The Westonian, Spring 2014 by aldeia

SPRING 2014

The

Westonian Magazine IN THIS ISSUE WHY NOW? Redesigning The Westonian MORE THAN A BUILDING Our New Science Center

FROM POCKETS TO PROJECTS A Life at Westtown >>

The Westonian, a magazine for alumni, parents, and friends, is published by Westtown School. Editor Terry Dubow, Associate Head of School Managing Editor Lynette Assarsson Contributors Kristen Batley ’81 Director of Alumni & Parent Engagement Mary Brooks Archivist Sue Gold 6th Grade Dean & Teacher Meghan Sayer Director of Gift Planning Design Lilly Pereira Photography Janine Chang Greg Cross Ed Cunicelli Tom Gilbert ’76 Tim Loose

We welcome letters to the editor. You may send them to our home address or to westonian@ westtown.edu.

CON N EC T

HEAD OF SCHOOL John Baird

facebook.com/westtownschool twitter.com/westtownschool vimeo.com/westtownschool instagram.com/westtownschool

BOARD OF TRUSTEES Timothy B. Barnard Kent D.W. Bream ’86 Thomas Brosius ’75 Martha Brown Bryans ’68

Beah Burger-Lehehan ’02 Luis Castillo ’80 Michelle Caughey ’71 John E. Colburn Hardin Coleman Dayton Coles ’63 Mary Niles Cornell ’60 Robert Cottone

Jonathan W. Evans ’73, Clerk Gary M. Holloway Jr. Sydney Howe-Barksdale David G. Jones ’72 Roderick (Kent) Julye ’80 Jess Lord ’90 Hugh McLean ’57

Mark Myers Brenda E. Perkins ’75 James Perkins’56 Robert Roche William (Drew) Smith ’82 Kristen M. Waterfield Edward C. Winslow III ’64

SPRING 2014

POCKETS TO PROJECTS The story of our ’14 lifers

The

Westonian Magazine

FE ATURE S

20 Why Now?

Why redesign The Westonian now? Find out how we arrived at the decision and take a look at The Westonian through the years.

25 From Pockets to Projects: A Life at Westtown

Eight members of the senior class have experienced Westtown from start to finish. Discover the secrets of the lifer experience.

30 More than a Building

The Science Center is more than bricks and mortar; it’s an expression of Westtown’s confidence, commitments and aspirations.

D E PAR TME NTS

02 LETTER FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL

A message from John Baird 03 NEWS FROM

AROUND ’TOWN

18 STUDENT VOICES Their turn: students write about life at Westtown

08 PAST IS PROLOGUE The more things change…

34 ALUMNI VOICES Making it Happen: The Thomas S. Brown Endowed Chair in Faith and Practice

10 STRATEGIC PLAN A vision and strategy for a flourishing Westtown

38 ALUMNI PROFILE Young Money author Kevin Roose ’05

12 FIELDS & COURTS Season roundup

42 CLASS NOTES Catch up on alumni news

14 FACULTY PROFILE The Evolution of Tim Loose

53 FROM THE ARCHIVES A blast from the past

What’s happening on campus?

BEHIND THE COVER Amanda Weaver ’14 is one of this year's lifers. She is a field hockey player and long distance runner. In her free time, she takes photos for The Brown and White and plays the flute. Mandy is excited about the wonderful classes that she has in the new Science Center, as she plans on studying biology. She will be attending Rice University in the fall.

16 ARTS GALLERY Student work showcase

LET TER F ROM T H E H EAD O F SC H O O L JOH N B A IRD

The View from my Window

Each morning through the window above my desk, I see the beautiful new Science Center glow. I’m taken with its graceful butterfly roof that captures and recycles rainwater and with how the spring light plays oﬀ the expanse of windows. The building itself teaches and reflects our ongoing commitment to leadership in environmental sustainability, which stems from our ethical and spiritual roots as a Quaker school. Most important, of course, is what happens inside the building where knowledgeable and passionate teachers continue the traditions of those who came before them to inspire curiosity, creativity, critical thinking, collaborative problem-solving, and a sense of wonder in their students. I’m delighted with and proud of our expanded Science Center and grateful to our visionary and supportive trustees and donors for believing in our students, their future, and ours. In many critical ways, our emerging strategic plan builds on the same inspiring foundation as our science building. The plan starts with innovative programming including the integration of design thinking and a collaborative, growth-oriented faculty culture, as well as a re-envisioning of our residential program in preparation for our modified boarding policy. The plan’s ultimate goal is to allow Westtown to continue its good work of producing whole, spiritually-grounded, empathic, globally, culturally, and scientifically-literate problem solvers and change agents. It’s no stretch to say that this re-imagined Westonian is also an expression of our strategic plan because it aims to amplify the varied voices of Westtown and to serve 02

The Westonian Magazine

as a forum for information, discussion and connection. I’m excited about The Westonian because it’s filled with stories and images that capture the full breadth of Westtown’s history and present. More than that, I like it because it’s brave. It leans into issues. It connects our rich history to our promising future. It captures our commitment to our essence while also taking chances. It reflects the confidence I and others feel about Westtown today. Over the last months when our team crisscrossed the country for our ’Town Talks on the strategic plan, we heard loud and clear that our alumni and parents want to hear about the strategic challenges of today, how Westtown is meeting them, and how they can get involved. They asked us to use this moment as an opportunity to strengthen engagement with our constituents, near and far, who love Westtown. That’s what we intend to do with The Westonian and beyond. In her book, Things Civil and Useful, A Personal View of Quaker Education, Helen Bell Hole ’24 reflected that, “Quaker education may be thought of as a tree, exposed to buﬀeting winds, often stormy ones. If the sap of its life doesn’t run strong, if the network of roots loses its vitality, then the tree will die…If however, it is deeply rooted and full of life, it will put out new branches and leaves and adapt itself in a unique way to new times and season. Those of us who treasure it and believe in it look towards its future with hope.” As spring unfolds at Westtown, the sap is running strong. We are staying in touch with our roots, relying on them for support, and feeling excited about the promising new sprouts we’re producing.

News from Around â&#x20AC;&#x2122;Town

Engineering Imagination Westtown students are leading the way in robotics and engineering. Students in Lower School construct models from the Lego WeDo robotics program. They work with simple machines such as gears, levers, and pulleys. Designing and creating a working model involves creative problemsolving and teamwork. >>

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N EWS F ROM ARO UND ’ T O WN

Engineering Imagination continued... Students use programing software to run the motors on their robots in order to perform various behaviors. In addition, they can create sound, backgrounds, and text displays on their computer screen. In early January, the 6th grade Westtown First Lego League (FLL) Team competed against 30 other teams, coming in eighth and earning the FLL Inspiration Award for a group that displays extraordinary teamwork, enthusiasm, and spirit. Their challenge: design and present an innovative solution to a problem resulting from “Nature’s Fury.” Their design: a For more on Robotics floating pet cage to protect at Westtown visit metalmoose.org. animals during floods. One judge commented that he was “exceedingly impressed with how poised the Westtown team was given their age and experience level.” And in Upper School, a team of 30 students is hard at work on “Aerial Assist,” a challenge in which robots cooperate to move 24-inch game balls down the field and into low or high goals to score. The more the robots assist each other, the higher their bonus points will be. The mission of Westtown Robotics is to create opportunities for students to develop skills in engineering, science and technology, as well as strategic business planning, leadership, communication, teamwork, community outreach and education.

T H E S TAG E BY THE N U M B ERS

Sweet Charity, Upper School musical

108 47 costume changes

The Westonian Magazine

musical numbers

Quaker Youth Leadership Conference in the Meeting House

Welcoming Friends In early February Westtown hosted more than 160 students and teachers from 23 Friends schools at the 2014 Quaker Youth Leadership Conference, entitled “Spicing Up the 21st Century: Integrity.” Students in Westtown’s Quaker Leadership Program, along with their counterparts at Delaware Valley Friends School, worked for 10 months to plan the conference. Susan Waterhouse, Cheryle Oshman Blunt and Betsy Swan were among the faculty advisors who worked alongside the students in QLP. Conference activities included service projects, tours of the campus, a panel discussion with young adult Friends working for social justice, and a group discussion about how to create and organize school- based campaigns to act on leadings. Among the workshop topics: Westtown’s discipline council program, maintaining integrity in our use of social media, the Climate Change Political Action Committee of Students (begun by a current Germantown Friends senior), leadership through athletics, and walking meditation. As Haley Peterson ’14 said, participants “learned about a lot of opportunities that we have as young people to create change in our world, whether it be through lobbying, or making a club at school, or service.”

To see more about school productions and what else is going on at Westtown visit our calendar:

Mulan Jr., Middle School musical

85 35 props

actors

N E W S F RO M A R O UND ’ T O W N

Globalized Education Alison Wright, a photojournalist and author of Face to Face: Portraits of the Human Spirit, presented a Shoemaker Lecture in November that galvanized students, faculty, parents and alumni. Her thinking resonates with global education at Westtown; as she said in an interview from the National Geographic website, “If you’re just here on Earth and don’t travel and see how other people are living, you’re not really living. Travel puts a face to a place. It helps you make a connection and start to care.” How do Westtown students make the connections that lead to caring? The world comes to Lower School. For example, Shacker Mourad, who grew up in Egypt came Alison Wright’s Book Face to Face: to talk to 5th grade about Portraits of the Human Spirit. Alison spoke at Westtown’s Shoemaker Egyptian life and music in Visiting Lecturer Series. The lecture conjunction with their study series features a succession of distinguished visitors each year of ancient Egypt. Eighth who move our students toward graders Alec Butler-Roberts, self-education and self-knowledge. Jourdan Catchings, Carter Programs are open to the entire Westtown community and, Dear, Collin Durkin and frequently, to the public as well. Lili Fernandez attended a www.westtown.edu/shoemaker conference at the United Nations in December dedicated to global sustainability and environmental health. Seventh graders Evee Bak, Aidan Fox and Hannah Jensen will travel to South Africa to attend an international Young Round Square Conference. Upper School Senior Projects took students to the Sacred Valley of Peru, Israel/Palestine, Ghana, China, Spain—and more.

westtown.edu/calendar

HAVE YOUR SAY

We want to hear from you. The Westonian aspires to serve as a forum for discussion and connection, which is why we’re introducing this new feature. In each issue, we’ll devote space for our readers to tell us what’s on their minds. We’ll oﬀer a query to focus the reflections, but we’ll try to keep it general enough to allow our readers to think deeply and share freely. For the next issue, please finish this sentence in a way that captures your truth.

When I think of Westtown, I think/feel/wonder… Send your responses to westonian@westtown.edu or to our street address with attention to Terry Dubow. We’ll publish as many responses as we can fit and will post those we can’t on our website. We ask that you keep the responses relatively short, constructive and considered. We’re excited to hear from you!

Hats off to the students, teachers and parents who provide support for all our onstage productions!

Holiday Concert, Upper School

instruments used

55 40 chairs

stands

The Laramie Project Fall play

190 light cues

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N EWS F ROM ARO UND ’ T O WN

Q UIC K NOTES June 16—August 15

E R

S UMMER S ESSI ONS AT

This summer, we have a whole host of new programs and experiences for kids of all ages. We offer camps, enrichment and for-credit classes.

STANFORD FABLEARN FELLOW Steve Compton, Director of the new Westtown Science Institute, has been selected from an international group of educators by Stanford University, with support from the National Science Foundation, as one of ten “Stanford FabLearn Fellows” for 2014, the inaugural year for this fellowship. Each fellow will be a pioneer in open source curriculum for Makerspaces and FabLabs all over the world and will collect data to inform research about the “makers” culture and digital fabrication in education.

A F EW H IG H L I G H T S: Grades 3–5 ! LegoBots: Introduction to Designing, Building and Programming ! ConfiDANCE: explore, hip-hop, jazz, and funk Grades 6–8 ! Heroes & Monsters: Acting & Art ! The Robot’s Brain: Prototyping with Microprocessors Grades 9-12 ! Design and Collaborative Engineering: Introductory Robotics and Programming ! Ethics and Moral Reasoning ! SAT prep ! Sustainable Solutions: Designing Answers to Environmental Challenges ! Writing for Success ! CSI @ WSI: Forensic Investigation ! Digital Production and Illustration … and many more!

For details and to register online

westtown.edu/summer

The Westonian Magazine

LIGHTING THE WAY Westtown School now purchases 100 percent of its electricity from renewable wind energy, and is a “Green Power Partner” with the Environmental Protection Agency, joining ranks with the Top 30 K-12 school in the country. Westtown is in 6th place! The Green Power Partnership includes leading organizations that range from Fortune 500 companies to governmental institutions to colleges and universities. Westtown was also January’s featured school in the EPA’s online newsletter, Green Power Partnership.

LUCKY CAMPUSES Congratulations to athletes in the Class of 2014 who signed National Letters of Intent! Elizabeth Cosper will ride with Auburn University’s equestrian team, Finley Sutton will play lacrosse for University of Denver, Jared Nickens will play basketball at University of Maryland and Katie and Stephanie Schick will swim for Loyola University Maryland. And these aren’t the only colleges fortunate enough to attract Westtown students. The Class of ’14 is an accomplished group in a whole host of ways, and this year’s spectacular college list is evidence of it. By spring break, 101 of our 120 seniors had admission offers from at least one campus, ranging from the Ivy League to top research institutions and liberal arts colleges.

CONGRATULATIONS! Seniors Eric Ekas, Karis Jackson, Laura Schell, Taylor Griffith, Katherine Mary Barnett, Lyra Piscitelli and Nate Urban have earned recognition from the National Merit Scholarship and the National Achievement Scholarship Programs. As a day and boarding school enrolling a national and international student body, Westtown is in the most selective cohort of schools in the nation when it comes to qualifying for these scholarship competitions.

N E W S F RO M A R O U ND ’ T O W N

Solve This! INQUIRING MINDS WANT TO KNOW: What are Westtown students studying these days? More to the point, how are they learning? Solve This! is a new feature that gives you a chance to test yourself by working through some of the questions and problems that challenge Westtown students today. Solutions can be found online and short videos of students and teachers give you a glimpse of classrooms throughout the school. You’ll have the chance to meet some of our students, reconnect with beloved faculty and experience innovative approaches to curriculum being used at Westtown today.

Who is Nidhogg? Part of the 6th grade unit on Vikings is learning about Norse mythology. Each student becomes an expert on a character from the Norse pantheon, and students teach each other about their characters by creating a presentation in Explain Everything, one of their iPad apps. Nicholas Hanchak ’20 tells you everything you could ever want to know about Nidhogg. ANSWER

www.westtown.edu/thewestonian

How much? You can probably solve the word problem below, but what’s really interesting is how Singapore Math teaches students to derive the solution. Listen as 5th grader Kavi Gandhi explains. After saving # of his paycheck for the month, Mr. Donovan has $1,335 left to spend. Mrs. Spencer saves ⅜ of her paycheck. Both of them save the same amount of money. How much is Mrs. Spencer’s paycheck? www.westtown.edu/ thewestonian

ANSWER

Who said it? Brush up your Shakespeare with T. Spencer! Who’s the character, what’s the play and what does it all mean? Identify the quote below: “Then must you speak Of one that loved not wisely, but too well; Of one not easily jealous, but, being wrought, Perplexed in the extreme.” ANSWER

Want to know more about the Westtown curriculum? Visit www.westtown.edu/academics

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Past is Prologue 08

1980

S I N C E 1 7 9 9 , Westtown students have lived and learned together. The earliest students lodged in large chambers with little personal space, while later generations of students have expressed their lives and times through ever-changing dormitory décor. Pictured here: (left) Taun Chapman ’81 and Ted Koenig ’81; (right) Lux Lennox ’15 (Elizabeth Lowry Brache ’40, great-grandmother) and Chris Bream ’15 (Kevin Bream ’82, father). A R CH I VA L P H O TO COUR T E S Y O F MA RY BR O O KS , W ES T T O W N S CH O O L A R CH I VES . 2 0 14 PH O T O BY E D CU N I C ELLI

2014

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S TRATEG I C P L AN

The World Needs More Westonians

A Vision and Strategy for a Flourishing Westtown Over the past two years, Westtown’s Board of Trustees, administration, faculty and staﬀ have worked together and with our wider community to draw up a plan that will help Westtown flourish today and in the years beyond. While the Board anticipates approving the final plan in June, we’ve already drafted a goal and have identified the emerging plan’s five imperatives: Strategic Goal: Because we are uniquely qualified to do so and because the world urgently needs us to, Westtown will become a recognized leader in developing the next generation of globally- and scientifically-literate, spiritually- and ethically-grounded leaders and stewards of a better world. To do so by September of 2018, we will: z 1D1:=> A63<-BC@1 >@=3@-;A B1B51@10 B= =C@ #C-91@ @==BA and the strategic goal z %B-.6:6H1 =C@ 1<@=::;1<B .1BE11< \[V \][ "@1 WX ABC01<BA z <3-31 =C@ /=<AB6BC1<BA >@=D601 ;1-<6<32C: A1@D6/1A 2=@ them and welcome their talents, time, and resources z "=A6B6=< )1Aũ=E< -A - /-CA1 E=@B5G -<0 01A1@D6<3 =2 36D6<3 z @-Ś - ACAB-6<-.:1 ŕ<-</6-: ;=01: A= B5-B )1Aũ=E< /-< achieve its immediate goals and so that it can be handed to the next generation of school leaders intact and poised for future consequence We have many exciting new ideas and ventures to share, but we know that the change in the residential policy has understandably drawn the most attention and interest. The revision came in response to the plan’s second imperative around 10

The Westonian Magazine

AB-.6:6H6<3 1<@=::;1<B E56/5 5-A 0@=>>10 <1-@:G X[ >1@/1<B over the last five years. While the required residential policy was not the sole source of this decline, we know from our research and experience that it’s played a crucial role. The Board of Trustees and Administration has a multi-pronged strategy for stabilizing enrollment and the revision is only one critical tool in this complicated task. We look forward to sharing more about the other strategies in the near future, but we want to share our progress on the process of developing an implementation plan because it is so important to our community. As a reminder, last May the Board approved a revision in the boarding policy that retains the two-year boarding requirement for students enrolling in 8th grade or later but B5-B -::=EA 2-;6:61A E5= 1<@=:: 6< ]B5 3@-01 =@ 1-@:61@ B51 choice to join the residential community. &56A 2-:: 1-0 =2 %/5==: =5< -6@0 -AA1;.:10 - B1-; of faculty and staﬀ to flesh out the details for the policy’s 6;>:1;1<B-B6=< &51 =;;C<6BG 621 =;;6ũ11 K L will submit a report and a series of recommendations to B51 1-0 =2 %/5==: 6< C3CAB &51 6</:C01A :=<3 B1@; 2-/C:BG -:C;<6 #C-91@A -A E1:: -A /C@@1<B -<0 2=@;1@ >-@1<BA :1@9A "-C: 15;-<< s__ -<0 )56B<1G =Ŕ;-< %Cũ1:: s_^ -<0 ;1;.1@A %>1</1@ -B1A 6<0- / C6@1 %51:-35 )6:A=< s^[ 1-<<1ũ1 ==>1@ :A=< !A5;-< :C<B -<0 :=@ @CH sV\ &51 5-A .11< 5-@0 -B E=@9 A6</1 !/B=.1@ ;11B6<3 weekly and dividing their work into three phases: research and vision setting, benchmark school visits, and design. This January, they completed their rounds of school visits. The committee visited seven day and boarding schools:

S T R AT EG I C P L A N

BY J O N E VA N S, CL ER K OF T H E B OA RD O F T R US T EE S A ND JO HN BA I RD, HE AD OF S C HO O L

=</=@0 /-01;G 6:B=< /-01;G 1=@31 %/5==: )G=;6<3 %1;6<-@G ==;6A 5-Ĺ&#x201D;11 -<0 )6::6AB=<

=@B5-;>B=< C@6<3 B516@ D6A6BA B51G ;1B E6B5 ABC01<BA and administrators, toured the campuses, and had meals in the dining room. At each school, they asked about how the schools build community between boarders and day students. They discussed when day students were permitted =< /-;>CA K1D1<6<3 ;1-:A =D1@<635B 1B/ L -<0 E5-B BG>1A of events and programming they had on evenings and weekends. They researched each schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s car policy and asked about student leadership opportunities for day students and boarders. &5=A1 D6A6BA =B51@ @1A1-@/5 -<0 B51 sA 011> connection to Westtownâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s residential program helped them develop a working version of a vision for the residential and day program. A draft of the vision states: We are a full and robust school with a high quality and diverse student body. All Westtown students and families feel supported and have a positive and fulfilling experience. Our residential program is Westtownâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s center of gravity, and all community members understand the value of the boarding program to the whole school. Many local families choose to board, and all experience the benefits of our residential program throughout their Westtown career. Students feel connected to each other, and everyone feels privileged and excited to be part of our program and school. &51 6A <=E ;=@1 2=@;-::G 1<B1@6<3 B51 01A63< >5-A1 of their work, with a focus on five main areas: evening programming, weekends, student leadership, shared community experiences, and physical space. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve begun to flesh out

a proposal for a car policy that permits day students to drive to and from school only while maintaining student safety and preserving the essence of community that is so vital to us. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve also developed an evening policy that includes welcoming day students to stay for dinner, study hall, and evening events. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re in the early phases of testing these policies and soliciting feedback. !<1 =2 B51 ;=AB 1F/6B6<3 @1D1:-B6=<A 5-A /1<B1@10 on physical space. It became clear early on that having an enticing, welcoming, convenient space for all students B= 5-<3 =CB 6A D6B-: -<G =2 B51 A/5==:A B51 D6A6B10 had student centers that combined dining rooms with A=/6-: A>-/1 -<0 1D1< A=;1 91G =Ĺ?/1A AC/5 -A B51 1-< =2 %BC01<BA &51 E6:: :691:G @1/=;;1<0 B5-B )1AĹŠ=E< develop such a space. &51 >@1A1<B10 -< C>0-B1 =2 B516@ work to the Board of Trustees in January and April. They continue to meet regularly with faculty in all the divisions. As they develop more proposals and ideas, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll continue Learn more and share to reach out to parents and students for ideas your thoughts at and feedback. They also welcome communicawesttown.edu/ strategicplan B6=< -<0 601-A 2@=; -:C;<6 &51 /-< be reached at communitylife@westtown.edu. !</1 ->>@=D10 B51 AB@-B136/ >:-< E6:: 51:> )1AĹŠ=E< flourish in the years ahead so that it can do the good work itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s always done. The plan is based on a clear and profound conviction: If we want to create a world thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s more just, more peaceful, more ethically prosperous, then the world <110A ;=@1 )1AB=<6-<A BsA -A A6;>:1 K-<0 -A /=;>:1F L as that.

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Fields & Courts AND THE WINNER IS…EVERYONE! Many of our fall and winter teams posted winning seasons this year. Some teams brought home league championship titles, some teams defeated rival George School for the first time in years, and some teams showed vast improvement over previous years. Individuals in See more sports cross country, indoor track, and updates online at swimming logged personal westtown.edu/ athletics bests in their events. Athletic success isn’t just measured in trophies, titles, times, scores or in win/loss ratios. It’s also measured in the teamwork, dedication, effort and spirit of athletes themselves. Go ’TOWN!

The Westonian Magazine

CHAMPIONSHIPS THIS YEAR GIRLS’ SWIMMING Friends Schools League Champions BOYS’ VARSITY BASKETBALL Friends Schools League Champions WRESTLING 10th Consecutive Friends Schools League Champions 7th Consecutive DISC Champions

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FACU LT Y PRO FIL E

The Evolution of Tim Loose STO RY BY Ć&#x201E; L PH O T O BY E D C UNI C E LLI

For Tim Loose, evolution is a passion. He studies it. He teaches it. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s created a course devoted to the topic. And as he prepares to retire after 44 years of teaching, evolution takes on added meaning, a metaphor for his professional life at Westtown. Reflecting on his legacy at the school, Tim says there are three things heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most proud of. Wrestling is one of them. â&#x20AC;&#x153;When I arrived and took over the program, it wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t much to speak of. I built it into something worthwhile, something I could hand over joyfully to Jay Farrow while still remaining part of it as assistant coach.â&#x20AC;? Tim was head coach from 1970â&#x20AC;&#x201C;86 when he left for a sabbatical that took him from Australia to the Amazon: Australia, to see the country, and the Amazon, to take part in a research expedition with Earth Watch. In a note to Tim at the end of wrestling season, John Baird wrote: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Since 1970 you have built a program that represents not only the very best of Westtown, but of high school athletes in the FSL, DISC, the state, and nationally. The teamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 7th consecutive DISC title and 10th consecutive FSL championship are a fitting climax to your brilliant career. Ultimately, though, your contributions will be measured in the relationships you have formed and your life-long influence on your students.â&#x20AC;? A second source of pride is creation of Westtownâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s photography program. The Art Center darkroom already existed when Tim arrived on campus, and he credits Don Byerly with laying the groundwork by sponsoring photography as an evening activity. His contribution to the process was to get a photography course into the curriculum. That was in 1987. Since then, Tim has taught the class and worked with student photographers, all the while creating his own vast portfolio which includes a wealth of images of campus life and Westtown athletics. Finally, there are the courses heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s taught and the leadership heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s provided within the Science Department. Tim and Jan Long put together the first AP Biology class at Westtown, for example, and along with Barry Feierman, he started the Environmental Science course. He also developed Campus Ecology, a 9th grade class that Westtown no longer oďŹ&#x20AC;ers because of changes in the curriculum with the move to â&#x20AC;&#x153;Physics First.â&#x20AC;? 14

The Westonian Magazine

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m sorry that class is gone because I loved the way it used the entire 600 acres, but I totally support the order of science courses today. The whole field of biology has changed so much that it doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t make sense any more without knowing chemistry, and chemistry itself builds on an understanding of physics. â&#x20AC;&#x153;So where Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve ended up is teaching the course on evolutionary history of life on earth. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve come full circleâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;my background is in geology with a specialty in evolutionary paleontology. I stay current as a teacher because Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m so interested that I do the reading for fun, and it carries over into my classes.â&#x20AC;? Timâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s range of accomplishments is indicative of his varied interests, but it also simply speaks to the facts of life in a boarding school. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You do lots of things and wear lots of hats, and theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re all important.â&#x20AC;? Tim believes itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s valuable for students to see that adults in the community do much more than teach. And while Tim has given generously of himself and his talents to the life of the schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; having served Westtown as Acting Director of Studies and of Athletics in the â&#x20AC;&#x2122;80s, as long-time chair of the Science Department, and as a member of myriad committeesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;this is not the work that makes his eyes light up. Teaching, clearly, has always been his first love. Tim Loose has witnessed many changes during his 44 years at Westtown, and heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s evolved and adapted to them all. Photography has morphed from wet to digital (the school now oďŹ&#x20AC;ers courses in both), and biology is no longer weighted toward acquiring information but instead on applying it and thinking critically. His beloved wrestlers grapple in a new Field House, and he teaches in a state-of-the-art Science Center. But in the end these are externals, and the core remains the same: the many students who share his passion for science. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My strongest students are as strong as ever, and I think theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re even more aggressive learners than in the past. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll miss them.â&#x20AC;? Westtown has a long tradition of excellence in science teaching, and like the legends who preceded him, Tim is characteristically modest about his achievements since coming to campus in 1970. He would say, simply, that heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s done his job. But in the words of Friedrich von Schiller, the German philosopher, â&#x20AC;&#x153;He who has done his best for his own time has lived for all times.â&#x20AC;? As has Tim Loose.

FAC U LT Y P R O F I L E

See more photos online of Tim Looseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s photo shoot at westtown.edu/ thewestonian

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The Arts Gallery A MOOD. A FEELING. A VISION. A LESSON. A HOPE. A DREAM. Our students reveal these through artistic expressionâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;which is self-expressionâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; in every division at Westtown. The Arts Gallery, a new feature in the The Westonian, celebrates the joy of Learn more creative endeavor, the mastery of about the Arts at technique, the exploration of varied westtown. materials and media. It celebrates edu/arts the artist in all of us. The work shown here represents the variety of ways students interact with material. This section will alternate between highlighting the performing arts and studio arts.

The Westonian Magazine

A R T G A L L E RY

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S TU DEN T VOIC ES

Owning It BY TAYLOR GRI FFI T H, STU DENT B O DY CO - PRESIDENT

This year has truly been the year of student initiative at Westtown. From the academics to the extracurricular activities, the students have stepped up in being key leading figures behind the ever-evolving Westtown Experience. For starters, a course option oﬀered this year was the Independent Seminar. Students who were accepted into this class were given the opportunity to pursue individual academic interests, such as the study of the Middle East or theoretical physics, for example. In this student-driven program, students chose their own projects, found supportive mentors outside of Westtown, and created their own final projects. As a student in this class, I felt that not only was this opportunity amazing, but it was also an experience in which we learned a lot about ourselves and better understood the vastness of our abilities. The same can be said about making a diﬀerence in the Westtown Community, especially for Phillip Cottone ’14,

Check out what else Taylor has to say at the Independent Seminar blog independentseminarblog. wordpress.com

The Westonian Magazine

“It was… an experience in which we learned a lot about ourselves and better understood the vastness of our abilities...”

founder of the new organization Westtown Way. Feeling as though some of the kids who got into trouble last year would have been better served by peer intervention, Phil wanted to create a group that would focus on maintaining Westtown’s safe social atmosphere. As a result, with the help of T. Linda McGuire, Dean of Students, Westtown Way came to fruition. While the organization is still relatively new, the group’s slogan thus far is, “We are an anti-bullying peer support group committed to finding the best possible communal outcome to unfortunate social situations.” Phil believes that students have more influence over each other than adults do, and in gaining support for this organization, he has helped many see that the energy needed to keep a safe and resilient student body has to come from the students as well. In keeping with the spirit of student initiative, Jeremy and I are currently leading the senior class in an eﬀort to hold on to one of Westtown’s valued events: Community Education Day. It was announced last fall that the annual CED had been cancelled this year due to a lack of support in organizing the workshops. This was disappointing to many, as the students treasure CED as a valuable alternative learning experience they might not receive otherwise. The Class of 2014 is hoping to transform CED into a “Sharing our Passions” event in which the senior class sponsors the workshops themselves, sharing the things they do best. In signups to date, we have had a number of seniors oﬀer to run a variety workshops, among them dancing, screen printing, t-shirt making, yoga, spoken word, beat making, baking, cooking, photography, and many more.

S T U D E NT VO I C E S

Making a Diﬀerence BY J E RE MY G RA F E VAN S, S T UD EN T B O DY CO- PRE S IDENT

Another inspiring addition to the year has been a Friday assembly series entitled “Sharing Our Stories,” in which community members share stories about something vital in their lives. Thus far we have heard about a student’s journey from recreational horse rider to Division 1 Scholarship athlete; another student’s experience of having his mother falsely incarcerated and having her in prison as he’s grown up; our new farm manager and his passion for tomatoes; a student who turned a gruesome sports injury into an excuse to pursue his hobby of film making; a student whose summer boredom led him to a love for musical beat making; and a pair of teachers whose worldly adventures got them into a couple life–threatening situations together. In the same way that current students are being given a forum to share their story, we have worked to encourage Alumni to come back and share theirs. Earlier this fall we were fortunate enough to have Josh Harris ’08 bring his work back into the community. Josh, otherwise known by his stage name, Maxxx Flair, is a rising hip-hop artist in New York City and was more than willing to come back and perform a concert for the student body to kick oﬀ our inaugural Westtown FallFest, which was another community-wide event that had marks of student initiative, from brainstorming, to volunteering to running stations, to providing live music. In addition to FallFest, in February, Work Program Heads organized a Sochi-inspired Work Program Olympics with events such as tray stacking, pitcher filling/distribution, and holding the maximum number of chairs oﬀ the floor as humanly possible. In addition to

“The students understand that the classic saying ‘You get out what you put in’ is certainly true at Westtown.”

spirited competition, the spirit of the student body was well nurtured in a recent student-only Thursday Meeting for Worship. Faculty and Staﬀ had their own Worship in the South Room while the students engaged in worship in the Meeting House as usual. Westtown’s nurturing of the body, spirit, and mind is happening in more innovative ways today than ever before. The students understand that the classic saying “You get out what you put in” is certainly true at Westtown. It has driven student initiative to a new level, and we are proud to see the positive impact achieved by empowering students and alumni not only to enrich their own personal experience, but also the experience of the entire community as well.

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REDESIGNING THE WESTONIAN

Why Now? It’s a legitimate question.

After all, The Westonian has served the Westtown community for more than 130 years, so why change it now especially when so much other change is happening at Westtown? Wouldn’t it be better to just keep something as treasured as this magazine the same for a year or two—if not forever? Maybe. But when you think of our strategic goal to improve engagement and communication, it’s impossible to avoid taking a hard look at the single most important outreach eﬀort we produce. The Westonian has served the Westtown community very well for years, and yet it has tremendous untapped potential to do that work even more eﬀectively. That’s the goal of this redesign. We want to keep the magazine fresh and do a better job communicating all that’s going on at school and in our 10,000 strong community.

BY TER RY DU BOW

To our survey in the Fall 2013 issue of The Westonian

195 65

paper surveys were returned

online surverys were completed More Survey Results >>>>>>

SURVEY RESULTS BY THE NUMBERS

If you could PRESERVE three things about The Westonian, they would be… Class Notes

203 80 71 70 54 48 tone

size

design

stories

length

infographic on Inside back cover

When The Westonian arrives I tend to… read it

125 flip to Class Notes

set it down for later

22 1 recycle it

First, let’s get to what stays the same… Class notes. More than 90 percent of survey respondents declared their love of Class Notes, which is great news. We want to devote even more space to them, so please send your updates in! The tone. We want to present compelling content for our readers with a tone of respect and honesty. A commitment to capturing Westtown today for tomorrow’s students. It’s humbling to walk into the archives and see the leather-bound Westonians from 1895. We know that we’re writing for posterity. We’ll do our best to live up to that weighty expectation.

How’d we get here?

This fall, I presented the idea of redesigning The Westonian to the Class Connectors, the Board of Trustees as well as the Board of Managers of the Westtown Alumni Association. I then assembled a group of alumni, school administrators, and parents to explore the question of whether we should make a change. We reviewed magazines from other schools and organizations, examined past issues of The Westonian and engaged in a visioning process that resulted in three statements that will guide us in the next years:

The Westonian Magazine

OUR MISSION The Westonian aims to capture the life of the school, to celebrate the impact that our students, faculty and alumni have on our world and to serve as a forum for connection, exploration, and conversation. OUR EDITORIAL PURPOSE AND APPROACH The Westonian strives to be a mustread-cover-to-cover magazine with content that compels the casual to committed reader. The articles and features will be lively, authentic and substantial while maintaining the Westtown spirit of joy, questioning, and curiosity. While the content will bring Westtown and its community to life, the voice will reflect the personality of Westtown graduates: intelligent, passionate, and engaged. All elements, including headlines, captions and copy, should strive to be captivating, clever, and clear. OUR VISUAL AESTHETIC AND PRIORITIES In its look and feel, The Westonian strives to capture the wonder, creativity, and energy inherent in the Westtown experience. We will emphasize large, dominant and candid photography prioritizing artistry, warmth and emotional resonance. Visual elements including photos, graphics and illustrations should do more than capture a moment; they should tell a story. The Westonian’s typography and design should be clean, readable, fresh and include suﬃcient white space to allow readers to absorb the content and feel of each page.

What did our readers tell us?

In November, we sent 8,000 copies of The Westonian around the world. This issue included a survey inviting readers to share their thoughts about the magazine and our other communications eﬀorts. We also posted the survey on our website and social media feeds. We received around 230 responses, which was helpful and revealing. While those who responded contributed some truly useful and important feedback, a response rate of less than 3 percent also indicated that we haven’t suﬃciently captured the interest of many, many readers. The surveys helped us develop departments such as “Past is Prologue” that juxtaposes an archival image with a current one to emphasize what stays the same at Westtown and “Have Your Say,” which provides space for alumni, parents, and students to share their views around a specified topic. The surveys also made it quite clear that this is a high stakes moment. Some respondents told us in no uncertain terms that changing The Westonian would be hurtful and a serious mistake. Hearing that level of caution is sobering and makes it even more critical that we make this shift worth any upset it causes. All of us involved in making this decision listened carefully to the voices belonging to Westonians who feel a deep loyalty to and, lately, some disappointment in Westtown. We also listened to voices that speak to a desire for increased connection and deeper understanding of the school today. We hope that the changes in The Westonian will allow the magazine to serve as a vehicle for connection, healing and enthusiasm.

The changes…

We’ll publish twice rather than three times a year. Look for issues in April and October. We spend roughly $60,000 annually on The Westonian, most of that on paper and postage. Printing two issues a year allows us to spend the same amount but invest instead in photography, design and writing. More importantly, the new schedule also gives us the time to write more in-depth, substantial pieces that our audience reports (and our experience confirms) will make the magazine compelling and relevant. In future issues, we plan to solicit article ideas, writing and photography from alumni, parents and students. We’ve made the magazine larger to allow for more white space and more compelling photography. It’s also a bit longer and features a content structure that we’ll repeat in future editions. We sought a simple, elegant and clean design, one that respected our heritage and reflected our Quaker values. We felt that The Westonian should be as beautiful and engaging as our history and the campus itself. We believe that our school and our readers deserve as much. We’ve made additional content available on the website—check it out at westtown.edu/thewestonian. We know there is no monolithic audience. Some readers love to hold the magazine in their hands. Others prefer to read it online. Still others haven’t ever visited our website to see what’s happening on campus. Oﬀering additional content online will give us chances to continue the conversation started in the magazine and invite readers to the website, which we update frequently.

NO T ES O N DESI GN C HA NG ES A. The new masthead is now set in upper and lowercase type, which has a less formal and friendlier tone. The “st” ligature is a nod to connections and staying connected which is what the magazine is all about. The ligature also makes reference to the main logo mark of the school which contains its own distinct ligature (“TT”) . Cover images are now full bleed and focus on supporting the narrative of one of the main issue features. B. New typefaces have been selected specifically for better legibililty making the magazine easier to read. C. New callouts point readers to additional online content.

SURVEY RESULTS BY THE NUMBERS If you could CHANGE three things about The Westonian, they would be… more alumni stories

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more fun and varied content

editor to our home address or to westonian@westtown.edu . You can also visit the magazine on our website and use the feedback tool there. And if you’re interested in writing for The Westonian, be sure to let us know! We’ll also ask for reactions formally and informally and will regularly solicit feedback and suggestions from the WAA Board of Managers, the Parent Council, the Board of Trustees and the faculty, staﬀ and students.

30 20

larger print

a slightly more modern magazine design

13 13

use better photos

make size of magazine larger

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The Westonian Magazine

FROM POCKETS TO PROJECTS

A Life at Westtown STO RY BY - % % Ć&#x201E; L PHO TO S BY ED C UNICEL L I

On a sunny summer day in late August 2000, Teacher Debbie Moyer welcomed the smallest students to New Student Orientation. Kids and their parents explored the vibrant Pre-K classroom full of books, art supplies, and personalized cubbies. At first, the children moved around the room tentatively and quietly. They shyly exchanged glances. Some clung to the leg of a parent. But soon enough, as is the way with four-year-olds, they began to pick up toys and play. T. Debbie helped them introduce themselves to each other. They chattered. They gnarled their teeth and made the sound of the dinosaur theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d just found. They romped in the â&#x20AC;&#x153;castle,â&#x20AC;? a wooden loft where they would eventually spend hours reading, playing, and resting. They found their new best friends. As they left that day, T. Debbie gave each student a yellow felt pocket with his or her name on it. She instructed them to wear their pockets on the first day of school and to put something in them that reminded them of home or made them happy: a photo, a trinket, a note from a parent. Top to bottom, lâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;r: Erin Silver-Wheeler, Karis Jackson, Clay McKee, Mandy Weaver, Luke Frankel, Katira Dobbins, Max Pinsky, and Maddie Assarsson hold up photos of themselves as young students.

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A few days later, as they readied themselves for school, their parents pinned the pockets to their brand new school clothes. Photos were taken. A parent or two shed tears as they dropped off their treasures in the Pre-K room, not sure they were ready to say goodbye. But the kids were ready. Eight of those kids would spend the next 14 years on this campus. Now seniors, all eight remember those yellow pockets, designed to make them feel safe and comfortable in their new surroundings. Most still have them tucked away for safe keeping as a token of their first days at Westtown. T. Debbie’s gesture set the tone for the studentcentered educational experience that Westtown offers. Maddie Assarsson, Katira Dobbins, Luke Frankel, Karis Jackson, Clay McKee, Max Pinsky, Erin Silver-Wheeler and Amanda Weaver are “lifers” at Westtown. It’s a large group—usually there are only a few lifers in each graduating class— notable also because three of them are children of alumni, two of whom were lifers as well. They gathered recently to talk about what it’s been like to have spent the better part of their lives (so far) at Westtown. What is immediately striking is the sense of comfort with each other—they behave more like brothers and sisters than classmates. They are playful and completely at home with one another. That stands to reason since they’ve known one another since they were four years old. They’ve watched each another grow up, gone to one another’s birthday parties, they’ve cheered for each other on the sidelines of sporting events, they’ve collaborated on countless school projects, participated in clubs together, led, ate, studied, done work jobs and roomed together. They are family.

The Westonian Magazine

Playing to Learn in Lower School When these kids, most of them 18 years old now, reflect on their Lower School experience the first thing most of them say is, in a word, “fun.” “It wasn’t just that recess was a lot of fun—because it was—it’s that all of it was fun,” says Luke. “Even though we were learning and doing projects, teachers made sure that we weren’t stressed out. When we got old enough to get grades, they made us feel as though grades weren’t the most important thing, but learning was. That kept it fun for us.” Katira agrees. “We played a lot of games. It seemed like we were playing all the time. But what we didn’t know was that those games were educational.” This sense of fun that the kids felt is an intentional outgrowth of the curriculum in Lower School. The playfulness and joy is by design. Our teachers know that kids learn best when they are happy and comfortable. These students also cite, in retrospect, that not being graded in Lower School (until 5th grade they received only comments) helped them to value what was important: themselves, others and learning for its own sake. “We had to work hard and we were taught well, but you didn’t feel like you were ranked against others. It helped us appreciate others’ talents,” Katira adds. At this, Karis enthusiastically chimes in. “When grades come out now, I STILL go right

Pre-Kindergarten class photo 2000—2001

to the comments! I care a lot about them because I think it’s the most important part. That’s because of how it was in Lower School.” In spite of the fun, it wasn’t always easy. “The laurels project in 5th grade,” notes Clay, “was probably one of the most difficult academic projects I’ve had at Westtown. It was intense! We had to complete tasks in all subjects to earn our graduation from Lower School. We had to run a total of 25 miles (not all at once!), complete the ‘Million Dollar Math’ project, learn cuneiform, write essays and more.” The “Laurels” are a signature program in Lower School designed as a project-based way to assess learning. “Like finals for Lower School,” as Erin describes them. They were named as such since fifth graders study ancient cultures as part of their curricula in history, geography and culture. “Laurels were so tough,” says Erin. “But I was so proud of myself. I felt a real sense of achievement.” The official end of their time at Lower School was celebrated in the Meeting House on the last day of school. Parents, teachers and all Lower School students gathered to hear each student present a brief message about his or her experience. Not surprisingly, several of them spoke of the pockets they wore to school on that first day.

Luke Frankel, Katira Dobbins, Karis Jackson, Max Pinsky, Clay McKee, Amanda Weaver, Maddie Assarsson, and Erin Silver-Wheeler are “lifers” at Westtown.

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In the Middle of it All Middle School brought new challenges, concerns and achievements. The group collectively chuckles as they recall this phase of life. “Ah, the time of changes and hormones and all that stuff, “ laughs Amanda. “There was more pressure socially and academically,” says Maddie. The Middle School curriculum is designed to help students take more responsibility for their work and to gradually become more independent, catering to the developmental needs of this age group. Academics probe deeper and become more challenging. Luke insists he “will never have a harder math course than Teacher Jon Kimmel’s math in 8th grade! I got to Upper School algebra with all these kids that came from other schools, and they didn’t know the material. But we did.” They also say that Middle Watch a video of the lifers at School is where they learned westtown.edu/ how to research. “We had thewestonian major research projects that were a big deal,” says Karis. “So when the big research projects came in Upper School we were ready for them.” Amanda even sees the research connection reflected in her 12th grade Hamlet paper. They all note how successful Middle School was in helping them overcome the social angst and awkwardness that comes with being 12 and 13 years old, especially at the lunch tables. Because of mixed-grade assigned seating that rotates monthly, “you had to meet and talk with other kids, so eventually you knew everyone,” explains Erin. “It made you more comfortable and made you judge people less.” All the seniors say that the transition to Upper School was an easy and exciting one. They were ready for the added freedoms and responsibilities given to Upper School students and they were more than prepared for the academic work that awaited them. “In fact,” asserts Max, “eighth grade was so academically

The Westonian Magazine

“This is home, and I say it subconsciously. Like when I say, ‘I’m going home,’ I mean Westtown.” — K ARI S JACK S O N ’ 1 4

difficult that 9th grade seemed like it was going to be a breeze.” Living & Learning in the Upper School Upper School turned out to be a bit more challenging than they’d expected. They all say that the Upper School years have been great, yet more complex. There are longer school days, more work, more time spent outside of class on projects, athletics, clubs and work jobs. But this is an ambitious bunch and they have met the Upper School challenge with energy and enthusiasm. They have filled their schedules with advanced courses and taken full advantage of all that’s available to them. They each have held leadership roles (as prefects, teams captains, editors, club heads and class officers), they are academic rock stars—each has earned Academic Distinction, and they’ve all completed more than 40 hours of service. The impact of Westtown is evident in their self-confidence, their

articulate manner of speaking and their value of community life. These eight lifers are energetic, enthusiastic and passionate. They say they are proud of the ‘ethos’ of their entire large, but close-knit class. “It’s pretty amazing,” notes Maddie, “every time new kids joined the class it was as if they’d been at Westtown their whole lives, too. We were happy to get to know new kids, and they seemed to make seamless transitions, blend right in with our awesome class. Westtown does that—well, I guess we do that, too!” Ask these kids what they enjoy most about Westtown, and the answers are nearly identical. Boarding. Relationships. Community. Connection. “Throughout the time here there were always fun things, and they were always things that made you get to know the people you were with better. You get closer to people than you do at other schools.” All agree that the relationships they’ve had with their teachers throughout their years here have been pivotal in their

experience. “I see teachers I had in Lower School and they still know me by name.” There is no doubt among these young adults that they have felt known and valued as individuals. Relationships and community in general are fostered in a deep and genuine way here, and that’s particularly evident in the boarding program. When asked if they ever had any doubts about living on campus, they practically shout that they couldn’t wait for it. “My older brother and sister had boarded, so I saw what their experiences were like,” says Luke. “I could barely wait for it to be my turn. And here I am roommates with my best friend from Pre-K! I love it.” Clay, his roommate, nods in agreement. Amanda elaborates, “There is just more here. (Plus some of my relatives went here!) Great community, great experience, great education. There was never any doubt.” Maddie says that she was so ready to move on dorm, especially after experiencing Day Students on Dorm freshman year. She credits the boarding program with teaching her how to “live with other people. People from all kinds of backgrounds, people will all kinds of personalities and styles. Having to live with people in college will be no adjustment at all.” From Pockets to Projects While most educational roads lead to graduation, at Westtown they also lead to Senior Projects, the capstone to a Westtown education. Senior Projects challenge students to put their skills to use in the ‘real world’ and to stretch themselves personally and academically. Students may elect to craft an independent study or a join school-led experience. As a whole, the class of 2014 went to 18 countries and 12 states. These lifers are ebullient when they talk about their choices for Senior Projects, ones they’d been waiting for “our whole Westtown lives!”

Their classrooms without walls took places all over the globe. Amanda and Maddie built a retaining wall for a school in Peru’s Sacred Valley. Erin taught at Heritage Academy in Ghana. Luke hiked the Appalachian Trail. Clay worked on a sheep farm in Ireland. Katira did a service project through William Penn House in Washington, DC. Max honed his Mandarin skills in China. Karis learned about both sides of the conflict in Israel and Palestine. It’s an impressive set of learning experiences, and they all credit Senior Projects as their most intensive preparation for what’s to come in their lives. Max reflects, “Senior Projects meant the end of my Westtown career but the beginning of my career as a global citizen. I have heard stories about Senior Project throughout school, and it has become a treasured thing, a rite of passage. It was an amazing feeling while I was in China to realize, ‘Wow, I’m doing my Senior Project right now. I can’t believe I’ve come this far.’ It was a surreal experience and it’s just starting to hit me that the next major milestone in my Westtown career is graduation.” The rest of the group agrees with Max’s sentiment, feeling that their projects were not only a milestone but also a stepping stone in their educational journeys. (You can read more about seniors’ experiences on their Projects on the blog www.westtownsrprojects.com.) So what does it mean to these kids to be lifers at Westtown? “I’m so proud of it,” says Karis. “This is home, and I say it subconsciously. Like when I say, ‘I’m going home,’ I mean Westtown.” A grander question still is what it means to be a Westonian. None of them take very long to answer and they all echo Luke’s response: “Being a Westonian means you’re obligated to show the world what you can do. You have a responsibility to use what you’ve learned because teachers have invested so much in you. You have to go and make the world a better place.”

Parents are Lifers, Too. Author’s Note: This class and this year’s lifers have special meaning to me. My daughter, Maddie, is one of the lifers, and the experience of watching her and all these kids blossom into the people they are now has been a profound joy. Those shy, tentative little people in the Pre-K room have grown into confident, articulate, funny, kind and passionate big people. I am not alone in my nostalgia. Says Betsy Pinsky ’83 (Max’s mom and a lifer herself), “I learned that my good fortune of being a member of such an amazing community also came with responsibility. How blessed we feel that our boys have had that same The author and her landscape in daughter, Maddie, in which to grow, Peru for Senior Projects struggle and thrive!” Adds Katira’s mom, Shelagh Wilson ’85, “Allowing me to attend Westtown was one of the best things my parents ever did for me, and the experience changed my life. The decision to send my children to Westtown starting in Pre-K was an easy one. They have learned to think critically, be tolerant, and speak their minds. It’s hard to believe these kids are about to go out into the world already!” What’s more, the sense of community that the students feel touches the parents too, and Westtown has encouraged our involvement every step of the way. We’ve gone on field trips, been room parents and class clerks, organized socials and, more importantly, become fast friends ourselves. It wasn’t just our kids who found a community here; we did as well.

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M O R E

T H A N

Building

T H E

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S C I E N C E

C E N T E R

When approached in a certain light, Westtownâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new science building looks like itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s topped with a pair of wings. The architects, in fact, call it a â&#x20AC;&#x153;butterfly roofâ&#x20AC;? because the two gables angle upwards and slope towards the middle, which gives the viewer the sense that the building just might take flight. Whether or not the building ever leaves the ground, the programs it houses are certainly poised for lift oďŹ&#x20AC;. The truth is that the building is more than a building. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a statement about Westtownâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s confidence, BUI LDI N G ON A L EG AC Y commitment and aspirations. It declares that This all happened quite fast. While itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been clear for years that Westtown Westtown believes, perhaps more than ever, needed more space to teach science, that todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s students need a rigorous, adventhe time between ground breaking to opening the doors to the expansion of turous, innovative education in the sciences. the existing building is measured in The worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s problems are manifold, and the months. Nine of them to be exact. Board Member David Jones â&#x20AC;&#x2122;72 led the project solutions will require scientifically-literate leadalong with George Schaab, Westtownâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ers and doers who not only know how the world facilities manager. Many more worked on the plan and its execution. In the end, works but are both empowered and prepared the project added six classrooms and to do something about it. 16,000 square feet, refurbished three

S T ORY BY - Ć&#x201E;

L PHO TO S BY ED C UNI C ELLI

other rooms and labs as well as the lecture hall, and created a design and engineering lab. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a teaching building as well, built as a model of sustainability principles. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Its design and operation are an expression of our care for the natural world and commitment to environmental leadership,â&#x20AC;? wrote Head of School John Baird in January. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It is heated and cooled by geothermal wells; it has a â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;butterfly roofâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; and cistern to collect and recycle rain water, and maximizes natural light through windows, which afford stunning vistas of the Main Building and the South Woods. Some of the wood in the building is sustainably harvested, the linoleum comes from vegetable matter, and a dashboard has been installed that will will enable us to track the buildingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s energy use.â&#x20AC;?

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Just as importantly, the building honors the fact that Westtown has always held scientific inquiry as one of its primary callings. In the early days, “depending on who the teachers were in the time they attended, kids could study botany, geology/mineralogy, ornithology, herpetology, astronomy and geography, heard lectures in chemistry, watched astronomical phenomena,” says Kevin Gallagher, Westtown Archivist. “All of these studies were considered ‘useful knowledge,’ which was both an Enlightenment approach to natural science and a Quaker approach. Useful knowledge and spiritual exploration, both inward and outward growth, were the two key principles for which Westtown was founded.” Those founding principles flourish at today’s Westtown. In the last years, students have flocked to science, engineering, robotics and sustainability in increasing numbers. Some key indicators: z XY >1@/1<B =2 )1ABB=E< 3@-0C-B1A ;-7=@ in science, technology, engineering, or math (STEM); nationally the average is 16 percent. z <@=::;1<B 6< '>>1@ %/5==: A/61</1 /=C@A1A 5-A 6</@1-A10 YY >1@/1<B 6< B51 last 14 years.

FA S T FAC T S / / SCI EN CE CEN TER A building design that presents a future in which conferences, professional teacher training, evening “science salons” and symposia can be hosted

The Westonian Magazine

A nano spectrophotometer, which measures DNA, RNA and protein analysis

z &51 <C;.1@ =2 '>>1@ %/5==: A/61</1 course offerings has doubled in the last 14 years. “The building affirms that we’re doing the right thing and tells us to keep going,” says Dawn Lovejoy, Chair of the Upper School Science Department. “One of the great things that the Board did when they funded this project was not to invest just in the building but also in fantastic equipment. The Board deserves a lot of credit for their vision.” NOW F OR T H E F UN PAR T Over winter break, a team of science teachers, facilities crew members and volunteers unpacked boxes, assembled chairs, desks, microscopes, and trained B= CA1 B51 <1E Y >@6<B1@A )51< .@1-9 ended in January, students and faculty celebrated the opening. The Upper School jazz band played in the lobby while the Lower, Middle and Upper School students took turns touring. It was a great day. The real fun, though, has taken place in the days that have followed. The science departments in all three divisions are energized to take an excellent science program to the next level. They’re building on a sturdy foundation that prioritizes passion and curiosity. “We teach students how to think rather than what to think,” says Celeste Payne, Upper School science teacher. The Upper School has been in the vanguard of science education for many years. They adopted a Physics First

A Design and Engineering Lab dedicated to training students in design thinking, 21st century technologies, and in the creative mastery of robotics

A similar dedicated lab for life science for long term research as well as individual and group experiments

curriculum long ago because it’s developmentally appropriate even if it’s still uncommon in high schools. They also let go of the Advanced Placement tests long before it was in vogue in favor of courses that promote in-depth learning and experimentation. “We have the flexibility to reimagine and expand because we’re not teaching to these tests,” says Lovejoy. That approach allows teachers to offer what science teacher Steve Compton calls a “crafted education,” one that allows teachers to focus on enthusiastically creating experiences for students to explore, test and grapple. The end result: confident, curious and scientificallyliterate students. Make no mistake; Westtown’s science classes are certainly content rich. But where other schools place standardized content mastery as the goal of their courses, Westtown places action and depth of understanding at the heart of theirs. “We prepare students because we cover a lot of related topics,” says Rose Koenig, Upper School Chemistry teacher, “but I’m able to delve deeper into more topics that I think are essential and that students find interesting.” The next steps for the Upper School Science Department revolve around a planned curricular review next year and building on the momentum the new building has generated. The department has already begun to develop and implement exciting programs in design and engineering. Outfitted with state-ofthe-art equipment, the new design and

A LEED silver minimum certification including geothermal heating/ cooling; rainwater harvesting; renewable construction materials, and solar hot water

One lab’s lights wired with DC electricity as a model for alternative energy sources —donated by Ben Hartman ’79 and Paul Savage ’79, who have a company called Nextek, which installs DC systems

“We teach students how to think rather than what to think.” engineering lab will immerse students in an active and creative environment that will encourage them to solve problems through engineering and design. To help accelerate these efforts, Steve Compton, Director of the Westtown Science Institute, will launch its inaugural summer program this June. The WSI will offer classes for 3@-01A Y WX -:: =2 E56/5 E6:: B-91 >:-/1 in the new building. The WSI will offer “an immersive experience wherein students dive deep into phenomena and systems, and are excited by what their work reveals,” notes Compton. The classes will emphasize “learning in which curiosity leads to fascination, fascination to inspiration, inspiration to investigation, investigation to creativity, innovative thinking and building.” Compton is certainly energized to make the WSI a signature program, and people are paying attention. Earlier this winter, he was selected from a global cohort of educators by Stanford University as one of ten “Stanford FabLearn Fellows” for 2014. SC IENT IST S EV E RY W H E R E The new building also houses the Middle School science program, which shares the departmental philosophy of active engagement with science. “These are not

worksheet-based classes,” says Josh Reilly, who teaches the 7th and 8th grade science classes. “Science is action based. The classes are student-directed, immersive and collaborative.” Reilly often splits his students into teams and then presents them with scenarios that require them to apply what they’ve learned and justify their results. For instance, he gave his 8th grade chemistry students a hazardous material scenario in which they had to test known and unknown materials and then determine the composition and potential danger of the materials. (No worries; everything turned out to be safe…) “My biggest mission is to generate excitement and maintain curiosity,” he says, which is why rather than presenting and lecturing, he often has his students experience the science and then work backwards to explore why the world works as it does. Lower School offers a similar experience for students. “Our program emphasizes hands-on, collaborative science projects,” reports Sue McLaughlin, Lower School Science Teacher. In her room, a series of large, hand-drawn paper whales hang from ceiling, the result of 4th grade’s interdisciplinary ocean study project. The class traveled to Cape Henlopen in Delaware to study the

classrooms, each with complete state-of-the-art equipment and instrumentation, providing tools and methods for investigation that are second to none

A drawer filled with preserved birds, many are more than

100

Total cost:

$13,000,000 Amount raised thanks to our generous and visionary donors

$11,200,000

years old Very cool digital and fluorescence microscopes

watershed where the Delaware River meets the Atlantic. “We study it because it’s part of their real world,” McLaughlin says. “Science is alive around you. It’s something that children do. It’s not something that’s done to them. I see my role as one of guidance in their discoveries.” Next year, Lower School students will have even more to work with when it opens its own “Design Lab” that will give students the tools they need to design and engineer solutions to the problems their teachers present to them. The goal in the Lower School is the same profound one that the Upper and Middle Schools share: to harness each student’s curiosity and sense of wonder and to use scientific inquiry like a pair of wings to help them take flight.

The Westtown Science Institute, an organizing force for summer programming, school year and weekend special events, TedX talks, a seminar series, Maker Faires, and community outreach.

A science faculty, two-thirds comprised by women

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ALUMN I VO I C ES

Making it Happen

How Alumni Help Westtown Keep Doing What It Does Best STO RY BY % %- L PH O T O CO UR T ES Y O F W ES T T O W N A RCHI V ES

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been more than 18,000 days since members of the Class of 1963 graduated, and in that time theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve travelled many diverse paths. Those paths re-converged for their 50th reunion to renew friendships, share experiences and garner support for the school that launched them on their varied journeys. As they readied for their 50th reunion, they began discussing how the Westtown experience was essential to their lives, how Westtown was a space that transformed them, how their years on campus were a compact experience that influenced nearly every experience that followed. In acknowledgement, the class raised nearly $1 million for their 50th gift to support faculty development, scholarships, dining room renovations and the Science Center. A group from the Class of 1963 also began to talk specifically about how Quakerism influenced them at Westtown, and they drafted a position paper about the intimate connection between Quakerism and education. They recognized the perception among some alumni that the focus on Quakerism at Westtown had diminished, and the group sought ways to refocus energies of alumni and administration on ways to raise the visibility of existing Quaker practices, as well as to inspire more of them. On Alumni Day, the group met with Head of School John Baird to propose their project: to create an endowment to fund a faculty member who would focus his/her energies on bringing together many diverse Quaker activities on campus and to ensure that the basic mission on which Westtown was founded, providing a Quaker education, would remain a cornerstone of Westtown regardless of what future changes may come. Baird recognized the parallels to the very successful position of Sustainability Coordinator and gave the green light to develop the proposal further. And so the group got to work and began developing ways to support Quakerism at Westtown. In short order, they made impressive progress in creating an endowed chair for faith and practice. As they did so, they lived out loud what has long been a great Westtown tradition: they acted. Westtown teaches many things, but among the most important is the courage and passion to act when one sees a need. Graduates touch communities and make change 34

The Westonian Magazine

around the world all the time. Some use that same approach to help Westtown live its mission. It is, in fact, the only way that Westtown has survived the dips and turmoil of history and thrived in the good years. Westtown is a school, but itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also a manifestation of belief. Westonians act, and weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re all better for it. Building a Chair Since an endowed chair was a realtively new concept for Westtown, the Board needed to understand better the implications of creating such a position. The group developed an outline of â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;areas of influenceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; to shape how the chair might function in the school community. Jonathan Evans, Clerk of the Board, noted that he was instrumental in forming a similar Chair at Haverford College. The seven initiators of the Fund wanted to ensure that the endowment would prevail in perpetuity for the purposes for which it was intended, and the agreement they forged with John Baird reflects that. After five years, the Westtown Meeting serves as Stewardship Coordinator to monitor the Fund. They called it a â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Chair in Faith and Practiceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; to make clear that they did not want to just fund another Quakerism teacher, and didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t intend the position to chair the Religion Department. â&#x20AC;&#x153;In fact,â&#x20AC;? says former faculty Tim James â&#x20AC;&#x2122;63 and one of the initiators, â&#x20AC;&#x153;the position has very little to do with â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;teachingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; religion. Rather, it is intended that the faculty member work across all disciplines to enhance, coalesce and make visible the many eďŹ&#x20AC;orts contributing to the Quaker ethos at the school.â&#x20AC;? Raising that visibility will help ensure that Westtown remain â&#x20AC;&#x153;a leader in a very competitive independent school [market],â&#x20AC;? says another initiator, Dori Dietz-Blitz â&#x20AC;&#x2122;63, â&#x20AC;&#x153;precisely because the chair will focus on education and building the community through the lens of Quakerism. Westtown will more eďŹ&#x20AC;ectively aďŹ&#x192;rm and celebrate its Quaker foundation as an educational institution and as a community informed by Quaker values.â&#x20AC;? The vision of the Fund is to support a named faculty position at Westtown whose incumbent will preserve and strengthen the Quaker heritage of Westtown School and help translate

A LU M NI VOI C E S

contemporary Quaker thought and Faith into daily practice at the school. As the Fund grows, it will eventually provide compensation to support a part-time faculty member, then a full-time member and ultimately more than one position. The vision is that the Chair will facilitate the Quaker-based decisionmaking process and will work collaboratively across disciplines and divisions to develop action items with the faculty, administration, students, the Spiritual Life Committee, parents, the Board, the Quaker community and others to advance and make evident the Quaker mission of the school. The group also chose to name the fund “The Thomas S. Brown Endowed Chair in Faith and Practice” to honor one of the great Quaker mentors who touched them and generations of Westonians as a Dean and teacher of Bible, Latin and English. “Tom Brown ’29, or TSB (‘Tisby’) as he was known, was the consummate Quaker,” explains Larry Flaccus ’63, a Fund initiator. “He embodied Quakerism and had influence for more than 30 years teaching at Westtown, followed by service on the Board, as well as being active in Philadelphia Yearly Meeting and other Quaker organizations. Our hope is that the person who is named the Chair would be more than a religion teacher and would act as a catalyst across disciplines to keep focus on Quaker life in policy, program and practice just as TSB did.” The Light Burns On Today’s Westtown places its Quaker heritage and identity at the center of its work. “Our expectation for respect, grounded in the belief that there is that of God in everyone, permeates every aspect of school life,” says Betsy Swan, Upper School

librarian and Clerk of the Religious and Spiritual Life Committees. Just this February, Westtown hosted the 2014 Quaker Youth Leadership Conference, which brought 160 students from 23 Quaker schools around the country to campus for workshops, service and fellowship. In Lower School, there is an intentional three-year cycle considering the testimonies. Students actively learn how to develop and respond to queries. Through classroom discussions prior to Meeting for Worship, they learn what is appropriate to share, and they develop the habit of sharing ministry in Meeting for Worship. Focused activities such as these help children think about how they live out their beliefs. Middle School students run their student council as a Meeting for Worship for Business, relying on student clerks to form the agenda and discern the sense of the meeting. In Upper School, students explore Quakerism through an array of required and electives courses oﬀered by the Religion Department. Upper School students also participate on an active Religious Life Committee which is focused on nurturing the spiritual lives of students and faculty of all faiths in the Upper School. Meeting for Worship remains at the heart of our community. It is there that students and faculty allow themselves a vulnerability that deepens and strengthens the nature of relationships throughout their full and varied lives at Westtown. Many families see Westtown’s Quaker identity as one of its most attractive features. “We investigated a number of Friends schools in the area,” proclaimed one parent at a community meeting last fall, “and we chose Westtown because the Quaker ethos permeates the community more than any other.”

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ALUMN I VO I C ES

“This is an opportunity for us to ‘pay it forward’ and leave a legacy that will help ensure the Quaker ethos continues to permeate the school in the generations to come.”

All of this is good news to the Class of 1963 and many others who hold Westtown’s Quaker identity close to their hearts. Other Vessels, Other Currencies It’s critical that we make this crystal clear: Westtown defines giving and acting broadly. For as long as we’ve existed, volunteers and donors have shaped us. Our students, faculty and staﬀ all benefit when our alumni, parents and friends contribute as class speakers, experts for counsel, and sounding boards for initiatives. We’ve worked over the last years to develop systems to make it easier to partner with our community so they can learn about our needs and about ways to share their talents and time. The dollar is not the only currency that Westtown uses to deliver the transformational education that our alumni remember. Moreover, the Class of 1963 is not the only one to have acted on a vision for the future of Westtown. The Class of 1946, who never used computers when they were students, recognized at the time of their 50th reunion in 1996, that computers were changing education. They had a vision and started the Computer Technology Endowment Fund. The class launched the fund with $116,650, and today it has a market value of $213,813. Their foresight provides the school critical budget relief for the continuous and changing needs of technology at Westtown. The generosity of Westonians is reflected in nearly every aspect of the running of the school. Capital projects like the facilities building renovation and Science Center have been made possible entirely through donor dollars. Volunteers on the board, in the classrooms or out in the market place mentoring young alumni give of their time. Internships, professional development, scholarships, African Dance in third grade, and the Middle School iPad program to name a few, are all areas where donors recognized or learned of a need and jumped in to answer it.

The Westonian Magazine

Healthy Seeds in Healthy Soil The Tisby Chair struck a chord with many alumni. Within a few months of forming the endowment, the group raised nearly $80,000 from the Class of 1963 and others, thanks in part to a a current and former Trustee who shared the group’s goals. “We now expect to reach out to alumni and others who knew TSB to help us achieve our ultimate goal of $1.5 million,” says Tom Rie ’63, one of the initiators with extensive contacts in the greater Philadelphia Quaker community. “Westtown endowed us with those Quaker values,” says Jane Elliot ’63, another of the initiators. “I strongly felt that those of us who benefited from that endowment should establish a financial endowment to ensure that generations coming after us could look back and realize they had received the same quiet but deep-running waters of Quakerism in practice that we had received. Realizing that others shared not only the same appreciation of that experience was as revitalizing and meaningful as some of the more extraordinary Meetings for Worship I’ve been fortunate enough to experience.” For Dietz-Blitz and Flaccus, the motivation was also personal. “Our parents founded the Shoemaker Visiting Lecturer Fund,” says Flaccus. “Several generations of Westonians have benefited from the influence of that endowment on enhancing scholarly thought, art and music. “This is an opportunity for us to ‘pay it forward’ and leave a legacy that will help ensure the Quaker ethos continues to permeate the school in the generations to come.” The Class of 1963 exemplifies one of the great Westtown ways. When they see a need, Westonians act. It’s as simple and remarkable as that.

SOCIA L RESPONSIB ILIT Y

Giving Back to Westtown INSPIRATIONA L TE ACHERS

g Celebratin 215 years

It’s no secret that the traditional business model of independent schools is under tremendous stress. Westtown cannot thrive by relying on tuition alone. We need a culture of giving so that Westtown can continue to deliver a transformative education grounded in Quaker values and preparing students to act and to lead. THE WEST TOWN FUND

On May 6, 1799, Westtown opened its doors to our first forty students. Wish Westtown a ‘Happy Birthday’ this May by making a gift to the Westtown Fund. Be a part of the legacy! TRANSF ORMATIVE EDUC ATION

westtown.edu/birthday

PL ANNED GIVING

Consider what Westtown means to you and explore the benefits of a life income gift. Receive income for life and impact the lives of future students. For more information, please contact Nancy Kriebel Turner at 610-399-7917 or nancy.turner@westtown.edu or visit

westtown.edu/plannedgiving SPIRITUA L GROW TH

ALUMN I PR OFILE

Kevin Roose â&#x20AC;&#x2122;05 searches for

The Soul of Wolf Country STO RY BY - Ć&#x201E;

L PH O T O BY JANI NE C HANG

In The Wolf of Wall Street, Leonardo DiCaprioâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Jordan Belfort and his cohorts exhibit such a haunting level of excess that itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s easy to draw sweeping conclusions about the men and women who occupy Wall Street. And thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just at the movies. Add to that the recklessness at the center of our financial meltdown, the gall of Bernie MadoďŹ&#x20AC;, the role of big money in our politics, and the world of finance can seem like a den of thieves. And maybe it isâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;sometimes and for some. Kevin Roose â&#x20AC;&#x2122;05, however, couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t help but wonder if there was more to the story. While living in New York after graduating from Brown University in 2009, heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d met countless young men and women working in the financial services industry. They seemed enough like him, but he also sensed a diďŹ&#x20AC;erence: they had money. And lots of it. Where he was living oďŹ&#x20AC; the proceeds of his first book, the acclaimed piece of literary journalism The Unlikely Disciple, they were â&#x20AC;&#x153;budding Master[s] of the Universe,â&#x20AC;? he writes in his new book, Young Money, â&#x20AC;&#x153;apprentice[s] at the feet of some of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most talented moneymakers.â&#x20AC;? He had a burning question: who were these people willing to join a profession that was less trusted and more reviled than at any time in the last 40 years? Watch Kevin Rooseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s appearance on The Daily Young Money chronicles his attempt to Show at www.westtown. find out. He spent three years following edu/thewestonian eight young investment bankers at the start of their careers. Some of his discoveries donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t qualify as headline news: investment bankers work 100 hour weeks in often boring and always stressful conditions. Most go into the field for the money, and many of them enjoy the rewards. Some of them flock to gold-studded events like â&#x20AC;&#x153;Fashion Meets Financeâ&#x20AC;? and bask in the privileges that come from new wealth. But some of what Roose uncovered jarred him: â&#x20AC;&#x153;I thought I was going to go into this subculture and find Gordon Gekko,â&#x20AC;?

The Westonian Magazine

he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;What surprised me was how conflicted they were.â&#x20AC;? Roose noticed that many of those he followed worked so hard and so ceaselessly that they barely had time to think. In fact, for some, his interviews marked the first time someone had asked them how it felt to be a banker. When they did think about it, many expressed â&#x20AC;&#x153;some existential questions that bubbled up after the crash.â&#x20AC;? It turns out that these young bankers had a lot of doubts about the value of their work and held deep concerns for the people whose lives were represented in the Excel spreadsheets on their laptops. At 26, Roose writes clean, clear journalistic prose lined with wit, which has earned him roles as a New York Times staďŹ&#x20AC; reporter and a writer for New York Magazine. His two years at Westtown no doubt helped shape his style and sharpened his eye for detail. He decided he wanted to be a writer during his junior year elective on Hemingway. He remembers telling his teacher (and Westtownâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new Upper School Principal) Chris Benbow â&#x20AC;&#x2122;90 that â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think I might want to do this.â&#x20AC;? Roose also attributes his approach and subject matter to his time at Westtown. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not sure Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m old and wise enough to know if I have a guiding principle, but I sense that thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a Quaker principle at work.â&#x20AC;? He seeks stories in which he can humanize people who otherwise can become caricatures, such as Wall Street Bankers or the Christian evangelicals whom he lived with under cover for The Unlikely Disciple, which he wrote while still in college. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think being at Westtown taught me to look for the good in everybody,â&#x20AC;? Roose says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;And maybe it rubbed oďŹ&#x20AC; on the bankers, tooâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;sharing their lives with me at the risk of getting fired was a very Quakerly thing to do.â&#x20AC;? Released in February 2014, Young Money immediately received a lot of attention. Roose was featured on the set of Morning Joe, The Daily Show and in the pages of Bloomberg Businessweek. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also now able to call himself a New York Times bestselling author. At Westtown, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re just proud to call him one of our own.

A LU M NI P R O FI L E

“I’m not sure I’m old and wise enough to know if I have a guiding principle, but I sense that there’s a Quaker principle at work.”

S PRIN G 2 0 1 4

All in the Family D ID YO U KN O W that legacy students make up 11 percent of our total enrollment this year? In the last decade, our Admissions Office has accepted 87 percent of alumni children who have completed applications, and, of that number, 80 percent have attended Westtown. In the last year alone, nearly $1 million in financial aid was awarded to alumni families. Family connections have always been important at Westtown, not just because of enrollment, but because of history and tradition. We proudly welcome legacy children and celebrate them each year in this publication. Check out the next generation of Westonians!

The Westonian Magazine

ALL IN T H E FAMILY

Connect Your Way Oh, the irony! In this day of hyper-connectivity, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s easier than ever to feel disconnected. We want to provide you with tools for staying informed and sharing your journey with Westtown in the ways that feel right for you. We have a whole slew of tools, and weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re always adding more. First things first, though. Please make sure we have your most current contact information by sending us a note (Alumni Office, 975 Westtown Road, West Chester, PA 19382), an email to alumni@ westtown.edu, or update your own information in netcommunity at www.westtown.edu/alumni. After you update us, check out some of these helpful online tools:

(1) LOWER SCHOOL Front row left to right: Zachary Krawchuk â&#x20AC;&#x2122;25 (Lara Rogers Krawchuk â&#x20AC;&#x2122;88), Madeline Polovina â&#x20AC;&#x2122;25 (Jennifer Goldsmith), Alexandra Smedley â&#x20AC;&#x2122;25 (Chris Smedley â&#x20AC;&#x2122;93), Emma Brooks â&#x20AC;&#x2122;26 (Amy Taylor Brooks â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;88/FF). Back row left to right: Taylor Nason â&#x20AC;&#x2122;23 (Tom Nason â&#x20AC;&#x2122;79), Alexander Krawchuck â&#x20AC;&#x2122;23 (Lara Rogers Krawchuk â&#x20AC;&#x2122;88), Olivia Leh â&#x20AC;&#x2122;23 (Jamie Richie â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;88/CF), Jackson Smedleyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;22 (Chris Smedley â&#x20AC;&#x2122;93), Rebekah James â&#x20AC;&#x2122;21 (Lauren Johnson James â&#x20AC;&#x2122;92, Bruce James â&#x20AC;&#x2122;90), Maya Brooks â&#x20AC;&#x2122;24 (Amy Taylor Brooks â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;88/FF), William Rowland â&#x20AC;&#x2122;24 (Diana Mark Rowland â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;87) (2) MIDDLE SCHOOL Front row left to right: Eleanor Goodman â&#x20AC;&#x2122;20 (Eleanor Price Mather â&#x20AC;&#x2122;28), Avery Bohn â&#x20AC;&#x2122;20 (Nathan Bohn â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;83/CF), Julia Castillo â&#x20AC;&#x2122;19 (Luis Castilloâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;80/BOT), Anna Harrison â&#x20AC;&#x2122;18 (Bruce Harrison â&#x20AC;&#x2122;81). Back row left to right: Timothy Novak â&#x20AC;&#x2122;20 (Deborah Bacon Novak â&#x20AC;&#x2122;85), Carter Dear â&#x20AC;&#x2122;18 (Marion vanArkel Dear â&#x20AC;&#x2122;83/CF), Jacob Polovina â&#x20AC;&#x2122;20 (Jennifer Goldsmith), Eric Butler-Roberts â&#x20AC;&#x2122;18 (Nina Butler-Roberts â&#x20AC;&#x2122;90) (3 ) 12th GRADE Front row left to right: Lyra Piscatelli (Cynthia Harvey â&#x20AC;&#x2122;76), Emma Leibman (Gregory Leibman â&#x20AC;&#x2122;78), Hannah Fairchild (Molly Wilson Fairchild â&#x20AC;&#x2122;76 and David Fairchild â&#x20AC;&#x2122;77), Jeff Novak (Deborah Bacon Novak â&#x20AC;&#x2122;85), Amelia Hall (Jeannie Spackman Hall â&#x20AC;&#x2122;79), Rowan Hepps Keeney (Marcia Hepps â&#x20AC;&#x2122;73), Julia Dietsche (Anna Henderson Dietsche â&#x20AC;&#x2122;80). Second row left to right: Todd Roberts (Lee Parshall Roberts â&#x20AC;&#x2122;85, Dave Roberts â&#x20AC;&#x2122;84), Billy Haviland (William Haviland â&#x20AC;&#x2122;77), Nate Urban (Edwin Austin Crenshaw 1845), Max Pinsky (Betsy Hepps Pinsky â&#x20AC;&#x2122;83). Back row left to right: Elizabeth Brown (Mark Brown â&#x20AC;&#x2122;82), Amanda Weaver (Scott Weaver â&#x20AC;&#x2122;81), Ajah Stone (Donald Stone â&#x20AC;&#x2122;57), Katie Ellis (Robert Ellis â&#x20AC;&#x2122;82), Katira Dobbins (Shelagh Wilson â&#x20AC;&#x2122;85/CF), Jeremy Graf Evans (Jon Evans â&#x20AC;&#x2122;73/BOT), Abadie Ludlum (John Ludlum â&#x20AC;&#x2122;73), Trent Schindler (Thomas Schindler â&#x20AC;&#x2122;78). Not Pictured: Jordan Martin (Gregory Martin â&#x20AC;&#x2122;84), Isabelle Mudge (Jared Mudge â&#x20AC;&#x2122;71), Habib Nâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Garnim (Susan Chase Nâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Garnim â&#x20AC;&#x2122;82), Caroline Rhoads (Jonathan Rhoads â&#x20AC;&#x2122;24) (4) 9th GRADE From left: Jade Jeffords (Anna Roberts â&#x20AC;&#x2122;84), Sarah Cassway (Rustin Cassway â&#x20AC;&#x2122;84), Rebecca Schmidt (Dina Patukas Schmidt â&#x20AC;&#x2122;84/FF), Sarah Harpster (Mary Hurd Harpster â&#x20AC;&#x2122;81), Maxwell Starr (Will Starr â&#x20AC;&#x2122;83), Not pictured: Rebecca Parker (Glenn Parker â&#x20AC;&#x2122;77), William Driscoll (David Fairchild â&#x20AC;&#x2122;77) (5) 10th GRADE Front row left to right: Emily Sands (Ann Barber Marston â&#x20AC;&#x2122;46), Madeline Roberts (Lee Parshall Roberts â&#x20AC;&#x2122;85, David Roberts â&#x20AC;&#x2122;84), Claire Murphy (Betsy Christopher â&#x20AC;&#x2122;73/FF). Back row L to R: Evan Sanders (Jennifer Fenander â&#x20AC;&#x2122;86), Dylan Gray (Beth Morton Gray â&#x20AC;&#x2122;85), Samuel Pinsky (Betsy Hepps Pinsky â&#x20AC;&#x2122;83), Colin Perkins-Taylor (Brenda Perkins â&#x20AC;&#x2122;75/BOT), Kathryn Novak (Deborah Bacon Novak â&#x20AC;&#x2122;85), Rebecca Wortmann (Richard Wortmann â&#x20AC;&#x2122;83), Not pictured: Jacob Castillo (Luis Castillo â&#x20AC;&#x2122;80/BOT), Rosalie Dear (Marion vanArkel Dear â&#x20AC;&#x2122;83/CF), James Duffey (Sara Jane Bacon Duffey â&#x20AC;&#x2122;79/CF), Caroline Tien (David Tien â&#x20AC;&#x2122;83), Chase Winham (Carolyn Mayo â&#x20AC;&#x2122;84/FF) (6) 11th GRADE Left to right: Zoe Laky (Laura Balderston Laky â&#x20AC;&#x2122;70), Melissa McLaughlin (Kathryn Packert McLaughlin â&#x20AC;&#x2122;79), Emma Battin (Timothy Battin â&#x20AC;&#x2122;83), Christopher Bream (Kevin Bream â&#x20AC;&#x2122;82), Not pictured: Max Strode (Brad Strode â&#x20AC;&#x2122;78)

EverTrue Alumni App M A A " BAA # BA and job opportunities in the palm of your hand M mB) " B networking that goes with you everywhere M B( A - M A B A ) A they move M - A , - ( ) everything happening on the communityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s social networks and website Go Bleachers Coming soon! Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be able to subscribe to watch Westtown athletics, theater productions and more from anywhere with an internet connection. eCollections Once a month, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll send you an electronic newsletter updating you on a monthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s worth of Westtown news. If you havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t received one recently and want one, let us know! We may not have your current email address! Call Drop our new Associate Head of School a line. Terry Dubowâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s always up for a conversation! Call: 610.399.7955.

Download the free EverTrue app now from the iTunes app store and select Westtown.

Westtown.edu M A "B A ) A athletics alerts M A A#B # B # M 4 B ! ##B)A #B - Facebook.com /westtownschool /westtownschoolathletics /westtownschoolalumni Twitter @westtownschool Instagram @westtownschool LinkedIn Westtown School

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Class Notes

To read the class notes, please sign into the alumni portal.

Teamwork and ingenuity, qualities of the Westtown School education. Boys carry chairs to the south lawn for an Alumni gathering.

From the Archives

1923

975 Westtown Road, West Chester, PA 19382-5700

Save the Dates Monday, May 19, 2014 10th Annual Golf and Tennis Outing

Tuesday, September 16, 2014 Lower School Back-to-School Night

Saturday, September 20, 2014 2nd Annual All-School FallFest

Saturday, June 7, 2014 Commencement [11:00am]

Friday-Sunday September 19–21, 2014 Upper School Parents’ Weekend

Wednesday, October 24, 2014 Middle School Parents’ Day

Middle School musical Mulan, Jr.

For more information on any of these events please visit

westtown.edu