Signature Magazine - Fall/Winter 2023

THE ADMISSIONS MAGAZINE OF EMMA WILLARD SCHOOL Fall/Winter 2023

F E AT U R E S

16 Gargoyles & Grotesques

The Gothic guardians of Emma Willard School

TH E A DM ISSION S M AG A Z IN E OF EMMA WILLARD SCHOOL

24 Living Language

Experiential learning beyond the classroom

30 A Few of My Favorite Things The “signature” is

by Suiki “Kiki” Y. ’24, co-editor of The Gargoyle for 2023 and 2024.

Archivist Stephanie Ross’s top picks

38 S upporting the Emma Experience Stories of impact from the Infinite Horizon campaign

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Honoring our founder’s vision,

Head of School

Emma Willard School proudly

Jenny Rao Meredith Legg, PhD

Associate Head of School Virginia Arbour

Chief Financial Officer

fosters in each young woman

Ann Dejnozka

a love of learning, the habits

Dean of Students

of an intellectual life, and the

Luke Meyers

character, moral strength, and

Head of Advancement Shelley Maher Kristen A. Mariotti

Head of Enrollment Management Chief Communications and Marketing Officer E D ITO RIA L STA F F Luke Meyers, Melissia Mason, Kaitlin Resler, Julia Gabriele

qualities of leadership to serve

Editorial Team

and shape her world.

Kaitlin Resler

Robin Prout, Roux Colacino ’22

Contributing Writers Photography Sara Niemiec

Class Notes Lilly Pereira

www.aldeia.design Designer << Roya S. ’24 and Jinny Y. ’24 bring the pep as jesters at the Elizabeth Parry Field Dedication Ceremony, alongside field hockey and lacrosse captain Ceci C. ’24, who shared remarks and led the crowd in the Emma cheer to prompt the lighting of the scoreboard. Read more about Liz Parry on p. 6 and the field dedication on p. 45.

D E PA R T M E N T S

02 Leading In

14 Faculty Voices

Head of School Jenny Rao

Kathleen McNamara’s Odyssey in English

03 From the Triangle Highlights of the celebratory spring semester

12 The Classroom Drew Levy on history, innovation, and critical thinking

42 From the Archives 44 New Trustees 45 Lighting the Way 46 Click 48 Admissions

R. C. Brayshaw & Company

www.rcbrayshaw.com Printer Please forward address changes to: Emma Willard School 285 Pawling Avenue Troy, NY 12180 866-833-1814 alumnae@emmawillard.org or emmawillard.org/alumnae Signature, the magazine of Emma Willard School, is published by the Communications Office two times each year for alumnae, parents, grandparents, and friends of Emma Willard School. The mission of this magazine is to capture the school’s values and culture through accurate and objective stories about members of the Emma community, past and present, as they put Emma Willard’s mark on the world.

Emma Willard School is a nonpartisan organization. In the spirit of honoring the individuality of our community members, we encourage featured individuals to share their authentic selves.

Views expressed are entirely their own.

O N THE COV E R An up-close view of this grotesque on Slocum also highlights the detail of the downspout, marking the year the building was built: 1910. Read more about these distinctive characters on p. 16.

Leading In HEAD OF SCHOOL JENNY RAO

Deep Learning Nurturing curiosity and the intrinsic love of learning are built into every aspect of the Emma Willard experience.

In many ways, the pursuit of “deep learning” is what spurred our founder to set off on her own educational venture after witnessing the rote and superficial forms of instruction available to the young women of her day. It was also central to the innovation of the school’s “Correlated Curriculum” of the mid-20th century and, more recently, our investments in the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL). However, as much as curriculum and pedagogy drive the academic year here at Emma, we also believe there is a need for time outside the classroom to immerse students deeply in a concept or topic.

Since my arrival at Emma Willard, we have been hard at work imagining ways to model and cultivate curiosity through a program that would allow students to select from a range of curated experiences tailored to pique their interest and understanding of a wide variety of ideas and subjects. Despite a global pandemic hitting amid this work, our team persevered and I am beyond thrilled to share the start of a new Emma Willard tradition: Jestermester.

A once-a-year “mini-term,” Jestermester will provide students with one full week of deep, immersive, hands-on learning on a topic of their choosing. Abandoning our regular schedule for one week gives students and faculty the opportunity to have a singular focus all week on a topic they are passionate about, surrounded by others who share their love for the topic; an ideal way to continue nurturing both our community connections and love for learning. Some Jestermester courses are built around travel, leading students through the spaces and places they’ve read about or heard referenced in class. Others invite students to work together to solve real-world problems or to step a bit out of their comfort zone by learning a new skill. All Jestermester courses are designed by our faculty with learning outcomes that align with our academic pillars and our commitment to innovation and joyful learning as a regular practice.

Some of this year’s topics include: Are the Winter Olympics Melting?, a visit to Lake Placid to explore the history of the games and the impact of climate change on them; Cultural Fusion, a journey to Singapore and

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Malaysia to uncover the influence of Chinese culture; Gender and Justice, a first-hand exploration of gender studies and equity on a college campus; and Sewing and Sustainability, a skills-based session that encourages students to contemplate the impact of consumerism and the clothing industry. With great joy, I must report that upon announcing these (and many other) Jestermester courses to our students, the resounding response was: “I don’t know what to choose—I love them all!”

Our students aren’t the only ones at Emma who are benefitting from the development of the Jestermester program. Perhaps what excites me the most about this new initiative is that it has empowered our faculty to prioritize innovation and experimentation by giving them the space (and time) to be creative and try new things, delve deeply into one area, and simply revel in the act of teaching and learning without constraints. Above all, I imagine this effort will contribute to the academic identity of our school, continuing the long legacy of Emma Willard School as a “first among firsts” in education and empowerment of young women; I could not conceive of a more authentic and inspiring expression of the love of learning than this.

In this issue of Signature magazine, you’ll be invited to learn more about Jestermester in the context of a collaboration between our language and experiential learning departments, explore the treasures of time preserved in the Emma archives, and get to know the stone visages of the silent inhabitants of Mount Ida who yet have a story to tell. In addition, you’ll learn of the latest support to our Infinite Horizon campaign that makes all of these initiatives (and more) possible.

Thank you for your partnership and support—your commitment to our mission is an inspiration for me.

FROM THE TR IA NGLE

From the Triangle Audrey S. ’24 and Elle K. ’24 enjoy their first steps on the Senior Triangle as rising seniors during the 2023 Triangle Takeover tradition.

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H I G H L I G H TS

2023 11. The cast of “Little Women”—a special project in the arts directed by Olivia Michel ’23—at the end of their performance.

12. Bailey Leone-Levine ’23 performs in the orchestra during the spring concert.

13. Apollo talent show hosts Noura Coulibaly ’23 and Trinity Mfoafo-M’Carthy ’23 delight the crowd as they introduce new acts to the stage (adorned with pink decor to fulfill the night’s theme of pink attire).

14. Gevi Syrett ’23, Bailey Leone-Levine ’23, and Meli Nabage ’23 christen the new eight (a racing shell used in crew) in spring 2023.

15. Page Hill Starzinger ’76 signs copies of her poetry books and speaks to students during the opening of the Starzinger Writing Center in May 2023.

16. The Class of 2023 headed out to the sidewalks of campus with chalk to fill the ground with the plans for next year.

17. Krisha J. ’24 leads dancers in a Bollywood-inspired dance to close out the Asian Student Union’s 2023 Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month Assembly.

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18. Elsa M. ’26 dances with classmates during the May Day celebrations in Spring 2023.

19. Claire Lanahan ’23 checks the bottom of a teacup saucer at Senior Tea to find out the name of the alum and year it was given.

10. Jennifer H. ’24 and Vernette B. ’24 pose together on the Senior Triangle as they take their places as leaders of the school.

11. Alex B. ’25, as the iconic Emma Jester mascot, and Elle K. ’24 celebrate during the Spring 2023 pep rally.

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Liz Parry 40 Years of Passion

BY MELISSIA MASON

Forty years ago, Ithaca grad Elizabeth “Liz” Parry was fresh off of the 1982 women’s national championship field hockey team. She arrived on Mount Ida with a plethora of enthusiasm and the intent of filling a one-year leave replacement position as a physical education teacher and head field hockey coach.

That 1983–84 school year became the first season of a lifetime of energy poured into the students and community at Emma Willard School.

When her interim position was complete, Liz decided she’d like to stay at Emma. In order to do so, she needed to be willing to coach a crew of young gymnasts who were interested in pursuing the sport during their time on Mount Ida. “I called The Masters School where I went to high school,” she recalls.

“We had a very good gymnastics program and Bob Nelligan was the coach. I got in touch with him and said, ‘I need to learn spotting.’” Liz spent the summer making connections to get the gymnastics practice and education she needed in order to land the permanent position in the Physical Education Department at Emma.

Although the gymnastics program only lasted about four years, Liz had shown her tenacity to learn new skills and go the extra mile, traits which she instilled in each of her students. This commitment would drive her through decades of teaching physical education, coaching both field hockey and

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lacrosse, as well as brief stints coaching basketball, volleyball, and, of course, gymnastics. Eventually, she would also become a health instructor, teach lifeguarding, and earn the title of Athletic Director.

A coaching icon in the Capital Region and beyond, Liz was a founding member of the Capital District Women’s Lacrosse League in 1990, was the Section 2 Girls Lacrosse Co-coordinator and then Coordinator from 1997–2016, and Assistant State Coordinator from 2006–2016. She currently serves as the State Coordinator for the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Girls Lacrosse. In addition to her 2015 induction into the Hall of Fame at Ithaca alongside her 1982 champion team, Liz was inducted into the Adirondack Chapter of the US Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 2018.

Liz has seen many transitions over her time on Mount Ida— from leadership to curriculum to campus renovations—and one thing has remained constant: her love for Emma. “I enjoy all parts of it. I went to a girls’ prep school, so I know what it’s all about. I love the people I work with, and I love the students.

Every year is different. The kids are the same, but different.

They want to try new things.” The format of athletics at Emma makes it possible for students to try sports they’ve never considered before. “I love that they’re working hard,” Liz says.

“Some of our people who have excelled in a sport started in

phys ed. I told them they should go out for the team. And the next thing you know, they just bloom! That’s what’s so fun to see. They just need encouragement.”

The years seem to blend together for Liz. “I walk up here every day from Wilson House, where I’ve been for 37 years— oh my goodness!” The reality of that number sinks in as she shares it. “I feel like a student all the time. I go home for vacations. I’m on the school calendar.” Now the Wearer of the Red Hat, Liz is the faculty member who has been at Emma the longest. She recalls as few as five Wearers of the Red Hat since she came to Mount Ida, most notably Choir Instructor Russell Locke, who seemed to wear the hat the longest, having taught here for over 50 years. “I can’t believe it’s me,” she laughs. “It’s like the seniors: you always have somebody in front of you and then all of a sudden it’s you. Everybody’s looking at me!”

Indeed, everyone is looking toward Liz for her energetic leadership. Head of School Jenny Rao considers Liz an icon among the faculty. “Liz Parry is a fierce competitor and a loyal teammate,” she says. “Emma Willard athletes for the past 40 years credit her with helping them find and build strength they never thought they had. She leads by example—the tenacity and passion for her work has only grown and she has shown us all what our Madame Willard said over 200 years ago, ‘Do

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Above: Liz and her father, Lynn Parry, celebrate Elizabeth Parry Field. See p. 45 for more about the dedication ceremony.

your best and your best will be getting better!’ Liz has done exactly that, and even though it seems she could not be more enthusiastic and encouraging, with each passing year her conviction and devotion deepens. Emma Willard is stronger and brighter because of Liz Parry.”

As one who works most closely with Liz, Dean of Students Shelley Maher has never seen anyone match Liz’s energy.

“She’s the epitome of a boarding school member,” Shelley enthuses. “Liz has an energy that is unsurpassed and never wavers, whether at eight o’clock in the morning or eleven o’clock at night.” Most importantly, that enthusiasm is laserfocused on going above and beyond for the sake of her students. “She has high expectations. She understands the demands on students, both in the classroom and outside, and she wants to bring out the best in them.”

It’s hard to miss Liz’s passion, intensity, and excitement— distinctive qualities that her students emulate. Ceci C. ’24, who has played both field hockey and lacrosse for Ms. Parry all four years at Emma, has felt her impact deeply. “She has a big personality and is always positive both at practice and at games,” Ceci shares. “Even when we’re struggling, she knows what we need to hear to cheer up and improve our play. I’ve imitated her coaching style and positive energy in my role as captain.”

As she looks toward the future, Liz wants to keep focusing on the students and their interests. “I just like to see where high school athletics is going. I think it’s important to keep our facilities updated while keeping in mind our student population and where their interests lie,” Liz says. While student involvement in club sports and transfer rules impact play at Emma, Liz feels that our international population provides our athletics program with a different perspective than many schools have. “Even if students come without any kind of background in a sport, we are teaching them to play. I love hearing the kids say, ‘Can I just come out and try it?’ And, yes, of course…give it a try!”

For all her enthusiasm on the field and off, passionate leadership, and willingness to guide both seasoned athletes and first-timers, Liz Parry has been honored by having the lower field at Emma Willard School named in her honor. The dedication was announced in the spring of 2021, and this fall an outdoor scoreboard went up on the lower playing field, emblazoned with her name.

With 40 years of alumnae having experienced her influence, a collection of themes emerge—singular words to describe Liz: Encouraging. Incredible. Energetic. Amazing.

These are just a few responses Andrea Hanley ’95 received when polling fellow alums in preparation for her remarks for the recent dedication of Elizabeth Parry Field. “You are a leader by example and experience,” Andrea said, addressing Liz. “It’s no coincidence you instill strength and success in others.”

Liz holds her students accountable, makes them work hard, motivates them, and pushes them through both challenge and triumph. The great news is, in Liz’s own words, “I’m not done yet!”

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FROM THE TR IA NGLE

2023 Commencement 1. The Class of 2023 process out from their seats after commencement, led by mace bearer Vernette B. ’24.

2. Prairie Gunnels ’23 is joined by her great-aunt Jameson “Jamie” Baxter ’61, grandmother Leslie Gunnels ’64, and aunt Abigail Gunnels ’95, three generations of Emma alumnae.* 3. Basil Aurora ’23 and Gabby Possible ’23 pose with roses in Kiggins Auditorium moments before Commencement 2023.* 4. Mairi Cumming ’23 accepts her diploma from sister Lucy, an alum of the Class of 2021.

5. Head of School Jenny Rao applauds the 2023 Commencement Speaker Shabana Basij-Rasikh, co-founder and president of the School of Leadership, Afghanistan (SOLA).

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6. Evangeline Wang ’23 embraces a teacher at the end of the commencement ceremonies.

7. Crystal Stewart ’23 delivers her commencement speech to her classmates.* 8. Katie Gentry ’23 and Neris Goerner ’23 excitedly show off their diplomas as they wait to greet faculty after the commencement ceremony.

9. Noura Coulibaly ’23 blows a kiss to loved ones and friends in the crowd at commencement.* See more photos online: emmawillard.org/commencement * PHOTOS BY LIZ LAJEUNESSE PHOTOGRAPHY ’91

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Faculty and Staff Kudos 1

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DR. ASHL E Y L . B E N N E T T Joins ACCIS Board (1) Director of College Counseling Dr. Ashley L. Bennett has been elected to serve a three-year term on the Board of Trustees of the Association of College Counselors in Independent Schools (ACCIS) and will serve on the board’s Finance Committee. ACCIS is the only membership organization that focuses on the professional development and support of college counselors who work in independent schools. ACCIS counts over 600 schools as members, represented by over 2,100 counselors and office assistants working to support the students in their care.

CAROLINE B UI N I C KY Chairs NYCWiC Conference (2) Director of Library Resources and Research Caroline Buinicky is serving as the General Co-Chair of the planning committee for the 2024 New York Celebration of Women in Computing Conference. The organization promotes the academic, social, and professional growth of technical women in the state of New York.

BRE TT LA FAVE Joins Parker School Board (3) Mathematics Instructor Brett LaFave is now a Trustee of Parker School (PreK–8) and will serve on the Finance Committee and Investment Subcommittee. Robert C. Parker School has close ties to Emma Willard, bearing the name of a former school principal who created a learning environment where children developed mutual respect, a love of learning, and an expectation that learning is exciting, interesting, and fun.

DR. ME RE D I T H L EGG Leads the Board of Susan Odell Taylor School (4) Associate Head of School Meredith Legg, PhD has been chosen as president of the board at Susan Odell Taylor School, an independent school for kindergarten through 8th grades with close ties to Emma Willard School.

E M M A W I LL AR D SC HO O L

A parent of students at the school for seven years, Meredith served on the Taylor School board for three years before becoming board president this fall. The Taylor School is celebrating its 25th anniversary as a leading PreK–8 independent school in the Capital Region.

N I CK M A RCHE S E Joins Blackbaud K–12 Executive Advisory Board (5) Emma Willard School’s Director of Academic & Strategic Technology Nick Marchese has been selected to serve a 4-year term on the Blackbaud K–12 Executive Advisory Board. Blackbaud is a school management system that Emma Willard School uses as our student information and learning management system. Nick joins a select group of only 15 other Technology Directors nationwide who will meet regularly with Blackbaud executives and project managers to provide guidance and help shape the Blackbaud product to best serve the nation and specifically the independent school community.

KRI ST E N M A R IOT T I in Admissions Leadership (6) Head of Enrollment Management Kristen Mariotti has been appointed as a member of The Association of Boarding Schools (TABS) Advisory Council for the 2023–24 school year.

She has also been named a mentor for the Admissions Leadership Council for the Enrollment Management Association (EMA).

XAV IE R M CK INZ IE Named Rising Star (7) Associate Director of College Counseling Xavier McKinzie was honored by the Association of College Counselors in Independent Schools (ACCIS) with their DE&I Rising Star Award. The accolade is given to an individual with fewer than five years of college counseling experience; growing visibility within the school, community, ACCIS/NACAC/regional ACAC in DE&I work; and demonstrated ability to

challenge the normative culture within their respective community to create greater equity.

CHR IS O U E LLE T T E President of NEALS (8) Director of Learning Support Chris Ouellette has recently stepped into the role of President of the Northeast Association of Learning Specialists (NEALS). Chris joined Emma Willard School in the 2022–23 school year.

He has been involved with NEALS for nearly a decade, serving as regional and communications coordinator, vice-president of the board, and most importantly, a member. Chris has worked in the field of special education for 22 years, working in public schools, and in therapeutic, alternative, and girlcentered boarding schools.

LINDSAY S LAU G HT E R Chosen for Select Show (9) Visual Art Instructor Lindsay Slaughter’s artwork, Fear of the Afterlife, was juried into Albany Center Gallery’s 45th Annual Photography Regional: Select Show, on view October 17– November 4.

CA RO LINE VA LIT E S Wins Juror’s Choice (10) Visual Art Instructor Caroline Valites’ piece, The Only Thing Holding Me Up (Cyanotype on graph paper), was honored with the Juror’s Choice award in the 45th Annual Photography Regional Exhibit at the Albany Center Gallery.

Caroline’s was one of only three Juror’s Choice selections out of over 270 in the exhibit.

FROM THE TR IA NGLE

Explore. Play. Learn.

GirlSummer, Emma’s signature summer program, welcomes girls to our vibrant campus for an enriching, personalized, and fun summer experience!

SAVE THE DATES

July 8-19, 2024 July 22-August 2, 2024 TWO TWO-WEEK SESSIONS

emmawillard.org/girlsummer Fall/Winter 2023

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The Classroom INTERVIEW BY JULIA GABRIELE

Drew Levy

Fostering Critical Thinking Drew Levy—varsity soccer coach, history instructor, and newly appointed department chair­—on molding innovative historical thinkers, transitioning away from the AP model, and training his students to argue opposing personal viewpoints How do you see your role differing now that you wear three hats at Emma (teacher, soccer coach, and department chair)? The coach and teacher hats I’ve been wearing simultaneously for a long time, while the department chair hat is a new one—it certainly comes with new responsibilities and demands that I find challenging but also exciting.

I recognize in that a sense of responsibility, particularly because I was so blessed in my time here as a younger teacher to work with Dr. Robert Naeher as my department chair.

He was a dear friend and a phenomenal colleague, and I feel like he provided a model for me in so many ways—in what a chair should do, and where a chair’s heart should be.

And so in large part, what I’m trying to do in wearing that hat for the first time is to live up to his model.

The History Department was recently awarded a curriculum innovation grant. What do you wish to accomplish with this as the new chair? We are currently in the process of developing a new survey class, which will focus on the history of Native American or Indigenous Peoples in North America. This is a topic that comes up as part of our

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broader US History survey, but like many other topics in a broad survey, it’s one that is never given the attention that it warrants. As a department, we’re really excited to see that course take shape as there is a strong desire among the students to be offered a course like this.

Can you speak more on innovation in the classroom? Innovation in the form of databases and the kinds of databases that the library has access to for our history students impresses me. We have access through JSTOR (short for Journal Storage) to the most important research periodicals in our field, which allows us to give students a really realistic, challengThis year you’re teaching three ing perspective of the work that Advanced Studies courses—how they’re going to encounter in college. do these courses differ from AP We have better resources for our courses, and how will your teachstudents, I think, than a lot of coling style and curriculum differ?

The biggest benefit for us in moving leges, let alone the kind of research away from the Advanced Placement™ resources that most history students curriculum is that it provided us the in high schools have access to. opportunity to enrich the research element of the class. It’s been a frus- How do you balance perspectives and encourage students to think tration here for many years that the critically in this politically divisive non-AP US History classes would climate? Our job as historians, and have one or two research papers a that’s what we’re endeavoring to be year, but we could never manage in class, isn’t simply to judge the to do it in the AP classes as there past. We’re going to encounter lots was just too much to cover. So of people who we disagree with. But we now have more latitude to dig part of our task is to attempt to move deeper in places and to do so in beyond judgment, and to try to get ways that allow more independence into a place where we are searching for the students. They work on for understanding. That doesn’t mean defining their research interests and that we don’t make the judgments or either exploring things that we’ve we don’t return to the judgments betencountered in class in more depth ter informed, but it means that we do or exploring things that we haven’t the hard work of wrestling with ideas really touched on in class.

TH E CLASS RO O M

that are discomfiting or disturbing. The benefits of that hard work outweigh the risks of taking the easy way out. When I teach government and politics, we spend a lot of time talking about current events. Doing so can seem even more fraught because current events seem even more immediate. We don’t have this reserve of talking about the 19th century or something in the past.

And one of the things that I like to try to require and encourage of my students is the ability to be able to argue a position that they don’t necessarily agree with. Even when we’re talking about the most contentious of issues, even when we’re talking about issues that for some students might be deeply personal. And to understand that we’re doing that in large part in order to try to exercise a necessary ability, to practice that thing that as a culture we’re not doing particularly well—listening to other people. I think attempting to articulate those positions that you don’t agree with is a really great way of practicing that task.

“ Our job as historians isn’t simply to judge the past...part of our task is to attempt to move beyond judgment, and to try to get into a place where we are searching for understanding.”

DREW L EV Y

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Faculty Voices

BY LUKE MEYERS

Kathleen McNamara

An Odyssey in English Kathleen McNamara began her journey teaching English at Emma Willard School nearly four decades ago. While technology and teaching techniques may have changed, her desire to inspire a love of the written word in students remains steadfast.

For years, Kathleen McNamara considered her role in the classroom to be presenting students with the material, challenging them to examine it critically, and serving as the “material expert” when questions arose. Students would look to her as the central resource to grow their knowledge and deepen their understanding of the great written works in history.

“The students’ own discovery and exploration has always been at the center of my teaching style,” explains Kathleen. “But then there was this moment when it really hit home for me: we were studying Homer’s Odyssey, and I asked the class if they had any questions.

A student raised her hand and explained that, no, she did not have any questions because she had already Googled all the answers ahead of time.

“And I remember thinking, ‘Wow, that’s brilliant...but things have just changed!’ They didn’t need me to be the in-classroom resource on the material; they needed something more.”

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Kathleen describes how this experience intensified her focus on student-centric teaching: she doubled her efforts in creating new context and comparisons for students, encouraging them to critically examine an author’s intent or motivations of a protagonist beyond the words on the page.

“Let’s go back to the Odyssey, for example,” begins Kathleen. “We start by reading the 2017 version by Dr. Emily Wilson, the first woman to translate this pillar of Western literature. Her Odyssey is more stripped down but also closer to the original Greek and gives new context to much of the tale. We read that text simultaneously with the more common but also much longer and flowery English translation most students would be familiar with today.

Suddenly, but not surprisingly, our students are asking new questions and arriving at new conclusions based on this comparison!”

Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey may be among the most ubiquitous narrative works studied in the Western world. Generations of English students have critically examined its composition. Its

themes of returning home despite trials and tribulation have given a secondary, appellative meaning to the word “odyssey.” What more could one English class truly discover about this epic?

“Then we add another piece to the puzzle by reading Madeline Miller’s novel Circe. The book is written with Circe as the main character and no longer simply a ‘woman along the way.’ Introducing this new point of view completely changes how the students see Odysseus and fosters a vital discussion about how women are portrayed and how power is wielded.”

Kathleen goes on to explain that, while many students say they prefer reading the epic as a poem, the introduction of additional versions causes them to question Odysseus’ character and conduct more critically: Is he truly a hero as assumed?

“Rather than seeing Odysseus as having pathos, the class ends up in a discussion about whether he is responsible for the hardships he experiences along the way,” explains Kathleen. “It’s not my job to tell our students how to think; rather, I want to ensure each class has a new

TH E CLASS RO O M

“ It’s not my job to tell our students how to think; rather, I want to ensure each class has a new idea to wrestle with or a challenge to their assumptions… and I feel like a better teacher for it.”

K AT HL EEN M C NA M A RA

idea to wrestle with or a challenge to their assumptions…and I feel like a better teacher for it.”

Beyond the classroom, Kathleen has helped scores of students explore new outlets for their love of writing as the advisor to The Clock. With a journalistic history that eclipses some of today’s most established media outlets, Emma Willard’s student-run newspaper holds a special place in the hearts of its editors and readers, past and present. However, as with contemporary journalism, Kathleen imagines The Clock will have to be carefully managed to remain relevant in this digital age,

all without losing its value to the campus community.

“I talk with the students often about the mission of the paper and what we’ve committed to provide for the community. We assess topics for publishing based on their alignment with our values and readers’ interests, which seems like a lost art, frankly,” asserts Kathleen.

“Journalism is in crisis everywhere, readership has tanked, and increasingly people cite social media as their primary—or only—news source. We have a real opportunity at Emma to show students that a newspaper isn’t an artifact, but

an antecedent to reading news on Facebook or LinkedIn.” Kathleen will step down from her role as The Clock advisor after this year, handing off the baton to two other advisors—fellow English instructors Erin Bennett and Shawna Norton—to put their imprint on an important part of the school’s history and tradition. She notes that this collaboration between faculty is a consistent and crucial element that makes up the Emma Willard experience.

Unlike in some educational environments, Emma’s faculty collaborate across all subjects and levels every year. Kathleen credits this pedagogical approach with providing a more compelling curricular experience for students and preventing the inherent stagnation that can come with hyper-specialization. It’s a true win-win, in her opinion.

“Our model helps instructors avoid the pitfall of practicing only their personal expertise because you really can’t be an individual contributor if the learning process is shared. In my opinion, that’s the beauty of Emma Willard: providing a more engaging and holistic experience for students also creates a more collaborative and enriching space for teachers.”

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STORY BY ROUX COLACINO ’22

Gargoyles & Grotesques THE GREAT GOTHIC GUARDIANS

OF EMMA WILLARD SCHOOL 50. a gossiping jester 51. a balding man, playing cello 52. a woman (seated?) with detailed hair (in ringlets or braids?), stretching a thin piece of cloth over her foot

50. The “gossiping jester” grotesque from Roux’s notes looks down on the campus community from the outside of Kiggins auditorium.

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With weathered clothes and worn features, these are just a few of the figures that keep careful watch over Slocum Hall. In fact, there are 82 of them hidden in plain sight around corners and doorways on that building alone, each one diligently carrying out its mission for over 100 years. Poets and astronomers, musicians and mathematicians—these are just some of the century-sustaining sentinels that look over the lives of those on campus. Yet even from their vantage point they seem unaware of the monsters that lurk above, silhouetted against a greying sky: wingèd beasts trapped in snarling stone— But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s start at the beginning, shall we?

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The year is 1910, and Emma Willard School is making its forever home on Mount Ida. There are three buildings in the beginning stage on the new campus: Slocum Hall, where the academic studies will be housed; Sage Hall, the student dormitory; and the Gymnasium, which will, in the future, be converted into a chapel and, most recently, to the Alice Dodge Wallace ’38 Center for the Performing Arts. Working alongside the architects of M.F. Cummings & Son, Englishman Abraham K. Mosley has been charged with designing all of the decorative elements that make the buildings feel distinctly Collegiate Gothic—a sharp, elegant architectural style that is part of the greater Gothic Revival movement.

Roux Colacino ’22 is currently a sophomore at Wagner College double majoring in Technical Theater and Art History.

They took on the project of cataloguing Emma Willard School’s stone inhabitants during their senior year, alongside a Signature project rewriting Faust (a project they continue to work on).

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There’s much exciting work he’s doing, but of particular interest to us are his plans for the gargoyles and grotesques that will decorate every exterior face of every building. They number some 300 sketches, and are actively being translated into stone by a team of English and French artists gathered on the campus lawn, amidst the debris of construction. On this, a breezy spring day, they’re using their craft to painstakingly turn blocks of Bedford Indiana limestone into many little—and some quite big—works of art that will soon be lifted up into the air and securely fixed into the walls. But why go to all this effort for pieces of the campus that are bound to be overlooked because of how high they sit out of the average line of sight?

This was one of the questions I had when I set out to catalog the gargoyles on campus, a task that quickly became much more complicated than I had bargained for. I had wanted to do a Practicum in the archives since 9th grade, but with the chaos of the COVID-19 pandemic and then college applications, it wasn’t until the spring semester of my senior year that my work began. I approached the archivist at the time, Nancy Iannucci, about possible archives projects. She immediately suggested I could take

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A

inventory of all of the gargoyles on campus, as a full catalog hadn’t yet been compiled. With this exciting prospect ahead, I immediately grabbed my sketchbook and a pencil and headed towards Slocum, into the great cataloging unknown! …Before promptly realizing that I had no clue where to start. For the first time, I noticed just how many little figures there were, and I found myself with an endless number of questions, chief among them being, “Why?” followed by, “How?” The ‘how?’ I’ve already revealed, but the answer to ‘why?’ can, in part, be answered by the architecture. The Gothic Revival style, by definition, draws direct inspiration from medieval Gothic buildings, especially religious institutions. Decorative features of the architecture like gargoyles and grotesques—an important distinction that will become relevant soon—are popular on revival buildings because they were popular on the original medieval churches and cathedrals that the newer buildings are based on.

There’s no clear, singular reason for their popularity,

51 A. A sculptor works on some of the stone guardians of campus during the early days of construction in the 1910s. 51. Per Roux’s notes: “Bald man playing cello” 52.

The affectionately known “foot gargoyle” has made appearances on the Emma Willard School TikTok.

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but one theory is that gargoyles were used as charms to ward off evil, and could most effectively watch over the populace from these structures, which were tall and often centrally located in any given town or city.

Another perhaps more credible idea is that having depictions of the clergy or biblical figures and stories on the exterior of churches made these subjects more accessible to illiterate people (the vast majority of the public at the time), and thus was another way to introduce Christianity to the masses. Regardless, a semblance of both of these ideas—explanatory symbolism and protection over a place—seem to have found their way into the modern use of sculpture in Gothic Revival architecture. For example, Slocum’s sculptures are academically and theatrically themed, while Sage’s are residential, and the old Gymnasium’s are athletic.

Up until now I’ve deliberately been vague in my classification of “sculpture,” and I feel there’s no better way to break that illusion than with a hard truth: there are actually only 16 gargoyles on campus—the rest are grotesques.

Shocking, I know, but this was pointed out to me by my friend Charlotte Hobbs �22 as we wandered outside the front of Slocum, taking stock of the various stone scholars residing there. Grotesques, I learned, are purely ornamental stone decorations, typically of people or animals and especially those in relation to myths and monsters. Gargoyles also follow this theme—although they tend to land more squarely in the monster category—but in order to be a gargoyle, the figure has to be able to displace water like a gutter, usually via a spout in its mouth. Etymologically this makes sense; “gargoyle,” like the word “gargle,” shares in common the Latin gula meaning “throat,” while “grotesque” uses the Italian word grotta, meaning “of a cave.” Sometimes (and indeed at Emma, often) these figures are high up and it’s hard to tell which is which, but I’ve found that looking for water damage below and around the mouth is usually a good indication of a gargoyle, because the water has had time to erode the stone.

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C

B

D

B. The gargoyles of Sage Tower, some of the 16 true gargoyles on campus. C. Roux describes this carving as, “A wailing figure with hands up to its face in an expression of shock/despair, knees almost up to its chest.” D. One of the many fearsome creatures, this one another actual gargoyle, staring down from the towers of Emma Willard School. E. Examples of some of the grotesques adorning Slocum hall, largely academically themed.

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E

Grotesques are purely ornamental stone decorations, typically of people or animals and especially those in relation to myths and monsters.

Gargoyles also follow this

theme—although they tend to land more squarely in the monster category—but in order to be a gargoyle, the figure has to be able to displace water like a gutter, usually via a spout in its mouth.

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Incidentally, this common confusion brings me to one of the main challenges I faced in trying to catalog “the gargoyles”: what counted? How was I to decide what to catalog? Worst of all, how was I going to keep it neat and orderly for the next person, knowing that it was the spring semester of my senior year?! Eventually, I landed on numerical notation for grotesques and alphabetical notation for anything else, with a few rules in place to limit both categories: 1. “If it has a face, I’m counting it”—an actual note I wrote on my map of Slocum 2. Grotesques must be human/have human features; no little creatures (lizards, turtles, etc.)—They are very cute but there are so many 3. No full miniatures of people [ex: Lady Justice on the Slocum columns]—really, the Slocum columns caused a lot of problems, but are so gorgeous and were well worth the trouble 4. The shallow sculptures above the doors of Slocum are (vaguely) reliefs, and for that reason won’t be counted— a harsh, but necessary, distinction to be made This was a fairly good system; the only issues I found were on the chapel, where there are corbel-esque decorations in the shape of a face peeking out of foliage, which technically fit all of the rules I set even though they don’t look like the typical grotesques on campus.

Additionally, there are two gargoyles on the chapel that are visually distinct from the ones on the clock tower. You can find them on the high porch around the back of the building: chimera-like creatures with their mouths hanging wide open in a growl, a hundred years later still allowing water to escape off of the roof.

Speaking of the chapel gargoyles, I have a soft spot in my heart for the terrific visages that look over campus from that building. I mean ‘terrific’ in the original sense here: their faces are terrified, or else downright maniacal.

I’ll let my notes do them justice: ★ B. Laughing figure with a mischievous smile lying down on an extension of the tower, hands clasped beneath it ★ C. Wailing figure with hands up to its face in an expression of shock/despair, knees almost up to its chest ★ D. Laughing figure similar to B ★ E. Wailing figure similar to C, but its arms are bent backward at the shoulders at a weird angle as it seemingly tries to push off from its base

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F F. The chapel clock tower featuring both gargoyles and grotesques 28. The hybrid creature noted in Roux’s catalog

There’s a reason for the intensity of emotion displayed here, and it’s my other favorite thing about them: there’s a story being told, and I think they’re being chased.

Below them on the molding, deeply carved to appear as though they’re barely being contained in their stone forms, are their six tormentors, positioned like wicked guardians around three sides of the tower. They are by far and away the most mythical of the grotesques on campus, and the most ferocious looking. Once again, I think I’ll let my notes illustrate the point: 24. L ion-monkey hybrid creature sitting facing the building, its neck twisting around in a snarl so that it seems to be craning its head behind it to look at inner campus 25. T wisting serpentine figure, hard to tell where its head is 26. B east very similar to #24, but the body is also curved around slightly

27. Profile of a very large beast head facing to the right with pointed ears, roaring 28. Beast vaguely similar to #24 and in a similar position, but much skinnier 29. Upside down beast of the same description, curling inwards on itself like a ‘C’ And even below them, the heads of two men looking around the window, wearing hard-to-read expressions but eyeing each other as if to say, “Pay it no mind.”

But the story pauses there. I wasn’t able to complete everything before graduation: the stonework on Sage has yet to be cataloged, and all of the grotesques and gargoyles on campus still need to be photographed individually. My descriptions, too, could use more accuracy, and there are more historical or otherwise significant figures on Slocum and the chapel to be identified (besides Theodore Roosevelt and Shakespeare). For example, Mosley’s grandmother—whom he described to have the same spirit and resilience as Emma Hart Willard—is found outside the door to admissions in

28 the port-cochere of Sage; we know this thanks to the research of former student Alex Spear ’20, author of The Architectural Heritage of Emma Willard School.

I write this article with two hopes for you, reader.

Firstly, that what I’ve written will inspire you to go take a walk with friends around the outside of campus, on a day in spring that I hope is as breezy and beautiful as it was in 1910. I promise you won’t regret setting aside an hour or two to spend some time looking at the story unfolding above you. I think you might find yourself reflected in some of them.

Secondly, and selfishly, that you might take up the task of continuing to uncover the history of ‘ye grey walls’ and finish the cataloging that’s been started. I firmly believe there’s much more of this tale of scholars and serpents to be told, and therein a million mysteries to unfold.

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STORY BY KAITLIN RESLER I L L U S T R AT I O N B Y D A N B E J A R

Experiential Learning Moves Language Learning Beyond the Classroom

Living Language D U R I N G T H E S P R I N G 2023 S E M E S T E R , a group of Chinese III students embarked on a field trip: armed with the tools from weeks of preparation, they made the three-hour drive to New York City for a day of activities in Chinatown. That same semester, French classes journeyed north for a three-day adventure in Montreal. On the top floor of Slocum, thin sheets of metal bearing curses fit for ancient Rome hang on a bulletin board, and around campus students record themselves doing skits in Spanish.

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T

The Language Department at Emma Willard School is embedding language skills into real-life experience, helping to connect students to the communities they’re learning about, and expanding that learning beyond the classroom.

Language classes in particular seem to fit an experiential learning model well. Last year students enjoyed authentic Chinese food at Rain Modern Chinese Restaurant in downtown Albany, NY. The weeks of class leading up to the trip were spent in preparation, practicing common words and phrases used in restaurants, studying the menu, and writing about what they wanted to try. Before the field trip, their teacher, Guangyu Hao, visited the restaurant to give it a try and to speak with the restaurant manager. This was important to make sure that a server who spoke Mandarin would be on site that day to interact with the class, and that the restaurant and server could accommodate the lesson. “He gave a lot of feedback,” Guangyu says, noting that the waitstaff took special care to instruct the students on “how to eat a particular dish; showing and speaking at the same time.” Such an authentic learning experience is valuable, explains Guangyu, because it “extends the learning opportunity from the original tasks as they engaged in communicative contexts and learned culturally related knowledge as well.”

Visiting the Museum of Chinese in America

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A student finds a book during the scavenger hunt as part of their trip to New York City.

That trip helped set students up for success as they ventured into New York City: tasked with a scavenger hunt, they navigated a given area of Chinatown in pairs, gaining points based on completing their activities (which included stops for snacks and treats, of course!) successfully. “Basically, this is real life!

It requires them to engage skills beyond using the language in the classroom,” Guangyu emphasizes.

“They have to work as a team and use their tools. They have to have the courage to talk to a stranger, to ask for help, to find a place on a map.

It’s more comprehensive.”

French Instructor Manon Sabatier notes,“trips like these enable me to address various learning styles in my class differently and easily.” Getting outside the classroom means that “visual learners may pick up some grammar point on a street sign walking in Montreal, kinesthetic students may land their vocab learning by putting it in a brochure, auditory learners may memorize a phrasing by hearing it spoken in the hall of

Visual learners may pick up grammar pointers by observing street signs as they walk through the city.

the Québec schools, etc.” A trip addresses many activities in an organic way, giving the students a true experience that builds confidence in their growing skills. Later this year, Spanish classes will head out on their own trip to Museo del Barrio in New York City, and spring will see students off on a Jestermester trip to Santiago de Cali & Cartagena, Colombia for a nineday trip where students will engage with the history of the region while exploring food, dance, and varied natural and cultural spaces.

“The purpose of learning a language,” suggests Language Department Chair and Spanish Instructor Gina Egan, “is being out there.” The ‘out there’ is the world, the community, the space where students can create connections with people as they cultivate a sense of curiosity across different places and life experiences.

It seems clear that the Language Department views learning a language as a glimpse into other worlds that points to a desire for true

Getting outside the classroom means that “visual learners may pick up some grammar point on a street sign walking in Montreal, kinesthetic students may land their vocab learning by putting it in a brochure, auditory learners may memorize a phrasing by hearing it spoken in the hall of the Quebec schools, etc.”

FRENCH INST RU CTO R MANO N SABAT IER

Students and chaperones enjoying dinner on the trip to Montreal

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The debate in costume gets heated in Latin class, as students shout support or dissent for the speaker (in Latin, of course!).

understanding: helping students build up their skills alongside their confidence and an awareness of the impact their learning has on and with cultures they are studying.

Confidence comes up in several discussions with teachers in the Language Department, largely through the lens of mimicking real-life experience, as they describe the many ways students are encouraged to get familiar with and try the languages they’re practicing.

Projects and final assessments have moved towards assignments or experiences that allow students to get closer to real-life use of a language.

Gina details how Spanish classes investigate museums, questioning and redefining concepts of stewardship. They look towards the communities represented by objects for guidance on how to create a space that is “responsible and inclusive, making sure that the information around artifacts is accurate and also collaborating: asking permission and what doing that means and looks like.” After these discussions, students create small exhibits to explain the cultural significance of the artifacts they’ve chosen. “It’s about doing and then reflecting on the doing,” Gina says.

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Technology helps here, as many of the French classes are collaborating with French-speaking students around the world: what previously might have been a pen-pal relationship has turned into video, with students exchanging their work via platforms such as Flipgrid.

Eloise Bererd’s class reads a book with students from her hometown, recording quick videos for the other as they work through the unit. Gina notes that the availability of technology helps to mimic real-life interactions that “get students to interact with each other

in more natural and lifelike ways” that extend the learning beyond classroom time. Now, students can pull out a phone or screen record themselves quickly as a homework assignment anytime. These tools help students speak the languages they’re learning more readily and more often, and in a way that mimics relationship-building in real time. “It’s really easy to say, hey your homework tonight is to go on to Flipgrid and leave a question about a pastime that you enjoy, then ask another student a question about their chosen pastime. Then they can all go back in and answer each other. It gets students to interact with each other in more natural and life-like ways.”

Even in Dr. Robert Matera’s Latin class, students get hands-on. From looking at and creating historically accurate ancient Roman graffiti to carving their own versions of curse tablets and dressing up in chitons to spend the class as ancient Roman senators in debate, Latin classes are getting as close to the experience as a teenager in upstate New York can get.

There are seemingly endless ways language is suited to experiential

A student gets to work transcribing a Roman curse onto a tablet in Latin class.

Jestermester

Latin class, dressed for debate and showing off their classical gestures

learning: the act of speaking and inhabiting a language overlaps with so many other facets of life, and this is evident in the ways the department partners with others on campus: History Department teachers visit French classrooms to speak about colonialism in Frenchspeaking parts of the world, art history faculty visit language classes to hone in on the work of Puerto Rican artist Pepón Osorio, and language classes have joined in a discussion of identity and DNA with a biology class. Signature, Emma Willard School’s capstone program, offers a language option for students who have taken all the classes available for a particular language: students can continue their studies with a team of teachers and experts to aid them in furthering their learning, often through the lens of a specific topic or project.

The common thread throughout all the classrooms and topics is seeking community and connection. In discussing the Language Department’s efforts, Gina references something Spanish Instructor Domenica Petulla said: “If I’ve taught you the way to communicate with another person and helped create better understanding and connection, then we’ve won.”

Borrowing from the spirit of our mascot (the boldly original, irreverent, and mischievous jester), Jestermester was designed to embrace experiential learning, hands-on lessons, teacher innovation, students exploring their passions, mixed-grade community building, and deep learning on one topic. In its pilot year, Jestermester will happen March 4–8, 2024.

Teachers completed a special week of professional development work in summer 2023 to compose detailed plans for specific Jestermester experiences. Taking inspiration from current classes, special interests, and contacts in the professional world, these leaders crafted a wonderfully diverse set of offerings for our students.

In the fall, twenty-eight Jestermester courses became available for students to choose from as they built their schedules.

Students in Spanish classes have the opportunity to travel while practicing their language skills, a perfect example of this dynamic new program:

Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia the Cali Fair festival colors

Afro, Now, Then, & Presente!

Join a bi-coastal adventure to Colombia’s Atlantic & Pacific Regions on a 9-day trip to Santiago de Cali and Cartagena, Colombia! Colombia has the third largest Afro-descendant population in the Western Hemisphere, with exciting Black cultures to learn from. In this course, students will explore Black Colombian pasts, presents, and futures by engaging with cuisine, dance, music, oral tradition, and natural spaces. Designed by Houseparent Giselle Lora in cooperation with World 2 the Whyze, this course will provide an overview on Black Colombian resistance through culture, history, and survival in a country that has benefited from Black labor and culture from the period of Spanish colonization to the present. Houseparent Chelsie Tuttle and Assistant Track and Field Coach Eric Lundblade will accompany Giselle in chaperoning.

NOTE: This piece has been corrected from the print edition.

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A Few of My

Favorite Things Archivist Stephanie Ross shares a few of her favorite pieces and stories from the Emma Willard School Archives

STORY BY MELISSIA MASON ARCHIVES PHOTOGRAPHY BY KAITLIN RESLER

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Treasures are hidden in closets, drawers, boxes, attics, and antique shops—ephemera from over 200 years of Emma Willard School history. Many of these items have made their way to the Archives in the basement of Dietel Library to be cherished for generations to come, donated by curious and preservation-minded alumnae and their families. Our community shares a collective passion for remembering and bequeathing the elements that made their lives on Mount Ida unforgettable.

Assistant Director of Research and Archives Stephanie Ross, new to the school in 2022, brought fresh eyes and an excitement to discover and share our rich history with students, families, alumnae, and the world.

During her first year, she’s connected with several families who have gifted items from their own time at Emma or that they’ve found “in the wild.”

“My favorite item right now is that portrait that’s on display,” Stephanie says, pointing to an all-school photo whose frame stretches across the top of a shelf of rare books. “It represents a lot of the qualities that we love here so much: the community, this campus. This portrait in particular was given to the archives by a legacy family, the Zahnleuters.” Mary Beth ’16, Heidi ’18, Molly ’20, and their mother Andrea discovered the framed photo in a vintage shop in Poughkeepsie.

Top of the page: This 1920s class photo was found by the Zahnleuter family through a fortuitous series of connections in Poughkeepsie. Inset above: Emma Willard Athletic Association bracelet donated by Leigh Dean ’55. Right (and inset left): Daryl Ann Neighbors Filandro ’73 beams as she presents Stephanie Ross with the letterpress cut of Sage Tower during Reunion 2023.

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“We were so excited and actually slightly surprised that we’d come across it,” Mary Beth shares.

News of the photo had traveled by word of mouth through more than a few people to get to the Zahnleuters. “Emma grads like myself and my sisters always have a knack for noticing ‘Emma in the Wild,’ as we like to describe it. While we don’t know when exactly this photo is from or who is in it, maybe a family member of one of the girls in the picture will see it one day when they come back to Emma and it will put a smile on their face, remembering their loved one. That’s what it’s all about!”

Items arrive on the archivist's desk in a steady stream. A mounted letterpress cut of Sage Tower, used to print the image, was discovered by Daryl Ann Neighbors Filandro ’73 during a random search of eBay. She delivered it into Stephanie’s hands during Reunion. An Emma Willard Athletic Association (EWAA) bracelet, class ring, and field hockey sticks (now hanging on the wall in Athletic Director Liz Parry’s office) were donated by the late Leigh Dean ’55, who would go on to leave a large part of her estate to the school (read more about Leigh’s gift on p. 38).

Beyond the individual items that have been entrusted to her care, Stephanie’s favorite things in the archives can best be sorted and described by collection.

(1)

(1) A close look at the ‘pagoda’ sleeves on the two-piece silktaffeta dress in the archives.

(2) Two uniform dresses in the same style but different colors date from the 1940s–50s (3) A look at the pocket embroidery on wool green uniform blazers.

(4)This white dotted Swiss dress is an example of those worn during dinner in the 1930s.

(5) A chambray sailor-collar uniform circa the 1910s featuring embroidery and a white hat.

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

CloThing Collection

Among the most intriguing articles of history stored in the archives are pieces of clothing. A two-piece green silk day dress, reported to be one of Emma Hart Willard’s own, is trimmed with embroidery employing gold metallic and autumnal colors. The dress is a typical, but excellent, example of the kind of day dress worn in the 1850s and early 1860s, featuring a short bodice and bell-shaped “pagoda” sleeves trimmed with fringe. On close inspection, one can see the original hand-stitching alongside later adjustments to the hem, made with machine stitches and more contemporary, cotton-blend thread.

Another box is filled with uniforms, labeled 1915–1929: now-yellowed white silk and cotton shirts, dark navy wool and chambray sailor-inspired uniforms—which can be seen in use in the 1910–20s photograph discovered by the Zahnleuter family—with embroidered sleeves and a similarly-adorned white sailor’s hat. A dotted Swiss dinner dress belonging to Jane Kight Redden ’40, a yellow gingham-checked everyday dress from Betsy Upton Stover ’69, Nancy Fleigh Daugherty ’64’s white shirtwaist dress, and a salmon twin to it, worn by Tara Collins-Gordon ’63, all speak to decades of shifting uniform style. Rounding out the collection are a variety of wool uniform blazers, each with their own era of Emma Willard School insignia embroidered on their pockets.

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Writings & Remembrances of Emma Hart Willard

The archives have preserved a number of fascinating artifacts from Emma Hart Willard’s life and beyond—music written to accompany a poem she wrote during a fearsome storm while sailing home from Europe, her indelible “Plan for Improving Female Education,” many of her original textbooks, and a journal containing hand-written poetry, remembrances, and autographs from her students. These words about Emma Hart Willard show the depth of one student’s appreciation: “The name of Emma, oft the grateful eye has fill'd with ears of pleasure at the thought of her—whose genius triumph'd o'er restraint, whose self-devotion purchas'd and bestow'd on orphan spirits, comforted and rais'd from poverty and scorn, a crown of worth. The name of Emma shines upon the page of female excellence—in ‘living light’—unsullied and alone.” —Seneca, December 5, 1828, Troy Female Seminary Obituaries and memorials written upon Madame Willard’s passing in 1870 are lovingly stored alongside fragile copies of a dedication in her honor that was printed and distributed by “The Women of America” at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. A seldom-seen lithograph portrait of Emma Hart Willard, which was used in a turn-of-the-20th-century news article, was nestled at the bottom of the box. Now that it’s been rediscovered, Stephanie plans to keep it out for display and preservation.

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Emma Hart Willard kept a journal in which her students wrote poetry and reflections for her to remember them by.

Generations of Publications

From the earliest catalog on file from 1833 to decades of handbooks to the hundreds of issues of The Triangle, The Clock, and The Gargoyle, the Archives contain a treasure-trove of individual and institutional memories preserved for perpetuity.

“There are many poems from early Triangle issues that are really special,” Stephanie recalls from her time exploring the collection. “Students really identify with them too. It's also funny to see that there are some challenges that always come back again.” An example of this can be found in a 1908 issue of The Triangle where students were complaining about the schedule, reminiscent of recent years coming out of COVID, when the schedule has shifted repeatedly requiring students to re-orient themselves each year.

Kiki Y. ’24 has found particular inspiration for her role as editor of The Gargoyle. “I’m especially attracted by the ones that are very early in the 1900s,” Kiki shares. “They have line drawings that give more of the ‘Emma feeling’ than more current ones.” Describing how recent issues of the yearbook display each student’s unique personality, Kiki finds that older issues reflect the feel of the community as a whole. “I included drawings last year that are similar to the ones I saw in the archives. This year, I want to incorporate the distinct vibe of the classical feel that conveys ‘Emma Willard’ alongside the diversity and color of individual personalities.”

Fall/Winter 2023 Top: A selection of Gargoyles that will be significant for this year’s Reunion classes. Bottom: Perusing a selection of handbooks reveals how expectations change over the decades.

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The Rittase Photography Collection

While hundreds of photos (some identified, some not) fill the basement shelves, among the most stunning photographs in the historical collections are those taken by noted photographer William M. Rittase (American, 1894–1968). He captured life at Emma Willard School throughout the 1930s, 40s, and 50s, covering everything from architecture to student life to academics.

“I think they're really beautiful and interesting,” Stephanie shares. “They tell so many stories about that period of time. Those could make a wonderful book, honestly, of just this one period during the school history.”

As beautiful as the Rittase photography is, it also highlights the changing composition of Emma over the years. What was once a place for young white women of means has transformed over time into the diverse community we see in photographs today.

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And so much more...

For more on the school archives visit emmawillard.org/archives-feature

To narrow down what is a “favorite” in the expansive collection at Emma Willard proves quite a challenge indeed.

Another favorite of Stephanie’s are the many scrapbooks in the collection. “Scrapbooks tell the personal histories of each student who left them behind,” Stephanie shares. “They are very interesting to go through.” Herbariums document the flora of the day and give a glimpse into the early study of botany on Mount Ida. Trophies tell the stories of contests long-forgotten and the students who excelled in everything from public speaking to geometry.

In addition to the allure of spending hours engrossed in the discovery of bygone eras, the archives present a particular challenge from an archivist’s perspective. Folders of undated, unidentified photos are commonplace. Many items await digitization and cataloging into a searchable index. “Last year, I had a group of students coming on Wednesday afternoons, and I think this year I want to have a little more structure with that,” Stephanie shares. “Students just want to be here— they want to experience it and see what’s down here. With some realistic goals, we could be very productive.”

Stephanie’s experience at Reunion 2023 is a perfect example of what can be accomplished by getting the right people in the room with a stack of photos. “The alums did an amazing job with identifying items. I got goosebumps when Ginny walked over,” Stephanie enthuses, referring to Virginia Brodhead LaPierre ’58. “She was the first one at the table where I had spread out all of these photos with Post-Its and pencils. She picked up a photograph and said, ‘This is my class. This is my roommate.’ She was able to identify every single person in that photo.”

With the digital catalog now in use, it’s possible to share collections online. Stephanie would like to have students help scan the photos that were identified during Reunion. “I would love to share these photos with alums to let them know that their work was really beneficial,” she says. “It would be really special.”

Stephanie’s next step to further the preservation of the Emma Willard School Archives is a site visit from Documentary Heritage Preservation Services of New York, a collaboration between the New York State Archives Documentary Heritage Program and the New York State Library Conservation/Preservation Program. “Their work will identify key priorities and goals for our archives,” Stephanie shares. This archival needs assessment is set to take place by the end of 2023.

For the intellectually curious and lovers of history— which, honestly, is everyone in the Emma Willard community—a visit to the basement of Dietel is a pilgrimage.

Whether coming to reminisce or to help digitize and create record of its treasures, the Emma Willard School Archives are, themselves, one of our community’s favorite things.

Fall/Winter 2023

Virginia “Ginny” Brodhead LaPierre ’58 enthusiastically identifies her classmates in archival photos.

See more of our favorite things on p. 42

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The Full Expe L E I GH D E AN ’ 55 EN DOWS ST U D E N T O P PORTUN I TY F UN D WI TH T R A N S FOR M ATION AL BEQU E ST TO EMMA WILLAR D

A curious child whose perspective on the world pushed boundaries in her younger school years, Leigh Dean ’55 came to Emma Willard School in 10th grade and found her place on Mount Ida. “Imagine my delight,” she writes of her experience, “when the questions I asked were not treated as ‘disruptions’ but as interesting ideas worth exploring.” Leigh’s delight in interesting, disruptive ideas forged a life of impact.

While at Emma Willard, Leigh was a committed field hockey player, vocalist in the choir and chorus, and “one of the best, most natural jesters we’ve ever seen” in Revels (according to The Gargoyle). Leading a self-described “rambunctious life,” Leigh’s personal experience with dyslexia spurred her to find new ways to nurture the joy of reading in herself and others. An advocate for the inclusion of all, Leigh’s life after Emma centered around creating books that reflected a variety of lived experiences, being the instigator of deep conversations, and pursuing the centering power of spiritual healing practice.

Of her career, Leigh once explained, “I write books for children, and for some time now I have found my energies channeled towards bringing peoples of differing backgrounds together through the stories that I write.”

She would spend a 35+ year career in publishing, working for many years as an editor in the Junior Book Division at McGraw Hill in New York City.

2,353 DONORS

$153,686,901

C AMPAI G N TOTA L A S OF 9/3 0/ 23

OF $175,000,000 GOAL

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Curious about the progress on the Alice Dodge Wallace ’38 Center for the Performing Arts?

Take a look at the latest progress at infinitehorizon.org/adw

E M M A WI L L AR D SC HO O L

EMMA rience

Infinite Horizon

TH E C A M PA I GN FO R E M M A W I LL A R D S CH O O L

Around the same time that she was writing thoughtful interracial books for children, Leigh was encouraging her beloved Emma Willard community to think more deeply about the issues facing our world. “Wouldn’t it be wonderful,” she said, “for Emma Willard graduates across the generations to share their ideas and experiences.”

The fruit of that labor was a series of alumnae forums in the school magazine in which Leigh engaged the community with prompts on issues like Conservation vs. Pollution, The Student Activist, The Single Parent, Alcoholism and the Alcoholic, and Prison Reform. She sought out alumnae who were doing important work, amplified their voices, and made them a catalyst for meaningful conversations.

A writer, poet, artist, song channeler, and energetic healer, Leigh was also a counselor of people. When she moved from New York City to Seattle, she re-focused her considerable energies on practices that heal. “I channel and focus energy—the energy that is the life force in all matter—and use that energy to bring balance to the people I work with,” she once shared. With a special sensitivity to nature, Leigh felt connected to all manner of growing things. This work led her to conduct healing circles and workshops, and resulted in two additional books written and self-published in her later years.

Throughout her life, Leigh modeled consideration for others. It is no wonder, then, that she made arrangements for her estate to be invested in providing the “full Emma experience” to all students who call her beloved Mount Ida home. Conscious of the inequities that could occur between students who come to Emma with the benefit of a scholarship, Leigh’s hope was that her bequest to the school would allow every student to pursue their passions and make Emma a more equitable environment in which to live and learn. Upon her passing in June of 2022, Leigh’s entire estate was gifted for this purpose as a part of the Infinite Horizon campaign, supporting the priority to strengthen our community.

Students at Emma in the 2023–2024 school year are the first to feel the impact of Leigh’s gift, which more than doubled the available Leigh Dean’s bequest has already more than annual resources for the doubled the annual amount available for Student Opportunity funding at Emma Willard.

Student Opportunity Fund, providing support for expenses outside of tuition.

With a portion of the Leigh Dean estate going to endow the Student Opportunity Fund and an additional amount to be used as a bridge gift until the endowment begins to draw, the impact was immediate. Select students were notified at the beginning of the school year that their student opportunity expenses have been covered, without them having to ask. Expenses for things like class rings, experiential learning opportunities, textbooks, prom tickets, commencement attire, yearbooks, weekend activity funds, and funds to travel home would be included.

In addition, supplemental funding for college visits and college applications for students who have need was made available.

Dean of Students Shelley Maher has had the privilege of talking with each of the students who will benefit from Leigh’s gift this school year. “It has been such a joyous experience for me to be able to share such news with these students who had no idea about any of it,” she reflects.

“Sharing with students that we are going to provide them with funds to be able to return home once during the year has brought tears to some of the students’ eyes.” Shelley calls Leigh’s gift a “dream come true” for those who are working to provide as many opportunities as possible for Emma students.

Leigh’s legacy gift is a fitting denouement to her life story—a pursuit of deep meaning and equity for all that leaves an indelible impression on the student experience.

—Melissia Mason

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K A L IS S E A N D ER S ON ’ 97 T H E P OW E R O F PARTI C I PATION Kalisse Anderson, JD ’97 serves as a member of the Infinite Horizon campaign steering committee. As a leader for the largest fundraising effort in the history of girls’ schools, Kalisse is both a champion and role model for the power of participation among her fellow alumnae. As a member of Emma Willard’s 1814 Association, she has used a monthly recurring gift to ensure her support spans the diverse needs of a given school year.

“Giving to the 1814 Association is such a wonderful way for us to remember Emma Hart Willard,” says Kalisse.

“To mark the inception of her idea, her concept for this school, and her formidable legacy. It’s also an important mechanism for supporting the school because it invites everyone to participate.”

The 1814 Association recognizes contributions across every constituency of the school, and its members provide more than 90% of all money raised for The Emma Fund.

Kalisse notes that these individuals’ collective generosity helps close the gap between revenue and real costs of providing an Emma Willard education for deserving students.

Her own support of the school and The 1814 Association is inspired by her family’s deep roots at Emma Willard: her mother, M. Parker Mabry from the class of 1971, her aunt Cheryl A. Parker who served as school librarian, and her grandfather, James A. Parker, a former member of the Board of Trustees.

“From the beginning, I’ve always had this sense of Emma Willard as a place I needed to establish myself and engage with in a leadership role,” explains Kalisse. “So much of that stems from when I would come to campus as a kid with my grandfather, who was a leader here, and he would tell me that one day I would come to Emma, too.”

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E M M A WI L L AR D SC HO O L

While Kalisse’s grandfather passed just four weeks before she would begin her first year, she carried her family’s legacy with her throughout her time at Emma Willard. She describes a strong sense of encouragement from her family to experience everything the school had to offer and make the most of the opportunity given to her. By her senior year, Kalisse was elected president of the student body and had developed a network of friends united in their desire to go out and make their imprint on the world.

“What I found in my time at Emma was a sense of my purpose and I discovered a network of other young women who were pursuing their purpose, too!” exclaims Kalisse.

“Having this shared reason for being at the school made our experience together so very enjoyable, very loving, and very inviting. And, for me, it made Emma Willard a place where I felt protected but also prepared for life outside the walls of Mount Ida.” Kalisse would go on to complete her Bachelor of Arts from Davidson College and her law degree from the University of Richmond. Throughout the course of a multifaceted legal career in government and private sector work, she has traveled the world from Austria to Ethiopia and throughout Eastern Europe. Currently, she serves as the Senior Attorney in the Office of Hearings and Appeals at the Small Business Administration of the United States Government.

“I’m so grateful for my experience at Emma and feel fortunate that I had the opportunity to be part of this place,” shares Kalisse. “I didn’t just graduate and move on; I met life-long friends, I grew into a woman, and I thrived as a result of my time at the school. My support is just one way to show how much Emma Willard has done for me along the way!”

—Luke Meyers

To learn more about the 1814 Association, visit: emmawillard.org/giving/1814

PH OTO BY CON N OR M CL AR EN

Infinite Horizon TH E C A M PA I GN FO R E M M A W I LL A R D S CH O O L

SA RAH S OULE ’77 E STA B LI SHES T H E “ SA L LIE GAR D N E R EN DOWED S CH O LAR S HI P F UN D” Sarah Goodwin Soule ’77 has made a generous contribution to the Infinite Horizon campaign to fund an endowed scholarship for students with demonstrated financial need. A former Alumnae Association Council member, Class Bulletin Reporter, two-time reunion chair, and 2022 recipient of the Service to Emma Willard Award, Sarah credits the inspiration for her philanthropy to her parents and her close friend Linda Gill Anderson ’77, co-chair of the Infinite Horizon campaign.

The endowed scholarship made possible by Sarah’s support and marking her 45th reunion will forever carry the memory of her parents, Sarah “Sallie” Thompson Soule and Gardner Northup Soule. Sallie and Gardner were actively engaged in numerous non-profit organizations and encouraged their children to do the same. Sallie was a founding director of the Vermont Community Foundation in 1986, whose approach to funding mirrored Sallie and Gardner’s vision of respect, integrity, equity, diversity, collaboration, and inclusion.

“My support of the school is intended to honor my parents for what they made possible for me and extend that opportunity to others in the future,” notes Sarah. “Just as I was invited by my classmate and friend Linda Gill Anderson to make a campaign gift, I hope others will be inspired to further the mission of Emma Willard School and access to education overall through their support.”

A passionate advocate for education, Sarah has dedicated her entire career to working as a college and post-secondary counselor. Currently, Sarah works for the Middlebury Union High School in Middlebury, Vermont—a

P H OTO BY A M A N DA H ER Z BERG E R

location well-known among generations of Emma Willard alumnae as the birthplace of our school and the women’s education movement in the United States.

“In the fall of 1974, I began working as an admissions tour guide at Emma Willard, and here I am now, working exactly half a mile from Madame Willard’s home in the village of Middlebury,” exclaims Sarah. “To say my life has come full circle would be an understatement: I am simply overwhelmed with gratitude and appreciation for the way this school has shaped my life and continues to do so.”

Sarah recounts highlights of her time at Emma Willard, including her role as head tour guide during her senior year and an experimental exchange program with the Thacher School for Boys in California that she took part in the spring of her junior year. The Thacher School would go on to accept its first co-education class the following year in 1977, a credit to the success of the student envoys sent to the West Coast from Emma Willard.

“Apparently the Thacher head of school called our principal (Frances Roland O’Connor) and they made an agreement to try exchanging a class of 30 students for the semester—30 girls to California at Thacher, 30 boys to New York at Emma Willard. So, there I was, having been in an all-girls school for the last three years sitting in a classroom with 10 boys. It was wild! That program is responsible for at least five marriages and I am still friends with many of those ‘Thacher boys’ to this day!”

Sarah’s penchant for making layered connections in life reached a new level when she was engaged to marry her fiance, Leigh, a long-time acquaintance and a graduate of Trinity-Pawling School. Leigh, a former employee of Orvis in Manchester, Vermont, shares Sarah’s love of the outdoors, travel, and Labrador Retrievers. In turn, Leigh has shared his passion for fly-fishing with Sarah, and their wedding in June of 2024 will be fly-fishing themed.

“We are tying the knot, pardon the pun,” quips Sarah.

“Several of my Emma Willard classmates will attend the wedding and the date will also mark what would have been the 100th anniversary of my grandparents’ wedding; they were great champions of education as well. It will be a very special day.”

Sarah and Leigh are asking guests to support the Curtis Fund of Vermont, a scholarship fund for first-generation college-bound students in Vermont, in lieu of gifts.

—Luke Meyers

Fall/Winter 2023

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The Classroom From the Archives ← CLASS RINGS Two class rings from Rachel Elisabeth Crow Dosé ’61 and her mother Elisabeth Crow (1927). Along with the donation, Rachel writes, “This ring is a reminder for me of three great years, wonderful classmates, and an excellent school with an excellent future.” Rachel’s sister Florence Crow Monger ’64 is the third in the family legacy to attend Emma Willard.

POEM → Emma Hart Willard’s poem “Rocked in the Cradle of the Deep” was printed onto pink satin for the 1900 gathering of the Emma Willard Association.

Madame Willard penned the poem while on her return voyage from Europe in 1830, calling it “Ocean Hymn.” A note that accompanies the musical version in the archives states, “A fellow passenger, Count De Choiseul, set [the poem] to music, and during the rest of the voyage it was sung as the evening hymn. The melody to which it is now sung was arranged by an Englishman, Joseph P. Knight.”

PIN → This pink enamel Emma Willard Association pin is one of the more stunning pieces of jewelry in the archives. The organization it represents was the Emma Willard Association of Troy Female Seminary, established in 1891 to unite all former pupils of the seminary (whether they graduated or not) in support of the institution. It was this group that initiated the memorial to Emma Hart Willard that was presented at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893.

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E M M A W I LL AR D SC HO O L

← BOOK Published in 1831, The Fulfillment of a Promise is a book of poetry written by Emma Hart Willard and submitted to a publisher as she was preparing to sail to Europe in September of 1830. Faced with the possibility that she might not survive the trip, Madame Willard wrote her will and made arrangements to fulfill a promise she’d made to her students. In the foreword of this book of poems, she wrote, “More than five years since, I bound myself to the young ladies then my pupils, to publish a few of my poems. In a season of affliction, during which I was obliged to suspend my accustomed duties to them, they paid to me the most touching attentions. I wished to do something for them; they asked of me this favour, and with solemnity I promised to grant it.”

For more on the school archives visit emmawillard.org/archives-feature

↓M AYP OL E Among the larger artifacts to be found in the archives is the top of the original May Pole from the early 1900s.

CHAMPAGNE ↑→ In 1941, the United States initiated the Liberty Ship program to meet the United States’ World War II maritime transport needs. The SS Emma Willard was a part of this fleet, commissioned in 1943 to transport supplies and, later, personnel. This satin-wrapped champagne bottle used to christen the ship lies in the Emma Willard School archives as a reminder of this poignant time in world history. The ship, which is also memorialized in the murals on the walls of Slocum basement, was decommissioned in 1946, sold into private use, and later scrapped.

Fall/Winter 2023

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New Trustees Welcome

O FFICERS Megan (Meg) Toohey Scremin ’00 Chair Denver, CO Susan (Susie) Hunter ’68 Vice Chair Manchester Center, VT Ann Gambling ’70 Hoffman Secretary New Hope, PA James (Jim) Hackett P’20 Treasurer Milton, MA TR USTEES Linda Gill Anderson ’77 Silver Spring, MD Rachel Birnboim New York, NY Karen Brifu-Lacy Mount Vernon, NY Laura Danforth Dobbs Ferry, NY Stephen Gonick P’16 ’20 Rexford, NY Wendy S. Graham ’85 Hoboken, NJ Katlyn Grasso Hamburg, NY Elizabeth (Betsy) Gifford Gross ’72 Bethesda, MD David Howson Westport, NY Maggie Bownes Johnson ’83 Waltham, MA Samantha Jones ’92 Stamford, CT Sharon Khanuja-Dhall ’89 Katonah, NY Julie Massry Knox ’98 Menands, NY Wendy Shuang Liu ’95 New York, NY Sarah (Sally) Klingenstein Martell ’85 New York, NY Denise Mormino Slingerlands, NY Betts Howes Murray ’73 South Dartmouth, MA Elizabeth (Lisa) Radcliffe ’82 Brooklyn, NY

Laura Danforth became head of school at The Masters School in July 2015. Before joining Masters, she was principal of the upper school at Ethical Culture Fieldston School in Riverdale, New York.

Prior to Fieldston, she served for 10 years as the associate head of school at Miss Porter’s School in Farmington, Connecticut. Laura’s senior administrative roles span a 40-year career in independent schools, including Dean of Faculty at Suffield Academy, Dean of Students at the Ethel Walker School, and Director of Counseling at St. Paul’s School. Currently the vice chair of the New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYSAIS), She has served as a board member at The Association of Boarding Schools (TABS) and the Parents League of New York. She received a BA in psychology and anthropology from Colby-Sawyer College and an MA in counseling psychology from Lesley University.

Katlyn Grasso is the Founder and CEO of GenHERation®, a network where young women and companies connect. She graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania where she received a BS in economics with concentrations in finance and strategic globalization. She is the inaugural recipient of the Penn President’s Engagement Prize, which funds ventures that have the potential to change the world. Grasso speaks internationally about entrepreneurship, technology, leadership, and the advancement of women, and has been a featured speaker at more than 400 events. She is a frequent radio and television contributor and a member of the boards of the Penn Fund, Penn Nursing Center for Global Women’s Health, TCU Neeley Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and Momentum: The Power of Penn Women. Katlyn was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 List as one of the most influential leaders in education.

Jennifer Schmelter ’85 Boston, MA Roger Tennent P’24 Brooklyn, NY 44

E M M A W I LL AR D SC HO O L

Maggie Bownes Johnson ’83 started her three-year term as President of the Alumnae Association Council (AAC) in July 2023. Maggie joined the AAC in 2018, serving two years as a member-at-large followed by three years in leadership as a Co-Vice President. Maggie loves being part of the AAC, developing strong relationships with alumnae from class years other than her own, and living the mission of the AAC: connecting alumnae to each other and back to Emma Willard School. Maggie has an undergraduate degree in Computer Science and Mathematics from Smith College and an MBA from Babson College. Maggie is an Operations Management professional and Lean Six Sigma Black Belt whose career has been focused in the field of industrial automation technology. Maggie is grateful for an Emma Willard experience made up of academic opportunities, rich traditions, and life-long friendships. Maggie’s Revels part was the Greensman, and she is honored to have proclaimed “Let the great folk come!”

Julie Massry Knox ’98 earned her BS at Drexel University and MBA (Business Administration) at The College of St. Rose. She is the Director of Marketing in her thirdgeneration family-owned and operated business, Tri City Rentals, Albany, Buffalo, and Rochester’s premier property management company.

The Massry family is one of the Capital Region’s most well-known and active business and philanthropic families. Julie serves as a board member at multiple local schools and nonprofits, including The College of St. Rose, Woodland Hill Montessori School, and the Center for Disability Services Foundation. Julie is a 2011 graduate of the Rensselaer Chamber Leadership Institute, received the Trailblazer Award from the Women’s Fund of the Capital Region in 2011, and was a 2013 Albany Business Review 40 under 40 award recipient. Julie lives in Menands with her husband and 3 sons ages 16, 14, and 9.

New electronic scoreboards in Charles Stewart Mott Gymnasium and outdoors at the upper and lower playing fields now benefit Jester athletes and their fans during competitions. These additions to our athletics facilities would not be possible without the generosity of donors who believe in and cheer on our athletes, year in and year out.

The three lead donors to the scoreboard project have generously supported the entire Emma Willard experience for many years. As dedicated athletes, this project resonated in a special way.

Dr. Martha Stauffer, Class of 1952, is the epitome of staying active throughout one’s life and has been a fixture on the Emma Willard tennis courts—and more recently the pickleball courts—when she visits campus for reunions and Alumnae Association Council business.

Reverend Ingrid Johnsen Barrett, Class of 1966, proved herself to be an athlete from an early age when she won a field race wearing a fluffy blue dress while in grade school in New Jersey. At Mills College in California, she was a member of the crew team and twice won gold in the national championships for women’s single sculls, setting a record for the 500meter race that stood unbeaten for years. After col-

FROM THE TR IA NGLE

Lighting the Way for Jester Athletics lege she ran almost daily for 50 years, entering many road races and four marathons, including the Boston Marathon. She and her husband played golf together regularly, and she enjoyed skiing in Vail with her family for decades. Sadly, Ingrid passed away in August.

Andrea Hanley, Class of 1995, has been a fan of Emma athletics since her time on the field hockey and lacrosse fields thirty years ago. Andrea was a three-sport athlete at Emma, most notably playing field hockey and lacrosse for Liz Parry. Basketball and ski racing at Willard Mountain also benefited from her participation. Andrea went on to play field hockey and lacrosse at Drew University, where she was a three-time All-American in lacrosse and NCAA record holder in many statistical categories (many of which still stand today). She coached at Gettysburg College for two years as a graduate assistant for field hockey and lacrosse while obtaining her master’s degree, then at Penn State for three years for lacrosse.

Andrea returned to the Capital Region, serving as an assistant coach for lacrosse for three seasons at The University at Albany, and elevated The Sage Colleges/Russell Sage club lacrosse program to the school’s first varsity program and recorded the program’s first win. Off the field, for the last 20 years, Andrea has evolved and grown her family’s business, The CDL School, a commercial driving school that works with some of the nation’s largest long-haul carriers.

Emma Willard School is grateful to these thoughtful alumnae.

—Robin Prout

Andrea Hanley ’95, Reverend Ingrid Johnson Barret ’66, and Dr. Martha Stauffer ’52

D E D I CAT I O N O F E L I Z A B E T H PA R RY F I E L D On the Friday of Fall Family Weekend, family, friends, current and former students, and current and former colleagues gathered to honor Liz Parry’s impact with the dedication of the lower playing field, now named in her honor. After remarks by Head of School Jenny Rao, Dean of Students Shelley Maher, Andrea Hanley ’95, and Ceci C. ’24, Liz shared her own words of wisdom with the crowd. “The playing field is where the magic happens,” Liz shared. “I’m excited by the thought of the countless athletes who train, compete, and create memories on this field. It is my hope that this place is a source of inspiration, camaraderie, and personal growth for all who use it.” The culmination of the event was the lighting of the new scoreboard bearing Liz’s name.

View the recording of the dedication at emmawillard.org/parry-dedication Fall/Winter 2023

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E M M A WI L L AR D SC HO O L

Varsity Soccer Seniors celebrate their last season with a jump in the goal on the newly-dubbed Elizabeth Parry Field.

Fall/Winter 2023

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EMMA WILLARD SCHOOL

BY THE NUMBERS

49

teaching faculty

88%

full time faculty

90%

teachers with advanced degrees

48

356

total enrollment

34

countries

19

US states

E M M A WI L L AR D SC HO O L

137

acre campus

$5.9M

in financial aid

Admissions How to Apply

The Admissions Team at Emma is eager to learn more about you! We are here to assist with the application process every step of the way. This process includes the following: APPLICATION Demonstrating a commitment to equity and inclusion, Emma Willard School is pleased to offer a free application for admission for both domestic and international candidates. Please apply here: emmawillard.org/admissions TRANSCRIPTS Should be completed by a school official and contain a minimum of two years of credits as well as the first semester or trimester of the current academic year.

RECOMMENDATIONS ❑ English Teacher ❑ Math Teacher ❑ Principal/Guidance Counselor

TESTING Emma Willard School is test optional and does not require the SSAT, PSAT, or SAT as elements of the application process. Instead, we ask applicants to submit a graded writing sample and a graded math test. For our international applicants, we also require the TOEFL or Duolingo test results to assist with understanding English proficiency.

More information can be found at emmawillard.org/admissions INTERVIEW For the 2024–2025 application season, we will be conducting all interviews via Zoom in order to provide equal access to all of our applicants.

IMPORTANT DATES Application deadline: International - January 15 Domestic - February 1 Financial aid application deadline: February 1 Admissions decision: March 10 Enrollment contract and deposit due: April 10

emmawillard.org

285 PAWLING AVENUE, TROY, NY 12180