Andover Bread Loaf A Phillips Academy Outreach Program
Fall Newsletter 2018
From the Director
Building a Youth-Driven Social Movement
Founded in 1987, Andover Bread Loaf (ABL) empowers students, teachers, schools, and communities to transform themselves by igniting a passion for learning through written self-expression and the arts. ABL is a partnership between Phillips Academy and the Bread Loaf School of English, Middlebury College’s graduate school.
Andover Bread Loaf is celebrating its 31st year as an advocacy program focused on helping the citizens of Lawrence reclaim their city. Our networked approach develops youth activists, educators, and leaders from the community in a pre-K through college pipeline. Recent funding awarded to Middlebury College’s Bread Loaf Teacher Network (BLTN) by the Ford Foundation for the BLTN Next Generation Leadership Network intensified ABL’s work on that pipeline. Lawrence youth are now working with peers from five other sites around the country—Atlanta, Louisville, Navajo Nation in Arizona, rural South Carolina, and rural Vermont. These social action teams serve as allies and resources and as policymakers and leaders in their schools, community organizations, and local institutions.
Photo by Teddy Anderson
In its first year, which wrapped up this past summer, the BLTN NextGen project far exceeded expectations. Youth worked together at two national conferences (see bit.ly/NextGenWR for video) and at individual site visits to further their respective social justice agendas and build the personal relationships that solidify their network. A powerful lesson learned in ABL and at all BLTN NextGen sites: When young people choose community activism that is important to them—and are supported by a network of adults and peers—they transform themselves as well as their communities. Academic and personal trajectories change, and youth become better prepared to lead happy, healthy, fulfilling lives.
Lou Bernieri
A community-based program, Andover Bread Loaf offers intergenerational workshops whenever possible. Shared stories and experiences make for many warm moments. Photo by Teddy Anderson
ABL Assistant Director Amaryllis Lopez steps to the mic to speak her truth. Amaryllis has helped spread ABL programs from Lawrence to Baton Rouge to El Salvador.
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Youth Take the Lead
A Private School with a Public Purpose
Simple, Thoughtful, Unique: MYDENTITY
Access to quality education is a Phillips Academy core value. The school’s four educational outreach programs—Andover Bread Loaf, the Institute for Recruitment of Teachers, Mathematics & Science for Minority Students, and PALS—have served for decades as resources for students and teachers locally, nationally, and worldwide.
By Ricardo Dobles, Director, ABL Writing Workshop for Teachers
Last winter, ABL Director Lou Bernieri met in Lawrence with me and several experienced youth writing leaders. Although July seemed far off, he sought the group’s guidance on a theme for the Lawrence Student Writers Workshop.
Visit www.andover.edu/outreach to learn more.
Photo by Gil Talbot
The idea of inhabiting two worlds at once (bi-lingual, bi-racial, bi-cultural, bi-sexual, etc.) gave rise to a deeper discussion of the worlds inhabited by the writing leaders and many young ABL participants. It was agreed that they travel among and between many worlds and many identities, yet there are intersections of gender, race, class, language, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and religion, to name a few.
ABL Ambassador
Modeste on the Move Ummi Modeste first got involved with Andover Bread Loaf in 1994 as a participant in the ABL Writing Workshop for Teachers. It was, says Modeste, one of the most transformative experiences of her life. Not only did she meet teachers from across the country and around the world, she also gained new teaching skills and explored new ways of thinking about education. In 2000, Modeste became an ABL Writing Workshop for Teachers director. Throughout the years, she notes, the program has intensified its focus on interrogating and dismantling systems of oppression and on developing and supporting youth as leaders. In addition to her involvement with writing workshops, Modeste has helped plan and lead ABL conferences in Lawrence, New Orleans, the Navajo Nation in Arizona, Nairobi, Tanzania, and Haiti. She also organizes and directs ABL’s New York City site, including the program’s annual conference there. During the academic year, Modeste is a college counselor at City-As-School in Manhattan and an adjunct professor at Empire State College in New York, and performs at spokenword venues with East Brooklyn Poets, an organization she helped found.
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With concept in hand, a few more questions still needed to be addressed. How could we capture this theme in a succinct, powerful manner? How could we invite a critical examination and a celebration of our identities?
How could we deliver the message of inclusivity that is at the core of all things ABL? As we do with all difficult questions that require a creative and thoughtful response, we asked our summer writing leaders! The fabulous fruit of their deliberation: MYDENTITY. Simple, brilliant, thoughtful, creative, and unique. The writing leaders demonstrated, once again, why it is best for adults to get out of the way and let them lead. Sixty-five Lawrence youth in grades eight through12 attended the Lawrence Student Writers Workshop on the Phillips Academy campus. As always, the intensive three-week program on writing, arts, and performance was youth centered as well as youth run. Some 25 ABL writing leaders mentored and guided the younger students and their peers around the MYDENTITY theme.
International Impact
Peace Literacy Conference Crosses Borders Bringing together teachers and students across borders to promote peace, ABL’s South Asia Peace Literacy Conference took place from July 29 to August 11 in Karachi, Pakistan, and Mumbai, India. Pakistan and India are two of the world’s most mutually hosile nations. The event is the brainchild of longtime ABL partners Mohsin Tejani, founder of The School of Writing in Karachi, and Lee Krishnan, teacher at the Diamond Jubilee School in Mumbai, and was cohosted by the two schools. Conference participants spent one week in each country. ABL Associate Director Richard Gorham—also director of ABL’s Peace Literacy Network—and fellow U.S. teachers Alan Nunez, Brendan McGrath, Ingrid Hess, and Julia Perlowski
flew to South Asia to work with teachers and students. In Karachi, Tejani led 35 participants in a weeklong workshop called “Arts Without Borders” and coordinated his city’s first-ever Family Literacy Night. In Mumbai, ABL staff cotaught classes alongside local teachers at two high schools and led workshops that included more than 200 teachers and young people. A Family Literacy Night in Mumbai drew more than 120 parents, teachers, and children. One young person’s writing at the conference included this observation: “Ammi’ [mother] took me to the mosque on Friday, my father took me to church on Thursday. The prayer I heard was the same.”
Students and teachers at the Diamond Jubilee School in Mumbai, India, prepare for the Peace Literacy Conference.
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People of all ages come by the dozens to speak their truth and/or to snap Photo by Teddy Anderson
encouragement for those who share.” —Jessica Valentin
Fuerza Draws a Crowd
Public Library Fosters Youth Voice and Civic Activism By Jessica Valentin, ABL ’13, Director, Lawrence Public Library
The Lawrence Public Library, a longtime ABL partner, serves all ages—particularly youth. These past two years witnessed the power of youth ownership and voice as library staff collaborated with students to create spaces for studying and research, self-expression and lifelong learning, and political and social change. We are keenly aware that we are fostering one of the last democratic spaces left in society—the public library. As such, the library is intentionally a safe space for youth of every race, color, creed, nationality, and sexual orientation. Our monthly Fuerza poetry open mics, organized by ABL alumna Yaneris Collado, were a hit during the 2017–2018 school year and have continued this fall. (Fuerza loosely translates as “Force.”) People of all ages, but predominantly youth, come by the dozens to speak their truth and/or to snap encouragement for those who share. This past summer’s second annual Library Writing and the Arts Camp, sponsored by ABL, brought youth from middle school through high school to write, make art, and create group pieces. These creations are currently featured in a library art exhibit. Youth—our present and our future—are so important to our work that we recently hired Allan Zapata as our full-time “teen coordinator.” He is on hand daily to assist young visitors to the library and is working on ways to reach out to those youth who have not yet discovered that we are here for them.
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Photo by Carolyn Zimmer
Our Generous Donors We gratefully acknowledge our 2017–2018 donors, who make this program and its incredible outcomes possible.
Foundations & Organizations
ABL writing leaders say goodbye after their intense three-week summer workshop on the Phillips Academy campus.
ABL Advisory Board Michael T. Cahill ’84, Chair New York, NY Susanna Rhodes Beckwith ’88, P’18 Providence, RI Sanjiv S. Desai ’89 Coconut Grove, FL José A. Dobles ’98 Brooklyn, NY Ricardo Dobles ’85 Holden, MA Keith T. Flaherty, MD, ’89 Cambridge, MA Elee E. Kraljii Gardiner ’88 Vancouver, BC, Canada Cynthia L. Greene ’87 Newton, MA Tucker Levy ’88 Charlestown, MA Gabriela Poma ’88 Cambridge, MA Gregory D. Shufro ’87 New York, NY Scobie D. Ward ’84 Hong Kong Timothy I. Watt ’89 West Hartford, CT Sturgis P. Woodberry ’84 Darien, CT
Abbot & Dorothy H. Stevens Foundation Betty Beland Greater Lawrence Summer Fund Edward S. & Winifred G. Moseley Foundation Merrimack Valley People for Peace Rogers Family Foundation
Individuals Fred L. Adair Jr. ’69 & Catherine A. Steiner-Adair Tenley E. Albright, MD & Gerald W. Blakeley Jr. P’88 Julia A. Alvarez ’67 & William Eichner Heidi H. Ashbaugh, MD, ’02 Sharyn Bahn Susanna Rhodes Beckwith ’88 & Dr. Curt Beckwith P’18 Geraldine Pope Bidwell ’79 & H. Gerald Bidwell P’09, ’17 James R. Bird Jr., PhD, ’67 & Anita MacMillen Bird Sophia I. Blaine ’22 Philip J. Bond P’10 Tyler P. Bond ’10 Robert A. Briggs ’82, P’11 Andrew V. Brown ’88 & Jill Bouquet Brown P’19 Phoebe W. Brown ’84 & Chris Carr Samuel C. Butler Jr. ’72 & Susan Jett P’03, ’09 Michael T. Cahill ’84 & Hilary W. Addington Maria Caico P’19 Berit K. Campion ’92 & Dmytro Mamedov Peter M. ’53 & Kathleen M. Capra Charles W. Carl Jr., MD, ’48 & Dianne Eckhart Carl David A. Carnoy ’83 & Lisa Landau Arnold A. Chacon & Alida Alvarado Chacon P’05, ’14 Jonathan A. Chacon ’14 Martin A. Clarke ’83 & Mediha Qureshi Margaret W. Coffin ’03 & Nathan S. Kellogg ’05 Dario E. Collado ’98 Susan C. Conley ’85 & Tony R. Kieffer Kevin A. Connolly ’74 & Diane Connolly Thomas Constable GP’19 Brett W. Cook ’72 & Richard Howard Colleen E. Boylan Cooper ’99 & Conor G. Cooper ’99 Laura J. Cox ’88 & Dan Rogoff Courtnie R. Crutchfield ’09 Monique E. Cueto-Potts & Timothy Potts Grace E. Curley ’81, P’14, ’20 John F. Jr. & Dolores A. Cusack P’18 Sanjiv S. Desai ’89 & Wendy Levitz
Esther Morgo Diskin ’84 & Glenn S. Diskin Conway A. Downing Jr. ’64 Hodgson G. Eckel ’88 Patricia H. & George H. Edmonds P’79, ’82 Mara Meyer Epstein ’01 & Jonathan Epstein William Faulkner ’09 Keith T. Flaherty, MD, ’89 & Mira Kautzky, MD Joshua C. Frechette ’90 & Trixie Sabundayo Charles A. ’06 & Elizabeth A. Frentz ’09 Beth Friedman Elee E. Kraljii Gardiner ’88 & Robert Kraljii Sherita D. Gaskins-Tillett, MD, ’90 & Stephen Tillett Martha Abbruzzese Genieser ’87 & W. Robert Genieser Yauvana V. Gold ’97 & Chris K. Gold, MD Cynthia L. Greene ’87 & David Jegen Sarah Jane Cohen Grossbard, MD, ’84 & Michael L. Grossbard P’15, ’19, W. Daniel Hall Jr. ’39 Richard B. Harrington ’85 Hannah J. Cole Heath ’98 & Tim Heath Patrick M. ’04 & Jonay Holkins Alanna H. Hughes ’04 Alana P. Humes ’15 Alexandra P. Jamali ’03 Wayne T. Jervis III ’87 & Heather Toogood Jervis P’22 Abigail C. Johnson ’71 Tiffany D. Joseph, PhD, ’00 Jonathan M. Judson ’02 Colleen M. Kennedy ’01 John M. Kirk III ’82 & Karen T. Kirk Michael J. ’94 & Amy Koehler Polly G. LaBarre ’88 Samuel Kit Bunn Lai, PhD, ’00 & Sachiko Ozawa ’99 Comfort Halsey Leckerling ’97 & Christian E. Leckerling Tucker ’88 & Victoria M. Levy Thomas P. Lockerby & Kathleen J. McCrickerd Angela S. Lorenz ’83 & Giovanni Figliomeni P’14 Benjamin I. Lumpkin ’91 Michael S. ’86 & Janice L. MacDougal Wanda Y. Mann ’90 Krystle L. Manuel-Countee ’09 Anne & Scott A. Marino P’19 Carolina E. Marion ’08 Patrick J. McCormick ’83 & Babette Fahey Caroline A. Mesinger ’16 Rhea U. Modeste Olivia D. Morgan-Plouffe ’90 & David Plouffe Peter B. Morin ’73 & Elizabeth Roscoe Morin ’76, P’07
P = Parent of Phillips Academy student(s) GP = Grandparent of Phillips Academy student(s) Donor list reflects gifts received between July 1, 2017, and June 30, 2018.
Andover Bread Loaf Phillips Academy 180 Main Street Andover, Mass. 01810-4161 978-884-8452 lbernieri@andover.edu www.andover.edu/abl
Support Andover Bread Loaf! Please help us make a difference in the lives of the deserving students, teachers, and community members who participate in ABL activities. Visit www.andover.edu/ablgiving to make your gift today.
Michael W. Jr. ’86 & Kristen Morris P’21 John Henry ’88 & Marion F. Moulton Kevin L. ’80 & Carolyn V. Murphy Debra Myers P’10 Kevin J. O’Brien ’92 John G. Palfrey & Catherine A. Carter P’21 Caroline Goodson Parker ’88 & John Parker Beth Parsons William & Nancy Penney GP’21 Gabriela Poma ’88 Vaho Rebassoo ’65 & Maura L. O’Neill P’99 Allan C. Reeder ’88 William W. Reid ’15 Bruce Reider, MD, ’67 & Patricia Simmons Reider P’10 Nicole E. Roberts ’02 & Krisa Benskin Elizabeth Wiedenmayer Rogers ’89 & Edward J. Rogers P’21, ’22 Christopher P. Rokous ’80 & Judith South Rokous J. Benjamin Romero ’12 Case L. Rosenfelt ’22 David L. Ross ’70 Barbara Gibson Roth-Donaldson ’51, P’84 & Franklin Donaldson Norman H. Rothschild ’86 & Cheng-Mei Liu P’10, ’20 Jennifer Greene Scott ’85 & Christopher D. Scott Matthew D. ’86 & Lily E. Shine Gregory D. ’87 & Jen Shufro P’22 Abby J. Shuman, PsyD, ’84 & Dean Eaton Lawrence A. ’80 & Joan E. Siff Kelly L. Sinclair ’03 Kevin S. Sinclair ’01 & Kerry Sinclair George B. Smith Jr. ’83 & Beth Becker-Smith R. Jordan Smyth Jr. ’84 & Shelagh Meehan Smyth Josef J. Tatelbaum ’78 & Grace Wang Juan E. Tavares ’97 Mark P. ’87 & Heather L. Timken Cassandra L. Tognoni ’05 Andrew S. Tonelli ’02 Lisa M. Torrisi Ryan M. Twomey ’19 A. Quincy Vale P’15, ’18 Nathaniel L. Waters ’95 Timothy I. Watt ’89 & Amity Gaige Juma O. Waugh ’98 Allen C. West ’48 Brooke H.B. Williams ’84 & Joshua Liberson Adam K. ’83 & Ann S. Wise Lydia L. Wise ’86, P’21 Sturgis P. ’84 & Carolyn Woodberry Torrance B. York ’84 & Gregory T. Walters Anna J. Zimmer ’17