Highlander Summer 2016

HIGHLANDER SUMMER 2016

The St. Margaret’s STEM Team

Preparing Students with Cultural Competency Skills

The Journey to College: SMES College Counseling

Alumni Profile: Dusting Away your Digital Footprint

Looking Forward: 2016 Strategic Plan

> Guideposts

By William N. Moseley, Head of School

Dear Friends, So often, we focus our spotlight on our unique programs, school milestones and the amazing efforts and achievements of our students. Of course, none of this would be possible without our extraordinary faculty. Every day, I encounter our faculty members fully engaged in teaching and learning with their students, excited about a project, hands-on activity or lab in their classrooms, developing new, engaging lessons, and nurturing our students to their fullest potential.

I was honored to sit among them on June 4 as together we presented the graduated Class of 2016. Graduation is an incredible moment of culmination for our Tartans that represents their love of scholarship, academic pursuits, perseverance and their incredibly bright futures. It also represents the longstanding commitment, investment and love of our 125+ faculty who have guided them for many years.

We have talked much about our STEM programs and the high demand for these technical disciplines in the world beyond St. Margaret’s. In this issue of the Highlander, we shine our light on the STEM faculty, a powerhouse group of educators igniting student learning and passions in science, math, engineering and computer science. Get to know their deep knowledge base, commitment to their students, and contagious enthusiasm for their subjects.

Also, spend time getting to know alumnus Ryan Ozonian ’05 who is improving personal security for mobile users, and read about our work in building cultural competency skills in our students, our college counseling process for all Tartans, and the future of St. Margaret’s in our recently launched strategic plan.

Enjoy these and many more inspiring stories as summer reading in this edition of the Highlander.

Sincerely,

Features

The STEM Team

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St. Margaret’s offers one of the most challenging STEM curriculum programs in secondary education today, but it is the 35 faculty members in these departments who bring the excitement to the classroom. See the diverse and broad capabilities and impressive bench strength of our entire STEM faculty.

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Contents

William N. Moseley Head of School

Departments

Tartan Snapshots

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Side by Side

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News happenings and achievements of St. Margaret’s.

Highlander, Summer 2016

Assistant Head of School for Strategic Initiatives Ryan Dahlem and TIDE Student Leader Aide Najera, grade 11, discuss preparing students with cultural competency skills for a diverse world.

Open Spaces

A showcase of student artwork—read an evocative memoir from a Lower School student that illustrates the nurturing environment of the Writer’s Workshop process and as a powerful vehicle for student voice, creativity and expression.

By The Numbers

The new Highlands Quad and Chalmers Field, St. Margaret’s “Heart of the Campus,” by the numbers.

St. Margaret’s Episcopal School William N. Moseley, Head of School

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Editorial Director Anne Dahlem

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Class Notes and Alumni Updates 30 Learn about the lives of your classmates and updates from the Tartan Alumni Association.

Looking Back

Longtime Director of the Early Childhood Development Center and Wee Tartan Center Ingrid Andrews and Upper School visual arts teacher Barbara Nelson retire from St. Margaret’s.

Looking Forward

See the future of St. Margaret’s through the 2016 Strategic Plan, and meet St. Margaret’s new assistant head of school for strategic initiatives, Ryan Dahlem.

The Journey to College: SMES College Counseling

A look at St. Margaret’s college counseling process and a Q&A session with four graduates of Class of 2015 personifying their college counseling experience that identifies the best college for their aspirations, talents and interests.

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Managing Editor Nicole Peddy Copy Editor Jennifer Perez Editorial Board Jeannine Clarke, Anne Dahlem, Jeneen Graham, William N. Moseley, Nicole Peddy Contributors Roland Allen, Ingrid Andrews, David Beshk, David Bush, Anne Dahlem, Ryan Dahlem, Kevin Estipular, Dr. Jeneen Graham, Jillian Gray, Steve Harless, Shelley Harmon, Veronica Johns-Richardson, Dick Jonovich, William N. Moseley, Heather Murray, Aide Najera, Barbara Nelson, Dr. Todd Newman, Elizabeth, O’Shea, Lynn Ozonian, Ryan Ozonian, Nicole Peddy, Jennifer Perez, Londa Posvistak, Ashley Ricart, Dr. Jennifer Ross-Viola, Kimberly Small, Masami Stahr, Amy Warren, Gene Wie, Morgan Yurek St. Margaret’s publishes responsibly. Highlander magazine is printed on Forest Stewardship Council certified paper, using soy-based inks, made from renewable resources such as natural pigments and vegetable oils.

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Highlander magazine is published by the Communications Office as a St. Margaret’s Episcopal School community magazine.

St. Margaret’s Episcopal School does not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, color, religion, sexual orientation or national and ethnic origin in the administration of its educational or hiring policies, admissions policies, financial aid, athletic or other school-administered programs.

Dusting Away Your Digital Footprint

Alumnus Ryan Ozonian, Class of 2005, CEO and co-founder of the successful messaging app Cyber Dust is changing the way technology is used to secure personal and private information.

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On the Cover The STEM Team: a roster of 35 team members in STEM departments from Preschool through grade 12. These teachers are a diverse group with broad capabilities and impressive bench strength. From left: Middle School science teacher Kevin Estipular, Orchestra Director and Upper School computer science teacher Gene Wie, Lower School Assistant Principal and STEM Fellow Heather Murray, Director of Technology and Innovation and Computer Science Department Chair Lynn Ozonian, Upper School Science Department Chair Jennifer Ross-Viola, Upper School Math teacher Masami Stahr, Middle School Math teacher Veronica Johns-Richardson, Upper School Science teacher Steve Harless and Math Department Chair Elizabeth O’Shea.

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> Tartan Snapshots

Compiled by Jennifer Perez

Academics

Kindergarten Literacy Bag Program Strengthen Student Reading Comprehension

2016 Graduates Head to College This year, seniors applied to 257 colleges and universities across the nation and internationally. Every student in the Class of 2016 who applied to a four-year college or university was accepted.

Acceptance letters were plentiful for Tartans from an impressive list of colleges and universities across the U.S., including Amherst College, Boston College, Brown University, Colby College, Colgate University, Duke University, Emory University, Georgetown University, New York University, Northwestern University, Pomona College, Stanford University, University of Chicago, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of Notre Dame, University of Pennsylvania, University of Southern California and University of Virginia. For complete details on where our seniors are headed this fall, please visit Tartan Today.

St. Margaret’s Kindergarten teachers and librarians joined forces to put together the Kindergarten Literacy Bag Program to aid in parent-child reading time and student reading success. The program; which was funded by a PTF grant, delivers a bag to each Kindergarten student filled with four thematic books centered around a theme that relates to the Kindergarten curriculum. According to Lower School Principal Jennifer Blount, through the program students have shown great improvement in reading comprehension.

Students Learn Impact of Computer Science on Human Existence During Hour of Code Upper School students in grades 9 through 11 were challenged to reflect on the power of computer science and its profound impact on the modern human experience.

The special “Hour of Code” session presented a brief and compelling evolution of computer science, starting with the father of computer science, Alan Turing.

AP Psychology Students See Developmental Theories in Action During Preschool Visit Students from Upper School Advanced Placement psychology had the opportunity to observe Preschool students in action and put the developmental theories and philosophy of human development into practice. Academic Dean and AP psychology teacher Jeneen Graham said, “The ECDC serves as the perfect lab for our students.

We begin to understand the vital role of play, peer to peer interaction, and the freedom of choice for the developing child.”

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Evan Lee Wins OC Math Circle New Year’s Invitational Tournament More than 180 grade 6 through 8 students from across California and Nevada traveled to St. Margaret’s to compete in the Orange County Math Circle New Year’s Invitational Tournament. After several rounds of intense problem solving, St. Margaret’s Evan Lee, grade 7, took home the top prize.

AP Bio Students Attempt to Transform E. coli Bacteria

Literacy Day – One World, Many Stories The St. Margaret’s community came together to raise awareness of the importance of literacy. “One World, Many Stories,” the theme of this year’s annual Literacy Day, brought together Lower, Middle and Upper School students, faculty and staff in spirited activities focused on building community around the topic of reading, stories and literacy.

Lower and Middle School Students Test the Theory of Mechanical Advantage Grade 8 students studying the physical science content of work, force and simple machines had a hands-on examination of pulley systems and mechanical advantage that turned out to be a formative assessment of the content students had learned during preceding labs. This activity became a cross-divisional opportunity when students in grades 2 and 4 joined the grade 8 students.

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To read more St. Margaret’s news, visit Tartan Today online at smes.org/tartan-today.org.

Upper School students in Ms. Theresa Bouchard’s Advanced Placement biology class conducted a transformation lab attempting to harvest DNA from a jellyfish into E. coli bacteria. The lab allowed students to utilize what they learned during the first term studying genetics, biochemistry and molecular biology, and get “real life” lab experience.

Arts

> Tartan Snapshots Senior Shelby Nicholas Named OC Register Artist of the Week Senior Shelby Nicholas, who is headed to Brown University in the fall, was featured as The Orange County Register Artist of the Week. She was showcased for her work in the Upper School musical “The Secret Garden.” Shelby was integrally involved in designing original frame-by-frame animations for the production that are projected onto background panels, as well as onto the actors themselves.

Jazz Band Plays for Jazz World’s Most Renowned Artists St. Margaret’s award-winning Jazz Band had the unique opportunity to perform at the 14th Annual Ocean Institute Red Hot Jazz Festival opening night. The Ocean Institute’s popular Jazz Festival hosts some of the jazz world’s most renowned artists.

Preschool and Upper School Students Collaborate in the Ceramics Studio

Dance Students Study Under American Ballet Theater Teacher

Upper School students had a cross-divisional collaboration to share a lesson with clay alongside Preschool students in the ceramics studio. The lesson involved Upper School students choosing a technique that they had learned in class to show the Preschool students.

St. Margaret’s dance students had the rare enrichment opportunity to learn from and practice alongside Alaine Haubert from the American Ballet Theater who has taught and coached dance for more than 50 years, all over the world. Through St. Margaret’s recent partnership with the American Ballet Theater, 40 Lower School students and 96 Middle and Upper School students benefited from two separate days of ballet classes.

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Athletics

Students Receive Top Visual Arts Awards in National Competitions Senior Nick Williams’ ceramic sculpture was accepted for inclusion in the 2016 National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts National K-12 Exhibition, and 48 St. Margaret’s student entries were selected in the Gold Key, Silver Key or honorable mention categories for the 2016 Regional Scholastic Art & Writing Awards.

Upper School chamber music students had the rare opportunity to learn from the Blair String Quartet, faculty members from the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee.

Students played pieces that they were studying for the Middle and Upper School Chamber Music Concert. Members of the quartet gave each student feedback on their performance skills during the masterclass format. In addition to the Upper School chamber music students, the masterclass was also attended by some Middle School chamber music students, and the combined Lower School grades 4 and 5 orchestra.

During four National Signing Days, 21 St. Margaret’s studentathletes from the Class of 2016 committed to play intercollegiate athletics next year. They are matriculating to an impressive group of selective colleges and universities where they will play their sport on the college stage. For complete details on where our seniors are headed this fall, please visit Tartan Today.

Upper School Sports Highlights n The girls’ varsity soccer team finished the season as Academy

League Champions and CIF Quarterfinalists, and the girls’ volleyball team ended the season as CIF Semifinalists. n Juniors Nicolas Gitter, Luke Gitter, Charles Smith and sophomore Daisy Sellas earned All-Academy League honors as both the girls’ and boys’ cross country squads advanced to the CIF Prelims. n Recognized as top athletes in the CIF Southern Section, seniors Gabrielle Benck, Taylor Freitas and Nick Shanks, and junior George Krantz were named All-CIF Southern Section honorees for the 2015 fall season.

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To read more St. Margaret’s news, visit Tartan Today online at smes.org/tartan-today.org.

Blair String Quartet Holds Masterclass for Upper School Students

SMES Student Athletes Commit to Top Colleges During National Signing Days

The St. Margaret’s

STEM Team

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B y Je n e e n G ra h a m , A c a d e m i c D e a n

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STEM is a particularly “buzzy” word in education these days. Often, we are asked about the STEM program, the courses we teach and the skills of our teachers in STEM education. While the trend toward STEM continues to be an important focus, STEM education is far from new at St. Margaret’s Episcopal School.

In the early 1990s, the U.S. government coined the term “STEM” because research showed that U.S. high school and college graduates lacked critical skills to fuel the burgeoning technological age. Hence “STEM,” an acronym for science, technology, engineering and math, was born to begin a discussion in education for cultivating these important high-demand skills that American graduates lacked.

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The St. Margaret’s STEM Team

Continued from page 7

As a college-preparatory institution that sends many graduates off to further study STEM areas in college, St. Margaret’s offers the most challenging, including college-level, STEM curriculum program in secondary education today. Programs, including computer science and engineering, that begin in preschool and build year over year engage our students in a love of STEM disciplines and challenge them to reach to their highest potential. Increasingly, our academic team has also put a stronger emphasis on integrating the curriculum so that these areas are not taught in isolation similar to how they are incorporated into STEM fields in the industry. Further, we have focused on the design thinking process that is critical to creation, innovation and invention.

faculty. This team of scientists, mathematicians, engineers, programmers and techies will tell you that they love their chosen fields. And, they love their students, too! They are deeply committed to teaching, continually engaging in professional development, and bringing new approaches into the classroom.

They stay on top of research and emerging technologies.

Importantly, they make learning fun, hands-on and exciting in their classrooms–and that’s why their students love them in return.

The profiles on the following pages highlight a small group of our 35-strong team of faculty in STEM departments. These teachers are highlighted to represent the diverse and broad capabilities and impressive bench strength of our entire STEM faculty.

As you read the alumni profile on Ryan Ozonian, Class of 2005, in this issue on page 28, and other profiles of outstanding students featured in past editions of the Highlander magazine, their stories are evidence that STEM education is, and has always been, a vital part of a St. Margaret’s education.

Enjoy reading about their impressive backgrounds, subject mastery, credentials, academic styles and true joy of teaching. I am enormously humbled and equally proud to introduce the St. Margaret’s STEM Team.

Today, we continue our focus, and there is no greater sign of our commitment to STEM than our incredible St. Margaret’s STEM

“The Doctor”

By Jeneen Graham, Academic Dean

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Jennifer Ross-Viola, Ph.D., Science Department Chair and Upper School Science Teacher Ph.D. in Cellular and Physiological Dynamics from University of Notre Dame Bachelor of Arts in biology from University of San Diego If Dr. Jennifer Ross-Viola were a doctor of medicine, she would have a waiting list a mile long for her unique blend of expertise and compassion. Her Ph.D. is in cellular and physiological dynamics from the University of Notre Dame. While she could have taken the medical route or continued to teach biology at her alma mater, she found her passion in working with high school students.

In particular, she loves equipping young minds with the tools to answer the “what is? And, how do we know?” type of questions of young, curious minds. As she says, “We live in an age where so much information is at our fingertips. Now more than ever we need to be able to evaluate, critique and respond to information that is presented to us as ‘scientific data.’ Without those skills and the proper background and understanding, we are not informed consumers nor citizens.”

Before arriving at St. Margaret’s more than nine years ago, Dr. Ross-Viola taught at Notre Dame for five years and in the science department at Francis Parker in San Diego. As the chair of the science department at St. Margaret’s for the past eight years, she has been instrumental in strengthening the

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science program, broadening the offerings in Kindergarten through grade 12 and influencing the school’s STEM proliferation as a leader of the STEM Task Force. Dr. Ross-Viola teaches Advanced Placement environmental science, biology, marine science and conceptual physics. She also coordinates our partnership with the University of California, Irvine School of Engineering summer internship program and endeavors to match the interests of our Upper School students with the right research projects.

Dr. Ross-Viola understands that to inspire students to study and appreciate science requires making the content relevant to them. In a recent peerschool review of the science department, teachers from other independent schools recognized our faculty’s ability to engage students in the relevance of scientific inquiry. Dr. Ross-Viola has led this focus through engaging her own students and through the enhancement of curriculum and class offerings.

When asked what she loves most about teaching she said, “I love those ‘ah-ha’ moments when a student’s brain has been stretched and they understand new concepts. But more importantly, I hope that my students feel that they can take what they’ve learned in my classes and apply it to broader issues in our environment, such as how to allocate water during drought conditions or how to combat climate change.”

Throughout their time at St. Margaret’s and well beyond, students call on Dr. Ross-Viola for guidance, support and inspiration. They appreciate the fact that the doctor is only a phone call away no matter how far college and life takes them from St. Margaret’s.

“The Pioneer”

“The Astrophysicist”

By Jeneen Graham, Academic Dean

By Jeneen Graham, Academic Dean

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Lynn Ozonian, Director of Technology and Innovation and Computer Science Department Chair Bachelor of Science in Information Technology from University of Maryland

Elizabeth O’Shea, Math Department Chair and Upper School Math Teacher Bachelor of Science in Astrophysics from University of California, Los Angeles

Lynn Ozonian has been pioneering technology, innovation and computer science education at St. Margaret’s since well before STEM became a commonly used term. She inspires students to fall in love with, and ultimately master, the fundamentals of computer science through her own lifelong passion.

When she began studying computer science it was a relatively new discipline. She found the blend of mathematical logic and creative thinking fascinating.

She often equates computer science to an art form and as she describes it, “Coding is similar to an artist’s brush—a scientific tool applied to a blank canvas to create a unique digital expression that didn’t exist before.”

Mrs. Ozonian co-led the STEM Task Force, and has expanded technology and engineering course offerings across the school. She teaches Advanced Placement computer science principles and a post-AP course in software engineering. She is excited to bring the world of computer science and coding to her students. She believes that coding is not a means to an end, but rather a foundational thinking process and approach that cultivates grit and has lifelong implications. “Helping students persevere through the process of analyzing why their code works or doesn’t work, and watching their excitement when they solve a problem is very rewarding. The persistence and patience students learn when programming are lifelong skills that can be applied to many other aspects of life,” she said.

For more than two decades, Mrs. Ozonian has been supporting St. Margaret’s students as they learn to use computer science to solve real problems. She came to St. Margaret’s from the corporate world in 1994 after a successful career in the computer programming field. She broke early barriers for women in the field and quickly moved through the ranks as a systems analyst, project manager and consulting partner to major corporations. She was the first female to become a partner at Computer Partners, a technology consulting company based in Chicago, and later moved to California, where she was vice president of information technology for CPI Pension and Trust services.

Mrs. Ozonian is a consummate techie and what appeals to her about technology is exactly what provokes anxiety about it in others. “It is constantly changing, technically intricate and precise, yet embedded in our everyday lives, in everything we do,” she explained. She continually explores new technologies for opportunities for student learning and for their potential impact to teaching and learning.

With a degree in astrophysics from University of California, Los Angeles, as well as a pilot’s and skydiver’s license, math department chair and teacher Elizabeth O’Shea is focused on taking St. Margaret’s to new heights. When reviewing the Advanced Placement exam scores from her AP calculus AB students last year I was concerned that the College Board may request an audit because her students received all fives but one, the highest score possible in one of the most challenging AP courses.

Mrs. O’Shea is serious about math and even more serious about wanting students to love it as much as she does. As she says, “My biggest goal as a teacher is to clearly communicate the material and inspire a love of learning. I want my students to have fun during class, learn to think logically, feel confident in taking on challenges, and realize how math can be applied to so many different areas of study.”

Before joining St. Margaret’s, she taught at Head Royce School in San Francisco, at St. Anthony’s High School in Long Beach and Sage Hill School in Newport Beach. While she has so many unique capabilities and qualities that make her a dynamic leader and teacher, what is most compelling when you watch her in action is how she develops relationships with her students.

For me, a moment that stands out in getting to know Elizabeth’s all-in personality about life and teaching happened on her first Halloween at St. Margaret’s. She came to school dressed head to toe as the Wicked Witch, green face paint and all. Her warm, open and positive personality allows her to easily connect with students and colleagues. “Although math will always be my first love, the thing I actually like the most about teaching is being with students. I love when they hang out in my classroom, share their opinions and tell me what is going on in their lives.” said Mrs. O’Shea. “The students at St. Margaret’s are amazing – so polite, thoughtful, caring, intelligent, interesting and engaging. I often say that teaching here does not feel like work – I just get to be with really cool people and do math all day!”

In addition to AP calculus AB, Mrs. O’Shea teaches pre-calculus honors, algebra II honors and geometry. If learning math from her doesn’t inspire students to develop a passion for STEM, I’m not sure what will. She is truly out of this world, in so many ways.

She came to education to fulfill her dreams of being a teacher and has never missed the corporate world. She builds strong relationships with her students through her patience, calm demeanor, and contagious passion for computer science. She inspires their own passion and scholarship in technology through exposing them to the important connections between technology and their lives. “That moment when they realize they are not just consumers of technology—that they are creators of it—is magical,” she said.

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“The STEM Fellow”

“The Wizard”

By Jeneen Graham, Academic Dean

By Jennifer Ross-Viola, Upper School Science Department Chair and Teacher

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Heather Murray, Lower School Assistant Principal and STEM Fellow Master of Natural Science from Idaho State University Bachelor of Science in Education from Idaho State University

Steve Harless, Upper School Science Teacher Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology Master of Science in Information Systems Management from Keller Graduate School Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University

Heather Murray brings an inspiring and exciting Preschool through grade 12 vision for STEM at St. Margaret’s. Her focus, which earned her the role of STEM Fellow two years ago, is driven by the design thinking cycle created by Stanford University’s d.school. Mrs. Murray encourages students to think about problem solving as a process that begins with empathy and is focused on understanding the end-user first. As she explains, when you create and problem solve in the design cycle you undoubtedly encounter failure before achieving the best solution. In fact, the motto is “fail fast and fail early.” The best designs incorporate multiple perspectives and knowledge sources, thereby incorporating a multidisciplinary approach to problem solving.

This year, she guided the Lower School, where she also serves as assistant principal, through the design thinking cycle. Working with grade-level Lower School teachers, they designed projects to support class themes that incorporated service, social studies and STEM. With a focus on serving human needs, the projects inspired students to use coursework knowledge and their intrinsic empathy to create better solutions to global issues. She also has led design thinking projects around understanding one’s ability to impact the community and the value of making connections in the Middle School, and an Upper School design project to create the interior functionality of an autonomous vehicle.

Mrs. Murray taught math in the Upper School for many years and served as math department chair. Before returning to St. Margaret’s in 2013, she was the Middle School principal of Boulder Country Day School in Colorado. She also taught at the college level as an adjunct professor at her alma mater Idaho State University. With a master’s in mathematics and teaching and administrative experience at primary, middle and high school levels, she brings the skills and rapport with students and faculty needed to lead the school in realizing the importance and value of STEM. At her core, Mrs. Murray loves math and will let you know that it is simply ‘way cool!’ In her view, “math seems to be the one subject that when done well, it makes every student feel they are smart. This reaction to learning math is something I find fascinating—it’s the subject I love to teach. Math models the pattern in the world around us, and I enjoy opening students’ minds to this knowledge.” She brings this same passion and energy to her role as STEM fellow.

While it is the world of STEM that drives Mrs. Murray to continually gather knowledge and tweak the design process for our school’s benefit, it is the students who get her excited to begin each day. “Teaching is all about connecting and relationships. Watching a student’s face light up and feel a sense of accomplishment when he or she learns something new is so rewarding,” said Mrs. Murray. “I like to help boost students to their highest potential—to me, this defines teaching at its core. Making connections with my students has impacted me over the years and it continues to motivate me with our students today.”

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Walk into Steve Harless’ introduction to engineering class on a typical school day and one might find students constructing a model of Star Wars’ BB-8, programming a microcontroller for a robot, wiring a student-designed pinball machine, or building a three-fourths sized mobile replica of St. Margaret’s iconic entryway arch for the Swallow’s Day Parade. And, if one is on campus on a Saturday or Sunday and happens to walk past his classroom, it wouldn’t be an uncommon sight to see him preparing for the upcoming week’s projects or demonstrations, often for hours on end. He explains, “I enjoy spending my ‘free’ time setting up new demonstrations or testing new project ideas for my classes.” In his classes – ranging from the aforementioned engineering to college-prep physics to Advanced Placement Physics C: mechanics and electricity and magnetism – students engage in more than 300 lab and demonstrations over the course of the school year. He also periodically wows the whole student body with his wizard-like exhibitions during Convocation to get students excited about science.

Mr. Harless, a Carnegie Mellon- and Georgia Tech-trained electrical engineer, wants to share how to control one’s environment by learning the physical laws that rule nature. He said, “High school students have the capacity to learn these concepts and dexterity to use tools to make contraptions that brings those concepts to life. I hope that the demonstrations, videos, activities, labs and projects inspire my students to explore the fascinating world we live in and to help students make a difference by knowing how to create inventions that make the world a better place.”

Prior to the start of Mr. Harless’ 25-year teaching career, he worked as an integrated circuits design engineer and producer of instructional videos. He was named one of ParentingOC Magazine’s Top Teachers of Orange County in 2015 for, among other things, leading an eight-member team of Upper School students to launch a handcrafted, high-altitude balloon into space for the Global Space Balloon Challenge. Under his leadership, St. Margaret’s was one of only a few high schools in the world invited to participate in the Global Space Balloon Challenge, an international education outreach and collaboration project to encourage people from around the world to build and launch their own high-altitude balloon science experiments. Colleges including Stanford University, University of Michigan, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and others from Europe and Australia also launched balloons.

“A Math Stahr”

By Elizabeth O’Shea, Math Department Chair and Upper School Math Teacher

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Masami Stahr, Ph.D., Upper School Math Teacher Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics from George Mason University Master of Science in Applied Mathematics from George Mason University Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from College of Notre Dame Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from George Mason University When students in Dr. Masami Stahr’s Advanced Placement calculus BC class asked if they could go to the pumpkin patch last October, she replied, “Sure, that sounds like fun! But you have to get your work done first.” For two days the students worked extra fast through the challenging material. When they came to class on Friday, the van was waiting for them. For that morning, she took their study of advanced calculus to the pumpkin patch where her students learned how to model the shape of a pumpkin with a volume of revolution.

It is with this same spirit of fun and enthusiasm that Dr. Stahr approaches all of the classes she teaches in mathematics, including Algebra II, pre-calculus, calculus and St. Margaret’s most advanced math course, multivariable calculus. She incorporates real-world problems into her lessons and uses several software programs to help bring math to life. In calculus, for example, students use Mathematica to see computer-generated solutions and produce 3D graphs.

Outside of class, Dr. Stahr has participated in the Texas Instruments International Conference and has been involved with training high school

teachers to create more student-centered classrooms. In her multivariable calculus class, students are designing lesson plans that they will present to the class. The lessons must be interdisciplinary and include applications of calculus in chemistry, medicine, biology, music and physics.

One of the things her students love are the stories she shares about growing up in a small town in Japan. She attended a very strict and rigorous high school, which locked students out of the front gate five minutes prior to the start of class. If students arrived late to school, they were made to enter through the back and feel shameful, possibly even being made to repeat a grade if they accumulated too many tardies. While she would never lock the door to her students, they understand and respect why Dr. Stahr has high expectations of them, including always arriving on time and prepared to learn.

Prior to joining the St. Margaret’s math department in 2015, Dr. Stahr studied English literature, computer science and applied mathematics at George Mason University where she earned her Ph.D. She went on to specialize in operations research and develop mathematical software for the medical and economics fields. She eventually took a teaching job at Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire where she taught for more than 15 years.

Dr. Stahr’s students often describe her classroom as a safe space for them to explore new ideas, ask questions, and learn from mistakes. She focuses on understanding her students’ needs, giving them support and making learning fun. “To me, the most enjoyable part of teaching is spending time with students,” Dr. Stahr. “They all have incredibly creative minds and interesting ways of thinking.”

“The Competitor”

By Jennifer Ross-Viola, Upper School Science Department Chair and Teacher

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Kevin Estipular, Middle School Science Teacher Master of Education from Vanguard University of Southern California Bachelor of Science from University of California, Irvine If a zombie apocalypse rages through Orange County, the students in Kevin Estipular’s seventh grade life science class will be prepared; they’ve been through it before. In early March, those students could be seen scrambling in the Middle School courtyard to avoid infection by classmate-carriers of the fictitious zombie virus. In the lesson, students were demonstrating the rapid spread of a virus with an R0 = 3 (translation: one case would generate three more infections) in an unvaccinated population. It wasn’t just the “zombie virus” that was infectious, so too was their enthusiasm for the project, like many of the hands-on activities in his classes.

science. They enjoy how science is challenging, but at the same time they can make meaning of the content with hands-on learning opportunities,” said Mr. Estipular.

He also loves to play off of the competitive nature of the students, often engaging them in a game of ‘grudgeball’ during which teams of students review content by answering questions then shooting a Nerf basketball in a “survivor-style” game. While alliances can be made between teams and heated battles can ensue, similar to most activities in his classes, such learning “games” leave the students clamoring for more.

Mr. Estipular is no stranger to competition himself; at St. Margaret’s he coaches the Middle School Chess Club, as well as Middle School flag football and basketball. Outside of the Tartans, Kevin continues to be one of the top scorers for the Back Bay Sharks, a team that won the Southern California Rugby Football Union Division II title last year.

“I love being able to make connections with students and engage them inside and outside of the classroom to get them interested in learning about

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“The Science Explorer”

By Jennifer Ross-Viola, Upper School Science Department Chair and Teacher

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Morgan Yurek, Lower School Science Teacher; Lower School Green Team Advisor; Junior FIRST LEGO League Coach Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies from San Diego State University Students run through the doors of the Campaign Center bubbling with excitement to see an equally excited Mrs. Yurek, who’s handing out “Science Bucks” at a table by the entrance. All week, the students have been talking about Lower School Family Science Night when they would get to mix up a batch of slime, take a virtual roller coaster ride or participate in a plankton race. The night of hands-on exploration is the brain-child of Mrs. Yurek, Lower School science teacher. It’s a perfect example of how she loves to inspire her young scientists, giving them the room to explore and learn through multiple modalities. The annual event has become a highlight with Lower School students and parents alike.

Mrs. Yurek’s classroom environment is much the same as Science Night. Her students are intently engaged with inquiry-based learning using hands-on techniques applying trial and error. “I believe learning happens when a child is engaged and given opportunities to learn through multiple modalities– visually, kinesthetically and tactilely. I love science because it allows awe and wonderment. Kids can use their imagination, ask questions, think outside the box, be problem solvers, be innovative, and think critically about the world around them and the larger universe,” she said.

From Kindergarten through grade 5, students learn to be meteorologists, investigate magnetic force, test light energy, study the engineering design process, and even design and construct an International Space Station.

“There are so many learning highpoints in my classroom. Seeing the students’ excitement for science and wanting to challenge themselves is a huge highlight for me,” said Mrs. Yurek.

“The Recruit”

By Elizabeth O’Shea, Math Department Chair and Upper School Math Teacher

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Veronica Johns-Richardson, Middle School Math Teacher Master of Education in Psychology from University of Colorado, Boulder Bachelor of Science in Business Marketing from University of Colorado, Boulder Intensity, grit and passion typify Middle School math teacher and class dean Veronica Johns-Richardson.

As a star basketball player for Troy High School in Fullerton, the Los Angeles Times wrote, “A wrecking ball couldn’t have brought down the house quicker than Veronica Johns-Richardson did Friday night.”

She was ranked the No. 14 point guard in the nation. A true scholar-athlete role model for her students, she was also in the competitive Troy Tech Magnet Program in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Named Troy High School Student of the Year her senior year, she was heavily recruited by Stanford University, Oregon University, Oregon State University, Ohio State University, Vanderbilt University, Denver University and University of California, Berkeley.

She selected University of Colorado, Boulder where she played Division I basketball four years, including two appearances in the NCAA Sweet 16 and one in the Elite Eight. She later played in the WNBA with the Los Angeles Sparks.

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Ms. Johns-Richardson brought her passion and drive to teaching joining Bolder Country Day School as a math teacher and athletic director for 10 years. In 2015, she returned to Orange County joining St. Margaret’s math department teaching pre-algebra in grade 6. She also is the grade 6 student dean, and a Middle School girls’ and boys’ volleyball and girls’ lacrosse coach.

Nicknamed by her students, ‘J-Rich’ says the thing she loves most about math is it helps you think logically. “While there might be many ways to approach a problem, ultimately there is only one right answer,” said Ms. Johns-Richardson. “I try to model this for my students in all aspects of life by encouraging them to be goal-oriented and try many different paths.” This year her students created their own companies to explore fractions, decimals and percentages. All components of the project were completed using different modes of technology. Finally, students had to market their products and pitch their companies to an audience in the “J-Rich Shark Tank!”

Beyond her energetic sixth graders, she enjoys teaching at St. Margaret’s because of the amazing facilities and resources, and the camaraderie among the math department and school faculty. On a daily basis, J-Rich’s students can be seen working together in groups or covering the back wall whiteboards with their work. She believes this informal approach to mathematics allows students to be creative, social and enjoy working together toward a common goal. “I like to bring my life story and pure enjoyment of math to my teaching each and every day.”

“The Tinkerer”

By Lynn Ozonian, Director of Technology and Innovation, Computer Science Department Chair

“The Technical Maestro”

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By Lynn Ozonian, Director of Technology and Innovation, Computer Science Department Chair

Ashley Ricart, Upper School EDGE Lab Manager and Middle School Fabrication and Digital Design Teacher Bachelor of Science in Computer Science with a focus of Computer Animation and Character Modeling from Full Sail University Walk into the EDGE Lab and you will find Ashley Ricart actively engaged in some type of design or fabrication. Whether it is 3D printing, laser cutting or computer numerical controlled (CNC) milling – she is well-versed in both additive and subtractive fabrication, truly exemplifying the definition of a “tinkerer.”

Through her passion for technology, she has always enjoyed sharing her knowledge with others and helping people. In the Upper School, she works with students and faculty on a variety of projects, including creating glowing wearable technology that combined fabrics and electronics integrated into garments that students wore to the annual Upper School Glow Down dance. In another project, Ms. Ricart worked with students studying the atomic structure to design their element and print an atomic model on the 3D printer to demonstrate the interaction of chemistry and physics.

“You journey with them and then suddenly you see an unbelievable sparkle in their eyes. The cognitive gears in their minds mesh together and everything they have learned magically clicks into place. Sometimes, when things aren’t quite meshing, it’s rewarding to see students work with continued determination. They are finding that learning is an exciting, never ending process and that life is full of possibilities,” said Ms. Ricart.

Starting the 2016-2017 school year, Ms. Ricart will teach Middle School technology and visual arts classes and manage the Middle School Design Lab with a focus on partnering with the faculty on the integration of design thinking and fabrication into the curriculum. She currently manages the EDGE lab and teaches the design and fabrication grade 8 semester elective where students learn to take an abstract idea and turn it into a functioning and useful product. In one project, students designed a Bluetooth/Wi-Fi compatible “airplay speaker” using a raspberry Pi and learned basic circuitry and coding. She also teaches two Lower School after-school 3D printing clubs.

Ms. Ricart said, “I like to use the design thinking methodology to help students create unique prototypes for any given problem. Using 3D printing and other fabrication technologies, like laser cutting, they can rapidly test their prototypes and make necessary iterations to have a more functional end product. Students really enjoy using the laser cutter and 3D printers to create things they can take home—or tools they can use in other classes!“

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Gene Wie, Orchestra Director and Upper School Computer Science Teacher Master of Fine Arts in Music from University of California, Irvine Bachelor of Science in Information and Computer Science from University of California, Irvine Gene Wie wears many hats: teacher, conductor and performer. His career at St. Margaret’s blends his love of music and his information technology expertise. On the stage, he is translating his creative vision for a musical performance through the use of his baton – and in the classroom, he artfully teaches students the techniques of translating a solution to a problem using computer code. Mr. Wie teaches music media programming, introduction to programming in Python and directs the orchestra and chamber music program in grades 4 through 12.

“Students routinely confide in me their reluctance and even fears about dealing with computers, usually along the lines of, “computers don’t like me!”

What I delight in is that over the course of the first several weeks of class, as we dive into the language of binary and the manner in which machines communicate, we demystify technology and create an environment where the students feel empowered to make use of it. Students are excited to learn how even a limited exposure to programming can help them in a range of pursuits in other fields,” said Mr. Wie. Mr. Wie worked in the technology industry in a variety of roles before returning to school to earn his master’s in music. He has studied abroad with world-class chamber music artists. In recent years, he has attended the Starling-DeLay Symposium in Violin Studies at the Juilliard School in New York, and observed classes of expert teachers at the Toho School of Music in Tokyo, Japan and the Aspen Music Festival in Colorado.

Outside of school, he leads a community service project in music and technology called LimbART, mentoring kindergarten through grade 12 and college students in bringing their talents in the arts and computer science to develop a variety of solutions for students with accessibility issues in music-making. Recently, they launched a project to develop a prosthetic arm for a child to play the violin. As a video game advocate, he also mentors kindergarten through grade 12 students in developing gaming-oriented projects to benefit the Child’s Play Charity, which brings toys and games to children’s hospitals and domestic violence shelters all over the world.

“I love helping each student discover the unique solutions to their challenges,” said Mr. Wie. “People ask me how I can stand teaching the same thing over and over, year after year, whether it is “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” or what variables and operators are. For me, it isn’t about teaching the specific subject, but rather teaching the individual student!”

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“The Imagineer”

By Lynn Ozonian, Director of Technology and Innovation, Computer Science Department Chair

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Londa Posvistak, Lower and Middle School Innovation and STEM Teacher; Junior FIRST LEGO League Coach Master of Science in Information Systems from Central Michigan University Bachelor of Science in Business from University of New Hampshire Imagine. Create. Engineer. Mrs. Posvistak has been instrumental in the creation and development of the ICE process used in the Lower School, which encourages experiential learning combined with design thinking, robotics and engineering concepts. At any given time, you can drop by the ICE Lab and witness the high levels of student engagement. Students are listening attentively to her patient explanations, eagerly raising their hands to ask questions, and then enthusiastically head to their workstations to utilize the ICE process to design and engineer their own projects.

Each class has its own schedule of hands-on, design-thinking activities. In grade 1, her students read the book, “A Chair for Mr. Bear,” and design and build a sturdy chair with LEGOs. Each grade level has a project tied to a STEM theme. “The project in grade 5 is a design-thinking challenge addressing a

current problem in the world, more specifically problems with water,” said Mrs. Posvistak. “Using the engineering design cycle, students select a problem with water, and create a solution to the identified problem using LEGO Mindstorm NXT. “At the heart of each of these projects the goal is to empower students to find solutions for themselves. Just because something already exists, doesn’t mean that it can’t be improved; and just because something doesn’t exist, it doesn’t mean that it can’t be imagined,” she said. “The hope is that it spreads outside of engineering challenges and into their daily lives. When they encounter a problem, their response should be, ‘What can we do to fix it?’”

During the past 17 years, Mrs. Posvistak has taught students at all grade levels, kindergarten through grade 12, encouraging them to think differently, like innovators. She has developed several innovative courses, including the grade 8 wearable technology course incorporating LEDs, sewing, Arduinos (an open-source electronic prototyping platform that allows the user to create interactive electronic objects) and other fun parts. Whether she is teaching grade 2 or grade 8, her effective teaching style engages students in the learning process and helps them develop critical thinking skills. She is a member of the LEGO EDGE, a Tufts University-affiliated group of innovative educators with a passion for LEGO robotics.

“The Cultivator”

By Ingrid Andrews, Director of the Early Childhood Development Center and Wee Tartan Center

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Shelley Harmon, Early Childhood Development Center Motor Development Specialist Bachelor of Arts in Human Development from Pacific Oaks College Shelley Harmon knows that young children are curious – they ask questions and are eager to touch and explore. Tapping into this natural curiosity, as the overseer of the Preschool greenhouse garden curriculum, she creates an environment where children can discover the life cycles of plants, animals and insects, and as the Early Childhood Development Center’s motor development specialist, she sets up physical challenges that identify and access the strengths and weaknesses of the children’s large motor skills and sensory integration with sand and water, velocity and viscosity, light and shadow, all part of the STEM curriculum in the ECDC Outdoor Classroom.

Each spring, Mrs. Harmon helps the children observe the Monarch butterfly cycle: the adults laying eggs under the milkweed plant leaves; the hatched larva eating milkweed and growing into caterpillars; then marvel as the caterpillars attach head down in a “J” shape and transform into emerald green pupas. After watching and waiting and counting the days, the children see the butterflies emerge and the process starts all over again. “The children

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not only learn the life cycle of the Monarch butterfly and how to identify body parts, they make “Caterpillar Crossing” signs, document the experience by taking photos and writing stories. Through observing various insects and plants in our own environment, I believe the students have an excellent opportunity to learn to nurture and respect nature,” said Mrs. Harmon.

Planting seeds and waiting for things to grow is not easy for young children.

Understanding what helps things grow: sun, water and soil is part of the lesson, as well. “We start with the composition of soil and the earthworm’s role and each month we concentrate on the next stage. Seeds, care of seedlings, transplanting, observing insects, harvesting the vegetables, tasting what they have grown and then donating the harvest to Father Serra’s Pantry are garden lessons to be learned,” Mrs. Harmon said.

Each Preschool class visits the St. Margaret’s Greenhouse Garden once a week for hands-on experiences to extend their knowledge that they bring back to their classrooms and take home, too!

Before joining St. Margaret’s 15 years ago, Mrs. Harmon worked in a preschool autistic pilot program for the Orange County Department of Education. “I was amazed and humbled to work with children that viewed the world in a different light and discovered that each of us is unique and learns in different ways. These children were my mentors on how to teach others,” she said.

“The Connector”

By Heather Murray, Lower School Assistant Principal and STEM Fellow

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David Beshk, Lower School Grade 5 Teacher; Lower School Dean of Students; Summer STEM Coordinator Master of Science in Educational Administration from California State University, Fullerton Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Arizona State University A walk into David Beshk’s class generates a sense of feeling known and loved for students. Each is greeted at the door every morning and afternoon as if they are of upmost importance. He talks to them as team members and makes it known that they have earned his respect.

STEM is a way of life for Mr. Beshk. He reads scientific journals, blogs and follows various scientists, universities and organizations online to stay current. “I visit museums as often as I can and love tinkering and building things with my children at home,” he said. “I love the creativity and endless challenges that STEM provides. I am always trying to develop new ideas that may be woven into my classes or create new clubs, classes or projects. STEM offers our world the best chance to meet and overcome the most serious problems facing mankind.”

The Full Roster

Eric Harrington

Josh Baldwin

Edmund Herlihy

John Bennett

Amanda Hudson

M.Div., Fuller Theological Seminary B.A., in Biology from Berea College Upper School Science Intern

Mr. Beshk’s dedication to STEM thinking and learning doesn’t stop after the school bell rings or when the school year ends. He teaches the rocket science and design after-school club in the Lower School and three Middle School summer STEM courses: rocket science and 3D design, animal physiology and prosthetic devices and rollercoaster physics and 3D design. He is currently working on designing a prototype model rocket using a 3D printer and laser cutting machine to integrate into the summer classes.

He started his career at St. Margaret’s in 2002 as the Upper School science intern. Since then, he has taught in every division, with the exception of Preschool, including grade 9 conceptual physics, grade 6 earth science, grade 1 and now grade 5.

Our students are fortunate to have such a champion for them and we, as his colleagues, are lucky to have his input and support.

The St. Margaret’s science, math and technology faculty comprise a lineup of 35 team members with impressive backgrounds, subject mastery, credentials and academic styles. Following is the roster of faculty in STEM departments beyond the small group highlighted in this article.

Stefani Baker

B.A. in Liberal Studies from California State University, San Marcos Upper School EDGE Lab Manager

He recently introduced the “Home Water Consumption Project” to his students. It is a month-long STEM activity for grade 5 students to track their personal water consumption at home for one week. Students calculate gallons per minute for their bathroom and kitchen faucets, bathroom shower and personal gallons per load for the family dishwasher and washing machine. Creating a “personal water bill” from the home data, students are then charged with designing solutions to conserve water in their homes

M.A. in Biological Sciences from Azusa Pacific University B.S. in Psychology from Azusa Pacific University Middle School Physical Science M.A. in Teaching from University of California, Irvine B.A. in Environmental Studies from University of the Pacific Upper School Chemistry; Biology

M.S. in Environmental Studies from West Coast University B.S. in Engineering from California Institute of Technology Upper School Conceptual Physics; Astronomy

B.S. in Environmental Resource Management from Penn State University Middle School Earth and Environmental Science

Theresa Bouchard

Andrew Johnson

Andrea Chou

Kim Jordan

M.A. in Education from Central Michigan University B.S. in Biology from Michigan Technological University Upper School AP Biology; College Prep Biology M.A. in Chemistry from University of Texas B.S. in Chemistry from University of California, Berkeley Upper School Chemistry Honors; AP Chemistry

Kathleen Cunningham

M.A. in Mathematics from University of Maryland B.S. in Mathematics from Union College Upper School Algebra II Honors; Calculus

Andrew Hammond

B.A. in Secondary Education with Concentration in Math from Clemson University Upper School Pre-Calculus; Math for Financial Markets

M.A.T. from University of California, Irvine B.S. in Mathematics University of California, Irvine Upper School Geometry; Geometry Honors

Kellie Paul

B.S. in Kinesiology from Pepperdine University Middle School Algebra 1A; Algebra 1B; Algebra 1

Diane Sage

B.S. in Mathematics and Statistics from Sonoma State University Algebra 2; Functions, Statistics and Trigonometry; Upper School AP Statistics

Corinne Samskey

M.Ed. from the University of Kansas B.S. in Education from Emporia State University Middle School Algebra 1B; Algebra 1; Geometry Honors

Timothy Sinnott

B.A. in Architectural History from New York University Upper School: AP Computer Science; Mobile App Development; Intro to Computer Programming Middle School: Grade 8 STEM Programming; Design and Fabrication; Grade 7 STEM Explorations

M.Ed. in Science Education from Georgia State University B.S. in Health, Physical Education and Science from the University of Georgia Lower School Science

Thomas Spellmire

Tony Jordan

B.A. in Biology and Mathematics from California State University, Stanislaus Middle School Algebra 1A

M.S. in Science from Emory University B.S. in Science from Georgia Southwestern College Upper School Conceptual Physics

Nancy Linaweaver

M.S. in Science from California State Polytechnic B.A., in Physical Education and Health from Eastern Oregon State University Upper School Physiology

B.A. in Mathematics from University of San Diego Upper School Pre-Calculus; Pre-Calculus Honors

Stephanie Windes

Nicki Yokota

M.Ed, in Psychology from University of Southern California B.A. in Psychology from University of Southern California Upper School Digital Media and Film Specialist *Some faculty members were unable to attend the group photo session.

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> Side By Side

Students participating in cultural competency workshops

Preparing Students with Cultural Competency Skills for a Diverse World

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By Ryan Dahlem, Assistant Head of School for Strategic Initiatives

R

ead the national news today, including coverage of the upcoming presidential election, and the headlines are full of stories about race, equity and justice. The narratives range from insensitive public gaffes to split-second decisions with tragic consequences, catalyzing intense debates around incidents now simply referred to by a central person or place: Paula Deen, Donald Sterling, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, Ferguson,

Baltimore and Charleston, to name a few.

At the college level, these topics are passionately debated as well, leading to a recent wave of campus protests, administrative concessions and racial unrest among the nation’s most elite colleges and universities including Harvard, Princeton and Yale.

With this national climate as a backdrop, St. Margaret’s mission of educating the hearts and minds of young people for lives of learning, leadership and service takes on even more significance.

St. Margaret’s is committed to preparing our graduates to engage

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in meaningful discussions about issues of diversity and inclusivity, and be part of solving the complex problems so often rooted in misunderstandings around difference.

Head of School Will Moseley announced cultural competency development as one of his three school-wide goals for the 2015-2016 school year, affirming our commitment to continued progress in the areas of diversity and inclusivity work and focusing the school on the next step in this important journey.

What is Cultural Competency?

What are the skills that will support me in working effectively across differences?

How do I manage the dynamics of privilege, bias, and “isms”?

A Focus on Skill Development

A Focus on My Cultures

A Focus on Fighting for Social Justice & Equity as Tools to Counter Oppression

A Focus on Learning about the Cultures of Others

How do my cultural identity groups influence me on a daily basis?

What is my level of understanding about the culture of the individuals and groups I am engaging?

Jones & Associates Consulting

According to national diversity expert Dr. Steven Jones, cultural competency is the set of understandings, perspectives and skills needed to effectively navigate interactions across individual, group and institutional differences. Cultural competency development focuses on inclusive communication skills and understanding one’s own cultural identifiers, as well as those of others. The ability to manage both intent and impact of one’s words and actions is an example of a vital cultural competency skill that must be applied when communicating across differences.

The deepest rationale for this work begins with our Episcopal identity and the belief that God calls us to love all his children. We aspire to be an inclusive community where every student, parent and employee walks onto campus each day feeling valued, loved, known and included. And while we have much in common that draws us to St. Margaret’s, we are not all the same. Recognizing and valuing our differences through the application of cultural competency skills will make us the strongest, most innovative and inclusive school community possible.

Recognizing and valuing diversity within an organization as a signal of strength is something that leading organizations across business sectors are realizing as well. In the article, ”How Diversity Can Drive Innovation,” Harvard Business Review cited research demonstrating how businesses that are more diverse, and value their diversity, outperform other companies on measurable outcomes including increasing market share.

Similar conclusions were described in a Scientific American article, “How Diversity Makes Us Smarter,” citing additional research on how working in diverse groups promotes hard work and creativity in individuals, and encourages the consideration of alternative perspectives, even before interpersonal interactions take place.

As a college-preparatory school, St. Margaret’s must also prepare students to successfully navigate diverse college campus

Cultural competency is the set of understandings, perspectives and skills needed to effectively navigate interactions across individual, group and institutional differences. communities. The experience begins with an increasingly complex admission process often involving essay questions designed to assess a candidate’s level of cultural competency. Most importantly, once in college, students need the skills that will enable them to thrive in vibrant residential university environments that are often more diverse than St. Margaret’s.

St. Margaret’s approaches cultural competency skill development with a growth mindset methodology, combining the work of psychologist Carol Dweck and diversity expert Rosetta Lee. We recognize that we are each on a journey of skill development, where competency is an aspiration requiring continual growth to navigate a changing world. We believe the inevitable moments of discomfort experienced in conversations around diversity and inclusivity represent powerful instances of learning and growth.

St. Margaret’s devotes significant time and resources to developing cultural competency skills. We have partnered with thought leaders to support our work, including Dr. Jones, Ms. Lee and Mr. Robert Greene. Over the past two years, they have visited campus on multiple occasions to engage students in large and small groups, and faculty and staff, the Board of Trustees and parents in workshops,

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case study sessions and discussions. In the past year this work has been supported by a PTF Grant. The Class of 2016 recently participated in a workshop with Mr. Greene on cultural competency skills needed for a successful transition to college.

In addition, each year St. Margaret’s sends students, faculty, staff and trustees to the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) Student Diversity Leadership Conference (SDLC) and People of Color Conference, respectively. Upper School

leaders in Tartan Inclusivity and Diversity Education (TIDE), energized by their experiences at SDLC, deliver informative and thought-provoking presentations to adults and students across divisions.

Looking ahead, the Board of Trustees recently approved the 2016 Strategic Plan that includes goals around cultural competency development and the continued fostering of an inclusive school community. The Strategic Plan is another tangible commitment to this important

work and will guide St. Margaret’s approach on matters of diversity and inclusivity into the future.

Will the national headlines change someday? Considering the influence St. Margaret’s graduates will have as leaders in the future, and the cultural competency skills they will leverage to create inclusive communities and address social injustices, our alumni will be positioned to change not only the headlines, but the world as well.

Student Perspective

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By TIDE Student Leader Aide Najera, Grade 11

Cultural competency, in its simplest form, is being a decent human being by acknowledging and respecting cultures that are unlike yours. It’s more than just tolerance. Cultural competency is similar to Mr. Moseley’s signature phrase: “I see you and I am glad to be with you.” It is acknowledgment, respect and appreciation of one another.

Cultural competency is treating people the way that they want to be treated. We’re all unique and come from different cultures and backgrounds. To do something simple like respecting others’ cultures and backgrounds leaves a huge impact. Now you may be thinking, how does cultural competency do all of that? Well, I’ll tell you: It shows people that you care; that you, as another human being, no greater or smaller, are willing to suspend your judgement and see others. It’s a classic epoché.

I’ve worked to develop my cultural competency skills because it’s the right thing to do; to learn and understand other people’s cultures without questioning their beliefs. It’s what I want people to practice when looking at my Mexican culture and traditions. I want others to understand festivities such as Día de Los Muertos or Día de la Virgen de Guadalupe so they could learn about my culture.

Cultural competency is caring for others—and what they care about. It sounds like a workload, trying to Google every detail of every culture known to man and trying to upgrade our 16GB brains

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to probably at least 64GB. Trust me, you don’t have to put yourself through that much trouble. In practice, cultural competency is being an active listener and asking questions, taking the time to have a conversation and showing you care. I can’t even begin to tell you how much I’ve learned just from listening. It goes a long way.

As a member of TIDE, Tartan Inclusivity and Diversity Education, it not only gave me the opportunity to lead and educate the school, but it gave me the chance to learn. I came in with an open mind, and I’m still in the process of learning so much. TIDE, itself, is a diverse leadership group where I can learn from each and every member about their own cultures and backgrounds. We use this knowledge when we present in front of the school or in our TIDE talks. We’re so diverse that when we talk about race and ethnicity, or gender, or mental health, we have people who identify with these topics and share aspects of who they are and their experiences.

Because we are so willing to share parts of our identities, whether it’s our struggles or privileges, we make it personal within the school, as well. Nothing makes it more impactful than seeing one of your friends talking about what’s important to them. I know when my fellow TIDE members tell their personal stories I get a deeper understanding about the topic and each of them. It puts a face behind the mask.

With college looming ahead and real life not far behind, I know personally that cultural competency is key to my betterment and that of society. Using these skills, I can only do good and create good. Whether it’s making friends, getting a job or just being a decent person, these skills are valuable. Cultural competency is important to me because I want to be a person who shows respect and appreciation in more than just simple ways. While I educate myself, I also encourage others to share more about who they are.

In my eyes, it’s one of the best win-win situations in life.

> Open Spaces A Showcase of Student Work The Teachers College Writing Project is an innovative teaching and learning curriculum applied in the Lower School that allows students to explore their voices as writers and emphasizes content quality. Students are referred to as writers and the process promotes student choice. The writers know and understand that they write to an audience of peers and adults alike. Students experience consistency in the writing process from kindergarten through grade 5 in writing genres throughout the Writer’s Workshop curriculum, including personal narrative, memoir, expository and research-based pieces. This consistent exposure across grade levels provides students with scaffolding to promote growth in content quality. Students are able to generate pieces in these styles with topics that interest them.

They are taught and practice the writing process, comprised of generating and organizing ideas, drafting, small group conferencing with teachers and peers, editing and publishing.

Once writing pieces are published, student writing is shared and celebrated. Writer’s Workshop provides teachers a foundation to facilitate students becoming true writers, while discovering their passion along the way.

The following is an outstanding piece from the Writer’s Workshop in the Lower School written by Sarah, grade 5. Sarah’s piece, “Alli” is an evocative memoir that illustrates the nurturing environment of the Writer’s Workshop process and its powerful vehicle for student voice, creativity and expression.

Alli

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By Sarah, Grade 5

Silence can say a lot without saying anything. It can say a lot about love, family, friendship, whether it’s good or not. Just like talking can say bad things, so can silence.

Like the silence of my sister’s heartbeat June 28, 2015. You can feel words with silence, too. Like when we all knew the words about to come out of the doctor’s mouth. It was really silent, so silent that you could hear a pin drop, but tense. You could hear everybody’s thoughts buzzing around, and it kind of made me woozy. That or thinking about the news to come.

Silence can also say you’re sorry. Like when my mom and dad looked me square in my blurry, teary eyes, then ran and threw their arms around me.

Silence can also say goodbye. Like when my dad carried her downstairs, with my mom and me trotting behind him, too full of grief to pull our heads up and watch. He put her in the back of the hearse, and we watched it drive away until it was just a little speck among the rest of the cars, even though it carried someone so special. The silence yet noise at that time was unbelievable.

Silence can also be bittersweet. Like when we lowered her coffin into the ground and threw roses to be down there with her body. I knew she’d be happier in Heaven, where she could do all the things she always had dreamed to do.

She had lived her life with silence, not being able to talk. She never knew which day would be her last.

And unfortunately, it was too soon.

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> By The Numbers

Heart of the

Campus

By Anne Dahlem

T

he new Highlands Quad and Chalmers Field officially reopened in January after a successful renovation project funded by generous donations from St. Margaret’s families to Fund A Need at the 2015 All-School Fundraiser. The new Highlands Quad creates a welcoming central quad and grand promenade that connects the divisional campuses, including the new Maseeh Middle School, through expanded greenspaces, inviting walking paths, new seating areas, including an outdoor gathering space at the campus center, and a grand west gate entry point and roundabout.

Chalmers Field was restored to a full-size practice and playing field and rotated to run east to west, allowing for better viewing from the existing concrete bleachers. Increased open space allows for additional practice area for Upper and Middle School teams and more usage for Lower School physical education classes. The field is adaptable and can be used full length for Upper School east to west, or used for two Middle School fields running north to south.

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More than 1,600 students, teachers, parents and other visitors use the Highlands Quad and Chalmers Field every day for athletics, recreation, greenspace, community and fellowship Highlands Quad: 95 tons of tile pavers used to construct 1,200 linear feet of walkways Chalmers Field: 250 ft. x 335 ft., 84,000 square feet, 10,000 square feet larger than the Tartan Field, 275 tons of Kentucky Blue Grass 1st game held on the new Chalmers Field: Girls Varsity Soccer Chalmers Field accommodates outfield practice for the varsity baseball team

8 Middle and Upper School Tartan Athletics sports practice on the Chalmers Field, as well as all Middle School P.E. classes (20-30 team practices weekly)

Sustainable Natural Turf Field Chalmers Field was reconstructed with new foundation, irrigation and natural Kentucky Blue Grass turf. The underground drainage system maximizes natural percolation while effectively removing water from the surface and minimizing direct flow to the storm drain. The grass does not go dormant in the winter providing better durability and quality of the field for year-round use. There is a custom “fertigation� system that continually mixes a controlled concentration of fertilizer into the irrigation system to maintain and accelerate strong plant growth with minimum water usage. The irrigation system also automatically adjusts for weather conditions. Many visiting athletics coaches and officials have commented on the outstanding quality, beauty and expanse of the field.

13 Middle School Tartans Athletics teams, flag football and soccer, play 6-8 games weekly on Chalmers Field 18 Lower School P.E. classes use the field multiple times a week Multiple teams practice daily on the field at the same time The Highlands Quad and Chalmers Field provide an ideal location to host annual community events like Commencement and Literacy Day

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The Tartan Journey to College SMES College Counseling

By Nicole Peddy

For many, the pathway through college admissions is the culmination of the learning, preparation and personal discovery of the high school years. As senior year approaches, the college application season is in sight. It is often a time that brings about anxiety among some students–and their parents–as they contemplate a decision that will affect the rest of their lives, yet the St. Margaret’s College Counseling process maps a plan that sets up each student for college admissions success, discovering a group of schools that is a right fit.

As a college-preparatory school, St. Margaret’s prepares students for selective college admissions. The school’s minimum graduation course requirements exceed the curriculum expectations of almost every college and university in the country. But, it’s not just the graduation course requirements that determine where a student will continue their learning beyond the halls of St. Margaret’s. Choosing a college is an opportunity for students to further develop interests, define talents, and consider their individual ideas, stances and values.

St. Margaret’s College Counseling Office helps assist students in finding college environments that best fit their unique talents and interests.

Director of College Counseling Roland Allen said, “College counseling at St. Margaret’s seeks to engage students in an experience that encourages them to use skills they have developed, in and out of the classroom, in exploring options and crafting college applications.”

College counseling support has been expanded and is available to all Upper School students, who are encouraged to access the resources of three full-time, and highly-experienced college counselors.

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The Tartan Plan

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At St. Margaret’s, the college counseling curriculum formally begins in Grade 8 and carries students through Upper School. Each year is themed to give students a primary focus to help them prepare, explore a range of activities and define their interests. The college counselors work closely with students, encouraging them in their growth and pursuit of intellectual, athletic and creative endeavors through the Upper School years. The experience is tailored to each individual student.

During the second half of junior year, the college counseling curriculum intensifies, and the college counselors help students and their families explore the full range of post-secondary options to find the college or university that not only will challenge them academically, but align with their goals, values and interests as well.

College counselors assist with academic planning, host student and parent workshops on the nuts and bolts of the college application and essay, and advise students on college visits and admission interviews.

Grade 8 Preparing for Upper School

Grade 10 Defining Passions and Interests

Grade 8 marks the start of the college-bound conversation.

Throughout the year, students join advisory groups, meet with college counselors to gain insight into the college application process and learn about the college counseling process in the Upper School.

Students are informed of what defines a successful college applicant and are encouraged to challenge themselves as they develop their interests in the Upper School.

College counselors reinforce the grade 9 conversations with sophomores, and introduce college admissions testing. In October, every grade 10 student sits for the PSAT. College counselors, advisors and teachers guide each student in taking appropriate SAT subject tests, Advanced Placement exams and selecting classes for junior year.

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Grade 9 Building Relationships with Adults

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In grade 9, students meet with the college counselors during advisory lunches. The focus for this year is learning to talk with adults, understanding the importance of academic achievement, accepting personal responsibility for one’s success, academic honor and integrity, and moving from observing to participating in the school community. Students work closely with their teachers, advisory and class deans to ensure academic success throughout their Upper School experiences, and are encouraged to explore a range of activities—athletic, artistic and service-based—as they look to develop their interests.

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Grade 11 Beginning the Process and Learning About Schools

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During first semester of junior year, each student is assigned a dedicated college counselor, who will guide them for the remainder of their time at St. Margaret’s. In January, the school hosts an official college kick-off event. Students take standardized college admissions test (SAT, ACT, and possibly SAT subject tests) and begin meeting with their college counselor to develop a plan for researching colleges, college visits and summer activities. Late in the spring, St. Margaret’s college counselors design a case studies program. In a mock admission session, students and parents are divided into “admissions committees” to review and discuss fictitious student files, and then decide which candidates to admit, wait list or deny to the mock university. The case study offers valuable insight into the admissions process.

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Grade 12 Applying to College

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Senior year is the time for students to finalize a thoughtful, balanced list of colleges in consultation with the college counselors and work closely with them on essays and applications. Seniors submit applications by the School deadlines, receive letters of admission and make final college selections by May 7. Ninety percent of students have typically applied to a college or university

by November of their senior year.

Students who decide to apply to college early in their senior year have two choices: early decision and early action. n Early decision applications are binding. A student can choose to apply to their top choice school by early decision, if it is offered by the school, and if they are accepted they are committing to enroll in the fall. n Early action is a college admission process where a student has

the opportunity to apply in an early admission round in the fall before the standard January application deadline. This process allows a student to apply early, but retains the choice to apply to multiple schools.

The college process for St. Margaret’s seniors is personal and one-on-one. The counselors work with each senior individually as they complete their college applications to ensure each student understands the application requirements including requirements for programs they may apply to, for example, in the arts or an academic specialty such as engineering or business.

Senior Reflections

Each year, September through November, more than 140 representatives from colleges and universities around the world visit the St. Margaret’s campus to recruit students. Students have the opportunity to talk with representatives in a small group setting.

They learn what sets each institution apart and specific details of the admission process. In meeting with the representatives, students also introduce themselves to the college, and there is a possibility they will be asked to interview with an admission officer.

Senior Nick Williams reflected on his decision to apply early decision to Tufts University. “Having applied and gotten into Tufts under the early decision process was one of the better choices I made my senior year. I worked very hard with diligent guidance from Ms. Warren, whom I have much thanks to give. I eventually decided that, if I were to move across the country for my education, I needed a place that was a home, not just a place to go to school, and that community was Tufts. The early decision option was clearly the right call for me as Tufts was my number one choice. Being able to get the acceptance letter before Christmas break and go into the holidays fully relaxed was a large relief,” he said.

The opportunity for college representatives to meet with St. Margaret’s students provides context when the admission officers read a student’s application. Additionally, by having admission officers on campus, they learn more about the dynamic collegepreparatory program that St. Margaret’s offers. Year after year, the representatives find St. Margaret’s students to be thoughtful, engaged community members.

William Miyamoto, who applied early action and will attend Stanford University in the fall said, “I decided to apply early to my first-choice college, because I felt like if I was accepted, the rest of the college application process and the remainder of my senior year would be far less stressful. During Christmas break, instead of working on my applications, I was able to visit the Stanford campus, and look around with the eyes of a new admit.”

Senior and Northwestern University-bound Lexi Vollero said, “I was looking for a top college to further educate and challenge me. Ms. Warren helped me through every step of my search. I ended up visiting around 20 colleges. I thought I was meant to go to Vanderbilt University, but it never completely clicked, so Ms. Warren worked incredibly hard with me to find a perfect fit. The moment I stepped on Northwestern’s campus my second time this fall, I knew it was where I belonged and wanted to spend the next stage of my life. I am incredibly excited for what is to come and feel so blessed by the people in my life and this amazing opportunity.”

Sewanee, The University of the South

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Taken by Director of College Counseling Roland Allen (left and above)

We asked four alumni from the Class of 2015 questions about their St. Margaret’s college counseling experience and journey to finding the best college based on their aspirations, talents and interests. Here are insights from Chris Lanham (Northwestern University), Elizabeth Stephens (University of California, Los Angeles), Quentin Talley (Georgia Institute of Technology) and Winnie Zhu (Barnard College):

What about the St. Margaret’s college counseling experience helped guide you in choosing the college/university that was the right fit for you?

Elizabeth: At the beginning of my college counseling experience at St. Margaret’s, I was convinced I wanted to spend the next four years at a tiny, liberal arts school in Portland. Considering I ended up at a research university with more than 40,000 students in the center of Los Angeles, I clearly had a dramatic shift in what I wanted from my college experience. By providing me with myriad resources and tools I needed to gain a complete understanding of all of my options, as well as advising me extensively, my college counselor led me to discover what I truly valued in order to choose the college that was the best fit for me.

Quentin Talley

Quentin: What helped guide me the most was my counselor’s deep knowledge of the various colleges, as well as his personal relationship with me. Because Mr. Allen knew me so well, he was able to point out so many options I had never heard of. Along with that, I would say the experience is less focused on rankings and more so on personal fit and environment. I definitely wouldn’t have been as content and fit in as well at many of the schools I was considering going into the process.

“The school’s minimum graduation course requirements exceed the curriculum expectations of almost every college and university in the country.”

Elizabeth Stephens

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What was the best piece of advice you received from your college counselor, or what was most helpful?

Chris: I was about to go and tour some schools. Before I left, Ms. Warren specifically said to keep my mind open. Give every school the same opportunity to impress you and you might be surprised about which you like. The list of schools I considered attending changed drastically due to this advice. I think that having an open mind and allowing yourself to listen to every institution will open up more opportunities for you.

Elizabeth: The best piece of advice I received from my college counselor was to be vulnerable and challenge myself during the essay writing process. By advising me to pick essay topics that were very personal and required a lot of reflection, my college counselor helped me produce unique, genuine essays that accurately captured my story and personality.

Winnie Zhu

What advice would you give students who are about to go through the college application experience?

Winnie: It’s fine to not know what to do at first, and don’t panic when you have no idea what to say when people ask you, “what kind of college are you looking for?” Talk about yourself; the more the counselor knows about you, the more he or she can help you, and everything will work out just fine.

Quentin: I would stress the importance of keeping an open mind.

I hadn’t even heard of Georgia Tech [Georgia Institute of Technology] until a week before the application deadline and at first only applied because of its reputation, but with no real intention of attending.

After being accepted, I decided to visit not really expecting much.

Yet, after my visit, I left positive that Georgia Tech was the place I wanted to spend my next four years.

“Choosing a college is an opportunity for students to further develop interests, define talents, and consider their individual ideas, stances and values.”

University of Cambridge, England Taken by Director of College Counseling Roland Allen

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Winnie: I was aiming at Wellesley College for quite a long time partially because of its high ranking. When I got wait-listed, I couldn’t wait to write back to the college as soon as possible, but Mr. Allen calmed me down and asked me to wait for the rest of the results and think again before rushing. Later, I got into Barnard College, calmly compared these two colleges and realized that Barnard was just where I wanted to be. I chose Barnard and couldn’t be happier with my choice.

Chris Lanham

How did you make the final decision on where to go to college?

Quentin: After decisions came out, I narrowed it down to two universities, Georgia Tech and Cal Berkeley [University of California, Berkeley]. Both are elite research universities with excellent engineering schools, so the decision really came down to fit and where I wanted to be. After spending time on both campuses, I had no doubt in my mind Georgia Tech was the right choice for me.

Everything about the campus felt conducive to growth, learning, and of course a little fun.

Chris: I applied early decision to Northwestern University, so there wasn’t much of a choice involved. I will say that the process of applying early was completely unexpected. I wasn’t even considering Northwestern until the summer before senior year.

But, I toured in the early fall and just knew. So much of deciding Northwestern was the place for me was intuitive. I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to tour several of the schools I was applying to before the early deadline. I visited Northwestern and knew it was the place for me.

Reflecting back, how did everything work out for you?

Quentin: I couldn’t be happier with my decision. The relationships and experiences I’ve found here have been some of the greatest ever, and I’m not sure I would have been as happy anywhere else.

Every school has its pros and cons, but all in all I think Georgia Tech fits me well and I’m confident my four years here will provide me with knowledge and experiences to last a lifetime.

Elizabeth: Looking back, I couldn’t be happier I chose to step outside of my comfort zone and go to UCLA. Since I spent my entire academic life at St. Margaret’s, facing an enormous institution with large lecture halls and thousands of unfamiliar faces on a huge campus was definitely a daunting experience when I first arrived at the university. However, with time I found smaller communities within the larger college community. Having an amazing network of supportive friends and joining worthwhile organizations, such as the Special Olympics, the disabilities studies program, and campus clubs and activities, make UCLA feel like home. As time goes by, I have become more confident that the academic opportunities and the college counseling I received at St. Margaret’s guided me to exactly where I needed to be to pursue my goals.

This year, seniors applied to 257 colleges and universities across the nation and internationally. Every student in the Class of 2016 who applied to a four-year college or university was accepted. Acceptances letters were plentiful for Tartans from an impressive list of colleges and universities across the U.S., including Amherst College, Boston College, Brown University, Colby College, Colgate University, Duke University, Emory University, Georgetown University, New York University, Northwestern University, Pomona College, Stanford University, University of Chicago, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of Notre Dame, University of Pennsylvania, University of Southern California and University of Virginia.

University of St Andrews, Scotland Taken by Director of College Counseling Roland Allen HIGHLANDER

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> Alumni Profile

Dusting Away Your Digital Footprint

By Nicole Peddy

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amed one of Forbes magazine’s 2016 “30 Under 30,” Ryan Ozonian, St. Margaret’s Class of 2005, is changing the way technology is used to

process personal and private information. Ryan is the chief executive officer and co-founder of Cyber Dust, an ephemeral messaging app he co-founded in 2014 with Mark Cuban, business leader, entrepreneur, billionaire and venture capitalist.

Messages sent via Cyber Dust automatically disappear 100 seconds after a user reads them. The messages cannot be traced and are not stored anywhere—not even on Cyber Dust’s hard drive. Cyber Dust promises to be the safest and most secure communications platform compared to its current rivals.

“Not every digital conversation in life should be recorded and stored. Natural human communication is ephemeral at heart, so why is every digital conversation saved and stored forever,” said Ryan who runs product development for Cyber Dust, manages the company’s 30 employees and oversees its relations with investors.

Cyber Dust has a few million registered users, most of whom are professionals who want to discuss business privately, said Ryan.

“We’re growing because privacy is only headed in one direction.

People want to take back their privacy, so we’re teaching them how to decrease their digital footprint. We want people to be aware of what they are doing when they hit send on any message.”

In mid-2015, Cyber Dust released its first original video content and has multiple patents pending on its memory technology. The app is available worldwide in 15 different languages.

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The Tartan Path to Success A 2009 graduate of University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, Ryan received a Bachelor of Arts in communications and media.

“I left college not knowing what I wanted to do. I knew what I liked doing; I knew I liked communications; I knew I liked technology.

[After college,] I was willing to sacrifice any sort of salary I could get from a standard job to be an unpaid intern, or at least an intern making a tiny bit of money, so I could be in the space I wanted to be in and learn,” remarked Ryan, who right out of college was hired as an intern for a technology company that was building social media games for Facebook.

Ryan learned a lot from his time with the company, including how to architect and build software through wire framing, and managing a group of programmers and designers to bring a game from the idea phase to the execution/launch phase. He left the company with ideas of his own and gathered seed funding from friends, family and his extended network. He raised close to $20,000 and built a game for iPhone called Trivia Friends, which amassed one million downloads in three to four months.

he was too young and inexperienced, Ryan searched the Internet for someone who wanted to invest in social mobile games.

He responded to a blog article with Mark Cuban’s contact information. “I wrote him a nice, concise email; I’m a good writer thanks to St. Margaret’s and Dallas Clemmons.

In eight minutes he responded and said he would give me $250,000. In 10 days, the money was in the bank. He believed in me and ever since then we’ve been building products together,” said Ryan.

The success of Trivia Friends led Ryan to create a development company, Mention Mobile, in 2010. It specializes in incorporating real friends into casual social games on Facebook and mobile devices.

Frustrated with the lack of funding he was receiving from venture capitalists who said

When asked what advice he would give entrepreneurs looking to make their dreams a reality, Ryan said that the best career advice he ever got was to stop thinking and just do it. “If you have an idea, the first step is to act on it. Even if you fail, you’ll learn how to do it better the next time,” Ryan added.

“If you have an idea, the first step is to act on it. Even if you fail, you’ll learn how to do it better the next time.”

Ryan Ozonian, front row second from left

Ryan, who said he is motivated to have a positive impact on people through innovation and hard work said, “At St. Margaret’s, I thought the main goal was to get the best grades possible to get into the best school possible. But, now that I think back on it, what served me the best is that St. Margaret’s allowed me the opportunity to take on different challenges and helped me navigate those challenges. What was most important was the support system that helped me learn how to conquer any challenge in life through hard work and persistence. Not everyone is the smartest person in the world, not everyone is going to get in to the best college in the world, but what you can do is take what you’ve learned and apply it to everything you do in your life.

For me, that started at St. Margaret’s.”

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Updates

> Alumni Updates Letter from the Tartan Alumni Association President Greetings Fellow Tartan Alumni,

Tartan Tee-Off Exceeds Fundraising Goal!

If you are reading this article then you are, no doubt, still connected to the school. You may also know that your Tartan Alumni Council has been working hard to build connections and improve outreach to our alumni now exceeding 2,000 strong with the addition of the Class of 2016. We would love for YOU to join us and help spread the word to Tartan friends about all the happenings at our alma mater.

Did you know?

GROWTH. The TAA started an endowment to help future generations of Tartans. TALE (Tartan Alumni Legacy Endowment) was created in 2014 to make a difference in the lives of future Tartan’s, forever. Started with a generous donation of $100,000 from a loyal Tartan, that amount is being matched by alumni. You, the alumni, have now cumulatively allowed us to donate more than $200,000 to fund an endowment that will one day help students attend St. Margaret’s. A special thanks to Dean Kim ’94 for his generous and inspiring gift this year.

STRATEGY. Alumni feedback was critical in devising the new strategic plan for our alma mater. These guiding principles will carry our school through the next decade and help shape the next generation of St. Margaret’s alumni. Thank you to our devoted alumni who were instrumental in sharing their voice in the plan’s creation.

VOLUNTEERISM. Two new alumni joined the ranks of the leadership body of the TAA, the Alumni Council. A special congrats to Megan Canright Rabinowitz ’99 and Georgina Lean ’09. Their perspective, enthusiasm and strategic minds will help us propel TAA initiatives and outreach to new heights.

I am grateful for their volunteerism.

Remember we need YOUR help! While the TAA is very new, the sentiments which drive us all to give back stems from our student days. Our school is entering a new era, with the children of alumni returning to attend, our reputation is growing and our ever-expanding group of alumni are finding more and more professional success. This is a critical time in the history of St. Margaret’s for alumni to get involved and continue to make a difference.

With Tartan Pride,

Excitement ensued at El Niguel Country Club for the 2015 Tartan Tee-Off, where efforts netted nearly $220,000 for St. Margaret’s Financial Aid Endowment. The tournament, presented by the Kao Family Foundation and led by a loyal volunteer committee, drew more than 120 parents, alumni, sponsors, parents of alumni and friends to compete in the annual event. During the dinner program, St. Margaret’s alumnus Bryan Flores ‘11, a recent graduate of Loyola Marymount University, shared his heartfelt gratitude for his scholarship support while a student at St. Margaret’s. The winning foursome was: Travis Nelson, Geoff Rosenhain, James Bishop and Brent Kuhn, each of whom received a winner’s trophy and a getaway trip compliments of Diamond Resorts. Save the date for 2016: October 17, 2016

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Tartan Alumni Legacy Endowment – TALE! The Tartan Alumni Association is proud to announce the largest gift to date to TALE by alumnus Dean Kim ’94 and his wife, Randa.

Dean, who is also a current parent, was inspired by St. Margaret’s and a matching gift opportunity from an anonymous TALE donor that doubled his generous gift.

Alumni giving has increased substantially over the last five years.

In 2010-2011 alumni giving was in the range of $5,000. As of February 2016, alumni giving had already surpassed $50,000. This growth is the result of hard work from the Alumni Council and alumni belief in the value of giving back to their alma mater each year.

>

Todd Newman M.D. ’91 snewman25911@yahoo.com

How can you participate? Every gift matters to continue

growing TALE. Small or large, your gift will be doubled and

directly impact the hearts and minds of future Tartan generations.

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Please make a gift today. www.smes.org/tale

5th Annual Alumni Career Forum

Class Notes Tartan Class Notes Compiled by Jillian Gray

1986– 30th Reunion

Special thanks to Stephanie Cordova Harvey, Shannon Balzer Palmer and Mark Risner for putting together an outstanding 30th Reunion! Check out the next issue of the Highlander for details and photos!

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More than 30 St. Margaret’s alumni returned to campus to engage and inspire Middle and Upper School students during the 5th Annual Alumni Career Forum. Ryan Ozonian ‘05 served as the keynote speaker. Joining Ryan in the experiential day were alumni spanning from the Classes of 1986 to 2013 who returned to their alma mater to provide current students a glimpse into their professional lives and the journey that brought them to this point. New highlights this year included two workshop experiences. One focused on Linked In – and how to create a profile and utilize the tool to tap into the St. Margaret’s alumni Linked In group.

The second workshop took real student business ideas and matched them up with alumni entrepreneurs who offered advice and insight.

“The importance of providing synergistic programming bringing both current students and alumni together to explore future career possibilities is priceless,” said Assistant Director of Advancement for Alumni Relations Jillian Gray.

If you would like to participate in 2017, please contact the Alumni Relations Office at alumni@smes.org.

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2016 Alumni Career Forum Speakers Chris Allen ’89 - Manager of Global Learning and Development, Panasonic Avionics Umar Bajwa ’05 – Founder, Ala3eeb Ryan Baker ’03 - Senior Financial Analyst and Field Agent, Mosier and Company, Inc. Alyson Barker ’99 - Vice President, General Counsel, Lucky Brand Kurt Belcher ’97 – CEO, STAJets Brooke (Ziccardi) Bowman ’96 – Principal, Ziccardi Designs

Brooke (Birtcher) Gustafson’03 Vice President Development Operations, Goodman Birtcher North America

Megan (Canright) Rabinowitz ’99 - Director of Scientific Operations, Forensic Analytical Consulting Services

Paul Janczyk ’04 - Senior Associate, Edwards Lifesciences

Mark Risner ’86 – Owner, The Law Office of Mark T. Risner

Georgina Lean ’09 - currently a Ph.D. candidate in Neuroscience at UC Irvine

Winston Robinson ’13 - Assistant Manager, Lacrosse Unlimited

Chase McClure ’13 – Internet Sales Representative, HGB Auto Co Connor McClure ’10 - Marketing Director, Betty’s Mexican Food

Scott DeYoung ’08 – Director, Faris Lee Investments

David Milburn ’05 - Business Strategist, The Young Trust and MDM International

Ryan Dunlop ’03 - National Accounts Manager, Danone Waters of America

Alex Miyawaki ’05 - Director of Audience Strategy, Entertainment at Maker Studios

Jordan Dzierwa ’06 – Owner, Skydog Jewelry

Todd Newman ’91 - Staff Anesthesiologist, Newport Harbor Anesthesia Consultants

William Findiesen ’10 - Financial Analyst and Accountant, Team Playbooks Tara Freese ’05 - Community Development Manager, Shea Homes

Ryan Ozonian ’05 - Co-Founder and CEO, Cyber Dust Justin Phan ’04 – CEO, PlayMyAd

1991– 25th Reunion

We hope you can join us for all the festivities during our 25th Reunion. Watch your mail for the invite or connect with the Alumni Relations Office at alumni@ smes.org. Mark Van Dam is busy these days with family life and being an artist. He said, “Life has found me with a six-year-old son and a pursuit for my passion. I have been furthering my fine art goals over the last 20 years and own an aquarium service business to keep the bills paid and our bellies full. St. Margaret’s is my first, and longest running account. My involvement with fine art began while studying at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Here it dawned on me that one could express their experiences, inspirations and appreciations with moving some paint around a canvas, and the ensuing lifestyle was a fit. Please feel invited to join me as I exhibit my artwork this summer at the 50th anniversary of the Art-A-Fair Festival in Laguna Beach.” In the meantime, check out Mark’s work at www.vandamart.com.

Spencer Scott ’05 - Deputy Public Defender, County of San Diego Novelle Shakeel ’06 - President and CEO, Parisian Management Inc. Alex Slavin ’02 - Associate at O’Melveny & Myers LLP Max Sutro ’08 - Client Marketing Associate at Athletes First Taylor (Chase) Wagniere ’06 Associate in the area of complex litigation at Blecher Collins & Pepperman Jennifer Wolfe ’91, MFT - Behavior Support Team Supervisor at StarView Community Services Andrew Wood ’03 - an Associate at Baker and Hostetler LLP Mark Van Dam ’91

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1995

Upcoming Alumni Events & Activities

Dave Tomlinson is working as the Upper School athletic trainer for St. Margaret’s and the dean of students for the junior and senior boys. He is enjoying his time with his daughter and wife, Karen, and is living in Dana Point.

Regional Events Summer / Fall 2016

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Homecoming November 4

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Can you believe our 20th Reunion from St. Margaret’s is here? An exciting milestone that needs to be celebrated!

Watch your mail for the invite or connect with the Alumni Relations Office at alumni@smes.org.

2001– 15th Reunion

Are you curious what the rest of the ‘01s are up to? Make plans and join us for the Alumni Christmas Party on Saturday, December 17… and watch Facebook for our class-specific activities!

Stefanie Wilson Brown married her husband, Greg, at St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church this past August. Joining her were her parents, Glenda and Steve, and her sister, Annie Wilson ’07. Stefanie is an Episcopal priest and works at Campbell Hall in North Hollywood.

10th Reunion, Class of 2006 November 23

1996– 20th Reunion

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2004

Alumni Christmas Party December 17

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Alumni Career Forum February 10

2003

Lindsay Stump Eres is executive director of Special Camp for Special Kids and dean of grade 9 and 10 girls at St. Margaret’s.

She has a toddler daughter, lives with her husband in Laguna Niguel and is an avid University of Southern California fan.

Stefanie Wilson Brown ’04

> Notable: Alumni Christmas Party 2015 The Alumni Christmas Party festivities took place on Friday, December 18 on campus in the outside courtyard of the Maseeh Middle School. Nearly 200 alumni and faculty reminisced and brought in the holiday’s Tartan style. Make plans now to join us on Saturday, December 17 for the 2016 Celebration!

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2005

David Milburn and his wife, Audrey, are proud sleep-deprived parents of son William Ethan Milburn. David was back at St. Margaret’s in January when he served as speaker for the Alumni Career Forum.

Stephanie Davis is serving the second year of her residency in Denver, where she is working to become a physician.

2008

Erin Kircher was just accepted at Stanford University in the Master of Arts in education program. Erin spent every summer while at St. Margaret’s and at college (Bucknell ‘12) working with mentally and physically challenged youth, starting with Special Camp for Special Kids and then at similar camps around the country. It was from these experiences that she decided to pursue a career in teaching.

> Notable:

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In Memoriam – Damian Jones ‘88

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2009 .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2006 – 10th Reunion

Ten years! It’s nearly time to reconnect with our classmates, be on the look-out for your invite, we can’t wait to celebrate this exciting milestone reunion on November 23, 2016!

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2007

Annie Wilson married her husband, Benjy, in August 2014 in Maine. They live in Boston where she is happily walking dogs and making films.

Josiah Edwards is finishing his master’s in education and will be an elementary school teacher. He also currently serves as a youth leader for St. Margaret’s Church Youth Group.

Jessica Roe graduated from USC in 2013 in Social Sciences and has been accepted into USC’s top ranked Master’s Occupational Therapy Program.

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2010

Woody Quinn finished his master’s degree from the University of Tennessee where he also played football. This past fall, he helped coach football at St. Margaret’s and is looking to pursue a career with the fire department.

Alumni Communications Brief Have you read the latest issue of TAB? We are helping you keep tabs on your alma mater through our e-newsletter the Tartan Alumni Buzz (TAB). Watch for features on alumni, campus news, arts, athletics, announcements and our alumni polls. In between issues, you can enjoy #TBT, event updates and spotlight news on the new Tartan Alumni Association Facebook page.

Be sure to “like” and follow!

On March 3, 2016, alumnus, Damian Jones, Class of 1988, passed away. Damian attended St. Margaret’s beginning in grade 8. While at St. Margaret’s, Damian was Associated Student Body Vice President and a two-sport athlete earning All-League titles in both baseball and football. He was also named All-CIF in football. He was a member of the yearbook staff, the newspaper staff, in the cast of “Godspell,” competed in mock trial and was Junior State President.

Damian received a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of California, Santa Barbara. He worked for Accenture as Senior Principal, Industry and Business Services Innovation and Senior Manager Government Relations. Previously, Damian worked as a Managing Partner at Pacific Strategy Group and as Community Affairs Director at Fannie Mae. He had been active with the Tartan Alumni Association, including serving as a Class Agent.

Damian lived in Denver and is survived by his wife Michelle; twin daughters, Sydney and Ashley; two sons, Quinton and Landon; his older brother, Cameron Jones ’87; two sisters, Tiffany and Tempest; and his parents, June and Vic Cameron, who were founding members of St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church.

Damian’s memory was honored at St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church on March 22, 2016 where many Tartans joined the family in reflecting back on his life and friendship.

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2011– 5th Reunion

It is hard to imagine that five years have already flown by since we crossed the stage at St. Margaret’s for graduation. We hope if you’re back in town you’ll join us for a special 2011 tribute at the Alumni Christmas Party on Saturday, December 17, 2016. Tory Davidson recently graduated from Whitman College with a double major in biology and theater and is doing a year of refugeetheater around the world, working on theater performances with refugees. She was inspired by a post-St. Margaret’s graduation experience with refugees in Thailand that changed her life and made her want to do this work for the next year before going to New York to work as an actress. Bryan Flores won his third professional fight in Studio City in February. He is undefeated and plans to have a busy fight schedule this year. Learn more about his story and upcoming fights at larataboxing.com. Erika Page has been doing a lot of moving since graduation. She went to school in Portland, Ore., for a couple years, lived in Cusco, Peru for a month, then in the fall of 2013, she moved to Nashville, Tenn. to complete an audio engineering program at Dark Horse Institute. After finishing that program, she moved to New York City where she is working to bring musicians together to record a demo of her songs. She is also in school to get her doctorate in Chinese medicine at Pacific College of Oriental Medicine. Check out her music at http://erikapage-music.com.

2012

Nolan Lynch is studying at Gettysburg College and enjoying his school. He will be graduating this year and on to his next adventure.

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In Memoriam – Jeff Askin ‘10

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Congratulations A special congratulations to the members of the Class of 2012 who are graduated from college and other young alumni finishing grad or professional school this year and embarking on a new adventure.

Be sure to update your email/mailing address to get invites to Tartan alumni regional events and activities. Updates through August can win a chance for Starbuck’s gift card giveaways.

Go to: http://bit.ly/address4SMES

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St. Margaret’s Environmental Focus In an effort to reduce waste and global impact, efforts are underway to eliminate duplicate mailings to married Tartan alumni and to the parent’s home address with multiple siblings along with alumni beyond 2009 who still have the same address as they did at graduation. We know some alumni do return home, yet we want to encourage all alumni to keep us posted on their new address to ensure they continue to receive a copy of the Highlander magazine and regional event invitations! Thanks so much for your help on this important effort. Updates can be entered at http://bit.ly/address4smes

Bryan Flores ’11

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> Notable:

S T. M A R G A R E T ’ S E P I S C O P A L S C H O O L

On January 4, 2016, we lost a member of our Tartan alumni family. While at St. Margaret’s, Jeff Askin’10, served as vice president for his class, was an active member of the Associated Student Body, a peer counselor and a senior counselor with Special Camp for Special Kids. Jeff played varsity football and lacrosse. In football, he was a starter on the winning team that led the Tartans to three CIF Championships including the State Championship in 2008.

In lacrosse, he was the starting goaltender on the winning team that led the Tartans to four Trinity League Championships. He was the lacrosse Trinity League Defensive MVP in 2010 and All Orange County First Team in 2010. As an alumnus, Jeff received a Bachelor of Science in communication from the University of Colorado, Boulder in 2014 and enjoyed traveling near and far.

On the evening of January 8, 2016, Jeff’s parents, Bonni and Jerry, his older brother Josh and sister Amy Askin ’05, joined together with family and many former St. Margaret’s classmates, friends, coaches and parents of alumni to honor Jeff’s memory in a special candlelight vigil held in the St. Margaret’s Fountain Courtyard. Jeff’s wit, compassion and lifelong friendships were celebrated in a place near and dear to him. He will be greatly missed.

2013

Andrew Torok is finishing his junior year at Wheaton College. He is on the men’s tennis team after having his football career cut short due to a neck injury. He currently works for Invesco Powershares, a boutique investment management firm based near Chicago which manages a family of exchange-traded funds. Andrew has been accepted into the London School of Economics for the summer of 2016. Robert Deng is a member of the Harvard University men’s golf team that finished third at the 2015 Ivy League Championships. Robert (77-71-69-217) scored one-over par for third place in the individual competition, earning himself All-Ivy League First Team honors. Winston Robinson is studying at Concordia University and playing lacrosse.

He is also coaching for St. Margaret’s as the running back and defensive end coach for football and the lacrosse program for the grade 7 and 8 students. Brandon Price placed second in the 5K at the Ivy League Indoor Track Championship at Cornell University. Brandon’s accomplishments this year are phenomenal, after an injury last fall. He ran a personal best in the 3000 meters, a time that places fourth fastest in Harvard University’s history.

2014

in the language in college. Sean Chang recently made Team USA for archery and is now a member of the 2016 Junior U.S. Archery Team. Liam McGregor is enjoying Stanford University and the atmosphere in the Palo Alto area. In January, he went to the Rose Bowl to cheer on fellow St. Margaret’s alumnus and current football player Charlie Beall. Ryan Harnisch is doing well at Denver and playing lacrosse.

He is a starter on the team, and faced the top faceman in the country when Denver took on Team USA to kick off the season.

Dalan Cragun is studying at the University of Washington at St. Louis. He is majoring in pre-med and also playing football at the school. Nicole Fava is attending Ole Miss.

She just performed in her first college dance concert, was dance captain for the theater department’s production of “Hair” and pledged Kappa Kappa Gamma. Brent Cahill made the Sports Illustrated cover as a member of the Cal Tech basketball team.

Willy Morrison ’14, Coach Brian Carmer and Jameson Edwards ’14

Anthony Cecere was the team leader in birdies recently and helped the Waves of Pepperdine win their first league title in five years last May. Jameson Edwards is at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in his sophomore year where he is enjoying college life. Over the summer he worked at some St. Margaret’s camps and also helped with the varsity football program. He caught up with Willy Morrison who is studying at Southern Methodist University and basketball coach Brian Carmer over the holidays.

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2015 Brandon Price ’13

Fernando Delgado ’15, Luis Ceballos ’15, Angel Ceballos ’15 and Brandon Torres ’15

Fernando Delgado, Luis Ceballos, Angel Ceballos and Brandon Torres met in Philadelphia with Director of College Counseling Roland Allen for dinner recently. Fernando and Luis are still studying Chinese, and both plan to minor

Parents of Alumni If your son or daughter no longer maintains an address at your home, please notify the Office of Alumni Relations at 949.661.0108, ext. 1247 or alumni@smes.org, of his or her new address. Thank you!

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> Looking Back

A Lasting Legacy – Early Childhood Development Center Director Ingrid Andrews Retires . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

B y Je a n n i n e C l a rke , M i dd l e S c h o o l P r i n c i p a l

There are many things I am thankful for I can find them near and far There are many things I am thankful for Let me tell you what they are I’m thankful for the earth I’m thankful for the sea I’m thankful for my friends And I’m thankful to be me.

This song has been sung by the students in the Early Childhood Development Center each fall at the All-School St. Margaret’s Day Eucharist. Our youngest Tartans, somewhat overwhelmed by the gymnasium filled with 1,200 students, have stood in the middle of the ceremony and delighted the community with their rendition of this treasured song. As I sit in the bleachers, surrounded by our Middle School students, the charming antics of our youngest Tartans are delightful to watch year in and year out. Some of the Preschool students have memorized the lyrics and sing with poise and charm, some confidently belt out the

Clockwise: Holden Dorsey, P3; Aspasia Vitakis, P5; Canon Dorsey, P4; and Elle McCalllister, Kindergarten; all children of former St. Margaret’s students.

song completely out of tune, and others are simply amazing performers engaging the crowd with smiles and waves. Each year, someone starts crying, someone never gets off of the lap of the teacher or parent sitting with the group, someone spends the entire song with their finger in their nose and someone else has lifted up their dress and begins swaying to the music with their polka dot tights in full view of the crowd. Year after year, this moment of sweetness and levity is followed by the entire school community joining in to sing the song together, complete with hand motions. Seeing the Pasternack Field House filled with 1,200 students of all ages and hearing this song about thankfulness is a beautiful example of the St. Margaret’s community and a treasured experience brought to the community by the Director of the Early Childhood Development Center, Ingrid Andrews.

When we gather to sing the song next fall, our beloved Ingrid Andrews, the key voice in the choir, will not be participating as she will be retiring from St. Margaret’s at the end of the 20152016 school year. Ingrid has led the St. Margaret’s Early Childhood Development Center as director with excellence for the past 10 years, and previously served as a classroom teacher at St. Margaret’s for 24 years.

I have had the honor of knowing and working with Ingrid for the past 25 years, and to know Ingrid is to love her. Our relationship began when my oldest son, Gavin, was a student in her Preschool classroom. The love, joy and care that she brought to his life and our family will never be forgotten. Our relationship evolved as we worked side by side as administrators for the past 10 years. I have enjoyed laughing with her and learning from her.

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Ingrid is a passionate educator and a teacher by trade. Her lasting legacy will be her expertise in teaching and learning and her effectiveness in instilling these best practices in the entire program.

Over the years, she has remained dedicated to continuous improvement of the learning experience. Her focus on documentation has provided a thoughtful and detailed narrative memorializing work samples, developmental milestones and has helped parents understand the philosophy and purpose of each program component.

These individual narratives have shaped and informed teaching practices as the process of documentation makes thinking and learning visible and enhances intentional teaching methods. Her integration of the Reggio Emilia approach has elevated the focus on the environment as a teaching tool.

Nowhere is the impact of the environment on teaching more evident than in the ECDC Outdoor Classroom. Over the years, Ingrid has worked with the faculty, our facilities team and an outdoor classroom consultant to fulfill an overall vision for the Outdoor Classroom space, which includes an outdoor science lab with live chickens, a sustainable garden, an artist’s studio, a library, symphony hall, theater and gym. It’s an inspiring and engaging place where children immerse themselves in nature, hone observation skills, practice persistence and cooperation, and develop academic concepts, problem solving and physical motor skills. The site has been identified as a model for other schools by the California Outdoor Classroom Project.

Ingrid can be found laughing with and enjoying the children as they experience the learning which takes place in the Outdoor Classroom. She delights in everything that is the early childhood

experience and has dedicated herself to creating a program which honors their needs and development. Walking through the Early Childhood Development Center, you can’t help but feel happy and cared for. The beautiful grounds, the peaceful music, the loving presence of adults and the safe and child-centered design makes you want to be four years old again.

Ingrid is not only joyful in the presence of children but is a creative and valued colleague, as well. She is well known for her wit and sense of humor and can always be counted on to bring an “outside the box” perspective to situations. Anyone who has ever stepped foot in Ingrid’s office knows that she has a free-flowing mind and a bit of a chaotic desk. Ingrid operates best in the world of big ideas and creativity. Her non-linear thinking is what has made her leadership unique. Her thinking is not confined to the reality of what is, but rather in the world of possibilities and envisioning the best future for each child. Her zest for life, sense of humor and wisdom have enhanced our school program. During many a principals’ meeting in the midst of a challenging discussion, Ingrid finds a connection with a Preschool song, often with corresponding hand motions, which she then freely belts out in the middle of the dialogue. Her perspective has brought smiles and laughs and then grounded the group back to unwavering focus on our students in every division. I have greatly appreciated the laughter and joy and valued perspective she has brought to our dialogue over the years.

There are teachers who are known for their extraordinary ability to connect with each and every student and transform lives.

Mrs. Ingrid Andrews is one of those truly gifted and exceptional educators known for her unparalleled expertise, passion and commitment to early childhood education.

Ingrid Andrews has dedicated her life’s work to our school and has impacted St. Margaret’s in deep and meaningful ways, and for that we are thankful and ever grateful.

Illustration of today’s ECDC Ingrid Andrews Outdoor Classroom, named at the 2015-2016 All-School Closing Ceremony in honor of her 35 years of service.

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> Looking Back

A Visual Artist Retrospective – Barbara Nelson Retires

By Nicole Peddy

As a founding member of St. Margaret’s Episcopal School’s visual arts department, Barbara Nelson has been integral to the vision, philosophy and curriculum design of The Arts at St. Margaret’s.

Since joining our community in 1985, she has enriched the minds of visual arts students in every division of the school. Mrs. Nelson has instructed more than 10 different types of Upper School classes, served as the Upper School yearbook advisor since 1992, and taught art in the Middle School and Lower School, including afterschool programs in clay and drawing.

Mrs. Nelson’s influence extended far beyond the classroom serving as the chair of the visual arts department for more than 20 years and as interim Upper School principal during the 19921993 school year.

She has shaped memorable school events, including fine arts nights, art festivals and Coffee House Cabarets. “Our Kindergarten through grade 12 Selected Works Exhibit has enjoyed a long and successful history. We began in my art room, moved to Sillers Hall, then to the Gateway Building, and now showcase our students’ work in the Performing Arts Center,” said Mrs. Nelson.

To honor Mrs. Nelson’s 31 years of service to the school, a visual arts exhibit entitled, “Barbara Nelson Retrospective” was displayed in the Performing Arts Center Foyer in November. The show included an amazing 60-piece collection of Mrs. Nelson’s works of art, including mixed media, 3D, 2D and tapestry art from the 1970s to the present.

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“I have been lucky to teach a subject that has enabled me to work with all age levels. A number of students have been in my classes from first grade through twelfth,” said Mrs. Nelson. “When my classes focused more on the upper levels, I kept in touch with the little ones in my afterschool clubs. My passion, however, has been in the Upper School, working with the advanced students to help make the arts part of their lives and futures.”

Senior Michelle Amber, who has had Mrs. Nelson as a teacher every year since her sophomore year, said, “I highly respect Mrs. Nelson for her determination, hard work, wit and eye for art and design. I always love hearing her life stories and points of view.

St. Margaret’s won’t be the same without her passion and creativity. I’m so blessed to have her as my teacher and friend and know she will do great things in the next chapter of her life.”

As a professional artist since 1972, Mrs. Nelson’s work has been exhibited at numerous galleries and museums nationwide. In addition to her artwork and graphics being featured in design books, corporate collections of her work include the Marriott Hotel in San Antonio, Texas; Hyatt Regency Hotels in Flint, Michigan; Chicago; Maui, Hawaii; and New Orleans; Guild

Wineries in San Francisco; and Bank of America world headquarters in San Francisco. Her work also is housed in private collections here in Orange County and as far away as Saudi Arabia and Switzerland.

“One of the most important things about Barbara’s career as a teaching artist at St. Margaret’s is that she has demonstrated her ability to create her own work while teaching students how to create their work,” said Director of the Arts Darcy Rice.

Mrs. Nelson added, “My ultimate goal for my students is that they develop into people who will be happy with who they are with the ability to find joy in life. I hope I’ve helped students discover what makes each of them unique and special. I wanted to give my students the gift of self-expression, as well as the appreciation of the expressions of others. Along with appreciation, I hope I’ve given them an understanding of the effect of visual arts on the human condition and helped them find joy in observing and creating art.”

Chris Allen, St. Margaret’s Class of 1991, said, “Mrs. Nelson is more than a teacher to me. She was one of my first mentors—she was there for me, coached me, and gave me insight into how to adapt to the ambiguity around us and embrace change. She also influenced my view of the world and the human condition and taught me the value of true diversity and respect. The arts can teach, inspire, mold and shape the world and the people in it... and Mrs. Nelson certainly did all those things for me. I’ll never be able to thank her enough.”

At the 2015-2016 All-School Closing Ceremony, the annual school art show was named the Barbara Nelson K-12 Selected Works Exhibition in her honor.

Artwork by Barbara Nelson

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> Looking Forward

2016 Strategic Plan a Bold Vision for St. Margaret’s Episcopal School

By Anne Dahlem

I

n January 2016, St. Margaret’s Episcopal School Board of Trustees and Head of School Will Moseley launched a new strategic plan after a multiyear strategic review and planning process that involved all constituencies of the school community. The visionary new plan breaks the model of traditional plans that focus on school operations and a tactical approach across areas of the school. The Board envisioned something different for St. Margaret’s

when it analyzed the current state of affairs and comprehensive feedback from the school community.

“It was clear from the in-depth analysis of the Board and the school leadership, and affirmed by our entire community, that St. Margaret’s is in an unparalleled position of strength in its academic program, business operations and financial health,” said Board of Trustees President Jason A. Weiss. “This presented an opportunity for us to set a course that represents our schoolwide areas of aspiration and opportunity to advance our academic programs and more fully realize our mission in the future.”

The plan’s priorities and goals are rooted in the school’s mission, Episcopal identity and aligned with our core values of high expectations, character, balance and breadth and community.

According to Mr. Weiss, the Board entrusts the implementation

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of this plan to Mr. Moseley and the faculty and staff to make any necessary changes to the programs and curriculum to achieve the plan’s goals.

“The successful implementation of this plan will further improve the education of our students and positively impact the members of our community in a lasting, meaningful way,” said Mr. Weiss.

The multiyear planning process included assessment of the school’s academic program, financial health, as well as five schoolwide task forces that explored and made recommendations in the areas of STEM education, diversity and inclusivity, global education, health and wellness, and sustainability.

In 2014, the Board created a Strategic Plan Steering Committee and engaged Roger Weaver of The Weaver Group to serve as a consultant for the process. The committee worked with Mr. Weaver and his team to enlist qualitative and quantitative approaches to gather input from all constituents of the school, including parents, students, alumni, faculty, staff, the administration and the Board of Trustees.

Chair of the Steering Committee and Board of Trustees Treasurer Paul Westhead said, “Our community participated at record levels, and overwhelmingly affirmed the school’s mission, as well as the curriculum, which places a high value on character, community, balance and breadth, and high expectations for our students to achieve their full potential.”

membership meeting, as well as all-school and division faculty and staff meetings. Faculty by division have already begun review of the plan against current academic programs.

The Board and school leadership have received enthusiastic and affirming feedback from the community. Mr. Moseley said, “This plan is rooted in our mission and Episcopal identity, and built on our core values. It’s a different kind of plan from those in the past. It’s aspirational versus operational. It is innovative and will continue to move St. Margaret’s forward in exciting and transformational ways for students today and for years into the future.”

The plan has been presented in parent forums, including the State of the School Address and the Parent Teacher Fellowship monthly

2016 Strategic Plan Read the complete plan here: smes.org/strategicplan

Appointment of Assistant Head of School for Strategic Initiatives

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In January, Head of School Will Moseley announced the appointment of Ryan Dahlem as Assistant Head of School for Strategic Initiatives. In the announcement, Mr. Moseley said: We identified the need for an experienced and forward-thinking educator dedicated to leading strategic initiatives. It became evident that we had the right person in our midst. I am delighted to announce the appointment of Ryan Dahlem as Assistant Head of School for Strategic Initiatives.

Academic Assessment Task Force and the 2008 Strategic Plan Committee and implementation team.

While many know Ryan for the past six years as Upper School Assistant Principal, he has contributed in significant ways to the learning experience for students in all divisions and advancement of St. Margaret’s for the past decade. Over the past few years, Ryan led several schoolwide initiatives that have demonstrated his ability to bring our community together and move forward important school priorities.

Prior to St. Margaret’s, Ryan was Associate Director of Admission at Stanford University where he oversaw admission for Stanford Athletics and partnered with the mathematics faculty to recruit exceptional mathematics talent from around the world. His territories included New England, Pacific Northwest, Asia and Orange County,

As the chair of the Diversity and Inclusivity Task Force, Ryan has led the conversation and development of understanding and cultural competency skills with our Board of Trustees, faculty, staff, students and parents. He has served as Interim Math Department Chair working with the academic team and faculty across divisions to complete a comprehensive curriculum mapping and vertical alignment process. Ryan also served on the 2012-2013

In 2006, Ryan came to St. Margaret’s and served for four years as the Director of Admission and Financial Aid recruiting and admitting hundreds of qualified new Tartans and their families in Preschool through grade 12. In addition, he taught Advanced Placement statistics in the Upper School for the past four years.

for which he read applications from St. Margaret’s students. Previously, Ryan taught mathematics at University High School in Irvine and Fenway High School in Boston.

Ryan holds a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from Stanford University, and a Master of Education in teaching and curriculum from Harvard University.

Ryan brings his extraordinary passion for St. Margaret’s, academic and administrative expertise, and the trust and esteem of his many colleagues to this new position, which officially begins July 1, 2016. He will lead the implementation of the Strategic Plan, cultural competency work, service learning and other special projects. We are excited to welcome Ryan in this role and to lead the implementation of our plan that will advance St. Margaret’s Episcopal School for students today and for generations to come.

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St. Margaret’s Episcopal School 31641 La Novia San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675-2752 Change Service Requested

Tartan Traditions…

Upcoming Events > . . . . . . . . . ...................................

June 6-August 12: Summer Camps (Registration is Open) July 19: Breakthrough Visitor’s Day August 17: San Juan Summer Nites Concert sponsored

by St. Margaret’s August 22: Lower, Middle and Upper School New Parent Orientation and PTF Tartan Spirit Day August 24: First Day of School for Kindergarten-Grade 12 August 29: First Day of School for Preschool September 7: PTF Welcome Back Coffee September 30: PTF Tartan Family BBQ October 17: Tartan Tee-Off October 24-25: Fall Break November 4: Homecoming November 12: Admission Open House Graduates are headed in 108 new and exciting directions! On June 4, St. Margaret’s Episcopal School held its 31st Commencement Ceremony for the Class of 2016.

As is tradition, the graduates tossed their caps culminating the inspiring and poignant celebration before singing the Alma Mater one final time as students.

“St. Margaret’s of Scotland Forever!” Godspeed Tartans!