BULLETIN
THE BREARLEY BULLETIN
610 East 83rd Street New York, NY 10028
THE BREARLEY SCHOOL
mens sana in corpore sano (A HEALTHY MIND IN A HEALTHY BODY)
C o n s t r u c t i n g B r e a r l e y ’s s e x u a l i t y h e a lt h e d u c a t i o n p r o g r a m FALL 2018
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FALL 2018
10/2/18 11:35 AM
How to raise a girder of teachers high into the sky (THE 2017–2018 SEXUAL HEALTH EDUCATION CREW, FROM LEFT TO RIGHT )
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.
ABOUT THE COVER mens sana in corpore sano Construction abounds at Brearley! Along with the mounting physical evidence (i.e., the ascension of a second schoolhouse across East End Avenue), much is in progress internally, like our recently launched sexuality health education curriculum, Our Whole Lives (OWL), introduced division-wide in 2017–2018. Inspired by the famous photograph “Lunch Atop a Skyscraper,” taken in 1932 during the final months before completion of the RCA Building (now known as 30 Rockefeller Plaza), our cover assembles the bold faculty and administrators who participated in OWL’s inaugural year at Brearley on a crossbeam perched near the top of 610, where the School has resided since 1929. Their guidance and commitment enabled OWL to soar, and its direction only points higher as the program continues to evolve. Block by block, resource by resource, the School’s dedication to promoting a healthy mind in a healthy body for each student further cements its position in the 21st century as a world-class institution that prepares girls of adventurous intellect to put their knowledge, confidence, and habits of mind and character to meaningful use in the world beyond.
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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 pgeer@brearley.org
10/2/18 11:35 AM
LAST DAY
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REMARKS FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL
The Importance of Listening Today we celebrate Upper School Last Day and the graduation of the Class of 2018. On behalf of the School, I thank all of you for gathering with us and for supporting these students throughout the years. They are fortunate, indeed, to have the guidance and encouragement of such dedicated teachers and staff, family members and fellow students. In keeping with my Last Day tradition, I address this letter to the graduating Class: Dear Seniors, When I sit in my office, I can hear the life of the School bubbling around me. The shrieks of joy rise from the pier and the pitter-pat of children’s steps seeps through the ceiling, reminding me always that I am not alone, I am surrounded by the people who make Brearley Brearley. There are moments when the sounds of the School interrupt my work and beckon me to learn more. Such was the event a couple of years ago, when I heard what I thought was the music of angels. I paused at my desk to listen, looked out the window, for real, in case there was some celestial being floating down the East River, and then I bent my ear to the air in search of those ethereal voices. I needn’t travel far. Reason returning, I climbed one floor to the US chorus rehearsal. They were singing “Who But I” by Daniel Brewbaker from his Irish cantata “Out of the Mist, Above the Real.” Their voices rang like bells—soft but so clear and resolute. Captivated, I slunk down the wall to sit on the floor, listening as the afternoon autumn light filled the room. To me, the sound was perfection. I felt my eyes well with tears—not of pride, but of appreciation for being present for this small but exquisite moment in the life of the School. When I considered what I might offer to you, our graduates, today, my first thoughts were of this moment and also that this is one of the final Last Day exercises that will take place in this Assembly Hall. Soon, this ceremony will be held in the beautiful new performance hall in 590. Thinking about this impending change, memories of listening to your Doughnut and Mascot assemblies, Gilbert and Sullivan, student-led Town Halls, speaking contests, Science symposia, Athletic Banquets, concerts and plays—all in this space—flooded my mind. While the classroom is the heart of the School, the Assembly Hall is the heart of the community. It is where we gather to hear each other’s voices, to celebrate, to question and to reflect. From my first visit to this school, I marveled at students’ willingness to share their knowledge, their talents, their opinions. Brearley students have a lot to say and the Class of 2018 comprises many orators! Intellectual discourse is routine at Brearley, and whether one is offering a novel idea in class, leading a heated club discussion or acting her heart out on center stage, Brearley girls relish joining and contributing to conversation. But with regard to this physical space, let’s shift the focus from performing to listening. One can make the case that this hall is literally a listening space. But we don’t talk much about the quality of the listening that goes on here. continued on next page
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LAST DAY
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There are moments when the sounds of the School beckon me to learn more.”
To my knowledge, there are no listening awards at Brearley, although the skill is essential to any academic or community endeavor. Every teacher values listening in the classroom, and every student wants to be listened to. So the act of listening isn’t undervalued at Brearley as much as it is underexplored, and it is, therefore, our capacity to listen with full and open hearts that I would like to talk with you about today. We’ve all had moments when a sound strikes an inner chord, provoking strong physical and emotional reactions. Whether we are listening to a transcendent piece of music, an impassioned speech about a favorite cause or language that offends our values or sense of self, the connection from our ears to our brain to our emotional center—for today’s purpose I’ll use the term heart—is palpable. The sound ignites an emotion that can lift or dampen our spirits, put us to sleep or inspire action. We rely on this sense every day, yet listening as an active member of a community is a complex act reliant on much more than what we hear. To begin, I think we would agree that one cannot successfully carry on a conversation without taking on board what others say. Yet we all have participated in conversations into which we enter from our various viewpoints, wrestle around a bit before retreating, like boxers, to our corners, unmoved, unchanged until the next contest. In these cases, are we listening to make our point or listening for understanding? The quality of our listening depends, I believe, on how we answer three simple but essential questions: 1. Whose voices are we hearing? 2. How do we respond to the voices we hear? 3. And finally, beyond listening to others, can we listen to ourselves? 4
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Whose voices do we hear? The poet Mary Rose O’Reilly wrote, “One can, I think, listen someone into existence, [and] encourage a stronger self to emerge…” This concept, listening someone into existence, is powerful. It conveys the responsibility we have as individuals and as members of a community to “give life” to others by listening to their voices. It’s also provocative in its reverse—we have the power to deny someone’s presence or value as a human being by not acknowledging what she says. Listening someone into existence gets right to the core of how we treat one another and who we are as members of a community. All of you have read Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God. I’d like to focus on the journey of Janie Mae Crawford to illustrate this connection between listening and acknowledging others’ existence. You may recall the passage in which Janie is summarily silenced by her husband, Mayor Starks, who not only refuses to allow her to address a public audience, believing that public speaking is inappropriate for women, but also restricts her access to the community conversations that take place on the porch of their family store. Although she tries to eavesdrop, she lives a life of isolation in her home and in the work of family business. Eatonville is a close-knit town for some but not all. Janie’s voice, representing others of her gender and race, is silenced and her ability to listen and thereby be a full member of society is censored. We can think of Hurston’s narrative of the Jim Crow south as a bygone era and assume we live in a different time, or, we can reflect upon Janie’s experience to recognize the power each of us possesses to include or exclude the voices and hence full participation of others in society. Whom do we invite to sit on our porch? This question is pertinent for today’s assembly because, despite the fact that colleges have worked diligently for many years to create intentionally diverse communities, many areas of campus life remain segregated by gender, race, socioeconomic status, nationality and, in our current divisive climate, political perspective. Seniors, as you shift your attention from life at Brearley to life as a college student, I encourage you to fight against this norm, and I underscore the importance of thinking about this before you go to college. You will be amazed at how quickly social groups form during the first few weeks on campus and how easy it will be for you, who may be a little at sea in a new environment, to find comfort with those who have attended schools like Brearley or who share your interests, which may, by extension, be more closely connected than you realize by having attended Brearley. As you watch the social waters run through campus, picking up and dropping students in groups along the bank, it may feel natural to go with the flow and be swept away too. But I urge you to be the student who reaches out to gather a group of porch sitters, above the banks, in your dorm, study groups and extracurriculars who represent the full and beautiful diversity of the community. This is not only the act of a good citizen; it will deepen your learning and sense of belonging. It’s good for you, and it’s good for others. How do you respond to the voices you hear? Let’s suppose you are listening very carefully today and act on my advice. Your metaphorical porch is now brimming with interesting voices sharing multiple perspectives, including those different from or in conflict with your own. To build a sense of community, you will have to navigate those differences in a way that draws people together rather than pushes them away. Ugh, the work of it all! It would be so much simpler to gather
with your Brearley friends and play a game of Jane Austen Trivia! “One can, I think, listen someone into existence, [and] encourage a stronger self to emerge.” When I first read O’Reilly’s words, I thought yes, of course, by listening to the other person, one acknowledges her viewpoint and perspective, thereby enhancing her sense of self. But upon further reflection, I wonder if the stronger self may also refer to our own sense of self? Do we deepen our understanding of our beliefs by isolating ourselves from divergent viewpoints or testing them against alternative perspectives? Do we develop a deeper understanding of ourselves by interacting with like individuals or those who may ask us to explain our logic or reason? Do we have the capacity to listen into existence someone whose beliefs are different from our own? Recently I heard a Brearley student ask a visiting speaker where the line between a difference of opinion and a judgment of morality exists. She shared that students at Brearley do a good job of listening to each other up to a point. She was troubled that voices that stray from the mainstream may be judged too quickly as immoral. If what this young woman says is true, and my job as head of school is to listen to every member of the community and recognize an element of truth in every voice, I committed in that moment to speaking to you and, in fact, all members of the community about extending our capacity to listen with not only an open but a courageous heart. It takes strength to fight against the norm of exclusion and to work to understand perspectives different from our own. Seniors, knowing the insight and fortitude you bring to every discussion, I can’t think of better-prepared young people to respond to this challenge. Big dreamers, you possess the ambition and stick-to-ittiveness necessary for initiating, sustaining and changing the content and tone of the dialogue. You care about each other, your fellow students and neighbors. You have made your mark at Brearley: You’ve formed new mentorship programs, organized protests and created service learning partnerships with schools and organizations. These are attributes of who you are as individuals and as a class, so don’t shrink away from dif-
ficult conversations and resist the tendency to “go small” when feeling insecure in a new place. If you feel yourself being pulled by the tide of conformity and comfort, swim hard in the opposite direction and pull diverse voices onto your porch. The broader your circle of listening, the more ability you have to enact change. As changemakers, you can create authentically inclusive communities. Finally, we arrive at the importance of learning to listen to oneself. As talented young women, you will encounter many people who offer advice and direct you toward a particular path. (I am one of those people.) As it is easy to default to the familiar when you join a new community, it can also be tempting to follow the advice of others without testing your own sense of direction. At the end of Their Eyes Were Watching God, after Janie finishes telling her story to her friend Phoeby, Phoeby expresses disappointment in her own life, that it is nowhere near as satisfying as Janie’s has been. Janie’s response is that you have to find out about living for yourself, by yourself. No one else can tell you or show you. At this moment, you may not have a clear course other than graduating today and beginning college or taking a gap year in the fall—the path ahead is hard to imagine. That’s fine! Just make sure to take yourself along for the journey. Keep your internal conversation going about what makes you happy; what is important to you; what gives you a sense of fulfillment. This kind of listening allows you to take ownership of your life and in it you will discover another use for your Brearley education. Undaunted by challenge, confident in your ability to think critically and form an independent opinion, you will be as successful turning these skills inward to discover your sense of purpose in life as you have been demonstrating them to all of us in the classroom, on the field and even, perhaps, on this very stage, in this special space. Gather your porch sitters, Respond to their voices, Listen to yourself. We believe in you. The world needs you. Godspeed! Your devoted Head of School FALL 2018
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610 NEWS & EVENTS
JUNE TRAVEL/STUDY PROGRAMS FOLLOWING LAST DAY, UPPER SCHOOL STUDENTS HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO EMBARK ON BREARLEY TRAVEL/STUDY PROGRAMS. THE TRIPS RUN ON A ROTATING BASIS, TO VERMONT, INDIA, CHINA OR ALABAMA. THIS JUNE STUDENTS WENT TO CHINA AND, FOR THE FIRST TIME, TO ALABAMA.
Alabama: Understanding Civil Rights Past and Present
China
This program was created to support students’ desire to deepen both their cultural competence and ability to listen to and learn from diverse perspectives through, among other ways, partnership with a peer school.
Focusing on issues of economic and cultural development, students also study Mandarin and Chinese culture, work with underserved children and do a homestay with families in Shaxi in the Yunnan Province.
The trip was transformative. Filled with intellectual learning—museum visits, videos, walks around cities—and emotional learning, which was woven through these experiences and included racial autobiographies, talks with community leaders, and group and individual reflections and discussions, allowed for a deep understanding of the material we encountered. I formed close relationships with both the Brearley group and the Indian Springs School participants. The most moving element to me were the racial autobiographies—we wrote about and shared our experiences with race and racism and their effect on us today. I learned how to speak about my own experiences and emotions, despite discomfort. I also learned how to listen to others. Though I came away more distraught about the history of race and race in the present day in our country, I also came away more motivated to do something—and with a clearer idea of how to do so.
In Nanxun Water Town, we had the pleasure of painting fans surrounded by the tranquility of the town. We made a stop in Suzhou and learned about the local traditional musical performance called pingtan. We also visited several museums and met many locals. On the first day in Shanghai, we went up to the top of the famous landmark Oriental Pearl Tower, 1148 feet to be exact, and admired the entire city from the observatory deck. We also studied the history of old neighborhood structures called nongtang by interviewing the community leaders. One of the highlights was being introduced to smart technology at Fudan University. Our students tried firsthand every single tech gadget. This morning we had our closing ceremony where each Brearley girl reflected on her experience on this trip. All gained more knowledge than they had anticipated.
— Frances Keohane ‘20 (excerpted from Brearley News online)
—Tammy Kuo and Yue Tang, Teachers of Mandarin
R E C E N T LY P U B L I S H E D B O O K S B Y T H E B R E A R L E Y C O M M U N I T Y Please send covers of your new books to classnotes@brearley.org.
Irene Duckworth Hecht ’51 Jeanne Chenault Porter ’61
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Michele Bogart ’70
Jamie Bernstein ’70
Jeanne McCulloch ’75
Martha K. Davis ’79
Farewell and Thank You In June we bid adieu to seven members of the faculty who retired at the end of the 2017–2018 academic year. Collectively they gave 190 years of service to Brearley, and for their dedication and contributions we are deeply grateful. (Not pictured: Helaine Smith, English)
THANK YOU, loyal and generous alumnae, parents and friends
who support Brearley each year through the Annual Fund. Your gifts have a Patricia Aakre, Library
Jean Drew, Science
Thomas Harrison, History
direct impact on our
students, teachers and
every aspect of the day-today running of the School. The 2017–2018 Annual Sirkka McMenamin, Physical Education Tish Webster, Art
Richard White, Science
Fund raised over $3.7
million. We are deeply
BREARLEY ALUMNAE
FOR ACTION
Brearley Alumnae for Action was co-founded by Lauren Goldenberg ’04 and Terri Seligman ’78 in the wake of the first Women’s March in January 2017, for which they organized 600 alumnae to march together in Washington, DC, and in New York. Since founding BAA, we have continued to organize
alumnae groups at End Family Separation, March for Science, March For Our Lives and other marches. We also organized a voter registration event with the League of Women Voters and a Reproductive Justice Lunch at Terri’s home, where Brearley alumna and parent Lisa Frelinghuysen ’84 spoke. A Planned Parenthood board member, Lisa discussed Planned Parenthood’s history and the services it provides, as well as what we can do to support reproductive justice. BAA provides wonderful opportunities for alumnae to be active in social justice issues with each other, and to rally, with students, around shared causes. Please contact Terri (tseligman@fkks.com)
grateful for the loyalty and commitment of all of our donors.
Every gift—no matter the size—genuinely makes a difference for today’s students and faculty,
and we thank you for
continuing this strong tradition of support.
or me (goldenberg.lauren@gmail.com) if you are interested in learning more about BAA. —Lauren Goldenberg ‘04
Susanna Leonard Hill ’83
Susanna Leonard Hill ’83
Jennifer Petty Hilger ’86
Lindsay Stern ’09
ANNUAL FUND 2017–2018
Tom March, Faculty
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610 NEWS & EVENTS
More Acclaim FOR THE BREARLEY BULLETIN
WHAT’S ON YOUR DESK? JANE FOLEY FRIED, HEAD OF SCHOOL
1. Gumby: Reminds me that as Head of School I have to be flexible. 2. St. Bernard: Originally bred for rescue in the Alps, this working dog symbolizes the care of the community entrusted to me. 3. Knight in Shining Armor: At times I have to be the community’s protector. 4. Fairy Godmother: Happily, at times I get to make students’ dreams come true!
For the second consecutive year, the Bulletin received national honor, picking up awards from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) and the University & College Designers Association (UCDA) for its cover story on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Winter 2017 issue, Brearley in formation. Brearley was the only non-higher education institution to be selected for either award category.
CASE: Silver Circle of Excellence Award for Individual CALL FOR NOMINATIONS
Frances Riker Davis 1915 Award Nominations are now being accepted for the 2019 Frances Riker Davis Award. The award, established in 1966, honors alumnae in a wide array of professions for extraordinary service to their communities either as professionals or volunteers. Historically, the award has gone to an alumna who has responded to needs in her community at many different levels, including a hands-on approach. If you know of an alumna who has devoted herself to community/ public service and whose efforts have made a significant impact on the lives of others, please submit her name and your reason for nominating her by October 15, 2018, to Daryl Gurian Stern, Director of Events and Alumnae Relations, at dstern@brearley.org.
Photography Among the judges’ comments: “A really well-done group portrait, very nicely shot for a wrapping cover. We loved the nod to Beyoncé, and the styling, lighting, and art direction were all excellent.”
UCDA: Award of Excellence, Alumni Publication This design competition “recognizes the best of the exceptional design work done by communication professionals to promote educational institutions and supports the exchange of ideas and information relating to the unique role of these designers.”
F A C U LT Y A N D S TA F F ’ S S U M M E R R E A D S
Jennifer Bartoli Design
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Carolyn Clark College Advising
Jo David Communications
Jenelle Deodath Lower School
Jane Foley Fried Head’s Office
James Mulkin Academic Life
Save the Date! ONE Amazing BREARLEY Reunion WHEN: Thursday, April 25, to Saturday, April 27, 2019 WHERE: The ONE and only BREARLEY School WHO: All alumnae WHY: Because together, we are ONE BREARLEY www.brearley.org/reunion19 Celebrating classes: 1939 • 1944 • 1949 • 1954 • 1959 • 1964 • 1969 • 1974 • 1979 • 1984 • 1989 • 1994 • 1999 • 2004 • 2009 • 2014
Send Us Your Submissions LOIS KAHN WALLACE BREARLEY WRITER’S AWARD Submissions are being accepted for the Lois Kahn Wallace Brearley Writer’s Award. The award, established in 1999 by the late Lois Kahn Wallace ’57, 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. Adult fiction and nonfiction works are eligible, as are books for children and young adults. The award is conferred approximately every two years and carries an honorarium. Please apply, or if you know someone who deserves the award, encourage her to apply. Please submit four copies of the work of your choice by October 1, 2018, to Daryl Gurian Stern, Director of Events and Alumnae Relations, The Brearley School, 610 East 83rd Street, New York, NY 10028. If you have any questions, contact Daryl at (212) 570-8516 or dstern@brearley.org.
CALLING ALL BREARLEY AUTHORS Alumnae, faculty, current
parents or students: If you
have published a book in the past 12 months or will do so before October 15, please contact Carolyn Siegel, at cckriz@gmail.com, to be
included in the 2018 Brearley Book Festival, which will be
held on November 15 and 16. We look forward to hearing Lisa Pollack Upper School
Katherine Swett ‘78 English
Susanna Terrell English, History, Geography
Tom Wright Classics
from all of our Brearley community authors!
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MENS SANA IN CORPORE SANO (A HEALTHY MIND IN A HEALTHY BODY)
C o n s t r u c t i n g B r e a r l e y ’s s e x u a l i t y h e a lt h e d u c a t i o n p r o g r a m As a leader in girls’ education we seek to redefine the model of healthy achievement for Brearley students and girls everywhere. We want Brearley girls to enter the world confident in themselves, with a sense of purpose and compassion, belief in their own agency, a willingness to take risks and the resilience to overcome adversity. To achieve their full potential, Brearley students must understand themselves as individuals and as responsible and engaged members of a larger community, cognizant and inspired that their actions can and should have a positive impact on the world around them. —Opening Doors, Brearley’s Strategic Vision, adopted by the Board of Trustees in 2014 www.brearley.org/openingdoors
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ARTICULATING VALUES LEARNED INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM. CARING FOR THEMSELVES AND FOR OTHERS. DARING TO TEST THE UNFAMILIAR.
In its Strategic Vision the School determined that effectively communicating its
expectations and aspirations for students will enhance not only the excellence of
their education today but their future sense of success and achievement.
In the fall of 2014, based on these goals, Brearley introduced a “new” Social Emotional Learning (SEL) program into the curriculum. While attention had
always been paid to SEL, the School revamped it to focus on three unifying
themes that it believed would carry well across Lower, Middle and Upper School: citizenship, self-care and purpose.
Since SEL’s official launch, the School has continued to fine-tune and tailor the program to address the specific needs and developmental stages of each division. One such result of our broad approach has been the recognition
of gaps in how self-care is taught, particularly in the area of sexuality health education. Addressing this deficiency in the curriculum and realizing that
providing a comprehensive sexual health education for our students is
essential to ensuring their sound development and full understanding of
their bodies and how to keep them healthy and safe, the School adopted and adapted Our Whole Lives (OWL), a nationally recognized and proven curriculum, for all three divisions last year.
Following are administrator, faculty, student and parent reports and insights
about the first year of Brearley’s evolving sexuality health education program.
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JANE FOLEY FRIED
no different, addressed with the same thought, care and expectations. Further, OWL reinforces consistency by using the same language throughout, in the vocabulary as well as the process of leading and holding productive and constructive discussions.
One of my first experiences as Head of School at Brearley was meeting the juniors and seniors in seminar. As part of that conversation, we discussed their impending transition to college. What was striking to me was their eagerness to discuss and learn more about sexual health—not just anatomy and physiology, but a deep understanding of intimacy and what a healthy relationship entails. Based on these interactions, it became clear that the School needed to develop a program to respond to these needs, which aligned with our Strategic Vision to prepare each student—the whole girl— to face challenges on a college campus and the world beyond.
Another reason for a K–XII curriculum is to support our teachers and parents. I had heard from Lower and Middle School faculty, administrators and parents who felt unprepared to respond to students’ questions about sexual health. Students were approaching their teachers with questions because they either did not feel comfortable asking their parents or their parents did not feel equipped to answer. Parents confirmed this; in an introductory program for families that we held, most revealed that they had little to no background whatsoever in sexual education and few had open conversations about sexual health with their own parents. This generational divide makes it very difficult for many parents to speak to their children, not just about anatomy and physical intimacy, but about abuse, identity and how to live life in a healthy way as a sexual being.
Head of School OWL teacher, Kindergarten
Now, as this time is undoubtedly a watershed moment for women, especially as the #MeToo movement draws focus to sexual harassment in the workplace and in schools, attention to these issues may not seem so unique, but six years ago, when I arrived at Brearley, the subject of sexual health, or more precisely sexual assault, was mainly a topic for higher education. Therein lay the crux of the matter: students with little understanding of sexual health are potentially more vulnerable to conflicts they might confront ahead. Sexual health education, therefore, needed to begin well before students entered college. A deficit at Brearley, it, along with resources for mental health issues, needed immediate attention, resulting in the creation of the Department of Counseling and Wellness, an increased number of mental health professionals on staff, more training for teachers and administrators, and new programs, which included the research of different sexual health programs from which we arrived at OWL. WHY A K–XII CURRICULUM? One of the goals of our Strategic Vision is to recognize that developmentally there should be a Lower, Middle and Upper division, but that the School should still operate as a K–XII institution; in the words of Aristotle, “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” Our teaching is intentional; as with our writing program, or any discipline, it is compatible with the developmental needs and capabilities of each age: there is a beginning, a middle and an end. Long an ingredient to our academic excellence, our approach to a sexuality health education curriculum should be
Each family has its own set of values. An objective of the program is to help parents and students discuss their values related to sexuality health, and a core element is encouraging students to ground this education in those values. FINAL THOUGHTS By and large OWL’s first year has been a success. It has given us the framework to refine the program and home in on certain areas that need further shaping, such as improved sequencing of the lesson material, providing more frequent updates to parents and training on how they can engage in these topics with their children, and continued guidance in effectively responding to inquiries that come up naturally. For example, when a young student asks a question, it is important that the teacher and parent think of it from her perspective, not from an adult’s. Simple answers suffice, and perhaps surprisingly to us satisfy! All students and their communities would benefit from this vital aspect of education—I was heartened to learn that some of our parents have shared our OWL homework lessons with their sons’ schools. I look forward to continuing teaching and building the program as it plays an essential role in preparing our girls for compassionate, confident and principled engagement in the world.
Sex education, including its spiritual aspects, should be part of a broad health and moral education from kindergarten through grade twelve, ideally carried out harmoniously by parents and teachers. 20 FALL 2018
DR. KEBA ROGERS
MARIA ZIMMERMANN
Director of Counseling and Wellness, OWL teacher, School-wide
Assistant Head of School for Student Life and Head of the Lower School, Music Department OWL teacher, Kindergarten
In January 2016 the Counseling and Wellness Department began its search for a sexuality education program that would both benefit and enhance the Brearley community. During that summer, after narrowing the choices down to two, Maria Zimmermann, Assistant Head of Student Life and Head of the Lower School, and I decided on Our Whole Lives (OWL). Our chief reasons for OWL were its comprehensive educational program, family and personal values perspective, focus on social justice, and homelink component that includes parents at the Lower and lower Middle School level.
We approached the introduction of OWL with great respect and complete awareness of the magnitude of the undertaking upon which we were about to embark. With this historical-for-the-school step we knew that our work would include not only students but their parents as well—one of the goals inherent in this particular program. Thus, in order to ensure that we had as much parent perspective from the outset as possible, we formed an OWL Parent Advisory Group, guided by Brearley trustee and parent Dr. Stephanie Perlman, a pediatrician at Hospital for Special Surgery. This cohort of 11 parent-professionals from all three divisions, reflecting a diversity of cultures, religions and family constructs, was invited to advise and comment on our efforts regarding the rollout of the program and to serve as ombudspeople in the parent community. Throughout the year we touched base with the group members in order to adjust and fine-tune our communications.
During the spring of 2017, the Counseling and Wellness Department attended a three-day training workshop for OWL facilitators. That September, 25 faculty and staff attended OWL training, learning not only about the OWL program but facilitation techniques and ways to engage families in discussions pertaining to sexuality education. The following month, the OWL program was launched in our K–XII classrooms, with the exception of Classes VI and IX for which similar topics in biology and health class, respectively, are taught. We began by teaching eight 40-minute sessions of OWL across the grades, imparting values of self-worth, sexual health, responsibility and social justice while covering such topics as body images, relationships with others and reproduction. Prior to the OWL program implementation, the sexuality education program was taught only in certain classes at Brearley, for example, Classes IV and V (puberty), Class VI (reproductive health-biology), Class IX (health), and Classes XI and XII (Junior and Senior Seminar). With the addition of the OWL program, we are not only able to ensure that all of our students are receiving a thorough, detailed sexuality education, but we are also able to partner with and provide resources for our families and, perhaps most important, build on the program each year based on what the students learn.
We hosted school-wide parent meetings and endeavored to keep the lines of communication open with families throughout the year as the program was introduced at each grade level. To be expected, the unveiling of the program was not without its hitches. Some families were at first discomfited at the notion of their daughters being exposed to sexuality health education at school or at tender ages. However, an overwhelming number of parents have expressed gratitude and, frankly, relief for the addition of OWL to the general curriculum. Others have appreciated the School’s willingness to listen to their questions and concerns about the program, and our willingness to pivot when appropriate so that as many members of our school community as possible can come to a point of greater comfort with this very important, albeit sensitive, work. At the conclusion of the 2017–2018 academic year, the OWL facilitators and members of the Parent Advisory group took stock of the year’s efforts and made suggestions for how to improve the content delivery and communication for the coming school year; we look forward to a smooth evolution in the development of this curriculum. Unrolling this program has been a heavy lift, but there is no doubt that teaching our students to know who they are, what their values are and how to honor themselves in the most holistic way possible is vital to their living healthy and safe lives.
—Dr. Benjamin Spock Dr. Spock’s Baby and Child Care Brearley physician, 1935–1944, 1946–1947 FALL 2018 21
EMPOWERING GIRLS, DISEMPOWERING WORDS In many ways the time our students are growing up in is more open and advanced, due in large part to the presence of the Internet and social media, yet also more complicated and dangerous, because of the Internet and social media. Beginning
in Middle School, when students have freer access to technology, it is common for
them to see or hear other young girls and women treated as or considered “less
than” or inferior human beings. Demeaning language, repeated often by a variety of sources in their social media spheres (celebrities, boys and other girls), can go
unrecognized for what it is and insidiously work on our young people’s subconscious. One of OWL’s lessons for Middle School is for the students to examine
slang words they’ve heard to describe sex and the body. When the girls are able
to look at those words, discuss and truly understand their meaning, they are able
to deconstruct them, to remove their potency and see them for what they are, which is not normal and always unacceptable. Through such exercises as those, along with its robust and comprehensive safety component, OWL empowers girls by disempowering words, educating them about appropriate terminology and
encouraging them to make good, confident and comfortable decisions based on
correct information and guided by their family values.
—Tim Brownell
Head of Middle School Student Life
Drama Department
OWL teacher, Class VIII 22 FALL 2018
Sophomore Seminar, a yearlong class that was introduced to the Xs last year, com-
prises sexuality health education, service It was an invaluable experience to be a part of OWL’s first year at Brearley. The faculty training was crucial, as were the ongoing support and resources we received from the Counseling and Wellness team. A primary goal as teachers of OWL was to start the conversation, and keep it going. Class discussions included the students’ reading scenarios about young college students navigating their relationships and valuing their protection. We learned that no topic is taboo. With the aid of a question box for them to submit their questions anonymously, students showed no inhibition in what they wanted to know. The time in between sessions enabled us to research their questions, carefully and comprehensively, and address them thoroughly in the next class. It was an effective tool in building trust. It will be exciting to watch as the program evolves to best serve the needs of the students. —Susan Sagor English Department and Maggie Maluf Math Department OWL teachers, Class XII
leadership development and public speaking. Our Whole Lives, the curriculum for the
sexuality health education component, was taught in an eight-session schedule. Using a holistic approach, OWL aims to dismount cultural and societal stereotypes by
focusing on attitudes, values and feelings
that will expand students’ knowledge and skills essential to expressing their sexuality in healthy and life-enriching ways. As with
any new program there are bound to be growing pains—at times students’ anonymous questions were submitted more for shock value than out of a genuine desire to
In the Lower School, OWL nurtures and supports the Respect and Responsibility curriculum. I taught OWL to the Kindergarteners, and it was a privilege to teach children who enjoyed the program so much. They were all active participants, showing little to no embarrassment compared to what was reported by teachers of older students at the outset, and our conversations included our families, anatomy, safe touch and No Go Tell, in which they drew three people they can go to if they ever have an uncomfortable experience with someone. —Jane Foley Fried Head of School OWL teacher, Kindergarten
learn—but that did not diminish the overarching goals of OWL. While it may not have
immediate resonance for the girls, their access to a sexuality health education as com-
prehensive as OWL’s, with its dissemination of honest and accurate information, model of caring and compassionate behavior and potential to save lives, is a lifelong gift.
—Evy Segal
Head of Upper School Student Life Math Department
OWL teacher, Class X FALL 2018 23
I signed up to be an OWL teacher, because not only did I want to learn to facilitate conversations with the seniors, but I also wanted to develop tools for communicating with my own daughters. —Maggie Maluf Math Department OWL teacher, Class XII By far, Classes VII and VIII seemed to learn and like the program more than they expected to and were pleased that their questions were being addressed. As the maturity levels varied among students within a grade, it was at times difficult to get them all on the same page. Being mindful of the physiological and maturational differences of the girls and shaping the program to address this will only enhance their OWL experience. —Maria Duckett Special Assistant to the Head of School OWL teacher, Classes VII and VIII Our culture glorifies many sexual images in ways that sometimes don’t align with our values. It is so important for everyone, not just young women, to make thoughtful decisions about their bodies that feel genuine to them. OWL gives us the space to consider who we are as community members and sexual beings and how we want to interact with the world around us. It empowers us with the knowledge that we all have the power and agency to set our own boundaries in a thoughtful manner so as to keep us both healthy and safe, and encourages our enjoyment of some of the wonderful facets of life. Once students are able to get over the it’s-awkward-and-embarrassing-and-Idon’t-want-to-talk-about-it factor and become open to the experience, OWL will be a lifelong support. —Emily Haberman (as told to The Zephyr) School Counselor OWL teacher, Classes VII, X, XI and XII
I oddly looked forward to each OWL meeting, perhaps because it served as respite from college talk and was casual and informative. At the end of each class, every student wrote and handed in a question (or a response or unrelated thoughts) on an index card to be answered in full in the next class. I believe this tradition encouraged us to reflect on what we had learned and allowed us to be curious without the fear of others’ judgment. I also found it fascinating to hear what others cared and wondered about. I didn’t realize how significant OWL was, though, until I edited Ms. Haberman’s interview for The Zephyr. It’s a bold move to institute a sexual health education program across every division of the School. The OWL curriculum promotes two powerful messages: 1) your moral values should guide your behavior in the six circles of self (how should one determine her moral values in the first place?); and 2) it is important to learn about sexual health and one’s body, regardless of age and without stigma. At its height, I think OWL will help students make more thoughtful decisions about their bodies. —Saima Iqbal Class of 2019 I was uncertain of what to expect upon first hearing about OWL, but after a year of participating in the program I have nothing but praise for it. I believe that the program (and those who administered it) did an incredible job of navigating the array of topics associated with a sexual health program, but also beginning to discuss other relevant but unexpected topics such as gender identity and sexual orientation. While topics such as these require more in-depth conversation and are not as black-and-white as topics like STIs and contraception, I thought it important that OWL addressed identity in its curriculum. What I think made the OWL program stand apart from my other experiences with sexual education (both at Brearley and at my previous school) was the amount of structure in the curriculum. I believe that the added structure is what caused both students and teachers to take the program as seriously as we did. I look forward to next year and seeing how the OWL curriculum is oriented toward seniors. —Jane Godiner Class of 2019
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The OWL program has allowed me to bridge the gap in an otherwise complicated subject and given me opportunities to create a channel of communication with my daughters that I probably would not have initiated so willingly. This lack of willingness is not attributable to lack of knowledge, but rather lack of precedent. I come from a generation where these subjects were not discussed openly at home. What I learned, I learned in school, and what I questioned, I went to friends or textbooks—sources other than my parents. When they finally did broach the subject, it was too late. I did not feel I could speak to them. I was not comfortable. We didn’t have the baseline. That Brearley has rolled out such an important curriculum for girls, especially during these interesting times, has enabled me, as a parent, to educate myself on age-appropriate topics and have a structured way of addressing them with my daughters early on. I want to be an approachable parent, and I also want the girls to feel confident asking their teachers questions. Nowadays, with access to the Internet, I feel the sources of information are less contained and perhaps more precarious, especially those pertaining to sexual health. I can already sense the changes in our household. We talk openly about issues related to sexual health, our bodies, changes in our bodies, what it means to have a healthy understanding of ourselves, what is okay and, more importantly, not okay. It wasn’t easy to start these dialogues and build a line of communication. But now they ask me questions. They tell me when something is uncomfortable. They are talking to me. As a parent, that is the best I can ask for. I believe the girls will benefit tremendously from the OWL program. To have this foundational understanding of sexual health is unprecedented. Information is empowering and takes the “awkward silence” out of the equation. We don’t have time for awkward silence anymore. We need our girls to know themselves, know their bodies, know their rights, know their power and know their courage within themselves. I am grateful to Brearley and for all OWL offers me as a parent to better prepare my daughters for life. —Kristen Chae Middle School Parent
“
We don’t have time for awkward silence anymore.
” FALL 2018 25
What makes you a Brearley Girl?
Olivia Harris ’10 I joined Brearley in Class VIII, young for my grade at 12 years old, coming from East New York, Brooklyn. For a long time, I thought that being a Brearley Girl was about being a mythical creature. Mehitabel would be a quiet bookworm with a biting wit. I was not. I was loud and sang in the hallways incessantly, and laughed a lot. But somehow, in college I found that Brearley had prepared me in ways that I could never have imagined. Brearley taught me the importance of caring about the world beyond ourselves and the strength to hold the world and myself accountable. Brearley women out in the world are fearless! Coming back to 610 to work in the Technology Department (2014–2016) helped me to see how brilliant, funny and absolutely original the girls are. Brearley girls led the change in increasing awareness around social justice issues. It brought tears to my eyes watching the girls spearhead conversations with faculty with grace and determination. Though they may not see it yet, Brearley women are incredible forces.
Share your story at www.brearley.org/share 26 FALL 2018
ONE BREARLEY
A singular place, and what it asks of us Incubator, proving ground, home. Brearley remains a singular place that is all about the girls—who they are, what they are capable of and what they can become. At Brearley each girl has the School’s outstanding academic program, dedicated mentors and talented peers behind her. Every girl has the opportunity to grow into her own extraordinary self, defining anew what it means to be a Brearley girl. Last fall, the School launched an ambitious campaign to build an expanded and more cohesive Brearley that will greatly deepen our capacity to fulfill our mission. This campaign will take all of us. All of us, standing on the shoulders of the generous Brearley families, alumnae, faculty and students who came before us. All of us, because while there is no one Brearley girl, there is only one Brearley.
R e a d m o r e at w w w. b r e a r l e y. o r g / c a m pa i g n
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BREARLEY’S GOT A n e w , a v a s t, a n d a p o w e r f u l l aN g u a g e is developed for the f u t u r e u s e o f a n a ly s i s , in which to wield its truths for the pur p ose s of m a nk ind. —Ada Lovel ace on the potential for t h e A n a ly t i c a l E n g i n e , 18 4 3
I
t is a beautiful thing that a woman, Ada Lovelace, is credited with being the “mother of computer programming.” In 1843 she translated a French description of Charles Babbage’s Analytical Engine and then went on to add notes to describe how to use the engine to calculate Bernoulli’s numbers. Her notes, two times longer than the actual text she was translating, gave real world context for this new intrigue— likening it to a Jacquard loom that wove “flowers and leaves”—and envisioned the machine’s potential when it was told what to do, i.e., programmed by humans. Lovelace’s capacity for seeing the engine’s computing potential sprang from a rich liberal arts education steeped in science and mathematics that her mother insisted she pursue despite the general practice of the times.
Now that the digital technology envisioned by Lovelace has become a reality and permeates every aspect of modern life, the conversation about technology and education spans the spectrum from overwhelming fear to mind-blowing potential. Through the course of human history, new technologies have often been the source of an extreme range of emotions. Over 2,000 years ago, Socrates warned that the new technology of writing might harm the ability to retain knowledge in the memory. What knowledge, then, is fundamental to a Brearley education given the new digital technologies of the 21st century? What should a Brearley student know by the time she heads off to college? In its usual getting-tothe-essence-of-the-matter fashion, Brearley faculty and administrators are grappling with how best to weave the learning of these evolved concepts into the already dense tapestry of the Brearley curriculum. It is helpful to break down the monolithic phrase “technology” into what it really means for education. Director of Technology Colin Samuel provides three helpful buckets: Educational Technology—using apps and hardware such as G Suite and iPads in the classroom; Maker Education—conceptualizing, designing and creating physical objects through robotics, for example, or 3D printing; and Computer Science—learning computational thinking to create scenarios and solve problems using skills such as computer programing, aka coding. It also includes the use of the Internet, providing access to vast sources of information as well as constant social interaction, which, in turn, introduces additional educational opportunities and challenges.
Head of School Jane Foley Fried points out that “computational thinking, more than ever, is fundamental to the critical, deep thinking that is the hallmark of a Brearley education.” Computational thinking—breaking ideas into parts, seeing patterns, identifying what is important, developing steps, or algorithms, to set up a solution or design—is most often associated with computer science and math. Dr. James Mulkin, Assistant Head of School for Academic Life, acknowledges that a heightened focus on computational thinking fits well into Brearley’s curricular approach as it promotes a “habit of mind” and develops students’ abilities so that they are not just users of technology applications, but creators. In fact, Brearley students have been thinking computationally in most liberal arts disciplines since the School was founded over 130 years ago: They learn to decode and examine literature such as The Odyssey, analyze data sets in science lab, craft a persuasive history essay or create layered, complex art.
30 FALL 2018
{ALGO} RITHM
by Elizabeth Chandler, Brearley Parent and Trustee
Currently computer science (CS) classes are threaded throughout the Brearley K–XII curriculum, and the School is committed to increasing the opportunity to develop CS skills as well as the confidence needed to deepen learning through the use of digital technologies. To the greatest extent possible, Brearley seeks to integrate fundamental CS concepts and thinking into its regular academic program. Ms. Fried explains that the learning of computational thinking, including computer programming, gains the most traction with students when applied to real world problems and when connected to work being done in their classes. At Brearley, integration is driven by talented faculty collaborating across academic disciplines. Karen Blumberg is a dedicated Technology Integrator who describes her job as “listening to what subject teachers are doing and want to do, and figuring out ways to introduce concepts and apps into existing classes.” In the spring, Ms. Blumberg teamed up with the Mandarin teachers on a project to conceptualize, design and produce traditional medieval seals using 3D printers and, with Class II, to use Scratch, an MIT-developed language, to program FunKey electronic boards to make instruments, and music, for their study about jazz. Math teacher Karl Paranya has been integrating CS into his core curriculum for many years. In Classes VII and VIII, his students learn recognition, abstraction, loops and parameters through Arduino, a platform for building electronics projects and basic programming skills. This fall, his elective CS course for Classes XI and XII covers macro and micro concepts beginning with the 1/0s, prepping students for a deep dive into coding with the language Python in the spring. Mr. Paranya’s goal for the students is to gain the knowledge and skills “to use their ideas to set up the solutions to problems and execute them computationally.” Art class at Brearley involves a lot of computational thinking—breaking down the elements of drawing, learning the process of creating a work of art—so it should come as no surprise that art teacher Luigi Cicala is head of the CoLaboratory Initiative, Brearley’s MAKER program. The CoLab develops projects that teach design and physical computing concepts, making things happen in the physical world, for example, through robotics, writing code to get real objects to move around or light up as well as creating designs and producing them with a laser cutter or 3D printer. Mr. Cicala’s Middle School MAKERCAMP is prototyping many of these exciting projects, preparing for the new MAKER space at 590 that will provide ample room for the expansion of the program during the school year. Looking ahead, Brearley is thrilled by the opportunity to interlace its rich liberal arts program with powerful new technology opportunities. Expanding the CS curriculum during the school year, and potentially through summer courses, will increase students’ fundamental skills to do more computationally, and will also address ethical issues and social guidelines for using technology in today’s complex world. Like Ada Lovelace, Brearley students’ strength as critical thinkers, with a strong scientific and math foundation, positions them well to take full advantage of these tools. Ultimately, both the challenge and the vision are to enhance the teaching and learning experience at Brearley to create an environment that serves its mission to “challenge its students…to think critically and creatively and prepare them for principled engagement in the world.” And, as the saying might go at Brearley, “There’s an algorithm for that!”
FALL 2018 31
BULLETIN
THE BREARLEY BULLETIN
610 East 83rd Street New York, NY 10028
THE BREARLEY SCHOOL
mens sana in corpore sano (A HEALTHY MIND IN A HEALTHY BODY)
C o n s t r u c t i n g B r e a r l e y ’s s e x u a l i t y h e a lt h e d u c a t i o n p r o g r a m FALL 2018
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10/2/18 11:35 AM