Quest 2023

Quest

2023–24

The Magazine of King School

Living With Purpose Karen Raidt and Liam Pufko ’25 in 2013.

A Letter From Carol Maoz HEAD OF SCHOOL

Dear King School Community, Welcome to the latest issue of Quest, an annual publication that allows us to reflect upon our journey and celebrate our school community.

This year’s theme, Living With Purpose, is central to our mission as a school and for me as a person and an educator.

As King’s Head of School, I consider it my foremost responsibility to inspire a lifelong love of learning and help students become responsible and engaged citizens of our global and interconnected society.

Living With Purpose is not merely a phrase; it's a philosophy that threads through every facet of my life and our educational journey at King.

This year’s issue is dedicated to the purposeful and intentional way we design our curriculum and the importance given to instilling in our students the significance of living with purpose. It is a testament to the commitment of our faculty, staff, students, and families, who ensure that every day spent within our school is meaningful.

Within these pages, you will find stories of our students and alumni who have found their purpose and are making a difference in their communities and beyond. You will discover how our innovative curriculum, co-curricular activities, and community programs have been thoughtfully planned to empower our students to live their lives with intentionality.

We hope to convey the depth of our commitment to this year's theme through heartfelt reflections and anecdotes. Our magazine is a chronicle of the inspiring individuals who embody the essence of Living With Purpose.

May the stories within these pages inspire and motivate each of us to live more intentionally, to give back to our communities, and to make the world a better place.

With warm regards,

Carol Maoz Head of School

Quest 2023-24 1

2 Quest 2023-24

Mission King School prepares students to thrive in a rapidly changing world.

Our students are immersed in an engaging and innovative curriculum anchored in an inquiry-based approach that fosters curiosity, intellectual growth, and character development.

At King, individual accomplishment complements a deep sense of belonging. We embrace diversity in all its forms, nurturing every student to learn and grow in a collaborative and supportive community.

Guided by dedicated educators and a commitment to academic excellence, King students become invested in their journey, develop a lifelong love of learning, and are well equipped to succeed in college and beyond. They graduate with a global mindset, a strong sense of social responsibility, and the confidence to pursue lives of purpose.

Virtues Integrity Being honest and accountable to our shared principles.

Kindness Treating others with empathy and compassion.

Perseverance Pursuing excellence with a focus on growth and improvement in the face of challenges.

Respect Treating every person with dignity through our words and actions.

Purpose at the Heart of the King School Mission: As part of its 10-year accreditation process with the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) and following best practices, King School embarked on an effort to review its mission statement to ensure that it remains resonant, relevant, and reflective of what King is as an academic institution.

The result is a revised version of the mission that reflects the input from faculty, staff, students, parents, and the Board of Trustees.

The updated statement aims to convey King’s priorities as a school, its unwavering commitment to academic excellence and community, its approach to teaching and learning, and the aspirations held for King graduates.

As part of the same process, the school also took a careful look at its virtues and reaffirmed that they remain its guiding principles with slightly revised definitions.

Above is the updated version of our mission statement and the definitions of virtues.

4 Quest 2023-24

Quest

2023–24 Faculty and Staff and Board of Trustees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Mi-Sun Freeman: Board Chair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

Karen Raidt: Living With Purpose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Educating for a Globalized World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

In This Issue

A Contemporary Haven for Learning and Innovation . . . . 18 Nurturing Leadership in the Lower School . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 R.E.A.D.Y. to Succeed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 College Counseling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Adventures in Edinburgh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Certificates of Distinction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Schooling With Purpose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Viking Tenacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Ackley: A Scholarly Journey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Eagleton: A Tradition in Teaching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 ALUMNI PROFILES BY DECADE

1960s Karen Raidt, p.10

Serendipitous Sisterhood: A Low-Heywood Bond . . . . . . . . 46 1970s

Summer of Love Meets Law and Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 1980s

Creating Spaces: Bridging Art, History, and Access . . . . . . . 50 1990s

Perseverance in Education Brings Entrepreneurial Success . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 Certificates of Distinction, p. 28

2000s

All in the Family: Grit, Curiosity, and Television . . . . . . . . . 54 2010s

A Quest for Empathy on a Path Less Traveled . . . . . . . . . . . 58 COMMUNITY

Community Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 Parents’ Association and Volunteers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Alumni Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Homecoming and Alumni Weekend, p. 66

Homecoming and Alumni Weekend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Alumni Class Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 Facts about King . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 In Memoriam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Celebrating Milestones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 Segalas: A Legacy of Generosity and Joy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Quest 2023-24 5

Faculty and Staff The King School community is grateful to our faculty and staff for their commitment to the school’s mission.

Thank you for guiding and mentoring our students to reach their full academic and personal potential.

6 Quest 2023-24

Board of Trustees 2023-24 The King School community extends its appreciation to our present and former board members, whose commitment, knowledge, and generosity have been instrumental in propelling the King School mission forward.

Back row, left to right: Daniel Knijnik, Lindsay Zaken, Martin Sullivan, Eric Gerster, Oktay Kurbanov, Doug Perlman, Thomas King, Ara Lovitt, Thomas Ryan, Dr. Wei Du. Front row, left to right: Matthew Allard, Peter Resnick, Nancy Heaton, Lauren Onis Bellmare KLHT’03, Mi-Sun Freeman, Carol Maoz, Kirby Grabowski Lim, Rachelle N. Spielvogel, Jessica Demmo, Robert Kay. Not pictured: Matthew Barlow, Trustee Emeritus Tom Conheeney, Ahmed Fattouh KLHT’91, Brian O’Callaghan, God-is Rivera, Lorenzo Wyatt.

Quest 2023-24 7

Meet Mi-Sun Freeman Chair of the Board of Trustees

A

committed and enthusiastic Viking and longtime member of the Board of Trustees, Mi-Sun Freeman P’22, ’29 became King’s Board Chair on July 1.

As a parent of two Vikings, Freeman has a thorough understanding of the King School journey from Prekindergarten to Grade 12. Her personal investment in the school ensures that she brings a unique perspective to her leadership role.

Since joining the King community in 2008, Freeman has given her time and energy to various initiatives. She has been a dedicated, generous, and supportive member of the Board of Trustees for the past six years, serving as Vice Chair of the Board and chairing the Enrollment Committee, which she still sits on. She cochaired the Head of School Search Committee and is a member of the Executive; Trusteeship; Development; Buildings and Grounds; Finance; and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging committees.

Freeman participated in the Parents’ Association, serving as President,

8 Quest 2023-24

Co-Chair of the Multicultural Committee, now called the KInD Committee; Chair and Co-Chair of the King Ambassador Committee; and team parent for several teams. She is a devoted Vikings superfan, frequently found cheering on the sidelines of games.

Quest had an opportunity to speak to Freeman about her experience as a parent and member of the Board of Trustees at King School.

Why did you choose King for your children?

When we moved out of New York City in 2004, we chose New Canaan because of its strong public schools. However, when it came time to enroll our eldest child, we found ourselves attracted to King not only because of the strong academics, but also because of its commitment to diversity. We have loved raising our family in New Canaan but want our kids to be educated in an environment that prepares them well for their future. We love that King attracts students from a wide variety of towns and backgrounds

and that the school starts with an Early Education program and goes through 12th grade. It has been our experience that this continuity of learning allows for fewer gaps as our kids have moved up in divisions.

How would you describe the King School experience from your perspective as a parent and from the perspective of your children?

King has been a great place for our children. Like many families, our children have very different strengths and interests. King nurtures and encourages these differences in a safe environment that has allowed our kids to thrive. Our daughter entered King in PreK and graduated with the Class of 2022. At King, she developed a love of world politics and cultures and, through the Global Distinctions program, was able to take classes that further explored these subjects. The education she received at King prepared her well for her studies at New York University, where she is pursuing a dual major in this discipline.

community and value the relationships we have formed with other King families that we have had the privilege to meet during our 15 years at the school.

Mi-Sun Freeman and her son, Paxton, at Homecoming 2018.

Our son is currently in the Middle School and is exploring and expanding his area of interest. With both kids, we have found that not only are the faculty experts in their field of study, they understand where the students are in their development and teach the whole child. Our son is not only learning the class material, he is also learning how to be a successful student.

What makes King special?

Community. I spoke earlier about why we chose King. The reason we have stayed and why King is so special is the people. It is clear that the faculty, staff, coaches, and administrators care deeply about our students. It is apparent not only in the way they interact with our kids but also in the way they teach our children to interact with each other.

King students are taught that they can be competitive and collaborative. King challenges our kids in an environment that allows them to take risks and ask questions. Our kids feel known by their teachers and peers, which has fostered a deep love of learning. These connections do not just happen in the classrooms. We love the sense of

What are your priorities as Board Chair?

The Board of Trustees’ main goal is to be good stewards of the school by providing financial oversight and a strategic plan that ensures the longevity and financial health of the school. The Board works closely with the Head of School, Carol Maoz, to ensure that critical decisions are missionoriented and provide the best student experience. We are moving forward with the initial phase of the Campus Master Plan, which will focus on upgrading our facilities to support the amazing programming we are already offering in the classrooms. Attracting missionminded families, as well as keeping and hiring the best faculty and staff, will continue to be a top priority of the school.

What would you like our community to know about the King School Board?

The King Board is composed of dedicated and talented individuals who care deeply about the school.

Our trustees have a wide range of

experiences and backgrounds and represent parents from all three divisions and include alumni. They dedicate a lot of time and work closely with Carol and her leadership team to ensure King continues to provide the best education and experience for our students. It has truly been a pleasure to work with this group of individuals.

What are you most excited about this year at King?

It is a very exciting time to be a part of the King community. We are in year four of a five-year strategic plan, and while we have had great progress in all areas, I look forward to completing many of these strategic goals. We have an amazing Head of School in Carol Maoz, whom I am excited to partner with to strengthen the position of the school.

We are moving forward with the Campus Master Plan, which will transform our campus and create spaces that will further support our students. King is a special place, and I am most excited to work with our incredible community to provide the best student experience for our children.

Roger and Mi-Sun Freeman with their children, Emmi '22 and Paxton '29.

Quest 2023-24 9

SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

Karen Raidt:

Living With Purpose 10 Quest 2023-24

O

ver the past three decades, Karen Raidt and her family have been an integral part of the King School community.

Shortly after Karen O’Keeffe arrived in 1993, she met her husband, John Raidt, at King. They married, and their two sons, Patrick, born in 2001, and James, born in 2005, became King “lifers,” beginning as infants in the faculty day care.

As her family grew, so did her career at King. She began as a Grade 2 teacher, then transitioned into a series of leadership roles, including Director of Teaching and Learning, Head of Lower School and now, Assistant Director of Global Education and Director of King Cares Service and Student Services.

With each transition building on the last, her life’s purpose deepened.

“In my progression from classroom teacher to where I am now,” said Raidt, “I gained different perspectives and felt so fortunate to see what amazing things my colleagues were doing in other areas. I have had a wonderful bird’s-eye view of the interconnectedness of the many different offices, departments, and grade levels, and have learned so much along the way.”

“I knew from working with the lower school learning specialist that it was something I wanted to learn more about,” Raidt said. “With her advice, I took additional classes here and there, learning techniques and approaches, which I found fascinating.”

Before King, Raidt had been on track to become a pediatrician when a discussion with her college advisor led to a stint in a grade school classroom. That changed everything. She pivoted to education and joined King shortly after graduating from Williams College and the Manhattanville College Master of Arts in Teaching Program.

In 2005, King restructured, creating a position that is known today as Director of Teaching and Learning. Raidt was just home from the hospital after giving birth to James when Head of School Tom Main called to offer her the position.

With two young children and having never been a director, Raidt was tentative.

“So much of my trajectory has been serendipitous,” she said, adding that she had advanced through conversations with people she admired.

“We tell students to take risks, to step out of their comfort zone,” she said, “and I realized I needed to do that as well.”

“We tell students to take risks, to step out of their comfort zone, and I realized I needed to do that as well.”

—Karen Raidt “The first person I met at King was Sue Cesare,” Raidt said, referring to the Head of School at the time, who is a 1948 LowHeywood alumna. “How she talked about academic excellence made me realize how much I could grow professionally, but it was how she spoke about the culture and the community that was so exciting to me.”

Raidt accepted the job and, for the first time in 12 years, she worked in an office rather than a classroom. In her new role, she was assigned to PreK through Grade 3 and began to work with teachers on scope and sequencing skills, teaching approaches, and curriculum development. She also worked with students in small groups and one-on-one.

“I enjoyed teaming with colleagues in a different way and getting to know more students and families across the grade levels,” said Raidt, whose role was eventually expanded to include Grades 4 and 5.

Main, noting Raidt’s deep knowledge of the lower school programs, asked her to step in as Interim Head of Lower School in the fall of 2011. By the end of the academic year, it became a permanent position.

In her first three weeks, she met John in the lower school courtyard outside her classroom, where he was waiting for a friend, a King parent. That moment began the Raidt family story at King.

The lower school leadership role deepened her understanding of the administrative side of education and furthered her interest in the interconnectedness of the programs within and across divisions.

They were married in 1996 in Williamstown, Massachusetts.

Several guests came from King, including teachers Sue Laramie and Ellen Eagleton, who both marked 30 years at the school in 2022.

Seven years later, as the students who entered PreK at the start of her tenure moved up to Middle School, she took the role of Director of King Cares Service and Student Services and moved up to an office in Middle School, too.

As she gained experience teaching, Raidt developed a deep appreciation for her colleagues’ expertise and broad range of perspectives. This inspired her to explore new areas of interest.

Scenes from Karen Raidt's tenure as Head of Lower School: top, welcoming arrivals on opening day in 2016 with students from the Class of 2024, then in Grade 5; opposite, awarding her son James his certificate during the 2016 Grade 5 Moving Up ceremony.

Quest 2023-24 11

SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

Karen Raidt with her Grade 2 students in 1995, her third year at King.

Raidt with Grade 2 students during a break in their ice skating event in 2000.

“From the time I can remember, community engagement has always been a part of my life, so King Cares was a natural fit for me,” Raidt said, adding that outreach has always been part of the King culture.

James ’23 forged close ties with math teachers and took a psychology course that piqued an interest he is continuing to explore at Duke University. Patrick ’20 made connections in the Performing Arts Department, which began in Middle School when he worked as a member of the stage crew to support the productions.

In 2019, Raidt moved again, to an office in the Upper School, where she also serves as an advisor. She added the role of Assistant Director of Global Education last year.

“Karen’s passionate commitment to our community has been truly remarkable,” said Head of Upper School Marnie Sadlowsky, a colleague of Raidt’s for more than 25 years.

“Under her leadership, the King Cares program has expanded and seamlessly integrated into our Global Education and Athletic programs. Karen collaborates with students to strengthen our community partnerships, creating a more connected and enriching experience for everyone at King School.”

“My best resources are always the colleagues I am working with and the students I am teaching,” Raidt said, crediting King’s professional growth and development opportunities with fostering collaboration and continuous learning. “The biggest thing you can do is support and celebrate colleagues who want to evolve into new roles, and King does a great job of that.”

When Raidt was still Head of Lower School, she and her husband attended the annual Winter Concert in the Performing Arts Center. As they sat in the audience, Raidt’s husband asked whether the concert was instrumental or chorale. She said instrumental.

Her husband, confused, said, “Patrick said he’s singing.”

“But Patrick doesn’t sing,” Raidt replied.

Just then, Patrick was introduced. He walked onstage alone with his guitar and delivered a striking rendition of “One More Light” by Linkin Park.

“We had no idea,” she said. “I was speechless. His performance was amazing, and we did not even know he sang.”

That moment was an affirmation.

Her belief in King extended to her children’s education.

“Even though we were not prepared for it,” she said, “we were confident that the many touchpoints King offers would yield that kind of exploration and self-discovery for our children.”

“We had faith in the school,” Raidt said, “and knew the teachers would not only help the boys develop new skills, but would also get to know them and challenge them to step out of their comfort zone. As a teacher here, the people that I was working with sparked my desire to explore more and gave me the support to do it. I wanted my kids to have that same experience.”

Patrick went on to earn a part in the upper school musical in his senior year. Though the beginning rehearsals conflicted with his football schedule, the faculty and staff worked together to allow him to do both. “That support and flexibility helped Patrick and James discover areas of interest they wanted to take further, and that discovery process makes all the difference,” Raidt said.

King delivered, and both of Raidt’s sons connected with teachers and staff members who helped them discover strengths and interests.

Patrick took his guitar to the College of the Holy Cross, and James plays Division I baseball at Duke, where he is enjoying classes and community outreach. As Raidt embarked on her

12 Quest 2023-24

In 2017, Karen Raidt, then Head of Lower School, and a student preparing food for the Second Grade Cafe.

31st year at King, for the first time in 22 years she had no children at the school. Although her boys have graduated, she said she still has much to learn.

“I find so much joy in collaborating and working with others each and every day, and learn from all of those interactions,” she said. “We all begin with a career path. Mine certainly has evolved organically and developed from the meaningful connections I have made with others over the years.”

Patrick, John, Karen, and James Raidt at King in 2013.

“Karen collaborates with students to strengthen our community partnerships, creating a more connected and enriching experience for everyone at King School.”

—Marnie Sadlowsky, Associate Head of School for Strategic Program, Head of Upper School

Below: Raidt with representatives from King's partner organizations the Boys and Girls Club of Stamford and the Orphan Starfish Foundation at the 2022 King Cares 5K.

Quest Fall 2021 1

Quest 2023-24 13

SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

Educating for a

Globalized World

T

he nearly 80 national flags waving across the King School campus reflect the many cultures in the community and serve as a visual reflection of the school’s commitment to global education.

The standard-bearer of this commitment is the Global Education program, which, in its 13th year, is deeply integrated into the curriculum from the classroom to the sports fields. Founded by world languages teacher Dr. Gilles Chosson, global education and global perspectives are incorporated into the student experience across all divisions, and the program’s success is earning accolades as it grows.

“In the Lower School, culturally responsive teaching immerses students in purposeful learning experiences which connect to their own lives and their role in a community,” Bowe said. “In the Middle School, guiding questions around identity and perspectives prompt students to examine their place in the world. In the Upper School, faculty guide students’ exploration of the self and their relationship with others.

Upper school students may also pursue a global studies distinction by engaging in an intensive interdisciplinary course of study.”

In May, three King teachers earned prestigious Global Expression and Thought (GET) Prizes for best practices in global education for K-12 schools. The Global Education Benchmark Group gives the award after considering the curriculum of more than 300 member schools representing 17 countries.

“This recognition of King’s global curriculum honors the work of our colleagues and highlights the value our school places on global education,” said Laura Bowe, who was named Director of Global Education in 2022.

Guiding questions with global themes are an important part of the curriculum within every division. Whether students are studying English, history, math, or science, they will explore global connections and perspectives in their lessons.

14 Quest 2023-24

Middle school students learning local cooking customs during a trip to Costa Rica.

Middle school students in Costa Rica.

LOWER SCHOOL: SYMBOLS AND CULTURE As second grade teachers Emily Decker and Aman Samra were developing lessons to enhance their geometry unit, they considered where shapes are used throughout the world and how they could infuse a global perspective into the lessons.

They looked to the existing curriculum, which included a book called “If You Lived Here,” which features houses of the world, including those of the Ndebele of Zimbabwe and South Africa.

Inspired by the tribe’s use of symbolic shapes, Decker and Samra looked to other cultures and added lessons surrounding Ghanaian and Islamic symbols. As the students learned about the different cultures, they began to approach geometry with a global lens to understand how shapes are linked to identity.

The class investigated how shapes in art and architecture communicate cultural identity. In South Africa, the Ndebele people create geometric wall paintings outside their homes as a form of communication with their village. In Ghana, patterns are used to create symbolic kente cloth. Nature and abstract motifs are used in Islamic architecture and the decorative art of many geographic regions to foster peace, share stories, and communicate principles of the religion. Students then designed their own authentic representations to make wall paintings, kente cloth, and mosaics.

Samra said: “As we researched more about the history and purpose of these things, we determined our unit drive, which was to use shapes to tell a story. I think what really helped me in this process was that I have had the opportunity to travel and study art and architecture in college. I tried to use my personal experience to help make ties.”

The teachers compiled information sheets about each art form, which students used as they conducted research. The research, in turn, sparked brilliant artwork as the students produced original pieces infused with colors, patterns, and shapes. The success of the curriculum earned Decker and Samra a GET prize.

Above: Lower school students explore how different cultures link geometric shapes with identity.

MIDDLE SCHOOL: CULTURAL IMMERSION Since its inception in 2015, King’s Costa Rica cultural immersion program has evolved into a transformative experience for middle school students. Initially designed to allow eighth grade students to practice the language, the journey has grown to incorporate service learning and to emphasize a deeper understanding of the Costa Rican way of life.

“Every time we go, we refine the curriculum, and it gets better,” middle school teacher Jenna Du Puis said.

“Authenticity has been our guiding principle, a measure of whether an experience truly reflects the culture and daily life of the people of Costa Rica. We carefully choose activities that align with this principle.”

Once in the country, Du Puis encourages the students to experience the culture by tasting local cuisine, witnessing traditional farming practices, supporting local artisans, and engaging in service opportunities.

Community service is central to the trip. Guided by the question “Where am I needed in my community?” students Quest 2023-24 15

SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

spend months preparing for the trip. Part of their preparation is to create projects that support King’s partner organization, the Orphaned Starfish Foundation (OSF).

Du Puis first took students to an OSF orphanage in 2018.

“I approached her to see if she would be interested in helping me create the global art curriculum, and she really helped shape this class. She was essential, and she was able to bring the perspective of a student and that of a person of color.”

“It was the most meaningful experience I have ever had in the realm of service work,” she said. “It left me with a deep appreciation for the learning opportunity that comes from visiting and speaking with the people we are helping.”

The resulting “Race in Art" unit introduces students to the idea of societal perceptions of identity. Using five paint colors, students mix the colors to match their skin tones and those of the five artists studied in the course.

Students return from the trip with insights into societal issues that spark meaningful discussions and encourage critical thinking about similar issues in the United States.

The experience inspires them to seek out similar service opportunities with other King partner organizations and in their own communities.

“This topic can be hard to discuss, and the unit is meant to allow students to access the concept of race from a very different approach,” LaPolla said. Through self-expression and the creative process, students consider their own heritage and that of others.

With each trip, Du Puis said new doors open to enriching, educational, and thought-provoking experiences that strengthen the curriculum.

“We have an excellent tour guide, a biologist who absolutely loves his country,” said Du Puis, adding that this is the third year working with this guide. “He is fluent in historical and cultural details about Costa Rica and can answer every question we ask. He can also explain the biodiversity within the country. This kind of experience goes way beyond the textbooks; it is learning at its best.”

UPPER SCHOOL: IDENTITY IN ART Ran LaPolla, who teaches art and design, is always looking for ways to use art to build a classroom community and provide a safe setting to discuss concepts like identity. As upper school global arts students were preparing to embark on a study of race, she enlisted the help of a student in exploring ways to facilitate dialogue.

The unit builds a classroom community, providing a safe setting to discuss complex concepts that ultimately examine historical and contemporary situations about race. White assisted LaPolla in teaching the class for the first time in the spring of 2020, earning independent study credit for her work.

“Mimi made me a much braver teacher,” said LaPolla, who earned a GET prize for the curriculum. “I stand up there and say things with conviction that I would not have had without her perspective and help.”

LaPolla has taught the course three times since creating it, and she said that the curriculum is more relevant each time she teaches it.

“It is always so hard to know what would feel like appropriation, and it has been a really positive lesson,” LaPolla said. “This comes from a positive take on identity and celebration of that, but provides a window into other worlds while creating a feeling of camaraderie as the class starts to interact around it.”

“Mimi White ’20 was very interested in art around social justice, and I wanted to create this course,” LaPolla said.

Above: Student sketchbooks featuring color studies. Opposite: Themes in Global Art students at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.

16 Quest 2023-24

“The recognition of King’s global curriculum honors the work of our colleagues and highlights the value our school places on global education.”

—Laura Bowe, Director of Global Education

Quest 2023-24 17

SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

A Contemporary Haven for

Learning and Innovation T he swift pace of technological advancements has catapulted libraries into a new realm, and King School is keeping pace. In 2022, the Lower School Library was redesigned. Over the summer, the Upper and Middle School Library Learning Commons (LLC) were redesigned to integrate these spaces into the school’s academic and cultural fabric.

King strategically aligned the LLC with maker spaces in the Lower and Middle Schools and the Innovation Lab in the Upper School, recognizing the value of hands-on, practical learning. Such synergy ensures that students don’t just consume information but actively engage with it, apply it, and make new discoveries.

“Today’s students envision the library as a multifaceted hub of resources and activities,” Director of Technology Innovation and Integration Dr. Craig Tunks said. “Beyond the traditional stacks of books, they anticipate access to a wealth of digital databases containing scholarly articles, e-books, and multimedia content. They expect the library to provide myriad research opportunities and guidance in navigating and discerning quality information.”

King’s contemporary LLC meets this expectation, offering communal spaces for collaborative projects, group discussions, and creative endeavors. Beyond just a place of quiet study, it’s an arena for active learning, creation, and innovation, reflecting the holistic needs of learners.

The LLC architecture and layout have been designed to serve 18 Quest 2023-24

diverse needs across different age groups.

“The upper school space, for instance, is a versatile haven conducive to independent study and group collaborations,” Tunks said, pointing to features like dry-erase tables.

“Meanwhile, the middle school’s space has been designed with a pronounced emphasis on fostering a love for reading.

Both spaces can accommodate entire classes, facilitating targeted instructional sessions or guidance on research methodologies and skills.”

Thanks to the generosity of an anonymous donor, the Upper School LLC’s architectural design and spatial layout have evolved to create spaces that accommodate group discussions, project brainstorming sessions, and individual contemplation. Soft seating, technology hubs, a math help center, and breakout areas are strategically placed to offer choice and flexibility, making it a place for study and genuine intellectual exploration and exchange.

In addition to the modernization, the LLC has a traditional feel and features an extensive range of fiction that challenges students to delve into various perspectives that foster critical thinking.

The nonfiction collection has undergone a contemporary transformation. Instead of rows of bookshelves, the LLC harnesses technology to offer a comprehensive selection of nonfiction materials through digital databases. This ensures easy, equitable, and widespread access for the King School

community and exemplifies the LLC’s dedication to the seamless integration of technology and learning.

Kim Klein and Leigh Roberts, King’s Teacher Librarians, play a pivotal role in securing the continued relevance and vitality of the LLC. By maintaining open communication channels with various academic departments, they make sure that the LLC’s resources, services, and instructional opportunities evolve in tandem with the shifting academic landscape. This dynamic approach allows the library to remain responsive and

proactive in meeting the school’s strategic goals.

“The King School’s Library Learning Commons is not just a space, it’s a statement—a testament to the school’s unwavering commitment to research, inquiry, and holistic learning,” Tunks said. “By forging partnerships with classroom teachers, continually evolving in response to feedback, and emphasizing hands-on, practical learning experiences, the LLC is set to play a pivotal role in King School’s journey toward academic excellence.”

Quest 2023-24 19

SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

Nurturing Leadership

in the Lower School

A

s Grade 5 students gathered in early October to congratulate the newly elected Lower School Student Council, President-elect Poppy Sisko ’31 and fellow council members received hugs from peers and gave consolation handshakes to the runners-up as everyone reflected on the campaign.

“When the results were announced, we were so impressed with how the students handled it,” said Hannah Scala, Grade 5 teacher and Project-Based Learning Coordinator. “The students conducted themselves with such respect. It really reflected their level of maturity.”

Grades 4 and 5, the leaders in the Lower School, are responsible for filling roles on the Student Council. The council features two Grade 4 representatives, one for each homeroom. Grade 5 students fill the additional positions of president, vice president, outreach ambassador, and secretary.

Students campaign for these positions, hanging posters throughout the Lower School and delivering speeches.

Students from Kindergarten through Grade 5 are eligible to vote.

When Poppy delivered her speech, she was calm and confident.

“A leader, to me, is someone who listens to and respects everyone,” she said. “I demonstrated my leadership skills when I gave a speech at the Ringing of the Bells ceremony.

20 Quest 2023-24

When I see people sitting alone or feeling left out, I make sure to include them.”

Her delivery was flawless, reflecting practice. But Poppy solidified her advantage by channeling her passion for musicals. She finished with a flourish by singing her campaign slogan, “Poppy for the People.”

The moment students step into King’s Lower School, they begin to develop confidence and leadership skills. From door holders and teachers’ helpers to Student Council members and assembly speakers, these roles are designed to support the incremental growth in responsibility, self-advocacy, and citizenship necessary to prepare students for the next stages of their lives.

“Each week, children are assigned a job,” PreK teacher Jennifer Agro said. “These include line leader, caboose, meeting helper, snack helper, and a few others. Having a job helps to teach responsibility and accountability, but also fosters confidence and developing a sense of self and purpose.”

Communication is also a central component of the leadership lessons. Children initiating play are encouraged to use language like “What’s your plan?” and “Tell me about your work.” When they want peers to change course, they are taught to make suggestions like “I have a different idea.”

“Successfully negotiating conflict is hard work but is essential for young learners,” Agro said. “When children can do this

on their own, it helps to build strong problem-solving skills and trust while building meaningful relationships with their teachers and peers.”

Students take on more responsibilities as they ascend through the Lower School. In Grades 2 and 3, students are assigned the role of helper for the day.

“Having a job helps to teach responsibility and accountability, but also fosters confidence and developing a sense of self and purpose.”

—Jennifer Agro, PreK teacher “They are responsible for choosing a greeting for the morning meeting,” Grade 2 teacher Emily Decker said, adding that the meeting leaders lead phonics lessons, pick up cafeteria snacks and help serve them, pass out papers, and deliver messages to the office throughout the day.

These helper-for-the-day roles continue through Grade 3.

“Students take this role very seriously; they love doing it,” Grade 3 teacher Samantha Clark said. “The selected child will help me all day, whether it’s delivering something to another classroom, leading a spelling dictation, or being the buddy for a visiting child from another school.”

By the time students reach Grades 4 and 5, they have a strong foundation in leadership, communication, and collaboration,

and are ready to step into the stewardship role that comes naturally with being the oldest students in the Lower School.

In 2023, the Advocacy Cafe was added to the Grade 5 curriculum. This program challenges students to select a topic of personal interest and work for weeks researching, sourcing, and developing speeches that they present to an audience at the cafe. Students step up to a lectern in front of parents, teachers, and peers and address topics such as climate change, cyberbullying, and gender equality.

“Some students have a hard time overcoming the fear of public speaking,” Scala said. “Creating a safe place for them to take such a risk helps them succeed, even if they make mistakes.”

They also realize their abilities to effect change through persuasive communication.

“The cafe presents the perfect time, place, and way to mess up, be nervous, and get extra support,” Scala said. “We tackle those real emotions of stage fright in the moment to show students that they really can do it.”

And slowly but surely, confidence grows.

“I feel like I might actually be able to make a change,” Panos Kouligkas ’30 said as he stepped away from the lectern, where he had made a case for a second four-square court in the lower school playground. Though the conversation continues, Panos started the dialogue, a central component in cultivating leadership at King.

Quest 2023-24 21

SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

R.E.A.D.Y. to Succeed:

Preparing for a Tech-Driven World

T

he more Ben Fineberg ’27 played baseball, the more he wondered what was special about the bats he liked. He decided to make one to see what went into the process. He enlisted performing arts teacher Mark Silence, a master in woodworking, for guidance. Ben researched various bat-making techniques, found an old Louisville Slugger, measured it, created drawings, found scrap wood, and set out to make a “test bat.”

With Silence guiding him, Ben practiced using table saws, band saws, and belt sanders. He learned to use hand tools, including a spokeshave and some carving tools. When he was ready to shape the wood, he used a lathe to make it round.

After the “test bat” was finished, Ben went back to the drawing board, this time using one of his favorite bats. With Silence, he decided to make the new bat with hard maple. The result was a “Ken Lewis-ville Slugger,” named for Ben’s mentor, King’s former baseball coach.

for eighth grade students that is designed to draw on skills developed throughout the lower and middle school years.

R.E.A.D.Y. was established when King School’s Computer Science, Engineering, and Innovation Department gathered with lower and middle school leadership to reflect on programs from Prekindergarten through Grade 8. They considered ways to intertwine technology, research competencies, and design thinking into the curriculum. The brainstorming session led to a curriculum overhaul that was aimed at preparing students to engage in an increasingly techdriven world.

Starting in the Lower School, students incrementally advance their research and technology skills. Their progress comes together in the R.E.A.D.Y. project, a semester-long independent study for Grade 8 students, directed by Sue Laramie, computer science and digital applications teacher.

“When I used the bat for the first time, it felt very similar to other wood bats I own,” said Ben, who is looking forward to using it next season.

Students embarking on the R.E.A.D.Y. project select a topic and harness the skills they’ve developed to research, use design thinking principles, and effectively communicate their discoveries.

Ben’s investigation was part of his Research, Experience, Action, Designed by You (R.E.A.D.Y.) project, a new program

“The big question is, ‘What interests you?’” said Laramie, adding that the goal of the project was for students to take

22 Quest 2023-24

ownership of their learning through inquiry, trial, and error. “As these are passion projects, the core criteria is that the topic is researchable, that there is something tangible produced, and the topic reflects something the student is curious about.”

The R.E.A.D.Y. projects were introduced in the 2022-23 school year. As Ben built a baseball bat, his classmates explored a variety of interests. Jimi Kulig ’27, Alex Burgoyne ’27, and Ollie Mansfield ’27 collaborated to make a horror film.

“They were all so different,” Laramie said, reflecting on the first year of R.E.A.D.Y. “It’s exciting because the students are thinking long-term about their projects.”

So much so that this year, the R.E.A.D.Y. program is expanding to two semesters, with students having the entire academic year for in-depth exploration, hands-on experiences, and active engagement with their chosen subjects, fostering a

R.E.A.D.Y. is a new program for eighth grade students that is designed to draw on skills developed throughout the lower and middle school years.

deeper understanding of various aspects of technology and innovation.

The support system has also grown. In addition to Laramie, Teacher Librarian Kim Klein and Innovation Lab Coordinator Mike Fischthal will offer guidance.

“With this added framework,” Laramie said, “the aspiration is to steer students toward more scholarly topics while ensuring their choices resonate with their passions and provide them with the mentorship and support needed for academic success.”

The R.E.A.D.Y. project prepares students to transition into the King Upper School, allowing them to develop robust research and problem-solving skills that will give them a competitive edge and enhance their future academic endeavors.

“One of the biggest takeaways from this project was realizing that it’s easier to do the short small steps than take the big steps that get it done faster,” Ben said. “The R.E.A.D.Y. project made me feel pretty good about entering the Upper School.

Now, I plan on taking a woodwork class next semester.”

Scan this QR code to see Ben Fineberg use his bat.

Quest 2023-24 23

SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

College Counseling

Starting Early With a Tailored Approach

F

inding the right college can be overwhelming, and the admissions process is complex and often timeconsuming. King School has worked for decades to create a college counseling program that aims to alleviate this pressure by offering ongoing, personalized support to students and their families.

While most schools begin exploring colleges in 10th or 11th grade, King’s College Counseling program begins in Grade 9 with a unique, four-year developmental approach that helps students discover and target the colleges most suitable to their interests and personalities.

“My King friends have all sorts of interests, and they are at all sorts of amazing schools, including New York University, Georgetown, and Harvard,” said Max Helman ’18, who attended Columbia University after graduating from King.

“I am just amazed by how King finds such perfect fits for everyone.”

The program includes a team of four counselors who develop relationships with students as soon as they enter the Upper School. By getting to know the students, they can draw on their expansive knowledge of colleges and universities both domestically and internationally to match students with the best fit.

“The college guidance process starts early at King,” Jenna Macrae ’19 said. “Teachers set high expectations for their students and create a plan to help you meet those

24 Quest 2023-24

expectations. Princeton was my dream, and they helped make that a reality and prepared me thoroughly to be challenged academically and athletically once I got there.”

“Our goal is to help students identify their unique talents and interests and then to match them with colleges that will help them flourish.”

—Jessica Landis, Director of College Counseling Students are paired with experienced counselors who guide them through the process. In the early years of Upper School, counselors help students reflect upon who they are and how best to explore their interests. As students grow, they are ready to connect what they have learned about themselves to colleges that best support their goals.

They continue working with their counselors to develop a list of potential colleges, write essays, and prepare for interviews. The program has helped many King students attend their top-choice colleges and universities.

“I started college counseling in ninth grade,” said Maeve Snover ’18, who went to Bucknell and worked with Director of College Counseling Jessica Landis during her time at King.

“Ms. Landis helped me find schools I was interested in,” she said, “and helped me throughout the application process to figure out what I wanted to talk about when I applied

to different schools. She also helped make sure that my application was up to par and that it showed who I was.”

Another strength of the program is its emphasis on building relationships with students’ families.

Working with college counselors at the outset of high school is advantageous because it allows students to plan high school courses with an objective in mind. Counselors help students identify their academic strengths and guide their curricular choices, finding opportunities for engagement, and developing standardized testing strategies.

“We take the time to get to know each student so we can best understand their needs and goals,” Landis said. “We also work closely with parents so they can be supportive partners in the college counseling process.”

The college counseling support extends to student-athletes.

In addition to their counselor, students also benefit from the Athletics program’s strong connections to college coaches and train in the school’s state-of-the-art athletic facilities.

The school hosts an annual College Athletics Night, facilitating direct interactions between students and college coaches. Students work with their counselors and coaches to create personalized recruiting plans.

“Our students consistently succeed in the college admissions process because they are well prepared and have strong support from our counselors and their families,” Landis said.

This commitment is reflected in the school's impressive track record, as numerous King graduates successfully join college and university athletic teams. The counseling program is a valuable resource for students aspiring to play sports at the collegiate level.

“Our goal is to help students identify their unique talents and interests and then to match them with colleges that will help them flourish,” Landis said. “We believe every student has something special to offer, and we want to help them find the place where they can best thrive.”

FROM THE COUNSELORS JULIA NACLERIO

“I always encourage students to be openminded and curious. There are so many great schools for them to consider, and the number of virtual tours available makes it easy for students to explore their options.”

The approach is working. In recent years, a range of outstanding colleges have accepted King students.

Over four years, the counselors form deep connections.

“My college counselor was one of the most valuable advising resources I had at King,” Helman said. “In addition to my actual advisor, my college counselor was a key part of what I like to call ‘the circle of support,’ which is made up of my teachers and my peers.”

Taking the pressure off students early in the process sets them up to thrive and succeed in high school and leaves them poised to make a college decision with thoughtful and reflective care.

As Helman concluded, “Coming to King was the best decision I ever made, and it completely changed my life.”

EMILY PRINCE

“When I meet with students for the first time, I always talk to them about ‘doing high school well.’ I encourage them to explore every opportunity in front of them here at King.”

DAVID VOLAIN

“I appreciate the ways in which our College Counseling program allows us to get to know students earlier in Upper School. By the time we’re discussing an initial college list in Grade 11, we’re past the ‘get to know you’ stage and can help students to consider options that align with their individual goals.”

Director of College Counseling Jessica Landis meeting with students.

Quest 2023-24 25

SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

Adventures in Edinburgh:

A Story of Transformation

L

ast summer, nearly 400 years after Cinderella first charmed audiences, Isabella Kolenberg ’25 stepped into the heroine’s glass slippers and joined 11 fellow King School thespians to stage a musical version of the fairy tale at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Like Cinderella’s night at the ball, the two-week trip was a transformative experience for the students.

After each show, children wishing to meet the fairy tale characters surrounded the cast members.

“Every day we performed, the audience was filled with little kids dressed up as Cinderella,” Isabella said. “To see that we had inspired these kids and that we were such a positive influence was amazing. This is exactly why I love theater.”

This is the Performing Arts program’s third appearance in the festival, and the trip fulfills a dual purpose: to deepen students’ practice as theater artists by performing in a new venue in front of an unfamiliar audience and to broaden their understanding of themselves as citizens of an international creative community. Every production of “Cinderella” was sold out, and the close interaction students had with the audience deepened the entire experience.

“Language itself is a gateway into the culture,” performing arts teacher Mark Silence said. “Just hearing the accents will enhance future productions.” He added, “The festival is a challenging but rewarding experience for students. It is a chance for them to learn and grow as artists and individuals.”

26 Quest 2023-24

Students are responsible for more than the performance at the festival. They must promote and sustain their show while navigating a different culture. They network with other students from around the world and watch them perform, adding another dimension to the adventure.

“Being able to immerse myself in these new forms of performance was extremely eye-opening,” Hathaway Liparidis ’26 said. “We were able to relate to other high school actors who were as passionate about the performing arts as we were.

Watching their performances helped us to understand and compare our own acting choices and performances.”

“We came across different people with different backgrounds. It changed my perspective.”

—Bruno Reinhoefer Ribeiro ’26 Though theater is the soul of what draws the students to Edinburgh, they take advantage of the city and its proximity to London.

“The students are constantly learning and experiencing so much,” Silence said. “There’s the art, music, culture, and the environment. Just being in Europe would be worthy of a trip, but when you add all of the theater events and cultural discoveries, you can’t avoid having a unique and enriching time.”

The trip fosters responsibility and independence as well.

“Being in a new country opened my mind to how much diversity is spread around the world,” Bruno Reinhoefer Ribeiro ’26 said. “Especially in the festival but also in London, we came across different people with different backgrounds.

It changed my perspective.”

The festival also offered intensive workshops. Students honed their comic timing with an improvisational music group called Baby Wants Candy and practiced taking theatrical risks with actors from the Tectonic Theatre Project. In London, they studied with professional actors at the iconic theater Shakespeare’s Globe and toured the National Theatre.

“At the Globe, we worked with a professional actor and explored the differences of class and how to add to a character based on their rank,” Hathaway said. “Then we watched professionals perform ‘The Crucible’ on the West End, which solidified the lessons we learned in the workshops.”

With each trip, Silence finds new ways to enhance the learning experience. He looks forward to the next trip with an eye on further building confidence, cultivating talent, and broadening perspectives.

“The students started the trip feeling like tourists, but they gradually realized that they were artists themselves,” Silence said. “They faced the same challenges, won over the same audiences, and got the same ovations as all of the other performers with whom they collaborated.”

For the cast, the Fringe Festival was Cinderella’s ball, and they were changed by the journey.

“Seeing all of the talent on display and experiencing it in a different country was incredible,” Isabella said, adding that playing to an audience of little Cinderellas was like her own fairy tale. “These moments really did feel magical.”

Silence also benefited from watching the other teachers.

“Having new voices and ideas widens the students’ scope of understanding and experience,” Silence said. “It also helps me to devise new approaches when I see how they respond to a variety of teaching styles.”

Beyond the formal classes, the spaces themselves, including the structure of Edinburgh, left an impression.

“We saw things that don’t really exist in the U.S.,” Bruno said, noting the Scottish capital’s division between the medieval fortresses of the Old Town and the neoclassical designs of the New Town. “It was interesting to see a modern city that has maintained so much of its history.”

Hathaway noted the Scottish traditions, including the food.

“Scotland is known for its haggis and black pudding, which a lot of us were brave enough to try,” she said. “It was really interesting to see how the city is built on tradition and community. All around Edinburgh, you can find kilts and bagpipes, and some of the King students bought them and took Celtic dancing class.”

Quest 2023-24 27

SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

UPPER SCHOOL

Certificates of Distinction:

A Path to Deeper Learning

A

t King, each student possesses a unique set of interests and questions about the world. For Wafa Nomani ’21, it was a desire to understand the medications her grandparents were taking. Bryce Heaton ’23 sought to deconstruct the essence of leadership. Luisa Simon ’23 and Ava Gillespie ’23 were curious about the functionality of wind turbines, and Alexandra Oxenstierna ’23 wondered if art could serve as a tool to overcome obstacles.

King’s Certificates of Distinction program empowers students to explore an array of intellectual topics, reflecting the diversity of their passions and curiosities.

From medicine and wind energy to leadership and Surrealism, students take what they have learned in the classroom and apply it to extensive independent research. The result is a wealth of knowledge, enhanced confidence, and refined skills, preparing students for the next stage of their academic journey and the broader world.

Analogous to undergraduate study, King’s graduation requirements comprise a sort of “major” in the liberal arts and sciences. The requirements for each Certificate of Distinction include an additional, focused “minor,” providing a tailored academic experience. This elective program is designed for students who, by Grade 10, crave an in-depth study in a specialized area beyond the broader graduation prerequisites.

Religions or Topics in Global Studies—are open to all students as all our students benefit from the wonderful opportunities these types of courses offer.”

In addition to the opportunity to present capstone projects or portfolios to the community, students who complete diploma distinctions are honored at Prize Day and are identifiable to everyone at commencement by the gold cords they wear over their gowns.

In the following stories of distinction journeys, Nomani steps into a science lab, Heaton deconstructs leadership, Simon and Gillespie collaborate to explore wind energy globally, and Oxenstierna finds freedom in art. Their work embodies the spirit of curiosity and academic excellence that defines King School.

Note: The Performing Arts Distinction is in its inaugural year.

The distinction offers students a comprehensive exploration of performing arts, including instrumental and choral music, theater, theater direction, and production. For students interested in pursuing music or theater in college, the distinction includes guidance in navigating the application processes prevalent in those fields.

“The program follows directly from our belief that adolescents can best develop robust academic skills in the context of a rich curriculum that is flexible and allows for choice,” Head of Upper School Marnie Sadlowsky said.

The Certificates of Distinction program offers six tracks: Global Studies, World Languages, Leadership, STEM, Performing Arts, and Art and Design. Each has its own requirements.

Students seeking a path to distinction declare their interest during the academic course selection process, guided by their advisor, the academic dean, program directors, and teachers, who supervise these diploma distinctions.

“It’s worth noting,” Sadlowsky said, “that some of our required courses for our distinctions—like Leadership Theory or World

28 Quest 2023-24

Class of 2023 valedictorian Ben Persily at Commencement wearing the gold cord signifying his Certificate of Distinction. Persily earned a STEM distinction for his research on gene editing at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center's Stem Cell Facility.

CERTIFICATE OF DISTINCTION IN ART AND DESIGN Alexandra Oxenstierna ’23 Advisor: Ran LaPolla, Art and Design Faculty Students aiming for the Art and Design Distinction undertake rigorous coursework, engage in club activities, and pursue art learning during summers and beyond. They showcase their artistic vision through meaningful capstone projects, considering their societal role and addressing universal themes with originality and relevance.

W

hen Alexandra Oxenstierna entered the Upper School, she sought a path in the sciences and took art classes to balance the workload. She fell in love with art and, by the end of her sophomore year, decided to pursue the Art and Design Distinction.

Working with art teacher Ran LaPolla, Oxenstierna created an accelerated plan to help her cover the necessary material.

She served as an assistant art teacher in the Lower School and increased her time in the studio, where she discovered that charcoal and oil were her favorite mediums.

To earn the Art and Design Distinction, Oxenstierna had to present her work at the Advanced Art Colloquium. Rather than focus on ways the work reflected her insights and growth, she challenged viewers to connect and discover their own perspectives.

“I wanted the art to tell a story of the transformation that happens when facing an obstacle and overcoming it,” Oxenstierna said.

Drawing from Surrealism, she aimed to create imagery that portrayed the human experience by combining rationality with dreams.

“I wanted viewers to step inside the experience and see themselves in my work,” she said. “My ability to share the art this way and let the viewers have their own experience with it was freeing.”

Oxenstierna credits LaPolla with helping her find the confidence to explore art at a deeper level and to present her work at the Colloquium.

“The environment Ms. LaPolla created allowed me to fully explore my artistic potential and discover an entirely new path to pursue in college,” she said.

Oxenstierna, who spent the summer after graduation studying figure painting and portraiture at the Barcelona Academy of Art in Spain, is now a freshman at the Iovine and Young Academy at the University of Southern California, exploring the intersection of art, business, and technology.

Alexandra Oxenstierna at work, and photos of her work.

Quest 2023-24 29

SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

CERTIFICATE OF DISTINCTION IN LEADERSHIP Bryce Heaton ’23 Advisor: Megan Yelton, Leadership Program Director To complete the Leadership Distinction, a student must demonstrate an understanding of leadership theory and meaningfully apply a strong skill set to coursework and leadership roles. Each certificate includes required courses, electives, club commitments, participation in trips and events, and a final capstone project.

C

urious about leadership theories, Bryce Heaton was drawn to the Leadership Distinction by his sister, Eliza ’20, who earned the same distinction at King.

The program allowed Heaton to take on leadership roles and apply the theories as he was learning them. He began to oversee clubs, guide student discussions, and practice public speaking, developing skills that would lead to his successful bid for student body president.

That ability to hone his leadership skills within the King community furthered his growth.

“I always felt supported,” he said. “As a result, when I led activities, I felt comfortable testing my skills. The teachers were always there for me.”

Of all the concepts Heaton learned, followership theory resonated with him. “The idea that followers and their inputs can be more important to success than leaders and their personal opinions gave me a new perspective,” he said.

“Recognizing that is critical for good leadership.”

At the end of senior year, he completed a capstone project through the mentorship program King Connects, which paired him with a King alumna. His mentor was Julie Sheetz KLHT’03, the Chief of Staff for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs in the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

Throughout his senior year they met monthly and discussed strategies for building his resume and leveraging his LinkedIn profile. Leadership was a central focus throughout their meetings. Sheetz advised Heaton in his leadership development in the Upper School, his decision to go to Duke University, and his future.

Currently, Heaton is in his first year at Duke, taking a wide range of courses in the arts and sciences. As he explores areas of study to pursue, he continues to draw on the leadership skills he learned through his distinction.

“Like King, Duke has numerous academic resource centers with student and faculty tutors that offer support in all academic fields,” Heaton said. “The camaraderie and energy on campus is infectious.”

30 Quest 2023-24

CERTIFICATE OF DISTINCTION IN STEM Wafa Nomani ’21 Advisor: Dr. Victoria Schulman, Director of Science Research The STEM Distinction allows students to develop their science, technology, engineering, and mathematics skills.

Students participate in research projects and internships, learning firsthand the skills used by today’s researchers and innovators, such as literature review, experimentation or project design, modeling, data analysis, and presentation of information.

W

hen she entered the Upper School, Wafa Nomani was set on earning a STEM Distinction, so she selected her courses guided by its requirements.

As a sophomore, inspired by her grandparents, she designed a project about two drugs used for diabetes and cholesterol.

Her work caught the attention of Director of Science and Research Dr. Victoria Schulman, who recruited Nomani to join the Advanced Science Program for Independent Research and Engineering (ASPIRE).

“When I got into research with Dr. Schulman, it was lifechanging,” Nomani said, adding that Schulman helped her connect with The Jan Grimm Lab in the Molecular Pharmacology Program at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.

At the lab, Nomani’s research focused on pancreatic cancer and how to deliver chemotherapy drugs in high concentrations without being excreted by the kidneys. Nomani and the team worked with different drugs in different concentrations and different conditions, ultimately finding a combination that worked. They had a lot of failures before they found success.

“It can be very hard to find the time to carry a full course load and learn what is necessary to contribute to the lab,” she said.

“Because I have that research experience, I have many more options and can explore avenues that interest me.”

Nomani is now conducting research in a clinical research lab focusing on fertility.

“Team members at a recent lab party kept bringing up how impressed they were with what I could contribute,” Nomani said, adding that the scientists noted how well she knew the experimental assays. “With every compliment, I thought of Dr. Schulman and how she pushed me and how she challenged me. I would not have been able to get as far on my own.”

Nomani is in her third year at New York University, where she is studying biology. She plans to pursue medical school.

“Failure can be devastating, but then you realize that this is a part of research,” said Nomani, who commuted to the lab five days a week in summer and two days when school was in session. “Not everything is going to work, and that is OK. Sometimes, you don’t answer your research question but make a discovery along the way, and you answer something else.”

Nomani credits Schulman with preparing ASPIRE students to thrive by placing them in the most prestigious labs and maintaining the highest expectations in the classroom.

“Dr. Schulman prepared me to be a researcher in ways that colleges don’t,” Nomani said, adding that Schulman has a detailed guidebook students are expected to use. “I want to emphasize how important it was that I knew how to analyze data, write reports, and create posters when I arrived at New York University.”

Once in college, Nomani realized the distinct advantage that came with her experience when peer students were learning from scratch.

Wafa Nomani at work: top, at the King lab, left, and preparing pancreatic cancer cells for a drug treatment at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC); above left and right, at the MSKCC lab; above, presenting research she conducted on roundworms in the King lab.

Quest 2023-24 31

SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

DUAL DISTINCTION CERTIFICATES IN GLOBAL STUDIES AND WORLD LANGUAGES Ava Gillespie ’23 and Luisa Simon ’23 Advisors: Laura Bowe, Director of Global Education, and Gilles Chosson, World Languages Faculty The Global Studies Distinction was King’s first diploma distinction, and World Languages followed immediately to meet the needs of students interested in incorporating languages into their global studies work.

The Global Studies Distinction helps students develop a deeper understanding of the world around them. Students in this track take world history, geography, and culture courses. They also study abroad and participate in service learning projects.

The World Languages Distinction offers students a chance to become proficient in multiple languages: Spanish, French, German, Chinese, or Japanese. Immersion programs and cultural exchanges are also options for students.

A

s sophomores, Ava Gillespie and Luisa Simon earned the Tom Main Fellowship to explore the question, “What is the scientific consensus on global climate change?” They set out to focus their research on the renewable energy of wind power. The global nature of their investigation led them to pursue a dual distinction in Global Studies and World Languages.

Starting with the pros and cons of wind energy, they intentionally worked to move past the political disputes related to climate change.

Simon focused offshore, while Gillespie focused onshore.

Gillespie visited an onshore turbine in Ohio, and Simon visited Long Island and Block Island to explore how communities are affected by offshore wind projects. Simon surveyed residents and tourists and interviewed climate activists, fishermen, scientists, climate change communicators, and more.

They also researched wind energy usage around the globe, finding great success with the technology in Belgium.

After finishing AP French, Simon had an independent study with Chosson, working as his teaching assistant. When not helping in the classroom, he guided her as she developed the class curriculum and lesson plans. She credits the experience with advancing her language skills exponentially.

“Working on this distinction allowed us to work closely with Dr. Chosson and Ms. Bowe, which was my most significant academic experience at King,” Simon said. “We traveled with them on the Global Studies trip to Denmark, Sweden, Finland, and Germany, and though this trip was separate from our project, they made sure we saw many wind turbines in use during our travels.”

After Simon and Gillespie delivered a King Talk about climate change, they presented a condensed version to the language faculty in French.

Simon and Gillespie are in their first year of college, Simon at New York University, and Gillespie at Colgate University.

“I had studied four years of French and two years of Spanish, and Ava studied Chinese and French,” Simon said, explaining how their World Language studies allowed them to dive deeper into their research. “We were able to use our language skills during our research and in conducting virtual interviews with a climate expert from Belgium.”

Their collaboration yielded an 80-page research paper.

“Together, we gained much more knowledge than we would have on our own,” Simon said. “When Ava and I discussed our research, we had very different information to share. Our interviews and conclusions were totally different, but as we put it together, we learned how complex this issue really is.”

Throughout their research, the team worked closely with Laura Bowe, Director of Global Education, and Dr. Gilles Chosson, World Languages Faculty.

32 Quest 2023-24

Luisa Simon and Ava Gillespie present their research.

Opposite: Simon conducting research at the Block Island Wind Farm, one of the first commercial offshore wind farm in the United States.

Quest 2023-24 33

SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

Schooling With Purpose Finding Meaning in Every Activity

T

he theme of this year is Living With Purpose, and the community came together to embrace it and learn about King’s mission to bring purpose and intentionality into every aspect of the student experience.

During the State of the School on October 5, Head of School Carol Maoz introduced seven students: Mason Stein ’30, Ricky Arango ’28, Theo Zhang ’28, Olivia Asnes ’25, Abby Block ’25, Kiran Rao ’25, and Liv King ’24.

They participated in a panel discussion

Parents and faculty socialize at the State of the School.

34 Quest 2023-24

about their King journey, which Maoz described as “the best part of the evening.” Here are some highlights from the discussion, which can be seen in its entirety on King’s website.

RICKY ARANGO ’28: Inspiring Harmony

OLIVIA ASNES ’25: Initiating Opportunities

Maoz: Ricky, how does King inspire you to seek purpose?

Ricky: I really find joy and my passion within music. It has made a huge impact on me. I want to talk about one of the main teachers and mentors in Project Music, Mr. Garrett Mendez, and how selfless he is to commit to Project Music, taking time out of his day to help and mentor students in music. He has helped many students find their passion, and I love how he goes out of his way to help everybody.

Maoz: Olivia, can you talk about the activities you are involved in, why you chose them, and in what ways they fill an important purpose?

Olivia: I can talk about Project Music, too. While Ricky plays the instrument in the band, I am more focused on tutoring the kids who are not playing the instrument at the time. I’m helping students with math and English. They are younger than me, and they don’t necessarily go to King, but I’m helping my community in that way and giving them the extra support that I’m able to receive from my teachers at King.

A student who also inspires me is Theo, right here (gesturing to fellow panelist Theo Zhang ’28). We are both in band together, pushing ourselves to strive and become better through our music. And I also want to mention another student, Kiran Vasisht ’28, who plays soccer with me. It is nice to see one of your friends accomplish something and be great at it, and it pushes you to be better at everything, and that is where I find my purpose.

Additionally, I am also the leader of the Women in Business Club, and I have been able to create a lot of different projects with my co-leaders. For example, we did a “Shark Tank” project where all of our members created a business idea or a business product and pitched it to the members of the club.

We had a little competition, and that was really engaging. My peers enjoyed participating in it and want us to bring it back this year.

Maoz: What is the purpose of this club? Why do we have a Women in Business Club at King?

Olivia: There are a lot of clubs at King revolving around business, like the Investment Club or the Marketing Club, and those are open to all different genders. However, in the business industry, I have found looking at the people in my life, a lot of them are men.

Providing a space for women to talk about business, a space specifically designed for them, is really helpful and something I am proud to be a part of.

Quest 2023-24 35

SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE

ABBY BLOCK ’25: Empowering Leadership

LIV KING ’24: Creating Change

KIRAN RAO ’25: Connecting Cultures

Maoz: Abby, you have said that you were shy when you entered King.

Now, you are a member of the Student Council and pursuing a Leadership Distinction. Can you talk about that change, about Student Council, about the Leadership Distinction, and about the environment that allows you to grow as a leader?

Abby: I came into King, and it never occurred to me how I could use my voice to make an impact or change things that needed to be changed in a positive way.

My freshman year, I ended up taking a public speaking class, which helped me realize that I could use my voice for positive change, and I ended up running for Student Council at the end of my freshman year. I had the honor of serving on Student Council for the past two years and making positive changes in the community, which translated into my Leadership Distinction, which I am taking classes for now that give me the purpose to lead others but also lead myself in a meaningful way. And it just allows me to use my voice positively.

Maoz: Liv, it’s fair to say you developed your love for art at King.

Now you feel very strongly about art, you are pursuing an Art Distinction, and you intend to continue your art studies in college. Can you talk about what drives you in this area, what matters to you, and how it gives you a sense of purpose?

Liv: My goal with my art is to spread a message and inspire people and have it be seen. That’s what drives me: the power that one person can have to effect change.

Maoz: Kiran has been involved with a program called the Global Citizens Initiative. This is a group that empowers young global citizens from all sectors of society and all over the world to be empathetic and lifelong leaders of positive change. Can you tell us about your experience as a GCI fellow this summer abroad and your project?

Kiran: The Global Citizens Initiative provides the opportunity for about 30 students to travel to a summit every year to be educated by great teachers and get the opportunity to meet people they would not ordinarily meet in their normal lives. This year, I traveled to Scotland. One of my favorite parts of this trip was the small conversations and how meaningful they were to me to learn about a student in China, what their daily life might be like, or what someone in Tunisia goes through when they go to school every day. That has been really rewarding. I’ve stayed in contact with these people, and that goes back to my purpose of serving others because I’m more mindful of what others might be going through in the different circumstances that affect everybody’s lives.

36 Quest 2023-24

Maoz: And can you talk a little about your teachers, one or more of your teachers, who have inspired you or helped you to find the purpose, and how they did it?

Liv: I have had many art teachers over the years at King; I have taken many art classes. There are so many to choose from, it is amazing. This year I am taking AP Art and Design with Ms. LaPolla, and she has been really inspiring to me.

She is always pushing me to take my ideas further and give my pieces deeper meaning. To reach down into my core, to who I am, and reflect myself through my art. That is really important to me.

MASON STEIN ’30: Advocating Conservation Maoz: In fifth grade, your teachers provided an opportunity for you to choose, research, and explore a topic that matters to you and has importance in our world. Can you tell us about this?

Mason: One of my passions in life is to make the world a better place environmentally and leave the world better than I found it. In fifth grade, we were given the opportunity to speak about our passions in something called the Advocacy Cafe. The Advocacy Cafe was where we researched a topic that we thought we needed to change. After we did our research on it, we wrote a speech and presented it to the parents. For me, I chose to do climate change, and I researched everything and anything I could find about climate change.

Maoz: In the same year, you had another opportunity to take your interest in environmental sustainability and use that knowledge and apply it to architecture. We know that architecture involves math, design thinking, and more. Can you talk about what that second project was in fifth grade?

Mason: In fifth grade, we had a math project, and we had to redesign the lower school PreK wing. We had to build it eco-friendly, with a certain amount of classrooms, easy bathroom access, and a front desk where they could check in. Some ideas that we had to put on the PreK wing were a green roof, which would keep you warm in the winter and cool in the summer; a wind turbine to generate wind energy; and solar panels to generate solar energy.

We researched a topic, built a model on graph paper, and then we put it into reallife measurements, and then we used a 3D app called SketchUp where we made our buildings come to life and made a real scale model with functions that we could use to redecorate and remake the PreK wing.

THEO ZHANG ’28: Applying Numbers Maoz: Theo, I understand you are a strong mathematician, and you find purpose in the way math is applied to everyday life. Can you expand on this?

Theo: Yes. So even on the drive here to this panel, you used math in traveling to King. Your GPS calculates the best route to get here and how much time it’s going to take. Even in this theater, the designer had to calculate the measurements to know how wide the aisle should be and make each of the chairs the same width. I just find it really cool that math can be applied to even the simplest of things.

Maoz: What does purpose mean to you?

Theo: For me, purpose means doing something with intention, and then using that intention helps you set a goal, big or small. Once you set a goal, you are motivated to keep setting more, either big or small goals, and it’s just a cycle that keeps doing what it’s doing.

“Purpose means doing something with intention, and then using that intention helps you set a goal, big or small.

Once you set a goal, you are motivated to keep setting more.”

—Theo Zhang ’28

Quest 2023-24 37

ATHLETICS

Viking Tenacity 2022-23

VARSITY BOYS BASKETBALL SEMIFINALS • BOYS GOLF 2ND PLACE FINISH • VARSITY GIRLS SOCCER WIN

T

he depth of King’s Athletics Department and the discipline of the student-athletes were reflected in the success of various varsity squads in the past year.

For the Varsity Boys Basketball Team, 2022-23 was the best season in program history. With a decade-high 17 wins, the team advanced to the FAA semifinals and was the top seed in the NEPSAC Class C tournament. The Boys Golf Team had its strongest season in years, with 12 wins and a second-place finish in the FAA tournament, while also setting individual and team low-score records. Charlotte Black ’23 led the Varsity Girls Soccer Team to wins over Class A Hopkins School and Class B Rye Country Day School and a tie with Class A Sacred Heart Greenwich. The Varsity Boys Lacrosse Team earned the

top seed in the Western Division of the New England McCoy Cup and finished second. The Varsity Boys Soccer Team defeated traditional Class A power Brunswick School in a thrilling game. The Volleyball, Softball, and Ice Hockey Teams won championship titles, and Anya Anderson ’25 and Peter Passaro ’23 collected medals for the Track and Field Team.

Enjoy close-ups of those wins throughout this section.

Varsity Boys Basketball, Boys Golf, Girls Soccer, Boys Lacrosse, and Boys Soccer during the 2022-23 season.

GOVERNING BODY AND LEAGUE AFFILIATIONS: UNDERSTANDING NEPSAC AND FAA King School is a member of the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) and, with an Upper School enrollment of 400, competes primarily in Class C tournaments for small schools. Despite this classification, King Girls Volleyball’s prowess compelled NEPSAC to move the team into Class B for midsize schools in 2019. Many King teams also compete in the Fairchester Athletic Association (FAA), which does not consider school size. King teams regularly compete for FAA championships against larger Class A and Class B schools. This context underlines the accomplishments of King’s successful teams.

Scan this QR code to see a comprehensive list of Viking championship titles.

A Season of Achievements

NS CLASS A AND CLASS B • VARSITY LACROSSE 2ND PLACE IN MCCOY CUP • VARSITY GIRLS VOLLEYBALL

Girls Volleyball King’s Varsity Girls Volleyball Team continues to demonstrate its prowess. The team finished the 2023 season with its tenth FAA Tournament title and tenth NEPSAC championship. With only one loss over the past two seasons, the team has earned back-to-back FAA tournament championships and NEPSAC Class B titles. Throughout both seasons, the competition was challenging, and the team repeatedly delivered peak performances under intense pressure. King Varsity Girls Volleyball has earned at least one championship for 11 consecutive seasons, excluding 2020, when the pandemic canceled the games.

2008, 2019-23 NEPSAC Class B Champions 2013, 2015-18 NEPSAC Class C Champions 2005, 2007-08, 2014-18, 2022-23 FAA Tournament Champions 2004-05, 2008, 2015-17, 2021-22 FAA RegularSeason Champions

Caroline Ellis ’25 Commits to Ole Miss Contributed by Jordan Rochelson

Caroline Ellis ’25 will play Division 1 volleyball at the University of Mississippi. The Rebels recruited Caroline as a junior, and she determined that Ole Miss was the right fit during an August visit to the campus in Oxford, Mississippi. Impressed by the camaraderie between players and the care demonstrated by the coaches, she made a verbal commitment while there

and plans to sign a National Letter of Intent next November.

Micah Hauben, Dean of Athletics, praises Caroline’s talent. “For Ole Miss to commit to her during the summer entering her junior year at King, it is clear she will be a dominant player in one of the top women's collegiate volleyball leagues in the country,” he said.

Quest 2023-24 39

ATHLETICS

Track and Field King’s Track and Field Team has piled up hardware. Vikings athletes collected seven gold and seven silver medals over the spring 2022 and spring 2023 seasons in the FAA and New England Prep School Track Association (NEPSTA) championships. Anya Anderson ’25 won multiple titles in the 100-meter and 200-meter sprints and one long jump title.

Senior captain Peter Passaro ’23 won a NEPSTA shot put title and was runner-up in the FAA. 2023 New England Division III Girls 200m Champion New England Division III Boys Shot Put Champion FAA Girls 100m Champion FAA Girls 200m Champion 2022 New England Division III Girls 100m Champion FAA Girls Long Jump Champion FAA Girls 100m Champion

Softball King’s Varsity Softball Team finished the season with a win over Canterbury to earn a share of the Western New England Class C championship. The Vikings scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth and got out of a bases-loaded jam in the top of the seventh to secure the title. The team’s four seniors, Tess Fredette, Ava Gillespie, Meredith Joo, and Izzy White, were spectacular in their final game.

2023 Western New England Champions 2022 Western New England Tournament Runners-Up 2022 FAA Tournament Runners-Up

40 Quest 2023-

Ice Hockey King’s Varsity Ice Hockey Team finished the 2022-23 season by defeating St. Luke’s School 6-2 to earn the FAA tournament championship in a packed Stamford Twin Rinks. The Vikings also claimed the FAA regular-season championship. It was the first time in program history that the team had won back-to-back regular-season and tournament titles. The Vikings won the 2022 tournament title game in overtime, also against St. Luke’s. The team’s success is a testament to Head Coach Guy Savage, the assistant coaches, and the players.

2021-22 and 2022-23 FAA Tournament Champions 2021-22 and 2022-23 FAA Regular-Season Champions

Golfing for a Cause Zach Munno ’24

King’s golf team co-captain Zach Munno earned the prestigious 2023 Presidents’ Leadership Award for demonstrating leadership, character, and community service. The United States Golf Association and the American Junior Golf Association (USGA-AJGA) awards the prize annually to two junior golfers.

In 2020, Zach created the Metro Cup, a fundraising golf event. He has since raised $250,000 for the Boys and Girls Club of Greenwich, The Bridge Foundation, Metropolitan PGA Junior Foundation, and the AJGA's Liberty National ACE Grant program.

“Zachary is an extraordinary leader,” USGA President Fred Perpall said.

“His dedication to the service of others inspires a bright future for the game of golf.”

A camera crew from the USGA-AJGA interviews Zach Munno about his fundraising efforts.

Quest

FACULTY

A Scholarly Journey

Learning to Travel and Traveling to Learn

E

arly in her teaching career Rachel Ackley backpacked through Vietnam, and it sparked a lifelong passion for learning and travel. She realized that exploring new cultures, landscapes, and perspectives enriched her understanding of the world.

and sense of social responsibility, and inspiring her students to become curious learners. “When I travel, I learn about different cultures, histories, and ways of life,” she said. “This knowledge helps me to better understand my students and to create more relevant and engaging lessons.”

“I believe that traveling is essential for teachers because it helps them to develop a global perspective,” said Ackley, who has taught history for 18 years, six at King.

Berlin, Germany, had long been on Ackley’s list of dream destinations. She hoped to visit and explore the role of historical memory as it relates to the city.

Since her Vietnam trip, travel has become integral to Ackley’s teaching practice, informing her history lessons

In 2022, she received The Patricia A. McDermott Faculty Summer Sabbatical Grant, King’s largest sabbatical grant and the highest honor it bestows on a

teacher. The award supports significant academic-related work to enhance professional development, and Ackley chose to conduct that work over eight days in Berlin during the summer of 2022.

Focusing on the city’s history and culture, she set out to study how it was possible to commemorate the past injustices of the Third Reich. Through the urban landscape of Berlin, she explored the theme of Catastrophe and Memory.

“My fundamental objective was to examine the ways in which individuals and the cultures in which they live have

Rachel Ackley photographed memorials while in Berlin. Left, the Stolpersteine, brass-topped stones engraved with the names and fates of Nazi victims.

They lay throughout Europe in front of victims' homes. Right, the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe.

42 Quest 2023-24

gone about making sense of events that would seem to defy comprehension,” Ackley said. “I wanted to use my time in Berlin to explore the diverse ways in which memories of catastrophic historical events in the 20th century have been passed on to subsequent generations.”

“I believe these projects have helped students become more critical thinkers and empathetic citizens,” Ackley said.

“My students were able to gain a deeper understanding of the impact of discrimination, both past and present.”

The second Berlin-inspired unit asks students to consider the extent to which ordinary Germans were responsible for the Holocaust. Students explore the motives and pressures that led some people to help and others to abandon their fellow human beings.

Immersed in historical sites, museums, and memorials, she met with local historians and activists, learning about the city’s role in the Holocaust and the Berlin-based efforts to rebuild and reconcile after World War II.

“Amid war and upheaval, a range of motivations—fear, greed, opportunity— led people to make choices that often had a deadly impact,” Ackley said. “I wanted to design a question regarding complicity that can help us think about our own choices today.”

“Berlin has been at the center of, arguably, the three biggest conflicts of the 20th century, and the evidence is everywhere,” Ackley said. “From the fragments of the Berlin Wall to the remnants of Allied bombs, you can reach out and touch the evidence of all those books you read in high school, college, and graduate studies.”

Ackley is excited to share with her students the knowledge and insights she gained from her sabbatical. She is just as committed to encouraging students to head out on their own adventures, ask questions, and let the travel change them.

Ackley’s trip to Germany inspired her to add two projects to the Grade 10 World History curriculum.

The first is a study of the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. Students discuss the debate over whether the United States should have participated, the Nazi regime’s use of the Olympics to promote its ideology, and the experiences of African American athletes like Jesse Owens in the context of the Jim Crow era.

“Get off your phone,” she said. “Get off your sofa. Grab a backpack and go get lost.”

Rachel Ackley at Checkpoint Charlie, the border crossing between East Berlin and West Berlin during the Cold War.

“My fundamental objective was to examine the ways in which individuals and the cultures in which they live have gone about making sense of events that would seem to defy comprehension.”

—Rachel Ackley

Quest 2023-24 43

FACULTY

Patrick, Caroline, Molly, and Ellen Eagleton at a King family picnic in 2006, Molly, Ellen, Caroline, Patrick, and Grace Eagleton at Caroline’s graduation from King in 2019. when Molly was in Grade 2 and Caroline was in PreK.

A Tradition in Teaching T he Eagleton family is part of King School’s DNA. Collectively, they have 85 years at the school.

Grade 3 teacher Ellen Eagleton has been a faculty member for 32 years. Her three children—Molly ’16, Caroline ’19, and Grace ’24—arrived at King’s faculty day care before their first birthdays. This year, Molly is bringing new meaning to the term “lifer” as she returns to campus to follow in her mother’s footsteps as a lower school teacher.

“My mom is the main reason I became a teacher,” Molly said. “Her dedication to her students and her craft is something I am in awe of every day. I look to her for

Molly Eagleton with a PreK classmate in 2003.

44 Quest 2023-24

guidance, support, and ideas because she has spent so many years in the field and has found ways to grow and evolve over the years.”

For Molly, it is especially helpful to have her mother as a mentor. For Ellen, it is emotional.

at Goucher College, she was in constant contact with her mother, asking for her insights on lesson plan development, teaching as a practice, and problemsolving.

“Our family is very excited to have Molly working at King,” Ellen said. “I feel honored to have the opportunity to watch her grow as an educator and see her learn from so many of my amazing colleagues.”

“I became a teacher because of the teachers I had at King,” she said. “My teachers always took the time to make sure I felt supported and was set up for success. I knew from a young age that I wanted to help other children feel supported and that their classroom was a place that fostered their growth both as learners and people.”

Returning to King was always part of Molly’s plan. As she studied education

She described her return to campus as a Kindergarten teacher as “surreal.”

As a first grade student, Molly lit the menorah during the King winter holiday concert in 2005.

Molly and Natalie Wind ’16 in Grade 3 on Halloween in 2007.

Ellen and Molly Eagleton at a family event in 2022.

“It was an indescribable feeling of time passing but also picking back up where I had left off,” she said. “When I arrived as a teacher, it was such a warm and welcoming experience. I felt like I had come back home.”

Every nook of the campus harbors a personal connection for Molly, who can associate a space with every stage of her formative life.

“Spending 18 years of my life here, and going through all my milestones in these walls, helped me define who I am and who I wanted to be,” she said. “I have a unique perspective of knowing exactly how my students feel while sitting in what was my Kindergarten classroom all those years ago.”

Despite the familiarity, former teachers are now her peers, and Molly is finding it hard to transition to first-name interactions.

“Every teacher I had over my time at King inspired me in one way or another,

“Spending 18 years of my life here…helped me define who I am and who I wanted to be.”

–Molly Eagleton both as a person and a teacher,” she said, adding that upper school math teacher Bill Wallace was particularly resonant.

“He taught me the importance of taking the time to know who your students are as learners and as people,” Molly said.

“He took the time to understand what I was interested in and what motivated me as a learner. I will never forget the difference he made in my life and the love of learning he instilled in me.”

But her mother still has the most influence.

“The genuine joy I see in someone’s face when they say to me, ‘Your mom taught me!’ is reflective of her incredible teaching abilities,” Molly said. “To be able to work with my mom every day is a gift that I will never take for granted. I am excited to continue learning from her and seeing firsthand the difference she continues to make in her students’ lives.”

Molly’s success as a teacher reinforces what her mother knew about the King education.

“Her life at King helped develop the skills that have prepared her to reach her full potential,” Ellen said, recognizing Head of School Carol Maoz and Head of Lower School Sandy Lizaire-Duff. “I feel very grateful to King, and especially to Sandy and Carol, for giving Molly the opportunity to join the King family as a faculty member.”

Quest 2023-24 45

ALUMNI PROFILES BY DECADE

1960s

Serendipitous Sisterhood

A Low-Heywood Bond

A

spark of recognition drew Ellen Dyer Thornton LH’62 and Camilla Brownson Kenny LH’65 together. Their parallel interests were impossible to miss. Books consume them. Nature confounds them. Service is a central purpose of their lives. They both volunteer at St. Paul’s by the Sea Episcopal Church in Jacksonville, Florida, their hometown. These commonalities fueled casual banter for more than a year. Then one day, their small talk turned to Connecticut. They began with Shelton, where they both had family. The discussion traveled south along the Gold Coast, their stories intersecting along the way.

Their voices rose with each discovery.

By the time they reached Stamford, the pitch was pretty high. Then came the pièce de résistance: They both went to Low-Heywood School. Their jaws dropped in a dramatic pause before their conversation crescendoed.

Thornton said she graduated in 1962, and Kenny in 1965, meaning they had overlapped for one year. They erupted in delight that echoed throughout their beloved church.

“We were so happy,” Kenny said. “It was early in the morning, and we were quite loud, screaming and dancing.”

“It was just so stunning,” Thornton added. “We traded stories about our time there, remembering different teachers, especially Mrs. Cesare,” she said, referring to Sue Cesare LH’48, who taught ethics and physical education at the time before becoming Head of School.

The women have forged a deep connection through their shared past.

46 Quest 2023-24

Their conversations have solidified just how formative Low-Heywood was in their lives. Their mutual teachers and the lessons they learned had a profound effect on both of them, evidenced by the decisions they made.

During her junior year, Thornton participated in American Field Service, an international youth exchange organization, and was selected to go to Japan for the summer. She stayed with a family on Shikoku, an island south of Honshu, Japan’s largest island. Her host owned a newspaper and, though Thornton did not speak Japanese, newspapers and Asian culture later became central to her life.

The trip, coupled with world religion classes taught by Cesare, kindled Thornton’s interest in Daoism, Shintoism, and Hinduism. With encouragement from teacher and Low-Heywood Headmistress Ann Ayers Herrick, Thornton studied art and immersed herself in Asian culture at Mills College, now a California campus of Northeastern University.

“When I look back, it was Low-Heywood that made all the difference in my life,” she said. “My trip to Japan influenced my appreciation for people from

different backgrounds and cultures. I learned how different we can all be and how wonderful it is that there is such a varied world that we can all appreciate and that we can all learn from one another. Low-Heywood shaped those kinds of attitudes, and they benefited me. They have made me a happier, more open person.”

After secretarial jobs at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts and Newsweek magazine, Thornton was hired as a reporter for a newspaper south of Boston. She loved the news business and went on to earn a Gannett journalism fellowship at the University of Hawaii, where she studied Japanese and traveled to China. She also met her husband, Brian Thornton, a journalist and surfer, in Hawaii.

Thornton’s career spanned the globe.

She was an on-air reporter for a television station in Hong Kong but found print to be her passion. She worked as a reporter at The Wichita Eagle in Kansas; The Patriot Ledger in Quincy, Massachusetts; and the Honolulu Star-Bulletin on Maui in Hawaii.

The Thorntons moved to Jacksonville in 2007, and she started writing fiction.

She has published two award-winning novels, “Touch the Dead” and “The Girl Who Swam to Atlantis,” the latter of which Kenny is reading with friends in The Beaches Book Club.

Like Thornton, Kenny traces her career back to Stamford. Though it seemed insignificant at the time, one summer in the early 1960s, King School was relocating. Kenny, whose brother attended King, helped Jean Steel, a volunteer mother, organize the library

Ellen Dyer Thornton LH’62 Camilla Brownson Kenny LH’65 Camilla Kenny and Ellen Thornton in 2023. Inset: Kenny in December 1964 and Thornton's novels. Opposite: Thornton and two of her teachers in Japan reading a fortune at the annual Tanabata Festival in July 1961.

at the new site. It took some time, but Kenny eventually found her calling in libraries.

First she earned a degree in psychology with minors in French and biology from Hood College in Maryland, then she took a job at a Baltimore library.

Inspired by Low-Heywood librarian Beatrice Brinker, Kenny entered the same library science program Brinker had completed at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland.

After graduating, she was a children’s librarian at Cuyahoga County Public Library until her husband, Peter Kenny, was transferred to New Jersey.

In 1981, the family moved to Jacksonville. Kenny began working as a school librarian, fueled by her passion for helping children learn and grow, and by the belief that libraries are essential to a well-rounded education.

“Access to books is so important,” she said. “How else can you gain an understanding for what goes on in other people’s lives and how they think and how you are different unless you read books?”

Kenny underlined the importance of her close relationships with Low-Heywood teachers in the classroom and in the many extracurricular programs available to her. She was able to cultivate a wide range of interests by joining the service, art, debate, and glee clubs, which left her with an expansive intellectual foundation.

“The school was extremely formative,” she said. “Just look at the class sizes.

High schools now have thousands of students. How can you get the attention you need? Since its founding, King School has maintained that teacherstudent ratio, which is so important to setting kids up for success.”

The school’s influence continues in the growing friendship between Kenny and Thornton. At St. Paul’s, Kenny sings in the choir, and Thornton is a lector.

Kenny uses the Dewey Decimal system to organize the church library, and Thornton volunteers as the receptionist.

Their paths cross almost daily.

“We are close and growing closer,” said Kenny, who is looking forward to having Thornton speak to her book club. “I just really enjoy her company. It is amazing that we have so much in common.”

Thornton agreed, saying: “I see her, and I just feel really good. We have similar interests, and I think those were cultivated at Low-Heywood. The girls I went to school with were wonderful.

I look back and think, ‘Wow, they were just miracles, every one of them.’”

Quest 2023-24 47

ALUMNI PROFILES BY DECADE

1970s

Summer of Love

Meets Law and Order

W

hen Rick Sarner K’73 arrived at King for his first day in sixth grade, it was the 1967 “Summer of Love.” As he donned the burgundy blazer uniform with hair trimmed above the collar, Timothy Leary was advising people to “turn on, tune in, drop out.” Aretha Franklin was demanding “Respect.” John Lennon graced the cover of Rolling Stone’s first issue, and Mrs. Robinson was causing controversy.

Slowly, the aesthetic of the culture infused the King campus, and by the time Sarner graduated from Middle School, the boys were sporting shaggy mop tops and frayed bell bottoms.

By ninth grade, the Low-Heywood girls had moved in next door, and the schools began sharing curricula. Low-Heywood offered King students theater for the first time, and King augmented the math and science options available to Low-Heywood. Sarner joined a group of students from both schools to publish a paper called The Joint.

“It was a great time to grow up,” said Sarner, a former trustee and the second of three generations in his family to attend one of King’s founding schools.

“Everyone had long hair and bell bottom pants by the time I graduated.

If you saw a student from behind, you couldn’t tell if they went to LowHeywood or King. But regardless of how we looked outwardly, the focus was always on getting a good education.”

The counterculture revolution and the liberal arts education had a lasting impact on Sarner, who straddled conformity and autonomy in carving a career path according to his own rules.

48 Quest 2023-24

“I was always a generalist,” he said, adding that his curiosity about a wide range of topics drove his course selection when he entered Dartmouth College. “I majored in geography, which in college is less about countries and their capitals and more about exploring the impact of location on the development of different societies and countries. It provided me with the balance and diversity I was looking for.”

At Dartmouth, he took a course in environmental law taught by an assistant attorney general in Vermont.

“I found it fascinating,” he said. “I loved the Socratic method. I was drawn to law because it could be applied in many different ways.” He graduated from Dartmouth with a major in geography and environmental studies and headed to Hofstra University to study law.

After Hofstra, he joined hundreds of lawyers in one of Manhattan’s bestknown firms, Shea & Gould. Though he had his sights on trial work, he used his career to explore different paths within the profession. For two years, he honed his litigation skills at the firm before moving to the smaller D’Amato & Lynch, joining a team of 75 attorneys and focusing on legal malpractice defense.

“Legal malpractice defense work was very interesting because I was looking at the ‘case within the case’ to determine whether the lawyer had committed malpractice,” Sarner said. “To answer the question, I had to learn that practice area.”

As his skills grew in range, he was attracted to smaller firms. He joined Lowenthal Landau Fischer & Ziegler, where he worked in commercial

Rick Sarner K’73

litigation for the next six years. While at the firm, he married Sharyn Frank. As their family grew, the couple moved to Connecticut.

“It didn’t take long before I was over the commute,” said Sarner, who wanted the freedom to manage his time. “I decided to hang out a shingle and start my own practice. I never thought I had it in me to be a solo practitioner, but once I did it, I realized I was extremely well suited to it.”

As a KLHT parent, Sarner joined the Board of Trustees and brought his expertise to help the Development Office create its first planned giving initiative.

After being immersed in the decadence of 1980s Manhattan, Sarner opened his office in Stamford in 1991 and built a practice focused on trusts and estates for the next 27 years.

During that time, King, then King & LowHeywood Thomas School, returned to the fore. Sarner’s father, George Sarner K’49, was the first generation to go to King, followed by Sarner and his sister, Gail Sarner LH’75. In the ’90s, Sarner’s children, Bryan KLHT’07 and Lauren KLHT’10, became the third generation to attend the school. Now a grandfather, Sarner hopes for a fourth.

As a KLHT parent, Sarner joined the Board of Trustees and brought his expertise to help the Development Office create its first planned giving initiative. Throughout his board tenure, he chaired the Trusteeship Committee and the Buildings and Grounds Committee and its subcommittee, which

developed the school’s first master plan.

“I live eight minutes from the school and drive past it on my way to and from work every day,” he said. “I have watched the campus grow and the athletic fields spread across it. It’s amazing how the school has grown.”

Five years ago, Sarner was approached by a partner at Zeldes, Needle & Cooper.

The firm, based in Bridgeport, was looking to expand its Stamford office and build its estate planning services.

After so many years on his own, Sarner was excited to collaborate again.

“At this point in my life, I enjoy being part of a team,” he said. Sarner also keeps in touch with his King classmates through a Facebook group of 1970s alumni from King, Low-Heywood, and Thomas Schools, and he helped organize his 50th class reunion in October.

Through years of change, the counterculture still echoes in Sarner’s love of music. An avid musician, he has less time than he would like to riff on his guitar, but rock ’n’ roll is always playing.

“I still listen to lots of music,” he said.

“My superpower is that I often win trivia contests if the subject relates to rock music from the ’60s through the ’90s. I also love running, as I find it to be a great stress-reducer. And when combined with music, running feels like dancing.”

The Sarner family: Lauren KLHT’10, Sharyn, Bryan KLHT’07, Rick K’73, and George K’49 at Bryan’s wedding in July.

Quest 2023-24 49

ALUMNI PROFILES BY DECADE

1980s

Creating Spaces

Bridging Art, History, and Access

I

n 2003, for the first time in its 62year history, the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., featured an African-American artist in a solo retrospective, “The Art of Romare Bearden.” It was considered the most comprehensive display of Bearden’s work to that date.

A central component of the exhibition was a film by Liz Laitman Hughes LHT’88 about the artist, his influences, and his process. Actors Danny Glover and Morgan Freeman and jazz musician Wynton Marsalis lent their voices to the film.

“That was the second film I made, and it is the one I am most proud of,” said Hughes, who produced 22 documentary films for the gallery over the next 16 years, a period she calls her golden age because she loved it so much. “Here you have an important artist who finally gets a place in the canon of art history, and

I was part of shaping the exhibit. It was incredible.”

A 12-minute version of the Bearden film was shown continuously in the exhibition; a 30-minute version was screened in a large auditorium. The project drew Hughes into the Harlem Renaissance and the people, artists, and music of 1920s New York City reflected in Bearden’s collages.

“Looking at the art, adding sound and images for context, and integrating all of it elevated the exhibit’s impact,” said Hughes, noting that Marsalis was interviewed for the film because he collects Bearden, who was heavily influenced by jazz. “Wynton’s reflections on the art allowed visitors to see the rhythms in Bearden’s painting in a way that made the art more accessible.”

For nearly 30 years, Hughes has worked in museums inside the Capital

Beltway, including the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Newseum before its closing in 2019.

The many exhibits explored such topics as the 1936 Olympics in Berlin under Adolf Hitler's Nazi dictatorship, the falsification of photographs in Joseph Stalin’s Soviet Union, Sergei Diaghilev and the founding of the Ballets Russes, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Montmartre in Paris.

Hughes lives with her husband and 14-year-old son among the 74 museums inside the beltway, but she traces her path into art back to Low-Heywood Thomas. She arrived in Grade 5 and graduated with the last all-girls class before the school merged with King School to become King & Low-Heywood Thomas School.

“It was very good feminist training,” said Hughes, who appreciates the benefits that come from an education steeped in the arts. “At Low-Heywood Thomas, we had a chance to read many female authors and learn about history from different perspectives. I was reading Maya Angelou among many women authors that were not part of the average curriculum at the time.”

As a senior in the Upper School, a for-credit internship at Silvermine Arts Center in New Canaan proved pivotal.

Her work on an exhibition of local artists began her career in galleries.

Hughes had another inspiring internship while studying art history at Skidmore College. This one was at Sotheby's, where she was exposed to the world of commercial art. The affluent art market resonated with her.

A still from “The Art of Romare Bearden,” the film Liz Hughes produced for the National Gallery of Art. Opposite, Hughes photographed in the National Gallery.

50 Quest 2023-24

Liz Laitman Hughes LHT’88

“I remember questioning why all of this great art was not in museums,” she said, adding that she discussed the topic at length with her father, an estate attorney. “He knew the cycle of wealthy people buying art and lending it to museums. A lot of that art never makes it to the museum. That was my first foray into art for the people, and to this day, that is my passion.”

In 2021, Hughes joined the Smithsonian Institution, where she now serves as project manager for “Our Shared Future: Reckoning with Our Racial Past,” a pan-institutional initiative exploring the history of racism and building pathways toward a more equitable future.

“Museums have a duty to tell difficult stories and to consider history we

haven't reckoned with,” said Hughes, adding that the initiative seeks to explore systemic racism and examine areas where it is most identifiable, thereby making change possible.

“The Smithsonian represents all of America,” she said. “We want to make sure that people who are not able to travel to Washington are still able to benefit from our programs.”

She travels to assist museums within and outside the Smithsonian with their programs.

As Hughes works on the Smithsonian’s multiyear initiative, she hopes to continually increase access to art and learning.

“It has been exciting,” she said, “to investigate how the Smithsonian can support other organizations so that they can create spaces for their audiences to look at past problems and go forward thinking about how they might improve upon things.”

Hughes said the Smithsonian is intentional in its effort to increase access to its art by lending artifacts and exhibitions to affiliates.

“My mother taught me to do everything and read everything,” she said. “She inspired me to be a lifelong learner, and I am trying to be that influence for my own son. I hope through my work I am also creating opportunities for communities throughout the country.”

“At Low-Heywood Thomas, we had a chance to read many female authors and learn about history from different perspectives.”

—Liz Laitman Hughes LHT’88

Quest 2023-24 51

ALUMNI PROFILES BY DECADE

1990s

Perseverance in Education Brings

Entrepreneurial Success

M

arc Hoffman KLHT’95 traces his success as an education entrepreneur to eighth grade.

He was nervous about entering the Upper School, as students often are.

Sue Cesare LH’48, Head of School at the time, saw Marc’s hesitancy and was intent on seeing him move up and thrive.

“Sue Cesare is an amazing person,” Hoffman said. “I am where I am now because of the leadership role she took with me and the support I was given.”

Hoffman flourished in the Upper School. He became an excellent student and was named captain of the football team, voted homecoming king, and elected student body president. He developed relationships with students throughout the school. He graduated with perfect attendance.

“I do not believe there was a clinical terminology for ‘growth mindset’ and ‘inquiry-based learning’ back then,” said Hoffman, who channels his passion for education into seminars and workshops for schools and organizations. “King was on the cutting edge of education. That is why I was able to thrive.”

After King, he studied psychology at Williams College, worked in the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, and earned his master’s degree in child clinical psychology at Yeshiva University before making education his career.

He founded the Hoffman Educational Group to offer academic coaching and educational advocacy services for students and their families.

“Talent matters, but grit is more important. ... I gravitate toward challenges."

—Marc Hoffman

In 2014, he founded Strong Start Early Care and Education, a project-based, early-education program for children from birth to five years old. The program serves nearly 400 children in Shelton and Trumbull, Connecticut.

“Strong Start is an extension of my experience in learning with King’s project-based model,” Hoffman said.

Like King’s Lower School, Strong Start’s philosophy is rooted in the Reggio

Emilia Approach, a child-centered, inquiry-based approach to learning.

Students explore the environment within intentionally designed spaces that allow them to actively engage in their learning. The students’ interests and curiosity drive the curriculum, often resulting in long-term project work that helps develop concepts of knowledge and understanding.

“Learning is not one-size-fits-all,” Hoffman said. “If I look at the people I work with professionally now, these are just übersuccessful people who all look at issues or solve problems differently, many of them being dyslexic and ADHD like myself. The learning environment is imperative to help cultivate that. If I had been in a passive learning environment where I was lectured, I would have had trouble, so I am committed to creating environments like the one I had.”

Hoffman loves seeing curiosity lead to discovery in the Strong Start students, including his son, Avi, 3.

“I have seen the project-based model’s impact on how he sees the world, how he applies what he learns in the classroom outside the classroom,”

Sue Cesare LH’48 Remembers…

"It was a pleasure for me to encourage Marc because his spirit to succeed was always visible and presented with humility. Our school is truly fortunate to have such an exceptionally committed, professional educator in its midst."

Sue Cesare, Head of School from 1970 to 1996.

52 Quest 2023-24

Marc Hoffman KLHT’95

Marc Hoffman and his son, Avi, 3.

Hoffman said. “That kind of learning model is so perfect; the openness, the exploration of it, is so good for kids.

Everyone in education should be doing project-based learning.”

In 2021, he published “Positive Mindset, Self-Awareness, Perseverance,” a guide for students with learning differences and ADHD to find their strengths. “I am committed to ensuring kids have a strong start like I did.”

In addition to a desire to create learning opportunities for children, Hoffman left King with an appreciation for perseverance. He credits those formative years with his ability to thrive as an entrepreneur. According to Harvard Business Review, 90% of new businesses fail. He equates those odds with his chances of thriving in high school.

“Talent matters, but grit is more important,” he said. “Perseverance is

key to success. Many people shy away from entrepreneurship because of the statistics. I thrive with those kinds of odds. I gravitate toward challenges, and that comes from that time in eighth grade. I know I can make it. I know what it takes.”

talking about growth mindset or emotional intelligence, the learning environment was conducive to cultivating all of those qualities. And now, as an educational entrepreneur, when I look back, I see how important and resonant that was.”

Just as King left an impression on Hoffman, so he did on the school. Since the 1990s, when Hoffman was still a student, Prize Day has featured the Marc L. Hoffman Award. The recognition is given to “a rising senior who has utilized strengths along with embracing a sense of an effective learning style to achieve academic excellence. Furthermore, this student has demonstrated honor, integrity, sound judgment, and fair play.”

Hoffman plans to be part of the King community for years to come.

“I look forward to Avi attending King,” he said. “I can’t imagine a better launch in life.”

Hoffman enjoys attending the ceremony to meet the award recipient.

“I love King,” he said. “I owe so much to King. Whether they were clinically Quest 2023-24 53

ALUMNI PROFILES BY DECADE

2000s

All in the Family:

Grit, Curiosity, and Television

W

hen ABC anchor David Muir interrupts programming with breaking news, “Saturday Night Live” (“SNL”) satirizes that news, and Bloomberg Television analyzes how the market is reacting, a Shaker sibling is just off camera. Molly Shaker KLHT’04 produces Muir’s breaking news, Grace Shaker KLHT’07 produces “SNL” sketches, and Will Shaker KLHT’10 produces Bloomberg’s television broadcasts.

“Our family text thread is pretty interesting in terms of current events,” Will said. “They reflect just about everything that is going on in the world on any given day.”

The siblings are the third generation of Shakers to work in media. Their grandfather, Theodore Shaker, was an executive for ABC and CBS. Their father, Ted Shaker K’68, grew up watching television productions from behind the scenes. He became a producer, earning 13 Emmys and two Peabody Awards. Ted met his wife, Sheryl, in the business, and they had storied careers while raising their three children in New Canaan.

Like television, King is also a family tradition. Ted attended in the 1960s.

Molly entered Grade 8 in 1999. Soon after, Grace and Will entered the Lower School. The Shakers have thrived with the benefit of being siblings on parallel paths.

54 Quest 2023-24

Molly Shaker steps in front of the camera during a production break.

MOLLY SHAKER: FROM LOCAL TO GLOBAL NEWS Molly’s dream was to write for The New Yorker.

“I have always gravitated toward writing,” said Molly, who earned an English degree from the University of Vermont (UVM). “King really nurtured my love of reading, writing, and literature.”

She started her career as a reporter for a weekly paper in Charlotte, Vermont, not far from UVM. For two years, she honed her craft, riding on tractors alongside farmers to write stories about the trials of agrarian life. She also delivered the paper.

Molly moved back to New Canaan in 2008, the economy stalled, and the decline of newspapers accelerated.

Realizing that a future in print might

not be practical, she began networking in New York. A conversation with a producer at “Good Morning America” (“GMA”) led to a freelance position with Standard & Poor’s, the credit rating agency, which publishes financial research reports.

“One day I was packing for a trip, and the ‘GMA’ producer called and said, ‘I need a freelance script coordinator,’” Molly recalled, adding that the job was a glorified intern position for a shift from 11 p.m. to 9 a.m. “I canceled my trip and started two days later.”

That was 2010; she has been at ABC since. Within a few years of her arrival, Molly was writing copy for anchors, producing shows, and traveling the world. She worked with teams covering the ISIS suicide bombings in Brussels in 2016, glaciers melting in Iceland, animals migrating in Tanzania, and

Molly Shaker KLHT’04 Grace Shaker KLHT’07 Will Shaker KLHT’10

President Donald Trump’s 2017 inaugural speech in Washington, D.C. She worked her way up the ranks and earned a promotion this summer to Executive Producer of Special Events for ABC News. One of the first stories she covered in her new role was Trump’s indictment in Georgia in August.

“We knew it was coming,” Molly said.

She and her team were prepared, with guests lined up for Muir. “When it is time to go on air, my boss is in David’s ear, and I am managing the remote guests. The guests are listening and pitching ideas to me. I feed them up to David. If David likes the idea, he goes to my guest.”

An avid reader, Molly still loves The New Yorker. But as the 2024 election season approaches, she is excited to be part of more special events at ABC.

Will, Grace, and their mother, Sheryl Shaker, on the set of “SNL.”

GRACE SHAKER: THE COLD OPEN Shortly after earning a political science degree from Wake Forest University, Grace arrived back in New Canaan as Molly was networking and the economy was nosediving.

Determined, Grace took an internship at “Access Hollywood” and began to work her way into the television business.

In 2011, she landed a job on Anderson Cooper’s daytime talk show. Two years with the show gave Grace clarity. She did not want to work in news, but she did want to live in Manhattan.

Producer Molly Shaker

She hustled to find a way into the entertainment side of television and to move to New York full time. She applied to join a team working on a Lorne Michaels “SNL” spinoff, and the hiring agent steered her to “SNL.”

“Never in a million years would I have thought to even apply to ‘SNL,’” Grace said, adding that the job was a step down from her prior position. But she took it and went to work with the biggest stars on the show in the heart of her favorite city.

Ten years later, she has pitched ideas, cast new talent, organized parties, and put fires out, filling just about every production role available. Her stories are peppered with iconic moments. She tried to persuade Harry Styles to jump into a pile of leaves, pitched a pantsuit skit to Sen. Elizabeth Warren and cast member Kate McKinnon, and mingled at after-parties with Dave Chappelle, Tina Fey, Chris Rock, and more. But she has worked most closely with Alec Baldwin.

“When Trump was elected, my whole life became the cold open,” Grace said, referring to the sketch that begins most Quest 2023-24 55

ALUMNI PROFILES BY DECADE

“SNL” shows. “Once Alec agreed to play Trump for four years, I was assigned to work with him, making sure he was happy, he had his scripts, and he got to the studio on time.”

In a world where talent changes every week, a consistent relationship for that duration is rare. Baldwin’s satiric impression of Trump earned him two Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.

In his 2017 acceptance speech, he thanked Grace.

“We became so close,” said Grace, who now co-produces the show.

“That was such an incredible time. It was unbelievable to be part of those legendary, satirical moments.”

Will Shaker, right, interviewing the founder of the failed FTX cryptocurrency exchange, Sam BankmanFried, in the Bahamas in 2022.

WILL SHAKER: KEEPING PACE WITH EMERGING TECHNOLOGY Being the youngest, Will had the benefit of seeing his sisters’ decisions play out.

After King, he joined Grace at Wake Forest and majored in English.

“I followed Grace and copied Molly,” Will said of his college choice and major.

He took his sisters’ lead into the news business, too, though his interest was in emerging technology.

Will’s career positions him at the forefront of the evolving media landscape. He began at CBSN, the original CBS News 24-hour streaming service. The company was essentially a startup within a legacy company, exploring how to keep pace with the industry trend toward digital streaming.

Grace Shaker on the set of “SNL.”

56 Quest 2023-24

As he learned the business, he saw traditional news companies fumbling with modern platforms and ultimately creating competition from within. Three years later, he moved to the livestream

business channel Cheddar, then to Bloomberg.

At Bloomberg, Will is at the epicenter of worldwide financial news. He works with the Bloomberg Terminal data and communication network, a powerful analytics tool known for its extensive real-time information. He and his team use the terminal to curate stories and create multimedia content based on reader interests and news trends.

“Bloomberg is huge,” Will said, noting the scale of the company, with 2,700 journalists in 190 countries and publishing over 5,000 daily stories worldwide. “The terminal makes it possible to curate the content and decide what is best suited for television.”

He also follows breaking news and trends in mainstream media. “Almost everything happening in the world ties to the markets,” he said. “I have to determine if it is something relevant to our viewers or not.”

Will serves as a line producer. Once he finds the editorial content, he has to

Ted Shaker K’68 A PARENT REFLECTS

ensure that the on-camera talent is on point. “I am like the conductor of the show,” he said. “I keep everyone on the same page all day. I decide what story we will start with and what external guest we will go to, and so on.”

From a curation standpoint, the size of Bloomberg is daunting. From a career standpoint, it is full of potential.

Bloomberg has offices around the world, so Will is looking forward to traveling.

“I am really interested in exploring other cultures,” he said. “I have my eye on Hong Kong. I love the idea of starting there and then traveling to all different parts of the world.”

MENTORS, NEIGHBORS, AND SIBLINGS The Shaker siblings live within a 10-minute walk of one another in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn. Grace has a dog she says looks like a rat, Will has a cat he named after a fish, and their combination has made Molly hold off on pet acquisitions. Molly and Grace love yoga; Will rides a Peloton. They habitually stroll the neighborhood together. Their lives overlap in endless ways, creating a shared support system that brings order to the television chaos, and this synergy helps them thrive.

All three of them credit King with getting them there.

“King instilled in us a deep sense of curiosity about all things,” Molly said.

“Being curious is key to being in the media, which informs so much of the public discourse. It also takes grit, patience, self-discipline, and grace.

Whether we were aware of it at the time or not, King taught us how to be and exude all of those things.”

“Going to King was a really good experience for me, and though my kids were doing fine in public school, we began to think that a school like KLHT would be a better environment for them. There was such a strong push within the administration to create a student body that reflected the world we live in. That, plus the idea of having smaller classes and much more personal relationships with faculty and students, contributed to the move. It made sense.

“The school offers a much more personal education. It’s an environment that fosters an expectation and instills the idea that Ted, Sheryl, Will, Molly, and Grace Shaker. you can learn and do what you care to do, and thereby become a smarter and better person. That’s pretty compelling.

“I think where my kids are today is in measure because of King.”

Ted Shaker K’68 is a 13-time Emmy and two-time Peabody Award-winning producer who has created networks, programs, and developed scores of talent, producers, and directors for broadcast, cable, and digital outlets for more than four decades. As the Executive Producer of CBS Sports, Ted was the creative leader behind seven Super Bowls, 10 NBA Finals, nine NCAA Tournaments, 12 Masters, three MLB World Series, eight US Open Tennis Championships, and 11 Daytona 500s. He also served as an executive producer for business news at CNBC, and founded Sports Illustrated Television.

He met his wife, Sheryl, on his first day at CBS Sports. While their children were at King, Sheryl served as president of the PA and served on the Board of Trustees. After 40 years, they left New Canaan in 2022 and moved to South Burlington, Vermont, where they now live.

Ted Shaker, #77, with his King football team. Molly, Grace, and Will Shaker.

Quest 2023-24 57

ALUMNI PROFILES BY DECADE

2010s

A Quest for Empathy

on a Path Less Traveled

C

uriosity is creating a unique path for Kimberly Villard ’20.

Compelled by cultures and people who make them, she is parsing the intricacies of empathy in a quest to create a world where human connection, meaningful change, and social progress intersect for the greater good.

Her research began in Upper School when Villard, who entered King School in Grade 7, followed by two siblings, created an independent study exploring language, substance abuse, and violence during the rise of hip-hop.

“Hip-hop is the most popular genre globally, and I wondered what that popularity said about the age we are living in and about Gen Z,” she said.

She also played a leadership role in the Milestones Club, King’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Club at the time. The meetings offered a safe space to discuss cultural shifts and topical events in art, athletics, and politics.

lot of people who were passionate about the same things that I was interested in,” Villard said.

She joined in several workshops, each with a different focus exploring how race, class, gender, and other individual characteristics intersect. This created an identity dynamic that was new to Villard.

“You may be Black, but you’re also a woman, and maybe you’re disabled,” she said. “How these things interplay is so interesting, and I had not really thought about that before.”

Villard was struck by the power of listening and its potential to lead to deeper understanding. She took this knowledge when she left King for the University of Southern California (USC), where she planned to follow a pre-law track to a career in social justice. Soon after arriving in California, she had second thoughts.

“I began to think of that work as more

reactive than proactive,” she said. “I struggled with the notion of achieving true justice for those who had been wronged because if true justice exists, then injustice could never occur in the first place.”

At USC, she served as a tour guide, which deepened her appreciation for the higher education environment. She also loved the cultural and socioeconomic diversity of the people she was meeting.

“I loved connecting with students and their families,” she said. “I enjoyed highlighting the importance of how a college degree can be life-changing for some folks, especially first-generation college students or those who come from low-income situations.”

These interactions nurtured her desire to explore empathetic dispositions through academic research. Though USC did not have an exact fit for her desired course of study, the school was interested in

“I am using what we know about evolutionary biology and the brain’s anatomy to learn how we shape the minds of young people to be more caring and empathetic.”

—Kimberly Villard These experiences laid the foundation for the most resonant experience of Villard’s upper school career: the National Student Diversity Leadership Conference, which King attends annually.

As a student, she attended conferences in Anaheim, California, and Nashville, Tennessee.

“The conferences were some of the first times that I was in an environment with a 58 Quest 2023-24

Kimberly Villard speaking at a 2019 Young Woman of Color Conference at Miss Porter’s School.

Kimberly Villard ’20

the work she proposed. Through the interdisciplinary major program, she developed her own major focused on the importance of emotion and reason in the context of academic environments.

“In essence, it is investigating the science of human goodness,” she said. “I am using what we know about evolutionary biology and the brain’s anatomy to learn how we shape the minds of young people to be more caring and empathetic.”

On this track, she will study writing and its effect on cultivating empathy.

“I am one of just a handful of students to create their own major at USC,” said Villard, who hopes to remain in academia and make empathy a core component of higher learning. “I realized that in education, though I may not be working in a courtroom myself, I can shape the minds of people who do. In this way, my work can be as meaningful as a career in justice might have been.”

To deepen her studies, Villard served as a research assistant at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence in New Haven and completed a project internship remotely at the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) in Chicago.

Villard is particularly interested in college-age students who are developing a sense of identity. She acknowledges fundamental questions as the guides to their exploration: Who am I? Who do I want to be in this world? What do I stand for? The same questions are central to King’s inquiry-based approach to learning.

“There is a lot of literature on socialemotional development for K-12, but I am interested in developing those competencies in ‘emerging adults’ like myself,” she said. “How do we shape the hearts and minds of college students?”

Villard at the Ringing of the Bells in 2016.

Quest 2023-24 59

COMMUNITY

Community Events K

Chinese New Year

ing School’s success is driven by a committed community working toward its mission. This network of relationships forms the school’s foundation, showcasing the community in action during key events and new occasions.

From the first bell to ring in the new school year to El Sistema and Grandparents Day, the connections between King community members grow stronger, and the future of the school shines brighter. These pages highlight some of the events King hosted since the last issue of Quest.

Thank you to every member of the King community who makes this school an extraordinary place to learn and grow.

Faculty vs. Seniors Basketball

Snow and S’mores

60 Quest 2023-24

Black History Month

El Sistema

Grandparents and Special Friends Day

Vikings Cup Golf Outing

King Cares

Holi Festival

Celebration of Philanthropy

Hope in Motion Walk

Quest 2023-24 61

COMMUNITY

Parents’ Association T

he King School Parents' Association is a reflection of the school's dynamic and thriving community.

The association creates a multitude of programs, all deeply rooted in the school's mission and enhancing the overall community experience. By generously giving their time and effort, the PA volunteers facilitate crucial communication between parents and the school across all grade levels, providing essential support for programs spanning Athletics, Art and Design, Performing Arts, and Service. The PA is a vital component of our community, nurturing a genuine sense of King spirit among our families.

Our heartfelt appreciation goes out to the leadership of the Parents’ Association for the 2022-23 term and to the devoted volunteers whose unwavering dedication was on display in last year’s community events. Welcome to the 2023-24 Parents’ Association leadership!

2023-24 PARENTS’ ASSOCIATION EXECUTIVE BOARD

GRADE REPRESENTATIVES

Sandy Burgoyne, President Hillary Rosenthal, Executive VP Antoinette Sullivan, Secretary Jennifer Munger, Treasurer Patty Diaz, Social Media

Dana Chernet, Prekindergarten James Laird, Prekindergarten Charlotte Allen, Kindergarten Carrie Whipple, Grade 1 Rashida Morisset, Grade 2 Lisa Mitchell, Grade 3 Daniela Knijnik, Grade 4 Carrie Sponheimer, Grade 5 Althea Cooper, Grade 6 Maureen McCauley, Grade 7 Alyssa Harvey Dawson, Grade 8 Nuala Riddell, Grade 9 Maureen Karr, Grade 10 Claire Neary, Grade 11 Alzbeta Harvey, Grade 12 Monica Lynn, Grade 12

DIVISIONAL VICE PRESIDENTS Lauren Burke, LS Vanessa Fedele, LS Darunee Gambino, MS Kate Jennings, US

COMMITTEES

PA KING CARES BUILDING 1 COMMUNITY

WELCOME AMBASSADORS

Vivi Kulig Victoria Loukas Kate Vivanco

Rachel Gigliotti Chika Beddu-Addo Antoinette Sullivan

SENIOR STRESS BUSTERS Liz Feinstein Lisa Perlman

Alissa Joy Wool

SCHOOL STORE

Jocelyn Dimsey Jennifer Ercklentz Mandy Miller

Bhavani Krishnan Merle Hugon Miho Hayashi

PERFORMING ARTS Aya DeSimone

VISUAL ARTS Aya DeSimone

PROJECT MUSIC Arianne Kolb

VIKING PRIDE Liz Feinstein Suzanne O’Callaghan Lindsay Oudsema Tressan Garcia

PA SPEAKER SERIES Pam Breakstone Erica Van Wyck

PA KING CARES Jessica Fitzsimmons

PA KING CARES MIDNIGHT RUN Laura Iverson Rebecca Mahadeva

PA KING CARES FOOD DRIVES Pam Breakstone Wendy Kleinman Jamie DeNatale

PA KING CARES—INSPIRICA Chelsie Carson Parents' Association Executive Board, left to right: Patty Diaz, Jennifer Munger, Jessica Fitzsimmons Sandy Burgoyne, Hillary Rosenthal, and Antoinette Sullivan.

62 Quest 2023-24

PA KING CARES BLOOD DRIVE

PA—KING CLOSET

KInD COMMITTEE Dian Holder Christianne Contopoulos Michelle Kolev

LOWER SCHOOL/ MIDDLE SCHOOL BOOK FAIR Stephanie Donoghue Dana Chernet Shanel Kay Lindsay Oudsema

LOWER SCHOOL DJ JAM Teresa Luong Kathy Mendez

LS BINGO NIGHT Tina Mazotas

LS TEACHER TREATS Alesya Wulfing

SUNSHINE COMMITTEE Seema Dohil

HOMECOMING BAKE SALE Lauren Bellmare Lauren Burke

HOMECOMING LS SPIRIT SQUAD Audra Furer

HOMECOMING LS SPIRIT SQUAD CHOREOGRAPHER Lauren Cosgrove

and Volunteers Festival of Lights

Global Fair

Teacher Treats

Speaker Series

Book Fair

Spring Fling

Midnight Run

Quest 2023-24 63

THE POWER OF COMMUNITY

Alumni Events T

he King School alumni community is a rich tapestry of Thomas School, Low-Heywood School, King School, Low-Heywood Thomas, King & Low-Heywood Thomas School, King Low-Heywood Thomas, and King School graduates. Each school has a unique history that contributes to our unified alumni community.

We celebrate this vibrant network and thank the alumni who have engaged with the community over the past year. Your involvement is a source of inspiration for current students, showcasing the trajectory of growth and success that awaits.

Your continued engagement and support enrich the ongoing narrative of King School.

The experiences and contributions of every graduate of every iteration of the school have played a significant role in shaping its present-day identity and fostering a sense of unity among the alumni.

Career Day

College Buddies

Alumni, including Emma Snover KLHT'14, an attorney, and Guilbert Francois KLHT'13, a marketing professional with the NBA, speak with students about their career paths.

College buddies Gavin McCue ’23 and Catie Baer ’22 at Penn State, and Bryce Heaton ’23 and Taylor Perlman ’20 at Duke University.

2022 Alumni vs. Varsity Thanksgiving Hockey Game

Left to right: Tommy Morris ’20, Charlie Feinstein ’20, Head Varsity Hockey Coach Guy Savage, Josh Lewis ’19, Jack Vanneck ’20.

64 Quest 2023-24

December 2022 Holiday Party

Left to right: Dana Lee, Mia Schipani LHT’84, Josh Lewis ’19, Turner Franco ’20, Sharon Giglio LHT’81, Jeff Becker K’83, former faculty Cathy Mishkin, Steve Sheehan KLHT’07, Nick Spyrou KLHT’12, Head of Upper School Marnie Sadlowsky

Alumnae Tea

Sharing Our School's Story

Alumnae from Low-Heywood, Thomas, and Low-Heywood Thomas Schools share tea and stories.

Inaugural Platinum Circle Dinner

Celebrating current and former faculty and staff with 20+ years of service.

2023 Commencement

Keynote speaker Kevin Pierre-Louis KLHT’10.

Lauren Onis Bellmare KLHT'03 presents to Grade 3 students about the history of King School.

Hot Chocolate and Hellos

College-aged alumni are welcomed back to campus over winter break.

King Connects Mentors Mixer

Mentees and mentors celebrate the end of the school year. Thank you to the 2022-23 Mentors: Jim Becker K’80, Nicole Johnson KLHT’02, Richie Nelli KLHT’15, Maya Krysicki KLHT’13, Steve Menking KLHT’06, Natalia Siera Millan KLHT’04, Georgia Orenstein KLHT’13, John Raffaeli KLHT’04, Mia Schipani LHT’84, Julie Sheetz KLHT’03, Zandra Sherrington LHT’86, Kishauna Soljour KLHT’09.

Quest 2023-24 65

COMMUNITY

Homecoming and Alumni Weekend

T

he Viking spirit proved to be stronger than any rainfall.

Despite uncooperative weather, Homecoming 2023 at King School was a weekend celebration filled with school spirit, alumni pride, and community fun.

"Our theme for the year is ‘Living With Purpose,’ and Homecoming is one of our most purposeful community gatherings at King,” Head of School Carol Maoz said.

“The event fosters a sense of belonging and provides an opportunity to give back to our community. It is wonderful to see all of our Vikings come together to celebrate our school and to welcome our alumni back home!"

The festivities kicked off on Friday, October 20, with a pep rally in the upper school gymnasium, where students, faculty, and staff cheered as the athletics teams pumped up the crowd with their dance routines and cheers.

“We really like seeing all the King spirit and everyone show up for the biggest event of the year,” said Carolina Frisoli ’24.

“There are a lot of people, and all wearing King Pride—so exciting,” said Kalyan Pelletier ’29.

66 Quest 2023-24

Friday evening, alumni classes from 1973 to 2021 gathered for a reception at the Performing Arts Center to reconnect with former classmates and teachers. Saturday’s festivities included a bake sale, giant inflatable slides and bounce houses, caricaturists, face painting, balloon artists, a live DJ, and more.

“I enjoy it so much,” said Beyah Garcia ’33, sporting a butterfly design around her eyes. Cecilia Bellmare ’33 agreed, “I like the face painting.”

Food trucks offered a variety of delicious options, and the Parents' Association bake sale delighted those with a sweet tooth.

“Homecoming is the biggest, brightest, rain-or-shine community event that we have,” said Sandy Burgoyne P’27, President of the Parents’ Association. “It literally brings out everybody. Kids, parents, grandparents, pets, everybody, and it is just beautiful to see the community at its best with the athletic games, the performing arts, the bake sale, we are all showing our Viking pride. It’s just a great day to be a Viking!”

Uniting Vikings Past and Present

“I love the energy,” said Daniel Knijnik P’31, ’32, a member of the Board of Trustees. “Everybody's happy, vibrant, and excited for the games.”

His daughter, Julia Knijnik ’31, a dedicated modern and jazz dancer, was about to join the Spirit Squad during the football game’s halftime show. “It’s a little scary,” Julia said. On second thought, she added, “I performed it at the pep rally, so it’s not super intimidating.”

Orna Gusinski P’29 expressed appreciation for King’s tightknit community, especially her fellow Grade 7 parents. “It’s very supportive and inclusive,” she said.

New and longtime educators also came together. Cathy Mishkin taught performing arts, history, and social science at King from 1976 to 2019. A beloved teacher, she is a regular presence on campus and has attended Homecoming every year since she joined the community.

“It’s just a wonderful feeling to be back home and to see people that you worked with and students that you taught and share memories,” Mishkin said. “It’s the legacy; it’s such

a good feeling that things are still going on, and they’re even stronger than they were.”

Chair of Mathematics Victoria Khiznichenko also enjoyed seeing past students. “I just saw one of my former honor students,” she said, “and he’s a junior at Boston College. He said, ‘I’m a math major.’ That made my day!”

Pamela Sparkman LHT’88 and Erin Shaw LHT’88 celebrated their 35th reunion. “It’s really special,” Sparkman said. “I came to the cocktail party last night. There were people from other grades that we interacted with and caught up and laughed with. It’s just a really good time.”

Shaw added: “It’s something that I could have never imagined when I was a junior or a senior, coming to this point in life and coming back on campus and really enjoying those special connections with friends and former faculty and people who are currently attending.”

Matthew Dorf K’88, who was marking the same milestone, said, “It’s a lot of fun to be back!”

Quest 2023-24 67

COMMUNITY

Homecoming 2023

LHT'88 classmates look at memorabilia on display during Homecoming.

Members of the King Class of 1983: Jeff Becker, Austin Stewart, Andy Gray.

Homecoming featured musical performances by the string ensemble, the middle school intermediate and advanced bands, as well as the chamber orchestra and the upper school advanced band. Choir members sang the national anthem before games. The Rhapsody Ensemble from Project Music joined the middle school bands for a couple of songs.

Rhapsody Ensemble is made up of second-year winds and brass students in Grades 4-6.

the King community!” Dean of Athletics Micah Hauben said.

“Viking Pride was on full display from start to finish.”

“I am excited to have instrumental ensembles from both Middle and Upper Schools help enrich the spirit of Homecoming,” said Garrett Mendez, Chair of Performing Arts.

Justin Martinelli ’28 came to enjoy the music, but his day of fun was just starting. “I like to listen to all the people play their instruments, and we’re gonna probably go watch the games.”

Middle school English teacher Jordan Rochelson attended a volleyball game during his first King Homecoming. “It’s so exciting,” he said. “There’s so much enthusiasm in the air and community feeling; it’s clear that everyone that’s here cares about being here.”

Supporting the soccer team were recent graduates Dylan J. Schmitke ’23 and Will Anderson ’23. “Being back here brings a lot of memories as well, like watching this soccer team makes me want to get on the field and play,” said Schmitke, who attends the University of Connecticut. “King prepared me really well,” he added. “The teachers were super supportive.”

King athletes gave their all in a variety of games, and the campus was bustling with activities all day. “Homecoming weekend was a true showing of the strength and power of

Anderson, in his first year at Providence College, said he also felt well prepared for the new phase of his academic journey. “I got to college and was able to settle in,” he said. “I didn’t feel overwhelmed.” Favorite teacher? “Miss O’Toole,”

The Pep Band plays at Homecoming.

Gwyn Rothman ’20, Elijah Busch ’21, Arynn Rybalov '21, Adom Laryea-Adjei ’23.

68 Quest 2023-24

King Cares 5K The 11th annual King Cares 5K, the closing event of Homecoming weekend, drew a crowd on October 22.

Over 100 people ran the 3.1 miles across King’s campus, cheered on by community members and race volunteers.

The funds raised from the event go to King partner organizations: the Boys & Girls Club of Stamford and the Orphaned Starfish Foundation.

Anderson said, referring to math teacher Sara O’Toole.

“Very fun class. She made it really interesting.”

“The increase in participation each year is a testament to the work of the upper school student-athletes, leaders, and club members,” said Karen Raidt, Director of King Cares Service. “The awareness of and support they are providing for King's partner organizations is tremendous.”

A special reunion dinner honored the King, Low-Heywood, and Thomas School Classes of 1973 at the Italian Center of Stamford.

“We’re celebrating our 50th reunion,” said Michael Luery K’73, who flew in from Sacramento, California. “That’s a big deal. It’s been half a century, and we’re still here! That’s a good thing, and it’s just great to see everybody again, and brings back a lot of memories, a lot of good times.”

Some of his memories included former King teacher Aaron “Woody” Hess. “He was an inspiration to me,” Luery said. “He was somebody you could talk to, and he always had time to give you some guidance and advice.

Alumni from classes graduating in 1973, 1978, 1983, 1988, 1998, 2003, 2008, 2013, and 2018 gathered across Stamford and Greenwich to mark their reunions.

Quest 2023-24 69

COMMUNITY

Homecoming 2023

Natasha Aysseh '19, Jordan Kulick '19, Ashley Xu '19, Augusta DeMartin '19.

Members of the Low-Heywood and King Class of 1973 celebrate their 50th reunion. From left, Mike Luery, Kevin Meyer, Jon Schreibfeder, Andrea Eginton Seaton, Buzz Kanter, Rick Sarner, Bob Potenza.

Lauren Bellmare KLHT’03, P’33, ’36 eagerly anticipated hosting her fellow classmates.

“I’m ready for my 20th-year reunion,” said Bellmare, a member of King’s Board of Trustees. “I’m really excited to see my classmates and to tell them about all the positive changes at the school and how it’s such an exciting place.”

Homecoming 2023 was a special weekend that celebrated the school’s history and spirit. The days were filled with fun, laughter, and a true sense of community and belonging.

“We’re celebrating our 50th reunion. That’s a big deal.

It’s been half a century, and we’re still here!

—Michael Luery K’73

Quest Fall 2021 1

70 Quest 2023-24

Former Head of School Sue Cesare LH’48 and her son, Ed Cesare K’78, celebrate their 75th and 45th reunions, respectively, during Homecoming.

Cesare with the alumnae of the Low-Heywood Thomas School Class of 1988.

Quest 2023-24 71

Alumni Class Notes 1950s CAROLYN K. “LYN” CLARK T’52 Lyn is working for a nonprofit weekly newspaper, The Montague Reporter, which provides coverage to nine villages and towns in Western Massachusetts. She serves as the distribution manager, a volunteer position that she expects to hold until she turns 90 next year. Once she steps away from distribution, Lyn will continue to serve the paper in various roles. A lover of language, Lyn credits Mabel Thomas, the founder of Thomas School, with instilling a lifelong love of the written word in her students.

1960s EDWARD HINES K’60 Edward has just celebrated his 48th wedding anniversary.

He and his wife, Sharon, have three children and six grandchildren. For decades, Ed has been curious about the school rule banning snowballing below the creek. He said that whenever it snows, the memory of that rule comes back and leaves him wondering why it was safer to snowball above the creek than below it. He figures it must have been that the old building was less likely to be damaged that way.

RICK KINNAIRD K’69 Building on his last report of exotic travels, Rick continues exploring ancient places, including Egypt, the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens, Luxor, Abydos, Alexandria, Armana, and some remote cliffside rock-cut tombs.

His travels inspire lectures, which are currently focused on Angkor Wat, Borobudur, Machu Picchu, Teotihuacan, Coba, Tikal, Chichen Itza, Petra, El Mirador, and the Taj Mahal. On the family front, he and his wife are just back from a visit with their daughter and family in London.

1970s LIBBY BYERS MOORE T’71 Libby and her classmates from the Thomas School Class of 1971 celebrated a belated 50th reunion over Columbus Day weekend in Little Compton, Rhode Island. They had such a fabulous time reminiscing that they are making plans to do it again in three years!

CHRIS WOOD K’66 In 2019, Chris decided he had lost enough time commuting to work in Silicon Valley and retired. He is enjoying every minute of it in Northern California. He is filling the time chasing his four energetic grandchildren. When not chasing them, he contemplates the phrase “Your Golden Years," convinced that whoever coined it never reached an age that brought the concomitant arrival of aches, pains, and near total hair loss.

Despite it all, Chris reports that all is well at 75 and sends his best to his classmates, with a special shoutout to his Tri-County Soccer Championship team.

Seated from left to right: Sandi Crawford Dion, Debby Atkins, Kimi McLean Hardej, Roza Lichtenheim. Back row: Ellen Schloss Blakeley, Nancy Koehler Foster, Sally Pinkerton, Marna Foss, Nancy Harrington Purcell and Libby Byers Moore.

72 Quest 2023-24

CYNTHIA HANCOCK NICHOLSON LH’71 In 2019, after nearly 43 years as a pastor, Cynthia retired. She and her husband began to travel and coach young pastors.

This year took them to England, Ireland, and Chile. As much as the work is fulfilling, so are the sightseeing and visits with friends. The couple is also enjoying time with their children and grandchildren.

Cynthia’s memories span both the Low-Heywood and King sides of the stone wall. Her favorite places were the music room and the library, the library being particularly notable as it was the place she first read Tolkien. She still appreciates Jan-Elizabeth James for her ability to teach music and literature and show students what courage looks like. Cynthia also mentioned Low-Heywood teacher Felicity Hoffecker, whose patience was always tested by the students’ shenanigans. Cynthia said she misses her bestie Mary Wallman, who lived with one foot in the world of school and the other in the thrilling world of the arts.

BUZZ KANTER K’73 Buzz is loving his new “retirement” job running the Arlington Inn & Spa, which he bought in the summer of 2022. The Vermont bed-and-breakfast dates to 1848 and has the charm of a Norman Rockwell painting, which is fitting because the artist lived and painted in Arlington for several years. Buzz has made many discoveries in the process of bringing the business back to its former glory, which he loves to share with guests. He invites everyone from the community to come visit southern Vermont and stay at his charming inn.

JON SCHREIBFEDER K’73 After living in Dallas, Texas, for 31 years, Jon and his wife, Maureen, are building a retirement home in Noblesville, Indiana, drawn to the area for its proximity to their sons.

Their eldest son, Matt, who lives in Noblesville with his wife and two children, is taking over their inventory management consulting business. Their other son, Phil, who has a son and a wife who is expecting, will be within driving distance of their new home. After 42 years of flying for business just about every week, Jon is looking forward to enjoying more time on terra firma—though he did make the trip to Connecticut for his 50th reunion at King.

Jon mentioned his growing appreciation for his teachers, especially David Sample, Savin Hoffecker, and Paul Draper, and the level of influence they had on him and his classmates.

CAROLE FRANK SKLAR T’72 Carole and her husband, Malcolm, are doing a lot of celebrating. She reports that her daughter, Alexis, and son-in-law, Greg, just celebrated their 15th anniversary. The couple have two boys, Brooks, 11, and Branch, 8. In August, Carole’s son, Todd, married Deborah Bankhead at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. The family is still celebrating!

1980s DR. JANEANE BERNSTEIN LHT’84 In 2020, Janeane started “Outside the Box,” a mental health podcast and event series addressing the mental health pandemic. Her new book, “Better Humans: What the Mental Health Pandemic Teaches Us About Humanity,” was published in August.

The book draws from interviews with students, teachers, mental health advocates, and professionals on ways to create societal change. Janeane is on a mission to encourage us all to be better humans and end the stigma surrounding mental health.

Janeane said that English teacher Marge Cady’s creative writing class changed the trajectory of her life. Cady taught Janeane at 15, telling her that there are no wrong answers when it comes to creativity. “With her kindness and coaching, I was able to express my emotions and experiences on the page,” Janeane said, “and this led me to become a journalist, author, and screenwriter. I am forever grateful for her guidance, wonderful writing strategies, and sweet demeanor when I needed it most.”

MIA SCHIPANI LHT’84 Mia and partners have opened Pickleball America in the Stamford Town Center. The space, the largest indoor pickleball center in the country, features multiple courts and space for pickle leagues, tournaments, exhibitions, and special events. The company is community-driven and committed to providing the highest quality programs, instruction, services, and experiences.

Quest 2023-24 73

ALUMNI CLASS NOTES

Alumni Class Notes VALERIE BOLLING LHT’86 After 30 years, Valerie retired from Greenwich Public Schools and is now a full-time children’s author.

She recently sold the rights to two of her books. HarperCollins bought world rights to “I See Color,” a picture book that turns the phrase “I don’t see color” on its head. Norton Young Readers acquired world rights to “Hope Makes a Better Future,” which follows a Black girl named Hope as she attends the 2017 Women’s March. “I See Color” will be released in winter 2024 and “Hope Makes a Better Future” in winter 2026. Valerie looks forward to visiting King and other schools with her books.

NARENDRA ROCHEROLLE K’86 After graduating from college, Narendra moved up and down the state of California before settling in the San Francisco suburb Mill Valley with his wife, Julie, and children, Nico, 13, and Sophie, 11. A few years after settling, and 35 years after graduating from King, he was watching his son play baseball as another father played catch with his daughter nearby. He recognized the man as Ben Sharp K’87, who also lived in Mill Valley. It was fitting that they reconnected on the ball field, as both Narendra and Ben played on the King baseball team in 1986.

Narendra remembers Ben as a great athlete who went on to play football for Duke. Narendra played baseball briefly for Princeton before moving on to cross-country and track.

Despite his best efforts, he says, he should have stuck with baseball.

1990s COLIN COSELL KLHT’97 Colin and his wife, Julia, welcomed their first child, Eloise, on March 28. They are madly in love and brought her to Homecoming to show her off.

SOULAFREDA VALASSIS HANTES KLHT’97 Soulafreda returned to King in March to participate in Career Day. After working as an attorney for almost 15 years, she decided to change course and pursue a career focused on supporting girls and women. She recently founded “Launch Her Further,” an educational consulting company that empowers tween and teenage girls through a series of lunch talks focused on the confidence gap in academics, body consciousness, self-esteem, and mental health. She is looking forward to connecting with members of King’s Girl Up Club and serving as a mentor for King Connects this year.

2000s TARA CARBERRY KLHT’04 Tara married Jim Palumbo on September 23. They were married in the rooftop gardens of the Brooklyn Grange with the Manhattan skyline in the background. They were surrounded by friends and family, including her brother, Michael Carberry KLHT’08, sister-inlaw Devan Bauman ’13, and dear friend Chrissie Knudsen KLHT’04. Tara and Jim live in Bushwick with their lovable pit bull, Dill, and are thrilled to be starting their married life together.

NATALIA SIEIRA MILLÁN KLHT’04 In January, Natalia Sieira Millán was promoted to partner with the law firm Shipman & Goodwin, which has offices throughout Connecticut and in Manhattan.

Natalia is a member of Shipman’s School Law Practice Group and represents local and regional boards of education, regional educational service centers, and charter schools in all areas of school law. She teaches school law courses at the University of Connecticut Neag School of Education, the School of Education at Quinnipiac University,

74 Quest 2023-24

and Quinnipiac University School of Law. In addition to her pro bono practice representing minors in immigration matters, Natalia serves on the Junior Board of Directors of the Family & Children’s Agency, and as a volunteer translator for Starfish Connection and the Community Health Workers Association of Connecticut.

GRETCHEN HAHN GODBEY KLHT’05 Gretchen married Chris Godbey in a small ceremony in the fall of 2021. Lauren Russell KLHT’05 was Gretchen’s maid of honor. After the wedding, the couple moved to Reston, Virginia, where they recently welcomed a baby boy. Gretchen is looking forward to meeting other KLHT graduates in the Washington, D.C., metro area.

STEVEN MENKING KLHT’06 On October 8, Steven and his wife, Courtney, welcomed their third baby, a healthy girl named Eden Elyse Menking.

Big sister Ava and big brother Seth are so happy!

VICTORIA SANTOS-BUCH MULLANE KLHT’07 Victoria and her husband, Mike, welcomed a son, Lincoln James Mullane, on March 31, 2022. His big sister, Sadie, has been loving her new role.

2010s MOLLY RATHER NOONAN KLHT’10 Molly met Garrett Noonan in the spring of 2019 and said “yes” two years later, when Garrett proposed on Nantucket.

The couple were married March 4 at St. Ann’s Catholic Church in West Palm Beach, Florida, and celebrated with a reception at the Henry Morrison Flagler Museum. The Noonans settled in Rowayton, where Molly works as an interior designer, and Garrett works in software sales.

ADRIENNE LANGE KLHT’11 Adrienne started a new position as a senior character artist at Blizzard Entertainment.

HANNAH FOLEY KLHT’13 Hannah is working toward an M.B.A. at the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business.

MAGGIE TOAL ’19 Maggie graduated summa cum laude from Clemson. She is continuing to study for her master’s degree.

2020s CAITLIN WEINSTOCK KLHT’07 Caitlin is an attorney for Eastman Kodak Company. She lives in Rochester, New York, with her husband, Nolan Lafler, and her children: George, 5; Harry, 3; and Freddie, 1.

ALEX LIM ’21 Alex is putting physics and engineering studies to the test as a racecar driver with great success. On June 4, he received the Keith Scala Award for the Most Improved Rookie Driver from the Fairfield County Sports Car Club. Just after collecting the award, he hopped into his car and raced to win his class and earn the overall Street Touring Champion, beating Ray Nelson, his former King physics teacher, by a margin of 0.2 seconds.

Quest 2023-24 75

Alumni Class Notes EMILY ALEXANDER ’22 Emily sent this great photo of a chance encounter with Jonathan Coulombe, Associate Head of Upper School and Upper School Dean of Students. The two ran into each other over the summer on Cape Cod. She is a sophomore at Bucknell University.

YURIY SANDMEIER ’23 Yuriy is back from a trip to Vietnam and Cambodia, where he explored the cultures and offered service to a Cambodian village that lacked clean water.

He, in conjunction with a nonprofit, helped to install a water filtration system that greatly improved the quality of life for the people living in the village. Yuriy said the experience touched his heart and transformed his perspective on life.

KENNY BACKES ’23 Kenny sent a note commending and thanking King math teacher Sara O’Toole for her exceptional leadership, positive spirit, and relentless community-building efforts during the coronavirus pandemic and in its wake. Kenny found her to be indispensable in getting his peers and the community through such a difficult time.

Share your class notes: email alumni@kingschoolct.org to be included in the next issue of Quest.

Other

Darien

New Canaan Greenwich

Facts About King Stamford

Other

Stamford

Darien

16

20%

New Canaan

Greenwich

40%

Greenwich

825

Stamford

10%

Donors to the Annual Fund

Darien

Living Alumni

20% Other

Student Hometowns

Since 2016, Enrollment Increased From

10%

➡

5,568

10%

New Canaan

Decrease in Acceptance Rate

10%

664 to 718

➡

Alumni are Current King Parents

Increase in Yield

Since 2016, Financial Access Increased From

18% to 21%

3

Varsity Championships Softball, Ice Hockey, Volleyball

6

Performing Arts Productions

All data is from the 2022-2023 school year.

76 Quest 2023-24

In Memoriam Ora Louise Kingsley Smith LH’45 March 9, 1927– February 17, 2022

G.E. Mary “Pixie” Williams LH’42 December 10, 1924– August 27, 2022

Ynez Kaplan T’47 August 17, 1929– November 27, 2022

Alice Franklin Goyert LH’63 November 22, 1944– January 2, 2023

Donald Lowell Price, M.D. K’52 June 16, 1935– May 5, 2023

Kenwood Curtis Nichols Parent KLHT’89, ’92 Former Trustee July 19, 1939– June 23, 2022

Carolyn “Lyn” Reed (Foster) McNaught T’55 November 22, 1937– October 4, 2022

Ilse Hayes Govoni T’45 December 4, 1927– November 28, 2022

Richard H. Cohen P’02 Former Trustee January 1, 1943– January 28, 2023

Roger Bernard Bacon K’55 May 10, 1937– July 19, 2023

Eleanor Mann Backman LH’36 November 3, 1918– July 26, 2022

Betty Gaines Ewing LH’53 January 23, 1936– July 28, 2022

Gregory H. Flagg K’73 July 4, 1954– February 10, 2023

Benjamin Van Vechten Former Faculty June 26, 1935– October 9, 2022

Donald F. Zezima Former Trustee March 21, 1927– December 14, 2022 Kyle W. Stewart K’88 March 23, 1970– March 7, 2023

Marion “Timmy” Westerlund Staber LH’40 February 6, 1922– October 10, 2022

James Coyle Former Interim Head of King School, Teacher, and Trustee June 4, 1934– November 8, 2023

Sydney Wrightson Tibbetts LH’54 August 15, 1936– March 17, 2023 Spiros “Sig” Segalas GPKLHT’07, ’09, ’10, ’12, ’14, ’16, ’21 July 2, 1933– January 2, 2023

James Allen Becker PK’80, K’83 Former Trustee February 5, 1934– April 7, 2023

Katy Simpson ’18 February 9, 2000– November 15, 2022

Quest 2023-24 77

LEADERSHIP

Celebrating

Service Milestones K

ing School honors the community members who have dedicated decades to tirelessly championing the school’s mission. These teachers have helped King realize triumphs and navigate challenges, always prioritizing the students.

The King family extends its heartfelt gratitude to these leaders. Thank you for steering the school toward its objectives and for bestowing knowledge on generations of students who have flourished under your care and guidance.

10 YEARS OF SERVICE World Languages Faculty Denise Mihailoff, World Languages Faculty Siying Ma, English Faculty Suzanne Gigante, Science Faculty and STEAM Coordinator for Grades PreK-5 Shevon Morris, History and Social Sciences Faculty and Grade 10 Dean Ian Lear-Nickum, and Director of College Counseling Jessica Landis.

20 YEARS OF SERVICE PLATINUM CIRCLE MEMBER (20+ Years) Art and Design Faculty Katie Tobin.

78 Quest 2023-24

30 YEARS OF SERVICE PLATINUM CIRCLE MEMBER (20+ Years) Assistant Director of Global Education and Director of King Cares Service and Student Services Karen Raidt.

Sig and Diane Segalas

A Legacy of Generosity and Joy

S

piros “Sig” Segalas and Diane Held, the star athlete and the uptown girl, were a magical couple. During 65 years together, they spent glittering nights at the starstudded Stork Club, witnessed thrilling Mickey Mantle homers, and sailed under the Grecian sun. Their love story for the ages was solidified by a shared value system of discipline, kindness, and generosity, all channeled into King, where their grandchildren attended school.

“Sig was a growth investing pioneer and an industry icon,” said Jennison’s Chief Executive Officer Jeff Becker K’83.

“Building an investment firm that has thrived for more than 50 years is an incredible accomplishment. But he never made it about himself. He had a deep commitment to our clients and our team, and created a culture steeped in values and integrity.”

Sig was a standout football player at Trinity School whom a 1949 newspaper article described as “the type of fullback all coaches dream of—heavy and tremendously fast.” Later, he became an officer in the Navy. Those experiences made him fiercely competitive and precisely punctual.

Although Diane died on February 13, 2021, and Sig followed on January 2, 2023, they will never be forgotten. Their personalities were electric. His great laugh and her sharp wit radiated joy. And they left a philanthropic legacy at King School, for which the entire community is eternally grateful.

Sig and Diane were a familiar sight at every game their grandchildren played.

Sig brought high expectations, Diane brought chairs, and the two cheered from the sidelines.

Born in Manhattan, Diane was a lifelong advocate for all, especially women.

She worked to help teenage parents and disabled women get on their feet, homemakers re-enter the job market, and young women start careers. Her primary focus was education. A strong believer in independent schools, Diane pointed her grandchildren in Connecticut to King School.

“My grandmother was very involved in our education,” Summer Segalas ’10 said, adding that at one point, seven Segalas grandchildren attended the school at the same time. “She had high expectations of us, she knew our teachers, and she made sure we kept up with our work.”

Though their grandchildren drew them to King, Sig and Diane supported the entire community, becoming the largest donors in the school’s history. Their generosity is reflected throughout the campus, including the Segalas Family Field, named in honor of their grandchildren, and the Segalas Fund to support the lower school’s Assessment and Instruction program. They also financed programs that develop writing skills in the Middle and Upper Schools, workshops to prevent bullying, school security enhancements, the Performing Arts Center, and Athletics.

Sig had enormous success in his professional life after co-founding the investment firm Jennison Associates in 1969.

THE SEGALAS FAMILY MEMBERS WITH KING CONNECTIONS Sig and Diane’s Grandchildren: Kimberly Segalas Sheehan KLHT’07 Tiana Segalas ’09 Summer Segalas ’10 Nicholas Spiros Segalas-Shaw ’12 Samantha Segalas-Shaw ’14 Sabrina Sampson ’16 Anthony Sampson ’21

Quest 2023-24 79

An evening of dinner, dancing, and donating to support King School.

Honorees Lynn and Tom King P’20, ’20, ’23 Gala Co-Chairs Hillary Rosenthal P’32 and Antoinette Sullivan P’25 Saturday, April 13, 2024 | 6:30 p.m.

Serafresca at the IC | 1620 Newfield Avenue, Stamford, CT 06905

80 Quest 2023-24

VIKINGS CUP Save the Date • May 20, 2024 The Apawamis Club, Rye NY

King School 1450 Newfield Ave Stamford, CT 06905 (203) 322-3496 kingschoolct.org