Winsor Bulletin | Summer 2023

WINSOR

CONNECTIONS THAT BUILD BELONGING

CONTENTS

In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Winsor’s Dance Team performed “Rebels and Revolutionaries.”

On the Cover: The image is accentuated with survey responses from Winsor students who shared aspects of the school that hold special meaning. Photo by Kristie Dean; design by Nicole Barbuto

IN THIS ISSUE

20 A New Mural Helps Winsor Strengthen Community, One Leaf at a Time

22 Winsor’s Newest Chair Honors the Value and Importance of Diversity

24 Connections That Build Belonging The intentional work of creating belonging at Winsor

34 Commencement

IN EVERY ISSUE

2 From the Head of School

3 From Pilgrim Road

40 Alumnae News

68 First Person

Connections That Bind for a Lifetime

Mid-morning on a nice autumn day, I can walk around the school and see students in every space throughout the buildings and in the courtyard. They sit in the halls of the academic wing, lie on the couches in the LubinO’Donnell Center, perch on high chairs in conference spaces, study quietly on the third floor of the Virginia Wing Library, and enjoy the sun in the red Adirondack chairs in the courtyard. But more than that: they are with one another, studying together, laughing at each other’s jokes, listening to a song through shared ear buds, resting with their head on a friend’s shoulder, distracting themselves with movies on their computers, planning an assembly program, sharing a snack or an iced tea, writing and editing English essays. At the end of the day, almost anywhere in the school, I can find sweatshirts and water bottles, notebooks and pens, blankets, t-shirts, and travel mugs. Yes, perhaps they are forgetful, but really they are at home. Their sense of belonging is deep and multifaceted: they feel comfortable in the spaces, they are connected to their friends and classmates, and they have a strong sense of purpose here. School is more than a workplace for our students; it’s another home and another family, too.

In this issue, you will read about the many ways our students today experience belonging at Winsor. You’ll find the familiar and the new: a reflection of long held traditions and spaces alongside new ones that reflect the changing needs of our students. Consistent throughout is the steady development of the lifelong relationships and connection built while here.

As you think back on your time at Winsor, perhaps you recall some of the challenges you faced as a student. But throughout those memories, you likely also remember the sense of connection and belonging among friends who helped support you as you grew into the person you are today, as well as the spaces on campus where you consistently found a sense of ease and comfort. Our current students share that sense of connection and take comfort in the relationships and environment so unique to the Winsor experience. Like you, they will take that sense with them wherever they go in the world, knowing that wherever they are, they will always have a place to belong here.

Soon schedules will be sent out, seniors will return to paint their homeroom, and the courtyard and hallways will ring with the joyful sounds of our girls coming home. Tetherball, absent from campus for more than ten years now, will make its comeback. We hope you, too, will return to campus soon!

— SARAH PELMAS

The Winsor School

HEAD OF SCHOOL

Sarah Pelmas

EDITOR IN CHIEF

Scott Butterworth

INTERIM DIRECTOR OF MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS

Nicole Barbuto

DIRECTOR OF ADVANCEMENT

Erika McMahon

DIRECTOR OF ENGAGEMENT AND EVENTS

Becky Withiam

CREATIVE DIRECTION AND DESIGN

Nicole Barbuto

PHOTOGRAPHY

Kristie Dean Photography and Winsor Faculty and Staff

BOARD OF TRUSTEES 2023–2024

PRESIDENT

Allison Kaneb Pellegrino ’89, P’21, ’22

VICE PRESIDENT

Larry Cheng P’23, ’25, ’28

TREASURER

Lori Whelan P’23, ’25

ASSISTANT TREASURER

David E. Goel P’23

CLERK

Elizabeth Bennett Carroll ’89

Chris Andrews P’26, ex officio

Eman Ansari P’20, ’24, ’28

Wendy Cromwell P’21

Polly Crozier ’92, P’30

Jennifer Dolins P’23, ’26

Linda Dorcena Forry P’28

Claire Pasternack Goldsmith ’01

Mary Beth Gordon P’23, ’26

Ashley Marlenga Herbst ’01, ex officio

Risteard Hogan P’23

David Humphrey P’28, ’31

Sam Kennedy P’23

Jessica Lutzker P’25

Mallika Marshall P’27

Elise McDonald P’26, ’28

Suzanne Ranere Norris ’94

Joseph J. O’Donnell P’05, ’07

Paresh Patel P’27, ’29, ’30

Sarah Pelmas

Marion Russell ’91, P’22, ’25

Kerry Swords P’23, ’27

Perry M. Traquina P’09, ’13

Emily Lubin Woods ’91, P’26

The Winsor School does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, creed, national origin, or sexual orientation in the administration of its educational policies, scholars programs, athletic programs, and other school-administered programs.

FROM PILGRIM ROAD

Class I Presents the Classic Folktale The Great Race

Class I students debuted their original play

The Great Race in early January. Set many years ago in China, the play was a new, original adaptation of the classic story about the creation of the Chinese zodiac calendar, created by Winsor Performing Arts Faculty Jeremy Johnson with music by Choral Director Andrew Marshall.

“I am beyond proud of this amazing production!” said World Languages Faculty Baoying Qiu. “This production makes history at Winsor, being the first Asian-themed play ever staged at the school, and it means a lot to all the people of color in this community. I especially love the message of the whole play being ‘don’t cheat to win, win with dignity, and keep your head high.’ You can’t win every race, and it’s OK to lose. Help each other on the way to the end of the race.”

Convocation 2022–23: Starting the Year Right

On the first day of school, August 30, Winsor welcomed students back to campus with a classic Convocation that felt familiar and welcoming.

Costumed seniors lined the hallways, handing out high fives and forming a “scream tunnel,” as students entered 103 Pilgrim Road. Seniors revealed their arcadethemed homeroom by dressing, for instance, as Pac-Man, Mario and Luigi, and Oregon Trail pioneers. The symbolism of an arcade, where there is always something exciting to do, summed up the senior class in one word: fun.

Inside the David E. and Stacey L. Goel Theater, Head of School Sarah Pelmas introduced new faculty and staff members and then new spaces such as a robotics lab and choral room. Ms. Pelmas also announced that, thanks to the Planet Protectors,

Winsor is now producing its own energy through solar panels, drawing rousing applause.

Allison Kaneb Pellegrino ’89, P’21, ’22, president of Winsor’s Board of Trustees, reminded students that, at this moment, they “stand on the threshold of an exciting adventure.”

“This is the place where you can take risks, ask hard questions, and be your true, authentic self. Here at Winsor, you will always belong— now and well into the future,” she added.

COLLECT President Chloe

Chao ’23, Senior Class President Olivia Sarkis ’23 and Lower School Council Heads Anaisha Mallik ’27 and Bonnie Shao ’27 also spoke to the assembled group and imparted some advice to start the year off right. “If we can empower each other, this year will be extraordinary,” Chloe said.

Ms. Pelmas reminded the audience that this school year marks Winsor’s 136th birthday. “In 1886,” she said, “Miss Winsor started a school in the Back Bay for girls who would grow up to be intellectual powerhouses and significant contributors to the world.” Today, in Longwood, she added, Winsor is still all of those things, and more. “We don’t all come from the same class or social circles. We are more diverse, more varied, we embrace people from many more backgrounds, and we graduate students who will follow a much greater variety of life paths.”

She went on to note, “And because of that diversity, we are more likely to disagree, see things from different perspectives, prioritize different things. And that’s great. It is perhaps the most important goal a school can have. ...It’s not always easy to disagree, but it is very important to do so.”

CLASS I STUDENTS PROTECT THREATENED BLANDING’S TURTLE POPULATION

Winsor Lower School students spent the school year caring for Potato and TK, a pair of endangered baby Blanding’s turtles, as student conservationists.

It is an annual tradition for Winsor to participate annually in Hatchling and Turtle Conservation through Headstarting (HATCH), a conservation-based education program run by Zoo New England. The program has contributed to a doubling in the population of Blanding’s turtles over nearly 20 years.

The turtles tend to grow faster at Winsor than they can in the wild, as they are guaranteed frequent and regular feedings and do not hibernate. By the time Potato and TK are released, at about 9 months of age, says Zoo New England, the young turtles will be about the same size as wild three to four year-olds. To release them, the entire Class I went in May on a field trip to Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge in Concord, Massachusetts.

Blanding’s turtles are one of only 10 turtle species native to Massachusetts. Winsor has participated in the HATCH program since the 2018-19 school year —this is the 14th year of the HATCH. program overall.

WINSOR DEBATERS DELIVER WORLD-CLASS PERFORMANCE AT INTERNATIONAL SPEAKING COMPETITION

Two Winsor debate students—Caroline Bae ’24 and Nika Bigelow ’25—earned spots in this spring’s World Individual Debating and Public Speaking Championships in Durban, South Africa.

Caroline was a grand finalist in the tournament’s interpretive reading competition and a finalist in persuasive speaking. She finished the competition ranked 18th in the world.

Longtime Debate Coach Jean Berg noted that “Winsor debaters have participated for a number of years in international and world debating and speaking competitions in Argentina, Botswana, Lithuania, the U.K., Canada, South Africa, Cyprus, and others.”

Caroline and Nika qualified for worlds at competitions in New England. Caroline was the top U.S. speaker and second overall at the International Independent Schools Public Speaking Competition. Nika, meanwhile, won her spot at Durban in a meet at the Kingswood Oxford School in Hartford, Connecticut, where Winsor was named the top team.

Pennypacker Prize Awarded to Andrew Marshall

ASIAM LEADS WINSOR IN CELEBRATING LUNAR NEW YEAR

In January, the affinity group

AsIAm—Asians in America—led events that celebrated Lunar New Year.

In an assembly, AsIAm heads discussed how Lunar New Year is celebrated in different cultures. For instance, the holiday was observed this year on January 22 in China and Korea, but in Japan it is always celebrated on January 1. The set of zodiac animals also differs from culture to culture: While this year in the Chinese zodiac is the Year of the Rabbit, in the Vietnamese zodiac it is the Year of the Cat.

At the annual Winsor Board of Trustees dinner, held in January, Choral Director Andrew Marshall was announced as the 2023 recipient of the Pennypacker Prize.

Head of School Sarah Pelmas quoted Head of Performing Arts Felicia Brady-Lopez in describing Mr. Marshall as “a soulful, inspired musician; a dynamic conductor; a humble, hardworking and beloved member of the department; someone who lights up the stage when accompanying his singers.”

The Pennypacker Prize is awarded annually to an outstanding faculty member between their second and seventh year at the school, and it honors Henriette Pennypacker Binswanger ’52. Established in 2002, the prize “is intended to encourage the recipient’s continuing educational growth and development.”

“It was an honor to have received the award. I was totally taken by surprise, and I appreciated the thoughtful words from my colleagues and students,” said Mr. Marshall.

Mr. Marshall joined the Performing Arts faculty in 2020, after teaching choral music, directing, and performance for more than two decades. His extended works for choir and orchestra are performed annually by the Philharmonic Orchestra of Jamaica and the Jamaica Choral Scholars.

AsIAm showed a video that featured members discussing their favorite cultural traditions, such as celebrating the Dragon Boat Festival, eating different varieties of mooncakes for the Moon Festival, and celebrating Korean New Year with traditional foods such as tteokguk (rice cake soup) and bibimbap.

The celebration continued with an Asian-inspired lunch menu from Chef Heather Pierce, as well as games and crafts outside the dining room.

Winsor Spirit Shines During Under the Lights

Winsor pride was on full display during Spirit Week in the lead-up to Under the Lights and the Head of the Charles Regatta. From the turf to the gym, spectators enjoyed 11 games on Friday night, split between soccer, field hockey, and volleyball, while rowing had two boats on the river Sunday morning.

Spirit Week kicked off with Terrific Twenties, and students interpreted this broadly from $20 bills to flappers and even to classic

pandemic attire. On Tuesday, students dressed up like movie star and comedian Adam Sandler.

On Wednesday, the whole school got creative for “wedding day,” with bouquets and bachelorette parties roaming the hallways.

On Thursday, the first-ever Jaguar and Panther Assembly was modeled after “Family Feud.” On Friday, the school came together for Red Day.

Under the Lights was a festive scene with hundreds of spectators enjoying the evening. Athletes warmed up in the courtyard while

families snacked on doughnuts and cider. A Fenway Park–inspired dinner was available for everyone in the dining room, featuring vegan chili, hot dogs, pretzels, hot chocolate, and apple crisp.

On Sunday, the festivities continued with finals for the Head of the Charles Regatta. To close out the week, more than 100 spectators made up of Winsor alumnae and current families cheered on the athletes from the Belmont Hill Winsor Boat House.

Fall Sports Highlights

CREW

Three Winsor crews brought home medals from the Textile River Regatta: gold for the Varsity 4+, silver for the Varsity 8+, and bronze for the 2V 8+. At the 57th Head of the Charles Regatta, Winsor competed in the Women’s Youth 4+ and Youth 8+ events. The Youth 4+ rowed the second fastest sprint of the 90-boat field as they powered to the finish line to place eighth. The 8+ jumped 40 spots beyond their bow marker to finish in 50th place.

CROSS COUNTRY

The cross country team captured its 18th Eastern Independent League (EIL) championship title, nudging out Pingree School. The two schools were tied through five runners, and the tiebreaker was Raina Sohur ’23, who eclipsed Pingree’s sixth finisher by two seconds. Meg Madison ’24 won the EIL individual title for the third time. Serena Toscani ’25 and Helena Nguyen ’23 were eighth and 15th, respectively, to join Meg in earning All-League honors.

Meg, the team captain, also triumphed at the New England Prep School Track and Field Association Division I Championships, while Winsor took seventh in the team competition. She completed the cross-country season by taking sixth place in the Champs Sports (formerly Foot Locker) Northeast Regional Championships and 27th at the Champs Sports National Championships in San Diego.

To cap a memorable year, Gatorade named Meg the girls’ cross country athlete of the year in Massachusetts for the second straight time.

VARSITY FIELD HOCKEY

The varsity field hockey team took third place in the EIL and advanced to the New England Prep School Athletic Conference Class C field hockey tournament. Highlights included a 4-0 shutout against Class A Austin Prep, a 2-0 victory over Dexter Southfield for Coach Erin Calamari-Kirwan’s 130th win, and a 2-1 Senior Day win over Newton Country Day.

Maddie Cheng ’25 and Ally Kennedy ’23 were All-New England selections, and Caroline Bub ’25 and Ariana Rowe ’24 were honorable mentions. Ally, Ariana and Caroline Bae ’24 were selected for the EIL All-League team.

VARSITY SOCCER

The varsity soccer team performed at a high level this year, dominating possession against the majority of opponents. Highlights included the first victory over the Rivers School in more than 15 years, season-opening wins over Lexington Christian Academy and Portsmouth Abbey, and a 1-0 home win over Newton Country Day on Senior Day. Varsity Soccer finished the season undefeated at home and was seeded third for the EIL postseason tournament, the highest in several years.

Sophie Fleishman ’25 was named to the all-NEPSAC squad, while Nell Sparks ’25 earned an honorable mention. Sophie, Nell, and Lydia Morris-Kliment ’23 were selected for the EIL All-League team.

VARSITY VOLLEYBALL

The varsity volleyball team began the year as a young squad, with only a few returning starters from the previous year. The Wildcats grew together as the season progressed, forging a winning record and tying for third in the EIL regular season.

A tough loss to Newton Country Day ended the postseason, but the team looks forward to having 13 returning varsity players next year.

AnAn Desimone ’23 was named to the all-NEPSAC squad, while Karla Sahin ’24 earned an honorable mention. AnAn and Karla were both selected for the EIL AllLeague team.

To read these news articles in full, please see winsor.edu/news.

Four Faculty Members Reach 20-Year Milestone

Each year, Winsor honors faculty and staff who have reached milestone years of tenure with the school, with special tributes paid to those reaching 20 years of service. Colleagues, students, and alumnae submit personalized tributes to these employees, who are woven in the fabric of Winsor’s history. Because a place is nothing without its people, the Winsor community celebrates these milestone achievements at the Annual Faculty, Staff, and Board of Trustees Dinner. This year, four faculty and staff members celebrated 20 years, representing the World Languages Department, English Department, College Counseling Department, and Athletics Department.

JENNIFER GRAHAM

One colleague likened Jennifer Graham to a hummingbird, “moving quickly and gracefully around and having impact all over.” Ms. Graham is the director of college counseling and has served as class dean, an English teacher, and an advisor for the Upper School Jewish affinity group Jew Kidz on the Block.

Ms. Graham’s steady force at Winsor has earned her a reputation for being calm, cool, and collected, no matter the situation. Students describe her as kind, caring, and energetic. Colleagues use words like “unflappable,” “positive,” and “professional,” a person who is highly generous and thoughtful with her time while wearing many hats on Pilgrim Road.

Head of School Sarah Pelmas celebrated Graham for “being a wonderful teacher, colleague, friend, advisor, and dean; for being someone we all delight in spending time with,

at the lunch table or on the fly in the hallway or at a celebration like tonight.”

Ms. Graham has a knack for making the classroom fun, which shines through in creative lessons like literary charades and asking students to imagine what kind of text messages Holden Caulfield, the main character from The Catcher in the Rye, would send if he were a modern teenager.

The Winsor community is incredibly grateful to the dedication Ms. Graham puts into the many roles she fulfills on campus, her flexibility, open-mindedness, patience, and humility.

LAURA HOULETTE

When a new teacher relocated to Boston for the job, World Languages Faculty Laura Houlette and her family had just moved into their home, but that didn’t stop her from generously offering her new

colleague a place to stay. Acts of kindness like this were plentiful in faculty and student stories of Ms. Houlette’s time at Winsor.

Ms. Houlette has taken on many roles here, including trip coordinator, department head, advisor for the community service club, and SEED meeting facilitator. She was praised for “always stepping up and saying yes, for [her] energy and creativity, [her] tremendously varied pedagogy, [her] generosity with colleagues… and [her] remarkable ability to spark a lifelong love of French in all [her] students.”

Ms. Houlette came to Winsor directly after completing her Ph.D. in French literature at Stanford University. To her students, she is Mme. Houlette, a highly inspiring and encouraging teacher. One alumna from 2007 credits Mme. Houlette for her ongoing fluency in French.

In a country where bilingualism is rare, Winsor is grateful for Ms. Houlette’s ability to instill a love of foreign language in our students.

MORIAH MUSTO

Moriah Musto started coaching cross country and track at Winsor only three years after graduating from college. She has built a dynasty with the two teams during her tenure on Pilgrim Road, with 18 Eastern Independent League (EIL) championship titles. No surprise that she has been named EIL Coach of the Year 13 times.

Her teams are consistently at the top of the heap for cross country programs in New England—all while Ms. Musto maintains a full-time day job at Fidelity Investments alongside her duties as track and field coach.

Ms. Musto was heralded for her “dedication, expertise, commitment to running, food and traditions, [her] obvious talent for managing a million things at once, and [her] clear love for all [her] runners past, present, and future.”

Ms. Musto has a knack for developing and encouraging student athletes to their highest potential. Winsor is proud of the accomplishments that have occurred under her leadership and the workmanship she brings to the team each year.

SZILVIA “SZILVI” SZOMBATI

Szilvia Szombati was a nationally ranked badminton player in Hungary before she began working at Winsor, and she had just taken up the sport of squash when she interviewed for the coaching role

at Winsor. Her pitch for how she envisioned coaching and building out the team seemed “spot-on,” and the school is very happy to have taken a chance on Ms. Szombati. She built the program and was instrumental in the development of the O’Donnell Center for Athletics and Wellness Squash Complex.

Switching to squash gave her a new passion for both playing and coaching, and her team captains characterize her approach as “mean strokes, nice demeanor.” Universally recognized as kind and supportive of every single player, Ms. Szombati was celebrated for her “incredible competitive spirit combined with graciousness and generosity, for [her] remarkable talent in badminton that translated so well to squash, for bringing the love of squash to literally hundreds of people each year, and for showing [Winsor] athletes how fun it is to play hard and win often.”

The squash program has advanced tremendously under her coaching; the number of participants has grown, the team’s record has

improved, and, since 2010, Winsor has won the EIL squash title every year.

Winsor is very grateful for the work Ms. Szombati has done to nurture and develop the squash program over the last two decades.

OTHER MILESTONES

5 Years

Gabriella Gangi

Emily Moran

Adam Newell

Andres Puigbo

Danica Villanueva

10 Years

John Crompton

Jeremy Johnson

Richie Waite

15 Years

Erin Calamari-Kirwan

Tom Wensinck

25 Years

Bob Anderson

Courtney Jackson

35 Years

Kevin Lynch

(L to R): Laura Houlette, Moriah Musto, Szilvia Szombati, and Jennifer Graham

Winter Sports Highlights

VARSITY BASKETBALL

The 2022–23 squad featured three senior captains, one returning starter, and five new team members. Although they faced many injuries and challenges throughout the season, they never stopped fighting and working hard to get better. In a pivotal early game, Winsor beat Eastern Independent League (EIL) rival Portsmouth Abbey despite having only five players available. The Wildcats then followed up by beating Dana Hall. Later in the year, the team completed a season sweep of Portsmouth Abbey. Four seniors with a combined 16 seasons, 11 on varsity, graduated from the program at season’s end—a great display of commitment and dedication. Nell Sparks ’25 was named to the All-League EIL team and was an honorable mention to the All-New England team, while Anissa Patel ’23 was an EIL honorable mention selection.

VARSITY ICE HOCKEY

An exciting season included a return of the alumnae game, a trip to watch a college game, and an incredible opportunity to play at Fenway Park against Beaver Country

Day School. The team put in a lot of hard work, and each member showed tremendous growth over the campaign. The returning players welcomed several new players, who brought enthusiasm and a sense of fun to team activities, including hard practices, group dinners, and long bus rides. The season culminated in a hard-fought 3-2 win against Beaver on senior day—a great way to cap off the careers of our four seniors. Ally Kennedy ’23 was named to the All-League EIL team, while Natalie Pan ’23 earned honorable mention.

VARSITY SWIMMING

The swim team recorded an undefeated regular season, including a pair of close wins over Dana Hall and a nailbiter over St. George’s that came down to the final relay. Winsor took second place at the EIL Championships, where Sophia Cukras ’26 set a school record in the 100 butterfly. At the New England Prep School Swimming and Diving Championships, the team placed third, knocking down three school records along the way: Sophia in the 100 freestyle; the 200 medley relay of Holiday Host ’23,

Leah Libman ’25, Sophia and Elena Toscani ’27; and the 200 freestyle relay of Sophia, Laurel Halfman ’25, Alaina Cai ’23, and Ashley Xu ’23. Seven swimmers were named both to the EIL All-League team and the All-New England team: Alaina, Sophia, Laurel, Holiday, Leah, Lidia Rodriguez ’23, and Ashley.

VARSITY SQUASH

Varsity squash was unchallenged by its EIL rivals, winning every game in all of the positions this season. The record resulted in Winsor’s 13th consecutive league title. At the New England Prep School Championships, the Wildcats placed third, behind Greenwich Academy and Hotchkiss School, placed all seven players in the top four of their positions, and brought home the biggest award they could possibly receive, this year’s Sportsmanship Award. Winsor capped a remarkable season at the U.S. High School Squash Championships in Philadelphia. There is no easy match in Division 1, in which the 16 best high school teams in the country meet. Winsor finished an astonishing sixth place out of the top 85 teams at the tournament.

Sora Karanja ’23 was named EIL MVP and Player of the Year, while Coach Szilvi Szombati was named EIL Coach of the Year. Sora, Lily Levitzky ’23, and Mina Subramanian ’24 were All-League selections, while Judy Liu ’29 was an honorable mention. Kaitlyn Doe ’27, Caroline Eielson ’24, and Judy were All-New England choices, while Mina and Lily earned honorable mentions.

Before the season, Caroline enjoyed an eventful summer, claiming the top spot in U.S. Squash’s national U17 rankings and competing with Team USA in the 2022 Pan American Junior Squash Championships in Bolivia. The Americans brought home the gold in the team competition, and Caroline added a silver medal in individual play and a bronze in doubles. This school year, Caroline moved into the U19 rankings, where she ranks fourth as of July 19.

To read these news articles in full, please see winsor.edu/news.

Winsor Theater Brings Style, Wit, and Brilliance to The Women

Offering comedic satire, as well as an exaggerated view of society women in the 1930s, Clare Boothe Luce’s classic play The Women featured a large ensemble and hundreds of dazzling costumes allowing Winsor’s talented cast to shine.

In the play, set in 1936 New York, the ladies of Manhattan’s elite come to life in the first scene over a game of bridge, digging into each other, providing acidtongued and quick-witted exchanges about other women and the men (frequently spoken of but never present).

As the play opened with a stage lit with rose hues, the cast stood frozen in period costumes as Nancy Blake, played by Asha Moreno ’23, introduced the members on stage. Sharp and self-aware, Nancy is the play’s only working woman (a writer and traveler) and serves as the occasional narrator for the play’s action. Liza Kuntz ’23 was hilarious as the meddling and poisonous Sylvia Fowler, Olivia Sarkis ’23 mastered the New York accent as the ever-pregnant and unhappy Edith Potter, and Sawyer Bowen-Flynn ’25 shined as the sweet and naive Peggy Day. Ava Bub ’23 was empathetic as Mary Haines, the play’s emotional center who is blissfully unaware of her

husband’s affair with Crystal Allen, played by Mae Myers ’24, a savvy and ruthless sales girl at Saks. That is, until Sylvia hatches a plot to inform Mary of her husband’s infidelities, leaving the audience to follow Mary’s emotional journey through betrayal, divorce, and calculated redemption.

Mina Feldman ’25 gave a superb performance as Lucy, the manager of a divorce hotel in Reno, Nevada, where many of the leading ladies spend a few scenes, and Chloe Chao ’23 brought the house down with her comedic flair as the overdramatic and pampered Countess de Lage, who by the end of the drama is on her fifth divorce.

The production had many twists and turns that kept the audience laughing. On more than one occasion, the brutal sparring among the show’s ladies gave way to all-out fistfights, hair-pulling, and leg-biting in an uproariously funny fashion.

The Upper School Fall Play presented in the David E. and Stacey L. Goel Theater last November came to life through the tireless work of Theater Director Jeremy Johnson, Technical Theater Director Andres Puigbo, and student members of the stage crew, and Costume Designer Jessica Pribble.

DR. CAROL GILLIGAN VISITS CAMPUS FOR RESEARCH STUDY

Psychologist and ethicist Dr. Carol Gilligan, whose research on girls between 1981 and 1991 broke new ground on the study of adolescent development, will include The Winsor School in her latest research project, called Strengthening Healthy Resistance and Courage in Girls.

“We are so excited to have the opportunity to collaborate with Dr. Gilligan and her research team on this project,” said Science Faculty and Institutional Researcher Denise Labieniec.

Dr. Gilligan and her team interviewed 12 randomly selected students at Winsor and 18 at The Hewitt School, an independent girls’ school in New York.

Dr. Gilligan also had an opportunity to attend Winsor classes, talk with students and experience the daily life of our vibrant community. The interviews are part of a pilot study, designed to raise questions and generate ideas that will inform future work by the research team.

A TRIBUTE TO WINSOR TRADITIONS

In September, an all-school assembly focused on Winsor traditions, both new and old. Students shared personal stories about their favorites of the school’s many traditions, including Under the Lights, Spirit Week, Field Day, and the Class I play. Other speakers discussed the history behind such familiar songs as “Jerusalem,” “Lamp of Learning,” and “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”

Grandparents and Grandfriends at Winsor Once More

For the first time since 2019, Winsor hosted grandparents and grandfriends on campus for a special luncheon, drawing more than 100 to the Lubin-O’Donnell Center’s Wildcat Room.

In her remarks, Head of School Sarah Pelmas described the lively culture at Winsor, including such beloved traditions as Spirit Week and Under the Lights.

“Every single day, at this school, our students look around and they see young women being smart, starring in the school play, being the captain of the soccer team, running student government, speaking their minds, hugging a friend in need, and fighting for what matters to them,” Ms. Pelmas said. “Every day they see the power of young women running things, together, with and for one another.”

She reminded the guests of the power in being present in children’s lives as a wise elder and of how youngsters often look to such adults for steadfastness and support.

“You can help them ride the ups and downs of their experiences just by asking about their day, about their friends, activities, successes and goals. You have the wisdom of experience, and the generational gift of not being their parents. You are basically magical,” Ms. Pelmas added to chuckles.

Winsor Celebrates Community in Annual Winter Concert

On the first snowfall of the season, the Winsor community gathered for a musical celebration of many instruments and voices.

The Annual Winter Concert began with Choral Director Andrew Marshall leading the Class III Descants in three pieces, accompanied by Head of Performing Arts Felicia Brady-Lopez on keyboard. Then Illumina, the Upper School chorus, performed four expressive choral pieces in contrasting styles.

The Upper School Percussion Ensemble presented “Caroled Bells,” a magical arrangement of the familiar “Carol of the Bells,” using concert bells, a marimba, two xylophones, Winsor’s new vibraphone, a bell tree, a triangle, a suspended cymbal, and a mark tree.

Ushering in the orchestral section of the program, the Upper School Chamber Players presented the Largo Pastorale movement from Arcangelo Corelli’s “Christmas Concerto” while the Lower School Orchestra, led by Performing Arts Faculty Julia Connor, navigated constantly shifting rhythms in Dvorak’s Slavonic Dance Op. 46, No. 1. Additionally, Mr. Marshall led the Sinfonietta—a mixture of professionals from the Boston community with Winsor faculty and students—in instrumental arrangements of seasonal favorites “O Hanukkah” and “Auld Lang Syne.”

Closing the program with a Winsor tradition, everyone was invited to the stage to sing “Hallelujah Chorus” from Handel’s Messiah with combined choirs and a community orchestra.

DR. PENIEL JOSEPH VISITS WINSOR DURING EAST COAST BOOK TOUR

Historian Dr. Peniel Joseph returned to Winsor for the third time in 15 years, this time to discuss what he calls America’s “Third Reconstruction”—a series of events that include the election of Barack Obama as president, the two Black Lives Matter movements, the rise of “Make America Great Again” and the related election of Donald Trump to succeed Obama, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr. Joseph juxtaposed this period against the periods after the Civil War, the First Reconstruction, and the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, the Second Reconstruction.

“We have a huge opportunity to tell ourselves about what it means to be an American, to tell ourselves about this country, and to tell ourselves about its values,” he said. “We have reconstructionists or redemptionists telling us two different stories.”

Dr. Joseph added, “We can tell a story about those who have tried to build that ‘beloved community’ that Dr. King talks about, and we can tell that story alongside the bitter stories of our history....What happens when we talk about both sides of the story? We’re going to change the country.”

WINSOR STUDENTS COMPETE AT BOSMUN CONFERENCE

More than two dozen Winsor students joined 1,500 of their peers at the 22nd annual Boston Invitational Model United Nations Conference (BosMUN) for three days in February. A month later, students attended the National High School Model UN conference in Manhattan.

The events give students a chance to take on the role of international diplomats, representing a country assigned by the organizers, then working with other delegates on real-world issues that multinational organizations face.

Three Winsor students were recognized at BosMUN for their contributions to the event: Susanne Pogorelec ’24 (Ghana, Sustainable Innovation Forum) and Ainsley Wang ’24 (Uzbekistan, Economic Social Commission for Asia and Pacific) each received an honorable mention, and Ella Paterniti ’26 (Ecuador, Organization of American States) was awarded a verbal commendation.

LOWER SCHOOL PARTNERS WITH COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS FOR DAY OF SERVICE

On the day following the last day of Semester 1 classes, Lower School students participated in a morning of community service activities in support of local organizations.

Organized by parent volunteers, the community service day is an annual tradition for the Lower School. Students came together on and off campus to assemble and decorate birthday boxes for children, organize donated clothing, and prepare meals for individuals in need.

Classes I and II gathered on campus to support Birthdayin-a-Box for the Birthday Wishes organization, which provides birthday party supplies to children and families experiencing homelessness.

Class III gathered in Dracut, Massachusetts to assist Catie’s Closet and Room to Grow; Catie’s Closet provides free, in-school access to clothing and basic necessities, while Room to Grow provides essential baby and toddler items to parents and caregivers.

And Class IV volunteered at Community Servings, which makes medically tailored meals to individuals and their families experiencing critical or chronic illness and nutrition insecurity.

The day was made possible by Parents’ Association Liaisons for Community Service and Communications Rachel Xu P’28 and Allyson Bloom P’29, with support from Director of Engagement and Events Becky Withiam, Assistant Director of Family Engagement Essence Denton, and many parent volunteers.

CLASS II ENGAGES AND EDUCATES AT ANNUAL GREEK SYMPOSIUM

At the annual Greek Symposium, Class II students transported Winsor audiences of parents, faculty, staff, and other students back to the lifestyles, fashions, ideas, surroundings, and customs of ancient Greece.

Gathering in the Wildcat Room, the Greek experts engaged a multitude of visitors on topics that included crime and punishment, medicine, philosophy, architecture, Olympics and other sporting events, mythology and religion, fashion, and Greek food and drink.

Informative posters on display were the product of many weeks of research and preparation, and visitors could also find intricate architectural models, sculptures, diagrams, and many interactive games. Activities included a trivia contest, a puppet show, short races, city planning, and a philosophy debate—all for fun prizes.

The Greek Symposium is the culminating project for Class II’s semester of work on Greece, and History Faculty Amy Lieberman, who organized this year’s event with History Faculty Annie Huntoon, called the annual tradition “certainly always a highlight of their years in the Lower School.”

Identity, Biology, and Emotion: Critical Conversations About Learning

How do personal identities, cultural backgrounds, biology, and human emotion affect learning? Over the past year, a webinar series brought together public and private school communities, including Winsor, to explore answers to this question.

The series, Critical Conversations, was developed by Luthern Williams, Winsor’s former director of diversity and now the head of New Roads School in Santa Monica, California.

The nationally shared webinar sessions also included follow-up events for communities to discuss related insights and ideas important to their schools.

Journalist Lisa Ling discussed how her identity and cultural influences affected her education and career. Psychiatrist Dan Siegel talked

about how biology hardwires us to identify “in groups” and “out groups” from the very outset of our lives. And neuroscientist Mary Helen Immordino-Yang explained how emotion inextricably links to learning.

These topics were especially relevant for Winsor professionals who strive to create an environment where all students find a sense of belonging. As Head of School Sarah Pelmas noted in the fall, Winsor students possess diverse backgrounds and identities: “We are still a school for intellectual powerhouses and for people who will significantly contribute to the world. But we are no longer all-white, and not every student at Winsor identifies as a girl. We want

BY JOAN YENAWINE

every single student to feel that this is their school, to feel like it’s truly theirs, to know that they belong.”

Ideas that came out of the Critical Conversation series make good common sense: Backgrounds and identities affect how people approach learning. It’s human nature to separate “in groups” vs. “out groups.” And we need to be curious and interested in order to learn deeply.

Yet determining how educational systems should respond to these high-level facts is not so simple. Every day, Winsor endeavors to create a supportive setting where all learners can take risks, make mistakes, celebrate growth, and continue these important conversations.

Lower School Closing Ceremony

With a focus on reflections, next steps, and new beginnings, Class IV students concluded their 2022–23 Lower School year with a ceremony of celebration inside the David E. and Stacey L. Goel Theater.

Head of Lower School Sharon Jones Phinney encouraged departing students to look forward, and she asked them to reflect and honor what worked this year and what did not.

“On any journey, you can only take so much luggage with you. Today and through the summer, I implore you to think about what you intend to bring with you and what you want to or even need to leave behind,” said Ms. Phinney.

“Through your reflections over the course of the year, you have a pretty good idea of what helped you make progress and what hindered progress. So, I suggest taking the summer as an opportunity to think about what made this year a success and pack it in a suitcase to be opened the day before your first day of school.”

Head of School Sarah Pelmas reminded students of how far they have come in four years and how proud everyone was of their rich accomplishments.

“You arrived on campus as tiny little Is, or medium little IIs, or even bigger IIIs, and you have since then dazzled

us on a fairly regular basis with your analytical skills, your determination, your generosity, your humor, and your sense of justice,” she said. “You played your hearts out in sports, you threw yourselves into theater and ensembles, you made truly lovely art, and you read voraciously.”

Ms. Pelmas added that, when she looks at the Lower School, she sees students with an abundance of cachet.

“Look around at the friends sitting around you right now. They look amazing, don’t they? And think about the cool, smart, impressive, talented things they have done this year,” she said.

“Let me tell you: You are amazing. Everyone around you right now can tell you one amazing thing about yourself, something you might not even fully believe. But it’s true. You are remarkable.”

Class IV speaker Emma Roffman ’27 described her class as a jungle, “chaotic and comedic, dramatic and exciting, but most of all, fun.”

Roffman reminisced about how the class all showed up as potatoes, using Snapchat filters, during a remote Zoom, or how quickly everyone learned their lines for the Class IV tradition of staging a Shakespeare play.

A New Mural Helps Winsor Strengthen Community, One Leaf at a Time

In December, three student groups embarked on the joint project to bring the mural to life. COLLECT, the Student Equity Board, and the Student Association of Fine Arts (SAFA) met at the beginning of the school year, and by November the project was underway. Using the assembly block on November 30, 2022, students met in their Sibling Squads to make leaves for the tree. (A combination of Upper School and Lower School students, Sibling Squads are a forum for mingling and making friends across grade levels as they play games and have guided discussions.)

Sprawling roots and intertwined branches stretch across the wall, the boughs laden with stories. As students, faculty, and staff walk past, individual leaves in this mural draw the eye and serve as a daily reminder that the Winsor community is both vibrant and complex.

Seniors Chloe Chao ’23, Gigi Chu ’23, and Ella Pascucci ’23 are the visionaries behind the tree mural, a project they saw as providing a representation of belonging and identity at Winsor. “While I loved painting and assembling this, my favorite part of this process was

seeing people stop in the hallway to read some of the messages written on the leaves!” Chloe said.

The eight-foot-square mural adorns the hallway across from Room 201, a spot that, the creators said, was a major consideration: “We wanted to display the mural in a central location of the school to make it accessible to the whole Winsor community.” Given its placement near the dining room, nearly everyone in the building walks by the art piece daily. Between students and faculty going to and from classrooms, and staff heading to lunch, it encounters a lot of foot traffic.

During one such Sibling Squad meeting, students participated in a discussion on the topic of belonging, anchored by the creation of the Winsor tree. “Especially after the virtual (and partially virtual) pandemic school years, COLLECT’s biggest goal this year was to strengthen Winsor’s sense of community,” said Chloe.

Students cut out construction paper leaves and recorded their response to the prompt “I am [blank] and I am [blank].” Recognizing the multiplicity of Winsor student identities, the organizers shared, “this prompt aims to recognize and celebrate the unique aspects of each student’s identity.” Chloe added, “We hoped that the mural would

highlight the stories of our diverse community.” In addition to selecting paper color and customizing their prompt response, students were encouraged to decorate their paper leaves with drawings and doodles to further personalize their contribution to the mural.

After the leaves were created and collected, SAFA got to work, even arranging a time-lapse video to capture the artistic process. First sketching the design and then drawing an outline on the wall, students eventually progressed to painting the trunk and branches. Head of Visual Arts Sara Macaulay and Visual Arts Faculty Emily Valenza were instrumental in supporting the creation of the mural, but there were many steps before students could progress to paint, including requests, meetings, and approvals from Head of School Sarah Pelmas, Head of Lower School Sharon Jones Phinney, Head of Upper School Kimberly Ramos, and even the Winsor Wall Committee.

Months of effort and collaboration culminated in SAFA, Lower School Council, and other Winsor community members hanging the leaves with care on January 26, 2023. By turns humorous and heartfelt, the leaves tell the story of Winsor students today. Each leaf

shares a unique student perspective, and together the leaves create a canopy of stories:

“I am determined, and I am also kind.”

“I am a Winsor student, but I also mix up my left from my right.”

“I am first generation American, and I am also the oldest of three siblings.”

“I am Arab American, and I am a feather in the Lower School play.”

“I am creative. I am also a book lover.”

Now that Chloe, Gigi, and Ella have graduated, it’s up to the next generation of student leaders to cultivate stories. With intentional opportunities for student leadership across clubs and student government, it won’t be long before students present new ideas, new projects, and new initiatives to strengthen the Winsor community and have a little fun. One thing is for sure, we can’t wait to see how the conversation around belonging continues to grow.

The mural’s organizers captured its creation, from sketch to design to painting to completion, on Instagram.

Winsor’s Newest Chair Honors the Value and Importance of Diversity

There is no better person, educator, or friend than Julian K. Braxton to hold the inaugural Bezan Chair for Community and Inclusion, honoring Diane Bezan’s legacy. It was Bezan, after all, who originally persuaded Braxton to overcome his misgivings about teaching at a girls’ school and to join Winsor.

“She said, ‘Julian, just come visit,’ and I came to visit the next week,” Mr. Braxton recalled at the December 9 ceremony that installed him as the Bezan Chair. “That was in 1999, and I’ve been here ever since.”

He recalled finding the community just as Bezan, then the Upper School director, described it, one “full of love, passion, and grace.”

BY MASLEN WARD ’16

Together, they served on the small subcommittee that wrote Winsor’s Principles of Diversity in 2003. The next year, Mr. Braxton was named as the school’s second director of diversity.

Mr. Braxton’s title has since evolved, to director of community and multicultural affairs and now to director of community and inclusion. Though, he added, “At the core of all three titles, it’s really about belonging.”

Belonging was a value that also defined Ms. Bezan’s tenure with Winsor. She came to the school in 1975 as a part-time math teacher, and colleagues soon recognized her extraordinary talent as an educator. Her role within the school grew, including as a faculty representative to the Search Committee that chose Carolyn McClintock

In 1998, before she recruited Mr. Braxton as a history teacher, Ms. Bezan wrote, “As we work to create an inclusive community, we renew our commitment to build and support a diverse school. The faculty needs to reflect the broader community in order to embrace the true richness of diversity.”

The Bezan Chair now stands as a permanently endowed commitment to this vision for a more diverse and inclusive Winsor, one where everyone feels as though they belong. The Bezan Chair was made possible through the generosity of Diane and her beloved husband, Allan Bezan. Ms. Bezan stepped away from Winsor for health reasons in 2005; she passed away on January 15, 2007.

“Planning for Winsor’s support seems the most natural thing to do—a way of giving back and enriching as many lives as I can,” Allan wrote in 2011. “Winsor is special! To be part of Winsor’s success in any way, no matter how small, is a reward in itself and I hope honors the memory of my dear wife.”

The ceremony celebrating Mr. Braxton’s installation and the inception of the Bezan Chair drew 140 people. It concluded with a panel discussion that brought together Head of School Sarah Pelmas with her predecessors Carolyn Peter and Rachel Friis Stettler to discuss the work to support diversity, equity, and inclusion at Winsor over their collective 35 years leading the school. Fittingly, the moderator for this memorable conversation was the guest of honor, Mr. Braxton.

The panel gave everyone in the audience the opportunity to observe from Mr. Braxton what anyone who spends time in his office already knows: The way he asks questions, listens to the answers, transforms his beliefs through dialogue, and shares these moments of transformation embody his way of communicating to every student and colleague that they belong at Winsor.

1: Director of Community and Inclusion Julian K. Braxton sits in the Bezan Chair, which Head of School Sarah Pelmas presented during assembly in January 2023. 2–3: Ms. Pelmas and Mr. Braxton at the Bezan Chair celebration in December 2022. 4–5: Mr. Braxton moderates a panel with Ms. Pelmas and former Heads of School Rachel Friis Stettler (2004–2016) and Carolyn McClintock Peter (1988–2004) at the Bezan Chair celebration. 6: (L to R): Hailey Fuchs ’16, Mr. Braxton, Maslen Ward ’16, Anshi Moreno Jimenez ’15, and Evan Joy McLaurin ’12 pose for a selfie at the Bezan Chair celebration.

“Winsor is special! To be part of Winsor’s success in any way, no matter how small, is a reward in itself and I hope honors the memory of my dear wife.”

— ALLAN BEZAN, IN 2011

Peter as Winsor’s sixth head of school. Ms. Bezan would become Upper School director and, later, associate director of the school.

BY JOAN YENAWINE

Joan is a writer and contributor for Winsor’s Communications team.

Head of School Sarah Pelmas’s bold statement has a fresh, modern ring to it. Yet the core value of belonging has long been a part of Winsor’s DNA. “At every moment when there was a shift in who the population of the school was, there has been some kind of thinking about belonging. So it’s not at all a new thing. The whole school is organized around making sure students feel they can bring their entire selves,” Ms. Pelmas says.

“It’s about people feeling like this is their place.”

After all, to develop the confidence needed to learn, a person first must feel comfortable and safe. Belonging, therefore, is crucial for every learning environment. Because Winsor has emphasized the goal of belonging for so long, the school is practiced at helping students find points of connection with others.

The advisory program is central to helping classmates become known both to one another and to faculty. In these small-group structured weekly meetings, adults and students discuss everything from serious academic and future plans to not-so-serious topics like K-pop or the finer points of Pictionary. As participants spend this time together intentionally, understanding and trust can grow.

“In an informal setting, I feel more comfortable being vulnerable and honest,” Alyna Johnson ’27 says. “Regardless of the activity, advisory connects me with classmates I might not have otherwise have befriended.”

Schoolwide traditions, including both regular elements of the academic day and highly anticipated events through the year such as off-campus trips, reveal even more of Winsor to students. These shared activities help cement classmates, faculty, and staff to one another.

Nora Furlong ’25 recalls how welcomed she felt from her very first day in Class I, as she ran through the “scream tunnel” of Upper School students. Hattie Jackman ’29 found that same sense of community through the annual Red Day: “The whole school comes together and shows spirit. Whether it’s watching one of the games or eating the amazing food, on Red Day, everyone has fun.”

Off-campus retreats to Hale Reservation, overnight trips to Cape Cod, daily meals in the dining room, and self-directed free periods provide students with a precious resource: time to cultivate connections.

AND WE ALL STARTED TALKING ABOUT BOOKS. THAT WAS A LOT OF FUN. MY CLOSE FRIEND IS IN MY ADVISORY. WE HAVE FUN TALKS FRIENDS DRESSED UP ALL SILLY, AND YOU WORK AS A TEAM TO CREATE YOUR CHEER AT THE END OF THE WEEK. I REALLY ENJOYED BETTER. I ALSO FELT LIKE THIS WAS A REALLY GOOD TRIP FOR CLASS BONDING.I REALLY ENJOY ADVISORY BLOCKS THAT ARE JUST IT’S FUN TO JUST HAVE FUN WITH CLASSMATES. MOST OF THE TIME WE PLAY GARTIC PHONE WHICH INVOLVES LOTS OF DRAWING SAFE SPACE FOR ME TO GO RELAX AND SPEND TIME ALONE. IT’S ALSO A REALLY NICE PLACE BECAUSE THERE ARE TONS OF BOOKS DAY CAPTURES THE WINSOR COMMUNITY BEST. WE CAN SHOW OUR SPIRIT THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE DAY AND ESPECIALLY AT UTL INCREDIBLY DEVOTED TO LQL. LQL STANDS FOR LITTLE QUEER LUNCH, HOWEVER, WE ARE CONSIDERING CHANGING THE NAME TO AND NOBODY ASKS ANY QUESTIONS OR NEEDS CLARIFICATION ON HOW I IDENTIFY. IT’S SUCH A NICE BREAK FROM EXPLAINING MY BECAUSE I DON’T THINK THAT MANY PEOPLE FEEL COMFORTABLE ASKING QUESTIONS ABOUT LQL, AND I WANT IT TO BE A MUCH EVER SINCE MS. MAIA HAS BEEN IN CHARGE OF IT, THE WELLNESS ROOM IS SOMEWHERE I CAN ACTUALLY RELAX. FROM THE GIANT WHERE EVERYONE DRESSES UP AND HAS AN AMAZING TIME, EVEN WHEN THEY ARE SITTING NEXT TO PEOPLE THAT THEY WOULD BECAUSE I LOVE LACROSSE IT WAS REALLY FUN IN CLASS I TO GO TO THE CONSERVATORY TO RELEASE OUR TURTLES IT’S NICE TO SECOND FLOOR BY THE MUSIC ROOMS RED DAY SPORTS, AND AFFINITY GROUPS. MAKES ME FEEL LIKE I HAVE A PLACE WHERE I BELONG ROLLING DOWN THE HILL PLAYING GAMES TOGETHER LIBRARY ( VERY COMFORTING) SPIRIT WEEK SHOWS A SENSE OF COMMUNITY ROLLED DOWN IT AND I HAD NO OTHER CHOICE BUT TO JOIN IN. DESPITE THE DIRT AND THE DIZZINESS, IT WAS WORTH THE THRILL. DANCE WHEN WE FINISHED ACTIVITIES EARLY. I LOVE THE COURTYARD BECAUSE OF THE HUGE OPEN SPACE. ON ONE OF THE GET-TOGETHERS BECAUSE ME AND MY TEAMMATES HAD A GREAT SASON TOGETHER AND WE FIT TOGETHER SO WELL AND IT WAS JUST AMAZING IT’S FUN AND RELAXED AND I LOVE PLAYING GROUP GAMES TOGETHER! THE TREE NEXT TO THE BENCH BECAUSE IT IS A NICE CLIMBING CLASS 2 RETREAT I REALLY ENJOYED APPLE PICKING WITH MY ADVISORY GROUP I ALSO HAD A FUN TIME DURING LUNCH TIME AND HAVE SPORTS OR AM WAITING 5 MINUTES BEFORE A CLASS STARTS IT IS A VERY COMFORTABLE AREA TO SIT AND DO HOMEWORK ENJOY GETTING TO PLAY GAMES TOGETHER LIKE A HAMBURGER GAME. LIBRARY BECAUSE THERE ARE BOOKS AND IT IS A NICE PLACE MID 1 FIELD HOCKEY FOR FALL SPORTS AND I REALLY LIKE FIELD HOCKEY SO I JOINED THE TEAM. I AM ON WIZARDS FIELD HOCKEY(CLUB) GAMES IN ADVISORY THE LIBRARY BECAUSE IT IS QUIET AND THERE ARE MANY BOOKS UTL BECAUSE IT WAS SO MUCH FUN TO PARTICIPATE BECAUSE A, IT’S THE FIRST SCHOOL TEAM SPORT AND B, SOCCER MEANS A LOT TO ME. I LOVED RELEASING OUR CLASS I TURTLES DON’T HAVE ANYTHING PLANNED AND WE GET TO KIND OF “CHILL” AND PLAY GAMES. I LOVE THE LIBRARY BECAUSE I HAVE ALWAYS PUZZLES AND GAMES ARE EVERYWHERE.RED DAY BECAUSE IT’S FUN, COMPETITIVE, AND WILD. I AM DEVOTED TO LQL. I CAN REALLY THE TURTLES AND WHILE THEY WERE GOING INTO THE SWAMP WE ALL SANG INTO THE UNKNOWN AND IT WAS REALLY FUN. SOMETIMES GUESSING THE WORD THE ADVISOR IS THINKING OF. I ALWAYS ENJOY GOING TO ADVISORY AND I THINK IT’S A GREAT USE OF A MONDAY OUTSIDE ON A NICE DAY. I THINK RED DAY CAPTURES THE ESSENCE OF OUR COMMUNITY BECAUSE IT’S WHEN THE WHOLE SCHOOL EVERYONE HAS FUN. I LOVE CLUBS AND I’M IN MS. PARSLEY’S LAST CLUB :)I WAS DEVOTED TO THE MID-3 BASKETBALL TEAM THIS THROUGHOUT THE SEASON. EVERY TIE WE HAD A BUS RIDE WE’D ALWAYS BE SINGING SONGS AND JOKING AROUND. I ENJOY ADVISORIES OUT, THEIR GROUP WILL USUALLY JOIN OURS AND WE’LL PLAY FUN WORD GAMES THE WHOLE CLASS. MY FAVORITE SPACE ON CAMPUS CAPTURES THE ESSENCE OF THE WINSOR COMMUNITY. EVERYONE IS CHEERING EACH OTHER ON REGARDLESS OF IT THEY PLAY A BECAUSE I REALLY LIKE IT AND I ALSO LIKE BEING ON A TEAM. I REALLY LIKED THE TIME IN CLASS II WHEN MY GRADE AND I WENT AND I PLAY GAMES OR DRAW. I LIKE THE LIBRARY BECAUSE IT IS A QUIET SPACE TO RELAX, READ A BOOK, OR GET SOME HOMEWORK DEVOTED TO MY CLUB OR AFFINITY GROUPS AND I CAN’T PLAY SPORTS I HAVE ONLY GONE ON ONE FIELD TRIP AND IT WAS KINDA STRINGFELLOW MABYE JUST PE AREAS, MY HOMEROOM, OR THE LUNCHROOM CUZ LUNCH IS SOOO GOOD UTL BECAUSE EVERYONE ENVIRONMENT WITH A SMALL GROUP OF PEOPLE ALL WORKING TO A SHARED GOAL. I HAVE MADE SMALL, PERSONAL ADJUSTMENTS MEMBER OF PLANET PROTECTORS.LAST YEAR, AT THE END OF CLASS II, MY CLASS WENT ON A TRIP TO TREETOP ADVENTURES, WHICH OF FUN AND ALLOWED THE CLASS TO GET TO KNOW PEOPLE THEY DON’T USUALLY TALK TOO IN A WAY THAT DIDN’T MAKE IT AWKWARD. GAME TO PLAY AND WHAT THE RULES ARE, ETC. I ENJOY SPENDING MY TIME IN THE LIBRARY THE MOST BECAUSE IT IS A CASUAL OF THE INVENTIVE AND OPEN-MINDED ENVIRONMENT AT WINSOR BECAUSE IT IS A FUN TRADITION THAT ISN’T GENERIC. THIS SCHOOL RESERVATION WORKERS THROUGH ICEBREAKERS. AFTER MY GROUP DID SO, WE FACED A DAUNTING VERTICAL CLIMB. HOWEVER, ENCOURAGED AND DID NOT FEEL JUDGED WHEN THEY DID NOT MEET THEIR GOALS. I WAS THRILLED TO SEE THAT EFFORT AND COURAGE MEETINGS ARE. SOMETIMES WE PLAY FUN GAMES LIKE PICTIONARY THAT TEACH US TO COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY AND THINK

PERFECTIONISM, SMART GOALS, LEADERSHIP, AND MORE. IN AN INFORMAL, SMALL SETTING, I FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE BEING OTHERWISE BEFRIENDED. MY FAVORITE SPACE ON CAMPUS IS THE THEATER BECAUSE IT IS OUR GATHERING PLACE. WHETHER

STUDENTS AND FACULTY ALL CONNECTED BY THE SHOW ON STAGE. I THINK THAT THE BROOKS POETRY READING CAPTURES

“ We want every single student to feel that this is their school, to think, ‘I belong here.’ ”

— SARAH PELMAS Head of School and O’Donnell Family Chair

TALKS AS A GROUP. I LOVE THE LIBRARY BECAUSE IT’S COZY AND FULL OF BOOKS! SPIRIT WEEK, CAUSE ITS A LOT OF FUN TO SEE ENJOYED OUR CLASS RETREAT. BECAUSE I WAS A NEW STUDENT THIS YEAR I REALLY FELT LIKE THIS TRIP LET ME KNOW MY CLASSMATES JUST FOR FUN. GENERALLY, DURING THESE TIMES WE’LL PLAY SOME SORT OF TEAM GAME. I REALLY ENJOY THESE TIMES BECAUSE DRAWING AND SOME TEAMWORK. IT’S REALLY FUN TO SEE THE FINAL DRAWING THAT COMES UP. I REALLY LOVE THE LIBRARY. I THINK BOOKS THERE AND I CAN ALWAYS FIND SOMETHING THAT I WANT TO READ, PLUS THE BOOKMARKS THERE SMELL REALLY NICE. I THINK UTL I THINK OUR SPIRIT SHOWS THE MOST. ALSO, IT REALLY SHOWS THE UNIQUENESS AND CRAZINESS OF THE WINSOR COMMUNITY. TO LOWER SCHOOL QUEER LOUNGE, AS WE NO LONGER MEET DURING LUNCHTIME. LQL IS SUCH A SPECIAL PLACE WHERE I CAN JUST MY PRONOUNS OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN TO THE SAME PEOPLE. I REALLY WANT TO BRING LQL INTO THE LIGHT JUST A BIT MORE SIGNIFICANT AFFINITY GROUP THAT PEOPLE ACTUALLY KNOW ABOUT. MY FAVORITE SPACE ON CAMPUS IS THE WELLNESS GIANT FLIPPY SEQUIN WALL TO THE NEW NOISE MACHINE, THE WELLNESS ROOM IS NEW AND IMPROVED TO THE MAX!!UTL. FOR SURE. WOULD NORMALLY HATE BEING NEAR. IT BRINGS US ALL CLOSER, EVEN THOUGH WORKING ON THE CHEER IS NEVER EASY. MID 1 LACROSSE TO HAVE THE SAME GROUP OF PEOPLE FOR A YEAR, AND I ALSO LOVE PLAYING GAMES IN ADVISORY DEFINITELY THE LOC LOUNGE BELONG OUTSIDE OF MY HOME. WHEN WE TOOK OUR CLASS PHOTO OUTSIDE OR WHEN WE WENT ON OUR FIELD TRIP AND WE WERE COMMUNITY MY FAVORITE MEMORY WAS FROM MY RETREAT THIS YEAR TO CARLSON ORCHARDS. ON A HILL, SOME OF US GOT DISTRACTED THRILL. I ENJOY THE GAMES WE PLAY TOGETHER THE MOST. I LOVED PLAYING THINGS ON A HAMBURGER WITH MY FRIENDS AND DOING GET-TOGETHERS WITH STUDENTS AND PARENTS, MY FRIENDS AND I ATE FOOD AND TALKED IN ONE SMALL CIRCLE ON THE GRASS. MID TREETOP ADVENTURES IN CLASS 1. SO MUCH FUN! WE EVEN HAD MR. MARSHALL CLIMB UP A TREE! MR. NEWELL’S ADVISORY CLIMBING TREE AND IT IS SO BEAUTIFUL AND IT GIVES A LOT OF SHADE. RED DAY CAUSE WE DO IT EVERY YEAR! WAS DURING THIS AND WE WERE ALL RUNNING AROUND ON THE PATCH OF GRASS THEY HAD. I REALLY LIKE THE LOC SPACE ON THE FIRST FLOOR BECAUSE HOMEWORK OR OTHER THINGS. SOFTBALL BECAUSE I FEEL INCLUDED THERE IN CLASS 1 WE WENT TO RELEASE THE TURTLES BACK INTO PLACE TO BE. I THINK THAT SPIRIT WEEK IS A GOOD TRADITION BECAUSE EVERYONE CAN COME TOGETHER TO ADMIRE EACH OTHER. HOCKEY(CLUB) AND I WAS ON MANY OTHER TEAMS. WHEN WE WENT TO CARLSON ORCHARDS AND WENT APPLE PICKING I LIKE WHEN PARTICIPATE IN SPORTS, HAVE FUN WITH OUR FRIENDS, AND EAT FOOD! I PARTICIPATED IN MID 2 SOCCER, WHICH MEANT A LOT TURTLES INTO THE WILD BECAUSE I GOT TO SPEND TIME WITH MY FRIENDS AND THE TURTLES, PLUS I LOVE BEING IN NATURE. I LOVE IT ALWAYS LOVED BOOKS, AND BEING SURROUNDED BY THEM MAKES ME SO HAPPY. ALSO, THE LIBRARIANS ARE ALWAYS SUPER NICE, REALLY CONNECT WITH MY PEERS AND IT ALWAYS FEELS LIKE A SAFE SPACE. LAST YEAR, MY CLASS WENT TO A RESERVATION TO SOMETIMES IN ADVISORY WE PLAY GAMES WITH OTHER ADVISORIES SUCH AS MAKING THE LONGEST SENTENCE POSSIBLE AS A GROUP, MONDAY MORNING. MY FAVORITE PLACE ON CAMPUS IS THE COURTYARD BECAUSE IT’S REALLY FUN TO RUN AROUND WITH FRIENDS SCHOOL GETS TO COME TOGETHER AND SHOW SPIRIT. WHETHER IT’S WATCHING ONE OF THE GAMES OR EATING THE AMAZING FOOD, ON THIS WINTER. IT HAD A SPECIAL MEANING BECAUSE I GOT TO BE CAPTAIN OF A SPORT FOR THE FIRST TIME AND THE TEAM BONDED ADVISORIES BECAUSE THEY’RE ALWAYS FUN AND EVERYONE IS JOKING AROUND. FOR EXAMPLE, WHENEVER ANOTHER GROUP’S ADVISOR CAMPUS IS THE LIBRARY. THE LIBRARY IS A VERY WELCOMING AND COZY AREA WHERE I ALWAYS FEEL CALM AND RELAXED. UTL SPORT OR NOT. THE PEP RALLY BEFOREHAND ESPECIALLY BRINGS OUT WINSOR’S SCHOOL SPIRIT I HAVE DEVOTED TO BASKETBALL WENT APPLE PICKING. I REMEMBER THAT WAS REALLY FUN. I ENJOY ADVISORY MEETINGS. I USUALLY ENJOY THE ONES WHEN MY ADVISORY HOMEWORK DONE. I THINK UTL REALLY CAPTURES THE ESSENCE OF WINSOR BECAUSE THERE IS A LOT OF TEAM SPORTSMANSHIP. I AM KINDA AWKWARD CUZ NO ONE KNEW EACH OTHER I LIKE GOING AND HANGING OUT WITH FRIENDS I LOVE AND ADMIRE MY ADVISOR EVERYONE SHOWS UP AND IS SO COMMITTED TO THE RED THEME I AM DEVOTED TO PLANET PROTECTORS. I ENJOY SHARING A PRODUCTIVE ADJUSTMENTS TO BE MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY, HOWEVER, I THINK THAT I AM ABLE TO MAKE A MUCH BIGGER CHANGE WHEN WHICH IS BASICALLY WHERE YOU GO THROUGH OBSTACLE COURSES ON TOP OF A TREE. I APPRECIATED THE TRIP BECAUSE IT WAS AWKWARD. I LIKE THAT ADVISORY IS A TIME WHEN WE CAN PLAY AN OCCASIONAL FUN GAME WITHOUT HAVING TO WORRY ABOUT CASUAL SPACE WHERE I CAN SPEAK WITH FRIENDS AND ALSO WORK ON HOMEWORK AND OTHER PROJECTS. I THINK PI DAY IS A GOOD SCHOOL YEAR, CLASS IV WENT TO HALE RESERVATION. BEFORE COMPLETING ANY COURSES, WE GOT TO KNOW EACH OTHER AND HOWEVER, AS WE BELAYED EACH OTHER, MY CLASSMATES CHEERED THE CLIMBERS ON. EVEN THOSE WHO WERE INITIALLY RELUCTANT COURAGE WERE ACKNOWLEDGED, FEELING CLOSER TO MY CLASSMATES AFTER THEIR DISPLAY OF KINDNESS. I ENJOY HOW BALANCED CREATIVELY BUT ARE ALSO SIMPLY A BREAK FROM THE SCHOOL DAY. BY CONTRAST, WE ALSO HAVE ESSENTIAL DISCUSSIONS ABOUT VULNERABLE AND HONEST. REGARDLESS OF THE ACTIVITY, ADVISORY CONNECTS ME WITH CLASSMATES WHOM I MIGHT NOT

AND WE ALL STARTED TALKING ABOUT BOOKS. THAT WAS A LOT OF FUN. MY CLOSE FRIEND IS IN MY ADVISORY. WE HAVE FUN TALKS FRIENDS DRESSED UP ALL SILLY, AND YOU WORK AS A TEAM TO CREATE YOUR CHEER AT THE END OF THE WEEK. I REALLY ENJOYED BETTER. I ALSO FELT LIKE THIS WAS A REALLY GOOD TRIP FOR CLASS BONDING.I REALLY ENJOY ADVISORY BLOCKS THAT ARE JUST IT’S FUN TO JUST HAVE FUN WITH CLASSMATES. MOST OF THE TIME WE PLAY GARTIC PHONE WHICH INVOLVES LOTS OF DRAWING SAFE SPACE FOR ME TO GO RELAX AND SPEND TIME ALONE. IT’S ALSO A REALLY NICE PLACE BECAUSE THERE ARE TONS OF BOOKS DAY CAPTURES THE WINSOR COMMUNITY BEST. WE CAN SHOW OUR SPIRIT THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE DAY AND ESPECIALLY AT UTL INCREDIBLY DEVOTED TO LQL. LQL STANDS FOR LITTLE QUEER LUNCH, HOWEVER, WE ARE CONSIDERING CHANGING THE NAME TO AND NOBODY ASKS ANY QUESTIONS OR NEEDS CLARIFICATION ON HOW I IDENTIFY. IT’S SUCH A NICE BREAK FROM EXPLAINING MY BECAUSE I DON’T THINK THAT MANY PEOPLE FEEL COMFORTABLE ASKING QUESTIONS ABOUT LQL, AND I WANT IT TO BE A MUCH EVER SINCE MS. MAIA HAS BEEN IN CHARGE OF IT, IT HAS IMPROVED MIRACULOUSLY. THE SOMEWHAT STRESSFUL, DOCTOR’S OFFICE-Y GIANT FLIPPY SEQUIN WALL TO THE NEW NOISE MACHINE, THE WELLNESS ROOM IS NEW AND IMPROVED TO THE MAX!!UTL. FOR WOULD NORMALLY HATE BEING NEAR. IT BRINGS US ALL CLOSER, EVEN THOUGH WORKING ON THE CHEER IS NEVER EASY. MID 1 TO HAVE THE SAME GROUP OF PEOPLE FOR A YEAR, AND I ALSO LOVE PLAYING GAMES IN ADVISORY DEFINITELY THE LOC LOUNGE BELONG OUTSIDE OF MY HOME. WHEN WE TOOK OUR CLASS PHOTO OUTSIDE OR WHEN WE WENT ON OUR FIELD TRIP AND WE WERE MY FAVORITE MEMORY WAS FROM MY RETREAT THIS YEAR TO CARLSON ORCHARDS. ON A HILL, SOME OF US GOT DISTRACTED AND ENJOY THE GAMES WE PLAY TOGETHER THE MOST. I LOVED PLAYING THINGS ON A HAMBURGER WITH MY FRIENDS AND DOING JUST TOGETHERS WITH STUDENTS AND PARENTS, MY FRIENDS AND I ATE FOOD AND TALKED IN ONE SMALL CIRCLE ON THE GRASS. MID AMAZING TREETOP ADVENTURES IN CLASS 1. SO MUCH FUN! WE EVEN HAD MR. MARSHALL CLIMB UP A TREE! MR. NEWELL’S ADVISORY NICE CLIMBING TREE AND IT IS SO BEAUTIFUL AND IT GIVES A LOT OF SHADE. RED DAY CAUSE WE DO IT EVERY YEAR! WAS DURING TIME AND WE WERE ALL RUNNING AROUND ON THE PATCH OF GRASS THEY HAD. I REALLY LIKE THE LOC SPACE ON THE FIRST FLOOR HOMEWORK OR OTHER THINGS. SOFTBALL BECAUSE I FEEL INCLUDED THERE IN CLASS 1 WE WENT TO RELEASE THE TURTLES BACK NICE PLACE TO BE. I THINK THAT SPIRIT WEEK IS A GOOD TRADITION BECAUSE EVERYONE CAN COME TOGETHER TO ADMIRE EACH FIELD HOCKEY(CLUB) AND I WAS ON MANY OTHER TEAMS. WHEN WE WENT TO CARLSON ORCHARDS AND WENT APPLE PICKING MUCH FUN TO PARTICIPATE IN SPORTS, HAVE FUN WITH OUR FRIENDS, AND EAT FOOD! I PARTICIPATED IN MID 2 SOCCER, WHICH CLASS I TURTLES INTO THE WILD BECAUSE I GOT TO SPEND TIME WITH MY FRIENDS AND THE TURTLES, PLUS I LOVE BEING IN NATURE. BECAUSE I HAVE ALWAYS LOVED BOOKS, AND BEING SURROUNDED BY THEM MAKES ME SO HAPPY. ALSO, THE LIBRARIANS ARE ALWAYS TO LQL. I CAN REALLY CONNECT WITH MY PEERS AND IT ALWAYS FEELS LIKE A SAFE SPACE. LAST YEAR, MY CLASS WENT TO A RESERVATION REALLY FUN. SOMETIMES IN ADVISORY WE PLAY GAMES WITH OTHER ADVISORIES SUCH AS MAKING THE LONGEST SENTENCE POSSIBLE GREAT USE OF A MONDAY MORNING. MY FAVORITE PLACE ON CAMPUS IS THE COURTYARD BECAUSE IT’S REALLY FUN TO RUN AROUND THE WHOLE SCHOOL GETS TO COME TOGETHER AND SHOW SPIRIT. WHETHER IT’S WATCHING ONE OF THE GAMES OR EATING THE BASKETBALL TEAM THIS WINTER. IT HAD A SPECIAL MEANING BECAUSE I GOT TO BE CAPTAIN OF A SPORT FOR THE FIRST TIME AND AROUND. I ENJOY ADVISORIES BECAUSE THEY’RE ALWAYS FUN AND EVERYONE IS JOKING AROUND. FOR EXAMPLE, WHENEVER ANOTHER FAVORITE SPACE ON CAMPUS IS THE LIBRARY. THE LIBRARY IS A VERY WELCOMING AND COZY AREA WHERE I ALWAYS FEEL CALM OF IT THEY PLAY A SPORT OR NOT. THE PEP RALLY BEFOREHAND ESPECIALLY BRINGS OUT WINSOR’S SCHOOL SPIRIT I HAVE DEVOTED AND I WENT APPLE PICKING. I REMEMBER THAT WAS REALLY FUN. I ENJOY ADVISORY MEETINGS. I USUALLY ENJOY THE ONES WHEN HOMEWORK DONE. I THINK UTL REALLY CAPTURES THE ESSENCE OF WINSOR BECAUSE THERE IS A LOT OF TEAM SPORTSMANSHIP. KINDA AWKWARD CUZ NO ONE KNEW EACH OTHER I LIKE GOING AND HANGING OUT WITH FRIENDS I LOVE AND ADMIRE MY ADVISOR SHOWS UP AND IS SO COMMITTED TO THE RED THEME I AM DEVOTED TO PLANET PROTECTORS. I ENJOY SHARING A PRODUCTIVE MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY, HOWEVER, I THINK THAT I AM ABLE TO MAKE A MUCH BIGGER CHANGE WHEN I WORK AS A BASICALLY WHERE YOU GO THROUGH OBSTACLE COURSES ON TOP OF A TREE. I APPRECIATED THE TRIP BECAUSE IT WAS PLENTY LIKE THAT ADVISORY IS A TIME WHEN WE CAN PLAY AN OCCASIONAL FUN GAME WITHOUT HAVING TO WORRY ABOUT WHICH GAME WHERE I CAN SPEAK WITH FRIENDS AND ALSO WORK ON HOMEWORK AND OTHER PROJECTS. I THINK PI DAY IS A GOOD EXAMPLE YEAR, CLASS IV WENT TO HALE RESERVATION. BEFORE COMPLETING ANY COURSES, WE GOT TO KNOW EACH OTHER AND HALE RESERVATION BELAYED EACH OTHER, MY CLASSMATES CHEERED THE CLIMBERS ON. EVEN THOSE WHO WERE INITIALLY RELUCTANT WERE ENCOURAGED ACKNOWLEDGED, FEELING CLOSER TO MY CLASSMATES AFTER THEIR DISPLAY OF KINDNESS. I ENJOY HOW BALANCED OUR MEETINGS ARE ALSO SIMPLY A BREAK FROM THE SCHOOL DAY. BY CONTRAST, WE ALSO HAVE ESSENTIAL DISCUSSIONS ABOUT PERFECTIONISM, HONEST. REGARDLESS OF THE ACTIVITY, ADVISORY CONNECTS ME WITH CLASSMATES WHOM I MIGHT NOT HAVE OTHERWISE

OR IMPRESSIVE ASSEMBLY WITH INSPIRING GUESTS, I LOVE BEING SURROUNDED BY SO MANY WINSOR STUDENTS

There is space to create a personal and collective sense of belonging at Winsor, and students find it with teammates in athletics and with classmates and faculty during advisory.

Athletics is still another forum for connection—the collective sense of purpose, striving, failing, and winning together. That surefire combination creates lasting bonds, even among kids who aren’t the fastest or who are relatively new to a sport.

Raina Sohur ’23 says she discovered the joys of the cross country team when she was in Class III. “I love the team because I felt like I belonged and was included equally from when I was a slow seventh grader to being a senior on varsity,” she says.

And for still other students, belonging to Winsor comes not through the people but through the spaces—personally resonant spots on campus such as the Lubin-O’Donnell Center lounge and the courtyard—where one feels fulfilled and at peace, perhaps with others or perhaps alone.

The dynamic of belonging is a tricky business to untangle. There is much to sort out and understand before a community of hundreds—with different backgrounds, identities, and perspectives—can come to know and appreciate one another. Ms. Pelmas describes this “diversity of viewpoints and our differences as a fundamental part of what it means to belong.”

Julian K. Braxton, Winsor’s director of community and inclusion, says he tells students, “You must venture out and create your own spaces of belonging and include people who may not always agree with you. ...In our disagreements, we can find ways of understanding each other.”

And no school—no matter how thoughtfully designed and organized its curriculum—can completely eliminate the normal growing pains of adolescence. “There are a couple of key times in life—usually around seventh grade and again at 10th grade—where significant identity formation starts happening because there are massive brain changes,” Ms. Pelmas says. “When people look back on middle school, they remember they felt out of place, they didn’t know who they were. You have to go through some rough patches, but it’s utterly crucial to who you are. We try to reinforce for kids that this is normal, that it’s necessary.”

TALKS AS A GROUP. I LOVE THE LIBRARY BECAUSE IT’S COZY AND FULL OF BOOKS! SPIRIT WEEK, CAUSE ITS A LOT OF FUN TO SEE ENJOYED OUR CLASS RETREAT. BECAUSE I WAS A NEW STUDENT THIS YEAR I REALLY FELT LIKE THIS TRIP LET ME KNOW MY CLASSMATES JUST FOR FUN. GENERALLY, DURING THESE TIMES WE’LL PLAY SOME SORT OF TEAM GAME. I REALLY ENJOY THESE TIMES BECAUSE DRAWING AND SOME TEAMWORK. IT’S REALLY FUN TO SEE THE FINAL DRAWING THAT COMES UP. I REALLY LOVE THE LIBRARY. I THINK BOOKS THERE AND I CAN ALWAYS FIND SOMETHING THAT I WANT TO READ, PLUS THE BOOKMARKS THERE SMELL REALLY NICE. I THINK UTL I THINK OUR SPIRIT SHOWS THE MOST. ALSO, IT REALLY SHOWS THE UNIQUENESS AND CRAZINESS OF THE WINSOR COMMUNITY. TO LOWER SCHOOL QUEER LOUNGE, AS WE NO LONGER MEET DURING LUNCHTIME. LQL IS SUCH A SPECIAL PLACE WHERE I CAN JUST MY PRONOUNS OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN TO THE SAME PEOPLE. I REALLY WANT TO BRING LQL INTO THE LIGHT JUST A BIT MORE SIGNIFICANT AFFINITY GROUP THAT PEOPLE ACTUALLY KNOW ABOUT. MY FAVORITE SPACE ON CAMPUS IS THE WELLNESS OFFICE-Y VIBE FROM THE MS. WARLAN ERA IS COMPLETELY GONE, AND REPLACED WITH SOMEWHERE I CAN ACTUALLY RELAX. FROM SURE. UTL IS WHERE EVERYONE DRESSES UP AND HAS AN AMAZING TIME, EVEN WHEN THEY ARE SITTING NEXT TO PEOPLE THAT LACROSSE BECAUSE I LOVE LACROSSE IT WAS REALLY FUN IN CLASS I TO GO TO THE CONSERVATORY TO RELEASE OUR TURTLES AREA ON THE SECOND FLOOR BY THE MUSIC ROOMS RED DAY SPORTS, AND AFFINITY GROUPS. MAKES ME FEEL LIKE I HAVE A PLACE WERE ALL ROLLING DOWN THE HILL PLAYING GAMES TOGETHER LIBRARY( VERY COMFORTING) SPIRIT WEEK SHOWS A SENSE OF AND ROLLED DOWN IT AND I HAD NO OTHER CHOICE BUT TO JOIN IN. DESPITE THE DIRT AND THE DIZZINESS, IT WAS WORTH THE JUST DANCE WHEN WE FINISHED ACTIVITIES EARLY. I LOVE THE COURTYARD BECAUSE OF THE HUGE OPEN SPACE. ON ONE OF THE MID 2 SOCCER BECAUSE ME AND MY TEAMMATES HAD A GREAT SEASON TOGETHER AND WE FIT TOGETHER SO WELL AND IT WAS ADVISORY BECAUSE IT’S FUN AND RELAXED AND I LOVE PLAYING GROUP GAMES TOGETHER! THE TREE NEXT TO THE BENCH BECAUSE DURING THIS YEAR’S CLASS 2 RETREAT I REALLY ENJOYED APPLE PICKING WITH MY ADVISORY GROUP I ALSO HAD A FUN TIME DURING FLOOR BECAUSE IF I HAVE SPORTS OR AM WAITING 5 MINUTES BEFORE A CLASS STARTS IT IS A VERY COMFORTABLE AREA TO SIT BACK INTO THE WILD I ENJOY GETTING TO PLAY GAMES TOGETHER LIKE A HAMBURGER GAME. LIBRARY BECAUSE THERE ARE BOOKS EACH OTHER. I WAS ON MID 1 FIELD HOCKEY FOR FALL SPORTS AND I REALLY LIKE FIELD HOCKEY SO I JOINED THE TEAM. I AM ON I LIKE WHEN WE PLAY GAMES IN ADVISORY THE LIBRARY BECAUSE IT IS QUIET AND THERE ARE MANY BOOKS UTL BECAUSE IT WHICH MEANT A LOT TO ME BECAUSE A, IT’S THE FIRST SCHOOL TEAM SPORT AND B, SOCCER MEANS A LOT TO ME. I LOVED RELEASING NATURE. I LOVE IT WHEN WE DON’T HAVE ANYTHING PLANNED AND WE GET TO KIND OF “CHILL” AND PLAY GAMES. I LOVE THE LIBRARY ALWAYS SUPER NICE, AND PUZZLES AND GAMES ARE EVERYWHERE.RED DAY BECAUSE IT’S FUN, COMPETITIVE, AND WILD. I AM RESERVATION TO RELEASE THE TURTLES AND WHILE THEY WERE GOING INTO THE SWAMP WE ALL SANG INTO THE UNKNOWN AND POSSIBLE AS A GROUP, OR GUESSING THE WORD THE ADVISOR IS THINKING OF. I ALWAYS ENJOY GOING TO ADVISORY AND I THINK AROUND WITH FRIENDS AND BE OUTSIDE ON A NICE DAY. I THINK RED DAY CAPTURES THE ESSENCE OF OUR COMMUNITY BECAUSE AMAZING FOOD, ON RED DAY EVERYONE HAS FUN. I LOVE CLUBS AND I’M IN MS. PARSLEY’S LAST CLUB :)I WAS DEVOTED TO THE AND THE TEAM BONDED THROUGHOUT THE SEASON. EVERY TIME WE HAD A BUS RIDE WE’D ALWAYS BE SINGING SONGS AND JOKING ANOTHER GROUP’S ADVISOR IS OUT, THEIR GROUP WILL USUALLY JOIN OURS AND WE’LL PLAY FUN WORD GAMES THE WHOLE CLASS. CALM AND RELAXED. UTL REALLY CAPTURES THE ESSENCE OF THE WINSOR COMMUNITY. EVERYONE IS CHEERING EACH OTHER ON REGARDLESS DEVOTED TO BASKETBALL BECAUSE I REALLY LIKE IT AND I ALSO LIKE BEING ON A TEAM. I REALLY LIKED THE TIME IN CLASS II WHEN WHEN MY ADVISORY AND I PLAY GAMES OR DRAW. I LIKE THE LIBRARY BECAUSE IT IS A QUIET SPACE TO RELAX, READ A BOOK, OR SPORTSMANSHIP. I AM NOT DEVOTED TO MY CLUB OR AFFINITY GROUPS AND I CAN’T PLAY SPORTS I HAVE ONLY GONE ON ONE FIELD TRIP AND ADVISOR MS. STRINGFELLOW MABYE JUST PE AREAS, MY HOMEROOM, OR THE LUNCHROOM CUZ LUNCH IS SOOO GOOD UTL BECAUSE ENVIRONMENT WITH A SMALL GROUP OF PEOPLE ALL WORKING TO A SHARED GOAL. I HAVE MADE SMALL, PERSONAL ADJUSTMENTS MEMBER OF PLANET PROTECTORS.LAST YEAR, AT THE END OF CLASS II, MY CLASS WENT ON A TRIP TO TREETOP ADVENTURES, OF FUN AND ALLOWED THE CLASS TO GET TO KNOW PEOPLE THEY DON’T USUALLY TALK TOO IN A WAY THAT DIDN’T MAKE IT AWKWARD. GAME TO PLAY AND WHAT THE RULES ARE, ETC. I ENJOY SPENDING MY TIME IN THE LIBRARY THE MOST BECAUSE IT IS A CASUAL EXAMPLE OF THE INVENTIVE AND OPEN-MINDED ENVIRONMENT AT WINSOR BECAUSE IT IS A FUN TRADITION THAT ISN’T GENERIC. THIS RESERVATION WORKERS THROUGH ICEBREAKERS. AFTER MY GROUP DID SO, WE FACED A DAUNTING VERTICAL CLIMB. HOWEVER, ENCOURAGED AND DID NOT FEEL JUDGED WHEN THEY DID NOT MEET THEIR GOALS. I WAS THRILLED TO SEE THAT EFFORT AND COURAGE MEETINGS ARE. SOMETIMES WE PLAY FUN GAMES LIKE PICTIONARY THAT TEACH US TO COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY AND THINK CREATIVELY PERFECTIONISM, SMART GOALS, LEADERSHIP, AND MORE. IN AN INFORMAL, SMALL SETTING, I FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE BEING VULNERABLE BEFRIENDED. MY FAVORITE SPACE ON CAMPUS IS THE THEATER BECAUSE IT IS OUR GATHERING PLACE. WHETHER I AM ATTENDING AND FACULTY ALL CONNECTED BY THE SHOW ON STAGE. I THINK THAT THE BROOKS POETRY READING CAPTURES OUR COMMUNITY‚ÄÔS

The dynamic of belonging is a tricky business to untangle. There is much to sort out and understand before a community of hundreds—with different backgrounds, identities, and perspectives—can come to know and appreciate one another.

Associate Head of School Kate Caspar says the only way to know whether Winsor is getting belonging “right” is for faculty and staff to stay closely connected to their students. This is where Winsor’s small size has an outsize impact.

“This is my fourth independent school, and I think one of Winsor’s great advantages is that we are small,” says Ms. Caspar. “We really know our students. We see them in class, we see them in clubs, activities, and advisories. I think every student here has a connection with an adult here, and it’s through those meaningful, trusted relationships that the best teaching happens.”

Belonging fits easily alongside diversity, equity, and inclusion as related educational goals. Indeed, Winsor’s 2021 Report on DEI concludes with the statement, “We remain steadfast in our commitment to belonging.”

But, Ms. Pelmas cautions, the terms are not interchangeable.

“Diversity is typically numbers—who is physically there. Equity is about ensuring access to the support needed to attain similar outcomes. And inclusion is the validation of particular identities and background,” the head of school says. “Belonging is very different because everybody has such an individual sense of what it feels like to belong or what it would mean for them to belong.”

Being part of a high-achieving institution carries its own, special challenge. “The level of ambition can create anxiety, which is contagious,” says Ms. Pelmas. “The kids feel it, the parents feel it. ...The kids are constantly worried about not measuring up. We spend a lot of time talking about that, because that can really make kids struggle with who they are and their self-concept.”

AND WE ALL STARTED TALKING ABOUT BOOKS. THAT WAS A LOT OF FUN. MY CLOSE FRIEND IS IN MY ADVISORY. WE HAVE FUN TALKS FRIENDS DRESSED UP ALL SILLY, AND YOU WORK AS A TEAM TO CREATE YOUR CHEER AT THE END OF THE WEEK. I REALLY ENJOYED BETTER. I ALSO FELT LIKE THIS WAS A REALLY GOOD TRIP FOR CLASS BONDING. I REALLY ENJOY ADVISORY BLOCKS THAT ARE JUST IT’S FUN TO JUST HAVE FUN WITH CLASSMATES. MOST OF THE TIME WE PLAY GARTIC PHONE WHICH INVOLVES LOTS OF DRAWING SAFE SPACE FOR ME TO GO RELAX AND SPEND TIME ALONE. IT’S ALSO A REALLY NICE PLACE BECAUSE THERE ARE TONS OF BOOKS DAY CAPTURES THE WINSOR COMMUNITY BEST. WE CAN SHOW OUR SPIRIT THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE DAY AND ESPECIALLY AT UTL INCREDIBLY DEVOTED TO LQL. LQL STANDS FOR LITTLE QUEER LUNCH, HOWEVER, WE ARE CONSIDERING CHANGING THE NAME TO AND NOBODY ASKS ANY QUESTIONS OR NEEDS CLARIFICATION ON HOW I IDENTIFY. IT’S SUCH A NICE BREAK FROM EXPLAINING MY BECAUSE I DON’T THINK THAT MANY PEOPLE FEEL COMFORTABLE ASKING QUESTIONS ABOUT LQL, AND I WANT IT TO BE A MUCH EVER SINCE MS. MAIA HAS BEEN IN CHARGE OF IT, IT HAS IMPROVED MIRACULOUSLY. THE WELLNESS ROOM IS SOMEWHERE I CAN THE MAX!!UTL. FOR SURE. UTL IS WHERE EVERYONE DRESSES UP AND HAS AN AMAZING TIME, EVEN WHEN THEY ARE SITTING NEXT NEVER EASY. MID 1 LACROSSE BECAUSE I LOVE LACROSSE IT WAS REALLY FUN IN CLASS I TO GO TO THE CONSERVATORY TO RELEASE THE LOC LOUNGE AREA ON THE SECOND FLOOR BY THE MUSIC ROOMS RED DAY SPORTS, AND AFFINITY GROUPS. MAKES ME FEEL FIELD TRIP AND WE WERE ALL ROLLING DOWN THE HILL PLAYING GAMES TOGETHER LIBRARY( VERY COMFORTING) SPIRIT WEEK US GOT DISTRACTED AND ROLLED DOWN IT AND I HAD NO OTHER CHOICE BUT TO JOIN IN. DESPITE THE DIRT AND THE DIZZINESS, FRIENDS AND DOING JUST DANCE WHEN WE FINISHED ACTIVITIES EARLY. I LOVE THE COURTYARD BECAUSE OF THE HUGE OPEN SPACE. THE GRASS. MID 2 SOCCER BECAUSE ME AND MY TEAMMATES HAD A GREAT SEASON TOGETHER AND WE FIT TOGETHER SO WELL NEWELL’S ADVISORY BECAUSE IT’S FUN AND RELAXED AND I LOVE PLAYING GROUP GAMES TOGETHER! THE TREE NEXT TO THE BENCH WAS DURING THIS YEAR’S CLASS 2 RETREAT I REALLY ENJOYED APPLE PICKING WITH MY ADVISORY GROUP I ALSO HAD A FUN TIME FIRST FLOOR BECAUSE IF I HAVE SPORTS OR AM WAITING 5 MINUTES BEFORE A CLASS STARTS IT IS A VERY COMFORTABLE AREA TURTLES BACK INTO THE WILD I ENJOY GETTING TO PLAY GAMES TOGETHER LIKE A HAMBURGER GAME. LIBRARY BECAUSE THERE ADMIRE EACH OTHER. I WAS ON MID 1 FIELD HOCKEY FOR FALL SPORTS AND I REALLY LIKE FIELD HOCKEY SO I JOINED THE TEAM. PICKING I LIKE WHEN WE PLAY GAMES IN ADVISORY THE LIBRARY BECAUSE IT IS QUIET AND THERE ARE MANY BOOKS UTL BECAUSE WHICH MEANT A LOT TO ME BECAUSE A, IT’S THE FIRST SCHOOL TEAM SPORT AND B, SOCCER MEANS A LOT TO ME. I LOVED RELEASING NATURE. I LOVE IT WHEN WE DON’T HAVE ANYTHING PLANNED AND WE GET TO KIND OF “CHILL” AND PLAY GAMES. I LOVE THE LIBRARY ALWAYS SUPER NICE, AND PUZZLES AND GAMES ARE EVERYWHERE.RED DAY BECAUSE IT’S FUN, COMPETITIVE, AND WILD. I AM RESERVATION TO RELEASE THE TURTLES AND WHILE THEY WERE GOING INTO THE SWAMP WE ALL SANG INTO THE UNKNOWN AND POSSIBLE AS A GROUP, OR GUESSING THE WORD THE ADVISOR IS THINKING OF. I ALWAYS ENJOY GOING TO ADVISORY AND I THINK AROUND WITH FRIENDS AND BE OUTSIDE ON A NICE DAY. I THINK RED DAY CAPTURES THE ESSENCE OF OUR COMMUNITY BECAUSE THE AMAZING FOOD, ON RED DAY EVERYONE HAS FUN. I LOVE CLUBS AND I’M IN MS. PARSLEY’S LAST CLUB :)I WAS DEVOTED TO AND THE TEAM BONDED THROUGHOUT THE SEASON. EVERY TIME WE HAD A BUS RIDE WE’D ALWAYS BE SINGING SONGS AND JOKING ANOTHER GROUP’S ADVISOR IS OUT, THEIR GROUP WILL USUALLY JOIN OURS AND WE’LL PLAY FUN WORD GAMES THE WHOLE CLASS. AND RELAXED. UTL REALLY CAPTURES THE ESSENCE OF THE WINSOR COMMUNITY. EVERYONE IS CHEERING EACH OTHER ON REGARDLESS DEVOTED TO BASKETBALL BECAUSE I REALLY LIKE IT AND I ALSO LIKE BEING ON A TEAM. I REALLY LIKED THE TIME IN CLASS II WHEN ONES WHEN MY ADVISORY AND I PLAY GAMES OR DRAW. I LIKE THE LIBRARY BECAUSE IT IS A QUIET SPACE TO RELAX, READ A BOOK, SPORTSMANSHIP. I AM NOT DEVOTED TO MY CLUB OR AFFINITY GROUPS AND I CAN’T PLAY SPORTS I HAVE ONLY GONE ON ONE FIELD ADMIRE MY ADVISOR MS. STRINGFELLOW MABYE JUST PE AREAS, MY HOMEROOM, OR THE LUNCHROOM CUZ LUNCH IS SOOO GOOD PRODUCTIVE ENVIRONMENT WITH A SMALL GROUP OF PEOPLE ALL WORKING TO A SHARED GOAL. I HAVE MADE SMALL, PERSONAL WHEN I WORK AS A MEMBER OF PLANET PROTECTORS.LAST YEAR, AT THE END OF CLASS II, MY CLASS WENT ON A TRIP TO TREETOP BECAUSE IT WAS PLENTY OF FUN AND ALLOWED THE CLASS TO GET TO KNOW PEOPLE THEY DON’T USUALLY TALK TOO IN A WAY WORRY ABOUT WHICH GAME TO PLAY AND WHAT THE RULES ARE, ETC. I ENJOY SPENDING MY TIME IN THE LIBRARY THE MOST BECAUSE DAY IS A GOOD EXAMPLE OF THE INVENTIVE AND OPEN-MINDED ENVIRONMENT AT WINSOR BECAUSE IT IS A FUN TRADITION THAT OTHER AND HALE RESERVATION WORKERS THROUGH ICEBREAKERS. AFTER MY GROUP DID SO, WE FACED A DAUNTING VERTICAL RELUCTANT WERE ENCOURAGED AND DID NOT FEEL JUDGED WHEN THEY DID NOT MEET THEIR GOALS. I WAS THRILLED TO SEE THAT HOW BALANCED OUR MEETINGS ARE. SOMETIMES WE PLAY FUN GAMES LIKE PICTIONARY THAT TEACH US TO COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY DISCUSSIONS ABOUT PERFECTIONISM, SMART GOALS, LEADERSHIP, AND MORE. IN AN INFORMAL, SMALL SETTING, I FEEL MORE MIGHT NOT HAVE OTHERWISE BEFRIENDED. MY FAVORITE SPACE ON CAMPUS IS THE THEATER BECAUSE IT IS OUR GATHERING

BY

“You must venture out and create your own spaces of belonging and include people who may not always agree with you. ...In our disagreements, we can find ways of understanding each other.”

— JULIAN K. BRAXTON Director of Community and Inclusion

Talking. Building relationships. Offering opportunities and choices. These are the time-intensive, creative, and intuitive ways that everyone at Winsor pursues creating a sense of belonging.

“There’s good work to do here,” muses Ms. Pelmas. “In a school like this, it’s easy to feel that we’re making a difference, because these kids are going to change the world. They’re going to be strong. They know what matters to them. You can feel that here.”

TALKS AS A GROUP. I LOVE THE LIBRARY BECAUSE IT’S COZY AND FULL OF BOOKS! SPIRIT WEEK, CAUSE ITS A LOT OF FUN TO SEE ENJOYED OUR CLASS RETREAT. BECAUSE I WAS A NEW STUDENT THIS YEAR I REALLY FELT LIKE THIS TRIP LET ME KNOW MY CLASSMATES JUST FOR FUN. GENERALLY, DURING THESE TIMES WE’LL PLAY SOME SORT OF TEAM GAME. I REALLY ENJOY THESE TIMES BECAUSE DRAWING AND SOME TEAMWORK. IT’S REALLY FUN TO SEE THE FINAL DRAWING THAT COMES UP. I REALLY LOVE THE LIBRARY. I THINK BOOKS THERE AND I CAN ALWAYS FIND SOMETHING THAT I WANT TO READ, PLUS THE BOOKMARKS THERE SMELL REALLY NICE. I THINK UTL I THINK OUR SPIRIT SHOWS THE MOST. ALSO, IT REALLY SHOWS THE UNIQUENESS AND CRAZINESS OF THE WINSOR COMMUNITY. TO LOWER SCHOOL QUEER LOUNGE, AS WE NO LONGER MEET DURING LUNCHTIME. LQL IS SUCH A SPECIAL PLACE WHERE I CAN JUST MY PRONOUNS OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN TO THE SAME PEOPLE. I REALLY WANT TO BRING LQL INTO THE LIGHT JUST A BIT MORE SIGNIFICANT AFFINITY GROUP THAT PEOPLE ACTUALLY KNOW ABOUT. MY FAVORITE SPACE ON CAMPUS IS THE WELLNESS CAN ACTUALLY RELAX. FROM THE GIANT FLIPPY SEQUIN WALL TO THE NEW NOISE MACHINE, THE WELLNESS ROOM IS NEW AND IMPROVED NEXT TO PEOPLE THAT THEY WOULD NORMALLY HATE BEING NEAR. IT BRINGS US ALL CLOSER, EVEN THOUGH WORKING ON THE CHEER RELEASE OUR TURTLES IT’S NICE TO HAVE THE SAME GROUP OF PEOPLE FOR A YEAR, AND I ALSO LOVE PLAYING GAMES IN ADVISORY LIKE I HAVE A PLACE WHERE I BELONG OUTSIDE OF MY HOME. WHEN WE TOOK OUR CLASS PHOTO OUTSIDE OR WHEN WE WENT SHOWS A SENSE OF COMMUNITY MY FAVORITE MEMORY WAS FROM MY RETREAT THIS YEAR TO CARLSON ORCHARDS. ON A HILL, DIZZINESS, IT WAS WORTH THE THRILL. I ENJOY THE GAMES WE PLAY TOGETHER THE MOST. I LOVED PLAYING THINGS ON A HAMBURGER WITH SPACE. ON ONE OF THE GET-TOGETHERS WITH STUDENTS AND PARENTS, MY FRIENDS AND I ATE FOOD AND TALKED IN ONE SMALL AND IT WAS JUST AMAZING TREETOP ADVENTURES IN CLASS 1. SO MUCH FUN! WE EVEN HAD MR. MARSHALL CLIMB UP A TREE! BENCH BECAUSE IT IS A NICE CLIMBING TREE AND IT IS SO BEAUTIFUL AND IT GIVES A LOT OF SHADE. RED DAY CAUSE WE DO IT EVERY TIME DURING LUNCH TIME AND WE WERE ALL RUNNING AROUND ON THE PATCH OF GRASS THEY HAD. I REALLY LIKE THE LOC SPACE AREA TO SIT AND DO HOMEWORK OR OTHER THINGS. SOFTBALL BECAUSE I FEEL INCLUDED THERE IN CLASS 1 WE WENT TO RELEASE THERE ARE BOOKS AND IT IS A NICE PLACE TO BE. I THINK THAT SPIRIT WEEK IS A GOOD TRADITION BECAUSE EVERYONE CAN COME TEAM. I AM ON WIZARDS FIELD HOCKEY(CLUB) AND I WAS ON MANY OTHER TEAMS. WHEN WE WENT TO CARLSON ORCHARDS AND WENT BECAUSE IT WAS SO MUCH FUN TO PARTICIPATE IN SPORTS, HAVE FUN WITH OUR FRIENDS, AND EAT FOOD! I PARTICIPATED IN MID 2 RELEASING OUR CLASS I TURTLES INTO THE WILD BECAUSE I GOT TO SPEND TIME WITH MY FRIENDS AND THE TURTLES, PLUS I LOVE LIBRARY BECAUSE I HAVE ALWAYS LOVED BOOKS, AND BEING SURROUNDED BY THEM MAKES ME SO HAPPY. ALSO, THE LIBRARIANS DEVOTED TO LQL. I CAN REALLY CONNECT WITH MY PEERS AND IT ALWAYS FEELS LIKE A SAFE SPACE. LAST YEAR, MY CLASS WENT AND IT WAS REALLY FUN. SOMETIMES IN ADVISORY WE PLAY GAMES WITH OTHER ADVISORIES SUCH AS MAKING THE LONGEST SENTENCE THINK IT’S A GREAT USE OF A MONDAY MORNING. MY FAVORITE PLACE ON CAMPUS IS THE COURTYARD BECAUSE IT’S REALLY FUN TO BECAUSE IT’S WHEN THE WHOLE SCHOOL GETS TO COME TOGETHER AND SHOW SPIRIT. WHETHER IT’S WATCHING ONE OF THE GAMES OR THE MID-3 BASKETBALL TEAM THIS WINTER. IT HAD A SPECIAL MEANING BECAUSE I GOT TO BE CAPTAIN OF A SPORT FOR THE JOKING AROUND. I ENJOY ADVISORIES BECAUSE THEY’RE ALWAYS FUN AND EVERYONE IS JOKING AROUND. FOR EXAMPLE, WHENEVER CLASS. MY FAVORITE SPACE ON CAMPUS IS THE LIBRARY. THE LIBRARY IS A VERY WELCOMING AND COZY AREA WHERE I ALWAYS REGARDLESS OF IT THEY PLAY A SPORT OR NOT. THE PEP RALLY BEFOREHAND ESPECIALLY BRINGS OUT WINSOR’S SCHOOL SPIRIT I WHEN MY GRADE AND I WENT APPLE PICKING. I REMEMBER THAT WAS REALLY FUN. I ENJOY ADVISORY MEETINGS. I USUALLY ENJOY BOOK, OR GET SOME HOMEWORK DONE. I THINK UTL REALLY CAPTURES THE ESSENCE OF WINSOR BECAUSE THERE IS A LOT OF TEAM FIELD TRIP AND IT WAS KINDA AWKWARD CUZ NO ONE KNEW EACH OTHER I LIKE GOING AND HANGING OUT WITH FRIENDS I LOVE GOOD UTL BECAUSE EVERYONE SHOWS UP AND IS SO COMMITTED TO THE RED THEME I AM DEVOTED TO PLANET PROTECTORS. I ENJOY PERSONAL ADJUSTMENTS TO BE MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY, HOWEVER, I THINK THAT I AM ABLE TO MAKE A MUCH BIGGER CHANGE TREETOP ADVENTURES, WHICH IS BASICALLY WHERE YOU GO THROUGH OBSTACLE COURSES ON TOP OF A TREE. I APPRECIATED THE THAT DIDN’T MAKE IT AWKWARD. I LIKE THAT ADVISORY IS A TIME WHEN WE CAN PLAY AN OCCASIONAL FUN GAME WITHOUT BECAUSE IT IS A CASUAL SPACE WHERE I CAN SPEAK WITH FRIENDS AND ALSO WORK ON HOMEWORK AND OTHER PROJECTS. I THAT ISN’T GENERIC. THIS SCHOOL YEAR, CLASS IV WENT TO HALE RESERVATION. BEFORE COMPLETING ANY COURSES, WE GOT TO VERTICAL CLIMB. HOWEVER, AS WE BELAYED EACH OTHER, MY CLASSMATES CHEERED THE CLIMBERS ON. EVEN THOSE WHO WERE INITIALLY THAT EFFORT AND COURAGE WERE ACKNOWLEDGED, FEELING CLOSER TO MY CLASSMATES AFTER THEIR DISPLAY OF KINDNESS. EFFECTIVELY AND THINK CREATIVELY BUT ARE ALSO SIMPLY A BREAK FROM THE SCHOOL DAY. BY CONTRAST, WE ALSO HAVE ESSENTIAL COMFORTABLE BEING VULNERABLE AND HONEST. REGARDLESS OF THE ACTIVITY, ADVISORY CONNECTS ME WITH CLASSMATES PLACE.

SUPPORT AND CREATIVITY. THE ENCOURAGEMENT TO BREATHE

INTO PRE-WRITTEN

Class retreats at the beginning of the school year are one way students and faculty forge a bond. By the time students in Class VIII are about to head off to college, they seek out their favorite teachers and revel in each other’s company.

Whetting the Appetite for Community

Every school day, more than 600 people stream into Winsor’s dining room. They come from different backgrounds, cultures, and towns. They come in talking, laughing, silent, tired, energized, nervous, lonely, and happy. For all their differences, they have one thing in common: They are hungry for what Winsor’s culinary team provides.

“Food is a great unifier in today’s world,” says Chef Heather Pierce, Winsor’s culinary director. “We can just enjoy each other’s company with what’s on the table. That is what I want our community to do here at Winsor: Stop, take a break from the intensity of the day, and share in a meal.”

Sharing time and food sounds like a straightforward and foolproof formula for creating community. But Ms. Pierce’s work is far from simple. It calls for a deft blend of art, science, and, above all, an understanding of who she cooks for.

Day by day, she has built a reputation for being accessible, involved, and easy to approach. Students often email her to propose menu ideas and to invite her to club meetings where foodrelated issues will be discussed. She has presented on nutrition through the wellness program, partnered with Planet Protectors on recycling and foodwaste concerns, and collaborated with affinity groups, where students share a common identity such as race, heritage, or religion, to plan special meals. Sometimes a student’s need to feel like they belong may be answered through adapting a family or traditional recipe to feed the whole Winsor student body.

“I love it when students share their food memories with me! I may not be able to duplicate their family recipes exactly, but I try to represent them the best that I can,” Ms. Pierce says. “My favorite comment that I’ve heard a few

times is ‘I felt seen.’ I love that.”

Of course, some students would rather be heard more than seen, so the dining room maintains a comment board where students can post questions or make suggestions and the staff can then respond.

All of this effort does not go unrecognized, and “Chef Heather” is a favorite of many of the students. Lara do Rosario ’26 says Ms. Pierce’s thoughtfulness “can be witnessed by her leadership in the kitchen and her dedication to cultural diversity in her menus.”

Though enticing people to try something new is one of her greatest satisfactions, Ms. Pierce never forgets about the student who would “rather have something a little less bold and a little more comforting.”

Winsor students often spend their days experimenting and pushing beyond their comfort zone, and sometimes a warm bowl of oatmeal or mac and cheese is adventure enough. The main feeling that kids should have in the dining room is that this is a place for them, where they can relax and be nourished.

At the end of the day, Ms. Pierce says, she simply wants to make people happy through food. “It’s the best feeling to share something you love with so many people,” she says.

Finding Their Happy Place

Laura Duncan, director of the Virginia Wing Library, says that “people laughing and talking” is the soundtrack to her days.

“I hear a lot of laughter, which is so lovely. We want the library to feel like a really happy space,” Ms. Duncan says.

Students overwhelmingly name the library as one of their favorite places on campus. Whether they need to study in silence or want to relax around the puzzle table and find that missing corner piece, they know there’s a sunny spot for them here.

Hamna Chowdhry ’26 says, “The library has always been a chill, safe space for me to work or talk.”

While students feel inherently welcomed at the library, they may not be aware how much planning and thought goes into shaping this environment. For Winsor’s library professionals, creating opportunities for belonging is an overarching goal that serves as their North Star for every consideration, including how they use the physical space, the new programs they launch and how they curate resources.

“Libraries are about so much more than the books on the shelves,” Ms. Duncan emphasizes. “I think they’re places that inspire community and that sense of belonging. My job is really about community.”

This past year, the library staff developed several programs that helped students explore and find a personal connection to books and one another. Classmates showed up to movie night

(the featured film based on a book, of course) in pajamas, and relaxed together over pizza. Before winter break, nearly 100 students responded to a schoolwide survey about their taste in books. In return, they were treated to individually curated selections of books to take home over break.

“One of the things that’s front of mind for [staff] on a daily basis and also in the big picture is, ‘How can we make each and every student feel represented and welcome?’” Ms. Duncan says. “We want this library collection to feel like it’s for everyone, to make sure that

people can see their own experiences and learn about other people’s experiences from those books.”

What book would have been in Ms. Duncan’s winter break bag when she was a child?

“When I was very little, I asked my mom to check out Sylvester and the Magic Pebble from the library on a monthly basis. Walking through my local library’s front doors felt like entering a magical gateway where all of these extraordinary experiences awaited me. I hope this library offers people a bit of magic, too.”

“I love the third floor of the library because it is silent, and I can focus well. The natural light is also unmatched, especially when the sunlight warms the tables.”

—RAINA SOHUR ’23

Celebrating the Class of 2023

For most of the world it was just another Tuesday, but for the Class of ’23 it was the first day of the rest of their lives as they bade farewell to their time on Pilgrim Road. In a ceremony that was a “happy and a sad day all at once,” as one speaker put it, 62 students were sent off with humble words of wisdom, songs, tributes, and of course, diplomas that signify their accomplishments.

Pictured here are Winsor students who spent their entire Lower and Upper School time on Pilgrim Road.

Wildcats Head out Into the Wild

The Class of 2023 bade farewell to their experiences on Pilgrim Road as students, faculty, and alumnae sent them off with caches of wisdom and good wishes at this year’s Commencement exercises on June 6.

Clouds and less than seasonal temperatures could not dim the positive energy that circulated throughout the ceremony. Advanced Rock On got the festivities started with a rollicking and uplifting rendition of Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now.” Seniors then processed into the courtyard, dressed in graduation-white garb of their choosing and holding a single red rose.

“We’re here to honor the people that you have become, the people you have been all along,” said Head of School Sarah Pelmas, “but maybe you are just a little more focused and polished and clear about what you want from this world.”

For an opening reading, students collectively chose a passage from Norton Juster’s 1961 children’s fantasy novel, The Phantom Tollbooth, about the humanity of mistakes and how normal it is to fumble in life. “You often learn more from being wrong for the right reasons than you do from being right for the wrong reasons,” Nicole Hwang ’23 read to the audience.

As Allison Kaneb Pellegrino ’89, P ’21, ’22, president of Winsor’s Board of Trustees, next took to the lectern, she was still reflecting on Juster’s words and Hwang’s passionate delivery.

“Today I thought I was going to be rock-solid, but The Phantom Tollbooth —in Class III, we loved it so much that one of my classmates even named her son Milo. You girls always get me,” Ms. Pellegrino said.

“This is a happy and a sad day all at once as we say goodbye and good luck to you,” she added. “On this day you are graduating, you

will no longer be enrolled students at Winsor, but at the very same moment you are becoming a part of something much, much greater.”

Ms. Pellegrino reminded graduates that, as they move into new chapters in their lives, they also are now part of a 4,000-plus community of Winsor alums. “I am talking about a social and emotional [network] that spans continents, as well as decades.”

Under the direction of Winsor Choral Director Andrew Marshall, all of the students rose to sing “Landslide,” a sentimental favorite by Fleetwood Mac about the passage of time that led some to reach for tissues.

“To those of us of a certain generation, that is one of the most poignant songs you could have chosen,” Ms. Pelmas told the students as she, too, took a few breaths for composure.

In her speech to the graduates, Ms. Pelmas urged them to use all of

their opportunities and everything they have learned for the power of good.

“Whatever your contributions are within athletics, theater, the arts, medicine, community organizing, running a restaurant, or leading a nonprofit, we need you. The world needs to be inspired, uplifted, educated, and led. When we think about the vast disparities around the world…the world needs to be reminded of the worth of every single human being on this planet,” she said.

Lindsay Whelan ’23 spoke on behalf of the graduating class, and she said her biggest takeaway from schooling is that “people make the place.” Whelan credited all of the levels of faculty, administrators, family, and students for making Commencement—as, indeed, all cherished Winsor events—such a memorable occasion.

“A once-empty tent, now filled with love, joy, and community,” said Whelan. “Just as all of these people made this place, this event, this day possible, you people, the Class of 2023 made this place and our time here so special.”

Liz Friedman ’87 gave the Commencement speech to graduates and held nothing back, providing a realistic picture of the good, the bad, and the ugly moments that can span a career. A highly accomplished Hollywood writer who has written for such television shows as House, Orange Is the New Black, and Xena: Warrior Princess, Friedman is currently the executive producer and co-showrunner for The Good Doctor

Ms. Friedman shared experiences of successes and failures—and urged students to always remain curious and open-minded.

“Living in the bubble is not what Winsor trained us to do, even if getting out of the bubble exposes us to views we did not see at Winsor. I ask you to embrace curiosity, to ask questions, and—this is really important—to listen to the answers. Create communities that are safe. That is very important. But not necessarily comfortable because, without challenges, I don’t believe there is promise,” Ms. Friedman said.

“I have had my share of challenges, and even firings. And you will, as well, but I hope less firings. Because even when you’re smart, well educated and you do everything right, things don’t always go your

way. And you will have a moment when you will need to choose between giving up and pressing on. What Winsor taught me was that giving up is not an option. Take a beat, rally yourself, tap into your community, and press on.”

While this group of students spent much of their Upper School experience wearing masks and constrained by social distancing, the smiles on this day were now big and visible, and many graduates hugged faculty before leaving the stage with their diplomas. Roses were tossed into the air as graduates enthusiastically danced their way out of the courtyard to the upbeat 1980s-era anthem “Walking on Sunshine.”

Congrats to the Class of 2023!

First Row (L to R): Catherine Julia Macenka, Lydia Grace Morris-Kliment, Jenna Gabrielle Phinney, Lily Sonal Levitzky, Jane Katherine Kelley, Abigail Elizabeth Cassidy, Valeria Gil Lopera, Rebecca Riccio, Nicole Hwang, Allison Ang Chan, Austin Grace Forrester, Isabelle Kaylin Fan, Ivy Blanche Eastland, Annika Clara Gudeman Cunningham, Vivian Anne Danahy, Chloe Madeline Chao

Second Row (L to R): Asha Lee Moreno, Petra Violet Sarkisian, Kathryn Clare Swords, Avery Elizabeth Dolins, Eleanor Yimei Carney, Ava Jennifer Kee, Ms. Sarah Pelmas, Ms. Kimberly Ramos, Anna Christina Halfman, Lauren Maria Hogan, AnAn Desimone, Ella Kate Pascucci, Elizabeth Annetta Kuntz, Sora Kim Karanja, Jeremiah Shirley Hickman-Maynard

Third Row (L to R): Tarini Aisvarya Dasari, Giselle Madison Chu, Melissa Gutierrez Sepulveda, Eleni Panayiota Georgountzos, Caroline Rebekah Shin, Courtney Ann FitzMaurice, Katya West Agrawal, Helena Mai Nguyen, Meredith Frances Tangney, Olivia Ruth Hochberg, Catherine Suzanne Anderson, Annika Singh, Sophia Christina Gerogiannis, Anissa Riyana Patel, Audrey Ting Cheng, Christina Elizabeth Monroe, Allison Roberta Kennedy, Elizabeth-Grace Espina Goel

Back Row (L to R): Clara Ann Eikeboom, Natalie Delia Pan, Summer Holiday Host, Lidia Madeline Rodriguez, Ashley Xu, Alaina Qingying Cai, Raina Shivani Sohur, Yunyoung Chun, Amory Caroline Gordon, Caroline Ann Friendly, Lindsay Melissa Whelan, Olivia Noor Sarkis, Cleo Blaine Jackson, Ava Louise Bub, Abigail Margaret Glynn

“What Winsor taught me was that giving up is not an option. Take a beat, rally yourself, tap into your community, and press on.”

—LIZ FRIEDMAN ’87

2022–23 PRIZEWINNERS

The Cross Country Cup

Mary (Meg) Madison ’24

The Field Hockey Cup

Allison “Ally” Kennedy ’23

The Soccer Cup

Abigail “Abby” Cassidy ’23

The Volleyball Cup

AnAn Desimone ’23

The Basketball Cup

Nell Sparks ’25

The Ice Hockey Cup

Meredith Tangney ’23

The Squash Cup

Sora Karanja ’23

The Swimming Cup

Alaina Cai ’23

The Crew Cup

Austin Forrester ’23

The Lacrosse Cup

Mary “Meg” Madison ’24

The Sailing Cup

Caroline Friendly ’23

The Softball Cup

Gricelda Castro ’24

The Tennis Cup

Julia Bae ’25

The Track and Field Cup

Lydia Morris-Kliment ’23

The Bremer Athletic Prize

Mary “Meg” Madison ’24

The Class of 1972 Prize

Allison “Ally” Kennedy ’23

The Nancy Shelmerdine ’72 Memorial Prize

Aiko Dable ’24

The Linda Alles ’71 Memorial Award

Evangeline “Eva” LaFond ’24

The Ann Nowell Kramer ’48

Drama Prize

Ava Bub ’23

The Brooks Parkman

Woodard ’48 Memorial Prize

Anissa Patel ’23

The Peggy Stuart-Coolidge ’32 Memorial Music Prize

Jeremiah Hickman-Maynard ’23

The Class IV Prize

Charlotte Wheler ’27

The Clare Cutler ’62 Memorial Prize for Excellence in the Dramatic Arts —Acting

Ella Troalic ’27

The Clare Cutler ’62 Memorial Prize for Excellence in the Dramatic Arts —Tech

Rutong “Bonnie” Shao ’27

The Class V Prize

Alisa Ross ’26

The Annie Lawrie Fabens

Crozier ’47 Memorial Prize

Olivia Sarkis ’23

The Ruth Sabine 1924 Prize

Sofia Robinson ’24

The Adele Bockstedt

Spanish Prize

Elizabeth-Grace Goel ’23

The Frances Cabot Putnam

1915 French Prize

Sophia Lichterfeld ’24

The Nora Saltonstall 1911 Memorial Scholarship

Jaire May ’24

The Ruth S. Thayer Prize for Excellence in Latin Aarushi Deswal ’25

The World Languages Department Prize for Excellence in Mandarin AnAn Desimone ’23

The Madras Science Prize

Ashley Xu ’23

The Richard P. Binzel Prize

Elizabeth “Liza” Kuntz ’23

The Mathematics Prize

Lauren Hogan ’23

The Frances Dorwin Dugan Prize

Catherine Macenka ’23

The Class of 2002 Award

The Student Equity Board

The Hemenway Prize

Raina Sohur ’23

The Class of 1994 Leadership Prize

Anissa Patel ’23

The Nina Cies ’68 Memorial Award

Lindsay Whelan ’23

The Virginia Wing Outstanding Teacher Award

Mark Brooks Hedstrom

Winsor Alums Return to Skate

The Winsor varsity hockey team, current coaches, and alums donned red and white jerseys to face off against each other in the Annual Alumni Hockey Game. Mixed teams of current players and alums brought laughter, memories, and fierce competition to Steriti Rink.

Alumnae Board 2023–24

PRESIDENT

Ashley Marlenga Herbst ’01

VICE-PRESIDENT

Meghan Weeks ’04

SECRETARY

Armine Afeyan ’08

MEMBERS AT LARGE

Desiree Allen ’98

Fatima Aziz ’06

Holly Breuer ’14, Co-Chair, Young Alumnae Committee

Hillary S. Brown ’80, P’17

Susan Holzman ’67

Elizabeth Flint Hooker ’95

Jennifer Inker ’83, P’26

Lindsay Mullen Jeanloz ’00

Danielle Johns ’05

Katherine McCord ’02, Co-Chair Alumnae Giving

Jillian Campbell McGrath ’02

Johanna Mendillo ’96

Julia Broderick O’Brien ’56, P’87

Nell O’Donnell ’81

Jennifer O’Neil ’93

Ambika Patni ’98

Elizabeth-Anne Finn Payne ’94

Sarah Marlenga Powers ’05

Mary Noonan Quirk ’05

Lacey Janet Rose ’06

Nancy Adams Roth ’66

Elizabeth Tillman ’83

Miwa Watkins ’83

Alexis Hasiotis Wintersteen ’91

Claire Wiseman ’83

EX-OFFICIO

PAST PRESIDENT

Erica Mayer ’91, P ’25

CO-CHAIR, ALUMNAE GIVING

Caitlin Crowe ’89

CO-CHAIR, ALUMNAE GIVING

Julia Livingston ’66, P’85, ’07

CO-CHAIR, ALUMNAE GIVING

Katherine McCord ’02

CO-CHAIR, YOUNG ALUMNAE COMMITTEE

Holly Breuer ’14

CO-CHAIR, YOUNG ALUMNAE COMMITTEE

Anushree Gupta ’13

DIRECTOR OF ENGAGEMENT AND EVENTS

Becky Withiam

Remembering WWII Hero and Winsor Alumna Mary Sears ’23

In November, in connection with Veterans Day, Winsor had the opportunity to learn about Mary Sears ’23, a veteran and marine scientist whose pioneering work in oceanography was integral to the success of the Navy in World War II.

After graduating from Winsor, Mary Sears went to Radcliffe College, then helped found Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in 1930. At the time, oceanography was considered a “man’s field,” yet Sears found a way to succeed nonetheless.

Bringing her story to students was Catherine Musemeche, a pediatric surgeon and the author of Lethal Tides: Mary Sears and the Marine Scientists Who Helped Win WWII.

Dr. Musemeche nodded to the amount of progress that women have made in professional circles. “When I was a student, we didn’t have women veterans to look up to,” she recalled. “Now in all the ranks we have women veterans.”

Underscoring this point was Lt. j.g. Giovanna De Vito ’16, who introduced Musemeche and is a public affairs officer for the U.S. Navy. Lt. j.g. De Vito credited the mentorship of female service members as integral to her application to the armed forces. “The greatest role models [are] women I have served with and women who have served before me,” she said.

Dr. Musemeche noted much the same in her chosen field. “Mary Sears was the generation of women ahead of me,” she said. “I went to medical school when there were very few women, but when you saw [another woman], you knew you could be there, too.’ ”

OVERHEARD

“I met a young alumna who is joining the same master’s program I had attended. She exclaimed, ’I’m following in your footsteps!’ and I replied, ‘No, you’re forging the next path, for all of us.’ ”

—ANJALI MIDHA ’98

Alums Honor Longtime Faculty Jennie

Skeele ’71, P’98, ’02

When beloved English Faculty Jennie Skeele ’71, P’98, ’02 announced she would retire at the end of the 2022–23 school year, alums knew they wanted to honor her and say goodbye. Skeele started at Winsor as a Class I student and returned to work at her alma mater shortly after graduating from Smith College. She taught at Winsor for 46 years.

In celebration, the Winsor community gathered for an evening of conversation and memories, hosted by Dr. Elizabeth Tillman ’83 on Zoom. Ms. Skeele reflected on her years at Winsor and how teaching and pedagogy changed over time, while alums, classmates, colleagues, former students, and family shared fond memories and funny stories.

One alum had the virtual room howling with laughter as she recalled Ms. Skeele’s diplomatic and kind response to a paper mistakenly titled with the word “pubic” instead of “public.”

Stories of comfort and support also illustrated Ms. Skeele’s transformational impact. Many alums remember the cupcakes she would make when students submitted their Expos Papers, each treat with a flag bearing the name of one paper. Others remember her strength and kindness when students faced the death of a loved one.

Alums told again and again of how Ms. Skeele’s lessons

CLASS NOTES

1958

Pamela Smith Henrikson

Alan and I have moved into North Hill, a retirement community 2 miles down the road from our home of 50 years. We miss the fun of entertaining friends and family, but we don’t miss chores and daily cooking. Many programs

had a lasting impact on their careers and their lives.

Ellie Springer ’96 shared, “You taught me how to read and write and think. I went on to major in English in college but learned way more at Winsor.” A professor at Harvard, Susannah Barton Tobin ’96 teaches writing and reflected that Ms. Skeele’s teaching lives on now through her own classroom instruction.

Even those alums who did not pursue a career in English credit Ms. Skeele with their ability to write well. Armine Afeyan ’08 said she still utilizes the skills learned to synthesize large amounts of information, and Liane Young ’00 admits that she hears Ms. Skeele’s voice when she writes even now.

“I’m not sure what adventures lie ahead,” remarked Ms. Skeele, but “I’m looking forward to spending more time with my family, especially my grandchildren.”

and interesting people make life stimulating. Over Christmas we took our family on a National Geographic cruise of the Galapagos Islands. Eleven of us, ranging in age from ten to eighty-two, found the trip magical!

1986

Lynn Harris

Lucky me! I got to visit Emily

(Perlman) Abedon ’86 in South Carolina for a weekend in early March. Also lucky: I happened to run into Sarah Beatty Buller ’84—both in bathrobes!—while at a spa for my birthday. Of course, it was not long before we heard the devastating news about her sister and our beloved classmate, Katie. I know we will remember Katie for the ray of sunlight she was at our school.

NEWSMAKER: CONNIE S. WONG ’86

Work That Is Changing the Face of Firefighting

When Massachusetts’ Asian American and Pacific Islanders Commission gathered in early May for its annual Unity Dinner, the occasion was an opportunity to celebrate outstanding community members and recognize public servants who have been significant agents of change.

Among the guests of honor this year was Connie S. Wong ’86, the Boston Fire Department’s deputy commissioner for labor relations, human resources, and legal affairs.

The commission tapped Ms. Wong as one of the first recipients of a new accolade, the Unsung Heroes Award, which honors community members whose work may go unrecognized but has made a profound impact.

Ms. Wong certainly meets those criteria: Since her 2014 appointment, she has led exceptional work in diversifying the fire department’s ranks, including its first female Asian American firefighter. She led the development of strategies and the updating of policies that improved the outreach, recruitment, hiring, and retention of Black, Indigenous, Asian American, Latin American, and female-identifying firefighters.

Ms. Wong has brought a multifaceted approach to her work, shown through such creative initiatives as a summer program that recruits high school students from the city’s underrepresented communities, a Fire Cadet program

1990

Sara Mossman

specifically for non-veteran Bostonians ages 18 to 25, and greater utilization of alternative civil service procedures to include a more robust language skill certification process.

Ms. Wong profoundly cares about her community and has made an impact by creating space for underrepresented and marginalized groups to thrive.

My family just took a leap from life in suburban Seattle to an island in the Salish Sea. Together with my spouse, our 8-year-old daughter, and my 83-year-old mother(!), we are beginning small-scale diversified food production, including fruit, medicinal plants, eggs and mushrooms. I also teach yoga and host farm interns, and I’m beginning to offer some children’s nature

programs on our land. Life is lively and full! We would absolutely love visits from Winsor friends and any interested alums.

1991

Mona Zutshi Opubor

I married my Nigerian college sweetheart, and we have lived in Nigeria for the past 11 years. I work for two magazines as a memoirist and editor, and I’m also teaching writing and English literature.

Sara Mossman ’90

No one ever visits me, but to my great delight, my classmate, Dr. Catherine Saxbe ’91 came to Lagos in March. She is a physician and a diplomat, currently residing with her family in Senegal. Despite it being a weird time in Nigeria—due to elections, a fuel shortage and an inability to source currency—Cat and I had a blast. We had great meals, heart-to-heart conversations and belly-aching laughs. It was a joy to be with an old friend who is smart, thoughtful, funny, honest and curious—all qualities Winsor nurtured in us as kids. Now can someone else visit me? I need to keep this party going!

Emily Lubin Woods

Trustee Emily Lubin Woods ’91, P ’26 has devoted much of her career to researching and advocating for the benefits and advantages of community schools in public education. In July of 2022, she published her first book, The Path to Successful Community School Policy Adoption (Routledge Research in Education Policy and Politics). The model of community schools is a

national equity strategy that brings communities together to create and coordinate opportunities to accelerate student success.

According to Emily, “Our current predominant school design is akin to a traditional telephone: a simple two-way system of delivery wherein teachers teach and students learn.” Community schools, she argues, “are more like smartphones. They have collaborative leadership structures that help educators connect, pool resources, and think more expansively.” Open during evenings, weekends, and summers, community schools engage directly with families, students, teachers, and local organizations to identify and coordinate health and social services and to become centers of the community.

Boston has 14 pilot community schools, and Winsor has a reciprocal relationship with some of them. Emily draws on her experience as a researcher, a former educator in the Boston Public School system, and in the philanthropic sector to convey the urgency in investing in more community schools as an equity strategy. Through her work, she hopes to generate open conversations on urban education leadership and policy.

1995

Jessica Sloman Anderson

Since graduating from Winsor, I have risen to the rank of Assistant Chief of the Houston Police Department. I have been in Houston for 23 years now and am happily married to my husband, Jeff, also a police officer. In addition to serving as Assistant Chief, I use my law

degree as the liaison for HPD to the Texas Legislature, assisting with developing and drafting laws impacting criminal justice. My kids are grown now and doing great. Kyle is a golf pro at a course in west Texas, and Allison joined the Coast Guard as their singer, after lots of school for opera. If you’re in Houston, feel free to get in touch or commit a crime and we can see each other.

Melanie Kahn

We moved to Provence in 2022 for a little change of environment, better weather (than Chicago), and an international experience for our children. We absolutely love living in southern France, and I’m pleased to say people are shocked to hear my French skills were acquired only through school—they just don’t know how amazing Winsor’s French program was, thanks to Mme.

Mona Zutshi Opubor ’91

Fabricant (whom I visit in Paris), Mrs. Mercer and Ms. Stenzel, among others. It’s particularly flattering when they think I’m a native French speaker from Quebec—sure, it’s not as flattering as if they thought I was Parisian, but I’ll take the compliment nonetheless! If you’re living in France or visiting Provence, please do drop me a note.

2000

Liane Young

Our 20th reunion was thwarted by the pandemic, but I’ve stayed in touch with folks. This spring, Marisa Murphy O’Boyle ’00, Emily Howe Bellemare ’00, Emily Flier Matteodo ’00, and I spent a wonderful weekend on the Cape. This winter, Marisa, Kimberly (O’Keefe) Markelewicz ’98 and I enjoyed skiing, snowboarding, and skating with our families. Coming up: visits with Andreea Stefanescu Knudson ’00 and Alexis Burakoff ’00. I’ve been a professor of psychology and neuroscience and director of the Morality Lab at Boston College since 2011; I’ve had the pleasure of working with Winsor students on their independent research projects!

My husband, Xin Gao, an oncologist

at MGH, and I live in Wellesley with our daughters, Jaelyn (5) and Adelyn (9). I was diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer in 2021; I’m happy to say that, after enduring surgeries, chemo, radiation, and hormone therapy, I’m cancer-free and excited for the future!

2002

Leila Sales

In July 2022, I got married in the beautiful Berkshires. I was fortunate that many of my Winsor friends came to celebrate: Justine Nagurney, Veronica Rotemberg, Allison Smith, Clare Hawthorne, and Emily Haydock . The wedding was officiated by Rabbi Shahar Colt. My husband and I bought a house in Austin two years ago, and we mostly spend our free time here throwing dance parties and curating a weekly newsletter of creative events. My eighth novel for young readers, THE MUSEUM OF LOST AND FOUND, will be published by

Abrams in May 2023. I’m planning bookstore events in Austin, Boston, NYC, and elsewhere, and I would love to see anyone from the Winsor community there!

2003

Genevra Stone

I married Jonathan Pritz August 27th at Camp Onaway. It was a wonderful wedding weekend, including camp activities, an outdoor chapel ceremony, and a morningafter hike (one of our favorite things to do together with our dog, Echo).

2005

Blair Hurley

I’ve published my second novel, called MINOR PROPHETS, and will be visiting Boston to discuss the book. Hope to see you at a reading!

(L to R): Marisa Murphy O’Boyle ’00, Emily Howe Bellemare ’00, Emily Flier Matteodo ’00, Liane Young ’00,

Melanie Kahn ’95 and family

NEWSMAKER: MELINA HALE ’88

Neuroscientist Named Dean at University of Chicago

Melina Hale ’88, a renowned neuroscientist and biomechanist, has been appointed the next dean of the College at the University of Chicago.

Dr. Hale, a professor in the Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy, has been on the University of Chicago faculty since 2002. Her appointment took effect July 1.

As dean, Dr. Hale oversees the strategic vision for the college and plays a crucial role in advancing university and college fundamental values. She also helps to provide undergraduate students with a transformative educational experience, the university said.

WINSOR ALUMNAE COME TOGETHER FOR ‘HOLIDAY HACKS’

The Winsor Alumnae Association brought together more than 30 people in November for “Holiday Hacks: An evening of entertaining insights.” The alums gained insider tips on everything from Thanksgiving beer pairings to assembling the perfect cheeseboard.

For the latter, Winsor’s culinary director, Heather Pierce, recommended using a smaller board than seems necessary and positioning boards and bowls at different heights; this will create more visual interest. Colorful and seasonal fruit, such as persimmons and gooseberries, will look great and can be a conversation starter.

Patrick Paulick and Julie Rockett ’92 focused on the array of possible beer pairings for each course of Thanksgiving dinner. The grapefruit beer from Schofferhofer was a crowd favorite, ideal for cocktail hour. Additionally, they recommended a big bottled Belgian farmhouse ale from Vielle Provision for the main course.

“I am honored to serve as the next dean of the college and will work wholeheartedly to further the college’s leadership in deep and creative liberal arts education and its engagement with the principles and practice of free expression,” Dr. Hale said in the university’s official announcement. “Our students are the heart of campus, and I look forward to hearing from them and working with them and colleagues across the university to further enhance academic opportunities and the student experience.”

“As a renowned scholar, educator and administrator, Melina has both cultivated a rich understanding of the university’s intellectual culture and made lasting contributions to it over her decades-long career here,” President Paul Alivisatos said. “Looking ahead, she will steward the college’s distinctive legacy and champion its promising future.”

Next up, dessert! Rachel Sundet ’99, partner and pastry chef at Big Dipper Hospitality Group, led a cookie demo, creating delicious rugelach. Did you know you can fill them with sweet or savory fillings? She showed how to roll the dough in sugar to create that beautiful sweet, glistening exterior. Rachel was kind enough to share her recipe cards with those who attended.

In addition to learning these “hacks,” the attendees wrote little notes of encouragement and advice to Winsor seniors.

NEWSMAKER: SUSANNA TWAROG ’04

A Business Built Around Dispensing Essentials

When she recognized an urgent need for wellness equity, Susanna Twarog ’04 joined many other young professionals in making a radical career shift in 2020.

Ms. Twarog and her colleague Robina Verbeek saw that, while businesses attempt to become more accessible and inclusive, basic human needs remain overlooked. They were discouraged by the lack of access that women on the go often have to everyday health products such as tampons, pads, and deodorant.

Ms. Twarog and Ms. Verbeek decided to change that narrative through innovation. They left their successful careers in finance to launch SOS, a start-up that develops smart vending machines to distribute free period-care

PROGRESSIVE POURS AT URBAN GRAPE

Close to 30 alums, spanning five decades, returned in April to the mixing-and-mingling spot Urban Grape for the first time in person since the pandemic for a “Progressive Pours” wine tasting.

The event highlighted South African wines and featured Rüdger van Wyk, head winemaker at StarkCondé. He recently launched his signature brand, Kara-Tara, and guests at the event had the option of tasting and learning about two of its selections, a 2020 chardonnay and a 2020 pinot noir. Also featured were a 2018 syrah from Stark-Condé and a brut sparkling wine from Boschendal.

Owned by Hadley Douglas ’92 and TJ Douglas, Urban Grape is dedicated to building community through beverage. The Douglases are also sought-after panelists on a variety of subjects, including their passions of equity and inclusion in the wine industry, Black-owned and woman-owned businesses, and social justice.

products and other wellness items. With its alternative to outdated tampon vending machines, SOS produced a new way for consumers to obtain essential health and wellness products while also giving brand exposure.

The vending machines also carry hair care and skin care products that can be purchased with an electronic payment. The product offerings are intentionally curated based on season and location.

SOS machines are in nine locations in greater Boston, as well as in New York and South Florida. The company has plans this year to expand domestically and internationally.

Ms. Twarog, a graduate of Vanderbilt University, said SOS believes that “supporting and investing in women has a ripple effect on the larger world. When women’s daily health needs are met, we can fully engage professionally and personally, to the benefit of everyone around us. We’re working toward this goal every day, one SOS machine at a time.”

“This was such a fun opportunity to meet alums from several generations over a glass of wine,” said Winsor Director of Engagement and Events Becky Withiam. “Urban Grape’s mission to create belonging and elevate BIPOC- and women-owned companies deeply resonates with our alums. It is no wonder this event has become an annual tradition. Winsor alums are doing amazing things in our community, and being able to highlight them whenever possible is a true honor.”

MARRIAGES

2002

Leila Sales and Brian Pennington

July 2022

2003

Genevra Stone and Jonathan Pritz

August 27, 2022

2008

Carolina Peisch and Olof Jacobson

September 10, 2022

ARRIVALS AND ADOPTIONS

2001

Lynn Guerra Eisenstat daughter, Harriet Albee Eisenstat

June 8, 2023

IN MEMORIAM

1939

Nancy Smith Foote

1940

Julia Deane Crowley

1944

June Hodgdon Nimick

Sydney Watkins Phillips

1945

Diana Beebe Richardson

1948

Margot Sullivan Grosvenor

Margaret Winsor Stubbs

Vera Potter Whistler

1950

Martha Raymond Bruning

Diana Forbes

Lee Bigelow Herter

1952

Priscilla Kingsley Sharpless

1954

Rosamond Greeley Hamlin

Mary Strekalovsky Kelsey

Penelope Potter Saxe

1956

Margaret Williams Casey

1961

Gayle Zelermeyer Golden

1964

Mabel Lyman Whiteside

1969

Carol Lider Thrope

1972

Constance Austin

Hester Fuller

1982

Ruth Finn Oshin

1986

Catherine Beatty Flowers

2001

Anna Larking Majeed

(L to R): Erin Driscoll ’10, Elise Green ’12, Emily Smith Magruder ’03, Gevvie Stone ’03, Jonathan Pritz, Giuliana Loukas Leahy ’03, Tara Sullivan ’03

(L to R): Justine Nagurney ’02, Veronica Rotemberg ’02, Leila Sales ’02, Allison Smith ’02, Clare Hawthorne ’02, Emily Haydock ’02

Harriet Albee Eisenstat was born June 8, 2023

Class of 1973

Patricia Livingston Aldrich

Lodge Park activist, chair of Green Sanctuary Ministry team, UU choir and native plant champion. And a bit more: building community, squash, tennis, hiking in the Maine woods, and now pickleball and a new son in law. Helping to organize our 50th Reunion has been enormously fun and rewarding. I have gotten a kick out of every old Winsor woman I have met, and I am proud and happy to be one now.

Are you a fan of Miss Rumphius, too? In many ways, my life reflects what she recommends: Have adventures in far away places, come home to live beside the sea, do something to make the world more beautiful. Adventures in far away Alaska (10 years) included: skiing 100 miles through Denali National Park, white-water kayaking, top finishes in Equinox Marathon, driving dog teams, building a log cabin, living without electricity or running water, starting a shelter for abused women, surveying the vegetation of Interior Alaska. Come home to live beside the sea: in Nahant, with my husband, daughter, dog, cat, and beloved family and friends nearby. Do something to make the world more beautiful: 30-year career in conservation, chair of Nahant Open Space Committee, Friends of

Garfield

Strange to say 50 years feels like it passed by faster than the 6 years I attended Winsor. Photo from 2020. 65th year on this planet!

again. I still hadn’t figured out where to move. I wanted to live with neighbors I could get to know. Co-Housing sounded interesting. I was visiting Taft in Anacortes on my way to see Anne on Orcas Island. When I mentioned Co-Housing to Taft, she told me one was being built just up the street. Long story short, I am now living there. The ease with which everything has fallen into place lets me know my karmic debt has been paid!

3 years ago I decided I needed to move out of the University District in Seattle. Living amongst college kids had become intolerable after 25 years of living there. It was a karmic lesson for me in that I recognized my neighbors attitude of selfish entitlement to make all the noise they wanted. I was the same way. Lucky for me, the pandemic emptied the neighborhood out. Parties stopped. Last year they were beginning

Anne

Elizabeth Garfield

Charlotte Grimm

(L to R): Elizabeth Garfield ’73, Annie Stubbs ’73, Anne Garfield ’73, Tricia Aldrich ’73 and Charggy Grimm ’73 (among others) gathered at Charggy’s place in Nahant in 2022. Even more classmates will gather there for our 50th Reunion in May 2023.

(L to R): Adrienne Torf ’73, Tricia Livingston Aldrich ’73, and Mimi Coolidge ’73, it’s always a pleasure to be in one another’s company after all these years.

Anne Garfield

Elizabeth Garfield

Alexandra Lee

Winsor gave me a strong foundation for different aspects of my life. Traveling to the Greek islands on a school trip led me to a life filled with travel and curiosity about the world. I often travel with artists and paint watercolors, alexandra_lee_watercolors on instagram. Highlights at Winsor were learning choral singing, making art with Mrs. Snow, loving Latin with Ms. Weissbach and playing field hockey, lacrosse and softball. The weekly grid mapped out in homeroom, designed to accomplish our goals, helped me become the professional I became. My career in nonprofit management included special project director for Boston Society of Architects, Rose Kennedy Greenway, and Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, and executive director of Kendall Square Association and Sasaki Foundation. The highlight was managing the 75th Anniversary of the Golden Gate Bridge. Life is now filled with gardening, yoga, friends, volunteering, reading, singing, painting and writing.

Katharine Leggat

50 years—yikes! How did that happen?! “They” say that our children(?) (I have none) and grandchildren (there are seven) will all hold multiple jobs over the course of their adult lives. Graduating from college, there were three things I knew I would never do, and teaching and coaching in a boarding school was one of those three. I have been doing just that, though, since the fall of 1980, and now, I am closing in on my 40th year working in one place, at Groton School. I have had several jobs within the school—math teacher, dorm head, field hockey coach, ice hockey coach, dean of students, acting assistant head, academic dean, and numerous other roles that are part and parcel of boarding school work. One job? Or multiple?! Life and work have been wonderful and rewarding, and I’m not ready to retire!

Janet Dorman Leighton

Faith and family have been my priority for the last fifty years. That summer of 1973 I was coming to know Jesus Christ, not just in my head but in my heart. I received a new awareness of how much He loves me, and of His forgiving grace towards me. I had also gotten pregnant the week we graduated. Christopher and I married that fall; our son was born in March. We added three daughters, and now have twelve grandchildren (ages 6–22). I continued to study part-time, graduating in 1982 (B.A. in Biblical Studies). Christopher was ordained a priest, and was rector of various

churches for 35+ years. I served alongside, mostly volunteering, in teaching, administration, communication, and music. My calling is to be a servant of the Word-written, spoken, prayed, and sung. I love watching people “get it” that God loves them! We are enjoying the “re-firement” years, continuing to do what we love— leading a “house church,” offering online Alpha courses, serving as catalysts helping churches work together in our underserved city and across the region. Life can be hard, but God is good!

Anne Bigelow MacFarlane

I went to Dartmouth where I created a major called ‘Technological Innovation and Moral Choice’, skied & rowed & rode & rock climbed, and met Neil whom I married 7 years later. I got a further degree in [philosophical] theology at Cambridge University while continuing to climb buildings at night and sea cliffs or crags on weekends. We settled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains where we had three children and Neil taught at UVa. From there we moved to Queens University in Ontario, adding more dogs and another child, and finally to Oxford University for 26 years. We’ve recently retired to my family house in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Two of the children live in England [one a software architect and the other a musician], one is based in Kenya [employed by an educational NGO], and the youngest [pursuing a doctorate in landscape ecology] is in Canada.

Alexandra Lee

The Class of 1973 celebrated its 50th Winsor reunion with a special dinner in the upper level of the Virginia Wing Library.

Front Row (L to R): Joanne E. Reavis-Hurlston, Katharine Leggat, Patricia Livingston Aldrich, Adrienne Torf, Margaret Joy Weaver, Maria Damon Back Row (L to R): Cathy Lurie, Susan Hunt, Martha Brace McEvoy, Anne Bigelow MacFarlane, Mary H. Coolidge, Gale Gryska Willauer, Karin Gaensler, Louise Hollingsworth Baker, Jody Feinberg, A. Taft Perry

Martha Brace McEvoy

50 years—amazing! That sounds and is such a long time ago, but in some ways, it seems impossible to believe it is that many years! After Winsor, Wellesley. NYC for commercial real estate and then a move to Maine.

I still live in Portland, which I love. My career for these past 30 years plus has been in manufacturing/ wholesale. Sometimes I owned my company, sometimes not. Now, I have cut back a bit and am working in a sales capacity only. I love it and plan to keep going until I don’t want to. I expect to spend the additional “down” time doing hands-on volunteer work (meals for the homeless, helping the immigrants who land in Portland) and traveling. I feel fortunate and grateful, am very happy and enjoy my life. I have lots of friends and family I love (including both parents

who are still in Westwood!). I have 7 grandchildren. I enjoy watching their lives unfold and being a part when permitted! They range in age from 15–25 and I learn something new during every visit, meal etc! I have at least one dog at all times. I do miss my husband, (of 28 years) Art. He died 5 years ago. We had a good life with time with family and friends at our lake house and in Portland and completely enjoyed each other. I feel like we have seen a lot of changes, particularly in the areas of technology. (Thank goodness for cell phones!) I love to keep up with new technology and other subjects that are relevant to my life. I appreciate the fact that I view learning new things as a pleasure and a challenge and I have the confidence to learn, fail, and try again. My Winsor education has stood me in good stead!

A. Taft Perry

I am retired and live in Anacortes, WA with my husband of 17 years. BD (Before Dan), places I called home included Anchorage, Port Alexander AK, Laramie WY, Chicago and Seattle for the longest stretch. My work life was varied including eight years as a pension actuary. My last gigs were fishing commercially in Alaska with my husband in the summers, and bookkeeping for his Seattle remodeling business the other 3 seasons. His children and their children live in Anacortes as well which is great, providing me with the role of bonus mom/ grandmother. I am an avid vegetable gardener and reader. I enjoy living in this small town with excellent hiking opportunities minutes away. My life is good.

Margaret Joy Weaver

My name changed. After 27 years as Judy Maloney, I divorced. I wasn’t going to return to my maiden name, as many lives had been lived. Judy rolled too easily into my married name—so a complete reset in 2016—Margaret Joy Weaver. A life journey of healing the 3-year public custody battle and suicide of my mother when I was 8. There was silence around our loss, yet that silence was filled by an expanded blended family, academic pursuits, and extracurricular activities— marathons, music and healing modalities. In 2003 a trunk of Mama’s emerged discovering her middle name and name of my great grandmother Margaret so I became 4th generation! Ambition, work and service were my passion—MBA, marketing entrepreneur, and nonprofits (Montesorri to Romania, Sedona Film Festival, Sedona City of Peace). I led Landmark transformational programs to tens of thousands around the world for 17 years. My love for India began in 2001. 2006–2008—6 trips training leaders in Landmark Programs. Since 2016 I have been immersed in India 360 days a year in the Ekam Journey of Enlightenment, while co-parenting my Indian daughter

Noorul Jawaheer—now a graduate student at NAU. We live in Sedona Arizona with our dog Precious. I am deeply grateful for my years at Winsor.

Edith

White

I’ve been living in Brazil for the past 35 years, originally working in the dance/theater world, and then transitioned into running a language school which I luckily closed just before the pandemic. Thankfully, as we all learned how to work remotely during Covid, I have since been giving ESL classes online, mostly to adolescents who keep me on my toes. I remember that my worst class in 6th grade at Winsor was English, and grammar was my nemesis. Imagine if someone had told me then, that during my adult years I would be teaching adolescents its fundamentals, and encouraging them to understand its essence so they, themselves, could solve all their own grammatical doubts. When primarily involved with dance and theater, I trained in the local circus for a brief stint, and then practiced capoeira, a Brazilian martial art, for 25 years. The musicality of the training led me to choral singing, an activity I do until today. I recall the first time I ever sang in a choir was at Winsor, with a very patient and innovative music teacher who had us sing, ’Apples are God’s Bottles,’ the opening line of which I remember until today.

Molly Butler Whitney

Living on the Southcoast of Massachusetts and enjoying the country living by the bay! 71 North Street, Mattapoisett, MA. 02739. Please give me a shout if you come my way. I would love to see my Winsor classmates!

30TH REUNION

Class of 1993

Laura Stanton

It is hard to believe that it has been 30 years! I am currently in Providence, RI with my husband and two boys who are 10 and 13. I am the program director for the geriatric psychiatry fellowship at Brown and work as a geriatric psychiatrist at the Miriam Hospital where I serve as the assistant chief of psychiatry. Over the years, I have run across many Winsor alumnae who are also physicians here at Brown—it is always fun to be in the halls at work and be stopped by the question: “wait, did you go to Winsor?!” I am looking forward to catching up with everyone at the reunion.

Elizabeth Young

After a satisfying career as a professor of Classical Studies and Comparative Literature, I decided to leave academia to focus on my own writing career and start up a private college consulting practice. If anyone is in need of college advice please be in touch!

Margaret Joy Weaver

25TH REUNION

Class of 1998

Blakeney Bell

2 years ago, I finally moved out of the city with my husband to my dream farm in the Hilltowns of Western Mass. I’m currently working my way through growing as many vegetables, flowers, and fruit as will survive at 1800 feet. Our recent experiments with sugaring have yielded 1 precious pint. The move has also helped me to create space for ALL the crafts and hoarding art supplies. I’m a Senior Manager at KPMG in our State & Local Government audit practice, and serve as a Business Unit Audit Technology Lead.

Lesley Broff

Well, I have finally gone ahead and gotten my LCSW and am mid-transition from working mobile therapy in schools and homes to the Autism Outpatient office. It took me a while to figure out, but this is where I plan to spend the rest of my career.

Liz Eavey

Twenty-five years has been forever and the blink of an eye. After Boston, I attended Georgetown, then went off to NYC to work at MTV Networks—an experience that I now recognize was set auspiciously in motion by a Winsor alumna in ’97. I graduated from Wharton (MBA ’11), where I met my husband (Chris), and I’ve spent the past decade working in the consumer startup space, at companies such as Zipcar and

HotelTonight, along with doing some writing about mental health. We’ve lived in Chicago, SF, and now Los Angeles, where we share a multi-generational home with my parents and kids—Caroline (6), Jack (4), Olivia (2). The combination of my daughter starting school and Claire Pasternack Goldsmith ’01 hosting a recent event has made me reflect on my own Winsor experience, the fingerprints of which emerge increasingly in my life every year. (The same cannot be said of my grammar.)

Kim O’Keefe Markelewicz

After college, I went to law school and began practicing law at a small firm. I met my husband, Robert, in Rhode Island, and we got married in 2010. We have two daughters,

Alexandra (8) and Julia (6). The girls keep me very busy and bring me so much joy! We live in Wellesley, not too far from my parents. Over these past 25 years, I’ve remained close friends with Winsor Class of 1998 classmates Emily Apsell Singer and Polly Howe Madsen . These ladies make my life better every day, and I am so grateful for them and all the milestones we’ve celebrated together! Through pure serendipity, Liane Young ’00 and I became reacquainted when our daughters started preschool together and now we are great friends (as are our daughters!). I look forward to seeing Winsor friends and reconnecting at our 25th Reunion. My email address is kmarkelewicz@gmail.com.

Ambika Patni

Two decades ago, I was counting the days until my move to New York. Having spent most of my life in Boston, I was ready to venture out. It is with no lack of irony that I admit I am back. I sometimes wonder if my time away was a vivid dream. Luckily, I have physical proof of journeys beyond the Mass Pike. A residence permit from 12 years in the UK. Dozens of Jo Malone London candles, where I worked for nine years. And most importantly, a husband (Scott) and two children (Arin, six, and Ayla, four). We love the South End, where we moved in 2020, and being closer to Winsor. Professionally, after a stint as Chief Marketing Officer of a skin care startup, I started my own marketing and brand strategy consultancy. I work with early-stage companies, which combines my

Liz Eavey

passion for entrepreneurship and marketing. So here I am back in Boston, and who knows if the circle is complete or if this is a curlicue to another destination. For now, I look forward to heading to Pilgrim Road (the jumping-off point for all my journeys) to celebrate these 25 years with you.

Emily Schlesinger

After graduating Vanderbilt University Law School in 2005 and spending some time working in the Midwest, my husband Hui Li and I moved to Seattle in 2011. I started in a role on Microsoft’s legal team in 2014, and I’ve continued to enjoy the many challenges the work offers. I currently lead a team of lawyers counseling engineering clients on how to navigate the intersection of health & life sciences and artificial intelligence. Hui and I welcomed our first son Gabriel in 2017 and just became a family of 4 (+ our furry child Jobey) with the arrival of our son Eli this past March. I am sorry I can’t make it to the reunion, but I look forward to trying to connect with folks when I’m next in the Boston area to see my parents (now in Dover). In the meantime, I’d welcome reach-outs to anyone who may be headed to my neck of the woods: schleses@gmail.com.

Since graduating from Winsor, I’ve spent most of my time in the Greater Boston area! After graduating from Cornell, I spent four wonderful years at Tufts Med, during which time I got to live with Polly Howe and met my husband David. David and I married in 2009, and we now have two awesome kids, who are 9 and 7. Our family enjoys skiing and traveling, and when our schedules manage to sync up, I love having coffee with Kim O’Keefe. I am an anesthesiologist at MelroseWakefield Hospital (where I got to work shoulder to shoulder with Winsor grad Diana Newton Wood until her retirement), and I teach first year medical students at Tufts Medical School.

Emily Apsell Singer

Emily Apsell Singer

Emily Schlesinger

The Class of 1998 celebrated its 25th Winsor reunion with a special dinner on the balcony of the Lubin-O’Donnell Center for Performing Arts and Wellness.

Front Row (L to R): Kristina Berglund, Blakeney Bell, Ambika Patni, Talia Eini-Pindyck, Adele Budovsky, Sarah Rosow, Kate Tooke Back Row (L to R): Emily A. Singer, Fiona Coffey, Kim O’Keefe Markelewicz, Paula Madsen, Kristen Stuart, Emelie Gevalt, Anjali Midha, Kristina Baynes Reid, Christiane Tolley, Kate Skeele

Returning to Winsor

It was a bright and beautiful spring day to reconnect as past students were invited into today’s classrooms to highlight how Winsor continues to move forward and further its legacy. Sundry generations descended onto campus for Alumnae Weekend 2023 for panels, classes, updates, and mingling. Pictured here are alumnae from the Class of 2018 opening a time capsule they had prepared for their five-year reunion.

The weather was on the side of Winsor alums as flawless spring days and warm temperatures created the perfect backdrop to Alumnae Weekend. On Friday and Saturday, alums were able to reconnect, remember, and reignite the pride they feel in attending a school still intent on its mission to empower girls to lead lives of purpose.

After class dinners on Friday, Saturday was designed to also welcome everyone together and to invite past students into today’s classrooms to highlight how Winsor continues to move forward and further its legacy.

Alumnae Board President Erika Mayer ’91 greeted attendees at lunch and said, “Although I think for many of us the school has undergone much physical transformation since we were last students, I hope you will see over the course of today how much Winsor continues to thrive, grow, and develop incredibly talented students who will go on to become future leaders, like yourselves.”

The day began with the aim of fostering connection and celebrating diversity among alums at the first-ever Affinity Group Workshop, where generations swapped stories and crafted quilt squares highlighting their Winsor experiences. Students also set goals for what they hope their affinity group communities can achieve in the following year.

A moving memorial to alums who were separated by death took place in the Lubin-O’Donnell Center’s Baldwin Recital Hall and was led by Kate Baker-Carr ’80. She asked the gathered group to recall, “What from your Winsor years, years that may well be from far more than half your lifetime ago, do you still hear, do you still carry in your heart? Are there particular places—the window sills in the senior homeroom perfect for two or three to

perch upon—that you hold dear? Even more importantly, who are the people from your Winsor years that you still hear, that you still carry in your heart? Who are the people you have come here, into this room, to remember?”

Guests were invited into classrooms for presentations from student-run groups working to foster inclusiveness and sustainability initiatives on campus. Solar panels, a greenhouse proposal, and a school-wide curriculum review were spotlighted as just a few of the examples of the important work being done by student-run groups, all of which were well received by the audience of alums.

Lunch was held in the dining room, which was decked out in Winsor red. Following a voice vote on Alumnae Board matters, a panel made up of alums from the Class of ’98 provided an intriguing window into their careers at major luxury brands, media, beauty companies, and startups. As guests nibbled on Winsor brownies, they heard all of the buzz on artificial intelligence, social media, and brand-building from accomplished marketing executives who were celebrating their 25th reunion.

The library, art, and science departments opened their doors and heralded their curriculums via “master classes” where alums painted pottery and listened to the latest dispatches from the science and library departments.

With all the trees in full bloom, the sun-lit courtyard was a prime spot for class photos, cocktails, and selfies as more alums from out-of-state arrived for the remainder of the day’s festivities, including remarks from Deputy Attorney General of the United States Lisa Monaco ’86, who received the Julia Lyman Simonds Distinguished Alumna Award at dinner.

To read alumnae weekend news articles in full, please see winsor.edu/news.

Connecting on Campus

Alumnae Weekend attendees represented more than 70 years of Winsor history, with alums from the Class of 1946 to the Class of 2018 in attendance. From cocktails in the courtyard to continuing education in the iLab, art studio, and library, alumnae strengthened their bonds and returned to their roots.

Dinner Provides a Great Capper to a Fun Weekend

Trickling in from cocktail hour in the courtyard, alums entered a transformed dining room where round tables, adorned with year markers, beckoned attendees to cluster and sit according to their graduation decade.

Alumnae Board President Erica Mayer ’91 welcomed the assembled crowd, noting that guests represented more than 70 years of Winsor history, with alums from the Class of 1946 to the Class of 2018 in attendance.

Thanking beloved retiring faculty, Winsor Board of Trustees President Allison Kaneb Pellegrino ’89, P’21, ’22 pointed to English Faculty Jennie Skeele ’71, P’98, ’02, who received a standing ovation for the 46 years she dedicated to Winsor. “Thank you for your love of this school and the generation of Winsor graduations you’ve inspired,” Ms. Pellegrino added to Ms.Skeele.

This year’s 25th-reunion speaker paid attention to “wake-up calls” to find her path and encouraged her classmates and fellow alums to do the same. CEO & co-founder of Diesel Labs Anjali Midha ’98 chose to go to business school, rather than staying at a job where she was unappreciated, and she left a company where she was told to listen more and speak less. Whatever it takes to affect change, “I will do it,” she shared.

Ms. Midha recalled connecting recently at a conference with a young Winsor alum, who confided that she was following in Ms. Midha’s footsteps. Her response? “No, you’re forging the next path, for all of us.”

Head of School Sarah Pelmas spoke about traditions across the years, like painting the senior homeroom and gathering for Under the Lights, that unite current students with the alum community.

Ms. Pelmas described the camaraderie between classes, such as

the seniors surprising the juniors on Ring Day and Class VI sewing and presenting a banner to Class VIII. She also mentioned the yearbook dedication—this year students chose Chef Heather and her team—to highlight the culinary delights that alums would soon enjoy for dinner.

While highlighting the Boston Lead Scholars Program—an eight-year scholarship for Boston residents—and the robust financial aid goals to support middle-income families, Ms. Pelmas shared a piece of advice she often offers.

“I like to tell families that, while their child’s time at Winsor will be extraordinary, students will be alumnae for far longer than they will be here. You are entering into a community that will be with you for the rest of your lives,” she said. Recalling the group of alums before her, Ms. Pelmas added, “They will soon get to be you. Welcome home, and thank you for being here.”

In introducing the guest speaker, Deputy Attorney General of the United States Lisa Monaco ’86, Ms. Pelmas joked that Ms. Monaco “calmed the roiling waters of justice long enough to spend the evening with us.” Ms. Pelmas presented Ms. Monaco with the Julia Lyman Simonds Distinguished Alumna Award, given in loving memory of the Class of 1917 graduate by her daughters and granddaughter; the honor goes annually to a loyal alumna who has combined energetic pursuit of excellence with devoted service to humanity.

Ms. Monaco told how her Winsor years still serve her today, crediting the school for the “skills and the confidence” to take on the responsibilities of deputy attorney general.

After thanking Ms. Pelmas for her “amazing stewardship” of the school, Ms. Monaco admitted that, with three brothers at home, “Winsor was a refuge for me.”

With work that puts her “smack dab in the middle of every flashpoint in our time,” Ms. Monaco said she

remains grateful to Winsor for giving her “the compass to navigate any crisis when there are no easy answers.”

“As I prepare to testify before Congress or for a national security meeting—basically anything I do where I digest large amounts of information—I hear Ms. Souvaine’s voice in my head from copying hours of Greek and Latin, ‘Muscles train the mind.’ ”

Recalling “the faculty who made the language classes more about

life than conjugating verbs, and the coaches who found a way to uplift players, even the ones who never made varsity field hockey,” she said, “Winsor is preparing its graduates, and Winsor women need that foundation more than ever.”

In closing, Ms. Monaco remarked that her job is about “not only what the law allows but also what is wise. Winsor and my parents helped me develop a compass to navigate the gray.”

Head of School Sarah Pelmas shares a laugh with Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco ’86.

65th Reunion—Class of 1958 (L to R): Carolyn Kimball Tolles, Suzy White, Lee Sprague, Sally Ropes Hinkle, Nancy Maitland, Pattie Sullivan, Cory Hurley McPeek

15th Reunion—Class of 2008 (L to R): Liz Chanin, Natasha Gorden, Lillian Kivel, Paige Coulier, Isabella Bulkeley

10th Reunion—Class of 2013 (L to R): Erina Li, Anu Gupta, Sarah Khorasani, Kate Brea, Elizabeth Hiss, Regina Noonan, Hannah McGrath

30th Reunion—Class of 1993 (L to R): Jen O’Neil, Abby Vigneron, Lorna Campbell, Jaime Stahler Smoller, Laura Finnerty, Kristin Paterson, Laura Stanton, Alisa Kahn Ridruejo, Ethel Bullitt

45th Reunion—Class of 1978 (L to R): Nancy Morgan Kivel, Janet Kouroubacahs, Karen Sontag

35th Reunion—Class of 1988 (L to R): Isabel Taube, Elizabeth Skates, Amy Daley, Kristin Hoffman

40th Reunion—Class of 1983 (L to R): Chrissie Glynn, Beth Bacon, Amanda Blakeley, Robin Downey, Celia Francis, Kim Harol, Denise Aranoff, Sarah Lees, Eugenie Jeffries, Sarah Greiner, Lizz Finnegan, Vicky Wiseman, Cynthia Esielionis, Jennifer Inker, Liz Tillman, Miwa Watkins, Dorrie Pollock, Alexandra McPeek, Siobhan O’Riordan

5th Reunion—Class of 2018 (L to R): Simran Khanna, Alex Bardon, Kathleen He, Alessandra DeVito, Lucie Kapner, Daphnee Piou, Madison Lehan

25th Reunion—Class of 1998 (L to R): Alisa Nagano, Liz Eavey, Kate Harrelson, Kate Skeele, Ambika Patni, Kate Tooke, Anjali Midha, Kristina Berglund

Using Robots to Build People

lockdowns!). The team has earned the “Inspire Award” at qualifying events five times—the competition’s highest award.

What is it like to be a part of the team? Every member of every team works for months to create a machine, and when we get to competition, every person acknowledges the work that they and their competitors have put in. We create robots with the intent that they should collaborate with other robots to overcome a challenge, rather than fight in violent duels.

How does this play into your teaching?

What is something people assume about robotics?

People’s first reaction is often, “Oh, so like ‘BattleBots’?” No. We do not do “BattleBots.”

How did Winsor robotics get started?

With a handful of students in 2017. These students recruited their first mentor, Marlyse Reeves, a Ph.D. student in computer science with a background in aerospace engineering. The students spent time with Marlyse, working on their robot, after school and over breaks, finding space in classrooms or in

home basements. That small group has grown into more than 30 active members with their own robotics lab in the Lubin-O’Donnell Center. The team recruited a second mentor, Rachel Holladay, another MIT Ph.D. student. Both Marlyse and Rachel have been irreplaceable and are people that the kids really look up to.

Does the robotics team compete?

The team has qualified for the state championship every year that we have competed (including the remote year during COVID-19 pandemic

Robotics is the embodiment of my philosophy for educating young people. To paraphrase Dean Kamen, founder of FIRST Tech Challenge: Where other programs use kids to build robots, we use robots to build kids. We use the context of building a robot to teach fundamental engineering principles and concrete mechanical, computer science, and business marketing skills. We teach students how to collaborate, how to respectfully and productively engage in critical dialogue. Students also learn leadership and respect for every member of our community. Winsor robotics is a safe space for students to be authentically themselves, share and explore their ideas, and have go-to trusted adults for advice.

Jason Cox is the faculty advisor to the Winsor Robotics Club, which boasts two competition teams: the Wildbots and the Wirecats. A systems integration specialist with the Technology Department, Mr. Cox is also Class V advisor and teacher, with courses that include STEM and Computer Science.

“INCREDIBLY REWARDING”

AND

“FUN”

is how Claire Pasternack Goldsmith ’01 described her career in education, which has included positions as a teacher and a consultant. Ms. Goldsmith credits her love of learning to her time on Pilgrim Road. “I wouldn’t be who I am without my Winsor experience—the education, people, and the identity I developed there. Winsor is where I learned to think critically, made my best friends, and developed a confident approach to doing good in the world.”

Ms. Goldsmith has remembered Winsor in her estate plans through a planned gift. “I know I will always care about access to an excellent education—especially for girls. I want that to be a part of my legacy.”

“My education prepared me to take career risks, hold my head high when things didn’t work out, focus on valuesbased impact, and grapple with what it means to be a working mother,” she added.

Ms. Goldsmith has stayed active at Winsor by serving on the Winsor Board of Trustees and has recently been appointed to co-chair of the Equity Committee.

Have you remembered Winsor in your will or retirement plan? Let us know and we’ll welcome you to the Lamp of Learning Society. Please be in touch with Erika McMahon 617.912.1340 or emcmahon@winsor.edu.

www.winsor.edu/giving

THE WINSOR SCHOOL

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If you have received this for your alumna daughter who is living elsewhere, please let us know by contacting our Assistant Director of Alumnae Engagement at 617.912.1321 or alumnae@winsor.edu.

FROM THE ARCHIVES

This 1980s rowing class took a creative approach to off-water training by practicing their synchronization on the Winsor fields.