Wooster News 2011

NEWS 2011

Dr. Donald Seifert ’51 remembering John Verdery What Makes a Wooster Education Unique Best Buddies Progress at Prospect the Best Possible Start

Wooster News 2011 A publication of Wooster School

Can you identify this picture?

Headmaster Timothy B. Golding Contributors Justine Bryar

Please email Justine Bryar at Justine.Bryar@woosterschool.org and receive a gift from the Wooster General Store.

Richard Cass Tad Jacks Matthew Levy ’12 William Street ’80 Don Wade Alumni Notes Justine Bryar Design Good Design, LLC www.gooddesignusa.com Photography Chip Riegel RoseMarie Wallace Proofreader Nina Maynard Send letters, alumni news or address corrections to:

Justine Bryar Wooster School 91 Miry Brook Road Danbury, CT 06810 U.S.A.

Justine.Bryar@woosterschool.org

203-830-3000 www.woosterschool.org

NEWS 2011

On the cover: Monica Dahlgren ’12 Goalie on this year’s HVAL Championship team.

4

6

NEWS 2011

Table of Contents 2 From the Headmaster 4 Dr. Donald M. Seifert ’51: A Legacy of Giving Back 6 remembering John Verdery through Joan Tait’s Eye 10 Three Views~ What Makes a Wooster Education Unique 16 Best Buddies and the Wooster Tradition 18 Progress at The Prospect School at Wooster 20 Getting Kids Off to the Best Possible Start

22 Across the Bridge 22 The Magic of Robotics 24 Why Sports Matter 28 The Wonders of Art 30 Wooster Drama Presents…

31 Wooster’s NEASC Accreditation 31 After Wooster: College Matriculation 32 Faculty Kudos

34 Class Notes

10 16

18

20 2011 1

From the Headmaster

E

x

p a

n

d

i

n

g

Our Horizons

“We ask ourselves: What brings outstanding teachers to our campus? What should we be teaching?�

This is our fundamental mission and my obligation to our students and parents.

2 Wooster News

Over the last several months since the Great Class of 2011 has gone off to their next educational endeavors, our campus has been busy with a variety of new projects and initiatives. Each academic year gives us new challenges. One of them is acclimating and supporting our newest members of the Wooster faculty and staff who are responsible for the young people in our care. Bringing the best administrators and teachers to our campus is my top priority in any year. As I have said in another issue of Wooster News, “We ask ourselves: What brings outstanding teachers to our campus?

What should we be teaching?” This is our fundamental mission and my obligation to our students and parents.

In this issue of Wooster News, we have focused on a number of topics relevant to this school year. As Headmaster, one of my annual projects is to set the theme for the year; for 2011–2012 our theme is Expanding Our Horizons. I direct you to the Wooster School website (www.woosterschool.org) and my annual Convocation speech. Two major initiatives have begun this year. We have added to our educational offerings a new entry level: the three-year-olds. We have reconfigured Wellington (formerly East Cottage) to include this age group and our pre-kindergarten program. In addition, we have begun The Prospect School at Wooster. This is a new division of Wooster

I am surrounded by people who give generously of their time to educate the young people in our care.

School intended for students ages 7–14 with language-based learning disabilities. We acquired the former Maimonides Academy building in 2010 and have begun this program at that facility. For those alumni who may come back on campus, I invite you to visit these two important additions to Wooster School.

This year we are involved in our self study as part of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) reaccreditation process. You will read more about this time of reflection and review of our School on page 31. We also completed the first step in determining an educational roadmap for the ever-changing curriculum of our school. You will hear more about this in the coming months.

When I think about Wooster School at this time of year, I am reminded daily of the word Generous in our School Prayer. I am surrounded by people who give generously of their time to educate the young people in our care. I am also reminded of generosity when I review those individuals who have made voluntary gifts to this school. For your information, a Report of Giving is included in this Wooster News.

Sincerely,

Timothy B. Golding, Headmaster

2011 3

Dr. Donald M. Seifert ’51

A Legacy of Giving Back 4 Wooster News

Tim Golding

father. He is totally

of a person who is a

Reflects on

self-effacing and

greater embodiment

Dr. Seifert and

modest. My greatest

of a Wooster School

the Class of ’61

fear is that my words

graduate or an example

might embarrass him.

of the students we

I believe Dr. Donald M.

Witness that while his

would like to produce

Seifert personifies the

gifts to Wooster over

now and into the

words in our School

the years, most recently

future. He is our ideal.

prayer that encourages

to the Angel Fund that

In 2011, we

our students to be

will sustain students

celebrated the 50th

One day, when he was 14 years old,

“gentle, generous,

through financial aid,

anniversary of the

Dr. Donald M. Seifert had an experience that would change his life and, ultimately, the lives of generations of Wooster School students.

“I had finished my first year at Bethel (Conn.) High School and my father and I went to Wooster to see my brother, who was a student here,” he recalls. “The Rev. John D. Verdery, who was the wonderful Headmaster, asked my father why I wasn’t attending Wooster as well and he encouraged my father to have me enroll. I didn’t learn until I was 35 that my parents couldn’t afford to send both my brother and I so I went to Wooster School as a scholarship student.”

Verdery and Wooster School had a profound impact on Dr. Seifert, who would receive his undergraduate degree from Brown University, his DMD (Doctor of Dental Medicine) from Harvard, and training in maxillofacial surgery at New York Cornell Hospital.

“Of all the schools I attended, Wooster had the greatest beneficial influence in my life,” he explains. “It was seminal in whatever I did. The combination of values was unique.

The importance of service, of helping others, and respect for people was something I learned at Wooster and I hope it has stayed with me throughout my life.”

“Just as today, Wooster had a wonderful facility that created a remarkable atmosphere to learn. Verdery set the standards. It really was like the novel, Goodbye, Mr. Chips.

Wooster was interested in promoting intellectual excellence. Lists would be posted so everyone knew what your academic average was. That pursuit of excellence is true today.”

Much to his surprise, Dr. Seifert, 78, was the valedictorian of his senior class.

truthful, kind and

have been generous,

graduation of the

brave.” His has been

he resolutely wishes

Class of 1961. Wooster

a life well-lived as an

not to take credit for

School was a different

outstanding and caring

doing what comes so

place back then and

doctor, husband and

naturally to him when it

the changes from an

comes to this place that

all-male boarding

he loves.

school to where we are

today were not always

When I think of

Dr. Seifert, as I often

easy for alumni to

do, I cannot think

accept. But when the Class of ’61 came back for their reunion in May,

“I always thought the other guys were smarter,” he says, laughing gently.

Dr. Seifert’s surgical practice and his long, pro bono efforts to establish a Department of Dentistry at Overlook Hospital in Summit, N.J., where he lives with his wife, Lynn, limited the amount of time and energy he could devote to Wooster School to the occasional Reunion. But a meeting with Headmaster Tim Golding changed all that.

“Learning Tim’s vision for the School and meeting some of the faculty and students convinced me that Wooster had remained true to everything I thought was important about it,” Dr. Seifert said. “I thought about making a contribution and talked it over with my wife and she said, ‘why don’t you just do it?’”

And so he did.

The “Dr. Donald Seifert ’51 and Mrs. Lynn Seifert Angel Endowment” provides a generous and steady source of financial aid for students who might not otherwise be able to attend Wooster School.

“If I was Warren Buffett, I’d have given a lot more,” he adds. “Wooster School is that important.”

its members realized that while the School had changed, our core values had not—not in the least. They resolved to come together as a class to do something important for Wooster.

To that end, they have made a significant contribution to the faculty development fund in honor of the outstanding teachers they remembered and with the hope that their efforts would help maintain our tradition of teaching excellence.

We give thanks.

2011 5

John Verdery

remembering

through Joan Tait’s Eye

Tim Golding | Joan Tait is with us this afternoon in the John Verdery Library. It is appropriate that we are in the John Verdery Library because Joan Tait was the secretary to John Verdery from 1970 to 76.

With that as an introduction, I would like to congratulate you on Evan Gilchrist’s graduation this year—your grandson. I would like to start by simply asking you how did you get the job of working for John Verdery and what were your duties?

Joan Tait | We have to start

with my son, Kim Gilchrist, who was already a student here in 1968. At the graduation of the class of 1970 I came to Commencement to be with him, and John Verdery, who was conducting the day, mentioned that one of the people who was leaving was his secretary. As soon as I heard that, I thought of nothing else except the fact that I would speak with John

6 Wooster News

Joan Tait was the longtime secretary to The Headmaster and an eyewitness to an important era in Wooster School history. She sat down with headmaster Tim Golding to share her memories and perceptions.

Verdery after the service and ask him if he were taking applications. If so, I would like to do that. So I did. And I began working in the fall of 1970.

TG | Many have said that John was a formidable personality.

JT | I would say that he was a tremendously

charismatic person. And he was always very connected with whomever he was talking.

He was always very friendly. He would always smile and twinkle at you. I asked my daughter, who was in the class of ’74, how she remembered him, and she said “He was so personable and so nice to everybody. He wasn’t stuffy at all.” I thought that was a pretty good description. Our offices, by the way, were in the New Building and the Headmaster’s office was right there before you came to the Library on the right. When classes changed, he would

stand in the doorway of his office and greet the kids as they came by, patting this one on the shoulder, “Hello, how are you?” or “Good game yesterday.” And I would see him doing this every morning as the classes went through.

He was really wonderful.

TG | Talk to me a little bit about John

Verdery’s relationship with the boys—did he do personal counseling with the boarders at his house, in his office, by walking around, or all of the above?

JT | I would say all of the above and even

out there on the benches of the athletic fields when the games were going on. He would find the youngster he wanted to talk to, and sometimes take him aside privately. He generally spread himself around wherever the students were, to be available to them—to find out what was going on in their lives. Kids loved to chat with him.

money to. He had heard of Wooster, but had never visited and he, I guess, thought “I’ll give it to them.” It was completely unexpected.

TG | I have seen in the files a number of

letters, correspondence that John hand wrote.

As his secretary, how much did you type or did he do most of it in longhand?

JT | Yes, he would send them to me,

and I would type them out and post them.

He regularly wrote letters to each of the graduating seniors in his own hand and they were a short view and long view of how that student had been in the School—how the whole experience had been. And they were wonderful letters. He was a supremely good letter-writer. He loved to write, really. I think that’s why so many things he wrote.

TG | How many seniors was he writing to in those days?

TG | Was it true that he had a favorite pipe? JT | Wasn’t it 44 this year? That’s a very high number. I don’t think we ever had 44 JT | Oh, absolutely. He always had that that I remember. I would say it was usually

and it was in and out of his mouth. It was part of his persona. He had a little theater about him as well. He did know how to make a point dramatically. He would gesture with the pipe, smiling or laughing in a particular way, or telling a joke. He loved stories and he had a very good sense of humor. He used humor a lot in his relations with people. He was trusted by everyone—boys, girls and me, too. Do you want to hear a story? I opened all the mail at the School and distributed it every morning. I opened a letter and sure enough there was a check in it—a big check. So, knowing John’s interest in fund-raising and all that, I told him ‘I have a very nice check here—$75.00.’ “Oh, let me see it.” He looked at it and said, “Joan, it’s for $75,000.” I think in the early ’70s. It was one of those moments that did not happen very often. The donor was not well known to John at all. I think it was a bequest. The story goes, as I remember it, this gentleman was drawing up his will and didn’t have any particular family to give any

less than that. He enjoyed thinking about the progress young kids had made in their years at school. He was very close to the students and to the senior class. I’ll mention a story here because it was one of the most outstanding saving of souls I’ve ever seen in the School. A young man named Chris Spaccarotella came into school as a sophomore, I think. His father was in the Army in Vietnam, and whenever he was in the States, he would come in to talk with John Verdery. He was always in full dress uniform, lots of ribbons and he was always very quiet spoken and he always paid his bills in person in the Business Office. His wife had committed suicide several months before Chris came to school. And he had to go back to Vietnam with the Army. This boy had been through a tragedy with his mother, and then his father disappeared over the horizon quite frequently. He came to Wooster and just stuck it out—he was very quiet. He put his head down, did his work, and in his senior year, he was Senior Prefect here. The father survived

“When classes changed, he would stand in the doorway of his office and greet the kids as they came by, patting this one on the shoulder, ‘Hello, how are you?’ or ‘Good game yesterday.’”

2011 7

the Vietnam War and his whole experience here was very good. I think John Verdery had a very strong role in bringing that boy through such trying circumstances.

TG | A number of people I talk to in my

travels talk about the personal contact, the extra mile that John Verdery went to in order to make that school experience a positive one was extraordinary. You could fill a library.

JT | He had wonderful help from his

senior faculty—there was Joe Grover, Donald Schwartz, Korb Eynon, Jules Arnold, John Cheeseman and Jim Hammer, who year after year were very close to the students. John had a very trusting relationship with his faculty and trustees. The communication was very good. So, without having to be there every moment, he relied on his senior faculty, who could tell him what was going on and he could focus on it, even more than the one-onone with the students.

think this was in 1968 or 69—he found that the parents of the girls were a little more inquisitive and curious because they knew this had been a boys’ boarding school. However, it didn’t mean that parents became active in school. They came to games and they came if a play was put on, but they didn’t take an active part in our school affairs. And I think he liked it that way. Another reason that John was skeptical about having too many day students was that he felt that it would become sort of a hybrid school. That he would lose the support of the alumni, who all had been boarders. And I think was worried that we would reach a sort of financial crunch— public relations with them was something

TG | One of the things I wrote in my summer letter this year was about the amount of involvement parents have in their children’s lives—as in a little too much; interfering with the teacher/student relationship. I was wondering if you could comment on the parents of your era at Wooster. Were the parents involved?—I know many of them were far away because of the boarding situation. Were the parent relationships with the boarding students different than those of the day students?

JT | Well, John Verdery liked to keep

his distance from the parents unless he was compelled to meet with them or write them a letter. Not a lot of distance, but a little so the School magic took hold. He did write to the parents about their students so they could feel in touch. He never had a PTA here or a parent council or things of that order.

He welcomed them when they came and was charming to them, but he did not encourage them to be in an active participatory way on campus. He believed in day students in small doses. However, as the girls came—I

8 Wooster News

Secretaries (top to

he didn’t like to think about. He had some favorite sayings he used to pull out from time to time. One was that the cost of boarding school—Wooster School—used to be about the cost of a mid-size Chevrolet. That was one of his analogies. When my two kids were here I think it was something like $3000, and it was about $4000 by the time they graduated.

They were day school students and, believe me, I welcomed that. I didn’t make any special arrangements because I worked here.

We paid full freight because we could do it. It seemed the right thing to do. Another saying he had was that you have to beware people with charm. And I could see that it was one of his own great gifts that he had come through his life aware that it could also be very dangerous. You have to be wary of charming people. It was somewhat self-deprecating, but you knew he was aware of it.

bottom, l to r): Eunice Grover, Mary Demetrius, Naomi Emmons, Joan Tait, Gloria Pappas, Eleanor Clark, Betsy Lopato, Ethel Hunt, Helen Sayers

TG | Did he control his schedule or did you

control his schedule?

JT | We did it together. I would try to

arrange what he wanted. There was a lot of telephoning to be done. He had a very busy schedule and he liked to keep in touch with a lot of people all the time, particularly the trustees. He also knew a lot of other headmasters in this area and also around the country. He stayed busy keeping up with his contacts and keeping up to date on what was going on in boarding schools and day schools.

He was up on it all. He kept in good touch with people. So he was busy.

TG | The question of fund-raising comes up a lot and I’ve read the book Dear Chris, which John wrote about fund-raising. I even know a little bit about who Chris is. Did you ever watch John Verdery’s fund-raising in action?

JT | Indeed I did. On Parents’ Day or

Alumni Day or even just as he talked about it offhand, in a private way, it was very much on his mind all the time. When he built his Board of Trustees, I’m sure money was part of what he had to consider—whether or not they would be a generous board. He had a great talent for selecting people—people who were not only generous, but also who were people of power in their lives.

TG | I’ve read the list of board members he had and they come from the captains of industry, law firms—it was extraordinary.

Suzanne Verdery—where does she fit into this whole puzzle?

JT | Well, she was a lady who had an

absolute, total talent for giving wonderful meals, entertainment and kindness to everyone. I never knew her to be difficult. She gave lovely parties that she and John would host together. She had a Cordon Bleu cooking background and put on just beautiful food.

They were both extremely gracious as a host and hostess. The same was true in France.

They had two houses in France—side by side in Roussillon. One was for all the guests who came to see them—everyone wanted to come to see the Verderys because they would have a wonderful time.

TG | How did John find privacy in a

boarding school—moments for himself for recovery time? Since he was on 24-7, where did he get those moments of solitude?

JT | I think he had fewer of them

than most people nowadays. He was so committed to the School and its life, he didn’t complain about not having a lot of time. However, he did find great pleasure in being a host, especially going off to France.

What I remember recreationally, if he was angry or had a lot on his mind, he would go out and chop wood. He was very good at splitting wood.

“John Verdery liked to keep his distance from the parents unless he was compelled to meet with them or write them a letter. Not a lot of distance, but a little so the School magic took hold.”

TG | I wanted to get your parting thoughts since your grandson, Evan, graduated in June; do you feel as though you have come full circle?

JT | Yes, it’s the end of an era, really, for

me. I’ve been very close to Wooster during so many phases of my life and my kids’ lives, and my grandchildren’s lives. For him to be coming to the end of his school years here was pretty important to me. I’m glad that he survived because he had a pretty shaky time earlier on. I was definitely thrilled when you announced that he won the Eugenia Coburn Prize. That was simply wonderful.

TG | Joan it has been a pleasure. Your memory is impeccable and we thank you for sharing all of this information.

JT | Thank you very much. It was a superb

set of years in my life and I’m just very grateful for the honor of working for him and to be associated with this school.

TG | Wooster is extremely fortunate to have had you.

2011 9

Self-help thru the decades

ol bear the laboring oar. This is a scho “We believe that the boy should the from has ol ies hard but the scho of hard work . Not only are the stud ption exce .” That is, all the boys without beginning been a school of “self help es, as waiting on table, washing dish perform the “jobs” of the school, such true st almo is It etc. s, , removing ashe taking care of rooms, sweeping halls a here, whether it is a clean bed, or gets boy a to say that anything that ram prog gets for himself. A “self help” clean plate or a good Latin mark he living, but we feel that the fullest, necessarily demands simplicity of e.” e where simplicity of living is in vogu richest and finest life can best thriv 1932 circa ol, Scho —The Story of the Wooster

Three Views~

What Makes a Wooster Education Unique

10 Wooster News

Trust, Culture & Responsibility

by Richard Cass

I first visited Wooster when my wife was being recruited as an administrator.

After twenty-some years around independent schools, I thought I’d experienced most of the ways in which students could act with each other, but on my student-led campus tour, I saw remarkable examples of students treating each other well, including holding doors open for each other and, wonder of wonders, cleaning the School. It seemed to me this respect for each other was only possible in an atmosphere of great trust.

At Wooster, both academic success and personal growth depend on trust: trust between student and teacher, student and school, student and community. Trust within the School is founded on a sense of mutual responsibility among students, faculty, administration and the community at large.

Wooster instills responsibility one student at a time, one act at a time. The School understands and respects each individual’s unique strengths and challenges. The Wooster motto affirms this practice: “From each according to ability; to each according to need.”

Wooster’s culture teaches students responsibility in scores of ways:

…this respect for each other was only possible in an

Responsibility for themselves:

> The Self-help tradition emphasizes personal engagement in the people and life of the School. > The Honor Code supports Wooster’s community of trust. > The Warner Rule insists that no one impede the learning, growth, or well-being of another. > The Jobs program implements the Self-help tradition by making students responsible for the condition of the campus. > The Prefect system places responsibility for campus life in the hands of student leaders.

trust .

atmosphere of great

Responsibility for their education:

> Students evaluate each other’s work. > Students are expected to recognize the need for and seek out extra academic help. > Students learn time management skills to maximize their learning efficiency. > And students are deeply involved in their college selection process.

2011 11

Responsibility for others:

> The School Motto reminds students to draw from each according to ability and to give to each according to need. > An Honor and Discipline Committee involves students in school disciplinary matters. > Student campus tour guides represent the School to visitors and prospective students and parents. > One hundred hours of community service is required for graduation.

Wooster’s curriculum teaches students to think critically and creatively. Students learn to listen to divergent opinions, to question assumptions and the validity of sources respectfully, and to collaborate. The faculty encourages students to reflect and

to integrate their curiosity, their passions and their experiences. But while Wooster’s academics prepare students for the intellectual rigors of post-secondary education, its social programs—like Self-help—lay the foundation for ethical living and effective citizenship.

Adults at Wooster model civility and courtesy.

Students internalize and act on these important values. A culture of kindness fosters and protects each student’s right to learn, creating a uniquely positive educational environment.

This mix of intellectual and social learning develops good people, good learners and good citizens. As students leave Wooster, they carry its values with them. They enter the larger world as capable, competent adults, prepared to navigate the future with intellectual and creative strength, grace, humor and dignity.

Self-Help: Leadership, Responsibility & Stewardship

by William St reet

class of 1980, Upper School History Teacher, Assistant Dean of Students

I still remember the first time I walked into Wooster School. I was a ninth grader, attending Ridgefield High School, when my parents and I arrived at New Building (now Grover Hall) and asked the person sweeping the floor where we could

12 Wooster News

find the Admissions office. I, in my naive, pre-Wooster ways, assumed we were asking the janitor. I remembered this vividly a year later when, as a Wooster tenth grader, I was sweeping the floor as a family came in and asked me where to find the Admissions office.

Wooster’s…social programs…lay the foundation for ethical

citizenship. living and effective

Self-help is most simply and probably most frequently described by student tour guides as “the students clean the School.” This simple phrase hardly begins to describe the responsibilities we require of the students. As one student who came to Wooster told me, “At my other school, we had jobs. But if you didn’t do them, the janitor would. At Wooster, you are it. If you do not do your job, no one will.”

“The students clean the School” also leaves out an important aspect of what Self-help is about. As students grow older, they grow into more and more responsibility. In the Upper School, seniors run Self-help with only limited adult supervision. If an adult must step in, it is usually because something has gone wrong.

Adult supervision is the exception, not the norm.

As Wooster has evolved to become a pre-k to 12 day school, Self-help has evolved along with it. At its core, it still involves students taking on fundamental responsibility for the day-to-day maintenance of the School.

Self-help does more than clean the School.

Former teacher Donald Schwartz, in a speech to a junior class about to take over their senior responsibilities, said that Self-help at Wooster builds morals, builds morale and cleans the School. It teaches us to think about and care for our environment. It gives us the sense of community which comes from completing a shared task. If all goes well, it cleans the School.

I sometimes tell students that there are three stages to Self-help. The first is the easiest: don’t litter. If a student realizes that she or he is making someone else’s work or

play area into a garbage can, that student has become aware of something larger than him or herself. The second stage is more difficult: if you see litter, pick it up, and dispose of it. This makes us responsible not only for ourselves but also for our community. This means actively helping each other and is sometimes more difficult for people to do. The third stage is the most difficult: help create a community atmosphere in which no one would consider littering. Individuals and society are in a constant process of creating each other. If we each take positive steps towards making our community better, it will become better and better serve the individual’s needs.

Towards the end of the summer of 2009, several faculty members and I accompanied the seniors on an overnight trip to a nearby camp. The camp had students of many ages, both day students and overnight campers, and a strong outdoor education program. I was shocked and surprised that the grounds seemed to be overrun with litter! The uncaring attitude which the campers there took towards their surroundings made me appreciate all the more how lucky we are to be at Wooster. I was proud of the Wooster students who not only took care of their own trash but picked up the litter others had left on the ground.

Each senior has a responsibility for a designated area of the School. Each senior also has responsibility for the general behavior of the students and the cleanliness of the entire school. Seniors are assigned their

Self-help at Wooster builds morals, builds morale and cleans the School. It teaches us to think about and care for our environment. It gives us the sense of community which comes from completing a shared

cleans

task. If all goes well, it the School.

2011 13

jobs at the end of April of their junior year, when the current senior class is preparing to leave campus to pursue an independent study.

During Jobs period, from 3:15–3:45 each day, students in grades 6–11 set to work at the tasks to which the seniors have directed them. They vacuum, they sweep, they dust, they empty the garbage and take out the recycling. They wash windows. They wash dishes. They do nearly all of this without any direct adult supervision. Sometimes, I stand back and marvel at what they accomplish.

Students in grades 6–7 do their jobs under the direction of eighth grade job captains, who receive support from seniors. Students in Lower School have various classroom and dining room responsibilities as directed by their teachers.

A great deal of responsibility falls upon the Senior Prefect. This senior assigns jobs to students in grades 8–12 every few weeks and deals with dozens of minor obstacles each day. Sometimes, it seems the Senior Prefect is presented with an endless stream of students and adults wanting immediate attention to this detail or that part of the campus.

Self-help has been a part of Wooster since its inception. Founder Aaron Coburn borrowed the idea of Self-help from Father Sill, the founder of Kent School. “The boys have done the work assigned to them in a credible way,” The Rev. Coburn wrote in his first report to the trustees (November 1926). “We seem to have naturally fallen into the program of Self-help.”

14 Wooster News

Since then, as Wooster has changed, so has the program. As Wooster changes, however, we strive to also remain the same, to keep what former longtime Headmaster John Verdery called “The Essence of Wooster.”

Self-help helps us to maintain our identity even as we grow from a boys’ boarding school to a co-ed Upper and Middle dayboarding school to a pre-k to 12 day school.

The impact that Self-help has upon students lasts long beyond graduation.

When I talk to alums, both people with whom I attended Wooster, and people whom I taught, they invariably ask about Self-help.

(Then they ask if Tom Hackett still teaches here—he does.) Several years ago, I walked around Wooster with a former prefect who had attended the School for five years. His father-in-law was with him; we stopped at every room to share some memory or experience. We spent the longest time in KP, however, remembering our experiences there during and after lunch. We recalled it as something fun and something worthwhile.

I think that there are only a few schools where that sort of memory could be so important to alums.

Isaac Roth, the Senior Prefect in 1993, once wrote me a note which included the following words: Self-help is the single most important thing to me. The challenge it presents causes me the most anxiety, most joy and teaches me more than any other one thing that I do.

Do What You’re Told Before You’re Told to Do It

by Matt hew Levy ’12 On April 29, 2011, Wooster’s Upper School “sent off” our 44 seniors, and “moved up” our 28 juniors. The Senior Send-Off service was held in the James Marshall Chapel with the entire Middle and Upper School student bodies in attendance. Rising Senior Prefect Matt Levy ’12 addressed his peers in a way that exemplifies the best of Wooster: “The Class of 2011 contributed great things to Wooster academically, artistically and athletically. So I stand up here to ask you, How will we leave our mark? No, I am not only addressing the class of 2012, but all the classes present here today, and the faculty.

How will we leave our mark on Wooster that has been ‘defined by the people who have lived, led, taught, coached and studied here?’

“I would like to take a quick and simple survey. All you have to do is raise your hand.

“By a show of hands, how many people here dislike being told what to do? [Ed: most hands were raised!]

“For faculty members, how many of you dislike telling a student what to do, when you know that student knows better? [Ed: ALL faculty hands were raised!]

“Students take note of this…Today, I have a solution for this dilemma that will make both parties happy: ‘Do what you are told, before you are told to do it.’ A simple solution to avoid many problems. This saying has kept me out of lots of trouble and has kept me in good graces with a majority of the faculty, which is probably part of the reason I am standing before you today.

Make smart decisions. We have heard this phrase many times before, mostly over long weekends and breaks. But for 2011–2012, I ask you to make conscious decisions.

Know the effects that your actions have on yourself and on other people. Understand the impression your actions will have on other people and make sure your impression matches how you want to portray yourself.

For 2011–2012, I charge you to ‘Do what you are told, before you are told to do it’ and ‘Make conscious decisions’ so that we may leave our mark on Wooster.

“For the year 2011–2012, I charge you, in the words of Robert Browning, ‘Come, come along with me / The best is yet to be.’

Thank you.”

“Do what you are told, before you are told to do it” and “Make conscious decisions” so that we

mark

may leave our on Wooster.

2011 15

Today there are

700,000

kids participating in the program

in 900 chapters in all 50 U.S. states and 50 countries.

16 Wooster News

“We’re not therapists or doctors. We don’t know our buddy’s diagnosis. That’s all confidential. We’re just there to be a pal.”

The concepts of service to the community and self-sacrifice are deeply

rooted in the Wooster School tradition. Students are imbued with the importance of giving back to the School and the world around them. So it is a natural and seamless fit that Wooster students are involved with Best Buddies, an international program that matches students in one-to-one relationships with other students.

The program was founded by Anthony Shriver in 1989 at Georgetown University.

He is the son of the late Sargent Shriver, the first director of the Peace Corps, and the late Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the driving force behind the Special Olympics. Clearly, the acorn didn’t fall far from that particular family tree. Today there are 700,000 kids participating in the program in 900 chapters in all 50 U.S. states and in 50 countries.

The student behind Wooster’s involvement is Greg Schmitt, a junior from Ridgefield, who came to Wooster following 6th grade in the Ridgefield schools and who serves as the chapter president at Wooster.

“I heard about Best Buddies last year and it appealed to me because I think I’d like to eventually become a psychiatrist and it seemed like a good fit,” says Schmitt, who is a musician, involved in the theater, and is passionate about Ultimate Frisbee. “I went to a leadership conference in July at Indiana University and really learned a lot about Best Buddies and

thought we should have a chapter here.”

According to Schmitt, the idea is for participants in Best Buddies to form one-on-one relationships with students who have intellectual or developmental disabilities. In Wooster’s case, all the students come from Danbury High School. Wooster’s students receive disability awareness training but Schmitt makes it clear that their role is simply being a friend.

“We’re not therapists or doctors,” he explains. “We don’t know our buddy’s diagnosis. That’s all confidential. We’re just there to be a pal.”

The 20 students from Wooster (roughly 15 percent of the student body, a remarkable percentage and about the size of a typical chapter even at larger schools) typically meet with their buddies, sometimes in group settings and sometime one-on-one.

“You can pretty much do whatever you want,” says Schmitt. “A group activity might be bowling, playing basketball, a school-sponsored dance or going to a game. An individual activity might be something like going to a movie. The big thing is to be there for your friend.”

In the final analysis, Best Buddies is another reflection of the Wooster tradition and the character of its students.

“Wooster students learn early in their time here that compassion and caring for the community are at the core of the School,” says Schmitt.

It’s also at the core of Best Buddies.

and the Wooster Tradition 2011 17

The Progress at Prospect

18 Wooster News

To one degree or another, teaching is a labor of love, and that is particularly true for the educators involved with The Prospect School at Wooster, which opened in 2011.

The School serves students ages 7–14 with learning disabilities.

“I am a passionate believer in schools like Prospect,” says Andrew Gray, the Chief Financial Officer at Wooster School who is one of the four-member management team for The Prospect School. “When I was four I couldn’t read. My kindergarten teacher told my mother I’d never graduate from high school. By a stroke of chance, my father was sent to northern Wales and I was sent to a convent school, where the nuns diagnosed me as dyslexic. When we returned to the United States, I was enrolled in the Carroll School in Lincoln, Mass. By the time I finished sixth grade I could read at a college level, so you can see why I understand and appreciate the impact a school like Prospect can have on kids, particularly since we are able to identify challenges at an earlier age now and can work on their issues. These kids are capable of so much and prospect is hugely important to me personally.”

Kelly Raymond, another member of the management team (along with Tad Jacks, Wooster’s Admissions Director and Rae-ann Allen, the Head of the Lower School), is Prospect School’s learning specialist. She has been involved at Wooster School on and off and in a variety of capacities for 15 years and welcomes the challenges and opportunities The Prospect School presents.

“My entire family is involved in working with students with learning challenges,” she explains. “We all understand how great the need is in the overall community for a school like Prospect. The public schools have more resources but the advantage we have

at Prospect is that the classes are smaller and we get to know the students much better than people working in larger classes. We are also able to work more closely with parents.

For me, the greatest thrill is working with a student and trying different approaches and then suddenly see it click.”

Jamie Matis is a teacher at Prospect School and, like Andrew Gray, she has a special connection with students who face learning challenges.

“In my case, I was diagnosed with mild dyslexia, so I understand the struggles and challenges these kids face, which I think helps my teaching,” she says. “I always liked babysitting and as a teacher, have always worked with elementary school students.

Being a part of Wooster School has helped tremendously because for children with learning issues, socialization is a major challenge. The teachers in the Lower School reach out to us so that our students have opportunities to interact with theirs. We are completely involved in our students’ educations—their curriculum and helping them understand what is expected and unexpected behavior.”

The other teacher at Prospect School is Howard Gorman, and to say he took an unexpected career path to Prospect is an understatement.

“I was in corporate finance but I always wanted to be a teacher,” he says. “I enjoy the complexity of special education. Teachers are creative by nature. It’s probably not a coincidence that I love building furniture. As teachers, we work with a variety of learning tools and a lot of time you have to improvise as you go along, creating new tools. But as challenging as it might be, when you make a connection with a student, the psychic rewards make it all worthwhile.”

“…the greatest thrill is working with a student and trying different approaches and then suddenly see it click.”

2011 19

Getting Kids Off to the Best Possible Start

An important new chapter in Wooster School’s history began in 2011 with the inception of the Early Childhood Center for students ages three through kindergarten, located in Wellington Cottage.

In the fall, there were six students in the combined three- and-four-year-olds and eight in kindergarten. Classes are held five days a week although the schedule is flexible for the younger children, including a half-day option.

“We constantly think in terms of a child’s development, which is one reason we’re always thinking of ways to move from active to quiet activities,” explains Jennifer Ellis, who teaches kindergarten. “We also have small group activities as well as activities for the larger groups. We strive for a natural ebb and flow and understand that it’s important to build in rest periods.”

Linda Borkowski, the Early Childhood Admissions Associate and a Kindergarten Assistant, explains an important part of the program’s philosophy.

“We spend a lot of time on the social and emotional growth of the individuals in the

20 Wooster News

group,” she says. “We want to help the children develop a strong self-image. To do that, we work very hard to create a safe, nurturing environment. We also believe very strongly in a play-based, rich materials program, because that’s how children learn best. ” There is also a strong effort to incorporate the students’ thinking in the development of the program. For example, at the end of each day a “Closing Circle” is held where students and staff discuss any problems that might have arisen during the day.

“We encourage the students to discuss what rules we should have,” says Nancy Hershatter, a teacher in pre-kindergarten and with the 4s. “When you include the children this way it gives them a strong sense of ownership.”

The program incorporates many of Wooster School’s resources.

“I think the program is unique because we can take advantage of the School’s art, music and library resources,” says Hershatter. “We even have a one-hour chapel story hour with the Reverend Ross.

“We encourage the students to discuss what rules we should have. When you include the children this way it gives them a strong sense of ownership.”

“Language development is central to our philosophy. We encourage the children

At every level of the program there is an emphasis on language development.

“Language development is central to our philosophy,” says Ellis. “We encourage the children to reflect on their experiences and also to develop their own agendas and activities.”

The program also benefits from the small class sizes.

“The number of students allows us to really get to know the students, as well as their strengths and the areas we need to focus

on,” explains Melissa Munk, a teacher in the pre-kindergarten 3s. “We also encourage the integration of adults into the classroom.”

And the program’s students can also participate in the “Summer at Wooster” program, which is open to children up to age 12. Students can attend the entire six-week schedule or divide it into two-week schedules.

Either way, the focus is on creative offerings such as arts and music.

It’s all part of the effort to get children off to the best possible start in their education.

to reflect on their experiences and also to develop their own agendas and activities.”

2011 21

ACross the Bridge

22 Wooster News

Technology

The Magic of Robotics The official title of the course is Information Technology 6: Robotics Engineering, which certainly sounds a

bit intimidating. But in reality, it is one of the most creative and innovative programs Wooster School has to offer.

Students learn the basics of electronic control and some elements of advanced programming logic while participating in inquiry-based lessons that cover engineering, measurements, ratios and proportions. The course ends with students involved in an open-ended challenge featuring problem solving, teamwork and project management.

“In the course students take on the roles of ‘mechanical engineers’ and ‘computer scientists,’” says Andrew Wright, who teaches the course. “Students study the dynamics of sensors as well as subjects such as motion planning and obstacle avoidance, velocity

and acceleration, and actuators. Students put knowledge and concepts into practice through lab settings where teams create robots.

There is also ‘object oriented’ programming through interactions with the incredibly cool LEGO Mindstorms NXT robotics kits. Every concept that is covered in the course can be applied directly to the cutting-edge, real-world programming processes in use today.”

If all this sounds like robotic fun and games—and it is a fun course, witness its popularity—it ultimately provides students with knowledge of core competencies of mathematics, science and technology.

“We use ‘playing’ with toys to open the door to understanding engineering, programming, sensors, gears and more,” says Wright. “Don’t worry; we’re secretly using a precisely structured curriculum.”

In a fun way, of course.

2011 23

Wooster School ACross the Bridge

Why Sports Matter Athletics have always played an important role in shaping the culture and spirit of Wooster School but in this day and age, do sports really matter, and if they do, why? Wooster’s Athletic Director Dave MacNutt thinks they do and maybe now more than ever.

“Sports—particularly team sports—have always taught lessons of collaboration, problem solving, sportsmanship, discipline and teamwork,” says MacNutt, who came to Wooster in 1992. “Sports teach important, fundamental life skills, but if you look at the obesity among kids today, it becomes even more obvious why they are so important. On the street where we live, there are ten families and my kids are the only ones you ever see out playing. The rest are inside playing video games or caught up in some sort of social media. That’s not very healthy, either physically, mentally, or socially.”

To that end, Wooster has increased its

24 Wooster News

number of teams from 15 to 31 in 20 years and the levels of participation among students are extraordinary by any measure.

“We have physical education programs for all students from age three through 8th grade,” MacNutt explains. “In 9th and 10th grades students participate in one team sport and one physical activity a year. The physical activity can be weightlifting, winter theater productions, outdoor programs, off-campus activities that include a physical activity, or an art-intensive program. In 11th and 12th grades, students must participate in one team sport and one physical activity a year, but seniors have the option of taking one semester off.”

One key word in all that is participate.

“Regardless of your ability, if you want to compete in a specific sport, you are on a team,” he says. “We have a ‘no-cut’ policy within each sport. You might not make the varsity and, if you do, you might not play in every game, but you will participate on some level.”

ATHLETICS

Another element central to Wooster’s athletics philosophy is an emphasis on a Code of Conduct that applies to athletes, coaches, officials and parents. It is taken very seriously.

“It is rare for a school to attain a level of excellence and also be respected for how the School community conducts itself on and off the field,” says MacNutt. “How we play is as important as how we do.”

Another rarity at Wooster is the participation of the faculty in athletics.

“Ninety-eight percent of our coaches are teachers here,” says MacNutt. “That allows them to see the students in a different light and allows the students to see their teachers differently. If you are a good coach, you’re usually a good teacher. It’s a win-win for everyone.”

To gauge just how successful Wooster athletics have been, just consider:

> Wooster has earned the Hudson Valley Athletic League’s most-coveted honor—the Sportsmanship Award—11 times in the last 14 years. > Wooster has been honored with a total of 44 sportsmanship awards. > The School has won 46 HVAL titles. > Wooster has received 49 bids to the prestigious New England tournament. > And the students have learned a lot of valuable lessons along the way, which is what matters most.

“Sports…have always taught lessons of collaboration, problem solving, sportsmanship, discipline and teamwork.”

2011 25

ACross the Bridge

Wooster School Athletic Hall of Fame

Wooster Creates an Athletic Hall of Fame Wooster’s new Athletic Hall of

programs. A listing of athletic

Fame will induct its inaugural

award winners can be found at

class of 10–12 members during

www.GoGenerals.org.

Alumni Weekend in May 2013.

The following is a list of eligibility

Alumni are asked to suggest

guidelines:

possible candidates by emailing

> Alumni/ae: Must have graduated

HallofFame@woosterschool.org

a minimum of five years ago and

with detailed information on the

will be evaluated on athletic

following:

achievements, sportsmanship,

> Who were the top athletes in

leadership and team play. Their

your class?

> Who were the best athletes during your time at Wooster?

> Who was the best coach you had at Wooster?

> Were any school records established during your time?

In addition to supplying the information above, people are asked to share their most memorable

actions must have brought credit to themselves, their team and the School.

> Coaches: Must either be retired or have left Wooster and will be evaluated on their performance as a coach, keeping in mind such qualities as teaching skills, life lessons and building character.

> Others: Any other individuals

athletic experiences. Some of these

with an official tie to Wooster,

recollections will be posted in the

such as an athletic trainer,

“Ninety-eight percent

“Alumni Corner” with a goal of

longtime volunteer, or friend

of our coaches

highlighting both past and current

to the program.

are teachers here. That allows them to see the students in a different light and allows the students to see their teachers differently.”

26 Wooster News

ATHLETICS

Eligibility Considerations

> All seniors who have earned either the Outstanding Athlete Award or the ScholarAthlete Award will be eligible for consideration.

> All school record holders, which have stood the test of time (a minimum of 10 years).

> All multiple Most Valuable Player award winners.

> All other nominees must have the approval of the Nominating Committee to be eligible for consideration.

Inductions will occur annually until such time when inductees become scarce. At such time, the rate at which members are inducted will be revisited. It is preferable to select recipients who are in a Reunion year, whenever possible.

Selection Procedure A Nominating Committee will collect nominations from a variety of sources and make recommendations to the Selection Committee. The composition of both committees will be announced shortly.

In early June, Class Agents will send out letters to classmates seeking nominations for a July 31, 2012, deadline.

Nominations are also sought from various groups including the Alumni Council, Athletic Department and Development Office. By early August, the Nominating Committee will recommend its preliminary candidates to the Selection Committee. By early September, a final list will be presented to the Selection Committee, which will announce the first class of inductees in October.

2011 27

ACross the Bridge

Arts @Wooster

Opening Students’ Eyes to the Wonders of Art Leave the classrooms and administrative offices and go down a broad set of wooden steps towards the athletic fields and you’ll find yourself in a land of wonder—the art facilities— where magic happens on a daily basis.

Sarah Rand is the Middle School art teacher, as well as a teacher of advanced art in the Upper School, who also teaches Upper School’s afternoon art classes. She has been at Wooster School for five years, polishing the skills she learned at the prestigious Rhode Island School of Design, where she received her bachelor of fine arts degree in Illustration and her masters in arts and teaching. Sarah taught for eight years in Tuckahoe, N.Y. before coming to Wooster. At RISD, and later at Wooster, she has developed a perspective and insight into the worlds of art and kids.

“Art is about learning the relationships

28 Wooster News

between color, shape, form, texture, depth and line,” she says. “In a school setting, art is really the hub. It brings everything together socially for students, helping them discover who they are and who they’re going to be. In Middle School we developed programs and projects that allow kids to tell their stories and bring them out through art.

“We want students to pull from their life experiences,” she adds. “We try and honor them and their ideas. It’s easy for kids to lose sight of who they are and how special they are.”

One of the most successful projects is the “Collaboratives” done by sixth, seventh and eight-graders. Classes do at least one a year and so far the program has resulted in some 20 pieces of astonishing breadth and creativity.

“We make two color prints, some as small as 8"x 9" and others as large as 18"x 24,"”

“…art is really the hub.

It brings everything together socially for students, helping them discover who they are and who they’re going to be.”

key component of Wooster’s art program.

Each division weaves

The Arts

Collaboration Collaboration is a

collaborative projects into the curriculum in age-appropriate ways. Lower School students might paint a giant pizza, construct a Trojan horse out of cardboard, or paint a huge moon with

she says. “One is kept intact so kids can have an overview and the other acts as a grid and is cut in squares. Each student is given a square to reproduce. Not only are they working on their own but also with others in creating the final collaboration. It is a wonderful exercise in sharing and teamwork.”

Mrs. Rand usually begins with a masterpiece like Paul Gauguin’s Siesta or Jasper Johns’ iconic, Flag.

“We chose to do Flag in conjunction with the anniversary of 9/11 because it was such an expression of strength, unity and support,” she explains. “It is a way of helping kids make a connection to the real world and the

School world. Compositionally, they may end up being a ‘little off’ but that’s okay. It’s part of what makes them interesting. In the end, we want kids to see their place as part of a bigger picture.”

Currently, the Collaboratives are on display in the Middle School and are stored in her studio, but Mrs. Rand would like to see them reach a larger audience.

“I have a dream that we could mount them on plywood, encase them in Plexiglas, and have them on display along the main driveway for everyone to see,” she says.

“Wouldn’t that be great?”

Wouldn’t it, indeed.

carefully shaded craters. Middle School classes collaborate on composite paintings of masterworks of art.

Upper School students collaborate to make boats that float on Miry Brook, sitespecific installations, or short films and videos. Creating together fosters respect for others’ ideas and processes, tolerance for different personalities, and offers students the unparalleled bond and feeling of pride that come from shared accomplishment.

2011 29

The Arts

ACross the Bridge The Cast

Freddy: Connor Williams ’13

Gaston: William Mound ’12 Germaine: Emily McInerney ’12 Albert Einstein: Corey Allred ’12 Suzanne: Carolyn Phelan ’13 Sagot: Oliver Kisielius ’14

Pablo Picasso: Greg Schmitt ’13

Charles Dabernow Schmendiman: Johnathan Figueroa ’14 The Countess: Madeleine Ball ’12 A female admirer: Madeleine Ball ’12 The Crew Director: Beau Gravitte Scenic Design: Kim Gerardi Costume Design: Andrea Barrett

Properties Design: Anne Gilson

Stage Manager: Olivia Blanton-Rich Assistant Stage Manager: Nicole Lang Assistant to Director: Anne Gilson

Picasso Painting: Debbie Chodoff,

Mrs. Rand and her Illustration Class Lighting Operators: Teddy Woods Sound Board Operator: Jamie MacNutt

Wooster Drama Presents Picasso at the Lapin Agile This fall, the Wooster Upper School Drama Department presented a phenomenal performance of Steve Martin’s Picasso at the Lapin Agile. The story is set in 1904 at a Montmartre bar in Paris and features the characters of Einstein and Picasso. Both men are on the verge of the creative break throughs that would change

30 Wooster News

the worlds of art and science forever.

They find themselves thrown together at the Lapin Agile, and the sparks fly as these titans clash with each other and a host of other characters. Einstein and Picasso debate the value of talent, genius, and ponder what is the engine that drives the creative moment?

In the past five years Wooster students have enrolled at the following colleges and universities:

NEASC

This is Wooster’s Self Study Year in Preparation for Continuing Accreditation by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC).

NEASC accreditation is a system of accountability with goals designed to

increase effectiveness and improvement for both public and independent schools and colleges. Accreditation is standards based and respects differences in institutional populations, missions and cultures. This system fosters institutional changes grounded in the judgment of practicing educators.

Accreditation attests to compliance with these established standards, as well as integrity in describing our program, our commitment to improvement, and the sufficiency of our resources. Every ten years, each member school must undergo a process of reflection about itself and its program, followed by updates two and five years after the visit.

NEASC provides schools with a clear guideline for the process leading up to this visit. The first step in our process was the full review of the Mission Statement carried out during the 2009–2010 school year, followed in 2010–2011 by the creation of an educational roadmap for our future.

This year, Wooster is writing a guided self study that requires us to closely examine our program in light of our mission in order to determine that the School is doing what it says it will do in implementing the mission through its various programs. This self study process is coordinated by a steering committee comprised of members of the faculty and staff. Stephanie Dumoski, our Director of Schedule and Planning, serves as the Chair of that committee. Other members are Amanda Barter, Scott Brady, Pete Lingenheld, Michelle Moriarty, Elyse Felicione, Charlotte Wood, Ron Hutchins and Justine Bryar.

Amherst College

Rochester Institute of Technology

Bard College

Roger Williams University

Bates College

Sacred Heart University

Binghamton University

Santa Clara University

Boston University

Sarah Lawrence College

Brown University

Skidmore College

Bucknell University

Spelman College

Cambridge University (UK)

St. Joseph’s University

Carleton College

Susquehanna University

Carnegie-Mellon University

Swarthmore College

Colby Sawyer College

Trinity College

Colgate University

Trinity University (TX)

Colorado College

Tufts University

Connecticut College

Union College

Drew University

University of Connecticut

Duke University

University of Delaware

Earlham College

University of Hartford

Eckerd College

UNC Chapel Hill

Elizabethtown College

University of Pennsylvania

Elmira University

University of Richmond

Elon University

University of St. Andrews (UK)

Fordham University

University of Virginia

George Washington University

University of Wisconsin

Gettysburg College

Villanova University

Haverford College

Washington and Lee University

Hendrix College

Washington University

Hobart and William Smith College

Wesleyan University

Holy Cross University

Wheaton College

James Madison University

Williams College

Kenyon College

Worchester Polytechnic University

Lehigh University

Yale University

Academics

After Wooster

Macalester College Manhattanville College McGill University Miami University (OH) Mount Holyoke College New York University Northwestern University Oberlin College Occidental College Purchase University Rensselaer Polytechnic University Rhode Island School of Design

2011 31

ACross the Bridge

Faculty Kudos

Founders Day: Thursday, April 21, 2011 Director of Studies, Academic Dean,

tennis coach, chess coach, Academic Bowl master, math teacher, department chair, father, husband, son, colleague and friend to many, Alvin Hamilton has dedicated 25 years of his life to Wooster School. The best way to honor this service is perhaps to share memories of others who have observed, befriended and worked with him over the years: Tom Hackett remembers his first encounter with Alvin, as he was taking a jog around campus during a summer afternoon and found Alvin clearing one of our Wooster paths of underbrush. When asked why he was performing such a task, Alvin replied, “Well, this is a Self-help school, isn’t it?”

32 Wooster News

“Once when he was coaching the chess team in the late ’80s, it fell to us to host a guest team for dinner. When Alvin introduced this idea to the head cook, George Schmidt, George asked him what he would like for dinner that night. Alvin casually replied, ‘Lobster.’ Nothing prepared Alvin for the eventuality that George actually did secure lobster for the whole boarding population and for our guests that evening. Alvin was gloriously mortified.”

A hugely accomplished chess player, adept GO player and shrewd poker player, we perhaps remember most his intense bridge matches with Gary Taylor, Eunice Grover and other Woosterites. And

Alvin Hamilton has dedicated

25years of his life to

Wooster School.

That he was the one sent by the faculty to help a particular child in crisis taught me not just that he was held in the deepest respect by his peers for his tact and candor and heartfelt concern, but also that being stern and systematic, on top of the details of running a complex community, and holding every kid to high standards of responsibility, was a way to show the students that they were richly valued and deeply loved.”

Of course, Gary also remembers poker games long into the night on a snow day with Head John Effinger, Alvin, Bill Street and Ken Hansberry sitting around the table singing songs from King Missile, wearing napkins on their heads as the snow fell outside in torrents....

Wooster is what it is in large part because of the love Alvin has showed day after day, month after month, year after year to all those who have passed through these halls.

It has not always been the warm, fuzzy kind of love that he regularly lavishes on his beautiful daughters, but it is the kind of love that makes those, like Gary and many others who know and have known him, better, wiser, more than we would have otherwise been. Countless students have benefitted from Alvin’s teaching, extra help, support, and particularly his behind the scenes advocacy.

Numerous parents have counted on his guidance as their children weather the storms of high school. Dozens of colleagues have looked to him for a shoulder to lean on or an ear to listen as they navigated the challenges of teaching at Wooster. Always, at every turn, Alvin holds the importance of balancing what is best for the students against what is best for Wooster in the forefront of his mind and heart, to the benefit of all. Alvin’s commitment to his family, his dedication to his Wooster family, his passion for serving Wooster in so many capacities over the years highlight this consummate School Man’s contributions to the survival and success of Wooster School for the past 25 years.

And finally, we can only agree with Korb Eynon, who notes: “Integrity. Integrity.

Integrity. I thought Joe Grover had left but then, there is Alvin.”

Faculty Kudos

although he is most known for his academic prowess (he is, after all, the keeper of the Academic Bowl) and his voracious intellect, he is also quite an accomplished tennis and soccer player.

John Cheeseman recalls Alvin’s lengthy written (and always witty) blow-byblow descriptions of intra-school chess competitions (in the early years, he was a very enthusiastic Wooster chess coach), his enduring commitment to the annual task of paring the prose of certain graduation prizes, and, as Director of Studies, his more than strong interest in faculty deadlines for grades and comments. Woe be to the tardy!

Faculty members past and current wish we had some tapes of the legendary encounters at faculty meetings between Korb Eynon and Alvin Hamilton: passionate and often ferocious dedication to clarity of ideas and language. Korb recalls one of his favorite scenes at Wooster: Alvin leading his daughters to school down the hill behind the Library.

Gary Taylor writes that Alvin was his friend at Wooster for 15 years, but his mentor even before that. One early ’90s memory of Alvin is of the entire faculty meeting around a single table talking not about school policy but about individual students, probing for what we could do to help them on their way.

Inevitably we’d ask each other which teacher had a particular connection with a particular student. “As a new, green teacher, I was struck by how often the full faculty chose Alvin for that role: > Alvin, the stern, systematic math teacher who always had his lesson plans for the entire year ready in September; > Alvin, the one who knew the entire academic schedule and the all-year calendar and the student/parent handbook off the top of his head and could foresee the practical implications of any management decision; > Alvin, the one who so often advocated for holding a student’s feet to the fire when work was late or some other responsibility was being shirked.

“…he was held in the deepest respect by his peers for his tact and candor and heartfelt concern, …being stern and systematic, on top of the details of running a complex community, and holding every kid to high standards of responsibility, was a way to show the students that they were richly valued and deeply loved.”

2011 33

CLASS Notes 1932

1955

sector as President and CEO of the

Former Faculty

80th Reunion

David H. Treadwell writes, “A trip

Mortgage Bankers Association in

Doug Gortner writes, ”Hello

Arthur D. Stein writes, “I am

to Dublin, Ireland, brought joy to

Washington, D.C. My wife, Mary, and

everyone, I have moved to

perhaps the oldest Alumni. I

Dave and Joan as they welcomed

our four children are doing great.”

greater Nashville which is a truly

am checking in with a meager

their 3rd grandchild Toby David

amount, this does not indicate

Shine. Toby joins his 8-year-old

1963

my great loyalty to Wooster. I

brother Ethan and his 5-year-

John Fisher writes, “Sue and I

and good restaurants. My

continue to miss my buddy John

old sister Amelia Joan. Their

are retired and living on Edisto

Episcopal Church membership

Coburn but the bronze hanging

daughter, Dr. Kasey Treadwell-

Island, S.C. Would love to see any

stands at 2300 and is growing at

in the Chapel hopefully shows

Shine, is the proud mom, and

classmates visiting the Charleston

about 15% per year. Have been

my love for Wooster. I am now 97

husband Jim the happy dad.”

area. We’re hoping for a big

doing consulting since leaving

1962

turnout for our 50th in 2013.”

Wooster. Check out my website:

years old and living in an assisted living home.”

wonderful city. Great symphony, good opera, lots of piano bars

www.wessebago.com. I have

1934

50th Reunion

1965

Nick Gilbert writes, “I am gearing

David Kuether writes, “Paige and I

time with yo’all but I love living

Stanley Gilbert had a stroke in

up to visit grandson Sebastian

have moved! After 37 years at our

in Tennessee where people don’t

August but was well enough to

Londa Gilbert (age 2) in Santiago,

New Hampshire home, we decided

honk, tailgate, and you can get

Chile, this January. Looking

that six months a year of cold and

out of a parking lot in a matter

forward to the 50th reunion.”

extremely cold weather, a warmer

of seconds because people down

place just might be a good thing.

here a just so unselfish the first

We are now settled in a very active

person lets you in. We had a

Rhys Moore writes, “Wooster Exacta

over-55 community in South

terrible flood two years ago. No

has moved to Dogwood Village, a

at Churchill Downs November

Carolina. Our two sons are both

looting, no complaining. Just

managed care facility in Grange,

2011 In this year’s running of the

married and living in the Boston

all hands on deck to help those

VA. She is doing well there, has

Breeder’s Cup Races (the biggest

and Chicago areas, so we are about

whose homes were damaged— usually at no charge for the clean up. My church had $3.5 million

watch Hamilton lose to Colgate.

1942 70th Reunion Joseph Johnson writes, “My wife

1974

many fond memories of my short

weekend in thoroughbred racing)

equidistant from both. We will miss

it. I am well, too—getting a little

at Churchill Downs there were two

the foliage but not the snow.”

rickety on my feet, but still OK.

horses running in the same race

The Wooster family should know

with Wooster connections. The

1996

that when people ask where

$2,000,000 Grey Goose Stakes for

Heather A. Walter-Hoffman writes,

drowned on the way to church.

I went to college, I tell them

2-year-old fillies featured Rocket

“Jan. 21, 2010, we added a new

But we are in ‘fly over country’

‘Wooster School’. I’m proud of that

21, owned by Fletcher Racing

member to our family, our son

so they barely bothered to make

and the job you are doing now.”

and whose Managing Director

David Patrick. He is growing like

note of the flooding on network

1951

is Kathy Moore, sister of Rhys

a little weed. My mom, Jean,

TV. Please let me know if you are

Moore ‘74 and Say A Novena,

passed away in October after an

headed this way. Best to all.”

Tom Dodge writes, “Retired for

owned by Rick Shanley, brother

illness and I have accepted a job

doug@wessebago.com

the third time last year. Sold the

of Nancy Shanley Cole ‘74. Both

working as a chef for First Health

sawmill to a Canadian firm and all

horses were featured in two page

of the Carolinas, Moore Regional

the equipment is now gone. My

photo spread in Sports Illustrated

Hospital in Pinehurst, N.C.’”

wife and I have retired to the round

and the race was broadcast on

home (18 sides) we built at the top

ESPN. Unfortunately neither horse

of our New Hampshire mountain

made it to the Winners Circle but

to write, paint and tell stories to

both Rick and I enjoyed the local

many friends, and is pleased with

any and all who will listen.”

flavors of Louisville. Well, Rick more

1952

than me from what I could tell.”

60th Reunion Robert G. Peck writes, “I am not fully retired after fifty years of teaching English full-time and part-time, in colleges and prep schools. A splendid time with George and Mary Madsen at Larry and Mary Hewses 50th anniversary celebration in early October.”

34 Wooster News

moorerhys@gmail.com

1975 David Stevens writes, “After spending two years with the Obama administration as a Presidential Appointment as Assistant Secretary of Housing and Federal Housing Commissioner, I have returned to the private

in damage and the head of my Bible study and his wife were

Attention Wooster Alums and Former faculty

We want to hear from you!

Do you have news you’d like to share with fellow classmates? If you are starting a new job or launching a new business, getting married, having a baby, or want to share your Favorite Wooster Memories, we want to hear from you!

Are you a former faculty or staff member, we’d love to hear about your life after Wooster School!

Visit our website at

www.woosterschool.org/alumni/submit-class-note and let us know how you are doing and what you’ve been up to.

Wooster School and the Alumni Council present the

8 t h a nn ua l golf outing F r i d ay, M ay 1 1 , 2 0 1 2

The Golf Club at Oxford Greens 99 Country Club Drive | Oxford, CT 06478

9am

S h otg u n S ta r t

more info to follow

It’s the season for giving and for giving thanks for gifts received.

Your gift of support to Wooster School 2011–12 Annual Giving campaign makes it possible for us to fill the gap each year between tuition income and the operational costs of our educational and extracurricular programs. Your gift enables us to continue to illuminate, enlighten, spark, inspire and dedicate ourselves to the joyful task of teaching and learning.

Please give as generously as you can.

Call the Development Office at 203-830-3922 or visit www.woosterschool.org/supporting-wooster

Inspiration lasts a lifetime when it happens every day.

Wooster School

Nonprofit Org U.S. Postage PAID Hartford CT Permit #1754

91 Miry Brook Road Danbury, Connecticut 06810 203-830-3916 www.woosterschool.org

2011

Reunion

Save the Date Friday, May 11, 2012 & Saturday, May 12, 2012 Announcing the Reunion of Classes

1942 1947 1952 1957 1962 1967 1972 1977 1982 1987 1992 1997 2002 2007 This event is for ALL Wooster alumni, families and friends.

Let us welcome you back for this special weekend with activities for everyone to enjoy.

Please check Wooster’s webpage and Facebook page for updates, registration form and hotel information. www.woosterschool.org