Monthly Musings

This is the fifteenth in an ongoing series of informal communications with Portsmouth Abbey School’s constituents.  Current parents, alumni/ae, past parents and friends have all expressed an interest in hearing more about our school, more often.  It is meant to be one element among a number of activities designed to keep you better informed about the School, the Monastery and our community.

Sterling Silver Benedictine Cross Moline Now Available in the Bookstore: Thanks to the extraordinary generosity of current parent Janet Curren P'03, '06 of Portobello Jewelers, Newport, these beautifully designed and lovingly created crosses are now available for sale in the Bookstore. The crosses hang on an eighteen-inch chain, and make the perfect gift for birthdays, confirmation, graduation, Mother's Day...you name it! We have a limited quantity in stock, so order now by visiting the Bookstore on our Website.

New Teaching Faculty: Six new members of the teaching faculty started at Portsmouth Abbey School this September. The English Department has gained three new members, Corie McDermott, Becky Swissler and Marc Lavallee, as well as new Writer-in-Residence, Michalle Gould. Marc will also be teaching Humanities. Nathalie Keller has joined the School community to teach French, and to take over as Director of the Abbey Singers, and finally, the Math Department welcomes Kendra Smith. Portsmouth Abbey School is proud of the teaching faculty, and the new arrivals are already proving invaluable assets to the School community as a whole. For contact information for all faculty, visit the Faculty Directory on our Website.

Athletics kicks-off the fall season: Already girls' and boys' varsity soccer teams are on a winning streak, both having lost just one out of three games. The boys' team won over Hyde School and tied with Marianapolis Prep. The girls' team tied with Pomfret and won against Marianapolis.  In junior varsity soccer, the boys' team scored an impressive 8-0 win over Hyde School, and the girls won over Pomfret 5-1, but lost to Falmouth Academy. Varsity field hockey logged two wins against Lexington Christian Academy and Beaver Country Day, with Amanda McDonnell '05 having successful shutouts in both games. Portsmouth Abbey School varsity football team beat Kimball Union Academy 30-12.  A very exciting opening month for Athletics! Please check out the Athletics pages on our School Website for continuing news and scores.

Admissions Open House Approaching: Spread the word: Open House will be held this year on Saturday, October 23rd. This will be a great opportunity for prospective parents to meet faculty and hear current students speak, as well as to tour campus, and gather admissions information. Further information can be found by visiting the Admissions pages of our Website. The Admissions team are also touring, visiting California, Maryland, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Connecticut in the next couple of weeks. Regional receptions are planned for New York City, Boston, and Cape Cod. Keep track of these activities and more, by visiting the Admissions Calendar on our Website.

The College Counseling Office Hits the Road: Erin Casey, Assistant Director of College Counseling, will be attending the NACAC annual meeting (National Association for College Admission Counseling) in Milwaukee at the end of the month. Prior to that she is going to Chicago to visit University of Chicago, Loyola and DePaul. Susan Wells, Director of College Counseling, recently returned from the CRUSSH tour, visiting Colgate, Rensselaer, Union, Skidmore, Syracuse and Hamilton. The students also have invaluable chances to meet with colleges, right here on campus. Over 50 colleges are visiting Portsmouth Abbey School during the month of October alone, including Boston College, Colgate, Vanderbilt, and Notre Dame. Please visit our Website for a complete calendar of all college visits this year.

Portsmouth Abbey School Staff Member Walks for Cancer: Liz Cotta, from the Offices of Student Life and College Counseling, will take part in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in New York in October. Liz will walk the 26 miles with her cousin, and was inspired to participate by the suffering of family members, including her mother who has overcome the disease twice. Liz must raise $1,800 just to participate, but is aiming for $5,000. Liz's husband is Steve Cotta '83. Donations or best wishes can be sent to Liz at ecotta@portsmouthabbey.org.

Ali Sacco '05 remembered at the 'Heart of Fashion Show': Portsmouth Abbey School teachers and students participated in the 'Heart of Fashion' show to raise money for The Ali Fund, that provides financial support to the cardiology unit at Children's Hospital in Boston. The Sacco family established the Fund after Ali's death last December from a rare cardiac disease known as pulmonary atresia. The 'Heart of Fashion Show' on September 17th allowed Ali's friends and family work in her memory in a fun way that incorporated Ali's interests in fashion and fundraising. The show raised nearly $50,000, and this number will increase thanks to a matching gift from the cardiologists at the Children's Hospital. Feryal Sacristan, John Platt, and Aroline Seibert were our teacher-models, and they were joined on the runway by twenty-three current students, as well as Kate Lyons, and Linsday O’Hara from the Class of 2004. Please visit the Photo Galleries on our Website for pictures of the event.

Professor Peter Kreeft delivers the first Dom Luke Childs lecture of the year: Dr Kreeft is the author of over 40 books, a professor of philosophy at Boston College, and in much demand on the speaking circuit. On September 20th, Dr Kreeft was on campus to deliver the first Dom Luke Childs Lecture of the year entitled 'Whether the natural moral law can ever be abolished from the heart of man'. Dr Kreeft debated the topic from the point of view of C.S. Lewis (who believes it can), and Thomas Aquinas (who does not), with extra 'commentary' from such contributors as Aldous Huxley and Socrates. The lecture was followed by a lively question and answer session with faculty and students. Professor Kreeft's visit was made possible by a partial subsidy from the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. For a calendar of upcoming lectures in the Dom Luke Childs series, please check our Website.

Portsmouth Abbey School Students in 'Open for Dancing': Six of our students took part in Island Moving Company's dance festival Open for Dancing 2004 this month in Newport. Alexandra Hogan ‘05, Caitlin Nicholson ‘05, Nicole Biewenga ‘08, Van Labadie ‘07, J.J. Miranda ‘06, and Joon Lee ‘07 joined other dancers, choreographers, and artists to create dances using some historic Newport settings. After three days of work, two days of performance took place in such settings as the ramparts at Fort Adams, the Sod Maze at Chateau-sur-Mer, and Doris Duke’s Rocky Lawn at Rough Point. Thanks go to Jay Bragan for organizing the students’ involvement, and for appreciating the importance of movement in the Performing Arts. Please visit the Photo Galleries on our Website for pictures of the event.

In-Flight Video Available to View: As announced in last month's Musings, Portsmouth Abbey School has a two-minute video playing on certain domestic and international Continental flights during September and October. This video is now available to download and view, by clicking here. Please let us know what you think at communications@portsmouthabbey.org.

What Did You Think?: The Summer Bulletin should have arrived with all of our constituents by now. Already we are receiving some great feedback from readers. Your opinion is important to us, so we would love to hear what you think of it. Please let us know at communications@portsmouthabbey.org.

New Portsmouth Abbey School Trail Club: Starting this month, students and faculty can hike Vermont's Long Trail, bike the Appalachian Trail, or run Rhode Island's North-South Trail – all without leaving campus! Participants simply sign up for a workout log, and record every mile and moment on the treadmill, StairMaster, Arc Trainer, rower, or bike. Once the primary goal of the 77 miles of the North-South Trail is completed, the winner gains a free water bottle, and official membership to the Trail Club. Achieving 265 miles completes the Long Trail, and 2,170 miles reaches the end of the Appalachian Trail, and the highest level of the Trail Club! This promises to be a fun and challenging Club for all. For further information, please contact Becky Swissler at bswissler@portsmouthabbey.org. For all other Athletics news, please visit the Athletics Page on our Website.

NEASC Accreditation Visiting Committee on Campus: Portsmouth Abbey School was delighted to host the visiting committee from the NEASC for four days this month. The committee was chaired by Phil Peck, Headmaster of the Holderness School and included members from schools throughout New England. The New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) is the nation's oldest regional accrediting association whose mission is the establishment and maintenance of high standards for all levels of education. Accreditation relies on a voluntary, peer-review process and a year-long self-study review. The committee's goal is to review the self-study report produced by Portsmouth Abbey School, and to come up with recommendations moving forward. The School is excited by this process of systematic self-improvement, and looks forward to acting on the recommendations of this committee.

Parents Committee Takes Shape: Under the leadership of new Parents Committee Co-chairs, John and Mary Power P '06 of Wellesley, MA, a committed group of 25 families are working to aid the School. The purpose of the Parents' Committee is to provide effective communication between and among current parents and the School through Parents' Committee meetings and
participation in Parents' Committee sponsored activities on campus. The Committee focuses its efforts in four primary areas: Admissions, Communications, Development and Student Life. Special thanks to Jaime '72 and Debbie Wilson P '01, '06 for their dedicated service as Co-chairs of the Parents Committee for the last two years.

Plan to Join Us: Regional gatherings are a wonderful opportunity for the School's alumni, parents and friends to gather in locations around the country to reconnect and learn what's new at Portsmouth Abbey. Please plan to attend one of the following events if you are in the area: November 4, the Chicago Reception at the Racquet Club hosted by Mr. and Mrs. Vincent Buonanno '62; December 7, the Greenwich Reception hosted by Mr. and Mrs. Creighton Condon '74; December 14, The Abbot's Reception at the New York Yacht Club hosted by Mr. and Mrs. William Keogh '78. Please contact Sarah McDonough, smcdonough@portsmouthabbey.org, if you have questions or wish to attend.

The Answer to the July/August Musings Question: "What color stone is placed intermittently within the stonewalls, running around campus?" 
Red. Dom Peter used to make sure that as the stone walls were built around campus, red stones were intermittently and artistically placed here and there.

The September Question of the Month:  How many alumni/ae are members of both the Cum Laude Society and the Athletic Association?  Please email answers to communications@portsmouthabbey.org

If you have questions, comments, or ideas, please contact the Communications Department at communications@portsmouthabbey.org.

Kathy Heydt Director of Communications

Nicky Piper Asst. Director of Communications

For all issues related to the School, please contact Tony Klemmer at tklemmer@portsmouthabbey.org or Jim De Vecchi at jdevecchi@portsmouthabbey.org at any time. We welcome the opportunity to hear from you.

Tony Klemmer '73 Assistant Headmaster Institutional Stewardship

Jim De Vecchi Headmaster

Visit our web site at: www.portsmouthabbey.org