Nine Student Poets Earn Prestigious Awards
Continuing the long Milton tradition of excellence in writing, nine student poets received prestigious awards this spring. From institutions such as Princeton and Bennington, through Hollins University and Smith College, judges recognized Milton students’ talent with language and imagery. In creative writing classes, the students devoted hours to writing and workshopping their pieces before English faculty members encouraged them to submit their best work to award competitions and publications.
Kat Kulke’s (II) poem “Autoscopy” won second prize in the Princeton University Leonard L. Milberg ’53 Secondary School Poetry Prize.
Students sift through and develop a number of ideas over time. For instance, Kat says, “My piece was originally a short story, but then it evolved into a poem that was driven by language.”
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With Its Own Surprises: Arabian Nights at King Theatre
Rich cultural and historical tales will unspool on stage this weekend in Milton's spring production, Arabian Nights. The script is playwright Mary Zimmerman’s adaption of the legendary collection of Persian stories, The Arabian Nights: The Book of 1,001 Nights.
“The focus of the tales is the strength of women,” says performing arts faculty member, Dar Anastas. “In a society where women had no official power, the stories show the ways in which they do have power.”
The stories, interwoven with dance and music, revolve around two main characters—Shahryar, the Persian king and Scheherezade, his new wife.
“The storytelling is really cinematic, so the challenge is to capture this sense and make the production flow from story to story,” says Dar.
Dar plans to extend the stage out into the seating area and surround the stage on three sides, bringing the audience members into the story. Four students are helping Dar design unique and fantastical sets and lighting. Moving elements will evolve with the action and the production promises surprise scenic moments.
Arabian Nights will fill King Theatre on Thursday, May 17, and Friday, May 18 at 7:30 p.m., and on Saturday, May 19 at 7 p.m.
watch promo video
José Ruiz is Milton’s New Dean of Students
This summer Milton will welcome José Luis Ruiz as the School’s new dean of students. José was most recently the associate dean of students and director of residential life at St. Mark’s School in Southborough, Massachusetts. José has been active in independent school life for many years and in numerous, valuable roles. He is a graduate of Westminster School in Simsbury, Connecticut, and has worked in independent schools for the last 13 years.
José’s experience in the classroom is extensive; he taught both introductory and advanced levels of Spanish at St. Mark’s and at Westminster. José majored in Spanish at Middlebury College and has completed work toward his master’s in education at Teachers College of Columbia University.
As director of the residential life program at St. Mark’s, José supported a staff of 11 dorm heads in managing their houses and oversaw all aspects of dormitory life. He helped implement school-wide initiatives in student life, advising, discipline and health services. In his role as associate dean, José worked most closely with the school’s student leaders, supporting and overseeing their selection process and programming.
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New Head Monitors Are Already Looking Forward
Newly elected head monitors Jessica Li (II) and Nick Maragos (II) have taken up the mantle as school leaders from outgoing head monitors Molly Gilmore (I) and Tom Schnoor (I). Jessica and Nick have moved into the office in the Schwarz Student Center, and they are already planning for the 2012–2013 school year.
“Overall, we want to set a positive and enthusiastic tone, especially through assemblies,” says Nick. “We want to pick up from Molly and Tom’s energy and start new traditions and School-wide events that everyone will remember.”
The head monitor election is an involved process. Over the course of a week in mid-April, each one of ten boys and three girls—self-nominated—made his or her case to all students and to the faculty about serving as one of the two head monitors for the 2012–2013 year. On April 11, ten male candidates delivered three-minute speeches to a packed house in the ACC. Students, Classes IV through I, could then rank the nominees online in order from one through ten. The three boys receiving the highest-ranking votes delivered longer, final speeches, with the three female candidates on April 17. Students voted that evening, until 11 p.m. Vote totals and election results were announced the following morning.
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U.S. History Students Honored for Outstanding Research
During the annual Bisbee Tea, Allison Edwards (II) describes her research paper, "Second Place: How the American Disposition of the Post-World War II Era Prevented the U.S. From Reaching Outer Space First." Allison is one of 11 recipients of this year's Ethan Wyatt Bisbee Prize, an honor bestowed on students for their outstanding research in United States History. Each year, faculty teaching the U.S. History and U.S. History in the Modern World courses choose honorees from among their students. The department invites prizewinners to the annual Bisbee Tea to celebrate their achievements and share their projects with faculty and fellow honorees.
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Seminar Day Connects Students with Thought-Provoking Experts and Activists
Sparking new ideas and lively conversation, 25 experts and activists on a wide range of publicly debated United States and international issues visited campus for the student-organized Seminar Day. Many Milton Academy graduates were among the guest speakers, stimulating great questions and discussions.
Called the Keyes Seminar Day, this lively event has been one of Milton’s most important traditions since 1977. It is named in honor of its founder, former faculty member Peter Keyes, a legendary promoter of student interest in political process as well as public and governmental affairs and service. In the Milton spirit of developing students’ confidence and competence to live by our motto, “Dare to be true,” Seminar Day brings to campus individuals who have made compelling choices. They are scholars, business people, scientists, educators, writers, political leaders and artists making a difference in the world.
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The Favorite “DYO” Experiments: On Exhibit at the Science Symposium
Milton’s second annual Science Symposium showcased advanced science students and their DYO (Design Your Own) experiments in the Pritzker Science Center. Faculty and friends gathered around the young scientists presenting their work.
Students structure and conduct experiments that explore all major areas of science and diverse hypotheses. They work independently on their questions for three to five weeks. The experiments range from examining road salt run-off in a local brook to the physics of ocean waves, from the effect of carbon dioxide on mung bean germination to the effect of changing frequencies on a cornstarch concentration.
Ashley Bae (I) and Ben Scharfstein (I) talked to the audience about the value of the DYO experiments.
“The coolest part about the DYO for me is designing the entire lab from start to finish,” says Ben. “The labs we conduct throughout the year are integrated into the day-to-day curriculum, which means that labs have a specific objective in mind. The goal of the DYO, however, is slightly different. Instead of focusing on a specific topic for a certain reason, the DYO is meant to get us excited about science and force us to use all of the skills we have learned during the year.”
Ashley’s advanced biology experiment was titled “Planarian head regeneration: the impact of bioelectric stimulation.” She also worked on another experiment with classmate Walton Lee (I) that examined stream water pollution.
“Because of the science immersion the DYOs have provided me, I know I want to pursue a career in scientific research,” says Ashley.
Milton Presents A Streetcar Named Desire
Wigg Hall becomes a cramped apartment in working-class New Orleans for the spring 1212 Play production of Tennessee Williams’s A Streetcar Named Desire. Peter Parisi, chair of the performing arts department, is directing the play with the help of two student assistants, Emilie Tréhu (I) and Rick Dionne (IV).
Nine of the ten cast members appear for the first time on the Milton stage in this production. Shannon Reilly (I) plays Stella Kowalski and Clare Dingle (II) plays her sister, the fading southern belle, Blanche DuBois.
“Blanche is a fascinating character,” says Clare. “She is complicated and tragic. She is delicate, but she can also be so cruel to the people around her.”
Adam Basri (II) plays Stella’s husband, Stanley, whose character demands a physical presence on the stage; Adam is up to the task. Referring to the original stage and film versions with Marlon Brando as Stanley, Peter says, “I told Adam that I don’t want to see Brando’s Stanley, I want to see Adam’s Stanley. He has succeeded in finding new ways to portray the character, such as really showing the relationship between Stanley and Stella.”
Performances begin at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday and Friday, May 3 and 4, and at 7 p.m. on Saturday, May 5.
Watch a clip of rehearsals
Merilin Castillo (I) Earns the 2012 Princeton Prize in Race Relations
After class each day, Merilin Castillo (I) travels to the Southern Jamaica Plain Health Center in Boston where she works until 7 p.m. on the Racial Healing and Reconciliation (R&R) project. Merilin is a founding member of the project, and her work earned her the 2012 Princeton Prize in Race Relations from Boston. The R&R project offers to youth groups and community leaders training and workshops on racism awareness and the effects of racism on health. In recognition of her hard work and dedication, she will receive the award on May 14 when she attends the Princeton Prize Symposium on Race held on the university’s campus.
“I’m excited to go to the symposium where I’ll meet other people who do similar work,” says Merilin. “It’s also a great opportunity to show what we do and raise awareness.”
With a strong interest in public health and community organizing, Merilin started working at the health center the summer after her Class IV year at Milton. The health center’s program manager used a grant to launch the R&R project and asked Merilin to help develop the curriculum and launch the project. Today, the project runs numerous programs and Merilin enthusiastically embraces the challenges. In the fall, the focus is on training volunteers who then work with local schools and community groups in the spring.
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Mara-a-Pula Performs in King Theatre
The Mara-a-Pula (MAP) marimba band performed a free concert on Thursday night in King Theatre. Comprised of high school students from a private school in Gaborone, Botswana, the marimba band is touring the United States to raise scholarship funds for AIDS orphans who attend their school. The group's visit to Milton Academy is generously supported by the Melissa Dilworth Gold Fund.
Changing Our Energy Sources: Green Tech Leaders Speak to Milton Students
Adam Berrey ’89 helped Milton honor Earth Day by organizing the “Milton Clean Tech Panel” for the assembly hosted by LORAX. The panelists, leaders in several companies involved in the clean tech industry, addressed the important role business plays in finding solutions for current and future environmental issues.
“Although we can all make small everyday changes to help the environment, such as taking quick showers and turning off lights, that just really glosses over the problems we face,” says Adam. “Our whole life depends on low cost energy and if we don’t fundamentally change how we provide this energy, there is no way we will stop global warming.”
Adam, a longtime environmentalist and entrepreneur, is a member of North Bridge Venture Partners. He was joined on the panel by Berl Hartman, New England chapter director of E2; Frank Gorke of CLEAResult; David Miller of Clean Energy Venture Group; and Tom Pincince, a Milton parent and CEO of Digital Lumens. All are New England-based companies either funding or producing products focused on clean technology.
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French Exchange Students Visit Milton
The modern languages department is hosting 20 French students and two chaperones from the Lycée Georges Duby in Aix en Provence in the south of France for two weeks. They are sharing Milton students' family life as well as attending classes and doing sightseeing in and around Boston, including a whale watch and a trip to Plimoth Plantation.
“We are thrilled to welcome them and wish them a wonderful visit,” says Séverine Carpenter, modern languages faculty member.
Milton students will then travel with faculty members Cedric Morlot and Isabelle Lantieri to Aix-en-Provence from May 24 to June 7. They will stay with their French pen pals' family, attend classes in their school, and visit the region. They will be back for graduation.
Dr. Sylvia Earle, Intrepid Explorer, Shares Her Passion for “The Deep”
World-renowned marine biologist and ocean explorer Dr. Sylvia Earle shared her passion and wonder of discovery with students during the science department’s assembly. An advocate for the research and protection of the ocean, Dr. Earle articulated a positive outlook on the future of “our most precious and largely unexplored frontiers—our seas.”
“If I could choose a time to arrive on the planet I would choose now,” says Dr. Earle. “Despite the bad news about our climate, the good news is we have the power and knowledge to shape the future in a way our predecessors did not. This is the best time because we have the ability to know who we are, where we’ve been and where we are going. depending on what we do or don’t do.”
The 77-year-old Dr. Earle understated her astonishing and extensive travel and diving itinerary—one week she might be in Hawaii, the next a deep-water Russian lake. She was effusive of her love of submersible diving machines, how she enjoys driving them and hopes that some day, using them to get to know oceans becomes a more commonplace experience for people.
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Milton Teams Celebrate Town’s 350th Anniversary
In celebration of the town of Milton’s 350th Anniversary, the Academy's varsity baseball and softball teams competed against Milton High School on Sunday, at the Curry College fields. The outcome was split as the girls’ Mustangs lost a close game (5-4) and the boys’ Mustangs won a game that highlighted strong hitting on both sides (15-6).
The baseball teams have a tradition of playing head to head in town celebrations. In 1912, at the town’s 250th Anniversary, Milton Academy took a 7-5 victory in ten innings over Milton High. At the towns 300th Anniversary in 1962, Milton High was the victor with a 7-6 win over the Academy. This year was the first time that the two softball teams participated in the celebration.
Lamar Reddicks, Milton Academy’s director of athletics and former Milton High basketball star, knows both schools better than anyone.
“As a proud member of both communities, I feel this is great tradition,” says Lamar. “The students on each of the teams know each other well, so even though these games were an exhibition, plenty was riding on them in the way of bragging rights. We are thankful to Curry College for providing a neutral site for these two games and participating in the celebration.”
“Shavees” Raise Funds for Child Cancer Research
With music thumping from speakers and students crowding the stairs and balconies, a buzz cutter went to work in the student center this afternoon as 12 students, faculty and staff shaved their heads to raise money for child cancer research. The Milton Barber Shop did the honors and the event raised $18,000 for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation.
Natalie Jones (II) organized the event with the assistance of faculty member Katie Collins, who was one of “shavees.” Head of School Todd Bland also participated in the event. Natalie says she was inspired to get involved with St. Baldrick’s because she has a family member who has had childhood cancer twice. Her previous school back in Hong Kong holds this event annually.
The St. Baldrick's Foundation is a volunteer-driven charity committed to funding the most promising research to find cures for childhood cancers and give survivors long and healthy lives. Thus far in 2012, the Foundation has raised more than $25 million. Each year, 160,000 children are diagnosed with cancer worldwide. Cancer is the number one disease killer of children in the U.S. and Canada.
Student Asian Society Hosts Identity Conference
The Asian Society at Milton Academy is hosting a conference titled Asian American Footsteps: Finding Our Own Path, on Sunday, April 15. Over 200 students from 15 independent schools will gather for workshops and performances. The keynote speaker is Wesley Yang, contributing editor at New York Magazine. The conference provides a unique opportunity for Asian international and Asian American students to discuss issues specific to their experiences.
“The goals of this conference are to inspire, educate, connect and affirm the experiences of Asian and Asian American and mixed-Asian students at our schools,” says Vivian WuWong, chair of Milton’s history department and faculty advisor to the Asian Society. Topics addressed at the conference will include college life, the model minority myth, and Asian American history.
For more information, please visit
Isoperimetric Quotients and Building Pig Pens? Math Faculty Member Matt Simonson Explains.
Matthew Simonson’s undergraduate mathematics thesis has taken on a life of its own. Not only is it a published article, it’s an experience Mr. Simonson recreates in his math classrooms at Milton. At Williams College, Mr. Simonson investigated the isoperimetric problem: how to enclose a certain amount of area with the least perimeter. Or, as Mr. Simonson puts it, “Suppose you’re building a pig pen. Your pigs need a certain amount of space to wallow, but you want to spend as little money as possible on fencing. What shape should your fence be?” Ordinarily, the most efficient shape would be a circle. “However, if you’re building the pig pen against the side of a barn, then you only need a semicircle. And if the wall of the barn is curved, or the surface isn’t flat, then the problem gets really interesting.”
The article Mr. Simonson wrote, based on his research of hyperbolic geometry, was published in the November 2011 issue of the Journal of the Korean Mathematical Society. He brings his research and discovery experience into his Honors Geometry classroom, where students are writing, peer reviewing and publishing their own math journal.
“This exploration affirmed for me how creative math can be,” says Mr. Simonson. “When you’re tackling a problem that’s never been solved, there’s no right way to go about proving it. Crafting a proof is more like architecture than puzzle solving. There are so many tools to choose from, and you have to figure out which will work best.”
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Ian Torney ’82 Exhibits At the Horizon in the Nesto Gallery
Milton’s Nesto Gallery opens its doors on April 10 to At the Horizon: Recent Paintings—an exhibition by alumnus Ian Torney, Class of 1982.
“I have been a painter of the observed landscape for nearly two decades now, painting in oil on board or canvas,” says Mr. Torney in his artist statement. “I came into my practice initially as a plein air landscape painter, making small works not wholly beholden to but derived from what was seen on location, and in reaction to a myriad of external (and perhaps internal) circumstances… I strive to make even my small canvases possess an inherent monumentality.”
His recent series, At The Horizon, is an “exploration of the boundless implications of ambiguity, mystery and promise found where the earth meets the sky,” he says. “It is an exploration directed as much by where the paint leads as it is by what the subject inspires.”
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Alumna Annie LaVigne ’07 Combines Cycling and Service This Summer
Harvard senior Annie LaVigne ’07 will trade her cap and gown for a cycling jersey and helmet this June. Annie will set off on a 70-day, cross-country trek; she is one of a team raising money for and building affordable housing, through the nonprofit Bike & Build. Her team will bike an average of 60 to 80 miles per day from Providence, Rhode Island, to Seattle, Washington, stopping every few days to work on construction sites.
“I am excited by the idea of fully dedicating myself to a cause and biking to the place I’m building. I look forward to riding from town to town, talking to people about affordable housing and meeting the people we are helping. Biking cross-country is such a unique way to travel—we’ll get to see the sights that you miss when you fly.”
A life-long athlete, Annie’s first exposure to distance cycling was two summers ago, when she led two cycling trips for teenagers in Europe and Canada. Annie’s major is developmental and regenerative biology, and she was looking for another challenge over the summer before she begins applying to medical schools.
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Governor Deval Patrick '74 Will Address the Class of 2012
Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, Milton Academy Class of 1974, will deliver the commencement address to this year’s graduating class. Governor Patrick was elected to office in 2006 and is now serving his second term as the state’s first African-American governor.
Born and raised in Chicago, Deval came to Milton in 1970 as part of the A Better Chance program, which provides “access to quality education for thousands of young people of color… who can compete effectively in schools, colleges and the workplace.” () Classmate Anna Waring ’74, a fellow ABC alum, met Deval during the summer program before they both matriculated at Milton. “Friendly, sweet, serious about his work and compassionate,” is how she describes Deval as a 13-year old.
Deval was at Milton during years of violent, racial turmoil in Boston. How did he navigate those times and retain the optimism that has magnetized others as they came to know him as governor? “He has a profound ability to see the biggest possible picture,” Will Speers ’75 says. “That [perspective] has served him throughout life—when he was unwelcome in certain restaurants during law school, or trying to get a taxi on Pennsylvania Avenue late at night after a meeting in The Oval Office. He acknowledges that these things are out there, they’re part of life, but they don’t reflect on him.”
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Margo Johnson Speaker Founded School for Girls in Kabul
Razia Jan, founder of the Zabuli Education Center in Kabul, Afghanistan, spoke to students about her improbable achievement: under difficult political, economic and cultural conditions, opening a K–8 school for girls. Mrs. Jan was this year’s Margaret A. Johnson Speaker, a series that brings noted female leaders to campus each year.
“At the beginning, building a girls’ school in Afghanistan seemed as difficult for me as going to the moon,” said Mrs. Jan. “I am just one person, but I thought it was important to do something.”
Born in Afghanistan, Mrs. Jan moved to the United States in 1970. She was the proprietor of a small tailoring business in Duxbury, Massachusetts, for 20 years. Her son, Lars, graduated from Milton in 1996. Her life changed after September 11, 2001, when she rallied her adopted New England community to send over 400 homemade blankets to rescue workers at Ground Zero. Her efforts expanded to sending care packages to U.S. troops in Afghanistan and coordinating the delivery of over 30,000 pairs of shoes to Afghan children through the military’s Operation Shoe Fly.
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Yale Senior Chelsey Locarno '08 Honored for Athletics and Academics
Milton alumna Chelsey Locarno '08 is one of 10 individuals from the Yale field hockey team named this year to the NFHCA National Academic Squad. The Ivy League champion team has been excelling both on the field and in the classroom, as recognized recently by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association. As a team, the Bulldogs earned the NFHCA National Academic Team Award for the 2011 season.
The National Academic Squad recognizes individual student-athletes who have achieved a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.30 through the first semester of the 2011–2012 academic year. Chelsey has been named a member of the National Academic Squad three times.
The Bulldogs have earned the National Academic Team Award in each of their seven seasons under head coach Pam Stuper. The award is presented to all field hockey teams that maintained a GPA of 3.0 or higher for the fall of 2011.
In addition to this academic success, the Bulldogs had a great 2011 season. The women finished their season 11–6 overall and 6–1 in Ivy League play to earn a share of the Ivy title—Yale’s first Ivy League title since 1980—with Princeton.
Photograph by Sam Rubin, Yale Sports Publicity
Spring Break Service: Students Build and Tutor in Belize
Eleven students traveled to an island off the coast of Belize, volunteering for the spring break service trip organized by Milton’s Community Service Program. The group spent a week at the Ocean Academy, the only school on Caye Caulker. In the mornings, students helped lay cinderblocks with concrete and completed construction of a new classroom. In the afternoons, they tutored Ocean Academy students. While on the island, they also helped with a mangrove restoration project.
“We all had an amazing time,” says Mallika Iyer (II). “We loved our project and we really bonded with the Ocean Academy students and teachers. Every person was important to our success, and none of us wanted to leave on Sunday! Working consistently with the same people, immersed for several hours in our tasks, was really meaningful. We felt we accomplished something important.”
Student Journalists Bring the Pros to Campus
This year’s editors of The Milton Paper, Milton’s independent student newspaper, shared a top priority. When Adam Beckman (I) and Cydney Grannan (I) became editors-in-chief they were intent upon bringing their peers’ writing to the next level. “The writing quality of The Paper was always good, but we knew that if we worked hard, we could make it better,” says Cydney.
The pair agreed that reaching their goal demanded certain steps as they led their team. They committed to rejecting articles that didn’t meet their standards; asking former writers to reapply for this year’s positions on The Paper; appointing at least three editors to every article; and giving constant feedback. This season, they also purposefully connected student journalists with professional journalists who could come to campus and share insights about the field today.
On their own, Adam, Cydney and their staff contacted professionals in Greater Boston, and this semester three career journalists accepted the students’ invitation. The upshot is a powerful series of workshops and seminars for the staffs of The Paper, and the School’s official student newspaper, The Milton Measure.
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A Musical Tour Over March Break
The Chamber Orchestra and Chamber Singers bring their instruments and voices on tour in Germany and Poland—native country of composer Frédéric Chopin—this spring break.
After landing in Berlin, the group of 65—including students, parents and faculty members—will go to Poznań, Poland, to get settled before traveling to Warsaw, making a stop to visit Chopin’s hometown of Zelazowa Wola. After performing in Warsaw and taking in the local sights, the group will perform a concert in Wrocław. Songs on the tour’s repertoire include Mozart’s Overture to “The Impresario” and movements from Haydn’s Symphony #103. The singers will perform a range of pieces including Beethoven, Brahms and American Spiritual songs.
The tour ends where it began, in Berlin, where the students will perform two concerts before coming back to campus on March 17.
UPenn and Milton Join in Developing New Faculty
Milton is collaborating with the University of Pennsylvania and a consortium of six other leading boarding schools to implement a new program that brings to Milton young scholars interested in teaching careers. Set on “preparing the next generation of outstanding teachers,” the Penn Residency Master’s in Teaching program involves prospective teachers in an innovative and comprehensive curriculum designed explicitly for boarding school’s particular environment. Milton is ready to include up to two Penn program participants during the coming school year.
Over two years, Penn Residency fellows will immerse themselves in the daily life of a boarding school, as well as in course work. The course work includes sessions at Penn’s Graduate School of Education and on boarding school campuses. At Milton, designated faculty mentors will work with the prospective teachers, and help them assume responsibility gradually, in teaching, advising, coaching—in helping young people discover and develop diverse talents. The Penn Residency program was developed for energetic, young people excited about the opportunity to teach at a top boarding school while earning a master’s degree. The faculty at Milton are excited by this opportunity to share both teaching skills and a commitment to students’ lives. For more information, explore the program Web site.
Aligning the Four Selves: Poet Li-Young Lee is the Bingham Visiting Reader
With great wit and unassuming gravitas, poet Li-Young Lee, this spring’s Bingham Visiting Reader, read his work to students in King Theatre. The first piece, “Self-Help for Fellow Refugees,” draws on his childhood in Indonesia, raised by Chinese parents who fled communist China only to be persecuted for their ethnicity in their new country.
If you happen to have watched armed men
beat and drag your father
out the front door of your house
and into the back of an idling truck
before your mother jerked you from the threshold
and buried your face in her skirt folds,
try not to judge your mother too harshly.
Mr. Lee’s second poem was a work-in-progress titled “The Undressing” about his relationship with his wife. The visual and provocative poem about his “shallowness” versus his wife’s “complexity” was cut short when Mr. Lee discovered the full poem was not printed on his papers. The audience, although left hanging in what was perhaps a planned humorous tease, embraced the moment with a round of cheers and clapping.
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Claire Robertson ’13 Brings the NOH8 Campaign to Milton
Advanced Photography student Claire Robertson (II) turned her lens on fellow students to promote a message of tolerance and inclusion. Claire, a board member of the student group GASP (Gay and Straight People), says the independent project was inspired by the NOH8 Campaign, a photographic silent protest created by celebrity photographer Adam Bouska in response to the passage of Proposition 8 in California.
Claire put out a call for student volunteers via email and word-of-mouth. She was amazed when 26 students showed up in the Art and Media Center for the photo shoot.
“The experience reminded me that Milton is a community, and people will come out to help and support you. People I did not expect showed up,” says Claire.
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Visiting artists make music with students
The dramatic sounds of Baroque music filled the Kellner Performing Arts Center as two Melissa Gold Artists visited campus to spend time with students.
Peter Sykes (right), a well-known keyboard artist, demonstrated Baroque music on the clavichord. View video. He is an associate professor of music and chair of the historical performance department at Boston University. He has also served as director of music at First Church in Cambridge, Congregational, since 1985.
Martin Pearlman (left), music director of the Boston Baroque Ensemble, rehearsed the Haydn Symphony with Milton’s Chamber Orchestra as they prepare for their upcoming tour in Germany. View video.
“Marty is one of the country’s leading experts in music of the Classical and Baroque periods. Rehearsing with him is a great experience for our students,” says Don Dregalla, music department chair. Mr. Pearlman is a professor of music at the Boston University School of Music.
The Melissa Dilworth Gold ’61 Visiting Artist Fund commemorates Melissa’s life and interests by bringing nationally recognized artists to campus each year so that students may benefit from dynamic interaction with inspirational and accomplished professionals.
Two Milton Writers Take First Prize from The Kenyon Review
Victoria White '14 and Yvonne Fu '14 earned first place in the eighth annual Patricia Grodd Poetry Prize for Young Writers presented by The Kenyon Review. This award recognizes outstanding young poets and is open to high school sophomores and juniors. Victoria's poem "Elephant Grave" and Yvonne’s poem "Dear Poet" were selected from nearly 650 submissions. This was the first tie in the contest's history.
Both Victoria and Yvonne worked on their poems in Lisa Baker's Creative Writing class, which is run in a workshop format. Students read each other's work, offering critique and inspiration, as the writers flesh out their ideas.
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The Importance of Being Earnest This Winter
Milton actors serve up wit and hilarity as they present The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Play for Serious People. Oscar Wilde’s play is an intellectual farce of two best friends leading double lives that intertwine in comedic ways in Victorian England.
Dar Anastas, performing arts faculty member and director of the winter production, says, "each student brings something unique to the stage, which adds to an already great piece of literature."
This season’s production of The Important of Being Earnest runs in Ruth King Theatre on Thursday, February 9, and Friday, February 10, at 7:30 p.m., and on Saturday, February 11, at 7 p.m. For tickets, contact Dar Anastas at dar_anastas@milton.edu.
View photos of the performance.
Three Milton Musicians Earning Accolades
Three students are hitting high notes with their recent musical accomplishments. Ilve Bayturk (III) earned first prize for her performance in the Concerto Competition at the South Shore Conservatory in January. Violinist Sydney Adedamola (III) and vocalist Alé Gianino (II) were selected to participate in the Massachusetts Music Educators Association All State Festival in March.
Ilve played Dmitri Shostakovich’s Concerto #2 First Movement Allegro during the competition. She is a seasoned competitor at the Conservatory, earning placements in her past five appearances, including last year’s Overall Winner award.
Both Ilve and Sydney play for Milton’s Chamber Orchestra under the direction of music department chair Don Dregalla. Sydney has been playing violin for 12 years, and this will be her first appearance at the All State Festival—a weekend-long event culminating in a final orchestral performance at Boston Symphony Hall. Students audition at district events to earn a spot.
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Letting Loose: Art by Wendy Seller
The Nesto Gallery welcomes a new exhibit this week. In Letting Loose: Digital Collages, Wendy Seller uses graphic design software to layer paintings with elements of existing imagery.
“Ms. Seller’s work is based on assembling fragments of historical art paintings and reconfiguring them,” says art faculty member and Nesto Gallery director, Anne Neely. “In discovering parts of paintings, she takes them out of their setting and creates new meaning for them in more contemporary ways.”
A professor at the Rhode Island School of Design, Ms. Seller has exhibited her work across the United States and overseas. She has also been published in Boston Globe Magazine and the New York Times.
To welcome the artist and her work, Milton will host an opening reception on Tuesday, February 7, in the Nesto Gallery from 5:30 to 7 p.m. The Gallery is located on the lower level of the Art and Media Center. The exhibit will run through March 6.
Visit wendyseller.com to learn more about the artist.
Alumna Eliza Byard Tackles Bullying and GLBT Issues
Dr. Eliza Byard ’86 spoke to students about biased bullying of GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender) students and how her organization is working with schools to address and change the problem. She is the executive director of the GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, a national education organization working to ensure safe schools for all students, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression.
Eliza says schools have a curriculum, and also a “hidden” curriculum, “the set of unarticulated and often unacknowledged things that get communicated to the student through the everyday experience in the school, often as much by what isn’t said or how it’s said or the content of what is said.”
Eliza stressed that bullying is a “dynamic within a community that affects every participant”—the bully, the target and the bystanders. “Everyone in that dynamic needs help and support, and everyone needs some form of intervention.”
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Isabel Chun ’14 Illustrates a New Children’s Book
Isabel Chun (III) has illustrated her first, published children’s book. Her childhood love of painting ultimately led her to this project. Isabel’s vivid and colorful illustrations appear in The Kwik Adventures of Baxter Brave and Tommy the Salami, the story of a young boy who sets off with his dog from the high-rise buildings of Hong Kong for an around-the-world adventure. Traversing four chapters—The Desert, The Ocean, The Jungle and The Mountains—the duo encounter storms, beautiful landscapes, and a variety of animals that help them along the way.
“My favorite chapter to work on was The Jungle, but my favorite illustration is the starry sky that appears in the desert chapter,” says Isabel.
The book contains nearly 100 illustrations, each artfully created by Isabel’s hand. Each illustration was formed in two parts: an ink drawing, which provided the outline, and a watercolor element that filled in the color and texture. Isabel scanned both portions into a computer and merged the two in Photoshop, creating vibrant images that reflect a child’s sense of whimsy.
“The part I most enjoyed was combining the watercolor and ink and seeing the result. The most challenging part of the process was learning how to tell a story through art. This was my first experience with this challenge, and I had to figure out what perspectives would appeal to children.”
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Sailor Russell Clarida ’15 Competes in the World Championships
Over winter break, Russell Clarida (IV) traveled to the east coast of New Zealand for the Optimist World Championships, where he competed against over 200 sailors from around the world. An Optimist is an eight-foot, single-handed sailing dinghy intended for use by sailors ages 15 and under.
Russell arrived two weeks before the competition to acclimate himself to the conditions of the South Pacific Ocean. He and four other sailors comprised the United States national team, representing the top American sailors of their age group. Russell is the 2011 North American Champion, a title he claimed over the summer in California.
Racing days at the Worlds are intense; the sailors compete in three races every day, crowding at the start and then racing out and around the markers before heading to the finish. Each race lasts about an hour and 15 minutes.
“The racing was tough,” says Russell. “The sun was really strong and the wind came from a different direction every day.” Despite the challenging conditions, Russell placed 27th out of 210 sailors.
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Fulfilling Dr. King’s Dream: A Charge From Alumna Heather McGhee
Heather McGhee ’97 works every day to address economic inequality. As the 2012 Martin Luther King, Jr. Speaker, she urged students to think about difficult economic issues. “If Dr. King were alive, he would be calling on people—particularly young people—to address economic justice in this country.”
Ms. McGhee is a director at Demos, a multi-issue national organization that combines research, policy and advocacy to influence public debate and catalyze change.
Acknowledging that the economy is a “daunting topic,” she enlisted seven student volunteers to help her demonstrate—through a moving human graph at the front of the audience—the disparity between rich and poor in the United States today. Each student held a sign representing a household income bracket. By taking steps forward or backward they gave life-size representation to movement among income brackets over time. The lowest income bracket saw the largest economic growth from 1947 to 1979. Between 1979 and 2009, this growth slowed dramatically, or stopped completely, for four of the five income quintiles.The top quintile, especially U.S. millionaires, saw spectacular growth in the same time.
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Milton Senior Honored at YoungArts Week
Hannah Grace (I) is representing Milton Academy as a finalist in YoungArts Week 2012. She is one of 152 students chosen from among 5,000 applicants representing the visual, literary and performing arts to participate in this unique event, taking place in Miami this week.
Hannah submitted a collection of six poems, written both in her Creative Writing class at Milton and during a summer program at Kenyon College.
“I was so excited to get the phone call telling me I was going to YoungArts,” says Hannah. “I am looking forward to meeting all the other students who won.”
This is not the first formal recognition of Hannah’s poetry. Last year, she won a silver medal for her work in the prestigious Scholastic Art and Writing Awards—the country’s oldest awards program for creative teenagers. She says her favorite poet is Billy Collins because “you can read his poems in different ways, and he uses great words.”
YoungArts is the core program of the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts. At the event, students will have the opportunity to win cash awards and the chance to become a Presidential Scholar in the Arts.
Milton Boys' Hockey Take to Ice at Fenway Park
On the hallowed grounds of Fenway Park, Milton Academy’s boys’ hockey team faced off against Noble and Greenough as part of Frozen Fenway 2012, a regional showcase of high school and collegiate hockey teams.
With temperatures dipping into the low 20s, Mustang fans cheered from the stands as the sun slipped down behind the Green Monster. Milton’s Jimmy Haddad (II) scored in the second period and Jon Franco (I) scored on a power play in the third, but the game went to Nobles 6-2. A great afternoon of hockey on the Red Sox stomping grounds.
View photos of the game.
Milton's Jazz Combo Performs at International Conference
The Jazz Education Network (JEN) has invited Milton Academy’s Advanced Jazz Combo to perform at this year’s JEN Conference on Friday, January 6 and Saturday, January 7. Milton’s musicians will travel to Louisville, Kentucky, to attend the two-day conference and play alongside some of the best school combos from around the world.
“The Jazz Combo will present a musical tribute to JEN's first legends of jazz education—Jamey Aebersold, David Baker, Jerry Coker and Dan Haerle—by performing their compositions,” says jazz faculty member Bob Sinicrope. “The students will also attend many clinics and performances during their time at the conference.”
The expected attendance at the conference is 3,000 people from all corners of the globe. The Jazz Education Network’s mission is to “build the jazz arts community by advancing education, promoting performance, and developing new audiences.”
A Christmas Carol, tenderly reshaped for the 21st century
If you dare update a classic, or alter a beloved tradition, you need to tread carefully. Jesse Kornbluth ’64 put aside any fears and tackled the classic of all Christmas tales. He contemporized a 19th century story that meant much to him when he was a Milton student.
According to Jesse, Milton was “staunchly traditional” in the early ’60s. He and his classmates addressed faculty as “sir” and sipped tea in real china after football games. His favorite tradition was a reading of A Christmas Carol in Straus Library by headmaster Arthur Bliss Perry the night before students went home for the holiday break.
“Mr. Perry entered and took his seat. And then he became Charles Dickens. He read without accent and without drama. He didn’t play up the sentiment. He simply delivered—as he had each December for 14 years and would for two more—the greatest Christmas story since the original one. I got shivers. Maybe shed a tear. It was that remarkable an experience.”
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First Person Plural: Filmmaker Deann Borshay Liem Shares Her Story
Students filled King Theatre on Wednesday morning to hear from Korean-born filmmaker Deann Borshay Liem. Milton’s thirteenth speaker in the Hong Kong Distinguished Lecture Series, Ms. Liem told her story as a Korean child adopted by an American family. Unique to her story, however, she “came to America both literally and metaphorically walking in another girl’s shoes.”
In 1966, eight-year-old Deann was sent as an adopted orphan to the United States, but she made the trip under another child’s identity; Deann’s passport and documentation said that her name was Cha Jung Hee, the name of another child at the orphanage. She was sent to America—told to keep her true identity hidden from her adoptive parents—wearing the clothing that the Borshay family had sent for Cha Jung Hee.
“Having grown up as someone I wasn’t, I never fully embraced my adoptive family or my role in it. Though they are warm, wonderful people, I was never able to fully accept their love for me,” she says.
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Proving Their Mettle in the Model United Nations
Julia Iansiti (III) and Alastair Bastian (III) are Model United Nations partners who balance each other out. “We work very well together,” says Julia. “We know each other’s strengths and weaknesses.” The two have participated in various Model UN conferences and competitions, either individually or as a pair, earning much recognition for their work.
Earlier this month, they won Outstanding Delegate Team at the Princeton Model United Nations Conference, where over 1,200 students competed.
“The Princeton conference is one of the most elite, geared toward experienced Model UN students, usually juniors and seniors,” says history faculty member Alan Gluck, who accompanied the students to Princeton. “As sophomores, Julia and Alastair competing in this event was very unusual, and their work was very impressive.”
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Nesto Gallery Alive with the Kinetic Sculptures of Anne Lilly
Sculptor Anne Lilly uses carefully engineered motion to shift and manipulate our perception of time and space. Constructing precise and interactive sculptures, which move in fluid and mesmeric ways, she elicits connections between external physical space and the viewer’s private, psychological domain.
“Each piece utilizes the direct touch of the viewer to impart energy and initiate movement,” Ms. Lilly describes. “I fabricate the work in stainless steel. Stainless is a cold, hard, impersonal material, and I like pressing these qualities against the warm and sensuous response of the work.”
Anne Lilly has created public artworks for the City of Boston, and in 2010 she was nominated for the Foster Prize of Boston’s Institute of Contemporary Art. Her work was included in the 2007 DeCordova Annual Exhibition and is held in corporate and private collections internationally.
Cate McQuaid of the Boston Globe writes, “Anne Lilly’s captivating stainless steel sculptures…are so intricately engineered they appear to do magic. Tall rods rising from cylinders planted on gears rush toward each other, bowing, then fall away in one fluid motion. Rotating grills look like they’ll collide, then they miraculously pass. The movement of each sparely designed piece is full of grace and surprise.”
Ms. Lilly’s Nesto Gallery exhibit, Nimbus: Recent Sculptures, opened on December 6 and continues through January 20.
Milton's Musicians are Ready for Winter
A long-standing tradition this time each year, Milton Academy's Winter Concerts prove to be a welcomed gift on these chilly, short December days. Orchestras and vocal groups have been busy in Kellner these past weeks preparing for two performances scheduled for Friday, December 9 and Sunday, December 11 in King Theatre.
Beginning at 7:30 p.m., Friday's concert features the Gospel Choir, Chamber Singers, Glee Club and the School's four a capella groups. Highlights include the Abendlied of Josef Rheinberger and Shalom Rav of Ben Steinberg, both sung by the Chamber Singers. The Glee Club will sing several selections, including a chorus from Gluck's operan Orfeo and an arrangement of the American Spiritual, Go Down Moses.
On Sunday at 4 p.m., Milton's two orchestras take the stage. The Chamber Orchestra performs works of Handel, Mozart, Haydn and the premiere of an orchestral transcription of Clare Grundman's Concertante for Alto Sax and band. The soloist will be Kate Ballinger (I). The full orchestra will play works of Chesnakov, Joplin, Tchaikovsky, Verdi and Holst. Watch orchestra rehearsal.
The music department will host a silent auction at both events to defray the cost of the Chamber Singers/Chamber Orchestra tour of Poland and Germany in 2012. If you have any questions, please contact Music Department Chair Don Dregalla at don_dregalla@milton.edu.
Students are the jury: Talbot Speaker challenges assumptions
On Wednesday morning, Brett Sokolow asked students to serve as a jury. He challenged students’ notions of what constitutes sexual assault by presenting a case, and asking them for how they would rule. Mr. Sokolow is a risk management consultant and higher education attorney, with long experience.
Mr. Sokolow outlined the facts from a groundbreaking case that occurred on a college campus 14 years ago. He then invited students to ask questions about the encounter between “Amy” and “Todd.” After this discussion, the students indicated by a show of hands their reading of the defendant’s guilt or innocence. Only then did Mr. Sokolow share the actual verdict. The students were mainly divided on the case, a common outcome, Mr. Sokolow says, when he speaks on college campuses nationwide. He said he hoped the students would continue the conversation among themselves throughout the day. In fact, the conversation did continue, across campus, over the days since the speaker’s challenge.
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Class IV Presents: The Haunting of Will Shakespeare
The Class IV Play, a long-standing performing arts tradition at Milton, is an all-inclusive and beloved class project. Faculty member Pam McArdle directs this year’s production, The Haunting of Will Shakespeare—a fanciful take on how a young Shakespeare became a playwright.
"This play offers a blend of light-hearted comedy along with a touch of Shakespeare," says Ms. McArdle. "It is age-appropriate for Class IV students, yet sophisticated and funny enough to challenge the actors."
View photos of the performance.
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Milton Alumni Compete with Nobles Off the Field
As Milton's Mustangs suited up to take on the Nobles teams, alumni from both schools were in a heated battle to show their spirit off the field. Milton and Nobles alumni from the Class of 1998 through the Class of 2011 competed for the highest number of gifts to the respective Annual Funds by game day.
Click here to see the final score.
“What words will you choose to live by?”
Stephen Elliott ’99 is this year’s Veterans’ Day Speaker
After reminiscing about Milton faculty and life in Goodwin House, Stephen Elliott ’99 urged students at the Veterans' Day Assembly to consider a future in public service.
“For me, Veterans’ Day is a time to reflect on the words I will choose to live by, and how I will commit service to others,” said Stephen. “If you permit me, I ask you as well: What words will you choose to live by, and how will you commit service to others?”
Having studied engineering and computer science at Yale, Stephen became a commissioned Naval officer in 2004 and served on the USS HENRY M. JACKSON, a ballistic missile submarine based out of Bangor, Washington. He told students how a recruiting poster hanging in the hallway of his engineering school planted the seed of his joining the military, which was not his goal going into college. His final decision was based on what the military represented to him, even though some military traditions went against his own personal beliefs.
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Crossing the Finish Line with Their Best Season in 15 Years
Milton's girls' cross country team capped off a winning season with a second place finish at the 2011 ISL Championships at Brooks School. The Mustangs entered the final race with their best record in 15 years (12-2).
"Though nerves were on edge, Victoria Lee (I) and Danielle Frederick (I) navigated the 3.1 miles with ease, finishing fourth and fifth out of a field of 90 girls,” said Head Coach Scott Huntoon. “Maddie Warwick (III) finished third for the team and had one of her best races of the season. She began the race in the top 20 and steadily advanced to capture 11th place.”
Scott says Lindsay Atkeson (II) pushed through fatigue to cross the finish line in 18th place.
“In her first ISL Championship, she gave our team a critical edge over third place Middlesex,” says Scott.
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Ellen Sukharevsky (II) is Following the Squids From Space
The squids in space returned to Earth on the final two space shuttle voyages, but the experiments on the unique Hawaiian bobtail squid continue. Ellen Sukharevsky (II) is playing an important role. Over the summer, Ellen returned to the Space Life Science Laboratory, a NASA facility at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, to assist scientists.
“My favorite part was taking care of the squid in their tanks. I did that every morning—cleaning the tanks and checking to see if babies hatched,” says Ellen. “The timing of hatching is important, because the experiments have to be done right when they are born.”
Ellen was comfortable working in a professional lab, performing a variety of scientific experiments and recording data. “The most challenging part of working in the lab was the technology, which didn’t always cooperate!” says Ellen.
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Milton Presents The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
H-I-L-A-R-I-O-U-S. That’s what Milton’s fall musical promises to be.
The Tony Award-winning comedy The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee chronicles six overachievers in the throes of puberty, as they vie for the spelling championship of a lifetime. For this quirky and charming cast of outsiders, the spelling bee is the one place where they can stand out and fit in at the same time. Competition, as they prove, can bring out the best and the worst in people.
Milton’s production of the play is co-directed by performing arts faculty members Kelli Edwards and Robert Saint Laurence ’07.
“This show is smaller than our last musical [Chicago],” Kelli says, “but we’ve realized that doesn’t make it any less difficult or complex.”
View photos of the performance.
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Balla Tounkara and his Kora Bring West Africa to Milton
French students and world music aficionados are in for a treat this Thursday when Balla Tounkara, a griot and master kora player from Mali, visits Milton to perform and work with students.
In West African tradition, a griot is a member of a caste who maintains an oral record of tribal history in the form of music, poetry and storytelling. The kora is a traditional 21-string bridge harp unique to West Africa.
Modern Languages faculty member Laurence Huughe says Mr. Tounkara’s visit “reflects our commitment in the French program to also focus our studies on French culture and language outside of France.”
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A New Look for the Mustangs
Last spring, Head of School Todd Bland appointed a committee and charged the group with developing a new and consistent identity for Milton athletics. The committee is now happy to introduce the design that Mr. Bland has approved as the School's official athletics logo. All of Milton's athletic wear, formal and informal, from this point forward, will use the new design. Clothing and products that use designs from within this logo group will soon be available in the School bookstore, as well.
A student vote in the 1982–1983 school year triggered adoption of the Mustang as Milton Academy's mascot. Before that time, Milton teams had been known only as "orange and blue." Use of the Mustang as part of our teams' identity grew, and teams adopted various, disparate graphics and images. To develop a single, strong institutional athletics identity, a group that included the athletics department, administrators, faculty, the student activities office and the communication office began to meet and to work with a design team.
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Artist Chandra Dieppa Ortiz Shows “Four Voices” in the Nesto Gallery
The walls of the Nesto Gallery will soon be ablaze with bright colors, rich texture, and the stories that artist Chandra Dieppa Ortiz has to share. Through inter-related series of paintings, mixed media collage and assemblage, Ms. Ortiz explores the historical and contemporary use of storytelling. Employing musical forms such as jazz, blues and hip-hop she creates complex, rhythmic compositions, where fragments, symbols and images play against textured surfaces.
“I explore issues of race, class, gender and culture in the hopes of creating a dialogue between communities and generations by visualizing cultural armor,” Ms. Ortiz says. “I believe that ‘cultural armor’ protects by using love, humor, faith, music, stories and the telling of home truths to empower and inspire each generation.”
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Tony Award-Winner Ben Vereen Comes to Milton
Mr. Ben Vereen—acclaimed performer and humanitarian—joined Milton students on campus this week, in class and in performance. The Tony Award-winning actor, with roles in features such as Roots, Pippin, Wicked, Hair, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Muppets, Grey's Anatomy and Law and Order, has entertained audiences around the world. His talent on the stage is coupled with his focus on improving access to arts and services among people around the United States. For his humanitarian contributions, he has received numerous awards including Israel’s Cultural and Humanitarian Awards, three NAACP Image Awards, an Eleanor Roosevelt Humanitarian Award and a Victory Award.
Swap-It: Where to Get Your Bargain Finery This Fall
A sparkly pair of leggings, a faux fur shawl, and a hat worthy of a Dr. Seuss character. Sounds crazy? It’s a student’s typical basketful of goodies, proudly compiled from Swap-It, Milton’s much-loved annual yard sale.
Swap-It represents not only a chance to find rare and hip t-shirts—it is the source for outfits that ordinarily would be just figments of imagination. The much-anticipated Swap-It dance relies on creative purchasing and layering of very affordable finery from the Swap-It “racks.” The Swap-It dance is the place to see and be seen, and to show off your colorful, bargain apparel.
A tradition for over 60 years, Milton’s K–8 families are hard at work organizing the enormous sale of quality treasures—outerwear and sports gear, books and games, furniture, home accessories and designer clothing—that also happen to have been used and donated by families in the Milton community. Teams of parents accept, sort, price and organize thousands of donations that pour in during the days before the sale, then manage the crowds and the cashiering.
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Documentary Filmmaker Ian Cheney ’98 Shows Us The City Dark
A city skyline at night is an impressive spectacle, but the millions of twinkling lights we’re accustomed to obscure the natural starlight above. In his new documentary, , filmmaker Ian Cheney ’98 explores this light pollution and asks: What do we lose when we lose our connection to the night?
“Not long after moving to New York from rural Maine, I heard a surprising statistic: for the first time in the history of the planet, more people were living in cities than in the countryside,” says Ian. “That global shift from rural to urban mirrored my own shift from spending much of my childhood under dark night skies to an adulthood in cities. Surely, I thought, I'm not the only person missing the stars.”
The film covers a wide geographical area—exploring the threat of killer asteroids in Hawaii and tracking hatching turtles along the Florida coast—and features stunning astrophotography and a cast of eclectic scientists, philosophers, historians and lighting designers. Ian says making the documentary was a great learning experience.
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Author, cultural critic and correspondent Touré ’89 publishes Who’s Afraid of Post-Blackness?
What does being black today mean? Is there an authentic black experience? What does it mean to be “acting white”? Author and television correspondent Touré ’89 asked these probing, philosophical and emotional questions of 105 prominent African-American artists, politicians, academics, journalists and religious leaders. He wove their answers with his own thoughts and experiences in his book Who’s Afraid of Post-Blackness?
A recent New York Times book review said of Touré’s new book, “This is one of the most acutely observed accounts of what it is like to be young, black and middle-class in contemporary America. … a performance carried through with unsparing honesty, in a distinctive voice that is often humorous, occasionally wary and defensive, but always intensely engaging.”
“I began the book when Obama’s victory was clear, a moment that made me say, ‘Something has changed in this country,’” says Touré. “I’d always thought, as many blacks did, that it was impossible for a black person to become president. So I decided to explore where race is now, because things had clearly changed from when I was a teenager. The possibilities for black people are different—the nature of racism is different.”
Not one to shy from controversy, Touré argues in the book that there is no one right way to be black. He wants to broaden the concept of black identity, asserting the idea that “blackness” is anything an African-American wants it to be. He gives voice to the generations of blacks growing up post-Civil Rights, looking forward into the twenty-first century.
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Bienvenidos a la Academia Milton!
If you hear more Spanish being spoken in the halls this month, it’s because Milton is hosting 16 students from Colegio el Pilar as part of the annual eight-week Spanish Exchange program. The first four weeks of the program took place in June, when Milton students traveled with faculty member Tracy Crews to Spain. Paired with Spanish counterparts, Milton students stayed in local homes and attended classes at El Pilar, a private school in Madrid. Now the roles are reversed, and Milton families are hosting the Madrileños into October.
“When the Milton students visit Spain, they experience full Spanish immersion, speaking no English,” explains Ms. Crews. “When the Spanish students visit, they speak a combination of both languages so that the Spanish students can work on their English and Milton students can continue their work in Spanish.”
Osaremen Okolo (II) is paired with Patricia Garrido, who describes her first visit to the United States as “fantastic.” Osaremen, who stayed with Patricia’s family in Madrid, hopes to return to Spain next summer.
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A fun and spirited Class Day
Super heroes, chefs, FBI agents, angels and cartoon characters burst onto “center stage” last Friday, as Class I students opened one of Milton’s favorite traditions: senior walk-in. The seniors dress for success, and their class leaders launch the year by setting the themes seniors have chosen for the School. Once the cacophony of the class entrance dies down, the speakers, Class I councilors Henry Green and Phoebe Bodkin, particularly welcome freshmen (Class IV). They share sage advice about their views of the best ways to make the most of Milton and how to share one’s self with the School. The seniors’ spectacle launches another fun Milton tradition, Class Day, where all four classes participate in activities on and off campus.
This year, School head monitors Molly Gilmore and Tom Schnoor, chose viewing Waiting For Superman as a summer activity for all students and faculty. That prepared everyone for the next item of the day, small group discussions about the documentary. Waiting For Superman is a compelling commentary on the state of American education; it follows several urban public school students and their families as they hope lottery results will deliver the crucial opportunity of a slot in a charter school system.
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Wendy Seligman Lewis Exhibit Opens at the Nesto Gallery
Wendy Seligman Lewis has been intrigued, over the course of her career, by the demands and revelations of self-portraiture. The artist who concentrates on self-portraits must observe the self intensely, both as object and subject. The Nesto exhibit, selected from among her other works, covers nearly 40 years of the artist's self-portraits, revealing her strength, vulnerability, experience, reflection, intensity and repose. Ultimately, these portraits are about the process of aging.
An opening reception for the show is scheduled on Tuesday, September 20, from 5:30–7 p.m. in the lower level of the Art and Media Center. The exhibit is open weekdays, 8:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m., until October 19.
The Nesto Gallery opened in 1972. The gallery brings in artists from the New England area whose work enriches and broadens the School's collective perspective. Eight exhibitions take place a year, two of which are student exhibitions. Each year one exhibition, planned on a rotating basis, includes either graduates, members of the Milton community or a local artist.
Service is Popular at Milton
Over 400 students, or two-thirds of the Upper School student body, devoted time to community service last year. During Wednesday’s assembly, student volunteers encouraged their peers to join them this year, as they shared their experiences of working with disabled adults, spending time with the elderly, and tutoring local elementary school students.
Nearly 250 students perform weekly service each year, and many more partake in multi-annual events such as sorting food at the Greater Boston Food Bank, organizing the Red Cross Blood Drive, and coordinating holiday giving. Collectively last year, students spent 7,780 hours at over 30 sites in the Milton and Boston area.
Six students were honored at the assembly for committing the most hours of service. Soerny Cruz (I) and Kitty Lan (II) earned the top two spots with 60 hours and 56 hours respectively.
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They're Arriving. Who Are They?
Rain has not dampened the happy buzz on campus as new students arrive for registration, orientation and a campus-wide scavenger hunt. Milton’s admission committee selected this class from among 1032 applications last year. This week, 164 new students begin School; 107 are boarding students and 57 are day students.
Milton’s new students hail from 21 states and 14 countries—places as geographically and culturally diverse as New England, California, Nebraska, Texas, the Bahamas, China, Japan, Jordan and Switzerland. At least 18 languages are spoken in students’ homes, including French, Kasakh, Korean, and Arabic.
These students are unique, interesting and opinionated individuals. Their backgrounds and interests are rich, varied and intriguing. One student is a football player who knits hats for orphans. Another is a hockey goalie and she is also a sculptor. A third is a nationally ranked Irish step dancer, and another was the editor of his school’s daily online news Web site. One home-schooled student started an all-girls robotic team in her hometown because the boys’ team excluded girls from competing.
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Summer Learning Experiences Enrich Faculty
Faculty return to campus renewed and reinvigorated after the summer, but for many, summer was not all fun in the sun. Many faculty use the valuable time for professional development.
For instance, academic dean and math faculty member Jackie Bonenfant attended a four-day conference at the Harvard Graduate School of Education called the "Future of Learning." It featured Howard Gardner, David Perkins, and a host of other researchers and practitioners. The focus of the conference was how three major societal changes—mind/brain research, the digital revolution, and globalization—will shape the future of teaching and learning.
“Howard Gardner outlined ‘Five Minds for the Future’ that we should foster: the disciplined mind, the synthesizing mind, the creating mind, the respectful mind, and the ethical mind,” says Jackie. “As he said, ‘The world will not be saved by high test scores… . More than ever, a laser-like focus is needed on the kinds of human beings we are raising and the kinds of societies—indeed, in a global era, the kind of world society—that we are fashioning.’”
English faculty member Tarim Chung immersed himself in postmodern literature based on a syllabus from a graduate course at Harvard. This included among others, Proust’s Remembrance of Things Past, Beckett’s Waiting for Godot, Nabokov’s Speak, Memory and Woolf’s To the Lighthouse.
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My Summer? Playing Basketball in Russia
Ikemefuna “Ike” Ngwudo ’13 was one of 20 high school basketball players selected nationwide to play on a USA Basketball team for a two-week exchange program in Russia this summer. During the trip to Moscow and St. Petersburg, the student-athletes learned about Russian culture, attended basketball clinics, and played games with local athletes.
“The trip was an amazing experience,” said Ike. “It was exciting to visit all the historical sights and to meet so many Russian basketball players, including members of their national team.”
Ike says he learned a lot about the sport during their drills and games, where the teams were always a combination of Russian and American players.
“Americans play more athletic games, and the Russians play more skill-based games,” said Ike. “The Russian players like to move faster. They are less fancy in their moves, but they are more refined in technique. They get the job done.”
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Harvard-bound Yuleissy Ramirez ’11 is National Squash Champion
Squash standout Yuleissy Ramirez ’11 was the under-19 champion at the National Urban Individual Championships, which took place in June at Williams College.
“It was very exciting,” said Yuleissy, who played for the SquashBusters team. “In the final match, I won the first two games and felt confident. I lost the next two games, and it can be hard to come back after that. I went back on the court telling myself I wasn’t going to lose.”
Yuleissy won that final game 11-4 and captured the championship. Chris Kane, her former squash coach at Milton, isn’t surprised: “She has incredible belief in herself and she knows how to dig in and work hard. She is a fun player to watch.”
Yuleissy began playing for SquashBusters when she was in sixth grade. Based in Boston and Cambridge, the nonprofit organization was the first urban youth enrichment program to combine squash, academics and community service. Yuleissy was initially drawn to the social and community service aspects of the program; when she came to Milton in her Class IV year, her athletic talent was obvious and she played on the varsity team.
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Alumnus Appointed Music Director of Boston Landmarks Orchestra
Alumnus Christopher Wilkins ’74 recently became the music director of the Boston Landmarks Orchestra, which performs orchestral music in significant architectural, historical and geographical settings throughout the Boston area. Founded in 2001, the Orchestra’s mission is to perform exceptional orchestral concerts, free to the public.
Christopher was appointed to his new position earlier this spring after a nationwide search. Last summer he assisted the Orchestra when founder and conductor, Charles Ansbacher, fell ill. Christopher led the Orchestra during a memorable concert at Fenway Park, where he conducted Beethoven’s Ode to Joy from atop the bullpen. The event also reunited Christopher with Milton classmate and Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick ’74, who narrated a story accompanied by the Orchestra.
At Milton, Christopher was an accomplished oboist and a member of numerous music ensembles. “I must have played Bach’s Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring at least 300 times,” he laughs. “It ended up being my thing, and I played it with the choir at all kinds of events in the Apthorp Chapel.”
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Hockey Standout Rob O'Gara (I) Drafted by Boston Bruins
Before his junior year, Long Island native Rob O’Gara (I) made a decision to transfer to Milton Academy. That decision led him to new academic and athletic opportunities, and for the School’s hockey team, Rob was a great addition. The defenseman helped the team win the NEPSAC Championship this past winter, and this month Rob was selected 151st in the fifth round of the NHL entry draft by the Boston Bruins.
“It’s a surreal experience and I still feel like I’m on cloud nine,” said Rob. “It’s such an honor to be chosen and see all the hard work come to fruition.”
Hockey coach Paul Cannata said Rob’s being drafted was anticipated as a number of teams followed him and indicated their interest in the 6'2" blue-liner during the season. Still, Rob said that seeing his name appear on the screen, while watching the draft picks online with his father at home in Massapequa, New York, was an exciting moment.
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Alumnus Economist Wins Communicator of the Year
Austan Goolsbee ’87, who chairs President Barack Obama’s Council of Economic Advisers, was recently awarded a title that connects with his Milton years. Austan was named the 2011 Communicator of the Year by the National Forensics League (NFL). Austan received the award at the league’s national speech and debate tournament, where he also served as a guest judge.
In 1987, faculty member Debbie Simon was one of Austan’s speech coaches—the year he became the National Champion in International Extemporaneous Speaking. He finished second in Original Oratory. The Milton Academy team, which also included Upper School Principal David Ball ’88 and performing arts faculty member Patrice Jean-Baptiste ’88, won the national championship.
The Communicator of the Year award is given to someone who directly draws upon speech training as part of his or her career. “When Austan accepted the award, he spoke about how invaluable that training has been,” said Debbie. Austan told the audience that when he was a student, the speech team held a fundraiser in which its members had to keep talking for 24 hours straight.
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Class of 2011 Sets a Record to Match
The Class of 2011 broke a record this year: 100 percent of them gave to the Annual Fund before graduation. Their participation puts them in a class of one. They made Milton history. The seniors were grateful, already, for their Milton experience. Why not help achieve record setting giving as well? Please give to the Annual Fund by June 30 to help strengthen the Milton essentials: exceptional academics; passionate faculty; broad opportunities; and talented classmates who are often lifetime friends.
While the Class of 2011 has left the quad, the Class of 2012, and students to come, are counting on you, and on your support. Please use the power of a gift to protect and extend the Milton essentials.
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