Brooks Bulletin Magazine, Fall/Winter 2013 by Brooks School

BROOKS BU L L E T I N • FA L L 2 013

SAMANTHA GRANT ’14 and her mother, English teacher Leigh Perkins ’81, set out on a journey to Afghanistan.

BOA R D O F T RUSTE E S President William N. Booth ’67 Chestnut Hill, Mass.

Pamela W. Albright Topsfield, Mass.

Vice Presidents W.J. Patrick Curley III ’69 New York, N.Y.

Lammot Copeland, Jr. ’50 Wilmington, Del.

Paul L. Hallingby ’65 New York, N.Y. Secretary Charles E. Bascom ’60 Marion, Mass. Treasurer Donald R. Peck Lexington, Mass.

John R. Barker ’87 Wellesley, Mass.

Anthony H. Everets ’93 New York, N.Y. Carol W. Geremia Sherborn, Mass. Steven R. Gorham ’85 Andover, Mass. Booth D. Kyle ’89 Seattle, Wash. Timothy H. McCoy ’81, Wellesley, Mass. John R. Packard Jr. Head of School Ginger Pearson ’99 Lowell, Mass. Charles C. Platt ’71 New York, N.Y. Belisario A. Rosas Andover, Mass. Lynne A. Sawyer ’83 New York, N.Y. Ashley Wightman Scott ’84 Manchester, Mass. Thomas E. Shirley Beverly, Mass.

Alumni Trustees David E. Berroa ’13 Lowell, Mass. Elizabeth C. Donohue ’12 Andover, Mass. Trustees Emeriti Lucius A.D. Andrew ’57 Seattle, Wash. Henry M. Buhl ’48 New York, N.Y. Steve Forbes ’66 Bedminster, N.J. James G. Hellmuth Lawrence, N.Y. H. Anthony Ittleson ’56 Green Pond, S.C. Michael B. Keating ’58 Boston, Mass. Frank A. Kissel ’69 Far Hills, N.J. Peter A. Nadosy ’64 New York, N.Y. Peter W. Nash ’51 Nantucket, Mass. Cera B. Robbins New York, N.Y. Eleanor R. Seaman Hobe Sound, Fla. David R. Williams III ’67 Beverly Farms, Mass.

Ramakrishna R. Sudireddy Andover, Mass. Isabella Speakman Timon ’92 Montchanin, Del. Joseph F. Trustey III Wenham, Mass.

Emma Goff ’14 works on her language skills in Andrés Méndez-Peñate’s Spanish IV class.

BROOKS BULLETIN

B CONTENTS

BU L L E T I N • FA L L 2 0 1 3

the

Power

Head of School John R. Packard Jr. Associate Head for External Affairs Jim Hamilton

Voice

Director of Development Gage Dobbins Director of Alumni Programs Emily French ’03

Director of Communications and Marketing Dan Callahan Editor/Writer Michelle Morrissey

FEAT U R ES

D E PA RT M E N TS

Design Lilly Pereira

24 Kabul Confidential

02 H ead of School Message

Contributors Erin Greene Chris Abbott ’75 Emily Williams Photography Dan Callahan Samantha Grant ’14 Erin Greene Tom Kates Michelle Morrissey Leigh Perkins ’81 Emily Williams

Unsolicited manuscripts are welcome. Opinions expressed in the Bulletin are those of the authors and not necessarily of Brooks School. Correspondence concerning the Bulletin should be addressed to: Editor, Brooks Bulletin 1160 Great Pond Road North Andover, MA 01845 or send comments via email to: editor@brooksschool.org © 2013 Brooks School

Faculty member Leigh Perkins ’81 and daughter Sam Grant ’14 traveled to the heart of Kabul this summer to see how a group of young Afghan girls is earning an education. They returned with a new perspective on Afghanistan and on themselves.

32 The Power of Voice

Brooks is a place where students are encouraged to find their own voice — and to use it, loud and often. We look at the tradition of public speaking here, from the Wilder Speaking Prize competition to the oratory class.

03 News + Notes 22 In the Classroom 45 Alumni News 50 Class Notes 80 Parting Shot

38 Images of Autumn

Fall is undoubtedly the most beautiful season on campus. Photographs from a short timespan in October capture moments big and small and reflect what makes Brooks such a special place. ON THE COVER Rooftops are a favorite hangout spot in many Afghan homes. Sam Grant ’14 takes in the view from a rooftop in Kabul during her trip to Afghanistan with her mother, faculty member Leigh Perkins ’81. Photo courtesy of Leigh Perkins.

A MESSAGE FROM JOHN R. PACKARD HEAD OF SCHOOL

“ Thinking, Planning, Aligning, Doing” When the school went through its 10-year

“ I am proud of who we are today and could not be more excited when thinking about what we might still be.”

reaccreditation process three years ago, I spoke to trustees, parents, colleagues and the visiting committee in charge of the process during a dinner on the first evening we were all together. I noted that if I were limited to one wish about what our guests would leave thinking, I hoped each of them would believe we were an extremely thoughtful school. As such, our guests would leave knowing and feeling our pride in what we were in that moment, along with our determination to be a better school with time. All of them would know and feel our deep and comprehensive pursuit of a mission we were still trying on at the time — to deliver the most meaningful educational experience our students will have in their lives. As this school year takes hold, I marvel at the progress we have made with this mission squarely in mind. We started Winter Term in January 2012 — one course for students and teams of teachers for three weeks, allowing for a deep and meaningful dive into subject matter, experiences and project-based learning that is difficult to access in the regular run of the academic year. We opened Chace House for 22 boys and three faculty families and found our way to a prototype we will replicate as we pursue next steps with our residential facilities. We built a new College Counseling office, a Learning Center and a Writing Center (all out of underutilized existing spaces), stepping in the direction of equipping the faculty and our students with resources aimed at deeper realization of our mission. We merged our academic technology and

library services to better support students and faculty within all academic pursuits. We have made progress each year with a range of energy efficiency improvements, and have aspirations about our own solar array capable of offsetting 35 percent of the school’s electrical consumption. We are in the process of reconsidering our curriculum with some new thinking about skill and content balance, assessment and schedule. We are working on health and safety protocols aimed at continuing to honor our pledge to take extraordinary care of our students. We have done a lot. We have more to do. What is ahead for Brooks requires more than the thoughtful mode I was proud to be in three years ago. We are actively planning mission-driven ways to enhance the value of the student experience at Brooks. We are working to foster support from the broader school community for the initiatives that will take us well beyond where we are now. Indeed, our thinking, planning, aligning and doing will have a profound impact on the student experience at Brooks now and for many years to come. The pages that follow will shed light on the impressive school we are in the moment, and our good feeling about the experience our students are having here and now. I am proud of who we are and could not be more excited about what we might still be. To share both with you during the months and years ahead will be great fun. For now, I thank all of you for your care and support of this great school. Have a wonderful holiday season.

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N EWS + NOTES

NEWS + NOTES IN THIS SECTION 04 News from Campus 05 Sports Highlight 18 Campus Scene 20 The Arts 22 In the Classroom

Cam Patch ’14 and Abby Skinner ’14 work in the new Writing Center.

N EWS + NOTES

New Place for Putting Pen to Paper The Brooks School Writing Center will be the hub of words both written and spoken. Shannon Alvino ’14 and Bryan Sutherlin ’15 work on their laptops in the new Writing Center, adjacent to English Department Chair Dean Charpentier’s classroom. In the background are sixth-formers Lucas Galli, Branden Shaw and Rachel Feingold.

At any given high school, there are typically

two types of writers — those students whose technical writing is precise, correct and near perfect, but who can never quite think outside the box to write a poem, some free verse or an imaginative short story. And those who are true creative writers come up with some impressive fiction, or some science-fiction-fantasy-meets-wartimeromance — but can’t seem to master the basics of literary analysis.

Now, Brooks has a place for both types of writers to call home. The Brooks School Writing Center was built this summer, born out of the English Department’s idea that student writers could use a place to gather and get help from a teacher or tutor on writing assignments, or share what they’ve written with their peers. The center occupies a top floor corner space in the Academic Building, giving

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N EWS + NOTES

students and faculty the opportunity to meet in a space that offers an inspirational view west over the Lake Cochichewick. “We needed a place where we could meet and conference with kids one on one,” said English Department Chair Dean Charpentier. He talked to several administrators, and work began on the space in May, just as the 2012–2013 school year was finishing. The Writing Center was formerly a physics lab, complete with gas lines, sinks, closets and lab tables drilled into the floor. It became Charpentier’s English classroom, but much of the science equipment remained. Charpentier had a vision, which his faculty peers shared, that in addition to serving as a formal writing tutoring area, the room could also make a great gathering space. The new Writing Center is opening at the perfect time, said Charpentier, because students’ creative writing is being shared more and more publicly with the school community through a variety of ways. “A brighter light has been shined on all the creative writing that kids are doing, the student newspaper has undergone a bit of a revival and our online literary journal Still Waters is going strong,” he said, adding that student writers are eager to share what they’ve written — either for a class assignment or for their own pleasure. The space will be staffed by English teachers who will be available to talk with students struggling with any type of writing assignment. But it will also be a space where student-authors can hang out, talk about favorite books or share their work. The room is equipped with a raised landing that will be used as a stage for poetry slams or readings, or visiting authors’ talks. It will serve as the home for Still Waters. The center will also help prepare Brooks students for college. “We did a survey of recent college grads, and many of them talked about the resources they had at college to get help, and a writing center was definitely there again and again,” Charpentier said. “We knew we wanted to prepare our students for what they’ll find at whatever college they attend.”

FALL 2013

SPORTS SPOTLIGHT

Girls 1st soccer shines The girls on the 1st soccer team

an upswing, winning seven of the

said it aloud before every game,

next nine games and tying two.

to keep it on their minds before

“Before every home game,

they took the field: win ISL, win

we passed a sign in the Athletic

ISL, win ISL.

Center that says, ‘Let no one out

The common goal was part of

work you today.’ We reiterated

the team spirit that brought the

that all the time,” said Goff of her

girls to the league semi-finals.

hardworking teammates.

And despite falling short of their

In the quarter-finals, Brooks

championship goal — they lost the

hosted Worcester Academy,

semi-final game to Choate, 1-0 —

opening up scoring 20 minutes

captains and coaches are pleased

into the first half off of a corner

with the hard work the girls put

kick by Jinx Charman ’16, headed

in this season.

in by captain Bella

“Our strength this season

Papapetros ’14. In the

See all the coaches’ wrap-ups from the fall season online at www.brooksschool. org/athletics/results

was the amount of heart that

semi-finals, the No. 4

we played with,” said Jaime

seeded Brooks faced

Gilbert ’04, head coach of girls

No. 1 seeded Choate.

1st soccer. “I think your heart is

But Brooks couldn’t

demonstrated through leadership.

best the Choate girls, who were

It starts with the coaches and

looking to avenge last year’s tough

how much do the coaches want

loss to Brooks in the quarter-finals.

it. Then it trickles down to your

Brooks lost in a near scoreless

leadership, your captains and

semi-final, 1-0.

then the rest of the team.” Emma Goff ’14, one of four

Gilbert says despite not reclaiming the ISL championship title the

team captains this year, said one

team won last year, she couldn’t

of the challenges early in the sea-

be more proud of the team.

son was bringing together a young

“Come tournament time, they

team. Gilbert agreed: She knew

were on one leg and they were

the team had heart, but it wasn’t

just powering through. I’ve never

coming through on the field.

coached a team with as much

“In the beginning, I wasn’t sure

heart as this one,” she said.

how much my seniors wanted it,” Gilbert said. So, in a Big Papiesque move, the coaches had a stern pep talk with the senior members of the team. “We asked them, ‘How bad do you want it?’” Gilbert recalls. “They didn’t answer me that day, but they showed me from then on.” The captains motivated the younger members of the team and the season soon shifted into

Kate Donovan ’17 muscles past a Choate player at the ISL semi-final game.

N EWS + NOTES

Alesandra Miller ’14 works with Piero, a fifth-grader at Bellesini.

What do you usually end up helping the students with? They have a lot of homework, much more than I did in fifth and sixth grade. The goal at Bellesini is to go to a private school and then eventually to college. We usually end up doing math, but sometimes we help them with English; for a lot of them, English is their second language, so we work with them on that if they want to.

Fast 5 // Q+A Each Monday night for the past three years, Alesandra Miller ’14 has been rounding up Brooksians to head to Bellesini Academy, an allboys school of fifth- through eighth-graders in Lawrence, Mass. Once a week, Miller leads the Brooks team in tutoring fifth- and sixth-graders, catching up on their daily lives, but mostly keeping the group focused on the task at hand: mastering their math and English homework. We asked her about her work and future plans.

Why did you want to tutor at Bellesini? I wanted to do the regular Community Service program, held every afternoon at Brooks, but I always played three varsity sports, and I didn’t have time. But I still wanted to do it, so sophomore year I set it up to go to Bellesini on Monday evenings.

The Brooks schedule is pretty busy, especially for upperclassmen — why is this important to you? If anything, it’s fun. You’re not only tutoring these kids, but you get to establish a relationship with the boys. They know you, and you know them. They want to talk with you, and you get to talk with them about their lives. They love to talk, but they always get their homework done! It goes by pretty quickly every Monday. Everybody comes out happy, it puts you in a good mood.

What’s your plan for next year? For me, I’ll be going to Boston College to play field hockey; I committed last year. For the Bellesini tutoring program, I want to find someone to take it over. It should be someone dedicated to going on a regular basis.

Already committed — any chance you’ll be tempted to float through your senior year? No way. I mean, I still have to apply. A lot of my friends make it sound like it’s been an easy process, but it hasn’t. I started looking at college my sophomore year; basically you start your college process a year early, and you have to worry about your academics and your level of play. You have to be on top of your game.

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N EWS + NOTES

Quote / Unquote

RECOMMENDED READING

“ Education is really illuminating to people. I transformed my paintings into the dreams of other students.” VICTORIA LIU ’14, who organized an auction of student artwork this summer, raising $50,000 for QuestBridge (an organization that provides college scholarships to students in need) and $10,000 for the Brooks School Art Department.

LAURA HAJDUKIEWICZ, SCIENCE TEACHER

The Tilted World: A Novel by Tom Franklin and Beth Ann Fennelly This book is by one of my college roommates

Winter Term Ahead When students return to school after Winter Break, they’ll

launch into the school’s third Winter Term, when they and faculty embark on an intense, three-week, one-topic course of study. And it’s shaping up to be an even better experience than last year, with faculty and administrators refining the program, and building on the experiences of the first two sessions. Associate Head for Academic Affairs Lance Latham said this year, new faculty are bringing a new slate of courses based on their interests and abilities. Of course, some popular courses will be returning: Car Wars, Astronomy and Making the Brooks Band will all be back. But there are new topics of interest as well: a course looking at the business and philosophy of the Disney empire, and one that brings together the faculty braintrust of Kihak For a full listing Nam ’99, Doug Burbank and Jeff Saunders to of courses, teach advanced robotics. There is also a course check out www. focusing on Italian culture and history with a brooksschool. org/academics/ spring travel component. winter-term Changes for 2014 will include some travel days built into the three weeks, afternoon activities added for students who have a free afternoon on any given day, and even a late-afternoon snack to keep the full-day momentum going. Winter Term caps with a community fair, this year scheduled as an evening event for parents to attend, that will showcase what each Winter Term class studied and accomplished.

and her husband, set against the backdrop of the 1927 flooding of the Mississippi River. It’s historical, with very interesting stories. And Beth Ann put a bunch of our friends in it, in a way — so there is a character named Laura.

REBECCA HOLT ’14

Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen I liked it because it took my mind off things, it was very funny. A nice light read.

JAMIE HAVILAND ’14

A Game of Thrones series

Some Winter Term favorites: □ Car Wars

□ Drums: Bring the Thunder

□ Astronomy

□ Skies of Fury

□ Making the Brooks Band

□ The Great Outdoors

□ All that Jazz

□ Making History

FALL 2013

by George R.R. Martin These books are very well-written; at any given time, you’re juggling between five to 10 characters’ stories, told by chapter. There’s never a dull moment.

MEET OUR NEW FACULTY Has made custom cakes like: Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ face, a cockroach and a fruit fly.

“ I have not had a lobster roll yet, but I hear they are amazing — I am thinking lobster roll [might win] over Texas BBQ.”

Favorite historical topic to teach: warfare. “I have always been fascinated with military tactics and weaponry.”

“ I love to travel pretty much anywhere.”

Christine Chen, History Favorite historical period? I love it all! But, if I had to pick, my favorite historical period would probably be the history of medicine because some of the ways they treated sickness and some of the beliefs surrounding what caused the illness are so interesting and crazy. You’re an avid traveler; where have you been most recently? This past summer I went to Denmark and Sweden. My brother and his family live in Saudi Arabia, so I’m hoping to soon make a trip out to visit him and then explore other areas of the Middle East.

Eddie Carson, History

Chris Davis, Science

Anne Epperson, History

What’s something that teenagers seem to struggle with when studying history, and how do you overcome that? As a teacher, it is my job and my desire to move students from the pretty stories and polished literature about historical events, to a deeper more complex analysis of understanding elite and popular culture. History should be taught from multiple points of view. In doing so, students must understand that history is not always a pretty picture. I encourage students to place their energy in doing critical reading in preparation for a far more intense discussion about ideas.

What’s the toughest part, and the best part, of teaching biology? Genetics, and dealing with how we go from DNA to RNA to proteins to a physical appearance. The best part is teaching evolution. Everything we observe around us, from physical characteristics to behavior, can be traced back to those traits being selected for by evolution over the course of history.

How did you end up at Brooks? I taught AP Human Geography, American History Honors, American Government, and English I and III at a large public high school in Cape Coral, Fla., before moving to Andover almost two years ago. I thought teaching at Brooks sounded like a great opportunity to teach in an environment so different from anything I had experienced before.

Heard you’re a baker; how did that start? I started when I was a junior in college because one of my friends asked for a Karl Marx cake for his birthday. My friends started asking for custom cakes and I honed my skills over the years.

If you could go back and live life as any famous person from history, who would it be? I would like to be Amelia Earhart. She was such a strong woman and was not afraid to take risks. Plus, I have always wanted to know what happened to her!

You moved here from Houston — be honest, what’s better: Southern cuisine or New England cuisine? Texas steaks and burgers are pretty much unmatched by most things. It is the one thing I will miss about Texas.

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“ I’d love to play in an old-time string band, but I’ve been a solo performer so long I’m not sure I could carry my weight.”

N EWS + NOTES

“ I try to teach the kids at Brooks the same things I was trying to teach the kids at the college level.”

“ I am excited to be teaching the classes I am teaching and love that I get to do both math and French.”

“ I don’t eat seafood — I like to study them, not eat them.”

Alden Flanders, Theology [Interim school minister]

Are teeangers spiritual? Yes indeed, I think young people have a real concern for spirituality. It doesn’t always look like spirituality that adults would recognize because one of their deep concerns is to differentiate themselves from the children they were and the adult world that often feels oppressive to them. The kids’ spiritual concerns tend to have to do with justice and fairness. They often believe in God, but not in ways that we adults would recognize. That’s my best short take. I suspect most young people would laugh at my stereotyping of them. You’re a banjo player — do you have a favorite song to play? Soldier’s Joy and Flop-Eared Mule.

FALL 2013

Justine Rooney, Science This is your first teaching job; how’s it going so far? I love being back in the small boarding school life. I spent four years of my life at a campus like this, and it feels really nice to be here. Something that we’d be surprised to learn about you? I studied fisheries while earning my environmental science degree at Connecticut College, and am fascinated by the topic.

Patrick Foley, Admissions [Head football coach]

Caroline Hannache, Math, World Languages

What’s the difference between coaching college ball and coaching high school ball? On the field, the biggest difference is the practice format. In college, the offense and defense almost have two separate practices and then come together to work on the special teams phase of the game. In high school, most of the kids play both offense and defense so the practice time really has to be split in half in order to work on those two phases of the game.

Are there similarities between teaching a foreign language and teaching mathematics? Yes — language, like math, is about understanding a big idea, and yet being able to pay attention to all of the details that allow us to follow through on that idea accurately. I think of grammar as being the nuts and bolts part of language that is very much like following mathematical rules, adding and subracting, and transforming things from one form to another.

You’re new to the Brooks admission office; any questions from visiting families that have stumped you so far? No real stumpers yet, but I’m sure they’re coming. I’m not afraid to tell families I’ll have to find out an answer and get back to them.

What are you looking forward to the most for this, your first year at Brooks? Becoming a part of this vibrant school filled with students that make me laugh and enjoy life, and faculty members that keep me on my toes and keep me inspired.

N EWS + NOTES

Easier to Find Have you ever been confused about the

number-and-letter system of room identification in the academic buildings at Brooks? Which floor is L21 or S19 on, and then what about the mysterious-sounding Room X? You’re not alone; new students each fall (and even some new faculty members) appear equally flummoxed by the room numbers. But newcomers and visitors will no longer roam the halls in search of their assigned locations, thanks to a few administrators who worked on solving the confusion this summer. When students returned to classes on Sept. 9, they found that the classrooms in the Link, Gardner and Johnson buildings coordinated with the Science Center numbers. All academic room numbers now have three digits and will no longer have accompanying letters. Rooms on the second floor start in the 200s, on the third floor, in the 300s, and so on. Room X and Room Y will have new numbers, but will retain their “X” and “Y” nicknames. The previously disjointed room numbering system was the result of many “add-ons” to the core classroom space first used when the Johnson building was erected in 1956. New signage throughout the academic building points out the new names, as well as the locations of offices for the form deans, associate heads and dean of faculty. “It’s part of the general project of improving the signage all around campus, from the classrooms to outside dormitories and at points of entry for incoming visitors,” said Associate Head for Academic Affairs Lance Latham. “The new room numbers will help parents, guests and new students navigate the school better.”

In Brief

A LONG-DISTANCE DEDICATION Each year, the senior class votes anonymously to pick the lucky person to whom they will dedicate the yearbook. They can choose a fellow student, or a helpful faculty or staff member. This past year, the class of 2013 chose Alex Costello, notable Brooks character for 12 years, teacher of English and oratory, and all-around jokester as the honoree. “Mr. Costello told us during our sophomore and junior years that he was planning on retiring,

but he decided to stay just one more year, so we could experience oratory taught his way. For this, he deserves to be recognized,” said one sixthformer in his dedication vote. Costello, writing from Florida, said he was

thrilled and truly humbled by the news. He said his connection to this class was part of the reason he chose to retire from Brooks when he did. “I felt so connected to this sixth-form class, I believed in my heart that my passion for and enjoyment of Brooks simply could not get any deeper after this class was gone,” Costello said via e-mail. “This wonderful honor only confirms that — for once — my timing could not have been better.”

PACKARD’S PROMISE Each fall, Head of School John Packard invites students to put him in a pretty awkward position — challenging him to recall their first names on the spot. The challenge pits Packard’s memory for names and faces against students who are hoping to stump him during the first two weeks of classes. During that time, Packard tells students they can challenge him to come up with their names as they see him throughout the school day. If he can’t seem to put a name with a face, the student wins a gift certificate to the School Store. It’s a way to fulfill his promise of learning every student’s name by mid-September. To celebrate, new students are invited to a Nametag Party at the Packard residence. They wear enough nametags to make it near-impossible for him to forget their names. So how did Packard fare this year? “I missed on four returning students and one new student,” he admitted, adding that the challenge technically continues throughout the year, with a few kids still striving for that School Store prize. “I always need to be on guard!” he said.

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N EWS + NOTES

Prefect Runaround Jordan Katz is a varsity soccer player in the fall, and a varsity hockey player in the winter. And one day in early September, she added “sprinter” to her Brooks athletic resume. It was at the annual all-school photo during the first week of school, when all students and all faculty gather for a pan-

Olympic, Hopeful Squash superstar Andreina Benedith ’14 has faced some

talented opponents on the court — and she’s bested most of them, to become the national U-19 urban squash champion. But this summer, she faced off against an opponent she just couldn’t beat, but it wasn’t because she didn’t give it her best effort. Benedith was chosen by U.S. Junior Squash to help persuade the International Olympic Committee to induct squash as an Olympic sport for the 2020 games. Squash was squaring off against two other sports — wrestling and baseball/softball. The IOC ultimately chose wrestling, but Benedith relishes the honor of being chosen to make the case on the world stage for the sport she loves. Benedith learned she might be tapped for the prestigious mission from the executive director of CitySquash, the urban squash program through which she first played the sport. A few weeks after that, she was in Argentina, prepping for her speech to the IOC, and for various international press conferences. She said she wasn’t nervous, because she approached her appeal to the IOC like a job that had to be done. The “big deal” factor finally sunk in when she arrived at the Hilton Hotel in Buenos Aires. “There were press photographers taking pictures every two seconds, and a bunch of important people all around,” said Benedith. So how did she try to sway the IOC? By explaining that squash is a more inclusive sport than wrestling and baseball/softball. “Squash is truly an international sport, with players from all around the world, and it’s equally inclusive to both male and female players,” she said. This fall, Benedith was active in the SquashBusters urban squash program, hoping to give kids from Lawrence the same experience she had through CitySquash. And this winter, she’s got at least one big goal for herself: to get better and better at squash. “I want to be in the top 10 or top 15. I think I can do it, I’m pretty close.”

FALL 2013

oramic photograph. Each year, the school prefect — this year, Katz — poses at one side of the photo, and then, as the panoramic camera slowly pans over the group, sprints around behind the group to be included posing at the opposite side. So the prefect appears in the left-hand side of the photo wearing a checkered blazer and in the right-

See outtakes from the photoshoot at www. brooksschool photos.com

hand side without the blazer. The tradition likely started in the mid-90s, when the school began using Panfoto to take the panoramic shot of all students and all faculty. And that checkered blazer? It’s handed down each summer from school prefect to school prefect, and is kept in a safe place to prevent damage. No telling the exact age of the blazer, but it’s getting a little worn, according to Katz. “I was debating putting my own spin on the runaround, but I respect the tradition and didn’t want to alter it,” Jordan said. “I think it was one of the moments that made the fact that I was actually head prefect set in.”

N EWS + NOTES

Working Smarter Campus upgrades focus on sustainability, energy efficiency.

Built 18 years ago, the Henry Luce

III Library was designed to be visually stunning, an effect that was achieved through a white, window-covered façade from which light shone day and night. It was also built at a time when electricity bills and the environment weren’t as much of a concern as they are today. “The library was an extremely over-lit building,” explained Director of Environmental Stewardship Brian Palm. “You couldn’t turn off the lights, so even at 2 a.m. it was lit up like a Christmas tree.” The library is just one building on campus benefiting from energy upgrades designed to not only save resources and money, but also to reflect the school’s desire to be mindful of its surroundings. Through a partnership with Greener U, a local organization that helps colleges, universities and schools determine which of their buildings could benefit most from energy redesign, Brooks is looking to create more sustainable buildings, one at a time. It was Greener U that advised Brooks to start with the library. Beginning in June, the building was upgraded to include a smart monitoring system that will be able to self-regulate temperature and lighting, and the chiller and fans were replaced. The expected savings ($35,000 to $40,000 a year) are so great that the project should pay for itself within 10 years. The most visible of the projects is the replacement of 103 windows in the Johnson and Link buildings. While windows don’t have a great

A GREENER BRO O KS BY THE NU MBERS

75% of the old Academic Building windows did not open

$35,000+ Savings by upgrading the Library to a smart monitoring system that will be able to self-regulate temperature and lighting

103 windows replaced in the Johnson and Link buildings

$80,000+ Savings by replacing old appliances in faculty residences

20%

of total energy usage is from 2 buildings (ice hockey rink and athletic facility are the biggest utility users on campus)

payback period due to their cost, Palm says that from a maintenance perspective it needed to be done. The old windows, which were installed in 1984, were starting to leak and show other signs of wear. While the project occasionally left gaping holes in buildings and cranes blocking entrances, the inconvenience was temporary. The benefits will be significant, not only for teachers and students who will be able to open the windows (75 percent of the old windows didn’t open) and enjoy better noise and temperature insulation, but also for those who will be receiving the discarded materials. Packaging materials from the new windows will be going to art teacher Lynn McLoughlin’s classroom to be used in art projects. The old windows themselves will be traveling much farther. Through a partnership between Brooks and the International Recycling Network, they will be shipped to Accra, Ghana, to be used in a development project there. “It’s a great statement for Brooks to have the priority of reuse, so others can enjoy their assets and give them new life instead of wasting them in a landfill,” said Jay Baldwin ’69 who works for IRN and helped create the partnership between the school and the organization. Disposing of large materials is expensive, and Brooks is paying for the removal of the windows and their transfer to IRN. But Palm says the cost is well worth it. “There’s an environmental cost to getting rid of your windows no matter what. You’re providing people in

B RO O KS BUL L E TI N

N EWS + NOTES

Cross Training Efforts to increase the school’s sustainability aren’t being performed just in aging buildings, but

something that “meets the needs of the

also in the classrooms

present without compromising the abil-

every day.

ity of future generations to meet their

Director of

Ghana with a set of building materials that they wouldn’t otherwise be able to access for that cost.” Two Brooks students are leading an efficiency project on a smaller scale but of no less impact. During the summer, Jamie Haviland ’14 and Alex Wagner ’15, through an internship at Greener U, were given a $20,000 budget and the task of replacing old appliances in faculty residences on campus. Through replacing old models with new, more energy-efficient ones, they say the school will save more than $80,000 within the next 10 years. “One of the things I learned is that replacing appliances has a really fast payoff,” said Jamie. “There’s an unbelievably fast return on investment.” And other projects are on the horizon. Palm says the school is looking at the ice hockey rink and athletic facility as the next locations for big energy upgrades. Those two buildings are the biggest utility users on campus, consuming about 20 percent of total usage. The school will also be captaining a multi-school energy competition in February, something it’s done the past two years. “The goal is to get schools to reduce their energy consumption during that time,” Palm said. “We won last year, St. Paul’s won the year before. We’re defending our title.”

FALL 2013

Summit allows teachers to think about ways to include sustainability in their lesson plans

Friedland said under the generally accepted definition of sustainability —

own needs” — each organization must

Environmental

define what they focus on to accomplish

Stewardship Brian

related goals.

Palm organized a

“Sustainability is a matter of choices,”

Sustainability Summit

he said. Knowing that the science

at Jay Peak, Vt., in

around sustainability is sometimes

July, with the aim of

complicated, science teacher Randy

the three-day gathering to bring faculty

Hesse wondered aloud how teachers

members from different disciplines

could keep students from being over-

together to talk about ingraining sus-

whelmed by the overarching topic of

tainability into their curriculum — from

sustainability.

arts to American history to physics. “The summit was designed to provide

Friedland agreed that “environmental despair” can seem inevitable when teen-

an intensive conference where faculty

agers think about all of the environmen-

could develop a shared baseline of

tal topics that are already part of their

knowledge in the field of sustainabil-

learning.

ity. Because this area of study can be

But he advised teachers to find the

connected to so many of the school’s

solvable problems, and use the compli-

values, it is my hope that the range of

cations as a learning tool.

academic departments represented at

Faculty members brainstormed ways

the retreat will ensure that the topic

to incorporate sustainability as a lifeskill

starts to permeate curricular discus-

that Brooks students would hone not

sions at all levels,” said Palm.

only in their science classes.

Palm partnered with Greener U, an

In Shelley Zatsky’s photography

organization that helps schools reach

classes, students will be working on a

goals of sustainability — everything from

“track your footprint” photo project.

overhauling curriculum to launching recycling programs. The conference started with a visit

“I’ll have them photograph their environmental footprint for a day — how much food do they waste, how often are

from Ben Hewitt, author of the article

they turning on lights or using energy in

“The Town that Food Saved,” which

some way,” said Zatsky. “It’s a good way

chronicled how the small town of

to make them aware of their consump-

Hardwick, Vt., revitalized itself with the

tion and environmental impact while at

help of some “agripreneurs.” The group

Brooks. In that way, it’s exactly what we

also heard from Dartmouth professor

talked about doing at Jay Peak.”

Andy Friedland, author of the textbook used in Brooks’ AP environmental science classes.

N EWS + NOTES

NEW KIDS

A snapshot of the interesting new students who joined the Brooks community this fall. CELMO CARVALHO Anapolis Goas, Brazil

CAROLINE SAEF Lexington, Massachusetts

Every fall, the Brooks

Deokcelmo Carvalho Filho might just become

Caroline Saef loves the chocolate chip cookies

campus gets an infusion of

known as the Man with the Plan. Originally from

in the Wilder Dining Hall. And that’s not just any

newness — the most visible

Brazil, he’s always known he wanted to attend

third-formers’ stamp of approval for the delicious

being the new students

college in the U.S. So he set his course for that

treats — Caroline knows her stuff when it comes

who join Brooks as third-,

goal — how best to get into an American univer-

to desserts.

fourth- and fifth-formers in

sity? Attend an American boarding school.

September. From the pool of applicants in the spring, 112 were chosen as new Brooksians, each with

“I knew by itself boarding school is a great

The Lexington native took an advanced baking summer course at the Cambridge School

experience, but it also prepares you very well for

of Culinary Arts before coming to Brooks, and

college,” says Celmo.

loved it. “I didn’t really know what I was doing

His family supported the decision, especially

at first, but I have an obsession with baking, so I

special talents and interest-

after his father watched a documentary about

thought I might as well try it,” said Saef, who now

ing stories to tell, and hailing

King Abdullah of Jordan, who attended Deerfield

counts vanilla cupcakes stuffed with chocolate

from as close as Methuen and

Academy.

and topped with raspberry frosting among her

as far as Egypt. The Bulletin spoke to four out of the group of “newbies,” to find out more about them,

So the plan began. They narrowed the search area to New England, and created criteria for where Celmo might want to call home. “I wanted to go to a school with clubs, like a

accomplishments. The chemistry of baking fits in with Caroline’s self-description of being a “math/science type person” but it also allows for some personal

why they chose Brooks and

business club, and also a school that had gradu-

flair, as well. “I like it because you are free to be

what they’re enjoying so far.

ates going to good colleges,” says Celmo. “Brooks

creative; whatever you want to do, you can make

felt like the best option. I liked the community,

it happen,” she said.

and the teachers seemed open to new ideas.” But even with bubbling enthusiasm for meeting

Interested in food and health, Caroline signed up for the Wellness Club, which focuses on stu-

new people and trying new things, this fourth-

dent health issues, from the dining hall options

former is still focused on his goals. He wants to

to getting enough sleep.

be fluent in Chinese in three years, and wants to study business and economics at MIT.

Caroline says she’s been enjoying the friendly atmosphere at Brooks since her arrival. “I was

“[Going to MIT] must be really challenging,

nervous about starting high school, and being at a

so I have to be prepared for a lot of demanding

new school where I didn’t know anyone, but that’s

things, and I think Brooks can provide that for

also an exciting piece, getting to meet all new peo-

me. I would love to be part of the many things

ple. I feel I’ve made a lot of friends already.”

that happen here, so I can be prepared. I wanted a place where I could be challenged. Brooks demands that from me.”

B RO O KS BUL L E TI N

N EWS + NOTES

Quote / Unquote Celmo on the new people and experiences he’s encountered so far:

KENNEDY POUNDS Brooklyn Park, Minnesota

NICK THORNDIKE Westwood, Massachusetts

You’d never know that Kennedy Pounds was a

Three years before coming to Brooks, Nick

performer. The third-former speaks just barely

Thorndike found himself in the Dominican

above a whisper, and says she’s very, very shy.

Republic learning some useful tips about rice.

But something about reciting a poem in front of

He, his family and family friends were doing

a crowd, it’s a different story — she puts on an

community service work after the 2010 earth-

impressive performance.

quake in Haiti. Many of the displaced Haitians

When the Minnesota native does reveal her

were in the Dominican Republic seeking refuge.

hidden talent for reciting poetry, people usually

And, apparently, seeking to share their secret to

respond with surprise. “They’ll say, ‘You can do

getting the best rice.

that stuff?’ And then when I start actually saying the poems, then they are really surprised.” It was her mother who first got her interested

“We visited kids in the town, and had a meal with them. It was just rice and beans, but it was great. They told me about the rice sticking

in poetry — Nekima Levy-Pounds ’94 became an

to the bottom of the pan and that being the

avid poetry fan during her own time at Brooks.

best,” he recalls.

Kennedy says her favorite author is Maya

It’s those little details the third-former remem-

Angelou; this summer she read Letters to My

bers from the two-week trip, during which his

Daughter, which she recommends. She counts

family helped paint rooms and visited a church

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings as among her

and school.

favorite poems. “I like it because it tells you about all the struggles that African-Americans have gone through and how they overcame those struggles,” Kennedy says. When she’s not busy reading, Kennedy is keep-

These days, Thorndike is enjoying his first semester at Brooks, mostly because of two things — his new friends, and his Latin class.

sentence says. It’s challenging; it’s the class I look forward to the most,” he explains. “Once you get

soccer team, and living in Merriman dormitory.

past the grammar, it’s fun; you get to read actual

So how does she go from a shy high school

Caroline on why she chose Brooks:

When I took a tour during my visit, I could feel the love. Kids I didn’t even know would say hi to me, it just felt like such a warm place. Kennedy on the advice she received from her mother, a Brooks alum, and her older sister, Jayda Pounds ’15:

They told me to do my homework ahead of time, and meet with teachers if I needed extra help. And Jayda said I should come out of my shell and meet new people.

Latin? Yes, Latin. “It’s like a puzzle! The endings of the sentence help you figure out what the

ing up with schoolwork, playing on the girls 1st

freshman to a strong public speaker? She stays

I’m doing sailing this fall, I’ve never done that before. And I’ve made new friends; I’ve got an Egyptian friend now, a Hungarian friend. I’m excited to try new sports, join clubs, meet new people, maybe be on student government.

famous texts.” He was familiar with Brooks from Fessenden

calm. “I take deep breaths; sometimes I just want

friends like Andrew Bolte ’15, Jack Banse ’14, and

to get it over with. I have to get into the groove of

Andrew and William Kimball, who graduated from

it first, but I enjoy it,” she says.

Brooks in the spring.

Nick on looking ahead to the spring crew season:

I find it very relaxing, even though some people would say it’s work. I feel at ease when I’m on the water, I think it’s all in the rhythm.

The best thing so far, he says, is dorm life. “Being in the dorm is like a little family,” he says.

FALL 2013

N EWS + NOTES

WELCOME NEW TRUSTEES

The Board of Trustees welcomed four new members this summer, each with a vested interest in the school’s future.

DAVID BERROA ’13 David Berroa will have to remember that he’s now allowed to call his former head of school by his first name, and not just “Mr. Packard.” Berroa is working with Packard and

BOOTH KYLE ’89

RAM SUDIREDDY P’15

When Booth Kyle was first approached

Sathvik Sudireddy ’15 is very involved

about joining the board, it was a classic

with the school’s theater program, with

“no-brainer.”

starring roles in recent productions. So

“I’ve always loved

it’s no coincidence that his father, new

Brooks, and since I am

trustee Ram Sudireddy, is interested in

an educator myself, I feel

strengthening the Brooks School arts

really strongly about giving

program with better facilities.

back to schools in general,

“Sathvik is getting a very good

and especially to the school that meant so

education, very good training and moral

much to me,” he said.

development,” said Sudireddy, who is

Kyle is currently the assistant head of Lakeside School in Seattle, and previously worked at Deerfield Academy for eight

interested in the overall wellbeing of the school in addition to the arts program. Sudireddy said his status as a current

years. Before that, he spent a few years

parent gives him a unique perspective,

working in the Brooks admission office.

which he’ll bring to the board work. “I’m

“As an alum, I’m automatically invested. My brother and sister came to Brooks

already tied to the school, and I’m getting live information on the things that are

after me; I started working there early in

happening on a daily or

my adult life — I’m connected to Brooks

weekly basis, so I’ll be able

in a very strong way,” said Kyle, who

to contribute in that way,”

counts teachers Dusty Richard and Peggy

he said.

Corbett, as well as advisor John Morris,

Sudireddy is the

coaches Bill Dunnell, Libby DeLana and

senior vice president

Henry Fox as his “guardian angels who

at International Rectifier, an advanced

were always looking out for me.”

power management technology firm with

At Lakeside, he’s heavily involved in

offices in Tewksbury, and headquarted in

curriculum review, and says that can help

California. He also founded Siltek Corp., a

him as a Brooks trustee. “Providing rele-

privately held software development and

vant curriculum and therefore a relevant

IT consulting corporation.

education for our digitally native kids, and

He said he sees a bright future for

being proactive about how our school’s

Brooks, and is interested in discussing

curriculum is designed for this century are

ways to increase the school’s endow-

important. We should be bold, because

ment, add more teachers and staff, and

the world is so much more connected

increase training and professional devel-

now. These kids’ jobs are going to be so

opment opportunities for those faculty.

different from ours,” so the high school

He notes that increasing the diversity of

curriculum should be evolving, as well,

the Brooks community is also a priority

he said.

for him. “And diversity does not just mean race, but also economic backgrounds and other factors,” said Sudireddy.

other trustees this year, as the newest member of the board. “I’m very excited to bounce ideas around other alumni and trustees on how Brooks School can continue to provide the most meaningful education for current and future students,” said Berroa, who as an alumni trustee will serve a two-year appointment. Now a freshman at Northeastern University, Berroa plans to pursue a career in architecture. So it’s no surprise that spaces on campus are something that Berroa feels passionate about. “As an aspiring architect, I have observed how design and function go hand in hand. Space is very important; it allows us to choose whether we socialize or remain independent. Brooks School has a beautiful campus and great locations to hang out, and recent renovations to the Student Center will surely have an impact on community life,” he explained. “I would like to work with alums and trustees to see how such an impact can be made in other common spaces, especially in dorms, and especially in the winter season.” He says he feels thankful that he was able to attend Brooks. “I believe that prep school is a great opportunity for inner-city kids who take their goals and themselves seriously. That being said, the transition isn’t easy. In the end, the hard work will bring along experiences,” said Berroa, who is originally from Lawrence. “I hope to encourage alumni and trustees to continue opening doors for inner-city youth who are passionate learners, and who are interested in the people and the world around them.”

B RO O KS BUL L E TI N

N EWS + NOTES

TIM MCCOY ’81, P’14 P’15 Tim McCoy’s ties to Brooks go way back,

Punctuation Fun‽

even before he was enrolled as a student here. He proudly points out that he was at Brooks for many summers as a camper and then counselor for the Brooks School Summer Programs. His years as a student here also represent a well-rounded experience — the school was all boys for his first two years and co-ed for his last two. Two of his years were as a boarder and two were as a day student. No matter which lens he’s looking through when he looks back on his Brooks experience, McCoy says he only has fond memories. McCoy, who has been a McDonald’s Restaurant franchisee in the Boston/ Lowell area for the past 25 years, said he also has a unique perspective as a parent, especially since he’s hearing about the daily life of the school from two sources: daughters Charlotte ’14 and Ellie ’15. “I’m getting an in-depth look behind the scenes,” he said. As a parent and alum, McCoy says he’s been getting to know Head of School John Packard, and feels “absolutely on the same page” with him about big projects on the horizon, such as a new auditorium that can fit the whole student body, a bigger and stronger chapel and chapel program, and a turf field. He admits to some mischevious deeds while a Brooks student — and laments that his daughters have already asked him about some stories they’ve heard from teachers they’ve had in common, like

On September 24, National Punctuation Day,

English teacher Leigh Perkins ’81 introduced her third-form English class to her new favorite punctuation mark: the interrobang. “It may be the only punctuation mark you’ll ever need while texting,” she said. The interrobang, often expressed as ?! or !?, is a combination of the exclamation point and the question mark. As one student explained, it can help overcome the frustration often associated with wanting to add exclamation to a question. The mark was invented in the 1960s, but it never became a standard in·ter·ro·bang punctuation mark. Perkins thought A punctuation mark in introducing it in class would be a the form of a question mark superimposed good way to get her students excited on an exclamation about punctuation. She encourpoint, used to end a aged them to be on the lookout for simultaneous question and exclamation. incorrect punctuation marks in the world around them, and the students responded enthusiastically. Students have already been picking up on errors around them, such as mailboxes with incorrectly placed apostrophes. They are also learning that getting punctuation right is important. “Then you don’t say something you really don’t mean,” said Molly Carabatsos ’17. Something like what the poster outside Perkins’ classroom reads: “Stop clubbing, baby seals,” with a picture of baby seals in a dance club. Who says punctuation can’t be fun?!

‽

Dusty Richard. “I tried not to influence them about their time at Brooks — I want them to experience things for themselves,” he said. As for the stories they’ve heard, “I tell them ‘Ahh, when you graduate I’ll tell you the real story.’”

FALL 2013

Kenza Bouanane ’17 shows off the interrobang tattoo — don’t worry, it’s temporary — that she and her classmates donned to celebrate National Punctuation Day.

CAMPUS SCENE

B RO O KS BUL L E TI N

Sixth-formers battle the rapids with their river guide during the senior class trip to the Deerfield River in western Massachusetts. At the start of each school year, each form heads to a different adventure to bond as a class and get the year off to a fun start.

FALL 2013

THE ARTS

Creating Curators The opening exhibit at the Lehman Art Center allows students to create a cohesive show using pieces from the school’s permanent collection. As student-artist Molly Alvino started gingerly pull-

ing out pieces of artwork from the collection in the basement of the Robert Lehman Art Center, she knew she had something pretty special, even if at first she couldn’t see how it would come together. But even on the first day she was looking over the school’s permanent collection, she was drawn to certain pieces. “I love color, so I’m pulling things that are catching my eye. I tend to do more abstract stuff, so this is different for me,” said Molly. Molly and other student-artists acted as curators this fall, when they worked with faculty members Amy Graham and Heather Lazar to choose and hang pieces in the Lehman Gallery for the first art exhibit of the 2013–14 school year. The show, curated entirely by the To see this year’s slate students with pieces of their choosing, of artists at the gallery, accomplished two goals — allowing be sure to check the students to act as curators, and showLehman Art Center web page; you’ll also casing some of the incredible pieces find exhibit opening from the school’s art collection that dates and gallery are normally kept in storage. hours: www.brooks school.org/lehman It also served as a great way for Graham, director of the Lehman Art Center, to reach one of her ongoing goals: to get students more involved “in every aspect” of the Lehman gallery. She believes that it is a great resource for the school community, and should be used as such. “It was a very organic process … the student gets a really personal sense of how theme works in visual

work,” said Graham, adding that the experience was like letting the students be in the driver’s seat rather than a passenger in a car. To begin, the only direction Graham gave the students was to “pull pieces that catch your eye, or pull you in.” From there, the students involved — Megan Quinn ’14, Ben Riley ’14, Steven Ives ’15, Molly Alvino ’15, Elise O’Brien ’14 and Delaney Blatchly ’14 — gathered their choices, anywhere from six to 12 each, all the while thinking about how their collected pieces were tied together, and what theme they represented. Graham modeled the idea after Douglas Hyland’s work at the New Britain Museum of Art, where later this year Brooks art students will do a similar type of show curating. “The fact that the students were in charge of having that theme and that vision put an academic and cerebral stamp on their visceral leanings. So they were able to state not only why they liked certain pieces. They were able to take it one step further to talk about why they were drawn to a collection of pieces, and able to identify a theme to their own choices,” said Graham. For Ben Riley and Steven Ives, that theme was all about Americana — from the black-and-white Depression-era photographs of Walker Evans to the opulence of a candy-apple red Porsche painting. They said pulling the pieces was relatively easy, but that learning to hang an art exhibit was an eye-opening experience.

B RO O KS BUL L E TI N

THE ARTS

“ I ended up choosing pieces with color, and things that drew me in. These pieces make you feel something, you feel an emotion when you look at them.” “I have newfound respect for people who do that all the time. It involved precise measurements and math, and it took roughly two and a half hours,” said Ives. “It was cool learning what goes into making an exhibit.” Of their dozen pieces, Steven and Ben said there were two that went well together — a print of the Statue of Liberty and a print of someone lazing on the beach with a cocktail. Both pieces are by alum Farwell Perry ’77, and were hung side-by-side in the gallery. “These go together because the stripes of the flag behind the Statue of Liberty sort of continue in the stripes of the woman’s bathing suit in the picture on

FALL 2013

Top left: Steven Ives ’15 and Ben Riley ’14. Above: Molly Alvino ’15 and Head of School John Packard.

the right,” Ben explained during the show’s opening in September. Megan Quinn and Elise O’Brien found their pieces came together naturally — seven black-and-white photographs, part of a collection of photos taken by French photographer Lucien Clergue. Both agreed that this set of photographs spoke to them. “To me it makes me think: freedom, bare freedom,” said Elise of the female forms posed in mountainous landscapes or sandy beaches. “They also feel like they have a temperature to them, or a texture.” By the time the show opened in mid-September, Molly had edited her choices, and pulled them together using a poem. “I ended up choosing pieces with color, and things that drew me in. These pieces make you feel something, you feel an emotion when you look at them,” she said at the exhibit opening. “This has been great because I didn’t even know this collection was down there, and now it’s on display for everyone.”

IN THE CLASSROOM

All About ’Bots Thanks to an educational gift, physics students are being introduced to robotics. Earlier this year, thanks to a grant from an alumnus,

students got a sneak peek into the world of robotics. Students worked in teams to design, build and race robots, learning about circuits and circular motion. They also learned to work with others, follow directions and brainstorm independent ideas. “The design was the most difficult part,” Ikenna Ndugba ’16 said. “I thought it would take much longer than it did, though. We all had different ideas but then took a piece from everyone’s design. So far, it’s panned out.” In the spring, students in Kate Zipin’s physics class used their designs to physically build their robots using power tools — something most kids

didn’t have experience doing. While Henry Mathey ’15 did have experience, his drill proved a bit too powerful, as it took three tries to properly drill a screw into two wooden boards. The final step of properly connecting the battery’s wires (needed to turn the wheels) was the hardest step for Serena Nickson ’16 and her team. But once they figured it out, their robot was literally running circles around the classroom. “We’ve been learning about the way energy travels, through resistance and motion,” Serena said. “It’s fun to see how everything connects and powers up because wires are usually hidden in most products.”

B RO O KS BUL L E TI N

IN THE CLASSROOM

Opposite page: P.J. Kelleher ’15 and Erinn Lee ’16 work in Kate Zipin’s physics class. Left: Dylan Rathbone ’16 adds wheels to his robotic car.

Teammate Sam Vogel ’15 had never used power tools before this project, which he deemed quite cool. And once their robot was up and running, he couldn’t wait for the big race. And what a race it was: students set up an obstacle course of chairs just outside Kate Zipin’s physics classroom, and let their robotic cars loose. Most made it around the track, but some crashed into the obstacles and had to start over. The Clay Foundation grant was awarded to introduce a robotics component to the school’s introductory physics course. Buckner W. Clay IV, Brooks class of 2002, is the CFO of Clay Foundation-West. Brooks teachers submitted some proposals for projects, said Clay, and the one for giving younger students the opportunity to experiment with robotics caught the foundation’s attention. “I am personally fascinated with robotics. Beyond creating wonderful mechanical contraptions to watch, the field brings together many theory-heavy disciplines into the physical world, which can mean the difference between being lost and finally getting it,” said Clay, who works as a software engineer at Google. “We are hopeful that the introduction of robotics early in a student’s education will inspire students or at least afford them an additional way to see the world. It certainly helped me.” There is a robotics course offered to upperclassmen, using the state-of-the-art Sejong Hall robotics lab that

FALL 2013

“ The kids were able to talk about linear speed, rotational speed, batteries, electricity, motors. And every kid used a power tool at some point to assemble the car, measuring, drilling, redrilling.” was part of the new Science Center construction in 2008. But younger students weren’t getting the exposure to robotics and engineering early on, until the Clay grant arrived. “This grant allows us to introduce robotics earlier, so that all students will get to experience some form of the study of robotics early on,” said Zipin. “Through the building process, students are thinking about the mechanisms by which these robotic cars moved; you’re essentially thinking about engineering. The kids were able to talk about linear speed, rotational speed, batteries, electricity, motors. And every kid used a power tool at some point to assemble the car, measuring, drilling, redrilling.” Zipin and fellow physics teacher Randy Hesse are working together to modify the 9th grade robotics experience for later this year, including focusing on the concepts of velocity and radio waves. “Our goal is for kids to have some exposure to robotics and engineering on that level, so we’ll be continuing to refine our curriculum, making room for creative exploration and more trial and error,” said Zipin.

English teacher Leigh Perkins ’81 >> sets out on a journey to Afghanistan with her daughter, Samantha Grant ’14.

Kabul

confidential

BY MICHELLE MORRISSEY

B RO O KS BUL L E TI N

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There is something discomforting about being in a place where everything is so easy. Sam and I spent the last two days making our way home from Kabul. It was an arduous trip with many checkpoints, bag collections and long waits. In the last 48 hours, we were frisked three times in Kabul alone. We were X-rayed five times. We watched a burly inked redwood of an American soldier help an elfin Afghan girl get a bag down from the overhead compartment, and learned that redwoods have nice manners, though few words, which they express in the range below bass. We traveled patiently for 17 hours in Afghan clothes and employing the necessary survival mindset of a woman in that part of the world: Draw no attention to yourself. Blend in. Be deferential. Wear a neutral face. Do not make eye contact. Men go first. Just get through this without getting hassled by the men in control. We got pedicures during our layover at JFK Airport, and let nice women scrape off the literal and metaphoric dust of our journey. We arrived safe and sound, and wandered around our home feeling very, very strange. Clean. Bright. Everything works. No dust. Constant power. Unlimited water. A dishwasher. Potable tap water. A stocked fridge that works. An easy drive to anything we might need. Familiar working toilets. A bathroom with a tub enclosure to shower in, not just a showerhead sticking out of the wall that soaks the whole room. Hot water. … The sense of privilege is almost as uncomfortable as the rank injustice of the disparity. We slept and slept and slept. No fellow human deserves to live the way so many Afghans do, through no fault of their own and as a result of long-term politics (and the resulting violence) far beyond their ken. I really believe we can make it better. I’d like your help. — excerpt from Leigh Perkins’ blog Kabul Confidential about her travels to Afghanistan

In August, English teacher Leigh Perkins ’81, with her daughter, Samantha Grant ’14, set out on a journey to Afghanistan for two weeks to further their knowledge of the country, the culture, and mostly to see first-hand the plight of girls seeking an education there. The trip was a result of Perkins’ work and interest in girls’ education in Afghanistan during the past six years. But it was also a beginning — eye-opening, affirming at most times, frightening and infuriating at other times — of her work to join a handful of other adults who want to change the future for women in Afghanistan. the start of a connection Perkins’ ties to Afghanistan began in 2004 when she started teaching The Kite Runner by Afghan-American author Khaled Hosseini in her classes. The book, which became a New York Times bestseller in 2005, tells the story of two young boys who are friends in Kabul, and grow into adulthood against the backdrop of tumultuous events in the country’s most violent decades. She admits that she had her own misconceptions, even as she started teaching the book in her classes. “But I don’t accept that kind of ignorance from my students, and I didn’t want it for myself. Instead of being scared about it, you should learn about it.” The history of the country is a deeply complex one, marred by war, Taliban rule, American occupation and other seemingly insurmountable woes. Perkins admits she is no lifelong scholar on the people and history of Afghanistan. “Of course I don’t have a solid grip on the entire history of the country,” she notes. “But that allows me to be hopeful. If we continue to think of it as a bombed out wasteland full of terrorists, nothing will change.”

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In the fall of 2007, Middlebury College student and Afghan Shabana BasijRasikh spoke to Perkins’ class about her experience. Captivated by her personal story — Shabana dressed as a boy for five years during the Taliban’s rule in order to attend a secret school — Brooks students began raising money for Shabana’s humanitarian projects. Shabana’s efforts to educate Afghan girls grew and grew, as did the Brooks community’s involvement in her work. Several fund-raisers have been hosted by Brooks students to support Shabana’s work. She eventually founded SOLA, the School of Leadership, Afghanistan, which now boasts more than 30 residential students, preparing them to continue their education at schools abroad and then return home to Afghanistan to help better the country. Helping Afghan girls get an education has become a passion for Perkins, who helped Brooks students organize fundraisers to help found SOLA and build a school in a village in Afghanistan. She now serves on the board of directors at SOLA. In her classroom, she’s connected Brooks students to Afghan students through a virtual exchange, using Skype and other online tools to share information. SOLA teamed up with Global Nomads Group, another nonprofit, to develop the exchange program between partner schools, and last year Brooks students piloted Global Citizens in Action, to promote the partnership here on campus. Perkins’ connection to Shabana’s family grew when she and her family took in Shabana’s younger sister, Marjeela, who attended Brooks for two years before graduating in 2011. “Taking in Marjeela was a big step in the right direction,” said Perkins. “The way I was brought up was if you can help somebody, you help somebody.” Marjeela is now a junior at Middlebury, where she is active in community service and other community groups such as Feminist Action at Middlebury, International Students Organization and the Islamic Society.

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She’s one example of what Perkins calls the sense of hope and sense of opportunity in these Afghan girls. “Every story you hear makes a more compelling case not only of the need for help, but of the ability to make a change. Every single one of these kids is going to go and come back and take on a project and do it. Shabana is the first example, and all of her siblings are not far behind her.”

Leigh Perkins’ trip was funded with Brooks School’s McVey Fellowship. Learn more about the faculty fund at www.brooksschool. org/bulletin

✒The girls are always learning and

working here. There is very little delineation between work and free time, and even after dinner (all meals are communal) they have another class and study hall. As night falls, all over the house you can hear little girl voices asking all sorts of school questions to the teachers (or anyone). It has been fun to hear the volunteers and Darik Vélez, of St. Paul’s School, working out how to explain the meanings of words we don’t usually think about defining (“as,” for example). The students we spoke with today at another school… had questions that ranged from “sincere but kind of funny” (“What is a shortcut to learn English?”) to heartbreaking (“A degree in painting is of no value here. Is it different in the US?” — that one was tough to answer). Underlying it all was desperate fear for their futures, a clear understanding that they have almost nothing to work with, and a drive to succeed. If our host today, Ustad Nazar Zalmai, the top teacher in the country, a person who was recently asked to advise the Minister of Education but who refused so as not to get entangled, a person who has literally dodged bullets in his classroom (Marjeela was a witness), a person who is so esteemed for his work that the Taliban completely left him alone (except for the males-only thing, of course) — if even he is stuck ... what hope is there to move the education system forward? I am convinced we can help. If we can help the teacher who teaches the teachers make progress with methods and material, then other teachers here will learn, then more students will benefit. A new project is percolating in my mind. Watch out, math and science peeps. A final thought, from Ustad Nazar: “No one has ever come here from another country to encourage us. Thank you for giving us courage.” Fellow teachers, is there any greater reason than that to help a brother in the struggle? Our worst days pale in comparison to what he and his colleagues face every day. Of course, some teachers prefer “the old ways,” and change is hard. But many are eager for it. Think on it.

ALUMNI CONNECTIONS Max Haivanis ’00 works for the Friends of the American University of Afghanistan as a fundraiser. He previously was the senior manager of Middle East affairs for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. In his current role, he heads to Kabul two or three times a year. He and Leigh both foresee that there are connections between the university and SOLA in the future. “It’s great to see that different types of people are getting involved in education in Afghanistan in different ways,” he said. “It goes back to making the country a better place. You see all the tragedy and violence in the media, but if you look at projects like SOLA or the university, you see that not everything is bad.” For the last three years, Brian Luti ’94 has worked in the Afghanistan/Pakistan Hands Program for the U.S. Army, providing political, cultural and social expertise to build networks among Afghans, non-Afghans, government agencies, security forces, NGOs and others. He’s currently in Afghanistan, and will remain there for about nine more months. He read about the Brooks connection to SOLA in a previous Brooks Bulletin, and said he was happy to see his alma mater getting involved. “I thought Brooks was a great place, and I’m really excited to see the school doing something in Afghanistan. There’s no panacea to the problems over here, but education is really important.” Peter Cross ’63 helps strengthen health care systems in underserved populations through an organization he founded, Innovative Development Expertise and Advisory Services, Inc. (IDEAS). This fall he took a trip to Afghanistan for nearly six weeks, working on a project that helped the Ministry of Public Health, primarily in its relationship to the private health sector there. There are about 15,000 private health entities in Afghanistan, but no large oversight group like an association of hospitals, or association Read more about the work that Haivanis, Luti and Cross are doing in Afghanistan at www.brooksschool. org/bulletin

of pharmaceutical companies. Like his fellow Brooks alums, he sees the country as a place of hope, especially in the area of public health. “There have been very dramatic decreases in mortality in

Afghanistan for children under the age of 5,” he said. “We’re able to see the progress; there are a lot of problems, but you find some good people, good Afghans … enough to get some good work done.”

“ [SOLA students] are always happy and appreciative. And they all want to be leaders. It’s a completely different mindset than any other 12-year-old that I know.”

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impressions Perkins and her daughter, Sam, arrived in Kabul on August 10, and the first thing they learned: When it comes to chowtime, pace yourself. They were so hungry upon their arrival, that when their hosts brought them bread, they wolfed it down, satisfying their hunger. But more was coming; a lot more. It’s an Afghan custom when you visit a home, a feast is served. And when someone visits your home, you must keep the food coming. Even though most visitors are unannounced, they are always welcome. In a room of beautiful carpets and cushions, the food came in waves — homemade yogurt, plates of boulani (picture a thin-crust calzone with a think layer of mashed potatoes and spices in it, says Perkins), qabli (rice with carrot shreds and raisins), green beans, okra, a cucumberyogurt drink, kebabs. It was just one of the cultural differences that Sam and Leigh would encounter during their two weeks in Afghanistan. They lived at “Baba Ted’s” house — the home of SOLA cofounder American entrepreneur Ted Achilles, located near the school. Their days included different activities like kite flying on the roof, teaching the students how to play badminton or board games like Sorry! and Othello. They shared meals, met visitors and worked at SOLA, tutoring the students, or, for Perkins, helping to plan out curriculum and teaching techniques. They spent time with Schuyler Moore, a Harvard student who is volunteering at SOLA, after taking a gap year from Harvard, working for the Global Terrorism Database in Washington, D.C. They also worked with Darik Velez, who teaches astronomy and physics at St. Paul’s School in Concord, N.H. Most of the day-to-day life in Afghanistan was positive for both

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Sam and Leigh — learning about a culture first-hand, trying new foods, making new friends. There were a few times when it was less comfortable. During a walk from a shopping mall to a rug store, Sam admits she was on “sensory overload.” “The sewage, the smoke, the people coming at you from all over the place. I knew we’d be fine with Shabana; she was telling me ‘cover your hair more, keep your head down,’” said Sam. “I sang a song in my head so as not to think about it. I felt like it was the longest 15 minutes of my life.” But what Sam noticed more than the heartache was the hope. She saw it in the SOLA girls, laughing as she made chocolate chip cookies with them, or as she showed them how to play Othello or Monopoly — but always

excited to learn and think about their futures. A typical day at SOLA features a rotating schedule for many of the girls. Some have classes in the morning, others in the afternoon, and some at night. One day, a visitor was teaching them how to write a proper e-mail. They study world history, math, English. The girls cook dinner in teams of two each night, some have more classes, and then finally go to bed at around 10:30 p.m., said Sam. “Here a lot of times we complain about going to school, but at SOLA, that’s all they look forward to. It’s what they love,” said Sam of the girls, who range in age from 12 to 17. “They are always happy and appreciative. And they all want to be leaders. It’s a completely different mindset than any other 12-year-old that I know,” Sam said.

✒In 10th grade English at Brooks, we talk a lot about what it’s like to

live under a repressive regime, and what happens to humans who are stretched to breaking by their circumstances (the traitorous yard boy in In The Time Of The Butterflies; the neighbors who are informants in Persepolis, for example) In a setting like this, trust is everything. When we enter and exit the gates to SOLA house, the kaka on duty always goes out into the street to see who might be there, looking for patterns of who might be watching. When we walk the 50-yard straight shot from SOLA to Ted’s guesthouse, a kaka [guard] stands in the street and watches until we’re locked inside. Mind you, we have never felt any hint of fear in this now-familiar neighborhood (we have Dutch and South African neighbors whom we have never even seen, but who somehow just by dint of their passports we find comfort), but we are naïve and don’t understand what every Afghan man, woman and child instinctively does after decades of violence — that you never know who you can trust, and that a failure to be alert and aware can be fatal. It must be tiring having one’s immediate personal security AND the larger notion of other entities spying on you and your countrymen at the forefront of your thoughts every day. That, and the struggle of daily life with limited basic resources … and the anxiety of fighting for a basic education, and the knowledge that the education your country’s system provides is deficient … these are just some of the inconceivable circumstances Afghan children grow up with. It’s not their fault and it’s not fair. And I’m proud of Brooks and other independent schools for stepping up to help in the ways they can. If you’re reading this and your school hasn’t stepped up, let’s talk about making that happen. … It’s worth the effort.

“ At the bottom of all of this are people. People who have the same human issues that we have, who struggle with illness, who celebrate their children’s successes and who are just trying to live.” the return When Brooks students speak about their travel to other countries through the school’s Exchange Program, they often find they walk away with the same life lesson: that no matter what the circumstances, the teenagers they meet are fundamentally just like Brooks teenagers. But certainly the girls at SOLA are different. They must be different. For Sam, and for Perkins, the challenge was learning to appreciate both the differences and the similarities equally. “I could connect with them on a lot of levels, but at the same time, I couldn’t,” explains Sam. “They live in this war-torn country. But they have to go on with their lives.” She recalled a time when the SOLA students were skyping with students in a classroom in Sweden, and one of the Swedish students asked the Afghan girls if they had a “safe room” or a “panic room”

BROOKS AND SOLA TODAY Since Leigh Perkins and Shabana Basij-Rasikh met six years ago, the connections connection between Brooks and the effort to educate Afghan girls has grown stronger each year. This fall, 15 girls from SOLA earned scholarships to 12 different schools in the U.S. Palwasha, a SOLA student, is attending Brooks this year. Leigh also has plans for getting Brooks community members involved. Afghan girls are “almost completely sedentary … their entire life is inside the walls of school and home, which I didn’t fully understand until I got there,” she observed, so she’s asking Brooks strength and conditioning coach Mike Stella to come up with a few routines that the girls could do inside to get some physical activity.

— somewhere to hide if they felt they were in physical danger. The SOLA girls were confused. “The Swedish student explained that it was a place where they could go when something bad happens. The SOLA girls asked, ‘What do you mean? What do you think would happen?’” explained Sam. What seems like frightening, unstable conditions to others are just regular, everyday life for the girls at SOLA. There’s a part of visiting Afghanistan, explained Perkins, that’s even more shocking because it hasn’t always been what it is today. “They were a developing country just like everyone else, up until 1979,” said Perkins. At a recent faculty meeting, Perkins made a presentation about her trip to her colleagues, showing pictures of Afghan women in typical mid-70s mini-skirts and other Western garments. But that was before war, the Taliban, American troops. “They’ve lived through four decades of war, so there’s this survivalist lifestyle … sometimes it feels as though nobody trusts anybody,” said Perkins. “What struck me the most the whole time, just being out in public and out in the streets, is that sense of fear and distrust. They don’t know who the terrorists are anymore.” But the country is much more than what Americans see on CNN or read online.

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“The scenery is awesome. When you fly in, it’s like this giant bowl, all of Kabul is spread out before you. It’s a pretty majestic country.” Now back on the Brooks School campus and well into the 2013–14 school year, Perkins and Sam are still processing their trip, and telling friends and colleagues about their experience for those 14 days in Afghanistan. “It’s still hard when people ask me about it, it’s hard to explain,” said Sam. “It’s given me a little more open-mindedness. I knew about this part of the world, but being there and living there is a whole different thing than learning about it.” At times when Sam was scared, says Perkins, “I wanted her to know that I was as scared as she was, but we were in good hands,” said Perkins. While Sam and the rest of the Perkins/Grant family have a personal connection through the Basij-Rasikh family, this trip had a different effect — it was much more personal. “Sam made contact on a personal level with so many different people — kids who have scholarships to U.S. schools but never got their visas so they can’t go, a war widow who is a 29-year-old mother of five,” said Perkins. “There aren’t people more different from her than these kids.” She knows it was the right decision to bring her daughter on the adventure. “This is the most foreign part of the world from being an American, to see the extreme and live through it and love it in spite of the fear is going to allow her to experience the rest of the world with an

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open mind and an open heart,” said Perkins. For herself, Perkins said the trip will inform her discussion of the world literature she’s already featuring in her English classes. She said her aim in the classroom is to “help our students learn about other cultures through that culture’s literature, not just through the Western lens.” Beyond the topic of Afghanistan, Perkins thinks of the trip as a challenge she overcame, a risk she faced and tackled. “As a teacher, the best thing I can do is be an example. I can authoritatively talk about pushing myself beyond what I thought my limits would be,” said Perkins. “In part I wanted to see if I could do it, to practice what I preach to our Brooks students about facing challenges and learning about people different from ourselves.” In the end, she proved her theory right — not only about overcoming fears and challenges, but about the people of Afghanistan. “My instinct was right. At the bottom of all of this are people. People who have the same human issues that we have, who struggle with illness, who celebrate their children’s successes and who are just trying to live,” she said. “We could have found a horrible situation. But instead we found wonderful people who want better for themselves and their children.”

AFGHAN RESOURCES What most of us know about Afghanistan is what we’ve learned since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on America. But the country’s history stretches back thousands of years and is wildly more rich and diverse than what we see on the nightly news. To learn more, check out these resources: www.kabulsummer.blogspot.com This is Leigh Perkins’ blog, with photos and information on her travels in Afghanistan with daughter, Sam Grant. www.sola-afghanistan.org Interested in learning more about the allgirls school that Leigh helps oversee as a board member? Check out SOLA’s site for inspiring stories. www.pbs.org/newshour/indepth_ coverage/asia/afghanistan/ timeline You could spend a lifetime as a scholar and still just touch the tip of the iceberg of Afghanistan’s history. This timeline gives an overview of important dates and events of the 19th and 20th century. Caravans by James Michener (novel) Max Haivanis recommends this book, written in the 1960s, that depicts Afghanistan as it was just before the start of World War II. “It’s fascinating; it shows how some issues have been perpetuated — both how the international community has treated the country and some of the cultural challenges they have faced then and are facing now.” www.bbc.co.uk/news/ world-south-asia-12011352 The BBC has numerous news stories about current events in Afghanistan, but this main site is a good place to start for some quick facts, with links to other, more in-depth coverage.

the

Power of

Voice Recognizing the value of student voices has long been a staple at any typical American high school. Student actors have wowed audiences with emotional soliloquies in countless school drama productions. Soloists from various singing groups have hit notes so high and clear that listeners get goose bumps. But at Brooks, the power of the spoken word is valued even further, beyond the typical high school play or music concert.

By Michelle Morrissey

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Brooks students use the power of their own words, through various forms of public address, to connect with their classmates and teachers, to reveal something personal about themselves, and receive support and acceptance from their peers. They stand at a podium, clear their throats, take a deep breath. And they begin to tell their stories. The results are meaningful and memorable moments of personal revelation; moments that build self-confidence and foster community understanding. But public speaking doesn’t come naturally to the typical teenager; much of adolescence is about fitting in and not standing out. What drives so many Brooks students to do what many would describe as their biggest fear — to take the leap and decide to make a public speech — is the training and support they receive in various ways, including the English Department’s oratory class and the annual Wilder Public Speaking Prize. “For teenagers who are just finding out who they are, and what their strengths are, to speak clearly and to figure out the cadences of language, rather than just the written word that comes flatly on a screen, is very important,” said Susan Hodgson, longtime Brooks faculty member who will run the speaking contest this spring. “To stand up and formulate your ideas clearly is

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as important as being able to read and write coherently.” Hodgson notes that the public speaking tradition is carried out in even more ways at Brooks — from speaking in class to standing up in School Meeting to make announcements or perform, to the senior addresses that students give in chapel. “The oral tradition here is really high. Other schools have flashing video monitors or emails that tell you what’s happening on campus, but we tend to do it by speaking,” she said. “Standing in front of your peers and delivering something important is a tradition here.”

The Roots of the F. Fessenden Wilder Speaking Prize

For Nekima Levy-Pounds ’94, the Wilder Speaking Prize was not only a lesson in public speaking, but also in perseverance. She competed during three of her four years at Brooks, and finally won her senior year with a speech about Sojourner Truth, famed abolitionist and women’s rights advocate. Her impromptu speech focused on unity. “I remember very clearly.

It started ‘My name is Nekima Levy and I am the headmistress of umoja.’ It’s the Swahili word for unity.” The contest has been held almost every spring at Brooks for a halfcentury, and invites students to practice the art of oratory by delivering both a memorized speech by another author (speeches by Barack Obama and Oprah Winfrey have been popular in recent years) and then a longer speech written by the student. A panel of faculty judges decides on the winner, who then goes on to compete in the Law Day Competition, a regional contest hosted by the Lawrence Bar Association, and judged by a three-member panel of attorneys and judges who evaluate the content and delivery of the speeches. In past years the contest was slightly different: students had to pick a topic out of a bowl for part of the competition, and come up with a speech in about three minutes. In other years, the contest has focused on different topics for different speakers. It was the impromptu speech that tripped up Levy-Pounds during one of her Wilder bids. The topic: Hats. “I wasn’t good at thinking on my feet, I guess. I was just lost!” she says with a laugh now. “I already had public speaking experience before I came to Brooks, but that exposed me to that area of public  WEB EXCLUSIVE: Hear speaking, which is from John Walsh ’04, who something I rely endowed a fund to support upon to this day.” public speaking at Brooks, and who remembers his To be sure, three Wilder Speaking public speaking Prize wins fondly. www. and addressing an brooksschool.org/bulletin

audience in an effective manner are both huge parts of Levy-Pounds’ current role as a law professor, civil rights attorney and social justice advocate. “I take the foundation of my public speaking skills and utilize them in places that range from community meetings all the way to the state legislature,” said Levy-Pounds, who teaches at the University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis. That was the idea when the prize was founded by John Cobey ’62 and his brother Todd Cobey ’61 shortly after their graduation from Brooks. Before enrolling at Brooks, they each had won public speaking prizes back home in Cleveland, and when they came to Brooks, it seemed like such a contest would be a great benefit to the school. “We were both president of the Debating Society, and we recognized the power of the tongue. They say the pen is mightier than the sword, but the tongue is more powerful than the pen,” said John Cobey, who works as a lawyer in Cincinnati. He said powerful speakers have been changing world history for centuries, from Pericles to Abraham Lincoln to Winston Churchill. They went to speak to founding headmaster Frank Ashburn about the idea, and made sure he knew that they didn’t want the endowed speaking prize to bear their name. Instead, they wanted to honor F. Fessenden Wilder, senior master and head of admission. Wilder, both WEB EXCLUSIVE: Watch Cobey brothvideos of the final speeches ers agreed, was of John McVeigh’s oratory responsible for the class. www.brooksschool. org/news make-up of

the school where they so enjoyed being students. “The physical plant of a school is very important, but what is really important is the faculty and the students … the mixture of the kids who were at Brooks was determined by Fessenden Wilder, working with Ashburn,” John Cobey said. “Normally you would not ever think to honor the admission guy, but my brother and I were very grateful to Mr. Wilder because he admitted us. Without him, neither of us would have had this incredible experience, so we were very grateful. When you see our class at reunion, and how we all get along together, that was Wilder’s genius.” Ashburn thought it a fine idea, and the first competition was held not long after the two had graduated. Todd Cobey said the idea of being a good public speaker, especially a persuasive public speaker, had traditionally been part of a classical education, and he and his brother both felt that was important. “There was a time in society when people felt it was an obligation of people who were educated to be leaders in society,” and that continues today. As Brooks prepares its students to be leaders of all types in whatever futures they choose, being able to express oneself with confidence and conviction is still important. “Public speaking gives you self-confidence — period. I’m delighted that it’s been going on for 50 years,” said Todd Cobey, who runs an investment firm and lives in California. He recalled that at some point early on, he was asked to come back and be a judge. “I hated it, because I thought each student was good!” he said. He remembers back to those awards he and his brother won in junior high school back in

Cleveland: he spoke about prohibition and his brother spoke about Abraham Lincoln. He recalls John’s speech the best. “He didn’t reveal he was talking about Lincoln, just a guy who had a very hard life, and then at the end said something like, ‘Who was this man who never let defeat defeat him?’ and he turned around and he was holding a portrait of Lincoln,” he explained. “It was a good trick, but that wouldn’t have won it for him. What won it was his speaking ability.” John was a “quiet kid” his brother said, and so to see him get up and command the attention of his whole school was impressive. “We just wanted to do that for other kids,” Todd said of creating the prize at Brooks. Other kids have benefitted from winning the Wilder, but for some, just taking part was a reward, even if they didn’t win. John Petzold ’03 says losing the Wilder was one of the best things that happened to him during his time at Brooks. The topic Petzold’s fifth-form year was on the Biblical quote: To whom much is given, much will be required. “I was this tree-hugging idealist at the time, and I dove right into U.S. foreign aid in Afghanistan and students driving BMWs. I stood on my pedestal and took everybody to town,” said Petzold, who admits he’s since stepped down from his pedestal. It was 2002 when Petzold spoke as part of the Wilder, just months after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. “It was an interesting time. There was a lot of emotion happening in the country and on campus and people were fired up about anything and everything,” he said. While he lost out to John Walsh ’04 in the Wilder, he did get another

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opportunity — he was chosen by his classmates to be the Prize Day speaker that year. His topic? Less political, and a bit more popular. “I talked about exploration and finding yourself. I joked about having high school to figure out what it was that I was good or bad at,” Petzold recalls. Now working as a consultant with Korn/Ferry International, Petzold says the Wilder was an “extremely positive experience. “There’s something magical about being in the chapel and having the whole school listening … there was a standing ovation, which was something I never forgot.” At the most recent Wilder competition, Renu Mukherjee ’15 wowed her fellow finalists and audience members with her captivating speech. It was even more impressive because of Renu’s young age — she was just in her third form — and the fact that she didn’t have any formal public speaking training. While some of the Wilder contestants have chosen to take the sixth-form oratory elective, it is not a prerequisite for the competition, which is open to students in all four forms. She spoke about her experience at Casino Night of her freshman year, and how she was feeling left out of the social circles that already seemed so quickly formed, even though it was only the first few weeks of the school year. “I wondered why there was meanness; essentially I was saying we should eliminate the meanness … and try to become better people, kinder people,” Renu said recently. “Just delivering the speech felt like an accomplishment. I got something off my chest. Afterwards, a lot of my classmates said, ‘I felt what you felt.’ People still talk to me about it.” Just after she was named the winner, Renu talked about why

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she wanted to take part: “I have been the quiet kid my whole life. I’ve always stayed under the radar outside of the classroom, so not many people knew who ‘Renu the Freshman’ was. I thought I would change that and give everyone a little shock. My whole life I’ve had so much to say, and I have just never said it. I just wanted to speak my mind, and the Wilder was a great place to do such a thing. I thought of it as an opportunity to have my voice heard.”

can expose them to new ideas,” he said. “The challenge comes from the anxiety of public speaking, when they have to do it themselves.” During a recent class, students watched online audio clips of speeches by Winston Churchill and Chief Joseph. But it was more than inspiration; McVeigh pointed out some techniques these speakers used to persuade their audiences — repeating a phrase, or appealing to a listener’s emotions, for example.

Oratory Class: Learning By Doing

Each semester, a small group of students faces what for some is their biggest nightmare — speaking in public — and conquers their collective fear. Through the oratory class, offered as an English Department elective for sixth-formers, students get training and historical perspective on the art of speaking, taking the practical skill and making it an academic exercise. Lucie Wise ’14 acknowledged that public speaking is something she’s “always been completely terrified of” but she decided to take the class after watching sixth-formers give their speeches during her years at Brooks. “It’s about getting out of your comfort zone — and I am 100 percent out of my comfort zone — but why not take this opportunity that’s offered?” she said. The class meets twice a week, working as a team or in small groups, to review everything from tone of voice, nervous ticks and physical stance to speech content. The course is based on the act of public speaking and the study of great speeches, explained teacher John McVeigh. “The students are really receptive to listening to and thinking about the words of great orators throughout history, which

To stand up and formulate your

ideas clearly is as important as being able to read and write coherently. Nate Geremia ’14 appreciates the class for its practical applications beyond the classroom. “This is going to help us later in life. My mom does a lot of public speaking in her job, and watching her do that, and having her practice with me, I kind of want to be a good public speaker, too,” he said. “Your social skills get better, in a sense. You get better at showing that you care about a certain topic, and better at getting your point across.”

For some students, it’s not all in the delivery, it’s also about the writing. “This class helps me a lot in my writing, in terms of learning to get my point across on paper, and not just babbling about something,” said Ryan Kizielewicz ’14. When former oratory teacher Alex Costello announced his retirement from Brooks last year, McVeigh immediately volunteered to teach the class. “I’m fascinated by oratory and public speaking. I used to drop by Costello’s class every once in a while and listen, and I really enjoy listening when people deliver a speech in Chapel,” said McVeigh, who also finds himself in a public speaking role as an assistant director of admission. “Teaching this class is giving me the chance to pursue something I’m passionate about.” An energetic teacher and speaker himself, McVeigh credits his early coaching with his own public speaking prowess. “I started coaching youth sports when I was in high school. Even with little kids, if you didn’t take command of the situation, the situation took control of you,” said McVeigh, who believes that public

speakers aren’t born, they’re made. He sees the class as a mix of positive reinforcement and constructive criticism. The latter can sometimes be a challenge. “The kids here don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings, so sometimes it’s challenging for them to learn that criticism truly is helpful,” said McVeigh. “They’re learning that it’s OK to say ‘this is something that didn’t work for me.’ It’s helpful to their writing, and not a personal criticism of their thoughts or ability.” McVeigh, who has taught science in recent years, said oratory is a unique experience, both for himself and the students. “It’s a really fun class. The students are finding a totally different way to express themselves, using content they get to generate themselves [their speeches],” he said. “As a teacher, it’s amazing to watch how much work kids will put in when they choose what they’re talking about.” The students will give speeches at the end of the semester on a topic of their choosing, with the entire school invited to listen. By late October, they were already seeing the light at the end of the

Who was Fessenden Wilder? F. Fessenden Wilder was a senior master, coach, dorm parent and director of admission at Brooks from 1933 to 1972. He died in November 1995 in Essex, Mass. Todd and John Cobey founded the Wilder Speaking Prize to honor him and his efforts to create a special environment at Brooks. John tells a story about his brother’s admission to Brooks. Shortly after his admission interview, Todd received a letter from Wilder. “He told my brother, ‘We are absolutely filled, but we want you very much in our school. Even if we have to hang a hammock for you,’” recalls John. “You can imagine what that did for my brother’s confidence.” Long after the two boys graduated, Todd was attending a Brooks football game, and Wilder himself told Todd how much the prize meant to him. “I was still kind of in awe … I was still a student and he was still a master, even though I was well past graduation,” he said.

tunnel, and possibly getting a bit nervous as their speech date approached. But knowing that half of anxiety is anticipation, McVeigh had them practicing in front of each other on a regular basis. “Certainly, a big goal is that I really want them to become confident in their ability to speak to groups of people. A second goal is to expose them to some great writing and thinking throughout history,” said McVeigh. “And I want them to walk out of here excited about doing more in the future. If they have a great experience, when they give the final speech, hopefully they’ll feel that they can’t wait for their next chance to do something like that again.”

Emotional Benefits to Students

Lucie Wise ’14 asked her mom what she thought about her speech topic. To her relief, her mom approved — she said not only should Lucie talk about being adopted, but she had to do it. “She said, ‘It’s going to be so amazing, and it’s really brave of you; it will be a good experience for you.’ She was really supportive.” It’s no big secret — Lucie, her family and all her friends know she’s adopted, but somehow it’s a little more intimidating to discuss it in such a public forum. “It’s one of the most important things about my life. A lot of people know, but they don’t know the details — they don’t know how I feel about it,” said Lucie. She first wanted to take the oratory class because she feels like she’s been “playing it safe for the past four years.” “I knew I would regret it if I didn’t; I know it’s going to help me so much.” And she’s already seen the results. “I definitely feel like I’m doing 100 percent better since

B RO O KS BUL L E TI N

the beginning of school. The first time we gave our first speech, I was freaking out, sweating, and my heart was beating so fast,” she said. “Now, I’m a lot more calm and more confident.” That’s the key to public speaking at Brooks — no matter where or how it’s preached or practiced, it’s all about building self-confidence. “For a student to say, ‘I can stand up in front of a group of people and I can present myself’ it’s amazing,” said Mark Shovan, a teacher here since 1968, who formerly served as the school counselor and for many years ran the Wilder Speaking Prize contest. “I admire anyone who can get up in front of an audience and can do something; I admire any adolescent for speaking up in class. I know that all they want to do is blend in.” Shovan believes everyone has some level of anxiety about something — when you’re speaking in public, it’s an anxiety about being embarrassed, or looking foolish. But to deliver a good speech, students have to figure out how to put that aside. “I think public speaking can help people by teaching them where to put the anxiety. That a good thing to know in life — knowing where do you put it when you have to perform.” Levy-Pounds recalls the confidence she gained from her Wilder experience. “When I think back, even doing it as a freshman, if you got up there to compete, you had to do your best to bring it, and to connect with the audience,” said Levy-Pounds. Now with two daughters at Brooks — Jayda ’15 and Kennedy ’17 — she continues to value public speaking for her girls. “I encourage the girls to take any opportunity they have to increase their skills in any given

FALL 2013

area like that. They should go after it, even if it could be challenging. Facing their fear makes them stronger people.” Nate Geremia ’14 sees the benefits already, much like Lucie. “I’ve seen it in the little things, purposely slowing down, taking pauses, making sure you make eye contact, especially with a small audience,” said Nate. While Lucie finds public speaking “absolutely terrifying,” Nate says it “really doesn’t freak me out.” It showed last year, when underclassmen were banned from playing videogames in the dorms. Nate felt so strongly that the privilege should be reinstated that he spoke to a full faculty meeting to plead his case. He said many of the impressive speeches he sees these days are well-spoken, but it’s often a speechwriter who can take credit for the word choices that make a great speech successful. He finds when he’s writing papers for various classes, he’s usually thinking about how the words would sound out loud. “The way I write is kind of like a spoken-word poem. In a way a speech is like a poem. If you don’t write it yourself, you’re not going to have the same passion for it.” Levy-Pounds possessed that passion for her topic during Wilder, and she now has that passion for her work. She teaches law students how to engage in oral advocacy, and she thinks back to some of those experiences at Brooks — beyond the Wilder, she also spoke in chapel, in School Meeting and was a senior prefect. “The main area I use my speaking is as an advocate for social justice and for the poor. I rely upon those skills … to utilize my leadership skills, and to this day I fall back on those experiences at Brooks in my work.”

Best Practices for the Best Speech In one of his classes, oratory teacher John McVeigh had students give a one-minute speech on any topic they wanted. Students then reviewed videos of their speeches, and a discussion of techniques and tips followed. “Even the most confident people, if they’re not prepared they can lose that confidence pretty quickly. Confidence comes from preparation, it doesn’t come from bravado or attitude,” said McVeigh. Lucie Wise ’14 says one of the best things she’s learned in oratory class is to take a pause. “It’s really helpful. If you take a breath, you realize you’re OK, you can do it,” she says. Pausing also commands an audience — it works well in class when McVeigh allows a few seconds of silence to get students’ attention. She also advises adding humor to your speech. “If you get a laugh, that’s the best feeling, and it shows that people are listening to you. You’ll be so much more confident after that,” she said. According to Toastmasters International — an organization that teaches public speaking and leadership skills — other tips include: • Pick a topic you are interested in. Know more about it than you include in your speech. Use personal stories and conversational language — that way you won’t forget what to say. • Rehearse out loud with all the equipment you plan on using. Revise as necessary. • Don’t apologize for any nervousness; the audience probably never noticed it.

WOR DS BY DA N CA L L A HA N

Autumn IM AGE S O F

At the center of campus, the sound of dry leaves crunching under loafered feet precedes students on their way to lunch. Around them, the Brooks School campus glows under a rainbow canopy of fall foliage. It’s a tranquil and serene setting that provides a nice balance to the energy and volume of an environment teeming with teenagers. The early days of autumn signal a shift in the school year. Not only has the temperature changed and the dorms come alive with the deafening clang of heating pipes, but also the atmosphere is different than it was a month ago. In September, students are getting settled. New students are making friends, adjusting to new teachers, and trying not to get lost as they navigate the academic building. Returning students are also finding their way, a year older and hoping to get off to a strong start. October is when the school year really starts to take shape. Classes have moved past the “getting to know you” phase and are fully entrenched in the syllabus. Athletic teams have played enough games to have a sense of how they stack up against the rest of the league. And sixth-formers have stopped thinking of themselves as fifth-formers and have comfortably accepted the leadership mantle. This fall was no different, following the same pattern of activity that defines the boarding school life. In a two-week stretch, the school welcomed parents to campus for Parents Weekend, opened its doors to more than 200 prospective families for the admission Fall Visit Day, and saw a deeply engaged Board of Trustees meet for two days to map out a vision for where Brooks will be five, 10 and even 20 years from now. The images from autumn — both mental and digital — are windows into an institution working at living up to its mission: to provide the most meaningful educational experience our students will have in their lives.

P HOTOS BY TO M K AT ES, DA N CA L L A HA N A ND EMI LY WI L L I A MS

B RO O KS BUL L E TI N

FALL 2013

1 RECYCLING BATTERIES In the Sustainability Seminar, a course taught by Director of Sustainability Brian Palm, Brant Abraham ’14, Catalina Robert ’14 and classmates gathered up hundreds of dead batteries and turned them in for recycling. Next, they will focus on organizing a dinner that features locally grown food. “The class is entirely a project based, student directed format,” says Palm. “Students take on actionable items on our campus with the goal of reducing environmental impact and saving the school money.” 2 FALL VISIT DAY The Admission Office saw more than 200 families visit campus on a dry and sunny Saturday afternoon. In addition to meeting teachers and touring campus, prospective students had a chance to talk with coaches and watch home athletic contests. “We couldn’t have asked for a nicer day,” says Interim Director of Admission Bini Egertson. “We met lots of great families and arranged a number of interviews for the days and weeks ahead.”

3 CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION Math teacher Susan Cameron gives individual instruction to Katherine von Stade ’17 before moving on to help Moubarak Ouro-Arguy ’17 and Duncan Davies ’17. This fall, Cameron’s geometry class used a dynamic software program called GeoGebra to explore relationships between angle measurements. “Instead of me telling the students what the relationship should be, they create a diagram in GeoGebra and then manipulate it to discover the relationship,” says Cameron. 4 FOREST MAINTENANCE On the recommendation of a landscape architect and a forester, Brooks has begun clearing the woods on the west side of campus. “The clearing is part of a larger forest management plan that aims to improve forest health, remove invasive species and provide greater protection for the watershed,” says Director of Sustainability Brian Palm. “In recent years, a number of invasive species have taken over that land. The overgrowth is choking off light and nutrients from the native trees.”

5 BOAT REPAIR While the rest of the school was otherwise occupied with games and play practice, English teacher T.J. Baker took advantage of the quiet solitude of Lake Cochichewick to apply some epoxy to the hull of a sailboat. “The boats in our sailing program have been with Brooks for many years and get lots of use,” says Baker. “Every now and then we need to make repairs to keep everything in good order.” 6 ADJUSTING TO A NEW COMMUNITY History teacher and competitive distance runner Eddie Carson, who joined Brooks this summer, is getting comfortable in his new home. “The Brooks family and its sense of ‘southern hospitality’ quickly eased any fears my wife and I might have had moving from Texas to Massachusetts. We were immediately welcomed by invites to dinner, gifts of bread and wine from local markets, and advice on how to navigate the campus life and the winding roads that are nearly void of street signs. We’re amazed at how well our transition to campus life has been. The only remaining fear is the challenge of integrating our running lifestyle with the brutal winters.”

B RO O KS BUL L E TI N

Images of Autumn

FALL 2013

Images of Autumn

STUDYING OUTSIDE Joseline Lu ’15 and Aron Xie ’15 get caught up on calculus homework while enjoying the perfect fall weather. The 250-acre Brooks campus is an ideal setting for studying outside.

Images of Autumn

smiling faces as students gave their families a glimpse into their lives at Brooks.”

8 PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT The field hockey team enjoys an autumn practice on one of the most spectacular grass fields in New England. This might be the last year the girls play on grass — more than half the ISL is now competing on turf, and New England championship rules require all tournament games be played on turf. “Our team is competing for a New England championship on a regular basis,” says coach Ali Mattison. “We need a turf playing surface if we want to be able to host home games.” Plans for a turf field are under way. Fundraising for the project continues, with the hope of breaking ground in June 2014. 9 MAIN STREET The road through the center of campus, while not officially named, is known ubiquitously as Main Street. It is the pedestrian spine of the school, a thoroughfare on which students and teachers walk together throughout the day. It has been a longstanding goal to close off the road to

vehicular traffic. “By installing an alternate road closer to the perimeter of campus, we would be able to restrict cars from using Main Street,” says Director of Strategic Projects Dean Ellerton. “That would give the center of campus more of a park feel and would greatly enhance the aesthetics at the school’s core. Ultimately, we want to maintain a New England village feel while also fostering ways to support community.” 10 PARENTS WEEKEND The families of Rowan Beaudoin-Friede ’17 and Giovanni Vargas ’17 were on campus in October for Parents Weekend. As the first major check-in of the academic year, parents had the opportunity to visit classes, meet with their child’s advisor and attend various faculty panels. “It was a typical New England weekend,” says Director of Parent Programs Erica Callahan. “We had warm, sunny weather on Friday, followed by damp, cloudy cold on Saturday. But on both days, it was a thrill to see so many

11 THE COPPER CYCLE Fourth-formers Jinx Charman and Emily Garrard are learning about the laws of conservation in Sarah Shea’s chemistry class. “This experiment is called The Copper Cycle,” says Shea. “Jinx and Emily are heating up a solution of copper (II) hydroxide in order to produce solid particles of copper (II) oxide. By putting solid powdered copper through a series of chemical reactions, the students arrive at the end of the lab once again with solid copper — despite it seeming to have disappeared during the various reactions in the lab. They start to understand the concepts of chemical compounds and chemical reactions, making good scientific observations and chemical equations. And they get to see for themselves how matter is never created nor is it destroyed.” 12 SUNSET One of the benefits of the school’s forest management plan is an expansive view of spectacular sunsets over the lake. Removing invasive plants and restoring the health of the forest is a long-term project that has no real end date. “It is incumbent on us to stay on top of this and regularly reassess how the woodlands on our western property border are doing,” says Director of Sustainability Brian Palm.

B RO O KS BUL L E TI N

A LUMNI N EWS

ALUMNI NEWS IN THIS SECTION 46 Alumni News 50 Class Notes 58 P rofile: Fred Kent ’61 70 P rofile: Jim Sperber ’87 78 I n Memoriam

Fall is football season: Can you name this hardy gridiron crew from the 1950s at Brooks? Email Michelle Morrissey, editor, with your guess: mmorrissey@ brooksschool.org

ALU MNI NEWS

The Storied South Bill Ferris ’60 publishes his latest book on Southern culture. Bill Ferris has said that his storytelling

Top: William Ferris filming. Above: William Ferris today.

Have you published a book recently? Tell us about it! Write Michelle Morrissey, Brooks Bulletin editor, at mmorrissey@ brooksschool.org

career began during his years as a Brooks student in the late 1950s. He would tell his Brooks dormmates tales of characters and happenings from his life growing up on a farm in the Mississippi Delta. By the time he graduated from Brooks in 1960, Ferris was already well on his way to where he is now, a well-known scholar of Southern cultures and author and folklorist of the South’s music, people, history and images. Now, 43 years after his Brooks graduation, Ferris is telling a new batch of stories. His latest book, The Storied South: Voices of Writers and Artists, was published this summer, and includes such well-known artists and thinkers as Eudora Welty, Pete Seeger, William Eggleston and Alice Walker. As with his previous books, Storied includes a DVD and CD of interviews that Ferris conducted during the past 40 years, as well as his photography. “The South is a land of talkers, whose stories are as old as the region itself,” Ferris says in the book’s introduction. The stories, Ferris points out, feature a broad range of people — southerners and nonsoutherners, men and women, black and white. “Together, they share a common interest in, a passion for, and an obsession with the American South that

defines how they write, compose, photograph and paint. … Gathered together in this book, they remind us why the human voice is key to the Southern experience.” Ferris even gives Brooks a shout-out in the book: “My study of the South began as I tried to understand the farm, which is the anchor of my life. As a young child I looked up to Robert Appleton, a dwarf who was known in the community as ‘Shorty Boy.’ Each time he and I met, we stood back to back and measured each other to see who was tallest. As a teenager, I wrote my first short story, entitled Shorty Boy, about Robert Appleton and published it in the Brooks School literary journal, The Bishop, May 1960.” Including this recent book, Ferris is the author or editor of more than 10 books, including the Encyclopedia of Southern Culture, which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize, and creator of 15 documentary films. He’s currently the Joel R. Williamson Eminent Professor of History at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the senior associate director of its Center for the Study of the American South, which he helped found in the 1970s. “These stories shaped me and helped me understand my own life. They led me back to the place where I was born, to people whom I deeply love,” he said.

B RO O KS BUL L E TI N

A LUMNI N EWS

Class of 1962 to fund Brooks Faculty Institute Initial capital from the Class of 1962 Endowed Fund for Faculty Professional Development, which was established during the class’ 50th reunion year, is now available for use. Much to the delight of Dean of Faculty John Haile, it will be used to fund the Brooks Faculty Institute, an annual off-campus conference during the summer for faculty to discuss specific big-picture topics that often get pushed to the back burner during the busy academic year. Director of Environmental Stewardship Brian Palm pioneered the summit model this past summer, when a number of faculty members joined him at Jay Peak in Vermont to discuss how to weave sustainability education throughout the curriculum. “People came back and just raved,” Haile said of the inaugural experience. “This is a great way for faculty to carve out time for conversations on things that aren’t urgent, but important. It’s been a struggle to tackle some of these topics during faculty meetings, when teachers have a million other things going on.” Haile envisions a small group of faculty workshopping a specific issue during the course of a few summer days. And his list of topics is already pretty long. He’d like the inaugural summit to focus on the school’s core values and how to integrate them into all aspects of the curriculum. He’d also like faculty to discuss the role of tradition, and how best to support positive traditions while squashing negative ones, as well as the use of campus space, and how best to foster healthy relationships between faculty and students in that space. “I think this program will be popular with

ALUMNI WEEKEND 2014

Ginger Pearson ’99 can’t wait to get back into the Brooks class-

room this May during her 15-year reunion. Much to her delight, after months of thoughtful conversations with alumni, faculty and administrators, the school decided to once again host Alumni Weekend during the academic year. “I think that having the kids at school will make a huge difference at reunion, helping give a better picture of what’s going on now and how the student experience has changed,” said Pearson, president of the Alumni Board and member of the Board of Trustees. Pearson is excited to see her former teachers at the front of their respective classrooms, as well as observe how enhancements in technology have altered their teachAlumni Weekend ing styles. Sports fans will get the chance to Schedule highlights cheer on current athletes during afternoon Friday games — including the annual Big East Softball • Alumni Golf Outing Tournament. Art lovers can take in the student • Chace House Tours • Class Dinners art exhibit in the Robert Lehman Art Center. And alums can learn more about the Brooks Saturday School of today during a faculty and student • Classroom Visits • Memorial Chapel Service panel, as well as during Head of School John • Convocation and Packard’s State of the School address. State of the School But make no mistake: Pearson also plans • Student and Faculty Panel • Athletic Contests to spend lots of quality time with some • All-Alumni Reception cute babies. and Dinner “A lot has changed in the past five years. A lot of my friends have kids now, which they didn’t at the five-year reunion,” Pearson said. “I’m definitely looking forward to reunion and seeing all my friends.” Two things won’t change with this shift in reunion: The school’s strong encouragement of family attendance — the children’s program will be in full swing — as well as the ample time permitted to reconnect with old pals. “Brooks is at its best when current students are on campus,” said Emily French ’03, director of alumni programs. “Alumni will be living a day in the life of what we do during school year. But we’ll also continue to celebrate the reconnection of alumni with one another.”

faculty,” Haile said. “It will get them off campus for a few days, enjoy some built-in leisure time wherever they are, but then have good conversations and generate ideas that will benefit the school.” The fund currently boasts $90,000, with additional life income gifts pledged. To get involved, please contact Director of Annual

Save the date ALUMNI WEEKEND MAY 16 — MAY 18, 2014 www.brooksschool.org/alumniweekend

Giving Ruth Weiner at rweiner@brooksschool. org or (978) 725-6287.

FALL 2013

ALU MNI NEWS

Alumni Briefs

LIFE-SAVER Eliot Lamb ’13 doesn’t have any formal emergency medical training. But what he does have are the lessons he learned in AP bio with Laura Hajdukiewicz during his sixth-form year at Brooks. And when a real-life emergency occurred this summer, those lessons were just enough. Max McGillivray ’12 (second from right), appears in Brooks’ production of Mark Twain’s Is He Dead?

During the summer, Lamb worked at his family’s resort, Pompano Beach Club in Bermuda. A woman had crashed her moped into

Talented Performer

a ditch, and Lamb, who

Max McGillivray ’11 keeps up his love of the stage through Hasty Pudding Theatricals at Harvard.

she was OK.

Max McGillivray’s successful stage career is continuing at

Harvard, although these days it’s likely in a big blonde wig and full makeup. McGillivray was part of the 2013 Hasty Pudding Theatricals, Harvard’s comedy troupe that annually hosts a theatrical production and roast of a Man and Woman of the Year (this year, Kiefer Sutherland and Marion Cotillard). Plans are currently in the works for the 2014 show. “I’m honored to be part of the historic Hasty Pudding Theatricals, the oldest theater troupe in the country. Our shows are typified by their silly plots, crude jokes, collegiate humor and anachronistic puns,” said Max. “While we are known for these burlesque, cross-dressing musicals, our previous members have bolstered much notoriety. Alumni include Theodore Roosevelt, J.P. Morgan, William Randolph Hearst, and Jack Lemmon, among others,” said McGillivray. During this year’s HPT skit Something About Maui, McGillivray joined the cast as a private in the military — Private Partz. His character and accompanying platoon search for a treasure to help America win World War II. Max was a theater veteran during his four years at Brooks, starring in shows like The Producers and A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum. His sixth-form year, he also directed a moving production of Our Town. He spoke about his love of acting during a 2011 Chapel speech at Brooks: “When I am acting, I am in a totally different zone, I am off the ground, I am loving life.”

happened to be driving by, jumped out to see if She wasn’t. “At first glance her feet were soaked in blood, but after scanning them, I didn’t see any lacerations,” Lamb said. “I realized it was her right leg where all the blood was coming from.” He immediately went into action, thinking of the things he had learned from “Mrs. H.” He cut the moped driver’s pantleg up to the knee, and saw she had a compound fracture of the tibia and one of her arteries had nearly been severed. “Thanks to Mrs. Hajdukiewicz, I remembered so much about the tibia and fibula and the makeup of that region of the body,” he said. “I had her stabilized for about 25 minutes while waiting for the ambulance.” His quick thinking won him praise from the medical personnel who responded to the scene. The paramedics told Lamb that because of where he put pressure and the angle that he held her leg, he saved her from passing out from blood loss. “I guess I wasn’t really expecting that when I rounded the corner in the van — it was all just a spur of the moment kind of thing. But luckily, because I loved anatomy, all that information stuck in my head. Without that prior knowledge I wouldn’t have known that it was the tibia, and I wouldn’t have known that her femoral artery had been nearly cut clean.”

B RO O KS BUL L E TI N

A LUMNI N EWS

ALUMNI BOARD WELCOMES NEW MEMBERS

While the incident made Lamb seriously consider a career in medicine, he decided his

WILL KINZEL ’92

ANDREW

Education: B.A. in

GARCIA ’94

Management from

Education: B.A.

Gettysburg College;

in International

J.D. from George

Studies from

Washington University Law School

Kenyon College

Residence: Washington, D.C.

Residence: New York, N.Y.

Profession: Managing Director of

Profession: Portfolio Manager

Government Affairs for Delta Air Lines

for Pine River Capital

How did Brooks prepare you for

How did Brooks prepare you for the

the workplace? Brooks prepares

workplace? Brooks taught me that if

students to be successful in whatever

you set goals and work toward them,

remember that information.”

they choose to do by encouraging

more often than not, you will succeed.

them to think critically about issues

This held true in academics, athletics

HELPING OUT

in front of them. The school encour-

and the arts.

true passion is for the hospitality business. “Even though I enjoy surgeries and the make up of the human body, I don’t think that profession is the right one for me. Maybe somewhere in my college career I will take another anatomy course or medicine course. I am just thankful to Mrs. H. for being such a great fun teacher so I could

Bill Fleischmann ’71 recently retired from a successful career in the Andover public schools — teacher, assistant principal and

ages students to pursue things that interest them, which hopefully sparks some level of passion within,

Why volunteer? Brooks, and its unique and supportive community, had a tremendous impact on my

mentor. He’s good at a lot of things, but

whatever that may be.

something he’s not good at: being retired.

Why volunteer? I would not have

unique community depends upon

been at Brooks without the help

support beyond tuition alone. I feel

of alumni who came before me. I

it is important to do my part to help

attended Brooks on a financial aid

sustain it for future generations to

of a classroom has been a boon for Brooks.

package. From my standpoint, it is an

have the same experience I had.

Fleischmann was back this fall, volunteering

important debt to repay and I hope

in the Learning Center during the school year,

to provide the same assistance.

“I’m lousy at it,” Fleischmann admits. “I need to be busy, busy, busy.” Turns out his inability to keep himself out

offering one-on-one tutoring to help science students get a leg up on some tough material. Susannah Parker, assistant director of the Learning Center, said Fleischmann’s knowledge and positive attitude have been great resources for the Learning Center, especially as it shifts from a strictly content-driven program to one that also focuses on study skills. “He gets to know kids really quickly and

How can others volunteer? Any engagement with the school is fantastic. You can attend an admission reception; host a student doing an

changed my life,” he explains. He entered Brooks on a scholarship as a day student from North Andover in 1967. “This is a fun place to drop in. And when you retire, gosh, you

former science teacher Bob Moore. Favorite campus activity: Chapel Favorite Brooks memory: I have

Favorite Brooks course: Sixth-form

so many of them: finally beating

Italian with former academic dean Favorite campus activity: The

he’d want to come back to Brooks. “This place

Favorite Brooks course: Physics with

cities during the summer.

worked with Fleischmann in Andover. “He

Fleischmann said he knew when he retired,

get involved.

Fellowship. Rev. Cogan is the best!

Tom Burgess.

makes the material fun and funny.”

How can others volunteer? Just

internship or working in different

they appreciate his sarcasm,” said Parker, who uses humor to teach and the kids enjoy it. He

development as a young adult. That

Exchange Program. Going to South Africa my sixth-form year is an experience that continues to impact what I do. Favorite Brooks memory: Springtime afternoons hanging out between Whitney and Merriman.

Governor’s at home on Parents Weekend; bringing a real cow on stage for Eight Maids a Milking [part of the annual holiday singalong]; playing at Summer Sendoff; and just making friendships that would last a lifetime. Why is the class of 1994 the best? I am partial to the class of 1994 because it was my class, but I really think the strength of Brooks is that

miss the kids; you miss the energy. It feels so

Why is the class of 1992 the best?

friendships extend beyond your class

natural to step back onto campus.”

It’s remarkable what everyone in the

to the community as a whole.

class has gone on to do. Some are running restaurants; some are in business. And we’re all over the country and all over the world. FALL 2013

CLASS NOTES

In Memoriam

OBITUARY

GORDON ABBOTT JR. ’45 former faculty and former trustee April 17, 2013 Manchester-by-the-Sea, Mass. ROBERT COBB JR. ’44 June 6, 2013 Westwood, Mass. WILLIAM COX, JR. ’49 May 1, 2013 Hobe Sound, Fla., and Nantucket, Mass. JOHN ‘JACK’ CRUNDEN ’76 April 7, 2013 Cape May Court House, N.J. STEPHEN SEDGWICK DELAFIELD ’50 May 3, 2013 New York, N.Y. PATRICIA DUNNELL wife of former faculty Bill Dunnell June 12, 2013 Meredith, N.H. NICHOLAS FROST ’86 Sept. 25, 2013 Sante Fe, N.M. ELLEN KINGSBURY wife of former faculty Ox Kingsbury June 15, 2013 Concord, Mass. FRANK MARINO HON. ’95 former business manager July 18, 2013 Methuen, Mass. GEORGE PEW JR. ’54 May 8, 2013 Villanova, Penn. ANTHONY PRUD’HOMME ’51 April 15, 2013 HOWARD WEEKS ’43 Aug. 27, 2013 Alstead, N.H.

Gordon Abbott Jr. Editor’s Note: Chris Abbott ’75, penned this obituary for his father, longtime Brooks supporter Gordon Abbott Jr. ’45. Loyal alumnus Gordon Abbott Jr., died April 17, 2013, leaving behind a legacy of service to his school. For more than 74 years, he was involved with the school — as a four-year student, post-graduate student, teacher, master, coach, trustee, and parent of two Brooks graduates and grandparent of two Brooksians. He came to Brooks in the fall of 1939, just 13 years after the school’s founding. As it was wartime, during his years at Brooks, Abbott and other students and faculty members manned a spotting tower looking for army airplanes at the top of Cow Hill, and reported the results to Army Air Force Headquarters. Abbott grew up in Boston and Manchester, Mass., and spent his summer with Brooks classmates, fishing for lobsters off of Cape Ann; green, black and white buoys marked their lobster pots — Brooks School colors! Crew and the opportunity to row on Lake

B RO O KS BULLETIN

C L ASS NOTES

Gordon Abbott Jr. cheered on the Brooks 1st boys hockey team with grandson Gordon ’14 at the Brooks rink in February.

Cochichewick were driving forces in Abbott’s decision to attend Brooks and in his fifth-form year he rowed on the undefeated 1st boat. Abbott enlisted in the Navy at 17; this was not uncommon during World War II as patriotism ran

From there, his professional life included work as an advertising copywriter in New York and Boston, as well as a long career in journalism, first as a reporter and then editor of several award-winning newspapers. For 18 years, he served as the first executive director of The Trustees of Reservations, a conservation organization in Massachusetts, founded in 1891.

“There was a tremendous camaraderie and that’s part of your life you look back on and fondly remember.” high and boys looked to sign up even before they turned 18. His father picked up his diploma at Brooks graduation in the spring of 1945. Following his naval service in Japan and Korea, Abbott returned to North Andover to, by his own admission, brush up on his “scholastic side” before attending Harvard College. After graduating from Harvard in 1950, Abbott was hired as a faculty member at Brooks by the venerable founding headmaster, Frank D. Ashburn. He taught English and mathematics, coached football and hockey, was in the dorm at Peabody House and the following year served as master of Gardner House. Abbott stayed at Brooks for two years.

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Following his retirement, Abbott returned to academia and earned a master’s degree in American Studies from University of Massachusetts-Boston. He served on numerous boards and volunteer organizations, including the Brooks Board of Trustees, on which he served from 1985 to 1990. He also pursued sailing and skiing, which he enjoyed all of his life with his family. The best move of his life, as he liked to say, was marrying Katharine Stanley-Brown of Washington, D.C. in 1955. Abbott passed his Brooks legacy on to their son, Chris Abbott ’75, daughter Alexandra Abbott ’85, as well as Chris’s daughter Lowell

Abbott ’10 and son Gordon H. Abbott ’14. In the early years, Brooks was a place that offered young men a great deal of personal attention. Some early students were not able to survive the academic rigors of the “St. Grottlesex” schools and came to Brooks for the opportunity to shine. The early compassion that drove Mr. Ashburn to consider young men with as-yet-unproven promise is a hallmark of Brooks that has endured for the young men and women of Brooks today. As Abbott wrote in a biography in 2008, “It’s not ‘my’ Brooks anymore — it is a totally different institution.” As with all institutions, they change and further develop with the times. What remains the same are the friendships people make at Brooks. Wrote Abbott, “There was a tremendous camaraderie and that’s part of your life you look back on and fondly remember.” Gordon Abbott Jr. leaves his wife of 58 years, four children and five grandchildren. He was an engaged Brooks School supporter and remained involved in the school to the end. Just two months before his death, Abbott, his son Chris and grandson Gordon were together in North Andover to see Brooks 1st boys hockey beat Buckingham Browne & Nichols, 4–2, on their way to a first New England Championship — victuri te salutamus.

PARTING SHOT

Homar Paez â&#x20AC;&#x2122;14 races in the ISL Cross-Country Championships in early November.

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