belonging
THE DERRYFIELD SCHOOL
FALL 2018
Athletics and Arts in Tandem: The Spirit of Derryfield Wildly popular Derryfield band ‘The Tiny Spoons’ left big shoes to fill following their graduation with the class of 2018. However, their shoes were not left empty for long, as the latest DS musical sensation, ‘Step One’, took the stage at the Junior Class Talent Show on October 5 th, bringing home the gold with their rendition of “Hey Jude.” Given the energy and spirit of the performance, it was hard to tell that Jael Fleurant ’19, Matt Michaud ’19, Eric Chapdelaine ’20, Yash Patel ’20, Lucas Gendron ’21, Gavin Kurdek ’22, Alex DeGregorio ’22, Charley Chang ’22, and Molly Mahar ’22 had competed in a race shortly before taking the stage. While they play a range of instruments from drums to clarinet to violin, all band members share one thing in common: they are runners for the school D-IV championship cross country team, coached by Shannon Best. Inspiration struck on the bus home from a meet, during which Charley began playing his violin. Jael asked if he could play “Hey Jude,” one of her favorite songs, and to everyone’s surprise, he was able to play it by ear within minutes. According to Coach Best, the idea to form a band began as a joke, but when “Eric piped in with something along the lines of, ‘This is my dream, I said this last year! Come on you guys...we have got to do this,’” they set about procuring music and scheduled their first practice for the very next day. “I love the idea of “Hey Jude,” because everybody knows it,” Eric says of their choice for their debut. Yash points out that leading up to the talent show, the team rehearsed for 15 minutes after practice each day. Although they had never performed with each other B e l o n g i n g : F a l l 2 0 18
before, their success on the race course easily translated into musical success. “Cross country is such an individual sport, so you kind of have to be very supportive, and that support carried right over in the band,” Eric notes, with Jael adding that “we have a unique team, we all trust each other, we’re all one big family.” The group’s hard work paid off the night of the talent show, as they delighted the crowd with their rousing performance of “Hey Jude” with Jael on lead vocals. The performance culminated with the audience chanting the chorus and clapping in rhythm along with the musicians, and it came as no surprise to everyone in attendance when ‘Step One’ earned overall first place. The unexpected sensation is a campus-wide hit, even going on to showcase their talents at the October 24th Leadership Reception. All ‘Step One’ required to take the stage was the support of each other, and belief in their abilities. As Coach Best says, “when it came to forming a band, they believed it would work because, seriously, how fun is that?!” Stay tuned for future performances—this star is on the rise.
BREAKTHROUGH MANCHESTER Breakthrough Manchester is off to a great start in our school year programming. This is on the heels of a highly successful summer of 2018, which was highlighted in our recently published 2017-2018 Year in Review. During this past summer, we increased our student body by 14%, serving 108 Manchester middle school students. Predominantly students of color, they speak a total of 20 different languages in their homes! Our College Bound program at Southern New Hampshire University also grew significantly, with an additional 31 freshmen who began the high school program this fall. In our Year in Review annual report we share heart-warming stories about our students, including Shiba, who was born in Uganda and moved to the US with her mother to have a quality education. We also write about Becca, a prior Breakthrough student, who came back for several summers as a Teaching Fellow, then Program Coordinator, and has now started her first year of teaching in a New Hampshire classroom! If you have not received your copy of the report, you may view it online or pick one up in our Breakthrough Office on campus.
MANCHESTER
Breakthrough Manchester is currently accepting applications for paid Summer Teaching Fellowships for 2019. We are recruiting high school and college students interested in pursuing careers in education. Rated as a top-ten internship in the country by Princeton Review, our student teachers are immersed in an experience filled with leadership opportunities, including solo-teaching academics, coaching an extracurricular activity, and advising and mentoring students. More information, along with our application, can be found on our website, breakthroughmanchester.org.
at The Derryfield School
COMPETING AT THE NEXT LEVEL
Lindsey Wagner: Yale University (swimming) John Anderson: Providence College (lacrosse) Max Horton: Hobart College (lacrosse) Jonny MacLean: Monmouth University (lacrosse) Jakob Murray: Ohio State University (gymnastics)
While establishing a strong foundation for lifelong fitness habits is a core objective of the Derryfield athletic program, coaches are always thrilled to work with talented and committed athletes who aim to compete in their sport at the highest level. Often, this involves committing to a university program as part of the admission process. So far this year, Derryfield has five seniors who have signed letters of intent with university programs. Not only is this an exciting moment for these student athletes to look to the future, it is also an opportunity for them to pause and reflect with pride on the hard work that has brought them so far. We wish all these athletes continued success as they compete at the next level.
DERRYFIELD GIRLS’ FIELD HOCKEY 1st State Title in D-II 5th State Championship in School History
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PRE-THANKSGIVING ALUMNI EVENT Over 50 Derryfield alumni, current and former faculty, and family members gathered on the evening of Wednesday, November 21 for the first ever alumni-centered event held the night before Thanksgiving. The Bookery, a new bookstore and cafe on Elm Street in Manchester, hosted the event with guests enjoying food and beverages while catching up with friends and classmates and perusing the store’s extensive selection of books and other merchandise. With a number of alumni returning home for the holiday weekend, the event capitalized on the tradition from recent years of Derryfield community members meeting up in Manchester the night before Thanksgiving. Based on this year’s success, Derryfield looks forward to growing the event in the coming years. Mark your calendars for Wednesday, November 27, 2019!
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A PROGRESS REPORT goal 1: belonging “Build a sense of belonging and identity within the Derryfield family.”
the staff of the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce. When discussing the decision to move to Carolyn’s hometown, they both note, “while being near family was the original motivation for moving to Manchester, once we started looking into opportunities in the area and how the city has changed and grown, it was clear that it was the right fit for us.” Fast forward three-and-a-half years and Mike is the co-chair of the World Languages Department and Boys’ Varsity Tennis coach at Derryfield and Carolyn is the Vice President of Strategic Partnerships and Programs with the Chamber of Commerce. Carolyn notes that her new connection with Derryfield as a faculty spouse and seeing Mike’s growth and excitement as a teacher has “solidified to me as an alumna that Derryfield is on the right track in continuing to offer innovative and unique opportunities for students.”
FAMILY TIES
As Derryfield, like Manchester, continues to grow and evolve with an eye on the future, Carolyn looks back to her time as a Derryfield student and reflects, “as a member of one of the first classes in the middle school building, I remember when campus was so much smaller. Seeing the growth of the School while maintaining such a welcoming community and culture is great.”
Derryfield plays an important role in so many people’s lives; it is a place of growth and exploration, of trust and compassion, and of building foundations and forging ahead. Alumna Carolyn Goodwin ’05 and faculty member Mike Leary embody and embrace those values in their lives as members of the Derryfield and Manchester communities.
Mike and Carolyn represent the future of the Derryfield and Manchester communities, showing us that the two are connected. The city’s rebirth as a hub of innovation and entrepreneurship mirrors the School’s own mission to prepare its students to be leaders in their communities and to meet the needs of an ever-changing world.
After celebrating their wedding day in July 2014 here in New Hampshire, Mike and Carolyn moved to Manchester in 2015. That fall Mike joined the Derryfield faculty as a Latin teacher and Carolyn joined
As Derryfield and Manchester continue to grow, so does the Leary family—Carolyn and Mike are expecting their first child (and hopefully a future member of the Derryfield Class of 2037) in January!
LEADING FOR THE COMMON GOOD
goal 2: leading
Derryfield’s Leading for the Common Good program looks beyond stereotypical leadership roles, like student government positions and club presidencies, to create a deeper, more inclusive definition of leadership as intentional and sustained engagement for the common good. Head of Upper School Ben Dougherty believes, “Ultimately all of our students will one day be called upon to lead… to step up, recognize what is right, and influence others. We really believe that we have a responsibility to help every student develop their leadership capacity, so our whole program is designed to reach every single student.”
“Cultivate inspired, effective, and compassionate student leaders committed to enriching their wider communities.” opportunities for our students to engage in what matters to them. By developing and presenting an original business plan, they have modeled leadership for their peers and could find their ideas creating positive change for thousands of people in refugee camps. Our students are reaffirming that even without a designated title, there are very clear ways to lead for the common good.”
So far this year, more Derryfield students have participated in traditional leadership development opportunities than at this point in the 2017-2018 school year, and in the entire 2016-2017 school year. But beyond traditional conferences and retreats, more and more Derryfield teachers are incorporating leadership development into elements of the curriculum. Students in Kate DiTullio’s Global Issues elective are asked to address a social or environmental problem with a business plan that is then submitted to the UNH Social Venture Innovation Challenge. Derryfield’s team of seniors Emanne Khan, Sally Mullins, and Abby Wilding were chosen out of a field of 90+ teams to compete in the final round of the challenge, the only high school team to advance. Their pitch, called Growing Hope, beat out five already-established businesses and MBA professionals to place third in the community track. Director of Student Leadership and Service Danielle Llewelyn reflects that “This project illustrates perfectly the value of providing B e l o n g i n g : F a l l 2 0 18
Sally Mullins ’19, Abby Wilding ’19, and Emanne Khan ’19 place third at the UNH Social Innovation Challenge for “Growing Hope.”
T ON DERRYFIELD’S STRATEGIC PLAN Construction of the Athletic & Wellness Center is underway! Since we broke ground in June, a lot has happened and construction has been swift. Here are a few of the highlights: •
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goal 3: building “Invest in a sequence of multiple physical plant upgrades by following a traditional master planning, campaign, and construction cycle.”
The loop road around campus has been completed. The road is currently in use for construction vehicles, but once complete will be accessible by anyone driving on campus. The excavation of the site was completed over the summer and into early fall. The foundation has been poured and the rough plumbing in the lower levels has been completed. This is where the future locker rooms, weight rooms, and cardio rooms will be located. Interior load-bearing masonry walls are in. The electrical transformer has been installed which will provide power to the entire building. Steel arrived in early December—excitement is growing as the structure starts to take shape!
Early snow has proven to be tricky, but the team weathered the challenge, and continues to stay on track. The steel work will be the majority of the focus in December and January with the goal to set the roof trusses by the middle of January.
A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS...
goal 4: elevating
Video is worth 1.8 million words according to Dr. James McQuivey’s study, “How Video Will Take Over the World.”
“Expand program and marketing to attract more families and retain current families.”
We agree. What better way to tell the stories of Derryfield than through video? This summer we launched our “Why Derryfield” campaign by visiting homes of current families to hear how Derryfield is exceeding their educational expectations. Once complete, the videos were shared on Facebook in their towns of residence. The results were amazing! Comments, shares, and views abounded resulting in increased web traffic to our discover.derryfield.org site. A big thank you to the families who participated! WATCH THE “WHY DERRYFIELD” VIDEO HERE
Dr. McQuivey’s “Equation” 1. 1 picture = 1,000 words 2. Video shoots at 30 frames per second 3. Therefore, 1 second of video = 30,000 words 4. 30,000 words x 60 seconds (a common video length) = 1.8 million. 5. Ta-da B e l o n g i n g : F a l l 2 0 18
Kirstie Karpawich, parent of Max ’19, opens up her Amherst home to share how Derryfield has transformed her son’s educational journey.
belonging THE DERRYFIELD SCHOOL 2108 RIVER ROAD, MANCHESTER, NH 03104
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Bye Bye Birdie The Derryfield Middle School Players had a great success with their production of Bye Bye Birdie. The show utilized the acting, singing, and dancing talents of 35 students as well as upper school tech students who comprised the amazing crew. All of their hard work paid off with robust ticket sales, resulting in large, enthusiastic crowds attending both performances. The production couldn’t have been possible without the incredible generosity of the parent volunteers, who helped with everything from costumes and makeup, to supplying snacks during tech Parents of Alumni: If your child no longer maintains a permanent address at your home, please notify the Advancement Office of the correct mailing address at 603.669.4524 or email advancement@derryfield.org. Photo: Marby Vinton ’23 and Griffin Johnson ’23.
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week and hosting a potluck dinner on opening night. They spent hours ironing, sorting, hanging, and organizing costumes backstage. Thank you to everyone who helped in this process. It truly takes a village to mount a successful production and Derryfield is one amazing village!