WEBB Magazine Winter 2013 edition

WEBB MAGAZINE Winter 2013

A Sense of Place Vivian Webb Chapel

On Our Own The Women’s College

Genetics Understanding the New Now

Promise FULFILLING OUR PROMISE

The Campaign for The Webb Schools

WEBB

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

MAGAZINE Winter 2013

Donald L. Lofgren, PhD Director, Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology Leo G. Marshall Director of Admission and Financial Aid Hector Martinez Director of College Guidance

FEATURES

Brian Ogden Dean of Faculty Janet K. Peddy Director of Finance, Planning and Operations

Campaign Deadline June 30, 2013

This is the final year of the Fulfilling Our Promise campaign.

Be a part of it by making a gift before June 30, 2013.

Join the more than 3,500 alumni, parents and friends who have already given.

Every gift makes a difference.

A SP C AL OPPO T N TY Name a seat in the new Susan A. Nelson Performing Arts Center.

A Webb Fund gift or multi-year pledge of $5,000 or more qualifies you to name a seat. Pledges may be paid over 1 to 3 years.

For more information, send an email to giving@webb.org or call Danielle Gordon at (909) 482-5267 or Robert Fass at (909) 445-8252.

From the Head of Schools On Our Own: The Women’s College Genetics: Understanding the New Now A Sense of Place: Vivian Webb Chapel

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Robert A. Hefner III ’53 Sports Arts Quest Faculty Affiliates Campaign Update Giving & Volunteering

WEBB TODAY

Theresa A. Smith, PhD Director of Academic Affairs

Help us to the finish line.

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Joe Woodward Director of Institutional Advancement

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BOARD OF TRUSTEES 2012-2013

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Paul M. Reitler ’54, Chairman of the Board Claire H. McCloud, Vice Chair, Secretary

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R. Larry Ashton ’70, Chairman, Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology, ex officio William M. Bauman ’82 Sanjiv P. Dholakia ’87 Jenna Z. Gambaro ’95 Wayne L. Hanson ’59 Janel Henriksen Hastings, PhD ’87 David Loo ’79 Roger J. Millar ’61 Timothy C. Moore, ’59 Susan A. Nelson, Head Emerita, ex officio Mickey E. Novak ’70 Janet K. Peddy, Director of Finance, Planning and Operations, assistant secretary, ex officio RJ Romero Miles R. Rosedale, ’69 Mary A. Schuck Taylor B. Stockdale, Head of Schools, ex officio Ralph D. Young ’63

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LIFE TRUSTEES Hugh H. Evans, Jr. ’49 Anne Gould H. Earl (Bud) Hoover II ’52 Murray H. Hutchison Robert Stragnell, MD Volume 17, Number 1 Cover Photo: Doug Santo Detail of fountain in the Teresa L. Snite Memorial Garden at the Vivian Webb Chapel.

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NEWSNOTES

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Alumni Profiles WSC and VWS News In Memoriam Final Word

From the Head of Schools

A Beautiful Failure While on a plane this fall, I was skimming CNN’s Money when I came across a story entitled Hosain Rahman’s Beautiful Failure. The headline grabbed me.

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Earlier that day, I had engaged in a conversation with the freshman dean at Harvard about the essential qualities needed to succeed in our nation’s most selective colleges and universities.

Resiliency, inner strength and moral courage were three of the top characteristics mentioned.

It got me to thinking.

Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

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n this age of zealous parenting (I can say this because I am as guilty as anyone), when we give out trophies for just about everything, I wonder if we are teaching our children how to fail and pick themselves back up? Are we teaching students to be resilient and determined? And most importantly, are we inspiring them to have the moral courage to do the right thing when it counts the most?

The CNN story caught my attention for more than just the headline about failure. As I began to read it, I soon realized that Hosain was a Webb alumnus—someone I knew well back in the early 1990’s and a graduate of the class of 1993. You can imagine my deep sense of pride as I read about Hosain Rahman ’93’s bold move, which saved his highly successful company. If my premise is right—that the true measurement of a school’s success is found in its alumni—then Hosain’s story is yet another testament to Webb.

After graduating from Webb and then Stanford with a degree in mechanical engineering, Hosain went on to start a tech company called Jawbone—a highly successful Silicon Valley company which initially specialized in hi-tech headsets. While at Webb, I remember Hosain as a tall, lanky affable kid with a wonderful smile, a quick wit and engaging personality. He always lit up the dining hall, the library, the chapel, or the pool deck when he entered. I smiled when he was described in this article by venture capitalist Ben Horowitz as “a relationship person, the sort of social savvy, influential connector described in Malcolm Gladwell’s The Tipping Point.” But Hosain is so much more than this. At Webb, he was known for his fierce commitment to honor, his strong work ethic, his sharp mind and creative mindset.

As Hosain and his business partner grew Jawbone, they revolutionized the wireless headset industry, and then ventured into other products, including the Jambox and the UP bracelet.

The UP bracelet is a game-changer in the area of personal health and health monitoring. It is a hi-tech bracelet and app that monitors your physical activity, nutrition and sleep, and then provides information for making positive changes to your routines to improve your health.

In November of 2011, Hosain and Jawbone released the UP bracelet in time for the Black Friday sales. As the story is told, UP soon came under criticism from its many customers.

For some reason, the bracelet was not transmitting the information properly and was shutting down. Hosain and his employees were distraught. Jawbone, still a fairly new company, had only released a few products in its history. And with the online communities buzzing with how poorly the UP bracelet was functioning, Jawbone was in a dire position. In the heat of the moment, when everything looked grim, Hosain, hunkered down, developed what he called a War Room at his Silicon Valley headquarters, and with his entire company went into crisis mode in an effort to find out what was wrong with the device and fix it as soon as possible.

During this time of despair, Hosain was described as being strong, vigilant, clear minded and focused despite severe sleep deprivation and around-the-clock attention to this high-pressure, critical situation. As CNN outlined, it was in the heat of the battle one night that Hosain decided to write a letter to his customers, investors, and other stakeholders.

But it wasn’t the usual defensive letter of faint apology and vague generalizations on the prognosis of the product in the future. Rather, it represented a sharp contrast to anything that had been written up to this time. It was honest, direct, and complete.

Hosain took full responsibility for the mishap, and offered all customers their money back, regardless of whether they returned the product. “We are so committed to this product that we’re offering you the option of using it for free.” What turned out to be a technical problem with the circuits was a watershed moment for Hosain and for his company. The UP

bracelet and Jawbone are absolutely thriving today, but that letter is now cited as having saved the company. The response from the Silicon Valley toward Hosain and Jawbone was one of total respect.

At the epicenter of the hi-tech universe, it was an old-fashioned, honest, straightforward, well-written letter which had the greatest impact of all.

Failure, as we all know, is inevitable. And great leaders fail often. The goal of a great education shouldn’t be about teaching students how to prevent failure. Rather, it should be about how best to respond when failure occurs. Hosain, in the heat of the battle, chose to think boldly and creatively, act with honor and moral courage, and to lead with distinction through the crisis.

He saved his company and his employees’ jobs as a result.

The Webb mission in action, again.

In the last issue of Webb, I made a plea not to use rankings to determine the quality of a school or a college. Rather, the best measurement of success, I suggested, was to look at the end product—the alumni. And by that I didn’t mean the wealth of the alumni, but the lives they choose to lead and the decisions they made when times were tough. The alumni of a school or college tell the real story.

As you read this issue of Webb, I hope you enjoy the many stories and examples of this extraordinary education in action today, and the many alumni who embody our values so well. The story on genetics highlights the importance of developing both creative thinking and moral courage in an increasingly complicated world. Our feature on women’s colleges underscores the effectiveness and importance of our unique two-schools-on-one campus framework for honoring the formative differences of boys and girls in meaningful ways. And the remarkable photo essay on the chapel reminds us all of our spiritual core as a school community.

Sincerely, Taylor B. Stockdale Head of Schools

The Webb Schools • WEbb.oRG

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On

WOMEN’S COLLEGES IN THE 21ST CENTURY

“I decided very early on,”

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confesses Director of College Guidance Hector Martinez, “that every girl at Vivian Webb School would at least consider a women’s college. If some of our girls weren’t going to consider it on their own, I would ‘casually’ add it to their college lists. ... If they were going to consider Harvard, Penn, or Columbia, then they would also have to consider Wellesley, Scripps, Bryn Mawr, and Barnard.”

Martinez felt strongly that every girl should investigate women’s colleges, even if it required a little push from him. “Each year, I would visit countless college campuses and I was always most impressed by the women’s colleges,” he explains. “Something was happening [there] that just wasn’t happening as quickly or as naturally at coed schools.

There was a sense of confidence and belonging in these all-female communities that was transforming these smart girls into women ready for life’s challenges.”

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He found, however, that “women’s colleges were poorly understood and mostly feared.” Some students categorically rejected the idea. “I told him flat out that I refused to go to an all-women’s college after going to an all-girl’s school,” recalls Lily Chen ’04, who graduated from Bryn Mawr in 2008 with a dual major in mathematics and psychology. Lana Madanat ’03, who received her BA in neuroscience from Smith College in 2008, responded similarly, even though her sister, Jumana Madanat Misleh ’99, was then a senior at Smith.

Martinez says VWS students are becoming much more open to the idea and Webb is now a top feeder school for women’s colleges: 51 percent of the 2012 graduating class applied to and 24 percent are attending a women’s college.

Still, resistance remains common. “For many prospective students,” laments Smith College Dean of Admissions Debra Shaver, “the notion of a women’s college is full of negative connotations. ... I think we need to change the conversation to what women’s colleges are: academically challenging, encouraging, empowering, and fun. Our outcomes prove our worth.”

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THEN AND NOW

AN ACADEMIC EDGE

Several recent studies on women in higher education have concluded that female students would be better served by a classroom environment tailored to the ways most women learn, with greater emphasis on participation, collaboration, and hands-on learning. What these studies seldom mention is that women’s colleges have offered just such an environment for decades.

Unlike most coed universities, the pedagogy at women’s colleges is tailored to the learning styles of female students.

“Smith professors know how to teach women and how to keep them engaged in the classroom,” says alumna Jumana Misleh. She recalls:

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In the 1800s, women’s colleges were almost the only choice for women seeking higher education; few universities accepted female students. Some of the earliest women’s colleges, like Mount Holyoke, were originally seminaries. Others were (and still are) affiliated with established colleges—created, in some cases, as an alternative to admitting women to existing all-male institutions.

Today, the need for women’s colleges is less obvious. Most American universities are coeducational and women outnumber men on college campuses. Some traditional women’s colleges have disappeared, while others are now coed.

However, as many women have realized, just because an institution is open to women does not necessarily mean it is welcoming or supportive. Researchers have noted that the climate for female students on coed campuses is often less than ideal, with negative consequences for women’s academic achievement and even their physical health. Furthermore, while about 60 percent of college students are female, teaching methods at coed universities predominantly favor the learning styles of male students.

Nowhere is the impact of these disparities more pronounced than in science, technology, engineering and math. A recent study by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research notes that female students are far less likely than men to receive undergraduate degrees in these disciplines and warns that the number of women in math and computer-related fields has actually fallen since 2000.

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Such results are no accident. “At a women’s college, every resource is dedicated to the education of and opportunities for women,” says Wellesley College Dean of Admissions Jennifer Desjarlais. Smith’s Debra Shaver adds that pedagogy at women’s colleges also tends to be more innovative than that at coed universities, pointing to examples like Smith’s open curriculum, which encourages students to take classes in many different fields, not just a narrow range of prerequisites. “It changes the dynamic in the classroom,” says Shaver. “Every student in every class wants to be there; she is not there because she needs to check off a requirement.”

Another advantage of women’s colleges is smaller classes.

“I don’t think I had a class of more than 30 people,” says Jessica Anand ’05, who graduated from Wellesley in 2009 with a double major in political science and Spanish. “I had a class of seven girls at one point. ... When I left a class, every single teacher knew my name and if I went back after a semester, they still remembered who I was.” Jumana Misleh says that at Smith, “on a rare occasion when I was late or missed a class, my professor would personally call me to ask if I was okay and would offer to go over the lecture with me.”

Lily Chen, a Bryn Mawr alumna, had high praise for the faculty and the “easy access to well-respected professionals in their specific fields.” She recalls: One o the est e ories ha e o college was

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Whatever the discipline, women’s college students often display a level of engagement that is rare for students of either sex at coed universities. Even VWS alumnae are sometimes startled by the passion for academics at women’s colleges. “There was tons and tons of participation [at Wellesley],” says Jessica Anand.

“Nobody was really missing class. That wasn’t necessarily because people wanted to get good grades, but because they were passionate about what they were studying. I cannot emphasize enough how important that was.”

Alumnae describe the academic experience as demanding but energizing. “Women’s colleges can bring out the best in you,” remarks Jumana Misleh. “It is pretty difficult to slack off when you’re surrounded by amazingly intelligent, driven women.”

Such passion can be a confidence booster for young women.

“If you can be shy, especially when participating in classroom discussions, it is nice to have a classroom of female peers where you can feel comfortable speaking up,” says Lana Madanat.

According to the National Association for College Admission Counseling, 92 percent of women’s college graduates report improved self-confidence, compared to only 70 percent of public university alumnae.

A RECIPE FOR SUCCESS

Research shows that women’s college students have higher graduation rates and are more satisfied with their education than women at coed institutions. The Women’s College Coalition notes that women’s college alumnae are also significantly more likely to go to graduate school. According to Debra Shaver, “Almost 70 percent of Smith alumnae pursue postgraduate education within five years of graduation.” Nationally, 51 percent of women’s college alumnae receive graduate degrees, compared to 33 percent of alumnae of coed liberal arts colleges and only 27 percent of public university alumnae.

Shaver adds that at Smith, the only U.S. women’s college to offer an accredited engineering degree program, about a third of undergraduates major in engineering, mathematics, or other scientific fields, considerably higher than average.

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to have served me well in my professional life.” (She is now an international trade attorney with Stewart and Stewart.)

TEN WOMEN’S COLLEGE PIONEERS One of the central missions of women’s colleges is to prepare women for leadership roles, and in that area, the record speaks for itself. A substantial percentage of women serving in Congress are women’s college alumnae, as is Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton (Wellesley College ’69).

T H E P O W E R O F PA R T N E R S H I P

Here are some other pioneering women to graduate from women’s colleges:

A less-recognized advantage of women’s colleges is the relationships many have with other nearby colleges. Wellesley, for example, is affiliated with Harvard and MIT and allows cross-registration with Babson, Brandeis, and Olin College of Engineering. Scripps College is one of the Claremont Colleges, along with Claremont McKenna, Harvey Mudd, Pitzer, and Pomona College, while Smith is one of the Five Colleges, with Amherst, Hampshire, the University of Massachusetts, and Mount Holyoke, another women’s college.

1 The first woman to win the Nobel Prize for Literature: Author Pearl S. Buck (Randolph-Macon Women’s College ’14), in 1932, for her novel The Good Earth.

2 The first female neurosurgeon in the U.S.: Dorothy Klenke Nash (Bryn Mawr College ’22).

3 The first woman appointed to a U.S. presidential cabinet: Frances Perkins (Mount Holyoke College ’02), secretary of labor under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1933-1945.

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“The numbers don’t lie,” says Hector Martinez. “The admission rates to medical school, law school, MBA programs, and other professional degrees are higher coming from a women’s college, even in comparison to the most prestigious coed colleges— including the Ivy League.”

4 The first African-American woman to graduate from Yale Law School and the first African-American female judge in the U.S.: Jane Matilda Bolin (Wellesley ’28), who graduated from Yale in 1931 and was appointed to the bench in 1939 by New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia.

5 The first woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize: Pacifist author, sociologist, and economist Emily Greene Balch (Bryn Mawr 1889), in 1946.

6 one of the first two women to reach the rank of general in the U.S. Army: Brig. Gen. Elizabeth P. Hoisington (College of Notre Dame ’40), Director of the Women’s Army Corps, promoted June 11, 1970.

7 The first woman to serve as president of a major U.S. university: Historian Hanna Holborn Gray (Bryn Mawr ’50), acting president of Yale, 1977-1978, and president of the University of Chicago, 1978-1993.

8 The first woman to serve as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations: Jeane Kirkpatrick (Barnard College ’48), 1981-1985.

9 The first female vice presidential candidate from a major American political party: Geraldine Ferraro (Marymount Manhattan College ’56), who ran with Democratic presidential candidate Walter Mondale in 1984.

10 The first woman to serve as U.S. secretary of state: Madeleine Albright (Wellesley ’59), secretary of state under President Bill Clinton, 1997-2001.

These alliances give students access to a vast range of classes.

“Through cross-registration, our students can choose from about 2,500 courses and more than 60 majors,” say Scripps Dean of Admissions Victoria Romero and Assistant Director of Admissions Margaret Nilsson. Wellesley’s Jennifer Desjarlais says crossregistration also facilitates interdisciplinary programs like the Sustainability Certificate Program offered by Wellesley, Babson, and Olin Colleges. Another benefit is that each student can effectively select her own balance of single-sex and coed courses.

Not all students cross-register; “I didn’t take very many coed classes outside of Wellesley and a few MIT classes,” says Jessica Anand. Other students actually complete their majors off campus, like Natalie Sacks ’07, who majored in public policy analysis at Pomona College while attending Scripps, and Jumana Misleh, who earned her BA in government from Smith and an interdisciplinary degree in international relations from the Five Colleges.

SOCIAL LIFE

The access to off-campus classes, clubs, and events does much to alleviate one of prospective students’ biggest fears about women’s colleges. “Initially, I really thought my social life would suffer or be stunted,” says Ari Litman ’08, who received her BA in psychology from Scripps in 2012, “but it was the complete opposite. ... It was so much fun.”

Students at women’s colleges have many social options.

Jumana Misleh says of Smith: “The accessibility of four other schools meant that there were always numerous parties, concerts, and sporting events to attend. You could start the

NETWORKING AND OTHER BENEFITS night out attending a screening of an independent film at Women’s colleges offer other perks, as well. Jumana Misleh Hampshire, go to dinner at Amherst, and end up at a fraternity explains: party at UMass. Students from the other schools regularly attended our on-campus parties. reall lo ed how e er thing at S ith was geared towards wo en, ro the classes to the There is a free bus that circulates ho sing Two totall di erent e a ples senior ear, participated in a weekl l nch ti e among the campuses, so it was also really easy to get around.” se inar intended to teach o ng wo en how to e inanciall sa and how to deal with in esting, loans, and other iss es, so that we ne er had to e dependent on so eone else to Alumnae admit that being socially anage o r inances The athletic acilities are designed or wo en was ne er a serio s active requires more deliberation than at a coed school. “It took more athlete, t it was great to e a le to se e ip ent designed or o r odies of an effort to get out and do things socially on the weekends,” says Perhaps the greatest benefit of women’s colleges is networking.

Eissa Villasenor ’98, who graduated The solidarity among alumnae is strong and the resulting from Mount Holyoke in 2002 with a double major in politics networks can be very powerful—particularly since, as Victoria and Spanish. However, Lana Madanat notes she and her friends Romero and Margaret Nilsson of Scripps observe, women’s had a very satisfying social life despite only occasionally college alumnae “are disproportionately represented in business venturing off campus. “We could have visited the other colleges and government.” in the area and made friends with more boys,” she says, “but we “Before I started,” says Eissa Villasenor, “someone told me that found that there were so many parties and on-campus events the network of women I would have just from graduating from at Smith that it wasn’t necessary to leave campus to have a Mount Holyoke would be tremendous. I found that to be true, good time.”

110 percent. ... I’ve found mentors in my career that way, friends in law school that way, friends abroad that way. ... I think it’s THE QUESTION OF MEN really inspiring.”

For many young women, the prospect of four years without men is distinctly alarming. Even Jumana Misleh, who “was intrigued HOW TO CHOOSE by the idea of going to class without (male) distractions,” For VWS students considering women’s colleges, alumnae admits, “When Mr. Martinez first suggested Smith, I believe stress the importance of campus visits. “For me, the college my response was, ‘But I like boys.’” visit sold it,” says Eissa Villasenor. “I came back [from Mount In practice, alumnae say the single-sex environment is less Holyoke] and I was certain that that was where I wanted to daunting than it sounds. “We didn’t miss having guys on campus spend the next four years of my life.” Jumana Misleh and Lana [at Wellesley] because you could always go see them if you Madanat say they had no interest in Smith until they toured wanted to,” says Jessica Anand. “I never felt a void of male and fell in love with the campus. presence in my life.”

“Don’t be deterred by the fact that it’s a women’s college,” offers “In the end, my experience at a women’s college did not keep Jessica Anand. “Don’t be scared that there aren’t men in your life, because if you want them, you’ll find them. I met my fiancé me from men,” says Ari Litman, who met her significant other during my junior year of college. It’s a different environment, while at Scripps. “Instead, it gave me the safe space to but it’s a lot less nerve-wracking once you get there.” educate [myself] and experience my growth. College was almost a retreat, and when I wanted male interaction, all “Based on my sister’s experience and my own,” says Ari Litman, I had to do was go outside.” “a women’s college is really the best place for a girl who’s looking to grow intellectually [and] socially, have really strong bonds “I do think women’s colleges play a huge role in shaping with women, develop her character, and find out who she is.” our identities and our views of men,” notes Jumana Misleh.

“We learn to be more analytical in our relationships and to not accept everything at face value.” She says her time at Smith made her more confident in dealing with men, which “seems

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All OF ALL of US Us [ Genetics and Genomics in Healthcare, Today and Tomorrow ]

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EYE COLOR, SKIN COLOR, ARMS, LEGS: these few features, and thousands more, come together uniquely in every human now alive, every human who ever has lived or ever will live. From our few noticeable characteristics—our fingers, for example, or our susceptibility to sunburn—to the myriad we never see—the structure of our neurons, say, or the placement of our internal organs—we are immensely complex. And yet: each individual cell in our body carries within it our genome, the total of our genetic makeup, as a helical double strand of DNA. We have begun to understand how genes (short strands of DNA) and chromosomes (longer strands of DNA containing multiple genes) function to create a whole—a complex living organism. U .

We’ve known, vaguely, about the existence of DNA for well over 100 years, and confirmed its role in heredity 60 years ago. Now we’re moving beyond that, using our knowledge of genetics to predict our fates and even to alter our DNA.

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some point, predicts Billings, all newborns will have their genomes scanned. When that testing reveals predispositions to medical conditions, should infants or young children

Put quantitatively, the human genome is composed

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of 23 pairs of chromosomes consisting of approximately

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3 billion individual DNA bases. If we think of the genome

as a book, it’s a book of recipes: some 30,000 to 40,000 recipes for making proteins. Each chromosome is a chapter, and each gene is a recipe. some gene “recipes” make one protein, while others can make several

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different proteins. The genes also encode information such

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as when, where and how much of each protein to make.

While we understand how genes work, we’re still discovering exactly what each gene does—the study of genetics—as well as how genes interact with each other and with environmental factors—the study of genomics.

We do know enough to begin using genetic and genomic information in medicine, and some of the issues surrounding the use of this information in healthcare are as complex as the genome itself.

Genetics, genomics and medical ethics are fascinating, fastchanging, complex fields that will directly affect us, and our children and grandchildren even more so. It’s no wonder Webb alumni are in the thick of things.

Genetic medicine sounds futuristic—and it is—but it’s already part of our healthcare system, and in some applications it has become almost routine. ick l ’9 is one of the scientist-entrepreneurs working to expand the use of genetic information. With an MBA and PhD from Vanderbilt University, he’s well-positioned to understand both the scientific and business aspects of biotechnology research. Nickols co-founded Insight Genetics and currently serves as chairman of the company’s scientific advisory board. Insight Genetics occupies

a specific niche in biomedical and genetic research, developing companion diagnostics—tests used to determine whether a particular treatment will be effective in treating a specific patient’s condition.

In this case the condition is non-small cell lung cancer and the drug is Pfizer’s Crizotinib. Roughly 5 percent of non-small cell lung cancers have a mutation that makes Crizotinib effective against them. With some 200,000 new cases of non-small cell lung cancer diagnosed annually in the United States, Crizotinib has the potential to help 10,000 new patients each year. Pfizer marketed Crizotinib with a companion diagnostic to determine which patients have non-small cell lung cancer with the genetic mutation that makes it susceptible to Crizotinib treatment. In essence, the companion diagnostic is a genetic test, not for the patient, but for the patient’s cancer. Insight Genetics developed and marketed a faster and more accurate version of that test.

This type of genetic testing, also known as molecular testing, is not cheap; costs range from $1,500 for a single test to more than $3,500 for a multiple test assay. When an anti-cancer therapy can cost $25,000 to $100,000, though, the cost of the test seems like a small down-payment. “Innovation has to be paid for,” Nickols notes, adding that targeted therapies like Crizotinib often cost less than broader treatments like

may or not develop later in life?

T M S R a L EGS R N O I a R Ea IS E R NO H 13 S E S S I E E C O E T fING ERS NOSE LI chemotherapy, so insurance companies have an incentive to promote their use.

issues, especially when it’s a person being tested, rather than a tumor.

Still, use of molecular testing is far from universal. While it’s common in larger hospitals and academic medical centers, “regional hospitals may be using 10-year-old medicine,” Nickols says. He estimates that approximately 15 percent of cancer patients receive molecular testing. And the therapy itself is not a magic bullet: eventually, the cancer develops resistance to the drug. “You know that you’re in the clear for a number of months” before resistance arises, Nickols explains, but eventually it will.

Unlike tests which reveal existing medical conditions, genetic tests reveal only predispositions, potentialities; not certainties.

Testing your genome may reveal a predisposition for Alzheimer’s disease or breast cancer, but not whether or not you will actually develop either disease. This uncertainty raises myriad questions, says Harvard PhD and MD aul Billi g ’7 , chief medical officer for Life Technologies. How do you determine which results are meaningful and which aren’t? How do you decide what measures are appropriate?

While there are cases in which Crizotinib treatment results in complete remission—that is, where the cancer can no longer be detected—more often the result is a reduction in the size of the cancer, sometimes to a point where it can be surgically removed. Overall, Nickols says, Crizotinib treatment raises the odds of survival for patients to 90 percent after 10 years.

While stem cell and gene therapies—both of which, broadly speaking, involve altering a patient’s DNA—receive a lot of press, testing is the most widespread application of genetics and genomics in healthcare, and it’s only going to become more commonplace. This raises some important moral and ethical

At some point, predicts Billings, all newborns will have their genomes scanned. When that testing reveals predispositions to medical conditions, should infants or young children undergo treatments to prevent conditions they may or not develop later in life—especially when those treatments may have their own serious side effects? This raises the possibility “that we will medicalize normal childhood,” says Billings. And later in life, should a genetic disposition to, for example, alcoholism or seizures be grounds for denying someone a driver’s license?

After all, using genetic testing technology “you can get information beyond just predisposition to cancer,” says Nickols.

Conditions from kidney disease and neurological disorders

“I’m only interested in knowing about things that I can act on,” says Nickols. Testing for untreatable hereditary diseases?

“I’m not too sure I want to know

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that.”

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14 to glaucoma have genetic markers that can be tested for. But adding to the uncertainty inherent in any test that reveals possibilities, rather than certainties, is the fact that our knowledge and technology is still very imprecise. “We’ve got large gaps in our knowledge,” Billings says. “We need more experience.

“Tests for genetically predisposed conditions generally just aren’t very accurate,” Billings adds. And even accurate tests have limitations. For example, testing can reveal the genetic marker for sickle cell anemia, but the disease can be acquired in other ways.

Genetic testing also raises privacy issues and questions of familial obligations.

“It might become routine to have a complete genetic profile at an early age, before one is capable of giving informed consent,” says Bill Ruddick ’49, a professor of philosophy at New York University.

“Once someone is capable of consent, the issue might become that of consenting to share this information with others: employers, potential mates, or insurers. Presumably it would already be shared with members of one’s family.” Those who do not have their genome scanned as infants or children might later feel pressure from their families to undergo testing,

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The ability to edit our own genome, and those of our children, raises the specter of eugenics. “There’s a lot

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of fear around making changes to the genome that can

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T M S R a L E R 15 N GS O I a Ea IS E R H OS S S I E E O E T fING ERS NOSE LI PS be transmitted,” says Billings. “What will people want

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Ruddick says, noting that genetic testing “will reveal far more genetic information bearing on the health prospects and reproductive decisions of relatives.”

And, of course, on your own health prospects. It’s going to be up to consumers of genomic information to determine what they want to know, notes Nickols. Do you really want to know what might kill you? “I’ve had my genome scanned ... and I’ve had several dark moments,” says Billings. “It’s still a little weird, that minute before someone might tell you that you have a potentially fatal disease.”

“I’m only interested in knowing about things that I can act on,” says Nickols. Testing for untreatable hereditary diseases?

“I’m not too sure I want to know that.”

Still, says Walter Ogier ’74, the ability to identify genetic risks is clearly beneficial: it gives people information to make decisions. With an MBA from Yale, Ogier has spent most of his career focusing on the business side of developing new medical technologies, including stem cell and gene therapies.

While not yet as widely used as genetic tests, these therapies have tremendous potential, and raise more bioethical issues.

Currently the president and CEO of Acetylon Pharmaceuticals, Ogier previously was president and CEO of Genetix Pharmaceuticals

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to change and what will they want to stay the same?”

(now bluebird bio), developing stem cell and gene transfer treatments for two genetic blood disorders, sickle cell anemia and beta-thalassemia. Both disorders are caused by a “misprint” in the genetic recipe for beta globin, a component of hemoglobin.

Genetix developed a treatment to insert a corrected copy of the beta globin gene into a patient’s stem cells using a bone marrow transplant; the treatments are currently undergoing clinical trials.

Still, says Billings, medical practice based in part on genomic information has the potential to be more reliable and more error-proof than current medical practice. There’s a catch, though: the healthcare system will have to undergo a paradigm shift. “We have too much wasteful treatment,” he says. “There’s no payment for prevention. Everything was incentived to take care of illness.”

Researchers are still working to overcome difficulties inherent in gene therapies. For example, Ogier says, “genes inserted into cells are not very permanent.” The body is adept at identifying and “clearing” altered DNA. Normally a helpful form of genetic housekeeping, when the altered DNA is a medical treatment this self-clearing becomes an obstacle.

And another catch: genomic information will need to be considered in context, as one factor among many affecting a person’s health. “Environment matters, prevention and treatment matter,” Billings explains.

“Genomics is not destiny.”

While researchers may find solutions for difficulties like this, some of the other issues associated with gene therapies are more intractable.

“There’s very little new under the sun here, but there are some interesting aspects of genomics and genetics that make them a special case” in bioethics, says Billings. “To the extent that we can alter reproductive practices and edit genetics, those are new capabilities, and those changes are transmitted from generation to generation. Children saved by genetic medicine can go on to have their own children.”

Vivian Webb Chapel discovering the beauty within As a place of respite and reverence, Vivian Webb Chapel serves its community well. It is a Webb rite of passage to present a senior chapel talk before one’s teachers and peers in the Vivian Webb Chapel, and it is the place where the news of historic and monumental worldwide events are shared—some with great wonder and excitement, as when Dr. Howard M. Fish, Jr. announced in April 1961, that the Russians had successfully sent a man into orbit and returned him safely to earth, and others with gravitas including the days after September 11, 2001, when students read from scriptures and spoke of forgiveness.

So much of substance and wonder has been discussed in the chapel that it is almost easy to overlook the intimate details that imbue the structure with personality, historic verities and beauty.

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Dr. Thompson Webb, the school’s founder, built the chapel himself with the help of students and faculty. The building, with its symmetrical arches and signature bell tower, is modeled on the 18th century mission at San Juan Capistrano, and was constructed of more than 60,000 simple 60-pound adobe bricks that were mixed, shaped and dried on campus. The first brick was laid in 1939 and the building was completed in 1944.

During those years, as the structure rose above campus, the first of many artistic blessings was bestowed upon the chapel—Dr. Webb learned that the renowned English sculptor, Alec Miller, was caught in the United States due to the war raging in Europe.

Miller’s carvings for the cathedral at Coventry were well known (and ultimately destroyed by a German air raid on that city).

During one of his first trips to the United States in 1910, Miller fulfilled an important commission for the cloister at Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania for which he crafted 40 carved stone gargoyles. Webb hired Miller to design furnishings for the chapel—Miller called them “fitments”—and the artist spent three years at Webb during which time he also crafted beautiful plaques bearing the likenesses of each member of the Webb family. Thompson and Vivian’s plaques still flank the east

Photos: Doug Santo

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doorway, just inside the building. The pews were built of Honduras mahogany during the summers of 1947 and 1948 under the direction of Miller, who also crafted the chapel doors.

From a scrap metal salesman, Dr. Webb purchased a couple of bells, one of which turned out to be a Meany Bell, one of the finest brands of bells ever crafted in the United States.

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And then there are the stained glass windows. Some are centuries old; the Taylor Window with its peasant scene, dates to 1620. Millard Sheets, renowned artist (he also worked as an architect, illustrator, muralist, and printmaker—he designed the circular Alf Museum structure), and father of Millard O. Sheets ’49, David Stary-Sheets ’57 and John A. Sheets ’61, fashioned the Arnett Window depicting the enlightenment of youth. And several windows were crafted by artist and Webb parent James Hubbell (Torrey ’76, Drew ’80, Lauren ’81, and Brennan ’87). Hubbell’s unique buildings and sculptures grace the grounds of numerous public spaces including the San Diego County Courthouse; Pacific Rim Park in Tijuana, Mexico; The Kuchumaa Ecological Center in Tecate, Mexico; and the Sea Ranch Chapel in Sea Ranch, California, just to name a few. The four glass windows he made for the chapel—the Ann R. Longley window, the Stephen R. Longley window, the Heyes window, and the Sharp window, incorporate the naturalistic design for which Hubbell has received worldwide critical acclaim.

• The Archangel Gabriel Defeating Satan, a rendering of the circa 1635 painting by Guido Reni located in Santa Maria della Concenzione de Cappuccini, Rome; (opposite page, right) • Madonna della Gatta, a representation of the circa 1520 painting by Giulio Romana located in the Museo di Capodimonte in Naples; (opposite page, center) • And The Descent from the Cross, a depiction of the circa 1612-1614 painting by Peter Paul Rubens located in the Cathedral of Our Lady, Antwerp, Belgium.

Set on a hill, an exquisite focal point for the entire community, the Vivian Webb Chapel is also home to the serenity of the Teresa L. Snite Memorial Garden, named in memory and in honor of Teresa Snite, grandmother of Lance Williams ’97; it is a peaceful reflection garden that serves as a sanctuary for intellectual and spiritual contemplation for students, teachers, and visitors.

“Vivian and I built this school to teach children the finest qualities of character above everything else, then the desire for learning and excellent scholarship.

We built this chapel as a proper place for the teaching of virtues that represent the finest character, honesty, dependability, trustworthiness, strength to do one’s duty, courage to uphold the right and fight for it,”

No chapel would be complete without great religious art and the chapel houses an august collection of oils-on-canvas based on masterworks including:

wrote Thompson Webb in the 1950s. “To acquire these virtues, we must continually keep them in mind and work for them.”

• A 20th century Madonna and Child; (opposite page, left) • An Adoration of the Shepherds, based on a 1610 painting by El Greco which is located in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York; • The Descent from the Cross, an interpretation of the masterwork by the French artist Eustache le Sueur; • Madonna dell’Impannata, based on an original circa 1513-1514 painting by Raphael located in the Pitti Place in Florence, Italy;

It is the singular place on campus that brings comfort, challenge, peace, and refreshment to the entire community.

From within and without, the chapel exudes an organic beauty; its structure was crafted with love and earnestness, and its adornments symbolize and honor the Webbs’ deep faith.

Opposite Page: Photos clockwise from top left: Chapel doors carved

by English sculptor, Alec Miller; Teresa L. Snite Memorial Garden; Chapel bell tower; Head of Schools Taylor Stockdale reflecting in the Vivian Webb Chapel, and “fitments” designed by Alec Miller.

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Today student news

PROS AND CONS Weighing in on Natural Gas Extraction: Under the Watchful Eye of Energy Maverick Robert A. Hefner III ’53 It’s not every day that high school students enjoy the opportunity to debate one of the great issues of all time—energy— in front of one of the most renowned energy professionals in the world, Robert A. Hefner III ’53, but that’s exactly what happened on October 2, 2012, when Hefner and his wife, MeiLi, visited the Webb campus for a day of classroom

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observation and a special convocation for students and faculty.

or more than 35 years, Hefner, an Oklahoman entrepreneur and energy futurist, has had a vision: an America fueled not by coal and oil, but by natural gas. As he explains in his 2009 book, The Grand Energy Transition, Hefner believes that natural gas can meet America’s energy needs while ending the country’s dependence on foreign oil; he affirms this by pointing out that the technology and infrastructure for the transition already exist and need only be scaled up to accomplish that goal. He further calls natural gas “a transformational fuel” and “the bridge fuel to our sustainable future.”

uring the Hefners visit to Webb, the couple stopped in an honors biology class where students were learning about, and conducting a lab on, natural selection. They then participated in an in-class debate on the issue of fracking and natural gas extractions with teacher John Lawrence’s AP Environmental Science class.

“I was on more of the ‘pro-fracking’ side in my head,” said Megan Scarlatelli ’14, “and when I found out I was not assigned to that side, I was frustrated ... after doing more in-depth research, I realized how each of the sides were strong in their points, as fracking itself is an extremely controversial subject in our modern society.”

“I see Mr. Hefner as a visionary who, just as so many of his kind, endured tremendous hardship, doubt and enormous obstacles in his belief and quest that natural gas could be found in very deep wells underground,” said Lawrence. “He was a pioneer in this concept and in his field while out-lasting his many detractors to eventually prove them wrong.”

Scarlatelli says she was a bit hesitant about interacting with Mr. Hefner, “but after meeting him, I saw he was extremely passionate [about the topic]. He was very knowledgeable and it was a great opportunity for our class.”

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On September 30, all Webb students had the opportunity to view Hefner’s 2012 documentary, The Grand Energy Transition, which describes a totally new way to think about past, present and c a menergy p u suse. b Natural r i e f sgas extraction remains controversial future due to concerns about the environmental impact of hydraulic fracturing or “fracking,” a drilling technique that releases gas trapped deep inside layers of shale. Hefner believes that the risks associated with fracking are far less than the hazards posed by coal extraction, and he has called for rigorous standards for the industry to insure environmental health and safety.

Students in the Environmental Science class separated into two groups and flipped a coin to decide which team would be pro or con in the fracturing debate.

“I felt like I was meeting a celebrity,” said Angela Yang ’13 who has often heard the Hefner name at Webb (through the Hefner Initiative—a competitive educational program that offers two Webb juniors the opportunity to travel and learn in Asia, and also through his generous endowment support of The Raymond M. Alf Inspirational and Unbounded Teaching Chair in Science, Unbounded Creativity in Science Award and the Unbounded Thinkers Symposium).

After getting to know the Hefners at the event, Yang added,

“I saw that they were genuinely interested in getting to know us and understanding what we were learning in class. Mr. Hefner treated our research and opinions seriously and respectfully.”

Maxim Popov ’14, who was one of the “con” debaters, said that watching the documentary actually helped him prepare for the event, because it “described the way fracturing worked.”

Aman Patheja ’13 admired Hefner’s personal tenacity in following a passion. “He persevered through all these difficulties and came out a winner in the end,” said Patheja.

Kabir Mohideen ’13, another “con” debater, described the day as a “great experience, even if it was nerve racking to have to argue in front of Mr. Hefner, who is obviously a proponent of fracking and natural gas.”

At the end of the debate, the pro side pulled ahead, but Lawrence felt that everyone came out a winner in the end. “The Hefners were a joy to have in class and to speak one-on-one with the students. Their visit was a wonderful chance for students to meet and interact with two people who, I think, have changed the future of this planet.”

After viewing the movie and conducting research, students realized that each side has valid points.

Below: Mr. Hefner fields student questions. Right: Mr. and Mrs. Hefner observe an AP Environmental Science class.

Hefner’s thesis is that mankind is entering the next stage of energy evolution: from inefficient, dirty solid fuels (wood and coal) and liquids (oil and gasoline) to gases (natural gas and wind power). Each of these transitions has stimulated leaps in technological and economic growth, and Hefner is certain that natural gas—allied with wind and solar power—will be as important to the 21st century as coal and oil were to the 19th and 20th centuries.

Hefner, who cites Ray Alf as a great inspiration, is a geologist and geophysicist. He graduated in 1957 from the University of Oklahoma, and soon after founded GHK Company, which pioneered deep natural gas exploration. The firm’s operations led to most of the technological innovation necessary to drill and produce the world’s deepest and highest pressure natural gas wells, including many world records.

Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

The Webb Schools • WEbb.oRG

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Today

gaul athletics

“We now go into games expecting a win.”

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Webb players and coaches step up to the plate

Despite the loss of four seniors, Stodgel looks forward to another great season. “I think athletics [at Webb] are moving in a great direction,” he says. “I’m hoping the community will see that and say, ‘I want my kid to get that education and be able to play baseball at this level.’”

V W S S O F T B A L L • VWS softball got a new coach last W S C B A S E B A L L • When Coach Jeff Stodgel arrived at Webb in 2009, he says “baseball was more of an activity and less of a sport.” His challenge was “changing what the players thought of the baseball program and thought of themselves as baseball players.”

In three seasons, Stodgel has managed to do just that.

The baseball team won seven games in 2009; in 2012, the team was 21-5, capturing Webb baseball’s first league championship since 1985.

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“Coach Stodgel is the most enthusiastic coach I have ever had,” says pitcher Nick Gollin ’13, who will play Division III baseball at Washington University in St. Louis next year.

“He has brought a sense of purpose to the team.”

Stodgel has also tried to give players a view of life in the major leagues. Earlier this year, he took a group to Arizona for spring training. “We got to watch big leaguers play in their spring training facilities and got a tour of the stadium,” explains shortstop Aaron DiGiamarino ’13, who will play for USC next year. “Hopefully I will be there in a few years.”

In July came what Stodgel calls “one of those culminating moments of the year.” Nine WSC players flew to Houston, where Jeff Luhnow ’84, general manager of the Astros, gave the Gauls a behind-thescenes look at the business of baseball.

“It made me want to work hard,” says DiGiamarino, “because playing baseball for a living seems pretty good to me.”

Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

season: Thomas O’Dell, who brings to Webb more than 25 years of coaching experience, including five years at San Gabriel Mission High and eight years at Alhambra. Collectively, his teams have made more than a dozen CIF appearances and won three league championships.

O’Dell is a soft-spoken coach. “I don’t believe in negativity,” he says. “You’re going to get out of a team what you put into it.”

His emphasis is on teamwork. “I put it on my resume,” he explains. “It’s a philosophy.” Catcher Tristan Duque ’14 says O’Dell “is focused on the team, rather than the individuals, and that is exactly what we need. He has brought the team a lot closer.”

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That closeness has paid off: The girls were 10-10 last year, a big improvement over 2011. “Because of [Coach O’Dell’s] encouragement, we grew more confident in ourselves and that began to show in our game,” says pitcher Eryn Halvey ’14.

“We went from having lost every single league game my freshman year to making it to the first round of CIF my sophomore year. ... We now go into games expecting a win.”

The more confident team also enjoys renovated facilities, thanks to a group of committed parents, including the families of Alex Faura ’13, Rachel Sprague ’14, and Mallory Thompson ’13.

Their generosity has provided much-needed improvements like a new batting cage, a scoreboard, new safety equipment, a new storage unit, a maintenance golf cart, and even a resurfaced infield.

With most of last year’s line-up returning, O’Dell says the team looks good for the coming season. “We have some strong incoming freshmen who definitely have a lot to bring to the team,” adds Halvey. “If we improved so much in just one year, I’m thinking we’ll go all the way this season!”

The Webb Schools • WEbb.oRG

Today

the arts

Orchestra teacher Linda Silva’s entry into music was influenced by her sweet tooth. She says she chose to play the clarinet in junior high school because of the instrument’s common nickname:

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“the licorice stick.”

Though it was initially her childhood love of candy that drew her to it, Silva says even now, 41 years later, she still thinks the clarinet was the right choice.

To Silva, the instrument is the perfect sound for her to both blend in with the crowd and stand out.

Linda Silva

Interweaving the voices of the musical community

“It has a really wide range and tonal qualities that can be homogenous with other instruments.

It can sound like other instruments in the orchestra but it can also have its own voice,” she said. “The best teachers in the world always talk about how instrumentalists think of their instrument as an extension of their voice.”

Silva, who has worked for Webb part time since 2006, and last year became Director of Instrumental Music, said what intrigues her about an orchestra is the way its different instrumental “voices” weave together.

“To me it’s all about sound,” she said. “All this great art, all this great music that has been produced, it’s about making those things come to life or even creating our own.”

Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

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ut more than the beauty or catchiness of the melody, for Silva the music she produces from her clarinet is about the organic effort it takes to create it.

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“I find I’m most attracted to the physical part of music, which is actually playing it, the movement involved in music,” she said. “I’m most interested in creating the sound rather than the compositional aspect. Music composition is a vital part of music making, but I prefer to focus on the aspect of bringing the music off the page.”

By becoming a full-time presence on the Webb campus, Silva said she can interweave the different sounds of her orchestra, and also engage on a deeper level with her students and their music.

Having one job is something new for Silva, who has worked much of her professional life as a freelance music teacher and orchestra member, working for schools such as Pomona College and California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, and playing for various professional symphonies.

Now, in addition to her Webb responsibilities, Silva continues to teach clarinet, play in a professional woodwind trio and perform as a member of the Riverside Symphony.

She says involving herself in so many different musical outlets helps her bring more knowledge and experience back to the classroom. Silva often encourages her students to attend her musical performances.

“They are seeing me perform, as well as being their conductor. I talk to my students a lot about the importance of being on both sides of the podium.”

Though her musical multitasking has given her a wealth of knowledge and experience, Silva says the fulltime experience at Webb will help her grow as a musician and a teacher.

“One year I had 15 W2s,” she said referring to the freelancer’s tax document. “If I’m in one place, I can really concentrate my efforts from what I’ve learned over a long time of teaching and performing at different venues. It’s been a nice shift and I’ve really liked it, most of all because Webb is a close community and a beautiful community.”

The Webb Schools • WEbb.oRG

News from the Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology

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For most small museums, one summer trip is about all they can handle.

Not so for the Alf Museum, which offered three major trips in 2012: the Summer Peccary Trip to Utah and southwest Montana, a special research

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trip to Eastern Montana, and the first of what is hoped to be a series of peccary trips to Madagascar.

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Paleontology research lab soon to be a reality at Webb 26

In the last issue of Quest (Webb magazine, Summer 2012), the museum’s groundbreaking research program with Webb students was highlighted in an article titled, “Student Research at Webb Reaches New Heights.” Yes, important projects were in the process of being completed in the Honors Advanced Museum Research course, a class with a record enrollment of 20. Also noted were upcoming presentations by seven students for the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology conference in North Carolina (held October 2012). Now past, our students held their own in the midst of over one thousand paleontologists who attended this international conference. What was not mentioned in the article was that the research program has no home. There is no research lab, so students work on office desks or on folding tables placed where collections are stored.

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hat all changed with the stroke of a pen in October 2012, as Andrea and Blake Brown ’68 donated $200,000 to fund a state-of-the-art research lab at Webb for use by students, museum staff, and visiting scholars. A 500square-foot science classroom (Shell Room), located on the lower floor of the museum adjacent to the fossil prep lab, will be converted into a research lab.

This new research facility, funded by Andrea and Blake Brown ’68, will be ready for use in the 2013-14 academic year.

The lab will have ten work stations with Internet connections, a large central work table, and floor mounted cabinets for specimen storage. The lab will be state-of-the-art, hosting a laser scanner, a rapid 3D printer for making specimen reproductions, digital calipers, and an imaging system for measuring tiny specimens. It’s going to be a tremendous improvement for Webb’s paleontology program and will make our research lab one of the best of its kind in the United States.

Over the last five years, Webb developed a unique research opportunity for high school students through the nationally accredited Raymond Alf Museum of Paleontology. Working with Dr. Andrew Farke and Dr. Don Lofgren, students completed research projects on specimens collected on peccary trips, both recent finds and those made long ago. Only at Webb can a high school student have this type of research experience, and soon in a fully functional research lab, thanks to the vision and generosity of Andrea and Blake Brown ’68.

The trip began July 8, in Bozeman, Montana, when Dr. Don Lofgren, alumnus Kevin Terris ’09, and three current Webb students (Gabe Gosney ’14, Kristina Oney ’14 and Chloe Soltis ’13) arrived by air and then headed east to the Hell Creek Formation badlands on the shores of Fort Peck Reservoir.

The trip was centered on investigation of faunal turnover at the time of dinosaur extinction. The weather was brutally hot, with temperatures surpassing 100 degrees for the week that the crew was in the field. In spite of the heat, many excellent micro-vertebrate specimens were collected, particularly those from mounds made by harvester ants. Some of these anthill samples are very rich in mammal teeth and will be the source of future student research projects.

Summer Peccary The 70th annual Summer Peccary trip in Webb’s history began on July 25. Composed of 27 current and former Webb students, the peccary group first visited southwest Montana to collect 35-million-year-old mammals with Dr. Lofgren at the famous Pipestone Springs site. Joining the group there were Larry Price ’61 and Martha Lussenhop. At Pipestone, Kevin Terris found a partial skeleton of a squirrel sized extinct rodent called Ischyromys. This was amazing as in over 100 years of collecting at this oft-visited site, no one had ever found an articulated mammal skeleton. As you may remember, Kevin Terris also found the extremely rare baby hadrosaur skeleton in Utah on the Summer Peccary trip of 2009. Kevin has a gift!

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The eastern Montana peccary crew (l-r), Kevin Terris ’09, Kristina Oney ’14, Gabe Gosney ’14. and Chloe Soltis ’13.

Ischyromys skeleton found by Kevin Terris ’09 at Pipestone Springs, Montana.

The Summer Peccary crew then headed south to Utah to join forces with Dr. Andrew Farke and other adults in collecting dinosaurs in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.

The focus of the work was continued excavation at the Cripe Site and prospecting for new sites in the Kaiparowits Formation. A highlight was the discovery by museum trustee Richard Clark, of the crest of the lambeosaurine duck-billed dinosaur Parasaurolophus, a rare and scientifically important specimen. This hadrosaur skull fragment was too large to be

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The Webb Schools • WEbb.oRG

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News from the Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology

SUMMER TRIPS CONT.

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carried out, so it is now awaiting transport by helicopter out of its remote wilderness location. Other adults included faculty Will Allan ’94, Sadie Kingsbury, Kevin Quick, and Sarah MacKenzie, as well as Michael Stokes and Duncan Everhart.

Students and young alumni were Kevin Terris ’09, Kathleen Terris ’07, Seraphina Oney ’12, Michelle Huber ’13, Landen Taflinger ’13, Cole Henry ’13, Jack Gilliat ’13, Jon Gunn ’13, Annisa Herrero ’13, Miya Wensley ’13, Christian Quick ’14, Skyler Marquez ’14, Kristina Oney ’14, Tristan Duque ’14, Gabe Gosney ’14, Maia Dominguez ’15, Siri Dominguez ’15, Jackie Withey ’15, Annie Childress ’15, Bob Stoddard ’15, Maddie Gaumer ’15, Cathy Chang ’15, Kate Lofgren ’16, Will Martinez ’16, Armen Chalian ’16, Arthur Chang ’16, and Matthew Lee’16.

DIGITAL FOSSILS Paleontology is a global science, with researchers all over the world striving to understand more about the history of life on Earth.

Stephanie Rapoport ’14 (l) and Tristan Duque ’14 (r) with camel tracks they will be imaging.

The Alf Museum group and local paleontologists prepare for fieldwork in the Mahajanda Province of northwest Madagascar.

Madagascar The museum also ran a two-week expedition to Madagascar led by Dr. Andrew Farke.

It was a fantastic experience as twenty travelers got to soak in the culture, biology, geology, and paleontology of Earth’s fourth largest island. The group included Annisa Herrero ’13, Skyler Marquez ’14, James Taylor, Pat Herrero, Dan Gluckstein and Akemi Chang, Bailey Stockdale ’11, Jeff Gluckstein ’05, Lisa Gluckstein ’08, David Mirkin ’66, Ron Hagander ’66, Barbara and Bob Mixon ’63, Terry Baganz, Will Allan ’94, Alicia and Larry Ashton ’70, and others.

HIGHLIGHTS WERE MANY AND INCLUDED: Part of the Summer Peccary group on top of a ridge in Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument; Bryce Canyon National Park in the distant horizon.

Bob Mixon ’63 quarrying for fossils in the Maevarano Formation, northwest Madagascar.

1) Visits to several national parks and private reserves, where participants saw at least seven different species of lemur, as well as chameleons, hissing cockroaches, crocodiles, and birds. Ninety-five percent of Madagascar’s terrestrial animals are found nowhere else on the planet.

2) The opportunity to immerse in Malagasy culture and history, from big cities to small villages. Although the group ate mainly at fancy restaurants by Malagasy standards, the best dining experience for many people was the few days of traditional cuisine at the paleontology field station (rice and beans, slathered with generous portions of sakay, the local hot sauce). Participants also learned about humanitarian programs run through the Ankizy Fund, an organization set up by scientists to help build and fund schools and dental clinics in areas that are underserved by the Malagasy government.

3) Participation for several days in paleontological fieldwork in northwestern Madagascar with a team from Stony Brook University (Dr. Farke’s alma mater) and the University of Antananarivo in pursuit of 70-million-year-old dinosaurs, birds, and crocodiles.

The Alf Museum team worked in a fossil quarry (which has yielded abundant carnivorous dinosaur bones) and prospected for new localities.

The trip was a great success and the museum hopes to offer it again in 2014.

Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

Current Student Research Projects

With over 150,000 fossil specimens, many of them representing extinct species found nowhere else, the Alf Museum is a critical resource.

However, not every researcher who wants to study our specimens can get to the museum. Thanks to the expansion of digital scanning and archiving, Alf Museum specimens are more accessible than ever before.

Digital photographs of fossils are useful, but a three-dimensional representation is best. This allows the viewer to examine structures from different angles, zoom in and out, and take measurements in any direction. Affordable 3D printing technology means that a scientist can download a digital file of a fossil and create a plastic replica within hours. Museums have been discussing specimen digitization for years, but few have acted, largely for technological or logistical reasons. With improvements in software and desktop computers, as well as the support of Webb students, the Alf Museum is poised to take the lead in the digitization of paleontology collections.

Photogrammetry is the technique used to digitize the museum’s most important specimens. Here, a fossil is photographed from multiple angles with a digital camera and then the pictures are loaded into software that reconstructs the fossil’s shape. The result is a file representing a three-dimensional specimen that can be uploaded to a free-access website and then downloaded by anyone in the world.

Beyond the “gee-whiz” factor, digitizing collections serves several important roles. As mentioned above, it improves access to collections for researchers (and the public) worldwide. New kinds of research are also possible, as digital specimens can be used for sophisticated measurements and analyses, allowing better documentation and interpretation of the fossil record. Finally, digitization helps the Alf Museum to fulfill its mission of preserving and protecting rare fossil resources. Digital files serve as a “back-up” if a specimen is damaged or lost.

Digitization efforts also fit our educational mission. Webb students Tristan Duque ’14 and Stephanie Rapoport ’14 are digitizing specimens in their advanced research class. Thus far, they have focused on digitizing the museum’s ichnotypes (specimens designated as the original reference for a new kind of fossil track).

For instance, our fossil spider tracks from the Coconino Sandstone near Seligman, Arizona, were designated as the ichnotype of Octopodichnus raymondi. Thus, ichnotypes have great scientific interest for paleontologists. An initial sample of digitized specimens from our collection was posted to the international research archive figshare.com in September and has already been viewed by hundreds of people worldwide. The Alf Museum is going global!

Twenty students in the Honors Advanced Museum Research class are working on ten research projects in the current academic year.

These projects include: •

Analysis of the Quarry 5 mammal fauna from the Barstow Formation of California Chris Kwon

•

Review of the anchitherine horses from the Barstow Formation Bo on ale

•

Study of the peccary Hesperhys from the Barstow Formation eredith Hess and liana Hernande

•

Description of a rare 60-million-year-old bird fossil from the Goler Formation of California ichael Paik and achel Choi

•

Analysis of over 1,000 multituberculate mammal teeth from the Eastern Green River Basin of Wyoming a e osne , Chloe Soltis , Kristina One and La ren West A project initiated by Malcolm McKenna ’48 that the Alf Museum is going to complete.

•

Analysis of tooth wear patterns in duck-billed dinosaurs from the Kaiparowits Formation of Utah on nn and Toshi Na ikian

•

Description of a new alligator species from the Kaiparowits Formation addie Henn , Al ert , and Sa Woodward

•

Study of the baby hadrosaur skull and skeleton from the Kaiparowits Formation Annisa Herrero , Brandon Scolieri , and Derek Chok

•

First report of a pterosaur bone from the Kaiparowits Formation Chiara Wilridge

•

Three dimensional imaging of fossil vertebrate tracks and trackways Tristan D e and Stephanie apoport

d i s c o v e r

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As a way of giving back to the school that he’s called home for 16 years, Caldwell hopes to raise funds through individual sponsorships of his competitions, money he’ll use to establish an endowed fund to support Webb athletes.

fa c u lt y

Perry AWArd Recipients plan journeys

for their growth and Webb’s benefit

“Sonsoles and Brian are wonderful examples of the spirit and total dedication on behalf of our students at

ince 1998, The Webb Schools’

Webb. They are also the latest recipients in a long line

Perry Endowment Fund has awarded more than $150,000 to faculty members for professional development—and for what the schools have received in return, it’s been a great investment. This year’s Perry Award for Faculty Enrichment recipients alone will use their funds to transport students to medieval Spain and encourage athletes to reach for the stars.

of outstanding Webb teachers who devote their lives to making Webb such a special learning community.

I am so proud of them as well as our entire faculty for stewarding our legacy of great teaching so well.

—Taylor Stockdale, Head of Schools

Spanish instructor Sonsoles Cardalliaguet will use her Perry Award funding to explore the manifold dimensions of Spain’s storied Camino de Santiago—the Pilgrimage of St. James. Traveled for more than 1,000 years, the Camino de Santiago is an expression of faith for practicing Catholics, as well as an expression of Spanish culture. “It has so much history; so much magic in terms of literature and everything,” explains Cardalliaguet. “There’s so much of Spain in the pilgrimage. And since the Middle Ages, people have come from all over Europe, and still do, to walk the route.”

Enrolling in an on-site, experiential course offered by the University of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, Spain, Cardalliaguet will unpack the richness of Spanish culture revealed along the pilgrim way: history, art, geography, literature, gastronomy, language, and culture. Today the ancient path is peopled by secular, as well as religious, wayfarers brought together from across Europe and the world to walk the road for myriad different reasons.

“This is something I can bring to the school that I am very passionate about,” says Cardalliaguet. Not only will she bring her experience and knowledge into the classroom, she also hopes to have the opportunity to accompany students in their own exploration of the pilgrimage. She’s already in talks with the university to develop a program designed for Webb students.

“I will be bringing my students something unique.

The idea is really to start something for them.”

Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

He’s also racing to “walk the walk” for his daughters.

“I tell my girls that they need to dream big—so big it seems impossible,” he says. “I tell them there’s nothing out there that you can’t do—but don’t be afraid of failure, because that’s how you learn and grow.” It’s a message Caldwell imparts to the Webb students he coaches, too. “When a runner looks at the world and sees limitless possibilities, I know I’ve done my job,” he says.

This year’s other Perry Award recipient, math instructor and cross-country coach Brian Caldwell, will use his funding to embark on another pilgrimage, of sorts: a series of long-distance endurance foot-, bicycle-, and ocean swim races. The competitions are measured in hundreds of miles, but the real journey is personal and interior.

Caldwell’s father passed away at the age of 48, when he was 12. Caldwell has been dedicated to physical fitness and his own health ever since. Looking forward to turning 50, he made a commitment to celebrate the year, and life, through his own form of self-expression: athletics.

He’s not doing it only for himself, though: he’ll be racing for The Webb Schools, for his two daughters and for his students.

“Thinking about what I’m grateful for. Most of the things I have to appreciate right now come from Webb.”

Cardalliaguet and Caldwell are the latest beneficiaries of the annual Perry Awards, the product of a remarkable couple and generous alumni. Previous recipients have used the funds to earn advanced degrees, conduct original research and writing projects, travel or learn new skills—all experiences they bring back to Webb. It’s a fitting tribute to the endowment’s namesakes, Les and Barbara Perry. From 1946 to 1976, the two dedicated their lives to the Webb community. Les served as athletic director, head football coach, head basketball coach, head baseball coach, advisor to the Block W Club, math teacher, and assistant headmaster. Barbara was a committed dorm parent, and together they contributed much to Webb’s history and to generations of Webb students. As one alumnus put it, the couple “gave us a reason to be valiant, to be loyal, to be alive.” ead of Schools Taylor Stockdale commented, “I had the great pleasure of knowing Les and Barbara, as well as the many alumni who grew up with them on the Webb campus.

While we have a formal committee for selecting the recipients, I also ask myself the question, ‘What would Les think?’ I am so proud to know in my heart that each Perry recipient today embodies the spirit and devotion of this remarkable and beloved Webb educator.”

Joann Robinson

“Behind the Desk” for 21 Years

It’s not only teachers who shape The Webb Schools’ heritage —Webb’s dedicated staff add to the school’s community, too.

In recognition of the contributions and lasting impressions of outstanding Webb staff, this year saw the establishment of the Joann Robinson Staff Distinguished Service Award.

Not surprisingly, Joann Robinson was the award’s first recipient, and it is established in honor of her upcoming retirement.

“It was a total surprise,” says Robinson, who received the award, along with an honorary Perry Award, during Parents Weekend.

Robinson arrived at The Webb Schools in 1992, during Susan Nelson’s first year as head of schools, and has held the position of assistant to both Nelson and Taylor Stockdale. That’s a big job with a lot of responsibilities, and the variety “has kept me going all these years,” Robinson says.

Robinson plays down her role in Webb’s administrative offices, averring that her job keeps her in the background, behind her desk. But, she admits, she interacts with just about everyone in the Webb community, from faculty and staff members to students, parents, alumni and board members—and that interaction, too, has kept her at Webb.

“It is difficult to convey in words the impact Joann has had on this campus during her long and distinguished Webb career.

Her retirement is richly deserved, but her vibrant personality and key role at the crossroads of so much Webb activity will be sorely missed. I was thrilled to bestow her with an honorary Perry Award and to establish the annual Joann Robinson Staff Distinguished Service Award so that her example and influence will remain on the Webb campus in perpetuity,” noted Head of Schools Taylor Stockdale.

H

Established by Guil Babcock ’49 to honor and remember the Perrys, and to recognize exceptional Webb faculty teaching today, the Perry Endowment Fund supports faculty enrichment and professional development through the Perry Awards given each year during Parents Weekend in October. The award itself reads: “For exemplary service and devotion to the lives of our students in the tradition of Les and Barbara Perry.”

Robinson has seen a lot of changes at Webb, and notes in particular that Webb alumni have strengthened their ties to the school over the past decades. However, it’s the continuity, rather than the changes, that stand out for her—the continuing excellence of Webb’s faculty, staff and students.

In her time at Webb, Robinson has added to that heritage of excellence, and as she leaves with 21 years worth of Webb stories, she also leaves a new award plaque with one name, her name. In the coming years, outstanding Webb staff will share their stories about Robinson and add their own stories as one by one their names are added to the Joann Robinson Staff Distinguished Service Award.

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Today

affiliates

Affiliates Support Faculty Growth and Development vigorous academic culture is a living community where students, faculty and parents contribute to the shared beliefs in the mission of the organization. Each year, The Affiliates of The Webb Schools support programs that provide creative opportunities to the faculty, which, in turn, directly benefit Webb students.

Proceeds from The Affiliates successful Dinner at Tiffany’s event held on March 24, 2012, established a fund for teacher growth and development. The Affiliates’ Teacher Development Fund supports the pursuit of professional growth activities throughout the year, including research and educational projects conducted by teachers.

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Math teacher Jim Dahler, who is currently on sabbatical, used his award to attend a linear algebra workshop last summer in Boston and has visited schools across the country to explore how other educators approach the dissemination of advanced math topics. Throughout his travels, he also connected with former Webb faculty and alumni including Daren Starnes at Lawrenceville Academy and Alison Hogarth ’93 at Peddie School. Dahler plans to develop a post-AP Calculus BC elective

for Webb’s advanced math students to be introduced in the 2013-2014 school curriculum.

Performing Arts faculty member Stefanie Hamlyn expanded her horizons by spending several days at a conference sponsored by the Educational Theatre Association entitled “Developing the Innovative Mind,” which was held in September 2012, in San Diego. She attended workshops exploring “Reviving Learning Through Theatre,” “Using the Camera as a Teaching Tool in the Classroom,” “Raising the Curtain on 21st Century Skills,” and “Developing a Technical Theatre Curriculum.” Hamlyn was inspired by the opportunity to share ideas with colleagues who share her passion for theater arts and to learn from some of the foremost experts in the country.

istory teacher Piya Narayen attended The Western Conference for the Association for Asian Studies (WCAAS) in West Yellowstone, Montana, in October 2012, where she presented her paper, “Entanglements and the City: Delhi’s Civil Station in Late Nineteenth Century British India.” The WCAAS flourishes today as a premier regional Asian Studies association; the group’s annual fall conferences include dozens of panels attended by more than 200 participants from all over the world. Webb faculty members have also utilized funds to attend Advanced Placement (AP) conferences to advance their understanding of subject matter including Geoff Owers, BC Calculus, and Andrea Chou, AP Chemistry.

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“One of the hallmarks of Webb has always been its extraordinary faculty,” said Head of Schools Taylor Stockdale. “We are truly fortunate to have teachers who are experts in their fields, and fully devoted to their students’ lives and successes. Funding from Affiliates for professional development is vital to our ability to attract and retain such an outstanding faculty, and also for rewarding teachers for their tireless passion and energy for students.”

under the

Tuscan sTars 31

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Affiliates Fundraiser 2013 Join us on Saturday, March 23, 2013, at the Sheraton Fairplex Conference Center as The Affiliates celebrate Under the Tuscan Stars.

This very special event will establish the

Affiliates Athletics and Afternoon Activities Fund So much of what is good about Webb happens after the last class ends and the afternoon begins. Every student and teacher on campus is fully engaged every day in team sports, or an equally passionate pursuit—visual and performing arts, robotics, outdoor adventures, and more. In an effort to provide our hardworking students and their teachers with enhanced resources to pursue these endeavors, The Affiliates benefit this year will support a number of capital projects in athletics, as well as provide additional operating support for afternoon activities.

For more information, please contact Anne Stewart at (909) 482-5245 or astewart@webb.org Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

The Webb Schools • WEbb.oRG

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FULFILLING OUR

PROMISE

Campaign Update

giving and volunteering

2005 - 2013

Fulfilling Our Promise Campaign by the Numbers

T H A N k S G I v I N G W E E k AT W E b b

$35 MILLION DOLLaRS + $13 MILLION IN DEfERRED GIfTS

$50 3,547 alumni, friends and parents reaching beyond themselves to make a commitment and help fulfill a promise.

GOAL $40

ENDOWMENT

25 New Endowment Funds Established (15 new funds for scholarship support; 3 new funds to name faculty chairs and provide faculty enrichment; 6 new program funds for arts, athletics, and student leadership; and 1 new building maintenance fund)

18 Existing Endowed Funds Increased

$35

(13 scholarship funds increased; 1 fund for faculty development increased; 2 funds for athletics and character education increased; and 2 facility maintenance funds increased) C A P I TA L

200+ Dorm Rooms and Common Areas Renovated 3 New Faculty Homes Purchased, Many Others Renovated

“build a fine plant and establish an

1 New Black Box Theater and Digital Media Studio Constructed

endowment that will see the school on

1 Performing Arts Center nder constr ction and reno ation

a sound foundation through all the

1 Dining Hall Renovation

years to come.”

1 Museum Renovation 1 New Swimming Pool and Aquatic Center nder constr ction

Several major donors and their gifts have been publicized over the years. And while these donations became headline news, cumulatively, it has been the thousands of smaller donations that have made a big difference. Since 2005, Webb has put campaign investments to work where they matter most, in the lives of students and teachers. Following is a glimpse of the progress made during that time.

7 New Campus Vehicles Purchased for Student Transportation 2 New Landscape/Garden Areas Created 2 Athletic Field Renovations 1 New Golf Training System

THE WEBB FUND

More than $1 million each year of unrestricted funding for current programs, maintenance, and operations.

Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

During the week of November 12, the Webb community participated in several activities to promote giving back to the schools during the first ever “Thanksgiving Week.” Students and teachers alike were encouraged to think about what they were most thankful for at Webb and to share their thoughts on a banner outside the dining hall. Responses ranged from the ubiquitous comments about how great the food and food service is, to more personal messages like having “a great community of support.” Signs were also posted in the plaza to educate the community on the importance of The Webb Fund, and how every aspect of a Webb education is supported by the gifts that we receive from alumni, parents and friends from faculty recruitment and retention to extracurricular activities like Theme Week and sports.

1 New Parking Lot and Turnaround

IN MILLIONS

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ore than 3,500 faculty, staff, friends, alumni, parents, corporations, and foundations gathered together over the course of the campaign to make various contributions ranging from in-kind gifts to multi-million dollar donations.

Collectively these donors have made a monumental impact on The Webb Schools, forever changing the course of its future as a premiere independent boarding school. The donations fulfilled a promise made to Thompson Webb upon his retirement to—

$13

Join us by making your gift before the campaign ends on June 30, 2013.

Two of our alumni also returned to campus to give chapel talks and share with the students and teachers why they have chosen to give back.

Gabe Romero ’08 was a Rogers Scholar while at Webb and has served as the class agent for the Class of 2008 since graduating. He encouraged the students

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to give back once they graduate in honor of their Webb memories. Vicenta Arrizon Maffris ’00 delivered her talk to the VWS students, and as an A Better Chance Scholar and Rogers Scholar herself, she said that she gives back so that others may have the same life changing experiences that she had at Webb. Vicenta is also a class agent, representing the VWS Class of 2000.

The week capped off with students writing thank you notes to alumni, parents, and friends for their support of The Webb Fund, letting them know how much they are appreciated. Anyone who wrote a note was given a wristband that says “I’m 100% Webb” to promote our goal of everyone giving to The Webb Fund year after year.

Thank you to all who made this a special week, and to all of the members of the Webb community who support the schools.

The Webb Schools • WEbb.oRG

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giving and volunteering

Susan Nelson Elected Board Chair of TABS

New Trustees Named

Affinity Groups Launched The Alumni Council launched two affinity groups this year— Women of Webb bringing together Vivian Webb alumnae and Webb 15 for graduating classes of the last 15 years.

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DAVID J. LOO ’79

RJ ROMERO P’12, P’15

is a founding principal of New York’s Hudson Realty Capital, a real estate fund management firm that invests in real estate and mortgage debt. To date, Hudson has acquired and managed more than $3.5 billion of assets through its five private equity funds.

Loo’s responsibilities at Hudson include raising capital, strategy, new loan originations, and administration.

is the CEO of Ontario, California’s OREMOR Management & Investment Company, which owns a variety of automotive businesses, including a wholesale auto auction, a vehicle paint protection company, a financial services company, and the OREMOR Automotive Group, which operates 11 Southern and Central California automotive franchises.

Romero serves on the boards of the California New Car Dealers Association, the Southern California Toyota Dealers Association, and the Toyota National Dealer Council.

Hudson was formed in 2003 from an alliance between SWH Funding Corporation and Newbridge Realty Capital, which Loo co-founded in 2001. Loo was previously with Credit Suisse First Boston, where he established the Portfolio Bids Group and served on the Real Estate Investment Committee. From 1994 to 1996, he was a member of the Praedium Group’s Recovery Fund.

Loo earned his BA from Wesleyan University and his MBA from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. He and his wife Valerie live in New York City, where Loo serves on the President’s Council of Wesleyan University and the board of directors of Civic Builders, which funds and builds facilities for charter schools.

“When Taylor Stockdale suggested that I join the board at Webb, I was a little skeptical, as I am obviously not in any physical proximity to campus,” says Loo. “However, Taylor also mentioned that over 50 percent of Webb’s recent graduating classes are attending colleges in the Northeast. With more and more alumni in this part of the world, it was important to him that the board include representation from the East Coast. Given that Webb was such a seminal experience for me, I am honored to be able to participate in the stewardship of the school and hopefully give something back to the Webb community.”

Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

Romero has long been active in the community, supporting Boys and Girls Clubs and the Children’s Hospital of Orange County’s Radio Lollipop program. OREMOR sponsors an annual high school choral competition and programs to provide holiday gifts to foster children, as well as participating in Operation Outreach, which provides books to elementary schools. OREMOR’s individual dealerships also sponsor many local charities and scholarship programs.

Romero serves on the advisory board for the Assistance League of Pomona Valley and is a member of the Board of Governors of the Rose Institute of State and Local Government at Claremont McKenna College, of which he is an alumnus. Romero’s wife Laura is currently president of The Affiliates of The Webb Schools.

“The Webb Schools are an energizing and rewarding place to be involved,” says Romero, “and it is a pleasure to interact with such an amazing group of faculty, parents, and students. As a parent of a Vivian Webb alumna and a current WSC student, I know firsthand the transformative power of a Webb education and look forward to doing what I can to help Webb flourish for generations to come.”

In June 2012, Susan Nelson, Head Emerita was named chair of the Board of Directors for The Association of Boarding Schools (TABS), an organization that represents 285 college-preparatory boarding schools worldwide. The 14-member board includes school heads from Phillips Exeter, Miss Porter’s, Cate and St. George’s Schools, as well as representatives from The Hotchkiss School, St. Paul’s School and the Canadian Association of Independent Schools.

Based in North Carolina, TABS leads a domestic and international effort to promote awareness and understanding of boarding schools and to expand the applicant pool for member institutions. It is a rich resource for educators seeking leadership training, research, guidance and support on all issues related to boarding schools. Professional development includes an annual conference, a Global Symposium and Summer Institutes that cover residential life, admission and marketing, and new teacher academy.

Susan is excited about recent research from a pilot study evaluating the college matriculation and graduation habits of boarding school alumni. Early data shows that boarding school graduates surpass other high school graduates in the areas of: persistence at college, college graduation rates, and a greater interest in attending graduate school.

We had a great turnout for the Webb15 summer launch party.

37 Class of ’98s Drew Doyle, Preston Clarke and Ryan Morrissey with his wife Kristine Estrada.

Kathy Sun ’02 and Michael Sun ’06 with their cousin Sarah Sun ’02 (middle).

Colleen Bartlett, Claire Staggs ’10, Kelsey DaSilva ’10, Ariel ’10 and Tiffany ’12 Fan.

Director of College Guidance Hector Martinez with Sara Lo ’02, Arjun Rao ’02, and Jana Sims ’03.

“I am pleased with this research project because it provides our schools and the public with quantifiable data that supports the benefits of a boarding school education as being lifelong and incomparable.”

Susan is also a trustee for Foothill Country Day School and the Claremont University Consortium.

In June, the Alumni Council launched Women of Webb, which aims to engage Vivian Webb alumnae with events and networking opportunities.

The Webb Schools • WEbb.oRG

NewsNotes From and for the alumni of The Webb Schools

Life On The Q List alumni spotlight

SciFi Author John Sc alzi ’87 o n w r i t i n g , h u m o r, a n d s u c c e s s

A Memorable Prank

Webb has had many accomplished alumni over the years, but only one has been nominated for a Hugo Award for an April Fool’s gag: best-selling author John Scalzi ’87.

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Last year, Scalzi’s publisher, Tor Books, posted a list of the most commonly occurring words in the titles of popular science fiction and fantasy novels, jokingly suggesting that any book whose title used all those words would be a surefire hit. “I will write that book,” proclaimed Scalzi, tongue in cheek. “Back up the money truck.” The result was The Shadow War of the Night Dragons: Book One: The Dead City: Prologue, published on the Tor website on April 1, 2011. To Scalzi’s astonishment, this satirical prologue to a nonexistent fantasy series earned him his ninth Hugo nomination, for Best Short Story. When Scalzi received the notification, he laughed so hard that his teenage daughter Athena thought he was having a seizure. (He would have been even more amused had he won, but the award went to Ken Liu’s The Paper Menagerie.)

Scalzi’s fiction work, which includes eight published novels, has mostly been in the science fiction genre, but he says his greatest literary influences are actually pre-World War II humorists like Dorothy Parker and Robert Benchley, and famously caustic newspaperman H.L. Mencken. That’s no surprise, considering Scalzi’s smart, often sarcastic sense of humor. For example, his latest novel, Redshirts, published by Tor in June, is a trenchant but affectionate parody about the hapless, doomed supporting characters of a certain well-known science fiction franchise. Not all of Scalzi’s books are overtly comedic, but even his popular military science fiction saga Old Man’s War includes plenty of droll wit.

A Writer of Many Talents The first decade of Scalzi’s professional writing career actually focused entirely on nonfiction. While at the University of Chicago, he edited the student newspaper while freelancing for various papers, including the Chicago Sun-Times. He later became a film critic for the Fresno Bee, an editor for America Online, and a financial consultant for companies like Oppenheimer Funds. He has written seven nonfiction books, including

Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

Finishing that novel, Agent to the Stars, inspired Scalzi to see if he could write one he could sell. In 2001, he completed Old Man’s War, which came to the attention of Tor editor Patrick Nielsen Hayden after Scalzi serialized the novel online.

Old Man’s War spawned four sequels: The Ghost Brigade, The Last Colony (the first of Scalzi’s novels to make the New York Times Bestseller List), Zoe’s Tale, and the forthcoming The Human Division.

Scalzi’s other novels include The Android’s Dream and Fuzzy Nation, an authorized reinvention of H. Beam Piper’s Little Fuzzy.

Old Man’s War is now in development at Paramount Pictures, but Scalzi maintains a healthy skepticism about its chances of reaching the big screen. “I will be very happy if it does,” he says, “but in the meantime, my job is to continue the writing.”

In addition to his novels and blog, Scalzi keeps busy as a story consultant, a regular columnist for AMC’s FilmCritic.com, and president of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.

“What I wanted to be when I grew up.”

Your Hate Mail Will Be Graded, a collection of his popular blog, “Whatever” (http://whatever.scalzi.com/). “Any time you have the opportunity to do different things, it’s of value,” he says. “Different types of writing use different parts of my brain.”

Scalzi calls Webb “the cradle of my fiction career.” He wrote his first short stories for John Heyes’ freshman composition class. Webb was also indirectly responsible for Scalzi’s return to fiction in 1997.

“My 10-year reunion was coming up and I didn’t want to go to it without having written my first novel,” he explains. “So, I wrote my first novel and finished it right before the reunion so I could say, ‘Oh, yeah, I just finished a novel.’ ... It was a silly reason, but it was a reason, and it was a real motivator.”

While his daughter is amused that he has become what he dubs a “Q-list” celebrity, Scalzi, who lives with his family in tiny Bradford, Ohio, has no intention of going Hollywood.

“I have friends who are actually famous and it can be scary.

I’m perfectly happy to be famous in my niche and then be able to go home and write and not worry about anything else.”

O

f course, he would still love to win a Hugo for his fiction; he’s won twice in nonfiction categories. However, Scalzi says he loves that he’s become “what I wanted to be when I grew up.”

“I think I would actually be a different writer if I hadn’t been at Webb,” he adds.

“Since I like the writer that I am, I’m glad I came.”

The Webb

Book shelf

New Releases Rivers of Ice, The Yakutat Bay Expedition of 1906 (Outskirts Press), is Bill Alley ’71’s account of the 1906 expedition by Cornell University Prof. Ralph S. Tarr to Alaska’s Yakutat Bay region to conduct the first thorough mapping and measurements of the glaciers surrounding the bay. Alley’s grandfather, Bill Thompson, had spent years living among the natives and he was one of the local guides who accompanied Prof. Tarr on the expedition. The book is based on Thompson’s journal and photographs he took of the expedition and the village of Yakutat. Alley is a retired museum curator with a master’s degree from North Carolina State University. He lives in Vancouver, WA, with his family. Available on Amazon.com “...so help me, God” Becoming the President is Daniel White’s new book about the lesser known and interesting facts about our nation’s presidents. Each inauguration has been unique, as have been the presidencies of the 43 men who have served in the nation’s highest office.

The book highlights the special qualities of each inauguration and gives a brief story of each administration. Dr. White has spent more than 25 years in leadership positions in independent schools in California and Hawaii.

Between 1979 and 1989, he held the positions of headmaster of Webb School of California, dean of academics and history teacher.

Dr. White and his wife, Judy, live in Hawaii, where he is the current headmaster of Island Pacific Academy in Kapolei. Available for purchase at www.BecomingThePresident.com DvD NEW RELEASE

The Grand Energy Transition: Natural Gas, The Bridge Fuel to Our Sustainable Future is a documentary of Robert Hefner ’53’s crusade to bridge the gap between today’s high-carbon fossil fuels and tomorrow’s sustainable energy sources with clean, economical, domestic natural gas. Over 30 years ago, Hefner discovered that this abundant domestic energy source would free us from our dependence on foreign oil; reduce the cost of powering our buildings, homes and cars; dramatically decrease air pollution; create jobs and stimulate our economy; and even help power an American industrial renaissance. http://www.the-get.com/order

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NewsNotes

22 and a half minutes with Julia Woertink (Salas) ’99

Associate Research Scientist Manager, Dow Chemical Company

Q&A What’s big in the small world of electronics innards?

There are two themes: sustainability and size. We’re always trying to pack more components into the same or a smaller space. These components—miniaturized circuit boards, for example, and flash drives—need to work and communicate with each other. At the same time, they give off heat, which needs to dissipate. So we’re putting them in smaller spaces but we still need to work within their constraints. It’s a dynamic, interesting area.

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Chances are you’ve got a Webb connection in your coat pocket. Or by your TV. Or on the seat next to you. The connection is Julia Woertink ’99. A chemist with the Dow Chemical Company, Woertink manages a group of scientists and technicians working on new materials for small electronics—everything from cell phones and digital music players to remote controls.

While her group is based in Marlborough, Mass., Woertink also works closely with Dow researchers and Dow’s clients in Japan, Korea and Taiwan, and Midland, Mich. (home to Dow corporate headquarters, in case you’re wondering). It’s R&D in the global age, for devices that have become ubiquitous.

Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

We also look at the entire lifecycle of a product, from manufacturing to recycling, to see how we can make products that are more sustainable. As one example, we can replace the lead in alloys used to solder components together—tin-silver alloys can be used instead of tin-lead alloys. The amount of lead used in a cell phone is small, but you’ve got to produce a lot of lead to manufacture thousands of cell phones.

What’s it like to work with researchers across cultures?

Every level of science is about communicating, so we have lots of teleconferences and travel. The need for face-to-face meetings is still huge. Communicating across disciplines can be as challenging as communicating across cultures. Chemists, metallurgists, engineers, and technicians each have their own language. They use different instruments in the lab, and they have their own standards for communicating data. In crosscultural and cross-discipline communication, I often repeat things back to the speaker to make sure we’re understanding each other.

What’s been your experience as a woman in a traditionally male-dominated field?

In college and the workplace, I’ve noticed the underrepresentation of women in research roles. In graduate school at Stanford I led a group dedicated to supporting women chemists—organizing seminars, training sessions and networking opportunities with other women in the field. At Dow, I’m on the leadership team for a similar group.

Council Corner Although my field is heavily male-dominated, I do think this is changing and more women are joining this area. It is a truly global industry, reaching across countries, languages and scientific disciplines. I have not felt that there are significant barriers put in front of me because I am a woman. In my experience, people respond first to the quality of my work and the effectiveness of my team.

What was your Webb experience like?

I was a day student at Webb for the first year, and I wasn’t really interested in being a boarding student. Then my family moved to Santa Monica and I thought, well, maybe boarding school would be all right. Now, my best friends still are friends I made at Webb. Being a boarding student made the transition to college easier, too. Webb teaches students how to balance student work with extracurriculars.

And for you, that was basketball, both at Webb and at Caltech, right?

Right. I came to Webb very tall, very awkward and not into sports. Coach Dan Pride kind of scouted me out and told me I could be a great basketball player. He taught me basketball.

I hadn’t really thought about teamwork before, but it’s so useful everywhere, not just sports.

You put a lot into your academic work at Webb, too.

After all, you won the first Unbounded Creativity in Science Award, endowed by Robert Hefner ’53 – and you were the class valedictorian.

I had great experiences at Webb in the sciences. I had inspiring teachers who gave me the freedom to discover things. When I went to Caltech, I felt like I’d already done some really interesting research at Webb. The classes at Webb are run much like college courses and emphasize critical thinking.

I received the Unbounded Creativity in Science Award for an independent project I completed; I did several of these my senior year. Physics teacher John Ball supported me through these projects and nominated me for the award. He taught me what it meant to be a scientist and inspired me to think creatively and push the boundaries of knowledge through my research. This is something I still do today in my current role, applying my research to enable new technologies in electronics.

he Alumni Council has been hard at work collaborating with members of the larger alumni community, as well as the leadership team at Webb.

One of our highest priorities has been Webb’s strategic planning process. At our annual Council retreat (held this year at the new Claremont University Consortium Center), we met with Taylor Stockdale to discuss the school’s updated mission statement. We also shared with him what we, as alumni, believe makes the Webb experience so exceptional. The Council has grown stronger in our resolve to support the school’s goal of graduating men and women of distinction and character.

The Alumni Council spearheaded two new initiatives this year, aimed at bringing together alumni with shared interests. The Women of Webb affinity group was launched this summer to bring together Vivian Webb alumnae. The Webb 15 affinity group also launched in August, with a goal of bringing together classes of the last 15 years. These groups have been received with great acclaim, and we continue plans to further strengthen our diverse alumni community.

The Alumni Council now has regional representation in most corners of the United States, as well as in Asia. In 2012 alone, regional alumni events took place in New York, Hong Kong, New Orleans, DC, Boston, Portland, and Silicon Valley.

Webb will continue its regional outreach in 2013.

L-R: Lee Lee Choi ’90, Bill Halstead ’67, Jose Govea ’74, Chip Greening ’62, Coleen Martinez ’86, Preston Clarke ’98, Janel Henriksen Hastings ’87, Taylor Stockdale, Doug Gregg ’66, Laura Wensley, Ken Colborn ’47, Laurie Lundin ’90, Lisa Miller ’89, Sandra Lee Rebish ’88, Danielle Gordon, Rahmi Mowjood ’90, and Renee Polanco ’94.

As my tenure as President of the Alumni Association comes to a close on June 30, I remain grateful for the privilege of working with an amazing team of women and men who share my love of and respect for Webb. Thank you for the opportunity to represent you.

With a grateful heart, Janel Henriksen Hastings ’87, President janelhastings@gmail.com

Julia is married to Jason Woertink ’97. They live in Massachusetts with their twin daughters.

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NewsNotes Election

Events and Highlights

Election Symposium at Webb

ALUMNI, PARENTS, AND FRIENDS RECONNECT ON CAMPUS AND AT REGIONAL EVENTS.

Alumni Weekend

Hong Kong On October 16, Director of Academic Affairs Theresa Smith organized an Election Symposium to educate about and involve students in politics and the 2012 election. We extend a big thank you to the faculty, students and alumni who led workshops. Below are highlights of our alumni speakers.

Twelve classes, spanning seven decades, celebrated reunions at this year’s Alumni Weekend. Our oldest reunion classes were the Class of ’47 honoring their 65th and Class of ’52 honoring their 60th. The Class of ’62 had 25 members return for the 50th reunion. Friday night gatherings took place in Claremont, Los Angeles, and Pasadena.

Nearly 250 alumni, family and friends attended the weekend. The Class of 2007 boasted the highest number of alumni with 31 members of the class in attendance, followed by the Class of 1967 with 25. Alumni flew in from all over the globe– Michael Ashton ’67 from Germany, King Lai ’82 and Paul Lai ’87 from Hong Kong, Dang Krairiksh ’67 from Thailand, and alumni from 22 different states.

Former faculty also joined us: Rick Whyte ’57, Clara Soto-Ivey and Bill Ripley ’60.

For more highlights and photos, visit www.webb.org

Keating Leung ’98 organized lunch with alumni in Hong Kong.

Read more about Webb’s visit to Hong Kong on page 48.

Alumni Water Polo Team Back row: Chris Sazo ’10, Ben Davis ’11, Devon Doherty ’10, Ethan Plugge ’97, Jason Tam ’02, Marc Wiener ’02, Weston White ’97, Patrick Zahn ’97 • Front row: Austin Talleur ’12, Matt Abrams ’10, Chandler Talleur ’10, Rob Gilmore ’70, Dan Suhr ’02, Steven Pankratz ’05, Ben Mackenzie ’05.

Boston Interested in having a regional event in your area?

Contact the Alumni Office at alumni@webb.org or the regional rep in your area.

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Shanghai

Dinner with parents and alumni at the Vizcaya Club, hosted by the Yang Family.

Beijing

San Francisco Jessica Anand ’05

Alumni on the Summer Peccary trip in July. Pictured: Will Allan ’94, Kevin Terris ’09, Kathleen Terris ’06, and Larry Price ’61.

Portland

Head of Schools Taylor Stockdale and Director of Student Life Peter Bartlett enjoyed dinner with alumni attending college in the Boston area. Young alumni working in the area also attended.

New York

Los Angeles Lisa Miller ’89 San Diego Julia Marciari-Alexander ’85 Portland Jason Blackwell ’91 New York Andy Chai ’97 Washington, DC David Ivey-Soto ’82 Amy Teachout ’04

In September, over 20 alumni and friends attended an event at the Irving Street Kitchen, hosted by Dodd Fischer ’61.

San Francisco

Fourth annual Young Alumni Holiday mixer in December.

Philadelphia

Philadelphia Katherine Kilmer ’10 Boston Lily Chen ’04 New Orleans Albert Walsh ’00 Hong Kong Joseph Poon ’88

Young alumni barbecue hosted by Regional Rep Jessica Anand ’05.

Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

Young Alumni dinner.

he keynote speaker, Alix Rosenthal ’91, presented to the VWS and WSC student body about what it takes to run for public office. Having just completed her second successful run as the Treasurer of the San Francisco Democratic County Central Committee, Alix outlined the process from conception to election and shared an inside look at what goes into a successful campaign as well as what to avoid. She also sat down with a few VWS students to talk about women in leadership.

The students asked Alix questions about her career path and what advice she might have for them. You can watch a video interview with Alix on www.youtube.com/thewebbschools.

T

Regional Events Three Forks, Montana

Update

Taiwan Jimmy Hsieh ’89

Webb panel discussion with University of Southern California’s Dean of Admission Timothy Brunhold, who discussed the growing international student population at American colleges.

College Connections Webb alumni at Tulane University Monica Dholakia ’12 and Camila Woodmansee ’12 were welcomed to New Orleans

by Albert Walsh ’00, his wife Jordan Shay, and George Peake ’00.

Webbies attending occidental College gathered for dinner in Eagle Rock.

Webb staffer and proud Oxy grad Danielle Gordon met up with Manraj Aulakh ’12, Ari Chalian ’12, Lisa Pangilinan ’12, Sean Sasaki ’09, Kyle Shin ’07, and Dylan Sittig ’09.

Steve Farley ’81, who was actively campaigning for a state senate seat, skyped in from Tucson, Arizona. Steve, who was elected in 2006 to the Arizona House of Representatives, talked about his work at the state legislature level and his campaign experiences.

He recalled Larry McMillin’s Individual Humanities class being a major influence in his life. He entered politics with a desire to serve others and change the world in a way that could help people.

His path into politics began when he and a group of like-minded Tucson residents led a grassroots effort opposing plans endorsed by the homebuilders associations and auto dealers to create a thoroughfare free of obstacles (such as pedestrians and bicycles).

Steve decided he did not want to live in a community like that.

His effort was defeated on the ballot, but he quickly met with the homebuilders to seek a compromise. Together, they worked out a transportation system that was mutually respectful and beneficial to both sides. That measure went on the next ballot and passed.

Steve saw his hard work rewarded and someone suggested he run for office. Initially, he was opposed to the idea, but he liked the feeling of involvement and positive change so he ran and won.

On November 6, Steve won his bid for an Arizona Senate seat in Tucson’s Legislative District 9. For this election, one of his major campaign goals was to restore cuts to education, create jobs, and support small businesses.

Class of ’88s Corey Calaycay and Scott Shalett also participated in the Election Symposium.

Corey visited campus and told students about the current issues facing Claremont City Council. He talked about ways students can get active in their community and neighborhood. Via telephone, Scott told students about his political experiences including campaigning for Al Gore. He also talked about the impact of social media on campaigns and the rapid fire 24-hour news cycle that occurs today.

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NewsNotes T H E W E B B SC HO O L S 1944 • It was nice to hear from Jack Vedder who wrote to us upon hearing the news of Admiral James Watkins’ passing. He wrote, “Jim was both a close friend and academic rival at Webb (as well as a proficient athlete). I consider it a genuine privilege to have known him even though nearly 70 years have elapsed since we were in school together.”

1947 • It was a 65th reunion celebration for Bill Stead and Larry Thum at Alumni Weekend. Like many alumni, they picked right up where they left off in conversation as if no time had passed. They even called their classmate, Ken Colborn, who was home recovering from surgery. Bill has fond memories of playing Webb football and he had a chance to visit with Landen Taflinger ’13, a senior who plays running back, corner back, and outside linebacker for the Gauls. - 1, 2 1950 • Ben Jones wrote: “For my wife, Denise and I, life is an ongoing adventure. I recently had cryosurgery and am recovering. My work at the Southern Inyo Hospital Medical Clinic has been reduced somewhat because of a low census of patients and a lack of funds. I remain the only autopsy surgeon for Inyo and Mono counties. I find the coroner’s cases (even after 49 years) interesting and challenging. Denise and I exercise by riding our Yamaha 450 and 700 ATV quads in the Owens Valley. We have eliminated our competitive running, but I continue to do a lot of photography at races and events and we are still involved with the Badwater Ultramarathon in assisting runners achieve their goals in getting from Badwater, Death Valley, to Whitney each year in July. We continue to feel blessed with good health, jobs we enjoy and a passion to learn new things and seek new challenges as we are in our Golden Years.” - 3 1952 • Five members of the Class of ’52 returned to Webb to celebrate their 60th reunion.

Jack Sterne flew in from South Carolina to join the rest of the California natives. Many thanks to Norm Blackburn for organizing the reunion. - 4

1966 • The Alumni Council welcomes Doug Gregg as a new member-at-large.

Doug retired from the San Diego District Attorney’s Office a few years ago, and we look forward to working with him.

Chip Martin visited with Patrick Campbell this summer. He wrote, “it was just Pat, his wife and me, but well worth the visit to Western Sonoma County.” - 12 David Mirkin and Ron Hagander went on the Madagascar Peccary Trip this summer. David found a dinosaur tooth. Both gentlemen are still serving as current trustees of the Alf Museum. - 13

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1962 • Twenty members of the Class of ’62 celebrated their 50th reunion in October. Alumni traveled from Florida, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Texas, and all corners of California.

Many thanks to the reunion chairs Chip Greening and Stephen Shafer. Special thanks also goes to Sam Darsie for organizing the Thursday night dinner and Friday golf tournament and Barry Wright for editing the memory book and leading the Saturday morning talking group. - 8

1965 • There’s another Pirate of the Caribbean on board. Dwight Morgan shared this fun photo taken while he was at Epcot Park in Florida, just before Thanksgiving. “I was in Florida with a group of SSR fanatics from all over the US and Canada to drive to Key West in our SSRs. We had about 80 couples and 61 SSRs. The rest of the group drove rentals because their SSRs were in storage for the winter. I have also included a picture of us lined up on the side of US Highway 1 on Isla Morada getting ready to leave for Key West.” - 10, 11

Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

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In September, Paul Billings visited the Keck Graduate Institute in Claremont where he talked with alumni and students about genomic medicine. Paul is the chief medical officer for Life Technologies, a biotech company based in Carlsbad, CA. It was nice to see Tony Crocker ’70, Joe Thomas ’70, Robert Donin ’74, and Mollie Mackenzie ’08.

Not pictured: Shawn Ali ’09. - 18

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Bob Martin, Joe Thomas and Larry Ashton met up in Park City, UT, Bob’s hometown, where they had a great dinner together talking about the good old days. - 20

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Congratulations to John Trefethen. Trefethen Vineyards won the 2012 International Award of Excellence in Sustainable Winegrowing from the Botanical Research Institute of Texas.

Specific notable Trefethen programs include: stormwater management, waste water recycling and reuse, wetlands restoration and management, natural pest control, solar energy, employee health and education programs, use of soy inks on bottle labels, and innovative use of electric vehicles and irrigation pumps. John generously shared his wine with 20 of his classmates and the Webb community at his 50th reunion during Alumni Weekend. Thanks, John! - 9 1963 • Bob Johnston lives in Inverness, CA, and is engaged to Peggy Bannan, of Tomales Bay. They are planning a pirate-themed wedding for June 2013. Bob retired from UC Davis in 2005, and is the board president of the Sierra Nevada Alliance, a nonprofit umbrella group with 90 watershed group members. He also is on the board of the Sierra Nevada Conservancy. Bob published over 100 technical papers on land use planning, transportation modeling, and urban growth modeling, which he says are useful to read, if you can’t get to sleep. Bob’s daughter, Madelynn, is now a senior at Brown. Bob says her grades are a lot better than his were.

Fletcher and Becky Strickler enjoyed dinner with Steve Farley ’81 and his wife Kelly. In November, Steve won the Arizona State Senate seat in Legislative District 9.

Fletcher and Becky were early supporters of Steve, volunteering for his campaign. - 16

Robin Leggewie’s daughter, Yvette, was married in December at the Royal Ridges Retreat in Yacolt, WA. Pictured: Yvette Leggewie Root, Debbie Leggewie, Shawn Root, and Robin. Yvette’s brothers Roger and Daniel were there, too. Robin and his family are all active peccary trip participants, and we enjoy seeing them every spring at the annual alumni trip. Larry Ashton wrote, “Robin and his kids have been coming since the mid 90s. I first met Yvette when she was about 6 years old. She is best known for her lilting piccolo music high above our Barstow campground. Shawn Root, her new husband, has been on a trip or two with us, too.” - 19

1960 • A big thank you to Bill Ripley who led the Saturday chapel service at Alumni Weekend.

It’s always wonderful to have you back, Bill. - 7

The Alumni Council is pleased to welcome Chip Greening as a new member-at-large. Chip has been a class agent for years, and a reunion chair for many reunions. We look forward to his participation on the Council.

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1970 • Larry Ashton sent in this photo with Joe Thomas standing next to the dinosaur Gryposaurus monumentensis at the Natural History Museum of Utah in Salt Lake City. The skull is a cast of the one that was found by the Alf Museum in 2001 in the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument. We have the original Type 1 skull in our museum. - 17

1955 • Alumni Director Laura Wensley enjoyed seeing Bill Bailey at the alumni event in Portland, OR. - 5 1957 • It was great to see Rick Whyte on campus in celebration of his 55th reunion during Alumni Weekend in October. We also held the first Rick Whyte ’57 Memorial Basketball Tournament on December 7, 2012, during the VWS Varsity game versus Sherman Indian.

We are thrilled to honor such a distinguished member of our community. - 6

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Mike Ashton and his brother Larry ’70 were interviewed on KWEB by VWS senior Kelly Jung ’13 during Alumni Weekend. One of the interesting stories they shared was that KWEB used to have an FM transmitter, so they used to bring coffee cake on Sunday mornings and warm it up on the FM transmitter. - 15

1953 • Congratulations to Mickey Wertheim whose grandson, Samuel I. Wertheim, was born on September 8, 2011.

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1967 • The gang from Class of ’67 had a terrific turnout for the 45th reunion.

Mike Ashton flew in from Hamburg, Germany, Dang Krairiksh and his wife traveled from Thailand, and several others flew in from Arizona, Connecticut, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, and Wisconsin. A big thank you to Fletcher Strickler who did a terrific job in chairing the reunion. - 14

1972 • It was a great turnout for the Class of ’72s 40th reunion. Beautiful Bend, OR, was a perfect setting for the 3-day event. Many thanks to David Ditz for organizing the reunion activities. Richard Downie traveled the furthest, flying in from Virginia. It was also great to see Robert and Barbara Morton from Utah, Tony and Dolores Rowland from Colorado, and the rest of the gang from all corners of California. In total there were 22 attendees, including spouses. Reunion activities included dinner at David and Gigi Ditz’s home on Thursday evening, a round of golf, a reunion dinner at the Seventh Mountain Resort with a reception sponsored by Webb, and a special remembrance for Gregg Jorgensen and Doug MacDonald along the Deschutes River. - 22, 23

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Congratulations to Joe Thomas. This year, his company Realty World ALL STARS was voted “Best Real Estate Company in Southern California” by the Los Angeles Times and “Best Real Estate Company in the Inland Empire” by Inland Valley Daily Bulletin. Go Gauls! - 21

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1973 • Michael Howard has retired from the Marine Corps (32 years of service with two combat tours in Iraq). “I was privileged to command the 4th Combat Engineer Battalion (960 Marines) during the initial invasion of Operation Iraqi Freedom. We covered over 500 kilometers under fire in under three weeks (the same area it took the British Army to cover in three years in WWI). We returned again for the Battle of Fallujah in Anbar Province. Our unit will hold its 10th anniversary of the capture of Baghdad, in Baltimore next Spring (hope to have our unit & USO friends Robert Duvall, Gary Sinese, Laura Hillenbrand & Ollie North there).

Wonderful group of American patriots! Three of our five kids are married and out on their own. We live on 45 acres of woods in Helvetia, OR, near where a friend of mine and I started Salute Products Inc. (we build state-of-the-art steel reactive targets for the military, police, and

The Webb Schools • WEbb.oRG

NewsNotes A lu m n i P ro f i l e

Jeff Luhnow ’84

competitive shooters). We just celebrated our 35th wedding anniversary in Tuscany. We’re active in our church and community. I serve on my family’s Seabiscuit Heritage Foundation.

My Marines had a saying in Iraq that I always remember: ‘Every day is a gift, and any day you are not being shot at is a good day.’ My very best to the Class of 1973, and all the greater Webb Schools family.” - 24 1974 • In June, Dr. Mark Anton was selected as one of Southern California’s Top Doctors by the Castle Connolly Medical research team after being nominated by his peers. His plastic surgery practice, Anton Aesthetics, is located in Newport Beach, CA. Mark is also involved with Operation Smile, the international organization which offers free surgeries to children and young adults born with cleft lips, cleft palates, and facial abnormalities. He’s worked with Operation Smile for over 20 years, traveling to countries such as Liberia, Haiti, and Kenya.

In October, he embarked on a two-week mission to Bolivia. - 25, 26

Field of Dreams for Webb baseball Nine members of the WSC baseball program and Coach Jeff Stodgel spent three days in Houston (July 25-27) to visit with Astros General Manager Jeff Luhnow ’84. Many thanks to Jeff and the Astros for their tremendous hospitality. The visit included a tour of Minute Maid Park where the boys learned about the history of the Astros.

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David Lahar is now on the Board of Trustees for Scripps College in Claremont, CA. 1977 • Andy Bondor made a surprise visit to campus in September. Andy attended both Reed and Pomona Colleges. He and his wife Patricia moved to Miami to work in television, and they now live in Vermont and continue to work in the business. Andy’s show is called Captain Salty’s End of the World Show. - 27 1978 • Not often do four Webb graduates get together in Bangkok, Thailand, but they happily did last September at the wedding of their dear friends’ daughter. Pictured: Pongath Athakravisoonthorn ’71; Krirkchai “Kirk” Charoen-Rajapark ’72; Danaichat Vongthongsri ’73; and Chatchawin “Pong” Charoen-Rajapark ’78. - 28

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26 1983 • It was nice to see Michael McDermott and his family on campus in August.

Michael visited with his wife Amanda, daughter Allegra, and his inlaws, who also live in Beijing. We enjoyed seeing Michael and his family again in November at our Webb dinner in Beijing. His company Gung-Ho Films recently worked with Louie C.K.’s Louie and The Amazing Race. Both TV shows won Emmy’s this past year. - 35, 36

Michael Mills and his wife Drucilla were on campus in October for Parents Weekend.

Their son John ’14 is a Webb junior. - 29

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1979 • Grant Cramer is executive producing the upcoming film, Lone Survivor, based on Marcus Lutrell’s best selling memoir of the failed June 28, 2005 mission “Operation Red Wing.” The film stars Mark Wahlberg as Marcus Lutrell.

Takashi Kiuchi and his son Nobu visited campus with former classmate Quinn Okamato.

Takashi and his family live in Japan. He is a Buddhist priest at the Chomyoji Temple in Tokyo.

He and Quinn enjoyed touring campus and seeing their old dorm rooms. Quinn attended Webb for a year, and the two have remained friends ever since. Quinn now lives in Playa del Rey, CA. - 30

1984 • John Holliday’s son, Adam ’15, is a sophomore at Webb. He’s on the WSC varsity soccer team and varsity cross country team, and last year he was freshman class president.

Here’s a fun photo of Adam taken at a soccer practice. - 37

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It’s difficult to visit Las Vegas without seeing the influence of Robert Frey. His latest creation, Goretorium, is a collaboration with film producer/director/actor, Eli Roth (best known for Hostel and Grindhouse, among others). Robert serves as CEO of this haunted horror attraction where visitors pay for a good scare and some gory fun. The attraction includes a nightclub, Baby Dolls Lounge, and you can even arrange to have a zombie wedding. Robert recently joined his classmates in Pasadena for their 30th reunion. - 34

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1986 • Leigh Bass and his wife, Karina, welcomed their third child into the family last year.

“Our baby Sophia is 15 months old and is very fun. She gets along well with and gets quite a bit of help from older brother Josh (10) and older sister Ariela (12).” - 39 In May, Jan Mitchell Johnson was named the national grants director for Stand for Children, an organization founded in 1996 by Jonah Edelman, son of Marian Wright Edelman (Children’s Defense Fund). Jan writes, “I am responsible for working with the chief development officer and the development professionals in each of our 10 state affiliates (AZ, CO, IL, IN, LA, MA, OR, TN, TX, and WA – soon to be NV and OK also) to raise money for our operations, programming, and expansion plans. In addition to writing grant proposals, I also train our state-level development staff, review their work, and report on projects we’re currently implementing. On a personal note, Kirk and I celebrated five years of marriage in November, and we bought a really groovy (1975) house last year. We enjoyed spending Labor Day Weekend in Vail with Simon and Christine Jones. Life is good.” - 40

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It was great to see Mark Shpall on campus in October. He’s the 12th grade dean and director of community programs at the New Community Jewish High School in West Hills, CA. He’s also the assistant wrestling coach, and he looks forward to some matches between his school and his alma mater this year. The Gauls say bring it on, Jaguars! - 41

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1987 • The Class of ’87 celebrated its 25th reunion with over two dozen members of the class in attendance. People came all the way from Hong Kong, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Missisippi, Vermont, and all of California. James Sun organized a Friday night dinner at Walter’s for the gang. Everyone enjoyed Saturday on campus, which included a special talk with Head of Schools Taylor Stockdale. Many thanks to the reunion committee for rallying the class for the 25th celebration. - 42

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Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

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1985 • Julia Marciari-Alexander has joined the Alumni Council as the regional representative for San Diego. She is looking forward to reconnecting with alumni of all ages in the area. Julia is the deputy director of curatorial affairs at the San Diego Museum of Art in Balboa Park.

1981 • Frankie Law flew in from Hong Kong to gave a chapel talk during the Sunday service on November 18, 2012. During his talk, Frankie told students, “Set a goal and work hard towards it; there is no free lunch in this world. If you want to succeed or be really good at something, you must work hard. It is also important to treasure and appreciate the people around you: teachers, friends and family; they care very much about you.” Frankie’s son Vincent ’13 is a senior at Webb. Vincent is a head peer advisor, cooking club president, a member of the Food Service Advisory Committee and a Chapel Council member. He also participates in badminton, choir, drama, and yearbook. - 32 1982 • The Class of ’82 celebrated its 30th reunion in October. The festivities kicked off with a Friday night dinner hosted by Bill Bauman in Pasadena, and then everyone enjoyed Saturday at Webb. A big shout-out to King Lai and his wife Elsa who traveled from Hong Kong, David Ivey-Soto from Virginia, and Tony Lyons from Colorado. Many thanks to reunion chairs Robbie Warner, Bill Bauman, and David Ivey-Soto. - 33

Scott McCollister wrote: “We traded in our home in Lake Oswego, OR, for a farm house on five acres in nearby Tualatin. Lots of ideas about what to do in terms of growing and other business options, but nothing firm yet.”

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Christina Mercer McGinley and her husband Todd enjoyed Parents Weekend with their daughter Cori ’16, a VWS freshman. - 38

1980 • Greg Gans is living in Portland, OR, and working as director of software engineering at Intel. His team is globally dispersed across the US, Mexico, Asia and Europe, which keeps him traveling a good deal.

Dave Wong writes, “Life is busy with four kids. Two in college, a senior in high school, and a 7th grader. I’m proud of all my kids and was especially proud that Brynne swam the 100m butterfly at the U.S. Olympic Trials this summer in Omaha, NE. She’s training to make the team for Rio de Janiero in 2016, and she verbally committed to the University of Texas Longhorns.” From left to right, Taylor, Brynne, Natalie and Davis in front. - 31

They watched batting practice from the field, saw the view from the press box, chatted with Jeff in the team dugout, and met and talked with lots of the Astro players and even a few Pittsburgh Pirate players. They also got to meet the Astros Minor League coordinator and learned about analytics and technology, and the importance of being bilingual.

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The Webb Schools • WEbb.oRG

NewsNotes webb in hong kong

Jennifer Lewis serves on the national board of trustees for St. Jude’s Ranch, a nonprofit organization dedicated to transforming the lives of abused and at-risk children, young adults and families by empowering them to create new chances, new choices and new hope in a caring community. - 49

over 70 guests attended a special presentation on “21st Century Education: Secondary School, College Admission & beyond,” held on November 1, at the

Laurie Lundin and Julie Han ’91 attended the launch event for Women of Webb at Edendale Bar and Grill in LA. Julie is a teacher and lives in Los Angeles with her family.

This is Laurie’s sixth year on Webb’s Alumni Council and she helped to spearhead the new Women of Webb affinity group. The mission of the group is to strengthen the bonds of the VWS alumnae community and to build a robust professional network. - 50

JW Marriott. Joining the Webb panel was USC’s Catherine Leung, director of the Hong Kong office and sister of Keating Leung ’98, and Annie Lundahl, director of marketing for The Association of Boarding Schools. Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, a member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong and parent of Cynthia Ip ’08, served as the panel moderator. Alumni attending included: Alumni Council member Joseph Poon ’88, Jun Obara ’98, Keating Leung ’98 and David Kahm ’90. Not pictured: board member Mickey Novak ’70 and Cynthia Ip ’08.

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Head of Schools Taylor Stockdale and a group of Webb students joined Rahmi Mowjood for the Fourth Annual Interfaith Walk on September 1, in Claremont. This event, which originally began as a “Walk and Rally for Hope and Peace” to commemorate the events of September 11, now focuses on wider issues of understanding and cooperation. Many thanks to Rahmi and his mother for inviting the Webb community. - 51 1991 • Jason Blackwell has joined the Alumni Council as the regional rep for Portland, OR. He enjoyed an early 1990s flashback moment with Christian Bayley and Jeremy Goldstone ’90 when they met up at the Portland event in September. The three classmates hadn’t seen each other in more than 20 years. Jason wrote, “Jeremy is married with kids and an elementary school teacher here in town. Christian is president of marketing and design agency Olive Studio and CEO of an event planning company. It was great seeing everyone.” - 52

Eddy Harinasuta was sorry to miss his 25th reunion. He and his wife, Boe expanded their family in August, with the birth of their son, Xavi, who joins his big sister, Zoe. Eddy works for Cisco in Bankok, Thailand, as a national broadband director and recently expanded his role to include managed service business. Eddy says best wishes ’87s, miss you all!. - 43

It was nice to see David Chic and his wife Elaine in Hong Kong in November. David and Elaine are the proud parents of Ryan, who is 1. David is a senior manager for American International Assurance Co. and Elaine is an education consultant who arranges summer camp programs in Beijing for students from Hong Kong and Macau. This summer David reconnected with some of his former classmates in Hong Kong: Edmond Ng ’92, Jeff Wang ’92, Alvin Hung ’93, Gustavo Han ’92, Peter Min ’92, Helen Liu ’92, Vicky Lam ’92, and Jiun Fan ’92. - 53, 54

We had a surprise visitor at our Webb event in Beijing. Michael Kwon stopped by to say hello. He was in town for a business meeting with Nike and he saw the Webb sign in the Grand Hyatt lobby. It was nice to catch up with him. As a retail design director for Nike Sports in China, Mike is currently working on new retail venues in Beijing. - 44

Rosa “June” Thanasophon and Jasmine Wu came to the Portland event in September.

June is married with two little daughters: Ava (2 1⁄2) and Ariya (1). She is a business development director at Intel. Jasmine is also married, has a 2 year-old, and is still working for Nike. - 55

Alumni Director Laura Wensley enjoyed lunch in Hong Kong with Paul Lai. Paul travels extensively for his work so we were lucky to reconnect with him. Paul joined Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA in June as head of corporate and investment banking for Asia. BBVA, Spain’s second-biggest bank, owns a 15% stake in China CITIC Bank Corp. and was the first Spanish lender to offer yuan trade settlement accounts for corporate clients, according to the company. Previously Paul ran the investment banking unit for HSBC in Hong Kong until early 2008. He joined Societe Generale SA in September that year, and ran the investment banking business for Greater China at CLSA in January 2010. - 45 Abe Salen and his wife Astrid celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary in July. “We live in Ladera Ranch with our three children. I am corporate counsel for a national staffing company and maintain my solo practice in Irvine. I bump into Merrill ’86 and Dave ’86 Christenson almost daily, and see Kirsten Kennelly Cone ’89 often as well.”

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1988 • Sandra Lee Rebish has joined the Alumni Council as a member-at-large. She is excited to represent her fellow classmates from the 1980s on the Council.

It was nice to see Timothy Sun in Hong Kong recently. He is a managing director and co-head of research at CCB International.

Andy Wu and his family are enjoying life in Shanghai. Andy and Sean Lee ’05 attended our Webb dinner at the Vizcaya Club. - 47 1990 • David Kahm and his family visited campus in August. This was his first time back since graduation. David brought along his mother and his children, Ethan and Lauren. David and his wife Stacie also have a younger daughter Vivian. They live in Hong Kong and David works as an investment banker for Serica Capital. It was nice to see David at our Hong Kong event in November. - 48

Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

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1992 • The Class of 1992 kicked off their 20th reunion at the home of Surya Jayaweera.

Attendees included Clifford Rice, Hali Preston, Mary Presecan, Rich Lin, Brett Kennedy, Naren Desai, Pippa Manley, Marc Schneider ’93, Quinn Young, Pete Stephenson, Julienne Kwak, Josh Klein, Eugene Choi, Currie Heinze and Ned DeWitt ’89. Many thanks to Clifford for chairing the reunion and to Surya and his wife Corinne for hosting! - 56 Michael Chang is now CEO of YesVideo headquartered in Santa Clara. He became CEO and joined the board of YesVideo following the successful acquisition of Greystripe, the company he co-founded and grew into one of the world’s largest mobile advertising networks. YesVideo is the global leader in personal home video transfer and online video sharing. It digitizes video formats such as VHS, Beta and 8mm film and stores its customers’ treasured memories in the Cloud for access online, through mobile and connected TV. To date YesVideo has transferred over 10 million videos. - 57 1994 • It was great to see Sonia Sabnis and Paula Wichienkuer at our Portland, OR, event in September. Sonia is a professor of Classics and Humanities at Reed College. She’d be happy to answer questions if any students are interested in learning more about Reed.

Paula is an internal medicine doctor at Providence Medical Group. - 58

Eugene Whitlock caught up with Lionel Yang and Tommy Oei ’89 over dinner in San Francisco. Tommy is a physician with Kaiser Permanente and Lionel has just switched companies after working with Adobe for several years. Eugene is an attorney for San Mateo County. He and Lionel will be helping to organize the Class of 1988 25th reunion in the fall and look forward to seeing everyone there. - 46 1989 • Jimmy Hsieh has joined the Alumni Council as a new regional rep for Taiwan.

We look forward to working with Jimmy to develop some alumni outreach in the Taipei area.

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1996 • Damien Bisserier is engaged to Lindsay Blaauw, and they plan to marry this August in Santa Barbara. Damien met Lindsay through best friend and classmate Jimmy Lin. Damien works as a senior client advisor for Bridgewater, a global institutional money manager based in Westport, CT, where he is responsible for managing their West Coast book of clients. - 59

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1997 • Lisa Shonnard, Ruchika (Chandiok) Rastogi and Kunal Shah chaired the Class of 1997, 15-year reunion in October. The class had a great time catching up with Mr. Fawcett and hitting the dance floor after the alumni dinner. Alumni Weekend attendees were also treated to a comedic performance by Jeremy Robertson on Saturday night. - 60

The Webb Schools • WEbb.oRG

NewsNotes Shampa Chatterjee Mukerji and her husband, Sam welcomed their daughter, Isha Rani Mukerji on November 30, 2011. Their son Kavin was thrilled to become a big brother and they are all enjoying being a family of four.

2001 • Brianne (Brie) Widaman currently works at Interscope Geffen A&M Records (Universal Music Group) with a wide variety of acts, including Il Volo, Priyanka Chopra, American Idol, and pop icon Madonna. Brianne also continues her work advocating for a more positive, realistic portrayal of females in media in the hopes of combating the epidemic of eating disorders and low self-esteem across the globe.

Dack LaMarque joined del Rey Global Investors as an equity analyst in July 2012. del Rey Global is a Los Angeles-based value-oriented international and global investment management firm with approximately $2.4 billion in AUM. The firm is run by Paul Hechmer, previously a founding member and portfolio manager of Tradewinds Global Investors. - 61 Damian Nelson and his new bride, Jacqueline were wed in Santa Barbara on September 15, 2012. Classmate Kabu Adodoad was a groomsman and brother Max ’95 served as best man. Congratulations to the newlyweds! - 62

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2002 • The Class of 2002 celebrated their 10th reunion at The Viceroy in Santa Monica, before returning to Webb for the Saturday festivities. Many thanks to Usman Ali, Kristen Henkins, Daniel Suhr, Kathy Sun, and Jordan Taylor for chairing the reunion committee and making sure your classmates had a great time. - 73

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Emily Carrigan is working on her PhD in psychology at the University of Connecticut.

Alex Rapoport and his wife Sarah are proud to announce the birth of their second child, Lindsay Nicole, born in Newport Beach, CA, on July 18, 2012. - 63

Jon Forney married Rachel Kelly on September 8, 2012, in Portland, OR. Alumni in attendance included Daniel Suhr, Alex Gordon, Chris Forney ’03, and Loren Rotner ’03.

After volunteering for the 15-year reunion committee, Kunal Shah has decided to serve as the class agent for 1997 as well. Kunal lives in Irvine, CA, and is the principal partner and electrical engineer at KBS Engineers, Inc. He and his wife Jamielynn welcomed their first child, a daughter named Maya, in October 2012. - 64

Kate (Walsh) Garrett co-founded Ciel Medical after graduating from the Stanford Biodesign Fellowship in June. Ciel Medical is developing an aspiration prevention device to reduce the risk of pneumonia for mechanically ventilated patients. Kate and her business partner are raising funding and aim to have the device commercially available in 2014.

1998 • Congratulations to Melinda Chan. She’s opened LA SkinAesthetics in Beverly Hills, which specializes in a wide range of skincare services. Melinda is a nationally board-certified physician assistant, licensed by the California Physician Assistant Committee. She received her bachelor’s in biopsychology from the University of Michigan, then attended PA school at Midwestern University. She graduated in 2005 with a masters in physician assistant studies.

Melinda and her fiance, Justin Malen, attended our Webb 15 event in August. Check out her website: www.laskinaesthetics.com - 65

Eleanor Pettus has been in Indiana for the past four years. She’s working toward a PhD at University of Notre Dame. Her dissertation is on education during the English Reformation.

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2005 • Jessica Anand, Alumni Council regional rep for San Francisco, hosted a barbecue for young alumni living in the Bay Area at her home on November 10, 2012. Attendees included Melanie Witte ’97, Dan Suhr ’02, Melissa Fabregas ’02, Marisa Chai ’02, Caleb Morse ’03, Will Habos ’04, Michelle Lo ’04, Kristen Priddy, Eric Eng ’07, Alyssa Sittig ’07, and Faisal Yaqub ’07. - 75

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Heidi Marti joined Webb’s Admission Office last July. As an admission officer, she’s involved with recruitment, interviewing, and developing the department’s new Young Alumni Network for Admission. Heidi returned to Webb in 2010 as the advancement fellow, the first Webb graduate to hold the position. She was a tremendous asset to the Alumni Office and spearheaded the widely popular Tuesday Trivia on Facebook. - 76

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Nick Phelps received an MBA and MSIT from Bentley University in Waltham, MA, in May 2012. He writes, “I am working at Biogen Idec, a leader in the biotechnology industry focused on drugs to treat neurodegenerative diseases. As an IT analyst, risk & security, I work on the identity and access management team where I analyze business and IT processes looking for improvement, and help manage data quality.” - 77

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2007 • The Class of 2007 celebrated their 5-year reunion this past Alumni Weekend with more than 25 attendees. On Friday night, the class met at Casa 421 in Claremont to share drinks and reminisce about their time at Webb. - 78 Vincent Cheng is in Boston working for Putnam Associates as a healthcare/life sciences consultant. His work involves developing business strategies for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.

Michelle Pastrano gave a chapel talk on Friday of Alumni Weekend. Mrs. Ogden gave her introduction and Archi Chandrashekar was her reader. - 79

A big thank you to Albert Walsh and his wife Jordan Shay. Katie Stewart (sister of Emily ’10 and Allen ’14) and Dylan Wensley (sister of Miya ’13) enjoyed an amazing week with Albert and Jordan at Castle Rock Ranch Camp in Kingston, ID. The days were filled with horse-back riding, hiking, swimming in the river, and vegetable gardening.

It was a trip they’ll always remember. - 72

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2006 • Margaret Kelley-Matthews wrote: “Unfortunately I’m no longer in San Diego (aka Paradise). I moved to Joshua Tree about six months ago to run three funeral homes, a cemetery, and a crematory (in the family business). It’s been a pretty crazy learning experience, but I’m having a great time. Let me know if you’re ever out visiting the national park.”

2000 • Vicenta Arrizon Maffris delivered a wonderful chapel talk to the VWS students during our first-ever Thanksgiving Week at Webb. She talked about the importance of giving back as an alumna and how her own life was transformed because of the generosity of alumni who came before her. Her husband, Kevin Maffris, joined her on campus and she was introduced by her father-in-law, Blair Maffris. Read more about Thanksgiving Week on page 35. - 70 Nina Kumra Gappy and Joseph Gappy were married on February 27, 2011, and they celebrated the birth of their daughter, Aviana Lynne Gappy, on June 29, 2012. They live in San Diego, CA, where Joseph is a high school biology teacher and Nina is an independent contractor in the meetings industry. - 71

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Aaron Hartman received his MA in higher education administration from Boston College.

In August, he was appointed the area director for Babson College, his undergrad alma mater.

1999 • It was nice to see Kathy Chen Liu and Maria Ng ’00 in Hong Kong. Kathy and her husband, Yu Liu, have a 14 month-old son, Kyle. Maria is also married and has a 15-monthold son, Nicholas. Maria works for Cathay Pacific in their aircraft trading teams. - 68 Anthony Shin is back at Webb as the new assistant director of college guidance. Working closely with Director of College Guidance Hector Martinez, Anthony assists in advising seniors with their college plans and supports the junior class as they begin their college search.

Anthony is also part of the English department teaching journalism. He recently attended the Webb 15 Young Alumni Launch Party with Mr. Martinez and classmates Steve Kim and Matthew Lim. - 69

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2004 • Congratulations to James Withey who earned his MD from the University of Southern California and the Keck School of Medicine on May 13, 2012. He has been accepted into the USC Internal Medicine Residency Program. - 74

Charles Hadsell and his fiancee Tara Larzelere, visited the Webb campus recently.

Charles’ aunt, Laurie Henry, surprised them with an engagement toast on the patio by the Webb House. Charles’ cousins Cole ’13 and Ian ’15 Henry are current students at Webb.

Charles and Tara are getting married in Dallas, TX, in March. - 66 Keating Leung visited campus in September during a business trip to Los Angeles.

This was his first visit back in six years and he enjoyed seeing long-time faculty, Blair Maffris, Don Lofgren, and Señor Valera. Keating and his wife Selene Chou have a baby daughter, Megan. In November, Keating organized a lunch reunion in Hong Kong with alumni from the classes of 1998, 1999, and 2000. It was good to see Vince Rhee ’00, Maria Ng ’00, Kathy Chen Liu ’99, Jimmy Hsieh ’98, Maurice Koo ’99, Joanne Goh ’99, and Jun Obara ’98.

Mrs. Po Wan Wendy (mother of Diana ’13, aunt of Tommy ’05) also attended. - 67

2003 • Daniel Smith and his wife, Christine are living in downtown Honolulu. Daniel is currently working as a financial representative with Northwestern Mutual and Christine is the special events manager at the Hawaii Food Bank. They invite all alumni living in or just visiting Hawaii to be in touch.

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Summer Swee-Singh graduated a semester early from UC Berkeley in December 2010, with a major in legal studies and a minor in music. Until recently, she worked as a legal and financial recruiter. Music continues to be her passion. Her YouTube channel has over 1.3 million video views, and she’s been collaborating with Indie-Pop Records in LA. Summer was recently featured in LA Weekly for three of her Skrillex cover videos. She lives in Oakland with two Webbies: Chris Appleby and Thitiwat Phromratanapongse.

The Webb Schools • WEbb.oRG

NewsNotes A lu m n i P ro f i l e

christina herring ’07

In July, Gabe Romero returned to campus as the new advancement fellow in the Alumni Office. Gabe is helping to staff various alumni programs and expanding our alumni outreach via social media and local events. Gabe graduated from Pomona College with a geology degree, and he’s now pursuing an MBA at the Drucker School at Claremont Graduate University. - 82

A whole new game

Willie Wang has moved to San Francisco to be head of business development at Tintup, a new start-up company that aggregates all posts from different social media outlets. Tintup’s technology allows users to customize their webpage to fit their own brand and image. - 83

Christina Herring ’07, Director of Basketball Operations, SBU Seawolves

2009 • Natascha Grundmann is currently in London, studying abroad with USC. Although she has always loved to travel, living in a foreign city and calling it home is something quite different. In the past few months, she has learned more about politics, history, communication styles, and culture than could ever be achieved sitting in a classroom at home. She considers herself blessed to be able to reconnect with family in Germany as well as travel to Ireland and Spain. Upon graduating with her communication and cultural competency in medicine degree, Natascha hopes to find a career with a medical nonprofit or spend some years giving back through Teach for America as well as continue her passion for teaching swimming. - 84

Stony Brook University’s new director of basketball operations, Christina Herring ’07, has loved basketball since grade school, when her father entered her in a local park league.

“I have known since eighth grade that I always wanted basketball to be a part of my life,” she says.

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Naturally, Herring played basketball at Webb, which brought her to the attention of Portland’s Lewis & Clark College. “They were trying to build a nationally recognized program and that was something that I wanted to be a part of,” she explains. Herring played more than 100 games with the Lewis & Clark Pioneers, becoming team captain and helping the women’s team earn its first NCAA Division III Northwest Conference regular title. She was also co-chair of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

After Herring graduated, her coach heard about the opening at Stony Brook and suggested that Herring apply. She did, and started her new job

Herring admits that life in Stony Brook — which is located on Long Island, New York — has its challenges, laughing, “I now know what a winter coat is!” However, she’s excited about

her new job, which she calls “a stepping stone to becoming a coach at the college level.”

Herring credits Webb’s Bob Mackenzie and former coaches Ann DeBoe and Dan Pride with helping to “fuel my passion for sports ... and [showing] me what it means to be a positive influence both on and off the court.” Her career is at SBU, but Herring says, “I will always be a Gaul at heart!”

Cynthia Ip graduated from UPenn in May, and she’s back in Hong Kong working in politics.

She enjoyed seeing Hector Martinez in November. Cynthia is working with her mother, Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, who is a member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong. - 80 Andrew Kunce received his BS in management from Tulane University. He majored in business management and minored in business law.

Nick Skenderian writes, “Since being at Macalester, I’ve had a wealth of opportunities that have all contributed in pointing me in the direction I want to go after graduation, hopefully the direction of survival in the real world first of all, but also into the field of health. Classes in organic chemistry, human physiology, neuroanatomy (all of the pre-med required classes) have helped to catch me up with the lingo of today’s science, but I believe it was my time spent in Copenhagen, Denmark, that really solidified my desire to enter the field of health.

My medical practice and policy program offered me opportunities that being an undergraduate in the US would not get. Not only did I travel throughout Europe studying health care, but I was also able to work with doctors and other students at local hospitals in determining diagnoses of patients that had been recently admitted into the hospital. Besides all of the academics, I was placed with a wonderful host family that quickly became like a natural family to me; I still keep in touch with them. Back on campus, I am on the public health committee, an active Friday evening soccer player, and will, this coming winter break, be working on getting my certification as an EMT. For all of the students at Webb, enjoy the time you have there, but also look forward to college...it’s an awesome place.”

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2010 • Coach Tom MacKinlay reunited with members of the 2009 CIF championship team.

Ben Davis ’11, Chandler Talleur, Austin Talleur ’12, Matt Abrams, and Chris Sazo were on campus during Alumni Weekend, to lead the alumni team to victory over the students. Many thanks to Matt’s dad, Mr. Abrams, for sharing this photo. - 85 David Bay, Sara Garcia-Dehbozhorgi, and Bijan Garcia-Dehbozhorgi ’08 were the alumni judges at the ASB Theme Week performance night. David wrote, “Coming back to Theme Week was amazing, and it was an honor and privilege to judge all the performances.

I was very impressed with each classes’ performance, and could tell that they all put so much effort into them. The greatest thing about coming back to judge was seeing the spirit and unity that each class had; it reminded me of the great times I had with my classmates back when I participated in Theme Week.” - 86

2008 • After graduating from Smith College in May, Gina Charusombat spent a lovely summer back home before departing back to the East Coast. She is currently serving a fellowship at Taxpayers for Common Sense, a nonpartisan, DC-based nonprofit that evaluates and advises on discretionary spending. According to Gina, “I work with the energy program researching energy companies receiving loan guarantees from governmental departments.

I have really enjoyed gaining exposure to policy evaluation and the collaboration with Congress necessary to reform policy. I feel like I’m working with people who are doing meaningful work, especially given this economy.”

Sarah Gray is completing her bachelor’s degree at the University of Alaska Fairbanks and will graduate in May 2013, with a BA in criminal justice. She was recently accepted at the University of Montana School of Law and will officially head to Missoula next fall as a member of the Class of 2016.

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Alex Scola flew in from Portland where he attends Reed College to hear his brother, Tim ’13, deliver a chapel talk. Charlotte Harris ’12 was also in attendance.

with the SBU Seawolves in August 2012.

As director of basketball operations, she now manages scheduling, travel, film exchange, and logistics for the Seawolves women’s team. “I am the glue that holds everything together,” she says.

Christina Durón graduated from Swarthmore in May, and is currently working toward a master’s degree in applied mathematics at the University of Washington. Upon graduation, she would like to either teach or work in the industry for a few years before pursuing a PhD. She writes, “I love it here in Washington, but I miss home in Claremont. Can’t wait to be back and hang out with my Webbies.”

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Katherine Kilmer has joined the Alumni Council as the new regional representative for Philadelphia. She organized a young alumni college mixer in December. - 87

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Many thanks to Neel Kotrappa, who participated in a panel discussion for parents about college athletics. Neel has been a member of the Claremont McKenna tennis team, a Division III sports program, since his freshman year. If any students are interested in applying to college as a student-athlete, he’d be happy to share information with them. - 88 Noah Woodward, a junior at Davidson College, studied in The General Course at the London School of Economics in London, England, in the fall. He also worked part-time for Kambi Sports Solutions.

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2011 • It was great to have Ben Davis and the band back to campus to play during Alumni Weekend. - 89 Congratulations to Lauren Taflinger. She was named to the Dean’s List for the 2012 spring semester at the University of Richmond.

2012 • Thanks to Sidney Leung for sharing this photo of Webbies in Boston. - 90

Debbie Lai is now the VWS class agent for 2008. She attended the Webb 15 launch event at the Culver Hotel this summer with Gina Charusombat. - 81

Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

The Webb Schools • WEbb.oRG

In Memoriam

A celebration of life 1954

1935 Hugh M. Curran ’35 died on February 27, 2012, at the age of 93.

He was our last living member of the class of 1935.

1937 Louis Zimmerman ’37 died on March 30, 2011. He was fond of Webb and kept in touch over the years, sometimes just calling us to say hi.

At the age of 88, he “retired” from his volunteer position at the Huntington Beach police department, where he manned the front desk in the Detective Bureau for 20 years. He was married to his wife, Jean for 68+ years before she died in 2008. At Webb, he was a mainstay in the Dramatics Club, most notably playing a hilarious feminine part in Rip Van Winkle.

1938 John Jaqua ’38 died on May 14, 2009. He was a prominent attorney and longtime Nike board member, and played a role in the formation of Nike. He was also a decorated WWII Marine aviator, having received the Distinguished Flying Cross, seven Air Medals and the Battle Campaign Medal with five stars. His legacy includes the John E. Jaqua Law Library at the University of Oregon, the Jaqua Concert Hall at Eugene’s Shedd Institute and the Jaqua Distinguished Alumnus Award at the law school.

John and his wife, Robin, have been leaders in their community, serving as key donors to a variety of local causes.

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Brent Rickard, Jr. ’38 passed away on March 26, 2012. During WWII, he flew on Pan Am’s sea planes for the Navy Air Transport Service in the Pacific theater. After the war, he continued as a flight engineer for 40 years, first flying out of San Francisco, then out of JFK Airport.

In 1984, he and his wife of 68 years, Ruth retired to Leisure World in Southern California, where she still lives today. At Webb, “Tex” was easily identified by his lanky six foot height and his natural drawling Texan accent. He was on the Honor Committee and was one of the most liked and respected boys in school.

Dr. William “Bill” Snider Sr. ’38 died on May 29, 2012, from cardiovascular disease. At Webb, Bill was senior class president, editor of the Blue and Gold, captain of the B-basketball team, and a member of the yearbook committee. At the age of 15, Bill attended Occidental College where he graduated with a BS in chemistry. He joined the Navy as a commissioned officer aboard the USS Meade and later the USS Sandlance. In 1953, he graduated from USC Medical School. He completed his residency at LA County General, and took his clinical pathology boards, achieving the highest score in the nation.

In 1960, Bill started a pathology practice at Intercommunity and Queen of the Valley hospitals in West Covina. He was chief pathologist at Queen of the Valley until his retirement in 1996. He remained on the board to help with the merger to form Citrus Valley Health Partners.

He also was a clinical professor of pathology at USC.

1941 Sigurd Andersen ’41 died on August 5, 2012. He is survived by his wife Lauren Kay, and their five children. At Webb, Sigurd was instrumental in the formation of the Debating Society, serving as its first president. He was also credited as being a life member of the California Scholastic Federation. He attended Princeton and enlisted in the Navy during WWII. He completed his studies in uniform at Cornell and received a PhD in applied statistics from North Carolina State University. He worked for the DuPont Company for more than 35 years in a position where he could apply his technical and managerial skills.

Sigurd and Lauren enjoyed many years of gardening and relaxation at their beloved farm near Stewartstown, PA. Webb Magazine • Winter 2013

William Aiken “Bill” Ordway ’41 passed away on April 11, 2012.

Bill is survived by his wife Nancy and two daughters. At Webb, Bill was a keen pilot and learned to fly on Mr. Shatzel’s sailplane. He also liked sports, especially football. In El Espejo, he was touted as an “excellent end [that was] a constant threat to [the] opposition.” Bill attended Caltech until 1942, when he left to join the Army and work as a ground school instructor and flight instructor for the Army Air Corps. After the war, he returned to engineering studies at Stanford.

He and his family moved to Arizona, where he worked as an engineer for the Arizona Highway Department. In 1965, the Ordway family moved to Phoenix where he was eventually appointed as the first director of the Arizona Department of Transportation. He served in this role until his retirement in 1985. Bill will be greatly missed by all who knew him. He was a dedicated alumnus, and we always enjoyed seeing him at Alumni Weekend and receiving his friendly phone calls.

1944 Admiral James D. Watkins ’44 passed away on July 26, 2012.

At Webb, Jim was an active member of the California Scholarship Federation and the El Espejo team, serving as editor in his senior year. He was a varsity letterman in football and basketball, and a member of the Honor Committee. Jim attended the US Naval Academy, graduating in 1949. He became the Chief of Naval Operations in 1982 and led operations in Grenada, Lebanon and the Persian Gulf. During his tenure as CNO, he precipitated a renaissance in naval operational thought that encouraged a new generation of officers. After retiring from the Navy, Jim chaired President Reagan’s Commission on the HIV epidemic known as The Watkins Commission and in 1989 was sworn in as Secretary of Energy by President George H. W. Bush. He served in this position until 1993, and during that time established important policy such as a ten-point plan to strengthen environmental protection and waste management. His plan led to the establishment of the Office of Environmental Restoration and Waste Management which, recognizing American dependence on foreign oil, instituted policy designed to increase oil production and decrease consumption.

He leaves behind his wife Janet and six children.

1945 We recently heard that Herbert Hoover III ’45 died on February 4, 2010. He was the grandson of our 31st president, Herbert Hoover.

Herbert was blessed to have his beloved wife Meredith by his side for 61 years of traveling as well as hours of volunteer service together with the American Red Cross. He is survived by his wife and two children.

1948 Richard Buckner “Buck” Jordan ’48 passed away on September 7, 2012. He is survived by his wife Connie. Buck attended Webb from 1943 to 1946. He was involved in the Stamp Club and known as an auto mechanic enthusiast. He attended Yale and served in the Navy for four years. His business career was in the financial industry, providing security advice to clients for more than 40 years. His love of philately, which began at Webb, continued throughout his life and his stamp exhibits garnered international awards.

1949 Robert Brooke ’49 passed away on September 10, 2012, in San Diego, CA. At Webb, Robert was known as quite the amateur radio enthusiast with his high-frequency portable set. He and a group of like-minded students were always experimenting and trying to transmit between buildings on campus.

Thomas H. Tuthill ’54 died on June 5, 2012, after a short battle with lung cancer. Tom is survived by his wife Jocelyn and two daughters.

In the senior yearbook, “Tut” was named one of the most popular boys in the class. He was an accomplished athlete, playing on both the A and B basketball and tennis teams. He had a penchant for surfing and stamp collecting. After Webb, he attended Claremont McKenna where he received a bachelor’s in business. After serving in the Army, he worked for the Campbell Soup Company. In 1972, he and a business associate purchased a food brokerage company and re-named it Halvorson Tuthill Sales, Inc. He shared in its success until his retirement in 1997.

himself with gentleness and good humor among both students and faculty families.” Stuart attended Lafayette College in Pennsylvania.

He graduated from the Santa Barbara College of Law and passed the Bar in 1980. He was a member of the California State Bar Association, American Bar Association, Los Angeles, Orange County, and Santa Barbara Bar Associations where Stuart practiced law for over 35 years.

Stuart acted as judge pro tem and arbitrator for the Santa Barbara Municipal and Superior courts. He is survived by his wife Susan McNally, his son Mario, his mother Barbara Colville O’Donnell, and his sister Maryanne Colville.

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Ronald Rutter ’56 passed away on July 15, 2012, in Modesto, CA. At Webb, Ron played football and was a stand-out on the track team, rising to varsity captain in his senior year. He was a member of the Camera Club, Ski Club, and Block W. Ron attended UCLA, majoring in economics. He also served with the Air National Guard and was called to active duty during the Berlin Crisis. He owned the Ronald J. Rutter Insurance Agency in Van Nuys, CA, for 27 years before moving to Santa Ynez, CA. He enjoyed fishing, traveling, and the outdoors. He finished the Baja 1000 off-road race in 1969 with his lifelong friend, Jim Renaker ’57. He is survived by his wife Nancy and their three children.

Michael M. Heflin Jr. ’85 died on July 21, 2012, after a brief illness.

Michael was president & CEO of Heflin & Co., LLC. He worked as an institutional stock broker at Cantor Fitzgerald for 10 years before starting his own broker dealer firm in 1996. In addition to owning his firm for 16 years, he was known for his generosity and support of many charitable organizations. During his time at Webb, Michael was a member of the Dorm Council and he went on to earn his BA from Northwestern. An active and loyal alumnus, Michael was one of the key donors for the black box theater project, known as the Copeland Donahue Theater and Digital Media Studio. We enjoyed seeing him at many reunions, most recently at his 25th reunion in 2010. Michael is survived by his wife Amanda; his four children Anna, Sophia, Michael III and Madeline; and his siblings Margaret, Charles ’88 and Elizabeth.

Michael’s father, Michael Heflin Sr., who passed away in 2008, served on Webb’s Board of Governors.

1963 David Procter ’63 died on August 12, 2012, at the age of 66. At Webb, David was a devotee of the Peccary Society and a member of the Rifle Club, winning numerous marksmanship awards. He was also a member of the lacrosse, baseball, and tennis teams, and lettered in his senior year on the varsity soccer team. He graduated from the University of New Hampshire, and was a captain in the US Air Force. David was the owner of OmniCare Labs, Inc. in Effingham, IL, which offers custom fabricated prosthetics, orthotics, and diabetic shoes. He is survived by his wife Barbara, and their three children.

1966 Carson E. Agnew ’66 passed away on September 5, 2012. He is survived by his wife Ellen Moran, brother Duncan, his two daughters, Anstes and Alison, his cousin Bill Agnew ’66, and nephew Elliott Agnew ’06.

The Agnew family has a long history with Webb. Carson’s two uncles attended in the thirties—David Agnew ’35 (1918-2001) and Seth Agnew ’39 (d. 1967). At Webb, Carson was valedictorian and a member of the Lincoln Debating Society. He led the El Espejo yearbook staff as co-copy editor in 1966. Carson received his SB in aeronautics and astronautics from MIT and his MS and PhD in engineering-economic systems from Stanford. His career spanned over 40 years in telecommunications, and he served in many executive and board roles in the satellite communications industry, working with Hughes Communications, American Mobile Satellite Corporation, Mobile Satellite Ventures, and Progeny LMS. He was responsible for Hughes’ role in setting up the first US mobile satellite licensee. We enjoyed seeing Carson on campus in October 2006 for his 40th reunion. Sadly, Carson’s health prevented him from attending the Class of 1966’s 45th reunion last fall. His classmates phoned him during the reunion to wish him their best.

1971 Stuart Colville ’71 died on March 27, 2012, after a long bout with spondylosis. At Webb, Stuart was an able academic and football player.

Bruce Hutchinson, Webb’s college counselor at that time, wrote, “On the football field, Stuart comes on like King Kong, but he conducts

1993 Eduardo Calderoni ’93 passed away on September 20, 2012, after a long battle with cancer. At Webb, Eduardo played basketball and was a member of the track and field teams. During his senior year, Eduardo wore #83 for the football team and helped Webb to a Prep League Championship. After Webb, he attended the Instituto Tecnológico y Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM) and received his degree in architecture. He worked for Morris Architects for more than 12 years in a position where he could apply his design and architecture skills in urban planning. Eduardo enjoyed fishing and being outdoors near his Houston, TX, home. He is survived by his wife Olivia Gonzalez de Calderoni, his children Fernanda and Eduardo, his parents, Jesus and Regina, and his brothers Jesus ’86 and Juan.

Former Faculty Sam Parkman died on November 28, 2010, at the age of 78.

Mr. Parkman taught English, Latin, and math at Webb from 1954 to 1959. He resided in Cambridge, MA, and is survived by his wife Mary and their two children. Mr. Parkman graduated from the Brooks School and Harvard College. He taught in California and New York and later was headmaster of Lake Forest Country Day in Illinois and Rippowam Cisqua School in New York. Elliott Trommald ’55 writes, “We always had fun rehashing the conversations we had over a particular spring break—Steve Sutro ’55, Dave Fleishhacker ’55 and, I think, Ron Quon ’55 were involved. We talked about teaching and responsibility and how and why schools behaved as they do. He was young then and accessible to us but we could talk with him about school in a way we could not with Ramsay, Gordon, or Fred. In later years, I talked with him as a colleague and appreciated the way he continued to learn and give of himself to others. I will especially miss his sense of humor that never flagged.”

The Webb Schools • WEbb.oRG

55

WEBB

Final Word

by Hector Martinez, Director of College Guidance

Schools That Change Lives

I 56

recently reread a wonderful book called Colleges That Change Lives made famous by Loren Pope, a well-respected educator and expert on American colleges. Mr. Pope passed away a few years back, but his book continues to be a popular read among college-bound students and their parents and always one that I recommend to families. What I like about it most is that it concentrates on small liberal arts colleges that have proved to have a significant impact on the lives of their graduates despite their less-than-well-known names. Most of the colleges on the list are places that even our own Webb students do not pay too much attention to unless my office suggests them. I could not agree more with Mr. Pope that the 40 colleges included in this book do, in fact, change the lives of young people for the better.

In fact, the only thing I don’t agree with is that there are only 40 schools that do this. I would argue that there are at least 100 other schools in America that do the same thing, but, for various reasons, these other jewels did not make it into the book.

The criteria for this book were that the schools had to adhere to a few very important qualities. One was the obvious fact that these places would have to put enormous attention on the undergraduate student experience exclusively, and that the size would encourage the sort of personal attention that would allow each student to be known and acknowledged as important members of the community. Another equally important factor was that each college would also have to be able to admit at least 50 percent of its applicants, so that the “exclusivity” of the place would not keep smart, motivated, interesting students from getting in—even if they didn’t have the perfect academic record or super high SAT scores. In fact, the selectivity issue is the number one reason why so many other great colleges that I would include on this list are not present. When I think back on my own college experience attending Pitzer, I definitely credit my school with changing my life in dramatic ways for which I will forever be grateful. Pitzer and the rest of the Claremont Colleges didn’t make it into the book because they have become too selective—something this particular book makes clear is not always a good thing. I couldn’t agree more! The fact is so many good colleges used to be able to admit the students they really wanted. Now they seem to have less room for these interesting students or the students who are simply different learners in high school with talents that cannot be measured by an SAT score, even though the students are impressive and talented.

It is not just colleges that change lives but certain high schools as well. Of course, I am referring to Webb and how lucky our students are because they are actually getting to attend a school that is changing their lives in dramatic and meaningful ways—a place that holds high value on becoming a well-educated scholar while also learning to be a good person—a place where they are known. Character, honor, rigor, leadership, and unbounded thinking, the attributes that are at the root of the Webb experience, are what I see my son getting every day as a freshman. His busy schedule sometimes seems overwhelming but at the same time so exciting: classes, chapel, assemblies, varsity wrestling, evening labs and tutorials, and an endless variety of social activities have allowed him the opportunity to get to know so many great people and make new friends and it has changed him.

Relax Enjoy Eat Play Cheer Reminisce Remember: It’s Alumni Weekend.

2013

SEPTEMbER 20 & 21

I can see that he is happy at Webb. He smiles more often and complains less (even about the homework), and seems more confident about what he can accomplish. These are signs that good things are happening to him because he belongs to a community that cares for him and knows he exists.

My wife is further proof that the Webb experience changes your life forever. As a 1986 graduate of Vivian Webb, Coleen credits her high school experience even more than her college years for transforming her into the woman she is today.

With so much attention placed on the ultra-popular and insanely selective schools like the Ivies, Stanford, and MIT, it is nice to know that there are so many other good choices out there to pick from if you spend the time to do your research and keep an open mind about those special places that might be less recognized but provide an equally powerful and meaningful experience. It’s also nice to know that if you are lucky enough to attend Webb or are a graduate of these great schools, you know first-hand how they can affect your life. It is no surprise that most would agree that The Webb Schools have been changing lives from the very start!

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CALENDAR Webb Day

March 16, 2013

Affiliates Benefit

March 23, 2013

Admission Revisit Day

March 27, 2013

Spring Break

March 30-April 14, 2013

Alumni Peccary Trip

May 3-5, 2013

Spring Musical

May 5, 2013

Spring Concert

May 19, 2013

Commencement

June 1, 2013

Please check the website for regional alumni events.

Calendar & Credits Editor Vivian Pradetto Marketing Coordinator Contributors Debbie Carini, Andrew Farke, Robert Fass, John Ferrari, Lauren Gold, Don Lofgren, Danielle Gordon, Aaron Severson, Laura Wensley Design Michael Stewart • Stewart Creative Photography Phil Channing, Andrew Farke, Don Lofgren, Nancy Newman, Scott Nichols, Doug Santo Printing Dual Graphics 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; the Western Association of Schools and Colleges; Boy’s Schools: An International Coalition; the National Coalition of Girls Schools; the California Association of Independent Schools; the College Entrance Examination Board; the Educational Records Bureau; the National Association of College Admissions Counselors; the Council for Basic Education; the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education; the Council for Religion in Independent Schools; National Association of Principals of Schools for Girls; and the Cum Laude Society.

Publication Information 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.

Postmaster: Send address changes to: The Webb Schools 1175 West Baseline Road Claremont, CA 91711 (909) 626-3587 / FAX (909) 621-4582 email: alumni@webb.org www.webb.org The mission of The Webb Schools is to provide an exemplary learning community that nurtures and inspires boys and girls to become men and women who: • Think boldly, mindfully and creatively, • Act with honor and moral courage, • Lead with distinction, • Serve with a generous spirit.

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Early Admission

College News

for the Class of 2013 The Class of 2013 is off to a great start with amazing college acceptances to some of the best colleges and universities in the world.

Nearly 60% of the senior class applied early admission, either Early Decision (ED) or Early Action (EA). Over half of our Webb seniors who applied early received good news.

Congratulations

to all of the students who got good news early!

We look forward to more good news from the Class of 2013 during the regular admission process later this spring.

American Academy of Dramatic Arts American Music & Dramatic Arts Academy Babson College Boston College Colorado College Columbia University Cornell University Dartmouth College Georgetown University Harvard University Harvey Mudd College Haverford College Johns Hopkins University New York Film Academy New York University Northern Arizona University Scripps College Southern Utah University St. Mary’s College Stanford University University of Chicago University of Michigan University of Notre Dame University of Southern California Washington University in St. Louis Yale-NUS College