ALUMNI PROFILE | DWIGHT TODAY
“Quest was a great way for me to be part of a mainstream school. Josh mapped a program just for me and the rewards came when I worked hard … but my Quest teachers sometimes worked harder than I did to keep me on track!” Dwight faculty provided differentiation, as they do for all students based on individual learning styles, as no two students learn in exactly the same way.
NICK SHAFIR ’11 QUEST TO SUCCEED “Do this for your 25-year-old self,” Josh Kigel, Director of Quest, implored Nick Shafir, when he was a teenager. “You’re not doing this for you now, but for Nick at 25!” What Nick was doing was working hard to succeed in school with dyslexia. When his motivation faltered, Josh encouraged Nick to see the bigger picture, the longer-term — the future. Thanks to Josh and Dwight’s Quest Program, Nick’s 25-year-old self would be reading and writing for a living — in fact, writing award-winning screenplays! “This would not have been the case without Josh and all the other great Dwight teachers who supported me, pushed me, and gave me the tools to succeed,” Nick shares. “I am very grateful to them.” A PERSONALIZED PATH THAT ENCOURAGED CREATIVITY In eighth grade, Nick transferred from the nearby Stephen Gaynor School. His family chose Dwight because of the great reputation our Quest Program has in New York City. Quest is designed to bring Dwight’s promise of personalized learning to life for students with specific academic needs and to promote their success. Those needs may be: skill development, enrichment, English as an Alternate Language, or flexible learning to pursue exceptional talents.
“My English teacher, Laurel Aquadro, really helped me succeed at and beyond Dwight. She approached assignments from different creative angles and encouraged ‘out-of-the-box thinking.’ I was able to use my spark of genius in the arts to complete assignments in her classes and others. For example, when we read The Odyssey in Kate Schroeder’s class, I wrote my paper as a rhyming poem rather than in narrative form. If there was a class in which I could make a movie, I did and I also made a video for my tenth grade Personal Project. It was great because the school encouraged ingenuity and helped me to gain confidence in my creative thought process, so that I was able to thrive at Dwight.” Nick’s artistic spark of genius also included playing the bass in a student band called Montague Terrace, “convinced that it was our rocket ship to stardom!” he says. “We played original music, mostly written by Matt Allan ’11, and the band was definitely a big part of my school life. We played at assemblies and I also played in a Dwight jazz ensemble, but I was more into rock.” Nick’s classmates were used to seeing him with bass in hand, along with long hair; hence, the 2011 yearbook prediction that saw Nick playing in a Van Halen cover band 30 years down the road! ENDURING IMPACT Prior to entering Dwight, Nick participated in a summer program with Radomir Kovacevic, the Olympic judo champion and P.E. teacher, whose famous grueling workouts tested the mettle of many a student. “He was a special guy,” Nick says of Radomir. “He had a big personality and he was a big factor in my early Dwight experience. To this day, I still think about him and the lessons I learned regarding how to carry myself. I had duck feet! No coddler, Radomir toughened me up and I began walking with a straight back. He was also full of love and it was a real treat to know him.” Chancellor Spahn, too, left a lasting impression for his intelligence and understanding, Nick explains. “He is one of those special people who listens to you and figures out what you need to succeed. He really supported me from the beginning, championing my development and giving me lots of ideas throughout high school.”
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