Fall 2015–Celebrating 107 Years of Serving Youth
Newsletter Date
PBC seeks to transform the lives of vulnerable young people through integrated experiential and adventure-based programming in schools and at our outdoor campus.
BRIDGING THE GAP Summer. For many it evokes thoughts of sunny days, playing with friends, free time to explore. This summer, for more than 100 middle and high school students from four urban public schools, it meant a chance to maintain their academic skills while spending sunny days with friends exploring the 264-acre campus of the Princeton-Blairstown Center (PBC). PBC launched the Summer Bridge program in 2015 to address the summer learning loss that is common for most students, but even more so for those from urban districts. The program was an overwhelming success and we are expanding next year. Recent research suggests that students lose between one and two months of academic knowledge during the summer, with a significant impact on reading and math skills. Low-income students typically exhibit a steeper loss. This effect is cumulative over multiple summers. While nearly 75% of public schools in the United States offer some academic assistance over the summer, most of it is designed to provide remedial learning for students who need to get up to speed, not minimizing summer learning loss itself. Additionally, because participation in summer programs is generally quite low and some evidence suggests the reason is that parents do not want their children in summer programs that mimic school-year instruction, a different vehicle may be needed to address the problem. We have that vehicle.
PBC’s Summer Bridge experience included five days of handson academic work mixed with project-based learning, leadership, social emotional learning (SEL), and fun, led by trained PBC facilitators and faculty from each of the participating schools. Each morning, students worked in small groups focusing on academic enrichment including literacy and STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) skills. PBC’s facilitators developed a STEM curriculum that included active learning activities such as a game of elimination tag that simulated macro invertebrate populations and how environmental stressors can impact the population; and a competition between teams of two or three students to build the tallest free-standing structure using sticks of spaghetti, a yard of tape, a yard of string, and a marshmallow. During projectbased learning and journaling sessions, one group of students wrote future biographies and participated in a wilderness survival skills training entitled “Surviving the Zombie Apocalypse.” Afternoons were spent exploring the beauty of PBC's 264acre campus. For many of the students, it was their first time canoeing, hiking, and orienteering, so they were learning those skills at the same time they were learning about the plants and animals native to northwest New Jersey. PBC’s adventure activities provided the backdrop for the development of leadership and SEL skills. Students climbed up the 60-foot climbing tower, rappelled down the dam, and completed challenges on high ropes course elements including a zip line. These activities helped them cope with and overcome their fears, learn more about themContinued on page 2...
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ty-five percent believed they could be more effective in helping a group be successful. Nearly half of the students felt more tolerant toward others with opinions different from their own. More than half felt better able to cooperate with others. Onethird were more likely to look for problems to solve. Fortytwo percent felt more inclined to stop and think before making decisions and believed they would make better choices. More than half felt more comfortable being outdoors. Because of these encouraging results, PBC will expand the program to five weeks and will seek to serve approximately 450 students during the summer of 2016. For 107 years, the Princeton-Blairstown Center has provided outdoor and environmental education experiences to youth from low-income communities. Summer Bridge is a natural outgrowth of our original mission by taking what we do well, collaborating with other education-focused organizations, and building a course that provides students with the skills and competencies they need to succeed in the 21 st century. Our ability to provide this program completely free of charge to our partners and their students is enabled directly by the support provided by our donors each year. For that we are truly grateful. Please carefully consider your gift this year and help the Princeton-Blairstown Center continue serving the vulnerable youth in our communities. Sincerely,
Rainy weather didn’t keep these participants from supporting their teammate in the bird’s nest challenge.
Mark L. Antin, Esq. Chair, Board of Trustees
Pam Gregory President & CEO
selves and their peers, and develop a cohesive group dynamic that will stay with them throughout the school year. Jaiden, a 7th grade student from Newark, New Jersey, said, "I thought that PBC was a learning place just like school. It wasn't but we did learn. We learned how to suit up with harnesses and helmets. The staff worked hard and had patience with everyone. PBC had lots of activities. Usually trips are boring but this was the best trip." Our Summer Bridge outcomes were very positive. One-third of the students rated the experience a “10” for “the best time ever,” and almost 80% rated it an “8” or higher. Forty-one percent felt more confident they could be a good leader. For2
Summer Bridge students spend time in Peyton Library working on literacy.
Summer Bridge: A Teacher’s Perspective
By Jonathan Dec ’13
I will be honest, I came to Princeton-Blairstown in August slightly disgruntled. Mid-August is a crucial time for teachers to prepare for the upcoming year, and I had planned to use that week to finalize my curriculum and get my classroom ready. I had just finished my first year of teaching, which was (by definition) rough, and I was looking forward to a chance to sit down and think about how to plan my classes before the students arrived. I’m a curriculumcentric teacher - I believe that the heart of good teaching is a good lesson. When I found out that I would be spending a week in the woods instead of at my laptop, I felt frustrated.
race, and our responsibilities as men in today’s world. I’d wanted to discuss those topics with my students in a safe space for a long time. Pinpointing cause-and-effect in education is difficult, so it’s hard to say exactly how the trip “changed” my relationship with students. What I can say, though, is that the trip reminded me of some important lessons I’d forgotten in the day-to-day grind of first-year teaching. During our ecology class in the creek one day, I heard a scream coming from one of my more excitable students. “It’s a snake!” he yelled, pointing at something in the water. I began reassuring everyone that the brown line in the creek was just a stick, only to watch it slither away in the middle of my sentence. After a challenging first year of teaching, I needed to be reminded of something that now seems obvious: the importance of trusting my students and valuing their perceptions of the world.
It’s been more than two months now since we returned from PBC, and in hindsight, I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to go. I often fall into the trap of prioritizing lesson planning and instruction over building relationships with students, so I think I needed that week in the woods more than I realized. I spent the week with a group of roughly 10 boys and A Summer Bridge participant collects water from Bass Lake to anaanother chaperone, climbing rock lyze as part of the STEM learning experience. walls, dissecting owl pellets, roasting marshmallows, and pickI did lose a week of planning time to the woods, but ing up (or not picking up) bugs in the river. My favorite part of now that we’re in the doldrums of October, I think the trip the trip was the daily reading block, when my group would did more for my teaching than any amount of time spent gather in the PBC library to read and discuss a coming-of-age perfecting a year-long calendar. Seeing my students as “just novel about a boy growing up in modern-day Bed-Stuy. There, people” outside the classroom was a powerful experience surrounded by a collection of yellowed classics and wildlife for me, and I hope that they left the trip with the sense that guides, with the doors left wide open to the pond, we had a I am human, too. series of deeply personal conversations about masculinity,
REUNIONS 2015 On Saturday, May 30th PBC was proud to host a breakfast meet-up during Reunions at Murray-Dodge Hall. It was great to see former and current staff and board as well as friends of the Center including Priscilla Hayes ’75 and her husband Pete, Chris Van Buren ’84, Sarah Tantillo ’87, Bruce Petersen ’79, Rev. Fred Borsch ’57, Ev Pinneo ‘48, Rev. David McAlpin ’50 and his daughter Janet, Daphne Thomas Jones ’77 and her sisters Ivy McKinney ’77 and Evora Thomas ’74, Dean Alison Boden, Chris Shepherd ’98, Kirsten Hund Blair ’84, Sari Chang Guthrie ’84, Julie Polhemus ’95 and husband Chris Jones ’95, Isabel McGinty *82, Marina Murvanidze Mitchell *98, Kevin C. Hudson ’97, Jackie Alexander ’84, Ed Seliga ’75 and his wife Debbie, Jane Fremon ’75, Misha Simmonds ’97 and his family, Jason Griffith ’95 and his family, Dr. Hunter Wood ’60, and Al Kaemmerlen ’62. Also in attendance were Mark Antin-PBC Board Chair, Tim Downs-PBC Trustee, and Pam Gregory-PBC President & CEO. Rev. David McAlpin ’50 (left) and his daughter Janet McAlpin join PBC Board Chair Mark Antin in Murray-Dodge Hall during Reunions.
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WOODCUTTERS WEEKEND 2015 We are grateful to all of the generous individuals and groups that joined us for Woodcutters 2015 where the temperatures were nearly perfect and the fall foliage was close to peak. This annual community service event results in a significant number of end of season projects being completed by the nearly 150 volunteers and staff. This year projects included building and repairing benches for the campfire circle, splitting and stacking wood, painting bat boxes, raking leaves, pruning lakeside shrubbery, cleaning out the library, washing windows in many buildings, planting bulbs, and spreading wheelbarrow after wheelbarrow of woodchips around our ropes and challenge course elements. This year we were proud to have volunteers from the Colonial Club, Princeton Area Alumni Association, and Vikings as well as current and former PBC staff members and Trustees. If you were unable to join us this year, mark your calendar for next year’s event: October 21-23, 2016!
PBC and Whole Foods: A Community Day Partnership One of the many great things about working for a non-profit organization is that sometimes someone calls, seemingly out of the blue, to provide support for your mission that almost seems too good to be true. For PBC, that call came from Beth Pearson, Marketing Team Leader for Whole Foods of Princeton. She called to say that PBC had been selected as a recipient of Whole Foods Community Giving Days, also known as “5% Day.” That meant that Whole Foods Market of Princeton would donate 5% of its net proceeds on September 22nd to benefit our programs for at-risk youth. PBC’s role was to promote the day to our network and staff an information table inside the store. Trustees Christina Bailey and Praveena Joseph-de Saram as well as Advisory Council member Ev Pinneo staffed the table. They thanked Whole Foods shoppers, handed out flyers, and answered questions about PBC’s programs. Thank you to Whole Foods of Princeton and every one of their customers! More than $7,000 was raised during the 5% Community Day, funds that enable PBC to serve vulnerable young people from Mercer County.
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PBC UNVEILS LEADERSHIP OAK BENCH
Honorees Fred Borsch ’57 and Ev Pinneo ’48 enjoy the Leadership Oak bench during Woodcutters Weekend.
Under pristine skies and surrounded by peak leaf color, PBC Board Chair Mark Antin welcomed Woodcutters Weekend volunteers and special guests Ev Pinneo and Rev. Fred Borsch and their families to the unveiling of PBC’s Leadership Oak bench. He spoke about the evolution of the project that “was born out of a desire by the PBC Board of Trustees to recognize one of PBC’s dearest, most thoughtful and enthusiastic supporters for his decades of service to the organization after completion of his most recent Board term last summer.” Mark shared with the crowd that the Board suggested several fitting honors at the Blairstown Campus but this selfless supporter, mindful of the significant contributions of others in helping to shape PBC and make it the special place it is today, was not inclined to accept an honor focused only on his contributions. Instead he suggested a functional hexagonal bench modeled after one he admired at a college. After an exchange of ideas and photos, PBC Facilities Director Jody Zengulis worked with a local stone mason to design and install the bench. The story of how this bench came to be is reflective of the first round of names that PBC’s Board of Trustees chose to recognize. The 21 individuals demonstrated many of the qualities associated with “The Greatest Generation” referred to in Tom Brokaw’s books and speeches. These characteristics include being personally frugal and yet philanthropically generous; having a deep sense of responsibility and loyalty; being humble and seeking no personal recognition for extraordinary deeds; demonstrating a remarkable work ethic; and embracing challenge, spirituality, and the future. These character traits are some of the very same social-emotional skills that our staff works diligently to teach students at our Blairstown Campus and through our School-Based Programs.
The honorees were: Eleanor R. Bayles Joseph L. Bolster, Jr. ’52 The Rt. Rev. Frederick H. Borsch ’57 Dr. Francis L. Broderick ’43 *46 Joseph C. Cornwall ’39 John G. Danielson ’58 Joan Doig Carl Egner 1910 L. Jose Gonzalez The Rev. David H. McAlpin, Jr. ’50 Stephen W. Nislick Everard K. Pinneo ’48 David G. Rahr ’60 Frederick L. Redpath ’39 Dr. Robert J. Rivers, Jr. ’53 Arthur V. Savage, Esq. ’48 John J.F. Sherrerd ’52 Winthrop A. Short ’41 Peter T. Smith The Rev. T. Guthrie Speers, Jr. ’50 Howard W. Stepp H’39 H’44 Mark Antin commented that “…the honorees’ wisdom; guidance; stewardship; leadership; generosity of time, talent and treasure; and passion for the mission and ideals of PBC were extraordinary and warranted recognition. Without them PBC would not exist today as a strong and vibrant leader in the field of social emotional learning.” He hoped that the bench would “provide a place for inspiration, education, and reflection for generations to come,” and stated that PBC looks forward to honoring additional leaders and adding deserving names to the bench in the future as we continue our 107-year old mission of serving at-risk youth.
PBC’s new Leadership Oak Bench was designed to honor those who have provided wisdom, leadership, and guidance to PBC over the course of its 107-year history.
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SOIRÉE UNDER THE STARS We would like to thank the 100+ individuals who attended our Soirée under the Stars at Unionville Vineyard in Ringoes, New Jersey, on October 9, 2015. After several years of transition from an affiliate of Princeton University to an independent non-profit, and many more years since our last fundraiser, the event was a huge success.
minds…he helped to pass laws that helped families and pediatricians learn more about the medicines used to treat children.” She presented a poster of thanks to Dr. Maldonado which highlighted the 585 pediatric labels that have been added to medicines over the last 25 years. Aliya Greenberg, a new Student Trustee on PBC’s Board of Trustees also made remarks. Aliya was one of two 2015 Princeton University PICS Sustainability interns who worked at the Blairstown Campus, and she shared the many ups and downs that come with working at Blairstown. Her responsibilities included teaching environmental education, cultivating the garden, supervising the compost, facilitating visiting groups, lifeguarding, and other necessary jobs around the property.
The highlight of the event was presenting Dr. Samuel Maldonado, Vice President of the Child Health Innovation and Leadership Department at Janssen Research & Development, with the 2015 Frank Broderick Award. The Frank Broderick Award is given to an individual who demonstrates a deep commitment to social jusDr. Sam Maldonado (right) receives the Frank Broderick Award She concluded, “I learned how to differtice, compassion, and selflessness – from Princeton-Blairstown Board Chair Mark Antin. entiate between a caddisfly and a mayfly, and qualities that Dr. Broderick, I learned how to form a relationship with someone who grew up Princeton University Class of 1943, exhibited in his courain a drastically different situation than I. My summer spent at geous efforts to achieve racial integration of the Princeton PBC made me a better leader, a more empathetic peer, and a Summer Camp and to mobilize those who advocated for more empowered and passionate individual.” racial integration of Princeton University in the 1940s. Maya, a 15-year-old volunteer and summer intern at PBC, proudly introduced “Dr. Sam” by stating, “If there was anyone on this earth who could stand a chance of being an angel it would be Dr. Sam. He championed efforts for children even when it wasn’t on the forefront of people’s
We are grateful to those who made this night possible, including our many sponsors. All proceeds from the event will support PBC’s innovative programs for vulnerable youth with a particular emphasis on our Summer Bridge Program (see pg. 1).
THANK YOU TO OUR SOIRÉE SPONSORS!
EGNER LODGE Mr. and Mrs. Bruce Petersen ’79 Mr. and Mrs. Christopher Van Buren ’84 DANIELSON LODGE Sarah and Mark Antin Pam Gregory and David Palladino Edith Hunt and Gregor Zore Kay and Ev Pinneo ’48 Gaylea Prichard-Silvers and Brant Silvers Pamela and Derek Simpkins
HUNT LODGE Mr. and Mrs. Peter Bailey Brown & Brown of Garden City dba Sobel Affiliates Mr. and Mrs. Timothy Downs Facility Services Partners, LLC – Gwen and Ted Brunelli Daphne and Tom Jones ’77 Praveena Joseph-de Saram *11 and Vijay Krishnamurthy Christopher “Fish” Shepherd ’98 The Rev. Jean R. and Peter T. Smith 6
EQ Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan Baer The Rev. Alison Boden, Ph.D. and Rev. Walter Kerbel Victoria and Tim Bridges Susan Danielson, Psy.D. Davis & Company Mr. and Mrs. James Farrin ’58 The Rev. David H. McAlpin, Jr. ’50 Nancy and Ed Metcalf ’58 Princeton-Blairstown Center’s Senior Leadership Team Sarah Tantillo, Ed.D. ’87 GIFTS IN KIND Christina and Peter Bailey The Bent Spoon Betsy Castro and Jonathan Dennis Driscoll Foods Pam Gregory and David Palladino Performance Food Group Trader Joe’s of Princeton
PBC WELCOMES NEW TRUSTEES The Princeton-Blairstown Center (PBC) welcomed three new Trustees, Meryl Kessler, Aliya Greenberg, and Ben Dobkin, this fall. PBC’s Board of Trustees is a highly committed group of individuals, from diverse backgrounds, responsible for setting policy and overseeing the organization's fiduciary commitments. All three new Trustees attend or attended Princeton University and all have been involved in the University’s highly acclaimed Outdoor Action program and have worked at PBC’s Blairstown Campus. Meryl Kessler, Executive Director of the League of Women Voters of Massachusetts (LWVMA), brings over 20 years of experience as an attorney, non-profit leader, and educator, as well as a strong commitment to civic education and engagement. Meryl holds a B.A. in Public and International Affairs from Princeton University, as well as an M.A. in Government from Harvard University and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. Meryl worked at the Blairstown Campus during summers of 1981 and 1982.
Aliya Greenberg is currently a sophomore majoring in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Princeton University. She recently served as PBC’s Princeton Internships in Civic Service (PICS) Sustainability Intern at the Blairstown Campus. During her time there, she created and taught a weeklong environmental education curriculum targeted at urban middle-schoolers. Aliya spent much of her summer working closely with PBC staff on providing STEM instruction to participants, with a focus on environmental education. Ben Dobkin, a current senior at Princeton University, is majoring in Sociology and working on certificates in applications of Computing and Technology and Society. Ben worked as a PICS Summer Experiential Educational Facilitator at PBC’s Blairstown Campus and lead groups of participants in teambuilding, leadership, and adventure exercises designed to increase their social-emotional skills.
A NEW ADDITION This summer, PBC had the opportunity to purchase a home and land adjacent to the Blairstown Campus with the intention of housing the Blairstown Director there. Before that move could happen, though, PBC Facilities Director Jody Zengulis and his assistant John Haney took the house down to the studs to give it new life. They moved walls, added a bathroom, updated flooring, and modernized the kitchen. In addition to increasing the Blairstown Campus to 264 acres, the purchase of this property provides PBC the opportunity to repurpose the old Director’s house. Located next door to the new property, the old Director’s house will be used for adult education groups, team-building retreats, and meetings. Thanks to the generosity of PBC Board member Pam Simpkins and her family, who were consolidating homes, the old Director’s house is nearly fully furnished. After some minor cosmetic work this winter, it is expected the old Director’s house will be ready to accommodate groups in Spring 2016.
Before...
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BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Princeton-Blairstown Center 13 Roszel Road, Suite C204A Princeton, NJ 08540 (609) 921-0070 www.princetonblairstown.org
Princeton Office President & CEO Pam Gregory Director of Finance & Administration Betsy Castro, MBA Director of Development & Communications Meredith Murray Accounting Assistant Gina Grieco Administrative & Marketing Assistant Brynn Mosello
School-Based Program
President Mark L. Antin, Esq. Vice President Sarah Tantillo, Ed.D. ’87 Secretary Rev. Alison Boden, Ph.D. Treasurer Christopher Van Buren ’84 Trustees Jonathan Baer Christina Bailey Gwen Cogan Brunelli Susan G. Danielson, Psy.D. Ben Dobkin ’16 Timothy Downs Jim Farrin ’58 Jane Fremon ’75 Aliya Greenberg ’18 Jason K. Griffiths ’97 Kevin C. Hudson ’97 James B. Huffman, P.E. ’77 Daphne Thomas Jones ’77 Praveena Joseph-de Saram *10 Meryl Kessler ’84 Bruce Petersen ’79
Gaylea Prichard-Silvers Romy E. Riddick Pamela L. Simpkins William Wild ’14 Advisory Council Sari Chang Guthrie ’84 Kathy Gordon, LCSW, DSW Al Kaemmerlen ’62 Marina Murvandize Mitchell *98 Aida Lupe Pacheco ’77 Jason Pedraza ’11 Everard K. Pinneo ’48 Marta E. Santos, M.D. ’98 Mark Washington Honorary Trustees Joseph L. Bolster, Jr. ’52 Rt. Reverend Frederick Borsch ’57 Joan N. Doig L. Jose Gonzalez David G. Rahr ’60 Dr. Robert J. Rivers, Jr. ’53 Winthrop A. Short ’41 President & CEO Pam Gregory
Site Coordinator - Global Neighborhood Secondary School Clarissa Ghazi, LMSW
Blairstown Campus Programs Director Roberto Gil, Jr., Esq. Assistant Directors Tom Arnold Adam Faller Coordinator, Special Programs Chris Trainor Office & Outreach Manager Pat Karl Facilities Director Jody Zengulis Facilities Assistants John Haney Tammy Porter-Leitner Food Services Manager Robert Buarotti
IS THE PRINCETON-BLAIRSTOWN CENTER INCLUDED IN YOUR WILL? The greatest assurance that the valuable work of the Princeton-Blairstown Center will continue for another century is through a Bequest from you. Please consider the Princeton-Blairstown Center as you provide security to those you love and honor and include us in that special group. Through a bequest you will join a group of visionaries who have left an unsurpassed legacy like Mr. and Mrs. Carl Egner, Mr. John Sherrerd, and Mr. Joseph Cornwall. Their gifts have helped to ensure that deserving youth who are less fortunate can experience the transformative power of our Blairstown Campus. Please contact Meredith Murray at mmurray@princetonblairstown.org or at 609.216.7025 for more information. 8