Parker Magazine Fall 2018

Parker

WOW: TWICE THE POWER | THE ART OF TIME MANAGEMENT | HIDDEN LIBRARY LESSONS | THE HEART OF CAMPUS

FALL 2018

THE MAGAZINE OF FRANCIS PARKER SCHOOL

THE PARENTS ASSOCIATION PRESENTS THE 37TH GALA

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fr a nc is p ar k er s c h oo l

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p a r en t s a s s o ci at i on

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2019 FRANCISPARKER.ORG/GALA ADVANCE PRICED TICKETS ON SALE NOW

AN EVENING OF COUNTRY TO BENEFIT PARKER STUDENTS CHAIRED BY ERIK KESKINEN

Parker Moment Members of the 2018 football team pose with faculty at faculty appreciation night on Friday, Sept. 21. As part of this timehonored Parker tradition, students are asked to invite a faculty or staff member who has made a meaningful impact on their life to be their special guest for the game.

AN EDUCATION IS THE GREATEST GIFT YOU CAN GIVE TO A CHILD Your support ensures that Parker students reach “as far as the mind can see.” Plan your gift before Dec. 31 and be a part of advancing Parker’s mission and the bright futures of our students.

MAKE YOUR GIFT TODAY FRANCISPARKER.ORG/GIVE

Parker Moment Members of the 2018 football team pose with faculty at faculty appreciation night on Friday, Sept. 21. As part of this timehonored Parker tradition, students are asked to invite a faculty or staff member who has made a meaningful impact on their life to be their special guest for the game.

AN EDUCATION IS THE GREATEST GIFT YOU CAN GIVE TO A CHILD Your support ensures that Parker students reach “as far as the mind can see.” Plan your gift before Dec. 31 and be a part of advancing Parker’s mission and the bright futures of our students.

MAKE YOUR GIFT TODAY FRANCISPARKER.ORG/GIVE

Head of School Message had something important to share.

Bill gently grabbed the microphone, looked over the crowd and said, “I just wanted to have a chance to thank Parker. To thank all of you. Manny is not here today because he is following his dream; he is a medical student.

And I believe it is because of Parker and the influence and support of all his teachers, that Manny went on to graduate from Princeton and enter medical school. Coming to Parker was the best thing that ever happened to my son, and I just wanted the chance to thank all of you.”

It was truly a touching moment.

Head of School Kevin Yaley addresses the audience at Parker’s Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in October 2018.

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uring the season of celebration and of giving thanks, on behalf of all Parker students, faculty, and staff I wish to extend my heartfelt gratitude for the many ways in which our community continues to support our school.

At a Parker event this past October, a few of us experienced first hand, the powerful and lasting impact of the generosity of the Parker community on one Parker graduate and his family some ten years later.

Indeed, there are times when we can see the impact your generous support has on our community. Most dramatically, we see it in the nearly completed construction of the Heart of Campus. Undoubtedly, the Heart of Campus will transform the student experience for years to come. We are only a few short months away from the grand opening which, quite simply, would not be possible without the vision and support of the Parker community.

We had just opened the Parker Athletics Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, recognizing an impressive collection of student-athletes for their accomplishments on and off the field. I was fortunate not only to emcee the event, but to introduce two inductees as they were players on our back-to-back championship Parker soccer team that I had the opportunity to coach. Unfortunately, one of the inductees, Manny Sardinha ’08, could not attend as he was in Philadelphia as a first-year medical student.

There are, however, other times when we do not immediately see or experience the impact of the support of our community in the same way we do when we look at the Heart of Campus. Still, the impact is deep and lasting even if it is not until years later that we learn of it.

After sharing a few words about this remarkable student-athlete, Manny’s father Bill joined me at the podium to accept the Hall of Fame plaque on behalf of his son. As Bill approached, he asked if he could say just a few words. Granted, it was not part of the script, but it was clear to me he

At the ceremony, I had the opportunity to speak with Bill personally. In our conversation, Bill told me that he had been waiting nearly ten years for the opportunity to appropriately thank Parker for the opportunities it had afforded his son. Bill shared the story of how Manny, the youngest of three children, came to his parents during his 8th-grade year and said he wanted to go to Parker. Bill told him that he and his mother would do everything they could to support Manny but was not sure how they could make it all work. Manny asked if he could apply and see what happens. We know how that story unfolded—from Parker to Princeton to medical school at Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine—thanks to the generous support of our Parker community.

Sometimes we do not realize the impact our gifts can have until many years later. And often the impact is more significant than we could ever imagine.

With gratitude,

Kevin Yaley Head of School FALL 2018 Parker Magazine

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Contents 08

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Learn how Parker’s WOW group empowers and promotes inclusivity in STEM among all genders and gender identities.

There’s more than story time happening at Parker’s Lower School library.

WOW: Empowering Students for Twice the Power

The Hidden Lessons of the Library

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Parker Middle School students learn necessary skills to manage their time and priorities—skills that last beyond their school years.

As construction nears completion, take a look at the Heart of Campus project from an insider’s view.

Teaching the Art of Time Management

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Heart of Campus

Parker Magazine FALL 2018

Francis Parker School Kevin Yaley, Head of School

Departments 04 42 28

Editor

Lori Foote ’94

Parker Highlights

Copy Editor

The latest news from the School.

Barb Fokos Nicole Gesualdo

Alumni Class Notes

Updates from Parker alumni across the decades.

Melissa Beltz Annie Sawyer Tiffany Yu

Alumni Profiles

Stemming the Stereotype: Profiles of four Parker alumnae currently working in STEM industries.

Our Mission The mission of Francis Parker School is to create and inspire a diverse community of independent thinkers whose academic excellence, global perspective, and strength of character prepare them to make a meaningful difference in the world.

2018-2019 Board of Trustees

Thank You, Donors

2017-2018 Report on Philanthropy

The Parker community is distinguished by the generosity and dedication of our families. The 2017-2018 Report on Philanthropy, which honors and recognizes our exceptional community of donors, is now available online at francisparker.org/report

Contributors

Robert Gleason, Chair Will Beamer ’89 Ayse Benker Diana Casey Randall Clark Kristie Diamond Rich Effress Graeme Gabriel Shakha Gillin, M.D. Robert Howard Randy Jones Ted Kim Susan Lester Jennifer Levitt Noelle Khoury Ludwig ’91 Patsy Marino Kate Deely Smith Meghan Spieker Traci Stuart Mary Taylor Sarah White Caroline Rentto Wohl ’86 Kevin Yaley, Head of School

Photography

Bauman Photography Melissa Beltz Nancee Lewis Photography Courtney Ranaudo Tiffany Yu

Non-Discrimination Statement

Francis Parker School is an inclusive community where diversity is welcomed and celebrated. We seek talented students, families, faculty and staff from different backgrounds. The School does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, physical ability, creed or national origin in the administration of its admissions, tuition assistance, employment determination or other procedures or programs.

Inclusive Language Statement

Francis Parker School is committed to the use of inclusive language. This pledge extends to our communications.

We practice the use of writing styles and language that are free from bias and sensitive to people's abilities, disabilities, ethnic and racial designations, cultural differences, and gender identities.

Parker Magazine is published three times each year by the Communications Office as a School community magazine.

Address correspondence to: communications@francisparker.org

On the Cover

Clockwise from top: Kira Hirsch, Class of 2019; Sahana Kumar, Class of 2019; Elizabeth Mitiku, Class of 2019; Tess Karras, Class of 2021; and Jordan Finley, Class of 2019, all members of WOW, pose for a photo in the robotics shop on Parker’s Linda Vista Campus.

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Parker Highlights HEART OF CAMPUS Heart of Campus construction is entering its final stages. With completion expected to occur in early 2019, students, parents, and faculty and staff excitedly anticipate the opening of the new Student Life Center, central Campus plaza, outdoor amphitheater, and, of course, the return of on-campus parking.

The opening of the Heart of Campus unlocks Parker's future.

This transformative project enhances the student experience and opens additional avenues toward meeting Francis Parker School’s evolving academic, arts, and athletics needs.

READ MORE page 32

self-study The Parker community is immersed in the self-study process as part of its reaccreditation through the California Association of Independent Schools and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.

The work of our self-study is carried out by teams of faculty and staff representing all areas of the School. Each team is responsible for one of 15 chapters, examining topics such as Mission, Climate and Community, Educational Program, Governance, Admissions, and Health, Safety, and Wellness. The final self-study document will be submitted as a whole in December 2019.

READ MORE page 13

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Upper School students Christopher Nawrocki, Class of 2021; Ashley Scott, Class of 2021; and Olivia Dangelo, Class of 2020 on the first day of school in September 2018.

measuring character education This school year, students in Grades 5, 8, and 9 have the opportunity to participate in the Character Skills Snapshot Benchmark, a tool used to objectively measure information about a student's character skill development. The benchmark measures specific character skills much like other tests measure academic skills, including these seven character traits: initiative, intellectual engagement, open-mindedness, resilience, self-control, social awareness, and teamwork. The data collected will be used to measure the efficacy of our character education programs over the coming years.

new positions strengthen the upper school program The Upper School welcomed two new members to its team in the 2018-2019 school year, helping to strengthen the program and ensure students thrive. Jennifer Chassman is the new Associate Head of Upper School for Academics, collaborating with faculty, department chairs, grade-level deans, College Counseling, and the Academic Resource Center team on all aspects of the academic program, including student progress, curriculum, and teaching.

Upper School’s new Dean of Students, Stacey Patsko, is a member of the student life team and works closely with the Associate Head of Upper School, Associated Student Body, grade-level deans, advisors, and others in academics in support of students.

parker podcast Tune in to the Parker Podcast to get the latest School news, meet members of the community, and learn more about upcoming events.

ADMISSIONS OPEN HOUSE Parker’s Admissions Season for the 2019-2020 school year opened Oct. 1 and runs through Feb. 1, 2019.

The Lower School and Middle and Upper School Open Houses will be held the first two weekends in December. Lower School Open House is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 1, and Middle and Upper School Open House is scheduled for the following Saturday, Dec. 8.

Parker’s Open House is an engaging way for parents and children to learn more about Parker. There will be time to explore parts of Campus, meet faculty and administrators, and ultimately gain a deeper understanding of what makes Parker unique.

For more information, visit: francisparker.org/admissions

Visit: francisparker.org/podcast

Read more online at francisparker.org/news FALL 2018 Parker Magazine

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Parker Highlights

SUPPORTING STUDENT WELLNESS

poetry week 2019

Educating the whole child means taking care of both body and mind. Parker accomplishes this mission through its many student wellness programs, including providing academic support when it’s needed at no additional cost. New additions to Parker’s Gooding Family Academic Resource Center (ARC), including dedicated Upper School and Middle School learning specialists, have meant the difference for many students.

Aimee Tanner joined the ARC team in 2018 as the Upper School learning specialist, and Karen Basil joined ARC in 2017 as the Middle School learning specialist. Both provide support to students with learning differences in their respective divisions in a non-feebased capacity, meaning learning support is included as part of a student’s tuition.

LOWER SCHOOL CHECK-OUT Always with an eye on student safety, the Lower School adopted a new scanning system to sign-out students at the end of the day.

Using ID badges, the School is able to keep a more accurate record of which students have been picked up by their parents or guardians and which have signed into the after school program.

Parker’s English Department will again host Poetry Week this Feb. 4–8, 2019, building off the momentum of last year’s success to bring poetry to every corner of both Campuses.

Poetry Week 2019 will feature faculty readings, assorted guest poets, students reading original poems, poetry lessons and discussions in non-English classes, and poetry over the PA system each morning.

There will also be a Poetry Salon for parents and community members in the evening on Thursday, Feb. 7.

Poetry Week 2019 welcomes award-winning poet and educator Naomi Shihab Nye (pictured above) as featured poet. The selfdescribed “wandering poet” has drawn on her experiences as a Palestinian-American and world traveler to write and edit more than 30 volumes of poetry, essays, and novels.

She has been a Lannan Fellow, a Guggenheim Fellow, and a Witter Bynner Fellow.

CORRECTIONS In the Summer 2018 issue (p.

5) we mis-identified Miriam Leakmariam in the Parents Association Board photo. In the same issue (p. 9) we mis-identified Troy Appel ’18, Class Valedictorian, and Ben Krongard ’18, Class speaker. We also misspelled Marc Matys’s name (p.27). We apologize for these errors.

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“Every girl on our team is uniquely inspiring because they each possess qualities that make them such strong engineers, teammates, and leaders.”

Sahana Kumar, Class of 2019

p. 8

“History has shown that kids who stand up for their beliefs can affect change, whether it be the newsboy strike of 1899 or the March for Our Lives movement just last spring.”

Jack Morrill, Class of 2019

“AT THE END OF

THE DAY, I WALKED AWAY FEELING LUCKY TO WORK AT PARKER. ALL SCHOOLS, INCLUDING PARKER, HAVE THEIR ‘STUFF’ TO DEAL WITH, BUT PARKER HAS ALWAYS BEEN A PLACE WHERE I’VE FELT SUPPORTED, ENCOURAGED, AND ENERGIZED TO WORK.” Parker faculty member p. 13

p. 25

“To be successful, people plan.”

“It really doesn’t matter how old you are; everyone loves to hear a good story.”

Laurie Brae p. 16 Lower School librarian

DJ Walcott, Middle School teacher p. 22

“At Parker, having that foundation of support from your teachers and your peers is so important, and it helps you prepare for when you move on to more challenging environments.”

Ayesha Bose ’11

p. 28

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WOW EMPOWERING STUDENTS FOR TWICE THE POWER

BY MELISSA BELTZ

It was difficult for the small group of high school girls not to be intimidated by the assembly of Qualcomm representatives sitting before them. But they were steeled by the reminder they carried with them that painted a vivid picture of why they were there in the first place: a picture of a lone girl huddled in a group of all-male teammates—a picture of their own team debating strategy before competing in a robotics competition.

The picture was fodder for the fire they hoped to ignite in the hearts of the company executives, an intimate depiction of the culture of the STEM community, and the reason they were there fighting for representation to continue doing what they love to do: building, programming, and competing robots.

The girls stood confidently in the conference room in Qualcomm’s San Diego headquarters and delivered a proposal for a corporate contribution that would broaden the reach of their robotics program. They knew they were fighting against the currents of history and wondered if their voices were enough to change the course of their own.

JUSTIFYING THE NEED Kira Hirsch, Class of 2019, joined Parker’s robotics team— known as the W.A.R. Lords—as a sophomore. In her three years of membership, she has held many different positions on the team of more than 60 students.

As Chairman’s Award presenter, Kira speaks before judges at various competitions run by FIRST, an organization whose name means For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, about the W.A.R. Lords and their achievements. As director of WOW and former director of sponsorships, she is well-versed in what it takes to secure the funding needed to grow the team’s membership and expand its outreach to other FIRST teams.

Kira is passionate about the “STEM” fields, which encompass science, technology, engineering, and math.

She is also a champion of a key subgroup of Parker’s 8

Parker Magazine FALL 2018

robotics team: WOW, whose acronym is derived from the name “Women of W.A.R. Lords.” WOW was created to empower girls and welcome them into the world of robotics, and today Kira’s goal is to promote inclusivity in STEM among all genders and gender identities.

“With robotics, I’m taking on leadership roles and exploring what I love—pursuing my passion for STEM while creating an environment that’s inclusive to everybody,” says Kira, now a senior and in her final year as a W.A.R. Lord.

The gender imbalance that exists in STEM fields is no secret—yet it remains. A 2017 report from the U.S. Department of Commerce revealed that women still hold only 24 percent of all STEM-related jobs in the United States. Women with degrees in STEM are also less likely than their male counterparts to work in STEM-related careers, opting instead for fields such as education and healthcare.

This picture of a single girl huddled among an otherwise all-male group helped illustrate WOW’s fight for gender equality in STEM when they went before Qualcomm in 2018.

Parker teacher Ryan Griggs has been with the W.A.R. Lords since 2007, when 10 students came together in his classroom to form what would become the championshipwinning robotics club. Since then, he’s struggled with the club’s microcosm of the industry’s gender imbalance.

“Girls were coming onto the team and then drifting away because they didn’t think they had a place. They couldn’t see themselves in that space,” he recalls.

ORIGIN STORY Melissa Fay, parent of two Parker graduates, joined the team as a mentor in 2013. As she got to know other team mentors, she was blown away by their breadth of experience. She also noticed an interesting dichotomy between the male and female mentors. Despite the fact that amazing men and women were backing the team, the women’s roles, in general, were largely focused on administration and support.

“There’s a pretty stark gender gap in the STEM environment.

It’s something that needs to be worked on and thought about.”

—Ryan Griggs, Head faculty mentor for the W.A.R. Lords

“It was interesting that these women happened to be attorneys, research scientists, and in charge of business development for Fortune 500 companies, [but] that talent wasn’t being leveraged on behalf of the team,” Melissa says. “Consequently, all of the student members—boys and girls—were only reaping the benefits of half the mentorship, and their perception of the abilities of those mentors was skewed.”

Melissa knew she could do more. She approached Ryan about taking a more active role. Ryan suggested she mentor the girls on the team who participated in various girls-only robotics events. Melissa decided to take it a step further: Why not create those kinds of events themselves?

A group of 10 female members of the W.A.R. Lords soon gathered around a conference table in Melissa’s Hillcrest office, each one expressing a sincere desire to contribute more to the team. What stood between them and their contributions were the obstacles of gender inequality and not knowing how to get past them.

“You could feel the camaraderie and the support,” Melissa says. “The, ‘Aha!’ moments of, ‘I’m not the only one.’ I realized at that moment that this needed to be an ongoing communication.”

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WOW members support teammates from all gender identities interested in building robots by hosting WOW-sponsored shop nights that build confidence through hands-on learning.

Pictured left to right: Sam Hodges, Kira Hirsch, and Sahana Kumar, all Class of 2019.

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That’s when WOW was born.

OWNING THEIR SPACE

Founded originally as Women of W.A.R. Lords, the program’s first few years focused largely on get-togethers similar to the one that took place in Melissa’s office. Active members at the time, including alumnae Anoushka Bose ’16, Adeline Longstreth ’14, and Camille Considine ’15, stepped up and encouraged other girls to get involved in robotics.

Alumna Avi Anklesaria ’18 perceived the gender gap in W.A.R. Lords when she first joined, during the summer before her junior year. Avi was mechanically inclined and wanted to be in the shop building robots, but she felt uncertain about being the only girl in the shop.

Initially, the program’s goal was to get more girls interested and involved in robotics and STEM and then to hone their skills to participate fully on the team.

WOW members created the hashtag #twicethepower to describe their mission. “Twice the power” means leveraging the full talent of the team by giving girls the opportunity and space to participate.

“We—as a society, as a community, as a robotics team, as a School—do better when we fully leverage the talent and energy of everyone in the community,” Melissa says. “The goal of WOW is to help bring twice the power to what we do.

That’s something that benefits everybody. It’s not just to the benefit of a single gender.”

SHIFTING THE FOCUS The summer before WOW’s third year, Melissa visited the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and met with Daniela Rus, director of MIT’s largest laboratory: the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory.

Melissa secured 20 minutes with the busy scientist and, during their conversation, asked why there were so few women in the laboratory. Dr. Rus said it wasn’t because there weren’t great engineers who were women. It was because those women were afraid to fail. In her view, they were afraid to stand up for what they wanted and tended not to fight for their ideas.

Melissa walked away from the conversation feeling like she and her collaborators at Parker had been approaching WOW all wrong. They had been focusing on skills and not on confidence.

That’s when WOW started its Fail Fearlessly lunch series.

At these events, women forging career paths in STEM fields are invited to Parker to discuss their experiences and, most importantly, their failures. The goal: to encourage a healthy amount of risk-taking.

Her unease faded away after her first Fail Fearlessly luncheon and continued to dissipate the more she heard professional women speak about how they created space for themselves in their fields. “Their success came with so many challenges, but getting over those is the reason I’m here today,” Avi says. “I always liked science and math, but I didn’t realize I could make a career out of it.” She is now attending the Viterbi School of Engineering at the University of Southern California.

In August 2017, after a year of being a W.A.R. Lord, Avi started a girls-only “Shop Night” as part of WOW. “I noticed there were so few girls at the [existing shop] trainings,” she explained. “Girls walked into the space, [but] the boys had experience working with tools already. The girls were out of their comfort zones. They stepped back and didn’t want to make mistakes.”

WOW Shop Nights got girls into the workshop. More importantly, they offered an environment free of intimidation where girls could get comfortable working with the many tools it takes to build a robot. They learned how to rivet, how to drill, and how to use the bandsaw, all in a welcoming space. Many WOW members acknowledge the significance of these girls-only Shop Nights in their own robotics journeys.

“I don’t know if I would still be on the team without WOW, to be honest,” says Tess Karras, Class of 2021.

Tess joined the W.A.R. Lords during her freshman year with every intention of being a programmer. She had taken relevant classes outside of Parker, but the programs she knew were different than those used to move a robot. She may have quit altogether if it weren’t for the WOW Shop Night she attended.

With no prior experience other than her Middle School woodshop class, Tess got acquainted with the tools in the shop and eventually drifted from programming to the build team. She is now a machinist and serves as the team’s safety officer.

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“A lot of people join the W.A.R. Lords without knowing what they want do,” says Tess. Experiences such as Shop Night can “plant the seed” for a lot of people who then graduate and go off to pursue careers close to what they did in robotics, she says.

Pallavi Murthy, Class of 2020, is the team’s quartermaster, which makes her responsible for inventory and maintenance of the shop’s supplies. Echoing Tess’s description, Pallavi was unsure what she wanted to do when she joined the W.A.R. Lords. She was fascinated by all the machines in the shop and ultimately settled in the build department, but her path wasn’t always an easy one.

“I lacked confidence in my abilities when I first entered the shop,” she says. “I was afraid to make mistakes and slip up like a normal human being.”

WOW has proven its success by integrating more women into Parker’s robotics program. In 2013, girls made up 29 percent of the W.A.R. Lords. Today, they account for 41 percent of the membership and hold a number of leadership roles.

THE SIGNIFICANCE Fail Fearlessly lunches, WOW Shop Nights, and many other outreach initiatives are reasons why WOW has been so influential and important to the W.A.R. Lords. “I think it was most rewarding to see how our team changed because of WOW,” says Jordan Finley, Class of 2019, a member of the W.A.R. Lords’ business team. “Now, we have guys in the shop wearing WOW shirts and actually recognizing that what we’re doing is valid and important and necessary.”

Inspired by how WOW has transformed Parker’s own team, members are now focusing on outreach to other schools’ teams around the United States, explaining the benefits of an inclusive program and encouraging them to consider similar moves. WOW members make presentations to other robotics clubs at FIRST competitions around the country about the progress of their program and how teams can create chapters of their own.

With these outward-looking activities, WOW is getting attention within the robotics community, in the STEM fields, and at large companies such as Qualcomm.

Sahana Kumar, Class of 2019, is in her fourth year on the team. She is head of software and strategy and has attended a few WOW events. Though she’s not actively involved in the management of the program, she has felt its positive impact and draws support from the many talented girls on the team.

During the last school year, Kira, Jordan, Avi, and fellow WOW member Amanda Wasserman, Class of 2019, presented at Qualcomm to secure funding to take WOW national. The group made their pitch successfully and walked away with a major grant from Qualcomm—one of the most influential technology companies in the area.

“Every girl on our team is uniquely inspiring because they each possess qualities that make them such strong engineers, teammates, and leaders,” Sahana says. “I think every girl on our team has taught me something different and has a quality that I aspire to possess as well, be it dealing with problems gracefully, leading well, or persevering despite overwhelming opposition.”

And as these Parker students made their pitch in the Qualcomm conference room, leaders of the tech giants asked why they should fund a program like WOW. Turning first to one other, then to the picture of the single ponytailed girl, Kira, Jordan, Avi, and Amanda said: This is why. n

“WOW has helped me overcome many of my initial mental roadblocks and continues to support me.

The Fail Fearlessly lunches helped me become more confident and own space in the shop without apology.”

—Pallavi Murthy, Class of 2020 12 Parker Magazine FALL 2018

For more information, visit: twicethepower.org

EXPERIENCE plus

REFLECTION equals

LEARNING An overview of Parker's self-study process

BY DAN LANG, HEAD OF MIDDLE SCHOOL

The formula, “Experience plus reflection equals learning,” is credited to John Dewey, the 20th-century philosopher and educational reformer. These words’ connection to Parker date back to the time of their writing: Dewey, a contemporary of Colonel Francis Parker, recognized Parker as a pioneer in progressive education.

Six years into its second century, Francis Parker School has educated generations of San Diegans and has transformed the lives of thousands of students. That is not by accident: The Parker we respect, love, and enjoy today is the result of an intentional process of evolution guided by a steadfast desire to improve. Informed design, lived experience, and reflection on that experience have allowed Parker to blossom from a small Mission Hills bungalow into a San Diego institution serving more than 1,300 students in three divisions on two campuses.

In the spirit of our namesake and the words of John Dewey, the Parker community will continue to learn through experience and reflection during the 2018-2019 school year

as part of a formal process of institutional improvement.

The School will conduct a thorough self-study as part of its re-accreditation process through the California Association of Independent Schools (CAIS) and Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).

During our professional work week in June 2018, Parker faculty and staff began the work of the self-study, which is structured to encourage detailed review and foster reflection. In response to selected questions from the CAIS self-study manual, small groups produced 140 flipchart pages of data on topics outlined by the accrediting agency. The data then were analyzed by statisticians at NP Strategies, a national public relations firm specializing in strategic guidance for businesses and nonprofits. The consultants synthesized the information into a report, which faculty and staff received during the following professional work week in August 2018.

The work of our self-study is carried out by teams of faculty and staff representing all areas of the School. Each team is

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SELF-STUDY responsible for one of 15 chapters, examining topics such as Mission; Climate and Community; Educational Program; Governance; Admissions; and Health, Safety, and Wellness.

Each chapter provides a standard, sets forth indicators of meeting that standard, and includes suggested questions from CAIS. The teams will collaborate to write the selfstudy document, which will be finalized and submitted in December 2019.

The School is committed to giving the 15 teams the resources they need to do the best possible work. NP Strategies returned to Parker this October to train team leaders on best practices in data collection, including survey design and interview techniques. These skills will

Above: Parker faculty tour Lick-Wilmerding High School in San Francisco, Calif.

help the teams to gather the best information possible from the people whose experience and reflection make the selfstudy an illuminating tool for future improvement.

In addition to observing our own practice of education, Parker is observing the work of peer schools. In early October, faculty and staff representatives traveled to eight schools across Northern and Southern California. This, too, promotes reflective learning: Seeing firsthand the circumstances, practices, challenges, and successes of peer institutions can help to put our own experience in context.

A full report on these trips will be presented to faculty and staff in January 2019.

Above: Parker faculty stop for a photo with students at Hillbrook School in Los Gatos, Calif.

REFLECTIONS FROM TRAVEL TEAM FACULTY AND STAFF MEMBERS: “It is incredibly helpful to visit other independent schools. It creates the opportunity for self-reflection and collaboration between colleagues of different areas of expertise.”

— Northern California Group 2: Branson and Lick-Wilmerding Schools

“Touring other campuses and classrooms, we get the chance to see what our programs might look like as they evolve and mature. We can ask ourselves, what do classrooms and programs look like when students start at Parker, and where do they end up?”

— Northern California Group 2: Branson and Lick-Wilmerding Schools

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Visiting peer schools is not a requirement of the self-study process—it is a choice, one that demonstrates Parker’s commitment to examining our School through a variety of lenses. Selected faculty and staff will see the School through another essential lens this winter, when they each shadow a student for an entire day. Experiencing a day in the life of a Parker student will deepen our understanding of the student experience.

A goal of the self-study is that the act of reflection on experience, and the value that brings, will touch all corners of the School. Head of School Kevin Yaley offered the following theme for the process: “One School—One Study.” Noting that self-study reports are often written by

“a few speaking for all,” Kevin set an expectation for the community that “all of us speak for Parker.”

The next 12 to 15 months will challenge all of us in the Parker community to review our experience, reflect upon that experience, and produce insight that will help the school as an institution to learn, yielding guidance for the next years of our journey together. This is exactly the process we guide our students through in our classrooms each day. Colonel Parker would approve. n

Above and right: Parker faculty and staff tour the Brentwood School in Los Angeles, Calif.

“First, we have a lot to be proud of. Second, we could be more intentional about staff development, particularly in the area of crossdepartmental and grade-level collaboration and understanding. Third, now is the time to leverage the excellent morale we’re enjoying in expanding teacher leadership.”

“I walked away feeling lucky to work at Parker.

All schools, including Parker, have areas for improvement, but Parker has always been a place where I’ve felt supported, encouraged, and energized to work.”

— Southern California Group 2: Brentwood and Crossroads Schools

— Northern California Group 1: Hillbrook and Bentley Schools

FALL 2018 Parker Magazine 15

Library Lessons

THE HIDDEN LESSONS OF PARKER'S LOWER SCHOOL LIBRARY

BY LORI FOOTE ’94

16 Parker Magazine FALL 2018

L

ibraries are magical places.

There are few people who can walk down the aisle of a library and not be captivated by the colorful spines of the books on the shelves or wonder about the adventures contained between their covers. In those books, readers discover their passions, find role models, and make emotional connections with the stories of people around the world and throughout time. The Considine Library at Parker’s Lower School is one of those magical places.

The list of momentous “firsts” that happen at the Lower School library is long. Students may check out their first book, meet their first librarian, fall in love with a story for the first time, take initial steps toward researching project topics, and make their first discoveries about who they are as readers.

The student experience at the Lower School library is the result of many years of developing, adjusting, and reinforcing a well-established library curriculum. For nearly 26 years, Laurie Brae, Lower School librarian, has been doing just that. The learning outcomes of Parker’s library curriculum include developing the ability to locate information; learning how to select, evaluate, and use information from a variety of sources both critically and competently; and understanding how to use information and technology ethically and responsibly. Another top priority: encouraging a love for reading.

The library’s learning outcomes sound comprehensive and well-planned—and they are.

But the Lower School students, by their nature, call forth the unscripted, enchanting aspects of library time. They describe it simply as fun.

For the youngest students, library lessons start with the basics. Laurie guides them on how to be a good listener during story time, how to navigate the library space responsibly, and, when they are ready, how to check out books to take home. Hidden in these formative lessons are the underlying themes of community, selfmanagement, responsibility, and respect for their classmates, teacher, and the books themselves.

Laurie holds story time sessions with students from Junior Kindergarten through Grade 5.

Even the oldest of those students benefit from

Left: Lower school students scramble to choose books to check out from the library. Above: Students use the “CAN IT BE FOR ME” technique to find the perfect book.

FALL 2018 Parker Magazine 17

Library Lessons exposure to great books. “It really doesn’t matter how old you are; everyone loves to hear a good story,” Laurie says. Among her main goals is to develop self-awareness in her students, in terms of what kinds of stories they like to read and how they like to read them. In her arsenal is a proven tool to help Lower Schoolers with the sometimes frustrating task of choosing the right book.

The tool is captured in an acronym: CAN IT BE FOR ME? It stands for: Cover, Author, Number of pages, Illustrator, Title, Blurb, Excerpt, First page, Opinions of others, Reverse title page, My friends, Enjoy genre.

Laurie found out about this method at a conference for librarians and brought it back to Parker. As students explore these 12 criteria and form their own opinions about each of the characteristics of a book, she explains, they will be better able to decide if the book is something they will find interesting and enjoyable.

Having a diverse collection of books helps. Laurie works closely with Christen Tedrow-Harrison, Parker’s

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director of diversity and inclusion, to understand how a diverse student population forges connections with books. Using the concept of “windows and mirrors,” Laurie can curate a collection that allows students to see themselves in certain books and to see into the lives of people from all walks of life in others.

This is an essential part of Parker’s strategic goal to ensure that diversity, inclusivity, and cultural competency are integrated into the classroom culture, teaching practices, and content.

Following one’s heart to a favorite book might be the most wonderfilled aspect of immersing oneself in the library, but Laurie makes sure that students grasp its raw academic utility, too. As students reach the middle grades and make their first forays into research projects, Laurie has the opportunity to teach them the differences between fiction and nonfiction books. She also works closely with the classroom teachers to ensure that whatever students intend to seek, they will find.

Many students gain a command of the library as a research site as part of their Lower School design class. The design teachers explain that all great designs are grounded in research— and that’s why many projects start in the library. Whether students are learning about how birds’ beaks are designed by nature for eating, or researching products to inform their own inventions for the Grade 4 business sale project, the library fuels their work. Laurie’s work with “design thinking” helps students to formulate questions, brainstorm ideas, and practice collaborating with their classmates.

One of Laurie’s core beliefs is that “no matter why students visit the library, they always find something wonderful.” This speaks to the magic of the Considine Library. It provides an experience that students enjoy so much, they almost forget they are learning—and that is as magical as it gets. n Below left: Students share their favorite book titles with each other. Below: A Lower School student checks out books from librarian Laurie Brae.

Who are You “Who are You: Portraits of Parker Students:” an exhibit of self-expression in the form of wire sculpture, photography, drawings, and paintings created by Parker Middle and Upper School students, was displayed in the James Alan Rose Art Gallery on Parker’s Linda Vista Campus in fall 2018.

FALL 2018 Parker Magazine 19

Who Are You Portraits by Parker Students

1

2 Image Guide 1. "Self Portrait in Traditional Dress"

by Elizabeth Mitiku, Class of 2019 2. "Disintegrate" by Cammie Capp, Class of 2020 3. A collage of student self portraits; a mix of works in photography, painting, and drawings.

4. Self Portrait by Jake Mills, Class of 2025 5. Untitled by Bella Sahota, Class of 2021 6. Untitled by Helena Vargas, Class of 2022 7. Untitled by Trinity Fima, Class of 2019 8. Untitled by Julianne Lilly, Class of 2021

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3

5

6

7

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TIME MANAGEMENT THE ART OF

BY LORI FOOTE ’94

Beginning in Lower School, Parker students are introduced to weekly assignment sheets and learn to fill in what the teacher assigns for homework each day.

This is the first step they take to become responsible for their assignments and organized with their homework.

When they are promoted to Middle School, the number of things they need to keep track of expands dramatically: Instead of having one teacher for all of their academic subjects, they have a different teacher for each. Suddenly, there is a demand for a unifying tool to help students stay organized and on top of their workload. Enter the Middle School planner.

At the start of each week in advisory class, all Middle School students dedicate time to looking at the week ahead. Students fill in the pages of the planner to track their classwork, homework, project work, and study time for each academic subject. They then note any extracurricular activities they might have, from club meetings to sports practices, and they make space for fun. Advisors suggest that students write in birthdays, plans with friends, and events with family, teaching them that for the planner to do its job, it needs to include everything.

Middle School teacher and Grade 6 Dean Chris McGrath explains that when students embrace the process and write down all of their activities, they can step back and say, “I'm looking at my whole week here.” It’s like journaling—with an eye toward productivity. Once students complete their weekly plan, Chris encourages them to share it with their parents, which he says often leads to good family conversations.

AT MIDDLE SCHOOL ORIENTATION IN LATE AUGUST, JUST BEFORE THE SCHOOL YEAR BEGINS, STUDENTS IN GRADES 6, 7, AND 8 ARE HANDED A CURIOUS COILBOUND PAPERBACK BOOK DUBBED THE MIDDLE SCHOOL PLANNER. TO THE YOUNGEST STUDENTS, THIS BOOK, WHICH SOMEWHAT RESEMBLES A CALENDAR, SEEMS UNUSUAL. TO RETURNING STUDENTS IN GRADES 7 AND 8, IT IS KNOWN ALL TOO WELL. HAVING EXPERIENCED FIRSTHAND THE WEEKLY PLANNING TIME IN ADVISORY CLASS AND THE RANDOM PLANNER CHECKS, THEY KNOW EXACTLY WHAT TO DO. As adults, most of us have a time-management system that helps us to juggle the multitude of tasks, appointments, and events that fill our days. We realize that managing our time is really about managing our priorities. Students in Parker’s Middle School have the chance to develop an approach to time management while they are young—a skill that will benefit them far beyond their school years.

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“We are

teaching them to be efficient and to make a planner that is truly useful to them.

We want them to learn to trust the tool and begin to form good habits.”

— Grade 6 Dean Chris McGrath Above left: Plan for the Week poster created

by Middle School teacher DJ Walcott. Below left to right: Grade 6 Dean Chris McGrath leads Grade 6 students through their weekly planning activities. A close-up view of a Middle School student planner.

FALL 2018 Parker Magazine 23

TIME MANAGEMENT As those newest to the concept, Grade 6 students receive extra guidance from their advisors when filling out their planners. “It starts out a bit scripted,” Chris explains. “We are teaching them to be efficient and to make a planner that is truly useful to them. We want them to learn to trust the tool and begin to form good habits.” By the end of the first trimester of classes, students have the process down. “We give gentle nudges,” Chris adds, “but they end up really embracing it.”

known around Campus as “the man with a plan,” developed a curriculum for Grade 8 that helps busy students to succeed in managing their workload. “To be successful, people plan,” DJ says. The curriculum provides students with a process they can rely on to map out their responsibilities, fostering a sense of confidence that they have the time to complete their work. DJ’s method also gives students an opportunity to identify any conflicts in advance, which further reduces their stress.

In Grades 7 and 8, the process of planning a week is routine for the students. Some may feel they can remember on their own everything that they need to do, but it only takes one missed assignment to drive home the power of the planner. The work in Grades 7 and 8 is about making the planner their own: Students come up with their own codes and abbreviations for recurring tasks, and they devise personalized color-coding systems that work for them.

“A lot of Parker kids are overscheduled with academics, clubs, athletics, and activities outside of school,” DJ says. “When they get older, and the social aspect begins to kick in, it affects their plan.” He tries to impart to his students that the true value of a well-thought-out plan is that it protects their time for the things they really want to pursue.

Middle School teacher and Grade 8 advisor DJ Walcott, affectionately

At Parker, just like at other rigorous college-preparatory schools across the country, students have to find a balance of time for homework, studying, activities, and spending time with the people who matter most to them. The Middle School planner demonstrates that with forethought and the right tool for the job, students can own their schedule and take command of the constellation of responsibilities and opportunities around them. n

Left: Middle School teacher DJ Walcott reviews a student’s plan for the week during advisory class.

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BY TIFFANY YU | PHOTOS BY DAVE HABERMAN

This fall, Parker’s Middle and Upper School Drama Club presented its production of Disney’s musical “Newsies”—a story of how standing up for what is right can change the world, even when you are a kid.

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The largely student-led production was special in three ways. It was the club’s first show in two years to bring together Middle and Upper School students onstage and backstage. It was the 100th Parker show for Elise Marinkovich, the Drama Club’s longtime advisor. And it was the first performance in the upgraded Amelita Galli-Curci Performing Arts Center—a symbol of Parker’s commitment to excellence in theater. Students had the chance to get creative in set design and costume design, making the arts center their own.

But first, they had to learn a lot about history.

DRAMATIC ROOTS “Newsies” takes place in New York City at the turn of the 20th century, where a group of ragtag kids who make a living selling newspapers decides to go on strike after newspaper tycoon Joseph Pulitzer raises the price at which the newsboys must purchase their papers to sell. It’s loosely based on the events surrounding the 1899 newsboys’ strike, when a youth-led campaign sought to bring change to the way newspaper companies treated their hawkers.

To portray their characters in an authentic way, learning about the time period was paramount for the cast and crew. Vaughn Melbourn, Class of 2019, and Caleb Haberman, Class of 2020, did extensive historical research, and all of the cast members read “Kids on Strike” by Susan Campbell Bartoletti, a nonfiction book about the lives of kids in the early 20th century.

“We really looked at what was ‘periodcorrect’ for the newsies,” said Vaughn.

“For instance, we learned that high-

26 Parker Magazine FALL 2018

fives came about in the 1970s. So we had to find different hand gestures that made sense to the newsboys.”

politics, he works as a tech director and set designer for the student-run Mask and Bauble Theatre Society.

The students also learned that newsboys weren’t all boys. “In history, we predominantly see boys as newsies, and the original Disney movie had an all-boy cast. But in our research, we found that girls also sold papers and often even outsold the boys,” Vaughn said. “The ensemble cast got to choose whether they wanted to play a boy newsie or a girl newsie.”

“It was really cool to hear what Bryce was learning in college and see him apply it to our project,” Vaughn said.

LOOKING THE PART The information students learned about the newsies’ era informed their planning for sets and costumes. Both aspects of the play were studentdriven team efforts.

“We all came together in the summer to help build the set,” explained Addison Smith, Class of 2023, who also played a newsie gang member named Albert. “It’s really cool to see our work up on stage.”

Vaughn’s work was critical when it came to the set. As assistant director and set designer, he spent most of this past summer planning and designing alongside Elise Marinkovich. Their goal was to bring the feeling of the Big Apple to the small theater while at the same time creating an adaptable, reusable set.

“We really had to be creative within the space constraints of the performing arts center and think ahead about how this set will be able to be used for our future shows like ‘The Lion King Jr,’” Vaughn recalled. “I learned so much about set design.”

He provided original sketches for what the set should look like and gave them to Parker alumnus Bryce Kelety ’17, who helped to turn them into formal blueprints. It’s a skill Bryce uses at Georgetown University, where, in addition to majoring in international

THEATER TIES Like many Parker alumni, Bryce was happy to help in any way he could.

Elise Marinkovich noted that this trait is common among former Drama Club members. “The alumni of the drama program are very involved and invested with our productions,” she said. “They understand the value of the program and keep coming back to give back.”

Perhaps Drama Club members have a predilection for giving back because they gain experience doing so while they’re still students. The club includes a mentoring program that connects senior students with new club members. For example, Olivia Dunford, Class of 2024—who participated in “Newsies”—has a partner for this school year in Anna Stanton, Class of 2019. Anna regularly meets with Olivia to check in on how classes are going, make sure she is making friends, and offer advice on how to keep up with homework during rehearsal.

“Being new at Parker, it has been really awesome to have Anna as a mentor,” Olivia said. “She helps me with my Middle School planner and makes sure I fit in my homework when I can. I am so thankful for the show and to be able to work with Anna.”

Olivia is not alone in feeling thankful for this production. The entire Parker community was grateful for the contributions of Elise Marinkovich as she marked her centennial show. In addition to advising the Drama Club, she has taught drama to many Upper School students.

“We are excited to share this momentous occasion with Ms. Marinkovich,” said Jack Morrill, Class of 2019, who played the main newsie, Jack Kelly, and assisted with choreography, costumes, and hair and makeup. He expressed the idea that the show allowed students to reflect on their connections with others: within the Drama Club, with other middle and high school students around the country, and across generations of young people.

“At the heart of it, ‘Newsies’ is about the power of unity,” Jack said.

“History has shown that kids who stand up for their beliefs can affect change, whether it be the newsboy strike of 1899 or the March for Our Lives Movement just last spring. The cast and crew could not be more excited to bring this show to life and share this story with the Parker community.” n Right from top: Zach Von Behren, Class of 2025; Kevin Kappes, Class of 2020; Jack Morrill, Class of 2019; and Camille Fundingsland, Class of 2020. Caleb Haberman, Class of 2020. Jordan Finley, Class of 2019; Vaughn Melbourn, Class of 2019; Graham Ong-Dean, Class of 2020.

Below left to right: Gia Marino, Class of 2020. Elsa Baumgartner, Class of 2021; Claire Harutunian, Class of 2023; Minerva Aldous, Class of 2025; Sree Kandhadai, Class of 2023; Evan Clark, Class of 2023.

FALL 2018 Parker Magazine 27

STEMMING

stereotype theE

FOUR PARKER ALUMNAE BREAK BARRIERS IN STEM INDUSTRIES

BY TIFFANY YU

A2yesha Bose ’11 PRODUCT MANAGER, SLACK

When Ayesha Bose ’11 got involved with Parker’s W.A.R. Lords robotics team, her eyes were opened to the possibilities of software engineering. Ayesha sought out every available computer science course at Parker—and often was one of the few female students in the class. Boys also outnumbered the girls on the robotics team when she first joined. But that never bothered Ayesha; the girls on the team took every opportunity to celebrate and support one another in their love of robotics.

When Ayesha went on to study electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, she found that her classes were well-balanced in terms of gender and that everyone was at least as passionate as she was about technology and innovation.

“MIT does a pretty good job in recruiting a balanced representation of men and women,” Ayesha says. “I met some of the smartest women there.”

Ayesha says the biggest challenge in college was leaving the supportive environment that she had at Parker. As a student who came from a place where every teacher knew her name, strengths, and what it would take for her to be successful, Ayesha found it daunting to enter a highly competitive college where classes were larger than what she’d previously known. She decided to develop one-onone relationships with her professors and to get involved 28 Parker Magazine FALL 2018

with the Society of Women Engineers at MIT to recreate the supportive network she had at Parker.

Through the Society of Women Engineers, Ayesha found a string of engineering internships that eventually led to her current job. She remembers being one of only two female engineering interns during those summers. The software company Slack, which offers a collaborative online platform for workplace communication, recognized her skills and her potential as a full-time employee, offering her a job as a product manager on the core product team.

“I get to analyze the problems we need to solve for our customers and decide why we should build certain products,” Ayesha explains. “My favorite part of my job is getting to work with all kinds of people—the engineering team, the marketing team, the sales team, and design team.”

Moments like these remind Ayesha of her time on Parker’s robotics team, where students with varied areas of strength—software engineers, builders, marketers—came together for the purpose of putting the best product out there.

“At Parker, having that foundation of support from your teachers and your peers is so important, and it helps you prepare for when you move on to more challenging environments.”

- AYESHA BOSE ’11

Engineering fields continue to be disproportionately male-dominated. According to the Society of Women Engineers, the number of women in engineering in the United States has not increased since the early 2000s. Only 20 percent of bachelor’s degree holders in engineering and computer science are women.

In the next 10 years, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts an increasing need for individuals to fill engineering and computer science jobs. To meet this demand, schools and colleges are implementing

programs designed to encourage the next generation to pursue careers in STEM, especially women and students from backgrounds that are underrepresented in these fields.

Parker caught up with four alumnae who are making the most of their passion for engineering. Coming from three different industries—space exploration, missile defense, and computer science—these alumnae let nothing discourage them from their dream of creating the next generation of innovative technology.

J2ulie Jester Newman ’10

ELECTRONICS ENGINEER, NASA JET PROPULSION LABORATORY On a clear summer evening in the year 2025, look to the southwestern sky and find the planet Jupiter. If you look hard enough, you might see the Europa Clipper spacecraft flying by Jupiter’s moon Europa, carrying with it Julie Jester Newman’s ’10 instrument named REASON. The Europa Clipper program is a mission in the works at NASA. Julie, a lead electronics engineer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, is designing and building part of the instrument REASON (Radar for Europa Assessment and Sounding: Ocean to Near-surface) that will be on board the spacecraft. REASON is a dual-frequency, ice-penetrating radar that will gather data about Europa’s crust and the oceans that may lie beneath.

“Europa Clipper is the ultimate mission,” Julie says. “There is a possibility we could find evidence of life at Europa. We know there is a liquid water ocean under the ice and, with REASON, we’ll learn much more about the moon.”

REASON is one of nine instruments that will be on board the spacecraft to study Europa. Julie and her team should complete their part of the project in 2020. With current technology, it would take seven years for the Europa Clipper spacecraft to reach Jupiter, but NASA is hoping to unveil a newly upgraded rocket that could reach Jupiter in only three years.

“I always wanted to send my work to space,” Julie says. “It

“Extraordinary results take extraordinary efforts. I am exactly where I want to be in my career, and I couldn’t have gotten here without the passionate faculty from Parker.”

- JULIE JESTER NEWMAN ’10

really is a dream to work on a project that will be going all the way to the outer solar system!”

Julie credits her time on Parker’s Upper School Science Olympiad team and her work with recently retired Upper School science teacher Rose Hanscom for sparking her love of science, saying they “definitely set me on my career path to engineering.”

Julie attended the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and majored in electrical engineering.

As Julie’s maiden name, Jester, may suggest, she is a charismatic leader with a lively sense of humor. She masterminded two major Caltech pranks during her college senior year.

Caltech has a long history of pulling pranks dating back to the 60s. For Julie’s first prank, she gathered more than 200 fellow students to help erect a 2,000-square-foot Hollywood-esque sign that read “Pasadena” on the hillside overlooking the Rose Bowl. As the sun set during halftime, the sign suddenly lit up in orange and spelled “Caltech.”

Julie’s second prank involved distributing more than 800 coffee mugs at an event for prospective students on the campus of Caltech’s greatest rival, MIT. Julie and other Caltech students posed as MIT students and passed out seemingly innocuous mugs that said MIT on them. But when hot liquid was in the mugs, another statement appeared: “Caltech, the hotter institute in technology.” To this day, Julie says, the mugs are sold at Caltech’s gift shops.

Julie proves that in engineering, there is plenty of room for fun, and a little curiosity can lead you to the stars.

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STEMMING THE STEREOTYPE

Tina Lung '00

SENIOR MEMBER OF TECHNICAL STAFF, DRAPER Tina Lung ’00 never thought she would end up in missile defense. In Grade 7, she had her heart set on becoming a chemical engineer.

“I remember coming home one day and looking up engineering in my encyclopedia,” Tina recalls. “I knew I loved math and science, and when I read [that] chemical engineers used a lot of math and science, I said, ‘That’s it! That is what I want to study.’”

Tina carried that dream all the way through her time at Parker. Retired Upper School science teacher Rose Hanscom recognized Tina’s love for chemistry and allowed her to conduct her own experiments in the lab after school.

“Ms. Hanscom really fostered my curiosity in chemistry,” says Tina. “I would bring crayons from home and create little experiments with the Bunsen burners and hot plates.”

Tina’s career came into focus when Upper School English teacher Jared D’Onofrio encouraged her to pursue chemical engineering at Syracuse University (his alma mater).

“I never heard of Syracuse before Mr. D’Onofrio’s encouragement,” Tina says. “Originally I was planning on following my sister to UC Davis, but I ended up loving Syracuse.”

In the honors track at Syracuse, Tina was one of only six students to graduate from the chemical engineering program in 2004, and she was one of the only two females in her class. Tina, however, wasn’t sure what her career path should be after graduating.

Thinking that she would go into the medical field, Tina went back to Syracuse to get her master’s degree in neuroscience. Still not sure about her future career, however, she went back again for a master’s in public administration. It wasn’t until she got her third master’s degree—in mechanical engineering from Cornell University—that she discovered her true love of systems

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engineering. She then quickly found her calling in missile defense, working for Raytheon and Draper.

Tina says the best part of her job is helping to develop the sophisticated technology that goes into defending the country. But missile defense offers its share of challenges, especially for a female engineer in a male-dominated field.

“More often than not, I am the only female in the room,” Tina says. “Sometimes a male colleague will make the poor assumption that I am in an administrative role instead of a technical engineering role.”

This experience has only driven Tina to work even harder to have her ideas heard. Tina knows that success doesn’t come easily, but she believes that with self-confidence and unshaken determination, you can achieve anything.

“You’ve got to have the self-belief that technology engineering is gender-neutral.

Just because someone may overlook your opinion doesn’t mean that it isn’t worth repeating. You’ve got to have a little more perseverance than you think. Don’t give up at the first sign of a roadblock; just work harder.”

- TINA LUNG ’00

C2amille Considine ’15 PRODUCT MANAGER, FLEXPORT

Camille Considine ’15 was caught off guard when the company for which she was interning offered her a fulltime position during her sophomore year at the University of California, Berkeley. Camille wasn’t looking for a fulltime job. She had more than two years of college left to go. She simply had been exploring different sectors in the technology industry when she arrived as an intern for Flexport, a global shipping logistics company in the Bay Area.

“Flexport wasn’t looking for interns at the time,” Camille recalls. “But I thought the problems that Flexport was trying to solve for its customers were really interesting. It took a little bit of convincing, but they added me as an intern.”

Camille was about two months into her internship when the CEO of the company and its top HR executive both asked her if she would consider taking a break from school to work there full-time. It wasn’t an offer she felt she could immediately accept. Instead, she replied, she would decide after she had worked there for three months and consulted with her college counselors. After an enjoyable three months, Camille considered herself lucky to discover that Berkeley allows its students to put their college careers on pause and return to the university when they are ready.

“The students of Parker’s robotics program are well equipped and know the relevant things that they have to do to get a company up and running. If they have an idea that strikes them that is missing in the world, go out and start that business. Don’t be afraid of stepping out of your comfort zone.”

Today, Camille is the product manager for Flexport’s ocean team. She travels around the globe to meet with customers to see what software products her team can build to streamline their freight shipping.

Since Camille started at Flexport in 2017, the company has grown from a couple of hundred employees to 1,000 staff members—and it’s only been a year. In 2018, Flexport was named one of the Best Companies to Work For by Inc. Magazine for its commitment to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace. Although gender balance varies from company to company, Camille is happy to report that about 55 percent of her team members are women.

“Students who are interested in pursuing a career in the technology field should do it,” Camille says. “There is a culture of helping young people who are just starting off in their career here in the Bay Area. You can find a lot of support and guidance from other more experienced people in the field.”

Camille is also an advocate for startups and young entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley, working as a scout for Sequoia Capital, a company that seeks to fund innovative entrepreneurs. While at Parker, Camille had the opportunity to experience this side of the tech industry firsthand. During her time with the W.A.R. Lords, Camille led marketing and fundraising activities for the program and co-founded WOW, an offshoot of the robotics team that supports people from all gender identities in STEM fields.

“Female founders are underrepresented in the technology field and [are] underfunded,” Camille says. “More women need to start companies so that we can change those metrics in the right direction.” n

- CAMILLE CONSIDINE ’15

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the

HEART OF CAMPUS Let’s take a step back for a moment to honor and recall the milestones that have positioned Francis Parker School where it is today. Since its humble beginnings in 1912 on a dusty hilltop overlooking the undeveloped Mission Valley, the School has benefited from leaders who have thoughtfully reflected on, identified, and addressed the needs of School, present and future.

Each time, their careful planning has created opportunities for the Parker community to rally in support of the campaigns that have moved Parker forward.

From the Linda Vista land acquisition in the 1970s to the Generations Campaign of the early 2000s to today, with the near-completion of the Heart of Campus project, Parker is always improving to ensure that its students have what they need to thrive.

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Heart of Campus construction is entering its final stages. With completion expected to occur in early 2019, students, parents, and faculty and staff excitedly anticipate the opening of the new Student Life Center, central Campus plaza, outdoor amphitheater, and, of course, the return of on-campus parking.

New Spaces and Places Highlights of the new Student Life Center include three upstairs meeting rooms and a state-of-the-art cafeteria.

The meeting rooms will serve the entire Parker community, increasing the number of spaces on Campus where classes, clubs, and groups can collaborate. When the partition that divides the Casey and Marino meeting rooms opens, it will reveal a space large enough for an entire grade level to meet together—joining the Field House and J. Crivello Hall as the locations on Campus where that is possible.

Downstairs, the new Parker Cafe will serve the same delicious meals in an updated facility. Students, faculty, and staff can expect hot meal stations, salad bar, sandwich bar, soup bar, fruit bar, and to-go options in the new space. A new pasta station open to the Middle and Upper School will add to the mix.

Breakfast will continue to be served in the mornings. As students come up the stairs or elevator from the parking structure, they will be greeted by the aroma of eggs and hash browns, which they can easily stop in for as they head off to their first class of the day.

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A Facelift for the Performing Arts Center The new Student Life Center’s neighbor, the Amelita Galli-Curci Performing Arts Center, has gone through a transformation as part of the Heart of Campus project. The building features a beautiful new front atrium that properly greets audience members for student performances and offers a sunny home for the statue of the building’s namesake, Amelita Galli-Curci. On the east side, an outdoor stage has been added, the Jordan Family Stage, which is surrounded by stadium-like seating in the amphitheater.

Wayfinding As new buildings go up, old numbers will come down. The Linda Vista and Mission Hills Campuses will soon feature new building identification letters and classroom signage and numbers, as well as updated maps. The new wayfinding design will help visitors to navigate the Campuses and will better assist first responders in the event of an emergency.

The first phase of wayfinding improvements will occur over the December break, with additional phases spanning the current school year and into summer 2019.

Donor recognition The Heart of Campus has been made possible by the generosity of Parker families and friends. The Casey Family Room, J. Crivello Court, Jordan Family Stage, Marino Family Room, Purdon Family Lobby, Samikoglu Family Room, and Silberman Family Plaza are the named spaces in and around the Heart of Campus Student Life Center that acknowledge the generosity of the families and their belief in and commitment to the Parker mission.

In the Purdon Family Lobby, a colorful wall display will recognize the generous families who gave $5,000 or more to make the Heart of Campus a reality for the Parker community. The 1912 Promenade, an installation of customized porcelain pavers stretching from the Silberman Family Entrance to J. Crivello Court, recognizes donors who gave in the amount of $1,912 or more. In the Parker Cafe, a preserved section of the Middle School Gym floor will display the names of alumni who donated to the campaign.

The opening of the Heart of Campus unlocks Parker’s future. This transformative project enhances the student experience and opens additional avenues toward meeting Francis Parker School’s evolving academic, arts, and athletics needs. n FALL 2018 Parker Magazine 35

FALL SPORTS

Football Parker football returned to its winning ways starting the season with a 7-0 record and dominating its opponents outscoring them 263-29. After dropping the next game, the Lancers won their last two games to finish 9-1 on the year. That earned them the No. 3 seed in the CIF section playoffs against

Southwest, where they won 41-15 and continued on to the CIF semifinals Nov. 16 against Tri City Christian.

The success of this season has been a true team effort. The hard work and determination of our players and coaches have been inspirational and truly energizing to the community.

Cross Country The cross country team began the year with its annual training trip to Julian—a highlight of the season that gets the team off to the right start.

The team ran a dominating season against many strong teams across San Diego County. The boys team took the Coastal League Conference Title for 36 Parker Magazine FALL 2018

2018-2019, and both the boys and girls teams continued on to participate in the CIF Championship Race on Nov. 17.

The water polo team has taken the division by storm this year. Only in year two and in our first year of eligibility to make the playoffs, the Lancers did just that. After a stellar season that earned them a No. 6 seed in the Division III CIF playoffs, the Lancers defeated Oceanside 13-4 to advance to the quarterfinals and then pulled off the

upset over favorite Bonita Vista 15-13 in a dramatic overtime thriller. The Lancers propelled to the semi-finals on Monday, Nov. 5, vs. Helix and finished with an 8-6 win and advanced to the CIF Championships vs. Classical Academy on Saturday, Nov. 10, where they fell short 11-8.

GO LANCERS!

Water Polo

Girls Volleyball Playing arguably the toughest leagues in the county left little room for error for our girls volleyball team. The athletes played well throughout the season, and key contributors pushed on despite numerous injuries. Nevertheless, the team was battle tested and played a

quality schedule that it qualified for the Division II CIF playoffs. Sadly, the season came to an end in Escondido with a tough 3-2 defeat.

FALL 2018 Parker Magazine 37

FALL SPORTS

Girls Golf

Girls Tennis

Our girls golf team was one of the best in the county again led by Brooke Seay and Caroline Garay, both Class of 2019.

Brooke began the season by playing in the World Junior Girls Championship in Canada, one of three girls invited to represent the United States in this international tournament. The team followed her lead and dominated the field winning the Coastal Conference Championship. In the CIF Tournament, Caroline represented Parker and finished tied for seventh for all of San Diego County, advancing to the state competition to play in the first round of the SoCal Regionals, finishing with a total of 78, 5 over par.

Our girls tennis program continues to make strides to compete with some of the top teams in San Diego County. The team earned impressive wins and made a strong push to qualify for the Division I CIF Tournament. It was ultimately defeated by La Jolla in round one but with a young nucleus, the team has an exciting future ahead of them.

LANCERS AT THE NEXT LEVEL CLASS OF 2018 Giselle Alota Cheer

Cole Harris Sailing Dartmouth College

University of North Carolina

Tufts University

Jimmy Chatfield Baseball

Sterling Hayes Baseball

Maddie McGrath Sailing

Emily Potts Cheer

United States Naval Academy

Yale University

38 Parker Magazine FALL 2018

Vanderbilt University

Sarina Jassy Dance

Brown University

Sam Merson Sailing

Wake Forest University

Boys sand volleyball finished the season with a 5-4 overall record. Nick Gustafson, Class of 2019, played on the No. 1 doubles team all year.

In the County Championships, our team lost to Westview 3-2 in the Division I semi-finals. In the County Pairs Championship, Nick Gustafson and Ben Sheres, Class of 2020, came in second in their pool and ended up in ninth place.

Bijan Sagart and Spencer Thoene, both Class of 2019, came in third in their pool and finished in third place in the silver division finals.

Julia Sheridan Rowing

For quite a few of our boys, this is their first experience playing on the sand.

As a group, the team improved more than any of our previous sand volleyball teams. Their strength was the number of talented players in the program.

Other standout players on the varsity team were Rodrigo Gallardo, Billy Harrington, and Alex Hernandez, all Class of 2020. n

Beatrix Thomas Sand Volleyball

University of California, San Diego

University of Southern California

Aeriel Sundt Sand Volleyball

Olivia Thorson Cheer

St. Mary’s College of California

GO LANCERS!

Boys Sand Volleyball

Michael Yourg Baseball University of San Diego

Brown University

FALL 2018 Parker Magazine 39

Athletics Hall of Fame

BY ANNIE SAWYER

On October 19, more than 100 alumni athletes, parents of alumni, current and retired coaches, trustees, and guests came together to celebrate the newest inductees into Parker’s Athletics Hall of Fame.

Seven individual athletes and two teams were welcomed into the group, which exists to recognize and honor Parker student-athletes, coaches, teams, and supporters for their contributions to the School’s athletics program.

Former players were inducted by their varsity coaches, who spoke not only about their performance on the field or court, but also about their strengths as scholars and peer leaders and the joy they brought to the sports they love.

Head of School and past Varsity Soccer Coach Kevin Yaley lauded Amani Walker ’07 for his love of the game and for playing with an enthusiasm and dedication that elevated the whole team. Kevin also commended Manny Sardinha ’08, who played with Amani for three years, for his relentless spirit, stellar play, and passion for the game that “put Parker soccer on the map.”

Associate Athletics Director and Volleyball Coach John Herman told attendees how Hannah Benjamin ’08 40 Parker Magazine FALL 2018

transformed into a powerful athlete in her journey from Middle School to varsity sports, and how her attention to detail and flawless fundamentals led to her election as captain in Grades 11 and 12.

John Morrison, former head coach of Parker Football, informed the crowd that Deon Randall ’10 accounted for 100 touchdowns running and throwing in Grades 11 and 12 alone, and that his hard work on the field made him stand out among the greatest football players in Parker history.

Coach Morrison described the persistence of Matt Wile ’11; he recalled many instances of walking toward the football field and hearing the distinct sound of Matt’s foot connecting with the ball as he put in hours of practice before the rest of the team arrived. He added that he is happy to hear that same sound on Sundays when Matt is on the field for the Minnesota Vikings.

David Glassey, who recently retired as Parker’s head baseball coach after 40 years, remembered listening to Kyle Dowdy ’11, then a Grade 6 student volunteering as a bat boy for the Varsity team, say that he was going to make the pros. Six years later, when Kyle pitched seven perfect innings in Parker’s annual game at Petco Park, David realized that he just might do it and couldn’t be more proud that Kyle is now

Left to right: Retired Parker coaches Tony Ghironi, Fran Styles, and Dan Kuiper.

Hannah Benjamin ’09, Belle Drouin ’89, and Maddie Tomey ’11.

on the roster for the Cleveland Indians.

Dalante Dunklin ’12 was described by Varsity Basketball Head Coach Jim Tomey as one of the best “thinkers of the game,” and an athlete whose teammates simply loved to play alongside him.

Amha Abebe ’10 and Jon Lee ’11.

Scott Morrison ’09 and Dalante Dunklin ’12.

Head of School Kevin Yaley and Amani Walker ’07.

Coach John Morrison highlighted the 2008 football team for setting a school record of 12 consecutive victories and sending 11 players on to play at the college level. He recalled passionately the moment at the beginning of the season when he realized the team was bound for greatness. The 2009

softball team, which was undefeated in Coastal League, won four consecutive CIF championships and finished the year as the Union Tribune’s No. 4 team in all divisions.

Coach Tomey described that team as the “gold standard.”

Parker’s Director of Athletics Anthony Thomas closed the evening by sharing the main

reason he came to Parker. It was embodied by the evening’s speakers, infused throughout the crowd, and inherent in the School community’s pride for every athlete being honored: Parker means family.

View a list of all Athletics Hall of Fame members online at: francisparker.org/athHOF FALL 2018 Parker Magazine 41

Class Notes updates

University in Aug. 2018, working toward a joint Ph.D. in Clinical and Community Psychology. Her focus is understanding the processes related to the development of racial identity in African American youth.

5. Jasmine Anklesaria ’14 accepted a position as major gifts associate at Stanford Graduate School of Business in Aug. 2018.

1. Fred Seeger ’72, pictured at Castle Urquhart next to Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands, spent two weeks traveling through Scotland in Sept.

2018.

6. Thomas Marshall ’14 moved to San Francisco in July 2018 after accepting a position in business strategy and negotiation for Walmart eCommerce.

10. Athena Zander ’16 is working as business development manager at the Athena Alliance, working to help the organization to reach new markets, connect with business leaders, source funding, and work with investment groups.

weddings

2. Austin Andrews ’05 received a Ph.D. in Philosophy of Mind in May 2018 from Cal Berkeley. In addition to his studies, he also volunteered at San Quentin Prison teaching philosophy to inmates. He recently started a post-doc at Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri.

3. Anne Gillman Cronin ’06 joined the U.S. Department of State as a foreign service officer in July 2018.

After four months of training in Washington D.C., she started her first assignment at the U.S. Embassy in The Hague, The Netherlands.

4. Asha Walker ’12 began a doctorate program at Georgia State 42 Parker Magazine FALL 2018

7. Michela Rodriguez ’14 was selected for a year-long fellowship with New York Theatre Workshop, one of the leading producing theaters of original work in the United States.

Her position involves reading script submissions, facilitating a readers’ group, and traveling around the city.

8. Sophie Woods ’14 accepted a position as analyst at CamberView Partners in San Francisco in July 2018.

11. Kristen Koehrn ’04 married Tom Gros on Sept. 29, 2018, in her parents’ backyard in La Mesa, with Kristen’s sister Kara Koehrn ’02 serving as officiant and maid of honor. Kristen works as a landscape architect, and Tom is a biotech engineer. The couple lives in Encinitas, CA. Pictured left to right:

Joanna Calderon ’02, Melissa Arbar ’02, Danny Irving ’04, Kristen Koehrn Gros ’04, Marisa Alvarez ’05, Tom Gros, Amy Guterman ’04, Jimena Bedoya Langton ’04, Allison Panton Least ’04, Hana Rosen ’04, Sarah Dawe ’02, and Kara Koehrn ’02.

9. Ben Sachrison ’16, who attends UCLA studying Political Science and American Politics and History, joined Parker’s Grade 7 students as a chaperone for this year’s trip to Catalina Island.

12. Blake Breslau ’09 married Kelsey Sweeney on July 21, 2018 at St. Paul’s

University Catholic Church in Madison, WI. Brent Breslau ’13 served as best man. Blake and Kelsey met at the University of Notre Dame, where Blake received his undergraduate degree and Masters of Business Administration, in addition to playing walk-on football for two seasons.

The happy couple resides in Chicago, where Blake works as private equity associate at Rock Island Capital and Kelsey works as a marketing executive at SAP Concur.

13. Dr. Sydney Oberstein ’11 married Dr. James Hook on July 6, 2018, in Bozeman, MT. After graduating from Parker, Sydney took a volleyball scholarship to Montana State University-Billings and then attended Life Chiropractic College West in northern California, where she received her doctorate degree.

Sydney and James moved back to San Diego in January to open the Life Chiropractic Center in Clairemont.

15. Ricardo da Rosa ’89 and wife Hanna welcomed son Ryan da Rosa, weighing 8 lb, 10 oz, on July 6, 2018.

16. Dalante Dunklin ’12 and wife Alayna welcomed son Dalante Donnell Dunklin Jr., weighing 7 lb, 14 oz, on Sept. 28, 2018.

in memoriAm

retired faculty

births

14. Andrew Cheskaty ’95 and partner Amber Heard welcomed son Adam Joseph Cheskaty, weighing 5 lb, 13 oz, on June 24, 2018.

18. Retired teacher, Parker alumna, and parent of alumni Anne Vafis ’51 is thrilled to share that she celebrated her 82nd birthday on Oct. 10, 2018. After a year of treatments for ovarian cancer, she is on the mend, walking two miles daily preparing for upcoming travel. Anne shares her gratitude for her fine medical care, loving family and friends, and an abundance of prayers and well wishes.

17. Retired teacher, parent of alumni, and current Parker grandparent Rose Hanscom is pleased to announce that she has become a climate activist.

She attended Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project training in Los Angeles in August, is volunteering for San Diego 350, and was outside the courthouse on Oct. 28, 2018, in support of the Juliana v. the United States lawsuit, which was tried in Oregon the following day.

19. Andrea Scott Cox ’73 passed away on April 21, 2018, after a long battle with MS. During her time at Parker, Andrea was a cheerleader and tennis player and is remembered for her cheerful, friendly manner and love of laughter. She is survived by her children Allison and Aaron, her granddaughters Sadie and Avery, and her brother Walker Scott ’71.

Parker alumni are invited to share their news in Class Notes. We welcome wedding and birth announcements, career updates and professional milestones, personal news, photos with fellow Parker people, and obituaries.

Send your note and/or photo to alumni@francisparker.org. Please specify if your news is to be published only in the magazine, or only on the alumni website or both.

FALL 2018 Parker Magazine 43

Parker alumni came together on Homecoming Day in Oct. 2018 to reconnect and share their Parker spirit. On these pages we celebrate some of Parker's alumni families who were among the guests that day.

the hanscom-taylor family

the cheskaty-ray family

the valverde family

the morris family, lilia marquez-rosenberg '89 and douglas family

the drouin family

44 Parker Magazine FALL 2018

the ludwig family

the fox family

JULIA GROFF '86 AND the salazar family

the SAVOIA family

the singh family

the walther-meade family

the barnes-feron family

the virgen-slane family

the rentto-wohl family

the WASSERMAN family

the Vilaplana family

the lillie family

the reed-HOLST family

the copson-byrd family

FALL 2018 Parker Magazine 45

HEAD OF

SCHOOL RECEPTION

Lesli and Osman Kibar, parents of Crea, Class of 2026; Inco, Class of 2029; and Lutra, Class of 2031; graciously hosted the Head of School Circle Reception on October 24.

They welcomed more than 100 parents, grandparents, parents of alumni, and alumni to their home in La Jolla.

This reception honors donors who have taken a leadership role in their support of Parker.

RANDY JONES, FATIH ASLANOBA, OSMAN KIBAR

MARK RILEY AND KAREN BERRY

46 Parker Magazine FALL 2018

OSMAN AND LESLIE KIBAR, KEVIN AND SHAWNA YALEY

MICHAEL THIEMANN, PATSY AND DAVID MARINO

JULIE GARRIE, MICHELE ROGERS

PETRA MERTENS, MARC MATYS, ERIC FOX, SUE LESTER

HAM SOUTHWORTH, MEGHAN AND WARREN SPIEKER, MONICA LAFFERTY

CLAIRE VAN DER LEE, JOHN APOSTOLIDES, CAROLYN GLEASON DE APOSTOLIDES, DRUE POLAKOFF AND GABY WOLFF

SHAWNA YALEY, LYNN GORGUZE

CARIN CANALE-THEAKSTON, SCHUYLER COPPEDGE, FRANS VAN DER LEE, HILLARY THEAKSTON, IRENE COPPEDGE

AYSE BENKER, BOARD CHAIR ROBERT GLEASON, LESLIE KIBAR

STEPHEN AND KAYLEE MCLAUGHLIN, MICHELLE HUBER

MARIJA SUBOTIC, JIMMY ANKLESARIA, CEVDET SAMIKOGLU, NASH SUBOTIC

FALL 2018 Parker Magazine 47

DON’T MISS THESE UPCOMING EVENTS:

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CALLING ALL LANCERS!

PARKER

For more information, visit: francisparker.org/fpssd

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For more information, visit: francisparker.org/reunion

A 48 Parker Magazine FALL 2018

99 ,A

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Saturday, April 27 Time and locations vary

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REUNION2019 APRIL 26 - 27

CELE

PARKER REUNION (Classes ending in 4s and 9s) Alumni in milestone reunion years are invited to join their classmates for an evening event.

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Friday, April 26, 12:30-6:30 pm at the Linda Vista Campus

Joi n

FPS IN SAN DIEGO Alumni of all class years are invited to the Linda Vista Campus for a fun back-to-school day followed by an afternoon reception on Lancer Lawn with past parents and current and retired faculty.

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SAVE THE DATE ALUMNI GIVING DAY Parker helped us build the foundation that launched our futures. Join us and make a gift to ensure that those experiences continue for Parker students. Help us reach 250 alumni donors on May 16, 2019.

For more information, visit francisparker.org/alumnigivingday

Visit francisparker.org/alumni for more upcoming events, including FPS events on the road in cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and Seattle.

AN EDUCATION IS THE GREATEST GIFT YOU CAN GIVE TO A CHILD Your support ensures that Parker students reach “as far as the mind can see.” Plan your gift before Dec. 31 and be a part of advancing Parker’s mission and the bright futures of our students.

MAKE YOUR GIFT TODAY FRANCISPARKER.ORG/GIVE

NONPROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE

PAID FRANCIS PARKER SCHOOL

Is this your preferred address? If you did not receive this magazine at your current address (or parents of alumni, if your son or daughter no longer maintains a permanent residence at your home), please notify the Alumni Office (alumni@francisparker.org or 858 / 874-3372) to update our records.

From the Archives From its first days, Francis Parker School has welcomed visitors from all over the world. Recorded in the Parker guestbook (pictured above), from 1914 to 1920, are visitors from across the globe who came to see what Parker was all about.

Professors from notable universities, such as the University of Chicago; Stanford University; and the University of California, Berkeley, came to visit Parker to share best practices and insights into student learning. Philanthropists also visited Parker, including San Diego resident Ellen Browning Scripps, founder of the Scripps Research Institute. In 1916, the School received a visit from Josephine A. Dolfer, a former pupil of Col. Francis W. Parker.

From well-known dignitaries to neighbors and friends near and far, this book is a testament to the idea that everyone finds their place at Parker.

6501 LINDA VISTA ROAD SAN DIEGO, CA 92111 FRANCISPARKER.ORG