The Colonnade 2018

Colonnade THE

INSIDE

ENCOURAGING ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT

STAND-OUT ALUMNI

SPARTANS WHO SERVE THE COMMUNITY

CONTENTS

4 5 14 16 22

Enriching our Community through Shared Stories

Head of School Dan Frank explains this year’s academic theme of storytelling

I Am a Steward: Randolph Reazin

This senior not only did a summer internship— he revamped an entire business

Spartans Who Serve

Steward faculty and students create service opportunities for others

Encouraging an Entrepreneurial Spirit

Teaching students of all disciplines

foundational skills for future careers

Aiming for the “Clouds”

Ted Benson ’01 builds on passion for programming to found software development company

Steward News

Steward Athletics

Steward Arts

Spartan Spotlight

Cover Story

MISSION | Prepare our students for college and for life in a community defined by robust academics, inspiration, engagement, and care.

Our cover design was inspired by the artwork of seniors Caroline Willhite and Sarah Petrocelli.

Enriching our Community through Shared Stories

“This is why we tell the story.”

These song lyrics have been on my mind every day since our grade 1-12 students performed last spring’s musical, Once on this Island (pictured). The song continues:

Life is why we tell the story

Pain is why we tell the story

Love is why we tell the story

Grief is why we tell the story

Hope is why we tell the story

Faith is why we tell the story

You are why we tell the story

Our gifted young musicians shared this song again at Convocation this past fall, and it has truly set the tone for this year. These lyrics are why we do everything we do at Steward. Our community is one of shared life, where we celebrate hope and love, hold each other up through grief and pain, and have faith in our students’ futures. We share experiences, knowledge, and a common mission: to prepare our students for college

and for life in a community defined by robust academics, inspiration, engagement, and care. This is our story.

In the classroom this year, we are exploring an academic theme of “storytelling.” In this magazine, you’ll read more about that, specifically the Global Read Aloud Project with A Long Walk to Water on page six. You’ll also be inspired by the story of our Visiting Innovators, former child refugees who are now social entrepreneurs changing lives in Africa—read more about them on page seven. In addition, we present the stories of several outstanding students, alumni, and teachers who are making a difference through music, technology, community service, and the arts. On top of that, we introduce you to the stories of our very first Spartans on page 24: our first three alumni who graduated 40 years ago.

Enjoy the magazine and, as always, thank you for being part of our story.

DAN FRANK, HEAD OF SCHOOL

ADMINISTRATION

Dan Frank, Head of School

Lisa Dwelle, Associate Head of School for Finance and Operations

Carol Moore, Director of Upper School

Susan Atkinson, Director of Middle School

Ingrid Moore, Director of Lower School

PUBLICATION STAFF

Kyra Molinaro, Editor

Kate Carpenter, Designer Carolyn Brandt, Lisa Dwelle, Rachel Williard, Contributing Editors

Kristina Kerns, Contributing Designer

Dan Frank, Jessica Jordan ’18, Jenny Lankford, Kyra Molinaro, Rachel Williard, Contributing Writers

Ariel Skelley Photo and Video, Kristina Kerns, Jenny Lankford, Kyra Molinaro, Wendell Powell Photography, Rachel Williard, Contributing Photographers

The Steward School admits students without regard to gender, race, color, religion, or national or ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school.

The editors have made every attempt to ensure the accuracy of information reported in this publication. We apologize for any inadvertent errors.

Worth Higgins & Associates, Inc., Printing

I AM A STEWARD:

RANDOLPH REAZIN ’18

Some students may view summer as the time to kick back and relax. But not senior Randolph Reazin—this Spartan spent his summer break doing an internship for Wendell Powell Studio here in Richmond. But this wasn’t a typical internship—Wendell Powell owner and Steward alumnus Douglas Hinckley ’91 said Randolph “completely changed the way Wendell Powell operates” with his impressive contributions. Read more about his accomplishments and career aspirations:

How did you get the opportunity to intern with Wendell Powell?

During my junior year, I really got into photography through taking classes with Upper School photography teacher John Alley. Later on, I asked Lower and Middle School visual arts teacher Cindy Grissom if she could recommend an artist in the community who I could work with for my Minimester internship. She suggested I reach out to Mr. Hinckley, who graciously allowed me to come work with him and his staff for a week. I really loved it, so they let me come back and intern over the summer. It was such an awesome experience getting to work with them and improve my skills.

What were your biggest accomplishments during your summer internship?

My largest contribution was building Wendell Powell a new, larger server to store all of their work. Up until then, the staff had been buying small hard drives and replacing them every year, so I ordered a bunch of computer parts that were rated for enterprise use and put them

together to provide 250 terabytes of storage—now, they can put absolutely everything on it, and it’s super reliable. They can also access the server outside of the studio anywhere that has Internet access— previously, the staff had to take their hard drives home in order to do work outside the office. Other than that, I helped them edit senior portraits and I started working on re-designing their website, which I’m still working on currently. I would love to come back and work at Wendell Powell this summer, as well.

Do you want to pursue photography in college?

FROM DOUGLAS HINCKLEY ’91:

I’m actually thinking of pursuing a career in animation graphics. I took a break from my internship over the summer to go to the Savannah College of Art & Design (SCAD) to do a week of animation and game design. It was really fun, and having knowledge of photography helped me with my creations because you need a strong understanding of color, composition, and how to make something visually interesting. I’m excited to see where my passions take me in college and beyond.

“Randolph has been invaluable to Wendell Powell Studio as he has vastly improved the way we work and manage our files. He originally was just going to learn aspects of our business, elements of Photoshop, and the technical side of the camera. He did all that and more as he incorporated his digital skills to design and build us a server and create a backup plan for all of our files. We are so thankful for Randolph and can’t wait to see what he accomplishes in the future.”

Exploring the Art of Storytelling

Academic divisions engage students through unique, storytellingthemed curriculum.

For young children, reading story books is one of the foundational building blocks of learning as they begin their education. But the concept of storytelling goes beyond the preschool level and is critical for teaching students of all ages how to relate to and empathize with others. That’s why our academic deans chose storytelling as the schoolwide theme for this year’s academic curriculum. Here are just a few examples of how each division is incorporating the idea of storytelling into their classrooms:

WHAT IS THE BIGGEST BENEFIT OF TEACHING STORYTELLING IN THE CURRICULUM FOR STUDENTS?

“It’s so important for children to realize that they have a story to share. They’re not just passive receivers of others’ stories—they have a unique voice and their stories are just as important as their peer’s or the author who wrote the book they’re reading. It teaches them to explore their feelings and their relationships to establish their identities and figure out what’s important to them.”

– Rebecca Groves, Lower School Academic Dean

LOWER SCHOOL

The Lower School always starts off the year by teaching students to write personal narratives in their writing workshops: younger students focus on choosing a single moment—be it a cherished family activity or a funny memory—that is meaningful to them. As they get older, they begin to focus on the reason why this moment is significant and what that reveals about their character.

To present storytelling in action, the Lower School hosted a “storytelling week” in October and welcomed master storyteller and singer/guitarist Courtney Campbell (pictured above). She performed for students and then taught workshops in which she focused on basic storytelling techniques for oral and written narratives. “I hope to instill an enthusiasm for telling, writing, and mining one’s own inner resources,” Mrs. Campbell said. “The gold each student has inside is there to be found.”

Also during storytelling week, the Lower School hosted on- and off-campus experiences for students to witness storytelling through musical and

historical lenses. Students attended a performance by Venezuelan band La Parranda El Clavo, which was in town for the Richmond Folk Festival, and later in the week, grades 4-5 went to the Richmond Symphony and grade 4 visited Jamestown.

MIDDLE SCHOOL

In Middle School, students are being exposed to storytelling through the concept of “windows and mirrors”—the goal is to provide students opportunities to learn about the lives of others through “windows” while also discovering more about themselves in the process, akin to looking into a “mirror.” To achieve this goal, each academic department is taking its own spin on storytelling in the curriculum through various hands-on, interactive projects that will continue on throughout the rest of the school year.

For example, sixth-grade science students will take part in a lesson called “My Life as a Drop of Water” in which they will learn about the water cycle from a first-person narrative. In seventh-grade history,

“Storytelling encourages the concepts of diversity and inclusion because it allows students to have conversations about the lives of others—people who are different from them, but yet not different at all. The empathy and understanding piece in any type of storytelling is an important idea to teach children. It shows them that not everyone walks the same walk.”

– Louise Robertson, Middle School Academic Dean

“Storytelling builds empathy and it’s instrumental in our community and in our world as we try to create a better place for all of us to live. It’s so critical to think of someone else’s experience and how you can relate it to your own story because, as we learn about others, we become more generous, accepting people. Through storytelling, we are helping to build a better society for future generations.”

– Elizabeth Simpson, Upper School Academic Dean

students will research, write scripts, and film news reports on topics from the life and presidency of Andrew Jackson. Through a partnership between grade 8 English and science, students recast traditional Edgar Allan Poe stories in a different setting and created interactive, coded dioramas. In addition, seventh-grade English, history, Spanish, math, and science classes will do a collaborative study of Francisco Jimenez’s novel The Circuit: Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child. Students will take part in hands-on activities to examine such topics as immigration, family life, health issues, and cost of living from the perspective of a migrant family living in California in the early 1950s.

UPPER SCHOOL

The Upper School academic departments are also focusing on various aspects of storytelling in their own diverse ways. In tenth-grade English class, students read first-person, primary accounts of the Salem Witch Trials and then wrote narrative poems in the voice of the person about whom they read, describing their feelings and thoughts about their experience. In social studies, students are always learning about the stories of historical figures, but teachers are focusing more on the personal lives of these figures to make them appear more human, rather than a person on a textbook page.

Hanging on the walls of the Upper School, “zines” (blank miniature story books) created by Upper School science teacher Laura Akesson invite students to spend time writing. On the front cover of the books, title prompts inspired by themes from

ON-CAMPUS

Linda Sue Park’s novel A Long Walk to Water (read more below) cued students to relay stories from their own experiences and lives. Some of the covers were even left blank to allow students the freedom to narrate a story of their choice. On all levels, students were asked to reflect on larger themes of “Why does my story matter?” and “How can I use my story to make a difference?”

SCHOOL-WIDE READING: A LONG WALK TO WATER

In addition to classroom activities, Steward engaged all the divisions (including faculty and staff) in a school-wide reading of the New York Times bestselling novel A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park. The dual narrative focuses on issues caused by political unrest and the unavailability of clean water in Sudan through the eyes of Salva Dut, a Sudanese Lost Boy who was separated from his family by war in 1985, and the fictional character of Nya, a young village girl.

The novel also happened to be a selection for the 2017 Global Read Aloud challenge, so the Middle School participated by passing the book around to each class in grades 6-8 and having each teacher read aloud a section to the students for several weeks in the fall.

Students in grades 4-5 as well as grade 9 also read the book in their classes, so all students in grades

WHIRLED PEACE DAY

The Steward community came together on September 20 to celebrate our twelfth annual Whirled Peace Day. As part of each year’s celebration, the school hosts a charitable giving drive, and this year’s drive was inspired by A Long Walk to Water. Art students in junior kindergarten through grade 8 created water bottle “piggy banks” that they took home to collect donations for Salva Dut’s nonprofit organization Water for South Sudan, which has constructed more than 304 wells since 2005 to give Sudanese people safe access to clean drinking water. The building of one well costs approximately $15,000, and Steward raised $1,000.

4-9 came together to have a group book discussion for two days in November (pictured above). Faculty and staff members helped lead the discussions, posing questions such as “What would you have done in Salva’s situation?” and “How do you think Nya felt about walking for eight hours to get water for her family?”

“We were really excited to have those discussions because they allowed students to share their perspectives with each other and establish a bigger connection to the novel they read,” said Lower School Academic Dean Rebecca Groves

VISITING INNOVATORS: MANYANG REATH KHER AND GER DUANY

On November 15, Steward hosted two young men who are helping to create economic stability in Africa. Like Salva, Manyang Reath Kher and Ger Duany were both Lost Boys as children in Sudan who came to America as teenage refugees. Now, they’re social entrepreneurs who run the Humanity Helping Sudan Project (HHS) and 734 Coffee, which helps fund HHS. Participants learned about how these organizations are helping in Africa, and how our own local food innovators are serving our own community.

EVENTS WITH CONNECTIONS TO A LONG WALK TO WATER

Scan here to read more about Whirled Peace Day

Scan here to read more about Visiting Innovators Manyang Reath Kher and Ger Duany

I AM A STEWARD: ANNE B. CIZENSKI

You might not recognize our new Middle and Upper School librarian by her married name, but you may have seen the name “Anne Blankman” in print— she is the author of several critically acclaimed young adult historical fiction novels, all of which are in our school libraries. You could say Mrs. Cizenski was destined to become a writer because her parents named her for the title character in Anne of Green Gables. She graduated from Union College and holds an M.S. in information science from SUNY Albany. Mrs. Cizenski previously worked in public and independent school libraries before moving to Richmond. Learn more about her love of reading and what inspires her to write:

Where does your love of reading and writing stem from?

I’ve loved writing for as long as I can remember. Ever since I could hold a pencil, I was writing stories and even illustrating them. I think it’s partially because I grew up in a family that loved reading, so I was always surrounded by books. I also always had this feeling that I had stories within me that wanted—needed—to be told. It wasn’t really a choice—I just felt I had to do it.

Why do you love writing historical fiction specifically?

I love the research element—I enjoy immersing myself in another time period, learning as much as I can, and trying to capture it on the page. In a way, historical fiction can feel like a fantasy adventure because it transports you to a world that you’re not familiar with. Also, history is just what happens to inspire me. For instance, when I began researching for my second book Conspiracy of Blood and Smoke (which is the sequel to my first book), I came across a real (still unsolved) homicide that occurred in Berlin, Germany in 1933. As I read the account of this very strange case, I just had chills running down my spine and I knew I wanted to write about it. I just come across something and I don’t know it until I get this little tickle in my brain, telling me I found my next story.

What inspired you to write your first novel?

After I graduated with my M.S., I was so busy with librarianship that my story ideas kept getting pushed to the back. It wasn’t until I was home for a little while after the birth of my daughter that I had the time to focus on writing. I grabbed a bunch of nonfiction books, and one was about Adolf Hitler’s half niece, who lived with him when she was a teenager as he was beginning to emerge from political obscurity. I became absolutely fascinated with this young woman and knew I wanted to write a story about someone like her. That feeling eventually grew into my first novel, Prisoner of Night and Fog.

What do you hope to bring to the Steward community in your new role?

First, I want to help all of my students become informed consumers of information. In this era of the Internet and blogs, it’s so important to be able to sift through all that noise and find out what is the most reputable and trustworthy information. I think that’s essential for anyone. Second, I want to inspire a lifelong love of reading in as many students as I can. I think reading is one of the greatest pleasures in life. If you love to read, you’ll never be bored. You’ll feel like you’ve traveled the world—even gone to other galaxies— just by opening a book.

International Adventures

waterfalls, black sand beaches, lavender fields, and more before returning home for the rest of the summer.

SAVE THE DATE

February 1-3 Winter Play, As You Like It

February 7 Visiting Innovator

February 24 Parents Association Gala and Auction at The Jefferson Hotel

March 29 Lower School Oratorical

April 4 Senior Showcase

April 21 Steward Spring Invitational and Debbie Robson Pancakes for a Purpose/Fun Run

April 26-28 Spring Musical, Anything Goes

April 27 Spring Social and Art Walk

May 10 Lower School Spring Program

May 11 Lower School Grandparents and Special Friends Day

Have you ever wanted to swim in the geothermal blue lagoons of Iceland? How about experience Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebrations first hand in Mexico? Our students have done all this and more on recent trips abroad through Steward!

This past June, Upper School science teacher Mary Greenlee led an Upper School student trip to Iceland in which students experienced the country’s environmental landscape. They visited glaciers,

In October, Middle School teachers Cierra Gillard and Wallace Inge led an eighth-grade trip to Mexico to study the country’s language and culture. In addition to experiencing Day of the Dead, the students saw ancient pyramids, sampled local treats, explored an archaeological site, and learned about famous Mexican artists. Go to stewardschool. org/mexico to read first-person student accounts of the trip.

We can’t wait to hear more about future study abroad trips, such as the upcoming Minimester trip to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands!

Spartan Treasures: Whitney's Gardens

“Is Whitney’s Garden the space outside Mr. Frank’s office?”

“Oh, you mean between the Upper School and Wilton Hall?”

No; Whitney’s Garden is the beautiful space across from the Middle School’s main doors. The quiet garden is a peaceful place nestled in the heart of Steward’s campus. The area serves as an escape from school life, a meeting space for parents, teachers, and students, as well as a beautiful backdrop for commemorating special events.

Whitney’s Garden was established many years ago in honor of Whitney Haynes, a former Lower School student who passed away in a boating accident. The space stands in memory of a wonderful student who brought much talent and life to Steward. In 2004, the garden was moved to its current position between the Middle School and Wilton Hall, where the garden’s tranquility beckons students, teachers, and visitors alike.

May 17 Spring Instrumental Concert

May 21 Upper School Recognition Assembly and Spring Choral Concert

May 31 Grade 5 Recognition Assembly

June 1 Grade 8 Recognition Assembly

June 3 Baccalaureate

June 4 Graduation

BY JESSICA JORDAN ’18

Steward faculty, staff, and students experience academics through international travel.

STEWARD ATHLETICS

4

THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS WHO RECEIVED ALL-TCIS AWARDS IN 2017

4

THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS WHO RECEIVED ALL-METRO AWARDS IN 2017

STEWARD

ATHLETICS AT A GLANCE

We are so proud of the amazing things our Spartan athletes are doing in our athletic program and in the community. Here’s a breakdown of Steward Athletics by the numbers:

68

THE NUMBER OF CLASS OF 2017 ALUMNI WHO ARE PLAYING COLLEGE ATHLETICS IN BASKETBALL (3) AND LACROSSE (1)

5

THE NUMBER OF UPPER SCHOOL STUDENTS WHO HAVE MADE VERBAL COMMITMENTS TO PLAY COLLEGIATE ATHLETICS IN BASEBALL (3) AND LACROSSE (2)

18

43

THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS WHO RECEIVED ALL-STATE AWARDS IN 2017

THE NUMBER OF ATHLETIC TEAMS AT STEWARD

Note: this data is representative of the 2017 calendar year in athletics.

APPROXIMATE PERCENTAGE OF ALL MIDDLE AND UPPER SCHOOL STUDENTS WHO PLAYED A SPORT AT STEWARD IN FALL 2017

12

THE NUMBER OF ATHLETIC TEAMS THAT QUALIFIED FOR STATE TOURNAMENTS IN 2017

171

APPROXIMATE NUMBER OF MIDDLE AND UPPER SCHOOL STUDENTS WHO PARTICIPATE IN TRAVEL/CLUB TEAMS

What sports have you played during your time at Steward?

Zac: Cross country, swimming, and baseball Caroline: Field hockey, basketball, and lacrosse

What does receiving this honor mean to you personally?

Zac: I’m so proud to have been recognized, especially taking into account what the award exemplifies. I’m happy to be able to represent all those qualities. It really justifies how hard I work and being able to see myself in this image reinforces everything I do at Steward.

Caroline: It’s particularly special for me because Ray Tate was my uncle. It’s such a huge honor to represent my family and carry on his legacy.

Do you have a philosophy or guiding principle when it comes to athletics?

Zac: For me, I like to say “there’s no sense in showing up if you’re not trying to win.” If I’m just showing up to have a good time, I don’t think I should be playing. There are other players out there who are there to win, so I have to be ready to compete with everything I have.

Caroline: I’m a very competitive person, so my ultimate goal is to win. But as a team, I focus on always improving and putting your best foot forward every day. It’s important to always keep working hard.

WE ARE STEWARDS:

CAROLINE LAIBSTAIN ’18 AND ZAC ABUSHMAIES ’18

The Ray Tate Student-Athlete Scholarship is awarded each year to senior student-athletes who have made outstanding contributions to Steward Athletics and school life. The 2017 recipients of the award are seniors Caroline Laibstain and Zac Abushmaies. We caught up with these two Spartans to discuss their passion for sports and aspirations for the future.

What’s your favorite sports-related moment from your time at Steward?

Zac: Earlier this year, I broke 18 minutes running a 5K at Deep Run Park, which was a big deal for me. I wasn’t even expecting to, but my teammate (freshman Ben Poling) said he would pace me to help me run faster, and I was able to do it. That’s just the kind of person he is, just so selfless.

Caroline: During lacrosse my sophomore year, we were playing Covenant at home during the state tournament. It was pouring rain and it was just a really tough game. We went into overtime, and I scored with 10 seconds left to win the game. The varsity baseball team was in the crowd, and they came running onto the field to congratulate us. It was such an amazing feeling.

Will you pursue athletics in college?

Zac: I would like to keep running. I’m trying to train for the mile in track this spring, so it depends on how I do. But I would definitely like to keep up with running in some form.

Caroline: I want to at least play at the club level but I’m considering seeing if I can try out as a walk-on for lacrosse. No matter what, I want to continue playing lacrosse in the future.

Are you a Steward alumni who played collegiate athletics?

If yes, then submit your photo to be added to our Spartan Wall of Fame in the Athletic Center! It doesn’t matter where or how long you played—we want to recognize all of our Spartans who went on to play sports in college. Make your submission by emailing alumni@stewardschool.org.

I AM A STEWARD: SAMSON TRINH

When it comes to music, there are few things that Lower and Middle School music teacher Samson Trinh can’t do. The Manhattan School of Music and VCU graduate plays nearly 10 musical instruments—including saxophone, clarinet, guitar, and ukulele—and has worked as an orchestrator, conductor, composer, and performer with famous artists such as Jason Mraz, Sara Bareilles, Rob Thomas, and Colbie Caillat. He is also the founder of UKE ‘n’ ROLL, featured in USA Today, which publishes ukulele music and lessons for enthusiasts and fellow educators. Read more about how this passionate artist plans on inspiring the Steward community through music:

How did you first become interested in music?

When I was four, I was at my grandma’s house and I saw the music video for Michael Jackson’s Bad. I remember dancing around and trying to imitate him singing, and from then on, I was always influenced by different genres of music. In elementary school, I was inspired to play guitar by hearing early rock n’ roll from the ‘50s and ‘60s, like Buddy Holly and Elvis Presley. Soon after, I started playing saxophone as I got interested in the new jack swing genre, which includes artists like Babyface and TLC. In high school, The Beatles anthology changed my life, and I was inspired to get involved with band from listening to jazz composers like the Gershwin brothers and Cole Porter. Finally, it was Harry Connick, Jr., who inspired me to arrange and write music for big bands and orchestras.

Tell us about having the chance to direct “Hamilton Live” at Dogwood Dell this past summer.

After my dad passed away in 2015, I was completely lost. When I listened to music, nothing really inspired me. Hearing the soundtrack to Broadway hit Hamilton for the first time was one of the few things that helped me heal. I was flattered when Dogwood Dell asked me to open up their performance season last spring, so I decided to direct a live performance of Hamilton hits in July, right around Independence Day. It was just the right time and place with the right people. We had a four-piece rhythm section, three-piece horn section, and a string quartet as well as 12 singers/rappers who only had three days to rehearse, and we pulled it off. More than 4,000 people came, which I wasn’t expecting at all. It was such an amazing

moment because there were so many people of different religions and ethnicities, and for this one night, we could forget our differences and enjoy the moment together.

What do you love most about teaching music to children?

I always say it was a fortunate accident that I got involved with teaching elementary school music, starting in Caroline and Henrico Counties. I never saw myself going that route—I always thought that one day I would head out to Los Angeles to do more composing for recording artists, but truth be told, writing music can be very lonely. That’s why I love the energy and enthusiasm that comes with teaching children—it’s something that makes them and their parents so happy. Music is a universal language, and once a melody kicks in, it can send so many emotions through your system. I love seeing how music makes people, especially children, really come alive.

What are your main goals in your new position at Steward?

I want to continue to build upon our strong choral and band programs, and I want to inspire students young and old by introducing them to genres, artists, and instruments that they may or may not have heard of—I hope that influence rubs off on them and maybe one day they’ll think back and remember, “Oh, that’s how I found out who The Beatles were.” In my first semester, I taught a group of young Lower School students to play the Imperial March from Star Wars on the harmonica. If I can get them to do that in a month by only spending an hour or so a week with them, I know I can do a lot more.

I AM A STEWARD: ETHAN WILLIAMS ’18

You’ve seen him on the big stage in recent Steward productions including Look Homeward, Angel and Once on this Island. Now, you can see senior Ethan Williams on the small screen in the independent teen drama web series Library Freaks. Ethan plays Thaddeus Peterson, a high school junior struggling with depression who begins an unlikely friendship with fellow student Bea Nixon, who struggles with anxiety. In order to understand their unique challenges with mental illness, they must also learn to understand and support one another. We caught up with Ethan in between filming sessions, several of which were filmed right here on Steward’s campus!

Scan here to check out the Library Freaks Facebook page and keep updated about when the series will premiere!

How did you get involved with this community project?

I know the series’ directors/producers, Tyler Meacham and Grace Day, through doing theatre with CharacterWorks for many years. I saw that they put out a casting notice for their latest project on Facebook, so I sent in two video submissions of me reading from the script. Within an hour after I submitted the second video, they called me saying they wanted me to play Thaddeus. That was in early August, and we filmed the entire series throughout the fall.

What have you enjoyed most about this experience?

Thaddeus is a really well-written character who I think is very relatable to every teenager. The series focuses on him trying to better communicate his feelings with his friends, even though there are times when he feels totally isolated, which I think everyone goes through at some point. The overall project has been a good challenge for me because I’ve never done on-screen acting before. It’s totally different—the camera magnifies every single expression on your face, so rather than playing to the back of the house like you do onstage, you’re playing to a small screen that’s two feet from the user’s face.

How has participating in Steward Performing Arts prepared you for this role?

Playing John Proctor in The Crucible really helped prepare me because, just like Thaddeus, John realizes that he’s messed up and has to stop being closed off and come to terms with his emotions. In general, being involved with theatre at Steward has given me the foundational skills needed to really build upon as an actor, such as stage presence and confidence. I’m so grateful for all of my experiences here.

What’s next on your agenda in terms of acting?

I’m going to play the role of Matthew in Richmond Triangle Players’ production of Corpus Christi in January and February, which is a retelling of the New Testament as the second coming of Jesus Christ. It’s a completely different play than anything I’ve ever done. In the meantime, I’m planning on pursuing acting in college. Currently I’m hoping to go to either Savannah College of Art & Design or UNC School of the Arts in Winston-Salem, N.C. No matter where I end up, I just want to keep acting in any way I can.

Spartans Who Serve

Steward faculty and students bring school mission to life by creating service opportunities for others.

BY JENNY LANKFORD

On Saturday mornings, you can find most teenagers sleeping in, watching TV, or playing video games, but sophomore Anna Kilduff has a different agenda for her weekends. You can usually find her lacing up her bowling shoes and aiming for strikes at the alley with a group of Special Olympics athletes.

“Community service is so important to me because I really feel that we are one whole community. I really think that if you help someone and they’re so happy that you did that, it really makes an impact on your life and on your day, and just shows that one person can do a lot,” Anna said.

As a Middle School student, Anna co-founded the Steward Middle School Special Olympics club with Meg Trepp ’16, who founded the school’s Special Olympics club in 2012 and Virginia’s first Unified Youth Bowling program in 2015. Anna then took over as president of the club as only a freshman, carrying on the club’s legacy.

Anna said, “Meg brought me to meet everyone at the Special Olympics Virginia office and one of the athletes was there, and she actually lives in my neighborhood. All along I never knew it, and that just made me want to help and just know everyone and get a lot more involved.”

The Upper School club continues to be the largest student organization on campus, and with 80 members, it’s the largest student-led Special Olympics club in the Commonwealth of Virginia. “It makes me so happy that everyone wants to get involved,” Anna said.

Steward now puts on bowling, basketball, and soccer unified leagues, where a Special Olympian is thoughtfully paired with a student to play the sport. Members of the club have also discussed adding other sports to the club’s repertoire including bocce, lacrosse, softball, and volleyball–either as clinics or as additional unified leagues.

“I see the club continuing to grow as new students come into the Upper School,” Anna said about where she sees the club in the future. “I see more events coming to campus, more sports coming to campus, and people getting more involved and wanting to talk to Special Olympics about creating new leagues. As new interests come in, we can connect those with Special Olympians and make Steward an even more inclusive place.”

“Maybe I can make a big impact by teaching others to make an impact.”

But Anna said none of the success and growth of the club would be possible without the contagious spirit of Steward faculty, like Middle School history teacher and girls basketball coach Wallace Inge, who leads several service initiatives at Steward. “Mr. Inge is the coach for the unified basketball league. He really wants to get the word out there that Special Olympians, people with intellectual disabilities, can be just like us. They can play sports; they can do anything that they want to do,” Anna said.

In addition to being the Special Olympics unified basketball league coach, Mr. Inge started the Steward Community Service Sampler summer camp in 2016, where a team of young volunteers and faculty spend time at multiple organizations around Richmond over the course of the week-long camp. “For example, seventh-grade kids organize a game of Sorry! with adults who can’t roll the dice or even talk, but to see these kids doing that, you’re like wow… here you are doing this wonderful thing for these people,” Mr. Inge said.

He also leads Middle School students on weekly service trips through their advisories and the division’s annual Community Week to organizations such as the Bon Secours Reinhart Guest House, The Virginia Home, Hilliard House Shelter, and Goochland Free Clinic, to name a few.

“I’ve been volunteering at Meals on Wheels since 1996 and I started bringing my kids with me ever since they were little,” Mr. Inge said. “I slowly figured out I can’t fix the

problems, but I’ve got all these kids who come through every year, and if I can make an impression on them about serving their community, then that helps. I just thought, maybe I can make a big impact by teaching others to make an impact.”

Through the work student and faculty leaders are doing to regularly create opportunities for others to give back, Steward is becoming a role model of community engagement and compassion, central to the school’s mission. Aly Truesdale with Special Olympics Virginia said, “Steward is a special place and I plan to use the school as the model for others so we can provide more opportunities in other areas like the school is providing!”

“We need to not only engage in our community, but we need to reach out and engage other communities and caring for ourselves involves caring for others, so I think it’s a very natural fit [with the school’s mission],” Mr. Inge said.

“I think it’s about as valuable a lesson as you can teach kids. If they remember the impact they had by serving the less fortunate, then that’s a job well done,” he continued.

As for how Anna feels about being considered a role model for her peers and the impact serving has had on her, she said, “I really, truly love helping everyone. I like seeing other people happy and making sure that our Special Olympians are having a great time and that our classmates are too.”

The Steward Community participates in many philanthropic events on and off campus throughout the year. Here are just some examples:

The

Senior Kyle Sims trains service dogs on Steward’s campus for Canine Companions for Independence.

The Magnano family sponsors an annual Rise Against Hunger meal packaging event, which Steward hosts.

Upper School Student Council hosts the annual Give Some, Get S’more event to collect items for various charitable organizations such as Henrico Christmas Mother and ASK Childhood Cancer Foundation.

FIRST PAGE: Steward students Anna Kilduff, Alex Wilkerson, and Olivia Koerner with Special Olympians and other volunteers at the club’s 2017 Bowl-A-Thon fundraiser LEFT: Mr. Inge and a few players from the unified basketball league RIGHT: Middle School girls advisory serving breakfast at the Bon Secours Reinhart Guest House

ENTREPRENEURIAL ENCOURAGING AN SPIRIT

Steward establishes Entrepreneurship Studies Program to teach students of all interests foundational skills for future careers.

BY KYRA MOLINARO

As pointed out by Harvard business professor Howard Stevenson in “Entrepreneurship: A Working Definition” in the Harvard Business Review, the concept of entrepreneurship is more than the act of starting a business or organization—it’s a total mindset, one that requires having confidence in the unknown.

This is a mindset that will serve our students well now and as they become adults: the U.S. Department of Labor recently reported that 65 percent of today’s grade-school children will end up in jobs that haven’t been invented yet. As career paths in this rapidly changing world will likely have exciting twists and turns, The Steward School is committed to preparing students to embrace these new adventures.

“Entrepreneurship is the nexus for preparing students for college and for life,” Head of School Dan Frank said. “It’s the applied expression of innovation. We live in a world where change is happening faster than it’s ever happened before, so it’s important to bring this modern knowledge to the forefront.”

That’s why this past spring, Steward officially launched an Entrepreneurship Studies Program in the Upper School, which formalizes and expands upon our existing entrepreneurship-related curriculum. It will allow our students new opportunities for learning, as well as the ability to earn a unique credential that will prepare them both for their college applications and their future careers.

Most importantly of all, it will give them the self-assurance and conviction they need to face a world where anything is possible.

GROWING IN NATIONAL FOCUS

The concept of entrepreneurship has gained incredible ground in the U.S. over the last few decades. Many of the foundational characteristics associated with entrepreneurship (such as passion, resourcefulness, and creativity) have always been valued in society. However, our awareness and vocabulary surrounding the concept has greatly improved in the last 20 years, according to Dr. Larry Myler, an author, business strategist, and professor of entrepreneurship studies at Brigham Young University.

“People now have a better understanding of what all is involved with entrepreneurialism,” said Dr. Myler, who wrote the book Indispensable by Monday on the concepts of “intrapreneurialism” (the act of developing a new product or line of business within one’s workplace). “There is a better dialogue happening about risk and reward and the dynamic personalities needed to create change. This has led more people to pursue entrepreneurship as a viable career path.”

There has also been an increased focus on entrepreneurship in politics—in 2010, former President Barack Obama launched the first annual Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) in Washington, D.C. When he attended the GES in Kenya in 2015, he called entrepreneurship a “key part of America’s engagement in the world” and “the spark of prosperity [for] creating new ways of seeing the world.”

“Entrepreneurship is the pursuit of opportunity beyond resources controlled.”

This stronger focus seems to be making an impact—more people than ever are launching new businesses. The Kauffman Startup Activity Index, an early indicator of new entrepreneurship in the U.S., inched up in 2016, after sharp increases two years in a row. The share of new entrepreneurs who started businesses to pursue opportunity rather than from necessity reached 86.3 percent, more than 12 percentage points higher than in 2009 at the height of the Great Recession.

With this ever-increasing push towards entrepreneurship, school-based entrepreneurship education programs are becoming an absolute necessity, according to Donald Malcolm Smith, director of the Office of Entrepreneurship Education at the U.S. Small Business Administration.

“Entrepreneurship is not just about being your own boss,” he said. “That’s why educational programs are critical for teaching young people the skills needed to get a business off the ground, such as financial capacity and literacy.”

Hundreds of colleges and universities across the U.S. have established entrepreneurship studies programs, including Virginia Tech and University of Virginia. As for high schools, many rely on partnerships with nonprofit organizations such as Junior Achievement and the Kauffman Foundation to provide support for students interested in the topic; few have an in-school focus on entrepreneurialism in the

curriculum. This means that Steward is likely one of the only schools across the nation that teaches these concepts in its classrooms as a means of preparing students for real life.

HITTING THE GROUND RUNNING

If you were in Steward’s Lora M. Robins Theatre on March 15 this past year, you likely would’ve felt as if you were sitting in on an episode of ABC’s hit reality show Shark Tank. Actually, it was Steward’s first Entrepreneurship Forum and student pitch fair, which served as the official kickoff of the Upper School’s Entrepreneurship Studies Program.

Mentored by Bryan Innovation Lab Lead Technologist Shane Diller, four student participants—sophomores Matthew Cantor, Callen Smith, and Cameron Jarvandi as well as senior Amanda Wang—presented original products to a panel of local Richmond entrepreneurs and business media in front of their peers, teachers, and parents (read more at stewardschool.org/innovation-through-entrepreneurship). In the end, the panel of experts selected Amanda as the winner of a $200 cash prize to be used toward launching her product, Zippods, which are anti-tangle zippers for headphone wires.

The forum—hosted by Andy Stefanovich, curator of TEDxRVA and bestselling author—represented all of the values and skills that Steward is impressing upon students

“The idea is to present a wellrounded, diverse curriculum that speaks to our mission of preparing students for college and for life.”

through its new program, which presents a cocurricular series of opportunities for Upper School students. Upon graduation, students who have earned enough credentials will graduate with an entrepreneurship endorsement on their diplomas. This program is open to all Upper School students who would like to participate.

The endorsement is earned through acquiring a combination of knowledge and creation units (see graphic on page 21 for details) and completing a senior project with a focus on entrepreneurship. Students must have three credentials, in any combination they choose, as long as at least one is a creation credential.

In addition to already established entrepreneurship threads in the curriculum, students will need to complete an entrepreneurship course that includes such topics as design thinking, market analysis, basic economics, fundraising, investor relations, and more. Plus, students are getting the opportunity to take “crash creation courses” with Upper School science teacher Laura Akesson to learn such hands-on skills as calligraphy/lettering, soldering, circuitry, packaging/labeling, and carpentry. The end result of the course will be the creation of a product using the learned skills.

“The idea is to present a well-rounded, diverse curriculum that speaks to our mission of preparing students for college and for life,” said Melissa Freed, Upper School curriculum dean and director of library services. “By taking part in experiential learning in and outside the classroom, they are honing their skills in design, iteration, and presentation, which are the foundation for working in any environment.”

BUILDING ON COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS

This past fall semester, the Upper School hosted a slew of hands-on activities and experiences for students to earn their entrepreneurship credentials, many of which are tied to the growing entrepreneurial market in Richmond.

In October, local entrepreneur and Richmond native Ted Elmore spoke to an assembly of students about his new BridgePark project. Mr. Elmore and his team aim to design a walking

bridge on the James River that will include public parks and other spaces for events, picnics, recreation, and more. By serving as a destination (not just a bridge), they hope to “shine a light on the extraordinary culture and creativity of Richmond,” according to the BridgePark website. Students had the option to eat lunch with Mr. Elmore and discuss his project one-on-one in order to receive a knowledge unit.

Through incorporating speakers such as Elmore into the program, students see real-life models for success, which Mr. Smith with the U.S. Small Business Administration said is key for a strong entrepreneurship education program. “When you engage with local business leaders, students are motivated by someone who has the drive and passion to create, which creates a positive peer pressure environment,” he said.

In November, a group of students took a trip to Richmond-based international advertising agency The Martin Agency, where they toured the facility and met with Martin executives to work on a real client project. The students were asked to use the month that followed to work collaboratively to solve an issue for the client, and in December, students returned to Martin to pitch their solutions. Freshman Mimi Traynham; sophomores Griffin Robeson, James Biggs, Sonali Sanjay, and Emory Sutton; and senior Caroline Laibstain were selected as the winners. In February, students will return to Capital One for a day-long collaboration session.

Not only are students engaging with local entrepreneurs in the external Richmond community, there are countless entrepreneurs in the internal Steward community who students can look to for guidance. In September, Richmond BizSense published its list of “The RVA 25,” a list of the 25 businesses that grew the most (based on average annual revenue growth) from 2014 to 2016. There were several Steward parents associated with many of the businesses on the list (read more at bit.ly/2gaKy6j).

In fact, a group of Steward parents has been instrumental in advising Steward faculty as the program has developed. Steward parent Brad Cummings serves as a board member of Startup Virginia (which students will visit in April) and is

ALUMNI IN ACTION: EMMETT COLEMAN FOUNDS THE HARMONY PROJECT

Emmett Coleman ’17 (above right) is using entrepreneurial skills in an effort to make the world a more accepting place. As part of his senior project at Steward, Mr. Coleman founded the Harmony Project, a non-profit organization devoted to promoting social justice and challenging preconceived notions.

Every week, a new community of a certain race, gender, religion, orientation, or identity is promoted on the organization’s Facebook page through calls-to-action for fundraising and education. Coleman said the goal is to bring advocacy to all communities rather than just focusing on a select few. “It’s a platform for people to use if they want to help society in some way but don’t know how,” he said. “We are striving towards equality for all groups.”

The project is still in its early stages, but Mr. Coleman aims to bring the organization on campus at the University of California, Berkeley, where he is currently a freshman hoping to major in social justice studies. “I will consistently be an advocate all throughout my life, and this is my starting platform,” he said. “I’m using it to figure out how to be the best advocate in the future.”

Scan here to watch a video that Emmett Coleman ’17 created for his senior project about the Harmony Project.

the co-founder of The Annex, both of which are local organizations dedicated to assisting young companies in central Virginia. The overall goal, he said, is to create an environment for young people like Steward students to pursue their dreams.

“I want students to understand that you can start something and create your own reality, especially because so many don’t even know it’s a possibility,” he said. “Putting new programs in place will make them aware that these types of opportunities exist, and they can look to people in the community to see examples of what success looks like.”

ANALYZING THE BIG PICTURE

At Steward, it’s understood that not every student may want to start his or her own business. But by engaging in entrepreneurship education, all students will gain necessary skills for their future careers regardless of their chosen discipline.

In fact, it’s proven that students with entrepreneurial knowledge are likely to succeed in life. Specifically looking at the impact of NFTE’s student programs, 80 percent of its alumni are in college or have graduated college, 86 percent are either employed or furthering their education, and 16 percent are self-employed or had a business open in the past year (only two percent of all American youth aged 16-24 were selfemployed in 2015).

Steward Foundation board member and parent Scott Frayser, who was instrumental in establishing Steward’s Entrepreneurship Studies program, emphasized the idea that entrepreneurship is applicable to all career fields because it teaches students that failure is a critical component for success. Mr. Frayser has more than 30 years of experience as an investment banker in mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures, as well as working as a partner and adviser to lead the structure and capitalization of multiple early stage entrepreneurial ventures.

“Entrepreneurialism means being able to understand risk and have the tenacity to keep trying even after you fail,” he said. “Whether you’re a musician or an accountant, it’s critical to have the capacity to iterate an idea, fail, adjust, and do it over again.”

Research shows that an entrepreneurial mindset—characterized by critical “noncognitive” skills such as grit, conscientiousness, and goal orientation—helps students engage in school, boosts educational performance, and is valued by employers. A survey of more than 400 employers found that the most prized skills were in the areas of “oral communication, teamwork/ collaboration, professionalism/work ethic, and critical thinking/problem solving,” according to research from the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE). More than 90 percent of employers identified these skills as “very important.”

Learning to accept failure is crucial because it teaches students to persevere: “People who succeed do so because they don’t quit,” Mr. Frayser said. “Each failure is a step towards success, and that’s the core concept that we want to impress upon students through Steward’s program.”

Whether the Entrepreneurship Studies Program guides students to their ideal career path or inspires them to continue exploring their options, the sky's the limit as long as they maintain passion and drive.

“The goal is for Steward to have a local, regional, and national reputation for innovative teaching and learning,” Mr. Frank said. “This program, paired with our deep curricular look at modern knowledge, pushes us to better outcomes for students and to excellence as a school.”

“Entrepreneurialism means being able to understand risk and have the tenacity to keep trying even after you fail. Whether you’re a musician or an accountant, it’s critical to have the capacity to iterate an idea, fail, adjust, and do it over again.”

Fostering Innovation among Faculty through MakerTech

Week

Steward isn’t just encouraging creativity in its students. Over the summer, the Bryan Innovation Lab hosted a professional development program called MakerTech Week and invited Steward teachers, as well as teachers from across Richmond, to learn about “modern knowledge” including robotics, 3D printing, computer programming, electronics, and more. The program will take place again this summer.

Participants began the week with a project idea but didn’t know how to bring their idea to life. By building their expertise through various professional development courses that focused on specific skills such as tinkering, computation, and iteration, they gained the knowledge needed to do so.

One stand-out project was a model of William Shakespeare’s head that was 3D printed and then programmed with embedded speakers to spew Elizabethan-era insults to passersby. Another group created a Vincent Van Gogh robot (pictured) that was programmed to recite facts about the famous artist’s life and display his notable works on a connected screen.

By fostering innovation among Steward faculty, the goal is for these concepts to reach students in their classrooms, thus inspiring the creative mindset needed in entrepreneurialism.

“This program serves as a hands-on way to teach our faculty the same skills that we are teaching in our Entrepreneurship Studies Program,” said Melissa Freed, Upper School curriculum dean and director of library services. “Our participants learn the value of failure and how to iterate through their process toward the path of success. They are faced with computational concepts and practices that they may not be comfortable with. We put ourselves in the shoes of our students so that we can not only build these skills, but also build empathy for our students who are going outside of their comfort zones.”

Scan here to read more and watch a video about MakerTech Week from CBS 6.

Edward “Ted” Benson ’01 has always been a builder at heart, fueled by a love of coding and computer science that materialized at Steward. His passion for digital creation has led him to a career in software development in which he’s worked for such technology titans as Amazon, BBN Technologies, and Google. But three years ago, he added another title to his resume: entrepreneur.

After graduating from Steward, Mr. Benson (son of JK-12 Technology Coordinator Robin Ricketts) went on to earn a B.S. in computer science from the University of Virginia in 2005 followed by both a M.S. and PhD in computer science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2010 and 2014 respectively. His time spent as a research assistant and instructor during his graduate years at MIT sparked a brief interest in becoming a professor, but instead, Mr. Benson decided to pursue a career in tech start-ups in San Francisco.

Shortly after his arrival in the Golden City, Mr. Benson began working on an idea that would become his biggest achievement to date. Using research from his graduate dissertation, he began working on a software platform that web developers could use to build a website using consumer-grade tools rather than the often complicated infrastructures normally used. From there, Cloudstitch was born.

Aiming for the “Clouds”

The goal of Cloudstitch, a web development platform, is to make programming and infrastructure accessible to everyone. It lets users manage and update websites entirely from their office suite, so there’s no need for custom servers and databases. Cloudstitch handles all the hard engineering, so users interact with their sites as if they were just spreadsheets, word documents, and shared folders.

“The idea behind Cloudstitch is that creating web applications is just too complicated these days— even for professionals—and it ends up taking so long,” Mr. Benson said. “I always joke that in 2017, physicists can teleport matter—granted, it’s very small matter. But regardless, if they can do that, it shouldn’t take a month for someone to build a working website. Cloudstitch makes the process of building a site so much quicker, and it’s one that is familiar and easy to use by everyone.”

Three years after its founding, the company was purchased/absorbed by Instabase—a data-driven software platform created by fellow MIT graduate Anant Bhardwaji—this past fall. “We are going to keep our service running, but we’ll now be focusing on integrating with the Instabase platform and products,” Mr. Benson said of the new venture. “It’s really exciting to play a part in this new project.”

Mr. Benson described the process of starting a

business a “rollercoaster,” but one that is incredibly rewarding when you’ve finally achieved your goal. “You have to have the determination to run through a thousand brick walls, and once you’ve gone through the thousandth wall, you have to come out on the other side smiling and ready to energetically give your pitch again,” he said.

On his time at Steward (where he attended from grades 2-12), Mr. Benson said he is grateful to have grown up in an intimate environment in which he was encouraged to try his hand at everything.

“There’s something magical about having the freedom to be yourself,” he said. “The community of support and family feeling really allowed me to explore anything I wanted as a child, ranging from sports to science, and I was never afraid to try something new. That’s what Steward gives its students.”

Class of 2001 alumnus reflects on founding software development company, Cloudstitch.

“There’s something magical about having the freedom to be yourself...that’s what Steward gives its students.”

Dear Spartan Alumni,

We’ve had a successful start to the 2017-18 academic year! At Convocation at the end of August, we proudly presented the fourth annual Alumni Achievement Award to Mary Harvard Nolde ’93. She spoke about her life and community involvement, including her role as chairwoman of the 2016 Women & Wellness event to support women’s cancer research at VCU Massey Cancer Center. Afterwards, we re-connected during our alumni coffee reception—see below for a group snapshot from the event!

In November, we had an incredible turnout for the second annual Trucks & Shucks Oyster Roast at Historic Tredegar in downtown Richmond. We held VIP reunions for class years ’12, ’07, ’02, ’97, ’92, ’87, ’82, and ’77, the last of which had a particularly special reunion because it’s the 40th anniversary of their graduation, which was Steward’s first ever! We caught up with our three class of ’77 graduates recently, and you can read more about them on page 24. Shortly after Trucks & Shucks, alumni hit the town once again for a Thanksgiving Social at Greenleaf’s Pool Room.

I’m so happy to participate in these great experiences and continue to bond with my fellow Spartan alumni. Remember that we are always looking for more alumni to get involved. Whether you’re an artist, an athlete, or want to spend time with friends, the Alumni Association has something for you!

STEWARD CONNECTS

5 THINGS YOU CAN ACCESS ON THE ALUMNI WEBPAGE

STEWARDSCHOOL.ORG/ALUMNI

1 ALUMNI NEWS

This magazine isn’t your only source for news about your fellow Spartans! We regularly publish feature stories on our own alumni digital newsroom, so be sure to check out the page to stay updated.

2 ALUMNI EVENTS

Check out our comprehensive list of all of the upcoming alumni events in 2017-18.

3 ATHLETIC CALENDAR

Stay updated about dates when you can come see your Spartans playing hard on the fields or courts.

Scan here to watch Mary Harvard Nolde’s Convocation speech!

From left to right: Kate Murray '92, Shahwar Qureshi '92, Beth Farmer '09, Dani Frazier '09, Mary Harvard Nolde '93, former Director of Athletics Janet Rice, Susan Twining ’84, Catherine Emery Leitch '93, Catherine Cooper Lipp '93, and Jimmy Benson '92.

4 UPDATE YOUR INFORMATION

Announce special news, such as a marriage or the birth of a child, by submitting a class note, or simply update your address and/or contract information so we can have it on file. You can also opt in for text updates about upcoming events.

5 FACULTY, STAFF, AND ALUMNI DIRECTORIES

Keep in touch with your fellow alumni as well as your favorite faculty and staff members by searching for their contact information in our database.

Dani Frazier '09 | President, 2017-18 Steward Alumni Association Board

COMMUNITY: ALUMNI

Achieving Country Music Stardom

The scenes from the music video for Kenny Chesney’s “All the Pretty Girls” may look familiar to you—almost all of them were filmed on location around Richmond. But that’s not the only remarkable thing about it—Will Renner ’15 (pictured top row, right) co-directed the video, which ran on CMT’s Hot 20 Countdown and has more than six million views (and counting!) on Vevo.

Over the summer, country music star Chesney and his team held a contest for college students in Tennessee to create a music video for the song. Mr. Renner, a junior at Belmont University in Nashville studying music business, entered the contest with fellow

Belmont student Jessica Martinez, despite having minimal experience shooting video.

“I knew my way around the camera, but luckily Jessica knows a lot more about creating a storyline, so we decided to team up and see what we could create,” Mr. Renner said.

The pair spent three weeks scouting out locations and filming at such locations as Belle Isle, Ray’s Italian Water Ice, Stanley’s Car and Truck Repair in Ashland, and Mark Leopold ’15’s house on Lake Anna. Several of the scenes also feature alumna Abigail Herring ’16

When Mr. Renner found out that their video had been selected as the official winner by Chesney and his team at Sony Music Nashville, he “didn’t believe it,” he said, "When it all sank in, it was just an incredible, overwhelming feeling."

After the monumental success, Mr. Renner is now considering a career in

video production. He said he’s grateful for his time at Steward for teaching him to go after his dreams, no matter how difficult they may seem. “At Steward, I was in an environment that taught you to seize opportunities that came your way and not to miss out,” he said. “That’s what I did with this video project, and it certainly paid off.”

40 YEARS LATER:

CLASS OF ’77 GRADUATES

2017 marks a very special milestone for The Steward School—it’s the 40th anniversary of our first-ever graduating class! We caught up with our three inaugural Spartans—William “Billy” Moncure, Caroline Davenport Rhodes, and Aubrey Gray Tuggle, Jr. (pictured above in that order)— to reminisce about their years at Steward:

What is your favorite memory from your time at Steward?

Mrs. Rhodes: The camaraderie between the classes was just outstanding. Steward truly felt like home for me.

Mr. Tuggle: Since we only had three people in our grade, we didn’t change classes—the teachers did! We stayed in the same room and a new teacher came in for every subject.

Mr. Moncure: It was so exciting when we broke ground on our first gymnasium. We had worked so

hard for that—everybody in the Steward family rallied together with fundraisers. That was a really big step for Steward.

What is the most important lesson you took away from Steward?

Mrs. Rhodes: We had such amazing, talented teachers who looked at students as individuals, not numbers. Having such caring and talented teachers taught me how to build solid, respectful relationships with others.

Mr. Tuggle: The importance of respect and teamwork. My classmates and I really stuck together and supported each other in everything we did. It was such a unique experience that taught me just how important it is to be there to cheer on the people who you care about.

Mr. Moncure: Despite how small the school was, we really had a lot of heart. We shared common bonds and mutual respect with all the teachers, staff, and students.

Caroline Davenport Rhodes

Aubrey Gray Tuggle, Jr.

William "Billy" Moncure

WE ARE STEWARDS:

KATE, DYLAN, AND CONNOR

We are fortunate to have a diverse array of alumni making strong contributions to our community near and far. We are even more fortunate when alumni choose to send their children to Steward, forging a lasting bond with our school that spans generations.

Not only is Katherine Porter Murray ’92 heavily involved with Steward as an alumna, but we have the pleasure of having her sons, Dylan ’21 and Connor ’24, with us as well. Find out what Mrs. Murray enjoys most about having a Spartan family.

What are the biggest benefits of having a Steward education?

I came to Steward in sixth grade and had very low self-esteem. I was definitely in need of encouragement to reach my potential. Within a week, I felt such warmth from the faculty and staff, and eventually, I started coming out of my shell. I had never gotten up and performed in front of anyone, but during my time at Steward, I became heavily involved in chorus and cheerleading. The great academic rigor at Steward helped me get into college at Hollins University, which I graduated from in 1996 with degrees in sociology and psychology. Now, I co-manage a women’s boutique store called Irresistibles in Richmond. I owe it all

to Steward because this school gave me the ability to be confident and form lasting relationships with others, as well as the drive to succeed that I didn’t have before.

Why did you decide to send your sons to Steward?

My sons have been at Steward since kindergarten because my husband and I love its child-focused, supportive learning environment. You can tell that the faculty and staff here truly love their jobs and want to help students succeed. They recognize that every student has strengths and weaknesses, and it’s their goal to foster students’ talents to get them to be the best they can be. For example, my boys have very different learning

styles. Steward works with them on an individual level to best support their needs. It shows that the teachers here truly care about students’ development and growth.

What is your favorite part of having your family involved at Steward?

I was obviously a student once, and now it’s really fun to play the parent role. It’s so interesting to look back

on my positive experience and see it through my sons’ eyes. It’s remarkable that they’ve even had some of the same teachers that I did, including music teacher Bonnie Anderson. That just goes to show that Steward has a supportive community that spans decades—everyone is so close-knit and helpful towards one another, and that’s the kind of community that I want my sons to grow up in. It’s truly a unique, special place to be, and I know they’ll look back fondly on their time here.

Interested in having your children at Steward?

Scan here to learn more about our application process!

Steward’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion is central to our mission and is a key component in the success of all that we do. We have an ongoing partnership with Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities (VCIC) in which representatives regularly visit campus to have honest conversations with students, faculty, and staff in an effort to challenge preconceived notions and promote acceptance.

In addition, Steward students are often selected as delegates to attend VCIC’s signature Emerging Leaders Institute program, The Harold M. Marsh, Sr. Connections Institute (formerly Metrotown). The experience begins with a five-

Encouraging Acceptance at Steward and Beyond

day residential program during the summer that allows student delegates to break barriers, deal with biased behavior, and develop an action plan to reduce prejudice in their schools. Two Steward alumni—Omri Morris ’10 and John “Jack” Trepp ’15—not only attended Connections during their time at Steward, but decided to work with VCIC later on in their lives:

How did you reconnect with VCIC?

Mr. Trepp: Attending Connections in 2012 was one of the greatest experiences of my life. I was lucky enough to intern in VCIC’s main office during summer 2017 before I began my junior year at Wake Forest University. Considering the kind of social and racial tensions we have in our country today, I wanted to learn from and do my best to contribute to

Cultivating an Eye for Design

Samantha Bisger ’09’s years at Steward certainly had an impact on her life—her Minimester internship inspired her to pursue a career in interior design. Ms. Bisger is currently working as a design assistant for Kemble Interiors, a leading international design firm based in New York City.

As part of the Upper School’s annual program in which many students complete week-long internships the week before spring break, Ms. Bisger chose to spend her Minimester week interning at Janie Molster Designs in Richmond. She fell in love with the design process and knew that’s what she wanted to pursue in college.

She went on to major in furnishings and interiors at the University of Georgia. During the summer before her junior year, she got the chance to intern for Kemble. It was a twist of fate that there was a spot open at the firm when Ms. Bisger graduated from college in 2014—she began working there shortly after and has never looked back.

As a design assistant, Ms. Bisger serves as an interior decorator for high-end residential projects, often serving as a liaison between a client and his or her architect on new builds. She and her team pick out all of the client’s light fixtures, flooring, and wall coverings down to every last

an organization that works tirelessly to create solutions to these issues.

Ms. Morris: When I started school at Steward, I was dealing with feelings of loneliness and discomfort, but having the chance to attend Connections in 2008 completely changed my perspective on life. Later on, I decided to work as a staff member for the 2016 and 2017 Connections programs. It was so amazing being on the other side and sharing my experience with today’s youth—I even got to work with Steward students, so everything came full circle!

How has your involvement with VCIC impacted your current or future career?

assessings what kinds of changes they'd like to see and formulating a plan to take action. This way of analyzing a situation, pinpointing issues, and creating a plan to make things better is exactly the kind of work I'd like to do when I graduate.

Ms. Morris: I’m a preschool teacher, so being involved with VCIC taught me how to approach young children in a loving way that encourages them to open up their minds to different perspectives. I not only know how to educate them about diversity, but I know how to empathize with them and relate to their individual experience. I am able to provide support by saying, “I hear you. I see you.”

Mr. Trepp: I am majoring in business and enterprise management. VCIC works with organizations by

To learn more about Steward’s commitment to diversity and inclusion, go to stewardschool.org/ diversity.

pillow and lamp shade—“we do it all,” she said.

“One of my favorite aspects of my job is that no two projects are the same because every client’s style is different,” she said. “I also get to travel pretty frequently—this fall, I worked on projects in Bermuda and Nantucket, Ma. I’m always on the go doing something new.”

Ms. Bisger credits Steward for giving her the strong writing and interpersonal skills needed to be successful in her career.

“Communication is a huge aspect of my job, so I really owe it to Steward for cultivating my skills in written and oral communications,” she said.

Class Notes

David MacKenzie ’85 married Valerie Hardin MacKenzie on October 6, 2017 in Richmond.

Laura Slabaugh Hargrave ’01 gave birth to a baby boy, Grayson Hargrave, on April 27, 2017.

1 Rachel Petock Mays ’06 married Devin Mays on March 25, 2017 in Madison, Va. Steward alumni in the wedding party included Austin Haas Shriver ’06, Lauren Christian Redfern ’07, and Louisa Kendig Adkins ’06

2 Louisa Kendig Adkins ’06 married Jason Adkins on April 29, 2017 in Richmond. Steward alumni in the wedding party included Austin Haas Shriver ’06, Beverley Borum ’06, and M’Lissa Levitt ’06

3 Megan Rhodes Litteral ’07 married Andrew Litteral on February 11, 2017 in Mexico.

Timothy Brinn ’07 married Julie Laskoski on May 27, 2017 in Milton, Pa.

4 Lauren Christian Redfern ’07 and Spencer Pierce Redfern were married on June 24, 2017 in Richmond. Steward alumni in the wedding party included Elicia Buchsbaum ’07, Mary Taylor Thornton ’07, Austin Haas Shriver ’06, Grace Astrove ’06, Rachel Petock Mays ’06, Erica Buchsbaum ’07, William Christian ’05, Braxton Pruitt ’05, Clay Carter ’05, and James "Matt"Gottwald ’99.

5 Chelsea Voltz Congdon ’08 gave birth to a baby girl, Addison Elizabeth Congdon, on April 6, 2017.

James E.B. “Jeb” Stuart VI ’09 married Danielle Chambers on April 22, 2017 in Richmond.

Ryan Burgess ’09 married Courtney Zamparello on December 10, 2016 in Richmond.

James Thornhill ’09 married Maggie Benson on May 6, 2017 in Richmond.

6 Richard Kish ’10 married Brooke Hubbard on April 29, 2017 in Richmond.

7 Andrew Caldwell ’13 was inducted into Sigma Alpha Lambda,

National Leadership and Honors Organization at the University of Virginia.

Michelle Napper ’13 graduated cum laude from Pace University in May 2017 with a double major in marketing and business management. She was also inducted into the American Advertising Federation Honors Society.

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First Day of School

You can download additional photos from these events and more on Steward Snaps!

Fall Social

Whirled Peace Day

Fall Spirit Week

Trucks & Shucks Oyster Roast

Founder’s Society Celebration

MS/US Grandparents Day

Ray Tate Spartan Golf Classic

IN OUR COMMUNITY: SNAPSHOTS

Thanksgiving Assembly

“I support Steward because this school means so much to me and my family. ”

“I donate to the Annual Fund because I know my participation matters. I want to be part of helping all students at Steward.”

WHAT’S YOUR STORY?

Each member of the Steward community tells a di erent story about why they give. With a gift to the Steward Annual Fund, you can help tell a story about what’s most meaningful to you.

Your support can be put to work immediately to fund the school’s most pressing needs. You can also direct your gift to fine arts, athletics, professional development, technology, or financial aid. When you donate, you join with parents, grandparents, faculty, alumni, and friends that make giving to Steward a priority.