Ten Minutes With Cassie Ruscz

Since joining the World Languages faculty in 2017, Cassie Ruscz has taught almost every level of Spanish, and this spring, began teaching a new course, Abnormal Psychology. She has served as an advisor, Assistant Coach for Girls Varsity Basketball, and as Head House Parent in Gibson for the past five years. Since 2021, she has served as Director of Residential Life, overseeing student activities, house life, and campus culture, and serves as Prefect Advisor. On July 1, Ruscz will take on a new role as Director of Multicultural Recruitment and Associate Director of Admissions at Gunn.

Ruscz majored in psychology and Spanish at Tufts University and studied psychology as part of her graduate work at the University of Delaware, earning her master’s in education in 2020. She is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of South Carolina’s College of Education, where her concentration is Education Systems Improvement and Anti-Racist Leadership. Her dissertation is titled, “Adolescent Leadership Development for Female Students in High School.”

In her first two years at Gunn, she was Head Coach for Varsity Softball, a sport in which she excelled as a student at the Taft School and at Tufts, where she was an All-American and helped to lead the Jumbos to back-to-back national championship titles.

Q: What is your favorite Frederick Gunn School tradition?

A: I love Fire Pit Fridays. I have very distinct memories of my first year here, when I lived in Bourne, back when Bourne was filled with 55 girls. The whole dorm would clear out and go to Fire Pit Friday, and I could hear them singing karaoke from my apartment on the third floor. That has been a really cool tradition that has been largely carried on by students.

Q: What advice do you have for new students?

A: My advice is to know that someone is always looking out for you. Sometimes students come in and they think they can fly under the radar. Our whole mantra of having at least One Trusted Adult, and just the care that we put in this community, there is always someone looking out for you. If students knew that more, particularly when they are new, I feel like they would not feel so nervous or anxious, or whatever emotion comes with being new.

Q: What is your favorite lesson or day of the year?

A: This isn’t a particular day on the calendar, but there is always this day in the springtime where, collectively, we as a school decide that it’s springtime and we’re going to go out and enjoy the warmth. You can kind of feel it in the air, and then when you walk around campus, people are just out and about. The annual water wars start, and you start to see many, many water guns on campus, or buckets, or water balloons.

Q: Who has been your greatest influence?

A: In my first couple of years here, Mrs. Small was like a second mom to me. She would give me advice, she would always be there to listen to me, to make me laugh, and give me a mint, and tell me if I was right or wrong. And there are three advisees who graduated after being in my advisory group for several years. Anjavie Thompson ’21, Alex Diaz ’21 and Danny Infante ’21 were and continue to be to this day three of the most quintessential Frederick Gunn School students I have ever met. Things did not come easily for them, whether it be academics or whatever they were working towards, but for four years I watched those three just work and work and work. Their passions and their drive will continue to impact me probably for the rest of my life.

Q: What would you say to Mr. Gunn if he were still here?

A: I would say thank you, first and foremost. And I don’t know how I would say this to him, but I would try to convey in some manner that he is incredibly courageous and brave for doing what he did. It takes a lot of bravery and courage to start a school and to have enough faith in that school to keep it going. I’d also make some crack about his beard that he probably wouldn’t think was funny.

Education

BA in Psychology and Spanish, Tufts University

M.Ed. in Educational Leadership and Administration, University of Delaware

Ed.D. candidate in Educational Practice and Innovation, University of South Carolina

Honors and Accolades

The Class of 1955 Distinguished Teaching Award, 2021

Current Responsibilities

Director of Residential LIfe

Spanish Teacher

Assistant Coach, Girls Varsity Basketball

Head House Parent, Gibson Prefect Advisor

The Frederick Gunn School Bulletin Spring 2023

Peter Becker

Head of School

BOARD OF TRUSTEES OFFICERS 2022-23

Patrick M. Dorton ’86

Board Chair

Wanji Walcott P’19

Vice Chair

Beth W. Glynn Secretary

Ashleigh Fernandez Treasurer

Stephen W. Baird ’68

William G. Bardel

Peter Becker, Head of School

Robert Bellinger ’73

Kevin Bogardus ’89

Sarah Scheel Cook ’82

Jon C. Deveaux

Natalie H. Elsberg P’25

Adam C. Gerry P’21

Sherm Hotchkiss ’63

Thomas R. King ’60

Timothy Jackson P’24

Jonathan S. Linen ’62

Damien Marshall P’24

Paul M. McManus, Jr. ’87 P’21 ’23

Bonnie A. Pennell ’86

Missy Cuello Remley ’87

Krystalynn Schlegel ’96

Omar Slowe ’97

Richard N. Tager ’56

Robert M. Tirschwell ’86

Dan Troiano ’77

Rebecca Weisberg ’90

MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS

Doug Day

Chief of Enrollment Strategy & Marketing dayd@frederickgunn.org

Jennifer Clement P’22 ’25 Bulletin Editor clementj@frederickgunn.org

ALUMNI & DEVELOPMENT

Sean Brown P’22 Chief Development Officer browns@frederickgunn.org

ADMISSIONS

Suzanne Day Director of Enrollment & Admissions days@frederickgunn.org

TRUSTEES EMERITI

Steven P. Bent ’59

Leo D. Bretter ’52 P’88

Jonathan Estreich P’06

Edsel B. Ford II ’68

Joan Noto P’97

Jonathan Tisch ’72

Gerrit Vreeland ’61

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Laura Eanes Martin ’90 P’20 ’23 ’25 President

Omar Slowe ’97

Vice President

Scott A. Schwind ’89

Krystalynn M. Schlegel ’96

PARENTS COUNCIL

Keith Gleason P’19 ’21 ’23 Co-Chair, Parent Giving

Ray Whitney ’87 P’24

Co-Chair, Parent Giving

Adrienne McManus P’21 ’23, Student Life Chair