Fall/Winter 2020 Brearley Bulletin Highlights

BULLETIN

610 East 83rd Street New York, NY 10028

THE BREARLEY BULLETIN FALL 2020

NON-PROFIT ORG U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT #129 19464

Last Day of firsts: 2020 ceremony held virtually p2

Identifying and combating racism at Brearley p24

Operating school during a pandemic p38

6 ft

Brearley in panoramic

FALL 2020

THE BREARLEY SCHOOL

Eyes of

Brearley

On the river, on East 83rd Street, we will be here.

Create a legacy for Brearley.

Incubator, proving ground, home. Brearley is a singular place that is all about the girls—who they are, what they are capable of, and what they can become.

When you include Brearley in your estate plans, you join a generous group of supporters who safeguard the Brearley experience for the girls of future generations.

For sample language to use in your will or trust, and further information, please contact: Phoebe T. Geer ’97, Associate Director of Development (212) 570-8609 or pgeer@brearley.org

CONTENTS VOLUME XCV • NUMBER 3 • FALL 2020

THE BREARLEY SCHOOL BOARD OF TRUSTEES 2020–2021

2 Last Day 2020

Christine Frankenhoff Alfaro ’91, President

12 Departing Faculty and Staff in 2019–2020

Susan Berresford ’61, Vice President

14 Retiring and Incoming Members

Modupe Akinola ’92, Treasurer

of the Board of Trustees 18 News and Events 24 Building an Antiracist Brearley 38 School in the Time of Covid-19

David Philip, Senior Vice President

Jocelyn Strauber ’91, Secretary

Tara Abrahams Gideon Berger Elizabeth Chandler Joseph DiMenna Amina Elderfield ’94 Thomas Farrell

48 Milestones

Jane Foley Fried

52 Class Notes

Jane Gladstone ‘86

Head of School Jane Foley Fried

Rebecca Haile

Editor Jane Newman

Sue Meng ’99

Graphic Designer Jennifer Bartoli

David Raso

If you have any questions or comments about the Bulletin, please contact Jane Newman at jnewman@brearley.org or (212) 570-8588.

Brearley is social (and social distancing)!

Julie Gamboa

Martha Haakmat

Munib Islam

Stephanie Perlman

Paula Campbell Roberts ’94 Bill Shutzer Lita Tandon ’06 Olivia Wassenaar ’97 Alan Yan

Facebook facebook.com/brearleyschoolnyc Instagram @brearleynyc Twitter @BrearleyNYC @JaneJFried

Trustees Emeriti Georges F. de Ménil Evelyn Janover Halpert ‘52 David T. Hamamoto Stephanie J. Hull Ellen Jewett ’77

Alumnae LinkedIn Group www.brearley.org/alumnaelinkedin

Alan Jones

Alumnae Facebook Group facebook.com/groups/brearleyalumnae

John F. Savarese

Special thanks to Eric Antanitus, Kristen Chae, James Kegley and members of the Brearley community for sharing photos and artwork with us.

Edward F. Rover

Priscilla M. Winn Barlow

Faculty Representative Debra Glick

TX_280CFD15A8BD

LAST DAY 2020

Leadership During Trying Times.

Remarks from the Head of School.

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Well, here we are together at a distance to celebrate the Class of 2020. It has not been the spring that any of us had planned, and certainly for the seniors this has been a time of reflection and discovery, as well as some disappointment and uncertainty. Acknowledging that this is all a part of a historic period of time, we can also remind ourselves why we are missing each other so much and what we have meant to one another. That is what I hope to do today. Let us lift our spirits in tribute to a group of young people who have shared themselves with this community and communities beyond the walls of this campus.

To describe these seniors, they know what they care about, and are deeply committed to what they care about. Take Mountain Day, which was rescheduled due to bad weather because a group of determined seniors presented their case in my office that we all, amid the transition to our new building and schedule, needed to celebrate a little old with the new! We took a chance on the weather and the Class of 2020 put on a terrific zoo-themed day at Bear Mountain. Theirs was the first rain date Mountain Day that anyone could recall. This is fitting because this is a class of firsts—first to have Mandarin, iPads, 590, a new senior homeroom and now a virtual Last Day. Thank you to the administrators, faculty, students and parents who have helped to put this gathering together. Out of many ideas has come this truly unique event that we hope you are enjoying.

I have to take a moment to thank the self-government co-heads, Charlotte and Leyla, who have been outstanding leaders in a year of change. Little did you know that the big changes of the fall would turn out to be a warm-up for responding to a pandemic. Your thoughtful and empathetic leadership has been an essential part of the School’s ability to respond to students’ needs. From surveys to Town Halls, you led with humility, openness and respect. It has been an honor for Ms. Segal, Ms. Kramer and me to serve the School with you. Thank you!

Class of 2020, as a whole you represent what is core to Brearley: a passionate exchange of ideas, deep respect for the liberal arts and principled engagement in the world. In case you are thinking that I am pulling only from the Mission Statement, I took some time over the past few weeks to list one item about each of you that demonstrates how you personify our School’s values.

Students, you have: An affinity for creating new programs to engage the community, founding the Medical Science, Middle East Culture and Current Affairs Clubs, a service program with the Clarke School and Belonging at Brearley.

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LAST DAY 2020

“

As you go forward, let your intellectual reach be boundless.

Global problems require global solutions—be part of them.”

A passion for science. Participating in research projects in labs across the city in topics as diverse as pathology, cancer genetics, protein engineering and molecular design as well as in veterinary programs for farm and exotic animals.

An intellectual adventurousness within the campus walls. You have broad curricular interests and an appreciation for your teachers and advisors. I was heartened to read your recent acknowledgments for your teachers and classes not only in Upper School but also in Lower and Middle School.

And at a time when so many schools have shifted their programs away from the arts, this class thrived in Brearley’s.

One student is a committed pianist who brings that love to those who are homebound, another is a singer/songwriter. We have an opera and choral singer and devotee of musical theater, and, of course, a cappella singers with the B-Nats.

We have dancers who favor musical theater dance, Polish folk, and choreography.

Some of you focused your energy on photography, painting and drawing, and your work displayed throughout the campus hallways has brought us tremendous pleasure.

There are poets and actors, theater technicians, costume designers and let’s not forget the props mistress. Using your artistic talent, you have led the Beaver and Yearbook.

Athletics, too, have been a large part of this class’s experience. The co-heads of the Athletic Association have done a terrific job and organized one of the largest homecomings in Brearley history. Seniors have captained teams that demonstrated character in victory and defeat. And this year two of you are talented swimmers whom we will be following on your college teams.

We see already your active citizenship, having mobilized students on the issue of gun control and volunteered for women candidates running for the presidency and US Senate. One interned with a Manhattan borough president, another has been a Senate page and still another is on a committee to advise a borough president on youth issues.

As a trail steward you have tended the land, while another has worked in sustainable farming and care for animals.

This class is acutely involved in caring for others in the Brearley com-

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munity and beyond, by leading the Joint Schools Association in service projects, cycling for cancer, creating a program of writing cards to refugees and first responders, volunteering in community gardening and medical and dental clinics for underserved populations, delivering meals to those who are homebound, teaching public elementary school students, assistant teaching P.E. at Brearley, applying drama as a way to engage children with Down Syndrome, volunteering with the Clarke School for children with hearing impairments, opening Lower School students’ eyes and hands to play and crafts, providing palliative care to young children with cancer, teaching swimming, assisting at an athletic recreation program for children with autism, working in literacy projects for immigrant populations, creating a video welcoming newly admitted students to Brearley, introducing younger students to robotics, and shepherding a Middle School Christian fellowship group.

Among our adventurers, we have a horse wrangler and a senior who spent time embedded within an Israeli Army unit.

And then there is the group who explores in different but equally interesting ways, drawn to astronomy and astrophysics, cosmology and relativity, classical Chinese literature and philosophy, entrepreneurial ventures such as resale of uniforms and connecting students with service opportunities, fashion design, and food writing. And, we have at least one very good chef.

This list, although long, is not exhaustive, but it tells a slice of the story of a group of 55 individuals who have grown up together.

Seniors, you have your own paths ahead, but like a herd of Jimbos, your class mascot, that communicates by sending vibrations through their feet across the savannah, you will call to each other to merge your paths again, and, following generations of alumnae, you will support one another whether you are near or far for the rest of your lives.

At this moment in particular, the Class of 2020 gives me hope. I’m thinking of the kind of hope that the author Rebecca Solnit describes as “only a beginning: it’s not substitute for action, only a basis for it.”

I’m also considering leadership during trying times, for which John Gardner, Secretary of Health and Human Services under President Johnson, called for “tough-minded optimists.” He wrote, “The future is not shaped by people who don’t believe in the future.” If we pause for a moment and think of the immediate future, the picture is rather fuzzy.

We don’t know when we will be together again. We don’t know what the fall may hold for schools and universities. We don’t know how long this pandemic and the need to physically distance may last. The person who does not believe in the future may throw up her hands, pull the covers over her head and say it’s not fair. Why now? Why me? We’ve all had those moments. But “tough-minded optimists,” armed with rugged hope, recognize the way world events are shaping the future and engage in the work before them.

Some aspects of college are bound to be more meaningful in these uncertain times. When I wrote this speech, I was focused on the world’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic—which has exposed, once again, the systemic inequities that continue to disproportionately impact Black and Brown communities. The pandemic has served as a backdrop for widespread civil unrest sparked by the most recent unlawful, inhumane and condemnatory killing of Black and Brown people in this country. As Ella Baker said during the height of the civil rights movement, “Until the

killing of black men, black mothers’ sons, becomes as important to the rest of the country as the killing of a white mother’s sons, we who believe in freedom cannot rest.” Ms. Baker said that in 1964.

It is unacceptable that the same issue that was present 56 years ago still plagues Black individuals across the country. We must do our part in taking action and educating a generation of leaders dedicated to justice.

And while we are doing that, we must also look inward to identify the anti-Black racism in our own community. We must be actively introspective about who we are and who we want to become and take concrete steps to confront racism in our school. This is what strong institutions do. They are open to criticism, address injustice and embrace continuous improvement. We will do better if the community engages in it. Look to your right and to your left. You are all required to be part of this initiative to create an antiracist community, and over the summer I want you to think about what your contribution to that change will be. You will be hearing from the School about the steps we are taking, which are by any measure significant. If you don’t think this effort requires your participation, then you need to call me over the summer so that I can convince you that it does.

It requires every student, parent, guardian, teacher and staff member.

These are not only complex problems to solve, they are connected to our history and to this country’s resistance to connecting its past with its present. These problems require a new openness to collaboration across disciplines and, in my mind, highlight the importance of a rigorous liberal arts program in educating the citizenry of a democracy. Scientists alone can’t solve the devastating impact of Covid-19 any more than sociologists and activists can resolve race relations in the United States. It’s not only that other specialists need to be involved, it is that our leaders in every area of expertise need a foundational understanding of history and ethics to be able to empathize with those who have different experiences from theirs, and to possess the curiosity and sense of social justice to commit to addressing those disparities. They also need to know what they don’t know and rely on those who do. We cannot be one country educated in silos and we cannot be an engaged citizenry that lives in them. Rather, it’s like an apeirogon, a polygon with countable infinite sides. It’s knowable and solvable but not by any one perspective or group.

I wouldn’t be honest if I didn’t state what should be obvious to you by now. This education is not for yourself alone. Yes, we want you to develop interests that spur your continued studies and feed your love of learn-

ing for the remainder of your life. Yes, we want you to find a vocation that you love and to be able to earn a living to take care of your family. And, this education, with its broad and deep exposure to the liberal arts, its focus on public speaking, leadership, service to others, as shown by the projects your class has been involved in, is for what? We’ve prepared you to lead, and from what I’m seeing in our world right now, you need to be at the center of decision-making of any system or organization to be heard and to shape the future. The fish rots from its head (seniors, you know what I’m referring to). You’ve got to be the head that keeps the fish healthy.

As a bit of relief, this does not have to be a solitary or lonely journey. I don’t believe the rhetoric that it is up to your generation alone. All generations are called to engage in the work of the future. As we have learned from the hidden figures behind the great men of discovery or civil rights leadership, we must recognize and encourage all those who contribute.

I know we have parents and grandparents watching this ceremony who are confronting local, national and global issues; their learning, their advances, their failures are all essential to your ability to tackle the nation’s and world’s problems. Lock arms with these tough-minded optimists and take inspiration from both the 19th-century abolitionist Theodore Parker and Dr. King, that history bends toward justice. What we know is that the arc won’t bend on its own: It requires our action.

As you go forward, let your intellectual reach be boundless. Global problems require global solutions—be part of them.

Lifting from the past, I close with the words often spoken by Jean Fair Mitchell, who led this institution during tumultuous times. She ended every Last Day speech by reading Philippians 4:8.

“Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”

Godspeed.

By the power vested in me by the Board of Trustees, I am honored to promote the Class of 2020 as graduates of the Brearley School.

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RETIRING AND DEPARTING MEMBERS OF THE FACULTY AND STAFF

Clockwise from top left: Clevelette Austin, Benda Craig, Karl Paranya, Evelyn Segal, Elizabeth Stainton ’77, Laura Schmidt and Jacques Houis.

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Thank You!

TO OUR FACULTY AND STAFF WHO DEPARTED IN 2020 AFTER MANY YEARS OF SERVICE clevelette austin has been Assistant CFO and Controller at

laura schmidt came to Brearley in 1992, originally working in the

benda craig has been a mainstay in the Brearley Business Office

evelyn segal joined Brearley in 1977 as a teacher of mathematics.

Brearley since 2010. In this position, she has been in charge of the annual audits and the preparation of the financial statements required for them. She has also managed student billing and accounting and has assisted with managing the School’s daily accounting and financial operation. Cleve counts the smooth functioning of the audits as among her proudest accomplishments in her 10 years at Brearley. She shares that she will always be grateful for the professional opportunities that she has had here and for the “focus on diversity and inclusion that has always made me feel comfortable.” She values the many friends she made at the School and looks forward to maintaining those ties. as Senior Accountant since 2009. Honing her craft for over 20 years as an accountant in the for-profit sector, Benda credits her smooth transition to the educational world with the help of a former Brearley Registrar, Susan Borbay. In charge of the accounts receivable and biweekly payroll, Benda, whose love of accounting is always in evidence, credits her team with working so well together over the years. Besides the vivacious students, artwork and art teachers on the 7th floor of 610, where the Business Office is located, Benda says she has especially enjoyed “her daily conversations with Marsha Gomez, Chef Enrique and, of course, the Food Service staff’s delicious cuisine.”

jacques houis is completing his 28th year in the Modern Languag-

es Department as a teacher of French, and he credits his students as being at the forefront of his love for Brearley. Since 1991, Jacques has taught students in Classes V to XII and has been an Upper School Advisor. One of his proudest accomplishments is a translation project that he began with four Brearley students as a Senior Spring mini course in 1997 and that ultimately led to his publishing a book, The Comic Romance, which received a positive review in the Times Literary Supplement. A 2017 visit from the head of the Yale French Department provided another proud moment when, after attending one of his classes, she remarked that the students were “equal intellectually and linguistically to the brightest French majors at her university.”

karl paranya, a member of the Mathematics Department since

2004, has also taught computer science since 2016. Working with students in all three divisions, Karl has taught Class IV and Classes VI to XII and coached Middle School and varsity track. As one of the original participants in the Maker Movement at Brearley, he has been active in the growth of the computer science and computational-thinking program. Besides his assiduous students, Karl is constantly impressed by his hardworking colleagues and their ability to get things done—never more on display than in the transition to Virtual Brearley. Outside of the classroom, Karl is proud of the Habitat for Humanity trips he has helped lead and shares a standout memory: when Brearley’s 4x800m varsity track team placed sixth at the national championships.

Admission Office for five years. Laura was an associate for a year in kindergarten before becoming a Class I homeroom teacher. In her 28 years at Brearley, Laura could always be found with a smile on her face, bonding with her students through individualized teaching. With the goal of making her students feel comfortable in the classroom, Laura encouraged them to be adaptable, collaborative and supportive toward each other. From studying Shakespeare with Helaine Smith to City Meals projects to impromptu and spontaneous laughter and lighthearted group activities that take place within any given school day, Laura has been a foundational part of life in the Lower School.

Early on, she served as Co-Head of the department and Acting Head of the Middle School, among other positions. She was appointed Head of the Upper School in 1998. Among many innovations, Evy created the first Upper School advising program and what is now the Day Six Daisy meeting.

As Head of Upper School Student Life, Evy has shaped the grade heads’ increased roles in the students’ lives and has been instrumental in developing new programs in social-emotional learning, sexuality health education and equity, diversity and inclusion. Evy says her “great joy has been working with the extraordinary Brearley students and with colleagues who are passionate about their subjects and committed to the young people they teach.”

elizabeth stainton ’77 has been a member of the Brearley Art

Department for 22 years, including 15 years as Department Head. She has taught studio art to every grade from I to XII in a variety of media.

Elizabeth was recognized with the Sandra Lea Marshall ’73 Award for faculty “whose concern for their students goes well beyond the call of duty” and is the current holder of a Chair for Excellence in Teaching.

Among her happiest moments, she says, were watching her daughter graduate from Brearley, proudly marching with a Brearley contingent in the Washington, DC, Women’s March, and seeing her students “grow and evolve as creative beings as they learned to communicate visually.”

Elizabeth is grateful for the “amazing group of adults here who have challenged and inspired me by their many interests and diverse talents and viewpoints.”

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RETIRING TRUSTEES

SINCERE THANKS

To Our Retiring Trustees

Clockwise from top left: Reza Ali, Nick Bienstock,Terri Seligman ’78, Athena Tapales, Andrew Tsai and Ivan Hageman.

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BREARLEY’S STATEMENT OF BELIEFS It is a pleasure to recognize the accomplishments of the members of the Board who retired in June 2020. During their tenure Brearley developed and launched such initiatives as “Opening Doors,” the School’s Strategic Vision; a campus plan with the construction of 590 East 83rd Street and renovations to 610; a comprehensive fundraising campaign in support of our strategic plan’s goals; and an enhanced commitment to antiracism, diversity, equity and inclusion, social and emotional learning, and sexuality health education within the K–XII curriculum. In addition, they guided the School during the early months of the pandemic, approving the establishment of tuition assistance and community funds to aid families and faculty and staff affected financially by the coronavirus. We thank these trustees for their dedicated service and innumerable contributions to Brearley.

Reza Ali

Trustee, 2014–2020 Executive Committee, Campaign Co-Chair, 2015–2020 Development Committee Investment Committee Trusteeship Committee

Nick Bienstock

Trustee, 2013–2020 Executive Committee, 2013–2020 Vice President 2019–2020 Building/Real Estate Committee, Chair, 2013–2020

Ivan Hageman

Trustee, 2014–2020 Building/Real Estate Committee Development Committee

Terri Seligman ’78

Trustee and President of the Alumnae Association, 2014–2020 Development Committee Trusteeship Committee

Athena Tapales

Trustee and President of the Parents’ Association, 2019–2020 Building/Real Estate Committee Development Committee

Andrew Tsai

Trustee, 2014–2020 Executive Committee, 2015–2020 Audit Committee, Chair, 2015–2020 Investment Committee

MISSION

The Brearley School challenges girls of adventurous intellect and diverse backgrounds to think critically and creatively and prepares them for principled engagement in the world.

Guided by a dedicated community of adults, students develop a command of many disciplines, a love of learning and a resilient and generous spirit. The bond among students and with their teachers is rooted in a passionate exchange of ideas and an appreciation for the unique and lively contributions of each individual.

A Brearley education unfolds over a lifetime. The School instills in its alumnae the confidence to pursue their ambitions and the wisdom to live balanced and purposeful lives.

DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION

The Brearley School believes that diversity of thought, practice and identity are essential elements in preparing students for principled engagement in the world.

We believe in the importance of establishing and strengthening the structures and practices necessary to achieve equitable representation and participation in our school. We are committed to putting these beliefs into action and are therefore engaged in continuous study, self-reflection and dialogue in order to improve and adapt as we learn.

We embrace the opportunities and challenges of learning and working in a diverse environment characterized by respect and consideration for the needs of others.

In partnership with faculty, staff, students, families and alumnae, we are endeavoring to instill and sustain shared values that promote a welcoming, inclusive and affirming community.

ANTIRACISM

The Brearley School condemns racism in the strongest possible terms and is committed to building an antiracist community. This work requires active introspection, self-awareness and the determination to make conscious and consistently equitable choices on a daily basis. We expect our faculty, staff, students, parents and trustees to pursue meaningful change through deliberate and measurable actions. These actions include participating in antiracist training and identifying and eliminating policies, practices and beliefs that uphold racial inequality in our community.

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NEW MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES 2020–2021

Clockwise from top left: Amina Elderfield ’94, Julie Gamboa, Sue Meng ’99, Olivia Cowley Wassenaar ’97, Bill Shutzer and Martha Haakmat.

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Amina Elderfield ’94 joins the Board as

the newly elected President of the Brearley Alumnae Board. A founder and driving force of the Community Task Force, Amina has served on the Francis Riker Davis Committee and 610 Connect and is a loyal member of the Miller Society. Amina is the Managing Director and head of internal communications at Morgan Stanley, where she partners with business unit heads and key stakeholders to develop strategies, tools and content to improve the employee experience. Prior to joining Morgan Stanley for a second time, Amina was the COO for a technology strategy team at JPMorgan Chase. Amina graduated from Georgetown University and holds a master’s in gastronomy from Australia’s University of Adelaide. She and her husband, Anthony, reside in New York.

Julie Gamboa joins the Board for a one-year

term as the President of the Parents’ Association. Hailing from the San Francisco Bay Area, Julie joined the Brearley community in 2013.

Prior to moving to New York, she spent 10 years in Washington, DC. In addition to having taught at the primary and secondary school levels, Julie has been actively involved in her children’s schools. She was previously co-chair of the Brearley Welcoming Committee and was a Brearley Class VIII representative. She has also served as co-chair of the Collegiate Festival.

Julie, a graduate of San Jose State University, and her husband, Joaquin, are the parents of Isabella ’18, Alexandra (X) and Sebastian (VII, Collegiate).

Martha Haakmat is the founder and exec-

utive director of Haakmat Consulting, LCC, where she provides leadership coaching and support for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) strategic planning for schools and other organizations. An experienced educator who has spent her 33-year-career teaching in and leading schools belonging to the New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYSAIS), she most recently served as a head of school where she worked specifically on enrollment, marketing and finance in a changing admissions landscape and developed strategic planning expertise, including DEI goal setting and ongoing systemic work.

She currently serves on the board of trustees for NYSAIS and also has been a trustee and member of various committees for the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS), the Independent School Admission Association of Greater New York (ISAAGNY) and New York City Guild of Independent School Heads. The founder and director of Educators for Growth and Empowerment (EDGE), a nationally recognized diversity consulting team, Martha is a graduate of Wesleyan University with a master’s degree from Bank Street College of Education.

Sue Meng ’99 is a partner at Debevoise &

Plimpton, where she advises public companies and private equity firms in connection with mergers and acquisitions, strategic investments and other significant corporate matters. As co-chair of Debevoise’s Pro Bono Committee, Sue guides the firm’s pro bono legal service to underserved individuals, communities, and organizations. A graduate of Harvard College, Sue received her JD from Yale Law School and her master’s degrees from the University of Oxford. She was Brearley’s first alumna to receive a Rhodes Scholarship. She serves on the board of Ttrustees for Prep for Prep and served on Brearley’s Alumnae Board from 2011 to 2014.

Sue and her husband, Antonius Kufferath, are the parents of Lucy Kufferath (II) and three-yearold Matilda Kufferath.

Bill Shutzer rejoins the Brearley Board of

Trustees following his previous term, 2002– 2008, in which he served as Executive Vice President and was a member of the Audit, Budget, Development and Executive Committees. Bill is a Senior Advisor of Evercore Partners, an investment banking firm. Prior to Evercore, he was President of Furman Selz and held senior positions at Lehman Brothers, including as head of their investment banking group. A graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Business School, Bill currently serves on the board of directors of Tiffany & Co., ExamWorks Group, Inc. and Evercore Trust Company, and was a director of CSK Auto, American Financial Group, RSI, and PracticeWorks. Bill is also currently a member of the Brookings Foreign Policy Committee and trustee of the Radcliffe Institute, Prep for Prep, and the Paul Taylor Dance Company. He and his wife, Fay Shutzer, are the parents of Katherine Brennan ’92, Megan Shutzer ’06, Christopher Shutzer and Jamie Shutzer. Their granddaughter Charlotte Brennan is in Class VII.

Olivia Cowley Wassenaar ’97 is a Se-

nior Partner at Apollo Global Management and co-head of Natural Resources, overseeing the firm’s investments in the natural resources sector. Prior to Apollo, Olivia was a Managing Director of Riverstone Holdings, an energy and power-focused private equity firm, and worked in the investment banking division of Goldman Sachs. Throughout her career, she has served on the boards of 15 companies, including four public companies. A graduate of Harvard College and University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, she has served as a nontrustee on Brearley’s Investment Committee since 2018 and is a member of the advisory council for the KBH Center for Energy, Law, and Business at the University of Texas. Olivia and her husband, Julian, have three children: Louisa (IV), Camilla (I) and Sebastian (K at Buckley).

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Welcome!

NEWS AND EVENTS

what are your observations of brearley so far?

It’s a great community. The students are thoughtful and multifaceted, and the relationships they have with their teachers are very special. Faculty are receptive to the students and it’s clear how dedicated they are in getting students to do and be their best.

NEW NATIONAL HONOR FOR THE BREARLEY BULLETIN

is it fair to say you hit the ground running starting on day one?

Dr. Noel-Pierre

head of upper school student life

Oh, yes. I simultaneously feel new and like I’ve been here for years! My official start date was July 6, but I actually began earlier, meeting and collaborating with administration and learning how systems work. If we weren’t in a pandemic my transition to Brearley might have been different, but at the same time having to dive in has allowed me to become familiar with a new school and environment a lot quicker.

coming to brearley at this particular time, what are your thoughts about its work in becoming an antiracist institution?

I’ve been very impressed by the steps Brearley is taking to confront racism. These issues are not unique to Brearley; all institutions in education—private and public—are struggling with this. But the way Brearley is handling it—listening, holding sessions, allowing community members to express their feelings, working to build trust, particularly with Black students and families—and continuing to, is encouraging and positive. I feel good about this start. how do you see this year unfolding?

In a normal year, meaning not in a pandemic, I would get to know a new culture gradually, by living and learning it. Covid-19 has made that a challenge. I miss having the ability to build relationships face-toface, but now that we’re more settled in the school year I’ve been getting more chances to observe classes and have one-on-one meetings with students, which is allowing me to get to know them better and them to know me. final question: what are you wearing in this photo?

This picture was taken during the Upper School Halloween celebration. I went back to my life science roots—I’m an anglerfish.

In July, the Spring 2019 Bulletin received an Honorable Mention from the University & College Designers Association (UCDA) for Cover Design in its annual national design awards competition. Selected from more than 820 entries, this is Brearley’s fourth nod from UCDA in six years. The photograph, which was taken by Ashley Garrett (P’12, P’17), was used to illustrate the cover story, Stepping into the Future: As we shape what a Brearley education looks like in the 21st century and what it means for our students and alumnae, we are living in the striving—and the striding.

R E C E N T LY P U B L I S H E D B O O K S B Y A L U M N A E

Jane Marla Robbins ‘61 18 FALL 2020

Louise Campbell ‘68

Rebecca Frost Cuevas ‘72

Katherine Barrett Swett ’78

Karen Brailsford ‘82

2020 FRD Award Winners Alex Piper ’84 and Samantha Eisenstein Watson ’96 have been honored with this year’s Frances Riker Davis Award. The annual award recognizes Brearley alumnae for service dedicated to the public good. Through professional work or volunteerism, these alumnae identify a need, create a solution and effect change.

Alex Piper ’84

In distinct but analogous ways, Alex and Samantha responded to fundamental human needs and addressed them with creative humanitarian solutions. Working selflessly as volunteers, both women founded programs and organizations that help people in difficult situations.

Alex, based in the Chicago area, created a charitable organization called the Family Table to provide food education and meals to families of varying financial means. Her main focus was with the residents

Samantha Eisenstein Watson ’96

of the YWCA's domestic violence emergency

shelter, where she also established the YWCA’s Urban Garden to grow organic produce while incorporating sustainability and mindfulness into her program. Alex devoted time to creating and running other programs that formed diverse communities around food, always engaging people in a shared meal together.

Sam, based in New England, survived two cancers, Ewing sarcoma in 1999 and secondary myelodyplastic syndrome in 2001. Those experiences made her aware of the devastating expenses associated with such illnesses: Sam observed that financial and psychological support was primarily devoted to children or adults, and that teenagers and young adult cancer survivors were in desperate need of funds and other kinds of help. Perceiving that need, Sam created a nonprofit, the Samfund, to give financial support and practical advice to young cancer survivors.

The Samfund website notes that to date over seven hundred young adults have been helped by the fund. In July 2019, the Samfund merged with the Expect Miracles Foundation, so that the two organizations can support one another’s financial assistance for cancer survivors.

Sam’s and Alex’s work reflects not only their successful strategies but also their compassionate, personal interest in the people they help.

Please send covers of your new books to classnotes@brearley.org.

Katie Roiphe ‘86

Hadley Freeman ‘96

From Here We Are, by Aarti Namdev Shahani ’97, recently published in paperback.

Mom’s baby sister—who’d crashed their first date, married a U.S. citizen and moved to Queens—became a citizen herself. She and her husband sponsored us in a process some have derided as “chain migration,” as if it were a bad thing. To me, the term is positive. Each family member is a link in the chain. The more links you add, the longer, the stronger, more unbreakable the chain is. Last I checked, strong families are a good thing.

It didn’t take twenty or thirty years, like it would today. It took three years. When the green cards came in the mail, my parents didn’t jump up and down like contestants on The Price Is Right. They sat together, taking deep breaths, feeling partial relief, like when you stretch a limb that’s been contorted too long and the blood rushes back.

We would no longer have to cross the street to avoid NYPD. The Keplanis of the world couldn’t hurt us anymore.

We could put our name on complaint letters to the super when the heat stopped in the winter or the upstairs neighbor’s shower seeped through the plaster and rained on us.

These were considerable wins.

Still, the question of how we’d make a living didn’t disappear. At their ages—middle-aged, too old to enroll in school or a great vocational program—Mom and Dad wouldn’t suddenly have doors fling open for them. And— they saw this in our building—there were so many people with papers who were poor.

Not surprisingly, my parents had opposite takes on America.

“If you want to stay in this misery, you stay alone,” Dad told Mom one day.

“Kya, dahling?” Mom didn’t understand.

Dad was ready to do what millions of immigrants before him had done: pack up and go. We don’t tend to hear this part of the American story. We know about the Ellis Island immigrants who poured in, not about those who then decided the winter was too cold, the city was too mean, and it was time to go back.

That was Dad’s thinking. After his first business venture fell apart, he tried to pick himself back up. He went knocking on Broadway doors, asking for any work he could get. He got the most menial jobs, sweeping streets and shoveling snow. He would work a whole day and still couldn’t put more than forty dollars in Mom’s hand.

And he longed for a country without snow—of which there are many. Paralyzing isolation and extreme weather—gross malfunctions of nature—are, for many immigrants, two of the most devastating features of America.

Copyright (c) 2020 by the author and reprinted with permission of Celadon Books, a division of Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC.

FALL 2020 19

NEWS AND EVENTS

3

Special Post–Election Day at Brearley On November 4, Classes VII–XII heard from and engaged with community members who had been invited to share their professional experiences and perspectives related to the US elections, including Ruth Messinger ’58, former Borough President of Manhattan and a longtime political leader in New York, and Sommer Omar ’12, a student at Yale Law School and a former policy assistant on the 2016 Democratic presidential campaign. Using the Turbo Talk model of Brearley’s class reunions, each guest spoke for 15 minutes before opening her or his session to questions from students, faculty and staff. The other participants were John Lin P’28, former senior pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church Downtown who has been in positions of faith leadership for over 20 years; Rebecca Haile, Brearley Trustee, P’20, P’29, a lawyer, author and executive who serves on the board of Emily’s List, which works to elect women to political office; and Thomas Lee P’19, P’21, P’26, Leitner Family Professor of International Law at Fordham University School of Law and special counsel to the general counsel of the US Department of Defense from May 2019 to August 2020.

6

2 1

4

5

WHAT’S ON YOUR DESK? COLIN SAMUEL, DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY 1. The cup comes from my fiancée. I’m a Steelers fan. 2. Annah Clontz (Head of Learning Skills) gave this sticker to me. Did I mention I’m a Steelers fan?

3. I use the ring light during Zoom calls to illuminate and cast an even light on my face. 4. The African mask was a gift from my colleagues at my last job.

5. The mini-exercise bike allows me to work out without having to leave my desk. 6. I use the Brearley Athletics cup to drink sparkling ice water.

610 (AND 590) AGAIN!

Lois Kahn Wallace ’57

Writer’s Award Established in 1999 by the late Lois Kahn Wallace ’57, this award honors and encourages a Brearley alumna at the beginning of her career as a published writer, or the beginning of writing in a new genre. Nominated books must be the first by the author, or the first by the author in its genre. Fiction and nonfiction works are eligible, as are books for young adults.

This award is conferred approximately every two years and carries an honorarium. To apply, submit six copies of the work to Daryl Gurian Stern, Director of Events and Alumnae Relations, at Brearley, 610 East 83rd Street, New York, NY 10028.

20 FALL 2020

Have spray, will travel. Brearley welcomes back (left to right) Nancy Handelman ’16, Beverly Milberg ’17, Ella Wickham ’20 and Lou Hagen ’19, among the hardy crew of school assistants helping us follow Covid-19 health and safety guidelines. For more on how Brearley is operating during the pandemic, please start reading on page 38.

2021 UPCOMING EVENTS VIRTUAL BREARLEY BENEFIT MARCH 8, 2021

TWO-WEEK VIRTUAL ALUMNAE WEEKEND & REUNIONS APRIL 2021

We hope to see you there!

FALL 2020 21

NEWS AND EVENTS

All in the Family

Artist Kim Beaty ’73 Adds Ruth Bader Ginsburg to Her Work

Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Priscilla Winn Barlow

Stephanie Hull

22 FALL 2020

On the sixth-floor foyer of the 590 schoolhouse, portraits of Brearley’s former Heads of School watch regally over students as they file into the Assembly Hall. Did you know that two of those portraits, Priscilla Winn Barlow’s and Stephanie Hull’s, have a special connection to late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg?

In 1990, Constance “Kim” Beaty ’73 launched her career in painting and now specializes in portraits and landscapes; she painted Dr. Winn Barlow’s portrait in 2003 and Dr. Hull’s in 2012. Coming from a family with a long Brearley lineage—she’s the daughter of the late Mary Rodgers Guettel ‘48, the well-known writer and composer, niece of Linda Rodgers Emory ‘53, sister of Nina Beaty ’71, and mother of Mairi McCormick ’12—it was only appropriate that Kim was commissioned to paint the official portrait for Justice Ginsburg, herself with deep ties to the School.

Before her appointment to the United States Supreme Court in 1993, Justice Ginsburg was the first female tenured professor at Columbia School of Law, where she received her JD. In honor of her service, Columbia commissioned a portrait of the justice to hang in the school. Aware of Kim’s work, Justice Ginsburg’s daughter, Jane Ginsburg ‘73, immediately encouraged her old classmate to submit her portfolio. Impressed with her work, the justice ultimately chose Kim—an honor for the artist. Pleased with the final result, which was unveiled at the law school in 2001, Justice Ginsburg told Kim that when the time came for her to be painted for the Supreme Court, “You’ll be first on my list.” Years later, she followed up on her word and again selected Kim as her portraitist.

From Kim’s appointment to physically painting the portrait was an arduous process that required the utmost focus and detail. She trailed Justice Ginsburg as often as possible. “I want to see my clients in action, see how they are, observe their personality—I want to portray the whole person in my portraits,” Kim explains. Justice Ginsburg, an aficionado of opera, and Kim often attended Glimmerglass performances together, including shows that showcased compositions by Kim’s late grandfather Richard Rodgers.

Beginning with over 30 compositional sketches, photos and oil paintings—one of which is hanging in the Brooklyn Museum—Kim created a life-sized drawing to get a sense of what the finished product would be.

Then, in 2015, she brought brush to the 30 x 40-inch canvas.

For the next several months, Kim and Justice Ginsburg collaborated on the iconography of the portrait, including the meaningful objects seen on her desk. Behind the justice, who is facing three-quarters to the right “gazing out as if she’s looking into the future with grave consideration and thoughtfulness,” are details representing her life as a whole: her husband Martin’s cookbook, her daughter’s law books, her son James’s CDs featuring the vocals of her daughter-in-law, Patrice Michaels, and a vase of freesias, one of her favorite flowers. Justice Ginsburg is adorned with jewelry she collected from her travels and her favorite jabot— without which it wouldn’t be an “RBG” portrait—which came from South Africa.

Kim handed over her work in 2016. Signifying an upward battle for women in portraiture, the painting bears Kim’s full name, Constance P. Beaty, in the bottom corner—a proud departure from C.P. Beaty, the name she often used as her signature due to its nonbinary nature. While Justice Ginsburg continued to serve on the bench, the portrait hung in the New York City Bar Association, its temporary home until it was recently transferred to its final resting place: the hallways of the United States Supreme Court, alongside fellow past justices.

The hours Kim spent with Justice Ginsburg solidified the notion that the justice was brilliant, and among the “kindest, most thoughtful people I have ever met; it was an enormous honor to paint her.” Kim continues, “She was extraordinary—not only for her accomplishments, but for her character.”

Like a true Brearley girl, Kim has fully embodied the School’s mission to teach girls to think critically and creatively and prepare them for principled engagement in the world. “I received a lot of encouragement to paint during my time at Brearley. Had I not had that early encouragement from the School, I would not have had the guts to even try for a career in portraiture because it takes a lot of nerve to try to get it right and make your clients happy,” Kim says. “Having been raised at Brearley and being taught that there was nothing that we could not do if we put our minds to it, by truth and toil, I always had a strong sense of trying to break barriers.”

Next up for Kim: a portrait series on young women, including one of Justice Ginsburg’s Brearley granddaughter, Clara Spera ’08.

Annual Giving to Brearley 2020–2021 School Year

We thank our extraordinary community of alumnae, parents, parents of alumnae, faculty, staff and friends for your generous philanthropic support. We are united in our belief in girls’ education and, together, we will ensure that our students learn and grow in a school that prepares them for principled engagement in the world.

The School relies on annual donations, combined with tuition and income from the endowment, to fund Brearley’s educational program each year. We welcome your participation and invite general operating gifts, unrestricted or directed to specific areas, as outlined below.

Brearley Fund Unrestricted Fueling all aspects of the educational program, your gifts will have a direct and immediate impact on purposeful teaching and expansive learning for today’s Brearley girls.

ANNUAL GIVING 2020–2021

United Fund

onl ine giv ing:

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Initiatives Embracing Brearley’s school song lyrics “By Truth and Toil united” and our commitment to building an antiracist and more equitable school community, your gifts empower expanded programming in this priority area.

gifts v ia daf, c as h o r check :

O p e n i n g Doo r s F u n d Scholarships Ensuring that talented students from a wide range of socioeconomic backgrounds can access a Brearley education, your gifts provide tuition assistance for families with demonstrated need.

Adventurous Intellect Fund

www.brearley.org/make-a-gift Venmo: Brearley_af Gifts of Stock: www.brearley.org/stock

Please mail or deliver your gift to The Brearley School 610 East 83rd Street New York, NY 10028

For any questions, contact Amina Holman, Annual Fund Director, at aholman@brearley.org or (212) 570-8610.

Faculty Support Providing for the dedicated architects of the School program, your gifts benefit curricular development, departmental review, professional growth and faculty salaries.

If you are making a year-end gift to Brearley, mailed gifts must be postmarked by Thursday, December 31, 2020, and online gifts should be made by midnight on December 31, 2020.

Every gift of any size matters.

Thank you for being a Brearley champion!

FALL 2020 23

ANTIRACISM

Building an Antiracist Brearley Last May, as the country experienced a long-overdue reckoning around racial injustice, Black students and alumnae called out incidents of racism and harm they had experienced at schools and colleges across the country. At Brearley, these courageous voices ignited a process of self-examination and reform at the School that will benefit current and future Brearley students for generations to come.

In communications over the summer, the School outlined its preliminary action steps to become an antiracist community. We are making progress in reviewing, revising and implementing systems, policies and practices that will create a strong and enduring foundation for a more inclusive and equitable community.

24 FALL 2020

Bursting the Brearley Bubble by Shae Campbell ‘21, art director of Panoramic (see page 36).

Brearley’s long legacy as a progressive institution enabled it to respond directly to the powerful calls for increased diversity, equity, access and belonging. Throughout its history, social movements required faculty, staff and trustees to go beyond the familiar in pursuit of truth and led us to adopt new approaches to teaching, learning and community building. These changes improved both the quality of the student experience and Brearley’s liberal arts program. In the recent past, Brearley has instituted a student-centered schedule, a new homework policy and a K–XII health education program for these very reasons. Today, calls for the School to become an antiracist institution are contributing to a stronger culture of listening, understanding and growing as a school.

The commitment to become an antiracist school requires a novel approach to institutional change. Using the metaphor of a house best explains the structural change needed in this new iteration of independent schools’ diversity, equity and inclusion work. In the past, the schools added a new room to respond to a specific institutional need. Now, we must examine the foundation to identify and resolve the cracks that have contributed to the marginalization of members of our community. Our work has been expansive, but today our antiracist work is systemic.

Our preliminary steps to address anti-Black racism at Brearley provide a 360-degree review of our systems, policies and practices. From governance to antiracist and anti-bias training and education, from program to accountability and research, from communication to staffing, the School is working on all fronts to address this issue (see chart on next page). We are committed to engaging the full community in this work. We will rise together as the foundation is strengthened.

Although the work is complex, the goal is simple: All members of our community should feel valued and a sense of belonging, and every student should graduate with cultural empathy and competence. By addressing anti-Black racism in our program, we are developing systems that will also identify and support other underrepresented or marginalized populations. This work will fundamentally strengthen our program, which seeks to prepare students for university and for meaningful and purposeful lives.

Our dedication to creating an antiracist school community is an enduring institutional commitment. Transparency and measuring the impact of our work are critical to our success. We’ve begun our equity audit, and with the external support of other experts we have started to review and update our curriculum and pedagogy as well as our hiring and retention policies. The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee of the Board of Trustees will lead the development of a strategic plan to guide this work into the future.

At the heart of antiracism work lies Brearley’s long-standing tenets. This institutional commitment will strengthen our liberal arts tradition that teaches critical thinking and writing, encourages a passionate exchange of ideas and develops in its students a sense of purpose that is greater than their own success. Our students’ ability to lead with intellect, empathy and cultural competence will be significantly enhanced by bringing an antiracism lens to their lives.

While this work is foundational, it’s also important to climb up to the roof to look out at the educational landscape. I believe this is an inflection point for many independent schools across the nation. Schools that rise to the call to build multicultural school communities will be in a position to respond to their students’ determination to make a positive difference in their communities with an education that provides them with the tools they need to do so.

This change in our school is a necessary step in preparing our students for principled engagement in the world.

—Jane Fried

FALL 2020 25

ANTIRACISM

Antiracism Initiatives governance

program

training and education

communication

To provide board-level oversight, support and accountability, the Board of Trustees has created a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee.

Aligned with the external curriculum review of Opening Doors, Brearley’s Strategic Vision, departments are engaged or will engage in developing an inclusive curriculum and culturally competent pedagogy with the support of outside consultants.

Students, faculty and staff are participating in training and education sessions on topics such as antiracism and cultivating community throughout the year.

Board and Head of School letters were sent over the summer to inform the community of the School’s commitment to antiracism and preliminary action steps.

Faculty and staff are also being trained in emotional responsiveness.

Antiracism Statement is included in Brearley’s Statement of Beliefs (see page 15), which is also featured in school and admission materials.

Antiracist advisory groups for students, parents, alumnae, and faculty and staff have been established to ensure open communication.

These groups meet in advance of DEI Board Committee meetings and each has a representative that sits on the board committee.

The DEI Committee will oversee a strategic plan for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

Alumnae Board has developed and ratified its own antiracism priorities to strengthen and expand racial equity work and commit to sustained change where needed.

New curriculum is being introduced in LS as well as in Class V and English and History Departments in Classes VI–XII. Physical Education and Drama Departments also are working with external consultants on new programs. .

In recognition of the essential value of race- and ethnicity-based affinity space, the Office of Equity and Inclusion and the Dean of Students are working to support the creation, organization and funding of programming for new and existing affinity spaces. The Umoja student group continues to be an exemplar for this work.

Collaboration with Black Students Demanding Change continues, including BSDC representation on Self-Government and a panel presentation at the upcoming NCGS conference.

26 FALL 2020

Trustees and parents have completed the first session of mandatory antiracism and anti-bias training.

A racial literacy and antiracism curriculum for K–XII (which already has been implemented in some grades) to guide students in the acquisition of cultural competence is underway.

Antiracist training will be offered to the Alumnae Board.

School Instagram highlights ongoing antiracism work.

The Alumnae Board met several times and hosted two town hall meetings with school leadership to discuss the School’s response to creating an antiracist community.

A K–XII family meeting hosted by school leadership explained antiracism commitment and progress on initial action steps.

Faculty presented changes to the curriculum and pedagogy for 2020–2021 school year.

Annual Giving Review and fall Bulletin provide updates on antiracism action steps.

antiracist advisory groups v = Co-Chair

staffing

policies and procedures

accountability and research

Hired an Associate Director of Equity and Community Engagement and appointed a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Coordinator to each division.

To increase transparency of institutional response to incidents of racism, the administration created age-appropriate discipline systems and Codes of Conduct for each division.

Conduct equity audit to identify areas for improvement and measure success of initiatives.

Hired a K–XII school counselor with experience working with BIPOC students in the Counseling and Wellness Department.

School administrators and department heads are participating in workshops with a national diversity hiring consultancy to identify and address aspects of our current hiring, onboarding and mentoring processes that support and impede the hiring and retention of talented teachers and administrators of color. The goal is to have new systems in place to support the hiring of teachers and staff of color by the hiring season.

A revised evaluation process will consider the commitment of faculty, staff and administrators to understanding and furthering the School’s goal to become a diverse, inclusive, antiracist community across socioeconomic levels and where all members feel valued and respected.

The School also created a Policy Against Racism, Bias and Bigotry for all students, faculty and staff, which also standardizes and makes transparent institutional response.

Multiple training sessions have taken place to introduce these new policies and practices to students and the reasons for their creation.

Faculty and staff too were trained in these new policies and practices during the opening of school.

Members of the discipline committees have been meeting to discuss case studies and issues of bias.

A third-party complaint system will be implemented this year.

Funding for mental health support has been provided to alumnae who requested it.

Administrators will explore models for restorative justice.

EnGenderED Research Collaborative is conducting parent focus groups by division and race and will soon begin meetings with MS and US students. An anonymous survey is available as well.

Faculty, staff and alumnae will also participate in focus groups in coming months.

All members of the community will have the opportunity to complete a survey, which asks the same questions posed in focus groups.

A climate survey will be developed based on information gathered and will inform the equity audit.

A summary of the equity audit will be shared with the community.

Findings of the equity audit to inform strategic plan for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and the review of mission statement.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Board Committee v Rebecca Haile v Stephanie Perlman v Paula Campbell Roberts ‘94 Tara Abrahams Christine Alfaro ‘91 Gideon Berger Susan Berresford ‘61 Amina Elderfield ‘94 Jane Fried Sue Meng Tanya Huelett (Administrator) Parents Elisabeth Cannell Daphné Crespo-Helm David Foster Julie Gamboa Shaba R. Keys John Lin Monica Machado Rob Manning Kimberly Ayers Shariff Tori Smith Takisia Whites Alumnae Ibijoke Akinola-Michel ‘92 Elaine Bennett ‘77 Lisa Chen ‘10 Ariel Fantasia ‘96 Jade Johnson ‘08 Georgia Levenson Keohane ‘90 Ayodele Lewis ’17 Andrea Matos ‘88 Christina Morales ’09 Gwendolyn Forston Waring ‘73 Faculty and Staff Utsman Afifi Janelle Barth Melissa Cassis Anayanci Cruz Celia Dillon Gabe Sanchez Ann Saunders Kelly Stein Runako Taylor Ella Vorenberg Students Alicia Alvarado ‘22 Tsion Carnielli ‘22 Taryn Chung ‘22 Mikayla Ervin ‘21 Chimene Keys ‘21 Connie Rosemond ‘22 Sasha Tucker ‘21 Aanika Veedon ‘22 Phoebe Weinstein ‘22 Emily Wheeler ‘22 FALL 2020 27

ANTIRACISM

Faculty

During the summer, departments including English and History and Class V teachers began an in-depth analysis of their programs and pedagogy through an antiracist lens—exploring what could be changed to ensure their inclusivity and relevance to the lives of all Brearley students. The School began with them in this first phase of change that will continue intentionally and measurably over the next three years, explains Dr. Mulkin, Assistant Head of School for Academic Life, as their curricula are “crucial to the identity of a student and her understanding of who she is in the world.”

Further, English and Class V had already commenced discussion about their programs, considering how they’re taught, for example, and rethinking their reading lists, which were long in need of updating to accommodate other voices and perspectives. They were therefore prepared to accelerate their work after Umoja’s call to action and the independent Instagram account Black@Brearley made it clear these updates were necessary.

Each department and the Class V teachers were matched with consultants with related expertise, with the purpose of providing faculty specialized support while preserving their autonomy in carrying out their work. Mr. McDonald, Class V Head Teacher, reports, “Our consultant has given us quite a few resources to use, and she has helped us clarify our thinking. She is a sounding board off of which we bounce ideas as we write new History units and choose new novels for English class.” Similarly, the English faculty have been working on their curriculum and pedagogy as a department and as grade-level teams; they will engage with their paired consultant in the next month. Additionally, they began collaborating with another consultant over the summer who is assisting them in developing a mission statement that will articulate the department’s commitment to a program that fights anti-Black racism. That consultant has already been instrumental, notes Dr. Wolf, Head of the English Department, in “facilitating group discussion and helping us to acknowledge our own and each other’s assumptions and values more fully.”

In September, English, Class V and History introduced curricular changes they are incorporating to their programs this year to parents and students. This academic work is ongoing, and it is Dr. Mulkin’s intention that this collaborative process will serve as a model for other departments as time goes on.

28 FALL 2020

The English Department’s major goals for this year have been to rethink our curriculum and pedagogy in the light of the concerns of Black students about anti-Black racism in our program. We have sought, in a number of ways, to create a program in which Black students—and all students—feel respected, validated, safe, and neither invisible nor hypervisible; a program in which students see themselves and aspects of their own identities mirrored and gain empathy for voices and experiences other than their own.

In particular, we have added texts by Black authors at every grade level between VI through XII, as well as texts by Native American and Asian American authors in the Middle and Upper School. The texts in our curriculum both celebrate traditionally marginalized cultures and acknowledge the hardships and traumas these groups have faced as a result of historic institutionalized racism. Throughout the year, we have built in opportunities for students to reflect on units of study, alongside their learning process, so that they can share how the revised program is working for them. As we review our curriculum and pedagogy, we will continue to diversify the voices and experiences that we teach. We will also continue to teach many texts that have been part of the ongoing curriculum, but we will approach these texts, and all texts, through a lens that is more intentional about not causing identity-based harm.

—2019–2021 English Department

Humanities curricula are crucial to the identity of a student and her understanding of who she is in the world.

This past June, the Class V team was asked to make significant changes to our curriculum, a charge that has been both exciting and daunting, a call we collectively find urgent and necessary. We recognize that the history of this country is too often romanticized and devoid of truths about racial oppression. We want our students to see how freedom and oppression were simultaneously established, and how they have been in tension ever since. But how to wholly and effectively teach that to 10- and 11-yearolds was a head scratcher. How do we do this without our students feeling defeated and deflated? How can we empower them?

We had our aha moment as we listened to a podcast series called The Land That Never Has Been Yet, a title borrowed from Langston Hughes’s poem “Let America Be America Again.” As we considered the poem it led us to these questions: • Who are the “we” in We the People?

• Who has had access to the grand ideals—freedom, equality and democracy—upon which this country is founded?

• Whose voices have been omitted or missing and how is this country working toward including those forgotten or erased voices?

These questions allowed us to shift our framework and gave us space to expand the voices and perspectives that would be included in our curriculum as well as examine how power has been wielded throughout this country’s history to exclude certain people.

Our goal through all of this is to tell a more honest history.

We want our girls to know that, no matter how young or old, they too can participate in that process of change— toward a more just, free and equal country.

The History Department is happy to report about the curricular changes we are making in the core history curriculum as part of the School’s antiracist initiative. We are energized and excited by the clear direction which the School is giving us and by everyone’s daily awareness of how historical crises impinge on the people who are living through them. For example, this year’s US History course in Class X began with a study of the 21st century, including a look at current racial disparities as well as at President Obama’s presidency, to create a frame through which to ponder our country’s development.

—Gail Marcus, History Department The 15th century marks for many historians the beginning of globalization, and, as Ibram Kendi’s How to Be an Antiracist describes, an important point in the invention and proliferation of racial hierarchies that are a part of our world today.

In Class VIII History we are excited to center how identities are created and recreated over time, how they reflect power systems and challenges to those systems and how they intersect with other systems of economics, politics and culture. We are seeking to correct the overemphasis on European history and the overutilization of Eurocentric concepts of “progress,” “civilization” and “modernity.”

This will allow the students to see “Europe” with much more historical accuracy and conceptual nuance, and create space for understanding non-European exchanges and conflicts in their own local terms.

—Gabe Sanchez, History Department

—Susannah Terrell, Class V

FALL 2020 29

ANTIRACISM

As part of our equity audit of Brearley we invited Upper School parents to sign up for interviews and focus groups. Happily, and we’ll admit surprising to us, there was a much larger response than we anticipated. The level of parent investment and enthusiasm to participate is a fantastic sign and quite unique—we have not seen this level of investment in other schools we have partnered with, which says many special things about the Brearley community.—Dr. Jacobs and Dr. Clonan-Roy, EnGenderED Research Collaborative

Parents To confront systemic racism at Brearley and address the harm that has been caused to Black students and alumnae, the School has pledged to mandate antiracist, anti-bias training for every constituency. This is a community-wide effort, for as Dr. Huelett, Director of Equity and Community Engagement, says, “Undoing this set of beliefs, behaviors, practices and policies is everyone’s work.”

As part of this commitment, at least one parent or guardian from each student’s household is required to participate in mandatory antiracism and anti-bias, or ABAR, training this year. Brearley enlisted Pollyanna Inc. to facilitate these sessions, which began for parents in mid-October. Among the goals of the instruction are to offer an opportunity for families to reflect on their own beliefs and practices and the messages these beliefs and practices send to their children; to provide insight for parents about their children’s identities, behaviors, socialization and learning; and to supply parents with concrete tools to reduce instances of identity-based harm from student to student and, ultimately, to support the School in its mission to become an antiracist institution. “We want, and need, families to be our partners as we identify and combat racism when it manifests itself in the community,” continues Dr. Huelett.

“Undoing this set of beliefs, behaviors, practices and policies is everyone’s work.”

30 FALL 2020

As a parent I am deeply invested in our getting this right.

—Rebecca Haile, P’20, P’29, Co-Chair, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee of the Board of Trustees

In addition to hosting constituency-wide ABAR training, the School is undergoing an 18-month independent equity audit to glean a deeper understanding of the lived experiences of each community group that constitutes Brearley, for which it has retained EnGenderED Research Collaborative. Co-founders Dr. Jacobs and Dr. Clonan-Roy apply a qualitative and inquiry-oriented lens to analyze all facets of a school ecosystem to identify racial inequities and biases and to make recommendations on how to upend systemic racism. In focus groups structured by racial/ethnic identities, Dr. Jacobs and Dr. Clonan-Roy have begun meeting with parents by division, with the other constituency groups to follow.

While using consultants has been common practice at Brearley, for this essential work the consultants throughout the School are taking an evidence-based approach. “In the past, we had invested heavily in learning and understanding. Now, we must prioritize effecting tangible change, asking ourselves, ‘How does this impact our practice in measurable ways?’” Dr. Huelett explains. “Tell us what you can accomplish. Show us how you can leave our school in a better place than we found it. Finally, while these changes have been a long time coming, they have crystallized in this moment and there is no going back.”

“We want, and need, families to be our partners as we identify and combat racism when it manifests itself in the community.”

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ANTIRACISM

Alumnae The Alumnae Board met many times over the summer to discuss feedback from individual alumnae, classes, BlackatBrearley representatives, the Miller Society and Brearley administrators. In August the Board hosted two town halls featuring Head of School Jane Fried, Board of Trustees President Christine Alfaro ‘91, the Trustee co-chairs of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee, and Director of Equity and Community Engagement Tanya Huelett. These forums enabled alumnae to hear from the administration and board members and to ask questions about antiracism steps being taken at Brearley.

Last month, the Alumnae Board ratified and shared its Antiracism Priorities, its own action plan to address anti-Black racism and to foster a truly inclusive, multicultural community for all alumnae. Among its objectives and goals are supporting alumnae of color and those who have been “othered”; maintaining transparency, representation and antiracism protocols by the Alumnae Board itself; reevaluating Alumnae Board structures and focus to seat more alumnae of color and diverse backgrounds; providing DEI training for current Alumnae Board members and exploring ways to expand to the wider alumnae community; ensuring that all affinity organizations like the Miller Society and Queerly Brearley have the Alumnae Board’s partnership and support; and representing the Alumnae Board on the Antiracism DEI Committee.

Amina Elderfield ‘94, President of the Alumnae Association, says the intention of developing an action plan, which will remain a living document, was furthered by “this pivotal moment for Brearley and for the world, which gives us the chance to ask ourselves some hard questions and challenge our own conventions with the hope of repairing, restoring and forging new ground through sustained change.”

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Town Hall Q&A Highlights Q. Why are the Board of Trustees’ Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee and its Antiracist Advisory Groups so important at this time?

A. The purpose of the DEI committee is to support and expand Brearley’s existing and new work in diversity, equity and inclusion so that all community members can learn and thrive. The DEI Committee must ensure and sustain its commitment, support, accountability and inclusivity in this work. We start with ourselves in modeling antiracism and being at the forefront of community antiracist training and ensuring that board-decided policies, procedures, and systems are also reviewed through an equity lens. We are putting antiracist advisory groups in place to broaden the communications channels at Brearley and to help to actively monitor the School’s progress in its antiracist work, provide feedback on proposed policies and proposals, identify issues and propose solutions where gaps may exist, and serve as the voice and liaison for their broader constituency group.

Q. By definition, Brearley teaches its students to be critical thinkers. Is there a conflict with that philosophy and requiring mandated antiracist training for its community?

A. We believe strongly in grounding our education in truth, morals and ethics, which is why we make it very clear that our community’s values are rooted in respect for others.

GO TO WWW.BREARLEY.ORG/TOWNHALL TO HEAR THE FULL SESSION

We are operating with renewed urgency. Every single day that a student experiences identity-based harm is a day too much.

—Tanya Huelett, Director of Equity and Community Engagement Our goal is to set up infrastructure so that we can support the administration in dismantling systemic racism and other biases at Brearley.

—Paula Campbell Roberts ’94, Co-Chair, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee of the Board of Trustees “If we’re going to be a vibrant, productive and supportive community, all of our voices must be heard, acknowledged and valued.”

—Amina Elderfield ‘94, President of the Alumnae Association Our Board of Trustees is 100 percent committed to this work, and we will not put it down.

—Christine Alfaro ‘91, President of the Board of Trustees We are taking the long view; we want to improve the School for our students who are here now and for all the students who will follow.

—Jane Foley Fried, Head of School

FALL 2020 33

ANTIRACISM

Students Student leadership at Brearley was exemplified last spring by the work of Umoja, the School’s affinity group for Black students. Over the summer students volunteered to serve in an advisory role for Ms. Fried and Dr. Huelett. During that time, students also founded a new Brearley publication, Panoramic, as a vehicle to “educate, empower and embody Brearley’s values of diversity, equity and inclusion,” which they launched in September. Concurrently, another Brearley student founded Black Students Demanding Change (@bsdc), a coalition dedicated to making schools in New York and across the country racially equitable and inclusive.

Through our students’ commitment and activism, they are helping to build a better Brearley.

MAYA WHITES ’21

34 FALL 2020

AVERY SHOATES ’21

JOSÉPHINE HELM ’22

Maya Whites ’21, Co-Head of Umoja What are some of the objectives of Umoja? Have they changed in the past year given Brearley’s recent and ongoing efforts in becoming an antiracist school?

In the past, some of UMOJA’s objectives have been increasing knowledge about Black history throughout the Brearley community, advocating against anti-Black racism, and creating space for non-Black students to learn how to be better allies to the Black community. A courageous group, members can often be found piping up about their experiences and refusing to go unheard.

Though UMOJA is maintaining these objectives and many more, Brearley’s recent antiracism work has allowed it to shift to a more introspective approach when planning the agenda for this year. With Brearley having put more structures in place for antiracism work outside of UMOJA (e.g., antiracism task forces and committees), UMOJA is moving back to its core value: family.

In other words, addressing how Brearley’s anti-Black racism has negatively affected Black students, supporting each other more, prioritizing members’ mental health and wellness, combating internalized racism and fostering a strong sense of community through group bonding.

What do you hope to leave as a legacy for Umoja and the School?

I want to leave a legacy of showing up for what I believe in. I’ve been in UMOJA since my freshman year and am so grateful for the UMOJA alumnae in classes 2018, 2019 and 2020 who showed me I should always take initiative and fight for what matters to me. Thanks to that alumnae cohort, Brearley now has the Brearley Diversity Student Leadership Council, the Big Sister/Little Sister Program, Belonging at Brearley Day, the UMOJA Festival and so much more. Initiatives that I’ve started in my time here only scratch the surface for what I know future students will do.

If you’re a Brearley student reading this: Know your voice matters. Your needs matter. Don’t hesitate to advocate for initiatives that will make Brearley a better place for you and your peers and call out issues when you see them. Whenever you get discouraged about how long a journey Brearley has to go, think of the hard work of alumnae like myself and others and realize how far our school has come.

Your leadership of Umoja was one of the catalysts for Brearley’s antiracism work, which led to your serving in a student advisory group for Ms. Fried and Dr. Huelett.

What did this summer role entail? Will you continue in this position throughout the year?

As the leader of the student advisory board I arranged the meeting time for the group and we met once a week throughout the summer. Student members of the advisory board had no assignments; their only task was to be present and offer their opinions on different aspects of antiracism efforts. I did a lot more listening than I usually do, which was a very valuable experience for me. Behind the scenes, I was in contact with Ms. Fried about proposed meeting topics, sharing student feedback on how the summer was going, and constantly thinking about how we could make the space as productive as possible. Sometimes, administrators or board trustees joined our meetings.

The summer student advisory committee model was so successful that our group is continuing to meet throughout this year once a cycle, of which I am remaining leader.

You coined Building a Better Brearley—how did you come up with that?

I was inspired by 590, Brearley’s new school building. After its construction, our school community had to adjust to the changes of being on a campus. And we are continuously making adjustments to the ways 590 is used. Its existence has allowed Brearley to reimagine schooling in a Covid-19 safe way that I never would’ve thought possible. I believe this is a metaphor for the work Brearley is doing in creating an antiracism Action Step Plan. The plan is very flexible and not at all finite. And so, the plan is “built,” but the journey has only just begun. And the construction never stops. The summer student advisory board has already discovered holes in the antiracism action plan that we and the administration are working to fix. It is constantly being improved upon, which it has to be in order to account for the diverse expanse that is the Brearley community. I am excited to be a part of building positive change, and even more excited to see the lengths to which this plan is taken after I am gone.

The plan is “built,” but the journey has only just begun.

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ANTIRACISM

Avery Shoates ’21 and Maya Whites ’21, Co-Founders and Co-Editors of Panoramic Panoramic has been a work in progress. When did you first come up with the idea?

We came up with the idea in ninth grade. We were looking for ways to contribute to the community because we felt the community lacked something, a void that needed to be filled. We thought Brearley gave a disproportionate share of attention to students’ athletic and academic accomplishments while neglecting other aspects of students’ lives and ways they add to the Brearley community. We worked on crafting a proposal for something new and creative and refreshing that would reflect everything we thought Brearley was missing.

Why do you think there is a need for another student publication at Brearley? How is this one different from the other ones that exist?

Although existing student publications sometimes include articles surrounding Brearley’s diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, before Panoramic there was not a student publication exclusively dedicated to this work. Brearley students start new clubs and CIOs every year, yet a new student publication had not been created in decades.

Panoramic is different because it is solely about the student perspective and it intentionally embraces the intersectionality of all identities that exist within “One Brearley.” Because of the online format students can submit an incredible range of artistic mediums, expanding the publication’s reach. However, we plan to print a few hard copies by request.

Do you see a long-term future for Panoramic? How do you ensure that as you are both graduating this year?

Panoramic is meant to amplify the student voice, a key to the authenticity of the publication. So, even if the focus of the student body shifts and Panoramic’s content shifts to themes the staff decides on, by maintaining the original mission it should have a long-term future.

How often are you going to publish Panoramic and how can community members access it?

We hope to release Panoramic four times in the school year, once per academic trimester and one summer issue.

Will you be expanding the staff?

Yes! Currently, our staff members are ourselves and our art director, Shae Campbell ‘21. Because we are all seniors, it is extremely important that we find successors to our positions for next year. We are also looking for staff contributors who will submit to Panoramic on a consistent basis.

By expanding the staff and leaving Panoramic in the hands of students who we know care about it and its mission, we can ensure that Panoramic will continue to grow. We are so excited to see what the students after us do.

How did you come up with the name?

We wanted a word that was expansive and all-encompassing, embodying all of the values we wanted our publication to reflect. Panoramic—defined by Google Dictionary as including all aspects of a subject; wide-ranging—struck us as the perfect name.

Panoramic’s mission is to be a creative magazine that educates, empowers, and embodies Brearley’s values of diversity, equity, and inclusion as well as cultivates a closer-knit school community.

ABOUT THE COVER

People of My Life, by Ines Im ‘21, appears in the debut issue of Panoramic.

36 FALL 2020

Joséphine Helm ’22, Founder and Executive Director of Black Students Demanding Change What prompted you to found BSDC? The creation of BSDC organization was born out of an intense moment of anti-Black racism in our nation and schools: both the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and too many others AND the resurfacing of the many painful experiences of Black students through @blackat accounts that popped up across the nation. After connecting with Black students at independent schools across the city in a group chat, I began to see that the need for antiracist reform was not unique to any one school. I called together a group of students from schools across the city, and the rest is history.

What is your role as Executive Director?

As Executive Director, I manage the New York chapter by leading meetings and organizing our initiatives and run the national team by connecting with chapter leaders across the nation.

What are the immediate goals of BSDC? Our immediate goals include launching five new chapters across the nation, recruiting new schools, and connecting with the coalitions our schools are part of, like NYSAIS, to spread the word and establish partnership with educational leaders.

And long-term goals?

Our long-term goal is to establish a new standard of antiracist culture in independent schools across the country.

Is it hard managing an organization of this magnitude on top of your schoolwork and other responsibilities?

Short answer: Yes. But both being a student at Brearley and running BSDC bring me incredible joy and fulfillment. The timing of the organization’s founding has been helpful. We started at the end of the 2019–2020 school year and worked to establish ourselves over the summer, so continuing into the fall is just about maintaining the momentum we’ve generated and staying on top of our other responsibilities.

What kind of feedback have you received since launching BSDC? Overall feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. We’ve recruited 13 partner schools, which have committed to implementing our demands (including Brearley), we’ve hosted a virtual conference with nearly 200 attendees, and we’ve made connections with students and educators across the country.

BSDC has recently gone national. What does this mean exactly? Will each @BSDC correlate with its geographic region (for example, @BSDCSF for San Francisco)?

BSDC NY was founded to serve New York–area schools, but we’ve recently launched DMV (DC, Maryland and Virginia) and California chapters. BSDC Northwest and BSDC New England are also in the works. We work closely with student leaders across the country to implement our action plan in schools across the nation. And yes, each @BSDC will correlate with the state/region it represents.

Is there a need to increase your staff?

While we have no official staff and are all student volunteers, expanding across the nation requires us to recruit students across the country to speak with. We achieve all this via word of mouth and social media.

You, Ms. Fried and Dr. Huelett are planning on speaking at a conference later in the school year. Can you tell us about it?

We will be presenting at the National Conference of Girls’ Schools to administrators at independent schools across the country about BSDC’s work. Ms. Fried and Dr. Huelett will speak about the importance of antiracist work in schools and the process of working with BSDC.

FALL 2020 37

COVID-19

BREARLEY IN THE TIME OF

C VID 38 FALL 2020

Thanks to the indefatigable efforts of Brearley’s Covid-19 task force, an interdisciplinary group of medical professionals, trustees and administrators, which worked along with faculty and staff throughout the summer to prepare for in-person learning, 610 and 590’s doors opened in September. To allow every class ample time to adjust to the new procedures and gather together safely, online orientation was followed by a gradual phasing in of in-person students. Daily start times have been staggered to reduce crowds during morning arrival.

To date, more than 85 percent of students are attending school in-person, with the remainder having elected remote learning. To facilitate blended learning, all classrooms have been outfitted with technology so that teachers can move back and forth between in-person and remote teaching and maximize student engagement.

While the rhythm of day-to-day life at Brearley may be different from ever before, it has neither dampened spirits nor diminished the joyful and purposeful learning that is a hallmark of the School. Students are settling in and adjusting to this “new normal,” and, whether physically or via screen, forging and strengthening connections with peers and teachers.

As the year progresses, faculty, the facilities team, the food service crew and staff continue to demonstrate their unflagging commitment to keeping the School running safely, for which the community is profoundly grateful. Behind the scenes they work diligently to make the unfamiliar familiar to Brearley students.

The following pages feature many of the daily protocols and guidelines in place; to read Brearley’s full reopening plan, please go to https://www.brearley.org/reopening-plan.

FALL 2020 39

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TOGETHER 6 FT APART 1. Prior to departing for school every student or parent fills out the daily Medbot app. Faculty and staff must fill out the app as well in order to be permitted into the building. Upon arrival each student gets her temperature checked by a school nurse.

2. Portable, no-touch sinks are placed outside 590 and 610 each morning for handwashing before entering the building. Sanitizing dispensers are in the lobbies at all times.

3. Elevators are restricted to only two people at a time.

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4. To help maintain social distancing while walking, Lower School students hold ribbons with red rings placed six feet apart.

5. Desks are placed six feet apart, and larger classes split into two rooms. New technology connects teacher to students in both classrooms as well as to remote learners.

6. Stairwells are one-way only.

7. Middle and Upper Schoolers eat outside. The School has provided fold-up chairs to the students for this purpose. In bad weather they eat indoors, socially distanced.

8. Lower Schoolers use pop-up dividers on their desks so they can take off their masks and eat lunch safely.

9. Bathrooms are limited to three people at a time; to keep track, students place a magnet outside the door. Once three magnets are on the board, a student waits outside until her turn.

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REMEMBER

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MASK REQUIRES D

TO WASH YOUR HANDS

10. Rather than walking between schoolhouses and having classes on various floors, each grade has its classes on a designated floor with students divided into cohorts.

11. Custom-made stickers have been affixed to steps to remind people of the six-feet-apart rule.

12. To help with social distancing, when dismissed from a class students must walk in a carousel around the perimeter of the hallway. If the classroom they are headed to is still occupied they must continue on the carousel until it has been vacated.

13. The play deck at 590 has been covered for outdoor classes and play.

Thank Y FOR YOou COOPERAUR TION

14. Classroom screens show both remote students and students in the annex rooms.

15. Handwashing and mask-wearing signs are posted on every floor.

Along with these and other mitigation measures, Brearley has begun offering Covid-19 tests to faculty and staff on a routine basis and periodic pooled testing for students. To fully support student mental and physical health, faculty received instruction over the summer on incorporating emotionally responsive practices into their teaching, and the School has hired both another school counselor and nurse.

FALL 2020 41

COVID COVID-19

DESSERT INSIDE BREARLEY’S KITCHEN WITH DIRECTOR OF FOOD SERVICES MARSHA GOMEZ SINCE THE CAFETERIAS IN 610 AND 590 ARE CLOSED TO STUDENTS, HOW ARE MEALS ORDERED AND DISTRIBUTED?

MG: In-person students, teachers and staff members order their meals online at least a week in advance. The kitchen takes into account any dietary restrictions. We still make 98 percent of the food ourselves, which is prepped in the 610 kitchen, as we have always done. The day before, we lay all of the to-go boxes out on tables and put in them as many dry items as we can to prepare for the following day. We serve about 530 boxes at 610, and about 250 boxes in 590.

Delivery is a process. Weather permitting, we have five different drop-off locations. Class V eats on the pier, Class VI and VII at the basketball courts at Carl Schurz, Class VIII at the fieldhouse, Class IX on the pier right after Class V leaves, Class X and XI at Asphalt Green, and Class XII has a table on the sidewalk in front of 610. Lower Schoolers eat in their classroom pods.

HOW IS THE KITCHEN STAFF PRACTICING FOOD SAFETY DURING THE PANDEMIC?

MG: We all wear masks in addition to gloves, which we’ve always worn. Honestly, the only difference between now and pre-Covid is that we wear masks. Everything that we’ve been asked to do, we practiced already. We constantly wash our hands and our workstations. On top of that, we put a sanitizing solution in the water to clean everything. We are as safe as we possibly can be.

WHAT ADJUSTMENTS HAVE YOU MADE TO THE MENU?

MG: My team has a monthly meeting to choose the menus. We discuss what can and can’t work.

For example, we can’t serve things that are too wet or it’ll buckle the boxes. Picking out the menu is the easy part and is when we have the most fun because we can be creative. It’s the logistics that are challenging. We’ve chosen to put dessert in the boxes. I came to the conclusion, “Just give them dessert! Make them happy.”

ANY MUENSTER BAGELS IN THE FUTURE?

MG: Unfortunately, anything that has to be served hot, we can’t do. It could be a possibility down the road, but for now, no Muenster bagels.

42 FALL 2020

ATHLETICS AND P.E. ARE WORKING OUT

When the Athletic Association of Independent Schools (AAIS) officially canceled the traditional fall season in July, Director of Athletics Danielle King and her fellow coaches were ready, swiftly switching gears to creating a safe hybrid program for Brearley’s Middle and Upper School student-athletes.

“All of the coaches came together to figure out how our teams could still play sports, out of which our fall recreational program was born,” Ms. King says. “The teams that normally would be competing against peer schools instead meet in cohort groups and participate in traditional fall sports and nontraditional activities like skill building, team building and conditioning. We rotate in-person and virtual instruction and utilize locations around the Upper East Side including the pier, the promenade, Carl Schurz Park, Asphalt Green, Central Park and Brearley’s fieldhouse.”

With, of course, masks. Let’s face it, working out in a mask is not easy, but ensuring players’ safety is a priority, and in anticipation of changes to the fall season Ms. King and her team spent time last spring and over the summer testing masks. Each athlete has been supplied with a workout-specific mask, specially designed for deep breathing and sweat. “We’ve had to reinvent pretty much everything we’ve done,” Ms. King continues.

For students choosing not to take part in our adapted athletics program this fall, physical education class is vital for their health and wellness. It too has undergone changes made necessary by the pandemic. The core values of the Lower School have been incorporated into the creative redesign of teaching foundational movement skills to K–IV students. The upper grades are participating in a new Wellness curriculum that has shifted from hands-on activities. “We’re focusing more intently on overall wellness, getting fit and exposing the students to tools they can use during this time and for life,” Sue Seufert, P.E. Department Head, explains. “We put an emphasis on taking care of the mind, body and spirit through physical wellness, mindfulness and meditation, and we’re also discussing good eating and sleeping habits.”

Athletics and P.E. continue to modify and adjust their programs to best serve the students. As Ms. King notes, “All of our coaches, all of our students in athletics are competitors. To go from a competitive mindset to a recreational mindset was tough, but overall we’ve received a lot of positive feedback.” To which Ms. Seufert adds, “It’s amazing to see all the teachers working together and getting so creative around our content and accepting and adjusting wherever necessary. Teamwork makes the dream work!”

FALL 2020 43

COVID-19

KEEPING THE COMMUNITY DISINFECTED AND ENGAGED Hired to help Brearley adhere to Covid-19 health and safety protocols, school assistants are situated throughout 610 and 590. Always with an abundance of disinfectant, they spray desks between classes that the students then wipe down. They also provide support however else is needed: supervising classrooms and annex rooms, checking that technology is working, monitoring hallways and ensuring the orderly running of the carousels, assisting with lunch, making sure bathrooms do not exceed capacity, taking students to the nurse’s office, preparing class materials and numerous other tasks.

Equipped with disinfectant as well, faculty and staff spray desks and take on many of these duties as floor supervisors, an extra role they are assigned approximately twice per the six-day academic cycle.

Additionally during the day, all the school buildings are cleaned and disinfected multiple times by the Facilities Department. In the evening, following a three-step protocol that aligns with CDC guidelines, the team uses CDC-approved multi-surface cleaners and disinfectants, products that have been used at Brearley for many years.

44 FALL 2020

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9 MEET OUR SCHOOL ASSISTANTS .1. Khyasia Foulks-Cruz .2. Tanner Smythson .3. Beverly Milberg ‘17 .4. Janelle Tan .5. Nancy Handelman ‘16 .6. Kymari Phillips .7. Lou Hagen ‘19 .8. Lennarsha Prescod .9. Shavella St. Preux

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.10. Michelle Echeverria .11. Ella Wickham ‘20 FALL 2020 45

COVID-19

In a school year where little is certain, we have an opportunity to lead in a way that is focused on meaningful change. We’re energetic about rethinking convention, and grateful to be a part of a student body that hasn’t let Covid-19 temper its enthusiasm.

—Drew Marriott ‘21 and Aisling Murtagh ‘21, Self-Government Co-Heads

Thank you for everything you are doing to keep the girls healthy this year and to give them as “normal” a school experience as possible. —Middle School parent

James Croswell, Brearley’s second Head of School, wrote, “The world of school is, beyond all worlds, the world of hope.” Do you know how much hope, and joy, and satisfaction you give to your teachers every day, how happy they are to be able to see you, even though they must reach you through masks, even though they must see you in this little technological box?

—Dr. Mulkin, Assistant Head of School for Academic Life

It’s a tough job teaching remotely and [our daughter’s teacher] has done an exemplary job. We are continually impressed by the way the School has responded to the recent challenges. —Lower School parent

The leadership in getting this school year underway is so unbelievable. [Our daughter] is so happy to be back at school (some normalcy in these unsettling times) as I am sure all the girls are. It’s been a joy to watch Brearley do it all—how you have revamped the school, implemented rigid Covid protocols while still managing to keep [it] a warm, nurturing, academically rigorous place. —Middle School parent

The entire School should be extremely proud. The remote pod is running like no other pod we have heard of at any other school.

—Lower School parent

I thank Brearley for creating an environment where kids can feel comfortable and safe while they learn, even in these difficult circumstances. —Upper School parent

Please keep the schoolhouse open as long as possible!

—Middle School parent 46 FALL 2020

Congratulations on all the work involved in the “reopening” of school. —Upper School parent

We struggled with the decision to send our children back into their school buildings. We were fortunate to have that choice.

There is even a comprehensive remote learning plan in place.

Thank you for taking the time to create an environment where the children can continue with the rigorous level of education we love while also adjusting for the current reality and incorporating opportunities for the girls to feel the warmth. —Lower School parent

Although this year is much different from what we initially expected, we are thrilled with and grateful for the enthusiasm and support of faculty and students thus far in our athletic endeavors. Most recently we worked to organize an adapted Homecoming which, while challenging at first, ended up going really well and serving as a great celebratory end to the fall season. We are looking forward to the rest of the year and enacting all the ideas we have in store! —Alyssa An ‘21 and Francesca Edmands ’21, Athletic Association Co-Heads

As founder and co-head of FRESH (Food’s Relationship to Economics, Society, and History) CIO (which stands for Common Interest Organization and is what a student-proposed organization is known as in its first two years), I have hosted the first speaker for my club which was a big success. Brearley alum and ice cream entrepreneur Hallie Meyer ‘11 spoke virtually to the club, and the remote platform that all clubs this year are taking (regardless of whether the co-heads are doing in person or remote school) has offered some positives: For instance, Hallie was able to show us where the ice cream is made at her store Caffé Panna, which she wouldn’t have been able to do if she came in person to speak at an assembly. —Grace Davis ’22, remote learner

Brearley has managed to pull off the impossible, continuing not only with daily in-person classes but also with clubs and other fun activities during this unprecedented time. —Upper School parent

We are so impressed with the School; the team has been doing an amazing job to keep students engaged and safe all the way since March! —Middle School parent Thank you for all of your efforts and dedication in making [school] happen! —Upper School parent

A Tax-Smart Way to Give: Donate Appreciated Securities

DID YOU KNOW BREARLEY ACCEPTS GIFTS OF PUBLICLY TRADED STOCK? This year, consider giving your annual donation to Brearley by transferring appreciated securities to support the School.

When you make your gift of securities held for more than one year, you receive a charitable tax deduction for the full fair market value of the stock and you avoid capital gains taxes. Brearley receives the current value of the securities as your gift.

For more information or to arrange a donation of securities, please contact Phoebe Geer ’97, Associate Director of Development, at (212) 570-8609 or pgeer@brearley.org.

FALL 2020 47

ALUMNAE, SHARE YOUR UPDATES! DO WE HAVE...

YOUR ADDRESS

YOUR EMAIL

YOUR PROFESSION

COMPLETE

CONTACT

SEND INFO TO

OUR ELECTRONIC FORM

DARYL GURIAN STERN

ALUMNAE RELATIONS

(WWW.BREARLEY.ORG/ PAGE ALUMNAE/

UPDATE-YOUR-PROFILE)

76 FALL 2020

DIRECTOR OR EVENTS & ALUMNAE RELATIONS

DSTERN@BREARLEY.ORG (212) 570-8516

THE BREARLEY SCHOOL 610 EAST 83RD STREET NEW YORK, NY 10028

2020–2021 ALUMNAE ASSOCIATION BOARD OFFICERS PRESIDENT Amina Elderfield ‘94 VICE PRESIDENT Dena Twain Sims ’00 SECRETARY Megan Lui ‘10

MEMBERS TO SERVE UNTIL 2021 Elaine Bennett ’77,

Britt Caputo Bunn ’04, Claire Gilman ’89, Colette Macari ’13, Dena Twain Sims ’00, Julia Speed ’07, Karen Young ’88 TO SERVE UNTIL 2022 Juanita Dugdale ’70,

KEEP IN TOUCH! We love hearing from you!

LET US KNOW WHAT’S GOING ON IN YOUR LIVES BY SENDING NOTES TO YOUR NOTES AGENT. IF YOU’D LIKE TO BECOME A NOTES AGENT OR FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT ALUMNAE RELATIONS AT CLASSNOTES@BREARLEY.ORG OR (212) 570-8616.

Margot Herrera ’80, Leslie Dickey Patel ’79, Anita Ramamurthy Bopalkar ’12 TO SERVE UNTIL 2023 Leslie Armstrong ‘58,

Antonia Bryan ‘63, Amina Elderfield ‘94, Ariel Fantasia ‘96, Ruth Gais, ‘64, Katherine Gross-Compitus ‘95, Lily-Hayes Kaufman ‘99, Cheyenne Kinch ‘08, Megan Lui ‘10, Tess McCann ‘11, Jaqueline Worth ‘82

COMMITTEE CHAIRS ALUMNAE WEEKEND AND REUNION

Wilhelmina Martin Eaken ‘64, Andrea Kassar ’95 ANNUAL FUND

Katie Shutzer Brennan ‘92, Emily Marzulli Rummel ‘06 ARTS

Claire Gilman ’89, Ali Giniger ’05 FRANCES RIKER DAVIS

Mia Meeker Campbell ’06, Lucy Mayer Harrop ‘70 LOIS KAHN WALLACE

Margot Herrera ‘80 MILLER SOCIETY

Cherise Fisher ‘90 NOMINATIONS

Sidaya Moore Sherwood ’90, Dena Twain Sims ‘00 PARENTS’ ASSOCIATION

Dena Twain Sims ‘00 QUEERLY BREARLEY

Elaine Bennett ‘77, Willem Finn Harling ‘17 YOUNG ALUMNAE

Anita Ramamurthy Bopalkar ’12, Colette Macari ’13

FALL 2020 77

Eyes of

Brearley

On the river, on East 83rd Street, we will be here.

Create a legacy for Brearley.

Incubator, proving ground, home. Brearley is a singular place that is all about the girls—who they are, what they are capable of, and what they can become.

When you include Brearley in your estate plans, you join a generous group of supporters who safeguard the Brearley experience for the girls of future generations.

For sample language to use in your will or trust, and further information, please contact: Phoebe T. Geer ’97, Associate Director of Development (212) 570-8609 or pgeer@brearley.org

BULLETIN

610 East 83rd Street New York, NY 10028

THE BREARLEY BULLETIN FALL 2020

NON-PROFIT ORG U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT #129 19464

Last Day of firsts: 2020 ceremony held virtually p2

Identifying and combating racism at Brearley p24

Operating school during a pandemic p38

6 ft

Brearley in panoramic

FALL 2020

THE BREARLEY SCHOOL