COMMON DIVIDE
Exploring democracy and difficult discussions
by David Fricke
FERTILE GROUND FOR CIVIL DISCOURSE
Andover’s values served us incredibly well this election season.
“Knowledge and goodness” was a reliable guide as we traversed a fraught political landscape. From policy discussions around health care and immigration to debates about accuracy in media coverage, students and faculty tackled an array of issues.
A prime example in the classroom was “The Will of the People,” this year’s William Sloane Coffin Jr. ’42 Colloquium. Organized by Leon Calleja, English department chair, the interdisciplinary course included more than 11 teachers and guest speakers who explored democracy and elections across history, law, literature, math, philosophy, and political theory. Students examined the meaning of citizenship by studying the role of elections, power dynamics in governing institutions, and the challenges that democracy faces.
As you will read in this issue’s cover story, we took this monumental time in American politics to focus on our commitment to civil discourse, a practice and an ideal that aligns with Andover’s mission.
Faculty played a crucial role, knowing that students would rely on their guidance in both classroom and residential settings. Harvard’s EdEthics team helped all of us sharpen our skills. Kemper Auditorium buzzed with conversation as 200 teachers workshopped ways to invite healthy debate without taking sides or revealing personal politics. They explored classroom scenarios and analyzed case studies, preparing for the days preceding and following the election.
Our Presidential Election Series also prompted students to think about complex domestic issues
and geopolitical topics, perhaps with a new lens. The series gave them access to thought leaders with a range of expertise—from McCarthyism and political extremism to the technology revolution.
Zeynep Tufekci, Princeton professor and techno-sociologist, discussed the unchecked influence of artificial intelligence and the difference between misinformation, disinformation, and deep fakes. Following her All-School Meeting presentation, Professor Tufekci’s lunchtime conversation with students sparked even deeper learning as they unpacked technology as a weaponized political tool.
The student-led Andover Political Union also modeled civil discourse in action. Attuned to global events and welcoming a range of views, students hosted weekly talks on presidential politics, the latest polls, and other current events. They are rightly proud of what they promoted as a “no-stakes-attached” setting, disconnected from the pressure of a graded assignment or a large group discussion where some students may be less inclined to express an unpopular opinion.
In one of our final pre-election events, I hosted a “fireside chat” with Larry Tye, journalist and author of numerous books, including biographies on Joseph McCarthy and Robert F. Kennedy. When a student asked what I found most compelling about Tye’s work, I shared that studying the lives and careers of historical figures provides context for thinking about the challenges we face today. Circumstances may change, but we can always learn from our past.
Across all of these moments, I was most inspired by our community’s courage to discuss complex issues that have caused such turmoil in our society. Andover’s 1,150 students hold just as many opinions. As they express those opinions, I remain grateful that they have this community and its values to lean on and learn from.
Raynard S. Kington, MD, PhD, P’24, ’27 Head of School
Photo
Andover magazine reinforces the special connection alumni have with Phillips Academy and Abbot Academy. Through thought-provoking stories, contemporary design, and inspiring profiles of alumni, students, and faculty, we aim to highlight the school’s enduring values, recognize our unique history, and celebrate the rich diversity of our community.
EDITOR’S NOTE
We did it. In this latest issue we jumped in headfirst to write about the two things you are not supposed to discuss in polite society: religion and politics.
“In Good Faith” (page 18) explores the many ways the chaplaincy guides students in their spiritual journeys, some of which are grounded in centuries-old traditions, and others that are based upon curiosity and interest rather than any religious affiliation.
“PA has always been a place that welcomes dialogue and civil discourse.”
Andover, the magazine of the Phillips Academy and Abbot Academy community, is published four times per year. It is produced by the Office of Communication at Phillips Academy, 180 Main Street, Andover, MA 01810.
Main PA phone: 978-749-4000
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Our cover story, “Common Divide” (page 24), attempts to explore the idea of civil discourse on a micro level. With commentary from teachers, students, and alumni, the story shares myriad perspectives expressed in the Andover community and the ways in which the school is actively encouraging diverse and respectful conversations.
For those looking for a lighter read, “Presidential Portrait” (page 16) shares the touching story of the lasting impact that history teacher Tom Lyons had on his former student, President George W. Bush ’64. On page 9, you can read about the upcoming nuptials of PA football coach Trey Brown ’12—and the surprising location he chose to pop the question! And of course, there is the ever-popular Class Notes section, complete with photos of alumni, friends, and families.
Whichever stories you choose to dive into, please let us know what you think. Did these stories prompt discussion among classmates? Were you motivated to contact a former teacher? Did you dig out your copy of Pot Pourri or The Circle to scan for familiar faces? Whatever the response, we always appreciate hearing from our readers.
Allyson Irish Editor magazine@andover.edu @andovermagazine
PAGE 24
“As I’m looking for the dolphins, I smack into the rocks. I’d made it.”
RANIE PEARCE ’79, P’10
PAGE 34
LEON CALLEJA
Commentary and shout-outs from our Big Blue readership
I—G.
would be nothing without my faith. From worshipping in Kemper Chapel with the Reverend Philip Zaeder to continuing my walk in worship and faith today, faith gives the purpose. It does not help find it.
HAMLIN O’KELLEY III ’90
My faith led me to seminary a year after college, and then I was called into full-time Christian ministry, originally pastoring a congregation and then teaching in Christian school settings. I was bi-vocational for nine years before returning to pastor a local church at the end of my career. I am now retired.
Becoming convinced over time that in Jesus’s truth, life, and way we can truly find another—good, beautiful, and true—way to live, my “life’s purpose” has been focused on offering soul care to help folks flourish by growing in faith, hope, and love.
If there is a God (truly the big question!), then it only makes sense to learn how to live in congruence with this “grain” of the universe that God has created. It has been such a privilege to have a life purpose of pastoring, teaching, and creating spaces in which others can discover, experience, and enjoy what it means to be created in the image of God and learn how to imagine and practice the shalom God offers and calls us all to.
—GREGG MESEROLE ’71
CORRECTION
I was very moved to find the In Memoriam passage for Rev. Frederic Pease in a recent issue of Andover magazine. Rev. Pease was among the most important adults in my life at Andover. I knew him as a teacher, a coach, and a minister of the Gospel in the Congregational tradition through all four years of my time there. Most importantly, he was a leader in the development of the community service program, to which I gave as much time and energy as I could. My condolences to the Pease family. He was a fine person, and his memory makes me smile.
—MARK J. LOGSDON
’67
I read with sadness about the passing of Alice Purington. She was my college counselor in the ’90s, and she changed the course of my life for the better. In one of my first meetings with her, she asked me where I wanted to go to college, and I listed the colleges I thought I was supposed to go to. She said, “No—tell me about the place you would like to go.”
I stopped and thought about it, then said, “Well, I want to go to a place that has fields of green grass.” She invited me to continue. “I want to go to a place where if I’m interested in something, I can pursue it.” She encouraged me further. “I want to go to a place where if I want to talk with a professor, I can.” She continued asking questions and listening to my responses, and at a certain point, she said, “You want to go to Middlebury.” She couldn’t have been more right. I ended up attending Middlebury, where the trajectory of my life took extraordinary turns again—as it had at Andover— and where I was opened up to possibilities I never could have imagined.
—PETER NILSSON ’95
I read the letter from Dr. Kington in the summer 2023 edition of Andover magazine and found it disturbing on many levels. At the most basic level, it isn’t appropriate for the head of an academic institution to write political editorials as if they were the unanimous opinion of the institution. Even if this letter were confined to an editorial section of a publication and presented as personal opinion, it is still disquieting to imagine an Andover student who doesn’t share the political beliefs presented in the letter worrying about holding a contrary position to the head of school.
Beyond these issues, I think the letter sets a terrible example to students as to how one should think about complex political/legal matters. How does the referenced Supreme Court ruling stand “in stark contrast to Andover’s founding mission to serve ‘youth…from every quarter?’” How does it “undermine progress?” What fundamental questions does it raise “around what it
means to live in a free and equal society?” Dr. Kington makes these catastrophizing claims but offers neither evidence to support them nor makes room for any nuance. Is this how Andover students are being taught to think critically about complicated issues? I hope not. Finally, I found Dr. Kington’s letter to be deeply offensive to Asian Americans. One of the central complaints of the referenced Supreme Court case was racial discrimination against Asian Americans in violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Dr. Kington’s letter discounts the possibility that those claims of discrimination have any validity. Is it the school’s official position that discrimination against a particular race or group is permissible if it “leverage[s] diversity’s benefits?” Or is that just Dr. Kington’s opinion? Or neither? The fact that these questions don’t have clear answers is the root of what disturbs me about this letter.
—DEAN FELCH ’02
Editor’s note: The letter above was originally sent to Andover magazine in the fall of 2023. Due to editorial miscommunication, the letter was not printed. We apologize for this oversight.
Dr. Kington responds: “Silence was not an option.” That was the subject of my 2023 magazine letter that recounted Andover’s response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that struck down the use of race in college admissions. While I do not speak for any individual on this campus, it is my job to speak for the institution on matters directly related to our mission and to uphold its values. The Court’s ruling stands starkly inconsistent with Andover’s founding values around diversity and its holistic admission policies. Andover’s constitution affirms that the school “be ever equally open to youth, of requisite qualifications, from every quarter.” Further, in no way does my statement imply or endorse discrimination of any sort. The suggestion misrepresents my words and the school’s position.
“If my knees didn’t give me trust issues, I might suggest Alumni Cluster Olympics. This looks awesome!”
—GILLIAN
ADEKOYEJO75 Via Instagram
AYA MURATA
For the first time in history, PA held the Cluster Olympics during opening of school weekend, and the winner was Flagstaff! Read more at andover.edu/today
Thanks to the close reading of Faculty Emeritus David Chase, we are correcting an item from the summer 2024 issue about Rabbit Pond. It’s unlikely that Rabbit Pond, as we know it today, was part of the campus at the founding of the Andover Theological Seminary in 1807.
NOEL Via Facebook
Andover’s 15th annual Veteran’s Day Dinner and Program featured keynote speaker Capt. Hunter D. Washburn ’00, USN, pictured at right with Massachusetts Congressman and Marine Corps veteran Seth Moulton ’97.
“Bravo Zulu Captain Hunter! PA has an amazing and almost unique tradition of military service. Thanks to Andover and the Military and the Blue Guidon for keeping us connected!”
All School
Squad Goals
by
The Blue Keys—with a little help from Head of School Raynard Kington (center)—got the crowd cheering with passion and pride during Andover-Exeter Weekend in November. This year marked the 146th meeting of the two schools, which began competing in 1878. It is the oldest prep school rivalry in the United States.
Photo
Henry Marte
All School
FULL CIRCLE MOMENT
Located in the pine grove just west of Cochran Chapel, the Gendler Peace Circle honors Rabbi Everett Gendler P’83, ’86, PA’s first Jewish chaplain. The circle was formally dedicated on September 20.
“Peace is not a destination. It’s a process,” said Head of School Raynard Kington. “Rabbi Gendler understood that peace requires not only commitment but also the courage to listen, to sit together, and to seek understanding even when it is difficult. So it’s fitting that this space in nature—a place to gather, share, listen, and reflect—will inspire future generations to come together in the same spirit that Rabbi Gendler so cherished.”
Gendler, who passed away in 2022, nurtured the campus community across three decades and was known as a champion of civil rights, equity, inclusion, and the power of civil discourse.
“Everett loved to conduct services outside, where one could be in nature,” said Tamar Szabo Gendler ’83, Gendler’s daughter. “It’s hard to imagine a tribute more appropriate for him than this space overlooking his beloved Cochran Chapel. I can’t think of anything that would have brought him more joy.”
The structure incorporates a stone from the Gendler family farm in Western Massachusetts and was made possible by the generosity of a group of alumni and friends, led by Jana Paley ’81 and Joe Tatelbaum ’78.
Front
from left: Hannah
Naomi Gendler Camper ’86, Tamar
Gendler ’83, and Mary Gendler P’83, ’86, widow of the late Rabbi Everett Gendler. Back row: Finn Camper, Julius Camper, and Clarke Camper.
“Arc is a family within the Andover community. The kindness and fun are a constant reminder of why I came to Andover.”
—EVERETT WOO ’25 on Andover’s Arc program, which is celebrating 40 years of creating connections between PA students and members of the community with special needs
LEADERSHIP PROGRAM SCALES UP
Andover’s Leadership Development Program (LDP), established by Head of School Raynard Kington in 2021 to foster career development among faculty and staff, has opened its doors to other independent schools.
“The vision was to create a pipeline of rising leaders who would gain the skills needed for more senior roles at Andover or elsewhere,” said Kington.
“Once the program was well established, I saw an opportunity to scale it.”
Now in its fourth year, the program is reaching beyond campus, with participants from across New England— St. Paul’s School, Deerfield Academy, and Pomfret School—and from Lick-
Wilmerding High School in California.
“I’m a big believer in continuous improvement and shared knowledge,” Kington added. “Expanding the network will strengthen the program’s impact across secondary education and allow faculty and staff to gain perspective on how other institutions operate.”
The nine-month program includes executive education coursework, a lunch-and-learn series with guest speakers, small group meetings, personalized coaching with an online platform that includes expert guidance and tools to support career momentum, and a capstone project to address an academic or student life priority or to
Andover added to its medal count at the summer 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. Coxswain Emelie Eldracher ’18 (center) led her boat to a silver medal in the PR3 mixed four. Meanwhile, PA crew coach Ellen Minzner, USRowing’s para high performance director, received the Order of Ikkos award from the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee in honor of her work to elevate paralympic rowing.
Ned Grew ’62 was honored in September by the Mineralogical Society of the United Kingdom and Ireland with an honorary fellowship. Grew is a University of Maine research professor in geological sciences and has served as the associate editor of Mineralogical Magazine, an international journal of mineral sciences, since 2006.
Who says there’s no love in football?
Tell that to PA head coach Trey Brown ’12, who popped the question to his future bride on the 50-yard line of Phelps Stadium— and she said yes! Congratulations!
improve a campus operation or system.
“Bringing faculty and staff together in this purposeful learning environment creates an even richer experience for many who otherwise do not typically work together,” said Eric Roland, LDP administrator and interim director of the Tang Institute.
The coveted outcome is when an LDP “graduate” advances their career at PA or elsewhere. Kington views both outcomes as positive, saying, “It’s equally validating to see faculty and staff serve our community in a new capacity or advance themselves and the field of education more broadly.”
row,
Gendler Szabo,
Szabo
Jeannie Kang ’28 and Julie Gillespie share time together at the Snyder Center.
All School
20 QUESTIONS WITH
Aquita Winslow
Aquita Winslow, dean of the Office of Community and Multicultural Development (CAMD), has a unique skillset. Trained as a lawyer and a librarian, Winslow, who joined the Academy in July 2023, spent her first year actively listening, asking tough questions, and embracing the intellect, talent, and character of students who call CAMD home. Andover magazine sat down with Winslow to learn more about her thoughts on PA, her lifelong love of libraries, and the ’90s movie she never gets tired of watching.
Football fans in Washington, D.C., will have their eyes on Leif Dormsjo ’93 who recently was appointed chair of the Washington Convention and Sports Authority (aka Events DC). Among other responsibilities, Dormsjo will oversee the transfer of the RFK Stadium campus from the federal government to serve as the new home stadium for the NFL’s Washington Commanders.
Where are you from?
I was born and raised in Northern California. Both my children [daughter Avery and son Aaron] live in Los Angeles and most of my friends are still in LA, so it feels like home. But eventually Andover will feel more like home. I just have to give it more time—and get used to shoveling snow!
What did you want to be when you grew up?
A lawyer. Funny thing is, when I was growing up, I always worked in libraries—my elementary school library, middle school library, and my college library—but it never occurred to me to be a librarian. I still went to law school because I’m stubborn like that.
What inspired your shift from lawyer to librarian?
I was meant to be a librarian. I was the kid who always had a book in hand. Libraries were my second home. It was a student who inspired me to become a school librarian. She was also a library kid who would come in every day, and I’d help her find books. One day she said to me, “I’m so glad you’re here.” Then it clicked. I started realizing that is what education is about— making spaces and experiences better for students.
What is one of your hidden talents?
I’m a very good singer.
Who are your favorite authors?
There are so many! I’m a huge Stephen King fan, N.K. Jemisin, Deborah Harkness, R.F. Kuang, and Naomi Novik, to name a few.
What is your motto? To thine own self be true.
Which words or phrases do you most overuse? Really and exactly.
How do you unwind?
Another secret thing about me, which nobody believes, is that I am an introvert. I do all my talking during the day so I don’t have to talk at night. That’s when I recharge my battery. I quilt. I do a lot of reading. And I hang out with my cats, Jameson and Little Man—they are highly entertaining.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Raising two kids. I’m very proud of them. They’re good people.
Is there anything you wish you were better at?
I’m a terrible camper. But I respect camping as an educational tool. At my previous job in California [Polytechnic
A new PBS documentary, Julia Alvarez: A Life Reimagined traces the personal history of acclaimed novelist, poet, and essayist Julia Alvarez ’67. The prolific Dominican American author was awarded the 2013 National Medal of Arts from the National Endowment for the Arts. Art writer and activist Lucy Lippard ’54 is profiled in the
School in Pasadena], the entire upper school would go on a camping trip every September. It was important and necessary to go out there and make the best of it, and especially to help the kids feel comfortable, safe, and have fun.
What scares you?
I’m a good swimmer, but when it comes to snorkeling at night—which can be a really beautiful experience—yeah, I’m not doing that.
What movie do you never get tired of watching?
In my past life I must have been a perpetual teenage boy. I love the first Transformers movie, and I’m a hug fan of Godzilla
What is your favorite spot on campus?
CAMD, of course, but I also love visiting Rabbit Pond. It’s amazing how many rabbits there are around here. So cute!
What is your favorite dish at Paresky?
The Italian sausage bar with pasta and cheese and fried onions. You can choose pesto or marinara with it.
What would students be surprised to learn about you?
I’m a big fan of standup comedy. Dave Chappelle is one of my favorites.
“I started realizing that is what education is about—making spaces and experiences better for students.”
If you could sit in on one class for a day, which would you choose?
It’s tough to have to choose between the English department and the theatre department, but I’ll go with theatre, because the thought of performing live theatre terrifies me. I love watching people get up in front of the world and act.
How do you think the times we’re living in are shaping the educational or teaching experience?
Social media is more than just a driving factor for students, it’s like an appendage for them. We must learn new ways of teaching students who are getting a lot of their belief systems from spaces that are only giving them snippets of information. How do you disrupt that way of learning? I think it’s hard to do, but teachers are focused on finding those pathways to provide deep, authentic learning to students in the age of 24/7 media, when information is
coming at them from several places and is not always easy to fact check.
What is something you have learned—or taught— in the past year that you especially value?
One thing I value, and that I want kids to value, is knowing how to use your own voice. Feeling powerful enough to speak for yourself—or if you can’t speak for yourself, to know who to talk to and who can speak for you—is an important skillset that we must teach. That is something I have engaged with faculty and students on, and I believe it’s vital that students are not afraid to tell us how we can help them.
What small details about Andover could tell a larger story about its students or teachers and its culture?
Whether it’s a “munch”— when cluster deans put out snacks for kids on Wednesday nights so they have time to hang out with each other—or meeting in smaller groups
with faculty and students around campus, there’s a utilization of space in a way that I think is telling of what this institution means. Also, there’s a cemetery on campus behind my office. I’d never seen anything like that before. But it makes sense now. People are very invested in Andover, so much so that some never want to leave.
What are you looking forward to this year?
Developing deeper relationships with people and just becoming more ingrained in the community.
Since 1988, CAMD has worked to promote understanding and awareness of differences among people and to foster an inclusive school culture. The office oversees nearly 40 student affinity groups and clubs and the Academy’s international students. CAMD also sponsors workshops, lectures, and educational programs that benefit the entire PA community, including the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day events, where guest speakers and student-led workshops bring Andover together to explore topics relating to justice, identity, and social issues.
Now back at PA as head baseball coach, Kevin Graber P’16 was inducted into the New York State Baseball Hall of Fame in November. Fellow Class of 2024 inductees included baseball legends Don
and Yogi Berra.
Looking for a competitive advantage for your company? Keziban Barry ’02 (center) has you covered. The NYC-based photographer and videographer recently launched her new venture, EDGE, which provides “a holistic and bespoke approach to career confidence for executives…to become unstoppable forces in their field.”
Mattingly
JOHN MARKS ’61: A LIFETIME OF PEACEBUILDING
BY NANCY HITCHCOCK
Most people avoid conflict, even on a small scale. Not John Marks ’61. Now 81, Marks has spent decades addressing some of the world’s most critical global challenges through Search for Common Ground, the organization he founded to promote cooperation and resolve societal differences. He has worked tirelessly to build peace—a mission that began at Andover.
“My aim was and is to make the world a better place,” he states. “I want to bring peace to whole countries and regions. It’s non sibi writ large. When I was at Andover, the idea of non sibi was drilled into my head, so by the time I got to college I was clear that I wanted to go in that direction.”
And go he did. In 1982, Marks start-
ed Search for Common Ground. When he and his closest colleague and wife, Susan Collin Marks, stepped down from the organization’s leadership in 2014, Search had become the world’s largest nongovernmental organization involved in peacebuilding, with a staff of 600 and offices in 35 countries. In 2018, Search was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Marks has documented his experiences and strategies in a new book, From Vision to Action: Remaking the World Through Social Entrepreneurship (Columbia University Press). Part memoir, part guide, the book explains what it means to be a social entrepreneur and how readers can create positive change in society by adopting 11 principles, including “Start from Vision,” “Keep Showing Up,” and “Make Yesable Propositions.”
Central to Marks’s philosophy is the
“You almost never can confront conflict directly. You need to accept the situation as it is and then try to transform it by 10 or 20 degrees.”
martial art of Aikido, which, he explains, calls for accepting an opponent’s energy and then trying to shift that energy gradually. “You almost never can confront conflict directly,” he says. “You need to accept the situation as it is and then try to transform it by 10 or 20 degrees.”
Throughout his book, Marks details innovative approaches that he used to reduce adversarial behavior, prevent violence, and strengthen relationships. His organization’s work spans major global conflicts: U.S.Soviet relations during the Cold War, peacemaking between Israelis and Palestinians, and efforts to prevent gender-based violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. One of Search’s most effective tools, Marks notes, has been the media. Recognizing its power to reach millions, the organization created Common Ground Productions, which produced more than 400 episodes of dramatic TV in 20 countries. Marks refers to these as “soap opera for social change.” Common Ground Productions also created radio programs, documentaries,
and reality TV shows that aimed to transform attitudes and behaviors. In Burundi, for instance, a country on the brink of mass slaughter in 1994, Search played a key role in countering hateful and inflammatory radio broadcasts that were fueling ethnic violence. “I believe our programs were major contributors to preventing genocide,” says Marks.
In another successful effort that Marks calls “wrestling diplomacy,” Search took members of America’s national wrestling team to Tehran to help improve U.S.-Iran relations after decades of hostility. “Since the Iranian revolution, no American sports team had visited Iran,” says Marks, “so when the wrestlers went, it became an international sensation.” At the event, American and Iranian wrestlers competed fiercely and then embraced, and the American flag was openly flown for the first time in decades. The goodwill generated was so significant that President Clinton later invited the U.S. wrestlers and Marks to the White House. According to presidential spokesperson Mike McCurry, the president’s goal was to send a message to the Iranians that he was interested in better relations.
Another of Marks’s guiding principles is “Keep Showing Up.” It’s an idea he attributes to a French class at Andover. “I read The Plague by Albert Camus,” he recalls, “and I still remember what he wrote about the necessity of not giving up.”
Despite current global unrest, Marks remains an optimist. “We are going through a very nasty phase,” he says. “Nevertheless, I believe that history is evolving in positive directions, but unfortunately, it’s not a straight-line progression. There are ups and downs, and we’re definitely in a down period. But you don’t start an organization called Search for Common Ground if you’re not an optimist.”
Lyric Trade: Reading the Subject in the Postwar Long Poem BY JULIA BLOCH ’91
University of Iowa Press
For her first scholarly book, Bloch studies how contemporary North American poetry uses lyric in relation to subjects such as race, gender, and nation. By engaging with poets Gwendolyn Brooks, H.D., Lorine Niedecker, Alice Notley, and Miyung Mi Kim, Loch presents the importance of lyric in the postwar long poem.
How to Play the Best Game of Your Life BY JOHN J. CARROLL ’94
CASP Publishing
In this handbook for achieving optimal performance on and off the field, Carroll provides sports psychology in chapters such as “Motivation,” “Goal Setting,” and “Habits & Routines.” Complete with advice and tools, the book prepares athletes mentally and physically in ways that can lead to positive experiences, confidence, and ultimately a “W.”
Memento Mori BY EUNICE HONG ’06
Red Hen Press
In her debut novel, Hong explores grief, resilience, love, and mortality through the life of a Korean American family. With roots in North Korea, a young woman tells her brother bedtime stories, weaving in Greek mythology and tales from their grandmother. Red Hen Press calls Memento Mori a “brilliant portrait of rage and resilience.”
Finding the Way to ‘Long Day’s Journey Into Night’: Eugene O’Neill and Carlotta Monterey O’Neill at Tao House BY WILLIAM DAVIES KING ’73
Anthem Press
Eugene O’Neill, who received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1936, wrote his most famous play, Long Day’s Journey Into Night, when he moved to his new Tao House with his third wife. In this autobiographical drama, King examines O’Neill and his relationships, the California house where the play was written, and his fractious marriage.
Hiroshima and the Historians: Debating America’s Most Controversial Decision BY KENNETH B. PYLE ’54
Cambridge University Press
In 1945, America made the controversial decision to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Pyle illuminates the complexities and moral issues related to these events and includes debates among historians about the major developments at the end of World War II: the beginning of the atomic age, the American world order, and the start of the Cold War arms race.
To be considered for “Bookshelf,” please send a brief summary of your recently published book to magazine@andover.edu
On campus in October, John Marks ’61, P’95, described his life work resolving conflicts and building peace in countries around the globe in a lively discussion with Amy Kellogg ’83, a former senior foreign affairs correspondent for Fox News.
Things About Learning in the World
Andover’s answer to study abroad, Learning in the World (LITW) offers every PA student the opportunity to immerse themselve in a culture unlike their own. The program, celebrating its 10th anniversary, is a key element in Andover’s mission to develop global citizens.
4
While LITW offers programs in some international destinations you might expect—Greece, Spain, and Germany for example—there are also extensive domestic options. A summer 2023 trip to the American South focused on civil rights in the 1960s, and in summer 2025, students will have the opportunity to engage in environmental stewardship in Vermont.
What’s next? LITW Director Mark Cutler hopes that even more students take advantage of this program, and he’d like to see LITW expand to all seven continents. As of yet, no programs have been organized in either Antarctica or Oceania, “But we are optimistic!” Cutler says. 5 1
Approximately 150 students take part in LITW programs each year. The majority of the trips are led by PA faculty and staff during the spring and summer. Students also have access to numerous affiliate programs, such as School Year Abroad.
Andover students have enjoyed off-campus learning opportunities for many years, including the Novosibirsk, Russia exchanges of the 1980s and School Year Abroad. In 2014, the Tang Institute reinvigorated and relaunched the program as LITW, which now is a standalone initiative.
The impact of LITW is undeniable. Jungwoo Park ’19 says his summer 2017 immersion in China enriched his classroom experiences and enabled him to gain a deeper appreciation of another society. “The trip broadened my understanding of China,” he says, “and helped me develop a more nuanced perspective on global cultures and issues.”
Scan the QR code above for a short survey about LITW. And to see more photos of recent LITW trips, visit andover.edu/magazine
ALUMNI EXCELLENCE
Three trailblazers were honored with the 2024 Andover Alumni Award of Distinction: Carroll R. Bogert ’79, a journalist advancing justice through The Marshall Project, a nonprofit news organization; William “Trey” Ellis ’80, an award-winning filmmaker and novelist focused on themes of identity, race, and culture; and Dr. Vanessa B. Kerry ’95, a World Health Organization envoy and founder of Seed Global Health. At an All-School Meeting in October, they inspired students with stories of transforming lives through passion, purpose, and innovation.
“Don’t let the suffering that will come our way in this world be too much for you. The people to your left and right can be a life raft that you can ride over some stormy seas. Keep your heart flexible, open, and kind.”
—CARROLL BOGERT ’79
“Because [Andover] is so selective and filled with interesting people from all over the world with all these big dreams, I felt like I could do anything. I felt like I could take on the world.”
—TREY ELLIS ’80
“We’re not that different: we all want to be happy, we want food on the table, we want our children cared for, we want our families safe, we want to feel joy. I hope very much that a place like [Andover] can help us to build that community that we need going forward.”
—VANESSA KERRY ’95
Congrats to Chandri Navarro ’82, P’15, who was included in the 2025 edition of The Best Lawyers in America for her expertise in international trade and finance law. Based in Washington, D.C., Navarro is senior counsel for Baker McKenzie’s International Commercial & Trade Practice Group.
Budding artist Yoojung “Claris” Shin ’25 recently created two full-color illustrations of campus to adorn the covers of PA’s 2024–2025 academic planner and annual directory. “At Andover, I’ve come to understand that art is not only about mastering technical skills,” says Shin, “but also about constantly exploring, interpreting, reflecting, and creatively challenging myself.”
Dan Murphy ’00 is making waves with his debut poetry collection due to be published in 2025. Estate Sale recently won the 2024 Agha Shahid Ali Prize in Poetry from The University of Utah. Murphy credits his love of writing to PA teachers and mentors Lou Bernieri P’96, ’10 and the late Tom McGraw P’07
From Andover Hill to Capitol Hill (or at least very close by!), Will Scharf ’04 was recently appointed White House staff secretary as part of the Trump administration. Scharf has served as one of President Donald Trump’s personal attorneys; his new role includes oversight of the flow of information to the president and senior staff.
Dean of the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism Willow Bay ’81 and her husband purchased a controlling stake in Angel City FC, a professional women’s soccer team, this past July. Bay joins a star-studded group of owners, investors, and board members, including actors Natalie Portman and Jennifer Garner and sports legend Billie Jean King.
Andover Alumni Award of Distinction recipients Carroll Bogert, Trey Ellis, and Vanessa Kerry
A teacher, a student, and a shared love of history
BY ALLYSON IRISH
Christmas 2023. Newburyport, Massachusetts. Eleanor Lyons had gathered the entire family—children David ’83, Joe ’89, John ’78, and Kathleen ’81, along with spouses, grandchildren, sisters, and cousins—at her home for the holiday. It was a festive night made even more fun when the family began their “Yankee swap” gift exchange.
Eleanor was approaching her milestone 90th birthday, and the family had something special planned. As she unwrapped the large, flat package, she was at first confused, then shocked, then delighted. It was a framed portrait of her late husband, beloved history instructor Tom Lyons, painted by former President George W. Bush ’64.
“I admired Tom Lyons a lot,” says Bush. “Whenever people have asked,
football star was recruited to play at Brown University. In the fall of his junior year at Brown, he contracted polio. Lyons spent nine months in the hospital. When he was released, he would need crutches to walk for the rest of his life. His football career was over.
Despite this setback, Eleanor says that her husband never complained. Instead, Lyons focused on his other love—history—and began a teaching career that would span nearly 40 years.
Raising a family of four on the Andover campus was enjoyable, says Eleanor, who found a community with other faculty families. Her husband thrived, publishing seven books, coaching football, advising The Phillipian, and teaching the challenging history course Man and Society.
While at Andover, Bush was known to be a social student who enjoyed sports
“ Whenever people have asked, ‘Did you have a teacher who influenced you?’ the answer is always, ‘Yes, Tom Lyons.’”
—President George W. Bush ’64
Presidential Portrait
‘Did you have a teacher who influenced you?’ the answer is always, ‘Yes, Tom Lyons.’”
Lyons looms large in the annals of celebrated PA teachers. His impact has been noted by legions of alumni who, like Bush, appreciated his sharp wit, gentle nature, and persistence.
Lyons had not been dealt an easy hand in life. Growing up in nearby Reading, Massachusetts, the high school
including the infamous PA stickball league, of which he was commissioner.
Bush also paid attention to Lyons and his history classes. And as he grew older and his political career evolved, Bush recognized even more clearly the impact of his former teacher, going as far as to mention Lyons in several of his campaign speeches and write about him in his memoir, Decision Points. Although Bush and Lyons did not
agree politically, there was a shared appreciation and respect. Bush even invited Eleanor and Tom to the White House for his January 2001 inauguration. Eleanor recalls being ushered into the Oval Office and watching as her husband and his former student sat next to each other talking.
“That was wonderful, to see Tom and the president by the fireside having a conversation. They had a good rapport
with one another,” she shares.
Daughter Kathleen also recalls that visit. “Although Dad did not necessarily agree with his politics, I remember he said, ‘That is a man of great integrity.’”
The feeling was mutual. And when Bush—who took up painting in retirement as a way to manage “being too antsy”—was asked by the Lyons family if he would consider creating a portrait of his former teacher, he readily agreed.
“I was intrigued by the idea,” Bush says. “Tom Lyons influenced my love of history. So I thought, let me see if we can find some pictures of him to use.”
The three paintings that Bush created are based on photos taken during Lyons’s 2001 visit to the White House. “I used a lot of color,” says Bush, “because he was a colorful man. He was a larger-than-life person.”
And the lessons that Lyons imparted—of integrity, persistence, and doing what is right—are lessons that Bush hopes today’s Andover students can still learn from.
“Take advantage of the opportunity [provided at Andover] and understand this is just a step in life. Learn as much as you can and be a good citizen. We need Americans to be citizens and not spectators. And don’t be discouraged by today’s political climate,” Bush advises. “History has shown that it will course correct.”
Above: The Lyons family, standing: John ’78 and Joe ’89; seated: David ’83, Eleanor, and Kathleen ’81
Opposite page: President George W. Bush ’64 took up painting in retirement and said the activity has “changed my life.”
IN GOOD FAITH
By Rita Savard
How the Chaplaincy Builds Bridges Across Beliefs
More than a third of American high schoolers report no religious affiliation. Given the odds, you might expect activity around the Academy’s chaplains’ offices to be pretty dull these days.
On the contrary.
“Many of the students showing up to Mass each week have no religious background,” says Dr. Mary Kantor, PA’s Catholic chaplain. “But whether our students identify with religious traditions or not, they are all seeking to share common human experiences, and they all have a need for conversation and support around what it means to be a good human and live an ethical life.”
On a crisp October evening, dozens of students crowded around tables in front of Paresky Commons to carve pumpkins. Sounds of laughter marked the welcome break from studies as a menagerie of glowing, gap-toothed grins took over the lawn. The event, which coincided with the Jewish holiday of Sukkot—a festival dating to ancient Israel that celebrates the harvest—was emblematic of the chaplains’ work on campus to create experiences for all.
For nearly 50 years, the Andover chaplaincy has championed the importance of discourse, dialogue, and above all, community. The Academy’s faith leaders are aware of perceptions that school and religion don’t always go together. Surveys from the Pew Research Center, a nonpartisan think tank based in Washington, D.C., have consistently shown a rise in religious “nones” among students—those who consider themselves unaffiliated with a religion. But with education and training in crisis intervention, grief counseling, and mental and emotional health needs, chaplains play an outsize role on campus, touching hundreds of students’ lives.
“Looking back at the ’70s, when the Academy started an interfaith ministry, or looking around campus today, young people—no matter if they are religious or not—are the same in the sense that they are all trying to figure out their place in the world,” Kantor says, adding that virtual learning during the pandemic created an uptick of students and families seeking out religious and spiritual services. “For many students, Andover is
their first exposure to different perspectives, and interfaith is simply about being able to be present with other humans. We don’t need to agree on everything in order to extend friendship and cooperation. With that goal in mind, we work to meet students where they are in the moment and provide safe spaces where they can come together and ask questions. In these moments—when students realize they are not alone, that their voices matter—they build skills, sensitivities, and awarenesses that will benefit them and prepare them for a diverse world.”
Community & Connection
Growing up, Tamar Gendler ’83 didn’t realize her family might be “different.” But a series of unique lifestyle choices soon made the obvious hard to ignore.
In the 1970s, while her friends’ brothers were fighting in the Vietnam War, Gendler’s parents were protesting it. Other families had television sets as fixtures in their living rooms. The Gendlers brought theirs out only to watch President Richard Nixon resign, then promptly put it away. Other kids’ lunches didn’t consist of food that was grown in their backyard. Other kids didn’t have a compost heap. Or solar panels. Or gathered monthly for lunar celebrations.
Her father, Rabbi Everett Gendler, who passed in 2022, is widely referred to as the founder of the Jewish environmental movement.
“When my dad joined the faculty at Andover, I came to realize how special he was,” recalls Tamar Gendler, who is currently dean of the faculty of Arts and Sciences at Yale University. “Sure, I had seen him at our synagogue doing things like leading services,
“Sharing a table with people who are fundamentally different from you stretches across history and spans many traditions.”
—Noureddine El Alam Instructor in Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science and Advisor to the Muslim Student Association
paying condolence calls, and blessing babies. But those were interactions with grownups who cared. Andover showed me that he was admired by the most intimidating people imaginable—teenagers—whom my elementary–school–self viewed as figures of heroic proportion.”
The 1970s was a time of transformation across the nation and Andover was changing along with it. Abbot Academy and Phillips Academy merged in 1973 to form a coeducational school and, two years prior, PA faculty voted to no longer require chapel attendance. But the absence of religion altogether would eventually prove problematic for an ever-broadening student population from around the world, as students far away from home for the first time were seeking connections to familiar traditions and life perspectives.
To meet student needs, in 1976 Andover’s first interfaith chaplaincy was born, bringing Jewish, Protestant, and Catholic chaplains together to offer something more malleable—educators who were also faith leaders, trained to work both in and outside of religious institutions. Their mission was to support the community and present a vision of how the world works when diverse traditions focus on how to be good humans and neighbors.
Arriving at Andover in 1977 with his wife, Mary, and daughters Tamar and Naomi ’86, Rabbi Gendler was initially hired as a six-month fill-in; he ended up staying for 19 years. He taught philosophy, non-Western religions, and served as an advisor to both Jewish and Muslim students.
Students who also described themselves as “unaffiliated” or “nonreligious” sought the rabbi out as a mentor and friend. Gendler came to describe the diverse interactions and connections across beliefs as “small sharings,” and they became the building blocks for interfaith partnerships at the Academy.
“Sometimes we don’t know what we need in the moment because life is full of unexpected twists and turns,” says Jana Paley ’81, who, along with Joe Tatelbaum ’78, led the initiative to create the new Gendler Peace Circle adjacent to Cochran Chapel. “In
“Kids have to be their whole selves to thrive under the rigors of Andover.”
—Linda Carter Griffith Associate Head of School for Equity, Inclusion, and Wellness
moments of grief and celebration, how people show up for us makes an imprint.”
In her third week of freshman year at Amherst College, Paley’s father died. Returning to her family in Florida felt like the longest day of her life.
“When I finally walked into the house, the phone rang,” she says. “It was Rabbi Gendler.”
Gendler believed in grapevines, and Andover’s grapevine worked well. Students had informed Gendler of Paley’s loss and he quickly sprang into action. When she returned to Massachusetts for college, Paley was surprised—and deeply moved—to be met on the jetway by Gendler and a few dozen students he gathered to support her.
The legacy of the first interfaith chaplains—including Catholic chaplain and English instructor Tom Hennigan, and Protestant chaplain and English instructor Phillip Zaeder P’79, ’83, GP’17, ’18—is one of forging and nurturing intentional relationships across campus. And that legacy continues today.
Social-Educational Exchange
Andover’s interdisciplinary Identity class, established in 2016, explores topics of race, gender, mental health, and sexuality. This year, for the first time, nearly half the students chose to keep “faith and spirituality” as a core part of their identity in an introductory exercise.
“Some don’t choose faith, and some aren’t affiliated with any religion,” explains Linda Carter Griffith, associate head of school for equity, inclusion, and wellness and the co-director of the Identity class. “We respect each person’s individuality. Faith is below the iceberg— it’s not immediately visible in people. But for those who consider it part of their core identity, it plays a big role in their wellness and growth. Kids have to be their whole selves to thrive under the rigors of Andover, and that is why the chaplaincy’s interfaith work is an important part of campus life. It’s critical that we offer support and the ability to connect around different belief systems.”
Above: Students singing at the Gendler Peace Circle dedication. Opposite page: Making friends at PA’s annual “Hummus Off.”
—Dr. Mary Kantor Catholic Chaplain
Kindness Comes Full Circle
When she was a new student at Andover, Rev. Gina Finocchiaro ’97, now the Academy’s Protestant chaplain, hadn’t seen interfaith work before.
“Here were three chaplains who really enjoyed working together,” Finocchiaro says. “They cared about each other, and they cared about supporting the whole community. I couldn’t have articulated it then, as a high school student, but in college I heard my call to ministry, and I began to realize I wanted to be a faith leader who builds community and works with people across differences.”
Throughout the year, the chaplaincy provides students with opportunities to learn from and about each other’s beliefs through dinners, guest speakers, and community engagement projects. By creating these spaces, interfaith leaders help make Andover a place where all students feel welcome.
“The interfaith theme is valid and inviting, especially in today’s world where people of different religious beliefs are often divided and pitted against one another,” says Mayen Etuk ’26, co-president of the Catholic Student Fellowship. “When we get together, no matter how different we are or how much our traditions vary, it’s the conversation that matters. Kindness, hospitality, and an openness to learning are values we all share.”
Muslim student leaders on campus are at the forefront of interfaith initiatives, advocating for open and respectful conversations, says Noureddine El Alam, instructor in mathematics, statistics, and computer science and advisor to the Muslim Student Association. Muslim students, he explains, emphasize the importance of dialogue in understanding and respecting the beliefs and practices of other religions.
“No matter which faith you’re practicing,” says El Alam, “it plays a huge part in building a school that aims to educate the whole child. Islam, for instance, is a rational belief system, not based on blind faith. I think that is one of the misconceptions in people’s minds about faith in general—that it is without rational thought. But to me, to the students I interact with, to the people of many different religions and cultures from around the world whom I meet at Andover, faith is rooted in empathy, curiosity, respect, gratitude, diversity, equity, and inclusion. Faith, from the Islamic perspective, is rational by design and the values it teaches align with Andover’s pillars of excellence. We don’t have to decide to be a person of faith or a person of intellect; these mindsets can coexist.” Campus conversations around equity, inclusion, and belonging include casting spirituality in much broader terms, through a worldview of diversity and faith cooperation.
For example, interfaith dinners between Muslim and Catholic-Christian students began in 2018 when students saw their dormmates fasting for Ramadan, a month of abstaining from food and drink observed by Muslims worldwide.
“Our students are also wonderful teachers,” El Alam says. “The empathy and support they extend to one another is an inspiring example for all to follow.”
Catholic students approached Kantor with a request to create a communal space for Muslim students breaking fast. “It was important to them that their peers knew they were a vital part of the community and that they felt supported,” Kantor says.
“Sharing a table with people who are fundamentally different from you stretches across history and spans many traditions,” adds El Alam. “Fostering peace is a simple but meaningful way to grow into more beautiful, complete, imaginative, and adventurous community members.”
At her first parish job, Finocchiaro says she and the local rabbi got up to some “good holy trouble” together. Those early interfaith relationships helped sharpen her skills in social work, youth services, and grief and crisis counselling, which led to the creation of a vital townwide “grief curriculum.”
“The kind of community building that grew out of that collective work certainly informs how I show up on campus today,” Finocchiaro says.
In a world fraught with divides across religious and cultural differences, Andover’s interfaith leaders, Griffith observes, are often central to community healing—especially in times of crisis.
Rabbi Joshua Greenberg had just started his first year as Andover’s Jewish chaplain when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking over 250 hostages.
“The number of colleagues, alumni, and parents that reached out to me—not only to check on the Jewish Student Union, but also to check on me individually—
“ What is so beautiful about a place like Andover is the business of relationship building that comes through experiential learning,”
—Rev Gina Finocchiaro ’97 Protestant Chaplain “ When it comes to interreligious diplomacy as a force for peace, perseverance in dialogue, however difficult, is the only way forward.”
speaks volumes about the care people hold in their hearts for this institution,” Greenberg wrote in an open reflection on the Academy’s website.
Soon after violence erupted, interfaith leaders united—as they have done in the past during moments of shared grief and trauma, including 9/11 and the Covid-19 pandemic—and sent a collective message to the Andover community. It is often in the darkest moments, Greenberg adds, that light can be found in community coming together. “It can be a powerful salve.”
“I believe that when we learn about the practices of our neighbors, we can actually learn a great deal about ourselves,” Greenberg explains. “At the heart of all religions are common languages we all share—love and serving others, grace and peace, excellence and achievement, growth and learning.”
More than a year later, the ongoing Israel-Hamas war also illustrates the fragility of interfaith diplomacy. Chaplains may bring their specific takes and individual practices, but “we’re united in wanting to foster helpful conversation around themes that are important for student well-being,” says Kantor, who is working with Rabbi Greenberg to build a new student interfaith coalition—one that centers on students’ relationships with each other, across faiths and across differences. “When it comes to interreligious diplomacy as a force for peace, perseverance in dialogue, however difficult, is the only way forward.”
In February, Andover will join celebrations around the globe marking the United Nations World Interfaith Harmony Week. The event promotes unity among all people, regardless of their faith, and encourages peace, dignity, and equality on a healthy planet. Andover has been participating for a decade.
“What is so beautiful about a place like Andover is the business of relationship building that comes through experiential learning,” adds Finocchiaro, who joined students on a visit to the Auschwitz exhibition in Boston in March. “It was emotional to move through that exhibit, and it was an honor to experience it with a group of Jewish students and to be trusted as an adult in that space as they processed very complicated history emotionally and intellectually. Andover is a place where you can do that with guidance and with respect, and in all the ways we talk about difference.”
HENRY MARTE
HENRY MARTE
Above: Students celebrating Sukkot and Halloween
Andover faith leaders: Rabbi Joshua “RJ” Greenberg, Noureddine El Alam, Dr. Mary Kantor, and Rev. Gina Finocchiaro ’97
As the United States prepares to inaugurate its 47th president amidst a turbulent cultural backdrop, Andover is working to encourage civil discourse—for the good of its students, the Andover community, and democracy writ large.
CO MM O N D I V I DE
Written by Allyson Irish
Illustrations by Neil Webb
he students slowly stream into Bulfinch Hall Room 107, water bottles and laptops in hand. They sit around a large wooden table and wait for the teacher to begin.
It’s a late start at 7:50 p.m., unusual for Andover’s regimented schedule. But this class is different. Offered only to seniors, The Will of the People is the most recent offering of The William Sloane Coffin Jr. ’42 Colloquium Series. Organized by English instructor Leon Calleja, the series explores all aspects of popular sovereignty through a series of interdisciplinary classes taught by different teachers and guest speakers. During the term, students will participate in classes such as Personality and Identity Politics, The Practice of Democratic Citizenship, and Freedom. Tonight, history instructor Matt Hession discusses the American political landscape of the late 1960s and early ’70s prior to the Supreme Court’s landmark 1976 ruling on campaign finance regulations. It’s impossible not to recognize the similarities to the current zeitgeist. Divisiveness. A fracturing among and within political parties. Mistrust in government and social institutions. Guided by insights and questions from Hession and Calleja, students
are encouraged to think about the many levers involved in a working democracy.
“A major takeaway of the course is having students think about what legitimizes democracy, to see that collective governance in general is hard work and shouldn’t be taken for granted,” says Calleja. “Democracy has always been a struggle that requires an active, inquisitive, and critically minded citizenry.”
THE STRUGGLE IS REAL
There’s no question 2024 was a big year. In terms of the sheer number of elections, more than 60 nations across the globe made decisions on leadership, signaling the potential for massive geopolitical shifts. In the United States, citizens continue to grapple with myriad hot-button issues, ranging from abortion rights and immigration to health care and freedom of speech.
All of this is happening amidst a backdrop of distrust and unease. The Pew Research Center, which has been polling Americans since 1958, states that public trust in government “is near historic lows.”
When it comes to education, the numbers are equally dismal. Pew data from April 2024 show that one-third of American public-school teachers in grades K–12 trust neither Democrats nor Republicans to manage public education.
“We’ve always been polarized,” says Jane Coaston, a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times who focuses on conservatism and the GOP. “What is different today is that people’s politics have become their personalities.”
Through her writing and podcast, Coaston—who was an All-School Meeting speaker in October—posits that this “cult of
personality” has been amplified by the use of social media. Online discussion forums in particular (like X and Reddit) have further fanned the flames of divisiveness.
“Posting online has become a performance that you would probably not do in any other space,” she notes. “When you are in person, you can read expression and there is greater context. But online you are praised and algorithmically boosted for being the most extreme version of who you are.”
Students understand this all too well. A board member of Andover’s Political Union (APU), Pragun Seth ’25 says that he and his peers are acutely aware of the inherent structural polarization within social media that includes clickbait and weaponized information.
And their wariness extends beyond social platforms.
“Nowadays, traditional media outlets have become so biased and their quality has degraded so much that I find myself fact-checking each conclusion that is presented to me,” Seth says.
Do media outlets care about these perceptions? Does it factor into their reporting, choice of guests, or their coverage?
A political reporter for nearly 30 years, John Berman ’90 says that objectivity and maintaining a civil conversation has always been—and remains—the goal of journalism. But that goal has become increasingly difficult to achieve.
“Every interview I go into, I have a plan to get as much substance as I can before the guest invariably lays the punches or does the sensational thing,” says Berman, co-anchor of CNN News Central. “We want to be compelling, but our goal is always journalism—even though the culture has become more addicted to shiny objects.”
Berman cut his political teeth covering the 1996 presidential campaign of Bill Clinton v. Bob Dole; four years later he spent 18 months on the road with candidate and fellow PA alumnus George W. Bush ’64, who eventually became the 43rd president. At that time, recalls Berman, use of the internet and social media for political campaigns was still somewhat novel. “Information wasn’t being blasted out every second of every day,” he says. Berman acknowledges that while the proliferation of real-time content available now is generally a good thing, it requires a high level of vigilance to assess sources and react respectfully and responsibly.
“Andover taught me how to ask questions and search for answers. I also learned how to make a point clearly and listen. You have to be willing to listen, especially to people you disagree with.”
GETTING TO DIALOGUE
How can we expect to teach the next generation of leaders about constructive dialogue if adults are not able to model this behavior themselves? It’s an important question and one that Head of School Raynard S. Kington, MD, PhD, P’24, ’27, addressed with the community at the start of the academic year. Andover’s approach to civil discourse, Kington said, leans heavily on its values and mission to “prepare students to become engaged members of society.” Kington acknowledged that this can be difficult when “society seems captivated by the most extreme viewpoints and loudest voices.” Yet that is precisely what the Academy wants students to do—identify core issues, deconstruct multiple perspectives, and ultimately learn from one another.
“Civil discourse leads to deeper understanding,” Kington said. “It is an essential component of an in-
Andover taught me how to ask questions and search for answers. I also learned how to make a point clearly and listen. You have to be willing to listen, especially to people you disagree with.”
We want students to dig deep into these conversations and to understand there is more than one side to a particular story or point of view, but that complexity often involves paradox.”
a new framework of peacebuilding capable of withstanding the volatility of our changing world.”
Katerina Browder ’26, another APU board member, agrees. Browder says that educational institutions like Andover should prioritize creating environments where students can “express their views openly without fear of social or academic consequences” and that teachers in particular play an important role by “modeling neutrality in political conversations and…teaching students how to engage in respectful conversation about difficult issues.”
tellectual community, and it is crucial during these turbulent times.”
Andover has always provided a place and space for difficult conversations, and those efforts amped up this past fall with various opportunities for students and campus adults to develop skills, test out various approaches to contentious scenarios, and hear from speakers with diverse political and ideological viewpoints.
Derek Curtis is the faculty advisor to the APU, PA Dems, and the Andover Conservative Club. When he met with the APU board over the summer, students explicitly asked to have a variety of viewpoints and perspectives presented through campus guest speakers. “They want more people talking,” he says, acknowledging that students not only recognize today’s heated rhetoric but also see how it is used to purposely weaponize discourse.
“The hope is that in talking we turn down the volume on extremity,” says Curtis. “The conversation itself is its own win. The worst thing we can do is go off in our own silos.”
Students have noticed. In October, The Phillipian published no fewer than five commentaries on topics like “Gender in Elections” and “Bringing Politics to Andover.” Writing about the need for a new approach to diplomacy, Grace Kim ’27 referred to her interview with John Marks ’61, a recent Tang Institute speaker and a visionary in the fields of diplomacy and peacemaking (see story, page 12).
“As the familiar world begins to give way to uncertainty, it is clear that we must adapt,” Kim writes. “…relying solely on government-to-government negotiations is simply insufficient in the face of the more complex and intense conflicts endangering our world today. The integration of the adaptable, human-centered approach of [diplomacy] can forge
From guest speakers to community conversations, Andover provided many options for political discussion this fall. Read more at andover.edu, “Discourse and Democracy.”
TALKING THE TALK
During an October tabletop exercise in Kemper Auditorium, campus adults gathered to consider a list of “micro dilemmas” with assistance from Harvard’s EdEthics Program, which provides research and training for educators around complex ethical decisions.
Seated around a table, instructors and staff reviewed a scenario that involved a teacher who wanted to include a student’s conservative viewpoint in a class where the majority held similar liberal perspectives. What to do?
The group discussed different types of language to use with the class and with the specific student and how to approach the dilemma in an open, inquisitive, and empathetic manner.
“It’s really complex and nuanced,” remarked one of the faculty members, as others nodded. “We want students to dig deep into these conversations and to understand there is more than one side to a particular story or point of view, but that complexity often involves paradox.”
Navigating these conversations is difficult, especially at a school like Andover with students from around the world who have
An Exchange of H OPE
efore David McCullough III ’13 entered his senior year at Yale University, he took a summer road trip to Texas, South Dakota, and Ohio. These locations were “a world away from the leafy Boston suburb I grew up in,” McCullough explains, and the experiences he had meeting with ranchers, preachers, and teachers changed the course of his life.
The trip opened his eyes to people and places vastly different from what he was used to, and McCullough was intrigued. Working with his graduate school professor Paul Solman, he dove into a research project to better understand the demographics and disparities.
What the pair discovered was that many of the problems facing the United States can be boiled down to one simple fact: we don’t know one another. So began the American Exchange Project (AEP), which McCullough co-founded in 2019.
“The whole theory of change at AEP is based on the notion of social capital, that your relationships matter enormously to your outcomes in life,” McCullough says.
AEP developed a unique program for high school seniors, pairing them with other U.S. teens across factors of difference, such as income levels, race, religion, political beliefs, and location. The program culminates in a week-long summer exchange.
Thus far, AEP has run close to 150 exchanges with 1,000 students in 70 towns across 40 states. Early data show that this approach works.
“We see that kids are much more likely to hang out with people who disagree with them after the experience,” McCullough says. “We also see that kids say they have faith in fellow Americans and they are
more optimistic about the future of the country.”
A teacher at Bishop Seabury Academy in Lawrence, Kansas, Sonja Czarnecki ’94 has been an AEP exchange manager since 2022.
Czarnecki is amazed at the transformations she has seen among participating students. The program, she says, directly addresses one of the root problems of societal polarization.
“We are fed a steady stream of content online that tends to confirm our biases, trigger the amygdala, and that generally reinforces our own prejudices,” she says.
The skills that AEP emphasizes—active listening, finding compromise, and looking for common ground—are much more than “nice to have.”
“What we are trying to get at with AEP,” says Czarnecki, “is the skill set that democracy needs to survive. You have to understand the values of the other side and find some common area to come together. Democracy can only really work when that type of situation can take place.”
McCullough is excited by the success of the program thus far and says he’d like these types of experiences to be “as normal a high school experience as a prom.”
The focus now is on scaling AEP and building out a national structure. If it works, McCullough says that AEP and programs like it can help to “stitch our divided country back together.”
differing socioeconomic, racial, and religious backgrounds. This diversity remains core to the educational experience, says Aquita Winslow, dean of the Office of Community and Multicultural Development.
“We have a profound responsibility to prepare our students for the complexities of the world they live in,” says Winslow, who developed training for student leaders and campus adults that included tips on how to frame effective conversations, especially those that may be emotionally and/or politically charged.
“Ignoring or avoiding difficult conversations—whether about race, politics, gender, or global conflicts like the Israel-Palestine war—does a disservice to our students,” she continues. “If we shy away from these uncomfortable topics, we lose the opportunity to help students think critically, engage with different perspectives, and develop their own moral compass.”
FORGING A WAY FORWARD
One thing is certain: the world that today’s high school students will graduate into will be more complex and interconnected than ever before. And the solutions to addressing global problems like climate change, lack of clean water, and political unrest will require conflict resolution skills, nuanced thinking, and the ability to lead those with differing points of view.
“The foundation of the United States is that it is a democracy and a fountainhead of innovation,” says Seth. “These unique aspects of this country are only made possible if we emphasize and respect each individual’s freedom of speech, whether we agree with that speech or not.”
If we shy away from these uncomfortable topics, we lose the opportunity to help students think critically, engage with different perspectives, and develop their own moral compass.”
Alexander Heffner ’08’s Breaking Bread TV series looks to build consensus across political and philosophical beliefs, one meal at a time. Read more at andover. edu/magazine.
While people may be drawn to those who have similar viewpoints and experiences, this type of homogenous thinking will not serve students—or democracy—well.
The antidote to this echo chamber is what some call “bridging”—inviting different voices to the discussion and listening first to understand. There are glimmers of hope (see sidebar, “An Exchange of Hope”), from media outlets and journalists pursuing a focus on common ground to organizations like Harvard’s EdEthics and the Institute for Citizens and Scholars— both of which have collaborated with Andover this past year—that provide research-based programming for educators.
At the same time, society needs to consider what types of actions and dialogue to incent. Will the outrageous and polarizing continue to be rewarded and glamorized, or will the next generation find a way to reinforce positive interactions and cooperation? Only time will tell.
“One thing that I have learned is that everything is true until it is not,” says Berman. “I’m hopeful that at some point we will reward civility and the ability to work in a civil way. I don’t think it is impossible.”
And from the perspectives of teachers and students at Andover, this endeavor is worthwhile.
“It’s hard work to promote and sustain the kind of intentionally diverse community that Andover sees as a part of its mission,” says Calleja. “But it is worth the struggle to preserve and perpetuate a democratic spirit among our students. It is part of Andover’s public purpose, and we have to keep at it. Because this kind of extraordinary education does not happen easily or on its own.”
Lunar Living Building a Career Beyond Earth
BY JOSEPH P. KAHN ’67
What is the cislunar economy, and how might it benefit humankind? To George Weinmann ’93, P’27, the opening of an Earth-Moon commercial lane is more than a science fiction fantasy realized. It represents the natural evolution of our innate urge to explore new frontiers, expand human horizons, and reconfigure global culture in all ways, from technology and commerce to leisure, travel, and recreation.
“Human economies grow and thrive when we can diversify our sphere of knowledge,” says Weinmann, who’s based in New Orleans. “We like to innovate, and sometimes you need to put yourself in new environments to be stimulated.”
Our understanding of climate and geography, even our basic communication skills, he continues, have all been enhanced by space exploration. “It isn’t just engineering and technology. It’s all the other aspects that make us human—and interesting.”
With a background in aerospace engineering and a lifelong fascination with space exploration, Weinmann operates at the intersection of business, finance, engineering, and aviation-aerospace development. In the last few years, he was in international marketing and sales with Blue Origin, billionaire Jeff Bezos’s rocket manufacturing and spaceflight services company, where his duties included work on the Orbital Reef mixed-use space station.
Today, Weinmann runs Challenge Aerospace, an investment firm exploring new opportunities in space-related ventures and other future-looking projects. In addition to brokering investor deals and serving as strategic advisor to companies both foreign and domestic, he pursues his own business ventures—anything outside of the atmosphere is likely to grab his attention—that capitalize on new technologies and potential cislunar markets.
One such project, yet to be announced, would bring modern, competitive sports to space, funded not by government
agencies but by individual teams and corporate sponsors. Other opportunities, according to Weinmann, are emerging to channel more private funding into an expanding space-based economy, aided by advances in areas like biomedical and material science research in microgravity and increased cultural interest in space.
“I’m interested in new ways to bring money into the cislunar economy,” he says. “Most ventures eventually depend on government revenue sources, which at the end of the day is not very diverse and doesn’t allow for true global participation.”
Arriving at Andover in ninth grade, Weinmann had long been interested in futuristic endeavors. He and three classmates built a working airship, which they flew during graduation exercises. At age 18, he earned his pilot’s license. However, a genetic lung condition ended any youthful dreams of joining NASA’s astronaut crew. After graduating from the University of Virginia, he spent five years at Boeing Corporation, applying his engineering, marketing, and plan-writing skills to developing concepts for a replacement of the space shuttle, among other projects.
for retirement. NASA, as well as other nations and private enterprises, would be customers.
Another Blue Origin goal, to colonize the Moon within the next two to three decades, prompts a question appropriate for someone in Weinmann’s position. Given the costs and risks involved, and with other pressing priorities here on Earth, even if we could do that, should we?
A STELLAR
DISCOVERY
After analyzing thousands of stars, Valencia Zhang ’25 is helping to redefine stellar astrophysics.
The senior with a passion for astronomy uncovered the first-ever triaxial pulsator, a star that pulsates about three different, perpendicular axes. While most stars’ pulsations can only be observed through their frequency, tidally tilted pulsators, a novel class of stars in binary systems, allow for the observation of pulsations from all angles. Zhang’s groundbreaking discovery challenges existing definitions in the field of stellar pulsations and provides new insights into the types of axes stars can pulsate about.
Zhang’s project in the field of asteroseismology earned her a $10,000 Davidson Fellows Scholarship, an award given to students age 18 or younger who have completed significant projects that have the potential to benefit society in the fields of science, technology, engineering, mathematics, literature, and music.
“When I started my research, I did not have a strong intuition for the types of features to look for and often chose sources for the wrong reasons,” Zhang said. “However, through many failed attempts and conversations with my mentors, I built a strong intuition and the motivation to persevere through setbacks.”
The 2024 Davidson scholarship recipients were honored in September at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C. Davidson Institute founder Bob Davidson said that the fellows “continue to push the boundaries of educational and research pursuits, striving to solve some of the world’s most challenging problems by leveraging creative, outside-the-box thinking.”
Later, armed with an MBA from the University of Michigan, Weinmann moved to Asia for a decade and a half, during which he was involved in funding, starting, and running three start-up airlines serving mainland China and the region. Eventually, though, he returned to his first love, space, and was recruited to Blue Origin by a cohort of former Boeing colleagues.
“ We like to innovate, and sometimes you need to put yourself in new environments to be stimulated.”
“They had already flown Jeff Bezos into space and were marching toward launching their orbital rocket,” he recalls. At Blue Origin, he helped develop a business plan for a commercially run space station to replace the International Space Station, which is scheduled
“That’s a good question, and one that could be asked of many human endeavors,” he says. Potential benefits include harvesting new energy sources and valuable minerals, he notes, in addition to offloading industries that have a negative impact on our planet’s health.
Yet Weinmann peers even deeper into the post-cislunar future for inspiration. Once nuclear propulsion is perfected, he posits, the entire solar system could be ripe for exploration, likening it to the way global culture and commerce were changed by the advent of the 19th-century clipper ship.
“I’d love to see space [travel] become affordable enough so that an explorer can go out there for what I’d call escaping themselves, not just for technology or business reasons,” he reflects. “When we can explore space with some ‘free time’ as opposed to programming every second of what we do there, we’re really going to see culture and humanity expand.”
Zhang plans to study both astronomy and physics in college.
“Being named a Davidson Fellow is a dream come true,” Zhang said. “It not only recognizes my passion for astronomy but also offers me the opportunity to interact with a community of individuals equally driven to make a difference in the world.”
The Thrills of Marathon Swimming
Ranie Pearce ’79, P’10, finds joy among dolphins, icebergs, and her people
BY JILL CLERKIN
Ranie Pearce has conquered some of the world’s most challenging waters, from the turbulent English Channel to frigid Antarctica. Little did she know what she was capable of when, at age 45, she abruptly ended a years-long hassle to get her teenagers to eat breakfast.
“I basically said, ‘I’m out of here!’” recalls Pearce. “I adored my daughters, but they were old enough to decide when and what to eat.” Unsure where to go for her new 6 a.m. “me time,” Pearce headed to the pool at the high school where she teaches special education—and never looked back.
“The other swimmers were nice,” she says, “and there was a great coach. I was just like, oh my god, there’s a whole world out here!”
Pearce lives just east of San Francisco Bay. Her first open water event was a 1.27-mile swim from Alcatraz Island to Aquatic Park. “It was wonderful,” she says. “I had found my people!” Pearce soon joined the South End Rowing Club, known for training channel swimmers. Her first official marathon swim was the Strait of Gibraltar (15 km) in
2010. With less than a kilometer to go, Pearce realized she might not make it:
“As hard as I swam, I wasn’t getting closer to shore. Out of nowhere came these huge dolphins, maybe 30 of them, and they swarmed around me. I was so mesmerized that I stopped concentrating on swimming.
“After about 10 minutes, the dolphins disappeared. As I’m looking for them, I smack into the rocks. I’d made it. I’ll swear till my dying day that those dolphins helped me reach safety by interrupting the current that was pushing me offshore.”
The following year Pearce swam the English Channel (33 km, 18+ hours), establishing herself as a world-class distance swimmer.
“Sharks circle, bump, and then they bite. I got circled and bumped.”
In 2016, just four hours into Hawaii’s 28.5-mile Molokai Channel Swim, Pearce came face to face with a 10-foot tiger shark.
“I was terrified, straight up,” she says. “It came at me with those dead eyes. Sharks circle, bump, and then they bite. I got circled and bumped.” Twenty long minutes later, she climbed aboard the watch boat. It was a rare DNF.
“I am a slow swimmer and I don’t ever win,” she notes, “but I get so much
“The craft, the creative practice, the artist, and the effort that produces meaningful art will remain no matter the medium or tools that are used.”
more out of this. In fact, I would say that training with my friends is often almost better than the actual event.”
Pearce dove into the world of winter swimming when invited on a 10-day trip to Patagonia in 2014. She has since completed cold water swims in China, Finland, and Russia (five times)—plus two “ice miles” in water below 40 degrees. “Even after 40 minutes, I’m not miserable,” she claims. “Adrenaline helps keep me blissfully numb.”
This past February, Pearce savored the pristine 30-degree waters of Antarctica in her usual gear—swimsuit, cap, goggles, and earplugs. No wetsuit allowed. “Some areas were frozen over,” she says, “but we found open spots where the water was moving.” The one-kilometer swim took 24 minutes.
Pearce has completed more than 40 major events on six continents and has swum in waters in and around all 50 states. Topping her to-do list for 2025 is a swim from Sweden to Denmark.
Now 64, the unstoppable athlete is not defined by a number. “I wear a bathing suit just about everywhere, and I’m not the most perfect physical specimen,” she says. “Some people might be bothered by that, but I’m just like, you don’t know what my body can do.”
Find out about Pearce’s Andover experience, surprising details about her swims, and future plans at andover.edu/magazine
POORVI PATODIA ’94 MINDFUL MUNCHIES
BY JENNIFER MYERS
Americans have long craved crunchy, salty snacks bursting with flavors like BBQ, ranch, and nacho cheese. Yet, until recently, grocery store shelves offered limited choices— potato chips, cheese puffs, and pretzels—that provided a quick fix but lacked nutritional value.
Ravenously hungry and searching out healthier snacks to satisfy her cravings while pregnant with oldest daughter Mira, Poorvi Patodia ’94, P’26, a former product brand manager, decided to create a better option.
“I thought of snacks I enjoyed growing up, particularly roasted chickpeas, which are a staple in many cultures, including India, where I was born,” she says. “Packed with protein and fiber and free of the top eight allergens, chickpeas have everything people want in the U.S., yet they are barely eaten here.” In 2012, she took a leap of faith and quit her job to launch Biena Snacks.
Biena is now a leader in the healthy snack market, offering a range of roasted chickpeas in flavors such as sea salt, honey roasted, “rockin’ ranch,” and habanero, available in over 15,000 stores nationwide. In 2022, the company expanded its product line with “Tasty Thins,” a low-calorie, high-nutrition chickpea chip.
Patodia’s company boasts more than 60 percent of the market share in the “roasted bean snacks” category—a category that did not exist when she started Biena.
“If we push hard and build the right team and community around us and stay determined,” Patodia says, “we can have a huge positive impact.”
—CHARLOTTE KENT ’98, head of visual and critical studies at Montclair State University, weighs in on AI-generated art.
Read more about Kent at andover.edu/magazine
“Yeah, yeah,” says Ranie Pearce when asked about sharks in San Francisco Bay. “They’re here. They just aren’t looking for me.”
Making the Grade
How thoughtful donors invest in Andover’s world-class faculty
BY KATIE FIERMONTI
Today, Andover faculty partner with the school’s benefactors like never before.
Whether presenting at an international conference or directing an innovative, cross-disciplinary workshop, PA instructors are being empowered to lead. They’re also being granted the opportunity to elevate their best professional selves, with uninterrupted time to contribute to peer-reviewed publications and new technologies for dynamic classroom lessons.
In particular, donors are giving faculty the tools to succeed by funding foundations, instructorships, and en-
“Andover is unique in that it has such exceptional faculty who have been there for decades, as well as teaching
fellows
right out of college. Having both groups is so important, and supporting and retaining them in their professional growth is crucial.”
—WHITNEY BOWEN ’10
dowed department chairs. So too leadership positions, sabbaticals, professional development funds, and more. These resources drive every classroom interaction, every lightbulb moment—and advance the Academy’s role as a national model for excellence in secondary education.
Whitney Bowen ’10 was eager to join the dozens of alumni, families, and friends worldwide who have given to this priority in the past five years. For the former elementary school teacher, a chance to help other educators resonated deeply. Bowen’s endowment sponsors sabbaticals, an Academy advantage that few peer schools can match—and one
that enables instructors each year to further their independent research, write books and articles, and seek additional academic enrichment.
“Andover is unique in that it has such exceptional faculty who have been there for decades, as well as teaching fellows right out of college,” says Bowen. “Having both groups is so important, and supporting and retaining them in their professional growth is crucial.”
She also wanted to celebrate the impact her own PA mentors made on her life and career.
“I had so many incredible teachers at Andover. They are a major part of what makes the school special. They are
your surrogate parents, coaches, mentors,” says Bowen. “And I wanted to say thank you.”
So did Serena Perin Vinton ’86. She, along with husband Henry and daughters Elena ’19, Alexandra ’22, and Amelia ’23, created an endowed fund for the Academic Skills Center in tribute to its hard-working staff, especially Director Laura Warner.
“Laura Warner is a godsend to the school. She opened her arms to my daughter Amelia, who is dyslexic,” says Vinton, who hopes the family’s gift helps increase understanding about neurodivergences. Vinton’s brother, Reuben ’89, and father, Reuben ’57, P’86, ’89, GP’19, ’22, ’23, also have dyslexia.
“From day one, Laura allowed Amelia to feel comfortable with her disability and offered her a safe space to feel
good about who she is,” she says. “But Laura needed more resources—to bring in speakers, to raise awareness, even things like getting students tested. If I can make things easier by providing this gift, then she and her team can serve the students all the better. And that’s really gratifying.”
For physics instructor Clyfe Beckwith P’15, ’17, who is one of nearly 100 PA faculty members currently bolstered by a teaching foundation, such support is priceless. He’s used the wider priority funding for everything from faculty dinners to technology equipment, even for a “life-changing” sabbatical that granted him extended time to “think big.”
He’s not alone. PA educators annually take advantage of professional development funds to heighten their subject knowledge. Many others are on teaching
“I’m hugely grateful to donors. Their investments positively advance Andover and enable us to be versatile and imaginative.”
instructorships that recognize and en courage rising faculty. In every instance, these resources offer opportunities to expand scholarly interests and amplify classroom creativity.
“I’m hugely grateful to donors,” says Beckwith. “Their investments positively advance Andover and enable us to be versatile and imaginative. I have colleagues from other schools who ask how we do what we do at PA. I tell them it’s because the Academy and our donors support us. Any time you can give students a nonstandard experience, they lap it up. The same is true for faculty.”
For more on how donors make Andover better every day, explore all the stories at andover.edu/ASPIRE
Donor support for Andover faculty continues to grow, with dozens of alumni, families, and friends making gifts across the breadth of their teaching endeavors.
More Than a Book Club
Rabbits Read creates connections and memories
BY NANCY HITCHCOCK
The Abbot Class of 1973 is distinct in many ways. They were the last group to graduate from Abbot Academy, they celebrated their 50th Reunion last year, and many partake in a virtual book club called Rabbits Read. Formed during the pandemic in spring 2020, the club has read nearly 60 books together.
“We’re a very tight-knit group,” says Dorothy Dodson “Dee” McLaughlin ’73. “The essence of what makes our book group great is connections. We have the opportunity to form new relationships, deepen old ones, and strengthen existing connections to our world, which is so vital and keeps us thriving as we age and transition through life stages.”
McLaughlin launched Rabbits Read at a time when people needed connections the most. Although the core group comprises women from the Class of ’73, other Abbot friends sometimes drop into the Zoom meeting as well.
“All the women have very fond memories of their time at Abbot,” says McLaughlin. “Each person brings myriad life experiences, some good, some bad, and some tragic. Sharing our stories and sharing the stories in literature helps us to understand our world.”
The group has read a wide range of genres, including classic literature, contemporary fiction, and socially conscious books. Titles such as Waking Up White, Caste, and Demon Copperhead sparked deep discussions on issues like racial justice, history, and addiction. They also read Afterlife by Julia Alvarez ’67, whose sister Ana is in the Class of ’73.
Memorable moments include discussions led by classmates and/or teachers who are authors. Mary Jane Miller ’73 presented The Ranch—A Story of the Predictable but Completely Unexpected about her early days in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, in the 1970s. Abbot English teacher Fran Ladd (Frances Dean Nolde ’54) discussed her book She Looked to the Sky: The Remarkable Life of a Pioneer Aviator with the group. And Catherine Armsden ’73 expounded on her memoir, An Alert, Well-Hydrated Artist in No Acute Distress, which delves into her and her friend’s diagnoses of Parkinson’s disease and tackles issues such as empathy in health care.
“It was very poignant to hear Catherine’s story and how she and oth-
ers live their lives even in the midst of a disease,” says McLaughlin. “It’s so much richer when you get to hear what’s behind the story and the author’s intent.”
The group’s monthly meetings strengthen friendships and provide support as individuals experience life’s transitions: challenges in relationships, caring for aging parents, moving, downsizing, and retirement. Just last year, McLaughlin retired from teaching—a career she pursued thanks to role model Susan McIntosh Lloyd P’77, ’78, ’79, an Abbot and PA history and music instructor.
“It’s more than a book club,” concludes McLaughlin. “It’s friends. It’s support. It expands our world.”
At their 50th Reunion in 2023, the Class of 1973 met their book club friends and welcomed curious classmates in the Pan Athletic Center’s Abbot Academy Dance Suite. Seated from left are Lucinda Leach, Christine Ho, Debra (Heifetz) Stein, Lori (Goodman) Seegers P’05, Dorothy (Dodson) “Dee” McLaughlin, Liz (Rollins) “Buzzy” Mauran, Cornelia (Petty) “Connee” Young, Sarah Bayldon, Judith Webster, Liz Miller (Betsy Coward), and Mary Clements Michelfelder. Standing: Lynn Chesler, Ellen Hoitsma, Vicki (Wood) DeBoest, and Robin (Lothrop) Pinto. Present, but not in photo: Jane Cashin Demers P’03, ’05.
Andover Edition puzzler
Across
5. Designer of the PA seal
6. First name of PA’s female head of school
11. Cluster named after a tree
13. Number of U.S. presidents who graduated from PA
16. Famous author and abolitionist who lived on campus in the late 1800s
17. Last name of the renowned author/poet who had a romantic relationship with an Abbot teacher
18. Name of the Abbot campus main gate
19. Name of the popular garage punk band formed on campus in the ’60s that recorded the album Calm Before
20. First name of Abbot Academy’s founder
How much do you really know about your beloved high school? The first three people to share correct answers with us will receive a prize! Please email magazine@andover.edu and be sure to include “Puzzler Answers” in the subject line.
Down
1. For several decades in the 1900s, an Abbot student was either a Griffin or a
2. Quad named after this 1865 alumnus who was an active voice for the rights of Black Americans
3. Last name of PA’s first head of school
4. Name of Abbot Academy’s beloved chocolatey dessert
7. First word of the most recent fundraising campaign
8. Predominant type of tree on PA campus
9. Student lounge formerly known as The Den
10. Bulfinch Hall was once used as a
12. Number of campus clusters
14. Abbot Hall is an example of this type of architecture
15. Industrious insect that is part of the PA seal
the gift of a summer at
Summer Session, our flagship five-week academic enrichment program, brings students together from across the country and around the world to enjoy 60-plus Lower School and Upper School institute course offerings—all led by outstanding faculty. Lively discussions, small class sizes, and hands-on learning will engage the most curious and dedicated student! Plus, regular social events and weekly off-campus trips will round out this transformational Andover experience.
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