place in the 50 Free and 500 Free, respectively.
CROSS COUNTRY – The Varsity Cross Country team had a successful regular season, with GOLF – Varsity Golf finished the regular season undefeated. They placed second in the OHSAA Division I Sectional Tournament and advanced to the OHSAA Division I District Tournament.
FIELD HOCKEY – The Varsity Field Hockey team finished the regular season with a record
of 10-5-2. With playoff wins over Stow (3-0) and Magnificat (4-3), the team advanced to the OHSAA District Semifinal Game. The JV Field Hockey team completed the regular season with a record of 8-2 and won the championship game of the JV tournament.
SOCCER –
The Varsity Soccer team had a record of 9-4-3, was seeded #1 in their OHSAA Division II District, and they advanced to the Regional Semifinals after being crowned District Champions. The JV Soccer team made a lot of progress and ended the season with a record of 6-4-4.
TENNIS –
Blazer Tennis (Varsity “A” team) was crowned 2015 OTCA State Champion. In the OHSAA Division II State Tournament, Ally Persky ’17 and Catherine Areklett ’17 won State RunnerUp in Doubles and Lauren Gillinov ’17 was the State Champion in Singles for the second year in a row. The Varsity “B” Tennis team completed their season with a record of 13-6. The JV Tennis team had a winning record of 10-6.
VOLLEYBALL –
Varsity Volleyball was seeded #4 in their OHSAA Division II District, and finished the season in the District Championship Game. The JV Volleyball team finished their season on a high note at the Magnificat JV Tournament.
HB
several top finishes and a trip to Districts. Junior Caroline Millican advanced to Regionals, and even to the State Championship Meet, where she finished 21st.
31
greater than the sum of its parts HB’s integrated mathematics curriculum reconfigures the traditional teaching approach as it connects concepts across fields of study
T
BY AM ANDA S E I FE RT & M IC H AE L BU E S C H E R
he girls walk in, as eighth-graders do, laughing and talking as they find their ways to their desks. Soon the backpacks have been set down, the pencil cases and binders arranged just so, and the door is closed for the period. The classroom is light-filled and welcoming, with the students seated in small groups rather than in rows, a few couches arranged near the window, and colorful posters hung on the walls with care. The people in this room are noticeably excited to be here. Surprisingly, they have not gathered for art class, drama, or some other special course that can almost always be counted on for an upbeat atmosphere. This is Beginning Algebra and Geometry. The teacher, Dr. Elizabeth Patterson, mentions yesterday’s test, and almost instantly, a cheerful “yee-haw!” erupts, followed by a chorus of giggles. With a grin and a voice set just above the din, Patterson announces today’s lessons, which will be largely performed by the students themselves, in small groups of two or three. They’re shifting gears a little now, away from equations with fractions and decimals, toward “system” problems introduced through situations. Today’s Iditarod-themed textbook pages have them charting graphs and, as always, thinking mathematically to answer questions. Throughout the class, there is friendly banter, and everyone is engaged. Patterson makes her way around the room, checking on work and levels of understanding, eventually ending at the Smart Board in the front of the classroom to walk the students through the “who, what, where, when, why, and how” of the problems. A very small percentage of the class time is spent with the teacher simply talking at the students; and the girls seem to like it this way. Their impression of this method of being taught algebra and geometry concurrently is resoundingly positive, and they appreciate having a little more independence as they work in groups or with partners to realize ideas together, benefitting from others’ perspectives. It’s not just the classroom activity that sets Hathaway Brown mathematics apart; the integration of topics within the curriculum is very different from the way these concepts are taught in most U.S. schools. The division of secondary mathematics into algebra, geometry, and a second year of algebra is unique to the United States, dating from the late 1800s when the idea that all students should go to high school began to take hold. Most industrialized countries teach math as a cohesive whole, where interesting problems arise in places that different topics overlap. With the rest of the world’s students learning math through connections and problem solving, it’s little wonder that the U.S. has fallen far
behind both in student achievement on international exams and in the attitudes they express about mathematics. At HB, Middle and Upper School students have begun to study math using an integrated approach. They learn all of the same material as a student in a traditional curriculum, but in a manner that connects the concepts, and emphasizes reasoning and problem solving. Topics that share a common structure are learned together, whether they are algebraic, geometric, or statistical in nature. Some topics that students can grasp at younger ages—area and volume, for instance—now are taught in earlier grades, while concepts such as quadratics and polynomials are taught later. Throughout the curriculum, HB teachers challenge students to think, reason, explain, and make connections. The members of HB’s mathematics faculty are careful to underscore that traditional mathematics curricular topics haven’t been abandoned, but the changes that have been made in the coursework come as a result of three years of careful study. “We looked at the research, both internationally and within the United States, and the clear message was that an approach that integrates different branches of mathematics produced better results in both the short term and the long term,” says Upper School Mathematics Department Chair Michael Buescher. To illustrate the point, he explains that the distance formula, the Pythagorean Theorem, and the equation of a circle on the Cartesian plane are different representations of the same overall concept. In the traditional curriculum, however, these formulas are taught in three different places: Algebra 1, Geometry, and Algebra 2 or Precalculus, respectively. As a result, many students in this country go through school thinking of math as a collection of disconnected formulas to be memorized, rather than a cohesive, logical whole to be appreciated for its power and beauty. The results of this integrated approach are impressive, as girls are exposed to more advanced concepts than they would be otherwise. More than three quarters of HB students take a full year of calculus before they graduate, and the vast majority of them study it for at least a few months. Students also have a firm foundation in statistics and probability—a crucial experience in the data-driven 21st century. Ultimately, HB graduates think quantitatively, know how to reason, and can construct logical arguments while explaining challenging concepts to others. With a strong and diverse foundation in mathematical concepts, they’re exquisitely well prepared for college too.
PHOTOS BY KEITH BERR
YOUR TURN Put your own mathematics skills to the test and use your knowledge to think analytically and answer the questions that HB eighth-graders worked on in Dr. Elizabeth Patterson’s Beginning Algebra and Geometry class. What happens when you graph two lines at the same time? What can you learn? Today you will use data graphs, and rules to examine what happens when two lines or curves intersect.
Race Scatter Plot 1200 1000 900 800 700 600 500 400 300
HB
Distance in Miles from Fairbanks
1100
200
33
100 0
0
20
40
60
80
100 120 140 160 Time in Hours
180 200
220 240
The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race is famous for its incredible length and its use of dogs. The sled drivers, known as mushers, start their dog sleds at Fairbanks, Alaska, and ride through the snow for several days until they reach Nome, Alaska. Along the route, there are stations where the competitors check in, so data is kept on the progress of each team. Joyla and her team of dogs have made it through the first five checkpoints. Her buddy Evie left Nome (the finish line) on the day the race started in an effort to meet Joyla and offer encouragement. Evie traveled along the route toward the racers on her snowmobile. The progress of each person is shown on the graph that follows. Your Task: With your team, analyze the data on the graph. Consider the questions below as you work. Be prepared to defend your results.
Which data represents Evie? Which represents Joyla? How can you tell? When did Evie meet Joyla? How long was the race? How can you tell? Who traveled faster? Explain how you know. Approximately how long did it take Joyla to finish the race? How did you find your answer?
Dietiker, Leslie. Core Connections. 2nd ed. Sacramento, CA: CPM Educational Program, 2013.
PHOTOS BY KEITH BERR
PRIDE
F
DISCOVERY FUN NEW WAYS BY REENA S. GOODWIN
HB
Innovative Project-Based Learning approach to Early Childhood education keeps students involved and informed in
35
L
avi the Lion needed a loving home. Inside of a cardboard crate, he dreamt of his imminent adventure while awaiting his departure from Africa. Three days later, he was startled by the sound of something unfamiliar at his new destination: the clapping and chatter of young children, anxious to meet their new friend. A hard jolt shook him to his feet, and a strange light began to creep inside. Those unfamiliar sounds grew louder, transforming into squeals of delight. The box was opened, and so were the children’s arms. Lavi the Lion had arrived at Hathaway Brown School. This is just the beginning of the first phase of the Project-Based Learning Approach in the Early Childhood program at HB. Taking cues from their students, teachers developed a back story about how this new stuffed lion had come to take up residence in their classroom. The construct helped 3- and 4-year-old boys and girls use their imaginations as they learned important facts about nature and geography and travel in a fun, engaging, and interactive way. To some, this may seem like play—and to an extent, it is. But according to Barb Cicerchi, assistant professor in Early Childhood education at Cuyahoga Community College, playing is a key part in the learning process for preschoolers.
The Project Approach is based within a set of strategies that enable teachers “to guide students through in-depth studies of real-world topics,” according to the program’s official website. As does the Discovery Learning cycle at Hathaway Brown, Project-Based Learning encourages students to partake in an in-depth investigation of a pragmatic topic that piques their interest. Having that interest is critical in order for children to flourish, helping to keep them on track in constructing their own knowledge— facilitated by their teachers—while building the social and emotional skills that help them grow as individuals. “The underlying goal is to generate an excitement for learning, leading in turn to extended inquiries and fresh discoveries,” says Brown. Before beginning this learning cycle and embarking on project in the classroom, teachers work with students to select a topic for the project. Taking the children’s individual curiosities as a starting point, narrowing down a singular topic can be a process in and of itself. In Amanda Bruner and Megan Nitzsche’s preschool classroom, where they coteach at HB, a desire for their students to take care of some “living” thing led to the topic of their most recent project: lions. Before the great cat ultimately was selected as the focal point for the project, Bruner and Nitzsche had to prompt their students to discover their interests. First, they provided small animal models to the children, who each cared for an individual animal. This exercise ultimately led them to determine that all of the members of the class should care for a larger animal together. Then they introduced the idea of bringing a lion into the community. They settled on that particular animal mainly for the qualities it represents. “We wanted to show that you can be powerful and also gentle,” says Nitzsche. Their students immediately latched onto the concept of caring for a lion, and they were hungry to learn more. And so the story of Lavi the Lion began.
“Children at this age learn differently than elementary school children,” she explains. “We know as Early Childhood educators that play is a child’s mind figuring out how something is working. That playtime is really important.” An expert in the field with 15 years of experience, Cicerchi has been mentoring EC teachers at HB since the school incorporated the approach into its curriculum three years ago. Project-Based Learning is not the exclusive form of learning at HB, but rather framed within the school’s overall Discovery Learning model, which incorporates “handson, multisensory environments, play-based literacy and exploratory learning,” describes HB Early Childhood Director Jane Brown.
But rather than simply raising questions so that teachers can provide the answers, the ProjectBased Learning approach encourages students to seek out the answers through their own research and investigation.
Learning through discovery at HB involves three cornerstones, which are gradually developed through active inquiry and exploration. They are:
COGNITION:
Collect, analyze, and classify data in order to make predictions as students interact with the environment.
COMPETENCE:
Encourage children to take risks when appropriate, resulting in a willingness to take on new challenges and diminishing the fear of failure.
COMMUNITY:
Engage in planning, problem solving, and executing scenarios while knowing how to ask questions.
“One of the biggest benefits is that I’m learning along with the children. They can see that, and they can see how I go about finding the answers. It makes teaching very exciting.” HB
CHAPTER 1:
CHAPTER TWO:
THE BEGINNING OF A PROJECT
DEVELOPING THE PROJECT
After a Project-Based Learning topic has been nailed down, the teachers launch into a discovery phase with the children. Through discussions, storytelling, and inquiries, they elicit prior knowledge so they may establish a plan to meet them where they are and set benchmarks for where to take them. Through these interactions, the teachers are fostering 21st century learning skills including collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking.
With each inquiry that arises during the discovery process, data begins to be collected. Utilizing resources such as books, films, field trips, and insight from experts, students are encouraged to be inquisitive and seek out information through investigation. As answers begin to take shape, students can react and make connections through their Project-Based work in the classroom together with their teachers.
And because they discovered that lions are the only cats that live in groups, they provided Lavi with some animal friends, too.
“One of the biggest benefits is that I’m learning along with the children,” says Bruner. “They can see that, and they can see how I go about finding the answers. It makes teaching very exciting.”
“We have observed that children learn from each other, pooling their data about what works and what doesn’t, and make adjustments as necessary,” Brown says.
In Bruner and Nitzsche’s class, many of the students’ questions after Lavi’s arrival revolved around caring for the lion itself. Where did the Lavi come from? What do lions eat? What type of habitat does he need in order to thrive? But rather than simply raising questions so that teachers can provide the answers, the Project-Based Learning approach encourages students to seek out the answers through their own research and investigation.
One of the first concerns the students had upon Lavi the Lion’s arrival was providing her a home. They gathered and carefully analyzed their research about the habitats of lions in Africa, and then the students created their own living environment for their new friend. Using materials such as dry grass, the children constructed a grassland dwelling in a corner of the preschool classroom, and stocked it with plenty of food options so that Lavi would stay nourished and sheltered.
37
No one child can take care of Lavi all alone. As they worked together, the children began to learn about each other and themselves—particularly their strengths and weaknesses—fueling their self-esteem and sense of purpose.
While students develop teamwork, problemsolving, and conflict resolution skills, educators also make sure that core curricular subjects such as literacy, mathematics, science, and geography, are incorporated into the project. Questions invoked by teachers become lessons for the students: “How many toes does Lavi have?” “How do you spell ‘Lavi?’” “What other names have the letter ‘L’ in them?” “Where is Africa on this map?”
Students are left with new knowledge and an understanding that asking questions is just as significant as finding answers; a memorable lesson for the future. Through these direct teacher-student interactions, children are urged to share what they’ve learned, and the teachers are able to evaluate group and individual learning progress. It is important to note that the ProjectBased Learning method is not the exclusive learning model employed in HB’s preschool classrooms. Rather, projects are complementary teaching tools used to foster engagement and keep young minds interested and eager to learn in an integrated and genuine manner. “It’s a very holistic way of learning,” says Nitzsche of HB’s comprehensive approach.
CHAPTER THREE: CONCLUDING THE PROJECT During the span of a project, teachers communicate on an ongoing basis with parents using a special documentation approach. Via emails, conversations, photos, classroom displays and more, students visually and verbally express what they are learning and that information is shared with their families. “When kids are part of the project, it helps get parents involved and encourages the students to talk about what they are doing,”
says Cicerchi. “When a child can’t stop talking about a project, that’s when you know learning is taking place.” HB Pre-Kindergarten Teacher Kristen Wise is the parent of Lilah, a student in Bruner and Nitzsche’s preschool class. In addition to daily teacher updates, Lilah keeps her mom apprised of her progress as well. “Watching Lilah become so excited about what has been happening in her classroom has been wonderful to see as a parent,” Wise says. “Every night at dinner she shares with great enthusiasm about what she has learned in school.” A project can last for a week or for a couple of months, depending on the students’ level of interest. To determine if the time is right to conclude the project, teachers will put forth what they call a provocation. In the lion class, the provocation included watching a video about African safaris. If the students are newly inspired by what they see and hear, the project will continue. If they’re unaffected by the provocation, teachers may judge that it’s time to wrap the project with a culminating event, such as a play, presentation, book, or display. Concluding each project in an imaginative and interactive way helps children apply what they have learned in the classroom in a meaningful way. At the conclusion of the
project, students are left with new knowledge and an understanding that asking questions is just as significant as finding answers; a memorable lesson for the future. Ciercci has witnessed many Early Childhood students benefit from the Project-Based Learning approach. “By the time by they get to kindergarten, they are full of creativity and questions,” she says. Just like Lavi the Lion, the children are encouraged to always be exploring. “As a parent, I hope for my child to be able to apply what she has learned to other areas of her life,” says Wise. “With ProjectBased Learning, she is practicing that skill every day.
Watch and discover. Learn more about the Early Childhood Project-Based Learning approach and Kindergarten Storyline methods at www.hb.edu/discoverylearning.
teaching in concert Upper School faculty members combine elements of history and music education to bring ideas to life
L
earning doesn’t happen in isolation. Creating access points for students to see and experience real connections between different disciplines increases their understanding and inspires further exploration. To that end, since the start of the school year, Hathaway Brown sophomores have been the beneficiaries of innovative and thoughtful curriculum that seeks to immerse them in elements of culture as they explore and connect on deeper and more meaningful levels with some of the historical happenings from the 18th-20th centuries that have defined the human experience.
This year, there are three focal points of the collaboration: the Industrial Revolution (Beethoven, Romanticism, and the Creation of New Instruments); the Russian Revolution (Stalin the Dictator vs. Shostakovich the Composer); and the Holocaust (Violins of Hope and The Children of Willesden Lane). Students not only explore the material in class, but they also have many immersive opportunities outside of HB to increase their understanding and develop more personal and poignant relationships with the material. For example, as they studied the Russian Revolution and learn about the events and people who shaped the era, the girls experienced a Cleveland Orchestra performance of Shostakovich’s Fourth Symphony, and they met cellist Martha Baldwin, an HB parent, who discussed the ways her personal understanding of the time period affects the way in which she plays the piece. To learn more about the rationale for this approach, and for fuller descriptions of the coursework involved, visit www.hb.edu/historymusic.
Martha Baldwin P ’30 of the Cleveland Orchestra shares Shostakovich’s Fourth Symphony with HB sophomores participating in the History-Music collaboration facilitated by Libby Seidel Stineman ’03 and Laura Main Webster ’91.
HB
Two years in the making, a unique history and music cocurricular collaboration has been spearheaded by Upper School History Teacher Libby Seidel Stineman ’03 and Vocal Arts Department Director Laura Main Webster ’91. The multilayered and synthesized teaching method developed by these two gifted educators has proven to be enormously instructive and energizing.
39
minding their business Students gain real-world finance, operations, and work experience at the all-new Hath Caff Upper School café
BY M A D I B R A DY ’ 16
The café was first envisioned in 2012, and Athena Haloua ’14 developed the original business plan. That plan was finalized during the 2015-2016 school year with funding, and this studentrun business has now become a reality. Philanthropic donations
from the HB Parent Association, The Veale Foundation, and several family donors assisted with start-up costs. The Hath Caff is located in the newly renovated Martha Frohring Geisel Library and Learning Commons on the second floor of HB’s Classic Building. Students, teachers, administrators, and visitors to the school can drop by the counter at specified times before, during, and after school each Monday through Friday. There, they are greeted by baristas (HB students in grades 9-12) who specialize in making coffee, lattes, Chai tea, hot chocolate, and a wide range of both caffeinated and non-caffeinated beverages. All of the tea products for sale—including a wide
PHOTO BY SHANNON AHLSTRAND
H
athaway Brown students enrolled in the Center for Business & Finance have really embraced this year’s school theme: “Light the Way, Leave Your Legacy.” In late January, Izzy Catanzaro ’16, Julia Felderman ’16, Alexa Papanikolaou ’17, Imani Rucker ’19, Madi Brady ’16 and their barista team made their mark at HB, opening a brand new student café called the Hath Caff.
@ H AT H CA F F
Follow the Hath Caff ’s progress on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!
array of classic and unique flavor options—come from Numi Organic Tea, a company that was co-founded by HB alumna Reem Rahim Hassani of the Class of 1984. Customers are welcome to sink down into the comfortable chairs in the Learning Commons and sip their drinks and munch on bagels, pastries, and cookies, which also are available at the Hath Caff. All of the food items come from local vendors, including Bialy’s Bagels in University Heights and Stone Oven in Cleveland Heights. Gourmet cookies are baked fresh by HB’s own Libby Seidel Stineman ’03, an Upper School history teacher who started her own bakery business called Milk and Cookies.
Students applied for executive positions at the Hath Caff last fall, filling the roles of CEO, Head of Marketing, Head of Customer Service, and Chief Financial Officer. The Executive Advisory board— made up of Purpura, Upper School History Department Chair Molly Krist, Upper School Business Teacher Steve Marcus, Director of the Center for Sustainability Torrey McMillan ’90, and HB parent Dave Yohann—serves as a guiding force, but all decision-making falls to the students. Hath Caff CEO Izzy Catanzaro ’16 has been the head of this project during this school year. She and her team have handled all of the purchasing, hiring, and financial aspects of the café. The Hath Caff is designed to work like any other business, and profits are used to fund operations. Outside of leadership positions, the baristas at the café are all paid students. Clocking in and out at shifts gives girls both an opportunity to earn a little money and also to learn what it’s like to have a job. The Center for Business & Finance offers a diploma designation for seniors, who may earn the distinction of being Business & Finance Scholars. To complete this designation, students must take two years of a Business & Finance course during their sophomore and junior years, along with a senior honors capstone course, and complete an applied project. The options for the honors capstone course include American Government: Rights and Politics; International Relations; or Economics. In those classes seniors must also write a research
Launching the Hath Caff is just the beginning. As Executive Council member Mrs. Krist says, “There are going to be bumps—sometimes big bumps—but the girls have really weathered the storm so far and are extremely prepared to figure out the best means of action to solve any issue.” The push toward lighting the way and leaving a legacy is powered by the creativity and innovation that comes completely from the students. Those same businesswomen are determined to listen to their customers and peers so the Hath Caff will continue to expand in ways that will be satisfying and educational for everyone.
THE HATH CAFF IS
OPEN
Monday through Friday before, during, and after school:
7:15 – 7:55 a.m. 10:05 – 10:25 a.m. 12:20 – 1:25 p.m. 3:25 – 4:30 p.m.
Drink prices range from $1.50 – $3.75 Bagels, cookies, and pastries are available for $2 apiece Visit www.hb.edu/hathcaff to learn more
HB
The overall goal for the Hath Caff is to be both a place to grab yummy snacks during the day and also a learning opportunity for all Upper School students, especially those who are part of the Center for Business & Finance. Center Director Kevin Purpura, who is the main advisor for the project, stated, “The Hath Caff is uniquely designed in that it is student-owned and operated. That is deliberate. This is immersion. Girls are learning by doing the process.”
thesis that’s at least 20 pages long on a chosen topic that focuses on a division of economics. The applied project can include creating a written business plan, certain internships, and now they may consider working at a student-run business such as the Hath Caff.
41
Help HB celebrate its 140th anniversary! Please consider making a $140 gift to the Annual Fund by using the envelope inside this issue.
31% of HB ALUMNAE Give 67% of HB PARENTS Give 100% of HB TRUSTEES Give
34%
of HB students receive financial aid
Tuition covers only 72% of an HB education
Generous donors make up most of the remaining 28%
FACULTY & STAFF PARTICIPATION in the Annual Fund
increased 50% over the last 2 years!
Thanks to people like you who believe in our mission and goals,
our 16-acre campus is home to an aquatics center, turf field, IDEA lab, visual & performing arts spaces, Worldwide Communications Center, AND 850 curious and engaged young minds.
2,200+
donors contributed
$1.8M
to HB in 2014–15
100%
of HB students benefit from the Annual Fund
WILL YOUR EMPLOYER MATCH YOUR GIFT? Last year, we received $40K through matching programs!
For generations, Hathaway Brown has cultivated and acknowledged girls’ voices by encouraging them to stand up, speak out, and achieve to their greatest potential. By giving to Hathaway Brown,
We greatly appreciate your gift, in any amount you are comfortable giving.
you help ensure today’s—and tomorrow’s—HB girls
WEB:
will be able to continue these important traditions.
PHONE:
LILY DATTA ’90, Parent of Nina ’26 Annual Giving Alumnae Chair
Make a gift at www.hb.edu/supportHB Contact Marcia Merritt at 216.320.8110
MAIL:
Mail directly to Hathaway Brown School,
Office of Advancement, 19600 North Park Blvd.
Shaker Heights, OH 44122
Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage
PAID
Cleveland, Ohio Permit #3439
19600 North Park Boulevard Shaker Heights, Ohio 44122
HB.edu /upcomingevents
Alumnae Legacy Brunch April 9, Anne Cutter Coburn Reception Room, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. For alumnae and their HB daughters, granddaughters, and great-granddaughters Billy Collins, U.S. Poet Laureate 2001–2003 April 14, The Ahuja Auditorium and HB Atrium, 6 – 9 p.m. Event for HB parents to honor Head of School Bill Christ Carnival/5K April 17, HB Grounds, 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. Proceeds benefit Youth Challenge Vocal Arts Spring Showcase April 21, HB Atrium, 7:30 p.m. Eighth Grade Musical April 29, 7:30 p.m. & May 1, 2:30 p.m., The Ahuja Auditorium Disney’s The Lion King Jr. HB Orchestra Spring Soiree May 17, HB Atrium, 7:30 p.m. Middle and Upper School orchestras perform Alumnae Weekend May 20 – 21 All class years welcome!
Fourth Grade Closing Exercises June 7, The Ahuja Auditorium, 5 p.m. 140th Commencement Exercises June 10, HB Courtyard, 11 a.m.
PHOTO BY KEITH BERR
Eighth Grade Closing Exercises June 6, The Ahuja Auditorium, 5 p.m.