Knight Times Fall 2013 by Pace Academy

KnightTimes T H E M A G A ZI N E OF PACE ACADEMY

CREATING INNOVATORS

FA L L 20 1 3

THE PACE CONNECTION Classroom Entrepreneurs Verano Sin Lìmites Atlanta Tech Village

BRING IT Saturday, November 9 7 p.m . Inman Center TICKETS: $50 | CLUB LEVEL: $250 Club Level includes 2 tickets and a gift.

Casual Attire & Full Bar Sports-related donations are still being accepted.

paceacademy.org/boosterbash 2

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

Letter from the Editor I recently married an entrepreneur. My husband, Wes, started Honeysuckle Gelato in 2011. I’ve seen firsthand the ups and downs of launching a business. Needless to say, it’s not an easy task, and my respect and admiration for those making a go of it on their own has grown exponentially in recent years. That personal connection to a startup business is one of the reasons I’m so excited about this issue of the KnightTimes, in which we applaud entrepreneurs in the Pace community. The theme of innovation and entrepreneurship grew out of the amazing experience our student interns had this summer at Atlanta Tech Village, an incubator for technology startups. Not long after determining that we’d highlight those involved in Atlanta Tech Village, I learned about the creation of the Pace Academy Social Entrepreneurship Initiative in the Upper School and the implementation of the Design Think program in the Lower School (you’ll learn more about these initiatives on pages 24–26). We also stumbled across several enterprising Pace alumni who are making their mark as entrepreneurs, particularly in the technology arena. As I talked to these graduates, it quickly became clear that there’s something about a Pace education that instills a creative, can-do spirit in students. Several attribute it to Pace’s small size, others to particular confidence-building teachers or programs, but without fail, everyone I spoke to agreed that Pace creates an environment in which students are free to be themselves, try new things and discover their passions—whatever those may be. I think entrepreneur Nick Zeckets ’98 expresses it best: “I had the confidence and ability to [start my own business] because of the opportunities Pace gave me to build my skill set,” he says. “That skill set didn’t come in college. It came from Pace.” So, hats off to all of our entrepreneurs—aspiring and established—and to those inspiring individuals who gave them the confidence to pursue their dreams. Now, go pick up a pint of Honeysuckle Gelato at an Atlanta-area Whole Foods Market. I highly recommend the seasalted caramel.

Caitlin Goodrich Jones ’00 Director of Communications

Contributor

Michelle Yancich ’13 A member of the Class of 2013, Yancich attends Yale University, where she plans to major in Classics. At Pace, she was the winner of the Frank D. Kaley Award, the school’s highest honor. Yancich was an active member of the Junior Classical League, Knight Gallery, theatre, and the Knightengales and Troubadours ensembles. She cites Latin teacher Elizabeth Kann as her inspiration and her “second mother.” Yancich interned for the Pace Communications Office this summer.

On the cover: Jon Birdsong '03, Head of Upper School Mike Gannon and Pace Parent Ed Trimble with Pace Academy's Atlanta Tech Village summer interns. Photo by Ashton Staniszewski

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

966 W. Paces Ferry Road, NW Atlanta, Georgia 30327 www.paceacademy.org

KnightTimes Fred Assaf

FALL 2013 Contents 6 NEWS What you need to know.

10 AROUND PACE A look at what's happening at Pace.

hea d O F S C H O O L

20 A Truly Limitless Summer

Division Heads

A day-camp experience at Pace for Latino/Hispanic students.

Michael Gannon he a d of u p p e r school

John Anderson HEAD O F M I DDL E SCHOOL

Anna Valerius HEAD O F L O WER SCHOOL

Communications Department Caitlin Goodrich Jones â&#x20AC;&#x2122;00 D I RE C TO R O F C O MM UNICAT IONS, EDITOR

Ryan Vihlen CREAT I V E S ERV I C ES M ANAGER, G RAPH I C DE S I G N ER

Lela Wallace DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER

Our Mission To create prepared, confident citizens of the world who honor the values of Pace Academy and who will preserve the legacy of our school for future generations.

Pace Cares Are you aware of a member of our community who is experiencing an illness or loss or is blessed with a new arrival? Pace Cares would love to help by delivering a home-cooked meal prepared by our dedicated volunteer cooks. Please call the Pace Cares hotline at 404-926-3727. To contribute ideas for the KnightTimes, please email Caitlin Goodrich Jones at cjones@paceacademy.org.

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

22 GLOBAL ED Around the world in 80 days.

24 Classroom Entrepreneurs Creating a new generation of learners.

28 It takes a village Atlanta Tech Village and Pace partner to offer high-tech internship opportunities.

34 ALUMNI Where are they now?

Letter f rom the Head of S ch ool

Dear Pace Family, There’s never a dull moment on the Pace campus! Faculty, staff and students returned to school on Aug. 16 and hit the ground running. From football games and parent gatherings to class trips and college visits, everyone is busy, and the energy is exhilarating. I’m loving every minute! I’m happy to report that construction of The Arthur M. Blank Upper School is going incredibly well, particularly given Atlanta’s record rainfall this summer. I’m in awe of the work our team continues to put into the project as I watch the new building rise quickly from the ground. And I couldn’t be more proud of our Upper School students and faculty who have embraced the Academic Village and made it their own. Their adaptability, enthusiasm and innovative spirit speaks volumes about the kind of individuals we hope to shape here at Pace. It’s exciting to see those qualities encouraged through new programs like Design Think, the Pace Academy Social Entrepreneurship Initiative and our partnership with Atlanta Tech Village. And it’s even more exciting to hear from alumni like Tyler Prochnow ’84, Nick Zeckets ’98, Jon Birdsong ’03 and Emily Evert ’05, who have used the skills and values they developed at Pace to launch businesses of their own. We hope you’ll enjoy their stories. In this issue, we’ll also take a look back at our summer Global Education trips, learn more about our Verano Sin Límites camp for Latino/Hispanic students, and recognize the accomplishments of our students and faculty. Thank you for making Pace a creative and inspiring place to spend my day. It’s an exciting time to be a Pace Knight! Sincerely,

Fred Assaf Head of school

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

NEWS

What You Need to Know

NMSP Names Semifinalists The National Merit Scholarship Program (NMSP) is an academic competition among the more than 1.5 million high school students who take the PSAT each year. The Pace Class of 2014 includes nine National Merit Semifinalists, 10 National Merit Commended Scholars and two National Achievement Semifinalists. This year’s Semifinalists, the highest-scoring entrants in Georgia, are seniors Osei Avril, Morgan Brewton-Johnson, Kal Golde, Katie Lucke, Jaclyn Lund, John Morrison, Elle Stang, Sarah Sukin and Katie Williamson. They will advance in the competition for National Merit Scholarships. Avril and Brewton-Johnson also have been named National Achievement Semifinalists, a distinction that honors Black American students for academic success. National Merit and National Achievement Finalists will be announced in early 2014. In addition, NMSP awards Commended Scholar status to approximately 34,000 high scorers in recognition of their outstanding academic promise. This year’s Commended Scholars are seniors Sam Downey, Nathan England, Kelliann Haidet, Harrison Halberg, Anshuman Parikh, Jeremy Paul, Josh Rogers, Sam Rubenstein, Chris St. Paul and Michael Sloman.

Harrison Moncino, Two-Time All-American

Two-Time All-American Harrison Moncino dominates Georgia's high school diving scene.

The honors just don’t stop for diver Harrison Moncino. The National Interscholastic Swim Coaches Association again selected junior Moncino, the reigning state champion, as an All-American diver. Moncino is one of only 100 male divers in the country to receive this honor, and the only male diver from Georgia. Moncino also was named an All-American for the 2011–12 year.

Pace Cares When our families and staff are in need, Pace Cares. 6

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

NEWS

A New Leader in Advancement

In July, Heather White assumed leadership of Pace’s Advancement Office following nearly two years as a major gifts officer for the school. In her previous role, White was instrumental in the success of the $32-million Aim High campaign. As director of Advancement, White oversees all of Pace’s fundraising efforts, including capital campaigns, the $1-million Annual Fund and the Georgia Private School Tax Credit program. Prior to working at Pace, White served as senior director of development for CARE and executive director of the Learning Makes a Difference Foundation. She lived for a summer in Warsaw, Poland, consulting for the Center for the Development of Philanthropy. White also has worked as a campaign manager for Coxe Curry & Associates and is currently vice-chair of the Board at The Cathedral Preschool. She and her husband, Rod, have twin daughters, Harper and Jordan, who are both in the fourth grade at Pace. Her son, Alexander, attends The Cathedral Preschool.

Heather White (third from right) takes the reins of the Advancement Office. From left to right: Fran Asche, Elizabeth Glass, Debra Mann, Heather White, Courtney Lundeen and Kat Cooper

Cheerleaders W! I! N! This summer, our very own Pace cheerleading squad attended the Universal Cheerleaders Association (UCA) summer camp at the University of Central Florida in Orlando. Seniors Mackenzie Attridge and Symone Sommerville, juniors Jayla Ellis and Elizabeth Willis, sophomore Sydney Sommerville and freshman Cameron Russ were named All-Americans. The Sommerville sisters and senior Anna Luetters won pinit-forward pins for their exemplary skills, and Symone Sommerville was among five cheerleaders invited to try out to be a UCA staffer, the highest honor at the camp. The Pace team placed first overall and was commended for its spirit.

Coaches and cheerleaders pose during the Universal Cheerleaders Association summer camp.

Jordan Named to UGA’s 40 Under 40

Upper School debate coach Shuntá Jordan was recently named to the University of Georgia’s 40 Under 40 Class of 2013. The group includes prominent graduates who have made an impact in business, leadership, community, educational and/or philanthropic endeavors. Jordan received her bachelor’s degree and Masters of Education from UGA. Under her leadership, Pace debate teams consistently rank in the top 10 nationally. Last year, the team of senior Anshuman Parikh and Victor Skenderi ’13 won the National Debate Coaches Association National Championship tournament for the first time in Pace history.

Shuntá Jordan has cemented Pace as a powerhouse debate school.

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

NEWS

PACESETTERS

Honoring Students Who Set the Pace Outside of School

Track phenom Kenny Selmon specializes in the 400-meter hurdles.

Competing on the World Stage It’s not every summer that a Pace athlete represents the United States in an international competition, but in July, senior track star Kenny Selmon traveled to Donetsk, Ukraine to participate in the World Youth Trials. This was Selmon’s first international competition after having participated in national meets in North Carolina and Florida earlier this year. “It was extremely different competing internationally,” he says. “It really hit me when I walked into the warm-up area and I didn’t see the typical Lovett, Westminster or Flying Spikes teams… I saw Russia and Germany, Jamaica and China!” In this race, he ran the 400-meter hurdles and placed third in the world with a time of 51.30 seconds. “Running my race wasn’t very different because every track is 400 meters,” he says. “But wearing ‘USA’ on my chest was a great honor.” When asked how he prepares for his races, Selmon responds, “I do the exact same warm up before every race and eat a bowl of pasta the night before. I also pray.” He trains with Olympic Champion and coach Kim Batten. “I run because I love putting in hard work and seeing great results,” he says. Earlier in the summer, Selmon ran the 400-meter hurdles at the World Youth Track and Field Trials in Edwardsville, Ill., and placed second with a time of 50.90 seconds. He also participated in the New Balance Outdoor Nationals in Greensboro, N.C., running the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 51.82 seconds, and in the Golden South Invitational in Orlando, Fla., at which he placed first in the 110-meter hurdles. — by Michelle Yancich ’13

Hoke Faser, Revolutionary

Seventh-grader Hoke Faser (pictured left) recently won rave reviews for his portrayal of Gavroche, the young revolutionary, in the Aurora Theatre’s production of Les Misérables. The professional theatre extended the six-week run of the musical following a string of sold-out performances, which gave Faser a taste of life as an actor. But Faser wasn’t the only member of the Pace family to participate in the production. Technical Director and Performing Arts faculty member Scott Sargent served as the props designer for the show.

Hoke Faser sampled life as a thespian during the Aurora Theatre's production of Les Misérables.

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

NEWS

Simons Brothers Selected for All-Star Lacrosse Academy

This summer, freshmen lacrosse players Josh and Drew Simons were named Brine National All-Stars and selected to represent the region at the 2013 Brine National All-Star Lacrosse Academy and Brine National Lacrosse Classic. The event took place in Boyds, Md., June 30–July 3. It brought the top lacrosse players in the country to one venue, where regional teams were coached by NCAA lacrosse coaches and competed to become the 2013 National Champion.

A Bright Future in Business

Senior Mark DiMeglio received a full scholarship from Deloitte LLP to participate in the Terry Business Academy at the University of Georgia this summer. DiMeglio was among 30 finalists selected from a field of 350 candidates for the highly selective program for high school students who demonstrate exceptional academic and extracurricular achievement, as well as a strong interest in business and entrepreneurship. The Academy gives students an intensive preview of all major business areas, such as accounting, finance, marketing and economics, as well as opportunities for leadership and presentation. It also teaches outside-the-classroom skills such as networking and business etiquette. At the end of the program, DiMeglio received the Best AllAround Student Award.

Brothers Drew Simons (left) and Josh Simons (right) were named Brine National All-Stars over the summer.

Checkmates In June, the US Chess Federation’s magazine, Chess Life, published an article featuring Pace senior Jeremy Paul and Ryan Christianson ’13. The two have been playing bughouse chess as a team since 2004 and participated in their final tournament this summer at SuperNationals. Together, Paul and Christianson have acquired five national championships and many other top-five places.

A Snapping Sensation Every summer, two dozen of the best high school football snappers in the country convene in Los Angeles for the Top Twelve/Event Elite camp. This year, senior John Morrison was among the snappers selected to participate. The three-day camp included intense training, competition and fun.

Mark DiMeglio receives Best All-Around Student award from Randy S. Groomes, UGA Director of Diversity Relations.

John Morrison with instructor Chris Sailor.

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

AROUND PACE

A Look at What's Happening at Pace

Fun Facts 283 tons of structural steel will be required for the building’s structure, equal in weight to 56 fullgrown African elephants.

24 inches of rain fell between April 24 and

Sept. 12, 2013, compared to 10.03 inches the previous year.

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

The Upper School is Going… Well, Up! In the short (and wet!) six months since construction of The Arthur M. Blank Family Upper School began, a tremendous amount of work has been accomplished. Construction officially started on April 24, 2013 behind Head of School Fred Assaf’s home, where the new faculty parking lot has been installed. While not obvious to the casual observer, this is no ordinary parking lot. It conceals two massive underground structures that, due to the project’s early start, were installed prior to the monsoon-type weather that Atlanta experienced over the majority of the summer months. The two underground structures will hold a combined 100,000 gallons of water and are up to 11.5-feet deep—think of an underground swimming pool! One structure was required for storm water treatment and control. A different structure will act as the fire protection system storage vault for the new Upper School and Inman Center. As soon as the demolition of Bridges Hall was completed, the construction team started on the significant excavation that would eventually extend more than 20 feet below the foundation of the Castle, a challenge that required a significant amount of engineered shoring to make sure that the Castle remained where it has stood for more than 80 years. If you had a chance to drive by the campus this summer, it was an impressive sight to see. University Development Services, the project manager for the new Upper School, is proud to report that there has been no movement or disturbance to the Castle. Now that all of the foundation walls are in place and the slabon-grade has been poured, the project is substantially out of the “mud-business.” Because crews are now working off of a hard surface, visible work progress will accelerate. In September, tall columns were installed that extend up all four floors of the building and are more than 55 feet tall. To give some perspective, the tallest point on the building will be 68 feet—13 feet higher than the current top of steel. By the end of November 2013, steel framing will have been installed through the third floor, and the building frame should be complete in early January. The exterior skin will start in mid-October on the lower level by the Fine Arts Center and will progress up the hill as the remainder of the steel is completed. Installation of interior mechanical and electrical systems will commence in mid-October, quickly following the completion of the building’s structure. Even with all of the challenges experienced this summer, the project is tracking on schedule and within budget. — by Pace Parent Bob Mills President, University Development Services

AROUND PACE

Professional Development: Summer Reading for Teachers This summer, a number of Pace faculty members participated in professional development opportunities. From conferences and courses to travel abroad, these activities help further teachers’ skills and knowledge in their areas of expertise. Middle School Spanish teacher Holly JimÉnez attended the Every Teacher Every Learner conference at Woodward Academy in June. The conference focused on how to educate 21st-century learners in a world language classroom. “I’ve been researching the best uses for incorporating technology in my classroom, and this conference gave me some great ideas,” Jiménez says. “We should not be prohibiting this generation from having access to their devices in class, but instead [we should] look for appropriate uses for them.” Middle School art teacher Jane Sibley took a two-week clay-working course at the Penland School in Penland, N.C. The class focused on “both hand-building and wheel work,” she says, and allowed participants to utilize 24-hour studios for anything from painting to glass and woodworking. “Half of the class members were art teachers,” Sibley says, and therefore a large portion of the course was dedicated to “low-fire work that can be incorporated into school art projects.” She reports that the experience was “amazing” and wishes she could keep the Pace art room open round the clock! Upper School AP European History and AP Comparative Politics teacher Helen Smith spent a week in Kansas City, Mo., grading AP Comparative Politics exams at the Kansas City Convention Center. As part of the grading process, each teacher is assigned one question (Smith was assigned one regarding economic liberalization) and is trained to grade said question. Smith worked with two other high school teachers and six college professors, which allowed her to discuss teaching techniques with her colleagues. “I found the entire experience fascinating,” she says. Each day of grading lasted from 8 a.m. until 5:30 p.m., with one hour for lunch and two 15-minute breaks. Smith estimates that she graded between 2,000 and 3,000 exams. Despite the packed schedule, Smith still managed to explore the city’s gorgeous neighborhoods and great restaurants. AP Art History teacher Jenni Ridall Coale '05 attended Connecting Collections, a five-day workshop in New York City. The course focused on incorporating art into the classroom and honing teaching methods, particularly inquiry-based teaching. The Museum of Modern Art hosted the workshop, with additional contributions from the Guggenheim, Met and Whitney Museums. Each day, participants visited a different museum, split into small groups and discussed various works of art. At the end of the week, each participant assembled a lesson plan; Coale’s focused on “the human figure in art, using increasingly abstract pieces” as examples. Coale says the workshop allowed for very “behindthe-scenes” looks at the museums; the group saw a few currently closed permanent exhibits at the Guggenheim and visited the Whitney on a day it was closed to the public. AP Art History teacher Jenni Coale attended the Connecting Collections workshop in New York City.

Friday Fun Days Sometimes it’s hard being the middle child—and the middle grade in the Middle School. So, this year, the seventh-grade teaching team has implemented First Fridays, a new tradition that will allow students in the seventh grade to “do something out of the ordinary,” says teacher Eden Tresize. Students will get out of the classroom, bond with their peers and create lasting memories. The tradition kicked off with a white-water rafting trip on Aug. 16, the first Friday of the new school year. Students traveled to the Nantahala River and, despite soggy conditions in Atlanta, enjoyed a rain-free day in the Smoky Mountains. “Our trip was great!” Tresize reports. “We all had a wonderful time rafting down the Nantahala, despite the 48degree river water.” Future First Friday activities will include service projects and on-campus picnics.

Sixth Grade Solidifies at Camp Every year, new students make up nearly one third of the sixth-grade class. To ease the transition to Middle School and bring the students together as a class, Lisa Dubovy and the sixth-grade team organize an annual trip to YMCA Camp High Harbour. From Aug. 21–23, students stayed in lakefront cabins and enjoyed water activities on Lake Burton, ropes courses, team building and delicious camp food. Students returned to campus exhausted and excited for the new school year.

— by Michelle Yancich ’13

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

AROUND PACE

2013–14 Parent Organization Officers Parents Club President: Anne LaMastra Vice President: Lori Movsovitz-Edlin Secretary: Donna Pottorff Treasurer: Stephanie Luetters Fall Fair Chairs: Allyson Maske and Cathy Funston Auction Chairs: Michele Boushka, Jessica Levenson and Leigh Walsh

Arts Alliance Co-Presidents: Joanna Hurley and Kim Thomson Secretary: Alison Sample Treasurer: Lynn Lund

Booster Club Presidents: Angela and Bill Selmon Vice Presidents: Kathy and David Rubenstein Treasurer: Keith Payne Secretary: Joanne Brown Booster Bash Chair: Cindy Jacoby Fall Sports Festival Chair: Tom Bethel Pace Race Chairs: Heather Litvak and Hilary Silverboard

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

Keeping Pace Returns In 2006, Pace began offering Keeping Pace, an academic summer program for the youth of Atlanta’s Peoplestown neighborhood and its surrounding communities. “Our mission is to provide an enriching, fun and stimulating program for middle-school students to meet their needs because they’re too old for camp and too young to work,” says Keeping Pace Director Martha Downer-Assaf. To facilitate the program, Pace partnered with Youth on the Move, an organization that provides academic support, leadership training, career and life planning and cultural opportunities to youth in Peoplestown, and with Raising Expectations, a similar program in the Vine City community. Rising sixth, seventh and eighth graders participated in an interview process to become Pace Scholars at the four-week camp, and 20 were selected. To create stimulating and interesting programing, the Keeping Pace team utilized many of the resources available on the Pace campus and introduced two new areas of study: sports psychology and the history of Atlanta. The new courses were multi-faceted, focused on writing, and were supported by field trips to the Atlanta History Center and the Tellus Science Museum. Keeping Pace students also participated in science and nutrition classes, math tutorials, swimming, pottery, book club and art. The program concluded with a celebration for the Scholars and their families, Keeping Pace staff and volunteers, and community members affiliated with the program’s partner organizations. “It was a wonderful time to look back on the success of the program this year and over the past seven years,” Downer-Assaf says. “We also remembered in a special way two original Keeping Pace students who passed away tragically years later.” Downer-Assaf credits the participating Pace faculty and students for this summer’s success. Faculty members involved included Mark Knott, Regina Tate, Matt Hall, Donice Bloodworth and Greg Lefever. Returning counselors were Jack Assaf ’13, and seniors Denzel Franklin and Shabrea Duffy. Duffy and Glendrevious Harris ’12 matriculated to Pace after their experiences at Keeping Pace. “Ultimately, Keeping Pace is successful because of the work and effort put forth by countless volunteers,” says Downer-Assaf. “Pace students volunteered more than 600 hours. Without them, Keeping Pace would not have been the tremendous success that it was. Next summer, follow Keeping Pace on Facebook!”

AROUND PACE

A Day of Firsts Wednesday, Aug. 14 was more than a little bit muggy, but the humidity and chance of rain did nothing to dampen the spirits of Pace faculty and students as they arrived on campus for the first day of school. True to form, Head of Lower School Anna Valerius greeted every student at the Randall House front door with a handshake or a hug. John Anderson, Head of Middle School, opened doors in the carpool line and welcomed Middle School students to â&#x20AC;&#x153;a great day to learn.â&#x20AC;? Head of Upper School Mike Gannon joined the raucous senior class on stage as the Upper School kicked off the school year in the Fine Arts Center, and Head of School Fred Assaf was everywhere all day long, camera in hand. The day marked the official beginning of Pace careers for 133 new students and 14 new faculty and staff members, and the fanfare and festivities made it a great way to kick off the new year.

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

AROUND PACE

Students Move into the Academic Village Construction of The Arthur M. Blank Family Upper School is progressing at remarkable speed, and as the new building goes up, Upper School students and faculty are getting used to life in their home for the year. By all accounts, the Academic Village, a temporary facility constructed on Pace’s rear practice fields, has been a huge hit—and a marked step up from the old Upper School. Teachers love their larger classrooms (they all have windows!), and students have wasted no time in enjoying the quad created by the new facility. It’s not unusual to find barefoot students tossing Frisbees in the grass or lounging in the Adirondack chairs provided by the Parents Club. The success of the new space has everyone wondering what history teacher Helen Smith so articulately expressed: “Why didn’t we do this 10 years ago?!”

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

AROUND PACE

The football cheerleaders celebrate the beginning of the fall athletic season at the Fall Sports Festival.

Fall Sports Festival, A Pace Family Affair

Left to right: Kendall Kirkman, Kate Trimble, Whit FitzGerald, Jack Rubenstein, DeAndre Byrd and Ceci Conrad on the ninth-grade retreat.

Freshmen Fun at Camp Skyline In early August, the ninth grade gathered at Camp Skyline in Mentone, Ala., for two days of team building, ropes courses and fun with this year’s senior peer leaders. Short periods of rain did not dampen the spirits of the freshmen, who made the most of it by starting an impromptu dance party and playing indoor games. The retreat offered time to reunite with old friends, meet new ones and face challenges with the support of classmates. By all accounts, it was a successful weekend and an auspicious beginning to the students’ high school experience.

Summer Programs Roll with the Flow

Morgan BrewtonJohnson with a camper.

The programming that took place on the Pace campus this summer was a great success! Pace Summer Programs offered 18 different camps in the months of June and July. Pace Camp served children from all over the Atlanta area and hired more than 60 Pace students and faculty to work during their summer breaks. Other camps included a cooking camp, Theatre Camp, Danger Camp, and basketball and volleyball camps. Pace was a very busy place this summer even amidst the construction and rain. The Summer Programs team would like to thank the Pace Facilities team; “We simply could not operate without them,” says Beth Singleton, director of Summer Programs. “We are already busy planning for the upcoming summer with new and exciting programs. Please contact the Summer Programs office to learn more!”

The Booster Club kicked off the fall athletic season at its annual Fall Sports Festival on Friday, Aug. 16. Pace families from all divisions came out to Riverview Road Athletic Complex in droves to cheer on the Knights as the team scrimmaged the Wesleyan Wolves. Before the game, the Booster Club recognized all fall varsity athletes as families enjoyed dinner from a variety of food trucks and activities for all ages, including the always-popular dunk tank. The event, chaired by Pace parent Tom Bethel, was capped off with a big win for the home team; the Knights defeated Wesleyan 37–0.

The Fall Sports Festival by the Numbers 1 dunk tank 2 volleyball nets 3 Falcons cheerleaders 5 Pace fall teams recognized 9 faculty and staff members dunked 100 Chick-fil-A sandwiches sold 120 tacos consumed 150 hot dogs devoured 180 Panini’s pressed 240 cheesesteaks chomped 500 cupcakes demolished

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

AROUND PACE

Spotlight on Reid Funston, 2013–14 Annual Fund Chair As the parents of four Pace students, there’s no doubt that Reid and Cathy Funston are pleased with their school choice. The family moved to Atlanta from Boston in 2000, when Funston and his business partner, former Pace parent Ted Davies, helped start Reicon Capital, a private asset management firm. When the Funstons later considered schools for their oldest son, Reid ’16, Pace quickly moved to the front of the pack. “What really stood out to us was Pace’s diverse community and the manner in which it seemed to celebrate all of its students’ successes and interests, whether academic, athletic or artistic,” Funston says. “With four kids with very divergent interests spanning debate, tennis, cross country, music and various academics, the diversity was very appealing. In addition, we consistently came in contact with Pace families whose stories confirmed our initial impressions that Pace could be a good fit for all of our children. On so many levels, Pace was at the top of the list.” In the end, it was a family decision: “We just fell in love with Pace.” Since then, Will ’19, Sidney ’21 and Grace ’21 have joined Reid at Pace. “We’ve been thrilled,” Funston says. So thrilled, in fact, that he and Cathy have thrown themselves into the life of the school. They served as Middle School division co-chairs for the Aim High campaign, Cathy co-chaired the 50th annual Pace Fall Fair, and Funston has volunteered to lead this year’s Annual Fund. For the Funstons, philanthropy is strategic: “Cathy and I try to focus our efforts where we feel we can have the biggest impact personally, professionally and financially,” Funston says. Right now, Pace fits the bill. “I don’t think there’s a building at Pace—or at any other college or independent school for that matter—that has been built with tuition dollars,” he explains when talking about the success of Aim High. “Cathy and I really do believe that we as parents have to give back to make those ‘extras’ possible. We feel it’s our responsibility to try and be as forthcoming and as generous as those that came before us, and from whose generosity and efforts we’ve benefitted. Clearly that sentiment seems to have been echoed in the parents’ and Pace community’s huge support of Aim High.”

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

But Funston feels that that generosity should extend beyond capital campaigns. “While I’m sensitive to moving on to the Annual Fund on the heels of a very recent and successful Aim High campaign, the Annual Fund fills another need, providing important support for programming not met by tuition,” he says. “It doesn’t go to fund an endowment, it goes directly toward our outstanding programs at Pace. If we don’t meet that Annual Fund goal, programming for our kids suffers.” Consequently, Funston and the Advancement Office have lofty goals for this year’s Annual Fund. “In addition to exceeding our fundraising goal of $1,000,000, we’d love to achieve 100-percent parent participation and have every family give at a personally meaningful level,” he says. “While we certainly have a dollar goal, I’m less concerned about what a family gives than I am that they do give. We’re too small and intimate a community for every Pace family not to participate. Every dollar is important, and I think that if we all give what we can, the total will take care of itself.” He speaks from experience. A graduate of Sewanee, the University of the South and, with Cathy, the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business, Funston has been actively involved in campaigns for both institutions, most recently as a co-chair of Chicago’s annual fund. However, he’s particularly excited about this Pace campaign and is exceedingly confident in the generosity of the school community. “My experience at other institutions has been that it can be difficult sometimes to convey a compelling enough message to prompt people to give, particularly in the absence of something concrete like a new Upper School,” he says. “Here at Pace though, many already understand the message around the Annual Fund, and the process is frankly more supported and enjoyable. I’ve found that Pace parents are happy to give because they’re so pleased with the school, its mission and their overall experience. We’re just very happy to be a part of this place.”

AROUND PACE

Welcome to Pace! We’d like to welcome the following new families to Pace Academy! Pre-First

Julia Fransen

Ford Jordan

Katy and Robert Fransen

Susie and Chuck Jordan

Madelyn Adams

Sydney Gaither

Wade Keller

Lesli and Ronald Gaither

Mary and Michael Keller

Zaki George

Kate Leach

Lubna Javaid and Binu George

Kiersten and Chris Leach

Quinn Gerry

Rory Lee

Kathryn and Seth Adams

Angelika Avdyeyeva Ella and Slava Avdyeyev

Matthew Bramwell Anna and Jeremy Bramwell

Cash Brooks Lisa and Dan Brooks

Bethany Chern Ailene Kim and Joshua Chern

Mia Chung Sandra and Alex Chung

Gibson Cronje Eve and Adrian Cronje

Raina Desai Angela and Ketan Desai

Katie Durant

Chris Durant ’87 Janice Durant

Roan Dutta Kara and Anand Dutta

Noah Eisenman Jenifer and Brian Eisenman

Jack Ellner Stefanie and Jim Ellner

Grayson Fess Kimberly and Joseph Fess

Virginia Foster Jennifer and David Foster

Anne and Chip Gerry

Cara Isdell Lee ’97 and Zak Lee

Thomas Gillis

Jolie Litvak

Leigh Ann and Jordan Gillis ’92

Will Grabowski

Kiery Braithwaite ’90 and Matt Grabowski

Audrey Graham

Heather and Andy Litvak

Arnav Maddineni Manogna and Sreedhar Maddineni

Alston Mallis Laurie and Hampton Mallis

Mary Feldman and Nathan Graham

Rebecca McCloskey

Parkey and Dan Haggman

Heather Patrick McCloskey ’89 and Mike McCloskey

Iliyan Hajiani

Britton McGurn

Jake Haggman

Shehla and Amin Hajiani

Jen McGurn and Darren McGurn

Dominic Hantula

Ryan McMurtry

Lee Ann and Doug Hantula

Randall Kilpatrick and Rick McMurtry

John Hardesty

Lawson Monroe

Jane and Derek Hardesty

Carter and Bill Monroe

Alexandra Harris

Grayson Murray

Lauren and Brian Harris

Portia Grayson and Winfield Murray

Ethan Holmes

Lillie Neidlinger

Mary and Ed Holmes

Colie and Brince Neidlinger

Reese Honeycutt

Dylan Nelson

Paige and Charles Honeycutt

Stephanie and Mitch Nelson

Hannah Hughes

Grace O’Bryan

Stacy and Jon Hughes

Andi and Doug O’Bryan

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

AROUND PACE

Jiya Patel

Second Grade

Virginia Heiser

Ritu Bath and Biranj Patel

Owen Rice

Ferris Flint

Lenox Herman

Natasha and Richard Rice

Heather and Eli Flint

Doyle Rona

Josh Litvak

Ginger Fay and Ken Rona

Heather and Andy Litvak

Evan Secor

Third Grade

Amy Secor and Scott Secor

Anna Kate Shelton Mindi and Pete Shelton

Olivia Siskin Wendy and Jonathan Siskin

Matthew Skop Lara Watkins and Mike Skop

Maddie Snyder Amy and Paul Snyder

Bauer Thomas

DeAnna and Drew Thomas ’97

Campbell Thomas Andrea and Lanier Thomas

Jon Soren UyHam Kirsten and John UyHam

Eric Wilhelmsen Spencer Wilhelmsen Krista Wilhelmsen and Jason Wilhelmsen

Brock Gramann Margaret and Todd Gramann

Sara Mazur Kim and Greg Mazur

Emma Beth Neville Kimberly and Jon Neville

Benjamin Schrager Lauren and Tim Schrager

Fourth Grade Will Aronson

Brooks and Craig Heiser

Sherri Kimmell and Wesley Herman

Maya Kaplan Ellen and Brad Kaplan

Austin Kelly Catharine and Jackson Kelly

Sophie Lettes Amy and Louis Lettes

George Lyon Elizabeth and Scott Lyon

Meghan McMillin Tricia and Andy McMillin

Andrew Miller Lorraine and George Miller

Andrew Neville Kimberly and Jon Neville

Wendy and Neal Aronson

Lauren O’Sullivan

Fifth Grade

Alex Phillips

Peyton Smith Shanna and Brian Smith

Oliver Whitney Christina and Andrew Whitney

Allison and Mike O’Sullivan

Natasha and Jon Phillips

Matthew Quintana Bea Perez and Ken Quintana

Will Rehmert Maria and Jason Rehmert

Ava Wimbush Tracy Wimbush

Sixth Grade

Ashley York

Klara Andra-Thomas

Amber and Chris York

First Grade

Sigrun Andradottir and Robin Thomas

Madison Edwards Meridith and David Edwards

Beatrix Boehner

Jackson Gray

Kirsten and Ken Boehner

Sarah and Bill Gray

Alex Wong

Sam Harris

Lisa and Tony Wong

Patty and Joe Harris

Blaise Reyes Amy and Ivan Reyes

Hayden Sample Alison and Greg Sample

Max Schiffer Maria and Rodney Schiffer

Emma Shelton Mindi and Pete Shelton

Will Stratton

Claire Stratton and William Stratton

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

AROUND PACE

Rachel Wray

Emma Downey

Stephen Walker

Nancy Gibson and Dan Downey

Tara Walker

Seventh Grade

Landon Goldstein

Sandy Xie

Jody and Cary Goldstein

Ying Xie

Jill Rawls

Thomas Hoover

Sophie Zelony

Jennifer and Steve Wray ’88

Dana and Jim Rawls

Logan Snead Liz Snead Les Snead

Will Zook Frances and Jim Zook

Eighth Grade Caleb Holifield Rick Holifield Carla Johnson

Ethan Much Karen and Andy Much

Hannah Schrager Lauren and Tim Schrager

Ninth Grade Misha Andra-Thomas Sigrun Andradottir and Robin Thomas

Parker Berman Sharon Bauer Joe Berman

Sophie Blasberg

Dee and Tom Hoover ’86

Deon Jackson Tiffani Smith Deon Jackson

Katie Jordan Michelle and Matt Jordan

Tenth Grade Callaway Chase Natalie and George Chase

Nicholas Kratz

Gabriela Ortiz and Ramiro Juarez

Laurie Kratz and William Davis Tim Kratz

Kendall Kirkman

Wallis Ohlhausen

Ramiro Juarez

Rosanne and Scott Kirkman

Emily Kurzweil Debbie and David Kurzweil

Sari Leven Michelle and Rob Leven

Katherine Brown Ohlhausen ’84 and Eric Ohlhausen

Malik Staples Joyce Staples

Anthony Trinh Tuyet Nguyen and Vu Trinh

Willie Lieberman Elizabeth and Matt Lieberman April Lieberman

Jordan Payne Cynthia and Ralph Payne

Ashley Raymer Brenda and Ken Raymer

Cameron Russ

Brooke and Bob Blasberg

Sonja and Ricky Russ

Summer Brown

Jibril Sadiq

Susanne Brown

Debra and Hamza Sadiq

DeAndre Byrd

Laura Shelton

Dionne Byrd James Byrd

Karen and Allen Shelton

Ceci Conrad

Lisa and Michael Siegel

Ann Douthitt Conrad ’84 and Neil Conrad ’84

Lori and Sam Zelony

Eleventh Grade Cassady Greene Kim and Ted Greene

Elijah Holifield Rick Holifield Carla Johnson

Chase Uter Viva Lowe-Wilson Lee-Anda and Everton Uter

Ben Siegel Andrew Thomas Belinda and Andre Thomas

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

VERANO SIN LĺMITES

A Truly Limitless Summer Verano Sin Límites provides a completely original day-camp experience for Latino/Hispanic students. In late 2011, Pace Academy received a grant from the Goizueta Foundation to establish the Pace Academy Latino/Hispanic Initiative with the goal of increasing the admission, retention and graduation efforts of Latino/Hispanic students at Pace. Since then, the three-year, $435,000 grant has been used to fund a diversity coordinator in each division, provide need-based financial aid for qualified Latino/Hispanic students, support Latino/Hispanic families in the Pace community and encourage Latino/Hispanic participation in programs like Global Education, the Academic Resource Center and College Counseling. As part of its outreach efforts, Pace also works with the Brookhaven Boys & Girls Club of Metro Atlanta and LaAmistad to coordinate a summer camp for Latino/Hispanic middle school students. Last year, Verano Sin Límites (translated Summer Without Limits) welcomed 13 children to campus for the inaugural summer experience. This summer, participation nearly doubled under the leadership of Upper School Spanish teacher and Diversity Coordinator Laura AgrontHobbs. Twenty-four students took part in two two-week camp experiences, many of them for the second year in a row.

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

Agront-Hobbs began planning this year’s camp nearly a year in advance. Her goal was to show the Verano Sin Límites participants that there is more than one way to learn. “We wanted to expose our campers to activities and classes that they wouldn’t normally have,” she says. “I want the kids to say, ‘Wow, I can learn without a book.’” So she and fellow Diversity Coordinator Holly JimÉnez recruited a team of Pace teachers who could facilitate practical learning experiences. Upper School Visual Arts teachers Mark Knott and France Dorman taught ceramics and sculpture; Jiménez introduced students to robotics; Upper School Science Department Chair Jonathan Day, Middle School Science teacher Emily Camp and fifth-grade teacher Greg Lefever provided hands-on activities outside and in the science lab; Agront-Hobbs taught a Spanish culture course; and Upper School Strength and Conditioning Coach Clement Rouviere put students to work in the gym. Agront-Hobbs and Jiménez also hired Haley Lowrey ’13, seniors Nathan Sokolic and William Rushton and junior Carolina Abdullah as counselors. Counselors were required to commit to both two-week sessions, and campers’ families had to ensure that their children would attend the full session as well. “I really wanted parents to buy into the program,” says Agront-Hobbs. “I knew we’d have to have parent support to be successful with the kids.”

VERANO SIN LĺMITES

In addition to on-campus activities, the Verano Sin Límites team coordinated field trips to Lake Lanier and the Tellus Science Museum in Cartersville, Ga. The result of Agront-Hobbs’ meticulous planning was a dynamic learning experience that won rave reviews from the campers, their parents and Pace’s partner organizations. “I was overwhelmed and impressed with the program,” says Angharad Chester-Jones, program director for LaAmistad. “The students came home every evening with challenging assignments that they were eager to complete. At the end of the summer, I couldn’t get over how proud they were of all their work in science, art, math—and even exercise and nutrition! We are so thankful that [the members of the Verano Sin Límites team] dedicated their time and resources to these students, who don’t often have the opportunity to learn in an environment so rich and positive!” Samantha Pinzon, club administrator of the Brookhaven Boys & Girls Club of Metro Atlanta, agrees. “Verano Sin Límites opened doors for our kids to explore, discover and have fun,” she says. “They always went to camp with a smile and excitement in their eyes. They even enjoyed the readings they had to do! I loved sending them, and I know they loved participating.” Alan Reyes, a student at Chamblee Middle School, and Luis Rivera, who attends Sequoyah Middle School, returned to Verano Sin Límites this summer for a second year. They came back, they say, “because it’s really fun.” “They taught me how to swim last year—and how to belly flop,” says Reyes. “I’m swimming again this year and getting better at backstroke. I’m also getting better at math.” The boys list robotics, field trips and Rouviere’s fitness course as some of their favorite activities. “Clement kills us,” Rivera says. “We do push ups and sit ups and lift weights. I was so sore. It hurts, but you’ve got to survive the pain.” Rivera also credits the counselors for his positive camp experience. “Nathan [Sokolic] has been really fun to get to know this summer,” he says. “And William [Rushton] helped me when I got braces. He had them and knew what to do and what to eat.” The only downside to the program? The boys say it’s too short. “I was sad it was only two weeks,” says Reyes. Rivera agrees: “We’d do it again. Especially if it lasted for two months.” Clearly, Agront-Hobbs and the Verano Sin Límites team succeeded in making learning fun for their campers, but, ultimately, the program’s long-term goal is to increase Pace’s Latino/Hispanic enrollment. “Our job is to identify kids who would be a good fit at Pace, and then to help them though the application process,” Agront-Hobbs says. “The kids we have participating in Verano Sin Límites are very good, very smart kids. We hope many of them end up at Pace.” •

Thank You! We raised $659,000 from your contributions to the Georgia Private School Tax Credit! This money will allow qualified students to benefit from a Pace Academy education through graduation. When taxes are reimbursed, you will receive a dollar-for-dollar tax return. PLEASE NOTE:

There will be changes for 2014: Next year's $58-million cap will be met by April 1, 2014. LLCs and S-Corps will be able to redirect up to $10,000. Forms will be sent to previous donors in October. For more information, contact the Advancement Office at 404-240-9103 or advancement@paceacademy.org.

www.paceacademy.org/taxcredit KnightTimes | Fall 2013

GLOBAL ED

Around the World in 80 Days A look at the 2013 summer Global Education study tours Upper School students and faculty members took advantage of summer vacation, headed to Hartsfield-Jackson Airport and saw the world on four Global Education study tours. The Global Education program once again offered the popular Cambridge trip and introduced three new trips: to Russia, Spain and Italy.

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

Top row (left to right): Students in Russia; Roman ruins in Italy; The croquet champions of the Cambridge trip Middle row (left to right): Russia trip participants; Students pose for a picture above the city of Florence, Italy; The entire Cambridge group with some distinguished individuals from Cambridge University Bottom row (left to right): Spain trip participants; Seniors Shabrea Duffy and Jayla Ellis in front of the Roman Colosseum

GLOBAL ED

Russia (May 25 – June 6)

Italy (June 23 – July 2)

The school year ended on May 24, and the next day, teachers Helen Smith and Scott Sargent along with seven students boarded a plane bound for Russia. The trip began in Moscow, where the group toured Red Square and St. Basil’s Cathedral and visited GUM, the state department store during Soviet times. Other destinations during the students’ time in Moscow included the Tretyakov Gallery, the Museum of Contemporary History, the Gulag Museum, the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, the Catherine Palace and, of course, the famous Kremlin. At the State Hermitage Museum, students searched for and presented their favorite work of art to the group. Then it was on to Saint Petersburg. The group traveled via overnight train to reach Peter the Great’s “window to the west.” They visited St. Isaac’s Cathedral, the Peter and Paul Fortress, Yusupov Palace, the Blockade Museum and the Piskariovskoye Memorial. Between sightseeing, a hydrofoil trip on the Moyka River and a walking tour of Palace Square, students managed to squeeze in time for shopping for souvenirs at the Izmailovsky Market. Participants were Aaron Davis, Austin Little, Joe Loughran, Patrick Moore, Dean Papastrat, William Sadlo and Emilia Tripodi.

In late June and early July, eight students travelled to Italy with Upper School visual arts teacher Donice Bloodworth, Upper School Latin teacher Elizabeth Kann and Director of Communications Caitlin Goodrich Jones '00. The trip included stops in Milan, Florence and Rome, as well as shorter trips to the Vatican and Ostia Antica. In Milan, the group visited the Duomo and the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele. The next day, they travelled to Florence via bus, where they toured the Uffizi Museum, Pitti Palace and Dal Giglio al David, which houses Michelangelo’s most famous sculpture. On the way to Rome, they stopped in Ostia Antica, Ancient Rome’s port city. Ostia is the home of many ruins, including old restaurants, temples, apartments and a well-preserved amphitheater. The final destination was Rome, where the group spent four days. Over the course of their stay, students toured the Vatican, the Baths of Caracalla, the Colosseum, the Forum and the Borghese Gardens. They also visited the Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps, Pantheon and Ara Pacis, did lots of shopping and ate their weight in gelato. On the last full day in Rome, the group had a run-in with a pickpocket on the subway, and junior Alex Johnson’s phone disappeared! She took it in stride, and the students headed to a restaurant to celebrate junior Olivia O’Connell’s 16th birthday. Trip participants included Johnson and O’Connell, junior Jayla Ellis, and seniors Symone Sommerville, Shabrea Duffy, Marc Bernstein, Jake Pokalsky and Hunter Cesinger.

Spain (June 8 –18) In June, 15 Upper School students, accompanied by Upper School Spanish teacher Allison Riley and Lower School Spanish teacher Lynn Bazzel, traveled to Spain to visit Granada, Sevilla, Cordoba and Madrid. The all-girl group’s first stop was Granada, where students took a cooking class, attended a soccer game and visited the Alhambra palace. They learned about the “history and culture of the south of Spain … a fairly ‘mixed’ culture with Jews, Muslims and Christians living side by side,” Riley says. From Granada, they took two daytrips to Sevilla and Cordoba, where they visited the Cathedral Mosque, “a great example of Arab architecture.” Next, they traveled to Madrid, where they visited the Museum of the Reina Sofia (a contemporary art museum), the Prado Museum (filled with pre-20th-century art), the Rastro market and the Royal Palace, among other sites. The study tour was a complete immersion experience. Students stayed with host families who spoke no English, and the girls had to manage the majority of the trip completely in Spanish. Spanishspeaking tour guides led some portions of the trip as well. The participating students were: Morgan Baker, Cater Carlton, Jessica Cooper, Erica Kahn, Arielle Levin, Natalie Marcrum, Katie Nelson, Natalie Novellas, Stephanie Novellas, Corinne Orr, Morgan Palmerton, Sarah Smith, Lauren Sullivan and Jules Zappone. “The trip to Spain was a great experience,” Riley says. “I hope to take a group again in 2015!”

Cambridge (July 21– 27) For several years, Pace has been privileged to take part in the Society of International Business Fellows summer program at Cambridge University. This summer, History Department Chair Tim Hornor and Pace parents Lisa and Nick Hoffman once again crossed the pond with a group of students to participate in the Money & Responsibility program at the prestigious institution. While at Cambridge, students attended classes that covered a wide range of financial topics and were taught by Cambridge professors. Courses included Credit Cards and Debt: Using Them Wisely; Budgets, Taxes and Inflation; Why Should the Arts (and other things) Matter; and When Bad Things Happen to Good Money. Between lectures, students punted the River Cam, dined in Clare College’s Great Hall took in a production of Shakespeare’s Comedy of Errors. They also visited the Fitzwilliam Museum and had free time to explore the surrounding area and its various eateries. Kelly Brown, Kal Golde, Amelia Hess, David Martos, James O’Brien, Michael O’Brien, Will Rucker and Nathan Sokolic participated in the study tour. • — with contributions from Michelle Yancich ’13

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

CLASSROOM ENTREPRENEURS

Classroom Entrepreneurs: Creating a New Generation of Learners Design Think and the Social Entrepreneurship Challenge prepare students for real-life challenges. There’s always been something about a Pace education that creates risk-takers, freethinkers and entrepreneurs. And, since its inception, Pace has instilled in its students a sense of social and ethical responsibility through the service learning and character education programs. This year, these defining characteristics of the Pace experience have coalesced with the introduction of Design Think in the Lower School and the Pace Academy Social Entrepreneurship Initiative in the Upper School. The two programs combine empathy and compassion with creativity and innovation to create an atypical learning environment, one that empowers students to get out of the classroom and solve real-world problems.

Changing the Way Lower School Students Learn Lower School Resource teacher Jasmina Patel’s classroom has no desks, which is rare in an elementary school. Instead, students work collaboratively at large tables and have at their disposal a wall

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

of whiteboards, dry-erase markers and a “Prototyping Center” where pipe cleaners, golf tees, paper towel rolls, yarn and feathers, boxes big and small and a multitude of other materials are up for grabs. Signs around the room encourage students to “Imagine” and “Never, Never, Never Give Up.” It’s all part of the Lower School’s Innovation and Design Thinking class, a program that launched this year for students in the fourth and fifth grades. It’s based on IDEO founder David Kelley’s concept of Design Think, a human-centered, team-based approach to tackling sticky problems. When applied to education, Design Think requires that students use empathy to identify and address issues on their own. Put simply, it’s a framework for creative problem solving. “What’s exciting about Design Think is that it puts the student in the driver’s seat,” says Patel. “It’s about learning through doing and allowing students to pursue their own ideas at age-appropriate levels. It’s 21st-century learning.” Here’s how it works: Students are presented with a “Challenge Card” with a phrase like: “Imagine a way to carry groceries up a flight of stairs,” or, “Imagine a

CLASSROOM ENTREPRENEURS

way to protect someone from the rain.” Working in small groups, they ask open-ended questions—“What if… ?” and “How might we… ?”—to evoke a story or need related to the situation on the card. Then they take action, and brainstorming ensues. During this period of “radical collaboration,” students must follow a set of rules: • One conversation at a time • Go for quantity of ideas • Headline! • Build on the ideas of others • Encourage wild ideas • Be visual • Stay on topic • Defer judgment As potentially successful ideas emerge, students create prototypes to determine what will and won’t work. It’s a “fail early, learn often” mentality. A show and tell of sorts follows during which students communicate their ideas and explain their prototype to classmates using sketches, three-dimensional models, a story, skit or a combination of these elements. Students cycle through the process to achieve a workable solution, repeating steps as necessary. For example, when imagining a way to carry groceries up a flight of stairs, fifth-graders Sophia Ellis, Mary Childs Hall, Helena Harris and Sam Selig put themselves in the shoes of an individual who physically could not lift a heavy grocery bag. They asked what they would do in that situation, brainstorming ideas and sketching prototypes as a group. “At first we thought about an elevator, but that already exists,” says Harris. “Then we thought about one of those chairs that carries old people up stairs. Like you see in the commercials.” The group ultimately combined several ideas to create a vertical conveyor belt that would allow the person transporting the groceries to press “on” and “off” buttons, sending the groceries from floor to floor. They fashioned their prototype out of pipe cleaners, brass fasteners one would find at an office-supply store, cardboard and small boxes. They even used foam letters to brand their contraption. “We thought about the conveyor belts at grocery stores,” Selig says. “And we used everyone’s ideas. It was really fun because we weren’t just listening to the teacher; we were the ones coming up with the project.” That, Patel says, is the goal. And it’s completely different from the way students are used to learning. The grocery exercise was merely an introduction to Design Think; students spent two class periods walking through the process. Their

next project will take longer, perhaps all year, if necessary. Fourth-grade students will meet for one period in every eightday cycle to consider animal habitats—exploring ways to solve the displacement of a specific species. “They’ll do research, video conference with experts and look at what countries around the world are doing to combat this issue,” Patel says. They’ll then work to create dioramas, brochures and other awareness pieces to illustrate and sell their solutions. Fifth graders will use the recent success of Senegal’s plastic recycling program to examine recycling in their own communities. “We’ll build empathy by asking questions like, ‘What does recycling do?’ and ‘Are we doing our best as a school to recycle?’” Patel says. She plans to pair fifth graders with first-grade students to investigate what materials are truly necessary in a classroom environment and what can be repurposed or recycled. “Kids want to be part of something bigger,” Patel says. “They don’t have the biases we do as adults, and that can be incredibly useful in solving problems. Design Think requires the mindset that we can all create change, and I think that’s a really good thing.” Head of Lower School Anna Valerius agrees. “The [Design Think] process empowers students,” she says. “They feel valued because they have a voice that results in action and viable solutions.” While the Design Think program focuses primarily on students in the fourth and fifth grades, Patel also works with Pre-First students to cultivate imaginative thinking. Through “brain-friendly” activities, she emphasizes the four Cs: collaboration, creativity, critical thinking and communication. In addition, all Lower School teachers took part in a Design Think training session, which included a prototyping exercise (ask them about their new Band-Aid designs!), and Patel is available to help them incorporate Design Think’s core tenants in their classrooms throughout the year. For Assistant Head of Lower School Phyllis Grant, the exercise had tremendous value. “It was wonderful because in our culture we don’t like to do things that aren’t perfect,” she says. “But in Design Think, perfection is not the goal; it’s all about the process.”

the design think process empathize define ideate prototype test

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

CLASSROOM ENTREPRENEURS

There’s no doubt the students understand that. They laugh as they present their prototypes and feel free to ad lib as they go. The environment makes thinking on their feet fun, and the sense of pride and ownership they feel for the products they create is evident. Creativity and critical thinking come together in a truly unique learning experience that, in the words of one very hard-thinking fifth grader, “uses all your brainpower.” Mission accomplished.

Defining Social Entrepreneurship in the Upper School It’s still early in the school year, but Upper School science teacher Tommy Hattori is already pretty excited about his new title: Director of Social Entrepreneurship. Hattori introduced the concept to Upper School students at an assembly on Aug. 21. Social entrepreneurship, he said, is “the pursuit of opportunity without regard to resources currently controlled,” a definition he borrowed from Harvard Business School professor Howard Stevenson. “Social entrepreneurs are risk-takers,” Hattori explained. “They are socially aware, passionate, innovative, dedicated, creative and concerned with the ‘quadruple bottom line: purpose, people, planet and profit.’” In short, they are business people who want to make a profit while making the world a better place. So what does this have to do with Pace? Well, a lot. Pace’s mission is to create prepared, confident citizens of the world—compassionate, informed individuals ready to excel in a multitude of arenas after leaving our campus. But, Hattori thought, why not expose students to real-world challenges and opportunities before they graduate? The Pace Academy Social Entrepreneurship Challenge (PASEC) strives to do just that. A partnership between City of Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed’s Office and Pace’s new Social Entrepreneurship Initiative, PASEC is an extracurricular activity open to all students in grades nine through 12. Student teams are paired with selected mentors to solve real-world issues for for-profit, hybrid and nonprofit organizations through entrepreneurship and innovation. The goal of the program is threefold. It aims to: • Stimulate and recognize creative thinking and action that can solve social problems through enterprise; • Invest in sustainable change; • Promote enterprise development for the quadruple bottom-line. This year’s Challenge issue, selected by Mayor Reed, is transportation, a hot topic in Atlanta. The city’s limited public transportation network, aging transit system and congestion frequently place it among the worst in the country for traffic, as any Atlanta commuter can attest. “The Mayor’s Office is looking to you for new ideas to solve the city’s transportation problems,” Hattori told students. To further familiarize Upper Schoolers with the concept of social

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

Transportation experts Dave Williams and Lisa Borders share their expertise with Upper School students during morning assembly on Sept. 16.

entrepreneurship, Hattori coordinated two panel discussions. On Sept. 4, students heard from four local social entrepreneurs: Pace parent Jillian Pritchard Cooke, founder of Wellness Within Your Walls; Chris Johnson, vice president of Better World Books; Travis Horsley, a partner at TOHL; and Ben Seidl, program director for World Water Relief. The business leaders shared their entrepreneurial stories, discussed the challenges they face and emphasized the importance of finding meaning in their work. Then, on Sept. 16, Pace welcomed a distinguished group of transportation experts who spoke about the issues and opportunities facing Atlanta. Lisa Borders, former City Council President and former Vice Mayor of Atlanta, facilitated the panel, which included Tom Weyandt, the Mayor’s senior policy advisor for transportation; Dave Williams, the Metro Atlanta Chamber’s vice president of Transportation and Environment; and Jim Durrett, executive director of the Buckhead Community Improvement District. Topics discussed included MARTA, mixed-use developments, and the city’s Beltline, Streetcar and sidewalk projects. At the end of the morning, Borders charged those present to, “listen, learn and lead. You can make a difference,” she said. So now it’s up to students to accept the Challenge. Those interested have formed small teams and identified the specific transportation issue they want to tackle. Then teams will select or be assigned a community mentor to guide them throughout the competition, providing insight regarding their proposals and helping them overcome challenges. In November, students will pitch their proposals to a panel of judges and continue work based on their feedback. The culmination of the competition will come in April 2014, when teams will present their final business plans to a panel of judges that includes prominent members of the business community and the Atlanta City Council. Plans will be judged based on creativity, feasibility and impact, and judges will award a $10,000 first-place prize as seed money to help launch the winner’s social enterprise. “We’re asking a lot of these students,” says Hattori. “But we’re excited to see what they come up with. Who knows, the next big transportation idea may just come from Pace Academy.” •

TO THESE COMPANIES AND FAMILIES FOR SPONSORING THE 2013 FALL FAIR AND SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR VOLUNTEERS FOR GIVING THEIR TIME AND TALENTS TO THE FALL FAIR.

Anonymous

The Arnold Family

The Levensons

Wendy & Neal Aronson • The Bethel Family • The Cleveland Family • The Costanzo Family • Cathy & Reid Funston John, Angie & Meghan Keller • The Lemke Family • The Maske Family • Heather & Rod White The Alkire Family • The Beardsley Family • The Boushka Family • The Cochran Family • Caroline & David Crawford The Curtin Family • The Gramann Family • The Hingst Family • The Hobbs Family • The Janki Family The LaMastra Family • The Luetters Family • The Marks Family • The Mathias Family • The Merchant Family Peachtree Smile Center LLC • Roberts & Daughdrill, P.C. • The Stamoulis Family The Owens Family • The Stebbins Family • The Swann Family The Arenth Family • Jennifer, Trabue & Bates Bland • Lynn & Kate Castle • The Delmonte Family The Ferro Family • The Flint Family • The Greene Family • The Karamanolis Family • Reita Maguire Movsovitz Edlin Family • The Nuckols Family • Stainbeck Hess Studio, llc Architecture • Julie & Scott Thompson Crystal & Jeff Baker • The Caton Family • Amy & John Dwyer • Stephanie & Jim Ellner • Sandy & Rob Farinella Sarah & Bill Gray • Parkey & Dan Haggman • The Hughes Family • The Litvak Family The Maddineni Family • Jennifer & Brian Queen • The Silverboard Family • Amy & Paul Snyder The Tucker Family • The Vadnais Family • The Yang Family • The York Family Coca-Cola • Courtnay & Rowe • Brightway Insurance • Doctor’s Express • ecdesign • The Paper Route My Party Guru • Performance Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine • Trevelino/Keller Our apologies to those sponsors not listed due to print deadline. KnightTimes | Fall 2013

Photography by Ashton Staniszewski

Standing: Matt Tanenblatt ’15 sitting (left to right): Matt Seaman ’15, Larine Hamied ’15, Sam Rubenstein ’14, Dean Papastrat ’15 bottom: Riley Muse ’14 28 KnightTimes | Fall 2013

It Takes a Village Offering cutting-edge technology internships for young entrepreneurs becomes a Pace family project.

Atlanta Tech Village sits at the corner of Piedmont and Lenox Roads in the heart of Buckhead’s business district. More than 100,000 cars pass through the busy intersection every day, and from their fifth-floor offices, technology entrepreneurs Jon Birdsong ’03 and Pace parent Ed Trimble (father of Will ’17 and Charlie ’19) have a sweeping view of the Buckhead skyline and the traffic below. While the five-story structure may look like a standard office building, inside, things are more than a little bit unconventional. In much of the building, the interior space is open, filled with desks, tables, couches and a sea of computer monitors. Giant screens broadcast recent tweets, and floor-to-ceiling whiteboards provide colorful canvases for announcements, new ideas and entertaining doodles. The open floor plan leads to collaboration, new relationships and, ultimately, innovation. Employees wear jeans and T-shirts, take PingPong breaks, go for Razor-scooter rides, and discuss new projects over chocolate milk or a beer harvested from the communal kitchen. The brainchild of entrepreneur David Cummings (he started Hannon Hill in 2001 and Pardot in 2007), Atlanta Tech Village opened in 2012 and provides space to nearly 60 service-technology and technologyrelated startups. It’s changing the way commercial real estate works by renting space per person per month in a building that includes shared public and private areas and other amenities. The goal is to “bring the [tech] community together, promote serendipitous interactions and be a powerful tool for recruiting the best talent [to the industry].” Atlanta Tech Village is essentially “a campus for cool people doing cool things,” and the individuals behind it are determined to make Georgia’s capital one of the nation’s top-five tech startup centers. Kevy, Trimble’s fourth startup, set up shop in Atlanta Tech Village in early 2013. (EzGov, his most successful venture, grew to $28 million in annual revenue and more than 180 employees in five global offices before being acquired in 2005.) Kevy’s plug-and-play Cloud Connectors make it easy for users to integrate cloud apps, allowing for the simple sharing of data. In just seven months, Kevy has grown to 15 employees. “I love starting and building companies,” Trimble says. He also loves mentoring young entrepreneurs like Birdsong, who, after stints at several startups, launched Rivalry in the spring of 2013. The com-

pany provides performance software for sales representatives. Both Trimble and Birdsong believe that Atlanta’s technology scene has a long way to go and are excited about what the Atlanta Tech Village may mean for the city. Future growth, they say, is dependent on a shift in culture and a new generation of technology entrepreneurs. “A lot of kids [in Atlanta] grow up and want to be lawyers or go into commercial real estate,” Birdsong says. “That’s great, but there hasn’t really been much of an option for careers in technology. One of the ways to change that is to expose kids to technology early—let them see companies like Kevy—and show them that there’s something else out there.” Atlanta Tech Village decided to do just that.

All in the Family “Ed and I have this mutual bond with the Pace community,” Birdsong says. “When Atlanta Tech Village wanted to figure out how to become more connected to the surrounding community, we both knew that Pace was a natural fit.” Birdsong reached out to Head of Upper School Mike Gannon to see if Pace students might be interested in summer internships, and Gannon jumped at the opportunity. As the 2012–13 school year came to a close, word about the internship program spread among Upper Schoolers. “We set up an application process and chose six students,” Gannon says. Larine Hamied ’15, Riley Muse ’14, Dean Papastrat ’15, Sam Rubenstein ’14, Matt Seaman ’15 and Matt Tanenblatt ’15 got the jobs. Theo Levine ’12, a rising sophomore at Harvard, also was selected. In the meantime, Birdsong and Trimble solicited companies around the Village that might need interns to do “meaningful work.” Once the student interns were identified, the two invited them, along with their parents, to tour the space and hear from the companies they might be working for. The students then ranked their top three choices. “Jon and I sat down with the kids’ bios and tried to match each student with the company that best suited his or her skills and interests,” Trimble says. “We then confirmed with the CEOs that they felt good about it, and we were ready to go.”

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

ATLANTA TECH VILLAGE

Getting to Work Rubenstein was grateful to land the internship and excited to join Birdsong’s Rivalry team. “I wanted a summer job where I could apply my skills, so I was taken by this opportunity,” he says. “I thought Rivalry was cool because it’s a small company, and I thought Jon was a cool guy—especially because he went to Pace. I thought that would be a good connection.” The other students were equally enthusiastic. “My first impression was that everyone at Atlanta Tech Village was really cool, young and creative,” says Muse, who worked with Cummings and the Village’s management team on various marketing initiatives. As summer rolled around, the students got down to business. Papastrat joined Sideqik, a company that provides partnership platforms for marketers. Working in code, the Upper School’s resident tech prodigy, “made an email notification system and did a bunch of editing on the company’s WordPress [website],” among other tasks that few outside the tech industry would understand. Hamied and Rubenstein were more focused on content marketing for SalesLoft and Rivalry, respectively. They researched and drafted blog posts, assisted in putting together presentations, identified sales prospects and helped manage their companies’ social media presences. Clickscape, a residential real estate search tool, had Tanenblatt researching neighborhoods all over Georgia and Tennessee to compile profiles for prospective buyers. Seaman was a social media manager and, later, assistant account manager for Insightpool, a social media marketing automation tool. Levine did programming work for Kevy, building cloud connectors within its platform. “One thing that I thought was really cool was that we weren’t just interns for our individual companies, we also were interns for Atlanta Tech Village as a whole,” says Rubenstein. That meant helping to organize Startup Chowdowns, weekly lunch-n-learns for all community members. “We were like an intern army on Fridays,” recalls Muse. On most days students put in eight hours, but they occasionally found themselves bringing work home. “One of the first articles I had to write talked about pipelines,” Hamied says. “I just had no idea

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what to write, so I went home and asked my parents, ‘What does this mean?’ and did research on my own.” Muse also found herself pursuing work-related interests outside the office. “The whole idea of Atlanta Tech Village is based on this book called The Rainforest,” she says. “So to understand how the Village worked, I read it on my own. It talks about how a startup company is like an ecological system, and everybody has to work together to promote innovation and success … it’s all about how to foster human relationships. It was really interesting.” But the students’ internships weren’t all work and no play. “Everyone at the Village says, ‘Work hard, play hard,’ and that sounds cliché, but they literally work so hard and do so much that when they accomplish something, they can just chill,” says Hamied. “Oftentimes, there was complete silence in the office and everyone was coding,” recalls Muse. “Then there were moments when everyone was just running around.” The students were particularly struck by the Village’s friendly, communal atmosphere. “It was so mature,” says Muse. “People would come up and want to form a relationship with you and sit with you at lunch. The environment really fostered relationships throughout the different companies.” “It made me excited for the real world,” says Tanenblatt. Atlanta Tech Village also provided students with a glimpse of the day-to-day hardships many startups must tackle. “[My work] really gave me insight into some of the realities small Internet businesses face,” says Seaman. “I got to see how hard [the people behind them] work and what they have to do to affect ‘the real world.’ I feel I better understand some basic fundamentals of business, PR and prioritizing my work. I learned that the smallest innovations make big differences; you just have to know where to implement them.” Many of the students were amazed to see how quickly their startups grew and are excited to track their growth over the coming months and years. “When I came in, our software wasn’t even finished,” remembers Rubenstein. “In my time at Rivalry, we brought on our first couple of clients, which was a big deal for us. We redesigned the website, and the software is up and running, and there are people using it. Even though I didn’t play a big part in the actual software design,

ATLANTA TECH VILLAGE

Top to bottom: Junior Dean Papastrat (far right) and the Sideqik team; Theo Levine '12 (center) with Jon Birdsong '03 and Ed Trimble; Scenes from inside Atlanta Tech Village; Rivalry founder Jon Birdsong and intern Sam Rubenstein; Pace's Atlanta Tech Village interns

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“You can make a career out of the things that you love to do, and a lot of people don’t realize that. Pursue what you love, embrace it and look for opportunities to get involved.” Ed Trimble Co-Founder & President of Kevy

“Start something. Whether you write a blog or design a website, start and hone a craft. Learn that as early as possible, and you can take your craft to any company or industry and be successful. And hang around people who are building cool things. That will inspire you to do your own thing in your own niche.” Jon Birdsong '03 CEO of Rivalry 32

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ATLANTA TECH VILLAGE

it’s cool that something I was a part of is succeeding.” In Trimble and Birdsong’s minds, Atlanta Tech Village’s partnership with Pace was a tremendous success. “The overwhelming majority of the Atlanta Tech Village’s interns came from Pace. Based on that fact and the unanimous delight of all the CEOs, it’s clear that Pace is the top Atlanta high school for students who want to get in and be exposed to technology,” says Birdsong. “The Pace kids were agile and added value from the start.” Trimble agrees: “The kids were all very well-rounded,” he says. “They each had a multitude of skills that they brought to the table. They were all tech-savvy and all showed a great deal of initiative. Everyone in the Village had nothing but great things to say about them, and that makes me and Jon really proud.” So what is it about the Pace environment that prepares students for this new kind of workplace? To Birdsong, the answer is a nobrainer: “I think the Pace culture is very similar to the entrepreneurial culture at Atlanta Tech Village because both let you pick your path,” he explains. “At other schools, kids are known for one thing—they’re the football player or the cheerleader. But at Pace, you can be in the play and on Student Council and be a jock. You’re not subscribed to one area. It’s the same thing here. In a startup, you have to wear all kinds of hats. You’re the designer, the guy building the product and the guy selling it.” He speaks from experience: “I can tell you [as a Pace alumnus] that Pace is one of the biggest reasons that I didn’t feel confined to a certain box professionally. I loved that I felt free to think about other options.”

The Future Trimble, Birdsong and Gannon couldn’t be more pleased with the success of the Pace/Atlanta Tech Village partnership. “The feedback we’ve received was that the program was life-changing,” Gannon says. “It was a terrific opportunity, and the kids did research and work that was actually used.” In fact, Sideqik has hired Papastrat to handle projects throughout the school year, and Levine will continue to work remotely for Kevy from Harvard. “I went into the internship not knowing what I would major in, but at the end of the summer, I pretty much decided that computer science is for me,” Levine says. “[My time with Kevy] was an awesome learning experience and will help me immensely going forward.” Gannon hopes that the partnership with Atlanta Tech Village will continue and that Pace will develop similar programs in other industries. “We want all of our students to apply knowledge outside the walls of Pace Academy,” he says. Birdsong and Trimble appreciate that sentiment. “If Jon and I have our way, this will be a long, long-term partnership,” Trimble says. Birdsong concurs. “To me, this summer really shows the rest of the community that Pace is focused on technology,” he says. “Pace will always be the first school to partner with Atlanta Tech Village, and the school has proven that its students come in and provide value right off the bat. That’s really exciting, and it makes me excited about the future of technology.” •

Left to right: Ed Trimble, Co-Founder and President of Kevy; Mike Gannon, Head of Upper School; and Jon Birdsong, CEO of Rivalry

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The Business of Building Connections Two Pace alumni and one former faculty member are revolutionizing alumni engagement through technology. Several years ago, Nick Zeckets ’98 (pictured left) traveled to Austin, Texas, to attend the SXSW Interactive Festival. At the time, Zeckets was vice president of strategy and development for TRU, a Chicago-based company specializing in youth research and insights. While in Austin, he asked former Pace faculty member Doug Alford to grab dinner and, over a bite to eat and a couple beers, the two started talking about their relationships with their collegiate alma maters. Zeckets and Alford, now a technology consultant for educational institutions, agreed that colleges and universities were missing opportunities to use technology to engage alumni and ultimately cultivate donors.

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“We wondered if what we thought was missing from our alumni relationships might be consistent with others’ experiences,” Zeckets says. So he and Alford started doing research, talking to friends and participating in weekly phone calls to share their findings. “We found that everything we thought was true was true—even more true than we thought,” Zeckets recalls. “The vast majority of tools available to alumni organizations are very focused on alumni staff needs—databases and customer relationship management tools,” Zeckets explains. “There are a handful of alumni-facing tools out there, but if you ask alumni what they think about those tools, most have never heard of them. Schools are spending tons of money on things no one ever sees with little return on investment.” The more Zeckets and Alford talked, the more they became convinced that they could solve the problem. “We thought we could

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provide a solution that would make alumni happy and make them beg to give back,” Zeckets says. “We believed we could make alumni engagement more valuable for everyone.” The solution is QuadWrangle, a mobile app that talks to and understands schools’ legacy databases, social media and other published content and optimizes that content for mobile consumption based on each individual alumnus. The company then leverages alumni data to drive online giving and tell schools more about individual constituents. Confused? Here’s an example: Say Zeckets, a Pace alumnus, downloads QuadWrangle on his iPhone. QuadWrangle uses Natural Language Processing technology (computers reading like people) to take whatever Pace publishes—the Knightly News, Knight Life blogs, tweets, etc.—to generate mobile content just for him. Because Zeckets is a huge fan of history teacher Helen Smith (“She’s easily among the five most influential people in my life,” he says. “I talk about her all the time.”), anytime Smith is mentioned in a news story or Facebook post, that news appears at the top of Zeckets’ QuadWrangle news stream. And when he finishes reading the story about Smith, he’ll find a link to information about the Annual Fund or the school’s most recent capital campaign if Smith is connected to any of those. Zeckets also can connect to and receive valuable connections through and guidance from other Pace alumni via QuadWrangle’s networking tool, ClassRing, and he’ll learn about Pace alumni events all over the country via its location-aware software. QuadWrangle keeps track of Zeckets’ activity within the app—what he reads, when he gives, which programs interest him—and Pace can plug that information back into its alumni database and use it to make much more targeted asks in the future. If the technology behind QuadWrangle sounds complicated, it’s because it is. While Zeckets handles product management, he needed someone to tackle software development. Enter James Song ’98, executive creative director and owner at JVST, a full-service digital advertising agency in San Francisco. Song is one of the top user-experience designers in the world, and he worked quickly to design and build QuadWrangle’s user interface while Zeckets recruited team members and began shopping the product to schools. Zeckets, who is married and has a young son, put in notice with TRU on April 1, 2013 and began working full time for QuadWrangle the following month. “It was an enormous relief and incredibly exciting,” Zeckets says of his decision to leave his day job. “At first I had energy out the wazoo, but some of that has been replaced by nerves and fear. You realize that your savings are starting to whittle away, but my response has been to double down on the stuff that’s working and triple down on the things that might bring a financial return. Pressure on the business means turning coal to diamonds.” Zeckets is optimistic about QuadWrangle’s future. Colleges and universities are already interested in the technology, and Zeckets believes the demand will continue to increase. “The need is so pervasive that once you get past those 200 well-endowed universities, you’ve got 2,000 plus that aren’t really sure how they’re going to make it,”

Clockwise from top left: Nick Zeckets and James Song during their days at Pace; Song's yearbook picture; Zeckets' yearbook picture; Song and Helen Smith; Doug Alford

he says. “If you were to tell me that my alma mater was going to cancel my major, I’d want to know and do something about it. So our passion is building.” Despite the fear and pressure that comes with starting a business, Zeckets believes he was well prepared. “I don’t want to characterize starting a business as easy, but I think it gets easier when you have a background of being given room to explore,” he says. “Pace really did that. Pace gave me a lot of rope to hang myself. And I did—all the time. But I also had an opportunity to be part of Model United Nations and Model Arab League and to gain confidence in representing significant ideas. [Helen] Smith and Pace gave me the platform to develop those skills, so when I get in front of a school or investor, I have the confidence and ability to respond and react. It didn’t come in college. It came from Pace.” And while Pace instilled confidence in Zeckets and his team, it also introduced “a social call to action,” which Zeckets believes makes starting a business even harder. “If I were just selling a standard corporate offering, I’d have been up and running much sooner,” he says. “The reason we have the fortitude to pursue a social call to action is because of the service ethic Pace instilled in all of us. It’s part of the prize. We’re not going to save education single handedly, but we’re going to try to make a dent.” •

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

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The Business of Making Life Easier

Entrepreneur Emily Evert ’05 is changing the way women shop. “I’ve always wanted to work for myself,” Emily Evert ’05 says matter-of-factly. “Both of my parents started their own businesses. It just seemed natural to follow suit.” Evert, at 26 and CEO of “Live Your Life” Box (LYLBox), hasn’t wasted any time. She graduated first in her class from the University of Georgia, was named Terry College of Business’s Senior of the Year and accepted a position right out of school as a consultant at Alvarez & Marsal Business Consulting’s Atlanta office. The professional services firm is known for its restructuring work, and Evert was soon assigned to the Lehman Brothers account. “I learned a lot about working in high-pressure environments,” she says with a laugh. “Every move was being watched by regulatory agencies and the world. It wasn’t always fun. I put in long hours, but it taught me a lot about what I could handle. It was the best job I could have taken out of college.” With three years of business experience under her belt, Evert moved to Cambridge, Mass., and enrolled in Harvard Business School in 2012. She had already begun formulating plans for a startup company, and a class inspired her to take the risk. “Harvard had just implemented a new course called Field,” Evert says. “During the third phase of the class, you learn about starting a company. I realized then that I wanted to take a chance.” Evert had long purchased personal products from online giant Amazon.com, but recent changes to Amazon Prime’s policies had her frustrated. She saw the need for an affordable, online, subscriptionbased service to provide those products that so many women—not to mention boyfriends and husbands—dread buying in the store month after month. “I thought, ‘If anything can be subscription-based, this is it!’” she says. Evert’s concept, she believed, was good. A customer would visit a website and select the types of products and brands she wanted to receive. For a $10 monthly fee, a box filled with the customer’s selection of tampons and pads would arrive in discrete packaging at a specified time every month. She called the product LYLBox. Evert, with the backing of an investor, filed for LLC status, began wading through paperwork and hired a web developer. As part of her role at Alvarez & Marsal, she had negotiated countless contracts with logistics providers, so identifying a provider and establishing a supply chain came easy. She then had to receive licensing from the Food and Drug Administration, a process Evert calls “a nightmare.” Despite several challenges, LYLBox launched to friends and family in the summer of 2013 and to the general public on Oct. 1 of this year. Thus far, response has been good, Evert says. “We’re in a unique place in the market. We have a few competitors, but they aren’t licensed by the FDA. We’re also cheaper and offer more products. Why pay

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$16 for something you can get at the store for $9?” she asks. “I feel confident in our price point.” Evert plans to grow the company quickly by spreading the word via social media and clever, playful marketing strategies. She’s reaching out to colleges and universities and has already recruited a team of interns from UGA. “It’s hard to market something no one wants to talk about,” she says. “You have to have a sense of humor about it.” As far as future plans go, Evert would be thrilled if LYLBox became her bread and butter when she graduates from business school next year. “It’s a hefty plan,” she says. “I’d need tens of thousands of subscriptions in less than a year, but I think it’s doable.” But LYLBox may not be the be all and end all for Evert. “Eventually, I want to launch more businesses,” she says. “I’d be happy if this [company] was bought in three or four years. My goal is to get my feet wet, launch a business and learn. I hope I can make this a career, but we’ll see. It’s always just nice to learn.” Evert says the confidence required to launch a business comes in large part as a result of her time at Pace. “I had a couple great teachers like Tim Hornor who made me believe I could do anything I wanted,” she recalls. “And I’ve realized that Pace is a unique environment. Kids are mean people, but Pace didn’t allow that to happen. You were free to be yourself and have a creative idea or a heated conversation without the fear of backlash or of being uncool. It’s unusual to find a school environment in which you feel free to brainstorm with friends, think critically and truly share ideas.” Learn more about LYLBox at www.lylbox.com.

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The Business of Mentoring Businesses

Serial entrepreneur Tyler Prochnow ’84 helps tech startups grow. Tyler Prochnow ’84 is the walking definition of a jack-of-all-trades. “I’m a little ADD,” he admits with a laugh. A political science major at the University of Richmond and Oglethorpe University, Prochnow kicked off his career on the campaign trail, eventually working his way up to a short stint in the White House in 1989. Politics led to law school and a J.D. from the University of Denver in 1995. After two years as an attorney in Denver, Prochnow moved to Kansas City and practiced marketing and advertising law until 2003 when, on the eve he was to be elected partner, he quit to found Golden Peak Sports, a full-service sports representation agency. His first startup came about by chance. “I’d worked on a big project representing the video production company that shot the first George Foreman grill infomercial,” he says. “We were negotiating the deal with Foreman, and he walked into the room by himself—no attorney, no agent. He told me that the day he hung up his gloves, his agent was done with him.” Prochnow, an avid sports fan, discovered that Foreman’s situation was not unusual and launched Golden Peak Sports to represent retired athletes like Deion Sanders, Olympic swimmer Amy Van Dyken and soccer star Aly Wagner. Business was booming, but an opportunity to invest in the city’s first arena football team lured Prochnow away from Golden Peak. “I was excited about the idea of fan-friendly entertainment involving players that lived in and gave back to community,” he says. “It sounded like a fit. Before I knew what happened, I owned the Kansas City Brigade.” Prochnow felt he’d spend the rest of his professional life in arena football, but three years later, he received a phone call from an individual interested in purchasing the team. “I said, ‘No way,’” Prochnow recalls. “He named a price, and I said, ‘Sure, it’s all yours.’” At 42, Prochnow found himself at a career crossroads and decided to take a leap. In 2008, he and a business partner launched Think Big Partners, a technology incubator and co-working space for startup companies. As a partner and co-founder, Prochnow provides entrepreneurs with insight, consulting and advice on the difficult legal and business issues they face. Think Big Partners offers its clients co-working space, access to the Internet and other resources, and programming such as an annual accelerator course, project plan management and market testing. There is an intensive vetting process for startup companies that want to be involved. “We spend a lot of time trying to get to know these companies even before we say yes or no,” Prochnow says. “We bet more on the individual. Great ideas are everywhere; great executors are hard to find.”

Think Big Partners isn’t Prochnow’s only project. He’s also cofounder and CEO of Leading Edge Technology Solutions, LLC, a cloud-based software solutions provider for the direct marketing industry; president and CEO of Connexsus, LLC, one of the nation’s premier direct marketing service companies; and president and managing member of ACS Properties, LLC, where he oversees the company’s varied business ventures and real estate projects nationwide. But Prochnow’s not done yet; there may be another startup on the horizon. “Unfortunately, I have a horrible mind that looks at things and wonders how to fix them,” Prochnow says. “I’ve got a folder two inches thick of ideas. I definitely have at least one—if not a couple more—[startups] in me.” Prochnow credits much of his entrepreneurial spirit to his Pace experience. He enrolled at the school as a freshman and quickly became involved in a number of different activities. “Because of its size, Pace creates an environment that easily leads to an entrepreneurial life,” he says. “Students receive a broad introduction to so many things. They can try them all and find what they’re passionate about.” That creative, innovative environment gives Pace students an advantage, Prochnow says. “I truly believe my Pace education was more responsible for who I am—whether good or bad—than any other educational environment I was in. I learned a lot in college and law school, but I don’t have those same kinds of memories. Pace was something really special.” Prochnow’s advice to Pace students and aspiring entrepreneurs is to embrace failure. “Failure is such a dirty word,” he says. “But something is only a failure if you don’t learn from it and take advantage of the lessons there. It’s likely that you will fail no matter how good you and your idea are. Just do it. Take the plunge. Don’t be discouraged by the mistakes, and remember that people who have failed at least once are significantly more successful in their second venture.” In other words, think big. Prochnow lives in Kansas City with his wife, Ann. His son, Connor, and his daughter, Sophia, are both in high school.

KnightTimes | Fall 2013

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Where Are They Now? Karl “Woody” Woodworth ’67 lives with his wife, Linda, 60 miles east of Atlanta in a 130-year-old farmhouse on a 350-acre farm. Karl and Linda have three sons, “all of them good-hearted souls and smart as whips,” he reports. Karl enjoyed a variety of occupations after graduating from Pace. He did radio work in the Navy, returned to Emory and graduated in 1974, and thereafter worked filing unemployment claims, was a technician in a water control lab and sold travel for American Express. Later, Karl was a librarian at Bell Laboratories, a computer programmer at SOLINET, ran Emory’s online library catalog for 10 years and consulted for IBM. Karl then became a medical librarian, working at Emory and finishing his career at Grady Hospital. At the farm, Karl and Linda fill the freezer with produce from their organic garden, sell organic eggs, keep three cows, dabble in forestry and step carefully around the chickens pecking in the yard. Karl satisfies his technical bent by wrestling with the mysteries of drip irrigation and electric fencing, and doing whatever has to be done to keep the 1973 tractor and old rusty 1989 Ford truck running. Karl says ‘hey’ to his classmates, and would like to remind students at Pace that it is possible to live a long and rewarding life just doing what you like to do, as much as that might change over the years. Dave Thompson ’88 recently began his 15th year as director of International Programs at The Hotchkiss School in Lakeville, Conn. There he helps students find travel, exchange and study-abroad opportunities. He and his wife, Peggy, live with daughters Serena, 4, and Amalia, 3 months (pictured to the left). The couple lives in a ninth- and 10th-grade girls dorm, where they have advisees, work with student clubs and coach. Dave is the head varsity ultimate Frisbee coach. He gets excited every time he sees a 404 area code pop up, hears an old REM song, sees the Braves at the top of the standings and has a student attend Hotchkiss from Atlanta. Aleron Kong ’99 completed his residency in internal medicine at Morehouse School of Medicine and is now working for Kaiser Permanente as a hospital physician at Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta. Mary Liebman ’00 recently moved from Atlanta to Washington D.C. to accept a position as assistant director of the Capital Campaign at National Cathedral School. She will receive her Masters of Nonprofit Administration from Notre Dame in December 2013. After four years as public relations and communications manager for The Home Depot Foundation, Catherine Woodling ’00

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was promoted to corporate communications manager at The Home Depot. Catherine lives in Atlanta, where she serves as president of the Reynoldstown Civic Improvement League, a board member of Neighborhood Planning Unit N and a member of the Pace Alumni Board. In August, Atlanta’s Creative Loafing profiled Kimmy Coburn ’02, the founder of Homestead Atlanta. The educational collective strives to revive forgotten heritage skills and explore innovative, sustainable-living approaches. Kimmy modeled the Homestead after the John C. Campbell Folk School, an organization in North Carolina that attempts to preserve Appalachian folk art. Homestead operates out of donated spaces throughout Atlanta and “is dedicated to teaching the art of self-reliant, authentic living,” Creative Loafing writes. It provides classes on everything from designing edible landscapes and cultivating mushrooms to winemaking and woodcraft. Kimmy maintains a blog for interested “Homesteaders.” Read more about her venture at www.thehomesteadatl.com. Emily Hishta Cohen ’06 started graduate school this fall and is working toward a Masters in Art History with an Advanced Certificate in Art Conservation at New York University’s Institute of Fine Arts. The four-year program at Mellon Library & Archives focuses on the conservation of bound and unbound paper. Melanie Gaynes ’09 graduated from Bowdoin College in May 2013 and now lives in Boston, where she works as a research assistant at Massachusetts General Hospital analyzing the cost-effectiveness of HIV/AIDS interventions. Michael Melia ’09 received a Master of Arts in Social Anthropology (with Honors) from the University of St Andrews in Scotland in June 2013. He graduated first in his class in the School of Philosophical and Anthropological Studies and was awarded the Dean’s List for Academic Excellence, the Ladislav Holy Memorial Trust and the Norman Kemp Travel Scholarship. While at St Andrews, Michael played bass guitar and keyboards for the band The Dirty Hemingways and jazz piano for The Master Splinter Quartet. He also recorded and produced three original albums. The bands played in venues and at University balls and events in and around eastern Scotland. Michael was a baritone for the St Salvator’s Chapel Choir, as well as the house pianist for the principal and vice chancellor of St Andrews. He has published several academic articles in Ethnographic Encounters, St Andrews’ anthropology journal, and in The Unfamiliar, the University of Edinburgh’s anthropology journal. Michael spent the summer of 2011 working in Nicosia, Cyprus, as an intern with the Cyprus Neuroscience and Technology Institute, a

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Borneo Gibbon — Highly Honored, Endangered Species, Nature’s Best Winland Smith Rice International Awards

SPOTLIGHT ON PHOTOGRAPHER KRISTI ODOM ’98 Photographer Kristi Odom ’98 can add another distinguished award to her long list of accolades. Her photograph of the outstretched arm of a White Bearded Gibbon (above) will be on display through early January 2014 as part of the Smithsonian Institution’s Nature’s Best Photography Windland Smith Rice International Awards Exhibition. She took the photograph while trekking through Tanjing Putting National Park in Borneo. “Gibbons are typically noisy, sending out hoots and howls to nearby friends, but this one sat calmly while our group watched him from a distance,” Kristi told the Fairfax Times. “He put his hand out to me, and his fragility and humanness struck me, and I

center that researches and develops communication technologies to strengthen the process of peace-building and civic education in the European Union. He also worked as an intern at the United Nations High Commission for Refugees. While in Nicosia, Michael played jazz piano nightly at Privé, a private dining and events venue. In the summer of 2012, Michael lived in Beijing and worked as a project management intern for ClearWorld Media, a digital media consultancy focusing on marketing strategies for sustainable, energy-related causes. He was a representative for the firm at three international conferences, including Macworld Asia, Beijing Mobile Game Summit and Beijing Microsoft Bizspark. During his stay in

felt that his arm, isolated in this shot, served to show more about him than perhaps a more conventional shot of his whole body.” The exhibition, on display on the first floor of the Museum of Natural History’s Special Exhibit’s Gallery, features approximately four dozen works of photographic art, which were selected from more than 20,000 images. The exhibit will run through early January 2014. Kristi is an award-winning wedding, nature and travel photographer. She and her husband live in Reston, Va. View her work at kristiodomphotography.com.

China, he continued his music with a Chinese band, The Rustlines. And, for his 2013 summer, he worked with the corporate offices of the Dakota Hotels in Edinburgh, Scotland as a digital media strategist. Michael will continue his studies in the UK at the University of Oxford, pursuing a Ph.D. in Anthropology while conducting research with the Saïd Business School. Daisy Kim ’10 is a senior at American University studying psychology, biochemistry and Spanish. Based on her academic performance, the South Korean Embassy selected Daisy to meet the country’s newly elected President Park Geun-hye—South Korea’s first

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She was 7 pounds, 15 ounces and 21 inches long. “We’ve been loving every minute of parenthood, and I feel extremely blessed to be able to stay at home with Elle every day in lieu of working,” Laura says. The proud grandmother is former Pace faculty member Debi Huffman.

President Geun-Hye Park is pictured far left; on the far right is Ambassador Young-Jin Choi; in the middle in the navy blue dress is Daisy Kim '10. This picture was featured in the Korean newspaper Korea Daily.

female president—as a student representative. In May, Daisy dined with Park Geun-hye, the Korean Ambassador to the U.S., a member of the Virginia House of Delegates and other distinguished guests. The event was featured in Korea Daily, a major Korean newspaper, which also published a photo of Daisy with the president. John McCrea ’13 was recently profiled in Piedmont Healthcare’s Foundation newsletter for his work with Food for Thought. John founded the service organization two years ago following the passing of Pace parent Larry Orr, who battled brain cancer. John enlisted the help of Jason Weiner ’13 to sell food to classmates, coordinate cookouts, blend smoothies and raise funds for The Orr Fund benefitting the Piedmont Brain Tumor Center. To date, Food for Thought has raised more than $1,000 to fight brain cancer.

BIRTHS Whitney Allsopp Jackson ‘98 and her husband, Kevin, welcomed daughter Isabel Mays on April 27, 2013 at Presbyterian Hospital in Charlotte, N.C. She weighed 7 pounds, 1 ounce and was 21 inches long. The family resides in Belmont, N.C. There, Whitney works as a non-profit consultant and is currently project manager for a System of Care Community School Initiative at Reid Park Academy. Kevin is a four-time Emmy award-winning senior producer for NASCAR Productions.

On Aug. 5, 2013, Alison Wheeler Dunagan ’01 and her husband, Bryan, welcomed twins, John “Wheeler” and Ann Healy. Alison is working toward her Masters of Nursing at Georgia State University’s Byrdine F. Lewis School and hopes to become a family nurse practitioner. Bryan is a teaching pastor at Peachtree Presbyterian Church. On June 22, 2013, Elizabeth Balentine Gurley ’01 and her husband, Hank, welcomed Henry “Davis", Jr. He weighed 8 pounds, 6 ounces and was 20.5 inches long. “Hank and I couldn’t be more thrilled,” says Elizabeth. The family lives in Atlanta. Martha Allgood Hastings ’01 and her husband, Patrick, welcomed Patrick “Pierce” on June 13, 2013. The family lives in Baltimore, where Martha is in multi-housing investment sales for CBRE’s Washington, D.C. multi-housing team. Patrick teaches upper school English at Gilman, a boys school in Baltimore. On April 20, 2013, Sara Hayes Stewart ’04 and her husband, Robby, welcomed a daughter, Mia Grace. The proud grandmother is former Pace faculty member B.J. Hayes. The family lives in Birmingham, Ala., where Sara is a school speech language pathologist, and Robby works in information technology. Lauren Griffith Kail ‘06 and her husband, Greg, had a baby girl, Eva Lauren, on Dec. 25, 2012.

MARRIAGES

Sarah and Steven Pinckney ’99 welcomed daughter Iris Amelia on July 5, 2013. She weighed 8 pounds, 10 ounces and was 20 inches long. Iris joins big brother Chase, 4, and big sister Lyda, 2. The family lives in Williamsport, Pa., where Steven is a family medicine physician.

On March 23, 2013, Jeff Westerlund ’98 and Haley Brumfield Westerlund ’03 were married. The ceremony and reception took place at the Trolley Barn in Atlanta’s Inman Park neighborhood. Pace alumni attendees included Spencer Brumfield ’01, Lacy Westerlund ’98, Singer Westerlund Hughes ’94, Andrew Hughes ’94, Pearse Haley ’09, Cullen Herman ’10, Caroline Herman ’13, Sherry Stephens White ’82, Marilena Stephens ’86, Laura Louise Stephens Perkinson ’90, Amelia Calloway ’03, Amanda Calloway Mercer ’98, Thomas Riddell ’98, Adam Ross ’98, Ali Trauner ’98, Julianna Rue Cagle ’03, Shellie Engel Porter ’03, Cooper Pettway ’01, Mary Logan Bikoff ’01, Eleanor Siegler ’97, Mitchell Hughes ’97 and “the-one-and-only” Rick Canfield.

Adam Chalker ’00 and his wife, Amber Parke, welcomed son William Parke on June 29, 2013. He was 7 pounds, 7 ounces and joins big sister Sophie, 3. The family lives in Southern Pines, N.C. where Adam leads the Organization Performance consulting practice for Suntiva, LLC. He also is a co-owner of East Coast CrossFit in Southern Pines.

Brandon Herman ’99 married Anneke Strachan Herman at Piedmont Estate and Gardens in Atlanta on Dec. 15, 2012. Barclay Macon ’00 and Daniel Andrews ’00 were in the wedding party. Anneke and Brandon live in Washington, D.C., where Anneke is an IS manager for the Advisory Board, a healthcare consulting company. Brandon is the federal director for Decision Lens, a software company.

Laura Huffman ’00 and Andrew Marko had a daughter, Eleanor Lynn, “Elle,” on May 4, 2013, at Atlanta’s Northside Hospital.

Karen Margolis Kaye ’00 married Ian Kaye on May 26, 2013 at the St. Regis Hotel in Atlanta. Pace folks in attendance were

Alden Brecher Sturgis ’98 and her husband, Colin, welcomed son Sutton James on June 25, 2013. He joins big brother Hutson. The family lives in the Atlanta area.

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1. Sutton James Sturgis 2. Mia Grace Stewart 3. Isabel Mays Jackson 4. Willam Parke Chalker with his big sister, Sophie 5. Patrick Pierce Hastings 6. Eva Lauren Kail 7. John Wheeler & Ann Healy Dunagan 8. Eleanor Lynn Marko 9. Iris Amelia Pinckney 10. Henry Davis Gurley, Jr.

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Caroline Cardon Nolan ’00, Eric Silverstein ’00, Lara Margolis Kross ’96, Sarah Brittingham ’00, Whitney White ’00, Lauren Cardon ’96, Marci Adilman ’96, Laura Adilman ’99, Austin McDonald ’97 and Aaron Ducoffe ’05. Karen is a physician assistant in the Shepherd Center’s Traumatic Brain Injury unit, and Ian is a manager of financial planning and analysis at Earthlink. The couple lives in Atlanta’s Morningside neighborhood. David Rogers ’02 married Sherri Raines on Aug. 10, 2013 in her hometown of Grand Falls-Windsor, Newfoundland. Pace alumni in attendance included the groom’s brother and sister, Geoffrey Rogers ’99 and Natalie Rogers ’04, and his mother, Liz Rogers, who taught in the Pace Lower School for many years. Sherri and David live and work in Calgary, Alberta.

Laura Dickey Corey ’04 married Jack Corey on Sept. 1, 2012 at the Duke University Chapel. Liza Crabtree ’04 served as maid of honor, and Kendall Howes ’04, Alex Jospin ’04, Olivia Levine ’04 and former Pace student Adam Simon were in attendance. The couple met at Duke University and resides in New York City. Laura is working on her dissertation at the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University, where she earned her master’s degree and has completed all other requirements toward her Ph.D. in Art History. She most recently worked on the exhibition Impressionism, Fashion, and Modernity at The Metropolitan Museum of Art and is currently consulting curator for the upcoming High Museum of Art exhibition The Art of the Louvre’s Tuileries Garden (November 2013–January 2014), for which she published an essay in the accompanying catalogue. She is also a master tutor for Applerouth Tutoring Services, working with students in New York and online. 1. The Raines/Rogers wedding 2. The Brumfield/Westerlund wedding 3. The Dickey/Corey wedding 4. The Strachan/Herman wedding 5. The Margolis/Kaye wedding

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IN MEMORIAM Paul James “PJ” Garcia ’09 passed away on Aug. 17, 2013. PJ is the son of Pace Academy Life Trustee Paul Garcia and his wife, Carol, and brother of Matthew ’03, Andrew ’05, Christopher, Alexandra ’11 and Elizabeth ’11. His family remembers PJ as “a loving and kind son, a wonderful brother to his five siblings … [and] a faithful friend to his many classmates at Pace Academy and Southern Methodist University.” “We will always remember his beautiful smile, his quick wit and his compassion for everything and everybody, especially those in need of encouragement,” they wrote. Donations in PJ’s memory can be made to Covenant House Georgia or Trinity Community Ministries of Atlanta.

PJ Garcia is remembered as “a faithful friend to his many classmates at Pace Academy and Southern Methodist University.”

Longtime Pace history teacher Shirley Mast passed away Aug. 8, 2013 in Vilas, N.C. She is the mother of Barbara Mast James ’77 and Lara Mast ’84. Headmaster Frank Kaley hired Shirley Mast as the school’s first full-time history teacher in 1963. A genuine intellectual who delighted in heated debate and made lively discussion a central feature of her classes, she was known as a challenging but gentle teacher who took academic rigor to a new level. She spent 31 years at Pace and, in the words of longtime teacher Helen Smith, “was THE history teacher.” The family asks that memorials be made to Holy Cross Episcopal Church, PO Box 645, Valle Crucis, NC, 28691, or to Pace Academy’s Aim High campaign. Online condolences may be shared with the family at www.austinandbarnesfuneralhome.com. Jack McCune, father of Mary McCune Dillon ’81, John McCune ’79 and Eve McCune Nash ’78, and grandfather of Claire ’11, Tess ’14 and Olivia Dillon ’17 passed away on Aug. 7, 2013. The “dedicated husband, inspiring father and proud grandfather leaves behind a legacy of love,” his family wrote. Jack was an active member of the Pace community and a longtime member of the Pace Academy Board of Trustees who was honored with Life Trustee status. “One of Jack’s many strengths was his ability to deeply connect with those around him,” his family wrote. “He always took a genuine interest in the lives and goals of others.” The Pace community is forever grateful to have been connected to Jack.

Shirley Mast was hired as the school's first full-time history teacher. Her career at Pace spanned 31 years.

Virginia Torbert, a longtime and beloved member of the Pace community, passed away on Aug. 9, 2013 following a lengthy battle with cancer. She is the mother of Walt ’97 and Ben Torbert ’05 and Mary Torbert Atkinson ’99 and mother-in-law of Laura Ridall Torbert ’03. With her husband, Roy, Virginia was a dedicated and tireless supporter of Pace.

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ALUMNI OUT AND ABOUT Send photos of you and your Pace classmates out and about to alumni@paceacademy.org.

Members of the Class of 1999 recently caught up in Atlanta. Pictured from left to right are: Lauren Becker, Aleron Kong, Anne Smith Stephenson and Laura Shapiro.

Over the summer break, Camille Barchers ’02 and Pace faculty member Graham Anthony visited Sam Cunningham ’02 in Alaska and hiked at Hatcher Pass in the southwest part of the Talkeetna Mountains. “I thought it might be fun for current Pace students to see that one of their teachers is also friends with former Pace students,” Camille says. We think so too!

Atlanta Happy Hour On Sept. 19, more than 30 Atlanta-area Pace alumni gathered at Monday Night Brewing for a happy hour. The Alummni Office plans to coordinate similar informal gatherings in the months to come. Stay tuned for details!

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Clockwise from top right (from left to right): Charlie Brickley '88, Caitlin Goodrich Jones '00, Chris Sweitzer '80 and Scott Sweitzer '84; Andrew Coietta '07, Will MacEwen '07 and Ross Brown '07; Frank Woodling '05, William Waters '03, Molly Parker, Keifer Pirrung '05, Jon Birdsong '03 and Jenni Ridall Coale '05

ALUMNI

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Clockwise from bottom: Elle Marko, daughter of Laura Huffman ’00; Eliza Inman, daughter of Amanda Rogers Inman ’00; Mia Stewart, daughter of Sara Hayes Stewart '04

BABY KNIGHTS Have you recently welcomed a new addition to your family? Let us know and we’ll send your little Knight his or her very own Pace T-shirt. Email alumni@paceacademy.org.

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