The Bulletin Winter 2024

THE MAGAZINE OF THE MASTERS SCHOOL

Bulletin

WINTER

2 0 24

Annual Report of Donors 2022–2023

contents F E AT U R E S

4 A BRIGHT FUTURE 04 The Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center 06 Where It All Started 08 Innovation, Inside and Out 09 From Idea to Impact 11 Building for the Future

12

INTERVIEW WITH THE IEC ARCHITECTS

14 T H E F U N D A M E N TA L S O F ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Asema Ahmed ’96 and Jung Lee ’90

16 I N T E R D I S C I P L I N A RY C O L L A B O R AT I O N TRANSFORMS LEARNING

ON TH E C OVER The opening of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center (IEC) marks the culmination of years of planning and celebrates the community’s support for the School's bold vision of creating a world-class hub for learning and innovation.

Printed on paper containing 30% post-consumer waste with vegetable based inks. 100% of the electricity used to manufacture the paper is green e-certified renewable energy.

2 FROM LAURA DANFORTH

18 SCIENCE RESEARCH

20 ON CAMPUS

22 A D AY I N T H E L I F E

24 BOARD OF TRUSTEES

26 C AT C H I N G U P W I T H F O R M E R FA C U LT Y

27 ALUMNA SPOTLIGHT

28 D O U B L E TA K E

30 MASTERS ON THE MOVE

32 CLASS NOTES

54 REMEMBRANCES

56 ANNUAL REPORT OF DONORS

The Masters School 49 Clinton Avenue Dobbs Ferry, NY 10522-2201 mastersny.org Send letters to communications@mastersny.org

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a welcome addition to campus

 A Message from LAURA DANFORTH

A new form has emerged on our American architect Louis Sullivan’s Read the story of Jung Lee ’90, an campus over the past few years, famous axiom “form follows function” innovator in the event planning space. coming to fruition this fall. expresses the idea that the purpose Jung says that Masters instilled in her The function of the new Innovation of a building should be the starting the ability to participate in complex and Entrepreneurship Center (IEC) point for its design. A new form has discussions and come away with a clear has informed its shape and will emerged on our campus over the past and incisive perspective — a skill she continue to evolve as Masters few years, coming to fruition this fall. regularly uses to help her clients realize students and faculty take advantage The function of the new Innovation their vision. Matthew Friedman ’18 was a of the opportunities made possible and Entrepreneurship Center (IEC) student in John Chiodo’s first Innovation by this remarkable facility. has informed its shape and will and Entrepreneurship class, which continue to evolve as Masters students sparked his passion for entrepreneurship. and faculty take advantage of the A serial entrepreneur, Friedman launched opportunities made possible by this remarkable facility. his first venture as a college freshman.

With its collaborative and interdisciplinary approach, the IEC curriculum, supported by dynamic classrooms and workshop spaces, is equipping students from diverse disciplines with the creative thinking and adaptive mindsets they need to set out on their path as powers for good in the world.

We already are seeing the entrepreneurial spirit at work. Students are preparing for pioneering entrepreneurship contests, pitch tournaments and science research project competitions — events that serve as both inspiration and practical learning experiences.

From the very beginning, we’ve had innovative, creative thinkers at Masters. The IEC arose out of The Masters School’s long-standing commitment to nurturing creativity. In the following pages, we highlight some members of the Masters community who, no matter their area of expertise, credit Masters with giving them the tools and skills to pursue their ideas and dreams. We also recognize the supporters of Our Might: Campaign for The Masters School, who made this new building possible.

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I know so many of you are out in the world making your own creative impact in our world. What an honor it is to have a front-row seat to witness the lives of our School’s graduates.

For more inspiration, come see our newest addition to campus.

When I walk through the IEC and see what is happening within its walls, behind its spacious windows, I think about our current students and their successors — Masters graduates well in the future, who will emerge from our School ready to serve the world with their might. Time and time again, I come away renewed.

With gratitude,

Laura Danforth Head of School

“

From the very beginning, we've had innovative,

creative thinkers at Masters. The IEC arose out of The Masters School's long-standing commitment to nurturing creativity.

— Laura Danforth, Head of School

”

ABOVE: Seventh grade students in Computer Science for Innovators and Makers studied computer programming using micro:bits, pocket-sized microcomputers developed by the BBC.

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a bright future

 Cover Story

THE INNOVATION AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP CENTER OPENS

Photo: Joshua Simpson Photography

The Masters School’s new Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center gives students cutting−edge resources and tools

to creatively solve the problems of tomorrow. | 4 | B U L L E T I N W i nte r 2024

Photo: Joshua Simpson Photography

A dedicated pitch room and collaboration-centered entrepreneurship lab. A robotics workshop and competition space. Laser and 3D printing stations.

A metalworking studio and a makerspace.

This sounds like a building that would be well-suited for a tech company in Silicon Valley.

In fact, it’s at 49 Clinton Avenue.

Photo: Joshua Simpson Photography

The Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center (IEC) is a stunning addition to The Masters School’s 96-acre campus. At just over 21,000 square feet, it has three floors of learning spaces tailored to support innovative thinking and an entrepreneurial mindset. Classrooms are equipped with the latest technology, collaboration suites invite students to solve problems together, and myriad tools − think 3D printers, computer-controlled routers, a walk-in spray painting booth, computerized sewing machines to fabricate customized apparel, an array of power and hand tools − help students bring their ideas to life.

Photo: Joshua Simpson Photography

“The new space gives students the ability to create just about anything they can imagine,” says John Chiodo, director of innovation, engineering and computer science.

And that is at the heart of what this building means to the Masters community. Students, who have already demonstrated that they are leaders in design thinking, social entrepreneurship, engineering and computer science, now have a facility that matches their skills and enhances their opportunities to create impact.

This, in short, is a place where ideas come to life. >>> more

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feature | T H E I N N O V AT I O N A N D E N T R E P R E N E U R S H I P C E N T E R

WHERE IT ALL STARTED When the original Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center opened in the fall of 2015, it was housed in an unassuming area of campus: the ground level of the Cameron Mann Dining Hall.

That space — some might describe it as “small but mighty” — was a clear commitment to the nascent program. Twenty-eight students enrolled in the eponymous flagship course during the 2015-2016 year, and a number of clubs and co-curriculars also used the IEC, including the Makers Club; the Robotics team; the Zetetics, Engineering and Robotics co-curricular; the Math Modeling team; the Cybersecurity team; and the Computer Science team.

Even with relatively limited physical space, students created projects that tackled big issues in the first year. They included an earpiece that provides the vagus nerve, and a cardboard box design that doesn’t use tape, can be folded to minimize its footprint, and holds the same or more weight than regular cardboard boxes.

UPPER SCHOOL IEC COURSES: • Design Thinking and Social Entrepreneurship

In the years that followed, IEC academic programming exploded in

• New Venture Startup/EntreX

popularity. By 2020, the program was offering six courses, and the

• Advanced Topics in Entrepreneurship/LeadX

Robotics, Coding and Cybersecurity teams were racking up dozens of awards and accolades.

• Engineering Essentials • Engineering Drawing and Design

The IEC also developed valuable partnerships with institutions including the University of Delaware Horn Entrepreneurship program and the University of Rochester. Since 2015, Masters students have earned more than 600 college

• Principles of Engineering • Advanced Topics in Computer Science

credits, and several students have been offered Presidential Scholarships at

• Advanced Topics in Computer Programming

the Rochester Institute of Technology.

• Independent Study in Software Development

“This program is a perfect manifestation of our mission,” Head of School Laura Danforth says. “And it deserved a proper space to continue to develop

MIDDLE SCHOOL IEC COURSES:

and further deliver on our promise.”

This school year, three faculty members on the IEC team are teaching more than 100 upper school students and all middle school students.

• Design, Modeling and Prototyping I and II • App Invention for Entrepreneurs • Computer Science for Innovators and Makers

“The program we offer is unique among independent schools,” says John Chiodo, the School’s director of innovation, engineering and computer science.

“You’d be hard-pressed to find any school that has a program with as much depth and breadth as ours. And there is still demand for the IEC to offer more.”

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“

What takes place in the IEC will prepare and equip [students] for college, careers and

citizenship as powers for good in a world where these skills are more important than ever.

”

— Laura Danforth, Head of School

Technological advancements have demonstrated the necessity of innovative thinkers: Whether it’s the increasingly pervasive Internet of Things or the impressive outputs from generative artificial intelligence, entrepreneurship and technology will undoubtedly play a significant role in the culture, the economy and education for years to come. That means teachers must prepare students for careers that, in many cases, don’t exist yet or are in constantly evolving fields.

“We know that our students will enter a competitive job market in a rapidly changing global economy,” Danforth says. “They will strive in professions we can barely even imagine today, where they will need to be collaborative, dynamic and versatile thinkers and doers. What takes place in the IEC will prepare and equip them for college, careers and citizenship as powers for good in a world where these skills are more important than ever.”

Clearly, the IEC needed a new home — a state-of-the-art one that could accommodate soaring popularity and provide students with the skills they need to be successful in shifting landscapes. >>> more

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feature | T H E I N N O V AT I O N A N D E N T R E P R E N E U R S H I P C E N T E R

“

The IEC itself is a teaching vehicle.

”

— Seth Marx, Associate Head of School for Institutional Advancement

INNOVATION, INSIDE and OUT When you step inside the new Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center, you are welcomed into an open, airy atrium filled with natural light, compliments of the floorto-ceiling windows.

firm Marvel Design.

interdisciplinary work, providing first-rate technology for teacher and student needs, and

“The IEC itself is a teaching vehicle,” says Marx,

open-ended seating and space configurations.

who sat on the task force. “Students can see how

On the first point, the task force agreed that

ventilation is brought through the building.

scheduling classes in the building beyond those

They can see how sprinklers are piped for fire

under the IEC umbrella would offer students

prevention and mitigation. They can see how the

holistic exposure to IEC programming through

blinds are powered by low-voltage wire.”

adjacency. When students in a humanities or language class see friends working on robots

The building’s materials were selected after

or designing sustainable clothing, it may pique

careful consideration and with sustainability

their interest.

in mind. The exterior cladding, for example, is zinc, an abundant resource that is responsibly

The technology in the IEC varies from room to

sourced. Concrete is used as a finish material

room. For example, a large room on the third

on interior and exterior walls and on floors

floor has two projectors, so students pitching

throughout, precluding the need for materials

their ideas can be confident that everyone in the

such as drywall, drywall tape, joint compound

audience has an ideal view of presentations.

It’s just up the hill from Estherwood, and so

and carpet. Gutters were designed to carry water

students whose classes are on the north side of

from the roof through pipes inside the walls and

Last but not least, all the furniture in the

the building are treated to breathtaking views of

into re-catchment tanks that slowly distribute

IEC is modular so it can be configured for a

the historic mansion.

the water to native species gardens around the

variety of class sizes and needs: large Harkness

outside of the building.

tables for Socratic-style discussions, individual desks for test-taking or quiet study, pods for

But that’s not all they see.

When it came to the layout and design of

smaller group work, or rows of seating for

Unlike most buildings, the IEC’s heating,

interior spaces, the task force had to wrestle

presentations. Breakout rooms and cafe-style

cooling, sprinkler and electrical systems

with big questions: How do we anticipate

seating arrangements are peppered throughout

are exposed.

using this building, not just now, but for

the building so that students can work on

generations to come? How might IEC courses

projects together or gather for impromptu

Seth Marx, associate head of school for

and programming grow and change in the next

brainstorming sessions.

institutional advancement, explains that this

10, 20, 50 years, given the constantly changing

was a purposeful decision by the IEC Task Force,

world of technology and entrepreneurship?

where students hone their entrepreneurial

a group of a dozen faculty and administrators that provided guidance to architect and design

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The result? A dynamic learning environment

The group focused on encouraging

problem-solving skills.

FROM IDEA to IMPACT Before the doors even opened, the IEC was bringing in exciting opportunities.

Last summer, The Masters School was selected to host the University of Delaware Horn Entrepreneurship’s Diamond Challenge as a pitch partner. The Diamond Challenge is a prestigious entrepreneurship competition for high school students to develop ideas that address pressing challenges. The Diamond Challenge has only 18 pitch partners across the globe.

In addition to hosting a Diamond Challenge event in February 2024, up to two Masters teams will be invited to the Diamond Challenge

Summit/Finals in April. More than a dozen

collaboration and positive culture-building

Masters students have been working diligently

we’re going to be able to accomplish.”

on their Diamond Challenge submissions since September. (See article below.)

Chloe Lane ’24 is taking several classes in the IEC: AP Statistics, Business Dynamics and New

Despite its name, classes in the building

Venture Startup/EntreX, a college-level course in

aren’t limited to those within the Innovation

entrepreneurship taught in collaboration with the

and Entrepreneurship Program. English, AP

Horn Entrepreneurship program. In the course,

Statistics, Public Speaking, Mandarin and a host

students develop a solution-oriented mindset

of other courses now take place in the IEC. This

when identifying problems; work through the

accomplishes one of the task forces’s goals — to

evidence-based entrepreneurship process; use

expose students to IEC programming through

business and social impact canvases to test

proximity — and it also alleviates what has been

their ideas; develop entrepreneurial skills in

a significant problem for some time now:

storytelling, leadership and business basics; and

a dearth of classroom space.

consider the unique challenges associated with distinct forms of entrepreneurship.

Before the IEC was built, “We had maximized the spaces that we had based on the facilities

Lane explains that learning to “implement a

we had,” says Sam Savage, associate head for

problem-solving mindset will benefit me in

faculty and academics and a member of the

college and after, as I plan to go into a related field.

IEC Task Force. “We had an incredibly high

On a smaller scale, I could potentially continue to

use of all of our spaces, such that it was hard to

pursue the startup I will create in class and turn it

find a free classroom during any given period

into a real value-seeking business.” She notes that

of the day. The more flexibility we build into

the IEC’s UV LED printer is ideal for printing

the system, the more creativity, innovation,

>>> more

Masters to Host Pitch Round in Global Entrepreneurship Competition When it comes to high school entrepreneurship competitions, the Diamond Challenge is the crown jewel.

So when the University of Delaware and its Horn Entrepreneurship program selected The Masters School to be a Diamond Challenge pitch partner this year, it proved to be a golden opportunity.

On February 24, the School’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center will host more than a dozen teams of high school entrepreneurs for the important pitch rounds. The competitors’ endgame? A top spot in the Diamond Challenge Summit in the spring.

“Masters is one of only 18 Diamond Challenge pitch partners in the world,” noted John Chiodo, director of innovation, entrepreneurship and computer science. “Being a Diamond Challenge pitch partner further solidifies Masters’ place as a leader in high school entrepreneurship education.”

The Diamond Challenge is open to high school students around the world. Student teams need to submit their business or social venture concepts video by January. A group of judges evaluates the submissions, and as teams advance, they participate, based on their region, in pitch rounds like the one at Masters in February. Finalists are invited to a three-day Diamond Challenge Summit in April at the University of Delaware.

Felicia Harrington, assistant director of youth programs for Horn Entrepreneurship, visited the IEC this

fall and was impressed with what she saw. “This facility is a realization of what high school entrepreneurship can be, a testament to John's visionary program and the commitment of a school that recognizes the immense potential of young entrepreneurs,” she said.

In 2022, Masters formed a relationship with the University of Delaware and its Horn Entrepreneurship program, which resulted in a three-credit dual enrollment opportunity for Masters students.

Johnny Teodorczuk ’25, who is taking Chiodo’s New Venture Startup/EntreX course, likes the class’s emphasis on experiential learning and project-based assessments. “It makes the learning experience much more meaningful compared to the traditional classroom experience,” he explained. “I appreciate how the courses in the entrepreneurship curriculum involve working in teams. It provides an opportunity to understand diverse perspectives and improve one’s communication and teamwork skills. It also encourages us to embrace failures by constantly pivoting and adapting along the way.”

As part of the class, students participate in the Diamond Challenge. Teodorczuk and his team are working to solve a problem that online shoppers encounter. “Consumers need a quicker and easier way to return online clothes to recoup what they paid for their articles of clothing,” he said. “Many consumers

ABOVE: Juniors Alice Fuller, left, and Rebecca Troy work on their Diamond Challenge submission in the IEC.

lose money due to their failure to return their clothing on time or at all.”

Alice Fuller ’25 and Rebecca Troy ’25 also are working to help consumers: They are submitting a product they’ve developed called Nu Plastics, a sodium alginate bioplastic that is completely compostable in a home compost. “Our goal is to phase out traditional plastics that don’t biodegrade and are poisoning our planet,” Fuller said. “Rebecca and I are now working to improve our product and workshop more possible applications.”

Teodorczuk reflected on what the Diamond Challenge means to him and his peers: “It provides Masters students with an irreplaceable opportunity to present their projects in a professional setting in front of experts in entrepreneurship.”

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logos on 3D objects, “which will be important if trying to sell a product or promote a company.”

“The building's technology is light-years ahead of other schools, and the beautiful architecture makes it extremely motivating to be in class,” Lane says. “Although I'm graduating in May, I

“

This abundance of resources has

significantly expanded the scope of

my work and opened up avenues for exploration and innovation.

feel so fortunate to have been able to get a year in this building.”

”

— Jeremy Li ’25

Kristina Gremski, the upper school science teacher who heads the School’s burgeoning Science Research Program (SRP), is thrilled that the program has a dedicated classroom in the new building. Since its inception in 2021, the SRP’s home was a small classroom in Morris Hall.

The new location is fitting, given that innovation is woven into the fabric of the SRP curriculum: Students in the yearlong courses are tasked with diving into the unknown and unanswered.

“Their projects need to address a new science research question or an unsolved engineering, computer science or math problem,” Gremski says. “They have to be new or innovative in some way. They have to carry out original research, which is something that most students don’t experience until graduate school.”

Gremski is confident that being in the IEC will have a positive impact on students’ work, which they have presented at local, state, national and international science fairs.

medicine to targeted areas in the body with

“The cutting-edge technologies in the IEC

high precision.

have exceeded my expectations and catered to all my research-related needs,” Li says.

“Currently, a common method of delivering

“This abundance of resources has significantly

medicines to the human body is by eating

expanded the scope of my work and opened up

a capsule, but it does not always reach the

avenues for exploration and innovation.”

targeted region — which slows the treatment,” Li explains. “The soft robot's flexible structure

That kind of pragmatic and potentially game-

and adaptive capabilities will allow it to traverse

changing design thinking isn’t just available

various anatomical regions, reaching targeted

to upper school students. Every middle school

sites that were previously challenging to access.”

student takes IEC courses each year, exposing them to concepts and ideas that have real-

He has been using a range of tools in the the soldering station in particular has been

Avi Kinon ’29 has taken a real liking to block

“invaluable,” because he has been using it

coding, a drag-and-drop technique that teaches

to weld the robot’s sensors. Li notes that the

the basic elements of computer programming.

equipment not only enhances his productivity

She was introduced to the method in App

but also prioritizes his safety. The fume

Invention for Entrepreneurs, a required course

extractor, for example, “promptly removes any

for all seventh grade students.

fumes generated,” he notes.

She said that the class “helps channel creativity,

“They will use the 3D printers and other IEC

and helps to teach us about business and

equipment for engineering or robotics projects,”

technology, which I think is awesome to have

Gremski said. “Being in the same building with

because it effectively prepares us for our future,

the engineering and computer science teachers

while still keeping it fun.”

allows for more opportunities for collaboration and will make it easier for the Science Research

In reflecting on the impact of the new building,

students to work on engineering, robotics and

Kinon says, “The opportunities it opens for

computer science projects.”

everyone involved are almost limitless. Who knows, maybe someone who works and learns in

One of those students is Jeremy Li ’25. From

this very building could do or create something

a young age, Li has been driven by a passion

that changes the world.”

for science. Now, as a student in Dr. Gremski’s program and with support from the IEC team, he is developing a soft robot that can deliver ABOVE: Jeremy Li '25 describes the soldering station in the IEC as "invaluable" to his creation of a soft robot.

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world uses.

IEC to create this advanced medical device;

BUILDING for the FUTURE During the IEC ribbon-cutting ceremony on September 30, hundreds of students, alumnae/i and parents gathered in the atrium to celebrate a momentous moment for the School: After more than five years of planning, designing and building, the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center was ready to open.

“In both the form and function of the building, this is a place where our students can step out of their comfort zone with confidence and develop new interests and pursuits, daring to try something new,” Head of School Laura Danforth said. “What excites me the most is to imagine our current students, and the next 10, 20, 50 years of Masters graduates, who will emerge from this building to change the world with their innovation and creativity, with their ideas, and with their might.”

In attendance were former trustee Diana Davis Spencer ’56, P’84 and her daughter, Abby Spencer Moffatt ’84. The Diana Davis Spencer Foundation made a groundbreaking gift — the largest in the history of the School — that allowed Masters to build the IEC. When Spencer spoke at the ceremony, she described the building as “an amazing center which will truly open a world of possibilities, of opportunities, and a world which encourages curiosity, grit and vision.”

Spencer noted that innovation has been part of The Masters School’s ethos since its founding: The School’s founders, Eliza Bailey Masters and Sallie Masters, offered courses such as mathematics, astronomy and moral philosophy, which were considered “unusual for women” at the time. This, Spencer said, shows that the founders “embraced an entrepreneurial mindset. They believed in intellectual inquiry.”

During there ceremony, Moffatt reflected on her time at Masters: “Long before the center was imagined, Masters was already a bastion of entrepreneurial spirit, promoting a culture of innovation, creativity and risk-taking. I was taught the value of resilience, perseverance and visionary thinking — essential qualities for navigating an increasingly complicated world.”

Just a couple weeks after the opening, students were making good use of the space: immersed in classes, huddling up to work on projects in the glass-walled breakout suites, and getting a head start on homework assignments while arranged across the inviting

ABOVE: Left to right: Head of School Laura Danforth; Our Might Campaign Chair Tracy Tang ’80, P’18; Abby Spencer Moffat ’84; Diana Davis Spencer ’56, P’84; and Associate Head of School for

“

furniture in the lobby.

It’s a space replete with potential — potential to develop a life-saving medicine, potential to create a groundbreaking technology, potential to design a tool that can streamline an entire industry. In short: potential for students to live the School’s mission — to be a power for good in the world — in new and exciting ways.

“Humanity is faced with serious issues that need addressing,” says John Chiodo, director of innovation, engineering and computer science. “Climate change, making power generation more efficient and cheaper, engineering better and more personalized medicines, restoring and improving infrastructures, securing cyberspace, and developing the tools to further scientific discovery — entrepreneurs will help solve these problems through innovation.”

Institutional Advancement Seth Marx cut the ribbon to open the IEC.

"What excites me the most is to imagine our current students, and the next generation of Masters

graduates, who will emerge from this building to change the world with their innovation and creativity...

— Laura Danforth, Head of School

And they’ll start right here at The Masters School.

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Envisioning the IEC A Conversation with Marvel Lead Project Architect Jennifer Olson Over the past four years Jennifer Olson has led a team of architects and designers as well as engineers, landscape designers and other consultants to bring the IEC from concepts through construction. The building is now taking on the role for which it was conceived.

ABOVE: The Marvel Architects team celebrates the opening of the IEC. Jennifer Olson is third from the left.

The Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center is such an aspirational name.

How did it inspire you for the design of the building?

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The central objective of the IEC design was to use architecture and landscape as educational tools. Our aim was to encourage students to observe and comprehend the indoor and outdoor built environment, fostering an appreciation for the intricate assembly and functioning of building systems. The intention is that this informative setting will inspire novel perspectives on the dynamic STEM courses conducted within the facility.

The Masters campus is an eclectic mix of buildings from different eras.

What elements of the context influenced or were incorporated into the design of the IEC?

Describe the process of working with the Masters community in designing the IEC.

What elements of the design and program of the IEC speak most strongly to the School’s core mission?

The design was significantly shaped by the campus environment. Embracing the campus aesthetic, the gabled roof seamlessly connects the building to the sky, and the zinc standing seam ribs extend from roof to ground, offering a modern twist on a classic form.

The concrete base, with a wood grain texture, mirrors the stone bases of nearby structures.

Additionally, akin to Estherwood's green copper roof, the light gray zinc cladding will naturally oxidize, contributing to the building's evolving aesthetic over time.

During the IEC design phase, frequent meetings with user groups and stakeholders, including faculty members from diverse disciplines such as math and science, were conducted. The IEC director played a key role, particularly in specifying specialty equipment for rooms like Robotics, CNC, Workshop, Laser Print, Paint Booth, and makerspace. This collaborative approach ensured that student preferences were integrated into the design through the input of faculty members.

Using the School's renowned teaching method as a spatial planning strategy, we designated the atrium as the "Harkness" space within the building. All program spaces are strategically organized around this central area, serving as the hub for various activities, from large events to informal student study and interactions.

We always try to use materials in their most natural form to reveal the inherent beauty of each item and its install process. The below materials stand out as favorites for the building.

What materials did you use that are novel or especially exciting to you?

• The sleek zinc cladding is a gorgeous complement to the irregular stone used elsewhere on campus.

• The board-formed concrete at the building base, the interior stair and elevator towers. The concrete is formed using wood pine planks to imprint the wood grain texture into the solid concrete.

We used this to emulate the scale and texture of the stone bases of many surrounding buildings.

• The exposed aggregate concrete floors.

The contractor “hand broadcasts” (tosses) the small white aggregates into the wet concrete. The variation of the stone density reveals the handmade nature of the material.

• The natural wood plank floors add warmth and richness to contrast the cool industrial building interiors.

It is hard to pick just one —- here are the top that come to mind:

What is your favorite moment in the building?

• From the innovation lounge, gazing through the glass windows into adjacent classrooms and up to the overlook rails, the view encapsulates our efforts in crafting a building framework that serves as the backdrop for dynamic and inspiring academic experiences and inquiries.

• The view out the window of the third floor northern classrooms, overlooking the unique architecture of the adjacent Estherwood Mansion, to the rooftops of Dobbs Ferry and out to the Hudson River and the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge. This view is a reminder of the rich history and context surrounding the building and beyond the perimeter of the campus.

• The moment when the light streams in from the tall windows and highlights the rich texture of the board-formed concrete walls.

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The Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship Long before the cutting-edge Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center opened its doors — before words like “makerspace” and “design thinking” were part of the everyday campus vocabulary — The Masters School was preparing students to become entrepreneurs.

Asema Ahmed ’96 Just ask Jung Lee’90 and Asema Ahmed ’96, both innovators in the event planning space, who say Masters exposed them to singular ideas and experiences and helped them cultivate the skills, perspectives and mindsets that are foundational to entrepreneurship.

Lee is the founder of Fête, a bespoke event planning and production company that has designed numerous high-profile events, including the Biden administration’s state dinners for the leaders of France and South Korea. She also owns Jung Lee

Jung Lee ’90

New York, a high-end home décor boutique, and slowdance.com, a wedding registry specializing in luxury items.

Ahmed co-founded Magnolias Linens, an event décor company focusing on upscale custom linens. She ran it with her mother and sister from 2002 until they sold it in 2013; she went on to work in private equity and serve as CEO of a Singapore-based design company. Ahmed is now building a career in mental health counseling.

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LEFT: Jung prepares for a White House state dinner in honor of the president of South Korea.

Photo courtesy of Shawn Connell

Lee credits Masters with helping

Ahmed was comfortable channeling

her develop one of the key skills

that creativity into her entrepreneurial

she uses to power her businesses:

venture for almost a dozen years.

the ability to participate in

She also credits Masters with helping

complex discussions and come

her sharpen a skill crucial for

away with a clear perspective. It’s

entrepreneurs: the ability to multitask.

a crucial competency for an event designer tasked with helping

“When you go to a great school, you

clients articulate what they want,

learn skills to manage more than one

then executing their vision.

thing,” she says. “The fact that I was able to take AP Bio and plan to be pre-

Lee immigrated to the U.S. from

med in college, but also develop my

South Korea with her family

creative side, play sports, and manage

when she was 5, joining Masters in ninth grade. She recalls the C+ that changed her life. It was

ABOVE: Ahmed, front row center, in a yearbook photo with her fellow peer leaders from the Class of 1996

on an essay for an English class with Mr. Rex Butt. “I had never gotten a C in my life, and I was mortified,” she says.

clubs, was a huge, leapfrogging step for the things I wanted to do later on.”

Now, working toward her degree in mental health counseling, Ahmed

links her passion for helping people with one of her favorite Masters activities: serving as a peer leader. “The values Masters created around

Determined to prove herself, she dug in, and discovered a passion for

the individual, inclusivity and appreciating your peers has helped me

literature — ultimately graduating with honors in English.

have an empathetic outlook,” she says.

“At Masters, because of the teachers, I learned to love English —

Both graduates say they chose Masters because it attracts a diverse

especially Irish writers,” Lee says. “Now, when I think about parties

student body, including many international students, which helped

and events, I create this world in my head. That comes from my time

them develop another crucial skill for entrepreneurship: the ability to

at Masters.” An essay, she discovered, must “convey a strong point of

interact with people from all types of backgrounds.

view. It has to be memorable. If it’s done really well, it’s indelible in your mind. That’s how I think about the events that we do. We need

“I loved the fact that Masters was international,” says Lee, who

them to be memorable and have a point of view.”

recently traveled to Kenya to plan an event. “When I travel the world, I feel comfortable in different types of places. We had so many

Ahmed attributes her success to the fact that Masters not only

different types of people at Masters. We all got along; that’s a big part

sparked her interest in a range of subjects, but also allowed her to

of what I do today in my work.”

explore them to their fullest.

Ahmed recently joined Masters’ Board of Trustees and was excited “At Masters, everything was available,” says Ahmed, who played

to return to campus for the first time in many years. “Just walking

softball and golf, fenced, served as a peer advisor, and was a

on campus and seeing the diversity, it’s amazing,” she says. “They’ve

yearbook editor.

kept the same vibe that they’ve always had. Masters was such a unique experience: to be able to collaborate and encounter and interact with

AP Bio and Mr. Tom Burke’s history class were her favorite courses.

so many diverse ideas and people in such a close proximity. I don’t

Yet so was a studio art course that required her to complete a

think I’ve ever had that anywhere else.”

portfolio. “Following the creative side of me was one of my happiest moments at Masters,” she recalls.

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feature | I N T E R D I S C I P L I N A R Y P R O J E C T S

INTERDISCIPLINARY COLLABORATION TRANSFORMS LEARNING When the curtain went up at the Claudia Boettcher Theatre in March 2022 for the middle school production of “Matilda,” all eyes were on the seventh and eighth grade actors energetically singing and dancing on stage.

Middle school humanities teacher Mary Chappell, however, was laser-focused on the set. As the production’s set designer, she was responsible for a small dollhouse that illuminated the stage during a flashback scene.

ABOVE: With a hand from the IEC, an upper school student in the Foundations in Architecture class designed a 3D sustainable dream house model.

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That small but important piece of scenery was the handiwork of the middle school student props team, which utilized machinery in the original Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center to craft it.

Chappell explained the multi-step process: “We built a cardboard dollhouse set piece. The stage manager figured out the scale needed for the design, presented it to Rae Johnson ’11, middle school innovation and entrepreneurship teacher, and produced the items. The final product was a perfect scale model that we could light up inside using parchment to fill in the windows. It looked great!”

“

It is our responsibility as makers and

builders to create that which is not only

sustainable, but that actually gives back.

Johnson provided instruction with Tinkercad, the 3D digital design app. “We were able to quickly reproduce 12 fiveinch pieces of a wood pattern versus having to build it by hand with a scalpel,” Johnson said. “To be able to do that work to the letter and to specification so quickly was a game changer.”

For the past three years, eighth grade students in Morghan Lewis’ science class have worked with Johnson on their yearlong engineering projects using Raspberry Pi, Tinkercad and a 3D printer.

“My students have been able to use engineering tools to assist them with their project designs that they wouldn’t otherwise be able to use if Rae hadn’t introduced the tools to them,” Lewis said.

Being a power for good inspired Alejandra Sarmiento ’27 on her engineering project when she designed and coded an operative American Sign Language application that provides ASL communication on all devices.

”

— Stephanie Mestyan, upper school visual arts teacher

When classical studies teacher Brittany Farrar approached Johnson about recreating items for her archaeological dig, Johnson jumped at the opportunity to help.

“I explained how small and intricate cylinder and stamp seal designs are, and Rae mentioned it would be easy to scale a design down to a small object using the IEC’s 3D printer,” Farrar said. “They volunteered to create digital designs inspired by some of the artifacts from class, and it was really cool to see the seals come to life!”

Farrar is looking ahead to when she can incorporate more of the IEC’s technology to reproduce very small or very large pieces, or even repetitive patterns from pottery or wall painting. She added, “It would be fascinating to take some of the building we do in Minecraft for my sixth grade Latin class and transition it to 3D items that can be held and displayed.”

“My main goal was to allow signers to have a sense of normalcy when speaking with non-signers,” Sarmiento explained. “This is a day-today obstacle that people in the ASL community face. This problem needs to be recognized, and creating an app is one step toward closing that gap.”

Upper school visual arts teacher Stephanie Mestyan is already making that happen with her architecture students. Mestyan’s sustainable dream home project comes to life thanks to the collaboration with Johnson. The students design their perfect sustainable homes using SketchUp, the 3D modeling program. They consider roof configurations, solar paneling, geographic locations and site placements in their designs.

With Johnson’s guidance, Sarmiento used the MIT App Inventor platform to create the app. “When we finished coding the ASL app, Mx. Johnson connected the tablet to AI Companion, a function on MIT App Inventor, which allowed me to present my project to the class and use all of the functions I had coded.”

“If our charge as teachers is to help students think critically about the present and past while planning for future innovations, we must think about our relationship to the environment around us,” Mestyan said.

“It is our responsibility as makers and builders to create that which is not only sustainable, but that actually gives back.”

Students have also used Tinkercad to envision the Rube Goldberg machines they build during their physics unit. “There is a physics simulator in Tinkercad, so they’re able to see ahead of time what the interactions in their machines will look like,” Johnson said.

For her sustainable architecture project, Valentina Valdivia ’27 created a dream home in Barcelona. “It was a relatively simple one-floor house with a lot of windows and multiple sustainable systems in place,” she said. “I had used Tinkercad in my sixth grade IEC class with Mx. Johnson and it helped me with this project.”

Last year, upper school students studying Mediterranean archaeology in their classical studies class excavated a site on campus and “uncovered” artifacts representing the ancient periods in history they had learned in class. Many of the larger artifacts were created in the Art Studio by faculty and staff members.

“Knowing the decisions you make on screen have consequences and the mistakes you make have consequences is a good learning experience,” Johnson said. “The most magical thing is when something turns out exactly as they wanted it to.”

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science research

Young Minds, Scientific Pioneers: Students Discover New Frontiers Through Original Research These innovators are generating ideas and acting as catalysts for the change needed to improve the well-being of people, society and the planet.

Under the auspices of upper school science teacher Kristina Gremski, who leads the School’s Science Research Program, students are conducting original, authentic research. They work with mentors who are experts in their field, maintain a portfolio of their findings, and present their projects at local and regional competitions. These five students are planning to enter their projects in either the upcoming New York State Science and Engineering Fair or the Regeneron Westchester Science & Engineering Fair.

IAN LAM ’25 Research Topic: The effects of low-intensity focused ultrasound (LIFUS) on the brain’s microvasculature to reveal the potential clinical applications for neurological diseases Mentor: Dr. Jonathan Fisher, New York Medical College

WHAT DID YOU LEARN? I learned different techniques for vessel analysis using the ImageJ computing platform; animal handling at the lab; and the mechanics of vessels, blood flow and dilation. Dr. Fisher also demonstrated how LIFUS uses different frequencies to target specific areas of the brain and how to use a device that captures high-resolution images of microvessels, such as capillaries.

WHAT WAS CHALLENGING ABOUT THE WORK? My work was fairly easy. Since I couldn’t work directly with animals, I did most of my work digitally using the ImageJ computing platform. The lab’s postdocs sent me images of the mice’s cerebral vasculatures, and I measured the vessel diameters of both large vessels and microvessels.

WHY DOES THIS INTEREST YOU? I’m passionate about medicine and human anatomy, and this was a great opportunity to gain experience in the field of medical research. I’m particularly interested in the vascular system, which this project focused heavily on.

ARE YOU GOING TO CONTINUE STUDYING IN THIS FIELD? Although I find medical research fascinating, I am leaning toward patient care and surgery. I want to be able to help people face-to-face.

SAM BENSON ’25 Research Topic: Creating a code that will plot graphs depicting the radiation emitted from the plasma inside a tokamak fusion reactor Mentors: Dr. Oak Nelson and Hari Choudhury, Columbia University

WHAT DID YOU LEARN? Dr. Nelson and Mr. Choudhury taught me virtually everything I now know about plasma physics.

WHAT WAS CHALLENGING ABOUT THE WORK? The hardest part was a lack of familiarity with Python, the coding software I used for this project. However, after I began planning out my code before I started writing it, I had fewer issues.

WHY DOES THIS INTEREST YOU? I’m interested in physics in general, and I feel very passionate about nuclear energy.

ARE YOU GOING TO CONTINUE STUDYING IN THIS FIELD? I hope to continue studying some form of physics. Although it is not necessarily the exact part of the field I would want to work in, plasma physics is a very interesting area of physics.

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CATERINA STOICA ’24 Research Topic: Using MRI data to study the anatomy of the brains of adults with autism Mentor: Dr. Mariana Lazar, NYU Langone Health

WHAT DID YOU LEARN? The MRI data found evidence of structural abnormalities, such as degenerated neural tracts, that might be linked to sensorimotor symptoms. This research can play an important role in improving our understanding of the disorder and how various abnormalities correlate with behavioral symptoms. These findings also provide the opportunity to define autism by its structural implications, leading to the development of better treatments.

WHAT WAS CHALLENGING ABOUT THE WORK? Much of the project involved coding and using software programs to process and analyze the imaging data. It was a largely self-guided process that involved a lot of challenging trial and error. However, I found a lot of joy in the ups and downs of the work, and I am glad to have discovered so much about myself as a learner along the way.

WHY DOES THIS INTEREST YOU? The project sparked my interest in neuroscience; I realized there is so much to learn about the brain.

Bridging the gap between behavioral psychology and neuroscience is imperative to better understand the human mind. My research is a small step on my journey to pursue a career in holistic and empathetic health care.

ARE YOU GOING TO CONTINUE STUDYING IN THIS FIELD? Working hands-on in a lab with other researchers in a tight-knit, supportive environment was an incredible experience, and I will be seeking inperson lab opportunities throughout college.

ALYSSA WANG ’25 Research Topic: Building a program to visualize potential topological models of the universe Mentors: Pip Petersen and Quinn Taylor, Ph.D. students, Case Western Reserve University

WHAT DID YOU LEARN? I learned how to apply new skills independently without a teacher’s help. I’ve had to teach myself programming in a game engine I wasn’t familiar with. It can get very frustrating at times not understanding where I’ve made mistakes, but learning to correct these mistakes gives me a better understanding of the complexity behind the mechanism coding.

head trying to figure out something that I can’t possibly wrap my head around. I heavily underestimated the hardship I would come across in my project, which is exactly why it is an exciting and important part of my academic life.

WHY DOES THIS INTEREST YOU? When I was much younger, I was interested in astronomy because of the beauty of the cosmos. It turned into a true passion of mine when I discovered how much we are still unaware of. The idea of exploring something hidden beneath the surface excites me.

ARE YOU GOING TO CONTINUE STUDYING IN THIS FIELD? Yes, I enjoy science and learning how things work. Problem-solving is an essential aspect of my personal life and enjoyment.

MAX LOVITT ’25 Research Topic: Classifying logical fallacies in natural language through improved logical awareness in input embeddings Mentors: While I don't have a mentor for this project in the traditional sense, I have reached out to various professors, experts, and Ph.D. students for advice; the one with whom I've corresponded the most is Zhivar Sourati, a Ph.D. student at the University of Southern California.

WHAT DID YOU LEARN? I am using various AI text classification techniques to automate the classification of different illogical arguments/statements in order to better detect misinformation online.

WHAT WAS CHALLENGING ABOUT THE WORK? Because most AI and natural language processing (NLP) research takes place at the graduate level, it is difficult to find tutorials and papers that do not assume a baseline, high-level understanding of machine learning and the math behind it.

WHY DOES THIS INTEREST YOU? I chose to take on this project because it presents an intersection between two of my main interests: argumentation and computer science.

ARE YOU GOING TO CONTINUE STUDYING IN THIS FIELD? While I'm not quite sure NLP is something I am looking to pursue in college and beyond, I do think that I am likely to pursue future research within the computer science field as a whole. Even if I don't keep researching this topic past this project, it is equipping me with skills that will aid me in any pursuit in the field of computer science.

WHAT WAS CHALLENGING ABOUT THE WORK? Seeing my code run properly is the sole consolation to my unfruitful hours scratching my

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News and happenings 

on campus

CELEBRATING THE CLASS OF 2023 June 10, 2023

In her speech to the Class of 2023, Co-President Aimee Ayala sought to define what being courageous looks like: “Showing up every day and trying your best, regardless of the outcome, is courageous.”

Head of School Laura Danforth encouraged the class to put away their worries and “think instead of hopes, as they are a more buoyant thing.”

Co-President Tyler Hack reminded his classmates that “We are entering a world where diverse opinions collide, where our beliefs may be challenged,” but “We must remember that everyone doesn’t have to agree on every matter.”

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G R A D U AT I O N 2 0 2 3

“Perhaps like me, you will suddenly find yourself with the eyes of the world upon you seeking guidance, watching as you go through this decision-making process, waiting for your critical decision. If you’ve spent your life doing things with might, you will be prepared for that moment.”

–Commencement speaker and British cave diver Rick Stanton, MBE, GM. In 2018, Stanton orchestrated the rescue of the Wild Boars soccer team from the Tham Luang caves of Thailand.

| on campus

meaningful connection Five years ago, Adul Samon ’23 and his soccer teammates were trapped in a cave in Thailand for over two weeks.

On its July 14, 2023, broadcast, “ABC World News Tonight with David Muir“ featured The Masters School and Samon’s heartwarming reunion with one of his rescuers, commencement speaker Rick Stanton. Scan the QR code to watch the full segment.

MIDDLE SCHOOL GRADUATES MOVE UP Before a crowd of beaming families, faculty and classmates, the 56 members of the Class of 2027 made the official transition to ninth grade during a joyful graduation ceremony in the Fonseca Center on June 9, 2023.

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trustees | N E W B O A R D M E M B E R S

Beth NOLAN ’69 Takes the Helm as Board Chair After decades of service to her alma mater, Nolan assumes a new leadership position.

If anyone understands Washington, D.C., it’s Beth Nolan ’69.

She’s been counsel to President Bill Clinton, senior vice president and general counsel for The George Washington University, and deputy assistant attorney general at the U.S. Department of Justice. Nolan has also held roles as a tenured law professor and partner in a private practice.

She is now adding another line to her already impressive resume: chair of The Masters School Board of Trustees.

When Nolan reflects on her time as a student at Masters, her favorite memories hint at her future career in law and public service: playing Hubert Humphrey in the School’s mock 1968 presidential election, serving as editor in chief of Tower, and researching papers in the library.

“I loved starting with a broad topic and reading and thinking until I made sense enough to have a thesis and ultimately a paper,” she says.

“I loved the quiet intensity of the effort. Those early lessons in focus paid off in later years.”

Another cherished memory? “Laughing,” Nolan recalls. “So much laughter with so many good friends, and so many intense conversations, too, as we found our place in the world.”

After graduating, Nolan earned her B.A. from Scripps College and her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center. She took on her first

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volunteer role at Masters in 1984, helping to organize her class’ 15th reunion; soon after, in 1989, she joined the Board.

“My board service was cut short by my joining the Clinton White House in January 1993, because we were prohibited from serving on boards,” Nolan explains. “But I rejoined the Board in 2009.”

She served from 2009 to 2018, then again in 2019. She became vice chair in 2021 and took the helm as chair in July 2023.

Nolan sees her role as multifaceted, explaining that her job is to “support our outstanding head of school, Laura Danforth, in her leadership of Masters; maintain the positive board culture we have developed, including focusing on diversity and inclusion on the Board; and help the Board address key strategic and generative issues that will enable us to flourish. Some of those issues we can choose.

Others may choose us.”

She describes her work on the Board under former Head of School Maureen Fonseca and Head of School Laura Danforth, as well as former chairs Lynn Pilzer Sobel ’71, P’99, ’05; Tracy Tang ’80, P’18 and Edith Chapin ’83 as “exciting and enriching.”

“The quality of our students, our teachers, and our administrators is extraordinary, and we have a vision and a mission that we live every day,” Nolan says. “I am so grateful to be part of the School through my board service, and to have such dedicated and talented fellow board members.”

Four New Members Join Board of Trustees Asema AHMED ’96

Asema Ahmed co-founded Magnolias Linens in partnership with her mother and sister, Talaiya ’92. The company flourished, earning recognition in publications including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USA Today, Modern Bride and ELLE magazine’s workbook.

Asema moved to Singapore in 2012 and worked in private equity at IP Investment Management. Her commitment to fostering educational opportunities led her to chair the Alumni Admissions program for Georgetown University in Singapore and Malaysia. She also played an active role in the NYU Young Alumni Leadership Committee, championing women’s empowerment and entrepreneurship within the NYU community. Asema’s dedication to global harmony earned her the Young Peacemakers Award from Seeds of Peace, an organization dedicated to empowering young leaders from conflict-affected regions. She has been deeply involved with the United World Colleges Foundation, underscoring her passion for education and unity.

Asema graduated from New York University with a B.A. in pre-med and religious studies, followed by an M.A. in international relations and affairs from Georgetown University. Her husband, Ozi Amanat, is a founder of K2 Global, a venture capital firm focused on investing in private technology companies. Asema and Ozi reside in South Florida with their two children. They are committed to family, innovation and making a positive impact on the world.

Sara BAREK P’27, ’29

Sara is a founding team member and managing partner of Oceans, a venture capital firm focused on early-stage investments and giving startups the hands-on support they need. Sara is responsible for Oceans’ operations. She spent 17 years at tech startups in client-facing and operational roles, including nine years at ClearForest, a natural language software company that was eventually acquired by Thomson Reuters. There, she ran engagements with Fortune 500 companies including deciphering customers’ business requirements, designing solutions to meet business drivers, managing engineering teams to deliver on those commitments, and measuring value derived from the solutions. At Thomson Reuters, she held roles as the global head of deployed solutions as well as director of business value delivery. She ensured the engineering team’s efforts were focused on key strategic initiatives.

Most recently, Sara ran strategic partnerships and product development for Harmony Labs, an incubator and research lab that studies the interaction of media, society and the emergence of culture. Sara also held manager positions at Kamoon, Morgen-Walke Associates and Caspian Securities.

Sara received her B.A. from Middlebury College. She currently serves as a class representative for the Class of 2027 and is a committed Parent Association volunteer.

Sara and her husband, Scott, recently moved from New York City to Hastings-on-Hudson.

Sam, Class of 2027, joined Masters in the 2021-22 school year; Jack, Class of 2029, joined Masters in the 2022-23 school year.

Rajay BAGARIA P’25

Rajay Bagaria is the founder and chief investment officer of Wasserstein Debt Opportunities (WDO), a credit hedge fund established in 2012. Rajay began his career at Goldman Sachs PIA, the principal investment area responsible for private equity and debt investments. He later joined Apollo Investment Management, where he worked for eight years and was promoted to partner and a member of the Investment Committee. Following Apollo, Rajay established WDO to capitalize on best practices learned at leading institutions. WDO manages capital on behalf of endowments, foundations and others who share a focus on responsible growth.

Away from the financial markets, Rajay has a strong interest in education. He is co-founder of The Manitou School, a private elementary school built to support local needs in the area of Cold Spring, New York. In 2015, Rajay published “High Yield Debt: An Insider’s Guide to the Marketplace” (Wiley). More recently, Rajay launched Bhutan Mindfulness Center, a nonprofit offering Tibetan meditation classes and support for underprivileged disabled students.

Rajay earned a B.A. from New York University’s Gallatin School with studies at the London School of Economics. He lives in Garrison with his wife, Rajni, and their two children, Arjun ’25 and Amalie, an eighth grade student at Manitou.

Jodi INNERFIELD ’05

Jodi is an ex officio member of the Board and senior director of product marketing at Salesforce, where she leads a team responsible for driving alignment and strategy of product launches across the product portfolio. Before joining Salesforce in 2017, Jodi’s product marketing career spanned roles in startups and large enterprises including Amazon and SAP SuccessFactors. She has held roles in product management, human resources and film production.

Jodi has served on the Dobbs Alumnae/i Association Board since 2021 and as the board president beginning in 2023. She has served on the NextGen Advisory Board for the Anti-Defamation League of NY/NJ since 2021 and also sits on the Education Committee for the ADL of NY/NJ. Jodi graduated from the ADL’s Glass Leadership Institute in 2021. She has served as a mentor to other marketers through First Round Capital's Fast Track mentorship program since 2022.

Jodi received her B.A. in psychology from Columbia University and her M.B.A. from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. She lives in Manhattan.

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catching up with former faculty James Fredericks Vocal teacher (1997-2015) Since leaving Masters, I’ve continued my work in the music department at Adelphi University.

I teach private voice, acting for singers and fundamentals of singing. I also have had the pleasure of assisting with three productions of the Opera Workshop at Adelphi.

In addition I also teach voice at The Horace Mann School and teach and coach privately in New York City.

It has been a great joy to coach and teach my neighbor and friend Ryan Silverman, who played Billy Flynn in “Chicago” and has appeared in numerous Broadway productions.

I also play and sing at private and corporate events.

For the past year I have been teaching a senior acting class at JASA, Jewish Association Serving the Aged. This has been a unique and challenging teaching opportunity! I learn from every session as much as I teach.

One of my most satisfactory associations has been with the Equity-aligned Morningside Players Theater Co., where I am the music supervisor.

With Morningside I conceived and directed the revue “Love is in the Air” and starred in “Love Letters.” In January for Morningside I am directing the play “Next Fall” by Geoffrey Nauffts.

I serve as accompanist and tenor soloist at St. Francis Episcopal Church in Stamford, Connecticut, and I remain a fervent theater and opera attendee. I would welcome hearing from Masters students and colleagues.

Cecilia Nauck Math Department (1969;1977-1998) Since I left Dobbs, my husband, Wolfgang, and I have been living in Durham, New Hampshire. It is a small town that is home to the University of New Hampshire, and so the population almost doubles when school is in session and all that youthful energy returns. We like the peace and quiet and the slow pace here. It gives us plenty of time to read, go for walks, and have long telephone talks with distant friends and family (we do not have email). Leaving The Masters School after more than 20 years on the faculty there wasn’t easy. However, I was offered a teaching position in the mathematics department at Oyster River High School here in Durham, which made facing the years after Dobbs seem more like my usual routine.

Portsmouth, once a prominent whaling town, is about 10 miles east of Durham. We often go there to stroll the historic streets, have a nice meal, or attend a “Live from the Met” opera performance at the music hall.

Since retirement, I have given in to my love of gardening and spend a lot of time “playing in the dirt.” We have a beautiful garden and about an acre of woods in the back to enjoy all year. It is fun seeing the chipmunks using the bridge edging and stone walls to go from A to B rather than going cross-country through the grass. Several years ago, a wild turkey decided to build her nest in the middle of a pachysandra bed near the house. Keeping her company for almost a month and then seeing the baby turkeys hatch and walk away was a real treat.

Our two children, Margret and Fritz, lead busy lives and are not nearby, so getting together with them and their families is special. We

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enjoy the phone calls that keep us up to date on what is going on in their lives and the lives and adventures of our four grandchildren, currently ages 20, 21, 22 and 23.

Several times a year, Cecilia and her husband, Wolfgang, moved to New we travel south and Hampshire after Dobbs. always look forward to having a nice lunch with Kathy Yang (former chair of the Science Department) in New York City. We reminisce about Ranny Clark (guidance counselor) and Jeanne Taylor (former math teacher) and our days at Dobbs. Kathy is very knowledgeable about Chinese art and works with museums learning ever more. Lastly, I always look forward to Christmas cards and letters from former Dobbs faculty friends, among them Celeste Landry, living with her husband and talented daughters in Boulder, Colorado, and Pat Bayliss in Wales.

I am so glad to be able to say hello to former colleagues and students at The Masters School. All of you enriched my life in many ways, and I enjoy remembering those happy days in the Dobbs Math Department.

alumna spotlight

alumnae/i

Lynn Lenfestey Fey ’61 Mining History

Fey and her Maltipoo, Charlie, visit her favorite restoration

An alumna’s journey to preserve a city’s past.

When Lynn Lenfestey Fey ’61 and her husband moved to Park City, Utah, more than 30 years ago, it wasn’t the starstudded ski enclave of today, best known for the 2002 Winter Olympics and the prestigious Sundance Film Festival.

“From the mid-1800s until the 1960s, it was a silver mining town,” Fey says. “We went, as we say, from silver to skis.”

To Fey, that history is invaluable — and worth preserving.

The desire to understand and celebrate history is, as Fey says, “in my DNA.” She grew up in De Pere, Wisconsin, and her grandmother founded the De Pere Historical Society. Her aunt, too, was passionate about history and founded the Green Bay Historical Society and the Neville Public Museum in Green Bay. But it wasn’t until Dobbs, in a class taught by Nancy Maginnes ’51, that Fey began to understand the draw of history.

Before that, Fey explains, “History was memorizing dates and battles and births and deaths.” In Ms. Maginnes’ class, “We read Adam Smith’s ‘Wealth of Nations,’ and it was all economics.”

of the three she completed in Park City.

She intended to work on just that one house. She ended up reviving three historic homes in Park City.

“One had a raccoon living in it that had probably been there for many years, with nobody else,” Fey says. “It still had the old coal shuttle where they used to come up alongside the house and throw the coal in.

So we found all this coal in the back room, which was fabulous.”

Fey also got involved with the Historical Society of Park City and the Park City Museum. She sat on the museum board for 25 years and spearheaded a capital campaign that raised $10 million to renovate and expand the museum.

For a time, she was a commissioner for the Park City Historic District, ensuring that structures within the district were abiding by preservation standards.

Recently, Fey has been working to preserve two mines, Silver King and Thaynes,

as well as mining artifacts on Park City Mountain through the organization Friends of Ski Mountain Mining History, an offshoot of the Park City Museum. “We are the only ski area in the world that has all these mines and mining artifacts still on the mountain,” Fey explains. “It’s been fun.”

She doesn’t just do it for her own enjoyment, though.

“I think that I’ve made my community a better community because of the work I’ve done in historic preservation,” Fey reflects, noting that visitors are drawn to the area because they get a glimpse into Park City’s history when they ski past old mines and miners’ houses, dine at a restaurant that was formerly a miner’s boarding house, and stroll through the historic downtown.

“I helped preserve that,” Fey says. “I feel that, in my community, it made a difference.”

Decades later in Park City, Fey was living in a place steeped in a rich and fascinating past.

So when she spotted a “for sale” sign on a house in the town’s historic district — one that needed significant work to be brought back to its original glory — she signed on the dotted line.

“I ended up restoring it and having the time of my life,” Fey shares.

Then: Fey purchased 610 Park Avenue,

Now: Fey and Charlie in front of 610 Park Avenue.

restoring it to the charming Victorian it once was.

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double double take take

AN ALUMNUS AND A STUDENT — BOTH ENTREPRENEURS — ANSWER A SERIES OF QUESTIONS ON THEIR INTERESTS, ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND PURSUITS.

What is the most challenging part of being an entrepreneur?

never easy and most fail. The ones that succeed are led by people who can think creatively to overcome challenges and

MATTHEW FRIEDMAN ’18 is a serial entrepreneur. As a student at Tulane University, he co-founded Rize, an online platform connecting students and small businesses through short-term paid projects.

Rize placed first at the 2021 Business Today International Conference Impact Challenge sponsored by Moody's Analytics and won the Tulane Lepage Center Pitch Competition.

While in college, he also developed an umbrella-sharing service, U-Lend, prototyping umbrella vending machines on campus.

After graduation, Matt worked for a tech startup in New Orleans. He recently joined a New York-based venture that specializes in digitizing legacy home video and institutional archives. While at Masters, Matt created Matt’s Resales, a business helping people sell items online for a commission.

MF: Entrepreneurship requires being

work harder than most. Being passionate

comfortable with uncertainty while

is also important; without passion, you

navigating new situations. When you decide

inherently don't give your best effort.

to build something on your own, you forgo the structure and clear path that comes with traditional careers. Entrepreneurs and innovators can learn from others' success,

Who is your role model?

but at the end of the day, you are building the ship as you go. Allowing yourself the

MF: Richard Branson, founder of Virgin

opportunity to fail, iterate, pivot and put it

Group, is someone I greatly admire for

all on the line is a challenge.

being a leading entrepreneurial thinker and advocate for people who have dyslexia.

AB: Stepping outside your comfort zone.

Branson’s ability to create a brand across

Exposing yourself, trying to network,

multiple industries is an important lesson

and speaking to people to gain valuable

of the power of brand marketing. His

information can feel difficult and

success in reimagining the customer

uncomfortable, but it is something that

experience motivates me to bring fun and

any entrepreneur has to do when starting a

excitement to my projects. As a fellow

venture to ensure the best chance at success.

dyslexic, Richard inspires me and instills confidence in my abilities to bring a creative perspective to innovation.

What qualities do you think every entrepreneur should possess?

AB: My father. He is an entrepreneur, and the qualities he possesses to be successful are ones that I wish to achieve. He works

MF: There is no replacement for hard

super hard at every task so people trust

work. To succeed, entrepreneurs must

him to get the job done. He has a great

have drive, ambition and an absolute

presence, which makes him likable.

commitment to their projects. Being an entrepreneur is not a 9-to-5 job; it requires

ARJUN BAGARIA ’25 is co-chair of both the Entrepreneurship and Economics Clubs. At Masters, he is currently studying Advanced Topics in Entrepreneurial Leadership, a one college-credit dualenrollment course through the University of Delaware. Last year his team participated in the Innovation Challenge and placed in the top three.

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significant time and emotional investment.

But if you are passionate, hard work can be

Define an entrepreneurial mindset.

easier, and you will be better equipped to lead those supporting your shared vision.

MF: Entrepreneurship starts with the ability to view everyday life with a critical

AB: Every entrepreneur should be able to

and empathetic lens, and using that lens to

work hard and be creative. Startups are

identify problems and opportunities

Matthew Friedman ̕1 8 for innovation that can improve the world

AB: I have made so many mistakes,

experiment, and prototype our concepts. I

around us, clearly expressing that vision, and

especially last year when I entered

felt very lucky to be exposed to this during

outlining a plan of execution. A misconception

competitions for the first time. There are

high school as it profoundly impacted what I

about entrepreneurship is that it only applies

many things I could have improved in my

pursued in and after college.

to people who have started their venture — in

strategies. My biggest mistake was not

reality, it is a mindset that anyone can bring to

realizing how big an opportunity I had and

AB: Entrepreneurship class. Having a class

their work.

how big I could make the idea that I had. If I

dedicated to entrepreneurship has given me

had known, I would have taken more risks. I

a newfound purpose in my academic and

now know I need to take more risks.

professional career. It's something I really

AB: The most important thing that I

look forward to.

have learned is that anyone can be an entrepreneur. That's the beauty of the entrepreneurial mindset. You don’t have to be starting a big business. You can

Favorite class at Masters and why?

Best advice you’ve received.

be an entrepreneur by coming up with a better way to do something at your

MF: During my junior year, I took the first

job. Entrepreneurship is thinking about

Innovation and Entrepreneurship class

MF: Don’t let the perfect be the enemy

consequential problems and how we can

taught by Mr. Chiodo, which introduced

of the good. It can be hard not to always

solve those problems in unique ways.

me to the world of entrepreneurship. In

strive for perfection, but the reality is

that class, my group set out to create an

that you need to experiment and iterate

in-home automatic composter, changing

an early version of your concept so you

the way households dispose of food scraps

can understand what the market wants.

without the hassle that comes with

By doing this, an entrepreneur can better

current composting techniques. It was in

understand what iteration they should

this class that I developed my passion for

invest in perfecting.

What mistakes have you made, and what did you learn from them?

MF: Rarely do I look at failures and think

entrepreneurship. We were encouraged to

about them as mistakes because I am

use innovation to improve environmental

AB: It's OK to fail. Mistakes are a part of

learning from every experience and bringing

sustainability, get out in the real world to

what makes us human. It is such a toxic

a new approach to the next project. One

mindset to think that when we make

of the most important lessons I learned at

mistakes it's the end of the world. Knowing

Tulane University is knowing when to put an

that has allowed me to be comfortable

idea aside and move on to something new.

Only some ventures are going to succeed, and I have learned how important it is to validate your ideas in the real world so you build something that people want.

Arjun Bagaria ̕25

with taking more risks and being OK with making mistakes.

m a s t e r s n y. o r g

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alumnae/i | M A S T E R S O N T H E M O V E

ROOTING for the HOME TEAM On September 6, 2023, at Nationals Park in the heart of the nation’s capital, alumnae/i, family and friends came together for an unforgettable night of rekindled connections and America’s favorite pastime.

The following week, members of the Classes of 1959 through 2018 headed to Fenway Park, the legendary home of the Boston Red Sox, for a reunion that was as timeless as the Green Monster itself.

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m a s t e r s n y. o r g

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Bulletin THE MAGA ZINE OF THE MASTERS SCHOOL

C O M M U N I C AT I O N S

ADVANCEMENT

Meredith Halpern Associate Head of Strategic Communications

Seth Marx Associate Head for Institutional Advancement

Brooke Nalle P’24, ’27 Director of Alumnae/i Engagement

Isaac Cass Digital Communications Manager

Judy Donald Advancement Associate

Maryann Perrotta Database Administrator

Hilary Finkelstein Director of Annual Giving

Mary Ryan ’00 Associate Director of Institutional Advancement

Christina Ha Communications Associate Laura Danforth Head of School

Jen Schutten Associate Director of Communications Design: KBWhite Communications LLC

Sydney Hummel Advancement Assistant Carol Maxwell Senior Manager, Engagement and Major Gifts

Amie Servino ’95, P’26 Director of Parent Engagement Maureen Steinhorn Annual Giving and Stewardship Manager

T H E M A S T E R S S C H O O L L E A D ER S HI P 2023 -2024 HEAD OF SCHOOL Laura Danforth BOARD OF TRUSTEES Beth Nolan ’69, Chair Allison Moore ’83, P’17, ’19, ’24, Vice Chair Katherine A. Henry ’94, P’25, ’29, Treasurer Dana W. Oliver P’22, ’25, Secretary Asema Ahmed ’96 Rajay Bagaria P’25 Sara Barek P’27, ’29 Laura Danforth Michael Greene P’10, ’13 Jodi Innerfield ’05 Ronen Israel P’23 Christina Masters Jones Philip Kassen Susan Katzke P’24 Stacey Lacy ’93 Zhifeng Li P’22 Steve Marlowe P’23, ’23, ’25 Edgar M. Masters H’98, Life Trustee Susan Follett Morris ’57, Life Trustee Rajiv Ratan P’22, ’24 Jonathan Resnick P’26, ’29 William Roberts Tracy Tang ’80, P’18 Mirna A. Valerio ’93

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HONORARY TRUSTEES Marin Alsop ’73 Cynthia Ferris Evans ’52, P’76, ’86 Jeannette Sanford Fowlkes ’58, P’87 Ruth Mitchell Freeman ’51 Nancy Maginnes Kissinger ’51 Claudia Boettcher Merthan ’51 Lynn Pilzer Sobel ’71, P’99, ’05 DOBBS ALUMNAE/I ASSOCIATION BOARD Jodi Innerfield ’05, President Ricardo Oelkers ’03, Vice President Lucas Buyon ’11, Clerk Natasha Bansgopaul ’04 Sharon Nechis Castillo ’84 Liza Ciaramella ’07 Austin O’Neill Dunyk ’98 Kathryn Taylor Harvill ’95 Victoria Love ’88 Vincent Madera ’05 Charles Mendelson ’03 Justina Michaels ’02 Hannah Miller ’10 Greg Pasternack ’05

PARENT ASSOCIATION EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Officers Parke Anderson P’24, ’27 Co-President Jenny Liang Milward P’24, ’26, ’29, Co-Vice President Madeline Seguinot P’20, ’24, Vice President, Upper School Midori Im P’22, ’28, Vice President, Middle School Committees and Chairs Sara Barek P’27 ’29, Admission Support Co-Chair Saloni Singh P’27, Admission Support Co-Chair Nadia Reid-Christie P’23, ’25, Boarding Parent Representative Dana Oliver P’22, ’25, Book Club Chair Tracelyn Charles P’26, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee Co-Chair Madeline Seguinot P’20, ’24, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee Co-Chair Susie Williams P’26, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee Co-Chair

Andrew Barnes P’26, ’26, Masters Fund Parent Chair Jordana Manzano P’23, ’26, PA Program Support Liaison Class Representatives Parke Anderson P’24, ’27 Sara Barek P’27, ’29 Barbra Crane P’28 Marla Evans P’24 Susan Furniss P’20, ’23, ’25 Sonal Gibson P’29, ’31 Midori Im P’22, ’28 Peter Lavery P’29 Maria Marino P’24 Jenny Liang Milward P’24, ’26, ’29 Lori Moussapour P’15, ’25 Shelly Steinwurtzel P’26, ’30 Latasha Thomas P’25, ’30 Jennifer Vargas P’26, ’31 Paula Wood P’26 Steven Yung P’23, ’30

949 1954 1959 1964 1969 1974 1979 1984 1989 1994 1999 2004 2009 2014 20

SAVE THE DATE The Masters School

Reunion 2024 Saturday, May 18 CELEBRATING CLASSES

ENDING IN 4 AND 9 All class years are invited to campus to celebrate.

GET INVOLVED Contact Brooke Nalle P’24, ’27, Director of Alumnae/i Engagement, at 914-479-6611 or brooke.nalle@mastersny.org.

49 Clinton Avenue | Dobbs Ferry, NY 10522-2201

Photo: Joshua Simpson Photography