Todd Bland is on Board

Head of School Todd Bland has been immersed in the life of Milton Academy all summer—meeting with and listening to administrators, faculty and staff, as well as to student leaders.  He has devoted time to learning more about the School community and culture, and about all the moving parts that make Milton, Milton. Opening days of School will be exciting for everyone—for Mr. Bland and his wife, Nancy, and for his children, Nick, Emily and Maggie, all of whom are new students at Milton.

Over the summer the board has worked with Mr. Bland to develop a public statement that reflects a shared sense of responsibilities for the year (and in some cases, several years) ahead.  The board is pleased to communicate that statement—a charge to the head of school—with the extended Milton community.  You will find a message from board president Brad Bloom, the board’s charge to Mr. Bland, and Mr. Bland’s response at Trustees' News.  We hope that in the document you see the needs of the School and responsibilities for Milton’s leader that were expressed by members throughout the Search for our new head of school.

Parents’ requests rewarded:
The Student-Faculty Directory will be online

Data, especially contact information, tends to change. Printed directories are obsolete as soon as they are off the press, as many Milton families have discovered. Printed directories mark a moment in time, but are less helpful than easy-to access, up-to-date, user-friendly information.

The 2009–2010 Milton Academy Student-Faculty Directory will be online by the start of School. We will send parents an email announcing its official launch.
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About those first few days

Surrounded by welcoming faces, new students are nevertheless making their way over unfamiliar terrain. Milton’s orientation activities help them get comfortable with the community and the campus. 

We want students to fit in — to feel comfortable about who and where they are.  Our programs in the earliest days are geared toward that end. They’re even designed by in-house experts: our own seniors.  Last year, Quinn Solfisburg of Class II asked Dean Bridget Johnson if the many rising seniors who wanted to help with activities at the start of School might work on that project. The seniors knew, Quinn thought, what new people would want and need to know about Milton, and how to connect with them in the Milton way.
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New to Milton?
A word to parents from the pros
Larry Fitzpatrick and Michaela (Mickey) Steimle
As deans for Class IV, we are delighted to welcome your children, members of the class of ’13 to Milton Academy.  Comprised of 151 students from all corners of the world—from Korea to South Boston—this class will be advised by 27 advisors, both boarding students and day students, and taught by faculty from every department of the Upper School. The transition to a new environment can be both thrilling and challenging, and Larry and I are eager to help make the change as smooth as possible.
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What to expect from Milton to parents
Milton keeps in touch with parents in several ways, but not through frequent email messages. We use the Centre Connection and the Web site; and your children’s advisors speak directly from Milton to you about the life of the School and your child’s experience here.
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Can you find a familiar face?

Aside from Elliot L. Richardson '37, can you identify another familiar Milton graduate in this photo?
Click here to enlarge the photo.

The Parents’ Association is dedicated to community building: fostering communication, offering opportunities for parents to meet one another, and supporting the efforts of faculty, staff and administration, and even providing occasional sweets and goodies for the students.

This newsletter, Centre Connection, is published five times each year to help inform parents about what’s happening on campus. In addition, the Milton Academy Web site is a vital tool. Updated daily, it includes previews and photos of special campus events in the arts, athletics, music, speech and all activities. The Milton news and daily calendar entries are a great way to find out what is going on in your student’s day and weekend. The Parents’ Association page will update you on our events, volunteer opportunities and other news. Two other informative and humorous sources of information are the school newspapers, the Milton Paper and the Milton Measure. We encourage you to consider a subscription to one or both of the papers, which can come to you via email if you prefer.

Dues Support Our Initiatives

We strive to provide very cost effective programs, and we depend on parents’ dues to fund such activities. Please do not forget to reply when you receive the dues email. You can add your dues to your tuition statements. Alternatively, please send a check to our treasurer, Gail Hoffman, 65 Sterling St., Newton, MA 02465 ($60 for one child, $100 for more than one child in the school).

Mark your calendars for Parents’ Weekend. As many of you know, parents shadow their child in class and to see what a day in the life of a Milton student involves. At the end of Friday, the Parents’ Association will host a wine and cheese reception.  We can all unwind and chat with other parents.  New this year is an earlier date for the Class IV Parent Dinner.  To make it easier for parents to attend, the dinner will be on Thursday evening, October 15 from 7 p.m. – 10 p.m. in Wigglesworth Hall.  More details will follow.

Faculty Profile: Tracy Crews
Since she was 14 years old, Tracy Crews wanted to be a teacher. An early linguist, Tracy always loved the intonation of language and the related cultural exploration; she studied both Spanish and French at Middlebury College. “The beauty of learning a language,” Tracy says, “is that once you start to open your mind to different ways of saying things, you open your mind to different ways of thinking about things. Language is not just some sort of code; it’s about living another culture, acceptance and tolerance.”
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2008–2009: A year in review

In the 2008–2009 academic year both the girls’ squash and boys’ tennis teams finished their seasons undefeated and placed first in the Independent School League; one Milton pianist was awarded first prize by the American Fine Arts Festival and was chosen from thousands of musicians to perform at the winners’ concert at Carnegie Hall; a Milton student was one of 28 teenagers appointed to Governor Patrick’s Statewide Youth Council; Milton jazz musicians spent their spring break touring South Africa and Botswana while other students helped refurbish a Navajo reservation and learned about Native-American culture in Arizona; performances included the Class IV Play La Casa Nova, the musical Pippin, Homer’s The Odyssey, and Fuddy Meers written by Milton alumnus David Lindsay-Abaire ’88; guest artists included international award-winning organist Cherry Rhodes and renowned jazz educator and saxophonist Ron Carter; guest speakers ranged from author Gish Jen, to distinguished professor of international relations Dr. David Shinn, to Florida’s first state surgeon general Ana Viamonte Ros; and Milton hosted events including the School-wide Community Service Day, Arts Night, Culturefest, Beatnik Cafes and three Special Olympics tournaments.

Click here to view some photos from this past year.

Students' Service Affects Lives, Especially Their Own
Each year we receive numerous messages of appreciation for the work that Milton students accomplish and the ways in which they interact with numerous and diverse groups of people. A vice principal at the local Glover School, for instance, sent this note to the students who helped at Glover on a weekly basis: “The sacrifice each of you made, I found personally inspiring. Make no mistake, you added value to the Glover community. The students looked up to you all and the teachers were glad to have your hands-on presence in the classroom. In fact, I like to think of Milton Academy’s service at the Glover as electrifying. May your legacy to service continue.”
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Can you help?
The Community Service program depends on gracious volunteer drivers to get students to/from their weekly service sites off campus. Parents have been a tremendous help in making this possible for over 200 dedicated students who participate each year.
[Read More]

DO IT: TRY OUT

Performing Arts

The performing arts department welcomes all students interested in trying out for the fall productions. Auditions for the Class IV Play, Lady Dracula, and the musical, Archy and Mehitabel, will take place in Kellner on Friday, September 11; Monday, September 14; and Tuesday, September 15 from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Callbacks will be Wednesday, September 16 from 2:00 to 5:30 p.m. All students may audition, regardless of experience. Students in Class IV may not audition for the musical as it occurs in the same season as their class play.

Auditions for the student directed one-act plays will take place on Tuesday, October 20 from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. and Wednesday, October 21 from 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. Callbacks will be Wednesday, October 21 from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.  

Auditions for the Speech Team will be on September 22, 23 and 25.

Sports

Interscholastic
Milton competes at the varsity level in football, field hockey, boys’ and girls’ soccer and boys’ and girls’ cross-country during the fall season. Pre-season practices for all varsity teams will begin on Tuesday, September 8 at 9:30 a.m. in the Athletic and Convocation Center.

Tryouts for the second and third teams will begin on Friday, September 11 after school. Locations for team tryouts will be posted.

Intramural
Fall intramural offerings are tennis, yoga, soccer and squash. Intramurals placement will be based on seniority; therefore, students in Classes III and II may not find open spots on certain intramural teams. Intramurals start on Friday, September 11.

Physical Education
All physical education classes will begin on Friday, September 11. This includes Project Adventure, Fitness Concepts, CPR and physical education classes. Please report to the Athletic and Convocation Center for your first class.

If you have any questions, please contact Marijke Alsbach, Interim Athletic Director, at 617-898-2259 or marijke_alsbach@milton.edu

Fall Athletic Schedules
The Mustangs take to the fields in September for another season of tough match-ups. Football, field hockey and girls' and boys' cross country teams begin the regular season on Saturday, September 26.  Boys' and girls' soccer kick-off the official games on September 16 and 18, respectively. Of course, don't miss out on early scrimmage battles that begin September 12. Click on the links below to view varsity team schedules. Click here to read about Milton athletics.

Boys' Soccer
Girls' Soccer
Boys' Cross Country
Girls' Cross Country
Field Hockey
Football

Challenging times, yet parents set a new record.

Do you want to be a member of the most important group on campus?

Join us. Become a Parent Giving Volunteer.

We are looking for active parents.  You will affect your own child’s education and the quality of the Milton experience for all students.  Parent volunteers are crucial to the success of Parents’ Annual Fund or Class I Parent Gift.

• Be a Class Representative.
• Attend parent giving phonathons.
• Make phone calls or send emails to fellow Milton parents from home.
• Enjoy the friendship and support of like-minded Milton parents.
• Feel the gratitude of the whole community.

You can be a volunteer from anywhere.  If you’d like to be involved, tell us. We will work with you to find a role that fits.

What is the Parents’ Annual Fund?

What is the Class I Parent Gift?

For over two decades, the parents of Class I students have joined together to contribute a special “thank you” gift to the School.   These parents express their appreciation to Milton for each child’s experience. Through the Class I Gift, they take care of future students and faculty.  They leave a lasting legacy, a permanent and valuable mark upon Milton Academy.

Contact Shannon Ollerhead, associate director of annual giving