The O'Neal Quarterly - Back to School Edition 2019

The O’Neal Quarterly • O’Neal Middle and Upper School students embark on annual class trips to cities and camps as far south as Atlanta, GA and as far north as Philadelphia, PA.

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• 13 students and a faculty member from Colegio FEM in Madrid are guests to the O’Neal Community for 2 weeks.

• School starts Tuesday, August 15th with 460 students. 117 students are new to O’Neal.

• Beka Carr, George Casey, Andrew Lewis, Jalen Lindsey, Morin Samples and Bray Woodard are elected to the Honor Council.

• Head of School Achievement Awards recognizing the highest academic average in each grade for the past school year are presented to Ana Huesa, Aidan Jones and Jason Marin (tied for 9th grade), Molly Kuzma and Isabella Miller.

• Brian Norris is announced as O’Neal’s Head Baseball Coach for the 2020 season. Brian is founder of the Sandhills Stingrays, a travel baseball and softball program.

O’Neal’s USA Swimming yearround club, The O’Neal Pelagics (pə-ˈla-jiks), celebrates its second year with full capacity at 60 members.

• O’Neal’s 3rd annual Leadership Academy serves 23 student-athletes and 7 coaches in a 3-day program focused on developing emotional intelligence.

• O’Neal Summer Fun experiences a 27% increase in registrations this summer bringing the number to an all new record of 916.

• O’Neal’s Aquatics Program has almost doubled registrations for its second summer of swimming lessons with a total of 302.

• Emma Sager is awarded the Helen Pringle Holmberg Scholarship. TJ McGraw from West Pine Middle School is the recipient of the Hannah Marie Bradshaw Scholarship.

Back to School 2019 • The O’Neal Players performs its spring drama production, Terrence McNally’s It’s Only a Play.

• O’Neal Boys Tennis and Golf are state champions.

• The annual JV/Varsity Sports Recognition Ceremony welcomes guest speaker Nikki Flores, assistant coach for American University Women’s Basketball.

• O’Neal’s literary publication “The Blackbird’s Eye” is dedicated to Upper School French teacher Dr. Vicky Grimm. O’Neal’s yearbook “The Talon” is dedicated to Upper School Biology teacher Cindi Carr.

• Valedictorian for O’Neal’s first graduating class, Richard Joyner ‘77, is Class of 2019 commencement speaker.

• The Class of 2019 has 41 graduates amassing $2.7 million in meritbased scholarships. Valedictorians are Maia Kantorowski and Blair Spencer and salutatorians are Jenna Burns and Shamiso Kodzai.

The Nordic Education

What’ s the big secret to its notable success?

by Angie Manning, Head of Lower School

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ne of my fondest memories as a child is riding my bike to what we called “the hills” with my neighborhood friends. Almost daily, we ventured into this wooded area to ride our bikes on selfmade trails until we got to “the tank.” Looking back, the tank was a big hole in the ground where local families dumped their old and undesirable things. For us, it was an imagination playground. We built forts from old tires, car parts, appliances, and perhaps even some lead-based paint cans. I remember having “wars” over which group of kids took ownership of the tank. Those teenagers didn’t stand a chance against our small group of savvy elementary kids as we shooed them away from our creations. Why is it that today a teen can tell you all about the Amazon rain forest, hybrid cars or plastic in the ocean, but cannot tell you about the trees and streams in the woods in their backyard? And furthermore, what is that doing to our children and our model of education?

For the entirety of my 20 years in education I have wondered about (and had a slight love affair with) the Nordic model of education.

This summer, I had the opportunity to visit schools in Denmark and see this system in action. I was fortunate enough to travel with prominent members of our community that have the same passion for education. I went with three Early Childhood college professors from Sandhills Community College, teachers from Moore County Schools, and even a member of the North Carolina Zoo. I began my adventure in the small town of Roskilde, where I participated in the Nordic Outdoor Model of Education (NOME) Study Tour. Our tour ended in the much larger city of Copenhagen after visiting over ten schools.

Denmark is the birthplace of such concepts as Forest School, Adventure Playgrounds, and now Udeskole (outdoor school).

Through this tour, we explored multiple facets of Nordic education.

The first night of NOME was a screening of the documentary film NaturePlay, Take Childhood Back. We discussed Scandinavian cultural concepts and the background behind the types of places we would see during the tour to help us get into the Friluftsliv (free air life) state of mind. The three days that followed were spent visiting area forest schools and immersing ourselves in Friluftsliv. What a treat! We explored multiple schools each day observing, interacting, and learning from the world around us. Also, we had the opportunity to sit down with the teachers and administrators at each school to discuss and ask questions about their methods.

The students we saw were immersed in nature and allowed to question, explore, run, and help one another. Children climbed trees, counted rocks, gathered sticks, played imaginative games, and took responsibility for their own learning. Some kids used real tools to whittle sticks with a teacher sitting by their side. Some kids used saws to cut wood and nails to construct their own tiny playhouses. Others took care of

animals, fostering a bond as well as responsibility. Kids cared for bunnies, chickens, goats, pigs, and even horses. Students followed their interests; however, they were guided by teachers. At the heart of each community, there was a sense of wonder and respect for each other and nature. Many schools had bonfires within their outdoor spaces. Students, both young and old, explored the woods without adults always by their side. Older students wandered paths with friends walking and talking. Younger students built all sorts of things from the sticks and branches they gathered. When the teachers called students to come inside, many appeared on the path leading from the wooded area and returned to class. It reminded me of the times when I was out exploring “the hills.”

Overall, in each school we visited, we observed independent, curious, passionate, and happy students! They were invested in learning and being part of a community. The trust between parents, teachers, students, and the school was genuine and abundant. I believe that focusing on social-emotional health and a connection to nature is vital in the process of preparing students to be successful in an academic setting as well as in life! It was affirming to see this in action.

Back at O’Neal, we are implementing some changes. Simple activities such as nature walks, bug hunts, and fort building happen every day in the Lower School. These are activities you can encourage at home too! Visit our outdoor learning area where you’ll find a more formal outdoor classroom set up for teachers and students to conduct entire lessons outside. Teachers use the outdoor stage for reading and dramatic play as well as concerts. You may even catch the occasional Friday afternoon dance party after assembly there.

I was searching for Denmark’s big secret to an excellent educational system, but what I found was it really isn’t such a big secret after all. Instead, I found affirmation of many things we are already doing right here in our own backyard. I found a wholechild-centered, research-and-evidence based school system, run by highly specialized and professional teachers. I found myself feeling proud and fortunate to be able to say that I am a part of the same type of school program right here in Southern Pines, NC.

The O’Neal Players present

“The Wolves” Nov. 2-4

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O’Neal Wins Wells Fargo Cup

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’Neal has earned the Wells Fargo Cup among Division 2A schools for the 2018-2019 school year. The North Carolina Independent School Athletic Association (NCISAA) has ranked O’Neal as having the top athletic program among Division 2A schools in the state.

Each school’s sports teams are given points based on their results throughout the year. The Wells Fargo Cup is then awarded to the athletic department who earns the most points during the school year. The state championships won by varsity girls swimming, varsity boys golf and varsity boys tennis along with state runners up -- varsity girls basketball and varsity girls track and field in addition to other state appearances were enough points to earn the Wells Fargo Cup recognition for the first time as a Division 2A school.

“We are incredibly proud of our school!” exclaims Athletic Director James Franklin. “This has been achieved due to our student-athletes and our coaches’ drive, determination and perseverance. We are also fortunate because we receive fantastic support from our administration who value the balance athletics offers in providing a well-rounded education.”

The last time O’Neal won the award was when it competed in Division 1 among an average of 30 schools. In fact, from the 1990-1991 school year through 2000-2001, O’Neal won the then Wachovia Cup seven times. When O’Neal joined Division 2A starting in the 2001-2002 school year, the school has been within sight of the accomplishment with a few second through 4th place finishes along the way.

Previously called The Wachovia Cup before Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., purchased Wachovia Bank, schools have been recognized since 1985 and the award is presented and sponsored by Wells Fargo.

he Wolves is 2017 Pulitzer Prize-nominated play and is the first written by Sarah DeLappe. It chronicles the life of nine teenagers and their indoor soccer team over the course of six weeks. The girls discuss a variety of issues while warming up using a variety of static/dynamic stretches and drills before each game. Each character is known to the audience solely by their number, yet it is their unique and distinct personalities that make them stand out. As DeLappe writes in the play’s preface, “I thought of this play like a war movie. Instead of a troop of young men preparing for battle, we watch a team of young women warming up for their soccer game. There’s a captain, a rebel, an innocent, a recent recruit, a common enemy.” Through her impressively realistic dialogue, DeLappe addresses the experiences of strong American girls living in contemporary society in a way that seems timely and universal. The Wolves is directed by O’Neal Upper and Middle School Drama Instructor Ian Watson, the stage manager is Lily Gutschmit, and the lighting/sound designer is Tyler Jordan. The cast is as follows: #11 (midfield) brainy and boastful: Bray Woodard #25 (captain/defense) typical coach’s daughter: Ana Huesa #13 (midfield) owns her wackiness: Clara Lussier #46 (bench) new girl/just wants to fit in: Victoria Mills #2 (defense) innocent and unlucky: Piper Everts #7 (striker) too cool for school: Molly Mansker #14 (midfield) 7’s insecure sidekick: Angela Carr #8 (defense) childlike and determined to stay that way: Maddie Vaswani #00 (goalie) perfectionist with performance anxiety: Sarah Massey Soccer Mom: Trixie Gomlak Due to some language and mature subject matter, The Wolves has a suggested admittance of age 12 and over. Tickets are $5 for faculty and students and $10 for adults.

Join the director/cast for talkback and Q&A session after the performance on Saturday, November 3rd. Mr. Watson will lead a discussion on the play’s themes, the play’s increasing popularity, the growth of female soccer in America, and the rehearsal process.

Give to the Annual Fund

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Upcoming Events Oct. 30: Halloween Carnival Nov. 1: Parent / Teacher Conferences Nov. 2-4: Upper School Play “The Wolves” Nov. 7: Bottles and Bingo Nov. 8: Military Appreciation Assembly & Breakfast

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The O’Neal Quarterly P.O. Box 290 Southern Pines, NC 28388

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