The SCHool, Winter 2015

the school the magazine of springside chestnut hill academy

How Four Alumni are Changing the Face of Philadelphia Designing for Real Life Students Help to Design a New Classroom Space for the School

The Faces Behind the Funds Three Donors Who Have Created Living Legacies

Fostering Global Citizenship through Travel SCH Academy’s Expanding Travel Program

FALL

2015

from the interim head of school For many teachers and parents, the beginning of a new school year brings up memories from our own early years; my 3rd grade classroom, for example. Mrs. Emerson despised procrastination, a word she introduced me to. (I know she wouldn’t have liked the way that last sentence ended, either.) She held firmly to the belief that proper behavior was required of children at all times, even during recess. Only later did I begin to realize something deeper about her outlook, her conviction that imagination would thrive within a clearly structured framework. From the work of great teachers like Donald Graves and Lucy Calkins, I came to understand that creative environments are ordered environments, that it is in Dr. Segar chats with a group of 1st grade boys. carefully designed settings, studios, labs, or the Sands Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership, where invention, discovery, and art are generated. Such environments can be lively, active sites, but they can also be quiet, secluded spots conducive to reflection, fantasy, or solitary work with words.

At SCH we celebrate enthusiastic experimentation and energetic collaboration, but we also recognize that other habits of mind hold powerful potential as well. It is important to make school as successful, and safe, for reserved or quiet individuals as it is for more voluble students. Many of the greatest accomplishments of humankind have come from persons whose temperament led them toward less social or more solitary lives, as writers and researchers such as Susan Cain and Jerome Kagan have shown.

A great school like SCH recognizes that it is important for every student to be well known and well connected. Too often, though, we think of connections as links between peers. For some students, the connections that sustain and energize them may be more with adults. For others, it may be connections to ideas, literature, music, or the natural world, or to the internal wonders of their own imagination. This is not to say that social isolation is a good thing; we need to remain vigilant about, and supportive to, children for whom friendship does not come easily.

Which brings me back to Mrs. Emerson. It was a hot afternoon in our 3rd grade classroom, and I had been trying to put off for as long as possible the task of finishing my butterfly project. The previous week, our class had walked out along a path where tall weeds and wildflowers swayed in soft breeze. With nets and killing jars we eight-year-olds were set to our task. My conquest was a black swallowtail, Papilio polyxenes, and now, days later, it was the cause of my procrastination.

I just hadn’t been able to finish “preserving” it the way my teacher insisted. It was to be pressed against a cotton backing between two plates of glass, which then would be sealed together with black border tape, the finished project to be displayed for parents night and then sent home to join the trove of grade school trophies.

“Why haven’t you finished?” Mrs. Emerson wanted to know. In that moment I could not articulate my urgent feeling of resistance to the final sealing up of this impossibly light and lovely creature. In those days, collecting and mounting specimens was a common practice but, for me at least, profoundly uncomfortable. My teacher sensed this somehow and found a way to help me through, offering a choice of brightly colored tapes to choose from, instead of somber black.

Seeing some younger students’ work with monarch butterflies this fall made me think that Mrs. Emerson would appreciate the ways in which butterfly study has evolved. We no longer think of butterflies as trophies. We aim to understand not just their beauty but the threats to their survival within the ecosystem we share, particularly Danaus plexippus, the monarch, with its symbiotic connection to milkweed and its extraordinary migration to Mexico.

This approach to learning is deeply engaging, combining curiosity with care, guided by an attitude approaching reverence.

It helps students move from investigation to investment, from competence to commitment. It is a way not just to make sense of the world but to effect essential change, to achieve different outcomes, not simply to master new techniques. It supports young people in developing more than a repertoire of skills or a taxonomy of information, but a framework for ethical decision making. It inspires further exploration, not procrastination. It is the kind of education one can truly take to heart, “full of wonder, full of enterprise, full of love for life.”

Mark W. Segar, Ed.D. Interim Head of School COVER IMAGE: Members of the school’s crew teams practicing on the Schuylkill River. Photo courtesy of Gib Randall/Vulcan Vision.

contents

THE SCHOOL

FALL 2015

THE MAGAZINE OF SPRINGSIDE CHESTNUT HILL ACADEMY The SCHool is a triannual publication of Springside Chestnut Hill Academy’s Office of Institutional Advancement.

Dr. Mark Segar, Ed.D. Interim Head of School OFFICE OF INSTITUTIONAL ADVANCEMENT Melissa Calvert Chief Advancement Officer Melissa Blue Brown ’87 Associate Director of Alumni and Parent Relations Lynn Burke Associate Director of The SCH Fund Nannette DiGiovanni Advancement Coordinator Ellen Nalle Hass ’77 Director of Major Gifts and Planned Giving Patti Hommes Director of Advancement Services Jennifer James McHugh ’84 Director of Development Cindy Messerle Director of The SCH Fund Leslie Connor Newbold ’86 Director of Alumni and Parent Relations Pepper Johnson Rexford ’92 Stewardship Coordinator Sue Toomey Administrative Assistant

Communications Caroline Colantuno Senior Director of Marketing and Communications Melissa Fisher Associate Director of Marketing Deidra A. Lyngard Director of Publications and Video Elizabeth Sanders ha Editor at Large

2 how four alumni are

changing the face of philadelphia

11 campus news

SCH Announces New Head of School

12 designing for real life

Students Help to Design a New Classroom Space for the School

14 the faces behind the funds Three Donors Who Have Created Living

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Legacies

16 sch standout athletes

Highlights of Alumni and Student Athletes

20 fostering global

citizenship through travel SCH Academy’s Expanding Travel Program

22 baccalaureate &

graduation

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Celebrating Our 2015 Graduating Class

30 living legacy: the

pearson family

Interview with Dr. Philip Pearson ’86

32 class notes

Cambodia

Canada

Ethiopia

Mexico

New Zealand

Peru

France

Denmark

Equador

Italy

37 legacy families Russia

Senegal

Spain

Thailand

UAE

40 mystery photo

Karen Tracy ha Director of Digital Communications

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Entrance to the Barnes Foundation.

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HOW FOUR ALUMNI ARE CHANGING THE FACE OF PHILADELPHIA

WALK DOWN ANY STREET IN CENTER CITY, PHILADELPHIA, AND YOU’LL SEE SIGNS OF A CITY REAWAKENING: RESTAURANTS AND OUTDOOR CAFES CROWDED WITH CUSTOMERS, OLD INDUSTRIAL BUILDINGS BEING REPURPOSED AS APARTMENTS AND CONDOS, HOTELS OPENING THEIR DOORS TO VISITORS, AND NEW SKYSCRAPERS CLAIMING THEIR PLACE ON THE SKYLINE. AND BENEATH IT ALL, THE HUM AND CLAMOR OF A CITY ON THE MOVE, SPURRED BY A GROWING INFLUX OF YOUNG, HIP CITY DWELLERS.

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“I’ve always believed that the ability to achieve a great building is not just the result of a good architect; it’s the result of a good client as well.”

~ Bill McDowell ’75

FOUR ALUMNI—PROJECT MANAGER BILL MCDOWELL ’75, BUILDERS MACK STULB ’75 AND DAVE RHODA ’74, AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION ARCHITECT FON WANG ’93—ARE PART OF THE CITY’S EXCITING TRANSFORMATION. TOGETHER, THEY HAVE BEEN DIRECTLY INVOLVED IN HELPING TO BUILD OR RESTORE MANY OF THE STRUCTURES THAT NOW, OR SOON WILL, DEFINE THE 21ST CENTURY FACE OF PHILADELPHIA. THESE INCLUDE THE BARNES FOUNDATION ON THE PARKWAY, COMCAST’S NEW INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY CENTER HIGH-RISE IN CENTER CITY, THE WAYNE JUNCTION DEPOT, AND THE PROVIDENT MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE BUILDING IN WEST PHILADELPHIA. THROUGH THIS MIX OF EXCITING NEW CONSTRUCTION AND THOUGHTFUL RESTORATION, THESE ALUMNI ARE SHAPING PHILADELPHIA’S FUTURE.

BILL MCDOWELL ’75 INDEPENDENT PROJECT MANAGER As the senior building project executive for the newest addition to the city’s premier cultural boulevard—the Barnes Foundation—Bill McDowell oversaw the design and construction of what was arguably one of the most architecturally and politically challenging building projects of recent years.

Trained as an architect but now a building project manager, Bill was hired by the Barnes to serve as liaison between its trustees and staff and the architects and builder and to ensure the project’s smooth progress. “The trustees were incredible in their commitment to the project but there was no in-house understanding of how a building gets designed and built, so I was hired full-time to manage the process,” explains McDowell. “I’ve always believed that the ability to achieve a great building is not just the result of a good architect; it’s the result of a good client as well. If the client isn’t able to deliver a realistic program to the architect, then the architect doesn’t have boundaries to design to. It’s a very technical process that responds to very technical criteria. My role was to ensure that the Barnes was as good a client as it could be.”

The legal stipulations governing the display of the foundation’s collection added to the project’s complexity. The design of the Gallery had to allow for the replication of Albert Barnes’s “ensembles” (his arrangements of paintings, decorative arts, and artifacts) while allowing for the ambitious vision of the architects in a modern form. The architects concluded that the best way to achieve this dual goal was to situate the new Gallery building— which mimicked the dimensions, sequence, and configuration of the rooms in the Merion, PA, building—within a larger, light-filled, contemporary envelope.

The final design manages to honor the original artistic vision of Barnes while offering a stunningly modern architectural experience for visitors.

Bill McDowell in the atrium of the Barnes Foundation.

The addition of this new building has helped to reinforce the original concept of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway as a cultural boulevard, along the lines of its role model, the Champs-Élysée, in Paris. As a side note, adds McDowell, the architect and planner Paul Cret who helped design Philadelphia’s Parkway also designed the original home of the Barnes Foundation in Merion.

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The building also serves another important function in helping to build pedestrian traffic along this busy avenue. “There’s a theory in urban planning that you need something of interest every five minutes if you’re going to entice people to walk,” says McDowell. “Whether that’s a Starbucks, a museum, or a garden, it actually doesn’t matter as long as there’s variety and something of interest.” The new Barnes provides this, he says, and adds to the cumulative momentum that one day, he hopes, will make the Parkway a truly pedestrianfriendly and vibrant avenue.

MACK STULB ’75 PRESIDENT, L. F. DRISCOLL What is on pace to be the tallest building outside of New York and Chicago is now rising at 18th and Arch Streets. Upon completion, it will soar 1,121 feet in the air and encompass a luxury Four Seasons hotel, two broadcast television stations, a large section dedicated to Comcast’s innovation and technology activities, and a block-long, glass-enclosed indoor plaza on the ground floor.

“It’s our job to figure out how to maximize value, minimize cost, and schedule to the greatest extent possible and still maintain the architect’s and owner’s vision.”

~ Mack Stulb ’75

The new Comcast Center for Innovation and Technology Center (CITC) is not the first height-breaking structure that Mack Stulb, president of one of Philadelphia’s preeminent construction firms, L. F. Driscoll, has shepherded into existence. The first was One Liberty Place, the building that infamously broke the tacit building height limit established in the 1950s by Philadelphia’s uber city planner Edmund Bacon. Bacon proposed that no structure should exceed the height of the statue of William Penn that topped City Hall as a way to pay visual homage to the city’s founder. This height barrier was respected until the mid-1980s when national developer Willard Rouse came to town with plans to build two skyscrapers, each of which would peer down on the crown of William Penn’s hat. In 1987, the first of these buildings, One Liberty Place, rose 945 feet into the sky, creating a startling new and exciting silhouette for the city skyline.

“Liberty Place was the turning point in development of new buildings and high-rise construction in Philadelphia,” explains Stulb. It and its sister building, Two Liberty Place, claimed one and two spots on the skyline for more than 20 years until the 974-foot Comcast Center opened its doors in 2008. Now Driscoll is building Comcast’s second building, which will establish yet another height record for the city, as well as most of the nation.

Asked what the role of a builder is in a typical project, Stulb says, “It’s our job to figure out how to maximize value, minimize cost, and schedule to the greatest extent possible and still maintain the architect’s and owner’s vision.”

He adds that the traditional role of the do-it-all master builder has evolved over the years. “Builders are now mostly construction managers. Tasks, design, and engineering have gotten very technical, advancing us to levels of tight tolerances, unique engineering, and the ability to prefabricate with a high degree of accuracy.” Stulb cites the Kimmel Center’s unique barrel vault glass roof as just one example. “That was just a dream of the architect, Rafael Viñoly, but with our engineering expertise in house, we were able to bring this dream to reality. To design this glass roof to perform structurally with its incredible spans and to not leak was an engineering marvel. You still don’t see anything like it anywhere. It’s just unique.”

New technologies feature prominently in the new Comcast building as well.

“This is the era of high-end glass façades—of patterned, colored, and highperformance glass,” observes Stulb. “The CITC will use glass for its exterior, similar to that used for the original Comcast Center,” Stulb explains, “but the

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Dave Rhoda, left, and Mack Stulb in front of the Comcast Innovation and Technology Center.

Rendering of the Comcast Innovation and Technology Center, courtesy of Foster + Partners.

Staying abreast of new technologies and understanding their capabilities is just one of the many challenges a builder has to deal with, especially one involved in many of the city’s more architecturally challenging and visionary projects. “Before we put a glass façade on any building, we computer model the design for performance. We then go to a testing facility in York, PA, and build an actual 30-to-50-foot-high façade mock up,” says Stulb. “We test it with extensive positive and negative wind and water pressure. We want to be absolutely confident that the materials we’re using will stand up to the high wind loads and movement you get at the top of these high-rise structures.

To make a building perform for 50 to100 years takes great collaboration and extensive engineering,” he adds. “We like that challenge here at Driscoll.”

How will a signature building like the Comcast Innovation and Technology Center impact the city? Seeing the level of investment that Comcast is willing to make in the city is bound to improve overall confidence and excitement about its future, predicts Stulb. “Philadelphia has always been a ‘tweener’ market. We can’t promise developers the returns on investment, in terms of sales or rental fees, that a New York or Washington, DC, can.” But with projects like CITC, estimated to bring up to 4,000 jobs into Center City, and the other development going on downtown now, Stulb says Philadelphia’s image is changing for the better, and with it, its attractiveness as a place to live as well as invest. “They always say ‘as construction goes, so goes everything else,’” says Stulb. “It will just take time.”

Courtesy of Foster + Partners.

technology behind it is dramatically different and more advanced from what it was just a few years ago, increasing thermal performance and yet enabling unobstructed views right through the building.”

A view through the CITC to the Comcast Center.

DAVE RHODA ’74 SENIOR SUPERINTENDENT, L. F. DRISCOLL While Mack Stulb follows CITC’s progress from across the river in Bala Cynwyd, all Dave Rhoda has to do is look out his window. But that’s only when he’s in his office. “I’m out at 7 o’clock walking around the site for an hour or two. I come back, check my appointments, go to meetings, then go back out and check everything again.” As senior superintendent on the CITC project, he starts his work well over a year before the first shovel is put into the ground with developing the work plan and scheduling all the work activities. Rhoda is the man responsible for the details—all the details. He and his staff of superintendents, assistant superintendents, and safety and quality control professionals orchestrate all the work that happens on-site.

They make sure everyone’s on-site when they should be and doing what they’re supposed to be doing. They enforce the safety rules. And they talk to a lot of tradesmen—“carpenters, laborers, ironworkers, dock builders, stone masons, electricians, plumbers, plasterers, tile setters, floor layers, and almost every trade imaginable.” And at the end of the project, it’s Rhoda and his staff who check the tens of thousands of items on the punch list to make sure they’re working the way they should, down to every light switch in the building.

You would expect that managing all these details would be the biggest challenge of a construction project, but Rhoda says, no, it’s communication.

“You really, really have to communicate because there are so many players.

Everybody has their own agenda, their own priorities, their own hot buttons.

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“The most important thing is to keep people working here, keep the city attractive, and have a development concept that has an eye on having people live where they work.”

~ Dave Rhoda ’74

Photo of Wayne Junction Station pre-restoration.

The work itself, when it comes down to it, is easy and straightforward. It’s making sure that everybody rows together,” says Rhoda. “Our job, first and foremost, is to drive the schedule…safely. The way to get this done is to lead and motivate the subcontractors so they perform, and the way you get this done is by effective communication.”

Rhoda specializes in what’s called “tight urban site development,” meaning he knows how to put a skyscraper into the middle of a city block surrounded by existing buildings. The CITC project is a case in point. “We literally don’t have anyplace on-site to store anything. Materials come in on a truck, we unload it, take it to where it gets installed, and we install it. We don’t even have space for the subcontractors’ trailers. We have to move the subcontractors around inside the building.” These challenges are compounded by the building’s height. “When you get up a couple hundred feet, then 800 feet, then 1,000 feet, the wind can blow things all over the city,” he explains, “so we have to plan for these types of things. Safety becomes the number one priority.”

Asked about the most critical phases of a high-rise project, Rhoda says getting out of the ground is one of the most time-consuming parts of the job. “It doesn’t look like a lot of work, but digging a hole 40 feet down and getting all the foundations prepared takes a lot of time with relatively low manpower.” CITC, as an example, has a 10-foot thick foundation comprising more than 4,000 yards and 14 million pounds of concrete. It took 400 cement trucks 12 hours to pour.

Other construction milestones are closing the building in, making it weather tight so that the interior work can begin, and the last three to six months of the job. “This is when the activity and manpower resembles controlled chaos,” says Rhoda, as everyone prepares for final inspections and owner occupation of the building. “One thing that is constant on a large project like this,” Rhoda adds, “is change. Right now it’s all about tower cranes, steel, and concrete. In the next couple of months, the focus will shift to getting elevators and windows started. The critical path will change throughout the job, until the job is done.”

Asked how the new Comcast building will impact the city, Rhoda says it will push the center of development further north and west, closer to Logan Circle and the Parkway. With the other current or planned apartment, condo, and hotel development in this area, Logan Circle is on target to become one of the next vibrant sections of the city.

While much of the focus is on CITC’s impact on the skyline, Rhoda is excited about the enhanced experience it will offer pedestrians. Underground tunnels will connect CITC to the other Comcast building and the SEPTA concourse. There will be a ground-floor Winter Garden along Arch Street incorporating large interior trees and a restaurant with outdoor seating.

“To me the biggest challenge for Philadelphia is to keep people working and living here,” says Rhoda. “I’m just thrilled that Comcast has chosen to stay here and be part of this. The Innovation and Technology Center is going to attract a lot of smart young ‘techy’ people like those who work at Apple and Google in 945 feet Silicon Valley. These young people will want to One Liberty Place ride their bikes or walk to work. They’ll want places to eat and drink, things to do.” All this bodes well for the future of the city, he says.

“We just have to make sure we provide a good mix of residential, occupational, recreational, and cultural options.”

548 feet City Hall

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FON WANG ’93 DIRECTOR OF HISTORIC PRESERVATION, BALLINGER Changing the face of Philadelphia also includes giving a facelift to some of its historic buildings, and Fon Wang is making sure the city’s architectural history remains a strong feature of Philadelphia’s future.

In August 2015, Wang joined Ballinger, a respected Philadelphia architecture and engineering firm, as their director of historic preservation with the charge to expand the company’s preservation portfolio. Before that, she served as president of UCI Architects, which specializes in architecture, historic preservation, planning, and interior design. Wang also teaches at PennDesign in its historic preservation program.

Currently, Wang is working on a major restoration project in West Philadelphia to convert the old Provident Mutual Life Insurance Complex into new headquarters for the city’s Police Department, Medical Examiner’s Office, and Department of Health Laboratory Services. The first phase of the restoration entailed removal of all non-original elements, including partitions and dropped ceilings installed by prior tenants. The next phase will involve installation of a new roof, cleaning of the limestone façade, and repair and restoration of the building’s striking lobby, which still retains many of its original architectural features, including coffered ceilings, marble-arched passageways, decorative plasterwork, and ornate bronze doors.

1121 feet

974 feet Comcast Center

Comcast Center for Innovation and Technology

Wang’s teaching responsibilities at PennDesign have focused her attention on preservation opportunities in yet another part of the city. She and her second-year graduate historic preservation students are studying the Sharswood neighborhood, which lies just north of Girard College. “I have a great group of creative students and I’m hoping that we can make a difference,” says Wang who explains that the Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) has received approval for eminent domain in the area. “We

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“More and more people are considering environmental sustainability and looking at using existing building stock. I think people also just gravitate to historic buildings; they want something unique.” ~ Fon Wang ’93

Courtesy of Splat Productions.

One of her major projects at UCI was restoration of Wayne Junction Station, one of the region’s Victorian-era train stations originally designed by Philadelphia architect Frank Furness in 1881 and rebuilt in 1901 by Wilson Brothers & Company. Wayne Junction Station is significant both for its architecture and its past and present role as a major transportation hub.

Restoration of this historically registered station was completed in the fall of 2015 and was undertaken with the goal of making it a catalyst for other revitalization in this part of North Philadelphia. The preservation aspects of the project include restoration of the original station building, passenger tunnels, stairways, and Germantown Headhouse, which was originally the women’s waiting room. Ramps and elevators were added to make the station universally accessible. One of the biggest challenges about this project, says Wang, was having to keep the station operational and publicly accessible during the renovation.

Rendering of the Wayne Junction Station after restoration.

Courtesy of Ballinger.

want to help PHA see the possibilities of preserving some of the area’s existing housing stock. The greenest building is one that is already built.”

Demolition is costly, both in terms of deconstruction expenses and the impact on the environment, with old building materials ending up in area landfills.

While new technologies have made certain aspects of construction more cost effective, modern construction, particularly with regard to housing developments, is often not executed with the care, attention to detail, and concern for quality that characterize buildings built 50 to 100 years ago.

Courtesy of UCI Architects.

The good news, says Wang, is that there seems to be a growing appreciation for preservation. “More and more people are considering environmental sustainability and looking at using existing building stock. I think people also just gravitate to historic buildings; they want something unique. If you look at the University of Pennsylvania or Drexel or Temple, it’s the historic buildings that people identify with, where they like to meet.” Wang adds that emerging building technology has made it possible to fit what contemporary clients want and need within the framework of an existing building. “If a client is interested,” says Wang, “then we have the opportunity to innovate and make it happen.”

Top: Rendering of the Provident Mutual Life Insurance Complex after renovation.

Bottom: A view of the building’s interior with its marble walls and ornate ceiling.

“The beauty and uniqueness of a city is displayed through its buildings over time,” reflects Bill McDowell. “If you destroy your historical fabric, you end up with any city, anywhere U.S.A. Architects take cues from their surroundings.

Being next to old, interesting buildings forces new architecture to be better, whether you choose to be different or to harmonize.”

Rebecca Solnit, author of Wanderlust: A History of Walking, has said that “a city is a language, a repository of possibilities.” Walk around Philadelphia today, and the energy and sense of possibility is palpable. What the city is becoming is in significant part due to the efforts of these four alumni and others like them whose work is dedicated to creating a vibrant and diverse urban core enlivened by a mix of old and new architecture. Buildings like the Barnes, CITC, Wayne Junction Station, and the Provident Mutual Life Insurance Complex are a part of Philadelphia’s unique language—the vocabulary of its past and the exciting story of its future.

“THE BEAUTY AND UNIQUENESS OF A CITY IS DISPLAYED THROUGH ITS BUILDINGS OVER TIME. IF YOU DESTROY YOUR HISTORICAL FABRIC, YOU END UP WITH ANY CITY, ANYWHERE U.S.A.” ~ BILL MCDOWELL ’75

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CAMPUSNEWS Dr. Stephen L. Druggan to Become SCH Academy’s Next Head of School Steve Druggan comes to SCH with more than 20 years of independent school experience, most recently at one of the largest and most culturally diverse independent schools in Asia. He is an international thought leader in contemporary education, mission-based leadership, and community building. He brings his visionary leadership, proven ability to build strong and cohesive communities, keen understanding and appreciation for global education and awareness, and passion for integrating technology throughout the curriculum to the students, faculty, and staff of Springside Chestnut Hill Academy. “SCH is a remarkable institution built on an incredible collective history,” said Steve on accepting the school’s offer. “I am so honored to be selected as the next Head of School for SCH Academy. I look forward to joining this wonderful community as we together write the next chapter in the school’s history.”

Since 2011, Steve has served as Deputy Head of School for Learning at Jakarta Intercultural School in Indonesia, supporting 2,500 students and a faculty/staff totaling over 700. Prior to his tenure at Jakarta Intercultural, Steve was the Deputy Head of School at Munich International School from 2009 to 2011. As an administrator, Steve has been described as a thoughtful, deliberate, and decisive leader. He has been highly effective in managing a complex organization and creating a strong school community committed to a shared mission. He has managed challenges with grace and composure and has been credited by his superiors and his peers for leading Jakarta Intercultural through a particularly difficult period in the school’s history.

Steve grew up in western Pennsylvania and has an Ed.D. in Organizational Management from Nova Southeastern University, Miami, Florida; his Principal’s Certification from The College of New Jersey, Mallorca, Spain; an M.A. in Curriculum and Instruction from United States International University, London; and a B.S. from Slippery Rock University in Elementary Education.

The enthusiastic support of our faculty, staff, students, parents, alumni, and administrators during Steve’s campus visit, coupled with the unanimous support of the Head of School Search Committee, led to a recommendation to the Board of Trustees that Steve be offered the position as Head of School. The Board of Trustees voted unanimously to approve his appointment. Steve and his family will move next summer from Jakarta to Philadelphia. He and his wife, Pia, have two children, Kilian, a senior at Jakarta Intercultural, and Alec, who will join SCH for his senior year. Steve and Pia have a passion for art and enjoy spending time outdoors. Family is a key component to their lives, and their free time often finds them in western Pennsylvania or northern Italy cooking and enjoying time with their extended family and friends.

School Receives National Recognition for Its No-Waste Initiatives SCH Academy’s cafeterias were recently certified as 2-Star Certified Green Restaurants® by the Green Restaurant Association (GRA), a national nonprofit organization helping restaurants to become more environmentally sustainable. SCH is the first school in the state to have a Certified Green Restaurant® cafeteria.

First Cohort of 9th Graders Go on Outward Bound On the first day of school, over 100 SCH 9th graders were navigating the deep forests of Pennsylvania instead of Upper School classrooms. This was the first freshman cohort to participate in the school’s new Outward Bound orientation program, part of its initiative to build student resilience and confidence and help bond the incoming Upper School class.

“SCH serves as a great environmental model for student foodservice across the country,” said Michael Oshman, CEO and founder of the Green Restaurant Association. “In education, leading by example is key, and Springside Chestnut Hill Academy is teaching important models of energy, water, and resource conservation through the environmental steps its foodservice has implemented.”

Matt Norcini, Upper School Dean of Student Life, was one of the faculty to accompany the students on their wilderness trek, for many of them a first-time experience. In his blog recounting the group’s experience, Norcini writes:

SCH has demonstrated its commitment to sustainability in other ways, as well. On Earth Day, the school completed a school-wide waste audit in which all of the school’s waste from both campuses was collected for a 24-hour period and then sorted by student volunteers to understand the amount of waste generated by the school, the potential to divert more waste from the landfill through increased recycling and composting, as well as opportunities to change purchasing and personal habits to reduce waste.

Through the struggle of learning to lead and work together, students become more self-aware, experience personal growth, and come together as a team. ... From morning breakfast and the breakdown of camp to day-ending reflection and conversation around the fire, Outward Bound creates familiarity in unfamiliar environments by providing a knowable, repeatable structure to its participants.

When asked to reflect on what they learned from the trip, one student said, “I learned that keeping a positive attitude and trying to make the best of every situation really helps me deal with challenging or difficult things.”

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designing for real life Renovation of the CEL space was made possible by a generous gift from the Springside Class of 1975 in honor of their 40th reunion.

Mika e

la

t Wa

son

It’s one thing to design a space on a computer and quite another to make it come to life in three-dimensions. Rising seniors Mikaela Watson and Frankie Reitmeyer learned the difference firsthand this past summer when they worked with new media teacher Juliet Fajardo and CEL executive director Ed Glassman on a project to redesign and retrofit portions of the school’s CEL space.

The CEL space “has always been an incredible area for students to work, play, and collaborate in an open way,” explains Glassman. With the completion of this project, its role has been enhanced and amplified. The new CEL space will now house a range of activities, including digital fabrication, media production, digital publishing, robotics, programming, and the Venture Incubator. All of these activities will be visible through glass-enclosed work spaces and windowed classrooms, engendering a heightened sense of creative energy and collaboration. “When students come into this space, they will feel inspired seeing all of the activity going on around them,” adds Glassman.

“One of the great things about architectural projects is collaboration and the coming together of different minds,” says Fajardo. “I wasn’t looking forward to doing this project in isolation and I thought, since it’s really their space that they’re going to be utilizing, wouldn’t it be great to involve some of my students and incorporate their perspective.”

For Watson and Reitmeyer, the opportunity to work on this project seemed a natural exciting extension of their work in Fajardo’s architecture class. For Watson, it offered a chance to gain more experience in an area she thinks might be a potential college major or minor. For Reitmeyer, who says she is naturally drawn to “houses, office

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spaces, and places that humans use,” the project offered an opportunity for her to apply other things she likes, such as math, science, and design.

The inspirational phase of a design project is one of the most important phases, and Fajardo wanted to be sure the students had an opportunity to contribute their ideas up front so they could see them evolve and come to life.

“I wanted them to see the design process from beginning to end. Design is something that really needs to be experienced. It includes outof-the-box thinking, a lot of problem solving, and collaboration. It brings in engineering, the arts, plus the business side of things and really utilizes a lot of the skills that we teach in our classrooms, but in a practical application.”

The project involved three aspects: combining and retrofitting two existing classrooms adjoining the CEL space into a single room where students can do 2D and 3D modeling and fabricate their designs using laser cutters and 3D printers; constructing a media production space involving a green screen room and audio recording studio; and designing a Brain Café where students will be able to work together in small groups and display products made in the Venture Incubator process. The Brain Café is scheduled to be built in a later phase.

“Mikaela and Frankie were really creative thinkers,” says Fajardo. Early on in the project, she tasked them with going to the “furniture graveyard,” a storage area for the school’s decommissioned furniture, and taking pictures of things that might fit within the

Students Help to Design a New Classroom Space for the School

The students were also involved in helping to select flooring and furnishings, assembling the spec sheets, contacting vendors, and arranging to have samples delivered. “There was so much information to process,” reflects Reitmeyer. “Mikaela and I would meet at a coffee shop and work on these things together.

It was good to problem solve with someone else.” One of the most challenging aspects for the students was dealing with the brokers.

“Salespeople are really trying to sell you things,” reflects Reitmeyer. “One was a real promoter; the other was really laid back and let the pieces speak for themselves.” One lighting consultant, she recalls, never got back to her

Now that the first phase of the build out is completed, the girls are able to see the fruits of their hard work. The spaces they helped to design are busy with students working on projects. When asked what they liked best about the experience, Watson said, “This was the first time I’ve been able to marry my interest in art and design with my interest in science. Working with all the different software programs enabled me to do this.” Reitmeyer adds, “Seeing the project come to life was the best part. Although there are more restrictions with a real-life project, you know you’re doing something that’s actually going to be used and have a function.” She admits, though, that architecture is probably not in her future. “I don’t think I could take having one of my projects rejected. I get too invested in my work.”

frankie r e

For Fajardo, having the students work alongside her on a project that directly impacts the student experience and enhances the educational program at SCH made this project especially meaningful.

It was also a pleasure to be able to give the girls a real-world design experience that tested their problem-solving, relational, and technological skills. “It’s definitely value added and an extension of their education to see how it impacts the real world.”

Stages in the construction of the new Digital Fabrication Lab. Far right: Juliet Fajardo in front of the new display cubicles in the lab.

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y er

The students were also tasked with creating an alternative design for the Brain Café which would be considered along with Fajardo’s concept. In putting together their ideas, one of the initial challenges the girls faced was reacquainting themselves with SketchUp, a 3D modeling software they had used in a previous new media class and which they needed to use to create their design.

until August, after the project was completed.

me it

overall design aesthetic of the project. One of the things Reitmeyer discovered was a set of IKEA cots used for a Parents Association fundraiser. The cots, made of unpainted wood slats and supported by a slender white metal truss, seemed a perfect element to use as part of a lighting fixture. Today they hang from the ceiling of the Digital Fabrication Lab, in between the florescent lights. “It’s a great creative reuse,” says Fajardo. “They bring a lot of warmth to the space and tie in with the wood trim. If Frankie hadn’t pointed them out, I would never have seen them.”

the faces behind the funds SCH is blessed to have over 122 special funds created by or in honor of programs, alumni, administrators, parents, and other family members. These funds support a wide range of learning activities and growth experiences that help enrich our students’ and faculty’s lives and serve as a daily manifestation of the power of giving. The following profiles highlight just three of the many people who have given to the school in very tangible and lasting ways.

Polly Lame Dunn ’65 Alumna

Jessie B. Hill ’72

Polly Lame Dunn’s love of learning is in her Springside DNA. So is her generous support of the love of learning at this school and others.

Like her mother before her (Mary Perkins Lame ’27), Polly loved her Springside educational experience. In fact, Polly was inspired by her experience to volunteer at the State College Friends School where her children were educated.

“One of the reasons I spend so much time volunteering and working at the school, now as committee clerk and earlier as administrator, parent, and trustee, is because I’ve experienced the value of independent education,” explains Polly. “After 35 years, our Friends School has grown from a parent-run alternative in the basement of the Meetinghouse to a fixture in the educational community in its own building and grounds. The teachers ARE the school and they love their students, so the students are excited and challenged to learn.”

Polly’s father, Dr. Edwin Lame, also appreciated the role Springside played in their family’s life, and he established an endowed fund in his wife’s memory to support the reading program at Springside. The Mary Perkins Lame Reading Fund is a permanent and self-sustaining source of funding that provides resources and teaching tools for faculty who teach reading in the lower grades.

This past spring, Polly celebrated her 50th reunion at Springside. In between the various weekend celebrations, she made a very generous gift to the Reading Fund in her mother’s name. It was a gift made from a place of joy celebrating her mother, the power of reading, her 50th reunion, and the school where she learned the value of an independent school education.

Former Trustee, Alumna Jessie Hill has traveled the globe. She has lived as close as Erdenheim, 10 minutes from school, and as far away as Hawaii and Taiwan. Jessie served on the Board of Trustees for Springside School, where she made generous contributions to The Campaign for Springside.

Jessie attended Springside through 9th grade, after which she left for boarding school. She attributes her commitment to the school to her great experiences as a young Springside student. “I have very happy memories of Lower School,” she says. “We had a lot of exposure to many different things from languages to geography.” She remembers assemblies where she and her 3rd grade classmates had to be up on stage in front of the entire Lower School and play geography games. It was a fun experience that gave her confidence in public speaking at a young age.

Another fond memory was starting French in Kindergarten. “I feel that this early start helped me a lot with my language-learning ability. It certainly piqued my interest in foreign languages,” she says. “I came to love learning them.” This love eventually led Jessie abroad to Asia. She lived in Taiwan for a period of time, teaching English and practicing Chinese. Today she has some proficiency in several foreign languages, including Russian, Chinese, Arabic, and Hawaiian.

In 2007, Jessie established The Foreign Language Fund to provide Springside’s Language Department with funding to offer Mandarin in Pre-K through 12th grade. Today, thanks to Jessie’s generosity, SCH students are not only learning the most widely spoken language in the world, they are helping to bridge East and West and acquiring a skill that will help them become citizens of the world. On leaving a legacy: “Springside Chestnut Hill Academy is an excellent school, and I am very proud of it and enjoy helping it to be as fine a school as it can be.”

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DONOR FUNDS IN ACTION from top to bottom: 1st grade teacher Deidra McRae reads a book to her students; 5th grade student reads a story he wrote to classmates and faculty during Author Day; girls in a Middle School Mandarin class review vocabulary; Lower School boys practice pronunciation in Mandarin class; Upper School English teacher Michael Ferrier receives the 2015 Rorer Teacher of Promise Award.

Edward C. “Ted” Rorer ’61

Honorary Trustee, Alumnus

Ted Rorer has assumed many leadership roles at his beloved alma maters, Chestnut Hill Academy and Trinity College, including serving as a trustee of both. He also played varsity squash at each school, and in 2001 returned to CHA to coach squash for three years, leading the team to an undefeated 17-0 season and winning both the Inter-Ac League and the Mid-Atlantic Squash Association Championships. In 2013, he was inducted into the CHA Athletic Hall of Fame honoring his coaching success.

Ted began his career as a French teacher at CHA but soon set off on a business path after receiving his MBA from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. In 1978 he established his own successful money management company, Rorer Asset Management, LLC. Currently, he serves as chairman of Copeland Capital Management, an investment management firm with $2 billion under management.

After leaving CHA, Ted continued to be active in its Alumni Association. He went on to lead the CHA board during Richard Parker’s term as headmaster, a tenure marked by many major milestones, including a celebration of the school’s 100th year in the Wissahickon Inn, near-capacity enrollment, and a 155 percent increase in unrestricted annual giving when close to $12 million was also raised in capital funds.

In 2009, CHA dedicated the Rorer Center for Science and Technology, a building that embodies and teaches sustainability, from its permeable parking lot, rain gardens, and grey-water capture system to its rooftop wind turbine, solar and photovoltaic panels, motion-sensor lighting system, and native species arboretum. In honor of his leadership, the school also established The Edward C. Rorer ’61 Teacher of Promise Award, which is given annually to that faculty member who best exemplifies the energy, passion, love of learning, care for students, and commitment that Ted brought to the school as a teacher, coach, trustee, and friend. This esteemed award includes a stipend to help the recipient pursue personal or professional growth.

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SCH STANDOUT ATHLETES

Photo courtesy of Northwestern University.

SCH ACADEMY’S CHAMPIONSHIP CULTURE has nurtured many outstanding athletes over the years. Below are profiles of some of our recent graduates and current students who are excelling in their sport and demonstrating the grit, character, and spirit of the SCH athlete.

SAM SHROPSHIRE ’13, NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY, TENNIS Sam was rated a Blue Chip High School Recruit and the #24-ranked high school player in the country his senior year. At Northwestern, he was ranked First-Team All-Big Ten, Big Ten Freshman of the Year, and ITA Midwest Rookie of the Year as a freshman, and FirstTeam All-Big Ten and #1 singles player as a sophomore. Last year, he was a First-Team All-Big Ten selection (unanimous), finishing 23-12 in singles and 16-12 in doubles. He anchored the #1 spot in singles and split between #1 and #2 in doubles.

CHRIS ALLEYNE ’16, COMMITTED TO UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND FOR BASEBALL According to the Prep Baseball Report: “The switch-hitter is a quick-twitch athlete with solid wheels, smooth defensive actions, and quick hands on double play turns.” Alleyne was First Team All-League as a junior.

MIKAELA WATSON ’16, COMMITTED TO STANFORD UNIVERSITY FOR LACROSSE Mikaela committed as a sophomore to Stanford University for lacrosse as one of the top recruits in the country. She was a fouryear varsity starter and three-time All-InterAc selection. She also plays field hockey and has been named All-Inter-Ac in two of her three years.

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Photo courtesy of University of Arkansas

TAYLOR ELLIS-WATSON ’10, UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS. TRACK AND FIELD

Photo courtesy of Northwestern University.

At SCH, Taylor was the 2011 Indoor and Outdoor State Champion in the 400m. She placed 5th at the 2011 Indoor Nationals and was named All-American for Indoor Track. She is a four-time Outdoor All American and three-time Indoor All American. Taylor was the 2015 SEC Outdoor Champion and First Team All-SEC in the 400m as well as the 2015 SEC Indoor Champion and First Team All-SEC in the 4x400 relay. Before Arkansas, she attended the University of Pittsburgh, where she was All-American and All-Big East and qualified for the NCAA Indoor Championships in the 400m dash as a freshman. She was named to the U-23 USA Track and Field Team that competed in the NACAC International Athletics Championship last summer and placed 2nd in the 400m. Taylor will train and compete for Arkansas in her final seasons this year and hopes to qualify for the Olympics in Rio next summer.

DARIAN BRYANT ’16, COMMITTED TO TEMPLE UNIVERSITY FOR FOOTBALL According to SCH Head Football Coach Rick Knox, Darian is a smart football player and very detail oriented. He works hard and has shown a commitment to be the best player he can possibly be. Darian has been a starter since his freshman year. He’s a varsity letter winner on the track team as well.

Taylor Ellis-Watson, Univesity of Arkansas

IBRAHEIM CAMPBELL ’10, NORTHWESTERN FOOTBALL, CLEVELAND BROWNS At CHA, Ibraheim earned All-League, All-State, All-Southeastern Pennsylvania, All-City, and was named to the Philadelphia Daily News All-Decade Team. At Northwestern, he was an Academic All-Big Ten honoree every year of college and was named a Freshman All-American by the Football Writers Association of America. He was Honorable Mention All-Big Ten as both a sophomore and junior, and as a senior, was team co-captain, Second Team All-Big Ten, and a fourth-round draft pick of the Cleveland Browns, where he now plays safety.

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ELSA RALL ’16 COMMITTED TO THE COLLEGE OF WILLIAM AND MARY FOR LACROSSE Elsa was a four-year varsity starter in goal and was twice named All-Interac. For the past two seasons, her save ratio places her amongst the best goalies in our region.

Photo courtesy of NJ Sports Pics

Photo courtesy of University of Pennsylvania.

DANNY HULL ’12, MARYWOOD UNIVERSITY, SOCCER AND BASEBALL At SCH, Danny was a three-time All-Inter-Ac selection for both soccer and baseball. As a collegiate freshman in soccer, he was named Conference Rookie of the Year and secondteam All-Conference in soccer and Honorable Mention in baseball. As a sophomore in soccer, he was First Team All-Conference, second team ECAC, and Team MVP. As a junior, he was First Team All-Conference, Second Team ECAC in soccer, and All-CSAC Honorable Mention in baseball.

AUGIE FRANK ’12, UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA, SQUASH At SCH, Augie was a three-time letter winner in squash, captain in his senior year, and twotime First Team All-Inter-Ac in squash. At the University of Pennsylvania, he has been in the varsity rotation since his freshman year. As a junior, he helped lead Penn to the College Squash Association Potter Cup (Collegiate Squash National Championship) and a 7th-place finish, the team’s first finish since 2008-2009.

NICOLE VOLGRAF ’11, INDIANA UNIVERSITY, FIELD HOCKEY Nicole is a two-time Academic All-Big Ten senior field hockey player at Indiana, tallying 15 career goals and 31 career points with 11 games left in her final season.

JORDAN YOUNG ’18, COMMITTED TO UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND FOR LACROSSE According to 3D Rising Recruiting Network: “One of the most athletic and talented defenseman in the class of 2018. Jordan has established himself as one of the best defenseman in the country at his age.”

According to his college coach to be, John Tillman, “He is the best cover defenseman in his class.” Jordan joined the varsity football team this year after not playing for several years and leads the team in rushing after three games. He earned player of the week honors for his 281-yard, five-touchdown performance against Mastery Charter North.

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Photo courtesy of Hofstra University.

Photo courtesy of Mercer University.

JACKSON KLEINTZ ’14, MERCER UNIVERSITY, LACROSSE

Syndi is a senior at Hofstra University and one of only 32 student-athletes across the country selected to serve on the NCAA Division I National Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, part of the NCAA’s governing structure.

Photo courtesy of AP Photo.

At SCH, Jackson, left, earned Second Team All-League as a senior and holds the school records for assists, season points, and career points. As a freshman at Mercer University, he started six games, had the game-winning goals in two overtime victories, and was named to the Southern Conference AllFreshman Team.

SYNDI EPPS ’12, HOFSTRA UNIVERSITY, BASKETBALL

MEGHAN MCCOOL ’16, COMMITTED TO UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA FOR SOCCER Meghan is a member of the US U-20 Women’s Soccer National Team and was recently in Honduras for a US U-20 Women’s World Cup Qualifying match. She also trained with the team in Californina this past August as they focused on qualifying for the 2016 FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup, to be held in Papau, New Guinea, at the end of the year.

Meghan verbally committed to top-ranked University of Virginia as a sophomore, was an iD2 selection, a member of the ODP state team, and Penn Fusion Soccer Club. She is the all-time leading scorer at SCH Academy, three-time team captain, and two-time InterAc First Team selection.

MALCOLM GLENDINNING ’17, COMMITTED TO BOSTON UNIVERSITY FOR LACROSSE According to 3D Rising Recruiting Network: “A very talented longstick midfielder, tough and reliable one-on-one defender. Has the ability to shut down elite midfielders and put points on the board.” Malcolm is a threesport athlete: varsity soccer, squash, and lacrosse. He was Second Team All-League as a sophomore.

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KATIE RUTAN ’09, UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND AND CLUB PROTEAS VOULAS, ATHENS, BASKETBALL Katie is currently a professional basketball player with the Club Proteas Voulas in Athens, Greece. She was a three-point shooting specialist at the University of Maryland, reaching the NCAA Final Four in 2014 as well as being named to the All-ACC Academic Team two years in a row. Before Maryland, Katie attended Xavier University where she was named a member of the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team. She is the alltime leading scorer at SCH, totaling 1,759 points throughout her high school career and averaging 20.3 points per game during her senior year. She was the 2009 Inter-Ac Player of the Year, a McDonald’s All-American Honorable Mention, and was ranked in the top 100 players in the nation by ESPN/Hoopgurlz.

FOSTERING GLOBAL CITIZE

by Michael Ferrier, Upper School English Faculty and Coordinator, Global Travel Program IN RECENT YEARS, THE GLOBAL TRAVEL PROGRAM HAS BECOME A CORNERSTONE IN OUR SCHOOL’S COMMITMENT TO FOSTERING GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP IN OUR STUDENTS AND DEVELOPING YOUNG PEOPLE WHO ARE CAPABLE OF INTERACTING COMPASSIONATELY, ETHICALLY, AND SUCCESSFULLY WITH DIVERSE PEOPLES AND CULTURES AROUND THE WORLD. AS A TRIP ORGANIZER, MICHAEL FERRIER HAS SEEN FIRSTHAND HOW TRULY TRANSFORMATIVE THESE TRAVEL EXPERIENCES HAVE BEEN FOR OUR STUDENTS. BELOW, HE TALKS ABOUT A RECENT TRIP TO NEW ZEALAND.

SCH’s Global Travel Program offers our students truly immersive experiences through homestays, exchanges, meaningful service work, field research, and experiential study.

We are committed to a vision of ethical and sustainable travel, one that teaches students that host communities have valuable lessons to impart, and that any service work that we perform must be based on principles of reciprocity and mutuality.

We seek out partnerships with organizations and communities where we can build sustained relationships and participate

This past November, I had the incredible privilege of taking a group of 20 students to the northern island of New Zealand. However, the inspiration for the trip began a few years earlier in my 9th grade English class. I had been drawn to Aotearoa, or the “land of the long white cloud,” primarily through my experience of teaching Witi Ihimaera’s The Whale Rider along with Niki Caro’s wonderful film adaptation of the novel. When I first saw the film, I was captivated by the vibrancy of the Maori culture and the breathtaking beauty of the New Zealand landscape. In my more sanguine moments, I also hoped that my 9th graders, who themselves were facing the challenges of being newcomers to Upper School, would see themselves in this modern-day Antigone, emboldened by her determination to realize her potential and uplifted by her commitment to her convictions and her intense pride in her culture. About three years ago, I began in earnest to design a trip itinerary and curriculum that would complement our study of the text and bring the richness of Maori culture alive for my students.

One important theme that our class explored is the Maori people’s deep and abiding connection to their land; it is a source of identity and belonging, and a place where their physical and spiritual lives intersect. However, it wasn’t until our group was living on a marae in Mimiwhangata Coastal Park and performing conservation service work alongside community members that the students fully grasped, in a truly visceral sense, the central importance of the natural world to the Maori people. And it wasn’t until students were performing manual labor by “grubbing” the land of invasive plant species, or participating in every facet of preparing a hangi, a traditional Maori feast, that they comprehended that food that has a close connection to nature or human work can be nourishing both to the body and to the soul. These unique learning opportunities, available through the Global Travel Program, allow students to deepen their understanding and appreciation of the content that they learn in their coursework back home, and expose students to new ways of seeing and perceiving the world.

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Cambodia

Canada

Ethiopia

Mexico

New Zealand

Peru

ENSHIP THROUGH TRAVEL

in ongoing projects. And through a combination of student coursework and a structured pre-departure curriculum based on building cross-cultural competency, we prepare students not only for their upcoming trips abroad but also their future personal and professional lives as global citizens.

In short, our trips encourage students to think of themselves as travelers and members of a global community, not as tourists.

Italy

France

Denmark

Equador

“It was this aspect of ‘teranga,’ which means hospitality, that stuck with me the most. Even just spending two weeks in Senegal taught me how important community is, and how with that supporting base, there is no need to fear the unknown. I ate more fish than I ever imagined, realized I only need 1/3 of a bucket of water to shower, learned how to haggle in French, and even attempted to pick up the local language with the help of some Senegalese kids who were trilingual.” ~ Kat Saltzman ’16

“We w ould g o to th watch e att classic French ic and snack ing on movie s whil crêpes favorit e filled w e ingr it e d h our ients.

I left F By t ran my rea ce, I felt like he time l little she w as sister host fa , and b milies o t h b my e me. If came I ev family to France er find mys elf in R , I kno ennes wI that w , ill welc ’ll have two homes ome m arms.” e with open ~ Han nah C larke ’17 Russia

Senegal

Spain

Thailand

UAE

The flags on this global map represent the 15 countries that SCH Academy students have visited in the past five years as part of the Global Travel Program.

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Front row, l to r: Amirah Lewis, Emily Zuckerman, Bridget Lipp, Josephine Surer, Emily Chicchi, Claire Cohen, Kali Godshall, Alyssa Fairman, Ciara Reith, Henney Hambrose, Jennifer Ailey, Madison Ramsey, Khalida Saalim, Stephanie Haenn, Sinead Brierley. 2nd row: Francesca Fabiani, Isabel Averback, Emily Kunkel, Kathleen Foley, Jessica Regam, Kerry Dowd, Gini Peyton, Gillian McClarty, Erica Schmidt, Neema Herbert, Tori Richardson, Emily Sullivan, Heaven Howard. 3rd row: Maria Montgomery, Samantha Tiger, Izzy Dickstein, Yane Willie, Comora Love-Mitchell, Miranda Levingston, Lauren McCormack, Sara Mathes, Armida Flores, Avery Nunn, Julia Moriarty, Jessica Saunders, Olivia Booker. 4th row: Sara Glass, Lily Lee, Brigit McDermott, Maddie Nicol, Ayana Rhym, Jamie Costarino, Allison Day, Lily Casebeer, Carlin Rode, Allie Billock, Caroline Henry, Courtney McElwee, Maddy Aslansan, Lauren Stokes.

Front row, l to r: Brandon Boyer, Evan Wolfe, Ben Dlin, Jay Regam, Andy Mutch, Will Tasman, Zachary Cohen, Mac McHugh. 2nd row: Chi Ho Cheung, Liam Cook, Jack Prochniak, Chi Kit Cheung, Jake Silverman, Chris Caldwell. 3rd row: Sameir Madden, Alex Mollick, Paul Boehringer, Joe Torsella, Matt Eckles, Josh Beckerman. 4th row: Robbie Phillips, Liang Li, Jackson Bistrong, Michael Bown, Bear Gardner, Kai Sun, Jose Contreras, Michael Melady. 5th row: Rayan Bousso, Desmond Johnson, Rheon Trim, Christian Williams, Sean McCann. 6th row: Evan Weinstein, Elyas Tecle, Peter Davis, Matt Giegerich, James Klauder, Pat McCann. 7th row: Paul Dooley, James Schweitzer, Jared Welsch, Matthew Miller, Mark Mulhern, Jordan Fromm. 8th row: James Oeth, Nickolas Lawlor, Dylan Parsons, Joe Mulhern, Antonio Fiol-Mahon, Philip Giovinazzo, Brian Hamilton. 9th row: Payden Howard, Henry Vogt, Garrison Xian, Chase Haegley, Riley Mihalik, Sam Grasso.

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BACCALAUREATE &GRADUATION 23

6.9.15

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6.10.15

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STUDENT AWARDS DEPARTMENTAL DISTINCTIONS

Distinction in Latin

Arts

Distinction in Mandarin

Distinction in TwoDimensional Art • Mikaela Watson ’16 • Lauren Stokes ’15

Distinction in ThreeDimensional Art • William Rappoport ’16 • Mac McHugh ’15

Distinction in Performing Arts • Jeffrey Elliot ’16 • Chi Ho Cheung ’15 • Emily Sullivan ’15

Distinction in Instrumental Music • Cameron Rogers ’16 • Isabella Dickstein ’15 • Mark Mulhern ’15

Distinction in New Media • Robert Hass ’16 • Chi Ho Cheung ’15 • Kyra Jackson ’15

English Distinction in English

• Iman Floyd-Carroll ’16 • Leah Kochenour ’16 • Rosalyn Koscica ’16 • Peter Davis ’15 • Sara Mathes ’15

History Distinction in History • Alexandra Fiol-Mahon ’16 • Andrew Kasian ’16 • Singley Risico ’16 • Emily Kunkel ’15 • Joseph Torsella ’15

Foreign Language Distinction in French • Jack Allison ’16 • Emily Kunkel ’15 • Matthew Miller ’15

Distinction in Spanish • Julia Dardaris ’16 • Khalida Saalim ’15 • Joseph Torsella ’15

• Brian Leard ’16 • Peter Davis ’15 • Rosalyn Koscica ’16 • Paul Boehringer ’15

Mathematics Distinction in Mathematics • Julia Dardaris ’16 • Andrew Kasian ’16 • Joseph Mulhern ’15 • Jessica Regam ’15

Engineering and Robotics Distinction in Engineering and Robotics • Maya Jones ’16 • Gib Randall ’16 • Brian Leard ’16 • Paul Boehringer ’15 • Kali Godshall ’15

Science Distinction in Biology • Julia Dardaris ’16 • Nicole Novo ’16 • Mikaela Watson ’16

Distinction in Science • Chi Kit Cheung ’15 • Jessica Regam ’15

Princeton University Book Award

University of Virginia Book Award

Presented by the Princeton Club of Philadelphia to a junior in recognition of outstanding academic achievement and exemplary community service.

• Zachary Halfpenny ’16

Presented to the outstanding junior based on academic and extracurricular activities in acknowledgment of that student’s commitment to academics, leadership, and community involvement, which Thomas Jefferson held in high regard.

• Mikaela Watson ’16

University of Pennsylvania Book Award Presented to a junior who best exemplifies the qualities and characteristics of Benjamin Franklin, the founder of the University of Pennsylvania—a scholar, innovator, and one who served the community.

• Rosalyn Koscica ’16

Brown University Book Award Recognizes a junior who best combines a high degree of ability in English expression, both written and spoken, with those outstanding personal qualities which, in the words of the Brown Charter of 1764, give promise that the student will become one of the “succession of men and women duly qualified for discharging the offices of life with usefulness and reputation.”

• Hunter Ferry ’16

COLLEGE BOOK AWARDS

Northwestern University Book Award Awarded to the junior who demonstrates high academic achievement and through considerable involvement in extracurricular activities, adds greatly to the life of the school.

• Brooke Hanraty ’16

The Rhode Island School of Design Book Award Given for excellence in the creative arts.

• James Schweitzer ’15

President’s Award winner James Schweitzer with Dr. Priscilla Sands.

Harvard University Book Award Awarded to the outstanding junior who displays excellence in scholarship and high character, combined with achievement in other fields.

• Julia Dardaris ’16

Yale University Book Award Presented to a member of the junior class who has shown intellectual promise, significant involvement in extracurricular activities, and service to the community.

• Brian Leard ’16

Deeded Arts Award winners, l to r: Mark Mulhern, Kathleen Foley, Maya Jones, Desmond Johnson, and Caroline Henry. Missing: Lauren McCormack.

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DEEDED AWARDS Arts Players On-Stage and Off-Stage Awards Given by the director of Players for a significant contribution, loyalty, and commitment to Players—on stage and off.

On Stage • Kathleen Foley ’15 • Desmond Johnson ’15 Off Stage • Caroline Henry ’15 • Mark Mulhern ’15

Suzanne Turner Rebmann Award Given in memory of Suzanne Turner Rebmann for excellence in one of the performing arts.

• Maya Jones ’16

Alumnae Association Art Award Given to a member of the senior class who has demonstrated extraordinary interest, ability, and accomplishment in the visual arts.

• Lauren McCormack ’15

Athletics Edward M. McIlvaine Memorial Scholarship Provides an outstanding summer opportunity for a boy who exhibits leadership potential and seeks a special growth experience. Awarded in memory of Ed McIlvaine, Class of 1995, whose involvement in the Outward Bound program left a lasting impression on his life.

• Blake Fennessy ’17

The J. L. Patterson Cup Named in honor of Dr. James Patterson, headmaster from 1897-1923, and awarded to the best all-round male athlete in the graduating class.

• Dylan Parsons ’15

The Lawrence R. Mallery ’05 Award Named for Lawrence Mallery from the Class of 1905. He admired scholar-athletes, and his family established this award to honor the scholarathlete of the senior class.

• Desmond Johnson ’15

The Junior Vare Award in Memory of Johanna Sigmund ’94 Named for the former chair of the Physical Education Department and given in memory of Johanna Sigmund ’94, this award is given to a junior who exhibits talent and a keen interest in athletics and sportsmanship and who demonstrates consistent academic achievement.

• Mikaela Watson ’16

Book Award winners l to r, front row: Rosalyn Koscica, Mikaela Watson, Julia Dardaris; 2nd row: Brian Leard, Zach Halfpenny, Hunter Ferry, James Schweitzer.

Phyllis M. Vare Sportsmanship Award Given in honor of Miss Vare, former chair of the Physical Education Department, to a senior who, through her leadership and example, has shown to others the highest standards of sportsmanship and play.

• Brigit McDermott ’15

Junior Julia Reeves receives the Rebmann Summer Study Award from Laura Rebmann Lenihan ’81.

Junior Mikaela Watson receives the Junior Vare Award from Mr. and Mrs. John Sigmund.

Mrs. Taddy Dawson awards senior Desmond Johnson the Martin Henry Dawson Memorial Award.

Sally Castle awards the Joseph L. Castle ’50 Comcast Scholarship to senior James Schweitzer.

Members of the Marler-Odell family congratulate this year’s Marler-Odell recipient, Gywneth Bjordammen.

Robin Kingsley ’75 awards Elizabeth Sheppard the Robert A. Kingsley Award for academic promise and scholarship.

Outward Bound Award Provides an outstanding summer Outward Bound opportunity for an Upper School girl who exhibits leadership potential and seeks a special growth experience.

• Elsa Rall ’16

Academic Science Society of Women in Engineering Award This program recognizes and honors girls who achieved excellence in the study of mathematics and science for at least three years and have demonstrated an aptitude and interest in engineering.

• Kali Godshall ’15

Rensselaer Polytechnic

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students who show the greatest intellectual curiosity during each of the high school years.

• Robert Hass ’16 • Paul Boehringer ’15 • Sara Mathes ’15

The Daniel Webster Charles Memorial Scholarship

Departmental Distinction recipients, l to r, front row: Mark Mulhern, Alexandra Fiol-Mahon, Leah Kochenour, Mikaela Watson, Andrew Kasian, Emily Sullivan, Singley Risico, Kali Godshall, Rosalyn Koscica; 2nd row: Joseph Torsella, Brian Leard, Emily Kunkel, Sara Mathes, Matthew Miller, Gib Randall, Nicole Novo, Julia Dardaris, Paul Boehringer; 3rd row: Kyra Jackson, Maya Jones, Peter Davis, Aska Cheung, Olly Cheung, Robert Hass. Not pictured: Lauren Stokes, William Rappaport, Mac McHugh, Jeffrey Elliot, Cameron Rogers, Isabella Dickstein, Iman Floyd-Carroll, Jack Allison, Khalida Saalim, Joseph Mulhern, Jessica Regam.

Given to that member of the Upper School who has demonstrated excellence in historical research and creativity in writing.

• Ellery Crandall ’16

The Joseph L. Castle ’50 Comcast Scholarship Awarded in memory of Joseph L. Castle ’50 by the Comcast Foundation to a senior in recognition of his general excellence, commitment to communications at SCH, and who may pursue further study of communications in college.

• James Schweitzer ’15

Rebmann Summer Study Awards Summer study stipend in memory of Bill and Susie Rebmann to supplement and extend the normal scope of school experiences.

• Julia Reeves ’15 Character Awards were received by, l to r, front row: Elizabeth Sheppard, Maddie Nicol, Ayana Rhym, Avery Nunn, Caroline Henry, Singley Risico; 2nd row: James Klauder, Desmond Johnson, James Schweitzer.

Institute Award for Excellence Awarded to a member of the junior class for outstanding academic achievement in the study of mathematics and science.

• Lily Wang ’16

The Marler-Odell Award Awarded to recognize excellence in applied science.

• Gywneth Bjordammen ’16

General Academics

National Merit Scholarship Award Awarded in recognition of academic excellence and performance on the PSAT. Finalist • Joseph Torsella ’16

The Christopher Fraser Carpenter ’60 Memorial Award In memory of Chris Carpenter ’60, this award is granted to that member of the junior class who has shown the greatest improvement during the year.

• Aidan Fitzpatrick ’16

The Franklin And Margaret Steele Fund for Entrepreneurship A scholarship given to a student who wishes to pursue his or her entrepreneurial passion through an internship in a certain industry or business.

• Elizabeth Sheppard ’16

Character Community Service Award Recognizes students for their extraordinary commitment to their community and meaningful service connections throughout their school career.

• James Klauder ’15 • Ayana Rhym ’15

The Robert A. Kingsley

The Class of 1959 Award Awarded to the student or

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Scholarship Given to that student below the senior class who has shown the highest degree of academic promise and scholarship, along with the most responsible type of leadership.

• Elizabeth Sheppard ’16

Jane Bell Memorial Award To keep alive the memory of the founder of Springside School, a woman of noble personality, full of enthusiasm and courage, and to remind the student that in this everchanging world, there will always remain a need for these virtues.

• Xavier Bell ’16 • Singley Risico ’16

The Martin Henry Dawson ’90 Memorial Award Presented annually in memory of Tinry Dawson ’90 to that senior who has, by vote of the members of the senior class, provided the most positive support and friendship to his classmates during their years together in the Upper School.

• Desmond Johnson’15

Sara Wetherell Blake ’70 Award Given in memory of Sara Wetherell Blake, Class of 1970, by vote of the senior class for service, simplicity, and sincerity.

• Maddie Nicol ’16

Alice Morice ’24 Memorial Award Given in memory of Alice Morice, Class of 1924, by vote of the faculty to that senior who has shown loyalty and devotion to the school in all aspects of school life.

• Avery Nunn ’15

The Caroline Susan Jones Award Given in honor of Springside’s headmistress from 1900 to 1921 by vote of the three upper classes and the faculty to a senior for courage, cheerfulness, fair-mindedness, good sportsmanship, influence widely felt, and the courage of

his or her own convictions.

• Caroline Henry ’15

The Edward Savage Memorial Award This award is named for Edward Savage, who worked at CHA from 1915 through the ’30s, taking care of athletic equipment as well as maintaining the athletic fields. The award is presented by the alumni and awarded for loyalty and service to the school.

• James Schweitzer ’15

President’s Award Awarded to a student at the discretion of the president for his or her outstanding contributions to the school.

• James Schweitzer ’15

Athletic Award recipients, l to r: Mikaela Watson, Elsa Rall, Dylan Parsons, Brigit McDermott, Desmond Johnson. Not pictured: Blake Fennessy.

Special Award

FACULTY AWARDS Excellence in Teaching Award Presented by Dr. Priscilla Sands.

• Ellen Kruger

The Edward C. Rorer ’61 Faculty of Promise Award In honor of Ted Rorer ’61, teacher, coach, trustee, and friend, this prize recognizes a young faculty member who exemplifies energy, passion, love of learning, care for students, and a commitment to the school. The award includes a stipend to help the recipient pursue personal or professional growth.

• Michael Ferrier • Jessica Tiffany

The Elliston Perot Walker Teaching Excellence Award In honor of CHA faculty member E. Perot Walker and his wife, Susie, for years of dedicated service, excellent teaching, and commitment to the students.

• Kevin Engleman h’14

The Landreth Award Given to a staff member who, for at least 10 years, has served the school with outstanding devotion.

• Lynn Gehr

William E. Shuttleworth Honorary Award Given to that teacher, by vote of 10-year alumni, who has had the most beneficial influence on the students.

• Roland Woehr h’07

The Corning Pearson ’30 Service Award Given in recognition of extraordinary service to the school, long-standing commitment to the school’s educational experience, dedication and loyalty to the school’s values and mission, and passion for its traditions, as personified by Corning Pearson ’30, student, athlete, educator, administrator, benefactor.

• Janie Parker

Academic Award winners, l to r, front row: Ellery Crandall, Aidan Fitzpatrick, Julia Reeves, Gwyneth Bjordammen, Kali Godshall, Jessica Regam; 2nd row: Joseph Torsella, Robert Hass, Elizabeth Sheppard, Sara Mathes, James Schweitzer, Paul Boehringer.

Corning Pearson Award winner, Janie Parker, right, with Kim Whetzel.

Faculty Award recipients, l to r: Ellen Fishman-Johnson, Kevin Engleman, Michael Ferrier, Lynn Gehr, Ellen Kruger, Roland Woehr.

Not pictured: Jessica Tiffany.

The Thomas Sayre Ambler Faculty Enrichment Award Awarded to an individual faculty member whose proposed area of study will best develop that zest for life, learning, and teaching characteristic of Thomas S. Ambler.

• Ellen Fishman-Johnson

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living legacy: the Interview with Dr. Philip Pearson ’86 Philip Pearson ’86, SCH parent of Maggie ’20 and Lucy ’22, comes from a long line of Pearsons who have graduated from CHA and Springside. The fifth son of Marjorie Newbold Pearson ’45 and Stephen Pearson ’37, Phil went from CHA to Princeton and from stock trader to renowned colorectal surgeon at Bryn Mawr Hospital. He shares his journey, memories, and passion for his alma mater in the following interview.

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What is your fondest memory of CHA? I have many but the best ones are of Blue and Blue Day when I was a little kid and Blue and Blue Day when I was senior captain of the dark blue team. I also remember great soccer games, performing in Gilbert and Sullivan’s Mikado my senior year, and singing all over campus with the Melody Boys [Ed: now the Hilltones].

What role did your upbringing play in your success?

My mom and dad supported us no matter what our interests, and we were five very different boys with five totally different career paths and trajectories.

We all got great educations. We graduated from CHA. Two of us went to Princeton, one went to Harvard, one went to Dartmouth, and one went to the Rhode Island School of Design.

We have all gone on to successful careers with loving families.

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What role did Springside/CHA play in your life?

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My middle school and high school years were the most formative.

By the time you get to college, you sort of know who you are.

CHA was a very supportive environment for all of the different interests that I had including theater, a cappella singing, sports, academics, and friends. School was also a huge tradition in my family and I followed in the footsteps of my four older brothers—Steve ’69,

Arthur ’74, Alex ’78, Josh ’82—as well as my father ‘37 and a multitude of other Pearsons before me!

What do you think are important traditions at CHA that you’d like to see continued? What’s your most cherished tradition?

I actually think that the brand-new tradition of the unification of Springside and CHA is the most important tradition that needs to be continued. To be honest, in 1986 when I was a senior, I had no idea why we were two different schools. I took classes with girls. I took choir with girls. I interacted with girls at lunch and after school. I saw no reason that we should be different schools. So, that is a huge new tradition that needs to be nurtured and supported. I also like the fact that old traditions like Blue and Blue Day are being preserved.

Why do you feel it’s important to give back to your school? What motivates you and your family to give?

We are totally invested in and proud of the SCH community because both of our girls go there and we are pretty jazzed about it. We support the school financially and have volunteered many hours in service to the school. We are happy to support an institution that is helping our girls grow and develop as people.

What are your proudest moments from your days at school?

One of my happiest moments was finishing number one in my class junior year and winning the Thomas Jefferson Book Award. Also, the Melody Boys received the Headmaster’s Award when I was a senior and that was a really special moment.

Describe a person or situation from your CHA years that had a profound effect on the way you look at life.

I remember my advisor, Anne Cantor. She was a math teacher for several years. But the fact that I had an advisor who was

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pearson family

5

4

basically a grown-up who was there to help me navigate not only the academic world of CHA but the social stuff too, meant the world to me. Anytime I had either a social or academic problem, I could go to her to discuss anything and everything. It was a great feeling and I am just remembering that the advisor system embodied the supportive atmosphere of CHA at the time.

and 70s. Our family was big enough that there wasn’t that much room for lots and lots of uncles and aunts and cousins at the table for Thanksgiving or Christmas, but we did have some uncles that we saw on a regular basis. My uncle Stanley Pearson who was a very very good athlete both at CHA and Princeton was a big part of my life when I was a kid.

Do you have any special sayings or expressions? Funny story/ stories about your time at CHA?

What do you feel have been the important successes in your life?

Figuring out academics and how to learn at CHA was huge for me. That allowed my academic career to really blossom. Then, going to Princeton and basically hanging in there with some of the smartest kids I’ve ever met was challenging and seriously educational. But the decision to enter the world of medicine after having traded stocks on Wall Street for six months was nothing less than a lightning strike. I was dissatisfied with the financial world and having never even considered medicine before that moment, I was totally convinced that I was going to become a doctor. I knew it in my bones. From that point forward, it was a laborious task to go back and take the right classes, do the right research, take the MCAT, apply to medical school, and get in. After 11 more years of education and training, I started my job at Bryn Mawr Hospital as a colorectal surgeon and have never looked back.

How did your family celebrate holidays (e.g., Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year, Easter, Memorial Day)? Did lots of relatives get together? What traditions did you have year after year?

We were a pretty basic white-bread suburban family and therefore our holiday traditions were fairly typical for the 60s

It really isn’t one set of expressions per se. But there is a lifelong and very close relationship with the Nalle family: Ned, Hod, Ellen, Zandy, and Lucy. Basically all of the Pearson boys grew up being friends with one or another of the Nalle kids. And in those long years of friendships we developed 6 some pretty hilarious and wacky humorous routines and nicknames and interactions that basically cannot be described to the outside world. It’s like we had this weird world to ourselves. But it was really funny stuff and that humor carries over into our adult lives. We’re all still friends.

CAPTIONS: 1. Top row, second from left: Philip’s father’s first cousin Corning Pearson ’30, after whom the school’s baseball diamond and the Corning Pearson ’30 Service Award are named.

2. The five Pearson boys. Philip is the baby.

3. Stephen Pearson ’37, Philip’s father.

4. Marjorie Newbold Pearson ’45 with current SCH students, granddaughters Lucy ’22 (left) and Maggie ’20.

5. The extended SCH Pearson family gathered for the rededication of the Pearson Baseball Diamond following the renovation of the athletic fields.

6. Josh, Alex, and Philip with a friend in Maine dancing around—could that be the Blue Devil?

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C L A S S NOTE S NEWS FROM OUR ALUMNI NEAR AND FAR

1950s 1952 Lin Knight reports, “Ann and I have just sold our house in Portland and are ‘homeless,’ taking a three-month road trip around the U.S. We plan eventually (July?) to rent an apartment back in San Francisco, where we lived for many years. This photo was taken a week or so ago at friends’ home in Arizona. Today (May 12) we are in Shamrock, TX, on our way to the Ozarks in Arkansas, a state neither of us has ever been to. We just had the privilege of attending the graduations in Albuquerque of two of our seven grandchildren—one as a nurse and one as a master in architecture from UNM. We plan to be in the Philadelphia area in a month or so, and hope to get out to see the SCH campus for the first time in many years. We’ll visit my sister in Philadelphia, then head up to New Haven to see some old Whiffenpoof buddies, then back across the northern tier of states, through our old home in

Jackson Hole, and to SFO. It’s one of those ‘bucket list things,’ and since we are both healthy and still like each other we’re just doin’ it!

Blessings to all.”

1955 Rebecca Pepper Sinkler, former Philadelphia Inquirer and New York Times Book Review editor, writes, “Has anything changed? Everything and nothing. Usual number of diseases and debilities, all probably the consequence of evil living over the years, which is not going to change if I can help it. Accumulation of children and grandchildren has of course changed everything too. They are the light of my life, as I am sure they are for all our class, what remains of it. Still mourning the loss of many, especially dear Patsy Warth, who was

one of my close friends.

Old CHA friends still figure in my life: Harry (Butchie) Groome, Morris Cheston, etc. Remember? A news and politics junkie, I waste far too much time watching TV. I also read constantly, edit stuff for nonprofits I am involved with, read, and critique rough drafts of books for friends.

Latest project is with the author Lorene Cary and her students at Penn, working on “Safe Kids Stories,” which is helping young kids, mostly victims of trauma, poverty, and horrendous schooling, tell their stories. Very rewarding. Other interest is in climate change and how to ameliorate it. Working with Citizen’s Climate Lobby, a group with a bipartisan approach to limiting the use of fossil fuels. Too complicated to explain here, but if you are interested, please look it up. It’s a way to approach environmental concerns without scaring Republicans (LOL). Still adore my New Hampshire garden and spend loads of time on it and in it. We grow all our fruits and veggies there, and flowers, flowers, flowers. Love the half-year we

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spend there happily among new friends, and the old ones who visit, plus family of course. One of my grands (15 years old) is spending the entire summer with us this year, hooray!! Also love the half-year I return to Philly and live on Rittenhouse Square. Paradise: theater, orchestra, ballet, lectures, a James Joyce course, and mostly MOVIES, which we go to at least two or three times a week. I feel like Persephone bouncing around with the seasons. So damn lucky!!!

Lucky, too, to still be married to my first love, David, who has turned out to be a real keeper. He is fit and fine, healthier than me, still looks good and has taken extraordinary care of me during my various down times. Still review an occasional book for the Times, but it takes too long and the pay is lousy. Grandkids entering adulthood—many in college, one in grad school, one living in the same building as us in Philly, making jewelry and growing up. They all have such peculiar food habits,

don’t they? Vegetarian, vegan, fruitarian (YES, he eats ONLY FRUIT). This too will pass.

As will all of us. Getting used to the idea that I am mortal, which is really very odd. One of my friends, whom I visited last weekend in LA, is in the very last days of cancer, has set such a great example of living to the fullest until the end. Hope we can all do that, and will be around for many more reunions. Cheers and love to you all.”

Elizabeth (Betsy) Hagar Perrott writes, “I am still playing golf almost three times a week, playing duplicate bridge and continuing with my art. Exercise is still important and trying to eat good and healthy foods. My family is the most important part of my life. I am blessed to have two beautiful granddaughters who are four and six years old.”

Polly Merritt Carroll writes, “Two years ago I moved to Oak Crest, a continuing care retirement community just east of Baltimore. I am very involved in many activities here—knitting and crocheting group, recycle group, line dancing, fitness program, and MdCCRA (MD Continuing Care Residents Assoc.) for which I have been involved in setting up a panel discussion on the “Future of Continuing Care.”

Just this winter I started an indoor bocce team that included three beginners. We competed against nine teams.”

Judy Gray Grieve recalls what stands out in her memories about school: “Sunning ourselves on the hill of grass in back of the school, my dad and Mr. Whitman throwing a lacrosse ball with Miss Vare at a father/daughter dinner in the gym and singing Brahm’s Requiem with the Philadelphia Orchestra. ”The things that have changed since the last reunion five years ago: “My great-granddaughter will be six in September, a

granddaughter’s wedding this summer, and I retired in February after 38 years in the pediatric office!”

Nell Stier Mecray writes, “My goal these last five years was to simplify my life, move into a gracious continuing care community, renovate our new home, create new mini gardens, sell the house we lived in for over 20 years, leave the large gardens, reduce stress on me and my working husband, play more duplicate bridge, serve on more committees, make new friends while keeping the old ones, maintain my health by exercising more, visit the children and grandchildren more, read more, entertain more, travel more easily. I accomplished all this by the time I was 75. The hard work is behind us. The children are relieved. I’m having fun”!

Alumni lacrosse game, 1st row, l to r: D. Brockenbrough ’14, Coach Kalinowksi, W. Rall ’13, T. Hogan ’14, M. Munro ’09, Coach DelGrande.

2nd row: I. Caplan ’13, K. Lawlor ’14, J. Kleintz ’14, F. Rall ‘13, G. Quillian ‘09. 3rd row: T. Brennan ’14, K. Espenshade ’12, P. Nicolo ’13, R. Munro ‘12

Carol Morgan Southall was presented with Freeport, Maine’s Citizen of the Year award. The award honors an outstanding citizen of the town who, by their initiative and efforts over the years, have made it a wonderful place to live.

1960s 1965 Fran Adams works as a nurse practitioner in adult psychiatry at her own private practice, where she “[finds] the work incredibly rewarding.” Her daughter, Zihui, whom she adopted from China, turned 21 in May, which they celebrated with a trip to Italy.

Sara Pilling writes, “I am more arthritic and less flexible, am fiercely independent but am learning to ask for support…for some things. I read what I want, I eat where and what I want, and I’ve given up making my bed! My priority is to do the things that bring me pleasure­, to listen more and speak less, to foster positive relationships and let go of the negative. I am the volunteer horticulturist (and founder) of a 63-family community vegetable garden in Radnor township. I am an avid quilter and raise chickens for their eggs! They taste delicious!!!”

Nina Sinkler Talbot writes, “My husband, Jimmy, and I have been married for 47 years! We have been lucky to have spent our life around children—Jimmy taught at CHA for 34 years, as a teacher, coach, and athletic director. We spent the last 14 years on the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee, where Jimmy was the director of Camp Tecumseh.” Nina has learned that “being around children really does keep you young— at least at heart.”

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Linda Cheston Fountain retired from her job at an investment boutique in 2010, which has enabled her to travel with her husband, Ed. They hiked in Patagonia, went on a guided tour of Israel, and this summer they planned a trip to the Hebrides and a family reunion in the Netherlands. Linda writes that she has volunteered locally and recently had the opportunity to return to riding and competing again. She continues to be a fitness nut with regular yoga and cycling.

Pat Roberts writes, “I’ve had a variety of jobs: Glamour Magazine, ABC Sports, a boat builder in Maine, The Dolan Family Office at Cablevision in Woodbury, New York, and most recently a personal assistant and bookkeeper to individual clients in New York and Philadelphia.” While working at ABC Sports, she worked for Frank Gifford of Giants football fame and an on-air commentator with Howard Cosell and Don Meredith for Monday Night Football. Her position with Frank ended up scoring her tickets to the 1985 Super Bowl.

Elementary School, where she has taught (except for a few years) since her graduation from Wellesley in 1969. She is now teaching the grandchildren of some of her first students of the 1970s.

Alumni Soccer Game, l to r: P. Adubato ’10, D. Tracy ’10, M. Marino ’08, T. Ferry ’08, S. Feirson ’12, R. Duffy ’09, C. Rosenberg ’12, J. Devine ’96, B. Freeman ’91, J. DiSalvo ’96, K. Spaeth ‘84

Since retiring from full-time teaching in 2014, Karen Quinn Doman reports she’s dusted off [her] hiking boots. She and Betsy Hord Jameson climbed a peak in Colorado, the Dolomites with college friends, and this year on the Grand Canyon and in Death Valley with her husband, Bruce.

Mimi Ellis Garrett retired this past year and now lives “happily on top of a mountain above Alexander Valley where the prune trees have been replaced by manicured

in memoriam

vineyards belonging to estate wineries. [I live] in a small house—off the grid with solar power, a hydro system, and wood heat.” She recently adopted two labradors that she is hoping to train as therapy dogs.

Mimi Ellis Garrett was featured in an advertisement on public transit buses in Sonoma County, California, for the months of April and May as “Outstanding Teacher.”

Mimi is currently the reading specialist at the Geyersville

Kathy Schultz Shelton “has been a newspaper reporter, historic preservationist, museum director, and an art and antiques dealer.” She has authored two books, which she published under the name Kathy Moses. She was a guest on Martha Stewart Living Television and sold art to Oprah Winfrey.

Ann (Pinky) Staman Hollingworth “retired from formal teaching but [is] tutoring (reading) and trying to write.” She has published ebooks for beginning readers, which has led her to set up a website and start blogging and utilizing social media.

Kathy Kroekel Harr cofounded “350 Bucks County, a local chapter of 350.org, an international nonprofit dedicated to building a global climate movement.

Our monthly meetings are aimed at raising awareness and organizing action toward climate safety and preserving a livable planet.”

Since graduating from Springside, Marjie McNeill Findlay has worked on the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation in South Dakota, where she saw firsthand how prominent issues of hunger and poverty are. Today, she is active with Hunger in America, an organization she joined when she discovered the prevalence of hunger in the Northeast, particularly in Massachusetts. She serves on the board of the Claneil Foundation, where she became board chair in 2003 and works to promote healthy lifestyles and help combat hunger. She currently resides in Carlisle, Massachusetts, where she lives with her husband, Geoff, on Clark Farm, a community-supported agriculture farm.

Fancie Wells Johnson is rising in stardom, as a song she wrote for her son Tod about giraffes is entering the music industry—30 years after she created it! The lyrics accompany the tune of “My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean,” and Tod’s old classmate, a current music producer, reached out to their family hoping to produce and distribute the song. The lyrics have now been copyrighted and the song has been

As of 8/31/15

In honor of Lisa Burgis ’77 and the travel fund created in her memory, a tree and plaque were dedicated at the corner of Willow Grove Avenue and Cherokee Street in June.

Lisa loved to travel and her father, Harold, created this fund in her name to help student travel abroad.

1934 Elizabeth Downes McDevitt

1938 Jane Wolstenholme Ostergren 1941 Donald Dodge 1942 Mary Franks Schroeder

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1956 Morris Lloyd Jr. Samuel M. V. Tatnall 1957 Marion “Kippy” Boulton Stroud 1966 Charlise Starn Felts 1980 Thomas Nott

remastered for a multi-media release including iTunes and YouTube.

Lucy Browning Wallace describes her life journey since graduating from Springside: “I feel I am such a different person from that 17-year-old teenager….but probably my classmates would recognize me. For one thing, I’m still an optimistic person (the phrase in the Yearbook used to describe me was a quote from Robert Browning, I believe along the line of ‘Look not thou down, but up’). Frankly, when I left Springside and even after graduation from Wheaton, I had no idea where my life’s journey would take me. And while it amazes me to think how unfocused I was—especially knowing how certain my peers were (or seemed to me to be) about their goals, I think it opened me to opportunities I might have otherwise missed.

Beth (Lizzie) McClenahan writes, “Springside seems a long way off, but my journey would not have been the same without the wise and passionate teaching of Low and Kleckner, Fox and Koltnow, et al. And as I routinely arrive at a client’s home at least 15 minutes late, I often think of Miss Potter trying so hard to help me schedule my time. I’m still taking naps in odd places and, oh yes, my paperwork is still not done on time!”

Priscilla Taylor Kennedy writes there are gifts that Springside gave that were never found elsewhere.

“First, friendships that lasted, swimming parties at Marjie’s, riding imaginary horses with Mimi, riding real horses with Pinky, deskmates with Julia.

Now when I meet a Springside friend, the years melt away; we resume where we left off and we share a treasure trove of experience that needs no mention. Life is short and we

do not have much time to be with those who travel with us, so be quick to love and make haste to be kind.”

REUNION

1970s 1976 Beth Somers Stutzman reports, “I was honored and delighted to don my regalia and remember my own educational past from Springside School, Mount Holyoke College, and the Wharton Business School as I participated in the college prep school graduation ceremony of the Class of 2015 at Lexington Christian Academy! Why did I have this pleasure? As an elected trustee serving my 12th year, I led the opening prayer, processed, and best of all, personally handed my daughter, Emily Stutzman, her diploma. It was a gift on many levels!

Emily graduated with high honors and will be attending Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA, to major in French and international business. For me, it bought back so many invaluable memories of my educational path, the friends I have gained along the way, my professional business achievements, and the opportunity to make a difference at an educational institution!

Standing firm or really sitting firm by dear Springside, Lindsay Scott Leisenring ’80, Lisa McLean Reynolds ’80, and Betsy Nott Hall ’82 enjoyed a mini reunion at Nebo Lodge in North Haven, Maine this summer.

America, announced that it had inducted Joseph L. Messa Jr. as its 55th president for the 2015-2016 year, following a year serving as its presidentelect. Joe is the founder of Messa & Associates, P.C. According to a press release issued by PTLA, he has successfully litigated multiple serious injury cases. He is an AV-rated attorney, listed in the Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers, a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, and was named a Top 100 Trial Lawyer by The National Trial Lawyers. He has been recognized as a Pennsylvania Super Lawyer from 2009 to 2015 and was selected to the Top 100 Pennsylvania and Top 100 Philadelphia lists for 2012, 2013, and 2015. This past year, Joe was certified by the American Board of Professional Liability Attorneys and awarded Diplomat status.

1980s 1980 On June 19, 2015, the Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association, the oldest local trial lawyer organization in

1983

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Miles Smith married Karin Lynn Gornick on Saturday, August 22.

1990s 1990 Elizabeth Eglinton Mitchell writes, “Eoin, our son, keeps me and my husband, John, very busy. He plays soccer, is a purple belt, plays the piano, and is starting the guitar. He is a Baden Powell Scout and is very active in the Jennersville YMCA youth theater program. When we aren’t juggling his schedule, we are working. John gallops race horses at Fair Hill Training Center and I manage the thoroughbred breeding farm where we live. I like to give back to the wonderful athletes that I have worked with all my life so I am active in a number of Thoroughbred charities including being on the committee for the Fair Hill Thoroughbred show. In my downtime I like to read, try new recipes and attempt being crafty. Managing a horse farm is not the typical Springside graduate’s career path, but it was always mine.

Sometimes I thank all the

teachers at Springside for helping me realize that I can follow my own path even if it is a little different. I often think, ‘Would I have this job that makes me so happy if I had started with an education from any other school?’ I might not.

Thank you for providing me a wonderful foundation to help me pursue my dreams.”

2000s 2004 Nicole Allen married Kellan White on October 4, 2014, in Philadelphia at the University of Pennsylvania Museum.

2011 This summer Lafayette Hill native and Indiana University fifth-year senior field hockey midfielder Nicole Volgraf was featured on Philafieldhockey.com, a local website that promotes college, high school, club, and youth field hockey in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties as well as college players who hail from the area but play outside of the five counties. The website had this to say about Nicole: “Volgraf was a decorated player at Springside and Viper FHC and was back in the Philadelphia area this summer to train, coach her cousin, and intern [Ed: at URBN’S Anthropologie] in the fashion industry. Volgraf redshirted her sophomore

year due to a back injury; she’s been a key player on the NCAA DI Indiana University team, a member of the Big 10, and now coached by Amanda Janney (formerly of Temple field hockey), having appeared in 49 games and notching 14 goals. Volgraf registered a .682 shot on goal percentage in 2014 and landed second in the team’s 2014 stats for goals and points. She earned Academic All-BigTen honors in 2013 and 2014 and Big Ten Distinguished Scholar (4.0 as an eligible athlete) in spring 2013 and spring 2015. In addition, Volgraf is the two-time president of Indiana’s Student Athlete Advisory Committee.”

Asked what she is most proud of, Nicole said that “being a D1 athlete has challenged me

in more ways than I can count.

I don’t think that any other experience could have given me this momentum.”

2010s

THE SCH FUND A CULTURE OF GENEROSITY The SCH Fund provides unrestricted annual gifts to the school’s most critical priorities such as: • • • • • • •

faculty classroom resources athletics arts and new media scholarships and financial aid robotics and so much more

These gifts make the SCH experience a reality and take us from good to great!

“SCH is dedicated to providing opportunities for all of its students and to giving talented individu-

To learn more about The SCH Fund and to make a gift, visit

sch.org/giving

als the ability to harvest those talents. Our school needs our support to continue to provide the great and varied curriculum and other programs it provides our children.“ ~ Claudia and Jay Springer P’16

LEGACY FAMILIES celebrating the ties between familyc vfbg and school

Victoria Mason-Ailey ’75, Jennifer Ailey’15

Patty Billock ’75, Alexandra ’15

Jackson Bistrong ’15, Caden Traversari-Bistrong ’20

Drew Bown ’22, Michael ’15, Matthew ’19

Briana Boyer ’17, Brandon ’15

Colleen Caldwell ’10, Christopher ’15, Matthew ’13

Oliver Cheung ’15, Aska ’15

Zachary Cohen ’15, Claire ’15, Valerie ’23

Kieron Cook ’19, Liam ’15

Peter Davis ’15, Emily ’12

Cynthia Orr Day ’73, Alison ’15, Alexander ’19

Antonio Fiol-Mahon ’15, Alexandra ’16

Rachel Flores ’17, Armida ’15

Kathleen Foley ’15, Patrick ’12

Jose Contreras ’15, Jazmin ’17

Geoffrey Dlin ’78, Ben ’15

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Matt Giegerich ’15, Nicole ’21, Brian ’14

Alexis Giovinazzo ’12, Philip ’15, Janet h’01

Kira Godshall ’17, Kali ’15, Emma ’18

Jack Grasso, ’14, Sam ’15, Alex ’18

Chase Haegley ’15, Sophia ’17

Henney Hambrose ’15, Smith ’16

Courtney Hamilton ’14, Brian ’15, Justin Dougherty ’20

John Kern Henry ’13, Caroline ’15

Christopher Howard ’12, Payden ’15

Izzy Johnson ’11, Desmond ’15

Matthew Klauder ’12, Caitlyn ’17, Jimmy ’15

George Kunkel ’13, Emily ’15

Cedric Madden ’12, Sameir ’15

Aaron Mathes ’94, Sara ’15, Ben ’96

Patrick McCann ’15, Sean ’15, Sean ’18

Brigit McDermott ’15, Catie ’17

Sophie Schindler Glovier ’83, Mac McHugh ’15, Will ’19, Jenny James McHugh ’84

Amanda Miller ’17, Matt ’15

Carson Mutch ’12, Linda Dudley Mutch ’78, Andy ’15

Schuyler Deming Wood ’58, Avery Nunn ’15

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Kevin Li ’15, Dylan Parsons ’15

Rachael Carter ’14, Gini Peyton ’15, Zuri ’17

Caroline Phillips ’09, Robbie ’15, Katie ’13

Billy Harris ’16, Pam von Seldeneck Harris ’81, Storrie Harris ’21, Lee von Seldeneck ’87, Jack Prochniak ‘15, Laura von Seldeneck Prochniak ‘84, Maddie Harris ’17, Lexi Prochniak ’16

Madison Ramsey ’15, Mackenzie ’18

Jay Regam ’15, Jessica ’15

Philip Rhym ’04, Ayana ’15

Ross Richardson ’07, Victoria ’15

Mason Rode ’17, Carlin ’15

Philip Schweitzer ’09, James ’15, Zack ’10

Cassandra Surer Myer ’83, Josephine Surer ’15, Anastasia Myer Politzi ’79

Theodore Tasman ’22, Grace ’17, W. Graham ’85, William ’15

Henry O’Reilly ’12, Ed ’03, Henry Vogt ’15, Bunny O’Reilly ’05, Brian Vogt ’17

Korey Welsch ’17, Jared ’15

Andrew Wolfe ’19, Evan ’15

Rachel Zuckerman ’13, Emily ’15

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DO YOU KNOW THEM?

BE THE FIRST TO SUBMIT YOUR ANSWER AND WIN AN ALUMNA/ALUMNUS GIFT! Here’s what we need to know: Who’s in it? What are they doing? When did it happen? Send your responses to Deidra Lyngard at dlyngard@sch.org or call 215-754-1616 and we’ll publish your reminiscences in our next issue.

From Bill Hall ’70: Blue and Blue Day, either ’66 or ’67, on the Springfield Ave side of the track. That’s the late Jonathan Orr ’71 passing off the baton to the late Dill Leas ’71.

First row of spectators L to R: Rob Baldi ’67, his girlfriend Cheryl (now his wife), David Lindy ’70, Bill White ’70, Bill Hall ’70, and Phil Clay ’70. From William Strong ’71: The picture on the right is at Blue and Blue Day perhaps in 1964 or 1965. Dil Lees is receiving the baton from Jon Orr (I believe). The Richardson Dilworth Lees scholarship is named after Dil who passed away in the early ’80s. From Robert Baldi ’67: “Blue and Blue Day, either 1966 or 1967. On left is an older boy (me) and a girl, Cheryl Ervin, who married him and to whom she is still married. “

From Jane Mebus Toczek ’79: “In case no one has offered information on the Springside mystery photo, I can tell you a little. The man, 2nd from right, is the late Charles F. Nahill Jr., who was a Pennsylvania State Representative from Montgomery County from 1979 to 1992; the photo was taken on the floor of the House Chamber. My dad preceded Mr. Nahill in representing the 154th district, so I recognized the House Chamber, and then Mr. Nahill.” And from Amanda Selfridge Shortall ’91: “I was looking at the Mystery Photo in the back of the Spring 2015 magazine and I am pretty sure that is a picture of my class—’91—and I think we are at the Pennsylvania Capitol. I am not sure of the year, but it must be the early ’80s since I left Springside in 3rd grade.”

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THE SCHOOL

NONPROFIT ORG U.S. POSTAGE PAID LANGHORNE, PA PERMIT NO. 118

THE MAGAZINE OF SPRINGSIDE CHESTNUT HILL ACADEMY

UPCOMING ALUMNI EVENTS FOR YOUR CALENDAR For more details, visit the Alumni Events page on the SCH website at sch.org November 20, 2015 Alumni Holiday Happy Hour at The Happy Rooster Center City, Philadelphia December 10-13, 2015 Pop Over to the Players Alumni Event May 6 & 7, 2016 Reunions

500 West Willow Grove Avenue • Philadelphia, PA 19118-4198

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