125 Years of Educating Boys
Student Life at Woodberry Forest School • january 2014
The House That Tigers Built partnering with habitat for humanity
Most people think the time it takes to build a house is measured in months, but Woodberry boys know a house can go up in hours — if there are enough hands and hammers.
JFK 22 Nov 1963 student-created art commemorates kennedy assassination
Fourteen years ago — about the time many current Woodberry boys were toddlers — art teacher Kelly Lonergan started a project with his Varsity Art students that explored the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Since then, more than sixty students in the afterschool art program have helped create eleven works of art, which were displayed in the Baker Gallery for the fiftieth anniversary of the shooting. How do students create composite paintings? I photocopy a picture and cut it into one-inch squares. Each student paints what he sees in his square on a large piece of paper. He doesn’t know what the photo shows until everyone is finished and we put it together on the wall. Why did you choose this specific event? I was a child when Kennedy was assassinated. The images, which fascinated me then, continue to fascinate our students today. My goal over the years was to complete the series in time for this year’s anniversary. What are some things students learn from the project? They learn art concepts like shape, color, and value. And they find out something about working as a team — every student made a contribution to the whole. The accuracy of each square is very important, but, in the end, the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. The project also communicates the shock, drama, confusion, and mystery of an important event in American history.
Serving the Community
fast fact
Woodberry boys are required to complete sixty hours of community service before graduation. While some hours are earned during summer projects, such as building trails and refurbishing elementary schools, boys serve throughout the year, too. Students volunteer with the local Boys and Girls Club or Senior Center, participate in blood drives, or develop their own projects!
Eighty Tigers got up early on a November Sunday, reported to the temporary job site on campus, and began to assemble walls for the first-ever Woodberry Forest/Habitat for Humanity Blitz Build. Five hours later, what had been a pile of lumber looked a lot more like a house. In December, several students spent another Blitz Build day with a crew of local volunteers to raise those Tiger-built walls at their permanent Orange County homesite, thirty minutes away. They also helped add a roof and siding. Working alongside the volunteers was the family of six who is buying the house — and will soon call it home. They’ll be reminded every day of the generosity of the boys of Woodberry Forest School. And those boys won’t soon forget the feeling they got — some call it “Habititis” — when they gave a helping hand to a deserving family.
Noland Fellowship
perry hammond studies in rome
Sixth-form student Perry Hammond pursued a longtime passion last summer: studying ancient stories and poems — in Latin — at the actual locations in Italy where they were set. This life-changing experience was made possible by the Noland Fellowship program, a prestigious summer study opportunity at Woodberry Forest.
student snapshot
Eric Ways ’14 Eric Ways ’14 shines brightly wherever he finds himself around the Woodberry campus. Whether he’s earning High Honors in the classroom, running around the Finch Track or Barbee Center breaking yet another sprinting record — he holds school and state records in the 300m, 500m, and 4x400m — or starring on stage, all eyes are on this outgoing North Carolina star.
To be selected as the 2013 Noland Fellow, Perry developed a proposal for participating in the Latin in Rome program, three weeks of above: Perry and friends in front of the Trevi fountain in Rome study and travel for outstanding high school Latin students. Scholars from the University of Dallas, which sponsors the program, accompanied a small group of highly motivated students from across the United States to ancient cities around Rome and the Bay of Naples. The students translated Latin passages relevant to their location, immersed themselves in local history and culture, and enjoyed wonderful food with new friends. For Perry, a trip highlight occurred as his group sat atop the acropolis at Cumae, an ancient city near Naples. “We translated passages from the Aeneid about Aenea’s visit to Cumae. This moment culminated for me more than six years of Latin study.”
How did you first learn about Woodberry Forest? My mom and I were extras in a film and spent our downtime in a room with the other extras. We met a Woodberry mom who told me I should look at the WFS website. It sounded like a great adventure, so I applied! And my mom was happy that I’d get such a good education. What have you been involved in at the Forest? I’ve played football and soccer, and I run track. This is my second year as varsity track captain. I am also a reader in Chapel, a campus tour guide, and a member of both the Woodberry Christian Fellowship and the Caucus, our student diversity group. And I love to act — I played the lead in The Outsiders and have had roles in five other plays. What are your plans for the future? I got a scholarship to Notre Dame University to run track, and I plan to study film and television. Of all the schools that recruited me, Notre Dame is the most like Woodberry. The track team is a family, and they have an excellent sprinting coach. Maybe — with a LOT of training — I’ll qualify for the Olympics.
Semi-Formal
a festive tradition
It’s not difficult to guess what Woodberry boys enjoy most about the January semi-formal — welcoming girls to campus! A longstanding Woodberry tradition, even featured in a 1944 issue of Life magazine, semi-formal attracts more than 200 girls to campus each year. Many boys bring a date from home, but some invite girls from Chatham, Foxcroft, Madeira, St. Margaret’s, St. Mary’s, and other schools. Attendees enjoy a catered dinner, a photo booth, and non-stop dancing — this year to Groovetown, a North Carolina–based band that plays everything from Motown to today’s hits. Ties are loosened, shoes are kicked off, and the action doesn't stop until 11:00 p.m., when boys return to their dorms, girls retire to their accommodations in the Wall Room, and all proclaim this year’s semiformal the best ever!
How has Woodberry prepared you for Notre Dame?
Take Advantage of Overnight Visits
Coach Phillips has really helped me! He knows what he’s talking about — he’s made me a lot faster, and his positive attitude makes track practice the best part of my day. Also, I know I’m ready for college academically. I’ve always been a good student, but Woodberry has taken me to the next level.
Prospective students have the opportunity to spend the night at Woodberry Sunday through Friday. Stay in the dorms with your guide, and even attend classes with him the next day before your scheduled interview. See what it's like to live at the Forest!
2 • Woodberry Forest School • 125 years of educating boys
Call the admissions office today to schedule your visit.
A Glimpse into the Classroom Active learning for inquisitive tigers
Woodberry teachers, always eager to engage their students, take teaching beyond the behind-the-desk routine. During the winter trimester, they’ve found plenty of great ways to get students involved in learning. Matthew Keating’s Honors Introduction to Computer Science students learned the Java programming language in preparation for the AP exam. They’ve also worked with the Finch, a robot with on-board light and temperature sensors they can program to move, talk, light up, and draw. In one of the Manning Family Science Building’s labs, Gregory Guldin turned out the lights for a burning experiment. Fourth-form chemistry students lit up mystery chemicals with Bunsen burners and identified the materials by their flame’s color. Paul Huber may be Woodberry’s senior master — the teacher who’s been at Woodberry the longest — but he’s still happy to use the latest technology. He’s written over forty games on Sporcle.com to make learning conjugations fun for his Latin students. (http://www.sporcle.com/games/psh3/latin_verb_sum_in_six_active_tenses) A trip to Washington, D.C., was on the agenda for Steve Stancill’s AP Criminal Law students. They sat in on a session of the Supreme Court as justices heard arguments in the search-and-seizure case Fernandez v. California. Fifth-form biology students braved chilly conditions one morning to observe and gather data on bird foraging preferences. They rotated between two stations, counting the number of seeds birds ate from the feeders. Lucky for the boys, their teacher, Len Mills, brought along some hot chocolate! Third-form English students in sections taught by Marc Hogan and Karen Broaddus are waiting for the results of their entries into the Writer’s Eye contest. They traveled to the University of Virginia to tour its art museum and choose a favorite artwork to inspire a story or poem, which they then submitted to the competition. In past years, two Tigers have won awards and seen their work published in the annual Writer’s Eye Anthology. clockwise from top:
Mr. Huber in his classroom; burning chemicals in the lab; examining the Finch robot; biology students observing birds
staff feature
Clyde Firman For the past eighteen years, the Forest has been home to Clyde Firman, Woodberry's director of food services, and his wife, Tammy, director of health services. Clyde, a native of southeastern Virginia, graduated from the Culinary Institute of America. He also coaches Woodberry’s skeet team and advises the Rod & Gun Club. Which entrée is the most popular with the boys? It’s a tie between chicken tortellini and ribs. We prepare 800 portions for our seated meal, which student waiters serve in the Reynolds Family Dining Room. A new building that features updated dining facilities is taking shape on campus. What will boys find most appealing about the new dining room? They’ll appreciate the additional space. We’ll be able to preserve the home-like feel of our current dining room while adding special locations for hot food items, our soup and salad bar — and, of course, our soft-serve ice cream bar. What is the appeal of the Rod & Gun Club? We’re incredibly fortunate to have a campus where boys can safely hunt, fish, help keep Robertson Lake clean, and just generally practice good conservation. Boys who join the club have been hunting and fishing since childhood. Where does the food come from for Woodberry’s annual wild game cookout?
Fall Sports By the Numbers
Woodberry's fall sports enjoyed a successful 2013 season.
22 All-Prep (5 Cross Country, 15 Football, 2 Soccer)
2 All-State Hon. Mentions (Football)
1 All-Prep Defensive MVP (Football)
2 Prep League Champions (Cross
12 All-State 1st Team (4 Cross Country,
8 Football)
7 All-State 2nd Team (5 Football, 2 Soccer)
Country, Football)
1 Coach of the Year (Cross Country) 1 State Champion (Cross Country)
Winter sports are already underway! Look in our next edition for updates on basketball, indoor climbing, indoor track, squash, swimming and diving, and wrestling.
We hunt some of it on campus — ducks, geese, squirrels, and the occasional rabbit. Boys contribute venison they harvest at home, and I purchase other foods, such as quail, wild boar sausage, and roasted oysters. The boys cook everything and invite their classmates to give it a try. Tell us about the legendary Currituck hunting trip. Interest is so high that we’re running two weekend trips. The boys love staying at Stuarts Hunting Lodge on Bell’s Island, in Currituck County, North Carolina, and hunting geese, ducks, and swans. Tiger Tales • january 2014 • 3
Presorted First Class U.S. Postage PAID Orange, VA Permit No. 97
Woodberry Forest School Office of Admissions 898 Woodberry Forest Road Woodberry Forest, VA 22989-9989
Here’s your latest copy of Tiger Tales!
FINANCIAL AID DEADLINE IS JANUARY 15
What step are you on?
(Parent's Financial Statement due)
For more information, email financial.aid@woodberry.org
Spend the night (optional)
Tour campus and interview
Take SSAT
Submit application, recommendations, and transcripts!
2013–14 Facts and Figures Dollars awarded (grants and loans)
$5,661,075
Percent of student body receiving aid
43%
Average aid package
$31,917
Number of full scholarship grants Median grant
26 $33,950
W W W.W O O D B E R RY. O R G
www . faceboo k . co m / woodberryforestsc h oo l
Don't forget to schedule your visit!
First-round application deadline:
FEBRUARY 1 CONTACT 888-798-9371
WFS.ADMISSIONS@WOODBERRY.ORG
ADDITIONAL DATES Admissions decision:
March 10 Invite Back Weekend:
April 4 & 5 Enrollment deadline:
April 10
Woodberry Forest admits students of any race, color, sexual orientation, disability, and national or ethnic origin to all of the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sexual orientation, disability, or national or ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic or other school-administered programs. This school is authorized under federal law to enroll nonimmigrant students.