What’s Happening at Milton?
Alumni News
Submit an application for TEDxMiltonAcademy
Next winter, on Friday, December 1, Milton Academy will host our next TEDxMiltonAcademy in King Theater on Milton’s Campus. The event is student-run, featuring a variety of talks from Milton students, faculty, staff, and alumni. If you have an idea that you would like to spread and wish to be a speaker, kindly fill out this application before May 14. Click here to watch last year’s event!
Multimillion-Dollar Gift Supports Math Education
As the parents of two Upper School students, trustee Shadi and Omid Farokhzad P ’23 ’25 know the importance of having a space that inspires a modern approach to teaching and learning. That is why they made a multimillion-dollar commitment to create a new home for math at Milton. The new Farokhzad Math Center will move the Math Department from the cramped attic of Ware Hall to a modern, light-filled, renovated building currently occupied by Cox Library—which is moving to Wigglesworth Hall this year. Please visit www.milton.edu/graduates/math-update to learn more about the math center renovation, and how you can partner with the Farokhzads in making this bold vision a reality.
We Cannot Imagine a More Giving Community
On Thursday, March 9, over 1,100 Milton community members came together to give more than $1.4 million dollars to Milton on Giving Day! We are incredibly excited for all of the possibilities this year’s Giving Day support will bring to our students. While we met—and even surpassed—our 1,000-donor goal, we are still tallying all of the generous gifts and preparing microchallenge totals. Stay tuned for the final total and a summary of your Giving Day impact!
John Avlon ‘91 to Speak at Graduation
This year’s Graduation speaker is John Avlon, Milton Academy Class of 1991. John is an award-winning journalist and author of six books, including Lincoln & the Fight for Peace and Washington’s Farewell. He is a CNN senior political analyst and anchor, known for his “Reality Check” segments across the network. Previously, he was the editor-in-chief of The Daily Beast and chief speechwriter for the mayor of New York City during the attacks of September 11, 2001. He lives in New York with his wife, Margaret Hoover, and their two children, Jack and Toula Lou.
Women’s History Month: A Look Back at Elizabeth “Betty” (Greenleaf) Buck, Lower School Principal, 1947–1979
In the aftermath of WWII, Milton Academy needed a revolutionary educational thinker to lead the preparatory school (later the Lower School) into a more hopeful and vibrant future. In the tumultuous post-war period, principal Elizabeth Greenleaf (later known as “Betty Buck”) revolutionized the teaching practices and priorities of the Lower School while reigniting the passion of teachers and students alike. Breaking with more traditional teaching philosophy, Buck believed in nurturing students at the level and pace that fit each learner best. Her commitment to expanding access to education led her to form the Saturday Course, a program that continues to provide a challenging supplementary curriculum to promising students from nearby public schools. She also was responsible for much of the Milton A.P.P.L.E. (A Personally Planned Learning Experience) program, which brought together children from private and public schools across Milton for an educational summer program. Buck’s unique perspective on the role of education in students’ lives and of Milton Academy in its surrounding community were aspirational, shaping a vision of public service that continues to inspire the Milton community today.
