Milton Magazine, Spring 2005 by Milton Academy

Milton Magazine

Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the Big Idea?

Spring 2005

Managing the International Health Crisis, page 3 Searching for What Sustains Us, page 6 Planning for Disaster Response, page 10 Moving Iraq Toward a Market Economy, page 13 Leading Schools, DeďŹ ning a Vision, page 18 Delivering Maximum Performance: the Dymaxion Man, page 31 Maintaining a Just-in-Time Inventory: Mathematics at Milton, page 35 Championing a Worthy Ideal: Teaching Grammar, page 39

Contents Features: The Big Idea 3 Managing the International Health Crisis Applying the best management strategies is of critical importance in fighting health inequalities and health crises among the world’s poor. David O. M. Ellis ’93

6 The Quest for What Sustains Us 3

Food brings us together and—when survival instincts or clashing cultures intervene— food can come between us. For these Milton graduates, food and its frequent companion, wine, are more than the source of energy. They are what sustains us. Heather Sullivan

10 Planning for Disaster Response The attacks of September 11, 2001, thrust Elizabeth Davis’s focal concern into American living rooms: we could not and cannot escape the need to plan for disasters. Cathleen Everett 6

Editor Cathleen Everett Associate Editor Heather Sullivan Photography Gordon Chase, Bryan Cheney, Michael Dwyer, Dana Jackson ’90, Michael Lutch, Milton Academy Archives, Nicki Pardo, Martha Stewart, Heather Sullivan, Greg White 13

Design Moore & Associates Cover Illustration David Cutler Printed on Recycled Paper Milton Magazine is published twice a year by Milton Academy. Editorial and business offices are located at Milton Academy where change-ofaddress notifications should be sent. As an institution committed to diversity, Milton Academy welcomes the opportunity to admit academically qualified students of any gender, race, color, handicapped status, sexual orientation, religion, national or ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally available to its students. It does not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, color, handicapped status, sexual orientation, religion, national or ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, admission policies, scholarship programs, and athletic or other schooladministered activities.

13 Moving Iraq Toward a Market Economy Derek Gilman ’79 mobilized and directed a team of attorneys in developing a body of law, 39 statutes, to undergird a new Iraqi economy. Cathleen Everett

16 The Unbearable Lightness of Starting I have a great need to start things: some great, some fun, some utterly useless. This is the life of a company starter. You Mon Tsang ’84

18 Leading Schools: Realizing Educational Visions These two graduates lead two markedly different schools; the Milton legacy figures in both of their approaches. Rod Skinner ’72

22 Fueling Modern American Drama A publisher of plays has a certain power to extend the life of a play. Work that enters the public repertory lasts forever. Cathleen Everett

24 Jean Valentine ’52 Wins 2004 National Book Award for Poetry Door in the Mountain collects her life’s work and orders her eight books of poetry chronologically, with the exception of the new poems which appear first. Lisa Baker

27 Sarah Bynum ’90 Madeleine Is Sleeping earned Sarah a spot among five finalists in fiction for the National Book Award, an honor that ensures an eager audience for her future work. Evan Hughes ’94

30 Linking Minority and Majority Businesses, Kym Lew Nelson Offers Strategic Purchasing Leaving the security of a global company might be too big a risk for many business women but Kym couldn’t wait to put her savvy to use in a largely untapped market.

Departments 31 Producing Maximum Performance from Technology: The Dymaxion Man Born of a commitment to service, the ideas of Buckminster Fuller 1913 remain relevant to the problems that continue to plague us, including sustainability, housing and even hunger. Michael O’Leary 27

The Big Idea on Campus 35 Mathematics Conglomerate Is Nimble, Responsive, Maintains a “Just in Time” Inventory Math department’s challenging commitment to developing their own teaching materials strengthens over time. Cathleen Everett

38 Their Idea: Making Mathematical Elegance Part of Campus Culture 31

Though not a business venture, Vincent Chan’s and Neil Katuna’s idea to start a math journal at Milton brought them face to face with real-world challenges entrepreneurs experience.

39 Championing a Worthy Ideal: No Retreat From Teaching Grammar at Milton While many schools have retreated from the rigorous consideration of grammar, Milton’s English faculty is still devoted to the pursuit of excellent usage. 46

41 Their Ingenuity and Drive Centers on Service Mobilizing their classmates, Lara Yeo ’06 and Colin Tierney ’05 have prioritized making time to help others.

43 Below the Surface: Ideas in Motion Devotees of this new competitive “sport” devote hours to putting their ideas into motion. Few, if any, of the nation’s top boarding schools have similar teams.

45 Linking His Heritage and His Future, Adam Och Studies Arabic at Milton Adam crafted an independent study plan for Arabic culture and language that is both challenging and gratifying.

46 A Dream Delayed but Not Denied Even without a pool, Coach Bob Tyler keeps varsity swimming alive and well at Milton.

48 The Head of School Milton’s most recent “big idea” reaches back in time. Robin Robertson

50 Post Script Signs of a Misspent Youth, Reinterpreted: The Making of an Entrepreneur Sean McVity ’80

52 In•Sight 54 On Centre News and notes from the campus and beyond

61 Sports Greg White

63 Make Plans to Return for Graduates Weekend May 13–14, 2005

64 Class Notes

What’s the

big idea?

This magazine honors the energy, ingenuity, perseverance and risk involved in bringing powerful and compelling ideas to life. Ideas matter at Milton. Confidence in your own ideas, respect for others’ ideas—these are cultural essentials here. Faculty, students and graduates take their ideas seriously, and the many examples of efforts to give them life and longevity are ample testimony. Even within this small sample of Miltonians’ endeavors, the range of individual commitments extends from writing laws for economic reform in Iraq, to making artisanal cheeses; from launching Internet businesses, to writing long and well enough to become a National Book Award Finalist. Whether we are protecting something inherently valuable that risks slipping away, striking out boldly in frontier territory, or setting higher standards and helping others meet them, Miltonians apply purpose and direction to their closely held ideas. On campus and throughout the world, they “Dare to be true.”

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David O. M. Ellis ’93

Managing the International

Health Crisis

Kigali Central Hospital, Rwanda

“When D. A. Henderson, leader of the successful World Health Organization campaign to eradicate smallpox, was asked at a press conference what disease the world should try to eliminate next, he surprised the audience by answering, ‘bad management.’”

uch of today’s media coverage of global health issues is misleading. News stories tend to focus on the controversies surrounding AIDS drug pricing or the amount of funding necessary to combat the epidemic successfully. Though these issues are important, they contribute to a myth that HIV/AIDS is the only looming catastrophe in international health and that cheaper drugs or a dramatic infusion of money could soon turn the tide. Those who pay closer attention and read sources outside the mainstream get a more accurate picture. HIV/AIDS is only one health crisis among many facing the world’s poor, including maternal and child health, tuberculosis, and cardiovascular disease. Moreover, no amount of money could rapidly overcome all the other systemic barriers to fighting disease in developing countries, such as undeveloped infrastructure, weak political will, and a paucity of human resources. Yet even by reading widely, a concerned citizen in the U.S. might not appreciate one of the most

critical obstacles to fighting health inequalities. When D. A. Henderson, leader of the successful World Health Organization campaign to eradicate smallpox, was asked at a press conference what disease the world should try to eliminate next, he surprised the audience by answering, “bad management.” Two years ago, I went to Rwanda as part of a team dedicated to confronting the management problem. The leaders of Rwanda’s Ministry of Health, aware of our management support project at Columbia University’s Center for Global Health and Economic Development, asked the center for assistance in launching a new national HIV/AIDS program. We went about recruiting candidates who had expertise in strategic planning, quantitative analysis and communication—a nontraditional profile of skills for public health work. Occasionally, we had to struggle with the Columbia bureaucracy to convince senior officials that someone with an M.B.A. might be a better fit than someone with an

M.P.H. In the end, we assembled a small team that included a management consultant, an accountant and a lawyer. We arrived in Kigali, the capital city, in summer 2003. When someone first asked me about my overall impressions of the situation in Rwanda, I could think only of Mikhail Gorbachev’s famous comment about the Russian economy: “In a word, good. In two words, not good.” Rwanda has made remarkable progress since the genocide, particularly in the area of domestic security. The country feels completely safe, with very little violent crime or political turmoil, and corruption is relatively modest. At the same time, Rwanda remains a deeply illiberal democracy rooted in a culture of deference to authority. Moreover, as a landlocked country with few natural resources, Rwanda has little economic base outside of traditional subsistence agriculture. Nearly half of the population is under the age of 15, and the public education system cannot cope.

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As we quickly learned, all of these problems directly contribute to weak management, which in turn hampers Rwanda’s ability to use the rapid influx of donor money intended to address the problems. For example, the government’s inability to pay adequate salaries to civil servants results in a perverse set of incentives. Rather than focusing on organizational objectives, health officials spend much of their time trying to supplement their meager salaries. For instance, officials often attend training sessions run by international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that offer per-diem payments for participation, even if the topic is wholly irrelevant. One particularly clever senior manager was almost never in Rwanda, aggressively seeking invitations to overseas conferences that paid him as much as $250 per day for hotel and food. He would quietly stay in hostels for $10 a night, and simply pocket the difference. Poverty also translates into shortsighted thinking and planning. Investment in long-term improvements is a luxury seldom contemplated, as most Rwandans are accustomed to thinking about how to provide for their families. “In the medium term,” one Rwandan joked to me, “we’re all dead.” Everything operates on a shortterm outlook. No one knows when public holidays will be observed, as the government tends to declare holidays at the last minute by national radio broadcast. If you find a car with a tank of gas more than a quarter full, you’ve likely found an expat’s car—Rwandans don’t invest in full tanks. This mindset endures even when capital becomes available. Significant funds for HIV/AIDS are arriving, yet the healthcare leadership does not tend to think about resolving the bottlenecks that will hamper scaled-up treatment three years from now, such as the critical need for more nurses, doctors and laboratory technicians. Despite $50 million in HIV/AIDS funding this year, not a single new nursing school is under construction. Meanwhile, the deferential streak in the Rwandan temperament contributes to workplace environments in which very few middle managers feel empowered to take initiative and their supervisors tend to micromanage. The HIV/AIDS management unit that I was advising initially had a system that required any staff member to sign a sheet before leaving the office for 4

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Overcrowded AIDS ward at Kigali Central Hospital

any meeting or errand, justifying the need for the excursion. One colleague occasionally wasted entire days of work because he had run out of cell phone minutes to make business calls, could not find another available phone in the office, yet could not go into town to re-charge his cell phone because the boss was not there to approve his errand. In its extreme form, such deference to authority becomes almost comic. One day, a prison work crew was landscaping a public square in Kigali while the prison guard supervising them sipped from his bottle of vodka. The guard eventually passed out. Rather than making a break for it, the prisoners respectfully picked the guard up and carried him back to jail, then quietly returned to their cells. My colleagues and I worked closely with our Rwandan counterparts to begin the slow process of transforming management culture in two key HIV/AIDS coordination offices. I was responsible for advising Dr. Blaise Karibushi, the leader of one of these units, and our first step was to overhaul the implementation plan for the new national HIV/AIDS program. We reversed the typical short-term approach to planning and began by agreeing to threeyear goals. We then calculated the level of human resources and infrastructure necessary to achieve these goals, and worked backwards from there. Eventually, Blaise’s team designed a detailed workplan and budget for the first year of the program.

This plan included investment in improvements that would not yield any immediate benefit but would alleviate anticipated constraints (such as a looming warehouse capacity problem) in years two or three. As the project progressed, Blaise and I had more time to focus on the more complex challenges of changing performance culture and management style. First, we developed a completely new incentives scheme. We translated the organizational workplan into individual workplans and performance targets, and set aside a pool of money for performance-linked bonuses at the end of the year. To make the system work, we also instituted a series of regular performance reviews for each person reporting to Blaise and asked those people to create a similar process for monitoring their supervisees. In a dramatic departure from the Rwandan norm, Blaise also began to seek feedback from his subordinates. Though this was initially very uncomfortable both for him and those giving him feedback, the constructive criticism he received helped him rethink his management style. Responding to this feedback, we experimented with new ways for Blaise to manage his team on a week-to-week basis. We discarded the system of daily sign-off on everyone’s intended activities. Instead, Blaise convened a weekly meeting of unit heads every Monday and agreed with them on their goals for the week. From

that departure point, each unit head was empowered to make any decision necessary to achieve those goals. At the next weekly meeting, the team would discuss any obstacles encountered and collectively agree on strategies for overcoming them. Over the year I spent in Kigali, progress on all these fronts was halting. Unit heads were often slow to seize their newfound autonomy. They usually felt more comfortable gaining Blaise’s assent before finalizing decisions, even where the decision was of only modest importance. The performance management system was not easy to implement in a context where many people claimed excuses for any shortfall, pointing to electricity outages, unreliable implementation partners and so forth. Even as we focused on long-term management issues, I spent over half my time helping Blaise react to unforeseen crises. For example, the central health procurement agency notified us one day that it had ordered HIV test kits for the next wave of program expansion, but had neglected to order needles for drawing blood. So I drove 10 hours north to Uganda and bought 20,000 needles, enough to fill the gap for one month until a new shipment arrived in Kigali.

I often wondered whether our strategy of attempting to change management culture was the right one. Effecting change was both slow and expensive. Indeed, the amount of money used to cover my salary and expenses, though modest by Western standards, would have financed ten Rwandan salaries or funded treatment for 500 HIV-positive people for one year. Ultimately, though, I became convinced that the kind of work we are doing in Rwanda needs to be expanded, because any small improvement in management has powerful multiplier effects. The rate of staff turnover within the management unit has decreased significantly because people are more satisfied with their jobs. Even more importantly, the gradual changes we made within the management team contributed significantly to the project’s success in achieving almost all of its first-year objectives. In turn, that success attracted widespread attention from donors and the promise of increased funding. With a long-term investment plan in place, current and future financing will be channeled to logically ordered improvements. Though combating the epidemic of bad management is no easier than turning the tide against HIV/AIDS, it is a fight equally worth fighting. Dai Ellis ’93

Dai Ellis is a student at Yale Law School where he is studying international law, health policy and human rights. Prior to law school, he helped to establish Columbia University’s Center for Global Health and Economic Development. Dr. Jeffrey Sachs created the Center when he joined the faculty at Columbia in 2002. While working at Columbia, Dai spent over a year in Rwanda working as the advisor to the executive director of the National AIDS Commission. He helped to implement the first national AIDS program for which Rwanda had received funding from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria. During his time in Rwanda, Dai founded Orphans of Rwanda, Inc., a U.S.–based 501(c)3 organization that provides support to vulnerable children orphaned by the Rwandan genocide and the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Visit www.orphansofrwanda.org to get further information or to make a donation. Before joining Columbia, Dai worked for several years at McKinsey and Company. He served biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry clients in the U.S. as well as several international development organizations, including the United Nations Development Program and International Red Cross. Building on his undergraduate degree in biochemistry and his work in the nonprofit sector, Dai left McKinsey to look for organizations that are bringing management expertise to bear on public health problems. A lengthy job search landed him at Columbia. His experiences in Rwanda and at Yale have confirmed his desire to pursue a career focused on expanding access to healthcare and education among the poor. Reach Dai at david.ellis@yale.edu.

These children are all orphans, due either to the genocide or HIV/AIDS; their raised hands indicate who has had malaria in the last year. The orphanage that provides them with care, Izere (Kinyarwanda for “hope”), is supported by a nonproﬁt organization Dai started. Izere is located in Nyanza, historical seat of Rwanda. 5

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Ian Cheney ’98 Jon Wright ’75 Nicole Bernard Dawes ’91

The Quest for What

Sustains

“Corn is essential to the kingdom of fast food that has come to dominate much of the American foodscape,” Ian says. “Corn fast-fattens livestock in confined feeding operations, sweetens millions of soft drinks as high fructose corn syrup, and transforms itself into thousands of different processed foods—it is all but unrecognizable in the supermarket, but without corn the food system would be a very different place.”

ood brings us together and—when survival instincts or clashing mores or cultures dictate—food can come between us. What we consume is closely allied to identity as well as health: You are what you eat, the adage goes. Traditional Chinese consider food in terms of yin and yang. From tomb-paintings, we know that ancient Egyptians prized figs, fish and cucumbers. During the Roman Empire, the senatorial class ate elaborate meals, in a reclining position and using their hands, washing the meal down with wine. Food, as much as love, is an ancient and international language, spoken with many accents. For some, the quest for food purity rivals the highest levels of religious fervor. For others, food represents good taste or certain values. Some seek food only to stave off hunger. For these Milton graduates, food and its frequent companion, wine, are more than the source of energy and vitality; they are what sustains us.

Ian Cheney ’98 What’s wrong with how America thinks of food? Until this year, Ian Cheney ’98 had never killed a deer. Why would he? Ian grew up in Milton, Massachusetts—not exactly a headquarters for hunters—and earned a master’s in environmental science from Yale, where he urged dining services to prepare locally produced, more healthful food. (Later, food maven Alice Waters added momentum to that movement at Yale.) Ian began considering shooting a deer because, he says, Americans are out of touch with the connection between food and nature. Eating food, he thinks, is an essentially sensual experience as fundamental to life as sleep and sex. Ian has been focused on food and its relationship to the people of our country—food-safety scares and the obesity epidemic, for example. Corn, Ian believes, is the center of America’s food system.

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With co-producer and Yale classmate Curt Ellis, director of photography Sam Cullman and award-winning director Aaron Woolf (who visited Milton as a Melissa Dilworth Gold visiting artist in 2002), Ian is producing King Corn, a film that goes beyond the heft of Supersize Me to examine America’s evolving and often ironic relationship with food. “We launched this project thinking that something was wrong with how America thinks about food. In the 19th century, the majority of people helped produce their own food, but now most people don’t know where our food comes from,” he says, noting that an average bite of food travels 1,300 miles before it’s eaten. One acre of corn yields 10,000 pounds. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the annual per capita corn consumption has soared from 15.4 pounds in the 1950s to 28.4 pounds in 2000. In Iowa, where both Ian and Curt can trace great-grandfathers, the filmmakers set out to follow a kernel through the food system. The film begins with their planting an acre of corn in northeastern Iowa. “The acre of corn—which must eventually be

sold—becomes a ticket into the world between farm and plate,” the filmmakers assert on their Web site. Film segments jump from the acre in Iowa to grain elevators, diners, gene laboratories and corporate boardrooms. The ripening of the corn drives the film’s narrative. It explores how our culture, economy and political system shape our landscapes, our communities and—by making certain types of food cheaper and more accessible—our bodies. We consume the industrial or “dent” corn in products such as ketchup and hamburger (that comes from corn-fed cows) and in virtually every processed food. An irony is that farmers who grow this corn are unable to feed themselves by farming; the corn is basically inedible in its original state. The government subsidizes industrial corn farming; therefore farmers grow it regardless of demand—and the demand stays strong because the cost is low. Before the corn becomes the corn syrup in soda, it is planted and fertilized, and protected from predators. It must survive to feed the masses. Yet as Ian and his colleagues found, the journey from the dark soil to an American table is filled with irony: A friend sent Ian heavy-duty gardening gloves, not realizing that farmers of large-scale operations have little cause to touch the earth. “I didn’t get much exercise as a farmer, either,” Ian admits.

In addition to planting their own acre of industrial corn, Ian and his Mosaic Films, Inc. colleagues talked with authors and activists. Eager to expand the debate about food, they also spoke to ranchers, lobbyists, restaurateurs, food warehousers and shrimp fishermen. They looked at corn as a concept, a commodity and a catalyst for changing the American diet. According to the trailer for King Corn, corn is the most powerful food crop the world has ever known, and it has allowed America to feed more people for less money than ever before. Ian warns about a two-class food system emerging: People with means are thinking carefully about what they eat, while others get access to more and more processed— but affordable—food. Ian started the project with bias about issues such as pesticides and the ramifications of using genetically modified corn. “I don’t think that we’ve been cautious enough,” he says. Yet, in spite of these issues, Ian says that farmers and ranchers are doing “reasonable and wonderful things.” Mosaic tried to capture the farmers’ challenges, while honoring the work ethic and commitment that they hold in common with their forbears. “Their values are rooted in a tradition I really respect—raising a family and growing food. But they are hooked into a system that yields little flexibility and little money.” Is our country subsidizing the right system? With an investment of $350, Ian and his colleagues produced 177 bushels of corn that in 2004 brought $1.65 per bushel—a net loss of 33 cents per bushel. Ian’s film includes archival footage, original music, and promotes dialogue about the way America farms and eats. Its release is scheduled for May 2005; go to www.KingCorn.net for more information.

Ian Cheney ’98, on the combine at harvest time

Jon Wright ’75 and his pig, Bess

Jon Wright ’75 Making artisanal cheeses on Taylor Farm “You wore your good jeans today,” jokes Doug Carleton, a carpenter and handyman at Taylor Farm in Londonderry, Vermont. The recipient of the jibe, Jon Wright ’75, nods his head and steps away from Bess. “She’s really a pet,” Jon says of the sow, oversized even by swine standards. Jon also introduces the farm’s primary “pets,” dairy cows with names such as Sally (who possesses the most substantial udders), Nadine (who bore a calf in late November), Harriet, Darla and Sunflower. The son of a Manhattan physician, Jon is a farmer in an idyllic, 19th-century sense— or at least, his hands, and his jeans, do get quite dirty. Jon’s interest in farming began when he visited Vermont as a child and strengthened when his Milton senior project, advised by Bryan Cheney, centered on photographing the 150-year-old Taylor Farm. After Milton, Jon attended agriculture school, where he was discouraged from pursuing an agricultural career. He completed a program in forest management at the University of Vermont’s School of Natural Resources and planned to focus on forestry consulting until he learned that Taylor Farm was vacant. Everyone said they were crazy when Jon and his wife, Kate, moved to Taylor Farm 7

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Channing Daughters Winery Nude sculptures and “racy” white wines (to quote the New York Times) pair nicely at Channing Daughters Winery, where Walter Channing ’59 brings both to life. A venture capitalist-sculptor-vintner, Walter graces his 125-acre vineyard with sensual wood sculptures and their likenesses grace many labels of his boutique wines. An August 2004 Newsday article lauds Walter’s wines: “There should be a lot of toasting this summer at Channing Daughters Winery.” On October 3, 2004, the New York Times wrote that Channing Daughters’ wines are notable for their compatibility with food. (Walter’s new winemaker, James Christopher Tracy, is a trained sommelier and former chef.) Walter’s wines are also described as “zippy,” “flamboyantly aromatic” and “palate-cleansing.” A visit to www.channingdaughters.com indicates that aficionados agree: Most labels from 2002 and 2003 vintages are sold out. (Members of the vineyard’s wine club get first dibs.) Walter planted his first Chardonnay vines at his Bridgehampton, Long Island, farm in 1982. He believes, he says, in producing artisanal wines through traditional methods: handpicking grapes, stomping them by foot and punching them down. Varieties include Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, Tocai Friulano, Merlot, Blaufrankisch and others. Contributing to his community through the beauty of art and wine, Walter also believes in land preservation: His farm is one of the last unbroken tracts of land on the South Fork of Long Island.

Taylor Farm’s dairy cows include Sally, Darla, Sunﬂower and Harriet.

as tenants. (They would later buy the core 18 acres, surrounded by over 500 acres of Vermont Land Trust land and near three popular ski areas.) After 10 years as a conventional dairy farmer, Jon began to think “everyone” might have been right. To sustain the farm, Jon and Kate began offering sleigh rides in the winter, established a monthly Farm Day for visitors and used the property’s “little house” as a guesthouse. Kate set up a roadside farm stand to sell baked goods. But until they discovered cheese, these efforts weren’t enough. While people have been making cheese for about 6,000 years, Jon started in 1999. Part art, part science, cheese-making capitalizes on the curdling of milk. Enter the farm’s pristine cheese-making room, where Jon and his team warm the milk and separate the curd from the whey (hard, isn’t it, to avoid the image of Little Miss Muffet?) to see artisanal cheese-making made possible by the rich milk of 45 Holstein cows in the barn next door. One hundred pounds of their milk will make 10 pounds of garlic, chipolte, maplesmoked, cumin or regular Gouda—an average of 1,200 pounds per week. (The average cow produces over 17,000 pounds of milk each year.) Jon isn’t alone in these cheese-making endeavors. His core staff of Doug, herdsman John Michalski, farm help Scott

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Bratton and cheesemaker Tamry Underwood care for the animals; milk the cows; warm the milk; add the culture and “hoop” the warm curds in metal rounds lined with cheesecloth; weight and press the developing cheese, bathe the cheese in brine, and leave it to dry for 10 days when it is hand-dipped four times in wax and put in the cheese cave to age. The Wrights’ decision to keep the farm is reinforced, Jon says, whenever they help a cow deliver her calf at 2 a.m. or when one of the Wright daughters helps make a batch of cheese or when his oldest daughter rides horseback after doing her homework. (The many awards from the American Cheese Society aren’t hurting their confidence much, either.) Jon’s wife, Kate, made the farm’s first batches of cheese, while consultant Peter Dixon guided the family as they developed their idea into a commercially viable product. “I do everything that no one else wants to do,” Jon says of his role on the farm. “I tend to most of the morning milking around 4:30 a.m., general farm management, fieldwork and help out with marketing and promotion. “The farm is a real community effort. We’ve had tremendous support primarily because we are one of the last farms left around here.”

Taylor Farm, part of the Vermont Cheese Council of which Jon is vice president, is Vermont’s only Gouda producer. The Wright family is committed to sustainable agriculture. They fertilize their rotationally grazed pastures and hay fields naturally and do not treat their cows with growth hormones. Gouda has made Jon’s farm tenable, but— despite product placement in markets such as Manhattan’s Zabar’s and Murray’s and Boston’s Savenor’s—the financial benefits do not yet rival the personal ones, which is okay with John: “After years of tremendous responsibility, hard work and raising a family, I have found great spiritual and emotional rewards in this work,” he says. To find Jon’s cheese or to visit the farm’s chicken, dog, cats, rabbits, 45 cows, nine horses and one turtle, go to www.taylorfarmvermont.com.

“I remember that line from Apollo 13 coming into my head: ‘All right, there are a thousand things that have to happen in order for us to survive—and we are on number eight.’ I could relate.” Most new businesses go out of business, so Nicole explains that keeping a streamlined staff—while you struggle for shelf space and refine the mechanics of distribution—is crucial to keeping a business viable. She notes that she has mixed feelings about food giants such as Kraft and Heinz “going organic” as the market for organic products grows. “In the end, the object is to grow the industry,” she says. “Thank goodness America loves the underdog. “This year, business could not be better,” she says. “We’re in over 6,000 stores and growing.” Nicole, whose mother ran a natural-foods store in Harwich on the Cape in the 1970s, grew up eating tempeh sandwiches and carob-covered rice cakes. Since then, food and its production have been close to Nicole and her family, who introduced all-natural Cape Cod Potato Chips and Chatham Village Croutons to supermarkets in the ’80s and ’90s. But Nicole had no immediate plans to take the lead in a new family business until, when she was pregnant in 2001 and craving saltine crackers, she found supermarket shelves bereft of organic crackers.

Nicole Bernard Dawes ’91 Her organic crackers please consumers “Our crackers look familiar and taste great, so we attract a lot of crossover business from people who might not usually buy organic,” says Nicole Dawes ’91, cofounder, president and chief operating officer of Late July Organic Snacks. “We are part of creating a sustainable future, which is why we’re all doing this.” Nicole also manages marketing—earning an “irresistible” review from the New York Times—customer relations and even steps in as forklift operator for her fledgling company, Late July. She says that in the first year of business, the company was continually in triage: Each day she mended logistical snags, soothing retailers as distribution details began to make processes more routine.

Nicole convinced her father, Steve Bernard, to join the venture. Market research showed that the $4 billion cracker market might just have room for a familiar product—featuring organic ingredients and without trans fats and artificial coloring. Relying on old-fashioned recipes from Farmer’s Almanacs she spent months preparing sample batches of crackers in her New York City apartment. “The guiding principle for me,” she says, “is would I feel proud and comfortable giving this to my son. “So many products, like some yogurts for children, masquerade as ‘health food.’ But if you read the label, you may reconsider feeding some products to your family.” Nicole quickly realized that her biggest challenge would be maintaining “mouth feel” or the customary cracker flakiness that comes from the use of hydrogenated oils. “I was never willing to compromise taste,” Nicole says.

Food Figures for Other Graduates As restaurateurs, farmers and more, many Milton alumni enjoy food as their business. Explore the Milton food connection further: George Bemis ’69, organic farmer www.hutchinsfarm.com Powell Cabot ’49, cheesemaker www.fannymasoncheese.com Mike Chase ’80, investment banker for nutrition industry www.healthbusiness.com James Doulos ’90, Kim Doulos ’84 and Reni Doulos Cadigan ’86, restaurateurs www.jimmysharborside.com William Lobkowitcz ’79, brewer www.czechbeer.com/lobkowicz.htm www.lobkowicz.org Peter Saltonstall ’71, vintner www.treleavenwines.com

Ensuring a shelf life to please consumers was another challenge, as was designing perfect packaging—a nostalgic beachscape, in this case. The result is bite-sized cheddar cheese snacks, round saltine crackers, classic rich and peanut butter and cheddar cheese sandwich crackers. The sandwich crackers are made with organic peanut butter and organic cheese. All of the crackers are made without hydrogenated oils (where the trans fats hide), preservatives, artificial flavors or colors. “If you have a society that relies on processed food, then it makes sense for people to read the labels and understand what’s in their food. “But there’s so much to worry about in the world. The quality of our crackers will never be one of them.” For more about Nicole’s company, go to www.latejuly.com. Heather Sullivan

Milton Magazine

Planning for

Disaster Response

September 11, 2001

“I do what I do with a passion because I feel a tremendous obliga-

tion and responsibility. What I bring to the table is long-standing experience and knowledge of the disability community—that is, a true singular understanding as a member of that community—matched with years of experience in emergency management planning and application. My career brings those things together.”

Certainly the attacks of September 11, 2001, thrust Elizabeth Davis’s focal concern into American living rooms: we could not and cannot escape the need to plan for disasters. We started thinking explicitly about the vulnerability of our workplaces, hospitals, schools and transportation networks as well as our homes. We asked pointed questions about who would spring into organized action to help us in the case of an “incident,” implementing a plan we assumed would be well-designed and fully resourced. Then Department of

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Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Tom Ridge told us that we owned responsibility for a prepared response, at least at the family level. Since then the issue has only gained momentum as we witness events, natural and manmade, that affect thousands every day. About one-fifth of the U.S. population, 54 million Americans, are persons with disabilities, individuals with an array of needs as well as abilities who, nonetheless, are particularly anxious about their personal safety in an emergency, according to two Harris Surveys done by the

National Organization on Disability in 2001 and 2003. Elizabeth Davis runs her own emergency management consulting firm. She focuses on planning and response with and for populations that have special needs. Within our communities, among our neighbors, relatives and friends, one out of every five Americans has a disability or medical need that should be taken into account in developing and carrying out emergency plans. Within the fraction of New York City staked out as “Ground Zero,” for example—in addition to the towers of businesses that included workers with mobility/physical, sensory (i.e. vision or hearing), and cognitive disabilities—were the following considerations: • More than 200 languages are spoken in NYC and the Chinatown neighborhood was within the impact zone.

Elizabeth A. Davis ’85

• Commercial and residential structures made up the mixed-use area which included special housing for seniors, people with disabilities, and lower incomes in addition to the market-rate housing.

University Law School was to develop the skill set necessary to commit herself further to the field of disability rights and disability law. In addition to her law degree, she earned a master’s in education, focused on deaf cultural studies.

• Seven home-based care agencies had offices in the zone serving roughly 5,000 clients living in that area as well.

“At the end of my graduate career, some effective pieces of legislation passed in the ’70s and ’80s culminated in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, a strong piece of civil rights legislation, and I benefited from the hard work that went into its passage.” Elizabeth’s first job was not as a lawyer; she joined the Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities (MOPD) as assistant to legal counsel and senior policy analyst. That job combined advocacy and application of policy for the disability community, along with legal and analytical work. After the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, Mayor Giuliani identified emergency management as a commitment housed under mayoral authority, and created the Mayor’s Office of Emergency Management (OEM). As the MOPD representative to the Office of Emergency Management, Elizabeth provided “structured advice and review” as she describes her role; she “incorporated disability access standards and protocol into the city’s emergency contingency plans, drills and outreach programs.”

• Several daycare centers, elementary and high schools along with colleges, two senior centers and even one hospital were all affected. “Special needs can create dynamic issues for emergency professionals responding during (or to) a crisis,” Elizabeth explains. “Their bottom line is to save lives but that means all lives. Better-laid plans maximize and utilize scarce resources during emergencies; these plans identify the needs as well as the abilities within the disability community. This is not just a victim model for planning: the extent to which you empower people to respond to the best of their abilities, you minimize the amount of response required from professionals, and stretch the availability of all kinds of resources.” Elizabeth points to the Chinese character that relates “opportunity and crisis” when she teases out the circumstances, both challenging and fortuitous, that led to her national prominence in a specialized field. “My dyslexia—I am so dyslexic that the only reason I can tell the difference between a “b” and a “d” is that my last name begins with a “d”—led me to request a language waiver at Milton,” Elizabeth says with a grin. “Rather, I requested a language substitution, and Milton agreed. I substituted American Sign Language, which I studied at Northeastern on weekends, for modern foreign language.” At Barnard College, Elizabeth concentrated in sociology and political science, and wrote her thesis on deaf studies. Her intention at Boston

President George Bush shakes hands with Elizabeth after having signed Executive Order 13347 focused on including people with disabilities in all emergency planning.

Her shift from a policy analyst to a frontline emergency response professional came when she was called upon to help resolve a crisis in Queens in 1997 where police had found a group of 64 deaf Mexicans who had ostensibly been smuggled into the country and forced into slave labor. Elizabeth found that she “held the communication key” in that situation— the ability to help responders, as well as Mayor Giuliani, sort through complex legal, cultural and social needs, to set priorities, and to initiate an appropriate response. The need for emergency management planning to include disability concerns was manifest. At that point Elizabeth became a member of the Office of Emergency Management, the organization with the resources and the authority to bring together teams for planning and responding. “My duty was to infuse consideration of disabilities within the emergency management structure, whether the disabilities were medically based, age based, or other kinds of special needs.” She ensured that, within the system, trained people were capable of responding to unique issues, whatever the triggering factor: a power outage, a water main break, a blizzard. The extreme and immediate needs emanating from the attacks of September 11, 2001, wrenched Elizabeth, who had been transitioning into her own private consulting firm, back into frontline response at ground zero. The Mayor’s Office of Emergency Management, as many remember, was located at 7 World Trade Center, which ultimately fell. She surrendered the effort to “achieve more balance” in her life through tailoring her own business to the imminent and overwhelming months-long demand in response to this crisis. Once Elizabeth was again ready to launch her business, the nation was consumed with the need to plan. One goal in establishing EAD & Associates, LLC Emergency

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Management & Special Needs Consultants, Elizabeth says was to “be selective about projects—to take on projects because of the overall impact they would have. I could take my experience to the largest and most effective emergency management venues, and apply that experience to make a difference.” As principal of EAD & Associates, Elizabeth has worked with private businesses, advocacy organizations, and governmental agencies in many states and at the federal level. Elizabeth just completed a three-year project with the National Organization on Disability, the “Emergency Preparedness Initiative,” which perhaps most successfully epitomizes the philosophy and strategies that drive Elizabeth’s work. “We had two parallel goals,” Elizabeth says, “we wanted to educate individuals with disabilities to be better prepared to act on behalf of their own needs, and then to be part of the solution process, whether the incident was an apartment fire, an ice storm or an act of terrorism. We empowered them to search out the planning agencies in their municipalities, and participate in shaping the solutions to emer-

gency challenges. The other arm of the initiative was to address the emergency management professionals—the planners and first responders—to make them aware of the unique emergency special needs they might face that may change the dynamic of their response, and help them develop more appropriate plans, with the stakeholders at the planning table.” Working closely with the Department of Homeland Security has predictably been a consistent feature of Elizabeth’s consulting. Last September she chaired a major conference on emergency preparedness for people with disabilities for the National Capital Region (Washington, D.C., Virginia and Maryland), supported by the Department of Homeland Security in partnership with the National Organization on Disability. Emergency management professionals from throughout the region and beyond immersed themselves in crucial issues, from plans for medically fragile populations to alert systems, evacuation issues, impacts of disaster responses on pediatric and senior populations, to workplace models. This conference is an example of a unique “window of opportunity,” Elizabeth says, that she and her colleagues now have and must use effectively.

For Elizabeth, and her peers and colleagues in both the emergency management and disability communities, the most significant symbol of their success in this area was Executive Order 13347, signed by President Bush in July 2004. Elizabeth was present in the Oval Office for the signing and feels that the tremendous impact of this order is both recognition of the issues and a commitment to positive change. The presidential order directs that people with disabilities must be included in all aspects of emergency planning at all levels, throughout the nation. “Emergencies are never going to be easy, and there is always going to be a response,” Elizabeth advises, “but if you at least have the knowledge and the ideas ahead of time, you can be better equipped to make the decisions that affect people’s lives. A strategic and inclusive approach to emergency preparedness benefits people of all abilities.” Cathleen Everett

Elizabeth Davis and her husband, Luis Penalver, and their children, Madeleine Isabelle (left) and Abigail Soledad

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Derek Gilman ’79

Moving Iraq Toward a

Market Economy

“From an intellectual point of

view, this experience was exhilarating: bright people around the table, challenging issues, lots of decisions to be made—made quickly, and made right.” As deputy general counsel of the Coalition Provisional Authority for Commercial Law Reform, Derek Gilman ’79 mobilized and directed a team of attorneys in developing a body of law, 39 statutes, to undergird a new Iraqi economy. He and his team worked closely with policy makers and

economists in undertaking this project. The vision entrusted to him and his team was to set the framework for transitioning Iraq from a managed economy to a market economy. With a staff of 19 attorneys set in Baghdad, and with the help of several professionals in the U.K., Australia and the United States, Derek coordinated simultaneous efforts to write “Orders” concerning issues such as the national budget, the operation of banks, a system of taxation, a securities exchange, the registration of companies, trademarks, patents, foreign investment and insurance.

An army reservist on active duty at that time, Derek was initially assigned to the Department of Defense, Office of General Counsel, International Affairs Division. He had been in Iraq working with the Iraqis on the legal documents that would become the foundation for the special tribunal trying Saddam Hussein and other senior Ba’athists, when “It was decided,” he said, “that I would stay on to work on the Commercial Law Reform Project.” To create “the conditions for sustainable development” (the directive from U.N. Security Council Resolution 1483), and to

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Working on commercial law reform in Iraq, from left, Muhammad Helm, Egyptian tax expert with BearingPoint; LTC Derek Gilman ’79; Kamil al Gailani, Iraqi minister of ﬁnance; Dr. Ahmed Chalabi, chair of ﬁnance committee, Iraqi Governing Council; Dr. Aziz Jafar Hassan, deputy director of the Ministry of Finance; Richard Laliberte, Canadian economist with BearingPoint; Rick Chewning, Internal Revenue Service

implement a transition, Iraq needed a broad-based body of law. One of the first elements in a complex process, in fact, became identifying and prioritizing the legal needs. Members of the Iraqi ministries working with the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA)—such as the ministries of finance, trade and planning—in addition to private developers and Iraqi businessmen, all contributed to delineating what needed to be done; the mission-critical issues were numerous and diverse. According to Derek, the ministries, at that point, were staffed with Iraqis who had not been Ba’athists. The new minister of finance, for instance (Kamil al Gailani), came to the post from private industry: “His advisors were long term professionals in the Hussein administration, but were not Ba’athists,” Derek said. “We also dealt with a number of professionals who were trained in the U.K., in Wales, who were capable and knowledgeable about Iraqi law.” Ambassador Bremer in response to requests from Iraqis and coalition advisors outlined 39 legal initiatives and Derek committed the working group to developing drafts of those 39; these Orders would at least be ready for the thorough “coordination” process that would occur before Ambassador Bremer signed the Orders into law. Lawyers from the project researched each of the issues at hand for relevant Iraqi law, trying to build upon it when possible, while remaining consistent with interna-

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tional law. With regard to the public debt, for instance, international law prohibits an occupier from increasing the sovereign debt of a nation. The Law Reform Project’s resolution with respect to that restriction was to write that while “Iraq would not increase its debt during the period of occupation, it might substitute existing instruments with other instruments.” Iraq, therefore, could reschedule its debt, once offers to forgive that debt were reconciled. The project routinely sought both help from advisors and subject-area expertise from specialists. Three Iraqi attorneys with master’s of law degrees, along with an Iraqi law professor, provided regular assistance to the project group. Lawyers from the project met twice weekly with the Iraqi Governing Council, and frequently with Iraqi bankers and businessmen. Various U.S. agencies provided support: the Treasury, the Federal Reserve, the Comptroller of the Currency, the Patent and Trademark Office, and the Department of Commerce. The assistant director of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was the principal drafter of securities law, but he worked in close consultation with securities lawyers working for the coalition in Iraq, who amended the draft to take into account Iraq’s practical realities. Other support came from U.K. and Australian government agencies, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. In many cases lawyers were drafting orders in Washington, Canberra or London, which would then be amended in Baghdad.

Once orders were drafted, they began to wind their way through an extensive coordination process, beginning with consultation with Iraqi government officials and private citizens, and seeking comments from the U.S., U.K. and Australian governments, the IMF and the World Bank. Lawyers would revise the draft and translate it into Arabic. Paul Bremer would review the revised draft Order and approve its presentation to the Governing Council. Discussions with the Governing Council led to further revisions, until a final draft reached Ambassador Bremer’s desk for signature. The CPA Web site posted the signed orders, in English and Arabic, and published them in Iraq’s Official Gazette. “The coordination process was logistically difficult,” says Derek, moving six separate groups through reading, commenting, collecting, responding, rewriting; ultimately they all had to sing from the same sheet of music.” As has been the case in other countries, moving a nation from a planned economy to a market economy opens opportunities for many, but threatens the stakeholders of the old system. Many expatriates returning to Iraq were excited about the economic opportunities and were ready to make more radical changes. However, those who had grown up in a planned economy wanted to keep their authority and their dominance. Some in the Ministry of Planning, for instance, wanted control over foreign investment and were reticent to make the changes in budget law recommended by the IMF.

“…moving a nation from a planned economy to a market economy opens opportunities for many, but threatens the stakeholders of the old system.”

Derek points to other challenges posed by cultural differences. “It was crucial for us and those working with us to ensure transparency in our process,” Derek says, “but operating with transparency was not an Iraqi experience.” “Under Saddam corruption was rampant; bribes were commonplace. In response and at the suggestion of Iraqis, many Orders reduced the discretion of public officials. For instance, regulations were adopted so that if a company met clear regulatory criteria, then it could be registered: no bribes, no red tape. We tried to make it easy for people to transform tangible wealth into intangible businesses— registered companies that would create greater wealth. “People who had had experience working in Eastern European countries advised us,” Derek says, “one who had written bankruptcy law for Bosnia, and a securities lawyer with experience in the Balkans. They and others who had seen what happened in Russia were concerned that we avoid allowing the riches of the country to go into a few pockets, that we avoid yielding the economic terrain to oligarchs. “We often had to move from thinking about broad strategic goals to considering the mundane and particular,” Derek explains. That was true with respect to developing a tax program. The IMF considered the availability of a non-oil source of revenue to be crucial if the Iraqis were

to renegotiate their sovereign debt. The existing tax codes were vastly unfair: those working for the government or in stateowned businesses did not pay taxes. Taxes paid by individuals working in private enterprise exceeded 40 percent, while private enterprises were subject to a total tax rate of 78 percent. Therefore many taxpayers would negotiate to reduce their taxes. Furthermore, a 25 percent “social welfare” tax paid by private enterprises didn’t go to social welfare at all. The reform initiative, therefore, needed to address those differences in citizens’ experiences and provide a tax that was relatively low (to promote compliance) but still high enough to generate sufficient non-oil revenue. A 15 percent flat tax was the strategy that prevailed. What’s the status of the implementation? What progress has been made? “At times we ran into significant internal Iraqi political differences, but at the end of the day, every one of the economic Orders was approved by the Governing Council,” Derek says. “On the whole, the legal principles underlying a new economy have been accepted.” For the system to operate effectively, more reorganizing and retraining of officials lie ahead. Derek points to the positive tracks thus far: More companies have registered in Iraq since February 2004 than in the entire 60-year history of the Company Registry; numerous companies are trading on the Iraq Stock Exchange; three foreign banks have received licenses to do busi-

ness in Iraq, and propose making millions of dollars available to Iraqi banks to lend to Iraqi businesses; and we’re seeing many joint ventures between Iraqi companies and foreign companies. Across the country, however, getting the word out about changes, reorganizing and retraining is going slower than anyone would have wanted, because resources have been diverted to cope with security issues and the election. “But economic development is occurring in some territories, and, in general, progress is being made,” Derek asserts. Derek is hopeful and grateful for the opportunity to make such a difference in the destiny of a country. “I was able to combine two aspects of my life, my legal experience and my experience in military service as a JAG officer, to work with extraordinary people, and to make a personal commitment to begin the rebuilding of an entire economy. I had Hernando deSoto’s Mystery of Capital at my bedside. That book examines the question of why capitalism succeeds in the West, but fails everywhere else. DeSoto’s conclusion is that the key cause is a lack of legal framework to support capitalism. That legal framework is what we tried to develop. Cathleen Everett

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You Mon Tsang ’84

The Unbearable Lightness of Starting

“I realized in my mid-20s that I have a need to start things: some great, some fun, some utterly useless. As a profession, that means starting companies. I’ve done it with a few thousand dollars and the sweat of my brow; I’ve done it with $20 million and the sweat of my brow.”

s I write, I am on the last crosscountry flight of the evening after two days of evangelizing about the company I started. The flight is already two and a half hours late and I am still over four hours away from home and my family. And I feel all right. I think about how to help a trade publication pep up their coverage of our space and how to convince a global conglomerate that our company, less than one quarter of 1 percent of their size, is the ideal partner for them. I put the final touches on the family holiday card (which felt a little rushed this year but I think will still be a crowd pleaser) and wonder why micropayments still have not flourished on the Web. This is the life of a company starter, an entrepreneur. I realized in my mid-20s that I have a need to start things: some great, some fun, some utterly useless. As a profession, that means starting companies. I’ve done it with a few thousand dollars and the sweat of my brow; I’ve done it with $20 million and the sweat of my brow.

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I am neck deep into my latest start-up, Biz360. We are trying to change the way Global2000 companies manage their brands. This company is my biggest bet thus far. Biz360 came from an idea nurtured during years of creating data analysis software at Brio Technology. Here is the problem: organizations seem to have a pretty good idea of how their corporate processes are running, but they have little idea of how their corporate reputation and brands are faring. They know sales of a product went up, and when, but they do not know how the media or consumers perceive the product. The have less than they need to plan strategically—to make decisions about what direction and resource allocation will achieve the outcomes they want. I am trying to solve this problem. Probably the toughest part of the road to success at Biz360 is convincing people that getting this accurate view of themselves is possible. In the first two years of business, my main role was education. Potential customers, never having seen anything like our capability, would completely underestimate what we do; they would assume, for instance, that we merely automated the gathering of news stories. Biz360 gives marketing professionals media analysis tools that provide a range of metrics previously unavailable—meas-

You Mon Tsang with his son Liam, 4 years old. “We were at SBC Park rooting for the San Francisco Giants,” You Mon says, “but for some reason, he’s a Red Sox fan!”

urements that pinpoint both opportunities and threats on an industry landscape as well as on consumer and general public landscapes, nationally or internationally. To convince them that we do this and more was a tremendous amount of work; I often had to overcome the frustration of explaining over and over again to a skeptical audience the ways in which we were doing something new and special. We did this through demonstrations. We did this through the testimony of a small group of early customers that were comfortable with using technology. We did this through tireless promotion in the press and at conferences. The flip side of this early road is telling today’s story: that the biggest brands in the high tech, pharmaceutical and financial services businesses—from Bank of America to Harley-Davidson to Sun Microsystems to AstraZeneca—are clients of ours. Over 70 of the largest global companies have bought into our vision. But I continue to evangelize; I continue to move forward. In fact, I think about Biz360 all the time: thoughts on how to grow it faster, to convince more people to use it, occupy my spare moments, tucked into corners and cracks of the days. Some days, I feel very tired, even dejected. Some days, I talk about moving on. Most days,

though, I feel great. My energy seems endless. That energy comes from the thrill of the start: an idea turning into something “real”; new jobs for good people; people saying, for the first time, “I want that.” And to get to the great feeling, I need to plow through the “no, thank yous,” the missed flight connections, the “that’s not possibles,” the slow movement forward, and the “95 percent of all start-ups fail.” This life is not for everyone. Sometimes I wish it weren’t for me. In the past, I have ruined relationships on account of my focus. This focus and drive to start is both a source of power and a significant character flaw. Fortunately, I now have a lovely wife who understands. Maybe this life is for you. Did I know right away that I was a starter? I did not. After Milton, headed to college, I was convinced I would be a banker. In college, I was attracted to urban planning. In business school, however, I fully realized that having tight control of one’s destiny was paramount to my happiness.

when does the next new business start? I don’t know. One thing I do know is that I cannot get enough of a new thing. Twenty years ago when I was at Milton, I found myself trying to exceed my own expectations. I came to Milton very selfaware. I knew why I came to Milton even though I came from New York City’s Chinatown: I wanted to be challenged. I thought of myself as a math and science major, but I walked out looking to major in humanities. In business, I see myself as the “zero-tofive-million-in-yearly-revenue” guy. That’s the person I’m comfortable with, and I’m good at it. I start small companies. But, again, I want a good challenge. When I move on to whatever the next thing is, I want to walk out as the “zero-to-fiftymillion” guy. I want to build enduring companies. Stay tuned for that. You Mon Tsang ’84

Since then, I have faced many decisions about control. What do I do well? I yielded the CEO position when the company grew larger than what I had previously handled. When do I cut bait? Many times, walking away seemed the easiest option. And

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Randall Dunn ’83 Anna L. Waring ’74

Leading Schools:

Realizing Educational Visions Randy Dunn ’83 reading to students

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ometimes you don’t know that you are on the trail of something big. Sometimes you are simply following your heart, listening to your conscience, doing what you think is right, and suddenly you realize that you have arrived at your life’s work. “Serendipity” is what Dr. Anna Waring, ’74, calls the confluence of circumstances that brought her to the presidency of Josephinum Academy, a Catholic school serving low-income young women in Chicago. A professor of organizational theory at DePaul University and an educator for 25 years, Anna had served on the board of Josephinum, or “the Jo” as those who work there call it, for seven years. Anna was planning to go off the board and “get my nights back,” but, in the course of board discussions about a leader for the institution, a board member turned to her and asked, “Would you think about it?” In fact, Anna realized, she had been thinking about such an opportunity for some time.

“Get a job.” Although “there is an apocryphal story that as a child I said I would run my own school,” Anna says, “I do not think I can talk about my career as intentional. Even eight years ago I would not have known that I would end up doing what I am doing now.” An A Better Chance (ABC) student, she was one of the first black students at Milton and one of the first to graduate from Williams College as well. Not sure about what to do after graduation, she “thought about taking a year off to find myself, but then my mother, said,

‘Don’t do that; you’ll be disappointed. Get a job.’” So, Anna got a job with ABC. After that she went to Stanford to get her doctorate in education thinking that eventually she would run an educational non-profit like ABC, not a school. But “the dirty little secret of grad schools is that professors invest more in you if they think you will become a professor yourself.” Anna then focused on professorial matters and made her way to DePaul, working with Josephinum Academy as a volunteer. In that work all the issues of opportunity and justice that had been part of her thinking as far back as her own days as an ABC student “came alive again. What happened to students who did not have the opportunities I had? How could we do something revolutionary to help young women? How can institutions facilitate opportunities for young women?”

A collaboration that says “yes” to girls In the presidency of “the Jo,” Anna saw answers to those questions: “It brought together skills and values that I have. Social justice causes, low-income students, gender, curriculum, faith, tradition, all these strands came together.” Founded in 1890 by the Sisters of Christian Charity, Josephinum Academy has weathered the decline in the number of Catholic schools in Chicago from more than 440 to 220 (at one point the Catholic system was the second-largest city school system in the United States) and the dwindling numbers of the Sisters of Christian Charity. In 1990 it collaborated with the Religious of the Sacred Heart. Today it contains vital

elements from both Orders: from the Sisters of Christian Charity, a 115-year legacy educating young women at the school and an in-kind of the building, an in-kind contribution; from the Religious Sacred Heart, the educational philosophy that shapes the core academic and extracurricular program. Josephinum’s historical mission has the education of young women within the tradition of the Catholic faith. Says Anna, “The Jo is a place that says ‘yes’ to girls, to their dreams and hopes. We’ve always been educating girls even when educating girls has not been a priority.” Historically, the Academy drew most of its students from the surrounding neighborhood. The Wicker Park neighborhood has changed, as has Josephinum’s student body. Founded for the daughters of German immigrants, and historically having educated Eastern European young women, today’s students are now largely African American and Latina. The come from 24 different zip codes throughout Chicago. “There are more transitional issues,” notes Anna. “Many of the young women are coming from large public schools where they’re not used to one-on-one attention or where disputes are settled with fights. But with the their own commitment and that of families, faculty and staff they make the transition to young women with clear and positive goals.” Each year, more than 95 percent of Josephinum’s seniors graduate on time and go on to attend colleges and universities.

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Anna remembers a senior at the last assembly of last year telling her schoolmates that “education is contagious and life is complicated” and then saying, “Dr. Waring, we’re leaving you our eggs and it’s your job to keep the nest safe.” Muses Waring, “I think about that a lot. This work is a calling.”

“We’re leaving you our eggs and it’s your job to keep the nest safe.” With tuition covering less than 20 percent of the operating budget, Dr. Anna Waring spends significant time fund-raising (“Fortunately I have a fabulous development staff”). Recent priorities have been technology (moving from one computer and no network to three computer laboratories and Internet hook-ups in each classroom) and faculty salaries (“Milton showed me how important a well-trained faculty that really likes students can be. I wanted to reproduce that excellence.” Last September starting salaries increased by 30 percent). Anna’s work does not end with fund-raising. “I am learning things I never thought I would have to learn: roof repair, how water pipes break, wiring buildings for technology, working with populations that are highly mobile.” Anna has also seen her previous lives intersect with her life at Josephinum in ways she had not anticipated. Milton, Williams, and Stanford classmates have contributed to the school. DePaul connections have helped with student interns and volunteers. “If you have treated people well, they will do right by you.” Most importantly, Anna has never lost sight of “the fact that this work is about students. In a budget meeting or a board meeting about bylaws, always remember why you’re there.” She quotes a nun who said of Josephinum, “I don’t always understand it, but God’s work is being done here.” Anna remembers a senior at the

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last assembly of last year telling her schoolmates that “education is contagious and life is complicated” and then saying, “Dr. Waring, we’re leaving you our eggs and it’s your job to keep the nest safe.” Muses Anna, “I think about that a lot. This work is a calling. If you’re doing what you love, working on a good cause, even if you’re not quite sure what you’re doing, things will work out, people will come to you.”

“I knew that education was what I wanted.” A similar opportunity to bring several parts of his life together led Randall Dunn ’83 to assume the Head of School position at the Roeper School this year. An ABC student like Anna, he came to Milton from the Boston public school system. Although he had held his own in the streets of Dorchester, when Randall first came to Milton, he felt “like a beat-up Chevy in the Indy 500.” But he also never felt alone. “The thing that changed my life is that people took care of me.” Lefty Marr checked in with him regularly. Dick and Ellie Griffin allowed him to stay overnight once a week so that he didn’t have to trek home after a long day of classes and sports. Randall became such a part of the 24/7 life of the school that eventually “Mr. Millet allowed me to become a boarding student even though I lived right down the road.” By the end of junior year Randall was thriving so well at Milton that he was elected Head Monitor. “The point is that all these people were looking after me.” While at Milton, Randall worked with Chuck Burdick at summer camp. “Right then I knew that education was what I wanted.”

From Milton Randall went to Brown. After Brown he earned a master’s of education at Harvard and then taught in a Brookline public elementary school while at the same time working as a dorm parent in Forbes. A stint working with Ed Foley at Derby Academy followed, after which Randall worked seven years as middle school head at the Landon School. At Landon, Randall “fell in love with the opportunity to make change, but I was always searching. As middle school director I certainly had an impact on students’ lives and the school but I wanted more.” In Roeper, with its humanistic, childcentered approach, Randall found what he was looking for. It was not only an opportunity to work intensely with children, but also “a great opportunity to be part of a mission focused on preparing kids for more than more school. It had a worldview. To have both of these things in one job was ideal.”

The patience and skill to go with whatever ideas come up The cornerstone of the Roeper education is personalization. Founded in 1941 by George and Annemarie Roeper, educators fleeing the persecutions in Germany, the Roeper School espouses “the importance of realizing the positive potential of each individual. Through a process of lifelong learning, each individual strives to become self-actualized as a moral, creative, productive, and fulfilled person, partner, and global citizen. The school recognizes that all people are unique and develop according to their own timetable and plan. This development grows from everyday decisions and genuine expressions of care,

Anna Waring ’74 with students

kindness, humility, respect and responsibility” [quoted from the Roeper School philosophy]. As Randall puts it, “It is about getting to know kids on a personal level. We want to focus on ways to allow their passions to dictate what happens in the classroom.” Even at the youngest level (Roeper is pre-K to 12), students choose what they are learning at any given moment. Teachers, in turn, “are comfortable going with whatever ideas come up; they can’t be in a rush to get someplace.” Through this process of personalization, the students “grow up being respectful of others’ ideas, no matter how wild or ordinary they might be. It teaches a whole lot about patience and listening,” habits of mind which, as the Roeper Preferred Future Plan 2003 states, “prepare our students to live justly, wisely, and artfully in the world.” This “preparation for life,” as George Roeper called it, forms the second vital, distinct thrust of the Roeper education.

A diverse school for gifted children The third distinct feature emerged in 1956 when Roeper reorganized itself as a school for gifted students. Roeper is one of the very few schools for the gifted that goes through high school. It sits cheek-to-jowl next to the Roeper Institute, an internationally known think-tank on gifted education that publishes the equally influential Roeper Review, and benefits from the intellectual buzz and access to foundation grants that the institute brings. Students commute from 60 different communities, some as far away as Indiana. Roughly 40 percent of the 640 students receive some

form of financial aid; a smaller percentage attend Roeper on full or half scholarships. In addition to this socioeconomic diversity, students of color comprise roughly a quarter of the student body. In fact, in the Detroit area, where neighborhoods tend to sort by race and ethnicity, Roeper is more diverse than the public schools of Birmingham and Bloomfield Hills, the two towns where the Roeper campuses are situated. A recent tuition hike may make Roeper’s commitment to diversity more challenging and the school is working on innovative ways to recruit students from diverse backgrounds. “We try to make school affordable,” says Randall. “Our students tend to be from gifted programs in the publics, so the whole notion of paying that much money is daunting.”

Becoming “more inorganic to stay organic” In fact, Randall finds himself leading Roeper at a crucial time in its growth. The ethic of personalization meant that the Roeper community approached life in a fluid, spontaneous way and just trusted that things would work out. But now the school has reached a point where it has to be more deliberate in its actions. In the past eight years the school has become more rigorous in its budgetary disciplines. It has begun to cultivate alumni, to build an ethic of giving, in order to increase the endowment and prepare the way for a capital campaign. As a way to ease the concerns of families that might balk at the tuition and to increase enrollment (Roeper hopes to add an additional 40 to 50 gifted students to its student body), Roeper families have been encouraged to reach out in

their neighborhoods and “tell their stories about the Roeper experience.” Without thoughtful planning, the increase in the student body could present challenges to personalization. Notes Randall, “It’s not a situation where you can just increase the number of faculty. When a school gets bigger the culture changes. As we get bigger we will have to get more thoughtful and systematic about personalization. Right now personalization and activism ooze organically from the philosophy; but in the future, I think, we will have to become more inorganic to stay organic.” For, make no mistake, it ultimately comes down to personalization. “Personalization puts us on the map,” states Randall. “A lot of schools struggle to do that, but child culture has moved so far away from adult culture. There are not obvious intersections. Our school has done a good job of bringing adults and students together, each giving meaning to the other.” Certainly, Roeper has brought meaning to Randall. “I feel more relaxed as a head here than I have in typically less stressful positions at other schools because it’s a very natural fit for me. My children are here and they love it. I feel as though my heart and soul are in this place.” Like Anna, Randall sees a Milton legacy in his own professional journey. “Roeper is a place where people understand that they can be themselves. That’s the kind of environment Milton was, and that’s what I want Roeper to be.” Rod Skinner ’72 Director of College Counseling

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Christopher Gould ’73 A play exists in performance

Fueling modern American drama

Broadway Play Publishing Incorporated

“Anybody who loves the the-

atre, I think, will admit to a genetic predisposition in that direction: My parents took me to the theatre often, probably starting with Gilbert and Sullivan. The immediacy of live performance hooked me—the person-toperson communication.” So Christopher (Kip) Gould ’73 dove into drama at Milton, and then at Tufts. That experience taught him that the most obvious way to stay connected with the theatre—acting—was not going to be his way. “I realized that not only was I not as talented as I would need to be, but also I liked going to the theatre more than being involved in the creation of it,” Kip explains. “Theatre is ephemeral,” says Kip, “a play exists in performance, live, on stage, and once a production closes, the play’s gone. The one person who can extend the play is the critic; a critic’s power can give more

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life to a play.” So his quest to help keep plays alive took Kip to New York after college, where he realized that he could write reviews and features about the theatre for publications right away. Quickly, however, his estimation of a critic’s power evolved to embrace the reality: only one critic has “real” power—the New York Times theatre critic. “Perhaps with 20 years of good work and tons of luck, I could get there,” Kip thought, “but that’s unlikely.” In fact, he thought, a publisher of plays has similar power. “Once a play has closed, you have only the script,” Kip notes. “The script is inadequate, but at least it’s a peek into what the playwright is trying to do.” Work that enters the public repertory lasts forever. Through the intercession of a then girlfriend, Kip secured a job in the mailroom at Samuel French, Inc. Samuel French, whose tag line is “The House of Plays for 175 years” was founded in 1830 and pioneered the concept of providing published scripts to theatrical producing groups throughout the world.

Kip began in the mailroom, then did some licensing work for amateur productions, and eventually became head of the musical licensing department. He sought out and recommended plays for the company to publish. This success, Kip reasoned, was unlikely to jettison him ahead of the French family members slated for the leadership of the firm. At that point, also, his eagerness to strike out in an unconventional direction was growing; he wanted to make a commitment to new, talented, American playwrights so that others could value their work. The spirit moved Kip to action in 1982, when he left Samuel French and started Broadway Play Publishing Incorporated (BPPI), beginning with playwrights who were then unknown to the public. Today, one link on BPPI’s Web site celebrates “over 20 years of brilliant playwriting,” listing an outstanding playwright each year, based on the year he or she was first published by BPPI. “After I started the company, Native Speech by Eric Overmyer was the first play I read where I knew I had a genius on my hands,” Kip recalls.

the professional theatres to vet the potential plays. This arrangement is possible because I can print such a limited number of copies of a given play. Furthermore, now that BPPI is publishing books with color covers (formerly they were black and white), it may be possible to convince Barnes and Noble or other chain bookstores to carry these publications. Thirty or 40 years ago trade publishers would regularly publish plays as one of the genres of literature for sale in general bookstores. That rarely happens now, and that leaves a whole niche open to a new printing and selling model.”

“On the Verge, Eric’s second play that I published, was my first big hit in terms of book sales and production licensing; it was the eighteenth play I published. Eric Overmyer is such a poet and so imaginative. On the Verge is an extraordinary play; hundreds of groups have produced it, and more will be doing it for another 30 or 40 years.” The catalogue of BPPI plays available to production companies across the country will generate hundreds of thousands of dollars for the playwrights over time, and guarantee that contemporary American plays light our stages. Kip purposefully set the size and the focus of his business. His is a highly personal venture: He chooses the plays to publish; his aesthetic underlies the body of work BBPI has printed. Playwrights on Kip’s “20-year” list, like A. R. Gurney, Jose Rivera, Laura Shaine Cunningham, Naomi Wallace and Tony Kushner, have earned Obie Awards, Pulitzer Prizes, a MacArthur Grant, NEA Awards and numerous other distinctions. (Dario Fo, one of the few foreign playwrights Kip published early on, won a Nobel Prize.) Kip’s aesthetic seems to prize power and artistry in the use of words; bold grappling with ideas; fresh treatment of issues; political relevance; pushing the limits of conventional theatre; and work that resonates with theatre audiences even as it challenges them. As it has for many industries, digital technology is radically altering the dynamics that have defined play publishing. In the

Kip Gould ’73

past, BBPI would need to publish 1,000 copies of a play to achieve an acceptable economy of scale, and the process would take two to three months; now that it’s possible to print 100 to 150 copies inexpensively with a two-week turnaround on a project (including color artwork), making a commitment is much easier. “It hugely expands what I can publish,” Kip comments. “We can even publish and sell at the theatre where the play is still in production.” Kip did just that with an A. R. Gurney play, Big Bill, in production at Lincoln Center. This change has led to altering the submission guidelines on the Web site, as well. “If a play is going to have a professional production, I’ll publish it,” Kip says. “This experiment completely shifts the terrain. Formerly, I chose from among those plays I saw; instead I’ll be depending on

The care and feeding of drama on stage has also included serving as president of The Vineyard Theatre board and member of the Adobe Theatre Company board. For 10 years Kip was a Tony Award voter as well (“One or two Broadway plays over that time were good,” he says). Focusing his career energy on stimulating an ancient, rich and valuable art form has been rewarding for Kip. The parents who brought Kip to the theatre when he was young also chose careers that reflected their values, including a commitment to family. Kip reflects that the role models he had in his parents, strengthened by the values he learned at Milton, yielded the idea that you could do something you love that benefits the community at the same time. For more than 20 years, Broadway Play Publishing Incorporated has fulfilled that idea. Note: BPPI’s Web site is www.broadwayplaypubl.com Cathleen Everett

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Jean Valentine ’52

Letter The hornet holds on to the curtain, winter sleep. Rubs her legs. Climbs the curtain. Behind her the cedars sleep lightly, like guests. But I am the guest. The ghost cars climb the ghost highway. Even my hand over the page adds to the ‘room tone’: the little constant wind. The effort of becoming. These words are my life. The effort of loving the un-become. To make the suffering visible. The un-become love: What we lost, a leaf, what we cherish, a leaf. One leaf of grass. I’m sending you this seed-pod, this red ribbon, my tongue these two red ribbons, my mouth, my other mouth, —but the other worlds—blindly I guzzle the swimming milk of its seed field flower—

Jean Valentine ’52 Wins 2004 National Book Award for Poetry “L

etter” is a poem by Jean Valentine ’52 that I found among the new poems of her most recent collection, Door in the Mountain: New and Collected Poems 1965– 2003, the winner of the 2004 National Book Award for Poetry. The poem is unassuming in the space it takes up, quiet in image, in its movement and thought— easy, even, to overlook. But the longer I spend with it, the more I appreciate the work of Jean Valentine. In its title, “Letter” offers us something tangible, something, well, deliverable. And yet like the hornet’s sleepy hold on the curtain she climbs, our grasp on the poem’s physical world is tenuous: Who has penned this letter? Who is its recipient? Where in the physical world of the poem does it sit? And, if “Letter” is the poem (the arrangement of letters into words) that we read, a letter opened for us, how do we translate its intentions?

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Just so, I think, Jean sets in motion this complicated and utterly tenuous relationship between the physical world and the interior experience of the present “I”— a relationship we see repeatedly through this collection. In the second stanza, this “I” is “the guest,” someone invited to enter but foreign, unfamiliar with the space entered—a letter herself, still in formation. “These words/are my life,” the narrator says—an admission of emotional connection between self and language, but also of physical connection: if words are, literally, self, then nothing is stable. Jean demonstrates this instability as she shifts and reorders language: “The effort of becoming” is, a line later, “[t]he effort of loving the un-become” and later, “[t]he unbecome love.” What we lose is also what we cherish; what we become is also unbecoming. Metaphor shifts our perception of the physical: a “leaf” is a book’s page; a letter is a “seed-pod” sent, is “this red rib-

bon,” is “my tongue.” The body is the physical letter. If we are words, after all, we are subject to the manipulation of writers and, of course, readers. Throughout this collection, Jean’s poetry works hard to articulate a self that is struggling to articulate itself (“the suffering visible”). “Letter” enacts both the necessity of self-articulation and the perpetual process of it: no letter is sent; completed action is not attainable; completed, defined self is not the point. Perhaps the point is to love what is still undefined. In a recent interview with Kate Greenstreet1, Jean says, “Don’t turn away from something that’s difficult because it’s difficult. Try to go toward it. Try to bring the same degree of necessity to reading it that the writer brought to writing it.” To read Jean well is to commit to plumbing the depths of each poem, to wrestle with their wrestlings. “[I want to] get to a place that has some depth to it,” she says. “Certainly,

Photo by Max Greenstreet

I’m always working with things that I don’t understand—with the unconscious, the invisible. And trying to find a way to translate it.” Jean’s poetry echoes the irrevocability of Sylvia Plath, the political of Adrienne Rich, the gravity of Dickinson. She asks her readers, explicitly in “Letter” but more subtly in other poems of the collection, to read her, to commit to the relationship and the responsibility of interpreting the letters sent. Door in the Mountain collects her life’s work and orders her eight books of poetry chronologically, with the exception of the new poems, which appear first. So many of these poems feel like shards to me: ragged, sometimes dangerous fragments—utterances of a self as it navigates literal and linguistic space. Her good friend and poet Adrienne Rich says of her writing: “Looking into a Valentine poem is

like looking into a lake: you can see your own outline, and the shapes of the upper world, reflected among rocks, underwater life, glint of lost bottles, drifted leaves.”2 Beneath the surface of many of these poems, Valentine’s own personal struggles with alcoholism, depression and divorce lurk. I read Jean’s collection on the same December day I heard the inventor and futurist Ray Kurzweil dazzle the student body assembled in the Fitzgibbons Convocation Center (see story, page 54). I had left staggering, filled with new knowledge of the exponential speed of progress, with the limitless nature of human exploration and invention in the worlds of biotechnology and artificial intelligence. Immediately following, Jean’s 1Interview with Jean Valentine, 2004, by Kate Greenstreet. www.jeanvalentine.com 2Ibid.

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Door in the Mountain: New and Selected Poems, 1965–2003

By John Freeman Jean Valentine made her poetic debut in 1965 with a book called Dream Barker, a title that aptly bugled the arrival of a sensibility unlike any other in American letters. While her contemporaries have turned the blank page into a confessional, Valentine fashioned a magic carpet out of it instead. Using an eerie sense of poise, she transports readers to cloudy dreamscapes where ordinary things take on secret menace and poignancy. All the while the poet’s consciousness lurks in the corner like a bat. Door in the Mountain, winner of the 2004 National Book Award, collects four decades of Valentine’s work and adds a hefty selection of new poems. Read the book chronologically and you can appreciate the gradual winnowing down of Valentine’s style. As with any poet, you can also infer the emotional arc of a life, from the heartbreaking honesty of the line, “God break me out of this stiff life I’ve made,” to the poem “Happiness,” which replays a street encounter through the prism of the poet’s weary gratitude. In the newest poems, words trickle down the page like rainwater from a leaky storm gutter. To fully appreciate Valentine’s care with language, one must slow down and watch the words fall, pay attention to each drop.

October morning — Sea lions barking On the off-shore rock Autumn evening — Seals’ heads nosing through the pink Pacific It’s a luxurious mandate, this quintessential style of Valentine’s, for it gives the reader a chance to indulge a heightened awareness in the natural world, the passage of time and the aural quality of language. In the magnificently strange and mysterious title poem, Valentine writes in the voice of a hunter walking through the forest with a deer strapped to his back. No one will give him shelter. Tired and perhaps cold, the speaker beseeches: “Door in the mountain/let me in.” This book is a door to a wonderful mind. Open it. John Freeman is a writer in New York. Reprinted with permission.

poetry felt like an antidote to the breathlessness, even recklessness of change: a concentrated slowing; a relentless focus on interiority and on the process of selfnarration. Maybe now more than ever, in the face of so much change, we need such attention to how we “become,” and how we love the “un-become.” But the longer I spend thinking about Jean, the more I consider. The last stanza of this poem “Letter” presents, in my mind, a world beyond word-bound identity. The language is unfettered by punctuation: a rush of consumption, of nourishment, of natural productivity, left open at either end with dashes: a nod to Dickinson, but also the promise of limitless white space unmarred by words. This last moment of this poem feels hopeful, possible—an undefined place for identity to exist, free of the (uncertain) certainty of language. Maybe this is Jean’s image of the subconscious or subliminal, the womb-like space where the self swims before it rises to meet consciousness. The irony, of course, is this: words are inescapable; they are the poet’s medium, the only way to connect the imagined and the “real.” And now I picture a projected, virtual, three-dimensional Kurzweil, all orchestrated by the “real” Kurzweil from his home in Cambridge, lecturing to Asian scientists about our imminent ability to move in and out of various selves in an extraordinary space beyond the physical—all imagined by the very “real” neurons that fire throughout our human brains, and I wonder if this scientist and this poet are more connected than not. And I wonder if Jean would mind the comparison. Lisa Baker English Department

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Sarah Bynum ’90

Fiction that captures national prominence:

Photo by Dana Jackson ’90

A Sleeping Protagonist Makes It Happen

arah Shun-Lien Bynum ’90 looks much like she did in 1990, and her manner seems about the same, too. She has a sweet round face, a mess of curls in her hair, and eyes that are quick to come alive. Her voice is strikingly high and small and even childlike, but her big gestures and her quick and animated patterns of speech suggest a decidedly adult intensity. In conversation with her, you can’t help but think that there’s a lot going on behind her eyes. Any reader of her first novel, Madeleine Is Sleeping, published in September by Harcourt, would have to agree. Part fairy tale, part bildungsroman, the book, in very short chapters, tells the story of a young girl growing up in provincial France at a time that is difficult to place. When she falls into a deep sleep, we are plunged into

a dream world of unlikely but likable characters and strange but pleasing scenarios. The man who performs a stage act based on his own flatulence, the magnificently fat woman who sprouts wings, the photographer with strange enthusiasms, the traveling gypsy circus—they are all here, and the question of what is real and what is imagined begins to dissolve, even as we are drawn into Madeleine’s story. Madeleine Is Sleeping earned Sarah a spot among five finalists in fiction for the National Book Award, an honor that ensures an eager audience for her future work. She and her Milton classmate Dana Jackson are married and expecting their first child in April. After living for a number of years in the Ft. Greene section of Brooklyn, they are moving to Los Angeles to further Dana’s film career and give the growing family more space. For an aspir-

ing writer, the experience of interviewing Sarah should have given me a serious Salieri complex, but it is too difficult to begrudge her this success. We met at a coffee shop in Brooklyn to talk about her book, the Milton roots of her writing and the controversy surrounding the National Book Awards. EH: Maybe you could tell me a little bit about what you were setting out to do in writing Madeleine Is Sleeping. Do you remember when the idea for the book was born? SB: Oh, absolutely. I was still a senior at Brown. And I had been recently exposed to so many texts that I was agitated and excited by. On the fiction side, Borges and Angela Carter. On the literary criticism side, Barthes and Irigaray and Foucault.

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“So originally it was an experiment, but I became so excited by this idea of having a sleeping protagonist at the helm of a story, and by all of the freedoms that offered, that I brought it back from hypertext onto the page. But I didn’t know it was going to be a book when I started writing. It was just this thing I was playing with.”

So I was kind of in a state of foment [a bubbling gesture]. At the same time I was taking a class in hypertext. I was very computer illiterate, but I liked the idea of this tool, this way of crafting a story that was more Weblike rather than chronological. So originally it was an experiment, but I became so excited by this idea of having a sleeping protagonist at the helm of a story, and by all of the freedoms that offered, that I brought it back from hypertext onto the page. But I didn’t know it was going to be a book when I started writing. It was just this thing I was playing with. EH: And you had other writing projects that popped up in the meantime? SB: Oh, this hasn’t been my consuming obsession for the last ten years. I would hope it would be much fatter if it had been. EH: In the times that you were working on it, was it slow going? Or are you a fast writer? SB: I’m a horribly slow writer. EH: Oh, good, so am I. SB: I’m painfully, excruciatingly slow, in part because I don’t like to move on to the next sentence until I’m happy with the current sentence. EH: It was clear to me in reading the book that a lot of attention was paid to the sounds and the rhythms of language. And some of those very short chapters struck me like poems, prose poems. Were there poets that influenced you, or did you ever think of it as poetry? SB: No, but I’ve been so delighted by that comparison. In fact, it’s been turned into somewhat of an accusation [laugh], especially by the New York Times. But I’ve been delighted, because I’m awed by poetry, which is still this very mysterious medium to me. [Leaning in and speaking quietly] I don’t read very much poetry, just between us…

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EH: Well the readers of the Milton Magazine might have to find out. SB: Okay, between us and the readers of the Milton Magazine. [Laughs.] But, that said, the poetry book that did actually have a great influence on this—especially when I was about halfway through, and I was beginning to think of it as more than just a thing but maybe, possibly, a book—is Anne Carson’s Autobiography of Red, which is a novel in verse. And that book just … completely transfixed me. It was a book that I kept returning to and reading passages from as I was finishing my book. And, in fact, I have the same agent as Anne—not that I’ve met her, I don’t mean to say Anne like I’m on a first-name basis. His name is Bill Clegg. I had met him, and I really liked him, but at the time I thought it was too early in the process. But when I read Autobiography of Red, literally I rushed home from the bookstore and called him up. And it was all actually thanks to Mr. McCloskey [English department], because he’s the one who introduced me to Bill Clegg, and Bill ended up being such a major force in making this book happen. So I’m forever indebted to Mr. McCloskey for giving me that push. I had been teaching English for three years, and I hadn’t been writing. And he just felt strongly that I should try to give the writing a shot. Even though I said “I’m not ready, the manuscript is not done,” he was very adamant. He said, “Just do it, it’s not going to hurt.” EH: In the book it is rarely clear to the reader—or at least this reader—what exactly is real and what is part of Madeleine’s vivid, fantastical dream life. And eventually I began to give up on the project of trying to separate one from the other. Is that okay? SB: I’m so glad you did! The book very willfully blurs the two. The line between memory and dreams, and between one’s sleeping life and one’s waking life, seems

so porous to me, that I wanted to avoid creating what to me would have been a false distinction. As opposed to something like Alice in Wonderland, where either she’s up on the riverbank, or she’s down the rabbit hole. I know the book asks for the reader to make a leap of faith—or a fall of faith, to go with it. EH: Who influenced you at Milton? What activities or classes were important to you? SB: Oh, Milton was where I caught the writing bug, for sure. It was having Mr. Smith my Class IV year, Red Smith, and then taking his creative writing class. There were some really great writers in that class. Theo Emery was in it. And I just remember being so…thrilled, and just feeling as if I was in my element, in that workshop. And then I also had wonderful experiences with Mr. McCloskey, though I didn’t study with him, and Mr. Connolly. And Kay Herzog, I had her as an English teacher. EH: She is wonderful. SB: Amazing. The Sound and the Fury, To the Lighthouse, books that feel so seminal to me—she was the one who unfolded them. When we did The Sound and the Fury, she read—not read, she recited—that passage from Macbeth, and I still have, in my 17-year-old’s handwriting, “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow, creeps in this petty pace from day to day.” Every time I read that passage, I hear her voice. So I have tremendous fondness and gratitude toward the English teachers I had. Randy McCutcheon too. I had him in Class III and adored him. EH: What did it mean to you to be a finalist for the National Book Award? SB: It was enormous— EH: How did you find out? SB: I was at my day job, and my boss had just asked me to order her lunch, and she wanted a chicken and avocado pressata.

“It’s really remarkable how much vitriol and passion this has awakened, particularly in The New York Times. Who knew?”

And Fran, the secretary, said, “There’s a Harold on line two for you.” And he launched into this explanation: “Out of so-and-so many submissions, you were one of the five finalists…” And it really did sound like I was being called by Publisher’s Clearinghouse. I kept waiting for that moment: “You just need to buy three magazine subscriptions.” I was so bewildered. But I wrote down his name and I Googled him, and sure enough his name came up as executive director of the National Book Foundation. And I completely lost it. The sense of astonishment kind of defies description. And then my boss yelled from the other room: “Did you get a chance to order that sandwich?” So that kind of immediately brought me back down to earth. EH: You recently read aloud from your work in a large auditorium in an event for all the finalists. Can you describe what that was like? How nervous were you, scale of one to ten? SB: I wasn’t nervous at all. When you’re reading you already have your script. The difficult part has been having to be interviewed and defend the book and speak to the National Book Awards controversy. That—that has made me nervous. EH: Well, I have to do my duty and ask you about the hubbub you don’t like talking about. SB: Oh, by now I’m an old veteran. EH: The controversy surrounding the finalists in fiction was that all five of you were women who live in New York City. None of you is a household name, and according to one report, only one of your books has sold more than 2,000 copies. Some have criticized the panel of judges for picking overly obscure books.

EH: Also in The New Yorker, though the novelist Thomas McGuane said the fiction finalists were a sign of the “meltdown” of the National Book Awards. How do you respond to that? SB: Among the five finalists, we’ve published 16 books—I’m the one who hasn’t pulled my weight there—and there are Guggenheims, and NEA fellowships, etc. These are very well respected writers, distinguished writers, and so “obscure” seems a misinformed way of describing them. I do have to say that the comment that was the most wounding was the Tom McGuane comment in The New Yorker. I think I naively thought that another writer, especially a literary novelist, would not be joining the ranks of the critics, and instead would be speaking up on our behalf. He admitted he hadn’t read the books. So that was wounding. After a while I guess you get a little inured to it. But I have to say I’m relieved that it’s over.

EH: One of the other finalists, Christine Schutt, has said, “I think publishers are afraid of taking risks on something that is different.” Do you think that’s true? SB: If that’s true, my situation is anomalous. I was lucky in that my agent found a publisher for it very quickly. And the publisher, Harcourt, got behind it immediately, from day one. They never tried to make it appear more conventional. They kind of embraced it in all its weirdness. But I don’t know if my limited experience is necessarily representative. EH: Are you working on something now? SB: I’ve been working on short fiction. I haven’t started on something longer. I’m anxious to, I’m excited. EH: Do you think you might do a collection of your short fiction? SB: I get asked that because a bunch of stories I’ve published have been about the same character, a middle school teacher, and are based on my experience teaching middle school. But I don’t want to just cobble together old stuff. I want to do something new. Evan Hughes ’94 Evan is on the editorial staff of The New York Review of Books. Reach him at ehughes@aya.yale.edu. Editor’s note: On January 19, Sarah visited Milton as a Bingham Lecture Series speaker. She dedicated her talk in memory of poet Lexi Rudnitsky ’91.

SB: It’s really remarkable how much vitriol and passion this has awakened, particularly in the New York Times. Who knew?

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Kym Lew Nelson ’75

Linking Minority and Majority Businesses, Kym Lew Nelson Offers Strategic Purchasing

ym Lew Nelson came by the urge honestly: She is from an entrepreneurial family and she couldn’t resist going solo. Kym’s mom ran a neighborhood nightclub in Roxbury, Massachusetts; her sister owns a consignment shop; and her uncle has one of the largest minority construction companies in New England. As president and chief operating officer of The KLEW Company, a consulting firm which she founded in 2002, Kym harnessed 19 years of brand management and purchasing experience at Proctor & Gamble (P&G) in Cincinnati and a master of business administration from Harvard to help companies develop strategic purchasing, optimize their supply chain, and link minority and majority suppliers. Leaving the security of a global company might be too big a risk for many business women, but Kym couldn’t wait to put her savvy to use in a largely untapped market, while trying to spend more time at home with her husband, Michael and their daughters, Alexis (12) and Sydney (6). So far, the competition of the big procurement consulting firms has not threatened her niche: helping minority companies connect through joint ventures which grant them enhanced purchasing power, while connecting those same groups of entrepreneurs with majority companies

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who need their services and want to support a diverse business model. “I’m kind of a matchmaker,” Kym says. Kym also has mobilized a flexible workforce by developing a network of subcontractors who can manage the 20 or 30 percent of the work that she can’t do alone. A recent alumni class on entrepreneurship at Harvard Business School reinforced much of what she learned on the job at P&G, Kym explains; the class material on business start-ups and the detailed case studies will be helpful if she decides to expand her business. “The class was reaffirming,” she says. Kym thanks her spirited family and her educational background for preparing her for the business world; Kym earned a bachelor’s from Stanford after Milton. “Attending Milton was really a great accident,” Kym says. “My sister was working

as a nurse in a doctor’s office. One of the patients was the former principal of the Lower School who talked about Milton and asked my sister if she knew anyone interested in applying.” Kym left Catholic school to attend Milton, where she played basketball, was involved with theatre as well as the speech and debate team. Before recognizing her strength in business and changing her college major to economics, Kym had been a drama major. In addition to her own postgraduate work, Kym maintains a connection to academia through her client base: She trains Yale University employees to purchase for greater efficiency and economy. Kym has managed global organizations, global suppliers and global brands. She develops and implements business and purchasing strategies, while helping to reduce costs. Her experience with minority companies helps them become effective suppliers for Fortune 500 companies. Pointing to a deal she facilitated between a German company and a domestic minority company that makes product labeling, Kym says, “I help business leaders who would never have met come together in a way that benefits everyone.” For more about The KLEW Company, visit ww.klew.biz.

Buckminster Fuller 1913

Producing Maximum Performance from Technology:

The Dymaxion Man

ast summer, the U.S. Postal Service issued a stamp commemorating the life of R. Buckminster Fuller ’13. Foregrounded by platonic solids and a lozenge-shaped, three-wheeled automobile, Fuller’s giant head is perched atop a ball-and-socket truss amid gaping onlookers. Spidering across the great dome of his forehead are the signature lines of triangles and hexagons that constitute his geodesic geometry. In the background, more geodesic domes lie on the Euclidean plane punctuated by what appear to be oversized power transformers and a helicopter pulling yet another dome along the invisible vectors of optimum design. Not your typical somber portrait of an elder statesman or groundbreaking scientist, this millennial take on a ’50s sci-fi aesthetic is, despite its winks and overall mood of loopiness, telling of both Fuller’s life and reputation. Born in Milton, Massachusetts, July 12, 1895, Buckminster Fuller attended Milton Academy from 1904 to 1913, where he later claimed to have learned all the engineering he needed to know from his high school physics class. He was expelled from Harvard twice before apprenticing as a machine fitter at Richards, Atkinson, an importer of cotton mill machinery in Boston. He then held various apprentice jobs at Armour, the industrial meatpack-

ing and byproducts firm, interrupted by two years of service as an ensign in the U.S. Navy during World War 1. At the ripe age of 27, he became president of Stockade Building System, a construction firm poised to change the way homes were constructed before eliciting the ire of the building unions. In 1927, after two years of lackluster dividends, the controlling interests of the company fired Fuller. Bankrupt and jobless at 32 with a wife and a newborn daughter to support, Fuller could only conclude that his family would be better off without him. He stood, desperate, on the icy shores of Lake Michigan in Chicago when he suddenly realized that his life did not belong to him, but rather to the whole universe. In the light of this revelation he had no right to take his own life; in fact, he was obliged to use his life in service of the cosmos. It was then that he began conducting “an experiment to discover what the little, penniless, unknown individual might be able to do effectively on behalf of humanity.” With his diverse education in mass production and industrial distribution networks, an intuitive feeling for structures and an infectious optimism, Fuller was uniquely positioned to offer a Dymaxion vision to the universe that had saved his life. Dymaxion (dynamism +

maximum + ion) is one of the signature terms Fuller coined during his career, meaning that which produces maximum performance from available technology. The term itself suggests a sense of humor and showmanship that would serve him well in conducting his grand experiment. Most people know of Fuller through the geodesic dome, examples of which can be found on almost any playground built in the late 1960s or ’70s. Ingenious for its simplicity and structural integrity, the geodesic dome is an elaboration of the truss principle in three dimensions. Pin three sticks together to form a triangle and you have a completely stable structure in which the angles of the triangle remain the same no matter how you attempt to deform it. Try the same thing with a rectangle and the joints at the corner will rotate with the slightest push. The geodesic dome simply extends the integrity of the triangle off the plane through repetition of the form. Described as such, it seems perhaps more remarkable that no one had thought of such a structural system until Fuller. It turns out that Fuller wasn’t the first person to employ the efficiency of the space truss; thrilled by the structural strength of his tetrahedral kite, Alexander Graham Bell erected a five-story tower on his island in 31

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“Dare to be naïve.” —R. Buckminster Fuller

Nova Scotia in 1907 using a tetrahedral space truss. Fuller’s genius lay instead in knowing, contrary to commonly held assumptions among engineers, that the strength of the geodesic dome would increase with the magnitude of the overall structure. In 1967, Fuller’s claims were put to the test at the Montreal Expo. Computer analysis had anticipated that his Expo bubble enveloping the U.S. Pavilion would burst at the equator from the outward thrust of the weight of the structural members. Fuller understood through years of experimentation, however, that

Geodesic dome over mid-Manhattan

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the force of gravity would be easily resisted by the tensional integrity of the dome’s material and geometry. To put Fuller’s achievement in a proper historical context, the largest dome of the ancient world was the Pantheon in Rome. Constructed in the 2nd century A.D., the Pantheon’s diameter measures 143 feet. It took roughly 1,300 years before that span was surpassed by Brunelleschi’s dome in Florence, which measures 153 feet in diameter. The Duomo stood as the largest dome in the world until 1967. Fuller’s dome measured a staggering 250 feet in diameter and stood 20 stories tall. Equally important, the 600-ton dome was a frac-

tion of the weight of its Italian rivals, exponentially stronger and its construction time could be measured in months rather than years. Although the U.S. Pavilion at the Montreal Expo would secure Fuller’s place in the history of architecture and engineering, the geodesic dome was, by Fuller’s own standards, a failure. By 1971, when the fundamental patent for the geodesic dome expired, just over 20,000 domes had been erected. Despite the U.S. Marine Corps hailing the geodesic dome as “the first basic improvement in mobile military shelter in 2,600 years,” Fuller had intended the geodesic dome to revolutionize the

housing industry as Ford’s assembly line had done for the automobile industry. Convinced that a house should cost no more than a car, Fuller envisioned the geodesic dome as the means to massproduced affordable housing. Because the individual members of a geodesic dome are small, a dome kit could be easily shipped and assembled quickly with no skilled labor. He had even anticipated a time when prefabricated domes could be delivered on site by helicopter. (Thus the curious image in the upper left-hand corner of the stamp.) While the domes achieved a quasi-mystical status among California hippies, 20,000 structures in 17 years hardly fulfills the dream of an America covered in mass-produced bubbles. Fuller and many of his followers argued that the housing industry, with its disparate unions more closely resembling medieval guilds than modern assembly lines, was threatened by the obsolescence heralded by the dome industry. Instead of accepting the inevitable change, the housing industry used its deep political ties to destroy Fuller’s solution to the housing crisis. While there is undoubtedly some truth to such claims, Fuller’s enthusiasm for the efficiency of the dome had blinded him to a critical aspect of housing: the true function of a home is to provide both physical and metaphorical shelter from the inclement weather of living. Domes as habitats have little precedent in the modern world and thus do not reflect the conventional image of domesticity. Perhaps this points to a nagging romanticism that limits the progress of an industrial world, but if efficiency were the sole criteria for housing, everyone would live in dense cities. Furthermore, everything from books to ovens to city streets is designed orthogonally, which makes it very difficult to fit a round house into a square world. Perhaps most importantly, the strength and efficiency of the geodesic dome make it appear insubstantial com-

In 1933, Fuller introduced the fast and fuel-efﬁcient Dymaxion car. Hopes for adoption and mass production were dashed when a demonstration resulted in a fatality.

pared to the structurally inefficient but seemingly solid brick town home. Appearance matters in this case; people want the feeling of stability as much as the shelter a building provides. Geodesic domes project anything but the protective comforts of home. The geodesic dome wasn’t Fuller’s only failure. Go down the list of his patents from the Dymaxion car to the Dymaxion bathroom and you will discover the same inability to reach the mass audience that he had intended. A visionary before his time? Perhaps, but we can never know with certainty because most of Fuller’s inventions were based on the technologies available at the time. His work and ideas should not, however, be relegated to the

cultural ephemera of mid-century modernism as the stamp suggests with its kitschy interpretation of his life’s work. Freed from the constraint of commercial success, the inventions can be viewed as artifacts of a much larger effort to optimize humanity’s relationship to nature, the bizarre forays into poetry an attempt to succinctly articulate that relationship (check out his Untitled Epic Poem on the History of Industrialization with Henry Ford as Odyssean industrialist), and the tireless lecturing a measure of his enthusiasm for the project. Although he rarely prepared notes for his speaking engagements, Fuller was fond of opening a discussion with the image of a knot. Just as the human body cannot be

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reduced to the food that nourishes it, so too the essence of a knot cannot be discerned in the nylon fibers that realize its form. Instead, the knot is a self-interfering pattern, an applied platonic form. It was Fuller’s ability to extend this metaphor into structural engineering and renewable energy that distinguishes him from merely a man of the times. Born of a commitment to service, Fuller’s ideas remain relevant to the problems that continue to plague us, including sustainability, housing and even hunger. Patterns, forms, dauntless initiative, marvel and enthusiasm for human discovery, an insistence that humanity with all its technological appendages is a part of nature, the life of service: these are the promise of Fuller’s lasting legacy. Michael O’Leary Michael O’Leary is a poet, publisher and engineer. He lives in Chicago.

“Buckminster Fuller was and continues to be one of my heroes,” says Gordon Chase (visual arts), who took this photograph during one of Buckminster’s visits to campus in the late 1970s. “He was one of a few people in the 20th century who worked passionately to improve the world and who refused to accept the limitations of politics and cultural divides,” Gordon says. “He inﬂuenced the thinking of an amazing number of people around the world and did as much as any goodwill ambassador to get leaders and ordinary people alike to see and to seek the ‘common good.’ He was the supreme optimist. In coining phrases like ‘operating manual for spaceship earth,’ he sought to unite us all beyond differences of religion, class and race.” Justin Aborn ’79 and David Rabkin ’79 show their version of a three-wheeled vehicle to Fuller.

From the Milton Academy archives: Fuller shares his vision with colleagues. 34

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What’s the big idea, on campus?

3 1

Mathematics conglomerate is nimble, responsive, maintains a “just in time” inventory

Math department’s challenging commitment to developing their own teaching materials strengthens over time Over the last 10 years, mathematics faculty at Milton have collaborated on an in-house suite of “products” that take “what’s best for the consumer” seriously. Focusing on the math experiences of their consumers—Upper and Middle School students—mathematics department faculty teach, in large measure, with materials they have developed themselves, in lieu of standard texts. The department’s years long commitment to shaping their own teaching materials reflects their love of math and the fun they have with mathematical ideas, as well as their genuine understanding of adolescents, those who are mathematically gifted as well as those who may not be enthusiastic about math (initially). Teaching this way is different, challenging, and ultimately much more rewarding: it requires constant dialogue among colleagues and unremitting attention to what happens among students in each class, each day.

The faculty’s decision to compose and collect course materials grew from practical matters, and ultimately harnessed faculty creativity and teaching skill. Each year, math faculty members found themselves conferring and ordering new texts for each course, only to be disappointed once they began using the books. “We were supplementing so much,” John Banderob comments, “that the cost of the books seemed wasteful. We were looking to strike a better balance between providing skills-based problems, and asking students to use skills in new applications.” The introduction into the classroom of the graphing calculator (in the early 1990s) changed the teaching of math so significantly that this, too, pushed faculty toward the decision. “With the calculator you are able to treat ideas and concepts inductively,” explains Keith Hilles-Pilant. You can do a hundred experiments quickly: setting a hypothesis and proving a hypothesis. The advent of new software in geometry, Geometric Supposer and its sequel, Geometer’s Sketchpad, also shifted the classroom dynamic toward discovery. “Students ‘uncover’ a theorem through manipulating a figure,” Hal Pratt explains, “rather than doing exercises that apply a

textbook theorem to a static figure on a page.” Finally, the department was moving toward “modeling” within the curriculum: “We wanted a manipulable application for every concept we introduced,” John recalls. “Using the materials we develop, we’re able to determine how we spend time in each course, and how we approach the material,” says Jackie Bonenfant, department chair. “We spend less time on the repetitive practice of skills, in the abstract, and more on presenting a stream of situations, asking students to determine what they need to know to solve the problem. We help them develop mathematical ideas and skills by working on them in a context—a more intriguing, less routine treatment of math for students.” Members of the department agree that this “discovery and extension” method of studying math is much closer to what mathematicians do in a research environment. Faculty ask students to understand a concept and then see where else it may apply. “In pre-calculus, for example, together we take a look at a special situation, establish a set of criteria, learn a lot,

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Mathematics department faculty, left to right, front: Terri HerrNeckar, Martha Jacobsen, Jeanne Jacobs, Heather Sugrue, Erica Banderob, Gregg Reilly, and Keith Hilles-Pilant; back: Geoff Theobald, Steve Feldman, Anne Kaufman, Peter Kahn, Hal Pratt, John Banderob, Juan Ramos, and Jackie Bonenfant, chair.

and then zoom out to test where else those criteria might apply,” says Keith. “They might apply to circular motion, for instance, or a field of objects that work in a similar way.” Writing your own teaching materials takes time and work, and it fosters a collegial environment that members of the department who have come from other schools experience as rare and intellectually invigorating. “You understand,” says Jackie, “that to do the best work with students, you need to trust and depend upon your department colleagues.” “As a department, and as a group of individuals, we have had to think and talk about what we are teaching, why we are teaching it, and how best to teach it; it’s an essential and ongoing conversation,” says Terri HerrNeckar. All those who teach sections of a given course meet once each week; teachers of several courses

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have many meetings. They discuss how classes have gone and roadblocks that have appeared; they agree upon common homework assignments and who will write an upcoming quiz. The discussions include: “What way would you use to solve this problem?” or “I want to introduce this concept. Do you have an effective problem to do that?” The outcome of teacher collaboration and attention to the craft of teaching is a curriculum that is responsive, efficient, customized, open-ended. “I teach two classes that each have a single section of students,” Erica Banderob says. “I write something up after each class. It’s not the same as last year; it fits exactly. When I see a need, I respond with the right thing, tomorrow!” Rather than following the preordained sequence in a textbook, “having a data base of our own materials gives us the confidence to change the flow, based on the students,” Terri notes.

When he arrived at Milton almost 20 years ago, Keith Hilles-Pilant designed Math 7 for students who have already taken at least two years of advanced placement-level calculus. “The content is completely different every year,” Keith says, “based on the interest of the students. I poll the incoming students and together we establish the syllabus for the coming year. This year, the students were interested in studying mathematical physics, so we are doing that. Along with the students, I generate the materials for the course. The result is a book, or perhaps a research journal is a more appropriate name for it. My hope is that the students will not only learn, but also discover that they can and want to do their own research.” Not surprisingly, students respond well to math that is designed just for them. Each student keeps a notebook, compiling daily the teaching materials from faculty mem-

bers along with their own work. “When you give students a new section of the ‘text’ each day, every day is important. The students know the pages are the work of the faculty in the department and they sort of share in our pride of ownership,” says Steve Feldman. “When a student asks a teacher why he or she is studying this or that, a faculty member can easily answer the question.” Students are responsible for building their notebooks; therefore, they are in charge of the key resource for the course. (The faculty keep a close eye on the Class IV notebooks, as they emerge.) In this environment, note-taking increases in importance: students can’t easily look up in a book the information they miss, although they might find helpful information on the Internet. Students learn to use other resources, too, like each other. Students are much more aware of their homework; they have a sense of ownership for it, and it becomes part of their overall math notebooks. “Having the same homework as others in different sections of the course is helpful, too,” Heather Sugrue notes. “They’re likely to work on it together, in the library, the student center, or the dorm. The conversations stretch across sections.”

2 “We have the technology now to produce much more professional-looking materials,” John says, and reworking the materials is constant and demands time. The transition from textbooks to facultydeveloped materials is the most difficult part; the up ramp is steep, and it takes two to three years to come up with a good critical mass of material. After that, teaching with these materials is easier, mainly because it’s not boring, it’s more effective and much more efficient. New technological developments that are affecting the teaching environment and sparking creativity today are digital projectors and SMART Boards. “The next big question,” Jackie says, “is whether or not we’ll use a computer algebra system (CAS). Students can use calculators with a CAS on standardized tests and AP tests, so that’s the next issue we will need to address.”

“We spend less time on the repetitive practice of skills, in the abstract, and more on presenting a stream of situations, asking students to determine what they need to know to solve the problem. We help them develop mathematical ideas and skills by working on them in a context—a more intriguing, less routine treatment of math for students.” —Jackie Bonenfant, Department Chair

Providing the best possible math experience for students has been the math department’s abiding goal, as they worked closely together to shape pertinent, challenging material year after year. “This style of teaching,” says Heather, “is what makes me want to stay at Milton. Not many schools are doing this: I feel I can contribute to students’ success on a daily basis.” Cathleen Everett

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Their idea: making mathematical elegance part of campus culture T

hough not a business venture, Vincent Chan and Neil Katuna’s idea to start a math journal at Milton brought them face to face with real-world challenges entrepreneurs experience. In response, they had to reach for still-emerging skills: persistence, adaptation, pragmatism, personnel management, expert communications. They succeeded. With a host of student writers, designers and editors, they produced Axiom—“a journal to inspire a love of mathematics in every member of the Milton Academy community.” In hindsight, both of the founders would agree to having learned significant life lessons, but neither would say the project was easy. Neil and Vincent love to think about math. Among the myriad student publications at Milton, none involved the community in exploring mathematical ideas. Why not? “Where is math in the Milton student scene?” they pondered. They wanted to build a bridge from the math thinkers to the School community at large.

mapping out an editorial plan drove home the complexity of their mission. They found themselves (reluctantly) asking, “What assumptions should we make?” “How much familiarity with what level concepts should we assume?” “What makes a ‘normal’ person want to read an article about math?” Thinking about math ought to be in the mainstream of campus cultural life, but how to make that happen wasn’t so clear. A democratic approach required that the pair solicit suggestions about what topics the proposed journal might take on. From their own reading on math, Neil and Vincent already had their “own perspective on what is interesting, and what isn’t,” Vincent admitted. Realizing that they couldn’t mandate the editorial content, they underwent a difficult process of watching their idea “popularized.” Articles about mathematics and gambling, or Descartes’ role in modern math, were not what they had in mind, but were articles

the staff were interested in writing, and believed would build this elusive bridge. The founders made their way through a thorny set of issues familiar to adults who have initiated ventures of any kind, but new to a pair of teenagers excited about a great idea. They dealt with bureaucratic red tape: The dean of students suggested that they come up with a different idea for the journal’s title. They confronted organizational challenges: meeting the expectations of volunteer staff and motivating the volunteers to follow through on what they’d agreed to do. They experienced the transitions of leadership changes. They had to compromise: Final content and design were not what they had in mind; they even tried incentives (prizes) and humor to reach the multitudes. Publication deadlines came and went and they had to plug on with adjusted timelines. They became excruciatingly aware of how critical effective communications are.

Eager to share the enthusiasm they felt both for provocative mathematical problems and elegant solutions, Neil and Vincent hoped to replicate the college math journals they had discovered during two summers at math camp—Canada U.S.A. Mathcamp at the University of Puget Sound and Colby College. They advertised their idea at School and recruited many student volunteers. The task of

Neil Katuna (left) and Vincent Chan, Axiom’s founders 38

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The community sees Axiom differently, as you might expect. The fresh, engaging newsletter reaches out to the curious with articles written by students on the mathematics behind roulette; the numerous mathematical concepts connected through the arrangements of numbers in Pascal’s Triangle; the “simple” computer programming behind certain dynamic patterns on your computer screen; Descartes’ contributions to math and philosophy; or “New Age Numerology.” Axiom has energy and life. It communicates the encouraging idea that those of us who don’t routinely think about math might like to enjoy it as much as these students do. While students did not take on the eight problems Vincent wrote as part of a contest to accompany the first issue, the community thinks Axiom is a success. Perhaps in college Neil and Vincent, in addition to devoting themselves to doing math, will once again involve others in excitement of thinking about mathematical ideas. Perhaps their learning curve was so valuable they will apply their acquired wisdom in a new venture in their next venue. Despite a rough road, they brought a brilliant idea home, accomplished what they set out to do, and as high school seniors experienced more than many adults ever do.

Championing a worthy ideal:

No retreat from teaching grammar at Milton I

f a student can master the qualities of effective composition—clarity, unity, coherence, concision, correctness and energy—then clear, informative, perhaps even entertaining, communication is the happy, inevitable result. While many schools have retreated from the rigorous consideration of grammar, Milton’s English faculty is still devoted to the pursuit of excellent usage. The gems set forth in “Key Concepts for Expository Writers” by David Smith (English faculty) include standard warnings to writers: Avoid clichés, for example. (The use of the work “gem” in the preceding sentence might qualify.) Forgo the use of pronouns such as “it” or “this” unless they have direct antecedents. Know the difference between active and passive voice, and choose passive deliberately, only to effect ambiguity or enervation. Understand how a paragraph is made and the important contribution of each unit— the sentence, the phrase, the word and punctuation. Practice unraveling sentences. Take this sentence from Tarim Chung’s Class IV English class: “I gave money to whomever I thought wanted it.” Well-educated readers who are not grammarians might rush to agree that “whomever” is in this case correct simply because it follows “to”; it must be the object of a preposition, right? Wrong. Take away the parenthetical “I thought”; identify what comes after the “to” as a noun clause; and realize that the subject of a noun clause must use the subjective “who.”

Illustration by David Cutler

Jim, who led the workshop from 1991 to 2004, applauds Guy Hughes, retired English chair and leader of the department’s re-emphasis on the cognitive domain over the affective domain. An embracing of the affective domain in the 1960s, Jim says, had popularized “rap sessions” and “values education” above pure reading and writing; Guy standardized and formalized the Class IV English class experience and introduced the workshop, which meets 20 times during each academic year.

“Being a good mechanic pays,” says Tarim, who now heads the School’s weekly Class IV Writing Workshops, which bring together the entire class to diagram sentences and practice strategies for sentence attack. The workshop is in tandem with the Class IV English classes, which encourage familiarity with important literary genres and help students develop competence as readers and writers. Tarim joins the legendary ranks of longtime teachers Jim Connolly and David Smith, two of the workshop’s five leaders during its more than 30-year history. Former faculty member Jane Archibald, another workshop leader, wrote the course. (Tarim jokes that he’s also inherited an archaeology site: He bases his lectures and exercises in part on the hand- and typewritten notes from the workshop’s four associated file drawers—the equivalent of an Olympic torch.)

“Often, when grammar is covered nowadays, students have the sense that they can wait you out,” David says, especially if their teachers are not comfortable with the material. Milton combats the “waiting it out” avoidance with a thorough, highly structured system that relies on the quality, regularity and energy of the workshop, which is reinforced by in-class exercises. “For many students, the workshop codifies the techniques that they have adopted because they are intuitive readers—they find that precision is possible and desirable,” Tarim says. “The workshops give students a chance to get into the detail of writing. “It’s a moment of real pleasure for me when students come into class and say, ‘Yesterday, I saw 20 grammar errors on the news and read 20 more in a magazine. Mr. Chung, I can’t enjoy a song on the radio now because I hear the dangling modifier or the pronoun reference errors.’ “I think that means that they really get it: Their world is composed of language, and now they have better access to the inner 39

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since feeling is first who pays any attention to the syntax of things will never wholly kiss you e.e. cummings In his 1998 “Why We Should Teach Grammar: A Manifesto” to English department colleagues, David Smith argues that grammar is among the most important and useful skills a student can command. The e.e. cummings stanza above has been used by opponents of thorough grammar instruction. David’s refutation: “This was a very disingenuous position to take for someone who cared as much about syntax as e. e. cummings. The notion that there could be a language of pure feeling, devoid of structure, is tempting; but cummings, even (or especially) in his wildest experiments, showed a constant regard for conventional grammar, and he understood that structure focuses and empowers emotion that would otherwise leak away. In fact, he might better have written that ‘only someone who pays close attention to the syntax of things/ will ever wholly kiss you.’”

Carriers of the torch (from left) David Smith, Jim Connolly and Tarim Chung joined Milton’s faculty in 1981, 1983 and 2001, respectively. The department’s efforts are now led by Rick Hardy, who became department chair in 1999 after joining the faculty in 1983. For grammar exercises, go to www.onlineapp.milton.edu:85/grammar/view/ index.asp.

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workings of their world. I liken the moment to the climax of the Matrix when the hero finally sees all the computer code streaming down the walls and realizes that everything, everything is composed of this simple but dominant code. “I also tell students that they may not get all of the grammar all of the time, but one day they’ll be writing a paper in college and they will start to make choices about language that are just right, that they just know deep down hews to all mechanical laws of English that they studied way back when.” Helping students become good writers is the goal, but good teaching must be accompanied by competent learning: David’s booklet on expository writing offers readers four appendixes, the first of which is an essay, “On Good Students and Bad.” Here, he wonders about the wisdom of asserting that any bad student must be bad only because his self-esteem has not been sufficiently puffed up. He offers a comparison between good and bad students: “Bad students settle for the minimum every time. They have, at best, a ‘get it off my desk’ attitude, one which values just finishing an assignment above doing it well. They believe they have read something when they have merely passed their eyes over it. They tend to lack staying power and may go belly up at the first hint

of fatigue or unhappiness. In contrast, good students manage to make the most of opportunities even when they don’t ‘feel like it.’ And they go beyond the minimum. They read until they have mastered the content of an assignment…they flesh out ideas and deliver rich illustrations. They take risks with metaphors. They edit out the dross and the grammatical errors. They proofread. When they put a paper on the teacher’s desk, they are not merely putting the ball back into his court but rather whacking a shot that they hope will knock his socks off. “Every bad student is a good student waiting to happen, but the ones who actually make the transition are the ones who, instead of just waiting, work at it. They shake off setbacks, work from strengths, extend themselves to master the material—and emerge from the process with well-earned self-esteem.” Taking inspiration from those who have earned their self-esteem before us, David exhibits quotations by Rilke, Mailer and Updike in his classroom. A Thomas Mann quote aptly expresses a truth for many of the world’s great writers. Mann wrote, “A writer is a person for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people.” Milton sets out to help students who write become writers and embrace the difficulty. Heather Sullivan

Their Ingenuity and Drive

Centers on Service Students measure success by what they do for others

Organizing “Night of a Thousand Dinners” for landmine victims Lara Yeo ’06 is irritated by people who claim they don’t have time for service. “I don’t have time for it either,” she says. “You make time to help others because it’s important,” she says. “If you never stop being busy then people just keep dying.” In November 2004, Lara mobilized her housemates in Robbins House to plan a “Night of a Thousand Dinners.” On one night, caring citizens from all over the world host dinners to raise funds and awareness for landmine clearance and survivor assistance. Launched in 2001, the event has spurred thousands of dinners in more than 50 countries and has raised millions of dollars.

Lara says that Canadian students must complete 50 hours of documented community service to graduate. Her commitment to helping others began when an older student, already involved in the cause, spoke at Lara’s old school about how she had fulfilled that obligation. “She showed us a video, and it was really somber stuff. “Since then, I’ve had to detach myself emotionally a little bit, while holding on to the commitment to act,” she says.

Lara says that her group’s fund raising helps communities in Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, Croatia and Mozambique. “It costs between two and three dollars to make a landmine and about 0ne thousand dollars to clear it,” she says. In addition to her work on behalf of Adopt-A-Minefield, Lara volunteers locally in Dorchester with Mujeres Unidad Accion, an organization that helps Spanishspeaking women to learn English so they may find jobs and gain independence. Lara, who plans next year to hold another dinner to benefit communities affected by landmines, believes that it’s important to act globally as well as locally. For more information, go to www.landmines.org or www.youthagainstlandmines.org.

Lara and 12 of her housemates held a Krispy Kreme doughnut sale and raised $363 to fund the pizza and homemade cupcakes for the Night of a Thousand Dinners. The event yielded a net $690 for Adopt-A-Minefield. At home in Canada, Lara volunteered for the Landmine Foundation, which inspired her to begin a chapter of Youth Against Landmines (YAL) before coming to Milton in fall 2004.

Lara Yeo ’06

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Colin Tierney ’05

Habitat for Humanity, only one of several ways Colin Tierney ’05 talks about his favorite part of building a house: “When the foundation is laid, you have the outline,” he says. “You can get the walls up within a day. When the walls go up, it starts to feel like a house.” Colin belongs to the Boston and Cape Cod chapters of Habitat for Humanity. During each of the last two summers, he spent several weeks building homes through the organization. Colin enjoys learning from the professional contractors who donate their time. The most rewarding part of the work, though, is seeing how thrilled the families are with their new homes: Each family who receives a new house earns it. In fact, families help volunteers build the home.

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“My dad worked with me on the houses in the summer. He and his father built the house that my father grew up in.” Colin’s first building project was in eighth grade—a six-foot bench. Later that year, as a Boy Scout, he built a bridge in his hometown of Wellesley, Massachusetts. Now an Eagle Scout, Colin began doing service in fifth grade as a Scout member. In the winter, Colin raises funds for Habitat for Humanity. He is also student head of the Young Republicans. In December, the Young Republicans enlisted classmates to help write letters to soldiers serving in Afghanistan. The group sold pizza and solicited contributions to fund care packages for soldiers in the Bravo Company of the 2nd Battalion, 35th Infantry. The packages contained frequently requested items such as batteries, comic books and Chex Mix.

Colin says that his idea of achieving success is intimately connected with what he can do for others. He’s inspired, he says, by these words of Ralph Waldo Emerson: “To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.” For more information on Habitat for Humanity, go to www.habitat.org.

Below the Surface: Ideas in Motion One science extracurricular gains cult status

Milton Academy Remote Operated Vehicle Team, top: Tom Gagnon (science faculty), Yoo-Na Kim ’07, Seohyung Kim ’06, Alice Tin ’06, Daniel Lee ’05, Charles Johnson ’07, Tim Fram ’07, Austin Cheng ’07, Rueben Banalagay ’07; bottom: Sam Minkoff ’06, Matthew Schoen ’06, Louisa Zhang ’05, David Wu ’05.

evotees of this new competitive “sport” devote hours to putting their ideas into motion. Few, if any, of the nation’s top boarding schools have similar teams.

It isn’t physics, chemistry or engineering. What is it? Club members idolize Robert Ballard, who discovered the Titanic wreck and used high-tech underwater gadgets to explore and study it. The 25 Milton Academy students who spend time fall and spring hanging around a cluttered science workshop are underwater explorers, too, also known on campus as MAROV (Milton Academy Remote Operated Vehicle) team. They were first-place winners of the New England competition last year. Their fourth annual mission is to pit their combined engineering skill and strategy against MIT and other regional schools, colleges and universities that have ROV

teams. Their advisor, Tom Gagnon (science department), insists he does little to guide students as they brainstorm vehicle designs aimed to pick up sticks, probes, “bucky balls,” and tow fish and complete more complicated underwater maneuvers. The outcome of these early sessions will determine the ease and grace with which they will “fly” the final vehicle—using camera views and a control box to maneuver. “What we do is applied science,” Dan Lee (Class I) says. “This kind of project has applications in the real world.” Dan is in his second year with the team; he designed an ergonomic control box for last year’s vehicle, intuitively placing the controls for movements up, down, forward, back, and for turning. In the design phase, students consider ideal placement and magnitude of thrust, control of buoyancy, the weight of the vehicle, its stability with and without

transported objects, its number of parts, how its tether above water might affect its maneuverability (ideally, not hindering it), and a list of other factors that can make or break a final mission. With a modest $600 budget last year, augmented by an underwater camera donated by the Milton’s swim team (see story, page 46) and a few odds and ends from parents, Milton students became supporters of the local Home Depot and Radio Shack outposts and many Internet electronics suppliers. There, they purchase PVC piping, connectors, foam arms and grippers, tubing and miscellaneous hardware.

Meet Herbie Herbie is the much-loved vehicle from 2004. He has two vertical motors, and two horizontal motors. His simple frame is composed primarily of PVC piping.

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Design it, build it, “ﬂy” it: a team’s philosophy K.I.S.S. (or Keep It Simple, Stupid) may not be the expected philosophy of a group of students who fiddle with circuitry and like to don goggles for drilling. But the students maintain that a simply designed vehicle is less likely to fail catastrophically, and it can rely on the smooth interaction of fewer parts (with any failure affecting the whole, fewer elements better the chances of completing a mission).

“Herbie,” MIlton students’ 2004 remotely operated underwater vehicle

“The competitions present a problem and, to find the best solution, students work within real time constraints and a fixed budget. Teamwork and decision-making are at the core of this successful team,” Tom says. “The students understand that if a single bad decision gets made at any point in the process, their whole mission might be jeopardized,” he says.

With his underwater cameras, he’s able to see clearly underwater and share those pictures with humans via a monitor. He’s quite capable and he is made to be watertight (though he might not know enough to come in out of the rain). Herbie performed heroics in the Milton Academy team’s quest for a regional win last year. His grace, if not his beauty (see photo above), secured his team a place in the national competition in Santa Barbara, California, last June. There, he performed flawlessly in his underwater trial, only to be blocked from victory by a failed camera during the actual competition. “Seo Hyung [Kim] and I were working on the deck retrieving items from the sub and re-launching it,” says team member Sam Minkoff (Class II). The left buoy was damaged as they attempted to put Herbie back into action after the camera failure—but back into action she went. “We put a lot of heart into that sub,” he says. Despite the failure, the team placed 10th out of 23 nationally and took top honors for overall design and use of their three remotely controlled grippers. The 2004 members were SeoHyung Kim, Albert Kwon, Daniel Lee, Fred Lien, Sam Minkoff, Andrew Oates, Matthew Schoen, Megan Smith, William Joo, Alice Tin, HsingYu Tsai, David Wu and Louisa Zhang. (See photo for 2005 members.)

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Sam Minkoff (Class II) and Dan Lee (Class I) working in the lab

Another choice that counts is finding the right driver—one who can stay calm under pressure. “You’re essentially flying the vehicle,” Tom says. Dan Lee, last year’s “driver,” who was part of the triage team that enabled Herbie to finish his mission, says, “It’s a video game that you make yourself. It’s very exciting, even when it’s stressful.” Tom’s students do investigate best practices and consider anecdotal case studies—especially important as they don’t

have enough time to test and re-test every eventuality. (Without an indoor pool, the team tests its vehicle using the pool at Blue Hills Regional Tech in nearby Canton and the UMass–Boston pool in Dorchester.) The competition judges students on how well they complete the tasks associated with the mission; engineering and communication; technical reports; and poster displays. The student group is small enough, Tom says, that every student has a full understanding of every component of the project—but members recognize each others’ strengths and allow for subspecialties to emerge: there is a role for researchers; tinkerers; solderers; PhotoShop and CAD design program experts; and spies (to monitor Web sites of the competition). The task for the 2005 Marine Advanced Technology Education (M.A.T.E.) competition for the “ranger” class—teams working with a modest budget but with tasks as challenging as their richer “explorer” peers, who use up to 40 amps compared to the ranger team’s 25—will consist of three “Olympic” events (note the ROV jargon emerging). Teams will appear at the “control shack” at the appointed time, following strict protocol as set forth at www.marinetech.org/rov_competition/ index.php. The idea for an ROV club at Milton was born when, during Tom’s 2001–2002 sabbatical, he developed a hands-on science curriculum for middle and high school at Tufts University’s Wright Center for Innovative Science Education. He also worked with educators there from the New England Aquarium and the Museum of Science as well as MIT—home of one of the country’s best ROV teams. “The competition is definitely not your typical science fair,” says Tom, who also advises the Rocketry Team at Milton. The 2005 competition, scheduled for May, will bring 26 teams to the University of Rhode Island, home of the Graduate School of Oceanography, where Professor Robert Ballard teaches. To follow the Milton team’s progress, visit www.milton.edu. Heather Sullivan

Linking His Heritage and His Future,

Adam Och Studies Arabic at Milton

Adam Och ’06

he full warmth and fun of Syria was just a bit more out of reach for Adam Och than it was for his cousins. During Adam’s most recent summer visit, he wished that, like them, could set off independently, interact, and get involved in more of what was happening. Language fluency, it seemed to Adam, was the key differential. Adam, whose father is Syrian-American and mother is Irish-American, attended an Islamic Sunday School as a child. In addition to gaining elementary familiarity with the religion and culture, he learned the alphabet, and how to read and write on a basic level. This early connection with Arabic culture and language proved valuable once Adam decided to study the Arabic language seriously. Last summer, Adam spent three hours a day, four days a week at the Boston Language Institute delving into Arabic. Having made this commitment, losing what he’d gained during the summer didn’t sit well. With his instructor at the institute willing to tutor him during the school year, Adam submitted an independent study proposal to Milton. Sarah Wehle, chair of student independent study, agreed with Adam’s proposed study plan, and served as his Milton Academy advisor.

“Starting off studying Arabic was the hardest time,” Adam feels. “The grammatical structure is difficult and the rules are counterintuitive if you approach the language with an English framework. Arabs think that the English language is oversimplified. Arabic is more complicated and you need to say things with greater specificity.” I finished the first grammar book this summer, and I thought things couldn’t go any further, but they do. For instance, one verb will be the base form, and then there are 10 different forms that stem from the base; if you twist the word around you get the passive voice, and so on. The language relies on a root system; if you get the pattern of three or four letters, you can figure out other words. Keeping up with building my vocabulary is a big challenge. I learn 20 new words for each chapter, and the words get more complicated as the book goes on. Choosing to study Arabic independently has involved challenges beyond the complexity of the language itself. Adam’s tutor comes to School twice each week for one and a half hours each time, and rounds out a day already packed with academic classes. “Studying in a one-on-one situa-

tion is different, ” Adam says. “You have to like your teacher, and you have to be prepared. There’s more homework between classes, because I only meet with him twice each week, and judging how long the homework would take me was hard. We’ve worked it out.” “At this point,” Adam says, “I can comprehend spoken Arabic—even what’s said at a good pace—quite well. It’s a harder thing for me to form sentences; I still have to translate from the English rather than thinking in Arabic.” Realizing his idea of a summer ago has meant hard and solitary work, Adam is pleased and planning ahead. “I’m going to finish the second level this year, take the third level next summer, and do the fourth level in my Class I year,” he says. “I’m learning the family language, and can communicate with my family on a different level. At the same time I’m pursuing something of great interest to me. I’ve always been interested in business and economics, and this prepares me for international business. In any case, doing this has given me a whole different dimension—a completely different way to look at other subjects and issues in general. That’s an advantage few have.” 45

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A Dream Delayed but Not Denied Even without a pool, Coach Bob Tyler keeps varsity swimming alive and well at Milton

t once an optimist and a realist, Bob Tyler came to Milton’s science department in 1988 with a vivid dream. Bob had coached some outstanding swimmers at Avon Old Farms, and at Bernal’s Gators, the premier New England competitive swim team that practiced at Harvard’s Blodgett pool. “I always wanted to create that quality of a program of my own,” Bob says. Circumstances demanded that the realist side of his personality take over. For 17 years, this quintessential coach has enthusiastically (and doggedly) trained and managed a competitive interscholastic swim team at Milton, without an on-campus pool. For hundreds of swimmers between 1988 and today, the swim team experience is one of their best and most lively memories of Milton. “We did well,” they often said about their performance at the New England swim team championships, “the best of all the schools without pools.” Bob confesses that coaching powerful swimmers—he had worked with students swimming at the junior national level who

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went on to make the Olympic team—was fun and exciting. “I’ve found that I haven’t lost my love for swimming or for coaching, despite working with swimmers who will never reach that level,” says Bob. “So I’ve realized that the coaching is the fun of it—working with teenagers in any medium, in class, in the dorm, or as a coach.” When Bob came to Milton, a colleague from his alma mater, Deerfield, had organized a club swim team. Former faculty member David Foster had 30 students, a van, and some pool time at the Dorchester YMCA. Bob’s arrival was the impetus to shift the club to an interscholastic varsity sport, which happened the following year. “Of the 30 swimmers,” Bob recalls, “few could swim competitively —Shannon Connelly (’89), Marc and Alex Chung (’89 and ’90, respectively) and Brendan Everett (’91). The others were new to competitive swimming.” Nonetheless, Bob worked on improving technical skills, creating the swim team culture, building and broadening the competitive experience. Eventually Milton’s

team entered the New England championships, and students’ eyes were opened to serious swimming and inspired by what they saw. As he watched team momentum build, then ebb, then build again, Bob set his own context. “We’re lucky,” he says, “that we have such a great school. We attract students who primarily want a great academic experience, and among them are some terrific swimmers for whom the learning environment comes first.” The logistics of using off-campus pools have always dogged the team. Although the situation has improved significantly with recent arrangements to swim at UMass Boston, the 20-minute drive over and back has always compromised practice time. “For the first 12 years, Milton’s team could only practice an hour each day, while other teams practiced a minimum of nearly double that,” Bob says. Frequently snowstorms closed Milton’s adopted pools or Milton’s practice and meet schedule had to adapt to the primary user’s schedule.

Some of the Milton Academy Swim Team members, 2004–2005, at practice

Challenges notwithstanding, swimmers would say that their team experience in this sport at Milton was unparalleled. “There have been such great people over the years,” Bob says. “They have great character, they give one another terrific support, they like being together, they’re eager to learn, and they really do get better. We focus on everyone moving forward. One great thing about swimming is that there’s an objective standard against which you can measure and celebrate improvement.” The coed nature of the swim team is a rich source for other lessons. “They gain so much,” Bob believes, “from seeing the power, discipline, focus and competence of their counterparts of the opposite sex.” The girls are particularly nurturing as teammates, and they maintain traditions like the “secret psych,” messages and gifts that pump up a swimmer with a record to break or a challenging opponent to confront.

Coach Jamie LaRochelle’s arrival at Milton in 1996 boosted the swim team’s resources and stature even further. Another science faculty member, coming from Strake Jesuit High School in Texas, Jamie swam with Bob Tyler’s brother at Deerfield (“Jamie was long my hero there,” Bob says), and coached with Bob at Avon. The two work well together—“neither of us needs to be a head coach,” Bob allows. Both are interested in technique over yardage, that the stroke be as efficient and effective as possible. It’s not as if Milton’s teams haven’t had successes as well. Roughly 25 girls’ teams and 20 boys teams compete in the New England championships, striving for placement in the top eight teams for each event. Milton’s best performance for the girls was achieving fifth place and the boys’ top finish was seventh place. Individual Milton swimmers have also achieved top eight status in various events over time. Milton’s first winner of a New England championship was Jason

Reichard (’98), in the 500-freestyle. “Not bad,” say the swimmers, “for a school without a pool!” Good-humored and completely supportive of the priorities in Milton’s master plan (that does not include a pool), the optimist and advocate in Bob can’t help explaining how quickly Milton, with a pool, could turn things around. “The nucleus would build quickly,” he asserts, “once we built a pool. We’d have an outstanding program in three to five years, and make our mark in swimming among New England boarding schools.” A successful competitive swimmer himself in the Master Swimmer program, Bob’s dream still thrives. He loves working with young people in any and every way, and has his years of enthusiastic devotion to Milton swimmers. “The coaching is the fun of it, after all,” Bob rejoins.

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The Head of School

Milton’s most recent “big idea” reaches back in time

ilton’s story, a history that has been in motion for more than 200 years, includes many expansive ideas promoted by believers—ideas that may have seemed outrageous at certain points in time. In 2005, one idea developed by the board at the turn of this century honors the energy, creativity and risk the magazine celebrates. This idea reached back and connected boldly with Milton’s tradition. The board opted to rebalance the Academy’s enrollment: to achieve, over a number of years, a ratio of boarding students and day students closer to the ratio that existed prior to the 1980s. The board’s analysis, their attention to what students and parents of the 1990s told them, resulted in the belief that increasing the number of boarding students, while keeping School size the same, was a pivotal goal. They took stock of the challenges involved in staying the same, the challenges involved in making the change, the potential for strengthening Milton, and they opted for a vision. In this vision, families from across the country and around the world are aware of and interested in Milton Academy, a boarding and day school in the Boston area with unusual attributes. Our distinguished and thriving school attracts highly capable boarding students, day students and faculty, eager to join a vigorous community of diverse individuals, active learners, deeply

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involved both in top-notch, up-to-date scholarship and in relationships and extracurricular commitments that stimulate extraordinary personal growth. Believing in the soundness of the vision as well as our capability to achieve it, we launched the effort. We undertook this “while we were at the top of our game,” as Fritz Hobbs, board president, is fond of saying. That meant that although the progressive steps toward rebalancing the enrollment were as numerous as they were daunting, we needed to address each of them while maintaining the excellence that had long characterized our School. Reaching the goal involved reorganizing our admission office to reach out more effectively across the nation, and to manage a greater number of applications. We redesigned our admission materials and outreach programs which had, in the past, insufficiently highlighted the size and strength of our residential program. Developing an enrollment plan that would acknowledge Milton’s K–12 identity (i.e., some students would be moving from Lower and Middle Schools to the Upper School), include the highly qualified day students we had typically admitted, and increase the number of boarding students—all without changing the fundamental size of the School—was a monthslong challenge. The upshot was a plan that, among other things, contributed to a project already in motion: a redesign of Milton’s Middle School.

In the meantime, a new student activities director strengthened our weekend programs, which eventually developed into the popular, well-attended raft of weekend events and goings-on students now enjoy. Faculty held school orientation events on weekend days to help establish early inclinations among new students toward spending time on campus. Knitting together more seamlessly the lives of boarding students and day students, so that all students experienced a richer, fuller sense of each other and identity with the School, was a crucial element of the vision. The Schwarz Student Center, opened in 2003, was designed (with the help of students, faculty and parents) to further that goal. Spending a moment in that space today testifies to its success. The student center is teeming with life morning, noon and night. Of course, we turned to alumni and parents close to the School and committed to this vision for the generosity and leadership that would bring the architectural ideas to life. Not only did friends of Milton make gifts that allowed us to build the Schwarz Center, they also funded two new residences, Norris House and Centre House. The shovel went into the ground for these houses in the fall of 2003, and boarding faculty were (barely) moved in and ready to welcome new students for the opening of School in September 2004. The houses were designed

to heed the wise counsel of veteran faculty and boarding students who told us clearly and compellingly what elements contributed to Miltonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s strong boarding program. Todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s happy residents, who love their houses, their housemates and their faculties, are developing a particular culture and set of traditions for Norris and Centre, respectively, comparable to those the other Milton houses enjoy. This spring, we will enroll approximately 100 new boarding students, an historically high total, from a group of more than 700 highly qualified and talented applicants. In fact, applications from potential boarding students in 2005 increased over those in 2004 by 38 percent. The new students will join in the exciting life of a thriving boarding and day School, where the evenings and weekends are as much a part of the learning environment, for all students, as the classrooms we all value so highly. Robin Robertson

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Post Script Post Script is a department that opens windows into the lives and experiences of your fellow Milton alumni. Graduates may author the pieces, or they may react to our interview questions. Opinions, memories, explorations, reactions to political or educational issues are all fair game. We believe you will find your Milton peers informative, provocative and entertaining. Please email us with your reactions and your ideas—cathy_everett@milton.edu.

Signs of a Misspent Youth, Reinterpreted: The Making of an Entrepreneur

“A

bright and ambitious-enough student, but sometimes scattered and uneven…often resistant to authority…moves in fits and starts.” To a student who has labored under the threat of teachers’ reports, or a parent who has despaired of a fitful or underachieving offspring, these observations may ring cruelly true. My mother feels your pain. Maybe they’re right. Or maybe these are the germinating seeds of a life seeking a different heading: artist, actor, adventurer, or all of these rolled into one—an entrepreneur. Volumes have been written about entrepreneurship. Much as been said about what it takes: love of your product, an abiding belief in your own ideas, the fortitude to weather failure without the support of a large enterprise as you rebuild. Less is made of the one characteristic I see as paramount: the inability to conform. My own road to entrepreneurialism began in 1991, when I followed my boss out of Citicorp to start a private investment bank, Meenan, McDevitt & Company, in

the New York suburbs. Despite doubts about leaving the security and prestige of Wall Street, I knew the move would give me things I needed much more: license to make my own rules, live by my own schedule, be myself. Ambition wasn’t a problem; nor was my work ethic. Both of these were profound. However, rather than the linear, make-a-list-and-finish-by-the-end-of-the-day style that organized businesses demand, my style is more like a game of Whack-a-Mole, zapping back and forth as different tasks catch my eye, and sustains my interest and momentum far better than the regularity of responsible tasking. Since the sale of Meenan, McDevitt to French bank Societe Generale in 1998, I’ve become a founder or partner in four other businesses: • In 1999, Heart Center Online, a cardiovascular medicine Internet site (www.heartcenteronline.com); • Returning to Wall Street in 2001, the Loan Portfolio Sales Group at New York investment bank Keefe, Bruyette & Woods (KBW); • In 2004 (after leaving KBW), Garnet Capital Advisors, an investment bank specializing in selling loan portfolios for banks and raising capital for companies that buy these loans;

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• Since 2002, the Los Angeles–based film-production company Goff-Kellam Productions (as executive producing partner), where our first full-length feature, Girl Play, is set for theatrical release in May. These experiences have put a new slant on my view of my adolescence. If my parents and teachers thought I was all over the map, well, I was, and maybe that’s not such a bad thing. I’ve been fascinated to realize how much Milton had to do with helping me forge my younger self into a successful entrepreneur. It’s not that my teachers and advisors steered me in this direction. Rather, it was through their thoughtful—and discerning—observations that I came to frame my understanding of myself better. Chuck Duncan, then the dean of students and my Class II advisor, wrote in 1978 that I seemed to operate in only two gears, Fast and Stop, and that I needed to recognize fast gear and harness it, or I might grind to a halt. He concluded: “There will be no middle ground for Sean.” He was dead right, and this understanding has profoundly influenced the course of my life.

I have kept these observations close at hand, to this day, and they have helped me determine how to channel a convention-resistant nature and short attention span to create opportunities. On the large scale, I have learned that I need to be perpetually overbooked to stay productive but, in handling many commitments, I must pursue them in small doses to stay committed. Practically, they have taught me that I will be scatterbrained but that things will get done, if I accept that I have to wait until the inspiration strikes. But my mother’s comment is the most trenchant: “We used to be so concerned about how much time you spent B.S.’ing your way out of jams—and now you get paid for it!” I always knew I’d make her proud. Sean McVity ’80

Mary-Louise Baumlin made me read through long passages of Le Rouge et Le Noir and Phedre in French class, explaining later that I had a “marvelous capacity,” but that I thought “comme un papillon”— constant energy and no direction. The class readings, she said, were to help force my mind through the material. 51

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Inâ&#x20AC;˘Sight

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In November 2004, Milton Academy students put up Seussical the Musical. Co-conceived by Lynn Ahrens, Stephen Flaherty and Eric Idle, Seussical combined the works of Dr. Seuss into a single colorful story. Peter Parisi directed, while Kelli Edwards choreographed and Ted Whalen served as musical director. Robert St. Laurence â&#x20AC;&#x2122;07 played the Cat in the Hat, aided by 33 other cast members who acted, sang and danced their way to standing ovations.

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OnCentre “What the Future Will Bring” Inventor, Author and Futurist Delivers Science Lecture

On December 15, this inventor, author and futurist delivered the 2004 science lecture, “What the Future Will Bring,” in the Fitzgibbons Convocation Center. He is the father of Amy Kurzweil ’05 and Ethan Kurzweil ’97. Called “the restless genius” by the Wall Street Journal and “the ultimate thinking machine” by Forbes magazine, Dr. Kurzweil’s ideas on the future have been touted by Bill Gates and Bill Clinton. Time magazine wrote, “Kurzweil’s eclectic career and propensity of combining science with practical—often humanitarian—applications have inspired comparisons with Thomas Edison.” “Most projects fail because the timing is wrong. Inventions must be relevant not only when they are conceived; they must still be relevant when they are complete,” Dr. Kurzweil told students. “I have become an avid student of technological trends.”

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He talked about the “seductive and explosive power of exponential growth,” also known as Moore’s Law and noted that the New York Times first referred to the World Wide Web in 1993. He explained that technology already drives 8 percent of the economy and influences most of the rest of it; he predicts that computers as we know them will disappear by 2010, being supplanted by nanotechnology embedded in everyday objects. Intelligence, though inherently imperfect, will be expanded enormously through fusion with technological devices. “We can know more of the future than you think,” Dr. Kurzweil said. “The most pervasive trend is that the rate of progress is increasing,” he noted, adding that scientists, leaders and the public must weigh the promise versus peril of a changing world, while acknowledging that progress is unstoppable. Dr. Kurzweil asserts that new technologies must be harnessed for the greater good and not sent underground where they cannot be monitored. He also believes that virtual reality will incorporate all of the senses by the year 2030, allowing people to “explore being a different person.” Dr. Kurzweil talked about the biotechnology revolution—the intersection of biology with information technology—predicting that human disease may be curtailed and human life dramatically extended in coming decades. He compared the

human body to a house: One that is well-maintained, properly wired and has a sound foundation and roof may last indefinitely; the same home, if poorly cared for, might disintegrate too soon. Dr. Kurzweil has been inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame, received the National Medal of Technology, the nation’s highest honor in technology, from President Clinton, and received the $500,000 Lemelson-MIT Prize, the nation’s largest award in invention and innovation. He has 12 honorary doctorates, seven national and international film awards and awards from three U.S. presidents. His best-selling book, The Age of Spiritual Machines, When Computers Exceed Human Intelligence, has been published in nine languages and was Amazon’s best-seller in the categories of “Science” and “Artificial Intelligence.” His most recent book, coauthored with Dr. Terry Grossman, is Fantastic Voyage: Live Long Enough to Live Forever (fantastic-voyage.net). The book shares information on how to maintain optimal health— through aggressive vitamin supplementation, exercise, careful diet and calorie restriction (shown to keep mice and elders from the Okinawan Islands younger longer)—in preparation for the biotechnology revolution that will preserve quality of life for many years beyond current expectations.

Dr. Kurzweil’s presentation was followed by a question-andanswer session in Straus Library, where Dr. Kurzweil explained technology as an expression of human potential. “We’re not defined by our limitations,” he said. “We’re defined by the fact that we seek to go beyond our limitations. “Power through technology amplifies creative and destructive tendencies: Two world wars were made possible by technology. “I believe that the benefits outweigh the peril.”

Photo by Michael Lutch, courtesy of Kurzweil Technologies, Inc.

Dr. Ray Kurzweil’s inventions include the first print-to-speech reading machine for the blind, the first flat-bed scanner, the first text-to-speech synthesizer, the first omni-font optical character recognition, the first music synthesizer that could re-create the grand piano and other orchestral instruments, and the first large vocabulary speech recognition.

Ray Kurzweil

Mr. Millet Honored at Middlesex Legendary coach and teacher Francis D. Millet—better known to generations of Miltonians as simply “Mr. Millet”—received Middlesex’s Henry Cabot Lodge ’20 Distinguished Alumni Award. Established in 1993, the award pays tribute to Middlesex alumni who have brought credit to their alma mater. “Frank arrived at Middlesex in 1931 and quickly established himself as one of his class’s top scholars,” wrote Jim Zimmerman, director of development at Middlesex, in the school’s alumni magazine.

As a young man at the school, Mr. Millet served as editor of The Anvil, class president, and played tennis and squash. In 1942, he came to Milton, where he has served as a teacher, advisor, dormitory master, secretary of the faculty, director of financial aid, director of admission and, of course, as architect of the School’s squash program. Mr. Zimmerman writes, “Frank began the formal squash program at Milton in 1965, and in the four decades since, he has built Milton into a regional and national squash powerhouse.”

Milton likewise recognized Mr. Millet’s civility, character and excellence—and his uncanny ability to model those behaviors for students—when he was awarded the Milton Medal in 2002. “More than six decades of distinguished service to education is an inspiring achievement,” writes Mr. Zimmerman. “Even though his service has been rendered at a rival school, and even though many of those squash victories have come at Middlesex’s expense over the years, the school honors his extraordinary commitment to young people, to education and to a more civil society.”

Frank D. Millet

Author and Musician James McBride Visits Campus

Drawing on rich life lessons to illustrate his ideas, James shared his family life, educational experiences and professional music career with the students. Mr. McBride’s memoir, The Color of Water, which remained on the New York Times Bestseller List for two years, has been translated into more than a dozen languages, and has become an American classic read in colleges and high schools. It is the autobiographical account of his mother, a white Jewish woman from Poland who raised 12 black children in New York City and sent each to college.

Noting that Martin Luther King’s key relevance to the world was as a moral standard of excellence, Mr. McBride helped students understand the power of Martin Luther King in his world. He encouraged students to “learn how to fail,” as well as to succeed—in other words, to “grow up in ways that are normal.” That said, he told students that the world is depending upon their ability to think, ask questions and respond. “Where decency lives is with every single one of you. It’s not about committees,” he said. “If you want to change the world, you must do it individually, and then the moral collective moves forward.” James McBride is a former staff writer for the Boston Globe, the Washington Post, and People. His work has appeared in many publications, including the New York Times and Rolling Stone. He is

the recipient of the 1997 Anisfield Wolf Book Award, as well as awards for his work as a composer in musical theatre, including the American Arts and Letters Richard Rodgers Award, the ASCAP Richard Rodgers Horizons Award, and the American Music Theatre Festival’s Stephen Sondheim Award. He has written songs for Anita Baker, Grover Washington Jr., Gary Burton, Silver Burdett Music Textbooks, and for the PBS television character “Barney.” James also conducts a 12-piece R&B jazz band. He has a bachelor’s degree from Oberlin College, having studied composition at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. He holds a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University and has received an honorary doctorate in humane letters from Whitman College and the College of New Jersey.

Mr. McBride’s newest book, Miracle at St. Anna, which the Baltimore Sun called a “searingly, soaringly beautiful novel,” has been dubbed “a lyrical, touching fable about the miraculous power of love” by Publishers Weekly. The book, already climbing the bestseller list, is the story of a black American soldier who befriends a 6-year-old Italian boy during World War II.

Riverhead Books

James McBride, award-winning writer, composer and saxophonist, visited Milton Academy on Wednesday, January 12, as the 2005 Dr. Martin Luther King Speaker. Realistic, insightful and humorous, Mr. McBride connected with students whom he urged to think, to question, to read, and to challenge the ubiquitous propaganda.

James McBride

Milton Magazine

An Odyssey: Teaching Epic Poetry and Essay-Writing to Eighth Graders Of mortal creatures, all that breathe and move, earth bears none frailer than mankind. What man believes in woe to come, so long as valor and tough knees are supplied him by the gods? —Odysseus to Amphinomos in Homer’s Odyssey Ask anyone what Homer’s Odyssey is about, and the initial reply might include, “a journey,” or “a quest.” The metaphor of the quest also resonates with the ancient epic poem’s place in the Grade 8 curriculum at Milton: Using Robert Fitzgerald’s 1961 translation, students examine the poem’s lyricism, structure, meaning and cultural significance. From October through January, the Odyssey unit is a major component of the eighth-grade curriculum. Kim Walker is in her third year of teaching Middle School English at Milton. “When I came, I was surprised that the Odyssey was on the syllabus. It’s dense. It’s an ancient epic. It has advanced vocabulary,” she says. In the beginning, students gain comfort with ancient Greek culture by focusing on gods and goddesses. (Each student becomes an expert on a deity of choice.) They play games, winning “nectar” or “ambrosia.” They talk about format and character development; they dramatize the poem; in groups, they tackle study questions; and they talk about modern-day nods to Homer’s classic: They watch, for example, the Coen brothers’ version of the tale, Brother, Where Art Thou, comparing its plot to its inspiration. Kim says that one of the most effective ways for eighth-grade students “to get” this material is

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Alexander Moffett, Grade 8, as Odysseus

by acting it out. The exercise forces them to make decisions about intent and to wrestle with perplexing passages: Portraying an action necessitates, and sometimes bolsters, basic comprehension. Also fascinating to students are the figures that emerge during Odysseus’s journey: Charybdis, Kalypso and the Cyclops. “I really liked to watch the characters change,” says eighth-grader Kate Davidson. “When the poem starts, everyone is very different than when it ends, and you see new sides to everyone. It is an intense study of how people react under different circumstances, especially when you throw gods and weird creatures into the mix.” The Odyssey bundles the ingredients of a great story—love, war, adventure, betrayal, hideous villains—and Kim says that students enjoy these lures, but that their intellectual experience goes deeper than simple fascination with Penelope’s loyalty or curiosity about exactly what the lotuseaters consume.

“Trying to figure out the plot or meaning of one book, or even passage, is hard to do because of the ancient Greek dialect,” says eighth-grader Alec Seymour. “It’s kind of like deciphering a foreign language with only a little bit of prior skill. But when you finish the poem, you have a much better understanding of not only Greek culture, but also the English language.” “I love anything and everything to do with classical Greece and Rome,” says eighth-grader Sarah Loucks. “Along with reading the poem, we got to review ancient Greek mythology and history, which was also a lot of fun.” “The students really feel confident, proud and privileged,” Kim says. “They work very closely with specific passages. They push through a challenging text. They keep at it, and they excel. “They do personal interpretation as well as oral work,” she adds. “We also ask them to draft [not in verse] their own book of the epic, filling in where they’ve identified gaps in the action.”

“Now I look at poetry not just as a form of writing or art,” says eighth-grader Dylan Tedaldi, “but also as a way to communicate.” En medias res, Emily Law, who also teaches eighth-grade English, found her students stumbling over the text’s chronology, which is not straightforward. She asked students to illustrate the main action, then posted their creations around the room, in chronological order, for reference. Emily and Kim say that students are quick to identify subtleties about race, religion and culture in the text. When a student does struggle, Kim says that that makes their eventual breakthrough in understanding— through visual representation, acting or in brainstorming for exam essay-writing—all the more remarkable. The Odyssey unit was developed in the 1980s by former English department faculty Laura Armstrong and longtime faculty Nan Lee, Elaine Apthorp and Rick Hardy, current English department chair.

Included in the unit is a close reading and comparison of the Odyssey to Barbara Kingsolver’s 1988 novel, The Bean Trees, in which a young woman leaves Pittman County, Kentucky, to discover her place in a global community and to learn to trust and be trusted by others. In addition to close textual analyses and comprehension, competent comparative essay-writing is a primary goal of the unit. Exam preparation includes strategizing essay structure. “Let’s talk about transitions [in your essays],” Kim tells her students. “Transitions allow you to hold your reader’s hand and take him or her to the next paragraph.” In preparation for continuing academic challenges in the Upper School, students learn to identify potential essay topics and list what to do before they begin writing a timed essay: know the question; make a quick outline; understand the value of a strong entrance and exit; balance detail, while remembering to manage time.

Literary Analysis: good readers, conﬁdent thinkers, sharp writers How the Lower School builds a culture that reveres books In his reading journal, Michael Char of Grade 6 recently wrote some pointed criticism of author Georgia Byng’s writing style. “Georgia Byng included so many similes in her story ‘Molly Moon Stops the World,’ that I felt like a drowning man being thrown a bottle of water. (Oops! It’s catching on.) The similes in the book were very good ones. However, because the similes were so long and detailed I would forget what was happening in the story. The following quote is an example of a good, but long simile, ‘The world was so quiet… No traffic, no music, no vacuum cleaners, no lawnmowers. Just silence…Then, suddenly as if the pause button on the world’s video player had been released, everything started again.’ It’s a great description, but after reading it I totally forgot what was happening in the story.”

A sophisticated critic, Michael comes by his skill honestly: Along with his Lower School classmates, he’s been analyzing authors’ work since Kindergarten. “I want students to understand that authors make lots of choices, and as they read, to think about what choices an author has made. I want them to know that a book didn’t spring up whole.” Connie Dodes, sixthgrade literature teacher, explains that the link between learning to read well and to write well is essential. Students’ awareness of how authors achieve effects with their writing comes into play as they themselves write. Connie helps them think of authors as mentors. “For instance, when I’m asking a student to stretch out a moment of tension in her writing, I ask her, ‘How did Mildred Taylor do it?’”

As a major component of their literature program, sixth-graders write weekly in their reading journals. They receive their journals during the last week of fifth grade. A letter from Connie inside the front cover explains her expectations of them in Grade 6; the inside back cover includes a list of suggested topics for their journal entries. “Are the characters believable? In what ways does the author let you know what the characters are like? Did the lead of the book ‘grab’ you and pull you in to the story? Why?” Sixth-graders choose their own “independent reading” and must read at least a half hour nightly. Either Connie or Joan Eisenberg, Lower School librarian, responds in writing to each of their weekly entries, “prodding them,” as Connie says, “to dig deeper, to

“Reading the Odyssey is like a treasure hunt,” says eighth-grader Melissa Mittelman. “Not only are you looking for the cultural and era imprints, but you are also working to follow the story and catch details.” “In their textual analyses, students begin to think more about their identities as well as the characters’,” Kim says. When students begin to see raw humanity wrapped in verse— when Penelope fends off her suitors or when Athena compares Odysseus to Telemachus, “measuring [him] with his father,” for example—students begin to grasp and appreciate the universality of great literature. Heather Sullivan

A sixth-grade section during library period, one of the many moments to share observations about their reading

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think about literature in new ways.” These exchanges allow them, as Joan says “to recommend other books, to build their sense of reading as a special, personal pleasure.”

sive an argument as they possibly can for the book they think should win; and I ask them to listen carefully, because someone may persuade them to change their opinions.”

Joan could be considered the Lower School’s secret ingredient in the yearslong cultivation of readers and reverence for books. “Library” is a full class period, as is art and science, and Joan uses her frequent connections with children, from Kindergarten on, to introduce them to books; build habits of perusing and checking books out of the library; share ideas, reactions and recommendations with each other. “Over the years, I learn about different students’ tastes in books. I have time to talk with them about their reading. Sometimes I work and work and work to just hit it, to find the type of book that hooks a certain student to reading. I often begin class with a pile of books: new books, books on a theme, books you shouldn’t miss. If one of the children has read one, then I ask him or her to talk about it. When they hear one another’s recommendations, they talk about their own reactions to what others have already read.”

A favorite student event is the grand debate that precedes students’ casting their votes for the Massachusetts Children’s Book Award. Of the 25 books nominated by teachers, librarians and children, Milton’s fifth- and sixth-graders must read five, and can try to convince other students that their analysis of a prize-winner should prevail. Only children may vote; their votes count. They come armed with opinions, notes and examples and defend their choices. From Joan’s and Connie’s point of view, their analyses and observations are remarkable: Is an idea “worthy”? Is a character believable? Is an outcome realistic? Whether children are still thinking concretely, or have moved toward more abstract thinking, they all believe themselves to be good thinkers on the level playing field of literary criticism.

Near the end of every year, Connie asks her students to write about how they have changed as readers. Their own words, she says, testify to their growth and increased skill. “I don’t just think about plot anymore, I think about characters and suspense and ideas and relationships,” one will say. “I don’t just read adventure stories anymore; now I’m reading lots of different kinds of books, and I’m

Joan Eisenberg (left), Lower School librarian, and Connie Dodes, Grade 6 faculty member

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Cathleen Everett

Sixth-grade book critic Michael Char follows up on a comment.

You don’t have to wait until sixth grade to learn that your opinion about a book matters. Thirdgraders stage a Milton Academy version of the Caldecott Medal contest, choosing the book they think ought to garner the award. Joan and some of the Lower School teachers decide which six picture books deserve consideration for a Caldecott Medal (the Caldecott Medal honors illustration). Third-graders, who have brought home a book a night for “home reading” over the course of several years, have developed a solid critical eye. “I ask them,” Joan says, “to make as persua-

reading more challenging books,” is another common refrain. When a student stops Joan as she passes in a hallway and says, “Oh, I just have to tell you how much I loved this book,” she’s thrilled. The Lower School traditions, activities, and curricula mindfully and explicitly build a culture of readers— and excellent critics.

Alumni Authors Recently published works Such Is Life in the Tropics: 25 Years in Costa Rica; 40 Anecdotes Such Is Life in the Tropics (Litografía e Imprenta LIL, 2004) by Roberta Hayes de Macaya ’56 is a collection of short tales of an American woman who lives in Costa Rica with her Costa Rican husband and their children. Over 25 years, they live in Puntarenas, Barrio Jimenez and Escazu. Arranged by place, relative, animal or trip, Roberta’s charming vignettes capture reflective moments, the beauty and mystery of place, or ably characterize her pushy mother-in-law who referred to Roberta as “the mother of my grandchildren” and fed them doughnuts instead of the whole grains favored by Roberta. In “Barney and the Angels,” Roberta shares the moment when her 13-year-old cocker spaniel, Barney, is put to sleep. Worms from the tropical torsalo fly have invaded his head and his eyes, and Barney is weak with the fight. After consulting with her son, who also loved Barney, Roberta decided to go with the vet’s advice: “I gave the yes signal and while she [the vet] readied the long needle I tried to comfort Barney by putting my hand over his nose, smell being

one remaining sense. I stroked his luxurious coat because he could also still feel. I was constricted by sobs, watching the needle go in. I felt that solid, male heart beating so strongly, a slow, steady pound. Then the rhythm sped up – boom, boom, boom, boom, and one last boom. Silence. Inertia. Death. And time stopped. And my heart died a bit.” Her final two of 40 tales—one entitled, “I Never Wore Blue Jeans”—center on herself. Roberta reflects how missing more than two decades of mainstream culture in her home country feels. “My world is the cows peering into the bedroom window when I open the curtains, or two-hour lunches, after peeling and chopping and searing and boiling…I seem to have totally missed the era of blue jeans, never having worn them.” Such Is Life in the Tropics is available in the United States by emailing Roberta at roberta_hayes@yahoo.com.

Chatter In his first book, Chatter (Random House, 2005), Patrick Keefe ’94 reveals how, and on whom, our government eavesdrops. He investigates what has been hushed up by politicians and overlooked by the American media. He also explores whether the interception of communication is effective for predicting and preventing future attacks and to what degree it threatens our privacy. “Chatter represents a timely and important contribution to the literature of eavesdropping and code breaking, and an extraordinary introduction to a world about which most Americans know very little,” writes David Kahn, author of The Codebreakers. In the late 1990s, when Patrick was a graduate student in England, he heard stories about an eavesdropping network led by the United States that spanned the planet. The system, known as Echelon, allowed America and its allies to intercept the private phone calls and emails of civilians and governments around the world. Taking the mystery of Echelon as his point of departure, Patrick explores the nature and context of communications interception, drawing together strands of history, investigative reporting and riveting anecdotes. The result is part detective story, part travelwriting, part essay on paranoia and secrecy in a digital age. Chatter begins at Menwith Hill, a secret eavesdropping station covered in mysterious, gargantuan golf balls, in England’s Yorkshire moors. From there, the narrative moves quickly to another American spy station hidden in the Australian outback; from the intelligence bureaucracy in Washington to

the European Parliament in Brussels; from an abandoned National Security Agency base in the mountains of North Carolina to the remote Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia. As Patrick hunts the truth of contemporary surveillance by intelligence agencies, he unearths little-known information and introduces us to a rogue’s gallery of characters. We meet a former British eavesdropper who now listens in on the United States Air Force for sport; an intelligence translator who risked prison to reveal an American operation to spy on the United Nations Security Council; a former member of the Senate committee on intelligence who says that oversight is so bad, a lot of senators only sit on the committee for the travel. “It is absolutely thrilling to see someone as young, as competent, and as gifted as Patrick Keefe taking on the secret world of Washington,” writes investigative journalist Seymour Hersh. Provocative, sometimes funny, and alarming without being alarmist, Chatter is a journey through a bizarre and shadowy world with vast implications for our security as well as our privacy. It is also an impressive nonfiction debut.

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Alumni Authors Recently published works The Flame Keepers The Flame Keepers (Hyperion, 2004) by Ned Handy ’40 is the fascinating first-person account of a World War II soldier’s capture and imprisonment in Stalag 17, one of Germany’s most notorious prisoner-of-war compounds. Ned enlisted at age 19, four months after Pearl Harbor. Shot down on his bomb group’s ninth mission against the Nazis in April 1944, he survived a year in Stalag 17. In the infamous Nazi prison camp, Ned soon led an escape team determined to tunnel to freedom. Along with the unforgettable comrades he describes, Ned worked relentlessly for months on a tunnel that was to prove instrumental in saving the lives of four fugitives sought by the Gestapo. One of those fugitives would become the only American ever to escape permanently from Stalag 17.

The Flame Keepers is a vivid firsthand account of an American soldier’s experience as a prisoner of war in Nazi Germany and a poignant portrait of the POWs who worked to survive within the wire and their German captors. Illustrated with original photographs taken inside the camp from a smuggled camera and published for the first time in the trade press, The Flame Keepers recounts one of World War II’s great untold stories. At war’s end, the GI Bill put Ned through MIT. Now Ned is senior vice commander of the Stalag 17 Association. Ned co-wrote the book with Kemp Battle, an author and a contributor to the Today show, who serves on the board of the Academy of American Poets.

Soul City In Soul City (Little, Brown, 2004) Touré ’89 introduces a black utopia whose legacy and future are on the line. When journalist Cadillac Jackson’s train arrived at Soul City, Cadillac “smoothed off into a new life.” Cadillac is sent by Chocolate City Magazine to cover Soul City’s mayoral election, but his real intent is to “render Soul City honestly” in a book that would establish his preeminence as a writer. Cadillac Jackson falls in love with Mahogany Sunshine, the DJ in the Biscuit Shop—as well as with Soul City itself—and works to reconcile the black culture he has experienced thus far with life within Soul City. Soul City was “founded by escaped slaves who could fly, a miraculous place where flowers grow out of the concrete, music is revered, and ailments are healed by doting grandmothers rather than doctors. According to Soul City legend, the escaped slaves blessed the citizens to live lives confined only

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by the boundaries of their dreams,” says Vanessa Bush writing for the American Library Association. In Soul City Touré draws on his lived experience with imaginative skill and expert wordsmithing to flesh out the humming reality and magic of Soul City. Cadillac Jackson, for example, “checked into his hotel, the Copasetic on Cool Street, then walked from Nappy Lane to Gravy Ave to Cornbread Boulevard. The sidewalks were forty to fifty feet wide and the streets were abuzz with all-age mini-festivals of hair braiding, marble shooting, bubble blowing, puddle stomping, rollerskating, faithful preaching, ‘God’s coming!’ mommies strolling, babies toddling, groceries spilling lots of flirting and gossip flying. On Bookoo Boulevard the Vinylmobile crept by offering old albums for a few dollars and children poured from homes to chase it as children elsewhere chase ice cream trucks. The Washeteria on Badass Ave had its own DJ so you could dance while you dried. And it made perfect sense that in a world where bad means good, the traffic signals used green for stop and red for go.” The mayoral race in Soul City hinges on the mayor’s prime function, which is to DJ for the town (speakers in the city sidewalks are connected to a central turntable at the mayor’s mansion). “This year’s ballot consists of the Jazz Party’s Coltrane Jones, the Hiphop Nation’s Willie Bobo, and the Soul Music Party’s Cool Spreadlove.” While the mayor of the last 12 years, Emperor Jones, had integrated various sounds and played a balanced play list, the winner would stick to his party’s musical genre, and could therefore

potentially “unbalance the mood of the town and lead to all sorts of catastrophes.” Hence a critical historical moment looms in Soul City. Critics have described Touré’s work as an “allegory on black culture filled with magic realism and biting social commentary.” They have commented on his ability to satirize stereotypes through inventive hyperbole. Touré capably translates his awareness of black culture, and particularly music, into a tale that envelops readers. As Cadillac Jackson discovers much about himself, we join him in learning more about human nature and the meaning of race in America. Touré is a contributing editor at Rolling Stone, an MTV personality, and a CNN regular. His work has appeared in The New Yorker, the New York Times, and many other publications. He attended the Columbia MFA program and lives in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. Since his first book, The Portable Promised Land, was published, Touré has read his work and joined creative writing classes at Milton several times.

Sports Coach Wendy Holden helps Milton girls’ hockey team “outplay themselves” Wendy Soutsos Holden is head coach of Milton Academy’s girls’ varsity hockey team. She comes to Milton after a season as assistant coach at Middlesex School. For the past four years, Wendy has been a head coach with Charles River Girls’ Hockey, and has led her team to the U.S.A. Hockey National Championships in two of those four years. During the summers, she is the on-ice director for Milton Girls’ Hockey Camp.

it “maxing out players.” When asked her secret, Wendy says, “I emphasize that hockey is a series of one-on-one battles. I tell the girls to focus on one period at a time, to do their job on the ice, and to have faith that their teammates are doing their job.” She adds, “Every team is different, but when coaching high school girls, the most important element is to make sure they feel confident.”

Holden attended Dartmouth College, where she was defenseman and captain for the varsity women’s hockey team. She was named Team Defensive MVP in 1999 and ECAC All Star in 1997. Prior to Dartmouth, Holden spent her high school years on the ice as defenseman and captain for Taft School.

What makes an athlete a great teammate? “There is no one answer to that question,” remarks Wendy. “Different players contribute in different ways. Some players lead by example, some players encourage others on the ice, and some players bring the team together off the ice.” Each type

Where did it all start? Coach Holden began her hockey career at the age of 4, battling her three older siblings on her hometown rink in Winnetka, Illinois. During her early years, Wendy says she was fortunate to be on the receiving end of great coaching. “When I was 8, my first all-star team was all boys,” Wendy recalls. “My coach went out of his way to help me like the sport, and taught me not to be intimidated by the male-dominated league.” At age 11 Wendy was greatly influenced by her Squirt League coach. At the time, she doubted her talent; her coach was the person who gave her the confidence to learn from her mistakes. During the course of that year, Wendy remembers “jumping up two teams.” What is the secret to motivating your team? This year, Coach Holden has proven that she can motivate players to perform past their expected potential. Wendy calls

of player, she says, brings a unique asset to a team, and each one is important to the team’s success.

in terms of work ethic and time management. Playing a sport doesn’t allow you to procrastinate.”

What are the strengths of Milton’s girls’ hockey program? “The most obvious is the very supportive network of parents,” says Wendy. “Milton Academy has some of the greatest diehard fans. I believe the program also has the benefit of attracting good players, because the girls get along really well. The team consists of players with great personalities, which makes it easy to work together as a team.”

How is the team doing this year? “I’m very pleased at how the season is going,” Wendy says. “We play in a tough league, but I believe as a team we’re exceeding expectations, and our individual players are exceeding their expectations of themselves. I guess you can say we’re outplaying ourselves.

How do you help players balance their academic and athletic lives? “There is no question that academic work comes first, and study also comes before practice,” Wendy says. “Athletics simply enhances their education

“As for next year,” Wendy says, “the systems are in place, and I have a clear idea of what I want the team to do. With the exception of one graduating senior, we should have a lot of returning talent. With a few new players and a larger team, we’ll be able to build up a bigger bench.”

Wendy Holden, girls’ varsity ice hockey coach

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A Hat Trick Athlete for Milton shots with our bodies and to ‘take one for the team.’ That sort of selfless sacrifice is what makes a team great.”

The big game of this year’s football season—Milton vs. Nobles—fell victim to New England weather. Athletes from both teams tried to clear six inches of snow from the playing field so the highly anticipated match could occur. The storm proved too strong. The game was rescheduled, and time heightened the drama. Milton hit first and hit hard; the Mustangs threw for a 45-yard touchdown. The wide receiver who put the points on the board was number 2, Ryan Walsh. It was the beginning of what Ryan calls his most memorable game. Playing both wide receiver on offense and safety on defense, Ryan finished the afternoon with three receptions for a total of 85 yards and two touchdowns, and forced a Nobles fumble in the second quarter. The Mustangs stampeded Nobles in a 28–0 victory.

“I always avoided sports that focus on individual performance,” says Ryan. “I love sports that rely on teamwork and teammates working together as one.” Ryan believes that the trust gained and given between players is the most important element in athletics, and ultimately is the key to winning. “You need to be able to sacrifice for your team and your teammates in order to win,” says Ryan. “Coach [Paul] Cannata, for example, is always telling us to block the

Ryan believes that every coach at Milton played an important role in his development as a player. “The coaches at Milton show up every day and give everything they have,” Ryan says. “They are able to respond to their players and they know how to make us play to our potential.” Ryan cares more about his friends on the team than he does about his own accomplishments. He wears the number 2 on his football jersey to honor his older brother, who wore that number before him, and he carries the number 17 on his lacrosse and

Ryan Walsh ’05

hockey uniforms to honor his father—a Boston firefighter with Ladder 17. Ryan is an athlete, a scholar and a true gentleman. Greg White

Ben Bunker ’05 for the Milton Measure

Make no mistake about it, Ryan Walsh loves football, but this senior from Milton, Massachusetts, does more than catch a pigskin. Ryan excels in three sports: football, hockey and lacrosse.

Ryan downplays his contributions to these sports and points to his teammates as the reason for his teams’ successes. Why? Ryan Walsh’s favorite aspect of sports is the team.

Ryan Walsh knew at a young age that he wanted to be a part of Milton Academy’s athletic program. His older brother, Mike Walsh ’01, played hockey for Milton and, like most younger brothers, Ryan wanted to follow in his brother’s footsteps. He entered the Academy in Grade 4 and spent most of his free time practicing and playing the three sports he loves most.

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Make Plans to Return for

Graduates Weekend May 13–14, 2005 Don’t Miss • John Noble M.D. ’55, speaker at the Dare To Be True Luncheon, relating his experiences as a smallpox eradication officer with the United States Public Health Service and as a member of a physician team working to control tuberculosis in Russian communities, hospitals and prisons. His work developing health programs to improve care in Boston’s inner city, has led to his recent appointment by the American College of Physicians to serve as Commissioner on the Board of the Joint Commission of Accreditation of Health Care Organizations. • Provocative and energizing classes for graduates and friends led by Milton faculty • Singular events on campus Friday evening for each reunion class • A chance to talk with Head of School Robin Robertson and trustees about Milton’s future • Saturday lunch in Milton’s newly opened residential houses: Centre and Norris • Panel discussions about Milton athletics today and how admission works at Milton • Topflight student musical and dramatic performances in Kellner Performing Arts Center For the latest reunion information or to register, go to the “alumni” pages at www.milton.edu, or call the alumni relations office at 617-898-2421 (Kathleen Kelly, director) or 617-898-2385 (Laura Barrow, assistant director).

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Class Notes 1935

1943

Rose Weld Baldwin enjoys returning to Milton to attend classes and events with her granddaughter Naja Baldwin ‘05. She believes the academic program is vastly more demanding than when she attended and wonders if she could have handled the present curriculum!

Alice Hall van Buren finds being a volunteer in the guidance department at the Cape Cod Regional Technical High School very rewarding, and does a lot with her music. Her husband is not well, but her children and grandchildren are very helpful.

1937 Rebeckah DuBois Glazebrook lives on Cape Cod during the summer and in Osprey, Florida, in the winter. Surgery on her left foot in 2001 has left her in a wheelchair. She enjoys her five grandchildren coming to Woods Hole each July and watching the cousins get to know each other.

1938 On a recent trip to Cleveland, Marjorie Handy Nichols reconnected with Hathaway House roommate Barbara Brown Webster. The two corresponded only occasionally and had not seen each other since graduation. Despite the long separation, she writes, “We met, hugged, kissed and talked nonstop for two hours as though it were yesterday…just shows how deep and binding those Milton days were!”

1941 Corrine Kernan Sevigny sadly reports that her husband Pierre died at the age of 87. He taught courses until two years ago at Concordia University, and many of his students have been wonderful in their support.

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Stephen Washburn celebrated his 80th birthday with a square dance at his house in Belmont with extended family and old friends. Stephen remembers similar dances held in the Saltonstall Gymnasium when at Milton. His oldest guest was Pete Fuller ’42 and the youngest dancer was Kate Fuller, daughter of Pete Fuller Jr. ’75.

1946 J. M. Burry and his wife Helga are spending more time at their place in the San Juan Islands and cruising in their boat up from Port Handy to Victoria, British Columbia.

1948 Lansing Lamont and his wife Ada celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary this year. After publishing his sixth book, No Twilight About Me, in 1999, Lansing is at work on a journalist’s memoir. He has 12 grandchildren, one of whom (Christopher Lamont, Class III, son of Douglas R. Lamont ’73) is currently a day student at Milton.

Having not seen each other since graduation, Marjorie Handy Nichols ’38 and her Hathaway House roommate, Barbara Brown Webster ’38, reunited recently in Cleveland.

Thayer Fremont-Smith reports that he is happily retired as a trial judge and has been happily married for 44 years. He has four wonderful sons and seven grandchildren.

1951 Rebecca Faxon Knowles and her husband Bob have a new condo in Yarmouth, Maine. She says, “Come see us and take a spin on our bright red lobster boat!”

1952 Arthur Harris became professor emeritus at University of Pennsylvania in March 2004. He welcomed grandtwins Aerin Rees and Christopher Brooks Harris in September 2004.

1954 Marie Iselin Doebler and her husband Joe returned from a grand African trip that took them from Cape Town to Zambia, Botswana and Namibia.

1949

1955

Bernard J. Florin was happy to visit Milton, where he “spent two of the best years of my life, right after World War II (1947– 1949).” He hopes some of his grandchildren will spend some time here, especially with all the developments since he graduated!

Pricilla Rand Baker attended the annual convention of the Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) in Switzerland. After serving on the board of directors of SATW in the 1980s, she is now chairman of the organization’s Senior Advisory Council.

1956 Katrina Carter Cameron and her husband Duncan live in Fort Bragg, California, where they perform locally and tour with their Puppetarium Theatre. Also known as Papa and Mama Geppetto, the Camerons write and perform their own librettos, as well as classic stories. Katrina, an experienced Off-Broadway composer, sculpts, paints, builds puppets and writes music for all their shows. Duncan, formerly at Apple, builds stages, handles audio and lighting, and designs rod-puppets. Judith Chute and her husband Paul Cifrino had another great trip to Costa Rica last spring, where they were hosted by Roberta Hayes de Macaya ’56, the author of Such Is Life in the Tropics, a book of short stories. Betsy Reece Hall returned to work after eight months of retirement. She is executive director of the associates of the Boston Public Library. The associates work to “expand the role of the Library in the intellectual life of the City,” which they do through literary events, fund raisers and community outreach. On the personal front, her children continue to give her joy— Tony is a film editor in Los Angeles and Lisa, in Maine, has her own jewelry business. Lisa’s

fields write online and answer children’s questions. His program reaches fifty-thousand kindergarteners through twelfthgraders.

1969 Donald Duncan (former faculty), Henry (Harry) Norweb III ’66, Ted Southworth ’66 and Albert Norweb enjoy the wedding day of Harry’s daughter in Boothbay Harbor, Maine—a day after Hurricane Bobbie passed through and the day before Hurricane Charlie threatened. “We were very lucky,” Harry writes.

daughter, Matilda, born August of 2002, is a constant delight. “My best to everyone and let’s get ready for 2006!”

Seychelles, Maldives and Colombo before settling to golf and garden in Princeton, New Jersey.

Ann Crockett Stever traveled to New Zealand in January 2004 to attend a world gathering of Quakers. Three hundred people came together to consider how their faith informs their lives, both individually and as groups working for peace and justice locally, nationally and internationally. With her partner Dorsey, Ann explored gorgeous New Zealand, especially the southern half of the South Island.

1963

1957 Keith Brodie, retired from Duke University, continues as president emeritus, working with chief residents in psychiatry at Duke Hospital. His book on the university presidency will be published by Praeger this summer. Helen Wilmerding Milner lost her husband Michael in August 2003. Her first grandson, Miles, was born two weeks later. She alternates babysitting for Miles (1) and his cousins Caroline (9) and Brooke (7). She was in London for daughter Angela’s wedding on New Year’s Eve. She then went on a cruise to the

Henry Beyer continues in the banking business but is increasingly frustrated as new laws and regulations make for less efficiency and productivity.

1967 Linn Jackson and a business partner have taken over Educator’s Ally, a 30-year-old business that specializes in placing teachers in Independent Schools. They operate primarily in the greater New York area, but are beginning to operate with a few boarding schools as well.

1968 Albion Fletcher Jr. designs jet engine control systems, mostly for helicopter engines, including both contenders for the new Presidential helicopter. He also organized a group that defeated a change to city government in Braintree. Richard Wilson finished second in his class in the 2004 Singlehanded Transatlantic Race aboard The Great American II. He created a school program online and in a newspaper where experts from a variety of

In 1993, after working in rural development in Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and Tanzania, Roland Lubett and wife Tandy settled in Armindale, New South Wales, Australia, in an area ironically called New England. Roland founded the Last-First Networks (www.lastfirst.net) as a resource center for development fieldworkers. Tandy works for the Aboriginal community in Armindale. Roland and Tandy invite Milton travelers in Australia to stop by.

1972 Cynthia Campbell Kimmey wonders, “At fifty years old, two physicians, two teenage sons…where did the time go?”

1975 Richard Barbour, his wife Charlotte and their daughters Rachel (16) and Annie (13) have relocated to Charleston, South Carolina, after two years in Maryland. Richard has a new position as senior engineer with Scientific Research Corporation, providing support to Navy shipbuilding and modification.

1976 Peter McKillop recently returned from 15 years in Asia as a correspondent for Newsweek in Tokyo and Hong Kong and as a banker for J.P. Morgan. He is now on his newest foreign assignment in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he oversees communication for Bank of America’s consumer bank.

Julia Simonds loves the operating room and continues her nursing education. She teaches at Cannon on the weekends and at Blue Hill some mornings. Coming full circle, she helped coach the Milton ski team last year and hopes to do it again this year. Her mother, Jean Hendrie Simonds ’41, loves her new house. She recently recovered from a hip fracture sustained by chasing squirrels off the deck, which she has learned not to do anymore!

1977 Elizabeth Burns reports that Red Sox Nation spreads to the Midwest and beyond!

1978 After 181⁄2 years together, Oliver Radford married his partner Steve Perry on June 14, 2004, in a small ceremony in Cambridge. In early September, family and friends, including classmates Maggie Jackson and Janet Auchinclosss Pyne, joined the couple at their Gloucester house for a memorable reception.

1979 Sarah Felton and her husband Mark Manasas are thrilled and very proud to announce the adoption of their daughter Eliza Mei Xian Manasas. Eliza was born May 9, 2003, and her Forever Day is July 26, 2004. She is a happy, healthy toddler who is keeping her parents extremely busy! David Marcus is a renewable energy investor in West Newton. Jim Sitrick and his wife Claudia are pleased—and overwhelmed —to welcome Thane Daniel Sitrick to their family. He was born August 4 in Papillion, Nebraska. Jim would love to hear from former classmates at 65

Milton Magazine

Fabulous at 40! Ann Taylor Black ’82 celebrates her birthday with her four children, Hunter (4), Logan (2) and Bailey and Quinn (6 months).

jbsitrickjr@cox.net. In particular, he would be overjoyed if anyone has an instruction manual for babies, as his arrived without one!

1980 Albert Creighton is busy with his family, town volunteer activities, and growing a business founded in 1992. He hopes to see many classmates at the next reunion! Chris Myers has fond memories of Milton and can’t wait to see old friends at the 25th reunion. He’s had a lot of fun starting a nonprofit after-school program in the Latino neighborhoods of Denver that tap the power of peer teaching. The organization has aspirations to “go national” one day. The Web site is www.openworldlearning.org.

1981 Anne Myers Brandt lives in Cambridge with her husband Cameron and daughter Charlotte (1), awaiting the winter birth of a son. Oliver Bustin coaches the Boston Bandits football team. They lost in the Eastern Finals of the National Tournament after an 11–1 season. He was in Washington, D.C., for the 2005 Presidential inauguration because his son was invited.

Milton Magazine

Erika Mobley ’86 and her husband Andrew Speight welcomed Colin Nicholas Speight on October 30, 2004. He was 8 lbs, 1 oz and 20.25" long.

1982

1983

1985

Althea Lindell lives in mid-coast Maine and enjoys the rural atmosphere. Her husband Ken has just been elected to the state legislature. They have three children: William (10), Thomas (8) and Sarah (5). Althea works primarily as a homemaker, but occasionally validates environmental lab data from home. She also started a quilting/sewing business called Blue Heron Quilts. She and her family are very busy but enjoy life together.

John Garrison lives with his wife Maria and children Diego (6) and Elena (4) in Maryland, where he has taken up bike riding (mainly as transportation to the Metro) and is working for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) on regional environmental issues in the Latin American and Caribbean Bureau.

Christina Takoudes Morrison and her husband Andrew Morrison welcomed their second daughter, Alyssa Roula Morrison, in November 2003. She joins big sister Stefanie (4). After 13 years in investment banking, Christina switched careers and is now vice president, New Business in Women’s Health, at Wyeth. Andrew has also changed careers and is now a stay-at-home father and loves raising the girls in Collegeville, Pennsylvania.

Bonnie MacDonald’s husband of 11 years, Rob Gould, died suddenly on August 26, 2002, while playing tennis. Throughout the subsequent months of shock, grief, pain and longing, Bonnie and her two daughters, then four and eight, received much support from family, friends and community. Several Milties responded with kindness and generosity when Ted Sears let the community know about a college fund established for the girls. On October 3, 2004, Bonnie found happiness and love again, and was married to Tim Thomas. Their new family includes Tim and his two daughters, who are close in age to Bonnie’s girls. Susanna Hodges Salk lives in Connecticut, where she is a playwright and also a special projects editor for House and Garden Magazine.

Wyman Fraser Davis was ordained a deacon in the Episcopal Church. Currently, she serves as a missionary liaison to the Diocese of Liberia. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia, with her husband Paul and five children. Paul Goldberg married his partner of 11 years, Joseph Bell, in a private ceremony on Plum Island in Massachusetts this year. He is “very proud to be one of the first Milton grads to enjoy the same rights, privileges, and responsibilities of marriage as his heterosexual classmates.” Paul owns a steel distribution company, and he and Joseph live in Newburyport.

1984 Flynn Monks and his wife Jennifer Monks welcomed Sasha Baron Monks on August 27, 2004. Flynn writes, “She’s cute, bald and in charge.”

1986 Erika Mobley and her husband Andrew Speight welcomed Colin Nicholas Speight on October 30, 2004. Erika says Colin is “a charmer so far and future Milton prospect for sure!”

1988 Matthew Day and his wife Tracy proudly announce the birth of their son, Jackson Boland Day, on March 16, 2004. Ann Louise Elliot and her husband John Williams welcomed two baby girls into the world in June. Georgianna Hulett Elliott Williams and Ruth Robertson Elliot Williams—fraternal twins —are doing very well, as are their exhausted parents. Anne is consulting for a philanthropic marketing company as she con-

Ann Louise Elliot ’88 and her husband John Williams welcomed twin girls: Georgie is in yellow (left) and Ruthie is in pink (right).

templates a career change; she is enrolled in an interior design graduate program at the Corcoran. She and John love living in Washington, D.C., just a few blocks from Jess Hobart ’87. Adam Towvim married Laura Gomberg in October of this year. They were engaged for about eight months, after he proposed on a ski trip along the FrenchItalian border. They will live in Cambridge.

Adam Wolfberg writes that the Brigham and Women’s resident gynecology service brought him together with three other Milton alums: medical student Yetsa Tuakli-Wosornu ’97, and residents Whitfield Growdon ’94, and Chrissy Curley Skiadas ’95.

1989 Anneliese Euler is busy recording her second album and first full-length studio work, “The Singer-Songwriter Song.” She has a live EP, “Live Brie,” as well. Her Web site features MP3s, photos and video of her original comic cabaret work as invented character Brie Feingold-Africa. She is also teaching Pilates matwork and considering an M.F.A. in theatre. She recently spent time with Katy Henrickson ’88, Gala True ’88, and Sam Briger ’90, who are all parents!

Anne McManus Hurlbut ’91 and her husband Matthew welcomed William Dawson Hurlbut, on June 1, 2004.

grew up. “Come visit and I’ll show you the best jewelry market in the world.”

1990 John Costello and his wife Kate Costello announce the birth of Alessandra “Allie” Grace Costello on May 1, 2004. They are living in Westwood, Massachusetts. Anne Francis suffered a stroke in December 2003 at the age of 32. After being medi-flighted to Mass General Hospital, Anne

lost her ability to speak and her right hand was numb. She can see peripherally with her left eye and has full sight in her right eye. Anne recovered at home after spending four days in a rehab center. She owns a landscaping business, has a golden retriever, and has a wonderful boyfriend. Amy Saltonstall Isaac and husband Johnathan welcomed Molly Elizabeth Isaac on August 28, 2004, and reports that all is well!

Carolina Schweizer Hiebl was married on September 24, 2004. She and her husband have a baby girl, Rosely Sofie Marlene Hiebl, born May 5, 2004.

Matthew Day ’88 and his wife Tracy introduce Jackson Boland Day. Jackson was born March 16, 2004, weighing 8 lbs, 8 oz. Matthew, Tracy and Jackson are at home in Milton.

Emily Moore has had a busy couple of years. She got married in June 2003 and had a baby, Greta Ann Moore Sturgis, in September. She says parenthood is a lot of fun, but she hopes to get some sleep before long! Robert Rosenthal is moving to Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, where his wife Malini

David Niles ’90 married Ann Ciaglia this summer. After a pre-wedding party in New York City, attended by former Forbes dorm head David Dunbar and Forbes dormmates and classmates Nat Paynter, David Kimball, Adam Slocum and Marc Chung, the couple tied the knot in Barrington, Rhode Island. Pictured are Alexis Graves, Adam Slocum, Ann Ciaglia Niles, David Niles and Bo Thorne Niles ’62.

Milton Magazine

Sophie Coquillette Koven ’92 and her husband Jamie celebrated the birth of their second daughter, Annabel Frances Koven, on August 16, 2004. Their older daughter, Lucy, turned 3 in May 2004.

David Niles married Ann Ciaglia Niles this summer. After a prewedding party in New York City, attended by former Forbes dorm head David Dunbar and Forbes dormmates Nat Paynter, David Kimball, Adam Slocum, and Marc Chung, the couple tied the knot in Barrington, Rhode Island. Bo Thorne Niles ’62, Adam Slocum and Alexis Greeves attended the 30-person ceremony. Caroline Roberts got married September 18, 2004, to her medical school classmate Jacob Abraham. They are both doing fellowships at Johns Hopkins— he in cardiology and she in endocrinology. She hopes to see everyone at the reunion in May!

1991 Jamus and Tara Callahan Driscoll welcomed Ethan Wood Driscoll on October 9, 2004. He was 9 pounds, 8 ounces and so far is a very easygoing baby. Older brother Gabriel loves having a little brother to tell people about, but the cat and dog are still a bit unsure about this noisy new person. Anne McManus Hurlbut and her husband Matthew welcomed a son, William Dawson Hurlbut, on June 1, 2004. They live in Marion, Massachusetts.

Milton Magazine

Kate Brooks Leness and her husband Tony announce the birth of their daughter, Lucy Brooks Leness, who arrived on April 10, 2004. Jennifer Simon and her husband Fred Phillips joyfully announce the birth of their son, Jacob Samuel, on May 10, 2004.

1992 Sophie Coquillette Koven and her husband Jamie celebrated the birth of their second daughter, Annabel Frances Koven on August 16, 2004. Their older daughter, Lucy, turned 3 in May.

Jess Hayes McDaniel ’93 married Evan McDaniel in fall 2004. Pictured from left to right: Josh Senders, Katie Leeson ’93, Mike Lustbader, Jenn Frank Lustbader ’93, Talia Kohorn Senders ’93, Evan McDaniel, Jess Haynes McDaniel, Marissa Coyne, Chris Coyne ’93, Darren Ross ’93, Johanna Ross, Jess Yager ’93.

Priya Thomas Stephen lives with her husband Ben in Arlington, Virginia. She practices general pediatrics in Silver Spring, Maryland. She had a great time this summer catching up with Julia Travers, who was in town doing her M.B.A. internship with the United Way. She recently heard from Celina Kennedy, who is doing well in Portland, Oregon.

1994 Frederick Melo lives in Minneapolis, where he is a crime reporter for the St. Paul Pioneer Press. He welcomes any Milton folks interested in learning more about media careers to contact him. Susanna Zaraysky is working in the wine industry, but is also pursuing a career in freelance travel, feature, and short story writing.

1993 Maureen Lyons teaches social studies at Pollard Middle School in Needham. She also coaches girls’ basketball at Needham High School and works at Milton at the Saturday Course and Sports PLUS. Jess Hayes McDaniel married Evan McDaniel in early fall. A big crew of Milton folks was there. Galt Niederhoffer sold her novel, was engaged to her boyfriend Jim and gave birth to her daughter, Magnolia Breyer Strouse. Her production company, Plum Pictures, will have two movies at Sundance this year. Galt, Jim and Magnolia live in New York.

Milton graduates joined Charlie Everett ’94 and Caty James at their wedding September 5 in Little Compton, Rhode Island: back row from left, Brendan Everett ’91, Parker Everett ’97, Ian Zilla ’94, Will Coleman ’94, Dave Rockwell, Lars Albright ’93, Connor Spreng, Charlie Everett ’94, Caty James (bride), Nika Thayer ’94, her ﬁancé Greg Mone, Vanessa Hynes ’94, Dan and Jennifer Parkes, Jessica Horak Stout ’94 and John Bamford; front row, Walter Horak ’65, J.P. Ribiero, Kathleen Campbell, Tim Langloss, Lawson Allen Albright, Devon White ’94 and Dwight Angelini

Moriah Campbell-Holt Musto ’96 married Christopher Musto on August 1, 2004. Pictured (from left) are Alice Burley ’96, David Dildine ’96, Moriah Musto ’96, Christopher Musto (groom), Mary Johannsen Warner ’95, Laura De Girolami Vander Elst ’96.

Charlie Everett and Caty James were married on September 5, 2004, in Little Compton, Rhode Island, where many Milton alumni helped celebrate.

1995 Nat Kreamer accepted a commission as an officer in the U.S. Navy, serving in a reserve capacity for the Office of Naval Intelligence when he’s not working as a consultant for Price Waterhouse Coopers in New York. Shana McMenimon McCarthy and her husband Ryan are expecting their first baby this May.

1996 Moriah Campbell-Holt married Christopher Musto on August 14, 2004, in Marion, Massachusetts. Milton grads in attendance were Alice Burley, Laura De Girolami Vander Elst, David Dildine and Mary Johannsen Warner ’95. Moriah is head cross-country and track coach at the Winsor School in Boston (with Mary Warner as the assistant coach) and also works in the online banking group at Citizens Bank. First Lieutenant Philip H. Dickinson married Moira Muholland on August 22, 2004 at the Old Post Chapel, Fort

Myers, Virginia. Spencer E. Dickinson, III ’93 was the best man, Sarah Dickinson ’98 a bridesmaid, and Nat Kreamer ’95 a groomsman. Phil and Moira will live in northern Virginia, where he is serving in the “Old Guard” 3rd Infantry Regiment and she is working at the state department. Peter Huoppi was married in November 2003 to Jennifer Close. They both graduated from Middlebury and now live in Burlington, where he is a staff photographer for the Burlington Free Press.

Nine friends from the Class of 1997 celebrated 10 years of friendship on Labor Day 2004 in New Hampshire. From left to right, back to front: Heather McGhee ’97, Lauren Wahtera ’97, Lily Davis ’97, Annie Moyer ’97, Lisa Balzano ’97, Emily Brooks ’97, Meroe Morse ’97, Alex Muenze ’97 and Alyssa Friedman ’97.

Brooks, Meroe Morse, Alex Muenze and Alyssa Friedman came together to celebrate 10 years of friendship. The bulk of them entered Milton in Class III in 1994, so Labor Day 2004 marked 10 years of close friendship that has not only endured but grown. In true Milton Academy style, they had blue and orange T-shirts made—the front featured a mustang and “1994–2004” and the back read “10 Years Strong.” The group was hosted by Emily Brooks at

her family house in Franconia, New Hampshire. Heather McGhee is developing economic policy at Demos, a think tank in New York. Lauren Wahtera lives with Alex Muenze in Boston and is pursuing a nursing career. Lily Davis published her first book, an English translation of the French biography The First Rasta. Annie Moyer runs a jobs program for juvenile offenders at a New York City courthouse. Lisa Balzano will attend medical school in New York next fall.

Phil Schmid lives in Los Angeles and works in finance at HBO. He is enrolled in an M.B.A. program at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management. He reports that he makes times for surfing and playing bass in a psychedelic-rock revival band. He occasionally crosses paths with many Milton alumni and recently saw Eliot Wadsworth’s ’96 New York–based band, The Head Set, at the Key Club on Sunset Boulevard. “See them if you get a chance, they are amazing.”

1997 On Labor Day weekend this year, Heather McGhee, Lauren Wahtera, Lily Davis, Annie Moyer, Lisa Balzano, Emily

The Brigham and Women’s resident gynecology service in August brought together four Milton alums: (from left) Harvard medical student Yetsa TuakliWosornu ’97, and residents Chrissy Skiadas ’95, Whitﬁeld Growdon ’94 and Adam Wolfberg ’88.

Milton Magazine

Lydon Friedrich ’98 married Eli Vonnegut, bringing together some Milton community members. Back row: Simon Rasin ’98, Mackie Dougherty ’99, Christopher Palmer ’96; middle row: Debbie Simon (faculty), Kate MacCluggage ’00, Eli Vonnegut, Lydon Friedrich Vonnegut, Lindsay Haynes ’98 and Nia Jacobs ’98, bridesmaids, Randy Cox (former faculty), Lila Dupree ’98; front row: Sarah McGinty ’98 and bridesmaid, Lyh-Ping Lam ’98, Danny Schlozman ’99.

Emily Brooks, an advertising executive, is running the New York marathon this year! Meroe Morse works at Sloan-Kettering in New York and is heading toward medical school. Alex Muenze is getting her master’s in public health from Boston University, and Alyssa Friedman is a social worker in New York City.

1998 Many Milton alumni attended Lydon Friedrich Vonnegut’s recent wedding. Lydon and her husband Eli live in Ann Arbor,

where Eli attends law school at the University of Michigan and Lydon teaches at Stony Creek Preschool. She plans to get her master’s at Columbia when the couple returns to New York.

1999 Amanda Drummond Conley married Chris Conley in June on Martha’s Vineyard, with many Milton alumni there to share the day. Amanda teaches math at Tabor Academy.

2000 David Huoppi graduated from Trinity in May, where he received the Robert Stewart Mathematics Prize and the Larry Silver Athletic Prize. He now teaches math at Salisbury School, where he is also a dorm parent and coaches sailing and lacrosse.

2002

Civil Affairs Specialist Nick Morton ’02 is serving in Baghdad.

Milton Magazine

Libby Hadzima and Kate Brodie completed The Stretch, the Dartmouth earth science offcampus program. They were joined by graduate student Colin O’Farrell ’99. All three traveled around the West Coast from Montana south to Arizona and then west through Nevada and California studying geology.

Amanda Drummond ’99 married Chris Conley in June. Pictured are John Blanchard ’99, Shira Milikowsky ’99, Amanda Drummond Conley ’99, Chris Conley, Hannah Labaree ’99, Sarah Schram ’99, Terence Burek ’99, Adele Burnes ’99.

Nick Morton is a civil affairs specialist with the 443rd Battalion, based in Warwick, Rhode Island. He is serving in Baghdad. If you would like contact information for Nick, please email his mother at pmorton@surfbest.net.

Remembering Our Friends Classmates or friends of recently deceased alumni are welcome to honor their friends by writing remembrances. We will print remembrances in Class Notes as space allows. You may direct questions to Cathy Everett, editor, at Cathy_Everett@milton.edu.

Deaths 1924 Katherine Dalton Hitch 1930 Lloyd Brown Nancy (Hannah) Saltonstall 1931 Elizabeth Perkins Nickerson 1934 Edward L. Barnes 1935 David Waddell Lillie 1936 Phillips C. Hallowell 1937 Sydney Biddle Katharine Skinner Cook 1938 Mary Mulligan McKee 1943 Clarke Freeman Peter Knox 1951 Joseph Conzelman 1952 John J. Reddy III 1955 Jonathan Knowlton 1959 Peter Kane 1991 Alexandra (Lexi) Rudnitsky 1998 Addison (Addi) Franklin Lyon Friends Albert J. Kelley P ’75 and former trustee

The Boston Globe September 24, 2004

Edward Barnes; Helped Shape Modernism in Architecture Edward Larrabee Barnes, one of the leading American architects of his generation, died September 21, 2004, of complications from a stroke suffered in April. He was 89. He and his wife Mary had made their home in Harvard Square since 1995, after he retired from his New York office. As an architect, Mr. Barnes was known as a modernist who stuck to the modernist creed, ignoring changing fashions as he crafted a personal style of his own. He studied architecture at Harvard University, where he was one of a remarkable generation of young designers attracted to that school in the 1940s by Walter Gropius, the former director of the Bauhaus School in Germany. Gropius’s students, including Philip Johnson, IM Pei, and Paul Rudolph, led the nation into modernism in the decades after World War II. Mr. Barnes’s early work was notable for crisply geometrical buildings, often of richly textured wood or shingle. The best known is the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts on Deer Isle, Maine, built in 1961, an informal cluster of shed-roofed pavilions and dock-like pathways that seems to float above the forest site as it spills down a hillside toward the ocean. Haystack had a strong influence on other architects who, like Mr. Barnes, were seeking a humane version of modernism. In 1994, it won the prestigious Twenty-Five Year Award from the American Institute of Architects, a prize awarded annually to an American building that has stood the test of time.

Among his many later buildings are the IBM Corporate Headquarters tower on Madison Avenue in New York, with its generous public greenhouse filled with clumps of bamboo; the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, often cited by curators as among the best museums in the nation; the Dallas Museum of Art; a master plan for the State University of New York at Purchase; and the Thurgood Marshall Federal Judiciary Building in Washington. Mr. Barnes was born in Chicago in 1915. His father was a lawyer and Harvard graduate and his mother, Margaret Ayer Barnes, was a writer who won the 1931 Pulitzer Prize for her novel Years of Grace. Mr. Barnes attended Milton Academy and Harvard, where he was president of the Glee Club and a varsity wrestler. He started Harvard as an English major, but later switched to architectural history. After college, he briefly taught English and other subjects at Milton Academy. He was inspired to become an architect after a visit to two houses in Lincoln, which Gropius and his colleague Marcel Breuer had built for themselves. Mr. Barnes returned to Harvard and received his master of architecture degree in 1942.

He found little government support for affordable housing and moved to New York where he started his own practice in 1949. His wife Mary, who studied architecture in London, was among his collaborators and also served as curator of architecture at the Museum of Modern Art from 1947 to 1949. Mr. Barnes was a tall, lanky, softspoken man who dressed in preppie tweeds and seersuckers. Until late in life, he spent an hour each morning running outdoors. He did most of his designing on weekends in his house in Mt. Kisco, N.Y., where he had a studio, and he would go to the New York office on Monday mornings with carefully worked out drawings for his staff. He was a person of warmth and charm, and in spite of his success, of great modesty. He liked his buildings to be as simple and logical as his clothes. They do not attempt to be flamboyantly original works of art. They are, rather, places that fit their sites, their inhabitants, and their purposes. They often have a spare and understated simplicity.

Mr. Barnes’s buildings in New England, besides Haystack, include the 28 State Street office tower in Boston (formerly New England Merchants Bank); the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Burlington, Vt.; Old Stone Square office building in Providence; dormitories at the Harvard Divinity School, St. Paul’s School, Deerfield Academy, and Bennington and Middlebury colleges; and a number of private houses. A book on his work, Edward Larrabee Barnes: Architect, published in 1994, lists 123 works. Mr. Barnes won numerous awards. He received the Thomas Jefferson Medal from the University of Virginia in 1981 and a 350th Anniversary Medal from Harvard in 1986. He was a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. In 1980, his firm received the Firm Award from the American Institute of Architects. He leaves his wife Mary; a son, John, an architect who is director of campus planning at the University of California-Santa Cruz; and two granddaughters. Copyright 2004, Globe Newspaper Company The Boston Globe Reprinted with permission

After serving during World War II in the Naval Reserve in San Francisco, he worked in California for designer Henry Dreyfus on the development of low-cost, prefabricated housing. “At that time there was no question in my mind that modern architecture and social commitment were inextricably linked,” he once said.

Milton Magazine

Providing for Milton’s Future Lucius Wilmerding III ’48 Safeguards School’s ‘Truths and Traditions’

Consistency marks the generosity of Lucius Wilmerding III ’48: He supports Milton’s Annual Fund regularly and has established two charitable gift annuities that grant lifetime income for him and will later help grow the School’s endowment. Lucius was in Class VI as the United States entered World War II. Younger faculty members were going off to war and many retired faculty returned to the classroom. “We had the best teachers,” Lucius says. Lucius appreciates the intellectual discipline that Milton gave him. “The curriculum trained our minds to make accurate judgments,” he says. “I also value friendships begun at Milton, which have deepened over time as we recognize the perspectives shared and the depth of wisdom imparted. “Now our gifts to Milton Academy assure that the School’s truths and traditions are offered to each new class as it takes up the challenge and excitement of School life that we knew over 50 years ago.”

Adela and Lucius Wilmerding

Milton Magazine

For information on planned giving options at Milton, please contact Suzie Hurd Greenup ’75 in the development office at 617-898-2376 or suzie_greenup@milton.edu.

Milton Academy Board of Trustees, 2005

Bradley M. Bloom Wellesley, Massachusetts William T. Burgin ’61 Dover, Massachusetts Jorge Castro ’75 Pasadena, California Edward Dugger III Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts James M. Fitzgibbons ’52 Emeritus Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts Victoria Hall Graham ’81 Haverford, Pennsylvania Margaret Jewett Greer ’47 Emerita Chevy Chase, Maryland Antonia Monroe Grumbach ’61 Secretary New York, New York J. Tomilson Hill ’66 New York, New York

Franklin W. Hobbs IV ’65 President New York, New York Barbara Hostetter Boston, Massachusetts Ogden M. Hunnewell ’70 Vice President Brookline, Massachusetts Harold W. Janeway ’54 Emeritus Webster, New Hampshire David B. Jenkins ’49 Duxbury, Massachusetts George A. Kellner Vice President New York, New York Helen Lin ’80 Hong Kong F. Warren McFarlan ’55 Belmont, Massachusetts Carol Smith Miller Boston, Massachusetts Tracy Pun Palandjian ’89 Belmont, Massachusetts

Richard C. Perry ’73 New York, New York John P. Reardon ’56 Vice President Cohasset, Massachusetts John S. Reidy ’56 Boston, Massachusetts Kevin Reilly Jr. ’73 Baton Rouge, Louisiana Robin Robertson Head of School Milton, Massachusetts H. Marshall Schwarz ’54 Emeritus New York, New York Karan Sheldon ’73 Blue Hill Falls, Maine Frederick G. Sykes ’65 Rye, New York Jide J. Zeitlin ’81 Treasurer New York, New York

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