Rowland Hall equips students with the skills and experiences they need to thrive in a dynamic world. We believe education is active, and that deep, authentic learning experiences engage students in powerful ways, enabling them to view themselves as innovators and creators. Our new vision and strategic priorities are helping to center and formalize this work, but it’s long been a part of the Rowland Hall experience, inspiring generations of students to pursue, create, and share knowledge both in and outside the classroom. In the past year alone, we’ve watched many of our young scientists and engineers, fueled by their personal passions, tackle real-world problems and offer innovative solutions designed to better our shared world. This fall, we’re spotlighting some of their stories. (Be sure to also check out "Ruchi Agarwal Named Runner-up in National Stockholm Junior Water Prize Competition," "Three Rowland Hall Students Place Fourth at International Science and Engineering Fair for Aviation Engine Design," and "Research Science: Taking Classroom Discoveries to the International Level.") 

The below text is an abridged version of this story for Fine Print. If you would like to learn more about the science behind the academic paper highlighted in this story, we invite you to view the full version.

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With more than 20 years of experience as a molecular and cell biologist—including over a decade as a breast cancer researcher, with a particular interest in racial disparity among breast cancer outcomes in the United States—Upper School science teacher Dr. Padmashree Rida has had plenty of opportunities to support other scientists.

Prior to joining Rowland Hall in 2021, Dr. Rida worked as a university research scientist, a role that offered her regular opportunities to advise graduate students working on original research and academic papers. A natural-born mentor, Dr. Rida has always enjoyed opportunities to help others blossom in their careers. But she’s also seen how disheartening it can be for scientists who, years into their professional journeys, realize that academic research—a field rife with opportunities for failure in everything from choosing the right hypothesis, to uncovering negative or inconclusive results, to the struggle of getting top-notch journals to publish work, to securing grants—isn’t for them. “There are no guaranteed returns in research; it’s always a gamble,” she said. “You can put in so many years to discover you were barking up the wrong tree.”

When Dr. Rida was invited to contribute to a special issue of the International Journal of Molecular Sciences, she saw an opportunity for a teaching experiment. What if she were to invite one of her Rowland Hall students to assist her? She thought it may be an ideal way to challenge a promising young scientist, exposing them not only to the processes, skills, and risks of real-world research, but also to the nature of scientific collaboration.

So in April, when Dr. Rida was invited to contribute to a special issue of the International Journal of Molecular Sciences (IJMS) focusing on hypoxia, a state of oxygen insufficiency in the body, she saw an opportunity for a teaching experiment. What if she were to invite one of her Rowland Hall students to assist her? She thought it may be an ideal way to challenge a promising young scientist, exposing them not only to the processes, skills, and risks of real-world research, but also to the nature of scientific collaboration, as Dr. Rida would be working closely with one of her long-standing collaborators, Dr. Nikita Jinna, and a group of Dr. Jinna’s colleagues from the City of Hope cancer treatment and research center to write the article. She thought the opportunity could be similar to an internship, allowing a student to try out a career option, risk-free, to get a sense of fit. “They could get their feet wet and ask if it’s for them,” she said.

For the student to do well in this project, though, they would have to have a certain set of skills: a strong biology background, of course, as well as the ability to critically read and write, as they would be reviewing dense academic materials, drawing conclusions, distilling insights, and synthesizing information. Dr. Rida saw these traits in Max Smart, then a senior in her Advanced Topics in Biology class.

“Dr. Rida recognized a project like this was perfect for me,” said Max, a Rowland Hall Lifer whose love of the natural world has driven his lifelong interest in the sciences, and who also loves to write. And Max recognized how valuable the experience could be. “I could tell this was a phenomenal opportunity,” he remembered. He said yes and, after completing finals in May, began assisting Dr. Rida, first by helping her and Dr. Jinna look into the role hypoxia may play in patient resistance to androgen receptor inhibition, a treatment option for a subset of patients with a particularly lethal type of cancer: triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). “We knew these treatments often work successfully for a short period, but most patients eventually develop resistance,” explained Dr. Rida. “Consequently, their disease relapses or progresses, and when this happens, we don't have good next-line treatment options for such patients.”

With several lines of evidence supporting their suspicions on hypoxia’s role in therapeutic resistance, the team focused their IJMS article on the topic, hoping their research would help shed light on how and why existing treatments fail, offer a broad view of study results on treatment options, and, because such therapeutic resistance is a problem for some other androgen-signaling-dependent cancers, make progress that could potentially have wide benefits. And though early evidence indicated a promising direction, as they began writing, Dr. Rida, heeding her own experience, made sure to set Max’s expectations. “There’s no guarantee we’ll find anything,” she remembered telling him, “but that’s the gamble with science.” 

That gamble didn’t deter Max, though, who jumped enthusiastically into the project, even, he said, as he faced a series of steep learning curves—beginning with getting acquainted with science writing. After Dr. Rida taught him how to use PubMed, a biomedical literature database, to search for primary literature with clinical trial data, Max remembered initially feeling overwhelmed as he worked to make sense of the jargon, acronyms, and medical terminology within these studies. “These are serious medical publications; it’s no joke,” he said. “It was like hitting a brick wall right out the gate—every sentence is riddled with words that mean nothing to you.” But after Dr. Rida recommended that Max make lists of unfamiliar words, terms, or methods so they could discuss them together, he got better at understanding the complex material. “With Dr. Rida's help, it became second nature,” he remembered. “Her mentorship broke down that brick wall.”

That mentorship continued as Max was challenged in other ways. He had to learn, for instance, how to pull from hundreds of pages of information the hard data that can benefit cancer researchers, and leaned on Dr. Rida’s advice to give himself space to process complicated material before looking for gaps or clarity within it. He also learned from Dr. Rida the importance of reading the literature critically, as well as broadly, to avoid scientific siloing. “Reading broadly allows ideas from different domains to network in ways that allow us to see things anew or from different vantage points,” explained Dr. Rida. So, in addition to reviewing studies on androgen-dependent TNBC, Max looked at studies on androgen-dependent prostate cancer, which behaves similarly to androgen-dependent TNBC and, because it has been researched for longer, offers an array of data on drug options and combinations that might be able to help researchers find what he called the “golden treatment” for TNBC patients. 

Getting Max on board with this collaboration taught him team science—and all good science these days is team science.—Dr. Padmashree Rida, science teacher

Additionally, Max learned firsthand the essential, though often tedious, nature of academic collaboration: how a group of researchers narrows a paper’s focus, finds consensus, reviews drafts prior to submission to a journal for peer review, and revises a manuscript to address reviewers’ feedback and concerns. By letting Max participate in the full process, Dr. Rida was helping to prepare him for success in a world in which the best scientists, no matter their fields or roles, need to be able to go beyond the scope of their individual disciplines to solve problems or create change collaboratively. “We teach science in class, but we don’t talk much about how science is really done, how science is disseminated, and the community behind it,” she said. “Getting Max on board with this collaboration taught him team science—and all good science these days is team science.”

It also taught him the joy of team success. After more than two months of collaborative researching, drafting, peer reviewing, revising, and waiting, “Adaptation to Hypoxia May Promote Therapeutic Resistance to Androgen Receptor Inhibition in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer” was published in IJMS on August 9. When asked what it felt like to see his name listed in an international science journal alongside his mentor’s and five City of Hope researchers only two months out of high school, Max said it was gratifying—but was quick to point out that that gratification went far beyond his personal benefits.

“I hope it’s going to play some small role in this field of research so we can get better treatments for people suffering from cancer,” he said. “If we helped just a tiny bit, that’s really gratifying.”

For Max, who will start at Middlebury College in January after taking a gap semester, it’s clear the experience will drive his professional decisions. Though he’s still deciding what he wants to study, working on this paper taught him how much he values using his passion for science and his love of writing—skills he worked on during his time at Rowland Hall—to help people. “I really appreciated being able to put knowledge and skills I’ve spent my entire academic career honing toward something that is actually going to, hopefully, play one tiny, small part in benefiting people who need good treatment,” said Max. “That was a pretty unique and awesome feeling.”

I really appreciated being able to put knowledge and skills I’ve spent my entire academic career honing toward something that is actually going to, hopefully, play one tiny, small part in benefiting people who need good treatment.—Max Smart ’22

For Dr. Rida, her self-described teaching experiment was also gratifying. Even before the rollout of Rowland Hall’s strategic priorities, she had been thinking about how she can harness her experience, resources, and background to give Upper School students opportunities to help find solutions to real-world problems and to participate in the construction of new knowledge. With this project under her belt, she’s even more aware of how she can best support them. “I learned so much about how to teach about clinical issues, to mentor, how students learn, what misconceptions they may have, and how to explain things,” she said of her time working with Max. She also learned how inspiring it can be to watch a high school student step up to a new challenge. “Max was willing to put in hours and hours of reading and writing, painstakingly plowing through literature,” she said. “Not once did he say, ‘I’m done.’”

And while she knows future experiences might not always be such a good fit, seeing how Max blossomed over their months together—his openness to new ideas, willingness to take risks, ability to successfully take feedback, and determination—showed her that offering them is worth the risk. Moreover, she knows such authentic learning experiences can impact young scientists’ identities, sense of belonging, and understanding of science. Thanks to this opportunity, Max took away an essential life lesson he’s grateful for—and one that will continue to give back to him, whether or not he becomes a researcher himself.

“I certainly got a taste of how some research can end up leaving you with very little to show. It can be discouraging. But then again, what isn't discouraging from time to time?” said Max. “It was an experience that helped teach me that anything you invest time and energy into can end up disappointing when it doesn't always pan out how you want. But when you hit those junctures, you just have to keep persevering.”

Authentic Learning

On September 21, a line of Rowland Hall buses pulled up to Great Salt Lake State Park and dropped off a group of fourth- and eleventh-graders, who began making their way to the shoreline.

It was a longer walk than it used to be. For years, Great Salt Lake has been shrinking, and in recent months there’s been an increased outcry to protect the lake. And it’s not just adults who want to find solutions to the possible loss of one of the state’s most renowned landmarks. On this sunny fall day, the Rowland Hall students—who had the chance to come together thanks to Beyond the Classroom, an annual Upper School event that engages students with the greater Salt Lake community and its natural surroundings—were focused on taking away inspiration from the lake to power their own Great Salt Lake projects this year.

Kids are really motivated by problems and love to solve them. They think outside the box, they’re creative, they take chances adults won’t.—Tyler Stack, fourth-grade teacher

For the fourth graders, the day was extra special, as it was a chance to get personally familiar with the lake that will play a prominent role in their classrooms this year. While a study of waterways has always been part of Rowland Hall’s Utah studies curriculum, the pressing issues of Great Salt Lake, which many lower schoolers are well aware of, have given the fourth-grade team—Marianne Love, Cheryl Chen, Haas Pectol, and Tyler Stack—a natural opportunity to help students connect classroom learning to real-world conversations, delve into the role we all play in protecting our shared natural resources in the desert we call home, and search for solutions.

“Kids are really motivated by problems and love to solve them, and it’s cool to get their ideas about a bigger issue,” said Tyler. “They think outside the box, they’re creative, they take chances adults won’t. Maybe someone will think of a solution no one has thought of.” And reminding kids that they can make a difference also helps connect them to their community. “It gives them pride in where they live, and ownership and stewardship,” said Marianne.

The trip to Great Salt Lake allowed students to begin to connect to the lake as they discovered what about it most appealed to them and made them excited to learn—like why the lake is salty or what story its exposed waterlines tell. With the support of their Upper School buddies, they were asked to see, think, and wonder about the lake as they explored. “We want them to think about why they think we should save the Great Salt Lake, not just ideas they hear from adults or teachers,” said Tyler.

After visiting the lake, the students, with the help of their buddies, created slideshows that highlighted their areas of interest—the jumping-off point of research projects they will work on over the year. These slideshows also opened the door to another opportunity: the chance to present at Aridity and Great Salt Lake, a community discussion on water in the West held at Rowland Hall on October 12. Three students volunteered to speak, excited to share with a larger audience what they had learned and why it was important.

Everyone can help.—Hadley R., fourth grade

“I wanted them to know about how much the Great Salt Lake was drying up,” said Hadley R., who also wanted to remind attendees that they can make a difference. “Everyone can help,” she added.

These fourth-grade presenters also wanted to remind the group that many lives depend on the lake. Millie C., who is fascinated by Great Salt Lake’s well-known Black Rock and the creatures who call it home, shared, “I wanted them to walk away thinking about things near the Great Salt Lake.”

Fourth graders will continue to build on this early Great Salt Lake work with upcoming projects, including writing persuasive letters about the lake to state representatives (as well as visiting the Utah State Capitol during the General Session in January) and presenting their research to a panel of community experts. It’s certainly an exciting year to be a Rowland Hall fourth grader, and our school community is looking forward to seeing the many ways these students will inspire others, drive important conversations, and contribute to solutions to protect our shared home.

“This is a great place to live, and we want to keep it that way,” said Marianne.

Authentic Learning

Todd Brickson stands tall as a mountain in the world of ski racing. 

For the past 20 years, he has served as the program director of Rowmark Ski Academy, Rowland Hall’s world-class ski racing program, founded in 1982. An international level 500 coach in the US Ski & Snowboard Association, Todd has worked with hundreds of top-level Olympic, World Cup, and collegiate athletes. But, even with all that experience, those who know Todd don’t immediately bring up his coaching prowess, or his experience on the slopes. Instead, they talk about who he is as a person—and for good reason.

Priority one, before coaching, is to be a very good role model. You need to be the kind of person who young people aspire to be one day. Todd is solid in that way.—Olle Larsson, Rowmark Ski Academy co-founder

“Priority one, before coaching, is to be a very good role model in front of people. If you fail that, it doesn’t matter what kind of coach you are,” said Olle Larsson, former Rowmark program director and the co-founder of the program, who was instrumental in hiring Todd. “You need to be the kind of person who young people aspire to be one day. Todd is solid in that way.”

Building athletes of good character is central to Todd. He makes that clear on the first page of the handbook given to all team members. There, he writes that the main goal of the program is “for each Rowmarker to learn and develop responsible independence.” He emphasizes that there is more to being on the team than just making it down the hill, adding, “This is above all a process, a time of trial and error, a time to learn from mistakes, a time to learn how to win—and learn how to lose.”

The values of responsibility and independence that Todd promotes create a strong bedrock on which he builds exceptional competitors and people. But here is where Todd steps back a bit, to let the athletes find that fire within that’s needed to push themselves farther and achieve more. He’s the iconic definition of a coach in these moments, trusting that his athletes are capable of practicing what to do, and he allows them to do it. That mutual respect is what launches Rowmark athletes into greatness.

“Todd provided me with tools and then didn't put any pressure or expectation on race day. He knew that pushing wouldn’t help, and that I needed to figure it out,” said former Rowmarker and Olympic athlete Breezy Johnson ‘13. “He provided me with the means to reach my incredibly high goals, and then was there with a hug and a word of advice, win or lose, at the end of the day.”

Todd does teach competitive spirit, but not in ways you may expect. He meets his students in competition in other arenas to show them that he respects them enough to go nose to nose. It may be on the golf course, in a go-kart, or by the side of a lake with a fishing pole in hand. Todd understands that coaching is a disposition and not contained to a certain time or place.

“There have been times when Todd has played hockey with us on a pond after skiing, or field hockey on dry land,” said Elisabeth Bocock, a senior who currently competes for both Rowmark and the US Ski Team. “He is never afraid to go shoulder on shoulder with us if that’s what it takes. He is super intense and does what he needs to do to win the game.”

And in his 20 years with the program, Todd’s intensity has helped raise the bar for Rowmark as an elite ski academy. Since 1988, there has been a representative from Rowmark at each Winter Olympics, and in 2014, the program became one of the first in the nation to achieve the Gold Certification level from the US Ski & Snowboard Association, and they’ve held onto that certification in the eight years since.

Rowmark’s skiers achieve off the slopes as well. The team currently has a 100 percent college placement rate, and its students are sought after by the best colleges and universities in the nation. “Todd is very involved in our academic success,” said Ian Hanrahan, co-captain of the Rowmark Academy Program. “He and the other coaches do a lot of work to make sure our teachers understand our busy schedules to help us stay on top of school and make sure we are successful skiers while still growing our academic careers.”

And Todd’s concern about the success of Rowmark skiers starts before they are even on the team. From the outset, he makes sure new recruits can thrive in the program. “Todd gives so much time to prospective families,” said Kathy Gunderson, former director of admission for Rowland Hall. “He cares so much about the candidates not only being a good fit for Rowmark but also finding academic success at the school as well. He’s brought recruiting to the next level.”

Todd’s recruiting prowess also extends to the coaches he selects to help guide the team. Every coach on Todd’s team knows they were selected for their excellence and are expected to reach extraordinarily high standards. But they also know that Todd views them as peers and wants them to feel welcome and able to grow as professionals through trial and error.

“Todd works to develop his staff,” said Rowmark Junior Program Director Troy Price. “Recently, three former staff members have gone on to coach for the US Ski Team. You must have excellent training to get job offers at that level.”

Staff development goes beyond coaching skills under Todd’s mentorship. After all, there is much more to the job than improving skiing skills. There are also all the logistical concerns, financial planning, health tracking, and emotional support needs that must be handled. Then there are the moments that are totally unexpected.

“My first season with the team we had a group of Rowmarkers involved in a head-on car accident while racing in Oregon,” said Troy. “Todd was coaching at another race in Whistler, Canada, yet he made arrangements to get to Portland. He stayed with our injured members during this extremely difficult time and was the glue that held everyone together. His empathy for others and his ability to stay calm in difficult situations is unmatched.”

Todd was a very important person in my development as an athlete. He taught me the tools I needed both technically with the fundamentals, and the greater work ethic required to make it to the highest level.—Breezy Johnson ‘13, Olympian

Todd’s two decades with Rowmark have left an indelible mark on all aspects of the program, and that impact will only continue to grow in the coming years. In 2019, an alpine training addition to the Utah Olympic Park became the team’s primary training facility, giving athletes access to the very slopes where their idols have competed. “This is the most important development for Rowmark since 1982,” said Olle. “The training arena that they now have does not exist anywhere else in the Northern Hemisphere.”

Time will tell what athletes will come off those slopes and into the national and international spotlights, but it’s clear that all of them will have benefitted from having Todd Brickson as a coach, mentor, and friend, just as those who came before them have.

“Todd was a very important person in my development as an athlete,” said Breezy. “He taught me the tools I needed both technically with the fundamentals, and the greater work ethic required to make it to the highest level.”

Rowmark

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Todd's anniversary isn't the only celebration for Rowmark Ski Academy this year. Rowmark is also excited to celebrate its 40th anniversary with a celebration weekend, to be held March 11–12. Current Rowmark athletes and families, as well as Rowmark alumni and their families, will be invited for a weekend of activities, including free skiing with friends, a dual ski race, BBQ tailgating, hors d’oeuvres, and remarks and a slideshow at the Utah Olympic Park. More details to come.

Is the friend sad or mad? 

That’s what a group of students in Lynelle Stoddard and Camilla Rosenberger’s 3PreK class were trying to determine one cool November day, as they looked through each other’s personal photo albums. 

Weston, as a baby, looks like he’s crying, one student observed. Another thinks he must be mad because he’s in a crib, and cribs are not fun. Weston can’t remember what he was feeling, and he really wants to look at his other pictures.

We use this year to work on how they treat each other and deal with situations.—Camilla Rosenberger, 3PreK assistant teacher

What the students were doing on this late fall day is a central goal in the 3PreK classroom: they were learning to name and hold their feelings, and how to turn those feelings into positive actions—life skills that will support them long after they leave the preschool classroom. To build these skills, the teachers have provided a selection of books for the students to read, including Silly Sally and When Sophie Gets Angry—Really, Really Angry…. They have also been singing songs such as "If You’re Happy and You Know It," and have explored feelings while reading We’re Going on a Bear Hunt as a class and then searching for a stuffed bear hidden in the Nature Yard. And along the way, there have been many conversations about how feelings play out in different ways.

“This is such an important time for their social-emotional progress,” said assistant teacher Camilla about the three- and four-year-old students. “We use this year to work on how they treat each other and deal with situations, through their education.”

Lead teacher Lynelle agreed. “We want them to learn strategies to manage their feelings, like taking big deep breaths to calm their bodies. When they’re angry, we encourage the strategy of ‘pretend to sniff a flower, and then blow out the candles on a birthday cake.’”

And, as illustrated on that November day, it’s important to the teachers that their students aren’t only dealing with their own feelings. The children are also learning how to identify what others may be feeling, and they interact with each other based on those cues. “Feelings photos” are part of these lessons. Every child has a set of photos taken of them displaying different emotions, and then the children look at their own faces before putting an emotion to each expression. This practice helps the students learn how to read each other’s faces, and to read the faces of those outside of the classroom as well.

We do activities like looking at your neighbor and asking them, ‘How are you feeling today?’ Or we will identify what emotion we see them displaying and we ask how we can help them deal with or work through that emotion.—Lynelle Stoddard, 3PreK lead teacher

“We do activities like looking at your neighbor and asking them, ‘How are you feeling today?’” said Lynelle. “Or we will identify what emotion we see them displaying and we ask how we can help them deal with or work through that emotion.”

Determining appropriate actions for emotions is another part of the students’ social-emotional growth. The teachers help the children work through which actions can help improve a situation and which ones may cause more problems. They may have conversations about sharing, consideration of others, and the importance of being a first-time listener—that is, following instructions without being asked multiple times. 

“We have a lot of books that are based on turning feelings into actions,” said Camilla. “No Biting, Louise is a favorite one, lately. Books like these help the kids discern what are good actions and what are not.”

The 3PreK students may be little, but their emotions are big, and by helping them name emotions, understand them, and maybe control them (even a little bit), their teachers are giving them a foundation on which to learn, grow, and become people the world needs. Even if the individual lessons aren’t remembered, and the book titles fade from memory, the central message will remain.

Social-Emotional Learning

For most of her life, Arden Louchheim was a dual-sport athlete in golf and ski racing.

Arden first discovered an interest in golf at just three years old after her family moved to Park City and rented a house on a golf course, which gave the preschooler plenty of chances to hit golf balls, a skill she quickly discovered she was not only good at, but enjoyed. “When you’re a little kid you don’t get to hit stuff very often, so I thought that was fun,” she said.

Ski racing came just a couple years later, in kindergarten, and by the time Arden was in elementary school, she was succeeding in both sports. Thanks to the support of club pros and coaches on the golf course, Rowmark Ski Academy coaches on the mountain, and her parents—whom she credits with a no-pressure approach that drove her interest in both sports—Arden excelled. By the time she was an upper schooler, she was regularly playing in tournaments against the nation’s top young golfers, had joined the Rowland Hall’s girls golf team, and was competing for Rowmark. And though Arden was successfully juggling both sports, alongside her academic responsibilities, over time it started becoming clear that her long-term interest lay in golf. “I knew golf was what I should be doing and what I love the most,” she said. And because Arden wanted to play golf at the college level, she didn’t want to risk a racing injury derailing that goal. “I didn’t want to do anything that could mess up the rest of my golf career,” she said. 

 

Arden has been the player every coach dreams to have on their team. She is dedicated to the game, dedicated to the sport, and inspires everyone else around her.—Brianna Coopman, coach

So Arden made the difficult decision to quit Rowmark after her sophomore year to focus on her golf game, using the time previously spent on the slopes for golf-specific workouts, which target different muscles than ski conditioning does, and golf practices. As she worked, Arden dropped her score significantly—a welcome result as she began contacting schools of interest. With her parents’ help, said Arden, she made a list of schools she’d like to attend, narrowing them down not only based on their women’s golf programs, but also on their size and school pride. Though her family helped her make sure her choices were achievable, said Arden, some of them still felt like a reach, including the NCAA Division I University of Nebraska–Lincoln, which remained in the golfer’s top-three schools during nearly the entire recruiting process. “It felt for a long time that Nebraska was a dream,” she said.

But over time, by highlighting her achievements, determination, and team-positive attitude, Arden built a relationship with Jeanne Sutherland, head coach of Nebraska’s women’s golf team. They first emailed and talked on the phone, then Coach Sutherland came to watch Arden compete in a tournament and ended up offering her a spot on the team. In July, Arden headed to Lincoln for her first visit and immediately felt a connection to the golf team and coaches, and—necessary for the aspiring journalist—Nebraska’s College of Journalism and Mass Communications. At the conclusion of their trip, her parents asked her an important question: Would you want to be here with a broken leg?—meaning, if you couldn’t golf, would you still want to attend the school? For Arden, the answer was an enthusiastic yes. Later that month, she verbally committed to Nebraska, and this week she signed her National Letter of Intent, making her an official Husker.

“Arden has been the player every coach dreams to have on their team,” said Brianna Coopman, head coach of Rowland Hall’s girls golf team. “She is dedicated to the game, dedicated to the sport, and inspires everyone else around her. When I heard the news she was signing with Nebraska and the Big Ten Conference, I could not have been a prouder coach. Nebraska will be lucky to have her, and I have full confidence she will excel at both golf and academics during her time there. Congrats! Go, Cornhuskers!”

To celebrate Arden’s decision to golf for Nebraska, we asked her a few questions about her athletic journey. The following interview has been lightly edited.

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Congratulations on signing with Nebraska! You’ve long wanted to play golf for a large university; in 2020, you even told HER Fairways, “I would love to play for a D1 women’s golf team at a school with a lot of school spirit and a football team.” How does it feel to know you’ll be attending and competing for a Big Ten school next fall?

It still doesn’t totally feel real. If you compare Nebraska to what I said in the HER Fairways article, it literally checks every box that I had for a college and more. Not only does it have a strong golf program, a football team, and school spirit (for all sports, not just football), it also has one of the best journalism schools in the country, which is what I want to major in. I feel so incredibly lucky that I get to go to Nebraska next year because it truly feels like it is the perfect place for me.

There have been so many people who have put in time and effort to help me achieve this goal.—Arden Louchheim

The recruitment process is a long journey. How did you feel when you received the offer from Nebraska?

Overall, I felt so extremely grateful. Grateful to the Nebraska coaches, Coach Sutherland and Coach Zedrick, for their belief in me; grateful to my parents for their undying love and support; grateful to my coach for all of his guidance with my swing; and grateful to everyone else who supported me on this journey. There have been so many people who have put in time and effort to help me achieve this goal, so it was really amazing to see not only my hard work, but also everyone else’s effort, come to fruition. I also definitely felt some relief. I learned and grew so much from the recruiting process, but it was long and stressful, so it was nice knowing that I had finally reached the end of it.

You've had a successful golf career at Rowland Hall, including helping to lead your team to back-to-back 2A state championships, earning top 2A medalist honors for three consecutive seasons, and being named team MVP twice. What moment as a Winged Lion are you most proud of so far?

I am most proud of the team’s back-to-back state wins. It is really fun to win individually, but it is even more rewarding to come together as a team and achieve our goals as a unit. In the 2021 season I believe we only won state by three strokes, so we knew going into the 2022 season that we needed to practice hard to make sure we defended our state title. Watching all of my teammates come to practice motivated me every day, and seeing all of our hard work pay off with a large margin of victory at state in 2022 is a moment I am very proud of.

As previously mentioned, you’ve achieved so much already as a Rowland Hall golfer, but because girls golf is a spring sport for the UHSAA, you still have one more season to play before graduating. What are your hopes and/or goals for your final season as a Winged Lion?

My two main goals for the season are for the team to defend our back-to-back team state titles and for me individually to gain my fourth state title. My goal going into high school was to be a four-time state champion, so it would be really cool to achieve that goal with a win this year. Other goals I have include setting a new personal best for 18 holes, and maybe even trying to set a 2A record. My 67 in state last year was my personal best and set a Rowland Hall record, and I would love to try to lower that even further.

Tell us about the skills—both academic and athletic—you built at Rowland Hall that you'll be taking with you to Nebraska.

Rowland Hall played a massive part in achieving my goal of playing D1 college golf. Academically, Rowland Hall is a very challenging school, and while balancing golf and school was difficult, it taught me to be disciplined and to manage my time well. I learned to budget the time I had each day for practice, homework, workouts, and social events so that I could excel in academics and athletics while still enjoying time with friends and family. Additionally, the discussions that we have in classes like history and English helped me gain comfort expressing myself clearly and concisely. A lot of the recruiting process is emails and phone calls with coaches, and the speaking skills that Rowland Hall taught me benefited me greatly in these conversations with coaches.

Rowland Hall provided me with a place to grow as an athlete.—Arden Louchheim

Athletically, Rowland Hall provided me with a place to grow as an athlete and to experience team golf for one of the first times. Golf is largely an individual sport, and there are only a couple of team tournaments per year, so getting the chance to play with my classmates representing my school every year has been an incredible experience for me. Additionally, our school’s ski academy, Rowmark, is a very competitive program and the athletes are expected to hold themselves to the team’s high standards. These expectations instilled in me at a young age the responsibility, work ethic, and focus needed to be a member of the team. Once I built these habits, I was able to apply them outside of ski racing, and they have served extremely useful in my golf career, and my life as a whole. I have been at Rowland Hall since kindergarten and I take a lot of pride in this school, so getting a chance to use my athletic skills to represent the school is an opportunity I am very thankful for.

What do you think golf has taught you about yourself?

In my opinion, golf is one of the sports that most closely resembles life, so it has taught me so much about myself as an athlete but also just as a person. First and foremost, golf has taught me that I am a competitor. I love the feeling of adrenaline that comes with a must-make putt or a drive on a tight hole where I have to hit the fairway. The opportunity that competition provides to showcase every skill that I have worked so hard on is my favorite part of the sport. Golf has also taught me to be very, very resilient. In golf, progress is not always linear, and learning to fight through a single tough round or a couple weeks of rough play has made me a stronger golfer and person who is more prepared to face adversity.

Is there anything else you want our community to know about your athletic and/or academic journey?

I am so thankful for the support that Rowland Hall has provided me. Golf tournaments, as well as Rowmark events, required me to miss a lot of class, but my teachers were always so understanding and supportive. I have had math teachers take time out of their lunch breaks or free periods to go over material I missed, and history teachers who allowed me to sit in on class periods other than my own to hear lectures that I was not at school for. The faculty and staff’s willingness to be flexible in order to allow every student to achieve their full potential is not something that I take for granted, and my success is a direct result of the support that I have received from Rowland Hall. I am very proud to be a Winged Lion.

Congratulations, Arden!

Athletics

Eighth graders are the de facto leaders of the Middle School, as the most senior students in the division. But being real leaders requires more than embracing their position in the hierarchy. 

Beginning this year, eighth-grade faculty are more greatly emphasizing leadership at their grade level, finding new ways to work with students to help them understand what it means to be leaders as well as to develop the skills they need to lead and to put those skills to work for the benefit of themselves and others. It’s an initiative that will continue to be part of the grade-level curriculum moving forward.

True leaders understand that instilling a sense of belonging in a community helps people to work together towards a common goal.—Dr. Chandani Patel, director of equity and inclusion

“I am a firm believer that leadership is a skill that can be learned,” said Ryan Hoglund, director of ethical education. “Anyone is capable of developing leadership skills.” 

To kick off this year, faculty introduced the topic of leadership during three days of workshops in September. Students took part in several learning sessions focusing on the building blocks of leadership, including creating inclusive communities, identifying and developing club opportunities for the Middle School, and turning conflict into opportunities for connection and growth.

“True leaders understand that instilling a sense of belonging in a community helps people to work together towards a common goal,” said Dr. Chandani Patel, director of equity and inclusion. “Likewise, they see that working through difficult conversations can lead to greater understanding and strengthen group dynamics.”

Different types of leadership was also a topic of conversation in the workshops. While the concept of leadership may bring to mind someone being “in charge,” faculty wanted students to realize we all have a sphere of influence and impact on our community, and that there are many ways to lead: through helping to organize activities, communicate goals, create feelings of inclusion, or observe and record activities for later reference. “We want kids to recognize that leadership comes in a variety of forms,” said eighth-grade American studies teacher Mary Jo Marker. 

Eighth grader Sabina L. found the workshops to be a valuable experience, both when it comes to identifying personal leadership styles and to remind students that a variety of resources are available to them as they uncover their leadership abilities. “We have the resources so we can get help from trusted adults. But they also have taught us how to communicate, and how to guide people and listen to people,” she said.

And the work is just beginning. The eighth graders will be putting their leadership skills into action throughout the year, first by leading several clubs available to students in sixth through eighth grades. During the September workshops, these students formed teams and came up with ideas for the clubs, then presented the options to their fellow middle schoolers. The clubs include Dungeons & Dragons, upcycled fashion, weightlifting, vegetarian cooking, and executive functioning. There is literally something for everyone, and by allowing eighth graders to focus on subjects they’re passionate about, the Middle School is getting them excited about practicing leadership.

Running the lacrosse club, I have developed skills to get people’s attention. I have also learned how to talk to them and give advice, when I used to be timid in doing that.—Halle P., class of 2027

“Running the lacrosse club, I have developed skills to get people’s attention,” said eighth grader Halle P. “I have also learned how to talk to them and give advice, when I used to be timid in doing that.”

Clubs will run through December, and while all groups are overseen by faculty, students will lead the activities at all times. Giving the students this opportunity not only builds leadership skills in them but is also directly aligned with the central vision of Rowland Hall: developing people the world needs. 

“We hope students lean into leadership roles, strengthening their communication, self, and peer-advocacy skills,” said Charlotte Larsen, Middle School assistant principal. “We hope this creates a deepening of student leadership opportunities in the Middle School, highlighting student voice and choice in creating the community they want to engage with each day.”

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Banner: Members of the Upcycled Fashion Club give old clothing new life.

Authentic Learning

Rowland Hall equips students with the skills and experiences they need to thrive in a dynamic world. We believe education is active, and that deep, authentic learning experiences engage students in powerful ways, enabling them to view themselves as innovators and creators. Our new vision and strategic priorities are helping to center and formalize this work, but it’s long been a part of the Rowland Hall experience, inspiring generations of students to pursue, create, and share knowledge both in and outside the classroom. In the past year alone, we’ve watched many of our young scientists and engineers, fueled by their personal passions, tackle real-world problems and offer innovative solutions designed to better our shared world. This fall, we’re spotlighting some of their stories. (Be sure to also check out "Ruchi Agarwal Named Runner-up in National Stockholm Junior Water Prize Competition," "Three Rowland Hall Students Place Fourth at International Science and Engineering Fair for Aviation Engine Design," and "Max Smart ’22 and Science Teacher Dr. Padmashree Rida Published in International Journal of Molecular Sciences.")

This piece is republished from Rowland Hall's 2021–2022 Annual Report.

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There was a lot of buzz surrounding a poster presented this spring at the Materials Research Society (MRS) meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii. 

“Discovery of Structure-Property Relationships of Intercalated Graphite Compounds Using Machine Learning” had the potential to lead to major discoveries in the field. But that isn’t what had people talking. It was that those presenting the poster weren’t researchers or professors, but four teenagers from Salt Lake City, Utah.

They were the only high school students there. People were very confused and very impressed.—Tascha Knowlton, Upper School science teacher

Rowland Hall seniors Tyler Gerstein, Ford Hodgkins, Samantha Lehman, and Olive Milavetz, along with science teacher Tascha Knowlton and University of Utah associate professor (and former Rowland Hall teacher) Dr. Kaci Kuntz, traveled to the conference to present findings from the school’s research science class, now in its second year.

“They were the only high school students there,” said Tascha. “People were very confused and very impressed. They were taken aback—some of them literally stepped back when they found out how old they were.”

The students’ work isn’t typical for high schoolers. They started their journey with document reviews, an undertaking that isn’t very exciting but is the bedrock of most scientific discoveries. They went through thousands of pages of research on the properties of graphite sheets—or graphene—to learn all they could about how they react with other compounds. “It was a lot of data mining and very time-consuming,” said Tascha. “They might go through multiple papers and only find one small piece of data worth using.”

The document reviews were just the tip of the iceberg. The students then took that data and dove into code writing and machine learning software to predict how the graphene would react to other unknown compounds. Would it take electrons from them or donate electrons to them? And what would the movement of those electrons do? The more they worked with the software, the more accurate the predictions became.

“We were able to predict color changes in the graphene depending on the compound placed between the sheets,” said Samantha. “It’s cool because color is an electric optical property.”

We got a lot of experience doing scientific writing. I got some coding experience, and we had to figure out machine learning. Then on top of all that, we had to navigate presenting our work to professionals in the field. We got to experience a range of activities in the scientific spectrum.—Samantha Lehman, class of 2022

There is still more work to do, though, and it will be carried on by students at Rowland Hall in 2022–2023. They will take the data gathered and the predictions made this year and begin to look at how these compounds may be useful and how to engineer them for various purposes. “Graphite is the most stable form of carbon and very lightweight,” said Tascha. “It could be used in building batteries, or in touch screens. There are some possible medical applications. Lots of possibilities.”

While the students who presented at the MRS conference won’t be actively working on the project full time anymore, that doesn’t mean they are completely walking away. “We can come back in to help in any way we can, or be a mentor to younger students,” said Samantha. “It’s cool because the involvement is whatever I want it to be.”

Beyond the scope of the project, the students can take the lessons they learned into new educational and career opportunities. They left high school with many skills most don’t acquire until college, or even graduate school. “We got a lot of experience doing scientific writing. I got some coding experience, and we had to figure out machine learning,” said Samantha. “Then on top of all that, we had to navigate presenting our work to professionals in the field. We got to experience a range of activities in the scientific spectrum.”

It wouldn’t be unlikely to see some, if not all, of these amazing budding scientists presenting at many conferences to come.

Authentic Learning

By Ashley Atwood and Robert Wilson
Original Watercolors by Annie Nash, Class of 2023

Editor's note: This piece is republished from Rowland Hall's 2021–2022 Annual Report.

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In May, Upper School science teacher Rob Wilson embarked on an opportunity of a lifetime: a trip to Ketchum, Idaho, to reside in the home of Ernest and Mary Hemingway as a visiting scholar. There, he wrote teaching resources based on his own use of Hemingway in the science classroom, as well as conducted the property’s first biological inventory. It was both a personal journey and a chance for the educator to invite students into his experience, showing them what is possible when you pursue and cultivate knowledge and passion.

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In late 1939, riding the high of celebrity built as a bestselling author and international war correspondent, Ernest Hemingway traveled to the newly built Sun Valley resort in Idaho on a publicity trip. While the writer was familiar with opportunities like this, it’s almost certain he was unprepared for the impact this trip would have on his life. From that first visit, he saw the Wood River Valley—home to Sun Valley and the former mining town of Ketchum—as a refuge, an idyllic place in which to socialize, hunt, fish, and write. He returned often over the next 20 years, and in 1959 moved to Ketchum full time with his fourth wife, Mary, after their exile from Cuba. The home they bought would be their last together, a place in which they could recharge, write, and entertain, whispers of cottonwood leaves and the rumble of the Big Wood River their constant companions. It is also where, on the morning of July 2, 1961, Ernest’s life ended in the foyer.

Mary Hemingway kept the home after her husband’s death and continued to visit it until her own passing in 1986, when she bequeathed it to The Nature Conservancy with instructions that it be turned into a nature reference library. In 2017, ownership of the house passed to The Community Library of Ketchum, which today honors the Hemingways’ legacy in Idaho through preservation work and educational opportunities, including an annual seminar that attracts those captivated by the author’s life and work. In 2019, the library completed a renovation of the home’s ground-floor garage into an apartment for visiting writers and scholars—a space in which invited guests can take in the landscape that inspired one of the greatest writers of a generation, find sanctuary in which to create, and walk away changed by this house of light.

Silkworms

That night we lay on the floor in the room and I listened to the silkworms eating. The silkworms fed in racks of mulberry leaves and all night you could hear them eating and a dropping sound in the leaves. I myself did not want to sleep because I had been living for a long time with the knowledge that if I ever shut my eyes in the dark and let myself go, my soul would go out of my body.
— Ernest Hemingway, “Now I Lay Me”

For a long time I avoided seeing the house. When I went to Ketchum, I would visit the grave in the town cemetery or the monument on Trail Creek, but I did not want to see the house. It seemed like an invasion of privacy, and it was not until I was invited late last year that I laid my eyes upon it. When I was invited to stay there, I was both thrilled and frightened; I was afraid that I might not be able to sleep knowing what happened in the foyer.

My first night in the house I did not fall asleep for a long time, until I slept deeply in the wee hours of the morning and awoke with a start from a bad dream. There was a hint of light to the east, and I could hear a robin. Ecologist Aldo Leopold calculated that “the robin will give voice when the light intensity reaches 0.01 candlepower.” I’ll take his word for it. I got up and made coffee and went outside to watch the day emerge. Four geese came downstream and turned around right in front of me and landed in the channel. A house wren commenced to sing. Eventually, some pine siskins and a ruby-crowned kinglet started talking. The sun lit up the peaks of the Boulder Mountains. Like a flash, the sun came out from behind a layer of clouds on the eastern horizon, and the house lit up. Glorious! The place was alive, truly alive. I came in to make breakfast, and only then did I realize the hour had already passed of the event that I’d been afraid would haunt me too much. The life of the land and the house outshines the darkness of the foyer.
— Rob Wilson, May 2022

* * *

Rob Wilson fell in love with the writing of Ernest Hemingway in eighth grade.

To this day, he remembers the thrill of that first reading of The Old Man and the Sea: how the novella brought to mind his own fishing trips with his dad. His mind readily painted a picture of the story’s setting: the boat, the deck, the handlines so different from his own rod and reel.

He remembers, as a high schooler, discovering a hardbound copy of Hemingway’s short stories on his dad’s bookshelf late one Friday and spending hours flipping its yellowed pages, reading long into the night. He remembers bonding with college friends over Hemingway, as well as quiet evenings during his early career as a field biologist, sitting on a cabin porch in southern Idaho and watching the sun set over the Pioneer Mountains above Sun Valley as he, again, made his way through Hemingway novels: The Sun Also Rises, A Farewell to Arms, For Whom the Bell Tolls. 

Hemingway’s writings were one of the first influential connections Rob had into the life of an artist, his stories and novels windows into worlds different from Rob’s in many ways, but also strikingly similar, with familiar streams of human experiences running through each tale. With each passing year, Rob began to see beyond the adventure stories that had first captivated him. Each new reading, supplemented by his accumulating life experience, became an opportunity to get lost in a story’s subtext. In Hemingway, Rob also found a kindred spirit—someone who, like him, respected the natural world. “Hemingway noticed the little things around him, and how they lived,” Rob said. The author’s writings are abundant with those observations: how trout hold in a clear river, for example, or the features of a wildfire-blackened mountainside, all described in such honest, sharp ways that it heightens the real-world experience of being outdoors.

In 2015, while re-reading Hemingway’s short story “A Pursuit Race,” Rob’s connection to Hemingway deepened in a new way when he realized how well its understated portrayal of alcoholism and heroin withdrawal could be applied to his health class lesson on substance abuse. He thought it would complement the textbook he usually used for the lesson, but more effectively invite students to contemplate the human impact of substance abuse in a way a textbook can’t.

“What fiction is,” he explained of that choice, “is a way to invite you into examining life.”

It was a successful experiment, one that excited both Rob and then-Head of School Alan Sparrow. Over the years, Rob began adding more texts to his lesson plans, including Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac and Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Braiding Sweetgrass, as well several Hemingway short stories: “Now I Lay Me” for its themes of metamorphosis, “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” for its tie to the climate, and “Big Two-Hearted River” for its portrayal of earth systems. Like the living creatures he brings to campus—pigeons for genetics, jellyfish to animate the history of life on Earth—Rob has found that Hemingway texts are an effective resource to enrich students’ understanding of science concepts. They’re also unexpected.

Research continues to make it clear that interdisciplinary learning, combining two or more subjects into one activity, benefits students by broadening how they think and how they approach problem solving.

“Students can be strict about silos,” he said, referring to the kind of thinking that draws lines around areas of study: students should reference a textbook or case study in science class and read Hemingway in English class. But research continues to make it clear that interdisciplinary learning, combining two or more subjects into one activity, benefits students by broadening how they think and how they approach problem solving. Hemingway’s signature iceberg approach—the idea that an author should allow a story’s deeper meaning to be implicitly realized by the reader—is an effective method for stretching young minds, allowing students space to lean on their own interpretations and observations.

“This is a major component of my teaching strategy,” said Rob. “If I tell you something, you are more likely to forget it. If you discover it for yourself based on what I provide, you will remember it and be proud of yourself.”

Many Hemingway stories build this skill with multiple examples of inference and deduction, forms of logic necessary to the scientific process, as well as sensory details that can deepen an understanding of natural sciences. While he was in Idaho, one of the stories Rob had his ninth-grade biology students read was “Now I Lay Me,” throughout which narrator Nick Adams, a soldier convalescing behind the front lines during World War I, refers to the sound of silkworms devouring mulberry leaves in his room. It was a natural tie to the class, which had been observing and caring for their own colony of silkworms that spring. Over the weeks, thanks to their worms’ diet of mulberry leaves, the class had watched the invertebrates grow from eyelash-sized hatchlings to fat, round, white worms. And as they read the story—for many, their introduction to Hemingway—that experience both provided a mental picture and enhanced the story’s subtext.

“It was easier to visualize the things described in the reading,” remembered Loc Ossana-Aoki, while classmate Rachel Brague added, “Having silkworms in the classroom helped emphasize the story, showed the bigger picture. Knowing about silkworms, I understood the emphasis on the man's experience.”

It was an experience that helped drive home the ideas that science isn’t static and that interdisciplinary connections enhance learning in exciting ways. Much like a Hemingway story, the students realized, there is always another layer to discover, something new to take away, to enrich overall understanding.

“Without any knowledge or experience, you can read these stories and understand what is happening,” explained Rachel, “but once you know more, the simple writing suddenly seems like the story is much longer and filled with more information than before.”

In past years, Rob has had students share Hemingway discoveries like these in class, but this year’s trip to Idaho gave them an opportunity to make even more connections among the stories, their studies, and his experience when he invited them to ask questions about his time away. “They were really curious,” said Rob. “All I did was say, ‘What would you like to know?’ and they asked questions for the entire period.” Discussion flowed around the Hemingway property’s major geographic features and how they change over time, natural selection, and the landscape itself: mature cottonwoods and blue spruces the Hemingways may have looked upon, a house wren whose call Rob imitated, and pileated woodpeckers whose strikes Rob demonstrated by knocking on the whiteboard. Rob also shared how he placed the class silkworms on the writing desk as he composed his own work, a metamorphosing muse, and his own feelings of fear, peace, and reverence for the sacred space.

“It was really personal for him,” said student Winston Hoffman, “but I think all of us appreciated what he had to say because he was trying to include us in the experience. It was like we had been there too, almost.”

Grasshoppers

As he had walked along the road, climbing, he had started many grasshoppers from the dust. These were just ordinary hoppers, but all a sooty black in color. Nick had wondered about them as he walked, without really thinking about them. Now, as he watched the black hopper that was nibbling at the wool of his sock with its fourway lip, he realized that they had all turned black from living in the burned-over land. He realized that the fire must have come the year before, but the grasshoppers were all black now. He wondered how long they would stay that way.
— Ernest Hemingway, “Big Two-Hearted River, Part One”

I headed north on Highway 93 around 1 pm. It was cool and windy, and I could see flurries of snow in the mountains ahead of me. I always feel such great anticipation during this part of the drive, and I remembered making the drive at other times of the year, doing other things with other people, and always having the sense that I am gravitating toward Ketchum. It’s funny to think of the warm summer nights on Big Cottonwood Creek, when I sat on the porch and looked across the Magic Valley to the Pioneer Mountains and wondered who had watched them fill with snow and returned to see that the snow had melted. Nothing about the drive reminded me of my dad except loading the car, driving past the duck club on the Jordan River and the other one on the Bear River, looking for ducks when I passed canals, geese in fields, bridges over rivers, and birds circling; the exit at Tremonton that we used to take to hunt and fish in Swan Valley (in the winter, the ducks would circle over the cottonwoods and disappear and reappear over the channel under the branches, closer than you were ever used to seeing them); looking out into the sagebrush, wondering if it held sage grouse; and the drive to Magic Valley where we took our last hunting trip that winter, when I broke through the ice on the Big Wood River, and I didn’t know if it would be 10 inches deep or 10 feet.

What I did not know going north is how much better I would understand this way when I took it, just a few days later, going south. I drove on knowing that I could share this experience and return to it.
— Rob Wilson, May 2022

* * *

Rob’s journey to his Hemingway House residency began in September 2016, when he received an invitation to that year’s Ernest Hemingway Seminar from his best friend from graduate school, Jeff Motychak. Titled Hemingway and Nature, the seminar was to feature discussions on “Big Two-Hearted River” and aimed to, in the words of The Community Library, “stimulate deep thinking about the role of nature in Hemingway’s works.” It was a perfect opportunity for two natural scientists fascinated by Hemingway and would play a transformative role in Rob’s life. “I was so deeply inspired,” Rob remembered. “I came back different.”

Rob has participated in the seminar each fall since, and in 2019 joined the planning committee to assist in its arrangement. His annual journey north is a pilgrimage of sorts, where he observes the landscape, reflects, and recharges. It’s also a chance for him to connect with Hemingway enthusiasts—literary scholars, scientists, art curators, educators, writers, and the curious public—who gather to examine a Hemingway novel, topic, or even passage. It was through these discussions that Rob built a relationship with the library, which in September 2021 extended a writer-in-residence invitation, initially hoping Rob would use the time to write the Hemingway lessons he had developed into teaching resources for other educators, a goal that would expand in the intervening months. And though he knew the experience would be deeply personal, he and Upper School Principal Ingrid Gustavson also knew it was a valuable opportunity, a chance to further help students perceive, seek, and discover connections in their learning, and they decided he would schedule the trip during the school year.

“So much of what we're doing with kids in education is modeling lifelong learning,” explained Ingrid. “This opportunity allowed Rob to explore, through his biologist lens, his observer lens, the home of a literary giant and give a new perspective on it.”

So many scientists know the quantitative evidence of what they’re looking at, but the quantitative evidence doesn’t matter unless you know who you’re impacting.—Annie Nash, class of 2023

It’s this kind of thinking that can change students’ lives. For upper schooler Annie Nash, who was first introduced to Hemingway in 2020 as one of Rob’s ninth-grade biology students, and who identifies as both a scientist and an artist, the confluence of subjects in Rob’s classroom felt natural, freeing her to think about how she can apply both sides of herself to her life’s work.

“I never really imagined art separate from the sciences,” she explained. “Science is artistic, nature is artistic, math is artistic—we can’t separate them.” And the older she gets, Annie said, the more she realizes an interdisciplinary approach to education is preparing her for a dynamic world that needs creative-minded and collaborative thinkers to take on its big challenges. “So many scientists know the quantitative evidence of what they’re looking at,” she said, “but the quantitative evidence doesn’t matter unless you know who you’re impacting.”

An aspiring pharmaceutical scientist, Annie knows her personal definition of success depends on more than an understanding of analytical chemistry and biostatistics. One area she’s especially concerned about is the historically negative impact of medicine on marginalized communities. She worries that the traditional approach to science education, one that focuses strictly on data, leaves scientists removed from the real-world impact of their work, and she believes applying topics like English, art, and history to her science studies helps her recognize worrying trends in her desired field so she can do her part to interrupt them. Novels and short stories are especially powerful ways to frame this history, she’s learned. More than other media, they effectively invite readers to reflect on humanity’s shared history and paint an understanding of how the human journey—what we’ve believed, what we’ve valued, how we’ve lived—has shaped the current world so readers can take away lessons for their own lives.

“You understand the time period but also separate the good and the bad—and then further the good in your own studies,” said Annie. “Scientists are sometimes viewed as being antisocial hermits who are detached from real-world issues. I want to break this stereotype so that I can encourage others to be empathetic in their research, to always strive to better the world.”

Cottonwoods

Best of all, he loved the fall. The leaves yellow on the cottonwoods, leaves floating on the trout streams, and above the hills the high, blue, windless skies.
— Ernest Hemingway, eulogy for Gene Van Guilder

I can track with my eye the flow through the deepest part of the channel that would have ruptured the beaver dam. The flow is deflected off of the bedrock wall. Parts of the channel are visible from the east-facing windows, and it is easy to imagine that residents of the house would have watched the river shape this bend over the years. They would have seen cottonwoods bloom with beet-colored catkins, fill in with lush green leaves, and fill the air with a distinct perfume; leaves yellow on the cottonwoods; and the transformation to black and white skeletons against the winter land. From here, they could watch the plumes of snow raised by the wind from the highest peaks. They would have heard the gossip of geese and had a view into the nests of hawks and private lives of kinglets, and been witness to the comings and goings of myriad birds throughout the year. It saddens me to know how much Ernest would have enjoyed this setting over the decades he could have lived here and did not. He has left us his gifts of perception so that we may enjoy it ourselves and teach others to experience the sublime and to protect it.

Teaching is a service of paying forward knowledge, skills, and values that enable another to cope and thrive in an ever-changing world. You can’t be a beacon if your light doesn’t shine. Mary could have walked away, and she chose to stay and have the house protected in perpetuity. The house on the hill of bedrock above the sea of cottonwoods is a beacon that both signals danger and radiates hope.
— Rob Wilson, May 2022

* * *

The house on the hill is designed to maximize its view.

From its wide patios, large windows, or broad lawn, visitors gaze upon a landscape of colors and textures: snow-capped peaks of the Boulder and Pioneer mountains, the Big Wood River flowing over gray stones, the dark trunks and lush foliage of black cottonwoods that, in late spring as they burst into new life, fill the warming air with a honey scent.

Cottonwood forests, or galleries, tell a story of resilience: their survival depends upon the ability of seedlings to keep their roots in contact with capillary fringe, the area of soil that draws moisture from the water table. When flood conditions are met, the trees grow in cohorts, but most years, due to weather or human disruption, those conditions are not met. As a result, one cohort of cottonwoods matures to nurture the next, a process that strengthens the entire gallery.

There are times, though, when a cottonwood forest stops regenerating altogether, a process that happens so gradually the untrained eye misses the first signs. For the caregivers of the Hemingway House and its estate, a loss like this—of Mary’s desire for how the property would continue on—would especially hurt, and so Rob volunteered to conduct the first biological inventory, a task necessary to fully realize Mary’s vision.

“It's the library’s mission, as stewards, to protect that little bit of land,” he explained. “The biggest thing I could offer was to describe the living landscape for them.”

In addition to writing teaching resources, Rob spent hours of his residency walking the property’s 13.9 acres looking for cottonwood saplings as evidence of regeneration and documenting the landscape, from the bedrock on which the house stands to the kinglets and house wrens calling into early spring mornings, all of which he included in a reference document for the land’s ongoing protection and conservation—his personal contribution to its stewardship. “This idea of stewardship is: if you're here, it's your job to take care of things,” said Rob. “That's maintaining a landscape, if that's what you have the opportunity to do, or a place, or a relationship.”

A recurrent theme at Rowland Hall is: be the change you want to see in the world. That’s stewardship. My message to students is they can be interested in something and cultivate it and watch it become bigger and better than they ever imagined.—Rob Wilson

As a scientist, Rob has too often seen how our time in history is marked by a collective lack of stewardship, from climate change to the imperiled animals he studies, and he believes each individual plays a role in stewarding our world. He knows that if in his classroom he can tap into our shared humanity by breaking down learning silos and showing students how their passions, whatever those are, connect to something bigger, he can better prepare them to be the people the world needs.

“A recurrent theme at Rowland Hall is: be the change you want to see in the world. That’s stewardship,” said Rob. “My message to students is they can be interested in something and cultivate it and watch it become bigger and better than they ever imagined.”

It’s a perspective that can be found in hundreds of ways across Rowland Hall classrooms, from cross-disciplinary teaching partnerships in the Upper School to experiential learning in the Beginning School. “Adults at Rowland Hall model so well how to see connections in the world, to get excited about learning across disciplines,” said Ingrid. “No one is too young or too old to discover things we really care about, then go deep and figure out how to teach them to others, support a cause, or further someone else's learning.”

This sharing of knowledge is often viewed as a pinnacle of education, a way of students continuing the journey their teachers set them on. Just as a younger cohort of cottonwoods benefits from the stability and nourishment provided by an older cohort, students benefit from their teachers’ examples, then go on to share what they know. “The true test of a student's learning is not the answer they write on an exam,” said Rob. “It is how they share what they learned with the people around them.”

Ingrid remembered seeing evidence of this truth in May when she stopped by Rob’s classroom to find him and three earth science students caring for tanks of betta fish and the class jellyfish, Calypso. Rob encouraged the students to tell Ingrid about the creatures, which they excitedly did, showing her how they harvest brine shrimp for jellyfish food and test the water, and sharing who was caring for the animals over the summer. In that moment, Ingrid said, she realized the students had fully taken ownership of their learning. “This is theirs now,” she thought.

“I always thought science was supposed to be very straightforward—not bringing your own opinion, your own feelings into it,” said Hope Thomas, one of the students in the classroom that day, and Calypso’s summer caretaker. “For a while, it made it a hard subject for me because I’m a very creative person.” But being in Rob’s classes, where she’s encouraged to see connections among areas of study that another science teacher may never approach, Hope realized that making science personal wasn’t just okay, it was necessary to understanding, and taking on, the challenges of today. 

“It makes it more applicable to us when we can think about science in a more personal way,” she said. “When you care about it more, you are more willing to take action.”

And ultimately, this is the goal of education: to help students make meaningful connections about what matters to them and take action to leave the world a better place than they found it. It’s a lesson, Rob has found, that means more to him with each passing year and is especially clear when he returns to The Old Man and the Sea, the book that started his journey, and the one Hemingway himself called “an epilogue to all my writing and what I have learned, or tried to learn, while writing and trying to live.” With the benefit of time, study, and lived experience, said Rob, it’s now more than just a fishing story—it’s a reminder of what is most precious in the time he has.

“What gets me now,” he said, “is the poignancy of how brief a moment is going to be.”

Authentic Learning

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Banner photo credits: Ernest Hemingway by Robert Capa (c) International Center of Photography/Magnum Photos; Mary Hemingway courtesy of the Jeanne Rodger Lane Center for Regional History, Dorice Taylor Collection. Other photographs provided by The Community Library and Rob Wilson.

Special thanks to The Community Library for their partnership on this story.

By Ashley Atwood and Robert Wilson
Original Watercolors by Annie Nash, Class of 2023

Editor's note: This piece is republished from Rowland Hall's 2021–2022 Annual Report.

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In May, Upper School science teacher Rob Wilson embarked on an opportunity of a lifetime: a trip to Ketchum, Idaho, to reside in the home of Ernest and Mary Hemingway as a visiting scholar. There, he wrote teaching resources based on his own use of Hemingway in the science classroom, as well as conducted the property’s first biological inventory. It was both a personal journey and a chance for the educator to invite students into his experience, showing them what is possible when you pursue and cultivate knowledge and passion.

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In late 1939, riding the high of celebrity built as a bestselling author and international war correspondent, Ernest Hemingway traveled to the newly built Sun Valley resort in Idaho on a publicity trip. While the writer was familiar with opportunities like this, it’s almost certain he was unprepared for the impact this trip would have on his life. From that first visit, he saw the Wood River Valley—home to Sun Valley and the former mining town of Ketchum—as a refuge, an idyllic place in which to socialize, hunt, fish, and write. He returned often over the next 20 years, and in 1959 moved to Ketchum full time with his fourth wife, Mary, after their exile from Cuba. The home they bought would be their last together, a place in which they could recharge, write, and entertain, whispers of cottonwood leaves and the rumble of the Big Wood River their constant companions. It is also where, on the morning of July 2, 1961, Ernest’s life ended in the foyer.

Mary Hemingway kept the home after her husband’s death and continued to visit it until her own passing in 1986, when she bequeathed it to The Nature Conservancy with instructions that it be turned into a nature reference library. In 2017, ownership of the house passed to The Community Library of Ketchum, which today honors the Hemingways’ legacy in Idaho through preservation work and educational opportunities, including an annual seminar that attracts those captivated by the author’s life and work. In 2019, the library completed a renovation of the home’s ground-floor garage into an apartment for visiting writers and scholars—a space in which invited guests can take in the landscape that inspired one of the greatest writers of a generation, find sanctuary in which to create, and walk away changed by this house of light.

Silkworms

That night we lay on the floor in the room and I listened to the silkworms eating. The silkworms fed in racks of mulberry leaves and all night you could hear them eating and a dropping sound in the leaves. I myself did not want to sleep because I had been living for a long time with the knowledge that if I ever shut my eyes in the dark and let myself go, my soul would go out of my body.
— Ernest Hemingway, “Now I Lay Me”

For a long time I avoided seeing the house. When I went to Ketchum, I would visit the grave in the town cemetery or the monument on Trail Creek, but I did not want to see the house. It seemed like an invasion of privacy, and it was not until I was invited late last year that I laid my eyes upon it. When I was invited to stay there, I was both thrilled and frightened; I was afraid that I might not be able to sleep knowing what happened in the foyer.

My first night in the house I did not fall asleep for a long time, until I slept deeply in the wee hours of the morning and awoke with a start from a bad dream. There was a hint of light to the east, and I could hear a robin. Ecologist Aldo Leopold calculated that “the robin will give voice when the light intensity reaches 0.01 candlepower.” I’ll take his word for it. I got up and made coffee and went outside to watch the day emerge. Four geese came downstream and turned around right in front of me and landed in the channel. A house wren commenced to sing. Eventually, some pine siskins and a ruby-crowned kinglet started talking. The sun lit up the peaks of the Boulder Mountains. Like a flash, the sun came out from behind a layer of clouds on the eastern horizon, and the house lit up. Glorious! The place was alive, truly alive. I came in to make breakfast, and only then did I realize the hour had already passed of the event that I’d been afraid would haunt me too much. The life of the land and the house outshines the darkness of the foyer.
— Rob Wilson, May 2022

* * *

Rob Wilson fell in love with the writing of Ernest Hemingway in eighth grade.

To this day, he remembers the thrill of that first reading of The Old Man and the Sea: how the novella brought to mind his own fishing trips with his dad. His mind readily painted a picture of the story’s setting: the boat, the deck, the handlines so different from his own rod and reel.

He remembers, as a high schooler, discovering a hardbound copy of Hemingway’s short stories on his dad’s bookshelf late one Friday and spending hours flipping its yellowed pages, reading long into the night. He remembers bonding with college friends over Hemingway, as well as quiet evenings during his early career as a field biologist, sitting on a cabin porch in southern Idaho and watching the sun set over the Pioneer Mountains above Sun Valley as he, again, made his way through Hemingway novels: The Sun Also Rises, A Farewell to Arms, For Whom the Bell Tolls. 

Hemingway’s writings were one of the first influential connections Rob had into the life of an artist, his stories and novels windows into worlds different from Rob’s in many ways, but also strikingly similar, with familiar streams of human experiences running through each tale. With each passing year, Rob began to see beyond the adventure stories that had first captivated him. Each new reading, supplemented by his accumulating life experience, became an opportunity to get lost in a story’s subtext. In Hemingway, Rob also found a kindred spirit—someone who, like him, respected the natural world. “Hemingway noticed the little things around him, and how they lived,” Rob said. The author’s writings are abundant with those observations: how trout hold in a clear river, for example, or the features of a wildfire-blackened mountainside, all described in such honest, sharp ways that it heightens the real-world experience of being outdoors.

In 2015, while re-reading Hemingway’s short story “A Pursuit Race,” Rob’s connection to Hemingway deepened in a new way when he realized how well its understated portrayal of alcoholism and heroin withdrawal could be applied to his health class lesson on substance abuse. He thought it would complement the textbook he usually used for the lesson, but more effectively invite students to contemplate the human impact of substance abuse in a way a textbook can’t.

“What fiction is,” he explained of that choice, “is a way to invite you into examining life.”

It was a successful experiment, one that excited both Rob and then-Head of School Alan Sparrow. Over the years, Rob began adding more texts to his lesson plans, including Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac and Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Braiding Sweetgrass, as well several Hemingway short stories: “Now I Lay Me” for its themes of metamorphosis, “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” for its tie to the climate, and “Big Two-Hearted River” for its portrayal of earth systems. Like the living creatures he brings to campus—pigeons for genetics, jellyfish to animate the history of life on Earth—Rob has found that Hemingway texts are an effective resource to enrich students’ understanding of science concepts. They’re also unexpected.

Research continues to make it clear that interdisciplinary learning, combining two or more subjects into one activity, benefits students by broadening how they think and how they approach problem solving.

“Students can be strict about silos,” he said, referring to the kind of thinking that draws lines around areas of study: students should reference a textbook or case study in science class and read Hemingway in English class. But research continues to make it clear that interdisciplinary learning, combining two or more subjects into one activity, benefits students by broadening how they think and how they approach problem solving. Hemingway’s signature iceberg approach—the idea that an author should allow a story’s deeper meaning to be implicitly realized by the reader—is an effective method for stretching young minds, allowing students space to lean on their own interpretations and observations.

“This is a major component of my teaching strategy,” said Rob. “If I tell you something, you are more likely to forget it. If you discover it for yourself based on what I provide, you will remember it and be proud of yourself.”

Many Hemingway stories build this skill with multiple examples of inference and deduction, forms of logic necessary to the scientific process, as well as sensory details that can deepen an understanding of natural sciences. While he was in Idaho, one of the stories Rob had his ninth-grade biology students read was “Now I Lay Me,” throughout which narrator Nick Adams, a soldier convalescing behind the front lines during World War I, refers to the sound of silkworms devouring mulberry leaves in his room. It was a natural tie to the class, which had been observing and caring for their own colony of silkworms that spring. Over the weeks, thanks to their worms’ diet of mulberry leaves, the class had watched the invertebrates grow from eyelash-sized hatchlings to fat, round, white worms. And as they read the story—for many, their introduction to Hemingway—that experience both provided a mental picture and enhanced the story’s subtext.

“It was easier to visualize the things described in the reading,” remembered Loc Ossana-Aoki, while classmate Rachel Brague added, “Having silkworms in the classroom helped emphasize the story, showed the bigger picture. Knowing about silkworms, I understood the emphasis on the man's experience.”

It was an experience that helped drive home the ideas that science isn’t static and that interdisciplinary connections enhance learning in exciting ways. Much like a Hemingway story, the students realized, there is always another layer to discover, something new to take away, to enrich overall understanding.

“Without any knowledge or experience, you can read these stories and understand what is happening,” explained Rachel, “but once you know more, the simple writing suddenly seems like the story is much longer and filled with more information than before.”

In past years, Rob has had students share Hemingway discoveries like these in class, but this year’s trip to Idaho gave them an opportunity to make even more connections among the stories, their studies, and his experience when he invited them to ask questions about his time away. “They were really curious,” said Rob. “All I did was say, ‘What would you like to know?’ and they asked questions for the entire period.” Discussion flowed around the Hemingway property’s major geographic features and how they change over time, natural selection, and the landscape itself: mature cottonwoods and blue spruces the Hemingways may have looked upon, a house wren whose call Rob imitated, and pileated woodpeckers whose strikes Rob demonstrated by knocking on the whiteboard. Rob also shared how he placed the class silkworms on the writing desk as he composed his own work, a metamorphosing muse, and his own feelings of fear, peace, and reverence for the sacred space.

“It was really personal for him,” said student Winston Hoffman, “but I think all of us appreciated what he had to say because he was trying to include us in the experience. It was like we had been there too, almost.”

Grasshoppers

As he had walked along the road, climbing, he had started many grasshoppers from the dust. These were just ordinary hoppers, but all a sooty black in color. Nick had wondered about them as he walked, without really thinking about them. Now, as he watched the black hopper that was nibbling at the wool of his sock with its fourway lip, he realized that they had all turned black from living in the burned-over land. He realized that the fire must have come the year before, but the grasshoppers were all black now. He wondered how long they would stay that way.
— Ernest Hemingway, “Big Two-Hearted River, Part One”

I headed north on Highway 93 around 1 pm. It was cool and windy, and I could see flurries of snow in the mountains ahead of me. I always feel such great anticipation during this part of the drive, and I remembered making the drive at other times of the year, doing other things with other people, and always having the sense that I am gravitating toward Ketchum. It’s funny to think of the warm summer nights on Big Cottonwood Creek, when I sat on the porch and looked across the Magic Valley to the Pioneer Mountains and wondered who had watched them fill with snow and returned to see that the snow had melted. Nothing about the drive reminded me of my dad except loading the car, driving past the duck club on the Jordan River and the other one on the Bear River, looking for ducks when I passed canals, geese in fields, bridges over rivers, and birds circling; the exit at Tremonton that we used to take to hunt and fish in Swan Valley (in the winter, the ducks would circle over the cottonwoods and disappear and reappear over the channel under the branches, closer than you were ever used to seeing them); looking out into the sagebrush, wondering if it held sage grouse; and the drive to Magic Valley where we took our last hunting trip that winter, when I broke through the ice on the Big Wood River, and I didn’t know if it would be 10 inches deep or 10 feet.

What I did not know going north is how much better I would understand this way when I took it, just a few days later, going south. I drove on knowing that I could share this experience and return to it.
— Rob Wilson, May 2022

* * *

Rob’s journey to his Hemingway House residency began in September 2016, when he received an invitation to that year’s Ernest Hemingway Seminar from his best friend from graduate school, Jeff Motychak. Titled Hemingway and Nature, the seminar was to feature discussions on “Big Two-Hearted River” and aimed to, in the words of The Community Library, “stimulate deep thinking about the role of nature in Hemingway’s works.” It was a perfect opportunity for two natural scientists fascinated by Hemingway and would play a transformative role in Rob’s life. “I was so deeply inspired,” Rob remembered. “I came back different.”

Rob has participated in the seminar each fall since, and in 2019 joined the planning committee to assist in its arrangement. His annual journey north is a pilgrimage of sorts, where he observes the landscape, reflects, and recharges. It’s also a chance for him to connect with Hemingway enthusiasts—literary scholars, scientists, art curators, educators, writers, and the curious public—who gather to examine a Hemingway novel, topic, or even passage. It was through these discussions that Rob built a relationship with the library, which in September 2021 extended a writer-in-residence invitation, initially hoping Rob would use the time to write the Hemingway lessons he had developed into teaching resources for other educators, a goal that would expand in the intervening months. And though he knew the experience would be deeply personal, he and Upper School Principal Ingrid Gustavson also knew it was a valuable opportunity, a chance to further help students perceive, seek, and discover connections in their learning, and they decided he would schedule the trip during the school year.

“So much of what we're doing with kids in education is modeling lifelong learning,” explained Ingrid. “This opportunity allowed Rob to explore, through his biologist lens, his observer lens, the home of a literary giant and give a new perspective on it.”

So many scientists know the quantitative evidence of what they’re looking at, but the quantitative evidence doesn’t matter unless you know who you’re impacting.—Annie Nash, class of 2023

It’s this kind of thinking that can change students’ lives. For upper schooler Annie Nash, who was first introduced to Hemingway in 2020 as one of Rob’s ninth-grade biology students, and who identifies as both a scientist and an artist, the confluence of subjects in Rob’s classroom felt natural, freeing her to think about how she can apply both sides of herself to her life’s work.

“I never really imagined art separate from the sciences,” she explained. “Science is artistic, nature is artistic, math is artistic—we can’t separate them.” And the older she gets, Annie said, the more she realizes an interdisciplinary approach to education is preparing her for a dynamic world that needs creative-minded and collaborative thinkers to take on its big challenges. “So many scientists know the quantitative evidence of what they’re looking at,” she said, “but the quantitative evidence doesn’t matter unless you know who you’re impacting.”

An aspiring pharmaceutical scientist, Annie knows her personal definition of success depends on more than an understanding of analytical chemistry and biostatistics. One area she’s especially concerned about is the historically negative impact of medicine on marginalized communities. She worries that the traditional approach to science education, one that focuses strictly on data, leaves scientists removed from the real-world impact of their work, and she believes applying topics like English, art, and history to her science studies helps her recognize worrying trends in her desired field so she can do her part to interrupt them. Novels and short stories are especially powerful ways to frame this history, she’s learned. More than other media, they effectively invite readers to reflect on humanity’s shared history and paint an understanding of how the human journey—what we’ve believed, what we’ve valued, how we’ve lived—has shaped the current world so readers can take away lessons for their own lives.

“You understand the time period but also separate the good and the bad—and then further the good in your own studies,” said Annie. “Scientists are sometimes viewed as being antisocial hermits who are detached from real-world issues. I want to break this stereotype so that I can encourage others to be empathetic in their research, to always strive to better the world.”

Cottonwoods

Best of all, he loved the fall. The leaves yellow on the cottonwoods, leaves floating on the trout streams, and above the hills the high, blue, windless skies.
— Ernest Hemingway, eulogy for Gene Van Guilder

I can track with my eye the flow through the deepest part of the channel that would have ruptured the beaver dam. The flow is deflected off of the bedrock wall. Parts of the channel are visible from the east-facing windows, and it is easy to imagine that residents of the house would have watched the river shape this bend over the years. They would have seen cottonwoods bloom with beet-colored catkins, fill in with lush green leaves, and fill the air with a distinct perfume; leaves yellow on the cottonwoods; and the transformation to black and white skeletons against the winter land. From here, they could watch the plumes of snow raised by the wind from the highest peaks. They would have heard the gossip of geese and had a view into the nests of hawks and private lives of kinglets, and been witness to the comings and goings of myriad birds throughout the year. It saddens me to know how much Ernest would have enjoyed this setting over the decades he could have lived here and did not. He has left us his gifts of perception so that we may enjoy it ourselves and teach others to experience the sublime and to protect it.

Teaching is a service of paying forward knowledge, skills, and values that enable another to cope and thrive in an ever-changing world. You can’t be a beacon if your light doesn’t shine. Mary could have walked away, and she chose to stay and have the house protected in perpetuity. The house on the hill of bedrock above the sea of cottonwoods is a beacon that both signals danger and radiates hope.
— Rob Wilson, May 2022

* * *

The house on the hill is designed to maximize its view.

From its wide patios, large windows, or broad lawn, visitors gaze upon a landscape of colors and textures: snow-capped peaks of the Boulder and Pioneer mountains, the Big Wood River flowing over gray stones, the dark trunks and lush foliage of black cottonwoods that, in late spring as they burst into new life, fill the warming air with a honey scent.

Cottonwood forests, or galleries, tell a story of resilience: their survival depends upon the ability of seedlings to keep their roots in contact with capillary fringe, the area of soil that draws moisture from the water table. When flood conditions are met, the trees grow in cohorts, but most years, due to weather or human disruption, those conditions are not met. As a result, one cohort of cottonwoods matures to nurture the next, a process that strengthens the entire gallery.

There are times, though, when a cottonwood forest stops regenerating altogether, a process that happens so gradually the untrained eye misses the first signs. For the caregivers of the Hemingway House and its estate, a loss like this—of Mary’s desire for how the property would continue on—would especially hurt, and so Rob volunteered to conduct the first biological inventory, a task necessary to fully realize Mary’s vision.

“It's the library’s mission, as stewards, to protect that little bit of land,” he explained. “The biggest thing I could offer was to describe the living landscape for them.”

In addition to writing teaching resources, Rob spent hours of his residency walking the property’s 13.9 acres looking for cottonwood saplings as evidence of regeneration and documenting the landscape, from the bedrock on which the house stands to the kinglets and house wrens calling into early spring mornings, all of which he included in a reference document for the land’s ongoing protection and conservation—his personal contribution to its stewardship. “This idea of stewardship is: if you're here, it's your job to take care of things,” said Rob. “That's maintaining a landscape, if that's what you have the opportunity to do, or a place, or a relationship.”

A recurrent theme at Rowland Hall is: be the change you want to see in the world. That’s stewardship. My message to students is they can be interested in something and cultivate it and watch it become bigger and better than they ever imagined.—Rob Wilson

As a scientist, Rob has too often seen how our time in history is marked by a collective lack of stewardship, from climate change to the imperiled animals he studies, and he believes each individual plays a role in stewarding our world. He knows that if in his classroom he can tap into our shared humanity by breaking down learning silos and showing students how their passions, whatever those are, connect to something bigger, he can better prepare them to be the people the world needs.

“A recurrent theme at Rowland Hall is: be the change you want to see in the world. That’s stewardship,” said Rob. “My message to students is they can be interested in something and cultivate it and watch it become bigger and better than they ever imagined.”

It’s a perspective that can be found in hundreds of ways across Rowland Hall classrooms, from cross-disciplinary teaching partnerships in the Upper School to experiential learning in the Beginning School. “Adults at Rowland Hall model so well how to see connections in the world, to get excited about learning across disciplines,” said Ingrid. “No one is too young or too old to discover things we really care about, then go deep and figure out how to teach them to others, support a cause, or further someone else's learning.”

This sharing of knowledge is often viewed as a pinnacle of education, a way of students continuing the journey their teachers set them on. Just as a younger cohort of cottonwoods benefits from the stability and nourishment provided by an older cohort, students benefit from their teachers’ examples, then go on to share what they know. “The true test of a student's learning is not the answer they write on an exam,” said Rob. “It is how they share what they learned with the people around them.”

Ingrid remembered seeing evidence of this truth in May when she stopped by Rob’s classroom to find him and three earth science students caring for tanks of betta fish and the class jellyfish, Calypso. Rob encouraged the students to tell Ingrid about the creatures, which they excitedly did, showing her how they harvest brine shrimp for jellyfish food and test the water, and sharing who was caring for the animals over the summer. In that moment, Ingrid said, she realized the students had fully taken ownership of their learning. “This is theirs now,” she thought.

“I always thought science was supposed to be very straightforward—not bringing your own opinion, your own feelings into it,” said Hope Thomas, one of the students in the classroom that day, and Calypso’s summer caretaker. “For a while, it made it a hard subject for me because I’m a very creative person.” But being in Rob’s classes, where she’s encouraged to see connections among areas of study that another science teacher may never approach, Hope realized that making science personal wasn’t just okay, it was necessary to understanding, and taking on, the challenges of today. 

“It makes it more applicable to us when we can think about science in a more personal way,” she said. “When you care about it more, you are more willing to take action.”

And ultimately, this is the goal of education: to help students make meaningful connections about what matters to them and take action to leave the world a better place than they found it. It’s a lesson, Rob has found, that means more to him with each passing year and is especially clear when he returns to The Old Man and the Sea, the book that started his journey, and the one Hemingway himself called “an epilogue to all my writing and what I have learned, or tried to learn, while writing and trying to live.” With the benefit of time, study, and lived experience, said Rob, it’s now more than just a fishing story—it’s a reminder of what is most precious in the time he has.

“What gets me now,” he said, “is the poignancy of how brief a moment is going to be.”

Authentic Learning

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Banner photo credits: Ernest Hemingway by Robert Capa (c) International Center of Photography/Magnum Photos; Mary Hemingway courtesy of the Jeanne Rodger Lane Center for Regional History, Dorice Taylor Collection. Other photographs provided by The Community Library and Rob Wilson.

Special thanks to The Community Library for their partnership on this story.

For this year’s debate team, there may be one thing that feels better than claiming Rowland Hall’s second consecutive region and state titles.

Doing it in person.

After two years of online-only competition, debaters from across the state were able to gather in person once again for the 2022 regional and state tournaments. After numerous Zoom-room competitions, said Mike Shackelford, Rowland Hall debate coach, these in-person gatherings were a welcome change.

"A return to in-person debate was rejuvenating,” said Mike. “Sure, it meant more planning and earlier mornings—but it also meant pep talks and motivational speeches, real-time collaboration, bonding and playing together between rounds, and supporting one another by watching final rounds as a group. It allowed our students to be truly seen and heard by their opponents, judges, and teammates." And it was especially exciting for the team members who hadn’t yet experienced in-person debate events. “They didn't even know what they were missing,” said Mike.

Sophomore Zac Bahna was one of these students. He experienced his first year of competition—where he placed third in Foreign Extemporaneous Speaking at state—on Zoom, and now understands the contrast between the two settings.

We were able to foster an environment in which everyone was willing to help each other out and push each other to succeed.—Zac Bahna, class of 2024

“The in-person experience is a lot different but more fun,” said Zac, who, with fellow sophomore and partner Harris Matheson, took third place in this year’s Public Forum event. “You get to talk to debaters from other schools and hang out with your teammates between rounds. Although last year’s debate season was still a great experience, the team felt more isolated and disconnected when we were all debating from our own homes. The state tournament was one of the first times that I could really feel the good energy of a team environment.”

That energy makes a difference for Rowland Hall not only because the team plays up a division into the 3A classification, pitting them against larger schools, but also because they had to spend a lot of time preparing for individual speech events—an area they don't practice during the regular season—to be competitive.

“It was so awesome to see so many Rowland Hall debaters come together and push themselves to compete in different events than they normally would and work together to achieve a common goal,” said Zac. “We were able to foster an environment in which everyone was willing to help each other out and push each other to succeed.”

As a result, the team walked away from the state tournament with their second consecutive 3A state title (their total score, 108, was 33 points higher than the second-place team) and an impressive list of performances:

• Senior Samantha Lehman took first place in National Extemporaneous Speaking, an event in which debaters are given a domestic affairs question and have 30 minutes to research, write, and deliver seven-minute speeches.
• Senior teammates Ella Houden and Kit Stevens took first place in Public Forum, an event that includes short speeches interspersed with three-minute crossfire sections, on the topic of the pros and cons of organic agriculture. Senior Samantha Lehman and junior Micah Sheinberg as well as sophomores Zac Bahna and Harris Matheson closed out the top three spots, giving them a co-championship.
• Junior Layla Hijjawi and sophomore Joey Lieskovan took first place in Policy, an event in which teams advocate for or against a policy change resolution, for their take on the best proposals for water resource protection. Juniors Ruchi Agarwal and Julia Summerfield also went undefeated in this event, giving them the co-championship, while senior George Drakos and sophomore Gabe Andrus, as well as sophomores Marina Peng and Logan Fang, tied for third place—a clean sweep of the top four spots! (Learn more about how debaters across the state, including Rowland Hall students, prepared for this topic in The Salt Lake Tribune.)
• Freshman Aiden Gandhi took fifth place in Lincoln-Douglas, a solo debate event, for his speech on journalistic ethics.
• Junior Zachary Klein took third place in Foreign Extemporaneous Speaking, an event in which debaters are given a foreign affairs question and have 30 minutes to research, write, and deliver seven-minute speeches.
• Freshman Andrew Murphy took fifth place in Student Congress, a competition in which students lead and participate in a simulation where they debate different pieces of national legislation.
• Junior Micah Sheinberg took fourth place in Impromptu Speaking, an event in which debaters are required to prepare and deliver speeches on a random topic, with only one to two minutes to prepare.

Samantha Lehman also made school history by being the first Rowland Hall student to win an individual state championship in three different debate events over her high school career. The senior said the accomplishment showed her that she can successfully debate on both national and state levels—and reminded her of what she’s learned over four years.

Debate has made me more confident in my voice.—Samantha Lehman, class of 2022

“Debate has made me a more confident person,” said Samantha. “I’ve always been willing to put myself out there, but debate has made me more confident in my voice, in my ability to convey ideas. I know how to speak to a specific audience, to use my research skills and cater arguments to different groups. I know how to speak efficiently and clearly, in a way that’s not pedantic. I know more about the world: criminal justice issues, arms sales, international relations, water, climate change—subjects you would never find out just in school and reading the news.”

This perspective was echoed by ninth grader Aiden Gandhi, who emerged as a team phenom in his novice season, taking fifth place in Lincoln-Douglas at his first state tournament.

“The season allowed me to grow and learn about topics and ideas that I never would have explored otherwise,” said Aiden. And though he is thrilled about the accomplishments of this year, he’s even more excited about his personal growth. “I think I am most proud of achieving the growth that I did this year in debate. It means that I will be better equipped for next year and future debates.”

It’s this kind of attitude, found across the team, that promises continued excellence for Rowland Hall Debate. Even after graduation, said Samantha, she’ll be keeping an eye on the team—she’s that excited about what lies ahead. Zac and Aiden, also looking forward to what's in the team’s future, have already promised to contribute to ongoing success by challenging themselves and their teammates, cultivating a positive and fun environment, and building community.

“I am excited for the opportunity that next year's season brings to connect, grow, and improve,” said Aiden.

Debate

Research is clear: Investing in early childhood education is a smart move. Not only is it one of the surest ways to set students on paths of lifelong curiosity and well-being, but it’s also been proven to enhance both individual lives and society at large. At Rowland Hall, thanks to a focus on evidence-based education, we have long been crafting a top-tier early childhood program centered around best practices for young learners during crucial years of their development. As a result, students leave the Beginning School viewing themselves as capable knowledge-makers, ready to thrive in the next stage of their joyful educational journeys.

In Melanie Robbins and Mary Grace Ellison’s kindergarten classroom, a small sign hangs over a row of student cubbies. It’s inconspicuous, but, once noticed, seems to summarize the day-to-day happenings of the energetic and vibrant room.

“Play,” it states, “is the work of childhood.”

This Jean Piaget quote, beautifully succinct, is a reminder that the activities that take place in Melanie and Mary Grace’s room, and in all Rowland Hall Beginning School classrooms, are not just fun—they’re incredibly meaningful, and essential to children’s development. By tapping into the most natural and essential of early childhood activities—play—educators are building crucial connections in young brains and setting a joyful foundation for discovering, exploring, embracing, and creating knowledge.

On a Thursday morning in February, the Piaget quote kept watch over a bustle of activity among the kindergartners. Walking by, a casual observer may have thought the activity was free play, but there was a thoughtful academic purpose behind the fun: the five- and six-year-olds were busy making their way through an array of learning centers designed for their Animals in Winter unit, a study of how animals hibernate, migrate, and adapt during the coldest months.

It was a time of play—and yet it was about so much more than the play. The longer the class was observed, the more apparent it became that a trove of educational and developmental benefits were taking shape just below the surface.

At one table, two girls bent over the covers of the animal reports they were creating for the unit; using library books as guides, they illustrated their chosen animals, a chipmunk and a fox, on the report covers. Nearby, a group of students, sprawled across cushions, worked on core literacy skills on iPads, while another, more rowdy, group rolled an oversized die and moved animal figurines across a homemade playing board. On the far side of the room, students looked through a pile of materials—empty oatmeal canisters, bits of cardboard, string—to be crafted into an animal habitat. In between these stations, children sorted animal pictures into groups or practiced writing letters, some with crayons on paper, others with fingers in sand. For an hour, the students enjoyed the freedom to sample whatever most appealed to them at any given moment, and to take from the group what they needed—for a few, it was a time to step back to reflect and quietly work on activities alone; for others, to engage with peers.

It was a time of play—and yet it was about so much more than the play. Like taking a cursory glance at a frozen winter landscape, which doesn’t reveal the rabbit blending into the snow or the entry to an animal den, just glancing at the fun would have limited the viewer’s understanding of what was occurring in the classroom. The longer the class was observed, the more apparent it became that a trove of educational and developmental benefits were taking shape just below the surface: Students cutting materials for the animal habitat or practicing writing the letter S with stumpy crayons were honing fine-motor skills. Those at the game board were mastering math by matching the number of dots on the die to the number of spaces they had to move. And all around the room, students were building social skills, whether while waiting for a turn or while navigating a disagreement.

“This is the power of early childhood,” said Melanie.

A Solid Foundation

At Rowland Hall’s Beginning School, an emphasis on well-grounded early childhood research, such as that around the benefits of purposeful play, is at the heart of the student experience—and for good reason. Between the ages of three and six, the time during which they begin to attend school, children’s brains are in the midst of a tremendous evolution that educators need to understand to fully support.

“The three-to-six age range is marked by huge transformation in the architecture of the brain, and the structures that get laid down during that time will persist,” said Principal Emma Wellman, who has led the Beginning School since 2018, and, in the 2021–2022 school year, took on the expanded role of Beginning School and Lower School principal. During the preschool and kindergarten years, Emma explained, foundational behaviors, aptitudes, skills, and values are ingrained in the brain, so it’s essential that children’s first teachers know how to positively impact this development.

“Early childhood teachers are laying the foundation for lifelong learning in terms of how students relate to school and to one another, and to themselves as learners and workers,” said Emma.

During the preschool and kindergarten years, foundational behaviors, aptitudes, skills, and values are ingrained in the brain, so it’s essential that children’s first teachers know how to positively impact this development.

Through thoughtful play and other proven early education tactics, educators can boost brain-building in ways that last: studies show that students who attend early childhood programs are more likely to later demonstrate high-functioning skills, such as strong emotional and social intelligence, curiosity, and discipline, and more likely to report high rates of fulfilling relationships and fulfilling careers. And it’s not just individual lives that benefit; there are also economic advantages to investing in early childhood education. Dr. James J. Heckman, professor of economics at the University of Chicago and an expert in the economics of human development, has found that investments in early childhood education result in the highest rates of economic returns, both for individuals and society at large. Simply put: investing in early childhood education is one of the best ways to greatly impact lives.

“You’re giving extra support in a time when it matters most,” said Emma.

An Emphasis on Relationship

When it comes to how children relate to school, teachers are often the key factor, and this is especially true in early childhood classrooms, where the trust educators build with young students sets them on paths of learning, curiosity, and self-discovery. In fact, said Emma, because warm, trusting relationships are strongly shown to be vital to early learning, they’re the first thing she recommends people look for when exploring preschool and kindergarten programs.

“The most important thing is the teacher-student relationship, because learning happens in the context of relationship,” she explained. “Everything is built on that.”

In the Beginning School, a focus on relationship, alongside an emphasis on reciprocal respect between teachers and students, guides everything from class sizes to division specialties; as a result, students remain at the center of decision-making. A focus on relationships also encourages more natural student participation in classroom happenings, an essential component to building brain connections in young learners.

“We want to make sure that kids remain in charge of big chunks of their own learning so that they don’t become dependent on the grown-ups to drive it for them,” said Emma.

This ownership over learning expands during children’s time in the Beginning School. As they build strong relationships with their students, teachers can encourage them to work on mastering both early academic skills and self-care activities. Through a process known as scaffolding, teachers support students as they make their way through the zone of proximal development—that is, the difference between what a child can do without help and what they can do with guidance and encouragement from a teacher. It’s a way to meet each learner where they are their own individual development, and it can be applied to both academic subjects, like building foundational skills in number sense and phonological awareness, or life skills, like putting on a coat or a mask.

“School is the perfect place for that practice to happen and to develop those skills, which are critical in other learning,” said Beginning School Assistant Principal Brittney Hansen ’02. “We take our time to let everyone learn that they can do an activity all by themselves and feel that confidence, that sense of pride, and carry themselves a little bit taller because of it.”

A Child-Sized Experience

It’s not difficult to find students owning their learning in the Beginning School: the process can be observed in the 3PreK student working to zip her coat, the kindergartner choosing a quiet-time book from the classroom library, and the 4PreK student sorting a pile of twigs, pine cones, and leaves gathered during outdoor classroom. Active learning is around every corner.

“All of our learning is entirely exploratory and we foster kids’ natural curiosity,” said Kelley Journey, the Beginning School’s experiential learning specialist. “We give kids a lot of authentic opportunities to learn in real-world situations.”

The design of the building even encourages this exploration; you don’t need to walk far into the Beginning School to realize that the place is built for young learners. Bulletin boards, supplies, and books are set at the children’s eye level. Easy-to-access cubbies provide space for each person’s belongings. Child-sized restrooms are attached to classrooms, encouraging independence (while also providing reassurance that trusted adults are nearby, if needed). Simple decor and minimal reference material leave room for imagination. All of these choices, explained Brittney, are based on sound research and made mindfully and intentionally to encourage natural curiosity and to empower students to move effortlessly among spaces as they follow their interests or learn to manage their personal needs. 

“A key function of early childhood education is for students to learn, to be able to take care of themselves and their belongings, to feel ownership over their space and learning environment, and to feel confident navigating the school,” said Brittney.

Educators in the Beginning School are very intentional about integrating areas of learning in meaningful, authentic ways for children.—Brittney Hansen ’02, Beginning School assistant principal

Beginning School days are also set up to harness the ways in which children learn best: there are moments of active play as well as quiet time, and educators stretch young brains with both structured lessons and space for choice and self-exploration—what Rowland Hall often refers to as choice and voice. This inclusion of choice, explained Kelley, is important for all students, but especially significant to young learners who often don’t feel they have a lot of control over their lives: when much of your day includes being told what to do, and when to do it, by adults, having choice in how you want to learn—alongside access to child-sized structures and materials that allow you to work without a grown-up’s help—you begin to view yourself as a capable knowledge-maker. Students given choice can see themselves as scientists, engineers, or artists, and they believe in their ability to find solutions, improve processes, or add beauty to the world.

And because Rowland Hall is an independent school, Beginning School teachers (like teachers across all of the school’s divisions) have the flexibility to explore the topics that spark their students’ interests. They’re naturals when it comes to identifying subjects that light up students’ eyes, and they enjoy the flexibility to adjust lesson plans in order to follow these paths, weaving foundational academic knowledge into the areas their individual classes wish to explore.

“Educators in the Beginning School are very intentional about integrating areas of learning in meaningful, authentic ways for children,” said Brittney. “We are less about saying, for instance, ‘Now is our time for science.’ Instead, we think of something that’s captivating and interesting for the child and then say, ‘It’s my job to figure out how to weave science into this.’”

A Community of Learners

There is a common refrain about Rowland Hall’s Beginning School: “This is a happy place.” Visitors frequently comment on the division’s warm atmosphere and often report feeling a sense of joy during their time there. For Emma and her leadership team, these reactions to the school aren't a coincidence; they’re confirmation that Rowland Hall is providing support exactly where it’s needed—for young learners, as well as for the adults who make their education possible.

Rowland Hall is so special. All faculty members are complete lifelong learners and continually challenge themselves to practice the best theories and pedagogies for children.—Kelley Journey, experiential learning specialist

“One way we show respect to teachers is by giving them opportunities and responsibility to be learners in their own right, to continue their own professional lives,” explained Emma. And this is important because early childhood programs that prioritize the well-being of their educators see numerous benefits—for instance, teachers with supportive administrators spend more of their time focused on students, and they’re more likely to stay with a school for the long haul. Professional development opportunities at Rowland Hall range from growing personal passions or areas of growth, like when kindergarten teacher Melanie Robbins helped incorporate outdoor classroom into the division’s curriculum, to exploring ways teachers can support Rowland Hall’s mission and strategic priorities, such as when 4PreK lead teacher Isabelle Buhler studied equity and inclusion in the early childhood programs.

“Rowland Hall is so special,” said Kelley. “All faculty members are complete lifelong learners and continually challenge themselves to practice the best theories and pedagogies for children.”

They challenge each other too: faculty are encouraged to share takeaways from their professional development experiences, a practice that supports one another’s engagement with, and investment in, their essential roles. It’s a practice that also ensures everything they do comes back to students: by staying current with early childhood research findings, the Beginning School team can provide the school’s youngest learners with what they most need, creating a solid educational foundation for those students and, at the same time, illustrating for them the value of learning.

And it’s perhaps this practice that best explains why the Beginning School is such a happy place: it’s a place that highlights the thrill of learning, where students see in teachers the lifelong benefits of staying curious, and where, through the eyes of children, adults are continuously reminded of the pure joy of discovery, of allowing curiosity to take you to new places, and of understanding just what you’re capable of.

It’s the magic of early childhood.

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Looking for a preschool or kindergarten? Download Rowland Hall's tips for picking a top-tier early childhood program.

Academics

Rowland Hall is centered around the student experience. But the school community is so much bigger than the students and even the teachers who interact with them in classrooms every day. There is a whole system of people working to keep people safe and fed, keep the grounds and buildings clean, and literally keep traffic moving. Then there are others who work not just to support the current students on campus, but students for years to come, through business functions, development, alumni, and community outreach.

It was a shape walk in January that piqued the curiosity of the school’s first graders about the variety of people on campus and created a project involving the whole grade. Going into one unfamiliar area of campus, a student was heard to exclaim, “Who are these people?” The students decided to create their own newspapers—the Rowland Hall Star Journal, The Winged Lion Press, and The Rowland Hall Times—to look at who are members of our community and how they help our school. 

First-grade teachers Susanna Mellor, April Nielsen, and Galen McCallum loved seeing the excitement of their students to take on a new (and rather arduous) project. The students would have to use a number of skills—some they had learned before, and some that were new. Reading and writing were obviously going to be employed. But they also had to learn how to come up with interview questions, and how to overcome nerves to conduct an interview. Photography became very important. One student took more than 75 photos for his piece. 

“I learned that you have to videotape your interview,” said first grader Harper Y., who interviewed Digital Communications Associate Robert Lainhart ’11. “That helped me remember what Robert had said and what to write.”

“There was no lack of confidence from the students during the interviews,” said Head of School (and interview subject) Mick Gee. “I think that came from the amount of preparation they did. They were ready with questions and even asked follow-up questions. They were pretty sophisticated.”

Buddy pairs worked to hone their skills with each other before sending letters requesting interviews to their intended subjects. The letters were an important part of the process since no journalist simply “gets” a big interview; some finesse has to be involved. Many of the students were unfamiliar with the proper format of a letter, so this was another learning opportunity. The teachers worked with them on how to make a proper introduction and explained that the interviews were about more than learning about work—they were also about the people behind that work. “We are all part of this community,” said first-grade teacher Susanna. “It’s important to be known as humans and not just defined by our jobs.”

The importance of voice and choice was key here. We wanted the kids to take an interest in what they were learning and get to know their subjects.—Galen McCallum, first-grade teacher

“They went into areas of the school where they normally never go and practiced speaking to other grown-ups,” said April. “They were picked up by their interview subjects and walked to the interview and back to their classrooms. And the students in my class insisted on wearing their special press badges so everyone would know they’re reporters.”

All of the kids were asked who they would want to interview. Not surprisingly, there was a lot of interest in the school’s kitchen. Two teams of intrepid reporters were dispatched to interview Director of Food Services Julia Simonsen and one of the chefs, Ben.

“The importance of voice and choice was key here. We wanted the kids to take an interest in what they were learning and get to know their subjects,” said Galen. “The students invited Ben and Julia down to see the finished articles when they were done. There is something beautiful about helping them make these connections.”

Being part of the first-grade interview project combined two of my favorite things: getting to know students and sharing my love of Rowland Hall.—Mary Anne Wetzel '01, director of financial aid

And those connections are what every student mentions when you ask them about the project. Briar C. sat down with Zenon Bulka in operations to learn more about him. She reported back that Zenon is from Poland, has two boys, and babysits a dog. “My favorite part of interviewing Zenon was getting to sit with him,” she said.

The interview subjects valued the experience as well. Director of Financial Aid Mary Anne Wetzel ’01 loves passing her new press contacts during the day. “Being part of the first-grade interview project combined two of my favorite things: getting to know students and sharing my love of Rowland Hall,” she said. “I hope they learned a little bit about what I do in the Admission Office, and I got to make two new first-grade friends.” 

It's a sentiment echoed from others involved as well. “I was thanking someone for taking part in the project, for giving their time,” said April. “They responded, ‘Thanks for spreading joy around the school.’”

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The first-grade team wishes to extend special thanks to fifth-grade teacher Jen Bourque for her support and guidance in crafting this project, which was initially used in the first-grade curriculum in the 2019–2020 school year.

Academics

Upon entering first grade, students are just beginning their reading and writing journeys, with varying levels of literacy experience. By the end of the school year, thanks to the guidance of a dedicated team of teachers, these first graders have become confident, age-appropriate readers and writers.

Rowland Hall’s first-grade team—April Nielsen, Galen McCallum, Susanna Mellor, and Lizbeth Sorensen—puts their hearts and souls, and more than 70 combined years of experience, into the art of teaching first graders how to read and write. These teachers are the backbone of Rowland Hall’s uniquely engaging literacy program, a key educational pillar that serves as a launchpad for students’ love of reading and writing, which continues to grow throughout their time at the school. 

Our students leave first grade loving reading and writing. They feel empowered as word professors, readers, writers, and learners.—April Nielsen, first-grade teacher

“Our students leave first grade loving reading and writing,” explained April, lead first-grade teacher. “They feel empowered as word professors, readers, writers, and learners.”

During their first-grade year, students have a variety of opportunities each day to strengthen their skills and foster a foundation of empowerment. They practice reading, writing, and phonics, and learn about different genres and how to use authors’ techniques in their own writing. “Students feel empowered to take control of their own learning,” April said. “They’re excited about their progress as readers and writers.”        

What sets Rowland Hall’s literacy program apart from others? Undoubtedly, it’s the devotion and hard work of the first-grade teachers. The team uses the best research-based practices, as well as their combined years of teaching experience, to create joyful and engaging classroom communities of children who feel safe trying new things while actively learning. “The first-grade literacy program is highly engaging, developmentally appropriate, and thorough,” said Susanna. “It includes explicit, teacher-directed instruction, as well as many components that are discovery-based, requiring students to investigate and explore.”

The program also offers individual support for each student throughout their reading journeys—and this has been especially true during the pandemic. The teachers were proactive following distance learning in spring 2020, identifying students who would benefit from additional support over the summer to ensure they wouldn’t fall behind when they returned to school in the fall. These students were offered a two-week summer learning program where they could focus on reading and writing, as well as mathematics, in ways that would keep them excited about learning. Once students returned to the classroom, the teachers worked tirelessly to offer them individualized literacy instruction, while also being proactive about reaching out to families about progress and how to support children at home. Thanks to Rowland Hall’s small class sizes and administrative support, they used formative assessments to guide their instruction. “We meet with each student individually to find out exactly where they are and what they need instructionally,” explained April. “Then we are able to work with students individually and in small groups to practice the new skills being taught each day.”

As the year progresses, the teachers use methods that encourage students to examine language and build meaningful literacy knowledge and skills. One of the most impressive aspects of Rowland Hall’s program is how they weave together reading and writing units to optimize student success and retention. “One nice thing about our program is when we’re reading nonfiction books,” April explained. “That’s when we’re learning how to write nonfiction, too, so students are really learning how these books are organized both during reading and writing time.”

The first-grade team is constantly hard at work implementing new and innovative strategies for writing workshops that make learning both inclusive and fun for students so that they want to explore those skills.

The first-grade team is also constantly hard at work implementing new and innovative strategies for writing workshops that make learning both inclusive and fun for students so that they want to explore those skills. (In fact, Galen highlighted how, during choice time, students often choose to do reading and writing activities. “I love writing workshop because I can use my imagination to write my very own books,” commented first grader Scarlett M.) Writing workshops allow the first graders to use a variety of skills to write and illustrate their own stories, building confidence and ownership of their own literacy learning. Students create everything from narratives to persuasive writing to nonfiction stories, and at the end of the year participate in an authors’ celebration where they read a story of their choice to their classmates and parents. This May, for example, student Ozzie S. chose to read his story about a “sushinami”—a tsunami made of sushi.

“It was fun writing my story and I'm excited to read it for the class,” Ozzie said. “I really liked drawing the pictures of the sushinami.”

The literacy program has been a longtime strength at Rowland Hall, and during an unconventional year, the program has been especially beneficial to students. Due to the consistent hard work and dedication of the first-grade team and their students, April is confident this year’s first graders will be well-prepared for second grade.

“I am extremely proud of our first graders and my team,” said April. “All of my students have made great reading and writing progress this year because they received intensive, systematic reading and writing instruction.”

Academics

It’s been 100 years since the 1920s, but eighth-grade American studies teacher Mary Jo Marker believes the nuances between then and now have never been more relevant. 

An interest in the parallels in time inspired Mary Jo to create a centenary project for her eighth graders in which she broke students into small groups and asked them to create a magazine based on the 1920s. Each group was asked to choose an overall theme for the magazine—this could be anything from fashion to politics to technology—and, within that theme, to focus on one aspect, like makeup or the stock market in the 1920s. 

“I thought it might be interesting to have the kids explore the 1920s more in depth,” explained Mary Jo, “and to do that in a more creative way that gave them voice and choice in how they approached their research around the 1920s.” To the students, this concept of voice and choice is invaluable when it comes to learning—it not only empowers them to be independent but it also builds engagement and allows them to broaden their interests and skills. 

After deciding on their groups’ themes for the magazine, the students were instructed to each write a 1,000-word article on their particular topics, each of which would appear in the finished publications. “One thing they all did really well,” reflected Mary Jo, “was meet the thousand-word limit, which was really a challenge for them.” 

When students are granted creative and academic freedom, they can produce some truly wonderful results.—Eighth-grader Milo B.

When it came to the magazines’ details, Mary Jo asked the students to use the Library of Congress to find advertisements, letters to the editor, and political cartoons to add to their projects to round them out and create end products that looked like actual magazines. Eighth grader Milo B. excelled in this project and credits much of his success to the great deal of creative liberties Mary Jo allowed the students. “When students are granted creative and academic freedom, they can produce some truly wonderful results, like the magazine,” Milo reflected. “Ms. Marker did a fantastic job in managing this project.”

When all was said and done, the eighth graders delivered some truly impressive pieces. Upon perusing the display of their work on the second floor in the Middle School, it is hard to not be blown away by the variety of topics and the immense creativity each group brought forward in both their design and in their writing. 

“It was great to see the personality of all the groups come out,” said Mary Jo. “I was really proud of them. I set a high bar, and by and large the majority were able to meet the learning targets and goals of the project.”

And in doing so, the students were able to recognize how history can be reflected in our own modern world by highlighting connections between society 100 years ago and today. The work the students created reveals a lot about their work ethic, creativity, and the outstanding guidance they received from Mary Jo, but it also reflects the collaborative nature of the Middle School—both among students, and between students and faculty. 

“I think this project reflects the willingness to be vulnerable and take risks to really set a high standard and work to meet it,” reflected Mary Jo. “This goes across the board, in the Middle School for students and adults alike.”

Mary Jo also noted how it is worth remembering, when looking at this project and future projects, that kids will rise to whatever occasion you set for them, so we mustn’t forget to create challenging opportunities for them to aspire to.

Academics

In mathematics, students learn the definition of an equation: a statement that shows the values of two mathematical expressions are equal (for example, x – 5 = 10).

But math teachers, including Garrett Stern, who teaches in the Middle School, want students to understand that an equation isn’t just numbers and letters on a page. “An equation,” said Garrett, “relates to an image on the graph.”

For many of our math students, this piece of algebra art represents their pinnacle achievement in middle school math.—Garrett Stern, math teacher

These images can take a variety of forms—such as lines, parabolas, and circles—which, when placed together on a graph, can do something exciting: they can create art.

To help illustrate the visual beauty in mathematical equations, Garrett has for the past six years assigned his students the task of creating their own algebra art using the Desmos graphing calculator, a free resource used by educators around the world. Every year, he’s found that Rowland Hall students are able to produce inventive, and often very impressive, works of art.

“For many of our math students, this piece of algebra art represents their pinnacle achievement in middle school math,” said Garrett.

At an April 15 student assembly, Garrett highlighted algebra art as well as recognized the accomplishments of this year’s crop of artists. He was joined by three students, Rebecca M., Jojo P., and Erika P., who created some of the most outstanding pieces in this year’s unit. Below, these students share their algebra art experiences with the Rowland Hall community.

“Star Destroyer” by Rebecca M.

Rebecca’s drawing of a Star Destroyer is one of this year’s most complicated pieces. In fact, the Star Wars fan’s subject was so detailed that Garrett said he initially attempted to talk her out of it.

“I tried to dissuade Rebecca from trying her idea,” he remembered, “but she rejected my advice.”

Rebecca—who was inspired to tackle the Star Destroyer after viewing an algebra art drawing of an AT-AT, or All-Terrain Armored Transport, that now-junior Dillon Fang created when he took Garrett’s class—admitted that, although she was able to complete her chosen subject in the end, the process of creating the Star Destroyer was very challenging.

“I was quite confident going into this project, but my confidence began to dwindle after doing some equations,” she said. Rebecca especially remembers the difficulty of creating the ship’s bridge. “It has many small pieces that you don’t think about until you have to trace it with algebra equations.”

Rebecca said the time-consuming three to four weeks it took to complete her project required a lot of patience and resilience—but that it was worth it because it taught her she can do difficult things.

“I am super proud of it. I would gladly do it again,” said Rebecca. “I managed to push through and made a really cool design.”

“Simplicity” by Jojo P.

Jojo loves line drawings, especially of people, and discovered that she could successfully recreate the curves of a traditional ink-and-paper line drawing in the online Desmos format—an accomplishment that caught her math teacher’s attention.

“What impresses me most about Jojo's piece is the stylish curvature,” Garrett said.

But creating her project wasn’t easy. Jojo remembers feeling far behind her classmates in the early days of the assignment.

“I didn't really know how to make the equations,” she said. “In the beginning, all I had was about five lines, when everybody else had way more done. I was scared I would be behind.” Instead of panicking, however, she persisted, figuring out the equations she needed and building on her skills as she moved from long lines and wide curves to nail and flower details, which she said were definitely the hardest part of the drawing.

“When it was finished, I felt proud,” Jojo remembered. “I felt awestruck because I didn't think I could do anything like this.” It’s clear that the experience built her confidence in a way that will continue to benefit her.

“The project was challenging, but it showed me, as a mathematician, what I actually was capable of,” Jojo said.

"Ornate Owl" by Erika P.

Garrett chose to highlight Erika's piece at the assembly because she managed to include texture—although she said that hadn’t been her original plan.

“I wanted to create an owl because owls are my favorite animal, but I hadn’t planned on making it so detailed,” Erika explained.

After experimenting with equations for the owl’s body, beak, talons, and eyes, Erika said she felt like she needed to add more to her drawing and started on what turned out to be its most complicated component: feathers.

“I had to try out multiple numbers in order to get the feathers—which were created out of parabolas—to be thin and long enough to look good if I consistently spread them throughout the wings,” she said. The feathers alone took Erika over two hours to complete, and are just one example of the experimentation she had to do to create a piece that she was proud to turn in.

“The hardest part was getting shapes and lines to line up and intersect, as well as experimenting with equations to get shapes that looked at least somewhat realistic,” she remembered. “I just had to jump into it.”

Now, Erika said, she can’t imagine her drawing without those detailed additions, and she’s proud she challenged herself.

“I was glad I decided to add detail because I was thinking about submitting the work before then, but it just didn’t feel like a finished piece,” she said. “After finishing, I felt quite accomplished!"

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Altogether, this year’s eighth-grade class created 75 pieces of algebra art. Below are some examples of their work (click each square to see the artwork larger on Desmos).

“Our students deservedly feel proud of their achievements,” said Garrett. “They ambitiously attempted challenging images, embraced sophisticated equations, attended to detail, and, above all, persevered.”

STEM

The princiPALS are back in the office to revisit one of today’s most essential topics: how to talk to kids about race.

Since recording their first episode on this subject—which won a silver InspirED Brilliance Award—in February 2020, princiPALS Emma Wellman and Jij de Jesus have often reflected on the importance of returning to this conversation. The need to do so was made especially clear after recent events, including ongoing violence against people of color, have continued to underscore our collective need to examine and talk about racism.

Demonstrations and discussions about racial inequity in this country initiated a massive shift in the conversations about race and racism.—Emma Wellman, Beginning School principal

“Demonstrations and discussions about racial inequity in this country initiated a massive shift in the conversations about race and racism,” said Emma.

And because these conversations don’t just happen among adults, the princiPALS wanted to give parents and caregivers tools that will help them teach children how to have thoughtful conversations about race and racial differences. With their trademark warmth and approachability—and their understanding of how children learn best during the early childhood and elementary years—Emma and Jij provide listeners with strategies to help kids develop positive racial identity and awareness and to teach the skills and vocabulary necessary to comfortably and respectfully discuss race.

“We’re talking about having the attitudes, capacities, and skills to navigate a diverse and dynamic world,” said Jij.

The princiPALS also give listeners tips to model antiracist behaviors for children, including simple steps that they can start using today to help dismantle racism, since, as Jij noted, “small choices can add up to make a big impact.”

Join Emma, Jij, and host Conor Bentley ’01, as they discuss “How to Talk to Kids about Race, Part II,” available now on Rowland Hall’s website as well as Stitcher and Apple Podcasts.

Podcast resources:

• Raising Race-Conscious Children
• PBS Utah’s Let’s Talk: Talking to Kids about Race
• Your Kids Aren't Too Young to Talk about Race: Resource Roundup

Podcast

The middle school years can be tough. Emotions can be sweeping and relationships can be tentative. It’s a time when students are feeling more grown up, but also are still firmly in childhood. Finding a place of refuge can be difficult. At Rowland Hall, many students are finding that island of confidence in the dance program.

“Middle schoolers are looking for a way to express themselves and to learn more about their own identities,” said Middle School Social-Emotional Counselor Leslie Czerwinski. “Dance is a space where you can show up, be yourself, and process thoughts through movement.” 

Students are not only learning how to move, but how to find their voice through movement.

Dance is the largest Arts & Ensembles class in the Middle School. Some students take more than one section of dance each semester because the program is unique and the community is so important to them. While most dance programs start with a foundation in ballet and other Eurocentric traditions, students coming into the Rowland Hall dance program begin with break dancing. Instead of focusing on a straight spine or the proper turnout, students learn how to use gravity and shift their weight. They are not only learning how to move, but how to find their voice through movement. And once students find their voice, explained Co-Director of Dance Sofia Gorder, training becomes fun.

“They are using rhythm and music. It’s a language they understand,” said Sofia. “Then, later, they can go on and learn ballet and other techniques so that they have their voice but also the training to support that voice.” 

Students take part in every aspect of creating dance pieces: they help in picking the music and costumes, they choreograph the movements, and they work together to compose the message and mood they want to convey. “Sofia gives us a lot of freedom with choreography,” said dance student Gabrielle H. “For Platform [the 2022 dance concert] we did an ocean dance as a group and we all got to contribute in some way.”

 

Collaboration helps build a strong interpersonal community among the dancers. The studio becomes a place where they can express themselves without fear of judgment and know their ideas will be taken seriously.

That collaboration helps build a strong interpersonal community among the dancers. The studio becomes a place where they can express themselves without fear of judgment and know their ideas will be taken seriously. “It’s a time to not really worry about things and just do what I love,” said dancer Meg H. “I like how everyone has their own style and has different movements that they like to do depending on their personalities.”

Discovering these differences and how to make them work together is another important aspect of the program. Sofia explained that part of the process is discovering how the same movement looks different when done by different people, and that can change the meaning. “Dance is just the platform we use to do the important work of understanding ourselves and the people around us,” she said. 

While the artistic and personal discoveries are essential, some students enjoy the dance program simply for its physicality—and because it’s fun. It’s a time to move and share energy with others in a welcoming environment. “It’s a strong physical space to express yourself,” said dancer Jack G. “You feel amazing when you finally master something and when you finish a show you feel relief.” 

No matter what they are seeking, Middle School students appear to be finding it in dance. “Regardless of one’s background, everyone can find joy in moving to music,” said Middle School Principal Pam Smith. “Our program can help students find joy, build their self-confidence, and connect with other members of our community.”

Dance

Rowland Hall Middle School’s annex, a blink-and-you-might-miss-it room located just a few steps away from the cafeteria, may seem like it can’t contain much.

But if you happened to walk by the annex this October, when it was serving as a studio for visual art teacher Anne Wolfer’s public art class, the small room appeared to have magically expanded: passersby could catch a glimpse of more than a dozen students, a collection of paints and brushes, and, leaning against the perimeter, sixteen 18-by-48-inch medium density fiberboard panels—the building blocks of a 24-foot-long mural, titled Outer Space, that the students designed for the Lincoln Street Campus.

Public art, a class in which middle schoolers study media created for the general public’s enjoyment, covers everything from murals, sculpture, and architecture to graffiti, environmental art, and digital art. Students learn how to look at public art critically, said Anne, as well as work together on one or two of their own public art pieces each semester, deepening their understanding of what they have been studying. Past classes have created a community tree and wall hanging, but this is the first time a group has taken on a mural.

“The projects are getting bigger,” Anne laughed.

Participating in the behind-the-scenes steps of a large-scale art installation is beneficial to students, as it helps them confidently build artistic, collaborative, and even cross-subject skills.

It’s not just the mural’s dimensions that are large; the process for a project this size is too. But letting students participate in the behind-the-scenes steps of a large-scale art installation is beneficial, as it helps them confidently build artistic, collaborative, and even cross-subject skills. For instance, before ever putting brushes to fiberboard panels, the class collaborated on a theme (nature or space) and then voted on mural designs they each submitted. (The winning design, a colorful take on the solar system, was created by seventh grader Mina G.) The students also tapped into math skills to transfer their chosen design from paper to panels, twice gridding Mina’s drawing to enlarge it to mural size.

And because this project required a balance between individual and group work, students additionally learned how to showcase their own styles while also ensuring cohesion among the mural’s sixteen panels. To help guide the class through this part of the process, Anne enlisted help from her friend Trent Call, a Salt Lake City-based professional artist known for his murals, who joined the class for two periods to share his artistic approach as well as to coach students during their final days of painting.

“It’s fun to see the different styles,” said Trent, as he watched the middle schoolers add color to their boards. Periodically, he would stop next to a young artist to offer a technique for creating texture and movement—then encourage that person to share the knowledge with students next to them.

“Personalize it, make it your own, but collaborate,” said Trent. “Look at the panel on each side and see how you can work together.”

Across the room, the three eighth graders tasked with painting the Saturn panels, Chase D., Kendra L., and Samuel L., were taking Trent’s advice. Standing side by side facing their boards, they discussed the best methods for adding pink, white, and yellow clouds across the surface of the planet—an unplanned addition, they said, but one that made sense after Samuel recommended it.

“They have been working as a unit together,” said Anne of the group, with a smile.

Without [public art], our communities would be dull.—Student Nathan L.

It’s clear that helping students build the kind of collaborative skills that will benefit them not only in art class, but in life, drives Anne, and this type of project, with its intrinsic focus on teamwork—of teaching students to find solutions as a group and to take turns in leadership roles—brings her joy. “I want them to experience what it means to do collaborative work, intentionally and artistically,” she said.

It’s also clear the unique atmosphere of this class—with its focus on the art that injects pride and personality into the places we call home—is providing a special benefit to the community-builders of tomorrow. Eighth grader Nathan L. certainly believes this. As he added yellow and orange paint to the tail of a shooting star, he noted that public art not only makes a statement, but contributes to people’s enjoyment of the places where they live.

"Without it,” he pointed out, “our communities would be dull.”

Visual Arts

This spring, Rowland Hall junior Isabel Hill was awarded three Honorable Mentions in the 2021 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards (West Writing Region-at-Large) for the short story “Now You See Me” and two pieces of original artwork: the painting The Goat in a Suit and a handmade necklace. This work has been shared below with Isabel’s permission.
    

Now You See Me

By Isabel Hill, Class of 2022

Maybe things changed when I first cut my hair. Or maybe things changed when I refused to grow it out again. My parents loved my hair; I think that might have been one of the reasons I thought It had to go before I did. Mom and Dad never like the thought of me leaving home. We weren’t exceptionally close, but it was kind of a protective love that they gave me. They gave me their opinion, and they gave me what was best for me, and yet I cut away every line they roped around me. My hair seemed like one of those ties. It was long and flowing and beautiful, an altar to my parents' depiction of perfection. 

I think I scared myself when I looked in the mirror after setting down the silver-bladed scissors. The dark halo around my head had been reduced to something jagged and sharp, like messy broken glass. I just stood there, longer than I knew how to count, holding fistfuls of severed wavy locks, and holding my breath even tighter.

I learned my first magic trick with a deck of cards. I learned how to make things disappear and reappear, but I didn’t stop at cards. I taught myself when to disappear. To disappear from friends, from teachers, and sometimes my parents. But no matter how long I had disappeared for, I always came back. Not with a flourish, or a puff of mysterious smoke, but in silence, as if I had never left to begin with. But staring at this stranger in my own mirror was scary. I couldn’t make my hair reappear. It was really gone. I didn’t think I would miss it, and I was right. It was my parents who were furious. 

When I left home I stopped wearing skirts and dresses and switched over to dress shirts and ties. I sometimes annoyed myself when I insisted on wearing a tie. It felt too tight, too close, but it looked good on me. It looked refined and precise, just how I wanted to feel. I didn’t think my parents would approve, but the thought became numbed, like a dull headache that one can learn to live with.

My new friends seemed to like my wardrobe choice, and I built my demeanor around that knowledge. I stood straight, with my shoulders squared, and spoke kindly but firmly. Confident and calm, like a gentleman should be. So self assured, yet not self absorbed. The one thing past my appearance that everyone seemed to adore was my magic. 

I could perform acts with smooth fluidity. People could get as close as they wanted, they would never figure out how I did it. They wanted to know my secret and learn my spells, and I would always tell them the truth with a little wink. I told them that It's not magic, it’s misdirection.

They liked it when I deceived them, so I kept practicing magic. It became my signature, the thing that people would whisper about me with awe. I liked doing it, and seeing people’s faces melt with wonder at the thought that maybe, just maybe, magic really was possible. I continued to practice new tricks. If there was something I couldn’t figure out at first I knew I would master it eventually. It was only a matter of time. My performance was as important as the trick itself, but I soon came to realize that it wasn’t just my shows that I was performing in.

When I stood with my new friends it was like standing on a stage, only my audience was surrounding me. I would easily enchant them with my witty and friendly act. But it wasn’t magic, it was misdirection. Whenever I was in a group I was surrounded by companions, but a piece of me always felt hollow. I could thrive in the spotlight, the center of attention, but that was all an act of magic. I had taught myself how to disappear and how to go unnoticed, I didn’t know what to do with myself if I tried to show what was behind my expression instead of what was behind a spectator’s ear. 

My expressions hid an emotion, a kind of feeling that I couldn’t touch under my fingertips. I felt it crawling under my skin from time to time, but I couldn’t grab a hold of it and crush it. It was infuriating, and I didn’t know what to do about it. I wanted to cut away my confused pieces like the shriveled leaves in my mother's garden that the plants didn't need anymore. I tried to reshape who I thought I was, pruning myself into a beautiful rose. But no matter how many leaves I trimmed the thorns would always grow back.

I kept performing. It was only a matter of time before I met Adrien. The one with a soft smile and sharp eyesight, the one who was always too perceptive for my own good. Or maybe it was for my own good. He was very kind to many people, and I seemed to be one of them. Adrien’s eyesight was sharp enough to cut through a person’s skin and see what they were underneath. He could see people opened up like the petals of a flower. 

I was scared to open myself up, as if doing so would break myself as well, like a flimsy little piggy bank. He didn’t need permission though. He wasn’t invading, he was just too attentive. Adrien could tell the difference between my thoughtful silence and my upset silence and I had no idea how he did it. He seemed to take a special fascination with me and I found it almost alarming.

It took me a while to figure out that Adrien’s fascination was more of a friendship. I already had friends of course, it was something I prided myself with, but this felt different, more honest. And Adrien, he was like glass. He was transparent, but somehow he was not fragile. He could get angry, and act cold, and sometimes his accomplishments would go to his head and he would talk too much. 

He was more transparent than me at least. I found it charming. Sometimes I would see him fraying like a rope when it was pulled too tightly. But he never broke. He never shattered. I’m not sure many other people could see when he was fraying. I was attentive to detail, it was how I became such a good magician. 

I liked to baffle him with my magic. I still enjoyed doing it, and even more so when I believed I was fooling someone who seemed to see things so clearly. He never figured out the secret behind my magic, or if he did he didn’t find it important to mention.

Once he asked me to go perform magic at one of his parties, and I said no. Once he asked me to join him and his friends at a café one afternoon, and I said no. But once he asked me to go walking in a local park, and once, I said yes.

I was scared for days. I’m not sure what intimidated me so much about being alone with someone, maybe it was the knowledge that there would be no one else to help pick up the conversation. It was daunting, and the thought lurked behind me like a shadow.

It followed me as a dark and transparent figure tugging at my heels. It pulled at me, but it couldn’t pull me back from the time Adrien had set. No amount of misdirection could change the advance of time. Yet when the time came, I performed again. Only this performance seemed different. I was only hiding my nervousness, for my sake of course, and eventually the theater mask fell away. 

It started to happen before I went to meet my friend, when I had chosen my outfit after fretting over it like a child. I looked at the person in the mirror, and I saw myself. I had a nice and relaxing posture, and I spoke softly; I no longer needed the confidence that dripped from my tongue as it had before. My short, dark hair haloed around my face, the tips curling upwards like the tendrils of a tiny sun. I wore a blue vest with little stripes, and a white blouse cuffed up to my elbows. I thought I looked beautiful. I didn’t wear a tie that day.

I met Adrien outside the park. The shadow was back, gripping at my ankles, yet somehow managing to take hold of my throat and close it up in the process. I managed to bluff my way all the way past the first fountain until we could manage to walk without needing to fill the cacophony of noise with our own voices.

He picked a flower at his feet and handed it to me to admire. It was a little purple clover. Its leaves were being nibbled away by some small insect, but it was just so pretty sitting there between my finger and thumb. Adrien smiled and said he thought it looked nice against my vest. He was right, it really did seem perfect. I kept the flower.

We only talked about neutral matters, or at least, I did. Adrien told me about what he had been up to, and what his parents were doing. We kept drifting back towards school, and the weather, and the national news. Once he asked me about my magic, and a smile crept towards my face. That was something I understood.

Later that day we promised ourselves we would meet again, probably at the same place, and perhaps on a similar time around a weekend. It was later that day when I realized something else about him. Adrien was like a mirror. He would take peoples images and reflect them back at you, but somehow you would only see the best frames. 

Maybe by watching him closely enough I would understand that trick, how he could see through our skins and see something pretty amongst the coiling veins and tendons. I would figure out the secret behind that trick someday. It was only a matter of time.

Student Voices

by Heather Ernst ’14

Among the chorus of duetting birds deep in the canyons of Southern Utah, a new duet is echoing off the red sandstone walls. Nicholas Miller ’14 and Camille Backman ’14 have traveled hundreds of miles to be here, on sacred land, and their purpose is a special one: to make music.

This pair’s story began nearly 12 years ago, when Nicholas joined the Rowland Hall community as a middle schooler. Since then, he and Camille have developed a deep friendship around their love for Southern Utah; their shared interest in activism and volunteering, which was nurtured during their time at the school; and their predilection for playing music, sometimes together (when the stars, and their schedules, align).

From a young age, both Nicholas and Camille have had an infectious passion for music. Nicholas found that love playing the guitar, mainly focusing on jazz, but he’s no stranger to experimentation: he’s done everything from play in rock bands to study the sitar in India. Camille, a classically trained violinist, has spent a great deal of her life dedicated to mastering her skills and perfecting her sound. Both have found a great deal of joy in collaborating together and with other musicians, something they’ve done since high school.

“We actually played a duet together at graduation,” revealed Nicholas. “That was the first formal time that we played together.”

After graduation, both continued their study of music, Nicholas at the Lamont Jazz School at the University of Denver and Camille at the Oberlin Conservatory in Ohio. Although the pair has been hundreds of miles apart—most recently on two separate continents, as Camille is now working on her master’s degree in Brussels, Belgium—they have always maintained their relationship as friends and musical partners.

“I would say each year that we’ve met up since high school we inevitably have some sort of jam session,” laughed Camille. “It’s so natural—when we spend time together, usually music is somehow being made.”

In fact, their musical connection is so natural that they managed to create their new album, For Other Waters Are Ever Flowing, without even knowing it, while traveling together through Southern Utah in summer 2020.

“I didn’t actually know that we were recording an album when we did it,” chuckled Nicholas, but the creativity flowed and “it ended up being an album’s worth of music.”

For Other Waters Are Ever Flowing consists entirely of improvised music between the violin and guitar, as well as the natural sounds of each location Nicholas and Camille visited during that trip. “Our aim was to find places in Utah with acoustic qualities that we were interested in,” explained Camille.

It became clear to the pair that this project could be a way for them to help spread awareness about the importance of the sacred indigenous lands that spread for miles across the desert of Southern Utah.

Location was a key aspect of this project. Both musicians had previous interest in Southern Utah after having traveled there numerous times growing up. And as they returned in summer 2020 as young adults and spent more time exploring the area’s spaces—rappelling into canyons with their instruments and recording materials strapped to their backs—their interests expanded from acoustic qualities to the history behind those spaces. It became clear to the pair that this project could be a way for them to help spread awareness about the importance of the sacred indigenous lands that spread for miles across the desert of Southern Utah. 

“Part of sharing this album is a way that we can protect indigenous lands while also making them accessible to people,” explained Camille. “Regardless of where you are in the world, you can listen and connect to Utah.”

As the pair explained, they were “trying to communicate with their roots and grapple with homecoming, leaving, returning, and belonging” through this music. Upon entering these wild spaces that mean so much to them, the music allowed for moments of connection with the ecological and cultural histories of the places. Listeners of the album have this experience too. It begins to feel as if the instruments are speaking to you: with each strum of the guitar and bow of the violin, you can feel yourself moving through the canyons, developing a new sense of consciousness and connection to those who lived there before. The abstract blending of sound, ecology, and activism make for an album that speaks to the history of the space in which it was recorded. And the most interesting part of the album is that it cannot be recreated—and it’s not meant to be.

“The music on the album can only happen in certain locations, in the moment it was created,” Camille explained. 

Looking back on her musical career, Camille credits Rowland Hall for giving her the space to build strong relationships. “Rowland Hall does an excellent job of allowing you to develop your interpersonal skills with your mentors and peers,” she reflected. 

Both Nicholas and Camille also credit their mentors from Rowland Hall in preparing them for life’s challenges. “I would definitely have to shout-out to Kody Partridge and Dr. Hickman,” Nicholas said. “Both of their classes made me a better thinker, which has connected to art and creativity for sure.” 

Nicholas and Camille will continue their creative pursuits: Nicholas is currently applying to graduate programs, where he will further his studies in music, and Camille is in her third and final year of her master of music program in Brussels. Looking forward, Nicholas and Camille are anxious and excited to be back on the same continent where they can create more music and collaborate on future projects.

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After many hours of collaboration, as well as editing from two different continents, and with the help of Anthony Peña (mixing) and Bridget Hartman (album artwork), Nicholas and Camille are proud to share For Other Waters Are Ever Flowing. Those interested in buying the album can do so through BandCamp, and 50 percent of the proceeds will go to Utah Diné Bikéyah, an alliance between the five native tribes of Utah who strive to preserve and protect the cultural and natural resources of ancestral Native American lands to benefit and bring healing to the people and the earth. The album is also available on Spotify, YouTube Music, and Apple Music.

Alumni

The Utah All-State Band's virtual performance of "Incantation and Dance" by John Barnes Chance. In the collage, Cedi Hinton appears above the S in State, and she gets the spotlight several times throughout the video.

In early December, Rowland Hall junior Cedi Hinton received an exciting notification in her email inbox: she had been named first trumpet in the Utah All-State Band.

“I was really shocked,” she said.

Shocked, because 2020 was the third year that Cedi had auditioned for the All-State Band, a group made up of top high school musicians from across Utah. After not making the cut in 2018 and 2019, Cedi said, she almost didn’t audition again.

“I auditioned the past two years,” she explained, “and I was always planning to audition, but I just got really busy with school and said, ‘I’m not going to stress myself out more with having to record another thing.’”

So she let the deadline pass her by.

Not long after, however, she learned that the Utah Music Educators Association (UMEA), which manages the All-State Band as well as other all-state groups, had extended the deadline. This convinced her to rethink her plan.

Cedi's recording not only secured her a place in the band, but also earned her the honor of trumpet first chair—an endorsement of both her musical skill and leadership abilities.

“So I submitted a recording,” she said.

That recording, which Cedi submitted on her 17th birthday, not only secured her a place in the band, but also earned her the honor of trumpet first chair—an endorsement of both her musical skill and leadership abilities (first chairs are recognized as the best in their instrument groups and often act as section leaders). Dr. Bret Jackson, Rowland Hall’s jazz and pop band director, wasn’t surprised when he learned of this impressive accolade.

“Those who have heard Cedi performing with the Rowland Hall jazz band know what a brilliant trumpeter she is,” said Bret, who noted that the last year one of his Rowland Hall students made All-State Band was 2014. “This honor says a lot about how hard she's worked to become a well-rounded trumpeter that is comfortable performing in a variety of musical genres and mediums.”

Cedi’s journey to well-rounded trumpeter began in elementary school, when she decided to take on a new instrument after playing the piano for several years. She decided to try the trumpet, she said, because “I thought it looked kind of cool.” And though she has also enjoyed checking out other instruments over the years—such as the bass, drums, and guitar—the trumpet is the instrument that’s stuck. By sixth grade, Cedi was taking private lessons with instructor Seretta Hart, whom she still works with today. She’s also embraced opportunities to hone her skills in music groups at Rowland Hall and through Salt Lake’s Wasatch Music Coaching Academy.

In the Utah All-State Band, Cedi’s talent was further developed by professional musicians: the group, which gathered virtually in January 2021, was instructed by Loras Schissel, music director and conductor of the Virginia Grand Military Band and the Cleveland Orchestra Blossom Festival Band, and mentored by members of the Utah Symphony in an online masterclass. While Cedi acknowledged that the virtual format made some aspects of the All-State Band experience tricky, she still recognizes and appreciates the benefits of it. In particular, she said, she enjoyed how the band’s performance of John Barnes Chance’s “Incantation and Dance” pulled her out of her comfort zone—as someone who loves and prefers to play jazz music, she said, studying this song helped her better appreciate classical music.

“I really enjoyed the song and expanding what I love to play,” Cedi said, “so maybe I’ll work on more songs like this and enjoy classical music more—and that’s kind of exciting.”

Cedi plans to try out for All-State Band one more time this fall, when she’s a senior. She admitted that, even though she’s made the band once already, the thought of auditioning for it one last time still makes her nervous.

I definitely want to keep playing, and meet people who also play, and join bands and groups.—Cedi Hinton

“That really intimidates me, but I kind of have to now—and I really want to,” she said.

It’s clear that Cedi is using this experience—including the lessons she learned before making All-State Band—to help guide her journey as a musician. It serves a reminder of her talent, as well as her resilience when things haven’t quite gone as planned. It’s also shown her that, whatever opportunities come her way, she’s driven by a passion for playing and the magic of collaboration.

“I definitely want to keep playing, and meet people who also play, and join bands and groups,” she said with a smile.

Congratulations, Cedi! We are so proud of you.

Music

While the term radio play might bring to mind radio series from the 1930s and 1940s, this type of production still attracts audiences today—podcasts, for instance, are “sort of the modern-day version of a radio play,” Matt said. Stories told as radio plays also have lasting power: "The War of the Worlds," a Mercury Theatre on the Air radio episode based on the 1898 H.G. Wells novel of the same name, dramatized a Martian invasion and is remembered because of the fear it stirred when it aired in 1938. “It caused a nationwide panic when it was first performed. People actually thought we were being invaded by aliens,” said Matt.

In the early months of distance learning, Rowland Hall students began exploring this theatre form, ultimately creating an adaptation of the popular children’s book The Gruffalo (which was edited by seventh- and eighth-grade Arts & Ensembles theatre teacher Meighan Smith). Their work was shared with families and friends—and, thanks to Salt Lake City’s Plan-B Theatre Company, the wider community when it was featured on The City Library’s BiblioBoard. And as Matt planned for the 2020–2021 year—which he knew would still include distance learning in some form—he decided to continue the study of radio plays. “With students at home, in class, and, for some, distance learning only, it seemed the most likely class project to be able to complete,” he explained.

This fall, Matt assigned his sixth-grade Arts & Ensembles class the task of creating an original radio play. The result, The Awakening, is a 16-minute production written and performed by students Sebby Bamberger, Lila Bates, Josie Fonarow, Elayna Hoglund, Paulina Ize-Cedillo, Emery Lieberman, Elle Prasthofer, Morgan Schmutz, Sophie Smith, Izzy Utgaard, and Kate Weissman. The play, which took about two months to complete, was written in both the horror and comedy genres, explained Elayna.

“The inspiration for it was the story of ‘The Ghost with the Bloody Finger,’” she said, referencing a well-known campfire ghost story designed to make listeners laugh. Elayna said the sixth graders wanted to incorporate humor into their radio play because they knew their audience would be mostly made up of listeners who were middle-school-aged and younger. “We knew that it’d be more fun to have some funny in it.”

All 11 students were invested in the project, getting involved in the brainstorming, writing, and script editing required of a radio play. Although they weren’t able to do the close-contact acting techniques of a stage production, they did get to experience voice acting, with distance learners applying best practices to capture the cleanest sound possible by recording with blankets over their heads or by sitting inside a closet, and in-person learners utilizing a handmade, COVID-approved sound booth made of two stacked desks wrapped with a thick, padded moving blanket. (Blankets were changed and desks and equipment were sanitized between each recording session.)

“There was never a time that a student was directly interacting with another student, but we were able to create the illusion that they were indeed responding to each other,” said Matt, who edited The Awakening.

The students also learned the importance of sound effects in radio plays, which are key to bringing this art form to life. “The tricky thing about a radio play is that there, of course, is no visual to accompany it,” Matt explained, “so it's even more necessary to rely on our sense of sound to tell the story.” He had students experiment with Foley, a sound-making technique pioneered in the 1920s and still used today—Elayna captured the sound of a refrigerator door closing, a microwave beeping, and a candy wrapper crackling, while classmate Sophie recorded a door slamming, feet running on concrete, and her interpretation of a leprechaun laughing. Sophie said it felt good knowing that her sound effects helped make a difference in the finished recording. “It was pretty nice because you knew it was your work,” she said.

Art will find a way, even in the most challenging times.—Matt Sincell, theatre teacher

And that finished recording is impressive indeed. It’s a strong reminder of student creativity and ingenuity, even within a pandemic. “What they have been able to accomplish in the face of such adversity is really quite unique and wonderful,” said Matt.

The theatre teacher is hopeful that the radio play will also bring smiles to the larger community: on December 14, Matt announced that Jerry Rapier, Plan-B Theatre’s artistic director and a dedicated supporter of theatre education in Utah, had offered to again promote the Rowland Hall students’ work by linking The Awakening to The City Library’s BiblioBoard and to Plan-B’s mobile app.

“It's super exciting to once again have Plan-B Theatre support our students' work,” said Matt. “It’s nice to think that they are able to provide a 16-minute gift of joy to other students outside of the Rowland Hall community. It's proof that art will find a way, even in the most challenging times.”

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Banner photo: Rowland Hall middle schoolers Lila Bates and Kate Weissman preparing to record lines of The Awakening.

Theatre

Watch our COVID-adjusted music program shine in this year's Lower School virtual holiday program, organized by McCarthey Campus Music Teacher Susan Swidnicki and filmed by videographer and PE teacher Collin Wolfe.

Susan Swidnicki, McCarthey Campus music teacher, is passionate about the power of music—especially during a global pandemic.

There’s perspective in music. People use music both for celebration and for mourning—and for understanding life a little better: love and friendship and what is important.—Susan Swidnicki, McCarthey Campus music teacher

“There’s perspective in music,” she said. “People use music both for celebration and for mourning—and for understanding life a little better: love and friendship and what is important.”

For many, music has been a powerful tool for coping with the emotions that the pandemic has stirred up—and that’s true for all ages, Susan explained. During the early childhood and elementary years, music can help children process and express big emotions, as well as build their confidence. As a longtime music educator, Susan has seen this again and again: how a song can help a child work through a difficult experience, how the discovery of hidden musical talent can awaken a previously unengaged student, or how performing in front of classmates can empower a shy student. It was, therefore, more imperative than ever to safely provide music education this year.

“I needed to figure out a way that kids could have skilled, active music making together in community,” Susan said.

Susan spent the spring and summer immersed in professional development with music educators around the world, trading ideas and best practices for lessons that fit within safety recommendations and school guidelines. She acknowledged that this was tricky: Rowland Hall has a long tradition of active music making, and the Lower School curriculum uses the Orff Schulwerk music-education approach, which emphasizes play, and in which music and movement go hand in hand. But under the school’s health and safety guidelines, activities like singing, playing the recorder, working in small groups, and folk dancing were off the table. Susan didn’t let this discourage her, though. Like many other COVID-related challenges, she said, it just required a new kind of thinking and some creativity.

“We’re all learning that we can adapt and be flexible,” she said, “and that we are more resilient than we thought.”

For Susan, this meant examining the skills that music class has always built, and then finding new ways to teach them. For example, she’s developing students’ notation, rhythm, and patterning skills with sets of non-wind instruments—like ukuleles, bucket drums, glockenspiels, boomwhackers, xylophones, and hand drums—that are rotated among classes monthly. Additionally, she’s helping kids, who tend to think of movement as something that requires their legs, find different ways to express themselves with their bodies. “They’re learning there are other parts to movement to explore,” said Susan, like arms and torsos, and even facial expressions around their masks (she challenges them to do things like share feelings using only their eyes).

And to continue helping students process 2020, Susan is also focusing on ways to further tie music education with school-wide social-emotional learning goals. She plans to expose students to music and expressive movements that don’t always reflect happiness, as well as to continue to introduce them to music from around the globe to illustrate how many cultures use music to make sense of the world. It’s clear that every choice she makes is thoughtful and designed to support students’ overall well-being, whether they are learning in the classroom or from home.

Despite the year’s limitations, Susan says students are still shining in music class, discovering not only their ability to create, but an understanding that they have something to contribute.

“My main goal, of course, is to keep kids healthy, but also to give them some sense of peace and calmness in their day,” Susan said.

And, of course, to empower them. Despite the year’s limitations, Susan says students are still shining in music class, discovering not only their ability to create, but an understanding that they have something to contribute, “which I think is one of the biggest messages we want to give to children right now,” she said.

Susan Swidnicki, formerly our Beginning School music teacher, took over for longtime McCarthey Campus music teacher Cindy Hall after Cindy retired this summer. Susan—also a professional oboist who has played with the Ballet West Orchestra and the Utah Symphony—was a natural choice and Rowland Hall is so grateful to have her. Read more about Susan in this 2018 profile.

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The Many Benefits of Music

Rowland Hall has long embraced active music making, and each division offers opportunities for students to build musical artistry. On the McCarthey Campus, explained Susan, music is an integral part of the beginning and lower schools’ curricula for many reasons:

• It builds self-discipline. In music class, students learn to control themselves within a group by listening to and respecting their peers when they perform.

• It encourages bravery. Everyone is expected to contribute, which builds students’ confidence and performance skills—and sometimes even taps into undiscovered talent.

• It helps students get comfortable making mistakes. Though all students are expected to contribute in music class, perfection is never expected. “You can still enjoy the process with mistakes,” said Susan.

• It supports math skills. The skills built in music class, like patterning, can help contribute to students’ success in math.

• It supports language skills. Music class helps build language skills in many ways, from exposing students to vocabulary and rhyming words, to helping build fluid reading skills with meter.

• It exposes students to diverse cultures. A culturally inclusive music approach, like Orff Schulwerk, helps students understand and appreciate the diversity of cultures.

Academics

As the pandemic plunged Rowland Hall into remote learning in spring, and as it continues to keep some students learning from home, upper schoolers in our newspaper and literary magazine classes have nimbly reimagined their printed products. Both publications have now found homes online, at least temporarily.

Read the 2020 Tesserae student literary magazine Read the Gazette student newspaper

Ben Fowler ’20 and senior Garrett Glasgow shared editor-in-chief duties to get Tesserae online—an effort that started in April and concluded this month. While the Tesserae team hopes to keep the website updated with future issues, Garrett said they’re definitely planning to bring back print for 2021:

“Due to COVID-19’s impact on the ability to create a print copy of this year's edition of Tesserae, the staff decided to shift to a digital copy of the magazine. With help from Rowland Hall's marketing team, the staff created a website with the usual collection of poems, prose, artwork, and photos created by students. In addition to the typical artforms seen in prior magazines, the digital nature of this year's edition also enabled us to include short videos. While we hope to create a print copy of the 2021 issue, the 2020 issue is widely accessible and filled with content by talented Rowland Hall students. We hope everyone takes an opportunity to look through this year's edition.”

Over at the Rowland Hall Gazette, senior and editor in chief Sophie Dau and her team look forward to posting new pieces every week or two:

“We decided to go digital this year because of the limited amount of students on campus, and we hope to incorporate outside content with more flexible publishing. We will update the website much more frequently, so keep an eye out for opinion pieces, teacher and student profiles, school news, current events, and more!”

Thanks to Ben, Garrett, Sophie, and their classmates—along with teachers Joel Long and Dr. Laura Johnson—for getting these digital publications up and running for community members near and far to enjoy. Our students’ creativity persists, even if the presses are paused.

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Top: Tesserae and Gazette website collage featuring background artwork by Tesserae contributing artist Alex Armknecht ’20.

Student Publications

By Ashley Atwood and Robert Wilson
Original Watercolors by Annie Nash, Class of 2023

Editor's note: This piece is republished from Rowland Hall's 2021–2022 Annual Report.

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In May, Upper School science teacher Rob Wilson embarked on an opportunity of a lifetime: a trip to Ketchum, Idaho, to reside in the home of Ernest and Mary Hemingway as a visiting scholar. There, he wrote teaching resources based on his own use of Hemingway in the science classroom, as well as conducted the property’s first biological inventory. It was both a personal journey and a chance for the educator to invite students into his experience, showing them what is possible when you pursue and cultivate knowledge and passion.

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In late 1939, riding the high of celebrity built as a bestselling author and international war correspondent, Ernest Hemingway traveled to the newly built Sun Valley resort in Idaho on a publicity trip. While the writer was familiar with opportunities like this, it’s almost certain he was unprepared for the impact this trip would have on his life. From that first visit, he saw the Wood River Valley—home to Sun Valley and the former mining town of Ketchum—as a refuge, an idyllic place in which to socialize, hunt, fish, and write. He returned often over the next 20 years, and in 1959 moved to Ketchum full time with his fourth wife, Mary, after their exile from Cuba. The home they bought would be their last together, a place in which they could recharge, write, and entertain, whispers of cottonwood leaves and the rumble of the Big Wood River their constant companions. It is also where, on the morning of July 2, 1961, Ernest’s life ended in the foyer.

Mary Hemingway kept the home after her husband’s death and continued to visit it until her own passing in 1986, when she bequeathed it to The Nature Conservancy with instructions that it be turned into a nature reference library. In 2017, ownership of the house passed to The Community Library of Ketchum, which today honors the Hemingways’ legacy in Idaho through preservation work and educational opportunities, including an annual seminar that attracts those captivated by the author’s life and work. In 2019, the library completed a renovation of the home’s ground-floor garage into an apartment for visiting writers and scholars—a space in which invited guests can take in the landscape that inspired one of the greatest writers of a generation, find sanctuary in which to create, and walk away changed by this house of light.

Silkworms

That night we lay on the floor in the room and I listened to the silkworms eating. The silkworms fed in racks of mulberry leaves and all night you could hear them eating and a dropping sound in the leaves. I myself did not want to sleep because I had been living for a long time with the knowledge that if I ever shut my eyes in the dark and let myself go, my soul would go out of my body.
— Ernest Hemingway, “Now I Lay Me”

For a long time I avoided seeing the house. When I went to Ketchum, I would visit the grave in the town cemetery or the monument on Trail Creek, but I did not want to see the house. It seemed like an invasion of privacy, and it was not until I was invited late last year that I laid my eyes upon it. When I was invited to stay there, I was both thrilled and frightened; I was afraid that I might not be able to sleep knowing what happened in the foyer.

My first night in the house I did not fall asleep for a long time, until I slept deeply in the wee hours of the morning and awoke with a start from a bad dream. There was a hint of light to the east, and I could hear a robin. Ecologist Aldo Leopold calculated that “the robin will give voice when the light intensity reaches 0.01 candlepower.” I’ll take his word for it. I got up and made coffee and went outside to watch the day emerge. Four geese came downstream and turned around right in front of me and landed in the channel. A house wren commenced to sing. Eventually, some pine siskins and a ruby-crowned kinglet started talking. The sun lit up the peaks of the Boulder Mountains. Like a flash, the sun came out from behind a layer of clouds on the eastern horizon, and the house lit up. Glorious! The place was alive, truly alive. I came in to make breakfast, and only then did I realize the hour had already passed of the event that I’d been afraid would haunt me too much. The life of the land and the house outshines the darkness of the foyer.
— Rob Wilson, May 2022

* * *

Rob Wilson fell in love with the writing of Ernest Hemingway in eighth grade.

To this day, he remembers the thrill of that first reading of The Old Man and the Sea: how the novella brought to mind his own fishing trips with his dad. His mind readily painted a picture of the story’s setting: the boat, the deck, the handlines so different from his own rod and reel.

He remembers, as a high schooler, discovering a hardbound copy of Hemingway’s short stories on his dad’s bookshelf late one Friday and spending hours flipping its yellowed pages, reading long into the night. He remembers bonding with college friends over Hemingway, as well as quiet evenings during his early career as a field biologist, sitting on a cabin porch in southern Idaho and watching the sun set over the Pioneer Mountains above Sun Valley as he, again, made his way through Hemingway novels: The Sun Also Rises, A Farewell to Arms, For Whom the Bell Tolls. 

Hemingway’s writings were one of the first influential connections Rob had into the life of an artist, his stories and novels windows into worlds different from Rob’s in many ways, but also strikingly similar, with familiar streams of human experiences running through each tale. With each passing year, Rob began to see beyond the adventure stories that had first captivated him. Each new reading, supplemented by his accumulating life experience, became an opportunity to get lost in a story’s subtext. In Hemingway, Rob also found a kindred spirit—someone who, like him, respected the natural world. “Hemingway noticed the little things around him, and how they lived,” Rob said. The author’s writings are abundant with those observations: how trout hold in a clear river, for example, or the features of a wildfire-blackened mountainside, all described in such honest, sharp ways that it heightens the real-world experience of being outdoors.

In 2015, while re-reading Hemingway’s short story “A Pursuit Race,” Rob’s connection to Hemingway deepened in a new way when he realized how well its understated portrayal of alcoholism and heroin withdrawal could be applied to his health class lesson on substance abuse. He thought it would complement the textbook he usually used for the lesson, but more effectively invite students to contemplate the human impact of substance abuse in a way a textbook can’t.

“What fiction is,” he explained of that choice, “is a way to invite you into examining life.”

It was a successful experiment, one that excited both Rob and then-Head of School Alan Sparrow. Over the years, Rob began adding more texts to his lesson plans, including Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac and Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Braiding Sweetgrass, as well several Hemingway short stories: “Now I Lay Me” for its themes of metamorphosis, “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” for its tie to the climate, and “Big Two-Hearted River” for its portrayal of earth systems. Like the living creatures he brings to campus—pigeons for genetics, jellyfish to animate the history of life on Earth—Rob has found that Hemingway texts are an effective resource to enrich students’ understanding of science concepts. They’re also unexpected.

Research continues to make it clear that interdisciplinary learning, combining two or more subjects into one activity, benefits students by broadening how they think and how they approach problem solving.

“Students can be strict about silos,” he said, referring to the kind of thinking that draws lines around areas of study: students should reference a textbook or case study in science class and read Hemingway in English class. But research continues to make it clear that interdisciplinary learning, combining two or more subjects into one activity, benefits students by broadening how they think and how they approach problem solving. Hemingway’s signature iceberg approach—the idea that an author should allow a story’s deeper meaning to be implicitly realized by the reader—is an effective method for stretching young minds, allowing students space to lean on their own interpretations and observations.

“This is a major component of my teaching strategy,” said Rob. “If I tell you something, you are more likely to forget it. If you discover it for yourself based on what I provide, you will remember it and be proud of yourself.”

Many Hemingway stories build this skill with multiple examples of inference and deduction, forms of logic necessary to the scientific process, as well as sensory details that can deepen an understanding of natural sciences. While he was in Idaho, one of the stories Rob had his ninth-grade biology students read was “Now I Lay Me,” throughout which narrator Nick Adams, a soldier convalescing behind the front lines during World War I, refers to the sound of silkworms devouring mulberry leaves in his room. It was a natural tie to the class, which had been observing and caring for their own colony of silkworms that spring. Over the weeks, thanks to their worms’ diet of mulberry leaves, the class had watched the invertebrates grow from eyelash-sized hatchlings to fat, round, white worms. And as they read the story—for many, their introduction to Hemingway—that experience both provided a mental picture and enhanced the story’s subtext.

“It was easier to visualize the things described in the reading,” remembered Loc Ossana-Aoki, while classmate Rachel Brague added, “Having silkworms in the classroom helped emphasize the story, showed the bigger picture. Knowing about silkworms, I understood the emphasis on the man's experience.”

It was an experience that helped drive home the ideas that science isn’t static and that interdisciplinary connections enhance learning in exciting ways. Much like a Hemingway story, the students realized, there is always another layer to discover, something new to take away, to enrich overall understanding.

“Without any knowledge or experience, you can read these stories and understand what is happening,” explained Rachel, “but once you know more, the simple writing suddenly seems like the story is much longer and filled with more information than before.”

In past years, Rob has had students share Hemingway discoveries like these in class, but this year’s trip to Idaho gave them an opportunity to make even more connections among the stories, their studies, and his experience when he invited them to ask questions about his time away. “They were really curious,” said Rob. “All I did was say, ‘What would you like to know?’ and they asked questions for the entire period.” Discussion flowed around the Hemingway property’s major geographic features and how they change over time, natural selection, and the landscape itself: mature cottonwoods and blue spruces the Hemingways may have looked upon, a house wren whose call Rob imitated, and pileated woodpeckers whose strikes Rob demonstrated by knocking on the whiteboard. Rob also shared how he placed the class silkworms on the writing desk as he composed his own work, a metamorphosing muse, and his own feelings of fear, peace, and reverence for the sacred space.

“It was really personal for him,” said student Winston Hoffman, “but I think all of us appreciated what he had to say because he was trying to include us in the experience. It was like we had been there too, almost.”

Grasshoppers

As he had walked along the road, climbing, he had started many grasshoppers from the dust. These were just ordinary hoppers, but all a sooty black in color. Nick had wondered about them as he walked, without really thinking about them. Now, as he watched the black hopper that was nibbling at the wool of his sock with its fourway lip, he realized that they had all turned black from living in the burned-over land. He realized that the fire must have come the year before, but the grasshoppers were all black now. He wondered how long they would stay that way.
— Ernest Hemingway, “Big Two-Hearted River, Part One”

I headed north on Highway 93 around 1 pm. It was cool and windy, and I could see flurries of snow in the mountains ahead of me. I always feel such great anticipation during this part of the drive, and I remembered making the drive at other times of the year, doing other things with other people, and always having the sense that I am gravitating toward Ketchum. It’s funny to think of the warm summer nights on Big Cottonwood Creek, when I sat on the porch and looked across the Magic Valley to the Pioneer Mountains and wondered who had watched them fill with snow and returned to see that the snow had melted. Nothing about the drive reminded me of my dad except loading the car, driving past the duck club on the Jordan River and the other one on the Bear River, looking for ducks when I passed canals, geese in fields, bridges over rivers, and birds circling; the exit at Tremonton that we used to take to hunt and fish in Swan Valley (in the winter, the ducks would circle over the cottonwoods and disappear and reappear over the channel under the branches, closer than you were ever used to seeing them); looking out into the sagebrush, wondering if it held sage grouse; and the drive to Magic Valley where we took our last hunting trip that winter, when I broke through the ice on the Big Wood River, and I didn’t know if it would be 10 inches deep or 10 feet.

What I did not know going north is how much better I would understand this way when I took it, just a few days later, going south. I drove on knowing that I could share this experience and return to it.
— Rob Wilson, May 2022

* * *

Rob’s journey to his Hemingway House residency began in September 2016, when he received an invitation to that year’s Ernest Hemingway Seminar from his best friend from graduate school, Jeff Motychak. Titled Hemingway and Nature, the seminar was to feature discussions on “Big Two-Hearted River” and aimed to, in the words of The Community Library, “stimulate deep thinking about the role of nature in Hemingway’s works.” It was a perfect opportunity for two natural scientists fascinated by Hemingway and would play a transformative role in Rob’s life. “I was so deeply inspired,” Rob remembered. “I came back different.”

Rob has participated in the seminar each fall since, and in 2019 joined the planning committee to assist in its arrangement. His annual journey north is a pilgrimage of sorts, where he observes the landscape, reflects, and recharges. It’s also a chance for him to connect with Hemingway enthusiasts—literary scholars, scientists, art curators, educators, writers, and the curious public—who gather to examine a Hemingway novel, topic, or even passage. It was through these discussions that Rob built a relationship with the library, which in September 2021 extended a writer-in-residence invitation, initially hoping Rob would use the time to write the Hemingway lessons he had developed into teaching resources for other educators, a goal that would expand in the intervening months. And though he knew the experience would be deeply personal, he and Upper School Principal Ingrid Gustavson also knew it was a valuable opportunity, a chance to further help students perceive, seek, and discover connections in their learning, and they decided he would schedule the trip during the school year.

“So much of what we're doing with kids in education is modeling lifelong learning,” explained Ingrid. “This opportunity allowed Rob to explore, through his biologist lens, his observer lens, the home of a literary giant and give a new perspective on it.”

So many scientists know the quantitative evidence of what they’re looking at, but the quantitative evidence doesn’t matter unless you know who you’re impacting.—Annie Nash, class of 2023

It’s this kind of thinking that can change students’ lives. For upper schooler Annie Nash, who was first introduced to Hemingway in 2020 as one of Rob’s ninth-grade biology students, and who identifies as both a scientist and an artist, the confluence of subjects in Rob’s classroom felt natural, freeing her to think about how she can apply both sides of herself to her life’s work.

“I never really imagined art separate from the sciences,” she explained. “Science is artistic, nature is artistic, math is artistic—we can’t separate them.” And the older she gets, Annie said, the more she realizes an interdisciplinary approach to education is preparing her for a dynamic world that needs creative-minded and collaborative thinkers to take on its big challenges. “So many scientists know the quantitative evidence of what they’re looking at,” she said, “but the quantitative evidence doesn’t matter unless you know who you’re impacting.”

An aspiring pharmaceutical scientist, Annie knows her personal definition of success depends on more than an understanding of analytical chemistry and biostatistics. One area she’s especially concerned about is the historically negative impact of medicine on marginalized communities. She worries that the traditional approach to science education, one that focuses strictly on data, leaves scientists removed from the real-world impact of their work, and she believes applying topics like English, art, and history to her science studies helps her recognize worrying trends in her desired field so she can do her part to interrupt them. Novels and short stories are especially powerful ways to frame this history, she’s learned. More than other media, they effectively invite readers to reflect on humanity’s shared history and paint an understanding of how the human journey—what we’ve believed, what we’ve valued, how we’ve lived—has shaped the current world so readers can take away lessons for their own lives.

“You understand the time period but also separate the good and the bad—and then further the good in your own studies,” said Annie. “Scientists are sometimes viewed as being antisocial hermits who are detached from real-world issues. I want to break this stereotype so that I can encourage others to be empathetic in their research, to always strive to better the world.”

Cottonwoods

Best of all, he loved the fall. The leaves yellow on the cottonwoods, leaves floating on the trout streams, and above the hills the high, blue, windless skies.
— Ernest Hemingway, eulogy for Gene Van Guilder

I can track with my eye the flow through the deepest part of the channel that would have ruptured the beaver dam. The flow is deflected off of the bedrock wall. Parts of the channel are visible from the east-facing windows, and it is easy to imagine that residents of the house would have watched the river shape this bend over the years. They would have seen cottonwoods bloom with beet-colored catkins, fill in with lush green leaves, and fill the air with a distinct perfume; leaves yellow on the cottonwoods; and the transformation to black and white skeletons against the winter land. From here, they could watch the plumes of snow raised by the wind from the highest peaks. They would have heard the gossip of geese and had a view into the nests of hawks and private lives of kinglets, and been witness to the comings and goings of myriad birds throughout the year. It saddens me to know how much Ernest would have enjoyed this setting over the decades he could have lived here and did not. He has left us his gifts of perception so that we may enjoy it ourselves and teach others to experience the sublime and to protect it.

Teaching is a service of paying forward knowledge, skills, and values that enable another to cope and thrive in an ever-changing world. You can’t be a beacon if your light doesn’t shine. Mary could have walked away, and she chose to stay and have the house protected in perpetuity. The house on the hill of bedrock above the sea of cottonwoods is a beacon that both signals danger and radiates hope.
— Rob Wilson, May 2022

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The house on the hill is designed to maximize its view.

From its wide patios, large windows, or broad lawn, visitors gaze upon a landscape of colors and textures: snow-capped peaks of the Boulder and Pioneer mountains, the Big Wood River flowing over gray stones, the dark trunks and lush foliage of black cottonwoods that, in late spring as they burst into new life, fill the warming air with a honey scent.

Cottonwood forests, or galleries, tell a story of resilience: their survival depends upon the ability of seedlings to keep their roots in contact with capillary fringe, the area of soil that draws moisture from the water table. When flood conditions are met, the trees grow in cohorts, but most years, due to weather or human disruption, those conditions are not met. As a result, one cohort of cottonwoods matures to nurture the next, a process that strengthens the entire gallery.

There are times, though, when a cottonwood forest stops regenerating altogether, a process that happens so gradually the untrained eye misses the first signs. For the caregivers of the Hemingway House and its estate, a loss like this—of Mary’s desire for how the property would continue on—would especially hurt, and so Rob volunteered to conduct the first biological inventory, a task necessary to fully realize Mary’s vision.

“It's the library’s mission, as stewards, to protect that little bit of land,” he explained. “The biggest thing I could offer was to describe the living landscape for them.”

In addition to writing teaching resources, Rob spent hours of his residency walking the property’s 13.9 acres looking for cottonwood saplings as evidence of regeneration and documenting the landscape, from the bedrock on which the house stands to the kinglets and house wrens calling into early spring mornings, all of which he included in a reference document for the land’s ongoing protection and conservation—his personal contribution to its stewardship. “This idea of stewardship is: if you're here, it's your job to take care of things,” said Rob. “That's maintaining a landscape, if that's what you have the opportunity to do, or a place, or a relationship.”

A recurrent theme at Rowland Hall is: be the change you want to see in the world. That’s stewardship. My message to students is they can be interested in something and cultivate it and watch it become bigger and better than they ever imagined.—Rob Wilson

As a scientist, Rob has too often seen how our time in history is marked by a collective lack of stewardship, from climate change to the imperiled animals he studies, and he believes each individual plays a role in stewarding our world. He knows that if in his classroom he can tap into our shared humanity by breaking down learning silos and showing students how their passions, whatever those are, connect to something bigger, he can better prepare them to be the people the world needs.

“A recurrent theme at Rowland Hall is: be the change you want to see in the world. That’s stewardship,” said Rob. “My message to students is they can be interested in something and cultivate it and watch it become bigger and better than they ever imagined.”

It’s a perspective that can be found in hundreds of ways across Rowland Hall classrooms, from cross-disciplinary teaching partnerships in the Upper School to experiential learning in the Beginning School. “Adults at Rowland Hall model so well how to see connections in the world, to get excited about learning across disciplines,” said Ingrid. “No one is too young or too old to discover things we really care about, then go deep and figure out how to teach them to others, support a cause, or further someone else's learning.”

This sharing of knowledge is often viewed as a pinnacle of education, a way of students continuing the journey their teachers set them on. Just as a younger cohort of cottonwoods benefits from the stability and nourishment provided by an older cohort, students benefit from their teachers’ examples, then go on to share what they know. “The true test of a student's learning is not the answer they write on an exam,” said Rob. “It is how they share what they learned with the people around them.”

Ingrid remembered seeing evidence of this truth in May when she stopped by Rob’s classroom to find him and three earth science students caring for tanks of betta fish and the class jellyfish, Calypso. Rob encouraged the students to tell Ingrid about the creatures, which they excitedly did, showing her how they harvest brine shrimp for jellyfish food and test the water, and sharing who was caring for the animals over the summer. In that moment, Ingrid said, she realized the students had fully taken ownership of their learning. “This is theirs now,” she thought.

“I always thought science was supposed to be very straightforward—not bringing your own opinion, your own feelings into it,” said Hope Thomas, one of the students in the classroom that day, and Calypso’s summer caretaker. “For a while, it made it a hard subject for me because I’m a very creative person.” But being in Rob’s classes, where she’s encouraged to see connections among areas of study that another science teacher may never approach, Hope realized that making science personal wasn’t just okay, it was necessary to understanding, and taking on, the challenges of today. 

“It makes it more applicable to us when we can think about science in a more personal way,” she said. “When you care about it more, you are more willing to take action.”

And ultimately, this is the goal of education: to help students make meaningful connections about what matters to them and take action to leave the world a better place than they found it. It’s a lesson, Rob has found, that means more to him with each passing year and is especially clear when he returns to The Old Man and the Sea, the book that started his journey, and the one Hemingway himself called “an epilogue to all my writing and what I have learned, or tried to learn, while writing and trying to live.” With the benefit of time, study, and lived experience, said Rob, it’s now more than just a fishing story—it’s a reminder of what is most precious in the time he has.

“What gets me now,” he said, “is the poignancy of how brief a moment is going to be.”

Authentic Learning

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Banner photo credits: Ernest Hemingway by Robert Capa (c) International Center of Photography/Magnum Photos; Mary Hemingway courtesy of the Jeanne Rodger Lane Center for Regional History, Dorice Taylor Collection. Other photographs provided by The Community Library and Rob Wilson.

Special thanks to The Community Library for their partnership on this story.

Beyond the Classroom 2021 was a great success!

"We were so glad to be able to offer our Beyond the Classroom program again this year after taking a break due to COVID in 2020,” said Upper School Principal Ingrid Gustavson. An Upper School tradition, Beyond the Classroom is a four-year sequence of experiences designed to take students out of the classroom and into the broader community.

We enjoyed a great day of relationship building, exploration, and self-reflection.—Ingrid Gustavson, Upper School principal

“Beyond the Classroom offers an opportunity for students in grades nine through eleven to engage with the greater Salt Lake City community and its natural surroundings to learn leadership skills, identify areas of interest, and develop an understanding about how to have an impact through individual and collective action,” said Ingrid. “Students heard from guest speakers, worked in teams, and explored areas of our own backyard, like the state capitol and Three Creeks Confluence, while also having a chance to go much further afield in the High Uintas. Seniors focused on their college applications, with a full day of workshopping their essays with college counselors and English teachers. The smiles in the photos say it all! We enjoyed a great day (three days for ninth graders) of relationship building, exploration, and self-reflection.”

This year’s event was held on September 21 and included the following experiences.

Ninth Grade

Ninth graders enjoyed activities around the theme Water and the West, first learning about federal water policy—including tension between the federal government and states around managing and conserving water—from the Debate Team. They then worked with the Seven Canyons Trust and Jordan River Commission to understand current efforts to daylight creeks.

Ninth graders continued their Beyond the Classroom experience with learning rotations at Camp Roger, located in Utah’s High Uintas, on Wednesday and Thursday, and meetings with advisors and teachers on Friday.

Tenth Grade

Tenth graders spent the day at Camp Roger, where they enjoyed learning rotations involving watercolors and hiking.

Eleventh Grade

Eleventh graders spent the morning examining climate effects in the West and how they disproportionately impact communities. They then mapped the heat island effect in the Folsom Corridor before traveling to the state capitol to learn from Better Utah about Utah’s climate and air quality issues.

Twelfth Grade

Twelfth graders participated in a college counseling workshop where they received assistance with their college applications from Rowland Hall’s college counselors and senior English teachers.

Experiential Learning

“An editorial cartoon isn’t just a funny picture,” Pulitzer-Prize-winning editorial cartoonist Michael Ramirez told Rowland Hall eighth graders at a special virtual presentation on January 25. “A good editorial cartoon is a fine instrument of journalism: It defines an issue. It challenges hypocrisy. It reveals the best and the worst of humanity. It calls the reader to arms against the complacent, the lethargic, the evil-doers, the indolent body politic, the champions of the status quo, the sordid predators of society.”

Editorial, or political, cartooning isn’t often a subject that middle school students examine closely. So when Rowland Hall had the chance to invite Michael—uncle of eighth grader Elli Ramirez and senior Ke’ea Ramirez—to speak to eighth graders, teacher Sarah Yoon jumped at the chance. She knew that the discussion on editorial cartooning, free speech, journalism, and citizen responsibility would tie to current studies as well as give students a unique opportunity to interact with an esteemed artist: in addition to two Pulitzer Prizes (1994 and 2008), Michael’s awards include a 2015 Reuben Award for Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year (the highest honor the profession bestows) and three Sigma Delta Chi awards for excellence in professional journalism (1995, 1997, and 2007). 

Michael urged students to seek out balanced information on complex issues, noting that this practice will provide them with a more comprehensive view of those issues, help them better understand and solidify their own beliefs, and prepare them to have constructive conversations.

At the January 25 event, Michael talked about how he views his role to help protect and inform the public, and gave students the chance to ask questions about his work, his career path, and even his love of surfing. He also used the time to inspire students to become active citizens and, one day, voters. The job of members of a democratic republic, he told them, is to be informed.

“Information is a necessary component to guide you in a political system based on self-governance and individual liberties,” Michael explained. He urged students to seek out balanced information on complex issues, noting that this practice will provide them with a more comprehensive view of those issues, help them better understand and solidify their own beliefs, and prepare them to have constructive conversations.

“You cannot make a substantive opinion on anything if you don’t know the depth of what you’re talking about,” he explained. “You can’t build a car if you don’t know the mechanics of an automobile; in the same way, you cannot construct an argument unless you know the mechanics of the debate.”

Michael’s presentation encouraged students—some noted that it aided them in understanding the power of their voices, while others reflected on how learning about Michael’s career helped them realize that they can express themselves in creative ways. They tapped into this inspiration as they embarked on their post-event assignment: to create their own editorial cartoons. In the weeks following the presentation, they became junior editorial cartoonists, researching, editing, and drawing (by hand or computer) their opinions on topics such as the January 6 attack on the US Capitol and the impact of COVID-19. For Monica Fernandez, the assignment gave her a chance to share her views on a subject she cares deeply about: climate change.

“I decided on the subject of my cartoon because I think climate change is a very important and real thing in our lives, and we should all try and become more aware of it so we can make smarter decisions in our day-to-day lives,” she explained. Like Michael and his fellow editorial cartoonists do, Monica took time to research her topic and consider the best approach to make her viewers think.

Monica's perspective is a reflection of what she and fellow students took away from Michael’s presentation—that good editorial cartoons inform and challenge readers as well as draw them into debate and action, and that engaged citizens have a say in the destiny of their country.

“I decided to include an hourglass, because I think this was a good way to visually show how fast time is running out,” she reflected. “My original plan was to show different natural elements (animals, trees, glaciers, people, oceans), but after creating a rough draft I realized that it looked sloppy and didn’t get my point across. I decided to just use the visual of the globe, and I was more happy with that design. My end result was three hourglasses—as the time goes by, each hourglass has more sand at the bottom and less world left.”

Monica hopes that, in addition to making viewers think, this image may also inspire them to change behaviors. “Even the little things in life that we do on a day-to-day basis can affect how much longer we can all make this world last before it all runs out,” she explained.

Her perspective is a reflection of what she and fellow students took away from Michael’s presentation—that good editorial cartoons inform and challenge readers as well as draw them into debate and action, and that engaged citizens have a say in the destiny of their country. The powerful images the students created prove that it’s never too early to help them think about their role as American citizens and sharpen the skills that will support them in that role. After all, as Michael pointed out, “Developing future citizens and participants in our democratic republic is so important.”

Experiential Learning

Introduction by Marianne Love, Fourth-Grade Teacher

Fourth grade at Rowland Hall is all about Utah. As we studied both brine shrimp and the legislative process this year, we thought, What better time than distance learning to combine the two?!

After learning how bills become laws, students took it upon themselves to petition our state government to make the brine shrimp the official crustacean of Utah. Who would ever think a landlocked state could possibly have a state crustacean? Students used their persuasive-writing skills to craft letters to our governor and state legislators. Below, Dean Filippone’s letter is one shining example of what a dedicated Rowland Hall fourth grader can create.

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May 6, 2020

Dear Governor Herbert, State Representatives, and State Senators:

I am a student at Rowland Hall in fourth grade and I am writing to you because I love the state of Utah. I only have one suggestion to make Utah even better: we can become the only landlocked state in the United States of America that has a state crustacean. The crustacean l nominate is the brine shrimp.

Brine shrimp are like people of Utah in that we are both persistent and don’t give up.

There are many cool facts about brine shrimp that remind me about Utah and the great people in it. For example, did you know that a brine shrimp is barely the size of a pencil eraser, yet because there are so many in the Great Salt Lake, their combined weight is more than 13,000 elephants? It reminds me of Utah because we are all very small in the face of the world, but when we work together we can do even the hardest things.

Another reason that brine shrimp should be the Utah state crustacean is because they’ve been around for over 600,000 years! Brine shrimp are part of this great state’s history, and should be acknowledged as a state crustacean!

Brine shrimp are like people of Utah in that we are both persistent and don’t give up. In fact, brine shrimp can survive at 221 Fahrenheit for two hours and still live. The cysts can even survive for 25 years without food! Utahns have survived a lot of persecution; not to mention challenges with the weather and having to form communities in the high mountains and mountain deserts. Brine shrimp and the people of Utah are tough!

Brine shrimp are very rare. Do you know that only Utah and California have brine shrimp in the United States?

It would be an honor to be the first landlocked state to have a state crustacean! Currently, there are only six states that have a state crustacean. They are: Oregon, Maryland, Texas, Maine, Alabama, and Louisiana. All of these six states are on the water. Unlike these states, Utah is landlocked so we would be unique as the first landlocked state to ever have a state crustacean. 

The final reason l hope you will consider is that brine shrimp are very rare. Do you know that only Utah and California have brine shrimp in the United States? It would be special to have them as our crustacean. These are dark days with COVID-19 so we should celebrate all nature and other things to make us feel better.

Thank you for your consideration, and l hope to hear from you soon.

Sincerely,
Dean

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Top image: Teacher Marianne Love wades in the Great Salt Lake during a fourth-grade field trip to Antelope Island in May 2018.

student voices

When kindergarten lead teacher Margaret Chapman learned she would be taking a two-month leave of absence in early 2020 for heart surgery, she knew that she—along with assistant kindergarten teacher Bethany Stephensen—would have many tasks to complete to keep their classroom running smoothly. At the top of the list? Making sure students had a safe place to think about this major change to their school days.

“This is a big event the children will be processing in the coming weeks,” said Bethany.

Dramatic play: A type of play where students assign, take on, and act out different roles.

To support students, Bethany and Margaret set up a special dramatic play area known as the kinder-cardiology unit. There, the children can try on the role of cardiologists who fix hearts—just like the doctors who will be fixing Margaret’s. Complete with white coats, medical masks and hats, exam and x-ray rooms, a file for records and prescription orders, and instruments like stethoscopes and thermometers, the area is the perfect place for kindergarteners to try out procedures on one another, as well as on the classroom’s many stuffed animals.

Margaret intentionally sits near kinder-cardiology as the children play so they can ask her questions about her surgery and what school will be like while she is away. This is important, Bethany explained, because dramatic play provides more than simple amusement for children—it also helps them sort out the big, and sometimes scary, things happening around them that they don’t fully understand and can’t control.

Dramatic play is a fundamental component of learning and development, helping children to work through their lived experiences and cope with emotions.—Bethany Stephensen, kindergarten assistant teacher

“Dramatic play is a fundamental component of learning and development, helping children to work through their lived experiences and cope with emotions,” said Bethany. “It is an opportunity for children—whose lives are largely controlled by adults—to feel powerful and capable.”

Gail Rose, 3PreK lead teacher, and Mary Swaminathan, 3PreK assistant teacher, agreed. “Dramatic play allows children to act out their stories and gives them the opportunity to see the world from a different perspective,” they explained.

Knowing the importance of this type of play during early childhood, “we are always on the lookout for themes that are naturally coming up in children’s play or experiences in their lives that are impacting their experiences at school,” Bethany said. “We then develop emergent curriculum to scaffold children’s learning through play opportunities based on our observations.”

And while adult involvement can be beneficial in certain types of dramatic play, Rowland Hall’s Beginning School teachers are also clear that children need access to unstructured, or open-ended, play.

“We strive to find a balance between structured and unstructured play experiences,” said Bethany. “It's important to us to be mindful of when children should be left to their play and when adult involvement and encouragement of specific types of play or skill practice is beneficial.”

Unstructured play among children helps them develop important social skills they’ll need for life, like teamwork, confidence, problem-solving, language development, self-control, and emotional regulation. Best of all, children don’t need much to make it happen: dramatic play requires minimal props and only a bit of space, whether it’s in a classroom or in an open area like a playground.

Dramatic play can also be encouraged in home spaces, further benefiting children. For parents and caregivers wishing to continue this kind of play outside of school hours, Gail and Mary gave the following tips:

• Be a good listener to find out what interests your child.

• Be open to joining dramatic play in a supportive role, but don’t direct it.

• Remember that dramatic play only requires some space and minimal props—use what is available.

• Read quality children’s literature to help give kids ideas.


Above all, they said, remember that children are natural storytellers—you can support them by simply being a good listener, and, most of all, by having fun.

Experiential Learning

On a Thursday in November, Susanna Mellor’s first-grade class was seated in a circle, ready to begin their morning meeting. That day, they started with a pinky greeting: everyone hooked fingers, forming a chain, and then Susanna turned to one of the students next to her. “Good morning, Thomas,” she began. The salutation passed around the circle, ending with a hearty, full-group welcome: “Good morning!”


Morning meeting is one of several practices recommended by Responsive Classroom, a student-centered approach to social and emotional learning (SEL) and effective classroom management. Lower School Principal Jij de Jesus explained that the division started utilizing Responsive Classroom in 2016 as a way to support Rowland Hall’s long-standing commitment to SEL, which is associated with higher academic achievement, improved teacher-student interactions, and higher-quality instruction.

Responsive Classroom gives teachers the tools to create truly joyful, safe, and inclusive classrooms. More importantly, it gives students more responsibility and ownership in the process of building a community of kindness, respect, and learning.—Lower School Principal Jij de Jesus

“Responsive Classroom gives teachers the tools to create truly joyful, safe, and inclusive classrooms that help our students thrive,” he said. “More importantly, it gives students more responsibility and ownership in the process of building a community of kindness, respect, and learning with their classmates.”

Morning meeting achieves this by engaging young learners in a welcoming atmosphere at the start of each school day. In addition to an inclusive greeting, the meeting includes a moment of sharing, a group activity, and a daily message. Whatever the day’s focus, teachers use the meeting to make sure each child is recognized and participating in the class.

“Responsive Classroom practices help build confidence and ease anxiety by fostering a sense of belonging and significance,” Susanna said. And, she added, as the school year progresses, its rewards multiply. “When they listen to each other, students feel that they matter. I see new friendships begin to bud, classmates work comfortably and easily together, and students take risks as they share ideas in class discussions.”

The Responsive Classroom Approach

Responsive Classroom, first developed by the Center for Responsive Schools in 1981, creates safe, nurturing learning environments through four key domains: engaging academics, positive community, effective management, and developmentally responsive teaching. Because Rowland Hall is focused on integrating SEL into our academic and co-curricular programs (we formally added it to goal 1 of our Strategic Plan in November 2018), incorporating Responsive Classroom into the Lower School curriculum was a logical choice. And it has made a difference.

“It's given our teachers more clarity and alignment when they consider how best to support students, structure learning activities, and promote positive behavior expectations,” Jij said. “Students, in turn, experience more consistency and are clear on why their actions matter for their own learning and for the learning of others.”

Rowland Hall is focused on integrating social and emotional learning into our academic and co-curricular programs; we even formally added it to goal 1 of our Strategic Plan in November 2018.

To drive student success, Responsive Classroom also emphasizes interactive modeling to teach the skills, strategies, and procedures that help kids thrive at school.

“Interactive modeling has made my classroom a more calm, efficient, and productive learning environment,” Susanna said. “When students watch and comment on what I do as I role-play a procedure, they actively deduce the steps by verbalizing them and listening to peers do the same. As a result, they have a firm and clear understanding when it comes time for them to begin the task at hand.”

Integrating Responsive Classroom into Established Practices

Responsive Classroom has helped Rowland Hall refocus many classroom practices toward the school’s overarching SEL goals. One example occurs at the beginning of each school year: developing classroom agreements. Unlike traditional lists of rules, classroom agreements are created in partnership, giving teachers and students buy-in on how their classrooms will run. While the agreements have been a part of the Lower School for many years, Responsive Classroom added another layer to the process.

“Using the Responsive Classroom approach has allowed my students to delve deeper into the process of exploring their own hopes and dreams, and how we can work as a group to help each other achieve our goals,” Susanna said. She explained that students become engaged, thoughtful, and passionate as they determine what will help them do things like learn how to read, try harder math problems, or even score soccer goals. “I notice students putting much more thought and reflection into this process, making it more meaningful and effective,” she said.

Collaborating on classroom agreements also makes it more likely that children will follow, and reference, those agreements during the school year.

“Students refer back to these agreements when obstacles arise and really demonstrate ownership of them,” said Susanna. “For example, when having a class discussion about erasers being damaged intentionally, several children commented, ‘That’s not following our agreement. We said we’d take care of our materials this year so that we could become better writers.’”

Classroom agreements are referenced regularly by instructors too. In Susanna’s morning meeting, for instance, students are asked which agreements they want to focus on and what actions they can take to make sure those agreements are honored. One student reminded classmates that they can meet their goal to keep calm in the classroom by walking; another observed that they can fulfill the agreement to try harder math problems by listening respectfully during instruction.

Using Responsive Classroom in New Ways

Responsive Classroom also inspires new methods to empower students. This fall, the Lower School used the foundation of classroom agreements in a new way: to create school-wide Winged Lion Agreements.

On September 6, 17 student delegates from grades one through five—one from each class—gathered in the McCarthey Campus parlor for the first-ever student constitutional convention. Delegates shared their classes’ newly developed classroom agreements with the group before beginning a discussion on agreements that could be applied to the whole school.

When students help make decisions about how the school runs, they understand their voices are valued and that they play a role in making school enjoyable for everyone.—Lower School Specialty Principal Linda Tatomer

Lower School Specialty Principal Linda Tatomer—who has completed all Responsive Classroom courses, including the Responsive Classroom for Leadership conference—led the discussion and was impressed by how the process unfolded. “When students help make decisions about how the school runs, they understand their voices are valued and that they play a role in making school enjoyable for everyone,” she said. “And because each student was a stakeholder in the convention’s outcome, they were serious about identifying meaningful goals.” She was also thrilled by the inclusion she saw in the room, especially by the way fifth graders mentored the first graders. “They really made connections and made them feel valued,” Linda said.

After thoughtful discussion, the group decided on five agreements for the year: 
    •    Be kind

    •    Respect

    •    Work hard and never give up

    •    Be safe

    •    Have fun


Each item was purposefully selected, down to exact words—for instance, the delegates chose the word “respect” because of its ability to encompass a wide range of areas, from personal behavior to how students should treat their surroundings.

Designing Better School Days with Responsive Classroom

Responsive Classroom further helps the Lower School team continuously reevaluate how to best meet students’ needs. One recent change to the school day occurred as a result of a February 2019 meeting with a Responsive Classroom consultant, who was sent to observe a full day at the school after Linda completed her training in the approach.

“One thing the consultant noticed was that our dining hall is very noisy,” Linda remembered. The consultant recommended a proven solution she thought would benefit the division: moving recess before lunch, an idea that the Lower School student support team had been considering for two years prior to the visit.

“The change would have numerous benefits,” said Linda. “Children could focus on eating, noise would go down, and no one would be racing to get outside.” After presenting the idea to an enthusiastic Lower School faculty in the spring, Jij and Linda began working on making the change for the fall. When it was time to introduce the schedule adjustment to students during the second chapel of the year, Jij, Linda, and Chuck White, the McCarthey Campus emotional support counselor, were thoughtful in their approach, using a similar style students had already experienced in the classroom.

“We asked, ‘What should lunch feel and sound like?’” Linda said. The team also emphasized the why behind the discussion so students would understand both the reason for change and its related benefits. “We talked about how we can all follow agreements to make school more enjoyable for everyone,” Linda said.

Using a dining table that had been brought into the chapel, Jij, Linda, and Chuck then modeled for students proper lunch behavior: entering the dining hall respectfully, staying seated facing the table, and talking at an appropriate volume. Each child was also given the chance to practice at the table.

Children have adjusted well to the change, Linda said. It was, she explained, an extension of the discussions students have become accustomed to—and, importantly, it reminded them that they each play a part in creating a respectful, safe, and joyful school for all.

“I’m really proud of them,” she said.

Responsive Classroom Resources for Parents and Caregivers

Responsive Classroom has been an influential tool in helping Rowland Hall meet SEL goals in the Lower School. Because we are committed to partnering with parents and caregivers in their children’s education, we have made many Responsive Classroom materials available in the parent section of the McCarthey Campus’ Steiner Library for those who are interested in more information about the approach.

Academics

Paper rockets whizzed through the air. Hot-air balloons fashioned out of fruit containers and plastic bags spiraled up a wind tunnel. Light from popsicle-stick flashlights and homemade circuits flared. And the sound of laughter—from both kids and adults—filled the room.

Rowland Hall’s first Maker Night, which attracted more than 140 people, was a success.

The event, held in the McCarthey Campus Field House on November 7, was inspired by the Lower School’s Maker Day, where kids explore a variety of science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM) activities. Maker Night built on this event by including Beginning School and Lower School families in the hands-on learning experiences.

As Lower School Principal Jij de Jesus surveyed the activity around the room, he couldn’t help but grin. “We love the fact that families can experience what kids experience in the classroom,” he said.

Maker Night attendees traveled among stations, engaging a variety of skills as mini scientists and engineers. As the night progressed, parents like Jenna Pagoaga, mother of second grader William and preschooler Ollie, found themselves managing a small cache of completed experiments. “It’s a great community event,” she said as she watched William run to the Sky Floaters table to design a blimp for a Lego passenger. “It’s fun to see them be creative and use what they learn in class.”

Slideshow: Images from Rowland Hall's first Maker Night.

One of the biggest draws of the night was Nerdy Derby, where kids built cars and raced them on one of the three lanes of a tall, curvy track. The evening was punctuated with the cheers of those whose cars made it to the end of the track—and the groans of those whose creations fell apart on descent. Undeterred, those students simply grabbed the debris and ran back to the design table to figure out how to strengthen their vehicles. That is the point of Maker Night.

It's important for parents to see what their kids are capable of. Give them a pile of stuff. Let them explore. The play-based part of it, the creativity part, is very important.—Jodi Spiro, Lower School math specialist

“Kids are learning it’s OK to try things out, mess up, and try again,” Jij explained. He also noted the importance of giving children independence when it comes to exploration. “Often, learning outcomes are decided beforehand; this is more open-ended,” he said. “It’s exciting to think of kids leading their own learning.”

Lower School Math Specialist Jodi Spiro echoed this idea. Maker Night, she said, emphasized to parents and caregivers the scientific process of thinking, planning, testing, and redesigning. And it showed that kids don’t always need formal instruction to learn. “It’s important for parents to see what their kids are capable of,” she said. “Give them a pile of stuff. Let them explore. The play-based part of it, the creativity part, is very important.”

Tasha Hatton, who attended Maker Night with her fifth grader, Gabrielle, is excited by how simple an environment of exploration can be. She remembered how Gabrielle lit up when she saw fourth-grade teacher Haas Pectol’s recycled-plastic station, where children were braiding the plastic from discarded Halloween costumes into ropes that can be turned into things like baskets—or even, as Haas demonstrated, crocheted clutches. Maker Night, Tasha said, stimulated her family’s curiosity. “It’s introduced us to ideas we wouldn’t have thought of otherwise.”

Tasha also marveled at how something as simple as recycled plastic can do wonders for a child’s imagination. “They’ll look at the world differently,” she said. “The next time they see something like that, it might spark a new idea.”

STEM

Fourth grade is the year of the field trip at Rowland Hall.

Each year students head out of the classroom and into some of Utah's most remarkable places. They learn about geology, the water cycle, conservation, and state history. For the first time this year they capped their experiences with an overnight in Mapleton Canyon, where they put their newfound knowledge to the test.

"The concept of an overnight field study just made sense as a culminating experience for students to truly immerse themselves in their home state," said Jij de Jesus, Lower School principal. "It also helped them gain a sense of responsibility and independence as the transition to fifth grade approaches."

Thanks to a generous donation by a Rowland Hall supporter, the school partnered with Find Your Path Utah, a company specializing in experiential education. Founder Tyler Fonarow, a former Rowland Hall administrator and current parent, instantly saw all the marvelous possibilities. And he knew one thing: he didn't want these kids to think of this as just another camping trip.

"We kept it as much like school as possible, as far as the schedule," Tyler said. "We wanted to give them a chance to use the outdoor skills they've built up over the course of the year to understand that learning can happen in any place."

This was about getting our students outside with their classmates to help them see the interconnectedness of the natural and human world around them. —Lower School Principal Jij de Jesus

Our intrepid students faced fun challenges the moment they stepped off the bus in Mapleton: they found out they'd have to hike to their campsite a mile up the canyon while the bus carried their supplies. And it wasn't just a nice stroll up a paved trail—a creek crossing, for one, required creative problem-solving if they wanted to keep their feet dry.

"It was a neat opportunity to have the kids get out of their comfort zone a little bit," Tyler said. "Some kids chose to be carried, some kids chose to put the water shoes on, some kids chose to walk with garbage bags. It's called challenge by choice. It's about pushing the kids to the level where they are comfortable and still challenged."

After the hike in, fourth graders enjoyed activities centered on discovering a sense of place in their environment, studying water science and macroinvertebrates, leaving no trace, and being present.

“This was about getting our students outside with their classmates to help them see the interconnectedness of the natural and human world around them,” Jij said. "The state legislature's recent Utah's Every Kid Outdoors Initiative supports the idea that kids benefit from getting outside, especially with the incredible experiences locally accessible to us."

The lessons stuck with the students. Fourth grader Meg Hoglund said that from now on, whenever she goes fishing with her dad she'll check fishes' mouths for macroinvertebrates. "I also learned that your little piece of trash can contribute to a big problem for the environment later on," she said. "That's why leave no trace means NO trace at all."

At the end of the overnight, the kids wrote poems about the trip. Verses covered an array of memories—from the importance of protecting the watershed, to getting long hair stuck in a zipper. Fourth-grade teacher Matthew Collins said the poems helped students encapsulate their experiences: "With every line, we saw how much they learned and grew and just how much the experiential-education trips of the last year impacted them."

Experiential Learning

Rowland Hall equips students with the skills and experiences they need to thrive in a dynamic world. We believe education is active, and that deep, authentic learning experiences engage students in powerful ways, enabling them to view themselves as innovators and creators. Our new vision and strategic priorities are helping to center and formalize this work, but it’s long been a part of the Rowland Hall experience, inspiring generations of students to pursue, create, and share knowledge both in and outside the classroom. In the past year alone, we’ve watched many of our young scientists and engineers, fueled by their personal passions, tackle real-world problems and offer innovative solutions designed to better our shared world. This fall, we’re spotlighting some of their stories. (Be sure to also check out "Ruchi Agarwal Named Runner-up in National Stockholm Junior Water Prize Competition," "Three Rowland Hall Students Place Fourth at International Science and Engineering Fair for Aviation Engine Design," and "Research Science: Taking Classroom Discoveries to the International Level.") 

The below text is an abridged version of this story for Fine Print. If you would like to learn more about the science behind the academic paper highlighted in this story, we invite you to view the full version.

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With more than 20 years of experience as a molecular and cell biologist—including over a decade as a breast cancer researcher, with a particular interest in racial disparity among breast cancer outcomes in the United States—Upper School science teacher Dr. Padmashree Rida has had plenty of opportunities to support other scientists.

Prior to joining Rowland Hall in 2021, Dr. Rida worked as a university research scientist, a role that offered her regular opportunities to advise graduate students working on original research and academic papers. A natural-born mentor, Dr. Rida has always enjoyed opportunities to help others blossom in their careers. But she’s also seen how disheartening it can be for scientists who, years into their professional journeys, realize that academic research—a field rife with opportunities for failure in everything from choosing the right hypothesis, to uncovering negative or inconclusive results, to the struggle of getting top-notch journals to publish work, to securing grants—isn’t for them. “There are no guaranteed returns in research; it’s always a gamble,” she said. “You can put in so many years to discover you were barking up the wrong tree.”

When Dr. Rida was invited to contribute to a special issue of the International Journal of Molecular Sciences, she saw an opportunity for a teaching experiment. What if she were to invite one of her Rowland Hall students to assist her? She thought it may be an ideal way to challenge a promising young scientist, exposing them not only to the processes, skills, and risks of real-world research, but also to the nature of scientific collaboration.

So in April, when Dr. Rida was invited to contribute to a special issue of the International Journal of Molecular Sciences (IJMS) focusing on hypoxia, a state of oxygen insufficiency in the body, she saw an opportunity for a teaching experiment. What if she were to invite one of her Rowland Hall students to assist her? She thought it may be an ideal way to challenge a promising young scientist, exposing them not only to the processes, skills, and risks of real-world research, but also to the nature of scientific collaboration, as Dr. Rida would be working closely with one of her long-standing collaborators, Dr. Nikita Jinna, and a group of Dr. Jinna’s colleagues from the City of Hope cancer treatment and research center to write the article. She thought the opportunity could be similar to an internship, allowing a student to try out a career option, risk-free, to get a sense of fit. “They could get their feet wet and ask if it’s for them,” she said.

For the student to do well in this project, though, they would have to have a certain set of skills: a strong biology background, of course, as well as the ability to critically read and write, as they would be reviewing dense academic materials, drawing conclusions, distilling insights, and synthesizing information. Dr. Rida saw these traits in Max Smart, then a senior in her Advanced Topics in Biology class.

“Dr. Rida recognized a project like this was perfect for me,” said Max, a Rowland Hall Lifer whose love of the natural world has driven his lifelong interest in the sciences, and who also loves to write. And Max recognized how valuable the experience could be. “I could tell this was a phenomenal opportunity,” he remembered. He said yes and, after completing finals in May, began assisting Dr. Rida, first by helping her and Dr. Jinna look into the role hypoxia may play in patient resistance to androgen receptor inhibition, a treatment option for a subset of patients with a particularly lethal type of cancer: triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). “We knew these treatments often work successfully for a short period, but most patients eventually develop resistance,” explained Dr. Rida. “Consequently, their disease relapses or progresses, and when this happens, we don't have good next-line treatment options for such patients.”

With several lines of evidence supporting their suspicions on hypoxia’s role in therapeutic resistance, the team focused their IJMS article on the topic, hoping their research would help shed light on how and why existing treatments fail, offer a broad view of study results on treatment options, and, because such therapeutic resistance is a problem for some other androgen-signaling-dependent cancers, make progress that could potentially have wide benefits. And though early evidence indicated a promising direction, as they began writing, Dr. Rida, heeding her own experience, made sure to set Max’s expectations. “There’s no guarantee we’ll find anything,” she remembered telling him, “but that’s the gamble with science.” 

That gamble didn’t deter Max, though, who jumped enthusiastically into the project, even, he said, as he faced a series of steep learning curves—beginning with getting acquainted with science writing. After Dr. Rida taught him how to use PubMed, a biomedical literature database, to search for primary literature with clinical trial data, Max remembered initially feeling overwhelmed as he worked to make sense of the jargon, acronyms, and medical terminology within these studies. “These are serious medical publications; it’s no joke,” he said. “It was like hitting a brick wall right out the gate—every sentence is riddled with words that mean nothing to you.” But after Dr. Rida recommended that Max make lists of unfamiliar words, terms, or methods so they could discuss them together, he got better at understanding the complex material. “With Dr. Rida's help, it became second nature,” he remembered. “Her mentorship broke down that brick wall.”

That mentorship continued as Max was challenged in other ways. He had to learn, for instance, how to pull from hundreds of pages of information the hard data that can benefit cancer researchers, and leaned on Dr. Rida’s advice to give himself space to process complicated material before looking for gaps or clarity within it. He also learned from Dr. Rida the importance of reading the literature critically, as well as broadly, to avoid scientific siloing. “Reading broadly allows ideas from different domains to network in ways that allow us to see things anew or from different vantage points,” explained Dr. Rida. So, in addition to reviewing studies on androgen-dependent TNBC, Max looked at studies on androgen-dependent prostate cancer, which behaves similarly to androgen-dependent TNBC and, because it has been researched for longer, offers an array of data on drug options and combinations that might be able to help researchers find what he called the “golden treatment” for TNBC patients. 

Getting Max on board with this collaboration taught him team science—and all good science these days is team science.—Dr. Padmashree Rida, science teacher

Additionally, Max learned firsthand the essential, though often tedious, nature of academic collaboration: how a group of researchers narrows a paper’s focus, finds consensus, reviews drafts prior to submission to a journal for peer review, and revises a manuscript to address reviewers’ feedback and concerns. By letting Max participate in the full process, Dr. Rida was helping to prepare him for success in a world in which the best scientists, no matter their fields or roles, need to be able to go beyond the scope of their individual disciplines to solve problems or create change collaboratively. “We teach science in class, but we don’t talk much about how science is really done, how science is disseminated, and the community behind it,” she said. “Getting Max on board with this collaboration taught him team science—and all good science these days is team science.”

It also taught him the joy of team success. After more than two months of collaborative researching, drafting, peer reviewing, revising, and waiting, “Adaptation to Hypoxia May Promote Therapeutic Resistance to Androgen Receptor Inhibition in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer” was published in IJMS on August 9. When asked what it felt like to see his name listed in an international science journal alongside his mentor’s and five City of Hope researchers only two months out of high school, Max said it was gratifying—but was quick to point out that that gratification went far beyond his personal benefits.

“I hope it’s going to play some small role in this field of research so we can get better treatments for people suffering from cancer,” he said. “If we helped just a tiny bit, that’s really gratifying.”

For Max, who will start at Middlebury College in January after taking a gap semester, it’s clear the experience will drive his professional decisions. Though he’s still deciding what he wants to study, working on this paper taught him how much he values using his passion for science and his love of writing—skills he worked on during his time at Rowland Hall—to help people. “I really appreciated being able to put knowledge and skills I’ve spent my entire academic career honing toward something that is actually going to, hopefully, play one tiny, small part in benefiting people who need good treatment,” said Max. “That was a pretty unique and awesome feeling.”

I really appreciated being able to put knowledge and skills I’ve spent my entire academic career honing toward something that is actually going to, hopefully, play one tiny, small part in benefiting people who need good treatment.—Max Smart ’22

For Dr. Rida, her self-described teaching experiment was also gratifying. Even before the rollout of Rowland Hall’s strategic priorities, she had been thinking about how she can harness her experience, resources, and background to give Upper School students opportunities to help find solutions to real-world problems and to participate in the construction of new knowledge. With this project under her belt, she’s even more aware of how she can best support them. “I learned so much about how to teach about clinical issues, to mentor, how students learn, what misconceptions they may have, and how to explain things,” she said of her time working with Max. She also learned how inspiring it can be to watch a high school student step up to a new challenge. “Max was willing to put in hours and hours of reading and writing, painstakingly plowing through literature,” she said. “Not once did he say, ‘I’m done.’”

And while she knows future experiences might not always be such a good fit, seeing how Max blossomed over their months together—his openness to new ideas, willingness to take risks, ability to successfully take feedback, and determination—showed her that offering them is worth the risk. Moreover, she knows such authentic learning experiences can impact young scientists’ identities, sense of belonging, and understanding of science. Thanks to this opportunity, Max took away an essential life lesson he’s grateful for—and one that will continue to give back to him, whether or not he becomes a researcher himself.

“I certainly got a taste of how some research can end up leaving you with very little to show. It can be discouraging. But then again, what isn't discouraging from time to time?” said Max. “It was an experience that helped teach me that anything you invest time and energy into can end up disappointing when it doesn't always pan out how you want. But when you hit those junctures, you just have to keep persevering.”

Authentic Learning

On September 21, a line of Rowland Hall buses pulled up to Great Salt Lake State Park and dropped off a group of fourth- and eleventh-graders, who began making their way to the shoreline.

It was a longer walk than it used to be. For years, Great Salt Lake has been shrinking, and in recent months there’s been an increased outcry to protect the lake. And it’s not just adults who want to find solutions to the possible loss of one of the state’s most renowned landmarks. On this sunny fall day, the Rowland Hall students—who had the chance to come together thanks to Beyond the Classroom, an annual Upper School event that engages students with the greater Salt Lake community and its natural surroundings—were focused on taking away inspiration from the lake to power their own Great Salt Lake projects this year.

Kids are really motivated by problems and love to solve them. They think outside the box, they’re creative, they take chances adults won’t.—Tyler Stack, fourth-grade teacher

For the fourth graders, the day was extra special, as it was a chance to get personally familiar with the lake that will play a prominent role in their classrooms this year. While a study of waterways has always been part of Rowland Hall’s Utah studies curriculum, the pressing issues of Great Salt Lake, which many lower schoolers are well aware of, have given the fourth-grade team—Marianne Love, Cheryl Chen, Haas Pectol, and Tyler Stack—a natural opportunity to help students connect classroom learning to real-world conversations, delve into the role we all play in protecting our shared natural resources in the desert we call home, and search for solutions.

“Kids are really motivated by problems and love to solve them, and it’s cool to get their ideas about a bigger issue,” said Tyler. “They think outside the box, they’re creative, they take chances adults won’t. Maybe someone will think of a solution no one has thought of.” And reminding kids that they can make a difference also helps connect them to their community. “It gives them pride in where they live, and ownership and stewardship,” said Marianne.

The trip to Great Salt Lake allowed students to begin to connect to the lake as they discovered what about it most appealed to them and made them excited to learn—like why the lake is salty or what story its exposed waterlines tell. With the support of their Upper School buddies, they were asked to see, think, and wonder about the lake as they explored. “We want them to think about why they think we should save the Great Salt Lake, not just ideas they hear from adults or teachers,” said Tyler.

After visiting the lake, the students, with the help of their buddies, created slideshows that highlighted their areas of interest—the jumping-off point of research projects they will work on over the year. These slideshows also opened the door to another opportunity: the chance to present at Aridity and Great Salt Lake, a community discussion on water in the West held at Rowland Hall on October 12. Three students volunteered to speak, excited to share with a larger audience what they had learned and why it was important.

Everyone can help.—Hadley R., fourth grade

“I wanted them to know about how much the Great Salt Lake was drying up,” said Hadley R., who also wanted to remind attendees that they can make a difference. “Everyone can help,” she added.

These fourth-grade presenters also wanted to remind the group that many lives depend on the lake. Millie C., who is fascinated by Great Salt Lake’s well-known Black Rock and the creatures who call it home, shared, “I wanted them to walk away thinking about things near the Great Salt Lake.”

Fourth graders will continue to build on this early Great Salt Lake work with upcoming projects, including writing persuasive letters about the lake to state representatives (as well as visiting the Utah State Capitol during the General Session in January) and presenting their research to a panel of community experts. It’s certainly an exciting year to be a Rowland Hall fourth grader, and our school community is looking forward to seeing the many ways these students will inspire others, drive important conversations, and contribute to solutions to protect our shared home.

“This is a great place to live, and we want to keep it that way,” said Marianne.

Authentic Learning

Rowland Hall equips students with the skills and experiences they need to thrive in a dynamic world. We believe education is active, and that deep, authentic learning experiences engage students in powerful ways, enabling them to view themselves as innovators and creators. Our new vision and strategic priorities are helping to center and formalize this work, but it’s long been a part of the Rowland Hall experience, inspiring generations of students to pursue, create, and share knowledge both in and outside the classroom. In the past year alone, we’ve watched many of our young scientists and engineers, fueled by their personal passions, tackle real-world problems and offer innovative solutions designed to better our shared world. This fall, we’re spotlighting some of their stories. (Be sure to also check out "Ruchi Agarwal Named Runner-up in National Stockholm Junior Water Prize Competition," "Three Rowland Hall Students Place Fourth at International Science and Engineering Fair for Aviation Engine Design," and "Max Smart ’22 and Science Teacher Dr. Padmashree Rida Published in International Journal of Molecular Sciences.")

This piece is republished from Rowland Hall's 2021–2022 Annual Report.

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There was a lot of buzz surrounding a poster presented this spring at the Materials Research Society (MRS) meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii. 

“Discovery of Structure-Property Relationships of Intercalated Graphite Compounds Using Machine Learning” had the potential to lead to major discoveries in the field. But that isn’t what had people talking. It was that those presenting the poster weren’t researchers or professors, but four teenagers from Salt Lake City, Utah.

They were the only high school students there. People were very confused and very impressed.—Tascha Knowlton, Upper School science teacher

Rowland Hall seniors Tyler Gerstein, Ford Hodgkins, Samantha Lehman, and Olive Milavetz, along with science teacher Tascha Knowlton and University of Utah associate professor (and former Rowland Hall teacher) Dr. Kaci Kuntz, traveled to the conference to present findings from the school’s research science class, now in its second year.

“They were the only high school students there,” said Tascha. “People were very confused and very impressed. They were taken aback—some of them literally stepped back when they found out how old they were.”

The students’ work isn’t typical for high schoolers. They started their journey with document reviews, an undertaking that isn’t very exciting but is the bedrock of most scientific discoveries. They went through thousands of pages of research on the properties of graphite sheets—or graphene—to learn all they could about how they react with other compounds. “It was a lot of data mining and very time-consuming,” said Tascha. “They might go through multiple papers and only find one small piece of data worth using.”

The document reviews were just the tip of the iceberg. The students then took that data and dove into code writing and machine learning software to predict how the graphene would react to other unknown compounds. Would it take electrons from them or donate electrons to them? And what would the movement of those electrons do? The more they worked with the software, the more accurate the predictions became.

“We were able to predict color changes in the graphene depending on the compound placed between the sheets,” said Samantha. “It’s cool because color is an electric optical property.”

We got a lot of experience doing scientific writing. I got some coding experience, and we had to figure out machine learning. Then on top of all that, we had to navigate presenting our work to professionals in the field. We got to experience a range of activities in the scientific spectrum.—Samantha Lehman, class of 2022

There is still more work to do, though, and it will be carried on by students at Rowland Hall in 2022–2023. They will take the data gathered and the predictions made this year and begin to look at how these compounds may be useful and how to engineer them for various purposes. “Graphite is the most stable form of carbon and very lightweight,” said Tascha. “It could be used in building batteries, or in touch screens. There are some possible medical applications. Lots of possibilities.”

While the students who presented at the MRS conference won’t be actively working on the project full time anymore, that doesn’t mean they are completely walking away. “We can come back in to help in any way we can, or be a mentor to younger students,” said Samantha. “It’s cool because the involvement is whatever I want it to be.”

Beyond the scope of the project, the students can take the lessons they learned into new educational and career opportunities. They left high school with many skills most don’t acquire until college, or even graduate school. “We got a lot of experience doing scientific writing. I got some coding experience, and we had to figure out machine learning,” said Samantha. “Then on top of all that, we had to navigate presenting our work to professionals in the field. We got to experience a range of activities in the scientific spectrum.”

It wouldn’t be unlikely to see some, if not all, of these amazing budding scientists presenting at many conferences to come.

Authentic Learning

Rowland Hall equips students with the skills and experiences they need to thrive in a dynamic world. We believe education is active, and that deep, authentic learning experiences engage students in powerful ways, enabling them to view themselves as innovators and creators. Our new vision and strategic priorities are helping to center and formalize this work, but it’s long been a part of the Rowland Hall experience, inspiring generations of students to pursue, create, and share knowledge both in and outside the classroom. In the past year alone, we’ve watched many of our young scientists and engineers, fueled by their personal passions, tackle real-world problems and offer innovative solutions designed to better our shared world. This fall, we’re spotlighting some of their stories. (Be sure to also check out "Ruchi Agarwal Named Runner-up in National Stockholm Junior Water Prize Competition," "Research Science: Taking Classroom Discoveries to the International Level," and "Max Smart ’22 and Science Teacher Dr. Padmashree Rida Published in International Journal of Molecular Sciences.")

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For many, air travel is a necessity in today’s world. It’s easier, faster, and, in many cases, cheaper than other transportation options. But there’s an environmental cost to that convenience: emissions. Currently, the aviation sector accounts for more than two percent of global carbon dioxide emissions, an environmental impact that scientists and engineers are working to lessen. That group of researchers now includes three Rowland Hall students.

In fall 2021, Aiden Gandhi, Eli Hatton, and Evan Weinstein, then ninth graders, were hard at work choosing a science fair topic. They knew they worked well together (as middle schoolers, they had teamed up for the You Be the Chemist Challenge), and they were united in a common goal: to create a project that could qualify for the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), the world’s largest high school STEM competition and an opportunity the young scientists had been waiting to be eligible for. As upper schoolers, that wait was over, so the only question was: what topic did they want to tackle?

The team’s priority was to choose a project that balanced members’ individual interests in engineering and physics. They decided a project on sustainable aviation would meet that objective. The choice allowed each member to play to his strengths—a good strategy when aiming for ISEF-level research. Additionally, the team liked that an aviation project would let them address climate change.

“We had lots of ideas of different areas of science we wanted to work with,” remembered Eli, but the team’s priority was to choose one that balanced members’ individual interests in engineering and physics. After discussion, they decided a project on sustainable aviation would meet that objective. “It’s a blend of everything we’re interested in,” explained Aiden. The choice also allowed each member to play to his strengths—a good strategy when aiming for ISEF-level research. “We each have individual interests within aviation—physics, technical—which meant we had a pretty diverse background going in,” said Evan.

Additionally, the team liked that an aviation project would let them address climate change. Like their peers around the world, they’ve long been aware of environmental challenges facing their generation, and, as aviation enthusiasts, they’re also aware of the industry’s role in carbon emissions. And because flying isn’t going away, they explained, air travel needs to become more environmentally friendly and efficient. “If we can’t completely get rid of it, we can at least make it better,” said Evan. 

The team first considered designing an entire sustainable aircraft—an idea they soon dismissed. “We realized that was far too complicated,” said Eli. Instead, they chose to focus on what Evan called the part that “makes airplanes more or less efficient”: the engine. An airplane’s engine, after all, is the source of its power—it’s where jet fuel is burned to provide the machine’s thrust (the force that moves an airplane in the air). But jet fuel is inefficient and the main contributor to an airplane’s carbon output: after fuel is burned inside the engine’s combustion chamber, it releases carbon waste into the atmosphere. However, it’s tricky to find a good substitute for jet fuel. Research has been done on other fuels, but many still release potentially harmful chemicals into the environment, and others are too volatile or expensive. And even ideas around electric aircraft have limited reach—the team found that current designs were only capable of short-distance flights. They wanted their experimental model to both eliminate the use of jet fuel and be available for international travel.

Goal in mind, the team set to work on a computer-aided design of an engine that creates propulsion via electrically heated tungsten coils in the combustion chamber. Tungsten, they explained, can efficiently heat and pressurize air, so they felt it was the right material choice. By February, the group was ready to present their project, named Engine-ering the Future of Air Travel, for the first time at a regional science fair, where they qualified for state—the step at which they would be considered for ISEF. They felt good about their odds: they placed second in the Mechanical and Materials Engineering division and fifth overall at the University of Utah Science and Engineering Fair, putting them in excellent position for an invitation to ISEF, which arrived a couple weeks after state.

“We were really happy we were invited,” remembered Aiden of the moment the group learned they had reached their goal.

But the team’s ISEF invitation wasn’t the end of the road—in fact, in many ways, the group had to work harder than ever to ramp up for international competition. They used the weeks leading to the May ISEF meeting to adjust their presentation to meet fair requirements and to tinker with their engine’s design. One major change the group made at this time was swapping the tungsten coils for tungsten fits, which, said Aiden, “have more surface area and would be better for transferring heat from the tungsten to the air throughout the engine.” They also began testing their model in ANSYS—engineering software that simulates airflow, thermal, and physical stress—to refine it. Additionally, as ISEF competitors, they had access to new resources, including local engineers Daniel Baxter and Duke Speer, who could provide feedback on their project to ensure it was ready for a higher level of scrutiny. And the team continued to seek support from Rowland Hall faculty. Robotics coach Alex Beaufort ’13 went over the mechanics of their engine, while physics teacher Robin Hori reviewed its physical properties and concepts to make sure they made sense theoretically. Their project mentor, science teacher Dr. Padmashree Rida, was invaluable to the group’s presentation practice. A former ISEF judge herself, Dr. Rida knew what they needed for the international competition, and she was impressed by what she saw.

What blew me away about this team of young scientists was their unflappable spirit, their ability to see around corners, the initiative they demonstrated by taking on a challenge that even industry experts have struggled with, and their motivation to continually innovate, iterate, and improve their original engine design.—Dr. Padmashree Rida, Upper School science teacher

“What blew me away about this team of young scientists was their unflappable spirit, their ability to see around corners, the initiative they demonstrated by taking on a challenge that even industry experts have struggled with, and their motivation to continually innovate, iterate, and improve their original engine design,” said Dr. Rida. “When they presented their poster to me for a practice session, I was amazed by how they had thought through every minute detail of their design, and how hard they had worked to research their problem inside out and to think of good responses to potential questions and critiques. They received feedback with heartwarming grace, showed inspiring tenacity and focus when faced with setbacks, and were deeply committed to their purpose: to do something about the pressing crisis of climate change.”

Robotics coach Alex echoed Dr. Rida’s sentiment, calling out the team’s impressive determination even when encountering hurdles just a week before competition—a promising characteristic of these future professional scientists and engineers. "They overcame obstacles with tenacity,” said Alex. “Even during the last week, when they encountered problems, they were able to adequately address them in a professional manner, approaching the solution with the scientific mindset that is ever evolving.”

These weeks of preparation were valuable, the team said, not only when it came to making their project more realistic, but also in helping them learn to better convey their ideas. By the time they headed to Atlanta in May, Aiden, Eli, and Evan were confident their updated engine could compare to today’s commercially used engines, and they were ready to present their work to some of the top engineering minds in the field. And though competition was high (the three Rowland Hall students were among 1,750 competitors from 49 US states and 63 countries, regions, and territories), what they remember most is the feeling of camaraderie among attendees—an essential component of their future careers.

“It’s important because you need more than one person to make a significant change in the world,” said Aiden. Evan added, “Not only are you making friends, but you’re also creating partnerships. Likely, these are the people you’ll be researching with at high levels.”

It’s safe to say that Rowland Hall’s jet engine crew would have been satisfied at this point: as ninth graders they had already made it to ISEF, they were mingling with innovative students from around the world, and they got to present their original research to engineering experts. But they soon learned their hard work had paid off in another exciting way. As attendees, the group was eligible for the event’s Grand Awards, prizes presented to the first- through fourth-place winners in each of ISEF’s 21 categories. (Top ISEF awards are then selected from the group of 21 First Award winners.) As the young scientists and engineers gathered on award night, the Rowland Hall team was thrilled to hear their names called over the loudspeaker—they were the Fourth Award winners in the Engineering Technology: Statics and Dynamics category, which had 81 total entries.

“We were very surprised and shocked and happy. It felt surreal,” remembered Eli. “We thought just making it there was our biggest achievement.”

These achievements won’t be wrapping up anytime soon. Now sophomores, Aiden, Eli, and Evan are still immersed in their jet engine research, currently choosing a 2023 science fair project that will build on last year’s work (details are still being kept quiet at this stage). With the benefit of their first ISEF experience, the team is excited to see what they can do next, and they’re quick to encourage other students to try science fairs themselves, noting how a Rowland Hall education, including excellent faculty support, prepares young scientists and engineers for these opportunities to take on real-world problems. “The resources at Rowland Hall are incredible,” said Aiden. “Faculty, our schoolwork, and papers and research in history, science, math—all that definitely prepared us for ISEF.”

Without a doubt, these students will continue to do incredible things, and the Rowland Hall community is looking forward to watching what they take on next. “I am super excited about the positive impact they will have, and the changes they will drive,” said Dr. Rida.

Authentic Learning

Rowland Hall equips students with the skills and experiences they need to thrive in a dynamic world. We believe education is active, and that deep, authentic learning experiences engage students in powerful ways, enabling them to view themselves as innovators and creators. Our new vision and strategic priorities are helping to center and formalize this work, but it’s long been a part of the Rowland Hall experience, inspiring generations of students to pursue, create, and share knowledge both in and outside the classroom. In the past year alone, we’ve watched many of our young scientists and engineers, fueled by their personal passions, tackle real-world problems and offer innovative solutions designed to better our shared world. This fall, we’re spotlighting some of their stories. (Be sure to also check out "Three Rowland Hall Students Place Fourth at International Science and Engineering Fair for Aviation Engine Design," "Research Science: Taking Classroom Discoveries to the International Level," and "Max Smart ’22 and Science Teacher Dr. Padmashree Rida Published in International Journal of Molecular Sciences.")

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Last year, while on the lookout for a science fair research subject, upper school debater Ruchi Agarwal found inspiration in a topic that was being examined by policy debaters across the country: The United States federal government should substantially increase its protection of water resources in the United States.

"It’s a prominent issue right now,” Ruchi said, and one she became personally passionate about while researching water resources for debate competitions. She decided to focus her science fair project on the study of toxic cyanobacteria—algae mats that produce neuro and liver toxins poisonous to humans and animals—in streams and rivers. Though much research has been done on algal blooms in lakes, Ruchi explained, little has been done on their presence in flowing waterways, despite cyanobacteria’s threat to lives around the globe.

Though much research has been done on algal blooms in lakes, little has been done on their presence in flowing waterways, despite cyanobacteria’s threat to lives around the globe.“Once I realized that the toxic mat formation is not just a local issue, but a global one, I immediately embarked on researching more about this scientific issue,” Ruchi later wrote about her decision.

Ruchi hypothesized that because toxin-producing cyanobacteria co-exist with non-toxic producers, they can synergize with non-toxic bacteria nutrients, as well as other resources—a theory she wanted to test at the Virgin River in Utah’s Zion National Park. With the help of park employees, Ruchi collected samples at four sites over a period of four months, which, with the support of University of Utah professor Dr. Ramesh Goel and graduate research assistant Shadman Kaiser, she tested for certain water quality parameters, cyanobacteria genomic content, and the ability of toxic cyanobacteria to synergize with other bacteria. Her research, Ruchi wrote, confirmed that Microcoleus, the most common cyanobacteria worldwide, is “dominant in nutrient-deficient environments and exhibits strange metabolic behavior which makes this genus very competitive in terms of flourishing with respect to other toxin producers.”

To say Ruchi’s findings were well received would be an understatement. As planned, Ruchi first presented her project at the regional University of Utah Science & Engineering Fair (USEF), where she qualified to compete at the state USEF. At state, she received further accolades: first place in the Civil and Environmental Engineering division, as well as the Salt Lake City Public Utilities prize. She also received an unexpected but exciting opportunity: a nomination to apply to compete for the Stockholm Junior Water Prize (SJWP), the most prestigious youth competition for water-related research.

When asked how it felt to be nominated for the SJWP, Ruchi remembered, “It was a mix of exciting and daunting … more the second emotion, primarily because receiving the nomination is just one step of many.”

Indeed, competing for the SJWP isn’t for the faint of heart: nominees (students in grades nine through twelve) must be working on projects “aimed at enhancing the quality of life through improvement of water quality, water resources management, or water and wastewater treatment,” and are required to write scientific research papers that are first submitted for state-level competitions, then—for the 50 young scientists chosen from each state—for national competition. The national winner then goes on to compete with scientists from 30 countries at the international competition in Stockholm, Sweden.

“I definitely hadn’t written a paper to this scale,” Ruchi said. And though the process came during the Upper School’s AP test season, she devoted time each day for three weeks to putting together her submission, leaning heavily on the knowledge she built in Upper School classes like biology, English, and debate—knowledge, Ruchi said, that equipped her with “the critical thinking skills that go into writing a 20-page paper.” In May she learned that her entry, “Water Scarcity in the Arid West: What is the Role of Harmful Algal Blooms?”, had earned the top prize for the state of Utah, and that she was headed to the national competition at the Colorado School of Mines in June.

“It was really nice to know it had paid off, and I was excited,” said Ruchi. That excitement grew once she arrived in Colorado, where she was able to learn more about water conservation and connect with students from across the nation. “It was inspiring talking to other people who are passionate about this,” she said.

And though Ruchi’s research already had a track record of excellence, she remained modest about her paper’s chance at the national level. “I thought maybe I had a chance to win one of the special awards,” she said, referring to prizes awarded to two top competitors who are not named either the national winner or one of two runners-up. You can, therefore, imagine Ruchi’s reaction when she was announced as a runner-up. “I was literally shocked,” she said.

Doing work that is so fundamental to our health and daily lives is incredibly fulfilling. It helped me realize that I could use my passion for research as a way to create change and find solutions to pressing issues in the scientific community.—Ruchi Agarwal, class of 2023

Ruchi may have been, but her teachers, including debate coach Mike Shackelford, weren't. “Ruchi is one of our top debaters, and, while I was thrilled, I wasn't surprised by her success at the SJWP,” said Mike. “She's always been driven, creative, articulate, and bright, and has honed her critical thinking, problem-solving, and communication skills over many years of competitive debate. As a coach, I've always believed that debate is a means to end, not an end in itself. And while I'm certainly happy when debaters win trophies, I'm especially proud when they apply their skills and knowledge to real-world experiences.”

With a boost of confidence as a scientist, Ruchi has started her senior year ready to build on her SJWP experience. She’s looking forward to tackling new challenges in classes like AP Biology, reworking her SJWP paper for submission to other science competitions, and growing her research skills. As an aspiring biology major, she said, she now better understands how the research she’s already interested in can make a difference in quality of life for people around the globe, and she hopes to play a role in effecting policy solutions through her work.

“Doing work that is so fundamental to our health and daily lives is incredibly fulfilling,” Ruchi reflected. “It helped me realize that I could use my passion for research as a way to create change and find solutions to pressing issues in the scientific community.”

Authentic Learning

Blocks are everywhere in the Beginning School.

Every classroom has shelves full of them, available for students to build whatever their imaginations desire. If you go into a classroom while school is in session, you’ll likely have to step over at least a couple walls or towers as you maneuver the space. In doing so, you are stepping right into the middle of a math lesson.

“We use the blocks to teach math concepts like half and whole and fractions,” said kindergarten lead teacher Melanie Robbins. “We start with a student exploring with blocks and expand that experience by asking questions and exploring new ways to look at things.”

Research shows that an early focus on math helps not only with mathematical cognition later, but also with overall learning throughout a child’s education.

Math isn’t a subject that you normally think of being taught in an early childhood setting. For decades the focus has been on literacy for younger children. Research shows that an early focus on math helps not only with mathematical cognition later, but also with overall learning throughout a child’s education. It’s something kindergartener Aria S. seems to realize, even though she’s only six. “I love math because it helps organize your brain,” she says. “It clears your brain and makes it so you can think easily.”

The ways math is taught in early education don’t look like what you might imagine. Yes, if you ask the students if they are learning math they will say they are, and will tell you all about addition and subtraction, how one plus one equals two, and the differences between working with “big” numbers and “small” numbers. What they won’t mention, though, is that they are being taught that math is all around them, in every part of their daily lives—that’s because it’s so naturally woven through the curriculum.

“We are a math community. We do math workshops, but we also use the language of math when we go on shape walks, or during dramatic play time,” Melanie said. “We do so much of our math through stories. It allows math to fluidly enter their brains.”

Teaching math through storytelling also allows the students to teach each other. In one recent lesson students listened to a story about a baby’s adventure as he explored his backyard. While they listened, they drew maps of where the baby went, how his movement formed shapes, and how far he traveled. Then they compared what they had each drawn.

Teaching math through storytelling also allows the students to teach each other.

“We look at how everyone thought about it differently,” Melanie said. “The students explain their thinking, and other students can collaborate and expand on concepts. It brings a joyful energy to math.”

While communal lessons are a cornerstone of teaching, there is also value in the smaller teachable moments. “We as teachers are always looking at how our students are exploring and how we can expand those experiences with questions,” said Melanie. “It’s about giving them choice and voice in how they learn and retain those lessons. We are intentional with our actions, but we are teaching in a way they aren’t thinking, ‘We’re doing math right now.’”

That brings us back to the blocks. As the kids get them out to build the city of the day, they are talking about their design ideas and who or what will live there. But they are also talking about how many blocks they will need to complete the various parts, and how to brace those blocks so they won’t fall down easily. It’s play, but math is also at work.

“The block building piece of the Beginning School is very mathematical,” said Melanie.  “You can always identify Rowland Hall students by their block-building abilities.”

STEM

Every day at Rowland Hall, students have their limits tested by a challenging curriculum and by mentors. It helps them grow. But what happens when the curriculum and mentors are pushed by challenging students?

More growth.

At the beginning of the school year, members of Rowland Hall’s technology team were approached by a number of ninth-grade students who had a complaint: they wanted to be able to do more on their school-issued laptops, but the current administrative settings wouldn’t let them. The restrictions were impeding their ability to grow as coders, they said. They didn’t just want more access, they needed it to learn.

The tech team is used to complaints, but not like this. They decided to try something new. They came to the students with an offer they couldn’t refuse.

“They challenged us to hack through the protections,” said Eli Hatton. “They said if we could do it they would let us keep the access instead of revoking it.”

This isn’t to say the tech team didn’t have their reservations. And they had very good reasons to say no. But they also knew this was an opportunity.

This isn’t to say the tech team didn’t have their reservations. And they had very good reasons to say no. But they also knew this was an opportunity. “We are always interested in cybersecurity,” said Alan Jeppson, associate director of technology. “Sometimes the only way to know if our security is working is to try and break it.”

Break it they did: the ninth graders were able to gain the access they desired, and then walked the tech team exactly what they had done so the weakness could be resolved. And thus the Rowland Hall Debugging Club was born.

“First thing we did was have them write a contract for acceptable use with their new machines,” said Alan. “Then we started looking around the school for more projects.”

It didn’t take long to find them. Upper School Assistant Principal Bernard Geoxavier needed a solution for tracking students needing physical education credits while not playing a sport or taking a class. The Debuggers figured out a solution: students needing the credits can now log time in the weight room with just a swipe of their student IDs when they exit and enter. It was a learning experience for the club members they wouldn’t have gotten otherwise. “We learned about readying software for very specific hardware and then deploying it,” said Eli. “Then we had to test it and see if it worked.”

Cybersecurity is a growing issue worldwide, and the club, along with members of the tech team and faculty, are looking at ways to improve their skills and the skills of the school community.

That was the first of many projects. Now the club is working on building a chatbot that will help students with everyday tasks, like navigating schedules, reviewing assignments, and performing other functions they would normally have to log in to the student portal to complete.

The opportunities are multiplying too, for both the benefit of the students and the school. Cybersecurity is a growing issue worldwide, and the club, along with members of the tech team and faculty, are looking at ways to improve their skills and the skills of the school community.

“We are looking at how we can get more kids involved, and how we could eventually compete in events like hackathons as a school,” said Ben Smith ’89, Upper School computer science teacher. “This would help these kids grow in areas where they could have real professional success in the future.”

Of course, the founding members of the Debuggers may have a future in store that no one has yet imagined. “This is a good group of super smart kids,” said Chief Information Officer Patrick Godfrey.  “It’s put all of us back on our toes how advanced they are and how they take a project and go after it.”

Added Alan, “These kids are crazy smart and talented. I really am interested in where they go from here.”

STEM

Research is clear: Investing in early childhood education is a smart move. Not only is it one of the surest ways to set students on paths of lifelong curiosity and well-being, but it’s also been proven to enhance both individual lives and society at large. At Rowland Hall, thanks to a focus on evidence-based education, we have long been crafting a top-tier early childhood program centered around best practices for young learners during crucial years of their development. As a result, students leave the Beginning School viewing themselves as capable knowledge-makers, ready to thrive in the next stage of their joyful educational journeys.

In Melanie Robbins and Mary Grace Ellison’s kindergarten classroom, a small sign hangs over a row of student cubbies. It’s inconspicuous, but, once noticed, seems to summarize the day-to-day happenings of the energetic and vibrant room.

“Play,” it states, “is the work of childhood.”

This Jean Piaget quote, beautifully succinct, is a reminder that the activities that take place in Melanie and Mary Grace’s room, and in all Rowland Hall Beginning School classrooms, are not just fun—they’re incredibly meaningful, and essential to children’s development. By tapping into the most natural and essential of early childhood activities—play—educators are building crucial connections in young brains and setting a joyful foundation for discovering, exploring, embracing, and creating knowledge.

On a Thursday morning in February, the Piaget quote kept watch over a bustle of activity among the kindergartners. Walking by, a casual observer may have thought the activity was free play, but there was a thoughtful academic purpose behind the fun: the five- and six-year-olds were busy making their way through an array of learning centers designed for their Animals in Winter unit, a study of how animals hibernate, migrate, and adapt during the coldest months.

It was a time of play—and yet it was about so much more than the play. The longer the class was observed, the more apparent it became that a trove of educational and developmental benefits were taking shape just below the surface.

At one table, two girls bent over the covers of the animal reports they were creating for the unit; using library books as guides, they illustrated their chosen animals, a chipmunk and a fox, on the report covers. Nearby, a group of students, sprawled across cushions, worked on core literacy skills on iPads, while another, more rowdy, group rolled an oversized die and moved animal figurines across a homemade playing board. On the far side of the room, students looked through a pile of materials—empty oatmeal canisters, bits of cardboard, string—to be crafted into an animal habitat. In between these stations, children sorted animal pictures into groups or practiced writing letters, some with crayons on paper, others with fingers in sand. For an hour, the students enjoyed the freedom to sample whatever most appealed to them at any given moment, and to take from the group what they needed—for a few, it was a time to step back to reflect and quietly work on activities alone; for others, to engage with peers.

It was a time of play—and yet it was about so much more than the play. Like taking a cursory glance at a frozen winter landscape, which doesn’t reveal the rabbit blending into the snow or the entry to an animal den, just glancing at the fun would have limited the viewer’s understanding of what was occurring in the classroom. The longer the class was observed, the more apparent it became that a trove of educational and developmental benefits were taking shape just below the surface: Students cutting materials for the animal habitat or practicing writing the letter S with stumpy crayons were honing fine-motor skills. Those at the game board were mastering math by matching the number of dots on the die to the number of spaces they had to move. And all around the room, students were building social skills, whether while waiting for a turn or while navigating a disagreement.

“This is the power of early childhood,” said Melanie.

A Solid Foundation

At Rowland Hall’s Beginning School, an emphasis on well-grounded early childhood research, such as that around the benefits of purposeful play, is at the heart of the student experience—and for good reason. Between the ages of three and six, the time during which they begin to attend school, children’s brains are in the midst of a tremendous evolution that educators need to understand to fully support.

“The three-to-six age range is marked by huge transformation in the architecture of the brain, and the structures that get laid down during that time will persist,” said Principal Emma Wellman, who has led the Beginning School since 2018, and, in the 2021–2022 school year, took on the expanded role of Beginning School and Lower School principal. During the preschool and kindergarten years, Emma explained, foundational behaviors, aptitudes, skills, and values are ingrained in the brain, so it’s essential that children’s first teachers know how to positively impact this development.

“Early childhood teachers are laying the foundation for lifelong learning in terms of how students relate to school and to one another, and to themselves as learners and workers,” said Emma.

During the preschool and kindergarten years, foundational behaviors, aptitudes, skills, and values are ingrained in the brain, so it’s essential that children’s first teachers know how to positively impact this development.

Through thoughtful play and other proven early education tactics, educators can boost brain-building in ways that last: studies show that students who attend early childhood programs are more likely to later demonstrate high-functioning skills, such as strong emotional and social intelligence, curiosity, and discipline, and more likely to report high rates of fulfilling relationships and fulfilling careers. And it’s not just individual lives that benefit; there are also economic advantages to investing in early childhood education. Dr. James J. Heckman, professor of economics at the University of Chicago and an expert in the economics of human development, has found that investments in early childhood education result in the highest rates of economic returns, both for individuals and society at large. Simply put: investing in early childhood education is one of the best ways to greatly impact lives.

“You’re giving extra support in a time when it matters most,” said Emma.

An Emphasis on Relationship

When it comes to how children relate to school, teachers are often the key factor, and this is especially true in early childhood classrooms, where the trust educators build with young students sets them on paths of learning, curiosity, and self-discovery. In fact, said Emma, because warm, trusting relationships are strongly shown to be vital to early learning, they’re the first thing she recommends people look for when exploring preschool and kindergarten programs.

“The most important thing is the teacher-student relationship, because learning happens in the context of relationship,” she explained. “Everything is built on that.”

In the Beginning School, a focus on relationship, alongside an emphasis on reciprocal respect between teachers and students, guides everything from class sizes to division specialties; as a result, students remain at the center of decision-making. A focus on relationships also encourages more natural student participation in classroom happenings, an essential component to building brain connections in young learners.

“We want to make sure that kids remain in charge of big chunks of their own learning so that they don’t become dependent on the grown-ups to drive it for them,” said Emma.

This ownership over learning expands during children’s time in the Beginning School. As they build strong relationships with their students, teachers can encourage them to work on mastering both early academic skills and self-care activities. Through a process known as scaffolding, teachers support students as they make their way through the zone of proximal development—that is, the difference between what a child can do without help and what they can do with guidance and encouragement from a teacher. It’s a way to meet each learner where they are their own individual development, and it can be applied to both academic subjects, like building foundational skills in number sense and phonological awareness, or life skills, like putting on a coat or a mask.

“School is the perfect place for that practice to happen and to develop those skills, which are critical in other learning,” said Beginning School Assistant Principal Brittney Hansen ’02. “We take our time to let everyone learn that they can do an activity all by themselves and feel that confidence, that sense of pride, and carry themselves a little bit taller because of it.”

A Child-Sized Experience

It’s not difficult to find students owning their learning in the Beginning School: the process can be observed in the 3PreK student working to zip her coat, the kindergartner choosing a quiet-time book from the classroom library, and the 4PreK student sorting a pile of twigs, pine cones, and leaves gathered during outdoor classroom. Active learning is around every corner.

“All of our learning is entirely exploratory and we foster kids’ natural curiosity,” said Kelley Journey, the Beginning School’s experiential learning specialist. “We give kids a lot of authentic opportunities to learn in real-world situations.”

The design of the building even encourages this exploration; you don’t need to walk far into the Beginning School to realize that the place is built for young learners. Bulletin boards, supplies, and books are set at the children’s eye level. Easy-to-access cubbies provide space for each person’s belongings. Child-sized restrooms are attached to classrooms, encouraging independence (while also providing reassurance that trusted adults are nearby, if needed). Simple decor and minimal reference material leave room for imagination. All of these choices, explained Brittney, are based on sound research and made mindfully and intentionally to encourage natural curiosity and to empower students to move effortlessly among spaces as they follow their interests or learn to manage their personal needs. 

“A key function of early childhood education is for students to learn, to be able to take care of themselves and their belongings, to feel ownership over their space and learning environment, and to feel confident navigating the school,” said Brittney.

Educators in the Beginning School are very intentional about integrating areas of learning in meaningful, authentic ways for children.—Brittney Hansen ’02, Beginning School assistant principal

Beginning School days are also set up to harness the ways in which children learn best: there are moments of active play as well as quiet time, and educators stretch young brains with both structured lessons and space for choice and self-exploration—what Rowland Hall often refers to as choice and voice. This inclusion of choice, explained Kelley, is important for all students, but especially significant to young learners who often don’t feel they have a lot of control over their lives: when much of your day includes being told what to do, and when to do it, by adults, having choice in how you want to learn—alongside access to child-sized structures and materials that allow you to work without a grown-up’s help—you begin to view yourself as a capable knowledge-maker. Students given choice can see themselves as scientists, engineers, or artists, and they believe in their ability to find solutions, improve processes, or add beauty to the world.

And because Rowland Hall is an independent school, Beginning School teachers (like teachers across all of the school’s divisions) have the flexibility to explore the topics that spark their students’ interests. They’re naturals when it comes to identifying subjects that light up students’ eyes, and they enjoy the flexibility to adjust lesson plans in order to follow these paths, weaving foundational academic knowledge into the areas their individual classes wish to explore.

“Educators in the Beginning School are very intentional about integrating areas of learning in meaningful, authentic ways for children,” said Brittney. “We are less about saying, for instance, ‘Now is our time for science.’ Instead, we think of something that’s captivating and interesting for the child and then say, ‘It’s my job to figure out how to weave science into this.’”

A Community of Learners

There is a common refrain about Rowland Hall’s Beginning School: “This is a happy place.” Visitors frequently comment on the division’s warm atmosphere and often report feeling a sense of joy during their time there. For Emma and her leadership team, these reactions to the school aren't a coincidence; they’re confirmation that Rowland Hall is providing support exactly where it’s needed—for young learners, as well as for the adults who make their education possible.

Rowland Hall is so special. All faculty members are complete lifelong learners and continually challenge themselves to practice the best theories and pedagogies for children.—Kelley Journey, experiential learning specialist

“One way we show respect to teachers is by giving them opportunities and responsibility to be learners in their own right, to continue their own professional lives,” explained Emma. And this is important because early childhood programs that prioritize the well-being of their educators see numerous benefits—for instance, teachers with supportive administrators spend more of their time focused on students, and they’re more likely to stay with a school for the long haul. Professional development opportunities at Rowland Hall range from growing personal passions or areas of growth, like when kindergarten teacher Melanie Robbins helped incorporate outdoor classroom into the division’s curriculum, to exploring ways teachers can support Rowland Hall’s mission and strategic priorities, such as when 4PreK lead teacher Isabelle Buhler studied equity and inclusion in the early childhood programs.

“Rowland Hall is so special,” said Kelley. “All faculty members are complete lifelong learners and continually challenge themselves to practice the best theories and pedagogies for children.”

They challenge each other too: faculty are encouraged to share takeaways from their professional development experiences, a practice that supports one another’s engagement with, and investment in, their essential roles. It’s a practice that also ensures everything they do comes back to students: by staying current with early childhood research findings, the Beginning School team can provide the school’s youngest learners with what they most need, creating a solid educational foundation for those students and, at the same time, illustrating for them the value of learning.

And it’s perhaps this practice that best explains why the Beginning School is such a happy place: it’s a place that highlights the thrill of learning, where students see in teachers the lifelong benefits of staying curious, and where, through the eyes of children, adults are continuously reminded of the pure joy of discovery, of allowing curiosity to take you to new places, and of understanding just what you’re capable of.

It’s the magic of early childhood.

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Looking for a preschool or kindergarten? Download Rowland Hall's tips for picking a top-tier early childhood program.

Academics

Todd Brickson stands tall as a mountain in the world of ski racing. 

For the past 20 years, he has served as the program director of Rowmark Ski Academy, Rowland Hall’s world-class ski racing program, founded in 1982. An international level 500 coach in the US Ski & Snowboard Association, Todd has worked with hundreds of top-level Olympic, World Cup, and collegiate athletes. But, even with all that experience, those who know Todd don’t immediately bring up his coaching prowess, or his experience on the slopes. Instead, they talk about who he is as a person—and for good reason.

Priority one, before coaching, is to be a very good role model. You need to be the kind of person who young people aspire to be one day. Todd is solid in that way.—Olle Larsson, Rowmark Ski Academy co-founder

“Priority one, before coaching, is to be a very good role model in front of people. If you fail that, it doesn’t matter what kind of coach you are,” said Olle Larsson, former Rowmark program director and the co-founder of the program, who was instrumental in hiring Todd. “You need to be the kind of person who young people aspire to be one day. Todd is solid in that way.”

Building athletes of good character is central to Todd. He makes that clear on the first page of the handbook given to all team members. There, he writes that the main goal of the program is “for each Rowmarker to learn and develop responsible independence.” He emphasizes that there is more to being on the team than just making it down the hill, adding, “This is above all a process, a time of trial and error, a time to learn from mistakes, a time to learn how to win—and learn how to lose.”

The values of responsibility and independence that Todd promotes create a strong bedrock on which he builds exceptional competitors and people. But here is where Todd steps back a bit, to let the athletes find that fire within that’s needed to push themselves farther and achieve more. He’s the iconic definition of a coach in these moments, trusting that his athletes are capable of practicing what to do, and he allows them to do it. That mutual respect is what launches Rowmark athletes into greatness.

“Todd provided me with tools and then didn't put any pressure or expectation on race day. He knew that pushing wouldn’t help, and that I needed to figure it out,” said former Rowmarker and Olympic athlete Breezy Johnson ‘13. “He provided me with the means to reach my incredibly high goals, and then was there with a hug and a word of advice, win or lose, at the end of the day.”

Todd does teach competitive spirit, but not in ways you may expect. He meets his students in competition in other arenas to show them that he respects them enough to go nose to nose. It may be on the golf course, in a go-kart, or by the side of a lake with a fishing pole in hand. Todd understands that coaching is a disposition and not contained to a certain time or place.

“There have been times when Todd has played hockey with us on a pond after skiing, or field hockey on dry land,” said Elisabeth Bocock, a senior who currently competes for both Rowmark and the US Ski Team. “He is never afraid to go shoulder on shoulder with us if that’s what it takes. He is super intense and does what he needs to do to win the game.”

And in his 20 years with the program, Todd’s intensity has helped raise the bar for Rowmark as an elite ski academy. Since 1988, there has been a representative from Rowmark at each Winter Olympics, and in 2014, the program became one of the first in the nation to achieve the Gold Certification level from the US Ski & Snowboard Association, and they’ve held onto that certification in the eight years since.

Rowmark’s skiers achieve off the slopes as well. The team currently has a 100 percent college placement rate, and its students are sought after by the best colleges and universities in the nation. “Todd is very involved in our academic success,” said Ian Hanrahan, co-captain of the Rowmark Academy Program. “He and the other coaches do a lot of work to make sure our teachers understand our busy schedules to help us stay on top of school and make sure we are successful skiers while still growing our academic careers.”

And Todd’s concern about the success of Rowmark skiers starts before they are even on the team. From the outset, he makes sure new recruits can thrive in the program. “Todd gives so much time to prospective families,” said Kathy Gunderson, former director of admission for Rowland Hall. “He cares so much about the candidates not only being a good fit for Rowmark but also finding academic success at the school as well. He’s brought recruiting to the next level.”

Todd’s recruiting prowess also extends to the coaches he selects to help guide the team. Every coach on Todd’s team knows they were selected for their excellence and are expected to reach extraordinarily high standards. But they also know that Todd views them as peers and wants them to feel welcome and able to grow as professionals through trial and error.

“Todd works to develop his staff,” said Rowmark Junior Program Director Troy Price. “Recently, three former staff members have gone on to coach for the US Ski Team. You must have excellent training to get job offers at that level.”

Staff development goes beyond coaching skills under Todd’s mentorship. After all, there is much more to the job than improving skiing skills. There are also all the logistical concerns, financial planning, health tracking, and emotional support needs that must be handled. Then there are the moments that are totally unexpected.

“My first season with the team we had a group of Rowmarkers involved in a head-on car accident while racing in Oregon,” said Troy. “Todd was coaching at another race in Whistler, Canada, yet he made arrangements to get to Portland. He stayed with our injured members during this extremely difficult time and was the glue that held everyone together. His empathy for others and his ability to stay calm in difficult situations is unmatched.”

Todd was a very important person in my development as an athlete. He taught me the tools I needed both technically with the fundamentals, and the greater work ethic required to make it to the highest level.—Breezy Johnson ‘13, Olympian

Todd’s two decades with Rowmark have left an indelible mark on all aspects of the program, and that impact will only continue to grow in the coming years. In 2019, an alpine training addition to the Utah Olympic Park became the team’s primary training facility, giving athletes access to the very slopes where their idols have competed. “This is the most important development for Rowmark since 1982,” said Olle. “The training arena that they now have does not exist anywhere else in the Northern Hemisphere.”

Time will tell what athletes will come off those slopes and into the national and international spotlights, but it’s clear that all of them will have benefitted from having Todd Brickson as a coach, mentor, and friend, just as those who came before them have.

“Todd was a very important person in my development as an athlete,” said Breezy. “He taught me the tools I needed both technically with the fundamentals, and the greater work ethic required to make it to the highest level.”

Rowmark

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Todd's anniversary isn't the only celebration for Rowmark Ski Academy this year. Rowmark is also excited to celebrate its 40th anniversary with a celebration weekend, to be held March 11–12. Current Rowmark athletes and families, as well as Rowmark alumni and their families, will be invited for a weekend of activities, including free skiing with friends, a dual ski race, BBQ tailgating, hors d’oeuvres, and remarks and a slideshow at the Utah Olympic Park. More details to come.

By Ashley Atwood and Robert Wilson
Original Watercolors by Annie Nash, Class of 2023

Editor's note: This piece is republished from Rowland Hall's 2021–2022 Annual Report.

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In May, Upper School science teacher Rob Wilson embarked on an opportunity of a lifetime: a trip to Ketchum, Idaho, to reside in the home of Ernest and Mary Hemingway as a visiting scholar. There, he wrote teaching resources based on his own use of Hemingway in the science classroom, as well as conducted the property’s first biological inventory. It was both a personal journey and a chance for the educator to invite students into his experience, showing them what is possible when you pursue and cultivate knowledge and passion.

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In late 1939, riding the high of celebrity built as a bestselling author and international war correspondent, Ernest Hemingway traveled to the newly built Sun Valley resort in Idaho on a publicity trip. While the writer was familiar with opportunities like this, it’s almost certain he was unprepared for the impact this trip would have on his life. From that first visit, he saw the Wood River Valley—home to Sun Valley and the former mining town of Ketchum—as a refuge, an idyllic place in which to socialize, hunt, fish, and write. He returned often over the next 20 years, and in 1959 moved to Ketchum full time with his fourth wife, Mary, after their exile from Cuba. The home they bought would be their last together, a place in which they could recharge, write, and entertain, whispers of cottonwood leaves and the rumble of the Big Wood River their constant companions. It is also where, on the morning of July 2, 1961, Ernest’s life ended in the foyer.

Mary Hemingway kept the home after her husband’s death and continued to visit it until her own passing in 1986, when she bequeathed it to The Nature Conservancy with instructions that it be turned into a nature reference library. In 2017, ownership of the house passed to The Community Library of Ketchum, which today honors the Hemingways’ legacy in Idaho through preservation work and educational opportunities, including an annual seminar that attracts those captivated by the author’s life and work. In 2019, the library completed a renovation of the home’s ground-floor garage into an apartment for visiting writers and scholars—a space in which invited guests can take in the landscape that inspired one of the greatest writers of a generation, find sanctuary in which to create, and walk away changed by this house of light.

Silkworms

That night we lay on the floor in the room and I listened to the silkworms eating. The silkworms fed in racks of mulberry leaves and all night you could hear them eating and a dropping sound in the leaves. I myself did not want to sleep because I had been living for a long time with the knowledge that if I ever shut my eyes in the dark and let myself go, my soul would go out of my body.
— Ernest Hemingway, “Now I Lay Me”

For a long time I avoided seeing the house. When I went to Ketchum, I would visit the grave in the town cemetery or the monument on Trail Creek, but I did not want to see the house. It seemed like an invasion of privacy, and it was not until I was invited late last year that I laid my eyes upon it. When I was invited to stay there, I was both thrilled and frightened; I was afraid that I might not be able to sleep knowing what happened in the foyer.

My first night in the house I did not fall asleep for a long time, until I slept deeply in the wee hours of the morning and awoke with a start from a bad dream. There was a hint of light to the east, and I could hear a robin. Ecologist Aldo Leopold calculated that “the robin will give voice when the light intensity reaches 0.01 candlepower.” I’ll take his word for it. I got up and made coffee and went outside to watch the day emerge. Four geese came downstream and turned around right in front of me and landed in the channel. A house wren commenced to sing. Eventually, some pine siskins and a ruby-crowned kinglet started talking. The sun lit up the peaks of the Boulder Mountains. Like a flash, the sun came out from behind a layer of clouds on the eastern horizon, and the house lit up. Glorious! The place was alive, truly alive. I came in to make breakfast, and only then did I realize the hour had already passed of the event that I’d been afraid would haunt me too much. The life of the land and the house outshines the darkness of the foyer.
— Rob Wilson, May 2022

* * *

Rob Wilson fell in love with the writing of Ernest Hemingway in eighth grade.

To this day, he remembers the thrill of that first reading of The Old Man and the Sea: how the novella brought to mind his own fishing trips with his dad. His mind readily painted a picture of the story’s setting: the boat, the deck, the handlines so different from his own rod and reel.

He remembers, as a high schooler, discovering a hardbound copy of Hemingway’s short stories on his dad’s bookshelf late one Friday and spending hours flipping its yellowed pages, reading long into the night. He remembers bonding with college friends over Hemingway, as well as quiet evenings during his early career as a field biologist, sitting on a cabin porch in southern Idaho and watching the sun set over the Pioneer Mountains above Sun Valley as he, again, made his way through Hemingway novels: The Sun Also Rises, A Farewell to Arms, For Whom the Bell Tolls. 

Hemingway’s writings were one of the first influential connections Rob had into the life of an artist, his stories and novels windows into worlds different from Rob’s in many ways, but also strikingly similar, with familiar streams of human experiences running through each tale. With each passing year, Rob began to see beyond the adventure stories that had first captivated him. Each new reading, supplemented by his accumulating life experience, became an opportunity to get lost in a story’s subtext. In Hemingway, Rob also found a kindred spirit—someone who, like him, respected the natural world. “Hemingway noticed the little things around him, and how they lived,” Rob said. The author’s writings are abundant with those observations: how trout hold in a clear river, for example, or the features of a wildfire-blackened mountainside, all described in such honest, sharp ways that it heightens the real-world experience of being outdoors.

In 2015, while re-reading Hemingway’s short story “A Pursuit Race,” Rob’s connection to Hemingway deepened in a new way when he realized how well its understated portrayal of alcoholism and heroin withdrawal could be applied to his health class lesson on substance abuse. He thought it would complement the textbook he usually used for the lesson, but more effectively invite students to contemplate the human impact of substance abuse in a way a textbook can’t.

“What fiction is,” he explained of that choice, “is a way to invite you into examining life.”

It was a successful experiment, one that excited both Rob and then-Head of School Alan Sparrow. Over the years, Rob began adding more texts to his lesson plans, including Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac and Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Braiding Sweetgrass, as well several Hemingway short stories: “Now I Lay Me” for its themes of metamorphosis, “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” for its tie to the climate, and “Big Two-Hearted River” for its portrayal of earth systems. Like the living creatures he brings to campus—pigeons for genetics, jellyfish to animate the history of life on Earth—Rob has found that Hemingway texts are an effective resource to enrich students’ understanding of science concepts. They’re also unexpected.

Research continues to make it clear that interdisciplinary learning, combining two or more subjects into one activity, benefits students by broadening how they think and how they approach problem solving.

“Students can be strict about silos,” he said, referring to the kind of thinking that draws lines around areas of study: students should reference a textbook or case study in science class and read Hemingway in English class. But research continues to make it clear that interdisciplinary learning, combining two or more subjects into one activity, benefits students by broadening how they think and how they approach problem solving. Hemingway’s signature iceberg approach—the idea that an author should allow a story’s deeper meaning to be implicitly realized by the reader—is an effective method for stretching young minds, allowing students space to lean on their own interpretations and observations.

“This is a major component of my teaching strategy,” said Rob. “If I tell you something, you are more likely to forget it. If you discover it for yourself based on what I provide, you will remember it and be proud of yourself.”

Many Hemingway stories build this skill with multiple examples of inference and deduction, forms of logic necessary to the scientific process, as well as sensory details that can deepen an understanding of natural sciences. While he was in Idaho, one of the stories Rob had his ninth-grade biology students read was “Now I Lay Me,” throughout which narrator Nick Adams, a soldier convalescing behind the front lines during World War I, refers to the sound of silkworms devouring mulberry leaves in his room. It was a natural tie to the class, which had been observing and caring for their own colony of silkworms that spring. Over the weeks, thanks to their worms’ diet of mulberry leaves, the class had watched the invertebrates grow from eyelash-sized hatchlings to fat, round, white worms. And as they read the story—for many, their introduction to Hemingway—that experience both provided a mental picture and enhanced the story’s subtext.

“It was easier to visualize the things described in the reading,” remembered Loc Ossana-Aoki, while classmate Rachel Brague added, “Having silkworms in the classroom helped emphasize the story, showed the bigger picture. Knowing about silkworms, I understood the emphasis on the man's experience.”

It was an experience that helped drive home the ideas that science isn’t static and that interdisciplinary connections enhance learning in exciting ways. Much like a Hemingway story, the students realized, there is always another layer to discover, something new to take away, to enrich overall understanding.

“Without any knowledge or experience, you can read these stories and understand what is happening,” explained Rachel, “but once you know more, the simple writing suddenly seems like the story is much longer and filled with more information than before.”

In past years, Rob has had students share Hemingway discoveries like these in class, but this year’s trip to Idaho gave them an opportunity to make even more connections among the stories, their studies, and his experience when he invited them to ask questions about his time away. “They were really curious,” said Rob. “All I did was say, ‘What would you like to know?’ and they asked questions for the entire period.” Discussion flowed around the Hemingway property’s major geographic features and how they change over time, natural selection, and the landscape itself: mature cottonwoods and blue spruces the Hemingways may have looked upon, a house wren whose call Rob imitated, and pileated woodpeckers whose strikes Rob demonstrated by knocking on the whiteboard. Rob also shared how he placed the class silkworms on the writing desk as he composed his own work, a metamorphosing muse, and his own feelings of fear, peace, and reverence for the sacred space.

“It was really personal for him,” said student Winston Hoffman, “but I think all of us appreciated what he had to say because he was trying to include us in the experience. It was like we had been there too, almost.”

Grasshoppers

As he had walked along the road, climbing, he had started many grasshoppers from the dust. These were just ordinary hoppers, but all a sooty black in color. Nick had wondered about them as he walked, without really thinking about them. Now, as he watched the black hopper that was nibbling at the wool of his sock with its fourway lip, he realized that they had all turned black from living in the burned-over land. He realized that the fire must have come the year before, but the grasshoppers were all black now. He wondered how long they would stay that way.
— Ernest Hemingway, “Big Two-Hearted River, Part One”

I headed north on Highway 93 around 1 pm. It was cool and windy, and I could see flurries of snow in the mountains ahead of me. I always feel such great anticipation during this part of the drive, and I remembered making the drive at other times of the year, doing other things with other people, and always having the sense that I am gravitating toward Ketchum. It’s funny to think of the warm summer nights on Big Cottonwood Creek, when I sat on the porch and looked across the Magic Valley to the Pioneer Mountains and wondered who had watched them fill with snow and returned to see that the snow had melted. Nothing about the drive reminded me of my dad except loading the car, driving past the duck club on the Jordan River and the other one on the Bear River, looking for ducks when I passed canals, geese in fields, bridges over rivers, and birds circling; the exit at Tremonton that we used to take to hunt and fish in Swan Valley (in the winter, the ducks would circle over the cottonwoods and disappear and reappear over the channel under the branches, closer than you were ever used to seeing them); looking out into the sagebrush, wondering if it held sage grouse; and the drive to Magic Valley where we took our last hunting trip that winter, when I broke through the ice on the Big Wood River, and I didn’t know if it would be 10 inches deep or 10 feet.

What I did not know going north is how much better I would understand this way when I took it, just a few days later, going south. I drove on knowing that I could share this experience and return to it.
— Rob Wilson, May 2022

* * *

Rob’s journey to his Hemingway House residency began in September 2016, when he received an invitation to that year’s Ernest Hemingway Seminar from his best friend from graduate school, Jeff Motychak. Titled Hemingway and Nature, the seminar was to feature discussions on “Big Two-Hearted River” and aimed to, in the words of The Community Library, “stimulate deep thinking about the role of nature in Hemingway’s works.” It was a perfect opportunity for two natural scientists fascinated by Hemingway and would play a transformative role in Rob’s life. “I was so deeply inspired,” Rob remembered. “I came back different.”

Rob has participated in the seminar each fall since, and in 2019 joined the planning committee to assist in its arrangement. His annual journey north is a pilgrimage of sorts, where he observes the landscape, reflects, and recharges. It’s also a chance for him to connect with Hemingway enthusiasts—literary scholars, scientists, art curators, educators, writers, and the curious public—who gather to examine a Hemingway novel, topic, or even passage. It was through these discussions that Rob built a relationship with the library, which in September 2021 extended a writer-in-residence invitation, initially hoping Rob would use the time to write the Hemingway lessons he had developed into teaching resources for other educators, a goal that would expand in the intervening months. And though he knew the experience would be deeply personal, he and Upper School Principal Ingrid Gustavson also knew it was a valuable opportunity, a chance to further help students perceive, seek, and discover connections in their learning, and they decided he would schedule the trip during the school year.

“So much of what we're doing with kids in education is modeling lifelong learning,” explained Ingrid. “This opportunity allowed Rob to explore, through his biologist lens, his observer lens, the home of a literary giant and give a new perspective on it.”

So many scientists know the quantitative evidence of what they’re looking at, but the quantitative evidence doesn’t matter unless you know who you’re impacting.—Annie Nash, class of 2023

It’s this kind of thinking that can change students’ lives. For upper schooler Annie Nash, who was first introduced to Hemingway in 2020 as one of Rob’s ninth-grade biology students, and who identifies as both a scientist and an artist, the confluence of subjects in Rob’s classroom felt natural, freeing her to think about how she can apply both sides of herself to her life’s work.

“I never really imagined art separate from the sciences,” she explained. “Science is artistic, nature is artistic, math is artistic—we can’t separate them.” And the older she gets, Annie said, the more she realizes an interdisciplinary approach to education is preparing her for a dynamic world that needs creative-minded and collaborative thinkers to take on its big challenges. “So many scientists know the quantitative evidence of what they’re looking at,” she said, “but the quantitative evidence doesn’t matter unless you know who you’re impacting.”

An aspiring pharmaceutical scientist, Annie knows her personal definition of success depends on more than an understanding of analytical chemistry and biostatistics. One area she’s especially concerned about is the historically negative impact of medicine on marginalized communities. She worries that the traditional approach to science education, one that focuses strictly on data, leaves scientists removed from the real-world impact of their work, and she believes applying topics like English, art, and history to her science studies helps her recognize worrying trends in her desired field so she can do her part to interrupt them. Novels and short stories are especially powerful ways to frame this history, she’s learned. More than other media, they effectively invite readers to reflect on humanity’s shared history and paint an understanding of how the human journey—what we’ve believed, what we’ve valued, how we’ve lived—has shaped the current world so readers can take away lessons for their own lives.

“You understand the time period but also separate the good and the bad—and then further the good in your own studies,” said Annie. “Scientists are sometimes viewed as being antisocial hermits who are detached from real-world issues. I want to break this stereotype so that I can encourage others to be empathetic in their research, to always strive to better the world.”

Cottonwoods

Best of all, he loved the fall. The leaves yellow on the cottonwoods, leaves floating on the trout streams, and above the hills the high, blue, windless skies.
— Ernest Hemingway, eulogy for Gene Van Guilder

I can track with my eye the flow through the deepest part of the channel that would have ruptured the beaver dam. The flow is deflected off of the bedrock wall. Parts of the channel are visible from the east-facing windows, and it is easy to imagine that residents of the house would have watched the river shape this bend over the years. They would have seen cottonwoods bloom with beet-colored catkins, fill in with lush green leaves, and fill the air with a distinct perfume; leaves yellow on the cottonwoods; and the transformation to black and white skeletons against the winter land. From here, they could watch the plumes of snow raised by the wind from the highest peaks. They would have heard the gossip of geese and had a view into the nests of hawks and private lives of kinglets, and been witness to the comings and goings of myriad birds throughout the year. It saddens me to know how much Ernest would have enjoyed this setting over the decades he could have lived here and did not. He has left us his gifts of perception so that we may enjoy it ourselves and teach others to experience the sublime and to protect it.

Teaching is a service of paying forward knowledge, skills, and values that enable another to cope and thrive in an ever-changing world. You can’t be a beacon if your light doesn’t shine. Mary could have walked away, and she chose to stay and have the house protected in perpetuity. The house on the hill of bedrock above the sea of cottonwoods is a beacon that both signals danger and radiates hope.
— Rob Wilson, May 2022

* * *

The house on the hill is designed to maximize its view.

From its wide patios, large windows, or broad lawn, visitors gaze upon a landscape of colors and textures: snow-capped peaks of the Boulder and Pioneer mountains, the Big Wood River flowing over gray stones, the dark trunks and lush foliage of black cottonwoods that, in late spring as they burst into new life, fill the warming air with a honey scent.

Cottonwood forests, or galleries, tell a story of resilience: their survival depends upon the ability of seedlings to keep their roots in contact with capillary fringe, the area of soil that draws moisture from the water table. When flood conditions are met, the trees grow in cohorts, but most years, due to weather or human disruption, those conditions are not met. As a result, one cohort of cottonwoods matures to nurture the next, a process that strengthens the entire gallery.

There are times, though, when a cottonwood forest stops regenerating altogether, a process that happens so gradually the untrained eye misses the first signs. For the caregivers of the Hemingway House and its estate, a loss like this—of Mary’s desire for how the property would continue on—would especially hurt, and so Rob volunteered to conduct the first biological inventory, a task necessary to fully realize Mary’s vision.

“It's the library’s mission, as stewards, to protect that little bit of land,” he explained. “The biggest thing I could offer was to describe the living landscape for them.”

In addition to writing teaching resources, Rob spent hours of his residency walking the property’s 13.9 acres looking for cottonwood saplings as evidence of regeneration and documenting the landscape, from the bedrock on which the house stands to the kinglets and house wrens calling into early spring mornings, all of which he included in a reference document for the land’s ongoing protection and conservation—his personal contribution to its stewardship. “This idea of stewardship is: if you're here, it's your job to take care of things,” said Rob. “That's maintaining a landscape, if that's what you have the opportunity to do, or a place, or a relationship.”

A recurrent theme at Rowland Hall is: be the change you want to see in the world. That’s stewardship. My message to students is they can be interested in something and cultivate it and watch it become bigger and better than they ever imagined.—Rob Wilson

As a scientist, Rob has too often seen how our time in history is marked by a collective lack of stewardship, from climate change to the imperiled animals he studies, and he believes each individual plays a role in stewarding our world. He knows that if in his classroom he can tap into our shared humanity by breaking down learning silos and showing students how their passions, whatever those are, connect to something bigger, he can better prepare them to be the people the world needs.

“A recurrent theme at Rowland Hall is: be the change you want to see in the world. That’s stewardship,” said Rob. “My message to students is they can be interested in something and cultivate it and watch it become bigger and better than they ever imagined.”

It’s a perspective that can be found in hundreds of ways across Rowland Hall classrooms, from cross-disciplinary teaching partnerships in the Upper School to experiential learning in the Beginning School. “Adults at Rowland Hall model so well how to see connections in the world, to get excited about learning across disciplines,” said Ingrid. “No one is too young or too old to discover things we really care about, then go deep and figure out how to teach them to others, support a cause, or further someone else's learning.”

This sharing of knowledge is often viewed as a pinnacle of education, a way of students continuing the journey their teachers set them on. Just as a younger cohort of cottonwoods benefits from the stability and nourishment provided by an older cohort, students benefit from their teachers’ examples, then go on to share what they know. “The true test of a student's learning is not the answer they write on an exam,” said Rob. “It is how they share what they learned with the people around them.”

Ingrid remembered seeing evidence of this truth in May when she stopped by Rob’s classroom to find him and three earth science students caring for tanks of betta fish and the class jellyfish, Calypso. Rob encouraged the students to tell Ingrid about the creatures, which they excitedly did, showing her how they harvest brine shrimp for jellyfish food and test the water, and sharing who was caring for the animals over the summer. In that moment, Ingrid said, she realized the students had fully taken ownership of their learning. “This is theirs now,” she thought.

“I always thought science was supposed to be very straightforward—not bringing your own opinion, your own feelings into it,” said Hope Thomas, one of the students in the classroom that day, and Calypso’s summer caretaker. “For a while, it made it a hard subject for me because I’m a very creative person.” But being in Rob’s classes, where she’s encouraged to see connections among areas of study that another science teacher may never approach, Hope realized that making science personal wasn’t just okay, it was necessary to understanding, and taking on, the challenges of today. 

“It makes it more applicable to us when we can think about science in a more personal way,” she said. “When you care about it more, you are more willing to take action.”

And ultimately, this is the goal of education: to help students make meaningful connections about what matters to them and take action to leave the world a better place than they found it. It’s a lesson, Rob has found, that means more to him with each passing year and is especially clear when he returns to The Old Man and the Sea, the book that started his journey, and the one Hemingway himself called “an epilogue to all my writing and what I have learned, or tried to learn, while writing and trying to live.” With the benefit of time, study, and lived experience, said Rob, it’s now more than just a fishing story—it’s a reminder of what is most precious in the time he has.

“What gets me now,” he said, “is the poignancy of how brief a moment is going to be.”

Authentic Learning

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Banner photo credits: Ernest Hemingway by Robert Capa (c) International Center of Photography/Magnum Photos; Mary Hemingway courtesy of the Jeanne Rodger Lane Center for Regional History, Dorice Taylor Collection. Other photographs provided by The Community Library and Rob Wilson.

Special thanks to The Community Library for their partnership on this story.

Each August, Rowland Hall holds a Convocation ceremony, a traditional gathering that brings our school community together to connect, learn, and celebrate the start of a new school year. This year’s event, held the morning of Friday, August 26, centered around the theme, and school value, Think Deeply.

Every year, Rowland Hall’s student body president is invited to address the group of students, faculty, staff, trustees, alumni, and families gathered for Convocation. (Look back at the 2021 and 2020 speeches.) For his speech, student body president Charlie Frech challenged students to help create a great school year by finding ways to think deeply—about friendship, self-discovery, and personal challenges. His speech, lightly edited for style and context, appears below.

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Hello, everyone. My name is Charlie Frech, and I am the student body president.

After reflecting on the school value Think Deeply, I have come to the conclusion that there is only one way to demonstrate the merit of this theme: a show-and-tell. Through this trip down memory lane, I hope to demonstrate that thinking deeply is possible at every age, no matter your grade level, and it should be a central component of your experience this year at Rowland Hall.

What I remember most from my days in 4PreK was not the lesson plans of what I learned or the everyday activities we completed, but the friendships I made.—Charlie Frech, class of 2023

My first item that I have brought for you today is my 4PreK yearbook. While flipping through the nostalgic pages of this book, I recognized that while I do miss aspects of 4PreK, like naptime or the “Tricycle Grand Prix,” where my classmates and I competitively raced one another throughout the playground on school-provided tricycles, what I remember most from my days in 4PreK was not the lesson plans of what I learned or the everyday activities we completed, but the friendships I made. After completing 4PreK, I left Rowland Hall, and later returned in seventh grade. For me, the friendships I made in my 4PreK class provided me with much-needed ease from the stresses of being a new student. To this day, I still appreciate the kindness and friendship that Heidi Paisley, Katerina Mantas, Jordan Van Orman, Julia Summerfield, Maile Fukushima, Mikel Lawlor, and Noah Shewell offered me when I entered the doors of the Lincoln Street Campus in seventh grade—as many of my current classmates remember, a shy kid with an extremely over-gelled, slicked-back hairdo. And no, it is not a perm. Thus, for all of the beginning and lower school students, I urge you to think deeply about how you can make new friends this year, because relationships matter.

The next item I brought to my show-and-tell today is an audio recording of me from Mr. Ainsworth’s eighth-grade Spanish class, butchering pop star Marc Anthony’s world-famous song Vivir Mi Vida with my own take on the lyrics.

Let me be the first to apologize to all of you, especially to my eighth-grade younger brother, Andrew Frech. I realize I may have just become a meme in the Middle School. But that horrific noise we all just heard surprisingly also provides a lesson on how to think deeply. In middle school, students start to find and use their own unique voices, literally and figuratively, as they learn more complicated subjects and transition into teenagers. This year, I challenge all of the middle schoolers to think deeply about how they will find their voices, whether through public speaking, artistic or athletic expression, or service projects. Luckily for all of us, I never pursued developing my voice as a singer.

The last item I brought today was our final project from physics last year: a model airplane. To me, this object represents the final way we can think deeply: by applying the lessons we learn from our teachers in order to develop our abilities to think critically, take risks, and solve problems creatively in the outside world. When my buddy Alex Yang and I worked on this plane last year, we faced many challenges. The wheels were too weak to hold the plane up, our propeller kept flying off our motor, and the electrical tape we used to attach our wires kept falling off. Nevertheless, we used the skills of diligence and hard work that Mr. Hori taught us to build our plane. For all of the high schoolers, I encourage you to continue to think deeply and apply the skills and values you learn inside the classroom to every facet of your life in the outside world. Sophomores, use the lessons of angles from your math class to prepare for the treacherous endeavor of parallel parking on campus as you are running late for class. Or seniors, apply the lessons of perseverance that you have learned from the late nights of writing essays and preparing for final exams to survive the toil and anguish of senioritis.

I want all of you, no matter your grade level, to realize the importance of thinking deeply, and how it encompasses all of Rowland Hall’s core values.—Charlie Frech

If I want you to take anything away from this Convocation speech, it is not that I am a horrible singer. Rather, I want all of you, no matter your grade level, to realize the importance of thinking deeply, and how it encompasses all of Rowland Hall’s core values: learning for life, welcoming everyone, living with purpose, and forming meaningful relationships. Thinking deeply applies to how we build friendships. It is completely in our control the level of kindness and empathy we show, and how much we support and care about others. Think deeply to make a new friend this year. Additionally, think deeply about how you challenge yourself and find your voice. Try something new. Join the band, play a new sport, take a new elective, create a club. Finally, apply everything you think deeply about in the classroom and apply those lessons to your life outside of Rowland Hall. Rowland Hall is an amazing school because it teaches you how to think, not only what to think. To conclude, I want to welcome all of our new students. We are delighted to have you join our community. I wish all the students, the teachers, and the administration the very best of school years, and, in the words of Marc Anthony, I hope you all have time to smile, to dance, and to live your best lives because I know that for me:

Voy a reír, voy a bailar 
Vivir mi vida, la la la la

Thank you.

Student Voices

Rowland Hall is excited to welcome students back to our two campuses for the 2022–2023 school year.

The first days of school are always exciting, and this year was no exception. As students and families arrived on Wednesday, August 24, they were greeted by an enthusiastic team of faculty and staff, and had the chance to say hello to friends, old and new. Some of our youngest learners also got to meet Roary, our school mascot, who was ready to give high-fives and pose for pictures as students made their way to class. Students also had the chance to come together this week at events like the Lower School's first community gathering of the year and the all-school Convocation.

Below, please enjoy some of the images captured over the first few days of school.

Community

Rowland Hall is thrilled to welcome students and families to the 2022–2023 school year.

As you spend time on our campuses in the following weeks, you’ll get to know the newest additions to our faculty and staff, as well as see some of our returning team members in new, adjusted, or expanded roles. For your convenience, we’ve listed these staffing changes below. (Please refer to Fond Farewells 2022 for a list of those not returning for this school year.) Be sure to check back, as this list will continue to be updated during the school year.

Administration and Staff

New Staff

• Teal Beltran joins Rowland Hall as an all-school nurse.
• Marlee Brown joins Rowland Hall as the advancement services manager. 
• Cassie Ford joins Rowland Hall as the payroll/benefits specialist.
• Braden Morrill joins Rowland Hall as the director of annual giving.
• Nicholas Renzo joins Rowland Hall as the director of people.

Administration and Staff Role Changes

• Alec Baden, formerly director of transportation, is now director of transportation and safety.
• Lindsay Carver, formerly the director of the Annual Fund, is now director of major gifts.
• Brittney Hansen ’02, formerly the Beginning School assistant principal, is now a Beginning School and Lower School assistant principal.
• Eric Schmitz, formerly a second-grade teacher, is now a Beginning School and Lower School assistant principal.
• Gita Varner ’05, formerly the manager of COVID campus response and safety, is now the operations project manager.

Beginning School

New Beginning School Faculty and Staff

• Jordan Capps joins Rowland Hall as a 4PreK assistant teacher, working alongside Lauren Augusta.
• Jenn Carrino joins Rowland Hall as an assistant kindergarten teacher, working alongside Melanie Robbins.
• Julianne Harmon joins Rowland Hall as a McCarthey Campus librarian.
• Tsering Kabsang joins Rowland Hall as the Beginning School associate teacher.
• Deborah Wright joins Rowland Hall as the McCarthey Campus emotional support counselor.

Beginning School Role Changes

• Melinda Canfield, formerly a long-term substitute teacher and classroom aide, is now a three-day 3PreK assistant teacher, working alongside Gail Rose.
• Mary Grace Ellison, formerly a kindergarten assistant teacher, is now a lead kindergarten teacher.
• Emma Shear, formerly the Beginning School associate teacher, is now an assistant kindergarten teacher, working alongside Mary Grace Ellison.
• Ella Slaker, formerly a 4PreK assistant teacher, is now a 4PreK lead teacher.
• Vicki Smith, formerly a kindergarten assistant teacher, is now a McCarthey Campus librarian.

Lower School

New Lower School Faculty and Staff

• Jenn Anderson joins Rowland Hall as the Lower School learning specialist.
• Julianne Harmon joins Rowland Hall as a McCarthey Campus librarian.
• Meredith Johnson joins Rowland Hall as a third-grade teacher.
• Sam Johnson joins Rowland Hall as a fifth-grade teacher.
• Lexi Kemp joins Rowland Hall as a third-grade teacher.
• Fabian Liesner joins Rowland Hall as a part-time Lower School PE teacher.
• Nico Napolski joins Rowland Hall as the Lower School science specialist.
• Deborah Wright joins Rowland Hall as the McCarthey Campus emotional support counselor.

Lower School Role Changes

• Vicki Smith, formerly a kindergarten assistant teacher, is now a McCarthey Campus librarian.
• Katie Williams, formerly a kindergarten lead teacher, is now a first-grade teacher.

Middle School

New Middle School Faculty and Staff

• Sophia Cutrubus ’18, pictured top, joins Rowland Hall as a part-time middle and upper school dance teacher.
• Mindy Leo joins Rowland Hall as a part-time academic support counselor.
• Jon Poll joins Rowland Hall as a computer science teacher.
• Brady Smith joins Rowland Hall as the eighth-grade English teacher.
• Dan Trockman joins Rowland Hall as the sixth-grade science teacher.

Middle School Role Changes

• Zack Alvidrez, formerly the interim Middle School athletic director, is now assistant athletic director.
• Molly Lewis, formerly a sixth-grade math and science teacher, is now the middle and upper school ceramics teacher.

Upper School

New and Returning Upper School Faculty

• Brian Birchler returns to Rowland Hall as a part-time Upper School math teacher.
• Paul Christensen returns to Rowland Hall as a part-time Upper School math teacher.
• Sophia Cutrubus ’18, pictured top, joins Rowland Hall as a part-time middle and upper school dance teacher.
• Xiao Shen joins Rowland Hall as an Upper School math teacher.
• Brenna Thomas joins Rowland Hall as an Upper School math teacher and ninth-grade advisor.

Upper School Role Changes

• Zack Alvidrez, formerly the interim Middle School athletic director, is now assistant athletic director.
• Molly Lewis, formerly a sixth-grade math and science teacher, is now the middle and upper school ceramics teacher.

Rowmark Ski Academy

New and Returning Rowmark Staff

• Peter Girardi joins Rowmark as FIS and head conditioning coach.
• Tristan McInnis ’14 returns to Rowmark as FIS coach and equipment manager.
• Ben Throm joins Rowmark as FIS coach.

Rowmark Role Changes

• Brian Morgan, formerly head men's FIS coach and equipment manager, is now head men's and women's FIS coach.

People

Carolyn Uhle, director of human resources, leaves Rowland Hall after 29 years. In addition to her most recent role, Carolyn also served as Lower School administrative assistant and accounts payable and payroll associate. As director of human resources, she was instrumental in building the school’s human resource practice, supporting faculty and staff, and ensuring that the school meets employment laws and regulations. Carolyn has brought to her work a genuine love of people, a deep care for the school, and a sense of humor. "I'm looking forward to being able to spend time with my family, follow my passions, and create new adventures,” she said. Read Carolyn’s retirement tribute.

Stuart McCandless (pictured top), fifth-grade teacher, is re-retiring after an encore year. Stuart first began teaching at Rowland Hall in 2001, retired for the 2020–2021 school year, and returned for 2021–2022. During these years, Stuart has impacted hundreds of fifth-grade students and their families and built strong classroom communities that foster deep and careful thinking, teamwork, and personal growth. He’s looking forward to spending more time with his wife, Peggy, in retirement, and we hope to have him back as a substitute from time to time.

Lori Miller, Lower School assistant principal, is retiring after 15 years of dedicated service to the beginning and lower schools. This year, she supported the new academic leadership team on the McCarthey Campus as Lower School assistant principal, but has spent most of her time at Rowland Hall as the director of learning services. Lori is a phenomenal resource, loved for her presence, humanity, and ardent encouragement for others. We are thrilled she'll have time for more travel, gardening, and being with her dear ones. She will be missed.

Andrea Beckman, Middle School administrative assistant, left Rowland Hall at the end of March, after nearly 14 years at the school, for an opportunity at Huntsman Cancer Institute. The heart and soul of the Middle School, Andrea worked tirelessly behind the scenes to support the entire division. She handled difficult situations with grace and professionalism and never said no to a colleague or friend in need. Her humor, kindness, and team spirit will be missed, and we look forward to seeing her at community events.

Beth Ott, 4PreK assistant teacher, leaves Rowland Hall after 13 years. Beth worked as an assistant teacher in both 4PreK and kindergarten, and was also the director of auxiliary programs for 10 years. Extraordinarily kind, patient, self-reflective, even-keeled, and curious, Beth is a cherished colleague, teacher, mentor, and friend, and she will be missed.

Dan Mitchell, middle and upper school ceramics teacher, leaves Rowland Hall after 12 years. Many students have repeatedly taken Dan’s classes, developing into skilled, masterful ceramicists, and many more have benefited from the welcoming, calming atmosphere of his classroom. We will miss Dan’s commitment to his craft and his ability to connect with students—not to mention his incredible T-shirt collection, music, storytelling, and love of cars.

Garrett Alberico, bus driver, resigned in September 2021 after 10 years with the school. He’ll be remembered for his years of hard work and his dedication to Rowland Hall and our families.

Linda Tatomer, Lower School assistant principal, left Rowland Hall in November 2021 after nearly 10 combined years at the school. In addition to this most recent role, Linda previously served as the Lower School specialty principal, the Lower School assistant principal, and a Middle School teacher. She had returned to Rowland Hall in the shared assistant principal role to support the transition to a new team of leaders in the beginning and lower schools.

I am very proud to have worked at Rowland Hall and with such outstanding colleagues.—Cheryl Birt, retiring McCarthey Campus library

Cheryl Birt, McCarthey Campus librarian, retires after eight years at Rowland Hall. Her dedication, organization, and welcoming smile will be missed. “I am very proud to have worked at Rowland Hall and with such outstanding colleagues,” she said.

Charles Cain departs Rowland Hall after eight years to work for his family's business. During his time at the school, Charles made delicious meals in the Lincoln Street Campus cafeteria during the school year and helped the McCarthey Campus operations team during summers. He was generous in his treatment of faculty, staff, students, and visitors alike, leading by example the many young employees who worked alongside him, and always giving his best and bringing pride to his day-to-day routine.

Emina Alibegović, Upper School mathematics teacher, leaves after six years at Rowland Hall. As Math Department chair, Emina led the redesign of the math curriculum, incorporating an integrated sequence and expanded curricular pathways for students of all abilities and interests. Committed to student and peer success, she has served as an advisor, led professional development work, initiated Friday hikes with students, and was in the vanguard when the school pivoted to distance learning in 2020. We’ll miss her energy, expertise, and commitment.

Trina Empey, student accounts manager, left Rowland Hall in December 2021 to relocate out of state, though she continued to support the school into March. Over the last six years, Trina developed strong relationships with families, streamlined the school’s billing and collection processes, and significantly reduced receivables. She always kept the needs of students and families at the center of her work, and brought a lot of laughter to the office.

Lyndsay Strange, Rowmark Ski Academy FIS coach, leaves Rowland Hall after six years to move to Washington State, where she will pursue new opportunities and adventures. Lyndsay has held multiple roles with Rowmark, bringing infectious positive energy, deep knowledge of all aspects of Alpine ski coaching, and an unwavering passion to find the next bottomless powder turn. She always kept it fun while pushing athletes to reach their potential and will be missed.

Chelsea Vasquez, eighth-grade English teacher, leaves Rowland Hall for new adventures after six years at the school. During her time here, Chelsea taught seventh- and eighth-grade English, and she will be remembered as a kind, caring, funny, humble, smart, and passionate teacher and a champion of all students—connecting with them, advocating for them, and inspiring them. She will be greatly missed.

Carly Biedul, Lower School science teacher, leaves Rowland Hall after five years. Carly joined the Lower School team as a long-term substitute in 2017, and has gotten elementary students fired up about science ever since. A dynamic and knowledgeable educator, Carly will be remembered for her humor, warmth, and energy. We wish her well as she finds her next grand adventure.

Kate Ferguson, Steiner Library assistant, leaves Rowland Hall after five years. Kate has been an integral part of the library, welcoming students and sparking joy for books and stories, and she brought warmth, deep knowledge, and a terrific sense of humor to her work. Though we will miss Kate as a full-time staff member, she will continue to be part of the community as a substitute teacher next year.

Niure Damico, advancement services manager, leaves for a new opportunity after nearly five years at the school. In addition to her support of the Advancement Department, Niure was an Upper School advisor and, prior to this year, worked as the Upper School administrative professional. We wish her the best of luck.

Matthew Collins, third-grade teacher, leaves Rowland Hall for a new opportunity after four years at the school. During his time here, Matthew has held many roles: fourth-grade teacher, third-grade teacher, ombudsperson, Strategic Plan Implementation Committee member, instructional coach, and Lower School representative on the Strategic Priority Task Force. A skilled and thoughtful educator, Matthew is admired by all who know him. He will be sincerely missed.

Jacade Narcisse, bus driver, left Rowland Hall in December 2021 after a combined four years at the school. Those lucky enough to cross paths with Jacade know of his genuine kindness, extended to everyone he meets, and hard work and dedication to Rowland Hall and our families.

Kirsten White leaves Rowland Hall after four years to work closer to home and better support the needs of her family at this time. During her time at the school, Kirsten worked in the Beginning School Enrichment program, for Extended Day, and as a 3PreK Assistant Teacher. We have so enjoyed having Kirsten on the faculty and wish her the best.

Nevah Stevenson, director of major gifts, left Rowland Hall in April after nearly three years at the school to become executive director of the Catholic Foundation of Utah. Nevah’s positivity and professionalism were an asset to the Advancement Department, where she worked to raise funds for the new Steiner Campus. She will be missed.

Foreste Peterson, Rowmark head women's FIS coach and head conditioning coach, leaves the school after two years to become assistant coach for the US Ski Team women's Development Team. Foreste led the Rowmark women's FIS team and conditioning program with tremendous expertise and enthusiasm. She is a tireless professional who—thanks to her experiences as a World Cup athlete, NCAA athlete, and Rowmark coach—will bring a lot to the table at the next level.

Irina Eikenberry, Upper School math teacher, leaves after one year. We are grateful for Irina's expertise in the creation of a new course: data science. This was a challenge, as there was no previous teacher's work to build upon, but Irina did it with grace, hard work, and professionalism. Students, and her colleagues, love Irina's kind and caring nature in the classroom and beyond. We wish her well as she works to complete her master's degree in statistics and enjoys life as a newlywed.

Marcus Riley, Lower School associate teacher, has completed his year with the Lower School. Marcus was just who was needed during another wacky COVID year—he rolled up his sleeves, figuratively and literally, to support every teacher, grade level, and student in the division, meeting many a curveball with flexibility, humor, and a can-do attitude. While he won’t be the associate teacher next year, since this was a one-year position, we’re glad he’s agreed to be a substitute teacher and are confident we’ll see a lot of him in this capacity.

Danielle Thomas, McCarthey Campus emotional support counselor, leaves Rowland Hall after one year to relocate with her family. Danielle jumped into our beginning and lower school communities with both feet—and her head and heart too. She quickly became a safe adult for many of our students and an invaluable member of the student support team. Danielle’s humor, warmth, and unflappable approach have meant so much to so many on the McCarthey Campus this year. She will be missed.

Chelsea Zussman, assistant nurse on the McCarthey Campus, leaves after one year at Rowland Hall. Chelsea quickly became an integral part of the team, working with students, families, and employees with grace, humor, and care during a very demanding year. Chelsea is returning to full-time parenthood but promises she will return to fill in when needed in the future. Thank you, Chelsea!

Sonya Cotton, Beginning School and Lower School logistics manager, leaves Rowland Hall after nearly a year to relocate with her family. Sonya temporarily stepped in mid-year to manage various essential components of the school day, all with good cheer, attention to detail, and a collaborative approach. We’ll miss you!

Josh Scheuerman leaves Rowland Hall after teaching the Middle School mixed media art class this past semester to return to his full-time job as a muralist. Schedule permitting, he may return to work with students as a visiting artist in the future.

Brina Serassio, dance ensemble teacher, leaves Rowland Hall after one year. During her time at the school, Brina inspired beginning dancers and helped to lay the foundation both for a strong dance program and the lifelong love of dance and artistic expression amongst middle schoolers. Schedule permitting, Brina may return throughout the next school year as a visiting artist, to help with Winter Sports, and to judge dance auditions.

People

Each year at division commencement ceremonies, Rowland Hall proudly honors faculty who have demonstrated exceptional teaching and mentoring.

Sumner/Larsen Excellence in Teaching Awards

The Sumner/Larsen Excellence in Teaching Faculty Awards are given each year to outstanding faculty members in each division who have demonstrated a love for teaching and excellence in their fields. This award was established in 1985 by Kit Sumner and his wife, Molly, who have shown an unparalleled commitment to Rowland Hall for three generations. In 2022, Kurt Larsen, who shares the Sumners’ high regard for Rowland Hall’s faculty and dedication to the school, joined Kit Sumner in funding this award to increase its impact. The newly renamed Sumner/Larsen Excellence in Teaching Faculty Award is one of the highest recognitions of excellence in teaching at Rowland Hall. Congratulations to the following recipients.

Beginning School: Gail Rose, 3PreK lead teacher

Gail Rose is like a unicorn: she is magical, enchanting, and adventurous, and her hair looks great in the wind. She inspires wonder in those around her, and her enthusiasm for learning and play is equally contagious amongst young children and adults. An insatiable learner and enthusiastic advocate for early childhood education, she reads widely, attends tons of webinars, and soaks up every opportunity for professional development—learning that translates to new ideas, connections, and passions to share with her young students and colleagues. She has been a beacon of steady positivity, and she and her merry band of students delight all who visit their classroom. She is a spark of joy, curiosity, and tenacity that lights a fire in others.

Lower School: Susanna Mellor, first-grade teacher

Susanna Mellor is an exceptionally reflective and thoughtful practitioner, with a nearly infinite well of patience and compassion. Her classroom community brims with positivity, deep thinking, mutual respect, and just the right amount of silliness. A highly effective and admired teacher, Susanna has worked hard to hone her craft, and is always open to learn more, tackle new challenges, and connect with colleagues for their perspectives and insight. She is calm and centered, and an exemplary colleague, providing a listening ear to those who need one, helpful advice when asked, and, even in the busiest, most stressful times, prioritizing care and community as an ally, advocate, and friend.

Middle School: Anna Wolfe, seventh-grade science teacher

Anna Wolfe is respected by her colleagues and beloved by her students. She loves teaching, seeking out opportunities for professional growth, collaboration, and development. Full of energy and cheer, Anna goes above and beyond: volunteering for committees, organizing events for students and teachers alike, single-handedly running Student Council, organizing a seventh-grade class trip, and more, all in addition to planning and engaging dynamic lessons. She sets the bar high for herself and for her students in the science classroom. She works tirelessly to bring out the best in every student, believing each is a scientist and aiming to ensure they see the connection between science and the world around them.

Upper School: Lisa Friedman, math teacher

Lisa Friedman loves teaching. She is continuously looking to grow her craft and focuses on improving student learning outcomes and the student experience. Lisa empowers students, placing them in dialogue with each other and encouraging them to work together. She is not afraid to set a high bar, and does it with a seemingly endless reserve of support, patience, and kindness. She is also a consummate professional and a respected colleague, embracing aspects of being an educator beyond the classroom and volunteering for service in other areas of school life: she’s a ninth-grade advisor, serves on the Honor Council, organized a pandemic-era Interim tennis tournament, and has gone on countless hikes with students.

Cary Jones Faculty Mentor Award 2022

The Cary Jones Faculty Mentor Award is presented to Rowland Hall faculty members who demonstrate excellence in teaching, serve as mentors to others, and contribute to the Rowland Hall community. This award was established through an anonymous gift to the school in honor of Mr. Jones’ dedication to the faculty when he was the chair of the Board of Trustees.

This year’s Cary Jones Faculty Mentor Award has been awarded to two Rowland Hall educators: Ben Smith ’89, computer science teacher, and Christian Waters, director of technology integration. Ben and Christian have reenergized the computer science program, growing some of the most sought-out electives in the middle and upper schools. Self-taught computer scientists, they model many of the traits we aspire to at Rowland Hall: a love of lifelong learning, resiliency, and empathy, to name but a few. They are receptive to the needs of students and our community, regularly offering professional learning opportunities and workshops for students, teachers, and parents/caregivers. They encourage a safe classroom environment, supporting and challenging students to think creatively and critically—when you walk into their classroom, you see and hear students actively creating, collaborating, and solving problems. When we look at our future programming, their classroom and vision is at the forefront of our strategic priority work.

For their teaching excellence, mentorship, and contributions to the school community, Rowland Hall proudly honors Ben Smith and Christian Waters with the 2022 Cary Jones Faculty Mentor Award.

People

Carolyn Uhle’s title at Rowland Hall is director of human resources.

It’s a good title, but it really doesn’t give you a full picture of what Carolyn does. Every day at the school, Carolyn functions as a psychologist, a sociologist, a mediator, a proofreader, an accountant, a policy keeper, and a problem solver.

“We are so lucky to have Carolyn,” said Chief Financial Officer Gwen Fonarow. “She is that rare person who can see the big picture yet at the same time respond to each situation with care, understanding that people and their needs can be so vastly different.”

We are so lucky to have Carolyn. She is that rare person who can see the big picture yet at the same time respond to each situation with care, understanding that people and their needs can be so vastly different.—Gwen Fonarow, chief financial officerCarolyn is the first person to hold the director of human resources position in the history of the school, and her experience as a staff member for the last 25-plus years made her well suited for it. Because, like Rowland Hall, Carolyn grew and changed a lot in that time.

“When I was first hired, I was the administrative assistant to the Lower School principal,” said Carolyn. “After a few years I transferred into the Business Office, where I did accounts payable and eventually took on payroll, then added benefits. In 2016 I was made the human resources manager and began completing my certification in the field. Then, after completing the certification in 2019, I was made director of human resources.”

Each of Carolyn’s career changes at Rowland Hall echoes the story of a school transforming from a small niche campus in the Avenues to a dynamic, constantly growing multi-campus institution with a national reputation. After all, one of the reasons she became the school’s first human resources director is that, up until fairly recently, such a position wasn’t recognized as needed. “Things are so different now than when I started,” she said. “But what stays the same is that this is a place of open ideas and diversity that really cares about preparing students to impact their world in a positive way.”

The position of director of human resources isn’t directly involved in education. Carolyn doesn’t prepare lesson plans or grade papers, take attendance or schedule parent-teacher conferences. But she sees her job as supporting the students. “Even though I don’t have a lot of contact with kids, I try to support faculty so that they can do their jobs better, and I support managers and administration so they can support faculty,” she said. “Everyone here, at the end of the day, is here for the kids.” 

Everyone here, at the end of the day, is here for the kids.—Carolyn Uhle

In order to support the faculty and staff Carolyn has worked hard to put in place a foundation for employment practices and a model of equity across all divisions when it comes to human resources. Her goal, she said, is for everyone to receive equal treatment and access to benefits, no matter where they are working or who they report to. She has done this not only through her work, but by collaborating with others to ensure that there is fairness and understanding of policies among the faculty and staff. “I think workplace harmony is important to Carolyn,” said Gwen. “Of course, that doesn’t mean people don’t get upset. But it means that when they do, they’re heard and given fair answers.”

“Carolyn puts people first,” added Associate Head of School Jennifer Blake. “That isn’t always easy in her position, trying to balance the business interests of the school with the personal needs of the faculty and staff, but she works tirelessly doing it."

Maybe the reason Carolyn is so good at caring for people professionally is how much cares for them personally. If you ask anyone who has known Carolyn for an extended time, the first thing they will tell you is how much they value her as a friend and confidant. “Carolyn was the first person I went to when I received some bad news while at work,” said Director of Operations Ann Burnett. “The news came as a shock and I thought of nothing more but to seek her out in her office so we could process together.”

Chief Information Officer Patrick Godfrey said that Carolyn’s office often serves as a place of refuge for anyone in need of one. “You can walk in and shut the door and vent a bit and know it’s not going to go anywhere,” he said. “And she will always manage to make you laugh. Carolyn has an excellent sense of humor.”

That sense of humor has been the source of countless practical jokes at the school over the years. Carolyn has been a part of pranks involving tiny school photos of employees pasted into various locations around campus and a famous flying loaf of bread. For all her antics, though, Carolyn is willing to get as good as she gives. “Carolyn has a really sensitive sense of smell,” says Patrick. “We took hundreds of those hanging air freshener trees and put them all over her office. It took her almost a month and a half to find them all. She never got mad, though, she just kept laughing.”

As she looks toward the next chapter of her life, Carolyn said she’s looking forward to spending time with her parents, her partner, John, and their dogs and family, and to recharging her batteries for new adventures. Of course, that doesn’t mean we still won’t see Carolyn around campus—she is thrilled with the changes and growth on the school’s horizon, and as excited about Rowland Hall’s new chapter as she is for her own. She will always be a part of this community, in many ways—even in muscle memory.

“When I leave, I’m probably going to drive to school every morning at first because that’s been my habit for 29 years,” she chuckled.

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Banner: Carolyn with colleague Carol Frymire.

People

For most of her life, Arden Louchheim was a dual-sport athlete in golf and ski racing.

Arden first discovered an interest in golf at just three years old after her family moved to Park City and rented a house on a golf course, which gave the preschooler plenty of chances to hit golf balls, a skill she quickly discovered she was not only good at, but enjoyed. “When you’re a little kid you don’t get to hit stuff very often, so I thought that was fun,” she said.

Ski racing came just a couple years later, in kindergarten, and by the time Arden was in elementary school, she was succeeding in both sports. Thanks to the support of club pros and coaches on the golf course, Rowmark Ski Academy coaches on the mountain, and her parents—whom she credits with a no-pressure approach that drove her interest in both sports—Arden excelled. By the time she was an upper schooler, she was regularly playing in tournaments against the nation’s top young golfers, had joined the Rowland Hall’s girls golf team, and was competing for Rowmark. And though Arden was successfully juggling both sports, alongside her academic responsibilities, over time it started becoming clear that her long-term interest lay in golf. “I knew golf was what I should be doing and what I love the most,” she said. And because Arden wanted to play golf at the college level, she didn’t want to risk a racing injury derailing that goal. “I didn’t want to do anything that could mess up the rest of my golf career,” she said. 

 

Arden has been the player every coach dreams to have on their team. She is dedicated to the game, dedicated to the sport, and inspires everyone else around her.—Brianna Coopman, coach

So Arden made the difficult decision to quit Rowmark after her sophomore year to focus on her golf game, using the time previously spent on the slopes for golf-specific workouts, which target different muscles than ski conditioning does, and golf practices. As she worked, Arden dropped her score significantly—a welcome result as she began contacting schools of interest. With her parents’ help, said Arden, she made a list of schools she’d like to attend, narrowing them down not only based on their women’s golf programs, but also on their size and school pride. Though her family helped her make sure her choices were achievable, said Arden, some of them still felt like a reach, including the NCAA Division I University of Nebraska–Lincoln, which remained in the golfer’s top-three schools during nearly the entire recruiting process. “It felt for a long time that Nebraska was a dream,” she said.

But over time, by highlighting her achievements, determination, and team-positive attitude, Arden built a relationship with Jeanne Sutherland, head coach of Nebraska’s women’s golf team. They first emailed and talked on the phone, then Coach Sutherland came to watch Arden compete in a tournament and ended up offering her a spot on the team. In July, Arden headed to Lincoln for her first visit and immediately felt a connection to the golf team and coaches, and—necessary for the aspiring journalist—Nebraska’s College of Journalism and Mass Communications. At the conclusion of their trip, her parents asked her an important question: Would you want to be here with a broken leg?—meaning, if you couldn’t golf, would you still want to attend the school? For Arden, the answer was an enthusiastic yes. Later that month, she verbally committed to Nebraska, and this week she signed her National Letter of Intent, making her an official Husker.

“Arden has been the player every coach dreams to have on their team,” said Brianna Coopman, head coach of Rowland Hall’s girls golf team. “She is dedicated to the game, dedicated to the sport, and inspires everyone else around her. When I heard the news she was signing with Nebraska and the Big Ten Conference, I could not have been a prouder coach. Nebraska will be lucky to have her, and I have full confidence she will excel at both golf and academics during her time there. Congrats! Go, Cornhuskers!”

To celebrate Arden’s decision to golf for Nebraska, we asked her a few questions about her athletic journey. The following interview has been lightly edited.

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Congratulations on signing with Nebraska! You’ve long wanted to play golf for a large university; in 2020, you even told HER Fairways, “I would love to play for a D1 women’s golf team at a school with a lot of school spirit and a football team.” How does it feel to know you’ll be attending and competing for a Big Ten school next fall?

It still doesn’t totally feel real. If you compare Nebraska to what I said in the HER Fairways article, it literally checks every box that I had for a college and more. Not only does it have a strong golf program, a football team, and school spirit (for all sports, not just football), it also has one of the best journalism schools in the country, which is what I want to major in. I feel so incredibly lucky that I get to go to Nebraska next year because it truly feels like it is the perfect place for me.

There have been so many people who have put in time and effort to help me achieve this goal.—Arden Louchheim

The recruitment process is a long journey. How did you feel when you received the offer from Nebraska?

Overall, I felt so extremely grateful. Grateful to the Nebraska coaches, Coach Sutherland and Coach Zedrick, for their belief in me; grateful to my parents for their undying love and support; grateful to my coach for all of his guidance with my swing; and grateful to everyone else who supported me on this journey. There have been so many people who have put in time and effort to help me achieve this goal, so it was really amazing to see not only my hard work, but also everyone else’s effort, come to fruition. I also definitely felt some relief. I learned and grew so much from the recruiting process, but it was long and stressful, so it was nice knowing that I had finally reached the end of it.

You've had a successful golf career at Rowland Hall, including helping to lead your team to back-to-back 2A state championships, earning top 2A medalist honors for three consecutive seasons, and being named team MVP twice. What moment as a Winged Lion are you most proud of so far?

I am most proud of the team’s back-to-back state wins. It is really fun to win individually, but it is even more rewarding to come together as a team and achieve our goals as a unit. In the 2021 season I believe we only won state by three strokes, so we knew going into the 2022 season that we needed to practice hard to make sure we defended our state title. Watching all of my teammates come to practice motivated me every day, and seeing all of our hard work pay off with a large margin of victory at state in 2022 is a moment I am very proud of.

As previously mentioned, you’ve achieved so much already as a Rowland Hall golfer, but because girls golf is a spring sport for the UHSAA, you still have one more season to play before graduating. What are your hopes and/or goals for your final season as a Winged Lion?

My two main goals for the season are for the team to defend our back-to-back team state titles and for me individually to gain my fourth state title. My goal going into high school was to be a four-time state champion, so it would be really cool to achieve that goal with a win this year. Other goals I have include setting a new personal best for 18 holes, and maybe even trying to set a 2A record. My 67 in state last year was my personal best and set a Rowland Hall record, and I would love to try to lower that even further.

Tell us about the skills—both academic and athletic—you built at Rowland Hall that you'll be taking with you to Nebraska.

Rowland Hall played a massive part in achieving my goal of playing D1 college golf. Academically, Rowland Hall is a very challenging school, and while balancing golf and school was difficult, it taught me to be disciplined and to manage my time well. I learned to budget the time I had each day for practice, homework, workouts, and social events so that I could excel in academics and athletics while still enjoying time with friends and family. Additionally, the discussions that we have in classes like history and English helped me gain comfort expressing myself clearly and concisely. A lot of the recruiting process is emails and phone calls with coaches, and the speaking skills that Rowland Hall taught me benefited me greatly in these conversations with coaches.

Rowland Hall provided me with a place to grow as an athlete.—Arden Louchheim

Athletically, Rowland Hall provided me with a place to grow as an athlete and to experience team golf for one of the first times. Golf is largely an individual sport, and there are only a couple of team tournaments per year, so getting the chance to play with my classmates representing my school every year has been an incredible experience for me. Additionally, our school’s ski academy, Rowmark, is a very competitive program and the athletes are expected to hold themselves to the team’s high standards. These expectations instilled in me at a young age the responsibility, work ethic, and focus needed to be a member of the team. Once I built these habits, I was able to apply them outside of ski racing, and they have served extremely useful in my golf career, and my life as a whole. I have been at Rowland Hall since kindergarten and I take a lot of pride in this school, so getting a chance to use my athletic skills to represent the school is an opportunity I am very thankful for.

What do you think golf has taught you about yourself?

In my opinion, golf is one of the sports that most closely resembles life, so it has taught me so much about myself as an athlete but also just as a person. First and foremost, golf has taught me that I am a competitor. I love the feeling of adrenaline that comes with a must-make putt or a drive on a tight hole where I have to hit the fairway. The opportunity that competition provides to showcase every skill that I have worked so hard on is my favorite part of the sport. Golf has also taught me to be very, very resilient. In golf, progress is not always linear, and learning to fight through a single tough round or a couple weeks of rough play has made me a stronger golfer and person who is more prepared to face adversity.

Is there anything else you want our community to know about your athletic and/or academic journey?

I am so thankful for the support that Rowland Hall has provided me. Golf tournaments, as well as Rowmark events, required me to miss a lot of class, but my teachers were always so understanding and supportive. I have had math teachers take time out of their lunch breaks or free periods to go over material I missed, and history teachers who allowed me to sit in on class periods other than my own to hear lectures that I was not at school for. The faculty and staff’s willingness to be flexible in order to allow every student to achieve their full potential is not something that I take for granted, and my success is a direct result of the support that I have received from Rowland Hall. I am very proud to be a Winged Lion.

Congratulations, Arden!

Athletics

At only 18 years old, Rowmarker Mary Bocock has already had an impressive skiing career.

In addition to her achievements as a top Rowmark Ski Academy athlete, Mary had the chance to compete with the US Ski & Snowboard Team in Europe in January 2021, an opportunity that led to her first nomination to the US Alpine Ski Team later that year. Earlier this month, she was nominated to the US Ski Team for a second time. And prior to sustaining a knee injury in December, Mary was ranked first in super-G, third in giant slalom, and eighth in slalom in the United States for her age.

Mary will soon add another achievement to her resume—college athlete—when she joins the Dartmouth College women’s ski team next year. She plans to enroll as a first-year student in fall 2023, after taking a gap year to continue her healing and focus on her commitment to the US Ski Team before she dives back into a routine of balancing school, training, and racing.

“Joining the Dartmouth ski team has been one of my athletic goals since I started thinking about colleges,” said Mary, who long considered the Ivy League school not only because it offered a top ski program, but also because of its academic excellence.

“This is a great fit for Mary on all levels,” said Todd Brickson, Rowmark Ski Academy program director. “Dartmouth has a long history of developing world-class ski racers within their storied NCAA Division 1 ski team, in conjunction with their flexible academic structure and top-notch education.”

To celebrate Mary’s plan to attend Dartmouth, we asked her a few questions about her decision and her journey as a skier. The following interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

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When did you find out that you have a spot on Dartmouth's ski team? How did it feel to receive that news?

I started talking to the coach about a year and a half before I committed to skiing for him. I knew the coach was interested in me, but I knew that I shouldn’t get my hopes up because there could be other girls out there. So when he told me he wanted to offer me a spot in the fall of 2023, I felt relieved and excited that I didn’t have to worry about my college experience.

You'll be taking a gap year before heading to Dartmouth. Why did you make that choice?

I will be taking a gap year after I graduate in the spring so that I can focus on my commitment to the US Ski Team and take advantage of all the resources they provide. Throughout my whole racing career, I have always had to balance traveling and school, so I want to experience the sport without having to balance the stresses of high school alongside the pressure of performing well in races and traveling. The Dartmouth coach actually offered me a spot to start in the fall of 2022, but I decided that I want to take a year to mature as an athlete and really focus on racing to make the most of my opportunity with the US Ski Team.

You've been offered a spot on the Dartmouth team and you're on the US Ski Team—basically, you've achieved two of your dreams. While you can't know what lies ahead, how are you approaching these two amazing opportunities?

I feel very lucky to have these two incredible opportunities ahead of me. I am trying to stay present and not worry about how I will balance the two programs. I am just trying to take advantage of the places and lessons I am experiencing. I always try to not take anything for granted—especially after COVID—and make the most of my time traveling and exploring new mountains and countries.

Focusing on your time at Rowland Hall, what moment as a member of Rowmark are you most proud of?

I’ve had a lot of great experiences on Rowmark, so it’s hard for me to pick my favorite moment. But if I had to, I would say one of my favorite memories is when I won a GS [giant slalom] race in Breckenridge, Colorado, at the end of my junior year. It was that race that helped me lower my points enough to make criteria for the US Ski Team. When I came down and everyone was cheering for me, I was so excited that I couldn’t stop smiling. Then, a few minutes later, my coach came down and gave me a hug (which is rare because he’s not one for hugs), and I started to experience an overwhelming amount of emotions because it all felt real.

On the other side, some of the most memorable experiences from Rowmark have been off the snow. The conditioning/team bonding week is always a highlight of the year because the whole team comes together to compete with each other in a very cohesive way. Competition is one of my favorite aspects of ski racing, so I always have a lot of fun on the camping weekend when the whole trip is just filled with competition.

Tell us about the skills you built at Rowland Hall and on Rowmark that you'll be taking with you after graduation.

One of the most notable skills I’ve learned from being on Rowmark while attending a challenging high school is time management and communication. In order for me to keep up with my work while I’m gone, I have to be very diligent with letting my teachers know when I will be gone and updating them on my progress throughout my trips. My first few training camps with the US Ski Team have been very different compared to those with Rowmark because nobody else in my group is in school. I am the only one trying to keep up with classes while skiing at a high level. I have to find time to separate myself and sit down and do school work while my teammates do their other activities. However, I have actually started to really enjoy Zooming into my classes while I'm away on ski trips because it is an opportunity for me to take time off from thinking about skiing and still feel connected with my life at home.

Congratulations, Mary!

Athletics

Congratulations to junior Elisabeth Bocock, who this week was nominated to the US Ski Team.

Elisabeth is one of 42 athletes nominated to the US Alpine Ski Team and one of three athletes who will be joining the women’s Development Team (D-Team) for the first time for the 2022–2023 competition season. (Athletes qualify for the team in the spring based on selection criteria, and the official team is announced in the fall once nominees complete physical fitness testing and medical department clearance.) She is the youngest addition to the D-Team and the only new member from the state of Utah.

“It was unreal,” said Elisabeth of the moment she received the call from US Ski Team Coach Chip Knight congratulating her on her season and confirming her place on the team. “It was what I’ve been hoping for basically my whole life.”

She’s not kidding. Thanks to her family’s love of skiing, Elisabeth has been involved with the sport for as long as she can remember: she clipped into her first pair of skis at age two, and some of her earliest memories include traveling with her family to Colorado to watch the World Cup—an experience that inspired her first dreams of joining the US Ski Team. “Seeing people on the team there was super exciting,” she remembered. “It made me want to be a part of that.”

It was unreal. It was what I’ve been hoping for basically my whole life.—Elisabeth Bocock, class of 2023, on being nominated to the US Ski Team

It also didn’t hurt that Elisabeth has three older siblings—brothers Scottie ’18 and Jimmy, and sister Mary—who were early naturals on the slopes and whose ski racing journeys inspired her own competitive drive. Elisabeth began racing for the Snowbird Ski Team at age six, and she joined Rowmark Ski Academy at age 13—a move she credits for preparing her to excel in both racing and academics, and where she’s had an exceptional career. In the 2021–2022 season alone, Elisabeth had five podium finishes in elite-level FIS races and is currently ranked first for her age in the US in slalom, giant slalom, and super-G, and second in the world in giant slalom.

“What is so impressive about Elisabeth objectively earning a spot on the US Ski Team is that her season was filled with setbacks,” said Foreste Peterson, Rowmark Ski Academy’s head women's FIS coach. “Whether it was having to quarantine from COVID exposures, or the many hard crashes she took that left her concussed, bloody, bruised, and banged up, she was knocked down time and time again. Yet, she bounced back every time, better than before, and always with a smile on her face. It was truly a pleasure to work with Elisabeth this year, and I so look forward to seeing what her future holds.”

And while Elisabeth’s riding the high of simply making the US Ski Team, she’s also enjoying an additional perk not available to every athlete in her position: the knowledge that this new experience will include her older sister (and role model), Mary, who was nominated to the US Ski Team last spring. “I’m super excited to work together in a different atmosphere,” said Elisabeth. “Mary’s been a real inspiration to me and has shown me what it takes to get to where I need to go.”

We can’t wait to see where she goes next. Congratulations, Elisabeth—we’ll be cheering you on!

Rowmark

Ever since Briggs Ballard learned he could play lacrosse while also studying finance and business development in college, he focused on turning that goal into a reality.

“From the day I realized I could play college lacrosse, it has been my biggest dream,” he said.

That dream came true on March 4, when Briggs committed to play for Texas Christian University (TCU), a Division 1 school with a lacrosse team that competes in the Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association. It’s an impressive step for the talented young athlete, who has been passionate about lacrosse since the age of three, when a Rowland Hall parent who moved to Utah from the East Coast created a mini lacrosse team for the community as a way to introduce students to the sport.

“I was a little too young to suit up,” Briggs said about the experience. “However, my brother [Boston Ballard ’20] played and I was always there watching and waiting for my turn. As I watched the older kids, I knew I wanted to play, and from that day on lacrosse was my sport. When I got my chance, I hit the ground running.”

And he’s excelled: by third grade, Briggs was playing competitive club lacrosse, and by sixth grade, club box lacrosse, and he was a member of youth teams at both Brighton High School and Corner Canyon High School, where his eighth-grade team won the state championship. In ninth grade, after a family move, Briggs began playing for Highland High School, where, as the only freshman on the varsity team, he led in goals, assists, and total points, earning him Freshman of the Year and Most Valuable Player accolades. When COVID-19 canceled his sophomore season, Briggs decided to use the time to think about how to take the skills he’d been building to the next level. “During quarantine, I decided I needed to push myself and play at the highest level of high school lacrosse,” he said. After making the team at IMG Academy, a prestigious sports training facility and boarding school in Florida, Briggs chose to spend his junior year there, where he practiced seven days a week and traveled the country playing top teams.

“It was a difficult decision to move away from my family and to leave Rowland Hall, but I decided to go for it and spent my junior year at IMG,” said Briggs. “The experience was one I will never forget; I learned so much about lacrosse and myself.”

He also learned just how much he appreciates his family and the Rowland Hall community: Briggs returned to Utah for his senior year, where he’s been enjoying time with friends, wrapping up his studies in the Upper School, playing lacrosse (of course!), and preparing for the next chapter of his story.

To celebrate Briggs’ decision to play lacrosse for TCU, we asked him to share more about his athletic journey. The following interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

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You're a Rowland Hall student who has pursued the sport you love (but one that's not offered by the school) alongside your studies. How have you juggled both responsibilities?

Juggling the rigor of Rowland Hall and the intensity of my lacrosse schedule has been challenging. I've had to learn to manage my time and plan ahead. I've done a lot of homework and studied on planes while flying home from tournaments. Even though Rowland Hall does not have a lacrosse program, the school and teachers have been very supportive and have always worked with me. Along with the challenges, playing for other schools has also been a blessing in many ways. It has enabled me to meet and socialize with kids outside of Rowland Hall and it's really expanded my social circle.

Can you briefly describe how you connected with the TCU team and how you made your decision to join them?

The lacrosse recruiting experience has been both awesome and stressful. I've had to really consider what level of lacrosse I want to play and balance that with the kind of college experience I want. My options were all over the board, from D1 schools to some smaller D3 schools, and several club options. Ultimately, I was heavily recruited by TCU, which happens to be where my brother goes to school. My brother has several friends currently on the TCU lacrosse team and because he knew I would love TCU, he had them reach out to me and from there the coach reached out. I fell in love with everything TCU has to offer, including their D1 lacrosse program. In addition to the lacrosse program, TCU checks all of the academic boxes for me and I can't wait to be a Horned Frog!

How did you feel when you officially committed to play for TCU?

I felt proud of myself and like all of my hard work paid off. I felt like I had finally done it and was relieved to have made a decision. The feeling of finally committing is a feeling I will never experience again and I am so grateful for how everything worked out.

What are your top memories from your lacrosse career (so far)?

My top memories of my lacrosse career so far are traveling all over the country with my parents and my best friends/teammates. I have played with several of the same kids since we were in the first grade and they have truly become some of my best friends. The summer tournaments are always memories; staying together as a team and playing the sport we love are memories I will never forget. Finally, last year, my IMG team traveled to Indiana, where we played Culver Academy, one of the best teams in the country. While we did not come away with the win, playing in front of so many people, and in a nationally televised game, is a very cool experience and a major memory for me. 

Tell us about the skills you built at Rowland Hall that you'll be taking with you to TCU.

I strongly believe Rowland Hall has set me up to succeed at TCU both academically and socially. Rowland Hall has taught me how to learn, how to be a critical thinker, and how to manage my time. Rowland Hall is a one-of-a-kind school and I cherish my time here and the education I’ve received. I know I will be a strong writer and contribute to the TCU community because of my Rowland Hall experience.

Is there anything else you want our community to know about your athletic and academic journey?

Just that I am beyond grateful for everyone who has supported me and helped me on my journey. My Rowland Hall friends have always been so supportive and encouraged me to keep on with lacrosse. From the teachers and staff to my friends, family, and coaches, I will forever be thankful for all of you. 

Lastly, GO FROGS!

Athletics

We are proud of the Olympians representing Rowmark Ski Academy and Rowland Hall at this month's Olympic Games, which kick off February 4.

Since their earliest days on the mountain, these skiers have been on a journey toward athletic excellence. Being named to their countries’ Alpine ski teams is one of the highest honors of their careers, and represents hours of sacrifice and a steady commitment to intense training and competition.

While four of our former athletes qualified for the 2022 Olympics, two will be competing in Beijing this month.

“Unfortunately, Breezy Johnson and Madi Hoffman both sustained season-ending knee injuries while training for the Games and will not be able to compete,” said Todd Brickson, Rowmark Ski Academy program director. “Nevertheless, they qualified for the Olympics and we could not be more proud of Breezy and Madi. Injury is a common reality in our sport and the timing is devastating, but they will be back stronger than ever. Katie Hensien and Katie Vesterstein will carry the Rowmark Ski Academy and Rowland Hall torch, and we will be watching!”

To help the Rowland Hall community prepare to cheer on our former Rowmarkers at the Games, we have provided brief overviews of the Olympians below (as well as a throwback photo for each!).

Team USA: Katie Hensien ’18

Katie Hensien graduated from Rowmark and Rowland Hall in 2018. She is a five-year member of the US Ski Team, and also currently skis for and attends the University of Denver. Katie is originally from Redmond, Washington, and will make her Olympic debut in Beijing. She is the 2020 national champion in giant slalom and was a part of the Junior World Championships team that won the silver medal in the team event in Val di Fassa, Italy.

“Katie is an incredible talent and hard worker, and is someone who always has a huge smile on her face,” said Todd. “She brings incredible energy and positive vibes into every room.”

Update February 9, 2022: Katie placed 26th in slalom.

Team Estonia: Kaitlyn (Katie) Vesterstein ’17

Katie Vesterstein graduated from Rowmark and Rowland Hall in 2017. A native of Duluth, Minnesota, Katie is currently a senior at the University of Utah and an All-American member of the university’s national champion ski team. Katie is a dual citizen of the US and Estonia and will be representing Estonia at the Beijing Games.

“Katie is a fierce competitor and incredibly kind teammate who grew up ski racing on the small hills of Minnesota before joining Rowmark and Rowland Hall for two years and propelling herself onto the prestigious University of Utah ski team,” said Todd.

Update February 7, 2022: Katie placed 35th in giant slalom.

Update February 9, 2022: Due to a crash, Katie received a DNF in slalom.

Team Australia: Madison (Madi) Hoffman ’18 (Injured)

Madi Hoffman graduated from Rowmark and Rowland Hall in 2018. She has been a member of the Australian National Team for several years and is also a two-year member of the national champion University of Utah ski team. Madi is a three-time Australian National Champion in slalom and giant slalom, and was one of only two Aussie women to qualify for the 2022 Olympics in Alpine skiing. She had been preparing for this moment with her coach (and former Rowmark head coach) Jim Tschabrun for four years.

“Madi is one of the hardest working and thoughtful young women I have ever had the pleasure to coach,” said Todd. “Her unfortunate knee injury will keep her from competing in this Olympics, but she is a very determined, talented ski racer, and I have no doubt that she will be back stronger than ever."

Team USA: Breezy Johnson ’13 (Injured)

Breezy Johnson graduated from Rowmark and Rowland Hall in 2013. Originally from Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Breezy joined the US Ski Team in 2014 and qualified for her first Olympic Games in 2018, where she placed seventh in downhill and 14th in super-G. Prior to her knee injury, Breezy was a clear medal contender after reeling off seven podium finishes and nine top-fives in her last 10 World Cup downhill races.

“In Breezy's time at Rowland Hall and Rowmark, she was incredibly determined and hardworking, both on the hill and in the classroom. At a young age Breezy had a very strong belief in herself and what was possible for her to achieve,” said Todd. “All I can say is that she is one of the world's best and she will be back with a vengeance.”

Schedule

Women’s Alpine skiing events begin on Monday, February 7. Check out the full Alpine skiing schedule for event information.

Help Us Cheer on the Athletes!

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for updates.

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Banner: Katie Hensien competing for Rowmark Ski Academy.

Alumni

When you realize that Rowland Hall senior Drew Lang grew up in a family filled with passionate and successful wrestlers—including two adored older brothers—it’s not surprising that he became intrigued by the sport at an early age.

When asked when Drew first showed an interest in wrestling, his mom, Jill Lang, shared an especially sweet memory: at a wrestling tournament for the family’s two oldest boys, Will and Jack, then in elementary school, where she discovered the then-toddler Drew attempting to change out of his training pants and into a wrestling singlet.

“I said, ‘Oh no, honey, it’s a little too soon,’” she said, chuckling at the memory.

Luckily for that determined toddler, the wait didn’t last much longer: Drew stepped on the mat for the first time at age three. And he hasn’t stopped wrestling since.

Though Drew’s initial interest in wrestling can be traced to simply wanting to do what his big brothers were doing, a deep personal connection to the sport has kept him going for more than 15 years. It’s clear when talking to Drew that wrestling—a sport that, though organized by teams, is very individual—speaks to his innate drive for excellence. He said he remembers enjoying the repetition of early training sessions, which allowed him to slowly hone his skills, as well as benefiting from exposure to a variety of styles shared by the array of families that made up the first wrestling club the Lang family joined after moving to Utah, Team Legacy. He believes these early experiences set a foundation for success.

Wrestling is very much a sport where what you put in, you get out. The feeling of putting in so much time and effort and sacrifice, and then at the end of the day receiving the results you want, it’s very satisfying and worth it for me.—Drew Lang, class of 2022

“A lot of wrestling is knowing what to do in certain positions, and the only way you can really know that is by wrestling in all sorts of positions,” explained Drew. “You pick up on different things when you learn to wrestle against different types of kids.”

And even though Drew was one of the youngest kids in Team Legacy when he got started, his mom said he wasn’t scared to challenge himself. “From a very early age, he has never, ever been afraid of anything,” said Jill. “It wasn’t that he always thought he was going to win, necessarily, but he always was confident in his ability and he was always willing to try things.” It was an approach that worked: around age five, Drew began to place in, and even win, national tournaments, and that taste of victory marked a turning point.

“The feeling of winning is really what sparked my passion for this sport,” Drew remembered. “Wrestling is very much a sport where what you put in, you get out. The feeling of putting in so much time and effort and sacrifice, and then at the end of the day receiving the results you want, it’s very satisfying and worth it for me.”

Since those first wins, Drew has continued to amass an impressive list of achievements, both in national competitions as a now-member of the Sanderson Wrestling Academy and on the West High School wrestling team (although Drew attends Rowland Hall, he is one of its students who plays a sport not offered by the school at another local high school). In January alone, the two-time 6A state wrestling champion finished in eighth place at the Doc Buchanan Invitational in California (”arguably the toughest high school tournament in the country attracting the nation’s top high school wrestlers,” said Jill), first place at the Utah All-Star Duals, and first place at the Rockwell Rumble. On January 19, he was ranked the number-one Utah wrestler, pound for pound, by the Beehive Top 25. And to top it all off, he’s inching his way toward becoming the winningest wrestler in West High School history, a title currently held by his brother Jack Lang ’19 (who, by the way, won it from the oldest Lang brother, Will, in 2019); Drew should take the title by the time the 2022 state tournament wraps later this month. As Drew heads into the final phase of his high school wrestling career, his chances of additional victories, including a third state championship, are promising indeed—especially when you factor in the impressive mental fitness, refined alongside his physical strength, that the young athlete will tap into as he faces his last high school opponents. It’s a kind of fitness that, at such an elite level of wrestling, can truly mean the difference between victory and defeat.

“Once you get to a certain point,” Drew explained, “mindset is almost more important than the physical aspect, just because everyone is so good. But the people that are the best are mentally strong.”

Nowhere is this more evident for Drew than when he revisits opponents who have previously bested him on the mat: his 2021 6A state championship win, for instance, came against Westlake High School’s Jacob Finlinson, who wrestled the state title away from Drew in 2020, and this year’s win against Juab High School’s Channing Warner at the Utah All-Star Duals was revenge for Channing’s one-point victory over Drew at the same event in 2021.

“I think that’s what’s really helped propel him to do so well in this sport,” Jill said. “He’s never made excuses. He’s accepted what has happened, win or lose, and if he does lose then he immediately goes into the mindset, ‘OK, how do I need to train differently? What would I have done differently in this match if I had a rematch?’”

It’s a mindset that Drew has also applied in the classroom: while the young athlete said he doesn’t often view himself as the top student, his years of wrestling have taught him that he is one of the hardest working. “I think having that work ethic at such a young age really helped me,” he said.

It certainly made a difference in his college search. In middle school, Drew told his parents that he wanted to wrestle for an Ivy League school, and it became a goal that he dedicated himself to with the same energy that he brings to the mat—and with similar results. This fall, he’ll be heading to Princeton University, where he hopes to reach new wrestling heights (he’d like to be a starter by his sophomore year as well as an All-American) and make connections toward a fulfilling career. “The academic growth I’ll have there,” he said, “I think is going to set me up for the rest of my life.”

I think the skills from this sport—learning how to be a good winner, learning how to be a gracious loser, time management, accountability, not being afraid of taking risks—are so beneficial.—Jill Lang, parent

Because when it comes down to it, Drew explained, few people go on to wrestle professionally—but that doesn’t mean the sport doesn’t continue to shape them. “There’s a quote about wrestling: ‘Once you’ve wrestled, everything else in life is easy,’” he said. “I think there’s some truth behind that, just because wrestling is the same as everything else: you’re going to fail at times, you’re going to be successful at times.”

Jill agreed. “Drew’s not going to be a wrestler his entire life,” she said, “but I think the skills from this sport—learning how to be a good winner, learning how to be a gracious loser, time management, accountability, not being afraid of taking risks—are so beneficial, whatever he decides to do.”

The sport has also shown him, and those around him, the power of family and community, all of which came together to support Drew’s dreams. While much of this credit goes to Jill and her husband, Dave, as well as to Drew’s favorite role models, Jack and Will, and his coaches, Jill also took time to express gratitude to Rowland Hall for playing an important role in Drew’s journey.

“I’ve been so blown away by how accommodating the school has been; that’s helped Drew be where he is today,” she said. “Middle School Spanish teacher Bill Shann literally has watched more matches of Drew’s than I could ever tell you—away matches, home matches, matches online. He’s just been so supportive. The teachers have been so accommodating, as I’m sure they are with other kids that have interests they want to pursue. That’s been such a blessing for our family, to have such a supportive network.”

And no matter what happens on the mat this month, Drew will end his high school wrestling career surrounded by those who love him most.

“This is Drew’s moment, and I’m so grateful I get to share in it,” said Jill. “I just want him to go out there, and do his best, and enjoy that moment, and just know, whatever place he takes, we’re right up there watching him, as we always are.”

Update February 7, 2022: Drew won the 6A Boys Division Tournament, held February 4–5, and will be the #1 seed going into the 6A Boys State Tournament, which begins on February 18.

Update February 19, 2022: Drew has ended his high school wrestling career with a third state championship; read more about his victory in the Deseret News. Congratulations, Drew!

Athletics

Summer Connery first played soccer at six years old, but she didn’t expect to like it.

“When my dad asked me if I wanted to start playing soccer, I was lukewarm to the idea,” she remembered. “Despite this, I still ended up joining a rec team that my dad coached—and I had a blast. From the first day, I loved it.”

She’s good at it too: since those early days on the field, Summer has played on a variety of teams, including the Utah Avalanche (club soccer), the Utah Olympic Development Program (ODP) state team, and the 2020 ODP West Region Costa Rica team. During her four-year career as a Winged Lion, Summer helped the Rowland Hall girls soccer team claim four Region Championships and three State Championships, set a school record of 112 career goals, and amassed an impressive list of achievements, including 2021 Utah High School Activities Association (UHSAA) Academic All-State, 2020 Deseret News 2A MVP, a 2019 KUTV Prep of the Week, 2019 UHSAA 2A Leading Scorer, 2018 UHSAA State Assist Leader (all classifications), three-time MaxPreps Player of the Week, three-time member of First Team All-State, and a member of the 2021 West Girls All-America Game team. And though her high school soccer career is ending, Summer isn’t yet done with her journey as a student-athlete: on November 10, she signed the National Letter of Intent to play Division 1 soccer at Colgate University, one of her top college picks.

“It was a dream come true to know that a school I loved wanted me to come play soccer for them,” said Summer.

Division 1 schools offer the highest level of intercollegiate sports sanctioned by the NCAA, which will challenge Summer in new and exciting ways. 

“Summer is a competitor; she will never settle or coast,” said Colette Smith, Rowland Hall girls soccer head coach. “Summer has been the type of player that works hard on her own and is constantly rallying her teammates to work with her. She evolved so much the past two years as a leader and as a soccer player. I am truly so excited to see what she does at the collegiate level. I know the attributes she shows on the soccer field will also help her in her future endeavors.”

To celebrate her decision to play at Colgate, we asked Summer to answer a few questions about her love of soccer and what she’s looking forward to as a D1 college athlete. The following interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

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Colgate was one of your top college choices, and not only because of its fantastic soccer program. Tell us about your interest in the school.

I always knew that I wanted to play D1 soccer in college, but equally important to me was finding an institution that valued academics just as much. I had a pool of schools I was interested in, and Colgate stood out as the perfect fit.

How did it feel to commit to playing D1 soccer at Colgate next year?

It was an incredible feeling because it was me officially signing to do what I love, in a place that I love, for the next four years. It was so amazing to think about all that I have gone through to get to this point, and it was a very rewarding feeling and celebration.

You’ve played soccer since you were six years old, and you mentioned that you loved it from day one. Is there a moment that especially stands out in your relationship with the sport?

I think I really, truly fell in soccer when my club team at the time, Black Diamond Soccer Club, won the Sparta Cup in 2013. We started off the tournament with a bad 7-2 loss to a team called Chaos. We got better as the tournament went on and came to meet Chaos again, this time in the finals. We then beat Chaos 4-2 in the finals and we got what I called “the biggest trophy ever.” I remember feeling such great happiness and pride knowing that we worked so hard as a team to overcome the hurdles we faced early in the tournament. It was a great team reward and win in our first tournament as a team.

You've had a successful career at Rowland Hall, including winning three state championships and being recognized as a Prep of the Week in 2019 and the state 2A MVP in 2020. What moment as a Winged Lion are you most proud of?

The moment as a Winged Lion that I am most proud of was in the 2019 finals, when we beat Real Salt Lake Academy in PKs [penalty kicks]. We were down 0-1 at the half, but we knew we weren’t out of it. I scored the tying goal and the winning PK, but it was so much bigger of an accomplishment than any two goals. I was so proud of our team and of our comeback. We could all feel that we were playing well and showed such grit on the field, and then, of course, the shootout required us all to be calm under pressure. It was a roller coaster of emotions throughout the game but I wouldn’t have it any other way because it made the victory that much sweeter.

Tell us about the skills you built at Rowland Hall, both on and off the field, that you'll be taking with you to Colgate.

In terms of off the field, the academics and teachers at Rowland Hall are so incredible and I know that organization and analytical skills I am learning will aid my academic journey at a place like Colgate. In terms of on the field, I have learned so many leadership skills from upperclassmen and coaches, and I am excited to contribute those to the Colgate soccer team and community.

Congratulations, Summer!

Athletics

Camryn Kennedy is the type of student-athlete you watch and wonder, “How does she do it?”

As a student at Rowland Hall’s Upper School, Camryn has juggled more than just classes and homework—she’s also successfully juggled the responsibilities of a varsity starter on the school’s girls soccer team and as a club soccer player. Over the past four years, Camryn has racked up an impressive list of achievements: she assisted the Winged Lions in winning four Region Championships and three State Championships, she was named Rowland Hall girls soccer MVP in 2021, and she was the 2020 leading scorer in league play with USA Metro, a club soccer team with which she’s played, and placed, in tournaments like the Far West Regional Championship, the Desert Conference League, the Pleasanton Rage Tournament, the Utah State Cup, and the Surf Cup. And through it all, Camryn has stood out—both for her play and for her leadership.
 
“Camryn has been very special for our team,” said Colette Smith, Rowland Hall’s girls soccer head coach. “She has taken on so many roles throughout the years, performing at different positions and being a calming presence on the field. She has an understanding of reading those around her.”
 
Camryn’s achievements also didn’t go unnoticed by university coaches. In late 2019, Kai Edwards, head coach of the women’s soccer team at Southern Utah University (SUU), reached out to Camryn about potentially joining the Division 1 school—an opportunity that would allow her to play at the highest level sanctioned by the NCAA. Camryn was able to build a relationship with the program, and by her junior year she knew she wanted to join SUU. On November 10, she made it official by signing her National Letter of Intent to play soccer for the Thunderbirds.

“We are so proud of Camryn’s commitment to SUU,” said Colette. “We are excited to see what she accomplishes at the next level.”

To celebrate her decision to play at SUU, we asked Camryn to answer a few questions about her love of soccer and what she’s looking forward to as a D1 college athlete. The following interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

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You’ve known since your junior year that you were going to attend and play soccer for SUU. Can you tell us a bit about how that happened and why the school felt like a good fit?

Before I even started looking at colleges, the SUU coach reached out to me. After building a bond with the coaches, I went to visit. Soon after, I went back for my official visit and started to like it more and more. It was a welcoming community and a fun environment.

How did it feel to officially say yes to playing soccer at SUU next year?

I was so excited to officially be a T-Bird. After all the hard work I put in, it was relieving to finally see all my dreams come to a reality.

Looking back on your time on Rowland Hall's girls soccer team, what moment as a Winged Lion are you most proud of?

I have played Rowland Hall soccer all four years—my team is truly like family to me. The connection all of us have on and off the field is astonishing. There is never a dull moment with the soccer team.

Tell us about the skills you built at Rowland Hall that you'll be taking with you to SUU.

School-wise, focusing and being organized is most definitely helpful. Communicating with teachers is a skill I'll be taking to SUU especially, because SUU has smaller classes, which makes it easier to talk to the teachers on a personal level, just like Rowland Hall.

Is there anything else you want our community to know about your soccer journey?

I've played comp for as long as I can remember and always in the same club. My dad [longtime Rowland Hall coach Bobby Kennedy] was my first comp coach, starting when I was eight years old until I was 15, and then he was my high school coach my freshman and sophomore years. My dad has taught me everything I know and continues to coach me every moment he can. From building a soccer field in the back of our yard to building a soccer tennis court at my house, my dad has truly been my encouragement.

Congratulations, Camryn!

Athletics

Change may be slow, but it’s worth the wait.

This life truth was recently made clear to Jodi Spiro’s third graders, a group of students passionate about doing their part to save the earth—particularly when it comes to limiting the amount of garbage that’s dumped into the environment, a topic they’ve discussed often this year.

“We knew there was a problem, then we watched this video of how much trash ends up in rivers and oceans, and we thought it was really sad,” said class member Helena A. “We saw this island made out of trash—it’s bigger than Texas.”

“It feels like people don’t really care about what they’re throwing out,” added classmate Declan M.

And it really bothered the third graders to imagine Rowland Hall contributing to the problem—especially in one specific way: even though the school had returned to a traditional serving line at lunch (during the pandemic, individually packaged meals were delivered to classrooms), the dining hall hadn’t shifted back to using metal cutlery. The students knew the use of plastic utensils had to be creating a lot of waste, so in October they visited the dining hall to get an idea of just how much. The third graders began by counting the number of plastic utensils that fit into the dining hall’s cutlery dispenser, then determined how many times that dispenser was filled. They were shocked to learn that the McCarthey Campus was tossing around 900 plastic forks, knives, and spoons each week.

We realized how much we were throwing away and we wanted to know why, and we wanted to change it.—Third grader Declan M.

“We realized how much we were throwing away, and we wanted to know why, and we wanted to change it,” said Declan.

And though the students were anxious to make those changes right away, Jodi knew they would need the support of campus partners, including SAGE Dining Services, Rowland Hall’s lunch provider, which she knew was probably using plastic cutlery for a reason. Jodi saw the moment as an opportunity for her class to not only understand the reasoning behind that decision, but to learn how to respectfully present their request to reverse it.

“The way you go about something is the way you’ll get lasting change,” she told the class. “You’re going to get better buy-in from everybody if you’re respectful.”

So the class began by writing persuasive letters to explain their concerns and to propose their solution, which they sent to Julia Simonsen, food service director for SAGE, in November. They received a prompt response explaining that there was indeed a reason behind the use of plastic cutlery: students had been throwing away the dining hall’s metal cutlery, as well as reusable cups and even lunch trays. This was its own problem—the dining hall simply couldn’t afford to keep replacing these items. The third graders realized that, in order to address their cutlery concerns, they would first have to tackle another waste issue. So they made Julia an offer: they would teach lower schoolers how to properly use lunchroom materials if SAGE agreed to bring them back. Julia agreed.

With their end goal in mind, the third graders jumped into making plans for educating fellow students both on the proper use of cafeteria materials and on limiting what they sent to the landfill. They knew they would have to talk to every Lower School class, so they divided into teams, with each team choosing the grades they wanted to present to and the approach they thought best for that age group, such as a slideshow, a game of Kahoot!, or a Book Creator story. They also teamed up with staff and faculty members Emily Clawson, Mary Anne Wetzel, and Collin Wolfe to create a TikTok video demonstrating these skills, which they played for every class.

@rowlandhall1867

Jodi Spiro's third-grade class is on a crusade to make our school more environmentally friendly, and their first stop is the dining hall. After seeing how many plastic utensils were being thrown away, the students knew they had to take action. They urged the school to bring back metal cutlery, reusable cups, and compost buckets. Even at such a young age, these students are authentically learning and making a difference not only for our school, but for the world. Great job, third graders!

♬ original sound - Rowland Hall

Rowland Hall third graders demonstrate where to discard leftover milk, how to separate trash from compostable materials (which are then used by the Lower School’s Garden Club), and where to return utensils, cups, and trays.

These class presentations were another chance for the third graders to tap into their respectful dialogue skills: they had to present their material in ways that didn’t place blame on anyone and inspired students to want to help. “We wanted to make sure everyone understood the problem,” explained Helena. “We showed them what’s been happening and what they can do.”

And the presentations made an impact. From first to fifth grade, students expressed a desire to help fix the dining hall’s dual waste problems through their daily actions. “I didn’t really know that I could actually convince people this well of what's been happening in the cafeteria,” said Declan. “It felt really good.” Fellow third graders in Matthew Collins’ and Katie Schwab’s classes even created posters to help remind students to pay attention when disposing of items on their lunch trays, which are helpful resources as students continue to build these habits.

From her perspective, Jodi was thrilled to see not only how other classes responded to her students’ hard work, but how the experience also built the students’ confidence. She said her class loved being seen as experts on a subject and answering their peers’ questions; after each presentation, they returned to the classroom beaming and asking to talk to more people. “I think it brought out parts of themselves that they probably didn’t even expect,” she said.

They learned change is slow, but change is possible, and to be persistent: just because you want something to change doesn’t mean it’s going to follow your timeline.—Jodi Spiro, third-grade teacher

It also showed them that hard work on a cause you believe in is worth it. When the reusable cutlery and cups returned to the dining hall after April break, the moment was more than just the culmination of a nearly school-year-long goal; it was a strong reminder of how young learners can help address problems that seem insurmountable—such as waste in the environment—and truly make a difference.

“It’s so easy to get overwhelmed with the bigness of it,” said Jodi, “but the students learned you can start with something small and in your control, like what’s happening in our school. They learned change is slow, but change is possible, and to be persistent. Just because you want something to change doesn’t mean it’s going to follow your timeline.”

They also learned that making good choices add up and that, often, being the change you wish to see in the world starts by simply making a small decision to do something.

“Don’t be a problem starter,” summarized Jodi. “Be a problem solver.”

Ethical Education

Disagreement is everywhere. At times it feels like it has overtaken discourse and that a civil exchange of ideas is near impossible. How are young people supposed to navigate this world?

When faced with disagreement the natural reaction is to pull back. But it is in those moments when leadership is needed most.—Ryan Hoglund, director of ethical education

At Rowland Hall, it is with the help of their teachers, administrators, and a bevy of special guests who are part of the recently revived Upper School Speaker Series.

The theme of this year’s series is “Leading with Impact While Navigating Disagreement.” The aim is to help students understand the importance of listening to diverse perspectives when forming opinions and to teach them to become leaders even in the face of contentious arguments.

“When faced with disagreement the natural reaction is to pull back,” said Ryan Hoglund, director of ethical education. “But it is in those moments when leadership is needed most. The speakers are helping our students learn how to lead in those moments.”

English teacher Kody Partridge began the speakers series more than a decade ago as part of her 11th-grade rhetorical research project. (As was the case with many programs, the series was shelved last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.) Series speakers are all considered changemakers—people who recognize when positive change is needed and take action to make a difference—in their respective fields. In their presentations, they lay out for students how they have dealt with disagreements in their professions and how those disagreements have helped them grow their skill sets and reach important goals.

The series kicked off in October with Brittney Cummins, educational advisor to Utah Governor Spencer Cox. Since then, Salt Lake Tribune Executive Editor Lauren Gustus, Millcreek City Council Representative Silvia Catten, alumna and activist Dulce Horn ’20, First District Congressional Representative Blake Moore, Senate Candidate Becky Edwards, Flourish Bakery and Flourish Ventures Executive Director Rev. Aimee Altizer, and Utah Senator Derek L. Kitchen have spoken to students.

I have really enjoyed how the speakers have helped us understand the importance of implementing these dialogue tactics in our day-to-day lives.—Kaitlyn Bates, class of 2022

“Millcreek City Councilwoman Silvia Catten discussed navigating billboard controversies,” said Dr. Carolyn Hickman, English department chair, when asked to share an example of a message from this year’s series that stood out to her. “She vividly illustrated the importance of active listening and empathy building as she spoke to the challenges of building compromise at the local level.”

“She explained how she worked around conflicts to help benefit her own community; I found her tactics about how to approach the more tense situations to be super informative and engaging.” added senior Kaitlyn Bates. “I have really enjoyed how the speakers have helped us understand the importance of implementing these dialogue tactics in our day-to-day lives.”

The speaker series is a companion piece to the Deliberate Dialogue skill set taught throughout the Upper School curriculum. These skills, defined early in the year so that students can develop an awareness of when to use them, include:

• Open-Mindedness: I am open to learning about the lives, values, and beliefs of others.

• Listening: I can reflect what the other person is saying.

• Speaking: I can speak for myself and not on the behalf of others.

• Responding: I am able to respond empathetically to others.

• Reflecting: I can find differences as well as similarities between my life, values, and beliefs, and those of others.


“Collaboration is messy. We want students to know that conflict can be productive and when that mess is managed you get the best outcomes,” said Ryan. “This not only helps prepare them for college, but for the world at large.”

Ethical Education

This week, Rowland Hall celebrated Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s life and legacy by focusing on the ways we can build a beloved community—a trusting, loving place where all people feel welcome and where individuals unite across differences.

Because each person in a community plays a role in realizing this vision, Rowland Hall dedicated the week surrounding Martin Luther King Jr. Day to a series of events and conversations designed to prompt reflection and foster solidarity towards action. 

"Students across the lower, middle, and upper schools were able to collectively engage in a program called Beloved@RowlandHall,” said Dr. Chandani Patel, director of equity and inclusion. “The interconnected program focused on Dr. King's idea of the beloved community, one that leads with love, understanding, and solidarity. Beloved@RowlandHall helped remind students that each of them holds the potential and responsibility to be a changemaker and that each of them is a valued and integral member of our beloved community."

Beloved@RowlandHall helped remind students that each of them holds the potential and responsibility to be a changemaker and that each of them is a valued and integral member of our beloved community.—Dr. Chandani Patel, director of equity and inclusion

On January 14, middle and upper schoolers had the opportunity to view the Brolly Arts film Beloved Community, a documentary featuring some of Utah’s civil rights leaders, and enjoy a performance by Utah’s Hip Hop Education and Resource Center—activities that, Chandani explained, allowed them “to interrogate the power of storytelling through multiple methods towards a shared goal of recognition—of ourselves, each other, and our community.” Students then created artifacts depicting what they need from one another to feel beloved and how they can help build a community in which each member feels valued, integral, and beloved.

At Lower School’s annual Changemaker Chapel, held on January 18, students continued this practice of creating their own reflective artifacts, as well as learned from dancer and educator Ursula Perry, who performed a piece for students and “elicited their reflections about Dr. King, movement, stories, and each of their hopes for the world,” said Chandani.

In addition to student events, Rowland Hall celebrated Dr. King’s legacy with a virtual evening of dialogue for all members of the school community. After viewing Beloved Community, participants had the chance to engage in a Q&A session featuring the Rev. France Davis, pastor emeritus, Calvary Baptist Church; Marian D. Howe-Taylor, communication and media outreach manager, Salt Lake Community College, and co-creator, Black Social Change Utah; Ursula Perry, dancer, Repertory Dance Theatre; and Amy MacDonald, director and founder, Brolly Arts.

Thank you to all members of the Rowland Hall community for your thoughtful participation this week and for the steps you are taking to shape our beloved community. As you continue on your own personal journey, we invite you to view educational material related to Brolly Arts’ current project, Black Social Change Utah 2.0. Also, keep an eye on our diversity, equity, and inclusion web page, where we’ll continue to announce upcoming evenings of dialogue.

Equity & Inclusion

Dr. Chandani Patel wasn’t looking for a new job when she learned that Rowland Hall in Salt Lake City was searching for its first director of equity and inclusion. But when a recruiter sent her the posting, she found her interest piqued.

At the time, Chandani was director for global diversity education at New York University, a challenging and rewarding role that she had no immediate plans to vacate. However, as she read Rowland Hall’s position statement, Chandani was surprised to find herself contemplating a move: not only did Rowland Hall demonstrate a long-term commitment to the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) work she’s dedicated her career to, but the school greatly emphasized community—a value that had risen in importance to her family after nearly a year of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“In the New Jersey/New York area, we did not have much community at all, really, because we were far from our workplaces—everyone commutes,” explained Chandani. “The pandemic really shifted our priorities. We didn't feel embedded in a community, and we really wanted that.”

As Chandani and her husband, English teacher Dr. Brady Smith, discussed the Rowland Hall opportunity, they realized that Salt Lake City may be just the place to grow the community connections they craved, both for themselves and for their young daughter, Aashna, then four years old. The location worked both personally—Chandani already had a sister in Salt Lake, her parents were willing to relocate, and Brady’s parents live in nearby Colorado—and professionally: Salt Lake’s size and growth opportunities, including the ability to build partnerships in the DEI space, greatly appealed to the two academics-turned-educators. Furthermore, Rowland Hall serves a student population that, after more than a decade in higher education, Chandani felt pulled toward.

“I had been thinking about transitioning to PreK–12 education for a couple of years,” she said, “because I was starting to see key challenges in higher education: a lot of the unlearning that folks were engaged in as adult learners needed to have happened a little earlier in their lives.” In other words, Chandani had been observing students entering college classrooms with little to no experience engaging with those whose backgrounds or beliefs differ from their own, and it had become clear to her that students need earlier opportunities to practice navigating conflict and building trust across their differences.

“The world is, in many ways, super interconnected, yet we continue to be siloed; we continue to see patterns of kids only hanging out with kids who look like them or like the same things,” explained Chandani. “Research backs this up, even from—or maybe especially from—a racial identity standpoint.”

School Today: What’s It For?

As Rowland Hall’s inaugural director of equity and inclusion, Chandani is now playing a role in building the collaboration skills that today’s students will need in college classrooms and beyond. But even though preparing students to respectfully handle tough conversations, particularly with those who have differing opinions, in today’s world is of vital importance, she explained, it still often isn’t a priority in PreK–12 schools.

“In many schools, those are not the skills educators are explicitly talking about or helping students learn,” said Chandani, “yet in every single industry, the first thing that any hiring committee will ask about is collaboration skills or a time you encountered and navigated a conflict.”

And employers need staff members who work well with others. Many cite so-called soft skills—such as teamwork and collaboration, leadership, critical thinking, and communication—as areas they most desire in new hires. And it isn’t just day-to-day business tasks that benefit from these skills; the most pressing problems we now face—the ones today’s students will help find solutions to, including inequality, climate change, and a global pandemic—can only be solved by coming together.

“Students have inherited a whole lot of problems that require really creative and out-of-the-box solutions; we have to imagine different possibilities to build a different and better world,” said Chandani. PreK–12 schools offer ideal environments in which students can safely learn how to build relationships, practice collaboration, and navigate conflict—which, Chandani pointed out, is a helpful life tool.

Schools are now the places where students should acquire and practice human-centered skills that machines can’t replicate—like teamwork, curiosity, judgment, and creativity—and where they learn what to do with all the information available at their fingertips.

“We need to help students understand that when conflict arises, you don't back away from it but embrace it, so that you can learn something new—maybe about yourself, maybe about the other person, maybe about that issue, maybe about the world,” she explained. “If that process can happen at a younger age, then we have many more opportunities for students to practice, and to understand how to work across their differences.”

For some, this can be an unfamiliar perspective: we haven’t often thought of PreK–12 schools in that way. But just as twenty-first century employers have been rethinking the skills employees need to succeed, so too should educators be rethinking the role twenty-first century schools play in student success.

“School is no longer a place to just learn facts and information—we have that available to us on the internet,” said Chandani. Instead, she explained, schools are now the places where students should acquire and practice human-centered skills that machines can’t replicate—like teamwork, curiosity, judgment, and creativity—and where they learn what to do with all the information available at their fingertips.

Creating Student Leaders

For a DEI professional like Chandani, refocusing the role schools play as we look to the future is important in enhancing students’ learning experiences, especially as they participate in current conversations around equity and inclusion. By emphasizing human-centered skills alongside traditional academic subjects, students are better able to see the humanity behind their studies, building a stronger understanding of our collective history and how it shaped, and shapes, our daily lives. Examining diverse lived experiences in an English class, for instance, or learning about the contributions of historically underrepresented groups to the sciences helps students understand cultural contexts, while engaging in classroom discussions helps students learn to express themselves, make connections, and practice respectful disagreement.

By emphasizing human-centered skills alongside traditional academic subjects, students are better able to see the humanity behind their studies, building a stronger understanding of our collective history and how it shaped, and shapes, our daily lives.

“It’s important for them to recognize that even if we have a lot of shared experiences and shared identities, we're still not going to always agree—and that's not a bad thing: that means you always have something to learn from each other,” said Chandani. This applies to educators, too, who help solidify these skills by modeling what it means to learn from others. “My goal,” said Chandani, “is to help students learn how to facilitate conversations, navigate conflict, and build a collaborative process.”

Importantly, this focus on building human-centered skills in the classroom should be viewed as an enhancement to learning—not something that comes at the expense of the academic rigor we expect from schools—because it enriches learning, helping to develop lifelong thinkers who can ask thoughtful questions to build their understanding of the world, their place in it, and their role in creating knowledge and change.

“Our students want to have hard conversations, and we want them to have the tools to ask questions of the world,” explained Chandani. “We're not in the business of making any student feel bad or responsible for something that's way bigger than them—that is not how learning happens. The goal is to give students tools to ask questions around why things are the way they are and how they might be different in the future so that everyone can thrive.”

These actions benefit students in other ways too: as we emphasize human-centered skills, we show the value of all lived experiences, giving students a deeper sense of belonging to their school communities. And as they feel that belonging—and their confidence grows—students are more likely to speak up, to take action, and to believe in their own ability to make change.

“I'm really invested in the idea that every single one of our students is a leader,” said Chandani. “And we need to cultivate that sense of leadership.”

Looking Ahead

For Chandani, building leaders doesn’t stop at students—in fact, she said, one of the most exciting things about joining Rowland Hall is discovering the community’s collective commitment toward lifelong learning and making the school a welcoming place for all.

Rowland Hall has been doing this for over a decade. This is a community that really does care for each other, that really does want to do the hard work, because everyone is in the space of wanting to learn.—Dr. Chandani Patel, director of equity and inclusion

“Rowland Hall has been doing this for over a decade,” said Chandani. “This is a community that really does care for each other, that really does want to do the hard work, because everyone is in the space of wanting to learn.”

As she continues to settle into the school community—now her family’s community—Chandani is committed to involving all stakeholders, including families, in supporting their students as well as in navigating their own learning journeys, and she’ll be engaging various groups in conversation to identify the top challenges, opportunities, and questions that will inform Rowland Hall’s DEI work in the coming years.

“I'm invested in learning from a diverse array of folks,” she said.

And because Chandani knows that it will take time to get to know the entire community, she’s also committed to providing ongoing updates on what she’s learning and what families can expect from her, beginning with a community forum tentatively scheduled for February.

“I want to talk with the community about what I'm learning, answer questions, and really make sure the work that I'm doing is transparent. This is not work done in secret; it’s shared work that is always going to be important to talk about and make visible,” said Chandani with a smile. “There is a lot of excitement and enthusiasm, and we have a really great opportunity to build on that momentum.”

Equity & Inclusion

On Tuesday, October 13, Upper School students and faculty participated in Half Day/Whole Heart, a long-standing Rowland Hall tradition.

“Half Day/Whole Heart is meant to get students out in the community, exposing them to organizations they could do continued service with, providing illustrations of concepts from classroom curriculum and dilemmas, and experiencing the satisfaction of doing good in the community,” said Director of Ethical Education Ryan Hoglund, who organized the event. “We know from brain science that service opportunities benefit the giver as well as the receiver. Also, when illustrating classroom concepts like working at the Jordan River while studying Utah watersheds or helping organizations that support the most vulnerable in our community, learning and empathy come to life in ways not possible in the classroom alone.”

This year’s Half Day/Whole Heart included the following grade-level opportunities, many of which supplemented Beyond the Classroom curricular connections.

When illustrating classroom concepts like working at the Jordan River while studying Utah watersheds or helping organizations that support the most vulnerable in our community, learning and empathy come to life in ways not possible in the classroom alone.—Ryan Hoglund, director of ethical education

Ninth Grade

Ninth graders continued their study of local watershed dilemmas, working with the Jordan River Commission to clean the river corridor and seed native species and wildflowers, mitigating invasive weed species.

Tenth Grade

Guided by Chaplain Jeremy Innis, tenth graders continued their exploration of world faith traditions in our community by visiting local religious sites to meet with faith representatives, then reviewing pilgrimage films.

Eleventh Grade

Eleventh graders continued their study of community dilemmas requiring individual and legislative action, this time focusing on food insecurity and unsheltered people. They heard from Glenn Bailey, executive director of Crossroads Urban Center, and Rina Jordan, a local food security advocate (and parent of two Rowland Hall alums), about individual commitment to this work and the legislative challenges of addressing the needs of the most vulnerable in our community.

Twelfth Grade

Twelfth graders completed deferred maintenance projects around the campus of The Sharing Place, a nonprofit that helps children and adolescents navigate their grief following the loss of a parent or caregiver.

Ethical Education

In early September, only days into her first semester at New York University, Rowland Hall alum Katie Kern ’21 was already busy.

Like other first-year students across the country, Katie had been navigating the numerous tasks involved with starting college, from exploring campus and starting classes (she’s currently studying politics) to settling into dorm life and meeting new people—all while adapting to the evolving safety measures of the pandemic, and even dodging severe weather: some of her first days in the city included record-breaking rainfall caused by the remnants of Hurricane Ida.

“The unprecedented hurricane that occurred within my first week of moving in was definitely a little shocking,” said Katie.

Starting college against a backdrop of flooded subways and sidewalks, as well as surging cases of COVID-19, isn’t the preference of any new college student. But instead of giving into what she calls the “heaviness” of global issues like these, Katie has been leaning on her well-established activism experience to look for solutions. Only days after arriving at NYU, whether on coffee dates with new friends or in class lectures, she’s been involved in plenty of conversations aimed at solving tough problems.

For those who know Katie, this isn’t surprising. During her four years at Rowland Hall, she was a blur of the same kind of activity. In addition to a full course load, she was a member of the school’s Roots & Shoots club, Navajo Project, mental health educators, and dance company. Off campus, she interned at Alliance for a Better Utah and taught dance to refugees at a 4-H after-school program. And even with all that going on, Katie also volunteered at least eight hours a week for March for Our Lives Utah, the local chapter of the student-led organization that’s helping to drive US gun reform—a commitment so impressive that, as Katie learned in August, it earned her YWCA Utah’s inaugural Leader of Tomorrow Award, an honor designed to highlight the outstanding volunteerism of Utah women under the age of 19.

“YWCA Utah wants to recognize that activists are doing incredible work while young,” said Lisa Brown Miranda, associate director of admission for Rowland Hall’s Lincoln Street Campus and member of the YWCA Utah Board of Directors.

And to the selection committee, Katie’s work most definitely stood out: as an early supporter of the March for Our Lives movement (she joined as a lead ambassador right after its 2018 founding), Katie was able to play a key role in the Utah chapter’s administration, and was ultimately named state co-director her senior year, alongside fellow high school student Tory Peters. In the co-director role, Katie helped lead difficult but necessary conversations about the toll of gun violence, as well as encouraged legislative change.

“Katie wanted to look for practical ways to approach gun safety,” said Ryan Hoglund, Rowland Hall’s director of ethical education, who taught and mentored Katie, giving him a front-row seat to her dedication to March for Our Lives Utah. “She worked with her peers, took to the airways on KRCL's RadioACTive program [in December 2019 and February 2020], lobbied the Utah legislature, and ultimately developed a school curriculum to increase the awareness of gun safety: what to do if you find a gun as a young child, and how to keep a loved one who is struggling with mental illness and is considering self-harm safe.”

Of the many March for Our Lives projects she supported, Katie said she’s especially proud of the group’s legislative work, including her own experience testifying for universal background checks at the state capitol in February 2020. Even though it was scary, she said, because she knew she’d be speaking to a group largely against gun reform, it underscored her commitment to finding a solution to the country’s gun-violence problems. It also taught her to see activism from a big-picture perspective: she might not be part of the group that gets a reform bill passed, but she’s helping to lay the groundwork.

“Every year we make a little bit of progress,” said Katie. “It’s going to be awhile, and understanding that is important. But we have the utmost determination to get it done, and I’m excited for the future.”

For Lisa, watching Katie receive recognition for her volunteerism is exciting: Lisa first met Katie when she was a prospective ninth grader and remembers being impressed even then by the young student’s early devotion to grassroots work. Knowing Rowland Hall supports, values, and celebrates these kinds of contributions—and works with students to develop their own unique voices—Lisa was thrilled when Katie enrolled in the Upper School, and she spent the next four years enthusiastically watching the young leader do great things, both in the school community and for the state of Utah.

“Katie did everything she thought she was going to do—and more,” said Lisa. “She’s not the kind of person to face a challenge and look for ways to dodge it. She just jumps in, using her gifts to make others’ lives better.”

Katie remembers sharing with Lisa this desire to volunteer at the grassroots level, and noted that she ultimately chose to attend Rowland Hall because she was impressed by our teachers’ obvious passion for their subjects—something she recognized in herself. And Katie credits many Rowland Hall instructors for playing a role in her journey, like history teacher Nate Kogan and English teachers Kody Partridge and Carolyn Hickman for helping her better understand politics and how the legislature works, and Director of Arts and Co-Director of Dance Sofia Gorder for showing her, a longtime and passionate dancer, how arts and activism intersect. She is also grateful to the school for providing safe spaces, whether in classrooms or at the Dinner & Dialogue events Katie helped plan and lead, to practice having the crucial conversations necessary to spark change.

“Rowland Hall gave me a lot of space and independence to do what I wanted, and I did feel supported,” Katie said.

And as evidenced by how she’s already spending her time at college, Katie isn’t slowing down. She plans to continue to devote herself to a variety of movements because, as she explained, “it feels very heavy, all the problems going on.” And she hopes this involvement—and perhaps even her Leader of Tomorrow Award—will encourage others to take action. After all, after spending so much time at the grassroots level, she’s learned how empowering it is to help chip away at problems that, at first glance, seem too enormous to tackle.

I definitely feel hope in moments when community comes together.—Katie Kern ’21

“I hope other young women—or students in general—recognize that they can do something about all these crises, that they can get involved,” she reflected.

And contrary to what some might think, Katie said, it doesn’t take much time to make a difference: she recommends everyone set aside just 10 minutes a day to learn about an issue affecting their community, and then find opportunities to help fix them. This is key, because in a world filled with nonstop news about everything that’s going wrong, having a hand in change is inspiring. In fact, Katie said, it’s these moments—watching communities join together in pursuit of solutions—that make her most optimistic about the future.

“I definitely feel hope in moments when community comes together,” she said.

Alumni

Following a four-month national search, Rowland Hall is excited to announce that Dr. Chandani Patel will take the reins on July 1 as our first director of equity and inclusion.

Chandani (pronounced ChAHn-dhuh-nee) has spent the last 10 years advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives across a number of institutions. For the past 18 months, she has served as the director for global diversity education for New York University (NYU), where she provides strategic direction and works with faculty on curriculum and instruction that is centered in DEI. Before that, she was senior assistant director at Columbia University’s Center for Teaching and Learning, where she developed pedagogical workshops and online resources to support instructors in creating inclusive classroom spaces. 

“I believe deeply in relationship building across a community,” Chandani said. “I look forward to being part of a community where all voices are represented so that we can work towards building an inclusive teaching and learning environment for all students, faculty, staff, and families.”

Chandani has taught and written extensively on how concepts of race, identity, and belonging shift across places, languages, and cultures. She holds a PhD from the University of Chicago, where she studied comparative literature with a focus on South Asian and African literatures. She also holds a BA in comparative literature and an MA in humanities and social thought, both from NYU.

Our search for a director of equity and inclusion began in mid-November, following the announcement of a $2.4 million donation from the Cumming Family Foundation to create the first endowed position in school history. Former head of school Alan Sparrow, who retired last June, worked closely with the Cumming family to articulate our DEI vision and secure the gift, which ensures we have a permanent, full-time leader to guide us in this important work. At a time when pivotal conversations about racial justice are occurring across the nation, we’re so grateful to the Cummings for their generosity and leadership. Their gift supports our core value of welcoming everyone, elevates our institutional commitment to DEI, and sets a precedent for schools in Utah and beyond.

Rowland Hall is forever grateful for the Cumming Family Foundation's $2.4 million gift to create the school's first endowed role, ensuring we have a permanent leader to guide us in this important work.

To ensure an effective search, Rowland Hall partnered with StratéGenius, a Berkeley-based firm with extensive experience cultivating, recruiting, and placing educators in DEI leadership positions at independent schools. Indeed, the process moved along efficiently and transparently: by the first week of March, school community members had a chance to virtually chat with and provide feedback on three finalists. According to our search committee—co-chaired by Head of School Mick Gee and Beginning School Principal Emma Wellman—Chandani rose to the top for our community due to her expertise, professionalism, sincere approachability, and willingness to dig deep in this important role. 

“The search committee was drawn to Chandani’s focus on building communities of belonging where members feel safe to learn and grow together,” Mick said. Chandani, in turn, said she’s excited to discover areas of growth within Rowland Hall where she can center equity in conversations and support inclusive dialogue.

Chandani will relocate to Salt Lake City this summer with husband Brady Smith, daughter Aashna (age 4), and dog Maddy. Chandani’s parents, Vaishali and Sanjay, will also be relocating to the area. Please join us in welcoming Chandani and her family to Rowland Hall!

Equity & Inclusion

Enrolling in a new school can be scary. Enrolling in a new school during a pandemic can kick those nerves up a notch. For new Rowland Hall sixth grader Sofia Drakou, one smiling staffer not only assuaged her fears, but left her feeling like she was flying—a familiar sensation for this young ballerina.

Before an August Zoom meeting with Rowland Hall Associate Director of Admission Lisa Brown Miranda, Sofia didn’t know what to expect from her new school. But as the two discussed everything from classes to teachers to balancing extracurriculars (Sofia has an increasingly demanding schedule with Ballet West Academy), Lisa put the rising sixth grader at ease: “As soon as she started talking to me, she won my heart with her enthusiasm and genuine interest in my feelings, expectations, and worries,” Sofia said of Lisa. 

“Lisa encouraged me and showed me that in her, I had found a reliable, empathetic, and kind person, and a valuable advisor to reach out if I needed to. This was, and still is, very important to me, and I will always be thankful for her presence in my life,” Sofia explained. “After our meeting, I felt like I was flying, and I couldn’t wait to come to Rowland Hall because she made me feel like I was welcomed before I even started school!”

I wanted to make sure that the books included inspiring people of color who mirror Ms. Miranda’s empowering personality and the diversity of our amazing school community.—Sixth grader Sofia Drakou

That pivotal meeting left Sofia eager to reciprocate Lisa’s kindness. To express her gratitude, the sixth grader and her brother—eleventh grader George—picked, purchased, and donated 10 children’s books related to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) to the McCarthey Campus library in honor of Lisa, who is Black and has been a champion of JEDI values at the school since her 2014 hiring. Indeed, Lisa is a dedicated member of the faculty/staff JEDI Committee and she and daughter Gabriella, a freshman, participated as panelists during that committee’s November 17 Amplifying Black Voices virtual evening of dialogue. Lisa also currently serves on the search committee for the school’s newly endowed director of equity and inclusion position. Beyond her JEDI-related services to the school, Lisa is simply a warm, caring ambassador for Rowland Hall. As she jets around the Lincoln Street Campus, she’s often seen greeting people by name and building them up in passing encounters, offering her colleagues effusive thanks for collaborating on past projects or, for students, asking how a test or weekend athletics competition went and praising their evolving talents and efforts.

“I wanted to make sure that the books included inspiring people of color who mirror Ms. Miranda’s empowering personality and the diversity of our amazing school community,” Sofia explained, “so young students at Rowland Hall can read about people and characters they can connect with, and be inspired by them.” The sixth grader hopes the books—which she and her brother donated on February 9—raise awareness of JEDI values at Rowland Hall, and help the school and its young students celebrate Black History Month.

My heart is bursting. Your gift will allow so many of our youngest learners to see themselves joyfully represented and will elicit pride in themselves and their families.—Associate Director of Admission Lisa Brown Miranda

Lisa said the donation left her overcome with joy. “I am proud of you always, always, but today my heart is bursting,” Lisa wrote to Sofia and George. “Your gift will allow so many of our youngest learners to see themselves joyfully represented and will elicit pride in themselves and their families. Other students will have the opportunity to learn about what makes their classmates special and beautiful in their own way. What a glorious gift!”  

As for Rowland Hall newbie Sofia, she’s off to a fantastic start and is even following in Lisa’s footsteps: she'll join six of her Middle School classmates to serve on Rowland Hall’s delegation at the Northwest Association of Independent Schools virtual Student Diversity Leadership Retreat March 1–2.

Rowland Hall thanks Sofia, George, and their parents for these wonderful additions to the McCarthey Campus library: 

• Equality's Call: The Story of Voting Rights in America, by author Deborah Diesen and illustrator Magdalena Mora
• Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story, by author Kevin Noble Maillard and illustrator Juana Martinez-Neal
• Last Stop on Market Street, by author Matt de la Peña and illustrator Christian Robinson
• My Little Golden Book About Ruth Bader Ginsburg, by author Shana Corey and illustrator Margeaux Lucas
• The Oldest Student: How Mary Walker Learned to Read, by author Rita Lorraine Hubbard and illustrator Oge Mora
• The Power of Her Pen: The Story of Groundbreaking Journalist Ethel L. Payne, by author Lesa Cline-Ransome and illustrator John Parra
• Shaking Things Up: 14 Young Women Who Changed the World, by author Susan Hood and illustrators Sophie Blackall, Emily Winfield Martin, Shadra Strickland, Melissa Sweet, LeUyen Pham, Oge Mora, Julie Morstad, Lisa Brown, Selina Alko, Hadley Hooper, Isabel Roxas, Erin Robinson, and Sara Palacios
• Sometimes People March, by author and illustrator Tessa Allen
• Thank You, Omu, by author and illustrator Oge Mora
• We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga, by author Traci Sorell and illustrator Frane Lessac

Community

Todd Brickson stands tall as a mountain in the world of ski racing. 

For the past 20 years, he has served as the program director of Rowmark Ski Academy, Rowland Hall’s world-class ski racing program, founded in 1982. An international level 500 coach in the US Ski & Snowboard Association, Todd has worked with hundreds of top-level Olympic, World Cup, and collegiate athletes. But, even with all that experience, those who know Todd don’t immediately bring up his coaching prowess, or his experience on the slopes. Instead, they talk about who he is as a person—and for good reason.

Priority one, before coaching, is to be a very good role model. You need to be the kind of person who young people aspire to be one day. Todd is solid in that way.—Olle Larsson, Rowmark Ski Academy co-founder

“Priority one, before coaching, is to be a very good role model in front of people. If you fail that, it doesn’t matter what kind of coach you are,” said Olle Larsson, former Rowmark program director and the co-founder of the program, who was instrumental in hiring Todd. “You need to be the kind of person who young people aspire to be one day. Todd is solid in that way.”

Building athletes of good character is central to Todd. He makes that clear on the first page of the handbook given to all team members. There, he writes that the main goal of the program is “for each Rowmarker to learn and develop responsible independence.” He emphasizes that there is more to being on the team than just making it down the hill, adding, “This is above all a process, a time of trial and error, a time to learn from mistakes, a time to learn how to win—and learn how to lose.”

The values of responsibility and independence that Todd promotes create a strong bedrock on which he builds exceptional competitors and people. But here is where Todd steps back a bit, to let the athletes find that fire within that’s needed to push themselves farther and achieve more. He’s the iconic definition of a coach in these moments, trusting that his athletes are capable of practicing what to do, and he allows them to do it. That mutual respect is what launches Rowmark athletes into greatness.

“Todd provided me with tools and then didn't put any pressure or expectation on race day. He knew that pushing wouldn’t help, and that I needed to figure it out,” said former Rowmarker and Olympic athlete Breezy Johnson ‘13. “He provided me with the means to reach my incredibly high goals, and then was there with a hug and a word of advice, win or lose, at the end of the day.”

Todd does teach competitive spirit, but not in ways you may expect. He meets his students in competition in other arenas to show them that he respects them enough to go nose to nose. It may be on the golf course, in a go-kart, or by the side of a lake with a fishing pole in hand. Todd understands that coaching is a disposition and not contained to a certain time or place.

“There have been times when Todd has played hockey with us on a pond after skiing, or field hockey on dry land,” said Elisabeth Bocock, a senior who currently competes for both Rowmark and the US Ski Team. “He is never afraid to go shoulder on shoulder with us if that’s what it takes. He is super intense and does what he needs to do to win the game.”

And in his 20 years with the program, Todd’s intensity has helped raise the bar for Rowmark as an elite ski academy. Since 1988, there has been a representative from Rowmark at each Winter Olympics, and in 2014, the program became one of the first in the nation to achieve the Gold Certification level from the US Ski & Snowboard Association, and they’ve held onto that certification in the eight years since.

Rowmark’s skiers achieve off the slopes as well. The team currently has a 100 percent college placement rate, and its students are sought after by the best colleges and universities in the nation. “Todd is very involved in our academic success,” said Ian Hanrahan, co-captain of the Rowmark Academy Program. “He and the other coaches do a lot of work to make sure our teachers understand our busy schedules to help us stay on top of school and make sure we are successful skiers while still growing our academic careers.”

And Todd’s concern about the success of Rowmark skiers starts before they are even on the team. From the outset, he makes sure new recruits can thrive in the program. “Todd gives so much time to prospective families,” said Kathy Gunderson, former director of admission for Rowland Hall. “He cares so much about the candidates not only being a good fit for Rowmark but also finding academic success at the school as well. He’s brought recruiting to the next level.”

Todd’s recruiting prowess also extends to the coaches he selects to help guide the team. Every coach on Todd’s team knows they were selected for their excellence and are expected to reach extraordinarily high standards. But they also know that Todd views them as peers and wants them to feel welcome and able to grow as professionals through trial and error.

“Todd works to develop his staff,” said Rowmark Junior Program Director Troy Price. “Recently, three former staff members have gone on to coach for the US Ski Team. You must have excellent training to get job offers at that level.”

Staff development goes beyond coaching skills under Todd’s mentorship. After all, there is much more to the job than improving skiing skills. There are also all the logistical concerns, financial planning, health tracking, and emotional support needs that must be handled. Then there are the moments that are totally unexpected.

“My first season with the team we had a group of Rowmarkers involved in a head-on car accident while racing in Oregon,” said Troy. “Todd was coaching at another race in Whistler, Canada, yet he made arrangements to get to Portland. He stayed with our injured members during this extremely difficult time and was the glue that held everyone together. His empathy for others and his ability to stay calm in difficult situations is unmatched.”

Todd was a very important person in my development as an athlete. He taught me the tools I needed both technically with the fundamentals, and the greater work ethic required to make it to the highest level.—Breezy Johnson ‘13, Olympian

Todd’s two decades with Rowmark have left an indelible mark on all aspects of the program, and that impact will only continue to grow in the coming years. In 2019, an alpine training addition to the Utah Olympic Park became the team’s primary training facility, giving athletes access to the very slopes where their idols have competed. “This is the most important development for Rowmark since 1982,” said Olle. “The training arena that they now have does not exist anywhere else in the Northern Hemisphere.”

Time will tell what athletes will come off those slopes and into the national and international spotlights, but it’s clear that all of them will have benefitted from having Todd Brickson as a coach, mentor, and friend, just as those who came before them have.

“Todd was a very important person in my development as an athlete,” said Breezy. “He taught me the tools I needed both technically with the fundamentals, and the greater work ethic required to make it to the highest level.”

Rowmark

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Todd's anniversary isn't the only celebration for Rowmark Ski Academy this year. Rowmark is also excited to celebrate its 40th anniversary with a celebration weekend, to be held March 11–12. Current Rowmark athletes and families, as well as Rowmark alumni and their families, will be invited for a weekend of activities, including free skiing with friends, a dual ski race, BBQ tailgating, hors d’oeuvres, and remarks and a slideshow at the Utah Olympic Park. More details to come.

At only 18 years old, Rowmarker Mary Bocock has already had an impressive skiing career.

In addition to her achievements as a top Rowmark Ski Academy athlete, Mary had the chance to compete with the US Ski & Snowboard Team in Europe in January 2021, an opportunity that led to her first nomination to the US Alpine Ski Team later that year. Earlier this month, she was nominated to the US Ski Team for a second time. And prior to sustaining a knee injury in December, Mary was ranked first in super-G, third in giant slalom, and eighth in slalom in the United States for her age.

Mary will soon add another achievement to her resume—college athlete—when she joins the Dartmouth College women’s ski team next year. She plans to enroll as a first-year student in fall 2023, after taking a gap year to continue her healing and focus on her commitment to the US Ski Team before she dives back into a routine of balancing school, training, and racing.

“Joining the Dartmouth ski team has been one of my athletic goals since I started thinking about colleges,” said Mary, who long considered the Ivy League school not only because it offered a top ski program, but also because of its academic excellence.

“This is a great fit for Mary on all levels,” said Todd Brickson, Rowmark Ski Academy program director. “Dartmouth has a long history of developing world-class ski racers within their storied NCAA Division 1 ski team, in conjunction with their flexible academic structure and top-notch education.”

To celebrate Mary’s plan to attend Dartmouth, we asked her a few questions about her decision and her journey as a skier. The following interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

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When did you find out that you have a spot on Dartmouth's ski team? How did it feel to receive that news?

I started talking to the coach about a year and a half before I committed to skiing for him. I knew the coach was interested in me, but I knew that I shouldn’t get my hopes up because there could be other girls out there. So when he told me he wanted to offer me a spot in the fall of 2023, I felt relieved and excited that I didn’t have to worry about my college experience.

You'll be taking a gap year before heading to Dartmouth. Why did you make that choice?

I will be taking a gap year after I graduate in the spring so that I can focus on my commitment to the US Ski Team and take advantage of all the resources they provide. Throughout my whole racing career, I have always had to balance traveling and school, so I want to experience the sport without having to balance the stresses of high school alongside the pressure of performing well in races and traveling. The Dartmouth coach actually offered me a spot to start in the fall of 2022, but I decided that I want to take a year to mature as an athlete and really focus on racing to make the most of my opportunity with the US Ski Team.

You've been offered a spot on the Dartmouth team and you're on the US Ski Team—basically, you've achieved two of your dreams. While you can't know what lies ahead, how are you approaching these two amazing opportunities?

I feel very lucky to have these two incredible opportunities ahead of me. I am trying to stay present and not worry about how I will balance the two programs. I am just trying to take advantage of the places and lessons I am experiencing. I always try to not take anything for granted—especially after COVID—and make the most of my time traveling and exploring new mountains and countries.

Focusing on your time at Rowland Hall, what moment as a member of Rowmark are you most proud of?

I’ve had a lot of great experiences on Rowmark, so it’s hard for me to pick my favorite moment. But if I had to, I would say one of my favorite memories is when I won a GS [giant slalom] race in Breckenridge, Colorado, at the end of my junior year. It was that race that helped me lower my points enough to make criteria for the US Ski Team. When I came down and everyone was cheering for me, I was so excited that I couldn’t stop smiling. Then, a few minutes later, my coach came down and gave me a hug (which is rare because he’s not one for hugs), and I started to experience an overwhelming amount of emotions because it all felt real.

On the other side, some of the most memorable experiences from Rowmark have been off the snow. The conditioning/team bonding week is always a highlight of the year because the whole team comes together to compete with each other in a very cohesive way. Competition is one of my favorite aspects of ski racing, so I always have a lot of fun on the camping weekend when the whole trip is just filled with competition.

Tell us about the skills you built at Rowland Hall and on Rowmark that you'll be taking with you after graduation.

One of the most notable skills I’ve learned from being on Rowmark while attending a challenging high school is time management and communication. In order for me to keep up with my work while I’m gone, I have to be very diligent with letting my teachers know when I will be gone and updating them on my progress throughout my trips. My first few training camps with the US Ski Team have been very different compared to those with Rowmark because nobody else in my group is in school. I am the only one trying to keep up with classes while skiing at a high level. I have to find time to separate myself and sit down and do school work while my teammates do their other activities. However, I have actually started to really enjoy Zooming into my classes while I'm away on ski trips because it is an opportunity for me to take time off from thinking about skiing and still feel connected with my life at home.

Congratulations, Mary!

Athletics

Congratulations to junior Elisabeth Bocock, who this week was nominated to the US Ski Team.

Elisabeth is one of 42 athletes nominated to the US Alpine Ski Team and one of three athletes who will be joining the women’s Development Team (D-Team) for the first time for the 2022–2023 competition season. (Athletes qualify for the team in the spring based on selection criteria, and the official team is announced in the fall once nominees complete physical fitness testing and medical department clearance.) She is the youngest addition to the D-Team and the only new member from the state of Utah.

“It was unreal,” said Elisabeth of the moment she received the call from US Ski Team Coach Chip Knight congratulating her on her season and confirming her place on the team. “It was what I’ve been hoping for basically my whole life.”

She’s not kidding. Thanks to her family’s love of skiing, Elisabeth has been involved with the sport for as long as she can remember: she clipped into her first pair of skis at age two, and some of her earliest memories include traveling with her family to Colorado to watch the World Cup—an experience that inspired her first dreams of joining the US Ski Team. “Seeing people on the team there was super exciting,” she remembered. “It made me want to be a part of that.”

It was unreal. It was what I’ve been hoping for basically my whole life.—Elisabeth Bocock, class of 2023, on being nominated to the US Ski Team

It also didn’t hurt that Elisabeth has three older siblings—brothers Scottie ’18 and Jimmy, and sister Mary—who were early naturals on the slopes and whose ski racing journeys inspired her own competitive drive. Elisabeth began racing for the Snowbird Ski Team at age six, and she joined Rowmark Ski Academy at age 13—a move she credits for preparing her to excel in both racing and academics, and where she’s had an exceptional career. In the 2021–2022 season alone, Elisabeth had five podium finishes in elite-level FIS races and is currently ranked first for her age in the US in slalom, giant slalom, and super-G, and second in the world in giant slalom.

“What is so impressive about Elisabeth objectively earning a spot on the US Ski Team is that her season was filled with setbacks,” said Foreste Peterson, Rowmark Ski Academy’s head women's FIS coach. “Whether it was having to quarantine from COVID exposures, or the many hard crashes she took that left her concussed, bloody, bruised, and banged up, she was knocked down time and time again. Yet, she bounced back every time, better than before, and always with a smile on her face. It was truly a pleasure to work with Elisabeth this year, and I so look forward to seeing what her future holds.”

And while Elisabeth’s riding the high of simply making the US Ski Team, she’s also enjoying an additional perk not available to every athlete in her position: the knowledge that this new experience will include her older sister (and role model), Mary, who was nominated to the US Ski Team last spring. “I’m super excited to work together in a different atmosphere,” said Elisabeth. “Mary’s been a real inspiration to me and has shown me what it takes to get to where I need to go.”

We can’t wait to see where she goes next. Congratulations, Elisabeth—we’ll be cheering you on!

Rowmark

We are proud of the Olympians representing Rowmark Ski Academy and Rowland Hall at this month's Olympic Games, which kick off February 4.

Since their earliest days on the mountain, these skiers have been on a journey toward athletic excellence. Being named to their countries’ Alpine ski teams is one of the highest honors of their careers, and represents hours of sacrifice and a steady commitment to intense training and competition.

While four of our former athletes qualified for the 2022 Olympics, two will be competing in Beijing this month.

“Unfortunately, Breezy Johnson and Madi Hoffman both sustained season-ending knee injuries while training for the Games and will not be able to compete,” said Todd Brickson, Rowmark Ski Academy program director. “Nevertheless, they qualified for the Olympics and we could not be more proud of Breezy and Madi. Injury is a common reality in our sport and the timing is devastating, but they will be back stronger than ever. Katie Hensien and Katie Vesterstein will carry the Rowmark Ski Academy and Rowland Hall torch, and we will be watching!”

To help the Rowland Hall community prepare to cheer on our former Rowmarkers at the Games, we have provided brief overviews of the Olympians below (as well as a throwback photo for each!).

Team USA: Katie Hensien ’18

Katie Hensien graduated from Rowmark and Rowland Hall in 2018. She is a five-year member of the US Ski Team, and also currently skis for and attends the University of Denver. Katie is originally from Redmond, Washington, and will make her Olympic debut in Beijing. She is the 2020 national champion in giant slalom and was a part of the Junior World Championships team that won the silver medal in the team event in Val di Fassa, Italy.

“Katie is an incredible talent and hard worker, and is someone who always has a huge smile on her face,” said Todd. “She brings incredible energy and positive vibes into every room.”

Update February 9, 2022: Katie placed 26th in slalom.

Team Estonia: Kaitlyn (Katie) Vesterstein ’17

Katie Vesterstein graduated from Rowmark and Rowland Hall in 2017. A native of Duluth, Minnesota, Katie is currently a senior at the University of Utah and an All-American member of the university’s national champion ski team. Katie is a dual citizen of the US and Estonia and will be representing Estonia at the Beijing Games.

“Katie is a fierce competitor and incredibly kind teammate who grew up ski racing on the small hills of Minnesota before joining Rowmark and Rowland Hall for two years and propelling herself onto the prestigious University of Utah ski team,” said Todd.

Update February 7, 2022: Katie placed 35th in giant slalom.

Update February 9, 2022: Due to a crash, Katie received a DNF in slalom.

Team Australia: Madison (Madi) Hoffman ’18 (Injured)

Madi Hoffman graduated from Rowmark and Rowland Hall in 2018. She has been a member of the Australian National Team for several years and is also a two-year member of the national champion University of Utah ski team. Madi is a three-time Australian National Champion in slalom and giant slalom, and was one of only two Aussie women to qualify for the 2022 Olympics in Alpine skiing. She had been preparing for this moment with her coach (and former Rowmark head coach) Jim Tschabrun for four years.

“Madi is one of the hardest working and thoughtful young women I have ever had the pleasure to coach,” said Todd. “Her unfortunate knee injury will keep her from competing in this Olympics, but she is a very determined, talented ski racer, and I have no doubt that she will be back stronger than ever."

Team USA: Breezy Johnson ’13 (Injured)

Breezy Johnson graduated from Rowmark and Rowland Hall in 2013. Originally from Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Breezy joined the US Ski Team in 2014 and qualified for her first Olympic Games in 2018, where she placed seventh in downhill and 14th in super-G. Prior to her knee injury, Breezy was a clear medal contender after reeling off seven podium finishes and nine top-fives in her last 10 World Cup downhill races.

“In Breezy's time at Rowland Hall and Rowmark, she was incredibly determined and hardworking, both on the hill and in the classroom. At a young age Breezy had a very strong belief in herself and what was possible for her to achieve,” said Todd. “All I can say is that she is one of the world's best and she will be back with a vengeance.”

Schedule

Women’s Alpine skiing events begin on Monday, February 7. Check out the full Alpine skiing schedule for event information.

Help Us Cheer on the Athletes!

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for updates.

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Banner: Katie Hensien competing for Rowmark Ski Academy.

Alumni

Since the age of six, Rowland Hall junior—and passionate ski racer—Mary Bocock has had a big goal: to join the US Ski Team. That dream just came true.

I’ve wanted to be on the team ever since I started racing, so getting the call felt like I was achieving a goal I’d had for over 10 years.—Mary Bocock, class of 2022

On May 3, US Ski & Snowboard announced that 44 top national athletes, including Mary, have been nominated to the US Alpine Ski Team for the 2021–2022 competition season (athletes qualify based on published selection criteria in the prior season). Mary is one of only three new members of the women’s Development Team, also known as the D-Team; she’s also the youngest addition to that team and the only new member hailing from the state of Utah.

“When I got the call from [US Ski Team Coach] Chip Knight congratulating me on my nomination to the D-Team, I was overwhelmed with excitement,” said Mary. “I’ve wanted to be on the team ever since I started racing, so getting the call felt like I was achieving a goal I’d had for over 10 years. I am looking forward to skiing with a group of girls who push me and who know what it takes to be the best.”

Mary had a sensational 2020–2021 race season, which included a November 2020 US Nationals performance with Rowmark Ski Academy that earned her an invitation to compete with the US Ski Team in Europe. After placing in several races in Cortina, Italy, and Garmisch, Germany, in early 2021, Mary returned to the United States to finish the season: at the FIS Elite Races at Sugar Bowl Resort and Squaw Valley, California, she took 10th place overall (second for U19s) in giant slalom, and 11th place overall (fourth for U19s) in slalom. At the FIS Spring Series in Breckenridge, Colorado, she won the giant slalom race—a win that currently ranks her second in the nation and sixth in the world in giant slalom for her age, as well as first and ninth in the world in super-G. Finally, she ended the season with a 12th-place finish in super-G at the US National Championships in Aspen, Colorado.

Mary's fierce competitive nature is among the best in the world and I'm confident that she will take advantage of this opportunity.—Graham Flinn, head FIS coach

“Mary has worked incredibly hard day in, day out, not only this season but for many years in order to put herself in a position to accomplish the goal of being named to the US Ski Team,” said Graham Flinn, head FIS coach for Rowmark Ski Academy. “I'm very proud of the way she carried herself throughout this past year's successes and challenges. She continues to impress with her drive and ability to be a student of the sport. Her fierce competitive nature is among the best in the world and I'm confident that she will take advantage of this opportunity.”

The US Ski Team’s alpine athletes have already kicked off pre-season camps, and the official team will be announced this fall once nominees complete required physical fitness testing and US Ski & Snowboard medical department clearance. We will continue to update the Rowland Hall community on Mary’s progress in this exciting new chapter in her ski-racing career—which she’ll balance alongside her senior year at Rowland Hall—through the fall and winter.

Congratulations, Mary!

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The below video, first shared with the Rowland Hall community in April 2021, features Mary's reflections on competing in Europe earlier this year.

Rowmark

This summer, Rowland Hall welcomed former competitive ski racer Foreste Peterson to the Rowmark Ski Academy team.

We could not be more excited to have Foreste on board to work with our Academy athletes on and off the hill to share her knowledge, work ethic, and grit.—Todd Brickson, Rowmark program director

Foreste joins Rowmark as U19 International Ski Federation coach and academic liaison. A former racer for the Squaw Valley Ski Team, US Ski Team, Dartmouth College Ski Team, and Team X Alpine private women’s team, Foreste brings to Rowmark valuable elite athlete knowledge and experience that will benefit our student-athletes.

“We are thrilled that Foreste has joined our Rowmark Ski Academy staff,” said Todd Brickson, program director. “Her international experience and skill as an elite ski racer; her determination to scratch and claw her way to the top of collegiate skiing, all the way to the World Cup; and her humble yet confident demeanor all combine to bring an incredible person and personality to our coaching team. We could not be more excited to have Foreste on board to work with our Academy athletes on and off the hill to share her knowledge, work ethic, and grit.”

To help introduce Foreste to the Rowland Hall community, we asked her to play a round of 20 questions. (Be sure to also check out 20 questions with Colette Smith, Upper School girls soccer coach, published earlier this fall.) Foreste's answers have been lightly edited for style and context.

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1. We’re so excited that you’re one of our Rowmark Ski Academy coaches. What made you decide to join the Rowmark team?

Thank you, I’m excited too! It was a pretty easy decision to join Rowmark. I had just retired from my own racing career and knew that I wanted to stay in the sport and give back to the next generation of ski racers. I also knew I wasn’t ready to leave Utah, so it was a no-brainer to not pass up this opportunity.

2. What initially got you interested in ski racing as a kid?

Both my parents were ski racers and avid skiers, so they put my older sister and me on skis at the age of two. At four I joined the Squaw Valley Ski Team junior program, which transitioned into the race program. Skiing has always been a huge part of my family’s lifestyle, so I didn’t really have a choice in the beginning. Luckily, I fell in love with it early on and knew that I wanted to take it as far as I could.

3. You have impressive credentials: you were a member of the US Ski Team for four years, then competed for Dartmouth College, where—among your many achievements—you raced in World Cup competitions and earned the Class of 1976 Award as one of the college’s most outstanding female athletes of 2017. You also skied for Team X Alpine, the elite private women’s team, for two years. How did these opportunities as an athlete prepare you for this new chapter of coaching?

While I’ll certainly take all that I’ve learned from my experiences as an athlete into my coaching career, I think what prepared me most were certain pieces of feedback and advice I got from my former coaches over the years. How I thought about skiing and how I carried myself as an athlete were largely influenced by how I was coached. Now that I’m the one in the coaching role, I’m still benefiting from the pearls of wisdom that struck me back when I was an athlete. This wisdom has not just prepared me, but has compelled me to stay in the sport so that I can pass it on to the next generation, and hopefully make a difference in their athletic careers.

4. You are coaching Rowmark’s U19 athletes (students aged 16–18). As someone who began competing with the US Ski Team at age 16, you understand what it’s like to juggle athletics and academics at a young age. How do you see yourself helping your student-athletes balance those areas?

I do know what it’s like to juggle athletics and academics, and I know how challenging it can be. It wasn’t until I got to Dartmouth that I realized what time management really meant. More than that, I learned how incredibly important it is to make the most of the limited time you have, whether in the library, in the gym, or on the ski hill. I found that staying present, focusing on the task at hand, and being deliberate about what I was trying to accomplish helped keep me grounded, especially in times of stress.

I’m already so impressed by how much the student-athletes I’m working with have on their plates and how well they manage the loads. That said, I realize there will inevitably be bumps in the road for each of them, so as their coach I fully intend to serve as a resource, provide guidance, and do whatever I can to help them figure out how to best strike a healthy life balance so they can focus on what’s important in the moment.

5. As a competitor, you skied all over the world. If you could only ski at one resort for the rest of your life, which one would you choose?

That is a really tough one, but if I had to pick one, it would probably be Jackson Hole.

6. If the powder fairy granted you the chance to pick your perfect ski weather, what would it be?

Twenty-five degrees, bluebird skies, little to no humidity, and no wind!

7. Necessary equipment aside, what’s the one item you can’t be on the mountain without?

A neckie, a.k.a. neck warmer, neck gaiter, or buff. No matter the temperature, I feel naked if I’m not wearing one.

8. What’s your favorite aprѐs ski meal?

Nothing beats Wiener schnitzel in Europe.

9. Who’s your favorite professional skier to watch?

When I was younger it was always Bode Miller. Nowadays, it’s probably Wendy Holdener for the women and Alexis Pinturault for the men.

10. Let’s step away from skiing for a moment and chat about other areas of your life. What is one of your favorite things you did this summer?

I went home to California to see each of my parents, which I hadn’t done in a long time. Part of my time I spent visiting my dad in Squaw Valley and Berkeley (where I split my time growing up), and the rest of my time I sp