Highlander Summer 2010

summer 2010

day in the life of middle school

into the woods in 8 weeks

alumni thrive at college

St. Margaret’s Is Building for the Future

departments

volume 22, number 1 summer 2010

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Guideposts Headmaster Marcus D. Hurlbut looks to the

A Day in the Life Of . . .

Middle School

future of St. Margaret’s Episcopal School

See how Middle School students spend their

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days throughout the week

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News & Notes Get the scoop on what’s been happening at

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St. Margaret’s lately

Open Spaces: Student Short Story and Artwork Showcasing student writing and visual arts talent

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Side by Side Student and teacher break down the complex process of producing a Broadway musical

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Class Notes Learn about the lives of your classmates, including “Notable” highlights

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By the Numbers: “Check Out” the Resources

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Looking Back In Memoriam: Canon Merle Minks

Learn the stats on the Library

features

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features

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Somewhere, Someone Needs You Students interview Ambassador Gaddi Vasquez on a life of service

St. Margaret’s Episcopal School Marcus D. Hurlbut, Headmaster Highlander magazine is published by the Communications Office as a St. Margaret’s Episcopal School community magazine.

Editor

Anne Mack Copy Editors

Michele Silverman, Jennifer Perez

Poised for the Future

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The future of St. Margaret’s academics and facilities

Writing Her Own Way

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The process and achievements of alumna Maggie Shipstead’s burgeoning career as a writer

Editorial Board

Andrea Canfield, Jeannine Clarke, Kathi Coleman Stephen Harrington, Marcus D. Hurlbut, Anne Mack; Adjunct members: Chriss Bonhall, Cortney Carlisle Contributors

Katherine Adelman, Roland Allen, Lora Allison, Michael Allison, Janice Avalone, Taylor Bayles, Andrea Canfield, Cortney Carlisle, Jeannine Clarke, Dallas Clemmons, Blakely Collier, Jessica Demorest, Andy Forquer, Thomas Hughes, Marcus D. Hurlbut, Kasey Jong, Ryan Jong, Alex Kaliannan, George Ko, Anne Mack, Darla Magaña, Lisa Merryman, Asako Mikumo, Rebecca Miller, Rian Otto, Jennifer Perez, Darcy Rice, Rowley Rice, Colfax Selby, Maggie Shipstead, Michele Silverman, Myles Stapelberg, Ian Tacquard, Will Travis, David Turley, Gaddi Vasquez, Pam Virk, Sim Virk, Tiffany Young Please send comments, questions, letters and submissions for “Open Spaces” to:

Highlander magazine St. Margaret’s Episcopal School 31641 La Novia San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675-2752 (949) 661-0108 communications@smes.org; www.smes.org Please include your name, address, e-mail address and phone number with your letter or submission.

Letters and “Open Spaces” may be edited for content and grammar.

St. Margaret’s publishes responsibly. Highlander magazine is printed on Forest Stewardship Council certified paper that contains 25 percent postconsumer recycled content, using soy-based inks made from renewable resources such as natural pigments and vegetable oils.

Thriving in College

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Highlander, Volume 22, Number 1. Summer 2010.

Alumni from the Class of 2009 reflect on their first year of college

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.

ON THE COVER

Artist’s illustration of St. Margaret’s Episcopal School’s campus development plan. Inside front: 2009 CIF Champions Girls Tennis team huddle in cheer as American tennis great Lindsay Davenport looks on. Inside back: Three-dimensional lemon tree artwork displays “Lemon-Aid” student donations outside the Library.

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G U I D E P O S T S

By Marcus D. Hurlbut, Headmaster e are pleased to welcome you to the summer 2010 issue of the Highlander, the magazine for the St. Margaret’s Episcopal School community. In these pages, we focus on both the future of St. Margaret’s, especially in our feature article on the Building on the Promise campaign as well as the present in “News & Notes.” We also recognize the important building blocks of our current school community, as we remember Canon Merle Minks, whose many contributions to the St. Margaret’s community were significant and enduring. You can read about this remarkable man in “In Memoriam: Canon Merle Minks. May 10, 1917–March 8, 2010.”

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We are blessed to be part of a school community with a strong framework and a united purpose to provide the very best education for all of our children, from Preschool through graduation, as they acquire the skills needed to continue to succeed and thrive as lifelong learners. Their remarkable accomplishments are recorded, in part, in the pages of this magazine.

As the 2009–2010 school year draws to a close, we look with great anticipation to the future and the important changes the coming months will bring to our campus. The Building on the Promise campaign offers the extraordinary opportunity to provide our students with improved tools to build their futures. The campaign supports our strategic plan and campus master plan with a new Middle School and Performing Arts Center, among other needed resources. In the arts, academics, and athletics, our students shine. In years to come, they will shine in facilities that are commensurate with their talents.

“In the arts, academics, and athletics, our students shine. In years to come, they will shine in facilities that are commensurate with their talents.”

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Lemon-Aid Raises $20,000 for Haiti

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N OT E S

Created and led by students in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti, St. Margaret’s Lemon-Aid effort, based on the concept of community lemonade stands raised more than $20,000. “Lemon-Aid” stands, selling lemonade, baked goods and other homemade and donated items, were organized by students throughout campus and at school events in February and March. Additionally, community members held their own fundraisers in their communities and neighborhoods to lend support to the effort.

The effort culminated in March with Lemon-Fest, a studentcreated community fair and concert, that drew local vendors including zpizza, Billabong, Hot Dog on a Stick and Tom’s Shoes. Lemon-Fest raised more than $11,000 in one day.

The concert kicked off with an informative presentation on the science of earthquakes by the Discovery Science Center then featured student performances from Preschool to Upper School.

All-School Community Service Coordinator Lora Allison said, “The most impressive aspect was the student initiative and leadership that made Lemon-Aid wildly successful. I was awed by the students’ initiative in planning and coordinating this highly successful benefit. Their willingness to give up their weekend to help those they will never meet and who are suffering is an example of compassion for us all.”

All funds raised were donated to the Episcopal Relief and Development Fund, a world relief organization working in Haiti.

Kenley Farace Wins O.C. Spelling Bee Seventh grader Kenley Farace won the Orange County Spelling Bee and went on to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., in early June. Kenley competed against 70 other local students in February, the largest field in Orange County history, and triumphed in round 13 to capture the trophy.

St. Margaret’s Upper School production of Children of a Lesser God won the 2010 Best Play Cappies Award. Senior Rebecca Miller won Best Actress in a Play. The Cappies is a national program that recognizes achievement in high school arts and drama programs.

Best Play

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NASA Astronaut Visits NASA Astronaut Dr. Michael Gernhardt visited St. Margaret’s in May and spoke with students in grades 4-12 about the importance of space and science exploration. A four-flight veteran, Dr. Gernhardt logged over 43 days in space, including four spacewalks. He shared stories of his work on the international space station and his early career beginning far below the earth’s surface as a deep sea diver and project engineer on subsea projects around the world.

Band Director Chris Carbajal and two Middle School students performed with the State Honor Band at the Sixth Annual Southern California Association of Independent Schools. David Krieger, grade 8, performed on baritone saxophone, and Jenna Frum, grade 8, played the flute.

St. Margaret’s a “Top School”

Ten tons of fresh snow were piled into the Early Childhood Development Center in January for hands-on learning opportunities in social studies, science, math and literacy. The snow covering the outdoor play area of the ECDC provided a springboard for activities and discussions about the physical properties of snow, the climate of winter, vocabulary, geography and literature.

St. Margaret’s was recognized as a “Top School” for the state of California by the 2009 Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth Talent Search.

CTY looks at the top schools by state to determine the number of student enrollments it receives into its annual Talent Search and St. Margaret’s achieved this prestigious distinction.

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

Learning with Snow

Five Tartans won writing awards in the 2010 California Scholastic Writing Awards Contest. Silver Key awards went to Kristin Godfrey, grade 7, in the short story category and Hanna Hurr, grade 12, in the poetry category. Meaghan Hurr, grade 10, won a Merit Award in the short story category, Peighton McRobie and Alexis Salcido, grade 7, won Merit Awards in the humor category.

California Writing Awards

Middle School Musicians Perform in State Honor Band

Students Win Second Place in QuikSCience Challenge Seventh-grade students, Benjamin Wang, Jack Cowan, Liam McGregor, Christian Carnahan and Brent Cahill, won second place in the annual QuikSCience Challenge for their entry focused on marine ecology education and solutions for the problem of fishing bycatch. The competition, sponsored by the Quiksilver Foundation and the University of Southern California Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies, combines a research project with community service and education. summer 2010

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Tartans CIF Champions

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(Continued)

The Tartans’ 2009-2010 CIF Championship streak began in November when the Girls Tennis team defeated Rio Mesa, winning a consecutive CIF Championship and completing a consecutive undefeated season. The girls were visited by American tennis champion Lindsay Davenport who told the team that her own high school tennis team’s CIF Championship win is among her most cherished memories.

Coach Rick Trager was named The Orange County Register 2009 Tennis Coach of the Year.

Next, the Tartans Football team won its fourth consecutive CIF Championship in a rainy and muddy battle against Ontario Christian Academy in December. With the 2009 CIF Championship, the Tartans set a new record as the first football team in Orange County history to win four straight CIF Championships, and they join only two other teams who have won four straight championships in the history of California, Temple City, 1969-1973, and St. Bonaventure, 1999-2002. The Tartans already hold the record for the

longest winning streak in the history of Orange County high school football, 44-0, 2006-2009.

In May, the Boys Volleyball team won a second CIF Championship in St. Margaret’s history with a victory over Arrowhead Christian. The Tartans reached the 2010 finals without dropping a game during the playoffs. The team played in the CIF final in 2009, but took the runner-up trophy.

Coaches Karch Kiraly and Jeremy Dailey were each named Volleyball Coach of the Year by The Orange County Register.

At the Track and Field CIF Championships in May, sophomores Chelsie Churchill and Billy Gaudreau each won CIF titles in their individual Track and Field events, the triple jump and 1600m, respectively.

U.S. Presidential Scholar Committee For the ninth year, Roland Allen, director of college counseling, traveled to Washington, D.C. to serve as a Review Committee member for the 2010 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program, established in 1964, by executive order of the President, to recognize and honor some of our nation's most distinguished graduating high school seniors.

Cum Laude Society Inductees Seven juniors and 14 seniors were inducted into the Cum Laude Society, an international high school academic honors society. To be eligible, juniors must rank in the top 10 percent of their class, and seniors must rank in the top 20 percent of their class and strive for perfection in their coursework and set high academic standards among their peers. St. Margaret’s is the only Cum Laude chapter in Orange County.

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Student Work Juried into Prestigious National Ceramics Show In February, artwork by Adam Holden, grade 11, was juried into the prestigious National K-12 Ceramic Exhibition held in March at the 44th National Council on Education for Ceramic Art. Adam’s piece was selected from a group of more than 1,100 submitted works; fewer than 170 were juried into the show.

St. Margaret’s 2010 spring gala and fundraiser, Club 30: A Tartan Jazz Club, brought the community together to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the school and to launch the Building on the Promise capital campaign to fund a new Middle School, Performing Arts Center and other needed resources. The glamorous, 1930sthemed night at the St. Regis Resort, planned by the Parent Teacher Fellowship and the school, featured student performances and the premiere of the “We Promise” film showcasing 3-D animated virtual tours of the new Middle School and Performing Arts Center. The event raised over $700,000 to support the 21st Century Learning Initiative and the Building on the Promise campaign.

St. Margaret’s Battle of the Books teams won first place and fourth place at the third annual Orange County Battle of the Books competition in March. The Tartan teams competed against 16 other teams from nine local schools, in a Jeopardystyle, book trivia competition. To prepare, team members, in grades 4, 5 and 6, read books and joined in book-related games and discussions. The program encourages a love of literature and reading.

Tartans Win Gavels at Harvard Model Congress To read more St. Margaret’s news, visit Tartan Today online at smesnews.org/today.

Club 30 Celebrates 30th Anniversary

The Upper School guitar ensemble performed at the 2010 San Juan Capistrano State of the City Breakfast after a special invitation to perform from Mayor Dr. Londres Uso. The president of the San Juan Capistrano Chamber of Commerce, Larry Thomas, thanked each of the student performers by name and remarked that the City was thankful for their performance, especially because he knew how hard they had worked to prepare.

Battle of the Books Team Wins First Place in O.C. Competition

Tartan Guitarists Perform for City of San Juan Capistrano

Seven St. Margaret’s seniors participated in the 2010 Harvard Model Congress, a premier government simulation for high school students, and were recognized for their superior performance. Four students were awarded gavels for their work in committees replicating various components of American government, including congressional and senate committees.

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Somewhere, Someone

Needs

You

A global perspective on serving others brings insight close to home “Somewhere,” Mr. Gaddi Vasquez told St. Margaret’s students during Upper School Chapel in 2009, “somebody needs what you have to offer. Someone needs what you have to give.”

As the former Director of the United States Peace Corps and United States Ambassador to the United Nation Organizations in Rome, Mr. Vasquez detailed the progression of his life of service, from his childhood as the son of farm laborers to world leadership roles. He told his story of perseverance and success in spite of challenges and inspired students to make service to others a greater priority in their own lives. Mr. Vasquez asked the St. Margaret’s community to remember to be thankful for our national prosperity and to consider the plight of those in impoverished nations as we make choices about how to use our time and resources.

All service is valuable, Mr. Vasquez emphasized, whether local or global.

A life of dedication to service is one of the tenets of a St. Margaret’s education, and the Celebrating Community 30th

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anniversary initiative provided even more opportunities for students, parents, teachers and staff to reach out to others.

This year, Upper School students raised $11,000 to benefit victims of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti in a student-run benefit festival and concert. Middle School students delivered 150 blankets to Project Linus to comfort children in Orange County hospitals. Lower School students created hundreds of flower arrangements and handmade cards for local senior citizens on Valentine’s Day; Preschool students packaged 1,000 bags of dog treats for the Ark of San Juan animal rescue. Students in all divisions set up “lemon aid” stands to raise money for Haiti earthquake relief, raising an additional $9,000. While students made contributions large and small throughout the year, parents, teachers and staff shared the spirit of giving as well, knitting scarves to be donated, contributing more than 5,000 books to a Library book drive, and filling the shelves of Father Serra’s Pantry, a San Juan Capistrano food bank.

St. Margaret’s has a longstanding dedication to support Father Serra’s Pantry, which served as a fitting location for another meeting, a year later, between St. Margaret’s students and Mr. Vasquez. The Pantry’s mission aligns with Mr. Vasquez’s lifelong commitment to fight poverty and hunger. In 2010, Mr. Vasquez accepted our invitation to hold a conversation about service with fifth-grade students Katherine Adelman and Myles Stapelberg, junior George Ko, and senior Sim Virk.

Father Serra’s Pantry serves 2,200 people a month with groceries, including: fresh food, toiletries, diapers, and dry rice and beans that are pre-packaged into family-size servings by volunteers. Many St. Margaret’s families volunteer their time at the Pantry, bringing food, measuring rice and beans, and helping distribute groceries. Pantry Coordinator Linda Mandala welcomed the group to the Pantry on a working day, showing Mr. Vasquez and the students the food packaging area and shelves filled with cans and boxes, all arranged with care. Mrs. Mandala guided the group through the bustling Pantry to the behind-the-scenes station for packaging rice and beans. Mr. Vasquez hung up his jacket and joined in, and, in an assembly line with the students, he helped fill a storage container with these important staples.

All-School Community Service Coordinator Lora Allison and Lower School teacher Janice Avalone selected this group of students, who had prepared discussion points and questions for Mr. Vasquez based on their personal interests and experiences. Though their individual goals, aspirations and contributions to community service are unique, these confident, well-spoken young people are representative of their peers.

“As long as we don’t forget, and we commit ourselves to a better world, we can get there.”

Gaddi Vasquez

Sim Virk: When you visited last year, you talked about students getting involved locally, versus students getting involved in Third World countries. Is one a better option than the other?

Mr. Gaddi Vasquez: The idea of helping with local service projects is a good one, but so is the idea of doing something on a much bigger scale. First, you have to decide for yourself what is motivating you. I’ve always believed that when you engage in volunteer work, you have to be at peace with your decision, because you have to be ready for the possibility that you might fail, or not achieve the goal you are trying to reach. You have to realize that there are people who need help and want help, and there are people who need help but don’t want it. By that I mean, they might not always be as appreciative or as responsive, and you’ll wonder, Why am I doing this?

When you undertake a community project or take on a global program, you have to be patient. You have to realize there will be frustrations; there will be ups and downs. Some people will say no. When you ask a donor, they might say no.

But that’s no reason to give up. The beauty of this country that we live in is that we’re still one of the very few countries

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on Earth where you can fail and start over again. That’s a very unique American characteristic that we should never forget.

One failure as an American is not the end of the world. We are a very giving, very forgiving, very redemptive society that allows people to rehabilitate themselves, to restore themselves, if they are willing to do that.

George Ko: From your experience dealing with world hunger and poverty, what do you think are the essential tools to break that cycle?

Mr. Gaddi Vasquez: To break that cycle, I think you have to build capacity. First, you have to give people the tools to start building the future themselves. Second, it has to be sustainable.

We have to teach people to grow things that work for them.

Third, you have to empower people. You have to give them a sense of ownership. We, as Americans, sometimes have the tendency to say, “We know the best way.” That might be true to some extent, but, as when a teacher is too intrusive, that can stand in the way of the learning experience. You have to give people a sense that it’s okay to learn. We have a culture in which it’s okay to fail. Working within our value system, you can help people understand that it’s okay if one way doesn’t work. We can find another way. We can find a solution to the problem.

For example, during my first trip overseas to Afghanistan, I met a young man in the outskirts of Kabul. Right after the bombing ceased, he opened a very tiny bakery. He was the recipient of a small grant to start his business. He already had one employee. How much was this grant? Just $150. He had just needed the seed money to buy his supplies and to rent his location, and now he had his own business. Here was a young man who wanted to build capacity and sustainability.

And he was allowed to build his own place, and he was empowered to do it his way.

Myles Stapelberg: You have accomplished so much already.

Do you have unfinished goals?

Mr. Gaddi Vasquez: I’m going to keep running the race to make the world a much better place. In 1975, I was a police officer in the City of Orange. I was 20 years old, and I was driving a patrol car on the graveyard shift, midnight to 7 a.m.

If someone had said to me, “Someday you’re going to be Director of the Peace Corps, someday you’ll be an Orange County Supervisor, someday you’ll be a United States Ambassador,” I think you could imagine what I would have said. “Come on, give me a break.” I consider myself very,

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very blessed and very, very fortunate in many, many ways. I wouldn’t change a thing. I believe what my father taught me.

You work hard so that you have a job the next day. And if you plant good seeds, good things will come your way, because people will recognize your talents, your gifts, your passion, your faith, your commitment, your dedication.

My whole life, my whole career, has been about people.

When I was your age, I had people tell me I had great possibilities—and I’m telling you, “You have great possibilities.”

But when you’re in fifth grade, most fifth-graders say, “Are you kidding me, I’m in fifth grade!” This is America. This is the United States, where you can be a fifth-grader, and somebody can tell you, “You’re going to be president of the United States,” and you don’t laugh it off, because this is a country where those dreams come true.

Katherine Adelman: Which job was your favorite? Which one do you think was most important?

Mr. Gaddi Vasquez: This is difficult to answer. I would have to say my most fulfilling job was Director of the Peace Corps. Every day I got to work with Americans who believe in volunteerism on a unique level. It is an opportunity to give of your self and your talents to people in countries who will value what you have to offer. It makes a difference in their lives, and it the experience of a lifetime for volunteers.

It offers a vantage point from which to see the world. It was a great job. The volunteers really believed in the mission and the cause.

Mr. Gaddi Vasquez: I applaud the questions you have to ask, and how you each are giving back to your communities.

I really appreciate what you and your fellow classmates at St. Margaret’s recognize: We’re blessed, we live in great neighborhoods, we have food on the table, our parents have jobs, and on our worst day here it’s not as bad as it can be somewhere else in the world. Given your distinctive backgrounds, all of you recognize that you can go beyond the boundaries of the community in Orange County. There’s a big world out there that needs our help, that needs our assistance. As long as we don’t forget, and we commit ourselves to a better world, we can get there.

To read Katherine Adelman’s student perspective, visit Tartan Today online and search for “Conversation with Mr. Vasquez.” ●

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Into the Woods: The Complex Layering of a Broadway Musical B y D a r c y R i c e , I n t o t h e Wo o d s D i r e c t o r a n d 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 D i r e c t o r o f t h e A r t s ne of the secrets of a great performance is to make it look easy.

Audience members want to see performers who make them forget how difficult the material is so that they can become engrossed in the story. The real nuts and bolts of producing a full-scale Broadway musical, however, is a complex and challenging process of layering the many elements that work together. If we have done our job well, then what you see is effortless and seamless.

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As director, my goal is to guide the students through the process of learning each of the elements while teaching them important skills that they will use throughout their lives.

This year’s Upper School musical, Into the Woods, is the same version of the show that was performed on Broadway. This particular Stephen Sondheim musical is so complicated musically that it is difficult even for adult performers to learn.

Once the cast is assembled, we have ten weeks to work through all of the stages of production before opening night.

I structure the after-school rehearsals to increasingly layer the elements of production. First, students work with

The process of creating this musical began in January with auditions. Over 50 Upper School students auditioned and 29 students were cast. This is a smaller cast show that requires more of each performer. I chose this musical, the 26th full-length show I’ve produced at St. Margaret’s, because we have a deep talent pool of experienced performers who can handle the complexity of this particular piece.

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St. Margaret’s Musical Director Stacey Wentzel to learn the music. At the beginning, I have the show broken down so that I always rehearse with the smallest number of cast members.

In addition to learning the singing and the lines, students work with St. Margaret’s Dance Director Holly Mehling. To layer the dance movements with the singing and speaking, we integrate the dance elements slowly. With two weeks until opening night, we need to break down the dance transitions and integrate them, literally, step by step. To do this, we had the cast members speak the lines rather than sing them because it was too complex to put the singing and the dancing together all at once. Instead, we slowed the process to isolate different elements of the learning process.

From a learning standpoint, we addressed many differentiated learning styles in this musical production. Music is memory, singing is reading, and dance is kinesthetic learning. As we go through this complicated material, in addition to the specific skills being learned, one of the most important life lessons students take away is how to take a very complicated and daunting project and take it down to manageable steps, then put it all together to create a seamless dream, a seamless fantasy for the audience.

Next, we work to stage the number. When we have difficulty with the music, we go back and learn the music again. We approach each piece on its own before we put it all together.

That takes time. That is what rehearsal is all about.

The story of Into the Woods is interesting because it deals with iconic characters that we think we know, but we come to see them in a different way. The stories involve Jack and the Beanstalk, Cinderella, the Baker and his wife, Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel and the witch. Their stories are intertwined and then eventually converge. One challenge this production provides is how to maintain continuity even though, quite simply, everybody is running into and out of the woods.

“From a learning standpoint, we addressed many differentiated learning styles in this musical production.

Music is memory, singing is reading, and dance is kinesthetic learning.”

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In the final weeks of preparation, we rehearsed bigger sections of the show. We finally added all of the artistic and technical elements—the set lighting, sound, microphones, sound effects, props, the use of costumes as an extension of character, focusing all the while on maintaining the continuity of the show when all elements combine. For this show, we also incorporated elements of puppetry, some Japanese style elements and special effects.

I am very excited that the musical requires a live orchestra.

All the rehearsals and practices are definitely worth the thrill and excitement of production week.

Alex Kaliannan, grade 9, Double Bassist

For one special effect, the witch transformed into a beautiful woman before our eyes. The helpful tip provided by the script is, “She is transformed into a beautiful woman.” How to actually create that transformation requires problemsolving between multiple cast members and our costume designer, Blakely Collier, grade 11. We handled the witch’s transformation through a variety of stage “magic” that included body-doubles, false-front costumes and the art of misdirection.

The final piece to add was working with a live St. Margaret’s student orchestra for this musical led by St. Margaret’s Orchestra Director Gene Wie. This live element was vastly different from working with a prerecorded soundtrack which the cast had been using from the beginning. Two weeks before production, we began singing with the orchestra that had rehearsed separately until this critical make-or-break moment. It was an enormous final hurdle for the actors and the musicians. For the musicians, rather than following their conductor alone, they were learning to follow a conductor who is following the singers with the added

When I learn that a new Upper School production is going to take place, I feel excitement about getting to design and create costumes for a new set of characters. I start with Mr. Rice and talk with him about design. I then work with choreographer Mrs. Holly Mehling to discuss dancing restraints.

I also work and talk with Mrs. Melinda Keane who is a great mentor to me about different ideas.

Every part of me goes into my costumes. I love the excitement of seeing my costumes on stage, yet I’m always nervous to see how it all turns out.

Blakely Collier, grade 11, Costume Designer

My life gets a boost in energy in the weeks of rehearsal. To prepare for the production, I let the character, what he stands for, what he believes, what he feels, take the lead, and I find that tying myself to the character elevates my performance. On opening night, I feel exhilarated beyond comprehension.

Taylor Bayles, grade 12, The Baker in Into the Woods.

breaks for dialogue and stage movement. In this musical, for example, the opening of the first act is 14 continuous minutes of music with dialogue and action and scene changes interspersed.

It is my goal as director, that when the house lights dim and the singing begins on opening night, the audience believes the characters, gets carried away by the performances and story, and relaxes into the show. If they do, we have done our job well.

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Here’s how the show goes, for the stage manager behind the scenes…

Show time. I survey the stage below me, one hand tracking the annotations in my script, the other adjusting my headset.

I say into the microphone that plays in the headsets of all backstage crew, “Stand by orchestra, stand by lighting spot 57.

Cue orchestra, cue lighting spot 57.” The bass drum booms and the actress screams as the stage is enveloped in darkness.

The audience gasps in horror as I sit back, smiling, waiting to give the next cue.

Rebecca Miller, grade 12, was the stage manager for Into the Woods, St. Margaret’s spring Upper School musical.

She writes about the process she went through while preparing for the production as well as the organization, patience and attention to the whole show necessary to run the behind-the-scenes activity.

By Rebecca Miller, Grade 12 I love performing in plays, but working backstage in the spring musical provided me with an entirely different perspective. My focus shifted from acting to the technical side of props, proper timing, sound and lighting.

I spent equal time acting and working behind the scenes so I could learn as much as possible about all aspects of the show. Only by understanding the entire production process could I maximize my contribution.

Rehearsals are often split between those in which the actors are learning the songs and those in which they are blocking the production. Although I enjoy all parts of the production process, I prefer the rehearsals that emphasize moving and acting. During these rehearsals I take a very active role, substituting for missing actors and ensuring that all of the actors remember their lines.

When an actor is having difficulty with a character, Mr. Rice often makes small suggestions or asks probing questions that encourage actors to consider their character’s perspective and personality. I love working during rehearsals, but my favorite part is the production week because all the acting and technical elements come together to form a cohesive show.

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After two months of rehearsals, the 29-member cast of Into the Woods steps across the stage, their voices rising to a crescendo, until a giant’s footsteps resound throughout the theater.

And on my cue, well-orchestrated chaos ensues.

The director watches the show from the audience because the production is now my responsibility. I have spent eight weeks tracking and documenting the stage blocking, eight weeks ensuring the performers memorize their lines, eight weeks filling in for missing actors… as stage manager for Into the Woods, I have played the show’s characters of the Baker, the Baker’s Wife, Cinderella and Jack, and all on the same day! It has been eight weeks of intense preparation to deliver a seamless production for the audience.

I am the stage manager.

Theatrical companies rely as much on unseen mechanics and extensive preparation as on speech and actions to beguile their audiences. In my opinion, through no other medium can artists transport so many people so thoroughly, by such simple means, into any moment, place or situation.

Tonight, the moment is “Once upon a time,” the place is the woods, and the situation is a hodgepodge of classic fairy tales. The illusion is achieved, and Into the Woods is a success.

As the audience stands in appreciation and congratulates the cast and crew, I tidy my space, turn off the lighting console, and descend the stairs from the tech booth. Exhausted, but satisfied, I am not necessarily the focus of the audience’s attention, but immediately embraced by our cast.

For now, at least, my work is done. ●

B Y

The St. Margaret’s

T H E

N U M B E R S

Library is a vital learning hub open to parents, students, faculty

and staff. The Library is home to a virtual window to the world in the 21st Century

Learning Lab, which allows for on-campus “field trips” to locations such as artists’ studios and operating rooms across the globe. Five dedicated librarians host an annual faculty and parent literature discussion series as well as multiple student

exhibits curated by St. Margaret’s art teachers and librarians, as well as displays of student work ranging

book discussion groups. The Library also contains rotating

from ceramics to science projects. The Library welcomed more than 75,000 visitors in the 2009-2010 school year.

Library Director Darla Magaña says, “As we strive to prepare students for lives of learning, the Library program serves to firmly establish in our students the essential skills of information access, evaluation and use.”

644 21 2,000 57 37,000 53,000

classes visited the Library in 2009-2010 for stories and information literacy lessons. database subscriptions and two online encyclopedias offer access to millions of articles and information around the clock. videos and audio books are in the Library collection.

computers are available in the Library.

books are housed in the Library.

books and online resources were circulated in the 2009-2010 school year.

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A DAY I N T H E L I F E M I D D L E S C H O O L

O F. . .

By Andrea Canfield

S

tudents in each St. Margaret’s division have access to important campus resources, such as the Library’s 21st Century Learning Lab. They use shared spaces that bring the campus community together, such as the Chapel and Sillers Hall. Yet each division has a distinct culture that revolves around the academic and social needs of its students. Headmaster Marcus D. Hurlbut, Academic Dean Dr. Regina McDuffie, Middle School Principal Jeannine Clarke and Assistant Principal Michael Allison together create and maintain a Middle School atmosphere that supports leadership, athletics, visual and performing arts, community service and academic enrichment for the approximately 300 students in the Middle School.

Middle School students develop positive traits both on-campus and off-campus with the support of their administrators, teachers and peers. Mr. Allison is in the position to witness these positive interactions daily. He relates, “One of my proudest moments came three years ago—these students are now juniors in the Upper School—when I went on the grade 8 trip to Washington, D.C. I can’t tell you how many times people came up to me to tell me how impressed they were with all aspects of our students. A former military general, our airline attendant, strangers on the street . . . they all were amazed by the behavior and decorum of our eighth-graders, as they saw in them the great traits that we see every day.”

8:55 a.m. Wednesday

> > 7:45 a.m. Monday–Thursday Instruction begins. Students follow the Middle School block schedule and report directly to their classes. Each day’s schedule is different, and students share responsibility for being in the right class on time. Fridays, instruction begins at 8:40 a.m., allowing time for faculty and staff development 7:30–8:30.

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Advisory. Students meet in small groups with their assigned advisory leader, a teacher or administrator who will be available for their advisees throughout their Middle School years.

9:15 a.m. Monday Convocation. In this student-led gathering, faculty raise their hands to make announcements, as the Student Council keeps the meeting moving and the students informed about club activities and other weekly happenings.

Principal Clarke and Assistant Principal Allison agree that the greatest reward for Middle School teachers and administrators is the satisfaction that comes from being with a great group of students day in and day out. “They are fun, spirited and a joy to be around. We really get to know them, and when they are promoted from eighth grade, we have a sense of pride and satisfaction in who they have become, and who they will be as they enter high school. Then, four years later, it is amazing to see those past Middle School kids cross over that stage on Gateway Field, on a beautiful June day, to receive their St. Margaret’s Upper School diplomas,” she said.

Lockers.

The quintessential Middle School experience revolves around social maturation. Forming and testing social bonds can be a challenging part of growing up. Assistant Principal Allison says, “Managing that pull and encouraging kids to hold firm to their family values and traditions is important at this transitional age.”

Chapel.

Increased freedom and opportunity for student leadership.

Principal Jeannine Clarke believes that one of the greatest challenges for new Middle School students is “adjusting to the increased freedoms and responsibilities that come along with moving up from the Lower School.” Students are excited about their new opportunities, ranging from selecting a language and perhaps studying in the Upper School, to starting their own club, or being a student leader in Chapel or Convocation.

10:30 a.m. Friday Activities. Recent activities included the Science Fair, a performance of Macbeth, and a dodgeball tournament.

9:45 a.m. Thursday

11:20 a.m. Tuesday

Chapel. In 2010, a special student-led Chapel service allowed students to perform in leadership roles in the Church in addition to their classrooms and clubs.

Music. Students participate in choir, band or orchestra classes.

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Performing Arts.

In the fall, the Middle School performed the musical Once on this Island. Other opportunities for artistic expression include vocal, instrumental and dance performances.

Lunchtime.

A casual time to run, play and talk with friends is an important part of the Middle School social life.

Athletics.

Almost all Middle School students play a sport. Middle School Athletic Coordinator Lori Fava leads a program that helps students continue their development from the Middle School through the Upper School.

Clubs.

Middle School Director of Community Service and Activities Amanda Hudson supports students as they form groups to provide community service, learn photography, read books, act as Admission Ambassadors and more. The scope of clubs is as broad as the interests of Middle School students.

Creative arts.

Middle School students receive instruction in the visual arts and the elements of composition. Lessons range from free-style self-expression to technical exercises, in media including paint, pastels, pencil drawing, clay and ceramics.

12:00 p.m. Monday

2 p.m. Monday

Lunch. Students enjoy PTF hot lunch or a lunch they have brought from home and time for socializing with each other. The fields are open for impromptu sports, and teachers gather at the tables to share lunchtime with Middle Schoolers.

Physical Education. Students have athletics or dance instruction during the day, allowing more time for homework in the evenings than after-school athletics programs.

12:40 p.m. Monday Languages. St. Margaret’s offers instruction in five languages: Spanish, Latin, Japanese, French and Chinese.

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Future

Poised for the

By Anne Mack

Ask a 2010 St. Margaret’s Episcopal School graduate about the future and he or she will likely say, “It looks bright.”

While our graduates are headed to a diverse group of colleges and universities across the nation well prepared and eager to meet new challenges and opportunities, St. Margaret’s is also ready for the future.

A handful of years ago, the St. Margaret’s Episcopal School Board of Trustees and administrative leadership went through the exercise of envisioning the future for the school. What does the future look like at St. Margaret’s? How will we serve our students? Will the curriculum need to evolve? How will our facilities and resources need to change with it?

Headmaster Marcus D. Hurlbut remembers the process, “Our school was already an academic institution of distinction and a vibrant and nurturing community. The vision for the school was evolving. We knew that it was our job to look ahead and plan where St. Margaret’s needed to go to preserve and advance our mission of educating the hearts and minds of young people for lives of learning, leadership and service for generations to come.”

As a result of those early meetings, trustees, parents, alumni, faculty and administrators created a strategic plan and campus development master plan for the school.

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k

1980s

1978 ................. 1979 ................. 1980 ................. 1981 ...........................................................

1970s

Initial property at 31641 La Novia, San Juan Capistrano is purchased and first campus plan is developed.

Site blessing, temporary classroom structures are installed and St. Margaret’s Episcopal School is opened.

Groundbreaking for first permanent school building (current Lower School main building).

Groundbreaking for St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church, offices and second classroom building. First permanent school building is opened.

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more important to learn the concepts of a colony revolting against an empire than to know the date of the Boston Massacre,” said Dr. McDuffie.

Teaching for the Future First and foremost, all agreed that St. Margaret’s programs needed to continue to evolve to meet the challenges of a changing world. In 2007, under the leadership of Mr. Hurlbut, Academic Dean Dr. Regina McDuffie and the division principals, the school set out to ensure that the core of St. Margaret’s, the academics, would meet the needs of the next generation of students.

“The 21st Century Learning Initiative underway at St. Margaret’s is about preparing students for the future,” said Dr. McDuffie. “We know the world our children will live and work in tomorrow will continue to change rapidly, and in many ways. It’s impossible to predict the extent to which workplaces, companies and societies will evolve. We know, however, that globalization and rapid technological integration into our lives will demand new skill sets and adaptability among tomorrow’s leaders.”

In partnership with researchers from the University of California, Irvine, St. Margaret’s is implementing the 21st Century Learning Initiative that is supported by leading international research and best practices. The initiative is at work at St. Margaret’s supporting ongoing implementation and evaluation of innovative instruction, relevant curricula and critical professional development for faculty.

Classroom environments are changing, as well. “Twenty-oneC,” as faculty refer to it, is equipping classrooms and campus buildings with the resources, technology, infrastructure and software to support the best and most effective instructional methods.

“If we want students of the 21st century to be creative and think critically, we need to provide creative, dynamic and engaging learning environments, too,” said Dr. McDuffie.

“The new, customizable and adaptable facilities with integrated technology will be an integral piece.”

St. Margaret’s curriculum is focused on critical and creative thinking, communication and responsibility. As a result, teaching has shifted away from textbooks and fact retention toward teaching for understanding of enduring concepts. “We set course learning goals first and then build the curriculum around them, utilizing lessons, activities and technology to facilitate the understanding of these goals. Today, when we teach the Revolutionary War in grade 8, for example, it’s

.............

1982 ................. 1983 ................. 1984 ................................................ 1985 ............................

St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church, Groundbreaking for Sillers Hall church offices and second school and adjacent, new classroom building are completed for the wing extension. opening day of school year.

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Fountain Courtyard is completed. Sillers Hall classroom wing is opened.

Sillers Hall is opened.

“Some have asked, however, why the construction of a new Performing Arts Center is ahead of other important needs, including, for example, an all-school dining center where fresh, healthy meals for our students can be prepared daily.

This is a very good question and one that we spent much time considering in the planning.”

Building for the Future To support the curriculum, the Building on the Promise campaign strives to fulfill these high-reaching plans. At the center are the construction of a modern Middle School campus and classroom building and state-of-the-art Performing Arts Center to be positioned majestically on the northwest corner of the campus welcoming all students, parents and visitors in grand fashion.

Imposing monuments were not, however, the focus of the plans that were created a half-dozen years ago. And, Mr. Hurlbut assures that, while they will be beautiful buildings that befit the mission-style campus, their exterior appearance is not the main focus today. “There is a ‘wow’ factor to these buildings, however, they are intended as tools— instruments to fully support our outstanding Middle School and burgeoning Performing Arts programs. They will provide new technological resources to best implement our 21st Century teaching methods to prepare our students for an evolving world.”

Many Tartans will recall that the initial construction actually began with the dedicated Upper School campus that opened in the fall of 2006, that includes the Pasternack Field House, the DeYoung Family Math and Science Center, the Stoddard Humanities Building, and the Nicholas Sports Park and Tartan Field.

With consultation from an expert team of architects and planners, the school leadership developed the current master plan that features dedicated, expanded and equipped facilities for all programs, including the Lower School, St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church and an all-school dining facility.

“Considering and planning for the long-term needs of the entire school was a thoughtful and patient process. We’re confident that in the end, this effort will serve the entire school extremely well for many years to come,” said Mr. Hurlbut. “We had to first look at the campus and decide how the space was best utilized, what the optimal locations for each program were, what existing facilities could be renovated what new facilities were needed.”

>>

These aren’t the only priorities of the plans. Mr. Hurlbut explains, “No one can argue that we have responsibly exhausted all possible usage and retrofitting scenarios for the current Middle School facilities, including Highland Hall, and for the Performing Arts in Sillers Hall and the Campaigne Center, and that these new facilities are badly needed.

.............

1987 ................. 1988 ................................................ 1989 ................. 1992 ............................

Groundbreaking for Early Early Childhood Development Childhood Development Center. Center is opened. Groundbreaking for Campaigne Center.

1990s

Campaigne Center is opened.

Church of the Nazarene building is leased by school for office and classroom use.

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..............

Classrooms will accommodate a variety of seating configurations, allowing for flexible delivery of instruction and featuring state-of-the-art audio/visual equipment, wireless technology, and extensive display and storage space.

In order to see these plans through development in the most efficient and least invasive means possible, the team developed a construction timeline allowing for the seamless and steady operation of the school while moving purposefully through the construction phase. As a result, it became apparent to all that the Performing Arts Center and Middle School campus would have to be built next. Once the respective programs are then relocated to their new locations, their current spaces in Sillers Hall, Gateway Building, the Campaigne Center and in the Lower School campus will be free for subsequent renovation and repurposing for other vital programs.

“The full plan we’ve developed for the school is achievable, yet requires timing. There is a domino effect to the construction. Things have to come first to allow us to implement all phases efficiently and successfully. We’re confident we will get there,” said Mr. Hurlbut.

Classrooms for the Future The new buildings will allow for expansion and full realization of the Middle School and Performing Arts programs.

The Middle School program was an early adopter of 21C practices and is well poised for its new facilities. The building and curriculum will work in concert, like never before, to enhance studies, as well as to provide a central campus and gathering place to support the unique social needs of Middle School students.

“The classrooms are designed as next generation learning spaces. These flexible spaces will promote active, collaborative and innovative teaching and learning,” said Middle School Principal Jeannine Clarke. “Our faculty and our students are ready to take the work we do to the next level of innovation and collaboration that these new facilities will make possible.”

The campus centers around a courtyard with tables, seating and an open-air amphitheater to be used for outdoor classes, lunch and special events, providing a focal point and meeting place as well as bringing a new sense of identity and community for Middle School students.

“Middle School students grapple with their place in the world. They have outgrown Lower School and yearn to be seen as teenagers, but they are in an awkward transition between the two,” said Mrs. Clarke. “The school is designed to help these emerging adolescents feel that they have their own distinct community, and to give them a sense of ownership, a sense of control and a sense of comfort.”

1994 ................. 1996 ................. 1997 ................. 1998 ................. 1999 ............................

Church of the Nazarene building is purchased, and is officially named and opened as Highland Hall.

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Groundbreaking for Gateway Building. Vacant plot of land (future site of Pasternack Field House) and office building on Calle Arroyo are purchased.

Gateway Building is opened.

New Upper School Building (currently Stoddard Humanities Building) is opened.

Three plots of land adjacent to Upper School Building are purchased and subsequently renovated as the Tartan Field.

The Performing Arts faculty and students are equally eager to reside in their new home. The Performing Arts Center will feature dedicated performance classrooms and spaces for choir, orchestra, band, dance and theater as well as technical performance learning, to foster our students’ creativity, talents and artistic expression.

The construction of these buildings will cost approximately $28 million and will take approximately 18 months to 2 years to complete. Currently St. Margaret’s has raised $16.4 million in the capital campaign to fund the project. The Board of Trustees has committed to breaking ground on the project in the fall of 2010.

The expansive music rooms are designed to optimize acoustics for classroom instruction and performance rehearsals.

The professional dance studio is designed with mirrored walls and a performance-standard sprung wooden floor.

President of the Board of Trustees Michael J. Berchtold says that St. Margaret’s is determined to see the full plans come to fruition within the next few years. “We see the future for St. Margaret’s clearly. The campus master plan and capital campaign are critical to the successful implementation of our strategic plan and to upholding and preserving our mission for the future. The Board of Trustees and school administration are 100 percent committed to this project.” ●

A versatile 125-seat Black Box Theater is designed both as a theater classroom and for ensemble music, dance and theater performances. The main theater and concert hall, with 450 seats, will be an ultimate performance venue and culmination of the best in superior technology and professional equipment, allowing for advanced performance and stage management learning.

“I am excited to have a beautiful new home for all of our successful, existing programs, however, I am even more excited to think about all the new initiatives that will be possible,” said Director of the Arts Darcy Rice.

“In our new spaces, we will finally have room to provide more opportunities in all disciplines of performing arts, with a special emphasis on student-initiated projects. Our fledgling student writers, directors, composers, musicians, dancers and choreographers will be able to have ongoing developmental events to showcase their talents. Our technical and design programs will expand into new realms of innovation, including a hands-on, student-centered approach to lighting, prop and scenic design, as well as the continued development of our costume and makeup design curriculum.”

.............

“We feel strongly that we owe it to our students, faculty and parents to provide facilities commensurate with our programs.”

Building on the Promise Co-Chairs Trace and Lauren Chalmers

Goal: $30 million Timeframe: Complete fundraising by December 2011 Funds raised to date: $16.4 million

Executive Director of Advancement: Stephen W. Harrington For more information on the Building on the Promise capital campaign, please visit www.smes.org or contact Steve Harrington at 949.661.0108 ext. 318 or Stephen.harrington@smes.org.

2005 ................. 2006 ................. 2007 ................. 2008 ................. 2010 ............................

2000s

Groundbreaking for Pasternack Field House and Upper School DeYoung Family Math and Science Center. Church offices are expanded and remodeled.

Pasternack Field House and DeYoung Family Math and Science Center are opened.

Vacant land adjacent to Cook Park and equestrian land along Calle Arroyo are purchased.

Three buildings in Ortega Village Center are purchased.

Renovations of Nicholas Sports Park and Tartan Field with artificial turf, new concession stand and bleachers are completed.

Preconstruction work begins for new Middle School and Performing Arts Center.

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O P E N

S PA C E S

A Swallow Story

By Thomas Hughes, Grade 2

Thomas Hughes, age 8, is an avid writer of movie and book reviews. Most recently, he wrote this short story, “A Swallow Story.” Thomas gets his ideas from daily events and discussions. For this story, he explains, “When I was told the swallows were coming to San Juan Capistrano, I imagined that I was a swallow, imagined where I would go, and then put comedy in.”

Once there was a swallow whose name was Fred. Now, Fred was no ordinary swallow, he was a secret spy of the organization SADO (Secret Animal Defense Organization).

Today, he had a very special mission. Fred had to stop the cold-hearted Fishlitis!

Fishlitis was Fred’s most hated enemy. He thought up the most sinister plans, which secretly, Fred admired. Fred stopped him every time, but usually, he found it quite hard. This particular day, Fishlitis was planning to destroy all of SADO’s members with his fish army.

I know you’re probably wondering why fish aren’t in SADO. After all, SADO includes all animals. If you really want to find out, here's the story. (If you don’t read this, then the rest of the story won’t make sense). When Fishlitis was a baby, he was teased. You see, Fishlitis was the first fish to come into SADO. Everyone teased him because he didn't have claws, fangs, or a tail. But they forgot one thing. He was a genius builder. Fishlitis could build a metal detector in an instant if he wanted to. So when more fish came into SADO, he told them what had happened to him, and how they should team up with him, to destroy SADO forever! Now, back to the story.

As I was saying, Fishlitis was planning to destroy all of SADO’s members with his fish army. So Fred the swallow decided to do the only thing he could: scout the battlefield.

He went over to SADO territories and asked, “Where exactly is the war going to appear?”

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“In the Rocky Mountains, of course!” exclaimed Captain Giraffanian.

The Rocky Mountains had been the normal battlefield for 15 years. The reason it is the normal battlefield is because it has many trees. With trees, there are so many tricks you can play, but I won’t take the time to tell them.

“Roger,” said Fred the swallow, and he was off.

When Fred got to the Rocky Mountains, he searched everywhere for traps and tricks and anything that could be hiding. As he was looking around, he started to think.

Suddenly, Fred almost burst with an idea!

“I’ve got to tell the others!” he yelled, and he rushed back to the SADO members, who were preparing for war.

“I have a plan!” Fred blurted. “Just listen!”

“Ok,” squeaked Sergeant Hamster Sultive. “Tell us.”

“All right, here goes: If our whole bird group teams up, we can eat the fish! Birds eat fish! It will be a meal to remember!

Let's go!” Everyone stormed out the door.

Two hours later they came back with fish in their bellies and the feel of victory in their hearts. ●

Untitled Acrylic paint on canvas Will Travis, Grade 12

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Writing Her Own Way Maggie Shipstead, Class of 2001

Maggie Shipstead, Class of 2001, graduated from Harvard University in 2005 with a Bachelor of Arts in English. She earned a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop, where she received Truman Capote, Teaching-Writing and Leggett-Schupes Fellowships.

Her short fiction has appeared in The Mississippi Review, The Missouri Review, Glimmer Train and The Virginia Quarterly Review. Her story, “The Cowboy Tango,” was awarded the Emily Clark Balch Prize for the best fiction published in The Virginia Quarterly Review in 2009 and was selected for The Best American Short Stories 2010 (publication date: October 2010), edited by Richard Russo. On learning her work was selected for The Best American Short Stories, Maggie writes, “I couldn’t have been more surprised if I woke up with my head sewn to the carpet.”

Through the Leggett-Shupes Fellowship, Maggie spent eight months in 2008 and 2009, on Nantucket Island, Massachusetts, writing the first draft of her soon-to-be-published first novel about a New England family. The book is in the final editing phases before publishing.

Maggie is currently a Wallace Stegner Creative Writing Fellow at Stanford University.

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Mr. Dallas Clemmons, St. Margaret’s Upper School English teacher, taught Maggie and remembers her advanced interest in writing that he helped foster and guide. “She did an independent study with me during her junior year,” Mr. Clemmons said. “She was interested in nonfiction travel writing so we kept that focus with writers such as Bill Bryson. We read Hemingway’s A Moveable Feast and Mark Twain’s Roughing It from a list of close to 30 books that Maggie wanted to study that year. She was definitely interested in studying these books from the writer’s perspective which left me with the impression early on that she wanted to be a writer. I taught her again the next year in AP [Advanced Placement] English, and I remember her reading journals very well, because they showed her insight and perception in very complex and ambiguous literature. To be a great writer, you must be a great reader, and Maggie was well on her way.”

In terms of guiding Maggie to develop her own writing, Mr. Clemmons says the St. Margaret’s program stresses writing as a craft. “The program is fairly individualized and we insist on students meeting with the teacher for one-onone conferencing. Then the student’s instruction is tailored to his or her needs. Because of our small class sizes and the tutorial time built into the schedule, we have the luxury to meet individually with every student and can avoid cookiecutter formulas and rubrics.

“I’ve been reading Maggie’s writing since her freshman year at Harvard. She’s always been very clever, very funny, and now her writing is rich in detail and figurative language and very imaginative,” he said.

and also their emotional wow factor. I think, though, I didn’t know I even wanted to be a writer until after college. And even though everything’s going well right now, I can’t know if I’ll make it. I’m still pretty much a guppy.

Mr. Clemmons is very familiar with the country’s top writing programs, having earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Yale University, a master’s degree in English from Columbia University, and a master’s in American Studies from the University of Iowa. He said, about Maggie’s accomplishment in earning a master’s from the University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop, “The Iowa Writers’ Workshop is very prestigious.

It is really difficult to get into that fiction writing workshop, and the Stegner Fellowships at Stanford are even more rare.

Truly only the best of the best are even considered.”

Andy Forquer: In “The Cowboy Tango” you skillfully describe the awkward movements of a ranch owner as he interacts with his unrequited love. You write: “He ran a hand over his face, pushing all the broken pieces around.”

How do you arrive at these resonant images?

St. Margaret’s Alumni Relations Office asked Alumni Contributor Andy Forquer, Class of 2004, to research and interview Maggie Shipstead for the Highlander. Though Andy was a freshman at St. Margaret’s when Maggie was a senior in 2001, he remembers her distinctly for her academic achievement and involvement in the community. As a result, he enthusiastically accepted the assignment confessing that Maggie was someone he very much wanted to know better. Andy took his job seriously, researching and reading much of Maggie’s work in preparation.

Andy Forquer: Were you aware in high school that you would become a writer, and how did your education at St. Margaret’s impact your decision?

Maggie Shipstead: I definitely wasn’t aware I was going to write. In fact, I think I was resistant to the idea, but I never quite came up with a viable alternative. Briefly I thought I would be an academic, but I don’t have the right stuff.

Definitely I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing now if not for the English teachers I had at St. Margaret’s, though. I owe an enormous debt to Mr. Dallas Clemmons, who was patient enough to do an independent study with me when I was a junior and was really the first person to talk to me about writing as a craft, like the product of a million human choices, instead of writing as this sort of monolithic, alien thing to be analyzed from afar. I’ve always been a reader, and he helped me develop a critical eye for what I read and also to get excited about the possibilities of fiction. Writing, in a removed sort of way, is a performance, and Mr. Clemmons got me started appreciating writers, even the ones who have been dead a long time, as rock stars, charismatic artists who blow you away with their inventiveness and technical skills

Maggie Shipstead: I think to an extent my images are just the product of how I see the world and, consequently, how I write. There are lots of people whose styles I would rather have than my own, but ultimately you have to make peace with writing the way you write. I do try to think pretty carefully about my images, though. Sometimes they come right away, and other times I have to ask myself, “What is it really like?” You can always look harder and always think harder.

Andy Forquer: I noticed at Harvard that your mentors, Lan Samantha Chang and Zadie Smith, have written extensively on themes of cross-cultural experience, and immigrants’ struggles to find ‘place.’ You’ve written about thriving in an East Coast setting after growing up in Southern California.

Was this alignment with these mentors simply a coincidence?

Maggie Shipstead: It’s interesting that you zeroed in on that, but I think it was, in fact, pure coincidence. When I got put in Sam’s (Lan Samantha Chang, currently the Director of the University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop) workshop, I think it was by chance—I think I applied to fiction writing in general, and then the teachers sort of took who they wanted.

At that point, Sam was relatively unknown, too, and since she was my first workshop leader, I didn’t have the experience to appreciate what an incredibly gifted teacher she is. She’s read everything; she knows what to tell you to read; she’s very flexible in her thinking and honest without being unkind. I applied specifically for Zadie Smith’s workshop because it seemed like the thing everyone was doing, even though at the time I hadn’t read either of her books that were out, and when I went to check if I was on the [class] list, I wasn’t. Turns out, I was looking at the wrong list. A friend told me a day later that I’d gotten in, so I still had time to register for the class, and I think of that moment—looking at

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Manuscript by Maggie

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the wrong list—as a sort of near-miss because I’m not sure I would have kept on writing if I hadn’t been in Zadie’s workshop. She’s an awe-inspiring presence. She has a startling intellect and an amazing literary sensibility, plus, she’s cool and young and takes a tough-love approach to teaching that I discovered I enjoyed. So I think that’s when I started to realize that I could survive the criticism that’s part and parcel of creative writing workshops.

I think what I drew from Sam and Zadie, more than any thematic focus, was confidence and, conversely, an appreciation for how very, very far I was from being good. College kids often think they’re writing publishable work, which they rarely are, and some get discouraged and give up when they realize what a slog they have in front of them. I think Sam and Zadie are upfront about how difficult writing is and how miraculous truly great writers are, but they make you believe the attempt is worth the potential disappointment.

Andy Forquer: Prior to pursuing a Master of Fine Arts at the University of Iowa, you mention a stint in law as a period during which you were sort of ‘adrift.’ Did this time clarify anything for you?

Maggie Shipstead: I think some time spent adrift can be good, especially for people who tend to be a little too intense, provided a year or two doesn’t turn into a lifetime.

The standard advice aspiring writers are given is that if you can think of anything else you’d be happy doing, you should do that. In my drifting year, I identified some jobs I didn’t want, which was good motivation for getting my act together and applying to Iowa. Not wanting to do other stuff still motivates me. Careers in the arts are difficult and uncertain, and while I would never advise people against following their heart, I think people should know what they’re getting into.

Talent isn’t enough. Willpower isn’t enough. You can have both and it can still not work out. Everything can go great for a while and then suddenly you hit a brick wall. Luck is a factor, too, and various other mysterious forces.

Andy Forquer: Your first novel was created during a University of Iowa fellowship when you spent an eightmonth period writing in a remote cabin on Nantucket Island and your only companion was an English Pointer.

What was that like?

far, and yet I was sitting in the same room every day, in the same chair, and taking my dog on the same walks and not talking to anyone. At one point I went five weeks without having a face-to-face conversation with anyone. Near the end, two college friends came to visit, and one walked through my bedroom in the middle of the night to get to the bathroom, and I sat bolt upright and started screaming at the top of my lungs. So I became somewhat . . . tightly wound.

But I wrote about 400 pages in four or five months, which was the whole point, and I had this incredible solitude and freedom from ordinary responsibilities, thanks to [the] fellowship from Iowa. I became very entrenched in my routine, but I liked my routine. Nantucket in the winter is very quiet and exceptionally gray, and I had to look closely for the things that distinguished one day from the next. I might not sign up to do another eight months entirely by myself, say, tomorrow, but I’m so grateful for that time. Plus, I’ve discovered that writing the first draft of a novel is way easier than slogging through the third draft, so in retrospect it doesn’t even seem like I was working that hard.

Andy Forquer: How does it feel to be back in flip-flops as a Stegner Fellow at Stanford University?

Maggie Shipstead: I never really had any plans to come back to California to live. But, now that I’m here, I’ve realized that I really did not appreciate the weather growing up. Not at all. I thought the weather was boring. It’s actually heavenly.

I have one more year at Stanford, and after that I’m not sure what I’ll do. It depends on the status of my book(s) and if I’m teaching or not and if I can get my paws on any grant money. If I had my druthers, I’d probably live in New York.

Andy Forquer: Okay let’s test your memory, recite the St. Margaret’s alma mater in 3… 2… 1…

Maggie Shipstead: Okay, but only if I get to hiss all the ‘s’ sounds.

To read an excerpt from Maggie’s short story, “The Cowboy Tango,” visit: http://www.vqronline.org/articles/2009/fall/shipstead-cowboy-tango

To read Maggie’s short story, “The Theory of the Origins of Time,” visit: www.fivechapters.com/2010/theory-on-the-origins-of-time. ●

Maggie Shipstead: Last year was amazing. I felt like I came so

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Thriving in College Class of 2009 Alumni Share Reflections on Their Freshman Year

W

hy are we so confident about St. Margaret Episcopal School’s college counseling program?

Essentially, it is because we are guided by a philosophy that recognizes the talents in all students and helps them find a good fit for their interests when they go to college.

Our college counseling philosophy encourages students to have full and engaged Upper School experiences. This is a simple philosophy that gives each student room to grow and experience all that St. Margaret’s has to offer. Admittedly, all students need direction, but at St. Margaret’s, each student has many mentors, including teachers, advisors, deans, chaplains, coaches, peer counselors and college counselors. The college counselors are often in the background, sharing information that keeps the community current regarding trends in college admissions. We also share our thoughts with the Academic Affairs Committee as new courses are planned and the curriculum is kept up-to-date.

St. Margaret’s is a lively school filled with students who are intellectually vibrant and involved doing wonderful things.

The entire program at St. Margaret’s, and the faculty, staff and

administration, encourages students to live up to their unique gifts and talents, both personally and academically. This approach serves our students very well.

This is my sixth year as director of college counseling. Nearly 500 St. Margaret’s graduates have gone to colleges and universities under my watch. The Class of 2005, my first class, graduated from college last spring and many of them are enrolled in graduate schools, or gainfully employed. Students in subsequent classes are currently enrolled in 127 different colleges and universities. Our graduates from the Class of 2009 recently concluded their first year of college.

I’m proud of my involvement here because I’ve seen firsthand that St. Margaret’s prepares its students very well for college.

The following updates are from four 2009 St. Margaret’s graduates recounting in their own words their experiences as college freshmen. These reflections illustrate that our students are in the right places and ready and eager for the new experiences, ideas, opportunities and academics the next step brings.

Roland Allen Director of College Counseling

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Boston College

Ryan Jong, Boston College

It has already been a month into my second semester of college, and I can feel my freshman year at Boston College coming to a close. What a wild ride it has been so far! It seems like only yesterday I stepped out of Logan Airport carrying three suitcases stuffed with my choice of belongings I would survive with. Transition into college was not as bad as I thought, mainly because every single freshman is doing the same exact thing. I felt like we were all struggling together through adjusting to dorm life, communal bathrooms, homework load and learning to do laundry.

I am definitely loving it! The football and basketball games are amazing, especially with the sea of bright gold created by the “Superfan” shirts every student wears. Hockey, a sport I was really never a fan of, is one of my favorite sports to watch now! I feel BC is the perfect college for me, because not only does it allow me to excel in activities and academics I am already fond of, but it offers the chance to be involved with so many new opportunities such as clubs, sports, even job opportunities such as helping in nonprofit organizations, or running for student government. College is like an Etch ‘n Sketch, it gives you endless opportunities and possibilities, and if you don’t like the things you're doing, just shake it, and start with something new. Currently, I am a coxswain on the Men’s Rowing (Crew) Team, something I had no interest in coming into BC. I found myself competing in the C.R.A.S.H B’s (World Indoor Rowing Championships) this past Sunday, a competition I had never even heard of, and winning my heat by 150 meters, coming in ninth place in the world in the coxswain race. After posting on a BC group’s wall, I found myself being contacted by a founder of a nonprofit, and was offered the executive director of a BC

job for “The Generation Project.” What is so neat about college is the fact that I see it as an opportunity for one to eagerly pursue unknown goals and to form some of the closest relationships in the student’s life.

Rowley Rice, Georgetown University I’m midway through my second semester at Georgetown University, and wow the time has flown by. Though the months have been filled with changes, I have been prepared enough that I am mostly just thrilled by the potential opportunities in the days and years ahead. I have immersed myself in the culture of Georgetown and Washington, D.C. My days and nights have been filled with long discussions on everything from utilitarianism to American energy policy.

Surrounded by ambitious, driven, and intellectually curious students, guided by professors well-versed in their chosen fields, and saturated by D.C.’s political culture, college is everything I hoped it would be.

Georgetown has exposed me to ideas and entire realms of studies that I was completely unaware of beforehand. I have continued my love of theater in the vibrant Georgetown student theater community, mainly focusing on directing.

I was also recently admitted into a special academic program known as the Carroll Fellows. This four-year program is designed to supplement the educational experience through discussion, reflection, and original research (I am currently researching a Depression-era etching from the Georgetown archives), culminating with a senior thesis. Though I miss the sun and surf of home (Washington did experience recordbreaking snowfall this winter) and the close-knit community of SMES, I am thrilled by the challenges and opportunities of Georgetown.

Georgetown

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University of Chicago

Tiffany Young, University of Chicago

I’ll be shadowing an editor at the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles during spring break. The challenges and work I take on here are constant, yet also full of opportunity. I am around intelligent, motivated, thoughtful people all the time–whether peers or professors–and as a student here, I feel like many exciting possibilities are available to me.

Colfax Selby, Columbia University

I’m almost through my winter quarter here at the University of Chicago, and I really can't believe I’m more than halfway through my first year of college. Time has just passed so quickly while I’ve been adjusting to the rigorous academics while trying to find time to explore the amazing city that is open to me. I’m excited to be able to take some really great classes and meet people who have helped me understand what I might want to concentrate on academically, and even pursue in the future. Being a first year, I have to focus on fulfilling the core first, which is nice because it provides diversity in my workload. At the same time, I’m also filling my first year with other classes that could turn into potential majors.

I am currently a freshman at Columbia University in the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

I am deciding between two majors at the moment, Financial Engineering and Engineering Management Systems. So far, I have enjoyed my college experience.

Although it was a big transition, I felt well prepared when I first set foot on campus. Having lived in California all my life, it is interesting to meet people from all different areas of the world, from Texas, France and even Tanzania. During the first weeks of school, there was a lot to take in. I didn’t know anyone, I had to organize my belongings in my room, I had to try to live with a person I’d never met, and on top of all that, I had to go to class. Classes in college are definitely a change from high school. My smallest class has about 40 students and my largest 200. No one is there to make sure you are doing your reading nightly and problem sets weekly; you just have to know what work you have to do. It took me a little while to fully realize this and learn what was necessary, but I feel that the teachers at St. Margaret’s prepared me well.

Columbia

Chicago at night has great energy, and I love visiting different neighborhoods in the city for museums (free days are the best), restaurants, theater and more. For the first time in my life, I’ve had to get used to living in a place that snows. But I actually really enjoy the cold and walking through the breathtaking beauty that is my campus when it’s blanketed with snow and then returning to the sunshine and beaches in California for breaks—it’s the best of both worlds.

The housing system here is unique, and I’m really glad to have the company of my awesome Resident Heads, a family with pets and a 3-year-old child that lives in the house with us, and fellow housemates at our dining table every night. I’ve kept busy with a full course schedule, contributing to my school newspaper, and thinking about resumes and internships for the first time. I’ve worked with a very helpful and enthusiastic adviser who has guided me along the way.

Recently, I was chosen for an externship program in which

At St. Margaret’s I was involved in the Honor Committee and I have since gotten involved in a similar organization here at school. It has been an exciting experience, although I am just now beginning to assume the roles and responsibilities of a college student and an adult. Now that some time has passed, I feel much more comfortable here and have settled in with good friends and a weekly routine of classes. Overall I am having a good time here at Columbia; it is a great match for my goals and personality. I have made a nice group of friends, have met fascinating people. I am learning a lot and enjoying college life in New York City. ●

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C L A S S

Class of

N OT E S

1989

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Shawn Brazeau After graduating from the University of Redlands, Shawn moved to Florida before moving to Boston in 2000. His wife, Christine, is from the area and they plan to settle in Boston along with their bulldog, Max. Shawn is a territory manager for Venyu, a company that provides data protection, disaster recovery and business continuity services. He and Christine spend their free time at the gym or with nieces and nephews.

Class of

1993

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Stephen Markwell Steve Markwell, founder of the Olympic Animal Sanctuary in Forks, Washington, was recently featured in an article in the Los Angeles Times. According to the writer, “There have always been good dogs and bad dogs…Then there are the really bad dogs – the cat-killers, face-biters and snarling, drooling wretches so mean even their owners want them shot. Those are Steve Markwell’s kind of dogs.” At his sanctuary, Steve works to train these challenging canines. To read the article, go to the Latimes.com and search “Steve Markwell.”

Class of

Kristin (Helms) McDaniel is the proud mother of three-yearold Jack, who will be a St. Margaret’s Episcopal School preschooler starting September 2010!

Class of

1996

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The Stefanie Canright Scholarship was awarded to Ariel Wolpe, a student at Emory University. As a result of the scholarship, Ariel will be traveling to Jodhpur, India this summer as part of the Foundation for Sustainable Development internship program. Jodhpur, located in Northwest India, is set in a scenic desert landscape. In spite of its stark beauty and compelling history, however, Jodhpur is also the scene of many developmental challenges including gross gender inequality, caste discrimination, and low literacy rates for women and rural populations. Ariel’s time in India will be spent assisting in community outreach programs to address social stigmas and in organizing workshops on health education.

1995

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Emily (Hallenbeck) Maxey Emily proudly announces the arrival of a new baby, Julia Jean Maxey, who was born on March 8, 2010 at Saddleback Memorial Hospital.

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Elayna (Rosenfeld) Ferguson Elayna welcomed Siena Bay Ferguson on August 3, 2009 in the State of Washington. Elayna’s husband, Sean, has an “awesome job” at Microsoft as a senior software engineer.

They nicknamed their daughter Sunny Siena because she is the happiest baby they’ve ever met.

Class of

1997

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N OTA B L E David A.C. Turley From David Turley’s days at St. Margaret’s in student government, he knew he wanted to go into politics and be a public servant. Since his graduation in 1997, David has spent his time focused on that goal.

“The intimate and supportive nature of the St. Margaret’s community gave me the opportunities and encouragement to get involved there as a student and as an adult in my community,” David said during a business trip to Miami.

David graduated from Vanderbilt University in 2001 with a Bachelor of Arts in Latin American studies. In his career, he has served as a political campaigner, activist and community organizer. He says he takes great pride in engaging and organizing young people in the community to embrace and work toward a cause they feel passionate about. He served as a founding board member for the Young Professionals’ Council for Choice in New York.

“My experience in student government as a teenager at St. Margaret’s gave me the strength and self confidence that I can indeed be a leader,” he said.

David has lived in four other countries: Spain, Argentina, Italy and the United Kingdom. He worked for the Ministry of Education in Spain as a consultant in the capital city of Madrid, developing a national pilot project for bilingual education at all grade levels. He has also organized for U.S. candidates for public office in California, New York, New Jersey, Texas, Pennsylvania, Kentucky and South Dakota. From working directly with minority populations in the United States, he is sensitive to the cultural nuances that shape attitudes and decisions. He is especially passionate about issues that affect the Latino and LGBT communities.

In 2008, David worked for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign and then for President Barack Obama and U.S. Senator Mark Udall’s election campaigns in Colorado. As the Latino outreach director for the Denver metropolitan area, David was involved in the unprecedented voter registration drive and get-out-the-vote effort in the Latino community.

“My dream one day is to run for office,” David said. “I think what I like most about politics is the feeling that I am making an impact and a difference in the communities and people with whom I work. There are many ways to give back to our communities, but I want to do more than just give back in my free time. I want to make it my life’s work.”

David currently works as a Regional Field Organizer with the Human Rights Campaign. As a field organizer based in New York City, David is responsible for field and political activities in the Northeastern U.S. David helps develop and implement field strategies to pass federal, state and local priorities and works with local HRC volunteer leaders and coalition partners.

The closeness David has with his mother, Yolanda Turley, and brother, Michael Turley, are constant sources of courage and love. Many others from St. Margaret’s remain steady influences in his life as well, including Mrs. Lisa Merryman, who taught him grade 7 geography, and his Upper School Latin teacher, Mr. Larry Rice. He said that he thinks of them and their passion, especially when he travels abroad. David also keeps the memories of dear loved ones who he has lost, Stefanie Canright, Lindsey Halsted and especially his father, Jim Turley. He reflected on their influence and shared, “[They] encouraged me and made me who I am today. Every day is truly a gift. I try to take advantage of every opportunity.”

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Class of

1998

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Class of

2001

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Michelle Legro Michelle graduated from Barnard College in 2005. She will be receiving a Master of Fine Arts degree in Fine Arts in nonfiction writing from Columbia University, and is currently the online editor of Lapham’s Quarterly, a magazine of history and ideas. She lives in Brooklyn, New York and is not in a band…yet.

Erin (Newman) Armstrong Erin has experienced exciting events in her life since graduation. She and her husband, Chris, welcomed their first daughter, Lily Hope Armstrong on March 14, 2010. They live in Ladera Ranch, and Erin currently works as a cardiovascular critical care nurse. They look forward to Lily having the opportunity to meet members of the St. Margaret’s community soon.

Matt McGraw and Jenny (Zuidema) McGraw Matt and Jenny McGraw (Class of 2001) were married on July 12, 2008 at a ceremony in San Juan Capistrano. They currently live in Scottsdale, Arizona where Jenny works for Wells Fargo Bank's Real Estate Managed Assets Group and Matt owns and operates a storage container business. They are currently looking to purchase a home in Phoenix.

Linling Hsu Linling recently debuted The Tehran Project, her long-time musical collaboration with Persian santur player, Amir Amiri.

The musical was part of a benefit concert for University of California, Irvine’s Susan Samueli Center for Integrative Medicine. The “East-West Fusion: Music Without Borders” concert featured many incredible musicians.

Class of

2000

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Tracy (Sherman) VanNostrand Tracy and her husband of five years, Steven, proudly announce the newest addition to their family, Emily Grace VanNostrand.

Emily was born July 22, 2009 and was welcomed by her parents and older brother, Jacob Scott.

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Clay Westrope Clay is currently pursuing a master’s program in Sustainable International Development. From September 2009 through April 2010, he conducted fieldwork in Tajikistan on a USAID-funded food security project with small-scale farmers. The country of Tajikistan, positioned in the Middle East, is bordered by Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, China and Afghanistan. Clay’s work researching agricultural value chains, helping farmers construct household gardens and linking farmers to markets, will serve as the basis for his master's thesis.

Class of

2002

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Ashleigh Barker Ashleigh is currently working on a Master in Business Administration at the University of Chicago, Booth School of Business. This summer she will intern at Deutsche Bank in New York City in its investment banking division. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Finance and International Business from Georgetown University in 2006.

Elaina Moore Elaina is very excited to be opening The Law Office of Elaina N. Moore in Anaheim. She currently handles business and family law matters. Elaina graduated from law school at the University of Colorado in 2008 and has been licensed to practice law in California since 2009.

Class of

2003

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Katharine “Polly” Bendush Polly is working on a Master in Business Administration and serving as Student Body President of the full-time business school at Pepperdine University. She remains active in Duke University’s alumni association, serving as the Young Alumni Coordinator and a volunteer interviewer on the Alumni Admissions Advisory Committee. Polly lives with fellow St. Margaret’s Class of 2003 classmates, Jacqueline Sutro and Parisa Jassim, in Hermosa Beach.

Anik Dang Anik started a record label and social multimedia company in Lake Forest. His company currently handles promotions and viral marketing for its first artist, Jay Dee Queue. The band, led by Justin Quinn (Class of 2001), performs frequently in Orange County. Be sure to check them out.

Maxwell Moholy Maxwell will be spending the summer in Bethesda, Maryland, completing a summer internship at the National Institutes of Health, one of the world’s foremost medical research centers.

Class of

2005

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Chris Benderev Chris went to the University of California, Los Angeles, where he developed an interest for media and journalism. He was a disc jockey and reporter with the campus radio station and wrote for the school newspaper during his senior year.

Chris interned in public radio newsrooms in San Francisco and Los Angeles during summers. After graduating from UCLA, he secured an internship at National Public Radio in Washington, D.C. in the fall of 2009 where he currently works part-time as an editorial/production assistant. He thoroughly enjoys being in the nation’s capital, but briefly longed for warmer Orange County days in the middle of this past year’s “snowpocalypse.”

Savannah Braithwaite Savannah recently graduated from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in Accounting. After school, she moved to San Diego, where she works as a financial analyst for Northrop Grumman Corporation. Savannah continues to be close with some of her best friends from St. Margaret’s, and knows that these friendships will last a lifetime.

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Class of 2005, Continued Laura Canright Laura passed the nursing licensure exam after six grueling hours of testing and is now a Registered Nurse. She works in the emergency room department in a Ft. Worth, Texas hospital.

Stephanie Davis Stephanie graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles in June 2009 with a Bachelor of Science in Physiological Science and is working for a cardiology practice at Cedars-Sinai doing clinical research in the field of heart transplantation. She’s been given the opportunity to present three of her research studies at the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation annual meeting in Chicago.

Stephanie plans to start medical school in July.

N OTA B L E Jessica Demorest As part of her senior project at Vanderbilt University, Jessica was one of six committee members responsible for the design, planning, fundraising and creation of the Murrell School playground. The Murrell School in Nashville serves students certified as seriously emotionally disturbed and learning disabled in Kindergarten through grade 7. To solve the problem of the students not having a safe place to play and the right equipment for their daily physical education lessons, Jessica and her classmates developed the idea of the playground-building project. The idea was inspired by an undergraduate course at Vanderbilt University about community development in the Human and Organizational Development department. She proudly reports that they raised $22,000 in cash gifts, completed the project in June 2009, and had an additional $40,000 donated in supplies and labor.

broken window communicates “freedom for delinquency in this space” and the message that “destructive actions are not punished here.” According to this theory, one broken window inherently causes another, encouraging substantial communitywide problems with violence, theft, vandalism, etc. and consequentially diminishing the neighborhood’s “sense of community.” Understanding the importance of cultivating a sense of community through physical space, she worked to build a playground that would positively impact the Murrell School community and create a space these children deserve and are proud to call theirs. The Murrell School faculty, staff, students and parents were included in the process. Susan Siegel, the school’s principal, said the faculty is “thrilled to have a safe place” for their students to play. Jessica shared that completing the playground project was “the proudest moment of my life.”

One of the focuses of the course was the effect that a community’s physical environment has on the residents’ “sense of community” which is directly correlated with safe, healthy, thriving neighborhoods. Jessica was intrigued by the “Broken Window Effect” theory which suggests that one

School playground before (left) and after renovation (right).

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Class of

2006

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Kelly Barrett Kelly graduated this year from the University of Southern California where she majored in Communications. In spring 2009, she studied communications and media abroad in Amsterdam, Holland. After graduation, she landed a full-time job at Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) where she is executive assistant to the assistant vice president of corporate communications and media relations and department coordinator, media relations. Kelly is living in Los Angeles.

Kevin Maghami Kevin graduated in May 2010 from New York University with a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics and a minor in Chemistry. He plans to work for NYU-Abu Dhabi, which states that it is The World's Honors College, next year as a student academic coach and teaching assistant for calculus, chemistry and physics before pursuing medical school.

Class of

2007

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Adrienne Baker Adrienne enjoyed backpacking in Europe with two girlfriends. She says hiking in Ireland, France and Spain was incredible. Adrienne was able to meet with Megan Ichinose (2007) and Mark Adams (2007) since both are studying abroad in Paris.

Returning to school, Adrienne is captain of an Ultimate Frisbee team and is having fun teaching new players the game. Adrienne recalls a fun coincidence when she was working the team’s booth at an activities fair. A girl came by the booth and asked Adrienne whether she went to St. Margaret’s and ran track and field. The girl had just graduated from Whitney and ran hurdles.

Corey Fava Corey was named the Roger Williams University Male Athlete of the Week for his offensive performance in the Hawks basketball team’s victory.

He was selected to be a member of the USA International Basketball team that traveled to Barcelona, Valencia and Madrid to compete against various professional and club teams in Spain. He had made the team the prior year when they traveled through Italy, Bosnia and Croatia.

Hallie Mayer This spring, Hallie participated in the University of California, Irvine’s New York Satellite Program, where she lived the “actor’s life” in “The Big Apple” for a month. Along with taking numerous dance, vocal and acting master classes, she performed off-Broadway at the York Theatre in a series of 15-minute original musicals.

Melissa Wohlgemuth Melissa spent five months studying abroad in Santiago, Chile, in a George Washington University immersion program from JulyDecember 2009. She stayed with a Chilean host family and went to the Universidad de Chile and Universidad Católica. During her stay, she had the opportunity to travel to the northern desert of Chile, the southern forests and seaports, and the wine country of Mendoza, Argentina. In addition to having an amazing experience that she says changed her perspective on the world, she is nearing fluency in Spanish.

Class of

2008

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Jeff Carpenter Jeff is currently a sophomore at Colby College majoring in Social Informatics. He works as the video director for the student newspaper, The Colby Echo. For spring break, he went on “an awesome” backpacking trip with the Colby Outing Club to Canyonlands and Arches National Parks in Utah.

This fall he’ll be studying abroad in Japan and plans to eat his body weight in sushi.

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Class of 2008, Continued Tain Lee Tain is the champion of the Division III NCAA Men’s 2010 Golf Championships. Prior to this championship, Tain finished eighth at the Division III men’s golf championships in Port St. Lucie, Florida. He had the second best freshman score in the tournament and was one of only three underclassmen to finish in the top 10. He currently attends Claremont McKenna College. At the conclusion of the tournament, Tain was named a Ping Division III First Team All-American and to the Division III All-Freshman Team. He is Claremont McKenna-Harvey Mudd-Scripps’ sixth golf All-American and the first since 2002. He is the only Claremont McKenna-Harvey MuddScripps’ player to earn the honor prior to his junior year.

Class of

2009

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Katelyn Murray Katelyn, currently finishing her freshman year at the University of Miami, had the opportunity to work for President Clinton’s Third Clinton Global Initiative University Meeting at The University of Miami this year. Established in 2005 by President Bill Clinton, the Clinton Global Initiative convenes global leaders to devise and implement innovative solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges.

(second from top right)

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David Mothander David has been accepted to Harvard University for the coming year where he will play football; he signed a letter of intent on February 3, 2010 as a kicker.

Rowley Rice Rowley completed his freshman year at Georgetown University. He assistant directed three productions this year, including a main-stage production of Tom Stoppard’s The Real Thing, and he has been chosen to be the producing artistic director of the Donn B. Murphy One Act Festival, which is a long-standing Georgetown tradition. Rowley was recently selected to join the Carroll Fellows Forum for the 2010 academic year. Fewer than two percent of freshmen are selected for the Fellowship. Carroll Fellows are expected not only to want to do more than others, but also to surpass their own expectations for themselves. The Carroll Fellows Initiative creates a community of like-minded students stretching across all four undergraduate years and into the alumni experience, and lays great stress on growth in expressive skills at levels beyond those usually endorsed by the curriculum. Rowley is working for the Carly Fiorina campaign in a paid internship this summer.

Natasha Pavlovich Tasha recently recovered well from hip surgery and returned to working out with the College of Charleston track team.

She cross trains a few hours a day, and has finally been given the clearance to run a few times a week. Her goal is to get back to Division I cross-country competition in the fall. She shares that she felt well prepared for college. She values the education she received, the strong bonds and relationships she formed with the teachers and coaches, and the opportunities that St. Margaret’s provided her in leadership, athletics and service work.

L O O K I N G

B A C K

In Memoriam: Canon Merle Minks.

May 10, 1917–March 8, 2010

By Lisa Merryman, Faculty Emeritus and School Archivist

n March 8, 2010, one of the true icons of St. Margaret’s Episcopal School and Church passed away at the age of 92.

Headmaster Marcus D. Hurlbut says of Canon Merle Minks, “He was a critical figure in the growth of both institutions, and his passing represents a significant milestone in our collective histories.”

O

Canon Minks was an amazing person. Since 1983, he was a vital force in the St. Margaret’s community. He served as Bishop’s Warden, Bishop’s Chancellor, and Bishop’s Representative of the Board of Trustees of St. Margaret’s School. He also served on the Board Executive Committee and the Joint Legacy Committee for St. Margaret’s Church and School.

Raised in the small town of Fisher, Illinois, Canon Minks received a degree from Knox College in 1939. He served in the military in World War II and later earned a law degree from the University of Texas, followed by a very successful 33-year career with Gulf Oil; he retired as General Counsel in 1981. He and his wife, Brooks, settled in Laguna Beach in 1983 and joined St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church. Then Priest-in-Charge and Headmaster Father Ernest D. Sillers recognized his talent. Father Sillers immediately asked if he would serve on the school’s Advisory Council and the church’s Bishop’s Committee. In 1984, the school established a formal Board of Trustees; Canon Minks was a founding member and he wrote the bylaws for the Trustees. One of the Minks family’s first efforts at St. Margaret’s was to jointly chair a fundraiser on December 4, 1984, to raise the $47,000 needed to complete Sillers Hall. This event was held in the uncompleted Ortega Business Center. The Waterford crystal candlesticks donated to the silent auction by the Minks family added tasteful elegance to the concrete floor and plastic chairs.

During his terms on the church vestry and the school’s Board of Trustees, as well as his terms as chancellor, there were times when differing opinions resulted in conflict. Sharon Sarpa, the first secretary for the church and school, and subsequent first Director of Admission, remembers how Canon Minks and Sharon’s husband, John (who also served on the Bishop’s Committee and school Board of Trustees), frequently disagreed on the path the new church and school should travel. Canon Minks was focused on personal relationships. He invited the Sarpas to dinner at the Mission Inn in Riverside to assure that congeniality was maintained. In this same manner, Canon Minks and his wife often hosted vestry and trustee dinners at their Laguna Beach home.

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Former Headmaster Markham B. Campaigne says of Canon Minks, “He was like John Marshall, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, who made major decisions that shaped our young nation. Merle made similar decisions that shaped a young St. Margaret’s. He was the longest-serving trustee of the school and he was instrumental in helping St. Margaret’s become one of the finest independent schools in California, existing in harmony with a vibrant and healthy parish.”

His wise counsel was greatly appreciated by church and school leaders. They also enjoyed his humorous side. Once, the vestry was discussing the order in which each member read the daily newspaper. Many said they read the sports section first. Others started with the front page and read the paper in order. Some had to start their day with the comics.

Then there was Canon Minks; he always read the business section first, changed to The Wall Street Journal, and then read the rest of the newspaper.

St. Margaret’s was not the only beneficiary of these gifts.

He also served on the board of South Coast Medical Center.

He was sometimes teased about how his volunteerism might get him an “express pass” to the ER and a “VIP pass” at the pearly gates.

On March 7, 2004, Merle Minks was named a Canon of the Cathedral Center of St. Paul. In recognition of significant service to the Larger Church, the Bishop often names clergy and laypersons as honorary Canons. According to the Diocese, the title Canon dates from medieval times, to denote a key advisor to the Bishop or to a cathedral community. On this occasion, which was celebrated at St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church, The Right Reverend Robert M. Anderson, Bishop Assistant of the Diocese, said, “Merle had the tenacity and spirit necessary to get us where we are today. He is full of the faith and the honor of God.” ●

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“. . . to educate the hearts and minds of young people for lives of learning, leadership and service.”

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

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