The Purple and White news from ashley hall FALL 2014
ASHLEY HALL
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TABLE
of
CONTENTS
01 Ashley Hall Greetings 04 Living Our Hallmarks 06 The Rutledge House for Global Studies Officially Opens J IL L MUTI
08 The Loyalty Fund
Ashley Hall Head of School
10 2014 College Acceptance Map 12
Ashley Hall is for Life
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The Ashley Hall Sisterhood
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Women Leading and Excelling
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Reunion Class Photos
Ashley Hall GREETINGS
20 Ashley Hall Alumnae in the News
Each new academic year brings fresh ideas and evolving
22 Class Notes
approaches to our purposeful work at Ashley Hall.
BOAR D
of
2014–2015
It is what keeps our school energized and relevant. This year, we are
TRUSTEES
excited to introduce our new fall newsletter, The Purple and White, which provides a snapshot of campus life and Ashley Hall Alumnae news early
OFFICERS
Kevin W. Mooney
Chairman | Wade Scott Parker
Anne Tamsberg Pope
in the school year. A newly designed and carefully curated Perspectives
Vice Chairman | Brett Hildebrand
Barton A. Proctor
magazine will hit mail boxes this spring with in-depth feature stories
Secretary | Heidi Ward Ravenel ’74
Dr. Jerry Reves (Immediate Past Chairman)
Treasurer | Hugh C. Lane, Jr.
John E. Thompson
MEMBERS-AT-LARGE
TRUSTEES EMERITI
Suzanne Buck Cantey ’95
Mary Agnes Burnham Hood
Emmie Aichele Dawson ’70
Martha Rivers Ingram ’53
Ann W. Dibble ’70
Patricia T. Kirkland
Randolph J. Friedman
Elizabeth Rivers Lewine ’54
responsible and prepared to meet the challenges of society with confidence.
Kenneth W. Harrell
Karen Jenkins Phillips ’79
Enjoy the inaugural issue of The Purple and White and I look forward to
Philip L. Horn, Jr.
J. Conrad Zimmerman, Jr.
Laurie A. Host ’73 Elizabeth Powers Lindh ’67
around Ashley Hall programs and personalities. Ideas and approaches, strategic initiatives and programmatic priorities all will evolve, but one thing will always remain true and serve as our continuing touchstone — our mission to produce educated women who are independent, ethically
seeing you on campus soon.
HEAD OF SCHOOL | Jill Swisher Muti
Janet Pearlstine Lipov
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Cover: As part of the Ashley Hall Global Studies Program, Upper School students explored Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands last summer.
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Purple and White editor, Paula Harrell, harrellp@ashleyhall.org
ASHLEY HALL
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An extraordinary school...
What it means to be Ashley Hall women...
Join us to contribute your strengths and skills...
S C O T T PA R K E R
R H E T T R A M S AY O U T T E N ’ 8 2
Ashley Hall Board of Trustees Chairman
Ashley Hall Alumnae Association President
E M I LY B A R R E T T A N D M I C H E L FA L I E R O
non-financial support for other activities such as special event support, faculty and staff appreciation, recognition of artists and athletes, among others. Like Ashley Hall, the Parents’ Association is ever changing and improving. Please join us to contribute your strengths and skills.
Ashley Hall Parents’ Association Co-Presidents
As I observed my daughter Amelia, now a junior at Ashley Hall, enthusiastically prepare for a new school year this past August, I reflected on why I serve this extraordinary school. There are many privileges of Board membership, however the one that resonates most for me is our front row seat at all commencements. As I saw the now young alumnae of Ashley Hall walk this past May, listened to the incredibly poignant commencement speakers and reflected on our school, I was moved by several thoughts. Ashley Hall is fulfilling its mission and doing so at an extremely high level. Society is embracing women in leadership roles as never before and our world is better for it. And the Ashley Hall education, in all its forms and facets, and beyond any other school in the Southeast, is positioning graduates to profoundly enhance the world in which we live. I hope you would agree it is wonderful to be at Ashley Hall. 2
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The Ashley Hall Alumnae Association is off to a great start and looking forward to an exciting year. Ashley Hall Alumna and author Margaret Bradham Thornton ’77 will headline the Writers Series on November 4 discussing her new novel Charleston, and her literary career. Of course the annual Oyster and Pig Roast which the Alumnae Association cohosts with the Parents’ Association is always a sensational evening and is scheduled for February 6. We will round out the year with Alumnae Weekend, April 17–18. Funds raised through the Alumnae Association support a partial scholarship for an Ashley Hall Upper School legacy student—an alumna’s daughter or granddaughter who otherwise could not attend. Helping to provide an excellent education to a worthy student allows us to realize what it means to be Ashley Hall women.
We are pleased to serve as the Ashley Hall Parents’ Association Co-Presidents this year and even more excited with the growing slate of dedicated mothers and fathers chairing committees, representing divisions and serving on the Executive Council as officers and liaisons. The work of the Parents’ Association takes place year-round and improves the experience of all students, as well as faculty and staff. In 2014–2015, we celebrate the success of the school’s track team by providing the necessary funding for a new, competitionworthy track at the school’s Johns Island Sports Center. The Parents’ Association will also complete its two-year pledge to the school’s Global Studies Program Initiative, and will continue to fund much of the professional development efforts that keep our excellent faculty on top of their game. In addition to fundraising, the Parents’ Association provides
From its founding more than 100 years ago, Ashley Hall has championed their original mission: To produce educated women who are independent, ethically responsible, and prepared to meet the challenges of society with confidence.
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L I VI N G our H A L L MARK S
Last June, a group of rising 8th, 9th and 10th graders traveled to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands for a unique study abroad experience. A perfect example of the cross-curricular emphasis of the Global Studies Program, this trip melded linguistic study with the life sciences. The girls began their two week adventure in the beautiful city of Quito where they lodged with a host family, speaking only Spanish during their time there.
A signature component of Ashley Hall’s innovative
The following week took this WOR L D LY group through the Amazon
arts curriculum, the school’s strings program
Jungle and eventually to the sandy beaches of the Galapagos Islands
celebrates 10 years of musical excellence this year. Many of the program’s first students are now in 9th grade! C REATIV E and committed to their art,
Danielle Feerst ’12, was recently profiled by Forbes.com for her impressive and C O LL A B O R AT I V E work fighting
these young musicians performed for the opening
autism. She is a junior at Tufts University and also the Chief
of The Rutledge House for Global Studies which
Executive Officer of AutismSees, a small business startup that
included a rousing version of Coldplay’s La Vida and
develops computer applications to assist those with autism in
an ethereal performance of the traditional Chinese
making successful public presentations. PQV, Danielle! See the
piece, Jasmine Flower.
full story on page 20.
Ashley Hall Senior Projects are
where they studied the biodiversities of these incredible ecosystems.
one of many programs that distinguish our school and students. This selfdirected, yearlong research project and class—actually counting for an English or science credit depending on the subject—requires from participating students dedication,
D I S C E RN M E N T and the ability to eloquently present and defend their work in front of faculty and the Upper School student body. No small task indeed. Nine seniors are working hard this year on topics that range from bioengineering, to gender equality. Inspired by the book The Gender Gap and her time volunteering for South Carolina Secretary of State candidate Ginny Deerin, Jennifer Barron’s project focuses on the reasons behind the lack of women holding political office.
Lower School students authentically demonstrate
C O M PA S S I O N and learn empathy through their support of service projects such as Crayons Matter. A not-for-profit organization, Crayons Matter, provides much needed school supplies such as crayons, paper and backpacks to children in struggling regions in Africa. These young, but perceptive, students proposed and sponsored a non-uniform day fundraiser on September 24 raising over $800 for this important cause.
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This year in the Ross Early Education
Coding is cool! Following closely on the heels of Lane Hall’s successful
Center, the Pre-Kindergarten students
robotics program, computer coding comes to life for Ashley Hall 5th and
are P URP O S E FUL through
6th grade students. Working with their own Arduino—the microcontroller
participation in the school-wide
found in all computers—the girls use coding to solve everyday problems,
initiative to compost all leftovers each
just like engineers! Projects include the development of providing an
day after lunch. They work as a team to
I N TE L L I G E N T irrigation system for the Intermediate School’s
combine food items for composting.
medicinal garden and much more throughout the year. ASHLEY HALL
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R U T LEDGE H OUS E for GLO B AL STUDIE S Officially OPE NS The
After 18 months of planning and meticulous renovation, Ashley Hall’s Rutledge House for Global Studies located at 179 Rutledge Avenue officially opened on Friday, September 5, to a joyful audience of faculty, administrators, members of the Board of Trustees, special invited guests and students— including international boarding students from China, Germany and England.
L IZZ IE RUS S L ER ’ 16 Rotary International Exchange Student who spent her sophomore year in Switzerland and guest speaker at The Rutledge House for Global Studies Opening.
The Rutledge House will serve as the residential home for the school’s international boarders as well as provide classroom space for Upper School humanities classes. It is considered
“I realize that to be worldly is to be open, open to meeting new people, open to new experiences, and even open to the curveballs that life throws at you. The curveball of [the challenges of living in] Switzerland ended up being a home-run. I cherish every second of my year abroad.”
the hub of the Global Studies Program, Ashley Hall’s signature program promoting global awareness through cross-curricular initiatives. Financial support of the Global Studies Program Initiative has been tremendous with $2.8 million already committed towards a $4.5 million goal. But there’s still work to be done. The Global Studies Program Initiative provides funding to allow the school to meet three critical needs: To create a restricted fund to maintain the property; to support curricular initiatives within the program including faculty and programmatic development and student travel; and to renovate and repurpose this historic home.
To learn more about Ashley Hall’s Global Studies Program Initiative, contact Catherine Newman, Director of Institutional Advancement, at newmanc@ashleyhall.org or call (843) 720-2886.
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A LYS S A YA NG ’15
B OARD ME MB E RS ANNE P OP E AND
Second year international boarding student from Shenzhen, China, Ashley Hall Student Council member and guest speaker at The Rutledge House for Global Studies Opening.
ANN W. D IB B L E ’ 7 0
“I feel that I speak for all of the international student residents of The Rutledge House. We thank Ashley Hall so very much, and we are grateful that we now have unlimited opportunities to be a part of our Ashley Hall family. We feel that it is our responsibility to pave the way for all future international boarding students at Ashley Hall and we are really excited. Thank you!”
“Our Global Studies Program addresses the power of communication through strong, vibrant linguistic study and Upper School electives such as “International Law”, “Asia Studies”, “Race , Gender and Equity”— through co-curricular activities like the Model United Nations, linguistic immersion programs, and meaningful opportunities to travel and explore our world through exchanges with school communities in other countries. These shared experiences build our character and perspective, and through them, we gain clarity and greater understanding of the world around us.” J IL L MUTI, Ashley Hall Head of School ASHLEY HALL
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P QV to A SHL EY HA L L’S Loyalty Fund DONORS! Thank you to everyone who gave in 2013–2014. Your generosity shattered our goal of $755,000, providing more than $920,000 to enhance the education at Ashley Hall—thank you. It has also given us the confidence to declare a $1 million goal for the 2014–2015 Ashley Hall Loyalty Fund. It is an ambitious, milestone goal. It is something no other independent school in the Lowcountry has ever achieved. It is believing that our innovative and extraordinary program is one of the best in the country and that every girl should have the ability to reach her full potential. It’s what we call the Ashley Hall Advantage, and it’s what sets us apart.
YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE LOYALTY FUND:
“The Ashley Hall community has never shied away from a challenge,” says Kenny Harrell, who with his wife Jeannie are our brave Loyalty Fund Chairs for this milestone year. “This year’s goal of $1 million will help Ashley Hall expand its reach even more by enhancing operations and helping to bridge the gap between tuition and the actual cost per student so that an Ashley Hall education is available to more Lowcountry girls.”
• Help classroom walls vanish as the school’s campus expands through experiential opportunities. Signature programs such as the school’s Offshore Leadership Program, the Summer Neuroscience Institute, and numerous field trips throughout the year are realized with the help of Loyalty Fund contributions. • Support competitive salaries to attract and retain the very best faculty and provide funding for innovative programs, such as the new coding and robotics program for Intermediate School students. With your support, the $1 million goal is well within reach. Thank you to those who have already contributed to this year’s Loyalty Fund. To make your gift for this year, please visit www.ashleyhall. org/online-giving.php or use the enclosed envelope. For more information on how you can help, please feel free to contact Sarah Evans, Director of the Loyalty Fund and Donor Relations, at evanss@ashleyhall.org or (843) 965-8547.
W E CA N’T IMAGINE A Y E AR W IT H OUT TH E L OYA LT Y FUN D, A ND W IT H YOUR SUPP ORT, WE WON’T H AVE TO! 8
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C O N G RATUL ATIONS AS H LEY HALL Class of 2014
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ACCEP TED AT NEARLY 100 E XCEP TIONAL COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES, B OTH NATIONALLY AND ABR OAD
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AS H LEY HALL is for L I FE This past May, the Class of 2014 became the latest to join the sisterhood of Ashley Hall Alumnae, bringing with them a large dose of fresh-faced enthusiasm and preparedness for their next step in life, the college experience. In addition to the coveted Ashley Hall diploma, each girl received a pearl and amethyst pin that is intended to serve as a touchstone and remembrance of her time at Ashley Hall. During graduation, the pin is placed on the girls’ white dresses by a special alumna they have chosen, often a sister, mother, grandmother, mentor or friend. It’s a generational bonding and harkens to the pinning of the members of our Jubilee Society, who could be described as the matriarchs of the Ashley Hall sisterhood.
C L AS S OF 2014
Each year, members of the class celebrating its 50th reunion are inducted into The Jubilee Society during a special reception and ceremony over Alumnae Weekend. This year members of the Class of 1964 were the inductees, and Jill Muti welcomed each member of the class with their special Jubilee Society pin. The bond that Ashley Hall Alumnae share—an education forged under the school’s timeless mission—is evident in the lives they live and celebrated by these milestone events. C L AY TON BUC KA LOO A ND JENNET R OBI NS ON A LTERMA N ’70
“The beauty of the Ashley Hall mission is that our focus goes beyond the next step in a student’s educational journey. Our mission is defined by how our students live their lives during their time on campus and afterwards. There’s no greater group of people that live that mission than Ashley Hall Alumnae.” JI L L MUT I A N D FER N K AR ESH HU R ST 12
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JI LL MUTI , Ashley Hall Head of School
ASHLEY HALL
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C E LE B RATING the A SHLEY HALL SI ST E RHO OD Ashley Hall women hold many attributes with a strong desire to give back being high on the list. This philanthropic mindset
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is something that is nurtured during their time as students with campus fundraisers being held for non-profit organizations such as the Ronald McDonald House and Water Missions International to name a few. This passion continues each year when they come together to celebrate their Ashley Hall friendships over Alumnae Weekend. One of the most anticipated events of the weekend, the Friday night party and silent auction, raises money for the Alumnae Scholarship Fund which supports a partial scholarship for an Upper School legacy student—an alumna’s daughter or granddaughter who may otherwise not be able to attend. Additionally, money raised also funds the pearl and amethyst graduation pins that are given out at commencement
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each year. Auction co-chairs, Elizabeth W. Royall ’05 and EB Ravenel ’89 and party co-chairs Marion Thomas Gilchrist ’83 and Molly Waring ’02 along with their respective committees worked tirelessly on this incredible evening, breaking previous records of money raised by an Alumnae Weekend event, over $15,000.
1. Cindee Adams Beerman ’79, Pam Pugh Inveen ’79,
Cyndy Thompson Applegate ’79
2. Patty C. Jones ’81 3. Elizabeth W. Royall ’05, Ellen Neff Hassell ’06, Kathleen C. Hay ’06, Annie Hutson McEwen ’05, Jane G. Werrell ’06
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4. Perusing auction items 5. Grandmother, Patience Davies Walker ’51, Granddaughter,
Eliza B. Grimball ’09, and Mother, Betsy Walker Grimball ’77
6. Elizabeth Hood Willis ’89, Llewellyn Hood Kassebaum ’54 7. Guests enjoying the evening 8. Kat Pearce Phillips ’81, Rhett Ramsay Outten ’82,
Caroline H. Ragsdale ’82, Cornelia Jones Graham ’87,
Martha Thornhill Walters ’82
9. Mrs. Margaret Tenney and Kat Hendrix ’81 10. Cashion Drolet ’97, Cornelia Jones Graham ’87 14
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WO ME N LE ADIN G and E XCE LLING
2014 Ashley Hall Alumnae Weekend Award Winners
CRANDALL CLOSE BOWLES ’65 PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AWARD
Honors an alumna who has achieved significant accomplishments in her chosen profession . 2014 AWARD RECIPIENT:
FERN KARESH HURST ’64 COMMUNITY VOLUNTEER AWARD
ELISABETH L. MARCHANT ’64
You don’t have to look far at Ashley Hall to see extraordinary women doing extraordinary things. From last spring’s Alumnae Weekend to the 2014 Commencement Ceremony, these women inspired and encouraged those around them to reach for their goals.
Honors an alumna who exhibits outstanding volunteer and community service.
Elisabeth is a lifelong entrepreneur and has been consistently recognized for her visionary
2014 AWARD RECIPIENT:
leadership and business acumen.
JAN GESTEFELD MOORE ’53 Jan has been an active member of the Charleston community JES S I CA S C H NORR, 1st Honor Graduate now attending Clemson University as a National Scholar
“Every single one of you is already incredibly accomplished. We are dreamers, inventing the future. Among the future graduates of this class, we have a future neurosurgeon, best-selling authors, a CIA spy. In 2044, the President of the United States will be elected from this senior class. Who knows? We may even have the first female Pope.” (Excerpted from Jessica’s commencement speech.)
through her acting career since she was eight years old. She performed during her time at Ashley Hall, acting in every dramatic performance possible. She was involved in the leadership of the Drama Club, serving as president her senior year. This past winter, Jan returned to the Ashley Hall stage to perform in the school’s musical revue, Just a Reminder, taking on in humorous fashion Pyramus’ death scene from Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Jan is adept at either comedy or tragedy and has performed in 45 plays over a span of 70 years.
Early in her career as president and CEO of her family’s manufacturing business, she opened significant new markets and expanded the company’s reach into new regions and product lines. She then entered the publishing and media world, launching her first endeavor with b3 Magazine, a national technology publication targeted at C-level executives. As an outgrowth of her lifelong passion to see women advance in the workplace, she launched Womenetics in 2009—a passion built on an education that fostered independent thinking women. Elisabeth is a graduate of Converse College with additional academic work in the U.S. and abroad at the university systems of Paris at The Sorbonne, Montreal at McGill University and New York City at The Parsons School of Environmental Design.
DEWAR GORDON HOLMES ’26 DISTINGUISHED ALUMNA AWARD MARTHA RIVERS INGRAM ’53 EXCELLENCE IN THE ARTS AWARD
Honors an alumna who has demonstrated dedicated volunteer service to Ashley Hall.
Honors an alumna who has been recognized by her peers for outstanding work in the performing or visual arts.
2014 AWARD RECIPIENT:
M A RT H A T E I C HN ER , CBS Sunday Morning correspondent and Ashley Hall 2014 Commencement Speaker with Dr. Jerry Reves
“You’ve heard this I’m sure, but it’s worth saying again, college isn’t just about getting a job. Or fun and games. College is about getting an education. It should be a playground for the mind…a laboratory for discovery. It should be a kind of personal how-to manual for taking on life. It won’t give you all the answers. It will give you tools to ask the right questions. At Ashley Hall you
MA EL A SI NGH , 2nd Honor Graduate now attending Washington University in St. Louis
“According to the ancient Greeks, diamonds were thought to
competed with one another as equals, without ever having to
have been the toughest materials on Earth—unbreakable,
question your right to excel. In college and, probably graduate
unconquerable, unable to be tamed. The girls of Ashley
school, not to mention life…don’t forget to keep doing just
Hall are like diamonds, precious gemstones, aptly named.
that. There is all kinds of research showing that women sell
Twinkling and shining simply for being who they are born to be.
themselves short academically and in their careers. DON’T!
Divine sparks in the universe, diamonds in the rough. With our
Be confident and play to win. Ambition isn’t a bad word.”
full potentials that will be unleashed soon enough.” (Excerpted
(Excerpted from Martha Teichner’s commencement speech.)
from Maela’s commencement speech.)
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BETSY CHEEK HOWLAND ’74
2014 AWARD RECIPIENT:
Betsy possesses all the qualities of
MARY MARONEY WALKER ’64
Dewar Gordon Holmes, ’26, as, she
Mary is a highly accomplished
has given selflessly to Ashley Hall
visual artist with works included
for decades. The word “no” seems
in numerous museum collections.
to be missing from her vocabulary
Through her support of other artists and art forms, she has
as she has volunteered consistently and constantly for many years. Her list of volunteer activities is extensive: Betsy worked
inspired many art projects. Mary has created works that
with the Alumnae House Tour every year it existed; co-chaired
have been translated into modern dance and has supported
the Card Party; co-chaired the Oyster and Pig Roast; served
the modern dance world with artwork for various special
as the boarder representative on the Alumnae Association
events and fundraisers. She maintains the Scroll Project
Board; has served as her class agent; works the Loyalty Fund
which consists of works by a slate of international artists
Phonathon year after year; and has been a dedicated volunteer
depicting the subject of war. She has taught visual arts,
for the horse show for seven years. In addition to the many
conducted workshops and has been a part of the Charleston
hours of volunteer time she has committed to the school,
arts’ community for decades. She is an example of the forward
Betsy is the parent of an alumna and has been a dedicated staff
progress made by Ashley Hall Alumnae in the art world on the
member at Ashley Hall for over 20 years.
international scene. ASHLEY HALL
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CELEBRATING 60TH REUNION
CELEBRATING 40TH REUNION
FRONT ROW: Topsy Herrin Barone-Thompson, Marion Goodstein Goodman, Barbara Johnson Baker, Rachel Mazursky Goodman
FRONT ROW: Lynné Byrd Harris,Cindy Jenkins, Julie Welch Hock, Lisa Darden BACK ROW: Ann Colwell Fuller, Leonie Harvin Gill, Betsy Cheek Howland, Heidi Ward Ravenel
BACK ROW: Sue Hagood Overton, Bobbie Gail Brown Rothschild, Llewellyn Hood Kassebaum, Elizabeth Rivers Lewine
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CELEBRATING 30TH REUNION
’64
’ 74
Jennifer Muller Koches, Ama Thornhill Couch, Elaine Conradi Eustis
’79
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CELEBRATING 20TH REUNION
CELEBRATING 5TH REUNION
Rhett Templeton Ambrite, Nancy Hood Egleston, Sara Pendarvis Bazemore, Olga Gomer Hernandez
Mariana R. Hay, Vaughn W. Connolly, Eliza B. Grimball
’89
CELEBRATING 50TH REUNION
CELEBRATING 35TH REUNION
CELEBRATING 25TH REUNION
FRONT ROW: Fern Karesh Hurst, Zan Deas Pratt, Susan Paul Firestone, Bettina Tillman Middleton, Jan Frampton Welch, Donna Gestefeld Williams, Bevie McGee Hardy, Jean Rae Herrin Hinton, Louise Belcher Hinton
FRONT ROW: Pam Pugh Inveen, Anne Scott Wallace, Victoria Beck Newman, Cindee Adams Beerman, Ginny Zemp, Carolyn Evans Swan, Tory Davis Champion, Jenks McDowell Bailey
FRONT ROW: Angie Hewitt Chakeris, EB Ravenel, Sarah Downs Blanchard
BACK ROW: Eunice Smith Logan, Anne de la Morandiere Cooper, Peggy M. Burnett, Peggy Pringle Schachte, Debbie Bateman McCabe, Lisa A. Morice, Mary Maroney Walker, Tricia Zimmerman Allen, Ruth Makemsom McCullough, Elisabeth L. Marchant, Terry Hinkle Fairman, Stanley Smith Reahard, Harriet Christenberry Heacock, Sarah A. Cruise, Toni Paul Jackson
BACK ROW: Felicia Morrison Huger, Jean Simpson Knowlton, Lynda E. Woerner, Heather Pennington Downs, Lise Loux Budd, Sallie Peeke DiMuzio, Elizabeth Kirkland Cahill, Catherine Calcote Fischer, Cyndy Thompson Applegate, Nancy Nuckles Colyar
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’94
BACK ROW: Lisa Theiler Bell, Helen Ann Lowenfield Harper, Caroline Welch West, Charlotte E. Evans, Julia Lake Shealy, Melissa Moise McLeod
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JUBILEE SOCIETY
CELEBRATING 10TH REUNION
Drew E. McKnight, Katie M. Hubler
ASHLEY HALL
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ASHLEY HALL ALUMNAE
IN THE NEWS MACON BIANUCCI ’13 was recently featured in U.S. News
DANIELLE FEERST ’12 was
& World Report’s popular “Best College Issue” in an article
recently profiled on FORBES.com
focused on the rising popularity of the gap year among U.S.
for her work with people with autism.
high school students. Macon worked in Africa for a year before heading to Northwestern University this past August.
Hope for People with Autism: AutismSees
Here’s more about Danielle. She says, “I’m a rising junior
The Value of a Gap Year
BY NICK MORGAN
sing and dance and I’m a sailor. I was on the sailing team at Tufts freshman year, but now I teach math and science through
BY MARGARET LOFTUS
Occasionally, a story comes along that’s so great I have to share it. Meet Danielle Feerst. She’s the CEO of AutismSees, a startup dedicated to creating technology—apps—to help people with autism make successful public presentations. She’s a rising junior at Tufts University. The first app is iPresentWell, and it’s in Beta in the app store. It’s fully functional, but the AutismSees team hopes to add more functionality—user eye contact and facial recognition tracking—through a Seedkicks fundraiser. On the scale of worthwhile projects, this one is a YES. They’ve raised about $3,500 of a hoped-for $15,000. Danielle says, “We are hoping to gather user feedback and design feedback with our summer trial partner, Goodwill of Silicon Valley. Goodwill is piloting a program to hire and train youth with higher functioning ASD in job interviews and social skills, that they are rolling out this summer. So we have kept in contact with them and are developing a new interactive web application and feature changes for our iOS app this fall. All
at Tufts studying engineering psych and minoring in ELS. I
STOMP—which is the Student Teacher Outreach Mentorship Program at the Center for Engineering at Tufts. This fall I’ll be dancing and continuing to participate in my sorority on campus, Chi Omega. I’m from Charleston, SC and I currently am the CEO of AutismSees and work as a summer engineering intern at Draper Lab MIT.” I asked her about her experience as a public speaker. She recalls, “My first experience public speaking was in 5th grade—I did a 4H state and district pubic speaking contest where I won a Gold Medal at each position going against other students who were 13 and 14 years old. I remember loving the contest and overcoming any anxiety pretty early on. I also did Model UN and Mock Trial—where I was voted Best Attorney at the state level for my high school, Ashley Hall. I participated in all my school’s plays and was active in musical theater, Show Choir, our high school choir, and a community performing arts center. So I’ve always had a passion for theater, public presentation, and speaking.”
money we raise on Seedkicks will go to our development and fall
Excerpted from “Hope for People with Autism: AutismSees” on
research at Tufts University.”
FORBES.com, September 4, 2014.
MARGARET
ELIZABETH SCARBOROUGH
BRADHAM
’11, a rising senior at the University
THORNTON ’77
of South Carolina, was profiled
was featured in the
August 15 in The Post and Courier for her summer job of
September issue of Vanity Fair’s popular “Hot Type” list for
performing as Taylor Swift in the Legend’s Concert Series in
her new novel, Charleston.
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
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community relations manager at education solutions provider Hobsons in Arlington, Virginia. High school students used to have the time to sample a variety of electives,
While most of her high school friends were cracking the
she notes, but they’re “now under pressure to take advanced
books and tailgating at college football games last year,
courses in every subject for all four years of high school. This
Macon Bianucci of Charleston, South Carolina, was deep in
gives them little time to explore their true interests.”
the African bush, rescuing injured and snared wildlife and
Recent Cornell University grad Wes Cornell says his self-
learning how to track game. College was in her plans —just
designed gap year doing scientific research around the world
not quite yet. After being accepted at several top-tier schools
certainly matured him and shaped his academic focus. In
the previous fall, the graduate of Ashley Hall, a private all-
Costa Rica, he researched the health care of workers at coffee
girls school, decided to defer her admission to Northwestern
farms through Duke University’s Organization for Tropical
University in Evanston, Illinois. “I wanted a break from
Studies and did a program on sustainable development
studying,” she says. She also wanted to try living in Africa and
and tropical ecology with the environmental study abroad
decided this “was a good time to do it.”
organization the School for Field Studies. He interned with
Long a rite of passage for affluent Brits, the so-called gap
the Colombia Nature Conservancy in Cartagena, and did
year—time spent traveling, volunteering or working between
research on viral pathways at a summer camp program at
high school and college—is now really catching on among
the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel. Once he got to
U.S. students. A survey by the American Gap Association,
Cornell, where he studied ecology and agriculture policy,
a nonprofit that accredits companies that coordinate these
he noticed a lot of classmates struggling to find themselves.
stints, found that enrollment in respondents’ programs
“Having had time off, I was able to figure out what really
climbed 27 percent from 2012 to 2013.
interested me,” he says.
Burnout is one of the top reasons students take a
Counselors typically encourage students weighing a year
break, according to an independent study of 280 gap year
off to apply to college anyway, while resources are easily
participants by education policy experts Karl Haigler and
accessible, and defer acceptance if they decide to go for it. On
Rae Nelson, authors of “Gap Year, American Style: Journeys
the other hand, students who are unsure of their college plans
Toward Learning, Serving, and Self- Discovery.” Subjects in
(or readiness) may benefit from putting off applying.
the Haigler and Nelson study also cited a desire to find out more about themselves, a luxury in today’s hypercompetitive culture, says Kim Oppelt, a former school counselor, now
Excerpted from “The Value of a Gap Year” in U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges 2015.
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CL A S S N OTES
Please send updates, announcements and news to Kristen
Ashley Hall Alumnae we want to hear from you!
online at www.ashleyhall.org/alumnae.php.
BIRTHS ’91 Heather Garris Pope and her husband, Ed, welcomed a beautiful baby girl—Evelyn Hollis Pope—to their family on July 3, 2014. ’02 Lauren Dumas Schryver and husband, Tim, welcomed a baby girl, Madison Reade Schryver, on October 10, 2013. CLASS NOTES ’49 Jeanne Harrison MacDonald and husband, Charles, will celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary in October. ’64 Tricia Zimmerman Allen was recently awarded the prestigious Oak Leaf Award by the Nature Conservancy. The award recognizes trustees and volunteers who have made extraordinary commitments that help the global organization achieve conservation objectives. Tricia has been a board member for The Nature Conservancy in Georgia since 1993 and was chair from 2000–2003. Duchess Fitch Crowley has retired after 27 years of federal service and moved to Tennessee to be a full-time grandmother. Elisabeth L. Marchant is Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Womenetics, a global business resources and media company that advocates for women’s leadership at all levels of business and society. Her business is headquartered in Atlanta, with an office in Chicago. She has been married for 35 years to David Jensen, also an entrepreneur, and they enjoy spending time at their mountain home in South Carolina and traveling to Europe, especially France, when they are able. 22
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Leinheiser at leinheiserk@ashleyhall.org or submit them
’65 Jane Gregg Pulling has been married since 1976 to Verne Pulling. She is a retired school superintendent and is currently active in advocacy on children’s issues. Jane serves on a number of state boards including the League of Women Voters.
’70 Frederica Mathewes-Green will have her 10th book, Welcome to the Orthodox Church: An Introduction to Eastern Christianity, published in February. She is also the proud grandmother of 13 grandchildren.
’67 Gay Murrill has three great children: son, Wade Howey, III, currently resides in Broomfield, Colorado and works in the computer tech field; son, Hugh Howey, author of the best-selling book WOOL, resides in Jupiter, Florida; and daughter, Mollie Howey, resides in Charleston and works on movie and TV sets on shows such as Army Wives and Reckless, to name a few. All the grandchildren have four legs. She recently closed Knit in Charleston and relocated to the cool mountains of North Carolina.
’71 Missy Craver Schenck and her husband, Sandy, co-owners of the Green River Preserve, a co-ed summer camp in Cedar Mountain focusing on connecting children and nature, were honored by Carolina Mountain Land Conservancy as winners of the 2014 Lela McBride Award. The award, presented at CMLC’s annual meeting at Camp Tekoa, recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to land conservation and stewardship in the region. Previous winners have included North Carolina Representative Chuck McGrady, Agriculture Secretary Steve Troxler and Congressman Charles Taylor.
’68 Sallie Middleton Parker and her husband, John, have 11 grandchildren (eight of which are her own biological grandchildren and three are through marriage). She teaches Hypno Breathing to expectant mothers. Sallie also serves on a board to help preserve a slave village at Mansfield Plantation in Georgetown, South Carolina. She loved spending time with Mary Anderson ’68, Adele Daniels George ’68, Mary Ellison Beatley ’68, Barbara Street ’68, Mary Lou Hassell ’68, and Sara Bowers Bowen ’68 this past year! Lynn Foskett Pierson is honored to have been chosen as one of 53 artists—out of 600 applicants—to show her work at the Boca Raton Museum of Art’s 63rd Annual All Florida Competition and Exhibition. Over 1,600 pieces of work were submitted to the jurying process and 83 were installed.
’76 Marjorie Ross Conway currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia with her husband, John, and works for the Coca-Cola Company. Her son, Ross, is graduating from the University of Georgia this year and her daughter, Katherine, is a junior at Georgia Southern University. Beth Driggers Mevers married Roy E. Mevers, III in 1990. They have three children, the youngest of which finished her junior year at the University of South Carolina in May. She is a proud grandmother to two grandchildren, Emma Grace Mevers and R. E. Mevers, Jr. She recently returned from a wonderful trip to Costa Rica with her husband and youngest daughter. While there she spent time surfing, fishing, kayaking and of course, sunning!
Mary Carter Moore is proud to share that five years ago her oldest son married an Ashley Hall girl that he met at Clemson. They now have a beautiful daughter. ’77 Margaret Bradham Thornton is an expert on the great playwright Tennessee Williams. She edited his abundant letters and gained extraordinary insights into the writer’s style and psyche. Now Margaret has written a fiction of her own, a novel called Charleston. It is much more than a romance, for it delves into the issues of identity, place, memory and more. The novel was released in July 2014. ’83 Caroline C. Lesesne has been named a private banker and senior vice president at First Federal Bank. She has 27 years of banking industry experience. ’84 Elizabeth Felder McDermott is now working at Home Instead Senior Care, a non-medical home care company that provides in-home care givers for patients. ’87 Stephanie Pendarvis McDonald has won a seat on the South Carolina Court of Appeals. The Legislature elected Stephanie on Wednesday, May 28, 2014 to Seat 7 for a six-year term. She was unopposed. While an attorney, she practiced appellate law for plaintiffs and defendants and defended public officials, law enforcement agencies, state agencies and local governments in state and federal courts. In 2014, she served as the chief administrative judge for civil court in the 9th circuit, which includes Charleston and Berkley counties. ’90 Perrin Cothran Conrad has enjoyed staying home with her son, being a freelance copywriter, publishing two books and investing in real estate since leaving law practice. One of her books, The Ballad of the Shirley T and Other Stories, is available through Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
’93 Beth Reines Wheeler was promoted to Corporate Director of Business Development for the Enterprise Car Sales Division in December 2013. Moving from Charleston to Portland, Oregon, then to St. Louis, Missouri, she and her family have greatly enjoyed the travel adventures her position has allowed. ’94 Olga Gomer Hernandez and her family traded their busy life in New York City for a different one in the Washington, DC area a little over a year ago. While they all miss the Big Apple, their daughters, Daniela Isabel (5) and Gabriela Sofia (2), enjoy what our nation’s capital has to offer; the space to run around, the parks, the museums, and the overall slower pace of things. Her husband, Jose’s, job was the catalyst for the move. Thankfully her New York firm accommodated this change and has allowed her to stay on and work remotely. Some days they feel very settled in, others less so, and they are always grateful for what they have; their family, their friends (old and new), their work and their home. ’95 Anne Donehue Hall continues to enjoy teaching middle and high school English at First Baptist School. She was recognized as a South Carolina Independent School Association Master Teacher for 2013–2014, and was invited to participate in the 2014 Lowcounty Writing Project Summer Institute. ’96 Liza Stevenson Calder is having her third baby in August! ’97 Margaret Anne Siachos will be seen this fall on the upcoming pilot television show for VH1, Hindsight. She also appears in several national commercials for Publix, Tribe Hummus, and Gander Mountain. You can follow her latest work at www. margaretanneflorence.com.
’00 Courtney L. Parades and Jeffrey Walker Plotner were married on May 31, 2014 at First Baptist Church. A reception followed at the Carolina Yacht Club. Courtney is a graduate of Wofford College and works for the Association of the Blind and Visually Impaired as Director of Programs. The groom is a graduate from Wofford College and is the co-founder of Brackish Bow Ties. Matrons of honor included Ann Kimball Gustafson ’00 and Brislin Eiserhardt West ’00. Bride’s attendants included Laura Phillipps ’00, Anne Reid ’99, Lindsay Skelton ’00, Amelia Walker ’00, and Caroline Wooten ’00. The couple honeymooned in Belize and reside in Charleston. Amelia Waring Walker and her husband, Will, welcomed their daughter, Margaret Calhoun Simonds Walker, on October 30, 2013. Amelia is still enjoying her job as law clerk to the Honorable Jean H. Toal, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of South Carolina. ’05 Julia B. Anderson and Dr. Charles Andrew Mowlaijko were married on July 9, 2014. The service was held at First (Scots) Presbyterian Church. A reception followed at the Carolina Yacht Club. Julia and Charles are graduates of Clemson University and the Medical University of South Carolina. Katherine Eve Anderson ’03, sister of the bride, was the maid of honor. Bride’s attendants included Anne Legare Rhett Boulware ’05, Elizabeth Coleman Hutchison ’04, Anne Hutson McEwen ’05, Mary Lake Newton ’04, and Caroline Hay Robinson ’05. Merrit Amanda Davis ’22, niece of the bride, served as junior bridesmaid. Lauren Elizabeth Widman ’05 served as reader. Greeters included Blair Meche Chestnut ’05 and Caroline Cutler Rowe ’05. The couple honeymooned in St. Lucia and reside in Greenville, South Carolina.
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’10 Charlotte G. Morrow graduated from Clemson University in May, 2014. ’12 Abbie M. Gibson placed 2nd in Novice on the Flat at IHSA National Championship in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania in May, 2014. Her college team, Skidmore Thoroughbreds, placed 3rd overall in the competition. ’13 Christine H. Quinn has made the Dean’s List both semesters at Bucknell University. She loves the school!
’14 Isabella G. Alfaro earned a spot on the AllLowcountry Girls Track First Team for her efforts in the 800 meters competition in June 2014. Helen H. Cribb won the South Carolina Independent School Association Bill Simpson Award for top graduating female athlete in SCISA for her involvement in track and cross country. Criteria for SCISA’s highest athletic award include lettering in at least two varsity sports, athletic awards and honors, recommendations from head of school, teachers and coaches, SAT and ACT scores, academic achievement, and community and civic involvement.
Natalie Swanson was recently named to the Honors Council at Rice University, where she attends college. Michaela White received honorable mention in The Post and Courier’s AllLowcountry Girls Track Meet for her efforts in June, 2014. IN MEMORIAM Sully McCauley Bogardus ’55, July 26, 2014 Eleanor Hope Moore ’56, July 23, 2014 Angie Whaley LeClercq ’60, June 19, 2014 Mary Stevens McAllister ’67, April 13, 2014
C RE ATIV ITY AT P L AY IN THE R OS S E ARLY E DUCATION C E NTE R.
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