ALUMNI E-NEWS #2 NOVEMBER 2014
This is our second-ever alumni e-newsletter and we are psyched about it. Our aim is to make this monthly email light up your inbox like a firecracker (but without a pesky explosion). WE WANT TO SEE YOUR PRETTY FACE (or, Upcoming Events) Monday, November 25, Class of 2013 High School Night Members of the Class of 2013 are invited to RSS to represent their new schools at our annual 8th Grade High School Night. Here’s the plan: 6:30PM - pizza and orientation; 7 - 7:45PM - high school night panel; 7:45PM - after-party! RSVP to Mr. Palmer at bpalmer@rssnyc.org. Friday, December 20, all alumni: Middle School Talent Show! This year, we’re inviting RSS graduates back to school at 1 p.m. on December 20 to join the audience for this spectacular annual tradition. And you get to sit in the bleachers. RSVPs required to Mr. Palmer at bpalmer@rssnyc.org. (We are not allowed to encourage you to skip school that day, if you have school that day. #stayinschoolkids) Monday, February 24, Parents of Alumni Celebration Tell your folks! Because sometimes it’s not all about you! :) We are delighted to invite parents of alumni to reunite in the Schafler, remember the good ol’ days, and meet our new headmaster. Invitation to follow, but feel free to forward this to your parental type figures so they’re in the know. Sunday, April 6, 2014, RSS Community Service Day Yes, April 2014 is a ways away, but we want this date in your calendars nonetheless. RSS alums are known more and more for doing good in the world, so let’s show current families how it’s done with a strong turnout of helping hands at our annual Community Service Day. Jot down this date and plan on joining us for a super-fun and meaningful day. MR. GRUBER WROTE A BOOK (and we’re going to tell you all about it) Michael Gruber joined the RSS faculty in 2003 as a third grade teacher, and since then he’s taught a number of our alumni. He’s also written his first novel, Hoodwink and the Invisible Doorway, recently published under the pen name Michael Rayleigh-Taylor. Of course we leaped (leapt? vaulted? catapulted?) at the chance to interview Mr. Gruber about his book, the writing process, and why he chose to publish under a pen name. Read the full interview here and check out the book here. Woot!
READ THIS, LISTEN TO THAT The alumni e-newsletter is brand new but we’ve already got a tradition. Each month we’ll ask a couple of our awesome teachers about music or books or Broadway or other interesting topics (graffiti? underwater basket weaving?) and share their recommendations with you. This month, we asked middle school assistant and tastemaker Megan Shotwell for her favorite post-apocalyptic novels and the venerable Morah Hava Weiss, who’s taught at RSS since 1981, for her tips on enjoying NYC this winter. These are wise and wonderful women, so you should heed their sage advice. Ms. Shotwell’s Three Essential Post-Apocalyptic Novels 1. The Stand by Stephen King: The Stand was my introduction to the post-apocalyptic novel at the age of 15. A government-engineered superflu kills off 99% of the world’s population and an epic battle of good vs. evil ensues. This is a must-read for anyone interested in the genre. 2. The Passage by Justin Cronin: Amazing storytelling and the introduction of a brand of vampires that is nothing like the angsty Brad Pitt or Robert Pattinson variety. This is the kind of book that grabs you from the very first moment and never lets you go. 3. The Road by Cormac McCarthy: A harrowing tale of a man and his son struggling to survive in a post-apocalyptic world. McCarthy creates moments of such beauty from even the bleakest of circumstances. Editor’s note: I have read all three of these books and they are all fantastic. -BP. Hava’s Tips for Enjoying New York City This Winter Downtown Dance Day: Get tickets for Complexions Contemporary Ballet at the Joyce Theater, 8th Ave. and 19th St., from now through December 1. Before or after the show, go for a walk along the High Line and then warm up indoors with lunch or dinner at Chelsea Market or Eately; both offer plenty of eating options under one roof. The Theatre, Dahling: Hava took her nieces to see “Fuerza Bruta” in Union Square and enjoyed it as much as they did: “It’s like a big party for young people.” The interactive theater experience closes in January, so get your tickets before then. If you prefer to sit when visiting the theater, try famed director Julie Taymor’s new production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” at Theatre for a New Audience in Brooklyn, then casually ask people at parties whether they’ve seen it
so they’ll know how cool you are. Keep upping your cultural coolness by checking out two other shows Hava recommends, the new production of “Twelfth Night” (men in dresses! direct from London!) or “Waiting for Godot” starring Professor X and Magneto (otherwise known as Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart). For more wintertime suggestions from Hava, click here. THROWBACK WHATEVER-DAY-IT-IS-TODAY We don’t want to brag or anything, but we have seen an abundance of alumni lately. Visitors from the classes of 2013 and 2012 have graced the halls of RSS in record numbers recently, and actual real-life adults from the classes of 2001, 2004, and 2005 gathered for our first alumni happy hour on October 24. We’re excited about expanding the number of in-person events we offer, so please let us know if you have a brilliant (or even halfway decent) idea for an event! WE ARE TOTES LIKABLE (but maybe too old to say “totes”) Check out our Facebook page and our growing (and awesome) Instagram account, two excellent ways for you to stay connected to one another and to life at good ol’ RSS. At left, our most liked photo on Facebook since last month’s newsletter. #ottomanellis #tbt Hey, college students! We really, really, really, really want your college mailing address (for nothing but good things, we promise). Make sure we have it via our alumni website. (If you’re on a phone right now, click this link and then scroll down, down, down.) There are treats involved (delicious treats!). If you’re interested in helping RSS stay awesome (and having your name published in the 2013-2014 Giving Report) we are super grateful for gifts of all sizes, and here’s where and how to give one. If you want some reasons why you might want to donate to RSS, call me. I’m friendly. We want to hear from you! Tell us how you’re feeling today and where you bought your favorite sweater of the season and what you’re doing during December break and when you’re coming to visit: bpalmer@rssnyc.org. Rodeph Sholom School Office of Development Bryant Palmer Director of Alumni Relations 646.438.8657 www.rodephsholomschool.org