View from the Ridge: Summer 2016

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Civil Discourse

FROM THE RIDGE |

4 GOING

SUMMER 2016

GLOBAL 11 Commencement 12 Our Hearthfelt Thanks 12 Alumni Highlight

Up, Up and Away

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Digging In

Over the course of my first year at Pacific Ridge – and what an engaging, exciting, and enriching year it’s been – I have come to appreciate the essential role that relationships play in every facet of the PRS experience.

In the classroom, I’ve observed students growing academically and personally through their interactions with one another. As an audience member and spectator, I can see how the bond between choir members, cast members, and teammates elevates a performance. While spending two fantastic weeks in China with 15 ninth graders and a colleague, I came to understand – through the joys and challenges of hiking, navigating, cooking, and service work – that together we are greater than the sum of our parts.

In the pages that follow, you will find even more examples of how Pacific Ridge students and faculty are at their best when working together. You will read about our plans to come together around the Harkness table to find common ground amidst what promises to be a divisive election season. You will read about Conceptual Physics classes banding together to take Pacific Ridge science to new heights – literally. You will read about a team that owes much of its on-court success to strong offcourt relationships, and about exciting travel experiences made that much more meaningful because they were shared.

I look forward to seeing what we can accomplish together in the new school year and beyond.

Dr. Sidra Smith Assistant Head 4 VIEW FROM THE RIDGE 2 VIEW FROM THE RIDGE

CIVIL DISCOURSE IN A TIME OF DISCORD Anyone who watches, listens to, or reads the news these days knows that we live in a climate of discord. The presidential election and what appear to be weekly local and global events highlight the fact that, as a nation and as a people, we often struggle to find common ground.

Observing these moments can be unsettling for all of us. As someone who spends his days leading a school that aims to prepare young people to lead their generation, I find these moments troubling on so many levels. When debates about issues turn into caustic sound bites and opportunities to tear down individuals, our young people are learning only how to attack and oppose, not how to learn, grow or improve.

The current divisive tone and lack of productive dialogue runs counter to all aspects of our mission: community, academic excellence, ethical responsibility, global engagement, and purposeful life. We believe our students can do better. We want to nurture young people to hold the kinds of qualities we need as a nation right now – curiosity, collaboration, creativity, open-mindedness, global awareness, innovation, compassion.

These are the qualities Pacific Ridge School has worked to instill in our graduates since the day we first opened our doors.

Ten years ago, when developing the school’s philosophy and programs, we focused much of our educational effort on the Harkness table. The symbol of the Harkness table encompassed everything within our mission; it still does today. The truth is that the Harkness table (both the skills learned around it and the ideas that are shared across it) is even more important today than it was ten years ago.

Now, more than ever, young people need to practice “speaking to understand” and “listening to learn.” Students need to see an opposing opinion as an opportunity to respectfully engage and discover. We need to teach our children how

to agree and disagree so that everyone involved in a discussion can benefit from the encounter.

So, this fall, using the Harkness table as both our backdrop and our centerpiece, we will spend time as a community focused on “Civil Discourse.”

The national election will give us plenty to talk about; it will also give us plenty of examples of discourse that is anything but civil. We will strive to learn from the discord and, as a community, model ways of speaking and listening that lead to greater understanding – to more effective problem solving.

This summer, our faculty and staff are reading Douglas Stone’s “Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most.” In late June, we sent a cohort of teachers to Phillips Exeter Academy for advanced training in the Harkness method. A group of teachers and administrators are working on programming that will energize our student body and give them more to consider during this election cycle than just the bites and barbs most readily available in the media.

Some programming we have planned will focus specifically on the coming election, and some will focus more broadly on creating engaged, open civil discourse.

We will participate in a statewide youth mock election in October and are having American History students facilitate school-wide conversations on important civic topics, from immigration to the space program.

We will have speakers on campus to talk about issues in modern politics, from polling to political cartoons.

For students who are interested in taking a leadership role, we will have a club sponsoring a field trip to Politifest at SDSU and organizing on-campus events.

We hope to engage parents as much as students in our work on Civil Discourse and look forward to hearing about how these conversations blossom around the dinner table as well as the Harkness table. Our programming can only grow stronger with the participation of our whole community – please do not hesitate to reach out if you have ideas or contacts that you would like to share with us.

When we return to school in September, civic issues such as health care, race relations, taxation, community policing, immigration, gun control, foreign policy, and the economy will be top of mind. For two months, people around the country will be debating how best to fortify our nation and world into the future. The conversations will be challenging, and the ideas will be conflicting. However, if we treat each conflict as an opportunity to learn, our students will discover more about themselves and their world, becoming adults who can agree and disagree, speak and listen, and contribute productively to the larger community.

Young people trained to debate ideas productively, respect other’s opinions and problem solve collaboratively will not only lead more enriched lives, but can also help transform a potentially divided and cynical society.

That is our collective work as a community, and I can’t think of a better mission for education.

Dr. Bob Ogle Head of School

Summer 2016 3

This year, more than 575 students and faculty participated in either school-designed or selfdesigned travel programs or internships. The trips build upon and reinforce the global perspective that is woven into a Pacific Ridge education through academic enrichment, cultural and linguistic immersion, and service

ents explore d u t s , g n ri p Each s rld and the wo the country lobal c Ridge’s g ifi c a P h g u thro . n program io t a c u d e l trave

work. Several of this year’s global adventures are highlighted on the following pages.

Students on the Cambodia trip were introduced to a country with rich tradition, vibrant culture, and a heartbreaking history.

Visits to Angkor Wat and a Buddhist monastery? Hauntingly beautiful. Visits to The Killing Fields and genocide museums? Simply haunting.

But students on this social justice-themed trip didn’t shy away from the tough subjects.

They posed ethical questions to a former Khmer Rogue member, asked a village chief his thoughts on global warming and education, and quizzed local non-governmental organization leaders about sustainability.

CAMBODIA

Amongst somber reflection and enlightening discussion, the group also found plenty of time for service and joy. During homestays on the island of Koh P’dao, students swam, played, and helped build a community garden. A language barrier, they soon learned, is no match for communal cooking, dance parties, and kind smiles.

4 VIEW FROM THE RIDGE

Every joy I have experienced here has been coupled with a reflection or reevaluation of some sort. I have learned that letting go of preconceptions is part of being a better traveler and a better citizen of the world.

“My meditation was interrupted by the return of my homestay’s rascal of a five-year-old. At first, I resisted calls to play in favor of quiet reflection, but his tugging at my hand and toothy, almost mischievous smile won me over. He pulled me to the river. There, the sun was casting its last yellowwhite rays over the Mekong.

Then he led me through the shrubbery, with the plant life cracking at our feet, and into a construction site. The smells of lumber, the springiness of the wood we balanced upon, the grubbiness of his hand against mine, the taste of dirt, and the sounds of birds flitting through the air are all that I focused on.

Although a wild romp through the brush was not the reflection I expected, I learned that letting go of preconceptions is part of being a better traveler and a better citizen of the world.”

– Senior Juliana Fan Summer 2016

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NICARAGUA Students on the Nicaragua trip weren’t afraid to get their hands dirty. They dug into the soil to plant trees, gripped lava rock while hiking volcanoes, wove baskets with an island artisan, and made chocolate and fresh mango jam by hand.

Working with Project Bona Fide, an organization dedicated to food security and sustainable living systems on Nicaragua’s Isla de Ometepe, students completed farm work while learning about

Yesterday may have been one of the greatest days in my life.

6 VIEW FROM THE RIDGE

food sovereignty, fermentation, permaculture, and natural medicine.

During homestays in the humble but beautiful village of Balgüe, students embraced a slower pace of life and off-grid living. Who needs Instagram when there are volcanic springs to float in, howler monkeys to hike alongside, and a community of welcoming Nicaraguans eager to make genuine connections?

“We finished lunch at the farm and immediately headed back to the local elementary school in town to teach English to a classroom of eager, happy children. Afterwards, we played some keep-away: 5 of us against about 40 little kids. As a soccer player, one of my life goals had been accomplished – playing soccer with children in a foreign country. Last night, the entire town experienced a power outage during a massive downpour, so everyone

engaged in deep conversations with their homestay families.

Anderson, Andrew, and I felt closer to our families than we had all trip. Amidst the darkness, all three of us told stories about our family histories, explained what American life is like for those of a different socioeconomic status, and learned about the importance of closeness and neighborly affection. That night was something we will never forget.”

– Junior Borhan Rafiq

GERMANY

DAYS

INTERVIEWS

Adrian Agresti, Elliot Lehrer, and Justin Vaughn’s Global Travel experience took them to five different cities over the course of 13 days, during which they conducted 29 interviews and collected 45 hours of video footage. It was certainly a full trip. It was also a trip full of purpose. The Pacific Ridge juniors hope to combine a love of filmmaking and an interest in global politics to create a documentary providing fresh insight into the European Union refugee crisis.

The trio designed an itinerary (Naples —› Munich —› Boylston —› Berlin —› Hamburg), were awarded a generous travel grant from a Pacific Ridge panel who believed in their mission, and sent out hundreds of emails in an effort to line up interviews. They toured refugee

“On my way out, with the gates closing behind me, I looked back. I saw one last glimpse of the girl I had seen in the kitchen.

She was standing and smiling in the middle of a group of children who were playing jubilantly in the wet gravel between the stark, white tents. I couldn’t help but wonder what would become of her generation as they grew up? Would they live among native born German citizens? Would they struggle to assimilate and form ghettos? There was no real way of knowing.

However, I knew one thing for sure: if all of Germany, and the world, put in as much effort [to support the refugee population] as Berg, her generation is on a course for success.”

– Junior Adrian Agresti

camps, schools, and chambers of commerce, speaking to both citizens and migrants about their daily challenges and opportunities.

Agresti recalls interviewing a Syrian man who wanted only “to be thought of as a human being, not a refugee.” That’s exactly what the boys hope to accomplish through their film. By putting a face on this global crisis they hope members of the Pacific Ridge community and beyond will learn more about the multi-faceted issue.

Summer 2016 7

How the Pacific Ridge Boys Varsity Volleyball team found success by sticking together

They didn’t drop a single league set.

The team might be young; the program new; the players not quite household names.

The spaghetti dinner – a staple for high school athletes looking to carbo-load before big competitions – became, in the forks of the Firebirds, an exercise in team chemistry rather than muscle energy. Like any family sitting down for a meal, the team ate, laughed, discussed, disagreed, and bonded. The weekly dinners were one part of a relationship-building equation that included weekend beach volleyball sessions and movie nights. The team became a supportive and tight-knit community, with off-court friendships that translated into on-court success.

But Pacific Ridge Boys Varsity Volleyball is nobody’s underdog.

From the beginning, the Firebirds have been an absolute menace to opponents.

During its inaugural year in 2014, the team didn’t lose a single league game. Nor did it lose a league game the following year – it’s first season in the CIF. This season the boys doubled down, trading impressive for unbelievable:

8 VIEW FROM THE RIDGE

How does a team still in its infancy suddenly find itself among the winningest programs in Pacific Ridge School history?

The secret sauce may well be marinara.

It wasn’t just that they cheered one another on or functioned more effectively as a unit, though that certainly gave them an edge.

It was that they felt comfortable holding one another accountable.

Team captain Anderson Lee ’17 recalls hitting out an important point and being immediately approached by setter Weston Corbeil ‘18 who looked Lee in the eyes and said simply: “Dude. You’ve gotta get that in.”

For a certain kind of team, that statement, when combined with a high-intensity game and teenage bravado, could easily be interpreted as fighting words.

The Firebirds are not that kind of team.

With a solid foundation of friendship, the boys are free to push one another without fear of bruised egos or hurt feelings. If a teammate says you

LEADS LEAGUE IN:

Hitting Percentage, Kills, Assists, Blocks, Digs, & Aces

need to get the ball in, you don’t bristle. You nod, agree, and you get the ball in the next time around.

“We hold each other to a high standard,” said Lee. “We’re always making each other better. It’s one of the best parts of this team.”

Head Coach Justin McCabe agrees.

“This group of guys are some of the most competitive, hardworking high school players I’ve ever been around,” he said.

“They push themselves harder than I could push them.”

Case in point: It was players, not coaches, who ran the season’s hardest practice.

“We implemented the rule during [captain’s] practice that if an easy ball drops and nobody dives, then everyone on the team does five burpees,” said Lee. “When we first started practicing we had maybe five plays within ten minutes where we had to do burpees.

It was rough. So guys started diving and seeing that we actually could keep a lot of those balls up. We all got better that day.”

The team’s work ethic and camaraderie were on full display during the season’s big wins, of which there were many.

Just three games into the season, the Division IV Firebirds took down the Division I Poway Titans in the kind of match that seems bigger than the box score. According to Lee, that 3-1 win was a statement. It was proof that Pacific Ridge could

hang with the best boys volleyball teams in San Diego County.

For the rest of the season they did more than just hang with the powerhouse teams. More often than not, they beat them. They went 21-3 on the season, with many of those 21 victories coming against big schools boasting longstanding Division I and II programs. It was impressive.

But then, even in defeat these Firebirds were impressive.

After playing their way to the CIF Championship game only to face a heartbreaking loss, there wasn’t a single Pacific Ridge player hanging his head or snapping at teammates.

“We definitely stayed together,” said Lee. “We didn’t disintegrate into individual players. Especially during the tough times.”

And though the year may not have ended with the exclamation mark they’d hoped, the future looks very bright for this makeshift family.

The team will return its entire roster next year. They’ll be older, wiser, stronger, and hungrier than ever to win it all.

Once again, the Pacific Ridge Boys Varsity Volleyball team will be nobody’s underdog.

“What they’re going to be,” said McCabe “is a force to be reckoned with.”

Summer 2016 9

Pacific Ridge Graduates Welcomed to Universities Across Nation and Overseas The list of acceptances below for the 357 graduates in the Classes of 2012 – 2016 gives a 5-year snapshot of the colleges and universities across the country and overseas that welcome our students. Bold type identifies the schools to which Pacific Ridge students have matriculated; asterisks next to schools indicate those institutions that include more than one Pacific Ridge graduate in their student and alumni ranks.

NORTHEAST

Amherst College Assumption College Babson College Bard College Barnard College Bates College * Bennington College Bentley University * Berklee College of Music Boston College * Boston University * Bowdoin College Brandeis University Brown University* Bryant University Clark University Colgate University Columbia University * Connecticut College Cooper Union Cornell University Curry College Dartmouth College Emerson College Emmanuel College Fairfield University Fordham University Franklin Olin College of Engineering * Harvard University Hobart & William Smith Colleges Hofstra University Ithaca College Long Island University Manhattanville College Marist College Mass. Coll. of Pharmacy & Health Science Massachusetts Institute of Technology Middlebury College New York University * Northeastern University * Pace University Polytechnic Institute of NYU Providence College Quinnipiac University Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Rhode Island School of Design Rochester Institute of Technology * St. John’s University St. Lawrence University Salve Regina University Sarah Lawrence College Simmons College Skidmore College Smith College Suffolk University Syracuse University * Trinity College Tufts University * Union College Univ. of Buffalo Univ. of Connecticut Univ. of Massachusetts Univ. of New Hampshire Univ. of Rhode Island Univ. of Rochester Univ. of Vermont U.S. Merchant Marine Academy Wagner College Wellesley College Wesleyan University Wheaton College Williams College *

10 VIEW FROM THE RIDGE

Worcester Polytechnic Inst.

Yale University

MID-ATLANTIC

American University Bucknell University Carnegie Mellon University Catholic University of America College of William and Mary Dickinson College Drexel University George Washington University * Georgetown University Gettysburg College Goucher College Haverford College Johns Hopkins University Lafayette College Lehigh University * Loyola University, Maryland Mercyhurst University Muhlenberg College Pennsylvania State University Princeton University * Radford University Rider University Roanoke College Seton Hall University Stevens Institute of Technology Swarthmore College United States Naval Academy Univ. of Maryland Univ. of Pennsylvania * Univ. of Pittsburgh University of Richmond * Univ. of Virginia Ursinus College Villanova University * Virginia Military Institute Virginia Tech * Virginia Wesleyan College Washington College Washington & Lee University

SOUTH/ SOUTHEAST

Baylor University Belmont University Berry College Centre College Clemson University College of Charleston * Columbia College Davidson College Duke University Eckerd College Elon University Emory University Emory University, Oxford College Flagler College Furman University George Mason University Georgia Institute of Technology Hendrix College High Point University * James Madison University Lynn University North Carolina State University Queen’s University of Charlotte Rice University Rhodes College Rollins College St. Edward’s University Savannah College of Art & Design

Southern Methodist Univ. * Texas A&M University Texas Christian University * Texas State University Trinity University Tulane University Univ. of Alabama University of Miami Univ. of Central Florida Univ. of Kentucky Univ. of Louisville Univ. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill Univ. of Tampa Univ. of Texas Vanderbilt University * Wake Forest University

MID-WEST

Carleton College * Case Western University College of St. Benedict DePaul University DePauw University Denison University Grinnell College Indiana University Kalamazoo College Kenyon College * Kettering University Knox College Lake Forest College Lawrence University Loyola University, Chicago Macalester College Marquette University Miami University of Ohio Michigan State University Missouri Univ. of Science & Technology Northwestern University Oberlin College Ohio State University Ohio Wesleyan University Oral Roberts University Purdue University * Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology Univ. of Chicago * Univ. of Illinois, Chicago Univ. of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign The University of Iowa University of Kansas Univ. of Michigan * Univ. of Minnesota Univ. of Missouri, Columbia Univ. of Missouri, Kansas City Univ. of Nebraska at Lincoln Univ. of Notre Dame * Univ. of Oklahoma Univ. of Wisconsin * Washington University in St. Louis * Xavier University

WEST/ MOUNTAIN

Arizona State University * Brigham Young University * Colorado College Colorado School of Mines Colorado State University Creighton University Johnson & Wales University Montana State University Northern Arizona University Regis University St. John’s College Univ. of Arizona Univ. of Colorado, Boulder * Univ. of Colorado, Denver Univ. of Colorado, Colorado Springs Univ. of Denver * Univ. of Hawaii Univ. of New Mexico Univ. of Utah Utah State University Westminster College

CALIFORNIA

Academy of Art University Art Institute of California Azusa Pacific University

Biola University Cal Tech * California Lutheran University Cal Poly Pomona Cal Poly San Luis Obispo CSU Chico CSU Fullerton CSU Long Beach CSU Monterey Bay CSU Northridge CSU San Marcos * Chapman University * Claremont McKenna College * Concordia Univ. - Irvine Fashion Institute of Design Harvey Mudd College Loyola Marymount University* Mills College Occidental College Pepperdine University Pitzer College Point Loma Nazarene * Pomona College * San Diego State University San Francisco State University San Jose State University Santa Clara University * Scripps College * SOKA Univ. of America Sonoma State University St. Mary’s College of CA Stanford University * UC Berkeley * UC Davis * UC Irvine UC Los Angeles * UC Merced UC Riverside * UC San Diego * UC Santa Barbara * UC Santa Cruz * Univ. of La Verne Univ. of the Pacific Univ. of Redlands * Univ. of San Diego * Univ. of San Francisco Univ. of Southern California * Whittier College *

PACIFIC NORTHWEST

Evergreen State College Gonzaga University Lewis and Clark College * Linfield College Oregon State University Portland State University Reed College * Seattle University Univ. of Oregon Univ. of Portland Univ. of Puget Sound * Univ. of Washington * Whitman College * Willamette University

INTERNATIONAL

Univ. of Aberdeen (Scotland) Aberystwyth University (Wales) American University of Paris Bard College, Berlin Cardiff University (Wales) Durham University (England) King’s College London McGill University Minerva Inst. For Research & Scholarship New College of the Humanities (England) New York University - Abu Dhabi University College London University College Roosevelt (Netherlands) Univ. of Alberta (Canada) Univ. of British Columbia (Canada) Univ. of Edinburgh (Scotland) Univ. of Glasgow (Scotland) Univ. of St. Andrews (Scotland) * Univ. of Toronto (Canada)

COMMENCEMENT 2016

At the end of May, during an overnight senior retreat, all 84 members of the senior class reflected on their experiences over the past six years and contributed to the writing of a collective Senior Statement.

During Commencement on June 16th, a group of senior representatives read the statement and, in doing so, provided family, faculty, classmates, and friends with a snapshot of the Class of 2016’s time at Pacific Ridge.

The following is an excerpt from their statement.

We are thankful for…

Second chances, amazing global opportunities, and acceptance letters to fantastic universities.

For our families’ emotional and financial support; senior breakfast and the dedication; and the good spirit of the facilities staff who cleaned up many of our messes.

For teachers who taught us more than the subject matter; for coaches who pushed us to greatness; for our peers who challenged and inspired us every single day.

For irreplaceable bonds that have lasted through six years of challenges and celebrations; the confidence that Harkness nurtures; countless celebrations and laughter; sun, waves, and sand.

For life changing travel to six of the seven continents; the support of our college guidance team (and the bagels they gave us!); great memories and great times.

For the places we’ll go, and the places we’ve been.

Summer 2016 11

ALUMNI HIGHLIGHT OUR HEARTFELT

THANKS

Thank you, Pacific Ridge community, for responding generously to the 2015-2016 Annual Fund campaign. Gifts to the Annual Fund,

representing 100% of our trustees, 100% of our faculty and staff, and 86 % of our families, brought this year’s total to a record-breaking $641,804! Gifts to the Annual Fund impact every student, every day, and help ensure excellence in all aspects of a Pacific Ridge School education. We are truly grateful for your support.

The Annual fund’s success relies heavily on a group of dedicated volunteers who share their passion for the school with the community, inspiring the remarkable support we receive each year. We would like to thank the following individuals for their hard work and commitment: CYNTHIA ALBOSTA

SUZIE NALBANDIAN

SASHA ANDREWS

CLAUDIA OLIVERIO

BOB BELL

WENDY OXENHORN

ALLISON BORTS

CHRISTIAN PAYNE

DONNA BOWER

CATHY PRVANOV

STACY CLARKE

DENISE SCOTT

LAURA EMBRY

HEATHER SCHMITT

KELLY GRIFFIN

LIN SHAW

DAWN GROSSMAN

LINNEA SHEAGREN

CHRISTINE HAMPARYAN

SHERYN SKOGLUND

NANCY JANDA

KIMBERLY WOO

JULIE LEVESQUE KAREN MCLOUGHLIN 12 VIEW FROM THE RIDGE

SUSAN URQUIDI

Alumni siblings share how Pacific Ridge has prepared them to lean into discomfort in pursuit of their passions.

Luke St. Marie ‘11 COLLEGE: Ph.D Physics Candidate at Georgetown University ’21 (Received his BS in Physics from Harvey Mudd College ’15) CURRENTLY: Studying for his comprehensive physics exam. After passing, he will be allowed to begin conducting research WHEN HE’S NOT IN CLASS YOU CAN FIND HIM: Exploring D.C.’s many museums and historical sites ON HIS FUTURE IN PHYSICS: I love figuring out how things work, and physics is kind of the ultimate expression of that.

While at Georgetown, I’ll be researching a number of topics including nanotechnology.

Then, after graduation, I might work in a government lab or for a private company developing better solar panels or more powerful computer components.

ON HOW PACIFIC RIDGE CLUBS FUELED HIS INTEREST IN SCIENCE: Although I’ve been interested in science since I was a little kid, Pacific Ridge helped me explore my passion. I was involved in Science Olympiad, which exposed me to fields of science I wouldn’t have explored otherwise, like epidemiology. Also, the Pacific Ridge Robotics Club was my first exposure to programming, which is an invaluable skill in the study of physics.

Global Travel, I wanted to come back.

Seoul is so dynamic. The city is dense, exciting, and constantly changing.

Emily St. Marie ‘14 COLLEGE: University of Chicago, Class of 2018 STUDYING: Global Studies & East Asian Languages and Civilizations CURRENTLY: In South Korea, completing an intensive Korean language program WHEN SHE’S NOT IN CLASS YOU CAN FIND HER: Enjoying Patbingsu – a Korean shaved ice dessert with red beans and a variety of sweet toppings ON HER FONDNESS FOR KOREA: Prior to my involvement in Lingo Online [a PRS service-learning group that offers English lessons to non-native speakers, many from Korea, via Skype] I had little to no knowledge of Korea.

But ever since traveling to Korea with two classmates during Pacific Ridge

ON HOW PACIFIC RIDGE PREPARED HER TO LEAN INTO DISCOMFORT: As much as I enjoy living in Seoul, there are many moments where I feel uncomfortable.

Pacific Ridge really prepared me to step outside my comfort zone.

Living in a foreign country alone, as I’m doing now, is something I don’t think I would have readily done without the prior travel experiences I had thanks to Pacific Ridge.

Claire St. Marie ‘16

ON WHAT SHE LOVES ABOUT ACTING: “I like seeing the world through a different point of view by getting to know a character and understanding where the character is coming from, then sharing that with an audience.”

ON WHAT SHE’LL TAKE FROM HER TIME AT PACIFIC RIDGE: “Being involved in Pacific Ridge Theater has helped me with my public speaking skills and my confidence.

I’ve also learned how to participate in class discussions respectfully and effectively, how to be a self-starter, and how to get out of my bubble and expand my worldview.”

COLLEGE: Syracuse University, College of Visual and Performing Arts, Class of 2020 [editor’s note: After auditioning 700900 applicants, Syracuse University’s School of Drama typically accepts only 25 acting majors and 25 musical theatre majors!]

WHEN SHE’S NOT STUDYING YOU’RE LIKELY TO FIND HER: Getting involved with Syracuse organizations that allow her to continue the DIME (Diversity, Inclusivity, Multiculturalism, and Equity) work she championed at Pacific Ridge.

Summer 2016 13

Pacific Ridge Conceptual Physics Reaches New Heights As many parents will attest, Middle School students can be great examples of Newton’s First Law of Motion, especially on a Saturday morning: teenagers at rest tend to stay at rest.

For more than a month students conceptualized, designed, and plotted. Topics they studied all year –buoyancy, density, motion, and gravity – came alive through the balloon preparation process.

So what force could cause a group of students to voluntarily wake before dawn to finish a class project?

Students on the Capsule Design team handmade the balloon’s payloads out of Styrofoam insulation, ensuring the cargo capsules were aerodynamic, light, and secure. The Experiment Design team selected items to research and observe at extreme high altitudes: a leafy plant, an iPod, snails, germinating seeds, marshmallows, a note written in invisible ink. The Photo Imaging team selected resilient cameras, which they later wrapped in chemical hand warmers, to capture both still photo and videos in sub-freezing temperatures. The Media Broadcasting team documented and shared the entire project by posting Instagram photos of class progress and livestreaming the launch. The Project Management team maintained efficiency and oversaw the entire process, while the Mission Control team coordinated a list of instructions for each aspect of the launch.

The answer is out of this world.

Or at least 100,000 feet above the world as we know it.

These students, along with a group of faculty members and parents, were rising before the sun to help launch Pacific Ridge School’s first-ever highaltitude weather balloons.

Conceptual Physics classes sent two balloons into the stratosphere this spring, with Mr. Melius and Mrs. Green’s students launching just a few weeks before Mr. Park’s and Mr. Wright’s.

From locations in Elmore Desert Ranch and Campo, the balloons went on 40 and 100-mile journeys.

But the journey to get the balloons flight-ready started long before launch day.

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101,000 ft.

Max Altitude Reached

WEATHER BALLOON TIMELAPSE

According to Conceptual Physics teacher Brad Melius, successfully completing a project of this scale required buy-in from the entire Pacific Ridge community and beyond.

The balloons were inflated with helium donated by Matheson TriGas in San Marcos; Spencer Ellis, a Mechanical Engineering graduate student at the University of California, San Diego served as an invaluable

resource throughout the project; a kind Brawley landowner allowed one of the launches to take place on his private property; teachers collaborated seamlessly; and parents, faculty members, and students volunteered time and ideas, and served as the project’s biggest cheerleaders.

“It was great to see the whole community so engaged in a science

a great learning experience. Everyone had so much fun hanging out before the launch and waiting for the balloon to fall. But when it was time to work, everyone was on it! We were all so proud of our work and excited to see our project go into space.”

Even a few unexpected challenges didn’t dampen student enthusiasm.

In fact, a very “sticky situation” during payload retrieval ended up being the highlight of 8thgrader Sophia Roses’s day.

“My favorite part of the launch, by far, was when we had to retrieve the payloads after they landed in a field of cow manure,” she said. “Luckily I didn’t have to walk through it – but it sure was funny!”

Approximately

100 Miles Flown

RESEARCH ITEMS ONBOARD

MARSHMALLOWS

SNAILS INVISIBLE INK PL A N T S

and engineering project,” said Mr. Melius. “We use creative experiments as a teaching tool in Physics all the time, but a project of this scale really has an impact. Students can see how different technologies and disciplines come together and how many different skill sets go into making something like this happen. They really got into it and their enthusiasm was contagious.”

That infectious joy didn’t seem to waver for the students, even throughout a 12-hour launch day.

“The launch was incredible,” said 8thgrade student Sloane McGuire. “It was

What made the weather balloon project such a complete learning experience, said Physics teacher Brooks Park, is that learning took place before, during, and after the launch. Long after the balloons popped and the payloads were collected, students continued to learn by testing the research items they sent up, examining the photos and videos, and reflecting on how the project could be improved next year.

“This year we started a middle school space program at Pacific Ridge,” said Mr. Park. “Just like the government space program has inspired innovation and advances in technology, I think in a small way our space program has done the same thing in terms of our science curriculum. So in a very real way, our space program has the same kind of collateral benefit as the national space program.”

“And,” he adds, “Our budget was a lot smaller.”

Summer 2016 15

ADMISSIONS OPEN HOUSE OCTOBER 29 1PM–4PM

6269 El Fuerte Street Carlsbad, CA 92009

IMPORTANT DATES AUGUST 31 OPENING DAY SEPTEMBER 9 COMMUNITY BBQ AND VOLLEYBALL HOME GAMES SEPTEMBER 22 BACK TO SCHOOL NIGHT OCTOBER 8 FALL FEST OCTOBER 12-14 STUDENT/PARENT/TEACHER CONFERENCES OCTOBER 29 ADMISSIONS OPEN HOUSE OCTOBER 30 HALLOWEEN PARADE NOVEMBER 19-27 THANKSGIVING BREAK DECEMBER 16 GINGERBREAD BREAKFAST

opian tribal s, as well as Ethi rie se s’ . ht Lig n -the-dark effect eld’s ‘Neo m Nadine Schönf d create a glow-in fro an el ed m od m ht m ig e ste br th e e r, where th makeup on for this imag n dark and colo inate paint and “My inspiration let light to illum tionship betwee la vio re e tra ‘17 th ul ice on an Pr d a ed te paint. I us ss.” – Emm concentra many in a series rough the darkne th of g e in on in is sh e s ie ag lit This im nt persona entative of vibra colors are repres 16 VIEW FROM THE RIDGE

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