The Trinity Voice, Spring 2024

FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL

“Alexa, pause.”

As I ask my digital officemate to quiet down so I can reflect on what’s ahead for readers in this issue of The Trinity Voice, it’s fitting that Alexa is nearby. It’s a source of music and one of the many pieces of technology that get me through the daytwo of the topics that are covered in the pages ahead.

Reflecting on my journey with technology in education, I'm transported back to my early days at Chantilly Montessori School in Charlotte. Back then, computers were a novelty, used primarily for typing exercises. I was intrigued by the untapped potential of these machines, so I delved into the world of educational technology, eventually earning a master’s degree in Educational Technology from Pepperdine. From teaching students to connect modems and routers to exploring HTML codes in the era of Netscape Navigator and AOL dial-up, my passion for integrating technology into education was born.

The evolutions in technology continue at rapid speed, presenting new opportunities and challenges. As we embrace innovations, such as artificial intelligence, we must also instill in our students a sense of responsibility in using technology in a way that aligns with Trinity’s Honor Code.

Music has always been a part of who I am. My mom would always play the classics, and I passed that down to my kids. There's also something about spiritual music, gospel music that feeds my soul.

While technology has been a constant in my educational journey, Trinity’s love for music is unparalleled. The enthusiasm that fills the school during Chapel and Greet the Week, especially for songs such as “My Lighthouse” and “The Garden Song,” is truly infectious. It’s moments like these that remind me of the vibrant spirit of our school community.

The year has been full of other sounds, including cheers for Wildcat champions, lively rhythms at school festivals and events, and impactful messages from guests who have visited as part of the Embracing Diversity speaker series. We have heard from new friends that 5th Grade students made this year in Ghana, where several staculty members made a life-changing visit through a Light the Fire grant - all of which we look forward to sharing with you in this issue.

I always look forward to The Voice as an opportunity to take a step back and see the breadth of the learning that occurs here each day and the impact this school has on so many lives.

Sincerely,

HEAD OF SCHOOL

buzz The

Getting to Know First Responders

To celebrate National First Responders Day, we welcomed the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, Charlotte Fire Department, and Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office to campus for breakfast and an opportunity to thank them for their service to the community. Students loved the opportunity to spend time with our neighbors and community servants.

The Longest Hallways in Charlotte

Middle School Koinonia groups navigated their way through uptown at the beginning of the school year during a scavenger hunt as they lived into the literal meaning of "koinonia"- Greek for fellowship. Students laughed and bonded as they chased down clues and decided on their group names, continuing on one of the special experiences of the Middle School years at Trinity.

New Look for Front Porch

A special Greet the Week was held in October to bless the new front porch walkway covering that was completed after months of work that began last school year and continued over the summer. Most of the wood that was replaced was original to the building’s opening in 2003! Our thanks to the crews that worked to create this beautiful addition.

What became of the old wood? Some was repurposed into adirondack chairs on the CCA rooftop. Other pieces will soon be used to make benches for an outdoor class area near the retention pond.

Service Learning Takes Root

A new service-learning partner for Trinity this year is just around the corner at the Innovation Barn, where 6th Grade students have learned about the circular economy and sustainability through projects such as an aquaponics lab in which leafy greens are grown and tilapia are raised.

We’ve Got Spirit!

Howdy, partner! This ol’ cowboy mosied in as part of Spirit Week, one of the highlights of the school year. On Throwback Thursday, students could dress up from a past decade, whether it was the 1870s or the 1970s. Spider-Man and his many different superhero colleagues also swooped into campus during the week.

Tribes' Acts of Kindness

During the month of February, the 12 Tribes of Trinty - grades 3-5 - participated in an Acts of Kindness Challenge, keeping track of the many ways we can show kindness, from holding a door open for a classmate to giving someone a compliment. The Tribes had a goal of 5,000 and smashed it, racking up 5,881 acts!

I liked when it was pajama day and we had marshmallows!

My favorite day was when I got to dress up like my teacher, Ms. Holthouser.

ELI DALTON

CHLOE OBLEADA

Timing is Everything

Curiosity about how a Polaroid camera works led 7th Grade students in Mr. Hicks’ science class to make their own pinhole cameras. Students learned about exposure times as they took their cameras around campus, and the chemical process at work as they developed their photos in the dark room.

Middle School Musical

The CCA stage was full of talent as Middle School students performed the winter musical, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” a musical-within-a-musical about a theater fan who guides the audience through listening to the soundtrack of their favorite musical. In the fall, students performed “Scared Silly,” a collection of short spooky plays.

“I’m My Best Me at GRP”

The 5th Grade trip to Green River Preserve in western North Carolina is a beloved experience for students in their final year of Lower School. Students are encouraged to challenge themselves during a week of activities in nature where they also learn about our relationship to the land.

My favorite part was going on all the hikes and identifying the mushrooms in rainbow order.

RUFARO MUVEZWA, 5TH GRADE

CFT has been a huge help as we revitalize the garden. Beds have been repaired, soil has been refreshed. The work will continue next school year and hopefully for many years in the future.

DALLAS SCHWERIN, FACILITIES DIRECTOR

Gonna Make This Garden Grow

Trinity welcomed a new partnership with the Carolina Farm Trust as it works with students in tending to the 8th Street Community Garden, where the CFT renovated plant beds this winter ahead of spring planting. We’re thrilled that CFT is working with Trinity in helping to keep this community asset thriving!

^ ^

Six Trinity student artists in grades K-5 were selected to display their art at the Mint Museum Uptown in March as part of Youth Art Month. We’re so proud of these Wildcat artists and their achievement!

You’ve Got a Friend in Me

Student advocacy led to a Buddy Bench being installed on the playground. 2nd Grade student Geneva read about the Buddy Bench program and made a pitch to Head of School Imana Sherrill and senior leadership for Trinity to have its own bench so students can make a new friend.

Wildcat Art at the Mint

Twenty Questions

BOARD MEMBER with

Marcus Clarke

What is your favorite way to start the day?

My conversations with God during my 5:30am run gets me ready to face the day. Prayer gets me started!

What did you want to be when you grow up?

Favorite Trinity moment?

Commencement. The look of accomplishment from our eighth graders is fulfilling.

If your life were a film, who would play you?

Jamie Foxx. He can be both serious and funny. A paramedic. Driving an ambulance and going place to place saving lives really interested me.

Who Inspires you?

My Dad - Julian Clarke. He is a retired Episcopal priest and throughout my growing up (and even now) has taught me the benefits of leaning on my faith… in good times and bad.

Favorite spot on Trinity's campus?

I work in college athletics, so walking by the outside basketball court watching kids play and dream reminds me of why I am in the industry.

What is your favorite time of day?

Sunrise - greet the day!

I can mimic a variety of accents. I was born and raised in the Virgin Islands and only use my true accent when I am around people from the Caribbean. 1 7 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 8 9 10 11 12 13 2 3 4 5 6

What's your cure for the hiccups?

What's your favorite Charlotte-area restaurant?

If you could only eat one gas station food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

I usually eat healthy, but Lays Salt & Vinegar chips will be my downfall.

What's your secret talent?

What is your favorite movie?

I grew up reading Marvel comic books. Anything in the Marvel cinematic universe is a hit for me.

If you could have a superpower, what would it be?

What was the last gift you gave someone?

A set of wine glasses.

Is cereal a soup?

Cereal is cereal….just don’t drown it in milk.

What foreign language would you like to be fluent in?

Portuguese

If you were a dessert, what would you be?

tart

What historical figure(s) would you invite to dinner?

Are you a dog person or a cat person?

I really hate hiccups. Yawning works for me. Dogs rule.

Time travel. I love history and would love to witness some things for myself.

Favorite Trinity song?

Lean On Me

Cajun Queen

Bishop Desmond Tutu

Pineapple

Twenty Questions

Scotty Bryan

What is your favorite way to start the day?

I love a good breakfast.

What did you want to be when you grow up?

Favorite Trinity moment?

Playing the Mother Abbess in the middle school production of “The Sound of Music.”

If your life were a film, who would play you?

I would be honored if Emma Stone played me. A writer. I still want to be published one day!

Who Inspires you?

My sister Pheriby, a fellow Trinity alum (TES '17). She is a talented dancer and her work ethic inspires me.

Favorite spot on Trinity's campus?

The courtyard. We played many rounds of “taps” there back in my day.

What is your favorite time of day?

Sunset or sunrise, I can’t decide.

I would like to think I have maintained my spelling skills from the TES spelling bee. 1 7 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 8 9 10 11 12 13 2 3 4 5 6

What's your cure for the hiccups?

What's your favorite Charlotte-area restaurant?

Yafo Kitchen. Their Harissa yogurt sauce is heavenly.

If you could only eat one gas station food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Bugles and a crisp Coke.

What's your secret talent?

What was the last gift you gave someone?

I gave my grandmother a necklace.

Is cereal a soup?

Absolutely not.

What foreign language would you like to be fluent in?

Spanish

If you were a dessert, what would you be?

What historical figure(s) would you invite to dinner?

I would invite Flannery O’Connor or Joan Didion, two of my favorite writers. It’s a Wonderful Life

What is your favorite movie?

If you could have a superpower, what would it be?

Are you a dog person or a cat person?

Favorite Trinity song?

The Trinity Song. It still gets stuck in my head sometimes!

Dark chocolate cake

Twenty Questions with

Cleya Williams

What is your favorite way to start the day?

Thanking God for waking us up. Turning on the news to check traffic, weather any highlights.

What did you want to be when you grow up?

Believe it or a not, a doctor.

Who Inspires you?

Strong women, especially when they showcase class, dignity and grace.

Favorite spot on Trinity's campus?

Trinity Extended Day room, They always seem to have fun and the kids never want to go home.

Favorite Trinity moment?

Sankofa Chapel

Strawberry shortcake I can draw 1 7 14

What is your favorite time of day?

Evening when it’s time to go home.

If your life were a film, who would play you?

Queen Latifah

What's your favorite Charlotte-area restaurant?

Bricktops - SouthPark

If you could only eat one gas station food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Chips, especially Queso Ruffles

What's your secret talent?

What is your favorite movie?

I have so many. Hidden Figures. Man on Fire.

What was the last gift you gave someone?

Souvenir bag and banana bread from the islands.

15 16 17 18 19 20 8 9 10 11 12 13 2 3 4 5 6

What's your cure for the hiccups?

Is cereal a soup?

No. I consider soup to be hot, consisting of a broth or some type of vegetable base, not cold with milk.

What foreign language would you like to be fluent in?

Spanish and Portuguese. I’m pretty rusty and would love to sharpen my skills.

If you were a dessert, what would you be?

What historical figure(s) would you invite to dinner?

Madam CJ Walker to pick her brain about being a self-made millionaire in her time. Former First Lady Michelle Obama. She has class, wisdom, and elegance.

Are you a dog person or a cat person?

Hold your breath for a few seconds and follow up with drinking some water. Dog Invisible cloak

If you could have a superpower, what would it be?

Favorite Trinity song?

The Garden Song (Inch by Inch)

Twenty Questions with

Chuck Hicks

MIDDLE SCHOOL SCIENCE TEACHER

What is your favorite way to start the day?

Making an omelet and having a cup of Typhoo black tea.

What did you want to be when you grow up?

A teacher — seriously. Took a long time to get there.

Who Inspires you?

Literally, my students. Whenever they have lightbulb moments it justifies my existence.

Favorite spot on Trinity's campus?

‘The Box,’ i.e. the square of couches in my classroom. All kinds of mind-bending conversations happen there.

What is your favorite time of day?

I’m a morning person. I get to school before dawn.

Favorite Trinity moment?

The Drowsy Chaperone was certainly a highlight. I regret not seeing our teams win championships this year in cross country, soccer, and basketball.

If your life were a film, who would play you?

Billy Bob Thornton, for sure.

What's your favorite Charlotte-area restaurant?

Toss up between Cajun Queen and Noble Smoke.

If you could only eat one gas station food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Duchess Honey Buns, made here in Charlotte.

What's your secret talent?

I’m mixed-handed. 1 7 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 8 9 10 11 12 13 2 3 4 5 6

What's your cure for the hiccups?

Preemptively avoiding certain spicy foods (science).

What is your favorite movie?

Apocalypse Now. It turned me on to T.S. Eliot.

If you could have a superpower, what would it be?

I have one — an uncanny knack for spotting patterns.

What was the last gift you gave someone?

An Apple watch for my wife Stacey… and all my Jolly Ranchers to the sixth graders.

Is cereal a soup?

I haven’t had a bowl of cereal since I was five, so I’m not qualified to answer.

What foreign language would you like to be fluent in?

I studied Russian for awhile but never quite got it.

If you were a dessert, what would you be?

A chocolate mousse rat from Jean-Luc Barrucand’s shop in Concord (worth the trip).

What historical figure(s) would you invite to dinner?

Georges Lemaître, the priest and physicist who developed the ‘big bang’ theory. Anyone at the intersection of faith and science interests me.

Are you a dog person or a cat person?

Definitely dogs, but I once had a cat with a doglike disposition.

Favorite Trinity song?

"Beautiful Things" (Gungor). Chaplain Matt does a great job leading this, and I love the younger students’ voices as they join in. A reminder of the process God takes us through.

Shelfies TES

Phillip Waugh

MIDDLE SCHOOL SCIENCE TEACHER

Trinity students walk more than 300,000 steps each year to ImaginOn - more than 100 miles! - to find a good book. Rather than make you walk that far, Trinity staculty shared what they’ve enjoyed reading.

“The 12 Rules for Life” by Jordan Peterson, a psychologist who has gathered tips for living a meaningful and fulfilling life.

“Crucial Conversations” is one I revisit. It gives insights into addressing tough conversations, active listening, clear communication, and teamwork. It’s a great book for anyone who speaks to other human beings.

“Coyote America” by Dan Flores picks apart the cultural significance, environmental history, and behavior of the coyote, which is one of my favorite animals. I was shocked at the significant impact the coyote has had on our country.

Joey Plum

MIDDLE SCHOOL MATH TEACHER

“Necessary Trouble: Growing Up at Midcentury” by Dr. Drew Faust, who was the first woman president of Harvard University. She writes about the changes happening around her as she grew up in the 1950s and 60s. It was interesting to see America through the lens of a young woman coming of age during a time when America was actively trying to perfect itself.

“Gathering Blossoms Under Fire: The Journals of Alice Walker” chronicles her life’s journey from the onset of adulthood to the present day. I felt like I was taking a master class in living. No matter what her mood was or how life ebbed and flowed, Walker made time to write every day, which not only allowed her to reflect, but also allowed her to work out her ideas for novels, including “The Color Purple.”

Kiana Davis

K-3 ART TEACHER - ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF TED

“A Love Song for Ricki Wilde” by Tia Williams is set against the backdrop of modern Harlem and Renaissance glamour. This is a swoon-worthy love story of two passionate artists drawn to the magic, romance, and opportunity of New York, and whose lives are uniquely and irreversibly linked.

“Zami: A New Spelling of My Name” by Audre Lorde is a fastmoving chronicle of the author’s vivid childhood memories in Harlem up to her coming of age in the late 1950s. It especially relates the linkage of women who have shaped her.

“Exhibiting Blackness: African Americans and the American Art Museum” by Bridget R. Cooks explores the challenges African American artists have faced in having their works represented in America’s art museums, nearly 100 years since the Chicago Art Institute held the first major museum exhibition of art by African Americans.

Cary Dufesne 2ND GRADE TEACHER

My mom and I are avid readers. She lives in New Jersey and one way we like staying connected is to read some of the same books. Over the last several months, we have read the following books:

“Tom Lake” by Ann Patchett, tells the story of three grown daughters who return to their parents during COVID. The author makes clever use of the play Our Town as a parallel theme in this story. As a fan of both Ann Patchett and Our Town, needless to say, I loved this book.

“Absolution” by Alice McDermott. This story gives a unique perspective on life in Vietnam in the 1960’s. It is told through the lens of American wives living there and trying to make a difference. I loved hearing my Mom’s perspective having lived through the era.

We have just started reading “The Women” by one of my favorite authors, Kristin Hannah. While I have only read a few chapters, I am already swept into the epic landscapes and lives that this great writer often creates.

Fé Patriciu

DIRECTOR OF ADMISSION AND FINANCIAL SUPPORT

“I Never Thought of it That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times” by Mónica Guzmán. Mónica was a year behind me at Bowdoin College and a fellow Latina. I came upon her book at a perfect time. As I reflected on my own struggle to find common ground with those on the other side of contentious issues, I was moved by her wisdom on how to bridge the political divide within her own family. Her words continue to resonate with me almost a year later as we approach another election year.

Capital Gains

8th Grade is a culmination of service-learning and becoming advocates for the community. Students this year added a new stop on that journey: the North Carolina General Assembly. Mecklenburg County lawmakers Mujtaba Mohammed, DeAndrea Salvador, and Mary Belk met with students and shared their insights on how to lobby for legislation during the annual Seminar class trip to Washington, D.C.

We are the Champions

From the basketball court to the courtroom, Trinity students racked up many championship achievements this school year.

Cross Country

The girls’ cross country team was the conference champion for the fourth year running. The team also ranked first among independent schools in North Carolina and ranked in the top 100 in the United States! Seven of the team members were named all-conference.

"This team is full of talent," said Coach Jason Martin. “They work hard and put in the commitment, and the championship is the natural result of that. A team doesn’t win the championship four years in a row without putting in the effort and dedication. I’m so proud of them."

8th Grade Boys Basketball

"For 20 daggum years, I have thought about this moment pretty much nonstop," said David Martin, Athletic Director and coach of the 8th Grade basketball team, which won its first-ever Queen City Conference championship in February, capping an undefeated season.

There have been many close brushes with the championship victory in the 20 years that Martin has coached the team. By his count, some 250 students have worn the Wildcat jersey on the 8th Grade team, and some of those alumni were in the gym to witness this year’s win.

While the championship trophy holds certain esteem, David Martin said another item “will always hold the place of honor”: a clay statue of himself and assistant coach Jason Martin that team members made in art class and presented to the coaches after the victory.

Chess Club

In a short time, the Chess Club has not only become one of the most popular Trinity Extended Day enrichments, but has also racked up multiple trophies, including first place (U800 section) at the ChessKid National Festival, and first place (K-3 U600 section) in the North Carolina K-12 Chess Championship.

"When we started this club a year and a half ago, these kids barely knew how to play chess,” said TES parent and chess coach Dan McCready. “It’s amazing to be part of their progress, and see their hard work and dedication pay off."

7th and 8th Grade Boys’ Soccer

Another team that hoisted a Queen City Conference championship trophy was the 7th and 8th Grade Boys’ Soccer team, which also finished the season first in the conference.

Coach John Ogburn said "every player stayed focused on doing their job and really came together as a team. They're such a talented group of young men with great leadership. I hope it's a memory they won't forget as they definitely deserved to be champions."

Mock Trial Team

For the second consecutive year, Trinity was the champion at the Charlotte-area mock trial championship, competing against five other middle school mock trial teams from area schools.

"I am so happy the students were recognized for their hard work and dedication," said Jennifer Bader, who leads the mock trial and speech and debate teams in Middle School.

Wired for Technology

How Trinity Incorporates Technology

Classroom technology once meant pulling up a chair to the beige computer tucked away in the corner of the room, inserting a floppy disk, and playing “The Oregon Trail.”

That’s a far cry from today’s classroom experience.

“It’s ubiquitous,” Head of Lower School Sarah Barton Thomas said of school technology, from Kindergarteners learning to use an iPad to 8th Grade students on Chromebooks contacting legislators before their class trip to Washington, D.C.

The presence of technology in the classroom, Thomas said, is a sign of its role in society and life in general. “Technology - laptops, tablets, the internet - is something that students will have never lived without,” she said.

A.I. Enters the Chat

That’s evident in the skills that students bring with them to school, said Lower School Digital Learning Catalyst Mer Leeson.

“There are some 8th Graders who have been coding and working in JavaScript,” Leeson said. Kindergarteners know how to take photos on a phone.

With more students already adept at using technology, Assistant Head of School for Academics Stephanie Griffin said Trinity’s role is “to teach students how to see technology as a learning tool, not just a toy.”

“We want students to create, not just consume information, and to be engaging with the world around them,” Griffin said.

Building Blocks of Technology Use

The rollout of technology is different for each grade, but each stage is built on the foundation of learning digital citizenship - how to use technology responsibly and respectfully.

“We value being a good part of the community, so translating that into when we’re online,” Leeson said. The school year begins in grades 1-5 with Leeson teaching citizenship and creative expression and how technology can help students show “the wonderful uniqueness that’s all about who you are.”

Kindergarten is unique in that their access to technology begins in the second trimester. “That’s intentional,” Griffin said, “because we believe that students need to first have a strong foundation in their classroom and the relationships they develop with each other and their teachers.”

Embedded within digital citizenship lessons is learning how to balance technology use. “We want to set up children to be comfortable with technology, know how to use it, and have conversations about why it’s important to put it down and go outside and play or read a book,” Leeson said.

As the school year progresses, grades 1-5 study coding, robotics, engineering through an iterative design process, and video production. The type of technology progresses through the grades: K-2 students work on iPads, and 3rd Grade students transition to Chromebooks, taking them home one night every other week. Their use of Chromebooks expands as they reach 5th Grade and then enter Middle School.

A “technophile at heart” since she was a teenager, Trinity’s IT Director, Teresa Barrow, has been amazed at the evolutions she has seen and continues to be excited about its potential - including in the area of artificial intelligence (A.I.).

“When it’s used properly, A.I. can be a great learning tool,” she said, from helping fine-tune a lesson plan for a student with a learning difference, to helping overcome writer’s block. “I’m cautiously optimistic.”

Like with other technology, Barrow said it’s important to embrace A.I. rather than ignore it in order “to prepare students for what’s coming.”

I want to see future engineers come out of Trinity. As bright as our children are, I want to see them be great adults, and I really hope technology will get them to that point.

TERESA BARROW

Leeson said teaching about A.I. not only provides a strong foundation for students in their future workforce, but can also benefit them in the development of research skills as they learn to refine their input and become better at deciphering quality of information.

“You have to use the tool and know it to be able to improve the tool,” they said, adding that it’s a new layer of the digital citizenship expectations of students’ technology use. “When you’re teaching the tools, you teach responsibility.”

Griffin said Trinity is “really thoughtful in how we take our next steps” with A.I, “but what is abundantly clear is that the landscape of school education and students’ lives are going to be deeply impacted by technology and artificial intelligence.”

“The more I learn about it, the more I’m fascinated,” she said. “There are so many applications in the school realm, and I am eager to explore that.”

Fostering Community and Belonging

The beats of the Johnson C. Smith University drumline provided the opening notes of a year of events - some new, some Trinity mainstays - that foster community and live into our core value of Embracing Diversity.

Embracing Diversity Chapel

The annual K-8 Embracing Diversity Chapel in September included a chapel talk delivered by Lucretia Berry, a former Freedom Fete speaker and author of “Hues of You.” Dr. Berry spoke about how we all belong to the same family and spent time with Kindergarten and 8th Grade to discuss ways to foster inclusivity.

Community Walk

Trinity’s first-ever Community Walk brought more than 200 people together in September. The JCSU drumline led the procession through Linear Park and back to campus to share a meal and make new connections - a great way to begin the year of community-building events celebrating Trinity and its people.

“Don’t Yuck My Yum!”

As part of a new speaker series launched this year, Trinity welcomed Rosetta Eun Ryong Lee, a nationally recognized diversity educator. During her daylong visit to Trinity, she spoke at K-8 Chapel about ways to be curious about differences, including not to “yuck” someone else’s “yum.”

Students and staculty showcased their talents of dance and song as part of the talent show theme of this year’s Latino Festival, organized by parent affinity group Café con Padres during Hispanic Heritage Month. The performances represented Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, El Salvador, and Mexico, and the festivities ended with the drumline from Blue Furia, a Charlotte FC supporters group.

Parent affinity group Invisible Differences hosted Keith Allen Johns as the kickoff for this year’s speaker series. He shared his thoughts on how parents can lead a balanced and more grounded life.

Latino Festival

Keith Allen Johns

^

Wildcats were able to see diversity on the big screen during a screening of “Zootopia” for the first-ever Embracing Diversity Midday Movie. The film, which students watched during a half-day at UNC Charlotte Center City, illustrates inclusivity and respecting differences. The day included a student-led discussion on what it means to be a friend and how to be inclusive.

Black History Month at Trinity brings the always-powerful Sankofa Chapel, full of incredible music performed by students and staculty, and a moving message. Staculty members Dawn Wheeler, Temekia Morton, and LaTishia Corley delivered a talk on belonging and joy as they shared their experiences in Ghana this past summer. Read more about their journey on page 32.

Freedom Fete also included a community paint hosted by parent affinity group Kindred and led by Trinity Lower School art teacher Kiana Davis. The community-created artwork was scheduled to be unveiled at the

Trinity’s annual celebration of those working to advance social justice marked its 20th anniversary by welcoming Dr. Howard Stevenson as the featured speaker. An award-winning scholar and nationally recognized expert, Dr. Stevenson shared insights on developing racial literacy and guided the audience through meaningful conversations.

Kindred Festival in April.

Freedom Fete

Community Paint

Sankofa Chapel

Note: This issue of The Voice was printed before the speaker series visit by Miriam Muhammad and the Kindred Festival.

Noticings

Writer’s workshop can be anywhere, not just the classroom. 2nd Grade took their noticing books to the marsh to observe the nature on campus and turn what they see, hear, and touch into story ideas. These notebooks - a Trinity tradition since its founding - are a great remedy for writer’s block.

Call to Worship

Music Adds Spirit to Worship at Trinity

Strumming his guitar at the front of the gym as students file in for K-8 Chapel, Music Chaplain Matt Moorman occupies a unique space.

"I don’t know about other independent schools, even Episcopal schools,” with something like this, Moorman said of Trinity’s music chaplaincy position. “I’ve never heard of this job before.”

In addition to teaching faith studies classes, Moorman and his guitar provide the soundtrack to the services that bookend each week - Greet the Week on Monday, K-8 Chapel on Friday - and grade-level chapel services in between. It’s not uncommon to see students in services with their arms around a classmate’s shoulder, swaying to the songs. You’re also likely to see a jolt of enthusiasm when Moorman leads the school in singing the chorus of “All the People

Said Amen,” a song that he introduced this year to end services.

“I think when you’re singing together or even just clapping along together and engaging with the music together, there is a spirit that you tap into that you otherwise can’t access,” Moorman said.

That type of community-building is Moorman’s goal with each song, whether it’s a physical connection with another person or a song that reflects Trinity’s identity as a “community that values difference, values justice.”

When he looked into the music chaplain position, Moorman heard about the special importance music plays at Trinity’s services, but nothing could have prepared him for what he experienced as he attended one of the final chapels of the 2022-23 school year.

“I was just astounded,” he said, in particular by students singing the Matisyahu song “One Day,” a Trinity favorite. “All these kids are singing at the top of their lungs, and somehow the words of the song and the melody and the rhythm came together to say something about who and what Trinity is.”

Music has been a central part of Moorman’s own life. His mother was his elementary school music teacher and church choir director in Raleigh. His grandfather, a Methodist minister and chaplain, “was very, very musical,” Moorman said. His stepfather played in bands, one of which opened for The Beach Boys, and his sister is an opera singer and runs a music school.

“Family gatherings were full of music,” he said. “I realized what I loved about music is that it’s another way of communicating something and for folks to come together around a common thing,” he said.

Father Brent Melton, Trinity’s School Chaplain, said the importance of music in worship is something every major world religion has in common, adding that Trinity has been fortunate to experience the many musical styles and the music of other faith traditions during special Chapel services, such as a celebration of the Jewish High Holy Days and a worship service with members of the Sikh community. Music is also an important element of the annual Lessons & Carols and Sankofa chapels.

“Nothing brings a people together more than singing,” he said. “There truly is a community movement when music is shared through a mass of voices. Hearing music is holy, but participating connects us like nothing else.”

That range of music is an example of Trinity living into its core value of Embracing Diversity, said the Rev. Lindsey Peery, Trinity’s Lower

School Chaplain and Dean of Community Life.

“We’re not just one congregation and our children are not coming from just one worship community, while some are coming from no worship community and this is their only experience for that,” Peery said. “Having these diverse musical opportunities is very Episcopalian.”

Staculty member Micah Johnson, Trinity’s Permanent Substitute Teacher, has often led the singing at Trinity services and sees it as a way “to connect with students on a musical and spiritual level.”

“I think what’s special (about music in Trinity services) is that even in songs that have a more serious meaning or more reverent, we always have the same kind of togetherness,” she said.

Selecting songs for chapels and Greet the Week involves conversations among the chaplain team - Melton, Moorman, and Peery - about the themes of that week’s Chapel Talks or

the liturgical calendar and creating a playlist that reinforces the message and Scripture: for example, playing “The Ten Commandements Song” when the chapel theme was Trinity’s Honor Code.

“Chapel is meant to engage the heart, mind, and soul,” Peery said, “and the soul piece really comes through with the music.”

There are times when Koinonia groups request a song for when it’s their turn to lead K-8 Chapel and Greet the Week, and Moorman has incorporated songs that he was written, such as “Tender Way.”

There truly is a community movement when music is shared through a mass of voices. Hearing music is holy, but participating connects us like nothing else.

REV. BRENT MELTON

It can take Moorman by surprise when a song that’s new to Trinity catches on and becomes a requested tune. One such song, “Take it Easy” by Matt Maher, wasn’t quite resonating at first, Moorman said. “All of a sudden it started connecting with them,” he said. “That’s the power and the beauty of musical worship.”

Making Art, Making Friends

5th Grade Art Exchange with Ghana

A connection of a few decades allowed Trinity’s 5th Grade students to make a connection 6,000 miles away.

Children Inspiring Hope is an organization that partners with schools in the Southeast and facilitates art exchanges between the students in those schools and students in Ghana.

Trinity became CIH’s newest partner school this year - CIH’s first new partner since the pandemic.

“You're a very inclusive community, a very conscious community of all the things that we seek to do,” said CIH founder and Executive

Director Amy Gaylor Nedriga. “That makes you a perfect partner.”

The beginnings of the partnership with Trinity go back to Nedriga’s time as a volunteer at Camp Sunshine, a pediatric oncology camp in Georgia. Another volunteer at the camp was future Trinity parent Annie Schwartz. The two became friends and in 2006 went to Ghana, where Schwartz had previously volunteered while a nursing student.

Nedriga’s experience in Ghana gave her the idea for what became CIH. Through a connection with a Georgia school, drawings were exchanged between the two countries.

The Ghanaian children were fascinated by what they received from America, and the Georgia students were just as excited and were left wanting to know more about life in Ghana. The questions were empathetic as they wondered about such things as whether their new friends had access to books and water.

What we're doing is creating a bridge to another culture. The world becomes smaller in a very tangible way.

AMY GAYLOR NEDRIGA

The school partnerships expanded and, through her friendship with Schwartz, reached Trinity’s 5th Grade. (In addition to Trinity, CIH currently partners with 5 other Southeastern schools.)

Nedriga said students treasure the exchanged art. She will come across a student in Ghana that she hasn’t seen in years “and they will stop and pull out from their backpack a piece of art they were given years ago.” She expects the same will be true of this year’s 5th Grade students.

“It's a memento of the ability to impact lives in a positive way,” she said.

Visual Arts Director Jen Rankey-Zona said 5th Grade was chosen for the partnership because students at that level can “understand the dynamics of different cultures and different ways to navigate the world.”

“The questions they ask are very beautiful and they are having really great cultural conversations,” she said. “They’re opening their eyes to the fact that their experiences are not the whole world’s.” She hopes the partnership continues next school year and that it becomes a 5th Grade experience that Lower School students look forward to.

Trinity participated in two exchanges through CIH this year. As part of the first exchange, 5th Grade discussed shared humanity and what it means to be generous and kind. Students made drawings reflecting those conversations, and CIH filmed the Ghanaian students’ reactions to receiving the Trinity art. 5th Grade watched the film when they received the first artwork from Ghana.

“What you saw on the screen and on the faces in the classroom was wonderment, joy, and

connection,” Nedriga said.

The second exchange focused on water and how it is a shared - and vulnerable - resource for the entire planet. In her drawing, student Hannah Kain wrote:

Water lets us live Life lets us love and Love helps us be.

Nedriga said she has been struck by Trinity students’ empathy and compassion in their art. “I’ve been doing this for 15 years, and it’s not common that all the students we work with are expressing such love and kindness and encouragement,” she said. “The love that I feel and see in your students is something to be proud of.”

It was sweet having this connection. I liked seeing their different art styles.

GENESIS CASTILLO FLORES

Wildcat Throwback

September 2023 marked 25 years since the Charlotte City Council approved the sale of two acres of First Ward property to Trinity to build “a school of distinction… and a cornerstone of the community.”

That vision first started in trailers on what is now the field, and 20 years ago this school year, we moved into our current building.

The building’s architect told the Observer said it was built and designed “to embrace the neighborhood rather than fence itself off" - a philosophy we live into every day as we use the entire city as a learning environment.

This school year included some important anniversaries in the Trinity story

Another important milestone came 20 years ago as Trinity graduated its first 8th Grade class.

Caitlyn Cotton TES ‘04 couldn’t believe how fast those 20 years flew by for the 33 students in the inaugural 8th Grade class.

This is impressive! THEN-PARENT JANET HEFFNER WAS QUOTED AS SAYING IN THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER DURING A TOUR OF THE NEW BUILDING.

I still have a good group of friends from that class and we always talk about how lucky we feel to still be close.

CAITLYN COTTON

The original drawings of the

building included a chapel overlooking the field and courtyard.

Trinity

A Welcome Place for Diverse Learners

Trinity Learning Catalysts help to create scholars

“Unique” is a word that appears in two of Trinity’s foundational elements: the Honor Code pledge to “respect the uniqueness and gifts of others,” and the school’s mission, which calls for students to be “challenged to academic excellence, while honored as an individual with unique potential.”

Helping to fulfill that mission is Trinity’s team of K-8 Learning Catalysts - a team that expanded to three members this school year.

“The elevator speech I used to give people is that we're a school counselor but for academics,” said Anna Okrah, who returned to Trinity this school year as a Learning Catalyst, a role she previously held at Trinity for 10 years. The catalyst team also includes Suzanne Newsom, who joined Trinity in that role in 2021, and Kimberly Monteleone, who moved into the catalyst role this school year after many years as a Lower School classroom teacher at Trinity.

The primary role of the Learning Catalyst“What doesn’t a Learning Catalyst do?” joked Monteleone - is to work with teachers on

classroom strategies to support the variety of learning needs they encounter, and to work with students and their families on understanding a student’s needs. Catalysts also support the admission department in evaluating the learning

needs of student applicants, serve on Trinity’s literacy task force, and manage Trinity’s tutors and occupational and speech therapists.

“We want everybody who sees the child during the day to have input,” Newsom said.

Having been a teacher in nearly every Lower School grade level since joining Trinity in 2007, Monteleone knows the diversity of academic needs teachers face. “We do our best to meet those needs with two teachers in the classroom” - a lead teacher and an instructional assistant.

“To have a third person” - the Learning Catalyst - “come in and support the diversity of learners is huge.”

In Lower School, where Newsom and Monteleone are focused, that support could mean going into a classroom to work with a group of students on a specific skill or working one-on-one with a student in need of additional support inside the classroom. Catalysts also work with groups outside the classroom to reinforce a subject matter or spend time on something that wasn’t mastered when it was first taught.

I love the variety of our skills and our experiences.

SUZANNE NEWSOM

Okrah, whose focus is Middle School, also provides some of the same inside- and outsidethe-classroom support and coaching for teachers on strategies. “I feel like it gives me a chance to be creative because every kid is different and every issue is different,” she said.

That diversity of learners, Monteleone said, “is one of the beautiful things about Trinity.”

“As a parent of neurodiverse children, this is one of the most welcoming places,” she said. “Because students are with classmates who are different from them in so many ways, they are able to have an appreciation for those differences and see them as positives. It’s a special place.”

Okrah said Trinity’s embrace of those differences along with other types of diversity - racial, cultural, socioeconomic - is “one of the reasons I came back and one of the reasons I always loved working here.”

With more children nationwide being diagnosed with some level of learning difference, Okrah wondered “at what point does different become the norm?

ANNA OKRAH

Having a team of three catalysts allows students to be “known and loved in a deeper way,” Okrah said, as each of them focuses on a specific gradelevel bloc (K-2, 3-5, and Middle School) to offer more student-specific support.

“I feel like I know the families better and the students better,” said Newsom.

Monteleone said being able to spend more time in the classroom “and see the children in action” allows her to help support teachers in a very intentional way. “I love that we’ll be able to see their growth,” she said.

Reflecting on a 3rd Grade student she previously taught, Monteleone said that having known her since kindergarten and to “be able to see the growth in that child with the support we’ve put in place for her, that’s why we do what we do.”

We Built this City

Being a part of the Charlotte landscape was the intention of Trinity’s founders, who envisioned a school for all of Charlotte that reflects the community’s diversity. Nestled in First Ward among the towers of uptown, Trinity remains the only independent K-8 school in Charlotte’s Center City.

Light the Fire

2023 RECIPIENTS

LaTishia Corley

3RD GRADE TEACHER

Temekia Morton

DIRECTOR OF AUXILIARY SERVICES

Dawn Wheeler

Learning doesn’t stop at the classroom door. Trinity, at its core, believes in taking learning out into the community and in being a lifelong learner. Trinity staculty model that learning through professional development that sharpens them as educators. One special opportunity for Trinity staculty is the Light the Fire grant, which allows them to pursue outside-the-box experiences that help them to grow professionally and personally. Three grants were awarded in 2023, each of them very unique and very fulfilling to the recipients. Here are their stores and experiences.

journey of discovery,” Wheeler said, that “was meant to dispel myths” about the African continent as well as “help us connect with who we are as African Americans.”

Each had long hoped to visit Africa and were encouraged by Director of Diversity, Equity, and Belonging Ayeola Elias to pursue it through Light the Fire.

particularly significant as it was where millions of Africans last set foot on their homeland during 300 years of the transatlantic slave trade. The group visited the Cape Coast dungeons, which includes the “Door of No Return” through which enslaved persons passed.

KINDERGARTEN INSTRUCTIONAL ASSISTANT "

A Journey of Discovery in Ghana

“Akwaaba!”

Speaking at the annual Sankofa Chapel in February, Kindergarten Instructional Assistant Dawn Wheeler shared the double meaning of the phrase she and her Trinity colleagues, Director of Auxiliary Services Temekia Morton and 3rd Grade Teacher LaTishia Corley, heard when they arrived in Ghana in July 2023.

“To regular tourists, it means ‘welcome,’” Wheeler said, “but for African Americans, it means ‘welcome home.’”

Their Light the Fire journey took them on “a

“We figured it might be a longshot,” said Corley. While previous Light the Fire trips involved a pair of recipients, “three people have never gone together,” she said.

Being awarded the grant, Morton said, “was a blessing” as it gave her “the opportunity to step foot in my ancestors’ land.”

The trip was a chance to change the perception of Africa and what it means to be African. “We always see the poor parts of it, but we never see the parts where people are excelling,” Corley said.

Morton said she was inspired by “seeing the level of excellence there by people who looked just like me.”

Not only did they want to bust others’ myths of Africa, Wheeler said, but also “unlearn some things that I had been taught.”

The choice of Ghana as their destination was

The opportunity to step foot in the land of my ancestors was huge for me and it was just a blessing.

TEMEKIA MORTON

We are better people for it.

LATISHIA CORLEY

The emotions that were stirred during that portion of the trip were one of the reasons why it was important to go as a group, Wheeler said. “This is an experience that you need people with you. It’s not a solo experience. It’s more than a duo experience. It needed to be the three of us.” There was a moment during the dungeon tour that the three were comforted by others in their travel group. “I don’t remember anything but these arms just encircling me,” Wheeler said. “The people we met in Ghana felt like cousins, aunts, uncles. They were so embracing.”

Corley said it was a difficult but worthwhile part of the trip, as it allowed the Trinity group to “make a connection and bond because we all shared the same experience.”

“We are better people for it,” she said, adding they remain in touch with their extended travel group. “I made a new family just by sharing that experience.”

Just as they sought to change the narrative about Africa, the “Door of No Return” has been renamed the “Door of Return” as ancestors of enslaved persons come back.

With the Ghana experience engrained in them, the group has shared with students and staculty what they discovered about Africa - and about themselves. Wheeler said she can talk with students about conquering fears, for example, as she had to overcome a fear of heights to do a canopy walk in the Ghanaian rainforest. “That makes me stronger as a person and helps me to be better at what I do here,” she said.

In the classroom, Wheeler has helped students learn about the vast diversity of the African continent. “I had a child say something about Africa and its jungles, and I said, yes, there are jungles, but also savannahs and mountains and rainforests - and cities that are bigger than Charlotte,” she said. “We’re teaching them that there’s more to every place than what you hear.”

The journey gave Morton affirmation of “who I am and who I was created to be.”

“I think you can’t fully help someone else until you are fully accepting of who you are,” she said. “This experience helps me empower others to be who they are and to be excellent at what they do.”

Corley said conversations with her class have prompted them to share more about their family backgrounds, and have helped students with their travel museum project as they explored cultures of the world, including Ghana.

“I’ve never shied away from being an educator of color and I’ve always shared that with my classes,” she said. “To be able to go and really see Africa and Ghana for myself opened my eyes and made me want to ask students to talk more about their cultures. I think that made me a better educator.”

"

I don't remember anything but these arms just encircling me. The people we met in Ghana felt like cousins, aunts, uncles. They were so embracing.

DAWN WHEELER

*Photos courtesy of Traveling Black

Marion Schmidt

ADMINISTRATIVE

PROJECT MANAGER

Teaching Wildcats to be Peaceful and Calm

Working at the Front Office for many years gave Marion Schmidt a view of students’ needs.

“They would come in from recess saying they have stomach aches or headaches, but Rebecca (School Nurse Rebecca Morris) couldn’t find anything wrong with them,” said Schmidt, Trinity’s Administrative Project Manager.

It made her wonder if something was stressing the students or making them anxious. With her background as a yoga teacher and her knowledge of brain behavior and development, Schmidt thought students could benefit from yoga and learning grounding and centering techniques.

Schmidt’s Light the Fire grant allowed her to train in children’s meditation with the goal of creating a mindfulness program for the school,

which began this year in grades K-2 and will expand to the rest of the school.

“The essence of the program is to teach what it means to be neutral, peaceful, and calm, and how we can get there,” Schmidt said.

As part of her meditation training, Schmidt studied with noted psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Siegel, whose book, “The Whole Brain Child,” introduced Schmidt to strategies that she has used for many years as a parent. For example, if a child falls and scrapes a knee, ask them to retell what happened. “It helps the brain process and release,” Schmidt said.

In her visits to K-2 classrooms, Schmidt builds on practices that teachers have been using in the classroom, such as brain breaks, planks, and mindfulness minutes.

Standing in front of a 1st Grade class, Schmidt signaled the start of a session with a Tibetan singing bowl before leading students through a set of activities, including buddy hugs, breath work, and tense-and-release exercises, before ringing bells to center the students at the end of their time together.

Schmidt also teaches a Body, Brain, and Breathwork class for 7th and 8th Grade students, leading them in mindfulness practices, meditation, and some movement exercises such as yoga. In the class, she discusses brain integration and how the different parts of the brain shape impulses and higher thinking.

Trauma, which comes in many forms, can hinder brain integration, and Schmidt tries to teach students how to process trauma and achieve brain integration, whether through meditation, mindfulness, or journaling.

“There’s so much you can do just by being aware of what your brain is capable of,” Schmidt said.

There is so much you can do just by being aware of what you brain is capable of.

As she nears completion of her certification in children’s meditation, Schmidt said the experience has been invaluable in providing her with knowledge and insight to help students and their families.

The impact that mindfulness teaching has on students, Schmidt said, was apparent last school year after she taught an enrichment class similar to the program she began with K-2 this year. She wanted the big takeaway of the class to be the mantra “I am peaceful and calm.” A parent approached Schmidt on a Monday morning, telling her how the parent had a moment of anger and frustration during the weekend. It was diffused by her daughter teaching her mother the “I am peaceful and calm” mantra from Schmidt’s class.

“Just becoming aware of how the brain works and how you can implement these practices, even if it’s just a little bit each day, can help anyone have a more fulfilling life,” she said.

Lindsey Morse

MIDDLE SCHOOL LATIN TEACHER

Building relationships through gaming

Scrolling through Instagram can take users down a rabbit hole. For Middle School Latin teacher Lindsey Morse, it led her toward a Light the Fire experience that tapped into her passion for tabletop role-playing games, or TTRPGs, such as “Dungeons & Dragons.”

“Up popped something for Therapeutic Game Mastering,” Morse said, in which TTRPGs are used to help with development and socialemotional needs. “I play a lot of these games outside of school, so I thought this was a neat idea.”

Morse used her Light the Fire grant to become a certified Therapeutic Game Master through a nine-week program. “It was primarily geared toward therapists, but there was a lot I could pull in for use in the classroom with building connections and creating a safe space,” she said.

TTRPGs are played in the Radagast Rabies affinity group Morse leads for Middle School students interested in games, comics, science fiction, and fantasy. The role of the Game Master is to oversee the game, presenting the game’s story to the players and moderating the playing.

In her role as Game Master, “it’s a lot of setting things up and then seeing what they do with it,” Morse said.

The gaming tabletop can be an outlet for students to work through situations in their own lives. “By taking on the role of a character

in the game, you have a buffer between you and what’s going on,” Morse said. “This is a way for people to practice social skills that might be lacking, or maybe they’re having friend trouble and could use a way to look at it from the perspective of a character in the game. As you play through a scenario, students are forced to think, ‘what if I had done things this way?’”

As a way of helping students develop their social skills, some games require collaboration through group play and negotiating paths forward.

On top of the social-emotional dynamics, Morse said TTRPGs help hone math skills as players roll the dice - “shiny math rocks” in “Dungeons & Dragons” parlance - and calculate percentages and probabilities, and students use creative writing to craft a plot for the game and their

characters. “It gets them to use their imagination, to create their own worlds,” she said.

With her certification, Morse said she feels more prepared to be aware of students’ needs and to “connect with them through a common vocabulary of, well, nerd stuff in a way you can’t when you’re in the classroom.”

"It gets them to use their imagination, to create their own worlds.

Defying Gravity

Science class became flight school for 7th Grade as part of their unit on gravity. Through multiple test flights of their paper airplanes, students in Mr. Waugh's class experimented with force and the amount that has to be exerted to combat gravity through lift and thrust and reducing drag.

Transitions

LOOKING BACK AND CELEBRATING TES’ 2023 GRADUATES

Middle school is a time of change for any student, but especially when that time in life coincides with a global pandemic. Trinity’s Class of 2023 entered 6th Grade in August 2020 as Wildcats returned to in-person learning and navigated safety protocols and cohorts. They emerged in the spring of 2023 as resilient 8th Graders who grabbed the community’s attention with a call for gun safety. In keeping with Trinity tradition, these students shared what Trinity meant to them as they prepared to move on to high school. Here are some of their reflections.

THE HONOR CODE SHAPED ME INTO WHO I AM TODAY AND WHO I ASPIRE TO BE IN THE FUTURE. I WILL CARRY THE HONOR CODE WITH ME AND SPREAD ITS TEACHINGS TO OTHERS I MEET IN THE FUTURE.

THANK YOU FOR TEACHING ME TO FIND THE GOOD IN PEOPLE, FOR GIVING ME CONFIDENCE TO USE MY VOICE TO CHANGE THE WORLD. TRINITY HAS HELPED ME FIND MYSELF AND WILL ALWAYS BE A PART OF ME.

Tessa Fulcher

Alaina Zabel

THE ADULTS IN MY LIFE AT TRINITY PUSHED ME TO DO MY BEST AND HELPED ME UNDERSTAND THE ABILITY I HAD TO DO AMAZING THINGS.

THERE WERE SO MANY OPPORTUNITIES THAT I COULDN'T DO IF NOT FOR TRINITY, LIKE SERVICE LEARNING AND THE TRIPS TO VARIOUS PLACES.

IFEEL LIKE I CAN TALK TO TRINITY’S TEACHERS AS IF THEY ARE ONE OF MY BEST FRIENDS. I HAVE LEARNED SO MUCH FROM THEM. THEY TAUGHT ME EVERYTHING FROM MATH FORMULAS TO HOW TO FIND A GIRLFRIEND. TRINITY WILL ALWAYS BE A SECOND HOME TO ME.

"

Geoffrey Eloge

IAM SO GLAD TRINITY WAS JUST THE BEGINNING OF MY SCHOOL LIFE AND I HOPE TO COME BACK AND STEP FOOT ONCE AGAIN IN THIS BUILDING.

Grey Robinson

Yoseline Flores

Nicolas Alonso†

Mac Bacon

Ashley Bean

Hayes Bowman†

Barnes Brinkley†

Class of 2023

HIGH SCHOOL CHOICES

Myers Park High School

Myers Park High School

Charlotte Latin School

Myers Park High School

Myers Park High School

Jake Brunnemer† Charlotte Latin School

Charlie Burke†

Peter Cane

Myers Park High School

Myers Park High School

Sophie Carlisle† Charlotte Catholic High School

Charlotte Coffron

Hattie Collins

Myers Park High School

Myers Park High School

Allison Corona† Charlotte Catholic High School

Margaret Cowden

Myers Park High School

Margaret Crane† Charlotte Country Day School

Jonah Danesis

Geoffrey Eloge

Charlotte Latin School

Myers Park High School

Mason FitzHugh† Charlotte Latin School

Yoseline Flores† East Mecklenburg High School

Tessa Fulcher

Gabby Gitomer†

Myers Park High School

Myers Park High School

Elyse Glassner† Charlotte Latin School

Mac Kaysen North Boise Jr High School

Irie King

Charlotte Latin School

Jack Lawson Myers Park High School

Grant Loeffler Charlotte Country Day School

Monica Martinez† Charlotte Catholic High School

Maggie Mast† Charlotte Country Day School

Hannah Miller Myers Park High School

Anna Monson† Asheville School

Jude Natarajan† Charlotte Country Day School

Hannah Niemann Myers Park High School

Yhael Osorio† Central High School

Austin Redmond† Charlotte Latin School

Carson Rheault Myers Park High School

Henry Rheault Myers Park High School

Grey Robinson Bishop England High School

Sebastian Rodriguez-Andahua† Providence Day School

Jade Rojas† East Mecklenburg High School

Jack Rook Charlotte Latin School

Ella Shaller Myers Park High School

Julia Stinson† Charlotte Latin School

Rocco Taddeo† Myers Park High School

Stella Thompson Northwest School of the Arts

Thomas Warlick Charlotte Latin School

Anna Warner Myers Park High School

Ned Warren Myers Park High School

Ryland Weintraub Myers Park High School

Hattie Young† Charlotte Latin School

Alaina Zabel† Myers Park High School

(† = Lifer Student; HS Choices as of August 2022)

When the Class of 2023 was in Kindergarten, their Science Buddies' class banner (Class of 2014) was based on social media. That inspired the Class of 2023 to design theirs after the BeReal app, which encourages users to be authentic, to represent their class and generation.

Jessie Duncan

Solar-powered learning

Millions of eyes gazed skyward on April 8 as a total solar eclipse unfolded. It was a rare phenomenon that won’t occur in the contiguous United States for another 20 years. But long after the eclipse, Jessie Duncan continues to peer at the sunsafely, that is.

“It’s tremendously exciting” to study the sun, said Duncan, who researches high-energy solar physics as a fellow in NASA’s Postdoctoral Program at the Goddard Space Flight Center near Washington, D.C.

Duncan’s work involves telescopes that observe the X-ray light emitted by the sun, as well as data analysis and the development of future solar instrumentation.

Studying the sun, Duncan said, can help understand the other stars in the universe and its effects on life on Earth, including on communications infrastructure.

“It's a really wonderful adjacent laboratory that we have a really great view of,” she said.

The eclipse provided a unique view of the part of the sun that is Duncan’s focus of study: the solar corona, the outermost part of the sun. During the eclipse, the corona appears as the white wispy ring surrounding the moon as it passes in front of the sun. “That’s the location where there are a lot of dramatic explosions, such as solar flares,” Duncan said.

Duncan was excited to watch the corona with the naked eye for a change. In addition to being a beautiful phenomenon, the eclipse allows Earth’s atmosphere to be studied in conditions that researchers can’t usually take advantage of. “There’s a lot of science that gets done,” Duncan said.

Eclipses can help in the study of space weather caused by particles that form the solar wind coming from the sun. Duncan’s studies focus on the corona’s constant state - its standard behavior and its temperature, which is actually hotter than the sun’s surface, Duncan said, posing “one of the outstanding myster(ies) of solar physics.”

Duncan has long been interested in physics and found her way to solar physics during her graduate work as she looked for research programs that would provide an opportunity to work in both data analysis and instrumentation. She found it at the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Minnesota, where she received her doctorate in solar physics in 2022.

A love of being outdoors as a child helped Duncan as she studied science at Trinity. “There was a lot of hands-on learning and learning about science as it relates to the natural world,” she said, recalling how she enjoyed making a “World in a Bottle” at the pond and studying its ecology under the microscope.

She also looks back with appreciation at her involvement with the Math Olympiad at Trinity

- “That was an environment in which math was considered fun” - and as a member of Cary Dufresne’s Odyssey of the Mind team, which Duncan said gave her “a skillset that I use more than almost anything else.”

The problem-solving aspects of OM help train your brain, and really all of physics is problem-solving.

“Working in any kind of research has a need to take a complex situation that you may be new to and break it down to come up with a better understanding.”

Because of educators such as Mrs. Dufresne and the learning opportunities at Trinity, Duncan is now helping others better understand the universe around us.

We are excited to introduce you to Trinity’s newest Alumni Relations Manager, Ron Laffitte. Ron joined Trinity in January 2024 and has been in the education field for more than 25 years, most recently at Pfeiffer University. He is eager to get to know the amazing community of Trinity alumni. Feel free to contact Ron at rlaffitte@tescharlotte. org, and remember to keep your alumni contact information up-to-date by visiting the alumni page under the Community section of TESCharlotte.org.

Tessa Fulcher (‘23) has been named the North Carolina State Champion in Dramatic Interpretation for Speech and Debate and recently won the Dramatic category at the Western Carolina Speech and Debate National Qualifiers Competition. Up next she’s heading to compete in the National competition this June! Way to go, Tessa!

Josie Harper (‘18) was named one of 15 interns at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Institute for the Environment, where she helped organize the 10th annual Cleantech Summit in March. It is one of the largest university-hosted events of its kind in the United States.

News Notes AND

Finley Holzman (‘20) and the Myers Park Girls Tennis team were named the North Carolina High School Athletic Association 4A state champions! Finley was also named a conference semi-finalist in individual doubles and an individual runner-up in the regional competition. Great work, Finley!

Sofia Plaza (‘20) and the Myers Park Girls Swim & Dive team were named the North Carolina High School Athletic Association 4A state champions! Sofia also placed second in both the 200 IM and the 200 Medley Relay, and third in the 100 Breaststroke at the state meet. The team also won the Girls 4A West Region Championship where Sofia placed first in both the 200 Medley Relay and 200 freestyle relay, and second in the 200 IM. Next year, Sofia has committed to swim at the University of Florida.

Nathan Hohnbaum (‘21) along with former TES student Cameron Bucci - placed third in the 200 Medley Relay and the 200 Freestyle Relay at the 4A West Region Championship.

Dylan Rogers (‘21) placed 14th in the Boys 1 Meter Diving at the 4A West Region Swimming and Diving Championship.

Talan Young (‘22) was selected to the prestigious All Carolina Select Choir held at Wingate University this winter.

Alaina Zabel (‘23) and the Myers Park Girls Cross Country were the 2023 North Carolina High School Athletic Association 4A West Region champions, in which she placed 6th in the Girls’ 5000 Meter Run Finals. She was also named to the SoMECK fall sports allconference team in Cross Country.

Skyler Woods (‘20) was named to the SoMECK all-conference Volleyball team this year.

Conrad Pollock (‘13) and Marcus Plair (‘12) were back on the basketball court this year as coaches, with Conroad coaching the 6th Grade boys basketball team and Marcus leading the 7th Grade boys basketball team.

Davis Angel (‘20) and Wells Peery (‘21) were both named to the SoMECK All Conference Boys Cross Country team as voted by league coaches this year. Davis and Wells were both part of the Myers Park Cross Country team which earned 6th place in the regional meet.

Marshall Pifer (‘20) along with the Charlotte Country Day swim team - placed 3rd at the state competition. Marshall had a record setting season with three school records in the 200 Yard Medley Relay, 100 Yard Backstroke, and the 400 Yard Free Relay. Marshall has committed to swim at Denison University in the fall.

Josie Pitt (‘19) received the Jonathan B. O’Brien Head of School Award in her senior year at St. Andrew’s School in May 2023. The award recognizes the senior who contributes to the ethos of the school with integrity, humanity, generosity, and love. She also received the Cresson Prize, awarded to seniors who have demonstrated the greatest improvement in athletic skill, sportsmanship, and leadership. Josie is now attending Vanderbilt University.

News Notes

AND

TES in DC!

Following the great time at the inaugural out-of-town alumni reunion in New York City in the summer of 2022, Trinity traveled to Washington, D.C., in October 2023 to reconnect with Wildcats in the nation’s capital. Nine Trinity alumni reconnected and recalled favorite TES memories, joined by former Trinity staculty members Vanessa Williams and Liz Whisnant, and current staculty members Jen RankeyZona and Katie Keels. “It was such a blast!” said Tracy Laughlin, TES ‘14. Another highlight of the D.C. visit was a stop at the Washington Ballet to see former Trinity student Silas Farley rehearsing a piece he choreographed for the Ballet as part of the Shakespeare Everywhere Festival. Silas shared with his colleagues how his love of Shakespeare began at Trinity in 5th Grade.

NEXT STOP...?

Where should the next Wildcat alumni reunion take place? As we begin planning for another out-of-town visit, we’d love to hear your destination ideas. Send your suggestions to alumni@tescharlotte.org.

A power outage provided Jailyn Feliz and Trinity’s 2nd Grade with a special opportunity to connect.

Lower School students this winter made the walk to Children’s Theater of Charlotte at ImaginOn where Feliz was performing in a touring production of “Schoolhouse Rock Live!” During rehearsals, Feliz would look out the window and see Trinity students walking into ImaginOn “in the same uniforms that I used to wear” and anticipated performing for them.

When it was 2nd Grade’s turn to see the show, a power outage short-circuited the outing, which was rescheduled for a day when the 2nd Grade wound up being the only ones in the audience. Because of the interactive nature of “Schoolhouse”, students were also able to go on stage to be part of the show.

“It was a full-circle moment,” Feliz said, recalling the many times she made the same walk as a Trinity student to see shows at the same theater. “Nothing sparks my joy like performing, especially for kids. They give great feedback. When they like something, they like it. When they don’t, they don’t.”

Feliz found her love of theater and acting while a student at Trinity, performing in “The Music Man,” “Alice in Wonderland,” and “Fiddler on the Roof.”

“Performing at Trinity really put me where I am now,” Feliz said. “I still have my first pair of character shoes. I still use them to practice sometimes and they still have my name on the bottom. Luckily, my feet have never grown.”

There are other Trinity keepsakes that Feliz has tucked inside her Koinonia box: a drawing and note from her Science Buddy, Olive Bigham TES ‘22; medals from Odyssey of the

Jailyn Feliz

TES '14

Actor found a love of stage at Trinity

Mind; a necklace from her 5th Grade trip to Green River Preserve; a letter from one of her teachers, Emily Dia, at the end of which she quotes from one of Feliz’s favorite books as a student, “The Fault in Our Stars.”

“I love how the teachers at Trinity build personal relationships with students,” Feliz said. “It’s very tight-knit. I always thought having a Koinonia was so genius. Everyone feels like they have someone watching out for them. They don’t get lost in the crowd.”

Another full-circle moment during her “Schoolhouse” performance for Trinty’s 2nd Grade was singing “I’m Just a Bill,” which Feliz remembered watching in her 8th Grade Seminar class.

After graduating from the University of North Carolina - Greensboro in 2023, Feliz joined Children’s Theatre of Charlotte’s Resident Touring Company. During a break in the “Schoolhouse” production tour, Feliz returned to ImaginOn in April to perform in “Danny, King of the Basement.” “It’s cool to have two shows in your head at once,” she said.

Feliz credits former Trinity music director Megan Postle for sparking her interest in the stage. “She definitely inspired me to keep

singing, keep performing.” Postle and her husband, former Trinity band director Damon Postle, now live in New York City, where Feliz is soon planning to relocate. Over social media, they have offered moving advice to Feliz. “Once a Wildcat, always a Wildcat,” she said.

"

Performing at Trinity really put me where I am now. I still have my first

pair of character shoes.

CHILDREN'S THEATRE OF CHARLOTTE PERFORMS "SCHOOLHOUSE ROCK"

FELIZ, CENTER RIGHT, IN A TES PERFORMANCE OF "ALICE IN WONDERLAND"

Passing Down a Tradition

A rite of passage for Trinity 8th Grade students is becoming a Science Buddy, developing a bond with Kindergarten Wildcats. They meet every week for a mix of learning activities and fun. You'll often see Science Buddies stop each other for a hug or a high five, sprinkling a little "known and loved" into the school day.

OUR MISSION

Trinity Episcopal School is committed to the breadth of the Episcopal tradition in both its unity and diversity.

A student of Trinity Episcopal School is challenged to academic excellence while honored as an individual with unique potential.

As faculty and families together influence young lives, students themselves will be affirmed as ambassadors of grace, citizens who live and teach an ethic of service and respect for others.

THE TRINITY VOICE

is a publication produced by the Advancement Office of Trinity Episcopal School in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Volume 9

DIRECTOR OF ADVANCEMENT

Katie Keels kkeels@tescharlotte.org

MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR

Chris Miller cmiller@tescharlotte.org

VISUAL COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR

Alexa Adams aadams@tescharlotte.org

DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR

Ron Laffitte rlaffitte@tescharlotte.org

ADVANCEMENT COORDINATOR

Joan Palumbo jpalumbo@tescharlotte.org

BOARD OF TRUSTEES ’23 -’24

Amy Colaco, Chair

Dr. Katherine Addison

Omid Ahdieh

Anne Bowman

Eugene Brown

The Rev. Joshua Case

Ann Clark

Marcus Clarke

Marisella Cuervo

Elizabeth Dalrymple Eblen ('07)

Eric Eubank

Tere Ey

Caroline Hobbs

Lois Johnson

Jamie Kiser

John Laughlin

Sharai Lavoie

Dan McCready

Raj Natarajan

Joe Pitt

Maureen (Molly) Shaw

EX OFFICIO

Imana Sherrill, Head of School

Jenn Loeffler, PA President

Maryam Zeledon

Trinity Episcopal School admits students of any race, color, religion, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the School. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national and ethnic origin in administration of its education and admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.

A student of Trinity Episcopal School is trained in the example of Christ and toward a stewardship of healthy body, lively soul and discerning mind. Scan

Community, scholarship, and generosity are at the heart of Trinity's school spirit. The same is true for the Trinity Fund. Your gift rings out loud and strong as a cheer for our students and teachers.

704. 358. 8101 www.TEScharlotte.org