The Calhoun Chronicle, Winter 2013 by The Calhoun School

Calhoun Raises Its Voice for Public Purpose

Calhoun Traditions

Supporting Sandy Relief

Alumnae/i News

winter 2013

Calhoun’s Mission To inspire a passion for learning through a progressive approach to education that values intellectual pursuit, creativity, diversity and community involvement.

Board of Trustees 2012 1 –-22001123

Eric Potoker ’85 Chair Karen Segal Vice Chair

Officers

Vice Presidents, Middle School

Co-Presidents

Life Trustees

Andrea Booth Mare Louise Rubin

NicoleEdelman Amy Frankel Lisa Konorty Rosa Sabater

Robert L. Beir* Eric B. Ryan

Jon Brayshaw Treasurer

*deceased

Erika Brewer Secretary

Pa r e n t s A s s o c i at i o n 2 0 1 2 1 –-22001123

Steven J. Nelson Head of School

Vice Presidents, Lower School/81st

Sara Pryor Meg Held Lisa Shaub Neeraj Parasher

Secretary

LouiseRoca Lynda Gore

Vice Presidents, Lower School/74th

Treasurer

Trustees

Honorary Trustees

Susan Barkey Andrea Booth Lori Fleishman Jonathan Bauman Dorr ‘92 James Glasgow Andrea Booth, PA Rep Melanie Lori Fleishman GriffithDorr ‘92 Dorian Glasgow James Herron Dylan Hixon Melanie Griffith David Kramer Dorian Herron’02 MelissaHixon Dylan Liberty Michael Liberty Melissa Marra Debra Mayer Michael Marra Marc Murphy Colleen Parish Brooke Pike Blair Shaiza Rizavi Colleen Pike Blair Mare Louise Shaiza RizaviRubin SusanLouise Mare Thomson Rubin, PA Rep Milton Thomson Susan L. Williams, Jr.

Edwin Einbender* Constance Stern Flaum ’39 Ronald M. Foster, Jr.* Sally Goodgold* Lawrence S. Harris Mark S. Kaufmann Anne Frankenthaler Kohn ’39* Peter D. Lederer Stuart Levin* David C. Masket* Joan Masket Arthur S. Olick Elizabeth Parmelee* June Saltzman Schiller ’42 Jesse S. Siegel* Mary-Ellen Greenberger Siegel ’49 Allen B. Swerdlick Edward S. Tishman

David Rothermel Chris Hawkins SusanVaccaro Lora Barkey

Andrea Black Barbara Pyles Vice Presidents, Upper School

Ellen Cohen Claudia Brown Barbara Woods

T H E CA L H OUN SC H OO L Main number

Alumnae/i Relations

212-497-6500

646-666-6450

Lower School/74th

Annual Giving

212-497-6550

212-497-6579

Admissions/81st

Communications

212-497-6542

212-497-6527

Admissions/74th

Please send changes of address, phone or email e-mailto to familyupdates@calhoun.org

212-497-6575

*deceased

o n t h e cov e r

w in su mtmeerr 22001132

XXXXXXXXXXX. Middle School and Upper School students took to the street on election day to “Rock the Vote.”

The is published twicetwice each each year by the by the TheCalhoun CalhounChronicle Chronicle is published year Communications Office for alumnae/i, current and former Communications Office for alumnae/i, current and former parents, staff and friends.

parents, staff and friends.

Editorial Assistants

Beth EditorKrieger beth.krieger@calhoun.org Beth Krieger NEWS Editor beth.krieger@calhoun.org Jim ByrneNews Alumnae/i jim.byrne@calhoun.org Bart Hale ‘00 Alumnae/i News bart.hale@calhoun.org Bart Hale Copy Editor‘00 bart.hale@calhoun.org Amy Edelman Copy Editor Editorial Assistants Amy Edelman Angela Fischer Elizabeth Garvey Michelle Raum

Angela Fischer Contributing Writers Michelle Raum Alison Bennett Contributing Sonia Bonsu Writers ’95 Laura Kompanek Dodd Elissa Brendan Kiely Steve Nelson Steve Nelson Photographers Benny Tuchman ‘12 Jim Byrne Photographers Beth Krieger Gary Joseph Cohen Design Kazumi Fish ‘15 Iris Brown Design, LLC BethA.Krieger Paul Leung Giovanni Pacifici Heather Sasaki-Parker

Photo : XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Photo: BethCOHEN Krieger Photo : GARY JOSEPH

Editor

Design

Iris A. Brown Design, LLC Cert no. XXX-XXX-XXXX

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Contents winter 2013

Feature Private School with a Public Purpose: Calhoun Raises Its Voice

Departments

Viewpoint

by Steve Nelson

S c h o o l N e w s Deconstructing Racism

TEDxTheCalhounSchool

In Memoriam: Lil Lulkin 14

LS Game Night

Benefit 2013

Grandparents Initiatives

Calhoun Traditions

Newsmakers

Calhoun Supports Sandy Relief

Calhoun Onstage

Sports

Alumnae/i News

Alumnae/i Council

Class Notes

Voices: Sheila Daise Bernard-Lassiter ’81

Voices: Greg Goodman ’98

Pub Night

Holiday Reunion Luncheon

Viewpoint by St even J. Nelso n , He a d of School

Engaging in the World with Raised Voice and Receptive Ear Many things distinguish The Calhoun School from other public and private schools. I doubt, for example, that many other schools would adopt a schoolwide theme titled “Raise Your Voice!” Most schools, certainly the schools of my childhood, are more interested in lowering student voices or, more often, not listening to their voices at all. Of course by “Raise Your Voice,” we are not specifically seeking greater volume. We don’t really have to encourage that! “Raising your voice” has much deeper implications for education—for society—than mere loudness. As we learn throughout life, the most powerful expressions are often gentle and evocative. A poem packs a greater wallop than a sledgehammer. This wonderful issue of The Calhoun Chronicle will introduce you to some of the ways we invite members of our community to stand up for what they believe, to take a position, to engage in the affairs of the world. Raising our voices, individually and collectively, is part of our responsibility as a private school with a public purpose. This aspect of our mission is self-evident in our progressive roots. For more than a century, progressive schools have been built with highly permeable walls between the school and the communities and world in which they operate. Our children’s futures are inextricably connected to the world around us. It is enlightened self-interest to get them a head start on having a voice. It is also our responsibility to help them do so; it provides the most meaningful context for powerful, relevant learning. The pages that follow present a lively chorus of student and faculty voices. In this year of “Raise Your Voice,” it has been immensely satisfying to reflect on how well we engage in the real issues of our complex global society. But while our mission and yearly theme exhort us to raise our voices, we must remember that a raised voice is not our only or greatest power. A raised voice has no meaning without a receptive ear. We must listen well to others and not be afraid of silence. Wisdom arises as often from deep reflection as from passionate argument. I’m reminded of an experience many years ago on a remote

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beach on the north shore of Lake Superior. The late-afternoon blue sky was thick enough to stir with a spoon. A fat orange sun sat on the horizon. It was profoundly silent, except for the faint hum of the generators from the handful of recreational vehicles parked side by side on the miles-long beach. The inhabitants were watching television. For whatever reason, they were unable, unwilling or afraid to be alone with the silent beauty. I worried then and I worry more now that we are losing our

“Our children’s futures are inextricably connected to the world around us. It is enlightened self-interest to get them a head start on having a voice. It is also our responsibility to help them do so; it provides the most meaningful context for powerful, relevant learning.” ability to really listen—to one another and to the eloquence of solitude. Our lives, especially in New York City, are chaotic and constantly filled with digital noise. I don’t think this is natural to our species—to any species—and may have consequences beyond our ken. So raise your voices. Sing songs of love and justice. But then listen well. In life as in music, the most beautiful moments rest in the silent spaces, the echoes, the stillness at the end of a perfectly shaped phrase.

school news

Point Made Films to Direct Doc on Racism After a lengthy search, Point Made Films has been selected as the creative team for Calhoun’s upcoming documentary film, Deconstructing Racism (working title). The announcement was made early this fall by David Alpert, project director of Calhoun’s three-part initiative, which was awarded a $243,063 grant last year by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation of Battle Creek, MI. Leading the Point Made Films team is director/writer Catherine Wigginton Greene, whose film credits include In 500 Words or Less and Adopted; and producer André Robert Lee, producer and director of the acclaimed documentary film The Prep School Negro. Deconstructing Racism will focus on the personal stories of students from independent and public schools as they confront the effects of institutionalized racism and white privilege. The work intends to draw students, teachers and parents into an active dialogue surrounding the deeply destructive effects of colorblindness, and a fear of directly talking about racism in a society that some call post-racial. The Deconstructing Racism project was the subject of a recent article in The New York Times, “Admitted, but Left Out” (Oct. 19, 2012), which referenced the initiatives of Calhoun and two other NYC independent schools to address issues of race and equity.

“We’re thrilled to have Point Made Films onboard,” says David. “Not only is the team’s style of filmmaking in keeping with our vision, but its track record with such acclaimed films as The Prep School Negro and Adopted shows an unusual ability to keep young people emotionally safe when working with and confronting challenging and sensitive issues.“ To support the educational outreach of the documentary film, a core team of educators chaired by Calhoun’s Director of Diversity & Equity Initiatives, Hilary North, will be leading the creation of a companion curriculum for students from K–12th grades. An interactive website for students will also be produced. Partnerships with public and independent school students and teachers have already begun to support this work, but Hilary notes that the participation of Point Made Films in these efforts will be significant. “In addition to the filmmakers’ experience in exploring complex issues of identity,” says Hilary, “is their unique set of strengths in developing curriculum and social media resources to further deepen the viewer’s engagement with the content of their films. This is exactly what we are aiming to do through the Deconstructing Racism project.” David says Calhoun is seeking additional funding partners to match the original grant from Kellogg. Expected launch date for all three projects is 2014. For more information, contact David at david.alpert@calhoun.org.

Tedx/TheCalhounSchool presents “Issues of Education,” March 4 TEDx/TheCalhounSchool presents an evening with renowned educators Nancy CarlssonPaige and Linda F. Nathan on March 4, 7:00pm, in Calhoun’s Mary Lea Johnson Performing Arts Center. Nancy will address the topic “When Education Goes Wrong: Taking the Creativity and Play out of Learning”; Linda will talk about “Why Art Matters.” A professor emerita of Lesley University, Nancy writes about the impact of media on children’s lives and social development. She is also the founder of Defending the Early Years (DEY), a nonprofit project whose purpose is to encourage educators to speak out about current policies that are affecting the education of young children. Her latest book is Taking Back Childhood. Linda is the founding headmaster of Boston Arts Academy and an internationally recognized teacher and speaker on school reform. She is the author of The Hardest Questions Aren’t on the Test: Lessons from an Innovative Urban School. This independent TEDx event is operated under license from TED. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for students and seniors, and may be purchased online at www.calhoun.org/tickets.

Lil Lulkin, Longtime Kindergarten Teacher, Dies at 78 Lil Lulkin, beloved kindergarten teacher at Calhoun for 34 years, passed away on January 5, 2013, at the age of 78. She has been called the “master teacher” by colleagues, and former students and parents remember the intuitive wisdom, warmth and generosity of spirit that made Lil’s kindergarten a memorable experience for everyone lucky enough to find him- or herself within her magic circle. Lil came to Calhoun in 1970, first as an assistant 3’s teacher and then as a kindergarten teacher, a position she held through three different buildings and five Heads of School. By the time she retired in 2004, she had taught hundreds of Calhoun children (one guesstimate was 525 kids). She served as an inspiration and mentor to many of Calhoun’s Lower School teachers, including first grade teacher Tillie Scarritt and current LS Co-Director Alison Max Rothschild ‘85—who was both a kindergarten student of Lil’s and, after her graduation from college, an assistant teacher who worked alongside her. Lil leaves behind her husband, Irving, her sons, Stuart and Robert, daughter-in-laws, Stacy and Donna, grandchildren, Felissa, Mitchell and Jonathan, and a sister. Condolences may be sent to the family in care of the Alumni Office/Lil Lulkin Memoriam, The Calhoun School, 433 West End Avenue, NY, NY 10024.

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school news

New Affinity Groups for Parents Three new parent affinity groups are in various stages of formation this year—Parents of Color, Touched by Adoption, and Raising Resilient Girls. All three emerged from parent interest, notes Hilary North, Calhoun’s Director of Diversity and Equity Initiatives, who is helping organize and support the groups’ initiatives. Hilary welcomes suggestions for additional affinity groups. She asks, “What about a group focused on learning differences? Or for LGBT parents?” Childcare is provided during all affinity group meetings to facilitate participation. For more information, email Hilary at hilary.north@ calhoun.org. n Parents of Color: Calhoun parents and guardians who identify as people of color can discuss their unique experiences and find community. Two meeting dates remain for this school year, March 11 and May 20, 6:30–8:00pm. Parent contact: Julie Mellony. n Touched by Adoption: In the making for a couple of years, this affinity group focuses on adoptive parenting. It is open to Calhoun parents and guardians who seek information and support around the unique issues and challenges that can arise within alternative family models. The group works closely with Leanne Jaffe, LCSW, of Adapting to Adoption. Remaining meeting dates this year are Feb. 11 and April 8, 6:00–7:30pm. Parent contacts: Carolyn Tierney and Charles Carter. n Raising Resilient Girls: This is a group currently in formation for parents and guardians who are interested in learning about and supporting one another in parenting daughters in today’s social environment. Topics for discussion will focus on issues of gender particular to girls and women. Meetings will be led by a professional facilitator. First meeting of the year is on February 27, with two more scheduled, April 24 and May 29, 6:30–8:00pm. Parent contact: Patience Sundaresan.

The Calhoun Chronicle

Charles Blow gave a pre-election talk at Calhoun in October.

Journalist Charles Blow Gives Pre-Election Talk Calhoun community members and neighbors came out on the evening of the last presidential debate in October, for a pre-debate review of the political landscape by Charles M. Blow, visual op-ed columnist for The New York Times. The event was hosted by Calhoun’s 2012–13 Performing Arts Series, now in its ninth year. Charles talked about this election’s voter identification requirements, which he called a “Republican strategy to put voters in confusion—specifically targeting young college students, the elderly and Hispanic.” He noted that unfettered money had a huge effect on local races. “In New York City, we don’t see the barrage of advertising they’re getting elsewhere,” but one ad salesman told him that the big lobby groups had bought all the ad space well in advance of the campaign season—which meant “locals couldn’t afford to or even find the space to do so. So how do you get knowledgeable about local candidates?” The political landscape, acknowledged Charles, is more divisive than it’s been in 40 years. “It’s broken. The only way to make changes in our election laws is through constitutional amendment, but that seems unlikely considering the fact that that hasn’t happened in forever” and “we’re electing more strident candidates instead of moderates.” In 20 years, he projected, “if Hispanics in Texas outnumber whites two-to-one, that could be the tipping point. Republicans can’t win without Texas.”

David Hawkins and his daughters make their selection of fresh produce—delivered straight from Paisley Farm—as part of their weekly CSA share.

Calhoun’s CSA Completes Its Third Year Even Sandy couldn’t affect the bounty that members of Calhoun’s CSA enjoyed this fall. Tomatoes, eggplant, cauliflower and more kinds of greens than you knew existed were all plentiful. One member admits to a new taste for kale, while others enjoyed the pork, fruit and egg shares. CSA shares will be offered for sale in midMay for the Fall 2013 season. Read more about Calhoun’s CSA at www.calhoun.org/csa. Anyone interested in joining the leadership group should contact Claudia Brown, claudiabrown@mac.com.

Internships Wanted FOR CALHOUN SENIORS

Monday, April 29 — Friday, June 6, 2013 Twelfth graders are seeking six-week internships for their last mod before graduation. If you can support an Upper School student with an internship opportunity, please contact Lavern McDonald, US Associate Director, lavern.mcdonald@calhoun.org, 212-497-6517. Read more about our Senior Work internship program: www.calhoun.org/seniorwork

school news

LS74 Game Night: Little Calhounders Join Cougar Nation Fan Club! Almost 70 Lower School parents and kids came out in early December for LS74 Game Night, to help cheer for the Girls’ Varsity Basketball team in its fourth game of the season. The young Calhounders and their families joined the regular Cougar Nation fans during the game, cheering wildly for the Varsity players as they toppled the York Prep Panthers in an exciting 54–44 win. The special event, hosted for Lower School 74th Street families by Calhoun’s Annual Fund committee, began with face painting and photo ops with the Cougar mascot, followed by a postgame pizza party and a meet-and-greet with the team’s players. The event was staged as a way to connect families in the two buildings, explains co-chair Patti Galluzzi. “Some of our families may be at Little Calhoun, but we are part of one big Calhoun family.” For Annual Fund co-chair, parent and Calhoun alum Lori Fleishman Dorr ’92, the experience resonates on a very personal level. “I played Varsity Basketball at Calhoun, so it was wonderful to sit with all of the enthusiastic kids and parents while watching the girls win,” she says. “And seeing about 30 kids chase the Cougar around the gym was priceless.” Patti and Lori send special thanks to the Development Office team for helping stage the event, to our star Girls’ Varsity Basketball team and coach Andrew Gerdes (who even showed the little Calhounders how he writes the plays!), to the one and only Cougar, and to all the fans for a great sporting event. Go, Cougars!

Pat Metheny Trio Performs for Calhoun Straight from his Unity Band world tour, jazz great Pat Metheny staged a private Benefit Concert at Calhoun this past October, raising more than $19,000 for the school’s Annual Fund. The Calhoun dad and winner of 19 Grammys performed with two of his band members, bassist Ben Williams and drummer Antonio Sanchez, to an enthusiastic, sold-out audience of parents, students, faculty/staff, alums and friends. “How do you describe it?” mused parent Jennifer Taylor after the performance. “The way Pat plays is so emotional. And when you’re in such a small, intimate space, the emotions just wash over you because you’re so close. It was a really powerful experience.”

1. Little Calhounders had a ball at LS Game Night! Fans included (L–R) Caia Scarola, Kali Hageman, Harper Dorr, Nathaniel Coker and Sadie Hawkins. 2. The Calhoun Cougar generated lots of school spirit. 3. Girls’ Varsity Basketball players came to the postgame pizza party for a victory run and a meet-and-greet with Lower School families: (L–R) Rebecca Marcus ’14, Kazumi Fish ‘15, Hannah Klingenstein ’13, Tiareh Cruz ‘13, Taj Cutting ‘14 (behind), Amani Orr ‘13 and Lia Barnhard ‘16.

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Come Celebrate Calhoun at the 2013 Benefit

The Calhoun Benefit is integral to the school’s fundraising efforts, providing financial support for everything that makes Calhoun a dynamic educational experience. Please join us for this incredible night, featuring:

• Cocktail Hour with Mojitos and Latin-Inspired Cuisine

• Live Conga Drummers • Live and Silent Auctions • Seated Three-Course Dinner • Dancing to NYC’s Hottest Latin DJ Benefit ticket prices range from $300 to $2,500 per ticket. A portion of the ticket price is tax-deductible. Guests who purchase the $2,500 ticket will be invited to attend a Private Walk-Around Tasting Event at Landmarc (at the Time Warner Center) on April 13. You can also support the Calhoun Beneﬁt by purchasing faculty tickets or by underwriting expenses. Visit www.calhoun.org/benefit for more details about the evening. See you on March 1!

Friday, March 1, 2013 RSVP online at www.calhoun.org/benefitrsvp

7:00pm—12:30am Cipriani Wall Street

| or call 212-497-6533 by February 24

school news

Calhoun Grandparents Enjoy Cultural Ventures

(Top) Grandparents enjoyed a formal tea luncheon in the grand ballroom of Gracie Mansion before going on a private tour of the public and private rooms. (Above) Donald Rubin (right) welcomes Calhoun grandparents to the Rubin Museum of Art, known for having the largest Western collection of religious art from the Himalayas, India, China and Mongolia.

Calhoun grandparents have been enjoying cultural learning experiences in New York City, thanks to initiatives of the school’s Development Office. The reason for offering the program, says David Smith, Director of Development and Alumni Affairs, is to acknowledge and thank our grandparents, who are always contributing to the richness of our school community. “Grandparents volunteer at Calhoun, attend the Benefit, donate to the Annual Fund and contribute

to the school in so many ways,” he says. Thus far, two groups of 20 to 30 grandparents have participated in private tours of the Rubin Museum of Art and Gracie Mansion. The tour of the Rubin Museum was particularly special; not only was the tour held while the museum was closed to the public, but it was led by the very man behind the museum and its vast collection of Himalayan art, Calhoun grandparent Donald Rubin. The tour highlighted some of the museum’s most valuable pieces and recent acquisitions, many of which have rarely or never been exhibited. At Gracie Mansion, the group was excited to see both the public as well the private rooms in the mayor’s official home—only viewable when the sitting mayor is not living in the mansion. “We are giving Calhoun grandparents an opportunity to connect with one another while exploring cultural institutions in special ways that are not often available to the general public,” says Nicole Nelson, Director of Special Events. “The places we see are open to the public, but the way in which we see them is what makes it so special.” This spring, Nicole expects to invite grandparents for private tours of Calhoun, to see progressive education in practice. Next fall and winter, the cultural tours will resume. Calhoun grandparents who would like to be notified of upcoming events should register online, at www.calhoun.org/grandparentemails, or contact Nicole Nelson, 212-497-6533.

join us!

Grandparents/ Grandfriends Morning May 3, 2013 Robert L. Beir Lower School at 74th Street

It’s a much anticipated event, when Little Calhoun invites grandparents and grandfriends for a morning of classroom visits and welcoming remarks by Head of School Steve Nelson and Lower School Director Kathleen Clinesmith. If you are a grandparent or relative of a Calhoun student in 3’s through first grade and would like an invitation (with date and RSVP details), please send your email address to jessica.dudley@calhoun.org, call 212-497-6578, or sign up online for email announcements, www.calhoun.org/grandparentemails.

Saul P. Steinberg, Calhoun Benefactor yY

Calhoun mourns the passing of Saul P. Steinberg, parent of Calhoun alumnus Nicholas Steinberg ‘88 and generous patron of the school, who passed away on December 7, 2012, at the age of 73. Saul was a major contributor to the purchase and renovation of Calhoun’s Lower School building on West 74th Street, which opened in 1989; the 74th Street theater is named in honor of his wife, Gayfryd Steinberg. Calhoun extends its condolences to the Steinberg family.

Your gift to the Calhoun Annual Fund helps support our

one-of-a-kind curriculum. www.calhoun.org/onlinegiving Make Calhoun Your Philanthropic Priority winter 2013

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parents associ ati o n news

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school news

O Calhoun Traditions Here we are in our 116th school year. Would you believe it? The 1970s modernistic architecture of Calhoun’s flagship building certainly belies our age. And the fact that our school thrives on change blurs the fact that our community does, in fact, have quite a few traditions that have continued through the years. So in answer to inquiring minds that want to know, here’s the beginning of what we hope will be a definitive list of some of the popular events, projects and uniquely Calhoun quirks that have transcended the years. Feel free to correct our starting dates or add to the list! Write to communications@calhoun.org. 50+ years [1960s] Alums Chime In on Facebook

n Annual

Benefit n Calhoun Carnival, a.k.a. Spring Fair (1963) n Community service n Field Day

Here’s what some alums answered on Facebook when we asked, “What do you think some of Calhoun’s oldest, most continuous traditions might be?” Many couldn’t help but share memories that went “outside the box” of institutional traditions. But the Egg Drop and the 12 Days of Christmas assembly were spot on! (Café Calhoun has morphed into an Upper School talent show during assembly time.)

40+ years [1970s] n Book

Fair

n Clusters n Cluster/Grade

Days Festival n Open classrooms n Ski trip (traces back to 1940s) n 12 Days of Christmas assembly n Harvest

30+ years [1980s] n Annual

Tea Drop n Eighth grade English research paper (c. 1980) n First grade Pocket People n LS Special Courses (since 1980) n MS trips to Washington, DC, and Boston n US community service requirement (c. 1980s) n Parent volleyball n Peer Leaders/camping trip n US Class Day n Egg

20+ years [early 1990s] n Cougar

mascot (1994) life-size selfportraits n LS Welcome Back Picnic (1990) n MS trips to Frost Valley or other camping destination n Cymbal clanging, marking the last day of school n Kindergarten

15+ years [mid–1990s] n First

Calhoun website, www. calhoun.org (1996) n First grade Mammal Museum n US Multicultural Club n MS Egyptian tomb project (c. 1996) n MS Souk project (c. 1996) n US QSP Club, a.k.a. LGBT club 10+ years [late 1990s–2000s] n Active

Physics chapter challenges (c. 1998) n Fourth Grade Moving Up n US biology cell construction project (traced back to 1999) n Steve’s graduation poems n Senior Projects> Masterworks>Senior Work n Senior Prom returns! n US Graduation baby slideshows Newer traditions n Athletic

Banquet Monday Night Basketball n Black Rock Forest trips n Community Orchestra n Junior Work n LS 100-Day Museum n Performing Arts Series (2004) n Senior Dinner n First Grade Summer Send-Off n Adult

Marco Aurelio ‘80: Sandwiches at Zabars; hanging out on the wall at Riverside Park; playing Frisbee in the park.

legacy to the school in the form of a Senior Class Gift to the Annual Fund]; Field Day; the school color of green is still alive and well.

Diánna Martin ‘90: Riding the elevators—especially when you’re not supposed to…shooting pool during a triple free period…getting into trouble at the wall in Riverside Park. Oh yeah! The Senior Thanksgiving skit.

Mark Rentschler ’00: Senior prank!…and Burger King, back in the day

Rafaela Malave ‘05: Egg Drop Nessim Watson ‘89: 12 Days of Christmas Natalie Rose ‘99: Café Calhoun, Egg Drop, 12 Days of Christmas, Vermont ski trip, Frost Valley Laura Rubenstein Yurick ‘80: The Parents Association; John Roeder teaching physics and playing piano; student government; awards at the end of the year—I forgot the name of the day, sorry. Senioritis and the Senior Party. Harvest Festival started when I was there and I think is still going on. Christopher Gordon ‘92: Café Calhoun and the Egg Drop…oh yeah, and taking out funny titled books from the library under a friend’s name and holding on to it forever!

Billy Zifchak ‘99: Scraping gum off the table bottoms? Rushing home to flush SAFs? (heheheh) Egg Drop for sure. Spring Fair. Xmas assembly and 12 Days of Xmas with Phil Bender. Middle School Boston and DC trips. I’ll second Frost Valley, and the Stowe ski trip. bizz buzz bam? And Café Calhoun, which was still new when I was around. Oh, and for those incoming 6th graders…Ruth Licht. Lydia Newman ‘96: Pocket People; Calhoun fair the first weekend in May with the bouncy castle and the maze made from refrigerator boxes in the gym. I remember walking down to sneak a peek at the fair being set up. Also back-to-school picnics. Arts festival. The lifers’ photo. Twelve Days of Christmas. Field day. Cluster day. Number names with Phil Bender. Physics carols with John Roeder.

Barbara Williams Fullard ‘66: An award called The Gilman Cup; The School Song; Calhoun was always involved in community service activities long before they became a requirement for graduation; Senior Class Gift [a Calhoun tradition for the families of each graduating student to leave a

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newsmakers

Lessons Learned in China Lead to New Perspectives “As an educator, I believe we need to understand the world broadly and profoundly before we teach our students,” says Maya Wang, MS Mandarin teacher. “The more understanding we gain, the more benefits our students receive.” With that in mind, Maya returned to her native China for nearly four weeks this past summer to conduct research on the Miao and Dong minority tribes and learn more about their education, culture and art. Accompanied by a photographer who documented the entire trip, Maya traveled to 15 villages in the Guizhou and Guangxi provinces— many of which did not have running water or electricity. She interviewed local artists, a community of seniors, and students at Xi Jiang Middle School. The trip, made possible by Calhoun’s Claudia Curfman Castellana Memorial Grant for professional development, reaped thousands of photos, hours of footage and new knowledge for Maya to infuse into her Mandarin-language-and-Chinese-culture curriculum at Calhoun. In a Middle School assembly upon her return, Maya’s tales about her experience with locals in the “senior village” of Guizhou Province—a town almost entirely made up of elder citizens—made a strong impression on students. In particular, they were astounded to hear that it takes the elderly residents four hours to get to the closest town to buy a bag of salt, and an entire day to venture to a bigger town to buy salt that’s 50 cents cheaper. “Poverty is the main issue in that area, and the only way for the seniors to get to those places is to go on foot,” explained Maya. “Once the students had a better idea of how the seniors lived, they were proud that [my photographer and I] took the time and effort to donate salt and noodles to those in the village.” At the Xi Jiang Middle School, Maya observed the drastic difference between that school’s approach to teaching and the methods used at Calhoun. The Chinese

The Calhoun Chronicle

(Top) Maya interviews students and teachers at Xi Jiang Middle School; (Above, left) A scene from the “senior village” in Guizhou; (Above, right) Outside Xi Jiang Middle School.

students, she notes, learn solely through lectures and memorization, as opposed to Calhoun’s emphasis on research, observation, exploration and hands-on activities. “I feel a bit sad that [the Chinese students] are under so much pressure,” says Maya. “Students in China are not encouraged to develop their own creativity and individuality.” Calhoun students had the opportunity to watch the Chinese middle school students in action, thanks to a video Maya presented at the assembly. They were particularly intrigued by the daily routines of their counterparts. And when they observed the Xi Jiang students perform the same warm-up routine that they do in Mandarin classes at Calhoun, they immediately joined in, repeating:

站直了。站得像树一样，站得像筷子一样 (Stand up straight. Stand up straight like a tree. Stand up straight like a chopstick.). “When this happened, I was speechless and really touched,” recalls Maya. “In that moment, I was very proud of my kids and glad that I had made the trip.” Maya expects to share her newfound insights and experiences with colleagues and students through a number of workshops, discussions and collaborations throughout the school year. “I appreciate that Calhoun recognizes the connection between teaching and learning and then supports the teachers in a variety of ways for professional development. After all, we are all learners ourselves.”

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read the latest news www.calhoun.org/newsmedia newsmakers

Calhoun Students and Faculty Speak at Innovation Conference Calhoun students and teachers were among the featured speakers at the “Teaching Innovation” conference hosted in November by Blue School, a progressive school in Lower Manhattan. Kadijah Sutton ’13, Matt Ferrer ’13, Farah Taslima ’13 and Emma Vallo ’15 talked to a packed room about how they raise their voices in and out of school, and noted that there is a comfort when speaking with adults at Calhoun that gives them the confidence to do so. They cited groups at school like the Upper School Queer/Straight Partnership and the Multicultural Club, as well as a recent diversity panel, as examples of Calhoun’s commitment to cultivating safe places to speak out. Math teachers Ben Schwartz and Anthony Yacobellis demonstrated three different math games they play with their respective Middle and Lower School students, all of which are designed to decentralize authority and promote student discovery. Says Anthony, “Our presentation was very well received, and Ben and I both felt that participants exited our session energized and eager to explore these activities and related concepts with the students in their own classrooms.” The Calhoun contingent also attended the conference as learners: Anthony enjoyed a presentation on neuroscience and the development of insight in the human brain conducted by David Rock, Blue School board member and founder of the NeuroLeadership Institute. “The constructivist nature of our hands-on curriculum was clearly supported by his research,” says Anthony. “I [was] even more convinced that Calhoun is engaged in best practice every single school day.”

Calhoun Proves Itself an Ally at PrideWorks Conference On the heels of Ally Week at Calhoun in October, a group of six Upper School students, along with Calhoun alum Rebecca Lansbury ’12 and Director of Diversity and Equity Initiatives Hilary North, attended the annual PrideWorks conference in Westchester County. The Calhoun delegation

joined nearly 600 other students, mostly from schools in the lower Hudson Valley, for a series of workshops designed for lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender youth and their allies. Calhoun was one of the few private schools at the conference, along with Little Red School House & Elisabeth Irwin High School (LREI). “It’s just one more way our schools are linking together around initiatives,” says Hilary.

Sophomores to Participate in Domestic Exchange

Two Calhoun sophomores are participating this year in the Network of Complementary Schools exchange, a program that gives Upper School students the opportunity to spend two weeks at a partner school in the United States or Canada, focusing on an area of interest and experiencing a different educational culture. Morgan Mitchell ‘15 (above, left) has signed on to go to the Commonwealth-Parkville School in Puerto Rico during spring break, to get a greater understanding of Hispanic/Puerto Rican culture. In May, Emily Kuper ‘15 (above, right) will attend The Putney School in Vermont, where she looks forward to exploring the school’s farm/food program. The Network of Complementary Schools has member schools in 13 states, from Vermont to California, as well as the school in Puerto Rico and one in Ontario, Canada. Calhoun, which has been a member of the network for more than 10 years, also welcomes students to our school— particularly those interested in our early childhood program, Upper School art program, and site-based learning program that makes use of New York as classroom.

Tiffany Poon ’14 Performs for Doctors Without Borders Tiffany Poon ’14 will perform a special benefit concert for Doctors Without Borders on March 7, 7pm, in Calhoun’s Mary Lea Johnson Performing Arts Center. The concert is being hosted by Calhoun’s Performing Arts Series. An eleventh grader, Tiffany came to New York from Hong Kong at the age of nine and made her European debut at the prestigious Sala Mozart (Mozart Hall) of Accademia Filarmonica in Bologna, Italy, when she was only 12 years old. She has since played in numerous international venues, from Australia and Russia to Montreal and across the United States—including Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall and Steinway Hall. The young pianist won first prize and Best Performance of Concerto Award at the VIII Moscow International Fredrick Chopin Competition for Young Pianists in September 2012; earlier, in 2007, she won the Grand Prize and First Prize at the World Piano Competition in Cincinnati, OH, and took First Prize at the Young Pianist Competition of New Jersey in 2007. Tiffany has the distinction of being the youngest student ever to perform solo recitals at the Juilliard School. (Hear/watch Tiffany in recent performances: www.youtube.com/user/ czrinasuen.) Tickets for the benefit concert are $10 for adults, $5 for students and seniors, and may be purchased online at www.calhoun.org/tickets.

Kiva Kids Make a Difference Calhoun’s Middle School Kiva Club is now ranked 45th out of the 1,000-plus school groups involved in this person-to-person micro-lending organization. Earlier this year, Middle School club members made $450 in loans—all in $25 increments—to help aspiring entrepreneurs and small organizations around the world. They also made their most local loan yet, passing along $200 to help get the Upper School Kiva Club started—with many of the members who first kicked off the Middle School club in 2009! winter 2013

school news

facult y newsma k e r s

In the Spotlight

ing my stay in Yerevan, I interacted with several people who helped me understand Armenian culture, religion and politics a bit better.”

LS teacher Patrick Ellsworth (inset) and a scene from his play Dancer in the Dark, performed last November in Stuttgart, Germany.

Dancer in the Dark, a play adapted by LS teacher Patrick Ellsworth from the 2000 film by Lars von Trier, had its German premiere at the historic Die Staatstheater Stuttgart, one of the most prestigious theaters in Germany, this past November. Although the production, which sold out all of its shows, was not entirely true to Patrick’s original vision (sections of his text were removed to accommodate ballet portions), he says, “Seeing my work done in Stuttgart was a wonderful experience. The multi-branch theater is an incredibly special place.”

Jorge Rubio, LS assistant teacher, in a Día de los Muertos performance.

The Calhoun Chronicle

Jorge Rubio, an associate teacher at Little Calhoun, performed his Día de los Muertos show, originally commissioned by El Museo del Barrio (New York’s leading Latino cultural institution) for the museum’s annual celebration in late October. An adaptation of Yuyi Morales’s book Just in Case, the production is meant to “make children feel as if they have stepped into the book, which is a trickster tale that doubles as a wonderful guide to the Spanish alphabet,” says Jorge. After the performance for the museum, Jorge brought the production to 74th Street for Little Calhoun’s very own Day of the Dead celebration. Students were engaged by the music as well as the call-and-response nature of the story, and they also helped Jorge’s character— Señor Calavera (Mr. Skeleton)—hunt down items that each began with a different letter of the alphabet. US art teacher Chris Garcia may not have known a single native phrase heading into his summer artist residency in Armenia last summer, but in no way did that prevent him from immersing himself in his new community’s life. Chris explains in “Sculpting in Yerevan,” an article he penned for Ceramics Technical magazine this fall, that although language can be a challenge, sometimes a common tongue can be superfluous. “I always feel as if I am simply scratching the surface of what makes a place special. Dur-

MS science teacher Joan Gillman has been awarded a grant by Cornell University’s East Asia Program to implement a new science unit this year focused on the tsunami that devastated Japan in 2011. Joan, who attended a workshop called “Water: Symbolism and Sustainability” at the International Summer Studies Institute (ISSI) at Cornell last summer, applied for the ISSI grant to assist the development of curriculum on the topic of water as it relates to Southeast Asia, Africa, South Asia or East Asia. Although she didn’t receive an official 2012 ISSI curriculum grant, which actually was geared toward the high school level, the jury for the East Asia Program was so impressed that they awarded Joan a separate grant! MS theater teacher Jono Hustis appeared this past fall in the cast of Found, a new musical that ran as a pre-Broadway workshop at the Berkshire Theatre Group’s Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield, MA. Jono and other members of the Story Pirates, the New York—based comedy troupe, helped bring to life the musical, which was based on Davy Rothbart’s popular Found magazine. “It was an amazing experience,” says Jono. “Building a musical from the ground up is great, but doing it with your best friends is transcendent!” Alien Assignment, a free iPhone and iPad app created for children by Calhoun kindergarten teacher Craig Schatten, has been piling up the accolades since its release last summer. The game, which Craig made expressly for the Fred Rogers Center (yes, that Mr. Rogers!), promotes problem solving, creative thinking and family fun as children help the lovable Gloop family fix their crashed spaceship. USA Today named it their “App of the Day” in August, while CBS News New York tapped it for their “Best Apps for Kids” list, which also included the sequel to global-smash Angry Birds. Pretty good company to be in! Download Alien Assignment for free in the iTunes app store, and then be sure to leave a comment after rating it!

Calhoun Responds to Hurricane Sandy In the days that followed Sandy’s devasting pummeling of our city, the foremost thought on the minds of most Calhounders was “How can we help?” But with school closed, our email down, and many of our community without power and cell phones, it was—at the very least—a frustrating time for an organized call to action. Instead, through our website, Twitter and Facebook, we tried to stay in touch and galvanize the troops. By the time school resumed, a core group of parents, faculty, staff and students were already knee-deep in plans for a first response. “Everyone wanted to act quickly,” recalls Debbie Aronson, Director of Community Service, who helped coordinate and anchor Calhoun’s relief activities. The first call to action was for Calhoun’s Day of Giving, held on November 12. There was an outpouring of generosity to the blood and coat drives. And the decision to redirect our annual Penny Harvest donations to Sandy relief encouraged even the youngest to dig deeply into their own pockets. Calhoun’s annual food drive, already in place to support our local food pantry, took on added significance; the pantry had begun serving displaced persons from the storm, but shelves were emptying, with so many of its usual donors refocused on the city’s hardest-hit areas. Once the Day of Giving had concluded, it became clear that Sandy relief was, indeed, going to be a long haul. “We knew we had to search for meaningful ways for our students and the entire school community to respond to the ongoing needs of our fellow New Yorkers in a sustainable fashion,” says Debbie. And while the Holiday Toy Drive became the Hurricane Toy Drive, and hundreds of parents, faculty and students found ways to continue donating and offering on-site support on their own, the search was on to look for a school or schools, badly hit by the storm, with whom Calhoun could partner.

School-to-School Partnering Now, thanks to a Calhoun parent, Common Cents Penny Harvest, and the coordinating efforts of Debbie Aronson, Calhoun is partnering with two New York City schools that were devastated by the hurricane. PS 47Q in Broad Channel and The Pennsylvania Academy Charter School in

Far Rockaway will be receiving money from Calhoun’s Penny Harvest fundraising and will be engaging in student-to-student activities. “Both schools are excited to partner with us and will be receiving the money from our Penny Harvest to use for extracurricular activities they can no longer afford,” says Debbie. In addition to the financial support, she says that students will be learning about the challenges these communities face and discussing other ways to reach out. The partnership was formally launched in early January, when “cluster families” of cross-divisional students got together to create friendship bracelets, murals and quilts for their new friends. Debbie hopes that some of our students will be able to have exchange visits in the future, and find new ways to reconnect and offer support. Special thanks to all the volunteers who helped and continue to help support Calhoun’s efforts—especially the members of Calhoun Community Action (CCA), a committee of the Parents Association; the MS and US Community Action classes, and the US Key Club. For updates on Calhoun’s efforts for Sandy relief, see www.calhoun.org/sandyrelief. 1. Fifth graders Abby Geissler and Josca Zahn sold their homemade A&J spa products at the Parents Associations Holiday Craft Fair to raise funds for Sandy relief. 2. It was an all-school effort to collect funds for Sandy relief through our annual Common Cents Penny Harvest. Sixth grader Jesse Fields is shown here at the Penny Harvest dropbox she helped design to encourage people to give. Donations will go to our two partner public schools to help fund their afterschool programs. 3. Calhoun’s annual toy drive benefited Hurricane Holiday Toy Drive, an organi-

zation that provided holiday gifts to children in the Far Rockaways. The Red Cross guided the efforts to find families that needed the most help. Calhoun collected bags filled to the brim with donations, wrapped by our students. 4. On the Day of Giving at Calhoun, more than 74 pints of blood were donated— the highest we’ve ever collected! In fact, there were people waiting in line for more than an hour, even with five tables set up. An extraordinary number of students stepped up to give, as well as staffers, parents, alums, parents of alums and a large number of neighborly walk-ins.

winter 2013

school news

Onstage 1. UP P E R SC H OOL T HEAT ER : L I T T L E S H O P O F H O R RO RS

2. Lower Sch o o l S PEC I A L CO U R S E: A N N I E

1. Consumed by the Little Shop’s hungry plant were (top left, clockwise): Jason Alejo ’14, Shoshana Baraschi-Ehrlich ’14, Emma Newman ’14, Jana Gharzeddine ’13, Martin Parian ’13, and Clio Sherman ’13; the chorus moved from horror to glee (from left, front): Farah Taslima ’13, Carlotta Kane ’14,

The Calhoun Chronicle

Emily Kuper ’15 and Kyler MurriaCastro ’16; Jana Gharzeddine ’13 as Mrs. Mushnik with Martian Parian ’13, playing Seymour Krelborn; Emma Newman ’14 as the sadistic dentist. 2. Annie players, from 2nd-4th grades, included: (from left, clockwise) Sophie Held ’22 and Hope Coven ’23; Socknamai Kane ’22 and Charlie Gary ’22; Julia Labush ’21, Paloma Chapman ’22 and Maya Cook ‘22

school news

3. 8 T H G RADE T H E ATER: ANN E FRA N K & M E

4. h o li day o rc h est ra co nc ert

5. LS WINTER ASSE M BLY

3. Eighth grade thespians presented a powerful performance of Anne Frank & Me. (top insert): Allie Leavitt ’17 and Tomás Butelman ’17; (far left) Gabby Chapman ’17, Allie Leavitt ’17, Clare Jasper ’17 and Elizabeth Brewer ’17; (right) Flory Joseph ’17, Olivia Abrams ’17, Zak Wegweiser ’17 and Gabby Chapman ’17. 4. Middle and Upper School students joined together for a splendid holiday concert; (insert) Danny Perez ’15, on violin. 5. Lower School students performed a variety of holiday songs at the Winter Assembly, attended by family and friends.

winter 2013

school news

sports 1. Girls’ Varsity Volleyball players show off their gold after storming past Trevor Day for the NYCAL tournament championship title.

2. Girls’ JV Volleyball members, in a huddle, swept through the tournament games, claiming the second championship banner for the Cougars.

TWIN WINS! Girls’ Varsity and JV Volleyball Teams Win Tournament Championships 2

It was a perfect postseason for the Calhoun Girls’ Varsity and JV Volleyball teams; both squads stormed through the NYCAL Tournament to capture the league’s championship titles! After rolling over No. 2 Columbia Prep 3–0 in the semifinals, the third-seeded Varsity Cougars advanced to the title game against regularseason champion Trevor Day. Riding a wave of momentum and spurred on by a large crowd of boisterous supporters, Calhoun blitzed its topseeded opponent from the get-go and dominated the Dragons throughout to a 3–0 victory that earned them the tourney crown. It was a total team effort, with captain Tiareh Cruz ‘13, Amani Orr ’13, Carner Round ’13, Taj Cutting ’14, Maddy Gordon ’14, Rebecca Snow ’14, Taylor Gerard ’15, Natalie Zukerman ’15, Hilda Ruiz ’16, Isabelle Thomson ’16, Rose Gruber ’16,

The Calhoun Chronicle

and Nicole Carey ’18 all playing vital roles in bringing the NYCAL championship home. The Cougars finished the league season 13–5, and are already eyeing a repeat in 2013. “I’m able to judge the success of our season not just by victories on the scoreboard, but by the growth and development of the team and each individual,” says coach Sabrina Spiegel ’06. “The girls demonstrated their tenacity and dedication to excellence down the home stretch, and, led by Tiareh, they grew and improved tremendously.” Sabrina adds that teammates Maddy and Taj “proved to be a solid, reliable offensive force,” and, supported by three starting freshmen and up-and-coming seventh grader Nicole Carey, the girls are in a great position to dominate again next season. Only one day after their Varsity counterparts spiked Trevor Day in the finals, the JV team

3. Cougars named goalie Noelle Clark ’14 their MVP of the soccer season. 4. Jack Javer ’15 fights for possession of the ball in a game against Columbia Prep. 5. Jason Kauppila ’18, having moved up from the Middle School to the Varsity team, finished in the top 10 in four of five 3.1-mile races.

penned a fantastic finish to its own story. The Cougars completed a combined 10–0 sweep of the NYCAL Tournament for Calhoun by besting Trevor Day 2–0 in the finals after beating Loyola by the same tally in the semifinals. “A 10–0 sweep in tournament play is reflective of the commitment and dedication the girls put into improving, learning and growing as athletes, teammates and young women,” says Sabrina. In the first game of the finals, Calhoun’s JV squad jumped out to several big leads, but the Dragons kept creeping back. Up one late in the game, with Trevor threatening to steal the momentum, Emma Griffith ‘17 made perhaps the play of the match. The eighth grader hustled hard into her own bench to save a ball, allowing Calhoun to win the point and, eventually, the game. With Sabrina and assistant coach Kevin Randazzo at the helm, the JV Cougars finished the season 10–5. “They were determined to win, and spent countless hours in the gym and even at camp over the summer,” says Kevin. “But, more important, they were willing to fail and make use of the situations where they did. Without that second piece, there would have been no growth, and consequently no banner to hang in the gym.”

school news

Sports Briefs Coach Alyssa Viglietto reports that the Girls’ MS Volleyball team put together a great season. The Cougars created their own goals in 2012, such as working together and getting to know teammates better, and improved with every practice. “Some of our matches were real nail-biters,” says Alyssa. “I’m proud of the progress they made and am glad to hear some of the girls will play club volleyball or attend camps and clinics in the offseason.” Although the Boys’ Varsity Soccer team recorded only one victory in the fall, coach Francesco Filiaci notes, “It was an important growing year for the team. Overall, the level of play jumped significantly from training in mid-August to our win against Browning and strong showings against Trevor Day and Columbia.” He continues, “The core of this team lies within the talented sophomore class. We also have some key players in the current junior class who will lead a powerful team next season. Ed Watkins was the only senior to play this 2012 season. Next year, the program will have much sharper teeth, greater wisdom and a stronger ability to win.” For the Girls’ Varsity Soccer team, the fall was a season of both development and fun. “As 2012 progressed, the team bonded over practice, bus rides, cupcakes, ‘The Winner’s Creed,’ the antics of Cheyenne Rosado ‘16 and Emma Newman ‘14, and our various highlight moments,” says coach Brittany Leerkamp. Some of the highlights included goals by Rebecca Marcus ‘14,

Leila Jacobson ’14 and Tania Calle ‘16, and a header goal by Emma. After a season of amazing saves in goal, the Cougars elected Noelle Clark ‘14 their MVP. “While 2012 was great, 2013 looks even more promising,” says Brittany. “But as we move forward we will miss our senior captains, Emily Kraft ’13 and Clio Sherman ’13. We wish them luck on all their future endeavors in college!” Matthew Vidmar, coach of the co-ed MS Soccer team, called 2012 a “season full of improvement.” Five different goalies got to see action and the defense gained valuable experience. He adds, “Next season we’d like to build on this foundation and get some more goals in the net!”

Youth and Experience Benefit Cross Country Program It was an autumn of constant progress for members of the Varsity and Middle School Cross Country teams, who began training together as one unit before the season began. Jason Kauppila ’18 kicked off the fall by winning the first two middle school races (1.5 miles). He was promptly moved up to the Varsity level, where, coach Hernán Ortiz says, “he truly found his stride.” Jason finished in the top 10 in four of his five 3.1-mile races, and improved his time by two minutes in the span of a month. He also led the way at the NYCAL Boys’ Varsity Championship race by placing 15th of 56 with a time of 20.00.66.

Another MS student, Michaela Harvey ’17, paced the Cougars at the NYCAL Girls’ Varsity Championship by clocking in at 25.44.00 to finish 16th. Sophomore Morgan Mitchell was also consistently strong, finishing most of the girls’ races in the top 10. Iziah Mohamed ’13 improved markedly as the season progressed; he slashed his personal best by more than six minutes by season’s end. James Basuk ’13 was the best finisher on the team (“an outstanding final kick!” notes Hernán), and Elijah Cabrera ’15, who was new to the sport, ended the season as Calhoun’s second strongest runner.

Calhoun to Add JV Boys’ Soccer in 2013 David Bartolacci, Director of Athletics at Calhoun, has announced that the school will field its first-ever Boys’ JV Soccer team in the fall of 2013. The addition of the team is in answer to the surging popularity of the sport; close to 30 boys tried out for the Varsity team in 2012. “Having a JV team for any sport is incredibly helpful in terms of building and developing the overall program,” notes David, “not to mention that it provides even more opportunities for our students to experience interscholastic athletics.” The next goal for Calhoun, he says, will be to create an official Middle School Girls’ Soccer team (the MS team is currently co-ed), and then an Upper School Girls’ JV team.

winter 2013

PRIVATE SCHOOL with a

public

purpose: calhoun raises its

Steve Nelson: Our Public Mission

Leaders of Public Initiatives Speak Out

24 27

Partnerships

Raise Your Voice! Spotlight on Curriculum

Public Initiatives

voice

why

Calhoun’s mission to be a “private school with public purpose” is our responsibility as a progressive institution, what we hope from our students, and where the school is going in the next five years.

Let’s start with

Institutional Responsibility Interview with steve nelson Head of School

What does it mean to be a “private school with a public purpose”? Is that Calhoun’s mission? A private progressive school, by definition, has to be an institution with a public purpose.* If you go back to Dewey’s idea of “school and society,” or the many people who wrote and talked about infusing education with democratic ideals or engaging in the work of having kids become good citizens, all of that is about having a public purpose. If there’s anything that distinguishes Calhoun, I think it’s that we’re more explicit and comprehensive about it. Our School & Society program is designed to engage kids in thinking about what’s going on in the world around them and to be agents in some way. They might be small agents doing small things when they’re little

* The language “private school with a public purpose” is included in Calhoun’s 2011—2016 Strategic Plan, adopted by the Calhoun Board of Trustees in May 2012.

kids, or significant agents of change as they move through and out of Calhoun. Social justice is, I think, at the center of what we would hope our kids to work toward. But how to achieve social justice is extraordinarily complex…so we want our kids to think critically about things. Being a good citizen means considering many points of view, being skeptical and self-critical. How do you build the criticalthinking skills needed to be a responsible citizen? The real magic is to fashion a curriculum that capitalizes on kids’ curiosity, that uses the real things that are going on in the world around us. They end up with the same or arguably better traditional skills, but they’ve been brought to that point through a really progressive approach, where the skill sets are the byproduct of a great education. And that’s not easy to do. It takes a lot of intention, it takes a lot of planning, it takes really skillful teachers. The best curriculum in the school may look like discovery, but it’s designed to evoke what we want to develop in kids; it’s not accidental.

20 Are we doing all we can do? What would you like to see happen in the next few years? I think we’ve made a great step forward in the Upper School by instituting a block schedule that gives us a time framework in which to do the kinds of things that we know produce criticalthinking skills and allow kids to explore and discover. But there’s even more that could be done. For example, we might have a class do only one project during an entire [five-to-six-week] mod that could include traveling somewhere to engage in public work. And they would be able to do that without interrupting their march toward graduation. How are you exploring these possible changes in our curriculum? I have three task forces, each comprised of teachers and administrators who are looking at three very intentional ways of recrafting the school’s program from Lower School all the way to Upper School. One task force is looking at how we can have a sequence or ladder of experiential and expeditionary experiences that build one on another toward some culminating experience in high school. This means everything from camping out at Black Rock Forest when you’re a little kid to potentially spending an entire mod whitewater-rafting on the Colorado River and learning geology and reading poetry under the stars.

history, language and culture of another part of the world while immersing themselves in it.

A second group is concentrating on the intersection of history, culture and language, and crafting a set of experiences for kids that will culminate in a rich awareness of some other place in the world. As an example, Maya Wang [Middle School Mandarin teacher] took a trip to China this past summer on a Calhoun grant (see page 10). It was, quite intentionally, not a trip to Beijing to stay at an international hotel and learn about the great sites that tourists see, but to go to a rural province in China and begin developing a relationship and this is just a hypothetical that might lead to our kids spending several weeks in a rural province in China at the end of eighth grade. That experience would build to an even more expansive experience before the students left high school.

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We’re exploring a similar track in Spanish, for which we might set up a partnership with a school in Latin America that has a rich program in environmental studies. Our kids would be learning the

how students stay

curious

“

[We’re] looking at three very intentional ways of recrafting the school’s program, from Lower School all the way to Upper School.

”

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These experiences would be the culmination of choices that begin in kindergarten, with what books they are presented, what the social studies curriculum includes. It wouldn’t be to the exclusion of everything else, but the goal is to make these very intentional, layered and unforgettable experiences for kids. The third through-line that people are working on is one that revisits the longstanding progressive notion of handwork and handcraft. We have a good shop program that introduces our kids to working with their hands. But I think we’ve just scratched the surface of what we can do. I’d like our kids to have these experiences beginning at a younger age and continuing through high school, where, along with everything else that they’re doing, they’re actually learning to build things, they’re learning how the physical universe works. The reality is, technology may make things easier, but basically it’s still about people making things with their hands. And there’s immense cognitive value in kids knowing how to do that. Expeditionary learning becomes even more interesting when you build your own kayak. Rebuilding a village means more if you’ve been developing carpentry skills from the time you were seven years old. If you’re doing scientific experiments in Black Rock Forest, how much more meaningful is it if you’ve actually learned to build some of the measuring instruments as part of that scientific experiment? I see these three threads through our curriculum as the next evolution as we realize our progressive mission.

how students become

critical thinkers

“

If our kids come out of their Calhoun experience with their natural curiosity intact, with their innate capacity for empathy sharpened…the rest takes care of itself.

”

How do these proposed curricular programs relate to our public purpose? Each one of these threads can be imbued with that mission. Take again that very hypothetical relationship with the school in the rural Chinese province. An immersion experience would acquaint our kids with aspects of the world around them that they just wouldn’t see otherwise. The expeditionary learning could be something like what happened after Katrina, when groups of students from around the country went to help rebuild homes and learned the reality of what made some neighborhoods in New Orleans more vulnerable to floodwaters than others. God knows we saw that right here in New York. You’ve introduced during your tenure a number of programs that are not student-based. Do you consider these a part of our public mission? First, let me differentiate between two things. One is the part of our mission that directly affects our students meaning, what our educational intentions are for them, in and outside of the curriculum. So School & Society’s Raise Your Voice, all of the thematic

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approaches we’ve taken to social justice over the years, the way in which we use real issues of the world as fodder in the curriculum all of those directly affect kids.

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We have a separate part of our mission that is our responsibility as an institution. It can’t be entirely separated from the education but does exist, to a certain extent, independently of the education. What are some of our institutional initiatives? The Deconstructing Racism project is an institutional effort to be agents for change in society, but we also expect it to engage our kids in a variety of ways as the project goes forward. To a certain extent, our school will be one of the beneficiaries of the work we do, just as other schools will be. The Eat Right Now program is a way of introducing our kids to nutritious food and healthy eating. Chefs go into classrooms, and Chef Bobo teaches an Upper School course, The Politics of Food. But as an institution, we’re also training chefs who are going out and starting food service programs like ours at other schools.

PEL (Progressive Education Laboratory) was created to stimulate the development of teachers who will use progressive methodology as they go on in their careers. It will benefit the schools where those teachers eventually teach, and it also benefits us when the fellows are in our classrooms. We may end up hiring some of those teachers ourselves. A lot of these are hybrid programs, but the point I want to make is that it is part of our mission, which is independent of the effect it has on our kids, and it is our role as an institution to be an agent for change in our own society. What kind of people do you hope our students will become? The longer I’ve been here, the less complicated that issue becomes to me. I don’t mean to suggest that curriculum is unimportant or that specific skills don’t matter, because clearly they do on one level. But if our kids come out of their Calhoun experience with their natural curiosity intact, with their innate capacity for empathy having been sharpened…And by empathy, I don’t mean sympathy. So many people conflate the meaning of those two words. Sympathy is analogous to charity, empathy is justice. Empathy doesn’t just mean feeling someone else’s pain; empathy means you have a growing capacity to see something through another perspective. A partner of empathy is what is, in educationspeak, critical-thinking skills…that is empathy. If we do all of those things, the rest of it takes care of itself. n

Leaders behind Calhoun’s public purpose initiatives talk about what they do and how their activities encourage our students to become compassionate citizens and leaders in a global society.

Let’s Talk About

Social Justice Hilary North Director of Diversity & Equity Initiatives

ur commitment to reflect society, to be more diverse, creates extra challenges for our school. Other schools may say that very thing, but their expectation will be, “Diversity is great, but once you’re in our school, we have a pretty clear idea of how we expect you to behave and comport yourself.“ We’re really trying to say, “Be who you are in our school, which may challenge us to change what we’re doing so you are being embraced, validated, respected and seen as a full member of our community.” So we’ve been encouraging the formation of affinity groups for parents, students and staff, as the interest arises. We’ve also been looking carefully at our admissions and hiring outreach, finding ways to diversify the pool of families and educators we attract, in order to better reflect the population outside of the school. Programmatically, our curriculum is much more than teaching tolerance or acceptance. We are trying to effectively and authentically prepare our students to be active participants in the world. We want our students to feel that they can engage in the pursuit of equity and justice, and we want them to be aware of difference and oppression. A lot of schools create a bubble in which the students are being educated, maybe not ever encouraging them to tackle something that might be controversial or edgy, uncomfortable or problematic. We don’t believe that’s the most effective way to prepare our students for the next step which is to be out in the larger society, where a lot of these issues are at play. By bringing these challenges to the school community, right in front of the kids, right in front of the teachers, we’re basically preparing them and giving them the tools to act, to engage and to inform themselves.

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How the Arts Serve the

Greater Community David Alpert Director of Performing Arts and the Performing Arts Series; Calhoun’s Deconstructing Racism Project Director

I want students to be critical thinkers. It’s a big fancy word, but I’m drawn to this idea of epistemology: Why do we know what we know? Maybe we need to ask some difficult questions. And in order for us to live up to the ideal that I think is inherent in the design of our country, our society requires the participation of every person in our society. So it’s our job to get our students to learn that they have a voice, that they have power and agency particularly because they’re students in a privileged school environment to fight for and on behalf of all different kinds of people, even if they don’t think of themselves as struggling with a particular issue.

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It’s an ongoing, continuous process to be advocates, to be allies, to make choices that will ultimately get us to a place where, maybe, we can be a society where oppression is not the norm. Yes, I think there’s an active role we’re hoping our students can take, and we try to create opportunities for them to do that while they’re students here, so that it’s a natural progression for them as they move on to the next phase of their lives. n

was passed into legislation by Congress. That was a very powerful experience.

he arts are an extraordinary vehicle for building our children’s critical-thinking skills and sensitivities to different ways of thinking and being. We introduce works of theater or music that are not standard fare or typical repertoire, exposing them to composers whose works are unusual, contemporary; composers who are unknown; composers who are of color. We’ll often update a theater production to focus on themes that reflect the political or social climate, or we’ll select a work that connects to what the students are doing in their classrooms.

Frequently, our Performing Arts Series which is a public initiative supports the very learning that’s going on in our theater or music programming. For example, when the Upper School presented The Laramie Project, a play about the murder of gay college student Matthew Shepard, our Performing Arts Series was able to underwrite a visit by Judy Shepard, Matthew’s mom, for our evening TALK series. To a packed house of Calhoun parents, faculty, staff, students, alumni and neighbors, Judy gave a very personal plea for the hate-crime bill she was fighting for, which soon after

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We are a school within a community that has wonderful opportunities presented to us because we’re in one of the biggest cities in the world, with so many artists. As our public purpose, through education, we could be very insular and have our programs open exclusively to the Calhoun community and do a few things throughout the year and let that be that. But as a community that believes that the best way to educate is to look at things beyond our walls, we need to always serve the greater community by inviting our neighbors to join us. Calhoun’s new Deconstructing Racism project is an extension of this commitment. Again, we could close our eyes, close our shutters and only focus on ourselves. But instead, we’re hoping to transform a conversation that doesn’t yet exist into one that is actively happening, and making that information accessible to kids all over the country. In the end, I think our community believes strongly that Calhoun is not just about Calhoun; it’s a holistic, supportive, compassionate community that has a responsibility to make a contribution far greater than ourselves. n

How About Learning Through

Community Service

Debbie Havas Aronson ‘79 Director of Community Service

Public and Private School Partners Some of these partnerships are studentto-student; others are focused on professional development between the schools’ faculty and administration. > Blue School > Family Life Academy Charter School

(FLACS) > Freebrook Academy > The Cambridge School of Weston, The

ommunity service learning is part of our culture here at Calhoun; the kids expect that this is part of what they do part of their responsibility as a member of this community and as a citizen of our global society.

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The community service program has changed quite a bit in the last 10 years. In the past, the majority of community service projects didn’t happen within the curriculum or the classroom. Now, the focus is more on community service learning, which is a deeper form of community service. So, in addition to the ongoing student clubs and all-school projects like Harvest Festival, we’re offering elective courses to our Lower, Middle and Upper School students as part of the academic program.

One of the critical components to community service learning is some kind of reflection. Oftentimes, kids come to me with an idea for a project, but they haven’t really thought about the purpose of it. So I try to make them understand that they have to be meeting a need, and that they first have to find out what, exactly, those needs are. In community service learning classes, that reflection can take the form of writing in journals, or engaging in discussions or activities to reflect on what they’re doing. We’ll talk about objectives and then evaluate the project: Was it productive? Did it effect any change? Did it raise awareness? Some students have such incredible experience with their community service activities that they continue working on them for their senior internship projects, or when they get to college. Some have continued to intern or work for the organizations they came to know. That’s what we’re really hoping for… that participation in community service becomes a part of who they are, and that they continue it throughout their lives. Ultimately, the program is meant to expose the students to, and help them learn about, differences in the world, and the responsibility we have to each other. n

Putney School, The Unquowa School (PEL program) > Hyde Leadership Charter School > University Heights High School > SAR Academy > Network of Complementary Schools

Community Partners Most of these collaborative partnerships support Calhoun’s community service learning program; a few are on-site learning collaborations. (This list does not include many of the charitable organizations the Calhoun community supports with fundraisers throughout the year.) > All Angels Church

> Badlands National Park > Black Rock Forest > Central Park Conservancy > Council House senior center > Esplanade Senior Residence > Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC) > Hamilton House > Holy Trinity Church food program > Hope for Haitian Children Foundation > JASA Senior Center > Jewish Home Lifecare > Joint Schools Activities > KIVA > Lewa Wildlife Conservancy/Matunda project > Mount Sinai Medical Center > Next Step Men’s Shelter at Stephen Wise Free Synagogue > Picture the Homeless > Riverside Park Fund > StudentsforService > West End Residences > West Side Campaign Against Hunger In addition to the numerous schools and community organizations listed above, Calhoun maintains relationships with a number of professional organizations that support our faculty and our mission.

students become

partners W

e have a curriculum and a program that is very much informed by what’s going on in the world around us. Two areas that I am very involved with the yearly theme and the Progressive Education Tradition (PET) are designed to make sure that we’re constantly looking outward. The yearly theme is an opportunity for our kids to explore a particular world topic through the curriculum, and the programming and outreach is purposely inclusive of our parents, grandparents, alumni and friends of Calhoun.

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The PET class, open to our adult community and Upper Schoolers, is an opportunity to understand the roots and pedagogy of progressive education. But its end goal is to educate and empower community members to advocate for progressive education. There are other ways that we are reaching beyond our walls. We’re establishing collaborative partnerships with other schools public and independent. Right now we’re entering our second year of a curriculum connection with Family Life Academy Charter School. It’s a middle school program; the students meet in the spring of sixth grade and participate in a school-to-school sharing about health and nutrition in the seventh grade. The exact projects are determined by the students and teachers another example of students co-constructing learning alongside teachers.

We’re also working with Freebrook Academy, which opened this year in Brooklyn. The Freebrook teachers are participating in our PET course, which is a great opportunity for all of us; it affords the Freebrook faculty an additional professional development opportunity, and it supports Calhoun because we’re learning, from the ground up, how to “live your philosophy” as a school develops itself. An Upper School student is also planning to facilitate an after-school creative writing workshop for FB students.

In the last couple of years, I’ve noticed that we’ve been getting inquiries for visits from an increasing number of educators local and international who are attracted to our clarity around and commitment to progressive pedagogy for all students. When they come to visit, I make it a priority to say that we would like to establish a relationship. Visiting other schools and creating an exchange for ideas is an invaluable form of professional development; it requires us to be reflective of our own practice. Inevitably, it impacts our teaching and our curriculum, which ultimately serves our students. n

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What We Mean by

School & Society Josephine Salvador Director of School & Society

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curricular perspectives. My hope would be that whenever we do something like this, it would have a huge publicpartnership/social justice aspect to it.

How All of This Affects Our

For an administrator and teacher, this involvement with public purpose grounds you much more holistically in the community. And the more connected you are, the more people you come in contact with, the more people you bring into the school, the richer the experience is going to be for our students. n

Curriculum Lorenzo Krakowsky Upper School Director

ublic purpose is the modern iteration of service learning, civics studies, citizenship and ethics. In fact, the whole purpose of education is to prepare kids to be good citizens, to be leaders and to be empathic. While academics are really important, they have to be connected to a larger purpose. Otherwise, we’re not serving our students well. If you look at the history of progressive education, it’s always been about having

students become

a public purpose, about connecting people to one another and to their cultures. Our mod schedule, with its extended blocks of time, allows us to spend a lot more time out in the city. I hope that our faculty will move toward using that time not just to explore the city and use its resources, but to find ways to build even more partnerships. For example, Nicole Nemergut’s Global Social Movements class went out last fall to meet and work with a variety of social service agencies. In the spring, my French class is going to start working with an agency that serves West African immigrants in Harlem. I want to see that kind of curricular integration become an even greater part of what we do. In fact, we’ve launched a committee to explore the possibility of a one-mod pilot program for 20 to 25 students that would be designed around a single theme maybe social justice, immigration, democracy and they would look at that theme from multiple

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lace-based learning is an important part of our progressive approach. When we get our students out of the school and, when we can, off the island of Manhattan, we challenge the lenses we New Yorkers often adopt. There are a variety of opportunities for place-based learning in the Upper School: from class assignments, such as my history class’s Asia in New York research project, to six-week internships in the senior year, community service, domestic exchange programs or overnight on-site learning explorations. When our kids go to another place and interact with people who are stakeholders in these spaces, they’re forced to look at things from a different vantage. Take, for example, the marine biology/ social studies trip we made with 24 kids to Jamaica back in 2010. We spent time here at school learning about Jamaican politics, environment, economics and social life. Once in Jamaica, the students had 5 a.m. outings in boats with local fishermen, watching as they pulled up empty nets because of overfishing and pollution from fertilizer run-off and unmanaged waste from resort tourism. The students then met with leading envi-

Insightful

27 Calhoun’s Public Initiatives Eat Right Now: Calhoun’s holistic approach to healthy eating has earned the school its position as a pioneer and leader in the nutrition wars. Chef Bobo, who is frequently invited to speak about how to produce healthy school lunches, invites visiting chefs and students to train in our kitchen. He and our food service staff offer electives and after-school courses for our students,

Deconstructing Racism: Calhoun is in the

global community. School & Society initiates and

midst of developing a national campaign to

supports the school’s yearly theme, sponsors

educate students of all ages on “Deconstruct-

the PET course, hosts visiting educators and

ing Racism.” The three-part project, including a

establishes partnerships with other schools.

documentary film, companion curriculum, and interactive website, was awarded a $243,063 grant by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation of Battle Creek, MI. An additional $250,000 is still being raised.

Progressive Education Traditions (PET): This free, six-part evening course, now in its fourth year, aims to deepen our community’s understanding of the progressive education tradition. Led by the Head of School, the class is open to

and often work in classrooms on interdisciplin-

Performing Arts Series: Since 2004, Calhoun

members of the Calhoun community—parents,

ary curriculum. Many of our sous chefs have

has offered an exciting program featuring pro-

US students, faculty/staff, grandparents and

gone on to start similar programs in other

fessional artists in music, dance and children’s

alums—as well as partner educators.

schools, both public and private.

theater, as well documentary films and lectures.

Green Roof: Calhoun’s Green Roof, which received a grant from the Edward E. Ford Foundation, was the first eco-friendly green roof in

Low ticket prices ensure that families and seniors can access quality programming in an intimate setting.

Progressive Education Lab (PEL): Funded in part by a leadership grant from the Edward E. Ford Foundation, PEL is a two-year teaching fellowship that provides experience-based training

New York City dedicated to educational study.

School & Society: School & Society is the philo-

to college graduates. The multi-site program,

Opened in May 2005, the Green Roof is not only

sophical “umbrella” for the myriad activities

which began in the summer of 2012, takes

a model for sustainability and energy savings,

that Calhoun pursues in the areas of commu-

place at the four founding schools: The Calhoun

but also for urban gardening. Hundreds of

nity service learning, multiculturalism, social

School; The Cambridge School of Weston,

visitors, both domestic and international, have

activism and progressive education theory

Weston, MA; The Putney School in Putney, VT;

toured the roof and continue to visit each year.

and practice. The goal is to create a seamless

and The Unquowa School in Fairfield, CT.

interconnection between the school and our

ronmental activists, and then brought their questions and observations to a meeting with the minister of foreign affairs in Kingston. He thought he was going to talk to the kids about dance hall music and Olympic icons. Instead, the kids said, “We have some questions about how you’re managing labor;

The Value of

Internships and Place-Based Learning Lavern McDonald Associate Director, Upper School

about how you’re going to make sure the environment will sustain life.” For an hour and a half, these kids had that minister tapping his knee because he was so nervous about their questions. And I can unequivocally say that those kids left the experience with another set of lenses; no longer will they go on

tropical excursions and be satisfied with a packaged experience sold by a tourism company; they know how to penetrate societies like this and ask the critical questions. Part of what I’m doing this year is working with teachers to conceive of local field trips and travel seminars to destinations off the beaten path. Art and biology teachers will again offer the trip to Badlands National Park in South Dakota. And I suspect more teachers will be crafting deeply meaningful experiential opportunities, as well. Ultimately, the goal is to find ways to help our students understand the kinds of issues that shape the wider world. That’s key citizenship education. I think that’s largely what drives a lot of the work I do here. With our talented, very resourced kids, bright eager learners…I think it’s our charge, it’s our responsibility. n

this 28

LOWER SCHOOL/74

year’s theme, Raise Your Voice, is all about public purpose; it’s about helping our students find their voices and showing them how standing up for what they believe can effect change. Here’s a peek at how the yearly theme re-energized some annual curricular and co-curricular projects, and inspired new classes and activities—from the 3’s through twelfth grade. uncovering

empathy This year’s Penny Harvest Drive (left) began only weeks before Hurricane Sandy hit. When the school decided to direct that fundraising to Sandy relief, first grade teachers observed that many of their students started bringing in money from their own piggy banks something they had rarely seen in years past. “There was suddenly a real, emotional connection for the Lower Schoolers to the people and places that needed help,” recalls LS teacher Amie Anderson. “It became very tangible for the children to think about where the Penny Harvest money was going.”

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Little Calhoun’s popular Pocket People project (above) helps jump-start discussions and explorations about identity and community. After creating their pocket people, the students build homes for their dolls and write stories about who they are. The dramatic play that ensues has evolved over the years, observes LS Director Kathleen Clinesmith. “The children have taken to moving their houses together to form apartment buildings and communities; two-daddy and two-mommy families have appeared; and last year, one child had the idea that her pocket person was homeless.”

Discovering Identity and Community By Elissa Kompanek, 4’s teacher

It’s not about teaching empathy; it’s about discovering what’s natural in every human being. With our preschoolers in the 3’s and 4’s, we start building a sense of community and a belief that our first job is to take care of one another. We want the children to get to know one another and appreciate their similarities and differences and to celebrate those. To that end, we have many celebrations and discussions about family customs and traditions. Through age-appropriate discussions about other cultures we connect with what the children already know and connect with a sense of community that goes beyond the classroom. Everything we do helps us to think about other people. We create welcome cards when the children start the school year, and when someone is absent, we make a “welcome back” card for their return. Before you know it, the children are noticing, “He’s not here; she must be sick,” and writing their own welcome-back cards. This is significant, because when a member of your community isn’t there, it affects the way your community operates and you miss him/her. Our literature also reflects these sensibilities. Authors like Faith Ringgold, Barbara Shook Hazen, Eve Bunting, Patricia Polacco and Shane DeRolf create characters and storylines with whom children can identify, which then ignite an awareness of situations the children may not recognize in their own lives. Books such as Amazing Grace,

discovering

compassion

Tar Beach, Global Babies, Whoever You Are and Tight Times enliven empathetic questions and discussions. We see children working on the ideas they arouse in both symbolic and creative play throughout the year. Since celebrating Gandhi’s birthday, children have invoked questions such as “What would Gandhi do or say?” The community grows as the children get older. Literature helps open the door to talking about and celebrating the differences they encounter among their new friends and adults. Other stories focus on collaboration, making it clear that some things just aren’t fair and illustrating how we need to work together.

The literature we read to our 4’s and kindergartners helps prepare them for the first grade curriculum, when they start learning about self-identity and basic needs shelter, clothing and food as well as the harder issues of homelessness and hunger. First graders make several trips to a local food pantry, where they help shelve the food they’ve collected as donations. They create communities with homemade pocket people, who reflect their own identities or those of imagined characters. They learn that they can work as partners with other people, in their classroom and in the community. The first grade social studies curriculum is a perfect example of an integrated curriculum that expands into community service learning that is age- and developmentally appropriate. n

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LOWER SCHOOL/81

Reaching Out Across Generations Stepping into someone else’s shoes is what Lower School teacher Giovanni Pucci asks his fourth graders to do each year when they tackle what is invariably an ambitious theater production. And while past students have executed such timeless tales as Romeo and Juliet and King Lear to splendid results, this current class is charged with an entirely different task the fourth graders are taking the personal memoirs of senior citizens and weaving these tales into scripts, which will be acted out under the lights this spring in a full stage production.

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The process isn’t new at Calhoun; Giovanni has been developing this intergenerational theater project over the last few years, usually culminating in “mini-plays” performed solely for the seniors. But this year, Giovanni wanted to take the project to the “next level.” The key to the endeavor is the opportunity for students to walk a mile in the shoes of not only people of a different generation, but those who might not be of the same economic

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background some, in fact, who have experienced what it’s like to be dirt poor. “The students get a real sense of history and make tangible connections,” says Giovanni. So this past December, fourth graders visited the Jewish Home and Hospital and the Hamilton House to spend time with the senior residents. The students and seniors broke out into small groups and chatted for more than an hour, forging friendships over cookies and juice. Then, with audio recorders rolling, the students eagerly listened as the seniors shared seminal stories from their lives. Now the students are busy with their playwriting, piecing diverse sections together into a flowing narrative. The project has been a success on both ends. In past performances the seniors have been moved to tears, and the students have taken immense pride in the result of their re-enactments. “[The students] realize it’s a real privilege to share” observes Giovanni, “and I think that goes to the way Calhoun gives back.” n

30 If I Had a Hammer Rock the Vote Students from the seventh grade Community Action class and the Upper School Language in Action class took to Broadway on election day to get out the vote.

Noel Paul Stookey, a.k.a. Paul of the renowned folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary, helped launch Calhoun’s yearly theme Raise Your Voice! in rousing fashion: He delighted students and faculty alike with his music, and reminded all that there are countless ways to inspire change with one’s voice.

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MIDDLE SCHOOL

How to Enact Change They’re going to have to wait until 2020 to raise their voices in a presidential election, but thanks to a humanities program that blends political process with independent social activism, fifth and sixth grade students are already standing up for what they believe.

LOWER SCHOOL/81

Student Government: Seeds of Leadership With the 2012 Presidential Election supplying inspiration and the Raise Your Voice yearly theme acting as the catalyst, one seemingly simple question “What is government?” proved to be a jumping-off point for spirited debates and the impetus for a new era of student leadership in Calhoun’s Lower School on 81st Street.

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“We started with zero assumptions and simply asked what government does and how it affects lives,” says LS teacher Daniel Ercilla, who, along with Josephine Salvador, Director of School & Society, helped re-launch the LS student government. “We let the kids take it from there because we wanted them to imagine how it would work and influence life at Calhoun.” The next step was for the second, third and fourth graders to determine what kind of government they wanted. “All the input was from the kids,” says Daniel. “Everyone participated, so you had countless ideas, ranging from ‘President for Life,’ which we explained was essentially a dictatorship, to anarchist regimes. It was very interesting listening to their thought processes.”

Eventually, the students held an election to pick a form of government. The winner was a rotating-representative style, where different teams of students from each grade take turns being in charge. Now that a government is in place, the students will be writing a constitution and bill of rights as well as defining the guidelines on how meetings will be run and requests considered. Adds Daniel, “Some kids are proposing things like fixing the water fountain while others want the bathroom kept tidier. Of course, there are those who oppose others at every step of the way, but that’s all part of the process.” With this year’s group of motivated students, the new government in the Lower School promises to deliver a lasting platform for young leaders to positively affect life at Calhoun. “It provides a sense of citizenry and a responsibility in knowing that one can be an agent of change,” notes Daniel. n

This past fall, the students learned how a bill becomes a law; they eagerly listened as visitors like Federal Judge Jesse Furman talked about the legal system’s impact on those laws; and they discussed the importance of citizenship with some of the newest eligible voters in the United States Calhoun’s own twelfth graders.

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According to Middle School humanities teacher Chelsea Stilman-Sandomir ’05, the two-year cross-disciplinary class is all about developing a critical eye, forming opinions and learning how to make intelligent decisions. “We hope that, although they can’t vote now, they realize they’re in a position to help their communities and voice their opinions in effective and positive ways,” she says. “The overarching purpose is to make our students more aware of the world around them, which is a goal we have threaded throughout the curriculum.” Fellow humanities teacher Andrew Marsiglio notes that part of building an effective curriculum includes using a variety of resources, such as videos

31 and literature, as well as relying on expert guests from our school and local community. In addition to Judge Furman, the students met with Tom Siracuse, the Green Party’s 2012 candidate for State Senate in the 29th District. “Every student connects to someone or something different,” observes Andrew, who says that the ultimate objective for students is that they know how to continue their learning on their own time and in their own unique way.

MIDDLE SCHOOL

us their opinions and sharing comments and observations,” observes Andrew. Asking them to ‘Raise Your Voice’ in a more structured way was exciting for them and it was rewarding to watch how involved they were.”

Even before Calhoun’s yearly theme was announced, the humanities teachers had decided that, in a presidential election year, it was vital to provide students with a nonpartisan understanding of how the U.S. government works. “Working the theme into our curriculum through written responses and class discussions was easy,” says Andrew. The year began with an assignment that asked the students to write down a cause or issue they felt passionate about, why it stirred their emotions and what they might be able to do to advance that cause. The speech bubbles they filled out were eventually attached to their photo portraits and posted on the Middle School wall for all to see. “Our students thrive when they’re telling

Enthusiasm was so high for the project that it led to a “Raise Your Voice!” picture-book story, with each student elaborating on his or her speech bubble. Irene Baigorri, in her first year of teaching at Calhoun, says the idea was for students to connect their personal passions to the world around them, to understand that “the personal is political” and that global issues can be traced back to our daily lives. Explains Irene, “For example, children who love their pets can translate that into thinking about animals on a broader scale animal rights or animal rights activism. The opportunity to reflect and talk about what they would raise their voice about stimulated their perception of themselves as potential agents of change.” n

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Bridging Boroughs, Student to Student A new partnership is developing between Hyde Leadership Charter School in the Bronx and Calhoun’s Middle School students, thanks to a collaboration between MS shop teacher David Hyman and Steve Ritz, dean of students at Hyde Leadership. This past December, Calhoun seventh graders visited Hyde Leadership, where they donated books to help build a permanent reading space for kindergarteners. The Calhoun kids spent time with the young students, reading to them and telling jokes. After their stop at Hyde Leadership, the seventh graders continued on to the Hunts Point Alliance for Children in the Bronx to deliver 11 miniature handcrafted Adirondack chairs they’d made the previous year in woodshop class. The preschoolers who will be using the chairs immediately took to the gifts and, with great enthusiasm, showed Calhoun students the ropes of their play space. “Every seventh grader I spoke with was so thrilled to be able to connect with the students at Hyde, they’ve asked when they can go again,” says David. “The Hyde students as well as the children at the Hunts Point Alliance were grateful for the donations, but far more excited for the attention and connections made. This was a great beginning for everyone.”

developing

Good citizens

32 More recently, four high school students from Hyde Leadership joined forces with 13 Middle Schoolers from Calhoun to build the stage and backdrop for a TEDxManhattan conference. Using donated materials, space and tech support from Calhoun, the students worked in integrated groups to design the signage. David and Steve hope the partnership between the schools leads to a highly replicable model of school and community collaboration.n

MIDDLE SCHOOL

Tackling the History of Injustice For the 16 eighth graders involved, the Middle School theater production of Anne Frank & Me was a natural extension of their curricular explorations of tolerance that began last year in English and social studies. It also dovetailed perfectly with Calhoun’s yearly theme, providing the students a unique outlet for expression.

UPPER SCHOOL

Advocating for Food Justice and Sustainability

“Handing over such a serious and remarkable script was a compliment to this group,” says director and MS theater teacher Ed Schloth. Middle School is a place where students are eager to speak out against injustices both big and small, so it should come as no surprise that this contemporary look at one of history’s most compelling figures was embraced by its participants. In the end, the thespians’ deftly executed performances conveyed the weight of the content, and allowed for a new generation to raise their voices as a reminder that past horrors should not be forgotten. (See more photos, page 15.) n

The play follows the story of Nicole Burns, a teenager who doubts the truth and cares even less about the Holocaust, but eventually comes face-to-face with the reality in an extraordinary sequence where she meets Anne Frank on a cattle car to Auschwitz.

Students in Chef Bobo’s elect The Politics of Food developed a keen understanding about where their food comes from and what they eat by investigating the powerful influence of the food industry, agribusiness and food lobbyists on our nation’s diet. During the course of the class, students read such books as Food Politics, Fast Food Nation and The Omnivore’s Dilemma. Guest speakers included community activist Karen Washington, who spoke about community gardens; Nancy Easton, executive director of Wellness in the Schools, an expert on the subject of school food politics; Dean Carlson of Wyebrook Farm, who talked to the students about sustainable farming; and community activist Harry Bubbins, who decried the encroachment of Fresh Direct in his Bronx neighborhood. The students also had the opportunity to eat lunch at Northern Spy Food Co., an East Village restaurant that sources all of its ingredients through local farms. “The aim is for my students to have a greater understanding of the choices they make, but also to influence others by advocating for change,” says Chef Bobo, who required his students to research a particular issue of their choosing, contribute to a class blog, and commit to how they could turn their knowledge into activism.

becoming

Reflective

Facing Truth with Laughter

nurturing

activists Naomi van der Lande ’13, who did her research on organic foods, was surprised that she found herself empathizing with some of the contributors to the conventional [food] industry: “Taking away their factory farms would result in immense job loss, possibly generating an even larger political issue,” acknowledged Naomi in her blog. “[But] my efforts in learning about the opposing side also proved to me how far-off our nation is from an all-natural food system. It should not have to be a privilege to have access to food that does not harm us and our surroundings.” Michael Luzmore ’13, who researched the urban food revolution, screened the film Edible City for Upper Schoolers, to advocate for the local food movement. “Understanding and seeing a whole economy and community that revolves around regional farmers’ foods is inspiring and hopeful for the future of sustainably grown local foods,” says Michael, who will continue his studies in the field next year at Cornell University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. n

UPPER SCHOOL

Global Social Movements: Effecting Change Through project- and place-based learning, Upper School students in Nicole Nemergut’s Global Social Movements class gained valuable insight into the many forms of activism that effect change around the world and in our own backyard. Students spent four weeks researching the internal decision-making in the Chipko Movement in India, the Landless Workers’ Movement in Brazil, and the World Social Forum. To better understand what motivates political activists, and the inner workings of their causes, Nicole took them to the Interference Archive in Brooklyn, where a meeting with Cindy Milstein of the Institute for Anarchist Studies proved to be eye-opening. During another

Jordan Peele ‘97 (far left), co-star of Comedy Central’s Key & Peele, returned to Calhoun in November to talk to students about his career path and how he found his voice. Comedy, he explained, is his way to explore subject matter that is sometimes too scary to “put out there” any other way. Recalling his time at Calhoun, Jordan remembers that “[As students] we could come up with an idea and the school would get behind us, get its resources behind us and let us go for it… they helped us to find our voice.” He encouraged the students to take advantage and grab every opportunity to do the same.

Advisor to Presidents Lester Hyman (left), onetime protégé of John F. Kennedy as well as an advisor to eight presidential candidates, came to Calhoun in early November to speak with seventh and eighth graders about the electoral process, the 2012 election and his experience in “lending his voice” to the political landscape over the course of the last 50 years.

trip, students met with members of the Sublevarte Colectivo, a Mexican art collective that emerged from the 1999–2000 National Autonomous University of Mexico student strikes. Discussions revolved around the various social movements in Mexico, the role of art and images in political protest, and the different types of protest tactics. The results of their explorations led to fascinating presentations to fellow Upper Schoolers, faculty and staff. Says Nicole, “Our students discovered not only how these movements function politically with the outside world, but how they structure themselves and make decisions within.” n

Celebrating Classes Ending in “3” and “8” All Alumnae/i Welcome! Location: Rooftop, 81st Street

Be a Reunion Class Agent! Q Help

plan your reunion Q Provide updates on classmates To volunteer, contact: Bart Hale ’00 Director of Alumnae/i Relations bart.hale@calhoun.org 646-666-6450

Reunion

Friday, May 10, 2013

class notes

Alumnae/i Letter Reinvigorating the Alumnae/i Council As with any successful organization, Calhoun continues to thrive

What issues will the Council address?

due to the selfless dedication of our volunteers. In no small

There are many areas where the council can offer important

part, this includes generous alums who help host events, serve as class chairs, and return on numerous occasions to speak with current students and fellow alums.

feedback. The various ways Calhoun connects with our alums is one example, and the career resources and networking opportunities the school provides is another key area to develop.

In response to the growing alumnae/i program and strength of

The events we hold for young alumni, the ways we engage alums

this network, Calhoun has worked over the past year to revive a

with students and our “On-the-Road” gatherings beyond NYC are

successful Alumnae/i Council leadership structure that is seen at

transforming the program. In 2011 we introduced the 1896 Circle,

many other schools. Charged to lead the Alumnae/i Association,

an alumnae/i giving society, and that can be further strengthened

the Alumnae/i Council’s goal is to support Calhoun’s mission as a

by the council’s guidance. There are opportunities to tackle these

leader in progressive education.

and many other projects on a leadership level.

The following provides some details and an overview of the

How does the nomination and election process work?

Alumnae/i Council:

The Alumnae/i Council’s nominations committee will consider

What is the Alumnae/i Council?

any alum who graduated from Calhoun. Typically, candidates

The Calhoun Alumnae/i Council is an advisory board consisting

are suggested to the committee by someone within the

of 9-20 directors who are elected for a three-year term. Their eligibility to serve is based on their past volunteerism in support of Calhoun, their diverse professional accomplishments and their commitment to Calhoun’s future. The directors on the council will represent the nearly 3,000 members of Calhoun’s Alumnae/i Association, serving as ambassadors to the entire school community and providing a critical alumnae/i voice. The council helps enhance the experience of all Calhoun alums by becoming familiar with the state of the school; providing opportunities to discuss and share Calhoun issues relevant to the alumnae/i

alumnae/i community or they can simply nominate themselves. In reviewing candidates, the nominations committee uses the following six criteria: (1) previous Calhoun volunteer experience— with a particular eye toward demonstrated leadership; (2) connectedness to other members of the alumnae/i community and a general passion for Calhoun; (3) demonstrated ideas for the alumnae/i relations program and vision about future opportunities; (4) support for Calhoun’s Annual Fund; (5) range of professional occupations and talents; (6) gender and racial diversity.

community; and promoting effective communications, event

If you know someone who may be a good candidate, or if you

programming and other modes of engagement with alums. The

would like to nominate yourself, please notify the Alumnae/i

council is an advisory board, not a policy-making group; policy

Office in writing at alumni@calhoun.org. Nominations must be

decisions are made by the school’s Board of Trustees, which has

received by March 1 each year, and if contested, an election will be

ultimate responsibility for Calhoun’s mission.

held in conjunction with the annual spring Reunion.

Why establish an Alumnae/i Council?

We remain optimistic and excited about the potential for this

The council will be instrumental in providing alumnae/i perspectives at Calhoun while also helping shape decisions about the future of our alumnae/i program. As we seek to better respond to the needs and interests of our alumnae/i community, the council will also help promote dialogue between alumnae/i and students, faculty, administrators and the Board of Trustees on important issues related to the school.

new council to add greater depth to an already strong network of alumnae/i leaders. Thank you to all who support the school and give so selflessly of yourselves for the betterment of our alma mater. Bart Hale ’00 Director of Alumnae/i Relations bart.hale@calhoun.org

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class notes

1960s

MARRIAGES Alex Heath ’95 to Amber Mullins

Betty Ann Goldstein Gaynor ’62 Brian Peters ’97 to Yael Leopold Brian Daniels ’98 to

Kate Stluka (2011) Josh Raeben ’01 to Sarah Boutilier Jesus Reina ’04 to Anna Margrethe Nilsen Angela Bonilla ’06 to Jay Coolman

BIRTHS To Bobby Rue ’85 and Laura Real, a boy, Alexander James To Billy Zifchak ’99 and Melissa Rosales Zifchak, a boy, Sawyer Kellan To Justin Bosch ’00 and Louise Bosch, a boy, Oscar Mason To Hilary Gluck Wasicek ’02 and Andrew Wasicek, a girl, Emma Marilyn

IN MEMORIAM Pat Oshrin Glazer ’39 Rita Bass Lubin ’43 Joan Landau Gindler ’46 (May 2010) Vicki Kanner Bernstein ‘44 Lilian Gold Schecter ’48 Arlene Petroff ’57 Nina Pollak Levin ’62 Chelsea Gable ’98

Faculty/Staff Lil Lulkin (see page 6)

The Calhoun Chronicle

In Memoriam

Chelsea Gable ’98 It is with a heavy heart that we share the sad news that Chelsea Gable ’98 died this past September in a car accident in Mount Vernon, NY, where her family lives. Though Chelsea only spent two years of high school at Calhoun, her presence and warmth left an enduring impact on Calhoun and her classmates. Those who shared their school days with Chelsea remember her big smile, genuine kindness and infectious energy, which radiated throughout the fourth floor. She was a member of Film Cult, Queer/ Straight Partnership and US Band, and was the photo editor of the yearbook. Among the many who attended her services were classmates Cathy Bertchume ’98, Katie Dreisbach ’98, Erol Gunduz ’98, Maggie Mikofsky ’98, Sophia Morel ’98, Audrey Pendleton ’98, Katya Tepelyan ’98 and Billy Zifchak ’99. Chelsea will be honored this spring at Reunion 2013, where she would have celebrated her 15th Reunion with her class. As best noted on a memorial Facebook page, “Her life was much too short for such an extraordinary person so full of rich, spirited life. The world is a sadder place without Chelsea.”

remains active as an honorary board member of Healthy Child Healthy World, where she was part of the founding board. The organization empowers parents to protect children from harmful chemicals and provides resources and tools to bring awareness to the issues that are putting children’s health at risk today. Betty is still living in Delray Beach, FL. Nina Pollak Levin ’62 passed away

last June after suffering from Pick’s disease, a rare neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain—only weeks after she had returned to visit Calhoun and celebrate her 50th Reunion with classmates. Those who saw her then were stunned and saddened later, when the news was announced. Nina had a career as a teacher and is survived by her husband, Marvin. Lillian Kean Appel ’66 had the unique opportunity to meet President Obama last spring! Lillian is director of major events and programs at Barnard College, where the president appeared as the school’s commencement speaker. “The entire experience of working with the White House staff and Secret Service was quite fascinating,” says Lillian. In the meeting, “I expressed how honored we were to have him at Barnard, and he told me how honored he was to be able to address our graduates. I remember thinking that he was even more handsome than his photos suggest, with an absolutely dazzling smile, and that he seemed so comfortable and natural during what must be an endless round of these meetings. All in all, it was an experience I’ll remember for the rest of my life.”

Loretta Wick Holland ’68, who

retired as a special education teacher for autistic students after 25 years at Southern Westchester BOCES, is now enjoying a new winter home in Boca Raton, FL, with her husband, Arthur. She also has more time to enjoy their four grandchildren; their third and last child, Nicole, was married in March 2012. Loretta passes on her “best wishes to all my classmates!”

1970s Laurie Goldrich Wolf ’71 had a book

published last July called Portland, Oregon Chef’s Table: Extraordinary Recipes from the City of Roses. In the book, Laurie celebrates Portland’s farm-to-table way of life by profiling signature “at home” recipes from more than 40 dining establishments. She still lives in Portland with her husband, Bruce, who was responsible for all of the photography for the book. Laurie also has a blog, www.foodfiendpdx. com. Holly Miller ’73, who lives in Shaker Heights, OH, is chief medical officer at MedAllies, which provides expertise and resources to help physicians with the application and use of health information technology. She is also the lead author on a book about personal health records, titled, Personal Health Records: The Essential Missing Element in 21st Century Healthcare, which was published in 2009. Jenny Sandler Meyers ’78 is a freelance illustrator, painter and writer in New York City. She is married to Adam Meyers, who is a research professor at New York University. Her son, Joshua, is a junior in high school.

class notes

1980s Mark Fowler ’81 was ordained as an interfaith/interspiritual minister through the One Spirit Interfaith Seminary in New York in June 2012. Mark looks forward to continuing a life of service and exploration of the divine, with some fun! He is still living on Staten Island, and though he lost power for 10 days, he was fortunate to escape any water damage from Sandy. Julie Isaacson Antupit ’82 moved

out to San Mateo, CA, from Massachusetts this past summer, and reports that the family’s transition is going well. “Our move was prompted by my husband’s new job here, and I was lucky enough to find a position as the learning specialist for The Carey School, which is a PreK–5 independent school in San Mateo.” Their son, Benjamin, also started at Carey in the fourth grade. “We’re all enjoying the mild, sunny weather in San Mateo,” says Julie, who adds, “we’d love to connect with other Calhoun alums who are in the Bay Area!” Nicolas Pasanella ’82, who received his master’s in architecture from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation in 1993, has been working as the director of construction at the Insight Property Group since January 2010. He is living in Alexandria, VA. Daniel Bernard ’86, a professor of

pharmacology at McGill University in Montreal, led an international team of clinicians and basic scientists to uncover a new genetic cause of thyroid hormone deficiency that is more common in males than in females. The team’s work was recently published in Nature Genetics.

Voices Advocating for the Invisible People

Musings by Sheila Daise Bernard-Lassiter ‘81

I want to write a quick note to congratulate and thank The Calhoun School for making me a truly dedicated member of the community in which I live. I became a licensed practical nurse in 1989, a career that I have found tremendously fulfilling. After almost 20 years of hospital nursing and private duty nursing, I went to Hudson River HealthCare, in Poughkeepsie, NY, and after a year, was transferred to an inner-city office, where I was truly challenged to the max! I had to learn the Spanish language and a completely different vocabulary. I found that I had a knack for communicating on all levels. I work with the underserved community, and it has enriched my life. In my day-to-day experience, I delight in problemsolving, never approaching a situation with the belief that it is over my head. I never say, “This is impossible,” to myself. I am a Calhoun graduate; nothing is impossible. In one particularly vivid memory, a male patient came to me on a terribly busy day in 2007. He asked me to call the health department to file a report about especially poor conditions at his shelter. I was overwhelmed and asked if he could call for himself. What he said to me truly changed my life. With tears falling, he explained, “Sheila, because of the choices I have made in my life, nobody will listen to me. That’s why God sent you here. You are the voice of the invisible people like myself.” I cried with him that day, then called the health department with him present so he would know it was done. It was such a simple request. Still, his life and his words propel me forward. So thank you, Calhoun. I know now what I was born to do and Calhoun gave me all of those tools. I never find myself threatened by anyone’s intelligence or title. I appreciate my own ability to learn and to grow. My mother raised me to be a lady; Calhoun taught me to believe in myself and never give up. To this day, I think of the school often. I have a big school pin on the corkboard near my desk, a ceramic mug and tile, and a mouse pad that all scream “The Calhoun School.” Most important, I have the heart of a lion when it comes to my work. Thanks to Calhoun for everything you were and still are to me. As I grow, so does the Calhoun spirit inside. Congratulations and best of luck with your progressive educational goals, always!

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1. (L–R): Ethan Maurer ’90, Ilana Plutzer Hyman ’90, Stav Birnbaum ’90, Jeffrey Belkin ’90 and Candace Cavalier ’90 gathered in September, with children in tow, to celebrate their milestone 40th birthdays. 2. Classmates gathered for the wedding of Brian Peters ’97. (L–R) Richard Lin ’97, Angie Soto ’97, Yael Leopold, Brian Peters ’97, Lafiya Watson ’97 and Troy Cummings ’97 3. Shaniquoa Elrington ‘96 in India 1

4. Justin Bosch ’00 and wife, Louise, pose with their baby boy, Oscar Mason, who was born in March 2012. 5. The Billy Zifchak ’99 kids: Nina, age five, with baby brother, Sawyer Kellan, who was born on June 28, 2012.

The Calhoun Chronicle

Chad Stoller ’88 is a managing partner at IPG Media Lab, a company that provides agencies and clients with access to new media by offering facilities, expertise and resources tailored to rigorously tested emerging media and marketing techniques. Chad lives with his daughter, Nova, 13, in lower Manhattan. He says he was thrilled to catch up with US science teacher John Roeder when he came back to Calhoun for a visit this fall. Nessim Watson ’89 is an academic and career advisor at Greenfield Community College in Massachusetts, where he works with faculty to incorporate internships and career development skills into the academic programs. Nessim earned a certificate in renewable energy and energy efficiency, and now works, as well, for the college’s energy program as a consultant in curriculum development and marketing. He lives in western Massachusetts with his wife, Peach Robidoux, and their daughter, Maya.

1990s Jeff Belkin ’90 joined the team

of Zero Gravity Management last spring as a literary manager and producer. The move came after his five years running Foremost Films, where he represented a stable of screenwriters while providing professional screenplay analysis and consulting through his side venture, Foremost Writers. Among his other work, Jeff also helped develop projects such as Gran Torino for Double Nickel Entertainment. Ethan Maurer ’90 lives in

Huntington, VT, with his wife, Beth, and daughter, Hannah. He continues working as a plan manager in the high school completion program at Vermont Adult Learning, a nonprofit that provides Vermonters with adult education. Ethan is also on the board of the advocacy group Vermont Priorities, which supports public policies in the state across economic, cultural and political spectrums. Dianna Martin ’90 was onstage this past fall for a performance of Marcel Pagnol’s classic romance Marius, which was held at the Storm Theatre Company. She also won a Planet Connections Theatre award over the summer for Outstanding Actress in a Reading with her performance as Shawna in Coyote on a Fence. Claudia Zelevansky ’91, who has been actively involved in the theater world since graduating with an MFA in directing from Yale, has been working as an associate at Martin Vinik Planning for the Arts since 2011 and is attending Columbia University’s Teachers College Program in Arts Administration. Claudia lives in Brooklyn, just 10 blocks from her sister, Nora ’95.

class notes

Puertorico Morales ’94 is living

Angie Soto ’97 checked in to share

in Maryland and working for the Baltimore County public school system, where he is a behavioral specialist.

that she is still teaching fifth grade in a New York City public school. “I have also been taking the time I have off for the summer to travel. I volunteered in Tanzania last summer, and two years ago spent it traveling around Trinidad and Tobago.”

Alex Heath ’95, who married Amber Mullins at a celebration last June, is currently living in Brooklyn and working as a vice president in corporate communications at Edelman, a global public relations firm, where he has been since 2010.

Alex Maynard ’98 moved back to

California after a brief stint in New York and is now living in San Diego.

Shaniquoa Elrington ’96 is the

Billy Zifchak ’99 and his wife,

interim director of instruction at Lefferts Gardens Charter School, an environmental science–themed K–3 learning environment in Brooklyn. She also self-published a photo book, India 2012 (available at blurb.com), about her adventures traveling through India earlier this year.

Melissa, welcomed a new baby boy to their family this summer, Sawyer Kellan Zifchak, who joins his older sister, Nina, now five. Billy owns and operates a tile restoration franchise in Bergen County, not far from the family home in Nanuet, NY. While his Hello Eden band has broken up, Billy notes, “Music is still a strong presence in my life. I have a friend who records with me in an ongoing project called BMFDV; it’s facetious punk rock. We finally finished a recording, where I play all the instruments and write the lyrics. The second record will be more ambitious and may include some Hello Eden members.”

Molly Mandlin ’96 just moved from

Brooklyn to the Bronx—“more space and a great new sunny room I’ve made into my studio,” she reports. “I’m still happily with Rob, my boyfriend of more than eight years.” She is working as an independent writer and artist. Kevin Silverman ’96 moved from Ogilvy Public Relations to Ruder Finn, where he assumed the position of senior vice president of digital influence. This past June, Kevin married Jennifer Johnson in a ceremony in Florida. Cynthia Caban ’97 caught up with

classmates at the Alumni Pub Night this past November. She has been working as a digital media editor for LordandTaylor.com since April, having spent the prior three years at Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy. Back in 2006, Cynthia received her graduate degree in fashion marketing from Parsons the New School for Design.

2000s Andrea Cortes-Juarbe ’01 is living

in San Francisco, where she teaches dance to children in after-school programs and recreation centers, including the Harvey Milk Center for the Arts. She’s also been doing video production and editing for the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department, and recently, began volunteering at SF General Hospital as a doula, noting, “I have helped seven women give birth!” Andrea is in the process of applying to graduate school to pursue a degree in dance/movement therapy.

Support Calhoun’s 2012—2013 Annual Fund

six Reasons Why Alumni Participation Matters 1. Testimonial to Calhoun: Your gift signals to others that Calhoun is valued by its graduates. 2. Competitive Spirit: Calhounders are proud! Help us compete with the higher alumni giving levels at our peer schools! 3. Appreciation for our teachers: Giving helps bring salaries to competitive levels, and shows our talented faculty how much they are valued—esp. by attaching a teacher tribute. 4. Expanding Financial Aid: Annual Fund dollars help support and promote a fully diverse community at Calhoun. 5. Growth of Alumni Programming: Your giving ensures even more resources for alumni programs, including reunions, career symposiums and Calhoun-on-the-Road. 6. Stability for Calhoun’s Future: As part of Calhoun’s 100+ year history, your lifelong connection guarantees a quality education for future generations. Make your 2012—2013 Alumni Annual Fund gift today, and help us grow our participation rate!

www.calhoun.org/alumgiving Sonia Bonsu ’95: 212-497-6579

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class notes

Voices was serving in the Peace Corps in Nicaragua. My plan was to visit for two weeks; I stayed for seven months. Musings by Greg Goodman ‘98 A handful of jobs and a few hundred thousand miles of travel Calhoun taught me that my life can be whatever I want it to be. later, I have redefined my definition of being a businessman. Today, that means following my dream of being a self-employed Exploring our world, sharing my experiences and inspiring others digital photographic artist and storyteller in Thailand. are my true passions. Along the way, I chronicle every step of the I’ve always loved the idea of being a businessman. As a little journey on AdventuresofaGoodMan.com, an online magazine of kid, I sold Garbage Pail Kids to my grandparents during Sunday my life. dinners. In elementary school, I ran a baseball card and comic While creating, marketing and managing the site, I have found shop during free time. By high school, I dreamed of becoming a a new confidence in myself and in my capabilities. Most recently, Hollywood CEO, though my real passion lay in computers and I was invited to Germany to present my work as a travel photogmaking web pages. rapher and storyteller at Photokina, the world’s largest photo trade June Idzal’s class introfair. One of my favorduced me to web design at ite moments from that Calhoun in 1996, and I soon My plan was to visit for two weeks; presentation was when I realized the Internet was told the audience, “I firmly I stayed for seven months. our generation’s brave new believe that if you follow world. Where else could a your dream and do what high school student have the you’re passionate about, chance to run an internaopportunities will present tional business while explorthemselves.” ing his creative, artistic and That’s why Carrie and detail-oriented sides? I are currently living in Throughout college, Chiang Mai, Thailand. We I continued to create spend our days working websites for fun and for on our passions and seepay. However, that never ing where they lead. For changed my desire to have a me, that involves being a corporate desk job. So, I got digital photographic artone, complete with clients, ist, managing a freelance deadlines, business cards online marketing business, and responsibilities. I was working on ideas for new finally a businessman, and websites, and developing life was perfect! the Symmetry Project, a So why was I so unsatisphotographic exploration fied? When I look back, it’s clear. My love for business stemmed of how our lives are mirrored around the world. from a childhood of being my own boss, not from trying to make I have no idea what’s next or how it will turn out, but I’m enjoya buck for someone else. Instead of being enthralled by my work, ing every day of my life! Plus, I still get to be a businessman; I just I spent my days dreaming of far-off places and teaching myself had to take a lesson from Calhoun and eliminate the walls first. photography. After three years of corporate American life, I took a leap of Greg Goodman ’98 gets into an Acra yoga position on the shores of the faith, quit my job, sold my stuff and joined my wife, Carrie, who Ganges River in Rishikesh, India, with his wife, Carrie.

Eliminating Walls

The Calhoun Chronicle

class notes

Josh Raeben ’01 married Sarah Boutilier in a wedding ceremony at the Brooklake Country Club in Florham Park, NJ, on October 13. Aaron Gelband ’01 and David Tunick ’01 both served as groomsmen, with Peter Concannon ’01, Alex Gelband ’05, Lizzie Tepper ’01 and Paloma Woo ’01 also on hand for the festivities. Josh and Sarah went on to honeymoon in Fiji. Whitney Ferguson ’03 left her job at Saks Fifth Avenue in December to head to Macy’s, where she is now an associate planner for women’s neo-sportswear. Whitney is responsible for managing and growing the Macy’s private label studio, handling the allocations and financial plans for more than 200 stores. She says, “It’s a big change in volume from Saks, and a huge challenge. I am really excited about taking this on. So far, my team is great!” Ali Green ’03 is serving as general manager at 83 1/2, a new, contemporary American restaurant on the Upper East Side that “seeks to provide fresh, local ingredients in the height of their season, in the true nature of farm-to-table.” Yokasta Tineo ’03 is working at the Columbia University Medical Center on 168th Street as a research assistant for a study on epilepsy and well-being. Simultaneously, she is in school part-time for massage therapy, expecting to complete that program in December 2013. Grace Tuttle ’03 completed her

MFA last summer at Parsons the New School for Design in the new trans-disciplinary design program. This fall, she co-taught a class in the same program, partnering with the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA to develop ways to educate young people on disaster preparedness—specifically,

water disaster preparedness in New York City. Michelle Schindler Williams ’03

is working as a designer at the Disney-ABC Television Group and also maintains a blog, Coffee & Champagne, about her everyday adventures and experiences. In September 2011, she married her high school sweetheart, Franklin Williams, at the Central Park Boathouse. Classmate Alex Sanchez ’03 served as one of her bridesmaids. (coffeeandchampagne.com)

Join us for the

Cougar Career Symposium Friday, February 22, 2013 12—3:30pm | 81st Street, 4th floor Alumnae/i panelists speak to alums and Upper Schoolers about career paths and opportunities. Chef Bobo lunch included! Find out who’s on this year’s panel, see videos from last year and RSVP to attend: www.calhoun.org/careersymposium

Emily Deutchman ’04, a talent analyst by day at The Talent Business, had a solo exhibition of her artwork Presidents with Boob Faces at The Living Gallery in Bushwick, in November. Classmates Rosanna Volchok ’04, Blake Brie ’04, Stacey Anderson ’04 and Maddy Thaler ’03 all attended the exhibit. Subsequent reviews and interviews with Emily appeared in numerous online magazines, and in New York magazine’s “Approval Matrix” (Dec. 31, 2012). Check out her project at www.presidentswithboobfaces.com. Jesus Reina ’04 married Anna Margrethe Nilsen, a Norwegian violinist whom he met at the Manhattan School of Music. The wedding, which was last May, began with a ceremony in Norway and then continued with a second wedding in Málaga, Spain. Adam Bass ’05 is working

part-time at video game retailer GameStop while also continuing to pursue his degree in film and media studies at Hunter College. Owen Rosenblum ’05 has launched his own full-service production company, Betterdays Media, where he works with creative agencies, brands and artists to produce engaging digital content.

A festive gathering of Calhounders celebrated the wedding of Josh Raeben ’01 in October. (Back, L–R) Aaron Gelband ’01 and Alex Gelband ’05 (Front, L–R) David Tunick ’01, Paloma Woo ’01, Josh, Lizzie Tepper ’01 and Peter Concannon ’01 (Timothy Glenn Photography) Angie Bonilla ’06 lives in Portland, OR, with her husband, Jay Coolman, whom she wed in March 2012. The couple paid a visit to Calhoun and reconnected with classmates at Alumni Pub Night when they came back east for Thanksgiving. “I’m still working on my BA at Portland State University,” notes Angie. “I am ready to graduate, work in early childhood and help families better prepare their children for school.” Alex Checkman ’06 is doing well in the teaching field, where she is now an assistant teacher at the Horace Mann School in New York while also

working on her graduate degree at Bank Street College of Education. Jenna Fortunato ’06 transitioned from Washington, DC, to San Francisco last winter, where she’s now working in media production as an event coordinator for Bay, Inc., a promotional advertising and marketing firm. Sophie Harris ’06 has been keeping

busy as a freelance fashion and documentary photographer, but she caught up with many classmates at Calhoun’s annual Alumni Pub Night just before Thanksgiving.

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class notes

FIVE Ways to Connect Online with the Calhoun Community 1.

Calhoun website www.calhoun.org/alumni

Facebook www.facebook.com/calhounalums

Linkedin http://bit.ly/calhounlinkedin

twitter www.twitter.com/calhounschool

YouTube www.youtube.com/calhounschool

The Calhoun Chronicle

Jacqueline Bevaqua ’12 met her biological family in October. (L-R) Half sister, Sierra; biological mother, Tanya; Jackie; and her biological sister, Brittney. David Katz ’06 began a position in

June as policy and financial analyst at SunRay Power LLC, a company that provides solar energy solutions for commercial facilities, hospitals, schools and other energy-intensive operations. David earned his master’s in public administration from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs in the spring of 2012. Evan Peters ’06 is currently in his second year of the JD program at Stanford Law School, where he reports, “I am focusing on energy regulation and finance, and working on two initiatives to bring down the cost of renewable energy.” Mike Zurkuhlen ’06 is a familiar face back at Calhoun these days! Mike, who was interning with the art department last year, is now a full-time MS art teacher for his alma mater. Meanwhile, he’s also pursuing his master’s degree in art education at Brooklyn College. Max Bosch ’07, who graduated with

a BFA from Denison University, is utilizing his creative talent as a graphic designer for fashion retailer Ralph Lauren. Max was also recently chosen to be one of several artists to help launch Campbell’s Go Soups. Wade Brill ’07 relocated to Buenos Aires, Argentina, last winter, where

she’s started her own practice as a Pilates and meditation instructor at a NYC-Pilates satellite location. Wade even has a blog! Read more updates from her at nycpilates. blogspot.com. Ally Kotowski ’07 took a position at

Human Rights Watch this past fall as a development associate, having worked at Amnesty International for a year following her graduation from Wesleyan University with a degree in government. Andrew Otton ’07 moved down to Dallas, TX, after graduating cum laude from Bowdoin College in 2011. He is now working as managing director at Dr. Sue’s Chocolate, where he oversees the production and financial operations of the company. Tom Segell ’07 moved to Washington, DC, after graduating from Miami University (OH) in 2011. He’s working as a marketing associate at FICO (formerly CR Software), a leading provider of accounts receivable management software. Andrew Sklar ’07 is proof that internships can be key! A graduate of Boston University, Andrew took a full-time job at NY1 News this June as a news assistant, after having served as an intern at the television station for two years during college!

class notes

Dan Stein ’07 has been studying toward his MM degree at The Juilliard School. In his “free” time, he’s also in his second year as a part-time music teacher at Calhoun. Shelby Wong ’07 is a welcoming face to theatergoers at the Walter Kerr Theater on Broadway, where she is currently working as an usher for the hit show The Heiress. Andrew Conlin ’08 spent his senior year at George Washington University working as a legislative aide for Holland & Knight LLP in Washington, DC. Since receiving his BA in international affairs, Andrew has joined Northwestern Mutual as a financial representative intern, specializing in financial security and estate planning. Liza Garrin ’08 graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology and is now working as a sales assistant for the sleepwear intimate apparel company Carole Hochman Design Group. The group licenses brand names such as Ralph Lauren, Oscar de la Renta, Betsey Johnson and Donna Karan. Justin Harris ’08 is an assistant producer for the independent film and television distribution company Lionsgate Entertainment Corporation in New York. He graduated from Oberlin College in May. Molly O’Steen ’08 graduated from

Emerson College in Boston with a degree in theater education and certification in teaching K–12. Masha Role-Rothenberg ’08 is

working at the Eastern Massachusetts Abortion Fund after having graduated from Wellesley College with honors in psychology. At Wellesley, she was co-president of a mental health awareness organization, Active Minds, as well as a member of the international honor society for psychology, Psi Chi.

Sam Scarritt-Selman ’08 is back in New York after receiving his BA in philosophy from Vassar College, where he also worked as a career assistant in the college’s Career Development Office. Sam is now a paralegal at the law firm Schlam Stone & Dolan LLP. Sasha Schechter ’08, who graduated

from Oberlin College with a BA in creative writing and theater, is working full-time as the community engagement coordinator for The Friends of Thirteen, Inc., at WNET/13. Matthew Sommer ’08 is in his first

year at Brooklyn Law School, after having graduated cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania in May 2012 with a major in classical studies and a minor in economics. Jack Asimov ’09, who is majoring in

government at Wesleyan, studied in Copenhagen last spring as part of the DIS (Danish Institute for Study Abroad), where he focused on the politics and economics of sustainability. Jack lived in a kollegium, an apartment-style dormitory for Danish university students, and traveled with his program to Sweden, northern Germany and Greenland. Ashley Julien ’09 is a senior at Vassar College, where she is majoring in studio art. Ashley spent last summer interning at the Lennon, Weinberg Gallery in Chelsea. John Zurkuhlen ’09 is currently

living in Henderson, NV, where he is pursuing a career as a full-time golfing professional. Most recently, John was on the Golf Channel’s Am Tour, which included competing in the 2012 national championship at the Tournament Players Club at Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL. Kate Davis ’10 reports that she is loving her experience at Bennington

Alumni Upend Faculty/Staff in Basketball Challenge

The streak is over! In the 8th Annual The suffocating defense of Neil “Special K” Kleinberg Basketball Challenge, Calhoun’s ’85 and the Alumni team alumni team defeated the faculty/ stymied Casey Shane ’06 staff 61–55, ending a four-year and the Faculty/Staff drought and evening up the all-time squad’s offense. Also series at 4-4. pictured, from left to right, The game, played on January 11 Joshua Azenberg ‘08, after a Varsity doubleheader, was an Chef Andrew Gerdes and impassioned contest, full of dazzling Christian Baber ‘08 drives to the hoop, net-splashing three-pointers and physical play in the paint. In fact, it was a back-and-forth affair until late in the second half, when the alumni squad extended the lead to 12. The faculty/staff team reinserted its starting five and valiantly fought back to within three points in the game’s final minute. But it was the alumni team’s year, and they fended off the rally and held on for the sweet, sweet victory.

College; during her free time from studies, she has been interning with a vegetarian chef, and she’s spending this winter in Italy, studying sustainability and food. (A Chef Bobo protégé, perhaps?) Jacqueline Bevacqua ’12 is a fashion

retail and merchandising major at Lasell College, which she’s been enjoying so far. Her biggest news, though, is that, in October, she met her biological family for the first time. Her mother, Tanya, works as

an energy conservation manager at Syracuse University; Jackie has a 20-year-old biological sister, Brittney, and a 15-year-old half sister, Sierra. “When I got to their home in Syracuse, they decorated their house with ‘Welcome Home’ signs all over the place,” recalls Jackie. “I also met my grandpa, who is an ex-marine, and had dinner with my grandma, Bachi. It honestly could not have been a better weekend. It was definitely life-changing.”

winter 2013

class notes

N ovembe r 20, 2012

Sixth Annual Pub Night A spirited crowd of 83 alums convened to kick off the Thanksgiving holiday weekend at Calhoun’s sixth annual Alumni Pub Night. It was the first time the event was held in midtown, at the Legends Bar, where alums enjoyed great drinks, great snacks and great company.

2 2

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1. (L–R) Terry Horowitz ’09 and Ashley Julien ’09 2. (L–R) Matias Stebbings ’97 with Max Bosch ’07 3. (L–R) Rico Bautista ’07, US science teacher John Roeder, Matthew Sommer ’08 and Andrew Ronan ’07

4. (L–R) Margay Kaplan ’08, Cody Lewis ’07, Maxine Krugman ’08, Emily Capkanis ’07, Serena Muller ’08, Liza Garrin ’08 5. Justin Harris ’08 6. (L–R) Nick Kahn ’05, Angie Bonilla ’06, US school counselor Francesca Canin

The Calhoun Chronicle

class notes

December 21 , 20 1 2

Holiday Homecoming Luncheon

The long-standing Harvest Fest lunch for recent grads changed holidays this year, but more than 40 alums still returned in December to catch up with one another and visit with their teachers. The homecoming event kicked off with the 12 Days of Christmas celebration, followed by a festive Chef Bobo luncheon.

1. (L-R) Shanta Best ’10 with Aiyana Wain-Hirschberg ‘11 2. (L-R) US math teacher Erika Zamfirescu and Alex Tritto ’12 3. (L-R) Bobby Aaronson ’12, Benny Tuchman ’12 and Sam Sasson ’12 4. (L-R) Kyra Castelli-Foley ’12, US theater teacher Margie Duffield and Danica Pacifici ’12

5. (L-R) Simon Gilbert ’12, Alek Miletic ’12 and Stephen Mondesir ’13 6. Head of School Steve Nelson with Gabe Berenbaum ’12 7. (L-R) Marc Burnett ’12, Fiona Lowenstein ’12, Fiona Wiedermann ’12

winter 2013

SCHOOL THE

Non-Profit Org U.S. Postage

SCHOOL

PAID SOUTHAMPTON, PA

433 West End Avenue New York, NY 10024 www.calhoun.org

PERMIT NO. 225

THE

address service requested

SCHOOL

To the Parents of Alumnae/i: If this issue is addressed to your daughter/son who no longer maintains a permanent address at your home, please notify the Alumnae/i Office with the correct mailing address. Call 212-497-6579, fax 212-497-6531 or contact by e-mail: alumni@calhoun.org.

THE

SCHOOL

THE SCHOOL

2013 Upcoming Events

Don’t miss these popular annual events and Performing Arts Series presentations—all open to the public! For the complete list of upcoming events, go to the calendar on the school’s website, www.calhoun.org.

March

May

Benefit 2013: Red Hot Rhythm! RSVP required by Feb. 24 www.calhoun.org/benefit

TEDxTheCalhounSchool “Innovations in Education” with Nancy Carlsson-Paige and Linda F. Nathan www.calhoun.org/tickets

7 Tiffany Poon ’14 in Recital To benefit Doctors Without Borders www.calhoun.org/tickets

April 13

50th Annual Calhoun Carnival

81st Street & WEA

Annual Calhoun Book Fair Barnes & Noble @ 81st St., 11am-5pm

Kidstuff: Charlotte’s Web

A TheatreworksUSA production www.calhoun.org/tickets

June 7

Annual Egg Drop

81st Street @ WEA

*Check out Calhoun Traditions, pg. 9