AROUND LA
LA at a Glance Mees Visiting Scholars The J. William Mees Visiting Scholars program invites professionals to share their expertise in workshops with LA students. During the 2013–2014 year the program funded two sessions. Passionate mathematicians and educators, Dr. Tim Fukawa-Connelly and Dr. Adam Boucher, challenged students with problem-solving experiments—including bungee-jumping Barbie dolls and water-spouting contraptions—that, ultimately, illustrated practical applications of mathematics. In contrast, the other visitor was New York-based singer/songwriter and author Dar Williams, who shared her music and sense of social justice and provided a glimpse into the life of a professional musician. Both events included presentations to the general public.
Poetry Performances One of 10 juniors speaking before an all-school audience in February, Eli Salm won this year’s annual Judith French Poetry Recitation competition with his presentation of Sharon Olds’ “Rite of Passage.” The community, which looks forward to this event each winter, was further entertained with the school’s first annual Senior English Seminar Poetry Slam this year. An exhibition, rather than a competition, it was inspired by the 2013 Mees Visiting Scholar, slam poet Taylor Mali. After the very personal, heartfelt performances of the nine finalists chosen by their peers, longtime teacher Ned Mitchell called the event “one of the most moving days of my school life.”
Service Highlights Shortly after arriving on campus, freshman Taylor Goodman-Leong had a surprise visit from Boston’s Channel 7 news team, which had selected her for their weekly “Class Act” spotlight. At the age of 8, Taylor began her organization, For Love of Erika, after losing a young friend to cancer. Each year, she collects and delivers toys to children in hospitals and homeless shelters. She also raises funds, which, this year, included a $1,000 Radio Disney Award. She is one of 12 finalists in the nation hoping to win a 2014 Caring Award from the Caring Institute this fall. Seniors Brendan Colton and Clare Noone also continued their efforts to make a difference in the fight against cancer by holding their second annual Relay for Life in April.
Celebrating Traditions Students come from around the world to study in this unfamiliar new setting and, luckily, they enjoy sharing stories and cultural traditions they bring with them from their own countries and heritages. An annual International Festival highlights foods, costumes, and traditions from countries ranging from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. In addition, this year Chinese students Gary Lai ’15 and Jack Huang ’15 organized a celebration of the Lunar New Year in MacNeil Lounge at the end of January. An evening of games, stories, and food ushered out the Year of the Snake and welcomed the Year of the Horse. 15 I FALL 2014
