Centre Connection
October, 2014
What Does a Dean of Students Do?
Dean José Ruiz Tells All
How would you describe your role in one sentence?
Simply stated, I support students in their personal development from adolescents to young adults.
In a few more words: I think about a student’s life as a whole. What worlds, especially outside the classroom, are students navigating, and how can we help them? I look at what are we offering; how students are experiencing our program (for example, athletics, activities, service opportunities, conversations with each other and with adults about cultural and social issues). I focus on how we can more intentionally promote students’ becoming confident, self-aware, responsible and resilient young people.
read moreDavid Ball Hopes You’ll Shadow Your Child
At Parents’ Weekend, That Is
A Message from Upper School Principal David Ball
We invite you to experience Milton for yourself—please join us for Parents’ Weekend on October 17 and 18.
We hope that you will spend as much time as possible with us that weekend: visiting classes (always a highlight), cheering on teams, conferring with teachers, and meeting fellow parents. Click here to download a schedule of the weekend’s events, just a few of which I would like to note specially.
Let me first mention two generous offerings of the Parents’ Association. On Thursday evening, the Parents’ Association will host dinners for the parents of Class III and IV students. On Friday afternoon, after classes are over and after Todd Bland shares his thoughts about the upcoming year, the Parents’ Association will host a reception for all parents in the Robert Saltonstall Gymnasium.
read moreVisual Treats On Campus Right Now
If you plan to visit Milton for Parents’ Weekend, schedule a few minutes in your day to enjoy three exhibits.
OUTSPOKEN: Six Women Photographers, a collection of work by artists Nadine Boughton, Nancy Grace Horton, Marky Kauffmann, Tira Khan, Rania Matar and Emily Schiffer, is currently running in the Nesto Gallery.
read moreJoel Moore: Medicinal Chemist,
Now Teaching in Pritzker
After 20 years, Joel Moore has realized his undergraduate aspiration to be a teacher in the chemistry labs of Milton’s Pritzker Science Center. A native Oklahoman, Joel attended Oklahoma State University as a secondary education major. A chemistry professor took note of Joel’s natural affinity for the subject and convinced him to add it as a double major. By graduation, chemistry was his sole focus. Joel went on to five years of graduate school in Kansas; a two-year post-doc at Harvard; and then eight years as a medicinal chemist in the...
read moreSearching for the Holy Grail in King Theatre
In a short few weeks, Milton’s Knights of the Round Table fill King Theatre with Broadway-style song and dance as they search the kingdom for the Holy Grail in Monty Python’s Spamalot. The quest begins Thursday, October 30, and Friday, October 31, at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, November 1, at 7 p.m. Click “read more” to take the Spamalot quiz.
read moreClass IV Students Take On Charles Dickens in Nicholas Nickleby
Charles Dickens’s story Nicholas Nickleby will unfold on the stage of King Theatre as more than 20 Class IV students bring to life the nineteenth-century adventures of a young boy traveling to London to seek his fortune. Performing arts faculty member Eleza Moyer, the play’s director, says although the story addresses serious issues, the light-hearted moments are many. Milton’s version of the story is slimmed-down from the original eight-hour adaptation. Zachary Mustin plays Ralph Nickleby, the ruthless uncle who does everything he can to...
read moreFall Greetings from the Parents’ Association
What a lovely fall it has been! The campus is decorated in vibrant reds, yellows and oranges, and our children are firmly ensconced in their classes and activities. The new Parents’ Association season of activities is well underway; we hope that this year will continue to bring us many opportunities to work together. Parents’ Weekend Parents’ Weekend officially begins tomorrow and we look forward to seeing everyone on campus. The weekend’s activities include the following: On Friday, parents shadow their children through a day of classes....
read moreBeyond Campus, Enticing Options
Each year, many students take advantage of Milton’s varied and exciting off-campus programs—from the farms of Vermont to the urban classrooms of New York City, from Madrid, Spain to Rennes, France. The modern languages department, in collaboration with School Year Abroad, runs programs through which students may choose to travel and learn for six weeks, a semester, or a year, expanding their worldview, experiencing life in another culture, testing and furthering language skills, and making life-long friends. The deans’ office coordinates...
read moreMany Students Choose to Serve
The Community Service Program launched the school year with over 200 student volunteers making weekly commitments at 27 different service sites. Many students are working in Boston and Milton public schools, or on campus in the Lower School and Children’s Center. Other organizations include the Milton Animal Shelter, Boston Home for Adults with Multiple Sclerosis, preschools in Randolph and Mattapan, the Special Olympics, and various after-school tutoring programs. This is the last call for anyone interested in participating in the annual...
read moreSwap-It: Treasured Tradition With a Fresh Approach
October brings the time-honored Swap-It sale to campus each year, and so many people—at Milton and beyond—feel the benefits. Swap-It began more than 60 years ago when Milton parents gathered to trade school uniforms. As years passed, families brought other items to trade and sell, and Swap-It grew into a lively and beloved tradition. For decades, sale proceeds have benefited Milton’s youngest learners: Proceeds have underwritten computers, cameras, playground equipment, Middle School lockers, furniture and teaching materials. Over the last...
read moreLouis and Caroline Set the Tone for “An Epic Year”
Milton’s co-head monitors, Caroline Wall (I) and Louis Demetroulakos (I), spoke to students and faculty during this year’s Convocation ceremony. Louis, drawing inspiration from his hero, the late “Crocodile Hunter” Steve Irwin, shared the values of living passionately, savoring the learning process, staying positive, and standing up for that which you believe. “Let’s make this an epic year,” he closed. Caroline—through the unlikely metaphor of unusual medical emergencies—offered solid advice to her...
read moreLook Who Stopped By to Jam
Each year, Milton’s music department hosts a wide range of famous talent—some of whom attended Milton—to perform on campus and work with students in small groups. The Melissa Dilworth Gold Fund, the Barbara Lee Family Foundation, the Gratwick Concert, the Benjamin Hermann Fund, and the Bob Sinicrope Jazz Artist program, to name a few, provide the financial support to make this possible. This fall, students attended a workshop lead by violinist and violist, Helena Baillie. Bassists Victor Wooten and Steve Bailey, of the group Bass...
read moreA Tradition Rooted in Rivalry: Milton-Nobles Day
Each athletic season culminates in the beloved Milton-Nobles Day. In the fall, the day of competition against the Bulldogs kicks off with a massive pep rally in the ACC. The jazz band plays, the step team performs, the dance team and the Mustang dance, and Class I emcees rally students, decked out in blue and orange. The rivalry with Noble and Greenough School dates back to an 1886 football game and it is alive and well today. Young alumni from Classes 2001 to 2014 participate in the Milton-Nobles Challenge, donating to their school’s annual...
read moreVolunteering is Easy and Fun
Parents report that volunteering is a great way to help Milton and feel engaged, yet the time commitment is only a few hours a month. Also, it’s a volunteer responsibility that you can do from the comfort of your own home or office—whether you are near or far.
Join the Milton Academy Parent Annual Fund Committee.
read moreFrom the Archives: Speech Team 1986
Milton’s speech and debate teams have earned recognition as one of the best in the country. Over 60 students participate, competing in state regional and national contests. The team has earned awards ranging from individual state and national championships to team honors including the Massachusetts Forensic League Grand Champions, the National Catholic League Masterson and Founder’s Championship and the National Forensic League’s Bruno Jacob Championship. The dedicated group has set a standard of excellence throughout the years that few programs in the country can match.
read moreHas Your Child Received The Flu Vaccine?
This fall, Milton Academy’s Health Center is offering the seasonal flu vaccine to all boarding students. Parents of boarding students recently received an email from the Health Center regarding this vaccination, which included a permission form to return. The limited supply of flu vaccine available at School means that we are unable to offer the vaccine to all day students; however any child in Massachusetts can receive the vaccination from a primary care physician or at any number of local health care providers and pharmacies. The...
read morePhoto of the Month
On the fields, at 97 years young, Frank Millet, beloved teacher and coach, has a handshake for each of the varsity soccer players after their game. Click “read more” to enlarge the image.
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