WEBB Magazine - Spring 2016

M A G A Z I N E

Spring 2016

Legacy Students Enroll in Record Numbers

THINKING INSIDE THE BOX

•

AGE OF REASON

•

ONE REMARKABLE LEGACY

a summer of amazing opportunities begins right here:

webb.org/summer Explore. Discover. Collaborate. Build.

Junior Scholars Program

Global Leadership

Paleontology, Leadership or Digital Arts

Engineering & Entrepreneurship

Grades 7 & 8

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10-day residential program 2 sessions: July 8 -17 and

July 20 -29

3-week residential program July 8 -29

WEBB

Spreading the word.

Meet our writers — Debbie Carini is a writer and development professional. She has been

M A G A Z I N E Spring 2016

FEATURES

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From the Head of Schools Thinking Inside the Box Age of Reason One Remarkable Legacy Legacy Students Enroll in Record Numbers

WEBB TODAY

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Sports Arts The Alf at Webb Faculty Affiliates

NEWSNOTES

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Alumni Profiles WSC and VWS News In Memoriam Final Word: Tracy Miller

affiliated with The Webb Schools since 1999 as a writer for the magazine as well as various campaign and fundraising materials; she is also a successful grant writer for the schools and Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology. She is a contributing writer to the Claremont Courier with the monthly humor column “Out of My Mind.”

John Ferrari has experience as a newspaper journalist and as a writer, editor, communications strategist and public outreach specialist in higher education. He has written feature articles on topics ranging from astrophysics and genetics to theme parks and, of course, the Alf Museum. He also serves as a public affairs officer in the Navy Reserve.

Aaron Severson began his writing and editing career as the editorial assistant for a science journal. He later became a story development executive for film, television, and comic book publishing and, more recently, a freelance writer and the founder of the award-winning automotive history website Ate Up With Motor. He has written for The Webb Schools since 2009.

SOCIAL

From the Head of Schools

Wet Clay 2

Recently while attending a Webb reception in San Francisco, I spoke with alumnus Dan Murray ’89 for some time. Dan, now in his 40s, was one of the original students I met when interviewing for my first job at Webb in 1988. While we were reconnecting, Dan described for me his feeling that being at Webb felt to him like being made of wet clay. Meaning, as a high school sophomore, he felt he was still very much developing as a person— and he knew that the faculty at Webb were playing a huge role in shaping him.

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

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found this metaphor powerful, and my mind jumped back to Thompson Webb and those years in the 1930s when his office was literally in the open air, as he built his chapel by hand. One can’t help but wonder what he was thinking as he molded that wet clay, much like his school was molding each student who enrolled there.

He not only embraced his family tradition, but also he reshaped that tradition and made his own mark on the world by using what he found in Southern California.

I have always felt that our high school years are the most formative, and this image of wet clay really brought it home for me. Working with young students of “wet clay” allows a creative faculty to leave impressions that will be shaped and reshaped in the years to come. Wet clay facilitates both original creations, as well as the reworking of the old into something new. Life itself, the nature of which is constant change, depends upon this flexibility.

Handmade adobe bricks used in the building of the Vivian Webb Chapel.

At this same reception, I had the opportunity to also reconnect with a great number of alumni, including Otis Y. Chandler ’96.

Otis came to Webb carting with him a family legacy in print media. Of course, Harrison Gray Otis and Harry Chandler built the Los Angeles Times into one of the leading newspapers in our nation. When Otis Chandler graduated from Webb, he decided to carry on the family legacy, but in an entirely new way. Otis started Goodreads in 2007, and it is now the online home to more than 40 million book lovers and readers around the globe. He took what was in his DNA and what he learned along the way and created something entirely new.

Similarly, we have no shortage of Vivian Webb graduates who are now very successful women. I am thinking of such inspirational leaders as Julia Marciari-Alexander ’85, now the executive director of the Walters Art Museum, Faye Karnavy Sahai ’86, a top executive at AIG in San Francisco overseeing the company’s global innovation and digital business centers, restaurateur and chef Jenn Louis ’89, Caroline Adler ’00, special assistant to President Obama and deputy communications director to first lady Michelle Obama, and so many more.

These are but a few examples that represent thousands of alumni who were nurtured here and I believe in some significant way “formed” on this campus.

I’ve often asked myself, when I interviewed at Webb as a teacher all those years ago, and met Dan and his friends, what was it about them that convinced me that this was the place I wanted to be? Although I couldn’t articulate it at the time, I think it was this sense of students who were in this process of discovery, students who benefited from Webb’s rich history and traditions, but were not mired in it the way you see often at other, older institutions. Like the founder himself, these were students who were eager and excited to take risks, create their own passions, and leave their own stamp on the world.

This edition of Webb embodies this spirit of taking the wet clay of our history and legacy, and molding each student’s foundation today and in years to come. This generative process of continually renewing ourselves is the essence of Webb, and perhaps, our greatest attribute of all.

Taylor B. Stockdale Head of Schools

The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

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Thinking

Inside the

Box — by Aaron Severson

The case for specialized colleges

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For students who already know where their passions lie, the idea of going to a college specializing in that field can be both tempting and intimidating. Specialized schools offer unique resources and a sense of focus that larger, more generalized colleges and universities can’t match. On the other hand, attending a specialized college may entail sacrifices that not everyone is willing to make.

A group of young Webb alumni recently shared their experiences with specialized colleges and weighed in on their advantages and tradeoffs.

Kaitlynn Eyvazzadeh ’14

Unique

advantages, While many colleges and universities offer courses or degree programs in disciplines like art, engineering, and business, the resources of those programs may pale in comparison to the opportunities available at schools specializing in those fields.

For example, at the prestigious Swiss hospitality management school Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL), which Max Popov ’14 is now attending, all students complete an intensive preparatory semester during which they alternate between classroom study and on-the-job experience covering almost every aspect of the hospitality industry. That includes working full shifts in the school’s own gourmet restaurant, Le Berceau des Sens. “It’s a real restaurant with a lot of reservations from people unrelated to the school,” says Popov. “It is usually reserved well in advance, especially in the holiday season. All the service is performed by students, with professional supervisors, and all the food is also prepared by students with help from professional chefs.”

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Vincent Law ’13, a junior in the food science

program at Cornell University’s College of Agriculture

and Life Sciences (CALS), says his program operates

its own dairy plant, which supplies yogurt and

ice cream for all Cornell dining halls. “We have our

own pasteurizers and ice cream machines,” he says.

“You get to see a whole miniature factory in our

own building. We develop our own ice cream flavor

as our end-of-the-year project.”

For Maddie Gaumer ’15, a freshman at Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, one of the unique advantages is Mudd’s approach to research. “There are amazing research opportunities going on,” says Gaumer, who has already participated in several Mudd research projects. “Because it’s an undergraduate-focused university, you’re not just getting people coffee—you’re doing real research.”

Chudan (Ivy) Liu ’15, another Mudd freshman, is excited about the school’s Clinic Program, which, she explains, “provides [juniors and seniors] the opportunity to solve real-world problems under the guidance of a mentor from a sponsoring corporation.”

unique

environment,

Ivy Liu ’15

Even students who are committed to a particular field or range of fields don’t always know where that interest will take them or how best to approach it. At a specialized school, students can explore the possibilities among peers who all share similar or related interests, providing a rich source of ideas, inspiration, and energy for everyone involved.

Kaitlynn Eyvazzadeh ’14, who is dual-majoring in songwriting and music business and management at Berklee College of Music in Boston, says that being surrounded by other musicians is an important part of her experience there. “It was really overwhelming when I first arrived,” she says. “I used to feel scared and found myself comparing my talent to others. Now, when I see other people that are better than me, it motivates me to practice and write more. It makes me want to become better.”

Stephanie Cho ’14 has found similar inspiration at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, the world’s oldest collegiate business school, where she is now a sophomore.

“I wasn’t particularly interested in becoming an entrepreneur, but seeing how much energy and passion some of my friends pursue it with is amazing,” she says. “I’ve seen some of my friends build a business entirely from scratch and go through an initial public offering, growing it to a company worth a couple of million dollars.” She now says she wants “to try investing as her ultimate career option.”

Gaumer says that even in the STEM fields, “it’s a really positive thing to be surrounded by people who are interested in the same things you are. At a lot of colleges, you’re going to be stuck in classes with kids who don’t like math or don’t like physics.

That’s never quite as much fun as being in a room full of kids who love math.”

7 Building strong camaraderie is of course a principal objective of military academies. “One thing I knew even before I attended,” says Air Force Academy alumna Lt. Juli Nokleberg ’10, “was that the camaraderie amongst cadets was bar none. The Academy and the people who decide to wear the uniform have lived up to my expectations and gone beyond.”

unique

connections.

One of the most important assets any school can offer students is the chance to start building a professional network. While many kinds of connections may be potentially useful, there are definite advantages to having a broad network within your own field.

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Emily Stewart ’11, who in 2014 completed her BFA in photography at New York’s Parsons School of Design, says the environment at Gabriel Gosney ’14, a midshipman at the Naval Academy, says that’s one of the major benefits of attending a military academy rather than pursuing a commission through ROTC at a civilian college. “The Academy is great if you want to make a career of it because it offers you better incentive to stay and better connections. All your friends are going to be in the service for a long time,” he explains.

Parsons also fosters strong professional relationships with faculty. “They have to be working artists,” she says. “You’re allowed to be friends with them and seek out connections.”

“A big part of Berklee is the connections you make,” says Eyvazzadeh. “A lot of our professors are professional musicians, which blows my mind. We also have guest speakers and famous musicians that come to talk to the students.

I saw Brian McKnight perform casually in the cafeteria my first semester.”

A related advantage is that just attending a specialized school can increase students’ visibility within their field.

Joshua Vincent ’14, a sophomore at Babson College, a relatively small but highly regarded business school in Massachusetts, says corporate recruiters are a regular presence on campus.

“If you go to a small campus, word travels fast,” he says.

“There are a lot of people coming into Babson looking for bright young minds to work for them.”

Too specialized?

The biggest fear many families have about specialized schools is that specialization may become a straitjacket. “Parents worry that their student will limit themselves to one area and not have a lot of options upon graduation,” explains director of college guidance Hector Martinez. “It is common to hear a parent say, ‘But what if they don’t make it in the art world?’ or ‘What if they don’t like what they do at that specialized college? They will have to transfer out and waste a lot of money.’”

The reality is that many specialized schools either exist within a larger university or else have close relationships with other area schools. Parsons, for instance, is one of eight New York

colleges affiliated with the New School, while Harvey Mudd is one of the Claremont Colleges. Those relationships provide students with many additional academic options.

Lara Grieco, associate director of recruitment for the University of Pennsylvania, says that at Wharton, “40% of classes are taken at other Penn schools. In fact, over one-third of Wharton students graduate with more than one undergraduate degree from Penn.”

Law says his school at Cornell works in a similar fashion.

“Our program is specialized, but at the same time, we need to take classes from other schools and majors,” he says. “I’m also taking language classes and other courses that will help me better understand my major or make me more aware of global issues.”

“Pretty much all [of Harvey Mudd College’s] core requirements for the first year and a half are on Mudd’s campus,” says Gaumer.

“It’s pretty easy once core is over to take class off-campus and I would say the majority of people here do because they want to meet other people and explore other classes.”

In some cases, students can also pursue interscholastic dual majors. Stewart’s Parsons BFA, for example, is actually one-half of a five-year dual BFA/B.A. program in photography and culture and media studies, divided between Parsons and Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts a few blocks away. Initially, Stewart looked at the two halves of her program as separate entities, but she says they’ve gradually become a more complex, unified whole. “I’ve realized they’re very interconnected with themes in my work and the way I look at photography,” she explains.

“It was one of the best choices I’ve ever made academically.”

Even where a specialized school stands alone, the skills it teaches may have many more applications than it might appear at first glance. EHL international admissions manager Mark Reimer stresses that the hospitality industry “is more than just hotels and restaurants... Any business that has at its heart a focus on people can benefit from employees that have hospitality training.” He says about half of all EHL graduates “go into non-traditional hospitality sectors, including banking and finance, retail/luxury brand management, marketing, consulting, etc.”

That said, some specialized schools are just that. Compared to Pitzer College, which he attended for a year while waiting for an appointment to the Naval Academy, Gosney says the Academy “is very much a trade school. At Pitzer, I was able to spend a ton of time learning for the sake of learning. The Academy expects midshipmen to be well-rounded, so I don’t have as much time to spend on my studies.”

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Understanding

the tradeoffs.

Attending a specialized college can involve some definite sacrifices. Naturally, that’s particularly true of military academies, which, aside from requiring a post-graduation service commitment of five or more years, maintain very strict standards of conduct. “There are restrictions on cadets because they fall under the UCMJ [Uniform Code of Military Justice],” says Nokleberg. “They are also held to a higher standard when compared to civilian college students—and, frankly, they should be. When you decide to join the military, you are deciding to wear the uniform and ultimately, if called upon, to give your life to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. The military is a 24/7, 365-day-a-year job.”

The demands of specialized civilian colleges are rarely that severe, but some are significant.

For example, EHL has a dress code, something that’s unheard of at most modern American colleges. “The students have to wear suits from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day,” says Popov.

“The rules on this dress code are really strict and students are expected to follow them.”

10 Max Popov ’14

Attending a specialized college may also mean giving up certain accustomed college traditions. Not all specialized colleges participate in intercollegiate athletics and some have no fraternities or sororities. Some schools don’t even have a campus as such. Stewart says the New School is “comprised of seven buildings scattered throughout the West Village. Once you step out of the building, you’re not even at school anymore.”

Additionally, many specialized schools are smaller than the typical major university, which can be both good and bad.

“Students who want to fly under the radar can find our small size a concern,” notes Thyra Briggs, vice president for admission and financial aid at Harvey Mudd College. “Here, people know each other by name for the most part... students, professors, and even the president. While most students love the closeness this creates, others would rather stay more anonymous.”

Another consideration is that even at specialized colleges, certain programs offer more resources and opportunities than others. That can be a problem for students who have second thoughts about their original ambitions. Ruyue (Susan) Xu ’14 enrolled at Caltech, intending to study chemical engineering.

Upon finding that field “wasn’t really what I expected it to be,” she realized that Caltech didn’t offer any alternatives she preferred. “I found out that Columbia has an industrial engineering and operations research department whose opportunities really caught my eye,” she says. “I transferred to Columbia as a sophomore.”

Weighing

the pros

and cons.

The students who thrive at a specialized college tend to be the ones who recognize and embrace the tradeoffs involved.

Stewart, for instance, loves living and attending classes “in the heart of Manhattan,” although she admits some students find the experience too stressful.

“I see on social media that my friends have gone to big schools and I sometimes wish I had the big school experience they do,” says Vincent, “but then I realize I came to this school for a reason. Everyone has second thoughts—the question is whether or not I have the fortitude to stay true to my promise. I feel that I’ve committed to it, I’m sticking it out, and I’m enjoying it.”

Nokleberg takes a similar view. “The Air Force Academy definitely challenged me more than I believed it would, but it is designed to do so,” she says. “The benefits outweigh any sacrifices, and for anyone desiring to be an officer, there truly isn’t a comparable preparatory experience.”

Nevertheless, it’s essential, particularly with military academies, that prospective students visit the school and carefully weigh the pros and cons. “The best thing to do is visit because there’s no way I can describe the atmosphere or explain how different the Academy is from college,” says Gosney. “Spend some time with a midshipman—make sure it’s what you want to do.”

“Really take a moment to ask yourself two questions,” suggests Xu. “‘Have I done adequate research on the field that I’m interested in?’ and ‘Will I enjoy my life at that school?’

If the answer is yes, then go for it. If no, maybe you should look into other, less-specialized colleges.”

Eyvazzadeh offers a slightly different perspective. She says that despite her lifelong interest in music, she never considered music school and initially resisted her father’s suggestion that she apply to Berklee. “I think it’s because I was scared,” she says. “All of my friends were going to ‘normal’ schools and I didn’t want to step out of my comfort zone. He just ignored me, pulled up the application, and started filling it out. I thank my dad for that every day.”

Eyvazzadeh believes it’s important for students to listen to their hearts as well as their heads. “We are all trying to grow up so quickly,” she says. “I will be 21 years old when I graduate from Berklee. Let’s say nothing happens—I’ll still have my whole life ahead of me. I can go study or do something else.

So breathe, and just do what you’re passionate about.”

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The Age of Reason How writing long, reading slow and arguing well will thrive in the digital age.

by John Ferrari

Where are you reading this?

Sitting on your couch? In bed? On a train? In front of your computer?

How are you reading this?

Flipping through the magazine? Reading it online? On your smartphone?

Is this the only thing you’re doing? Or are you also watching TV? Waiting for a Web page to load?

Why are you reading this?

Because it’s in your alma mater’s magazine?

Because you’re a parent—or prospective parent—of a current Webb student?

Or did the topic bring you here? Are you reading this for pleasure, or for the information?

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Technology has altered our relationship with reading.

The Internet, wireless connections, smartphones, e-readers and related technologies have expanded the ways, places and times we can read. More broadly, technology has rearranged how we consume media and get information. It’s not a new process— think of the spread of television in the 1950s, and before that radio in the 1920s—and this could be a golden age for reading.

But the speed of technology and the immediate appeal of the moving image favors sound bites over substance, quick info over contemplation, repeated assertion over reasoned debate.

Where does this leave thoughtful, analytical reading of substantive texts? Where does it leave reading for pleasure?

In the high-speed digital age, what’s the role of critical thinking?

As it turns out, they’re more important than ever.

Today’s information environment is one of multiple, simultaneous perspectives and points of view, notes Mark Dzula, Webb’s director of teaching and learning resources, and the school’s journalism program advisor. It’s an environment which presents conflicting, nuanced truths. Quick reading—browsing Wikipedia for the main plot points of Tolstoy’s War and Peace, say—leads to quick answers, but not to complex answers; not to explanations. Close reading, critical reading, does. Reading, Dzula says, is not just about getting answers, it’s about asking questions. Interrogating a text allows readers to examine a situation at multiple levels— to ask what’s really happening, beyond the action and beneath the surface. This in turn cultivates an ability to consider and engage with events, ideas and data from differing perspectives.

Those abilities are useful for more than understanding epic Russian novels. “Critical thinking is key to being an engaged citizen,” notes Theresa Smith, Webb’s director of academic affairs. “Even a quick sound bite requires a critical eye.”

In fact, says Eleanor Pettus ’02, critical thinking “is doubly important now when politicians do speak in 30-second sound bites.” Longer forms of communication—from novels to speeches—allow authors to fully explain complex ideas.

Short, quick communications—from sound bites to tweets— do not, requiring people to deduce the logic and argument underlying them. “That’s made life much more difficult for the citizen,” says Pettus, a history teacher at Atlanta Classical Academy in Atlanta. “There are implicit, underlying, extraordinarily important arguments” about the nature of humanity made in political discourse—but those arguments are lost when political speech is limited to sound bites and slogans.

“ You can’t substitute the quick facts

and the sound bites and Googling information for reasoning,” agrees Dasha Polzik ’98, a humanities teacher at Maine Coast Waldorf School in Freeport, Maine. “There are different kinds of questions that we want students and people in general to be able to answer.” Some questions have simple, factual answers, but the most important do not. “They are questions of how we live together—they’re moral and ethical and political questions.

All of the questions that we have to answer as adults in the world that are most significant have to do with moral and political values. You can’t find an answer to these questions on the Internet.”

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Beyond decoding arguments, the facilities fostered by slow reading allow people to actively engage with a complex world. Dzula argues that critical analysis and reasoning skills allow people to consider others’ perspectives, to step outside themselves. This in turn helps them communicate complex ideas to others, and understand ideas from beyond their own area of expertise—crucial skills, he says, in an environment that prizes both specialization and collaboration. As the National Center on Education and the Economy concluded in its 2007 report Tough Choices or Tough Times, in today’s workplace “comfort with ideas and abstractions is the passport to a good job, in which creativity and innovation are the key to the good life.” The National Endowment for the Arts’ To Read or Not to Read (2007) put it succinctly: “reading widely and reading well can be a career investment.”

Building these skills, says Goodreads founder Otis Chandler ’96, is a key benefit of slow reading, and especially of simply reading for pleasure.

“ Many people seem to have the mistaken

perception that fiction is only for entertainment, but I believe you learn more from a good fiction story than you can from almost anything else.

Human brains are wired to remember emotions, not facts, and so the way we literally learn and remember things is by couching them in emotions.

In other words, stories.”

Webb’s integrated humanities program is designed to develop reasoning skills, and stories are a big part of the curriculum. Short stories and novels may be read for their literary content in one course, or analyzed in their historical context in another. Students read differing types of text—from literature to political tracts—to gain experience critically examining each. “We’re trying to build a habit of slowing down,” says Smith. “I think that the habit of reading deeply isn’t something you naturally develop in an age of sound bites… we want our students to know how to decipher what’s good information and what’s not good information.”

“The whole thing about the humanities in the digital age is that it’s no longer about teaching kids a lot of facts,” explains Webb history and humanities department chair Jessica Fisher.

“It’s about knowing how to sort and prioritize facts.” Webb’s interdisciplinary approach to the humanities, she says, allows students to develop a nuanced understanding of issues and the world. That tradition is deeply embedded at Webb.

Jerry Martin ’64, now a high school English teacher at Milken Community Schools in Los Angeles, recalls that at Webb he learned to look for ambiguity and perform textual analysis.

Today, he tries to do the same for his own students, who become better thinkers when they connect with the complexity of a text, he says.

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“ What we learn in debate is there are always two sides to an argument,” Critical thinking continues beyond the classroom—from the library to afternoon activities. Dzula points out that the first step in learning critical thinking skills is being able to find reliable, reputable information. In the Internet age, students can access a world of information with a few keystrokes, but assessing that information isn’t so easy. Enter the 21st century library, which offers not only access to information, but support in selecting the right information. There’s a place for the library’s traditional role as a place for thought, too. Dzula notes that thinking is an activity. In a fast-paced world, “when do we have time to sit? We need to have space and time for contemplation.”

Critical reading, analysis and reasoning all come together in Webb’s debate team. The essence of debate—wielding evidence in support of an argument—emphasizes communications and analytical skills, says Fisher, the team’s coach.

As in Webb classrooms, debate requires a

mastery of skills, not content, and rewards

students who think about a debate topic

rather than just learn about it.

That’s its own skill, Fisher says: considering arguments holistically. Debate team members aren’t walking encyclopedias, she says—but they do learn a lot about the topics they debate.

“Because news is so digitized, sometimes it can feel overwhelming,” says Akua McLeod ’16, one of the debate team’s captains. Debate has strengthened her ability to evaluate issues, arguments and sources, and helped her think through her own beliefs.

agrees Seraphina Oney ’12, a founding member of Webb’s debate team and now a senior at Wellesley. In today’s media-saturated world, she says, people face competing sources and can’t rely on any single source of information. The close reading and critical analysis skills Webb develops help students evaluate sources and information to build their own ‘ground truth.’

Goodread’s Chandler points out that the need for critical reasoning skills extends to producers, as well as consumers, of information. “I think we are entering a renaissance of the written word,” he argues. “If you count social media and the blogosphere and text messages and email, we are writing and reading more text than ever. Thus, being able to articulate yourself clearly using words has never been more important…

The need for humans to communicate clearly and concisely has never been greater.”

Students today have a sense that they can find all the answers on the Internet, says Smith. Webb prepares students for a future when they won’t be able to look up all the answers on Wikipedia, because they’ll be the ones coming up with the answers. And in the digital age, reading slow and writing long are more powerful tools than ever. When so much of a text, or an argument, may be hidden, says Polzik, “we had better prepare people to reason.”

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From Many Acts of Generosity, One Remarkable Legacy.

In 1922, Sherman Day Thacher showed a great kindness to Thompson Webb.

Thacher was then the owner and founder of The Thacher School in Ojai, California.

At the time, Thompson Webb was teaching at his father’s school in Bell Buckle, Tenn., when Thacher reached out; Thompson described the next turn of events in his Shoestring speech—which he gave regularly to the boys and at Kiwanis and Rotary Club meetings throughout Southern California: “One day, I don’t know why, Mr. Sherman Day Thacher… wrote me a letter out of a clear sky and told me that he was turning down hundreds of boys.”

Thompson elaborated on Thacher’s unselfish offer, “He said there was a need for another school of his

by Debbie Carini

type on the Coast, and he would like very much to see me come out and start it. ”

Chandler Field

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In the beginning it was an act of generosity that helped establish Webb, and a generosity of spirit that would set the standard for a wide-sweeping tradition of philanthropy throughout the school’s history. For nearly 100 years, the altruism of alumni, parents, friends and supporters has strengthened not only the infrastructure, but also the character, permanence and far-reaching impact of Webb.

“Some of these stories span nearly 100 years,” says Head of Schools Taylor Stockdale, “but the long tail of this generosity to Webb is undeniable and timeless. Thanks to the contributions of these philanthropists, Webb students and alumni are able to make a positive impact as leaders within their communities and professions around the world.”

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At an early Webb commencement, Leo Chandler, whose son Thomas ’30 would later found Chandler School in Pasadena, thanked Thompson for what he had done for the young man.

Along with another grateful parent, Colonel Joseph W. Sutphen, whose son was Joe ’27, the pair put up enough money for Thompson to build a home, an infirmary, and 12 additional dorm rooms. This generous loan inspired other Webb parents— businessmen and founding families of the West—to throw their support behind the burgeoning enterprise and more dorms, a sewer system, and the original gym (now Hooper Student Center) were in place by the start of the 1930s.

And so it would continue throughout the school’s early years which overlapped with the catastrophic events of the stock market crash on October 24, 1929, and the ensuing consequences of The Great Depression. The Okies portrayed in John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath were picking citrus fruit and grapes not far from the campus, but the school and its plucky headmaster persevered. In 1930, Thompson called his teachers together and told them, “We may not have students enough to pay your salaries next year with the stock market crashing and so on.

All I’m going to do is offer everybody a salary ten percent less than last year.” The magnanimous teachers all accepted and

by Christmas the school was full—he called the staff together again: “You are all going to get your full salary plus a raise.”

Students and their parents took a risk on an unproven school; and Thompson took a risk in finding the right boys—going so far as to offer financial aid to the first seven students who wanted to work their way through in lieu of tuition and board.

In the late 1930s, Vivian Webb’s father, the Rev. Robert P. Howell, gave the school a thousand books from his library.

This prompted the second largest gift to the school, when the parents of Thomas Jackson ’30, a bright young man who died shortly after leaving Webb, offered to build a library as a memorial to their son and fund its entire construction, including the services of renowned architect Myron Hunt.

The Growing Ye ars Throughout the 1930s, 40s and 50s, the school experienced steady growth, and the benevolence of Webb families continued to make an impact, even though the school was a proprietary institution—there would be no tax break for contributions. The earliest dorms were funded by the Webb family and debt. The most significant structure to rise during those years was the Vivian Webb Chapel, which was begun in 1938 and completed in 1945. Teachers, students and even the occasional visitor contributed by helping Thompson lay the handmade bricks.

In 1957, the school became a non-profit institution and a steady stream of support brought the campus new structures, improved infrastructure, and enhanced grounds including: • Chandler Field, 1960, built as a memorial to Ralph Chandler ’40 (who died in World War II) by the Chandler family.

• Price Dining Hall, 1961, a gift of Alice B. and Thomas M. Price who served as a Webb trustee from 1958 to 1962.

Clockwise from above: Jackson Library; Mary N. Hutchison Center & Dorm; W. Russell Fawcett Memorial Library; Jameson Hall.

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• Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology, 1968,

whose construction was funded by a $100,000 gift from George Getty ’42, and whose labs were supported by the family of Dwight Taylor ’49 (the Taylor family, over time, would donate gifts totaling more than $1 million to Webb).

• Seeley Greenleaf Mudd Mathematics Building, 1972,

which also included a new auditorium was funded by Seeley Greenleaf Mudd (parent of Seeley Wintersmith Mudd II ’43).

• Sutro Aquatics Center, mid-1960s, a gift of $91,000

($712,000 in today’s dollars) from John A. Sutro, father of Steve ’55 and John, Jr. ’53.

In addition, the 1960s saw the construction of several new dormitories which were made possible by gifts from the families for which each structure is named: • Holt Hall, 1965, was named for Mrs. Herbert B. Holt

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(mother of Martin ’39, grandmother of Herbert ’67, and aunt of Donald Bekins ’49). In addition to the dorm that carries her name, Holt also helped finance the Alf Museum and the health center.

• William H. Jones Hall 1965 was a gift of George Getty ’42 to honor his stepfather.

• MacLeod Hall was a 1963 gift of Martha Harris MacLeod (parent of Norman Jr. ’40).

• Jameson Hall was primarily funded in 1962 by

Frank Gard Jameson ’41, (his son is Frank Jr. ’71 and grandchildren, Michael ’08 and Julia ’09).

By the 1980s, the school was firmly established and the first-ever full-fledged fundraising effort, The Campaign for The Webb Schools, was undertaken and eventually raised more than $7 million. Gifts to this campaign enriched the campus through the construction of new buildings such as: • Mary N. Hutchison Center & Dorm, a gift of John Hutchison (parent of Stuart ’83) and Murray Hutchison (parent of Chris ’80, Andrew ’86, Eric ’87 and Kevin ’89), in memory of their mother. Murray also served on the board and is a life trustee.

Barbara Mott McCarthy Aquatics Center

• Appleby Dorm, a gift of Jerene Appleby and her son,

Carlton ’41; Jerene gave the building to Webb in gratitude for Thompson Webb’s enrolling her sons (Carlton ’41 and Andrew ’46) on trust when she was unable to advance the tuition. Carlton is the father of Jeff ’69, and grandfather of Chris ’07 and Wayne ’05 and Mareesa ’07 Frank.

• W. Russell Fawcett Library, a 1987 gift of

Priscilla Fawcett as a memorial to her husband.

Her son David ’61 served as a member of the Webb faculty for 39 years.

The Path to Long-te rm Stab i lity With the infrastructure fairly well built-up, attention turned next to establishing a savings account for the school.

The 1994 -1999 Building Character—A Campaign for The Webb Schools, which raised more than $22 million, was primarily concerned with establishing a viable endowment for the institution—taking its total from $1 million to $20 million.

Webb relies on income from endowment funds to provide support for ongoing programs such as scholarships, programming, and faculty retention. James Drasdo ’63 chaired the campaign and made a leadership gift to help establish the Les & Barbara Perry Faculty Enrichment Fund.

During Building Character there were several transformative leadership gifts including: • The Mary Stuart Rogers Endowed Scholarship,

established in 1996 and made possible by Col. John S. Rogers USAF ’59, grandfather of Tylor ’16, and the Mary Stuart Rogers Foundation.

• Raymond M. Alf Inspirational and Unbounded Teaching

Chair in Science, funded in 1998 in honor of Ray Alf by Robert A. Hefner III ’53.

• Robert A. Hefner III ’53 Endowment for Excellence in Science, providing annual support for science related initiatives.

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• The McCarthy Collaborative Learning Lab established

in 2000 through the generosity of Avery McCarthy ’52.

McCarthy has continued to help fund new software programs and licenses for computer labs and dormitories.

He also funded the Avery McCarthy ’52 Charitable Lead

Unitrust to support the world languages department and supported the new Barbara Mott McCarthy Aquatics Center.

• The estate of David Pinkham ’37 provided more than

$4 million from a charitable trust set up by him and his wife Virginia Pinkham. The gift was used in part for construction projects, faculty development, and programs that will help the schools continue to promote the character of its students.

• The Les and Barbara Perry Faculty Enrichment Fund,

established in 1995, with a leadership gift from James Drasdo ’63.

• An unrestricted gift from the Scripps brothers,

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Charles and Robert, both the class of ’37.

• The Clifford S. Heinz ’37 Ethical Education Program,

which was established in 1997 by Clifford Heinz ’37 and the C.S. Heinz Foundation to augment the work of Webb’s student-run honor committees, curriculum and athletic programs.

As a new century took hold, Webb once again looked to its future.

In 2005, the Fulfilling Our Promise campaign addressed comprehensive needs of the school including capital necessities, endowment, operating funds, and the Alf Museum. The campaign, which raised more than $50 million, established 25 new endowment funds, increased the amounts of 20 existing endowment funds, and was the most successful planned giving effort ever, producing the largest deferred gifts in Webb’s

Above: Copeland Donahue Theater Below: Mary Stuart Rogers Sports Center

Additional major gifts came from Paul Reitler ’54 (his brother is William ’72 and his grandson is Chason Bridges ’13) who established the Reitler Scholarship Fund; the Hanson family (Skip ’59, Bob ’62 and their father Wayne); Peter Ziegler ’63; Franklin Otis Booth Jr. ’40 and the Otis Booth Foundation for endowment for financial aid; and Louis Mayberg ’80, also for financial aid endowment through The Louis Mayberg ’80 Scholarship Fund.

90+ year history: $13.2 million in deferred gifts at face value.

There were also numerous capital improvements and more than $10 million was raised through The Webb Fund.

The campaign kicked-off with an extraordinary gift— the largest in Webb’s history at more than $6 million— from James D. Burke ’42 and his wife, Lin (P Richard ’69).

The leadership gift came in the form of a family cabin on Big Bear Lake, which was subsequently sold; with the proceeds of that sale, Webb built the Copeland Donahue Theater in 2008. Additionally, the gift continues to provide endowment support to the schools.

As Webb now looks to The Centennial in 2022, the community can be proud of what it has built and what is yet to come. Those early Webb facilities, with modern upgrades, still represent the core of today’s vibrant campus, now comprising 30 buildings and 42 faculty residences on more than 70 acres of land.

Throughout the years, Webb’s leaders have added significantly to the institution’s footprint in response to growing enrollment, changing needs, and enhanced capabilities. New buildings have been, and will continue to be, designed to blend harmoniously with the campus’ stately architecture and—in keeping with Thompson’s intent—to maximize opportunities for students, faculty, and visitors to exchange ideas, learn, lead honorable lives, and establish lifelong bonds.

The campaign included leadership gifts such as: • The Mary Stuart Rogers Sports Center and Faculty Field through a gift from Col. John S. Roger USAF ’59 and the Mary Stuart Rogers Foundation.

• Endowed funds to support the salary of the curator at

the Alf Museum as well as a fund to support the curator’s research work with students and the scientific community

by Gretchen Augustyn (P Jennifer ’89) and family.

Augustyn is a trustee of the Alf Museum.

• Ming Chung Liu and Yan Cheung (P Ken ’10) made the

lead gift towards the Susan A. Nelson Performing Arts Center; they also generously supported major renovations to the historic Alamo dorm.

• The John Bryan Family Scholarship Fund established by

“Generous contributions of alumni, parents, and

Mr. and Mrs. John Bryan ’43 • The Crean Foundation established a matching scholarship

program that garnered $3 million to support financial aid for deserving students, which was also made possible by the Crean family, and Crean Foundation board member, Susan Thomas (P Corey ’05 and Elizabeth ’09).

• Charlene E. and Michael T. Gallagher (P Candace ’07

and Michael ’09) provided instrumental support to several key areas of the campaign including the Kirkhill Dorm renovation, the campus turn-around and the reconstruction of the student quad area.

• The estate of Mr. and Mrs. Victor Heerman Jr. ’42

supported faculty.

• The estate of Dwight W. Taylor ’49 supported

current needs.

friends who believe in the mission of a Webb education have helped to create and sustain Webb. The future— Webb at 100—holds bright promise for new and exciting ventures,” says Joe Woodward, director of institutional advancement.

“Webb is committed to providing current and future students with a learning experience that is unmatched in all aspects: academic, athletic, social, and civic.”

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Alumni and Sibling Legacy Students Enroll in Record Numbers

W

ith so many statistics supporting the benefits of a

boarding school education, it should come as no surprise

that applications to Webb are up 100% since 2001—and a growing number of these applicants are the children of alumni and siblings of our graduates. While these numbers are impressive alone, perhaps even more striking is the number of students, who, once accepted, actually join the Webb community. Of boarding students who are accepted, some 70% choose to attend Webb (versus 52% at boarding schools nationwide), and 98% of day students accepted join the community.

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“

“We’ve made such wonderful progress enrolling legacy students. Today we find ourselves at an all-time high.

We want our alumni and legacy families to know that we have a robust financial aid budget and are working hard to make Webb affordable for the best and brightest,” says Taylor Stockdale, Head of Schools.

”

“Families say yes because Webb is doing so well,” says Leo Marshall, director of admission.

Of course, attending a top boarding school does more than help students get into a good college—it provides a remarkable education, a powerful alumni network, and lifelong friends. But Webb’s attractiveness to bright, eager

The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

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students has most to do with the distinctive qualities that set Webb apart from peer schools— an ambitious program in developing honorable leaders, a forward-looking and innovative curriculum, and a dedicated boarding faculty and staff.

“The school isn’t stuck in time.

We still honor the core values of a Webb education, but we’re a dynamic and innovative learning community,” Marshall says.

Stockdale agrees and adds that the long tenured admission office has certainly helped with these numbers. Leo Marshall’s work over the past 15 years has been in partnership with Stevie Marshall, who serves as the senior associate director of admission. They are joined in this endeavor by Jeff Stodgel, associate director of admission and financial aid, and Heidi Marti, assistant director of admission.

“Everyone is competing for great boarding students,” says Marshall.

“The difference at Webb is that this is a school that’s always looking at itself and asking, ‘what can we do better?’”

Certainly the strong interest in a Webb education within the legacy community of alumni and current families is a great indicator of Webb’s growing success as a school. There are now 16 alumni legacy students on campus—13 are the children of graduates and three are the children of alumni grandparents. There are also numerous nieces, nephews and cousins of alumni at Webb. All told, nearly one-third of current students has a sibling on campus or is related to a Webb graduate.

Over the last five years, Webb has also garnered national and international attention in a variety of publications and been ranked as one of the best boarding schools in America. Publications as diverse as The Washington Post, Boarding School Review, Los Angeles magazine, Business Insider, The Bund magazine and others have taken note of both Webb’s excellence and its uniqueness.

According to Stockdale, this recognition has come in part because of the growing national reputation of Webb’s senior team and faculty. “Involvement of senior staff in national organizations such as NAIS (National Association of Independent Schools), TABS (The Association of Boarding Schools), CASE (Council for Advancement and Support of Education) and other organizations has been important in raising the stature of the schools nationwide,” he says.

Webb’s rise in notoriety also enhances college admission opportunities as well.

Hector Martinez, director of college guidance, is today one of the most well-known college placement officers in the country. Martinez has served as chairman of The College Board Western Region and was a member of the Council of the College Board Scholarship Service. He most recently was appointed to a threeyear term as a member of the National College Board Guidance and Admissions Council and served as co-chairman of the College Board National Forum.

In the end, Stockdale explains, “Our senior team and our faculty continue to work so hard to bring to fruition the promise of The Centennial Strategic Plan. For all of these reasons, students and families from across the country and around the world look at a Webb education as one of the most important investments they can make.”

“For me, the children and siblings of Webb alumni are among the best and brightest of our incoming class each year. I want this to continue to be true for years to come,” Stockdale finished.

The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

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WEBB

TODAY

G AU L AT H LE T I C S

Five Fall Teams Reach CIF Competition

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With a number of teams finishing in top slots league-wide, athletics director Steve Wishek can state with confidence that the move to the San Joaquin League has been a huge victory for athletes and their teams.“It continues to pay dividends in terms of success for our athletes,” said Wishek. “Success is becoming the new normal for Gauls teams.”

Five teams finished at, or near the top, of league standings and experienced CIF competition.

Girls Cross Country was the league champion for the first time since 1991 and continued on to the CIF prelims, where they finished one spot away from advancing to CIF finals.

Boys Cross Country followed their 2014 League Championship with another for 2015, and also continued on to CIF. Runner Raphael Huang ’17 was named League MVP and First Team honors went to Andrew Fenichel ’17 and Jackson Bibbens ’18; Second Team honors went to Henry Dominquez-Letelier ’17, Kevin Wang ’18, Barrett Fischer ’16, and Nick Martinez ’18.

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

In addition, Sarah Hebb ’18, Yukimi Hiroshima ’17, Anissa Medina ’18, Madison Steinorth ’18, and Anne Lofgren ’19 were named to the All-League First Team, and Clair Jiang ’18, Isabella Martinez ’19, and Grace Kirkland ’18 were named All-League Second Team.

In WSC water polo competition, the team captured the league championship for the first time since 2009 and played through the semifinals. WSC water polo athletes compete in the Academy League, which is in its first year of existence. David Albers ’16 was named League MVP, First Team All-CIF, and to the all-area water polo team by the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin newspaper. Other All-League honors went to Travis Alvarado ’18, Mitchell Fargo ’17, and Max Sapozhkov ’17, First Team; and Will Donahue ’18, Richard Parnell ’16, and Mark Kraus ’16, Second Team.

In addition to David Albers ’16, Mitchell Fargo ’17 was named First Team All-CIF, Travis Alvarado ’18 was named Second Team All-CIF and Mark Kraus ’16 was named Third Team All-CIF. VWS Tennis also finished league play in first place and followed with a trip to CIF where they competed until the quarter finals. Athletes Gio Tyndale ’16, Katie Hawkes ’16, Megan Kotrappa ’16, and Tiffany Kim ’16 received First Team All-League honors; while Michelle Lee ’16, Thea Kirkpatrick ’18, Jordan Street ’16 and Naomi Buday ’16 received Second Team All-League accolades.

“This is a back-to-back league championship for VWS tennis,” said Wishek, explaining that each year, the Gauls have been eliminated from CIF competition by the team that eventually went on to win the CIF championship.

Girls Volleyball finished second in league play and received second place honors in CIF competition. Jordan Fuelling ’17 was named to the All-League First Team, while Jessica Burns ’16 and Kate Lofgren ’16 earned Second Team honors.

The Gauls gridiron team played their first evening game under the lights on Faculty Field taking on Fairmont Prep of Anaheim.

Chaz Salazar ’16, Apollo Thomas ’17 and Shey Newton ’16 were named to the First Team All-League, and Raj Sandhu ’16 and Tylor Bell-Rogers ’16 were recognized on the Second Team All-League.

Gabriel Sanchez ’77 returned to Webb to coach the first VWS golf team. While a student at Webb, Sanchez played golf for four years and was captain of the team for three.

“I really enjoy coaching the girls at VWS,” he said. “One of the proudest moments of last season was when we were named the high school girls’ golf team with the highest GPA in Southern California.”

Kitty He ’17 took home Second Team All-League honors for the team.

Wishek was also proud to announce: Hailey Arteaga ’16 signed a National Letter of Intent to play softball for Division 1 Seton Hall University receiving a full scholarship to play for the Big East university in South Orange, NJ; and Shey Newton ’16 signed to play football for Division 1 University of San Diego.

“The fall season has been marked with a lot of success on the field, for which we are very proud,” said Wishek, “but even more importantly, the coaches and student athletes have represented Webb with distinction in regards to their sportsmanship and comportment embodying the schools mission to the outside community.”

For more information about Webb’s athletic programs, teams, and scheduling, go to http://www.webb.org/athletics/index.aspx.

The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

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WEBB

TODAY

THE ARTS

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T H E AT E R I N T H E D I G I TA L A G E Technology and theater have long been intertwined: from the days of the Ancient Greeks and Romans who employed deux ex machina (a plot device in which an actor would be lowered onto the stage via crane) to the revolving stage of Kabuki theater in the 1750s to the mounting of footlights in the 1880s. Today’s technology–computercontrolled lighting, sound, and scenery–has become an indispensable part of live performing arts providing exciting new experiences not only for actors, but also for those interested in production and design.

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

Behind the Scenes

The technical theater program at Webb offers a unique opportunity for students to explore the area of entertainment technology. And, with Webb’s theatrical venues–the Liu/Cheung Theater and the Copeland Donahue Theater and Digital Media Studio–they are exposed to the latest technological advances. The Liu/Cheung Theater features a state-of-the-art control booth with professional grade lighting and sound systems, two spotlights, a cyclorama with LED lighting, a sprung floor on stage, lighting catwalks, a rehearsal room, and a dedicated scene shop for constructing sets and props. The Copeland Donahue is a flexible space that features a hi-tech digital media studio for creating cutting-edge works.

Alex Valdez is Webb’s technical director, and he describes his students as artists.

“We (the technicians) are performers too,” he says.

“We want to captivate the audience, but also enhance and embellish what the performer is doing on stage.

Participants in the program are trained to be resourceful and imaginative contributors who integrate engineering and artistic techniques with theatrical settings.

“There is great cohesion between the performers and the technicians–this art form is very collaborative, the show belongs to the students and every set piece, prop, and special effect is created by students. It’s worth more to them when they put all that energy into it,” says Valdez.

Participation in theater tech is much like being on a team, there are many different components to bringing a show to life.

Sarah Tinsley ’17 decided to explore theater tech on the advice of another classmate.

“It was like rocket science to me when I first started,” she says of the technology. “But as time progressed, and I learned more, it became a lot simpler.”

Tinsley has worked on theatrical, dance and choral productions. And she’s learned to be inventive.

“During one musical number, the sound temporarily went out,” she says. “The technicians still had to come up with sound effects, and we did, using an old bottle!”

Curtis Scheu ’16 says he never really thought about the origins of the lighting or sound, or the workers behind the scenes, whenever he found himself in a performance space. Now, after several seasons, his participation has paid off in more ways than he’d imagined it would.

“I’ve come to know the names and science behind all the cords I’ve used to set up my desktop computers and TVs, and a lot more about how electricity works,” he says.

“When a projector isn’t working in class, I can troubleshoot or even fix the problem before we have to call upon the technical support staff.”

Scheu’s favorite special effect so far was for the 2015 dance show, Underworlds and Awakenings, which was inspired by the myth of Persephone. The effect was during Bailey Scherer’s ’16 solo which she performed on a suspended hoop.

“The theater was dark besides a few lights: two to create clear shadows to the left and right of her on the stage, and one to create a rose pattern on the crash pad below her,” explains Scheu. “For me, it was one of the first moments that I stopped and realized how my work could take an already beautiful person and dance routine, and make it even more so.”

Fine arts department chair Stefanie Plumley says that she and Valdez work very closely through every stage of production to ensure that the technology is used to enhance the story.

“We never do anything just because it looks cool, or because we can,” she says.

“Of course, that doesn’t prevent us from doing cool things with our new toys, but we always make sure that it is part of the storytelling, rather than the main event.”

For example, she explains: “the first show we did in the space,

Metamorphoses, involved a lot of gods speaking to mortals. The challenge was to create something that was truly awesome and otherworldly.

So I had media arts teacher Jonathan Capone film certain scenes, which we were then able to project onto fog during the show. The result was fantastic; giant heads speaking from a curtain of fog–what could be more god-like than that! None of it would have been possible without the new technology. The things we can do with lighting now are incredible, and it’s become a major player when I’m in the process of designing a show.”

If the designers can imagine it, odds are good that it can be built and carried out

by Webb’s theater techs.

“Not a lot of high schools have a tech program as all-encompassing as ours,” says Valdez. “Our program covers all areas–set design, lighting and sound design and props. We have a proscenium stage, a black box theater, a full scene shop, and lighting and sound capabilities with separate controls.”

For theater tech participants, working under the pressures of deadlines, creative problem solving, teamwork and self-expression can be just as exhilarating as scoring the winning run or crossing the finish line. It’s the job of a stage manager to call cues with precision and insight, blending the technical elements seamlessly into the show.

It’s the job of a lighting designer to create a stellar light plot that directs the audience’s focus to what’s important on stage and it’s the job of stagehands to complete scene changes without the audience missing a beat. Theater technicians are often considered “behind the scenes,” but their work makes every production possible.

And Webb’s sophisticated systems and equipment provide a springboard from which creativity can truly take flight.

“There are many aspects of theatrical performance, and bringing them all together in harmony is the impressive feat that our directors, teachers, and friends manage to do so well here at Webb,” adds Scheu.

Plumley concurs: “The hands-on learning, the opportunity to develop a set of real skills and the community we build in the afternoon theater program is the biggest reason that non-performers decide to join us.”

The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

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News from the Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology at The Webb Schools

Alf Museum Creates National Award to Recognize Research and Education Excellence by Paleontologists 36

One of the most important facets of the Alf Museum is its integration into The Webb Schools, and the extensive opportunities that students have to work with real paleontologists.

This is a powerful educational model, and one that deserves to be used more widely. Yet, it is difficult to implement because professional paleontologists are often hesitant to engage in these kinds of efforts with K-12 students for a variety of reasons: lack of time, lack of recognition of its importance by universities, or a shortage of funding, among others. In order to encourage and recognize endeavors outside of Webb, the trustees of the Alf Museum have established the Raymond M. Alf Award for Excellence in Paleontological Research and Education. It honors a paleontologist who pursues outstanding original scientific research as well as exceptional education and outreach at the primary and secondary school (K-12) levels in the spirit of Ray Alf. Dr. Kent Smith of Oklahoma State University’s Center for Health Sciences was the first recipient of the award, given at the 23rd Annual Peccary Society Dinner. Dr. Smith is a professor of anatomy, associate dean for the university’s Office for the Advancement of American Indians in Medicine and Science, an affiliated research associate of the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, and co-founder of Native Explorers Foundation. This foundation creates

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

Dr. Andrew Farke (R) presents Dr. Kent Smith (L) with the inaugural Alf Award.

innovative educational programs around the disciplines of anatomy and vertebrate paleontology, with the goal of increasing the number of Native Americans pursuing careers as scientists, educators, and physicians.

As his colleagues attest, Dr. Smith’s “unwavering commitment to encouraging students,” has ignited a passion for paleontology and scientific inquiry in countless young minds. He empowers students to explore opportunities, try difficult research, and to imagine themselves as scientists. His philosophy is akin to that of Raymond Alf. “Our initiatives will increase the number of American Indians practicing medicine and working in the science fields through mentoring and targeted programs,” said Smith.

As expressed by Alf Museum board member Terry Baganz, “Out of all the candidates, Dr. Smith stood out because he engages young people to experience the thrill of scientific discovery, which embodies our mission here at the Alf Museum.”

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Student Perspectives from a Paleontology Conference

By Megan Kotrappa ’16 In October 2015, a group of seven Webb students attended the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology’s annual meeting (SVP), held in Dallas, Texas. They continued a long tradition of students presenting their original research at the conference. One of the attendees was Megan Kotrappa ’16, a senior in Webb’s Advanced Studies in Paleontology class. Below, she talks about her research and her experience at the SVP conference.

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Projects in the Collections Room:

Cavity Mounts

Fossils break. It happens. But that doesn’t mean we can’t try and prevent breaks in the first place.

One new way we are doing this is to make custom housing for specimens known as cavity mounts.

Starting in August 2014, I began researching the inner ear of a multituberculate, an extinct rodent-like mammal that lived in California about 60 million years ago. Through digital segmentation, I was able to isolate the left and right ear canals from a CT scan of the skull. After a few months of going layer by layer through the CT scan, I created a 3D model that was printed on the research lab’s 3D printer.

Then I identified the specific regions of each respective ear canal and compared it to information on ear regions from other multituberculate species. Before the end of the school year, I was able to write an abstract that summarized the information I gained from this research and then applied for the chance to present it at the SVP conference. Upon returning to school in August, I learned that my abstract was accepted, so I created a poster that covered all the aspects of the research I had done the past year.

After writing the text for the poster, practicing my one-minute spiel, and seeing the completed cloth poster in front of me, I awaited our trip to the SVP Conference.

While at the meeting, we explored Dallas, attended presentations, and learned about new and upcoming research from well-known paleontologists. When it came time for my presentation, I was both excited and overwhelmed. Paleontologists from around the world and authors of the papers I had read stopped by to ask questions about the advanced technology I used and provide advice on further research. Others doing similar work asked my opinion on Slicer, the program I used for the CT scan segmentation, while some asked what my research could tell us about this species of multituberculate.

Getting asked whether this was my Ph.D. thesis truly confirmed the level of research we are doing at the Alf Museum. Attending the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology conference and presenting was a once in a lifetime experience for a high school student, and I am so thankful to have had the opportunity.

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This cavity mount houses parts of the right foot of a tyrannosaur from the Kaiparowits Formation of Utah.

These easy-to-make storage containers are an ideal way to house fossils. Each mount is made with archival materials, such as Ethafoam and Tyvek. These materials won’t harm the fossil and can stand the test of time. Each cavity mount is custom-made as the Ethafoam is cut into the shape of the fossil to ensure that the specimen is kept stable, there isn’t stress put on delicate structures, and the specimen won’t roll around when moved. Tyvek lines the foam cavity and provides additional support for fragile fossils, and works to catch any fragments that might happen to fall off. Cavity mounts work great for researchers too. They provide a secure way to handle fossils and a safe place to put them while taking measurements or making observations. Yes, cavity mounts take time to build, but this step is one of the most important in preserving Alf Museum fossils for future generations.

The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

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Serving the Alf Museum for 30 Years:

Docent Carol Jorden A vital part of the museum’s mission is our strong commitment to education and public outreach as we work to connect with people in our local communities.

Beyond the weekday tours and fossil loan kits that annually reach thousands of elementary school students, Family Science Discovery Days are special Saturday events that accommodate family visits and encourage participation.

These are big events that would not be possible without student and parent volunteers and our exceptional docents, Marky Katib, Ellen Goldman, Bill Hanlon and Carol Jorden.

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Carol Jorden has the longest history as a museum docent, with 30 years of dedicated service. She began in 1986 while attending Cal State Los Angeles for her teaching credential. Geology courses led to her interest in paleontology and she discovered the Alf Museum. Carol saw Ray Alf conduct tours, and with his dramatic and captivating lessons, she knew that she would bring her own students to the museum someday.

It wasn’t long before Carol was conducting tours of the museum for students of her school every year. Although busy as a full-time teacher, Carol also volunteered Volunteering at the Alf Museum inspired Carol to apply for an Earthwatch Institute for the museum’s weekend events. When Scholarship, which allowed her to help the Family Science Discovery Day program excavate and study a woolly mammoth was created in 2002, Carol enthusiastically from Oxford, England. volunteered to give paleontology talks to children which quickly grew in popularity.

Now, the most attended part of the program is “Mrs. Jorden’s Fossil Talks,” which attract up to 30 children at each session.

Carol has witnessed the museum’s transformation over the years, from concrete floors and fossils leaned up against bare brick walls, to achieving national accreditation and undergoing multiple renovations. Carol was there for all of it and recalls that when she saw the completed Hall of Life renovation in 2011, it brought tears to her eyes.

Carol is a “life learner” and her volunteer efforts have made her a highly valued member of the Alf Museum team. She recently retired from teaching, but generously continues her outstanding work for us. The contributions of our docents keep the museum outreach program running strong and we are very thankful for the support of these extraordinary people.

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

Dinosaur Joe headed to Japan!

Back in 2013, the Alf Museum made international headlines with the announcement of a baby Parasaurolophus nicknamed “Joe,” the smallest and most complete skeleton ever found. Now, “Joe” is headed for a yearlong exhibition in Japan, through special arrangements made between the Alf Museum, the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo, and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.

“Joe” was selected as one of a handful of recent spectacular dinosaur discoveries for display at Dinosaur Expo 2016. This expo, which runs every few years, draws hundreds of thousands of museum visitors. In addition to a three month showing in Tokyo, the exhibit will also be visiting science museums in Kitakyushu, Osaka, and Nagoya.

Although the skeleton is from a small dinosaur, transporting it is a massive undertaking.

A custom crate had to be built, along with special transport at the airport and a personal escort of the specimen onto the aircraft. Collections manager Gabe Santos and Augustyn Family curator Andy Farke have been working with staff at the Tokyo museum to set up arrangements. The fossil departed the Alf Museum in early March 2016, and it will be returning in the spring of 2017.

“This is an incredible opportunity for the Alf Museum and The Webb Schools,” says Farke.

“As far as I know, no other fossil from the museum has ever received this kind of international attention. We can’t wait to share this discovery with the world!”

Alf

raymond m. Alf museum of paleontology

the Webb schools

S AV E T H E D AT E

October 21, 2016 24th Annual Peccary Society Dinner • 5:30 Cocktail Reception

• 7:00 Dinner

Proceeds directly support the museum’s operating budget.

Join the Peccary Society in Barstow

April 29!

Join members of the board of trustees, Webb alumni and staff, and their friends and families on a search for fossils in the Mud Hills near Barstow, California (kids are welcome), on Friday, April 29 through Sunday, May 1, 2016. We meet and camp at Owl Canyon Campground, north of Barstow. Trip leaders are museum director Dr. Don Lofgren; Augustyn Family curator and director of research and collections Dr. Andy Farke; and museum board chair Larry Ashton ’70.

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Dr. Don Lofgren, Jennifer Liu ’05, Katie Kent Lawlor ’05, Lance Williams ’97 and Will Zahn ’95 at the 2015 Peccary Society Dinner

Alf Museum in Hollywood In true Hollywood fashion, “rock” stars of the Alf Museum were on hand for the world premiere of Disney/Pixar’s latest animated movie, The Good Dinosaur. The Alf Museum was invited to create a temporary exhibit at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, featuring dinosaur footprints from the museum’s collection. The display, including specimens from throughout the United States, described the kinds of information that paleontologists can learn from trackways and also told the story of the museum’s unique relationship with Webb. Nearly all of the fossils on display were found by Webb students. Alf Museum staff selected the fossils for the exhibit and installed them in mid-November alongside an exhibit from the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. Thousands of visitors to the theatre viewed the Alf Museum’s display during November and December 2015.

The itinerary is flexible, as you can arrive and leave when you wish, but it all starts the evening of Friday, April 29, when we set up camp and organize a gathering area with campfire where participants can cook, eat and relax for an evening of conversation and cool beverages. At breakfast on Saturday we break out the peccary pans, and you can cook your own eggs, bacon, and pancakes or “golden browns” over an open fire just like Webb students first did with Ray Alf over 60 years ago. We use the exact same pans! Then we drive out to the badlands to search for the “documents of life,” 16 million year old fossils (collected under federal BLM permit; all fossils are reposited at the Alf Museum).

Then it’s back to the campground for a BBQ dinner and campfire gathering that includes a raffle and singing the Peccary Song.

Sunday morning, we drive through Rainbow Basin and visit the Peccary Site, where the museum got its start in 1936 with the discovery of a new fossil species by Bill Webb ’39 and Ray Alf. We will also view the famous Barstow Syncline before heading home by noon.

Mark your calendars and contact Don Lofgren for further information (dlofgren@webb.org; 909-482-5242).

The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

WEBB

TODAY

FA C U LT Y

Taking time to think things through This issue of the Webb magazine asks us to wonder about long-form writing, now that a text-chat-post device is always in hand.

Without denying the utility of instant global

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texting—my carpool group of Webb faculty relies on it—I believe that people want to explain themselves, which takes time both for the speaker or writer and for the listener or reader.

At mid-life, I’ve taken on a few projects I dodged when I was younger. First, I learned to operate a chain saw. For years, I had hidden my fear of chain saws beyond a credible façade of environmental altruism; I used an axe and big bow saw to cut down trees and firewood, pretending to myself that I was driven by a deep reverence for timeless hand tools. While I do love both hand tools and the exercise and skill it takes to use them well, more true was my avoidance of the chain saw; I was afraid.

I’ve gotten over that; I’m cautious but really like cutting with that gas-powered machine.

Another mid-life first: I changed the oil in my car this summer. I know so many people—including my wife—who grew up changing their oil that it is awkward to admit how satisfied I felt after doing this by myself for the first time. But more than pride, I felt relief; one more thing not to

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

:

by Andy Dahlstrom Department Chair, English and Humanities

be afraid of. The oil didn’t leak, the car didn’t overheat, and the warning lights didn’t flash. I simply drove my car, with a new feeling for what was going on under the hood. The joy I felt seems goofy. Why was I scared of such a simple operation?

The trickier thing I have faced recently is thinking for myself, specifically about politics. The intersection of my personal life and two recent incidents of muchpublicized violence required something new of me. After the violence in Paris on Friday, November 13th—killings and hostage-taking claimed by ISIS or ISIL, depending on your translation of Arabic— the majority of the 50 U.S. governors announced that their states would not accept immigrants from Syria or Iraq.

I was moved to write to my Seattle congressman, to urge him to oppose these governors, and to welcome immigrants to my home state of Washington. In my letter, I invoked a memory from my childhood. My church—and the congressman’s— often included in our weekly “Prayers for the People” those suffering political oppression under regimes in Central America. More concretely, my church sponsored emigration from Nicaragua and El Salvador; political refugees joined us in the pews in church and made it real for me that people left their homes to escape violence and political frictions.

Picking my words to write to my congressman, I emphasized an anecdote

I knew he would recognize from the days when we attended a church that acted politically.

In the spring of my senior year in high school, I was scared by a group of North Africans, who attacked me and my student group when we arrived in their town between the Sahara Desert and the Atlas Mountains. (I attended a private school that sent those of us studying French for a trimester-long bicycle tour of French-speaking countries, including Algeria.) Hoping for lodging or a place to camp in that Algerian town, we rolled in at dusk on our bicycles. But even on the outskirts of town, people had begun to call to us, then shout at us, then throw rocks at us. The Arabic we had studied in classes in Seattle—Hello. How are you?

How many kilometers have you traveled?— was not the Arabic we heard that evening.

We forced our way through a crowd that was trying to block our way, we threw rocks back, and fled the town. We rode into the night, and into the mountains beyond the town, fueled by adrenaline and anger. Finally, we camped, hiding down a dirt road. We hadn’t seen an Algerian in at least an hour. That night, I believed I had encountered a savage and irrational people. Every trait I could associate with Algerians—primarily race and religion—I condemned. My fear of them I turned into hatred. If I could have been airlifted out of Algeria that

Last week, as part of my work to metabolize the violence in San Bernadino, I walked into the Islamic community center near Webb. I had driven by it dozens of times, but never stopped.

I introduced myself to a couple of men— a father and son, it turned out—sitting outside, and said that I had been thinking a lot about them, about Muslim Americans.

I was offered “Arabic coffee,” which the son made for me. I was encouraged to visit Jerusalem and offered lodging there.

I was told why Sunnis and Shi’ites are in separate schools. I was invited to visit one of their inter-faith gatherings.

night, I would have been overjoyed. And I would have been stuck with a hateful opinion I believed I was justified in holding. After all, it wasn’t prejudice on my part; it was experience that had shown me who these people were.

Instead, I woke to a clear, sunny morning.

Frost covered our bicycles and sleeping bags. What had seemed like a good hiding place at night was actually a promontory, where any passerby could see us. Soon after we began moving around, two Algerians started walking up the road toward us: one old man and one little boy. We talked about fighting them. But the old man held a tray, holding a giant galette, a baked item that is a cross between a sugar cookie and a pizza crust.

Saying nothing, he set the tray down and backed away. The boy put down a metal pitcher, containing coffee. It’s a testament to the twisting influence of fear that we talked about the breakfast being poisoned.

Finally, we dug into the galette and drank the coffee. Both were incredible. We offered some of the galette to the old man; he refused. But he sent the boy running off with the pitcher, which returned with a second round of coffee.

I didn’t have the Arabic or the humility to explain myself to my hosts that morning.

They gave me two things: an unforgettable breakfast and a way to eat the words and thoughts I had held for twelve hours, since I had been attacked.

In the span of two weeks, I sat down with my congressman in Seattle for an hour of conversation and with an unknown Muslim neighbor. In both conversations, I listened to men with an impressive grasp of the respective histories they lived with.

As I spoke, I heard myself trying to find the tone and vocabulary that matched my beliefs about the American political and cultural climate. More fundamentally, what are my beliefs? How do I work them out for myself, rather than parroting what I have read or heard? Long conversations with thoughtful people have helped.

Hearing what is “trending” has not.

I I am tempted to dismiss this generation of hand-device communication, because it invites behavior I dislike: snap judgment, distracted driving, speaking in demands, making excuses for running late. The devices are fine for asking your spouse what you can pick up at the grocery store.

Do they help anyone reflect, wonder, or deepen understanding? Do they help develop and refine a vocabulary or

improve expressiveness? Or are those skills better practiced through longer forms of narration and dialogue?

One adage seems relevant here: it’s a poor craftsman who blames his tools.

I see on campus a couple of ways in which the smartphone in everyone’s pocket contributes to the education we value.

Students record curricular speeches on their phones, and good things happen through those recordings. A student listening to her own recorded words can suggest almost as many editorial changes as I do; students don’t edit their writing as vigorously as they do their recorded speeches. Recently, my AP Literature student Matthew, a senior, recorded a speech six times to get his wording and thinking right. His discipline was self-directed. Being exact and methodical, pursuit of a high standard, care that a product represents you accurately— qualities expressed through use of a smartphone. Also, student recordings captivate. My favorite day teaching freshman last year came when kids recorded reactions to their peers’ This I Believe speeches. It was a class period of holding the phone to one’s ear, hearing a scripted speech, and recording a spoken response.

Far more than I have heard in conventional classroom discussions—or when students swap papers—the freshmen showed how well they could extract meaning from a classmate’s words. It is exciting to hear kids working hard to find their thinking and to express it to an audience they respect.

French philosopher Simone Weil answers the question about the durability of extended writing or conversation in her line, “attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.” Paying attention is generous. And, feeling that you have been attended to—by a listener or reader— elicits thanks.

The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

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WEBB

TODAY

A FFI LI ATE S

Webb Celebrates Parents Weekend with Academics, Athletics and Arts A record number of parents enjoyed a beautiful California fall weekend as they were treated to a glimpse into their child’s campus life at Webb. From meetings, to classes, to sporting events and theater and art presentations, parents sampled the diverse and stimulating atmosphere in which their teenagers live each day.

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The event kicked off on Thursday, October 1, with a parent reception at the boutique hotel Casa 425 in downtown Claremont where 115 guests experienced a relaxed welcome to the weekend hosted by Jenny Kong (P Elisa ’15 and Bella ’18), president of The Affiliates.

On Friday, October 2, parents and students gathered for breakfast before attending classes; later, they enjoyed a presentation by Head of Schools Taylor Stockdale, who premiered a short video which highlighted the exciting and unique aspects of Webb’s new academic program, “An Innovative Curriculum.” Director of academic affairs Theresa Smith and director of college guidance Hector Martinez also joined the discussion.

Following the video, Stockdale honored several faculty members and employees for their dedication to the school and its mission.

Director of admission Leo Marshall received the 2014-2015 Coach of the Year award for his work with the Track and Field team; Marshall was traveling but was able to “phone-in” his acceptance speech. The Perry Awards were also announced with Jim Dahler, mathematics, and Wendy Maxon, history, being recognized for

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

their contributions and dedication to the students of Webb.

Sandra Ostrow, college guidance executive assistant, was the third recipient of the Joann Robinson Staff Distinguished Service Award for her 18 years of service.

The day culminated with the annual benefit hosted by The Affiliates of The Webb Schools. The event, held under tents on the lower field, was the largest and most successful Affiliates benefit ever with more than 350 parents and friends in attendance.

“Together at Webb” brought in more than $200,000 to support the Affiliates Fund for Teacher Development, financial aid and other programs and activities that provide Webb’s margin of excellence.

Event co-chairs Denise Guntert (P Anthony ’18) and Lisa Albert (P Cole ’15 and Wyatt ’17) thanked the numerous volunteers and generous supporters who made the event possible. Highlights of the evening were auctioneer Chuck Dukas, who has worked on television shows such as Dancing with the Stars and American Idol, and live performances by Webb’s Choir and Chamber Singers.

On Saturday morning, parents ate breakfast with students’ advisors. Director of experiential learning Tracy Miller, Martinez, and alumna Katherine Kilmer ’10 updated parents of juniors and seniors on college trends, summer planning and what to plan for in the coming year, as well as Webb’s alumni network, regional events and more. Meanwhile, Stockdale, Smith, director of student life Peter Bartlett and alumna Coleen Martinez ’86 (P William ’16 and Benjamin ’19) led the sophomore and freshmen parents in a panel discussion detailing Webb’s innovative curriculum, student life and alumni programs.

This year’s event is planned for the weekend of October 7.

For more information, visit www.webb.org.

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Together at Webb

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NewsNotes FROM AND FOR THE ALUMNI OF THE WEBB SCHOOLS

alumni spotlight

Jason Brooks

’99

Jason Brooks chose to attend high school at The Webb Schools because the institution exemplified the things he wanted to become.

“Principes, non Homines,” said Brooks, quoting the motto of Webb School of California. “We’re supposed to be leaders, not just men. It was a powerful attraction to join a community of people who not only believed that, but lived it every day.”

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

B Brooks was home-schooled in his Watts Los Angeles neighborhood until he was 14, providing yet another impetus for Webb as his choice—“I was the only boy in a family with four sisters, I needed to be around boys!”

Today, he is the World Language Department Head at Brooklyn Prospect Charter School, an IB (International Baccalaureate) World School serving kindergarten through 12th grade. Brooklyn Prospect’s mission is to prepare students to become global citizens and help them to develop the love of learning that provides the foundation for lifelong personal and academic success.

To that end, Brooks has found the perfect outlet for teaching what he loves—World Languages.

“In my sophomore year at Webb, I was across the hall from Eric Tzeng ’99. He spoke Mandarin and Cantonese with his parents. And he was just one of many who spoke another language at home—I also had friends who spoke Japanese and Arabic,” he said.

“There’s so much cognitive benefit to learning another language,” explained Brooks who majored in Spanish and Mandarin at Trinity University. He also earned an M.A. in Chinese from Zhejiang University in China. In 2012, he received an M.E. from Harvard University.

His first job as a teacher was at The McCallie School, a boys boarding and day college-preparatory school in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where he designed comprehensive language curricula for all levels of Chinese instruction, including AP Chinese language and culture.

“The Webb model is really the best,” said Brooks of the twoschools-on-one-campus model. “At McCallie [the all-boys school], my students never ran into a woman who was unequivocally smarter than them. Single-sex education is a powerful tool, but it’s also important to know that women can be as smart as men.

Webb was such a great environment because it incentivized

academic achievement, and it normalized the high end of the Bell Curve for me. When you leave Webb, you leave with the knowledge that there are very few problems for which you won’t be able to say, ‘I can figure this out.’”

At Brooklyn Prospect Charter School, Brooks leads

a team of six educators in creating the “scope and

sequence” for Mandarin and Spanish programs

that align with IB standards. He also employs

technology including “video self-observation” and

other research-based methods to deliver quality

instruction. He Skypes with associates (former

classmates) in China, and guest speakers make

presentations to his classes via Skype as well.

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In addition, he teaches two classes and observes his staff as they provide instruction.

“I help them establish best practices and reach their goals,” he said of his colleagues. “Through LinkedIn and attending conferences, I’m always trying to connect to teachers who are doing similar things and moving in a similar direction.”

He is also continuing his education, submitting doctoral applications to USC, LMU and UCLA so that he can pursue a degree in Educational Leadership.

At Webb, Brooks remembers learning about Chaucer in the morning and then running with teacher Brian Caldwell in the evening; he remembers getting help with his homework at night.

“Now I want to help students learn,” he said. “I want to encourage academic excellence in my students—and for some of them, this may be the first time someone has expected that of them.”

As a lifelong learner, Brooks says that he benefits as well— “I’ve grown as a part of this process too.”

The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

NewsNotes

22 and a half minutes with Taylor

Chaput ’06

Paddle Board Bliss and Shore Yoga

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aylor Chaput ’06 is the owner and founder of Paddle Board Bliss and Shore Yoga, the company she founded in 2010. Most folks would not describe their jobs as blissful, but Chaput has not only found contentment in her work, she is building an enterprise that now includes three locations, a yoga studio/retail shop, plus daily classes and rentals. Chaput grew up in La Verne; at Webb she was involved in many activities and in 2003 received the Freshman Athlete Award. She graduated from Santa Clara University with a major in business, and was working in the accounting field when, in 2010, she made the jump to follow her bliss.

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

Q&A Yoga is such a blissful pursuit – but you are running a business; how do you prepare for, and keep up with the transactional side of your operations? And how do you maintain your bliss with your business firing on so many cylinders (multiple locations, retreats, trainings, etc.)?

When I started my business, I had two paddle boards so it was definitely a lot easier to manage five years ago. Since then, we’ve grown to three locations: Laguna Beach, San Diego, and Newport Beach, where we operate a retail location.

We decided to diversify and the only way to do that effectively was to prioritize our activities and then hire the right people.

It’s one thing to start a business on your own; it’s an entirely different story to grow a business and build a team, and to do it in a way that will preserve and enhance the brand and what we stand for which is really to help individuals find their own bliss through paddle boarding and yoga. We’ve grown because we have a great team and we share core values; we have managers who help run the paddling side, people who specialize in retail, and several excellent yoga teachers. My partner focuses on partnerships and strategy, and my involvement ranges from answering calls from customers to deciding what area Bliss needs to move into next.

The paddle board and yoga – how did you come up with this combination?

I love the water, love paddle boarding and surfing, and the same can be said for yoga. When I first started tinkering with paddle board yoga about 5 years ago, it became clear to me that it wasn’t a gimmick—it really is the real thing. It is clearly more challenging to balance on a board, let alone to practice yoga poses. That being said, the board is quite stable, and since I first started practicing we have now designed special paddle yoga boards, which are more stable than the first versions of paddle boards. The feeling of doing yoga on a paddle board is truly unique—you not only work muscles you didn’t realize you have, but you also have to be more deliberate and slow down your practice versus yoga on land. Some of the most advanced yogis with whom we work as partners have admitted that yoga on a paddle board has helped them with their land practice.

People often say “do what you love.” You seem to be doing that now. How did you get from accounting to SUP yoga?

My mom took me out on a paddle board one day and I fell in love with it immediately. I wondered, is there a viable business here? Paddle boarding had just started in Laguna and it has become the fastest growing watersport. I was also attracted to the “empowerment” side of paddle boarding. Surfing seemed such a male-dominated sport and paddle boarding was a way for women to get out on the water and build their confidence with a new challenge. My accounting training has been essential to running a business, understanding numbers (particularly cashflow!), but it simply wasn’t my passion. I found myself in an accounting position at a production company right after graduating from Santa Clara University—that lasted an entire six weeks—I simply couldn’t do it. So I decided to give paddle boarding a shot, and Bliss Paddle Yoga was born.

angry with someone, panicking, or any other kind of emotion.

Your breathing is one of the first things to be affected. When teaching yoga, I realize that the union of mind, body, and spirit has different meanings for different people, and this meaning may even change from day to day. Teaching helped me realize that there is no such thing as a rigid definition of perfect yoga.

It’s all relative. Someone may be able to get into an arm balance and get their legs into lotus position without even flinching, while someone else may have difficulty ever getting into a seated lotus position. Yoga is really about realizing your own limits, pushing them to the point of growth, not breakage, and being as mindful as possible on the way… and of course breathing— synchronizing breath with movement.

What is your favorite place to practice yoga? And what is the most exotic (or unusual) place you’ve practiced?

One of the best moments was teaching at Wanderlust Festival in Sydney, Australia. It was so surreal to look around in Darling Harbour while reflecting on our journey to get there. Most of the Aussie yogis had never done paddle yoga before, so it was amazing to introduce them to it and see them embrace it.

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If someone has never practiced yoga before, where is a good place to start? And when should one take the step to the paddle board?

Anyone can do it—many people are pleasantly surprised and even empowered following the experience. We love to see students transform their fears into huge smiles on the water.

It’s not about standing up or doing challenging postures, it’s more about finding peace and bliss.

What do you like to do when you’re not practicing yoga?

Do you volunteer? Have a different creative pursuit?

I love traveling, reading, cooking, music, and moving.

Does teaching provide you with a different perspective on the art of yoga?

Yoga is simply a part of my life. I try to practice daily because it enables me to feel grounded and grateful for everything that I have. Very few people realize the importance of one of the most basic activities in yoga (or everyday life for that matter): breathing. Think about when you find yourself stressed out,

What about your Webb experience helped you to pursue a career as a yogi and business owner?

Webb taught me discipline, the importance of hard work and teamwork. I am so grateful for my experiences being on a team— learning how to follow and to lead. While I miss the competition, I think that’s where you can have fun with business.

The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

NewsNotes

Events and Highlights

Alumni Weekend 2015

REUNIONS, HOLIDAY PARTIES AND MORE. ALUMNI, PARENTS AND FRIENDS RECONNECT. Find more event photos at www.webb.org/alumnievents

Events

Over 250 guests attended the 23rd annual Peccary Society Dinner.

SAN FRANCISCO Holiday gathering with alumni and friends at Farallon.

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SEATTLE Holiday gathering with alumni and friends at Frolik.

Another victorious alumni team at the annual water polo game!

Alumni vs. Students Basketball Games Over 50 alumni kicked off the New Year at the 2nd annual Alumni Basketball games.

SAN DIEGO Summer beer tasting at the home of Whitney Wharton ’05.

LOS ANGELES Close to 90 alumni, parents and friends attended the holiday gathering at the Jonathan Club, hosted by Webb trustee and parent RJ Romero and his wife Laura (P ’12, ’15).

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

Council Corner

Teachers of Webb As we prepare for The Centennial celebration in 2022, the Alumni Council is gathering and sharing stories about the great teachers of Webb. We hope you enjoy this profile written by Jim Hall ’59, a former student of D. Murray Alexander who taught physics, geometry and math from 1947 to 1960. Murray passed away in 2009 at the age of 93, survived by his wife Evelyn and their three children.

– Rahmi Mowjood ’90, President, Alumni Council

Physics is Phun! A profile of D. Murray Alexander

by Jim Hall ’59

Mr. Alexander started out his junior physics class at Webb by writing “Physics is Phun!” on the blackboard. (Yes, we had blackboards in the ’50s, and they worked, no batteries, plenty of chalk dust!)

And physics was fun in Mr. Alexander’s classroom beneath the old lower dorm.

D. Murray Alexander was born in St. Andrews, Scotland, so he was a Brit but never an Englishman! His father was also a teacher, and Murray spent the first 10 years of his life in Durban, South Africa, where his father was headmaster of the Durban Technical College. He graduated from St. Andrews University with honors in physics in 1938, just in time to serve with distinction in the RAF as a squadron leader flying coastal weather missions. In 1946 Murray came to California and Caltech.

He graduated with a master’s in physics, was elected to Sigma Xi and met his to-be wife, Evelyn (not necessarily in order of importance).

As an accomplished pilot Murray took Evelyn on their first date to lunch in the San Fernando Valley by flying her there in a small two-seater airplane!

Murray became head of the science department at Webb in the 1950s and single-handedly built the adobe house he, Evelyn and the Alexander children lived in during their tenure at Webb. Murray was an inspiring teacher. He had wonderful demonstrations. The dramatic demonstration of the conservation of angular momentum was hard to forget. Murray would get a student volunteer (or a volunteered student) to hold a weighted bicycle wheel fitted with handgrips extending from the axel.

He sat the student on a swivel chair and spun the bicycle wheel up with a motor drive. He then asked the student to rotate the plane of the wheel from vertical to horizontal, and of course the student began to spin around in the swivel chair. You could feel the resistance of the wheel to being rotated, and as a side benefit understand the principle of the gyroscope!

Of course there were many other demonstrations. Some did not go so well!

Murray had devised a beautiful demonstration of static electricity, which he combined with a demonstration of the workings of the internal combustion engine. He had set up a static electricity generator (called a Wimshurst machine) on the lab bench and nearby had a Bunsen burner connected to a gas supply valve overhead on the low ceiling. He had a student come up and crank the generator handle to charge the Leyden

jar capacitor attached to it. With the gas turned on, but with the burner not lit, he put one hand on the terminal of the Leyden jar and snapped a spark from his other hand to the grounded Bunsen burner. The gas burst in to flame to great applause from the class. After this curtain raiser there was a lecture on voltage, charge, ignition temperature, and the workings of the generator.

All went well until near the end of the hour, when the class clamored for a repeat of the spectacular demonstration. Mr. Alexander, ever the gracious Scot, complied. The student was summoned to crank the generator. The hand was placed on the Leyden jar, and the spark was snapped at the Bunsen burner. Nothing. The spark was snapped again. Still nothing. “Mr. Alexander, you forgot to turn on the gas!” offered one helpful soul in the front.

Mr. Alexander nodded and reached up to the overhead valve, which was of course attached to a grounded pipe. The result was spectacular!

Mr. Alexander’s hair, normally slicked down to elegant perfection, stood straight out from his head and radiated sparks, demonstrating just how to charge a conductor filled with salt water to a high voltage and what happens when you do that! Mr. Alexander, consummate teacher that he was, discharged himself, took his hand off the Leyden jar, smoothed his hair, turned on the gas, and did an encore performance of the demonstration. We all knew that indeed “physics was phun.”

Mr. Alexander’s influence as a teacher was widespread while at Webb and after he left. He was part of the development team of PSSC physics, a modern approach to teaching high school physics that had a profound effect on many students. He left Webb in the 60s and became a professor at De Anza College in Cupertino. He also taught physics all over the world including India, Sweden, and Turkey.

Murray was a keen athlete (captain of the rugby, swim and golf teams while he was at St. Andrews) and an excellent tennis player. He retired from active teaching at age 70, and was ranked No. 1 in the Northern California Tennis Association in the 75 to 80 bracket.

Read more stories or share your own at: www.webb.org/teachersofwebb

The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

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NewsNotes T H E W E B B SC HO O L S 1939 • Although Art Clokey passed away in January 2010, his work lives on and was featured at the second annual Gumbyfest at Citrus College in September, which celebrated the 60th anniversary of Gumby! Art and Ruth Clokey founded Clokey Films (later renamed Clokey Productions) when they launched Gumby in 1955. Gumby and friends starred in more than 209 TV episodes and a movie.

1944 • David Armstrong and his son Paul ’76 visited the Webb campus in October.

David is now living at Mt. San Antonio Gardens in Claremont and Paul resides in Orange County. They visited Jackson Library to see David’s wood carving. - 1 1948 • The library of Malcolm McKenna is now housed in a research annex of the Division of Paleontology at the American Museum of Natural History, where he spent most of his career. His expansive collection contains hundreds of papers and books on a wide range of scientific topics.

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1950 • Chester Horton and Hans Lehmann proudly represented the Class of 1950 for their 65th reunion at Alumni Weekend. They were seen cheering the Gauls from the football stands as if it were yesterday. - 2

William Race still has fond memories of Dr. Thompson Webb, Mr. Ray Alf (driving his family in a Model “A” Ford), all of the faculty, and bunking in the “Field House.”

1952 • Norm Blackburn and Mike Murray play golf every Tuesday.

“Here we are at Indian Valley Golf Course in Marin. We are both in our 80s and enjoy the fellowship of the day.” - 3

Jack Sterne was at the geyser fields near Akureyri, Iceland, on a tour across the North Atlantic in September. - 4

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1953 • It was nice to see Scott Evans on campus this fall. He was in Claremont for his Claremont McKenna reunion. - 5 1955 • With fondness and laughter, the Class of 1955 met for their 60th reunion and reflected on many Webb influences, among them Ray Alf. Bill Bailey and Elliott Trommald led the festivities and David Fleishhacker hosted his classmates (in absentia) for the Peccary Dinner. Dick Lynas was recognized with the Colborn Distinguished Service Award (see p. 60 for details). Class photo back row: Bernard Cleyet, Ward Jones. Front row: Dick Lynas, Bill Bailey and Fulton Wright. Missing: Mac Brown, Bob Kaufman, and Elliott Trommald.

L-R at Peccary Dinner: Bill and Sigrid Bell, Ward Jones, Ron and Margaret Quon.- 6, 7

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PROFILE

Paul Reitler ’54 Paul Reitler steps down as chairman of The Webb Schools’ board of trustees effective June 30. He has held this position since 2011, and during this time helped lead Webb through the $50 million Fulfilling Our Promise campaign and The Centennial Strategic Plan 1922-2022. Paul has served as a Webb trustee since 2001. We are tremendously grateful for his volunteer leadership and dedication to Webb.

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

1956 • During a trip to Florida in December, Head of Schools Taylor Stockdale enjoyed lunch with Dick Stoker and Tim Moore ’59. - 8 1960 • It was nice to see Fritz Mulhauser in D.C. He left the ACLU in January 2015 after 20 years.

Bill Ripley and William Wilson enjoyed a glass of wine together on Alumni Weekend. A big thanks to Bill who once again officiated over the alumni chapel service on Saturday. - 9 1961 • After 33 years at the San Francisco Chronicle, Jon Carrol retired in November 2015. He started at the paper in 1962 as a summer intern working for the “This World” section.

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Save the Date! Alumni Weekend is October 21 & 22, 2016. Join Dodd Fischer, Larry Price, Don Girard and others for the 55th reunion.

Larry Price and Martha Lussenhop were married on July 25, 2015 in Bend, Ore. Classmates at the wedding included Dick Dunham, John Erving, Dodd Fischer, and Don Girard. Larry and Martha live nearby in Sisters, Ore., and also in Portland.

They participated in the 2014 peccary trip to Mongolia, connecting with Martha’s background in paleontology. Last May, Larry gave a Sunday chapel talk to Webb students about his participation in the 2012 discovery of the Higgs boson, a major milestone for particle physics. - 10

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1962 • Richard Power wrote: “Rick Wilson ’68 and I are both members of the Rotary Club of Sebastopol. Rick is the club president for the 2015-16 year and I am on his board of directors. I was the president for the 2010-11 year.” - 11 1965 • Fourteen members of the Class of 1965 celebrated their 50th reunion with a pronouncement from Gordon Webb, grandson of Thompson Webb, that they are the best class ever! The class certainly has strong ties to Webb. Ken Elliott and Greg Grant come from families that represent 20 Webb alumni combined. Contact Mark Smith and Bob Crosby to learn about the reunion class gift. Back row: Mark Smith, Dwight Morgan, Bill Vestal, Ken Gregg. Front row: Les Barta, Greg Grant, Greg Dyer, Pat Stroop, Bob Crosby, Gordon Webb, Ken Elliott and David Wright. Second photo: Greg Dyer, Bob Crosby and Rick Smith.

Missing: David Speyer. - 12, 13

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1966 • Save the date for the 50th reunion! Alumni Weekend is October 21 & 22, 2016.

Contact Ron Hagander, Clag Offutt or Jonathan Wygant for details.

1967 • Kudos to Tim Goddard for receiving the 2015 John H. Pickering Award of Achievement, presented in Chicago by the Senior Lawyers Division of the American Bar Association for his work with the Arizona Senior Citizens Law Project. The law project is a non-profit organization dedicated to serving the over-60 population and is the only such resource of its kind in Phoenix. The law project handles 1,400 cases a year in areas varying from Social Security and wills to real estate and financial abuse of the elderly.

Home visits, often by Tim himself, are emphasized and are particularly useful in serving clients who are homebound or isolated. The law project received the Dr. R. Alice Drought Caring Spirit Community Award of Excellence in 2007. Tim has been the executive director of the law project for 20 years. - 14

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1968 • Pete Sawyers and his wife Melissa attended the Peccary Dinner in October. - 15 1970 • Nine members of the Class of 1970 returned to campus for Alumni Weekend.

Larry Ashton, Mickey Novak, Marc Wilson, Jim Sylvester and Joe Thomas attended both days. Randy Davies and Robin Leggewie were at the Peccary Dinner, and Rob Gilmore played in the alumni water polo game. - 16, 17 1971 • Class of ’71 will celebrate its 45th reunion during the weekend of October 21-22, 2016. Contact Charlie Callander at charlie.callander@yellowstoneclub.com for information.

The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

NewsNotes PROFILE

Gabriel Sanchez ’77

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Gabriel Sanchez has returned to Webb to coach the first VWS golf team. “It’s rather surreal to be coaching at Webb. Each day as I park my car at the chapel to pick up a van, the memories from the past flood me: from being a student, to my wife and I being married in the Vivian Webb Chapel by a former teacher from Webb.

I really enjoy coaching the girls. In just the past season, I’ve learned a lot and have realized that whether it is my girls’ golf team or my students in my classroom, teenagers are interesting and fun to work

with, regardless of the environment. One of the proudest moments of last season was when we were named the high school girls’ golf team with the highest GPA in Southern California! It has been a pleasure and an honor to be back at Webb and especially starting the VWS golf program.” Gabe played for two years in college at the University of La Verne and just finished his 15th year coaching the boys’ golf team at Bonita High School. During his time at Bonita, he led his team to 15 winning seasons and four league titles.

This is his second year leading the VWS golf program.

1975 • It was nice to see Jim Boyce and Greg Lynch at Alumni Weekend to celebrate their 40th reunion. - 18 1976 • Save the date for the Class of ’76s 40th reunion. Alumni Weekend is October 21-22, 2016. Visit the alumni website for more details.

Steve Lesse attended the Latinos of Webb Dodgers game with his wife Michelle and family. - 19 1979 • Eric Pauwels and Peter Muiznieks met in Chicago for dinner.

It was also great to see Eric and his father Jaques Pauwels, former Webb faculty member, at Alumni Weekend. - 20 1980 • Seventeen members of the Class of 1980 celebrated their 35th reunion in October. The class gathered in Palm Springs at the Ace Hotel on Thursday and Friday, which included a jeep tour of the San Andreas fault and two class dinners. Then on Saturday, a group visited Webb for the campus festivities. Louis Mayberg received the Alumni Outstanding Achievement Award in recognition of his professional and philanthropic work (read more on p. 60). In honor of this reunion, the class has established a Class of 1980 Scholarship Fund in support of financial aid. A big thank you to Rob Seltzer and David Myles for chairing the reunion, and special thanks to Frank Jones for organizing the desert gathering. - 21, 22

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1981 • John Duden writes, “Hello to my fellow Webbies and Class of ’81 classmates.

I hope you’re all doing well and living great lives. It’s hard to believe that this coming June will mark 35 years since we stood in the warm Alamo sun appreciating the culmination of our lives at Webb and our graduation ceremony. I’ve enjoyed seeing many of you at prior class reunions over the years and hope that we can get a good gathering together to celebrate our 35th. Please mark your calendars for October 21-22.

It would be great to get a decent size group together to visit and catch up. Looking forward to seeing everyone who can make it!”

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Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

1984 • Michael Arias still lives and makes movies in Tokyo. Harmony, his newest feature film, is in Japanese theaters as of this writing. - 23 1985 • Class of ’85 had a great turnout for the 30th reunion. Over 35 Webbies came to the Friday night party hosted by Van Fisher Grossman, which included friends from other classes and a Skype call to Rome with Claudia Marcus! Folks flew in from Hong Kong, Tennessee, Nevada, Maryland, and Washington. A big thanks to the reunion committee Dan Grofer, Art Laffer, Julia Marciari-Alexander and Rob Takata, and special thanks to Van and Jim Sheehy for their help. - 24 1986 • Merrill Christenson visited campus in October. “I visited all of my favorite spots. Football was a big part of my experience at Webb. Dave and I each have three kids, all in the same grade and both of our families live in Ladera Ranch, Calif. All kids are active in sports and are great little students. Brynn, my oldest daughter, is on my left. Noelle, Dave’s oldest daughter is on my right.” - 25

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WSC reunion with Geoff Fite, Carl Lachman, Simon Jones, and Tom Monroe! - 26 Rich Martinez is the proud dad of a WSC sophomore. His son Nick is a boarder in Alamo and a member of the varsity cross country team. - 27 William Suh visited the Webb campus over the summer. He’s still living in SoCal with his family. - 28 Webbies in Korea had a reunion with Chan Sung, Chris Kimm, Mike Lee ’84, Lee Chou ’88, Mike Kwon, and Bob Kim ’89. Chan is the regional counsel for North Asia for Diageo, covering Korea and Japan. Chris is regional director at LaSalle Investment Management. Mike Lee is with Citadel Investment Group. - 29 1987 • Hubert Chen was back on campus this summer. His son Kevin was enrolled in Webb’s Junior Scholars Paleo Program. Hubert is the chief medical officer at Pfenex, a biotechnology company developing biosimilar products and novel vaccines.

He lives in San Diego with his wife Amy and their two children. - 30

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1989 • Geoff Hersch is the proud dad of a Webb freshman. Drew is a boarder in Kirkhill. - 36

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We enjoyed seeing Darren Liang and his family on campus in July. They are now living in Taipei and their son David is attending Taipei American School.

Darren is still working for International Wood Products Co. as director and CEO. - 31 John Scalzi and Kevin Stampfl reconnected at a book signing at Kepler’s Books in Menlo Park, Calif. A big thanks to Debbie Lai ’08 for sending in this photo.

Brad Justus ’78 and Bruce Madding ’69 also attended. - 32 James Sun shared this photo with Michael Ball ’86 and Igbo Obioha.

They met in September to celebrate Igbo’s birthday. - 33 Sarah Tong Sangmeister attended John Scalzi’s book signing in Los Angeles.

“I am still a partner at Keesal, Young & Logan and attempting to keep track of my three sons (twin 13-year-olds and a 9-year-old) and my husband John. We have been busy as owners of Gladstones Long Beach but are also the franchisees of Pieology in Long Beach and San Diego County. For those unfamiliar with Pieology, it is a build-your-own pizza concept. Abe Salen was wonderful to drive up for the grand opening of our Long Beach store!” - 34 1988 • Claudia Hackethal’s daughter Izzy is a VWS freshman this year.

Here they are during move-in weekend. - 35

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The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

NewsNotes Erik Hart was appointed to the board of directors of MVP Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) II, as an independent director. MVP REIT II is a publicly registered, non-traded real estate investment trust that invests in real property, primarily focusing on parking facilities, including lots, garages and other structures located throughout the United States and Canada. In December he attended an intensive seminar on corporate governance at the Kellogg School of Management in Chicago. He and his family live on a 92-acre farm near Louisville, Ky. Jimmy Hsieh came to campus with his wife Dawn and their children Audrey and Andre. The twins are in 5th grade at the Taipei American School. Jimmy is now in his third year on the Alumni Council as regional rep in Taiwan. He’d love to hear from any Webbies coming to Taipei. - 37

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Bob Kim is married and welcomed his first child (a boy) in February 2016.

“I moved from Los Angeles to Korea about 4 years ago and I’m now working at a law firm in Seoul called Lee International IP & Law Group.”

1990 • The Class of 1990 had a wonderful 25th reunion with 24 classmates in attendance. Many thanks to the reunion committee: Lee Lee Choi (Chou), Doug Chun, Christine French (Baggerly), Praveena Jeereddi and Hewitt Pratt.

The festivities kicked off on Friday night at Praveena’s home in Claremont and the merriment continued on Saturday on campus, especially on the dance floor! - 38, 39

Kate Hanson Johnson and her husband Chad attended our Seattle event. Kate is a librarian at a middle school in Tacoma, Wash., and Chad is a math teacher. - 40

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Laurie Lundin married Chris Stone on August 2, 2015 in Malibu. “We are both ‘first timers’ and we are a ‘matched set’—thrilled to have found one another. Sandy Lee attended while her husband George was away building houses on a Mexico missions trip. George and Sandy’s gorgeous children (Laurie’s godchildren), Penny and Conrad, were the flower girl and ring bearer. They were magnificent.” - 41 It was great to see Sam Moulton on campus for the 25th reunion. Sam lives in the UK and teaches at the Dumpton School where he is the head of religious studies and classics. Sam dug up his WSC mug after the reunion and shared this photo in a toast to classmates. - 42 1991 • Jason Blackwell brought his wife Michele and 11-year-old son Miles to campus for a tour. - 43 1993 • Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong, Zachary Kidd ’95 and Brad Sargent ’94 attended the Washington, D.C., alumni mixer in November.

Maame lives in Maryland with her husband. After 8 years with the U.S. Department of Justice, she joined Millennium Challenge Corp., a government foreign aid agency, as VP and general counsel. Zak is the founder of DupontStudios, a company that helps organizations communicate public policy messages through video. Brad is serving his second year on the Alumni Council as regional rep in D.C. - 44

Michael Gutierrez is living in Austria with his wife and two children.

He’s joined a small business designing executive leadership courses.

1994 • A big thanks to Renee Polanco for organizing the Latinos of Webb Dodgers game. Husband Robert and baby Reyna joined us for the fun evening! - 45 1995 • The Class of 1995 celebrated their 20th reunion in October. Many thanks to the reunion committee for their efforts in bringing the class together: Jenna Gambaro, Blake Johnson, Arran Shea and Alex Dey. The festivities began at Perch in downtown LA and continued on campus on Saturday. Back: Eric Schlosser, Evon Walks, Raquel Diaz Cloyed, Augie Seaman. Front: Will Zahn, Arran Shea, Ingela Amundson (Ratledge), Jenna Gambaro. Verhan Henderson, Bea Hsu and Blake Johnson also joined the fun at Perch. - 46, 47 1996 • Great seeing Monica Atiyeh Whitaker in Portland! She’s busy in her role as a judge and her family is thrilled that she is expecting her second child in March. - 48

Doug Lee had a mini reunion in Marina del Rey, Calif., with Edward Pascual, Patrick Siritaratiwat and Mike Miller. Edward is a director at Oak Pass Capital and Patrick is a senior financial analyst at Big 5 Sporting Goods.

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

Will Marshall and Otis Chandler attended the holiday event in San Francisco. - 49 1997 • Rebecca Klein is a Spanish teacher at the Seattle Academy of Arts and Sciences and a proud new mom of Remy Isaac Handler, born in June 2015. - 50, 51 1997 • Weston White married Mary Elizabeth Butler this past August.

“In attendance were: Randy Bick, Alex Rapoport, and Patrick Zahn of the class of 1997, and Daniel Suhr ’02. I am pretty happy these days.”

1999 • Matthew Lim and his wife Tracy welcomed their daughter, Madelyn Yu-Yan Lim, on October 12, 2015. - 52

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2000 • It was great to see Class of 2000 back on campus for their 15-year reunion!

Many thanks to all who attended and to the reunion committee. L-R: Hayes Shair, John Sang, Geoff Winssinger, Kelly Smith Fayne, Ryan Kon. Missing: Deidre Braun, Lilly Coye, Asim Rizvi, Ed Tangchitnob. - 53

Congratulations to Ben Dey, who Variety named one of Hollywood’s new industry leaders. Ben is a TV talent agent at Creative Artist Agency.

Deval Dvivedi visited the Webb campus in September. He was sorry to miss the reunion. - 54 After 5 years in New York, Asim Rizvi and his family are back in Southern California.

He is a staff psychiatrist for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

Asim and his wife Mehrukh live in Walnut, and are expecting their second child. - 55 2001 • Michelle Buysse teaches yoga at CorePower Yoga, Rancho Valencia and Rancho La Puerta. She is co-hosting a yoga and photography retreat to Colombia in 2016 (slowdownretreat.com) and continues to train instructors. She recently started an indoor living wall company (VitalGardenscapes.com) to help remove toxins indoors and promote health through functional art. - 56

Art Priromprintr is now in Washington, D.C., working as the manager of dance programming at the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts. - 57

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Brianne (Brie) Widaman has once again been scouring the country as a judge for American Idol in preparation for its farewell season (airing January 2016). Her work at 19 Entertainment has also included management of a variety of musical acts and working with the hit show So You Think You Can Dance. Independently, Brie is also spearheading a revolutionary venture set to impart a unique take on artist development and production, working closely with on-the-verge, unsigned talent.

2002 • Marisa Chai married Samuel Meehan on September 12, 2015 at Condor’s Nest Ranch in Pala, Calif. Webbies in attendance included Marisa’s brothers Andy ’97 and Eddie ’94, Vanessa Dell ’99, Kate Garrett (Walsh) and Caleb Morse ’03. - 58

Keith Monteverde Teo married Winni Wang at Shangri-La’s Boracay Resort and Spa in the Philippines. Webbies in attendance included Yuen Chien, Ben Chen, Natalia Leung, and Louise Lu. - 59 2003 • Jayson Sohi married Cecilia Lodevico on March 28, 2015 in Laguna Beach.

Richard Yao officiated the ceremony, Chris Forney, George Hajjar and Eric Bourne were groomsmen, and Alex Karevoll and Alex Gordon ’02 also attended. - 60

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The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

NewsNotes 2004 • Adriana Alejandro Santos married Kevin Coe in D.C. on November 7, 2015.

Adriana and Kevin are living in Arlington, Va., where Adriana is a management consultant for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Kevin is an Army veteran and consultant for the U.S. Department of Defense; he is also starting his own consulting firm. They are hopeful that they will be welcoming Julia, Kevin’s daughter, home soon, and resuming their life as a family. - 61

A large crew from Class of ’04 came to the Webb15 networking mixer in Los Angeles in August. L-R: Chris Oakley, Nihar Shah, Tara de Silva, Whitney Hanlon, Michael Nuss, Adam Yuan, Andrew Tye, Lorraine Sun, Will Habos and Steph Ho. - 62

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2005 • The Class of 2005 celebrated their 10-year reunion in October with 36 members of the class attending! Many thanks to the reunion committee: Brittan Berry, Blake Crawford, Mimi Issa, Scott Shiokari, Whitney Wharton (Sevesind), and especially Jessica Anand Gupta for hosting the Friday night party at her parent’s home in Claremont. Jessica also gave an inspiring chapel talk to the VWS students. On Saturday, Mimi received the Young Alumni Rising Star Award (see p. 60 for more details). - 63, 64

Krystal Iskandar married her Stanford sweetheart Gilberto Jiménez on September 20, 2015 in Princeville, Kauai. They had an intimate ceremony with immediate family, including Krystal’s sisters, Jasmin ’06 and Tatiana ’08. - 65

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Tyler Lloyd is at Georgetown in his second year of law school. “I left the Navy last year after four years as a surface warfare officer, and I decided to attend law school to focus on international law, human rights, and immigration policy. In the Navy, I served aboard two ships (the first in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii; the second in Norfolk, Va.) with several deployments overseas. I currently live in Vienna, Va. (just outside of Washington, D.C.), with my fiancée, Shirin.” - 66 2006 • Huffington Post named Jordi Baron one of the “10 Young Leaders Who Are Creating a Better World.” Over the past four years, Jordi’s contributions to Operation Smile have been concentrated in program management in Latin America and the Caribbean. Last year, the organization ran 51 surgical missions and held over 32,000 specialty consultations in Latin America alone.

Sarah Lewis, Heidi Marti and Jen Liu ’05 attended a showing of the independent film Runoff at the Claremont Laemmle in July. They enjoyed meeting Kurt Pitzer ’84, who produced the movie. Sarah started at Columbia Business School’s MBA program in January. Her brother Riley Lewis ’07 graduated in May with a dual MBA/MRED (Master of Real Estate Development) from USC. - 67 2007 • We enjoyed seeing Candace Gallagher Waguespack and her family on campus during Alumni Weekend! Candace and her husband Justin welcomed their second child, Adelais Waguespack on March 22, 2015. - 68 2008 • Debbie Lai and Cynthia Ip traveled from the Bay area to attend Alumni Weekend. They reconnected with Lexus Beaman, who is now in her second year as advancement fellow at Webb. Lexus also works part-time as a school counselor at David & Margaret Youth and Family Services. - 69

It was a Nelson-Dey reunion in Seattle with Emily Nelson, brother Henry Nelson ’10 and cousin Alex Dey ’95. Emily is running the Treehouse Masters website. - 70 Jarel Hill, Gabe Romero, Taj Tucker, and Becker Jung had a mini reunion in New York City. Jarel moved to Brooklyn in July to work at a financial firm in Manhattan.

Taj is finishing his last year at Columbia Law. After graduating, he plans on going into corporate law with an oil and gas company based in the city. Becker is at IBM as a business analytics and strategy consultant working in the city as well. Gabe is a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army and recently finished a year-long training in Alabama to become a medevac pilot. He has logged over 100 hours flying an OH-58 Kiowa, what civilians would see as a news helicopter, and is waiting to take a Blackhawk course this spring. - 71

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Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

Go Emma Burdekin ’12 finished her senior year as captain of the Pomona-Pitzer volleyball team and received the Coach’s award. She spent four years with the Sagehens–this year as a middle hitter and played in all but one game this season. The high point of her career was the first game against Chapman this season when she had a .500 kill percentage. Emma will graduate with a biology degree from Pomona College in May. 1 Alex Faura ’13 has loved her first two years on the

Wellesley softball team. Both years her team was NEWMAC Conference champions and NCAA Division III Regional Runners Up. “It’s been a great experience; better than I had imagined. My favorite thing about playing softball at Wellesley is not just my teammates but the whole athletic community is incredibly close-knit and a huge support system.” 2

Kienan Dixon ’14 completed his second year

with the Dickinson football team. “I play quarterback and I’m an English and Spanish double major with an emphasis on sports broadcasting. The high point of this season was beating our undefeated rivals, Franklin and Marshall College, at their homecoming in the rain 13-7.” 3

Katie Dickins ’14 enjoyed her second year on

the Juniata College volleyball team. Her freshman year she averaged 7.67 assists per game, with a total 101 assists her first season. 4

Gauls!

Alumni Collegiate Sports Update

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Eryn Halvey ’14 is in her second year with the Wellesley volleyball team. Playing in 21 out of 28 games in her sophomore year, Eryn has proven herself to be a valuable asset on the court. Her junior year at Webb, Eryn was awarded the Coach Dan Pride Award for her outstanding achievement as a student athlete.

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Megan Fuelling ’15 enjoyed her first season

with the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps volleyball team.

The 6-foot middle blocker is attending Scripps College and is currently undecided on a major. 7

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College cross country team. “My season went really well. I managed to letter and stay in the top 7 for most of the season. I ran a PR of 28:38 at the Charles Bowles Willamette Invitational in Salem, Ore. The men’s team finished 2nd in the SCAC Conference and came in 15th overall at the Western Regional D3 race in Claremont, Calif.” 8

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Adrian Hui ’15 is in his first season as a member of the Pomona-Pitzer men’s swimming and diving team.

Adrian set the WSC swim record in the 200 IM and was the CIF Champion in the 50 yard freestyle and the CIF runner up in the 100 yard butterfly in 2015. 9

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Amy Jin ’15 is a member of the Wellesley golf team.

“My golf season was over in late October but it will resume again in the spring. I really enjoyed being on the golf team, and we get to travel to New York and Williams to play tournaments on weekends.” 10

Katie Rice ’14 continues to make her mark

on the University of Puget Sound volleyball team, with numerous kills and digs each game as an outside hitter. 5

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Daniel Crisostomo ’15 had a breakout first

season with the UC Irvine men’s soccer team.

A true freshman, Daniel played in 17 out of 22 games.

During his senior year at Webb, Daniel was named the San Joaquin League Male Athlete of the Year for his stellar performance on the soccer field. He helped lead the WSC team to a league championship and the CIF SoCal State Finals. 6

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For more news on alumni athletes in college visit webb.org. If you have college athletic news to share, email us at alumni@webb.org.

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The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

NewsNotes 2009 • Marja Diaz ’12, Alya Ahmad, Priscy Galvan, and Ivie Tokunboh ’12 attended the Webb15 networking mixer in Los Angeles. - 72 2010 • The Class of 2010 enjoyed catching up at their 5-year reunion in October.

Over 40 members of the class reconnected at Casa 425 on Friday night and on campus on Saturday, breaking the record for most attendees at a 5-year reunion! Thank you to the reunion committee for chairing such a great event! A special thanks to John Hur for the WSC sweatshirts. They made the weekend even more memorable. - 73, 74, 75

Juli Nokleberg visited the Webb campus with her mom Lisa in September.

Juli caught up with Coach Duque, Mr. Coates and others during her visit. - 76

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Noah Woodward has joined the baseball operations staff at the Atlanta Braves.

Noah spent part of the 2014-15 season as an intern in the Baltimore Orioles baseball analytics department. He previously worked at Cornerstone Research and also wrote for Baseball Prospectus.

2011 • Valerie Kraus is now in San Francisco working on the sales and equity team at investment banking firm, Jefferies LLC.

The past summer, Andy Lee worked as a data science intern at Groupon.

Andy’s main project was to build a dashboard to visualize the business impact that resulted from tuning one of their deal-ranking algorithms. “Groupon was a fantastic place to work and it exposed me to industry-level engineering work of which, prior to my internship, I had very little knowledge. Because of this, I have a much clearer idea of what I want to do as I move forward with my final year in college.”

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2012 • Last summer Stacy Chen interned at the Universal Studios lot working at NBC Nightly News, where she helped producers with their daily stories by researching, interviewing, and sometimes going on shoots with them. As part of her training, she would watch the show go on air from the control room every day. Here she is with journalist Ronan Farrow. - 77

Before his senior year at NYU, Henry Xu was a summer intern for the Food Safety Inspection Service, Civil Rights Staff at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in D.C. Henry’s office specifically helped ensure equal employment opportunity for employees within USDA and at inspection plants. “I really enjoyed my time at USDA, and I would recommend any Webb students in college to try to spend at least one summer in D.C. doing a federal internship. I think experience in the public sector is very helpful no matter what you want to do in the future.”

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2013 • A big thanks to this year’s Theme Night judges: Chloe Soltis, Lianne Parker, Alicia Zheng ’14, Ben Davis ’11, and Sonia Huang ’06. - 78

Landen Taflinger spent last summer at the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, Pa. working in the Center for Strategic Leadership and Development at the Peace Keeping and Stability Operations Institute. He helped assess multiple briefings, papers, and studies and provided feedback on the pros and cons of certain government evaluations.

This past fall he was in Bologna, Italy, taking classes in international studies and security studies.

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It was nice to see Albert Xu at Georgetown University, where he’s double majoring in accounting and finance. - 79 2014 • Anthony Shin ’99 from the College Guidance Office enjoyed seeing Hailey Beaman at Bowdoin College. -80

Last summer Erik Chu interned in downtown Los Angeles at Divy Inc., an internet-based financial services start-up. He worked on a variety of projects ranging from marketing, coming up with a logo and slogan, to finance where he helped construct the user growth and revenue model from the ground up.

Julia Ni worked for the Princeton Alumni Association in Beijing last summer before spending a month in Kenya to implement a project for Engineers without Borders, something she has been working on for the past year.

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

Webb15 Events

Regional events are a great way for young alumni to network and stay connected with the Webb community.

Webb15 Throwback Bash in San Francisco 8/4 1 Thank you to Jessica Anand Gupta ’05 for hosting a fantastic throwback event to get classes excited about Alumni Weekend!

Third Annual Webb15 Networking Mixer in Los Angeles 8/14 2, 3 More than 50 alumni attended the annual networking event in downtown LA, hosted by Charles Hung ’97 at his restaurant The Backhouse. Thank you to our host and alumni mentors: Jesse Albert ’82, producer at Xpansive Media and board member of Producer’s Guild of America; Lee Lee Choi ’90, instructional director for Intensive Support and Innovation Center, Los Angeles Unified School District; Carson Moore ’00, script writer for TNT Network’s show Major Crimes; Joshua Saltman ’87, associate general counsel, media distribution at The Walt Disney Company; Sarah White Mollenkopf ’96, director, global health economics and reimbursement at Edwards Lifesciences; and Edward Tangchitnob M.D., FACOG ’00, Citrus Valley Medical Center.

Webb15 Networking Mixer in Washington, D.C. 11/5

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Over 30 alumni attended the D.C. Networking Mixer at Mission Dupont.

A big thank you to our alumni mentors: Fritz Mulhauser ’60, retired senior staff attorney for the ACLU of the Nation’s Capital and former congressional staff member/assistant director of U.S. Gov’t Accountability Office; Richard Downie ’72, executive VP for global strategies, OMNITRU Technologies; Scott Shalett ’88, managing director, head of civic engagement at JPMorgan Chase and former principal of Dewey Square Group; Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong ’93, VP and general counsel at Millennium Challenge Corporation and former counselor to the attorney general at the U.S. Department of Justice; and Zachary Kidd ’95, founder of DupontStudios.

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Webb15 Holiday Gathering in Philadelphia 12/2 5 Young alumni holiday gathering at Garces Trading, Co. with alumni council regional representative Will Habos ’04.

Webb15 Professional Networking Mixer in New York 12/3 6, 7, 8 Over 30 alumni attended the first networking mixer in NYC at CASK Bar + Kitchen.

Alumni in the fields of entertainment, law, finance, the arts, and more offered advice and mentorship to our young alumni. Thank you to our alumni mentors: David Loo ’79, managing director, Hudson Realty Capital LLC and a member of Webb’s board of trustees; Robert Lee ’88, faculty lyricist at NYU’s Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program; Scott Lee ’89, principal at Morphosis Architects; Rahul Prakash ’97, founder and managing director, Coyote Ridge Ventures; and Jason Brooks ’99, world languages chair, Brooklyn Prospect School.

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College Dinner in Boston 12/4 9 Faculty members Melanie Bauman, Sarah Lantz and Theresa Smith enjoyed dinner with young alumni from Harvard, MIT, Tufts, Wellesley, Boston College, Boston University, Berklee College of Music, Brandeis, and Northeastern University.

Young Alumni Holiday Party 12/17 10 Young alumni visited campus for the 5th annual holiday gathering.

The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

NewsNotes Mayberg, Issa and Lynas –

H o nore d A l umni

Alumni Outstanding Achievement Award

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Louis Mayberg ’80 is co-founder and president of ProFunds Advisors LLC and ProShare Advisors LLC. Mayberg has more than 30 years of experience in the financial services and investment industries and has started or rehabilitated numerous companies.

Among his recent activities is W2Fuel, a multi-state biochemical refinery and Convergence Development which focuses on inner-city urban renewal through home ownership by placing low-income working families into new affordable homes at a lower cost than renting. Previously, in 1986, he co-founded National Capital Companies LLC, a Bethesda-based investment bank specializing in mergers, acquisitions and equity underwritings in the financial services industry. He also managed National Capital’s financial services hedge fund.

Former faculty member Blair Maffris was not surprised to hear that Mimi went to Haiti. “She’s a caring individual and exceptional in what she does. She’s the type of person who puts forth a real effort and doesn’t just talk about it. As a student, she always helped. She was there to set up the art cafes. I remember her going on weekend trips to Joshua Tree, and she always set up the camp with a positive, enthusiastic attitude.”

An active community volunteer and philanthropist, Mayberg has served on a variety of international, national and local boards and currently serves as Hillel board president at his alma mater, George Washington University. He has a preference for entrepreneurial philanthropy and counts among his most impactful initiatives Securing America’s Future Energy and Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

Dick Lynas ’55 is an invaluable member of the Webb community, who has devoted thousands of hours to the Alf Museum over the past two decades and served on the museum board of trustees since 2004. His volunteer work has varied from cataloguing fossil specimens to reworking the collections’ expansive database. Acting as the museum’s maintenance expert, Dick also assisted with exhibit repairs and modifications, and was responsible for installing the security camera system in the exhibit halls—purchasing, installing and wiring all the equipment himself. He developed a photo archive database of peccary trips, participated in countless field trips in support of research efforts, and created a technically correct sheet music version of the Peccary Song. As museum director Don Lofgren states, “Dick’s fingerprints are everywhere in the museum.”

In 2005, Mayberg established the Louis M. Mayberg ’80 Scholarship Fund providing financial aid to Webb students with high financial need. Mayberg lives with his wife Manette and has four children plus a new son-in-law.

Young Al u mn i Ris in g Sta r Awa r d Micol “Mimi” Issa ’05 has shown a deep commitment to education and serving others, most notably in Haiti, where she spent four years. In 2010, following the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck the country, Mimi traveled to Port-Au-Prince to join an organization called H.E.L.P. (Haitian Education and Leadership Program), which gives scholarships and leadership training to students heading to university. Haiti, one of the least developed countries in the Americas, has an unemployment rate around 50%. After the quake, H.E.L.P. received an influx of funds, so they hired Mimi as an English program manager to give its students the skills they needed to succeed at college. In Haiti, she launched a program for students pursuing careers in medicine, engineering, business and education.

Her time in Haiti also included working as program manager at Ecole Supérieure d’Infotronique d’Haiti, where she designed and led an intensive English program to prepare students for intermediatelevel courses in computer science and business economics.

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

Mimi received a bachelor’s degree at Oberlin College, and last summer she participated in an intensive Arabic program at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey. She is currently teaching 8th grade English at Brookhurst Junior High School in Anaheim.

C olbor n D is t inguis hed S er v ic e Aw a rd

In his professional career, Dick served in the Navy for seven years and made two tours as a naval aviator during the Vietnam War. He also spent 25 years working as an instructor and field engineer on military flight simulators.

His tremendous dedication and tireless efforts on behalf of the Alf Museum and Webb will have a lasting impact for generations to come.

WATCH Videos of each recipient’s acceptance remarks can be seen at youtube.com/thewebbschools.

Nominations for the 2016 Alumni Awards are due by July 15, 2016.

For more details and to nominate a classmate visit: www.webb.org/alumniawards

FO RM E R FAC U LT Y, STA F F & F R I E N D S Dr. S. Brock Blomberg is the new president of Ursinus College, a private, independent, coeducational, liberal arts college located in Collegeville, Pa. Brock, father of Megan Blomberg ’15, was previously the dean of the Robert Day School of Economics and Finance at Claremont McKenna College.

David Lloyd is remarried and living in Traverse City, Mich. with his wife Merrily.

David taught English and coached at Webb from 1999 to 2005 and served as WSC counselor and WSC assistant to the dean.

We all enjoyed seeing Blair Maffris, Steve Sittig (not pictured), and Dave Fawcett at Alumni Weekend. -81 Former alumni director Paula Pitzer (P Kurt ’84 and Paige ’88) attended the Peccary Dinner in October, and caught up with museum trustee Jay Greening and his wife Victoria. Paula worked at Webb from 1981 to 1991. -82 Joan Presecan and Mary Newkirk attended the Saturday dinner on Alumni Weekend. Joan taught biology at Webb from 1982 to 1996. Mary was an athletic coach at Webb from 1986 to 1998. -83 It was nice to hear from Tim Quinn. He is a middle school teacher at St. Mary’s in Orange County.

It was great to see Ruth Santana-Grace (P Dakota ’11) in Chestnut Hill, Pa. She enjoys preaching at several churches around Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Ruth is also on the board of the Princeton Seminary. She recently hosted several Webbies for Thanksgiving dinner including John Dominguez ’11, Maia Dominguez ’15, Siri Dominguez ’15, Vicky Alejandro ’14, and Anthony Palacio ’15, and she officiated Adriana Alejandro ’04’s wedding (see p. 56). -84

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Hank and Harriet Sharp attended the Peccary Dinner. The Sharps were at Webb from 1975 to 1981. Hank taught geometry and physics, and Harriet was a librarian. -85 Sheana Wijeyeratne (P Sasha ’08 and Shihan ’11) has joined Webb’s business office as a senior accounting analyst. Sheana has worked in the Alf Museum part-time since 2009 and temporarily in the business office since 2011. We are happy that she is now an even bigger part of the Webb community!

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“I Support Webb Because...

Alumni Weekend is a time to reconnect with classmates and The Webb Schools. This year, the Alumni Council sponsored the “I Support Webb Because…” project and asked alumni from all decades to stop and share why they give back to Webb.

Replies to the prompt included: “It changed my life.” Ken Liu ’10 “Webb added to my life’s purpose.” Rahmi Mowjood ’90 “I gained a second family.” Juli Nokleberg ’10 “Webb supported me.” Jim Hall ’59

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Why do you support The Webb Fund? You can tell us why in the comments section of the online giving form at webb.org/giving, or by emailing dgordon@webb.org.

The 2015-16 Webb Fund campaign ends June 30.

Please make your gift today to support current students and teachers, and to honor your Webb experience.

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The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

In Memoriam

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Sybil Stockdale, mother of Head of Schools Taylor Stockdale, passed away on October 10, 2015. Among her numerous accomplishments throughout her life, Sybil is notably remembered for being the driving force behind the national movement to end the torture and mistreatment of American prisoners of war in Vietnam. When her husband, Vice Admiral James Stockdale, was taken as a POW during the Vietnam War in 1965, the Stockdale home, led by Sybil, was a comforting gathering place for other Navy wives in similar situations.

Along with many of the other wives, Sybil founded the League of American Families of American Prisoners and Missing in Southeast Asia. After being elected as the first national coordinator, Sybil moved to Washington, D.C. and was able to convince Congress and the administration to publicly acknowledge the mistreatment of those held in Vietnam.

She regularly met with President Nixon and Henry Kissinger to discuss prisoner issues, becoming the voice of prisoner recognition and hope. As a result of her determination, prisoner treatment improved and her husband and other POWs were released in 1973. For her courage and loyalty, Sybil was presented the U.S. Navy’s Distinguished Public Service Award, and is the only wife of an active-duty naval officer to ever be given this honor. In 1984, Sybil co-authored In Love and War with her husband, describing their ordeal during the Vietnam War, and it is considered required reading for military spouses.

Her papers and memoirs from the Vietnam era are currently housed at Stanford University’s Hoover Library. Even after retiring to Coronado, Calif., a core group of POW/MIA wives met monthly at the Stockdale home until her passing.

Webb Magazine • Spring 2016

Life trustee Robert Stragnell died on October 22, 2015.

Parent to three Webb graduates—C. Gregory ’69, R. Sanford (Sandy) ’73, and Stephen ’78—Robert was a member of Webb’s board of trustees from 1968 to 1984, served as board president for the 1977-78 school year and was the first chairman of the museum board from 1979-1981. He became a life trustee in 1988. After graduating from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, he interned at the Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena, Calif., was a resident in internal medicine at the Veterans Administration Wadsworth Hospital in Los Angeles, Calif., and a trainee of the National Heart Institute at the Los Angeles County General Hospital. In 1952, the doctor draft relocated him to Fort Sam Houston, Texas, as a 1st lieutenant, then to Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. where he was promoted to captain. He continued to practice medicine in Arcadia, Calif. until he retired in 1987 and moved to Arizona.

He became the president of the Phippen Museum of Western Art and was the curator of two exhibitions before moving to New Hampshire with his wife Libby in 2004.

1937 Clifford S. Heinz Jr. ’37 passed away on September 22, 2015.

The grandson of H.J. Heinz, founder of the famous ketchup company, Cliff was a renowned businessman and philanthropist, and was one of the country’s leading benefactors of ethics education for children. He also established himself in the aerospace industry by building planes and parts for tanks during World War II. He funded ethics programs in various colleges and schools. A friend of the Dalai Lama, Cliff endowed a chair for peace studies at the University of California, Irvine.

Giving back to Webb, he created the Clifford S. Heinz Ethical Education Endowment to support character development, and the Heinz Endowed Fellowship in Ethical Education, awarded to the faculty member who serves as the lynch pin for all related programs on campus which pertain to the issue of character development.

A celebration of life 1941

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David Ghormley ’41 passed away on May 25, 2015. At Webb, David’s athletic ability could be seen while earning letters in football, basketball, and baseball. He was very involved outside the classroom: contributing to both school publications, being a member of the Glee Club and dance committee, and prefect of the Lower Dorm. He earned an MBA from Harvard University, served in the U.S. Navy during World War II, and was an elder in the Presbyterian Church. David was a consultant in the food industry and served on various boards until his retirement.

He also was the author of the “Senior Moments” column in the Sunriver Scene, a monthly newspaper published in Sunriver, Ore.

Andrew Branscome ’61 died on September 11, 2015.

While at Webb, Andrew was known for his artistic ability and his way with words, contributing to Sage, El Espejo, and Blue & Gold. He earned a varsity letter in soccer and was a member of Quill and Scroll. Andrew also had familial ties to Webb: his uncle was Larry McMillin, beloved Webb faculty member for over 35 years.

1944 Hugh Burleson ’44 passed away in June 2014. While at Webb, Hugh played on the varsity football team and swam whenever the weather permitted. He had a strong interest in nature study and was a zealous stamp collector. After Webb, he served in the U.S. Army and found a passion for Japan after landing on the country’s shores following World War II. He graduated with a degree in Asian Studies from University of California, Berkeley.

He spent the rest of his life involved in U.S.-Japan relations, actively organizing Bellevue, Washington’s Japanese/JapaneseAmerican community and helping to lead Bellevue’s former Japan Week. Hugh also served as the head of Bellevue’s Sister Cities organization.

1994 Sean P. Meadows ’94 passed away in November 2015 after battling an auto immune disease. While at Webb, Sean participated in track and field and was a Webb Singer.

He earned his a bachelor’s degree from Pitzer College, and then two MA’s from Claremont Graduate School in ancient philosophy and political science. He also earned his Ph.D. in political science from Claremont Graduate University and JD from Chapman University School of Law. Sean is survived by his wife Kristin and their 4 year old son, Liam.

1950 Thomas E. Lewis ’50 died on November 1, 2012. After Webb, Tom graduated from USC as a member of Kappa Alpha Order fraternity and Air Force ROTC. He then was stationed at George Air Force Base in Victorville, Calif. He was discharged in 1956 and began a career in the by-products industry in Arizona.

Tom entertained his friends and family with stories about any vast number of interests he held. Married to his wife for 57 years, Tom enjoyed golfing, salmon fishing, and fine tuning his various cars. His son Charles ’77 and grandson Taylor ’08 also attended Webb.

The Webb Schools • WEBB.ORG

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Final Word B y Tr a c y M i l l e r Director of Experiential Learning

Monoliths, Mosquito Nets and Microcontrollers

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have sometimes thought that the story of experiential learning at Webb can be told in equipment lists. One of the great pleasures of my job is to help gather the materials our students and faculty need before they head out into the field. I find myself tracking down the most peculiar objects: surfing booties, sous vide machines, weather balloons, Arduino microcontrollers, chisels, field notebooks and journals, rain ponchos, dry bags and wetsuits, telescopes, ballet shoes, mosquito nets, work gloves, pipettes, and oil paints. What my gathering makes clear is that school supplies at Webb do not just mean backpacks and notebooks, pens, pencils, and calculators.

Instead, we need different kinds of supplies for different kinds of classrooms. In fact, some of our best learning environments are not even on our own campus. They’re nestled amidst the monoliths in Joshua Tree, where students armed with recording equipment capture found sounds for their Psychoacoustic Art Unbounded Days course. Or in a computer science lab at Harvey Mudd College, where our Summer Program engineering students build robots and learn the intricacies of programming.

Our classrooms are on the streets of Havana, where students on this Spring Break’s Cuba trip will learn about a country in transition, and the trails of the Andy Warhol Nature Preserve, where Dr. Dzula and Mr. Dahlstrom took students to make and explore art last summer. As director of experiential learning my job is to gather, organize, urge and live vicariously through the amazing field experiences our students enjoy each year.

I do this work because I know how much it matters. I have witnessed firsthand the tremendous joy and opportunity for immersive learning that comes when we extend our classrooms and nudge our students out into the world. I see this whenever I take Webb students off campus, be it to far-flung locales such as Romania and Thailand or to meet with a professor of neuroscience at Pomona College and discuss what it takes to pursue a career in that field. The entire faculty here at Webb knows it, too. It is why our teachers work so hard to plan Unbounded

“ I have witnessed firsthand the tremendous joy and opportunity for

immersive learning that comes when we extend our classrooms and nudge our students out into the world.”

Days courses that engage, inspire and challenge our kids and give up their school breaks and summers to take students on trips and work in our Summer Programs. It is why Thompson Webb used to point to the campus’s fields and orchards as our science labs, and alumni still remember Ray Alf’s Living Biology course as a transformative educational experience.

Putting our textbooks and technology aside for a bit helps us see the world anew. For example, students on our upcoming trip to Belize will explore the island alongside science department chair and environmental studies teacher John Lawrence. John’s deep connections to Belize will allow the group to forgo typical tourist destinations and eat and explore like locals; in so doing they’ll immerse themselves in Belize’s rich history, culture and ecology. Out in the world facts, figures and theories become stories and experiences. It is one thing to study the steps of starting a business in an entrepreneurship class; it is another to visit the offices of Patagonia in Ventura, as our Summer Programs students recently did. There, they learned firsthand the story of how one entrepreneur with a passion for environmental sustainability built an international company.

What might have felt improbable—building a company from scratch—now seemed possible.

It is easy to get bogged down in details and rest in routines.

Yet when Webb students are offered a chance to step outside of their campus habits they grab hold of it—no amount of snowpack on Mount Baldy, dust in Barstow or early morning alarms to fight Los Angeles traffic dissuades them. When I see our students so gamely venture into the world and take advantage of the many opportunities for experiential learning that we provide them here at Webb, I am reminded that I too should follow their lead. Indeed, we all should. Let us remember to take a page from our students and find ways to move past our habits and routines and embrace opportunities to explore, experience and see the world anew.

Calendar & Credits

A D M I N I S T R AT I O N Taylor B. Stockdale Head of Schools Peter Bartlett Director of Student Life

Executive Editor Joe Woodward

Donald L. Lofgren, PhD Director, Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology

Editor Vivian Pradetto

Leo G. Marshall Director of Admission and Financial Aid

Contributors Lexus Beaman ’08, Debbie Carini, Andy Dahlstrom, Andrew Farke, John Ferrari, Danielle Gordon, Jim Hall ’59, Harason Horowitz ’02, Megan Kotrappa ’16, Don Lofgren, Tracy Miller, Kathy Sanders, Aaron Severson, Laura Wensley

Hector Martinez Director of College Guidance Brian Ogden Dean of Faculty

Design Michael Stewart • Stewart Creative

Janet K. Peddy Director of Finance, Planning and Operations

Photography Phil Channing, Andrew Farke, Don Lofgren, Nancy Newman, Scott Nichols

Theresa A. Smith, PhD Director of Academic Affairs

Printing Dual Graphics

Joe Woodward Director of Institutional Advancement BOARD OF TRUSTEES 2015-2016 Paul M. Reitler ’54, Chairman of the Board Claire H. McCloud, Vice Chair, Secretary Sanjiv P. Dholakia ’87, Vice Chair R. Larry Ashton ’70, Chairman, Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology, ex officio William M. Bauman ’82 Blake H. Brown ’68 Michael Chang ’92 Jenna Z. Gambaro ’95 Wayne L. Hanson ’59 Janel Henriksen Hastings, PhD ’87 John Holliday ’84 Ming Chung Liu David Loo ’79 Christina Mercer McGinley, PhD ’84 Roger J. Millar ’61 David Myles, PhD ’80 Mickey E. Novak ’70

Janet K. Peddy, Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Secretary, ex officio RJ Romero Miles R. Rosedale ’69 Mary A. Schuck Taylor B. Stockdale, Head of Schools, ex officio

LIFE TRUSTEES

Nondiscrimination Policy– The Webb Schools admit students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin, sexual orientation or any other characteristic protected by state or federal law to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the schools. The Webb Schools do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, sexual orientation or any other characteristic protected by state or federal law in administration of their educational policies, tuition assistance, athletic, and other school-administered programs, or any other basis in law.

Memberships National Association of Independent Schools; Western Association of Schools and Colleges; Boy’s Schools: An International Coalition; National Coalition of Girls’ Schools; California Association of Independent Schools; College Entrance Examination Board; Educational Records Bureau; National Association of College Admissions Counselors; Council for Basic Education; Council for the Advancement and Support of Education; Council for Religion Hugh H. Evans Jr. ’49 in Independent Schools; National Association of Principals of Anne Gould Schools for Girls; and the Cum Laude Society.

H. Earl (Bud) Hoover II ’52 Publication Information Murray H. Hutchison Webb magazine is the official publication of Webb School of California, Vivian Webb School, and the Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology.

Published for families, friends and alumni by The Webb Schools.

Volume 19, Number 1

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