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The Park School
The Park School 171 Goddard Avenue Brookline, Massachusetts 02445
The Park School FA LL BU LLE TIN 2016
Alumni, you can update your information on our website: www.parkschool.org/alumni, then click on the tab called “Stay In Touch.”
A N N UA L R E P OR T OF G I V ING 2015 –16
FA L L B U L L E T I N 2 016 • A N N UA L R E P O R T O F G I V I N G 2 015 –16
BOARD OF TRUSTEES 2016 – 17
ALUMNI COMMITTEE 2016 – 17
Fall Bulletin 2016 Annual Report of Giving 2015 – 16
Officers Vincent Chiang, Chair Polly Crozier, Vice Chair Peter Riehl, Vice Chair Stanley Shaw, Secretary Sam Wilderman, Treasurer
Greg Kadetsky ’96, Co-Chair Joanie Amick Kelly ’83, Co-Chair
Editor Kate LaPine
Martina Albright ’83 David Ball ’85 Laura Barkan Peter Barkan ’86 Seth Brennan Denise Jefferson Casper Carlos Castillo ’97 Vincent Chiang Sara Leventhal Fleiss ’95 Heeten Kalan Conan Laughlin Jessica Lutzker Todd MacLean Amy Lloyd McCarthy ’86 Katie McWeeny Nikki Nudelman Kate Olmsted Neela Pal Shadé Solomon Kerry Swords Christina W. Vest Edward “EJ” Whelan Mary Witkowski Emily Lubin Woods Ex Officio Cynthia A. Harmon Head of School Kimberly Boyd Assistant Head for Finance & Operations Board Chairs Emeriti Kennett F. Burnes David D. Croll Charles C. Cunningham, Jr. George P. Denny III David G. Fubini M. Dozier Gardner John L. Hall II Kevin J. Maroni J. Michael Maynard Anne Worthington Prescott Suzie Tapson Deborah Jackson Weiss Headmaster Emeritus Robert S. Hurlbut, Jr. Head of School Emeritus Jerrold I. Katz
John Barkan ’85 Peter Barkan ’86 Kathrene Tiffany Bell ’96 Bob Bray ’53 Aldel Brown ’04 Astrid Levis-Thorne Burns ’98 Emily Potts Callejas ’89 Carlos Castillo ’97 Greg Cope ’71 Lilla Curran ’95 Melissa Deland ’95 Sara Leventhal Fleiss ’95 David Glynn ’91 Abigail Ross Goodman ’91 Anne Collins Goodyear ’84 Jennifer Segal Herman ’82 Julia Lloyd Johannsen ’93 Bob Kenerson ’53 Amy Lampert ’63 Abbott Lawrence ’85 Eve Wadsworth Lehrman ’95 Nia Lutch ’97 Chip Pierce ’81 Miriam Posner ’03 Eliza Drachman-Jones Quincy ’98 Kate Gormley Saeli ’02 Katharine Burrage Schmitt ’95 Alyssa Burrage Scott ’92 Jordan Scott ’89 Rebecca Lewin Scott ’89 Sarah Shoukimas Ryan ’97 Garrett Solomon ’86 Diana Walcott ’85 Laura Church Wilmerding ’84 Rebecca Wilsker ’00
Design Robert Beerman, Onward Upward Photography Coffee Pond Photography Flo Farrell Heidi Johnson Tom Kates ’84 Kate LaPine John Rich Printing Puritan Capital
The Bulletin is published twice yearly for the alumni, parents, and friends of The Park School. We welcome your comments and ideas. The Park School 171 Goddard Avenue Brookline, Massachusetts 02445
2016 Alumni Achievement Award: Peter Wetherbee ’53 Park is proud to honor educator and volunteer Winthrop (Peter) Wetherbee ’53 as the 2016 recipient of the Park Alumni Achievement Award.
To contact the Bulletin: Kate LaPine Director of Communications 617-274-6009 lapinek@parkschool.org
PETER WETHERBEE ,
To report alumni news: Rena LaRusso ’04 Director of Alumni Relations 617-274-6022 alumni@parkschool.org To make a gift to Park: Beatrix Sanders Director of Development 617-274-6020 sandersb@parkschool.org To report address changes: Jamie Byron Development Associate 617-274-6018 development@parkschool.org The Park School admits qualified students without regard to race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, ancestry, sex, disabilities, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, or family composition to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the School. Park does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, ancestry, sex, disabilities, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, or family composition or any other status protected by applicable law in the administration of its educational, admissions, financial aid, athletic and other policies and programs.
Cover artwork David Rome (Grade VIII)
NO M I NATI O NS SO U GHT F O R :
T H E PA R K A L U M N I ACHIEVMENT AWARD This award is given to the Park alumnus/alumna who exemplifies the School’s values and educational mission through distinctive achievement in his or her community or field of endeavor. This person’s leadership and contributions have made a meaningful impact and inspire our current students and alumni. To nominate a Park alumnus/ alumna for this award, please include your nominee’s name, class year, profession, and reason for nomination. All submissions must be received by January 6, 2017 to be considered for the 2017 award. Send nominations to alumni@ parkschool.org or The Park School Alumni Office, 171 Goddard Avenue, Brookline, MA 02445.
now retired, began his distinguished career at Cornell in 1967. As the Chair of the English Department, he decided to act on a long-standing wish to give back, and started the Cornell Prison Education Program (CPEP). The Cornell Prison Education Program got its start more than a decade ago when a group of Cornell professors started volunteering their time to teach courses to the prisoners at the Auburn Correctional Facility, a maximum security level prison, located in Auburn, NY. In a July 2010 Ithaca.com article, Peter told the story of the program’s founding. “I first started as a volunteer in the GED program in Auburn, but then the director of volunteer services at the prison asked if I would expand into teaching some writing and literature courses. We used to joke that I was a little one room schoolhouse.” He was later joined by two more instructors and they were able to move the teaching from a monthly to weekly basis. Peter taught the first class of inmates about the writings of Mark Twain and Herman Melville. The program, with the backing of Cayuga Community College and a substantial gift from Doris Buffet’s Sunshine Lady Foundation, has become a fully accredited program where students earn Cornell credits which are then transferred to Cayuga. The Community College later awards the students an associate’s degree when enough credits are earned. All of the classes are taught by Cornell faculty and PhD students and consist of a largely liberal arts curriculum that ranges across classes in genetics, biology, constitutional law,
international human rights, anthropology of Japan, Shakespeare, economics, medical anthropology, and theatre. In addition, the program also offers preparatory classes for those inmates not yet admitted to CPEP. The program is also not just limited to prisoners, and has recently started offering courses to correctional officers. In a 2004 issue of the Park School Bulletin, Peter wrote of his classes at CPEP that “it took many months to build a relationship of trust—a trust that depends on the men’s assurance that you will be coming back week after week, on sensing that you, like them, are feeling your way into the relationship. Gradually a guarded intimacy takes shape, and we, too, begin to learn, to feel what it is like to be incarcerated, what it does to a man and what it teaches him.” Peter also wrote that in his 40-year teaching career, “nothing in that time has been more fulfilling than Cornell at Auburn. As everyone I know who does similar work would acknowledge, it changes your life.” Peter attended Park for ten years, and other alumni in Peter’s family include his mother Carolyn Hall ’26, and his sister Helen Wetherbee ’57. After Park, Peter attended Milton, Harvard, University of Leeds (UK), and finished at the University of California, Berkeley, where he earned his PhD in English literature. Peter currently lives in Ithaca, New York. We look forward to Peter’s visit to Park this year on December 2, 2016, and can’t wait to hear more about his experience at CPEP!
The Park School
Fall Bulletin 2016
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A Message to the Park Community from Vinny Chiang and Cynthia Harmon
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Around Park This Summer Creative Arts at Park Summer at Park Summer Professional Development Summer Energy Efficiency Initiative
10 New Trustees Elected in September 2016 Laura Barkan Peter Barkan ’86 Carlos Castillo ’97 Sara Leventhal Fleiss ’95 Neela Pal Folashade (Shadé) Solomon Christina Vest Mary Witkowski Two Graduations in 2016 15 Grade VIII Graduation Address: Tenzin Dawa Thargay ’11 Grade IX Graduation Address: Gilad Seckler ’10 28 Grade IX at Park 1967–2016 Grade IX Lead Us Out 40
Alumni Notes Alumni Service Award: Garrett Solomon ’86
Annual Report of Giving 2015 – 16 Park21: A New Culture of Innovation inside back cover
Alumni Achievement Award: Peter Wetherbee ’53
Dear Park School Community,
Greetings. I hope this letter finds you well.
As I enter my third year as Chair of The Park School Board of Trustees, I am continually impressed by those around me. The Park School Board is made up of individuals who give generously of their time and talents in service of the School. Even through the recent significant changes, I can attest that their commitment has been unwavering. And every day, as I work with the Board, administration, faculty and parents, I am reminded of the enduring qualities that, frankly, make Park, “Park.”
Commitment: Park’s faculty, staff, and administration teach our children with an energy, eagerness, and enthusiasm that is truly inspiring. It is remarkable to me the extent which Park teachers take advantage of professional development opportunities to further hone their craft. I have had dozens of conversations with faculty this fall and they have spoken of a renewed vitality that is palpable throughout the School. Community: Park, at its core, is a community. We choose Park because of our shared values of academic excellence and mutual respect that create an environment where each child is supported to develop to his or her greatest potential. Our school culture has always encouraged parents, faculty, staff, and administration to roll up our sleeves and work together to further enrich and support our children’s learning experiences. Character: With two children who have graduated from Park and one in the Upper Division, I have had a front row seat watching Park students grow up—from mornings in the stairwell waiting for Mrs. Ball to signal the start of the school day—to the stage where they sit at graduation. Park kids are great kids. It’s not just their accomplishments academically, athletically, or in the auditorium that are notable. They come to embody the values of kindness, thoughtfulness, and inclusiveness, and we are proud that they represent our community. With this foundation, I am most excited to partner with Cynthia Harmon this year. The School is fortunate to have a leader like Cynthia step up and serve as our Interim Head of School. Her leadership, thoughtfulness, and dedication to Park are truly impressive and keep the School looking ahead. It is a privilege and an honor to serve Park. We on the Board are committed to move Park forward while maintaining the level of academic excellence, citizenship, and achievement that have defined our students since 1888. I am extremely confident about the 2016-17 school year and a very bright future for The Park School. Sincerely,
Vincent W. Chiang, MD Chair, Park School Board of Trustees
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Dear Park School Community,
The opening of a new school year
is always charged with great excitement and a little nervousness. This holds true for children and adults alike. The children who cross Park’s threshold come together each day, and in a relatively short time, forge a class community— a community that is rich with learning opportunities that challenge, provide choice and collaboration, and allow exploration of what it means to be a student at Park. At the helm of that experience are the incredibly talented and passionate Park faculty. They are responsible for nurturing the relationships and rigor that are central to student growth and development. So what does it mean to lead The Park School? To me, it means to lead by examination and example. While we embrace the fullness of 21st-century learning, the School’s motto of “Simplicity and Sincerity” keeps us centered on the essential qualities of elementary education. We foster finding one’s voice to affect change, garnering the necessary skills to navigate challenging moments with courage and humility. Park enables teachers to create global classrooms where children learn the evaluative skills to synthesize the vast breadth of knowledge available at their fingertips. And we teach that with privilege comes the responsibility and expectation to serve one’s immediate and distant communities. As a member of the Park community for over twenty years, I have the fortune of having some historical perspective about Park’s ever evolving narrative. That history informs my ability to reflect on where we have been, to examine where we are, and to direct where we are going. Like all of us who are all passionate about Park, I believe that it is the attention we devote to nurturing both the heads and hearts of our students that defines the exceptional and singular experience we offer. I know that I am charged with inspiring, fostering, and supporting this community of educators, students, and families—both near and far—that strives to be its best today and tomorrow. I look forward to an exciting year! Sincerely,
Cynthia A. Harmon Head of School
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around park
this summer...
Creative Arts at Park For five weeks this summer, Park’s campus was abuzz with creative energy. Creative Arts at Park celebrated its 35th season—replete with singing, dancing, gymnastics, karate, artistic creations in every medium, and full-scale productions of Aladdin, Little Shop of Horrors, and Tartuffe! CAAP runs from June 26 – July 28, 2017. For more information, visit creativeartsatpark.org
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around park
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Summer at Park Summer at Park, our ACA-accredited program for kids ages 4 to 15, welcomed nearly 650 campers in 2016. The 20+ programs (art, cooking, leadership, outdoor adventure, science, sports, and general day camps) take place throughout Park’s beautiful, 34-acre campus, and many camps visit engaging destinations in and around Boston every day. Summer at Park runs from June 19 – August 18, 2017. For more infomation, visit summeratpark.org
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Many, many Park alumni spend their summers as Summer at Park camp counselors and lifeguards! (Back Row) L-R: Duncan Lamont ’15, Jonathan DeJesus ’15, Charlie Mathews ’14, Chris Mathews ’14, Dana Welshman-Studley ’85 (Front Row) L-R: India Davis Goodridge ’03, Grace Cinquegrana ’03, Ashwin Devavaram ’15, Leyla Ewald ’16, Enya Meade ’12, Sarah Power ’14 and Hadley Edie ’11 Alumni missing from this photo: Caroline Beecher ’15, Nina Levine ’13, Rick Ono ’15, Johnny Parry ’14, Anna Porter ’07, and Chloe Sahyoun ’11
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Summer Professional Development While school is officially “out,� faculty members are exploring and deepening their understanding about best practices of teaching and learning. Professional development took people to places as far away as Colorado and as nearby as our very own Park library and classrooms. Particularly exciting was a four-day seminar called E3: Engaging in Educational Excellence, led by Jorge Vega, Liza Talusan, and Pamela Penna. E3 was a summer institute designed to ask WHY: Why should we dive into diversity, equity, and inclusion? Why should we reevaluate our teaching and curriculum design? Why is everyone insisting that we integrate technology into our schools? In all, approximately 35 faculty and administrators, spanning all divisions, participated in this seminar based on theory, research, best practices, and applied learning.
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Summer Energy Efficiency Initiative
These improvements are the equivalent of
This summer, Park’s Facilities Team was busy with several major projects designed to improve the School’s carbon footprint and our annual budget as well. First, we replaced the original two 1970’s-era boilers with three new, highefficiency gas boilers. Since we switched from oil to gas, we also removed the 150,000-gallon oil tank that was buried under the driveway! The School’s water tank was swapped out for a smaller, tankless system. And, throughout the the school, we replaced 1,441 light bulbs with LED lights, adding motion sensors to conserve even more energy.
SAVING 1,081 BARRELS OF OIL FROM BEING BURNED IN POWER PLANTS, WHICH RELEASES HARMFUL GASES INTO THE ATMOSPHERE
PREVENTING 100 ACRES OF PINE TREES FROM BEING CUT DOWN
REMOVING 92 CARS FROM OUR ROADWAYS
SAVING 52,664 GALLONS OF GAS FROM BEING CONSUMED
ELIMINATING THE ENERGY CONSUMED BY 49 HOMES
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New Trustees Laura Barkan
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aura first got to know Park in 1992, when she met her future husband, John Barkan. As an alumnus of the school, John invited her to attend a Park School event. Laura recalled, “It struck me immediately that the alumni of the school, like John and his brother Peter, are kind, positive people, and they are passionate about the school that nurtured them so many years ago.” When it came time for their children (Jacob ’16 and Oliver Grade VI) to start kindergarten, John and Laura couldn’t think of a better place. For nearly 20 years, Laura has worked with the leadership of large public companies—as well as individuals seeking new insights—to help them learn how to change, lead and communicate more effectively. Prior to founding Leadership by Design, a consulting firm focused on helping to develop inspirational business leaders, Laura was a principal at Tapestry Networks, where she worked with the boards of directors of Fortune 100 companies in the US and Europe. Laura convened exclusive, multi-industry networks of audit committee chairs to address critical corporate governance and financial issues, and she published extensively on the insights gained in these networks. Laura is an active volunteer for educational and community non-profit organizations. Most recently Laura and her family started a nutrition program for a primary school in a remote area of Kenya. Today, this program serves more than 600
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children a healthy lunch every school day. The Barkans travel to the school regularly to work with the students and teachers, occasionally sponsoring US teachers to travel with them, including Park’s own Merrill Hawkins ’96. Laura has also held a variety of roles in the Parents’ Association at Park, such as co-chairing Springfest auction, chairing PA communications and serving on the Park Parent editorial board, and is honored to be assuming the role of President through the 2017 – 2018 academic year. Laura has a bachelor’s degree from Boston University and master’s degree in psychology from Harvard’s Extension School. In her free time, she enjoys travel, art appreciation, and yoga. Despite now officially being the weakest skier in the family, Laura refuses to give up chasing John, Jacob, and Oliver hiking and skiing through the mountains of Vermont and Colorado.
Peter Barkan ’86
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hen Peter walked his daughter, Lila, into school to start first grade last year, he was happily surprised to find himself in his own first grade classroom from many years ago. “It is amazing how much the education has progressed, while the values and energy of The Park School have remained the same over so many years. The School is still focused intently on equipping each child for his or her own success.” With Lila (Grade II) and Seth (Grade IV) at Park, he enjoys being on the campus frequently to connect with the kids, faculty, parents, and old classmates. Peter was awarded the Ellen Fowler Award for Citizenship at his graduation in 1986. After nine years at Park, Peter went on to St. Paul’s School, followed by Brown University, where he earned a bachelor of arts in urban studies and the history of architecture. “I even studied the ‘brutalist’ style of Park’s Main Building!” Post-college, Peter spent five years in the Boston area working in technology before earning an MBA at Duke University. Peter then worked as a consultant in San Francisco while trying to soak up all the skiing, cycling, and adventure that the Bay Area offers. When an assignment in real estate development came along, Peter
Carlos Castillo ’97
“S
ome of my closest and longest friendships started at Park, which is why I have never been able to let Park go!” Carlos, who joined the Class of 1997 in Grade VII, remembers every part of Park, from Morning Meeting, to Project REASON, to his whole ninth grade year. He was awarded the Ellen Fowler Award for Citizenship at his graduation. His class remains so close that now, 21 years
found it offered the diverse mix of legal, financial, architectural, operational, and technical issues that had always intrigued him. Peter is now the second-generation leader of The Barkan Companies, a regional competitor in multi-family real estate development and property management. In particular, Peter focuses on overseeing and expanding the family’s portfolio of affordable housing. Peter has been active at Park for many years as a long-term member of the Alumni Committee, and on the Buildings and Grounds Committee for the past four years. He is always curious about buildings and what makes them tick. “I really enjoy the challenges of making Park’s campus the best possible backdrop for the learning and activities that benefit our children.”
post-graduation, Carlos is in touch with Park friends every day. “There is a certain positive energy and connection that lives on and keeps me committed to Park.” Carlos joined the Alumni Committee in 2012 and is very excited to be serving as the Alumni Representative to the Board of Trustees. “When I look back, it is clear that The Park School has shaped me into who I am today. I truly believe if every community were like Park, the world would be a much better place. I am honored to be giving back to the institution in this way.” After Park, Carlos went on to Buckingham Browne and Nichols and graduated from Tufts University in 2004. He has spent the last 12 years in real estate, working in both commercial construction and residential development. In addition to holding a real estate license, Carlos is LEED-accredited and holds a construction license in the State of Massachusetts. Recently, Carlos has been focusing on the redevelopment of Dudley Square in Roxbury.
Sara Leventhal Fleiss ’95
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ara began her relationship with Park as a student in Mr. Segar’s second grade class in 1987, which continued while her younger sister, Rebecca Leventhal ’97, attended. As an adult, Sara has stayed engaged with the School as a member of the Investment Committee and the Alumni Committee. Park has played a key role in Sara’s education. Beyond teaching her the importance of a strong handshake and the song-worthy aspects of the Boar’s Head*, Goddard Avenue was where Sara first learned the critical thinking and strong analytical skills that have been the foundation of her career. Park fostered her passion to engage, learn, debate, and appreciate differences and varied opinions. When looking for a school for their son Solomon, Sara and her husband,
continues, next page *a reference to a traditional song from Yule Festival that has since been retired
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“Raising our kids to be global citizens is important.”
Sara Leventhal Fleiss ’95 continued
Peter, were impressed that these core values remained constant and integral to the Park community. After Park, Sara attended Milton Academy and Harvard College, where she studied applied mathematics. She then went on to receive an MBA from Harvard Business School. Sara co-founded and, until recently, was co-portfolio manager of Emeth Partners, an emerging markets arbitrage hedge fund. Prior to founding Emeth, Sara was the lead analyst on the emerging markets equities portfolio at Harvard Management Company (HMC). At HMC, Sara built and developed a team that focused on risk arbitrage, volatility arbitrage, and relative value trading strategies. She started her career on the Citigroup Equity Derivatives desk. This fall, Sara will shift roles to become a senior lecturer at Harvard Business School, where she teaches finance in the MBA program. Sara chairs the investment committee for United Way of Mass Bay and Merrimack Valley and serves on the investment committee of the Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts. She also sits on the advisory board of Match Education. Sara and Peter live in Brookline with their three young children, Solomon (Grade I), Morris (age 4), and Annabel (age 1).
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Neela Pal
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aving grown up in India, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Japan, Neela truly values the global perspective that is infused into the Park School experience. In social studies last year, her fifth grader learned about the US immigration experience and the stories of the variety of people who come to this country; her second grader studied the lives, food, shelter, arts, and cultures of people from Columbia, India, Mexico, and China, and in sixth grade, her oldest had a chance to participate in a South Africa apartheid simulation. “Raising our kids to be global citizens is important. It has been great to see all that Park does to help children understand the inter-connectedness of the world and how they can contribute to the both local and the global community.” After spending her elementary school years in Westchester, New York, Neela’s family moved to Tokyo, where she attended the American School in Japan. She met her husband, Sekar Kathiresan, in their freshman year at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. After graduation, Neela moved to Cincinnati to work in brand management at Procter & Gamble, while Sekar moved to Boston to attend medical school at Harvard.
Finally, after a few years of back and forth between the two cities, Neela joined Sekar in Boston while she earned her MBA at Harvard Business School. Neela and Sekar live in Newton with their three children, Nina (Grade VIII), Nikhil (Grade VI), and Devan (Grade III). “When Sekar and I were looking at elementary schools for our oldest, a number of colleagues recommended that we look at Park. In our meetings with the faculty and administration and in talking to other Park families, we were really impressed with the combination of a warm, inclusive community, a focus on academic excellence, and a commitment to developing confident and caring students.” At Park, Neela has volunteered at SpringFest, served as a Class Rep, and co-chaired the annual raffle at the Faculty & Staff Appreciation Luncheon. Neela is currently vice president of brand marketing at TripAdvisor, where she is helping the company transform from a review site to a travel booking and commerce site. “As businesses and organizations evolve, its critical to make sure that the brand—and what it stands for—also evolves.” As a trustee at Park, Neela is looking forward to helping the School define its place among independent schools, using her marketing and branding experience. “Park is a great brand, but like TripAdvisor, as we evolve our offerings, we have an opportunity to be even more clear about what we stand for and communicate that core to our current and prospective communities.”
Folashade (Shadé) Solomon
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hadé, a fourth generation Bostonian, joins the Park School Board of Trustees with over 20 years of education experience. Shadé started her career as an elementary school teacher and taught for eight years in the Wayland and Boston Public Schools. She organized and led faculty professional development work on pedagogy and literacy instruction, represented her schools at national conferences, facilitated whole school change initiatives, organized restructuring of grade-level teams, developed principal and teacher evaluation policies, helped design the school-wide, pre-service teaching mentoring program with Wheelock College masters students, and created curriculum for second and third grade project-based interdisciplinary units. Shadé then left the classroom and worked as a researcher and professional developer at TERC, a not-for-profit STEM education research and development organization in Cambridge. At TERC, she gained in-depth experience working with K-12 teachers to integrate science into interdisciplinary academic units. While at TERC, she also pursued a doctorate in administration, planning, and social policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her dissertation, Making the Invisible Visible: A Community of Practice Attempts to See Race and Integrate It into Teachers’ Practice, focuses on a professional development community in which teachers investigated their own practice of exploring issues of race, broadening their understanding of their diverse groups
of students and the subject matter they teach, and generally developing a socially-just disposition of inquiry toward their work. Shadé also holds a MS in leadership and policy in education from Wheelock College and a BA in theatre arts from University of Massachusetts, Boston. In her role as a post-doctoral research fellow at TERC, Shadé broadened her research to include her love of the performing arts. She looked at issues of science learning, race, and identity in arts-based organizations such as dance schools, music academies, and other culturally-based learning institutions that exist outside of K-12 school settings. She has shared her expertise working with local school districts as a consultant, school evaluator, and as a member of the Cambridge-Ellis School Board of Directors. Recently, Shadé discovered that she missed teaching and accepted a position as assistant professor of education at Framingham State University. She is passionate about her work with teachers, schools, and school districts to help build strong professional learning communities where all children achieve at high levels. When it came to finding the right school for their children, Isaiah (Grade VI) and Yael (Grade III), Shadé and her husband, Jesse, approached the challenge like a research project. After exploring public and private, small and large, and single gender options, they ultimately decided that Park was the best fit. Shadé and Jesse were excited about Park’s consistent science teaching from first grade on, small class size, and the quality of the daily experience Park provides children—going well beyond typical classroom instruction with multi-modal learning through the arts, music, and physical education. She looks forward to working with the Board.
Christina Vest
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he best part of Christina and John Vest’s morning is coming to Park together. “We love it! Not only do we get to spend time together as a family but we get to visit with the kids’ teachers and friends, have a cup of coffee with other parents, and attend Morning Meeting—what a great way to start off the day!” From their first visit, Christina and John felt a strong connection to the School. They both liked the strong sense Park’s inclusive, diverse community, as well as the exceptional faculty who would be teaching their children. “After spending the morning visiting classes as prospective Pre-K and Grade I students, Ameri and Charles announced that Park was their absolute first choice.” Park has been such a wonderful fit for both Ameri and Charles, who are now in Grades VI and IV, respectively. Christina was raised in Miami, but migrated north to attend Phillips Academy, Andover. She and John met at Harvard College, where Christina received her BA. After college, Christina moved to Dallas, to work at Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst, a private equity firm, then returned to Boston for her MBA at Harvard Business School. She and John reunited
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Christina Vest continued
in New York City, while John was getting his MD at Columbia and where he later joined the cardiology division faculty. After a few more moves, the Vests are now happily ensconced in Boston. Christina is a managing director and partner of Hicks Equity Partners, the private equity arm of Tom Hicks’ family office. John is senior director of clinical development at Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, a Cambridgebased biotech firm. At Park, Christina has enjoyed being actively involved with the Parents’ Association, co-chairing Springfest in 2014, co-chairing the Faculty & Staff Appreciation Raffle in 2015, and serving on the PA board last year. In addition, Christina has enjoyed being a Class Rep, as well as serving on the Major Gifts Committee and on the Finance Taskforce of the Strategic Plan Committee. “I am excited to be joining Park’s Board of Trustees and am looking forward to working with the administration, the faculty, and the parents of this wonderful school.”
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Mary Witkowski
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hen looking for a school for her children, Mary saw in Park a chance for her children to become curious, supported, and challenged and for her family to join a community of thoughtful educators and parents. Growing up in Marblehead, she attended two independent day schools on the North Shore very similar to Park: Shore Country Day School for grades Kindergarten–5, followed by Tower School for grades 6–9. “Tower was and continues to be a huge influence on my life – giving me a foundation for all of my subsequent education. I gained a lot from the strong academics, but gained even more from the individual relationships with faculty who took their time to teach me how to learn.” With that preparation, Mary enrolled in one of Deerfield Academy’s first co-ed classes and later Harvard College, where she majored in biochemistry and most importantly met her husband, Erik, in the library. “I know, kind of dorky!” After graduating from Harvard, Mary worked as a consultant at Bain & Company for three years and developed a keen interest in improving healthcare delivery systems. She earned her MBA from Harvard Business School and worked in business and finance for several years before enrolling at Harvard Medical School in 2007. Mary brings a unique business background to medicine. She is particularly interested in examining and re-tooling healthcare delivery systems that will improve patient care. “When I was at Bain, I worked with companies ranging from orange juice and paper cup manufacturers to financial services companies to improve how they delivered their products to the market. Now that
I’ve been on the inside of medicine, I am excited about the many opportunities I see for improvement in the way we provide medical care. We need to ask the right questions and be willing to make change to bring the facilities, technology, and organizational systems into alignment to provide better outcomes and better care for patients.” Erik and Mary live around the corner from Park with their four children, Erika (Grade VIII), Luke (Grade V), Cate (Grade II), and Jack (age 4). All four children are avid ice skaters, which has influenced the whole Witkowski family. Mary serves on the board of the Skating Club of Boston’s Theater on Ice Program and has joined an adult skating team as well. Since the family has been at Park, Mary has served as a class rep in Pre-K and in Grade VI, served on the Springfest Auction committee, and will be co-chairing the Faculty & Staff Appreciation Luncheon this year. Currently, she serves on the board of the Lynch Foundation, focusing primarily on supporting education and healthcare. During her tenure as a trustee at Tower School, Mary served on the head of school search committee and the strategic planning committee. As Park’s new strategic plan gets underway, Mary is excited to join the Board of Trustees.
Two Graduations in 2016
In this unusual year—the final year of the Grade IX program at Park—fourteen students graduated from Grade IX, and fifty students graduated from Grade VIII. Going forward, both classes will be known as the Class of 2016. To mark the occasion, the School held two separate graduation exercises under the green and white Park School tent on the Faulkner Field.
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Grade VIII Graduation
W E D NESDAY, JUNE 15, 2016
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Tenzin Dawa Thargay ’11 Attending Park from Pre-Kindergarten to Grade VI, Tenzin went on to The Roxbury Latin School where he continued to cultivate the seeds of service he developed at Park. He helped facilitate “Connected Living,” a computer literacy program for senior citizens, volunteered at the Epiphany School, and played on the varsity tennis team. Now a junior at the Commonwealth Honors College, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Tenzin is pursuing a dual degree in political science and Chinese language and literature. In the spring of 2016, Tenzin organized the Five College Conference for Compassionate Leadership and invited Dr. Thupten Jinpa, His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s principle translator. Over the summer, Tenzin served as an Annenberg Fellow with the Council of American Ambassadors interning with the U.S. Department of State’s Office on International Religious Freedom.
Grade VIII Graduation Address by Tenzin Dawa Thargay ’11
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ood afternoon faculty, staff, proud parents, extended family members, and of course, the illustrious Grade VIII of 2016. It is my extreme pleasure to serve as the inaugural Grade VIII graduation speaker. Of course, before I begin, I would like to make two quick thank yous. First, to Mrs. Lucey, my former sixth grade English teacher, who reached out to me with this kind invitation; I am truly humbled. And second, to my amazing parents. Thank you, Amala and Pala (mom and dad in Tibetan) for sending me to Park. I certainly would not be who I am if it were not for both you and this amazing school. Charged with the responsibility of imparting some words of wisdom as you transition into the next part of your young adult lives, I have been reflecting a lot on my own life leading up to
today’s event. On May 16th, I had the privilege of meeting Grade VIII only after they had endured not only a grueling mathematics exam and athletics practice, but also a review session for that following day’s exam! However, I was so impressed by your insightful comments, cohesiveness as a class, and exuberant energy! Today marks a milestone in your young careers—entering high school. This is no small feat and you should be extremely proud of yourselves and excited for the road ahead. In the brief time that I have with you here today, I hope to share some insights from my time in high school and experience so far in college. I started Park in the fall of 2000 in Mrs. Fabre’s Nursery class and spent eight formative years here before I left after Grade VI to attend The Roxbury
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Latin School. Visiting the beautiful new and old parts of Park last month washed me with waves of nostalgia. Everything from lining up to go to classes, collecting snack for the rest of my peers, or playing Zumbinis on the computer, all came back to me. From dressing up as a Minuteman in Mrs. Ong’s second grade class for the colonial school house visit, to doing my Greek Gods, Goddesses, Heroes and Heroines (GGHH) project on Perseus in Mr. Wells’s fourth grade class, I have certainly come a very long way—much as you all have today. You are all so lucky to have been nurtured in this amazing institution that is The Park School. Park’s values of cultivating, and I quote from the School’s
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mission, “an appreciation of similarities and differences of perspective and the interdependence of all people,” is perhaps one of the most important things you will gain from a Park education. As I walked the halls of Park and got to know you last month, I saw the mission statement in real life. To see such a beautifully diverse student body and faculty from all walks of life, working in harmony under one roof, gave me such immense hope for the future and how the world should act. I had the privilege of hearing the Dalai Lama yesterday when he was in Washington D.C., and he actually said something very similar to the Park School mission statement! His Holiness emphasized that we seven billion human beings are essentially all the same. We all want to be happy, healthy, and not suffer. Sure, we may look different, have our own points of view, or come from varying walks of life, but at the core, we all want similar things and we should celebrate and embrace one another for
our uniqueness. At Park, I never felt that there was a feeling of “being different” in the pejorative sense. Rather, it was celebrated as being unique and adding a special tile into the beautiful mosaic that is Park. When you leave Park and ultimately step back and view the mosaic that you were a part of for so many years, you will see all of the unique and beautiful pieces, that when combined, form a loving, compassionate, and caring environment. Stepping into your new high school, college, and adult lives, you will inevitably encounter people with different points of views, backgrounds, and beliefs. Embrace them for their unique outlooks and never lose that appreciation for similarities and differences of perspective and the interdependence of all people, for those encounters oftentimes prove to be the most formative. I think the most important parts of my character and set of values that I developed at Park were service and leadership. Today I would like to encourage
you all to leave Park and enter your next institution as compassionate leaders for the 21st century. While this may sound like a daunting challenge, you will find that Park has equipped you with the proper tools. So what does it mean to be a compassionate leader? Oftentimes when we engage in leadership, our ego arises and can corrupt the motivation of genuinely helping people without expecting anything in return. Given the current political climate and the recent tragic events in Orlando, it is imperative to both cultivate and harness this unselfish emotion. Park has a long-standing tradition of service learning and teaching service to young students. From participating in the Chop-a-thon, to doing “Job Time” or
visiting the Horizons For Homeless Children in Jamaica Plain, Park was quietly planting the seeds of service in my mind. I distinctly remember making bookmarks and selling them to raise money for tsunami relief when I was in the third grade. At that time, all I knew was that there were people across the world who were far less fortunate than me and that I had the power to make a small difference in their lives. If Park was where my seeds of service were planted, then Roxbury Latin is the place where they would be cultivated. Emblazoned on the Refectory, our dining hall, is the phrase, “to whom much has been given, much will be expected.” At Roxbury Latin, service is an integral part of the school’s mission of preparing boys for “church and service.” While the days of preparing young men to enter the seminary are long gone, this value of service still shines bright as Roxbury Latin enters its 371st year of operation. Grade VIII, I encourage you to not only reflect on the privileges and experiences that Park has given you, but to also rise to the occasion of meeting
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the expectations placed on you. If you haven’t found out already, you will soon realize that adding service to others as a part of your life will bring you much joy. In the next chapter of your young careers, try to get involved in helping others as much as possible. Let the seeds of service planted by Park grow as strong and unwavering as the mighty Charter Oak, which serves as the powerful symbol of this school. Be it brownie sale or volunteer tutoring, don’t simply just do it because it will look good when applying to colleges or on your resume, but do it because you feel moved to help other people who are in
NEX T S CHOOL S FOR GR A D E VI I I
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Abshir Adam Jacob Barkan Oliver Bernstein Zane Bookbinder Jonathan Breitbart Jordyn Britton Will Carter Alaina Cherry Gracie Chiang Sallie Lawrence Chope India Claudy Sydney Cohen
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need of aid. That is the type of motivation that will yield the most rewarding and fruitful experiences. When I met you in May, I asked you all what you thought compassion meant. One brave young lady raised her hand and provided a perfect answer. She said something along the lines of, “a feeling you that makes you concerned when you see other people not doing well.” In April, I put together an event at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, called “The Five College Conference for Compassionate Leadership.” Reflecting on all of the national and international conflict, I realized that a fundamental
component was missing; compassion. Compassion transcends boundaries, beliefs, and backgrounds. It allows us to tap into our shared humanity. I invited Dr. Thupten Jinpa, principal translator of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, to speak about compassionate leadership, along with a panel of esteemed professors from the Five College Consortium, who explained what compassion means in their fields. These professors, who all teach different subjects, helped me to not only develop “an appreciation of similarities and differences of perspective and the interdependence of all people,” but also to understand why we
Buckingham Browne & Nichols School Phillips Academy, Andover Nobles and Greenough School Milton Academy Cambridge School of Weston St. Joseph’s Preparatory School Buckingham Browne and Nichols Milton Academy Milton Academy Beaver Country Day School Milton Academy Buckingham Browne & Nichols School
Katie Conn Georgia Cook Shelstie Dastinot Breanna Durand Zoe Falkson Jake Flanagan Jake Gershberg Lev Goldman Sadie Golen Simon Grossman Charlie Guerra Natalie Hatton
Milton Academy Middlesex School Dexter/Southfield School Brimmer and May School Beaver Country Day School Boston College High School Newton North High School Cambridge School of Weston Winsor School Brookline High School Nobles and Greenough School Beaver Country Day School
need compassion now more than ever. According to Dr. Jinpa, “we are increasingly living in a multicultural environment and especially the universities and high schools are the most multicultural places.” Thus compassion, something that this school so successfully teaches you, combined with leadership, creates limitless potential for you all to make a difference in the world. I truly believe that Park is the perfect garden to cultivate the necessary seeds for compassionate leadership in the 21st century. From the School’s mission, to the hours you have spent both inside and outside of the classroom
Ambrey Hayes Lucas Hill JohnO Hoins Will Keating Charlotte Ketterson Karina Kilburn Sophia Lowry Daniel Mangan-Geltman Caleb Mansbach Gage McWeeny Ben Moskowitz Mikayla Paquette Jeffery Perry
serving others and learning, you are developing the key elements of leadership. From understanding oneself as well as others, to embracing another perspective, you are also developing key life skills that will carry you far. As you enter your new schools, keep this South African proverb in mind: “If you go alone you will go fast, but if you go with others you will go far.” Surround yourself with loving and supporting faculty and friends who will encourage you to go far in life. Far too often we fall in love with the thrill of going fast. But remember that what you forgo in speed, you will make up in lasting memories and friendships. While the population of countries is expanding, our worlds have never been closer together. In a time of unprecedented interconnectedness, we must not forget what unifies us all, compassion. Take stock of all the privileges and
Groton School Cambridge School of Weston Cardigan Mountain School Nobles and Greenough School Beaver Country Day School Thayer Academy Nobles and Greenough School Brewster Academy Buckingham Browne & Nichols School Belmont Hill School Beaver Country Day School Beaver Country Day School Winchendon School
experiences you have gained and use them to serve other people, for much will be expected of you. Grade VIII, while the road ahead is long and uncertain, I have no doubt that Park has prepared you well for what lies ahead. As you leave its nurturing walls and enter into the fertile ground that is high school, and ultimately college, you will blossom into contributing members of those societies and become change agents. I am so excited for your bright future, and I hope you continue to cultivate those seeds of compassion, leadership, and service. Congratulations to Grade VIII, the brand new Class of 2016!
T HE JOA N CROCK E R AWA RD F OR COM M U NIT Y SE RVICE
Polly Tsai Each year, the Parents’ Association presents this award in honor of former Park parent Joan Crocker, who exemplified the kind of devotion and steadfast zeal this award recognizes in its recipients.
Jessica Reed Camila Salcedo Jake Sanghavi Kaity Severin David Shaw Jada Smith Khyle Smith Nathan Smith Betsy Soloway-Aizley Nicole Taylor Russell Thorndike Henry Tsai Clare Wibiralske
Buckingham Browne & Nichols School Boston Latin School Nobles and Greenough School Concord Academy Milton Academy Boston University Academy Dana Hall School Milton Academy Brookline High School Dana Hall School Groton School Beaver Country Day School Loomis Chaffee School
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Gilad Seckler ’10 Gilad first stepped through the doors of Park as a shy sixth grader in September 2006. Over the next four years, he would undergo a journey of great personal and vertical growth—a journey culminating in his legacy as the mastermind behind the fabled “Team Smock” of TOTAL Day lore as well as several historic talent show acts. After graduating in 2010, Gilad enrolled in Newton North High School, where he spent many hours playing and singing in music groups, running around the track, and kicking soccer balls. Gilad’s hard work in school paid off and he now attends Brown University. At Brown, he can most often be found playing trombone or Ultimate Frisbee, with the exception of a brief hiatus during Fall 2015 at Tel Aviv University. Gilad worked at a developmental psychology lab at UC Berkeley this summer.
Grade IX Graduation Address by Gilad Seckler ’10
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aculty, staff, students, families, alumni, trustees, and Class of 2016—what an honor and a privilege it is to be back here in this tent for the first time in six years. For those who don’t know me, my name is Gilad—or as Mr. Savage likes to call me, Gilahhrd—and I graduated from Park in 2010. If you have ever attended a Park School graduation, you’ll know that it is pretty much obligatory for the speaker to offer advice to the graduating class and to reminisce about the good times he or she had at Park. I must admit that, as someone who prides myself on originality, I was sorely tempted to break from this precedent. But after several drafts and advice from people I trust, I realized that this occasion is about you, ninth graders, not me, so I want to—for the most part—stick to the playbook. Part of what makes this school special are the traditions that continue year after year and the way that every class has the chance to make the experience their own. I remember walking around the library in eighth grade looking at all the poetry anthologies; and I remember decorating the cover of my own anthology, which I titled “Fishing for Stars,” with wallpaper from my childhood bedroom. I remember the extensive
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Grade IX Graduation FRIDAY, JUNE 17, 2016
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planning and careful construction that went into the House Project during sixth grade, my first year at Park; I still have the cardboard model I meticulously designed, complete with its umbrella-shaped roof. And I remember the competitive spirit of TOTAL Day and the excitement I felt when tasked with leading my own team in ninth grade; I embraced this role by making the executive decision that we call ourselves Team Smock, for the sole purpose that I wanted to write a cheer called “We Will Smock You.” These experiences, with their shared but also profoundly personal elements, are a large part of what brings the Park community together and also what helped me grow as an individual in my time here. But when I reflect on my time at Park, I would be remiss to ignore the fact that some of the foremost memories in my mind are also my low points and greatest failures. I remember occasions, thankfully rare, when I was excluded or insulted, and I remember a few times when I was guilty of the same offenses. I remember jumping onto a hotel bed and breaking it during the trip my Latin class took to Italy and then, just a few days later, causing an old elevator to get stuck at a different hotel. I remember going through the woodshop in ninth grade with a friend, gluing tools to tables and sealing a cabinet shut for no reason other than our own amusement. I’m not proud of decisions like these—they were stupid and irresponsible. But they taught me some important lessons. In the last example, in particular, the lesson came in the form of the sticky punishment deemed fitting for our sticky crime: my friend and I were to scrape gum off every surface in the school. I remember that as we were going room to room with our little plastic gum scrapers, we walked into Ms. Bogue-Myslik’s class at one point and found her doing work.
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We apologized for interrupting and proceeded to crawl around inspecting the underside of every piece of furniture in the room. Of course, Ms. Bogue-Myslik was caught somewhat off-guard by the appearance two students holding what are probably best described as tiny spatulas taken from the kitchen of the world’s saddest play house. So I explained how we had ended up there while Ms. Bogue-Myslik listened patiently to my story. At the end of the saga, she confirmed that gluing random items around the wood shop was indeed quite stupid. And then she said something which stuck with me, a piece of advice she had received from a wise and sacred source, and which I am now going to pass on to all of you: “You know, I was listening to an NPR podcast recently where the point of one of the stories was that if you’re going to do something stupid you should at least let it happen while you’re young.” (Or something like that). Which is not terrible advice in my opinion.
Now, let me be explicitly clear to the students in the audience: I do not condone gluing stuff to the walls and counters of the wood shop. But if you have to make stupid mistakes in your life, now is the time to do so because those same mistakes can be incredibly valuable and memorable in the long run. In short, as you transition into high school and beyond, I want to encourage you all to step out of your comfort zone. Within reason, of course—pay attention to those little alarm bells too if something really doesn’t feel right. But, for example, if a friend invites you to a party and you’re afraid you won’t know anyone and you kind of just wanted to stay in
anyway because you think you might be getting sick blah blah blah…just go! You won’t regret it. Or, honestly, you might, but at least you won’t regret not having gone, which is a far worse feeling in my opinion. Ask someone on a date, but accept that they may decline, and then you’ll be sad for a bit and get over it. Or they may say yes, but it will be really weird and uncomfortable, and you’ll make some adjustments the next time you go on a date. Or it may be great. My point here is that positive and negative experiences can both serve as incredible opportunities to learn—but you can’t benefit from either if you don’t put yourself in situations to have new experiences. So take risks, and try to keep the big picture in mind when not everything you try goes exactly as you had hoped. A few months ago, I had an hour to spare between class and work, and I decided to grab a sandwich and consume it on the way to a meeting I wanted to squeeze in. So there I am, scarfing down a hoagie as I hurry along the street, when I hear a man’s voice say, “Excuse me.” I look up to see a distinguished-looking older gentleman in a brown suit. The crown of his head is perfectly smooth and bald, with graying hair carefully combed on the sides. He speaks in an accent that sounds vaguely Mediterranean. “Forgive me,” he says, “I am sure that the reason you are hurrying from one place to another eating in this way is because you are very busy. But I must tell you, it is not good to eat and walk like this.” He then told me that if I were some sort of refugee, who had to take whatever chance to eat I could get, that my behavior would be justified. But that
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NEXT SC H O O L S FOR GRADE IX
those with the good fortune of not having to worry about their next meal were much better off sitting and enjoying their food, even if it means rushing to the next appointment. My gut response was one of defensiveness. Who does this old European dude think he is to tell me when to eat my sandwich? I thought. But this emotion quickly gave way to a sense of embarrassment. My behavior, I realized, was so at odds with the values of this stranger that he had felt it necessary to take it upon himself to correct me. And, frankly, he’s right: I don’t believe it’s healthy—physically or psychologically—to eat on the go. So I swallowed my pride, along with a good chunk of chicken salad, thanked the old man for his advice, and made a resolution to set aside meals as a time out from the rest of my day. And I’ve stuck with it. Class of 2016, your lives are only going to get more complicated and tightly scheduled over the next several years, and this makes it all the more important to take breaks—especially during periods of high stress and high volumes of work. Build specific times and places for relaxation into your daily routine, and you will thank yourself at the times when you really need them. At Park, you are blessed with a structure that creates opportunities for both focus and breaks, but in high school and college you will need to take greater responsibility for your own day-to-day functioning. I encourage you to study hard but also to chill hard. Set aside small pockets of time to just be with your friends—even something as simple as a quick bite to eat. Find a creative outlet, whether that be writing poetry or playing a musical instrument. Figure out what works for you. Class of 2016, my main advice to you thus far has been to take risks and to take breaks, but before I wrap up, I want to step back for a moment. Recognize that the chance to take risks and take breaks is a luxury that not everyone has. Unlike many young people around the world, you have so many
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Orly Burnes John Joseph De Marco Megan Duckworth Harry Golen Pierce Haley Thaddeus Howe Sujay Jain Henry Ngo Nanneke Nicholas Claire Randolph George Rowe River Studley Kyla Wright Kion Young
Cambridge School of Weston Roxbury Latin School Dana Hall School Buckingham Browne & Nichols School Buckingham Browne & Nichols School Northfield Mt. Hermon Brimmer and May School Brimmer and May School Dana Hall School Dana Hall School Thayer Academy Norfolk Agricultural High School Boston Trinity Academy Phillips Academy, Andover
adults nudging you, supporting you, and guiding you in the right direction, and I promise you that you will end up in a situation you can feel good about by the end of high school— no matter how stressful it may be along the way. A staggering amount of resources are being put into your education, and that gives you a certain responsibility to make your parents and teachers’ investment in you worth it. Now is the time to let these adults know how thankful you are and to start thinking: what is my education leading to? How will I give back to my community? You are now an ambassador for the values you have learned at Park: hard work; creativity and collaboration; simplicity and sincerity. I found out when I visited a few weeks ago that the very year after I graduated from Park, each ninth grade began branding itself with a class word. First of all, I just wanted to say I am disappointed to have missed out on this trend, so I am taking this opportunity to retroactively claim #HYPE as the official word of the Class of 2010. But the Class of 2016 came up with a word almost as good, and that word is Significant. At this moment, you ninth graders certainly are significant; but in a way it’s difficult for you not to be—you are the oldest in the school, few in number, and, sadly, the last of your kind. But next year you will very likely be insignificant once again. And I say that not to scare or depress you but because I want you to understand that with this transition you have the chance to rededicate yourself, to redefine yourself, and, ultimately, to become a new and better kind of significant. Now is the time to start thinking about what that significant will look like and how you will get there. So as you move forward, ninth graders, my advice to you is three-fold: take risks, take breaks, and take pride in your education. Congratulations, Class of 2016, and good luck.
2 016 G r a d u a t i o n Aw a r d s THE ELLEN FOWLER AWARD
HEAD OF SCHOOL’S AWARD
THE CURTIS E. SMITH
F OR CITIZENSHIP
FOR ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE
ATHLETIC AWARD
George Rowe River Studley
Harry Golen
Orly Burnes Henry Ngo
THE ISABELLA T. GROBLEWSKI
THE JOHN SPICER AWARD
ARTS AWARD
FOR UNIQUE SERVICE
Claire Randolph
Kyla Wright
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Grade IX at Park 19 6 7 – 2 016 by Kate LaPine, Director of Communications The Ninth Grade Program Concludes With The 2015 –16 Academic Year
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ark’s Grade IX program, which flourished for nearly 50 years, epitomized the best of a Park School education. With intentionally small classes, Grade IX enabled 14- and 15-year-olds to grow, to know themselves better, and to take risks within a familiar environment. For decades, Park teachers carefully crafted a “senior year” for ninth graders. The School’s oldest students participated in an outstanding academic program that prepared them well for a wide variety of strong secondary-schools. Ninth graders served as leaders for the School community. They were captains of athletic teams, leads in dramatic productions, club and student council presidents. They traveled overseas with their language classes, living with local families and learning about and experiencing other cultures. And they tried out a “job” during their two-week Work Study projects. All this, as ninth graders.
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The American educational landscape was changing in the 1960s and ’70s. High schools were being redefined—going coed, adding advanced placement classes, accommodating independent study—exciting changes that best served students in Grades 10, 11, and 12. Many public schools were grouping young adolescents into junior highs for Grades 6 through 9. These changes coincided with the arrival of Park’s ninth head of school, Harry Groblewski, who came to Park from an elementary school in South Carolina that had grown into a high school. Park was losing students to other schools after sixth grade, and Mr. Groblewski saw that adding ninth grade would strengthen the whole Upper Division. In doing so, Park was able to attract faculty who had a real passion for adolescents and saw themselves as middle-school specialists. What Park created with the leadership of an astonishingly strong team of educators was an extraordinary program called Grade IX. Headmaster Emeritus Bob Hurlbut states, “Park’s Grade IX challenged the strong, confident learner, scholar, athlete, and potential leader who could polish and test his or her emerging skills and comfort level. It also gave the hesitant student a safe place and time to master struggling skills and sense of self-worth. In essence, Grade IX was a place to mature in a familiar
setting and benefit from a deeply committed, caring, and versatile faculty along with classmates who had been together for four to eleven years. Grade IX provided a place to grow and better select one’s next school. Being treated as a ‘senior’ and not as a ‘freshman’ (although these terms reference the same age group) can make a profound difference. In brief, Grade IX was a place to stretch, create, try something new, and build upon the friendships of many years.” While the Grade IX program continued to shine for decades, several factors, including decreased demand and changes to the larger academic landscape, converged to spell the end of ninth grade at Park. Beginning in 2014-15, the School engaged in a comprehensive review of the program. While the committee strongly believed in Park’s Grade IX and recommended that the School should continue to have a ninth grade, these outside factors were driving demand, and directly affected the ability to offer a meaningful Grade IX experience. In fact, the question of keeping Grade IX at Park is not a new one. Head of School Emeritus Jerry Katz recalls that during his 20-year tenure, demographic trends began to shift. “There was a point, probably around the early 2000’s, when other area schools that had ninth grade programs decided to discontinue them. We made a very curative decision at that point, after reflecting on it, to continue to offer Grade IX at Park. We knew it would be to a somewhat
smaller cohort of students. When I first came to Park in the early 90s, our ninth grades averaged between 28 and 32 students. In the last decade of my leadership years at Park, it was probably more like 18 to 22 students. That certainly was a change, but one that we perceived didn’t infect program quality. In fact I always said 9th grade couldn’t be 9th grade if there was ever a year when no one decided to leave after 8th grade and everyone stayed. Part of the character of the program was a smaller class redefining itself.” In October 2015, after learning that the number of eighth graders who were planning to stay for Grade IX would be very small, the School recognized that it could not provide a robust Grade IX experience for just a handful of students. A task force composed of trustees and administrators then conducted a thorough evaluation of the future of the Grade IX program at Park. During its review, the Grade IX Evaluation Committee researched and analyzed information from multiple sources. The Committee conducted surveys and had discussions with the parent community, faculty and staff, surveyed “next schools” most frequently attended by Park students, and
made outreach to other key constituents including former Park administrators and trustees. This process strongly affirmed the perception within the Park community and at next schools of the high quality of Park’s Grade IX program. However, the data and discussions clearly pointed to a changing environment which colored Grade IX’s viability as a program. Most notably, the Committee determined that family perceptions within the Park community had evolved to a widely-held preference for students to seek a secondary school experience beginning in ninth grade. The Committee also found that secondary school admissions and financial aid trends overall, and among the next schools most relevant to current Park families, reflected this preference for students to matriculate over a four-year integrated high school program. After careful consideration and based on the recommendation of the Grade IX Evaluation Committee, the Board of Trustees unanimously voted to transition Park to a pre-kindergarten to eighth grade school at the conclusion of the 2015-16 academic year. Grade IX Evaluation Committee Chair Pete Riehl concluded, “We believe that this decision will serve to strengthen Park’s focus on excellence in elementary and middle school education and affirms Park’s motto of ‘Simplicity and Sincerity.’”
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o commemorate Park’s Grade IX program, the School commissioned a video to be presented at the Grade IX Lead Us Out evening on September 29. We interviewed more than 20 individuals who had a deep connection to Grade IX during its 49-year tenure. Time would not allow us to include everyone’s voice in the film nor in the remarks made that evening. However, in the pages that follow, we have selected a few reflections that highlight the essence of the program. The School is grateful to all who participated in making the Grade IX video and evening possible.
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Peter Amershadian, Faculty Member (1988–2011)
Alexis Lelon, Faculty Member (1984–2006)
Sally Baker, Faculty Member (1976–2004)
Harlem Logan ’86
John Barkan ’85, Current Parent
Alice Perrera Lucey ’77, Faculty Member (1984–present)
Peter Boskey ’05
Eliza Drachman-Jones Quincy ’98
Keisha Powell Burgess ’90, Current Parent
John Rich, videographer
Alison Burr ’70
Alan Rivera, Faculty Member (1998–present)
Alison Connolly, Faculty Member (1989–present)
Michael Robinson, Head of School (2013–2016)
Comfort Halsey Cope, Faculty Member (1977–2016)
Carolina Samudio-Ortega ’96
Cynthia Harmon, Head of School (2016–present)
Jonathan Shaw, Faculty Member (1966–1978)
Wanda Holland Greene, Faculty Member (1997–2008)
Margo Ayres Smith, Faculty Member (1972–2016)
Julia Holton ’15
John Spicer, Faculty Member (1960–1977)
Bob Hurlbut, Headmaster emeritus (1969–1993)
Stephen Weiss ’67
Jerry Katz, Head of School emeritus (1993–2013)
Dana Welshman-Studley ’85, Faculty Member (1994–present)
Rena LaRusso ’04
Kyla Wright ’16
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Grade IX at Park “Grade Nine was the heart and the soul of the school. It really was about the values at Park, and the values that Park taught you. Park taught you how to really be a good person, how to be a good citizen, how to treat people the way you might want to be treated. It wasn’t just about all the things we learned in the classroom, but it was really also about learning to be a good citizen.” JO HN B A R KAN ’ 85
19 6 7 – 2 016
“I think the not-so-secret secret to the ninth grade was its size. The fact that it was small by definition allowed the light to shine really clearly on the trees that were left in the forest. As a number of the students left at the end of eighth grade, the students who were left were allowed to flourish and have their voices heard and really develop their confidence in a way that in a bigger class might not have been as possible.” COMFOR T H AL S E Y COPE
“I think what ninth grade meant to me is what ninth grade meant to Park. It was a leadership year, a distinctive year. An opportunity for kids to be more visible, more up front and center at a time when many of their peers were moving on to new schools. I think ninth grade meant academic rigor. It meant empowerment. It meant advocacy for equity and justice. It meant things that I associate with the Upper Division in particular, but with Park School in general. It was just a condensed version.” J E R RY K AT Z
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“Everyone knew who the ninth graders were. I think the ninth graders, virtually without exception, rose to the occasion of being leaders. I use the word leader in a more general sense than simply heads of organizations or chiefs of publications or whatever it might have been. You just knew when the ninth graders were present. They took on the role of leadership by setting examples for how to be a good human being with each other. I remember how many times sitting in the library and watching a ninth grader who noticed a younger student having trouble with homework or something, and almost without fail, they would step over and help the younger one. I would often hear the young students speak in semi-reverent terms about the ninth graders. That was part of the fun. That transition from six through nine, for me, is a magical time in life. Having had the opportunity to be part of it for so long was a very refreshing thing for me.” PE T ER AM E R S H A D I A N
“Just having the sense that they were the seniors of the school, that all the other kids looked up to them, made them really step up. In every single venue, whether it was on the playing field or running Morning Meeting or being in a play, I can’t think of another ninth grade that would stretch the kids as the ninth grade program at Park did.” SA LLY B A KER
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Grade IX at Park 19 6 7 – 2 016
“When I decided to start the Gay Straight Alliance, I will always remember the support and the really warm, welcoming environment that the faculty and administration offered to begin that kind of affinity group in a middle school setting.” PE TE R B O S K EY ’ 0 5
“When I was a third grader, I remember looking up to the ninth graders. I thought they were already in college. In my head, I assumed they were getting ready to go become doctors and lawyers. It felt like they had taken time to give back to the school for a year instead of going off to high-school a year earlier. I was like “that’s really cool.” When I became a ninth grader, we knew leadership was a goal. It was always talked about when you become a ninth grader, you’re going to represent the school, you’re going to be leaders in the school. In my ninth grade year, I happened to be captain on three teams: cross country, wrestling and track. I felt like it was a responsibility as opposed as something that was assumed that I would get. It was something you had to work towards.” H ARL E M LOG AN ’8 6
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“The language trip was an opportunity that many students, including myself, would not have ever had. I’ve never been back to France—that was my once in a lifetime opportunity. We weren’t just tourists sightseeing on those trips. We really got to experience the countries and the cultures and kind of make those times or events our own. My daughter had an amazing experience too. Because of her trip to Spain she wants to study abroad and pursue international business, which she is actually minoring in now. Her ninth grade trip opened up a whole new world for her.” K E IS H A P OW E L L B U R G E SS ’ 9 0
“Another tremendous moment was when the ninth graders would come back from their work study programs. I loved hearing how they reflected on their experiences, engaging in meaningful work in areas of study or work with mentors. I could see the personal vocational growth and self awareness and self discovery that would happen in just a short period of time. I knew in that moment that this was an experience that I would want every middle school, early high school age student to have. I wanted to bundle it up. I’m so grateful that Park offered that to those students. I know it’s life changing.” M I CH A E L ROBINS ON
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“I remember that my work study was helping with administrative duties and interacting with families at a women’s shelter in Jamaica Plain. That opportunity to volunteer at this shelter really opened my eyes to desire to do more for people. I currently work at an organization that does socially responsible investments. I find that’s a way to bridge that desire to do more for the community with my financial background, a mission that was instilled in me through my work study experience. I now have clients that give money to my work study women’s shelter. It is just wonderful. I never would have thought that that same shelter would come back full circle in my life 20 years later.” CAR O LIN A S A M U D I O-OR T E G A ’ 9 6
“The tenacity, self confidence, and eye opening experiences I gained during my years at Park, and especially as a member of the first ninth grade, are without a doubt, responsible for my personal and professional success.” S T E PH E N WE IS S '6 7
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Epilogue
T
he event, Grade IX Lead Us Out, served as a way for the Park community to mark the end of the ninth grade program, to acknowledge the loss, to gather together and celebrate, and ultimately, to move on. Alice Perera Lucey ’77, herself a ninth grade graduate, and the administrator responsible for Upper Division, closed the evening with these remarks.
T
onight has been an honoring, a good bye and a way to mark that Park is moving forward... We began the 2016 – 2017 year as a Pre-K – Grade VIII school. Our eighth grade program has always been strong, and it continues to be a year which combines academic excellence and opportunities for growth. This year, eighth graders lead student organizations, they make up the yearbook staff, they are the captains of teams, they will run Total Day, and in Morning Meeting, they sit in the back rows
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“Each of you, connected to Grade IX by personal experience and devotion, has woven into the fabric of the school by being a part of this special program.” A L I C E PE RE RA LU C E Y ’7 7
of this theater and lead us out after the “moment of silence.” I am proud to say that the Class of 2017 is already demonstrating what it means to lead by example as the oldest students in the school. While eighth grade will never become a carbon copy of the ninth grade, the underlying elements of the things we valued most about the ninth grade are being woven into Grade VIII. I use the word weaving intentionally. Those of you who know me well, know that I am intrigued by the phrase, the fabric of the school. What does that mean? What does that look like? Why fabric? Fabric refers to woven cloth. It also refers to the basic structure of something. Time and time again, the things that are most important to Park are referred to as part of the “fabric of the School” because these things have been woven into the basic structure of what we do and who we are and because the threads combine to tell a story—the story of the School. To really understand this fabric weaving metaphor, one must understand the threads themselves, the warp and the weft, and how they work. Let me explain. Warp threads are fixed vertical threads that form the backbone of the weaving. The weft threads are woven across the warp, and these are the threads that tell the story by painting a picture, if you will, into the fabric. The weft threads can be changed in a process called discontinued threads when one weft is knotted or tucked into place and another is introduced. To me, the warp represents the permanent parts of the School—the core values, the pieces of the Park mission that have not changed and will not change even as mission statements have been re-written over time. The warp is the backbone of the weaving, invisible actually in a tapestry but of the utmost importance because the warp threads give support and structure to the weft threads. I believe that many of warp threads of The Park School stand for the things we love most about Grade IX. These
threads include the importance of relationships and a sense of belonging, the belief in and respect for each student as an individual, the care and attention which allow students to blossom, find a passion and trust their voice, the commitment to excellence, the joy of learning fueled by curiosity, creativity and confidence, the commitment to group leadership, and the multiple opportunities for each student to learn and grow both in and out of the classroom. While parts of the warp are fixed, Park’s fabric is not static. Rather than one unchanging square, the fabric of the School continues to be woven, discontinued weft threads are knotted and changed, which allows the fabric to tell an ongoing story, evolving as necessary. How exciting to think that we are, right now, weaving new threads into that fabric. How important to realize that the things we love most about the ninth grade are, in fact, so central to the school that they form the backbone, the structure, the warp to our woven fabric and are, as a result, permanent threads in the story of the school. The weft of Grade IX—the discontinued threads I described earlier— have been gently knotted and tucked into the back of the tapestry. New weft threads are being woven as we speak, beginning to tell the story of a Pre-K – VIII school. Each of you, connected to Grade IX by personal experience and devotion, has woven into the fabric of the school by being a part of this special program. And while the weft threads may have changed, your story is still there, still strong, still important. And your collective legacy, the legacy of the ninth grade will continue to provide structure and permanence to the fabric of the school as we move forward. Ninth graders led us out of Morning Meeting for close to 50 years. Many of the things we love most about Grade IX will continue to lead us onward.
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Grade Lead Us Out 2
celebration: Grade IX Lead Us Out
1
The Grade IX program holds a special place in the fabric of school life and it has made a transformational difference in the lives of many Park students, faculty, and families. For 49 years,
3
Park’s oldest students were asked to lead—both 4
literally and figuratively—on a daily basis. And, at the end of every Morning Meeting, following the moment of silence, the speaker at the podium would close by saying, “Ninth Grade, Lead Us Out.” That phrase seemed like a fitting title for an event designed to celebrate, remember, and say goodbye to the Grade IX program. On the evening of September 29, hundreds of former ninth grade students (from the 1970s to the very last ninth grade graduates of 2016), parents of alumni, and current and former faculty gathered first in the library, and then filled the theater for an informative and moving evening of reflections and a video presentation that is posted on Park’s website. In the following pages, we present some highlights.
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5 1 Julia Holton ’15 reads her poem, “Imagining the Gold of Graduation Day,” a response poem to Robert Frost’s “Nothing Gold Can Stay.” 2 Olivia Moorehead-Slaughter and Olamide Olatunji ’07 3 Kay Peterson and Merle Jacobs 4 Wanda Holland Greene 5 Diane Wright and Brandon Johnson 6 Colin McNay ’75 and Toni Gilligan 7 Charles Li ’04 and Dana Welshman-Studley ’85 8 Michael Maynard, Annabelle Ambrose, and Jerry Cathey 9 Alice Perera Lucey ’77, Jerry Katz, and Wanda Holland Greene 10 Chloe Page ’15, Kym Morris ’15, and Moni Sparrow ’15 11 Eliza Drachman-Jones Quincy ’98, and John Rich, creator of the Grade IX Lead Us Out video. 12 Cynthia A. Harmon
6
13 Diana Walcott ’85 and Ben Lampert ’07 14 David Ball ’85, Betsy Ball, and Vinny Chiang 15 Emma Tiedemann ’08 and Olivia Cinquegrana ’08 16 Rodger Cohen ’74 and Polly Hoppin ’74 17 Bob Hurlbut 18 Miriam Posner ’03 and Laneisha Gray ’03 19 Jerry Katz 20 Curt Miller and Elizabeth Sandman Norian ’92 21 Emilia “Mimi” Stubbe ’03 and Judy Hale 22 Janina Galler, Elizabeth Sandman Norian ’92, and Alexis Lelon 23 Merle Jacobs, Ira Wilson, and Kevin Maroni 24 Mikayla Paquette ’16, Orly Burnes ’16, and Natalie Hatton ’16 25 Fred Hoppin, Tom Smith, and Snowden Henry ’80 26 Lynn Prives and Helen Burrage 27 Cary Williams ’09 and Sophie Moss ’09
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WATCH THE VIDEO: www.parkschool.org/Page/ About-Park/History--Mission
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alumni notes
1962
RE U N ION YEAR!
CLASS REPRESENTATIVE NEEDED!
1963 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Amy Lampert
1966 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Wigs Frank
1936
1953
Rosamond Kent Sprague is “still well at 94! Perhaps due to Park’s good meals and regular exercise!”
CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
1967
Bob Bray
CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
1938 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Putty McDowell Ham Coolidge has moved to the Coolidge Farm on the edge of Squam Lake. He’s living with his son John and wife Ann, and John is building a new house for all of them in the area.
1942 Sherman Clough Jr. has just celebrated his 89th birthday. He lives in Williamsburg, Virginia and recalls his Park School days fondly!
1944 Jerri Godfrey Paul has “twenty years of volunteer service for Meals on Wheels. Twenty, also, at Enchanted Forest Nature Sanctuary.” She has also published a children’s book, Remarkable Ralph, The Christmas Cat.
1945 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Natalie Park Shutz
1948 Renny Little writes that “my son Bob’s two oldest daughters played on Acton-Boxborough’s division one state champion field hockey team last fall.”
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REUNION YEAR!
Davis Rowley Peter Wetherbee writes, “I wish I could tell you we had been climbing in Nepal or hiking in New Zealand. The fact is we are reliving parenthood, and somewhat tied down. Our son Pete and his 17-yearold twin sons have been living with us for the past few years, which we enjoy very much, but it keeps us busy. Andrea runs a busy household and I’m still doing scholarship, keeping in touch with alumni of the Cornell Prison Education Program (which is thriving, and now gives a two-year degree), and trying to keep my poor garden from wholly succumbing to the drought that is afflicting upstate New York.” Peter is also the recipient of the 2016 Alumni Achievement Award. Please see the last page of this magazine for more.
1960 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE NEEDED!
Roger Nott wrote in and says, “I am enjoying my retirement dividing my time between my home Gainesville, Georgia, and my wife Emme’s homes in the mid-Hudson River Valley. I do a lot of whitewater canoe tripping, teaching, promoting, and judging, including judging this year’s Canoe Slalom Olympic Trials in Charlotte and Oklahoma City. We recently returned from a wonderful trip to Barcelona, Arles, and Paris timed to coincide with the singer Adele’s world tour, on which Emme’s daughter Katie Kresek serves as concert mistress. In Georgia, I enjoy being near my son John, who is a partner in an Atlanta engineering firm, and his two year-old daughter Savannah.”
Congratulations to Heidi Ravven! “This has been an exciting year for us. My second grandchild was born in August, Yael Sophronia Bruria Morris-Ravven. She joins sister, Lucy, in beautiful Putney, Vermont. In the fall, I was named a Fellow of Ramachandran’s Integrative Neurosciences Research Program (INRP) and also became a Member of the Atrocity Prevention Study Group, in Washington, DC. This spring, my book on neuroscience and ethics, The Self Beyond Itself, is coming out in Chinese translation published by the People’s Publishing House, and I set out for a book and lecture tour in China. My daughter, Simha Ravven, M.D., has been appointed assistant professor of law and psychiatry at Yale and she and her family are moving to the New Haven area in June.”
1968 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Vicky Hall Kehlenbeck
1970 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Anne Singer Paul Ayoub, a partner at Nutter in the real estate and finance department and a member of the Nutter Charitable Advisors, has been elected Vice Chair of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce’s
Board of Directors. A longtime member of the Board’s Executive Committee, he also serves as secretary and general counsel as well as co-chair of the Chamber’s real estate development committee. Congratulations Paul! Tamsin Knox writes, “I spent ten days hiking in the Dolomites in Italy this summer with my husband. We carried 20-pound backs and walked from one Rifugio (mountain hut where hikers can eat and sleep) to another along the line of the front between the Italians and the Austrians in the First World War. There was still snow, barbed wire, fragments of artillery shells, and bullet casings from machine guns lying on the ground. The wildflowers were stunning with gentians and orchids growing by the trails. I thought often of how my hiking trips started under Mr. Bourne and the Park School Mountaineering Club. I even brought back a summit rock for my collection!”
1972
RE U N ION YEAR!
CLASS REPRESENTATIVE NEEDED!
1973 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Rick Berenson
1974 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Margaret Smith Bell Rodger Cohen
1975 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Colin McNay Bill Sullivan
1976 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Tenney Mead Cover
1977
RE U N ION YEAR!
CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Sam Solomon Sam Solomon reports: “All is well in the Solomon family. I am working in Providence at RISD.”
From the very small world department… This summer, I went to our favorite restaurant in Indianapolis for an early dinner and I saw New Bedford scallops on the menu. I mentioned to the waiter that I was from Boston and was happy to see New England represented on the menu. He said he was too...from Dorchester-Mattapan. I told him I’d gone to high school in Milton and commuted through Dorchester, to which he responded “Milton? or Milton Academy?” Now, it struck me as a little odd that he was aware of the two schools in Milton. But it got even weirder when he mentioned that he had gone to Park, “You know, the Park in Brookline, the one on Goddard Avenue, with Mr. Katz.” I just about levitated from the booth!!! In my 20+ years in Indiana, no one—and I mean NO ONE—has been familiar with Park or Milton. The well-informed waiter was none other than Arden Assee, Park Class of 2005, who had moved to Indianapolis after finishing eighth grade at Park. Arden hopes to own his own restaurant/bar soon and is two years into a five-year plan to get there. Thought you’d enjoy this story of two Parkies in Indy.
up from Dover with his family along with their two dogs—one a new puppy—on their way to take their sons to camp. Between 4 dogs, 2 goats, and our neighbors’ chickens, we had quite the party! Hey, only three years until our 40th reunion! Anyone interested in a mini-reunion sooner? Hope you’re all well!” “In honor of our Swedish ancestry,” Holly Dando and her mom visited Sweden this summer. “We had so much fun eating great food, seeing cool museums in Stockholm, and bonding with the spirit of Ingmar Bergman on Faro. I am loving my work with Headstrong Project providing psychotherapy to traumatized veterans of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. I will be heading to Los Angeles to see the ELO reunion show at the Hollywood Bowl in September with some friends—music from our era! I also had a great visit with Kitta Frost ’74 who came through town last month.”
Linda Thomas Terhune ’76
1980 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE NEEDED!
Jessica Slosberg Benjamin writes to us, “I am very proud of Jennifer Gooch Hummer, my classmate and forever friend, on the publication of her upcoming young adult book, Operation Tenley. It’s a laugh-out-loud fantasy with a sense of humor and rollicking plot twists. This first installment of the ‘Fair Ones’ series is available on Amazon.com.” Congratulations, Jennifer!
1981 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Matt Carothers Alex Mehlman
1982
RE U N ION YEAR!
CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Allison Nash Mael
1979 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Lalla Carothers Sally Solomon Lalla Carothers writes, “We’re having a fun-filled summer in Cumberland, Maine. I saw Margie Talcott for a brief visit in Brookline before a Sox game in June. After my 30th college reunion (already?), we acquired two Nigerian dwarf goats named Iris and Venus. No kidding. A week later we loaded
them in a dog crate and took them and our dog to Vinalhaven Island for our 4th of July vacation. The goats are adorable and funny, especially when they jump around. For the second year in a row, we hosted a 12-year-old boy from New York City for a week in mid-July as part of the Fresh Air Fund, a wonderful program that matches inner city kids with families in rural areas. My 13-year-old daughter and I are joining eight other students and another chaperone for a two-week exchange program in Aomori, Japan. I wish I could remember more details from Mr. BentinckSmith’s eighth grade social studies class: ‘You don’t know that Japan is an island???’ In August I’m going to climb Mt. Katahdin. Hope these 50-something knees hold out! My brother Matt Carothers ’81 drove
Holly Dando ’79 and her mom celebrating midsummer in Sweden.
10th: 2007 15th: 2002 20th: 1997
SAVE THE D AT E
25th: 1992 30th: 1987 35th: 1982 40th: 1977 45th: 1972
Saturday REUNION 2017 May 20 50th: 1967
If you are interested in helping plan your reunion, please contact Rena LaRusso ’04, Director of Alumni Relations, at 617-274-6022 or alumni@parkschool.org
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he Alumni Award T for Distinguished Service to The Park School Established in 1999, the Alumni Award for Distinguished Service is presented annually at Graduation to an alumna or alumnus of The Park School for dedicated service to the Park community.
Garrett Solomon, Class of 1986
Garrett Solomon ’86, received the 2016 Alumni Award for Distinguished Service from Board Chair Vinny Chiang at Graduation in June.
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G
arrett Solomon attended Park from Grade VII – IX, and those three years have clearly made an impact, as Garrett is one of Park’s most devoted alumni volunteers. For the past eleven years he has dedicated innumerable hours to Park, including eight years of service on Park’s Board of Trustees. Park has been extremely fortunate to benefit from his diligence and commitment as a volunteer. Garrett’s service began when he became a member of the Alumni Committee in 2005. In 2007, Garrett joined the Buildings and Ground Committee of the Board as a non– trustee member. Beginning in 2008, Garrett started his official Board tenure as Alumni Representative on the Board of Trustees, a position he held until 2012. In 2012, Garrett then joined the Board for a three-year term. In 2013, Garrett became Chair of both the Buildings & Ground Committee as well as the Security Task Force Committee. In this capacity, Garrett was one of the leaders of the renovation of the front entrance construction project, which transformed Park’s welcome to the community. In 2015, Garrett was appointed to the Strategic Planning Committee and the Upper Division Task Force. Currently, Garrett holds the role of Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees. While he has worn many hats during his eight years on Park’s Board of Trustees,
Garrett’s leadership and aplomb have shone through in each position he has held. He has always enthusiastically and eagerly taken on different tasks for Park and this, combined with his expertise, is something we have all benefitted from. In 2006, Garrett was instrumental in establishing the Class of 1986 Financial Aid Fund in honor of their upcoming 20th Reunion. This Fund provides financial aid to a student entering Park in the sixth or seventh grade, and continues to support this student throughout his or her years at Park. The nature of this Fund is yet another example of Garrett’s generosity, kind-heartedness, and reflects his deep appreciation of Park’s values. In 2009 and 2010, Garrett also served on the Alumni Engagement Task Force, a group of 16 alumni who developed a comprehensive Engagement Plan for alumni of the School, resulting in many initiatives which are now established elements of Park’s alumni program. Garrett has given back in so many ways to the School, and his alumni voice on the Board has always been strong. We are extremely fortunate to have him as a dedicated volunteer at Park, and are deeply grateful for his leadership, time, and commitment to the School. Park is proud to award Garrett the 2016 Alumni Service Award.
alumni notes
1983
1994
2000
CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Lisa Livens Freeman Elise Mott
Alan Bern Aba Taylor
Jessica Whitman Seney
1984
1995
CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Anne Collins Goodyear
Lilla Curran
Elena Wethers Thompson wrote in to say, “Hi to my classmates! Hope everyone is well! All here is well and busy—life is full with work and kid activities—two gymnasts will keep you busy. Have been at Johns Hopkins for eight years now and just moved late last summer to a wonderful house closer to work and schools—yea! I keep in touch with Alicia Lancaster Silva and Jessica Pearlman, and love being in touch with many of you on Facebook.”
Danny Jensen is a food and travel writer for Thrillist, Time Out, TravelZoo and other publications covering Los Angeles and beyond.
1996 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Kathrene Tiffany Bell Nick Brescia Merrill Hawkins Katayoun Shahroki
1997
1986 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
RE U N ION YEAR!
CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Mark Epker Jay Livens
Sarah Conway Suzy McManmon Sarah Robbat
1987
1998
RE U N ION YEAR!
CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Mary Sarah Baker Fairweather Geoffrey Glick
Lydia Hawkins Meg Lloyd Sarah Swettberg
1988 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Liza Cohen Gates
1989 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Dahlia Aronson Ian Glick Rebecca Lewin Scott
1990 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Zachary Cherry Alexander Rabinsky
1992
RE U N ION YEAR!
CLASS REPRESENTATIVE NEEDED!
Daphne Johnson Berger enjoyed a nice long stay in Boston this summer. Daphne was joined by her family—husband, Brandon, and two-year-old son, Brooks, to beat the New Orleans heat, while working remotely, as vice president of leasing for Retail Union Partners. She was excited to hang out with fellow Parkies Alex Whisnant and Eliza Drachman-Jones Quincy, who live in the area.
1999 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Colin Arnold Susanna Whitaker Waters Elizabeth Weyman
Frances! After seven years of teaching and living at boarding schools in New York and Switzerland, David Kehlenbeck decided that he needed a change to day school life. In August 2015 he moved to Richmond, Virginia, and is now starting his second year teaching high school math at the Collegiate School, a private Junior Kindergarten-Grade 12 day school. He loves living in Virginia again and being only an hour away from his alma mater in Charlottesville. He would love to catch up with anyone who lives in the mid-Atlantic!
Cotton Codinha is associate editor of beauty and fitness for Elle Magazine in New York City. It’s been a busy year for Frances Denny. She married Joshua Brau on Squam Lake in September 2015 and was awarded a Fellowship from the New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) in Photography. The Artists’ Fellowship Program is administered by NYFA with leadership support from the New York State Council on the Arts. The program is highly competitive and this year’s recipients and finalists were selected by discipline-specific peer panels from an applicant pool of 2,669. Frances also published her first book of photographs, Let Virtue Be Your Guide (Radius Books) in May 2016. Her book explores her family, their history as settlers of New England, and the idea of feminine virtue. Congratulations,
2001 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Ben Bullitt Katharine Haskell tells us: “This has been a very big year for my family. I got married to my wonderful husband, Jesse Skinner, last September and we are expecting our first baby, Jackson Haskell Skinner, in August. We have also just moved to Virginia where I will finish my Navy career. On a sad note, my father, George Haskell, passed away last September. He is greatly missed by all of us.’
Become a Class Representative C l a s s e s o f 1960, 1961, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1978, 1980, 1985, 1991, 1992, 2002
á Stay in touch with friends! á Gather class news for the Bulletin! á Help plan your reunion! Want to learn more?
1993 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Jessica Ko Beck Jaime Quiros Alison Ross
Please contact Rena LaRusso ’04, Director of Alumni Relations, at 617-274-6022 or alumni@parkschool.org
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alumni notes
Above: 2005 classmates Rachel Kay and Ellie Shepley celebrating with Page Smith at Page’s bachelorette party.
2002
RE U N ION YEAR!
Clockwise from top left: Class of 2005 friends Jamie Maynard and Rachel Kay posed for a picture at a chance encounter; Madeleine Mitchell ’06 celebrates completing her fifth Pan-Mass Challenge; Friends from the Class of 2005: Rebecca Feinberg, Lily Bullitt, Laura Kerry, and Camille White-Stern.
CLASS REPRESENTATIVE NEEDED!
Alex Lebow has moved from New Orleans to Portland, Oregon, to start a job at Nike. Congratulations Alex!
2003 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Diana Rutherford
2006
Congratulations to Peter Warren, who wrote the script for the movie Ghost Team, which opened in theaters this August.
CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
2004 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Steven Fox Congratulations to Amelia Levitan on her engagement to Joe Bailey!
2005 CLASS REPRESENTATIVE
Lily Bullitt Sabrina Lee graduated from college in 2012, and has been working in civil rights and criminal justice since then. “I’m a rising 3L at Harvard Law School and am pursuing a career in public defense. I get to see Aldel Brown ’04 around the law school campus, and Olamide Oladipo, who just graduated from
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McCall Cruz Harvard Business School, and who is still one of my closest friends. As I work in criminal justice and represent indigent defendants, I am so thankful to Park for focusing so much on civil rights and racial justice when we were younger.” Sarah Tiedemann is “currently (like as of this minute) driving cross country to Denver, where I have accepted a position at Stanley British Primary School as the annual fund and alumni relations manager. I am also a certified Bar Method instructor teaching in Boston and now in Denver. Would love to know if there are any Parkies in Colorado!” Ashley Sharp writes, “Everything is wonderful on my end. I graduated from Georgetown School of Medicine in May and have moved to the West Coast for my residency training! I am one month into my intern year in Medicine at UCLA and am absolutely loving it so far.
In June 2017, I will move to San Francisco (where my sister, Else Sharp ’07, currently lives) to complete my anesthesiology residency at UCSF!” Rachel Kay and Ellie Shepley recently celebrated Page Smith’s bachelorette party in the Bahamas. Rachel also recently ran into Jamie Maynard at Johnny’s. Gordie Sayre has been working for the Department of State since 2013, and is about to take his first overseas posting for two years in Caracas, Venezuela. Lily Bullit writes, “after graduating, I spent two years working at a community organization in Kibera, Nairobi, and am now working in New York for a non-profit that does international pro bono work. Oliver English and I (and our moms) recently went to see Tucker Halpern perform with his band Sofi Tukker in Boston and I love seeing Parkies in NYC whenever we get the chance.
Madeleine Mitchell writes in, ‘This August, I rode in my fifth PanMass Challenge, a two-day, 192mile bike-a-thon that raises money for cancer research and treatment at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. This year was my second ride in honor of my mom, Susan Siebert, who was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia in October 2014. She went through intensive treatment at DFCI, including chemotherapy and a stem cell transplant, and a year of recovery at home. She is now doing great and is back at work as of January this year. I now ride the PMC along with family and friends on Team Mama Love, in honor of my mom and other ‘mamas’ who have undergone treatment. Over the course of my five PMC rides, I have raised over $33,000 for Dana-Farber.”
At right, Cary Williams ’09 and Jess Franks ’09 traveled together through Europe over the summer. Here they are at Park Güell in Barcelona.
2007
Above, Annie Goodridge ’10 is breaking records in track & field at Oberlin. Go, Annie!
RE U N ION YEAR!
CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Thomas Cope Benjamin Schwartz Mollie Cunningham Young Jacob Aduama has accepted the position of test engineer with the Volvo group (Volvo Trucks), in Hagerstown, Maryland. Congratulations, Jacob!
2008 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Manizeh Afridi Marielle Rabins George Bell graduated from Trinity College in 2015 and works for AOL in Boston. Natalia Salcedo is living in Framingham and working at a municipal law firm as a legal assistant. She also met up with Sofia Silverglass during the summer in Provincetown!
2009 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Mercedes Garcia-Orozco Cary Williams Elizabeth Ayoub writes, “I will be graduating from Vanderbilt in May 2016! I have accepted a position in management consulting for Accenture and will be based in Atlanta.” Congratulations to Lexie Sparrow, who graduated from Occidental College in May 2016. David Livingstone graduated from the University of Chicago and is moving to Castine, Maine, to pursue a master’s in maritime management.
2011 Stephanie Mehlman is moving to New York to pursue a master’s in Health Administration from the Columbia School of Public Health. Miranda Haymon is moving to Washington, DC, for a year to be the directing fellow at Arena Stage. She may run into Samantha Shalom, who will also be in the nation’s capital to start a career in financial consulting. Friends since their Park days, Cary Williams and Jessica Franks traveled together in Europe following their college graduations. Cary Williams graduated from Harvard College and moved to San Francisco to become an Associate Consultant at Bain & Company. Isa Moss and Sophie Moss are working for City Year in Boston.
Annie Goodridge just finished her sophomore year at Oberlin, where she has managed to break numerous records in track and field that eventually led her to a bid at the national indoor championship for Division 3 schools in March! Congratulations, Annie.
CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Grace Donnell-Kilmer Eliza Thomas
2012 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Enya Meade Jaleel Williams James Bell is a freshman at Trinity College.
2010 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Annie Goodridge Gilad Seckler Michela Thomsen Henry Bell is a junior at Trinity College. Emily Hoyt spent the summer conducting bioengineering research at the EPFL in Switzerland. In the fall, she will enter her senior year at Williams to complete her bachelor’s degree in chemistry.
At Milton Academy’s Cum Laude ceremony in the spring, three Park alumni from the Class of 2012 were recognized for their academic achievements. Congratulations, Carter Wilcox, David Jones, and Sam Brigham!
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2013 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Maddie Hurley Kat Mitchell
2014 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Ellie Formisano Olivia Mills
2015 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
Caroline Beecher Jonathan DeJesus
2016 CLASS REPRESENTATIVES
John Joseph DeMarco Charlotte Ketterson Gage McWeeny River Studley
The Class of 2016 Joins the Alumni Association
News from Former Faculty & Staff Pauline Davis (Music 1971 – 1978) writes, “When I thought I was completed ‘retired,’ I took on volunteer duties at church: vestry, bell choir, and others. Life is full with visits to and from daughter Amy and family (William 12 and Emily 10) and lots of music with my husband Peter Epstein (brother-in-law of) Mary Epstein, who taught at Park from 1973 – 75.”
Sally Baker (Assistant Head of School 1980 – 2004) had a chance encounter with Jonathan Tucker ’98, at a book-signing party in Los Angeles!
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The Park School Bulletin
fall 2016
The Park Alumni Association welcomed the two Classes of 2016 (14 graduating ninth graders and 50 graduating eighth graders) as the newest members of the alumni community in June. This spring tradition is where the upcoming graduates get their first look at post-student life. Park’s Grade IX were hosted at Faulkner House for a pizza lunch, and they heard from alumna Diana Walcott ’85 about why she remains connected to Park, and serves on Park’s Alumni Committee. Park’s Grade VIII had an ice cream sundae party, where they heard from Rena LaRusso ’04 on the importance of staying engaged with the School. Congratulations to John Joseph DeMarco, River Studley, Gage McWeeny, & Charlotte Ketterson for being elected as their Class Representatives!
alumni notes Arrivals Clockwise from left: Benjamin Norian, son of Elizabeth Sandman Norian '92; Lindsay Segar ’99 holds her brand new twins, Lily and Samantha; Charlotte, daughter of Jessica Whitman Seney ’00, proudly displays her Park School bib; and Maxwell Reale’s (Class of 2000) son Whitney.
1992 Elizabeth Sandman Norian and Mark Norian Benjamin Norian September 29, 2015 1996 Carolina Samudio-Ortega and Emmanuel Ortega Nia Maia Ortega August 13, 2016 1999 Lindsay Segar and Marco Steinsieck Lily Segar Steinsieck & Samantha Susan Steinsieck August 2, 2016 2000 Jessica Whitman Seney and Scott Seney Charlotte Child Seney August 31, 2015 Maxwell Reale and Elizabeth Reale Whitley Thomas Reale April 17, 2016
In memoriam Amy DiAdamo Foster September 14, 2016 Director of Alumni Affairs 2005 – 2007 Aunt of Annie DiAdamo ’16, Jake DiAdamo ’17, and Chloe DiAdamo ’22 Robert Fraser June 23, 2016 Father of Jennifer Boyd Fraser ’82 Rev. Cornelius ‘Neal’ Hastie June 15, 2016 Father of John C. Hastie ’78 Ruth Kenerson June 26, 2016 Wife of Dr. Bob Kenerson ’53 and former Pre-K teacher Mario Rubio-Ospina August 5, 2016 After-School Program and Woodworking Teacher 2000 – 2010
Marshall Neilson September 8, 2016 Marshall, a member of Park’s Technology Department and a Growth Education teacher for twenty years, passed away after a nine-month battle with leukemia. Marshall was beloved by students and adults throughout the School for his humor and love of music. For Marshall, Park was more than just a workplace with work colleagues—it was a place of great joy, kindness, and deeply-rooted friendships. Seventeen years ago, Park was also where Marshall met his future wife, Liz, who was a teaching intern. Since 2013, Liz has been a member of the Academic Support Department and their three children, Bea (age 11), Parker (age 8), and Molly (age 4), have all benefited from a Park education. In lieu of flowers, please send contributions to Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in memory of Marshall Neilson to support cancer research and patient care, PO Box 849168, Boston, MA 02284 or dana-farber.org/gift
Susan Smith July 30, 2016 Mother of Amy Smith Berylson ’68, Rob Smith ’74, and Debra Smith Knez ’75 fall 2016
The Park School Bulletin 47
alumni notes
College Choices for the Class of 2013 Carlo Abelli Yoo Jin Ahn Noosha Aliabadi Victoria Alvarez Nathan Baranski Samuel Brigham Watson Cheek Clasby Chope Elsie Coen Liam Connor-Moreno Mica Curtin-Bowen Courtney Drucker Melinda Edie Samuel Feibel Tyler Fizek Sophie Formela Ashlyn Frank Pavel Frantsen Isaiah Freedman
Yale University Boston University Pitzer College Reed College Boston University Yale University (fall 2017) Harvard College Oberlin College Georgetown University IMG Academy Post-Grad year Muhlenberg College University of Michigan Colby College Cornell University University of Denver Wesleyan University Fordham University Loyola Marymount University Brandeis University
Isabelle Gilman Villanova University Maya Gordon Haverford College Justine Hatton Middlebury College Elizabeth Hemp Bryn Mawr College Margaret Hemp Smith College Madeline Hurley Bates College David Jones Washington University in St. Louis Sarah Kavoogian Middlebury College Rebecca Samantha Koppel University of Chicago Nathan Krieger Wesleyan University Robinson Lamont Oberlin College Nina Levine College of William and Mary Henry Lutes University of Washington (Seattle) Lillian Mannion Princeton University Elizabeth McKown Tufts University Yale University Eliza McNay Benjamin Mooney American University Boston University Nnamdi Okwerekwu
Eleanor Grant Parker Colby College Miguel Principe New York University Sabrina Rabins Colby College George Reeders University of St. Andrews Zachary Ruben University of Colorado, Boulder June Sass Colorado College (fall 2017) Lilienne Marie Sexton Dartmouth College Pavel Sonkin Gap Year Rachel Spitzer Haverford College Alexi Leah Struzenski Dickinson College Anna Thorndike Yale University Emily Tyszka Case Western Reserve University Isabelle Wallace Trinity College Carter Wilcox Harvard College Thomas Wolpow Middlebury College Boston College Eliza Wright Stephanie Yemane Boston University
Members of the Class of 2013 Graduating from High School in 2017 Mikaela Elizabeth Cox James Robert Feinberg Chloe LeStage
St. Mark's School Belmont Hill School Milton Academy
Katherine Mitchell Caroline Strong O'Boy Harry Sherman Erin Simshauser
William Thorndike Jameson Woods Denny Yu
Tabor Academy The Winsor School Noble & Greenough School The Winsor School
The Brooks School Beaver Country Day School Concord Academy
Please note that the above list, compiled by the Alumni Office, does not include all members of the Class of 2013. Alumni not appearing on this list have not submitted their information to our office. Please call the Alumni Office at 617-274-6022 or email at alumni@parkschool.org with any changes or additional information. Thank you.
S AV E T H E D AT E !
Young
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For the Classes of 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017
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YULE FESTIVAL
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Questions? 617-274-6022 or alumni@parkschool.org
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The Park School Bulletin
fall 2016
FOLLOW US AND STAY CONNECTED WITH PARK!
BOARD OF TRUSTEES 2016 – 17
ALUMNI COMMITTEE 2016 – 17
Fall Bulletin 2016 Annual Report of Giving 2015 – 16
Officers Vincent Chiang, Chair Polly Crozier, Vice Chair Peter Riehl, Vice Chair Stanley Shaw, Secretary Sam Wilderman, Treasurer
Greg Kadetsky ’96, Co-Chair Joanie Amick Kelly ’83, Co-Chair
Editor Kate LaPine
Martina Albright ’83 David Ball ’85 Laura Barkan Peter Barkan ’86 Seth Brennan Denise Jefferson Casper Carlos Castillo ’97 Vincent Chiang Sara Leventhal Fleiss ’95 Heeten Kalan Conan Laughlin Jessica Lutzker Todd MacLean Amy Lloyd McCarthy ’86 Katie McWeeny Nikki Nudelman Kate Olmsted Neela Pal Shadé Solomon Kerry Swords Christina W. Vest Edward “EJ” Whelan Mary Witkowski Emily Lubin Woods Ex Officio Cynthia A. Harmon Head of School Kimberly Boyd Assistant Head for Finance & Operations Board Chairs Emeriti Kennett F. Burnes David D. Croll Charles C. Cunningham, Jr. George P. Denny III David G. Fubini M. Dozier Gardner John L. Hall II Kevin J. Maroni J. Michael Maynard Anne Worthington Prescott Suzie Tapson Deborah Jackson Weiss Headmaster Emeritus Robert S. Hurlbut, Jr. Head of School Emeritus Jerrold I. Katz
John Barkan ’85 Peter Barkan ’86 Kathrene Tiffany Bell ’96 Bob Bray ’53 Aldel Brown ’04 Astrid Levis-Thorne Burns ’98 Emily Potts Callejas ’89 Carlos Castillo ’97 Greg Cope ’71 Lilla Curran ’95 Melissa Deland ’95 Sara Leventhal Fleiss ’95 David Glynn ’91 Abigail Ross Goodman ’91 Anne Collins Goodyear ’84 Jennifer Segal Herman ’82 Julia Lloyd Johannsen ’93 Bob Kenerson ’53 Amy Lampert ’63 Abbott Lawrence ’85 Eve Wadsworth Lehrman ’95 Nia Lutch ’97 Chip Pierce ’81 Miriam Posner ’03 Eliza Drachman-Jones Quincy ’98 Kate Gormley Saeli ’02 Katharine Burrage Schmitt ’95 Alyssa Burrage Scott ’92 Jordan Scott ’89 Rebecca Lewin Scott ’89 Sarah Shoukimas Ryan ’97 Garrett Solomon ’86 Diana Walcott ’85 Laura Church Wilmerding ’84 Rebecca Wilsker ’00
Design Robert Beerman, Onward Upward Photography Coffee Pond Photography Flo Farrell Heidi Johnson Tom Kates ’84 Kate LaPine John Rich Printing Puritan Capital
The Bulletin is published twice yearly for the alumni, parents, and friends of The Park School. We welcome your comments and ideas. The Park School 171 Goddard Avenue Brookline, Massachusetts 02445
2016 Alumni Achievement Award: Peter Wetherbee ’53 Park is proud to honor educator and volunteer Winthrop (Peter) Wetherbee ’53 as the 2016 recipient of the Park Alumni Achievement Award.
To contact the Bulletin: Kate LaPine Director of Communications 617-274-6009 lapinek@parkschool.org
PETER WETHERBEE ,
To report alumni news: Rena LaRusso ’04 Director of Alumni Relations 617-274-6022 alumni@parkschool.org To make a gift to Park: Beatrix Sanders Director of Development 617-274-6020 sandersb@parkschool.org To report address changes: Jamie Byron Development Associate 617-274-6018 development@parkschool.org The Park School admits qualified students without regard to race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, ancestry, sex, disabilities, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, or family composition to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the School. Park does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, ancestry, sex, disabilities, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, or family composition or any other status protected by applicable law in the administration of its educational, admissions, financial aid, athletic and other policies and programs.
Cover artwork David Rome (Grade VIII)
NO M I NATI O NS SO U GHT F O R :
T H E PA R K A L U M N I ACHIEVMENT AWARD This award is given to the Park alumnus/alumna who exemplifies the School’s values and educational mission through distinctive achievement in his or her community or field of endeavor. This person’s leadership and contributions have made a meaningful impact and inspire our current students and alumni. To nominate a Park alumnus/ alumna for this award, please include your nominee’s name, class year, profession, and reason for nomination. All submissions must be received by January 6, 2017 to be considered for the 2017 award. Send nominations to alumni@ parkschool.org or The Park School Alumni Office, 171 Goddard Avenue, Brookline, MA 02445.
now retired, began his distinguished career at Cornell in 1967. As the Chair of the English Department, he decided to act on a long-standing wish to give back, and started the Cornell Prison Education Program (CPEP). The Cornell Prison Education Program got its start more than a decade ago when a group of Cornell professors started volunteering their time to teach courses to the prisoners at the Auburn Correctional Facility, a maximum security level prison, located in Auburn, NY. In a July 2010 Ithaca.com article, Peter told the story of the program’s founding. “I first started as a volunteer in the GED program in Auburn, but then the director of volunteer services at the prison asked if I would expand into teaching some writing and literature courses. We used to joke that I was a little one room schoolhouse.” He was later joined by two more instructors and they were able to move the teaching from a monthly to weekly basis. Peter taught the first class of inmates about the writings of Mark Twain and Herman Melville. The program, with the backing of Cayuga Community College and a substantial gift from Doris Buffet’s Sunshine Lady Foundation, has become a fully accredited program where students earn Cornell credits which are then transferred to Cayuga. The Community College later awards the students an associate’s degree when enough credits are earned. All of the classes are taught by Cornell faculty and PhD students and consist of a largely liberal arts curriculum that ranges across classes in genetics, biology, constitutional law,
international human rights, anthropology of Japan, Shakespeare, economics, medical anthropology, and theatre. In addition, the program also offers preparatory classes for those inmates not yet admitted to CPEP. The program is also not just limited to prisoners, and has recently started offering courses to correctional officers. In a 2004 issue of the Park School Bulletin, Peter wrote of his classes at CPEP that “it took many months to build a relationship of trust—a trust that depends on the men’s assurance that you will be coming back week after week, on sensing that you, like them, are feeling your way into the relationship. Gradually a guarded intimacy takes shape, and we, too, begin to learn, to feel what it is like to be incarcerated, what it does to a man and what it teaches him.” Peter also wrote that in his 40-year teaching career, “nothing in that time has been more fulfilling than Cornell at Auburn. As everyone I know who does similar work would acknowledge, it changes your life.” Peter attended Park for ten years, and other alumni in Peter’s family include his mother Carolyn Hall ’26, and his sister Helen Wetherbee ’57. After Park, Peter attended Milton, Harvard, University of Leeds (UK), and finished at the University of California, Berkeley, where he earned his PhD in English literature. Peter currently lives in Ithaca, New York. We look forward to Peter’s visit to Park this year on December 2, 2016, and can’t wait to hear more about his experience at CPEP!
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