Mar 28, 2014 - âBuilding the hexagonal pyramid was hard and challenging. I really had to stop and think ... Matthew Kr
Spring 2014
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SEMIANNUAL NEWSLETTER
THE OAK
A gathering place for students, alumni, parents and friends of Saint Andrew’s Episcopal School
IN THIS ISSUE:
Experiential Learning —it’s Sticky! | 2 A-ha Moments from Lower School Immersed in Learning
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Mah Celebrates 40 Years | 13 Parents’ Association Board
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CONTRIBUTORS: Harry V. McKay, Jr. Angela Bartlett Hillary Freeman Joanne Lee Lisa Robinson
Alumni Chronicles | 16
Victoria Trevor
Upcoming Events
Cover photo: David April
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COVER STORY
experiential | ek,spi(ə)rē `enCHəl |
[adjective] involving or based on experience (the process of doing and seeing things and
of having things happen to you or the skill or knowledge that you get by doing something) and observation
Dear Friends, The older I get the more I realize how much I’ve learned through experience. I also realize how many of the facts I learned in school I’ve long ago forgotten. Most of us forget about 95% of what we learned in school unless we continue to ‘use’ that knowledge, skill, or information in our daily lives in some manner. I’ve also come to believe that each of us moves along a path of learning that is quite unique, and very much related to how we experience and build meaning into our world. No two people have identical knowledge, even if they’ve studied and learned exactly the same material. We want all of our students to ‘master’ certain basic skills, of course, although we understand that what content youngsters will remember later on will differ for each. That’s okay because our objective is to provide a wide breadth of learning experiences for all children, enabling then to begin finding their own unique path of life-long learning. School is not about trying to ensure that everyone learns and remembers exactly the same things. Research continues to confirm that attaching real life experiences to learning will enhance the possibility of embedding it in our memory because such experiences engage all body senses, which are the conduits for learning. The school field trip used to be the main technique for moving the learning process into real life, enhancing the possibilities for meaningful real time connections for our young sojourners. Today, however, good teachers use many different 21st century pedagogical classroom techniques that engage students in Experiential Learning. This experiential approach was an engaging topic of presentation this past fall at one of our Division Head Coffees hosted by Victoria Trevor, Lower School Head, and Hillary Freeman, Middle School Head. Here’s why such an approach can be so powerful and important today: 1. I nformation today is ubiquitous. Technologically savvy students can nearly instantaneously find data. That task is no longer the main assignment, nor the primary challenge. Determining the value and accuracy of information and, ultimately, being able to synthesize disparate information to design real world solutions are the advanced cognitive skills that experiential learning makes avail able to students.
Creating Evaluating Analyzing Applying Understanding Remembering
2. Incorporating experiential learning into their educational experience accelerates the movement of learners to the apex of higher order human thought. Bloom’s Taxonomy, a classification of learning objectives, illustrates the progression of learning that is required to reach the pinnacle of human thought . . . creating. It visually depicts the scaffolding of learning that is mastered as student progress from recalling information to designing solutions.
Pre-Kindergarten students practice writing by tracing the shapes of letters in shaving cream, glitter, and even colored sand to get a feel for forming the letters.
3. Experiential learning makes education sticky. As already mentioned, being immersed in such learning activates multiple points of sensory input, ensuring multiple opportunities for imprinting knowledge. By varying the points of entry, the brain has to adapt to a cacophony of oppor tunities to capture information. Being imprinted in multiple locations allows students to make future connections from different perspectives.
At Saint Andrew’s Episcopal School we believe children do their best work when they are encouraged to actively explore and interact with hands-on learning processes. Using appropriate classroom manipulatives or field experiences skills such as memory retention, reading, motor agility, hand-eye coordination, and learning awareness become enhanced and improved. Within the pages of this issue of The Oak you’ll learn more about how experiential opportunities are enhancing children’s learning both inside and outside the classroom. You’ll also read about the terrific things our alumni are doing, as well as the many wonderful activities and events in store for us this coming spring. Enjoy! Warm regards,
Experience
Share
Experiential Learning
Apply
Process Generalize
Harry V. McKay, Jr., Head of School
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SPRING 2014
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LOWER SCHOOL
“ Tell me, and I will F O R GE T . Show me, and I may REMEMBER. I N VOLVE me, and I will UNDERSTAND .”
A few A-Ha Moments from Lower School! Each day, I have the pleasure of visiting our classrooms and alongside our students having a go at experiential learning. Our talented faculty routinely provide interactive experiences that let our students think, perform, problem solve and make things happen while they are working toward a solution. Hands-on learning unleashes great potential for our students and sparks the “A-ha” moments our students will remember and build upon long after a lesson is over.
— Confucius, 450 BC
Here are a few fabulous examples of experiential learning in Lower School.
Collecting leaf litter from the forest floor to see what creatures may inhabit the debris.
Did you know? • Americans buy 90 million pounds of marshmallows each year. That’s about the same weight as 1,286 gray whales.
Taking a brief rest during one of the nature hikes.
• The marshmallow capital of the world is in Ligonier, Noble County, Indiana. • Each summer more than 50% of all marshmallows sold are toasted over a fire. • Americans spend nearly $125 million dollars on marshmallows each year
Practicing chopstick skills to pick up soybean paper.
• The largest s’more ever made weighed 1,600 pounds and used 20,000 toasted marshmallows and 7,000 chocolate bars. The record was set on May 23, 2003.
The goal of this extraordinary Every Day Math activity was to engage students in their own understanding of the underlying properties of three-dimensional shapes. Without a doubt this hands-on geometry in a classroom is highly motivating and less likely to offer the resistance often encountered with traditional approaches. The whole enterprise of constructing a shape using marshmallows and toothpicks is a problem solving process involving critical analysis, physical dexterity, and creativity. Our students marveled at the rectangular prisms, pyramids and cubes they independently designed. After our students all made their shapes they spent time identifying the flat surfaces and vertices. This was a spectacular way to validate the study of geometry and is one of the best was to unify math theory and practice. Our students delighted in their reflections: • “It was intriguing and a little surprising to discover that so many shapes could be made from marshmallows and toothpicks.” — Karl Thilking • “I learned that if you built the base too wide it would not work so well.” — Meishin Yen • “Building the hexagonal pyramid was hard and challenging. I really had to stop and think about this one!” — Noelle Harry • “If I had more time, I would like to find out how to make even more complicated shapes!” — Luke Wall • “I wish I had a lot more marshmallows and toothpicks to design even more bigger and better ideas!” — Charlie Lantz
A few of the geometric marshmallow creations.
Students in Mrs. Millerick’s class create cubes and pyramids out of toothpicks and marshmallows.
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However, as our second graders know, these are not the only great facts about marshmallows! They are also one of the best math manipulatives ever! Students of all ages enjoy making their own shapes. Our second grade students have been learning all about 3D shapes and I am sure you will agree there is no better way to get students to learn all of the shapes and labels than to create their own. Our students embarked on a thinking journey of great discovery involving marshmallows and toothpicks!
• “I wish I could eat my marshmallow shape.” — Sebastian Burkhardt
Nature as Teacher The fifth grade trip to Walden West science camp sparked, cultivated and promoted our students’ interest in all things scientific. During the week long adventure, students’ interest and passion in science flourished as the hands-on experiences made science even more interesting and fun. Fifth grade students enjoyed their direct encounters with nature as they boldly explored, investigated and examined firsthand all aspects of their outdoor laboratory. Shoaib Valani even went as far as declaring it the best week ever, especially as he touched the fuzziness of the redwood tree’s bark and picked up a bay laurel leaf. He fondly recalls how they crushed the leaf and smelled it. A huge smile crossed his face as he told about the strong, pleasant aroma. Matthew Kress wrote in his journal, “I noticed that the outdoors activities were as enjoyable as playing video games! It was great to be outdoors, see the beauty of nature, birds and all the trees”.
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L O W E R S C H O O L
Ila Mathur shared the following: “Science camp was a wonderful and inspirational experience. I will never forget it. I was as eager an energetic puppy to go, and not prepared to have such a fantastic time and to learn so many new things about nature. One experience that helped me at science camp was lessons from Jim Wiltens, who came to our school weeks before our adventure. He taught our class many things, but one thing in particular helped a lot. He said that to reach goal you have to have all your tables in place. What that means is, you have to have most of the experiences and knowledge necessary for reaching the goal. I was prepared for the adventure.”
Their Green Team experience came in handy at Walden West as they worked to create zero food waste.
One of the most important things I learned at science camp was independence. I have the not-so-good talent of losing things. At camp, I didn’t lose one single thing. This is a big deal for me. I also thoroughly liked learning about nature and experiencing it firsthand. I am so glad I had the opportunity to go to science camp! Science camp was inspiring and I wish I could go again.” At camp they also further developed their Green Team skills. (The fifth grade class oversees the campus recycling efforts.) Rhys Edwards explained their challenge. “Chunky The Waste Monkey is a bucket in the dining hall that contains the food waste from breakfast, lunch and dinner. Underneath Chunky was the evil Garbage Gator! He wants to eat Chunky! So we had to produce as little waste as possible to save Chunky. Within a day or two, we proudly reported zero food waste!”
Journey to Japan! As part of their journey, students worked with seventh grade students to practice Japanese writing.
Kayvon R. fills his sushi wrapper with sticky rice.
Stella P. proudly displaying the origami boat she folded.
To kick off the start of the Lunar New Year, our Pre-K and Kindergarten students embarked on a first class journey to Japan. Each student excitedly received a ticket for his or her flight and departed from the playground for an epic adventure. During their trip they learned the traditional Japanese art of paper folding. Our students loved this origami challenge and successfully folded colored papers into little boats and cups. Did you know that when you practice origami, you are activating your whole brain? It has long been known that origami has many benefits like developing eye hand coordination, sequencing skills, attention skills, patience, temporal spatial skills, math reasoning, etc., but according to the latest research on the brain and the work of Doctor Katrin Shumakov and Yuri Shumakov, when both hands are engaged, impellent motor impulses activate the language portion of the brain. Needing to eat on their journey, the students also had the opportunity to made their own inarizushi (cone sushi) from soybean paper and sticky rice. Their journey included an overview of Japan’s geography of Japan and the introduction of a few simple phrases such as hello and the numbers 1-10. The wondrous experience did not stop there. On Day 2, the students traveled to Mrs. Stacey’s Social Studies classroom, which had been transformed into the home of a Japanese aristocrat. Students removed their shoes then bowed in a respectful and courteous manner before participating in a calligraphy activity. It was tremendous to watch our seventh grade students partner with a younger buddy and guide them to write the word “tree.” These are just a few of the many ways our fine faculty incorporate experiential learning into both every day learning activities and special events. Saint Andrew’s Episcopal School is exceptional at nurturing our students and offering real world experiences that prepare leaders for the future global economy.
Victoria Treavor, Ms. Gaulden helps students fold their origami creations.
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Lower School Head SPRING 2014
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M I D D L E
S C H O O L
Im me rs ed i n
Learning
One appeal of experiential learning is that it scaffolds higher order thinking skills. Immersive experiences provide a foundation for reflection and, by extension, the ability to develop and assimilate abstract or interdisciplinary ideas. Another appeal is that experiential learning takes advantage of every available information input mode (senses, emotions, thought, etc.), offering both a richly textured learning environment and the highest possibility of reaching each individual student in their preferred learning style. Finally, supported by the full range of opportunities for ingesting information, increased depth and complexity of learning and whole child learning are natural offshoots. Concrete Experience
Active Experimentation
Courtney G. describes her recreation of treasure found in Tutankhamen’s tomb. Each spring, Mr. Kunzel’s eighth grade math class measures the height of the church steeple.
Reflective Observation
Vocab revived!
Abstract Conceptualization
Experiential activities are among the most powerful teaching and learning tools available. In Middle School, we are continuously incorporating new experiences for students.
Kristoffer B. leads a flashlight tour for fourth grade students.
Instead of learning a random list of vocabulary words, in sixth grade English class, students selected new vocabulary words from the novel they read together as a class. The words and their definitions were recorded and displayed by each sixth grade section. Small collaborative groups of students developed skits that used all of the vocabulary words. The unit culminated with individual group performances. The final test was a breeze because the ingenious and consistent use of the new vocabulary words, in class, made them very “sticky”.
How tall is that steeple: real world math
Archeologists, Egyptologists, and Curators — OH MY!
When an eighth grade math class finished learning trigonometry, they used handmade clinometers to discover the height of the church
Every year, the sixth grade discovers ancient Egyptian civilization by living it! They mummify chickens. One classroom became a cave, replete with cave drawings and hieroglyphics, designed by students, based on found information, drawn on many of the classroom/ cave walls. Students culminate the unit by creating a museum of hand made King Tut artifacts. This year I saw a sarcophagus and an ancient game (similar to chess), death masks, thrones, daggers, varieties of amulets and more! The students role-played archeologists, museum curators, and docents.
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Exercise Jam! PE warm ups just got a whole lot more fun! This year, our fabulous PE teachers have offered students the opportunity to lead PE class warm-ups. Students must create the warm up and get it, and the associated music, approved before taking over the helm. The students have experienced dance warm ups, Zumba®inspired warm-ups, boot-camp style warm ups, and a very creative card game inspired warm-up. Student leaders take the responsibility seriously and are fearless about engaging their peers.
Erase the “Video-bomb”
Sina S. listens as Bennet L. describes the chess like game found in the tomb.
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steeple. The clinometer is used to measure the angle of elevation to the top of the steeple. Up next, how do you know which way Mecca is from any point on the globe, or from a moving space station (other than using an app)?
The ‘erase the video bomb’ project — students recording the video with someone walking back and forth.
Learning how to use iMovie to make kitschy videos can feel like an old tired re-run to some. Not at Saint Andrew’s Middle School! In technology class, groups of four students were tasked with filming a self-created scene, using two cameras, positioned at 45 degrees and 325 degrees from the point of action. About 15 feet behind the point of action, student number four paced back and forth behind the scene being filmed (aka “photo bombed” the scene). The goal for the foursome was to take both cameras and splice the film together to ensure that the photo bomber was not in any frame but the scene being filmed was uninterrupted. Now that is filmmaking immersion!
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M I D D L E
S C H O O L
At Boojum, sixth grade student must work together to accomplish this task.
Respecting Ben Franklin
Despite the government shutdown, students were able to see nearly all of the historical sites and museums on their itinerary.
Representative Anna Eshoo spent nearly an hour sharing with the students about her work and how they can be responsible citizens.
Did you ever wonder what really went on behind closed doors at Constitutional Convention? The eighth grade classes at Saint Andrew’s no longer have to wonder. Their classroom was converted into Independence Hall. Green tablecloths were donned with candles. Curtains were closed shut for privacy. The temperature was hot. George Washington presided and the students role played the other members of the convention. Protocol was adhered to. Manners were kept in check. Persuasion skills were in full swing. Pros and cons on how the people of the United States should be represented in congress were debated. Compromise became the tenor of the day. Both perspectives prevailed, leaving us with the House of Representatives and the Senate. Just observing the event was memorable; being immersed in it was very “sticky”.
Ava B. and Annabelle A. practice chord sequences.
Chord Construction to Music Creation In music class, students learned the mathematics behind chord construction on the xylophones. After some practice, students were split into four groups of five collaborators. When a chord series was presented, each group had an opportunity to play the series for the class. Subsequent chord sequences became more challenging and had to be played at a faster pace. Finally, each group had to write a “song” using a given set of chord sequences. Student engagement was at a record high. This “learn by doing” immersion made understanding chords not only fun, but very “sticky”. Developing a song demonstrated the quick acceleration to the top of Bloom’s Taxonomy that hands on learning avails.
Off Campus Immersion Each fall, the entire middle school travels off campus for grade level experiences. These trips demonstrate hands-on immersion at the highest level. In addition to the multitude of opportunities to enhance disciplinary learning through experience, offsite immersion provides a canvas for holistic education. The sixth grade participates in an outdoor ropes course that is designed to team build and develop a sense for independence that their new home, the middle school, expects. The seventh grade students immerse themselves in two disciplines — ocean science and literature as experienced through the eyes and senses of John Steinbeck. The eighth grade class travels to the nation’s capitol where their immersion into the founding of our country forever paints a picture of the development of our nation. THE OAK
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SPRING 2014
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M I D D L E
S C H O O L
Dr. Martin Luther King Memorial, West Coast Style
Mah Celebrates
To celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King’s legacy, the three eighth grade sections participated in three different hands-on projects that culminated into a student designed simulation of the King Memorial they visited on their experiential trip to Washington, DC. One class used paint sample cards to display meaningful and self selected words that were used by Dr. King. Another built a mountain of rocks containing phrases that they thought captured Dr. King’s spirit and ideology. The final group created people chains that were hung between pillars displaying Dr. King’s words and phrases. The tribute allowed for a deeper understanding of Dr. King’s goals, the depth of his thoughts and teachings, and universality of his messages.
4 0 TH A N N I V E R S A RY
The cell structure of plant re-imagined as parts of a cruise ship.
Reflection and Abstraction
The King Memorial re-invented.
To help students to reflect on their understanding of cell organelles, and to develop the ability to reuse learned information in alternative venues, sixth grade students were asked to use the cell model, including all of the organelles, as a basis for explaining how a completely different scenario functions. Students developed a cell based Disneyland, laptop, classroom, baseball field, house, cupcake factory, ice cream shop, zoo, grocery store, car, and ship. When offered choice within parameters of a project and encouragement to be creative, students naturally gravitate to higher orders of thinking, with enthusiasm!
Do you know an app for… How many time have you said or heard, “Wouldn’t it be cool to have a phone app for . . . ?” Our 8th grade students are learning how to design and program your dreams apps! Beginning with learning how to create buttons on the cell phone screens to designing an authentic application usable by any teacher at school, 8th grade students are becoming increasingly capable of both designing and programming cell phone apps. The most recent challenge was to create an app that would randomly select a student in the classroom [to answer a question] by shaking the phone. Extra credit: add the student’s picture to the app! The student engagement was phenomenal. This example of authentic, hands-on, practical technology education exemplifies the teacher designed 21st century education offered at Saint Andrew’s.
Not Your Old Fashioned English Class Inspired by author James Kennedy, seventh grade students develop 90-second films that tell the entire story of a Newbery award recipient book in a maximum of 90 seconds. To accomplish this, students read Newbery award winning books over the summer. Based on the results of the official pitch fest, where each student uses authentic pitch protocol to “sell” their book to their peers, five books are selected from which movies are created. In five collaborative groups, students read the selected book they are assigned and together decide how to summarize the key plot events in 90 minutes. The group writes the script for their movie and films it, outside of class, using their choice of film media. This year, one group filmed scenes developed in the video game Minecraft! Group goals are set and target achievement is self-evaluated. In addition to the video, students culminate the project with a written reflective essay.
It’s In The Bag Imagine walking into you middle school science lab and finding a paper bag filled with several random objects in it, and your teacher asking you and a partner to taxonomically classify the contents. Where does one begin? This experience completely emulates scientific thought and canonizes pattern recognition. By the end of this experiential exercise, students have a deeper understanding of the complexity that scientist experience when classifying life.
This year commemorates Mrs. Lani Mah’s 40th year of service! Mrs. Mah began teaching at Saint Andrew’s in 1974. (It was Mrs. Mah who proposed in 1974 that female teachers should be permitted to wear pants.) During her tenure, she has served as a teacher, the Kindergarten Director, the Director of Primary Grades (Pre-K to 3rd) and more recently as the Director of Admission. Mrs. Mah’s contributions to the life and success of Saint Andrew’s Episcopal School have been quite varied and numerous. She has served repeatedly on multiple Trustee, faculty and administrative committees. As a long time strategic member of the administrative team she has been instrumental in helping the school maintain a record of academic excellence. Her dedication, professionalism and enthusiasm are unmatched! She is proud and finds it rewarding in helping Saint Andrew’s guide generations of students to grow and mature from Pre-K to 8th. Mrs. Mah is delighted when alumni and past student return to visit or to enroll their own children. She has also enjoyed working with the many dedicated faculty and staff over these 40 years! In her free time, Mrs. Mah enjoys gardening, traveling, reading, cooking and participating in outdoor activities. She enjoys spending time with her husband, Robert, and two children, Kenneth and Cheri. Mrs. Mah is a native Californian. She graduated from the University of California, Davis with a Bachelor of Science degree in Child Development and Education. She then attended the University of California, Berkeley to attain a K-9 Multiple Subject Teaching Credential and begin her teaching career. After numerous years as a classroom instructor, Mrs. Mah returned to graduate school to earn a Masters in Education specializing in Educational Administration from Santa Clara University.
Hillary Freeman Middle School Head THE OAK
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PARENTS’ ASSOCIATION BOARD
Greetings from the Parents’ Association Board President It is hard to believe that we have already crossed the midpoint of the school year and that spring is just a few short weeks away! It has truly been a pleasure to work with this year’s Parent Association Board, the Saint Andrew’s administration and faculty, and our parent community. Every parent in the Saint Andrew’s community is a welcomed and valued member of the Parents’ Association. At Saint Andrew’s, we constantly strive to continue the tradition of being a warm, welcoming, and inclusive community. The dedicated members of the PAB seek to strengthen the connection of parents with the school and with each other. To this end, the PAB sponsors many events throughout the year. To date, our children have celebrated their love of reading at the Book Fair, dressed in their favorite costumes for the Harvest Festival, spent time with their buddies at Buddy Lunch, and showcased their incredible talents at the Variety Show. We offer our sincere thanks to the many parent volunteers that have made these events possible. And, we have many more events to look forward to this spring. We are excited to bring STAR Speaker, Dr. Dacher Keltner, to our campus on March 28th. Dr. Keltner is a professor at UC Berkely and author of Born to Be Good: The Science of a Meaningful Life. In addition, we can all look forward to Lower School Field Day, Middle School Tropical Day, and the Service Learning Chapel, a wonderful celebration of the meaningful way our students serve our community throughout the year. The highlight of the year for our parent community is always the Spring Social! Julie Sheng and Selina Williams, our Fundraising Chairs, have been hard at work with their committee to bring us “Hollywood — A Night in Tinseltown.” Please mark your calendar and plan to join us for a fabulous evening on Saturday, May 3rd in The Hall. This special event offers a great opportunity to socialize with friends, meet new families, and raise funds for important parent-sponsored events, programs, and projects that enrich our students’ experiences. Funds raised at the Spring Social are used in a variety of ways. A portion of these funds go to PAB-sponsored programs integral to our school including financial aid, Creative Arts Package (CAP), Pursuing Responsibility, Integrity, Discipline & Effort (PRIDE), and our Saint Andrew’s School Speaker Series (STAR). This past fall, CAP sponsored the Morris Brothers Making Better Choices Tour, an assembly that supported our character education program during CHARACTER COUNTS!® Week. In the spring, CAP funds will be used to bring the San Francisco Opera Guild to Saint Andrew’s. By tradition, the Spring Social will also fund a special gift to the school to benefit our children. As you walk through campus and visit the classrooms, you will see the Outdoor Classroom, the Middle School Science Lab, and the sunshade at the lunch tables, all recent gifts provided by our parents from our fundraising efforts at the Spring Social. We are looking forward to sharing information about this year’s gift very soon! We know that all of our parents are busy with the demands of everyday life, but we also know that even a small contribution of your time and energy can significantly contribute to the PAB’s efforts to sponsor and support enriching activities for our community. I hope you will join us to volunteer at one of our upcoming events. On behalf of the Parents’ Association Board, I offer my best wishes for a healthy and happy spring!
Angela Bartlett
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Save the Date and Mark Your Calendar as We Celebrate A Night in Tinseltown! E v en t
Deta ils
Saturday, May 3 at 5:30 p.m. — Saint Andrew’s Hall Tic k ets
$ 95 by April 17 $115 after April 17 Visit: www.st-andrews.org /tinseltown for more information about the event. Celebrate Hollywood style and come enjoy Games, a fabulous Live Auction — including Teacher Outings, Silent Auction, Raffle, Dinner and Dancing!
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ALUMNI CHRONICLES
2001
Alumni News C L A S S
Alison Lewis ’01 After graduating from Saint Andrew’s,
N O T E S
1994
CLASS NOTES
Melissa “Missy” Carr Rietfors ‘94 attended Archbishop
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Mitty High School and the University of Southern California (USC), where she majored in Biology. After graduation, she moved to Hawaii to participate in a marine science internship. “I realized the islands spoke to me, and took a job in the aquaculture field, studying fisheries and how to raise fish, which is very important in a world that is quickly overfishing our oceans ”. Missy completed her masters degree in Marine Science, got married, bought a home, adopted a dog, and welcomed a phenomenal baby girl into her life! She is currently working to help improve STEM education in Hawaii public schools.
1995 David Arcella ‘95 is a second year anesthesiology resident at the University of Massachusetts. He attended the University of Southern California School of Medicine and also received his undergraduate degree from USC in Biomedical Engineering.
Alison Lewis ’01, earned a B.S. from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. She now works in San Francisco as an Executive Assistant at a management consulting firm. Her husband, Chris Caldarulo, has a degree from San Francisco State University. He works in San Bruno as a reimbursement coordinator at a pharmaceutical consulting company. Chris proposed to Alison in Avila Beach, a place they grew to love during college. Alison thought their trip was just to celebrate Chris’s birthday, and she had no idea what Chris was planning. After a day of shopping and enjoying the sun, Chris suggested a walk with their dogs. On a secluded trail along a creek, Chris stopped to give the dogs water. While he was on his knee, he turned to Alison and grabbed her hands. Alison was so shocked she could barely respond. She couldn’t believe Chris had acted normally all day! Then the jumping and giggling started! They were married on August 24, 2013 at Maison du Lac in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Her bridesmaids were Caitlin Lewis, Nathalie Waite and Kristina Dhillon. She and Chris live in Daly City with their dogs, Chloe and Ranger.
2006 Penelope (PJ) Blum ‘06 is an honors student at Hunter College, in New York City, where she is studying Political Science. When PJ was at Saint Andrew’s she learned from Mr. Adams that “that if I push myself 1% a day, by the end of the year I will have improved 365%. This was first applied in our Friday runs. Using the same lesson to everyday life’s goal you find yourself achieving something awesome ”.
Ryan Seid ’07 and Marshall Seid ’09 , students at the University of California, San Diego.
1996
2008
Shelly Weger ‘96 works in Washington, D.C. as a trial attorney
Kaeleigh Hamel-Curd ‘08 is currently enrolled
for the Civil Division of the United States Department of Justice. Shelly was hired through the Attorney General’s Honors Program and has been working there for four years. She received her JD from Santa Clara University School of Law in 2009.
in the Musicians Institute: College of Contemporary Music in Hollywood, CA getting his degree in Drum Performance. After graduation, he plans on getting a graduate degree in Music Business.
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ALUMNI CHRONICLES
ALUMNI CHRONICLES
2010 Alec Prusa ‘10 is a senior at Saint Francis High School. He has accepted a soccer scholarship to the University of the Pacific in Stockton. His sister, Nina, is a fifth grade student here. Byron Fan ’10 is a senior at Saratoga High School. He was selected as the Co-Concertmaster of the 2013 CODA All-State High School Orchestra. He is the winner of the 2012 American String Teachers Association (ASTA) Competition, 2012 Peninsula Symphony Young Musicians’ Competition, 2011 and 2012 U.S. Open Music Competitions, 2006 and 2012 Chinese Music Teachers Association of Northern California competitions, 2011 Golden Strings of America Competition, 2011 California Music Educators Association, and 2009 Junior Bach Festival. He is also a five-time ECYS Solo Competition winner. Byron is a student of Mr. Li Lin, who is a faculty member at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and at the 2013 Perlman Summer Music School.
ALUMNI EVENTS! SATURDAY,
May 3rd
Alumni Pre-Party Cocktail Bash before the PAB-hosted Spring Social. Tickets for the Spring Social must be purchased in advance.
FRIDAY,
May 16th
Class of 2010 Alumni Family Reception under the Oak Tree 4 PM.
TUESDAY,
June 3rd
Welcome Class of 2014 to the Saint Andrew’s Alumni Association. Graduation Breakfast 8 AM.
If you would like more information please contact Joanne Lee 408-867-3785, ext. 207.
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WITH THE RIGHT FOUNDATION, EVERY THING IS POSSIBLE!
FOR ADMISSIONS INQUIRIES, PLEASE CONTACT:
U P C O M I N G E V E N T S ! PAB Dad’s Club hosts Family BBQ
April 11
TEL: 408.867.3785 X208
Grades 1-4 Spring Concert
April 16
[email protected]
Ice Cream Reception for Erik Carlson
April 16
www.st-andrews.org
Spring Recess
April 18–25
PAB hosts Spring Social
May 3
Grades 5-8 Spring Concert
May 14
Service Learning Chapel
May 15
Spring Open House
May 27
Chapel to Honor Harry V. McKay, Jr.
May 29
Parent Appreciation Brunch
May 30
Moving Up Ceremony / Graduation
June 4
Please check the school website for event times and locations.
Kindergarten students get their Zumba on in physical education class.
13601 Saratoga Avenue Saratoga, CA 95070-5055 TEL: 408.867.3785
