August 2006
Dear Friends of Chatham Hall,
This summer I cycled with herons. An odd experience, one that I had never thought about, but, nevertheless, simple and magical.
From our porch at the house we rented on the coast of Nova Scotia, every day we watched the herons fly up the cove, to hunt for fish in the shallow waters left when the tide had receded. They waded with magnificent patience and grace. Tide in, tide out. Herons in, herons out. Such was the rhythm of the place.
I also cycled for hours every day along the rugged coast, some mornings in fog so thick that I had to stop every mile and clean my glasses. And after several days, the simplicity of that seascape made its way into my heart and soul. The rhythm of the hills, the contours of the shore, and the distant islands placed me back into contact with something simple at the center of myself and, I dare say, at the center of life. I would come upon herons when I cycled up and down that coastline. They would observe me, and, then, when I came too close, off they would go, in that prehistoric way they have of flying.
One day, as I pedaled by two herons on the coast, they rose, angled, and flew beside me, all the way to the end of the peninsula. Their awkward elegance and, well, mine, traveled side-by-side, down the coast. I felt a kind of harmony with something else, a harmony with the place. I felt that I belonged.
And that, of course, is what Chatham Hall is all about this year, and every year, for that matter. We educators and students on our academic bikes, stretching the muscles of our minds, heart, and souls, until we all find ourselves scooting along, at a stronger pace, at home with some new acquaintances by their sides. So we build an academic community, one year after another.
We have a fair amount of momentum propelling us into the ride of this new year, and some important signposts ahead. Here are a few of them to bring you up-to-date.
Our Advancement Office had a record year last year. The Annual Fund exceeded its $1-million goal ($1,085,000, to be precise), including 100 percent participation from trustees, Alumnae Council, and faculty and staff, plus a record 44 Rector’s Circle members (donors of $10,000 or more).
Last year’s seniors are off to an impressive array of universities and colleges that include Bowdoin College, Bryn Mawr College, Columbia University, Davidson College, Dickinson College, James Madison University, Lake Forest College, Skidmore College, University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill), University of Richmond, The University of the South (Sewanee), University of Virginia, Virginia Tech, and Williams College.
The achievements of our students on 2005-06 Advanced Placement examinations (for college credit) were spectacular. We had 49 students take 93 AP exams in 14 subject areas. Of those 93 tests, 87 tests (94 percent) earned a score of three (the score, of a potential five, usually required for college credit) or higher! We have had a run of excellent results over the last several years, but these are the best results yet. In addition, 50 percent of our tests earned a score of four or five. Classes that had every student earn a score of three or higher are, Calculus BC (four students), Chemistry (nine students), English Lit (11 students), European History (nine students), French Lit (two students), Human Geography (20 students), Music Theory (seven students), and Spanish Language (two students).
A large and exciting group of new girls (57 of them!) are energizing all of us. They come from fifteen states in the United States and eight foreign countries (Costa Rica, Germany, Japan, Thailand, Bermuda, Lithuania, South Korea, and Turkey). Eleven are legacies, and 3 are U.S. citizens living abroad (from Nepal, Malaysia, and Philippines). Some interesting notes: one new girl read 126 books last year, one U.S. citizen has lived in the United States only two years of her life (other countries include Singapore, Hong Kong, Botswana, Dominican Republic, and Philippines), two are competitive swimmers, one plays the Hae-Gum (a traditional Korean instrument), and another spent the summer traveling the United States doing outreach work.
We have some powerful new teachers this year, including Dr. Steven Barton, director of our music program, who comes to us from St. Paul’s School in Baltimore, where he was the director of music and had remarkable success developing their voice and choir programs (including a recent performance of Mozart’s Requiem); Dr. Anila Gill, who holds a Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry from Georgia State University in Atlanta, where in 2005 she received the Graduate Award for Outstanding Instruction; and Dina Yassin, our ESL teacher and coordinator of international students, who comes to us most immediately from the Nova Language School, Inc. (Nova, Japan), where she taught English and American culture to Japanese learners for four years.
Faculty have returned from a summer of travel and learning. The husband-wife duo of Dr. Alan Spearman (Latin and English teacher, and librarian) and English teacher Dr. Mary Edmonds lead the list: they traveled together to the Galapagos Islands, then to England, where Mary undertook a range of educational and cultural experiences and Alan directed current senior Isabella Yeager in an independent study (more about this below). Among their many activities was attending the new, notoriously gory—two people in the audience fainted—production of Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus. English Department chair Dr. Ann Beal traveled to Oxford University as a recipient of a Spencer Scholarship (given to Chatham Hall by Kyle and Sally Spencer, grandparents of Laura Spencer ’07 ) to study for three weeks the History and Architecture of Oxford with Christopher Day, noted authority on local history and architecture. History teacher Caswell Nilsen attended the Paris Teacher Seminar, where, under the direction of an Oxford don, he was immersed into the cultural and intellectual life of Paris. I traveled with the National Association of Independent Schools’ Diversity Delegation to India, where I met a number of impressive educators and visited several powerful schools. I might also mention that Academic Dean Chris Hughes is off in November to Japan for three weeks in the Fulbright Memorial Teacher Program for “distinguished primary and secondary educators” that includes meetings with government officials and educators, visits to schools, and a brief home stay.
On the student front for the summer … Seven students traveled to France with Mrs. Mary Lee Black, chair of the Department of Foreign Languages, for study and a home stay in France; 12 students traveled with Spanish teacher Ms. Kim Jackson for the same kind of program in Spain. Isabella Yeager ’07 (under the guidance of Dr. Alan Spearman), who received this year’s Hallam Hurt Student and Faculty Foreign Travel Award, traveled to London and its environs to research the life of Agnes Groundolf, the wife of medieval English poet John Gower. Jessica Workman ’08 attended the Bridgewater College High School Leadership Academy in Bridgewater, Virginia. Caitlyn Bishop ’07 and Kate Thomas ’08 spent a week in July in Richmond, Va., participating in Impact Richmond, working with a team of youth to repair an elderly woman's home. Caitlyn also participated in Girls State at Longwood University in Farmville, Va. Leandra Lambert ’07 was one of ten girls invited to attend The International Girls' Forum, held this year at The Winsor School, in Boston, which also included attending the National Coalition of Girls Schools’ annual conference. Leandra participated in the People to People Student Ambassador Programs, spending three weeks in Australia. Twenty-seven old and new field hockey and volleyball players returned this year a week before other students for Chatham Hall’s first athletic pre-season, funded by a generous trustee.
Benazir Bhutto, former Prime Minister of Pakistan, will be our leader in residence on October 9-10. (Wangari Maathai was forced to cancel her North American tour because of a conflicting event with the Nobel Committee in Europe this fall, and it was impossible to reschedule her for a different date.) Ms. Bhutto was the first female prime minister in the Muslim world; she served two terms, often struggling against the very powerful military leaders of the nation. She ranks among the most significant figures in the modern political world, and her visit will give us the opportunity to explore topics that have tremendous bearing on the world today, including women’s rights, Islam, Asian politics, international relations, terrorism, etc. Ms. Bhutto’s Web site is http://www.benazirbhutto.net.
The renowned Tobias Wolff will be our writer in residence on December 6-7. His books include a novel, The Barracks Thief; two memoirs, This Boy's Life and In Pharaoh’s Army; and three collections of short stories, In the Garden of the North American Martyrs, Back in the World, and, most recently, The Night in Question. Mr. Wolff’s work appears regularly in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, Harper's, and other magazines and literary journals. He is currently the Ward W. and Priscilla B. Woods Professor in the School of Humanities and Sciences at Stanford University.
Lower Dabney was renovated over the summer, including more than double the space (in two rooms) than the day students have had in the past (they are thrilled); a new student activities office, bookstore, and snack center; and a newly designed and equipped workout room. All of this adds to last summer’s renovation of the niche. Thanks to the generosity of parents, grandparents, and last year’s seniors, the basement has become chic!
Finally, in late September we will launch the new Chatham Hall Web site. It is very exciting, very different, and very beautiful. That is all I will say … Stay tuned to www.chathamhall.org.
And so, greetings to all of you as those of us on campus begin to speed along the coastline of a new school year—toward places where we have not been before.
Sincerely,
Gary Fountain
Rector
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October 13, 2008
Day Student Open House
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November 9-10, 2008
Open House
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December 1. 2008
Early Decision Applications Due
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December 7-8
Open House
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December 15
Notification for Early Decision Applicants
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January 10
Reply Date - Contracts and deposits due for students admitted Early Decision
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January 18-19
Open House
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February 10
Applications and Financial Aid materials Due
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February 15-16
Open House
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March 10
Notification for Applicants
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April 4-5
Revisit Weekend for admitted students and their families
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April 10
Reply Date - Contracts due for admitted students