Saint Ann's Times | Summer 2020

SAINT ANN’S TIMES

SUMMER 2020

Artwork by (clockwise from top left): Kyler L., 11th grade; Indra, 9th grade; Walker S., 11th grade; Lucy G., 9th grade; Ruby D., 10th grade; Ruby D., 10th grade; Thisbe W., 10th grade

Saint Ann’s Times: Summer 2020 A NOTE FROM THE EDITORS _____________________________________________________ 3 A LETTER FROM VINCE__________________________________________________________ 4 INSIDE THE CLASSROOM

Alumni Collaboration: Katie Merz ’78 and Third Graders_______________________________ 8 Fourth Grade Independent Science Research Projects _________________________________ 10 Zoom Brings New Opportunities to the Theater Classroom ____________________________ 11 New Student Art and Music Websites _____________________________________________ 12 OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM

Travelogue: Cuba Dance Trip for High School Students________________________________ Photo Gallery: High School Production of Macbeth___________________________________ Printing Face-Shield Headbands for Maimonides Medical Center________________________ Featured Year-End Publications__________________________________________________

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COMMUNITY EVENTS

Skating Party________________________________________________________________ 22 CLASS OF 2020________________________________________________________________ 24 FACULTY NEWS________________________________________________________________ 26 NEW SAINT ANN’S ADMINISTRATORS____________________________________________ 28 ALUMNI

Alumni Events _______________________________________________________________ 30 Alumni in the Field: Life As an Artist by Ilana Harris-Babou ’09 _________________________ 31 Alumni Mini Features__________________________________________________________ 32 IN MEMORIAM_________________________________________________________________ 38

Cover Artwork: Serenity B., 8th grade

The Saint Ann’s Times is published biannually by Saint Ann’s School for alumni, parents of alumni, parents, grandparents, faculty, former faculty, and friends of the School. Questions or feedback about the magazine may be sent to the Director of Communications at communications@saintannsny.org and/or the Director of Alumni Relations at alumni@saintannsny.org.

Editorial Staff

Design

Anne Conway, Director of Communications

Heather Francovitch, Web and Graphic Design Coordinator

Hannah Swacker Kurnit ’97, Director of Alumni Relations David Smith, Director of Development Elena Sheppard ’05, Alumni Relations Associate Anna Verdi, Special Events Coordinator

©2020 Saint Ann’s School

Artwork by: Edie L., 11th grade

WELCOME

A Note From the Editors Dear Readers, Welcome to the first-ever online-only issue of the Saint Ann’s Times! We work together to produce the magazine along with a team of our colleagues and, of course, all of our many contributors from the extended Saint Ann’s community.

Due to the challenging circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, including the evershifting geographic locations of many of our community members, we made the decision to publish the Summer 2020 issue through the online publishing platform ISSUU. We hope this change allows us to reach everyone this summer, wherever you may be. While we treasure holding the physical magazine in our hands as much as we know our readers do, this alternative format has also afforded us an exciting opportunity to share different types of content from this period at Saint Ann’s in a way that would be difficult in print. We hope you enjoy these glimpses into what our students, faculty, staff and alumni have been up to these last few months.

We are grateful to everyone who contributed their time and worked to make this issue possible during a spring unlike any other. We welcome feedback on this alternative format and news for the next issue.

If you know someone in our extended community—grandparents, former faculty and staff, parents of alumni, etc.—who did not receive a link directly to their inbox, we may not have a current email address on file for them. Feel free to get in touch with either of us and we will be happy to update our records.

If you’re interested in reading more about our planning for the fall, you can find all COVID-19 related communications on our website here.

Most importantly, thank you for reading!

Warmly,

Anne Conway Director of Communications communications@saintannsny.org

Hannah Swacker Kurnit ‘97 Director of Alumni Relations alumni@saintannsny.org

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A LETTER FROM VINCE

Confronting Racism at Saint Ann’s: Our Commitments for 2020–2021 and Beyond The letter below was sent to current parents, high school students, faculty, staff and all alumni on June 23 and posted on our website. We reprint it here for our full extended community.

Dear Faculty, Staff, Students, Parents and Alumni, Racism is systemic. It is endemic. It is pervasive, and it exists at Saint Ann’s School. It is perpetuated by unequal distribution of power and privilege along racial lines in ways that uphold white supremacy. Anti-Black racism in the United States manifests itself—as it has for four hundred years—in ways too numerous to count, most grievously in centuries of enslavement, physical violence, murder and brutality systematically targeting Black people in our country. It exists in and has been perpetuated by corporations, colleges and universities, civic and judicial institutions, churches, and schools. Including this one. Over the past several weeks I have heard from many of our alumni who care deeply about our school but who experienced racism in many forms that we must acknowledge and confront as the first step towards immediate and lasting change to benefit all current and future Saint Ann’s students.

We believe that Black Lives Matter. What will we do at Saint Ann’s to face the history and reality of anti-Black racism and protect today’s Saint Ann’s students from it? How can I and our faculty and staff make changes and decisions right now that will ensure that all students, from our preschoolers to our seniors, will experience a different school in September 2020?

First, I acknowledge that racism exists and has been sustained within our walls. It has caused and is causing pain and trauma to our students, teachers, and staff of color. Second, we must make clear commitments whose ultimate aim—however hard it may be to achieve or however long it may take—is to dismantle racism by understanding and overturning the systematic ways in which it has persisted in our school. To do so requires clearly stated commitments from me and everyone else in positions of leadership at Saint Ann’s in every facet of what we do, as well as action born of those commitments. Third, to our Black alumni, students, faculty and staff in particular I apologize that I have not more swiftly, transparently and directly addressed racism and acts of bias on the part of members of our community. Acknowledging that we failed you, that I failed you, is for me an important step towards meaningful change. Your voices, raised in the hope that today’s Saint Ann’s students will not experience what you did, will make a difference.

I am outlining here a first set of commitments and actions that we will undertake now and throughout the 2020-21 school year. What ties them all together is the recognition that if we are to fulfill one of Saint Ann’s most basic and solemn commitments—to see every child flourish—then we must enact change across every dimension of the school, and we must keep the experience of every student at the center of our vision and decision-making.

The past several weeks have revealed broad enthusiasm from teachers, administrators and staff across all of our divisions and departments for undertaking this work, and the Board of Trustees has reaffirmed its commitment as the school’s governing body to support these

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efforts. Communication, transparency, and accountability through periodic progress reports, the school website, and other means will be central to every step I describe below. In one way or another everyone who cares about Saint Ann’s, everyone who has joined me in celebrating what is powerfully good about our school, must and should participate in making our school more just, inclusive and equitable so that our students can learn in an environment that embodies these fundamental values of our community.

Culture and Community • Create designated time in our schedule for regular workshops and facilitated conversations around race and racism in which every middle and high school student will participate. (Those who are interested will find information about what is already underway at Saint Ann’s here: https://saintannsny.org/diversity. School-year specific information on these pages will be updated over the summer to reflect the 2020–21 school year.)

• With the goal of eliminating peer-to-peer bias incidents, ensure that every student has engaged in anti-bias work that is age and developmentally appropriate in grades K-12.

• Review and where necessary revise student disciplinary policies to ensure that pathways for reporting bias incidents are clear and train administrators in implementing restorative justice practices when incidents of racialized community or individual harm occur.

Curriculum and Faculty • To further the school’s goal of fostering a racially diverse faculty and staff we will require open, advertised searches for all teaching and staff positions so that hires are made from the broadest and most diverse pools of candidates.

• Undertake department- and division-wide curriculum reviews in 2020–21 to ensure that curricula reflect a robust diversity of texts, perspectives, topics, and authors, to critically examine ways in which whiteness can be decentered and openly discussed, and to ensure that every student develops fluency, knowledge, and deep understanding of the role of race in American society.

• To continue to support faculty efforts to create new curricula and respond appropriately to bias incidents, and to ensure an equitable learning environment for every student we will undertake ongoing professional development opportunities and training in which all teachers will engage, including workshops in curriculum redesign, culturally responsive pedagogy, decentering whiteness, mandatory anti-bias training and others.

• Beginning in 2021–22, after school-wide professional development and training opportunities have been provided in 2020–21, teacher evaluations will include assessment of each teacher’s ability to address bias incidents when they occur and their effectiveness in creating equitable classroom environments.

• Undertake review of Faculty and Staff Handbook to ensure that equitable and explicit policies are in place and consistently followed to provide mentoring and to address incidents of bias on the part of faculty and staff.

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Resources • Increase funding for diversity and equity work (workshops, training, professional development, etc.) by $100,000 in the 2020–21 school year.

• Sustain the school’s commitment to need-based financial aid (more than $9 million in 2020-21) in the face of financial constraints related to COVID-19. In addition to this, the school has already allocated more than $800,000 in emergency financial aid for the coming year to Saint Ann’s families impacted by the current financial crisis.

• Sustain and if possible expand on the school’s current commitment ($250,000 annually) to non-tuition scholarship support in order to promote equitable access to all of the school’s academic and extracurricular programs, academic and student support services, and an equitable college application process.

• Continue recruitment and outreach efforts in admissions to build on the progress already made in achieving greater racial diversity in all major admissions-entry grades.

• Compensate faculty and staff who serve as ongoing facilitators of equity work with colleagues and students, recognizing that this burden and others often fall disproportionately on faculty and staff of color.

Reconciliation and Dialogue • Through the recently created Alumni Advisory Committee, facilitate dialogue with and solicit ongoing advice from graduates of Saint Ann’s on behalf of the school administration and Board of Trustees.

• Organize conversations among Black alumni, trustees, faculty and administrators as an affinity space for Black people affiliated with Saint Ann’s to build community with each other and to carve out space for healing, reflection, dialogue and support.

• Through Monday Symposium, White Anti-Racist Educators, racial affinity spaces for faculty and staff, and other external and internal programming continue to support school-wide dialogue on race, identity, and equity and deepen faculty-wide familiarity with anti-racist practices.

• Develop workshops for parents to provide information and resources that will enable all parents to support the equity work of the school.

Leadership and Governance • Review and revise our Mission Statement and Statement of Purposes and Objectives to explicitly embed principles of diversity, equity and inclusion in these guiding documents.

• Create designated young alumni seats on the Board of Trustees to ensure that the perspectives, and votes, of young alumni are included in the school’s governing body.

• In the criteria used by the Nominating and Governance Committee of the Board of Trustees, include experience in diversity practices among the skills sought in identifying and recruiting new members of the Board.

• Ensure that the composition of the Board of Trustees reflects the increasing racial diversity of our school community; currently five of nineteen trustees are people of color, four of whom are Black.

• Strengthen Board training on diversity, equity and inclusion work in schools.

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• Continued training and professional development for all Core administrators, department chairs and others in positions of leadership in effective strategies to dismantle racism in schools, bias-incident response protocols, implicit bias and culturally responsive curricula.

• Continue to make racial diversity a central consideration in any searches to fill leadership positions at Saint Ann’s.

Because systemic racism is pervasive and deeply rooted, it will not be eliminated from our school in the year ahead, and indeed can never fully be extirpated so long as it thrives in the society around us and in the structures and practices of our institutions. It is my hope that these initial steps, and others to be developed this fall, will set our feet upon a path we must follow, and follow urgently. The journey towards equity will not be over soon, and we will make mistakes along the way. We will take up this challenge with characteristic passion and creativity; with unswerving attention to the voices of all of our students; with our belief in the power of deep, meaningful and respectful relationships between teachers and students; and with a recognition that the problems we face may be universal but the way is open for us to overcome them that embodies the best of Saint Ann’s traditions, values and beliefs.

The enthusiasm and commitment demonstrated by hundreds of faculty and staff in the past several weeks gives me confidence that our school can and will fulfill its obligation to see every child flourish, to make every family a true partner in our work, and to be a place where every teacher and staff is a full and equal member of the community.

Love,

Vincent Tompkins Head of School

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INSIDE THE CLASSROOM

Alumni Collaboration: Katie Merz ’78 and Third Graders Anne Conway, Director of Communications This semester, artist Katie Merz ’78, who describes her work as “influenced by Brooklyn, cartoons, architecture, silence and the kinetic structure of things” collaborated with Laurie Duchovny and Asher Townsend’s ’10 third grade class. Included here are some of the photos that resulted and Laurie’s reflection on the ultimate video project.

Home, is where I want to be But I guess I’m already there I come home, she lifted up her wings I guess that this must be the place.

–David Byrne

When Asher and I made the video for our project with Katie Merz ’78, we didn’t know that “Naive Melody” was one of her favorite songs as well. It makes sense. It’s the best love song ever, and Katie’s work is about finding love in the face of sometimes overwhelming circumstances and injustices. Love, imagination and community gave our class wings. Thank you, Katie.

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Fourth Grade Independent Science Research Projects Elisa Chavez, Nicholas Harbison and Gretta Reed, Science Faculty Members

Each spring, fourth grade students complete independent science research projects. Each student formulates a testable question and conducts an at-home experiment to test it. This year, the students needed to get extra creative to find materials, collect data and share results with their classes. We were impressed with their flexibility, innovation and artistry as they designed and executed their experiments!

Research questions included:

• How many spring migratory

birds can be spotted in Prospect Park?

• Which soap is the most effective at removing stains?

• Are different shells found

“ocean side” and “bay side”?

• Do birds communicate to each other about where food is?

• Does the density of water influence tornado speed?

• How does exercise change heart rates?

• Which food scraps and

soils make the most effective compost?

• Which colors can my dog see?

We saw students get hands-on! Whether gardening, baking, cooking, or collecting, fourth graders connected over their research and inspired one another to keep exploring and experimenting this summer. Building on a year full of in-class observational skill building, students also utilized new-to-them tools like Google Slides and Sheets and presented their results and conclusions to their class via Zoom.

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Zoom Brings New Opportunities to the Theater Classroom Nancy Reardon, Theater Faculty Zoom gave me an opportunity that I haven’t had before in all my years teaching at Saint Ann’s. So many theater friends were stuck in their homes that they were going just as crazy as the rest of us. So I asked some of them if they would like to give me a hand teaching our students. I teach two sections of high school Shakespeare Workshop as well as a section of lower middle school theater.

First up was Tony Award-winning actor, songwriter, all around great guy Jim Dale who leapt at the opportunity. Jim, who did all the voices for the Harry Potter audio books, wrote and performed a fifteenminute monologue for my fourth and fifth graders about characters and voices, using the Harry Potter characters he had created. He ended it by calling on the students to call someone they knew who might want to hear from them. It was very funny and very sweet. You can listen to a short excerpt here.

Next up were two legendary theater pros who joined our Zooming Shakespeare Workshop to watch students perform and give feedback. Kathy Chalfant, a multiple award-winning actress and Bartlett Sher, the resident Artistic Director of Lincoln Center, both jumped in.

Kathy came to both sections of the Workshop giving the students smart and understandable comments to improve their work. Bart came not once but three times to each section. He had some do a monologue not once or twice but seven times in one case. He was gentle, funny and smart. You can view some of what Bart shared with students here.

Kathy said working with my students was the best thing she had done since the lockdown. Bart, a ninetime Tony Award-winning director, one of the best in the world in my opinion, said he enjoyed it so much that he would like to come back next year to work with the actors in person.

It was pretty special. In fact, one of the seniors in my workshop noted how special, saying it was a wonderful way to end his days at Saint Ann’s.

Artwork by: Lily L., 8th grade

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New Student Art and Music Websites This spring, during distance learning, our art and music departments created new websites to chronicle the work students were producing. The idea behind the art website was to post everything teachers were receiving from their students as it came in, so that the site simply documented these strange times while celebrating the creativity and resilience of our students. The music website contains audio and video recordings of students from throughout the school continuing to make music together while apart, along with photos from days when we could do so together. Enjoy these new ways of appreciating our students’ work!

View Student Art Site Here

View Student Music Site Here

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OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM

Travelogue: Cuba Dance Trip for High School Students Kate Hamilton, Theater Faculty

2/8 Saturday What an amazing group of high school students we took to Cuba in February! I was joined by my fellow chaperones and dance teachers Shalewa Mackall, Jamal Jackson ’96 and Dana Thomas.

After landing in Havana and meeting our guide, Beatriz, and driver, Fernando, we were given a quick bus tour and history about how Cuba has changed since the “Special Period,” and Beatriz pointed out important government buildings and architecture. We then proceeded to Havana Vieja and began a walking tour to the main squares, including Plaza de Armas and Plaza de la Catedral, and viewed Spanish Colonial architecture. We were struck by the contrast and juxtaposition of restored, dilapidated and somewhere-in-between buildings, while marveling at all the sculptures dotted about.

2/9 Sunday Our first full day was jam-packed and was particularly memorable. A trip to Las Terrazas, situated in the Sierra del Rosario mountain range, included a tour and history of the self-sustaining community, a coffee tasting, and a visit to local artist Ariel Gato’s studio. Surrounded by hanging recycled paper that he uses for his art work, Gato’s studio was packed with a large array of watercolor and oil paintings, cards, and wooden mobiles. After a delicious lunch and a decided change of weather, the highlight for many was jumping into the San Juan river in pouring rain. Dining at sunset on the terrace at Atelier restaurant was a visual treat; it was decorated with old typewriters, sewing machines, and even roseshaped toilet paper installations in the bathroom. We rounded off the evening by wandering through live performances, art installations, and found-art sculptures at the famous o Fábrica de Arte Cuba.

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2/10–2/14 The week The main focus of our trip was studying movement technique and learning repertory at Malpaso Dance Studio in Vedado. Our days started with a Graham-based class led by Idania, who was clear, concise and so warm in her corrections and teaching style. Idania is not only a phenomenal teacher but also the mother of Osnel Delgado, founder of Malpaso Dance Company. Throughout the week Idania taught sequences across the floor and added spiraling and turning variations. One of our favorites was moving in a figure-eight floor pattern around a partner, which we performed all together.

After a short break, Joanna led a daily Afro-Cuban dance class, where the students learned choreography of the Orishas. Joanna is a principal dancer with a national Afro-Cuban folkloric company. Her passion, pace and layering of material interspersed with explanations and context about the movement’s source were hungrily absorbed and much enjoyed. Each day Joanna reviewed and built on previous material to create dances.

Walking to and from the dance studio everyday we encountered a familiar mixture of soundbites: street conversation, the calls of vendors in the marketplace and the pulling of pineapple carts, all mixed in with the sound of schoolchildren’s voices as we turned the corner to the street where the studio was located. The walk became a time to catch up with each other and enjoy being outside in the warm sunshine. The studio is a theater within The Sephardic Center Museum. The museum is run by members of the Cuban Jewish community, one of whom was in his eighties and greeted visitors daily upon their arrival at the museum.

2/10 Monday After classes, we were picked up by Beatriz and Fernando and taken to a perfect area for site-specific dance making on the Malecón. Here the students performed solos, duos and trios interacting with the seawall, the open space and various sculptural objects. A highlight was a five-minute long improvisation that we performed as a group.

2/11 Tuesday After our daily classes in the morning, Louis, a Malpaso company member, taught us a duet from Dancing with Lions, a full-length dance inspired by Hemingway’s The Old Man and The Sea and, in particular, the struggle between a fisherman and a marlin. The section we learned contained beautifully fluid movement vocabulary and partner work. Later that day, Beatriz led us on a tour of the famous o Hotel Nacional de Cuba. From there we visited El Morro Fort, and then continued our site-specific investigations around the Cristo de La Habana sculpture, overlooking the bay of Havana, at twilight.

Later, during dinner in Havana Vieja, Kiiren J. (12th grade) provided a memorable highlight when he was invited to perform one of his raps with the live band.

2/12 Wednesday After our daily classes, we developed our improvisations and began to develop them into a group dance. We also reviewed the Malpaso duet. The evening was spent dining and walking about in the squares of Havana Vieja.

2/13 Thursday This was the last day with Idania. After class, we interviewed Louis about his training and dancing with Malpaso. Next was the best lobster lunch ever at Le Chansonnier. After lunch, we embarked on a well-earned trip to the beach. Diving into perfect waves in beautiful surroundings was the best! Some of us ran a hundred-meter dash, while others played games in the water or just walked along the beach until the sun began to dip behind the trees. We rounded off the day dining with Malpaso company members at Mediterraneo Havana in Vedado.

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2/14 Friday On our last day with Joanna, she taught Rumba–a great way to end and so much fun! Afterwards, Faith P. (12th grade) facilitated and translated a question and answer session with Joanna. We had a particularly memorable exchange with Rafael Carini Millan Middle School in the afternoon. Students and faculty greeted us with a passionate introduction to their school, in English. They then led us into a large room where they sang, acted and danced initiating an exchange with members of our group.

We attended a presentation given by Habana Compas dance company, whose performance combined percussion and dance in a studio and theater space housed in a converted warehouse. After a brief visit to historical Revolution Square and our farewell dinner, Louis joined us to attend an outstanding performance of the Cuban National Ballet at the Gran Teatro de La Habana. Then, in various forms of antique taxis, we made our way back to the hotel.

2/15 Saturday Before leaving we were able to squeeze in a quick trip to Fusterlandia to view José Fuster’s extensive public art installations and colorful, whimsical mosaics. After a quick flight home, we returned to cold weather and happy parents. We realize now how particularly fortunate we were to be able to take this trip when we did!

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Photo Gallery: High School Production of Macbeth In February, Nancy Reardon directed high schoolers in an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth set in 1972. Photography by Kimberlee Venable, Art Faculty.

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Printing Face-Shield Headbands for Maimonides Medical Center Jascha Narveson, Computer Faculty When Saint Ann’s closed I pretty much immediately spent two weeks sleeping off a mild case of COVID-19. After another couple weeks of self-isolation I was ready to try and help out by volunteering the Computer Center’s 3D printers. Around that same time, Dr. Danny Sherwinter from Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn wrote to the New York Consortium of Independent School Technologists email list, looking for donations of materials so his team could assemble their own face-shields. One quick email exchange later and my wife Lainie Fefferman (former math faculty) and I were making two trips a day to the Computer Center, printing out batches of headbands using the 3D file that Dr. Sherwinter sent.

Diana Lomask ’87, Director of Admission, helped immensely by driving fresh batches of alcoholwiped headbands to the Maimonides drop-off point. Over the following three weeks we delivered over 200 headbands. Soon after Dr. Sherwinter wrote with great news: Things had stabilized at Maimonides to the point where they no longer needed extra PPE—an early sign of what is now a general trend all across the city.

I enjoyed my reverse commute: Walking to the Computer Center early in the morning and late at night while teaching from home during the day. If you know someone in the medical field who needs 3D parts printed, do put them in touch with me!

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Featured Year-End Publications Math Art Festival This spring our annual Math Art Festival moved to a new format on Padlet. Click here to view. Scroll to the right and down to check out what students created!

Library Summer Reading Lists Our suggested summer reading lists are available on our website. Check them out for some inspiration. Happy reading this summer!

Science Explorations Click here to look through Science Explorations, the e-publication from our high school Independent Science Research program.

Literary Magazines Click here to read the High School Literary Magazine. Click here for the Middle School Literary Magazine.

Artwork by: Soleil P., 9th grade

Inextricable tangle Laying, inaudible on the floor Bending Twisting In the decrepit closet Hulling them out, Hours disentangling On and on Distributing into order Descending again

By Hope C., 4th Grade 21

COMMUNITY EVENTS

Skating Party On February 27, about 700 people attended the beloved annual Skating Party that takes place at the LeFrak Center at Lakeside in Prospect Park. Students, parents and faculty laced up their skates and enjoyed gliding around the ice on two rinks, one covered and one open, connected by an ice bridge. Hot chocolate breaks allowed skaters to warm up between spins on the rinks. Every year, families agree that the Skating Party is a very special and favorite community evening.

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Artwork by: Eve M., 1st grade

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Saint Ann’s has seen a substantial increase in requests for financial aid from families who need support in order to keep their children—our students—enrolled at Saint Ann’s. If you can give to the Annual Fund this year, or can give an additional gift, please know that all donations through July 31 will go directly toward keeping our community whole. This crisis has affected each of us differently, but we know that those of you who are in a position to help will enable us to meet the needs of our families so that we can continue to “offer our dreams to those who will share theirs with us.” make a gift

Questions?

www.saintannsny.org/annual-fund

CLASS OF 2020 Members of the Class of 2020 were were invited to attend the following colleges: Aberystwyth University (UK)...........1

Marymount Manhattan College.......1

University of Exeter (UK)..................1

American University..........................6

McGill University (Canada)..............4

University of Glasgow (UK)..............3

American University of Paris (FR).....2

Middlebury College...........................2

University of Hartford.......................1

Amherst College................................5

Mills College.....................................1

University of Kent (UK)....................1

Babson College..................................2

New York University.........................3

University of Leeds (UK)..................1

Bard College....................................15

Northeastern University....................3

University of Maine, Farmington......1

Bard College Berlin (Germany).........2

Northwestern University...................2

Barnard College.................................1

Oberlin College...............................15

University of Massachusetts, Amherst..........................................9

Bates College.....................................1

Oberlin Conservatory of Music.........1

Boston College..................................2

Occidental College............................1

Boston University..............................5

Oxford Brookes University (UK)......1

Brandeis University............................4

Parsons School of Design...................1

Brown University...............................8

Pitzer College.....................................2

Bryn Mawr College...........................2

Princeton University..........................1

California Institute of the Arts..........1

Reed College......................................4

Carleton College................................3

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute........1

Carnegie Mellon University...............1

Rhode Island School of Design.........2

Chapman University..........................1

Rhodes College..................................1

Clark University................................6

Rice University..................................2

Colgate University.............................2

Sarah Lawrence College.....................7

College of William and Mary............1

Savannah College of Art and Design...............................1

Colorado College...............................1 Columbia University.........................1 Concordia University (Canada).........1 Connecticut College..........................4 Cornell University.............................5 Drexel University...............................1 Duke University................................1 Durham University (UK)..................1 Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University..................1 Emerson College................................4 Emory University..............................4 Fashion Institute of Technology........1 Fordham University...........................1 George Washington University..........3 Georgetown University......................1 Goldsmiths University (UK).............1 Grinnell College................................3 Hamilton College..............................8 Harvey Mudd College.......................1 Haverford College.............................5 Howard University............................3 Ithaca College....................................3 Kenyon College.................................8 Loughborough University (UK)........1 Macalester College.............................8 24

School of the Art Institute of Chicago.......................................2 Scripps College..................................1 Skidmore College..............................7 Smith College....................................7 Spelman College................................3 SUNY, Albany...................................1 SUNY, Binghamton University.........6 SUNY, Purchase College...................2 SUNY, Stony Brook University.........4 Swarthmore College..........................2 Syracuse University............................2 Temple University..............................4 Trinity College..................................1 Tufts University.................................6 United States Naval Academy............1 UC, Berkeley.....................................1 UC, Davis..........................................1 UC, Los Angeles................................1 UC, San Diego..................................2 UC, Santa Barbara.............................2 UC, Santa Cruz.................................4 University of Chicago........................6 University of Colorado, Boulder........1 University of Edinburgh (UK)..........3

University of Michigan......................5 University of North Carolina School of the Arts...........................3 University of Pennsylvania................1 University of Puget Sound.................1 University of Rochester......................5 University of St Andrews (UK).........3 University of the Arts London, Central Saint Martins (UK)...........1 University of Toronto (Canada).........1 University of Vermont.......................8 University of Virginia........................2 Vassar College....................................7 Washington University in St. Louis.....................................2 Wesleyan University........................11 Western University (Canada).............1 Whitman College..............................1 Williams College...............................3 Worcester Polytechnic Institute.........1 Yale University...................................2

The Class of 2020 will matriculate at the following colleges: American University................................. 1

Parsons School of Design......................... 1

Amherst College....................................... 3

Pitzer College........................................... 1

Babson College......................................... 1

Princeton University................................. 1

Bard College Berlin (Germany)................ 1

Rhode Island School of Design................. 1

Barnard College........................................ 1

Rice University......................................... 2

Boston College......................................... 1

School of the Art Institute of Chicago...... 1

Boston University..................................... 1

Smith College........................................... 2

Brown University..................................... 7

Swarthmore College................................. 1

Chapman University................................ 1

Tufts University........................................ 3

Columbia University................................ 1

University of Chicago............................... 5

Connecticut College................................. 2

University of Edinburgh (UK).................. 1

Cornell University.................................... 4

University of Hartford.............................. 1

Emerson College...................................... 1

University of Kent (UK)*......................... 1

Emory University..................................... 2

University of Michigan............................. 1

Fashion Institute of Technology................ 1

University of Virginia............................... 1

George Washington University................. 1

University of North Carolina, School of the Arts.................................. 1

Georgetown University............................. 1 Haverford College.................................... 2 Kenyon College........................................ 2 New York University................................ 2 Northwestern University.......................... 1 Oberlin College........................................ 4 Oberlin Conservatory of Music................ 1

University of St Andrews (UK)................. 1 Vassar College.......................................... 2 Washington University in St. Louis.......... 2 Wesleyan University................................. 6 Williams College...................................... 2 Yale University......................................... 2

*At the time of publication, U.K. offers were still being confirmed

Artwork by: Sam S., 12th grade

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FACULTY NEWS

Current Faculty Kevin Anderson

Kevin’s role in the high school office will expand.

He will take on additional duties organizing student activities as High School Student Affairs Coordinator.

Gillian Baine

This fall, Gillian will assume the role of Head of the Lower School. During her teaching career at Saint Ann’s, spanning eleven years overall, she has taught in each grade from kindergarten through third, coached middle school soccer, and worked as an interviewer in our admissions office. Gillian’s ability to connect immediately, intuitively and respectfully with young children, and to articulate a future for the Lower School that builds on our distinctive strengths will serve her well in this new role.

Desiree Butler

During her year on leave from teaching English at Saint Ann’s, Desiree won the 2020 Yale Series of Younger Poets competition for her manuscript What Noise Against the Cane. She returns to the Saint Ann’s classroom this fall.

Chris Caccamise

This fall, Chris will assume the role of Educational Technology Coordinator. Prior to arriving at Saint Ann’s, Chris served as the Digital Media Specialist at The Allen-Stevenson School.

He brings a wealth of experience to his new role here, supporting faculty in making effective use of technology in their classrooms and students as they develop digital fluency. Chris will continue to teach courses in the Computer Department.

Chad Coe

Chad, who teaches music, recorded with the Peter Leitch New Life Orchestra, which features the compositions and arranging of Peter Leitch.

Dominic Coles ’12

Dominic’s duo, Other Plastics, released a new record called Overtime Liquor. It is available for order on Bandcamp. When he’s not making music Dominic is an assistant in the middle school office.

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Diane Exavier

Playwright and theater teacher Diane has a book of poetry being released in 2021 titled The Math of Saint Felix from The 3rd Thing, a small, independent press dedicated to publishing necessary alternatives to what is already out there in abundance. The Math of Saint Felix is Diane’s attempt to do the math of a woman, of her mother, in a family, in America, in Haitian Diaspora.

Eli Forsythe

Eli is now the Director of Academic and Administrative Technology. Eli has been an educational technologist at Saint Ann’s since 2013, and was integral to our successful transition to distance learning this spring.

Laura Gilbert

Electric Earth Concerts, a music organization in Peterborough, N.H., of which Laura is CoFounder and Co-Artistic Director, was awarded a National Endowment of the Arts ArtWorks grant for their project “Changing the Conversation.”

The project is a series of four concerts and eight free community engagement events exploring the interplay of gender, race, politics and aesthetics, that has helped to shape the language of American concert music during the last one hundred years.

Tom Kingsley

Tom, who has been at Saint Ann’s since 2004 teaching debate, oratory and rhetoric, Latin, and Greek, will be the next chair of the Classics and Asian Languages Department, which also includes our Language Structures program. Tom, a teacher of enormous wisdom and keen insight, has devoted himself to his department, to our students and to our school.

Łukasz Krzywon

After three years at Saint Ann’s, Łukasz is leaving to pursue his master’s degree in Mathematics at New York University.

Michele Levin

After three years working as an advisor in the high school office, Michele is moving into a new role as the Co-Chair of the Science Department for the 2020–2021 school year.

Dov Lebowitz-Nowak ’00

Dov has transitioned to a full-time role as Innovation Educational Technologist & Help Desk Manager, which is part of the technology staff team.

Liz Lord

Liz returned to the middle school office this spring after she and her husband Lee welcomed daughter Madeline to their family.

Hannah Mermelstein

Librarian Hannah and her wife Gretchen welcomed Fern Bindy Mermelstein Virkler to their family this spring. Fern joins big sister Ellen, who is a rising preschool fours student.

Sarah Moon

In addition to her work as a college counselor, next year Sarah will leave her role as a teacher in the Romance Languages Department but take on new responsibilities in our DEI office as High School Student Equity Coordinator.

Max Neesemann ’01

Max is leaving his position as Chair of the Mathematics Department and will return to teaching full-time.

Maria Osborn

Maria is leaving her position as Co-Chair of the Theater Department and will return to teaching full-time.

Tori Russell

Tori has moved to the Finance Office full-time in the role of Accounts Payable and Finance Associate.

Stephanie Schragger & Michele Levin

Stephanie (history faculty) and Michele (science faculty) started a fundraiser called Brooklyn Cares to help feed frontline workers during the coronavirus pandemic. They have raised over $16,000 and delivered over 1,000 meals,

partnering with local restaurants who did the cooking. Others in the Saint Ann’s community helped deliver meals including School Psychologist Liz Bernbach ’86 and her husband Nelson, as well as Head Nurse Pumpkin Wentzel.

Megan Shand ’92

This fall, Megan will assume the role of CoChair of the Theater Department. For nearly two decades Megan has been a cornerstone of the department. She is an exquisite costume designer, a generous and inspiring teacher, and a collaborator on theater productions too numerous to count.

Elizabeth Sheridan Rossi

Elizabeth will assume the role of Chair of the Mathematics Department this fall. She began teaching math at Saint Ann’s in 2006 and returned in the fall of 2018 after some time away to complete her doctoral work. Elizabeth brings a keen interest in igniting a passion for and confidence in mathematics among her students, and the universal support of her colleagues in the Mathematics Department, to her new role.

Marcus Singleton

Marcus was recently featured in an artNet News piece in which artists from across the country were interviewed about what they saw and felt at the George Floyd protests. After four years in the Lower School, Marcus is leaving Saint Ann’s this fall to take up an artists’ residence at The Macedonia Institute in Chatham, New York.

Dante Smith

After four years working with our tech theater students, Dante accepted a full-time position with Lighting Design Group, a broadcast and television lighting firm, and is currently working as a Lighting Director for CNN’s Primetime coverage.

Connor Spencer

Connor will be leaving his role as English teacher to begin a Ph.D. in English and Comparative Literature at Columbia in the fall, focusing on 20th-century LGBTQ literature and culture.

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Birgitta Victorson

This fall, Birgitta will assume the role of Chair of the Theater Department. In her twelve years at Saint Ann’s, Birgitta’s deep training and experience as a theater artist, her ability to span drama and dance, the respect she enjoys in the department and across the school among colleagues who have worked with her, and her vision for building on the remarkable qualities that set our Theater Department apart from all others have proven her more than ready to take on this new role.

Asiya Wadud

Poetry teacher Asiya’s Echo Exhibit project, ran from June 22-July 10. The project was a series of oneon-one telephone conversations between community members and writers, selected by Asiya, who built a poem using the words or themes of the phone conversation as content.

Carrie Wang

Carrie will be leaving her role in the History Department to attend medical school.

Jennifer Zerneck

Jen, who has taught and coached at Saint Ann’s since 2008 as a member of the Recreational Arts Department, is moving into a new role as Middle School Grade Dean. She will begin working with sixth graders in the fall.

New Saint Ann’s Administrators Veronica Rivera

Veronica is the new High School Grade Dean and she will begin working with the tenth grade this fall. A graduate of Amherst College, Veronica is currently serving as a Post-Placement Counselor for Upper School students (including Saint Ann’s students) at Prep for Prep, where she has worked in various roles since 2010. In addition to her role in the high school office, Veronica will also work part-time with our Director of Diversity and Institutional Equity as High School Student Equity Counselor. Veronica’s decade of experience cultivating relationships with students and advising them throughout the process of school placement in middle school, during their high school experience, and during the college application process are all qualities that she will bring to bear in her work at Saint Ann’s.

James Rutherford

Jamie joined the development team this spring in the role of Advancement Services Manager. He brings an extensive background in development work, most recently at The National September 11 Memorial & Museum where he served as Senior Manager for Data and Donor Analytics.

Maureen “Mo” Yusuf-Morales

Mo is the new Head of the Upper Middle School. A graduate of Stuyvesant High School, Smith College, and NYU’s Steinhardt School, from which she received her master’s degree in School Leadership, Mo most recently served as the Founding Principal at East Harlem Scholars Academy. Prior to that Mo worked as a middle school teacher, advisor and administrator at the Town School, Brooklyn Friends School, Uncommon Schools, and Breakthrough New York. To her new role at Saint Ann’s Mo brings brilliant collaborative instincts, an immediate and charismatic connection with children, and a deep commitment to making schools equitable learning environments for all students.

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Artwork by Jules H., 11th grade

The bay I went to the beach for a picnic.

I saw a polished ship and silver seagulls Were fighting red fire ants Squids zoomed and sprayed Their black ink at the sharks Whales sing their breathtaking Songs, immortal jellyfish ride the Currents over a reef that sparkles Like jewels At two we have to leave and just before we Rolled up the blankets, I wrote this poem We walked past plants of all sizes Green leaves flowed down to the water And nibbled on my fish After sinking under the waves on this Wonderful summer day.

By Jordan Y., 4th Grade

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ALUMNI EVENTS

Virtual Alumni Networking Event On Wednesday, June 17, Saint Ann’s joined our Brooklyn Independent School neighbors to host an online event: Conversation on Careers. Panelists included, Peter Laughter (Brooklyn Friends ’89), Founder and CEO of Spartoi Group, Bari Saltman Lemberger (Berkeley Carroll ’10), Senior Manager of Social Impact at LinkedIn, and Adeyemi Mchunguzi (Packer ’09) Founder, CEO & Principal Consultant of ASMT Solutions.

The discussion included career concerns in a post-quarantine world, such as: how to engage professionally, how to network effectively without direct contact, job searching with confidence, representing yourself well when interviewing, and how to best showcase your talents virtually— especially via platforms like LinkedIn. In past years this networking event has been in person, and our annual gathering is a wonderful opportunity for our alumni to engage, and share skills and expertise, with alumni from other Brooklyn Independent Schools.

An Alumni Gathering in Washington, D.C. On February 13, alumni in the Washington, D.C. area gathered at 12 Stories in the Wharf District.

With a gorgeous view of the Potomac as our backdrop, roughly thirty alumni chatted the evening away. Alumni from the class of 2018 to the class of 1977 were present. It was a wonderful evening of mingling and meeting old friends and making new ones—something we sorely miss now.

Artwork by Nikita M., 8th Grade

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ALUMNI IN THE FIELD

Life As an Artist Ilana Harris-Babou ’09 Ever since I finished my M.F.A. in 2016, I’ve been working as an artist and educator throughout the United States, Canada and Europe.

My art is interdisciplinary, spanning sculpture and installation, and grounded in video. I speak the aspirational language of consumer culture, using humor as a means to digest painful realities. I confront the contradictions of the American Dream: the ever-unreliable notion that hard work will lead to upward mobility and economic freedom.

Lately I’ve been experimenting with ceramics and animation.

I’ve been living in the Berkshires and teaching video and sculpture at Williams College for the past few years. Last year was full of adventures. I was the youngest artist in the 2019 Whitney Biennial, and was on Forbes Magazine’s 30 Under 30 list in Arts & Style. I had solo presentations at the Flint Institute of Arts in Michigan, and 80WSE galleries at NYU. Both shows explored the legacy of discriminatory housing practices in high-end design. I was honored to see my work on the cover of an Art in America magazine displayed in the library when I visited Saint Ann’s for Alumni Day last spring!

My latest project, Decision Fatigue, opened at HESSE FLATOW gallery in February. I built a mock high-end beauty boutique filled with absurdist products like Cheeto faceserum and Borax healing crystals. It features a video starring my mother, Sheila Harris, in a parody beauty tutorial. My mom had at least one child enrolled at Saint Ann’s continuously for thirty years (1979-2009). Is there some sort of award for that?

Like many of us in the arts, the majority of my projects for the coming year have been cancelled or postponed. So, we’ll see what happens next. I hope my practice can evolve to meet the challenges we’re all facing. I’m finally moving back to Brooklyn and I look forward to finding ways to support the community. God willing, I’ll be an artist-in-residence at Pioneer Works in Red Hook this fall.

Hopefully you all can stop by my studio!

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ALUMNI MINI FEATURES

Akash Mehta ’16 In recent months I’ve been reporting on New York City and state politics. I wrote for Jacobin on Governor Cuomo’s budget, which among other austerity measures made deep Medicaid cuts during a pandemic, and on the profoundly undemocratic process by which it was passed; for Gothamist on NYPD sweeps of homeless encampments in violation of CDC COVID-19 public health guidelines; and for The Intercept on Governor Cuomo and Mayor De Blasio’s opposition to city legislation to move homeless individuals into empty hotel rooms, despite the fact that the federal government would pay for the program.

In the course of this work, I’ve been taken aback by how many of these issues I’ve been the first journalist to cover in-depth or at all. This isn’t because of any skill on my part; it’s easy for any adversarially minded journalist to find important scoops, but because New York politics are scandalously underreported. The state’s budget is larger than nine out of ten countries’, yet the negotiations that produce it receive extremely little press coverage.

To help fill this hole, I’m joining with a few other young journalists to launch an online investigative news publication, tentatively named The Jungle. Our aim is to publish thorough and adversarial reporting on the most consequential and least understood policy battles and power struggles on the city and especially state level.

We know this is an extremely ambitious project; it will take a village to succeed. If anyone in the Saint Ann’s community (especially those connected to New York journalism or politics) are interested in learning more or in being involved—by writing for us, joining our advisory board, sharing contacts, or offering thoughts and advice—please reach out to me via email.

Charlotte Coates ’09 I am a psychiatric nurse on an acute inpatient unit at Mt. Sinai West in Midtown. In March and April, the hospital filled with COVID-19 patients at an overwhelming rate. Critically ill New Yorkers, sick with a disease we weren’t prepared for, in numbers we couldn’t have imagined, occupied every usable space of the hospital. Nurses from all different specialties were reassigned to the emergency room, the intensive care unit and medical-surgical floors. What sticks with me from those weeks on the unfamiliar medical units is the adrenalin, the fear of failure, the day-long existential dread and twelve-hour shifts spent in stifling and uncomfortable PPE—with facial scars to show for it.

I’m now back to working in psychiatry as an RN and Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner. My focus has shifted to the treatment of trauma, grief, and severe depression—all of which are ballooning among the general population, as well as health care providers themselves. One thing that’s helping me develop new therapeutic approaches is to process my own experience through writing (I wrote about COVID-19 for the Washington Post), and to encourage patients to cope using their own creative expression.

Having arrived at Saint Ann’s in 9th grade after a somewhat more traditional education, I graduated with an appreciation of art in all its forms as a bridge to our shared humanity.

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Ari Brand ’02 On an eerie Friday the 13th in March, my alter-ego, Ari The Singalong Guy, tried leading a children’s singalong on Instagram Live for the first time. It kinda worked, so I did it again. And again. And every single weekday since, at 11:00 a.m. EST, I grab my guitar, my yellow sweatband and whatever silly random objects I can find in my kids’ toy bin, and improvise a forty-five-minute set directly to my iPhone. The Wall Street Journal has since called me a “rock star in the kids music scene,” which was hyperbole, but nice. I receive lots of videos of two-year-olds in front of their iPads, donning their sweatbands, punishing their ukuleles. One three-year-old girl drew a picture of me complete with sweat stains, from “when he’s rocking so hard.” There are live comments from viewers, so I do tons of shoutouts, and that’s fun. Rock jumps, scavenger hunts, every singalong ends with a grown-up song of the day; timely favorites include “Lean On Me” and “I Will Survive.” Another, not-quite-as-timely, Weezer’s “Buddy Holly.”

Vickie Fernandez Wint ’02 After the birth of my daughter Valentina in 2018, I was inspired to become a birth doula, postpartum doula and a certified lactation counselor. Since starting my business Nurtured Beginnings in May 2019, I’ve been grateful to work with over forty-five families in New York City and support over twenty-five families during the birth of their children. The pregnancy, birth and postpartum journey is a significant and monumental life transition and I aspire to bring calmness, instill confidence and prepare families to welcome and nurture their babies. I have been particularly honored to be able to support people during the pandemic, as the birthing landscape continues to adjust and change.

Talisman Brolin ’00 I’ve spent most of my life wanting to create safe spaces for myself and others. This pandemic has turned our worlds upside down and, after two weeks of complete panic mode, I decided to scratch the “service” itch. I am now a proud and humble volunteer Crisis Counselor with the Crisis Text Line. I found myself with the time, capacity and desire to learn more about how I could become a better listener. During the thirty-hour onboarding course I processed as much about myself as I have during the most productive therapy sessions. Pinky swear.

The Crisis Text Line is free, 24/7 support for those in crisis. Text 741741 from anywhere in the United States to text with a trained Crisis Counselor (we also support Canada, the U.K. and Ireland). With over one hundred million messages processed to date, we’re growing quickly, but so is the need.

I’m writing these words a month before they will be published, and have no idea what my world or the world will look like, when you read them. But certain things will not change. Remember to be kind and patient with yourselves; that it’s completely normal to have highs and lows (also just a lot of lows); vitamin D is real; and you deserve to be supported and loved. Also, chocolate.

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Gena Oppenheim ’97 I took this year off from teaching at Saint Ann’s and had the honor of serving as the Senior Education Fellow for the Hamilton Education Program at the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.

The goal of the Hamilton Education Program is to help students see the founding era’s relevance by using primary sources to create a performance piece following the model used by Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator of the musical Hamilton. For six months I worked with a fantastic team to introduce the world of Hamilton to students and teachers in Title I-eligible schools in Miami, Nashville, New York City, Norfolk and Philadelphia. Although, like the rest of the world, the live element of our program took a pause in March, it has been amazing to watch the Hamilton team pivot our curriculum into the online sphere. At the beginning of April, I had the opportunity to write an original script for Lin-Manuel Miranda and co-star in a video with him to introduce an at-home version of our program.

I’m looking forward to returning to the classroom at Saint Ann’s this fall.

Jackson Collins ’96 Cards on Race is a dynamic tool designed to help people examine race in a thoughtful, structured and engaging way. The deck allows users to develop racial literacy, empathy, and the healthy racial coping strategies needed to navigate our most challenging conversations about race.

The idea for Cards on Race emerged from my doctoral research on the experiences of students of color who attend predominantly white independent schools. In particular, student reflections on how they wished they had the vocabulary and strategies to process their racialized experiences earlier on in their school journey. They also described how they wished their white peers and faculty had these skills so they could engage in more meaningful conversations about race.

Accessible to beginners and the advanced, the deck and the curriculum are designed to adapt to evolving needs. The deck is meant to inspire learning, healing, understanding and collaboration as we each go through our individual and collective journeys in examining race and our racialized experiences.

For more visit CardsOnRace.com.

Ivy Pochoda ’94 It’s been hard to work of late. For a while I’d been waiting for the release of my latest novel These Women, waiting and marking time—which feels longer as each day so closely resembles the next. It’s hard to start writing a new book before the previous one comes out. Until the day a book is released it feels private, a secret I’m keeping to myself. And to start a new project would be to wish away the time These Women and I had together before it belongs to everyone else. But it’s out in the world now and I’ve had to let it go, happily. Yet, I’m still finding it difficult—let me rephrase—I’m finding it impossible to work given the circumstances. I’ve decided not to punish myself for this. Hey, I may never get the chance not to write again. I plan to enjoy it. As this period of social distancing began, I finished the final draft of what, sadly, will be the last book in my collaboration with Kobe Bryant, Epoca: The River of Sand. The foundation of these books is my passion for classics which began at Saint Ann’s. Kobe and I had so much work left to do and so many classical fantasy worlds to explore. Saying goodbye to this book and series felt like losing him all over again. And this is one more reason I won’t beat myself up for lack of creative output. Yet, ideas come even though I don’t have time for them. I’ve been thinking a lot about Western novels and the somewhat apocalyptic vision they present. I’ve been reading a lot of classic Westerns and laying that framework over the scenario we find ourselves in now.

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Who knows what will come of this interest—but it is a suitable landing strip for my anxiety. One day, it might take shape into something that will compel me to work despite the seeming impossibility of doing so now.

Greg Bronner ’93 Greg and Nellie Bronner announce the birth of their baby G. Elbert Bronner, who joins them in Harlem. Greg is now an ADK 46er, a certified sprinkler inspector, an occasional real estate writer and a CFA.

Adina Klein ’88 Greetings from the West Village, currently known as @askformasks headquarters.

When they shut down the city in mid-March, there was not a mask to be found and there was no way to buy fabric to make them. I’m a quilter and quilters tend to hoard fabric. I had some Obama fabric I bought in 2008, so I decided to use that to make masks. I threw the masks I made on my dining room table, took a photo and put it on Facebook. Amy Israel ’88 saw the post and begged me to make more and sell them.

Before I knew it, my phone was blowing up with requests. I couldn’t keep up with demand and homeschool my daughter at the same time, so I hired two of my fellow unemployed fashion industry professionals to help me sew them. Now we have a “real business.” We’ve sold almost 900 masks, plus given away countless others to essential workers, and donated more than $2,000 to various New York based charities and small business GoFundMes. All the fabric, with a few exceptions, is from my stash.

I’ve reconnected with so many people through this project, including countless Saint Ann’s alumni (too many to list). Beloved Saint Ann’s English teacher from the 1980s Patrick O’Connor (forever known as Mr. O to me) was one of my first customers.

Sadly it seems like we will all need masks for a good long while. So, for the foreseeable future, I’ll keep making and selling them. Please follow us @askformasks on Instagram and be a MASKTIVIST, wear a mask! Stay safe everybody.

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Marj Kleinman ’88 During lockdown, I launched Stoop Stories, a documentary and community portrait series that features families, essential workers, and small business owners coping with COVID-19 and racial injustice in Brownstone Brooklyn. Our neighbors’ stories have been very moving and rich, including a Stoop Story by Dino Delvaille ’88, and alumna, Nara Garber ’87, who’s been delivering food to hospital workers, performing with her kitchen sink band outside of a nursing home, and supporting her essential worker husband, Tolan Bistrek, who maintains all the medical equipment for NewYorkPresbyterian Lower Manhattan.

We were featured in Time Out New York and the New York Times. You can see all Stoop Stories on Instagram. If you’re interested, please do schedule a stoop shoot or share your own Stoop Story here!

Clockwise from top left: Alumnae Kenya Brome; Dino Delvaille ’88 and family; Nara Garber ’87 and husband Tolan Bistrek

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Catherine Griffin-Matlow ’86 I have, as I am sure many of you have, been homeschooling our seven-year-old daughter, Adelaide, throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. For the first day at her “new school,” she said she wanted to wear “Mommy’s school’s uniform”.

Feeling a bit overwhelmed by the prospect of my new role as school teacher, the shirt was a great reminder to stay true to the open-minded and creative environment that led to the depth of my learning experiences at Saint Ann’s. Please know that the spirit of Saint Ann’s lives on in my heart, my head and ... my living room!

John Merz ’84 I co-founded a totally volunteer-led mobile soup kitchen, the North Brooklyn Angels, which conventionally served 1,200 meals Monday–Friday pre-COVID-19. Since the pandemic we have scaled to 1,200 or more meals per day: serving three meals to hospital workers at Woodhull, plus our regular daily stops, and taking over the food delivery at various shuttered senior centers. Additionally we’ve distributed over 60,000 pounds of bulk food to other organizations feeding those in need. A second wave is likely and economic fallout will surely devastate many more in our community so we continue to hack at being present to the suffering, catalyzing the goodwill among neighbors into energy, food and tangible love. One thing Saint Ann’s modeled to me was to be audacious, use your imagination and when others say you can’t, you say, “I think I can.” We can and will keep at it until the wheels come off. Join us sometime.

Keep in touch and share your news with us at alumni@saintannsny.org.

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IN MEMORIAM Whitney Buckholz ’05 Whitney Buckholz ’05 passed away on June 5 of metastatic breast cancer. She is survived by her adoring parents, Lizanne Fontaine and Robert Buckholz; her siblings and their partners: John Buckholz ’00 (Katherine Lewandowski), Elizabeth Buckholz ’08 (Antonin Ciaccio), Nathaniel Buckholz ’08 (Paul Brunick), and Quentin Buckholz ’08 (Nooshin Soltani), her beloved nieces and nephews, her grandmothers, aunts, uncles, and cousins. Her obituary is available to read here.

Allyson Chase ’80

By Bruce Jackman ’75 It is with great sorrow I am reporting the passing of my cousin Allyson Chase. Allyson was found in her apartment in West Hollywood, California, Thursday, April 23 by neighbors. Although Allyson had been in declining health in recent years, her passing was unexpected. Allyson and I were cousins.

We were related via my mother and her father Hamilton Chase, who served on the Board of Trustees of Saint Ann’s School for many years. Allyson and I were at Saint Ann’s together. We matriculated in September 1967, the first year Saint Ann’s School resided at 129 Pierrepont Street.

My memories of Allyson are, she was delightful! Fun loving with several friends, yet embracing her parents’ focus which was on education. After graduation from Saint Ann’s in 1980, she entered Brown University. Upon graduation from Brown, Allyson headed to a warmer climate, Los Angeles, California, to pursue a career in the legal field. She attended University of West Los Angeles—School of Law. She later worked for the law firm Nossa LLP. Allyson’s religious affiliation was with The Soka Gakkai International, a Buddhist organization. Soka Gakkai sponsored cultural and arts festivals. Allyson and her dear friend Dywana choreographed dance routines and performed as dancers! At times, there were six to seven dance routines for a specific event. In addition, as many as twenty-three dancers performed along with forty junior dancers. In preparation for the events, Allyson and Dywana would stay up late, then go to Denny’s for an early breakfast at 2:00 am and go to work the next day. Obviously, one of Allyson’s true passions that brought her joy!

In conversations I have recently had with some of Allyson’s friends, she embodied the adage, “work hard and play hard.” She was accomplished professionally, yet she was a committed friend and spent time with her friends participating in activities she was passionate about. A wonderful spirit gone too soon!

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Peter Lynn ’78 Peter Lynn passed away suddenly on June 5. Below are remembrances from his daughter and father.

By Richard Lynn, Peter’s father No other school would have been such a perfect match for my brilliantly creative son, and no headmaster but Stanley Bosworth would have tolerated the creative disruptions that were part of the package. Peter, his mother Ronnie, his daughter Sandy, and I will be forever grateful to Saint Ann’s.

By Sandy Lynn, Peter’s daughter Saint Ann’s was a refuge for Dad where his “certain freewheeling mentality” flourished. I will always be grateful for Stanley Bosworth taking Peter under his wing and allowing Dad a place to grow. Dad’s recollections of Saint Ann’s told of an Eden where he could be himself: whether it be working in the theater tech crew with Eric ’75 and Scott Cornwell ’77, or memories made with his close friends Tom Siegman ’78 and Ross Mernyk ’79 such as smuggling a locker door out with Tom in order to repaint it and bring it back. Peter will be remembered for his quick wit, intelligence and kindness.

Maxx Rachel Daughter of Philippa Gordon ’71

By Philippa Gordon ’71 My daughter Annie Rachel Gordon Bromberg, who preferred to be called Maxx Rachel, died in home hospice care on January 11, of a brain tumor diagnosed in 2018. She was 26 years old. Besides parents Philippa Gordon ’71 and Ken Bromberg, she is survived by her sisters Sophie and Eve, half-sister Johanna Bromberg, my older brother David, and the children of my younger brother Neil ’75, Leila and Jake. Donations in memoriam can be made to Planned Parenthood or the Brooklyn Public Library.

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Alan Schoenberg Melissa ’99 and Megan ’09 Schoenberg lost their father, Alan, to COVID-19 this April after his fiveyear battle with Alzheimer’s. Alan’s love of learning, philosophy, art and music went hand in hand with his desire to educate his daughters at Saint Ann’s. Alan and his wife, Brenda (deceased in 2011), were devoted Saint Ann’s parents and proudly supported their children’s academic and artistic endeavors.

Alan’s two mantras, “never let school interfere with your education” and “be you,” will be carried forth by his many beloved friends and family, who will remember him always.

Gerard P. Watson Former Trustee It is with sadness that we announce the passing of former Board of Trustee Member Gerard P. Watson, who served on the Board from 1984–1995. Gerry passed away at home in Brooklyn, at 88 years old after a long battle with COPD. He kept both his prided stoicism and his sardonic wit until the end, snapping (gently) at any of his daughters who showed teary-eyed tendencies towards the impending terminality of it all with such bon mots as: “Where did you think this was headed?”

Gerry is survived by four daughters and three grandchildren all of whom are connected to Saint Ann’s in one or more ways: Mary Watson ’78 (current trustee and former faculty ) and her son John Watson ’16; Margaret Watson and her children Huntly Cooper ’18 and former student Mac Cooper; Tracey Watson ’82 and Maureen Watson ’85.

Gerry found his way to Saint Ann’s in a very non-Saint Ann’s manner. Structure was his creed. He stumbled on Saint Ann’s because he kept charts of everything—including any published results of college placements—and Saint Ann’s kept popping up on his charts. What he discovered when he got there was not exactly what he had expected, yet along the way, he became a huge advocate. He was won over by a number of very tangible things such as the way the school knew each of his very different daughters and taught them in very different ways—introducing them to amazing learning opportunities and giving them the freedom to experiment and fail. The Saint Ann’s skeptic ultimately became the life-long advocate.

Marielle Vigourt Former Chair of Romance Languages Department Marielle, who taught French at Saint Ann’s for more than three decades, passed away in April after a long battle with cancer.

Rememberances from Alumni Daniella Gitlin ’02 Ralph Waldo Emerson, about whom Marielle wrote her master’s thesis, writes that “to regard the young child [...] requires, no doubt, rare patience: a patience that nothing but faith in the remedial forces of the soul can give.” Marielle’s faith was in her gaze, her words, her subtle cheekiness, her warm embrace. She would sit with us, a small, worn book in her hand, her nails painted a deep red, and we would read. Her light burns bright in all of us.

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Hannah Sassoon ’11 In my mind’s eye abides an image—a moment, brief as a wink, that recurred frequently in Marielle’s classroom. Like this: she’s sitting at her desk, holding open the white wings of a book—Surrealist poetry, perhaps, or Flaubert’s contes. A word is tickling her with its elegance or wit. She lifts her eyes, all sparkling, and we smile at each other, because she can see I’m ticklish, too.

Katie Dutko ’05 I remember a quote by Marielle published in The Ram (2002 or 2003, maybe?) in which she was translating colombe de paix into English and it was coming out in a humorous way. While she was surely trying to convey this translation in the context of French poetry or literature, this struck me as so fitting at the time, and for years after, since Marielle was a source of serenity for so many who crossed paths with her. She swooped in like a dove of peace at a time when I needed more calm in my life and for that I was always so grateful. Rest in peace, Marielle.

Tribute from Joelle Zimmerman, Romance Languages Department Faculty Marielle, vignettes d’une exploratrice “Joelle, let go. Just let go!”

Marielle was not just a congenial colleague and a dear friend, she was my life mentor.

Marielle hired me in May 1991 just as she was named Chair of the French Department at Saint Ann’s. With us both having gone through the French educational system, Marielle immediately understood my bewilderment at the freedom—bordering on chaos—which permeated every aspect of the school life. An enthusiastic disciple of Stanley Bosworth’s educational vision, Marielle patiently undertook the task of undoing years of rigid French pedagogical tenets. First, she taught me how to look at the “glass half-full” and be content with it. Like most French people, I was used to dwelling on the empty part. This was also when I first heard her utter the phrase which would become a leitmotiv as our friendship evolved.

Grades? Detention? “Just let go!” Some students won’t do their homework assignments? “They probably have better things to do right now. Let go!”

What I learned next was to step back, release the urge for control and learn to be fully present and open. Still a work in progress.

“L’ange au sourire” When Marielle listened to you, her face radiated inner calm and understanding; she gently invited you into her confidence with the serenity of her smile, just like her beloved Smiling Angel from the Reims cathedral or the Buddha on her mantelpiece. Calm, soothing, comforting and encouraging, Marielle.

“L’hôtesse parfaite” Whenever you stepped in Marielle and Vivian’s apartment you were meant to feel special. Even when Marielle was quite sick, she insisted on being the perfect hostess: she asked about your family, she got up and fussed about the cups and spoons and cookies, and so often you left with a special gift.

Marielle had a knack to make you feel special, heard, understood and loved.

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“Yet, but, though” Anecdotal reports. Not an easy enterprise, even for native speakers. Marielle was a wordsmith; words, just like music, had a special resonance, a special pitch. She tried on numerous occasions to teach me the subtle nuances between a “yet” versus a “but” or a “though,” to no avail. And when discussing a text, her in-depth analysis of every single word used by the particular author was dazzling, dizzying even.

“Ma Jeanne d’Arc” When you read about Marielle being described as a “smiling angel,” or a “perfect hostess,” you might be lulled into thinking that she was just a kind, gentle soul. She was that. But she was also an iron maid. She had a sword—her intellect and her verve at defending the wronged—and was not afraid to use it when necessary. Marielle, like a pioneer, believed in exploring life in order to reach all of its obscure corners. She was a tireless explorer and a fighter. She was a devourer of knowledge, and of experiences. And while battling, she was focused and determined; she did not complain.

“Le bon air frais” Despite the many fights she waged, this warrior did not need much to regain strength: a little walk outside to fill her lungs with fresh air, to feel the sun rays on her skin, to hear the birds flutter about.

Mask down, nose pointed up, eyes closed, wide grin, a long, deep intake of breath; Marielle letting life engulf all her senses.

There are so many other vignettes I could share but I think you are getting the gist. I have to let go now. Ça y est, Marielle, je lâche prise, mais je te garde dans mon coeur. Ce n’est qu’un au revoir!

Tribute from Rosalie Fisher, Romance Languages Department Chair Marielle was a brilliant intellect, capable of the most illuminating rational analysis. Yet somehow there was no contradiction in the delight with which she celebrated the role chance plays in all of our lives. She loved to recount the many accidental encounters or fortuitous turns of events she herself had experienced, and together we enjoyed recalling the random circumstances that brought us each to Saint Ann’s School. In my case, crucially, this included Marielle’s decision to hire me! So I should not have been surprised when, during a Romance Department Retreat a few years back, as we were exchanging notes on some of our most beloved classroom activities, Marielle invited us to join in the collective surrealist practice called le cadavre exquis. Some of us were familiar with the principles of the game, but hearing Marielle explain the process—and how our precise individual contributions (subject, transitive verb, object, place, time) would combine to reveal something mysterious, beautiful, and freed of rational thought—drew our entire group enthusiastically into the exercise. As promised, some ten minutes later, we all delighted in the final product: “Zeus—shines—the little silver forks—on the cliffs of Donegal—at noon.”

“The magnetic fields—kept climbing—the most delicious apple tart—on the green sofa—last summer.”

Chance, mystery, freedom, joy, transcendence—these were central to Marielle, to her teaching, to the way she lived her life. “Don’t put them in boxes,” she said, referring to our students. And she would have said the same about anyone. As our fearless leader in the French Department, and later the Romance Languages Department, she constantly encouraged, advocated for our freedom to teach what we love and our students’ freedom to learn what they love.

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I know that I am not the only one who feels incredibly lucky to have had Marielle as a mentor, an inspiration, a wise and always empathetic counselor and a cherished friend. It is impossible to describe all that there was to love about Marielle—her brilliance, her sense of humor, her unshakeable belief in

the good in all of us, her truly boundless generosity. I am so grateful for all that she has given to me, to our school, to the world. Merci, Marielle, de tout cœur!

Tribute from Melanie Shah, Romance Languages Department Faculty Melanie conducted an oral interview with Marielle on the occasion of her retirement in May 2018. Click here to listen to the audio of their conversation.

Once in a long while, you meet a soul so special she will transform you in deep ways. These transformations to your being become interwoven within your fabric, making it impossible for you and others to distinguish what was the you before you met her, and what is the you now that you incorporated her teachings.

This was my experience with Marielle. Her impact was great. My heart rejoices at having met her. Each time I saw her, I felt like I came back to the source, and I relish every moment spent in her company.

When I remember Marielle these days, I often see her in motion. On one occasion, she walks alongside me on Clinton Street. I just taught my first class at Plaza, and we’re headed to the main building. She carries thick folders under her arm, a bag on her shoulder. A strong wind pushes us back and makes her hair dance around her face. Our shoulders touch, and we weather the wind together.

My whole being is focused on fighting the wind, but Marielle’s voice reaches me, filling me in on the school—her school. I sense an urgency in her stride; it tells me, “Teaching has to happen.”

Another time, I see Marielle writing, her words bound in sentences, sinuous like a row of olive trees, staying close to the Earth, anchored to its roots. There is harmony within the chaos. She filled a release form for me once, when I interviewed her on the occasion of her retirement. On the line for «Occupation », she wrote teach, shunning the word teacher, and omitting the I for I teach. As I ponder this, I realize that for Marielle, teaching was never about a title nor exerting authority over her students. Teaching was not about her own self either. It was an action of giving, set in the present, renewed each time she stepped in the classroom.

The last time I saw Marielle at her home, she told me that breathing the fresh air from outside had become her favorite thing. She said that the light was beautiful. I looked down and saw a large rectangle of sunlight sitting on her rug. Around us, the sun slipped through her window panes, pouring its silver rays over the many plants and flowers brought to her by her visitors. She took my hands and told me that my hands were cold. I told her that her hands were warm. She left her hands on mine as if she held a bird out of the nest. I remembered she needed to stay warm, so I took my hands away.

When it was time to leave, Marielle took me to the door, and I said goodbye to her. She opened the door, inviting the blinding sunlight into the room.

Artwork by Lulu J., 9th grade

‘p’ P for the popsicle, which drips, and plops On The Ground.

P, for the pitch of the drum as the Stick pongs on it. The Pile of palm leaves, In the shade. P, for the jagged part In the pale blue sky. The poignant pour Of tears, as the baby pouts. P, the dark purple of The Rotten, putrid, plum.

by Anna S., 4th grade

129 Pierrepont Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201

Stay connected with us online at www.saintannsny.org

Artwork by Max L., 8th grade