Ravenscroft Magazine summer 2015

SUMMER 2015 | VOL. XVIII. NO. 2

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INSIDE: Female Students Develop App for Competition |

G. Smedes York ’59 Honored | Reflections on Graduation

BIRD’S EYE VIEW Discovering the hidden details on campus

Celebrating Lead From Here on Campus Students gather at the Character Tree Sculpture, an important campus symbol at the core of Lead From Here. The patio surrounding is the shape of the three circles in the Citizen Leader Framework that reflect the stages of leadership development: “Leading Self,” “Leading With Others,” and “Changing Your World.”

Photo by Nathan Clendenin

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FEATURES 6 Global Citizenship

DEPARTMENTS 2 Vision & Voice

Clarity of Vision: Young entrepreneur molds passion for science and social responsibility into eye care solutions

3 Lead From Here

12 Innovation & Technology

Girl Code: Female students enter the Technovation Challenge

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Creative Leadership

G. Smedes York ’59 Honored with Distinguished Alumni Award

Design by M Creative | Photography by Allie Wilson and Jennifer Marchi Written by Allie Wilson, Matt Taylor, and Jennifer Marchi, Communications staff, and Karen Lewis Taylor

Once a Raven, Always a Raven: An essay by Haley Gardner ’15

28 Center Stage

Ravenscroft magazine is published three times a year by the Communications Office. Any suggestions or comments should be directed to 919-847-0900, ext. 2312 or allie.wilson@ravenscroft.org.

News and updates from the Ravenscroft community

26 Student Showcase

The (final) Yellow Rose: Reflections from a mother on graduation

Creating Deep Thinkers and Empowered Learners

4 Notes from the Nest

20 Academic Excellence

A Recap of Current Events Doreen Kelly, Head of School

When the Student Becomes the Teacher: Emily Procter ’86

30 Game Day Digital Diversions: Matt Hunter ’04

32 Class Notes 46 Ravenscroft Rewind

An era gone by

VISION & VOICE A message from our Head of School

Connecting With Our Community Doreen Kelly, Head of School OUR COMMUNITY IS BRIMMING with accomplishment and aspiration. I want to share some of the events I have been part of since our last magazine was published that reflect this reality. I am grateful for these ongoing opportunities to connect with various members of our community who exemplify the power of our mission, vision, and values in action.

Award recipients are also recognized at commencement. The recognition ceremony is a constant in our community; so, too, is the excellence it celebrates.

DONORS

ALUMNI

We honored Smedes York ’59 as our 2015 Distinguished Alumni Award recipient in May. Smedes has demonstrated time and again the characteristics we want our current students to emulate — being motivated, collaborative, visionary, empathetic, and ethical, to name a few.

vision and determination, which motivated him to share the letter with those vendors. “Through Jane’s letter, she has not only changed her world but also that of many others as well,” Chris said.

Among those honored this year was School Nurse Martha Janes, who has served at Ravenscroft for 40 years. She was inducted into the Class of 1862, Ravenscroft’s honorary alumni class that honors non-alumni for their outstanding contributions to the School.

We can all make a difference for Ravenscroft through philanthropy.

The Embrace Possibility campaign will call upon this philanthropic spirit to help realize our shared vision. I discussed this vision during a campaign event in April. Embrace Possibility will endow Lead From Here, which benefits teachers, staff and students, and enhances the academic program. The campaign will also increase the endowment for

STUDENTS

During the Distinguished Alumni Award reception, Smedes participated in a panel discussion with fellow Ravenscroft alumni Sen. Neal Hunt ’60 and Easter Maynard ’89 as well as incoming SGA President DJ Washington ’16. The panel discussed citizenship and leadership in keeping with Ravenscroft’s Lead From Here initiative.

Lead From Here is a forward-looking initiative, which means its greatest benefits will be realized over time. However, we witness examples of the difference maker it will be for our students in their everyday acts of leadership and service.

This spring, third-grader Jane McNeill wrote a letter to Head of Lower School Payton Hobbs outlining the need for more water fountains in the building and how

FACULTY Each year we celebrate teaching excellence and service to Ravenscroft during our Faculty and Staff Recognition and Reception in May. Winners of the Helton Award, the Qubain Award for Teaching Excellence, the Parents’ Association Distinguished Faculty Award, and the O’Herron Distinguished Faculty Award are announced. We also honor years of service to the School.

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financial aid and student support to open Ravenscroft’s doors to the most talented applicants regardless of economic circumstance. Finally, Embrace Possibility will provide first-rate facilities and programs that support and enhance Ravenscroft’s commitment to excellence through support of the Annual Fund.

People and programs are at the core of what we do. We have the very best of both at Ravenscroft.

Sincerely to make it happen through fundraising.

Jane’s words inspired several vendors to collaborate on the purchase of a Dual Water Fountain with a bottle filling station. Director of Buildings and Grounds Chris Farrow admired Jane’s

Doreen C. Kelly Head of School

LEAD FROM HERE Updates from our Movement

Creating Deep Thinkers and Empowered Learners “WHAT BROUGHT YOU TO RALEIGH?” I encountered that question more than any other last year, my first at Ravenscroft. It was the most obvious question, of course, and I gave the most direct answer. “Ravenscroft brought us here.”

After teaching, coaching, and serving as a Class Dean for eight years at a school in Nashville, Tenn., I found myself considering an opportunity to join the Ravenscroft faculty. I asked friends and colleagues about Ravenscroft, and received gushing reports on its reputation, stature, and legacy of excellence. I came to interview and found dedicated faculty, students who were deeply invested in their learning, and a beautiful campus. But what really drew me to Ravenscroft was the Lead From Here initiative.

I will never forget that portion of my interview day. I sat on the couch in Colleen Ramsden’s office and she

handed me a printout of the Citizen Leader Framework, or as I call it, “The Circles.” I told Colleen then what I have told friends and colleagues since: Lead From Here is the kind of framework that exemplifies and empowers 21st-century education. It addresses the habits of mind that create deep thinkers and empowered learners.

It recognizes the need for young

people to thoughtfully develop the cultural and interpersonal skills that are necessary to thrive in the world of tomorrow. And it provides a standard language that unlocks the possibilities of interdisciplinary and cross-divisional learning that can be reinforced from one classroom to another, year after year.

So yes, my family came to Raleigh for Ravenscroft, and I came to Ravenscroft for the Lead From Here initiative.

Beyond the posters, language, and “The Circles,” Ravenscroft seeks to instill the Lead From Here competencies in both students, faculty, and parents. This year, through its partnership with the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL), Ravenscroft began a program to develop a group of faculty to serve as on-campus experts, and I was privileged to be selected as a member of this group. We met every two weeks throughout the year and spent four full days at CCL headquarters in Greensboro developing our skills as facilitators and engaging more deeply with the Lead From Here competencies.

At the end of the year, we were recognized as “Certified Lead Trainers” under the auspices of CCL and Ravenscroft.

If you visit my office, you will see my certificate proudly displayed. But more than the certificate, I feel more empowered than ever to engage with students, colleagues, and parents about the value and effectiveness of the Lead From Here initiative. I believe in it deeply, and through my experiences in the past year I can see how interconnected the competencies are, how they manifest themselves in daily life both inside and outside of the classroom, and how they enable our students to be successful now and in the future.

by Aaron Sundstrom

“What really drew me to Ravenscroft was the Lead From Here initiative.”

— AARON SUNDSTROM, UPPER SCHOOL MATHEMATICS DEPARTMENT CHAIR, TEACHER

This summer, I will be working with two colleagues to revamp one of the core courses in the Upper School math curriculum. Beyond adjusting the sequencing of the course and mapping the curriculum to our new daily schedule, we will be seeking out opportunities to directly and intentionally infuse the Lead From Here competencies into the curriculum. Math is too often taught in a vacuum — students erroneously learn that mathematics in the classroom is disconnected from the world around them. Lead From Here provides us an opportunity to rethink math education and present concepts within the context of 21st-century skills: How do other cultures learn these mathematical concepts, and how can their interpretation deepen your understanding? How does getting a question wrong empower you to learn?

Can you solve a complex problem in a group more effectively than you can solve it by yourself?

These are the questions we should be asking students. Their answers to those questions will fuel their ability to tackle the larger questions they will encounter in life. Our students will undoubtedly enter a more diverse, complex, and interconnected world than we have ever known. Lead From Here is both a reflection of that reality and our greatest asset in preparing students to face it.

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NOTES FROM THE NEST News from around the campus

First Bald Miss America Contestant Encourages Students to Embrace Difference

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AYLA MARTELL, the first bald contestant in the Miss America

pageant, visited Ravenscroft in April to discuss the autoimmune disease alopecia and to help students learn to embrace difference.

Martell met with Lower School students, Middle School girls, and members of the Upper School’s SHE (Strong. Healthy. Empowered.) club. She also participated in a parent coffee.

“It’s great for other kids and young adults to come together and see they’re not alone in this,” said Mark Warner. He and his wife, Dr. Amelia Warner, sponsored Martell’s visit to Raleigh. She is pictured with Emma Warner ’28 and Samantha Brock ’26.

RAVENSCROFT PERFORMANCE GROUP ENJOYS A “SUPERIOR” SPRING Ravenscroft’s student musicians had a Superior spring. All of the School’s performing music ensembles, with more than 300 participating students, earned Superior ratings at competitions held between March and May. “We are certainly excited by the tangible recognition and accolades garnered by our music ensembles across all three divisions,” Director of Fine Arts David McChesney said.

“Superior ratings for all of our students from Lower through Upper School is something to cheer about and be proud of. However, what it demonstrably highlights is the journey that our students are experiencing in our Fine Arts programs. Tutti Bravi!”

Running Over Cancer 5K Raises More Than $13,500 Ravencroft’s Hood to Coast team and the Ravenscroft Running Club hosted the third annual Running Over Cancer 5K on April 19. The race attracted more than 250 people who registered for the race and raised more than $13,500 for the American Cancer Society.

Even with a downpour of rain, the event had great support from Ravenscroft and the Raleigh community who came out to honor, support, and celebrate those who fought and are fighting cancer, including a large group who came out to honor Dr. L.H. Stocks who passed away from cancer nearly a year ago.

The Hood to Coast team and Running Club thank all those involved in the event.

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MIDDLE SCHOOL’S STEM+ OFFERINGS SEEK TO FOSTER GROWTH MINDSET IN STUDENTS Ravenscroft’s upcoming schedule change for 2015-2016 will provide students with additional opportunities to take electives that include six different STEM+ courses: DigitalRavens; Middle School Engineering; RavensNews; Science Olympiad; Think It! Design It! Make It!; and Video Editing. The creative elements of the STEM+ courses align well with the Middle School’s overall focus on Project Based Learning.

“We called our program STEM+ because it’s not limited to STEM. It’s all going to require the kind of thinking that you see in a design or an engineering process,” Head of Middle School Denise Colpitts said. “I think we

can feel good about that. For years we didn’t label offerings as STEM because it wasn’t the pure definition of the term. It’s a little different angle on it now.”

STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) education seeks to address a growing need for qualified candidates for high-tech jobs. In its purest form, STEM focuses on a curriculum that integrates each individual element rather than teaching the subjects in isolation.

Ravenscroft’s STEM+ courses integrate several elements at once but do not require that all four elements be present at the same time in every offering.

Yunxin Ouyang ’16 and Cory Carr ’16 Win First Place at Science Olympiad Yunxin Ouyang ’16 and Cory Carr ’16 won first place for Chem Lab in the 2015 N.C. Science Olympiad state tournament to lead four medal-winning efforts for Ravenscroft.

Ravenscroft’s additional medal-winning efforts came from the following student teams: Lee Whitley ’15 and Laura Naslund ’15 placed third in Astronomy; Laura Naslund and Cory Carr placed fifth in Cell Biology; Yunxin Ouyang and Rebecca Brandes ’17 placed ninth in Egg-O-Naut.

Overall, the Ravenscroft Science Olympiad team finished in the top third of the tournament in only its second time participating in the competition.

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(above) Field-testing of the ViFlex prototype in Nepal. Photo courtesy of Access Healthcare Nepal.

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Field-testing of the ViFlex prototype in Nepal.

Photo courtesy of Access Healthcare Nepal.

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T ISN’T EVERY DAY THAT AN IDEA first bounced around in a college dorm room catches the attention of the Clinton Global Initiative University (CGIU).

Of course, making prescription eyeglasses easier to customize and distribute to remote areas isn’t just any idea, and the organizers at CGIU aren’t the only ones to see its potential to improve the lives of the millions of people in developing nations who have vision problems.

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“I was thinking about how to change the focal power Their product has been in development over of a lens without changing out the lens itself,” Nathan the last two years. As their startup, ViFlex, gained Brajer ’10 said of his initial idea. That led to a conversarecognition — in 2014, they took second-place tion with roommate Evan Madill about eyeglasses and honors in the Suren G. Dutia and Jas K. Grewal barriers to vision care for people who live in rural areas Global Impact Award, presented by the Skandalaris of poor countries, where even basic health care is often Center for Entrepreneurial Studies at Washington difficult to secure.

University, and were international finalists for the James Since that first spark of inspiration in their junior year at Dyson Award, among others — they secured funding St. Louis’s Washington University, Brajer and Madill have and put together a team of engineering students at Duke devoted countless hours to understanding and addressing University, where Brajer is enrolled in medical school. the challenges of getting How does Brajer find affordable eyeglasses to time to serve as chief people in remote locales. technical officer (CTO) Their work began in earof ViFlex while attendnest when they realized ing medical school? Coan earlier effort, AdSpecs, founder and CEO Madill had failed to make what says Brajer, who earned a Brajer calls “a significant, bachelor’s in biomedical lasting impact.” engineering, magna cum “It’s not just the issue laude, is in his element of cost per pair. There’s managing complex and a shortage of eye doctors dynamic projects. to diagnose eye condi“Nathan has a lot of tions and prescribe corstrengths, but one that rective lenses. There’s also NATHAN BRAJER ’10 (at right) and ViFlex co-founder and CEO Evan Madill at stands out is his ability to the cost of distributing the 2014 Dutia competition. Photo courtesy of Whitney Curtis. get things done regardcustomized frames and less of the issues that lenses,” he explained. “The AdSpecs idea addressed the come up,” he said. “For startups, time is at a premilack of optometrists — at the expense of dramatically um. To be able to move a project forward in the face increasing the cost per pair of eyeglasses — but failed to of unexpected issues that span a number of domains address the distribution cost barrier. That realization was is an extremely valuable skill. Nathan does this well, the starting point for us.” which is a big part of why ViFlex has progressed to Brajer and Madill’s solution: frames designed to this point.” accommodate any lens.

Brajer credits the rigor of his studies at Ravenscroft, “Instead of locking the lenses into the frame at the where he first explored his passion for science, for helpmanufacturing plant and having to produce and ship ing him develop discipline and time management skills. many extra pairs for all the different combinations of preHe adds that the school’s emphasis on community scription strengths” — which presents significant obstacles service helped fuel his dedication to solving public health for cash-strapped clinics serving smaller rural populations challenges in the developing world.

— “you wait to fit the lenses into the frames until the “That experience has encouraged me to take what I’m point where you’re handing them to the user,” Brajer said. learning in school and use it to help the community,” he

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says. “[It’s important to] engage with the world beyond team],” he said. “I would at times get impatient with the classroom and lab, to put my head up and look around slow progress, but Nathan would ground me and remind and say, ‘What can I do for my community?’” everyone that we are all students first… Personally, I am Upper School Science Instructor John Karny, who thankful for the opportunity he granted me to grow not taught Brajer’s AP Chemistry class, says he is “not at all only as an engineer but as a student, leader and person.” surprised” that his former student is an entrepreneur with ViFlex’s innovative, low-cost frames have been fielda strong sense of social tested in countries includresponsibility. ing Ghana, India, and “Even in chemisThailand, and their thirdtry, he was generous generation prototype is with his time when being readied for largeopportunities arose for scale testing. The compacollaborative work or ny was invited to present when others needed his their work at the CGIU help. He had an abilin March, even joining ity to find solutions to a select group for lunch problems without being with Clinton Foundaexplicitly told how to tion Vice Chair Chelsea do it,” Karny said. “He Clinton. has learned how to use As Brajer looks to the his mind to solve probfuture and a career in lems, which is what NATHAN BRAJER ’10 (left) and ViFlex co-founder and CEO Evan Madill took clinical practice, he knows scientists and engineers second-place at the 2014 Dutia competition. Photo courtesy of Whitney Curtis. he wants to continue to do. It’s also what our push science and technolschool desires to instill in all its students — to use one’s ogy to provide better solutions for healthcare challenges. talents to make the world around us better.”

“I’ve developed a desire to make things better at Yitaek Hwang, a Duke engineering student who serves a system-wide level — through research or more businessas ViFlex’s chief engineer, cites Brajer’s leadership as a related routes, I’m not sure,” he said. “Over the next few critical component of their accomplishments. years I hope to figure out more of a plan of what that “More than seeing ViFlex succeed, he wanted it to will be.” be a great experience for everyone [on the engineering Learn more about ViFlex at viflexglasses.com. R

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INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY

Girl Code (left to right) YUNXIN OUYANG ’16, KARINN KASBEKAR ’16, CHELSEA SCHLACKS ’16, ISABELLE GIOVINAZZO ’16, and NATALIE LANG ’17

BY MATT TAYLOR

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HELSEA SCHLACKS’ PATH TO LEADING A TEAM of Ravenscroft students in the Technovation Challenge — which she would later describe as a “life-changing experience” — was inspired in part by an article about Google’s “Made With Code” initiative that she received from Upper School Computer Science Instructor Bill Chissoe. The three-year, $50 million initiative seeks to inspire young women to learn code in an effort to close the technology industry’s gender gap.

After reading the article, Schlacks contacted some of the women whose stories are documented on Google’s website and inquired about topics including how they got their start in computer science and what they would Africa, five from Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and recommend doing to prepare for college and a career in Asia, and 11 from Mexico. Overall, 600 groups from 60 the field. different countries participated in the competition.

“I received two responses back, both from entrepreDetermined as ever, Schlacks continued working on neurs, and they both told me to search for opportunities the app throughout the summer despite the fact that her that not only build skills in coding, but also to improve team did not win the competition. leadership skills,” Schlacks said. “One woman told me to “We worked hard and felt confident in our app, use my excitement and love of computer science and leadknowing that completion of the challenge itself was ing to not only enhance my skills and resume, but also to an accomplishment; however, the recognition for a job help and inspire those around me, and I truly took her well done made for a great ending to the competition,” advice to heart.”

Schlacks said.

She soon discovered the Technovation Challenge and knew that it represented the opportunity for leadership and skill development that she was seeking.

Developing a Positive Vibe Chissoe gladly agreed to serve as a coach and mentor.

The Technovation Challenge is a Global Technology He knew that the lessons learned would go well beyond Entrepreneurship Program for girls ages 10 to 18. the technology alone.

Its mission is to inspire and educate girls and women to “Technology or coding is not an end of itself. You learn solve real-world problems through technology. Students it so you can do something with it. The Technovation work in teams to develop mobile app “startups” to solve Challenge embraces this idea, and writing an app was only real problems in their communities. part of the project” Chissoe said. “The team had to write a business plan and do market analysis.

Again, it’s much less how the code does it and more what are you are getting it to echnology or coding is not an do, what are you achieving with it.”

The Ravenscroft group was one end of itself. You learn it so of 18 teams from North America and you can do something with it.

Canada to advance to the semifinals.

They joined 10 semifinalists from The Technovation Challenge

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embraces this idea, and writing an app was only part of the project.”

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INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY

The competition serves as a response to the underrepresentation of women in the fields of technology and entrepreneurship. According to the Technovation Challenge website, “7 percent of technology entrepreneurs are women, four in 1,000 female college freshmen want to major in computer science, and 50 percent of women who are in STEM careers leave the workforce.”

Participants in the Technovation Challenge do not necessarily need technical skills; however, members of the Ravenscroft team did bring some experience to the table. Shlacks, who took Honors Computer Science, recruited the hard-working team of Yunxin Ouyang, Karinn Kasbekar, Isabelle Giovinazzo, and Natalie Lang.

Ouyang had AP Computer Science and Lang has done Web Design and took an independent study in C++ programming with Mr. Chissoe.

“The most valuable skill I gained was how to be professional,” Schlacks said. “Whether I was prepping for a meeting, emailing the heads of local organizations, or even researching and calculating the number of high school students in the Triangle area that have community service requirements for out potential market size, I had to think and act like a businesswoman, not a 17-year-old high school student.”

The team met in person four to five hours each week between January and April. They spent additional time completing project work outside of their regular meetings. If Schlacks harbored any initial concerns about the group’s commitment to the project, those concerns quickly faded as the team generated enthusiasm around their app and the name and logo for their startup, Volunteer Vibes.

Volunteer Vibes connects volunteers with local organizations in need of service. For volunteers, it simplifies the community service process by tracking their hours and including a search-by-category function that enables them to find organizations of interest. For organizations, it provides easy access to volunteers while allowing them to publish their daily schedules and upcoming events.

The Volunteer Vibes team engaged in late-night group chats online, gathered at 6:45 a.m. meetings before school, and even held a sleepover that served as an extended working meeting.

“Everyone was too excited to care about the time commitment. At least personally, it was nothing I had ever experienced before. We were creating a product and a company. It was one of the first times we were actually taking our experiences from school and applying them outside of it,” Schlacks said. “Aside from that, we were Middle school girls that express interest in Science, bonding as a group of friends, teammates, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM). and coworkers, a group that would have normally not been together. Quickly, we were too invested to stop. We wanted to help the community, finish what we started, and win the competition.”

Factoid

74% .04%

Girls that select computer science when choosing a college major.

—Girls Who Code

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Changing Your World Through Technology

Factoid

Schlacks said that nearly all of Ravenscroft’s Bachelor degrees earned by women: Lead From Here competencies came into play during the Technovation Challenge. She noted that much of the work exemplified the Changing Your World competencies.

“We were tasked with creating an app that would improve our community. Through every aspect of the project we had to maintain vision, and be reflective, strategic, resourceComputer science degrees awarded to women: ful, and adaptive when problems would occur,” Schlacks said. “It was inspiring to see so much of what we had been learning and practicing in school translate into a real-life situation.”

As part of the challenge, the team —Girls Who Code created not only the app itself but also a four-minute pitch video, a two-minute demo video, a business plan, and a 100-word description of the app. The team presented its work to what it takes to develop an idea as well as the discipline Ravenscroft faculty and staff members during a lunchand focus to see it through to a proposal stage and time meeting designed to solicit feedback prior to the ultimately adoption.

April 23 submission deadline.

Hearing Schlacks reflect on the experience, it seems The presentation reflected the enthusiasm, confithe competition met its goal of inspiring and educating dence, and organizational skills that Chissoe observed girls to solve real-world problems through technology. during the course of the project. He said the project “The lessons I learned from this competition are has produced an entrepreneurial spirit among the team innumerable. The challenge fused business and techmembers who are now empowered with the knowlnology, thereby making it essential that my teammates edge that, either individually or as a team, they have and I understood both elements individually and how they came together,” she said. “The Technovation Challenge was truly a life-changing experience. It not e were tasked with creating an app only drastically improved my whole team’s coding and leadership skills, that would improve our community. but it also gave us the skills and Through every aspect of the project we inspiration to pursue a career in technology and entrepreneurship.” R

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had to maintain vision, and be reflective, strategic, resourceful, and adaptive when problems would occur.”

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CREATIVE LEADERSHIP

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BY MATT TAYLOR

G. SMEDES YORK HONORED WITH DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARD F

ORMER RALEIGH MAYOR G. SMEDES YORK ’59 has a lifetime of memories from the local community, many of which are documented in his 2014 memoir, “Growing Up With Raleigh: Memoirs and Reflections of a Native Son.” Despite the innumerable names and faces he has encountered throughout his experiences in college athletics, the military, government service, community service, and corporate work, York can still remember his Tucker Street teachers from grades one through five.

LAURA HELTON KALORIN ’92, Alumni Council president, and DOREEN KELLY with York as he receives his award.

(left) Photo by Evan Semones courtesy of the Daily Tarheel; original article posted at tinyurl.com/nkdysvt.

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(top left) York played forward at NC State College before it became NC State University (top right) York speaking at the awards ceremony (bottom left) After he was unable to attend the 2015 Pen Pal Breakfast, Smedes York surprised his fourth-grade friend with a surprise visit and an autographed copy of his book. He has participated in the program since it started in 2007. (bottom right) Election night October 9, 1979

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I remember all my teachers from Ravenscroft.

It was small, but the teachers were really good.

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Head of School used to be housed in what was known as the York House, a home that was once occupied by some of Smedes’ siblings.

York served on the Ravenscroft Strategic Planning Steering Committee in 2005 and 2006. He has been a Pen Pal with Ravenscroft fourth-graders since the program started in 2007. In 2012, he delivered the opening of school keynote address as Ravenscroft celebrated its 150th anniversary.

“Smedes’ own contributions to Ravenscroft are evident from the time you pull up to campus. While serving on the Strategic Planning Committee in the mid-2000s, Smedes noted that the chain link fence surrounding the campus at the time was, to put it plainly, the ugliest fence he had ever seen,” Head of School Doreen Kelly said at the Distinguished Alumni Award luncheon. “Amidst a longtime career serving the Raleigh community, his role in acting as a voice against the old fence was truly a public service.”

Following the Distinguished Alumni Award presentation, York participated in a panel discussion with fellow Ravenscroft alumni Sen. Neal Hunt ’60 and Easter Maynard ’89 as well as Ravenscroft’s incoming Student Government Association President DJ Washington ’16.

The panel focused on questions about citizenship and leadership in keeping with Ravenscroft’s Lead From Here initiative. R

“I remember all my teachers from Ravenscroft.

It was small, but the teachers were really good,” York recalled during a springtime interview in his Raleigh office. “The teachers were generally strict, but it was not hard to establish a rapport with them.”

York named each of those teachers during a luncheon honoring him as Ravenscroft’s Distinguished Alumni Award winner on May 20 at North Ridge Country Club.

The Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes distinguished service and loyalty to Ravenscroft and/ or outstanding professional, civic, and personal accomplishments. It is the highest award presented by the Ravenscroft School Alumni Association.

During his remarks, York reflected on the teachers he enjoyed learning from as a young child and read a class paper that he wrote in the fifth grade titled, “What America Is To Me.” He recalled being a serious, competitive student, so much so that he once faked an illness when he realized he had forgotten about an assignment that was due.

“It didn’t work,” he reported.

He and his family have deep ties to the school. His father, Willie York, was instrumental in the evolution and growth of the current Ravenscroft campus. Construction of SEN. NEAL HUNT ’60 , G. SMEDES YORK ’59, Ravenscroft’s incoming Student Government the campus was done with a concrete panel Association President DJ WASHINGTON ’16, and EASTER MAYNARD ’89 participated on a system his father developed. Meanwhile, the panel discussion at the awards ceremony.

Summer 2015

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ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE

The (final)

Yellow Rose ! reflections from a mother !

by Head of School, Doreen Kelly

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f

or the last 16 years or so, I have enjoyed the pleasure of each

Commencement Exercise. In particular, I am always moved during one part of the celebration. As our Fine Arts Department shares some beautiful music, seniors rise row-byrow, select a yellow rose from the collected bouquet, and scan the crowd for their mothers, grandmothers, or guardians. During this poignant time, I have observed countless students share that brief, intimate moment of a hug. Needless to say, I always wear waterproof mascara to graduation!

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“The symbol of friendship, joy, and appreciation associated with the yellow rose is captured. Everything that is and was is suspended momentarily. It is a truly beautiful moment.”

— Doreen Kelly, Head of School

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Summer 2015

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ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE

You see, behind each hug there is a family story.

It may be common place for the family to hug in this moment of joy. There can also be a sense of pain associated with adolescents growing up and the related anxieties of that change. Perhaps moving up and out is a good thing. Perhaps not. I don’t always know. However, this brief exchange places a pause button on that story. The symbol of friendship, joy, and appreciation associated with the yellow rose is captured. Everything that is and was is suspended momentarily. It is a truly beautiful moment.

As a mother preparing for Commencement, I am mindful of this upcoming moment and its significance for me, too. More than anything right now, I find myself humming, “Sunrise, Sunset” from Harold Prince’s “Fiddler on the Roof.”

“Is this the little girl I carried?

Is this the little boy at play?

I don’t remember growing older, when did they?

When did she get to be a beauty?

When did he get to be so tall?

Wasn’t it yesterday when they were small? … swiftly flow the days.”

Indeed, the days have flowed swiftly as I remember with great clarity when my youngest, Erin Kelly, arrived in Mrs. Jan Dickson’s prekindergarten class. Though we had accepted our positions here, Chris and I were hopeful that the children would transition well. From the start,

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we knew Erin would be the only one of our children to go through every grade level at Ravenscroft. She was spirited and loved to tell jokes. In the years that have followed, I have experienced firsthand how Ravenscroft has helped support me as a parent. I have and will always believe that a parent is the primary educator. It is up to parents to provide an environment at home that sets the tone for providing the gift of high expectations in a loving and nurturing manner. In each division, I watched my child be appropriately nurtured and challenged in ways that she could meet her full potential as a human being.

Along the way, there have been some bumps and challenges, to be sure. I’m certain Erin was fairly tired of my constant pleas to get better organized or to put in maximum effort all of the time. I’ve come to learn that all things come together, but not always on my time frame! And yet I have learned through our Lead From Here framework, those failures and missteps have helped shape her in ways that will be critical for her future. I have learned that students who succeed in the future are those who believe that continued learning, rather than being flawless, helps make them smart. Lord knows, none of my kids are flawless, despite my deep love for them. I appreciate how Ravenscroft has helped me allow them to fail, and therefore to succeed and to grow from each experience.

And so, like every other mother, grandmother, or guardian on Friday evening, I guard the story of Erin that is mine.

It is a story of numerous blessings, some growing pains, tremendous satisfaction, and endless pride. I will gather it all up in one split second as I see her coming, my youngest, to present me with that final yellow rose and a hearty hug. R

“Behind each hug there is a family story.”

— Doreen Kelly, Head of School

Summer 2015

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STUDENT SHOWCASE Highlighting exceptional student work

Once a Raven, Always a Raven

AN ESSAY by Haley Gardner ’15

The following essay was written as a final in-class reflection for AP English Literature & Composition, taught by Upper School English Department Chair Marcia Jones. See more student work at www.ravenscroft.org/showcase.

A

S THE LEAVES ON THE TREES

surrounding Ravenscroft School begin to sprout tender, lime-colored foliage, the atmosphere becomes lighter and warmer, and the energy of rebirth hums through the air. Pink buds bloom on the Rose Garden’s arching structures, and the geese who inhabit the campus deliver fluffy gray goslings in nests burrowed close to the red brick Upper School building. Just like the changing of the seasons, the period of high school comes to a close, ushering in the new chapter of college for the class

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of 2015. Seniors sporting summery shorts and T-shirts with the name of their new universities boldly printed across the chest waltz down the hallway with conviction, cognizant of the jealousy of their junior peers.

The juniors, eager to accept their roles as seniors, begin to assume the senior parking lot and exclaim, “I can’t believe we’re almost seniors!” as the class of 2015 chuckles and remembers possessing the same mentality exactly one year ago. While the juniors, clad in mountain trip boots, begin to contemplate the decision of

their future schools, most seniors recognize their success in finally making a paramount life decision.

As I stroll through the Upper School hallways on the way to my next class, I glance at the bountiful, laminated signs that line up on the forest green lockers with the spirited word “CONGRATULATIONS” typed on pennants displaying new school colors in shades of red, blue, yellow, and orange. Tiny school flags litter the multicolored map of the United States across from the office, proudly exhibiting the national

spread of universities the class of 2015 will attend next autumn. My baby blue pennant sportively perches in the middle of North Carolina amongst a plethora of others. The faces of familiar seniors appear contented, but slightly tired and wiser, as if they possess some superior knowledge unknown to the impressionable underclassmen. I observe as the freshmen flee to their English

HALEY GARDNER ‘15 at graduation

I and geometry classes, anxiously chattering to one another about their answers for number five on the test, and whisper, “Do you think they will grade on a curve?” I sigh blissfully, knowing that those days are behind me, at least until next fall.

When I first arrived at Ravenscroft in ninth grade, the idea of being in high school with older kids who could drive made me jittery and apprehensive. I desperately wanted to make friends, so I invested all my time and energy into attempting to please other people, while shunning my school work. From TV shows and movies, I had learned that popularity in high school was crucial, and one obtained it by wearing the coolest clothes and collecting the most friends. My primary concerns were, “Does this sweater look good with this dress?” and “Do you think he

likes me?” However, by sophomore year I ascertained that at Ravenscroft, most students were zealous about achieving academic success and following their own passions rather than fitting in with the crowd.

Students joined clubs and strove to be on the Headmaster’s List. Instead of being called a “nerd,” intelligent and hard working pupils were praised for their accomplishments.

The academically nurturing environment at Ravenscroft exceeded my expectations, and ultimately, I realized that my high school experience was not going to be what I had expected at all — smart was cool.

As a result, my attitude changed completely and my work ethic improved. Instead of superficially focusing on what outfits would grant the most friends, I concentrated on what study methods would earn the best grades. Furthermore, my passions deepened, and I discovered more about myself. Previously, in middle school and ninth grade I hungered to fit in, but now I aspired to stand out.

I explored my enthusiasm for writing in English and journalism class and my fascination with science in biology. Through Key Club, I unearthed my appetite to serve the community and help others. Now I know what makes me who I am and what I can bring to the table at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

My appreciation for the life lessons acquired at Ravenscroft School over the past four years runs deep, and though I am eagerly anticipating new adventures and experiences in college, I will miss various aspects of the Ravenscroft community and cherish the innumerable memories I have amassed over the years. For example, I will never forget playing varsity tennis on the scorching courts in early August or staying until eight o’clock at night to perfect the Nevarmore with the other editors. Nor will I fail to remember accidentally plum-

“At Ravenscroft, most students were zealous about achieving academic success and following their own passions rather than fitting in with the crowd.”

meting face first into the long jump sandpit during the track and field unit of freshman gym or munching on John Bailey’s sizzling quesadillas by a waterfall in the rain during the junior mountain trip last June. Most importantly, I will miss the faculty’s genuine concern for their students’ well being, the enormous sense of community within the student body, and my lifelong high school friends.

While I am graduating from Ravenscroft this spring, I want the other students still on their high school journey to realize how extraordinarily fortunate they are to attend such a life-changing institution as Ravenscroft. I trust that Ravenscroft will continue to shape them into compassionate and driven people as it has nurtured me. Though sometimes the classes may seem difficult and frustrating (especially chemistry with Mr. Karny), I hope they realize the long-term benefits of the healthy challenges Ravenscroft provides.

As my high school career comes to a close, I appreciate the opportunities Ravenscroft has presented me, and I am positive that there is no other school I would have preferred to attend for the past four years. R

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CENTER STAGE Students and alumni excelling in the arts

When the Student Becomes a Teacher Emily Procter ’86

(left to right) EMILY ’86 with her father, WILLIAM PROCTER ’50, mother, Barbara Jones, and stepfather Jerry Jones.

Imagine being the parent of a pre-kindergartener and meeting a teacher during a school visit.

She is in the middle of writing a farewell letter to a former student with whom she developed a strong bond. She is visibly sad to say goodbye. It is a somber moment, and yet, for a prospective parent, it is comforting to witness the strength of the student-teacher bond.

E

MILY PROCTER ‘86 recently

encountered this scenario while looking at schools for her fouryear-old daughter. It is no coincidence that she found herself focused on the teacher during that visit.

“Good teachers stay with you,” she says. “My teachers greatly impacted my life and they probably don’t even have any idea how much.”

Procter, who was inducted into Ravenscroft’s Alumni Fine Arts Hall of Fame Award in April, is now look-

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ing for the same type of educational experience for her daughter. She likens a teacher’s impact to having a positive voice in your head that provides coaching even beyond your time together.

“Think of the situation this way,” the voice might say, or “How fantastic that it occurred to you.”

A self-described contextual learner, Procter says she found an inspiring and positive space at Ravenscroft.

Her instructors helped her success-

fully navigate Lower, Middle, and Upper School during a time when she was, by her own accounts, a budding “social butterfly.”

Before graduating from Ravenscroft, Procter considered relocating to New York instead of attending college. She chose the latter option thanks in part to the input of Ravenscroft’s College Counseling team.

“I just wanted to be in a very artistic community,” she said. “Luckily our college adviser suggested ECU.

by Allie Wilson

“Good teachers stay with you. My teachers greatly impacted my life and they probably don’t even have any idea how much.”

It was never on my radar, and it was a perfect fit.”

Procter graduated from East Carolina University with a double major in journalism and dance. She worked as a weather anchor at WNCT in Greenville, N.C., which sparked her interest in nonfiction storytelling. She set out for Los Angeles to pursue her storytelling interest.

Understanding that the odds on “making it” in Hollywood were long, Procter did the math to determine how many auditions would be necessary before she could expect to land a job. Little did she know that multiple high-profile roles would be part of the equation.

Procter starred as Detective Calleigh Duquesne for 10 seasons on “CSI Miami” and appeared as attorney Ainsley Hayes on the Emmyand Golden Globe-winning “The West Wing” for two seasons.

She tracks her life and career in terms of the significant markers that have shaped her journey: making it into the union, not panicking when monthly bills came in, having her parents recognize “actress” as her job title.

Another of those “marker moments” put her father in the role of teacher. Procter recalls sitting on set during a break between shooting when someone asked if they could get her water or anything else she

might need. Afterward, her father advised, “Never take anything from someone if you can get it for yourself.”

“That is a great thing to learn. The entertainment business can turn your self-worth and identity into your brand more than product. I feel like that moment helped me to feel more comfortable about my contribution to storytelling and that is what I want to do with my life,” she said. “Your brand comes and goes very quickly. Teaching is giving someone a tool from their toolbox. It sticks with them.”

Having learned from her teachers and her parents, Procter now sees herself living out the role of teacher as an actress, friend, daughter, co-worker, and mother. She considers her role as mom to her daughter Pippa to be the most important.

“I want to look back on Pippa’s childhood and know I did the absolute best I could.” Procter says.

Recently, Pippa asked her when she would get to be the one in charge.

“I told her, ‘My job for you as a mommy is to teach you all the things I know and for you to learn more than me so you can pass it all on to your children,’” Procter said. R

CURRENT STUDENTS, GRAB SOME ADVICE FROM THIS RAVEN WHO IS SOARING FROM THE NEST “I want to make a case for the ‘C’ student.”

“It’s about the big picture. Everyone will eventually learn to read and know the math that is appropriate for their life. If what you are thinking about right now is not working for you, don’t worry about it. Go at life with drive and passion. Drive counts for a lot.”

EMILY PROCTER ’86 was the 2014-2015 Alumni Fine Arts Hall of Fame winner Summer 2015

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GAME DAY Students and alumni who are outstanding athletes

Digital Diversions Matt Hunter ’04

MATT HUNTER ’04

How exactly did Matt Hunter ‘04, a North Carolina native who loves baseball, find himself in Boston at the center of a professional hockey celebration? It wasn’t just any celebration, either — Hunter rode on a duck boat through the city during the 2011 victory parade celebrating the Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins.

T

HE RARE OPPORTUNITY, which Hunter described as “quite a scenery change” and his Boston friends termed “wicked cool,” is actually not as much of a stretch as it might seem given his appreciation for a good story, his need for a creative outlet, and his belief in the importance of being adaptive. Those factors, along with a love story, explain how the unique circumstance materialized.

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An NC State history major, Hunter enjoyed the storytelling side of his chosen academic discipline.

After graduation, he combined that passion for storytelling with his creative interests and headed to Elon, where he became a member of the university’s first Interactive Media master’s class in 2010. That’s where he met his classmate and future wife, Laura, a Massachusetts native.

The couple relocated to Boston after earning their master’s degrees.

Hunter joined the Bruins as a digital marketing designer and soon thereafter was on the back of that duck boat.

“We live in a really fast-paced digital environment, and having someone who you can bring on to a team who has multiple skills sets is really valuable,” Hunter said. “Elon gave me a crash course in all of this stuff. I really

by Matt Taylor

think that’s why I got the job at the Physical Education Instructor Greg Bruins, because they were looking Long coached the team and rememfor someone who could kind of do bers Hunter as “an extremely hard everything here and there. I think working first baseman, good hitter, and being able to do everything fairly great teammate who led by example well and being able to offer that to and loved baseball.” Long, who played an employer is priceless.” college baseball at the University of Hunter designed, developed, and North Carolina at Greensboro, said, managed content for the Bruins’ “I could always count on him to give digital assets including websites, social me everything he had in every game.” media, email marketing, and in-game Hunter’s Ravenscroft playing expeexperiences. He committed to learnrience is consistent with MLB.Com ing new things on the job rather than Digital Academy’s goal “to inspire turning down tasks that fell outside his participation and ensure a positive comfort zone. experience for youth baseball players.”

“My first couple of weeks I said yes “Coach Long was a fantastic coach to all these projects. I wanted to do and he taught us how to play the them because I wanted to do a good job and stay the and places around the course,” he said. “A lot of country might have,” people don’t really know Hunter said. “It’s so what they’re doing when accessible for these guys they first start out at placto go online and get the es. You learn on the job, tools to help them be and you learn new things successful.” every day. It’s important The MyHits and to be patient and not get MyPitch technologies too stressed out.” served as forerunners to Last summer, Hunter the full Digital Acadjoined MLB.com Digital emy. The programs Academy as a digital allow baseball players The 2004 Varsity Baseball team. HUNTER ’04 is pictured in the back row, fourth media producer. According from the left. to upload videos of to its website, “MLB.com themselves hitting and Digital Academy is an interactive game well, but it was also just a fun pitching, respectively, and compare instructional platform that brings environment,” Hunter said. “It wasn’t their efforts to those of professional professional-level swing analysis, too much pressure, he wasn’t too inplayers. Hunter compared his own tips and resources to youth players, tense. The main thing was just having swing to that of former New York coaches, parents and leagues.” fun out there, and I was lucky enough Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter.

Hunter manages a variety of to play for him for three years. It was “I definitely have some stuff to marketing channels, designing and a lot of fun.” work on,” Hunter joked. “It’s been distributing emails, creating promoRavenscroft went 22-5 during a while.” tional graphics, and handling content Hunter’s senior season in 2004.

MLB.com Digital Academy is for social media as well as the web.

The Digital Academy has launched headquartered in Raleigh. After work“I can relate to it very easily,” Huntan instructional center on its website ing remotely from Boston during his er said. “That was kind of a struggle that offers a certification course for first year with the website, Hunter for me when I worked for the Bruins. coaches. The center provides informawill return to his home turf at the end I love sports, I enjoy watching hockey, tion about baseball fundamentals and of the summer. R but I didn’t grow up with it and defiinstruction with player safety in mind. nitely was never a Bruins fan. I’ve been “It’s a little more fulfilling to help playing baseball my entire life.” with youth baseball and coaches Hunter competed for three years and players that might not have the on Ravenscroft’s varsity baseball team. resources that some other regions

“It’s fulfilling to help with youth baseball and coaches and players that might not have the resources that some other regions and places around the country might have.”

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CLASS NOTES Catching up with our alumni

BIRTHS 3

2

1

4

5 1. JEN MADISON SNOOK ‘95, son Christian Robert Frederick Snook, July 23, 2014 2. ANNA WHITE HOSEA ’98, son Robert Edward

5. RYAN ‘09 AND LINDSAY COWHER KELLY ‘09,

Hosea, Feb. 21, 2015

son Nile Jeremiah, May 13, 2015

3. CARRIE BRENNAN GALLOWAY ‘00, daughter Celia Gray Galloway, Dec. 24, 2014

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4. JACLYN WHITE MORGAN ’01, son Gatling Creek Morgan, March 13, 2015

TUCKER STREET

Sympathy to the family of James Woolery who passed away on December 18, 2014. He started Ravenscroft in kindergarten in 1942, finishing the seventh grade in the ’49-’50 year, the highest grade offered at that time. He went on to Broughton for two years, then graduated from VES in 1955. Jim graduated from Duke and received a Masters from the University of Michigan in Actuarial Studies. He worked for the North Carolina Insurance Department for many years.

Sympathy to the family of Bill Rand ‘47 who passed away on January 26. Bill had been involved with Ravenscroft recently as one of our Fourth Grade Pen Pals. He was also one of our “stars” in the 150th Anniversary Celebration Video highlighting the Tucker Street years.

1973

Ted Salisbury tedsalisbury@hotmail.com

1974

Lynn Wall McKinney lynnwmck@bellsouth.net

Sympathy to Trent Ragland on the death of his father, Trent Ragland, Jr. He passed away on March 3.

1975

Cindy Poole cindy@cindypoole.com

The class of ’75 had their 40th class reunion at the home of David and Cindy Poole Roberts. We had classmates from Ohio (Jeff), SC (Scott) and VA (Dixon), as well as all parts of NC. It was great to get caught up on news and we have decided to do it again before another 5 years flies by! May was a busy time for a lot of people so we will try for another time of the year. Classmates, (if you were at Ravenscroft any of the 4 years, even if you didn’t graduate with us) please join our class of ’75 Facebook page so we can keep you informed!

Nancy Dameron Almquist writes “In just over 5 years, we have had all three children married, a house fire and a couple of other major life events.

We have also enjoyed some fabulous trips together to celebrate our crazy life together. No grandchildren, but incredibly accomplished children with a PhD College Professor, a DMD and a successful business owner. I am headed to Camp Merrie Woode in a couple of days for 24 plus year. Love my ‘Nurse Nancy’ role and the hundreds of young friends I have as a result!

So sorry to miss the reunion Cindy so graciously organized and hosted.”

Scott Allen is the new director of medical student affairs at University of South Carolina School of Medicine — Florence campus. He is also an assistant professor of clinical radiology in the USC school of medicine and head of neuroradiology at McLeod Regional Medical Center, whew! Had a great time at the reunion!

Sara Pope Titchener and her daughter Haywood had a great trip together to Iceland! Sara owns Titchener Travel in Dunn so she definitely knows how to plan an awesome adventure!

In Memoriam James Woolery ’55 Dec. 18, 2014

Bill Rand ’47 Jan. 26, 2015

Tim Brady ‘79 Feb. 15, 2015

Amanda Worth Tueting reports that she is happily retired from Research Administration at NC State. She is enjoying the beach (always), gardening (for the first time ever) and painting, for the first time in many, many years! (She painted Cindy’s 2 dachshunds’s portrait and it is incredible!) Amanda also says she had a great time at the reunion and loved catching up with folks — hoping even more come next time.

Mary Minor Clifton Shulby says that she is happily retired from WCPSS after teaching academically gifted students and then first graders in Wake County. She is loving going to her beach condo.

Shelly Cole Morgan writes “My youngest daughter Patsy is getting married this fall. Granddaughter Sadie Cole Boulware will be turning 2 July 29th.

Really enjoyed the 40th reunion, seeing everyone was great.

Lou Ann Phelps writes “I’m a new Grandma! Pres-

Preston, grandson of LOU ANN PHELPS ‘75

ton is 3 months old now. Just had a wonderful family vacation in Rodanthe. OBX was beautiful! I’m still a therapist at Holly Hill Hospital’s Partial Hospital Program. We are currently ranked second in the nation in patient satisfaction.

Very rewarding work.”

Cindy has been training for triathlons and will have done at least 4 this year. Still selling real estate in Raleigh and is enjoying being a grandmother to a 2-year-old in LA and a one-year-old in Charleston with husband, David.

1976

Mary Catherine Kennedy Sigmon MCKS@KennedyOfficeSupply.com

Classmates – mark your calendar for our reunion in October! Homecoming is October 16, the Alumni 5K is the morning of October 17. Join me on the planning committee — we need your help!

1975 Reunion — standing left to right: NIGEL CLARK, CINDY POOLE ROBERTS, JOE BULLARD, LOUIS MCCLAM, SCOTT ALLEN (from SC), DIXON WALLACE (from VA), AMANDA WORTH TUETING. Sitting, clockwise: JEFF SMITH (red shirt — who came in from Ohio!), NAJLA NAVE CARLTON, BERNADETTE RANSBOTTOM HERNE, SMITH WORTH, SHELLEY COLE MORGAN, BECKY FLYTHE WATTS, ASHLEY WILSON BROOK, KIM REYNOLDS, CHRIS INGRAM, SARA POPE TITCHENER.

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CLASS NOTES

1977

Terry Wallace Chambliss terry.chambliss@duke.edu

Sympathy to Bill ‘79 and George Clark whose mother passed on May 6.

1978

Class Agent needed! If you are interested in serving, please email Tammy Haywood, Director of Alumni Giving and Activities, at thaywood@ravenscroft.org.

1979

Allison Gilbert Holmes allisonholmes@nc.rr.com

BILL CLARK ‘79 and his wife, Happy, and their new son, William

Sympathy goes out to Tim Brady’s family. Tim passed away unexpectedly from a heart attack on February 15.

Bill Clark and his wife, Happy, welcomed their son, William James Clark, on February 12, 2015. Also, sympathy to Bill and George Clark ‘77 whose mother passed on May 6.

Tom Gibbons’s daughter, Christina, plays soccer for Duke, but also made the National Soccer Team. Congratulations to the Gibbons family!

1979 Classmates from TIM BRADY’s memorial service. From left to right: CATHY EDWARDS LULL, WILLIAM PARISH, ANITA DANIEL KRAYNIK, NYLE WADFORD, ALLISON GILBERT HOLMES and WORTH HARRIS

Worth Harris has his oldest, Sarah, at Wake Forest, and his youngest is a junior at Broughton High School.

John Hogan’s son, John, is getting ready to finish his Freshman year at UNC and another son, Hardy, that is starting to look at colleges as he is in the 11th grade. John and his wife, Elizabeth celebrated their 29th anniversary in May. George Andrews and his wife, Debbie, went to the Kentucky Derby! George also planned a guys weekend at The Preakness.

Hope Strickland Dobey got married on May 2, 2015 to Tim Pflaum at Haywood Hall in downtown Raleigh. They honeymooned in Italy!

The 1979 class reunion

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Shahab Isfahani is moving to LA. His husband, Tim, is starting with his company as a senior vice president and General Manager. Their limo business is growing rapidly and need to be there to make sure things go smooth. They are sad to leave their new home and they are putting it on the market soon. Shahab says that he will work 10 to 12 more years and wants to triple the company before he leaves. They are planning on moving the first of June.

Scott Luihn has been married to his wife, Karen, for 26 years. Their oldest daughter, Sarah, is an ER tech at Duke Medical Center. She is working her way to nursing. Jenny, their youngest, is heading into her senior year Appalachian State.

Scott walks the Neuse River greenway (as often as he can) with his camera looking for things people miss as they fly by with earphones on.

Photography and videos are his hobbies. Traveling to the beach and the mountains are what Scott likes about living here.

Elizabeth William Martin writes that her oldest daughter, Elizabeth, is finishing her junior year at University of Tennessee – Knoxville. Their middle child, Marshall, will be graduating from McCallie in May and heading to Chapel Hill in the fall. Phillip, their youngest is a sophomore this year at McCallie. Both boys love soccer so that is where she spends her time. They will be back in NC this summer for Carolina Orientation and then a trip to Atlantic Beach. She caught up several times with Margie Johnson Springer and Anne Sigmon McDonald in their trips back and forth for college visits and then came for Anne’s wedding in November. It was truly a celebration and a happy time.

Lisa Brown Glenn told me about her son, Logan Aldridge ‘09, and what all he is up to. Logan works at NC Orthotics and Prosthetics. Logan has also started his own company to design a jump rope for people with disabilities. He has partnered with a company called Mute to design this jump rope. The name of his company is Adaptive Division. He also won the long jump with a distance of 5.56 meters at the 2015 Desert challenge, held in Tempe, Ariz., on May 15 and May 16. Overall, he qualified for the 2015 U.S. Paralympic Nationals in three events: long jump, the 100-meter dash, and the 200-meter dash.

Dianne Jones Hyneman has adopted a new golden retriever/lab mix named Whiskey.

John Buckley wrote that he and his wife, Lori, were briefly in Raleigh to visit with his brotherin-law and they drove through our old neighborhood, Brookhaven. He said that our old house and his looked a lot like he remembered them from 1990. John said that his son, Jack, (John Franklin Buckley V) is in his first semester at James Madison University pursuing a degree in Integrated Science and Technology. His daughter, Taylor Anderson Buckley, just accepted the position of Talent Acquisition and Development Specialist with SyntraCorp LLC in Charlotte.

Lawrence Watts sent in that his son, Adam (18), was accepted to Northwestern Engineering

Program in December. His final choices were Penn, Duke and Northwestern. Lawrence says Adam clearly has his mom’s brains! It will be a bit chilly for Adam and expensive for Lawrence but worth it. His youngest, Daniel (14), is following in his brother’s footsteps heading to Latin next year and will probably likely also play Varsity as a Freshman. Lawrence wrote that he is sorry to have missed the reunion but there were too many Region III soccer games all over the country for Daniel.

Skipper Day let me know that he, David Cozart, Tom Rice, Tom Gibbons, Jack Puckett, Kirk Summers, Jim Kilgore, Greg Deener, and Lawrence Watts have a boys weekend of golf in Pinehurst. I hope they will send a photo of this to share!

Dan Sapp said that his wife, Anne, retired after 25plus years in banking last June but is sick of Dan already and looking for her next challenge. Dan continues to consult and coach executives and teams on communication strategy and leadership communication. Recent clients are folks like most of the senior team at Facebook, Bank of the West, Private Equity and VC firms, etc… Dan lectures twice a year at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business and he also helped several schools with fundraising message, as well as training development teams on fund raising communication style and strategy, including Stanford’s Business School, UC Berkeley’s Business School, The California College of Arts and yes, good ole Ravenscroft! Dan’s 17-year-old junior in high school, Walker, is looking at several NC schools for the fall of 2016. If anyone can help them get into Elon, let them know. Walker is a basketball freak who tore his ACL twice in 6 months between his sophomore and junior year, so he is looking for a big senior season. His “little” brother, 15-yearold Mason, is a sophomore who was the captain of his JV football team this fall and started as a defenseman on the varsity lacrosse team in the spring. Dan is thankful that both boys look like their mother!

Dean Shavlik sent a photo of a gathering of some of the football players from back in the day. Coach Bob Siff came to town and wanted to host the guys that he coached on the football team at Winston’s Grille for drinks. Here is who came: Bob Siff, Bill

Winstead, Jimmy Cox, Nyle Wadford, Dean Shavlik, Skipper Day, Jock Brakebill, George Smith, George Andrews, Tom Kennihan, Scott Jurgensen, William Gaither, BJ and Henry Warren. It sounds like they

have done well; they got their licenses this year and my son, James just achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. It has been a crazy year! We will start the college process this summer. I appreciate everyone that came to the reunion.

1980

Class Agent needed! If you are interested in serving, please email Tammy Haywood, director of alumni giving and activities at thaywood@ravenscroft.org.

1981

Class Agent needed! If you are interested in serving, please email Tammy Haywood, Director of Alumni Giving and Activities, at thaywood@ravenscroft.org.

Ravenscroft Football players and coaches (pictured left to right) SKIPPER DAY ‘79, DEAN SHAVLIK ‘80, BILL WINSTEAD, assistant coach, WILLIAM GAITHER ‘82, BOB SIFF, assistant coach, and TOM KENNIHAN ‘80.

Classmates – mark your calendar for our reunion in October! Homecoming is October 16, the Alumni 5K is the morning of October 17. This is our 35th Year Reunion! Join me on the planning committee — we need your help!

Congratulations go to Chris Kennedy on being inducted into the NC Tennis Hall of Fame. Kevin Mertens and Carl Smith were there for the induction and they reminisced about the good old days being on the tennis team at Ravenscroft.

JIMMY COX ‘79 with former coaches Bob Siff and Bill Winstead. Alums DEAN SHAVLIK ‘80, GEORGE ANDREWS ’79, and GEORGE SMITH ’78

Congratulations also go to Dr. Mary Mears on being awarded the Lahoma Adams Buford Peace award at the University of Alabama. The award is given to a faculty member who has demonstrated levels of involvement in mediating human disputes, helping overcome prejudice promoting justice and establishing peace. Mary is an Associate Studies and Graduate Program Director in the College of Communications at the University of Alabama. She is traveling with students from the Honor’s College to Serbia. Way to go Mary and Roll Tide!

Gordon Berkstresser is a Regulatory Compliance Attorney at GE in Houston, TX.

Gail Cutter is the Director of Recruiting at Brooks Price Law Firm.

Condolences go to Betsy Barringer Hoaglund on the death of her mother. Cindi Holding, Lynn Pucillo Buehler, and Beth Lyon Murray joined Betsy in celebrating Audrey’s life.

all had a great time!

Congratulations to William Allen’s son Wade on getting his Eagle Scout.

I have been busy selling South African wines. My boys are sophomores in high school. They both ran cross country, winter and spring track. They

Jay Hardison emailed me that his son has turned 16 and is driving, as well as Gigi Johnson’s daughter Elise and my nephews, James and Stuart.

Summer 2015

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CLASS NOTES

2015 REUNIONS – MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

Nancy Christian’s daughter Catherine has recently

Homecoming is October 16, and the Alumni 5K is the morning of October 17.

Reunions to be held for the following class years:

For spring break, James Joyner, his wife, Emily, and their daughter, Emily Clarke Joyner, went to NYC. Their son is at NC State.

- 1976 - 1981 - 1986 - 1991 - 1996 - 2001 - 2006

graduated from college.

1982

William Gaither

Barbie Jones Sabo’s son Matt is a freshman at the University of North Florida.

Kim McCall Whitley and her children traveled to Key West for their spring break.

William Allen and Haywood Hardin went duck

wmgaither@msn.com

1983

Caroline Day Plummer Carolinedayplummer@gmail.com

1984

John Parham jparham@tcfnmail.com

hunting this winter. From the looks of the ducks that they shot, I’m not sure if there are any ducks left in the state of South Carolina!

Tim Wicker is serving as chair of the Alumni Lead

Obviously, Bill Little did not learn the last time he ran the Uwharrie 100, and he’s running it again. Just like last time, Kelly Worth Mitchell has volunteered to be a pace runner for him. Go Bill and Kelly. My knees hurt just thinking about it!

John Parham has joined The Carolinas Financial Network as partner.

And I loved the reply to my email for any news from Mitch Mitchell. Unfortunately, I am unable to print his comment, but thanks for the laugh, Mitch!

And finally, many thanks to Madeline Gilbert for serving as your class agent. She writes “as much fun as I’ve had being your class correspondent, it’s time to pass the torch on to another classmate. It’s been great catching up with so many of you.” If you are interested in serving as Class Agent,

From Here 5K on October 17 on the Ravenscroft Cross Country Course.

1985

Class Agent needed! If you are interested in serving, please email Tammy Haywood, Director of Alumni Giving and Activities, at thaywood@ravenscroft.org.

Sympathy goes out to Preston Miller and his family on the death of his father, Hal Miller, who passed away on March 27.

contact Tammy Haywood, Director of Alumni Giving and Activities, at thaywood@ravenscroft.org.

Emily Procter ’86 INDUCTED INTO ALUMNI FINE ARTS HALL OF FAME Ravenscroft honored Emily Procter ’86 as the 2014-2015 Alumni Fine Arts Hall of Fame winner during the Upper School Ensembles concert on April 22.

For nine seasons, Procter starred as Det. Calleigh Duquesne in “CSI Miami.” She has also appeared as attorney Ainsley Hayes, whom she portrayed on the Emmy and Golden Globe-winning “The West Wing” for two seasons.

“We are all artists. Art is merely the marriage of passion and expression,” Procter said.

“I would like to encourage everyone to lead as artistic a life as possible.”

Procter thanked her Ravenscroft teachers for helping to make her success possible and encouraged current Fine Arts students to pursue their dreams.

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Whit Brown ’86 RECEIVES RISING STAR AWARD Whit Brown ’06 received the Triangle Commercial Association

of Realtors’ Rising Star Award on March 3 during the annual Frontier Awards event at Carolina Country Club in Raleigh.

The event recognizes more than 40 of the Triangle’s topproducing commercial real estate brokers.

TOM ABRAHAM’s ’89 book

1986

Class Agent needed! If you are interested in serving, please email Tammy Haywood, Director of Alumni Giving and Activities, at thaywood@ravenscroft.org.

Classmates – mark your calendar for our reunion in October! Homecoming is October 16, the Alumni 5K is the morning of October 17. This is your 30th Year Reunion! If you are interested in serving on the planning committee, contact Tammy Haywood at thaywood@ravenscroft.org.

1987

Gerry Jacobs Gerryjacobs1969@gmail.com

1988

Cathy Myers Carlino ccarlino@carolina.rr.com

1989

Amy Copeland Petitfils and Sonya Smith Beacham

apocalyptic novellas. They were released in February and have, since their release, remained among the best-sellers in their categories. You can read more about it at http://tomabrahamsbooks.com.

Sympathy to Russell Miller on the death of his father, Hal, who passed away March 27.

1990

Kristin Snyder Kash Kkash@houseofkash.com

1991

Class Agent needed! If you are interested in serving, please email Tammy Haywood, Director of Alumni Giving and Activities, at thaywood@ravenscroft.org.

Classmates – mark your calendar for our reunion in October! Homecoming is October 16, the Alumni 5K is the morning of October 17. This is our 25th Year Reunion! Join me on the planning committee — we need your help!

acpetitfils@yahoo.com sbeacham@cfcc.edu

1992

Tom Abrahams writes “My wife, Courtney, and

Stephanie.butler@bcafreeedom.com

I just celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary.

We met at The University of Florida, graduated together on the same day, and got married two years later. We moved to Houston in 1999, which is where we still live and where I work for KTRK-TV, the ABC owned station here.

Tom also has some book news: In September, I signed a 3 book deal with Post Hill Press. The first two of those books are out in August and December. The third, which I’m writing now, is out in 2016. All three are political novels. I also signed a deal with Amazon Publishing for three post-

TIM JOHNSON’s ‘94 children Lucy (3) and Gus (1)

Stephenie Butler Kovac

1993

Penny Abrahams Rogers pennyrogers@gmail.com

1994

Tim Johnson tej916@gmail.com

Kate Young Lee writes “I am still living in Richmond with my husband and 2 kids. I am currently working as the Quality Assurance Director

Summer 2015

37

CLASS NOTES

WEDDINGS

2

1

38

1. Jennifer Cole ‘04 married Jacob Tolley on August

2. Ryan Youngblood ‘07 married Brittany Halsey on

30, 2014

October 25, 2014

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at a local craft brewery called Hardywood Park Craft Brewery. Loving every minute of it...very lucky to have a job I’m excited to go to everyday!

My son is finishing up Kindergarten (which is crazy) and my daughter is keeping us running (she’s 2 going on 18). Life is good!”

folks are well: Brandon Evans, Ann Bradshaw, Ashley Butler, William Wilkins, and Marilyn Jordan. One

As for me, my wife Hadley and I are well, enjoying work and 2 little kids (Lucy, 3, and Gus, 1). We are looking forward to making a trip to Emerald Isle to visit my Mom in July. Despite desperate attempts to get updates from some old classmates I can only report that the following

jmadison77@gmail.com

classmate got a new cat who I will not name!

1995

Jen Madison Snook Thank you, Matt Cantando, for your work as Class Agent all these years! Matt is passing the job on to Jen Madison Snook.

Homecoming is October 16, the Alumni 5K is the morning of October 17 and we will gather at Sean Fowler’s Mandolin for our 20th Reunion on Saturday night, October 17th! More details to come!!! If you would like to be on the planning committee, contact Jen!

Jimmy Goodmon, vice president and general manager of Capitol Broadcasting Company’s (CBC) New Media Group, was honored with the first Digital Leadership Award to be given by the National Association of Broadcasters. The Digital Leadership Award is designed to recognize an individual at a broadcast station, group or network who has had a significant role in transforming a traditional broadcast business to succeed on digital media platforms in a measurable way. Under Goodmon’s direction, CBC New Media was one of the first companies to successfully deliver overthe-air digital video to mobile devices, and it has patented technology to help broadcasters stream video within a geographic range, to confine their signals to their local designated market areas (DMA).

Jen Madison Snook and her husband, Steve, relocated to Raleigh from the DC area in the spring of 2014. They welcomed their first child, Christian Robert Frederick Snook, on July 23, 2014. Jen recently enjoyed reconnecting with some local alums and their children at the Little Ravens Sandbox Party and hopes to catch up with more former classmates soon!

1996

Katy Geil Smyth katygeil@hotmail.com

Classmates – mark your calendar for our reunion in October! Homecoming is October 16, the Alumni 5K is the morning of October 17. Join me on the planning committee — we need your help!

William and Amy Nolan Weaver welcomed a son, Leonard Nevins Weaver, to their family! Leo joins Sadie — who is an awesome big sister.

1997

Elizabeth Warren Hamilton Ecarver22@nc.rr.com

1998

Ellen Mann O’Connor Ellen.b.mann@gmail.com

1999

Allison Drummond Stewart allisonkathleenstewart@gmail.com

Hannah Ong writes “After working in the Maryland state mental health system for almost 3 years, I took a new position with the District of Columbia Department of Behavioral Health in March 2015. I am now the Director of Psychiatric Services for Saint Elizabeths Hospital, and I am enjoying the challenges of getting to know a new system and learning the ropes in a new hospital.

My husband and I still live just outside of DC in the Maryland suburbs, and I continue to spend my free time competing in equestrian events.

Over the last year I took up distance running and have completed 5 half-marathons.”

JEN SNOOK ‘95 recently enjoyed reconnecting with some local alums and their children at the Little Ravens Sandbox Party.

2000

Melissa Warren Dougher melissawdougher@gmail.com

Carly Apple and her husband, Jonathan Frederick, welcomed their son, Lincoln Frederick, in December 2014!

Carrie Brenneman Galloway and her husband, Jay, welcomed their daughter, Celia Gray Galloway, on Christmas Eve! She is a happy and healthy baby and Carrie and Jay are enjoying parenthood.

Anthony Reid opened The Wandering Moose, a food truck business, this year with a longtime friend.

Their website is www.wanderingmoosenc.com.

2001

AMY WEAVER ‘96 and William welcomed a son, Leonard Nevins Weaver, to their family! Leo joins Sadie, who is an awesome big sister.

Jaclyn White Morgan jaclyn.w.morgan@gmail.com

Classmates – mark your calendar for our reunion in October! Homecoming is October 16, the Alumni 5K is the morning of October 17. Join me on the planning committee — we need your help!

Jaclyn White Morgan became a mother to a beautiful baby boy, Gatling Creek, in March and is loving this new chapter of life. She and her husband Rem enjoyed several days of fishing and gallery hopping in New Mexico just before their son’s arrival. She adores her work as a natural light wedding and lifestyle photographer based in Eastern North Carolina. You can find samples of her work at www.jaclynmorganphotography.com.

ANTHONY REID’S ’00 food truck.

Alena Simmonds Oakes went through the training and certification process to become a Certified Spinning® Instructor and is an indoor cycling coach with Gold’s Gym in Richmond, VA. Summer 2015

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CLASS NOTES

She absolutely loves training, teaching and helping others achieve their fitness goals! Her days are full and fun as a stay-at-home mom, fitness instructor and It Works independent distributor.

Alena and Rob’s son, Hudson, will be three in December.

Gretchen writes “I am now the Associate Director

2002

Jessie.tesh@gmail.com

Class Agent needed! If you are interested in serving, please email Tammy Haywood, Director of Alumni Giving and Activities, at thaywood@ravenscroft.org.

of Development for Camp Sea Gull and Camp Seafarer.”

2005

Jessie Hale Tesh

2006

Celeste Allen Chapman celeste.allen22@gmail.com

2003

Anna Claire Murnick Price annaclaireprice@gmail.com

Chan Namgong and Rachel welcomed Helen Minsuh Namgong on April 24.

Hugh Leatherman married Cate Morse May 2 in Charleston. Rob Ponton and Leebo Smith served as groomsmen. Alice-Anne Leatherman ‘06, sister of the groom, was a bridesmaid.

Scott Forsyth writes “On April 25, I married my partner of seven years, Matt Lowder, at The Cotton Room in Durham. We had been “engaged” for a year, planning to have a ceremony for ourselves and our families. Imagine our surprise when halfway through the planning process, we found out we’d be needing an official NC State Marriage License as well! After eight long years of med school and training in Chapel Hill, I finally finish my residency in Emergency Medicine at UNC Hospitals this month. Matt is in his first year of post-doc work at UC Davis; I’ll be joining him in California, where I’ll be an ER doctor at Rideout Memorial Hospital, just north of Sacramento. No kids now (or on the horizon), but our cat Harold is stoked for the move.”

2004

Gretchen Presnell, Ashley Board, and Keith Strombotne gretchenphyde@gmail.com ashleyboard@gmail.com kstrombo3@gmail.com

Corey Bass writes “I got married in January to Marianne Foust in Wilmington. In late February, I moved from Greenville to the Triangle to begin work with UNC Athletics and Learfield Sports.”

Jennifer Cole Tolley writes “Jacob and I got married on August 30, 2014 in Blowing Rock. Jacob was born and raised in West Virginia, and we reside in Raleigh now.”

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Classmates – mark your calendar for our reunion in October! Homecoming is October 16, the Alumni 5K is the morning of October 17.

Join me on the planning committee — we need your help!

2007

Rob Byrd robertbyrd@gmail.com

Taylor Machikas is currently working for Quintiles and recently finished her first semester in the NC State Jenkins MBA Program, with a concentration in bioscience management.

After a year working with domestic sex trafficking survivors ages 12-17 in New York City, Caroline Fish has joined the 2018 law class at St. John’s University in Queens, N.Y., as a scholar in the International Honors Program. She plans to continue her work on issues of sex trafficking, sexual assault and domestic violence in the legal field on an international scale.

Ryan Youngblood married Brittany Halsey on October 25, 2015 in Raleigh.

2008

Taylor Rankin, Lauren Miller, and Casey Stevenson tfr813@aol.com lauren.e.miller@vanderbilt.edu ccs32@duke.edu

Congrats to Dominic Parker, an assistant coach at Richard Bland College, on his team’s NJCAA Division II championship.

Kate Hawkins writes “I’ve moved to Boston where I will continue to work in the Investigator Grants department of a Raleigh-based Clinical Research Organization called PRA Health Sciences. Essentially, I negotiate contracts and budgets for clinical trials. The most difficult part of the move to Boston (besides Chick-Fil-A and

Goodberry’s withdrawals) might be figuring out where to put Arthur’s and my guitars in our little apartment (we have a total of 11). I’m excited to spend the summer road tripping around New England and hopefully catching a game or two at Fenway!”

Anya Knower writes “I recently moved to New

Kat Simmons writes “I’m still in Raleigh and I

Scheduling/Quality Control grind over at InDemand and still managing to hang on to an apartment in Manhattan. Been a busy spring for us, as we distributed the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight this Saturday (Sorry I couldn’t get anybody else my employee discount). In my spare time, I’ve been staying busy writing everything from short screenplays to starting a novel, and I plan on getting myself out to an open mic or two in the coming months to try my hand at the whole “comedy” thing. Hope everyone keeps up the positive momentum, and for those of y’all in the NYC area, my door is always open!”

work at WakeMed as a pharmacy technician, currently running the Patient Assistance Program.

I’m also trying to knock out some prerequisite classes that will get me into pharmacy school.”

Ryan Sandman writes “Hey everyone! I’m still in DC currently working part time at the Library of Congress in their Middle East/Israeli Section doing lots of small projects. I am still trying to find a full time job either in the sports or hospitality fields. I recently applied to Georgetown University’s Sports Industry Management Masters Program and if I get in I would start in the Fall!”

Lindsey Waldenberg writes “I’m living in Austin, TX and working as a Program Officer with Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. I work in the education department where I create educational resources and plan professional development workshops for middle and high school teachers, amongst other responsibilities. I’m also pursuing my Master’s in Public History at Texas State University. Keeping busy!”

Lauren Miller writes “I’m living in Nashville, TN and about to finish up my first year as a 9th grade English teacher. I’m SO ready for the teacher perk of summer. More excitingly, I’ll be getting married in June in the NC mountains, so I’ll be Lauren Wieczorek...letting go of “Miller” will be tough because no one ever asks me how to spell it.”

Stephen Dunn writes “I’ve enjoyed reading all of the updates posted so far and look forward to the rest! I hope everyone is doing awesome! I am still a tax accountant for KPMG in Raleigh and work primarily with large private and public corporations located all over North Carolina.

This past year has been both busy and rewarding.

I recently passed the CPA exam and am awaiting final approval from the board to become a fully licensed CPA. I also bought a house so I will be in the area for the indefinite future. In other news, pending a final medical review of my previously broken leg, I will be sworn into the North Carolina Army National Guard and attending Basic Training then Officer Candidate School sometime this fall.”

York City. I am the social media manager and junior account executive at a public relations agency. I am officially renting my first apartment in Brooklyn!”

Jack Manley write “I’m still working on the

Rush Dorsett writes “I’m currently living in Medellín, Colombia! It’s a beautiful city, and I’ve been enjoying living in the mountains and speaking Spanish, saying things like “Ay, que chebre...” with a thick Colombian accent. I’m currently working at a startup PR firm called Publicize where I research and write about tech companies and entrepreneurs both here and around the world. I’m also singing with a local group, teaching some little kids music once a week, dancing a whole lot of salsaaaa, volunteering at a local farm, and practicing yoga and meditation on the daily.

Es buena vida!! Let me know if any of you are traveling through Colombia!”

Mark Gozzo still resides in good ol’ NC — for now, at least; although whispers of the “big city life” seem to increasingly present themselves, he’s currently holding on to the Tar Heel State and working as a Project Manager at McKinney, a leading digital and integration ad agency in Durham. He recently and proudly attended younger sister Melina’s college graduation from Virginia Tech and is excited to see her dive into the real world.

2009

Kathryn Fogartie, Jack Greenberg, and Sallie King Katfogartie@gmail.com jack.d.greenberg@gmail.com shking@email.unc.edu

Logan Aldridge won the long jump with a distance of 5.56 meters at the 2015 Desert challenge, held in Tempe, Ariz., on May 15 and May 16.

Overall, he qualified for the 2015 U.S. Paralympic Nationals in three events: long jump, the 100-meter dash, and the 200-meter dash.

Summer 2015

41

CLASS NOTES

Logan Aldridge ’09 QUALIFIES FOR 2015 U.S. PARALYMPIC NATIONALS LOGAN ALDRIDGE ’09 won the long jump with a distance of 5.56 meters at the 2015 Desert challenge, held in Tempe, Ariz., on May 15 and 16. Overall, he qualified for the 2015 U.S. Paralympic Nationals in three events: long jump, the 100-meter dash, and the 200-meter dash. Aldridge finished third in the 200-meter dash with a time of 25.64 and fourth in the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.74. Aldridge was a captain of the lacrosse team at Ravenscroft and has recently taken up track and field.

Aldridge finished third in the 200-meter dash with a time of 25.64 and fourth in the 100meter dash with a time of 12.74. Logan was a captain of the lacrosse team at Ravenscroft and has recently taken up track and field.

Former Ravens golfer, Reeves Zaytoun, was honored at UNC as one of their top ten scholar athletes.

Andrew Watters received the Paramedic of the

natalie.salmonese@gmail.com tarheel2006@gmail.com ccbern@umich.edu

Brandon Bryan was one of only 30 seniors at

Laura Higginson is working at Sea Island Resort as an Event Design Coordinator. She works with the event design team to plan both weddings and corporate events at the resort.

2011

Patrick Bailey, Zaki Haidary, and Allie Withers Jpb693@gmail.com zakihaidary@gmail.com alliewithers@gmail.com

Austin Hill graduated from the United State Air Force Academy on May 28th and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant. He was selected to continue his training in Flight School and will be based in Columbus, Mississippi. Austin is the first student to be appointed and attend the Air Force Academy from Ravenscroft. Austin married Hallie Marohl of Wenatchee, Washington on June 20th. Hallie also graduated from the Air Force Academy.

Sympathy goes out to Catherine Colonna and her family on the death of her father, Frank Colonna, who passed away on April 1.

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www.ravenscroft.org/alumniblog

2010

Natalie Salmonese, Tyson Pressell, and Chase Bernhardt

42

Allie Withers served as the Ravenscroft Alumni blogger in April. You can read her blog posts at

Year award from the from the Farmville VFW in Farmville, Virginia.

Denison University presented with the prestigious 2015 Distinguished Leadership Award, which recognizes graduating seniors who have demonstrated exemplary leadership and service to the college through their involvement in student organizations, in co-curricular activities, on the residential education staff, and as athletes and scholars.

During the award ceremony, Laurel Kennedy, vice president for student development, said this of Bryan: “Brandon, you wrote about discover-

Sean Kelly ’11 HONORED DURING DUKE BASKETBALL SENIOR NIGHT SEAN KELLY ’11, a Duke basketball walk-on, was honored during the team’s Senior Night activities on Feb. 4. Kelly was honored after playing in his final game in Cameron. Overall, he appeared in six games for the National Championship team.

Brandon Bryan ’11 HONORED FOR DISTINGUISHED LEADERSHIP Brandon Bryan ’11 received the 2015 Distinguished

Leadership Award at Denison University. The award recognizes graduating seniors who have demonstrated exemplary leadership and service to the college through their involvement in student organizations, in co-curricular activities, on the residential education staff, and as athletes and scholars.

ing the difference between holding a leadership position and acting as an effective leader. As Inter Fraternity Council President, you faced the choice: a fancy title or using that title to seek meaningful change. Choosing the latter, you determined that effective leadership centers on inspiring others to act with integrity. You modeled that integrity, and asked other fraternity men to do the same, embracing the values that have made their organizations strong and honorable. Your goal of dismantling negative fraternity stereotypes propelled you to join the Community Sexual Assault Awareness and Response Team and to raise expectations for all men on campus regarding sexual assault and high standards of personal behavior. You engaged a nationally renowned speaker to speak here about healthy relationships, and the strong student turnout affirmed not just the event’s value, but also your peers’ support for your efforts. The college and all Denisonians are grateful for your vigor and determination, and we hope others will continue to emulate your commitments and effectiveness.”

Allison Powell is moving to Washington DC to do research on immunotherapy cancer treatment at Children’s National Medical Center!

Aaron Sugar is moving to Atlanta, Georgia to start his new job for Deloitte Financial Consulting.

Dawson Kirkland is attending NYU Law School starting this fall.

Scott VanName is starting his position as an Engineer for Cisco after graduation.

Austin Hill is getting married in June and starting USAF Pilot Training at Columbus AFB, MS.

Sarah Heilman will be attending graduate school at Mannes College of Music at The New School in New York City for vocal performance.

Sofia Armstrong will be attending graduate school at ECU starting this fall to obtain her Masters in Teaching and working as the Certified Athletic Trainer at Farmville Central High School as well.

Reeves Zaytoun ’11 HONORED AS TOP 10 SCHOLAR-ATHLETE AT UNC REEVES ZAYTOUN ’11 was honored as a Top 10 Scholar-Athlete at the University of North Carolina’s second annual Scholar-Athlete Awards Luncheon on April 29. The Top 10 Scholar-Athlete award recognizes the five senior men and five senior women with the highest cumulative grade point averages. Zaytoun is a business major and member of the men’s golf team.

Summer 2015

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CLASS NOTES

Peyton Burgess is moving to NYC to intern for

Alex Kumbar writes “Last summer I worked with

FTI Consulting in their strategic communications sector.

iD tech camps as a lead instructor. Creating a fun and engaging camp experience while also teaching the basics of programming. This summer I’m going to be doing cross functional IT for Cisco at their location in RTP.”

Meka Vallier is moving to Dallas, Texas to work in Corporate AT&T’s marketing department.

Carson Smith is moving to Savannah, GA to con-

SCOTT GOLDCOTT ‘12 at Nobby’s/ Newcastle Beach, New South Wales, Australia

tinue her studies in film at Savannah College of Art & Design.

Amanda Lampuri will be spending her summer interning for A Southern Soirèe wedding and event planning company!

Malcolm McKinney debuted at Carnegie Hall in May.

Lewis Stocks came back to campus and talked

Sarah Stumpo is moving to Charlotte, NC to attend Queens University for a Masters in Interior Architecture and living with Allie Withers.

Emily Mcdowell just graduated summa cum laude with high thesis honors from Tufts University.

2012

Angelika Barth, Jordan Jeter, and Lewis Stocks angelikagaledesigns@gmail.com jjeter@elon.edu hstocks@ncsu.edu

Scott Goldcott writes “Having an incredible time studying abroad in the land down under. Taking advantage of everyday overseas traveling throughout Australia and New Zealand. I highly recommend visiting the Oceania Region if one is ever given the chance. Being abroad has made me gain a better understanding of how much my friends and family across the pond mean to me, can’t wait to see them mid July when I fly back home!”

with students during Career Week about working as an investment analyst. He is living in Charlotte this Summer and is serving as a Summer Analyst for Fennebresque, an Investment Bank. He plans to graduate a semester early from N.C. State in December, 2015, with a degree in Finance.

Caroline Margolis has been named to the second team for the 2015 All-Atlantic Coast Conference Women’s Lacrosse Team. She is a junior at Boston College.

Brianna Bryan was a graduation marshal for Wake Forest University’s commencement on May 18.

2013

Emily Bedsole, Bryant Dowd, Thomas Sigmon ebedsole2@gmail.com bdowd1@nc.rr.com thomasigmon@gmail.com

at the Manchester Business School. He was also elected to serve on the Undergraduate Business Student Association Cabinet as Treasurer for the 2015-16 academic year.

Congratulations to Calley Mangum on being the recipient of the Helen Aicher and Kenneth Ward Nelson Scholarship and the Miriam Gilbert Shakespeare Award from the Department of English at The University of Iowa. These awards provide support and encouragement to undergraduate English majors as they pursue their degree.

Jordan Jeter is doing an internship in London.

He is a marketing and customer service major.

Max Sminkey continues to enjoy his time at Northeastern. He just completed his first six-

Will Mueller will be abroad in the UK studying

Quinn Billerman ’12 HONORED AS UNIVERSITY SCHOLAR-ATHLETE Quinn Billerman ’12 has been honored by the National Football Foundation as a 2015

University Scholar-Athlete. He was recognized during the Bill Dooley Chapter of North Carolina’s 20th Annual Awards Dinner at Duke University on April 29. Billerman, a quarterback at North Carolina Central University, is a history major who received “A” Honor Roll distinction for achieving a perfect 4.0 grade point average in both the spring 2014 and fall 2014 semesters. He is a member of Tau Sigma National Honor Society.

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month co-op working for Boston Scientific’s Endoscopy R&D division, will be entering Northeastern’s combined Bachelors/Masters program in the fall for mechanical engineering, and is passionate about growing Northeastern’s new Habitat for Humanity chapter as treasurer.

Alfre Wimberly is currently a rising junior at UNC-Chapel Hill as an Environmental Science major with a Chemistry minor. This summer, she is working through summer school at NC State University. She was chosen as Hollings Scholar for the class of 2015-2017, is a member of the professional chemistry fraternity Alpha Chi Sigma and the UNC Club Field Hockey team, and is excited to do research for NOAA again!

Savannah Miller writes, “I have just finished my second year at Gettysburg College where I have declared a major in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and a minor in Physics. This past semester, I participated in a lab intensive interdisciplinary course where I did research on the interaction between gold nanoparticles and model cell membranes. This summer I have a job assisting a professor in the Physics department with research. The research will look at the interaction of DNA with gold nanoparticles. In the fall, I will be studying abroad in Lancaster, England.

The program includes a three week seminar in London and a two week free travel break.”

Mariel Ziperski ’13 SHINES FOR MICHIGAN ROWING TEAM Mariel Ziperski ’13 and her teammates on the first varsity four rowing team had the strongest performance of the day for the seventh-ranked Michigan Wolverines during a Big Ten Double Dual versus No. 15 Indiana and Iowa on April 11.

2014

Mary Grady Bell, Humza Rizvi mgbell@live.unc.edu humzarizvi@gmail.com

Thomas Matthews is enjoying Rhodes College and will be living in Washington DC this summer taking classes and working at George Washington University Hospital.

JT Fritsch will be interning with an indie filmmaker in Raleigh this summer.

Patrick McIntyre will be living in Pittsburgh while

Kelsey Hill is enjoying studying psychology at

doing an internship.

Clemson University.

Humza Rizvi will be living in Washington DC

Arash Kasebi is majoring in Textiles with a

while interning at a consulting firm.

concentration in Medical Textiles at NC State.

He has also recently become a firefighter for the Bayleaf Fire Department.

Mary Grady Bell ’14 studied abroad in India through the Kenan-Flagler business school in the last half of may studying Southeast Asian business operational challenges. She has now transitioned into a two-month internship with the nonprofit Girls Who Code in San Francisco, sponsored by the Morehead-Cain Scholarship.

Chase Duncan is majoring in electrical engineering at Virginia Tech. He serves as a Cadre in the Corps of Cadets and plans to commission in the Army upon graduation.

MARY GRADY BELL ’14 studying abroad in India

Kianna Jimenez is a double major in Chemistry & Math with a minor in Spanish/Theatre. She is in the Honors Society and in the Honors Program and was selected to be a Student Ambassador, Orientation Leader, and Secretary of the Campus Activities Board. She was elected to coordinate this years Honors symposium event, which was an amazing success. This summer is interning for an engineering company and has future plans to study abroad.

Tate Replogle ’14 INDUCTED INTO ELON’S PERICLEAN SCHOLARS PROGRAM Tate Replogle ’14 has been inducted into The Periclean Scholars

program at Elon University.

The Periclean Scholars program at Elon University is committed to raising the level of civic engagement and social responsibility of the entire university community and to developing students with a deep sense of global citizenship and commitment to the common good. Students who become part of the Periclean Scholars program take a series of courses culminating in a class project of global social change.

Summer 2015

45

RAVENSCROFT REWIND A look back in time in Ravens history

Class of 2015 “Lifers”

Lifers from the Class of 2015 pose for a photo before graduating on the Lower School playground harking back to their younger Raven days.

Pictured: Olivia Aschman, Davy Babson, John Bailey, Nina Barnett, Axel Barth, Mel Broughton, Zachary Chapman, Devin Connare, Cole Cutter, Johnny Davis, Jack Dempster, Amanda Frederiksen, Caroline Gainey, Keeton Glenn, Katie Hahn, Tristan Hammersla, Zack Hofstadter, Erin Kelly, Liam King, John Landers, Ford Layman, Alexandra Lee, Sydney Macnabb, MJ Malone, Parker Mikesh, Sarah Miller, Kaytlyn Mras, Laura Naslund, Courtney Price, John Pupa, Rebecca Qubain, Alex Romley, Charlotte Spence, Mitchell Stumpo, Sam Sutherland, McLean Voelkel, and Alexandra Zuckerman

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R avenscroft magazine

Is Ravenscroft in your will?

T

HE JOSIAH OGDEN WATSON SOCIETY

was established to honor and recognize those individuals who have included Ravenscroft in their estate plans. These individuals have made bequests, established trusts, or given insurance policies to the school. The Society is named in honor of Ravenscroft’s original benefactor whose bequest formed the origins of the school we know today.

Join the Josiah Ogden Watson Society Help ensure that future generations have the same opportunities that Ravenscroft gave you. For assistance in establishing a new gift or adding to an existing plan, visit www.ravenscroft.org/plannedgiving, contact Phil Higginson, Assistant Head of School for Institutional Advancement, or Anna White Hosea ’98, Director of Development for a conversation about your legacy. pch@ravenscroft.org | ahosea@ravenscroft.org | 919-847-0900

Non-Profit Org US Postage PAID Raleigh, NC Permit No. 9

7409 Falls of Neuse Road Raleigh, NC 27615 Return Service Requested

OUR MISSION

The Ravenscroft community, guided by our legacy of excellence, nurtures individual potential and prepares students to thrive in a complex and interdependent world.

Lower School students and faculty designed individual puzzle pieces that were assembled into one large puzzle to illustrate the concept that each person is unique and special, and that everyone is important and needed to complete the larger picture.