GFA Magazine Summer 2021

GREENS FARMS ACADEMY MAGAZINE | summer 2021

Class of 2021: Leading with Joy

Educating Beyond the classroom

steam: authentic innovation

Board of Trustees 2021–2022

President/Chair: David Durkin, P ’18, ’22, ’23 Vice President/Vice Chair: Samantha Mooney, P ’18, ’20 Treasurer: Michael Blitzer, P ’24, ’27 Secretary: Vani Bettegowda, P ’22, ’25 Barbara Amone, P ’23 Rebecca Bliss Bill Bucknall, GP ’24, ’26 Richard Canning, P ’19, ’20 Sanford “Sandy” Ewing, P ’20, ’23, ’26 Roger Ferris, P ’18, ’18, ’20, ’28 Meade Fogel, P ’27, ’28, ’28 Sandra Frost, P ’25, ’29 Ward K. Horton, P ’24, ’28 Lynne Laukhuf, P ’95 Kristen McDonald, P ’21, ’23, ’25 Theresa Minson, P ’18, ’20, ’22 Thomas Murphy, P ’19, ’21, ’22, ’26 Sean Obi ’13 Kim Keller Raveis ’88, P ’23, ’25, ’28 Nadene Reid, P ’25 Kate Roth ’90, Ed.D., P ’20, ’23 Don San Jose, P ’22, ’25 Gregg Tenser, P ’23, ’25 Angela Timashev, P ’21, ’23 Emily Von Kohorn ’96 Ex-officio: Bob Whelan, P ’24

Content 4 News & Events

16 Arts

22 athletics

32 Class of 2021: Leading with Joy

40 Features

56 alumni & class notes Editor

Frances Moore Design

Lindsay Russo

Additional stories & Photography

Yoon S. Byun John Nash Nikki Oxfeld

Greens Farms Academy does not discriminate against any person in admission, financial aid, program involvement, employment, or otherwise because of sexual orientation, race, Summer 2021 | 1 religion, age, gender, national origin, or disability.

A message from the head of school, BOB WHELAN On June 10, the Class of 2021 graduated and became members of the GFA alumni community.

What a gift it was to be with one another on such a beautiful day — to see smiles, tears, and hugs. Wes Moore, combat veteran, bestselling author, and former CEO of the Robinhood Foundation, offered a compelling road map for how our seniors might choose to navigate their lives, offering that “there will be good days, there will be bad ones, there will be hard times, there will be unexpected joys and unexpected failures. Your ability to move through it all with joy is going to mean everything.” It was a theme that resonated with so many of us, and on the pages that follow, you’ll see examples of our community’s alignment around that very message.

In our feature piece, “Educating Beyond the Classroom” (page 40), you’ll learn how students in all three divisions are encouraged to “examine their entire world — by asking questions, identifying problems, discovering and sharing solutions.”

We are a community defined by relationships, and it seems only fitting to include a story about alumni who have reconnected in a creative and professional endeavor.

You can read about designers Lily Miesmer ’07 and Jack Miner ’07 on page 56.

The week of closing ceremonies was highlighted by GFA’s inaugural Baccalaureate ceremony, an evening that highlighted student voices. Outgoing Trustee Mike Greenberg, P ’19, ’21, inspired our senior class with lessons learned from Michael Jordan, and we shared a memorable musical moment together (page 37). You can read about the growth and accomplishments of students from each of our divisions starting on page 28.

At the start of the 2021–22 school year, our 97th as an institution, there is a palpable sense of momentum as we head into the next chapter of GFA’s history.

As ever, the stories of our community members’ lives of purpose illuminate the mission, core values, and legacy of this school. Please stay in touch and continue to check back in now and then (gfacademy.org).

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“As ever, the stories of our community members’ lives of purpose illuminate the mission, core values, and legacy of this school.”

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Eric Lee Named Next AD the former Senior Director of Player Development for the Cincinnati Reds, is Greens Farms Academy’s next Athletic Director.

“Eric distinguished himself among an exceptional group of candidates as an authentic and accomplished leader.

His commitment to and vision for the development of our student-athletes and coaches were palpable, as were his humility, intelligence, and competitive fire,” said GFA Head of School Bob Whelan in an announcement to the community. “The principles and values that guide Eric are, in part, a reflection of his own experience as an independent school student at Sidwell Friends School and his journey as an athlete, teacher, and coach.”

Lee earned his B.A. in political science at Haverford College, where he was a three-year varsity letter-winner. He went on to teach world history and coach basketball and baseball at Hawaii Preparatory Academy before returning to Haverford College, where he was an Assistant Dean of Students and Assistant Baseball Coach. Lee spent two years at National Presbyterian School, an independent school in Washington, D.C. where he worked in the Development Office and coached the girls’ middle school basketball and softball teams. After earning a law degree from the University of Maryland, Lee joined the Cincinnati Reds organization and rose steadily through the ranks over eight years, serving as the Director of Baseball Operations and the Senior Director of International Operations before assuming his current role as Senior Director of Player Development in 2018.

Lee said he was excited about returning to an independent school community this summer when he, his wife

Alexandra, and their two dogs arrive in Westport. One of the aspects about GFA that Lee found appealing, he said, was that its mission and values matched his own.

“I knew that GFA was an incredible school that takes seriously its responsibility to provide a well-rounded and rigorous education for its students,” he said. “As I learned more about the community, it confirmed for me that GFA is a place where people do what they say: they set aspirational goals, and then do the hard work to achieve them. That is something I badly want to be a part of. “ Tauni Butterfield will be leaving GFA after 20 years as its Athletic Director, joining Carolina Day School in Ashville, N.C., as its new A.D. Lee said he is humbled by the breadth and depth of Butterfield’s work in her time at GFA, and looks forward to continuing that winning legacy.

“Thanks to the work of the outstanding Physical Education teachers, coaches, and staff under Tauni’s exemplary leadership, a tradition of achievement and growth by GFA students and teams is already in place. It is this foundation, plus the incredible potential that lies within each student, that makes the possibilities limitless for what our Dragons can achieve on the fields, courts, and beyond,” he said.

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“Thanks to the work of the outstanding Physical Education teachers, coaches, and staff under Tauni’s exemplary leadership, a tradition of achievement and growth by GFA students and teams is already in place. It is this foundation, plus the incredible potential that lies within each student, that makes the possibilities limitless for what our Dragons can achieve on the fields, courts, and beyond.”

Eric Lee Athletic Director

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Outgoing Trustees

Stephanie Ercegovic, P ’20, ’23, ’25 Stephanie has been on the board since 2015. During her tenure she has worked on the Advancement Committee, Co-Chaired the Athletics Committee and provided invaluable expertise as a member of the Investment Committee. She is also a Lifetime Benefactor, and according to Head of School Bob Whelan, an “ambassador extraordinaire for GFA.” She and husband Brian Foster are parents of three GFA students: Marguerite ’25, Eloise ’23, and Adriana ’20.

According to Board of Trustees Vice Chair Samantha Mooney, “Stephanie’s sharp intellect and commitment to GFA have had a huge impact on our institution’s success. We are most grateful for all she and Brian have done for GFA. Additionally, her sweet humor and genuine warmth have been incredibly meaningful to her peers.”

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Michael Greenberg, P ’19, ’21 Mike joined the GFA Board of Trustees in 2011. During his tenure, he co-chaired the Advisory Council, Annual Fund (with wife Stacy) and Committee on Trustees. He has also been on the Educational Policy and Executive Committees. Through his dynamic emcee skills, Mike has helped raise significant resources for the school. His two children, Nikki and Stephen, were both “lifers” at GFA, and graduated in 2019 and 2021, respectively.

According to Board of Trustees Chair David Durkin, “Mike’s commitment to GFA is more than inspiring!

Though he is going off the board, there is no way we will let him go. He is too precious a commodity and who else will give Bob access to star athletes for our snow day videos?”

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Departing Administrators Michael Pina Director of College Guidance

Joined GFA: 2011 Fun fact: Michael has served two terms as a NACAC Assembly Delegate and has a B.A. in Philosophy from Trinity College (CT) and a J.D. from Boston College Law School.

Heading to: University of Richmond to serve as Director of Admissions for Diversity Outreach and Partnerships

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— Rachel Boyer, Acting Director of College Guidance

Perhaps you have enjoyed a coffee or a beer with Michael, argued Boston vs. New York sports with him, or been on a crazy adventure like kayaking from Fairfield to Long Island together. Or maybe you know Michael for his itch for travel, his love of fried chicken, his genuine care for students, or the way he lifts people up and shines a light on their individual talents. In any case, you are lucky to have spent time with him and will undoubtedly miss his gregarious nature and ever-present smile on campus.

— Erica Hunt, Upper School Math Teacher

“

“

As a colleague, Michael is always in your corner but is never afraid to challenge your thinking to get you to approach something from a different angle. As a boss, he lifts up each team member to reveal their talents. As a friend, you simply couldn’t ask for better. From his gregarious laugh that encourages everyone in earshot to join him to his unyielding focus on family; from his empathy to his tireless quest to incorporate fun into his daily life, Michael’s the kind of guy everyone wants to be around. I’m sad that he’ll no longer be just down the hall, but I’m so grateful that he’ll always be part of my life and never more than a phone call away.

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Departing administrators

Tauni Butterfield Director of Athletics and Physical Education

Joined GFA: 2001 Fun fact: Since 2001, GFA Athletics has won 101 league, New England/regional and national championships.

Heading to: Carolina Day School, Asheville, N.C., as its next Athletic Director

“Tauni has been more than a boss, she’s been a mentor and an inspiration to everyone. She made this past year one we will never be able to live up to again! Whether it’s her dressing up as a sea monster for our PreK P.E. class or driving all over Fairfield Country to deliver senior posters, her commitment to the athletes and coaches, and her creativity and passion are immeasurable. We will miss her presence, but hope to live up to her legacy for years to come.”

— Liz Schuellein, Assistant to the Athletic Director

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“Over the last 20 years, Tauni has left an impact that stresses sportsmanship, integrity, kindness, and grit. From our youngest PreK learners to all student-athletes, coaches, and fellow faculty, she has given support and been our biggest cheerleader day in and day out. Although Tauni is starting a new chapter of her life, the legacy she has built at GFA will be everlasting.”

— Jennifer Harris, Assistant Director of Athletics

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Horizons GFA is back in person this summer for its PreK–8 six-week summer session. COVID modifications have kept the community healthy with 100% of the students and staff testing negative in two spaced COVID tests. Horizons GFA programming eliminates summer learning loss, closes learning gaps, and teaches valuable social-emotional skills to 175 Bridgeport students. Led by 19 teachers, 20 teaching interns, 38 volunteers (including 14 GFA Upper School students and nine Horizons GFA grads currently in high school), three reading specialists, and nine enrichment teachers, students have academics and SEL in the morning and engaging enrichment activities in the afternoon.

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Quisque Pro Omnibus legacy Society

Honoring GFA through a will, trust, retirement plan, or other deferred gift continues the important work of those who have come before us. Together, we can focus on the future, secure in the knowledge that generations of GFA students, staff, and faculty will benefit from our visionary generosity.

Leave your legacy by joining the

Quisque Pro Omnibus Society.

For assistance with your charitable gift plans, please contact Christy Ball P’14, Associate Director of Advancement, at (203) 256-7552 or cball@gfacademy.org.

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Giving Day Success!

GFA’s inaugural Giving Day was a milestone day for the school community. Astounding support helped over 900 donors raise more than $670,000 in gifts to the Annual Fund.

The enthusiasm and spirit of donors and volunteers were matched by that of students, staff, and faculty participating in the festivities on campus. It was a day to remember, creating new traditions and setting a new standard for philanthropy at GFA.

For more on Giving Day, visit www.gfacademy.org/giving-day

PEACE Games This annual field day was back stronger than ever this year, as students celebrated the countries they researched throughout the year and engaged in friendly, fun competition.

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GFA’s second virtual Dragon Dash broke its fundraising record for the second year in a row, making it one of the school’s most successful races to date. Throughout the weekend-long event, more than 270 participants ran 5Ks, went on family walks, biked around their towns, and celebrated the annual spring event in various physically distant ways.

2021

The event brought in a total of $6,401, all of which was donated to Komera, a nonprofit organization in Rwanda that “develops self-confident young women through education, community development, and health.”

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Lower School Performance

A Mixed-Up Fairy Tale Fourth graders did not let the pandemic stop them from carrying on with tradition.

This spring, Lower School students and teachers attended a live showing of the grade’s performance of A Mixed-Up Fairy Tale, written by Susanna Hargreaves. The story, told in a dream sequence, combines the popular fairy tales of Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Hansel and Gretel, The Three Little Pigs, and more. The fourth graders — along with their teachers Manny Lalonde, Katie Grambling, Ariana Fustini, and John Shanley — were incredibly invested in creating something special together; a true “Each for All” moment.

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The arts

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Performing Arts:

D’Addario ’12 Enjoys an ‘Extra Semester’

This spring the GFA Theatre Department brought to life an original work, The Book of Names, co-written by an alumnus, Jon Bauerfeld ’12.

Restrictions on audience attendance inspired Director of Theatre Programs Stephen Stout to turn the stage production into a feature-length film. The Book of Names will premiere Sept. 9.

The musical tells myriad stories of immigrants arriving at Ellis Island. When riots in New York City shut down ferry transportation to and from the island, the group must stay longer than they bargained for.

Alumna Siena D’Addario graduated from GFA in 2012.

Her theater journey had just begun. After attending the NYU Tisch School of the Arts and receiving her BFA in theater in 2016, D’Addario started her career as a film and theater actor and producer, working full-time in New York City. When the pandemic struck and masses flocked away from the city, D’Addario revisited a role she knew well: that of a GFA Theatre student. This spring she returned to campus for her “extra semester,” sharing her knowledge and craft with the community through her role in the upcoming spring musical, The Book of Names.

D’Addario, who spent most of the past year working on virtual projects without the ability to perform in a theater alongside others, jumped at the opportunity to participate in a musical back on the GFA campus, excited to be back in a theater space that was both new to her (she graduated before the Janet Hartwell Performing Arts Center was built), and familiar at the same time.

“While I attended GFA for high school, I was in every play and musical. I was for sure one of — if not the most — notorious, resident theater nerds,” D’Addario joked. “I took all the theater classes that were offered by Mr. Stout, and eventually, when applying to conservatory programs and deciding to go to college for theater, the programs at GFA were a big motivator.”

Throughout her time at Tisch, D’Addario focused on new plays specifically, and enjoyed the process of incubating and developing new scripts alongside other actors and creators.

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“Mr. Stout and Jon [Bauerfeld] were big parts of my life while I attended GFA, which made it even more special,” she said.

“When Mr. Stout texted me out of the blue one night and offered me the opportunity to perform in a brand

The arts

“It was so rewarding to work with Mr. Stout again. His classes and guidance were such huge parts of my decision to really go for a career in the arts.”

Siena D’Addario ’12

new musical written by a friend of mine … it was all the more exciting and I knew I just had to grab onto this opportunity,” she gushed.

D’Addario played multiple characters within the ensemble in an effort to help round out the look and feel of an overcrowded Ellis Island in 1924, where The Book of Names takes place. “It was an out-of-body experience to be at my high school again doing theater as an adult and as a working actor — but in the absolute best way possible,” she said.

“I was so impressed by the talent of the students and also their kindness. Every single student made me feel very welcome and they were always excited to include me in the new GFA Theatre traditions ... It made me a little jealous that I wasn’t a student at GFA right now! It was a special feeling to be able to lend my hand to this process in the very place where I decided to pursue a career in acting.”

While some things change, others stay the same — even nine years after graduation.

“It was so rewarding to work with Mr. Stout again. His classes and guidance were such huge parts of my decision to really go for a career in the arts, so it was really special to work together again as adults and for us both to revisit that director/actor relationship,” D’Addario explained.

“Working with Jon [Bauerfeld] and his material was also a privilege. I remember performing an original musical number of his during a Winter Showcase while we were students. It was based on The Odyssey. Even then, his talent was plain as day, but to see how far he has come

and how truly moving his music is was just so cool. It made me proud to call him my friend.”

Unlike most hight school theater experiences, the cast filmed the production to be released as a movie. After months of rehearsals, the band classroom evolved into a makeshift studio to record the music ahead of time. “I like to refer to that sort of process as ‘precision singing’ because when your face is that close to a mic, and you have only a few other people in a room singing with you, everyone has to be clear about every moment in the music. Every note, cut-off, and dynamic-shift has to be totally in-sync,” she said.

Once the music was recorded, the marathon weekend of filming began. “I’ve been on quite a few film sets, and this was a totally unique experience. It truly was a hybrid of theatre and film,” D’Addario explained. “The crew was amazing and had no problem keeping up with us. We would take a run at a big chunk of scenes, the cameras would be rolling on it and when Mr. Stout would call ‘Cut!’ they would just pop up and say, ‘Yep! Got it!’ It was because of that kind of momentum that we were able to finish filming the entire piece in one weekend, which is an incredible feat.”

She felt that working alongside GFA students and faculty was a privilege, and she was glad to play a part in shaping a beautiful piece of theater. “In a year where we all had to miss out on a lot of things — personally and professionally — it was such a gift to be able to be in a theater, support an old friend, and make something alongside a passionate group of people. It felt even more special than it normally would. I will fondly remember my ‘extra semester’ at GFA.”

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Art s

Scholastic

Photograph by Sam Freeman ’21

While GFA has always had a strong presence among the top Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, this year broke records for the number of award-winning students, and the overall number of awards. In the writing category, 28 GFA students won 51 awards. For arts, 13 students received awards.

Among the arts awards, three students received special recognition: Madison Gordon, whose photography submission titled “Spotted Self Portrait” received the CAEA Best in Photography; Harriet Wells, whose photography submission titled “IVY” received the Judge’s Award; and Cassandra Callari, whose film/animation submission received the Jerry’s Artarama of Connecticut 20 | www.gfacademy.org

and Juan Castillo Best in Film & Animation distinction.

The mission of the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, is to “identify students with exceptional artistic and literary talent and present their remarkable work to the world,” according to the official website, and has been “supporting the future of creativity since 1923.”

The arts

Writing Awards

Timothy Northrop: “Southport Harbor in the Late Summer” [Flash Fiction] — Gold Key

Tenth Grade

Fiona Burton: “If We Could Read Our Stories” Twelfth Grade

Haley Nilsson: “Christian Couples

Noah Bachner: “Green Mountain” [Personal

Counseling” [Short Story] — Honorable

Essay & Memoir] — Gold Key

Mention

Cayla Bernstein: “Joshua Bennett’s ‘Family

Comfort Omotunde: “Revival” [Dramatic

Reunion’: What Lies Beneath” [Critical Essay]

Script] — Honorable Mention

[Dramatic Script] — Silver Key Ninth Grade

Noa Gottlieb: “Creative” [Poetry] —

— Silver Key; “Claudia Rankine’s ‘The New

Honorable Mention Beyza Kalender: “Best Earth Memory”

Therapist’: Fundamental Racism” [Critical

Jackson Rassias: “The Fire Burns” [Personal

[Personal Essay & Memoir] — Honorable

Essay] — Honorable Mention; “Learning to

Essay & Memoir] — Honorable Mention

Mention, “Tiredness” [Flash Fiction] —

Be” [Personal Essay & Memoir] — Gold Key,

Honorable Mention

American Voices Nominee; “Inishbofin”

Jaffir Wajahat: “The Milk Snake” [Poetry] —

[Personal Essay & Memoir] — Silver Key;

Honorable Mention; “The Bobcat” [Poetry]

Riley Meyer: “Hair” [Flash Fiction] —

“Nothing to Hide” [Short Story] — Honorable

— Honorable Mention

Honorable Mention; “The Night Sky” [Flash

Mention; “Eyes Wide Open” [Portfolio] —

Fiction] — Honorable Mention

Honorable Mention; “Great Blue Heron”

Eleventh Grade

[Poetry] — Gold Key; “Blurred Realities”

Shealeigh Crombie: “Mortal Parity” [Critical

Zoe Monschein: “Night Air” [Personal Essay

[Portfolio] — Gold Key

Essay] — Gold Key

& Memoir] — Silver Key

Samara Cohen: “In the Fading Sun” [Flash

Mary Kessler: “Cycles” [Short Story] — Silver

Charlotte Walter: “Escape in the Sky”

Fiction] — Honorable Mention

Key

[Personal Essay & Memoir] — Silver Key

Elek Krizsan: “One year after the senior

Kavya Krishnamurthy: “blue and green

Eighth Grade

revolution: Vive le GFA, or an end to the

and white things” [Poetry] — Silver Key;

Jordan Moss : “The Dreadfully Mad Game”

status quo?” [Humor] — Silver Key; “Going

“Photographs” [Personal Essay & Memoir] —

[Poetry] — Silver Key

Anywhere” [Short Story] — Honorable

Silver Key; “‘Hope and Music in Dickinson’s

Mention

‘Heart, not so heavy as mine’” [Critical Essay]

Arts Awards

— Silver Key; “Forget Me Not” [Flash Fiction] Caroline McCall: “Seaside Goldenrod”

— Silver Key; “Geminis and Other Poems”

Bella Bohnsack: Photography, Honorable

[Personal Essay & Memoir] — Silver Key;

[Poetry] — Honorable Mention

Mention; Art Portfolio, Gold Key

“What Privilege Teaches Us” [Personal Essay & Memoir] — Honorable Mention

Camille Ewing: Photography, Silver Key Kevin Kuryla: “He and I” [Personal Essay &

Samantha Freeman: Art portfolio, Gold Key

Memoir] — Honorable Mention

Madison Gordon: Photography, Gold Key:

Tess McCormick: “A Sky Full of Starlings”

CAEA Best in Photography

[Personal Essay & Memoir] — Honorable

Andie Morelli: “Project 17” [Personal Essay &

Andie Morelli: Photography, Honorable

Mention; “The Fragile Power of Nature”

Memoir] — Honorable Mention

Mention

[Personal Essay & Memoir] — Honorable

Comfort Omotunde: Digital Art, Gold Key;

Mention; “Eight Salt Marsh Secrets” [Poetry]

Lane Murphy: “One Day” [Poetry] — Silver

Art Portfolio, Silver Key

— Honorable Mention

Key; “Diagnosis” [Poetry] — Honorable

Anna Reynolds: Photography, Honorable

Mention

Mention

Kate Millard: “Empty Nest” [Short Story] — Honorable Mention

Harriet Wells: Photography, Gold Key: Judge’s Antara Singh-Ghai: “On the Origin of the

Award

Box” [Personal Essay & Memoir] — Honorable

Cassandra Callari: Film & Animation, Gold

Aidan Murphy: “The Southside” [Personal

Mention; “newbury” [Poetry] — Honorable

Key: Jerry’s Artarama of CT; Juan Castillo

Essay & Memoir] — Honorable Mention;

Mention; “Four A.M.” [Flash Fiction] — Gold Key

Best in Film & Animation

“Great Blue Heron” [Poetry] — Honorable Mention

Jason Hernandez: Film & Animation, Emily Twitchell: “Erosion” [Personal Essay &

Honorable Mention

Memoir] — Silver Key

Santy Mejia: Film & Animation, Silver Key Summer 2021 | 21

HOME OF THE DRAGONS 22 | www.gfacademy.org

DRAGONS WINTER

Wrestling

8 All Americans and GFA’s first national champs: Nico Provo, NHSCA National champion & National Prep Champion Nate Taylor, NHSCA National Champion

Girls Basketball

Georgia Grabowski joined the GFA 1,000-point club during this winter’s modified basketball season.

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DRAGONS SPRING

Girls Tennis: 2021 FAA Champs

Boys Tennis: 2021 Faa Champs

Girls tennis finished its league-winning season with an 8-1 record, losing just 10 individual matches all season.

The boys tennis team went 10-0 this season to take home the league title. Their individual match record was a remarkable 69-1.

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Boys Lacrosse: 2021 Faa Champs

Sailing: fifth in nation

The Dragons won their first FAA championship in over 20 years, capping off an undefeated season.

The GFA sailing team qualified for the 2021 Baker National Team Racing Championships, finishing as the fifth best team in the nation.

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DRAGONS at the Next Level In an update from our winter magazine story, four more Greens Farms Academy varsity athletes have announced their intentions to play sports at the collegiate level next fall, for a total of 14 college-bound athletes.

Wrestlers Justin Mastroianni (New York University) and Aiden Hebert (Trinity College), sailing team member Sofia Segalla (UPenn) and cross country runner Hayley Nilsson (Tufts) will take their talents to the next level after graduating from GFA. At the end of the recruiting process, Mastroianni found himself looking at two schools: NYU and the Division I University of Michigan. Weighing all the pros and cons, though, it was the New York City school that won out.

“It was a last-minute decision,” Mastroianni said. “All my life, I was thinking of going D-I. I just thought NYU was a better fit for me, not just for my wrestling future but my success in life, as well.”

A public-school State Open champ and New England runner-up before transferring to GFA as a junior, Mastroianni has been consistently ranked as a Top 100

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wrestler in his age group, according to GFA wrestling coach Jack Conroy. This spring, he won a New England regional wrestling championship, and took part in the 2021 Prep Nationals, too.

For Hebert, a connection with the Trinity campus and the school’s wrestling coach made the difference. He explained, “It’s a really good liberal arts school and just to connect with people there, in the wrestling room, it just feels like everything has come full circle.”

Segalla’s recruiting process took her from coast to coast as she initially committed to a West Coast school that later defunded its sailing program. UPenn had been one of the first schools to recruit her and when her other opportunity fell through, the Quakers were still there with open arms.

Athletics

“They said they would do everything within their power to get me in,” Segalla said. “They didn’t know if they could do it, but I had a lot of support from the Penn coach and that felt really nice. Once I got in, I knew I wanted to be a part of that team.”

Segalla hopes to major in computer science/cognitive science while at Penn.

Those Dragons include: Marygrace DelliSanti, who will play lacrosse at Gettysburg; Georgia Grabowski, who will be playing basketball at Ithaca College; Connor McDonald, who will play tennis at Boston College; Piper Melnick, who will row at California-Berkeley; Nico Provo, who will wrestle at Cornell; Mark Roszkowski, who will play baseball at Tufts; CJ Shea, who will wrestle for Wesleyan; Will Whelan, who will play soccer at Hobart; and Max Yates, who will play lacrosse at Colgate.

Nilsson had always thought about running in college,

“

I had a list of schools at the beginning but I liked Tufts because of its location and the pre-med program. I knew I wanted to run in college, and I was going to do whatever it took to run no matter where I went.

but waited to find out where she was going to go before committing to a program.

She found it at Tufts, a Division III program in Boston where she can run cross country and track while majoring in pre-med.

“I had a list of schools at the beginning but I liked Tufts because of its location and the pre-med program,” said Nilsson, who has family in the city. “I knew I wanted to run in college, and I was going to do whatever it took to run no matter where I went, but I thought Tufts was definitely going to be a good option.”

“

Hayley Nilsson ’21

Earlier this winter, girls basketball standout and 2020 Connecticut Gatorade Player of the Year Allie Palmieri ’21 started her basketball career at Boston College.

“I am so proud of all our senior scholar athletes,” then-GFA Athletic Director Tauni Butterfield said. “To have so many committed athletes this year, with more to come, is just so exciting for the school community. I applaud all their hard work on and off the court, field, and mat. I know they will continue to make the school proud as they play at the next level.”

The four join a group of 10 other GFA student athletes who have previously announced their decisions to compete at the college level.

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Lower School

Moving Up

My hope for the future is that everyone can be celebrated for their differences, and that people will be leaders, not followers. I hope for all these things and many, many more. The Lower School will always be an inclusive place, and I will always remember not to judge a book by its cover and always take care of animals.

Heidi, Class of ’29

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”

“My hope for the future is a just community and a greener earth. The Lower School will always be a place of differences, and I will always remember that no matter what the world throws at me, I should always dream big.”

— Soren, Class of ’29

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Middle School

Moving Up

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“We’ll have seen the pandemic through a different lens than younger kids, and also compared to adults. We will have experienced Middle School differently than most other grades, but we will also have gained something as well: our ability to adapt, our ability to persist through rough patches in our lives, and many other skills we have gained from this odd middle school experience.

Our legacy will be not just of community-building, but of improvement and effort in the areas we lack. … We have by no means fully reached that goal, but we will succeed when we try and persist into high school and beyond.”

— Ben Grimm, Class of ’25

“Regardless of where life takes us, I’m confident that we will all flourish. [Just as it is] framed across the Forum wall, we have all seen what it means to dare to be different and dare to be ourselves. This phrase outlines how GFA has driven us to find ourselves. We have all learned that there is nothing more important than being who we are.

I’ve learned how to be my true, authentic self.”

— Cecil Reid, Class of ’25

“Being at GFA together, a part of this community, made us feel safe — safe to ask questions and share ideas. This community is built in our advisories and in our House competitions. It is strengthened when we play four-square and basketball on the Dragon Lot during recess and lunch. Before COVID we were a close community sitting shoulder-to-shoulder on the steps of the Forum. And somehow we’ve become an even tighter community while distanced six feet apart.”

— Hadley Salem, Class of ’25

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Class of 2021 ‘Leading wit h Joy’ For the first time in more than a year, a few hundred people were able to gather in person on campus.

Alumni, parents, faculty, staff, and students came together on June 10 in celebration of the remarkable Class of 2021.

This year’s commencement speaker was Wes Moore, combat veteran, bestselling author, social entrepreneur, and former CEO of the Robinhood Foundation. Addressing, the class of 89 students, Moore thanked them for “leading with joy” and smiling through an especially tough year.

“Through every journey you see there will be good days, there will be bad ones, there will be difficult things, there will be hard times, there will be unexpected joys and unexpected failures. Your ability to move through it all with joy is going to mean everything,” Moore imparted.

He pointed out that the questions they will be asked in the coming months and years — questions about college majors and grades — may seem to be of paramount importance right now. However, he assured the class, down the road they will realize that the measure of success is not about specific academic achievements, but whether one upheld their values throughout the journey.

Moore predicted, “The most important questions you are going to be asked are: ‘Who is it you will choose to fight for? Who will matter to you when it’s not easy?

Who will you stand for? Who will you use your voice for? Who will you use your intellect for? Who will you share your blessings with?’”

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“Connection is the energy between people when we feel seen, heard, and valued.

This, ultimately, will be among the most important things in your life: the people who love and care for you. It has been such a gift to go on this journey with you.”

— Bob Whelan P ’24, Head of School

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“I remind myself that we come from this small place — one that is small enough that we can tuck it within ourselves and carry it forward into our separate futures. We will go on to new places and be faced with experiences which, at this moment, we might not even be able to imagine. But we will press forward without losing all that GFA has taught us, without losing each other.”

— Hannah MacDonald, Valedictorian

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“You came here to witness the last day this family will be together like this. Today is a final hoorah and a final goodbye for many. We have synced our sleep cycles, gotten on the same meal schedule, and breathed the same filtered air with each other for 1 to 13 years. … We are all brothers and sisters and thank you for everything you’ve all done for me. Without all of you, I wouldn’t be a fraction of the person I am today.”

— Henry Mcdonald, Salutatorian

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Baccalaureate 2021

On June 9, GFA hosted its first-ever Baccalaureate ceremony, with parent and trustee Mike Greenberg P ’19, ’21 as the featured speaker. The event — designed as an intimate evening for seniors and their families — marked the first time the senior class was able to convene in person under one roof (or tent, in this case). In addition to Greenberg’s words of wisdom (see below), Head of School Bob Whelan P ’24 led the group in a spirited performance of Adele’s “Someone Like You.” Mike Greenberg’s “Michael Jordan” Lessons: 1. “People are going to say what they’re going to say. You do what’s good for you. … Tending to the needs of others … and serving the greater good are the most rewarding experiences you can have in your life. But it is also a reminder that a lot of irrelevant people are going to offer a lot of irrelevant criticism of the way you look, act and think. … Let them say what they want. You be you.”

2. “You aren’t going to hit grand slams every day of your life, but there will be dribblers up the thirdbase line that you beat out that are worth celebrating every single day if only you are willing to look for them. … Look for them and celebrate them wherever you can.”

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THE ROAD

Ahead Class of 2021 Matriculation Babson College Bates College (2) Berklee College of Music Boston College (4) Boston University (4) Bucknell University University of California-Berkeley University of California-Santa Barbara (2) California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo Clemson University Colby College Colgate University (2) College of the Holy Cross (2) College of William and Mary University of Colorado Boulder Connecticut College 38 | www.gfacademy.org University of Connecticut Cornell University (2)

Dartmouth College (2) Emory University George Washington University (2) Georgetown University (3) University of Georgia Georgia Institute of Technology Gettysburg College (2) Hamilton College Hobart and William Smith Colleges Howard University Ithaca College University of Miami University of Michigan Middlebury College New York University NYU Shanghai Northeastern University (3) Northwestern University Occidental College

University of Pennsylvania (3) Pennsylvania State University Pitzer College Pratt Institute University of Richmond (2) Sacred Heart University Southern Methodist University (2) Stockholm School of Economics Trinity College (2) Tufts University (2) Tulane University (4) Vanderbilt University Villanova University (2) University of Virginia (4) Wake Forest University (2) Washington University in St Louis (2) Wesleyan University (2) Yale University

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Educating Beyond the Classroom

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“Learning means the most when it feeds a student’s sense of purpose.”

Part of what it means to be a 21st century student is to extend education beyond the classroom. Greens Farms Academy not only encourages its students to examine their entire world — by asking questions, identifying problems, discovering and sharing solutions — but it identifies this level of inquiry as a critical component in developing the thinkers and doers of tomorrow. Putting this into practice is a priority across all three divisions, as faculty increasingly create space and time for students to dig deeply into their environment while continuing to implement the academic concepts they develop in a traditional classroom setting.

“We strive to unlock intrinsic motivation, cultivate a sense of purpose, and prepare students to thrive as learners and citizens,” according to Victor Llanque, Associate Head of School. “Our curriculum meets students in their areas of interest to help them develop the essential skills, knowledge, and most importantly, the learning posture they will need to meet the opportunities and challenges the world offers.”

While this idea is not new to GFA — for example, the annual World Perspectives Symposium and traditional eighth-grade Capstone projectshave been a part of the GFA experience for more than a decade — these past efforts have provided ample evidence that this type of learning translates to students of all ages. Going forward the faculty across all divisions will be looking to increase the opportunities for student-driven initiatives.

“Our teachers activate GFA’s core values around students’ curiosity — which routinely is a driver for what they’re going to be most interested in pursuing — and help develop a framework for students to pursue topics that they are particularly excited about and motivated by,”

said Head of School Bob Whelan. “It really positions the student to take the lead.”

Taking the Lead

In the Upper School, students can explore Inquiries and Advanced Inquiries as part of the official curriculum. An Inquiry is designed to “deepen a student’s understanding of a given subject or facilitate the development of a skill beyond what is possible in the rest of the curriculum.”

While undertaking an Inquiry, students explore topics in greater depth than they would in traditional courses, work alongside faculty mentors to write substantial research papers, and ideally gain a new skill or new knowledge about a topic that is not covered in the curriculum.

Advanced Inquiries offer additional depth to seniors who want to take their curiosity and interests to the next level.

These undertakings are considered the highest level of academic rigor at GFA, and are meant to “generate the highest level of understanding, demand the greatest skill, and offer the most latitude for students to exercise their agency and follow their curiosity about their chosen subject of study,” according to the US Curriculum Guide.

Typically, in an Advanced Inquiry, students ask questions and identify a problem, create a plan for pursuing their inquiry, and ultimately create an original piece of work that is presented to an audience of their peers.

For his Advanced Inquiry in mathematics, senior Isaac Moskowitz spent about 10 weeks this year doing a deepdive into topics about which he’d always had a base-level of knowledge, but had always wanted to learn more: astrophysics and astronomy. He took on Einstein’s Theory Summer 2021 | 41

of Relativity to discover more about how gravity interacts with other parts of the universe, aiming to answer the central question: “How do general relativistic equations and the mathematical principles underpinning these equations affect the way gravity is understood by physicists; how do solutions to these equations push the boundaries of what is known about quantum black holes and their dynamic relationship with the cosmos?”

“I embarked this year on a journey to figure out what kind of math Einstein used and what kind of math his contemporaries used to derive these equations that would describe mathematically the principles I [already] understood in words, pictures and in other forms,” Moskowitz explained.

Working with faculty advisors Christa Fratto (Upper School Math), Joachim Kuhn (Upper School Physics), and Kurt Mederer (Upper School Math), Moskowitz was able to connect the different mathematics, physics, and presentational pieces needed to successfully share his findings at this year’s World Perspectives Symposium and other presentation opportunities.

“I’ve learned more about the type of math that’s been used and about physical concepts and general relativity than I could have ever learned without this kind of project. It’s been a really great experience,” he said.

Making Connections

Modeled after an Upper School Design Thinking class, this year’s culminating project for fifth graders asked them to devise a concept that “will support community

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members in academic settings during a global pandemic.”

Divided into teams, each group spent the final week of school: · taking a slow walk around campus to identify a problem, · implementing empathy to discover how this problem might be affecting different members of the community, · collaborating on a solution, · branding their concept, and · presenting the idea to their peers.

Fifth grade history teacher Jonathan Jackson explained, “Our goals were for them to be able to make observations of their own environment, and to look at things on a broader scale — not just what our school has faced this year and possible improvements that our school could make, but schools in general.”

Drawing from an English unit on news writing, the groups had to “pitch” their idea to teachers and peers.

The research skills practiced in Jackson’s history classes were now used to discover what products already existed, and where there were gaps. The students used concepts from Meghan Chew’s math classes to determine the costs associated with their products.

“We’re hoping that they make the connection between what we’re doing in the classroom and how they can use it in the real world,” said fifth grade English Teacher Fran Denote. “We talk a lot about how this next generation is going to need this collaborative design-thinking skill for 21st century workplaces.”

One industrious fifth-grade group envisioned a company they called Cordexio. The online messaging site was designed to address some of the difficulties students and teachers faced with online platforms during the last year.

The Cordexio inventors reported, “Teachers and students can message personally in chats that are specific to them.

Teachers will get notifications when a student messages them. Video calls are also available directly on the website.

Teachers will also get notifications when students start a call. … Finally, there will be a chatbot, which you can ask questions to and will immediately get the answer.”

Hardware associated with the platform would include a “96pb server to ensure that the website should never

crash. … With dual CPUs the server will be steady for whenever you need to use it,” the presenters predicted.

While in-depth, curiosity-based projects will continue in the Middle School, the faculty felt that this pilot project had particular significance this year.

“I feel like it’d be a huge miss for us not to capture what this year has been like,” Jackson reflected. “Because of all the sacrifices that we’ve made to make this year work … I think it’s absolutely worth us assessing how we did this. We should be asking ourselves going forward, ‘What can we do to make situations like this better?’ I just think after everything that we’ve been through this year, there is really a call for this kind of reflection.”

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StoryWalk®

Last summer, as GFA faculty and staff prepared for oncampus learning amid the pandemic, teachers were asked to reimagine their classrooms and reshape the lessons they teach. In the Lower School, the library and science classrooms would be closed for student visitors. Christine Fecteau, Director of Library Services, and Sofi Kurtz, Lower School Science teacher, realized their specialties would need to take a different form during the 2020–21 school year.

“As lovers of all things books and reading — as well as of outdoor spaces — we had the perfect plan: an innovative and creative way for our students to enjoy both: a StoryWalk®,” explained Fecteau.

Drawing from the project first imagined by Anne Ferguson of Montpelier, VT (in conjunction with the Kellogg-Hubbard Library), the StoryWalk® consists of laminated pages from a children’s book that are placed successively down an outdoor path, enticing readers to enjoy some of their favorite stories in a natural setting.

“Believers in project-based learning, Christine and I knew that this would be a perfect partnership with the fourth graders,” said Kurtz.

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The fourth graders took the lead in planning, designing, and building the 18 stands that would become the GFA StoryWalk®, drawing from their math, science, language arts, and design-thinking classes, among others. For example: · Using math skills, the fourth graders determined how many stands could be created from one sheet of wood, as well as how many posts, nuts, bolts, and screws they would need. · Students evaluated picture books to determine which story would work best, and created a database of which books could be used in the future. · Art students painted and helped install the StoryWalk® stands.

“This fourth-grade class rose to the occasion, even volunteering to lend a hand during their recess time,” said Kurtz.

The project, which is meant to be updated and enjoyed for years to come, also enlisted the help of the maintenance team, including Jairo Mejia and Tom Barry. Lower School faculty leaders also included Jane Verlin, Head of Lower School; Nicholas Iacobelli, Information Technology Teacher; and Manny Lalonde, Fourth Grade Teacher.

“As lovers of all things books and reading — as well as of outdoor spaces — we had the perfect plan: an innovative and creative way for our students to enjoy both: a StoryWalk®.”

Christine Fecteau Director of Library Services

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Earth Day Across Campus and Beyond The long winter days amid the pandemic were starting to feel like Groundhog Day for Lower School Science teacher Sofi Kurtz. Campus life was, naturally, different amid the pandemic, and faculty were tasked with discovering new ways to engage students not just with the curriculum but with each other. Yet so many resources remained restricted.

that’s the highlight of teaching. Watching both older and younger students work together makes it all worth it. In those PreK–12 moments — when they’re just being kids together — their age-gap makes no difference.”

Known for her consistent creativity and hands-on approach to teaching, Kurtz thought about how she could help mimic a normal year in a safe way. She contemplated, “How can I remove the walls — literally and figuratively?”

She approached Upper School Science Teacher and Sustainability Coordinator Heather Heenehan with the idea to hold a schoolwide Earth Day celebration — and each time they met to discuss the project, it morphed into something larger. Middle School joined in, too, turning a single Earth Day celebration into a week-long Sustainability mini term.

The ultimate goal was to bring together students, faculty, and staff to a place where kids could just be kids and people could come together to connect across divisions— something that had been limited all year.

“I was craving those connections,” Kurtz said. “For me, 46 | www.gfacademy.org

As she walked in circles around the playground, an idea came to life.

“It just unfolded so naturally,” Kurtz said. “The more it unfolded, the more people wanted to be a part of it. It made the day so special because of the great people that were involved.”

With the buy-in from other faculty members — including Upper School science and English teachers, Associate Teacher Stefania Vendrella, and the Technology Department — the initiative drew from many areas and interests. Kurtz and Heenehan teamed up with Middle School Sustainability Teaching Fellow Julia Roellke to create community-based activities like a kindness rock garden, painting gardening pots, recycling relays, and nature-writing.

“For some students, this experience was a chance to put some of their Advanced Inquiry projects into practice and is directly related to and part of the work they’ve been doing all year. For others it is something they love doing, sharing sustainability with younger students,” said Heenehan. “Our motto is: ‘Planting a garden is believing in tomorrow.’ Cross-divisional days like this one help us believe in tomorrow.”

Each of Heenehan’s Upper School classes led an activity

— Marine Science students hosted Seashell BINGO at Burying Hill Beach; freshmen assisted junior Katie Gabriele in a plant scavenger hunt; and Advanced Inquiry students assisted Roellke in planning the Sustainability mini-term for the Middle School.

The inaugural mini-term focused on sustainability.

Faculty paused traditional course instruction to thoughtfully integrate transdisciplinary lessons and activities, and Heenehan and Roellke’s students engaged in lessons about climate change, environmental action, and resource consumption.

“It’s wonderful how teaching and learning extends beyond the traditional classroom walls at GFA,” Roellke said.

GFA’s mission and core values are centered around the idea of partnership between faculty and students. When Gabriel decided on her Advanced Inquiry project for this Summer 2021 | 47

year, she gravitated toward this event, and ultimately led both the Upper and Lower Schools in a Bee and HoneyDNA activity.

“It was so fun for me, because I got to really work with [Gabriel].

We were on campus until 5 p.m. every day,” Kurtz said. “It was hers. She fully invested in it. Talk about partnership — everything GFA is built on — to be able to collaborate and partner with her in this way was a very cool experience.”

Kurtz is a proponent of service learning between multiple divisions. “They really learn from each other, on both sides of it,” she said. “That’s the definition of service, when it’s mutually beneficial for both parties involved. So they’re doing these projects together, where they’re learning together, and they’re also helping each other to learn.”

Part of the learning experience is the consideration and ultimately the implementation of: “How can I learn this and then teach it to somebody else?” Those are skills students of any age can carry with them, and Kurtz believes these are the lessons that children keep far beyond their time on campus.

“Earth Day is one of those days where there’s something for everybody to be a part of,” she said. “When you learn or work on a campus like this — it’s only right to celebrate our place.”

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“Watching both older and younger students work together makes it all worth it. In those PreK–12 moments — when they’re just being kids together — their age-gap makes no difference.”

Sofi Kurtz Lower School Science Teacher

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STEAM at GFA:

Authentic Innovation In many ways the 2020–21 school year can be summed up to one word: pivot. With limitations on shared spaces and physical activities, the ability to adapt was crucial.

Luckily, adaptation is the GFA STEAM program’s strength. It has always focused on authentic innovation, guided by an engineering-design process and a rigorous STEM curriculum. With detailed courses and computational thinking initiatives already in place across divisions, the question Director of STEAM Modupe Oshin now asked faculty to consider was how to use these resources to create something innovative, or authentically solve a problem.

Oshin explained, “We started with the question: ‘Can we even do this?’ But eventually we concluded that the kids needed it. We were on campus, in our classrooms all day. The schedule was intense. And that’s where this program provided a way to, in so many words, ‘blow off STEAM.’” Thus, the pivot.

“As restricted as we were, we realized we still had so much,” said Oshin.

“That was the theme of the year: ‘Using what we had at our fingertips for creativity and collaboration, how could we create an environment to let go and think outside the box? And then how is this relevant?’”

One of the aspects that distinguishes GFA from other institutions is the hard work and devotion of its students, critical to any innovation efforts the faculty wish to instill.

“They’re learning really tough material and they’re extremely advanced,” Oshin said. “But at the end of the day, they’re finding really creative ways to learn and immerse themselves in that learning. It’s not just from a textbook, it’s something you’re getting your hands on.”

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This year’s highlights

PreK: Avian Amusement Park Throughout the spring, the PreK explored the campus and neighboring Audubon trails with a particular interest in the birds that inhabit these places. Such investigations inspired the children to build something special for their feathered friends. Students combined their knowledge of birds with math lessons and focused on simple machines to create Birds of Play: An Avian Amusement Park.

Seventh Grade: Human Body Projects In a year where COVID-19 was relevant in every moment at school, seventh-grade students focused their Human Body BioSTEAM projects on innovative solutions to diseases. “I think the students felt empowered in that

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way. Like they could actually solve this problem,” Oshin said.

Their work was broken out into three phases: 1. Selecting a human body system to research.

2. Designing a lab activity or organ dissection to better explore the anatomy and physiology of their chosen body system.

3. Combining their research, laboratory, and computer science skills to begin the engineering- design process within their researched body system.

Among the varied topics students explored, they

discovered innovative solutions and prototypes around skin- and nail-care; neurological and musculoskeletal challenges; and cardiovascular, digestive, and respiratory issues.

Jemma Siegel ’21: Hugback: Immersive Furniture for the Digital Age In the inaugural year of Advanced Inquiry courses, Upper School students showcased their knowledge and passion for STEAM in innovative ways. Senior Jemma Siegel focused on the central idea of industrial and product design to create a piece of furniture conducive to user wants and needs. Siegel explained that seeing outdated forms of aid during COVID-19 restrictions — such as

plexiglass dividers, floor stickers, and booths — was her inspiration.

“There are other ways to be safe without explicitly dividing people, especially in such inorganic ways,” she pointed out.

Her solution was the “hugback,” a cross between a tent and a chair-cover, designed to keep people safe and comfortable, while also offering a sense of solitude and seclusion in a populated environment.

“As I designed hugback, I took inspiration from recent designs, like the IKEA Lomsk chair, as well as mid-century modernist architecture, drawing from their emphasis on rounded shapes and comfort,” she said.

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Master Class

with

Mr. Campbell

The GFA community is invited to join Upper School History Teacher Ian Campbell for a master class this fall. Origins of War explores the causes of war through the study of five conflicts: The Peloponnesian War, The 2nd Punic War, WWI, WWII, and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Guided by Mr. Campbell, the class will examine what combination of general and specific causes led to these conflicts and how they provide insight into how peace might have been achieved in the past and better secured in the future. Origins of War will be offered in weekly online sessions with periodic in-person/Zoom discussion meetings. The class will begin Sept. 15.

To register, and for more information, visit us online at www.gfacademy.org/originsofwar

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Ways to Give All donations to GFA are tax-deductible.

By Check

Checks should be made payable to Greens Farms Academy and mailed to the attention of the Advancement Office.

By Credit Card and Online

Credit card donations can be made online at www. gfacademy.org/giveonline. If you would like to make your payment over time, you can arrange a monthly or quarterly recurring gift.

Appreciated Securities

Gifts of stocks, bonds, or other appreciated securities allow donors to avoid paying capital gains taxes and qualify for a charitable deduction.

Please contact the Advancement Office if you would like to make a gift of securities.

Matching Gifts

By taking advantage of an employer’s matching gift program, donors can significantly increase the amount and impact of their gift.

Planned Gifts

An impactful way to make a gift to GFA is to make a commitment through your will. Please contact the Advancement Office for more information.

Summer 2021 | 55

Alumni Spotlight

’07

Lily Miesmer Jack miner

Fashion-Forward, Friends First i Friends for more than 20 years, graduates Jack Miner ’07 and Lily Miesmer ’07 are embarking on their first major creative adventure together. With their new womenswear collection, Interior, they hope to offer “a nuanced and idiosyncratic approach to daily dressing,” according to the Interior website.

Miesmer and Miner launched their brand in 2020, a year now-notorious for instilling uncertainty. Yet instead of waiting it out, they discovered ways to take the difficulties of COVID — the isolation of being in lockdown, the abandonment of regular routines, the financial chaos — and turn them into opportunities.

“It created this white space where I could ask myself important questions: ‘What do I want to do, ultimately, and how is what I’m doing laddering up to that? And am I creatively fulfilled?’” Miesmer theorized. “I think it allowed a lot of people who were entrepreneurial in spirit to have a moment where they decided, ‘I’m just gonna shoot my shot.’”

Miner added that the circumstances surrounding a COVID landscape promoted a completely new way for the two of them to collaborate.

“The one silver lining [of COVID] is that it gave us this opportunity to explore this new facet of our relationship as business partners and that’s been really fulfilling and sort of natural and easy as a result of our foundation,” he said.

The two met when Miner came to GFA in 2002. Though they had many common interests, it wasn’t an instant connection. Miesmer laughed, “We were not sure of each other because we were too similar.”

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as they discovered that they “spoke the same language.”

While they were in high school they were never “two kids sketching clothing,” but they admired the same authors, filmmakers, historical figures, and designers. In each other they discovered a true soulmate.

As with any long-term friendship, there are communication ebbs and flows over time. Yet through their college years, internships and other ventures in the fashion industry, relationships, moves, and other important life-changes, the door to their friendship has always remained open; they still speak the same language.

“It’s that DNA of a shared aesthetic vernacular that has culminated into this brand,” Miesmer said.

The fact that Miner and Miesmer are co-creative directors at Interior is at the heart of their brand’s identity. However, they divvy up duties that align with their individual strengths. Miner interned at Calvin Klein before learning the ropes from fashion venture capitalist Chris Burch.

Miner later launched his own menswear brand, Hecho, from Mexico City. In 2018 he moved back to the States to handle finance and operations for his friend’s company, Bode. At Interior, he serves as the company’s CEO. “Having worked in the industry for the duration of my career, I’m able to navigate the business along a healthy path, so I’m happy managing the logistics and then also having creative agency in overseeing how it all coalesces,” Miner said.

As Chief Brand Officer, Miesmer, whose background is in marketing, handles the product, brand-positioning and e-commerce channel. Long before launching Interior, she interned at Vogue and wrote for T: The New York Times Style Magazine. She moved on to consult for a number of direct-

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“The name Interior was chosen for its playful misdirect: clothes, by their very nature, are worn on one’s exterior. Yet the name also points to our shared inner emotional landscape: our interiority.”

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Interior website

Alumni Spotlight

to-consumer startups, but never lost touch with — or her love for — fashion.

Her areas of expertise gave Miner the confidence he needed to dive into a womenswear brand. He explained, “I felt safe with Lily as my partner and co-creative director because she’s a woman and because she’s an adept, savvy consumer herself. She is very aware of the market … it is important that she heads up decision-making around products, specifically.”

The fact that Interior is a direct-to-consumer enterprise might actually be an asset in a post-COVID world.

“COVID is changing the face of the industry in that it’s continuing the momentum of something that was already set in motion,” Miesmer explained. “Direct-to-consumer channels are now super emphasized and that was always my gut about the industry. … I think it is important for any business that’s going to survive COVID. That was our mutual vision for the brand: having a strong direct-toconsumer channel.”

For example, massive and expensive fashion shows have given way to high-concept short films, and retailers are more intentional about the quantities they are producing and the way that clothing is being produced.

“The fashion space has become more egalitarian because now anyone anywhere in the country can have a frontrow seat. There’s less emphasis on the elitism of the front row of a fashion show, so that’s been really cool. It’s bred innovation and more equality,” Miesmer described.

According to Miner, the events of the past year have also had an important influence on their connection with customers.

“I think people really are craving specialness and meaning with what they’re purchasing now, as a result of COVID. [They want] things that have an emotional resonance,” he said. “This idea of creating something that feels like it’s special and emotionally resonant connects us with the customer on a deeper level.”

To experience Interior, visit them online: interior.nyc

In the last year, the fashion industry has also seen a burst of creativity brought about by constraints of in-person events.

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Alumni Spotlight

Looking Back on “The Farm” Lily Miesmer ’07

GFA Lifer (1995–2007) Lives in: Manhattan Jack Miner ’07

Joined GFA in eighth grade (2002–2007) Lives in: Brooklyn Heights Some favorite GFA teachers

Class Vocabulary: Lily

Class Intimidating: Jack

Lisa Cissel, John Cissel, Bob Guffin, Jeffrey Morrison, Kate Morrison, Elizabeth Cleary, Amy Schwartz, OJ Burns, Nancy McTague-Stock, Ian Campbell (Miesmer: “Ian Campbell LOVES fashion. He and I would always talk about clothes.”)

Reflections on their GFA experience

Miesmer: “GFA was amazing. That’s really what sticks out to me. The quality of the teachers and how much they emphasized writing. It’s so important to be able to communicate that way.”

Miner: “GFA afforded us a lot of freedom as very young adults — for better or worse — and I cherish that. ... It was at the time (and I hope that it still is) a fairly liberal-minded community, and one that was patient and kind. It felt very safe in hindsight.”

What would their former teachers and classmates be surprised to know about them now?

Miner: “I don’t think they would be surprised to know that we are still as close as we are.”

Miesmer: “Or that we started a brand together.”

Words of advice to current students

Miesmer: “At GFA, do what you’re inclined to do, and don’t be discouraged if you aren’t, say, the top student in a certain class. You can’t compare yourself to other students because you don’t know what they are going through or what motivates them.”

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Miner: “So often we feel the need to categorize things in such a polarized way in order to understand them: everything has to either be a success or a failure. But actually, neither of those things exist. A perceived failure is just an opportunity for learning. The only time that opportunities for learning become painful is when we have to learn the same lesson over and over again. I would hope that the kids who are in school at GFA know that the world isn’t the polarized place that we tend to make it out to be.”

With social-gathering restrictions still in place, GFA alumni across the globe connected this spring for a week-long Virtual Reunion.

The week’s events kicked off with a Head of School Roundtable featuring current Head of School Bob Whelan P ’24 and former Heads Janet Hartwell (2003–2018) and Jim Coyle (1972–1998). Whelan led an incredible stroll down memory lane in his conversation about education and GFA history with these two beloved former GFA leaders.

Alumni put their knowledge to the test during How to Brain Your Dragon’s Virtual Trivia Night, led by legendary Upper School Math Teacher Jon Matte and Director of Campus Safety and Head Athletic Trainer Jason Hannum. Congratulations to the trivia champion Ken Kaufman ’78!

GFA Director of Equity and Inclusion Shanelle Henry concluded the week with the talk: “What it Means to be Black in White Spaces: A Conversation About Race,” where GFA alumni of color engaged in discussion with current students of color at GFA about the past, present, and path forward.

“Thank you to everyone who participated,” Director of Alumni Relations Ana Holwell said. “Now more than ever, we value the importance of connecting and are looking forward to getting back to our regular programming at our in-person reunion in spring 2022!”

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Class Notes...

1949

Josephine Hanlon Tate

Joey recently celebrated her 90th birthday and is enjoying life in Norwich, VT spending her days painting, teaching, and staying involved in the community.

radiation and then chemotherapy in July. I have wonderful doctors, friends, and family caring for me and I am getting better.

1974

Scott Hood

Like so many others, I’ve been working from home since March 1951 2020. Alison and I had just begun our Ann Hoopes long-awaited trip to Havana, Cuba, Ann has been staying busy playing to learn more about the history and golf and performing frequently on culture there, when word came that the piano.

Bowdoin College — our employer

for 28 (Alison) and 31 (me) years 1973 — would be sending everyone home Kelsey Biggers and resuming the semester online.

Sissy [Cargill Biggers ’75] and I have Leaving abruptly for Maine the very moved permanently to Oak Bluffs next morning, we had no idea that this on the island of Martha’s Vineyard! would continue for another academic We are delighted that our daughter year! Slowly and carefully, things Sarah [Biggers ’05] and her husband are now coming back, and we have George are parents to one-year-old an even greater appreciation for the Molly and have a beautiful historic value of in-person learning and the home in Weston! resilience of the Bowdoin community.

We expect to be back in person in Kathleen DeBoer September, and while I will be glad I am fighting a recurrence of my lung to be back on campus, I’ll miss these cancer. I just had major spinal surgery L.L. Bean slippers and my rescue dog, and the removal of a tumor in my Parson Brown, curled up beside them! chest cavity. I am scheduled to start

1976 Michele OrrisModugno

The Class of 1976 celebrated our 45th reunion with a “Reunion Chat” on Zoom, which included three former teachers: Ed Denes, Chris Brown, and Guy Bradford. We had a delightful 90-minute conversation about our days at GFA and what we all have been doing over the last 45 years. I have been keeping busy as Vice President of the GFA Alumni Council by attending Zoom Class Reunions, serving on the Trustee Committee on Equity and Inclusion, updating class contact lists, and more. I also serve on the Advisory Council for the Bridgeport Regional Aquaculture School. My husband and I still live in Fairfield, while our daughter graduated from the Boston University School of Law in May and has returned to Los Angeles. She will be sitting for the California Bar this summer.

1980 Amy Waugh Curry

Amy reports that she is very busy in the real estate business and is learning how to sail.

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Abby Raphael

01

I am grateful that my family and I have been healthy through the pandemic and that our lives are starting to return to normal.

1983

Dawn Burnett

As of October 2020, I was asked to be the Site Manager at Patrick Henry’s Scotchtown Museum. The manor house was built in 1719 and was the home of Patrick Henry from 17711778 and Dolly Madison for a short period as a child. It’s been a real education learning about life in the 18th century, curatorial and archeological work, and the development of virtual and in-person events. Of course, my love of textiles has been a catalyst for programming and more costumes for the site!

Shelly Stiegler Gardner

Everything is good with us! My oldest son Clay ’13 serves as Deputy Chief of Staff to the Mayor of San Jose, California, where he helps lead the Mayor’s efforts around digital services, privacy and transparency, emerging transit, and public-private partnerships. My daughter Georgianna ’14 is loving life in Nashville, where she’s just started a new role in country music at Creative Artists Agency. Griffin ’15, my youngest, is a Fulbright Scholar and is now following his passion for the ocean at the Scripps Institute in San Diego, where he’s pursuing a Master’s in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation.

1988

02

Jana Asher

I am finishing up my second year as a tenure-track Assistant Professor at Slippery Rock University — this was a career switch for me and so far, I love it!

1990 Stephanie Gisondi-Little, Jay Krasnow, Erika Rosen di Paolo, Rachael Stracka, Nick Szeychenyi, Bob Pescod, and Adam Lippman enjoyed celebrating their 30th Reunion over

Zoom in May. 01 Scott Hood ’74 and his wife, Alison, enjoying a Maine moment without masks 02 Dawn Burnett ’83 at Patrick Henry’s Scotchtown Museum

Stephanie Gisondi-Little has been living

in LA since ’97 but she still gets back to Connecticut to visit the old stomping grounds.

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03

04

03 Jackie Garbutt ’01

04 Nicholas D’Addario ’04, welcomed son Fritz with wife Caroline

1997

Adam Lippman

I’m working at two non-profits, improving parks and trails, and doing lots of hiking and backpacking. I’m still making music and working on a new record, but just for fun these days.

Megan Wagner

My husband, Stefan, and I welcomed Luka Alexander Wagner on November 17, 2020. Sofia is a great big sister. We continue to enjoy living in Rowayton and bump into other Nicholas GFA-ers from time to time. I most Szechenyi recently began a new job as CMO of I’m still in the D.C. area working Prose.com — a direct-to-consumer on Japan and Asia at the Center for personalized haircare brand based Strategic and International Studies. in Brooklyn, N.Y.

1996 1999 Stephanie Darrick Lin Carendi I am currently working for Live Our pandemic adventure of living up Nation and my own family firm in in the Catskills has turned permanent sunny SoCal. (for now). My husband and two kids (8 and 10) left NYC and are restoring Elizabeth Press a farm from 1860 in the hamlet of I live in Berlin, Germany with my Lew Beach, N.Y., by the trout-laden husband and son and am currently Beaverkill River. We keep bees, Head of Business Intelligence at chickens, and rabbits. I am helping my Lingoda — an online language husband on his green-energy venture school. and am building a studio for my

painting and jewelry work (vcarendi. com). I am also creating jewelry history webinars for GemX.club and on the board of the storytelling organization Off Assignment.

2001

Jacqueline Garbutt

Jackie, her husband Alex, and her two kiddos Frankie (4) and Georgie (2) have recently moved out to Somerset, England, and are enjoying settling into country life. She is producing a series for the Discovery Channel and can’t wait to see the backside of UK lockdown number three!

2003 Sefra Levin

I’m running a survival training club, The Readiness Collective, at the SoNo mall. Come check us out!

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05

06

05 Stephanie Strohm’s ’04 new book Once Upon a Tide: A Mermaid’s Tale coming this fall 06 Meredith Koch ’07 with husband Ryan Hayes

2004

Nicholas D’Addario

My wife, Caroline, and I are happy to announce the birth of our son, Fritz Francis D’Addario. He was born on March 24, 2021. We moved back to Fairfield County from Brooklyn, N.Y., this past fall.

Stephanie Strohm Lando

My middle-grade debut, Once Upon a Tide: A Mermaid’s Tale will be published by Disney-Hyperion on September 14, 2021. This mermaid princess adventure is perfect for readers ages 8-12 and available for preorder now! Currently, I’m working on the Arden High graphic novel series, a retelling of Shakespeare’s plays set at a modern, magical high school. While writing the first book, Twelfth Grade Night (out Fall 2022), I loved reminiscing about GFA’s 2002 production of Twelfth Night — such a fun show! I recently moved to LA and haven’t decided if I like it yet, but I 66 | www.gfacademy.org

definitely love being back in the same city as Evie Symington ’06.

2006 Michelangelo Barone

Michelangelo Barone was thrilled to perform in a tribute to Stevie Wonder, Elton John, Marvin Gaye, and other great artists of the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s at Fox & Hound in Quincy, MA, this spring.

Schuyler Kemeny

My husband Malcolm and I were married in the Hudson River Valley in 2016, joined by several GFA friends.

We’ve bounced between New York and Boston, and this spring moved to our home in Weston. The highlight of our lives has been our two miraculous daughters, Chloe (March 2019) and Brooke (April 2021). Very best wishes to all.

2007

Meredith Koch

Thanks to her trusty leg braces and six years of PT after her spinal cord injury, Meredith Koch ’08, walked down the aisle and married Ryan Hayes on May 15, 2021, in Norwalk. GFA alumni in attendance were David Koch ’03 and Emma Weeks ’08. Thank you to vaccines and the frontline workers who allowed everyone to celebrate and dance the night away!

Ace Patterson

I wanted to share some recent news on my end: I had a CNBC’s TechCheck interview that was recently aired on TV, discussing my journey as a tech employee and music entrepreneur.

I was also in an eight-minute Ford Mustang x Travel Insider commercial, or “mini-documentary”, about my life as a musician in Oakland.

Kiersten Wilcox

After being in Jackson Hole for almost ten years, my family and I moved to Kennebunk, ME, at the end of 2019. In 2020, I opened my own contemporary art gallery in the

07

08

09 07 Ace Patterson ’07 08 Kiersten Wilcox’s ’07 art gallery in Kennebunk, ME 09 Cross-stitch by Joe Roll

heart of Kennebunkport’s shopping with clients including Interscope district, Dock Square. I am excited Records, Pandora, Create Music to celebrate the gallery’s one-year Group, and more. She and fellow anniversary and look forward to many GFA graduate Mark Warburg ’09 more years of bringing exceptional are neighbors and love to go hiking art to the community. together in Griffith Park.

2008 2011 Daniel Gagliano

After graduating from Johns Hopkins SAIS and a tumultuous year in military strategy, I have headed back to the classroom to teach U.S. History (don’t tell Mr. Campbell). Life is still quiet in D.C. as I spend my waking hours preparing for class lessons, reading way too many books, and using my master’s on the weekends to plan invasions for countries that could not possibly defend themselves (watch The West Wing for the reference). Let me know if you come down to D.C.! (203) 644-3538 2009

Ally Norton

Ally Norton recently started a new job as Director of Communications at SpinLab Communications, an LAbased boutique PR firm specializing in corporate communications for businesses in the music, entertainment, and media industries,

students as I taught over 30 different courses online, including one for the Bruce Museum, focusing on artist Emily Mason’s printmaking work.

(Some of my students were parents of my former GFA students!) Working through ArtPartners, our community liaison faction at Silvermine Art Courtney Center, I was pleased to bring the Whitelock art curriculum to the Dunbar School I graduated from Rush University in Bridgeport, where we melded Medical College and will be joining art and meteorological happenings.

Sparrow/MSU as a General Surgery I was nominated and chosen by Resident! curators to be featured in the March/

April issue of New England Magazine Former Faculty as one of nine New England artists “worth watching.” I have received Chris Brown a Fellowship to continue my work I finally retired from teaching in France this fall, as a returning secondary-school English in 2019 at Visiting Artist Fellow in Orquevaux. age 72. GFA and Jim Coyle (Best. Head.

Ever.) are where it all began — six years Joe Roll of wonderful, indelible memories.

During COVID days last year, I put

together a cross-stitch of a bench Charles Gedge cover, although I actually began Charles reports that he’s sailed several the project a few years ago. Now times with Capt. Lauren Morgens ’97 completed and installed on an old on Delaware’s tall ship. family hassock in my living room,

I designed quite a bit of symbolism Nancy McTagueinto it that I can share with those Stock interested. If you look closely, you can The pandemic brought me to a new catch the honey bees and ladybugs at community of nationally based the center between the GFA crests.

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In Memoriam Ann Hughes ’59

Alice Ann Longstreth Hughes of Viroqua, WI, formerly of Fairfield, CT, New York, NY, Aspen, CO, Stowe VT, Fort Collins, CO, and several locations in Savannah, Georgia, among other places, passed away on May 6, 2021.

Elizabeth Osborn ’76

Dr. Elizabeth Osborn passed away on February 25, 2021. Born and raised in New Haven, Connecticut, Liz graduated from Green Farms Academy in New Canaan. At Princeton, she majored in Psychology and swam four years on the women’s swim team, serving as captain her senior year.

In 1975, she led the team to its second Eastern Championship and was leading scorer for the 7-1 Tigers. In 1976, she set a university record in the 200-yard breaststroke and placed in the AIAW championships.

After graduating A.B. cum laude from Princeton, Liz continued her studies in Clinical Psychology at Fordham University where she received a Ph.D. in 1984. She began her career as a clinical psychologist specializing in children in residential treatment while maintaining a private practice in psychotherapy and psychodiagnostic testing. Liz earned an M.B.A. at New York University in 1991.

She settled in Valhalla, New York where she raised two daughters, Alexandra and Katherine Osborn-Jones, and more recently helped raise her granddaughter Adrienne.

In 1996, Liz became the Director at the Jewish Child Care Association in Pleasantville, New York and later worked for decades at the Henry Ittleson Center of the Jewish Board of Family and Children’s Services in New York. She continued to maintain a private practice.

Edward Eldredge Stone ’79

Ted Stone died peacefully at his home in Bangkok, Thailand on June 19, 2021. Ted maintained a wide circle of devoted friends and family across the globe who cherished him for his warm good nature, kindness, gentleness, generosity and steadfast loyalty.

Throughout his active and wide-ranging life, Ted is remembered for traveling extraordinary distances to visit friends and attend family gatherings. He will live on in the hearts and minds of the many diverse people deeply touched by his warm and generous life.

Nick Tierney ’10

Nick Tierney was diagnosed with gastric cancer in December of 2020.

He died on February 4, 2021. In the words of Sam Jack, his best friend since GFA kindergarten, “Through humble action and a rare selfreliance, Nicky brought compassion and kindness to this world — a powerful kindness that has and will continue to change lives for the better. We will cherish Nicky and hold him close to us forever.”

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Barge Levy (Former Faculty)

Lawrence H. Levy Jr., who was always affectionately known as “Barge,” died on Jan. 19, 2021, in Louisville (near Boulder), Colo. He was surrounded by his family with love and peace.

Barge was born on Sept. 10, 1942, in Washington, D.C., to Beta Rothafel and Lawrence H. Levy Sr. He was one of five siblings and grew up in Bedford Village, N.Y. Barge graduated from Choate Rosemary Hall in Wallingford, Conn., in 1961. He attended Columbia University for his undergraduate degree and Harvard for his master’s degree. Education and helping others was always part of the fabric of Barge’s story.

In later years he spent much time with his children, grandchildren and loved ones before being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Everyone who met Barge always commented that he was ready with a smile and a twinkle in his eyes, right up until the end of his life.

Claudette Pinede (Former Faculty)

Claudette Pinede (née Pierre-Noël) passed away on January 24, 2021, surrounded by her family and friends. Those who knew her over the 81 years of her life, will remember her laughter and the wellspring of joy that rose from deep inside her.

Claudette was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, to Vaugirard Pierre-Noël, a publisher and distinguished newspaper editor, and Laura Pierre Noël (née Latortue). As a young girl she loved dogs, camping, and singing along with her brother. After graduating at the top of her class, she attended State University where she earned a B.S. in Chemistry and Science. She was then granted a merit scholarship from the French government to attend the National Graduate School of Biology and Biochemistry in Paris. There, she met Edouard Pinede, whom she would marry. Their first child, Nadine (GFA Class of ’82), was born in Paris, and their son Didier Edouard, in Port-au-Prince (GFA Class of ’83).

When Edouard was transferred to the US, Claudette began teaching Biology at Convent of the Sacred Heart, a prestigious private school in Connecticut. She also earned her M.Sc. in Biology. To provide her children with educational opportunities, Claudette became a teacher at Greens Farms Academy in Greens Farms, Connecticut. Her math and science students respected (and sometimes feared) her exacting standards; she could gain the attention of a class with a single glance – but they also adored her warmth and humor.

Thank you

On June 1, we celebrated the members of our community who continue to offer their time, treasure, and talent all year long. They truly embody our motto, “Each for All.” Our Board of Trustees, Leadership Donors, Advisory Council, Annual Giving Class Captains, Parents Association, and Alumni Council dedicate themselves to building community, ensuring financial stability, and securing the future success of our school, all which benefits our students today and tomorrow.

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