A Message from the Head of School

FALL 2021

The Bement Bulletin is published yearly by the communications office for current and past parents, alumni, grandparents, and friends of The Bement School.

MANAGING EDITOR

Megan Tady FR

DESIGNER

Penny Michalak P’14

WRITERS

Rachael Carter FA Jill Craig P’29 ’29 Jerry Dobosz FA Evelyn Lee ’21 Megan Mahoney FA Meg O’Brien ’95, FA Will Paulding FA Cori Scagel ’21 Terry Shields P’19 ’21 ’25, FA Megan Tady FR

EDITORS

Sara Becton Ardrey P’22 ’24, FA Kimberly Caldwell Loughlin P’18, FA Emily Mikolayunas Rich P’24 ’28, FA

PHOTOGRAPHERS

Sara Becton Ardrey P’22 ’24, FA Erin Cromack ’07, PF Alice Gearhart FA Katie MacCallum P’29, FA David Michalak P’14 Emily Mikolayunas Rich P’24 ’28, FA Bradley Walker P’24 ’27

KEY

’GB Alumna/us from Grace Bement era (1925–1947) ’00 Alumna/us Class Year TT Trustee PTT Past Trustee P Parent GP Grandparent GGP Great Grandparent FA Current Faculty or Staff PF Past Faculty or Staff FR Friend of Bement HOS Head of School FHS Former Head of School IHOS Interim Head of School

STAY CONNECTED

BEMENT IS ON FACEBOOK

facebook.com/BementSchool

FOLLOW US ON TWITTER

@BementSchool

“The impediment to action advances action.”

When Marcus Aurelius wrote these words nearly two thousand years ago, he was likely mulling a specific concrete problem of his life or Roman politics; he could never have imagined the challenges faced by schools, families, and communities in the last year and a half. Yet the implacable optimism of his maxim captures exactly the spirit that led Bement through an unforgettable year of living and learning together. Forced to adapt in the face of global upheaval, Bement students, families, faculty, staff, alumni, and friends responded with characteristic resilience, creativity, selflessness, and grace. Their stories await you in the pages of this edition of The Bement Bulletin.

The evergreen elements of the Bement community are here, too: a foundational sense of partnership between the school and its families; the integration of Bement with its place in Historic Deerfield; and an enduring emphasis on cultivating wonder, curiosity, and joy in the minds of young people. Truly, it is the interplay between these forces—tradition and innovation, predictability and novelty—that makes Bement the transformative place that it is and sustains the school decade after decade, through challenges and progress.

My first year in the head of school’s office taught me the power of this dynamic, most evident in the spirit and fellowship of Bement’s students. Drawn to Bement by myriad impulses, they craft a school to call their own and fuel our shared work with their talent and passion. In the turbulent year and a half just passed, their resilience and determination inspired our faculty and staff at every turn. Honoring their promise and ensuring that every child finds success are the beacons guiding Bement’s continued evolution.

In a few short years, Bement will celebrate its centennial, one hundred years of education and service that began with Grace Bement’s simple, powerful commitment to children. Such a milestone will inevitably force our gaze rearward to honor our history, even as we chart a course for Bement’s next century. I invite you to add your voice to that conversation and visit us often in the years ahead; in the meantime, I hope these snapshots of today’s Bement resonate with your Bement experience.

MIKE SCHLOAT P’24 ’26 Head of School