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Prep for PrepSince 1978, Prep for Prep has placed almost 2,000 promising students in independent schools around New York. 30 years later, we hear from Prep alumnae who attended Nightingale.famous peaks.

Moving Right AlongAs an infant, Nightingale third-grader Catherine Hughes ’20 lost her right leg, but she hasn’t let this slow her down.spearhead the new Children’s Radio Foundation, which just broadcast its first show on South African public radio.

Spaces at NightingaleTake a tour through some of the spaces in our schoolhouse and get to know the people these areas are named after.

Photographs from our 90th-anniversary benefit at the American Museum of Natural History

Class Notes

HallwaysStories and photographs from around the schoolhouse

VoicesStefanie Sundel ‘98 honors the women who came before her.

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6 Alumnae Around the WorldFrom Singapore to the Upper East Side, see where Nightingale-Bamford alumnae are currently living.

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THE BLUE DOORS 3

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Writing to the entire Nightingale community in this magazine twice annually for the

past 19 years, I cannot remember a time that has felt so volatile. Since December,

revolutions have begun against oppressive regimes across the Middle East and North

Africa. An assassination attempt on Representative Giffords in Arizona reintroduced

a debate on gun control and political discourse in our country, and, for a time,

overshadowed the contentious debates on immigration. In Japan the heart-breaking

devastation caused by the natural forces of earthquakes and tsunamis, and the unfolding

nuclear disaster, have galvanized our students into action (learn more about their

activities at www.nightingale.org). And closer to home, Karen Dressner, beloved lower

school science teacher since 1989, died suddenly at the end of January—a devastation

of a different kind for all of us who knew this remarkable teacher.

With each of these events, I’ve heard from alumnae, parents, and former faculty, who

have reminded me how truly global and interconnected our community is. Prince Zeid

Ra’ad, the permanent ambassador to the United Nations from Jordan and parent of

Lula in Class II, spoke to the Upper School in February about the many changes sweeping

across the Middle East—among his many lessons, he reminded us that these revolutions

began with the galvanizing sacrifice of a single person and how important it is to think

critically and question the status quo. Sarah Goher ’04 wrote in with stirring accounts

from Egypt, where she lives with her husband: “It’s interesting how I’ve now started to

appreciate all that I learned at school about revolutions. I never predicted I would live

through one and while I have the option of leaving, I am staying to make a difference.”

And two of our alumnae are living and working in Japan right now, Natacha Lam ’06 and

Nella Williams ’06; both are safe and staying in Japan for the rest of the academic year.

While we constantly celebrate the differences in backgrounds and perspectives within

the Nightingale community, when events happen like those in Japan or Egypt, we come

together. We feel for the loss of life, we understand the desire for freedom: we find

those universalities that draw us together, no matter our backgrounds or geography.

Just over a year from now, in June of 2012, I will be retiring after 20 years as Head of

School. I’m not positive about what will come next for me—there’s much to accomplish

here at Nightingale between now and then—but I do know that this is the kind of

community that you never really leave.

Sincerely,

Dorothy A. Hutcheson

Head of School

Becky Tickaram, member of the Class of 2011 and Ms. Hutcheson’s advisee, performs at C.A.F.E. Cultural Night on February 25, 2011.

THE BLUE DOORS 54 THE BLUE DOORS

Thirty-three years ago, Gary Simons, an elementary school teacher in the South Bronx, had a dream: Find gifted children in public schools throughout New York City and give them access to the best independent schools. In partnership with Columbia University, he launched Prep for Prep, which has become one of the nation’s premier leadership and educational programs for children of color.

From the start, Nightingale has played a major role in supporting Prep’s mission. As one of 11 independent schools in Manhattan to open its doors to Prep students in 1979, Nightingale has granted nearly full scholarships to 66 students since that time, and currently has 17 Prep students in attendance.

The experiences of six alumnae, featured in the following pages, illustrate not only the incredible opportunities the Prep students received, but the challenges they faced along the way, such as commutes of up to two hours each way, language barriers, and other cultural differences.

“First and foremost these students are chosen for their academic excellence,” says Dorothy Hutcheson, head of Nightingale-Bamford. “But it’s also really important to hear different perspectives in life. There are more boroughs in New York City than Manhattan, so we shouldn’t just have one dominant perspective at the school.”

THE JOURNEY TO NIGHTINGALE

While Nightingale benefits as much as the Prep students do, getting in isn’t easy. Students in the Prep for Prep program, named so because it prepares students for college preparatory schools, must commit to rigorous testing and thousands of hours of academic preparation.

It all starts in the fifth grade, when administrators at 500 public schools throughout the five boroughs nominate outstanding African-American, Latino, or Asian students to apply to the program. Of 5,000 applicants tested, only 150 students are accepted for day school placement after undergoing interviews, IQ tests, and submitting writing samples. “Our ultimate mission is to create a generation of diverse leaders,” says Aileen Hefferren, chief executive at Prep for Prep, “so we are looking for students who have firepower and drive.”

Once accepted, students undergo an intense 14-month boot camp to academically prepare them for independent schools like Nightingale. “What we are trying to do is close the skill gap,” says Hefferren. “These are very bright kids but they don’t have the skills they need.” During the summer prior to sixth grade, students participate in a seven-week summer school session, with seven classes a day and four hours of homework every night. During the school year, the sixth-graders continue their preparation, attending 90-minute classes after school every Wednesday at Trinity School and

daylong sessions on Saturdays. Then, students complete another full-time, seven-week summer session before seventh grade.

Learning time management skills is one of the biggest goals of the program. Advisors meet with the students daily to review their grades and scores from daily quizzes. If the students are unprepared for class on three occasions, Prep staff contacts the students and their parents. “We quickly escalate because if you fall behind it is hard to catch up,” says Hefferren. “We are there to help these students reach their potential.” In addition to the academic preparation, students

devote time to exploring the social changes they’re about to experience, reading literature that deals with the issue of identity.

“There is a big contrast between the resources their families have and what other girls have,” says Hefferren. “Having a strong sense of who you are allows the girls to navigate that a little bit better.”

Once at Nightingale, Prep’s team of counselors, many of whom are recent college graduates, touch base with the students every month to see how they’re adjusting to their new school. “The counselors have had similar life experiences,” says

Hefferren, “so they can be a sounding board.” Students draw moral support from Prep peers who attend other private schools in New York City by getting together two Saturdays a month for organized outings such as apple picking or ice skating.

Similarly, senior faculty members at Nightingale and school counselors monitor the Prep students’ adjustment to their new environment. “We try to do everything we can to help these families make great transitions,” says Margaret Metz, director of admissions at Nightingale. Several class-wide activities for the seventh-graders also help break the ice, such as the Gilbert and Sullivan musical the class produces in the spring, or the team-building exercises students participate in on their trip to Cooperstown, NY.

For the most part, says Hefferren, the Prep students adjust well to their new school. “Prep girls just love Nightingale,” she says. “Nightingale has a holistic approach to diversity and a disposition that is warm, welcoming, and open. They embrace the Prep for Prep girls in the same way they embrace all of the girls.”

To help parents cope with their daughter’s new world, school counselors also field questions from parents about delicate social situations their children are facing. “Their daughter may be invited to a bat mitzvah and they’re wondering, ‘What do I bring as a present?’,” says Hefferren.

“Sometimes the girls come back with a more expensive present than the one they brought. We try to help the parents understand that their child wasn’t invited for the size of the present she’d bring. So if she wants to go she should absolutely go.”

Preparing for the FutureSince 1978, Prep for Prep has placed almost 2,000 promising students in independent schools around New York. More than 30 years later, we hear from Prep alumnae who attended Nightingale. By Joanne Fowler P’20

Nightingale has grantednearly full scholarships to 66 students since 1979, and currently has 17 Prep students in attendance.

6 THE BLUE DOORS THE BLUE DOORS 7

EASING THE FINANCIAL BURDEN

While Nightingale and Prep work together to ease the academic and cultural transition, the school also partners with other groups to lessen the financial burden many families face. In addition to the scholarships Nightingale grants Prep students, the F&P DeRosa Memorial Fund also supports a few Prep students by assuming the majority of tuition fees and providing financial assistance for extra-curricular activities. Currently, one DeRosa-sponsored student is enrolled at Nightingale; last year two DeRosa-backed students graduated and now attend colleges in the Northeast. In total, Nightingale provides financial aid to more than a fifth of the student body. “We provide the funding to encourage schools to take more Prep students,” says Anne Fitzgerald, program director at the DeRosa fund. “So far it’s worked out splendidly. The two students who’ve graduated are just as loyal to Nightingale as they are to Prep for Prep.”

Because many Prep students have faced hardship in their lives, Hutcheson says, they deeply value their education at Nightingale and enthusiastically step into leadership roles .

“They don’t take things for granted,” says Hutcheson. “Their families are doing everything they can to send their kids here. It always goes back to the parents who have moved body and soul to get them here.”

Among independent schools in New York City, Nightingale ranks as one of the most diverse, with nearly a third of the entire student body made up of students of color. The retention rate of Prep students at Nightingale is 95%, says Hutcheson, and the vast majority go on to attend highly competitive colleges. “These kids are the crème de la crème,” says Margaret Metz. “And they have raised the bar of social awareness.”

“You come to this school to grow,” continues Hutcheson. “If kids are in a class with other kids who challenge them, that’s great. You don’t come to Nightingale to be massaged. Nightingale is changed by every student who walks through the blue doors—especially the cadre of strong Prep for Prep students.”

From their perspective...We asked six Prep alumnae who attended Nightingale to share with us a little bit about their experiences. Their stories follow on the next three pages.

Priscilla Aquino Garza ’97

I came to Nightingale as a seventh grader. Before that I was at a public school in Washington Heights, where the classes were too big and there were too many discipline issues. At Prep I came to value a smaller classroom environment because of the attention to students and the college-going culture. I wanted to open up new opportunities for myself and didn’t have a lot of women in my life at that time who could help shape my view of myself as a first generation Latina in the US.

My mom is from Costa Rica and in herfamily there was little encouragement forwomen to go to college. It was hard for her

to let go of me and not have me home at4:00 p.m. every day instead of participating in sports, clubs, and other activities. Seeing all the young women at Nightingale and how they were empowered helped her understand this new experience.

The respect the girls have for each other at Nightingale is unique. There was no innate disconnect like what I felt at public schools. I felt attracted to this new family and was impressed by the kinship and welcoming attitude the girls had.

One of my favorite teachers was Werner Feig. He was my seventh grade history teacher and I still carry pieces of him wherever I go. I felt fragile coming into a school that didn’t understand my culture and he always took time to help me process my role in the unfamiliar world of prep school.

There were class adjustments, cultural adjustments. Prep for Prep matched me up with a big sister who would answer a lot of my questions, such as “what do you do on a camping trip?,” since I had never been. But there is no handbook on transitioning from a large urban school to a small private school with such different student bodies. People like Mr. Feig helped me pull all the pieces together to remind me that what I had to offer was critical to Nightingale as well. He helped me increase the level of comfort I had in myself and allowed me to see myself

as a part of the community. As co-president of C.A.F.E. for two years, I further tried to build the awareness of the Nightingale community to the same social, cultural and class issues that were emulated in my own experience.

It could be challenging at times, both academically and socially. My parents were always very supportive but also had to adjust to the different school culture at Nightingale. My mom works as a lunchroom aide and speaks broken English, but she came to all of my school events. I can’t tell you how many parents-only events I accompanied her to so I could translate for her. Other parents were wondering what was I doing sitting there. But I wanted my parents to participate just as other parents did even if it meant I had to sit with her. It took me going to college to realize what it took for her to give me everything she did.

Nightingale and Prep allowed me to think big for myself, and helped me believe I could become a leader. I felt prepared by the time I got to Harvard. I am now working in education policy in Austin, Texas, and gave birth to my first child in March.

I have always been proud to be a part ofboth worlds—my Nightingale world and myfamily’s world. If I had not taken advantageof everything offered to me, it would havebeen the biggest mistake of my life.

Priscilla with beloved Nightingale history teacher Werner Feig.

I grew up in Ozone Park, Queens, and was raised by mom, who’s from Guyana.

I was always a good student at my public school, but then I enrolled in the Prep for Prep program. It was one of the hardest things I had ever done. I had never encountered such an enormous amount of work. For the first time in my life I wasn’t at the top of my class.

I entered Nightingale in seventh grade and absolutely loved it. The students were so welcoming. Most of my friends were survivors, students who had been at the school since Kindergarten. I had a class that was willing to discuss everything with no animosity whatsoever—things like where you come from and what the norms are in your family. Having teachers and mentors who really cared for you was one of my favorite parts of Nightingale. They really delved into your lives.

Everything at the school is intimate: the classes, the discussions. My mom loved it. When I went through the boarding school phase, wondering if I should switch schools, she said, “no way.” She saw how supportive the school was. There was always someone you could go to, someone you could trust.

Going home in my school uniform was a huge thing. I always felt like an outsider in my neighborhood. Some of my friends used to say, “You are going to an uppity school.” It affected me a lot.

Experiencing the divergence of resources

I felt at home and in the classroom was a big deal. So many of my classmates had everything they ever wanted—beautiful homes in the city and a country home. Then I’d go home and see my friends who had nothing. It was an epiphany for me. A lot of people don’t realize the disparity in wealth until later in life. I think Prep for Prep tried to prepare us for the culture shock, but it could be jarring. My mom always said it’s all about school and preparing for college.

I ran track every year at Nightingale, played basketball and was co-head of C.A.F.E. By the time I arrived at Penn, I felt very well prepared academically and socially. I studied English and now am in my first year of law school at New York University.

I have a lot of fond memories of Nightingale. I spent a lot of time growing behind those blue doors.

Melissa Providence ’02

Melissa with Head of School Dorothy Hutcheson.

Nightingale is changedby every student who walks through the blue doors—especially the cadre of strong Prep for Prep students.


I grew up in the South Bronx with my mom, who’s a seamstress from Honduras. We lived on a pretty safe block, but you’d hear about shootings just a block or two away every now and then.

My principal at SPS 39 told me to apply to Prep for Prep. I was always a good student and loved books and academics. By the time I arrived at Nightingale in 1987, I was so well prepared academically from Prep for Prep I was ahead of the curve.

My first two years were a culture shock.

At my old school in the Bronx, all the kids were African-American and Hispanic, but at Nightingale it was all female and Caucasian. At the time, C.A.F.E. was just getting started and there were very few students of color. In my graduating class of 33, there were three African-American girls and two Latinas, of which I was one.

It was hard. A lot of questions were asked of me, such as “are you on welfare?” There were so many assumptions made of you that were not necessarily true. I was an only child and my mom let me travel on the subway into the city alone to go to school. It was a lot for me to do at such a young age.

Before Nightingale, I didn’t know what lacrosse and badminton were, or what a summer house was. I used to joke about it with some of the other Prep girls. Some of the girls would invite us to their homes, but my mom would tell me, “Don’t bring anyone to our house. I don’t want them to see how we live.” Kids can be materialistic. I remember one time I wanted an L.L. Bean bag, but I knew I couldn’t have it.

One year I formed a group called Sugar and Spice with three black students and one other Latina. It didn’t last long because

one of the teachers said we were sectioning ourselves off. We didn’t feel that was fair and thought the teachers could be more sensitive. We told the teachers that the other girls could come talk to us as well.

The opportunities that were given to me were so different than what my friends had back at my public school. Once I left sixth grade, I never kept in touch with my old friends. I was so busy with homework and afterschool activities I never had much free time. My mom was very protective and wouldn’t let me date or go out. I heard that some of the kids from my old school had died or gone to jail. If I had stayed at the public school there was always the pressure of violence. Not having those pressures really helped me focus on my schoolwork. My academic experience was fantastic. I went to the University of Pennsylvania for college and now work as a marketing manager for HBO.

I have so many good memories of Nightingale. I never had a traumatic experience at school—just a few ups and downs during the first year or two. Then I matured and didn’t let things get to me as much.

Karla Lozano ’93 Melissa Diaz Bonilla ’89

Prior to Nightingale, I went to PS 108 in Brooklyn. I attended school there until fifth grade and it did not really offer many opportunities. There were no physical education or music classes offered, so when I went to Nightingale in seventh grade, it was a whole new world, not just academically but in so many ways.

One of the biggest challenges was commuting. Previously I walked two blocks to school, but at Nightingale I commuted with my parents who worked in Manhattan.

My father was a manager at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and my mother was also a pharmacy technician there. I had to get up at 5:00 a.m. and get out of the house at 6:00 a.m. or 6:30 a.m. at the latest. Then I would take a bus from the hospital at 68th and York to the school.

Culturally it was also an adjustment. I went to a predominantly black and Latino school previously, but when I came to Nightingale it was me, two other black students, plus one Asian student. But I felt accepted right away so that wasn’t too big of an issue. A lot of other Prep students felt accepted, too. It says something about the school when someone comes in during seventh grade with a different background and can feel right at home. Educating the hearts and minds is not just a school motto. It does play out in the way the students behave.

My parents didn’t have a problem with the school being predominantly white. They actually thought that was a good thing. They wanted me to be in an environment that was representative of the real world so I could feel comfortable interacting with people from different backgrounds—

socioeconomic and cultural. That way I could be prepared at the college level and at the work level as well.

My 14 months of preparation at Prep for Prep was an intense experience. I know for a fact that if I had not undergone those 14 months, I would have been lost when I got to Nightingale. But I felt up to speed once I started. I also participated in the Glee Club, student government, and was part of the social services board. After I graduated from Nightingale, I went to Yale feeling well prepared and received my bachelor’s degree in 1993. Then I went to medical school in 1997 at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. Now I am a pediatrician in private practice with eight other physicians in New Jersey. It was always my dream to be a pediatrician. When I was four I told my mom I wanted to be a baby nurse and she said, “Why not a baby doctor?” So from then on, that was my goal.

I have a three-year-old daughter right now and, unfortunately, sending her to Nightingale is not an option since we live in New Jersey. But if we were to move back to the New York City area, Nightingale would be the only choice for me.

THE BLUE DOORS 98 THE BLUE DOORS

Karla’s photo from her senior class yearbook in 1993.

Melissa receiving an award at Honors Assembly.

Segacy Roberts ’10

My parents first heard about Prep for Prep from friends and wanted the same thing every parent wants: a good education for me, their only child. They are both West Indian. My dad, who is a criminal defense lawyer, is from Trinidad, and my mom, who’s currently in school to be a nurse anesthetist, is from Jamaica. We live in the Flatlands area of Brooklyn.

I was invited to apply for Prep for Prep after scoring high on the standardized test—once a student reached a certain grade they were invited. I don’t think I understood how

extraordinary the Prep for Prep program was until much later, probably towards the end of my first summer.

Before Nightingale I went to PS 276 from Kindergarten through grade five and then Hudde Junior High for a year in sixth grade. I was ready to go to a new school—my junior high school wasn’t challenging and I constantly felt as though I was wasting a year there. Hudde was at least twice the size of Nightingale and I barely knew my own teachers, let alone other faculty members. It was such a nice change to get to know Ms. Hutcheson, who makes it her goal to know every student in the school by name. I cannot stress enough how welcoming and reassuring it was to have her greet me every morning at the blue doors my first year.

Socially, everything went well, but I do know with ready-made friends from Prep it took me a little longer to make close bonds with the Nightingale girls in my class. That is not to say that my classmates weren’t extremely welcoming. It did happen and many of them are my closest friends now. But many Prep kids will try to stick together in the face of such a radically different environment, especially one in which the other girls have known each other for so long. I think it’s something Nightingale should be aware of.

Through my experiences at Prep and Nightingale, I have learned that I should never settle for less than the best in my life. I’ve been given the opportunity from both Prep and Nightingale to achieve so much and I will continue to take advantage of that. I’ve been able to take internships and travel to countries that have opened my eyes to new and exciting possibilities for the future. More specifically, if I had gone to any other private school, I would have missed out on so many fantastic teachers. I originally did not want to go to an all-girls school but I am very, very grateful that Prep pushed me towards one. Being surrounded by such strong women has taught me so much.

I’m 18 now and currently a freshman at Dartmouth College. While I’m still officially undecided, I may double major in Spanish and English and minor in Filmmaking or Government.

Recently I had lunch with two women from the DeRosa Foundation, the foundation that sponsored me during my time at Nightingale. One of them said that while there are other schools in Manhattan, there is really no place that comes close to Nightingale.

I agree completely.

Segacy with Nightingale classmate and fellow Prep graduate Karla Gomez at their Nightingale Commencement.

I didn’t have a stable upbringing. I grew up in Brooklyn and my family moved around a lot. The last place we lived in Brooklyn was Carroll Gardens. I went to PS 58 through fifth grade; then in sixth grade I went to Mark Twain, another public school for talented students, and studied art.

My mom used to always say that education would set you up for success later in life, so she was adamant about finding the

best school possible—even if it was far away in Manhattan. Because it was so far away and such a small school, Nightingale felt like a different world I was traveling into every day. Some days were better than others.

I would be lying if I didn’t say it was a complete culture shock when I first started. At the time my mom was a secretary and my dad was a truck driver. I come from a blue-collar family and I am still the only one in my family to have graduated from college. At Nightingale I found myself sitting in a class with someone who has halls named after them at Harvard. It made you realize in a very tangible way the economic and social differences and the opportunities that exist in different worlds in New York, just a subway ride away. Seventh and eighth grade were tough. I felt like I fit in—but not.

I did student government and was president of C.A.F.E. During the summer of my tenth-grade year, I was given a scholarship to go to Costa Rica to do volunteer work with the Experiment in International Living. It was my first trip out of the country. I also went to Italy with my Latin class in eleventh grade. Nightingale

paid for it because my parents never could have afforded it. I remember getting really sick on the plane because I had never traveled that long on a plane before.

Nightingale wasn’t just saying they were about diversity. They went above and beyond to make sure that I wasn’t missing out on anything. They gave me so many wonderful experiences. When I was in tenth grade, my family moved to Long Island and I made the decision to finish my education at Nightingale. I had to leave my house at 6:00 a.m. every day and ride the train one-and-a-half to two hours each way.

By the time I got to Columbia I wasn’t that surprised by the differences in people’s backgrounds. I was acutely aware of who I was and could tell you with confidence what my interests were, while many undergrads were first discovering the differences in the world. I also felt so well prepared academically. My freshman year was a breeze.

I have always felt grateful to Nightingale because of the opportunities they gave me. The school really took me in.

Jennifer Martinez ’00

Jennifer as council vice president with council president Liz Niemiec ‘00.


by Greg Groggel

Running is often a pursuit left for the mature. We tend to avoid its inherent challenges in our younger days only to gravitate to it as the years pass, hoping to maintain a balance of body and mind.

Just don’t tell that to Catherine Hughes. To know what Catherine has accomplished as a runner and

triathlete at only eight years old should serve as guilt-ridden propulsion to lace up those long-forgotten trainers and hit the nearest park. But to know that the Nightingale third-grader has done it as an amputee might just inspire you to face far greater challenges.

When Hemsley Hughes was pregnant with Catherine, she and her husband James learned that Catherine had a clubfoot, due to an amniotic band wrapped around the limb. When Catherine was born in January 2002, the doctors suggested they amputate the foot below the ankle. Friends advised otherwise, fearful of what that might mean for young Catherine.

“After we had gotten over the initial shock it really was the best way for her to have a normal childhood,” says Hemsley, who works as a reading specialist at Spence.

From there, things continued as normal, if in that frantic manner of active families.

Catherine received her first prosthesis shortly after that first Christmas and was walking at 15 months. There was a little physical therapy in the beginning, but only because it was included with their insurance at the time.

Then came figure skating at age three and soccer, equestrian, and skiing at age four. For many of these activities, Hemsley and James (who teaches and coaches at St. David’s School) could only do so much to guide their daughter; the rest was up to Catherine. Learning how to ride a bicycle, for instance, took a little longer than it might otherwise.

“With the way the ankle is supposed to bend, we couldn’t really help her because we didn’t know,” Hemsley says. “She had to figure it out herself. And she did.”

The activities steamrolled as Catherine got older. At age five, she competed at the Empire State Games for the Physically Challenged for the first time. Since then, she’s taken part in a number of races, often winning her category of below-the-knee-amputee and placing just as high among able-bodied runners. The races range from one mile to five, with an annual mini-triathlon thrown in for good measure (75-yard swim, two-mile bike and one-mile run).

Catherine has the hardware to speak to her success, but keeps a select five trophies on her desk at home. Her favorite is the smallest and most conspicuous of the bunch—a single foot in a running shoe.

Despite the success, Catherine’s joy of running is found in the competition itself. “I usually start it and think that the race will be fun,” says Catherine, typically shy at age eight. “Then in the middle I feel tired and want to stop. But at the end I feel excited when I see the finish.” She says there’s a similar moment of “Phew, I finished!” each time she crosses the line, though to everyone who knows her it’s never a question of “if” but “when.”

AlongMoving Right

As an infant, Nightingale third-grader Catherine Hughes ’20 lost her right leg, but she hasn’t let this slow her down.


Catherine has drawn inspiration from her mentor and family friend Amy Palmiero-Winters, a fellow amputee whom she first met at the Empire State Games in 2006. Palmiero-Winters is a distinguished athlete herself, regardless of classification. The ultra-marathoner had her left leg amputated below the knee after a 1994 motorcycle accident, but has since won the AAU Sullivan Award, the nation’s top amateur prize, and was recently named the first amputee to the U.S. track and field team.

As sports director of A Step Ahead, a leading prosthetics company that Catherine has become involved with, Palmiero-Winters coaches and organizes activities for a group of young amputees and favors a doctrine of tough love. “I like to watch them reach their limit, or what they think is their limit,” Palmiero-Winters explains. “Then have them dig past where they thought they could go and take five more steps.”

This fall, Amy and Catherine were nominated to The Huffington Post’s Game Changers, a series celebrating innovators, visionaries, and leaders in 12 categories. After more than three million votes were cast online, the Hughes family received the call that the two amputees had won the award in the sports category, trumping the likes of tennis legend Serena Williams, Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow and soccer superstar Landon Donovan.

Upon hearing the news, Catherine could scarcely believe it to be true, asking anyone in range if they were in fact lying to her. And even Hemsley admits she never thought her daughter would win.

Along with the other winners, the family was invited to the Game Changers gala in SoHo. Catherine didn’t particularly enjoy all the photographers there for the attending celebrities, nor did she appreciate getting picked up by media aristocrat Arianna Huffington. But she did take great pleasure in shopping for a new purple dress, making her way down the red carpet, and staying out late—she’s eight after all.

It has been a busy year all around for Catherine. A documentary titled “Hope and Possibility,” will soon be released featuring her and the pediatric amputee athletes of the “A Step Ahead” program. Fellow students might have spotted a film crew following Catherine through the halls of Nightingale one day this fall. And because of numerous interview requests (this one included), she’s being coaxed to put words to ideas most won’t even begin to consider until they can legally drive.

When asked what she would tell someone who has recently lost a limb, her advice was simple. “Do what you think you can do,” Catherine advises. “If you think you can do it, you will be able to do it, even if other people say you can’t.” A true third-grade sage.

It’s all bittersweet, of course. When a school friend told her how jealous she was of her celebrity, Catherine pointed at her foot and asked, “Do you really want to be famous for this?”

Further challenges lie ahead. Catherine recently had a growth bone removed from her leg to facilitate the use of her prosthesis in the years to come. Right now it’s the first thing she puts on in the morning and usually the last to come off before bed.

She’ll admit that the whole process is annoying and the prosthesis itself can be a source of frustration. But during those moments of discontent, she can look to her family at home and her community at school for support. And if she feels like going it alone, a personal piece of wisdom she tells herself should be enough: “If you keep going you’ll get to the finish eventually.”

Simple sure, but advice worth heeding in any respect, whether venturing out for a quick jog or preparing to face one of life’s other challenges.

Michelle Nam ‘16, Bryn Wolgemuth ‘16, and Carlexa Fevry ‘16 (left to right) perform at the first-ever Middle School Instrumental Concert on January 25, 2011. The concerts (performed during Middle School and Upper School assemblies) resulted from the incredible growth of our instrumental program over the last several years and featured performances by strings, Orff, guitar, and drumming classes.


From top left, counter clockwise:

H. DALE HEmmERDINGER AUDITORIUm

Devoted board member and past parent Dale Hemmerdinger was the key trustee behind the construction of our modern schoolhouse; our 385-seat auditorium is named in his honor. Twice-weekly meetings are held here for each division, as are special lectures, numerous PE classes, Convocation and year-end assemblies, and a plethora of musical and dramatic presentations.

AUDREY GOODE ‘39 ALUmNAE ROOm

Long-serving staff member Audrey Goode covered so many jobs during her tenure at Nightingale, it’s hard to list them all. But throughout her time at the school, and even up to the present day, she has been most passionate about our alumnae. It’s particularly appropriate, then, that the alumnae room—which features portraits of every class and formerly housed the Nightingale archives—is named in her honor.

SARAH E. HAmILTON STUDENT CENTER

This area is, by far, the most used space in the building: lunch room, meeting space, study hall, reception area, faculty lounge, lecture hall, and kitchen for our afterschool baking class. It is named after Betty Hamilton, whose career at Nightingale covered so many roles and who connected with so many girls during her years here.

JOAN STITT mCmENAmIN LIBRARY

Named for Nightingale’s fifth headmistress, our library holds tens of thousands of volumes and provides access to millions more online. It is a central gathering place for our community and a quiet place for our students to study, and it features the only remaining architectural element from the original 1929 schoolhouse: the majestic arched windows. As one of the central spaces in the modern schoolhouse that Mrs. McMenamin built, it is a meaningful tribute to her years of leadership.

ALINE VICARY ROOm

A beloved teacher from 1935 –1973 and head of Middle School from 1960–1973, Miss Vicary was fundamental in shaping the lives of generations of girls. Upon her retirement, the yearbook staff wrote, “Words cannot express how important Miss Vicary is to the school or how far reaching her influence has been.”

WILLIAm B. HELLER TERRACE

Hugely popular among faculty and students as the weather warms, the William B. Heller Terrace provides a quiet area for reading, sunny place for lunching, and occasionally a festive space for cocktail parties. Named for a former board member and Nightingale father, the terrace is now also used by the Environmental Board to grow organic herbs and fruits.

ANN m. WILSON ’39 READING ROOm

There is, perhaps, no more fitting space to be named for Miss Wilson than this Lower School reading room. As a Lower School teacher for almost 40 years, she taught almost 1,000 girls not just how to read, but how to love reading. This room is used now for show-and-tell, story time, and student-devised plays and shows throughout the year.

SUSAN HECHT TOFEL ’48 GYmNASIUm

One of the largest spaces in the schoolhouse, the gymnasium hosts classes, games, pep rallies, and extra-curricular programs like Sunny Days and our weekend open gym sessions. It is named after Sue Tofel, an alumna, past parent, grandparent, and one of our longest-serving trustees (including eight years as president of the board).

BLANCHE G. mANSFIELD PLAYGROUND

If you were at Nightingale at all in the last 30 years, you know Mrs. Mansfield, our long-standing and extremely dedicated Head of Lower School. It is only fitting that the incredible playground where our youngest girls spend their free time is named in her honor.

NightingaleSpaces at

As the school expands into the townhouse next door, we thought it’d be nice to take a quick tour through some of the named spaces in our current schoolhouse and get to know the people to whom these areas are dedicated.


A Dinner and Auction Benefit toCelebrate Nightingale’s History

Opposite, top, clockwise: the Hall of Ocean Life was transformed for dinner and dancing with 800 guests; faculty member Sam Howell heads up the faculty skit; Head of Middle School Noni Thomas and Rodney Lopez take a turn on the dance floor at the end of the evening;

Nancy Jones PP’94, PP’98, PP’04 with Garrett and Clay Kirk PP’89 and PP’94 and their daughter (and faculty member) Laura Kirk ‘94.

On March 15, we hosted a special 90th-anniversary celebration at the American Museum of Natural History.

Eight hundred parents, alumnae, past parents, faculty, and staff packed into the Hall of the Universe at the

Rose Planetarium for cocktails and the start of the silent auction. Everyone then moved into the magical Hall

of Ocean Life, where they were treated to a special performance by Upper School a capella group Bassless

Accusations. A sumptuous dinner was served while several faculty members presented their hysterical take on

how Miss Nightingale and Miss Bamford came up with the school motto. After a live auction, guests poured

onto the floor to wrap up the evening with dancing under the 94-foot blue whale.

Thanks to the incredible generosity of everyone who purchased tickets, donated and bid on auction items,

and helped underwrite the event, we raised more than $350,000 for the Nightingale-Bamford School Scholarship

Fund! Special thanks to our fabulous benefit tri-chairs—Shoshanna Lonstein Gruss ‘93 P’23, Catherine Skobe

P’18, and Alison Sellin Weiskopf ‘81 P’18—and all of the volunteers who made the event such a success.


Opposite page, top, clockwise: Cathy and Salvatore Trentalancia PP’10; faculty member Robin Daley with her husband Jack and faculty member Naomi Hayashi; Sharon Reid and Franklin Reed P’23; three generations of Nightingale alumna: Cathy Cramer ‘77, her mother and longtime

board member Sue Hecht Tofel ‘48, and Cathy’s daughter Leah Cramer Gibbs ‘10; Ethelee Hahn with her daughter Marina Hahn, alumna and parent of a third-grader; this page, top, clockwise: Kate Auletta ‘00, Louisa Conrad ‘00, faculty member Fernanda Winthrop ‘00, Zoe Settle ‘00,

and Claire Cosman ‘00; Helen Song and Lap Wai Chan P’14, P’16; Josh Gruss and benefit tri-chair Shoshanna Lonstein Gruss ‘93 P’23.

For more photos and information on our 90th-anniversary benefit, please visit www.nightingale.org/90.

20 THE BLUE DOORS THE BLUE DOORS 2116 THE BLUE DOORS

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

COLORADO

WYOMING

NEW MEXICO

ARKANSAS

KANSAS

OKLAHOMA TENNESSEE

FLORIDA

ALASKA

PUERTO RICO

= TWO NIGHTINGALE ALUMNAE

BERMUDA

MISSOURI

IOWA PENNSYLVANIA

VERMONT

MAINE

DELAWARE

RHODE ISLAND

MASSACHUSETTS

TRI-STATE REGION(see side bar)

NEW HAMPSHIRE

UTAH

ARIZONA

MONTANA

NORTH DAKOTA

SOUTH DAKOTA

NEBRASKA

WASHINGTON

OREGON

IDAHO

NEVADA

MINNESOTA

WISCONSIN

ILLINOIS

MICHIGAN

OHIOINDIANA

KENTUCKY

VIRGINIA

MARYLAND

WASHINGTON, DC

WEST VIRGINIA

ALABAMAGEORGIA

SOUTH CAROLINA

LOUISIANA

TEXAS

NORTH CAROLINA

MANHATTAN

TRI-STATE REGION

AUSTRALIA

AUSTRIA

CANADA

CHINA

COLOMBIA, SA

EGYPT

FRANCE

GERMANY

GREECE

HONG KONG

ISRAEL

ITALY

JAPAN

MEXICO

MOROCCO

NORWAY

SINGAPORE

SLOVENIA

SPAIN

SWEDEN

SWITZERLAND

UNITED KINGDOM

Below 14th Street

WESTCHESTER

Nightingale-Bamford AlumnaeAround the World

UPSTATE NY

LONG ISLAND

STATEN ISLAND

QUEENS

BRONX

Above 110th Street

NEW JERSEY

BROOKLYN

CONNECTICUT

Midtown

Upper West Side

Upper East Side

HAWAII


The generosity and spirit of the Nightingale commu-nity was on full display on Saturday, January 22, 2011, as over 200 volunteers filled the schoolhouse to participate in a wide variety of service projects. From decorating greeting cards and creating tissue paper flower bouquets to assembling toiletry kits and making sandwiches, Nightingale girls and their families spent the day in support of seniors, U.S. soldiers, children, and others in need around the city. Up in the gym, participants played games and participated in activities to raise over $500 for two worthy causes—Nightingale’s A School for A School

(in Cambodia; see page 32) and Partners in Health (in Haiti). In addition, 20 of our volunteers spent the morning delivering Meals on Heels or bonding with residents at the Terence Cardinal Cooke Health Care Center over a variety of arts and crafts projects. With characteristic heart and enthusiasm, the Nightingale community came out in force to serve others and connect with the world around them. Thank to the leadership of Kristen Mulvoy, director of community service; our parent volunteers in charge of community service, Suzi Parrasch and Julie White; and our Upper School Community Service Board.

Anna Jurew ‘15 helped lead her four-by-four relay team to a first-place finish at the Millrose Games at Madison Square Garden on January 28, 2011. As denoted by their black armbands, she and her teammates ran their race in honor of teacher Karen Dressner, who died on January 25, 2011. (See page 34.)

Anne Hay ’14 and Mary Wood ’23 team up to decorate a card at Family Service Day.

Hal

lway

s family service day

Annette Gordon-Reed, legal scholar and Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family, captivated her audience at the sixth-annual Joan Stitt McMenamin Lecture on December 10, 2010, as she discussed her lifelong love of history and her approach to the story of Thomas Jefferson’s relationship with his slave, Sally Hemings. Ms. Gordon-Reed is pictured at far left, with Heidi Kasevich, head of the History Department, and Jim Basker, president of the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, which co-presented the lecture.

mcmenamin lecture


gimp project

The Nightingale community was treated to moving dance performances by the GIMP Project on January 6, 2011. Featuring four trained dancers and four performers who have physical disabilities, GIMP aims to challenge accepted notions about dance, performance, and body image. Sponsored by Parents of C.A.F.E., the dancers performed for students

dr. ruth charms nightingale

On Friday, March 4, 2011, famed author and psychosexual therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer arrived at Nightingale to deliver the 12th-annual Feig Lecture. Students from Classes VII through XII, parents, alumnae, faculty, and staff packed the auditorium to hear Dr. Ruth speak about her experiences as a child who survived the Holocaust and its emotional aftermath, a journey she chronicles in her memoir, Musically Speaking. From the very beginning of the morning, however, it was clear that her personal story was just a part of what she had to offer. This 82-year-old was four feet and seven inches of moxie and humor.

That this would be no ordinary lecture was apparent from the start. As Head of School Dorothy Hutcheson introduced Dr. Ruth and mentioned her authorship of a number of books about sex, Dr. Ruth immediately interrupted from her seat and told her that when one says the word sex, one must “say it with more enthusiasm!” The unexpected comment brought the house down, and the audience was hooked before she even began. Despite her advancing age and small stature, Dr. Ruth filled the room with energy, and proved herself to be the ultimate role model for everyone there.

Dr. Ruth’s personal story is compelling. Her life changed forever when her name was one of 300 randomly drawn for an evacuation of Jewish children from Germany to Switzerland in 1939. On January 5

during the day and at a community-wide event in the evening. The riveting, raw beauty of the dancers’ movements pushed us to expand our thinking and to embrace diversity in all its forms. In the talk-back session following the evening performance, audience members had the opportunity to ask questions of the performers as well as the GIMP Project’s founder, director, and choreographer, Heidi Latsky.

of that year, she boarded a train in Frankfurt and never saw her family again. She spent six years in an orphanage in Switzerland, and then made her way to Palestine, where she fought for Israeli independence as part of the Haganah. Later she moved to Paris, and in 1956, Dr. Ruth immigrated to the United States and studied at the New School of Social Research and Columbia University.

What is most compelling about Dr. Ruth, however, is not her distinguished biography but the power of her personality. On the train to Switzerland, she put aside her own grief at having been separated from her family and tried to engage the other children in song to keep them from crying. She understood that mere chance saved her life, and she felt deeply the obligation to do something with her life because she had been spared. While world-renowned psychosexual therapist was perhaps not what she envisioned when she started out, she has helped countless people with her willingness to talk openly about sexuality with grace and good humor.

Throughout her visit to Nightingale, Dr. Ruth showed a genuine interest in everyone she met. Touring the school before her lecture, she stopped every student she passed to ask them about themselves, and then she stayed at the reception following her talk for as long as there were people to engage. The schoolhouse was abuzz with students and faculty alike marveling at her energy and the power of her spirit. And with that, a new generation of Dr. Ruth fans was born. latin club victory

On November 6, 2010, seven Upper School members of the Latin Club competed in a Certamen Latinum, a Jeopardy-style Latin competition. The event was held at the Spence School and, for the third consecutive

year, Team Nightingale triumphed by a large margin over teams from Brearley, Browning, Chapin, and Spence. Victorious students were, from left to right, Jenny Lu ’12, Olivia Herrington ’14, Sammy Bernstein ’11, Victoria Hall-Palerm ’11, Suzanne Rosen ’11, Solveig Gold ’13, and Grace McLeod ’13.

Past parent and founder of the Werner Feig Memorial Lecture Series Patti Kenner with Head of School Dorothy A. Hutcheson, Dr. Ruth Westheimer, and Rebecca Feig, daughter of Werner Feig.


children’s radio foundation

In the fall 2009 issue of The Blue Doors, we reported on the Children's Radio Foundation, which was spearheaded by parent Pam Michaelcheck and past parent Beth Sachs. Ms. Sachs recently wrote in with this update on the foundation's progress.

Since our previous article, CRF has been extremely busy rolling out programs across Africa and beyond. We work with local community organizations to set up and sustain youth radio projects that give a voice to young people. Community journalism initiatives, radio debates on youth violence, and environmental advocacy radio—these are just a few of our projects that are designed to build confidence, develop communication skills, and encourage critical thinking and global awareness among youth.

Over the past year, the CRF has worked closely with international partners UNICEF and MIT and has taken on an array of exciting projects. Here are some of the highlights: • The Radio Workshop, our nationwide youth radio

broadcast in South Africa, reaches over 300,000 regular listeners, as well as a worldwide audience online.

• As part of UNICEF’s climate change initiatives, CRF

trained over 200 young people from 44 countries as radio journalists at the Children’s Climate Forum in Copenhagen and at UNICEF’s Zambia Children’s Climate Conference.

• In World Cup in My Village, the CRF partnered with

UNICEF to provide youth media training and access to coverage of the FIFA World Cup 2010 for young people in Zambia and Rwanda.

• In Haiti, CRF trained young people in September to

produce radio programs about community issues in the run-up to the national election.

• In January 2011, CRF will establish a network of youth radio reporters in Tanzania, to spark a dialogue about the issues concerning young Tanzanians.

The CRF touches the lives of so many young people across the globe, and we are certain that 2011 will be the most exciting year yet for the CRF. We benefit greatly from the help of our student interns and from assistance from the Nightingale community, and we thank you for your constant support. If you would like to receive updates about new projects or find out how you can help, please visit our Web site at www.childrensradiofoundation.org.

speech and debate

Nightingale’s speech and debate team, Nightingale Forensics, has been busy over the past few months. With the expert guidance and unwavering support of faculty advisor LE Hartmann-Ting, the team is growing and having great success at tournaments both near and far.

Over President’s Day Weekend in February, 13 Upper School team members traveled to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where they joined 3,500 students from around the country for the 37th Annual Harvard National High School Invitational Forensics Tournament. The girls competed in three categories: Extemporaneous Speaking, Original Oratory, and Public Forum. The entire weekend provided an incredible experience for the participants to hone

Over 300 members of the Nightingale community came out on February 4, 2011 to celebrate the remarkable 30-year career of Athletic Director Jenny Smith, who announced earlier this year that she would retire at the end of the 2011 Sunny Days camp season. As Athletic Director, Ms. Smith developed Nightingale’s athletic program from the ground up and built Sunny Days, the perennially popular June camp celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, into the must-attend program of the early summer. She is also the consummate Nighthawk fan who personally appears at more games than one would think is physically possible.

their speech and debate skills and to learn from their peers from around the country. With well-deserved pride, Dr. Hartmann-Ting praised the team and their efforts, saying: “The girls were AMAZING on this trip. They took risks, worked hard, supported one another, and left with a tremendous amount of enthusiasm for the program.”

Nightingale Forensics returned to competition a few weeks later on March 9, when three teams of two attended a public forum qualifying tournament at Regis High School and enjoyed tremendous success. Debating the resolution “Plea Bargaining undermines the criminal justice system,” Francesca Haass ‘12 and Millicent Hennessey ‘12 were undefeated and earned a qualification to compete at the state competition in April! Also competing were Stephanie Wisowaty ‘12 and Katie Harris ‘12, who had a strong 2-1 record and are alternates for the state competition.

Alumnae, students, faculty, and current and past parents packed the auditorium to eat, drink, and pay tribute to Ms. Smith and her many contributions to Nightingale. At the event, Head of School Dorothy Hutcheson announced the creation of the Jenny Smith Nighthawks Fund, which will support our fitness programs and ensure that Ms. Smith’s legacy will be felt at Nightingale for many years to come. In addition, Ms. Smith became the first inductee into the newly-created Nightingale Athletic Hall of Fame, which will honor Nightingale alumnae for their outstanding contributions in athletics.

Throughout the joyful evening, it was clear that Ms. Smith has had a profound impact on the Nightingale community, and that she will be greatly missed.

thrives at nightingale

jenny smith farewell party

Current members of the physical education depart-ment join to celebrate Jenny Smith. From left to right: Lisa Campbell, Pam Charles, Chimé Wangdu, Rosanne Quinn, Alison Trotta, Jenny Smith, Leslie Spalding, Jeanne Finnigan-John, Eileen Saguirer, and GloriAnne DiToro.


nightingale and pale male

When Lower School Science teacher Karen Dressner passed away unexpectedly on Tuesday, January 25, the Nightingale community lost a treasured teacher and friend. Ms. Dressner believed in a hands-on approach to learning and scientific discovery, and her unbounded enthusiasm for her subject inspired a generation of Nightingale girls. Nightingale parent Jayne Sosland wrote the following article about Ms. Dressner’s third-grade field studies class, completing it less than two weeks before Ms. Dressner’s death.

With its great museums and diverse range of people and cultures, New York is, in my opinion, one of the most exciting places to raise a family. When I am asked by non-New York parents about the lack of direct access to nature in the city, I need only to point to Central Park as my reply. Although we may not have our own backyards, we have 843 acres filled with open green spaces, woods, lakes, and streams, all of which attract wildlife despite the park’s location in the middle of an urban landscape. The wonders of the park were not lost on Lower School science teacher Karen Dressner, who in 1995 created the Class III field study program to bring Nightingale girls outdoors for hands-on experiences. “I became convinced that it was essential for my young students to spend a few hours focused on nature and among trees, squirrels, herons, and the hundreds of natural surprises that the park offers throughout the year,” said Ms. Dressner. For over 15 years, Central Park and other local outdoor spaces have functioned as open classrooms in which Class III students have discovered the natural world at their doorstep. This story is about their observations of the famous red-tailed hawk Pale

Male and their unique meetings with documentarian Lincoln Karim.

Ten years ago, Lincoln Karim was walking in Central Park and saw people looking at some birds nesting atop an apartment building. They were red-tailed hawks, which were first spotted in the park in 1991 after a 100-year absence. He used his telescope to get a closer look, and was captivated:

“I saw the mother with her chicks and could not believe that one could get such an amazing view with such a small scope. I was instantly hooked from a photography standpoint.”

Since 2002, Mr. Karim has tirelessly documented the hawks and their trials and tribulations with his remarkable photography and videography talents. He has also set up an observation station dubbed the Hubble and generously offers passersby the opportunity to get a closer look at the birds. In the fall of 2004, a third-grade Nightingale student and her father happened upon Mr. Karim in the park and were so taken by his work that they passed on his information to Ms. Dressner, who then took her field study class to meet him. Mr. Karim took the girls bird watching and introduced them to Pale Male and Lola, the famed red-tailed hawks who resided in the façade of a Fifth Avenue building. The children were dazzled. The following week Mr. Karim sent photographs of the hawks to the students and the students sent a packet of thank-you notes to Mr. Karim.

Just three months later, on December 7, 2004, Pale Male’s nest was removed from its building at the direction of the building’s board. This was very upsetting to many naturalists and fans of the birds and attracted a great deal of media attention. Mr. Karim was heartsick, and he and several others protested in front of the building that had been Pale

Male’s home. In the emotional melee that ensued, Mr. Karim was arrested. To assist in his defense, Ms. Dressner was asked by Marie Winn, author of a book about Pale Male and Lola called Red Tails in Love, if the thank-you notes from the Nightingale girls could be used as character references for Mr. Karim. With surnames omitted, the notes were submitted to the court and the charges against Mr. Karim were eventually dropped. Soon, the birds returned to their roost and remain there today. Recently, Ms. Dressner took another group of Nightingale field study students to meet Mr. Karim, go bird watching, and see Pale Male and Lola from the Hubble. Again, the students were riveted.

“I want students to be out in the world, following their natural curiosity and having first-hand experiences,” said Ms. Dressner. For our daughters, the experience of observing these regal birds in the middle of Manhattan adds to the magic of a New York City childhood. by Jayne Sosland P’20

For more information on Pale Male, visit Mr. Karim’s Web site at www.palemale.com or Ms. Winn’s at mariewinnnaturenews.blogspot.com. There are also a variety of children’s books and documentaries available through the Nightingale library.

green schools alliance

Nightingale’s Environmental Board coordinated and hosted the Green Schools Alliance Fall Summit on November 15, 2010. The Green Schools Alliance is a nationwide coalition of schools that works to build a sustainable future through education and action projects, and Nightingale is an active member. Approximately 275 students, teachers, parents, and facilities managers attended the summit, which featured 25 vendors and organizations providing information and ideas for green living and showcasing environmentally-responsible products and practices.

Charlotte Cebula ’20 peers through the telescope as Catherine Hughes ’20 and Caroline Coudert-Morris ’20 listen to Ms. Dressner.

Hailey Huddleston ‘11, one of the co-heads of the Environmental Board, sits atop a small mountain of e-waste that Upper School students collected.

In addition, award-winning documentary filmmaker and environmental advocate Ian Cheney presented clips from his newest documentary, Truck Farm, which follows the progress of a portable herb and vegetable garden created in the back of a pickup truck. During the evening, attendees were also treated to a delicious dinner featuring local, organic foods prepared by Chef Vazquez and his team. As part of the lead-up to the summit, Environmental Board co-heads Sara Allan ’11 and Hailey Huddleston ’11 also spearheaded a highly-successful e-waste recycling drive, which collected over 10,000 pounds of e-waste!


When Ms. Birch told us in November that we would be singing with the Yale Whiffenpoofs, the Upper School Chorus practically erupted. The white-gloved a cappella group is justifiably famous, not least for its recent stint on NBC’s “The Sing Off” (where, as the Whiffenpoofs and the Nightingale singers agreed during our conversations, they were robbed). When we learned that the concert would also include prestigious a cappella groups from Princeton and Harvard, and that it was going to be held in none other than Alice Tully Hall, it seemed like nothing could get better. In the weeks leading up to the concert, we nervously learned our music and watched our future soulmates perform on TV. But despite the seemingly insurmountable expectations that built up among the Upper School singers in the weeks leading up to the concert, all of our hopes were more than met when we heard the first chords sung by the Whiffenpoofs themselves as they marched into our holiday party on the last day of school. They kindly treated us to an impromptu concert, and we treated them to raucous applause. From there, the following 36 hours were a nonstop blur of excitement. Rehearsals with Spence and the college groups started that Friday afternoon, December 17, when we were joined by not only the Whiffenpoofs but the Princeton Nassoons as well. We ran through the powerful song “It Gets Better,” written by Jay Kuo and Blair Shepard, which offers solace to gay teens struggling with their identity. It was to be the closing number of the entire performance, involving all three college groups and the two high school groups. As a special treat in the middle of that afternoon rehearsal, the writers of the song even came to talk to us and advise us on how to make the song even more meaningful to the audience.

But the best part came the following day, December 18, the day of the concert. Rehearsals started at Lincoln Center at 10 that morning, when we were finally joined by the singers from Harvard. After a break in the middle of the day when the college groups rehearsed their sets, the Nightingale and Spence girls came back at 5:00 that afternoon ready to perform. During downtime before the concert, we also managed to meet a bunch of the performers and make some new friends! I even got some beat-boxing lessons from a member of the Whiffenpoofs that I intend to try to put to good use with Bassless Accusations [Nightingale’s a capella group] this spring. It was refreshing to learn that these guys, whom we had formerly seen as minor celebrities, were just average college kids who got as much stage fright as we did. Finally, the performance began. Spence and Nightingale opened the concert together, singing a medley of three Christmas songs: “Happy Holidays,”

“White Christmas,” and “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” Then, once our set was over, we got to sit in the balcony and watch the entire concert. The performers were all amazingly good, and it was even better to be able to sit there while they were singing and go, “Hey, I know them!” Finally, when it was time for the final number, we all gathered on stage and really let loose with the power of the words. As soon as we looked out at the room, full to bursting with friends and family, we lost any inhibition or nervous-ness we might have been feeling. I, for one, was dancing like there was no tomorrow. The exhilaration of being on such an amazing stage, singing a song that really means something with so many amazing performers, was unlike anything I had ever experi-enced before. I was truly sad when the song was over. After the concert was over, we all left for winter vacation (not before snapping a few pictures with some Whiffenpoofs and buying a CD or two), but it was a privilege to have had such an enjoyable experience. by Victoria Hall-Palerm ‘11

chorus performs at

alice tully hall

Nightingale accompanist Jennifer Creek and chorus member Holly Hutcheson ’11 in front of the concert poster at Alice Tully Hall.

Over winter vacation in 2009, students in Nightingale’s Women’s Rights Club read Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl Wudunn’s book Half the Sky, an examination of oppression against women around the world. The book outlines, among other issues, the sex-trafficking of young girls throughout the world, which spoke to the club’s leaders—Lucia Perez ‘10, Hannah Cope ‘11, Annabel Buckfire ‘11, and advisor Susan Cohen-Nicole. They decided to do something about it, something that would galvanize the entire Nightingale community.

“While researching how we could help,” says Hannah, “we learned that education is instrumental in preventing human rights abuses, namely sex- trafficking.” The students examined many different education projects around the globe—including the work of Greg Mortenson, who spoke at Nightingale in 2010—but were inspired by the story of American Assistance for Cambodia, an organization that builds schools in rural Cambodia. They decided that this was a perfect way to get involved and, thus, “A School for a School” was born.

The goal was clear, if large in scale: raise $13,000 to build a school in Cambodia. These funds would be matched by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, allowing for the construction of a brand-new schoolhouse. Despite the size of the goal, it took the Nightingale community—through dances, bake sales, and a host of other fundraising activities spear-headed by the Women’s Rights Club—only six months or so to raise the full amount.

And, true to the desires of Annabel, Hannah, and Lucia, it was a schoolwide endeavor: “Every grade got involved in this project,” said Head of School Dorothy A. Hutcheson. “It was inspiring to see how

quickly and passionately our community jumped on board.”

Raising the money is just the beginning, of course, and students look forward to hearing about the construction of the new Nightingale-Bamford School in Cambodia. Working with Director of Community Service Kristen Mulvoy, the Women’s Rights Club will continue to educate the Nightingale community about the needs of girls in Cambodia, and they will be exploring ways to continue our partnership with the new Nightingale school and our support of its students.

For more information on American Assistance for Cambodia, please visit www.cambodiaschools.com. More information on the Half the Sky movement can be found at www.halftheskymovement.org.

a school for a school

Women’s Rights Club advisor Susan Cohen-Nicole with student leaders Hannah Cope ‘11 and Annabel Buckfire ‘11


Animal drawings by Lexi Whitehouse ‘19

trunk show

On December 7, 2010, the Sarah E. Hamilton Student Center was transformed into a shopping mecca at Nightingale’s second-ever Holiday Trunk Show, which raised more than $19,000 for the Scholarship Fund. Advertised throughout the neighborhood and open to the community, the Trunk Show was paradise for holiday shoppers and featured a wide variety of gift items from 34 vendors, including jewelry, apparel, stationery, gourmet foods, decorative pieces for the home, and much more. The talent of the Nightingale community was on full display as well, as more than a third of our vendors were alumnae, faculty, parents, and other friends of the school. The schoolhouse buzzed with excitement throughout the day, and shoppers felt great about the fact that they could add much-needed dollars to the Scholarship Fund and find terrific holiday gifts at the same time!

Mary Beth and Stephen Daniel, parents of India in Class V, recently donated an incredible 81 volumes from the Library of America (LOA) collection to the Joan Stitt McMenamin Library at Nightingale. The donation was made in honor of Mr. Daniel’s father, Ronald—who is board chairman of the LOA—on the occasion of his 81st birthday.

“This is such a meaningful gift,” said Head of School Dorothy A. Hutcheson. “There is no better

resource as we teach our girls about the power of their voice than this collection of preeminent authors, politicians, activitists, and storytellers.”

The Library of America was founded in 1979 with the goal of promoting and preserving American writing; they currently publish more than 200 volumes in their signature black cover, featuring authors from John Adams and Raymond Carver to Edith Wharton and Thornton Wilder. More information about the Library of America can be found at www.loa.org.

the gift of language

Members of the Daniel family pose with Head of School Dorothy A. Hutcheson and Head Librarian Diane Neary and two of the donated volumes. Back row, left to right: Stephen Daniel, Mary Beth Daniel, Ronald Daniel, Ms. Neary; front row, left to right: Ms. Hutcheson and India Daniel ‘18.

40 THE BLUE DOORS

Voic

esStefanie J. Sundel ‘98 is an associate at Labaton Sucharow, where she concentrates on prosecuting complex securities fraud cases on behalf of institutional investors.

I am a proud “alpha girl”1 of Generation Y and a litigation associate in a Manhattan-based law firm. I grew up with the fruits of feminism and am privileged to reap the plums of my grandmother’s and mother’s years in the proverbial trenches. When it comes to mentors, I am well-nourished by the know-how of more experienced, talented women in the law and beyond. I highlight here several particularly inspiring ones.

BALANCING FEmININITY AND POWER

Two visionary women entrepreneurs founded a school for girls in 1920, the year women won the right to vote. As we heard at school assemblies, Frances Nicolau Nightingale’s warmth and enthusiasm, joined with Maya Stevens Bamford’s rigor and intellectual ambition, created a school to educate the mind and heart together. They had a vision, defined it, refined it, and launched it into action with dedication to flawless execution. For generations, their leadership has helped girls, including me, become strong, independent, confident women in the workplace.

Although I never had the chance to personally meet Miss Nightingale or Miss Bamford, their legacy was brought to life for me (and other students for the past 19 years) by Dorothy A. Hutcheson, Head of School. The way Ms. Hutcheson carries out her ambitious mission is exemplary. Ms. Hutcheson rules with a firm fist while being irrefutably feminine and compassionate. She taught me that a woman can lead at an executive level effectively, like a warrior with an arsenal of attacks, without compromising her femininity and natural joyfulness. The fierce and kind women in the Nightingale-Bamford School community have made fantastic role models. Because of them, I was raised with amazing feminist energy. I am consequently outspoken and relish going head-to-head with male colleagues and adversaries every day. I am comfortable being the lone lady lawyer in a room, which is wonderfully rare. Every day I put to use the lessons learned from the extraordinary examples of Miss Nightingale, Miss Bamford, and Ms. Hutcheson.

SEPARATING PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL

In my third year of law school, I had the privilege of going to the U.S. Supreme Court to meet with Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. I prepared one question based on her adoration of animals. When given the opportunity, I humbly queried:

“Given your love of animals, do you think they should be afforded greater treatment under the law?” To my surprise, she explained without hesitation: “I love animals, but I don’t believe we should go changing our whole legal system for them; remember, always separate your personal from your professional.”

I try to use Justice O’Connor’s advice every day. Her mandate has allowed me to develop a professional perspective. Valued colleagues need not be friends, and ideological opposites can be close companions, such as Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Justice Antonin Scalia. Attorneys need not agree with conduct to zealously defend it; the Sixth Amendment applies to the most reprehensible. My fondness for dogs need not prevent me from endorsing U.S. property laws, and my adversaries can be mentors discretely, too. A woman can wear many hats, within and beyond her law firm.

DON’T BE AFRAID TO mAkE mISTAkES

In 1969, my grandmother decided to enter the workforce over my grandfather’s objection. At age 40, she became a drive-in bank teller at the Newark & Essex Commercial Bank. The only other

“lady teller” at the branch perfectly reconciled her balances daily. But my grandmother’s daily balances always showed slight discrepancies. My grandmother was envious of her female colleague’s perfect reconciliations—that is, until police came to arrest the other lady teller. A manager subsequently told my grandmother that nobody can reconcile perfectly every day, and that it was the red flag that led the bank to discover that she was “cooking the books.” Whenever my grandmother tells that story she advises: “Don’t be afraid to make your own mistakes. Sometimes mistakes are good.”

Thanks to my grandmother’s fearlessness, I feel free to make my own mistakes at work. Each one is a deposit into an experience account. Errors are portals to discovery. Because of my grandmother, I take risks readily, and subscribe to thought leadership. I speak up when others don’t, and when what I have to say is unpopular. If ever I start to chastise myself for my mistake of the minute, I call my grandmother to remind me that we can always learn from our mistakes.

The women of Generation Y have been lucky to be able to indulge in the lessons of a remarkable array of pioneering professional women, and we have benefited from their trailblazing.

1. See Dan Kindlon, Alpha Girls: Understanding the New American Girl and How She Is Changing the World (Rodale Books, 2006).

Reprinted with permission from the November 8, 2010 edition of the New York Law Journal © 2010 ALM Media Properties, LLC. All rights reserved.

Here we feature an essay by a member of the Nightingale community. If you would like to share some of your thoughts or experiences with others in the community, please contact us at [email protected].

Documents

e Blue Doors The Nightingale-Bamford SchoolVolume · PDF file÷e Blue Doors The Nightingale-Bamford School Volume 5 Issue 2 Spring 2011