Andover magazine - Fall/Winter 2021 Issue by Phillips Academy

FALL/WINTER 2021 THE MAGAZINE OF THE PHILLIPS ACADEMY & ABBOT ACADEMY COMMUNITY

Global Flavor Fusion From Hong Kong to Mexico to Italy, alumni cook up tasty ways to impact community

From the Head of School

RENEWING OUR COMMITMENT TO ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE

Up First An annular solar eclipse on June 10 gave some lucky viewers a glimpse of the moon passing between Earth and the sun, creating a fiery orange crescent in the morning sky. Donald Slater, instructor in history and social science, captured the grandeur from Phelps Stadium.

I often refer to fall 2021 as the start of my “second first year” at Andover. Many of the traditions, events, and interactions that I experienced virtually during the pandemic carry deeper meaning now, in their familiar settings. Speaking with students and faculty, I’ve grown more appreciative of what we missed most last year: conversations around a table that help us discern context; the privilege of discussing—and disagreeing—face to face; being able to feel the applause, the kind that warms your heart. These connections allow us to read a room, detect nuance, and draw out personalities. Sometimes we read the room incorrectly, but even our in-person mistakes are welcome! Fall on campus has renewed and reenergized all of us. Most notably, our students. And while we have seen some challenges of reentry—time management and lack of sleep, among them—for the most part, their joy is palpable. I’ve seen it as students cheer for their teammates, collaborate in The Nest makerspace, present their research, or sprint to meet their Phillipian deadline. So much about what makes Andover special emerges in these everyday interactions. Something else that makes Andover special is its capacity for intellectual complexity. School leadership took up this topic in November, when the Board of Trustees returned to campus for the first time since February 2020. They were joined by the Andover Development Board for a series of conversations around preserving academic excellence. A rigorous curriculum is a hallmark of Andover and a key factor in our ability to attract “youth from every quarter.” Yet it has been several years since

the last comprehensive review of the academic experience. Working with the think tank RAND (including Heather Schwartz ’95, senior policy researcher and program director within RAND’s education and labor division), we will be engaging the entire faculty and school leadership to develop a system for regular assessment of our academic program—from the faculty and department level to the full curriculum and student experience. The presentation “Curriculum 101,” created by Dean of Studies Raj Mundra P’18, ’20, provides a useful foundation for this effort. He discusses the value of a liberal arts program and characteristics of an Andover education, including: • How a diverse community leads to the best educational outcomes • Multiple pathways and options for students • The tension between academic excellence and student well-being • A learning community that extends beyond the traditional classroom Establishing an assessment system will take deliberate thought and effort, but I am confident that it will serve us well into the future. From the boardroom to the classroom, it is an exciting time to be part of the Andover community. The campus is thriving, despite the enduring presence of the pandemic. Our vaccination rates are among the highest anywhere, with students at 99 percent and faculty/staff at 97 percent. Students are fully engaged in classes, clubs, athletics, the arts, and music and theatre performances. The famed Grasshopper Night returned to sellout crowds during Family Weekend. And, by the time this letter is published, I will have experienced another first in my “second first year”—joining Phillips Exeter Principal Bill Rawson to kick off the 144th Andover-Exeter Weekend! Go Big Blue!

Raynard S. Kington, MD, PhD, P’24 Head of School

PUBLISHER

Tracy M. Sweet EDITOR

Allyson Irish ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Rita Savard DESIGNER

Ken Puleo CLASS NOTES

CONTRIBUTORS

Jill Clerkin Katie Fiermonti Nancy Hitchcock Tessa Hite Vanessa Kerry ’95 Joe Lemire ’01 Jennifer Myers David Perry Ali Rosen ’03

Anne Marino

Andover, the magazine of the Phillips Academy and Abbot Academy community, is published four times per year. It is produced by the Office of Communication at Phillips Academy, 180 Main Street, Andover, MA 01810. Main PA phone: 978-749-4000 Changes of address and death notices: 978-749-4269, alumni-records@andover.edu Phillips Academy website: www.andover.edu Andover magazine phone: 978-749-4677 Email: magazine@andover.edu Postmasters: Send address changes to Phillips Academy 180 Main Street Andover MA 01810-4161 ISSN-0735-5718

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EDITOR’S NOTE “No matter where I serve my guests, they seem to like my kitchen best.” This homespun adage was something I saw daily growing up. The multicolored cross-stitch was framed and hung directly over our kitchen sink. My childhood kitchen was modest at best. Our early 1900s Victorian house featured a walk-in pantry and a small, boxy eat-in kitchen with little to no counter space. To open the refrigerator or oven door, you had to move either the table or one of the chairs, sometimes both. Charming, but not particularly functional. “Why,” I often wondered, “do people like the kitchen best?” The answer, of course, is food. And the latest issue of Andover magazine explores all aspects of this communal and necessary staple of life. Our cover story (page 24) features three alumni whose love of food will take readers on a trip around the globe. Lara Gilmore ’86 is co-owner of Italy’s world-famous Osteria Francescana and the Food for Soul community kitchens, which recently expanded to North America. Craig Reynolds ’73, proprietor of the agave spirits company Dos Volcanes, combines his love for tequila with an equally strong commitment to the nonprofit Project Amigo, which provides scholarships and health care for kids in Colima, Mexico. And Rebecca Schrage ’97 uses her Jewish grandfather’s top-secret recipe at Schragels, Hong Kong’s first bagel shop. We hope you enjoy family, friends, and special food during the upcoming holiday season. And if you are so inclined, please share with us a favorite food memory from your time at PA or Abbot! Best,

Allyson Irish Editor magazine@andover.edu @andovermagazine

“I think the smartest companies will look at the pandemic not as a blueprint for the future of work, but as an experiment rife with learnings.”

ANJALI SUD ’01 PAGE 40

ALL SCHOOL

DEPARTMENTS

8 Buzz

1 Head of School

9 The World Comes to Andover

4 Voices

Campus Update

12 Then & Now 15 Bookshelf

“You need to clean up the mysteries in your life.”

50 FEATURES

20 Lost & Found

18 A-Game 40

A 68-year-old family mystery is pieced together inside the Andover archives.

Alumni Up Close

44 Philanthropy

24 Global Flavor Fusion

46 At Issue 50 End Note

Take a trip around the world with alumni who use food and spirits as a recipe for change.

BILL DAMON ’63 PAGE 20

38 Awards of Distinction ON THE COVER:

Rebecca Schrage ’97 walks the streets of Hong Kong noshing on her delicious bagels. Read more on page 24.

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© 2021 Phillips Academy, Andover, MA All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

FALL/WINTER 2021

Volume 115, Number 1

NOAH FECKS

Andover magazine reinforces the special connection alumni have with Phillips Academy and Abbot Academy. Through thought-provoking stories, contemporary design, and inspiring profiles of alumni, students, and faculty, we aim to highlight the school’s enduring values, recognize our unique history, and celebrate the rich diversity of our community.

Andover recognizes three alumni who embody the non sibi spirit.

48 Déjà Blue Remembering 9/11

VOICES

POT POURRI

State of the Arts In response to our summer Arts Issue, readers reflect on memorable music, art, and theatre that profoundly impacted their lives.

POT POURRI

omeone at Andover in 1957 arranged for a group of students to attend an afternoon concert by Herbert von Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic at Boston Symphony Hall. Though I was a very unsophisticated Seattle kid on a full scholarship, I knew Brahms’ Second Symphony by heart from my well-worn Columbia LP. Suddenly, in Boston, in the middle of the second movement, I found myself sobbing. It seemed to me that Brahms was crying his heart out, and I could only join him. I had never experienced such a response to music before, and it frightened me. That evening, I wrote to the blind violinist who owned the neighborhood record store where I worked as a teenager, asking him if I should be worried about this extreme behavior.

—PAULA (PRIAL) FOLKMAN ’54

Was I losing it? He had been my guide to many musical discoveries (Callas, Milanov, Ponselle...and all the great composers). And I trusted him. To my tears, he answered, “Welcome to the club!” Much earlier in Seattle, as I was stepping into adolescence, I asked my somewhat musical mother if the intense joy I got from classical music was a gift I would have all my life, or was it “just a phase?” For the first time in my life, I realized she didn’t understand me or my question. I felt so alone! I feared this special happiness might pass away, even though I couldn’t imagine how that would happen. (Music, especially Handel’s Messiah, was my escape from a pervasive self-hatred for being gay. How could I cope if I “lost” music?) My blind friend, on the other hand, fully understood me and, what’s more, celebrated my passage! As I went on to Columbia and, among many other things, the thrills of standing room at the old Metropolitan Opera, I came to appreciate this passage as a vital opening of my soul to a long life filled with cherished moments of ecstasy. If Andover hadn’t taken me to Boston that day, how long would it have taken for me to come alive?

Paula (Prial) Folkman ’54 in production of H.M.S. Pinafore

—ROD PARKE ’57

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MARINE AMOUROUX ’98 via Facebook

COURTESY OF THE EAGLE-TRIBUNE

In response to Eagle Tribune article about Gus ’93 (left, NY Mets hitting coach) and Hugh Quattlebaum ’96 (right, Red Sox VP of scouting development), pictured here with Gus’s sons and their parents faculty emeriti Ruth and Ed ’60:

“ I spent only one year (’97–’98) in Andover as a Kemper scholar. I was lucky enough to have both Mr. and Mrs. Quattlebaum, teaching history and art history...big-hearted people, genuine teachers, still in my heart and memory.”

The article on p. 13 of the Arts Issue references the Gilbert and Sullivan productions led by [Abbot music instructor] Miss Kate Friskin. But three also occurred in the early 1950s. They were Pirates of Penzance (1952), H.M.S. Pinafore (1953) [see photo at left], and Mikado (1954). I was lucky enough to have been very involved in these wonderful shows. Check the old issues of The Phillipian online—they got great reviews! While at Abbot, probably in 1972 or 1973, I first saw a slide of “Guernica” by Pablo Picasso. Dorothy Judd, a longtime Abbot Spanish teacher, spent a class period on this painting. She explained what occurred at Guernica in 1937 and why Picasso portrayed the tragedy in his distinctive way. His depiction of war and its consequences resonates today. I later saw the painting in its temporary New York home in 1973 and then in its permanent Madrid home in 2010. In between, I studied the painting in art history and Spanish classes. But nothing compares to seeing it for the first time at Abbot. —NOREEN MARKLEY ’73, P’11

Thank you for the awesome summer 2021 edition of the magazine. In response to your question about a piece of art that changed our lives, I’d like to share that the Avatar animated series on Nickelodeon fits that description. The beauty of the animation and the thoughtful storytelling of both The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra truly marked my consciousness. I’ve watched every season of both series multiple times and often think of the lessons learned by Aang and Korra as I face challenge after challenge in my life. When I became an Andover host mom a few years back, I bonded with the first international student who lived with us—a thoughtful and compassionate young woman from Turkey—over several hours indulging in Korra’s animated journey toward adulthood.

I fondly remember Pat Morgan’s art history class and time spent, at his direction, admiring the great collection in the Addison. In response to your suggestion about a piece of art that has made life “more bearable,” I am sharing pictures of an art sculpture that has brightened my days. On a visit to Old Town San Diego in 1968, I purchased an art sculpture of children on a teeter-totter by the Mexican artist Manuel Felguerez. He died last year, but his charming sculptures continue his legacy. This one brings a smile to my face, as it reminds me of riding on a seesaw at a public park when I was a child. Guests often have a similar response, happily relating their own childhood memories.

—RAQUEL MORENO ’01

—FRED FENTON ’53

“ Hey! I played Beethoven’s 5th with that person! They’re lucky to have Vivian on their team!!” PAUL HOCHMAN ’82 via Facebook

In response to Vivian Toy ’81 being named director of Career Mobility at the New York Times

Regarding recent Andover magazine award:

“ Well deserved. I once commented to the Yale magazine that they were almost as good as the Andover magazine…” @ADEKOYEJO75 via Instagram

All School

Leading the Way Head of School Raynard S. Kington, MD, PhD, P’24, joins the Class of 2022 for the opening of school Vista Walk following the path that students walk on Commencement day. This is the first of many special traditions for Andover seniors. Kington was recently featured on the cover of Northshore Magazine’s “Community All-Stars” issue, which highlights leaders shaping the region’s culture. And Kington’s essay, “Leadership Lessons: Making Space for Empathy,” was published by the National Association of Independent Schools. “By maintaining our ability to feel—especially the hard stuff— and developing better methods of self-care to help us carry that burden of empathy,” Kington writes, “we are better able to stay human and maintain meaning in our work and our mission.” Photo by Neil Evans

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The World Comes to Andover

All School

Liz Powell ’90

Founder & President, G2G Consulting

BLUE RUNS DEEP

Commission Report; American Sports, Patriotism, and Militarism; the Patriot Act; Guantanamo; and America Online 9/11 Conspiracy Thinking. “The seminar was well-suited to the prismatic nature of September 11 and how it has become a multitude of ‘9/11s’—a plurality of things,” says instructor in English Tom Kane, who coordinated the course. “Whether we look at religion, technology, trauma, philosophy, citizenship, media, or architecture,” he says, “we can theorize and glean a new glimpse of complex material, the political and historical forces that led up to and out of 9/11. In doing so, we can gain greater appreciation for the sources and forces that shape our world today.”

Founder, OffBeet Compost

OffBeet Compost, located in Massachusetts’ Merrimack Valley, promotes the idea of everyone becoming “champions of the environment.” The company, which has collected food waste from campus, works to create a resilient green economy by generating local green jobs, empowering community members to be land stewards, and contributing to an environmentally sustainable and just landscape.

Arthur C. Brooks

Professor, author, columnist

Brooks has spent years teaching how to break the cycle of hatred through his books, articles, podcast, and speaking engagements. During an October All-School Meeting, Brooks offered solutions on how to disagree appropriately and respectfully, and how to build a new social movement based in solidarity and love.

SANTIAGO GARZA

For current students, September 11, 2001, is history rather than memory. This past fall, that tragic day in American history was examined in depth through a robust curriculum. Twenty years after nearly 3,000 lives were lost at the World Trade Center, The Pentagon, and near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, a new interdisciplinary seminar engaged students born after the event who have only known its echoes. The William Sloane Coffin ’42 Colloquium involved more than a dozen faculty members, who guided students in an examination of a number of distinct and intersecting topics, such as Philosophy in a Time of Terror; Religious Extremism; The 9/11

Kesiah Bascom

Jack Gary the

BU Z Z

A beloved author and now a new iconic toy. This past summer, toymaker Mattel unveiled its latest Barbie doll—in the likeness of Julia Alvarez ’67! Part of the Barbie “Inspiring Women” series, which aims to shine a light on role models for children, Alvarez was chosen for her legendary career, bravery in selfexpression, and continuing “to inspire generations of young Latinx to proudly tell their stories.”

Director of Archaeology, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation

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Kat Conlon ’04 was chosen this past February to lead the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation (MMSF), named in honor of basketball legend Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna, who both died tragically in a 2020 helicopter crash. The mission of MMSF is to create a positive impact for underserved athletes.

As part of the Peabody Institute of Archaeology’s Diggin’ In series, Gary presented a fascinating history of what is believed to be the oldest Black Baptist church in the United States, located in Williamsburg, Virginia. The church was founded in 1776 when a free Black man began to preach in the area.

PHOTO GAGE SKIDMORE

TWENTY YEARS LATER: TEACHING 9/11

Tapping into the school’s vast network of alumni expertise, the Blue Runs Deep industry series provides opportunities for alumni to meet with and talk to current students about different career fields. The series was launched last year by the Student Alumni Representatives (STARs) group in collaboration with the Office of Alumni Engagement. This fall, Blue Runs Deep hosted two online conversations: “Alumni in Law” and “Alumni in Medicine.” Speaking with a panel of four alumni representing diverse medical fields, students asked questions about their path to a medical career and choice of specialty, the impact of COVID-19, and ways in which students can leverage the Andover network. When asked what advice they would give to their younger Andover selves, several of the panelists commented that they wished they had taken more humanities-based classes. Dr. Alisa Savetamal ’85, medical director of the Connecticut Burn Center, offered similar advice, saying, “This is a time for you to explore. In the words of my kids, ‘don’t be a grind.’ If you start something interesting, follow that.”

Did you ever wonder how businesses secure government funding? That is the goal of Powell’s company, G2G Consulting, which offers a comprehensive, strategic roadmap to achieve the best results. With more than two decades of experience working on health, defense, high-tech, and economic development issues in Congress, Powell has a lot to offer to up-and-coming entrepreneurs.

“ It’s important for each of you, no matter what your background is, to understand your historical presence on this land.” Maria Hinojosa

Journalist & Author

The founder of Futuro Media, an independent, nonprofit newsroom based in Harlem, New York City, Hinojosa works to create multimedia content that provides a critically important voice to the diversity of experience in America.

Campus Update

All School EXAMINING PA’S COMPLEX HISTORY

QUARANTINE OBSERVATIONS

Institutions like Andover that date back centuries are themselves living organisms of history. They have evolved through national revolutions, world wars, political divisions, and civil rights milestones. Framed by this history, Head of School Raynard S. Kington, MD, PhD, P’24, has named a committee to reexamine the school’s past as it relates to the legacy of the physical campus and historical connections to slavery. The Committee on Challenging Histories at Phillips Academy is chaired by instructor in history and social science Chris Jones and composed of faculty, staff, and students who are charged as follows: • Commence preliminary research and investigation of historically significant elements of campus.

Some people baked bread, others learned how to crochet. Derek Jacoby spent the better part of the COVID-19 quarantine taking photos. A lot of photos. The music instructor, who also conducts Andover’s symphony and chamber orchestras and handbell choir, took nearly 15,000 images of the campus from March 2020 to March 2021. Taking almost daily photos of the desolate campus was an exercise in observation or “slow looking.” And although it began as a personal project, it grew into much more as others began commenting on—and looking forward to—his postings on Instagram and Facebook. One of his favorite images is of a chair inside Bulfinch Hall (see below). “Even though the image is simple, it gives you everything you need to know about Bulfinch without being there,” Jacoby says. “I took in a lot of details that I hadn’t noticed before. You need to be in the right place at the right time.”

Committee to investigate historically significant elements of campus faculty, staff, parents, and students, as well as the public, about the complicated history of this Academy.

“ The committee … will help our community more fully understand our school’s past in order to make the best decisions possible for the future.”

BU Z Z

Congratulations to Simona Montanari ’94, who received the Outstanding Professor Award from Cal State LA. Montanari is a professor of language development with a focus on bilingual/multilingual development.

A full Q&A with Jacoby is available at andover.edu/magazine. See more images on Instagram @derek.jacoby

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Emmy Award–winning producer Dick Wolf ’64 celebrated the 500th episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit this past fall with actors Ice-T and Mariska Hargitay. Wolf is the creator and executive producer of the Law & Order franchise, which includes six police/ courtroom dramas.

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the

—ALLYSON IRISH

DEREK JACOBY

Andover also became the first high school to join the consortium on Universities Studying Slavery (USS). Founded by the University of Virginia, the USS gives PA access to the experiences of those in higher education who have addressed complicated histories on their own campuses. Andover’s initiative aligns with its commitment to diversity and inclusion and was part of the original charge to the Anti-Racism Task Force, which recognized that this topic required a stand-alone initiative. “This important work is part of a growing movement in education,” • Establish principles for considering said Kington. “It can be controverelements of PA’s history that might sial at times, especially as questions —HEAD OF SCHOOL RAYNARD call for reevaluation in light of PA’s arise around matters of building S. KINGTON, MD, PHD, P’24 identity and mission, and for guidnames, historical recognition, and ing any decisions made about posother honors bestowed upon insible alterations to the campus. dividuals whose pasts do not consistently align with a school’s values…The committee will not rewrite or erase • Develop processes that would generate recommendaAndover’s history or make decisions about a particular area tions of actions to the Head of School and to the Board of campus,” he continued. “Rather, it will help our comof Trustees grounded in these principles. munity more fully understand our school’s past in order to • Propose projects for the school to pursue in the future to make the best decisions possible for the future.” better educate its community of administrators, alumni,

Student Life During a Pandemic Everyone has a story to tell about life during COVID-19. From the early days of uncertainty to the isolation of living in lockdown. Zoom fatigue and remote learning. Drive-by celebrations and waiting for test results. The Phillips Academy History Association (PAHA), in collaboration with Student Advocates for Climate Awareness (SACA), has documented the impact of the pandemic on the lives of PA students in the “COVID-19 Oral History Journal.” The 97-page report (available at andoverhistoryassociation.co/read-journal) reads like an up-close and personal community diary, including student interviews, a few outside voices, and a foreword from Head of School Raynard S. Kington, MD, PhD, P’24. “The pandemic has fundamentally changed our lives here at Andover—and even more so for the millions of families who have tragically lost loved ones to the ravaging virus,” writes William Situ ’22 in his editor’s note. “Yet there is always light at the end of the tunnel. Through these obstacles, we have seen the compassion, strength, and resilience of the Andover community. As a student of history, I felt it was my responsibility to record all the voices and opinions during this period of time for future generations.” The journal will become a permanent part of the Academy’s digital archives. “Nothing is more powerful than a good story,” writes Situ. “It can inspire, enliven, and unify.” —RITA SAVARD

Then & Now

Campus Dining

All School NEW DIRECTORS FOR CAMD & BRACE CENTER

1976 “More time is spent

2021 Paresky Commons,

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the

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GIL TALBOT

so named in 2009 following a major renovation, is the campus hub for breakfast, lunch, and dinner—and community bonding. The marble steps leading to the second-floor dining halls bear the impressions of generations of students and faculty, serving as a visual reminder of the building’s history. Today’s menu items include an array of fresh, healthy, and delicious global food options—from planning to plate, thanks to Executive Chef David Rosetto, nutritionist Aggie Kip, and the Paresky Commons culinary team—highlighting a commitment to source as locally and sustainably as possible.

Bridget Tsemo

PHOTOS BY GIL TALBOT

BRIDGET TSEMO has been an advocate for civil rights since high school. Teaching, says the Chicago native, is another form of activism. As Andover’s new director of the Office of Community and Multicultural Development (CAMD), Tsemo looks forward to building relationships with students and encouraging them to explore and discover their capabilities and strengths. Prior to joining PA as an English instructor in 2018, Tsemo was chair of the English Department at the Pomfret School in Connecticut. She also taught African American studies at the University of Iowa. In addition to leading CAMD and teaching African American literature, Tsemo serves as faculty advisor for the Af-Lat-Am Society and co-advisor for AMP (Af-Lat-Am Mentoring Program). “Our students are passionate about fixing larger societal issues that we’re all facing today,” says Tsemo. “My goal is to make sure they begin with themselves, focusing on self-care like getting enough sleep and eating well. Looking at the big-picture work as a lifelong endeavor—instead of a short-term deadline—can prevent emotions from taking over and losing sight of all the positive work that can be done.”

RICHARD GRABER P’83, COURTESY OF ARCHIVES AND SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, PHILLIPS ACADEMY

by the student body as a whole in Commons than any other building,” notes Jeffery McAnallen ’74 in “Culinary Crimes on Andover Hill, a history of dining at Phillips Academy.” His 50page term paper, forever immortalized in Andover’s archives, is prefaced by an ode to the historic dining hall: “We had acrobatic cheese, heartless hash and sauerkraut—‘twoud make a fellow sneeze—oh—maybe you don’t believe me, maybe you think I fib; just take a trip to Andover and tuck in a Crocker bib.”

Emma Staffaroni

EMMA STAFFARONI, a member of the Andover community since 2013, has worked to advance gender awareness in education through everything from the reading she assigns her students to the conversations she has with colleagues and mentors. The new director of the Brace Center for Gender Studies is committed to shining a light on the broad range of available resources related to gender, sexuality, race, and ethnicity—and building a community that will support, encourage, and celebrate every person on campus. “Gender is a big part of that, because it is a social force,” Staffaroni says. “But there are also other forces, such as racism, classism, and homophobia that put us in our categories and divide us.” Staffaroni earned a master’s degree in women’s and gender history studies in 2013 from Sarah Lawrence College and has taught at Revolution Prep in New York City and Lycée Pasteur in Besançon, France. In addition to leading the Brace Center, she teaches the senior elective A Room of Their Own, a course focused on women’s literature. Staffaroni also helped found Andover’s first all-gender dormitory, which has been a role model for numerous other independent secondary schools seeking to make residential life more inclusive.

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Fans of the Ice Age movie series will be interested in George Church ’72’s latest project. The renowned Harvard geneticist recently teamed up with other scientists and entrepreneurs to form Colossal, a company that aims to genetically resurrect the woolly mammoth in Siberia. Stay tuned.

Thanks to Bob Feldman ’54 for sharing news about former PA faculty member Raymond “Dutch” Wolf (pictured here from the 1953 Pot Pourri), whose song “It’s Halloween” found new life in this fall’s Halloween Kills movie, the latest installment of the classic slasher series. “Time has a funny way of collapsing upon itself,” Feldman says.

Bookshelf

All School

TRUTH BE TOLD BY NANCY HITCHCOCK

The Abbot Learning Garden

The harvest from its first growing season included kale, spinach, napa cabbage, bok choy, tatsoi, radish greens, green leaf lettuce, dill, and cilantro.

The garden includes 12 raised beds, an in-ground plot, a storage shed and wash station, and a fenced in-ground plot. An orchard and berry hedge row will be planted in spring 2022.

Learn more about the garden on Instagram @agreenerblue.

the

Students have teamed up with the Paresky Commons dining staff, the Food and Agriculture class, and the Academy’s Community Engagement program, which brought local elementary students to plant in the garden. Allison Guerette, campus sustainability coordinator, manages the garden and hopes to develop more partnerships in the coming year.

Over the winter, students will design informational signage; develop procedures and instruction manuals for the irrigation system and wash station, weeding, and pest management; and provide general maintenance.

BU Z Z

hat would have happened if Tanya Selvaratnam ’88 had stayed silent? If Selvaratnam hadn’t revealed to The New Yorker the intimate abuse she suffered from then New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, the magazine wouldn’t have researched and found three more women with similar allegations and written an article in 2018 that led to the attorney general’s resignation three hours after the article was published. In her memoir Assume Nothing: A Story of Intimate Violence, Selvaratnam courageously describes how a seemingly healthy relationship quickly turned abusive. An award-winning filmmaker and writer, Selvaratnam came to America from Sri Lanka as a toddler. She met Schneiderman at the Democratic National Convention in 2016. They had much in common: both graduated from Harvard, spoke Chinese, and were interested in social activism. But soon, Schneiderman’s behavior turned controlling and manipulative. He drank too much. He spat on and slapped her. He even threatened to kill her if she left him. When Selvaratnam finally extracted herself from the relationship after one year, she went public so other women wouldn’t suffer from Schneiderman’s violence—and went on to write her story to support victims of abuse everywhere. “I hope the book would help people spot, stop, and prevent intimate partner violence,” Selvaratnam explains. “I hope that it will help people heal. I want people to know that they’re not alone. By sharing our stories, we do our part to chip away at the conditioning that perpetuates the cycle of violence.” Publicly, Schneiderman and Governor Andrew Cuomo both actively advocated for women’s rights, but privately both behaved egregiously toward women. Had Schneiderman not been exposed and subsequently resigned, he would have been the attorney general charged with investigating Cuomo for allegations of sexually harassing at least 11 women. Today, New York state has two women in top political positions: Letitia James is the first female and first Black attorney general, and Kathy Hochul is the state’s first female governor. “Both these outcomes were unintended and unexpected,” says Selvaratnam. “I don’t credit myself with these outcomes, but they are a testament to the power of storytelling. And if change can’t happen top-down, it can happen ground-up, swelling with story upon story.”

NINA WURTZEL

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Watch for actress Madelon Curtis Harper ’69 on the big screen in the upcoming movie Alice. Harper plays a supporting role in the film, which is inspired by the true story of an enslaved Black woman who escapes her captors in 1800s Georgia. GIL TALBOT

Co-chair of the Alumni Council’s Af-Lat-Am Committee, Nick Olmo ’98 was featured in the recent story “A Complicated Love” published by CASE (Council for the Advancement and Support of Education. The story highlights the challenges faced by alumni of color as they engage with their alma maters and includes comments from Andover’s director of alumni engagement Jenny Savino P’21, ’24.

PHOTOS BY ALLISON GUERETTE

Located behind the Gelb Science Center, the Abbot Learning Garden was created with support from the Abbot Academy Fund. More than 40 students have worked on or attended programs in the garden since it was developed in 2020.

To be considered for “Bookshelf,” please send a brief summary of your book and a high-resolution image of the book cover to magazine@andover.edu.

The Nightborn

Things About

BY ISABEL COOPER ’01 Sourcebooks Casablanca This is the second fantasy romance in Cooper’s Stormbringer series. In a world where sentinels fight demons that threaten humanity, the beautiful warrior sentinel Branwyn teams with Zelen, the youngest member of the High Council, to discover dark secrets in their city and uncover their real enemies—all as their relationship deepens.

Three Days at Camp David: How a Secret Meeting in 1971 Transformed the Global Economy BY JEFFREY GARTEN ’64 HarperCollins Publishers In total secrecy, President Richard Nixon and his top advisors met at Camp David in 1971 and resolved to disconnect the dollar from gold—a dramatic decision that changed the course of history. Garten takes the reader into the room where the decision was made. The book provides perspective on America’s role in the world then and now.

Hurricane: My Story of Resilience BY SALVADOR GÓMEZ-COLÓN ’21 Norton Young Readers As part of the new I, Witness book series—written by youth activists for middle schoolers—a new PA alumnus shares how he survived Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico in 2017. Gómez-Colón did more than survive; he founded Light and Hope, which raised money to purchase and distribute solar-powered lamps and hand-powered washing machines for households in need.

Breath Taking: The Power, Fragility, and Future of Our Extraordinary Lungs BY MICHAEL J. STEPHEN, MD, ’91 Grove Atlantic From an expert in pulmonary medicine, Breath Taking offers inspiration and hope to millions whose lungs have been affected by COVID-19 and other conditions, such as asthma and stress. Stephen illuminates the importance of our lungs, the evolutionary origins of breathing, and the healing power of breath.

Off the Wall

A Slice of Life

Produced by married collaborators Hollis Frampton ’54 and Marion Faller, Rites of Passage is a series of photographs showing ornately decorated three-tiered cakes that celebrate the progression of life’s momentous events. The cake toppers mark milestones such as birth, school, religious rituals, marriage, children, a new home, and anniversaries. Completing the cycle of life, the series ends with an urn and, finally, the same empty cake top with which it begins. Photographed in November 1983, Rites of Passage was printed under Faller’s supervision in 1984, after Frampton’s death. While a student at Phillips Academy, Frampton became close friends with Frank Stella ’54 and Carl Andre ’53. The three artists would later credit their time at the Academy— and with faculty members Patrick and Maud Morgan—as invaluable influences on their creative development. In 1990, Stella gifted Rites of Passage to the Addison, which now has seven photographic series by Frampton in its collection. —TESSA HITE

Curatorial Fellow, Addison Gallery of American Art Hollis Frampton and Marion Faller, Rites of Passage, 1983-1984. Plates 1–9, 12, 16, 18, and 19 from a series of 20 gelatin silver prints, 13 7/8 x 10 13/16 inches each. Gift of Frank Stella ’54, 1990.53.1-20

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A-GAME

Swinging for Success

Jeehae Lee ’02’s new app helps golfers analyze their game in 3D

eehae Lee’s golf resume is impressive. She won two Ivy League team championships at Yale, played on the LPGA Tour, managed superstar Michelle Wie’s career, served as an executive at Topgolf, and now is co-founder and CEO of Sportsbox AI, whose first product, 3D Golf, provides biomechanics analysis using only a smartphone. Before all that, however, Lee starred on Andover’s golf team. Being co-captain of a boys’ golf team in high school remains “one of my favorite fun facts that I tell people,” she says with a laugh. Nearly 20 years later, the details of that experience remain fresh—including beating a highly ranked Deerfield player with a 17th-hole birdie, team travels in the van, and Dairy Queen challenges organized by coaches Nat Smith and Bill Scott. “It’s the little things that stand out most,” she says. Lee made the most of her Andover education. Even though she already had two difficult math courses lined up for her senior fall—statistics and linear algebra—Lee wanted to take another class with Donald Barry, whose geometry class she enjoyed as a ninth-grader. “This is the most Andover thing ever, but I went out of my way to take a third math class my senior fall to have Mr. Barry again.” Yuan Han’s mentorship and instruction in language helped, too. Lee was born in Korea and immigrated to the United States when she was in middle school, where she learned English and French. At Andover, Lee immersed herself in Chinese; she credits Dr. Han for challenging her. “He always took a special interest in me. He told me I was very smart, but that I just needed to work a little harder.”

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On the golf course, Lee played two years on the Futures tour after graduating from Yale in 2006. She then earned an LPGA t our card at Q-School in the same class as Wie, playing on the Tour through 2011—when she began working at the global sports, events, and talent management company IMG, and representing Wie. After Lee earned an MBA from Wharton, Topgolf tapped her for its director of business strategy. Two promotions later, she was head of business development and growth initiatives for the company’s Toptracer brand. “I think the biggest learning I’ve taken away from my Topgolf experience has been the leadership and management of a team,” Lee says. “I’ve had some really great bosses there that have shown me how to not only build a product that people like, but also how to really build a business and build a team.”

The experience primed Lee for her current role as CEO of Sportsbox AI, where she reunited with her former Yale teammate, Stephanie Wei. Technology has enabled advanced analysis of golf swings not only for professional players, but also for dedicated amateurs—yet most data-collecting motion capture systems require golfers to either wear sensor-laden vests or take swings in expensive multi-camera studios. Sportsbox 3D Golf changes the tool by taking slow-motion video from a smartphone and generating accurate swing data based on 39 points on the body.

“The tech itself is—obviously I am biased—legitimately incredible,” Lee says. “It’s like magic. What it does is turn a 2D video into full 3D information that renders an avatar that you can see from multiple angles.” The product has backing from the bold-named glitterati of golf coaching, such as legendary instructor David Leadbetter and Sean Foley, who coaches Justin Rose and Lydia Ko, both of whom have reached a No. 1 world ranking. They were sold on the product, sure, but its leadership, they say, made it a standout. “Jeehae is incredibly impressive,” Foley says. 3D Golf launched on iPhone in October and Android in November, initially on an invite-only basis for coaches, but with plans for wider expansion. A consumer version is slated for 2022 through which “a golfer of any level can get an analysis and have the AI coaching module recommend a few tips, as well as drill content and instructional content that’s relevant for them,” Lee says. That’s a far cry from the experience of Lee’s own playing days a dozen years ago, when she’d leave practice with a take-home compact disc on which a video of her lesson had been burned. “The iPhone has been revolutionary for coaching,” she says. “With the advent of the iPhone, lessons have changed forever.” 

GETTY IMAGES

BY JOE LEMIRE ’01

Joe Lemire ’01 is a senior writer at SportTechie and a contributor to the New York Times, Men’s Health and MLB Network. A graduate of the University of Virginia, he is a former Sports Illustrated staff writer whose work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Grantland, and Bleacher Report.

Pieces of a 68-year-old family mystery come together in Andover’s archives BY DAVID PERRY

Lost & Found Bill Damon ’63 when he first entered Phillips Academy in 1959, in front of Will Hall (his junior dorm).

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n the decade since she became director of Archives and Special Collections, Paige Roberts has received more than 2,500 research requests. Some simple, others complex. Students, faculty, staff, alumni, and scholars from far and wide. She can put a face to very few. Bill Damon ’63 is one of them. In 2013, late on the Friday afternoon before his 50th Reunion, Damon walked into the archives’ offices. “I’m looking for some information about my father,” he told Roberts. Then he explained why. “When I heard his story, it totally blew me away,” she says. And so began Damon’s journey to know the father he never met, which is chronicled in his acclaimed new book, A Round of Golf with My Father: The New Psychology of Exploring Your Past to Make Peace with Your Present (Templeton Press). Damon, a leading scholar on human development and a professor of education at Stanford University, where he serves as director of the Stanford Center on Adolescence, began his search nearly a decade ago, in his 60s—almost two decades after his dad, Philip Damon, had died. In winter 1944, Philip came home on leave from the war and married Helen Meyers. Then he returned to Europe to resume the fight. Helen’s only child, Bill, arrived nine months later. Philip never returned. Until he was in college, Damon thought his father died in World War II, as his mother had implied. Then one day Helen dropped the truth on him—mentioning she would like to share the $100 a month Bill’s father had been sending her for all those years. Feeling ambushed by the news, Damon declined the money and decided against addressing the revelation with his mother.

Philip Damon (left) in 1941 and Bill Damon in 1963 “When I gazed upon my beginning year college photo and compared it to the picture of my father (he was also beginning college at the time his photo was taken)...I did a double take.” Opposite page: Bill Damon’s mother, Helen Meyers Damon, looking fashion-forward in 1960.

In an instant, his father went from dead to deadbeat, he thought. Why stir that pot with her now? And he never did. The Call That Changed Everything Are you the kind of person who’s afraid to look behind a closed door? Damon found himself having to answer that question when his daughter, Maria ’95, called in 2011. “Dad, I’m not sure I should be telling you this,” said a hesitant Maria. “I found a lot of information on your father.” Maria had been curious about her grandfather. In “ I thought of myself googling him, she discovered a small trove of information as being shy and very in an oral history within the intimidated by my peers records of the United States in school. They were Information Agency (USIA). “I was intrigued,” Damon better athletes, smarter, says. “Because at that point, harder working, the I was already a stable person with a family of my own. cool kids. But in the Earlier in my life, I wasn’t archives, one of my sure I wanted to identify this teachers wrote that I guy.” Maria sent him the link. was outgoing, friendly, “And it just floored me,” gregarious, well-liked. Damon recalls. “It had everything in it. One thing after I couldn’t believe it, and another. It was unbelievable.” it was helpful for me to It turns out his father see that.” had attended both Phillips Academy and Harvard, a path Damon had unknowingly followed. The details of the story were, for decades, securely locked away in the Academy’s archives. Phil Damon finished neither school, barely making it through his third year at Andover before being dismissed. He partied, was described as lazy, girl-crazy, and a troublemaker, and earned a series of written admonishments. Despite this, he was admitted to Harvard in 1941, but left the follow-

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ing year to volunteer in the Army. There, he found purpose and even moral courage, testifying at a war crimes trial following the war. He also worked for the USIA, spreading word of the benefits of democracy. Eventually, he married a French ballerina and started a second family, never returning to the first. And, like his own father, Phil Damon spent his final years in the throes of multiple sclerosis. But of all the revelations, one in particular struck Damon—the description of his father as a “great golfer.” A Round of Golf with My Father follows Damon’s quest to slay his buried regrets, conquer misconceptions, and answer long-dormant questions about his father. Calling upon a method developed by psychiatrist Robert Butler, Damon conducted a “life review” to examine his past through memory, documentation, and interviews. The process involves looking back on the highs and lows of one’s life, then squaring them against fact. It is a reckoning. “Memory,” says Damon, “is not like a photograph, meaning that a lot of the memories we have are not exactly right. For example, I thought of myself as being shy and very intimidated by my peers in school. They were better athletes, smarter, harder working, the cool kids. But in the archives I discovered that several of my teachers wrote that I was outgoing, friendly, gregarious, well-liked. I couldn’t believe it, and it was helpful for me to see that.” Research for the book took five years. Damon interviewed his father’s relatives, other relatives, and his newfound half-sisters, and raided archives from Andover to London. The book culminates with Damon grabbing an old, worn golf bag his father once used and heading to the Pittsfield (Mass.) Country Club. The vintage golf bag, sent to Damon by a cousin, contained a scorecard Phil Damon filled out while playing the same course when he was 12. And on a gorgeous spring day, Damon joyously played 18 holes against the score card of his pre-teen father. And he lost. But he also won. The life review liberated him

from ignorance and anger. He forgave his father and found in the man several respectable traits. “I came away with a couple of life lessons,” he says. “One is that you pretty much have to have conversations with people in your life before it’s too late. I didn’t get to do that with my mother. You need to clean up the mysteries in your life.” Looking Back With Fresh Eyes Roberts was ready when Damon appeared again in her office at the Oliver Wendell Holmes Library. For all the historical content she oversees— managing the special collections of 7,000 books and the archives of all things official for Phillips Academy and Abbot Academy—Damon’s book impressed her. It was Roberts who led Damon to folders about his father’s history at the school. Damon discovered notes on his father from an English teacher he also had two decades later, Hart Day Leavitt. “I was amazed to find that and wondered, could he have ever put together that we were father and son? He never said anything if he had.” Sadly, Leavitt was gone by the time Damon wanted to ask. Stories about our past are always a mixed bag of memories. Steeped in a stew of facts, experiences, nostalgia, and hearsay. While putting his own past under a magnifying glass, Damon was able to fill in the holes on an absentee parent—and found himself better understanding the parent who stayed with him for the long haul. “My mother was obviously a very strong woman, very smart,” Damon says. “She was dealt a huge blow by my father not returning. And for three or four years, she just didn’t know if he wasn’t returning. She would still visit his parents. When she finally found out, it was devastating for her. But she did bounce back.” Hard-working, full of love, and fueled by ambition, Helen (Meyers) Damon persevered. “She had a career in the 1950s, which was not very common for women in those days,” says Damon. “And it was in advertising, which was a

real live version of Mad Men.” Despite her hard work, she made considerably less than her male co-workers. But failing wasn’t an option. In the ’60s, Helen designed shoes that were sold in some highend boutiques around Cambridge and Boston. She was successful enough that Damon noticed the shoes worn by a girl he was dating were While putting his among those designed by his mother. “She was a good mother and alown past under a ways made sure I had opportunities,” magnifying glass, Damon says. “If my father had come Damon was able home, maybe she would have lived out her days without having a chance to to fill in the holes develop her love of fashion into a creon an absentee ative and fulfilling career.” Helen died in 2006. A retired entrepreneur and parent—and found artist, she lived happily in a house she himself better purchased by the sea in Maine. understanding the In his search for himself, Damon found what he was looking for. Now parent who stayed at peace with his past, he also benefits with him for the from having gained an extended family. His two half-sisters live in Thailand, long haul. and he treasures their relationship. “I’m hoping that through my example, trying to understand one’s past more clearly, I can help others do the same,” Damon says. “The present and future are important, but trying to obliterate the past and denying resentment and regret is a losing proposition.”  David Perry has covered news and feature stories in Massachusetts cities and towns for more than four decades. An award-winning features writer, he is also a Grammy-nominated artist for Best Album Notes for The Jack Kerouac Collection.

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LOBAL FLAVOR FUSION BY RITA SAVARD

S PAOLO TERZI

ome say the soul of family is in the kitchen, a place where lessons are learned, stories are shared, and life is lived. But no matter who you are, where you’ve been, or where you’re going, sharing food is part of the human story. From our earliest childhood memories of family get-togethers to first dates to celebrating milestones, food is at the heart of the gathering table. It comforts, brings joy, offers the excitement of something new, or evokes the familiar with a homey taste of nostalgia. On the following pages, you’ll meet alumni who use food and spirits to connect with community, uplift others, honor the past, and pay it forward.

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YAEL BRONNER RUBIN/SCHRAGELS

Raising Spirits Equal parts non sibi and tequila create Craig Reynolds ’73’s cocktail for change

Craig Reynolds ’73 wearing thick gloves as he harvests agave pups (offshoots) on his farm in Woodland, California

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raig Reynolds’ phone is ringing nonstop these days. Farmers. Distillers. Celebrities. All curious about his crops—rows of prehistoric-looking succulents across a sweeping desert vista in Yolo County, California. Crops that yield one of the most exclusive liquors on the luxury market. The agave plant is an iconic symbol of the Mexican spirits world, mainly enjoyed in its distilled form as tequila. Reynolds’ own brand of “agave spirits” —Dos Volcanes—is made from the same blue Webber plant as tequila. It began as a whim—an idea dreamed up as a way to raise money for scholarships to support Project Amigo. Since 1984, Reynolds and his wife, Cass,

have been volunteers at the nonprofit, which fosters literacy and educational opportunities for underserved children in Colima, Mexico. “I was certain it would fail,” admits Reynolds, whose day job was working in the California State Legislature as chief of staff for Sen. Lois Wolk. He had zero experience farming or, for that matter, running a business. “But I went along with it to humor my friend, Ted Rose, co-founder of Project Amigo, and surprisingly—to me at least—the agaves did very well.” His first crop, planted in Colima in 2006, produced 10,000 bottles of Dos Volcanes. The new brand quickly became a critics’ favorite, fetching $70 for a 750 ml. bottle. Proceeds from the sales were poured into the scholarship program that helps send children in rural Colima to high school and college. A teen from a migrant labor camp named Brenda was one of Dos Volcanes’ first scholars. Her father worked in Mexico’s sugar cane fields and her mother, also a field hand, harvested berries at a local farm. At 17, Brenda was accepted to the University of Colima Medical School—a one-hour bus ride from the camp. She traveled back and forth every day for six years; this past

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Below: Dos Volcanes earned its name from the location of Reynolds’ agave crop in Mexico: between two volcanoes.

TEQUILA or NOT TEQUILA? First, a little history. When it comes to turning agave into alcohol, Mexico enjoys a considerable head start over California. Indigenous Mesoamericans made a fermented beerlike beverage called pulque from agave for at least 1,000 years. A sliver of research suggests distillation may have occurred prior to Spanish contact, but the dominant belief is that it was the conquistadors of the 1600s who first started making liquor out of the plant to quell their craving for brandy. The tradition became big business over the next two centuries, especially for the Cuervo and Sauza families. The Mexican government has controlled the designation “tequila” since 1974 and “mezcal” since 1994—much like France controls the designation “Champagne.” Thus, Dos Volcanes, created in the same way as tequila but made from agaves grown outside the region, is branded as spirits distilled from agave.

California’s water policy. Because of climate change, the state is experiencing warmer temperatures, making it the driest it’s been in a century and dropping crucial water sources to their lowest levels. The science is dire news for everyone, but especially for farmers whose cash crops include almonds and pistachios, which have an insatiable appetite for water. Ecologically, growing agave can potentially address at least some of the effects of climate change in California, Reynolds explains. The large, spiky bluish-green succulents are naturally drought tolerant, fire resistant and, when compared to other California crops, require less than one-tenth the water to cultivate. “In other words, it’s a perfect plant,” says Reynolds. “Not to mention that it can grow in places where almost nothing else can grow—like rocky and sandy areas.” As he forged ahead, trying to carve out solutions for the state’s water shortage, Reynolds would often quip that “the better solution would be for almond growers to grow agave—a high value crop that doesn’t require much water.” In 2014, the same year he successfully harvested his crop in Mexico, Reynolds planted blue agave north of the border in Yolo County. “I figured with climate change and the predicted warming, this area would be more and more hospitable,” Reynolds says. “And the world really doesn’t need another

tequila from Mexico—there are over 1,500 brands. But California could certainly use at least one.” Reynolds now has five California craft distillers making spirits from his California-grown agave. Retired from politics, Reynolds remains an advocate for the environment through a new concept he’s coined “Mezcalifornia” (trademark pending), aimed at building an agave spirits industry in The Golden State that addresses drought, groundwater, and wildfire issues. The first harvest of his Yolo County crop in 2019 created a media buzz, drawing fans and inquiries from around the globe. In addition to his phone and inbox lighting up with requests— including a publicity campaign for a celebrity tequila on his agave farm and plans for a teaching distillery at UC Davis—some large-scale growers are beginning to take interest. Getting the big farming operations on board, Reynolds points out, is the only way for agave to have a fighting chance to create real and lasting environmental change. And whatever emerges on this side of the border for agave will be something new in both name and spirit. “I’m focused on nurturing the industry through its infancy, getting more growers and craft distillers on board and connecting them,” Reynolds says, adding that he is now working with one of the largest growers in the region, which recently planted an experimental crop of agave. “The goal isn’t to try and replicate what’s happening in Mexico, but to innovate right here in California.”

Alfred Tomaselli ’87 Ham Apple Casserole Ming Tsai ’82, P’18 Chef, Restaurateur Food is life. For me, food is the best way to share yourself with other people. And if it’s tasty, you can make people happy through food. It’s the only art form that uses all of your senses: sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste. How cool is that?

Rajesh Mundra P’18, ’20 Dean of Studies, Biology Instructor

ISTOCK: BREAD, MARIATKACH; MANGO, BOONCHUAY1970; TURKEY, EVGENYB; NAPKIN, ANDREY ELKIN

May she graduated as a physician. “Brenda now serves as a doctor in a nearby village, helping them through the pandemic,” Reynolds says. “There are dozens of stories like hers, made possible by the support of Project Amigo staff, volunteers, and contributors.” While growing agave in Mexico, Reynolds discovered another way the plant could be useful. His job in politics pushed him deep into the weeds of

Faculty, staff, and alumni savor their favorite memories, places, and feelings about food.

At left: Renolds uses a sharp, longhandled “cao” to slice away the plants’ distinctive sword-like leaves.

I was traveling In Ahmedabad, India, with Catherine Tousignant ’88 and Andover students in the Niswarth program a few years ago. We were there at the end of mango season, and I was told to find the Alphonso variety. We went to a couple of stores and discovered the season had ended the week before—and that there were none to be found. Undeterred, we went to a local market and, after many conversations, we were taken inside a warehouse where there were just a couple of crates left of the Alphonsos! So, happy with anticipation, we bargained (lightly) and eventually bought a crate. That evening in the hotel, we encouraged our students to close their eyes as we placed some beautiful pieces of this precious fruit on their plates. Eyes still closed, they sniffed and took in the full aroma. Exotic and unfamiliar, their curiosity was piqued. Now, with lots of smiles and salivating mouths (eyes still shut), each student picked up their fork and finally tasted a piece of the Alphonso mango. Magic! The texture and taste were extraordinary, overwhelming, and peaceful all at the same time! How could this be? Years later, I still talk about the vivid memories of that moment with the Niswarth group.

3 cups cooked ham, diced 2 tbsp. prepared mustard 2 apples, cored and diced 2 tbsp. lemon juice ½ cup brown sugar 1 tsp. grated orange rind 2 tbsp. flour Arrange ham in 1 ½ quart casserole. Spread with mustard. Arrange the diced apples over ham and add lemon juice. Combine brown sugar, orange rind, and flour and sprinkle on top. Bake at 350 for 30–35 minutes. Serves 4.

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Bridget Tsemo Director of CAMD, African American Literature Instructor When my mom got sick in 2000, my sister and I decided we’d bring Thanksgiving to her at the nursing home. We had never cooked such a big meal before, and that turkey seemed so overwhelming. It was a commitment! But we had each other to get through it. To tell you the truth, we may have left the bag inside the turkey, and I can’t say whether anyone actually liked it, but the whole family got to have dinner together with my mom. That memory signals the beginning of a very close relationship with my sister, who is my best friend.

A Taste of Humanity

ull up a chair, let the world slow down, savor the meal—and the company. An old Italian proverb might explain it best: A tavola non s’invecchia: “At the table with good friends and family, one does not grow old.” Words to live by for Lara Gilmore, who knows a thing or two about the transformative power of food. The co-owner of Modena, Italy’s Osteria Francescana—awarded three Michelin stars since 2012 and twice named World’s Best Restaurant—is fighting food waste with her chef husband, Massimo Bottura, and changing the conversation on food. The power couple launched a social enterprise in 2015. Food for Soul rede-

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fines the possibilities of soup kitchens. But make no mistake, Gilmore advises, flashing a thousand-watt smile. This is not a charity project. It is a cultural one. There are now 13 refettori (Italian for dining halls) worldwide, including two that opened in the United States this year. Refettorio Harlem in New York, which has been providing meals to the community throughout 2021, will open its doors to the public in mid-December, and Refettorio San Francisco currently serves meals in a temporary space while searching for a permanent home. All shine a light on making the most of surplus food. “The word refettorio,” Gilmore explains, “comes from the Latin reficere, meaning to ‘remake,’ but also to restore. It was originally a place where monks gathered to share their daily meal. “We wanted to focus on rescuing food and show people how you can make truly delicious meals out of what would otherwise be thrown away by grocery stores, markets, and catering companies,” Gilmore says. “But we also wanted to address beauty at the refettorio. Hospitality and how you welcome someone—how they feel in their environment—is just as important as what you’re serving them at the table.”

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Lara Gilmore ’86’s refettori are no ordinary soup kitchens

Lara Gilmore ’86 in the sprawling gardens of Casa Maria Luigia, her new bed and breakfast in Modena, Italy

At left: Gilmore with the staff of Refettorio Felix in London FELIX LONDRA

Page 33: A bustling dinner at the Refettorio Gastromotiva Gilmore with husband Massimo Bottura at Casa Maria Luigia

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Northern Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region, known for its balsamic vinegar and Ferrari sports cars, was not prepared for the destruction caused by an earthquake that hit Modena in 2012. The local dairy-farming community was pulverized and hundreds of thousands of damaged cheese wheels were destined to be thrown away— until Bottura and Gilmore stepped in, masterminding what is now known worldwide as “The Great Parmesan Rescue.” Featured in the opening episode of the Netflix documentary Chef ’s Table, Bottura developed a technique for cooking risotto in cheese to get chefs to buy the damaged wheels. With Gilmore’s communications savvy, they hosted an online fundraiser since dubbed the “biggest Italian dinner in history” on social media. The easy-to-make and delicious recipe made it into home kitchens and culinary hotspots alike all around the world. Every cheese wheel was sold and the industry was saved. “It was eye-opening,” Gilmore says. “Chefs are realizing they have a voice,

and with that voice is an opportunity to make change.” She points out that we’re at a critical moment. Almost one billion tons of ready-for-sale food gets wasted every year, most of it at home, according to the United Nations Environment Programme, for which Bottura is a goodwill ambassador. “We want to communicate that wasting food is not ethical and show people how they can get creative and have real impact,” Gilmore says. The first refettorio was born as a pop-up concept at the 2015 Food Expo in Milan. Housed in an abandoned theatre, the community kitchen brought together more than 60 international chefs to cook using food leftovers from the Expo. During the six months of the event, 100 volunteers washed dishes, mopped floors, and served over 10,000 meals cooked from 15 tons of salvaged food. Today, the Milan refettorio still serves healthy meals in a beautiful space five days a week. The project has grown and flourished in cities across the globe, with each location—a historic colonial house

MARCO PODERI

how to make tortellini. Paired with veteran Italian pasta makers, students ages 16 to 25, including their son Charlie, produce tortellini daily for local restaurants, cafeterias, and businesses (including a Maserati car factory). The students gain both skill and pride for contributing to their town’s culinary identity. When the pandemic made it impossible for the U.S. refettori to open their doors to the public, both locations— along with established refettori around the globe—transformed into brown bag delivery services for the most vulnerable. In Harlem, an average of 600 meals a week are still being delivered to those in need. “The past couple of years has reminded us how strong we are when we work together,” Gilmore says. “We will always be a community gathering around a table of family, friends, and strangers who will become friends. Food is the binding force that draws us together and reminds us of our collective humanity.”

A TWIST of FATE The day Lara Gilmore stepped inside her French classroom at Andover, it changed the course of her future. “I just didn’t click with my teacher,” Gilmore says. “Sometimes it happens.” So she switched to Italian, taught by Vincent Pascucci, whom Gilmore describes as an elegant, older gentleman from Como, Italy, who came to class every day in a beautiful suit and tie. “Before we even learned the language, he made us fall in love with the culture—the food, the landscape, the art and music. It really opened my mind up to Europe and European history. And with that, at age 15, began the beginning of the whole rest of my life.” As soon as she graduated from Andover, she visited Italy, knowing that someday she’d be back. Years later, when living in New York and studying art, she replied to an ad for a bartender at the Caffé di Nonna in Soho. “I told them I could speak fluent Italian, make a good cappuccino, that I had traveled and knew a little bit about wine. They asked me to start working the next day.” Massimo Bottura, an Italian who was learning his way around New York City kitchens, also happened to walk into that same café, looking for a job. The pair became fast friends. Bottura would eventually return home to Italy. In 1993, Gilmore took a leap of faith and left New York for Modena to be with her future husband. “I feel both American and Italian,” she says. “But when I’m in the kitchen, I feel more Italian.”

ANGELO DALBO

Food for Soul restores and renovates neglected spaces, transforming them into inspiring community hubs. By partnering with artists, architects, designers, and musicians, Gilmore and Bottura are building a movement in which people in vulnerable situations— as well as the whole community—can feel welcome and valued. “Imagine a beautiful space, filled with art, music, and good conversation,” Gilmore says. “This sparks social connections. Not just for the people in need, but for the volunteers, the chefs— everyone walking through the doors and joining the gathering. It brings them all together in an equal way. And everybody is raised up a little bit. That is the power of food. We think of food as delicious meals, but food—and the act of coming together around a table and creating a dialogue—transforms how we feel about ourselves.” Food is both a teacher and a storyteller. One life-changing lesson—and quite possibly the genesis of Gilmore and Bottura’s food revolution—harkens back to 360,000 wheels of ParmigianoReggiano cheese.

in Yucatan, Mexico; an ancient crypt in the heart of Paris; a 100-year-old Gothic-style church in Harlem—boasting its own unique character and style. “Like the finest dining rooms in the world,” adds Gilmore, a fine arts major, “the refettori are places where food and hospitality combine with art and culture. It is also about bringing dignity to the table, which can be done in many ways—through the power of beauty, the quality of ideas, and the value of hospitality—something we’ve learned over our 26 years of experience at Osteria Francescana.” The wild success of the Modena restaurant, a 12-table, 34-seat intimate affair in a small town, has allowed Gilmore and Bottura to wield influence over issues they care most about and combine their love of community, art, and food to lead the charge on social impact entrepreneurship. Three years ago, Gilmore and Bottura launched Tortellante, a project that teaches people with special needs

YAEL BRONNER RUBIN/SCHRAGELS

Schmear This! An old family recipe helped Rebecca Schrage ’97 put New York–style bagels on the map in Hong Kong

Rebecca Schrage ’97 enjoys her favorite snack— a piping hot Schragels everything bagel.

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very recipe tells a story. For Rebecca Schrage, a marriage of two worlds, family tradition, and new frontiers is where the plot thickens. So it’s fitting that, of all things, a food in the shape of a circle takes center stage in her kitchen. Bagels, like pizza and mom’s mac and cheese, are one of those hot-button foods that evoke strong feelings. Schrage’s earliest memories involve waking up on Sundays to the heady scent, distinctively doughy and slightly sweet. “We’d rush downstairs in our pajamas to dig in,” she says. “Weekends at the Schrage house were for bagel brunches with schmears [a generous

slathering of cream cheese] and all the fixings—lox, whitefish salad, egg salad, and chopped liver.” The golden-brown circle, perfectly imperfect, would still be warm as she raised it to her mouth and closed her eyes. This is where her journey began. Food was the language of love for Schrage’s mother, Elizabeth, who found joy immersing her family in cuisine from two different worlds— Hong Kong, the place of her own roots, and the Jewish food traditions of her husband, Michael. Schrage’s grandfather, Benjamin Schrage, emigrated from Poland to New York City, where, history confirms, the Polish-Jewish community introduced the unique and tasty bread to America. Benjamin owned and ran New York delis throughout the 1950s and 1960s. His granddaughter, who lived in New York post college when working on Wall Street as an investment banker, is—like any New Yorker—fiercely particular about the bagel. The art of boiling the dough, she says, and the persistence of a technique passed down through hundreds of years separates the real deal bagels from the phonies. “A great bagel is all about the chew,” Schrage declares. “A thin, shiny, crackly

QuickBites Because bicultural and biracial people have two identities within one social domain, their identification is often challenged. When applying to Andover in the mid-’90s, Schrage had to check a race box, and for the first time she found herself having to choose between her Caucasian and Asian identities. She attended the Andover Asian Society meetings because she was strongly connected to her Chinese culture, but still felt like something was missing—something that spoke to her unique experience. So, Schrage founded the Interracial Student Association (now called MOSAIC), which also welcomed students who were in mixed-race relationships. The students bonded in their shared experiences and also shared with the Academy their frustrations over having to choose a single identity on the Andover application form. In response, the Academy’s application process was updated, enabling students to choose more than one descriptor. “Growing up in a mixed culture household was so incredibly different. I thought it was important to create a place where interracial students could meet and share experiences, ask questions, and get advice on challenges they might face,” she says.

“The crossing of cultures back then was a big deal,” says Schrage. “I love this photo of my parents with both sets of grandparents. It’s a beautiful representation of love and where I come from.”

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Rev. Gina Finocchiaro ’97 Interim Protestant Chaplain All my travel memories have a soft spot with food at the core. There was a pot of fondue with crusty bread in Québec City. The best cup of coffee with real sugar in Costa Rica, chocolate churros con chocolate in the south of Spain, fish and chips in a pub in London, pain au chocolat outside Notre Dame—and don’t even get me started about my time in Italy! Squid ink pasta on Lake Como, gelato in Florence, street food in Sicily, and cannoli from a food truck! I could go on and on. But my time in Santa Fe, New Mexico, inspired a new holiday tradition with posole. The centerpiece of Southwestern cooking is the chili pepper. I took a whole class on chili peppers when I was there. Posole is a festive colorful dish—a great recipe for days when a cook has more time as it takes a while to prepare. A pot will feed a lot of people, or last for days. In my kitchen, it is a good New Year’s Eve/Day project. It fills me with hope, sustenance, and nourishment to start the year off right. Best of all, posole is a good excuse to invite friends over!

Corrie Martin English Instructor ISTOCK: POSOLÉ, BHOFACK2; HIBISCUS, OBSCURA99; POT, EDUARDROBERT; NAPKIN, ANDREY ELKIN

FULL CIRCLE

crust and a dense, chewy interior come requests followed. Schrage purchased from the proper boiling. If it’s not boiled, an extra oven and refrigerator and was it’s not a bagel. Steaming doesn’t count.” soon rising before dawn to fulfill orders Schrage earned a degree in ecofor restaurants, hotels, corporate events, nomics and Asian studies from the and individuals—all before heading to University of Pennsylvania. Her investher day job. ment banking career took her from In 2014, CNN Money ran the New York to New Zealand to Hong story “Hong Kong’s Bagel Banker,” and Kong. There, she joined fellow expats seemingly overnight Schrage’s purpose in a chorus of “can’t-find-a-decent-bachanged. She found a commercial gel-in-Hong Kong.” The closest thing kitchen and decided to go all in. Schrage found were frozen, colorless, “The fact that there were no real flat bagels—a sure sign that the dough bagels in Hong Kong was shocking,” had been rolled out by Schrage says. “It’s a machine instead of by melting pot of so many hand. different cultures that WHAT’S NEXT There was only appreciate high-quality Schrage is currently one way to ensure food. That first order I working on opening a a fresh, authentic got from a top restauJewish deli. It will involve bagel in Hong Kong: rant chef was key—it bagels, of course, but also smoked meats, smoked Schrage dusted off her made me realize there fish, and a lot of Schrage’s grandfather’s recipe was an opportunity favorite traditional Jewish and made her own. for a real wholesale foods: potato latkes, A lucky friend business out here.” knishes, blintzes, and “mom’s matzah ball soup.” who got to try one of For top hotels, she Schrage’s first batches began to hand roll to of homemade bagels order. The Mandarin requested three dozen for a birthday Oriental preferred larger sesame and party. Schrage obliged. poppy seed bagels, Grand Hyatt wanted Serendipitously, the party was mini bagels, and The Peninsula wanted attended by people from Hong Kong’s pink beetroot canapé bagels for their food industry, and immediately after iconic afternoon tea. Schrage got a call from a well-known “Whatever they wanted, we did,” chef who just had to have some. More Schrage says. “The coolest part was that many of our wholesale partners called the bagels ‘Schragels’ on their menu, which helped us expand really quickly.” The media caught on, with stories in the New York Times and South China Morning Post. And in 2016, the global magazine Jetsetter named Schragels one of the top bagels in the world. Schrage now runs a wholesale factory and a thriving retail space. In the Schrage family, the bagel represents the perfect food. A circle. No beginning or end but held within a single delicious ring—echoes of hard work, good intentions, the soul of a grandfather, and a gift of nourishment to the people it feeds. “I’ve always believed in the dream,” says Schrage. 

As years pile on living on the mainland, my trips home to Hawaii become increasingly centered around (should I admit, consumed with?) food. The moment after I click “Purchase Ticket,” a list and itinerary are produced—dishes, delicacies, restaurants, plate lunch joints, cafés, bakeries, markets, purveyors, shrimp trucks, and shave ice stands. My first stop from the airport is Tamashiro’s for poke, limu, and fresh poi. Want to hang out? Meet me at the Ramen place on King! Let’s go for a walk in Chinatown and stop for tea. I always thought the motto should not be “Lucky you live Hawaii,” but “Lucky you eat Hawaii!”

Ruth Quattlebaum P’93, ’96 Archivist Emerita Kahlua Pie 26 chocolate wafer cookies, crushed ¼ cup butter, melted ¼ cup Kahlua 1 pint marshmallow creme 2 cups whipping cream, whipped stiff Butter a 9-inch springform pan. Combine crushed wafers and melted butter. Press in bottom and up sides of pan, reserving enough for sprinkling on top. Gradually stir Kahlua into marshmallow creme. Pour into pan and top with reserved crumbs Put in freezer for 3 hours and bring directly to the table to serve. Jenn Dire ifer Sav ctor i of Al no P’21 , umn Food i Eng ’24 m agem child eans f a , ent peop family d mily to m in l by b e at the ners ar e. Since e lo t I fami od or by able are every ni was a ly di ght. fami c h o n The ly, w of m ice. I ner t h y f in ou family. F able with you hav ether e r hom amil m s at at anyw y me e, you e, at a a a dinn here in t the bea ls can t re part a he w er w c k h e , on v plac as in orld. a pri ac e st o T Food rity. It is illed in m he value ation, a enjo always t valued e by my of family ying a a d it in stes bes nd sacr ad. It is e the c t omp when y d space. o any of fa u are mily .

Lou Bernieri P’96, ’10 Director of Andover Bread Loaf, English Instructor My favorite food memory is of my grandmother’s pesto gnocchi— everything made from scratch with fresh ingredients—topped with Parmigiano-Reggiano.

support youth of color. Lewis is currently on the boards of several education and nonprofit institutions, including Uncommon Schools, The Posse Foundation, and City Fund. He served as a Phillips Academy charter trustee twice. In the early 2000s, he and his wife, Carol Sutton Lewis, established the African American Art Acquisition Fund, which has helped the Addison Gallery purchase 30 significant works of art to date.

William M. Lewis Jr. ’74

n award-winning film editor, producer, and director, Dorothy Tod is well known for her work on children’s television programs as well as compelling documentaries that shed light on timely social and environmental issues. After graduating from Abbot Academy, Tod earned a BA at Vassar College. She began her film career editing footage for CBS’s Captain Kangaroo and PBS’s groundbreaking Sesame Street

and has since produced and edited more than 300 short nature films. In 1972, she established Dorothy Tod Films. What if You Couldn’t Read?, her 1980 documentary, won the duPont–Columbia Citation in Broadcast Journalism. Her 1981 film Warriors’ Women, also a prize-winner, aired nationally on PBS, providing insights into the impact of the Vietnam War. In 2000, Tod produced and directed A Dyslexic Family Diary, about a mother’s 18-year struggle to get an education

for her bright dyslexic son. Tod also established and managed the Vermont Women’s Cable Network. Following a 1998 flash flood that wreaked havoc in Vermont, Tod began focusing on water problems and dams. She is currently a member of the Producer’s Committee for Freedom and Unity: The Vermont Movie, a documentary series that aims to understand Vermont’s iconoclastic spirit.

Dorothy Tod ’60

orking in his family’s restaurant sparked his initial fascination with food, but Ming Tsai’s career path to “top chef” was not a straight one. While earning a degree in mechanical engineering at Yale, he spent several summers in Paris learning to cook. Studying at Le Cordon Bleu tipped the scales. He went on to earn a master’s degree in hotel administration and hospitality from Cornell and trained under internationally acclaimed master chefs.

In 1998, Ming opened Blue Ginger, an East-meets-West fusion restaurant in Wellesley, Massachusetts. Blue Ginger received three stars from the Boston Globe and earned Tsai Esquire Magazine’s “Chef of the Year,” among many other accolades. In 2013, he opened Blue Dragon in Boston, featuring his signature East-West fusion with a twist on traditional pub classics. Tsai is also host and executive producer of Simply Ming, an Emmy Award–nominated

public television cooking show now celebrating its 17th season. After his wife, Polly, was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2017, Tsai focused on healthier vegan cooking to help fuel her recovery. His MingsBings, highprotein, gluten-free patties packed with superfoods, debuted at Fenway Park this past summer. A portion of the proceeds will benefit The DanaFarber Cancer Institute and Family Reach.

JESSIE WALLNER

Chosen by a seven-member alumni committee, the recipients of Andover’s Alumni Award of Distinction represent a diverse sampling of individuals and industries. While William M. Lewis Jr. ’74, Dorothy Tod ’60, and Ming Tsai ’82, P’18, have chosen different paths, these three alumni are united in their quest for excellence and their embodiment of Andover’s non sibi motto.

Investment Banking. Born in Richmond, Virginia, Lewis came to Andover through A Better Chance (ABC), a program whose mission is to “increase substantially the number of well-educated young people of color who are capable of assuming positions of responsibility and leadership in American society.” Lewis went on to become ABC’s national chair, a leader in promoting advancement through educational opportunity, and a strong backer of institutions that

JESSIE WALLNER

A financial services trailblazer and philanthropist. An awardwinning filmmaker and entrepreneur. A master chef and advocate.

ith more than four decades of Wall Street experience, Bill Lewis recently joined Apollo Global Management Inc. as a senior partner and member of Apollo’s executive committee. Lewis graduated from Harvard College and earned an MBA at Harvard Business School before joining Morgan Stanley in 1982. In 1989, he became the firm’s first African American managing director. He joined Lazard Ltd in 2004, where he worked for 17 years and became chairman of

LYNN HAYES

Living Lives of Distinction

Ming Tsai ’82, P’18 38

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A LU M N I U P C L O S E

Wonder Woman Meet the CEO-entrepreneurtech outsider-mom who transformed a failing company into a billion-dollar enterprise BY JENNIFER MYERS

njali Sud ’01 oversees a global platform with 230 million users and more than 1,000 employees as the CEO of Vimeo. She wakes every day fired up for learning more and building upon that knowledge to make an impact. “At Vimeo, we are in a fast-moving, highly competitive space,” says Sud, who has served as CEO of the video hosting and sharing service since 2017. “There are no playbooks or rules to follow, which is challenging in the best of ways. I can’t imagine getting up every day and not feeling energized by that privilege.” Under Sud’s leadership, Vimeo—once considered YouTube’s weird and artsy cousin—spun off from its parent company IAC/InterActive Corp. in May, becoming an independent, publicly traded company with a market value of nearly $8.4 billion. While that energy can be intoxicating, Sud is conscious not to let her work fully consume her life. She takes time for self-care by aiming to get a solid eight hours of sleep each night and to go out for solo walks on the weekends to clear her head. She is the first to admit that no one, not even Wonder Woman, can truly balance everything successfully.

“ The practice of curiosity is so valuable. It helps you admit what you don’t know, uncover dangerous blind spots, and continuously improve. I also think it makes you more empathetic in seeking to understand others’ perspectives.” 40

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“I live in a world of perpetual tradeoffs: as a CEO, mother, wife, friend, sister, daughter, and every other facet of my relationship with the world,” Sud says. “Every day is an exercise in picking the things to lean into and the things to let go. I’ve found that by embracing these tradeoffs and being more intentional about the things I let go, I am happier and more fulfilled in my life choices.” Sometimes, she admits, those life choices include ordering pizza from Dominos or making a beeline for the nearest Olive Garden for those addictive breadsticks—everything in moderation. In the workplace, Sud says she and her executive team lead by modeling curiosity and empathy in their daily interactions to create a culture that empowers people to do their best work while driving positive outcomes. “The practice of curiosity is so valuable. It helps you admit what you don’t know, uncover dangerous blind spots, and continuously improve,” she explains. “I also think it makes you more empathetic in seeking to understand others’ perspectives.” The mark of a successful CEO, Sud adds, is someone who can admit what they do not know and give those more talented than themselves the room

to work and make decisions, knowing in the end the leader is always accountable. “This is a skill I am continuously working on,” she says. When the COVID-19 lockdown began in March 2020 and companies sent employees home, Vimeo was suddenly faced with a demand for their software they had never experienced before. The expansion the company had been working toward under Sud’s leadership accelerated at a rapid pace. While the onslaught stretched the company from an operational standpoint, it also validated the vison and strategy she and her team crafted. “Suddenly every process, every line of code, every customer interaction had higher stakes,” Sud says. “It really forced us to be more disciplined and scalable in everything we do.” Will workers ever return to their cubicles fulltime in a post-COVID America? “Why would we?” Sud asks. “We have a ton of work to do to truly figure out hybrid and remote work, but now that we’ve experienced some of the benefits, we can’t just bury our heads in the sand.” The lockdown forced even the most reluctant companies to realize the constraints of time and place no longer exist. When we have the technology to hold live virtual meetings with colleagues around the globe in sweatpants from the comfort of our couches, there is no need for employees to commute two hours every day or to be restricted to job opportunities in their geographic area. “I think the smartest companies will look at the pandemic not as a blueprint for the future of work, but as an experiment rife with learnings to test and optimize from,” Sud says. “If I had a crystal ball, I think we would see that technology—and video specifically—will continue to make work more asynchronous and accessible, so that everyone across a company, regardless of their location or schedules, can learn, collaborate, and connect more easily. That has powerful implications for productivity, culture, and inclusivity.” Sud’s ambitious vision for Vimeo is to bring the power of video to every business in the world regardless of their budget, size, or expertise. “If I’ve done my job well, every business—from the smallest shop to the largest enterprise—will be using video, and Vimeo will be powering a more efficient, better way for all of us to communicate, collaborate, and connect at work.” 

GENDER EQUITY IN AI

o many people, coding sounds tedious and complicated. Not so for Athena Rhee ’24, who describes her newly learned skill as “fascinating” and even “fun.” In fall 2020, while taking her PA classes remotely from her home in Seoul, Rhee taught herself to code. There were frustrations and challenges, but she was motivated: “Technology has great potential for good,” says Rhee, “but I realized that many artificial intelligence [AI] systems are being developed primarily by men. If female coders don’t step up and contribute, AI will not function equitably. “Currently, only 12 percent of machine-learning researchers are female,” she continues. “Because of this gender disparity in STEM fields, the algorithms, data sets, and designs in AIs are at risk of neglecting the challenges faced by women and other gender minority groups.” Rhee cites the field of medicine as an example. “Treatments effective for men might not be as effective for women.” Female coders, she notes, “ Code may look “offer different insights, resulting in data sets like random and algorithms that lines of enable AI systems to provide more accurate indecipherable diagnoses and more letters, but once effective treatments for you learn how to women.” This past summer, code, you’ll be Rhee was appointed to mesmerized by the board of Code Your Chances (CYC), a globhow fascinating al nonprofit that teachit is. Each word, es young girls the importance of computer each line has a science and showcaspurpose.” es the opportunities available by learning to code. Rhee helps CYC locate organizations to collaborate with and host interactive workshops. A member of PA’s Computer Science Club and AI Club, Rhee shares her coding experiences and enthusiasm widely. “AI will be guiding and controlling more and more aspects of everyone’s lives in the years ahead,” she says. “A more genderinclusive creation of AI will help technology address the real-world challenges that all humans face.” —JILL CLERKIN

A LU M N I U P C L O S E

Paving the Way Louis Parker ’73 helps the next generation navigate their way to success BY DAVID PERRY

ouis Parker remembers well the change of scenery. His hometown, Homewood, was an area of Pittsburgh known for gun violence and hardscrabble poverty; it was all brick, tar, and concrete. In the fall of 1969, he arrived at Phillips Academy—a visual feast of trees, manicured lawns, and historic halls. But it wasn’t just the landscape. Parker, who came to PA through A Better Chance (ABC)—a nonprofit that pairs students of color with quality educational opportunities—was a young African American in a sea of white faces. “By the time I arrived, ABC had really begun to change the population. There were 40 or 50 other students of

UNEXPECTED ART color,” recalls Parker, adding that he arrived just a few years after his older brother, John, who was one of ABC’s first students in 1965. “The school I went to in Homewood had 2,000 students, and two of them were white.” After graduating in 1973, Parker earned a BA in political science from the University of Pennsylvania in 1977 and an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1990. He then blazed a trail across the boardrooms of America, corporations that need only initials: notably, IBM, ADP, and GE. At General Electric, he rose quickly to become one of the corporation’s top 40 executives. He now sits on the board of A Better Chance. In 2011, Parker decided to concentrate on giving back to Black and Latino youth and, in 2013, he opened the public charter school Visible Men Academy (VMA) in Bradenton, Florida, to battle what he calls “the humanitarian crisis of education for boys of color.” Recently, Parker left the corporate world to become VMA’s CEO. He made some changes, brought in fresh personnel, and bore down full-time on fleshing out his vision of a school that would eventually make today’s good students

tomorrow’s good men. The school, which is tuition-free, currently has 100 students, kindergarten through grade five. “There is a crisis of Black and brown boys and a huge dropout rate,” says Parker. “Changing that is our mission.” Education, he adds, is the key to making better partners, citizens, and employees. “I was just like these boys,” he explains, “but there wasn’t an opportunity at the time for people like me in K–5— years that are very formative.” Parker wishes his Alabama-born father had such an opportunity. Born on a farm, he came back from World War II and worked for the Pennsylvania Railroad, though he never learned to read or write. When he took a test to earn a higher license with the company, he had to ask to bring his wife in with him so she could read the questions. “I thought I had a great childhood,” says Parker, who has a 15-year-old son. “I was a good student. I knew we weren’t rich, but I didn’t know I was living in poverty until I went to Andover. When I was doing well in corporate America, people would say, ‘you are living the dream!’ But I didn’t have that dream. As a kid, I didn’t know it even existed.” In addition to academics, the students at VMA—thanks to Parker’s experience and leadership—are receiving an early childhood education that is strongly rooted in emotional health— focusing on character, relationships, and belonging. Andover, he says, “taught me how to learn. I had done well in school before, but Andover was different. I had to learn how to learn and mature. At 14, being so far from home after growing up in an all-Black community was a big difference. When I got to Andover, I was so homesick. But after a semester I didn’t want to go home. “Andover taught me who I am. It gave me the ability to navigate through society and to stand toe to toe with anyone.”

JENNIFER CECERE ’69

“Always be grateful for what you have and never be envious of others…”

housands of people hustle through the Little Italy– University Circle railway station in Cleveland every year. All pass under a suspended intricate sculpture that might remind some of the handmade white doilies adorning side tables at Nona’s house. Some may be surprised to find a 15-foot-long sculpture of five interlocking white lacy domes made of laser-cut steel casting intricate shadows on the tile station walls. “The goal for the piece is to champion the handiwork of unsung women. I love the idea of taking activities like knitting and crochet, often considered safe outlets for women done alone in private, into the public realm,” explains Jennifer Cecere, who won a national competition to create the permanent public art work. “The view is a little bit unexpected. You’re in a public space being confronted with materials and processes that you don’t expect to see. It’s meant to challenge our notions of public art.” Cecere grew up in Richmond, Indiana, as a 4-H girl and a daughter of Italian-American parents. She became interested in art at a young age, studied art with Ginny Carter and photography with Wendy Snyder MacNeil at Abbot, and earned a BFA at Cornell University. For more than 40 years, Cecere has created large public sculptures, such as Double Doily—a white bench featuring a lace pattern made of aluminum (see below)—and other pieces made of plastic, vinyl, and fabric. Her work has been exhibited in sculpture parks, galleries, and museums, including Central Park, the Staten Island Ferry Terminal, Newport Beach Sculpture Park, the Guggenheim Museum, MoMA/PS1, Smithsonian Museum, and the Addison Gallery of American Art. —NANCY HITCHCOCK

MANUEL A. “MANOLO” CADENAS ’40

recently joined the exclusive centenarian club and is the author of Memories of a Journey Through Time, an autobiography about his early life in Cuba and the difficult period of the 1960s when he, his wife, and three young children left behind all their material possessions to seek freedom in America.

Louis Parker’73 shares a laugh with a student at Visible Men Academy.

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P H I L A N T H RO P Y

KNOWLEDGE & GOODNESS: THE ANDOVER CAMPAIGN

Every year, more than 1,500 donors across 21 classes unite to pair their personal and class affinities to Knowledge & Goodness priorities, such as scholarships, campus enhancements, Outreach programs, and other key areas.

Big Blue Connections

GIL TALBOT

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orated to match any donations from the rest of the class to Andover Bread Loaf and PALS, two longstanding Academy Outreach programs. The chosen recipients of the match funds were the nonprofits Groundwork Lawrence and Habitat for Humanity, in recognition of the decades-long partnership the school has enjoyed with the greater Merrimack Valley community. Additionally, a state tax credit awarded to some of the donors will be re-donated. The unique endeavor—christened the PA’71/Lawrence Project—proved popular, pushing total class reunion participation to 41 percent. Many volunteered their time for Andover as well. “Most of us had been struck by the state of the world and COVID-19 and

its impact on the economy,” says Geoff Foisie ’71. “I asked, what if we use this occasion—reunion—as a way to assist those who are less fortunate. And class members responded right away.” The gift resonated with a class that attended Andover during an era of increased social consciousness. “This was really a group initiative, and that was one of the great things about it,” he says. Likewise, the Class of 1966 banded together for its recent reunion effort. Galvanized by the leadership donation of Chris “Topper” Lynn ’66 to fund the pool in the highly anticipated Pan Athletic Center, the class successfully launched a series of giving challenges aimed at facility enhancements and financial aid. “Topper’s gift caught the imagination of our class, and we went from there,” says Robin Hogen ’66, who works to

build alumni participation as head class agent. “Everyone we asked to contribute said, yes, I’m in, I want to do this.” In an impressive flurry of generosity, the class named the boys’ locker room and hot tub in the future Pan Athletic Center, and endowed two scholarships, all in tribute to much-loved and admired classmates. Donors hope the funding helps keep Andover athletes competitive and boosts educational resources for current and future students. According to Hogen, the Class of 1966 is exploring additional avenues for impact. “Who knows what the next five years will bring?” he says, given that gifts made in the five-year reunion cycle— ending in Reunion Weekend—count toward class giving and participation goals. “There’s plenty of opportunity for alumni to join in.” 

TORY WESNOFSKE

ural way to commemorate their own time at Andover. Twenty years after Commencement, through college, careers, and parenthood, they’ve never forgotten the place where they met, the place that Peter still calls “home.” Recently, the couple named a locker room in the Snyder Center with their first major gift, a tax-smart donation of appreciated securities. “A lot of things aligned—our reunion, the campaign, and our resources. I thought, we can make this an especially meaningful show of support,” says Peter, who played squash and tennis as a student. “We wanted to demonstrate our enthusiasm for the Academy and what it’s meant to us, and our reunion was a good chance to do that.” “When we made this gift we were kind of new to philanthropy,” Amy adds. “We didn’t come from families that gave in big ways, so it wasn’t like this was a well-established thing that we did. But I always wanted to help today’s students have the same kind of transformative experience we had. When I think about our formative years and the impact that the Academy had, I will always be grateful.” The Class of 1971 was also prompted by gratitude—and non sibi spirit— for their 50th Reunion gift. A dozen classmates collab-

BETHANY VERSOY

eunion, whether in person or virtual, presents a unique chance to reconvene, reminisce, and create new Andover moments. For alumni celebrating these milestones, reunion also provides an opportunity to make a singular impact at Andover— one that lasts long after Reunion Weekend has ended. In fact, every year, more than 1,500 donors across 21 classes unite to pair their personal and class affinities to Knowledge & Goodness priorities, such as scholarships, campus enhancements, Outreach programs, and other key areas. For alumni Amy ’98 and Peter Christodoulo ’98, making a gift to mark their 20th Reunion was a nat-

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Finding resonance in reunion giving

To learn more about reunion giving, please contact Nicole Cherubini, director of development, at 978-749-4288 or ncherubini@andover.edu.

AT ISSUE

ISTOCK: WANLEE PRACHYAPANAPRAI

Transforming Our Investment in Health Care BY VANESSA KERRY, MD, MSC, ’95

s a physician I have worked in myriad settings. I have had the privilege to train in some of the world’s top hospitals, serve in urban community health centers, deliver care in rural Africa, work overnights in post-earthquake Haiti, and swelter in PPE in the trenches of COVID-19. Each of these experiences has cemented my deep understanding that health care is fundamentally human-centered. Doctors, nurses, midwives, and health workers of all types serve as the front lines of human response in sickness. And at the center is the patient who is a wife, a father, a child—a human life in need, with a community that revolves around them. Thus, when World Health Organization Director General Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus shared in May that more than 115,000 health-care workers had died due to COVID-19, I was stunned. Though paling in comparison to the millions of lives COVID-19 has taken in total, these workers’ deaths are significant. Collectively, they represent a loss of over one million years of education, $4.5 billion in training, and a devastating blow to a sector already facing personnel shortages estimated to reach 18 million people by 2030. The immediate impact is that more people, especially in communities that need it the most, will lack access to health services. As we respond to COVID-19, we will need to acknowledge and act in support of the profound role of health workers far more than we have to date. In recent years, the promise of technology in global health has drawn massive speculative dollars and attention. Financiers, philanthropists, and governments have intensified their investments in health care research and infrastructure. Interventions have made progress in some disease areas like HIV. However, support for the front lines of health delivery—the workforce—has not kept pace, and impact has remained siloed and underleveraged. The lack of prescriptive policies or funding to invest in the workforce are telling, reflecting a persistent misunderstanding of the essential role of health workers in ensuring health for all.

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The global COVID-19 vaccine rollout offers a poignant example. The need for vaccines is without question, but health workers are critical to delivering shots in arms and protecting essential services. Independent reports have indicated that for every $1 invested in vaccine supply, $2.50 would be needed to deliver vaccines to patients. Yet, while governments wrestle with their vaccine donations to COVID-19 Donations Global Access (COVAX), none have committed to the essential human resources needed to deliver them. As a result, many countries remain unprepared: vaccine readiness in at least 11 African countries is at 75 percent or less. The pandemic has rolled back decades of progress, tested the As we look to resilience of health systems, and respond to unmasked continued inequities across the globe. Recent studies COVID-19, we have shown increases in maternal will need to mortality and tuberculosis deaths, for example, since COVID-19 acknowledge and began. The World Bank has act in support estimated the cumulative cost of the profound role of COVID-19 to be more than $16 trillion to date. In contrast, of health workers researchers have estimated the far more than we cost to achieve necessary and overdue global benchmarks in health, have to date. including universal health care and filling the global shortages of health workers, to be a fraction of that figure. At $400 billion, the annual investment required to close the gap is one-fortieth of the cost of COVID-19 and promises dividends in development, economic growth, and well-being, beyond those of health. While the investment is significant, evidence shows that growth of the health sector and health system improvements have sizable returns. Macroeconomic analysis has indicated that 25 percent of economic growth in low- and middle-income countries from 2000 to 2011 was attributed to improvements in population health. Additionally, investing in health systems has multiplier effects. It improves health, strengthens

COVID-19 has underscored the importance of health as essential for social well-being, economic growth, and equity. economic growth and national security, and fosters greater social protection and cohesion. The health and social sectors generate jobs, almost 70 percent of which will be occupied by women. The employment of women achieves progress toward both gender equality and poverty alleviation and brings families into the formal sector. I have seen this transformation firsthand in my work at Seed Global Health, the international non-governmental organization I run. At Seed, we focus on the power of investing in health and the health workforce to transform countries. Through partnerships with sub-Saharan African governments and in-country academic institutions, we have helped train more than 30,000 doctors, nurses, and midwives over the past nine years and have impacted hundreds of thousands of lives. Today, these are the same health workers who have been on the frontlines of the pandemic, responding to COVID-19 and protecting essential services—the tuberculosis cases and deliveries that are otherwise on the rise. Our model leverages education over time to help provide better care to patients, train future generations, support the health sector, and catalyze change in the health system. Though it has taken a decade, we can see the progress in closing the unacceptable gaps in health care that not only exist, but also are now expanding. COVID-19 has underscored the importance of health as essential for social well-being, economic

growth, and equity and for resilient communities and countries. It has shown us we must meet health challenges directly—newly emerged or entrenched. As we seek to define and enact “pandemic preparedness” or to “build back better,” we must transform our priorities in health and our approach to health investments. Otherwise, we will only cement our status quo, and the global health system—and all its impacts—will continue to operate as it always has. The world has the capacity—tools, science, technology, financial mechanisms—needed. We must now summon the political will and courage to redeploy these resources more effectively for systemic transformation. It starts by investing in and valuing people, our own futures, and those health workers who protect them. 

Vanessa Bradford Kerry is founder and CEO of the nonprofit Seed Global Health, which focuses on the power of investing in health and the health workforce for social well-being, economic growth, and equity to transform countries. She is also a critical care physician at Massachusetts General Hospital, serves as the associate director of partnerships and global initiatives at MGH Global Health, and directs the Global Public Policy and Social Change program at Harvard Medical School. Kerry recently lent her expertise to Andover’s health advisory board to help the Academy navigate the COVID-19 pandemic.

DÉJÀ BLUE

LOOKING BACK ON CLASS NOTES

REMEMBERING

9/11 N

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join a group committed to rebuilding Lower Manhattan. Sven Hsia ’59 had watched the South Tower collapse from his office window. “A greyish cloud of debris came rumbling down Wall Street with the full force and effect of a flash flood roaring down a narrow canyon passage,” he recalled. Weeks later, he could still smell the acrid smoke. From her office in Queens, Sara Ingram ’71 also witnessed the towers aflame. “Someone walked by, looked out the window, and asked if they were filming a movie—that’s how unreal it looked,” she posted. Closer to campus, John Doherty ’59, director of Veterans Services for the Town of Andover, wrote of supplying PA with American flags for a campus candlelight service. Another eyewitness, Julian Hatton ’74, had stared through a rooftop telescope at a woman trapped in the blown-out tower, waving for help. And then, “I turn to see Tower 2 snapping at the level where the hole was,” he wrote. “I don’t remember hearing the roar and tear of steel; it’s as if the spectacle was encased in a silent cocoon.” Robert Preston ’74 reflected upon the emotional impact of the shrines—teddy bears and love letters—he’d seen to victims still missing or presumed dead. Alex Belida ’66 had been headed to his Pentagon office when the hijacked plane struck. Two days later, he visited the impact site, “which by then was filled with thousands of FBI, troops and rescue-fire workers,” he reported, comparing the scene to others he’d witnessed in war-torn Africa. “It’s a shame,” he added, “it took these horrific events to focus our government and people on a plague that has ravaged other

countries for years.” CNN newsman David Ensor ’69 echoed that theme, writing, “Many Americans did not understand how interdependent they really are with the rest of the world.” The longest entry, from John Ketterer ’82, was a harrowing narrative of searching for a friend in the smokey chaos near Ground Zero. Miraculously, the two found themselves side-by-side in an adjoining plaza, ash-covered and barely recognizable to each other. The sense of loss expressed by friends of Todd Isaac ’90 and Stacey Sanders ’94 was particularly sharp. “Todd modeled for us all the beauty and importance of being yourself and reaching out to share your positive spirit with everybody,” penned Louise Parsons ’90. Within two days of the attacks, wrote Moacir de Sa Pereira ’94, the class e-mail list was flooded with posts as “it became clear that we’d lost a classmate, something for which no one is ever prepared.” Threaded throughout was a message perhaps best expressed by ’83 columnists Elizabeth McHenry and Electa Sevier: “Our hearts go out to all who have lost loved ones,” they wrote. “We hope that the news we report here will inspire you to contact old pals and renew bonds of friendship that are so central to our happiness and well-being.” Those Andover bonds had rarely seemed more important. Or more durable. —JOE KAHN ’67 Déjà Blue offers snapshots of alumni letters and Class Notes from Abbot and PA archives, thanks to the Class Secretaries Committee.

ISTOCK: BACKGROUND, MH

ormally, Class Notes capture important life transitions: weddings and births, degrees earned, careers charted. Social get-togethers and Andover/ Abbot memories are reliable staples, too, as are, especially in older classes, obituaries, and fond farewells. Occasionally, though, a singular event triggers reactions from all corners of the PA community. Then “normal” no longer applies. Such was the case 20 years ago following the 9/11 terrorist attacks, when this magazine published a special September 11 Reflections issue. Of the 100 Class Notes columns published that winter, nearly half made reference to 9/11. Many entries were intensely personal, particularly from alumni living or working near the attack sites. The first came via Jim Carrington ’42, who shared news of his grandson’s “miraculous” escape from the World Trade Center. From John Li ’50, a Brooklyn hospital physician: “So many blood donations were collected from people who waited in long lines for hours, more than could be used,” he wrote, in true non sibi spirit. More than ever, he concluded, “We have to help the world.” Martha Belknap ’54 posted similar sentiments. “May we continue to pray for light and love to enter the hearts and minds of everyone so that peace will prevail in our world.” Edie Williamson Kean ’54, already volunteering at Ground Zero, observed, “It helps to have some tiny part in the cleanup.” Jennifer Cecere ’69 wrote that while New York City was slowly healing, there remained a “big sadness,” inspiring her to

END NOTE

Food for Thought BY ALI ROSEN ’03

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JUNE 28–JULY 31, 2022

NOAH FECKS

don’t know how to get people to agree on politics or money or religion. But start talking about food, and I can get your entire life story. I always wanted to be a storyteller—at Andover I wrote for The Phillipian and directed theatre—but no arena inspired me the way food does. Food is our childhoods, our cultures, our celebrations, and our comfort in trying times. It is one of the few mediums in which you can tell a story through every one of the senses. I always felt this way about food, but I never thought I could actually make it into a career. My path to food as a profession was a circuitous one. I interned and worked in restaurants and wrote recipes when I was younger, but I never saw it as a serious option that I could pursue professionally. After graduating from college, I started working in news production. But a few years in, I had a sit-down with a correspondent who passionately advised me to follow my dreams by following the story. He, of course, was referencing his years in far-flung bureaus, doggedly pursuing whatever was behind the international headlines. But it planted the seed that my storytelling passions might lie elsewhere. I took a leap and went to work for a food website startup. It was a risk, but one that I could not have been happier with once I got to spend my days in kitchens, learning from chefs about their most beloved dishes. I eventually landed my own show, Potluck with Ali Rosen, telling the stories of chefs, restaurateurs, farmers, and makers around New York City and across the globe. I’ve been lucky to interview some of the greats like Anthony Bourdain, Jacques Pepin, and Martha Stewart. But I have so much more enjoyed the opportunity to share the stories of people whose food hasn’t garnered as much attention. I’ve watched thousands of dumplings being made for the dim sum brunch rush and gone behind the scenes of a generations-old matzoh factory. I’ve gone to salmon hatcheries in Alaska and whiskey distilleries in Japan. And the best part of my job is that whenever I want to learn a recipe, I not only get to ask the best chef how to do it, but

Food is our childhoods, our cultures, our celebrations, and our comfort in trying times.

also get to share their intimate knowledge with viewers who want to know. In turn, I’ve been able to take my knowledge and help others become more confident cooks through my show and cookbooks. Covering food professionally means a lifetime of education. There is no such thing as full expertise on food. You can spend years studying one niche topic and still learn every day. You can meet the world’s foremost expert in the foods of a specific region or of a particular type of baking and yet there is still a hunger to know more. There always is more. And at the end of that exploration there is always a literal treat. What career could possibly be better?  Ali Rosen ’03 is an Emmy Award- and James Beard Award-nominated food writer and TV host. Her show, Potluck with Ali Rosen, is in its 13th season on NYC Life. Rosen is the author of two cookbooks: Bring It: Tried and True Recipes for Potlucks and Casual Entertaining and Modern Freezer Meals: Simple Recipes to Cook Now and Freeze for Later. Follow her on Instagram @ali_rosen

Give your child the gift of an Andover Summer experience Phillips Academy’s Summer Session is seeking talented, motivated students to join our 2022 cohort. More than 500 students from the United States and abroad enjoyed a safe and successful return to Summer Session on the Phillips Academy campus in 2021, sharing a transformational five-week academic experience they needed after a challenging year. This coming summer, our flagship program for rising 7th- through 12th-graders will offer a variety of exciting new courses—including Entrepreneurship, Neuropsychology, and Art as Action—as well as old favorites like Writing for Success, CSI: Andover, and Applied Physics. In addition, our new 9th-Grade Academy will offer students an interdisciplinary course designed to prepare them for the unique transition from middle to high school. From in-person to online, Phillips Academy offers something for everyone in summer 2022.

Share your love of Andover with the students in your life and begin an application today at andover.edu/summer.

Periodicals postage

PAID at Andover, MA and additional mailing offices

A Hoppin’ Good Show More than 1,200 guests attended Family Weekend in October, marking an in-person return to this important annual event. In addition to enjoying concerts by the Academy bands and orchestras, families also had a chance to watch Andover’s student talent show, Grasshopper Night. For more photos, visit phillipsacademy. smugmug.com.

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Andover magazine - Fall/Winter 2021 Issue

Articles inside

A-Game

Campus Update

Head of School

Buzz

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