Shore Country Day School Bulletin - Fall 2021

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SHORE BULLETIN • FALL 2021

A YEAR OF CHALLENGE, RESILIENCE, AND JOY

2021–2022 Board of Trustees Amy Marks President Blake Liggio Vice President Secretary Denise Marks Treasurer Ian Brady Michelle Crafton Dino Di Palma Khoa Do ’86 John Fawcett Franklin Foster Hugh Foster Anthony Frye Daan Goedkoop Elizabeth Harrigan ’92 Barbara Iler Amanda Jackson Stacylee Kruuse Rayna Lesser Hannaway Domenic Marinelli George Noble ’85 Elia Perez Tessicini John Tucker Michele Vaccaro Sarah Wolfgang Alex 4 ZaldastaniSHORE BU LLETIN FALL 2021

CONTENTS

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SHORE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL Established 1936 545 Cabot Street Beverly, Massachusetts 01915 (978) 927-1700 www.ShoreSchool.org ADMINISTRATION Head of School Clair P. Ward Head of Upper School Gustavo Carrera Head of Lower School Sara L. Knox Director of Admissions and Enrollment Management Daphne Clark Faldi ’89 Director of Advancement Katie E. Kozin Director of Finance and Operations Ann-Marie Flynn Director of Marketing and Communications William R. Fisher MAGAZINE Editorial Brooke Booth William Fisher Linda Grodberg Katie Kozin Sara Tollerud Photography William Fisher Linda Grodberg Louise Michaud Design Jeanne Abboud Design ON THE COVER: Artwork by Marcela Hernandez ’21

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From the Head of School

A Year of Challenge, Resilience, and Joy 04 16 18 22

Silver Linings: The Pandemic at Shore Students Find Secondary School Matches Despite Challenges Teachers Use New Technology to Build Connections Progress and the Pandemic: Strategic Planning

Community 23 25 30 32 34

A Night of Celebration Employee Milestones & Retirements Giving Day—A Day of Giving and Gratitude Meet Amy Marks Welcome New Trustees

News 36 37 38 42

Students Show Support for the Black Lives Matter Movement Carrera is Published on the Topic of Racial Justice Celebrating the Light of Knowledge 84th Closing Exercises

Inspiration 47 52 55 57

High School Musical Jr. Lingua Franca: Reassessing the Curriculum in English Portrait of a Graduate: Marcela Hernandez ’21 Spring Sports

Past & Present 60 61 63 69

Shore Alumni Head to College Virtual Alumni Events Alumni Notes In Memoriam

Inside back cover: The Shore Fund

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FROM THE HEAD O F SCHOOL

Learning What We Are Made Of

By Clair Ward As you have heard me say before, Shore won last year. We did it by having absolutely every oar in the water, paddling madly: the families, the children, the employees, and the trustees.

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hat a difference a year makes! My guess is that each of us could name the moments in the recent span that made us and those that broke us. Like many schools that maintained in-person learning, when we open school this fall it will be the third version of school that we have launched in a total of 17 months. In the spring of 2020, we opened fully remote learning with two weeks of preparation. In the fall of 2020, we opened in-person school while a global pandemic raged. This fall, we planned to open something closer to a normal version of school. Each time, we were inventing. There was no playbook, no course we could take; we simply had to keep safety and children as our focus and press on.

As you have heard me say before, Shore won last year. We did it by having absolutely every oar in the water, paddling madly: the families, the children, the employees, and the trustees. Yes, this was a different version of Shore. But we kept children in school and learning (even our standardized test scores looked as strong as they ever have). For this reason, by June, I found myself feeling elated and no longer tired; hopeful and no longer discouraged. And now, after spending months and months dreaming about normal, I am beginning to wonder if normal is good enough for Shore. We have learned what we are made of, and if we consider what is possible when we are no longer battling a pandemic, perhaps there is an opportunity to

F RO M TH E H E A D O F SC H O O L

take our children’s experience to new heights until we reach a new version of normal.

In Plato’s Republic, the philosopher explores the definition of a just society. During one conversation, Socrates says, “Our need will be the real creator”—ironically a more just and inclusive way of saying that necessity is the mother of invention. Shore’s most recent strategic plan, Our Future in Focus, included aspirations that we were planning to achieve. In February 2020, we had begun to imagine the ways that we could accomplish our goals, but at the time, these actions were abstract. Educating children through a pandemic, a racial awakening, and a political storm left us with no choice but to roll up our sleeves and “do.” Our urgent needs forced us to create, and I would submit to you that the results were all the better. As we look back, there is no denying that an educational revolution happened on a timeline

that was far more aggressive than if we had had more time to plan.

Necessity was our creative force.

So where does this leave us?

As humans we need a sense of normalcy, stability, and predictability. But the question that inspires me as a leader is how we can use what just happened not to return to our old normal, but to build a new normal that is more relevant, nimble, inclusive, and just. That was our aspiration when we envisioned Our Future in Focus. So let us imagine that while the value of a Shore education remains as high as ever, how we get there might need to evolve to be sure our children are prepared for their future. Let us challenge ourselves to use our recent lessons to build an experience for children that fills them with agency and an entrepreneurial spirit. Let us

use our inventiveness to sustain a creative approach to how we build and rebuild a curriculum that is as relevant as possible. Perhaps this will be our new normal.

I am filled with excitement and hope for Shore’s future. While I would never have chosen the events of the last year, including the pain, loss, and fear that affected many in our community, it is my dream that we use our current momentum and the lessons we have learned to enhance our future outcomes.

Shore and its children shine brightly. Notice the big and small moments of how that happened in the pages of this Bulletin. I look forward to partnering with all of you as we boldly move our school forward to realize the destiny that was only an aspiration a mere year and a half ago. Thank you for joining us for the journey!

The question that inspires me as a leader is how we can use what just happened not to return to our old normal, but to build a new normal that is more relevant, nimble, inclusive, and just.

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Silver Linings: The Pandemic at Shore

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By Bill Fisher

t was a shot across the bow of the advancing pandemic. In the summer of 2020, on the heels of a virtual graduation and a spring spent in remote learning after a statewide school shutdown in March, Shore’s administration, Board of Trustees, and the Board’s COVID-19 Task Force resolved to open the following school year fully in person. The decision was momentous and prescient: by the end of the 2020-2021 school year, Shore would complete nine months of in-person learning, earning praise from families, employees, and students for preserving face-to-face education in spite of the pandemic odds. “Thank you to the entire Shore staff for this year,” one family wrote on social media. “Words can’t express how grateful we are for everything everyone did to allow our kids to have in-person learning since day one.”

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Indeed, getting from June 2020 to the first day of school—let alone to the following June—required an all-in effort from every corner of the Shore community.

But that effort was worth it. “Based on the spring,” says Head of School Clair Ward, “we knew what our kids needed—they needed to be in person. And I knew that whatever version of that we could achieve was going to be better for children than being fully remote. My feeling was, Shore needs to do Shore.” The COVID-19 Task Force agreed. “Nearly every one of the Task Force members was a current parent at the school. They remembered what the spring had looked like for their kids, and knew what their kids needed, too,” says Ward.

There were numerous challenges to face before the return to school. The first was ascertaining whether Shore had the physical capacity to house its 350-some students safely, observing all the distancing and hygiene guidelines handed down to schools by the state’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Rooms were measured; rules for nearfull-time masking were devised; empty desks and chairs were arranged six feet apart and counted; hand-washing areas were inventoried and in some cases added; air-handling systems were evaluated and upgraded; and potential outdoor classroom spaces were surveyed. In the end, the news was good: even with large areas such as the theater and Dining Hall closed to most gatherings due to virus fears, Shore’s facilities were more than adequate for safe in-person learning for the entire student population.

Next, administrators had to plan for two scenarios for the fall: full in-person attendance, and the remote learning that most observers expected would return at some point as virus transmission rates spiked.

“Everybody thought we would get only six to eight weeks in school, and then we would be going back to distance learning,” says Head of Lower School Sara Knox. “So we needed to maintain the momentum from the spring and make sure that teachers continued to “Words can’t take advantage of professional development opporexpress how tunities related to distance learning, knowing that there was this very real possibility that grateful we are for that’s what we were going to be doing for at least everything everyone did a portion of the school year. At the same time we had to compartmentalize that thinking so to allow our kids to have we could also imagine what in-person learning in-person learning would look like.”

Knox and Head of Upper School Gustavo since day one.”

Carrera had to completely revamp the curric—Shore family ulum to anticipate switches between in-person and remote learning, and they had to revise schedules to accommodate the cohort model that would be implemented to keep groups of children separate from each other, minimizing the chances of in-school spread of

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COVID-19. Says Knox, “One of the things we did before we started the school year was to prioritize units in all subject areas that really required in-person teaching and learning. We shifted the curriculum at every grade level so that we could capitalize on the time that we expected to have kids in person.”

Carrera, along with his faculty, had to reimagine teaching for the cohort model. “For example,” he says, “we had to create heterogeneous math classes—groupings of students at different ability levels—in order to sustain social connections within the cohort. That was a challenge for the teachers, who had to deliver what were essentially multiple complete math tracks at the same time.” The revised Upper School curriculum also called for new rotations in art, music, and engineering classes. Because the teachers in these subject areas in a typical year would be exposed to the entire student body, their teaching would now have to be confined to one cohort per grade at a time, limiting the chances that one sick teacher could spread COVID-19 throughout the entire division.

By August, with planning for both in-person learning and remote attendance well underway, it was time to make sure teachers and families were on board with the return to school. Among faculty members, fear and uncertainty had been growing, as news coverage of teachers’ reluctance to return to classrooms nationwide increased. “In the case of our faculty,” says Clair Ward, “they just needed communication. They wanted to hear how we were making school a safe environment for both children and adults, and they needed reassurance that the policies and procedures we were developing for safety—masking, hand washing, physical distancing—would work in the classroom.”

Families, too, needed more communication from the school as they sought answers to their questions— especially since they would not be allowed on campus during the school year. Shore published a complete reopening plan that detailed everything from contacttracing protocols to daily health and safety procedures at every grade level. Ward also began hosting a series of webinars for families to provide even more information and updates about the school’s response to COVID-19.

“I recall the month of August being nothing but courage—courage to convince the families we could do it, courage to convince ourselves that we could do it, courage to convince the faculty that they would be okay, and that they could do it,” says Ward.

Finally, in September, over the course of three opening days, masked students arrived in stages for their first day back at Shore since being sent home in March. In a message to families, Ward promised, “In

“I recall the month of August being nothing but courage—courage to convince the families we could do it, courage to convince ourselves that we could do it, courage to convince the faculty that they could do it.”

—Clair Ward, Head of School

the extraordinary times brought by the pandemic, we recognize that our highest responsibility is doing all we can to protect the health and safety of our students, families, and employees. We will remain open for in-person learning on campus only as long as it is safe to do so.”

Shore’s commitment to safety meant that families had to complete a comprehensive health self-screening for their child through a mobile app called MyMedBot each day before coming to Shore. Once at school, children wore masks the majority of the time, whether in the classroom or outside, and seating arrangements were carefully mapped to maintain social distancing.

Throughout their school day, children remained with a single homeroom or cohort, a group of 10-16 students with dedicated indoor and outdoor spaces and little contact with other groups of students. Signage and floor markings enabled safer, one-way traffic flow in the school’s hallways, and extensive new cleaning protocols and windows and doors propped open to allow fresh air flow followed CDC and Massachusetts state guidelines for combating the spread of the virus.

Despite the new procedures that affected nearly every aspect of life for both children and adults at the

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“Outdoor time, whether it was an outdoor class or just time for lunch and recess, was helpful for both students and teachers. The fresh air made everyone feel safe.”

school, “Shore still felt like Shore,” says Clair —Gustavo Carrera, Head of Ward. “When you Upper School ask someone what is special about Shore, they usually repeat some version of, ‘It’s the people.’

Watching the faculty and staff embrace the planning and training and excitedly welcome the students back during the opening days made the ‘people factor’ even more noticeable.” Over the first days of school, teachers rolled out protocols for frequent hand washing in ways that even the youngest students could understand; they introduced older students to tented outdoor learning areas that faculty and staff had worked together to construct in order to provide students with as much fresh air as possible; and they explained how Shore hallmarks such as daily recess, regular art, music, and language classes, outdoor education, and the Upper School advisory system—though modified for safety’s sake—would remain part of the routine.

The children, for their part, seemed to take all the new policies and practices in stride, glad to see their friends and teachers in person again despite the “new normal” of mask wearing and social distancing. “It was

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easy to get distracted or worried by the ways in which children’s experiences could be compromised by all the measures we had to take to ensure the safety of our community, but seeing the children happy to be on campus made all the difference in the world. The joy we experienced at being together back at school was palpable,” says Ward.

“When the year began,” elaborates Sara Knox, “it was an all-in feeling. The energy was so genuine, and there was this all-hands-on-deck mentality. Teachers supported each other, sharing their resources, time, and labor. We all felt proud, because we knew that so many schools were not able to start in the way that we were.”

In-person school required faculty members to adapt in countless ways. Spending much more time outdoors was one of the most noticeable changes. According to Gustavo Carrera, “Outdoor time, whether it was an outdoor class or just time for lunch and recess, was helpful for both students and teachers. The fresh air made everyone feel safe. Pedagogically speaking, we noticed that being outdoors inspired greater engagement on the part of the students. Both they and their teachers really enjoyed being outside under a tent or in the sun just having a conversation or eating lunch.”

Sara Knox says, “Our teachers had to read the room even more closely than ever before, noticing when kids

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needed a break from the confined space of the homeOne adaptation was required of teachers in both room. They could give one student or a whole class a Upper and Lower schools. This was the use of a rolling few moments outside—time enough for them to reset cart to transport teaching materials. Because Upper and be ready for learning again.”

School cohorts remained in their classrooms for the Technology was another area where teachers had majority of the day, instead of moving between indito adapt to the new circumstances. Because of the vidual subject teachers’ rooms as in a normal year, this concern about touching and sharing paper and other year the teachers had to go mobile, transporting supplies, materials in the classroom, says Knox, “We made projects, art materials, books, and more between cohort digital versions of a lot of things that were rooms on rolling red carts that became a familiar traditionally on paper, so that kids could sight in the hallways. Similarly, in the Lower “We made access everything they needed on School, special subject teachers in art, their iPad. A lot of teacher time music, Spanish, and S.A.I.L. (Science digital versions went into that digital transforand Art Integrated Learning)—who of a lot of things that mation, but it paid off. We were in a normal year would see students able to shift from what was as they traveled to their dedicated were traditionally on paper, in some cases an outdated special subject teaching spaces— so that kids could access worksheet model to an had to travel between homerooms approach where children could where students spent the majority everything they needed independently access their of their day. The rolling red carts on their iPad.” work and manage their own became a familiar sight in the Lower learning on a device. Things like School, as well.

—Sara Knox, commenting and sharing through All of Shore’s employees had to Head of Lower School Google Drive happened more in step up in one way or another as the the Lower School than they’ve ever school adapted to the circumstances of the happened before.” pandemic. When all-school weekly COVID-19 In the Upper School, says Gustavo Carrera, testing began in January, for example, members of the teachers turned to digital technology to offer greater staff volunteered to help administer the tests in the differentiation of instruction within each cohort.

Lower School and to package and sort kits for employee “Learning platforms like Showbie, an iPad app for self-service testing. The Maintenance Department creating and completing assignments, allowed for the followed rigorous daily cleaning procedures, and the kind of engagement that sometimes a student could Dining Services staff delivered packaged meals to homenot find in the classroom, because it gave them the rooms and cohort rooms throughout the school. independent thinking time they needed to respond at As the year went on and Shore experienced its first their own pace.” positive cases of COVID-19 among students, teachers,

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and families, the school’s safety protocols appeared to be working. Affected homerooms or cohorts were quarantined at home as needed—with Zoom enabling distance learning to continue—and there was no evidence of in-school transmission of the virus. Shore remained open, much to the surprise of many. And so months into the reopening, the question became not whether the school could sustain in-person learning, but whether the experience could be improved. “We started to notice what we were missing,” says Sara Knox.

“We couldn’t bring everyone together in the theater. We couldn’t have all-school House meetings. What could we do to sustain the school community when we couldn’t all be together in the ways we were used to?”

Fifth grade teachers, along with their Kindergarten and Pre-Kindergarten colleagues, shared one idea with Knox. The Big Buddies program brings together fifth graders with Kindergarten and Pre-Kindergarten students for reading, games, activities, and more—but during a pandemic year in which cohorts and homerooms had to remain separated, none of these was possible. Teachers asked Knox whether they might reimagine the Big Buddies program to meet the safety protocols that were in place, which called for 14 feet of distance between cohorts. “There were a lot of conversations about what we could do that felt safe,” says Knox. “The first time they got together, they were

outside on the field, they had measured the distance between groups with a measuring tape, and they were playing a no-contact call-out game.” Later in the year, they used Zoom to stay in touch across classrooms, and they even enjoyed a pen pal program.

Elsewhere around the school, students and teachers were finding similar ways to connect with each other safely and sustain school spirit. Music teachers Jenn Boyum and Alex Asacker orchestrated virtual concerts and talent shares via Zoom, and House captains arranged competitions, crafts, and video events for Upper School cohorts. Video Morning Meetings that featured classroom presentations and other forms of student participation delighted Lower Schoolers each week.

Just as maintaining connections within the school required extra effort, so did keeping families, who were not allowed on campus, in the loop. “We missed the families in the building; we missed them on the fields and in the theater,” says Gustavo Carrera. “The families, too, missed the opportunity to see their children at work in the ways in which they had in the past.” To engage families, Upper and Lower School teachers turned to Zoom conferences, frequent phone

“We missed the families in the building; we missed them on the fields and in the theater.”

— Gustavo Carrera

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“By allowing the students to paint the picture of what the school year looked like, the families learned about their lives at Shore in a totally different way.”

— Gustavo Carrera calls, and regular e-mails about what was going on in the classroom.

“We had to work even harder at communication than we normally do,” says Sara Knox, “because I think, in a normal year when there are families on the curb at carpool or in the Kiva, or coming into the building to do something special in a classroom, very quick, informal face-to-face check-ins are common.

Families can get a sense of what’s happening and how their child is doing. This year, we learned that we had to communicate much more. I think part of it is that families didn’t have a visual—they wanted to picture it more, and the only way that could happen was for us to find more touch points.”

The extra effort clearly paid dividends. One innovation in the Upper School, the student-led parent-teacher

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conference, was universally praised. “By allowing the student to paint the picture of what the school year looked like,” says Gustavo Carrera, “the families learned about their lives at Shore in a totally different way.

Particularly this year, it was so important for families to hear from the children themselves what the experience was like, rather than mediated by the teacher or an advisor. I heard from families afterwards that the student-led conference was something that made them very proud of their kids.”

Still, the pandemic took its toll, not only on the connections between families and school, but on students and employees themselves, some of whom struggled with anxiety triggered by a long winter spent masked and indoors, never certain when the next case of COVID-19 in the school would be announced. “We definitely had to attend to everyone’s mental health throughout the year,” explains Clair Ward. “I would say that the children’s mental health ebbed and flowed, and I would say the employees’ and the families’ mental health ebbed and flowed, as well. Among our families, there were circumstances that made managing school and personal life very challenging— issues around childcare and remote working adding to the stress of the pandemic itself.”

“At every grade level,” adds Sara Knox, “we had at least a handful of kids who were really struggling with anxiety. All of those instances required a lot of conversations and planning sessions that involved the teacher, me, School Counselor Katie Hertz, and the families, and sometimes even an outside counselor.” COVID-19 may not have been the sole cause of the anxiety, admits Knox, but it played a role. “When school is so different, and children aren’t able to see their friends outside of school, it becomes a lot to cope with.”

As the year went on, employee exhaustion, too, became a factor. It was the pandemic, but it was more than that. “When I think about individuals at this school and the contributions that each person made this year that were above and beyond the call of duty,” says Knox, “it’s easy to picture a person and name three to five things they did that went far beyond just pitching in and being a helper. I think it’s worth saying again and again that there’s no way that we would have been able to do what we did this year if we didn’t have everybody on board, thinking the same way. The attitude was, ‘We’re going to do this.’ But it’s a long time to push with that mentality, and that leads to exhaustion.

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Everybody’s going for the A-plus, and it’s not just a month of that; it’s a year-plus. You hit a wall.”

Yet by the spring, the worst of the pandemic in Massachusetts seemed to be fading, and the mood on campus was lifting. Shore’s weekly COVID-19 testing, which had been required for all students and employees since January, was returning acrossthe-board negative results week after week. Beloved Shore traditions such as Head’s Holiday and Field Day brought the school together outdoors, and, though students and teachers remained masked, their joy was evident. “What I felt in these events was relief,” says Clair Ward. “I felt relief that I could see and hear and taste the joy that wasn’t so easy to sense at times during the previous year. And at a time when the rest of the world was politicizing masks or vaccines or other kinds of national divisions, what I saw was nothing but gratitude from all of our community members, relief that this was an oasis of sanity and joy for kids.”

Shore families, for their part, had, with few exceptions, been supportive of the school’s COVID-19 response, and they went out of their way to express their appreciation. Throughout the year, the Shore Parents Association arranged small gestures, such

as the delivery of flowers to all employees, to demonstrate their gratitude and buoy spirits. The Chair of the Parents Association, Michele Vaccaro, wrote, “The Parents Association is extremely appreciative for all that Shore faculty and staff have done for our school, our children, and our community. They have worked tirelessly, and we will always remember everything they have done to get through this year.” Other families sent notes of thanks to individual employees.

If gratitude and joy were silver linings of the pandemic, so, too, were other discoveries that came throughout the year.

According to Sara Knox, “So much about how we teach has shifted and changed for the better since last spring. In terms of technology platforms and project types, our teachers have just had to dive in and start using all kinds of new tools and approaches which would have taken us much longer to get to had it not been for the pandemic.” Technology has also enabled new forms of communication with families that may well stick around after the pandemic “There’s something to be said for the Zoom parent conference or grade-level parent coffee,” says Knox, “or

If gratitude and joy were silver linings of the pandemic, so, too, were other discoveries that came throughout the year.

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the admissions event that’s virtual, rather than in person.

Attendance is simply better, and easier for families; guests can tune in from wherever they are.” Gustavo Carrera agrees, “We learned that technology can provide a very robust experience, both for students and for families.”

If there is one silver lining from the year that stands out for Carrera, it is what he’s learned about nimbleness. “We did not over-plan, which served us well, because during the pandemic we had to change our plans several times and, for example, remain flexible in the face of unexpected quarantines. This allowed us to give more freedom to our teachers to solve problems in their own way, and it allowed us to honor the student experience—beyond simple content delivery.” As an example, Carrera explains how teachers were empowered to make one-on-one connections with students, despite the limitations of the cohort system and the yearlong requirement for social distancing. “What you saw was teachers meeting

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individually with students in the hallways, where open doors to the outside meant that fresh air was continually flowing.

We could have over-managed these situations by limiting the use of the hallways, but I believe that would have created less of a sense of safety and less of a sense of empowerment.”

Clair Ward identifies another silver lining of the year.

“I think we actually provided more inclusive access to the school because of the more frequent virtual communications we made available—people had more access to the partnership between home and school, even alumni and the families of alumni that desperately want to maintain their connection to Shore. The pandemic provided that opportunity and taught us how important that connection is, and how our larger Shore community is just waiting to be asked, waiting to be connected. That’s something we want to hold on to.”

Beyond silver linings, Ward sees the pandemic as a test for Shore, “a test to see if we as a community could be flexible, strategic, focused, and caring. And I believe we have proved ourselves—we all know some things about Shore that we didn’t know before, about our capacity and our adaptability. In other words, if we can be successful in a 15-month chapter like this one, then when it comes to executing our strategic plan, or looking at ways to make Shore more sustainable, more inclusive, the pandemic has proven to us that we have what it takes to be successful in those realms, too.”

Ward continues, “So to me, the story of this year isn’t so much COVID-19 as it is how COVID-19 provided an extreme proving ground for the behaviors we need to be successful as an organization and as a community—the behaviors of innovation, courage, nimbleness, and flexibility. The data demonstrate that we were successful in all the important ways. We had no in-school transmission of the virus—a testament to all of our protocols and weekly testing. Academically, because of the way we built our schedules, the children ended up right where they should have been by the end of the year—there was virtually no impact on learning, and that’s backed up by our standardized academic test results.”

“The year was successful because it provided a vibrant school experience, against all odds,” elaborates Gustavo Carrera. “Academically, emotionally, students were challenged, and they thrived. I have an enormous amount of respect for my colleagues, but more than that, I’m really in awe as to what they pulled off.”

Employees—and beyond them, the families—are the “good bones” that the pandemic revealed, according to Clair Ward. “With the caring, the nimbleness, and the bravery that came to the forefront during the year, we’ve received a real injection of confidence in what we are capable of. Armed with what we’ve learned from the pandemic, I believe we’re now prepared to make incredible strategic progress in the years to come.”

“The year was successful because it provided a vibrant school experience, against all odds.

Academically, emotionally, students were challenged, and they thrived.

I have an enormous amount of respect for my colleagues, but more than that, I’m really in awe as to what they pulled off.”

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Students Find Secondary School Matches

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Despite Challenges

Adding to the challenge was a flood of pandemichis year, like every year, Shore famiinspired secondary school applications from the lies turned to the Secondary School increased number of families in the public school Counseling Office as they faced the task system who became interested in independent schools of finding an appropriate fit for their for the first time. “Most schools reported a 40% increase child’s next school. Unlike every other in applications over the previous year,” reports van year, however, Shore families faced Otterloo. Part of the extraordinary rise was due to doing so in the midst of a pandemic. “Almost everyanother factor unique to this year: the SSAT became thing about this secondary school admissions season optional at nearly every school, after the Enrollment was different,” says Director of Secondary School Management Association, the organization that Counseling Sander van Otterloo. administers the SSAT, tried to move its testing online Fortunately, at least one thing remained the but faced difficulty with the rollout. The optional same this year: Shore’s success in finding great test meant that many schools, particularly secondary school matches for its graduates. the most selective, received an additional Still, the list of new hurdles brought boost in applications from students about by the pandemic was long. For whose test scores normally would have starters, families could not visit been a barrier to entry. campuses to see schools in action, As if that weren’t enough, and in-person interviews were off admissions decisions made by the table, as well. Even counseling secondary schools at the very start sessions with van Otterloo and of the pandemic in the spring of 2020 Head of School Clair Ward had to be brought unintended consequences for conducted virtually. “These factors uncerthis year’s applicants. Given the uncer compounded the difficulty of what can tainties around the early phases of COVID-19 be already a fraught financial and emotional Phillips Academy in the United States, many independent decision,” says van Otterloo.

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S ECO N DA RY SC H OO L M ATC H ES

schools expected to face unusually high rates of attrition, both among their enrolled students and among those who had just been accepted that spring. To mitigate this perceived risk, they overenrolled incoming classes. When the anticipated attrition never materialized, however, it made acceptance even more difficult for students seeking admission this year.

“All this is to say,” explains van Otterloo, “that all signs pointed to a potentially lower overall acceptance rate for Shore students applying to secondary schools.”

And while the overall rate was indeed lower, surprisingly that wasn’t the end of the story: though they may have been accepted at fewer schools, about 75% of Shore students were accepted at their first-choice school, an all-important statistic given the Secondary School Counseling Office’s emphasis on finding the right fit for each child. Says Head of School Clair Ward, “This is a testament to our efforts on behalf of each individual child. To have the resources to successfully advocate for our students with the admissions officers of some of the most competitive secondary schools in the country is an extraordinary advantage for us.”

There was more good news. Some 15 eighth graders chose to return for Shore’s ninth grade program— double the enrollment during the 2020-2021 school year. “It was an easy decision for many families who just felt they couldn’t get an adequate look at other schools this year, and instead chose the strong program they were already familiar with,” says van Otterloo.

Among those families who did apply out, van Otterloo is pleased to note that students earned acceptances at a wider range of schools than in previous years. Whereas last year, for example, some 60 students ended up at 18 independent schools, this year’s smaller group of appliPingree School cants found homes at 23. “To see that number increase so significantly in a year is exciting,” attests van Otterloo. “It means our approach to finding a ‘custom’ fit is working.” When families consider a wider range of options, especially by looking outside of the most popular schools in the immediate region, it’s easier for the Secondary School Counseling Office to recommend the best school fit for each child.

Another bright spot this year, according to van Otterloo, was refining the Secondary School Counseling Office’s approach to communicating with families. “Storytelling became a bigger part of the job than ever,” he says. “I have always told families that

Director of Secondary School Counseling Sander van Otterloo ’91

what I’m trying to do when presenting a Shore student to an admissions officer is tell their story. But this year it was more than that. Because of the pandemic, I had to tell the story of the schools themselves to a lot of families. It’s easy to look at the website and find the numbers. But it’s another thing to know how those numbers are reflected in a student’s daily experience on campus. So this year I spent a lot of time showing families how they could think more deeply about all the different ways a school can support their child.”

Also successful was a series of smaller Zoom conversations with admissions directors from a group of schools, typically two or three. “I invited them to have direct conversations with families so they could get to know the schools better. Families could then just drop into these sessions and ask any questions on their mind directly to admissions directors.” The six well-attended conversations were part of a communications plan that included more touchpoints than ever for families—particularly later in the secondary school search process. “Interestingly, I may have done more counseling after families received their acceptances this year, because there were no in-person revisit days at the schools that admitted their child. It made finding the right fit a real puzzle, and the result was more conversation post-acceptance than I’ve ever had.”

Looking back at what made this year uniquely challenging—but also uniquely successful—van Otterloo is hesitant when it comes to predicting what changes will stick around in the future. One thing of which he is certain: the sense of relief at having faced a one-of-akind year and emerged at the end of it with such strong results for Shore students.

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Teachers Use NEW TECHNOLOGY to Build Connections

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I

n Beth White’s Pre-Kindergarten classroom, children waved to a squat, bird-like device mounted on a tripod in the middle of the space. On the screen nearby, the students saw their own images projected alongside a wide-angle view of their fifth grade Big Buddies in their own classroom. The fifth graders waved back.

The device the students were using to communicate between classrooms is the Meeting Owl Pro, a robotic, artificial intelligence-powered camera that captures 360° video and audio. The Owl works by automatically shifting the camera to focus on whoever is speaking, presenting a wide-angle view of the entire space along with closeups of individual speakers. When used in conjunction with video-conferencing software like Zoom, the result for viewers is an engaging experience that nearly feels like sitting in the classroom. The Owl and similar telepresence devices saw a surge in popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic, as the education world adjusted to the realities of closed school buildings, hybrid learning models, and students and teachers sick or quarantined at home. The technology allowed school to continue despite the effects of the pandemic.

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Owl as one avenue to virtually visit Knowing that distance or hybrid THE DEVICE with our Big Buddies.” White worked learning was a likelihood at some point THE STUDENTS with fifth grade teacher David Lund during the school year—because of to set up a visual math game that either another statewide school closure WERE USING TO fifth graders and Pre-Kindergartners or the need for isolated quarantines COMMUNICATE could play via the Owls in each of their of specific homerooms or cohorts— classrooms.

Shore acquired the devices for every BETWEEN Elsewhere in the school, faculty classroom in the school at the start of CLASSROOMS IS members used the Owl to give themthe fall. Even though most students selves a presence in the classroom ended up attending in-person school THE MEETING OWL when they couldn’t be there in person. on Shore’s campus, teachers of all PRO, A ROBOTIC, The device allowed Innovation Lab grades found creative ways to employ Manager Cam McNall to teach from the smart technology not only to ARTIFICIAL his technology-rich workspace, even enable remote attendance for students INTELLIGENCEwhen his students may have been in and faculty members affected by the a classroom in another building. The COVID-19 pandemic, but also to build POWERED CAMERA Owl also helped teachers who may vital connections within the school THAT CAPTURES have been at home in quarantine to community. continue teaching, and to be there For example, Beth White used the 360° VIDEO AND for students in other ways, too. Upper Owl to help keep alive the beloved Big AUDIO. School teachers could even remotely Buddies program, which in a typical host their cohort’s morning meeting, year would see fifth graders pairing up letting them interact with the whole with Pre-K and Kindergarten students class or check in with individual students. Meanwhile, to read together, play games, complete craft projects, in the Lower School, explains Director of Auxiliary and more. “This year,” says White, “since we couldn’t Programs Jocelyn Norris, “Teachers in quarantine be with them in person in the same ways, we used the

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N EW T EC H N O LO GY

was remote all the time, and he could join class every were still able to instruct and guide their students day. It was pretty amazing.” from home, and it was fascinating to see how well the According to second grade homeroom teacher students responded. They loved going up to the Owl to Carol Porter, there was a distinct show their work and ask queslearning curve before she and her tions about their progress.” students were able to feel at ease with In Oliver Hay’s Upper School THE OWL KEPT the technology. “When I first turned science classroom, where quaron the Owl camera, the students were antines weren’t uncommon, REMOTE STUDENTS naturally fascinated by it. The ‘eyes’ the Owl kept remote students ENGAGED. OLIVER of the Owl captured their attention engaged. Hay used the Owl in immediately, drawing comments combination with the screenHAY USED THE OWL like ‘It’s watching me!’ and ‘Hey Owl, sharing feature of Zoom to enable IN COMBINATION over here!’” Still, Porter explains, everyone to collaborate on the “It’s striking how un-self-conscious same document. “It was seamless WITH THE SCREENmy students became about using this to the point that I didn’t have to SHARING FEATURE new technology. With one student change my lesson plans at all,” at home in quarantine, the children says Hay. “Students at home were OF ZOOM TO easily understood the dynamic of using engaged as much as students in ENABLE EVERYONE the Owl to share with her what was the classroom. It’s pretty remarkgoing on in the classroom. And for the able how normal this new normal TO COLLABORATE student at home, it was a gift—seeing became.” “Having the Owl in ON THE SAME how much she enjoyed being part of the classroom was great,” adds the class while stuck at home was truly Upper School math teacher Katie DOCUMENT. endearing.”

Sullivan. “I had one student who

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Progress and the Pandemic: Strategic Planning

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On February 21, 2021, the Strategic Initiatives Committee of the Board of Trustees sent the following update on the school’s strategic planning process— Our Future in Focus—to the Shore community: n February 2020 we gathered as a community to participate in an inspiring “Visioning Day” process. The purpose of the day was to seek input to help shape Shore’s strategic plan and goals. Attendees included current families, alumni and alum families, current and former employees, Board members, and educators.

This inclusive process harnessed the valuable perspectives of Shore Country Day School stakeholders past and present. We are grateful for the role all played in ensuring Shore’s future.

This day resulted in the creation of a shared vision for Shore:

By 2025, Shore will be boldly reimagined to inspire a diverse community of global difference-makers.

This vision includes three goals: n INNOVATION: In 2025, Shore Country Day School community members are immersed in expansive and innovative teaching and learning experiences within and beyond classroom walls. n EQUITY & INCLUSION: In 2025, Shore Country Day School is a diverse and accessible community where everyone feels a sense of belonging. n FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY: In 2025, Shore Country Day School is financially sustainable as evidenced by more diverse income streams and continuous generation of surplus assets to reinvest in new programming and new business initiatives.

In a year like no other, where we have had to pivot and change in unprecedented ways, our community should feel proud that the vision and goals we created a year ago, before the pandemic began, are more relevant than ever.

Although we had to put our strategic planning process on hold to address more immediate concerns from COVID19, the school has already made exciting strategic progress in innovation, technology use, equity, and inclusivity.

Notably, the Board approved Shore’s Equity & Inclusion Commitment in May 2020, despite the pandemic. In fall 2020, the Board restarted the work of defining broader next steps to support Our Future in Focus.

Although we have not been able to continue with the formal process as originally planned, we continue to grow strategically, and we are already making progress on our high-level goals. There is no question that our learnings from this year make our organization stronger, more innovative, more agile, and better prepared for the future.

Warmly, The Strategic Initiatives Committee of the Board of Trustees Elia Perez Tessicini, Committee Chair

Rayna Lesser Hannaway, Board President

Ian Brady

Amy Marks

Dino Di Palma

Santo Politi

John Fawcett

Clair Ward, Head of School

Hugo Foster

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A Night of Celebration MAY 26, 2021

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n May 26, Shore presented “A Night of Celebration,” a virtual event to reflect on a momentous year, honor retiring Shore employees, applaud those celebrating milestone years of service in 2020 and 2021, and look forward toward Shore’s future. Hosted live from Shore’s Trustey Family Theatre by Latin and English teacher Doug Lucey and theater arts teacher Sarah Carlin, A Night of Celebration was attended by nearly 200 members of the Shore community past and present, including employees and former employees, current families, alumni and alumni families, friends, and grandfriends. Keynote remarks were given by Clair Ward, Head of School; Rayna Lesser Hannaway, President of the Board of Trustees; and Amy Marks, incoming President of the Board of Trustees.

“This night was a long overdue opportunity to show our appreciation for the employees that make the magic happen,” said Ward. “This includes the ones we can see, and the ones who work tirelessly behind the scenes to make a positive impact on our children. While the event served to recognize the anniversaries and transitions of Shore’s current employees, it is not lost on me that Shore’s strength this year was due in part to the groundwork laid by all of the employees, families, trustees, volunteers, and students who came before us. So it is fitting that—although we wish we could have come together in person—the virtual format of A Night of Celebration was able to draw a broad audience made up of community members from Shore’s past as well as its present.”

Ward added that while the circumstances of the pandemic and the virtual event format may have kept remarks and tributes brief, community members could look forward to this issue of the Shore Bulletin

magazine for full recognition of employees celebrating milestones.

The evening began before it had even begun, with a live chat feature that allowed attendees to share their thoughts in real time as they waited for the show to start. One viewer chimed in from Brisbane, Australia, to say hello, while another local participant wrote, “For all the teachers, aides, staff members, and everyone who taught our little ones during a very challenging COVID-filled year, THANK YOU.” Doug Lucey and Sarah Carlin kicked off the festivities with comedy, entering the stage covered in bubble wrap and protected by face shields and other

Hosted live from Shore’s Trustey Family Theatre by Latin and English teacher Doug Lucey and theater arts teacher Sarah Carlin, A Night of Celebration was attended by nearly 200 members of the Shore community past and present, including employees and former employees, current families, alumni and alumni families, friends, and grandfriends.

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Clair Ward, Head of School

Rayna Lesser Hannaway, President of the Board of Trustees

COVID-19-inspired gear. After receiving a cell phone ‘alert’ from the CDC about its recent mask-free guidance for vaccinated adults, Lucey and Carlin joyously removed their protective wear to face the audience in elegant formal attire. “This is truly a night of celebration at Shore,” said Carlin. “We’re so happy you’re tuning in tonight, whether from your living room or your laptop,” said Lucey. Throughout the event, Carlin and Lucey returned to the stage to introduce videos recognizing employees celebrating milestone years of service, and they also performed skits honoring retirees.

In pre-recorded videos presented over the course of the evening, the keynote speakers reflected on Shore’s strength in the face of the pandemic and expressed gratitude to all those who made an in-person school year possible. Clair Ward noted, “We have walked the proverbial hot coal challenge and come out of it stronger than we have ever been. … We are on the verge of extraordinary growth in the breadth and depth of who we are. We are on the verge of innovation that is bound to capture the attention of not only the independent school industry, but also nonprofits in general. I know, these are bold statements. But because of the commitment of our community both past and present, our future success is within reach.”

Rayna Lesser Hannaway, the President of the Board of Trustees, spoke of Shore’s adaptability. “This experience, and the sacrifices made by all of you who have helped Shore navigate this difficult situation, have taught us valuable lessons that will live within Shore’s culture long after the pandemic is over. There are so many positive things happening because we were forced into this very uncertain situation. We have embraced flexibility and innovation, and we have kept a long-term strategic focus instead of being paralyzed by fear and uncertainty.”

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Amy Marks, President-Elect of the Board of Trustees

Amy Marks, the President-Elect of the Board of Trustees, expressed gratitude for the Shore community. “When I stop to think about this past year,” she said, “I struggle to put into words how much this community has meant to our family… the hundreds of ways all of our teachers learned to connect with, teach, sing with, perform with, run with, create and innovate with, and care for the young people in our lives while wearing masks and trying to maintain social distance— which I imagine may be as uniquely challenging in Pre-K as it is in middle school…. For our family, Shore was a very bright light in a challenging year.”

Later in the evening, Clair Ward paid tribute to the four Shore employees retiring at the end of the year: English teacher Ellen Wright, with 21 years of service; nurse Sue Cronin, with 25; Kindergarten teacher Deb Parkhurst, with 32; and third grade teacher Sam Hamlin, with 39.

At the conclusion of A Night of Celebration, guests again used the live chat feature to share their thoughts.

“I was overwhelmed by this amazing production,” wrote one attendee. “A big shoutout to all the faculty and staff for making it through such a challenging year and coming out on the other side. Summer will be sweet and well-deserved,” wrote another. One guest summed it up this way: “We could not be more grateful for our school and all of you. You outdid yourselves this year!”

Watch the video of the event by scanning the QR code or visiting bit.ly/3jZswB2

10 Years

2020 & 2021 Employee Milestones & Retirements

By Clair Ward

Milestones

10 Years

5 Years Each of our five-year employees has begun to leave their mark on Shore Country Day School in their own way. We appreciate their special dedication and commitment to our students day in and day out.

These employees are now a part of our foundation—the foundation of learning. We congratulate them on reaching this important milestone.

• Alex Asacker Lower School music teacher • Amanda Berg Grade 5 teacher • Brooke Booth Director of Annual Giving • Manny Brito Spanish teacher

Sarah Sklarsky Upper School history teacher Mary Kinahan Grade 1 teacher Mary has the ability to redirect a child in a way that not only preserves their dignity, but also builds their confidence. She sees each child through the lens of possibility. The result is pure magic in the classroom.

• Monique Clark Assistant to Head of Lower School

While Sarah demonstrates and effectively models precision, she is always one to see a student’s ability to improve. Sarah is often the person advocating for the underdog. This makes her truly approachable, whether it be in the classroom or during track practice.

15 Years

• Bill Fisher Director of Marketing and Communications • Ann-Marie Flynn Director of Finance and Operations • Pam Haley Assistant to Head of Upper School • Chris Hubbard Librarian • James Hubbard Grade 4 teacher

Carol Porter Grade 2 teacher

• Sara Knox Head of Lower School

Carol is a master teacher who presents a calm and steady classroom culture. This allows children to grow, knowing that Carol is there to catch them when they fall. Carol is a true role model for children and adults alike.

• Whitney Morris ’96 Grade 5 teacher • Stacy Tell Grade 4 teacher

Gretchen Bowder Spanish teacher Gretchen leads with compassion for her students. She sends a message that she is willing to meet them where they are and take them where they can go.

Gretchen is able to communicate both high standards and partnership. She does this with a skip in her step and delight in her heart.

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on Linda’s talents to get us through a challenging moment. We all appreciate Linda’s commitment to Shore and her pursuit of excellence in her work.

consistently stretching herself in her own learning and growth as a professional. One of the things that makes Pamela such an amazing community member is her sense of empathy. She quietly scans every room for ways to meet folks where they are and enhance their sense of inclusion.

25 Years Betsy Smith Business Office Assistant A committed member of the Business Office, Betsy Smith is always willing to lend a helping hand. Whether it be sorting through the daily bus challenges or rolling up her sleeves to help with COVID testing, we are grateful for all of the ways that Betsy is committed to her colleagues. This commitment shows itself in the form of a great deal of personal loyalty.

20 Years

Dave Poulo Systems Support Specialist In all of Dave’s years at Shore, it is safe to say that the last two have been a whirlwind. Rolling our teachers and students both into and out of remote learning, along with managing our transition from laptops to iPads, Dave uses good cheer and a positive outlook to offer technology support. Dave offers smiles to all of his colleagues and seems to approach each new challenge with enthusiasm. Dave’s work in technology is excellent, but we are all lucky to have him as a welcoming and inclusive colleague.

Linda Grodberg Manager of Print and Digital Media Linda is a champion of polish and accuracy, two things that are so important in her work overseeing Shore’s print and digital content.

This is only enhanced by the fact that Linda has worked in several departments at Shore, thereby bringing history and perspective to all that she does. On more than one occasion, Shore has had to rely

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Pamela Torres Upper School Spanish teacher Pamela is filled with passion for her students and for her work. She is

Lynn Pisanelli Physical Education teacher For two and a half decades, Lynn Pisanelli has been Shore’s very own energizer bunny. Lynn works to build relationships with each and every colleague and approaches her work as a teacher and coach with so much positive spirit. Always one to encourage each of us to be more active (as if we could keep up with her!) and supportive of one another, Lynn is one of our best examples of someone truly living Shore’s Community Code. She greets each student with a disarming dose of warmth that makes kids want to join in her fun. 30 Years

M IL ESTO N ES & RET I REM EN TS

30 Years

high standards for both Shore and herself. With a memory like a steel trap, Loretta can always be counted on for perspective on the history of Shore traditions. Loretta helps us pursue current excellence, too. We will be forever grateful for her leadership in Shore’s inclusion efforts.

Not only did this help move our community forward, but it also set the tone of all of us working together regardless of our specific roles.

Retirements Nancy McNall Athletic Director

2020

Nancy is a confident, compassionate, and steady leader in all that she does at Shore. Always an incredible professional, Nancy makes students the main focus of each day. One of Nancy’s greatest legacies will always be the way she has built such a positive athletic culture. She is able to balance her healthy competitive edge with her belief in every athlete’s potential. She models this for all of Shore’s coaching staff, and the effect on student athletes is nothing short of amazing.

35 Years

35 Years

Loretta Stokes Manager of Human Resources and Student Accounts Loretta is a crucial factor in so much of what makes Shore a success. In addition to her fantastic “can-do” spirit, Loretta is committed to

Carol was a devoted member of the Shore community even as she maintained her deep commitment to her own family. With the occasional twinkle of mischief in her eye, she could joke or tease with the best of them. With love in her heart, she would use her lunch hour to help her own mother or provide transportation for her beloved grandchildren.

She even managed to fit in the regular exercise and long bike rides that became her signature activity.

Carol, we thank you for your 18 years of Shore and hope that your retirement is bringing you all of the precious moments you had anticipated.

2021

Carol O’Neill Comptroller One of the biggest challenges of spring 2020 was knowing that we were saying farewell to colleague Carol O’Neill with no ability to celebrate her in person. For 18 years, Carol was part of the foundation of Shore’s Business Office. That means 18 years, 18 audits, two Heads of School, two Business Office leaders, and countless spreadsheets making sure the bills were paid and the lights stayed on. Carol’s efficiency and drive to do great work are just two of the many traits that others observe about her. Former Head of School Larry Griffin had this to say about Carol: “Her dedication is unparalleled, matched only by her professionalism, precision, and superb character.”

Ellen Wright Upper School English teacher This year we celebrate 21 years of Ellen Wright. To sit in Ellen’s classroom is to experience a master teacher in action. With no pretense or need for a firm hand, Ellen meets her students where they are and takes them to all kinds of places in literature. Ellen has a way of inspiring engagement that, while it can look effortless, is actually the result of meticulous planning and preparation. One of the first things that I noticed about Ellen is her delight for the ages she teaches. She knows well the ways in which sixth and seventh graders can stumble when they do not have a framework or structure to support them. So without judgement

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and with a tremendous amount of positive energy, she provides it.

Never one to raise her voice, Ellen leads with kindness and compassion for those she teaches.

I loved reading former Head of School Larry Griffin’s description of Ellen: “Ellen is not in it for adulation or to compete for titles; she is in it to help each and every one of her students grow in skills, facility with language, and the ability to express themselves articulately with the written word. Ellen is recognized for her intellect as well as for her character and warmth.” I know that all of Ellen’s colleagues would agree that she is a wonderful role model for children and adults alike.

Ellen, we will miss your curiosity and the cerebral way in which you are always striving to enhance your perspective in the classroom.

We will miss your ability to collect everyone’s attention with humility and quiet leadership. Our collective Shore hearts wish you the peace and the space to continue growing, and the opportunity to spend even more time with your favorite partner in crime, Bruce.

Sue Cronin School Nurse This spring, I was in the health office when a young person came in to report a stomachache. Sue Cronin moved toward the child and got to her level, after glancing

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briefly at the clock. What happened next was pure poetry. “What did you have for lunch? Have you had any water to drink? It’s so close to the end of the day—what do you have after school?” With more skill (and a lot more love) than an official interrogation, it isn’t long before the child admits that she has tennis after school and that she doesn’t want to go. Without missing a beat, Sue then strategizes with the child about how she could tell mom she isn’t enjoying tennis anymore.

This is just one moment in the many of Sue Cronin’s days as our School Nurse. It is a job that requires one to be on their toes at all times. Sue monitors concussions and chronic illnesses, calls families about falls, and sorts out the sick from the “I’d rather not go to math class” in the blink of an eye. She even cares for the Shore adults.

And as if that was not already a big enough job, along comes COVID. Either COVID pushed her to the edge, or she decided to go out in a flame of glory! Either way she has been our protector, our cheerleader, our care-giver, and our friend through all of her time at Shore. Former Head of School Larry Griffin says, “What astounds me most about Sue is how she manages to make all visitors feel they are the most important people in the world at that moment, and their concern is of the utmost importance.” We could not agree more. Caring with respect, with softness, or even with tough love when necessary, Sue is the consummate professional.

This year we celebrate 25 years of Sue Cronin. Sue, thank you for your years of commitment to Shore and its community. Thank you for being my late night, early morning, and weekend partner this year as we made our way through contact tracing and quarantine decisions. You are leaving big shoes to fill, and we are honored to have worked beside you for so many years. Our collective

Shore hearts offer you best wishes for all of the Maine sunsets and time with your family you have earned.

Debra Parkhurst Kindergarten teacher “Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning.

But for children, play IS serious learning,” said educator Fred Rogers.

This year we celebrate 32 years of Deb Parkhurst, a teacher devoted to creating wonder both in and out of the classroom through play and imagination. From fairy houses, to leprechaun traps, to snowball fights in the grass on a sunny day, there isn’t anything that Mrs. Parkhurst wouldn’t do to engage and delight her students. This strategy is so effective that one of her students this year actually referred to Mrs. Parkhurst as his very best friend. How could kindergarten get any better than that? Current students, former students, families, and colleagues all refer to the magic of Deb Parkhurst.

While some might believe that these are simply strategies deployed by a master teacher, I am here to tell you that the magic beneath this connection to her students is a mixture of love and empathy. This leaves everyone who interacts with her feeling as though they have been respected and honored. At the beginning of one year, a student wanted to be sure that Deb knew right

M IL ESTO N ES & RET I REM EN TS

away that he was going to be trouble.

Rather than to meet him with power or discipline, she set out to help him develop a new identity—that of classroom helper. Within a few short weeks, he was arriving early to help his teacher prepare the classroom for the others. He felt seen and honored; he found a new version of himself, and the two of them never looked back.

Larry Griffin reflects on Deb’s magic: “When a child’s first step at school is greeted by the open-armed reception of Debra Parkhurst, the child is assured of the opportunity to realize one’s dreams. High expectations are achieved in a supportive cocoon that figuratively protects the child from injury when making mistakes, and it encourages both exploration and experimentation.”

Summoner of fairies and leprechauns, champion of imaginative play, believer in what is possible, Deb, you are a Kindergarten marvel.

Thank you for what you have given your students. Thank you for being a role model for kindness both seen and unseen. Our collective Shore hearts wish you time with your family and the opportunity to spend long days with a very lucky pug named Ruby Wrinkles.

Sam Hamlin Grade 3 teacher This year we celebrate nearly 40 years of Sam Hamlin. As most

of you know, Sam is a jack-of-alltrades. In addition to being a third grade teacher, Sam is a set builder, singer, playwright, emcee, comedian, boat builder, and the list goes on. Who among us can say they have so many skills across so many areas of creativity? I still remember my very first Egyptian Play at Shore, when Sam wrote me into the storyline and I was face to face with a cadre of young third graders all sporting my hairstyle. I knew at this moment that in addition to all of his other skills, Sam was an observer of people—something that has influenced scores of young charges in his many years in the classroom.

“Sam believed all of his students were capable learners with different approaches to mastery. He recognized possibilities where others saw roadblocks; he never hesitated to simply dive in and seek creative solutions,” says former Head of School Larry Griffin. This not only included solutions for student learning, but I am told by Larry that Sam once figured out how to make Mary Poppins fly into the rafters on stage during a performance.

Passionate about working with his hands, he never hesitated to find hands-on learning opportunities for his students. He models creativity and imagination, something to which anyone who has attended the annual Olympic Festival can attest.

After all, who else but Sam Hamlin could get the Shore adults to come to school on a Friday afternoon in togas and enthusiastically play the part of chariot race spectators?

Sam, thank you for being Shore’s embodiment of a Renaissance spirit. We are grateful for all the hats you have worn and for your commitment to always finding a way to unlock a solution. Our collective Shore hearts send you best wishes in your next endeavors, and we certainly hope you will still visit.

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GI V I N G DAY

Shore invited community members to leave a love note and share what’s in their hearts during its May 12, 2021, Giving Day—a day of giving and gratitude.

Families, students, grandparents, alumni, and employees shared gratitude for the things they love most about Shore.

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MEET

Amy Marks

Shore’s New President of the Board of Trustees

“E

quity and inclusion work is at the heart of everything I do,” says Amy Marks, Shore’s new President of the Board of Trustees. “It’s central to me; it’s central to how I see the world.” A professor and the former Chair of the Psychology Department at Suffolk University in Boston, Marks is a developmental psychologist whose work focuses on understanding youth development in marginalized and oppressed social groups. “When I was approached about taking the board president role, I thought it was a great opportunity to help move the school forward strategically—from admissions to finances—while weaving equity and inclusion into everything.”

With two daughters at Shore, in grades five and seven, Marks admits she has a deeply personal interest in doing this work at Shore: “I want to help build an environment at the school that they can be proud of.” A native of the

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North Shore, Marks has experience working on issues of equity and inclusion with other nonprofits in the region. “I love it here, but we have a long way to go when it comes to building more access and opportunity into what we’re doing, whether it’s at Shore or other organizations around the North Shore.”

Growing up multicultural— white on her mother’s side, Native American on her father’s—Marks saw and experienced racism and discrimination firsthand. That experience, combined with a lifelong love of science, gave rise to a career dedicated to research around issues of social justice and children. “I’ve been studying things like discrimination and

racism for about 20 years. I’ve always been motivated by questions like, what are the impacts on children’s health? What are the impacts on children’s well-being or their educational outcomes?”

Similar questions come to mind when Marks surveys the independent school landscape, including Shore. “These are institutions that were largely built to sidestep the public school system or to serve a client base that could afford to send their often white male students to private school—creating a separate class of institution. And so what we’re trying to do now in 2021 is chip away at that system by asking hard questions of ourselves: In what ways have we caused harm?

“Equity and inclusion work is at the heart of everything I do. It’s central to me; it’s central to how I see the world.”

—Amy Marks, President of the Board of Trustees

M E E T A M Y M A RKS

In what ways are we still causing harm? Are there institutional policies or practices that we uphold that might be causing harm or excluding some? Is there repair work to be done?”

Marks sees Shore as at the beginning of this process, “planting seeds, looking critically at ourselves, trying to hold ourselves accountable. That’s how we can make improvement.” One important sign of progress is the decision to create a new Director of Instruction and Inclusion position, an outcome of an audit of diversity, equity, and inclusion at Shore completed in 2019. The way the position is built, says Marks, means that it will be integral to the innovation that is happening in the curriculum as a result of the strategic planning process that spanned 2019-2021.

“It’s not a siloed position. It’s visionary, and different. The new director is going to be a leader within the school who will touch the core of what our children are learning in the classrooms and inspire our innovative teachers in new ways.” The position will “drive us forward in becoming more inclusive and equitable in what our children are reading and how they’re reading. That’s a huge piece of what we need to change.”

Still, says Marks, the year of the pandemic has already spurred change.

“I think Shore grew tremendously this year in its ability to be flexible and make rapid change. Consider what it took to scrap in-person learning in the spring and move everything online, and then scrap that and move everything back to

the classroom in the fall. I think about the bravery it took to open Shore before other schools had committed to doing that—we had to look outside of the U.S. to find examples in Europe where they had done it safely. That rapid change, flexibility, bravery, and innovative spirit—it was like a fire had been lit under us. Those traits will serve us well as we seek

we rally together with an eye toward equity and inclusion, I sincerely hope that people will feel comfortable approaching me and reaching out to me when they see or think of new ways that Shore can be its best.

I’m grateful to be part of this community—it takes everyone to do this work. It takes all of us to kindly love each other

Shore is at the beginning of this process, “planting seeds, looking critically at ourselves, trying to hold ourselves accountable. That’s how we can make improvement.” to align our new normal with our strategic planning.”

If strategic planning will help guide the next three to five years for Shore, so will the creativity and commitment of the school community, Marks argues. “As

through this process. Kindness is key, because no one is perfect.

The more supportive of each other we can be, the more we can help each other through this experience, and the more lasting change we’ll create.”

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Welcome New Trustees Michelle Crafton Family: Jared, spouse; children: Zachary, Grade 4, Tyler, Grade 2, and Myles.

Residence: Swampscott.

Education: M.S.W., Columbia University; B.A., University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.

Professional Background: Adjunct Professor, Salem State University School of Social Work; Director of Adolescent Services, Mental Health Association - NYC; Director of the NYC 9/11 Benefit Program, NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Community and Interests: Listening to live music and playing tennis.

Amanda Jackson Family: Ned, spouse; children: Nate, Grade 7, and Cole, Grade 2.

Residence: Wenham.

Education: B.A., University of Richmond.

Professional Background: Managing Director, U.S. Eastern Region/Europe, Business Development, SRS Acquiom.

Community and Interests: Hiking, skiing, and spending time outdoors with family.

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N EW T RUST EES

Domenic Marinelli Family: Erica, spouse; children: Emma, Grade 6, Bryan ’18, and Luke ’20.

Residence: Marblehead.

Education: M.B.A., Suffolk University; B.S.B.A, Suffolk University.

Professional Background: Managing Director and Wealth Management, The Marinelli Group —Morgan Stanley; holistic financial planning wealth management.

Community and Interests: Boating, skiing, and golfing.

John Tucker Family: Grace, spouse; children: Jay ’10 and Ashley ’14.

Residence: Wenham.

Education: B.A., Trinity College; M.S. Finance, Boston College; Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).

Professional Background: CIO of Equity Index, State Street Global Advisors.

Community and Interests: Boston Bruins games, Cape Cod, and recreational travel.

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STUDENTS SHOW SUPPORT for the Black Lives Matter Movement

“I like the feeling that we are helping something more than just ourselves.

You’re helping the whole society, not just you or your classroom.”

—Fourth grader Evelyn Marks

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n March 1, a group of fourth grade students placed Black Lives Matter signs on Shore’s campus to demonstrate their support for the movement protesting against incidents of police brutality and racially motivated violence against Black people. According to the fourth graders, they wanted “to support the movement, and to show parents, bus drivers, students, and campus visitors that we do.”

The students, teacher Liza Jones’s fourth grade homeroom, had petitioned the Head of School, Clair Ward, for permission to put the signs in prominent locations so they would be visible to the Shore community and any visitors to campus. In approving the students’ petition, Ward said, “At Shore, we honor student voices when it comes to many things… especially equity and inclusion. This proposal joins other successful student-led initiatives at the school, and I and Shore’s administration are proud to offer our support. I am sure we are all pleased to see Shore’s Equity and Inclusion Commitment in action.”

Said Liza Jones, “In class we’ve talked about white supremacy, systemic racism, and the death of Trayvon Martin in 2012, which sparked the Black Lives Matter movement. These are all things my

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students have been thinking about.” Discussions about equity and social justice stemmed from the fourth graders’ studies during Black History Month.

“We celebrated some current living inspirations and remembered several historic figures,” said Jones.

“That work led us to issues of inequity and to the question of how Black History Month and the Black Lives Matter movement surface stories that have often been overlooked or dismissed.”

Jaylin Frye said, “We wanted to support the protests and show people that we believe in Black Lives Matter.” Brennan Hinrichsen added, “We hoped to make more people aware, so they might research the movement and decide that they support it, too, and eventually more people will join them.”

The fourth graders were troubled by racial injustice, particularly in the United States. “Black lives haven’t been treated as well as people with other skin colors,” said Makaylie O’Neil. Henry Sahovey agreed, “Black and white people should have the same opportunities.”

The students felt proud to be taking part in a social justice movement. “I like the feeling that we are helping something more than just ourselves,” explained Evelyn Marks. “You’re helping the whole society, not just you or your classroom.”

Carrera is Published

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on the Topic of Racial Justice

n article by Head of Upper School Gustavo Carrera on the topic of racial justice appears in the winter 2021 edition of Independent School magazine, published by the National Association of Independent Schools. In the piece, Carrera argues that as independent school leaders wonder how to seize a moment of reckoning around racial justice, they must understand the full scope and complexities of their school histories, their cultures, and the experiences of everyone in their communities.

“Teaching is an act of hope. Teachers are optimists,” Carrera writes. “… For years, schools have been redoubling efforts to ensure that they are diverse, equitable, and inclusive institutions. Yet we are continuously falling short. Time and time again, we promise ourselves that we will provide professional development so faculty can be culturally competent and promote cultural competence in our students; be more diverse in our admission and hiring (often this includes the hiring of diversity, equity, and inclusion leaders); and change our curricula, maybe even institute some specific anti-racist and anti-bias curriculum.”

Yet independent schools remain profoundly unequal social spaces; only a handful have enacted and sustained changes long enough to produce self-replicating outcomes, Carrera notes. “In our problemsolving, we are jumping to action without having the courage to look at ourselves realistically and ask: What role do our schools play in the system of white supremacy?”

“In our problem-solving, we are jumping to action without having the courage to look at ourselves realistically and ask: What role do our schools play in the system of white supremacy?”

Carrera examines the history of independent schools in answering this question. “The raison d’être of independent schools has been, and continues to be, that of advancing the interests of those who already have privilege,” he argues. “To put it differently, our main job is to preserve the social status quo or reproduce the elite; this class-bound purpose results in a hierarchical view of the world in which our students are destined for leadership.”

Carrera goes on to point out that independent schools today find themselves facing a momentous opportunity—to honestly address racial injustice and the system of white supremacy by ensuring that they help students develop lives of meaning and purpose and prepare them for ethical and active citizenship.

“Despite the challenges,” Carrera concludes, “I am very optimistic. I work in independent schools because I deeply believe that our schools are exceptional. The small size and engagement of our communities have made us nimble and allowed us to remain independent of many forces beyond our walls that plague our public counterparts. Our communities are temperamentally prepared to ask deep questions about our values and our purpose. Asking those difficult questions will not diminish us; instead, I expect that each school in its own way will be able to leverage its values to enact institutional transformation that will pursue systemic change in our society.”

Read Carrera’s full article by scanning the QR code or visiting bit.ly/2Ut1jhi

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O

Celebrating The Light of Knowledge

n June 7, at the conclusion of a remarkable school year transformed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the seven members of Shore’s ninth grade Class of 2021 were graduated in front of their families at an intimate evening ceremony in the Trustey Family Theatre. Billed as “Celebrating the Light of Knowledge,” the first-ofits-kind event was designed by the ninth graders themselves, and featured the students as speakers alongside faculty advisors, Head of Upper School Gustavo Carrera, and Head of School Clair Ward.

Attendees wore masks and followed other pandemic safety protocols while indoors but, following springtime guidance from the CDC and the State of Massachusetts, were allowed to remove masks to gather in Shore’s Learning Garden following the ceremony.

The event began in Shore’s ninth grade dining room, where

Candles played a central role in the ninth graders’ celebration.

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“Tonight’s ceremony is inspired by the words of Margaret Fuller: ‘If you have knowledge, let others light their candles in it.’”

Ninth graders posed for a photo in front of the historic Winslow Building.

the students received white roses before posing together for a group photo on the steps of the historic Winslow Building. They then walked to the Center for Creativity, where their families had gathered. Each student was limited to six guests, which enabled family

—Gustavo Carrera, Head of Upper School

groups to remain socially distanced once seated in the theater.

The ceremony commenced with a recording of the traditional graduation processional, “Pomp and Circumstance,” after which Gustavo Carrera welcomed attendees.

“Tonight’s ceremony is inspired by the words of Margaret Fuller,” said Carrera. “‘If you have knowledge, let others light their candles in it.’ Margaret Fuller, a native of Cambridge, Massachusetts, believed in the transformative impact of education. But Fuller also knew that the knowledge that we gain from our education is more than just expertise. It is about the character we build, a process that starts at school but continues for the rest of our lives.” Carrera spoke of Fuller’s career, first as an educator and writer, and later as an advocate for women. “There is no doubt that learning illuminates the mind and enhances perspective—it has been our pleasure to watch tonight’s graduates growing and

L IG H T O F KN OWLED GE

Accompanied by Head of School Clair Ward, the students walked from the Winslow Building to the Trustey Family Theatre.

illuminating their view of the world.

We know that this will serve them well as they take the next steps in their journey.”

Carrera invited the graduates each to light their own taper from the glowing blue Shore candle in the center of a table on stage, and then it was time for each to step individually to the podium to share words they had prepared for the ceremony.

“I never thought I would be here, having the opportunity to speak at my graduation from ninth grade,” said Charles Dobbins. “The seven of us have come so far. Shore is so special, and we should all cherish it. … I grew up at Shore, and throughout my growth the Shore community has shown me that they will accept me no matter what. I couldn’t feel safer at Shore than I do right now, because the bond that I have with the Shore community has only grown stronger, and is growing stronger by the moment. This past week, I’ve been in a very reflective state. Often I would fondly think about memories from Shore, and I wouldn’t even realize how much I was smiling. Shore is an amazing place that people cannot appreciate enough.”

“I want to thank the Shore employees,” said Jack McVeigh, “for finding a way for us to come to school in person this year—a feat that seemed near-impossible last year at this time. I’m so grateful to everyone here—my teachers, classmates, coaches, and my family—for helping to shape the person I am today. Beyond what we’ve learned in class—and we’ve learned a lot— what we’ve learned about kindness, leadership, responsibility, and much more will help guide us in the future. When I came to Shore in sixth grade, I had no idea what

to expect, but I am so appreciative for the experience I’ve had, and I’m so lucky to have been able to call myself a Shore student.”

According to Marcela Hernandez, “Shore has taught me many skills and morals that I will continue to use throughout my life.” And in the words of Will Sumner, “Shore allowed me to grow as a student, athlete, artist, and performer, and taught me to grasp the importance of self-advocacy and hard work.”

At the conclusion of the students’ remarks, their advisors came to the podium to share thoughts about each of them, and to decorate each with the ninth grade honor cord. Clair Ward presented students with their graduation certificates, then introduced a video collection of congratulations from Shore employees. When Ward returned to the stage toward the end of the evening, she invited the graduates to distribute red roses to their families, and she shared her closing words.

“In many cultural and religious traditions, light is the symbol of peace, enlightenment, prosperity, and the ability of good to prevail over evil. In the Hindu tradition light burns not for itself, but to remind all of us of the most important values it

Ninth graders held their graduation certificates.

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represents. In Buddhism, light is the ultimate reality, and leads one toward nirvana, the ultimate state.

Many aspects of Chinese culture celebrate light as a symbol of joy and good fortune. And now Shore is using light to celebrate your personal growth and knowledge.

I’m sure I don’t have to illuminate how symbolic it is that our very first annual ceremony of light begins with you at the conclusion of this of all years.”

Ward continued, “Much like we look to the light of the stars for guidance and inspiration, we hope you will look to Shore, the foundation of your educational development. Know that the Shore you see now reflects the fact that you were here. It is our hope that you will always see yourselves in Shore as you remember your moments of growth, your moments of challenge, and your moments of joy.

On behalf of your teachers, I want to thank you for the privilege of being your guides and your coaches.

Thank you for the lessons you have taught us along the way, and know that this will always be your home.”

Above: Head of Upper School Gustavo Carrera addressed the audience. Below: The graduates posed with their teachers and advisors.

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Ward concluded, “When you leave this ceremony you will take your lit candle with you. While the candle itself might extinguish, the knowledge, the perspective, and the care that you have received at Shore never will. The Shore candle will burn brightly for you until your return. In the meantime, we ask that you foster your minds and your hearts. Your ability to grow from here is no longer our responsibility;

it now becomes yours. So use what you have been given here to make the world a better place. Use what you have learned here to bring the Shore Community Code to the larger world community.”

It was then time for the recessional music, Natalie Merchant’s “Kind and Generous,” during which the graduates took their lit candles and carried them outside to the Learning Garden to meet their families. There the students and family members wrote wishes on small squares of paper, which were ignited with a match and allowed to float gently into the sky.

Guests lingered until the evening light began to fade, then slowly departed, taking the light of knowledge with them.

The members of the ninth grade Class of 2021 are: Leonardo DiStefano, Charles Dobbins, Marcela Hernandez, Jack McVeigh, Dylan Olsen, Samuel Porter, and William Sumner.

Watch the Grade 9 ceremony by scanning the QR code or visiting bit.ly/3CYah7t

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Charles Dobbins Jack McVeigh William Sumner Dylan Olsen Marcela Hernandez Leonardo DiStefano Charles Dobbins lighting a candle Samuel Porter Jack McVeigh writing down a wish Marcela Hernandez lighting a candle in the garden 11. Leonardo DiStefano setting a wish alight

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84th Closing Exercises

Eighth graders posed for a class photo on the steps of the Winslow Building.

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n June 9, Head of School Clair Ward presided as 51 eighth grade students were graduated during Shore’s 84th Closing Exercises, held outdoors for the first time in recent memory. Also for the first time, ninth graders were graduated during their own celebration, held two days earlier.

The Closing Exercises had not been held in person for two years— 2020’s graduation ceremony was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In her remarks, Ward thanked the audience for their support as the school navigated an unprecedented time. “Families, we offer our deepest gratitude for all you have done to encourage these amazing kids through this challenging, yet joyous year. Students, on behalf of your teachers, I want to thank you for the privilege of being your guides and your coaches,

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especially this year. Thank you for letting us walk beside you throughout your Shore journey.

Know that this will always be your home, and that you will always be a class that finished the year in complete and utter fulfillment of our mission.”

Before the Closing Exercises began under a sprawling tent assembled on the athletic fields, graduates gathered in the Dining Hall, where they received white roses they’d carry or wear during the ceremony. Parents looked on, cameras and phones in hand to capture the scene, as the graduates posed for class photos on the steps of the historic Winslow Building and then processed as a group for the start of the Closing Exercises.

At the podium, Head of School Clair Ward welcomed the graduates and guests by referring to Shore’s Community Code. “Graduates, we are committed to you taking Shore’s

Community Code with you as your most significant lesson. If you are kind, true, respectful, open, and dependable, you will in fact be not only your best, but also the best of Shore. As we move through our ceremony of celebration today, be

84 TH CLOS IN G EX ERC I S ES

Clockwise from top left: Andrew Gould embraced his mother, Jeanne; Caleigh Fates stood with Harold Johnson; students sat together; students stood; families looked on; Emily Haley celebrated with Kipley Kagan.

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Clockwise from top left: Hugh Foster and Nicholas Laubinger processed under the tent; Louisa Politi, Khyati Patel, and Lucinda Withrop posed for a photo; Aidan Ryan stood with his family; Halia Taylor and a friend held white roses; William Goedkoop received his boutonnière from Head of School Clair Ward; roses were arranged on a table before being distributed to families.

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84 TH CLOS IN G EX ERC I S ES

thinking about how your ability to take your Shore best to the next level makes today not an ending, but a beginning.”

Following Ward’s inspiring introduction, the President of the Board of Trustees, Rayna Lesser Hannaway, shared a message featuring four pieces of advice for the graduates. “First, learn to be a good listener. So often we find ourselves thinking of our responses while another person is talking, or we interrupt, or we’re busy checking our e-mail or our cell phone. The best kind of listening is about just listening and being comfortable with not knowing what you’re going to say next or what question you might ask. Second, if you want to do something great, don’t be afraid of failure. Take risks and embrace failure. It is often the fuel for our success. Third, we all need to ask for help. Don’t be afraid to show your vulnerability. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, know what is in your control and what is not, and focus your energy on what you can control. Focus on the process, not the outcome.

A good process is what creates extraordinary results.”

The Head of School then called each eighth grade graduate individually to the podium, where she congratulated them before the students received a graduation certificate from Head of Upper School Gustavo Carrera. Later, graduates were invited to present roses to their parents, and the Blundin family, whose children had spent a combined 36 years at Shore, was acknowledged with a special bouquet.

As the ceremony wound to a close, Clair Ward returned to the podium to offer her final words, in which she drew parallels between the Shore education and lessons learned from TikTok, the videosharing platform popular with many of the eighth graders who

Friends posed for a photo.

were listening. “The first lesson is fail quickly and fail often. The most successful TikTok-ers produce an abundance of content—a mode of constant creation. The idea is that the more you produce, the better you become and the higher your chances are of success. At Shore, we know that pushing through failure is the key to innovation and creativity.

Eighth graders gave roses to their families.

“The second lesson is to embrace your niche. The 800 million TikTok users are not just one community; they are bunches and bunches of individual communities, each with their own interests. This is true within our Shore community, too. If we have done our job, then you are leaving Shore with some sense of who you are and some passion for continuing to grow. If we are doing our job, we have positioned you to discover new things about yourselves in high school—a place where you just might develop a new niche.

“The third and final lesson is to stand on the shoulders of giants.

One of TikTok’s most-used features allows users to create their own take on existing material. Originality is valuable, but knowledge and education exist because of our commitment to sharing our ideas.

Today, Shore graduates, you stand on the shoulders of giants: your teachers, your families, and your heroes. If you learn the humility it takes to learn from others, then you stand a better chance of being the giant whose shoulder someone else stands on in the future—you become their inspiration.”

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Head of School Clair Ward addressed the audience.

Graduates and their families next listened to a recording of the traditional benediction, performed

by Shore students and employees, and then the eighth graders recessed to the Macklemore song “Good Old Days,” whose lyrics explain, “I wish somebody would have told me, babe, some day, these will be the good old days. …

Someday soon, your whole life’s gonna change. You’ll miss the magic of these good old days.”

In the Howard Gymnasium, faculty formed a receiving line to cheer the newly graduated students as they high-fived one of the hands painted around the doors of the gym, “taking one last touch of Shore,” as Clair Ward explained, “and leaving one last touch of yourself at Shore.”

Outside on the Greentop families then gathered to greet their graduates and share well wishes for the future. Fifteen eighth graders will return to Shore in the fall to be part of the school’s unique ninth grade program, while other graduating students will move on to top high schools and college preparatory schools including Brooks School, The Governor’s Academy,

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Milton Academy, Pingree School, Phillips Academy, and Phillips Exeter Academy, among others.

The eighth grade graduates of the Class of 2022 are: Mary Adams, Emerson Albrecht, Jackson Allen, Isaiah Aminzadeh, Jordi Ayala, Charlotte Bigelow, John

Blundin, Arianna Bocchino, Shane Cardarelli, John Cataldo, Angus Clark, Luka Clark, Eva Contis, Amanda Cooper, Mai Do, Grayson Driscoll, Jude Eskandar, Logan Fairbrother, Caleigh Fates, Henry Foster, Hugh Foster III, Laird Gerdes, William Goedkoop, Andrew Gould, Emily Haley, Rae Hanlon, Sophie Harris, Madison Hugo, William Iler, Harold Johnson, Kipley Kagan, Nicholas Laubinger, Camille Maccarone, Lila Mallon, Skylar McNall, Robert Mullaney Jr., Liam Mulligan, Anton Nugteren, Ethan Oder, Khyati Patel, Louisa Politi, Laya Raju, Chloe Remondi, Aidan Ryan, Nicholas Schibli, Edward Schlueter, Hadley Spater, Henry Sumner, Halia Taylor, Fiona van Otterloo, and Lucinda Winthrop.

Watch the Closing Exercises by scanning the QR code or visiting bit.ly/3xVT4YT

Students sat under a tent on the athletic fields.

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n the summer of 2020, when it was becoming apparent that the upcoming pandemic school year would look dramatically different from all other years, theater arts teacher Sarah Carlin and Upper School music teacher Jenn Boyum found themselves wondering whether the annual Upper School musical, the centerpiece of Shore’s performing arts calendar, could still go on. The Trustey Family Theatre would be closed to large gatherings, and health and safety rules prohibited groups from singing indoors. Even outdoor singing was approved only with masks and 10 feet of distance between singers.

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The only option Carlin and Boyum could see for keeping the musical alive in this environment was presenting it as a video. But, would it be an entirely virtual production, with all parts recorded separately, or was there some way to preserve in-person performance elements of the musical while still following the rules? After all, according to Carlin, building community through performance is one of the most important goals in staging the musical each year.

Carlin and Boyum found answers to their questions in Disney’s High School Musical Jr., a one-hour stage version of the hit movie. In it, two high school juniors from rival cliques threaten the school’s social order. The protagonists, Troy Bolton, a basketball team captain, and Gabriella Montez, a shy transfer student excelling in math and science, try out for the lead parts in their high school musical, and this causes division throughout the school. Despite other students’ attempts to thwart their dreams, Troy and Gabriella aim to resist peer pressure and rivalry and wish to inspire others not to “stick to the status quo.” However, they have to battle high school diva Sharpay Evans and her twin brother Ryan, who both seek to sabotage the friendship and romance between Troy and Gabriella and gain the leads in the school musical.

With its catchy, relatable songs and its familiar school settings and costumes, High School Musical Jr. was the ideal vehicle for creating a hybrid of virtual and in-person performances. At home, students learned and recorded themselves singing musical numbers largely on their own. At school, they lip-synced the songs for the camera, and practiced and performed choreography and spoken scenes together in person, though masked and socially distanced. Some scenes could be staged on location—a pep rally in the Howard Gymnasium, or a study session in the Library, for example— while others were recorded in front of a green screen, which allowed a virtual background to be dropped in during editing. Carlin and Boyum, with the assistance of Vinny Laino, Theater Manager and Technical Theater Director, then went through a time-consuming process of layering together the students’ vocal recordings with their lip-synced performances to create completed songs, and they stitched together scenes acted at school to build out the storyline.

“We could have chosen a completely virtual production,” explains Carlin. “We could have required kids to do everything at home, putting together scenes via Zoom. But we decided that what is paramount in what we do here at Shore

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H IG H SC H O O L M USI CA L J R.

Opposite page, top to bottom: Kipley Kagan performed a dance number; Amanda Cooper, Jack McVeigh, and Rae Hanlon practiced a scene; members of the cast rehearsed in the Howard Gymnasium. This page, clockwise from top left: Sarah Carlin directed a scene with Vinny Laino; Amanda Cooper and Jack McVeigh lip-synced; members of the cast cheered; members of the cast rehearsed an ensemble number against a greenscreen.

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Above: Kindergarten teacher Keisha Myrie looked on as students practiced dance moves. Below: Sarah Carlin gave direction to Ethan Oder and Arianna Bocchino. Previous page, clockwise from top: Amanda Cooper acted in a scene with Kipley Kagan and Laya Raju; dancers rehearsed; Ethan Oder and Arianna Bocchino posed on stage; Ollie Wallace, Jack McVeigh, and Will Sumner acted in a scene.

is giving children an experience of community— rehearsing together, learning choreography together, being in scenes and acting together, being able to respond to each other in the same place. So we decided to do the ‘pandemic version’ of this musical, where actors are in person, but masked and observant of all the other safety precautions for the entire production.”

Carlin, Boyum, and the cast dealt with numerous challenges during the making of High School Musical Jr.—not the least of which was learning to act while wearing a mask. “We wondered how they would convey emotion,” recounts Boyum. “Ultimately, they had to dig deep, boosting their physical expressiveness beyond the face, which was two-thirds covered. To show who is talking and what they’re feeling, we had to coach them to use gestures and body language. In the end, they did a great job of making sure the expressive quality of each scene is still intact.”

Filming, rather than staging, the musical presented its own learning curve. “With a traditional musical,” explains Carlin, “there’s a system, and we know how everything works. With this production, we had to throw out all of the rules we usually follow.” For example, Carlin and Vinny Laino, who ran the video camera, had to experiment with how to use the green screen to best effect. There were numerous large ensemble numbers in which not all the actors could fit within the green screen frame; these scenes had to be stitched together from multiple takes of smaller groups of students. The limited time available for the musical was another challenge for filming. “Normally we’d have four days a week plus some weekend days for rehearsals alone,” says Boyum. “This year, we had only a few days a week to work with the students, and we could gather only small groups at a time, further limiting our window for rehearsal and filming.”

Still, says Carlin, the extra effort was all worth it, enabling as close to an in-person musical experience as possible under the circumstances. “Sure, it’s nice to have a polished stage production at the end,” she admits, “but honestly, with the year we had, giving our students the opportunity to be together in this process was far and away the most important thing to us. It wasn’t easy, and we’re so proud of them for the way they stuck with it. They had to stay apart while they were performing, they had to be diligent about learning the material on their own, they had to support each other in unprecedented times. All of this just elevated the experience for them. By the end, they were truly happy to have been part of it.”

Watch the video of High School Musical Jr. by scanning the QR code or visiting bit.ly/3AMi9XZ

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Lingua Franca: Reassessing the Curriculum in English

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By Bill Fisher

he 2019-2020 school year was the beginning of a watershed moment for Shore’s Upper School English Department. The head of the division, Gustavo Carrera, had begun a review of the department’s faculty and curriculum from the perspective of diversity, equity, and inclusion—a reflection of a major strategic priority at the school that was formalized in an Equity & Inclusion Commitment approved by Shore’s Board of Trustees in the spring of 2020. “We know that Shore has a responsibility not only to take action ourselves, but also to raise our children to recognize and address systems of oppression,” the members of the Board’s Equity & Inclusion Committee wrote to families. That same spring, Carrera hired fifth grade homeroom teacher Louis Frank to fill a vacant position and serve as chair in the Upper School English Department, noting that Frank’s extensive background and training in issues related to diversity, equity, and inclusion were a significant factor in his winning the job.

By the following school year, 2020-2021, these changes were already making a visible impact on the English curriculum and the experience of Upper School students. According to Frank, “Much of my graduate work was concerned with understanding how the literary canon as we have known it for so long has been informed by and reflected systems of power and oppression. When I arrived in the department I

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noticed that the text selection tended to be predominantly concerned with a specific white perspective.”

Given a student population that has historically been mostly white, says Frank, it appeared that most of the texts in the Upper School curriculum were “mirrors,” reflecting back to the students their own culture.

“What I wanted to do,” explains Frank, “was to create more ‘windows’ in the curriculum—more opportunities to explore new worlds and new perspectives.

Literature is a really wonderful way, particularly at the middle school level, to engage in conversations around certain systemic issues in a way that kids can access through characters, through narration, through a literary lens.”

Works by diverse young authors were introduced, and books that dealt with themes of racism, white

“What I wanted to do was to create more ‘windows’ in the curriculum— more opportunities to explore new worlds and new perspectives.”

—Louis Frank, English teacher and English Department Chair

L IN GUA F RA N CA

supremacy, and related issues were now front and center. There is an appetite for these types of materials, says Frank. “This is the lingua franca of this generation. Because of the digital access they have to the world and the way they engage with media, the students in my classroom are already grappling with so many of these ideas in their lives—ideas like white supremacy, patriarchy, misogyny, homophobia. These are words that I might not have learned until college, but for these young people, it is how they understand the world right now.”

An example of the kind of reading that is now featured prominently in the Upper School English curriculum is Walter Dean Myers’s Monster, part of the eighth grade’s syllabus. The story of Harlem teen Steve Harmon, on trial for his alleged participation in a murder and labeled a “monster” by the prosecution, the book focuses on the racism inherent in a justice system that relies on the dehumanization of the accused, and works to humanize the character of Steve.

Monster was chosen for the way in which it speaks directly to the themes in what was formerly a centerpiece of the eighth grade English curriculum, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, now a part of the grade’s summer reading list. In that canonical work, heroic “good” whites battle racist “bad” whites while Black characters in the novel are rarely given voice. Explains

Head of Upper School Gustavo Carrera, “Teaching both texts has allowed us to encourage deeper conversations about equity and race in our society. The students are not only addressing a new text but they are also approaching two texts in completely different ways.”

Louis Frank agrees, “My students and I discuss the place To Kill a Mockingbird has been assigned in the American cultural imagination with regard to race and the justice system, and we ask how might Monster broaden our understanding of the justice system and the people most commonly affected by it. Myers’s novel allows students to look at two different approaches to issues of racism and so-called justice, and we place the books in conversation with each other.” Adding Monster to the reading list has had the effect of re-centering important voices that have not historically been centered in the cultural imagination, says Frank.

It is fortunate for Shore at this moment that middle school students are inherently interested in the idea of fairness. Because of this predisposition, Frank argues, young people can become deeply invested in themes of equity and injustice found in a book such as Just Mercy, newly introduced into the ninth grade curriculum. This non-fiction work recounts the story of its

Research shows that middle school-age children learn better when they are engaged on an emotional as well as an intellectual level, and, says Frank, these newer texts do both.

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author, Bryan Stevenson, the young lawyer who founded the Equal Justice Initiative, a legal practice dedicated to defending those most desperate and in need: the poor, the wrongly condemned, and women and children trapped in the criminal justice system. “My students are already attuned to the broader idea that the system isn’t fair, but they need this book to experience the full scope of the problem and its human consequences,” says Frank. “Just Mercy sparks engaged conversations about the concrete ways that inequity operates in our society, and it allows us to explore the idea of what a more just, more compassionate society might look like.”

Increased engagement is a key benefit of the recent changes in the department.

As Frank contends, “There has historically been this idea in English classrooms that texts that teachers choose are things to be endured, not enjoyed. But what if we started thinking about books not as things to be endured, but as opportunities to engage with material that feels relevant, new, and exciting? Authors are creating texts that are increasingly representative of a wider range of experiences, and these feel more relevant to students because of the world that they live in.” At the same time, these newer texts have the power to engage students more deeply in learning about traditional, theoretical elements of the English curriculum, such as character, conflict, symbolism, and figurative language. Research shows that middle school-age children learn better when they are engaged on an emotional as well as an intellectual level, and, says Frank, these newer texts do both.

He cites an eighth grade discussion inspired by another recently introduced book as an example of the engaged learning he is increasingly witnessing in the classroom. In The Marrow Thieves, a speculative fiction novel by Canadian author Cherie Dimaline,

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humanity has nearly destroyed the world through global warming, and the indigenous people of North America are being hunted and harvested for their bone marrow, which carries the key to recovering something the rest of the population has lost: the ability to dream.

In this dark world, a group of young people struggle to survive, and one of these protagonists happens to be gay. “It’s just presented as a matter of course,” explains Frank, “and my students were struck by that. They’d been wondering why, in so many representations of gay characters that they’ve seen, the character’s sexuality is the entirety of the story. Yet in The Marrow Thieves, here is a gay character who just is; that’s not his essential humanity, and that’s not all that defines him and how he operates in the story. There is a certain power in the quotidian, and I think this character reflects that.” Students are hungry for representations that allow them to apply some of the ideas and observations they’ve acquired on their own, Frank says. “That’s what this kind of literature allows them to do.”

The academic and author Saidiya Hartman has said, “So much of the work of oppression is policing the imagination.” For Frank, who admits he is inspired

by Hartman’s work, the English classroom should be a place for combating oppression and expanding the imagination. “When I think about the changes we’ve made to the curriculum, I think about how books can not only challenge the cultural imagination, but also expand the child’s imagination. By meeting young people where they are and providing texts that speak the language in which they’re already immersed, we can respond to their most urgent emotional and intellectual needs—and the needs of our society. Literature inspires us to believe that a more just world is possible.”

Portrait of a Graduate: Marcela Hernandez ’21

I

f there is one word that describes Marcela Hernandez’s ninth grade experience at Shore, that word is balance. “I think that while I know I need to study for quizzes and be a hard worker,” she reflects, “I’ve learned I also need to make sure I’m spending time with my little sister painting, or being outside with my little brother. The independence I’ve had this year has really helped me take that next step, learning to balance one project versus another, and learning to manage my time well enough at home so that I can hang out with my family but also get the work done.”

Balance is a hallmark of Shore’s ninth grade program, which, despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, remained in person and largely intact during the 2020-2021 school year, offering a signature blend of rigorous academics, student independence,

and close relationships with teachers and mentors. “Ninth grade has been very successful for me,” says Hernandez, “considering how so many other schools were affected by the pandemic. I felt like I was almost in a normal school year, besides the masks and hand sanitizing, of course. It didn’t really affect my learning as much as it did some of my other classmates who left Shore in eighth grade.”

Now, she is heading to Phillips Academy in the fall, feeling “100% confident” she is ready for the opportunities she will encounter there. “I’ll know how to take time on weekends to do my work, versus having my social life. I really discovered that this year.”

For Hernandez, the path to ninth grade and beyond began when she arrived at Shore in the first grade, where finding balance meant having fun while developing close relationships with teachers.

“I remember so many small things

that seemed so insignificant, but when I look back on them, they were just so fun—from sock parties in first grade to hanging out with friends and playing a game after school in fifth. I also remember having teachers who were really involved, who you have a good relationship with. Even now when I’m walking through the hallways and I see my Lower School teachers, I know I can stop and have a comfortable conversation with them.”

Looking back, Hernandez says she’s struck by the academic growth that was happening all along the way. “I remember in the Lower School always having a tough time getting homework done, especially with math, which I hated at the time. I would actually cry at night when I had to do my homework. But

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now math is my favorite subject.

Even in the transition from sixth grade to seventh I was able to find that balance, and I finally learned how important it is to have certain study skills—and how important it is to be a hard worker, but also be able to have fun in the learning.”

Discussion is another area in which growth and balance have yielded surprising results. “In sixth grade I did not talk at all around the Harkness table. I would stay quiet and sit in the back and listen to everyone else’s points. But as the years went on I became more confident. It’s not quite like being on a stage, but it did bring me out of my shell. I found my voice, and learned how to be a leader without overpowering the group.”

“Since I was in the first grade I’ve recited the Community Code every morning. It’s all about being a good person and trying your best, being open to new experiences and being kind. I think Shore taught us really well how to take those tenets and actually apply them—to find balance in our lives.”

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What most stands out for Hernandez about her Shore experience is the balance in the relationships she’s built—with other students, but especially with her teachers. “Of course I had a great time with my friends, but I also knew that I was comfortable with my teachers, and they’d always be there for me if I needed help. You can have a normal conversation with your teachers about whatever; it doesn’t have to be related to school. When I look back at my time here I think that’s what made Shore such a great experience for me.”

As she looks forward to continuing her high school career, Hernandez says there’s one thing she’s especially glad to be taking with her from her time at Shore.

“Since I was in the first grade I’ve recited the Community Code every morning. It’s all about being a good person and trying your best, being open to new experiences and

being kind. I think Shore taught us really well how to take those tenets and actually apply them—to find balance in our lives. Having that moral compass with me throughout life, I feel like I’ll be able to go far with anything.”

Spring Sports

A

By Bill Fisher

fter a pandemic year without an Upper School sports program, students and coaches were thrilled to take the fields again starting March 29 as intramural spring-season practices for lacrosse, baseball, softball, and track and field began. “The vibe was incredibly positive,” says Athletic Director Nancy McNall. “The opportunity for the kids to be outdoors, connecting through athletics, was glorious.”

McNall had been eager to restart an Upper School sports program ever since the COVID-19 pandemic effectively shut down all competition in spring 2020.

While McNall and fellow physical education teachers Mike Pannozzi and Lynn Pisanelli were able to provide students with remote workouts and practice videos that spring and, when school reopened in the fall, relatively normal physical education classes for the Lower School, a return to Upper School sports remained out of reach. High rates of COVID-19 transmission in the region made close competitive play too risky.

In the spring, however, with coronavirus numbers dropping and plenty of evidence from the fall to suggest that Shore’s safety measures were effective, it became possible to consider a restart. Families and students were all for it, says McNall. “One of the things I’ve always enjoyed about working at Shore is that the

students and families are so supportive of the athletic program. Everyone was ready to get back out there.”

The first step toward a spring season was devising safety protocols that would continue protecting children from COVID-19 even while competing. That meant dropping interscholastic play and travel in favor of scrimmages among Shore teams only, and it also meant closing locker rooms, requiring masks, and keeping players as physically distanced as possible while on the sidelines.

Step two was finding willing coaches among Shore’s faculty and staff. Explains McNall, “Because we depend

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S P RI N G SPO RTS

on our teachers to coach our kids, I wasn’t sure we’d even have a coaching roster for the spring given the added stress our teachers were already facing because of the coronavirus.” But the response was overwhelming, says McNall. “I couldn’t believe that almost all of the coaches said yes. They knew sports would be great for their students, and they couldn’t wait to get out on the fields alongside them. To see that selflessness in our teachers—despite the ways the season would look different, and despite the challenges—was amazing and gratifying. The season wouldn’t have happened without their willingness to step up.”

McNall says she couldn’t be happier about how the restart went. “Our kids were so good about following the COVID-19 safety rules. The worst thing that could happen was that a mask might snap and break. That’s the reason we had replacements in our medical kits.”

More importantly, sports brought back something that was missing from Shore during an unprecedented year—a way for students to build connections across peer groups and grades. “What we really did is go back to what we used to have at Shore—a robust intramural program on campus that’s very spirited.

We had all grades playing together on the same field, so they could compete against one another or practice separately, whatever the situation called for.”

McNall planned other ways to make the spring season feel special. One day a week, there were “Blue and White Game Days,” when students were divided into blue and white squads in honor of Shore’s colors.

Then they competed against each other to earn points for their color and try for the championship at the end of the season.

Regardless of any prizes that may have been won, McNall saw big rewards for all Upper Schoolers in the afterschool sports program. “It was great for the eighth and ninth graders who were leaving Shore to have one last season on the fields after missing last spring, fall, and winter. For our sixth graders, it was their very first chance to be involved in spring sports. This propelled them into this year and gave them a sense of what the program is all about. It was especially important for our seventh graders, who will be the leaders on our teams this year. This spring will surely have given them a little bit of confidence as they head into the fall.”

McNall says Shore is planning to run the full afterschool sports program in the fall, when the hope is that COVID-19 will have receded enough into the background to allow a return to something close to normal.

But this spring, intramural practices and scrimmages helped to give everyone the sense that normal was within reach. “Being out on the fields, I felt we were right where we should be as a school,” McNall says. “If anything, this past year has made me appreciate even more how important sports are to our program, and how much I love what I do.”

“What we really did is go back to what we used to have at Shore—a robust intramural program on campus that’s very spirited. We had all grades playing together on the same field, so they could compete against one another or practice separately, whatever the situation called for.”

—Athletic Director Nancy McNall

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PAST & PRESENT

CO L L EG E ACC EPTA N C ES

Shore Alumni Head to College Congratulations to these Shore alumni on their college acceptances!

Linden Adamson ’18 Boston University

Carter Crocker ’18 Boston College

Sarah Kennedy ’18 William & Mary College

Devon Alperin ’18 Washington University in St. Louis

Teresa DiNanno ’18 Hartwick College

Cole Keough ’18 Syracuse University

Graham Archer ’18 Tufts University

Julia Dobbins ’18 American University

Emily LeMieux ’18 Northeastern University Myles Lopes ’18 Tufts University Eleni Mazareas ’18 Barnard College of Columbia University John McFadden ’18 University of Massachusetts Amherst Ainsley McKenna ’18 Syracuse University Madeline Mullaney ’18 Harvard University

Anna Bargman ’18 Yale University Kealan Biebesheimer ’18 University of Glasgow Kelly Blundin ’18 Princeton University Molly Bolland ’18 University of Southern California Aidan Callahan ’18 Worcester Polytechnic Institute Catherine Card ’18 George Washington University Enzo Caruso ’18 Boston College Alicia Coble ’18 Tufts University Abigail Cotraro ’18 Boston University

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Emily Dornan ’18 University of Utah Global Business Scholars Catherine Fortin ’18 Haverford College Caroline Fritz ’18 Boston College Peter Goeben ’18 Bentley University Charles Hoffman ’18 University of New Hampshire Samuel Izzo ’18 Bridgewater State University Sophia Izzo ’18 University of Vermont Benjamin Jones ’18 University of Toronto Caroline Kagan ’17 University of Vermont

Isabel Murphy ’18 Boston College Alexander Oder ’18 University of Chicago Stephanie Pratt ’18 Hamilton College Andrew Samperi ’18 Seton Hall University Anna Sassine ’18 Haverford College Tessa Shields ’18 University of Massachusetts Amherst Benjamin Wilkinson ’18 Northeastern University Ryan Winchester ’18 Northeastern University Brigid Woelfel ’18 Colby College

Virtual Alumni Events Conversation and Music with Jazz Vocalist Lauren Henderson ’02 DECEMBER 15, 2020 Over 50 guests tuned in via Zoom for a special virtual event featuring conversation and music with jazz vocalist Lauren Henderson ’02. The event was hosted by Pre-K teacher Beth White, who had been Henderson’s second grade teacher.

Young Alumni Trivia Night APRIL 6, 2021 Shore’s Alumni Office hosted its first-ever virtual alumni trivia event with 35 high school alumni and Grade 9 students competing alongside 11 Shore employees. Head of Upper School Gustavo Carrera welcomed the group at the beginning of the event and encouraged attendees to stay connected with Shore. A fun night was had by all!

Young Alumni Panel for Shore Eighth and Ninth Graders MAY 24, 2021 Shore alumni Julia Dobbins ’18, Jerry “Jay” Edokpa ’19, Lily Iler ’19, and Brigid Woelfel ’18 (clockwise from top left) spoke with current Grade 8 and 9 students during the school’s inaugural Young Alumni Panel. Director of Secondary School Counseling Sander van Otterloo ’91 and Upper School faculty member Louis Frank moderated the virtual event, asking panelists to share about their experience transitioning to high school and being Shore alumni.

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CALLING ALL ALUMNI:

KEEP IN TOUCH!

Update Your Contact Information Today!

Your connection to Shore is so important. Over 300 alumni have updated their contact information since January 2021.

The strength of our alumni network continues to grow!

Visit www.shoreschool.org/alumni/update-your-information today to network and receive event invitations, updates, and the annual Bulletin magazine.

The majority of Shore’s communications are only sent electronically, so e-mail is especially important.

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A LUM N I N OT ES

ALUMNI NOTES Nancy (Wheatland) Biglow ’45 writes that she moved away from the North Shore to Cambridge, MA, and went on to travel all throughout Europe. In 1953, she married her husband, Lucius Biglow, Jr., in Harvard Chapel. The family relocated to Seattle, WA, where Lucius practiced corporate law and Nancy taught school for one year before having four children: Lucius, John, Timothy, and Anne—and she now has four grandchildren! Her son, John, rowed for Yale University and then for the U.S. national team. He even won bronze medals at both the 1981 and 1982 World Championships! Nancy remembers her four years at Shore fondly.

Margaret Shaw Dean ’49 writes that she lost her husband four years ago, but still lives in the Washington, DC, area near her son, who lives in Maryland. Margaret still heads up to Chatham, MA, whenever she is able to do so.

In July, Deedee Morss Decker ’55 traveled to the North Shore from Colorado to visit and catch up with fellow classmates and longtime friends Susanna Colloredo-Mansfeld ’55, Eloise Hodges ’55, and Carroll Taylor Clark ’55.

Jim Irving ’69

Caleb Loring III ’59 is still trying to retire! He is an active volunteer with his church, the Salvation Army, and other local nonprofits. Caleb and his wife of 55 years, Bronwyn (Bonny), have six grandchildren.

Peter Dorsey ’66 is living on the North Shore and working in real estate, specializing in period and antique homes, ocean estates, and country farms. His website is www.NorthShoreAbode.com.

Melissa Marsh Heaver ’67 writes that in the last few years, her family has grown two-fold! In 2018, her son, Tom, married Megan Hiltz of Westminster, MD, and the two had a daughter, Charlotte (born in 2019). Melissa’s daughter, Isabel, married Will Levy of Baltimore, MD, and the two have twin sons (Ben and Bill).

Peter Sortwell ’68 writes that he sold his company, Arborwell, this year and is now retired.

(From left to right) Eloise Hodges ’55, Carroll Taylor Clark ’55, Susanna Colloredo-Mansfeld ’55, Deedee Morss Decker ’55

Susan (Shierling) Riegel Harding ’57 writes that she has one daughter, Tatiana Riegel, who is a film editor. Susan is currently happy in her home with her dog and thankful to have survived this past year—life has been good!

Timothy Hollander ’58 left Shore for six years at Middlesex School and is looking to reconnect with his fellow Shore classmates! He is still located in New England.

Jim Irving ’69 has just published his first two novels: Friends Like These and Friend of a Friend. They are the first two of a three-book series published by Speaking Volumes and are available digitally and in paperback.

The Friends books are contemporary mysteries set in Arlington, VA, and feature Joth Proctor, an underemployed criminal defense lawyer and native of Salem, MA. His third book, Friend of the Court, is to be published before the end of the year. Jim left a thoughtful inscription to the Shore community inside his book in Shore’s Library. Jim also enjoys being in touch with fellow Class of 1969 classmates Tom Perkins, Tarry Cutler, Bill Duryea, and Kevin Kearney.

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Class of 1980 Virtual Reunion Several members of Shore’s Class of 1980 organized a special “Zoom-union” in celebration of their class’s 41st reunion in April. Thirty-four classmates from across the country and around the world gathered virtually, with some seeing each other for the first time since graduation! In preparation for the gathering, Class of 1980 alumni submitted personal updates to classmate Todd Brown, who compiled a 20-page document and included both individual student portraits and class pictures from Shore.

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A LUM N I N OT ES

Annie Huntoon ’97 shares that she is now a teacher in the History Department at the Winsor School in Boston, MA. After many years working as a numismatist at Northshore Numismatics, Chris Pienta ’97 will be starting school in September at the North Bennet Street School to pursue a degree in preservation carpentry. Chris is also the President of the Board of Directors at Girls Rock Campaign Boston, a nonprofit dedicated to amplifying the voices of girls, women, and youth and adults with marginalized gender identities through music education and performance!

Philip Nel ’84, University Distinguished Professor of English at Kansas State University and nationally recognized children’s literature scholar

Philip Nel ’84 is currently a University Distinguished Professor of English at Kansas State University. He is a scholar of children’s literature, and after recent controversy regarding the works of Dr. Seuss, news organizations around the country turned to Nel for his insight on Seuss’s work.

Heath Cabot ’93 is an Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Pittsburgh and was recently awarded the Chancellor’s Distinguished Research Award. This award honors faculty members who have demonstrated great potential by virtue of the quality of their early contributions. The award’s selection committee had this to say of Dr. Cabot: “The selection committee was impressed by how you channeled your ethnographic work with migrants, policymakers, non-governmental organizations, lawyers, and refugees into a monograph that now serves as the foundation for work on solidarity.”

Former Shore English teacher Joanne Harder and granddaughters Layla and Ruby Harder

Eliza (Gregory) Coll ’98 is currently living in Phoenix, AZ, with her husband, Sean, and sons Miles (5) and Ellis (2).

Eliza owns a consulting firm providing emergency management and public health preparedness services. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she has worked alongside county and state public health officials to support their response.

Heath Cabot ’93

Retired English teacher Joanne Harder included a visit to Shore as part of “Camp Mimi” with granddaughters Layla and Ruby Harder, whose dad is Shore alum Bryn Harder ’94.

Jonathan Quade ’98 is currently enjoying life in Kennebunkport, ME. He is the Head of Major Operations at Batson River Brewing & Distilling.

Kate (Cournoyer) Wallman ’01 and her husband, Andy, welcomed their first child, William “Will” Wallman, on June 9, 2020. They also made the move out of the city of San Francisco to the suburbs and now reside in Belvedere, CA.

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Morgan Atkins ’02 moved to Aspen, CO, in August of 2020 after spending the last seven years in the Boston Public School System as the Coordinator of Culture and Climate at the Eliot School in the North End. Her move to Colorado was inspired by her love for the mountains and spending time outside, especially this year! She is now working as a guidance counselor at Aspen Country Day School, and loving the experience and all of the opportunities to challenge herself.

Emily Huntoon ’02 is currently working at Liberty Mutual in Boston, MA, and was recently married to Tom Roth. The wedding took place in Hamilton, MA. Anne (Cameron) Zgrablich ’02 and her husband, Andrew, welcomed their third daughter to their family last year.

Isla Drew was born on July 15, 2020, and her older sisters, Grace and Ruthie, are smitten. Grace will be entering Shore’s first grade in the fall—a big welcome back to the Zgrablich family!

In 2017, Harry O’Hanley ’03 founded ABL Space Systems, a startup to develop launch vehicles to send small satellites into orbit. In March 2021, the rocket builder reached a $1.3 billion valuation after finishing a $170 million round of funding from investors. And in April, ABL made a deal with aerospace giant Lockheed Martin for dozens of missions over the next decade. The company is now among the most valuable in the growing space industry.

at Brooks since 2017 and is a history teacher and program director of cross country. She also serves on the Diversity Leadership Council, and is the incoming Interim Curriculum Coordinator for the 2021-2022 school year.

Before Brooks, Joanna was at Miss Porter’s School in Farmington, CT, where she was the History Department Chair. She is also currently a Doctor of Education candidate at Northeastern University. Her dissertation focuses on equity and justice academic programming and classroom practices in co-educational independent schools.

She hopes to complete and defend her dissertation in September 2021!

Marissa Muggeo ’04 and Jay Donovan were married on February 27, 2021, at the Harvard Club of Boston.

In attendance were Brookwood friends and, of course, fellow Shore alum and older brother, Jared Muggeo ’98.

In August of 2019, Lowell Abbott ’07 married wife Kelly Abbott. In attendance were Shore classmates Phoebe Burr ’07 and Hayden Stone ’07. Lowell is currently the Associate Director of Admissions at Marin Country Day School in California—she writes that MCDS brings back lots of memories of Shore!

In 2020, Connor Cash ’08 graduated from Harvard Business School and launched his own company that focuses on sustainability: www.connorccash.com. He also dove headfirst into pet ownership and adopted a new dog!

Joanna McDonough ’04 recently won the Brooks School Reverend George F. Vought Prize. This prize is awarded to a member of the Brooks faculty who in their first few years has made special contributions to the school and exhibited notable professional growth. Joanna has been

Jessica Marlor ’08

Joanna McDonough ’04

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Jessica Marlor ’08 was recently awarded a Toulmin Fellowship, which is given annually to pioneers in music composition. Her second opera was set to premiere at the POLIN Museum in Warsaw, Poland, but was cancelled due to the pandemic. Jessica was also awarded by the Brooklyn Arts Council to create a piece of music about Brooklyn, which culminated in a distanced live performance at the Brooklyn Museum. She is happily living in an apartment in Ridgewood, Queens, with her partner and dog. You can find her online at @orpheuswannabe on Instagram and www.jlcomposes.com.

A LUM N I N OT ES

Marissa Muggeo ’04 wedding: (from left to right) Zach Cotreau, Brookwood ’02; Megan Donovan, Brookwood ’97; Jay Donovan, Brookwood ’02; Marissa Muggeo Donovan ’04, Jared Muggeo ’98.

Wesley Fabyan ’10 received a BS in bioengineering from Harvard University in 2018, and is currently pursuing a bioengineering PhD at the University of Washington in Seattle.

Abigail Mosse ’13 graduated from Drexel University in 2020 with a BS in fashion design. She recently started her own company, Bouncy Frown Studios. You can find her at www.bouncyfrown.com.

Nate Morgan ’08

Alexandra Kagan ’14 completed her senior year at Furman University in South Carolina, studying psychology.

Nate Morgan ’08 is currently an MBA candidate at the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia.

Rebekah Scharfe ’08 passed her PE exam to become a Professional Engineer. She is currently working at John A. Penney Co., Inc. in Cambridge, MA. Madeline James ’09 is in the middle of a PhD program for European history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Jake Stokes ’09 graduated from the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine in May 2021 with a Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine. He is currently at Angell Animal Medical Center (in Boston, MA) in their Rotating Internship Program. Jake’s focus is small animal medicine and surgery.

Jake Stokes ’09

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Brendan Callahan ’16 moved to New York to perform in the off-Broadway production of Sing Street with New York Theatre Workshop in 2019-2020. Broadway shut down two weeks before the show was to open due to the pandemic. When theater resumes, Brendan will make his Broadway debut in the original cast of Sing Street.

You can catch the original Broadway cast recording on Spotify. In the meantime, Brendan is still living in NY, enrolled as a full-time student at Baruch College.

Chloe Rourke-Nicholas ’16 will be studying abroad at the London School of Economics for the 2021-2022 academic year.

Maddie Mullaney ’18 was profiled in the Chelsea Record after signing her letter of intent to attend Harvard University and compete for the Crimson’s Division 1 field hockey program. As a Pingree School senior, Mullaney was ranked as one of the top high school field hockey players in the country, and she also earned Honor Roll and Head of School List recognition throughout her high school career—Congrats Maddie!

Christopher Kagan ’20 just completed his sophomore year at the Pingree School in Hamilton, MA.

Caroline Kagan ’17 enjoyed a gap/postgraduate year at Exeter and now will go on to play lacrosse at University of Vermont.

Aidan Callahan ’18 graduated from St. John’s Prep in May of 2021. Aidan was a four-year varsity basketball player, two-year captain, and two-year Catholic conference MVP. He has been recruited to play on the Worcester Polytechnic Institute men’s basketball team upon his matriculation in fall of 2021.

Julia Dobbins ’18 will be attending American University in the fall for opera. She was also a featured speaker at Shore’s Young Alumni Panel in May 2021 (see page 61 for more details on the event for Shore eighth and ninth graders).

Peter Goeben ’18 has been a four-year lettered varsity golf team member, acting as captain his senior year, at the Hamilton-Wenham Regional High School. He will be attending Bentley University in the fall of 2021.

Maddie Mullaney ’18

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Julia Dobbins ’18 over Zoom, at Shore’s Young Alumni Panel in May 2021

IN M EM O RI A M

In Memoriam

a Sally Vance Allen ’55 December 19, 2020 Robert Coolidge ’48 May 26, 2021 Rose “Posie” Morgan Daignault ’80 December 3, 2020 Eleanor P. Dorsey P ’62, ’63, ’66, ’69, ’71, GP ’05, ’11 Parent of Alumni Former Grandparent Former Trustee February 3, 2021 Elizabeth “Susie” Kinder P ’80, ’84 Parent of Alumni Former Faculty June 10, 2021 Deirdre O’Neil P ’77, ’79, ’80, GP ’09, ’12 Parent of Alumni Former Grandparent Former Trustee February 16, 2021

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Giving Day is Shore’s annual community-wide celebration of giving and gratitude directly supporting The Shore Fund. On this special day, students, families, alumni, grandparents, employees, and friends come together to share their love for Shore through gifts to The Shore Fund and messages of gratitude.

Thank you for your inspiring support on May 12, 2021!

Giving Day 2021 by the Numbers

51 Love Notes Shared 108 Alumni Donors | 31 First-Time Donors Most Frequent Gift Amount $35 | 204 Loyal Donors More than

360 Donors

|

three or more consecutive years of giving

1955 | Most Recent Graduation Year 2020 Over $200,000 Raised for The Shore Fund

Alumni Earliest Graduation Year

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SAVE THE DATE Giving Day—The Shore Fund’s busiest day of the year!

Katie Kozin Director of Advancement kkozin@shoreschool.org (978) 402-3816

Brooke Booth P ’24, ’26, ’29 Director of Annual Giving bbooth@shoreschool.org (978) 402-3818

Sara Tollerud P ’29 Advancement Services Manager stollerud@shoreschool.org (978) 402-3817

For more information, contact the Advancement Office or visit

www.shoreschool.org/give

The Shore Fund provides necessary flexible and unrestricted funding that propels the school’s mission forward and inspires a love of learning for every Shore student.

Thank you for considering a gift to the 2021-2022 Shore Fund.

Your support strengthens the Shore community!

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SHORE

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If this publication is addressed to someone who no longer maintains a permanent address at your home, contact the Advancement Office at advancement@shoreschool.org. This will enable us to keep our database current and ensure that all alumni receive the Bulletin.

Thank you!