23 minute read
AROUND CAMPUS
HAPPENINGS AROUND CAMPUS
OUTREACH
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Lower School Student Council raises money for Feed More with a pajama day. They also held a food and clothing drive to benefit the School’s community partners.
Jackson Hawthorne ’28 and other Middle School boys help clean up Historic Evergreen and East End Cemeteries.
Upper School students restock shelves at Richmond ToolBank to complete service projects as part of an after-school program.
NEW PERSPECTIVES
Junior kindergarteners learn about the Chinese New Year from St. Catherine’s Chinese Teacher Kefu Dorian, the mother of junior kindergartener Owen Dorian.
Middle School students in the eighth grade elective EngageRVA visit public murals that comprise Mending Walls RVA, a project aimed at building bridges between Richmond communities.
INSPIRATION
Assistant Director of Athletics Stephen Lewis shares personal stories about discrimination, perseverance and finding common ground in Upper School chapel. He was awarded the Courage Story Award at the inaugural RVA Sports Awards in February.
Middle School Spanish Teacher Kathleen Hornik discusses her Hispanic heritage in Upper School chapel. After researching 12 colleges, each junior takes part in a mock admissions committee exercise and participates in a University of Richmond information session and campus tour.
MIND (Mental Illness Needs Discussion) holds its first meeting of the year in January after being on hiatus for much of the pandemic. The club seeks to promote mental wellness through discussions and guest speakers.
COMMUNITY BUILDING
Saints welcome newly-accepted Lower and Middle School families to campus. Sixth grade boys take part in a 16-year tradition where they engage in group activities, sports and community service. On Ash Wednesday, Upper School’s new chaplain, the Rev. John Ohmer, placed ashes and encouraged three challenges for Lent: “Be kind, don’t talk about the absent, and give people the benefit of the doubt.”
ARTS & CULTURE
Second grade boys in Hayden Vick’s class celebrate Fat Tuesday by designing and building mini floats and enjoying king cake to celebrate Mardi Gras.
The Beaux Ties a cappella group performs patriotic music for the 113th commemoration of George Washington’s birthday at the Virginia State Capitol. Illustrator Henry Cole visits Lower School to discuss his creative process with students
Sixth graders in Alex Knight’s English class display book covers they designed based on their interpretations of novels.
Kindergarteners show off drawings of Jackie Robinson, part of a collaborative book project to honor the contributions of Black Americans to U.S. history.
FIRST GRADE TIME CAPSULE
Capturing First Grade in Time
By Whitney Mathews, first grade teacher
My first class of kindergarten boys graduates from college this spring. Seventeen years ago, I never would have been able to imagine those young kindergarteners about to enter the real world. It’s a milestone to be sure.
So approaching the 2/22/22 date with my current class, I kept wrestling with the idea of capturing a moment in time. Fast forward to 3/3/33, and my first graders will be seniors, about to cross a big bridge themselves. I decided to create a time capsule they will open their senior year and remember their time in our happy, energetic classroom, even during a pandemic.
The boys wrote about themselves, their friendships and what first grade is to them. They included self-portraits and items symbolic of the year — a class photo, mask and favorite classroom toys. These tangible items represent what they love and what they’re struggling with. It doesn’t take a psychology degree to see that the minifigure mascot, a trickster Lego minifigure named Covid Man, who moves around the classroom dressed in a hazmat suit leaving clues for the boys to solve, is their way of internalizing the pandemic. The students believe he has special COVID-protection powers, though they worry he is going to disappear when the virus goes away entirely. (We’ll see about that!)
These memories will stay buried in the basement for the next 11 years. I can only imagine their faces when they open the capsule and remember.
VISION
To be a global thought leader in best practices for educating boys, serving as a resource for educators and parents seeking expertise in raising boys.
MISSION
Reflecting St. Christopher’s commitment to being a global leader in educating boys, The Center for the Study of Boys is dedicated to promoting best practices in engaging and teaching boys through research, professional development and programming.
CORE VALUES
• We respect, understand and value the complexity and uniqueness of boys.
• We provide opportunities for educators, parents and the boys themselves to understand and reflect on their own journeys to manhood and to learn from the journeys of others.
• We seek to understand the experiences of boys first and foremost through the boys’ voices, and we honor the boys’ contributions to the work of the center.
• We value partnerships with educators from around the world, knowing through this work we will address issues facing boys.
Parent Programs Encourage Connection, Rules and Boundaries
By Kim Hudson, director of The Center for the Study of Boys
Parenting a boy is no easy task. Each stage brings challenges for parents raising boys to be good men. As experts in understanding the unique needs of boys, The Center for the Study of Boys has enhanced its offerings for parent education.
In November, the center hosted a program for Lower School parents, “Listen to Learn: Exploring Podcasts about Raising and Educating Boys.” Prior to the event, participants listened to the podcast, “How to Raise Boys,” where author and parenting specialist Maggie Dent talked with boy expert, Dr. Michael Gurian, about what boys need to thrive. Participants then gathered on Zoom for a guided discussion about takeaways from the podcast and putting them into practice. Center Director Kim Hudson and JK Co-Teacher Amma Gatty served as program facilitators.
In February, we partnered with South African psychologist and author Megan de Beyer for two parent meetings. In a Middle School program, “How to Be Teenage Ready,” de Beyer explored young teen boys’ physical, emotional and social development and encouraged parents to provide reasonable rules and boundaries. In the Upper School program, “Communicating with Your Teenage Son,” she provided tips for connecting, which included helping boys name and own their feelings and understand strong emotions such as anger.
Author and parenting expert Maggie Dent Psychologist and author Megan de Beyer The cover of Megan de Beyer’s book
MOMENTUM 2025
In Pursuit of Excellence
By Ed Cowell and Sarah Mansfield
Momentum 2025, St. Christopher’s strategic plan, charges us to provide our boys with the most comprehensive and thoughtful education possible. In doing so, we must constantly examine every aspect of our institution to ensure our boys are afforded the highest quality contributions to their academic, social and emotional development.
Our core beliefs call for a commitment to academic excellence that prepares boys for college and for life, while valuing the power of relationships in a diverse and inclusive community. These beliefs are further strengthened by our School’s civility statement, challenging and reminding our boys to engage in conversations that may sometimes be difficult, but that they can respectfully disagree without demeaning or devaluing others.
We have been on a diversity, equity and inclusion journey guided by a fervent belief that every member of our school community matters.
Diversity represents who we are as a community.
Equity suggests sensitivity to our community members’ differing needs and acknowledges that simply giving everyone the same does not ensure their success. Equity requires focus on giving individuals what they need to be successful. That may have to be different for each student to help ensure that individual’s success in our community and beyond.
Inclusion is what we do, the active steps we take to help make sure all individuals in our community feel welcome to participate, and that their thoughts and ideas are valued.
Recognizing it is vital for Saints of the 2020s and beyond to enter the world with a broad perspective of history, culture, literature and beliefs, we believe we have a duty to prepare our young men for the world they will inhabit by exposing them to ideas representing the true breadth of our nation and our world. We want our boys to be global thought leaders. During the summer of 2020 and into the 2020-21 school year, StC faculty launched a more comprehensive curriculum audit to identify opportunities for enhancements, advance individual and departmental goals, support a growth mindset for faculty and students, and help foster an environment of empathy, civility and belonging that allows students to openly examine their values and beliefs.
Our Teaching and Learning Team, comprising Headmaster Mason Lecky, Assistant Head of School Sarah Mansfield, divisional curriculum specialists Keena Fitch, Lisa Snider and Karen Wray, division heads Warren Hunter and Tony Szymendera, Director of Community and Inclusion Ed Cowell and Center for the Study of Boys Director Kim Hudson designed an intentional and reflective process for our faculty.
As teachers began considering potential enhancements to their courses, additional support was offered by the School Librarians Lisa Brennan, Emily Burkot and Lucinda Whitehurst. This work aligned with the focus of our annual Summer Curriculum Institute, which brings faculty together from two or more disciplines. The history/ social studies and English/language arts content areas collaborated during the summer of 2021 in an honest evaluation of whether new pedagogy could enhance learning. Additionally, Upper School World Languages Teacher and Community and Inclusion Lead Elsa Woodaman collaborated with members of the Teaching and Learning Team to create a tool that examines and analyzes how teachers achieve the goals and vision outlined in St. Christopher’s mission, diversity and civility statements.
The goal resulting from this curriculum audit and its associated changes is to create a stronger sense of belonging for all members, no matter their race, religion, national origin, family structure or lived experiences. We are all enriched by the diverse perspectives every individual brings to the St. Christopher’s community.
Assistant Head of School Sarah Mansfield and Director of Community and Inclusion Ed Cowell lead various JK-12 initiatives.
ATHLETICS
CROSS COUNTRY
Varsity cross country won its fourth straight Prep League title, knocking off favorite Collegiate School. StC placed six runners on the All-Prep team: Will Wise ’22, Ford Clark ’23, Holden Valerie ’23, Oliver Fitch ’22, Liam Kurzawa ’25 and George Beck ’23, with Patrick Mayer ’24 missing the honor by one place. Wise, who finished fourth overall at the VISAA meet for All-State honors, led the team that finished sixth.
FOOTBALL
Varsity football had perhaps the best season in the School’s history, finishing 10-1 and entering the VISAA tournament as the top seed. The team won 10 games in a row for the first time, winning the Prep League title. The record included a win over eventual VISAA champ Trinity Episcopal School, 57-19, with an average margin of victory of 34 points. The All-Prep team boasted 12 Saints, and the All-State team had 11, including Prep League and VISAA player of the year Andre Greene ’22. Greene and Trent Hendrick ’22 were named first-team All-Metro, and Nikkos Kovanes ’22 made second team.
SOCCER
Soccer ran up a 10-4-4 record, winning the Menno Classic and reaching the VISAA semifinals. Highlights included two ties, believe it or not. The Saints were the only team to tie nationally ranked and eventual VISAA champ Collegiate, and on Senior Day in the 90th minute, Willy Hall ’22 knocked in a free kick to knot Woodberry Forest School at 1. John Collier ’22, Taylor McDermott ’22 and Rex Alphen ’23 made the All-Prep team, and McDermott and Alphen were named VISAA first team. Ford Clark ‘23
Andre Greene ‘22
Taylor McDermott ‘22
BASKETBALL
Varsity basketball had an exciting season, finishing 16-9, 6-4 overall in Prep League play. The Saints fell just short of winning the Prep League tourney for the first time since 2000, falling 53-51 to STAB in a heartbreaker. Keishawn Pulley ’22 was named co-Prep League player of the year. Nikkos Kovanes ’22 and Trent Hendrick ’22 were also named All-Prep. Pulley and Brandon Jennings ’23 made the Prep League all-tournament team.
FUTSAL
StC’s two teams went a combined 24-8-3 during the regular season and Valentine Classic, with StC Red not losing a contest until the final game. Nate Broughton ’22 and Cameron King ’23 were named to the all-tournament team.
INDOOR TRACK
The indoor team placed third in the Prep League meet and fourth in the VISAA meet. Eighth grader Victor Olesen ’26 won the pole vault at Preps and placed second at states. Ned Boehling ’22 finished second in the shot put at Preps and the VISAA meet. Ford Clark ’23 (500 meter) and Stanton Dodson ’23 (55 hurdles) placed third at VISAA. Olesen vaulted 15-1 at New Balance Indoor Nationals, the top performance for a 14-year-old in the United States.
Jamie Boyd ‘22 Keishawn Pulley ’22
Stan Dodson ‘23
SQUASH
Squash is another team that had the best School season on record, ending the regular season 10-0, including a Mid-Atlantic Squash Tournament championship. The Saints knocked off perennial powers in Gonzaga College High School, Mercersburg Academy, Episcopal High School and Potomac School (three times). This effort earned a spot at the Division II level of the U.S. Squash Nationals in Philadelphia, the highest StC has ever been seeded.
SWIMMING & DIVING
Swimming and diving completed an unbeaten season, winning the Prep League and VISAA championships, dispatching favorite Collegiate School. In the past, a strong swimmer or two has led StC to victory, but this year was more of a team effort. In Preps, nine StC swimmers finished in the top 20 in overall individual points, including Prep League champ Alex Gertner ’25 (100-yard butterfly). At the VISAA meet, a win in the 200 free relay by .01 seconds buoyed the Saints to victory.
WRESTLING
An outstanding winter continued with wrestling winning the Prep League title yet again and also claiming the VISAA crown. Riley Finck ’23 was named Prep League Most Outstanding Wrestler (MOW), one of eight individual champs. In VISAA, StC boasted five state champs in Caleb Haney ’24, Tyler Hood ’25, Cale Roggie ’23 (MOW - Middle Weights), Joshua Powell ’22 and Finck. Powell led the Saints to a 14th place finish at National Preps and finished seventh overall for All-American honors.
THE ARTS
ON STAGE
An Encore on the Other Side of the Stage
By Luke Gresham ’22
Standing before everyone, I assumed my role of Scar in “The Lion King.” My knees shook from walking on stage to when I bellowed the last lines of the song, “Be Prepared,” then, a roar of applause.
Despite retiring from theater after that middle school experience, I felt it calling me back this year. I knew I had to return to Ampersand, the joint theater group of St. Christopher’s and St. Catherine’s, this time as director of a one-act play.
Ampersand performances typically line up with The Pine Needle deadlines, so it quickly became obvious that my performance week would be a busy one. Ampersand tech weeks are infamous for the sheer volume of time they consume, leaving little time for homework and studying, let alone journalism.
However, I spent my time between rehearsals during tech week taking notes. With only one rehearsal and production meeting per week, balancing both seemed easy. Even tech week I could manage easily enough, with my more sympathetic teachers moving my tests back and giving me extensions on papers.
Opening night comes and everyone tells each other, “Break a leg.” Preparing to review their hard work, I do not participate in the group activities, trying to separate myself so I can remain unbiased and retain some sort of “journalistic integrity.” However, all my fears were for naught as I found something to love in each play.
When the time for my one-act came at last, I was catatonic. In my mind, some of the actors still weren’t prepared, and I needed more time. How could I criticize others when mine was so behind? To my surprise, the cast outperformed themselves. Pride swelled in my heart as I saw how far my actors had come, exceeding my expectations and thrilling their audience. Once again, the roar of applause surrounded me, but this time, I applauded, too. Luke Gresham ‘22 (far right) sings “Be Prepared”
Upper School one-act plays
Outré’s production of “Shrek: The Musical Jr.”
By Jeremy Dunn, Middle School theater teacher
Outré’s winter performance of “Shrek: The Musical Jr.” marked a return closer to normalcy for our Middle School theater company.
As we eagerly await completion of the new theater complex at St. Catherine’s, students rehearsed and performed in the beautiful new Ryan Recital Hall. Since the hall was designed for concert performances, it was an interesting technical challenge to adapt the space to theater mode. Our talented technical advisor, J.D. Jump, put a lot of time and thought into making sure the space provided a level of technical artistry that would complement the show while giving the stage crew meaningful learning opportunities. The tech crew did an amazing job building Woodworking Teacher Nick Doremus’ vision of a castle, providing the actors an amazing space to perform.
The cast was one of the hardest working groups that the company has seen in some time, with stellar performances from students who confidently belted out the show’s catchy tunes. Finding passion in the performance was often easier thanks to the clever lyrics and closeto-our-heart themes of how accepting and celebrating our differences makes us strong. This was the first musical with Outré for Assistant Director Jake Simard, an outstanding addition to the team who helped students add nuance to their performances. Brodie Schlobohm ‘27 led the cast with his portrayal of the big, green, cranky titular character and was supported by 30 other Middle School boys in the cast and crew, along with 40 of our friends from St. Catherine’s. Many long-standing faculty noted that this performance was possibly the best show the Middle School has presented.
THE ARTS
IN CONCERT
The student debut concert at StC’s Arts Center took place in late October and included performances by individuals as well as the Upper School Honors Chamber Orchestra, Upper School Concert Band, Saints Jazz/Rock Band, Middle School Quartet and Beaux Ties, an a cappella group.
Gentry Vaiksnoras ‘27 Grady White ‘24 Upper School Honors Chamber Orchestra
The Beaux Ties Carter Lecky ‘28
STUDENT STANDOUT
Patel Finds Star Audience
By Joseph Long ’22
What started as a hobby has evolved into a potential career for Kyan Patel ’23. A talented artist from a young age, he has created numerous works that have received attention and accolades, including a Scholastic Art & Writing Award Gold Key for an eighth grade self portrait.
Last summer Patel painted a 36” x 42” portrait of Andre Greene ’22 dressed in his football gear to commemorate his signing with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Greene said, “I was literally speechless. It was probably one of the nicest looking things someone has ever made for me!” This led to making a portrait for UNC Coach Mack Brown, who came to St. Christopher’s to meet with Greene. One thing led to another, and now Patel has received commissions from other players and coaches, including UNC wide receiver Josh Downs, Clemson University running back Will Shipley and an undisclosed member of the Dallas Cowboys.
As a devoted sports fan and soccer player, Patel has an obvious proclivity for sports in his art. Patel said, “Athletes love photos of themselves, things of themselves, and not many do paintings of themselves, which is something completely different.” He hopes to eventually paint for the NFL and other professional sports organizations.
Patel’s first piece to receive attention was a portrait he painted with his mother in 2020, called “Blue Tape,” which hangs in the Luck Leadership Center. It depicts a face divided into four quadrants, representing Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Trayvon Martin, who were all killed by police. His largest and most artistically complex piece, which measures 73” x 60” and hangs in the StC Arts Center, was painted from a photo he took of a girl from the Indian village of Ori singing on the street. Half of the portrait is color and half is black and white, which juxtaposes the happiness and sadness of the Indian people, who were hit particularly hard by COVID-19.
Patel comes from a family of avid artists, including his mother and grandparents. He is self-taught to some extent, though his mother and art teacher have also been important in building his skills. For him, painting is “super-calming because you’re just there, you’re just doing it.”
STUDENT STANDOUTS
Gentry Vaiksnoras ’27 and Palmer Berry ’27 auditioned and were selected for the Central Virginia Orchestra.
Robert Head ‘26 was selected to perform on trumpet with the District I Middle School Band’s March concert at Highland Springs High School. Clockwise from top left: Ephraim Bullock ‘22, Oliver Garner ‘23, alumnus Ira White ‘11 and Carter Lecky ‘28 danced in the Richmond Ballet production of “Romeo and Juliet” last winter.
All-District Chorus participants include (front row) Joaquin Torres ‘25, Teddy Price ‘23, and (back row) Scott Neely ‘22, Ben Butterfield ‘25, Alex Hatfield ‘23. Price was also tapped to go on to All-State Chorus.
Pole Vaulting Phenom
At age 10, Victor Olesen ’26’s gymnastics coach suggested he try pole vaulting. Within two years he bettered most of the area’s top challengers. Last year, as a seventh grader new to StC, he assumed the School’s No. 1 vaulting position and is now considered the top contender for his grade level nationwide.
This past winter, Olesen went undefeated, took top Prep League honors, snared second place in the VISAA meet, and a win at the 2022 UCS Spirit National Pole Vault Summit in Nevada. He ended the season winning his division at New York’s New Balance Indoor Nationals jumping 15’1”, his highest leap on record.
Like most vaulters, Olesen is powerful, part sprinter, part strongman, part gymnast. “He has good bar awareness and can make split-second adjustments,” said Coach Key Randolph ’83, also noting his consistency, humility and willingness to stick around after meets to put equipment away. “Victor goes about his business in a quiet but super-intense way,” he said. “He doesn’t do anything halfway.”
Seth Aschheim ’24 was tapped for VCU Engineering’s Dean’s Early Research Initiative for 2022-23. The program aims to enhance high school students’ exposure to engineering research while providing mentoring opportunities for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. Aschheim will work with Dr. Patrick Martin’s project, “Human Activity Recognition for Mobile Robots.”
Nate Glerum ‘22, AJ Jones ‘22 and Caton Lee ‘23’s work was displayed at the Visual Arts Center of Richmond as regional winners of the Scholastic Awards in Virginia. Scholastic Award writing winners included Ford Clark ’23, Eli Martin ’22 and Kevin Omohundro ’22.
Max Buono ’23 was accepted into the Virginia Aerospace Science and Technology Scholars program, an online science, technology, engineering and mathematics program, highlighted by a seven-day residential summer academy at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia.
Seniors Alex Lim and Nate Glerum and junior Nick Manetas composed the first cohort of StC’s Capstone Scholars program with a goal of producing original, publishable research.
Manetas is working with Upper School English Teacher and Writerin-Residence Ron Smith on a short story collection. Most days after school this fall, he wrote for an hour or more, often taking walks and driving downtown, creating “sketches” of people, conversations and places observed. He’s grateful to have established the daily habit, with a short story and poem submitted for publication, and his one-act play, “Dinner for Two,” was part of Ampersand’s February production.
“I suppose the ‘concrete research’ in my project has been a great deal of self-discovery,” Manetas said. “I’ve come to understand what I think good poetry should look like and what draws me into reading short stories.” He views this experience as just the beginning of his journey, with more reading, analyzing and writing plans his senior year and beyond. As he looks ahead to college, he leans toward a major that will allow him to combine his interests in writing, government, history and social change. “In the end, I believe being an effective communicator and an artistic thinker will serve me well in whatever major I choose,” he said.
Lim is working with StC Director of Health Services Ann Vanichkachorn on the impact of guided meditation in the classroom. He estimates putting in about 120 hours of research, where he learned data analysis and study design, concluding that brief, intermittent mindfulness meditation reduces assessment-related stress. He presented his findings at Longwood University in March as part of the Regional Junior Science and Humanities Symposium.
Glerum is working with Upper School Arts Department Chair Rusty Wilson on filmmaking. He said he has learned about the challenges of 3D animation, as well as the creative process of making animated films. His work will be self-published on his YouTube channel. Glerum plans to continue working on both live action and animated films in college, saying, “Due to the nature of the topic, I will always be learning new ways to present the story I’m trying to share.”
