Best Wishes to our Retirees

BEST WISHE S TO

OUR RETIREES

CHRIST Y VAIL , Head of Lower School Retiring after 15 years

programs put on by Elena Bennett.” Christy came to Country Day after heading

He added, “Christy has been the driving the elementary division at The Harker School in San Jose. She brought with her a long career dedicated to the education of young children, as well as her beautiful singing voice, which we were treated to on a number of occasions over the years.

One of Christy’s earliest memories is singing in her crib when she was about four years old. And she’s been singing ever since – in church choirs, school concerts, friends’ weddings, and even at her own wedding, where she and her husband Mark sang a Day were the Winter Concerts and the Civil Rights Assembly,” Christy said, adding, “especially when I sang with the kids and with the amazing Jay Johnson on the piano! I will definitely miss the beautiful, uplifting

In the head of school’s remarks upon her retirement, Lee Thomsen said, “Christy is a passionate and articulate voice for the importance of a child-centered experience rich in the arts, physical education, and social-emotional learning.” duet! “My favorite times singing at Country

force behind the division-wide adoption of the Responsive Classroom program as well as Dovetail Toolbox curriculum, which have both brought a coherence and consistency to the experience of children throughout the lower grades.”

Christy and Mark recently moved from Sacramento to the hills of Lincoln where they plan to spend more time with their family.

BRIAN FRISH MAN , Middle & High School Theater Director Retiring after 15 years

Standing at six feet, six inches, it’s not a surprise that Brian played basketball in high school and college, where he delivered impressive statistics against some of the best schools in the country. He had the NBA on his radar and toward the end of his junior year at San Diego State he was invited to the Lakers Camp. But the effects of dental surgery hampered his try-out during the first day of camp, and he was not invited back. Giving up his hopes for a professional basketball career, Brian began taking acting classes and soon was making a living as an actor in such films as Savage Streets (1984), 1941 (1979) and 240-Robert (1979).

After a decade in the film business, Brian went back to college, earning a bachelor’s degree at Sonoma State and a master’s at UCLA. After teaching drama and directing in Los Angeles and Reno, he moved to Sacramento when he was hired as the school’s theater director.

Brian is retiring to run his wellness practice based out of Grass Valley. He first became interested in wellness during his years as an actor in order to improve his mental, physical, and spiritual health; and his many injuries on the basketball court (as well as his height) caused him to look at different ways of maintaining his health, including ergonomic positions, spine strengthening, somatic posture exercises, and yoga.

In his closing remarks this year, Head of School Lee Thomsen said, “Brian was truly an ‘actor's director,’ in his willingness to incorporate the suggestions of his students. Whether that meant adding a song to feature the talent of a class member, writing an additional scene to flesh out a smaller part, or guiding student-written productions, Brian always brought the best out of his students.”

DENISE SCR UGGS, Mathematics Teacher Retiring after 20 years

Teaching was Denise’s second career after serving almost 20 years in the U.S. Navy, and her experience in the navy impacted her classroom approach. She told the Octagon, “I met and worked with so many different people and have been to so many different places, it makes me more patient, understanding and open to everyone’s backgrounds and cultures, especially because Country Day is very diverse.” Denise earned her bachelor’s degree while in the Navy and upon retirement enrolled in and received her master’s degree from “Troops to Teachers,” a program in which the Navy partnered with local universities to help retiring sailors get an education degree and teaching credential.

Her 20-year teaching career at Country Day began when she, her husband, and baby daughter, Brianna, moved to Sacramento and she was hired to teach math and science to fourth graders. After two years, she moved to the fifth grade, then sixth, and finally to the Middle School, always teaching the mathematics segment of the curriculum. “Math is either right or wrong,” says Denise, “which is why it has always been my favorite subject.”

For the last eight years, Denise taught eighth grade, which was her favorite. “I was able to teach both algebra and geometry, which are my preferred classes, and I really love eighth graders; they are very special young people.” This year’s graduation class was a distinct one for Denise since she taught some of them in fifth grade and again in eighth grade and was delighted to congratulate them as high school graduates, just as she, too, was leaving the school.

FELECIA KEYS, Orchestra & Choir Director Retiring after 10 years

Her name sounds like a melody so it’s fitting that Felecia Keys became a musician. Her music career began when she discovered the violin in sixth grade. Felecia told the Octagon, “I feel super blessed that I’ve been able to do music my whole life,” She plans to continue with music in her retirement city near Lake Chapala, Mexico. Felecia was introduced to the Lake Chapala area by friends and has spent vacations there in preparation for her move. In fact, she is already a member of the Lake Chapala Orchestra!

Hired as Country Day’s orchestra and choir director 10 years ago, Felecia was excited about taking on the role of teaching fifth grade orchestra in addition to Middle and High School orchestras. “I had high expectations for all three levels, and all groups had the same practice requirement of 60 minutes per week. Teaching fifth graders really brought me back to my early days of learning music, and I was careful to stay attuned to their learning style and musical background.”

When she was not teaching at Country Day, Felecia regularly played with the Sacramento Chamber Orchestra. In Keys’ interview with the Octagon, she said that playing with the Chamber Orchestra “helped her to support and understand her students as they prepared for auditions, performances, and solos.”

PA UL BA UMAN , Octagon Advisor Retiring after 2 years

At the virtual retirement party at the end of the school year, Head of School Lee Thomsen said, “Paul Bauman brought a lengthy resume of newspaper experience, is himself a published author, and brought his unflappable personality and style to our student paper.” Lee added, “We are deeply grateful to him for setting up the paper for the next decades of success.”

Before the call from the school, Paul had recently retired as desk chief in the sports department of The Sacramento Bee, where he had worked for the last 18 years, and was looking forward to working full time on his website NorCal Tennis Czar, a blog about professional, collegiate, and junior tennis. His 40-year career of professional newspaper experience has taken him to pro tennis tournaments around the world and stints as a sports writer in Texas and Nevada. Paul’s amateur journalism career started even earlier, when he was named editor-in-chief of the Rio Americano newspaper, and he continued writing at Stanford, where he was the co-sports editor of the Stanford Daily.

Paul was part of the school community before he was hired. His children, Jeff ’06 and Claire ’09, are graduates, and his wife, Jane, is Country Day’s director of college counseling.