outreach outreach
Immersion Experiences for Students, Faculty and Alumni Annual Report of Giving 2007-2008
GOOD SPORTS!
The NA community shared a rousing good time at Homecoming on Saturday, October 18. With athletic games, live music, the Senior Grill, roasted marshmallows and good company — fun was had by all.
and Wonder
Members Journey to Israel by Von Rollenhagen
Trip U.S.A.!
Miles in 60 Days by Kirsti Morin
Pavlo: Building a Mountain by Jonathan Downs
a World of Difference
Alumni Immersion Experience in India by Mariam Subjally ’03
outreach FALL 2008
Donald M. Austin Head of School
Lisa E. Grider Director of Institutional Advancement
EDITOR
Debra W. Marr Director of Communications
CONTRIBUTORS
Blackwood ParlinEdward Manigan
Nancy McGaughanKirsti Morin
Nicole ChampagneVon Rollenhagen
Alexandra MahoneyMariam Subjally ’03 Marcia Worth-Baker
PROOFREADERS
Stacey Kaplan-LaytonJennifer Maffei
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
William D. Green ’69 Chairman
Nancy Baird Harwood ’75Wayne D. Kent ’85
Pamela HuttenbergJonathan D. Olesky ’74
Jeffrey J. Silverman ’82 Vice Chairs
Joseph P. McGrath, Jr. ’81Ernest W. Loesser SecretaryTreasurer
Donald AustinRichard R. Redmond ’77
Patricia BudziakAjay Sawhney
John C. Galbraith ’75Andrew Senchak
Leo Gordon ’69Robert Silver
Kim Hirsh ’80Eric Sumner ’73
Tosan LivingstoneEvangeline Tross
David McGraw ’77Joshua Weinreich
Rita Pignatelli-MercuriJane Wilf
Emeriti
Louis V. Aronson II ’41 John L. McGraw ’49
Paul Busse ’38Robert S. Puder ’38
Robert Del Tufo ’51Gary Rose
William D. Hardin ’44William T. Wachenfeld ’44
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD OF GOVERNORS
Leo M. Gordon ’69 President
Van Stevens ’65Lance Aronson ’74 1st Vice President2nd Vice President
Amanda Rubinstein Black ’97 Secretary
John Bess ’69Lauren Jacobs ’98
Patrick Ciccone ’62Mark Menza ’71
Noah Franzblau ’86Adam Rosen ’99
Matthew Gertler ’90Lara Samet ’01
John Gregory ’99Kim Griffinger Wachtel ’85
Thomas Hennigan ’77Art Williams ’81 Art Wynne ’79
Emeriti
J. Richard Beltram ’41William C.H. Stroh III ’48 Richard M. Watson ’50
Outreach is a publication for Newark Academy alumni. Office of Institutional Advancement
Newark Academy, 91 South Orange Avenue Livingston, New Jersey 07039
Telephone: 973.992.7000, Fax: 973.992.8962
E-mail: dmarr@newarka.edu; Website: www.newarka.edu
MIDDLE SCHOOL PLAY
SpacePandas” OF THE “THE Revenge
Last May, the Newark Academy community was treated to “The Revenge of the Space Pandas” or “Binky Rudich and the Two-Speed Clock”,a goofy yet sophisticated fable about time and space travel, the desire to escape home, and the innately corrupt power structure of a fairy-tale kingdom.
The characters, played by middle school actors and actresses, were a bizarre collection of humans, animals and space creatures. Directed by arts faculty member Elaine Brodie, “Revenge” was a joyous adventure that tapped into everyone’s imagination.
Perspectives “
” Our entire school community will benefit.
FROMTHE HEAD OF SCHOOL
Immersion Experiences for NA Students
I am very pleased to announce an exciting addition to the Newark Academy program that advances our mission to for m global citizens. At its September meeting, the Board of Trustees voted unanimously to accept a recommendation from NA’s 2007-08 Immersion Committee (composed of faculty, students and parent representatives) that beginning with the Class of 2013 all Newark Academy graduates will have at least one significant, off-campus, immersion experience. Students may fulfill this requirement at any time (including summer break) over the four years of the Upper School through one of three options:
• A two-week wilderness-type experience
• A three-week cultural/foreign language experience or service experience
• Participation in an approved semester or summer immersion program
This immersion program reinforces Newark Academy’s position as a leader in incorporating experiential education into the secondary school curriculum. Our students will gain knowledge, broaden their perspectives, and learn the important skill of adapting to new environments. Immersion is our 21st century response to the call set forth by our centuries-old motto – ad lumen – toward enlightenment.
Parents and recent alumni will recognize that this immersion requirement confirms and strengthens a longstanding commitment by our students to broadening their exposure to the world through travel, service, and wilderness experiences. For many years a growing number of Newark Academy students have participated in semester and year-long immersion programs such as the Mountain School, Maine Coast Semester, the High Mountain Institute, and School Year Abroad. Recently, our students have done shorter exchanges organized by our faculty with schools in France and Senegal, and we are exploring other school-to-school exchanges in Spain, China and Israel. In addition, many students have participated in summer programs in distant places such as Costa Rica, Tanzania, Thailand and India, as well as a variety of wilderness experiences in the United States.
As we formalize immersion experiences in the Upper School, I anticipate that our entire school community will benefit. Students returning from these challenging programs routinely report greater self-confidence and a heightened awareness of the world. A school that is composed of students whose rigorous classroom work is complemented by such direct experiences will be better able to fulfill its mission to contribute to the world informed citizens who “embrace their responsibilities as ethical, intellectual, and civic stewards in the global environment.”
Donald M. AustinEXCHANGE RATES HIGHLY AT NA
Students from France and Senegal Experience Life at the Academy
Last April, 27 students and three faculty members from College Jeanne d’Arc-St Aspais in Fontainebleau, France, lived withNewark Academy families, attended classes at NA, visited New York City, Philadelphia, Ellis Island and took a two-day trip to Gettysburg. The students accompanied their host families to sporting events, theater and shopping adventures.
This visit marked the second part in an exchange program that began last summer when French teachers Mary Lysinger and Debbie Ronan chaperoned seven Newark Academy students on a “Fontainebleau adventure” in which they stayed with host families and attended classes. Lysinger commented, “Creating signature experiences that involve international travel and relationships with international schools and their students is a component of the strategic plan and was the jumping off point for our Fontainebleau adventure.”
While French students visited the Academy in April, 19 students from Lycée Français Jean Mormoz in Dakar, Senegal, experienced life in the NA community earlier in
the year. Upper School Principal Dr. Richard DiBianca explained that 41 students from Senegal were part of an English immersion experience coordinated by Pingry. As all the students were French speaking, they hoped to speak English during their visit. DiBianca added, “Some of the students were Senegalese, some were French, and some were Lebanese.” The students stayed with their host families for six days and spent one day at Newark Academy where they were welcomed with fanfare in both English and French. Other events included sightseeing, participating in activities with their host families and experiencing a snow day
GLOBAL SPEAKER SERIES: ETHAN
ZOHN Co-Founder of Grassroots Soccer(and Winner of “Survivor: Africa”)
In his motivational talk to the students of Newark Academy, Ethan Zohn urged,“Make a difference for yourself by making a difference for others.” As the first speaker in the newly established Global Speaker Series, Zohn led by example. He used his $1 million “Survivor: Africa” prize money to help begin the Grassroots Soccer program. This innovative program sends African soccer stars into schools throughout Africa to educate the students about HIV and AIDS. Having played soccer professionally in Zimbabwe, Zohn had witnessed the devastation caused by AIDS/HIV. The goal of Grassroots Soccer is awareness and education. Zohn commented, “Stay true to your core values and make happiness real for others.” Zohn’s presentation included video clips giving a first-hand view of the African AIDS epidemic as well as a question and answer session with the students and faculty.
Underwritten by Peter Feinberg ’78 and Margery Gering Feinberg ’78 as part of the Feinberg Multicultural Program, the new Global Speaker Series will bring various speakers to the Academy to address issues of international interest and concern.
Sixth Grade Science Expo 2008 Focuses on Global Warming Solutions
At the opening of the sixth grade science expo, students excitedly presented and discussed their exhibits. At a display entitled “Wicking Wall,” two students demonstrated both how a wicking wall works and how they constructed their model. While one student-created exhibit explored the potential of fish farming, another exhibit showed the effects of carbon-filled air versus clean air on floating ice symbolizing the polar ice caps.
Other exhibits included a wind turbine electrical system, a “green wall,” a rainwater recapture and purification system and a model of the “sustainable house” that the sixth grade scientists and their teacher, Debra Tavares, built outside the school.
Tavares said, “In an effort to make children aware of solutions to global warming, I created the Sustainable House Project to expose my students to the possibilities and uses of alternative energy in their lives and to engage them in the experiential learning process.”
WildernessBound with Mr.Limmer, OneLastTime!
BY ALEXANDRA MAHONEYAs John Limmer crested the lip of the Kaibab Trail and stepped onto the North Rim of the Grand Canyon last June, a small group of students and two chaperones applauded lightly. All had just completed the 14-mile ascent from Phantom Ranch at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, a place one can reach only by foot or by mule. We climbed one vertical mile from the time we left the lodge at 6:30 a.m., where temperatures would reach over 100 degrees that afternoon, to this moment at the trailhead with its patches of snow among the evergreens. John betrayed his pleasure with a broad smile as students slumped against the signposts. It was the 27th time he’d made the two-day, 28-mile round trip – 25 times with Newark Academy seniors and once each with his own sons.
LLast spring was John’s 25th and final trip to the Southwest with Newark Academy seniors for their senior project. The trip has become an honored tradition, treasured by a quarter-century of students and hopefully many to come – the school intends to keep John’s tradition alive in its senior project incarnation. John has crafted the trip “by hand” – no tour companies involved – keeping the experience intimate, rugged and genuine as the campers make their way through various National Parks filled with tourists. While the itinerary of the trip has changed slightly over the years, the Grand Canyon hike has been its anchor. And John has settled into a time-tested pattern in the two-week camping trip that has varied little in the last decade.
Frequently referred to by the misnomer “The Arizona Trip,” the group actually spends most of its time in Utah. While various segments of the trip might be reordered, the current structure looks like this: a four-day canoe trip on the Green River which runs through Moab; excursions in Arches, Zion and Bryce National Parks,
as well as the Navajo National Monument in the middle of Arizona; and, of course, the Grand Canyon.
The group travels by van, purchasing food supplies at local grocery stores and cooking meals in the campgrounds. We spend time among the desert varnish that decorates the gorge walls of the Green River, the petroglyphs and kivas of the Ancient Puebloans, the sandstone and shale of the redrock throughout the region,and the buttes and hoodoos of Bryce and Zion. We hike to Hey Hoe Mine, canoe around Bow-Knot Bend, traverse Walter’s Wiggles, and scramble up Angel’s Landing.
Each night John gathers the troops for a campfire chat, reading a story about a hallucinogenic flower from Edward Abbey’s Desert Solitaire or a creation myth from a Native American anthology. He talks about the geology and history of the Southwest, explaining that limestone is a sedimentary rock made of compressed bodies of ancient sea creatures or describing John Wesley Powell’s historic trip down the Colorado and Green rivers. And the kids learn. However, the real learning emerges out on the trails, among the dramatic landscape of the Southwest, where students are given a good deal of independence to explore the world around them and, as happens when experience becomes the teacher, to make mistakes within the safety of the group.
In all these years, only a small group of teachers has had the oppor tunity to accompany and learn from John. Joe Borlo served as the accomplice most of those years, and in the last decade Lisa Swanson, Kathleen Sigrist, Arlene Jachim and I have chaperoned as well. After one single two-week trip, I marveled at the idea of doing such a thing 25 times. Of course, as John attests, he didn’t start out knowing that he’d reach such a milestone. What kept him going back all those years? Was it just the beauty and majesty of the landscape? The chance to “get away”? In my mind it’s perfectly clear: the only thing that could keep a teacher going back year after year is a dedication to and passion for sharing such a place and an experience with his students.
COMMENCEMENT JUNE 8, 2008
Outside on the front lawn of Newark Academy on an excessively hot and humid evening, the 106 members of the Class of 2008 received their diplomas to thunderous applause and support from family members, faculty, staff, and friends. For the first time in the history of commencement exercises at the Academy, the ceremony was simulcast in the Rose Auditorium to give audience members the option of viewing the proceedings inside and out of the heat.
Commencement speaker David N.W.
and CEO
He began his speech with two questions: 1) Who are the members of the Class of 2008 as a result of their years at Newark Academy — what knowledge, skills and attitudes has NA fostered in them, and what experiences has NA provided, that are different from those they might have gotten at another school? and 2) What sort of world are they heading into? He said that to the extent the answers to question 1 have been consciously designed in relation to the answers to question 2, the graduates have a lot to be grateful for.
He noted that the confluence of these two questions is at the heart of NA’s new Strategic Plan, which asks the community to focus on what NA graduates will need to know and be able to do, and what habits of mind and heart will they need, to thrive in a global economy and culture.
The evening concluded with a reception in which many hands were shaken, cheeks were kissed, and congratulations and good wishes were exchanged.
COLLEGE DESTINATIONS FOR THE CLASS OF 2008
Michael Acierno
Williams College
Michelle Adler
Cornell University
Matthew Ainsley
McGill University
Evan Atkinson
Elon University
James Bannon
Swarthmore College
Michael Benoit
Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science & Art
Anna Birnbaum
Trinity College
Chelsea Blake
Cornell University
Charlie Bloom
Berklee College of Music
Emily Bluck
Scripps College
Jackson Boyar
Indiana University — Bloomington
Sophie Breene
Hamilton College
Melissa Bryson
Wake Forest University
Ian Cali
University of Delaware
Dana Chernock
Bucknell University
Daniel Corman
Colorado College
Joseph Coscia
Georgetown University
Michael Cutri
Stevens Institute of Technology
Ryan Diehl
Colgate University
Gwendolyn Dobro
Emory University
Deandra Duncan
University of Michigan
Dana Ellis
Bates College
Benjamin Essner
Boston University
Ariele Faber
Middlebury College
Eric Fattakhov
Stanford University
Louis Feinberg
George Washington University
Duncan Fisher
Derek Fischer
University of Pennsylvania
Stanford University
Michael Forman
George Washington University
David Frank University of Rochester
Jessica Frankel
New York University
Natalie Friedman
Franklin & Marshall College
Maxwell Frost
Princeton University
Rebecca Gallick
University of Michigan
Dena Gaviola
New York University
Genevieve Geiger
Tufts University
Madison Gerish
Dickinson College
Andrew Goldberg
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Jenifer-Cahryn Goldman Colby College
Robert Gordon
University of Wisconsin —
Madison
Joseph Greenaway Occidental College
Zane Grodman
University of Pennsylvania
Sarah Gross University of Southern California
Lena Grosse
Emerson College
Arianna Groveman
Union College
Alexa Gruber
University of Richmond
Meghan Henshall
Kenyon College
Eric Hintz
Emory University
Calvin Hopkins
Tufts University
Andrew Huang
University of Rochester
Stephen Ingui
Drew University
Samuel Jacobs
New York University
Thomas Jasterzbski
Davidson College
Rohit Joshi
Boston College
Sarah Karinja
Columbia University
Jason Katz
Bucknell University
Samantha Kelly
Indiana University — Bloomington
Matthew Kennedy
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
Ryan Keur
Elon University
Rachel Klein
Skidmore College
Athrey Krishnakumar
University of Michigan
James Kruvant
George Washington University
Philip Lamb
University of York (UK)
Andrew Laughlin
Villanova University
Ziann Lee
Dickinson College
Caroline Lill
University of St. Andrews (UK)
Rebecca Litwin Carleton College
Joseph Longthorne
Boston Conservatory
Christian Lysinger
SUNY Albany
Lauren Martino
Indiana University — Bloomington
Luis Martins
University of Connecticut
Amanda Marx
Indiana University — Bloomington
Bradley Maykow
Connecticut College
Holly Maykow
Trinity College
Cori McGinn
Loyola University —
New Orleans
James McMahon
Villanova University
Bryan Mills
Cornell University
Alexandra Mulvihill
University of Denver
Marc Murray
University of St. Andrews (UK)
Lynn Olesky
Johns Hopkins University
Samantha Pivetz
Carleton College
Joanne Quinn
Emory University
Neta Ra’anan
Manhattan School of Music
Ryan Rafel
George Washington University
Vishal Reddy
Brown University
Charlotte Reisen
Lewis & Clark College
Matthew Richards
Lehigh University
Patricia Rodrigues
Barnard College
Charlotte Rosen
Connecticut College
Carli Roth
Vanderbilt University
Jacqueline Scala
Swarthmore College
Nikki Schlecker
University of Pennsylvania
Austin Schurley
Miami University — Ohio
Nathaniel Schwalb
Yale University
Rebecca Shulman
University of Vermont
Arielle Silverman
Duke University
Maximilian Staiger
Post Graduate Year
Alex Stein
Tufts University
Jonathan Sternlicht
Muhlenberg College
Kaitlin Stevens
University of Miami
Tyi Stewart-Jones
Rutgers University
David Ulrich
Claremont McKenna College
Kimberly Vita
University of Connecticut
Michael Volkert
Pennsylvania State University
Noah Wiviott
George Washington University
Jennifer Zelnick
Haverford College
WWith Israel celebrating its 60th Anniversary of statehood, Amy Rubin Schottland and Sam Goldfischer made heroic efforts to book travel arrangements through Ayelet Tours. Additional arrangements were made with the help and influence of Jane Wilf, allowing us a tour at Israel’s memorial to the Holocaust, Yad Vashem, and Peter Feinberg ’78, whose association with MetroWest led us to a tour of The Feinberg Center for the youth of Rishon L’tzion and a meeting with Ethiopian Jews who had emigrated to Israel. Making final arrangements in March for a trip set to go in mid June, we were limited in some ways to following the general tour paths. Still, with foresight and persistence, we were able to visit two schools, meet with staff at two youth services organizations and meet for discussions with three different groups interested in fostering the peace process. Effor ts were made to engage us in the plight of the displaced Palestinian Culture, but we did not get to the West Bank except for a two-hour tour of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.
WisdomandWonder Faculty Members Journey to Israel
By Von RollenhagenIn the fall of 2007, Blackie Parlin approached Head of School Don Austin about the possibility of embarking on Newark Academy’s global initiatives by finding a way to send 11 faculty members to the Middle East. Concept quickly gave way to reality when Mr. Parlin arranged financial support with several Newark Academy alumni. At the spring Parents Association Gala an additional $40,000 was raised in auction to ensure that we would indeed be traveling to Israel and the West Bank.
From Jerusalem and the Old City and the Temple Mount to Tel Aviv and Old Jaffa, to Haifa and Safed and Tiberius and the Golan Heights to Ein Gedi and Masada, we par ticipated in a trip that had a profound impact upon us individually and collectively As we gathered on our last night together in a park on top of Old Jaffa overlooking the Mediterranean for an improvised Shabbat Service, the sun set into the sea to our left behind the cross of a Medieval Church and to our right we could look past a Mosque and down the coast to Tel Aviv. Amy Rubin Schottland and Sam Goldfischer led our g roup – one Or thodox, one Conservative, one Reform, two agnostics, an atheist, four Protestants and a Roman Catholic – in song and prayer, then each of us offered a reflection on what had passed between us and before us in these 10 days. At first we were moved to reverent silence, then as emotions leveled into wistfulness there was expression of respect, deep admiration, questions political and personal, and universally there was gratitude that our school community could g ive so generously to a trip that will have long term effects on our lives and, by extension, the ways in which we approach our jobs as teachers.
As our service atop Yafo ended, the loud-speakers from the Mosque below us carried out the Muslim call to worship and we set out for a Shabbat Dinner at Beit Daniel, Israel’s first Reform Congregation. Though the neophytes among us had come to understand that the political and spiritual divides in Israel are many and deep, we were still surprised to learn that the power wielded by the Ultra Or thodox delayed the occupation of Beit Daniel’s building until an Act of Parliament facilitated its opening 20 years after its first attempt to form.
When we returned to the States, I asked each traveler to offer a written reflection on what he or she had seen and learned. Each of us had personal highlights and insights and I cannot represent them all here, but collectively there were a few places and themes that coalesced into the defining elements of our journey to Israel.
Overriding all was the sense that we were, by our very presence, being asked to understand the layers of history and relig ion that define the reg ion and its distinct populations. We literally visited the walled city of Old Jerusalem in layers with our first night’s witnessing of the devout shuckling in prayer at the Western Wall, then later in successive days beneath the city along an excavation tour and finally a trip to the Temple Mount and a walk along the Old City’s Rampar ts. Inside lay the Quar ters: Armenian, Christian, Jewish and Muslim. In 1967 the IDF claimed Old Jerusalem in one of the fiercest battles of the Six Day War. What the Israelis call the “liberation” of Jerusalem has united disparate Muslims from neighboring countries in defiance ever since. There are the layers of history elsewhere as well: Megiddo with its ruins of 25 civilizations and modern Israel itself, at once democratically secular and determinedly Jewish, with its myriad political par ties, from the more liberal Labor Party to the fundamentalism of the Shas Party.
Among the many stunning landscapes we visited, The Golan Heights, a territory annexed from Syria in the waning moments of the Six Day War, struck us as especially beautiful. And here, too, the layers and the contradictions were in evidence: a beautiful valley brimming with agriculture was being irrigated with water diver ted from the Jordan River while down stream its decimated flow of fresh water into the Dead Sea exacerbates the evaporation of what water remains there. Amidst beautiful fields where cattle g razed above the flourishing kibbutzim below we passed the bunkers once used by the Syrians to bomb the low lying Israeli farms and we read signs warning us away from acreage still rife with live land mines. Later we visited the Golan Winery, a thriving enterprise in a land that, as I write, Israel is negotiating with Syria in consideration of its return.
Masada, our last real stop of historic note, was majestic in its design and inspirational in its story of siege and sacrifice. Here we took in a 360-deg ree view of the Dead Sea plateau and the mountains above, imagining with the help of our guide Roni’s
narration, the logistical complications of the Roman attack and the calm “surrender” of Herod’s people in the face of imminent defeat. In the 115 degree heat it was hard to believe that just seven miles and an hour before the ascent of Masada we were wading in the pools of the desert oasis waterfall at Ein Gedi. When we gathered that last night in Old Jaffa, unbeknownst to me then but apparent in the writings I later received, a school was on many of our minds. Yes, there was gratitude for Newark Academy’s g reat generosity but there were also questions about Israel and its challenges that led our thoughts intellectually and spiritually to the work being done in Galilee at The Bilingual Galil School.
“
Here were authentic efforts serving real kids – kids being studiousand serious, kids being knuckleheads, kids being charming and shy and wanting to escape to the playground together.
”
Both the Israel Ministry of Education and the United Jewish Communities fund The Bilingual Galil School, located high in the hills and surrounded by barbed wire fencing. Its express purpose is to educate children in an environment that promotes respectful coexistence among Jewish-Israeli and Arab-Israeli children. The school is 60 percent Muslim and 40 percent Jewish. We had met with groups interested in fostering peace, even with a most eloquent and insightful Reform Rabbi. In hindsight the simple success of this school where every class was taught in Arabic and Hebrew and staffed by both an Arab and Jewish teacher, even co-led by an Arab Principal and a Jewish Principal, struck us as a moving tribute to those who labor for peace in the service of future generations.
Here were authentic efforts serving real kids – kids being studious and serious, kids being knuckleheads, kids being charming and shy and wanting to escape to the playground together. Our host, a native Jewish-Israeli woman, was clearly nationalistic at her core yet nonetheless possessed the integrity and the ethical commitment to check these feelings and provide a real education and a real promise of hope for her region’s youth, even in the face of doubters.
Here in the hills of Galilee something was being accomplished that might in fact last, and its implications for what could actually be achieved are quite inspiring. As Amy Rubin Schottland wrote in her reflection, “Israeli schools are producing the technology innovators of the future. And yet, these opportunities do not seem [typically] to be available for all her citizens...Israel is founded on the Zionists’ dream, but what has been the cost to those who also call it home?” Though our trip did not provide an answer, perhaps The Bilingual Galil School, or Yad v’ Yad (Hand in Hand), as it is also known, provides a glimpse at the genesis of a solution.
CONVOCATION September 5, 2008
Head of School Donald Austin led the opening ceremony in the Rose Auditorium, welcoming students to the new academic year. Students and faculty were also greeted by Jon Olesky ’74, vice chair of the board of trustees; Leo Gordon ’69, president of the alumni association; Rita Pignatelli-Mercuri, president of the parents association, and Kyle Ostroff ’09, school council president.
“The ladder of success is best climbed by stepping on the rungs of opportunity.”
– AYN RAND
Jennifer Choe Groves ’87 delivered the convocation address urging students to seize opportunities that are presented to them. Jennifer has done just that in a career path that eventually led to the White House where Jennifer currently serves as the director for intellectual property and innovation. She is responsible for coordinating U.S. trade policy and has been the lead intellectual property negotiator in numerous Free Trade Agreements with international trading partners including Russia and the former Soviet Union, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, North Africa, and many other countries.
Jennifer began her legal career as a prosecutor with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office. She subsequently entered private practice with several prominent law firms, where she practiced intellectual property and entertainment litigation. Jennifer received an LL.M. from Columbia University Law School specializing in intellectual property and international and comparative law; a J.D. from Rutgers Law School; and an A.B. from Princeton University. She is also a graduate of the Juilliard School of Music, where she studied piano and composition.
Following the ceremony, Jennifer was joined on the front patio by throngs of students who were eager to learn more about the steps that led to her exciting and influential career path.
EACH YEAR AT CONVOCATION, outstanding members of the faculty are recognized for their important contributions to the NA community:
Elaine Brodie
Catherine Lynham Academic Chair
Dan Erlandson
Ohaus Chair in Science, Mathematics and Technology
Scott Jacoby
Ernest S. Allsopp Award
Amy Hone
Ripps Faculty Award
Marcia Worth-Baker Innovation in Teaching Award
Tara DelRusso
Ted Gilbreath
Brenda Hamm Head of School Awards
WELCOME, LISA GRIDER
faculty focus
Fond Farewells
A number of esteemed faculty and staff members departed from Newark Academy at the end of the 2007-2008 school year. Steve Griggs, director of athletics, and Fred McGaughn, director of institutional advancement, both retired from the administration.
Glen Depino (Health), Mary Lysinger (French) and Bash Mohammed (Humanities) all exited the faculty. Madelyn Onofrio, middle school office manager, and Claire Gallagher,admission office manager, both retired from the school’s staff.
Welcome to New Faculty
Six new members joined the NA faculty this year: Jennifer Blevins (Science), Nathalie Gaillot (French), Chris George (Physics), Ana Josuva (Spanish and Language Department Chair), Elizabeth Sparacino (Humanities) and Jeffrey Vinikoor (Humanities).
Travel Experiences
Kirsti Morin (Humanities) was awarded the major summer sabbatical – a cross-countr y road trip. Her adventure is detailed on pages 18-22.
Lee Abbey (Humanities) traveled to Prague in the Czech Republic on a mini-sabbatical last March. This experience allowed him a deeper study of Prague’s role in European history and the opportunity to examine Prague’s new role in Eastern Europe.
In July, Elizabeth Barbato (English) had the fortunate opportunity to travel to the Galapagos on a tour operated by Natural Habitat Adventures (www.nathab.com), a company founded and operated by NA alum Ben Bressler ’80. The 12-day tour featured daily hikes on each island, extensive scientific information about the biodiversity of the archipelago and snorkeling. Dr. Barbato swam with marine iguanas, penguins, cormorants, sea turtles, sea lions and Galapagos sharks – and lived to tell the tale!
In August, Debra Tavares (Science) and Dan Erlandson (Science) attended a week-long course at the Island School in Eleuthera, Bahamas. More than just a school, the Island School offered authentic work in a developing world context. Their experience was focused on personal development, scientific research, sustainable economic development and
The Office of Institutional Advancement is pleased to announce the arrival of its new director, Lisa Grider. Lisa’s 20-year career is anchored in service to nonprofit organizations, including Texas Christian University, Baylor University Medical Center and Seton Hall University. Immediately prior to joining Newark Academy, Lisa served as executive vice president and chief operating officer of Graham Pelton Consulting, Inc., a full-service fundraising and nonprofit management firm. Lisa lives in Essex Fells with her husband, Mitch Lawrence, and daughter, Neeley Lawrence.
Please join us in welcoming Lisa to the Institutional Advancement team and wishing her success as she helps Newark Academy achieve its goals.
environmental preservation through resource management, alternative energy production and community outreach. (And they managed to fit in some snorkeling, too!)
Milestones
BIRTHS/WEDDINGS
Tara Ann Gencarelli (Health) married Jon DelRusso on May 31 in Fairfield, New Jersey. The couple resides in Nutley. Sandy Palmer (Science) and her husband, Rob, are proud to announce the birth of their son, Colby, born on May 22. He joins big sister, Willow (3).
COMPLETED DEGREES
This summer, Yvette Luxenberg (Dance) earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in dance from Hollins University/American Dance Festival Program. The one-of-a-kind program concentrates on hands-on experiences of the American Dance Festival (ADF), the most prestigious dance festival in the United States. While participating in the program, Luxenberg split her time between the Hollins University campus in Roanoke, Virginia, and the Duke University campus, home to the ADF, in Durham, North Carolina.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS/ACHIEVEMENTS
Elizabeth Barbato (English) attended the prestigious Colgate Writers’ Conference this summer. By coincidence, the conference was organized and managed by NA alum Matthew Leone ’67.
Marquis Scott, director of technology, was invited to return to his alma mater, The Hotchkiss School, as the keynote speaker at an athletic awards ceremony. He addressed the assembly with a moving testimony on the influence of sports on his life and how his years at Hotchkiss helped shape his life and his future.
SecretsTrade OFTHE
Christopher P. Davis III, Class of 2012, is known around NA for dapper dressing, the American flag he hangs on his locker each year, and now, thanks to Trader Magazine, for his financial acumen. Davis appeared as “The Freshman” in the finance publication’s fourth annual list of “30 Under 30,” which listed a handful of the “world’s top traders.”
WWhile Davis lear ned the basics of investing around the dinner table from his father, Paul Davis, who manages portfolios at Oppenheimer and Company, he has had the opportunity to expand his experience at Newark Academy. “I am a member of the Student Endowment Committee, which was founded thanks to an anonymous gift of $100,000,” explains Davis. “One of the provisions of the gift was that it be managed by students. It’s a great opportunity for me and for the school.” Davis has reason to be proud; the student-run fund saw a solid performance in 2007; its value climbed 13.7%. “I also get to sit in on meetings of the school’s investment committee, which often inspire me to research further.”
Davis credits the school for a unique opportunity. “I can’t imagine that any other school could have given me, a kid, this kind of experience.” A Newark Academy student since sixth grade, Davis is proud to call himself a “lifer.”
In addition to his father’s guidance, Davis also looks to Benson Hawk, chair of the humanities department and teacher of economics, and Sam Goldfischer, director of finance, as inspirations. “Mr. Hawk has taught me about the world-wide economic conditions that can affect stock
performance, and Mr. Goldfischer has shown me how institutional investment differs from the kind of investing I do for myself,” explains Davis.
Davis recently carved a few hours out of his busy schedule to tape a short segment for Fox News. “It was exciting when Fox News called my father to ask if I could be on television,” admits Davis. The segment, however, is yet to be aired. The recent stock market plunge and global fiscal crisis has dominated the news. Even so, Davis is able to share his experience and acumen with fellow students. The fall’s first issue of the school newspaper, The Minuteman, featured a piece by Davis that discusses aspects of the financial situation. Davis isn’t worried about the world financial situation. At age 15, he “thinks longterm.”
Future plans for Davis include a career in business. For now, he’s savoring the high school experience, midterms, school lunches, Spirit Week, and all. “Every day is a good day here,” he states with obvious pleasure. “Newark Academy is the perfect fit for me.”
the sports report
FALL SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
At the mid-point of the 2008-2009 fall sports season, Newark Academy athletic teams boast a combined win-loss record of 57 victories, 42 defeats and three ties.
The boys and girls cross country teams have a combined recordof 19-5 (girls 8-4, boys 11-1), including a very impressive third place finish by the boys in the prestigious Shore Invitational on October 4 at Holmdel, NJ. On October 15 the boys finished third in the Colonial Hills Conference championships and our girls finished fifth, both teams continuing their fine seasons.
The girls soccer team entered the Essex County tournament as the third seed but was upset by cross-town rival, Livingston High School. The girls (8-5) have their sights set on winning the Hills Division title and then vying for both the Prep and State tournament championships.
The girls tennis team (14-5) made it to the finals of the Essex County tournament before bowing to top-ranked Millburn. Our first doubles team of Molly Alter and Carly Hyatt won the Essex County doubles championship and is presently playing in the State doubles championship as the #2 seed.
Five of our teams, girls soccer, boys and girls cross country, girls tennis and girls volleyball have qualified for State tournament play. As we go to press, our boys and girls soccer, field hockey, cross country and volleyball teams have also begun play in the Prep State tournament in their respective sports.
Although undermanned in terms of overall numbers and playing predominantly freshmen and sophomores, the football team has demonstrated remarkable resilience and determination. The future looks bright for our young Minuteman.
FOR CURRENT SCORES AND ATHLETIC NEWS GOTO
WWW.NEWARKA.EDU, CLICK ON “ACADEMY LIFE,” THEN CLICK ON “ATHLETICS.”
NJSIAA REALIGNMENT PLAN
Newark Academy athletics will soon experience the impact of the recently passed NJSIAA realignment plan. This plan will disband the Colonial Hills Conference, the athletic conference in which Newark Academy has been a member since 1995. In its place will be the formation of what is presently being referred to as the Essex Conference. In essence, Newark Academy athletics will become part of a super conference, comprised of all Essex County high schools and divided into divisions of like-sized schools. In the next few months, representatives from each of the member schools will focus on determining the breadth and depth of these newly formed divisions while trying to main tain an equitable balance in scheduling. A great deal of background work will proceed in the near future to make this new conference operational; the state has mandated that the new conference should be prepared to function for the fall 2009 season. We will keep you updated on the progress of the conference throughout the year.
RoadTripU.S.A.!
10,000 Miles in 60 Days
by Kirsti MorinI’m looking into the eyes of two men, ages 20 and 27, who have risked ever ything for the chance to cross the border from Mexico into the United States, and tonight they do not even know where they will get their next meal or where they will sleep. Tonight, they may live or die. It is one of the most heartbreaking moments of realization for me: simply by virtue of where I was born, I am clothed, fed, and have a pretty good idea where I am sleeping tonight. Darwin and Antonio have far less. And yet, in their eyes, I do not see jealousy or malice, I see hope, courage, and pride. They didn’t ask anything of us, but said simply, ‘Tell people we are good. We just want to work. Tell people we are good. We just want to work.’ There, on the border town of Nogales, Mexico, Darwin said, ‘Tonight, maybe we will survive and maybe we won’t. We trust in God. For God, there is no border.’ Blog entr y-July 12, 2008
I wrote this during an immersion experience in Mexico with an organization called Borderlinks, a bi-national, nonprofit educational organization at the U.S./Mexico border dedicated to cross-border relationship building opportunities. This was just one of many eye-opening experiences I had this summer as I traversed the dirt roads, blue roads, and highway interstates on the great American road trip.
It was the epitome of what Newark Academy’s sabbatical program afforded me: the opportunity to be immersed in experiences that would challenge my former modes of thinking and enrich my teaching of American history. I applied for the sabbatical because I have taught American histor y for more than 15 years, yet my direct knowledge of the United
States has been mainly limited to what I have read in books or watched on documentaries. As both a teacher and a citizen, I yearned for a new challenge and a new perspective on this country and its neighbors.
For two months, I followed the historical trails westward to California and back with my husband, Neil (NA English department chair and IB director), our son, Alex (7), and daughter, Eleni (3). Crammed into a Honda Civic, we also tried to set a good environmental example by driving a small fuel-efficient car. Along the way, I shared my cross-country travel experienceswith my Newark Academy family in a blog entitled “The Way We are Today ”
JUNE 26 MADISON, NEW JERSEY
Leaving our driveway in Madison, New Jersey.
JULY 2 MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE
Outside the former Lorraine Hotel in Memphis, Tennessee. The wreath marks the spot where Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinatedon April 4, 1968. Inside, in the Civil Rights Museum, you can see his room just as he left it. Unexpectedly and overwhelmingly moving.
JULY 3 VICKSBURG NATIONAL PARK, MISSISSIPPI
One of the most challenging yet rewarding parts of the trip was tryingto explain historical events to our seven-year-old son. Why was there a Civil War? Which team was New Jersey on? Here at Vicksburg National Park in Mississippi we struggled to explain how the Confederates held out for 47 days against the Union siege in July 1863.
JULY 5 VACHERIE, LOUISIANA
One of my goals for this trip was to see a historic plantation with the slaves’ quarters intact. Laura Plantation, in Vacherie, Louisiana, has preserved 16x16 homes that were inhabited from the early 1800s until 1977. Steeped in Creole histor y, Laura Plantation’s other notable claim to fame is that the Br’er Rabbit tales passed down from the Senegalese slaves that lived here, were retold and made popular by Joel Chandler Harris.
JULY 9 LAKE VALLEY, NEW MEXICO
Alex strummed his guitar while William Jenning Byran’s “Cross of Gold” speech came to life for me here at a ghost town in Lake Valley, New Mexico. This silver mine closed in 1893, while just down the road, Hillsboro sur vived because its mines were full of gold.
JULY 14 PALM SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA
We saw miles of wind turbines outside of Palm Springs, California. These wind farms are scattered across the country. Just one megatower can generate up to 300 kilowatts an hour (enough energy to keep an average household going for one month).
JULY 17 PRISMO BEACH, CALIFORNIA
We did it! We made it to the Pacific Ocean and camped here at Prismo Beach.
JULY 20 THE MUIR WOODS NATIONAL MONUMENT, CALIFORNIA
The Muir Woods National Monument is the home of some of the last remaining Redwoods that used to thrive in the San Francisco area. Redwoods, we found out, poignantly grow in family circles; the roots from the center tree sprout new life and form a circle around the root crown of the original tree.
JULY 22 YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, CALIFORNIA
It would be silly for me to try and capture the beauty of Yosemite National Park in words. It was more stunning and diverse than I ever imagined. We were amazed at how quickly the terrain changes here; not only was our elevation changing by the thousands within the tiny span of 10 minutes, but the natural transformations were mind-blowing!
JULY 23 MANZANAR, CALIFORNIA
In 1942, in the small town of Manzanar, the federal government followed through with one of FDR’s reactions to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Executive Order 9066. This authorized the relocation of anyone who might threaten the United States from within. Consequently, 120,000 Japanese Americans were relocated to 11 internment camps in the U.S. The camp we visited was once home to more than 10,000 Japanese Americans.
JULY 23 DEATH VALLEY, CALIFORNIA
We heard cries of “the heat is hurting me!” from the backseat as we drove through Death Valley. Compared to the pioneers who headed west in the 1800s with little more than a covered wagon to protect them when they were not walking, I thought we were all right. Yes, it was 118 degrees, but we had fresh water, air conditioning and AAA maps!
JULY 25 ZION NATIONAL PARK, UTAH
When you have spent 24 hours a day with your family for a whole month, it is true bliss to have an evening to yourself. Neil took the kids to a movie and I sat outside our hotel room in Springdale watching the storms dance with the sunset over Zion National Park.
JULY 28 NAVAJO NATION
We helped Eleni hike the three-mile round trip White House Trail into Canyon de Chelley in the Navajo Nation by enticing her with Skittles (in a way reminiscent of how Elliot got E.T. out of his room).
RoadTrip U.S.A.!
AUGUST 2 COLORADO
The mountains of Colorado served as a backdrop for this rare family photo op.
AUGUST 5 KANSAS
The yellow brick road is flat, very flat; there are a few states that just seem to go on forever and Kansas is one of them.
AUGUST 5 DODGE CIT Y, KANSAS
“It takes 22 months to make a T-bone steak!” A local Kansas geologist explained how the discovery of the Ogalala Aquafilter beneath much of Kansas inspired packing plants to move here. In the past 20 years, rather than moving the cattle through Kansas, they take care of everything here. We saw where the calves were born and weaned, where the yearlings wandered in a pasture, and where the cows spent their final days in a feed yard before the slaughterhouse. After that, I was told, “The T-bone steak gets shipped to the East Coast and eaten at a fancy restaurant for $30 each.”
AUGUST 7 ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI
The gateway to the West: the Arch in St. Louis, Missouri
AUGUST 7 ILLINOIS
There were few “kicks on Route 66” as we were facing a possible rebellion in the backseat, but we did have a mighty fine cheesecake at the Ariston, which has been open since the 1920s, the heyday of Route 66.
RoadTrip U.S.A.!
AUGUST 10 DETROIT, MICHIGAN
My son Alex is sitting in the seat that Rosa Parks refused to move from in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1955. Today the bus can be seen at the Henry Ford Museum in Detroit, Michigan.
AUGUST 13 NEW HAMPSHIRE & MAINE
The Aspens are beautiful in Colorado, but seeing these birch trees as we drove east on Route 2 from New Hampshire into Maine brought tears to my eyes. In so many ways, we were home.
AUGUST 21 NARRAGANSETT, RHODE ISL AND Ten years ago Neil and I were married here at Point Judith Lighthouse in Narragansett, Rhode Island.
AUGUST 22 PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND
I saw my home state and its founder, Roger Williams, with new eyes after visiting the Roger Williams Memorial Park in Providence, Rhode Island. I read some healthy advice on a marker, “Freedom never meant agreement, however … Williams believed to the end that tolerance of diversity, not enforcement of conformity, was the key to civil peace.”
AUGUST HOME
We take these signs for granted, but after 10,000 miles and 60 days on the road, this sign and the arms of some good friends were pure delight!
What a difference a road trip makes!
While I’m not naïve enough to think that all of the quick stops we made in our rush around the U.S.A. were anything more than superficial, I do know that our time on the road has opened more perspectives on American history than the lessons in any book could have dispelled. One of the first things I did on my return to New Jersey was purchase for my classroom two relief maps, one of the United States and one of the world. I’m also incorporating the words frontier, borders, and freedom into my questions in class so that my students can grapple with these concepts in terms of America, just as I did. Overall, this sabbatical experience provided me with a deeper appreciation for the United States,my family, and my opportunities as a teacher.
If you want to read more about Borderlinks and the rest of Kirsti’s trip across the United States in her blog, The Way We are Today, please go to kirstiandneil.blogspot.com
Archives
by Blackie ParlinH ARDAT WORK
The Newark Academy faculty has been talking a great deal about “immersion experiences” for our students. The focus has been on experiences in the wilderness and in the homes of people in foreign cultures. I am completely supportive of encouraging young people in both of these experiences, but I’ve expressed a concern: I am the product of valuable work experiences and a believer in the formative and educational value of work. By “work” I mean working under a hard-nosed boss who expects a full hour’s labor for an hour’s pay and would not hesitate to fire the non-productive.
I learned to work on a farm down the dirt road from my family’s summer house in the Adirondacks. If I did not do my jobs, animals could hunger or literally die of thirst. When the boss farmer told me at age 10 to take the John Deere two-horse mower for some circuits around the big field, I knew I was doing a man’s work and felt manly. When, two years later with a thunderstorm approaching and loaded hay wagons and trucks still in the fields, he told me to drive one of the trucks to the barn, I felt that I was saving the world’s hay crop.
Our culture makes it more and more difficult for young people to get real jobs. Many of us as suburban parents have tried to make jobs for our children somewhat artificially.
I’ve polled the seniors whom I have in class this year. Sixteen out of 40 report that they worked during the summer. Of those 16, some appear to have had somewhat protected jobs – jobs without the tough, demanding boss. Because
I RECEIVED SOME RESPONSES to my column entitled “Shared Cultures” in the Spring issue of Outreach. Joe Powell corrected my spelling of “xenophobic.” I recalled John Kim’s story of a supervisor telling him that, if a student corrected him, he should say, “Right you are. Just trying to keep you on your toes.” So, Joe Powell, right you are. Just trying to keep Outreach readers on their toes. The correct spelling of xenophobic is just that… or is it zenophobic?
these difficult work experiences prepare our students for their future endeavors, it is my hope that our community will consider real work experience an educational essential.
In my early years at NA, there was a student who used his jeep to plow snow from driveways. When there was a blizzard, he would be absent from school. When he returned to class, he was so sleep-deprived, because he had worked through the night or nights, that teachers would let him sleep in the back row. He was a lesson to us all.
If you have need for a young worker to shovel coal, unpack merchandise on the loading dock, stock the shelves before 7:00 a.m., milk cows by hand, deliver newspapers, or mow grass with a hand mower, please let us know.
Lucio Ricci wrote to say that he recalled Art Nelke as an engaging conversationalist. As a guest in the Ricci home, Art Nelke would describe the wonders of pristine Maine from coast to forest, descriptions which Ricci later saw to be marvelously accurate.
This recollection reminded me of a Nelke story which haunts Joan and me, because we can’t recall the end of the story. It seems that on a family trip to Spain an aunt died in a very rural area when Spain
was still a “donkey culture,” if I can use that term. The body had to be taken to Madrid for death certification. The only way to get the aunt’s body to Madrid was to strap it (or would it be more respectful to say “her?”) onto the roof of the car. And this is how they drove to Madrid. Unfortunately, Joan and I cannot recall Mr. Nelke’s account of the trip or the arrival in Madrid.
Yes, Art was a wonderful conversationalist.
Remembering Remembering
BY JONATHAN DOWNSPavlo Pavlo
BUILDING A MOUNTAIN
PPavlo Levkiv entered and exited this world struggling to survive. He was born in Ukraine with an umbilical chord wrapped around his neck, and he died at the Jersey Shore in the cruel current of a summer riptide. Every day of his life, Pavlo fought cerebral palsy. His speech was inaudible, his muscle memory unpredictable, and his coordination was clumsy at best. Anyone who personally knew Pavlo, passed by him in the hallways, or even heard of him second hand, rooted for him. We rooted for him not because he had a disability, but because of what he did with it.
Earth. In his free time, he developed carpool algorithms designed to reduce carbon emissions and fight global warming. He also ran cross-country for three years – often with bloody elbows and muddy knees. He competed one season with a broken arm. When he got bored with cross-country his senior year, he quit, and tried wrestling. The only match he ever won was by forfeit. He always lost; and he always loved it.
At Newark Academy Pavlo Levkiv built a mountain. He quietly demanded that we all look deep within ourselves in search for personal meaning and intrinsic rewards.
The litany of his accomplishments is nothing short of inspirational. As a freshman in high school, Pavlo took calculus and excelled. He could read and write fluently in three languages. He spent his high school summers at Princeton, working with astrophysicists on the development of telescopic lenses intendedto reach solar systems with planets similar to
It comes as no surprise to those who knew Pavlo, to understand that these accolades and accomplishments are not why Pavlo was so attractive. Pavlo was attractive because he always smiled. He had a smile that was biggest when he was pushed, challenged, and put in predicaments of discomfort. A rare disposition, Pavlo’s attitude is what distinguished him as magnetic, contagious, and admirable. He humbly preferred a test he could not pass, an opponent he could not defeat, and an obstacle he could not overcome. He was tickled by trepidation.
I had the good fortune to coach Pavlo in three years of crosscountry, teach him in freshman and senior year English, and see him graduate Newark Academy to study at my alma mater, Middlebury College. While his freshman year transcript is impressive, I believe Pavlo wanted to go to Middlebury mostly because of its location. Middlebury exists in the heart of the
Green Mountains; and for the five years that I knew Pavlo, he was enamored by mountains. He wrote about mountains in English, he begged his parents to take him on hikes whenever they had free time, and he always dreamed of one day climbing Mount Everest. In fact, the last words of his final essay at Newark Academy, he wrote, “Go outside!”
Flying home from his funeral, I realized why Pavlo loved to be outside, specifically among the mountaintops. He was a young man with lofty values. He loved to summit and see. When he was on the top of a mountain he could survey the world. From up there the petty problems of daily life, the seemingly unsolvable cultural conflicts, and all of the pain and suffering of the world were washed away with whipping winds, blended by a heightened view. For Pavlo, all things tied tightly together on the top of a mountain.
At Newark Academy Pavlo Levkiv built a mountain. He quietly demanded that we all look deep within ourselves in search for personal meaning and intrinsic rewards. Those in attendance at his funeral will recollect a first hand account of the power of
Pavlo. We were left torn by the tragic death of a beloved boy, but we were comforted by the strength and support of a school community. We were brought closer together by his life and death. Now, in the aftermath, we move from mourning the loss of Pavlo to celebrating his life. He once wrote in my class, “death is a part of real life,” and albeit too brief, we are thankful for his adoration of discomfort, his incessant smile, and humble happiness. He has brought a school 235 years old one step closer toward enlightenment.
A memorial fund has been established at Newark Academy to honor and celebrate the remarkable life of Pavlo Levkiv. Please send your memorial contribution to Newark Academy, Office of Institutional Advancement, or call (973) 992-7000, ext. 320, for further details.
Helping
BY NANCYMcGAUGHANHands
Jill Edwards Resnick ’85 and Devika Daga ’06
Last January, Newark Academy launched its Alumni Mentoring Program with the belief that all alumni, both young and old, could benefit. It was hoped that younger alums, just starting out in their careers, would be able to tap into the accumulated knowledge of those with more experience, and that our more seasoned alumni would be able to give back to Newark Academy by advising and helping those who came after them. Six months into the program, our hopes are being realized as alumni reach out to each other through the Mentoring Program on the Newark Academy website.
WWhen Jill Edwards Resnick ’85 answered the call to be a mentor from her classmate Kim Griffinger Wachtel ’85, she had some real reser vations. Jill is a busy person working as director of community development at Merrill Lynch where she runs their tax credit investment business. She was concerned about the time commitment and also had a few preconceived ideas about the college students of today. But she agreed to be part of the new program because it was her friend Kim asking – also figuring that she would probably never be contacted by anyone anyway.
Later that spring, Jill received an e-mail from Devika Daga ’06 asking for some advice about the financial
world. Over the next several months their relationship grew, helping not only Devika’s entry into the business world, but changing Jill’s perceptions as well.
Devika e-mailed Jill with a request for information and advice, and after only a few exchanges, Jill was so impressed by her maturity, motivation and resourcefulness that she invited her to lunch and to meet several people at her office. Devika’s graciousness and attitude compelled Jill to explore further ways to help so she did some research and found that Merrill Lynch sponsored a “Leaders of Tomorrow Academy.” She passed the information on to Devika who immediately applied and was accepted. In fact, Devika impressed people in the program so
much that she was invited to come back and apply for an another internship.
The relationship formed between these two talented and motivated women gave birth not only to opportunities for Devika, but to a new perception of the “younger generation” by Jill. “It has totally changed my attitude about college students, and I am so happy about the whole process.” For Jill, it was a wonderful, rewarding experience to help such a mature and focused young woman, and she is very glad that she is part of the Mentoring Program. For Davika, the experience was not only incredibly helpful, but totally surprising. After having little luck with the University of Michigan alumni, she had no idea when she sent out her first e-mails through the Newark Academy mentoring page that the alumni she contacted would be so helpful and involved. Every alum she communicated with, like Jill, spent time and energy meeting her, introducing her to colleagues, and answering her questions. She even attended a 6:00 a.m. business meeting with Brian Zucker ’84 when he invited her to shadow him at the office for a day. “I was
amazed at how helpful everyone was, how forthcoming they were – they really went above and beyond for me.” It was also wonderful for Devika to have Newark Academy in common with her mentors. Many of them had had the same teachers as she, and that shared experience made their interactions more comfortable and natural.
Through it all, Devika received the best advice she could have hoped for. When she was offered a chance to work in Michigan over the summer for the Obama campaign she was uncertain and nervous about what to do. After all, she had been asked to apply for an important internship and she didn’t want to make a mistake by not taking it. Her mind was put at ease, however, after she spoke with Jill and Brian. While both of them understood her fears, they encouraged her to follow her heart and work on the campaign. They assured her that it was a big world, and that she shouldn’t be worried about making a mistake at her age. Because the advice came from people she truly had come to trust, Devika was able to hit the campaign trail with a clear conscience. She also knows that after the election, she will still have a lot of people in her corner
AlumniNews &Events
From the President of the Alumni Board of Governors
Participation and connectivity – these are the goals of the Alumni Association’s Board of Governors for 2008-09. We plan to present a series of events and programs that will bring alumni of all generations together to renew old friendships, connect with other alumni, and interact with today’s student body, the faculty, and the Academy itself.
We began the year with Reunion on October 18, when we celebrated the accomplishments of Pamela Dennis ’78, recipient of the Alumni Achievement Award, and Jamal Parker ’98 and Rahman Smiley ’98, the newest inductees into the Newark Academy Athletic Hall of Fame. We also recognized David Hardin ’73 with the Fulton MacArthur Award for his service to the Academy, and Don Goble with the Distinguished Faculty Award for his positive impact on students during his tenure at NA.
The Board of Governors also plans to build on its Mentoring Program by bringing alumni together for an inaugural networking event in New York City on January 8. We encourage all in our NA alumni family who are just starting out, or are seeking to change course, to come and connect with our experienced alumni to garner advice and guidance.
In addition, we will bring alumni to the Academy throughout the year to share experiences with the student body, provide perspective on how the Academy prepared them to meet the challenges of college life and beyond, and to model examples of giving back through the “Culture of Generosity.” If you have a unique perspective on your Newark Academy experience or how that experience has helped you in your professional, business, or volunteer life, please let us know. We will do our best to identify an opportunity for you to come and share that with other alumni or the current student body.
The Board of Governors will again lead the way in developing a more robust class representative program, increasing additional support for the Annual Fund, and bringing you meaningful events and programs. We will visit Boston, Chicago and Washington, D.C. during the year as we connect with alumni to provide you with information on the exciting developments in the life of the Academy. The 10th Annual Minuteman Golf Invitational will take place on May 20. Mark your calendar for a fun-filled day at Wild Turkey Golf Club in Hardyston, New Jersey as we gather to support the Endowed Alumni Fund for Faculty.
We look forward to seeing many of you as we join together to participate and connect in support of NA throughout the coming year.
SENIOR CLASS – BOARD OF GOVERNORS BREAKFAST
April 17, 2008
The Alumni Association’s Board of Governors treated the Class of 2008 to breakfast in the Great Hall of the Simon Family Field House to welcome the graduating senior class to the alumni community. Each senior was presented with a gift from the Board of Governors, and the Honorable Leo M. Gordon, President of the Board of Governors, spoke to the seniors and encouraged them to stay connected to NA as they venture off to college and beyond.
THE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD OF GOVERNORS honored their departing members and welcomedtheir new governors at a receptionon May 7, 2008. A fond farewell and thank you was given to those retiring from service:
Sam Gaidemak ’85, Kim Hirsh ’80, Ian Josloff ’90, Andy Mulvihill ’81, and Scott Newman ’73.
Leo M. Gordon ’69The board was happy to welcome: Pat Ciccone ’62, Matt Gertler ’90, Tommy Hennigan ’77, Lauren Jacobs ’98, Adam Rosen ’99 and Art Wynne ’79 and is grateful for their commitment to the alumni community of Newark Academy.
Young Alumni Cocktail Reception
NEWYORKCITY
April 3, 2008
Butterfield 8 was the scene of the annual young alumni cocktail party. There was a lot of laughter and good feeling on hand as tons of alumni showed up to reconnect with their old teachers and to catch up with one another. For many it was a chance to find out who was living in their neighborhood, or to share a memory with an old classmate. Whatever the reasons – everyone had a great time!
1: Don Austin, Alex Bernstein ’90
2: Sophie Pizim ’98, Joe Borlo
3: Jason Granet ’96, Lyndsey Granet-Rosen ’99, Adam Rosen ’99
4: Heather Podvey ’03, Marissa DiFrisco ’03
5: Blackie Parlin, Amanda Rubinstein Black ’97
REGIONAL EVENT LOS ANGELES
April 14, 2008
Roger Lowenstein ’60 and his wife, Barbara, hosted a reception at their home for Los Angeles area alumni. NA west coasters braved the LA traffic to meet Head of School Don Austin and to network with one another. It was a delightful evening for all who attended.
MINUTEMAN GOLF INVITATIONAL
May 21, 2008
Despite some crazy weather, the 9th Annual Minuteman Golf Invitational at Wild Turkey Golf Course was a huge success, with more than 130 golfers raising over $50,000 for the Alumni Fund for Faculty. There were raffles, prizes, silent and live auctions, as well as some good natured betting, all for the benefit of NA’s beloved faculty. Many thanks go out to the hard working Golf Committee and to all those who played golf or sponsored the event.
ALMA MATERLUNCH
April 23, 2008
All alumni of 50 years or more were invited back to NA for the annual Alma Mater Lunch. After sharing a nice lunch and conversation, several members participated in a video project by sharing fond memories and recollections of their days on First Street.
AMentoring Experience
Life’s Journeys Made Easier through Friendship and Collaboration
Provi
Carabello ’97 and Jerry Maldonado ’92
PProvi Carabello and Jerry Maldonado have known each other since childhood. They maintained an acquaintance through their shared neighborhood and family friendship, although they were not especially close due to their five-year age difference. But when Provi was 12, Jerry sought her out and strongly suggested that she consider applying to his alma mater, Newark Academy. Because he was so passionate about the school and had achieved so much there, Provi took Jerry’s advice, thus beginning a mentoring relationship that has lasted for more than 10 years.
Although Provi enrolled at NA due to Jerry’s encouragement, she was very much on her own when she first arrived in the fall of 1993, as Jerry had graduated in 1992 and was attending college. Provi remembers a sense of culture shock as she was suddenly thrown in with kids who talked about country clubs, travel and social events she knew nothing about. It was a whole new world, one in which she sometimesfelt alone, especially as a minority student.
Looking back, Jerry experienced a similar reaction when he first started at NA. He had been encouraged to attend Newark Academy by his public school teachers who guided him through the application process and helped him secure a scholarship. But once on campus, he was intimidated by the difference between his world at home and the world he found himself in at school. Despite the culture shock, and in part because of it, Newark Academy was a transformational experience for both Provi and Jerry. It forced them to think in broader strokes and expand their world views.
Jerry became acutely aware of the inequality that exists between classes and the significant gap that separates people economically and politically. This realization pushed
BY NANCYMcGAUGHANhim to strive for more, continuing his education at Brown University where he studied economic development and international relations, and then at Columbia University where he earned a master’s degree.
Jerry now heads the Ford Foundation’s domestic program and their Gulf Coast Initiative, a 5-year, $50-million program charged with rebuilding the structural underpinnings in the three Gulf States most affected by Hurricane Katrina. The goal is to help rebuild communities through affordable housing, educational structures and economic opportunities. Most importantly, the initiative addresses the disconnect caused by poverty and the marginalization and social exclusion which results from it. According to Jerry, “It is more than rebuilding houses – it is rebuilding communities and addressing the issues that happen when we see people as ‘others.’”
In 2008, Provi and Jerry reconnected, surprised to learn they had chosen the same career path and shared a dedication to effecting global change. Jerry, with his experiences at the Ford Foundation, has been able to offer his advice to Provi once again as she navigates her way through graduate school choices.
Provi looks forward to the next few years, although she knows they will be hectic and a lot of hard work. She is in the master’s program at the Maxwell School at Syracuse University, conducting research on human rights policy and law. She also plans to travel to Uganda and India to study conflict and transnational migration. Then she is on to her second master’s program at Cornell. Along the way, she knows she will be fortunate to have the advice and concern of a devoted friend and mentor to guide her
BECOME A MINORITY MENTOR
The wonderful mentoring relationship that developed between Jerry and Provi has inspired them to reach out to all NA alumni of color. They believe that by sharing their experiences with others, they can help build an important social network to launch successful careers for minority alumni.
If you are interested in being a minority mentor, please contact Nancy McGaughan at 973-992-7000, ext. 367 or e-mail her at nmcgaughan@newarka.edu.
Making a World of Difference Making a World of Difference
An Alumni Immersion Experience in India
by Mariam Subjally’03THE BEST ADVICE I HAVE EVER HEARD remains that which I received at an assembly at Newark Academy. The speaker urged us to lose ourselves, to get lost in something bigger than we are, and through that immersion, who we are, and what is important to us, eventually emerges. Years later, I “lost myself” on a trip abroad and made some amazing self-discoveries.
After a quick stint working in Manhattan, and learning of my acceptance into law school, I left my job in New York and booked a flight to India. I planned to visit family, work at an orphanage in Pune, and tour all the major sites. While I had imagined that working at the orphanage would be a good way to extend my trip an extra two months, I had absolutely no idea what I was getting myself into.
The Ashraya Initiative for Children is a nonprofit organization founded by a fellow alum from Emor y, Elizabeth Sholtys. As an IB student, she had traveled to India and witnessed the disastrous conditions of their gover nment-run orphanages. She returned a year-and-a half later as an Emory scholar. Elizabeth (now 24) manages an orphanage of 11, an educational outreach program that educates more than 50 children, and a medical outreach program which helps street men, women, and children with ever ything from wor ms to multi-drug resistant tuberculosis. This entire organization is run by college students and recent college graduates.
When I arrived at the orphanage in early April I was greeted by 10 eager and smiling children (the eleventh was a baby). Twenty hands grabbed to help with my suitcases, and every child asked me when I was to leave.
My days there were filled: I taught in the slums at our outreach center three days each week and in the evenings I taught the kids at the orphanage, as well as super vised soccer, arts and crafts, board games, dinner and chores. After dinner we had reading time and then it was lights out for the kids. That’s when I would begin preparing academic activities for the next day.
The alternate days were just as busy – teaching the children in the orphanage, picking up books, taking them for uniform fittings and escorting them to and from football. In addition, I wrote personality profiles
on the street children for future volunteers; helped organize dinners; and supervised field trips to farms, arcades and shopping malls. I took slum children to town for the first time and taught them their ABC’s and how to count to 20. I also bought Barbie dolls for the girls and received the biggest smiles I had ever seen. For two months, I lived and worked for the sole benefit of others. I never knew I was capable of so much.
It was, however, the most difficult thing I have ever done. I ate watered-down vegetarian Indian food and watched children fight over rice every day. I slept in 100-degree weather on a folding cot (with cockroaches!). There was no television and only two computers with spotty internet connections. I had never been so far from my comfort zone.
“
I realized soon after I left Pune that I had left a piece of myself at Ashraya, and yet had gained a whole new perspective on life.
”
But I lost myself when I was at the orphanage –everything I did, and everyone I spoke to was in some way related to those kids. I realized soon after I left Pune that I had left a piece of myself at Ashraya, and yet had gained a whole new perspective on life. I returned with a deep awareness of what poverty is. I experienced the beauty and courage of children who have seen the worst, but continue to look for the best in life, love and education. I realized that everyone has a role to play, and that everyone can help in some way.
Five years have gone by since I heard that sage advice – to find myself through immersion in an experience. Newark Academy imparted in me a sense of social responsibility and for that I am truly grateful.
Alumni Profile: Author and Playwright Liz Maccie’93
Her Story BY NANCY McGAUGHANTThere is something very special about Liz Maccie, and it is apparent from the moment you meet her. Whether it’s her engaging smile, her energetic demeanor, or just her unabashed sincerity, you can’t help feeling good when you’re with her. After talking with Liz, you also discover that she is a woman who knows herself well, and who understands how she came to be the person she is today.
Liz entered Newark Academy as a freshman in 1989, with a bit of a chip on her shoulder. Her parents had made that decision and Liz was none too happy about leaving her friends from middle school and entering a world of new kids who were surely not going to accept her. Liz, however, was amazed to be proven wrong. Right from the start, she found caring friends who accepted her and teachers who cared enough about her to break down her resistance and challenge her to fulfill her promise.
Liz fondly recalls Ms. Galvin having her rewrite papers because she knew Liz could do better, and pressing her to settle for nothing less than her best work. “Looking back I see that Ms. Galvin’s belief in me changed my perception of myself. I guess I was worth the effort.”
Festival in 2009, and has just completed her first directing project entitled Foxglove which will also premiere at Sundance.
Her most prized accomplishment, however, is the one closest to her heart. Her first novel will be published this year and Liz is hopeful that it will be an inspiration for young girls. With the working title My Higher Education this young adult book deals with the fears, self-consciousness and pain that goes with adolescence, and it takes place all on a young girl’s first day at a new high school. Although Liz tells people that the work is not autobiographical, she will admit that it is based on her own experiences at Newark Academy when she arrived nervous and angry in 1989.
Whether it was reading To Kill a Mockingbird with Mrs. Parlin, singing with Mrs. Jacobyor acting with Mr. Jacoby, Liz found adults who thought shewas capable, intelligent and deserving of success. Academic achievement became fun and affirming, and Liz realized that there was a lot she wanted to accomplish in life.
After graduating from Bucknell University, Liz spent a few years in New York City pursuing an acting career. She then headed out to Los Angeles where she enjoys working in program development for the Disney Channel and screenwriting. Over the years, Liz has penned several screen plays that have made their way into film. She just finished writing a movie starring the young singer/songwriter Christine Evans which is scheduled for an early 2009 release. This film, which is being compared to Thirteen and Once, is certainly a career highlight. Liz is also producing a documentary called Leaving Vogue Moran which will premiere at The Sundance Film
Recognizing how important it is to believe in yourself and to have others believe in you has motivated Liz to not only write her novel, but to become involved with The Young Storytellers Project in Los Angeles. There, screen writers like Liz go into troubled schools and help kids turn their stories into short films and plays which are performed by Hollywood actors. The work is inspiring and meaningful –and she sees the direct result in the lives of the children she works with. Watching a boy, whom everyone had given up on, turn his life around after being in the program reaffirms her belief that when you express your faith in someone, they will begin to have faith in themselves. She has seen it impact her own life, and is thrilled to share it with the kids in the program.
Now whether it’s taking on a challenging project, getting a book published, running marathons or helping others, Liz faces her life with confidence and self-worth. She is grateful for her parents, who saw her promise and sacrificed so much to make sure she had the best opportunities, and to the teachers at NA, whose faith in her ability and potential was unshakeable. “Newark Academy was the turning point in my life… I would be a totally different person if I had gone somewhere else. I will never forget that.”
Liz is currently working on her next young adult novel, Scoops, which delves into the life of a young girl the summer before she leaves for college. It will be finished by the end of 2008.
REUNION 2008 AWARDS REUNION 2008 AWARDS
Pamela
Dennis
’78 Alumni Achievement Award
Pamela’s career in fashion began when she designed the gown for her own wedding. She eventually founded Pamela Dennis, LLC and is well known for using luxurious fabric from Italy and France and combining them in ways which recall the glamorous days of Hollywood. She is now fashion designer to the stars, with her creations frequently appearing on the Red Carpet.
Major fashion and lifestyle publications have featured Pamela’s fashions. In addition to receiving numerous fashion and design awards, she is also a frequent fashion commentator on entertainment programs. Pamela is also very involved with charity fashion shows and philanthropic causes. Many NA seniors have had the opportunity to model her designs in the numerous NAPA fashion shows highlighting Pamela’s work.
With her talent for design, eye for fabric and texture, and sense of glamour, there is no limit to how far Pamela Dennis can go in the fashion world. Newark Academy is proud of her accomplishments and grateful for her continuing relationship with the Academy.
David Hardin ’73
Fulton H. MacArthur Award
David Hardin has been an important member of the Newark Academy community since his days as a student. His grandfather, father, brothers and son all graduated from NA. David served as a class representative for six years in the ’80s and was a member of the alumni board of governors from 1983 until 1986 when he began serving on the board of trustees. David was a vital and influential trustee from 19852006, and is one of Newark Academy’s longest tenured trustees. He also served as the Academy’s legal counsel for many years, and has contributed generously in all aspects of Academy life. David is the embodiment of what Newark Academy values in its students, parents and alumni.
Jamal Parker ’98 and Rahman Smiley ’98
Athletic Hall of Fame Award
Both Jamal Parker and Rahman Smiley had outstanding athletic careers playing tennis at Newark Academy and at
their respective universities. While playing at NA, Jamal was ranked #2 in the country in 1994, and #1 in the state in both 1996 and 1998. In 1997, he was ranked #2. Jamal won 129 matches while at NA, and only lost one match in his four years, giving him the best record for a four-year player. In college, he was Big Ten Singles Finalist in 2002 at the University of Illinois and helped his team win four Big Ten Championships. He was also ranked #2 in NCAA in doubles in 2002. Jamal went on to play three years on the professional tour.
Rahman has an equally stellar record as state singles champion in 1997 and NA team captain in 1998. He was the Star-Ledger player of the year in 1997 and county player of the year in 1998. In junior tennis, he was ranked in the top five in every age group in the Eastern Tennis Association and won sportsmanship awards at both the National Indoor Championships and the Gateway Invitational. At Indiana University, Rahman was a four-year starter and team captain and MVP in 2002. He played 1st doubles all four years and was ranked as high as #20 in the country; in singles he was ranked as high as #60. Rahman was one of only two players with at least 10 conference singles wins in one season, and was among the top 12 players in team history in singles and doubles wins. He led the team to its highest national ranking in history and its first NCAA win in 2000. He played on the ATP tour for two years.
Both men were respected not only for their tennis prowess, but also for their commitment to NA and their strength of character. Teachers, classmates and fellow players remember them as dedicated athletes, role models and caring friends. Newark Academy is proud and fortunate to have had both these fine gentlemen as representatives, and is happy to honor them as distinguished athletes.
Donald Goble Distinguished Faculty Award
Don Goble taught mathematics at Newark Academy from 1970 until his retirement in 2007. In his 37 years at NA, he touched the lives of many students as a dedicated, accessible and caring teacher and friend. His easygoing teaching style, along with his warmth and sense of humor, made him not only a trusted teacher, but also a wonderful student advisor. In addition, Don’s successes as a coach are legendary. He coached baseball for 22 years, winning four state championships and four conference titles. His final record of 218 wins makes him one of NA’s most successful coaches, and the dedication and loyalty of his former players attests to his ability to connect with and lead his teams. Don will always be remembered with respect and fondness by his students and colleagues.
REUNION 2008
UPCOMING EVENTS
MARK YOUR CALENDARS
New Jersey and New York City Alumni!
NETWORKING NIGHT
The Newark Academy Alumni Association will host its first NA Networking Night in New York City on January 8. The purpose? To connect Newark Academy alumni so they can share their experience, advice and career knowledge.
THURSDAY, JANUARY 8
THE PENN CLUB NEW YORK CITY 6-9 P.M.
The evening will begin with a panel of alumni representing various professions. Panelists include Brian Zucker ’84, Managing Director of Deutsche Bank, Nihal Mehta ’95, CEO of buzzd, Beth Rasin ’75, Executive Director of Power Play NYC and a practicing attorney, Stacey Bradford ’89, associate editor for Smart Money.com, and Matt Miller ’99 of IMG Media. This is a wonderful opportunity for younger alums to gather advice and information, and for our more experienced alumni to meet the bright and talented next generation of NA grads.
Check the NA website for more information. You won’t want to miss this opportunity!
Class Notes
1933
Jack Selvage is doing very well in Williamstown, Massachusetts, home of his college alma mater. He moved to a retirement community there about three years ago. In addition to the concerts, lectures and sports events offered by the college, Jack plays bridge twice a week with his 98-year-old partner who is still sharp as a tack.
1941
Joe Byrne keeps busy these days enjoying his 16 grandchildren from his six children, and playing golf. Joe retired in 1986 from the Joseph M. Byrne Company. His dad, also Joseph, was a member of the Class of 1911 and a Newark Academy trustee.
Ralph Del Deo retired a number of years ago after practicing law in New Jersey for 50 years. He lives in Palm Beach, Florida, with his wife of 60 years, Blanche. They have four children, eight grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
1945
Denis Hagios, son of Edria and Ted Hagios, is very active in the Special Olympics and had his picture on 66,500 boxes of Wheaties cereal after winning the International Gold Medal in golf. He competed against 11 other players from all over the world in Raleigh-Durham,
North Carolina, and won by an amazing 10 strokes. Ted is active with his lecture, “The Colony of New Jersey 1664 to 1776,” and is working on a project with 8th graders to increase their understanding of the area by looking at old buildings, deeds, graveyards, businesses and industries, circa 1700-1850. The children can now walk through their communities and point out where the sawmill or blacksmith shop was, what family ran it, where they lived and where they are buried.
1948
Jacob Stern, grandson of Bill Ster n, was valedictorian at The Brentwood School in Los Angeles. He was accepted early by Stanford University, was captain of the swim team his junior and senior years, has straight A’s, and speaks, writes
and reads Japanese. He is also a very nice young man of whom Bill is very proud.
1950
Roger Brodkin wrote, “Life is favoring me thus far with reasonably good health and fading vest gives of once formable mind, I continue in my career even as the distant shades await me.”
Bill Richards reports that all is well. Although he feels somewhat detached from the current school community, he cherishes the memories and experiences of the 1950-51 years. He feels that the varied experiences of the staff and students played a significant role in his development. Since retirement in 1985, Bill and his wife have owned and operated a pet care facility in Brooksville, Florida. (www.forfours.com)
Larry Taylor and his wife, Jean, still reside in Albion, Michigan, in a home nestled in a wooded area overlooking a branch of the Kalamazoo River and adjacent to Albion College’s nature preserve. Larry remains an active emeritus professor at Albion College’s Department of Geological Sciences, which he established in 1964. He is publishing accounts of his early polar experiences as a glaciologist in Greenland, Alaska and Antarctica in journals. He and two Dartmouth
classmates celebrated their 75th birthdays last October by undertaking a 10-mile trek up Mt. Moosilauke and adjacent peaks in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Each summer, Larry and Jean spend time at a family retreat on Squam Lake, New Hampshire.
1951
Martin Ginsburg, an internist, has retired from private practice in Ithaca, New York, but works two days a week at a clinic for indigent people. He also lectures at Cornell, Ithaca College and local high schools on medicine as a profession and the connection between medicine and music. Marty remembers well classmates Bob DelTufo, George Gering and sitting behind Kelly Marx in Saturday study (detention) hall.
Kelly Marx is enjoying retirement from the presidency of Clinton Milk Company, playing racquetball three times a week and working hard for Cerebral Palsy of New Jersey where he has served in a leadership role for 43 years.
Lee Neuwirth has been giving some lectures on cryptography to children at the Plainsboro Library in New Jersey.
1952
Norman Grossblatt has had an interesting year. He celebrated 50 years of marriage to his wife, Mickey, in May, and marked 45 years as a manuscript editor at the National Academy of Sciences in June. In October he received the Harold Swanberg Distinguished Service Award of the American Medical Writers Association (AMWA). For Norman, the most important highlights are his two sons, Philip in Albuquerque and Ben in Seattle, two daughters-in-law, and four grandchildren. Norman graduated from Haverford College in 1956 and moved to the Washington, D.C. area where he and Mickey have lived for 44 years in the same Chevy Chase neighborhood. Mickey retired three years ago from her work as a teacher and admission officer at a small independent school, and she has also been a manuscript editor in the life sciences for years. Norman was one of the founders, and for eight years was the first president of the Board of Editors in the Life Sciences which is the only United States body that awards credentials in scientific editing. He has been an active member of the AMWA for almost 35 years and a member of the Council of Science Editors for almost 30 years. He and Mickey have country walked in Italy, France, or the British Isles for a couple of weeks every summer since 1987.
Michael Masin says hello to all the members of the Class of 1952. He has been in touch with Dick Slutsker and visited with Harold Levitt, and wants to know where the rest of his classmates are.
For the past year, Bill Van Winkle has served as the 52nd president of the Root Beer & Checker Club, and Bruce Van Villet, who is also a member, attended most of the luncheons and social events. (While there is no root beer and there are no checkers, Bill assures us there are lots of laughs.) He has also seen Cynthia Matthews, widow of Bill Matthews at several events. Bill Wescott and his wife, Rose, enjoyed a Shrewsbury River dinner cruise aboard the Van Winkle’s boat, Primetime, over the summer
1955
Four captains of industry, Jim Bonomo, Ed Levitt, Anton DePaul and Bennet Stern met one evening in July to discuss the U.S. trade deficit. Before dinner with their wives, the men recited their favorite Albert T. Davis sermons. Afterward, the talk turned to their legendary feats on the playing fields of the Academy’s First Street campus. The extraordinary evening ended with the couples being chauffeured home in Udell Stallings’ vintage 1939 four-door Buick convertible.
1957
Pete Hahn, who was a post graduate at Newark Academy for one year, wrote in to tell of his fond remembrances of the Academy on First Street. He credits the fine teachers of NA with instilling a love for education in him. After serving in the Navy as an officer for four years, Pete returned to the college from which he graduated, Hobart, to work in admissions, and then went on to a 24-year career at Blair Academy in New Jersey. In 1994, he traveled to Taipei where he was a guidance counselor at the Taipei American School for six years. Pete retired in 2001 to Austin, Texas, and now provides cell phone and wireless internet solutions as a customer service representative for AT&T Mobility. He enjoys hearing from his former students, being active in politics, and relaxing with his wonderful border collie, Bertie.
1959
With the first volume of the publication of 25 years in the field at the Early Bronze Age site of Khirbet Iskander in Jordan in press, and volume two in progress, Jim D’Angelo has turned to another major project near Atlanta, Georgia. As an advisor to a county chapter of the Society for Georgia Archaeology, the Gwinnett Archaeological Research Society,
Jim is involved as principle investigator at a frontier fort known as Fort Daniel. It was located on Hog Mountain in eastern Gwinnett County and dates back to about 1795. To date, hundreds of artifacts and intact buried features have been found. This project, as well as Jim’s work in Jordan, has been done as independent research. For a living, he is a staff archaeologist with TRC Environmental in Norcross, Georgia.
1961
George Brescher and his wife are now retired and enjoy living on the west coast of Florida. He serves part time as a senior judge to help with the heavy caseload, and also delivers Meals on Wheels for senior citizens.
Mac Simpson recently had dinner at the Kahala Hilton with Tony Mascia. Mac finds it hard to believe that Tony looks 20 years younger than he does! Tony’s son and daughter-in-law live in Hawaii and have a very successful business where they make new garments out of old mu’umu’us and aloha shirts. You can visit their website at www.muumuuheaven.com.
1962
Last April, Bud D’Avella, Ken Fischer and their wives took an extended trip to India, Egypt, Greece and Italy. The couples, who
We Fondly Remember
James Q. Bensen ’32
June 24, 2008
Edward Geiger ’40
February 19, 2008
Willam Dwyer Jr. ’48 February 29, 2008
Pavlo Levkiv ’07 August 1, 2008
(See memorial tribute on page 24)
have houses on the same block in Mantoloking, New Jersey, had a great time strolling through much of the history they learned at NA. They would love to get together with any classmates in the New Jersey area.
Henry Lesher reports that his calendar is full. Who would have thought that he would launch a new venture at the age of 64, and have it create such attention? Henry is founder of Career Advancement Systems, which is a revolutionary new program
designed to help clients find new positions in record time. Prior to creating CAS, Henry had served as executive vice-president for the nation’s oldest and largest career management coaching firm. He is now one of the country’s most sought after career coaches and motivational speakers. He also serves as co-host of a New York radio show called Careers, Lifestyles and You. Henry’s youngest daughter gave birth to his first grandchild this past summer, and his eldest daughter has the best Green Pet Supply Store in San Francisco. Henry’s son graduated from Rutgers University and has an exciting senior audit position with a major pharmaceutical company; his wife, Doris, is a medical director with another pharmaceutical company in New Jersey.
Jim McWilliams reports that his daughter Nancy (11) is in 6th grade and his son, Chris, is a chemist in Richmond, Virginia, and has two children. Jim’s other son, Doug, is a chemical engineer in Kingsport, Tennessee. Jim, who is basically retired, still gets calls to handle cases from time to time. His specialty is murder cases. He stays active teaching attorneys with the state and local bar associations. He is trying to learn golf, although he swore he would never be an old duffer like Bud D’Avella and others. He sends his best wishes to all.
Last fall, Joe Scarlett retired as chairman of the board of the publicly traded Tractor Supply Company, the nationwide chain of 800 farm and ranch supply stores. He and his wife, Dorothy, just celebrated their 38th anniversary at their beach house in Hilton Head, South Carolina, and were recently
on cruises to the Mediterranean and the Caribbean. Joe commits much of his time to the Scarlett Leadership Institute at Belmont University in Nashville. He and Dorothy are working on a series of middle Tennessee preschoolthrough-college educational initiatives both directly and through their family foundation. Joe is also doing some public speaking on leadership, ethics and retailing. Both their children are doing well. Their daughter is a marketing executive at Coca-Cola and their son is the general manager of a hotel in the Chicago loop.
1963
Now that the country is in the midst of a presidential election season, Stephen Lozowick and Lanny Davis speak on the phone quite frequently. Stephen was thrilled to have attended the wedding of Jena Ciccone, the daughter of Pat Ciccone ’62, in July 2008 and was happy to see Ralph Pellecchia ’62 there as well.
1965
Andrew Grassano, son of Alan Grassano and his wife, Valerie, graduated as the 2008 class valedictorian from Grandview Preparatory School in Boca Raton and has signed a national letter of intent to swim for the University of Denver. Andrew was a 2007 FHSSA state championship finalist in the 100-yard butterfly and broke six high school swim records. He was named Boca Raton’s “Swimmer of the Year.” He was also selected as a member of the USA Swimming Organization Southern Zone Team and competed at the for mer Olympics site in Atlanta last summer. Andrew’s older brother,
Alex, is studying economics and finance at Southern Methodist University.
1966
Jonathan Epstein continues his law practice in Princeton with Drinker Biddle and was recently elected as one of the managing partners of the firm. He is proud to say that he has been able to pass on his passion for sports (with attribution to his NA years and coaches Hendrickson and Lincoln) to his children. Jonathan’s son, Harrison, is captain of the Babson College golf team, and his daughter, Hannah, is at Middlebury College playing lacrosse.
Tom Louthan retired from the U.S. Senate Finance Committee working for Senator Baucus and federal service last June. He took some time off during the summer and is now a senior manager of tax policy at Deloitte.
1967
Larry Cetrulo is pleasedto report that Richie Bauer, Tom Kilmurray, Frank Silver man, Wayne Russell and he have begun a lively and nostalgic correspondence, full of stories of their youth, some fact and some fiction. He encourages all of his classmates to join them – just let him know of your interest, and he will add you to their circulation list. On the home front, Larry’s grandchildren, Jason (8) and Julia (6), are having fun in Atlanta where they live with Larry’s daughter, Lara. Lauren is completing a year in Paris, making documentary films; Nicky has just completed his first year at Tufts Medical School; and Katie is a senior at Harvard who worked for Harper Collins in New
York City for the summer. Larry spent August “down the cape” (how he misses summers “down the shore”). He has been working out every morning at 6:00 a.m. with the Harvard football team and he highly recommends six days a week of vigorous exercise for anyone over 50 whose knees can take it. He sends best wishes to the Class of 1967.
Bob Good has published his first science fiction novel entitled Currently Dead. It is for sale at Amazon.com, as well as Barnes and Noble and Books-a-Million.
Matt Leone enjoys hearing from classmates like Tom Kilmurray, Wayne Russell, Rick Bauer, Gary Zweibel, Bob Weinstein and Larry Cetrulo, and likes hearing of their thriving lives and families. Having Tom Kilmurray keep him connected to music is priceless for Matt. Last July, Colgate University Press published Crafting Fiction, Poetry and Memoir: Talks from the Colgate Writer’s Conference . Matt edited the book and directs the conference. In scholarly matters, Matt is just trying to keep pace with his daughter who is completing a doctorate thesis on Dante at Cambridge University. In musical matters, despite Tom Kilmurray’s efforts, Matt has fallen far behind his son who is a high school senior and a local rock star
FLORIDA IN MARCH, ANYONE?
NA would like to head south in March and we are looking for a venue. If anyone would like to host a gathering of Florida area alums in your home, please contact Nancy McGaughan at (973) 992-7000, ext.367 or e-mail nmcgaughan@newarka.edu.
Over the past year, Bobby Lynch has had the pleasure of seeing three former classmates: Bob Goode, Bill Colin and Tom Kilmurray He concludes that Bob has too much free time as evidenced by his excellent golf game. Bill’s game, on the other hand, is taking a back seat to his financial advisory activities. Tom has joined the renaissance and is working in Jersey City. They got together in New York for lunch and expect to do that again soon. Bobby and his wife, Lorraine, have been blessed to produce three productive, tax-paying members of society who have in tur n produced four (and counting) grandsons for them. Bobby is working at Healthcare Finance Group, Inc. (HFG), a company he co-founded eight years ago. HFG is a specialty finance company with more than 50 employees providing nearly $1 billion in loan commitments to the healthcare industry.
Wayne Russell will celebrate his 25th year with the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta this year. He is managing director of supervision and regulation with oversight responsibility for approximately 80 banks and 600 bank holding companies in the Southeast. He and wife Leslie enjoy golf, travel, baseball and going to concerts, including recent Atlanta shows by Jersey rockers Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen. Wayne has been e-mailing classmates Larr y
Cetrulo, Tom Kilmurray, Matt Leone, Rick Bauer and Frank Silverman, and there is talk of a mini-reunion later this year to compare waists and hairlines.
Barry Nostradamus Sher has just finished the program for the installation of Rabbi J. Cosgrove at the Park Avenue Synagogue.
Bob Weisenfeld continues to thrive as assistant vice president for Corporate and Foundation Relations at Gustavis Adolphus University in Minnesota. He is planning to get together with five NA alums at nearby Carleton College. He encourages alumni to reach out to fellow alums in their areas. For lists of NA grads in your area, please contact Nancy McGaughan at nmcgaughan@newarka.edu.
1968
William Ridge’s daughter was married last summer. Newark Academy mourns the passing of William’s father, Charles K. Ridge ’38, who served as a faculty member at Newark Academy during the 1960s when he taught physics.
Peter Schwartz’s son, Jonathan, was married in Ann Arbor, Michigan last May. His daughter, Rachael, was married in Philadelphia in June. Peter’s other son, Jeffrey, received a bachelor of fine arts degree from
the University of Arizona and now resides in Oaska, Japan. Peter continues to work in a continuing care retirement community as a staff physician for the residents who live there.
1969
Jeff Gerhold reported that in October 2006, nine of the 12 members of the winning state tour nament basketball team, along with others, tur ned up 37 years later to honor Coach Hendrickson at a dinner par ty It was an incredible night. Jeff thanks those who contributed to NA’s Hendrickson Fund for the endowment, and is willing to share the lyrics to “Homage to Coach,” which he sang at the dinner, but which cannot be reprinted here.
Bill Kaplan shared that when his son, Daniel (13), was doing his summer reading and book reports for school, Bill referred back to his trusty English Reference Book which he got from T.C. Abbey at Newark Academy. He was able to help Daniel with terms like “protagonist” and “antagonist” and the difference between comedy and tragedy. Bill used that grey covered guide through college and long afterward. He considers it one of the most valuable reference sources he received at NA, and is thrilled that he now uses it with his children.
Eric Lederer would like to invite all members of the Class of 1969 to join him, other classmates, and Coach Bob Hendrickson for the Class of 1969 annual golf outing in Phoenix in February 2009. If you are interested in joining the fun, please contact Eric at lederer@independence.net.
David MacNaughton has enjoyed serving on the board of trustees at Bates College for the last eight years. He recalls another Bates College alum, former Head of School Bob Butler, encouraging him to consider Bates when making his college choices.
John Newman lives in a townhouse in North Caldwell not far from his brother, Scott ’73. John has workedfull time at his law firm in Hackensack since 1981, specializing in commercial real estate. He plays tennis several times a week and skis as often as possible. John’s daughter, Becky, is a senior at Montclair High School and his son, Cody, is a sophomore at Bates College. This past summer he had a wonderful vacation in Bermuda with them.
Arthur Pittis teaches humanities and theater at the Austin Waldorf School’s high school, and serves as the regional leadership council member for the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America. His daughters are now adults and,
as his parents are now in their mid-80s, he finds himself making more trips to New Jersey.
In 1999, Bill Simon and his wife, Cindy, established a program called Sound Body Sound Mind to combat the growing childhood obesity epidemic in Los Angeles. The program is geared toward those students who do not regularly participate in organized physical activity. Sound Body Sound Mind provides each participating school with $50,000 of exercise equipment, a companion curriculum, incentives for achievement, and a safe, clean environment where students can get fit before and after school. Since its inception, the program has partnered with 50 Los Angeles area high schools, impacting more than 40,000 kids every day. To celebrate being in 50 high schools and to raise funds to go into 50 middle schools, Sound Body Sound Mind hosted its first gala in April 2008, honoring Coach John Wooden. Bill is overjoyed to report that the gala raised more than $3 million.
1970
Dennis D’Arcy Banks is currently practicing psychiatry in Greenwich, Connecticut, and spending summers as a polo professional, teaching and playing polo in East Hampton, New York. He is president of La Pampa Polo Club and this fall is
moving the club to Hilo, Hawaii. Dennis is looking forward to living in the Aloha State.
It has been a busy time for Joe DeJianne and his family. Joe’s oldest son, Michael, is at Providence College for his senior year; twins, Peter and Thomas, are freshmen at Syracuse University and Saint Joseph’s University respectively. Joe and his wife, Lorraine, are doing well considering all the packing they did last summer and are looking forward to college Parents’ Weekends.
1971
Roger Andersen, semi-retired from the corporate world in 2007, continues to do part-time consulting and board governance work for a private equity firm in Manhattan. He has written a book which is now in stores and which can also be ordered online at www.theexecutivecalling.com. The book is titled The Executive Calling: Corporate Success Without Losing Your Soul. It deals with understanding and resolving tensions between the ideals of religious faith and the demands of leadership in the corporate world. It includes numerous anecdotes from Roger’s 30-plus years in corporate management.
1973
Stuart Flaum has made an exciting change. He is now a financial advisor at AXA Advisors, focusing on the concerns of families with children and other dependents with special needs nationwide. He is very excited about this wonderful and exciting opportunity, and about being the NYC Manhattan Walk Borough Co-Chair for Autism Speaks. Stuart is happily married to Candia Herman and is still trying to catch fish with Tony Marchigiano. He reports that Joe Borlo makes an awesome pizza pie in several varieties, and invites his classmates to contact him at stuartflaum@gmail.com
Paul Krieger lives in Asheville, North Carolina. He is the headmaster of an all-boys prep school founded in 1900. He and his wife, Beth, have three children: Emily, a senior at Elon University; Colin, a high school senior; and Jeff, a high school freshman. They have been in Asheville for nine years and they love it. Paul just signed an eight year contract that will bring him to his retirement in 2016.
Cynthia “Cindy” Rotwein lives in the Santa Cruz Mountains and works in San Jose, California, for Colliers International as a commercial real estate agent. She tells us it is a wonderful place to live, and she encourages classmates to visit the area.
1975
John Lowell became a grandfather for the first time in June 2008.
Beth Rasin is wearing many different hats these days. She is the executive director of PowerPlay NYC, Inc., a nonprofit organization that providesfundamental sports and life skills training for girls in underserved communities in New York City. She is producer of a documentary film about Pakistani squash legend Hashim Khan, and associate directorof the Tournament of Champions which is the largest professional squash event in North America and is played in Grand Central Terminal.Beth is also a strategic business and communications consultant for businesses and nonprofits, while continuing her own law practice.
1976
Francey Kanengiser Burke’s oldest son, Doug, was inducted into the New Jersey Bar Association.
Jim Fredericks has written a novel, Brother, a legal thriller. The book is being published by Bascom Hill and can be found in bookstores and on Amazon.com. You can also get it on Jim’s website, www.jamesfredericks.com. Jim encourages friends to visit the website and contact him. He lives in Fort Worth, Texas, with his wife and four children.
Last summer Peter Marx vacationed in Bermuda while daughter Callie’11 had a great time in Cannes and Paris on the Newark Academy French immersion trip. His oldest daughter, Amanda, graduated from Newark
Academy in June and is now a freshman at Indiana University.
Jo Stein and Patty Stanton spent a few days together at the Jersey shore over the summer, where they continued to laugh about having been “at the bar with Borlo” last year. They look forward to seeing everyone at the next Reunion in 2016.
1977
It was a busy summer for Jim Garofalo and his family. They moved from Denver to Cherry Hills Village, Colorado, about two miles away. Jim’s children, Jessica (6) and Lauren (3), had fun playing tennis and swimming while he completed another new home. He and his wife, Terri, attended several of the DNC
Convention events, including the main event at Mile High Stadium. They both enjoyed the last Reunion, visiting with Borlo and other old friends. Jim invites anyone planning a trip out west to get in touch for skiing in Vail and Breckenridge.
Bill Kenny was sorry to miss his classmates at Reunion last fall. He was in France on vacation at the time, but wants to say hello to ever yone and promises he will see them at the 35th.
Dillard Kirby has renewed his friendship with KC Nichols over the past few years. They swim and compete regularly at a masters swim program at Drew University. Dillard reports that although KC beats him regularly, now that KC
has turned 50 he will have to swim in a different age group for the next year. Dillard also spends time with Steve Adler who is a successful triathlete and a wonderful guy. In fact, they ran and swam at Newark Academy, joined by KC, in July as a way to celebrate Steve’s 50th birthday. He invites other classmates who want to join him for a run or a swim to e-mail him at sdk@fmkirby.com.
Paul Long has been named assistant director of development for the United States Equestrian Team Foundation (USET). His mission is to raise funds to support equestrian athletes, promote international excellence, and to build for the future of United States equestrian teams. Paul was a member of the USET Foundation National Advisory Council from 1993 until 2005 and has been a horseman for many years. He lives in Mahwah with his family
1978
Sheila Callahan was engaged to Lech Czerski in February 2008. Lech is a molecular biologist currently involved in diabetes research at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Sheila was sad to miss her 30th NA Reunion, but she was at a writer’s conference.
Margie Feinberg was thrilled to watch her son Louis ’08 graduate
from Newark Academy in June. Louis joins Margie and her father George Gering ’51 as the third generation of NA alumni.
Anne Herbst would like to announce the release of Line by Line, a collaborative book she created with poet Gary Bolstridge. Anne’s drawings accompany each of the 61 poems, and she designed the cover as well. If anyone wants a signed copy, they should contact Anne.
1979
Susan C. Pannullo was honored in June 2008 with the Gary Lichtenstein Humanitarian Award by Voices Against Brain Cancer, a group whose mission is to find a cure for brain cancer by advancing scientific research, increasing awareness within the medical community, and supporting patients and families afflicted with brain cancer. Susan is director of neuro-oncology in the Department of Neurological Surgery at New York Presbyterian Hospital at the Weill-Cornell Medical College.
1980
Sarah Key is pleased to announce the arrival of her eighth cookbook, Serendipity Parties. It is full of great recipes, party ideas and music playlists, and is a perfect holiday gift. You can purchase it on Amazon.com.
After 24 years as a financial advisor at Smith Barney, Michael Martino has moved his comprehensive family wealth management team to Morgan Stanley in their new Minneapolis office.
Brad Winters lives in Ellicott City, Maryland, with his wife, Mara, and their two children, Callie (10) and Ian (7), and their Scottish fold cats, Sephira and Macrana. He is working as an intensivist in the cardiac, surgical and neuro-critical care units at Johns Hopkins Hospital doing patient safety and quality of care research, and acting as the medical director of the hospital’s rapid response team program. Brad spends his free time kayaking, climbing and cycling.
Carole Melone Zuckert lives in Greenwich, Connecticut, with her husband, Tim, and their two children, Sam (13) and Carlyn (12). She is a realtor with Prudential and enjoyed seeing old friends at their 25th Reunion.
1981
As international sales director of Norway’s largest wine and spirit producer, Hans Petter Evensen travels around the world leading their efforts to sell great Norwegian Aquavit and vodka. Last summer he visited Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Minnesota, New Jersey, Connecticut and New York.
Nothing makes him happier than to be back in the USA. During his visit he had the chance to see Art Williams, and he was visited in Norway by classmate Eric Schneck
A radio piece by Sue Karlin on an arctic community aired on National Public Radio, the WAMC Northeast Public Radio Network and Spectrum Radio. Sue put together the piece from a trip she made to Greenland last fall.
Andy Mulvihill’s daughter, Alex’08, graduated from Newark Academy in June 2008. She is a freshman at the University of Denver.
1982
Doug Polaner enjoyed seeing the many ’82ers who made it to the reunion party at Jeff Silverman’s house last fall. Doug lives in Westchester County, New York, with his wife, Tina, and their two boys, Mason (7) and Tucker (5). They run a wine import and distribution business which they started in 1999.
After more than 20 years in California, Karen StockerlGoldstein and her husband, Keith, moved from the San Francisco Bay Area to St. Louis. Keith was offered a position at Washington University’s Barnes/ Jewish Hospital where he is an associate professor in bone marrow
transplantation with an emphasis on treating myeloma patients. In addition, he serves as director of the oncology division medical informatics. During their time in California, Karen earned a master’s degree in nonprofit business administration. She developed and managed many community based day and residential programs for people who have developmental disabilities, such as autism and Down syndrome. Now that she is finally settled in St. Louis she will be looking for similar opportunities. Her e-mail address is Karen@mytuffy.org, and she would love to hear from old classmates.
Julie Bick Weed and her husband, Rogers, took their sons, ages 11, 10 and 8, out of school last spring to travel through Turkey, Greece and France for two months. Julie is still freelancing for the New York Times Sunday business section and volunteering as PTA co-president of her sons’ elementary school in Seattle. She is starting to play tennis again and fondly remembers Mrs. Newman coaching her and the girls tennis team at NA.
1983
Stacey Kent’s new album, Breakfast on the Morning Tram, has received rave reviews. Her latest tour to promote the album has taken Stacey to more than 27 countries,
and the album has gone “gold” in France and Germany.
John Prokop is enjoying his work as a financial advisor at Regent Atlantic Capital, LLC in Chatham. He remembers well his days at NA, especially teachers Kim, Borlo and Gobel. John manages to stay in touch with quite a few classmates and enjoyed his 25th Reunion.
After a personally challenging year, Amy Lynn Schwartzbard has discovered her passion in service to others, and is happier than ever. In March 2007, she closed her furniture/design business of 14 years, and made the difficult decision to enroll her teenage daughter in a program boarding school in Iowa. Through programs offered by the school she was introduced to leadership seminars by a company called Resource Realizations. Upon completion of their 10-week training program, in which she participated in the launching of a community center in the ninth ward of New Orleans, Amy founded Branching Out seminars. She formed this company to bring leadership training to the general population and to those in disadvantaged communities. Her goal is to have youth leadership camps for kids from challenged communities. Amy also completed her neurolinguistic practitioner’s certification and is attending a 10-month quantum coaching certification training
program to enhance her skills for her new seminar business while working with families with teens in crisis. She is thrilled to report that her daughter, Justine, is doing well and is planning to attend college. Amy is grateful to her daughter for opening up this opportunity for her to have her dream life.
Cristina Russano Young and her husband, Nigel, have moved to Doha, State of Qatar, with her employer, ExxonMobil, for a two to three year expatriate assignment. Cris is now the residential manager for ExxonMobil in Doha, responsible for housing strategy and the supply of expatriate housing.
1984
David Arthur,who is an assistant county attorney in Broward, Florida, went on a six-day fishing trip with friends to northeastern Ontario. They arrived by boat plane, and there was no one around for hundreds of miles. David and his friends saw moose, otters, bald eagles, and, fortunately, no bears. While there he caught lots of walleye and a 30-inch northern pike.
Jim Parks is back in the United States after working in Italy for Black&Decker for three years. While in Italy, he met his second wife, Dora, who is from Caserta,
near Naples. They were married in 2006 and have a beautiful daughter,Martina, who was born in February2008. She joins Jim’s son, Jonathan (7), from his previous marriage. They are living in White Hall, Maryland, and Jim is still working for Black&Decker as an engineeringmanager in charge of all portable corded saw development. This year he celebrated 20 years with the company. He encourages all who wish to contact him to e-mail jim.parks@bdk.com.
Adam Weiss recently joined Earth Class Mail as vice president of business development. By giving people access to their postal mail online, Earth Class Mail does for postal mail what the cell phone did for the telephone. You no longer have to be at home, at the office, or in any particular place to receive your mail. Adam is still living in
New Jersey but travels quite a bit – mostly to Europe. Since the company is based in Seattle, he will be spending a lot of time there and would be delighted to connect with any NA people in the Pacific Northwest.
1985
Eli Hinson had a great week with his wife and kids at Grand Lake in Oklahoma this past summer. His children, Laura and Eli, conquered water skiing; he shot a 68 in golf (on the front nine); and they all saw the Oklahoma National Guard fly over at sunset to kick off the biggest fireworks show he had seen in 20 years.
Matthew Mandel is thrilled with his daughter, Hannah Miriam Mandel (9 months). He and his wife, Tia, are enjoying parenthood.
Jim Ressler has a daughter, Lila (5), and he recently bought a home health care business in New Jersey which he plans on expanding.
Bob Stroh has embarked on opening a new concept restaurant for the Holiday Inn Brand. It is called The Sporting News Grill and is affiliated with the nation’s oldest sports publication, The Sporting News. Bob has two children, Amanda (4) and Bobby (1). He enjoyed coming back to NA for his father’s 60th Reunion and seeing many familiar places.
1986
Evelyn Rosenthal Kaminsky and her husband had a daughter, Sydney Cate, in October 2007. They are enjoying her greatly, and Evelyn finds motherhood amazing. They also enjoy spending time with Meredith Blinder Mintz and Sydney’s aunt/godmother Elizabeth Rosenthal Traub ’96.
Andrea Lauer Rice and her husband, Barton, welcomed John Patrick into their family last Januar y. He joins older brother Nicholas (5). Andrea claims that
both boys provide inspiration and occasionally act as guinea pigs for her company, Lauer Learning. Founded in 2005, Lauer Learning creates multimedia educational products for children in language, culture and history, and has recently published a graphic novel entitled, Freedom Fighters. This followed the publication of two coffee table books and an award-winning educational computer game on the 1956 Hungarian Revolution. She is currently working on a book for toddlers to teach them about southern culture. You can learn more about these products at www.lauerlearning.com.
1987
Lesli Ligorner is having a great time working in Shanghai with her husband. She finds the development of the legal system there fascinating, and continues to love her job leading the labor and employment practice in Beijing and Shanghai for her firm, Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker. She welcomes her fellow alumni to visit.
It has been a busy year for Brad Piver and his family. They recently
NA is Coming to the Beltway!
The Monocle
Januar y 29, 2009
All Washington D.C. area alumni are invited to come together in our nation’s capitol for cocktails and conversation on Thursday, January 29. It’s a great way to catch up with other NA alumni in the area and to share some great NA stories. Invitations will be going out, but if you will be traveling to Washington and wish to join us, check the NA website for more details.
visited his brother, Todd ’89, and his family in Marblehead, Massachusetts. They had a great time golfing, fishing and boating. Both of Brad’s sons, Austin and Preston, caught their first fish, and as their Uncle Todd returned their fish to the water and baited their hooks, neither fisherman nor fish got hurt in the process – they count that as a big success! Brad’s family continues to be busy with hockey, both ice and roller. Brad and Austin attended the junior Olympics for Roller Hockey and won a bronze medal defeating a strong team from Hong Kong. They also faced teams from Great Britain, California, New Jersey and Massachusetts. Brad had the pleasure of coaching Austin’s team, with his wife, Sharon, Preston and daughter Tatem cheering from the stands. Tatem (2) is already showing signs of wanting to play hockey like her brothers. When not chasing the kids around, Brad and Sharon play golf at the local golf club. This fall all three kids are in school with Austin in the 7th grade, Preston in 2nd grade and Tatem in pre-school. Brad invites anyone who is in the D.C. metro area or in northern Virginia to look them up.
Loren Weiss Selig has begun a new job as development and volunteer coordinator for Avis Goodwin Community Health Center. Between working three days a week and taking care of two growing girls, a husband and a dog, she is very busy.
1988
Alex Tait and his family drove East last summer to see some old friends. They reconnected with
R.J. Grissinger and his family at Long Beach Island, and spent July 4th with John Fleissner and Rob Hageman and their respective families.
Jason Steinhart and his wife have two beautiful children. Their daughter, Alyssa (5), enjoys playing goalie for her soccer team, pretending in acting class, and dancing. Their son, Aaron (2), loves to be chased around the house and tickled. They live in Warren, New Jersey, and both Jason and his wife are assistant general counsels for Sanofi-Aventis, a French pharmaceutical company headquartered in Bridgewater, New Jersey.
1989
Sandra Baptista has been working to finish her Ph.D. in geography at Rutgers University. Over the years, she has taught at Rutgers in the geography and human ecology departments. Sandra also spent time in southern Brazil in the state of Santa Catarina doing research for her dissertation on social and landscape changes in the metropolitan region of Florianopolis. She has started to publish her research and currently has one article published in the journal Environmental Conservation and a forthcoming article in Ecology and Society. In April, Sandra learned that she was accepted to Columbia University’s
Earth Institute Fellows Program, which is a two-year post-doctoral position where she will be affiliated with the Center for International Earth Science Information Network located in Palisades, New York. She is thrilled about the opportunity to expand her research in Brazil, and to collaborate with colleagues working on related projects at other sites around the world. She is also delighted to be moving back to the New Jersey/New York metro area to be closer to family and friends.
Kanileah Phelps has been reconnecting with old friends and classmates on Facebook. She also ran into Mtima Fuller last July at the Lincoln Park Music Festival in Newark. Kanileah’s brother Kaleem ’93 and sister Kalenah ’87 were both with her at the festival.
Phinneus Sonin may have lost touch with his classmates over the past 20 years, but it seems like he might be coming back into the fold. He reports that a mystery classmate has found his cell number and has been connecting Phinneus to the rest of the class one at a time. Phinneus would love to know who this myster y connection is. He knows the person lives in Oklahoma City and has a wife and two sons, but he needs your help to solve this mystery. So, if you get a call from Phinneus, he is not the caller but he would love to chat and catch up.
1990
Amy Jaffe Brown lives in Brooklyn with her husband, Jeff, who is assistant U.S. attorney for the souther n district of Manhattan, and their son, Henry, who was born in October 2005. Amy is vice president of global marketing for Polo Ralph Lauren.
Betsy Blaskopf Greenleaf and her husband welcomed the birth of their first child, Layla Rose, on March 21, 2008. Betsy is a urogynecologist at Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch and was honored as “Alumna of the Year” at Morris County Community College in April.
Darcie Graf Velez gave birth to her first child, Jack Zayas, in April. She and her husband, Chris, live in Roselle, New Jersey. Darcie stays home with the baby, but also works with an internet solutions company helping businesses increase their revenue. They plan to move to upstate New York in a few years to open a military police dog training facility. Darcie is still active with athletics and hopes to return for a third season with the New York Sharks (a semi-professional women’s tackle football team). She continues to play field hockey all year round in an adult league. Feel free to check out her still unfinished website at www.Minidarcie.com.
1991
Scott Algeier and his wife, Estella, are thrilled to announce the birth of their identical twin daughters, Julianna Marie and Grace Lucia. The girls were born six weeks premature in January, but are healthy and growing rapidly. Both Scott and Estella feel blessed.
Mike Lane and his wife left Baltimore, Maryland, about a year ago for fly-over country. They now live in St. Louis, Missouri, where Mike has finished his first year of an Infectious Diseases fellowship at Washington University. They are settling in and discovering all that St. Louis has to offer. They are also discovering the joys of parenthood with their first child, Sara Nicole, who was born in May. Mike welcomes hearing from his classmates.
Last July, Beverly Anish Levinson and her husband had their first baby, Mitchell Casey.
The Yale Law Jour nal recently published an article by Alan Levy entitled, “How ‘Swingers’ Might Save Hollywood from a Federal Pornography Statute.”
1992
Tina Alzadon-Hillman is proud to announce the birth of her first child, Jack Arthur Hillman, last January. He is a wonderful addition to the family. Tina and her husband, Brian, continue to live in New York City where she works for the Department of Homeless Services as the assistant commissioner of planning.
1993
After 10 years of shoeing horses and competing at team ropings
throughout the Southwest, Jordan Garrick joined the ranks of struggling actors. He landed speaking roles in a few commercials, and a part on the USA network television series, In Plain Sight. He was also admitted into the Screen Actors Guild. Jordan moved from New Mexico and is now continuing to shoe horses and attend auditions in California’s bay area. He encourages former classmates to contact him and is offering a beer and steak dinner to anyone who can help him locate Spencer Brooks
James Gitkin is pleased to announce that last March he cofounded Salpeter Gitkin LLP, a new law firm based in Fort Lauderdale. He lives in nearby Weston with his wife and twin sons (3).
Last August Maria Teresa McNeilly-Anta and her husband, Brad, celebrated the baptism of the newest addition to their family,
their son Sebastian, in Gallicia, Spain. Among the honored cast and crew of this quijotic adventure were Eva San Pedro Anta ’97, and former beloved NA teachers don Joseph Borlo and don Thomas Behr.
1994
Erica Greenbaum Bank and her husband, Eliot, welcomed daughter Talia Sarit, who was born in March. Talia joined her proud big brother and sister at home in West Orange, New Jersey. When not with the kids, Erica is a senior manager with Deloitte Consulting’s human capital practice, and Eliot runs an IT consulting firm for small businesses.
Adam Kimowitz has recently joined his father in dental practice in Denville, New Jersey. They focus on implant, cosmetic and family dentistry. Adam currently lives in Hoboken with his wife, Mara.
Amanda Schultz Lonergan and husband Sam welcomed their second child, Scarlett Mae, in June 2008. Scarlett joins her big brother, Caden.
Jon Wolfe and his wife, Jessica, are pleased to announce the birth to their second child in May, Deanna Jacqueline, who is a sweet, calm baby. Their son, Nicholas (3), has started preschool. Jon is the lead producer of the 6:00 p.m. Sports Center at ESPN. He works crazy hours but is thrilled to be controlling the content for a show he has watched since childhood. Jon’s brother, Gary ’88, and his wife, Marielle, have a son, Trip (2), and are also doing well.
1995
Toni Ann Carrino-Casale and her husband, Jason Casale, welcomed their twin daughters, Jiana Marie and Joli Marie, who were born at
St. Barnabas Hospital in June. The couple looks forward to an exciting and adventurous time with their girls.
Lauren Arkoff Fisher finished her fellowship in regional anesthesia at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York. She recently joined the Department of Anesthesia at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/ Harvard Medical School in Boston. She lives in Newton with her husband, Jonathan.
Stacy Ackerman Landau and her family welcomed their third child, a little girl, Alexa, last March. She joins big brothers Charlie and Cameron.
Leigh Baitler Schwartzreich and her husband, Jay, are proud parents to twin boys, Max and Dylan, born in October 2007.
Stephen Sislen wrote the book, music and lyrics for Room 16 which was presented at the ASCAP/ Disney Musical Theater Workshop in New York City. Along with his writing partner, Stephen wrote the musical Slut, which ran offBroadway at the American Theater of Actors after a record-breaking run at the New York International Fringe Festival in 2003. Their musical, The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere, also continues to tour the nation for Theater Works USA. In addition to his work with his partner,Winters, Stephen’s music has been featured on the Disney Channel television show Johnny and the Sprites. He is a member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater Workshop and the Dramatists Guild.
1997
Jason Gaccione lives in Westwood, New Jersey, with his wife Kelly, stepson Geoffrey (15), and son Breydan Jason, who was born last June. Geoffrey played varsity baseball as a shortstop for Westwood High School his freshman year and coached baseball camp for ages 9-10 during the summer. Kelly is a registered nurse who is now taking some time away from her career to raise their new son. Jason works for CBRE Capital Markets in real estate investment banking.
Ajay Kulkarni graduated along with Kevin Castelo ’98 with an MBA from MIT Sloan. He reports that there is a small NA family at MIT Sloane with Lisa Shah Sen’s ’98 husband in the Class of 2009, and
Are You Still Living with Mom and Dad?
Well, according to our records you are. We know you have probably moved on, and might even have a family of your own by now, but we need you to update your address with us before we can move you out of your old room in our database. Please take a few minutes and update your information with us by either visiting www.newarka.edu and logging in to the alumni portion of the site, or by contacting the Alumni Office at jmaffei@newarka.edu.
Doug Jardine ’98, who is just starting in the Class of 2010. Ajay plans to stay in Boston where he will be launching his own company.
1998
Thomas Bradshaw has four plays published by Samuel French, and has written two new plays, Dawn and Southern Promises. He works as a playwright in New York City and as an associate professor
Jack Hyman, who has worked for SRA International Inc. of Fairfax, Virginia, for the past five years, was appointed the enterprise portal technical lead in support of the U.S. Missile Defense Agency. He is currently working on a Ph.D. at Nova Southeastern University in information systems and should be finished in 2010. Jack was also given a term appointment on the faculty of American University College of Arts & Science, as well as the Georgetown University Graduate School of Education & Human Development.
Lauren Jacobs and Adam Lazer were married last August. Lauren is a social worker at Morristown Memorial Hospital, and Adam is an engineer at Paulus, Sokolowski & Sartor in Warren, New Jersey.
Arielle Greenbaum Saposh is happy to announce the birth of her baby girl, Liat, in May 2008.
Lisa Shah Sen exhibited her photography at the Boston Arts Festival at Christopher Columbus Park in Boston earlier this year.
Clancy Smith married Kacey Cohen in June 2007. He met Kacey while finishing his undergraduate work at Bard College. He earned a master’s degree in philosophy from Kent State University in May 2007, and just began work toward a Ph.D. in philosophy at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh this fall.
1999
After living in New York City and traveling throughout Israel, Adam Kaswiner applied to the Culinary Institute of America, and is now an enthusiastic student living in the beautiful Hudson Valley of New York State. He is eager to start his externship, and he imagines it will take him to exciting places.
Jackie Ko wrote to tell us that the Ko family is doing well. Joanne ’96 is married and a lawyer, Jonathan ’03 graduated from college and is backpacking through Asia, and Jackie is working as a senior account executive in a pharmaceutical advertising agency for direct marketing in New York City.
Sean McGaughan was married in September to Susannah Gersten at the Belvedere Mansion in Rhinebeck, New York. His brother
Brian ’01 was his best man and Dave Slojkowski was one of his groomsmen. His sister, Molly ’05, was also in the wedding party. Emily Weinstein, Matt Miller, Adam Fells, Dave Jacobs ’00, Ben Ritter ’00 and Katie Kilcullen ’06 were also in attendance.
Doug McNamara is currently living in Seabrook, Mar yland, with his fiancée Rachel Fitzgerald. He works as a research analyst at the Association of Public Health Laboratories.
Matt Miller works at IMG Media where he recently launched an exciting and innovative program called Model.Live. This interactive, online series documents the lives of three aspiring runway models on their way to fashion week in New York, London, Paris and Milan. It gives an authentic glimpse into how professional models live, and the hard work and commitment required to achieve success. Matt is responsible for coordinating and maintaining four profiles (the show’s and the models’) as well as the promotion for Model.Live on Bebo.com, a social media network where viewers can interact with the models and receive instant updates on their activities and experiences through their personal e-mails, text messages, voicemails, photos and short video confessionals. Matt is responsible for the collection of all that content, and for making sure
it is compelling and part of the overall story. This is an exciting opportunity for Matt and he is happy to be part of something that is truly new. He hopes everyone will take a moment and check it out on www.bebo.com/modellive.
Marsha Morman is happy to report that her first novel, The Darcys and the Bingleys, had a national release on September 8. You can find out more about her book at Amazon.com under her pen name, Marsha Attman.
Matt Steenberg just started medical school at New Jersey Medical School.
Brian Sudler graduated from the University of Rhode Island with a double major in history and Spanish. He felt very strongly about wanting to serve as a Green Beret and is now serving with the Army Special Forces in Afghanistan.
Asha Talwar earned an MBA from Fordham Graduate School of Business where she pursued their global professional program and majored in management. This summer she was promoted to manager of global fragrance marketing at Estee Lauder. Asha is responsible for leading all product and program development for Aerin Lauder’s Private Collection fragrances and the White Linen fragrances.
Jan Vobecky graduated from Vanderbilt Medical School and is doing his residency work at Stanford University.
2000
Viraj Bhalani graduated from Saba University School of Medicine in the Netherlands-Antilles in May 2008. He is doing research at the Renal Research Institute in New York City
Amy Kimmel Dahmann returned last fall from Seoul, South Korea, where she taught kindergarten at an English immersion school and traveled throughout Asia with her fiancé. In April, she was married to Todd Dahmann. In attendance were Alison Poole, Rachel Zief, Diane Pinder, Jon Sandler, Blake Neiman ’01 and Dana Cash ’01 After the wedding, the couple moved to Fayetteville, North Carolina, where Todd is stationed as a captain in the United States Army. Amy is working as the assistant director at the Fort Bragg United Services Organization, fundraising and running outreach programs benefitting soldiers and their families.
Last summer, Steve Savage was the piano bar entertainer aboard one of Royal Caribbean’s largest ships, the Explorer of the Seas Drawing from a repertoire of over 300 songs, Steve did a high energy
rock and roll sing-a-long show six nights a week. He lived on the ship for more than three months, returning to the Berklee College of Music in Boston this fall to continue his music studies. Steve performs regularly in Boston and New York.
Matt Wurgaft is now attending Seton Hall University Law School after several years with Sony Music. He is excited to continue his education and to delve deeply into intellectual property and entertainment law.
2001
Emile Cobert is in her last year of medical school at New York Medical College. She plans to go into emergency medicine.
Ariel Eber was named to the U.S.A. Women’s National Indoor Field Hockey Team. She will compete in the prestigious Pan American Indoor Championships this November.
After working and coaching at Newark Academy for three years, Brad Greenman has taken a job as a full-time teacher and coach at Gill St. Bernard’s School. He is the assistant athletic director and head baseball coach, and also teaches lower and middle school physical education. Brad lives in Morristown with two other NA alums, Noah
Gold and Andrew Martino ’02
Both are doing very well. Noah is in his last year at law school, and Andrew is the general manager of the largest bar and night club in Long Beach Island. He still sees alums, including Jeff Carter and Eric Glober man, who also live in Morristown.
Chizzy Igbokwe graduated from Temple University in 2005 and went on to earn a master’s degree in global communications from the American University of Paris. She plans to pursue an international career in global higher education and marketing. Chizzy is also an active member of the IABC (International Association of Business Communicators) and was recently selected to join the Chief Marketing Officers Club.
After graduating from New York University in 2005, Julie Jacobs joined Merrill Lynch’s High Net Derivatives Group. She recently began the full time MBA program at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and will graduate in 2010. She is currently living in Philadelphia.
Brian McGaughan is in his final year of law school. He was a summer associate at the law firm of Hidell, Pitoni and Bach in Manhattan over the summer.
Lisa Warren is living her childhood dream of being the next “Jack Hannah” at The Museum of Science in Boston where she does a presentation on the Science Live Stage several times a week. She credits her passion for science (and a touch of stage presence) to Newark Academy teachers Ms. Tavares, Mr. Limmer and Mr. Jacoby.
Michael Weintraub began a Ph.D. program in comparative government at Georgetown University this fall. He intends to focus his studies on the micro dynamics of armed conflict and specifically study civil war in sub-Saharan Africa.
2002
Jacob Dunn has joined Merrill Lynch as a financial advisor. He is now living in Jersey City.
Julie Fiocco married fellow Purdue grad, Ric Haas on May 24, 2008 at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Chicago, with a reception at The Intercontinental Hotel. After honeymooning in Puerto Rico, the couple returned to Chicago where they both work for Abbott.
Mackenzie Ryan works for the online maps department of Backpacker and Bicycling magazines, part of Active Interest Media. They create trail maps in every region of the United States using GPS technology. They also supply
guidebook style information including photos, directions and trail conditions. She has been working as a journalist since her senior year at Cornell, and lived in the wine region of upstate New York for two years reporting news there after graduation. Mackenzie is also a photojournalist. She now lives outside of Boulder, Colorado, which supplies endless opportunities for great backpacking, hiking and mountain biking trips – also great for photos. Mackenzie invites all her NA friends to come visit for snowboarding, skiing or camping.
Last June, Alex Senchak moved to San Francisco to work as a theatrical consultant designing theater and performance spaces all over the country. He has settled in the marina area which is a nice part of the city with great views of Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge
Shar monique Shade is an events manager at SYS-CON Media, an interactive media company that specializes in events, magazines and books. She recently began work toward a master’s degree at Boston University, and hopes to study abroad next summer in London for the final semester of the program. Sharmonique sees Andaiye Taylor ’01 and Alex Mack, and also spent a week in Paris with Chizzy Igbokwe ’01 while she was there studying at the American University of Paris.
Daniel Singer sat for the certified financial planner comprehensive exam last March and passed. Right after the exam, he set off for Zambia, Botswana, and South Africa for three weeks. It was quite an experience.
2003
Brad Chernock moved to New York City with his fiancée and is in the physician assistant program at Weill Cornell Medical College.
Aja Nisenson had a solo show, Piccola Cosi, which she wrote and per for med at The New York Inter national Fringe Festival last August.
Symon Perriman completed his first year as a project manager at Microsoft working on Windows server’s high availability and clustering team. He has had numerous successes this past year and is being recognized as an upcoming technical leader. His blog reaches nearly 500,000 viewers each month,and he recently gave three presentations to more than 1,000 computing experts at TechEd, one of the industry’s largest conferences. Symon lives in downtown Seattle and is still in contact with a few of his classmates, most recently seeing Dave Mazzuca in New York City in July.
2004
Louise Ball began a full-time job with Capital One Financial in Richmond, Virginia, as a manager on the internet delivery and portfolio team. Before starting her job, she was maid of honor at her sister Lillian’s ’99 wedding in Sedona, Arizona, on June 28.
Jamie Cohen graduated from the University of Michigan on the dean’s list and is currently attending Saba University which is an accelerated medical school.
Jacob Feldman graduated from Columbia University with honors and has been admitted to Harvard Law School (Class of 2011).
Tim Hwang spent his first summer out of college working in San Francisco for Creative Commons, a nonprofit group working to
expand creator choice in licensing creative works. On the side, he is working on a follow-up conference to ROFLCon, an event devoted to internet culture and celebrity online that has received press from Wired, NPR, and the Boston Globe He returned to Harvard University in the fall to work on cyber law and technology policy issues at Berkman Center for Internet and Society. He plans to go UFO hunting next year as part of a project to explore fringe science communities.
Jess Kaswiner graduated from Connecticut College, Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude, and was honored with the Museum Studies Award. She moved to Chicago last summer and is working toward a master’s degree in art education at the School of the Ar t Institute of Chicago.
Alumni
in
Mike Kirwan graduated from Williams College last May as a three time All-American swimmer, a national runner-up in 2007, and a Williams College record holder in the 800-yard freestyle relay. This fall he began work toward a Ph.D. in neuroscience at the University of Maryland at College Park. Mike was a double major in psychology and economics with a concentration in neuroscience while at Williams.
Sarah Lipsey is engaged to be married to Yuval Brokman, a fellow classmate at Brandeis University. They are planning a January 2009 wedding. Nick Miller has recently been studying at St. Stephens College in Delhi, India.
Stephane Slotten graduated from Columbia University with a bachelor’s degree in operations research engineering, and is working on Wall Street with
College: SAVE THE
DATE! Come back to NA on Januar y 6
All college-age alums are invited back to Newark Academy for our annual In-College Lunch on Tuesday, January 6. Come have lunch with your old teachers, and find out what your classmates have been up to all year. Lunch starts at 11:30 a.m. in The Great Hall, so set your alarms and head over to NA for a bite to eat, and a lot of hugs.
Make sure we have your current college address and e-mail for care packages, invitations and updates.
Don’t Make Us Google You!
We know that the first section of Outreach magazine that most readers flip to is Class Notes — and we’d like to have even more news to keep you connected with your classmates. To do that effectively we need to have your current e-mail and home address. Please contact the Alumni Office by emailing jmaffei@newarka.edu and update your information with us. We want to keep you up to date on all that is happening at NA and with the alumni community. And we don’t want to cyber-stalk you!
Citigroup. He is enjoying the “real world,” but was forced to stop cycling and racing due to two knee surgeries and lingering knee injuries. While Stephane admits that stopping riding is difficult, he knows it is best to stop before he injures himself more seriously
Tiffany Shumate graduated cum laude from Bryn Mawr College last May. She was thrilled to see Scott and Julie Jacoby as well as Nancy Grant and Jessica George ’03 in the stands waving, smiling and throwing kisses. The Jacoby’s gave her a beautiful graduation brunch. Two weeks after graduation, Tiffany moved to Washington, D.C. and interned for the summer at an education advocacy group called DC VOICE. Their mission is to organize and inform community members, parents and students about the state of Washington, D.C. schools. It was a rewarding experience. In September, Tiffany began work at The Center for the Study of Social Policy where she is working on child welfare reform in California, New Jersey and Texas.
Michael Sterling graduated from Carleton College in June where he majored in philosophy. He currently works as a junior research associate at Trilogy Global Advisors in New York City
2005
Ashley Cyburt studied communications at Charles University in Prague last year and spent the summer living in New York City and interning at THINK PR, a small fashion, beauty, entertainment, and lifestyle public relations firm.
Sarah Dobro spent the summer apprenticing at Scargo Pottery on Cape Cod. She managed the gallery and had an opportunity to work on the pottery wheel as well. She also studied for and took the MCAT exam. This fall she is applying to medical schools. On the Cape she had a great time hanging out with Sam Weinreich and his family who were vacationing there.
Jake Gorelov spent the year abroad at Oxford University studying math and history. He played on the tennis team there and traveled all over Europe. In his final year at Williams College he will serve as managing editor of the Williams Record, the independent weekly newspaper, and will be a member of the Williams tennis team.
Jamal Gorrick stopped by Newark Academy to say hello. He is a senior at Harvard University and singing with the Harvard Opportunes, majoring in psychology and minoring in economics. He spent the past summer as a financial intern in New York City with
Brett Finkelstein and Darian Solimine ’06
Emily LiMandri spent her junior year studying in Rome. In the summer, she lived in New York City and interned with Sotheby’s in the European ceramics and Chinese export porcelain department.
Molly McGaughan spent her spring semester in London and traveled all over Europe. She had a great time exploring the continent with Cassie Coggeshall who was studying in Florence, and also managed to visit Lawrence Jewkes at his university in England. Over the summer she lived in New York City and interned at Imagine Global, a public relations firm. She will continue to write on a free-lance basis for the company throughout her senior year at Hamilton College.
Mike Pickoff, an environmental studies major, was named to the dean’s list at Bates College during the second semester of the 2007-08 school year
After studying film in England during the spring, Doug Vollmayer spent his summer as a production assistant at a film production company in New York City. He also worked with his brother, Dan ’03, to produce an online comedy series that is currently posted on YouTube. Doug has also been working with
Christina Capatides on the production of a documentary film about bullying in schools, in the workforce and on the internet. During his senior year he will concentrate on completing his thesis on how global warming is presented in the media, and will leave his role as host of Penn State’s late night comedy show in order to host Penn State’s first campus television game show.
Stephen Wentz lived in New York City over the summer and worked at Credit Suisse as a summer ana-
lyst within fixed income sales and trading. He is now back at Lehigh University and will graduate in May 2009.
2006
Sarah Marcus is highly involved in the theater community at the University of Pennsylvania. She has worked on 23 productions in both performing and technical capacities, and serves as vice chair of Stimulus Children’s Theater, a student group which performs on Penn’s campus and around West Philadelphia schools and day care
Alumni Lacrosse
May 31, 2008
centers. Sarah is the costume designer of Bloomers, Penn’s only all-female musical sketch comedy group, the sister group of Mask and Wig which performed at NA last spring. She continues to intern at Sh-k-boom/Ghostlight Records and most recently worked on the recording of the 2008 Tony Award Winner In the Heights.
2007
Michael Thomas was named to the dean’s list at Bates College during the second semester of the 2007-08 academic year.
The second annual alumni lacrosse game was held on May 31 with the scrappy alumni team challenging NA’s varsity. Even though there were periods of rain, the game was fast paced and friendly, with the varsity ending up triumphant at the end. Everyone shared lunch in the Great Hall after the game and went home sore and happy.
Newark Academy
91 South Orange Avenue Livingston, NJ 07039
Phone: 973.992.7000
Fax: 973.992.8962 www.newarka.edu
E-mail: outreach@newarka.edu
Return service requested
Parents of alumni: If this publication is addressed to your child and he or she no longer maintains a permanent residence at your home, please notifythe alumni office, 973.992.7000, or send an e-mail to nmcgaughan@newarka.edu.
A group of 35 middle and upper school students descended upon Tiananmen Square during their 12-day cultural and educational exploration in China. The summer trip was led by faculty member Maria Teresa McNeilly-Anta, along with Kareen Obydol-Alexandre, Neil Stourton and Ling Tsuo. This directory has been printed on recycled papers certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. In doing so, Newark Academy is suppor ting environmentally responsible, socially beneficial and economically viable management of the world’s forests.