Oak Leaves Winter 2023-2024

Oak Leaves

Juan with friend Barrett Nnoka '74

In the spring of 2021, several alumni and former faculty came together to establish the Norm Keiser Legacy Fund to honor the memory of Oakwood's former history faculty member. As the Black Lives Matter movement was growing, the goal was to help the school continue to foster an understanding of Black history as American history, as Norm did so effectively in the 1960s. It is now an endowed fund with lofty goals - to further the education of students and the community in an historical and current understanding of civil rights in the United States.

Excerpts from a letter Janet Tenney ’67 shared with alumni from the 1960s about the Fund follows:

Dear Friends,

As we all face this time of strife and division in our society, many are asking what can I do to make a difference? As my political friends say, work locally. Oakwood Friends School

may be local for some of you, but at one time it was local for all of us.

The Norm Keiser Legacy Fund has already supported some small projects and faculty are looking to incorporate more social justice related topics into their teaching.I hope you will consider contributing to the Fund. It is a small way to make a difference in the education of Oakwood students in the full American history, the Friends Peace Testimony and empower them to make an impact on the larger community in the Hudson Valley.

To donate visit the school’s donation page and note "Norm Keiser Legacy Fund" in the "Comments” section or contact Wendy Giangrasso at (845) 462-4200 x230 or wgiangrasso@ oakwoodfriends.org.

Warmly,

Janet Tenney

’67