Spring 2020 MKA Review Magazine

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THE MAGAZINE OF

MONTCLAIR KIMBERLEY ACADEMY SP R I N G 2 0 2 0

NITY U M M O C L A T D AND VI E T C E N N MKA?” O C Y H A W “ , N O I T E QUES ANSWERS TH

THE MAGAZINE OF

MONTCLAIR KIMBERLEY ACADEMY SPRI N G 20 2 0

F E ATURE

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MKA’s Parent Community:

A connected and vital community answers the question, “Why MKA?”

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F ROM THE HE AD MASTER

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MKA Campus, student, and faculty news

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AR E MKA Stories of Giving

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CLASS NOT ES

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Evidence of our mission is found in the KNOWLEDGE, VISION and INTEGRITY of our students and our alumni: K N OW L EDGE • Academic excellence • Intellectual independence • Love of learning

Editors Gretchen Berra Kim Saunders Design Aldeia www.aldeia.desgn Copy Editors Diane Lundy Marnie McNany Assistant Editors Ashley Conde Eric Gutierrez Rebecca Turcotte Contributors Jenn Baratta Chris Kenrick Laela Perkins Talia Selove

VISION • Personal engagement with the world • Understanding of human complexity • A sense of humility and compassion I N TEG R ITY • Strength of character • Responsibility as a citizen and leader • An honorable and generous life

Photographers Michael Branscom Steve Clayton Derek Morf Karen Schifferdecker

FALL 2015

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F RO M T H E H E A D M AST E R

The Parent Voice

BY T H O MAS W. NA M M AC K

The mission and morale of an independent school are powered by a community to which everyone has freely chosen to belong. All of us, students, parents, and colleagues, have other choices. Building our faculty, our student body, and our community comes down to saying “yes” to MKA’s reason for being and believing in the promise of its mission. A purely transactional relationship with MKA would be like owning a high-performance automobile that never gets out of second gear.

The act of choosing brings forward people who are diverse by many measures yet bound together by common values and aspirations. The integrity of the school depends upon our capacity to be inclusive of all people who say “yes” to MKA. The perspectives and voices of MKA’s parents provide essential motivation, insights, and feedback, and we strive to listen, reflect, and respond to what our parents share about the MKA experience. Our network of PAMKA volunteers, the Parent Admissions Ambassadors, our MKA Fund volunteers, and our parent affinity groups are examples of structures created by the school to foster collaboration among parents and MKA. These volunteer roles provide invaluable dividends in terms of understanding how parents and students experience MKA. Communication among teachers, advisors, and parents is a robust and essential component in MKA’s commitment to know each student well as a person and a learner. The most effective schoolhome relationships are built through conversations, meetings, assessments of student progress, and shared community experiences. Challenging students and encouraging them to take the risks that lead to

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personal growth have to be matched with a range of safety nets devised by teachers, advisors, coaches, and parents. The shared aspiration for each student’s success is what keeps communication strong and generative among us all.

There are certainly moments when we will each wonder, “Is the school listening?” “Are the parents hearing us?” Those are instances when asking clarifying questions is critical. Assumptions and judgments can erode any relationship, and I write this as someone for whom the press of time or the appearance of urgency can occasionally interfere with my understanding. The full capacity of the parent voice at MKA is not about building the homeschool relationship, but in re-building and restoring the partnership when there have been unmet expectations. Few gestures are as compelling, to the school or to our parents, as when the other chooses to reach out and seek greater understanding in order to do what is best for an MKA student. ■

A HONORING DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

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The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “Let us realize the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” It doesn’t happen by itself, but rather through the actions of pioneers who are willing to go against the tide of tyranny. On Wednesday, January 22, 2020, the MKA Middle School Dance Program, under the direction of Monica Elmore, held its annual performance to honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and selected prominent human rights activists and humanitarians from around the world.

The courageous leaders featured in the program also included Bayard Rustin, Barack Obama, Nelson Mandela, Ellen DeGeneres, Mahatma Gandhi, Chance the Rapper, Maya Angelou, Harriet Tubman, Harvey Milk, Rosa Parks, James Baldwin, Cesar Chavez, Angela Davis, Lena Horne, Mariela Castro, and Jane Elliott.

Both the in-school assembly and evening performances began with a heartfelt introduction

by Dr. Randy Kleinman who spoke about how Dr. King fought for the civil rights of African Americans along with advocating for the vulnerable, marginalized, and the oppressed. His speech also captured the essence of how Dr. King reminded our nation what a true democracy should look like for all.

The program included many outstanding performances at all grade levels that incorporated a variety of dance genres, including tap, lyrical, contemporary modern, and hip-hop. A highlight of the evening was the sixth, seventh, and eighth grade Chinese class performances that were choreographed under the direction of Ms. Zhang in honor of the Year of the Rat. Students incorporated flags, flowing fans, and the powerful grace of tai chi into their celebration of Chinese culture. Another highlight was the Middle School Step Team performance coached by Ms. Yesenia RaveloRodriguez. Congratulations to all on a beautiful and moving performance!

IN T HIS SECT IO N : Big News Campus News Student News Faculty News Athletics

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COLLABOR ATION ACROSS CAMPUSES The Middle School Student Ed Tech leaders traveled to Brookside to work on a project with our littlest learners, utilizing littleBits electronic building blocks to engineer and solve real-life problems.

KINDERGARTEN AND NINTH GRADE STUDENTS CAME TOGETHER FOR AN EXCITING MORNING ACTIVITY. All ninth graders take a Global Citizenship course based upon Design Thinking (from Stanford’s d.School). Students learn more about themselves and consider how they can engage with both their local and global communities in an informed and ethical way. The 5 Stages of Design Thinking are: Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test. The ninth graders created and tested prototypes and partnered with kindergarten students for this process. Studies have shown that, out of several groups who were tasked with making a prototype, kindergarteners came out on top because they were willing to experiment, receive feedback, and then make adjustments. Meeting up at Nishuane Park in Montclair, ninth grade and kindergarten students were divided into teams and tried to create the “best” catapult they could. A great time was had by all, and varying degrees of success were attained! This activity is a clear and exciting example of Goal 2: A One-School Community of the Strategic Plan in that students were integrated and connected across campuses “in ways that are inclusive, creative, and practical.”

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In September, a group of Middle and Upper School students, joined by teachers and Headmaster Tom Nammack, marched in solidarity with over 100,000 people in NYC during the Climate Strike. Students made signs, yelled chants, and showed their enthusiasm for making dramatic changes to address Climate Change.

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DIWALI CELEBRATIONS WERE JOYFUL AT MKA IN OCTOBER. Primary and Middle School students dressed in traditional Indian clothing in honor of the holiday.

Students at the Primary School enjoyed an interactive dance performance from Ajna Dance Company to help them learn about and celebrate Diwali. Thanks to generous parents, students at the Middle School celebrated during lunch with delicious Indian food, festive music, and henna tattoos for all to enjoy.

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MKA Middle School students (Grades 6-8) dropped into the Black History Month flex to explore The People’s House Virtual Reality Goggle experience.

The historic visit to Former President Barack Obama and Former First Lady Michelle Obama’s White House took the students on an intimate journey of the West Wing, Executive, and Private Residences, reflecting their time there. Students felt as though they had spent 15 minutes in a private meeting with the former President and First Lady.

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News Shorts

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OUR YOUNGEST COUGARS ENJOY LUNCH IN THE NEW CAFETORIUM AT THE PRIMARY SCHOOL! [ 1 ] CONGRATULATIONS TO MKA UPPER SCHOOL STUDENT NICK BAUM WHO PUBLISHED HIS BOOK, THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM ON AMAZON. The book, dedicated to MKA alum and former teacher Jess Bishop ’04, is the story of eighth-grader Nicholas Baum, an outspoken conservative

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and Trump supporter who lives in Essex County, NJ, the most liberal county in the blue state.

In his private middle school, Nick faces daily encounters and obstacles that challenge his political beliefs but remains firm on his stances. The Elephant in the Room is a firsthand retelling of stories, thoughts, and hopes from Nick, including his stances, love of New Jersey, anxieties, Jewish heritage, and how they all play a part in shaping his political affiliation. Despite your politics or political beliefs, Nick

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teaches the valuable lesson of never backing down and always standing up for what you believe in. [ 2 ] CONGRATULATIONS TO MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENT TYLER RIZZO WHO WAS CHOSEN AS THE WINNER OF SEASON 10’S AMERICAN NINJA WARRIOR OBSTACLE DESIGN CHALLENGE! His design inspired the Barrel Roll used in the Seattle/Tacoma course. [ 3 ]

SENIORS ENROLLED IN THE NEW YORK CITY LITERATURE AND HISTORY CLASS TOOK A GUIDED WALKING TOUR OF HARLEM. The tour explored the history of Harlem, from its origins as a Dutch Farming village in the 1600s through its transformation into the “Capital of Black America” by the 1920s.

Among the sites they visited were the Abyssinian Baptist Church, Striver’s Row, the original office of the NAACP, and the meeting place for Marcus Garvey’s UNIA. [ 4 ]

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FACULTY BASKETBALL GAME The Middle School Student Government under the leadership of CherylAnne Amendola and Shanie Israel, together with PAMKA, organized another successful Students vs.

Faculty basketball game on January 31.

The beneficiary of the proceeds from this year’s game is the VHL Alliance, an organization dedicated to research, education, and support for those affected by VHL, or Von Hippel-Lindau.

The Middle School gym was packed full of excited students and families during this night focused on fun and charity.

Sixth and seventh graders started off the night with a “mini-game” in which combined teams played one another to warm up the crowd. Chamber singers sang the national anthem prior to the main event of faculty versus the 8th grade students. The Middle School Pep Band brought the energy up a notch with their musical narration of the events of the evening’s game. Both the faculty and the student teams played their hearts out, but the faculty ultimately prevailed as the 2020 victors.

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Student Awards

IT IS WITH GREAT PLEASURE THAT MKA CONGRATULATES SENIOR ALEXANDER CHON ON HIS SELECTION AS ONE OF NEW JERSEY’S TWO DELEGATES TO THE 2020 UNITED STATES SENATE YOUTH PROGRAM (USSYP).

Alex was chosen based on his “outstanding leadership abilities, high scholastic standing, strong commitment to [his] school and community, and interest in government, history, and politics.” The program invites juniors and seniors who are selected from each of the 50 states plus the District of Columbia and the Department of Defense Education Activity to meet with high 103 other delegates in Washington, DC for a week-long intensive program on government and leadership. After completion of the program, all participants will be eligible for a $10,000 undergraduate college scholarship. The United States Senate Youth Program is in its fifty-eighth year and is fully funded by the Hearst Foundation. Alex is the current Student Body President, the Editor-in-Chief of the school’s newspaper, The Academy News, and a captain of the Cross-Country Team. We are so pleased that his strong record of leadership and academic achievement has been recognized by such a prestigious organization, and we wish him the very best as he experiences the USSYP.

Senior Amanda Mack is one of twenty girls selected from seven New Jersey counties to participate in the prestigious 2019 Debutante Leadership Program. This notable program has been offered every other year for the past 27 years, by invitation only, to outstanding high school junior and senior girls who have demonstrated academic excellence and a commitment to community service.

Debutantes participate in educational, cultural, social, and community service activities, and complete weeks of dance rehearsals with their escorts and fathers. The culmination of the ten-month program was the illustrious 14th Biennial Emerald and Ivory Debutante Cotillion. Amanda found out about the program because she is part of Jack and Jill of America, and many of the mothers in the chapter are also Essex County Links members. In addition to preparing for the event, Amanda and her fellow participants attended an etiquette session, participated in a Women to Women initiative which sponsored a woman from the Congo, and collected toiletries and sanitary products to support victims of domestic violence. Congratulations to Amanda!

SOPHOMORE JACKIE TSAI HAS BEEN RECOGNIZED WITH TWO AWARDS BY THE ROYAL CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC FOR PIANO. After completing several practical exams and fulfilling prerequisites, Jackie was awarded both a Center Certificate of Excellence and a State Certificate of Excellence at Level 9 out of 10. “The Royal Conservatory Certificate Program provides a recognized standard of musical achievement through an effectively sequenced system of study and individual student assessments, from preparatory to advanced levels.” (www. rcmusic.com) Congratulations to Jackie on her Certificates of Excellence for piano!

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2018-2019 UPPER SCHOOL UNDERCLASSMAN AWARD RECIPIENTS Due to spatial constraints in the Fall 2019 issue of the Review magazine, we were unable to list the underclassman award recipients for the 2018-2019 school year. Please find recipient names here and help us congratulate these outstanding students that have been honored with Academic, Service, and Athletic Awards. We could not be more proud of their hard work, dedication, and the impressive feats they accomplished during the 2018-2019 school year!

A BIG CONGRATULATIONS TO THE VARSITY FOOTBALL TEAM WHO RAISED $1,800 FOR GO 4 THE GOAL. Go 4 the Goal is an organization that aims to improve the lives of children battling cancer by providing financial support, developing and implementing unique hospital programs, funding innovative research, and granting personal wishes.

UND E RCL ASSME N AWARDS

DEPARTMENT & FACULTY AWARDS The French Prize: Natalia Eichmann Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Medal: Beyer White

MKA STUDENTS RECEIVE NATIONAL ACADEMIC RECOGNITION MKA Seniors Michelle Medawar and Julian OkunDubitsky have been named Semifinalists in the 2020 National Merit® Scholarship Program. The National Merit® Scholarship Program is in its 65th year and is an academic competition for recognition and scholarships that includes approximately 1.5 million entrants each year. The 2018 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test served as an initial screening of program entrants for this year. Montclair resident Julian Okun-Dubitsky and South Orange resident Michelle Medawar will be considered for National Merit Scholarships as the selection of some 7,500 Merit Scholarship® winners from the group of more than 16,000 Semifinalists is now in progress.

Congratulations to Michelle and Julian on this tremendous accomplishment!

NICO EIDEN ’21 AND HIS BROTHER ALEX EIDEN ’17 HAVE BEEN APPLAUDED BY THE INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF CATHOLIC UNIVERSITIES (IFCU). Alex is currently majoring in international business, computer science, and Japanese at Villanova, and both brothers have been incredibly active as philanthropic innovators. Their original quest was to eliminate the fear of fractions in Caribbean schools after meeting Sal Khan, founder of Khan Academy. Today, they seek to level the playing field for academic advancement. Their efforts help students advance their math proficiencies and coding confidences, and many more school computer labs have been updated with thousands of new devices complimenting MKA’s original donation of 50 repurposed iPads! In November, Nico and Alex returned from three days of meetings in Washington DC with international agencies that could lead to better futures for even more youth in developing nations.

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Feagley Award for Creativity: Kendall Larrier The Frank Brogan Memorial Award: Isabella Liu The John Rabke Memorial Award: Kayla Zur

COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARDS BRONZE 11TH GRADE Amna Arain, Yousef Cheema, Alex Chon, AJ Christian, Natalia Eichmann, Arman Ganchi, Diana Kazarian, Maya Kwapniewski, Isabella Liu, Mattie O’Donnell, Biren Pramanik, Naren Rajani, Sydney Weinstein, Nathalie Wilson, Kayla Zur 10TH GRADE Elizabeth Esterow, Caleb Hofmann, Spencer Goldberg, OB Sedransk, Dan Stehr 9TH GRADE Michael Bronstein, Olivia OkunDubitsky, Kate Weinstein

John Rabuse History Prize: Michelle Medawar

SILVER 9TH GRADE Chloe Lebovitch

The Elliot Furbert Memorial Award: Yasamin Elmasry

GOLD 11TH GRADE Cristina Cusmai, Ainsley Manlowe

The MacVicar Prize: John Colbert, Christina Cusmai, Arnelle Larose, Emily Talkow

10TH GRADE Aron Dyadyuk

FACULTY SCHOLAR AWARDS 9TH GRADE Milo Blake, Natalia Espinosa-Dice, Dhruv Jetley, Noah Weinberg 10TH GRADE Anthony DiMaggio, George Eilender, Isa Lucas, Rohan Moniz, Isabella Szyfer 11TH GRADE John Colbert, Natalia Eichmann, Isabella Liu, Beyer White

9TH GRADE Jess Christian

ATHLETIC AWARDS Klein Awards: 9TH GRADE Chloe Skipper, John Testa 10TH GRADE Lindsey Yu, Zack Wheeler 11TH GRADE Emily Talkow, Charlie Koenig

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All-School Gathering Montclair Kimberley Academy’s Annual All-School Gathering Highlights the Strengths and Talents of a Diverse and Inclusive Community The All-School Gathering celebrates community, highlights the depth of talent across all three campuses, and officially starts the school year. Celebrated for the 26th time on October 11, the event brought energy and lots of noise to the Fairleigh Dickinson Gymnasium at the Upper School. Approximately 1,040 MKA students, over 200 faculty and staff members, and many special guests were treated to performances and ceremonies that illustrated the sense of community that permeates the school. At the helm for his 14th Gathering, Headmaster Tom Nammack said, “There are a number of students who are here this morning to offer all of us the gift of their performances—not just to entertain us, but to connect with a community that they trust, in a place that all here can claim as a second home.”

Performances by the Brookside Bellringers, Middle and Upper School Chamber Singers, Middle and Upper School Jazz Ensembles, Middle School Dance Ensemble, Upper School Advanced Dance Class, and the Upper School a cappella group Remix were interspersed throughout the event and included an incredible solo performance of “At Last” by senior Elizabeth Appel-Caraccioli. MKA’s robust and successful athletics program celebrated individual and team accomplishments with the presentation of athletic honors from 2018–19, as well as by rousing performances from the MKA Cheerleaders and this year’s faculty/staff Step Team. Individual student academic, athletic, and fine and performing arts accomplishments were celebrated with the awarding of MKA sweaters.

Flanked by the portraits of Montclair Academy founder John MacVicar and The Kimberley School founder Mary K. Waring, Mr. Nammack touched upon the school’s history when he recognized Lori Daskowitz, a member of the Business Office, for her 30 years of service to the school. Other employees reaching this milestone this year include Teri Butler and Karen Newman.

Alumni Council Secretary Lhenée McCoy ’05, celebrated the hard work and dedication of the entire school’s faculty, and she presented the 2019 Founders’ Cup for Teaching Excellence to long-time Upper School science teacher and basketball coach Tony Jones. Nominated by current and former students as well as colleagues, Mr. Jones’s ability to relate to students in and out of the classroom and his 12

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high-standards of academic and personal excellence clearly reflect the guidelines for the award itself.

Middle School 8th Grade Class President Hilal Tokat encouraged her fellow students to, “Contribute to the MKA community in whichever way we can. Let’s help each other to be better people.” She suggested that everyone reach for his or her “Personal Best” in the words of late teacher and coach Tom Fleming. Upper School Student Government President Alexander Chon reflected on his past experiences and celebrated the traditions and the special aspects of each MKA campus. Senior Class President Charlie Koenig led one of the celebration’s most special traditions of all when kindergarteners crossed a bridge to be welcomed on the other side by seniors who give them each a very friendly toy cougar.

From the sea of MKA spirit gear to the cheers for kindergartners receiving MKA Cougars, school spirit was high (and loud)! The All-School Gathering concluded when the youngest member of the community, Aspen (Class of 2032), and Madison Green, a current senior who rang the bell herself as a kindergartener, rang the Academy Bell to officially mark the start of MKA’s 132nd school year.

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“ There are a number of students who are here this morning to offer all of us the gift of their performances— not just to entertain us, but to connect with a community that they trust, in a place that all here can claim as a second home.”

– Tom Nammack, MKA Headmaster

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BIG News

All the world is a stage for our littlest cougars, thanks to the Primary School’s new state-of-the-art auditorium. This new gathering space is the heart of the newly renovated Brookside Campus and will continue to impact school programing in ways yet to be discovered. From the first performance by Ms. Kathy Sasena’s first grade class to the inaugural third grade pajama party, the Primary School students and faculty are finding countless ways to expand into their new wing and enjoy the sun-soaked spaces of the new dining hall, auditorium, admissions suite, and entryway gallery.

To celebrate the official opening of the new wing, MKA hosted a Ribbon

Cutting Reception on Saturday, October 19 as part of Homecoming & Reunion Weekend. Over 150 parents, students, grandparents, alumni, faculty, staff, and friends wandered through the building, played on the new playground, and enjoyed a short program of speeches

by Headmaster Tom Nammack, Board of Trustees President Kate Logan, and Primary School Head of Campus Rachel Geringer-Dunn.

In a special tribute, Tom Nammack thanked the current fourth grade class for providing a powerful source of inspiration for this project. “The faculty, Trustees, and the architects saw the wonderful creativity of your projects,

plays and performances, art work, and special events, and we got very excited as we imagined what you could do with more elbow room – with the beautiful and versatile spaces we have added to the campus. Thank you, Class of 2028.”

MKA is also grateful for the generous philanthropic support provided by the MKA alumni, families, and friends who made this project possible, many of whom came together to name the school’s new main entrance in honor of our beloved, former Head of Primary School Ginger Kriegel. This support and belief in MKA’s vision ensures a legacy for present and future generations of Brookside students.

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Arts HELD ON SEPTEMBER 13, “ARTS UNDER THE STARS” WAS A WONDERFUL SEASON KICKOFF

While sitting outside in the Upper School Amphitheater in beautiful fall weather, a full audience enjoyed music from both Remix & Chamber Singers. They took time to look at interesting and sublime artwork made by student artists from all three campuses, and lastly, they were entertained by Upper School actors in select Shakespeare scenes that ranged from the dramatic to the comedic.

On January 24, the MKA Middle School wrapped up its celebrations to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with a Jazz Band Luncheon for all students, faculty, and parents who wished to attend. The Jazz Band, led by Linda Larkin, performed jazz standards that were popular during Dr. King’s lifetime: Charlie Parker’s “My Little Suede Shoes,” Dizzy Gillespie, Luciano Pozo Gonzalez, and Walter Gil Fuller’s “Manteca,” Sid Wyche and Mayme Watts’ “Alright, Ok, You Win,” and ending with Nat Adderley’s “Work Song.” The Jazz Band gave rousing performances at all three lunches and were enthusiastically supported by their classmates at each. It was an exciting end to a celebratory week.

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Whodunnit?

Clue is a hysterical melodrama that took over Deetjen Theatre in November. The original four-show run sold out in less than 24 hours, so the final dress rehearsal was opened as a Preview Performance, which then also sold out! A late-night, for-studentsonly performance was added and followed the Friday night show (also sold out). The entire cast & crew worked tirelessly to create this “choreographed chaos� onstage which was done flawlessly and provided much-needed laughter to many.

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SPOOKLEY MKA’s littlest thespians in 1S take the stage for the first time in the Primary School’s new auditorium for the “Spookley the Square Pumpkin” performance.

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Faculty Spotlight Steve Valentine-Published Author, Sought-After Speaker, Academic Thought Leader. It is difficult to name all the roles that Assistant Head of Upper School Steve Valentine assumes in the course of a day: teacher, advisor, author, and speaker cover just a few, but leader is what comes to mind most of all. The published author of three books finds himself in demand and fortunate enough to engage in conversations that span the topics of education, leadership, and professional growth. Most recently, Mr. Valentine published Make Yourself Clear, a book about the ways a teaching mindset can be applied to work of all kinds, not just the work done in schools. Mr. Valentine’s work as an author has led to presentations on large stages and interviews with renowned thinkers. He has spoken at South by Southwest EDU, and more recently, at Google. Additionally, he has published interviews with Aswath Damodaran, aka the “Dean of Wall Street,” and bestselling creativity guru, Austin Kleon. Next up, he’ll be publishing a conversation with physicist, biotech entrepreneur, and author Safi Bahcall. In each conversation, according to Valentine, he has learned about the ways that critical thinking, creativity, and interdisciplinary approaches can help MKA to better fulfill its mission of providing a vibrant and transformative education. “It’s a privilege to be able to talk to wildly successful people about the ways in which their education, both formal and informal, helped them to recognize their passions and fulfill their aspirations.”

Congratulations to Middle School History Department Chair CherylAnne Amendola on selfpublishing her first book. Written for ages 5 and up, On the Backs of the Enslaved takes an honest look at the life of Thomas Jefferson and his connection to slavery in the United States. Amendola decided to write the book because she was looking for an appropriate, historically accurate Jefferson biography for her young son to read last year, and she couldn’t find one. Amendola shares that, “It is really important to address our nation’s hard history even with our youngest learners. In the book, I acknowledge Jefferson’s accomplishments but also highlight—by name—many of the people whose stolen labor made those accomplishments possible.” The book is illustrated by Allison Grace O’Donnell ’18, a sophomore studying studio art and legal studies in Washington DC. O’Donnell is most passionate about the intersection between creative expression and social justice, and she dedicated her work on the book to late MKA faculty member Tony Cuneo. This work clearly reflects Amendola’s belief that all people’s histories should be represented in the classroom, and we are excited about the many connections to MKA. For more information, find On the Backs of the Enslaved on Amazon.

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NEW FACULTY MKA welcomes new faculty members: Thea Burstin, Michael Campagna, Beth Dellapietro, Nicholas DeVenezia, Joe Ganesh, Sam Harris, Marshall Hatcher, Emily Healy, Chris Kenrick, John Leister, Fay Lonsinger, Dr. Rob Masella, Marta Monaco, Juan Ramos, Lauren Ramos, Stephen Roca, Michael Sasso ’12, Kyle Schrader, Tripti Singh, Carlie Till ’13, Deborah van Eerde, Michael Vascimini, and Ramon Vega.

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ATHLETICS 2019 FALL 2019 TEAM AND STUDENT-ATHLETE HONORS AND AWARDS *During the recently completed 2019 Fall Athletics season, the following MKA teams, coaches and athletes achieved honors:

FIELD HOCKEY

FOOTBALL

Head Coach: Gia Nappi (4th Year) Record: 7–12–1

Head Coach: Anthony Rea (6th Year) Record: 3–7

Cristina Cusmai ’20 Capt.

Luciano Calandra ’20 Capt.; MKA Defensive Player of the Year Award; 1st Team Defense, All-MIFL

Natalia Eichmann ’20 Capt.

Julia Hansen ’20 Capt.

Amanda Mack ’20 Capt.; MKA Most Valuable Player Award; 1st Team All-Prep B; 1st Team AllAmerican Division, SEC; 1st Team All-Red Division, Essex/ Union Conference; Selected to NJFHCA Senior All-Star Game; 3rd Team All Non-Public, nj.com; 2nd Team All NonPublic, NJFHCA Michelle Medawar ’20 Capt.

Nathalie Wilson ’20 Capt.; 1st Team All-Prep B Natalia Espinosa-Dice ’22 MKA Most Improved Player Award; 2nd Team All-Red Division, Essex/Union Conference Ayantu Flowers ’22 MKA Coaches Award; Honorable Mention All-Red Division, Essex/Union Conference Phoebe Williams ’22 2nd Team All-American Division, SEC Natalie Yu ’23 Honorable Mention All-American Division, SEC; Honorable Mention All-Red Division, Essex/Union Conference

Jack O’Connell ’20 Capt.; MKA Offensive Player of the Year Award; 1st Team Offense, All-MIFL Naren Rajani ’20 2nd Team Offense, All-MIFL Alexander Sylvander ’20 MKA Weiner Award Michele Cestone ’21 MKA Most Improved Player Award; 2nd Team Defense, All-MIFL Nicolas Lembo ’23 MKA Rookie of the Year Award

BOYS’ CROSS COUNTRY Head Coach: Timothy White (1st Year) Record: 2–7 Alex Chon ’20 Capt.

Charlie Koenig ’20 Capt.; MKA Most Valuable Runner Award; 1st Team All Non-Public, nj.com; NJ Prep B State Champion; 1st Team All-American Division, SEC Jack Wilkin ’20 Capt.; Honorable Mention AllAmerican Division, SEC Aidan Szilgayi ’23 MKA Rookie of the Year Award

GIRLS’ CROSS COUNTRY Head Coach: Timothy White (1st Year) Record: 6–3 Anna Bradley ’20 Capt.; MKA Most Valuable Runner Award; 1st Team AllAmerican Division, SEC Emma Burd ’22 MKA Most Improved Runner Award; 2nd Team AllAmerican Division, SEC

Head Coach: Jordan Raper (1st Year) Record: 8–9–1

Head Coach: Bill Wing (23rd Year) Record: 11–8

Ciara Daly ’20 Honorable Mention AllAmerican Division, SEC

Ainsley Manlowe ’20 Capt.; 2nd Team All-American Division, SEC

Jaime Fuchs ’20 Capt.

Sabrina Noble ’20 MKA Player of the Year Award; Honorable Mention All-American Division, SEC; NJ Prep B State Doubles Champion

Ava Chickering ’22 MKA Coaches Award Lauren Schier ’22 Honorable Mention AllAmerican Division, SEC

Alexis Riley ’20 Capt.; 2nd Team All-American Division, SEC

BOYS’ SOCCER Head Coach: Rob Leather (6th Year) Record: 16–6–1 Andrew Garofalo ’20 Capt.; Honorable Mention All-American Division, SEC; 3rd Team All Non-Public, nj.com; 1st Team All-Prep B Shea Hammond ’20 MKA Coaches Award; 2nd Team All-American Division, SEC Jonathan Park ’20 Capt.

Spencer Goldberg ’21 Honorable Mention AllAmerican Division, SEC Will Horn ’21 Capt.; MKA Players’ Player of the Year Award; 1st Team All-American Division, SEC; 3rd Team All Non-Public, nj.com; 1st Team All-Prep B

Sean Cadigan ’22 MKA Most Valuable Player Award; 2nd Team AllAmerican Division, SEC; Honorable Mention All-Prep B

GIRLS’ TENNIS

Arianna Jobst ’20 MKA Most Valuable Player Award; 1st Team All-American Division, SEC; 3rd Team All Non-Public, nj.com; 1st Team All-Prep B

Zach Wheeler ’21 Capt.; 1st Team All-American Division, SEC; 3rd Team All Non-Public, nj.com; 1st Team All-Prep B

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GIRLS’ SOCCER

Julia Conforti ’21 Capt.

Sarah Hobbs ’21 Honorable Mention AllAmerican Division, SEC; Honorable Mention All-Prep B Chloe Skipper ’22 MKA Players’ Player of the Year Award; 1st Team AllAmerican Division, SEC; 1st Team All-Prep B Brooke Huntington ’23 MKA Rookie of the Year Award

Elana Perlmutter ’20 MKA Player of the Year Award; Honorable Mention All-American Division, SEC; NJ Prep B State Doubles Champion Emily Talkow ’20 Capt.; MKA Coaches Award; 1st Team All-American Division, SEC Hanna Ganchi ’23 1st Team All-American Division, SEC

VOLLEYBALL Head Coach: Molli Dowd (2nd Year) Record: 10–12 Alina Smith ’20 Capt.; MKA Coaches Award; 2nd Team All-Liberty Division, SEC Vanessa Amsinger ’21 MKA Most Improved Player Award; Honorable Mention All-Liberty Division, SEC PJ Dowd ’21 Capt.; 1st Team All-Liberty Division, SEC Samiyah Abdur-Rahim ’23 Honorable Mention All-Liberty Division, SEC Hailey Fouche ’23 MKA Rookie of the Year Award; 2nd Team All-Liberty Division, SEC

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am often struck by a palpable sense of joy when I enter the Middle School’s Penick Lobby in the morning. Students are jumping out of their cars, faculty members are walking and talking as they arrive, and current parents are checking in at the front desk for a meeting or event. Despite the early morning hour, there is warmth and excitement in the air.

As MKA’s Director of Admissions and Financial Aid, I am charged with welcoming prospective families to our school and showing them why we are different, unique, and exceptional. I am so fortunate to be that first touch point for parents, and I get to ask them many questions such as, “How did you hear about MKA?” and “What kind of school are you looking for?” Most prospective parents will hear about our school from a current MKA parent and mention that they are looking for a community—a “second family.” Once they are here, students and parents describe a sense of belonging and become involved in many different ways.

I always like to describe MKA’s parent community as a “roll up your sleeves” operation. Parents are engaged with the school constantly, and it is no surprise that their love for MKA is noticed by everyone in their cohort. This much is clear: there is a power in word of mouth that our parents provide to all those in their orbit.

From September through May, the Admissions Department hosts over twenty events, and our Parent Admissions Ambassadors are present at each one. Why? The reason for their attendance is simply because they are our best spokespeople and they help to attract and retain families in our community. Our parent community at MKA is essential not only to building our internal sense of pride, but also to enhancing the school’s reputation outside of MKA’s three campuses.

Parents often want to know how MKA is different from other schools. We answer this with one simple word: culture. Culture to us is the way in which our community members interact with one another. It is displayed in the respect and kindness our students and faculty show towards each other every day. It is the shock on visitors’ faces when they see our children smiling in the hallways, looking at them in the eye, and offering a firm handshake.

In this issue of the Review, you will hear directly from parents across all three campuses about why they chose MKA. As an alumna and parent, it has always been clear to me why MKA is extraordinary. As Director of Admissions, I am privy to our community’s stories, perspectives, and opinions, which all help to shape the answer to the question, “Why MKA?” It means so much to hear frequent testimonials from a wide cross section of constituents. By sharing their firsthand experience and love for the school, parents help bring our mission to life. This issue is for our parents—a celebration, really—we are in this together, after all.

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Alyson Waldman ’99, P ’30 DIRECTOR OF ADMISSIONS AND FINANCIAL AID

THIS MUCH IS CLEAR: THERE IS A POWER IN WORD OF MOUTH THAT OUR PARENTS PROVIDE TO ALL THOSE IN THEIR ORBIT.

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MKA IS ONE OF THE BEST DECISIONS OUR FAMILYHAS EVER MADE. The O’Haras

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here are many important factors that contribute to a parent’s decision when choosing a school for his or her children. J.D. and Amy O’Hara chose MKA for their first child because they felt that the school reflected their values as parents. Their goal is to raise good people who will provide a positive impact on society for years to come. They could see that MKA understands that each child is unique and has a different way of learning.

The creative education style at They said, “Our children MKA makes learning exciting. Our are each so different, kids have literally thanked us for yet they have each found sending them here and told us their place at MKA. We they “didn’t know school could are most proud to watch be so fun.” However, they aren’t them in their respective just having fun: they are learning environments amongst and growing as well. They tell their peers where they us about the interesting things are happy and confident they learn in class, the creativity in their roles as leaders, of the other students they work teammates, or otherwith, and the personal goals they wise.

MKA has helped set for themselves. There is an shape these qualities atmosphere of encouragement and taught them the and motivation that we have never importance of each.” The seen before. It feels like family.

O’Haras also feel that the school understands the importance of finding balance. While academics are a strong component of MKA’s education, the school recognizes the importance of a rounded experience including athletics, arts, and other activities. “Our kids have developed so many

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new interests since we’ve been at MKA. They were once only interested in traditional subjects and sports, but now music and art have become big parts of our household life. All of our children are still relatively young, so we look forward to what new and exciting windows MKA will open for them.”

The O’Haras feel that the MKA faculty has been an incredible source of support for their children. In every class, teachers identify a student’s individual learning style and motivators for success. They create specific plans to address student needs and structures to ensure accountability. This consistent and nurturing approach has helped the O’Hara boys and other students succeed and build confidence. “With three children enrolled (and a fourth to join next year), all of the teachers that we’ve had experience with have had the ability to challenge each of our children at the appropriate level.

Further, teachers communicate internally to make sure that these needs are transferred from class to class.

They are certainly willing to go the extra mile when needed.” The O’Haras often hear about the discussions that their children have with their teachers. What they like about this is the word “discussion.” MKA teachers listen and respond to the children and try to educate in a way that will incorporate the interests of the students. Amy illustrated this when she shared, “At some stage last year one of our boys took an interest in the music of Queen. He suggested to the music teacher that the band learn and perform some Queen songs. The teacher and rest of his classmates got behind the idea, and they performed one at the Spring Concert last year.

We are so thankful for the sense of pride and confidence this type of moment provided to our child.”

MKA IS A NURTURING, WELLSTRUCTURED, DIVERSE ACADEMY OF EDUCATION AND ADVENTURE.

Mten Halsey and Fatou Mbaye

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s parents at MKA, Mten Halsey and Fatou Mbaye have seen their child choose from an array of extracurricular activities such as hockey, theatre, soccer, video editing, band, sound design, and most recently, fencing.

They chose MKA for their child because they feel strongly that school matters and that MKA is committed to making a difference in their son's life by training him not just for the challenges of today but for emerging career paths in the future. “MKA has created new interests and passions. Our son was always interested in music, and MKA's band program has satisfied his desire to discover more. Now he has developed a curiosity for video and photo editing, which was a pleasant surprise for us.”

MKA’s commitment to student development is what makes Fatou most proud to be a part of the community.

She feels that the school has created a multifaceted

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We feel that there is a powerful channel of communication that was generated between us and the faculty and staff in the admissions process. This channel serves to facilitate the sharing of information and gives us comfort that our voice is always being heard.

system that encompasses not only academics, but also health and fitness, emotional well-being, social dynamics, career development, and mindfulness. “The teachers have provided an excellent foundation of learning for our son. Specifically, they always have an accurate assessment of his development, and they communicate immediately when more attention is needed in certain areas. We find that the teachers are willing to work in tandem with us, setting plans of actions for the betterment of our son's development.”

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MKA IS A SCHOOL THAT AIMS TO BRING OUT THE BEST IN CHILDREN BY CREATING A HIGHLY INCLUSIVE ENVIRONMENT THAT FOSTERS UNDERSTANDING AND ENCOURAGES THEM TO APPLY WHAT THEY LEARN TO THEIR STUDIES AND TO THEIR DAILY LIFE. The Ronens

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athan and Kiyomi Ronen are the parents of 9th grader Remy who joined the MKA community in the fall of 2017. Prior to coming to MKA, Remy was a Middle School student at a local public school.

While she excelled there, she felt the environment was too homogenous for her and was ultimately unsatisfied, feeling that she did not fit in. A friend of Remy's told her about MKA and how much she thought Remy would like it. Once Remy took a closer look at MKA and had a school visit, she felt that MKA was the place she wanted to be. For the Ronens, their child's happiness is what matters most to them, and they were thrilled to have her attend MKA. “We are proud to see that Remy is excited to get up each morning, get to MKA on time, apply

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herself to a rigorous class schedule, attend volleyball after school, and then come home in the evening and still hit the books. She goes to bed with a happy and satisfied look on her face. What else can make us as parents more content?”

When the Ronens first joined the MKA community, they were assigned a host family to help answer any questions they had and to make Remy's transition an easy one. “We were very touched at how often the host family contacted us, emailed us, invited us over, and tried to create a bond between Remy and their child before the first day of school.” The Ronens have since volunteered to be a host family to new students as well. "We can't always volunteer during school hours as much as we'd like to because of scheduling conflicts, but we feel it's a great opportunity to give

back to a school and community that has given our family so much over the past three years.”

MKA certainly understands Remy academically.

She started studying French at MKA in seventh grade, and the school encouraged her to pursue Chinese as a second foreign language in ninth grade. Most students at MKA study only one world language.

Remy also attends Japanese weekend school where she has been studying Japanese every Saturday for the past ten years. Taking on Chinese as a third foreign language class seemed like it might be too much, but Remy wanted to do it. The administration at MKA was encouraging and advised her that if she was going to take Chinese, she should do so for four years in order to be seen positively by admissions committees when applying to colleges. To the Ronens, MKA demonstrated a high level of support in uncovering their daughter’s needs and interests.

“There is no doubt in our minds, and Remy’s, that MKA encourages its students to think, infer, apply, and understand what she learns, rather than just memorize.” They feel Remy is constantly

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When Remy entered MKA’s Upper School, Academic Dean Maria Shepard was happy to meet with us to alleviate any concerns we had about the schedule Remy was planning to take in 9th grade. When we contacted Maria on a separate occasion to see if MKA could arrange for Remy to take the AP Japanese exam (even though Japanese is not part of the school curriculum), she looked into our special request and made it happen for Remy.

challenged to think outside the box and then share those thoughts in the classroom. "She does not feel stifled or encouraged to maintain views that are not aligned with her own. Classmates accept each other’s viewpoints with a level of maturity that [our] other children did not experience at the high schools they attended.” The Ronens feel that diversity is sought after at MKA and creates a vibrant atmosphere, inside and out of the classroom. They also stated that Remy's teachers provide meaningful and detailed comments about what she does well and where she can improve.

“The evaluations are not generic; they are well-thought out and provide specific examples indicating that the teachers are paying close attention to Remy's development, growth, and personal success.”

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MKA IS A COMMUNITY THAT WANTS YOU TO SUCCEED. The Arcillas

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he moment we went to the MKA Open House, we fell in love. Walking through the hallways, we knew it would be the best fit for our children.” Derrick and Florence Arcilla’s oldest child, Daniel, was the first to apply to the school. He was shy and quiet, and right away, the Arcillas knew that at MKA he wouldn’t get lost in the mix because the teacher to student ratio was low and teachers knew their students well. Florence shared, “It was important for me to have our children attend MKA from Pre-K to 12 because I love how at Brookside, they promote the love of learning in a nurturing environment.” At the Primary School there were no letter grades, which was evidence that their child wouldn’t have to compete with anyone and could simply enjoy the love of learning. Brookside, they said, was a fairytale and a great beginning for all three of their children’s journey. "We were so

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impressed with the activities MKA offers from Brookside to the Upper School. Brookside’s bitty sports program teaches fundamentals and most importantly, sportsmanship.

Then at the Middle and Upper School, so many different clubs are offered. My three kids are very different. I like how they have been able to try new things at Brookside, and then build on what they have experienced at the Middle School and Upper School. MKA encourages a student to be well rounded.”

MKA provides the foundation a child needs and builds from there. "Our children are their own people, and each was able to choose his and her own path.

One child is more sports driven, another is more STEM driven, and our youngest loves the arts. MKA offered everything to them, and they embraced it.”

The Arcillas wanted their children to start at the school at such a young age because they felt MKA shared the same vision they did for their children. "Brookside, promotes the love of learning in a nurturing environment." The community was welcoming not only for the children but also for the parents. This openness allowed for firsthand knowledge of the school’s impact. Florence worked at the PAMKA Book Fair for years and saw how each child at Brookside loved reading and meeting the authors.

She also liked how taking a test or assessment wasn’t stressful for any child because it existed only to assess what they knew. She says, “I felt if a school is promoting stress, children only absorb what they need

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to know for that one test, but they will not remember what they studied after a few days. My family sits during dinner, and my children still remember what they learned.” The Arcillas say there is more academic structure at the Middle School, but the faculty and staff really promote confidence. “Middle school years are hard because of hormones and other factors, but the faculty and staff make sure that students know that someone in the school, whether it’s their advisor or an administrator, is there for them.” At the Upper School, they feel that the faculty and staff are there to help prepare their children for the future. “In my opinion, they want every child to succeed with whatever path each student chooses. I have heard numerous times from advisors and coaches that one of their goals is to make sure that, once they leave MKA, the students have the morals, respect, and confidence for the next chapter of their lives.” Building a community within the school in order to understand the larger community outside of it is what the Arcillas believe makes MKA so special.

We love MKA for numerous reasons. We absolutely love that the teachers, administrators, and even the maintenance staff, understand and know my kids. They encourage them and want to see them happy. One great example is when Daniel visited Brookside and told Mrs. Gonzalez about the achievements he had earned and how well he’s doing in the Upper School. Mrs. Gonzalez told Daniel she remembered interviewing him when he was four years old, and she said she saw something special in Daniel even though he was shy and quiet. Now my 17-year-old is not as shy and quiet and has confidence in himself because at MKA he was able to show how special he is, and the school embraced it.

MKA MEETS THE INDIVIDUAL NEEDS OF EACH CHILD, FOCUSING ON THE WHOLE CHILD, GUIDING HER OR HIM TO BE THE BEST LEARNER AND PERSON THEY CAN BE. Anya Barrett '89

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hen Anya Barrett was growing up, her parents told her and her brother that there was no greater gift that parents could give their child than a good education, and her parents worked tirelessly to make their MKA education possible. When it came time to send their own children to school, Anya and her husband, John, also believed that giving their kids a good education was a priority. MKA offered academic opportunities and so much more. “It was apparent from the first moment we visited Brookside more than eight years ago that MKA would provide our kids with so much more than just a good education.”

The school has changed quite a bit since Anya was a student. As a current member of the Board of Trustees, Anya has a unique perspective into how much thought goes into every single decision that is made at MKA and how the school is always focusing on what is best for the student, “It’s amazing really,” she says. “But even without that perspective, it’s wonderful to see the constant evolution of the school as a whole.” Anya is especially proud to see the good work that the school is doing with respect to the SEL (Social Emotional Learning) curriculum. “We didn’t have that when I was a student, and I am grateful that our children do.”

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There is never a shortage of someone looking to help at MKA. I’ve never struggled to find an answer. I love how open the school is to new ideas as well. Suggestions may not always come to fruition, but they are always thoughtfully managed and responded to. Whether it be a teacher, an administrator, or even Mr. Nammack, I always feel heard, and that’s a great thing to be able to say.

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MKA IS AN INCLUSIVE COMMUNITY OF STUDENTS, PARENTS, FACULTY, STAFF, AND ADMINISTRATORS THAT COMES TOGETHER TO PROVIDE AN ACADEMICALLY CHALLENGING EDUCATION IN A CARING AND SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENT FOCUSED ON LAYING THE FOUNDATION FOR A LIFELONG LOVE OF LEARNING AND ENGAGEMENT WITH THE WORLD. Karen and Robert Gulliver

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n the ten years that the Gullivers have been involved as parents with MKA, they feel the school has provided them many ways to be heard. Karen says, “I have always felt that teachers and administrators have been accessible and responsive whenever we had questions or concerns as a family.” Volunteering for PAMKA also played an important role in her connection to the school community. “PAMKA has provided me the space and opportunity to forge many meaningful friendships, and I have felt supported in my parenting journey through my involvement with the school.” During their time at the school, MKA has introduced parent affinity groups, which have become important vehicles for fostering communication and dialogue. “I am a member of the Diversity & Inclusion Parent Committee and the Parents of Students of Color Affinity Group, both of which contribute to creating an inclusive and affirming environment where diversity is valued and celebrated.”

When asked why she wanted to become a Trustee at the school, Karen explained that MKA is a special community, and being a part of the community

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MKA has played an important and impactful role in the lives of both of our daughters, and it has been an incredible journey guiding them and watching them grow into young adults. Last spring, our oldest graduated from MKA, and I could not have been more proud as a parent to send her off to college this fall, knowing that her MKA education prepared her to venture into the world to confidently take on new and exciting challenges.

has been a wonderful experience for her family. In their time at the school, Karen has volunteered for PAMKA, served as an Admissions Ambassador, and been a Development Annual Giving Volunteer. She says, “In all of these roles and in my experience with my own daughters, I have witnessed how the school meets students where they are as individuals and learners, providing academic challenges and rigor as appropriate in a nurturing, supportive, and collaborative environment. I have seen how the school lives its mission, and it is a privilege to serve as a Trustee, working to ensure that children and families will have the opportunity to thrive as members of the MKA community for generations to come.”

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MKA is a school which in addition to a very strong academics program, has an excellent music program. It is a small school, with a warm and welcoming environment, and all students seem to know each other.

MKA TEACHES THAT LEARNING CAN BE FUN AND ENCOURAGES STUDENTS TO DEVELOP CURIOSITY FOR THEIR SUBJECTS. Christina Klais and Roland Turck

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n July of 2010, Roland Turck and Christina Klais learned that they had to move to New Jersey from Mexico City on very short notice. It was a corporate move, and they had to start house and school hunting immediately. The family visited several private and public schools in Morris and Essex counties, but Christina remembers very well her first visit to Brookside. She says, “Even with no kids in the school at the time, I had a feeling the students must be very happy there. It was a welcoming, warm, and friendly atmosphere.” Christina and Roland did not

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have this feeling after visiting the other schools they saw. They also felt that Zandi Nammack (Associate Director of Admissions at the Primary School at the time) was very understanding of the situation they were in and was integral in helping them get through the application process. The family was thrilled when their daughter, Clara, was accepted. They knew MKA was a small school with a warm environment that welcomed all students, and that is exactly what they were looking for.

The Turck family had been moving around for many years, and their children were experienced in changing houses, schools, and becoming accustomed to various languages. When they came to MKA, the family was coming from a Latin American culture (both children went to English speaking schools, but were the only non-Mexicans that attended), and it was a big change for them. The kids missed their friends, the Spanish language, and their daily lives. When Clara started at MKA, she had a wonderful first grade teacher, Mrs. Park, who made her transition into the school as smooth as possible. Christina says, “I distinctly remember Mrs. Park giving me her cell phone number and telling me that if I needed something, it would be better to call in the evenings rather than wait until the next morning. As a parent, I know that if a problem exists, I can reach out to advisors and teachers, and a resolution of the issue will be accomplished.”

MKA IS A PLACE WHERE DREAMS ARE FORMED, SKILLS ARE SHARPENED, AND THE COURSES OF LIFE GET CHARTED. Leon Shade ’98

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eon Shade is a Health & Physical Education teacher at the Middle School. As an MKA graduate himself, it is important for him to be a part of a culture that he says cares deeply about giving children the tools they need to open doors and then go out into the world to do tremendous things. “I realize that I’m a small piece to the puzzle, but I’m happy to be in a position to work alongside other teachers who want to get behind our students and guide them on a path that will serve them, nurture them, and build them up to be their best selves. That was something that the school did for me, so working here gives me the opportunity to do that for many others.” Guadalupe Cabido Shade, Leon’s wife, teaches math at the Middle School. Choosing MKA for their two youngest daughters was an easy decision.

Academically, Leon struggled a bit when he first came to MKA as a student because he did not have the educational foundation that others had. Leon shares, “When my children were born, ...I wanted to give them a better opportunity with their first steps in learning and developing than I had.”

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I am so proud to work at the school that I attended. I walk the hallways and am able to give myself to the students, making them better, all while knowing that I am a product of the school.

That’s a really cool thing to be able to say. I’m proud to represent an outcome that our students can see as a success story.

To the Shade family, the school’s philosophies and approaches to learning and teaching don’t cut corners or stifle creativity. MKA doesn’t just talk about giving students, faculty, and parents the best tools to be successful, it brings them to fruition. It’s a place where innovation is the norm, and the community consistently works on how it can make experiences better. “I’m a relatively new ‘parent’ at MKA, and what I think makes the school so different are the considerations it provides for parents to be heard. The invitations for and welcoming of dialogue and perspective make it easy to feel that MKA wants to listen.”

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MKA IS A COMMUNITY Monique French-Brown

As a parent, I feel heard when I see a change in school policy or a shift in curricula as the end result of ‘conversations’ or exchange of ideas that often took place within the variety of affinity groups, parent committees, or campus parent sessions.

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onique is a parent to current 3rd grader Annabella French-Brown, and she is also the Co-Chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Parent Committee (DIPC), Community Engagement Vice President for PAMKA, and a member of the Parents of Students of Color and LGBT Parent Affinity Groups. Monique and her wife, Wanda, initially chose MKA for their daughter largely due to the school’s reputation for rigorous academics and preparing students for successful entree into top tier colleges and universities.

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The family remains at MKA because of the school’s commitment to supporting students and families.

“MKA is a community,” says Monique. “As a parent, I am most proud that I am part of a school, an environment, that ‘makes space’ for the often hard or messy questions/ concerns revolving around issues of diversity and inclusion. Tom Nammack once said something along the lines of, ‘As a school we definitely don’t have all the answers, sometimes we don’t get it right, but we owe it to every student to always try and do better.’”

During her first year as a member of the DIPC, the committee was in the process of reassessing its

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objectives, goals, and its core mission and how such translated to the students and families via school policy, curriculum, and social media. In that meeting participants were vocal: challenging one another, engaging the Committee Chairs, and bringing questions directly to Tom Nammack, who was in attendance. What Monique experienced during that first year was a group of parents, faculty, and administrators who were dedicated in a way that went beyond the typical “standard” diversity rhetoric. The diversity and inclusion work being done at the school was viewed as integral to the support of students and their families. The next year when she was approached to be Committee Co-Chair, Monique was grateful for the opportunity to be part of the continuing efforts to prepare students’ cultural competencies for a society that is growing more complex and global and to ensure that students—and their families— are seen, known, and truly accepted for who they are.

THERE’S AN OPEN DIALOGUE BETWEEN PARENTS, THE FACULTY, AND THE ADMINISTRATION. I’M ALWAYS IMPRESSED BY MKA’S WILLINGNESS TO WORK AS A TEAM IN THE BEST INTEREST OF THE STUDENTS. Tina Jordan

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AMKA is a parent volunteer organization established to provide opportunities to foster a strong MKA community through parent involvement in programs, social gatherings, volunteer opportunities, and special events.

PAMKA also raises funds and organizes volunteers to achieve these financial goals. Tina Jordan is PAMKA’s current President and an integral pillar of the organization.

“My husband and I attended an Admissions Open House before applying for our daughter where Owen, a senior, spoke to the parents. He had such poise and was so articulate. I remember thinking that if my daughter could be half that confident, then we’d be in great shape. I submitted our application that afternoon and have never looked back.” Years later, Tina says it is really her honor to be the PAMKA President because, “we have such an amazing parent population who are more than willing to give of their time and talents.

I’ve loved the position and have had the opportunity to meet so many wonderful and interesting parents I would not have otherwise had the opportunity to meet.” When asked what she is most proud of accomplishing within the PAMKA President role, Tina says that there are many events and programs that have made her proud. This year in particular, PAMKA launched the MKA Watercooler, a Facebook group for MKA parents/guardians to engage, ask questions, and

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I’ve been doing Admissions tours lately and had a group of prospective parents ask me what has impressed me most about MKA. I told them that I’m most impressed with the faculty because of the enthusiasm and effort they bring to teaching. They’re rooting for our kids and want them to succeed. I feel lucky to be part of such a supportive and wonderful community.

share information relevant to each other and the MKA community. “We’ve been talking about starting it for years, and I’m happy that it’s finally off the ground. It’s been very successful with 350 current parents using the forum.”

When Tina visits each campus, she is amazed to watch the students walk through the hallways where faculty members and administrators know the kids, greet them with a smile, and ask them how they’re doing. The faculty, staff, and administrators are invested in the well-being of the kids; they provide added challenges when necessary and are always willing to offer extra help and academic, social, or emotional support. “Almost all the faculty engage in professional development throughout the year, and it shows in the classroom. Not only are they bringing the most recent research and technology back to the classroom but they’re also demonstrating to our kids that you’re never too old, or too versed in a subject matter, to stop learning.” PAMKA is fortunate to play a pivotal and unique role in professional development compared with other schools by funding PAMKA Faculty Trust Grants that enable the teachers to be learners, as well.

“It’s a fantastic lesson for the kids and inspires them to value learning. MKA is teaching our kids how to be curious learners now and always.”

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P PA REN T NE WS

MKA celebrates community on a beautiful day at the Middle School campus.

PA R E N T N E WS

Dear MKA Families, One of MKA’s greatest strengths is the active cultivation of lifelong learners. Our community of faculty, staff, parents, students, and alumni always seeks to improve, is intellectually curious, and engages with the world and the local community, making the school vibrant, challenging (in a good way!), and wonderful.

Every year PAMKA organizes a wide range of programs and events that foster this community of lifelong learning and leadership. These include programs such as:

PAMKA BOARD OF OFFICERS Tina Jordan President Erica Amsinger Secretary Sabrina Rodgers Finance Vice President Suzanne Weinberg Communications Vice President Monique French-Brown Community Outreach Vice President

• Faculty Trust Grants that fund travel and field experiences to give our faculty unique insights that they can take back to their classrooms

Jamie Decter Volunteer Coordinator Vice President

• Scholastic Book Fair which celebrates reading and writing and brings award-winning authors to our community for presentations and signings

Leigh Conforti Special Events Vice President

• Parenting Workshops that provide thoughtful and practical parenting ideas for supporting the development of our children • The Lecture Series, a biennial event featuring accomplished thoughtprovoking speakers from academia, public policy, the arts, education, science, and beyond • Blood Drives and other community engagement efforts to support needs in our local community

Margaret Wager Primary School Campus Vice President Janice Jacobson Middle School Campus Vice President Sybil Eng Upper School Campus Vice President

THE PAMKA MISSION STATEMENT PAMKA is a parent volunteer organization established to provide opportunities for parents to participate in the support and enhancement of the students’ educational experience at Montclair Kimberley Academy (MKA). PAMKA pursues its mission working in cooperation with the school administration through activities consistent with the policies and goals established by the Board of Trustees at MKA.

Sincerely, Tina Jordan, PAMKA President

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PA R E N T N E WS

PAMKA Grant

PAMKA President Tina Jordan and 2018-2019 PAMKA Grant Committee Chair Beth Fuchs along with the PAMKA Faculty Trust Grant Committee were pleased to award six Faculty Trust Grants totaling $29,894 for 2019. The recipients were celebrated as they shared details on their adventures at the September faculty and staff Opening Meeting.

PAMKA’s Faculty Trust Grants program began in 1978 with an initial award of $150. Since that time, over 150 faculty members have received more than $610,00 in grant awards. This program allows MKA faculty to travel the globe pursuing field-oriented, transformative courses that enlighten them and enrich their students’ classroom experience in a unique way. Our students continually reap the benefits of these inspirational and educational experiences.

Primary School Teacher Erica Tricarico DeTrolio traveled to England and Wales to explore old buildings, castles, and important sites to learn about their histories. Erica immersed herself in the connection between medieval castles, modern day monarchy, and the lore of “fairy tale life.” She was inspired to take this trip by the detailed questions students asked about castles, bridges, moats, and the monarchs who resided within the castles. She hopes to be able to better support the interests of the children and provide learning experiences that will enhance their understanding as they cover the Fairy Tales unit in Pre-K. Primary School Librarian Crystal Glynn visited Japan where she studied traditional and modern forms of Japanese storytelling, as well as the concept of kyokan. In particular she focused on kamishibai (a format in which a storyteller uses a small box theatre and picture cards to deliver a performance), kabuki and rakugo (where exaggerated facial expressions are used), and manga (comic books and graphic novels). Kyokan means “shared feeling” and is used to describe the sense of community created when engaged in a story as a group. Crystal has seen how storytelling in the library contributes to engagement, literacy, social-emotional learning, and building community, and she is excited to bring these new storytelling methods to Brookside.

Primary School Teacher Caylie Marden embarked on an adventure to Scandinavian Lapland where she visited Sami villages in Norway and Finland and

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observed the aurora borealis. On the edge of the Arctic Circle, Caylie experienced one of Europe’s oldest indigenous cultures and met with and learned about the migratory reindeer herders and their language, traditions, customs, and livelihood. She also spent a few nights in a glass-domed igloo (to view the northern lights) and in a Sami teepee. Stories of this trip, which was physically and emotionally challenging, will reinforce Caylie’s encouragement of students to take risks as well as tie into the Light, Snow, and Night Sky units in the Pre-K science curriculum.

Upper School History Teacher David Korfhage headed to Greece to study Greek history and its connections to modern day democracy and citizenship. In his teaching preparation during the summer of 2018, David read a book on ancient Greek history in which the author stressed citizenship.

This book led David to make a connection between the history he was reading and his long-standing concern regarding the gradual weakening of democratic institutions.

Visiting historic sites in Greece deepened David’s understanding of Greek history, reinvigorated his appreciation for freedom, democracy, citizenship, and individualism, and provided him with materials, ideas, experiences, and photos to use in his 9th grade Early World History class.

Upper School Spanish Teacher Isabel Janelli traveled to the País Vasco and Cataluña regions of Spain to learn about each autonomous region’s identity and multiculturalism, art, and global issues.

Isabel visited a variety of museums and toured cities looking at art. She learned

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more about the Euskera and Catalàn languages and learned how sustainability efforts have improved the cities. She explored the history, observed the daily life of members of these regions, and simply engaged at an intimate level with the language. Isabel is adding cultural topics from this trip to the AP Spanish Language and Culture curriculum as well as bringing stories and concepts to her other Spanish classes.

Upper School Spanish and English Teacher Paige Boncher headed to Cuba during Spring Break 2019 to take dance lessons in Havana and then traveled across Cuba to experience the dance culture in Santiago de Cuba. Paige observed, experienced, and has since infused her Spanish classrooms with the contagious rhythms of Cuba’s legendary music and dance culture.

Through prior personal experience, Paige has found that the lessons of dance and of language learning are mutually reinforcing (and there is research to support this connection). She plans to introduce a research unit on Cuban dance in which students will investigate the origins and steps of a particular Cuban dance style.

In time, this may be expanded to include Cuban art, music, and architecture.

Through this research project, students would learn organically about the history of colonization and the resulting synthesis of European and slave cultures.

PAMKA is proud to support these exciting projects that are sure to enrich and inspire not just the participants but our community as a whole. Congratulations to all of the recipients!

PA R E N T N E WS

Parenting Workshops

Book Fair Tri-Campus PAMKA Book Fair Chairs Becki Hirsh and Valerie Puryear, along with their team of volunteers, brought the joy of reading to MKA as they transformed all three campuses into a winter wonderland to celebrate the 2019 “Arctic Adventures” Scholastic Book Fair. Every year MKA hosts Scholastic’s largest Book Fair in the country and invites several talented authors and illustrators to share their creative process with our students.

Thank you to Alison Slone and Amy O’Hara for making our Primary School Book Fair a reading extravaganza complete with pajama night and engaging presentations for our youngest readers by authors Malcolm Mitchell and Betsy Bird. Katherine Ruberton and Danielle Qureshi made sure that every Middle School student celebrated creativity and a love of books by welcoming authors Rachel Renee Russell, Gordon Korman, and Kazu Kibuishi to speak with students in 4th through 8th grades. MKA’s Upper School Book Fair was also an amazing literary journey thanks to author Jeff Hobbs and PAMKA volunteer Chris Eng. Thank you to all the parents who dedicate so much of their time to make this remarkable event possible. MKA is also grateful to Scholastic for their partnership and support of the 2019 “Arctic Adventures” Scholastic Book Fair.

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Each year, MKA parents look forward to PAMKA’s Parenting Workshops. Erica Urquhart and her team delivered timely and relevant content from local experts including Lauren Hyman Kaplan ’93, Helaina Altabef, Donna Dalgetty, The Jed Foundation and Michael Korn. The workshop, This Can’t Wait: Resilience as a Tool for Success covered topics such as Kindness leading to Academic Success, Screenagers 2, and College Loneliness/ Self Talk. Thank you to Erica and her team for their hard work and effort in putting together these informative sessions for our parents.

Giving Tree Jennifer Vonderahe led PAMKA’s efforts for the tricampus Giving Tree in December. Children’s hats, gloves, mittens, and toys were collected and donated to Toni’s Kitchen and The Valley Settlement House.

This was a wonderful event that represented MKA’s community support and holiday spirit!

Blood Drive PAMKA’s fall and spring Blood Drive was a huge success thanks to the organization and efforts of Dori Sedransk.

Thank you to the many student, faculty, and parent donors who came to the Upper School gym this past November to support this cause.

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T T RUSTEE N E WS

Current parent and Trustee, Naveen Ballem ’90, with son, Kirin Ballem ’30, standing beside their family sponsored tree at the Primary School Ribbon Cutting.

T RUST E E N E WS

MONTCLAIR KIMBERLEY ACADEMY

Dear Students, Faculty, Administrators, Parents, Alumni, and other members of the MKA Community, Perhaps you can identify with the experience as a parent when you visit a school or program for your child and it “fits.” There is no easy way to describe it other than a sense that this is the place your child belongs, there is a shared direction, and there is potential for growth.

At MKA, the parent role does not end with the initial choice. An invitation is extended; a relationship is established; and there is an opportunity to make an impact.

Ensuring that MKA has the resources and the leadership in place to enact the mission of the school in order to be the right fit for families is the charge and responsibility of the Board of Trustees. I am joined on the Board by other parents of MKA students past and present, and I value the parent perspective. It is a vital ingredient in decision-making about the school’s future. We are aided by the fact that the school provides opportunities for the community to participate in and contribute to discussions to better understand a family’s experience at MKA. A successful outcome for our students starts with great teaching, thoughtful advising, and high-quality coaching, but it is also directly influenced by forces outside of the classroom yet in the building. The school co-partners with parents to better educate the students. It is essential that we are rowing in the same direction, and the voice of the parent helps steer the ship.

Throughout my time as a parent at MKA, I remember feeling that I was part of something great. Partnerships were formed with my sons’ teachers and the parents of my sons’ friends. They were relationships formed over time and nurtured by trust. In times of deep sadness and exalting joy I turned then, and now, to the members of that community. The names of the families may be different than when my sons attended MKA, but we have been and will always be a community connected by shared values. In our MKA community each of us has the right to say and feel—“I belong here.”

2019-2020 BOARD OF TRUSTEES OFFICERS Kathleen M. Logan President Luke A. Sarsfield III ’91 Vice President Karen T. Gulliver Vice President Jeffrey G. Szilagyi Treasurer David A. Crichlow Secretary MEMBER TRUSTEES Merrick G. Andlinger Naveen Ballem ’ 90 Jennifer A. Barbetta Anya C. Barrett ’ 89 James L. Bromley Bonnie S. Carter Evelyn M. Colbert Paige L. Cottingham-Streater ’ 79 Amanda L. Englander ’ 04 Carolyn N. Everson Clifford B. Finkle IV ’ 92 Peter J. Fusco ’ 89 Tracy E. Higgins Barbara Holmes Michael V. Johnson Tina A. Jordan Lauren H. Kaplan ’ 93 Thomas W. Nammack Robert J. Ruberton Stephanie A. Salzman Matthew J. Sherman Mei-Mei H. Tuan Margaret A. Wager HONORARY TRUSTEES Aubin Z. Ames ’ 54 John E. Garippa Alice M. Hirsh

Sincerely,

Susan H. Ruddick

Kathleen M. Logan President, Board of Trustees

Newton B. Schott, Jr. ADVISORY TRUSTEES Barry W. Ridings ’70 Robert L. Tortoriello For more information about our Board of Trustees, please visit www.mka.org/about/ board-of-trustees

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A ALU M N I N E WS

Alumni gather during Homecoming & Reunion Weekend

A LU M N I N E WS

Dear Alumni, Your Alumni Council has been hard at work!

This year, we have doubled down on our commitment to support and interact with all of our fellow alumni. For the first time, we’ve moved our recruitment process to a rolling basis, which gives our Engagement Committee more time to identify and get to know those alumni who would be the strongest additions to our group. If you are interested in joining us, please fill out our questionnaire on the MKA alumni website.

Our Development Committee has been working closely with the Development Office to identify opportunities to bolster alumni giving—every donation is a valuable one. Please consider giving something back to MKA today!

And we all feel the greatest pride in the hard work our Awards Committee does. This past fall, we presented the Young Alumni Award to Lauren Morisseau ’11 and the Distinguished Alumni Award to Nithya Nathan-Pineau ’03 at our second annual Alumni Awards Reception, which kicks off Homecoming and Reunion weekend. We solicit nominations for these and other awards every year; everyone is invited to join in the process. Visit www.mka.org/ alumni/celebrating-our-alumni for more information.

No matter how you choose to do it, I encourage you to participate in and engage with the tremendous alumni community of which you’re a part—and which I am proud to represent. Feel free to reach out to me directly any time; I’m always happy to chat!

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Amanda Englander ’04 President Stuart Harwood ’07 Executive VP Caitlin Di Ruggiero ’06 Treasurer Lhenée McKoy ’05 Secretary COUNCIL Stephen Bezer ’11 Racquel Booth ’96 Geoffrey Close ’71 Rich Cosgrove ’84 Michael DeVita ’11 Frank Godlewski ’76 Joanne Goldberg ’87, P ’21 Stu Harwood ’07 Julie Kim ’92, P ’24, ’27 Angela McCaffrey ’06 Lhenée McCoy ’05 Chadd Mukete ’11 Samora Noguera ’02 Stephen Smith ’81, P ’17, 20 John Thompson ’03

SAVE THE DATE!

All my best,

June 13 Alumni Spring Games & Klank Klassic

Amanda Englander ’04, Alumni Council President

October 9-11 Homecoming October 27 Atlanta, GA regional event

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A LU M N I N E WS

Young Alumni Award Established in 2018 by the MKA Alumni Council, the Young Alumni Award (YAA) recognizes an alumna or alumnus who graduated from MKA within the past 15 years and has demonstrated significant contributions to his or her profession and community. The accomplishments being considered need not be publicly renowned but should reflect MKA’s deep and inspirational commitment to the improvement of society.

“ MKA’s legacy of valuing students as unique individuals, and intentionally cultivating a diverse community had ripple effects that motivated change on a campus 700 miles away.” —Lauren Morisseau ’11

LAUREN M O R ISSEAU ’ 11 MKA’S R I PP LE EFFECT

Congratulations to Lauren Morisseau who was named the 2019 Young Alumni Award recipient at the second annual Alumni Awards Reception during Reunion & Homecoming Weekend. Lauren was recognized for her advocacy work with the LGBTQ communities on the campuses of MKA and University of Notre Dame. Upon receiving the award, Lauren expressed her deep appreciation for her Upper School experience by thanking MKA for the “role it played supporting a learning environment in which students can develop their personal ethics and leave prepared to act on them.”

Lauren’s interest in social justice was sparked in 2008 when she became a member of MKA’s new Gay-Straight Alliance, later renamed the Gender Sexuality Alliance. She was excited to be a part of this newly formed community and felt the thrill of working alongside peers interested in speaking out about social issues that needed to be confronted in their community.

Lauren’s sense of social responsibility continued at the University of Notre Dame where she quickly discovered that she was one of few student activists on her college campus who had the privilege of attending a high school that encouraged LGBTQ students and their allies to gather, organize, and celebrate their identities. She became involved in campus advocacy projects, helping to create more appropriate and affirming student organizations and spaces for both LGBTQ students and students of color. As a leader of the Progressive Student Alliance, Lauren co-led a movement to create the first recognized LGBTQ student group on campus, known as PrismND. MKA is honored to celebrate Lauren and the work she has achieved as a social justice advocate. As described by one MKA faculty member, Lauren is “a natural educator and activist…. Her passion for building a just world was and continues to be contagious.”

If you would like to nominate a classmate or friend for the 2020 Young Alumni Award, please VISIT URL for the complete list of nomination criteria and deadlines. www.mka.org/alumni/ celebrating-our-alumni

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Dr. Michael Houston current World Language teacher with 2019 Young Alumni Award honoree Lauren Morisseau

Lauren Morisseau AWARDS AND ACCOLADES 2020: Enters accelerated Nursing Program at Xavier University in Cincinnati, OH 2017-2018: Awarded Fulbright Teaching Grant—Teaching Assistantship in Huye, Rwanda 2015: Received BA in Anthropology with minors in Gender Studies and Peace Studies from the University of Notre Dame 2014: University of Notre Dame Spring

Semester abroad in Perth, Australia 2013: Mel Bautista Service and Leadership Award for outstanding commitment to serving the LGBT community and the Notre Dame community at large with integrity, respect, and compassion.

Internship with Minderoo Foundation’s Walk Free Initiative – Human rights organization seeking to end modern slavery

in all forms with multifaceted global approach 2011: Graduated from MKA Recipient of Ethel M. Spurr Award at Commencement Inducted into Cum Laude Society 2010: Recipient of the MacVicar Prize 4-year recipient of Faculty Scholar Award Basketball Captain, including 9 varsity letters

Alumni Events

Snap shot

Keep up-to-date on the latest MKA Alumni events by visiting our upcoming schedule of events at mka.org/alumnievents

NEW YORK ALUMNI RECEPTION The 2019-2020 Alumni Programming opened up with the annual NYC Regional Alumni Cocktails & Conversations event on September 24 at District Social in midtown Manhattan.

@MKAALUMNI

@MKAALUMNI

ALUMNI WINTER GAMES RECEPTION The year ended with the highly anticipated Alumni Winter Games & Reception held on Friday, November 29. Thank you to all of our basketball and ice hockey alumni players and to those who joined us in cheering in the stands and attending the post-game reception at Upstairs at Tierney’s.

It was another great event!

MONTCLAIR KIMBERLY ACADEMY

A LU M N I N E WS

HOMECOMING 2019 The MKA community enjoyed a quintessential fall weekend together that included opportunities for remembrance and celebration. The MKA Alumni Engagement Office hosted several events during the weekend that brought over 200 alumni from class years ending in ’4 and ’9, friends, Trustees, faculty, staff, and students together on campus. The weekend began on Friday, October 18 with the Alumni Awards Reception, continued on Saturday with meaningful memorial programs, the Golden Circle brunch, a ribbon-cutting at the Primary School, a BBQ on Lloyd Road, several sporting events, and evening gatherings of alumni by class and affinity group.

Nithya Nathan Pinneau, Esq. ’03 was the recipient of the 2019 Distinguished Alumni Award. Nithya is an immigration lawyer who is currently the Senior Program Director for the Detained Children’s Program at the Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights Coalition. She manages the Detained Immigrant Children’s Program which provides legal services to children detained in the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement, including direct representation, pro bono mentorship and training, and community outreach. The Young Alumni Award was given to Lauren Morisseau ’11. She was a member of the Jesuit Volunteer Corps, served with Americorps, and completed her Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship in Butare, Rwanda. These experiences in educational service and social justice work galvanized Lauren’s passion for public health and trauma-informed social services, leading her to seek a career change as she is currently working toward her nursing degree.

Poignant moments were shared by the MKA community at memorial programs for two impactful MKA faculty members. Nixon Bicknell’s career at Montclair Academy and Montclair Kimberley Academy spanned 27 years as he filled the roles of Choral Music Director and faculty member. He will be forever remembered and appreciated for writing the lyrics to the Montclair Kimberley

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Academy School Song in 1974. Tony Cuneo taught drawing, painting, AP studio art, and photography at MKA from 1988 – 2018. He was a talented artist in a variety of disciplines and inspired students and colleagues alike in his roles as teacher, mentor, and friend. As Headmaster Tom Nammack noted, “His career at MKA will remain as a force for good in the life of the school.”

With the fall season in full swing, families from all three campuses showed their Cougar Pride, cheering on the MKA field hockey, soccer, and football teams throughout the day. Attendees enjoyed the many festivities lining Lloyd Road, with student-run tables selling food and lots of MKA swag.

Saturday evening cocktail parties were held at special venues all around Montclair and brought together alumni from across the country. Classmates reconnected with each other and reminisced about their times at The Kimberley School, Montclair Academy, and MKA perfectly capping off the days’ festivities with great food, friends, and fare!

On Sunday, the Fifth Annual Co-ed Alumni Soccer Game took place on Muenster Field with many alumni players in attendance and members of their family and friends cheering them on, while the Second Annual Co-ed Volleyball Game was held in the Upper School Gym, and a great time was had by all!

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W WE A R E M KA

The Altirs: Back row: Laura ’23, Mike, and Nadia Front row: Joseph ’29, Katherine ’26, Giorgio ’24, Victoria ’27

W E A R E M KA

Walking the Walk and Talking the Talk: Stories of Extraordinary People and Why They Give

Altirs family Mike and Nadia Altirs know that it takes leadership, teamwork, and empathy to build something worth believing in. Their family business thrives due to hard work and know-how; their family values tradition and supports one another; and they strive to contribute to their community in meaningful ways. They know the necessity of having structure in place to help their family and others be the best they can be.

When the Altirs family started looking for a new school for their oldest daughter, Laura, they quickly realized that the nurturing environment and caliber of teaching across three campuses at MKA was something that would benefit all five of their children.

They were delighted to find one school that would help each child uncover his and her own individual gifts and strengths while also being “academically challenging and [having] wonderful community service and outreach opportunities within a very supportive community of parents and faculty.” It’s hard not to bump into one of the Altirs children on our campuses. Laura is finishing up her 9th grade year at the Upper School; Giorgio will soon celebrate his 8th grade graduation from the Middle School; Katherine is completing 6th grade; Victoria is concluding 5th grade; and Joseph will be celebrating his 3rd grade graduation from the Primary School this June.

Giving back to the community is a tradition at the heart of the Altirs family. Mike and Nadia have a strong personal connection to the individuals and charities that they choose to support, including their church, their Lebanese community, the Ellis Island Honor Society, Wounded Warriors, MKA, and many other non-profits. The importance of helping others

is a life lesson that Mike and Nadia are also instilling in each of their children. The five siblings are active with HealthBarn Foundations’ Healing Meals program, a not-for-profit organization that prepares nutritious meals for senior citizens and families with children undergoing medical treatment at local hospitals. The kids pool their own money to donate to the organization for the purchase of ingredients and packaging. They also volunteer their time preparing and cooking healthy meals for delivery.

Their Lebanese heritage, both here and abroad, plays an essential role in their daily life. During their most recent trip to their family home in Lebanon, Laura interviewed some of the town locals, and the family donated supply kits to children whose families attend local churches.

The Altirs family is proud to be part of the MKA community and chose to support the Primary School renovations because “young children need to feel comfortable and nurtured …We knew the faculty and staff [at MKA] were able to provide this nurturing environment, but we wanted to make sure the facility also reflected that.” Additionally, the Altirs support PAMKA’s annual hat and mitten drive. Thanks to their fashion company, Capelli NY, the family donates hundreds of mittens and hat sets for underprivileged children each winter.

Mike says, “We would like to thank Tom Nammack, the Board, and all the faculty and staff for always giving their best to the MKA community.” MKA is grateful for the support the Altirs family provides our community and proud to see all the good they do for others.

“ We know our kids are in a great environment and getting the foundation they need for their future.”

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WE ARE MKA

“ Stacey has played an integral role as a Parent Admissions Ambassador. As an experienced tri-campus parent, she is tuned into the community in so many ways…”

VOLUNTE E R E XTRAO R D I NA I R E

Stacey (Honstedt) Polanskyj ’92 Stacey (Honstedt) Polanskyj ’92 has been a volunteer at MKA for over three decades. As an MKA student, Stacey collected hats and scarves in the winter and handed them out to the homeless in New York’s Penn Station. Continuing in her current roles as an Admissions Ambassador, a New Family Host, a Survival Shop volunteer, and a voting member of PAMKA’s Nominating Committee, Stacey defines what it means to be an active member of the MKA community.

Stacey credits her lifelong commitment to volunteering to the values she learned while a student at MKA. At Colgate University, she began working with Big Brothers Big Sisters, an organization she continues to support today, and in the college Admissions Office. Still committed to her undergraduate alma mater today, Stacey holds a seat on Colgate’s Gift Chair Committee helping to raise philanthropic awareness among her peers.

Returning as a parent to MKA in 2011, Stacey has supported MKA with an impressive list of volunteer leadership positions, including Grade Representative, class parent, PAMKA Gala Auction sub-committee

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Chair, and Primary School Book Fair Chair, in addition to working many other jobs at Book Fair over the years. Stacey has also served on the executive board of PAMKA as the Vice President for the Primary School, a two-year volunteer job with an impressive list of responsibilities and the opportunity to work with the Primary School administration as well as the parents of our youngest Cougars.

Admissions Director Alyson Waldman ’99 notes, “Stacey has played an integral role as a Parent Admissions Ambassador. As an experienced tri-campus parent, she is tuned into the community in so many ways, and her knowledge of the parent experience is treasured and coveted by my department and all who work with her.”

In addition to the many ways that Stacey volunteers at MKA, she greatly enjoys volunteering alongside her children and watching them discover their own enthusiasm for giving back. Stacey and her husband, Peter, are very appreciative that each of their children, Cassandra ’22, Madeline ’24, Damian ’27, and Lindsay ’29, is being exposed to the myriad ways to help others in and around the family’s community. She considers her family lucky to be a part of a school community where faculty and administration listen to the students’ thoughts and opinions and help them to see the opportunities they have to make the world better.

MKA is fortunate to have Stacey and her family as active members of our community, and we look forward to many years working together to continue to make the MKA experience a welcoming, enlightening, and joyful one for everyone.

W E A R E M KA

“ Anne attended The Kimberley School and MKA on scholarship and believes that it is very important to acknowledge that her path was accessible thanks to the generosity of others.”

Dr. Anne Morey ’79 Dr. Anne Morey ’79 has cultivated a lifelong love of learning, but from an early age, she knew she wanted to be the one who encouraged curiosity and instilled knowledge in others. Anne’s aunt, a professor in medieval history and culture, served as a role model and had a profound influence on Anne’s ultimate appointment as a professor of Popular Culture and Film Studies. However, Anne credits MKA and the teachers she had as a student for shaping her into the educator she is today.

MKA played a significant part of Anne’s life journey because, as she says, “It is never as easy to learn as it is at the high school age.” Anne learned to produce acceptable work on a deadline and developed an assortment of intellectual passions. She laughs as she remembers sitting in the MKA library in one of the old green leather chairs perusing multiple stacks of books at once. She recognizes the commitment her teachers made to help her explore new topics and ideas while challenging her to think, which led to a love of learning that has lasted well beyond the walls of the school. Today it is immensely gratifying for Anne to give the same support and encouragement she received at MKA to her own students.

After graduating from MKA, Anne received her undergraduate degree from Bryn Mawr College then continued her studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she earned a master’s degree in Radio, Television, and Motion Pictures. Anne earned her PhD. in Radio, Television, and Film from The University of Texas at Austin, and after two years of teaching at Middlebury College, she returned to Texas where she has

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called the English Department at Texas A&M home for the past 18 years.

Years of attending and teaching at several institutions provided impactful experiences and further exposure to new ideas. Anne now hopes that one day her own students will remember her as fondly as she remembers her favorite TKS and MKA faculty members. Marilyn Faden, Nixon Bicknell, Calvin Matzke (all Upper School F&PA faculty members), William Bullard (Upper School Humanities and F&PA faculty member), and Madame Andree Sciamanda (foreign language teacher) are among the earliest models Anne drew upon in her own teaching career. She appreciates the caliber of teaching she had as a student and works every day in her own classroom to equip her students for the next phase of their lives.

Anne attended The Kimberley School and MKA on scholarship and believes that it is very important to acknowledge that her path was accessible thanks to the generosity of others. Anne supports MKA today because she wants to help today’s students feel that same passion and sense of community that she feels as an alumna of MKA.

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WE ARE MKA

“ [The school] was really a turning point in my life, and I wanted to recognize that in a more concrete way.”

Barbara (Bywater) Creed ’62 Great memories of her time at TKS and her feeling that MKA continues to do a great job educating young people are what led Barbara (Bywater) Creed, TKS ’62 to include MKA in her estate plans and become a member of the Heritage Society. When you speak with Barbara, it is clear why her class poll voted her as having “done most for K.S.” Barbara grew up in Montclair and entered The Kimberley School in ninth grade. She and her close-knit class of just 22 students participated in the majority of the school’s clubs and activities. During her time at TKS, Barbara was the Senior High Student Council President and Editor-in-Chief of the Kimberley Kourier for 1961. She was involved in the Glee Club and Ooragnaks (Kangaroos spelled backwards), and she participated in sports including softball, Varsity Field Hockey, and water ballet.

Barbara received a BA in political science from Wellesley College in 1966 and then attended Boston University School of Law, serving on the law review and receiving her JD magna cum laude in 1969. After graduation, Barbara and her husband, Chris, moved to San Francisco where she accepted a position with Pillsbury Madison & Sutro, one of the largest and oldest law firms in the city at the time. In 1977, she made partner and later was elected to the firm’s seven-person Executive Committee.

Barbara became an expert in employee benefits, and in 1997, she moved her practice to Trucker Huss, a firm that focused solely on employee benefits.

Barbara and Chris’s plan had always been to return to the east coast, but they fell in love with California and today, the Bay Area continues to be home.

Barbara has been involved in many community and charitable activities, including serving as the chair of the board

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of trustees of the $14B Church Pension Fund, which provides pensions and other benefits to the clergy and lay employees of the Episcopal Church in the US and other countries. In her retirement, Barbara has found a new career leading discussions of significant cases on the current docket of the Supreme Court of the United States.

Two teachers at TKS had a lasting influence on Barbara’s life: Mrs. Roberts taught English and was the advisor to the Kimberley Kourier, and Mrs. Anthony taught history and led the Model UN program.

Barbara participated in Model UN for two years; she credits her time with this group for cultivating her interest in political science and influencing some of her future decisions.

She shares, “They were just some of the best teachers I have ever met in my life.”

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Barbara remains in close touch with many of her classmates. They gather together every few years for mini reunions in different locations around the US. Last year they gathered at Holly (Harrison) Gathright’s ’62 in Louisville, KY. Barabara credits her family and TKS for providing the foundation that has led to a full and rewarding life. “I’m eternally grateful to my parents for making [my education] possible and to Kimberley for the opportunities it gave me. [The school] was really a turning point in my life, and I wanted to recognize that in a more concrete way.” For more information on the Heritage Society, visit mka.org/ plannedgiving or contact Chris Kenrick, Associate Director of Philanthropy at ckenrick@mka.org or 973-509-7933.

C CL ASS N OT ES

Centerpieces that adorn the tables welcoming MA, TKS and MKA Alumni to the Homecoming Barbeque on Lloyd Road.

C L AS S N OT ES

E D I TO R ’S N OT E

The deadline for news for the FALL MKA Review is May 15, and the deadline for the SPRING issue is December 15. News can be submitted at any time in response to the Alumni Office’s annual mailing, on the MKA Fund remittance envelopes, via mail or email to the MKA Alumni Engagement Office (alumni@mka.org) or your class representative. We keep ongoing files for each class and welcome photographs in digital or hard copy. If your class does not have a Class Representative listed, please consider volunteering for the position! It is a great way to re-establish contacts with old friends, does not require a great deal of time, and is essential to the ongoing vitality of the school. Thank you.

The Alumni Office recently learned 1934 that / TKS /

Mary E. Hoermann Vreeland

passed away peacefully on Monday, June 26, 2018. Our deepest sympathy goes out to her family.

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/ TKS / Helen

B. Cadue recently contacted the Alumni Office to let us know that Josephine McNair

passed away on July 3, 2019.

Our deepest sympathy goes out to her family.

Schutt

Josephine McNair Schutt ’35

MKA sends condolences to 1938, whose sister, / TKS /

Ann McNair

Scharadin

Josephine

McNair Schutt ’35

July 3, 2019.

1941

passed away on

/ TKS/ Mrs. Enid Hyde, 5402 Duvall Drive,

Bethesda, MD 20816 enidghyde@ aol.com

MKA sends its sincere condolences to 1942 the family of who / TKS/

Helen Jones Gordon

died at the age of 95 on December 18, 2019.

1943

Alumni Office recently learned that Leonard P. Whitmarsh passed away in March 2019. Our deepest sympathy goes out to his family.

1945 54

/ MA / The

75TH REUNION OCTOBER 10, 2020

/ TKS / Mrs. Leigh Smith, 847 Franklin Street, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568 lbsmith15@yahoo.com / MA / Hon. William B. Grant, 537 Milano Road, Kissimmee, FL 34759, grantwb@cfl.rr.com

The Alumni Office recently learned that Bud Tietje passed away on April 25, 2018 at the age of 90. Our deepest sympathy goes out to his family.

1946

/ TKS / Mrs. Eleanor Ketcham, 9 Pancake

Hollow, Aquinnah, MA 02535, ellieketcham@aol.com

Eleanore Ketcham writes: “In March 2019, our class lost another member, Christa Arnold Buergin.

Christa was born in Munich, Germany, moved to the US at the onset of World War II, and came to Kimberley for high school. Later, she became a horticulturist with an MA degree in landscape architecture and also an Army wife who moved with her family to Alaska, Georgia, Wisconsin, Colorado, and Germany. She is survived by three children and two grandchildren.

I remember in high school that I always admired Christa’s practical viewpoint and also her beautiful head of wavy hair.

If readers want to contact Christa’s children or the children of others recently deceased, please write me and ask.

Margaret Shanks Moore continues to live in NYC near her sister, Meteer. Her children and grandchildren mostly live in California where they grew up, so she is considering moving back

M KA review / Mon tc l ai r K i mb e r l e y Ac ade my

there. In the short term, she’s looking forward to going to a grandson’s graduation from the University of Chicago and then on to Sacramento, CA where one of her sons practices law.

Heidi Ames Troxell still lives in a retirement community in Maryland and reports that she’s blessed with good health and good friends there. Her two daughters are in California and her sons in Massachusetts and middle NJ, and that’s the only rub—they’re pretty far away. But, one of them took her to Maine for a summer week—near Bath where her mother’s (Anna Lincoln Ames ’20) family originated.

Connie Ritchie DuHamel is our only classmate who still lives in Montclair. She reports that her daughter Emily and her husband have moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan, but daughters Betsy and Charlotte remain in the Boston area, and Lucy has moved full-time to Little Compton, RI. Stancy and Kate still live in or near NYC. Kate is a clinical psychologist whose specialty is ‘self-hypnosis for pain management and burns.’”Wow!

1948

/ MA / Mr. John Leonhard, 51 Fromm Court, Mahwah,

NJ 07430, nhandjhleonhard@aol.com

Dick Sandler writes: “Still chugging along and playing good golf (mid 80s) and about to be a great grandfather. Regards to all, Dick.”

1950 1951

70TH REUNION OCTOBER 10, 2020

/ TKS / Mrs. Gail

Marentette, 93 Glen

Avenue, Llewellyn Park, West Orange, NJ 07052

1952

/ TKS / Mrs. Martha Moran, 8011 Strauff Road,

Baltimore, MD 21204, martha.moran1@ verizon.net

1954

/ TKS /Ms. Georgia Carrington , 38 Silver

Spring Lane, Ridgefield, CT 06877 / MA / Mr. Sheldon Buck, 51 Cornell

C L ASS N OT ES

Road, Wellesley, MA 02482, sheldonbuck@me.com

1955

65TH REUNION OCTOBER 10, 2020

/ MA / Mr. Lawrence Martin, P.O. Box 1058 , Lexington, VA 24450, martinlexington@centurylink.net

1956

/ TKS / Ms. Susan Ferdinand, 125 Limerick

Lane, Phillipsburg, NJ 08865, facesbyferdinand@gmail.com / MA / Mr. Eric Jaeckel, P.O. Box

20153, Boulder, CO 80308, efjaeckel@hotmail.com Dr. Lawrence Nazarian, 82 Brickstone Circle, Rochester, NY 14620, LFredN@ aol.com Sue Ferdinand writes: “Sadly, we

must report the death of Julie Hedges

Rohrer on October 28, 2019. A

graduate of Wheaton, Julie enjoyed a career as a financial journalist, starting with BusinessWeek, then Forbes, and ultimately with Institutional Investor Magazine, where she became the senior editor.

In retirement, Julie pursued her passion for Morgan horses and became a renowned champion of Classic Pleasure Driving.

Julie Hedges Rohrer

I always love to hear from Nicole

de Jurenev. Her description of life

in Santa Fe is so delightful that I include it in its entirety here: ‘I am living in Santa Fe, also known as the Christmas City. We have all sorts of celebrations such as a reenactment of Mary and Joseph searching for a room and other Christmas dramas from the Bible. One of the streets I used to live on has a Christmas Eve walk, and all the homeowners put out farolitos (small lit candles

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in sand in paper bags), a nod to Mary and Joseph as they searched for a room. There are also bonfires and stops for mulled cider. Up to 40,000 folks are bussed in from the neighboring towns. Of course, there are symphonies, chorales, and concerts as well as darling neighborhood carolers. We actually have several Christmas shops open all year long. We also have a very beautiful Cathedral with some of the art painted by local painters which is open all year long to everyone, no matter what your faith is. There are many opportunities to serve: the homeless, children, those struggling to make ends meet, veterans, and everybody who needs help. This goes on all year, even though we are one of the poorest states in the union; Santa Feans give with full hearts. My Christmas wish to all is that we see friends and strangers with love and affection and help each other be the very best human beings we can be.’

Having completed work on her house that was neglected during her late husband’s illness, our classmate, Rev. Jane Romeyn Dunning, acquired a second-hand Airstream RV van and, with Maggie the Dog, has joined a group called RV Women, “travelling to campsites in Vermont and Eastern Connecticut, visiting old friends and reconnecting with people she cares about.” Jane continues to serve as Chaplain to the Shelburne Falls Fire Department.

Julia Schou Estes writes: ‘I sadly lost my husband two and a half years ago after being married for nearly 56 years. I bought a new house in Alpharetta, Georgia and am living with my granddaughter and her husband and their five year old son. I now have three great grandchildren and another one on the way. This Thanksgiving, we have rented a house on the Gulf and will be spending a week there (all 25 family members). Believe it or not, we all get along. I am truly blessed and have thoroughly enjoyed my life here in the south!’

MA Montclair Academy / TKS The Kimberley School / MKA Montclair Kimberley Academy

Having survived Lyme disease in Maine last summer, Gail Zabriskie Wilson is now prepping for knee surgery in January—as am I. The Wilsons winter in Florida (near Gail’s sister Aubin Zabriskie Ames ’54). Their children are spread from Connecticut to California, as are her grandchildren with ‘two grandsons working and living together in Denver, one grandson just graduated from Furman in SC and job hunting, one grandson at Dickinson in PA, and the only granddaughter, a senior at New Canaan HS and looking at colleges with nursing programs.’

Meredyth Clark Graham reports that she and her husband take the family to their Aruba timeshare every summer. What fun! Meredyth has been teaching ESL at a local community college for 32 years.

Molla Kaplan Reisbaum from Wayne, Joanne Weiser Salomon from Hackensack, Sally Bever Zweibach from Glen Cove, LI, and I from Phillipsburg, manage to buck traffic and get together for lunch about every three to four months. We are a lively Gang of Four, and our conversations tend to center, passionately, on politics. Fortunately, we are all on the same side of the aisle.

Minus a few aches and pains and some wrinkles, we are 25 years old at heart, and, like so many members of the Class of ’56, so active that it is hard to find a common bit of free time for these meetings. Even Joanne, who claims that her life is dull, is playing ‘duplicate bridge 5 days a week, giving lessons at the club twice, and running the business end of the bridge club.’

She writes, ‘I would call myself semi-retired; not teaching English any more but still teaching. I have three granddaughters, none married and no great grandchildren that I’m aware of, but I’m super ready to babysit, change diapers, etc. I’m politically obsessed. When I’m not at the bridge club, I’m glued to the TV watching CNN. Jack Tapper and Wolf Blitzer are part of my family now. I haven’t seen any good

55

C L AS S N OT ES

movies, but I’m planning on seeing The Irishman and The Good Liar. Hi, to you and all the Kimberley Girls, Class of ’56.’”

1957

/ TKS / Mrs. Thelma “Tam” Knight, 3001 Linton

Boulevard, No. 201C, Delray Beach, FL 33445, tknight115@aol.com

MKA sends its sincere condolences to the family of Michael J. (Pollock) Pollard who died at the age of 80 of cardiac arrest at a Los Angeles hospital on November 20, 2019.

Pollard was known for his role as the getaway driver in the 1967 film Bonnie and Clyde, which earned him an Academy Award nomination.

1958

/ TKS / Mrs. Diana Little, 1-K Buckingham Road,

West Orange, NJ 07052, littlecorp@ verizon.net / MA / Mr. Henry Agens, 86 Eagle Rock

Way, Montclair, NJ 07042, hymelee@ earthlink.net

writes: “Mike Gennet and his wife, Chris, have traveled extensively in the past couple of years. I thought it might be interesting if he commented on the experiences they encountered in the places they visited. So here, in a nutshell, is the Gennet Grand Tour: ‘My wife, Chris, and I feel very fortunate that we have the time, resources, and good health to tackle some ambitious journeys while we can. In September 2018, we spent 24 days in South Africa and four days in London on the way. Being a wine aficionado (an acquired California hobby), I insisted that, if we were going on safari, the Cape Winelands be an additive. We spent three full days touring six wine areas in truly the most beautiful wine country we’d ever seen. The wines were delicious, and the food and attentive winery staff were outstanding. Our experiences in Cape Town, Johannesburg, Kruger National Park (for our safari), and ultimately Victoria Falls were memorable and far exceeded my expectations.

Hy Agens

56

This past May, we enjoyed a very special National Geographic 10-day tour of Israel and Jordan for five days. With our own guides, the exposure in Israel to the three major religions and both sides of the prospective ‘Two State Solution’ was fascinating and terrifying at the same time. We saw clear evidence of potential strife and no sign of a true ‘solution’ that would provide satisfactory benefits to the Israelis and Palestinians, both of whom claim the same land, especially on the West Bank.

The Israeli dominance of the Palestinian region is palpable, and the fast growing series of Jewish settlements in Palestine puts Israeli communities in strategic positions all over this volatile region. We had revealing meetings with the U.S. educated Palestinian Foreign Minister to the EU and the Israeli Knesset Speaker. They both agreed that each side has to ‘give up some of its dreams’ for there to be a lasting peace.

We were in both a Palestinian refugee camp and an Israeli settlement, as well as staying in a successful kibbutz on the Dead Sea where we floated a bit. Then we took a boat cruise on the Sea of Galilee, and I swam in the Red Sea in Eilat. We crossed over to Jordan and visited the incredible Wadi Rum, where Lawrence of Arabia lived and fought…and where the movie was filmed. Amman was very interesting, but the high points were the nine miles we hiked in Petra (truly one of the wonders of the world) and a visit to Jerash on the Syrian border, perhaps the greatest Roman ruins in existence.

Our other big 2019 trip in the Fall was 32 days in Italy. Our tour took us to Puglia, the heel of the boot, for a week of incredible scenery, food, wine, and hospitable people. We next flew to Sicily for a 15-day tour of the largest island in the Mediterranean in depth and a splendid panorama of history,

MKA review / Mon tc l ai r K i mb e r l e y Ac ade my

going back to Phoenician and Etruscan times. Again, we enjoyed super-delicious food, wonderful historical and archeological sites, and some new wines. Drinking Mount Etna Red Wine on the volcano was a great way to end our day. The high point was probably Taromina, where the Greco-Roman arena still operates as an active amphitheater.

We then rented a lovely villa on the Amalfi Coast, where we could walk to incredible seaside restaurants, taxi into Positano, and charter a boat to Capri. With absolutely perfect weather and some spectacular views etched in our memories, we had a great time in this unique part of the world that I’d never visited before.

Chris and I concluded our trip to Italy with 5 special days in Rome walking the history-filled streets and inhaling the special atmosphere of the Eternal City.

Since we hadn’t visited in 18 years and having done our homework, this was our own special tour of Rome which was invigorating, stimulating, and educational.

Returning from our long trip to Italy, we flew out to our timeshare in Kauai for a wonderful, relaxing 8 days of sun and surf.

So that’s a summary of our major trips.

Thank you for taking this Michael Gennet ’58 and his journey with wife Chris in Rome, Italy. me.’

“It is with regret that I must report the passing of our classmate, Alan Michael “Mike” Chodorcoff on December 15, 2019 after a long, difficult illness. He was 79.

Mike was born in East Orange, raised in West Orange, and resided in Montville, NJ at the time of his death. After graduating from MA and college, he was a member of the US Army Reserve. He worked in the insurance industry, last as

C L ASS N OT ES

an independent with The Benefit Foundation in Wayne. Mike was a member, board member, and past treasurer of B’nai Jeshurun in Short Hills. He was also past president of the Federation of Diabetes Research in Livingston.

At Montclair Academy, Mike was a popular member of our class. He played second base on the very successful 1957-1958 MA Baseball team, a team that lost only one game(non-league) over two years. Fellow classmate and team shortstop Dave Black wrote: ‘Mike ‘Double Play’ Chodorcoff was a fun, funny, delight to be around. A true conservative, never afraid to let you know how he felt. I will miss our weekly email exchanges, and his warm sense of humor. RIP my friend.’

Frank Sachs and Mike remained close and in touch for all of the 60-plus years since graduating from MA. Frank stated: ‘When you were a friend with Mike, you stayed friends for life.’

Mike is survived by his wife Jean, sons William and Brian, daughter Maria, three grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews. The MA Class of ’58 sends our sincerest condolences to the Chodorcoff family.”

1959

/ TKS / Ms. Jarvis Reilly Nolan, 15612 Via Marchena,

San Diego, CA 92128, jarvisno@aol.com

Bob Schmitt with his wife Penny at Van Vleck celebrating the MA Class of 1962 55th Reunion in October 2017.

MKA recently learned that Robert “Bob” Schmitt, Jr. passed away on October 31, 2019. His family and friends will miss his sense of humor, keen wit, and generosity.

Our deepest sympathy goes out to his family and loved ones. Bob’s wife, Penny, shared the following obituary: “Bob died on October 31, 2019 after a long battle with prostate cancer. His sharp sense of humor was surely shaped by having been born on April Fools’ Day, and his family believes he would find some amusement on having passed on Halloween. He graduated from MA in 1962 and served two years in the Army before going to Hobart in 1964. He graduated with a BA in English. He joined Phi Sigma Kappa fraternity and maintained friendships with those brothers over the last 54 years. He met his wife of 51 years, Penny Larkin Schmitt ’68, at HWS. Bob worked first for IBM, then Digital Equipment Corporation, during which time the family lived in NH, Hong Kong, and Singapore. He later started his own company, Biometrica, using facial recognition software in casinos. He also had a small company which used facial recognition for genealogy research and worked with collectors to corroborate the identities of potentially famous people in daguerreotypes and photographs. Bob is survived by his wife, Penny, and three daughters, Joanne K. Schmitt of CA; Kate Schmitt of FL; Kris Schmitt Wilson of NH, and a five-month-old granddaughter, Alice Wilson.”

years to do this. Many large celebrations around town were done even fireworks!

Winthrop, MA 02152

shore of the Chesapeake Bay. Very proud of my son, A.J. Royce ’94 who is president of Royce Global which celebrates 90 years in business.

Would enjoy catching up with old friends. Give me a call if you are in our vicinity, 201-213-6835.”

1962

1965

1960writes: “In January I’m 1961 60TH REUNION

/ TKS / Mrs. Suzanne

OCTOBER 10, 2020

Hardy, 47 Bartlett Parkway,

Sheila Hogan

going to Israel for ten days with my church group. Thirty-seven of us will travel together including the pastor and his wife.

Family is important to me: Madison, my oldest granddaughter, is receiving her Masters from Berkeley. Kelleigh, another granddaughter, is graduating from Georgia Tech. Spring will be busy.

Cutter, a grandson was chosen to be in the Honor Society. His high school football team won State. It has taken them over twenty-five

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/TKS /Mrs. Barbara Creed, 501 Portola Road, #8185,

Portola Valley, CA 94028, bbcreed@ aol.com

55TH REUNION OCTOBER 10, 2020

/ TKS / Ms. Katharine “Kitty” Haines, 174 East 74th Street, Apt. 9F, New York, NY

/ MA / Mr. W. Doug Donald, 189 Sedgefield Circle, Winter Park, FL 32792, D1Donald@aol.com

writes: “Semi-retired 10 1964 years. We spend our winters in the Jay Royce

Sarasota, FL area and summers in Clayton DE, near the Eastern

MA Montclair Academy / TKS The Kimberley School / MKA Montclair Kimberley Academy

10021, khaines22@aol.com Lucille Russamano de Boissezon writes: “I spent the summer in Spring Lake at my beach house, and in September and October, I was in my home in Denia, Spain. I sold my home in Geneva, Switzerland, which I was sad to do, but my sons are in NYC, and I wanted to spend

57

L E GAC Y FA M I LY

A Family Legacy “ A man cannot leave a better legacy to the world than a well-educated family.” THOMAS SCOTT MKA is proud, fortunate, and grateful to have a community that includes generations of families whose members have attended our founding schools of Brookside, The Kimberley School, Montclair Academy, and today’s Montclair Kimberley Academy.

Family legacies are worth treasuring and passing on to the next generation. The enduring value of an MKA education was especially clear to Jackie and Rick Jenkins ’77 when it came time to decide where they wanted their children Emma ’12, Charlotte ’18, and Gregory ’18 to attend school. Because of Rick’s experience as a student, he and Jackie saw that MKA “equips you for college and for life. It provides the skills to succeed in just about any environment you choose.” All three of the Jenkins children started at MKA in Pre-K and graduated as Lifers.

As President of Eden Gold Media, LLC, Rick believes that his experiences at MKA have benefitted every part of his career in business and golf writing. He credits the “analytical thinking, curiosity, exploration and research, communications skills, teamwork and collaboration, and ethical standards” advocated and

58

MKA review / Mon tc l ai r K i mb e r l e y Ac ade my

emulated by the faculty and staff of the school. He says, “It was easy to make friends at MKA [because] it was small enough to enable meeting people, and the respect and acceptance factors were much higher than in the public-school system from which I came.” Rick fondly remembers the teachers who were gifted in the classroom and made lasting impressions on him, like Ken Gibson (economics), Judy Nesbitt (math), and Bob Hemmeter (history). Being in close proximity to quality education factored into Jackie and Rick’s decision to move to Montclair in 1991, and they deliberately looked for a neighborhood that was close to each campus so their kids could attend MKA. Rick and his children attest to the important aspects of an MKA education that they hope will never change: the emphasis on a well-rounded education including the focus on critical thinking, the academic rigor, and

L EGAC Y FA M I LY

THE JENKINS FAMILY: Rick Jenkins ’77, Jackie Jenkins, Gregory Jenkins ’18, Charlotte Jenkins ’18, Emma Jenkins ’12

the level of attention to each individual student, as well as the sense of community and belonging that was pertinent to the cohesiveness of the student body.

Charlotte and Greg added that the College Counseling Office and the soccer program under Coach Leather, respectively, were the best experiences they ever had.

Rick is thrilled that so many of these strengths have remained consistent since he attended in the 1970s.

The Jenkins children benefited from MKA’s college preparatory program and appreciated the academic rigor, especially from a writing perspective. Emma shares that, as a history major at Dickinson College, she relied on the writing skills she developed and honed at MKA, especially on her Junior Thesis, to set her up for success. Charlotte shares that MKA cultivated her critical thinking skills and instilled in her the importance of having a strong work ethic, both of

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which have benefited her greatly at Davidson College.

Greg, who attends Lafayette College, credits MKA for highlighting the importance of seeing your teachers for help and additional practice when needed.

One can confidently say that the Jenkins family values the education MKA provided and the friendships each family member made while there.

Rick states, “My time serving on the Alumni Council and the Board of Trustees proved what a well-run school MKA is. The administration and faculty work very hard to make MKA the school it is today.” Jackie gratefully mentions how very fortunate the family is to be a part of the MKA community and have that structure, consistency, and exposure to high expectations in their children’s lives for so long, and the entire family has found great friendships that have remained long after graduation.

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Peter is on the left in the picture which was taken at the Tony Awards, where Dr. Jill Biden introduced the performance by the cast of Bandstand.

Peter Stern ’65 has been edging out of practicing law in favor of ever-increasing involvement in theater. His recent project was the transfer of A Christmas Carol from The Old Vic Theatre in London to the Lyceum Theatre on Broadway for an eight-week season that started on November 7, 2019. It was a new and fascinating adaptation/interpretation of the classic Charles Dickens story. In 2018, Peter was a co-producer of The Prom which ran for close to a year at the Longacre Theatre and which became a movie starring Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, and Ariana Grande.

Prior to that was Bandstand at the Jacobs Theatre.

more time with them. In November, I was in Oman, a part of the Middle East which I love, and then on to Dubai, where my husband has an office. I am now in the USA with no plans for 2020 except for a trip to Russia with my family at Easter. My husband is half Russian, so it is time to see where Grandma comes from.”

Susan DeBevoise Wright writes: “Every decade or two, Jim and I have a BIG year. This was it. We marked many family milestones, beginning with my 50th Vassar Reunion on the same weekend that Andrew, our grandson, graduated from Dartmouth. I made a flying trip home in time to hear Yo-Yo Ma deliver the Commencement Address and play "Song of the Birds." Our family of 14 enjoyed summertime in Maine. Later in August, Jim and I took a special trip down "Memory Lane," returning to the house we built at Lake Sunapee 20 years ago. There we celebrated Jim’s 80th birthday, then had another getaway for our 35th wedding anniversary. Just when all good things were coming to an end, Patrick, our grandson

60

(Andrew’s brother) arrived to begin college at Dartmouth. It doesn’t get any better than this.

Time for another reunion?”

Kitty Haines writes: “I had a lovely summer on the farm in MA and went to Rome & Florence with a bunch of NYC friends in early October. It’s a NYC Christmas which should be fun. 2020 is the month of February in Bermuda (because who wants to be in NYC then?) and a river cruise to Amsterdam with Ginny Redpath in April.”

1966

/ MA / Mr. A. Craig Cameron, 11 Bay Point

Drive, Ormond Beach, FL 32174, ccameron@cameronhodges.com Mr. Douglas Fitzpatrick, 70 Eastern Vista, Sedona, AZ 86351

1967

/ MA / Mr. Craig Perry, 3467 Pinestream Road , Atlanta,

GA 30327, craigcperry@aol.com

1968

/ TKS / Ms. Avie Claire Kalker, 10 Knolls Road,

Williamstown, MA 01267, heraldicone@ gmail.com

MKA review / Mon tc l ai r K i mb e r l e y Ac ade my

Congratulations to Michael Yamashita ’67 on his new book release Shangri-La [along the tea road to Lhasa]. “Through vivid photographs and personal narrative, Michael Yamashita captures the rarefied, enchanting and rapidly changing world of Tibet—the earthly paradise that inspired author James Hilton’s fictional Shangri-La. In his book, Shangri-La [along the tea road to Lhasa], Yamashita follows the Chamagudao—the legendary Tea Horse Road—to explore the precipitous mountain passes, mistshrouded valleys, and monasteries perched on towering peaks above pristine lakes and meadows of this elusive land. The Chamagudao’s circuitous route through Sichuan and Yunnan Provinces in western China led Yamashita to the Tibetan Autonomous Region’s capital city of Lhasa, traveling the network of dirt roads, trails and highways that now make up this once vital trade route that stretched for almost 1,400 miles (2350 km). A thousand years ago, it linked the mighty Chinese Empire with remote Tibetan villages and nomadic tribes, whose legendary horses were needed by the Chinese military for their wars against Mongol invaders. In return, traders carried prized Chinese tea to the ardently religious Tibetans who depended upon it for both their sacred Buddhist rituals and sustenance. Today, the remnants of this route provide a conduit for Yamashita’s exploration of a land that is at once ethereally peaceful and politically turbulent, and fast disappearing. This book is a close-up view of a land, its people, and a way of life that is becoming increasingly difficult to find and experience.”

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/ MA / Mr. Geoff Gregg, 6108

vjc@vjamescastiglia.com / Mr. Peter

Percheron Trail, Summerfield, NC 27358,

Webb, Mile Slip Farm, 48 Mason Road,

tartanone@triad.rr.com

Brookline, NH 03033, pwebb@

Mark Davis writes: “Retired business

winerbennett.com

analyst and software consultant for JDEdwards/Oracle, and moved to sunny California in 2012.”

1969

1971

/ TKS / Miss Philippa Bowles, 39 Orts Road,

Hamburg, NJ 07419, wvbond60@

/ TKS / Ms. Christine Hannon, 97 North Street,

gmail.com / MA / Mr. Jeffrey Jones, 77 Monroe

Northhampton, MA 01060, channon@

Street, Cedar Grove, NJ 07009,

smith.edu

coastdaylight98@yahoo.com /

/ MA / Dr. Edward A. Griggs Jr., 100

Mr. Anthony Vitale, 10 North Wood

Cedar Street, Apt. B24, Dobbs Ferry,

Avenue, Apt. 601, Linden, NJ 07036,

NY 10522

Tony.Vitale@TVOD.com

Christine Hannon writes: “Seven Class

of ’69ers gathered in Bluffton, SC last November to celebrate our 50th reunion. The weekend was full of talk, laughter, memories, tears, food, fun, biking, walking, bowling, and even dancing in the street.”

1973

/ TKS / Ms. Susan Read, 38 College Circle, Staunton,

VA 24401

/ MA / Mr. Thomas C. Galligan, 14805 Audubon Lakes Drive, Baton Rouge, LA 70810, tgalligan714@gmail.com / Mr. Gregory Lackey, 138 Paupukkewis Trail, Medford Lakes, NJ 08055, gregory. lackey@usps.gov

Left to right: Barbara Brogan, Virginia Vassallo, Ellen Hare, Chris Hannon, Toni DeLorenzo, Phyllis Rawlins, Nina Boral

Christine Wakefield traveled to

Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda with a group from the Oakland Park Zoo to gain invaluable insight into the challenges facing both the human and wildlife populations in this biologically diverse part of Africa. Chris reports she also judged a cooking completion in Kabale, Uganda.

Congratulations to Shelley Brightman Walchak for running a successful campaign to increase much-needed funding for the Pine River (CO) library.

Finally, deepest condolences to Virginia Vassallo on the loss of her beloved husband, Russ, in January 2019.

1970

50TH REUNION OCTOBER 10, 2020

1974

/ TKS / Ms. Erin Cuffe Crawford, 121 Clarewill

Avenue, Upper Montclair, NJ 07043, erincrawford@verizon.net

The Alumni Office sends its sincere condolences to William Frederick whose mother, Marion Kerr Frederick, passed away on December 14, 2019 at the age of 95.

1975

45TH REUNION OCTOBER 10, 2020

/ MKA / Mr. Paul Zukerberg, 1790 Lanier Place NW, Washington, DC 20009, paul.zukerberg@gmail.com

The Alumni Office sends its sincere 1974 condolences to whose Dale Horne

mother, Marion Kerr Frederick, passed away on December 14, 2019 at the age of 95.

1977

/ MA / Mr. Robert Hubsmith, 16 Warren

Road, Maplewood, NJ 07040,

/ TKS / Ms. Leslie Bryan, 844

roberthubsmith24@gmail.com /

East Morningside Drive, NE, Atlanta,

Mr. Andrew Pedersen, 5 Whipporwill

GA 30324, lbryan@dsckd.com

Valley Rd, Atlantic Highlands, NJ 07716,

/ MA / Mr. V. James Castiglia Esq., 3 Lark Lane, Oak Ridge, NJ 07438,

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apedersenco@gmail.com

Congratulations to Sara Troxell Winokur ’74 on her debut novel: Double Blind: The Icelandic Manuscript Murders. She is a Ph.D. molecular geneticist whose research has been published in many scientific journals, including Human Molecular Genetics, Nature Genetics, and Cell: Stem Cell. As an ovarian cancer thriver, Sara has dedicated her life to family, friends, travel, and her second career as an author of historical fiction and forensic mysteries. Sara lives with her family and writes in Southern California.

SYNOPSIS Double Blind: The Icelandic Manuscript Murders A young boy disappears in the chill of North Iceland.

Twenty years later, a mysterious poem lands on the desk of his twin sister Brynja, a forensic geneticist, and rekindles her hopes that her brother might be alive. As Brynja unravels the clues, more poems arrive, each bearing dire consequences for those who receive them: the guard of the medieval manuscript of Icelandic sagas that may have the answer to her burning question, the prime minister’s secretary, the local pastor.

Is the poet out to stop Brynja from finding her brother and shut down her access to the DNA database? Or is the verse maker simply a psychopath copycat killer?

Fighting the visual auras that have plagued her since childhood and now threaten everything she holds dear, Brynja must summon the strength to navigate the twisted labyrinth of the poet’s mind and confront the dark secret buried in her family’s past.

Double Blind: The Icelandic Manuscript Murders is a wild ride through the cultural landscape of Iceland, from rural farmsteads to icy fjords to the high-tech world of DNA forensics. This crime thriller packed with twists and turns will keep you at the edge of your seat until the very end.

MKA sends its deepest condolences

MA Montclair Academy / TKS The Kimberley School / MKA Montclair Kimberley Academy

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to Pat Berry whose mother, Victoria “Fay” Shaw Berry, passed away on December 10, 2019 at the age of 92.

Patricia (Cane) Donahue writes: “We just celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary with a cruise on the Danube River. Having retired from teaching last year, I continue to be involved in science education. I continue to serve on a committee overseeing the new statewide, standardized science test. In addition, I completed a program to become a certified Master Gardener and am piloting a new event for the state’s Science Olympiad competition called ‘The Garden State.’”

Rob Hubsmith writes: “Thank you Joe Ciccolini for putting together a Holiday Party with representation from the classes of ’72, ’76, ’78, and of course, ’77. We had 21 alumni come out for the festivities at Luigi’s in Newark. The Class of ’77 was well represented: Pat Berry, Chris Brenner (up from Maryland), Stacy Cochran, Nancy Dainesi, Rob Hubsmith, Rick Jenkins, Cheryl and Peter McMullen, David Pinkham, Brad Protas (up from Florida), Keith Ridings and Peter Valentine. George Hrab, Judy Nesbit, Eric Gutierrez, and Chris Kenrick also were in attendance. It was a fun event; let’s hope it’s an annual tradition with even more alumni.

Congrats to Paul Hastaba on the birth of grandkid #1, Cameron Ava Hastaba. Doug Mahler tells me that son Lukas is an intern at the Golf Channel and other son, Derek, is in his junior year at Penn State in the Smeal Business School. Andy Dobbin is out of New Canaan and now lives on the Upper East Side in the City.

He says that having Central Park as his backyard keeps him sane and helps with some past health issues that are thankfully behind him. Bev Hall says all is well with her and is still tending to her small ranch in Wyoming with an assortment of animals- cows (8 more calves coming in the Spring), horses, dogs, cats and lots of wildlife (she did not elaborate on the latter). Mike Platt is now in season seven of Grace and Frankie on Netflix (check it out,

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if you haven’t!) Mike is also the proud father of 10-year-old twins, Kash and Avery who are following in Dad’s footsteps as hockey players. The Class of ’77 wishes to extend our heartfelt condolences to Pat Berry on the passing of her mom, Victoria “Fay” Shaw Berry on December 10.”

1978

/ MKA/ Ms. Jane Lugaric Burkhard, 299 Crown Road,

Kentfield, CA 94904, janeburkhard@ comcast.net / Mr. Bart Lund, 66 Linden Ave., Verona, NJ 07044, barton.lund@ me.com / Mrs. Heath Shelby, 5 Edgehill Ct, Llewellyn Park, West Orange, NJ 07052, chezshelby@aol.com / Ms. Pamela Zeug, 60 W. 57th Street, #15F, New York, NY 10019, pzeug@ downinggroup.com

A few members from the Class of ’78 gathered for lunch in early December with a broader group from ’77 and ’76. Laughter was shared by all.

throughout the world). Their original quest was to eliminate the fear of fractions in Caribbean schools after meeting Sal Khan, founder of Khan Academy. Today it’s to level the playing field for academic advancement. They have cross-trained teachers; students are advancing their math proficiencies and coding confidences, and many more computer school computer labs have been updated with thousands of new devices complimenting MKA’s original donation of 50 repurposed iPads!

A glimpse of their work since the founding of the ALDAS Youth First Initiative has been published by the IFCU: Math and Coding in the Caribbean, Social Responsibility and Rewiring Education: How Technology Can Unlock Every Student’s Potential. (shorturl.at/ mnxRX) This past November, Nico and Alex returned from three days of meetings in Washington DC with international agencies that could lead to better futures for more youth in developing nations.

1979

/ MKA / Dr. John Brink, 1246 Beach Haven Road,

Atlanta, GA 30324 / Shawn Ortiz, 2163

Gilbride Road, Martinsville, NJ 08836

Left to right: Bart Lund, Peter Van Leer, Heath Betke Shelby, Bill Transue, Susan Cole.

The Alumni Office sends our sincere condolences to Mike Berry whose mother, Victoria “Fay” Shaw Berry, passed away on December 10, 2019 at the age of 92.

Frederick Eiden and Debora Eiden are proud parents of their sons Nico and Alex who continue to make a positive impact for those in need. Philanthropic innovator Nico Eiden ’21, along with MKA graduate and brother Alex Eiden ’17, who is currently multiple majoring in international business, computer science, and Japanese at Villanova, have been applauded by the International Federation of Catholic Universities (IFCU- an organization of over 200 Catholic universities

MKA review / Mon tc l ai r K i mb e r l e y Ac ade my

The Alumni Office sends its sincere condolences to Betsy Stanton Santarlasci whose father, Richard A. Stanton, passed away on November 20, 2019.

A big shout-out and congratulations to Ruth M. Perretti. Her restaurant, “Ruthie’s BBQ and Pizza,” won the Readers’ Choice Award for best BBQ in Essex County (Morris|Essex Health & Life Magazine)!

Saturday, October 19 started bright and early at 9:00 a.m. in the Upper School Chorus Room with a tribute to MKA’s musical maestro, Nixon Bicknell, who recently passed; alumni, staff, and family came to share heartfelt stories about Mr. Bicknell’s many decades of dedication at MKA, and we sang several songs with current chorus students. Representing the 1979

C L ASS N OT ES

Jim Johnson at the 2019 Alumni Awards Reception

Congratulations MKA’s 2000 Distinguished Alumni Award winner Jim Johnson ’79 who was named the new corporation counsel for New York City! In this new position, he will lead the city’s Law Department and oversee the work of hundreds of lawyers.

Bruce Eng, Lori Dewey Dioguardi, Ken Dioguardi, and Shawn Mahieu Ortiz write: “On October 18, Lisa Godlewski Westheimer and her husband, Bill, graciously hosted us at their historic home in Llewellyn Park. We noshed on Lisa’s and Leslie Coleman DeGeorges’ delicious homemade deviled eggs, Bruno’s Sicilian square pizza, and much more. We enjoyed the MKA 1979 memorabilia room, and each of us received a custom keepsake 40th Reunion Pet Rock. The Pet Rocks were the idea of our reunion committee, decorated and signed by current MKA students. A few of us even brought our yearbooks to be signed. Another highlight: Ruth Perretti and Jim Johnson collaborated to create four stunning photo collage posters of our class.

Later in the evening, we were treated to a surprise adventure, crossing the dark courtyard from the main house and into the bright lights of Bill and Lisa’s photography and art studios to view their latest creative works. Two classmates were able to join us live via Facetime: Stefanie Andreani Kibele in Germany and Andrea Meschkow Schneider in Arizona.

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FRONT ROW: Andy Rod, Lisa Godlewski Westheimer, Paige Cottingham-Streater, Shawn Mahieu Ortiz, Ken Dioguardi, Sally De Piro MIDDLE ROW: Larry Duca, Debbie Doerr Larsen, Leslie Coleman Degeorges, Anita Sims Rainford, Ruth Perretti, Alison O’Neill, Lori Dewey Dioguardi BACK ROW: George Frey, Gardner Semet, Tony Cristello, Bruce Eng, Jim Johnson

Lisa’s house: Bill’s photography studio

Lisa’s house: Lisa’s art studio

class were Peggy Mills-Kaplan, Paige Cottingham-Streater, and Bruce Eng. The afternoon kicked off with a BBQ and the football game, MKA vs. Morristown-Beard. MKA was losing badly, and Tony Barnes, John Joseph, and Ken Dioguardi said half joking/half seriously, “Hey guys, let’s suit-up and help the team.”

MA Montclair Academy / TKS The Kimberley School / MKA Montclair Kimberley Academy

Needless to say, they did not suit-up, and MKA lost 42 to 7 (it was later disclosed that 5 of MKA’s starters were not playing because of concussion protocols—safety first!). MKA took official group photos of our class in the beautiful sunlight and fall foliage with the forever-young George Hrab.

Lamarr Tsufura brought a special treat for all attending the football game/BBQ. It was a giant treasure pile of MKA archival grade photos that his photographer father, Satoru, discreetly took while we were at MKA. Satoru’s amazing eye and talent captured our life at MKA forever on film. Lamarr generously let classmates take photos; Tracy Green Frager got the pan-motion photo of her running the ball in a soccer game, Lamarr told us that was his father’s favorite photo of all time.

After the game, a bunch of us needed more “reminders” of our good ole MKA days, so, as if by telepathy, we headed to Tierney’s for some refueling before the MC hotel evening cocktail party.

Great news for Tierney’s fans: it is exactly the same!

The new MC hotel, just a few blocks away from the Upper School, was the site for the evening party for the 1979, 1984, and 1989 classes. After formal class photos were taken by MKA, some of us migrated to the hotel rooftop bar

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and took in the magnificent view of the Manhattan skyline on a crystal clear, crisp night.

Not ready to turn-in just yet, after the MC Hotel, Ruth Perretti kindly invited the alumni who never want to quit, to her restaurant, Ruthie’s, for more fun, food, and reminiscing.

If you did not get a 40th Reunion Pet Rock, there are many leftover Pet Rocks for our next reunion, so please attend to collect yours!”

Until we meet again, Class of 1979, 40th reunion committee: Paige Cottingham-Streater, Leslie Coleman DeGeorges, Steve Dodd, Dave Wallace, Bruce Eng

1980 MKA sends its deepest sympathy to 40TH REUNION

OCTOBER 10, 2020

Cynthia Voss whose father, Donald

Voss, passed away on August 19, 2019 at the age of 83 after a challenging series of strokes.

MKA sends its heartfelt sympathies to Betsy Bacot whose mother, Shirley Bacot Shamel, passed away on January 6, 2020.

1981

/ MKA / Mrs. Laura (Reisch) Itzkowitz, 37

Nottingham Road, Manalapan, NJ 07726, howardandlaura@optonline.net

The Alumni Office sends its sincere condolences to Carolyn Stanton

whose father, Richard A. Stanton, Richard A Stanton, father of Elizabeth A. passed awayon Santarlasci ’79, Carolyn November 20, Calnan ’81, and Richard G. Stanton ’87.

2019.

MKA sends its deepest sympathy to Margaret Schumann whose mother, Caroline Weyer Schumann, passed away on September 21, 2019.

Steven Chambers writes: “Helloooo c-o ’81! I was so saddened to hear of Nixon Bicknell’s passing and thought about how committed he was to our class, to Master Singers (was that a one-word name?), and to the Calnan

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school musicals.

He was such a powerful inspiration in my MKA experience and to so many other students, I know.

Steven Chambers ’81 I’m in Boston, taking a break (career pivot?) from 30 years in high tech working with AI, machine learning, voice recognition, and other technologies that are now, today, embodied in Siri and Alexa and Google Voice, getting a Masters in Education at Harvard, and it’s a real experience being in my mid-50s surrounded by 22-28 year olds. Eye opening and often in a good way.

I hope everyone in our august class of ’81 is doing fantastically well. Two years until our (gulp) FORTIETH class reunion!”

George Margitich, father of Christine Margitich Janis passed away on Tuesday, December 10, 2019 at the age of 88.

MKA sends its heartfelt condolences to the family.

George Margitich, father of Christine Janis ’81

1982

/ MKA / Mrs. Jennifer Jones Ladda, 17 Belleclaire

Place, Verona, NJ 07044, jjonesladda@ gmail.com

MKA sends its heartfelt sympathies to Susan Bacot-Davis whose mother, Shirley Bacot Shamel, passed away on January 6, 2020.

MKA sends its heartfelt sympathies to Andrew F. Smith

whose father, Roy C. Smith, passed away on November 15, 2019.

MKA’s former Trustee Roy C Smith, father of Kelly Mongeau ’82, Andrew Smith ’84, and Allison Fernandez ’90

1985 moved back to the 35TH REUNION

OCTOBER 10, 2020

Roger Brown

Montclair area after being away since 1985 and has had the pleasure to bump into a few old friends.

1986

/ MKA / Ms. Jennifer Remington-Knodel, 44

07006, jenremknodel@aol.com

1987

/ MKA / Mr. Dennis Rodano, 14 Wayland Drive,

Verona, NJ 07044-2331, rodanod@ verizon.net / Ms. Lynne Yellin, 413

/ MKA / Mr. Walter J. Davis,

Ridgecrest Drive , Chapel Hill, NC 27514,

66 Oakwood Drive, New

lynnegy@aol.com

Providence, NJ 07974, davisteam@comcast.net / Mrs. Maureen Natkin (J.P.), 5 Riverview Road, Irvington, NY 10533

MKA sends its deepest sympathy to Andy Voss whose father, Donald Voss, passed away on August 19, 2019 at the age of 83 after a challenging series of strokes.

Congratulations to Laura La Corte who accepted a new position as the Chief Compliance and Privacy

M KA review / Mon tc l ai r K i mb e r l e y Ac ade my

1984

Hamilton Drive East, North Caldwell, NJ

MKA sends its heartfelt sympathies to Kelley Smith Mongeau whose father, Roy C. Smith passed away on November 15, 2019.

1983

Officer at Prospect Medical Holdings, Inc. The Alumni Office sends its sincere condolences to Ron DeMatteo whose father, Ronald DeMatteo, passed away on November 26, 2019, after a brief illness.

MKA sends its deepest sympathy to Christine Voss whose father, Donald Voss, passed away on August 19, 2019 at the age of 83 after a challenging series of strokes.

The Alumni Office sends its sincere condolences to Richard G. Stanton whose father, Richard A. Stanton, passed away on November 20, 2019.

Alumni Spotlights NEGAR AHKAMI ’88 Negar is a visual artist whose work is inspired

by Iran's ceramic traditions and its architecture.

Her art work is meant to show gratitude and admiration and pay respect to Iran's influential art history.

Negar’s greatest accomplishment in her career stems from the beginning. Early in her career as an artist, getting accepted to Skowhegan, a prestigious artist residency in Maine, was probably the biggest boost for her because it came at a critical time, and was an important step in her personal trajectory. Negar shares, “You are thrown into a summer camplike environment but with other intense and highly ambitious artists. Established artists give you studio visits and critics. While I am not a great fan of Jeff Koons, it was amazing to have him visit my studio and get his feedback, and he won me over when I was skeptical.” Prior to this experience, Negar went through a period of self-doubt in relation to the art world, and she felt great to get accepted into this selective institution with incredible alumni. It made her feel that she was not entirely delusional in her deep-down self-belief as an artist.

While art was a constant in Negar’s life, her desire to act was even stronger than her desire to paint. But she had more validation and encouragement in the visual arts, and there were logistical problems about getting rides home after play practice. Therefore, after freshman year it was not something Negar pursued, despite a passion for it. Michael Bergman really lifted her up when he invited her to do the program cover-art for a few of his great, memorable productions. Negar loved being involved with the theater in this small way, and being part of anything involving Mr. Bergman, whom she really respected as a visionary. Another kind of mentor who impacted Negar was Mr. Berry with his excellent Literary Arts Magazine, Stylus. By publishing her art and involving Negar in the selection process of work of other artists, he encouraged her along her art path, and perhaps contributed to an early sense of confidence. Finally, Mr. Matzke and Mrs. Jones were big parts of Negar’s time at MKA. From them, Negar further fell in love with art history and learned to think more critically about art, which has served her well over the years.

Negar believes that saying no to opportunities really does close doors, and saying yes to the seemingly insignificant opportunities can really open doors. She had a few great opportunities come her way when the timing was terrible; to be in a high profile collection, and to make a public art project in Times Square. While she does not necessarily have regrets given what was going on in her life at the time, Negar thinks it can close doors and narrow your world when you say no. On the contrary, the times Negar has said yes to things, even to exhibitions that she was not excited about, led to other great opportunities that have greatly helped her career.

1989

/ MKA / Mr. Louis Lessig, 2009 Morris Drive, Cherry

Hill, NJ 08003, llessig@brownconnery. com / Mr. Josh Raymond, 33 Oak Place,

North Caldwell, NJ 07006,jraymond@ trenklawfirm.com

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1990 Congratulations to

30TH REUNION OCTOBER 10, 2020

writes: “Had a great time seeing everyone at reunion in the fall. Please reach out if you are ever in the Raleigh-Durham area, perhaps visiting colleges with your kids. I’ve been back at Duke in my current role [Assistant Dean for Alumni & Development and Senior

Geoff Krouse

Lecturing Fellow (M&A) at Duke University School of Law] since August 2016.”

/ MKA /

Krishna

was appointed as the Tax Legislative Counsel for the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

In this role, Krishna serves as the chief tax lawyer for the Secretary of the Treasury on domestic Federal tax issues.

Vallabhaneni

MA Montclair Academy / TKS The Kimberley School / MKA Montclair Kimberley Academy

ROHINA (GANDHI) HOFFMAN ’86 Rohina is a fine art photographer whose practice uses portraiture and the natural world to investigate themes of identity, home, women’s issues, and adolescence.

Born in India and raised in New Jersey, Rohina grew up in a family of doctors spanning three generations. Her interest in photography began at the Upper School when she was introduced to the art of traditional black and white film photography. While an undergraduate at Brown University, Rohina also studied photography at the Rhode Island School of Design and she was a staff photographer for the Brown Daily Herald.

A graduate of Brown University Medical School and resident at UCLA Medical Center, her training led to a career as a neurologist.

A skilled observer of her patients, Rohina was instilled with a deep and unique appreciation of the human experience. Her ability to forge the sacred trust between doctor and patient has been instrumental in fostering a parallel connection between photographer and subject.

Rohina has recently published her first monograph Hair Stories with Damiani Editore (February 2019) accompanied by a solo exhibition at Brown University’s Alpert Medical School.

Her photographs have been exhibited in juried group shows both nationally and internationally and she has received numerous awards. She has been published in Lenscratch, Marie Claire Italia, F-Stop Magazine, The Daily Beast, Speigel, El Pais, Shots Magazine, and Edge of Humanity among others. She lives with her husband, three children and two golden retrievers in Los Angeles.

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MKA sends its heartfelt sympathies to Allison Smith Fernandez whose father, Roy C. Smith, passed away on November 15, 2019.

1991

/ MKA / Ms. Dara Marmon, 330 E.39th, Apt. 21D, New

York, NY 10016, daramarmon @gmail. com / Mr. Luke Sarsfield, 105 Franklin Street, Apt. 4, New York, NY 10013, luke. sarsfield@gs.com

Dara Marmon writes: “Greetings and salutations from NYC! In these internet days, news travels fast and reading this column is like watching a rerun of Friends.

But, unlike Friends, some things are worth re-watching. Check out the photo Balaji Gandhi sent to me!

If you want to know where Matt Blesso bought his suit and what brought these three jokers together on a random Saturday night in Durham, NC, you will have to come to the 30th reunion.

There is a story there. And, believe it or not, it is fit to print but so much better in person!

Yeah, you read that right, the story is fit to print, and we are having our 30th reunion, October 2021. So, Matt Blesso, Balaji Gandhi, and Tim Werkley, I expect to see you there and hear the tale.

And before people get all upset about me not liking Friends, check out me and my daughter on the sofa at Central Perk. She likes the show way more than I do or ever did. We went to the pop-up exhibit back in September 2019.

On an even more personal note, last year, my daughter worked on a fundraiser for the Leukemia and Lymphoma society. There were Facebook posts about it. I want to thank the entire MKA community for their generosity, and especially my 1991 classmates. A 50 state challenge was met as so many of you said, ‘No problem, Dara.’ Donations came in from Georgia, Colorado, New Hampshire, Oregon, Connecticut, no hesitations. Even if we all do not speak on a regular basis, a tie forged over thirty or forty years

66

Dara Marmon ’91 and daughter on the sofa at Central Perk.

ago keeps us together and involved.

I am grateful for that friendship and connection. Thank you all.

Send along news, updates, and photos of random meet ups. We have a little way to go until that 30 year reunion.”

1992

Tim Werkley ’91, Matt Blesso ’91, and Balaji Gandhi ’91 reconnecting in Durham, NC.

/ MKA / Dr. Enrique Neblett, 718 Ainsley Court,

Durham, NC 27713, enrique.neblett@ gmail.com

was invited to be the guest speaker at the 2019 MKA Community Scholars Dinner.

MKA sends its deepest condolences to Max Fierst whose mother, Marjorie Fierst, passed away on December 4, Marjorie Fierst, mother 2019. of Max Fierst ’92

Ingrid Ramos Nakamura

1994

/ MKA / Mr. Jason Awerdick, 23 Greenbrook

Drive, Bloomfield, NJ 07003, jasonawerdick@gmail.com

1995 1996

25TH REUNION OCTOBER 10, 2020 / MKA / Ms. Tanya Barnes, barnes.tanya@

gmail.com / Ms. Erica Hirsch, 10 West 15th Street, #710, New York, NY 10011, ehirsch77@yahoo.com / Mr. Lee Vartan,

3 Swayze Lane, Chester, NJ 07930, ldvartan@yahoo.com

1998

/ MKA / Ms. Gemma Giantomasi,

80 Avon Dr, Essex Fells, NJ 07021, gemma.diaco@gmail.com Karson St. John McGinley

MKA review / Mon tc l ai r K i mb e r l e y Ac ade my

lives in

Guest speaker Ingrid Ramos Nakamura ’92 (center) supported by her peers: fellow Community Scholar Solomon Steplight ’93 (left), and fellow classmate Stacey Polanskyj (right)

San Diego, CA with her husband, Mitch, and two children: Chase (6) and Siena (3). After selling their family yoga studio last year, they recently opened a retreat center in Southern California’s wine country, where they now host year-round yoga retreats, teacher trainings, and workshops. Karson also has an online yoga membership, where she virtually connects to women all over the world through her online yoga and positive psychology offerings.

You can connect with Karson’s yoga and mindfulness offerings (including her bi-monthly contributions to the Chopra Center’s catalogue of health and wellness articles) at her website: www.karsonmcginley.com.

Angela Mulligan Knapp and family relocated to Martha’s Vineyard from Washington State this past summer.

Shortly afterwards they welcomed their third child, Morrow Grace.

Angela continues to work remotely as a staff Physician for Kashi Clinical Laboratories and consulting

C L ASS N OT ES

Angela Knapp ’98 and family.

Whitney Brown ’00, husband Jeff, and their new addition.

Doctor at Peirson for Children.

MKA sends our sincere condolences to Frank Lawatsch whose mother, Deanna Lawatsch, passed away on December 4, 2019 at the age of 72.

Road, Essex Fells, NJ 07021, slomienski@

1999

/ MKA / Mr. Alexander Holz, 233 E. 3rd Street,

Apt. 3C, New York, NY 10009, alexbhlz@ gmail.com / Ms. Sandra Tritt, sandratritt@gmail.com

2000

20TH REUNION OCTOBER 10, 2020

/ MKA / Ms. Anna Cook, 5 Highview

Court, Wayne, NJ 07470, anna_labowsky @yahoo.com / Mr. John Garippa, 2741 NE 58th Street, Fort Lauderdale, FL

icloud.com

Congrats to Morgan Fraser Mouchette who was recently elected partner at her law firm, Blank Rome LLP (effective January 1, 2020) in the matrimonial group where she specializes in all aspects of family law.

Congratulations to Victoria O’Kane Lamberth and husband John Lamberth who welcomed George Joseph Lamberth on Wednesday, September 11, 2019.

He joins older brother Haynes.

Everyone is doing great!

2003

/ MKA / Ms. Judith Ferreira, 819 Clifton

Avenue, Newark, NJ 07104-3211,

33308, oceanhut@aol.com / Mrs. Jaclyn

jferreir@pratt.edu / Ms. Melanie Bieber,

Spedaliere, 60 E. Oak Street, Basking

20 West 72nd Street, #302A, New York,

Ridge, NJ 07920, jaclynspedaliere@

NY 10023, mel.braverman@gmail.com

gmail.com

This past Christmas Eve (12/24/19) Mark Fortunato and his wife Katie welcomed their first child, James Peter Fortunato. Born 7lbs 11oz at Greenwich Hospital, the couple is excited to watch him grow up! Mark and Katie reside in Greenwich, CT. MKA sends condolences to Nina Giampapa, whose mother, Susan Giampapa, passed away on December 1, 2019 at the age of 63.

Amy Trainor Ashby is Vice President and Editor-in-Chief at Warren Publishing in Charlotte, North Carolina. She and her husband, John, welcomed their third

Whitney Brown and her husband, Jeff, welcomed their first child, Alder Grey Perkins in June 2019.

Whitney practices as a veterinarian in Washington state.

2001

/ MKA / Ms. Dana Pisacane, 119 Dowey

Street, San Francisco, CA 94117, dana. piscane@gmail.com

2002

/ MKA / Miss Emily Santangelo, 27 Woods

Road, Little Falls, NJ 07424, emilyannesantangelo@gmail.com/ Mrs. Melissa Fortunato Slomienski, 58 Oldchester

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Friends and classmates Sarah Miller ’02 and Tory Lamberth ’02 welcomed sons, Eddie Cordon (left) and George Lamberth (right) this September. Here the boys enjoy an early play date.

MA Montclair Academy / TKS The Kimberley School / MKA Montclair Kimberley Academy

James Peter Fortunato

MKA’s Kindergarten teachers Spencer Pyke and Alex Langbein ’03 dressed up as a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on Halloween at the Primary School.

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(L to R) Wynne, John, Chase, Amy Trainor Ashby ’03, and Russell.

Chisako Sugiyama-Murray ’05 and husband, Kyle.

child, Wynne Morgan, in March 2018. Wynne is younger sister to Russell (3) and Chase (11).

2004

Congratulations to Angela McCaffrey on her engagement to Patrick Clark.

They will wed on October 9, 2020 in Asbury Park, NJ.

/ MKA / Brendan

2007

McCaffrey, 235 West

102nd Street, Apt. 10i, New York, NY 10025, brendan.a.mccaffrey@gmail.

/ MKA / Mr. Brian May, bmay88@gmail.com

/Mr. Harry Raymond, raymond.harry

com / Ms. Katherine Santoro, 333 River

@gmail.com / Mr. Stuart Harwood,

Street, Apt. 539, Hoboken, NJ 07030,

273 16th Street Apt. 1711 Jersey City, NJ

kate.santoro@gmail.com

07310, stuartmharwood@gmail.com

Congratulations to Allison Davis who was quoted in the article “How to Plan a Wedding. (Or, You Could Just Elope.)” from the 8/7/19 edition of The New York Times (online) Style section. www.nytimes.com/guides/ fashion/how-to-plan-a-wedding

2005

15TH REUNION OCTOBER 10, 2020

/ MKA / Mr. Edmund Kozak,320 23rd

Street S, Apt. 905, Arlington, VA 22202, e.g.kozak@gmail.com / Mr. Manav Lalwani, 132 Blue Heron Drive, Riverside Court, Secaucus, NJ 07094-2391, manav.lalwani@gmail.com

Since graduating MKA, Chisako

Sugiyama-Murray graduated from

the University of Michigan with a Bachelors of Science degree, Movement Science in Kinesiology.

After playing Division 1 Women’s Tennis for four years, she continued to play professionally on the WTA for a year prior to retiring and returning to school. Chisako obtained a Physical Therapist Assistant license, then returned to get her Doctorate of Physical Therapy at the University of Texas in 2018. Currently, she is

68

Angela McCaffrey ’06 and her fiance, Patrick Clark.

Amanda Gertsen’s ’05 son Oakley Gertsen

2008

/ MKA / Mr. Matthew Metzger,

239 Elizabeth St., #4, New York,

the Director at Edge Physical Therapy in Paramus, NJ working with patients with orthopedic ailments. Using her extensive sports background, Chisako hopes to continue working with patients of all ages in the northern NJ region. Living locally in Clifton, NJ, Chisako is happily married to her high school sweetheart Kyle Murray (actuall y from rival Montclair High School) for over two years.

MKA sends condolences to Paul Cuneo, whose father, Tony Cuneo, passed away on August 5, 2019.

On April 25, 2019, Amanda Bennett Gertsen and her spouse Ryan welcomed their son, Oakley Gertsen, into the world.

2006

NY 10012, metzgermd@gmail.com

Congratulations to Matt Metzger who was appointed by the Manhattan Borough President to serve on Manhattan’s Community Board 2. Matt also joined the Metropolitan College of New York’s Advisory Council.

Elise McMullen opened her own Psychotherapy Private Practice in downtown NYC! The name of her practice is Elise McMullen Licensed Mental Health Counselor, PLLC. She works primarily with high achieving adults who are struggling with things like anxiety, relationships, and life transitions.

2009

/ MKA / Mr. Brian Purcell, 89 Davis Avenue,

Bloomfield, NJ 07003, bnpurcell14@

/ MKA / Ms. Natalie

gmail.com / Ms. Jane Stanton, 240 South

Azzoli, 8 Spruce

Mountain Avenue, Montclair, NJ 07042,

Street, Apt. 50H, New York, NY 10038,

janestanton1@gmail.com

nat6888@gmail.com / Ms. Angela

Congratulations to Page Harbeck and her fiancée who got engaged in November 2019.

McCaffrey, 229 Crescenzi Court, West Orange, NJ 07052, angelamccaffrey@gmail.com

M KA review / Mon tc l ai r K i mb e r l e y Ac ade my

C L ASS N OT ES

Page Harbeck ’09 smiles with her fiancé.

Christopher Nechev with parents Elizabeth ’09 and Yavor Nechev.

In the fall of 2019, Nadia Brown stopped by MKA for a workshop with the Upper School advanced acting students. She is currently appearing in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child on Broadway. MKA is so proud of you, Nadia!

MKA alumni coming together to celebrate the marriage of Frankie Mayer ’09 & Natalie Lutz ’11.

Kerry Fusco ’11 and Mallory McDonagh ’10 ran into each other while completing the NYC Marathon in November 2019.

Elizabeth Ahlborn Nechev and her husband, Yavor Nechev, welcomed their first child, Christopher Thomas Nechev, on October 10, 2019.

Congratulations to MKA alumni Frankie Mayer and Natalie Lutz ’11 who tied the knot on October 26, 2019 at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, NJ.

organizing and publicizing any materials that support the story of the school’s athletic history. She is one of only three athletic archivists in the nation. Visit https:// tinyurl.com/y39sp52h to learn more about her role in this great article from Muhlenberg College.

Congratulations to former MKA Field Hockey and Girls’ Lacrosse athlete and Michigan State Field Hockey midfielder Mallory McDonagh who completed the NYC Marathon in November 2019.

2010

10TH REUNION OCTOBER 10, 2020

/ MKA / Ms. Devon Barrett, 109 Llewellyn

Road, Montclair, NJ 07042, dlb792@ aim.com / Mr. Matthew Palmisano, 51 Grover Lane, West Caldwell, NJ 07006, matt.r.palmisano@gmail.com

Congrats to Laurainne Ojo-Ohikuare for finding the way to merge her personal passions and her professional career. As the University of Maryland Athletic Archivist, Laurainne is tasked with

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2011

Congratulations to former MKA Field Hockey and Girls’ Lacrosse and Amherst College Lacrosse athlete Kerry Fusco who completed the NYC Marathon in November 2019.

Congratulations to MKA alumni Natalie Lutz and Frankie Mayer ’09 who tied the knot on October 26, 2019 at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, NJ.

2012

/ MKA / Ms. Casey Musicant, 573 Farmdale

Road, Franklin Lakes, NJ 07417, casey. musicant@gmail.com / Mr. Ed Rosini, 32 Edgemont Road, Montclair, NJ 07042, erosini32@gmail.com

2013

/ MKA / Elizabeth “Lizzie” Amato, ljamato420@mac.

com / Mr. Ed Bozik, bozik@me.com

/ MKA / Seth Bynum, 32 High Street, West

Orange, NJ 07052, seth.bynum1@ gmail.com / Ms. Carina Wong, 9 Deer Trail Road, North Caldwell, NJ 07006, carinamwong@gmail.com

MKA sends condolences to Sarah Cuneo, whose father, Tony Cuneo, passed away on August 5, 2019.

MA Montclair Academy / TKS The Kimberley School / MKA Montclair Kimberley Academy

2014

/ MKA / Ms. Kassandra Fotiadis, kassandra.

fotiadis@gmail.com Ariana Puzzo is a graduate student

at Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, Media and Integrated Marketing Communications, where she writes

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Alumni Spotlights LAURAINNE OJO-OHIKUARE ’10 Laurainne remembers fondly rising from a once shy freshman to the outspoken Monjo House Captain during her senior year. MKA prepared Laurainne to seize opportunities, realize her potential and helped her grow into the confident, well-balanced individual she is today. There wasn't just one class or one teacher that made her MKA experience enjoyable, but many who opened their doors to Laurainne left an indelible mark on her. Individuals such as her volleyball coach, Mike Tully, and college counselor, Deanna Donnelly, helped guide Laurainne to find the confidence in her abilities to take on many roles, including that MKA “student-athlete”.

After graduating MKA in 2010, Laurainne continued playing volleyball for Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pa. where she graduated in 2014 with a degree in English Literature and a minor in Computer Science, well on her way to becoming a Professor of English. She was then accepted to New York University's dual degree program, allowing Laurainne to earn a M.A. in Literature and a M.S. in Information and Library Science. It was while in that program, that she discovered working in an archive in higher education offered the opportunity to go beyond traditional teaching.

Since graduating from NYU in 2016, Laurainne has had the opportunity to work as an Assistant Curator for New York University's Fales Library and Special Collections and the Archivist for the Jack Mitchell Photography of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre collection for the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture during its inaugural year.

Now, as the Athletics Archivist and Curator for University of Maryland, College Park Laurainne is responsible for all historical athletic materials across current and discontinued sports from UMD's intercollegiate athletic debut in the Southern Conference, through the Atlantic Coach Conference (ACC), and now into the BIG Ten Conference.

Having the opportunity to be one of three Athletics Archivists in the country, is a dream that Laurainne couldn't have seen for herself back when she was that shy MKA freshman. But thanks to teachers and mentors like Mike Houston, Ellen Ferguson, Dominique Gerard, and Patricia Sullivan, encouraging her to explore and express who she was at MKA, today Laurainne has the opportunity to collect, preserve, and teach the rich athletic history of UMD to everyone on campus, a position she finds truly amazing.

Class of 2013 graduates David Kabrt (left), Alex Amari (center), and Carly Sibilia (right) recently had a mini reunion in rainy Oxford, UK. David stopped by Oxford during an extended Heathrow layover to visit Alex and Carly, who were attending the University of Oxford as graduate students. Alex completed his MSc in Social Data Science while working for Deloitte as an Analytics Researcher, and Carly is now utilizing her MSc in Biodiversity, Conservation and Management as a Staff Scientist for ERM.

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MKA review / Mon tc l ai r K i mb e r l e y Ac ade my

VICTORIA KITIRATTRAGARN ’15 Victoria remembers the moment she decided on her career path.

“In third grade, they ask you what you want to be when you grow up,” she said. “This was easy for me. I chose artist.”"

Even at a young age, Victoria's vocation was clear. She started violin at three and piano at five and later picked up oil painting in middle school. “My mom encouraged me in everything,” she said. “She wanted me to find what I was passionate about and enrolled me in all kinds of arts programs.” Studying at MKA gave Victoria the time management tools and academic knowledge necessary to have a fulfilling undergraduate career.

Two MKA teachers in particular really gave Victoria the final boost of confidence before going off to college: Anthony Cuneo and Dimitri Hadjipetkov. Mr. Cuneo introduced her to what it would be like to make art that was more meaningful to herself. She produced some of her best work to this date in his class. Mr. Hadjipetkov created an atmosphere of dedicated musicians who all worked toward long-term goals.

At the end of her senior year, Victoria’s achieved her goal of a solo performance at Carnegie Hall.

Congrats to Victoria for following her passions of music and oil painting.

C L ASS N OT ES

Kori Durando ’15

about education. Her reporting took her to Chicago, China, and South Africa before she joined Medill’s Washington, DC, bureau. Ariana graduated cum laude in 2018 from Fairfield University where she studied digital journalism, history, and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies. She works as a social media manager for Clifton Merchant Magazine, a monthly publication about Clifton, New Jersey. Ariana is currently a reporting intern at Military Times.

2015

Alex Eiden ’17, who is currently multiple majoring in international business, computer science, and Japanese at Villanova, along with brother and current MKA student Nico Eiden ’21, have been applauded by the International Federation of Catholic Universities (IFCU- an organization of over 200 Catholic universities throughout the world). Their original quest was to eliminate the fear of fractions in Caribbean schools after meeting Sal Khan, founder of Khan Academy. Today it's to level the playing field for academic advancement. They Alex Eiden ’17 with John D. Couch, have cross-trained teachers; students are Executive Advisor to, and former VP of advancing their math proficiencies and Education at, Apple, Inc. coding confidences, and many more computer school computer labs have been updated with thousands of new devices complimenting MKA's original donation of 50 repurposed iPads! A glimpse of their work since the founding of the ALDAS Youth First Initiative has been published by the IFCU: Math and Coding in the Caribbean, Social Responsibility and Rewiring Education: How Technology Can Unlock Every Student’s Potential. (shorturl.at/mnxRX) This past November, Alex and Nico returned from three days of meetings in Washington DC with international agencies that could lead to better futures for more youth in developing nations.

Allison “Ali” Grace O’Donnell ’18 is a sophomore studying studio art and legal studies in Washington DC. She is most passionate about the intersection between creative expression and social justice.

Ali also illustrated MKA’s Middle School History Department Chair CherylAnne Amendola’s first self-published book On the Backs of the Enslaved.

Written for ages 5 and up, the book takes a look at the life of Thomas Jefferson and his connection to slavery in the U.S. Ali dedicated her work on the book to late MKA faculty member Tony Cuneo. For more information, you can find On the Backs of the Enslaved on Amazon: http://ow.ly/qBWC50xe8LY.

5 TH REUNION OCTOBER 10, 2020

/ MKA / Ms. Korinne “Kori” Durando,

koridurando@gmail.com

Congratulations to Kori Durando who, after three years working at Bobbi Brown’s Beauty Evolution, accepted a job on the Corporate Relations team at the Boston Children’s Hospital Trust.

2016

/ MKA / Ms. Zoe Bieler, zoe.bieler@gmail.com

/ Mr. Charles Rilli, crilli33@gmail.com /Ms. Lily Andres, lily.andres@gmail.com

2017

/ MKA / Ms. Jenna Donatiello, jdonatiello12

@aol.com / Mr. Matt Rubenstein, mattrubenstein98@gmail.com

2018

/ MKA / Ms. Lailanni Lucien, llucien05@gmail.

com / Mr. Keenan McAuliffe, keenan. cavenaugh13@gmail.com / Ms. Kerri McGuire, kerrimcg11@yahoo.com

2019 ions to Congratulat/ MKA /

Emily Fusco

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Emily Fusco ’19

who completed the New York City Marathon in November 2019. On her arm she wrote “run your race,” which is what former MKA faculty member Tom Fleming always used to say to his MKA runners.

MA Montclair Academy / TKS The Kimberley School / MKA Montclair Kimberley Academy

While vacationing in Dublin, Upper School French teacher Dr. Michael Houston had an unexpected MKA encounter with siblings Alex Golub ’17 and Michael Golub ’19.

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An MKA education nurtures passions, expands minds, and encourages a life-long love of learning. Your investment in The MKA Fund provides the resources for a vibrant and transformative educational experience for every student.

Join the MKA community in making your gift today. www.mka.org/giving

For additional information or questions, contact Jenn Baratta P ’23 and ’26 Director of Annual Giving jbaratta@mka.org or (973) 509-7932

MON TC L AIR K IM B E R L E Y AC ADE MY 20 1 VALLEY ROAD, M O NTCLAIR, N J 07042