It’s with strongly mixed feelings that I write this final, brief letter to parents. After four years as Upper School Principal, I am leaving Milton in June to begin doctoral studies in education at Harvard. I am tremendously excited about taking this chance to read and write and think deeply about schools and teaching and learning, and I am sad about leaving Milton Academy and the wonderful family of students, parents, and faculty that I have come to know and love here.
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Day of Service
By Andrea Geyling, Community Service

All Upper and Middle School students will spend the day serving our local communities on Wednesday, May 4. To launch the day, Class I service leaders will share reflections on their service experiences at Milton with students gathered in assembly. Then students and faculty will fan out to projects at over 30 sites on campus, in the towns of Milton, Randolph, Quincy, Weymouth, Brighton, Dorchester, and in downtown Boston. They will travel by bus, vans, T, and on foot. They will wash windows, do grounds work, walk dogs, play cards with elders, read to children, cook meals for the homeless, prepare farmland for planting, paint a playground, host a field day for hospitalized children, and much more. Especially after the long winter, and at a time of tight budgets for agencies, many of the project sites have been eagerly awaiting the return of Milton Academy volunteer crews. Several projects will be led by students who have volunteered every week at a particular site throughout the year.
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Bertha Coombs ’80 to Speak at Graduation

Bertha Coombs of the Milton Academy Class of 1980 has graciously agreed to be our graduation speaker this year. An accomplished and experienced journalist, Bertha covers business and financial news as a reporter for NBC’s business news network, CNBC.

Bertha’s career has given her opportunities to explore a passion for writing and learning fostered during her years at Milton. It has also given her an appreciation for good rain gear. At CNBC, she has reported on everything from the markets to corporate fraud trials and all four of last year’s devastating hurricanes.
[Read More]

Graduation Details for Class I Parents

After all these years of supporting your child through the joys and challenges of studying and growing up here, you now enjoy the opportunity to think about your child’s graduation from Milton Academy. Click here to view some of the details of the graduation ceremony and surrounding events.

Graduation Speakers in Milton's Past

In 2003, director of college counseling Rod Skinner ’72 P’03 wrote in Milton Magazine that Hemingway would have called Milton's graduation “a beauty day”: a magical moment when a rainy New England spring finally retreated to reveal a cloudless, clear backdrop for the congratulations and good-byes about to be said.

Graduations, of course, share with literature that inability to stand in isolation: Each milestone allows the graduate and the audience to remember those that came before—whether it rained or didn’t, whether the speakers stumbled or shone, whether a favorite relative traveled 2,000 miles to witness the day—and to consider the graduations, at the Academy and in one’s family, that might lie ahead.
[Read More]
[View a List of Milton's Graduation Speakers]

What is the year of this photo?

The above photo of Milton Academy students was taken on the front steps of Warren Hall. Click here to enter your guess as to when this photo was taken.

A Conversation with Dr. Robertson
May 12, at 6 p.m.

Before we say good-bye to the 2004–05 school year, the Parents’ Association will gather for our final meeting on Thursday evening May 12 to hear from head of school, Dr. Robin Robertson. Please note that the time of this event has changed. Join Dr. Robertson for a reception beginning in the Straus library at 6 p.m., followed by a 6:30 p.m. Parents’ Association meeting that will feature Dr. Robertson. It has been an eventful year: here is a great opportunity to look back on it with some perspective.
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So Many Thanks...

Every parent at Milton is a member of our Parents’ Association. Together, we strive to foster a sense of spirit to enhance our children’s years at Milton Academy and to keep open the channel of communications among parents and between parents and the school.
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We Face Challenges, Too

With most of the activities for this year behind us, the Parents’ Association is beginning preparations for the 2005-06 school year.

As half of Milton students are boarding students, we will continue to think creatively about ways to help parents from further away feel more connected to the Milton community. To keep our organization strong and vibrant, we need to create meaningful opportunities for interested parents to contribute to Parents’ Association events—from nearby neighborhoods as well as distant continents.
[Read More]

Interested in Helping?

Let’s keep the Parents’ Association dynamic and daring. Consider joining us at our year-end meeting on May 12. If you can’t attend and would like to become more active, or simply pass along a suggestion, send us an email. Ideas and enthusiasm are always welcome!

Happy spring to all from the Parents’ Association executive board,

Susan Littlefield and M.E. Malone, co-presidents
Julie Rinaldini and Patti Salem, co-vice presidents
Ayca Gazelle, treasurer
Maria Sebastian, recording secretary
Carol Flynn-Rice, corresponding secretary

February 2005

December 2004

October 2004

August 2004

April 2004

January 2004

December 2003

October 2003

August 2003

Meet Josh Emmott

Josh Emmott’s teaching career began with three years at New York City’s JFK High School at 225th and Broadway, just around the corner from Yankee Stadium (he’s not a Yankees fan, for those of you with inquiring minds).

Josh’s love of his subject—history—has a longer tenure: As a student at Northfield Mount Hermon School, he spent a semester in Egypt and became fascinated with Middle Eastern history, which is his specialty. After graduating from Wesleyan University, he completed a master’s in Islamic Societies and Cultures at the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies; he then spent two years in Jordan as a Peace Corps volunteer, helping micro-enterprises market their wares.
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Tsunami Fundraiser

Parents and students, join us at the gala on May 7 planned for your entertainment and fun by the student Tsunami Relief Coalition. In addition to the powerful draw of Milton’s own jazz, instrumental, and vocal groups that will perform that night, perhaps a chance at the silent auction items will entice you to come.
[Read More]

Spring Sports Prospectus
from Milton Academy Coaches

Girls’ Lacrosse
The team is quickly off to a 2-0 start, and is looking forward to a strong season for 2005. Many of the returning players have come back stronger and improved from last season, which gives us a solid nucleus. We have taken much more of a team approach with all aspects of our game, especially with our offensive attack. The scoring, as it has been in our first two games, will be spread out among many attackers this season. Newcomers this year will also help us a lot. Alyson Friedensohn will start for us this season in the midfield while goalkeeper Amanda Rothschild will backstop the team in the nets. We expect strong leadership and performances from co-captains Lindsay McNamara and Jenna Larson, as well as Teresa Curtis and Sarah Ebert up front and Stephanie Richards and Maggie Cochran on defense.
[Baseball]
[Softball]
[Boys' Lacrosse]
[Track]

Milton Students Perform in Annual Dance Concert

Under the direction of performing arts faculty member Kelli Edwards, student dancers took to the stage in early March to perform classical, modern, hip-hop and Indian dance as part of Milton's annual dance concert. All three performances drew a full house in King Theatre.
[View Photos of the Performance]

Academy Celebrates 75 Years of Extraordinary Musicians

Steven Isserlis, cellist, (left) and Stephen Hough, pianist, performed for the 75th annual Gratwick Concert on April 14, 2005. The concert series provides students with the rare opportunity to hear and meet world-class artists in a beautiful and accoustically rewarding setting—Straus Library. Recent Gratwick artists have included Garrick Ohlsson, Joshua Bell, Eduardo Fernandez, Lorraine Hunt and the Emerson String Quartet.
[Read More]

Parents’ Fund Update
It’s that time of year! The snow is gone, trees are blooming, and the Annual Fund is closing in on the end of the fiscal year. As of the end of March, more than $650,000 has been raised in gifts and pledges from 58 percent of Milton’s parents. Our goals are in sight!

Thank you to those 350 families who have already made a gift or pledge to the Annual Fund. If you have not yet made a gift, please click here to make your gift online via Visa, MasterCard or American Express, or contact Hilary Wirtz, associate director of parent giving, at (617) 898-2386 or
hilary_wirtz@milton.edu. Annual Fund gifts must be received by May 31, 2005.

Spring Phonathons: Get Involved
Become a Parents’ Fund volunteer. This is a great way to get involved in the Milton community and to meet fellow parents. Come join the fun! Help represent the Milton Academy Annual Fund by participating in phonathons and contacting fellow parents throughout the year.

Upcoming Dates
We have one calling night remaining; let’s end with a bang! To help usher in the spring, the final phonathon on Wednesday, April 27 will have a tropical theme, complete with margaritas and funny drink umbrellas! At this point in the year, volunteer efforts are crucial to reach the goal of 75% participation.

6:30 p.m. Dinner and Welcome
7:00 p.m. Calling
Development Office,
Caroline Saltonstall Building, 2nd Floor

Please respond to Jess Feingold, assistant director of annual giving, at (617) 898-2113 or
Jessica_feingold@milton.edu.

Parent Annual Giving: Class Statistics

Click here to view a chart of class donations, percentage of participation, and dollars pledged as of March 31, 2005.

Class I 2005 Parent Gift: Exciting News! $1 Million Challenge

Thanks to the generosity of an anonymous Class I parent, the class has the chance to meet a $1 million challenge. If the Class I 2005 Parent Gift can reach its goal of raising $1 million by June 2005, the family that issued the challenge will give Milton an additional $1 million, providing a dollar for dollar match for each family’s contribution.

To date, over 50 percent of Class I families have made a gift in support of the project. Our goal is to reach 100 percent participation and raise $1 million. Please consider making your gift today. Click here to make your gift online via Visa, MasterCard or American Express, or contact Hilary Wirtz, associate director of parent giving, at (617) 898-2386 or
hilary_wirtz@milton.edu. Class I gifts and pledges must be received by June 30, 2005.