Welcome to the July 2008 edition of the Online Hillard Herald. This issue includes updates about:

• Head of School Ann Pollina’s report on the past school year;
• the May 2008 Alumnae Weekend celebrations, including links to online photo albums of the festivities;
• the Class of 2008’s Graduation, including links to online photo albums of the Orchard Ceremony and Commencement, as well as a list of colleges and universities where recent graduates are attending;
• the June 30th debut of the Bolshoi Ballet’s prestigious summer program at Westover;
• an update about the upcoming Centennial Celebrations;
• links to news about this year’s Community Service Day, the Drama Program’s success at the 2008 Halo Awards, Westover’s first Academic All-American Athlete, recent alumnae gatherings, and other news of interest.

Head of School Ann Pollina (center) greeted members of the Class of 1958 and their spouses at the May 16th Alumnae Weekend reception: from left — John and Jodie Merrill Eastman, Dirk and Mary Tremaine Soutendijk, and Kitsy Baird Smith.

Head of School Ann Pollina spoke to alumnae and guests at the Alumnae Weekend’s Town Meeting on May 17th:

This morning I am here to help celebrate the work of our alumnae volunteers, to comment on the current state of Westover’s health, and especially to examine our future.

I am happy to report that we are in very good health indeed. Westover’s endowment as of March 31st this year is $42.2 million – an achievement in this poor market. That translates to a healthy $220,000 per student. We once again anticipate ending this year with a balanced budget.  Thanks to your generosity and the hard work of our Alumnae Governors we have met our critically important Annual Fund goal.

We expect to open next year as usual with approximately 200 students, having admitted 63 new students as of this date; they are splendid candidates. Our new students come from Austria, China, Connecticut, Florida, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Massachusetts, Mexico, Missouri, the Netherlands, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Virginia. Our student body next year will come from 18 states and 11 other countries. Add to that the six countries we regularly exchange with (Australia, England, France, Jordan, South Africa, and Spain), the two countries (China and Rwanda) where we have exchanges planned, and you will begin to understand the depth of global exposure we can give our girls. Never has that been more essential. These are the young women who will inherit, and I promise you will be part of the solutions, to global problems. They come with great credentials: 22% of our new students are legacy students, related to alumnae or current students, and 19% are U.S. kids of color. 

A generous financial aid program, which many of you regularly support through your reunion scholarship funds, assures us a kind of diversity that makes Westover an extraordinarily rich experience for all students, and that aid reaches students who need almost a full scholarship to those whose families may need only a few thousand dollars to make Westover happen for them. We have students and faculty from all over the country and all over the world, from many ethnic and racial heritages, religions and socio-economic groups. 

We are deliberate about this mix not because we are trying to be politically correct, but because we believe philosophically that it is one of the best ways for all of us to learn. Diversity for us is much more than our colors, our accents, where we live or worship. Because we reverence each others’ different talents, we expand the possibilities we see for ourselves. Westover is a school that does not put kids in boxes; we are a school that encourages trying new things; a school that celebrates excellence. Achievement is cool here, and we support each other in this. Our students are a deeply committed group. They are serious scholars, gifted musicians and artists, talented athletes. It is not nerdy to be accomplished and committed here; it is the sign of a leader. Let me share with you some of these achievements.

• We have 78 of our current students taking 149 Advanced Placement exams for college credit in 19 subjects. That means 42% of our girls, beginning in sophomore year, are doing college level work. We expect our usual results, which are stunning. Last year 96% of those tests qualified our girls for college credit, 50-60% scoring honors grades of 4 or 5. Our students are named AP scholars for their high performance on multiple exams at close to three times the national rate.

• 1/6 of our school, in addition to their regular academics, participate in a pre-professional co-curricular program with the Manhattan School of Music in NYC, with Brass City Ballet, or with the WISE (Women in Science and Engineering) Program.

• Let me say a word or two about the WISE Program. It began 14 years ago in recognition of the fact that the numbers of women majors in engineering fields and computer science were still a national disgrace. In collaboration with educators at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, we designed a curriculum above and beyond regular mathematics and science courses that focused on scientific methods, computer science, and engineering courses such as Physical and Structural Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Architecture. Students in the program take the college level Advanced Placement Computer Science Exam as sophomores. Each year, the National Association of Independent Schools awards Leading Edge schools – schools intended as role models for excellence. In the area of curriculum innovation, three schools in the nation are recognized as Leading Edge Schools each year. The 2006 winner in the mid-sized school category was Westover for our WISE program.
 
Other academic accomplishments of our students include:

• 10 of our studio artists received state recognition in the Scholastic Art awards, 80% of whom received gold and silver awards, which means they go on to national recognition. To put that in perspective, schools that regularly compete in the Scholastic competition expect to get one award at the national level every 10 years. We have also just received the news that one of our seniors has won a National Gold Medal for her photography; only two such awards are given nationwide. This is the second time in the last four years that a Westover photographer was named best in the country.

• Westover recently received an unheard of 22 nominations for Halo Awards, the local high school Tony awards, sponsored by Seven Angels Theatre. All three of our productions — the Fall musical Into the Woods, the winter production of Shaw’s Saint Joan, and Westover’s version of  “Shakespeare in the Park,” A Midsummer Night’s Dream, which was performed in the Quad last week — were cited. The decisions for 2008 will be made next Monday. So send your good thoughts our way.

• Westover students competed in the 15th annual General Electric High School Computer Science contest, and one of the top 10 students and the only girl in the top 10 was a Westover junior.

• One of our seniors has been honored with a National Merit Scholarship, a distinction that puts her among less than 1/5 of 1% of all students in the country who took the qualifying 2007 Preliminary SAT.

• Our poets are in a class by themselves … if you have seen the quality of poetry in recent editions of The Lantern you will understand why. Seven of our young poets were finalists for New Haven Country in the Statewide IMPAC Poetry Competition. One of them, a sophomore, finished first and represented New Haven County in the statewide competiton.

• That our students are appreciated for their talents is manifest in a sampling of colleges attended by our graduates in the last five years, which include Amherst, Brown, Bryn Mawr, Bucknell, Carnegie Mellon, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Emory, Georgetown, Harvard, Haverford, Howard, Johns Hopkins, Macalester, Middlebury, NYU, Oberlin, Northwestern, Princeton, Rice, RPI, RISD, Smith, St. Lawrence, Swarthmore, Trinity, Tufts, University of Chicago, Union, UPenn, Vanderbilt, Wellesley, Williams, and Yale, to name only a few of the bigger names.

On the sports field our girls are equally accomplished:
 
• Soccer – CISAC league and tournament Champions

• Field Hockey – Received #5 seed in the New England Tournament

• Cross Country – 5 All-CISAC league runners, and one All New-England runner.

• Volleyball – Finished 3rd in Western New England

• Basketball – CISAC league and tournament Champions. Finished #3 in New England.

• Squash – 2007 New England Champions Division B. This year we were bumped up to Division A, and still posted the most successful record to date, going 15-3, and finishing 20th in the country.

• Spring sports are under way and we look forward to an exciting season. Varsity Tennis captured their third straight CISAC title on Friday.

• We have one of the oldest outdoor programs, dating from the early 1970s; team members this coming week will be on a trip to the Adirondacks, where they will be canoeing and camping.  The program continues to build skills in camping, hiking, climbing, paddling, and more importantly in self-sufficiency and collaborative problem solving.

These and other achievements are a regular feature of our website; come visit us there later this summer to see our newly designed site and to keep up with the news of the School and of your classmates.

At Westover, achievements of the spirit are as important as those of the mind and body:

• Every year Westover students complete thousands of hours of community service, write hundreds of letters for Amnesty International, are active in improving the environment, and seek to find peaceful solutions for the problems of our world.

• Dorcas raised over $22,000 in the last three years and with it has established the Dorcas Fund at the Connecticut Community Foundation. This Fund enables Westover juniors to make charitable donations each year to organizations that they choose, to invest part of their earnings toward future philanthropic opportunities, and to learn about the work of philanthropic foundations. They were recently featured in the annual report of the Connecticut Community Foundation with a heading “This is what a young philanthropist looks like.”

• The list of charitable outreach goes on and on. Some of the local agencies that benefited from our assistance include Waterbury Baptist Ministries, Connecticut Special Olympics, the Red Cross, Girls Inc., Middlebury Public Library, Children's Community School, Flanders Nature Center, the local soup kitchen, and Animals for Life. Our students are also supporting humanitarian efforts in Darfur and Ghana, and we continue our connection with our school in Rwanda.

• Many of you know that we at Westover are excited about our collaboration with a group in Boston who are building a math/science middle school for girls in Rwanda, the Maranyundo School. This wonderful project, spearheaded in part by Barrie Hogan Landry ’62, has won the hearts of our students and faculty. Last year at Alumnae Weekend we raffled off a beautiful quilt sewn by our Needle Arts class from fabric I brought back from Rwanda; with alumnae help, our students raised close to $1,000 for the Maranyundo School. In addition, the alumna who won the quilt was asked if she would donate it back to the Rwandan school. When I traveled to Rwanda this February for the opening of the school, one of my proudest moments was to walk into the dining hall and see the Westover quilt decorating the wall — underprivileged girls half a world away touched by the hands and hearts of our Westover students.
 
If I sound proud of all our students do, well — I am!  But I am also humbled by the number of people who make these accomplishments possible. We are blessed with a remarkably talented and dedicated faculty and staff who encourage, cajole, or coerce the best out of our students; they do so because of because of their deep belief in the potential of every Westover girl.

Sadly, for us at least, one of those who have made so many of our accomplishments possible is retiring this year. Sharon Holladay has served as Director of Development at Westover since 1990. She completed our Second Century Campaign and saw the School’s endowment grow from $10 million to its current position in the mid-$40 million. Sharon’s peer review was filled with words like ability, commitment, integrity, honesty, creativity and humor. Her ability to make sound creative decisions and to lead her office with skill will be sorely missed. Sharon’s love of this place, her recognition of the needs of the School, and most importantly, her understanding of and reverence for education made her perfect for her role. She will be sorely missed, and I will ask you to join me in recognizing her.

When counting my blessings, I never miss all of you — Westover alumnae and friends, second to none in loyalty to this place. 

Gloria Steinem has said that “You can always tell what a woman’s values are by how she spends her money.” You have spent your money on Westover, which tells me that you value not only this culture of excellence, but you care about that which is more important than any external achievement — the essential goodness of our girls and the formative role of education in constructing a better future through their lives. They, like you, are as beautiful in heart and soul as they are accomplished in more obvious ways. That is the greatness of Westover; that is what all of you took away, whether you knew it or not; that is what you help to perpetuate by your loyalty and connection. Thank you for your support of Westover; I will do my best to see that it always remains a beacon for the things you value.

• Click here to view photographs of speakers, award recipients, and other presentations during the 2008 Alumnae Weekend.

• Click here to view a “Westover family album” – photos of some of the alumnae relatives who attended the May 16-18 Alumnae Weekend.

• Click here to view other highlights of the 2008 Alumnae Weekend.

The following remarks were given by Alumnae Association Governor Katrina Rauch Wagner ’61 at the May 2008 Alumnae Weekend when she presented Beth Markham Nicholson ’63 (left) with this year’s Westover Award:
 
The Board of Governors is honored this morning to present Elizabeth Markham Nicholson, Class of 1963, the 2008 Westover Award.
 
Following her graduation from Westover, Beth attended Stanford University and Stanford University Law School, where she was co-founder of the Environmental Law Society, hinting at achievements to come.
 
In 1986 Beth became the first volunteer and co-founder of the Bostonian nonprofit Save the Harbor/Save the Bay. She did so, because she believed that her children should be able to swim safely in what was then one of the most polluted harbors in the country. Following the agency’s initial successful cleanup efforts, Save the Harbor/Save the Bay launched the Campaign for the Water’s Edge, which Beth chaired.

Boston Magazine selected Save the Harbor/Save the Bay as the 2007 Best of Boston Award for bringing disparate groups of people together for a great cause. Beth, among others, is given tremendous credit for cobbling and holding together an unlikely coalition of scientists, environmentalists, community activists, residents, state, city and local politicians, cultural and business leaders and real estate developers. Under the banner of Save the Harbor, these groups work closely to guide and care for the restoration and balanced development of two of Boston’s most valued natural resources — its harbor and its shoreline. 

Today, in large part thanks to Beth’s leadership, it is possible to visit the Institute of Contemporary Art on Fan Pier, the Boston Children’s Museum on the Fort Point Channel, the New England Aquarium on Long Wharf, the U.S.S. Constitution in Charlestown, or the Boston Harbor Islands National Park surrounded by clean water and fresh air. One can go for a whale-watch or harbor cruise, walk along the water’s edge, on the beach or along the waterfront, catch a striped bass off any pier, ride a water taxi, hold a business conference, or special event waterside, enjoy dining at a waterfront restaurant, catch a show at the Bank of America Pavilion or music on Rowe’s Wharf or spend a relaxing day on one of 14 beautiful beaches.

In 2005, after 32 years in Chestnut Hill, MA, Beth and her husband moved to Boulder, CO, to be nearer their family. Beth and Phil both hail from the West and for years they have had a cabin in Estes Park, CO, so in many ways this decision was a homecoming.
 
Today, at Westover we joyfully honor her for the incredibly fine person she is and her many outstanding accomplishments.

The following remarks were given by Beth Markham Nicholson ’63 when she accepted the 2008 Westover Award:

I can’t tell you how deeply touched and honored I am to be receiving this award today. It is certainly something I never expected — in fact, quite the contrary. When I started getting involved with the cleanup of Boston Harbor, I got a warning. An old friend assured me, “Beth, if you get caught up in this sludge and effluent business, no one will want to talk to you at cocktail parties!” Well, Mary Fran had a point, but she didn’t know that I had a secret weapon. I had been to Westover, and we had learned a lot more here than Latin, Medieval History, and how to write a good English composition! One of the things we had learned, thanks to our wonderful biology teacher, Mrs. Adele Prentiss, was how to get beyond the “yuck!” factor. Mrs. Prentiss taught us that no matter how gross something might look in front of us — a sliced, splayed and diagrammed earthworm, for example — if we looked at it carefully, we would begin to see it as something fascinating. Just as she had promised, I didn’t have to learn very much about Boston’s water and sewer infrastructure before I was hooked. After all, what is a city if not a giant organism with food coming in and waste going out? If you want to know just how fascinated I was, see me after lunch and I will give you some graphic stories!

Westover also taught us to enlarge our definitions of home and family. This was a universally painful lesson that started with profound homesickness for most of us. But over time, we realized that “home” would expand to include the many places that we would live in our lives. We learned that “family” would grow to include larger communities such as Westover and that we could build friendships here that would last a lifetime. This expanded view of the world served me well, especially when we found ourselves moving to Boston as virtual strangers in the early ’70’s. Westover had taught me to step into these new situations — it wasn’t very long before Boston became a rich and diverse community near and dear to my heart.

Westover also taught us how to survive tough experiences involving personal growth and personal loss. Although these challenges seemed huge at the time, they were small compared to what life would deal out to us. When I look at my classmates and see what so many of them have gone through, I stand in awe. There is no doubt in my mind that Westover produces strong women.

When we were here, we also learned to be flexible, to roll with whatever came our way. Of course, that is an invaluable skill whether you are dealing with the roller-coaster world of non-profit organizations, or life itself. Flexibility was once again my greatest resource when, three years ago, we decided to pull up stakes and move west. Our goal was to be closer to our family, the mountains, and a wonderful old family cabin, but it was hard leaving our Boston friends, Save the Harbor, the larger community, the ocean, and almost more than anything, these huge New England trees and forests. It was the right time and the right decision. Still, I had to really restrain myself from asking every Boulderite I met, “So, what happens when you flush your toilet? Where’s the water going? Do you use secondary, tertiary or reverse osmosis? What about the drinking water?”

Instead, I decided to do something entirely different, to live out a childhood dream of owning a horse. I got my first horse at the age of 60 and now am the proud owner of two gorgeous Friesians. I am struggling to learn dressage, probably the toughest sport I have ever tried. It is a kind of Zen-equitation. If you are really, really good, nobody sees anything happening. The horse just seems to do these lovely steps by himself. And then, at night, I am struggling to learn the tango, thanks to the enthusiasm of our daughter, Ginny, who is an excellent tango dancer, and to the enthusiasm of my husband, Philip. He’s also an excellent dancer, and somehow seems convinced that we can master this very challenging dance. 

Sometimes I think people will notice smoke coming out of my ears because my mental circuits are totally in overload as I try to teach my mind and body so many new things. But actually, I’m having the time of my life. I love new challenges, again something that we learned a lot about in our years at Westover. 

In anticipation of returning for our Reunion, I looked back over the past 45 years and found a new appreciation for all the things Westover has given me. But of all these, this award is certainly the most wonderful as well as the easiest to accept. Thank you!

Kay Clarkson McDonald ’39 (standing, third from left) was joined by several classmates and two of her children after being presented with the Maria R. Allen Volunteer Service to Westover Award during Alumnae Weekend in May 2008. With Kay are (from left): standing – Alumnae Association Governor and Westover Archivist Maria Randall Allen ’42; Kay’s son, Eric Schulhof; Kay; Kay’s daughter, Anne Schulhof Butler ’66; Jean Van Sinderen Henry ’39; sitting – Helen Hatch Warner ’39, and Sidney Lauck Mattoon ’39.

The following remarks describing Kay Clarkson McDonald’s long-time commitment to the School were presented by Alumnae Association Governor Berrell Mallery ’60.

When I called Kay to tell her that the Board of Governors had voted to present her with the Maria R. Allen Volunteer Service Award, she initially insisted that there were more deserving individuals. When she was convinced that our vote was final, she was quiet for a few seconds and then said, “I think I need to lie down and think about this.”

It wasn’t until after that conversation that I learned about the continuity I would experience with this presentation. I was reminded by our Alumnae Memory Bank, [Alumnae Director] Laura Nash Volovski ’83, that this was the lady I met at [former English teacher] Liz Newton’s funeral; this was the lady who went to school with my mother. And now she is the lady who has, I hope, recovered from my phone call by now.

Since Kay graduated in 1939 she has demonstrated Westover spirit in her volunteering in every way possible. She has been Class Agent, Class Secretary and Reunion Chair so many times that she cannot recall how many.

In 1962 Kay began serving on the Board of Governors. During her reign she was Secretary in 1963, Vice President in 1965, and President from 1967 to 1969. Some of Kay’s contributions (at least the ones we know of) include being Alumnae Features Editor of the Westover magazine from 1969 to 1976 and Archives Assistant to Maria Allen from 1986 to the present.

Kay played a key role during some of the most challenging years of Westover’s history in her work with the Archives.  Maria is especially grateful for Kay’s reading through bound volumes of The Wick to list important events in Westover’s history and Kay’s work on a list of Prominent Speakers at Westover.

At a time when we celebrate the robust health of Westover in anticipation of another 100 years, it is fitting that we present this award to someone who helped reinforce, fortify, and make more visible the wonderful spirit of the School that was designed nearly 100 years ago.

To that end, on behalf of the Board of Governors of Westover’s Alumnae Association it is my pleasure to present this year’s Maria R. Allen Volunteer Service to Westover Award to Kay Clarkson McDonald ’39.

The following remarks were given by Alumnae Association Governor Lauren Collins ’96 (center) during the 2008 Alumnae Weekend to recognize the achievements of Mia Ferrara Pelosi ’95 (at right with Alumnae Association Governor Stacie Cass Harasty ’95), when Mia was the recipient of the 2008 Distinguished Young Alumna Award.

Mia’s first successful encounter with form, function, and style that I can recall dates back to the spring of 1994, when I was a sophomore and one of the girls under her German’s guidance. As Third Head of Overs, Mia was charged with the seemingly impossible task of coordinating about two dozen costumed girls on the stage of what was then the Louise B. Dillingham Student Activities Center.

After college at New York University, Mia entered the fashion and marketing world in New York City. She always has had an eye for textile pizzazz. However, when she mused over the fact that she really wasn’t doing any good in her job, she was told, “But you’re making women feel pretty.”

Fortunately, around this time, Mia realized her true path. Her father held a patent on a sturdy yet efficient temporary shelter that could be used for disaster relief. Mia recognized the potential of this concept and, working with her dad, reinforced, tweaked, and started to produce the Global Village Shelter. The end result is a highly portable, easy-to-assemble hut made out of biodegradable, flame-resistant material that can last in tough conditions up to 18 months. The prototypes have been successfully tested in the wake of natural disasters in Grenada, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and right here in the southern U.S. in Gulfport, MS.

The Global Village Shelter has been dubbed “design for humanity” and the “origami house.”  The design has been recognized by the Index Design awards, a number of magazines, The Washington Post, The New York Times, and The Hartford Courant. A model is in a permanent collection at New York’s Museum of Modern Art.

The brilliance of the Global Village Shelter is only contained by often-times tenuous geo-political conditions. Recent global tragedies in Myanmar and China remind all of us of the need for sufficient, efficient, and immediate disaster relief. But as Mia can tell you, a good design is not enough to unravel the red tape that frequently binds relief organizations. But we can be rest assured that Mia will not tire.

After accepting her award, Mia shared her thoughts with her fellow alumnae:

I want to thank the Westover community for this award.  It is a true privilege to be recognized among so many accomplished women. Really awesome.

As Lauren mentioned, I graduated from Westover in 1995 and went to New York University. I finished my degree in Philosophy and later, while I was trying to figure things out, a second degree in fiction writing … so naturally I worked in the fashion industry. After all, the illustrious question: What do you do with a philosophy degree?

I am going to share some of my thoughts and experiences that got me to where I am right now. 

During college I befriended a homeless man named Mike. We had a similar schedule — both up early, home late, and we lived in the same neighborhood. I gave him aspirin when he had headaches, coffee in the morning, and also taught him how to use the internet at the NYU library. In exchange for these things, he gave me the advice to do unto others as you would have done unto you.

I understood the ethics of reciprocity, but was not living it, and by living it I mean having it prevail in all of my actions, not just at Christmas or when the weather was bad for the homeless. It had to become natural and unassuming, constant. To see a homeless man living “love thy neighbor” changed my outlook on life. I felt deeply, after a lot of coffee and many egg roll dinners, that I was fortunate because I was simply alive. I had food and shelter. So many people do not. I feel strongly that every human being deserves the same, every single one. I am eternally thankful for Mike’s willingness to share his thoughts and experiences; he did change me.

I floundered for a couple of years trying to figure out where I could fit the Golden Rule into this world … I know we all try to make a difference, but how can you survive on a feeling or a thought? How can you really help people in need? I struggled thinking about this and I still do. But I have always been a person that takes action on my thoughts.

I knew that my father had patented a small building made of cardboard. I knew the patent was expiring, and I knew – and this was the most important one – that a huge company had expressed interest in funding some of these buildings. At that point they were not particularly disaster relief shelters; the product was not completely tooled up, it was simply a hopeful thought with great potential, legally protected and sitting idle … kind of like me.

So I left fashion … I left New York … and moved to Connecticut to help build and work on prototypes of this shelter and see what happened. Fast forward seven years and you have our present company, Global Village Shelters.   

My work is slow. A close friend of mine likens me to a chicken sitting on an egg for seven years, trying to make it hatch. She asks, how long do you sit? 

I’ll be honest and say that there are many days I am gravely discouraged, like Sisyphus rolling his rock up the hill, except my rock is a 20-square-meter building, and the hill is often a government organization. This work is riddled with red tape, corruption and exorbitant shipping costs. The logistics alone are endlessly complicated and not worthy of lecture outside of an office. Manufacturing a product involves many people and companies. Getting a shipping container to Pakistan, for free, is hard work. There are so many people working in this capacity to help others … it is amazing and almost always invisible. 

I do not believe success comes easily and in this business you have to give a lot more than you receive. After seven years we have donated 1,000 shelters to Pakistan, 200 to Grenada, 500 to Honduras, and at least another 100 to various museums. About sales … well, I am the chicken on the egg. I have sold 30 shelters to date.

A single photo of a family being helped by our shelter makes this project worth its weight in gold; I have hundreds of photographs. I am so fortunate to meet people that are in the field; these are people digging latrines and caring for the terminally ill; these are doctors being paid nothing; these are volunteers walking through fields of dying people handing out food. A friend and co-worker of mine works for CARE. He lives outside Atlanta with his wife and two children … he volunteered in Afghanistan helping pregnant women get pre-natal vitamins. He spent five solid days under a tarp hiding from gunfire. These are sacrifices people make everyday … it is impossible for us to know about all of them.

I believe that a full life is one devoted to others. Many people that study philosophy, and there are not a lot of us, find their calling in religion. The basic tenet, “love thy neighbor,” is a way of life; the only thing I can strive for is to live this and work this. I hope I am successful in this endeavor ... maybe even successful enough to hatch this egg.

Elizabeth Wood Crane ’73 (right) gave the following Chapel Talk during the Alumnae Weekend on May 17th:

I come here this morning — to my 35th Class Reunion — with both humility and pride. Humility in that I am even here speaking to you. When I first received the kind invitation to give this address, I was a bit overwhelmed. Actually, to be truthful, I thought there must have been some kind of mistake (and so did some of my fellow classmates — as they were kind enough to share with me!) Basically, I felt fortunate to have gotten to go to Westover at all, but over the past couple of months I have wondered (even fretted as my husband can tell you) what of interest I could possibly talk to you all about for a few minutes.

But while my achievements may be more modest than some alums, I do take great pride in sharing with you where I have found the passion in my life. I’ll call it “personal connection,” or building community with everyone that we touch, not just family and friends, but neighbors we don’t know or the people at the grocery store. How fitting that I am speaking at a Reunion Weekend.

Sixteen years ago, when my husband and I had our first daughter, right from the beginning, I was amazed by the lack of support, and I don’t mean from my husband. Hours after she was born, when it was our turn to change her diaper, believe it or not, we didn’t have a clue. And it didn’t get much better after that. We were unceremoniously tossed out of the hospital after two days and arrived home pretty oblivious as to where to go from there. The years since that ominous beginning were filled with even more uncertainty. Raised in Buffalo and living in Maine, I didn’t have family close by that I could go to, so getting advice about something as it was happening was difficult. Neighbors weren’t overly helpful because most everyone was at work, and friends’ ideas on raising children often differed from ours.

But when we were young, expectations of kids were so much clearer — albeit more structured, but at least predictable: you stood up when an elder entered the room, respected any adult you came in contact with, and looked people in the eye when you talked to them. The roles were clearly defined and parents, for the most part, stood united in their collective oversight of the young. After all, don’t we all love the notion that “it takes a village to raise a child?”

Today, kids are more independent and in many families both parents are working. My experience is that it has created a lack of connection between parents and other parents and also between parents and their kids. And this has only been exacerbated by the advent of cell phones, where now parents looking for their kids at our house simply call their child directly on their cell phone, thus bypassing another opportunity to communicate with us, and another lost connection between parents. Not to mention computers: I.M. and Facebook make it possible for plans to get made and conversations to take place that are out of earshot of anyone.

So who really suffers from this lack of connection, or what some might even see as isolation? Clearly it’s our kids. Kids seem to be growing up with less and less parental “face time” or support and more and more navigate through life by communicating on-line or by modeling what they see on TV. I have struggled with this as a parent: how to help our kids manage the Internet, cell phones, underage drinking, and coed sleepovers, as we parents become more and more distanced from each other.

It was through this growing frustration with where to go for support and how to answer these questions that I ultimately developed a passion, or maybe it’s a yearning, for connection with other parents. I talked to anyone and everyone that I could find about even the most mundane topics of parenting. I found that friends had different views on how to handle issues and teachers gave yet another perspective. Eventually, my passion — some might say my obsession — started to evidence itself in the part-time work I did directing community programs at an elementary school, which led to a graduate degree in social work and a career focused on making connections and building community by working with teenagers and their families. As part of my graduate work I facilitated a group of 7- to 9-year-olds at the Center for Grieving Children, a place I could never have imagined myself working, and a perfect example of people making connections within a loving community for the sake of children who were grieving. And now at Portland High School, another place I never thought I could manage, I counsel at-risk and immigrant teenagers and see every day living examples of what my passion, this thing for lack of a better word I’ll call “connection” is all about. These kids have a sense of community — yes, they live in housing projects that are their communities — but they have deep wounds that no one is addressing and their suffering is all different. Some come from war-torn countries and have lost parents or siblings, others grew up poor and live with substance abuse and violence, and some have garden variety losses like a best friend moving away or the loss of the family dog. They are grieving in many ways too, just as the kids at the Center for Grieving Children are, but the point is that they don’t have the support they need: the healthy, adult connections that are provided every day at the Center for Grieving Children.

But I have learned that even the smallest support can make a huge difference. At the Center for Grieving Children, regardless of the magnitude of the loss, when families share their experiences with other families, their grief is lessened. They seem lighter. Community support makes a discernible difference even in the most stressful situations. To my surprise, working with grieving children wasn’t depressing at all; in fact, it was actually hopeful and uplifting. Kids and families leave the center each week looking a little brighter and a bit happier than when they arrive.

So at Portland High School, where I see the same grief symptoms in the kids who come into my office — the same look of despair as the kids at the Center for Grieving Children, not because someone has died, although that is sometimes the case, but because they have experienced so much grief and loss through the difficult lives they have lived — I know what they are looking for. If I can just take a few minutes to really listen, to connect, to give them my time, they leave a little lighter, a little less isolated. Oh, they plug their Ipods back in and check their cell phones as they leave, but I truly feel that I have given them something no one else can or, should I say, no one else has. My time.

I guess if I’ve learned anything, it’s that making connections takes time. Maybe that’s what’s missing in the hectic, busy world we now live in: taking the time to connect with other parents, with my own kids, with other people’s kids, with other people. I hear myself say every day, “I don’t have time.”

So if I could be so bold as to leave you with a message today, it would be that my kids — dare I say, your kids ... all kids — need caring adults who can spare some time for them. I have found that it doesn’t have to be a lot of time but it needs to be time enough to connect. Be a mentor, be a friend, because I believe that it does take a village to raise a child.

With the end of the 2007-2008 school year at Westover, the school community bid good-bye to Sharon K. Holladay, long-time Director of Alumnae and Development, and welcomed her successor, Mimi Falsey.

At the same time, long-time Alumnae Director Laura Nash Volovski ’83 has been named as Westover’s Director of Admission. Nancy Aordkian-Pelaez ’86, who has been serving as the School’s Centennial Coordinator, has been named the new Alumnae Director.

Sharon retired June 30th as Westover’s Director of Alumnae and Development after having served in that post since July 1990. In announcing Sharon’s retirement at the May Alumnae Weekend, Head of School Ann Pollina described Sharon as “one of those who have made so many of our accomplishments possible. Sharon completed our Second Century Campaign and saw the School’s endowment grow from $10 million to its current position exceeding $40 million. Sharon’s peer review was filled with words like ability, commitment, integrity, honesty, creativity and humor. Her ability to make sound creative decisions and to lead her office with skill will be sorely missed. Sharon’s love of this place, her recognition of the needs of the School, and most importantly, her understanding of and reverence for education made her perfect for her role.”

As the new Director of Alumnae and Development, Mimi Falsey brings extensive experience in the field among both private schools and universities, including Quinnipiac University, Fairfield University, Yale University, and Choate Rosemary Hall. Prior to entering the advancement profession, she practiced trusts and estates law in New Haven, CT. A graduate of Rosemary Hall, she holds a B.A. in Psychology from Yale, a law degree from Western New England College School of Law, and a Master of Laws in Taxation from New York University School of Law. Mimi can be reached at 203-577-4541 or at mfalsey@westoverschool.org.

Laura had served as Alumnae Director since 1999. She has been at Westover since 1988, serving previously as the Director of Publications and as an English teacher. Laura holds a B.A. in English, with a Minor in History, from the University of Connecticut. As the new Director of Admission, she succeeds Sara Lynn Leavenworth Renda ’87, who had served in that post since 2003. Laura assumed her new responsibilities on June 1st. Laura can be reached at 203-577-4522 or at lvolovski@westoverschool.org.

Nancy has served as Centennial Coordinator since 2006 and had served as a member of the Alumnae Association Board of Governors from 2004 until May 2008. She holds a B.A. in Anthropology, with Minors in Spanish and Geology, from Bates College. As the new Alumnae Director, she will continue to serve as the Centennial Coordinator.  Nancy can be reached at 203-577-4593 or at npelaez@westoverschool.org.

More detailed profiles of Mimi, Laura, and Nancy will appear in the 2008 Westover Annual Report this fall.

Alumnae Director Nancy Pelaez ’86 reminds all alumnae who attended the 2008 Alumnae Weekend in May to please complete and return their Post-Reunion Weekend Survey that was in their Reunion Folder, if they have not yet done so. If you need a new copy of the survey, please click on the attached PDF. Print the survey, fill in your responses, and then return it to:

For the past decade noted author and alumna Laurie Lisle ’61 has been busy gathering research on and writing the history of Westover’s first 100 years. The book, Westover: Giving Girls A Place of Their Own, will be published in January 2009 by Wesleyan University Press. Laurie is the author of two biographies, Portrait of an Artist: A Biography of Georgia O’Keeffe and Louise Nevelson: A Passionate Life, along with several other books.  Charlotte Strick ’91, an Art Director at Farrar, Straus & Giroux, designed the book’s jacket and interior details. The book will include 50 archival photographs, which were scanned and enhanced by Abby Pope ’93, a freelance photographer based in New York City.

Other Centennial Reminders:

• There will be an extensive update, including a schedule, of Centennial plans and events in the 2008 Annual Report, which will be distributed in October;

• The Alumnae Association Board of Governors’ Networking Committee is looking for volunteer hosts to organize regional Centennial gatherings of all sizes from May 2009 through June 2010. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Alumnae Governors Kyla Reynolds P’an ’91 at kylarpan@gmail.com or Martha Allen Ross ’57 at martha@oldfieldcove.com.  

Alumnae who will be celebrating reunions in 2009 (the members of classes ending in 4s and 9s) and 2010 (the members of classes ending in 5s and 0s) are asked to be on the lookout for a Pre-Reunion Questionnaire and Profile that will arrive in the mail later this summer.

Please fill out the Questionnaire and review your Alumnae Profile, so that the Alumnae Office can plan a fabulous Reunion for you and make sure the information we have in our records is accurate and up-to-date — and if you use e-mail, please make sure we have your current e-mail address so that we can keep you informed as soon as possible about updates about your reunion celebrations!

If you have any questions regarding the Pre-Reunion Questionnaire and Profile, please call Alumnae Director Nancy Pelaez ’86 at 203-577-4593 or e-mail her at npelaez@westoverschool.org.

Patricia Kelly Healy ’35 died on April 13, 2008, at the age of 91. For more than 70 years Patti has been part of Westover. As a student, a parent, a Trustee and an ever-loyal alumna, Patti  contributed to Westover’s vitality and success in countless ways.

Patti was a Trustee at Westover during the 1980s when Westover began planning on of its first major capital campaigns. A primary focus of the campaign was to build an endowment to support Westover’s academic programs. Patti stepped right up to the challenge by making a substantial gift and creating the Patricia K. Healy Fund for Natural Sciences. Patti’s fund has enriched our science program by supporting an annual campus field trip during which every freshman spends a full weekend in the Westover woods studying forest growth patterns and learning about the threats posed by invasive species and insect infestations.

For the remainder of her life, Patti thoughtfully contributed each year to her fund, thus assuring that it would continue to meet current program needs. Recently Westover learned that Patti wasn’t finished with her fund yet! During the last week of May, Westover received notice that Patti had named Westover as the sole beneficiary on two generous life insurance policies. Of course Patti’s life insurance proceeds will be added to the Patricia K. Healy Fund for Natural Sciences, the income from which will continue to support the study of the natural sciences at Westover for all time.

As Patti’s gift so well demonstrates, life insurance is an important planned giving vehicle that — as with many planned gifts — can expand an individual’s capacity to give to Westover. Here are some possibilities:

• A person can simply name Westover as a beneficiary on an existing policy, as did Patti. This can work well in cases where the original purpose of the policy no longer exists, such as providing for dependents who have long since grown up and prospered.

• A person can create a new policy for Westover’s benefit, or transfer ownership of an existing policy to Westover. In such cases, where both the owner and the beneficiary are Westover, the donor is eligible for an immediate tax deduction in an amount equal to the policy’s cost basis or cash surrender value, whichever is less.

• A particularly creative use of life insurance is referred to as “wealth replacement.” There can be significant tax benefits to a donor who may wish to give an existing asset, such as cash or appreciated securities, to Westover outright during her or his lifetime, and replace the value of that asset in her or his estate with the proceeds of a new life insurance policy that, upon termination, will pay an amount equal to the donated asset to the donor’s heirs. The result is that the donor is able to make a significant lifetime gift to Westover, receive the tax and financial benefits of doing so, and still not reduce amounts that her or his heirs will inherit.

If you would like more information about planned giving opportunities at Westover, please e-mail Paul Sutherland, Director of Planned Giving, at psutherland@westoverschool.org or call him at 203-577-4590; or e-mail Mimi Falsey, Director of Alumnae and Development at mfalsey@westoverschool.org or call her at 203-577-4541.

Young dancers auditioning March 30 for the Bolshoi Ballet Academy’s summer intensive program, which will run from June 30 to Aug. 1 at Westover.

On June 30th, Westover welcomed the renowned Bolshoi Ballet Academy of Moscow, which is offering aspiring ballet dancers the opportunity to train with teachers from the most revered Russian academy in the ballet world for a five-week and three-week summer intensive at Westover through Aug. 1st. Dancers are taking classes in the School’s Performing Art Center’s three dance studios.

The program has attracted dancers from Switzerland, Canada, Moscow, and Brazil.  Many states are represented including California and Hawaii. Total enrollment ranges from 65 to 90 dancers per week. Four Westover graduates are among the counselors. The students and their teachers reside on the third floor along with three rooms on the second floor.

More than 50 dance students, ranging in age from 7 to young adult, took part in the auditions at Westover in March and April. To view a slide show of the March 30th audition on the Waterbury Republican-American website, click here. To view other photos from the audition, click here.

Irina Sirova, Chair of Classical Dance for the Bolshoi Ballet Academy, traveled from Moscow to conduct the auditions. The Bolshoi’s summer residency in Connecticut marks the Academy’s first such visit to the U.S. in nine years. Students who participate in the summer intensives are studying all manner of classical Russian ballet technique including classical ballet, pointe, variations, character dance, repertoire, partnering, and folk dance.

The Bolshoi Ballet Academy summer program, the Academy’s exclusive U.S. engagement, is presented by the Russian American Foundation, a cultural foundation based in New York City that promotes increased understanding of Russian heritage and culture through the presentation of Russian arts events in the U.S. as well as a month-long festival of Russian culture in New York each June.

Throughout the Bolshoi summer sessions, American students will study with the Bolshoi Academy’s top instructors, as well as with Marina Leonova, Dean of the Bolshoi Ballet Academy, who will preside over the first week of the sessions.

The Summer Intensives will conclude with an invitation for one male student and one female student to travel to Moscow and join a host of young dancers of Russian ballet at a one-night only Gala at the iconic Bolshoi Theater in Moscow.

Rina Kirshner, Vice President of Russian American Foundation, said the five-week session is, in effect, an exclusive opportunity for interested dancers to audition for the Bolshoi Ballet Academy. Two students from last summer’s initial partnership with RAF and the Bolshoi Academy were accepted to further their studies at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Moscow.
 
The Bolshoi Ballet Academy's new alliance with RAF and Westover brings the famed academy to the U.S. for intensive training for the first time since 1999, when the Bolshoi concluded its years-long affiliation with the Vail Valley Foundation in Colorado.
 
The Bolshoi Academy's Dean Marina Leonova notes that partnership between the Academy and RAF “works towards expanding the dialogue among professionals who are responsible for directing the development and preservation of ballet, and who are teaching the next generation of dancers. This will not only contribute to promoting methods of teaching of Russian classical dance, which helps mastering all styles of choreographic art, but will also foster cross-cultural understanding. This will be an extremely important step in breaking down cultural biases and facilitating a meaningful exchange.”

Ms. Kirshner noted that “Russian history and culture have shaped the evolution of ballet on all levels, from choreography to music, to staging and, of course, the performers. RAF believes that this cross-cultural initiative will benefit the present day artistic communities of both countries by allowing them a direct dialogue and to learn from each other's experiences.”

For information about “Bolshoi Ballet Academy: Summer Intensive” call 212-687-6118 ext. 207 or visit the Bolshoi Ballet Academy's website.

Members of the Class of 2008 toss confetti into the air at the conclusion of the June 6th graduation ceremonies in the School’s Quad. To see more photos of the June 6th graduation, click here; to see photos of the June 5th Orchard Award ceremony, click here.

Despite a soaking rain hours earlier that threatened to move the ceremonies indoors, the 48 members of Westover’s Class of 2008 processed into the School’s beloved Quadrangle on Friday morning, June 6th. Despite the still overcast skies and cool temperatures, the School’s 99th commencement exercises proceeded without interruption or precipitation, and the Class of 2008 joined the ranks of the School’s alumnae.

Senior Class Speaker Abigail Woodham ’08 looked back at her two years at Westover as a wry but warm variation of Alice in Wonderland. Click on the link below to download excerpts from her remarks.

The Commencement Address was given by Chip Arndt, an entrepreneur and social activist who was the 2003 co-winner of the CBS “reality” series, The Amazing Race. In his remarks, Chip both cited the legacy of past alumnae achievement — sharing with the Class of 2008 and others present a list of alumnae and their successes in life in government, career, the arts, and philanthropy — and  called on the graduates to take chances in their lives. He cited his experiences since his graduation from Hotchkiss as examples of choices he has made which have helped enrich his life and given him opportunities to both learn from and help people he has met.

As always, the Commencement Exercises concluded with the members of the graduating class forming a circle on Molder Field, surrounded by a larger circle made up of members of Westover’s three other classes. The students then returned to the Quadrangle, where members of the West and Over teams circled their respective apple trees, while the Class of 2008 circled the Senior Tree for one last time.

Please click on the attachment below to see a list of colleges and universities where Westover students from the Classes of 2004 through 2008 have been accepted. Members of the Class of 2008 will matriculate at those schools that are listed in bold blue type with an asterisk next to the school’s name.

Every year, Westover faculty members are offered grant opportunities through several Westover endowment funds that were established to support faculty participating in varied course development, educational enrichment and sabbatical activities — usually but not always conducted during the summer months. These endowment funds have been established over the years through generous gifts and grants from alumnae and other friends of the School, as well as through such non-profit agencies as the Edward E. Ford Foundation. *

During the 2007-2008 school year, the most recent grant from the Edward E. Ford Foundation provided funds for all of the teachers in the School’s English Department and Language Department to visit other schools and to observe their counterparts at work in the classroom. During the 2008-2009 school year, members of Westover’s Mathematics, Arts, and Athletic Departments will be given time to observe their peers at other schools.

In addition, Sarkis Boyadjian, Mathematics Department Head, took part in a teacher exchange program from January through March with Saint Mary’s Anglican Girls School in Perth, Australial.

Among the faculty members receiving grants for 2008 programs are:

• Rachel Bashevkin, Associate Director of Studies and Jewish Students Advisor, a three-week study program at the Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem, studying conversational Hebrew in the morning and texts (such as Psalms or essays of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel) in the afternoon;

• Lisa Marie Buoncoure, History teacher, a six-month sabbatical, which will include travel activities as well as a course in the U.S. Constitution at a California college;

• Jill Freeland, History Department Head, to create history projects for use with SmartBoard technology;

• Michael Gallagher, Photography teacher, to attend the Society for Photographic Education conference in March and to work on his Tibetan composites portfolio from his six-month sabbatical several years ago in which he traveled to China, Tibet, and other Southeast Asian countries;

• Alice Hallaran, Science teacher, and Terry Hallaran, Director of Studies and Science teacher, for a six-month sabattical, which will include travel to British Columbia (during Summer 2007 Alice and Terry also took a teaching course in Advanced Placement Environmental Science at St. Johnsbury, NH);

• Ian Jamieson, WISE and Mathematics teacher, to develop three new courses for the WISE program;

• Barbara Jennings, Dorm Parent, to continue Yoga training course work;

• Heather Mannella, Science teacher, to revamp Westover’s ongoing Forest Census project in Westover’s Woods, which is used in student science classes.

• Lori Mele, Spanish teacher, to take a master’s degree course at Saint Louis University in Spain.

• Carol Santos, Dean of Students, to continue pursuing her studies at Columbia University Teacher’s College for a Master’s Degree in Education (Carol also studied at Columbia during summer 2007);

• Kate Seyboth, a WISE and Mathematics teacher, to restructure the School’s Computer Literacy course so it will be on-line and self-paced, and to pursue ongoing graduate studies at Tufts University;

• Marla Truini, Director of the Drama Program, to pursue course work on her Master’s of Theatre Production and Design at the Ashland Center for Theatre Studies at Southern Oregon University.

Among the faculty members receiving grants for 2007 programs were:

• Lisa Marie Buoncoure, History teacher, to participate in a church trip working at a summer camp program for Iraqi refugees in Amman, Jordan;

• Melinda Burbank, Science Department Head, a six-month sabbatical for travel to Peru and other projects;

• Bruce Coffin, English teacher, to travel to England to do additional research on the English novelist JL Carr;

• Jo Dexter, English teacher, to work on a young-adult novel;

• Jan Gilley, Director of International Programs and Exchanges, a six-month sabbatical that included photographic studies and travel to visit Westover’s exchange schools in Jordan, Spain, France, England, and South Africa;

• Thomas Hungerford, Director of Faculty, Chaplain, and English teacher, to work on a Dostoyevsky research paper which he delivered as a speaker at the Center for Theoretical Studies at Charles University in Prague, the Czech Republic, and later at the Theology School at St. John’s University in Minnesota;

• Barbara Jennings, Dorm Parent, to continue Yoga training course work;

• Lynn Loveridge Kling ’75, Mathematics teacher, to take an Advanced Placement AB Calculus teaching course at Taft School’s Summer Educational Institute, as well as additional community college courses;

• Debbie Verzino, Mathematics teacher, to take a Statistics course at the University of Connecticut.

* It should be noted that not all of the faculty activities during the summer months necessarily focus on educational matters. Ali Perdue, Art History teacher, married Ben Hildenbrand on Saturday, July 12th, 2008. Our congratulations to the happy couple!

Members of the Varsity Tennis team (top photo) at the 21st Annual New England Prep Tennis Tournament at Milton Academy this spring.

Westover Varsity Tennis finished the 2008 season with its most successful season, going 12-4 and posting the most wins of a tennis team in school history. During the regular season Westover defeated new opponent, Pomfret, and avenged last year’s losses to Berkshire and Miss Porter’s. Westover continued its dominance of the CISAC league, going undefeated for the third straight year.

In addition to a wonderful regular season, the team enjoyed their most successful post-season ever. The team started the post-season by competing in the CISAC Tournament on May 17. Ten girls qualified for the tournament – four for singles play and six for doubles play. In the Doubles Tournament Westover swept the field, finishing 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. The team of Charlotte Radcliffe ’08/Jillian Silver ’10 took the Doubles Championship, while Ji Hyun Lee ’08/Resa McLellan ’09 took second, and Annie Donovan ’11/Katie Norfleet ’11 finished third. The girls were equally successful in the Singles Tournament as we had a 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 8th place finisher. Lindsey Combest ’08 won her first round match against Chase Collegiate’s #1 player, but was later knocked out by the tournament finalist. Co-Captains Molly Hubbard ’09 and Mira Suarsana ’09 wound up playing for third place, with Molly coming out on top in the end. The highlight of the day came from Carolyn Jay ’10, who avenged an earlier season loss by defeating Hamden Hall’s #1 and became Westover’s first CISAC Singles Champion. Westover claimed the Team Championship by finishing with 32 points and beat out Hamden Hall, who finished with 17 points.

The success at the CISAC Tournament was quickly followed by more good news, as the next day, Westover received an invitation to the 21st Annual New England Prep Tennis Tournament for the first time in 21 years. A young Westover team traveled to Milton Academy and finished in a very respectable 11th place, beating out such teams as Nobles, Rivers and Miss Porter’s. Carolyn Jay won a match in the Consolation Draw of the A Singles Flight. Molly Hubbard put up a good fight, but could not quite defeat either of her opponents in the B Singles Flight. Jillian Silver and Mira Suarsana teamed up to win a Main Draw match in the A Doubles Flight and the team of Annie Donovan and Katie Norfleet also claimed a win in the Main Draw of the B Doubles Flight. It was a great experience and an honor to compete among the best teams in New England. The team would like to thank the Rev. and Mrs. Craig Burlington (P’87) for hosting the team and Assistant Director of Admissions JP Burlington and Patricia Hubbard (P’09) for making the trip to Milton to support the girls.

Overall, Westover completed the most successful athletic year in recent history. Successes include:

• three CISAC League and Tournament Championships in Soccer, Basketball, and Tennis;
• three New England Tournament bids for Field Hockey, Basketball, Tennis;
• a # 11 finish in Class A Squash;
• a # 3 in WNEPSWVA for Volleyball;
• and Westover’s first Academic All American.

These results are a credit to our scholar athletes, who balance demanding academic schedules with outstanding commitment to their sports and teams, as well as talented and dedicated coaches who are devoted to making teams successful.

Westover has had plenty of reasons to celebrate during the first half of 2008. Among the highlights:

• Student Named National Merit Scholar: Hannah Laymon ’08 has been named a 2008 National Merit Scholar, a distinction that puts her among less than one-fifth of 1% of all students in the country who took the qualifying 2007 Preliminary SAT. Click here for more details.

• Westover’s First Academic High School All American: Kendall Mulligan ’08 was selected by US Lacrosse as a High School Academic All American. Kendall was selected on the basis of her lacrosse abilities, academic strength (including honors and AP classes and a GPA of 3.6 or greater), selection as a New England All Star, contributions to other Varsity sports, and significant contributions to both the School and to the wider community. Click here for more details.

• Student Wins Scholastic Art Competition National Award: Amelia Fox ’08, a resident of New Fairfield, CT, has won a prestigious Gold Award for Photography in the 2008 National Scholastic Art & Writing Competition for her work, “Pam Cubed,” a silver gelatin, black-and-white print. Click here for more details.

• Westover Student is Highest Ranking Girl in Computer Science Contest: Kayla Meduna ’09 was the highest placing girl in the 15th Annual GE Connecticut High School Computer Science Contest held on April 24 at Fairfield University. A resident of Brewster, NY, Kayla placed 10th overall out of 110 participants. Of the 34 girls who entered the contest, seven were Westover students who participate in the school’s WISE (Women In Science and Engineering) program. Click here for more details.

• Westover’s Theater Program Wins Four Halo Awards: Westover’s Drama Program was one of the big winners at the Fifth Annual Halo Awards on May 19th, with Westover students winning four awards, two in the acting categories and two in the stagecraft categories. Click here for more details.

• Student Wins County Level of Poetry Contest: Felicity Sheehy ’10 was the New Haven County winner in the poetry category for the statewide IMPAC-Connecticut State University Literary Awards. Felicity, who resides in Jefferson Valley, NY, was one of seven Westover students who were semi-finalists for the New Haven County competition. The other Westover semi-finalists were Kate Blum ’08 of Waterbury, CT; Domenique Harrison ’08 of West Orange, NJ, and Hannah Laymon ’08 of Danbury, CT; Min-Jung Kim ’09 of Seoul, South Korea, and Kate Truini ’09 of Roxbury; and Caitlin MacGinitie ’10 of Roxbury, CT. Click here for more details.

• Head of School Ann Pollina Honored by AAUW: The Greater Waterbury branch of the American Association of University Women (AAUW) honored Head of School Ann Pollina with a Named Gift to the Eleanor Roosevelt Fund of the AAUW Educational Foundation. Click here for more details.

• The May 22 All-School Community Service Day: More than 200 students and faculty visit more than a dozen area schools and non-profit organizations to help make a difference. Click here for more details.

To read even more news about Westover, click here.

Welcome to the second edition of the Online Hillard Herald, February 2008. In this issue, we will:

• review the outstanding results that Westover students had in the 2007 Advanced Placement exams;
• update you on our Annual Fund campaign;
• bring you news of the 2008 Dorcas Fair and share an online photo album showing some of the highlights of this year’s successful charity event.
• give you a round-up of Westover’s winter sports results to date;
• offer you information about how to make a planned gift to Westover;
• and visit online photo albums of Head of School Ann Pollina’s recent trip to Asia, and other recent Westover gatherings and events.

Traditionally, Westover students who take the Advanced Placement exams each May meet with solid success, with almost nine out of ten of them earning a grade of at least “3” or higher, a score that qualifies for college credit — and the majority of those earning college credit receive honor scores of “4” or “5” on these standardized national exams.

In May 2007, however, Westover students surpassed even their best past results: of the 136 exams taken in 18 different subjects, 131 of them — an astonishing 96% — earned a grade of “3” or higher and 68% scored honor scores of "4" or "5". These high results were recorded in all of the 18 exam subjects, but were particularly noteworthy in the math and science exams. Unlike some schools, Head of School Ann Pollina said, Westover requires all of its students enrolled in an Advanced Placement course to take the national exam in that subject when it is administered in May, so Westover’s AP results reflect all of its students enrolled in AP courses.

“We are particularly proud,” Ann said, “that 23% — nine out of the 39 girls in Connecticut who sat for the demanding Advanced Placement Computer Science exam — were Westover students, most of them as sophomores and juniors rather than seniors as expected. All of our students qualified for college credit on that exam. Three of the seven girls in the state of Connecticut who earned ‘5,’ the highest possible grade, on the exam were from Westover.” 

The students taking the AP Computer Science exam participate in Westover’s Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) program, which was started in 1992 to attract girls to fields such as engineering and technology. In 2006 Westover School’s WISE program won a National Association of Independent School’s Leading Edge Award in curriculum innovation. The award recognizes outstanding academic programs that are innovative and successful. Students in the WISE program engage in hands-on engineering problem-solving projects, study JavaScript to prepare for the AP computer science exam, and create an independent research project.

The Westover WISE program was started in collaboration with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY and Westover students are guaranteed admission to Rensselaer if they complete the WISE program in good standing. The program was co-founded by Ann Pollina, head of Westover School, and is currently co-directed by Kate Seyboth and Ian Jamieson.

Reviewing Westover students’ overall success in the AP math and science exams, Ann noted that 30 members of the Class of 2007 — 64% of the graduating class of 47 students — took either the Calculus AB or the Calculus BC exam. Of those 30 AP Calculus students, half of them, 15, received 5's on their exams, the highest score, while eight earned 4's, and 6 earned 3's. Of the 15 Westover students taking the AP Biology exam, she said, 10 received 5's, four received 4's, and one received a 3. Of nine students taking AP Physics, Ann added, 2 students earned 5's, 2 earned 4's, and 4 received 3's.

Reviewing the AP Physics results, the teacher of the course, Heather Mannella ’91, noted, “Our students had a mean score of 3.56 on the exam. That compares to the national mean of 2.86, the Connecticut male mean score of 3.34, and the Connecticut female mean score of 2.96.” Across the nation, 59% of students taking the AP Physics exam scored 3 or higher, Heather added, while “89% of our students scored 3 or higher. I am so proud of them!”

Westover’s outstanding AP results have been featured on the website of the National Coalition of Girls' Schools (click here or see the link below).

Here are other facts about the Connecticut Advanced Placement Computer Science A test:

• 35% of girls in Connecticut who got a 3 or higher on the test (a score high enough to earn college credit) were from Westover (26 girls in Connecticut got a 3 or higher on the test; nine of them were from Westover).

• 23% of girls in the state of Connecticut who took the test were from Westover (nine of the 39 girls who took the test statewide were from Westover).

• Nationally, 15% of girls taking the test received 5’s; 33% of Westover girls who took the test received 5’s.

• Nationally, 47% of girls taking the test received a 3 or higher; 100% of Westover girls who took the test received 3 or higher.

“Last year,” Ann noted, “only three girls in Connecticut took the AP Computer Science AB test. We are hoping to have four from Westover take the Computer Science AB test this May.”

Members of this year’s Dialtones — student volunteers who are calling on you to support the 2007-08 Annual Fund.

 We need you! We have just passed the halfway point of Westover’s 2007-08 Annual Fund campaign, and while we are drawing nearer to our goal of $1,250,000, we still need alumnae responding in greater numbers so that our percentage of participation among alumnae will top 50% for this year’s Annual Fund campaign.

As of January 10th, we have received a total of $877,289 to the Annual Fund with a participation rate among alumnae of 18%. Most class agents have been in touch with their classmates through letters, phone calls, and e-mails, and we thank them for their efforts to date and encourage their classmates to respond positively as the agents continue their appeals on behalf of the Annual Fund.

Westover’s students are doing their share on behalf of this year’s Annual Fund through the Dialtones, our student volunteers who conduct several phonathons during the campaign. This year the Dialtones are reminding alumnae that gifts to the 2007-2008 Annual Fund can be made in honor of Head of School Ann Pollina to celebrate her first 10 years at Westover’s helm. Gifts made in honor of Ann will be used to support faculty salaries, a special focus of Ann’s throughout her tenure as Head of School.

On Dec. 4th and Jan. 8th, the Dialtones gathered in Westover’s Hillard House for dinner, study hall, and calling. Over the two evenings, 36 girls made 451 phone calls. Out of those calls, they received 105 gifts and pledges totaling $6,784 and raised the percent participation among alumnae by 3.5 points!

Annual Fund Director Kristin Martinkovic White ’91 noted, “In these two phonathons we have tried something new to boost percent participation. We have been calling the young alumnae, focusing on the classes of 1991 - 2007 and calling them on their cell phones. This has clearly been effective in raising percent participation and has resulted in some wonderful phone conversations. For example, 70% of the class of 2007 who were called on their cell phones made gifts to the Annual Fund. We even had a Westover ‘first’: a student from the Class of 2007 was in class at Franklin & Marshall when her cell phone rang. She could not talk on the phone, but did proceed to text her pledge to her student caller!”

If you have not yet had a chance to make your gift to the 2007-2008 Annual Fund, you can do so by clicking here to make your gift on line through our safe, secure website. All gifts received before June 30th, 2008, will count towards the 2007-2008 Annual Fund goal.

Alumnae enjoying one of the presentations during the 2007 Alumnae Weekend.

The 2008 Alumnae Weekend will be held May 16-18.

This year’s Alumnae Weekend features a command performance of the Student Performers Showcase, including an Alumnae Sing-Along, in the School’s Performing Arts Center. The showcase has been so well received by alumnae audiences since it was first presented in May 2005 that we are offering a final encore performance for this year’s Alumnae Weekend. Westover and the Alumnae Association Board of Governors invite alumnae celebrating their reunions this year, as well as all alumnae, to attend a spectacular performance of student singing groups, musicians, dancers and actors on Friday, May 16, 2008.

On Saturday, May 17, join your classmates for our traditional Alumnae Day schedule. Take part in Chapel Line and Chapel, the Town Meeting with Head of School Ann Pollina and presentations of awards, enjoy lunch under the West and Over trees, visit with faculty, enjoy afternoon workshops led by alumnae and teachers, and take student-led campus tours.

Classes ending in 3s and 8s will celebrate their reunions with class gatherings and dinners Saturday evening. Please join your classmates and other Westover alumnae for this special performance and commemorative weekend.

For more infomation about the 2008 Alumnae Weekend, including information on how to register now, click here.

Betsy Lillian '09, the Wicked Witch, and Samantha Mallette '09, as Snow White, welcome visitors to the the 2008 Dorcas Fair on Jan. 13th. To see more photos from this year's event, click here.

Fairytales can have happy endings, at least at this year’s Dorcas Fair, where the annual fundraising event organized and run by Westover’s Class of 2009 raised $11, 882 in profits for charity.

Held on Jan. 13th, this year’s fair, called Dorcas Fairytales, featured members of the junior class dressed up as various characters from Mother Goose, the Brothers Grimm, and Hans Christian Andersen, along with a variety of booths and activities with a fairytale motif – from a children’s ride that consisted of a rolling, giant slice of cheese pushed by the three blind mice to an inflatable castle where youngsters could bounce around inside ... well, as if by magic! Dorcas Advisor Ruth Amoh ’02 noted that it was only after the class had settled on the fair’s fairytale theme that they discovered that, by coincidence, Westover’s fall musical — Into the Woods — was also drawn from fairytales.

Ruth praised the leadership of this year’s Dorcas Heads: First Head Mimi Kigawa, Second Head Kate Truini, and Third Head Molly Hubbard. “They listened and communicated really well with me,” Ruth said. “All three were hardworking and very dedicated toward making the fair a great success.” She also praised the rest of the Class of 2009 for their teamwork and willingness to put in a lot of effort for months ahead of time. “Virtually everything was done before we left for break in December,” she added, “which really made a difference in the days leading up to the fair itself. We still had to work really hard and we were still tired from all that work, but we learned a lot from the experience.”

Ruth also thanked parents of the three Dorcas Heads, parents of their classmates, as well as members of the faculty and staff, who donated items for the fair’s silent auction, helped purchase and deliver supplies for the event, and who staffed some of the booths at the fair.

Although the Dorcas Fair raised an extraordinary amount of money, Ruth hopes that the girls will realize “it’s not just the amount of money they raise, it’s knowing that they will be able to help” so many different people through their efforts. The Dorcas Heads will select several charities in the next several months to allocate a portion of the funds raised from this year’s auction. The balance of the profits from this year’s fair will then be added to the Dorcas Fund, an endowment fund set up several years ago at the Connecticut Community Foundation. As a result, the Dorcas heads also serve as “trustees” for the Dorcas Fund, allowing them to allocate a portion of the earnings from the endowment fund to aid charities throughout the school year, in addition to the allocations the Dorcas Heads designate from their own Dorcas Fair profits.

To view the slide show of the 2008 Dorcas Fair, click here.

Westover Athletics continue to dominate!

• Varsity Basketball claimed the Connecticut Independent School Athleticc Conference (CISAC) regular season title with a 68-29 win over Watkinson School on Jan. 30th. The team is undefeated to date in CISAC play and has earned the top seed in the CISAC Tournament and home court advantage. The team has fallen only once so far this season, in a January heartbreaker at Canterbury School on a last-second prayer shot that put the Saints on top 58-57. The Wildcats defeated Chase Collegiate School in front of a standing-room-only crowd, and also thrilled spectators with a 69-64 win over Class A 12-3 Hopkins School. Their current record as of Feb. 6th: 11-1. JV Basketball also has only one loss, and that as well to Canterbury.