Gordon a lumni connect ion W i n t e r 2 0 1 5second century campaign edition

Dear Gordon Friends,As the holiday season concludes, I can’t help but think of how much we have to be grateful for this year at Gordon. Programs and teachers are thriving in their new spaces, and students are benefitting from access to two new state of the art music classrooms and a new theater. Members of the community are enjoying the spacious new dining hall, as well as a lunch program that serves five nutritionist-approved meals per week. The new conference room has provided various adult groups in the community with a much needed space for meetings to support the work of the school. Last but certainly not least, the Commons has distinguished itself as a casual meeting area that caters to students, classes, parents, alumni, prospective families, faculty and staff.To celebrate the amazing new music and theater spaces, and the fact that they are finished and up and running, I have highlighted three faculty members and their programs: • Milly Romanzi, Director of Fine and Performing Arts • Susan Hodgin, Middle School music • Bill Beaudoin, Middle School music electivesAccompanying those pieces you will find alumni who have shared their experiences at Gordon and the impact that Ms. Romanzi, Ms. Hodgin and Mr. Beaudoin have had on their lives. I was also excited to learn that journalist Noah Davis ’97 covered the United States National Soccer Team and their journey at the World Cup in Brazil over the summer! He shared his top five moments from his trip, and some photos he captured from his own excursions throughout the country and from the press box. I hope you enjoy the issue, and please keep in touch! Visitors are always welcome, so please contact the Development Office if you would like a tour of the new spaces.Warm regards, Mollie Mattuchio

Associate Development Director mmattuchio@gordonschool.org

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t a b l e o f c o n t e n t s

2

campus notes

4

alumni events

6

faculty and alumni profiles: second century campaign edition

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noah davis ’97: my top five moments from the World cup

13

gordon athletics update

14

class notes

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teacher residency program class notes

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Campus Notes

lucy Kahn ‘06 delivers remarks at the c.J. buckley experiential learning night

Academic, activist and musician Lucy Kahn ’06 delivered a riveting address June 5, 2014

at the C.J. Buckley Experiential Learning Night. After graduating from Sarah Lawrence College,

Lucy spent three months working on a sheep and vegetable farm in Conway, Massachusetts,

where she deepened her knowledge of agricultural techniques, foraging and herbal medicine.

In September, she joined the Manhattan Country School farm in the beautiful Catskill Mountains

of Roxbury, New York for a one year farm-based teaching apprenticeship.

Jessie litwin ’08 returns for the annual induction luncheon with the class of 2014

Jessie Litwin ’08 addressed the Class of 2014 at the annual Induction Luncheon last spring.

Jesse spoke about her experience and her responsibilities a Gordon alumna, as well as her

pursuits at Northeastern University. Music and theater were an essential part of Jessie’s time at

Gordon, and she is currently member of the Nor’easters, the a cappella group at Northeastern.

gordon librarian elected to serve as juror for major literary award

At last spring’s American Librarian Association conference in

Las Vegas, Gordon librarian Frances Martindale was elected to

serve on the jury for the Coretta Scott King—Virginia Hamilton

Lifetime Achievement Award. She will be one of five jurors

choosing the 2017 winner. The award honors African American

authors and illustrators, and educational practitioners, for

their contributions to childrens’ and young adult literature. Ms. Martindale began volunteering

for the Coretta Scott King award in 2013. Her growing relationship with the award represents

the next step in her work advocating for multicultural literature.

congratulations

to the teacher residency program

class of 2014

From left to right:

Director Lynn Bowman,

Jacqui Denault,

Lyndsey Ursillo,

Zach Oppenheimer ’02,

Ashleigh Stackpoole,

Meagan Hughes,

Claudia Traub,

Kelly Zilly,

Tyler Hammer and

Instructor, Diana Reeves

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five days of hot lunch at gordon

The new dining hall has set the stage for a new

era of lunch at Gordon. Students, faculty and

staff dine together at seated lunches. This new

program fosters healthy eating and community

building. Gordon’s lunch program provides

nutritionist-approved lunches five days per

week, unlimited fruit for all students and fresh,

locally grown ingredients through Farm Fresh

RI’s Mobile Market program.

gordon hosts national robotics Qualifier

Gordon hosted the FIRST LEGO League

Robotics qualifying tournament on December

6th. Twenty teams from throughout Rhode

Island were present at Gordon to compete,

including Gordon’s Middle School team,

going strong after thirteen years.

Heritage language program

The Heritage Language program is a new

addition to the first grade curriculum. The

program supports native Spanish speakers

within the curriculum, by challenging this

particular group of students to refine their

verbal, written and reading skills.

new math specialist for the 2014-2015

school year

Longtime eighth grade math and science

teacher Eric Kravitz has expanded his role to

become Gordon’s math specialist. During the

summer, Mr. Kravitz attended several Math

in Focus conferences, and is dedicated to

working with faculty to enhance Gordon’s

math curriculum and best meet the needs of

students across all grade levels.

H e a d ’ s a d V i s o r y c o u n c i l

parents of alumni

Tish Bodell-Hopkins

Kevin Bowman

Andrew Campbell

Johnnie Chace, Co-Chair

Malcolm G. Chace, Jr.

Ren Cheng

Pamela Choi Redfern

Ann Marie Clarkson

Meredith Curren

Cindy Elder

Mary Engle

Ken Fain

Fred Franklin

Amy Fuller

Peyton Gibson

Ginnie Goldstein

Bruce Hampton

Kerri Hayes

Barbara Hendrie

Jennifer Hosmer

Heidi Janes

Dan Kahn

Linda Kaplan

Sally Lapides

Greg Lupica

Helen Macdonald

Sara Shea McConnell

Ro Mede

Cheryl Nathanson,

Board Liaison

Sue Oppenheimer

Liz Pannell

Irene Pappas

Vicki Phillips

Faith and Jeff Pine

Patty Rock

Mary Anne Sedney

b o a r d o f t r u s t e e s 2 0 1 4 - 2 0 1 5

Susanna Rhodes Beckwith ’84, Chair

Flossie Crisp, Vice Chair

Michael Hamilton, Vice Chair

Harry Romain, Vice Chair

George Matouk, Treasurer

Ralph L. Wales, Assistant Treasurer

J. Winslow Alford

Robin Boss

David Bourns

Heidi Buonanno

Rosemary Colt, Faculty and

Staff Representative

Eileen Sweeney Craddock

Sarah Dobron

Chris Fay

Rob Glancy ’97

Eugene Johnson ’87

Chris Kahler

Marianne Monte

Candida Monteiro

Cheryl Nathanson

Amy Orth, GCA Representative

Jason Pina

Donald Powers

Amanda Riegel

Jane Ritson-Parsons

Anthony Rust

William Talley

Lisa Sienkiewicz

Bill Shuey

Linda Shumate

Susan Stevenson

Jonathan Stone

Donna Templeton

Pam Vogel

Martha Dineen Wales

alumni

Thomas Goddard ’57

Roz Rustigian ’65

Becky Book ’66

Bob Fine ’68

Ted Widmer ’76

Ben Rhodes ’78

Ward Caswell ’80

Annie White ’87

Lara Ewens Montecalvo ’88

Christine Isidoro ’94

Christopher Liao ’94

Ted Trafton ’94

Emily Bresnahan-McRae

Mahoney ’97

Sarah Chace Cotter ’97

Gia Garzone ’97

Rob Glancy ’97, Co-Chair

Andrea Weisman Russell ’97

Adam Freedman ’98

Ben Freedman ’01

Nick Wall ’99

Katie Goetz ’00

Isaiah Osofisan ’00

Caroline Greene Hunt ’01

Caroline Goddard ’01

Gillian Lang ’01

Carlin O’Donnell ’03

Alex Ardente ’04

Alumni Events

y o u n g Alumni Reunion, June 2014

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5

PRovidence

Young Alumni RecePtion

SePtembeR 2014

HeAd’S AdviSoRY council meeting, octobeR 2014

HeAd'S AdviSoRY council

StAtement oF PuRPoSe

to provide alumni and parents of alumni

the opportunity to reconnect with gordon

in an informative and meaningful way.

members are kept current on initiatives at the

school and asked to participate in discussion

that will support the school’s work.

the council has a direct relationship

with the board of trustees through the

position of a selected board liaison.

Head’s Advisory council members serve as

ambassadors of gordon

in greater Providence.

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faculty profile:

second century campaign edition

Milly Romanzidirector of fine and performing arts

that is infused with social meaning—content

that explores the range of emotion and

experience. We hone skills at a high level,

and with this scaffolding students are highly

successful in next-school experiences. We

create thoughtful, discerning theater goers.

We foster creative thinking and problem

solving. But most importantly, we strive to

teach what it means to be human.

The new theater space is a home for the

performance program, and it is also a space

that classroom teachers use for instruction

across all divisions. In a single week this

fabulously flexible new space hosted a Greek

tragedy with seventy five middle schoolers,

a page-to-stage third grade production, a

creative play project in Kindergarten, three

visiting author talks addressing every child

in the school, a full-on mock trial, a rally for

children’s rights, an open mic night, a reading

of creative writing, two dance classes, three

choruses, and two acting classes. All with a

pull of the curtains and a move of the chairs!

Our new home is both elegant and approach-

able, high tech and very simple, central to the

life of the school but self-contained. It inspires,

enables, and leads us to new pathways of

self-discovery. —Milly Romanzi

Milly RoManzi’s jouRney at GoRdon

school beGan neaRly a dozen yeaRs aGo,

when she had just Moved to Rhode island.

accoRdinG to Ms. RoManzi, GoRdon

was the cleaR f it foR heR then second

GRadeR, sheRRy RoManzi ‘10. sheRRy’s

love foR the peRfoRMinG aRts iGnited

in GoRdon’s cReative atMospheRe, which

then Rekindled Ms. RoManzi’s passion

foR theateR afteR twenty yeaRs as an

adveRtis inG executive. Ms. RoManzi

f iRst volunteeRed to sew costuMes,

accoMpany choRuses and seRve snacks;

whateveR she could do to suppoRt the

Rapidly GRowinG pRoGRaM of unique

quality and content. fast foRwaRd to

fall 2014, in which Ms. RoManzi stepped

into the Role of diRectoR of f ine and

peRfoRMinG aRts in the new theateR. she

has shaRed Reflections about heR Role

and the beautiful new space below.

had the good fortune to build on the after

school theater program begun by Frances

Martindale who partnered with Brown/Trinity

and whose work was furthered in the Middle

School by Susan Reenan. I also have the great

opportunity to work with each of the master

teachers in our music and art departments, and

am looking forward to leading an integrated

arts department as we settle into our freshly

defined spaces.

Dedicated to an inclusive experience that

honors the contribution of each individual

student, the performance program at Gordon

School seeks above all to provide a safe place

of belonging. In our theater work everyone

is cast, parts are crafted to the actor and not

vice versa, scripts are carved to create special

moments for all, and behind-the-scenes contri-

butions are highly valued. Each play experience

is a unique ‘organism’, a living, breathing com-

munity of contributors that relies on the health

of each to thrive, and which ceases to exist at

the end of our project together… a bittersweet

dynamic that makes each project precious.

Gordon School’s performing arts work

culminates in extraordinary product, but is

unparalleled in its process. We build joy, safe

risk-taking and empathy. We explore content

I

7

What inspired you to pursue a career as

an actor and director?

My inspiration to become a director was

definitely influenced by my time at Gordon

School. I fell in love with performance

and acting at Gordon largely because of

the amazing guidance and teaching of Ms.

Martindale and Ms. Romanzi. I remember

watching Annie Jr. when I was in the fifth

grade, and saying to myself, that looks pretty

fun, and everything has really transpired since

then. I didn’t start directing until my sophomore

year of high school at Moses Brown where

I directed my first two one-act plays: God

by Woody Allen and The Lives of the Great

Waitresses by Nina Shengold. It was then that

I realized my creative voice could most clearly

be expressed through the presentation of the

whole product rather than performing a single

character. The job of the director is really

to glue all of the beautifully creative and

individual voices of each artist together into

a singularity. That action of gluing and collab-

oration is what truly inspired me. My first real

encounter with that came from watching my

theater teachers at Gordon bring together

both children and adults to make amazingly

dynamic work.

What are some highlights from your time

as an undergraduate student at the tisch

school of the arts at new york university?

A highlight of my time at Tisch was my first

film, Survivng Texterosis, centered around

the anxiety that comes from the instantaneity

of text messaging in the context of college age

dating and romance. It was a huge experiment,

and I made many, many, many mistakes, but

I’m still proud of the outcome and I use that

experience of creation as fuel to keep pushing

me forward. My second highlight was directing

my senior thesis Luna Park by Donald

Margulies. It was the biggest project that I

had taken on, but it had a very close personal

connection to me and my family history. It

really taught me that my best work will always

stem from me; not abstract concepts that have

little to no intersection with my life.

How did ms. romanzi’s program shape you

as an actor?

Ms. Romanzi is one of the most beautiful

and amazing people that I have ever had the

privilege to know. What she gave me was my

confidence. It is, and continues to be, one of

the most important gifts I have ever received.

I don’t know how she did it. After every time

I worked with her, I always felt like I had

improved and that I could continue to do so.

Her patience, intelligence and love for teach-

ing and theater was and is a palpable force that

rubbed off on me. I would not be where I am

today without her guidance and confidence

in me as a performer and as a person. She

believed in me in whatever I was doing, and

continues to do so, and I hope she has at least

a faint idea of how important and inspirational

that has been to me. I truly am in her debt.

do you have any upcoming projects that you

are excited about?

There are some rumblings of potential projects

in my future. I just formed a production

company, Bowen Street Productions, with

my dear friend Christopher Fitzsimmons who

I met at Brown University’s Theaterbridge

program. We just finished directing our first

commercial in Napa Valley, California for

a medical facility. My next big project is that

I am producing, not directing, a piece called

Strange Weather. It is a modern dance and

theater piece to the music of Tom Waits, which

will hopefully premiere in New York City in

the near future. Besides that, the other projects

in my future are not developed enough for me

to elaborate on, but I can say keep an eye out

for my debut feature film in the next two years.

We are always looking out for more work at

Bowen Street Productions, and urge anyone

looking for video or theatrical production in

the Gordon School community to contact me.

Sorry for the for the most obvious plug in history!

What is your favorite memory from

performing in the activity room?

My favorite Activity Room memory has to

be playing Harold Hill in the Music Man in

eighth grade. This is such a great memory to

be largely because of the huge amount of time

and effort Ms. Romanzi put in to prepare me.

I also selfishly will never forget it because I

have never had a bigger part in a musical to

this day, and people still tell me how much

they enjoyed watching that production, almost

nine years later.

shaRkey weinbeRG ’06 studied with Milly RoManzi duRinG his t iMe as a student at GoRdon. he peRfoRMed undeR heR diRection,

and cRedits heR foR f indinG his pRoMise as an actoR and diRectoR. afteR GoRdon, shaRkey attended Moses bRown, and he

GRaduated fRoM the tisch school of the aRts at new yoRk univeRsity last spRinG. he is cuRRently diRectinG and pRoducinG.

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All Middle School students at Gordon School

have a voice, are empowered and are valued.

Music classes continue the experiential learning

begun in Lower School and expand toward

higher levels of development and understanding

in music literacy, critical thinking and problem

solving. Skills in music classes such as partici-

pation, communication, discipline, risk-taking,

collaboration, innovation, creativity, and the

ability to “self-start” are essential in today’s

world. Music teaches all of those things, plus

it gives students access to the intrinsic value

of expression and what it means to be human.

The process of learning is as important as the

finished product.

The multicultural mission of Gordon is evident

every day in music class. It is an inclusive

environment where multiple varieties of in-

structional strategies are used to engage every

student. We sing, play Orff instruments and

recorder, move, improvise, dance, experiment,

drum, play handbells, create, compose, analyze,

interpret and evaluate. As students expand their

journey toward music literacy, they grow in

their abilities to perform and create music, to

perceive and understand music, and to com-

prehend the powerful connections between

music and the other arts, other content areas

and multicultural communities. Students

explore music history, emphasizing the rela-

tionship between music as an art form and the

individual and society. We address contempo-

rary concerns around the culture of music:

Why is “popular music” popular? What is the

ratio of importance between talent and image?

How does music aid and/or detract from an

understanding between cultures? What is the

role of music in social justice? As students

begin to formulate their own insights into

these complex topics, they begin the process

of critical analysis. As always, we operate in

a hands-on, interactive setting.

Middle School music classes and performance

ensembles are infused with energy, intellectual

stimulation and self-expression. The impact of

the new spaces on the Middle School music

program is systemic. Students are experiencing

visible and physical proof that music is valued

at Gordon. They are more eager to take the

subject seriously. They are embracing joy in

their achievements because the process of

getting to the finished product has become

profoundly more focused and pleasant. The

new physical environments feel emotionally

safe. Students can experiment with creative

expression and they can engage in the physical

trial and error necessary to achieve skills. I am

able to listen without distraction, which allows

me to not only listen to the music product

but to each individual student and be more

sensitive to their individual needs.

The new music classroom has windows, fresh

air and appropriate acoustics, allowing us to

reinforce Gordon founder Helen Cooke’s ob-

jective to “instill the true spirit of joyous work.”

There is an interactive whiteboard and a won-

derful speaker system for enhanced listening

capacity. With quality acoustics, students can

be fully immersed in learning. They now have

the capacity to listen for the nuances of pitch,

tone, articulation and balance. They feel more

connected to group and solo singing, experience

truer aural feedback from instruments and

participate more comfortably in academic

dialogue. Gordon students are now benefitting

enormously from a space designed specifically

with their needs in mind. And we are all look-

ing forward to the opportunity to perform in

the new theater space.

I believe…

Music is an essential subject,

not only because of the mental workout

necessary to

comprehend, create, and perform it well

and not simply because

it is an amazing avenue to

explore other cultures, history

and the intersection between the arts

and social justice

but

because music has its own

intrinsic value to touch the human spirit.

—Susan Hodgin

middle ScHool muSic teAcHeR SuSAn Hodgin begAn teAcHing At goRdon in 2010. tHiS FAll, mS. Hodgin enteRed HeR own

bRAnd new clASSRoom tHAnkS to tHe geneRoSitY oF donoRS FRom tHe RecentlY comPleted Second centuRY cAmPAign.

in Addition to teAcHing muSic clASSeS tHRougHout tHe dAY, mS. Hodgin iS At tHe Helm oF beloved PRogRAmS At goRdon,

SucH AS tHe g-noteS A cAPPellA gRouP And tHe HAndbell enSemble. mS. Hodgin’S commitment to elevAting tHe muSic

PRogRAm At goRdon iS ReFlected in HeR dAilY woRk.

faculty profile: second century campaign edition

susan hodginmiddle scHool music

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kayla caMpbell ’11 studied with susan

hodGin duRinG Ms. hodGin’s f iRst yeaR

as the Middle school Music teacheR at

GoRdon in 2010. kayla is now a senioR

at wheeleR school, wheRe she continues

heR studies as a dedicated peRfoRMinG

aRtist.

When did your passion for performing

and singing develop?

I started playing the piano when I was in first

grade. My mom claims it was second grade,

and I’m positive it was Kindergarten, so we

split the difference. I had no idea what I was

doing when I first started, but going to my

lesson soon became the highlight of my week.

It seemed logical that I started singing with

the chorus when I was in first grade, I’d liked

the Kindergarten and first grade shows, and

I wanted to do more like it. I seized the oppor-

tunity to shine in front of a crowd; I quite

enjoyed the spotlight when I was younger.

I got involved with handbells more seriously

in seventh grade. We had done some work

with them in earlier Middle School years, but

when it came time to choose electives in the

upper years I knew I had to take musical ones.

Chorus and handbells were the only options,

aside from band. There wasn’t enough star

power in that for me, so I started ringing more

seriously. I guess I caught the bug and I’ve

never looked back.

What are some highlights from your time

as a student at gordon?

I really appreciated any time I got to work with

Ms. Romanzi. She was such an influential per-

son in my life. Middle School can be a rough

time for a lot of people, and I was definitely

one of them, but working with Ms. Romanzi,

be it on chorus songs, secret G-Notes rehears-

als when Ms. Griffith was leaving, the musical,

or Shakespeare in the City, was always a time

when I could be myself and I felt the safest.

The theater and music programs wouldn’t

have been the same to me without her, and

I wouldn’t be the person I am today without

my teachers.

How did ms. Hodgin’s program influence

your career as a performer?

I only got to experience Ms. Hodgin for one

year, however it was a fantastic experience.

She opened doors for me that I didn’t even

know were there. The G-Notes opened up to

male members for the first time, which was a

whole new musical experience for me, and she

led me to participate in the All State choir for the

first time; something that I still like to bring up

in conversation. She challenged me to take on a

bigger role in the handbell choir, and if it weren’t

for her I wouldn’t be ringing with the Wheeler

Concert Handbell Ringers; she worked tirelessly

with me to help me prepare for my audition.

do you have any upcoming projects that

you are excited about?

The Wheeler Concert Handbell Ringers

performed at the High School Ring Out at

the Aldrich Mansion, and we will perform

for Alex and Ani in our winter concert series.

We always welcome people to come watch

us perform!

are you planning to continue your choral

and handbell work in college?

Unfortunately handbells are not easy to find

everywhere. As it stands right now, none of

the colleges I’m applying to have a handbell

program. However I definitely plan to continue

ringing. The handbell community is rich in

churches around the country, and I hope to

find such a community wherever I go to college.

“gordon isn’t gordon without a little music. i could say so much about the music program at gordon and how special it was to me. ever since second grade when i

learned how to play the recorder, to eighth grade when i was a keyboard soloist in the band, gordon has never failed to challenge me musically. i learned how to

compose melodies and conduct a handbell ensemble with ms. Hodgin. i learned how to express myself musically and theatrically with ms. Romanzi. i even learned

how to play in a band with other musicians with mr. beaudoin for the first time. these priceless experiences have allowed me to continue to be musical in my high

school career as i continue to play music with others. i cannot express my gratitude enough for how much gordon has exposed me to learning about my own musical

capabilities.” —Xilian Sansoucy ’13

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faculty profile: second century campaign edition

bill beaudoinmiddle scHool music electiVes

It has been a long and rewarding path for me

as a teacher of Middle School music. I arrived

at Gordon in 1981 as a private lesson teacher

of drums and flute. My beliefs about the impor-

tance of providing meaningful music making

opportunities for students led to collaborations

with other instrumentalists to form small

ensembles and rock bands. Eventually this

model was offered to students as an arts elec-

tive class. A few years later, I decided to offer

percussion ensemble as an elective. Happily,

both classes have attracted students to partici-

pate in instrumental music performance.

I have always felt that my job as a music

teacher is to help students to reach their goals

musically. For me, that means that I need to

learn as much as possible about every individ-

ual in order to identify the steps necessary

to facilitate growth in each student. Although

we are working to create music together, the

process of learning to be a part of a performing

group is very much an individual journey.

The new Middle School band clasroom is a

welcome location for the band and percussion

ensembles. We now have adequate space

to accommodate the various groups without

clutter. Classroom time can be managed more

efficiently due to the ability to leave ensemble

equipment in place. We have a white board,

storage space and a flat screen television at our

disposal. Already, the space has had a positive

impact on the program in many ways. I now

have the capability to show videos of inspira-

tional performers or instruction. Just the other

day, the percussion ensemble rehearsed a cho-

ral piece along with a video performance that

we are planning to perform with the Gordon

chorus. This would not have been possible

last year. I am excited to be teaching in such

a supportive environment, and our students

will certainly benefit from the incredible new

resources. —Bill Beaudoin

What albums i’m listening to right now:

Herbie Mann Mississippi Gambler

Charles Lloyd Weavings

B.B. King The Jungle

Joseph Haydn The Creation

Jerry Butler It All Comes Out In My Song

The Beatles Introducing The Beatles

bill beaudoin has been teachinG at GoRdon foR oveR thiRty-thRee yeaRs. hundReds

of students have benefitted fRoM his inclusive and suppoRtive appRoach to teachinG

Music. this yeaR, foR the f iRst t iMe, MR. beaudoin has his own space to teach Music

electives as a Result of the second centuRy caMpaiGn.

“As a member of the band, going through my punk middle school stage with baggy cargo pants, studded

belts, crimped hair, and my red electric guitar slung carefully around my neck, i was unsure of who i was,

but mr. beaudoin was not. He saw a girl who loved music and was ecstatic to be learning about it from him.

He gave me a guitar solo in the song “Soul man” that i insisted he give to the boy in my class who had been

playing the electric guitar longer than i had. mr. beaudoin let me have the solo and i will never forget per-

forming it with the band in the field house. i was wearing a sparkly cheetah pencil skirt that i had just made

in my fashion class, and to some i may have certainly looked ridiculous. but all mr. beaudoin noticed was that

i nailed my solo and i know he saw the pride and adrenaline rushing through me.” —Jessie litwin ’08

11

nick MiRza ’07 studied undeR bill

beaudoin at GoRdon, wheRe he fuRtheR

developed his passion foR playinG the

dRuMs. nick went on to attend wheeleR

school afteR he GRaduated fRoM

GoRdon, and he cuRRently attends

eMoRy univeRsity in atlanta, GeoRGia.

When did you decide you wanted to play

the drums?

My interest in drumming started when I was

in sixth grade. My uncle was a professional

drummer for years, and he had given my

brother one of his snare drums when my

brother was in elementary school, with the

hope that my brother might learn the instrument.

His interest in drumming was short lived, and

the snare drum ended up in the tree house in

our backyard. One day I decided, on a whim,

to see what was still in the tree house after

years of abandonment. Finding the drum really

piqued my curiosity, and shortly thereafter I

started taking drum lessons. One of my mom’s

colleagues strongly recommended that I take

lessons with Mr. Beaudoin. She described

him as being the best. I couldn’t agree more.

I also happened to be transitioning between

schools, and Gordon was one of the schools

I was interested in attending. Because of Mr.

Beaudoin’s program, Gordon was the obvious

choice.

What are some highlights from your time as

a student at gordon?

It won’t come as shock to hear that Mr. Beau-

doin’s classes were the biggest highlights from

my time at Gordon. I only went to Gordon

for seventh and eighth grade, but during those

two years I learned so much about music and

about myself. Throughout my time at Gordon,

I exclusively took the band and percussion

ensemble electives taught by Mr. Beaudoin; I

ended up having some sort of music instruction

almost every day of the school week with him.

Needless to say, it was an invaluable experi-

ence. In addition to my immersion in Gordon’s

music program, I really enjoyed and appreci-

ated Gordon’s core curriculum. I had great

teachers for all of my classes. The Civil Rights

trip was another highlight, and an experience

that I appreciate to this day. Being introduced

to those social and historical issues in such a

direct way gives Gordon students a huge ad-

vantage and an extremely valuable perspective

in position to have a positive impact on the

world.

How did mr. beaudoin’s program influence

your career as a performer?

Mr. Beaudoin’s program was undoubtedly the

most significant influence on my passion for

music. His program showed me that music is

a fun, rewarding and communal experience.

Mr. Beaudoin’s program is rooted in teamwork.

Whether it is a classic pop song in band or an

exotic arrangement in percussion ensemble,

teamwork is at the very core of making music

in Mr. Beaudoin’s classes. Regardless of

whether or not his students end up pursuing

music as a career, Mr. Beaudoin’s classes foster

the development of qualities like patience,

empathy, teamwork and mutual understanding

that are crucial in all aspects of life.

do you have any upcoming projects that you

are excited about?

Right now I am involved in a jazz combo at

Emory University, where I am in my senior

year. I don’t have much free time during the

week because of my busy class schedule, but

the little amount of free time that I do have is

typically devoted to music. The jazz combo

program at Emory has been a great experience;

it is certainly a challenging program but it is

also extremely rewarding. I am lucky to play

with some very talented musicians, many

of whom will undoubtedly have impressive

careers as professional musicians in the future.

are you planning to pursue music after you

graduate from emory university?

Music will always be a part of my life. My

current goal is to attend medical school in

the future. I will take one or two gap years after

I graduate to get some more experience under

my belt, and to give myself a break from school

before I commit to the long process of becoming

a doctor. I don’t have anything set in stone in

terms of my plans before medical school, but

I have no doubt that drumming will always be

a major presence.

Above right photo: nick performing with his jazz

combo at emory university

12

alumni profile

noah davis ’97

1. Walking into arena das dunas in natal,

brazil, which was the site of the united states

versus ghana match on June 16th

It is always very cool to walk into a stadium

press box and see my name tag next to a work

station. That never gets old. Well, I guess it

might, but that will be a good sign that it is

time to quit and go do something else.

2. united states defender John brooks’

winning goal against ghana

There is no cheering in the press box because

you’re supposed to be objective, and the

United States press corps is more professional

than most, but it’s impossible not to feel some-

thing, even if it’s just happiness for the players

on the field who you have been covering for

the last four years.

3. Watching the brazil versus mexico match

in porto de galinhas

Three friends and I went to a local restaurant

in Porto de Galinhas for the host country’s

second game. Nothing else was open. The

police, the electric crews, the local shop

owners, everyone took the afternoon off to

support famed Brazilian forward, Neymar, and

the rest of the Brazilian team. We ate excellent

shrimp and tried not to look out of place.

4. the drive to the united states versus

germany match

It poured the night before the match, flooding

most of Recife including portions of the high-

way. About ten miles from the stadium, we

drove through a massive puddle, more like a

temporary river, that was at least two feet deep

and three hundred yards wide. Water came

up through floor of the car. I felt like we were

fording a river in the Oregon Trail computer

game, just like I used to do in the Gordon

computer lab.

5. united states versus belgium under the

manhattan bridge, prior to the World cup

qualifying games

For the first time in twelve years, I watched

a United States game in the States. I went to

a packed viewing party near my house. It was

amazing to see how much the sport has grown

since the Korea/Japan World Cup in 2002,

when a few friends and I ran around an empty

Blackstone Boulevard following America’s

2-0 win over Mexico in the quarterfinals.

When did your interest in journalism and

freelance writing begin?

While I had a brief, glorious stint at an

alternative high school paper reviewing

concerts I didn’t attend, I got serious about

journalism and writing my senior year when

people would ask me what I was going to do

after college. I started telling them “move to

New York and become a writer,” so I moved

to Brooklyn and got a job in a restaurant. I

wrote everywhere that would have me, usually

for free, and got exceptionally good at clearing

plates. One of these is a tangible life skill;

the other is how I currently make a living.

How did gordon impact your career as a

writer?

I have fond memories of the Dr. Weirdly series

my good friend Karl Dunkelman ’97 and I

created in first grade. He was a far superior

illustrator, so I think I became the writer by

default. It turned out okay. Beyond that, the

ability to keep an open mind about the people

and the topics I cover has been essential in

my career. That’s definitely a skill I first began

developing at Gordon.

noah davis ‘97 is a fReelance wRiteR based in bRooklyn, new yoRk. he has wRitten

foR The New Yorker, The wall STreeT JourNal, DeTailS, eSPN, SPorTS illuSTraTeD, MeN’S

F iTNeSS and Many otheRs. noah is also the deputy editoR at aMerica Soccer Now,

GraNTlaND’S united states national teaM coluMnist, a staff wRiteR at The claSSical

and a senioR editoR at STreeT F iGhT. noah GRadated fRoM Moses bRown in 2001 and

Received his b.a. fRoM bates colleGe in 2005.

noah (second fRoM RiGht above) RepoRted fRoM the 2014 woRld cup in bRazil oveR

the suMMeR, and has aGReed to shaRe his top f ive MoMents of the touRnaMent.

13

“winning and losing with your friends can give you

a sense of community, and you can have a lot of fun

doing it too. Your sports career at gordon will be

the most fun, exciting and gratifying experience that

you can have, even if you’re not a star athlete, or

if you’re trying a new sport for the first time. it was

for me.” —benjamin Hrovat, eighth grade, at the

student run fall sports assembly

2 0 1 4 f a l l s e a s o n H i g H l i g H t s

• The girls A field hockey team won the

Middle School Tournament for the third year

in a row. They have had only one loss over

the past three seasons. This fall they went

undefeated and only gave up one goal.

• Three Gordon cross country runners finished

in the top thirty of eight hundred runners,

male and female. The number three and

number six female runners and the number

twenty six male runner.

a n o t e f r o m V e r o n i c a J u t r a s , d i r e c t o r o f W e l l n e s s a n d a t H l e t i c s

when i asked coaches to send me a brief recap of their seasons to highlight perceived successes and accolades via email, my inbox was inundated with lengthy

stories about team “ah-ha moments”, accounts of individual skill, leadership development in players, personal transformation and an overall celebration of attitude,

energy, commitment, and teamwork. comments about statistics and titles were included as a side note, or not referenced at all. i could not be prouder as an

athletic director to read those comments. our coaches have youth sports in perspective. they care deeply about their team’s actual experience rather than a singular

outcome. At gordon, we teach child by child, and our commitment to meeting the needs of adolescents, providing guidance, challenging kids appropriately and

facilitating a growth process is as pervasive on the athletics fields as it is in our classrooms.

Gordon Athletics

“this year, the boys A soccer team will not be able

to display trophies, but we have afforded the future

some changes that are fertile. the precedence of

confident boys, unity in sports and a redefinition

of fun where the culture of inclusion is alive.”

—Sheldon townsend, boys A soccer coach

14

5OsBonney B. Sevellon ’54 was the 2014 Legacy

Award recipient for Big Brothers and Big

Sisters of the Ocean State last spring.

8OsDeborah Forman ’81 writes: “I am currently

working on my second book with Quarry Books

called Color Lab for Mixed-Media Artists due to

come out in the spring of 2015. My first book,

Paint Lab, came out in fall 2013. Thrilled to

have my second grader Nathaniel at Gordon!”

9OsAriel Mae Lambe Mercik ’95 and her husband

Kevin welcomed their first child Bridget in June

of 2013. Ariel then completed her Ph.D. at

Columbia University in December 2013, and

began her new position last January as assistant

professor in the history department at the

University of Connecticut.

Merebea Danforth ’98 writes: “Last May I

moved to Baltimore, Maryland. I will be here

for just over a year while completing an

accelerated nursing program at Johns Hopkins

University. I have really enjoyed the move

into this new field.”

Charlie Enright ’98 is competing in the Volvo

Ocean Race as the skipper for Team Alvimedica.

The race began in Alicante, Spain in October.

Charlie became an All-American as a member

of the sailing team at Brown University, and

has skippered boats in major races around the

world. This past June, The Herreshoff Marine

Museum hosted a lecture by Charlie, in which

he spoke about taking on Ocean Racing’s

toughest challenge. Next May, the Volvo race

will complete its sixth of nine legs and arrive

in Newport after a 5,000-mile trip from Itajai,

Brazil.

Last July, director Sam Fleischner ’98 returned

to Providence and treated an audience to a

question and answer session after the opening

night screening of his award-winning film

Stand Clear of the Closing Doors, at the Cable

Car Cinema in Providence. photo 1

Last July, Greg Katzen ’98 married Caitlin

Miller, sister of current Gordon employee

Joe Miller ’02. The wedding featured two

Gordon alumni, Adam Freedman ’98 and

Simone Mikolich ’99, as ceremony speakers

and officiants. Greg finished his first year

of graduate school last spring in Palo Alto,

California, where he is getting a doctorate

in clinical psychology.

OOsRauf Prasodjo ’00 earned his Ph.D. from Yale,

and dropped by campus last May with his

mother and father. He is pictured with Lower

School Director Maryanne Pieri. photo 2

Terry Moran ’02 writes: “I just recently moved

to Boston to take over the New England

territory for Heavy Seas Brewery, the makers

of Loose Cannon IPA. I have been working for

the brewery for over four years and love it.

We have tripled in size over the past four years

and it is an awesome industry. I recently got

engaged to my Loyola classmate Savannah Audi

and will be married in Newport next summer.”

Bates Parsons ’02 writes: “My fiancée Leah

and I got engaged earlier this year and are

getting married next April in Minnesota.

We are living out in Denver and both working

in the financial services industry. She’s in

the brokerage business and I’m in investment

banking. All is well out here in the Wild West!”

Sarah Engle ’03 writes: “This is my second

year teaching third grade at Leadership Prep

Ocean Hill in Brownsville, Brooklyn. We are

incredibly passionate about using high-quality,

data-driven instruction to reverse the achieve-

ment gap and prepare low-income students

to graduate from college. Last year, out of

over 700 New York City public and charter

schools, we ranked in the top 15 schools

based on our performance on the third and

fourth grade state exam.”

Allegra Scharff ’03 writes: “I’m excited to be

the Director of Education for Revive the Roots,

a nonprofit organization geared towards

ecological social design in Smithfield, Rhode

Island. As a young organization we all wear

many hats, but my focus has been creating

and teaching permaculture based programs

on and off site, along with coordinating

internships and facilitating other educational

opportunities. I am in the process of starting an

environmental mentoring program in Central

Falls in partnership with Apeiron Institute

for Sustainable Living. I love what I do, the

like-mindedness of my co-workers who have

become some of my best friends and the

amazing property we are able to watch thrive.

Working in Rhode Island has to be the most

invaluable part of my job. It is wonderful to

give back to a community that helped me

become who I am.” photo 3

Alex Unger ’03 recently completed the AIDS/

LifeCycle Ride to End AIDS to raise money

and awareness for the HIV/AIDS epidemic and

1 2 3class notes

3W i n t e r 2 0 1 4

15

support the San Francisco AIDS Foundation

and the Los Angeles LGBT Center. He is

pictured coming into the closing ceremonies

in LA. He writes: “Next year is right around the

corner! I’m super excited for the ride in June

2015: www.tofighthiv.org/goto/alexunger.”

photo 4

Nate Ardente ’05 received his masters in

Sustainable Real Estate Development from

Tulane this past May. He is now located in

Boston, Massachusetts where he is a Research

Analyst for Jones Lang LaSalle.

Alix Bowman ’05 completed her service with

City Year in San Jose, California last spring. She

worked at Caesar Chavez Elementary School

providing tutoring and teaching in grades three

through five. She was recently accepted to

the University of Pennsylvania Residency

Master’s in Teaching Program. She taught

at Miss Porter’s School in Connecticut while

taking classes this summer at the University

of Pennsylvania.

Alex Carney ’05 is a marketing representative

for Mainspring Healthcare Solutions based in

Boston, Massachusetts.

Chris Kingdon ’05 is a social media monitoring

reporter at Bloomberg LP in London.

Anna Mack ’05 graduated with honors from

Middlebury College last spring. Prior to gradu-

ating, Anna was awarded the U.S. Department

of State Critical Language Scholarship (CLS)

and a Fulbright Fellowship. With her Fulbright

grant, Anna will explore how disability is expe-

rienced in modern-day China. By conducting

interviews with adults with disabilities and

policy analysts, she will investigate the

relationship between community and policy

and how this may enrich an understanding of

international disability policy. Her Fulbright

research proposal developed out of her work

as a senior at Middlebury on the relationship

between international disability discourse and

rights advocacy work in China, as well as from

her engagement with the Center for Compara-

tive Study of Race and Ethnicity’s Life Stories

Project.

Allie McCahan ’05 is a senior business analyst

at SinglePlatform in New York City.

Liam Miner ’05 is still located in Denver,

Colorado, and is working as a business analyst

for a software company specializing in customer

experience analytics. He spends most of his

weekends hiking or on the ski slopes.

Maggie Sawdy ’05 is still in Kenya studying

the behavior and development of hyenas. You

can follow her adventure through her blog at:

http://travelsofacollegegrad.wordpress.com/.

Coby Unger ’05 writes: “I moved to the Bay

Area in June and have been enjoying a position

as resident artist at Autodesk’s Pier 9 and

Instructable.com. I recently had my final

presentation, which focused mostly on the

prosthetic arm project I have been working

on with a nine-year-old Warwick, Rhode

Island native named Aidan. Aidan was born

without a left arm below the elbow. We have

been working together to develop a prosthetic

socket that will grow with him as he gets older

and a series of attachments and accessories.

Currently, the vast majority of prosthetic sockets

are a fixed size and can only be used for about

a year by children before they outgrow them.

The goal among most professional prosthetists

is to replace missing limbs with something

as close to the ’normal’ limb as possible.

I decided that I wanted to take a different

approach and try to see Aidan’s limb difference

as a unique design opportunity and give him

a prosthetic that would be cool and fun. The

attachments all have specific applications from

riding a bike or playing the violin, to building

with Legos or playing video games.”

Ben Fine ’07 was chosen as a captain of the

2014-2015 Brandeis University Varsity Tennis

Team. Ben (on the right) is pictured on the

court with former Gordon classmate Dylan

Neel ’07. Ben and Dylan were teammates on

a United States Tennis Association league team

in Boston last summer. photo 5

After his second academic year at the United

States Naval Academy, Gavin Fuller ’08 photos

6 + 7 began PROTRAMID, which is the U.S.

Naval Academy summer training. It is a four

week program, which includes an in depth

introduction to a wide range of Marine Corps

experiences, including aviation. As a quantitative

economics major, Gavin completed course

work at the London School of Economics dur-

ing August and July. He loved being in London,

and it was a significant change to be in a

civilian college environment. Late last summer,

Gavin signed his two for seven agreement.

He is committed to finishing his last two years

at the U.S. Naval Academy and serving for

a minimum of five years in the fleet after

graduation. Gavin still finds time to play club

lacrosse, recreational squash and golf.

6 74 5

16

Morgan Rainey ’08 was an intern at ArtProv

last summer. She is pictured with artist and

owner Nick Paciorek. She also interned with

Candita Clayton at her Hope Artiste Village

Gallery. photo 1

Brandon Bowman ’09 completed his first year

at the United States Air Force Academy last

spring. He played on the lacrosse team and

saw a lot of playing time. The USAFA Falcons

were the Eastern Collegiate Conference title

champions. Winning the play-in game against

Richmond, Brandon and the team headed to

the first round of the NCAA tournament as

the seventeenth best team in the nation. They

played the number one seed Duke and lost,

but it was a good fight. This was the first time

since 1988 that the Falcons made it to the

NCAA tournament. photos 2 + 3

1OsRandy Alsabe ’10 graduated cum laude from

Classical High School. He entered George

Washington University in Washington, DC

last fall. Over the past few years at Classical,

Randy was a member of Chopin Club as a

committed pianist and a stage manager. Randy

was the president of the Chopin Club this past

year and a recipient of Chopin Scholarship

award. Randy was also able to stay involved

in soccer, baseball and track. In the past

year, Randy finished medical research at the

Providence VA Medical Center. He also had

an internship at Rhode Island Hospital in

orthopedics.

Maddy Berkson ’10, Audrey Chisholm ’10,

and Hannah Langmuir ’10 were all nominees

for Rhode Island COX Sports Awards last

spring. Maddy was nominated for both girls

outdoor track and girls indoor track, Audrey for

girls volleyball and Hannah for girls lacrosse.

Allie Fuller ’10 graduated from St. George’s

School last spring. She now attends Connecticut

College and will play varsity squash.

Austin Miller ’10 had a wonderful four years

at Moses Brown. He played ice hockey and

lacrosse for four years, and senior year was

selected as captain of both his ice hockey and

lacrosse teams. During his senior year he also

played football for the first time and had a

great season. Last summer, Austin traveled to

Valparaiso, Chile to volunteer at a non-profit

established by a Camp Fuller counselor.

He attends Holy Cross College and will play

Division I lacrosse.

Jonah Parker ’10 attends Vassar College. Last

spring, he had his senior art gallery show at

the Wheeler School.

Sherry Romanzi ’10 is a freshman at Princeton

University in Princeton, New Jersey. Along

with four busloads of Princeton students, Sherry

attended the People’s Climate March last

September in New York City. Also in attendance

with The Putney School was Gordon alumna

Kayla Pina ’12. photos 5 + 6

Charlie Ruhl ’10 was on the Rhode Island State

Championship winning golf team at Moses

Brown last spring.

Emma Ruhl ’10 and Charlotte Whalen ’10

spent last spring as seniors at Lincoln School

doing service learning projects and community

service at Gordon School to help out in Early

Childhood. They also supported the develop-

ment office and did some alumni relations

work! They are pictured with Sherry Romanzi

’10 on campus last spring in photo 7. Sherry

was a presence on campus last spring to help

students prepare for Gordon’s Shakespeare in

the City production held at Veterans Memorial

Auditorium. photo 4

1

2 + 3

4 + 5

6 7

17

Sylvia Skerry ’10 was awarded the Edward M.

Lawton, Jr. Prize for her work in the existential-

ism elective at Williston Northampton School.

The award is presented for superior work in

various elective courses in the History and

Social Sciences Department. photo 8

As the graduating senior with the highest

academic grade point average at St. Mary

Academy Bay View in Riverside, Rhode Island,

Emily Sulanowski ’10 delivered the valedictory

address at graduation. She also received a 2014

National Merit Scholarship sponsored by the

Quanex Foundation. Emily attends Rensselaer

Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, New York.

She is enrolled in the five year bachelor of

architecture program. Last spring she was

the recipient of a Rensselaer Medal, which is

annually awarded to the outstanding math and

science student in participating high schools.

The award provides four or five years of merit-

based scholarship funding if the medal winner

enrolls at Rensselaer.

Meghan Wales ’10 entered Tufts University

this fall. She was engaged at Trinity Repertory

Company for her senior project at Wheeler

last spring, and she was also involved there

for community service projects for the past

three years.

Sarah Chin ’11 was elected senior class

president at Wheeler School. She started her

service this fall.

Jared Donaldson ’11 had an amazing year!

It started with an all-expenses paid visit to

Dubai for three weeks to be Roger Federer’s

hitting partner. In the summer, Jared won three

consecutive professional tennis tournaments

and was granted a wild card into the men’s

main draw of the US Open. Jared played one

of his favorite professional tennis players, Gael

Monfils from France, in an exciting match.

Playing in the men’s draw of the US Open was

a dream come true for Jared and his whole

family. Jared currently lives and trains with

his coach Taylor Dent and Taylor’s family in

Irvine, California. photo 9 + 10

Manya Glassman ’11 received a scholarship

from the Patricia W. Edwards Memorial Art

Fund at the Rhode Island Foundation and

studied in the Rhode Island School of Design’s

Young Artist Program this past summer.

Last spring at Lincoln School, Jamie Pine ’11

was elected to be student council president.

Her term began this fall. Jamie spent the last

school year as the student representative on

Lincoln’s Board of Trustees.

Ezra Rice ’11 was elected co-president of

Wheeler School for the 2014-2015 school

year.

Lily Maris ’12 spent the month of July in

Shanghai, China studying Chinese at East

China Normal University. Lily is pictured

with the Shanghai skyline. photo 11

At the Moses Brown Academic Awards

Assembly last spring, Gordon alumni were

recognized in three different areas of study.

Andrew Binder ’13 for excellence in mathe-

matics, Nick Buonanno ’13 for excellence in

biology and Lucy Hamilton ’13 for excellence

in visual arts. photo 12

Drew Blanchard ’13, Jack Malkin ’14 and

Andrew Dorman ’14 were selected to repre-

sent New England at the National Lacrosse

Classic last spring. Andrew’s name also popped

up in one of Inside Lacrosse’s scouting reports.

Madison Kelly ’13 will serve as the president

of Lincoln’s tenth grade. She was elected for

the position last spring by her classmates.

Class Secretaries 1987 annie White

1997 rob glancy

1998 merebea danforth

1999 georgia mischak nick Wall

2000 isaiah osofisan

2001 rebecca nelson

2002 Katja nelson

2003 carlin o’donnell

2004 maggie moran

2005 liam miner

2010 emma ruhlcharlotte Whalen

interested in becoming a class secretary

and managing updates for your class?

email mollie mattuchio, associate

development director, at

mmattuchio@gordonschool.org

for more information.

facebook.com/thegordonschool

@gordonschool

@gordonschool

w w w. g o r d o n s c h o o l . o r g

visit Gordon school online

9 10 11 128

18

Carol Anguilla TRP ’11 (photo above) writes:

“After graduating from the Gordon Teacher

Residency Program in June of 2011, I was

hired as a second grade classroom teacher at

St. Michael’s Country Day School in Newport,

Rhode Island. I was both thrilled and slightly

terrified to be jumping into my own classroom.

There was so much to do and adjust to in that

frenetic month of August. I had to quickly learn

the curriculum, decorate my classroom, set

up my files, my record-keeping and figure out

the St. Michael’s way. Although I had a lot of

learning to do, I knew I couldn’t have received

any better preparation than I did through the

Gordon Teacher Residency Program. In addi-

tion to the substantive knowledge I acquired, I

learned to be reflective, flexible, open-minded

and innovative. Of course, these first few years

were not without their bumps, but then that’s

where the reflective and flexible parts have

been helpful. I loved second grade and always

cherish the hugs and laughs I shared with my

little ones.

After three years, I changed positions within

the school to become the sixth, seventh and

eighth grade history teacher and I encountered

those bumps all over again. Of course there are

the relationship dramas, the moods, the high

pitched giggling and the questionable joking

around, but there are also the funny stories, the

heart-to-heart discussions, the deeper thinking

and the meaningful dialogue that I’ve learned

to treasure in the middle school. I have felt

much of my learning at Gordon has been even

better applied here in the middle school as we

delve into questions of identity, we and they,

choosing to participate, connections among

people of the world and our connections to

the past.

I always look back on my time at Gordon with

very fond memories. I treasure the relationships

I made with faculty, staff and parents. It is a

special bond that I know I never would have

found in any other program. In fact, just yester-

day I ran into a parent whose son I taught

the teacher Residency Program is a full time, yearlong immersion program leading to a

master of Arts in teaching degree and Rhode island elementary teacher certification in first

through sixth grade.

teaching residents work side by side with experienced teachers and take courses taught by

the gordon School and Roger williams university School of education faculty. the courses

are designed to integrate theory, research and practical experience grounded in multi-

cultural education and teaching for social justice. Students will spend their days at gordon

School in the classroom and take Roger williams university courses in the evenings.

Admission to the teacher Residency Program is limited. cohorts are ten to twelve students

to allow relationship building within the cohort, with faculty members and with the

educational community at gordon School. Personalized support and extensive classroom

time encourage residents to ask questions, take risks, challenge one another’s thinking

and connect theory with practice in a community that is multicultural, collaborative and

inquiry-based.

the program is now accepting applications for the 2015-2016 cohort which begins June

2015! Please contact the teacher Residency Program director, lynn bowman, at lbowman@

gordonschool.org or 401 434-3833 x181 for more information.

Teacher Residency Program a l u m n i n o t e s

19

second grade Spanish teacher at Gordon.

New this year is the Heritage Language

Program for first graders. The program caters

to our Latino community and challenges

this particular group of kids with more verbal,

written and reading skills.”

Tracey Clarke TRP ’12 writes: “I have been

instructing in math and writing, in addition

to writing grants, doing admission work and

writing curriculum at Rhode Island College

Outreach Programs for two years now.”

Courtney DeAngelis-Thiele TRP ’12 writes:

“I am still working at Wheeler and teaching

Pre-Kindergarten and second grade math.

I absolutely love it here! I have actually gone

back to Rhode Island College to get an early

childhood certification as well. As of January,

I will be certified in grades Pre-Kindergarten

through sixth. I only had to take three

additional classes because of the work I did

at Gordon and the student teaching I did in

second grade.”

Mike Marnell TRP ’12 (photo above) writes:

“When I decided to go back to school to get

my master’s degree, I couldn’t have imagined

a better place for me to re-enter the world of

teaching than through the Gordon School. The

professionalism of the teachers, the joy of the

students, the support of my professors, and the

passion from everyone involved was a wonder-

ful atmosphere to learn in and an experience

that I will never forget.

After graduating from the TRP, I began teaching

on Cape Cod, and had quickly acquired a long

term substitute position at a public school in

Yarmouth, Massachusetts. The position, which

was in a fifth grade classroom, lasted from

November through the end of the year and

eventually ended with an offer to come back

full-time the following year. Fate had other

plans for me, however. During the year I had

been contacted by Saint Andrew’s School in

Boca Raton, Florida. I was flown down, put up

in a hotel, and brought in to teach a lesson to a

group of fourth graders. The lesson that I taught

was probably a little more radical than they

were used to, but I believe in my teaching

methods, and knew that I had an amazing

lesson planned. Apparently those involved

thought so too, because I left the classroom

to a standing ovation from the students and an

eventual job offer from the school. I know that

I would not have been able to be as successful

without the learning that I acquired from the

Teacher Residency Program. I use this learning

each and every day. I now teach first grade

and am thankful that my experience at Gordon

prepared me so well for what was to come.

In fact, my school utilizes the dual teacher

concept that I had become so comfortable

with at Gordon.

I like to be involved in the school. I co-teach

two after school singing enrichments, probably

not a surprise to those who remember me

walking the halls, singing away, and recently

led a professional development meeting based

around the reading of Teaching Children to

Care. My family has quickly adjusted to life

in South Florida. We enjoy going to the beach,

swimming at the pool, riding bicycles, explor-

ing our many parks, camping and just taking

advantage of everything that our area has to

offer. All in all, life is very good.

My family and I wish to thank all of those

people involved with the Teacher Residency

Program for making our experience such a

magical one.”

Anna Burnham ’02 TRP ’13 writes: “I am work-

ing at Bay View Academy. I am the third grade

teacher! This is my first year teaching at Bay

View and I absolutely love it! The Teacher

Residency Program has helped me in so many

ways. I have a critical eye when it comes to

inclusion and exclusion of multicultural prac-

tice. What was eye opening for me after the

program was the reality that for most schools

multicultural practice isn’t even a thought. I

in third grade. She was at St. Michael’s for a

soccer game between Gordon and St. Michael’s.

She immediately came to me and was so happy

to tell me all about her son and how happy he

was at Gordon. We reminisced about our time

together there.

I hope to always keep that strong tie with

Gordon and my friends there. I always feel

welcome there. It’s like coming home.”

Cameron Ross-MacCormack TRP ’11 is

currently teaching second grade at Unquowa

School in Fairfield, Connecticut.

Katie Cahoon TRP ’11 teaches sixth grade

math, science and humanities at Gordon.

She recently welcomed a baby girl.

Morgan Kerr TRP ’11 writes: “I received a grant

from Maine Agriculture in the Classroom in

order to start and maintain a school garden

program for our school. We are going to use

the funds to build a school garden and outdoor

classroom so that students can have more ac-

cess to real life hands on learning experiences.

My students have played a huge part in

designing, planning and organizing the garden

development as well as learn about sustainable

agriculture techniques that we can use in our

garden. It has been a lot of work, a ton of fun

and incredibly rewarding to see the growth that

my students have gone through as learners over

the past year.

It has been great to get this project rolling as

four other teachers have jumped on board

because of their wish to provide more real life

learning experiences for their students in our

standard driven curriculum. We have been

planning together to find ways to make it easier

for ourselves and other teachers to link the

common core standards into these hands on

experiences.”

Iveth Streisand TRP ’11 writes: “This is my

second year as the Kindergarten through

2 0

Gianel Santana TRP ’13 writes: “I took a job

at Blackstone Valley Prep Mayoral Academy.

I am currently teaching Kindergarten and I

absolutely love it! This class of twenty-seven

scholars is certainly keeping me on my toes, as

well as learning the ways of Blackstone Valley

Prep. I am putting a lot, if not all, of what I

have learned into practice as well as learning

so much more from such a supportive school

community.”

Claire Newbury TRP ’13 writes: “I’m teaching

kindergarten at Rocky Hill School and loving

it. I feel incredibly supported by the adminis-

tration and my colleagues. I’m learning and

collaborating with specialists every day, and

it’s amazing.”

Jacqui Denault TRP ’14 writes: “Throughout

the month of August I taught incoming fourth

graders at Blackstone Vally Prep Mayoral

Academy in English Language Arts and Math.

Currently, I am teaching first grade at Myron J.

Francis Elementary School in East Providence,

which is part of the East Providence public

school system.”

Meagan Hughes TRP ’14 is teaching fifth grade

at John Avery Parker School in New Bedford,

MA.

Claudia Traub TRP ’14 writes: “I am a third

grade teacher at Carlos Pacheco School.

Meagan Hughes TRP ’14 and I have met

and spoken a few times and will continue to

brainstorm, which is super cool. I have thirty

students in my class, most of them are English

Language Learners (ELL) so I will have my work

cut out, but I am super excited. I have spent

the week thinking of ways to make literacy a

place the students want to be. I set up a library

with my own and donated books with music

and lighting and chairs, so that reading is

enjoyable. I am still searching for more books

that provide mirrors to these specific kids. I am

designing stations so that they have choice in

their literacy work and getting trained in

reading street which is the curriculum they

are using. Very exciting.”

Ashleigh Stackpoole TRP ’14 writes: “I am

working at the John K. Tarbox School in Law-

rence, Massachusetts. We are a public school

serving grades one through five. I have twenty-

six students in my class; two students just moved

to America over the summer, and one student

who moved to America last year. These students

are considered “newcomers”, meaning they

are new to the English language. The student

demographic is 98% Latino, with many of my

students coming from Spanish speaking homes.

Our school is driven on assessment and we

work with The Achievement Network, requiring

our students to take assessments throughout the

year to prepare them for the Massachusetts

Comprehensive Assessment System test in the

spring. Despite the challenges as a first year

teacher, I am extremely honored to have the

opportunity to work with twenty-six amazing

students. They teach me something new every

day. As a new teacher, I am just trying to con-

tinue doing the work I believe in, which is to

help my students recognize their own voices

and power as individuals within the above

mentioned school foundation.”

Lyndsey Ursillo TRP ’14 writes: “I am currently

a day to day sub at The Learning Community

that serves Central Falls, Pawtucket and Provi-

dence, Rhode Island. They have a really nice

system where I come every single day even

if I am not covering a class and I get to sit in

classes and observe. Therefore, I am getting

to see a wide range of grades (Kindergarten

through eighth) and classes. Also I got engaged

in September so I’m psyched about that! I’m

already planning the wedding for next August.”

Kelly Zilly TRP ’14 writes: “I recently moved

Greenwich, Connecticut where I am a full time

nanny for a family with three children, and I’m

pursuing Orton-Gillingham certification.”

subbed in countless schools all over Rhode

Island my first year after the program and I

couldn’t believe the exclusion of everything I

value as best practice. I can remember subbing

once and I was teaching a lesson on Christopher

Columbus, but these students had been taught

the week before that he was a hero. When I

asked them to consider the perspective of the

Native people they were at a loss for words.

What I truly love most about having my own

classroom is that I can continue to grow in my

ability to teach a multicultural curriculum. I

don’t have free range, of course, but the litera-

ture I choose, posters I put up and the way in

which I teach are all my own. I could go on

and on but in a nutshell I am incredibly grate-

ful to have been pushed and challenged to

think like a multicultural educator. It truly is

the kind of teacher I strive to be.”

Kristy Castro ’01 TRP ’13 is at Stuart Hall

School for Boys in San Francisco, California

teaching fourth grade. Before Stuart Hall, she

was in Washington, DC teaching at Bishop

Walker School for Boys.

Aurora Culpo TRP ’13 writes: “I live in San

Francisco, which in my opinion is the greatest

city in the country, and commute 45 minutes

to Helios School for gifted children in Sunny-

vale, California. It’s a school geared toward

“gifted” students. What they all have in common

is asynchronous development and heightened

sensitivity. It’s almost as if within each child

is a person of several different ages. They can

be extremely advanced in certain ways and

completely deficient in other ways. I co-teach

first grade. All the faculty members are really

conscious, open, kind people. It’s a great place

to work.”

Leah Dembinski TRP ’13 recently got a job as

an interim art teacher at Excel Academy in East

Boston, Massachusetts.

how you can make a gift: go to www.gordonschool.org/give

or send a check made out to gordon School in the enclosed envelope.

c l a s s r o o m t e c H n o l o g y

Lessons that use iPads will be introduced in

Lower School, building on the current program

in Kindergarten. Robotics will be integrated

throughout the Middle School science

curriculum and white board technology will

continue to enhance classroom teaching.

J o u K o W s K y f a m i l y l i b r a r y

The Joukowsky Family Library will support

learning through its 17,000 volume

collection, research database resources,

ebook options and technology.

m at H e d u c at i o n

The Math in Focus curriculum continues

to be a place of investment. This year, a new

math specialist position will be in place to

work with faculty members to further develop

teaching instruction.

V i s u a l a n d p e r f o r m i n g a r t s

Gordon’s new state of the art theater and

music classrooms will provide additional

avenues to inspire personal creativity

and individual expression through a variety

of exhibits and student performances.

a t H l e t i c s

Gordon will continue its commitment to a

positive athletic experience with a focus on

skill development, sportsmanship, empathy,

communication, winning and losing with

integrity and healthy risk-taking.

f i n a n c i a l a i d

Supporting students and families will ensure that

Gordon meets the enrollment goals of balanced

gender, increased racial diversity, and talented

and motivated students who are poised to

achieve academic success.

c u r r i c u l u m i n n o V a t i o n

Through an innovation grant program, faculty

will work across disciplines and divisions

on curriculum projects. Faculty will be invited

to submit proposals to study, craft and

implement curriculum enhancements.

c a m p u s i m p r o V e m e n t s

Gordon is committed to providing the continued

beautification of the campus including twelve

acres of land, a pond and stream, three

playgrounds and nature trails.

s t u d e n t c i t i z e n s H i p

Continuing the Open Circle social curriculum

in Early Childhood and Lower School, and

introducing Developmental Designs in Middle

School, Gordon will invest in the social,

emotional and academic growth of its students.

s u s t a i n i n g g o r d o n

Approximately $740 per student is needed to

ensure that Gordon is excelling in every area

and meeting budgeted needs. A gift to sustain

Gordon allows you to make a tax-deductible

gift while supporting lower tuition increases.

the gordon fund is a way for everyone who cares about

gordon to join together and enhance the school experience for

every student. this is a new way of giving, rooted in supporting

programs and projects that benefit gordon students today.

your gift makes a tangible statement about what gordon

means to you.

gordon wants to direct your gift to the programs

that matter to you! consider the ten program areas

below which comprise the 2014-2015 gordon fund.

The GORDON Fund Choose the program that fits2 0 1 4 - 2 0 1 5

45 maxfield avenue east Providence ri 02914 www.gordonschool.org

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the gordon school alumni app

stay connected with gordon alumni from your iphone, ipad and android device.

top four reasons to download the gordon alumni app:

1.

Keep all of your friends from 45 maxfield at your fingertips by accessing the

gordon alumni directory securely from anywhere.

2.

find nearby gators using the map directory.

3.

update your contact information easily and efficiently.

4.

anyone who downloads the app between now and Valentine’s day will be

entered to win a prize pack of gordon gear that will let you show your love

for gordon wherever you go.

please note: if, after verifying your email address, you do not receive a

confirmation message, check your spam filter. if the message is not there,

contact mollie mattuchio (mmattuchio@gordonschool.org).

download the app from itunes or the google play store, or go to

www.gordonschool.org/mobilecommunity.