Brooks Bulletin Summer 2025

2024–2025

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

President John R. Barker ’87, P’21, P’23 Wellesley, Mass.

Vice Presidents

Cristina E. Antelo ’95 Washington, D.C.

Charles F. Cornish ’06 Sudbury, Mass.

Secretary

Phillip W. Field ’05 Boston, Mass.

Treasurer

Valentine Hollingsworth III ’72, P’17 Dover, Mass.

TRUSTEES

Peter J. Caldwell

Providence, R.I.

Catalina Dib P’25, P’26 Boston, Mass.

Head of School

John R. Packard Jr. P’18, P’21

Associate Head of Schooll

Nina Freeman

Director of Institutional Advancement

Gage S. Dobbins P’22, P’23

Director of Alumni and Family Programs

Sara Bird

Director of Family Engagement and Giving

Mary Merrill

Director of Admission and Financial Aid

Bini W. Egertson P’12, P’15

Director of Communications and Marketing

Kate Moran

Design Aldeia www.aldeia.design

Director of Editorial and Multimedia Services

Emily Williams

Director of Digital Communications Jennifer O’Neill

BULLETIN • SUMMER 2025

Peter V.K. Doyle ’69 Sherborn, Mass.

Cheryl M. Duckworth P’22, P’23 Lynnfield, Mass.

Anthony H. Everets ’93 New York, N.Y.

Julia Saltonstall Haley ’88, P’25 South Hamilton, Mass.

Paul L. Hallingby ’65 New York, N.Y.

Kevin R. Hendrickson ’04, P’24, P’28 North Andover, Mass.

Monique Y. Johnson P’24, P’26 North Andover, Mass.

Booth D. Kyle ’89 Annapolis, Md.

Diana Merriam P’08, P’11 Boxford, Mass.

Sally T. Milliken ’88, P’22, P’24, P’27 Byfield, Mass.

Sunit Mukherjee P’15, P’22 North Andover, Mass.

John R. Packard Jr. P’18, P’21 Head of School North Andover, Mass.

Russell T. Pyle ’87, P’25 Chestnut Hill, Mass.

Vivek Sharma P’24 Boston, Mass.

Isabella Speakman Timon ’92, P’26

Gulf Stream, Fla.

Alessandro F. Uzielli ’85

New York, N.Y.

Meredith M. Verdone ’81, P’19 Newton Center, Mass.

Christopher T. Wood ’85 Los Angeles, Calif.

ALUMNI TRUSTEES

Matthew Nash ’14 Dover, N.H.

Aron Xie ’15

Hong Kong, Hong Kong

TRUSTEES EMERITI

William N. Booth ’67, P’05

Chestnut Hill, Mass.

Henry M. Buhl ’48

New York, N.Y.

Steve Forbes ’66, P’91

Bedminster, N.J.

Steven R. Gorham ’85, P’17, P’21

Ipswich, Mass.

H. Anthony Ittleson ’56, P’84, P’86

Green Pond, S.C.

Michael B. Keating ’58, P’97

Boston, Mass.

Frank A. Kissel ’69, P’96, P’99

Far Hills, N.J.

Peter A. Nadosy ’64 New York, N.Y.

Eleanor R. Seaman P’86, P’88, P’91, GP’18 Hobe Sound, Fla.

David R. Williams III ’67 Beverly Farms, Mass.

Unsolicited manuscripts are welcome. Opinions expressed in the Bulletin are those of the authors and not necessarily of Brooks School.

mail Editor, Brooks Bulletin 1160 Great Pond Road North Andover, MA 01845

email communications@ brooksschool.org

Brooks celebrated 91 students in the class of 2025 with three joyful commencement events, including a Donning of the Stoles and Symbols Ceremony, featuring guest speaker Nina DeJesus Bowman ’85.

32 Building on Strong Foundations

Brooks’ academic spaces are getting a renovation, starting with the Henry Luce III Library. In 2026, phase I of the improvements will transform the building’s main and second floors into an expansive learning area consisting of classrooms, breakout rooms and welcoming common areas as well as an Academic Commons, staffed by faculty offering students support.

48 Reunion

We were thrilled to welcome the classes of 1975 and 2020 back to campus for their 50th and 5th reunions this May. With nearperfect weather, both classes were able to enjoy reconnecting with each other and the Brooks School of today.

“The centennial year presents a distinct opening to reflect on the many ways in which the school has reached and impacted generations of students.”

A MESSAGE FROM JOHN R. PACKARD JR. HEAD OF SCHOOL

Second Century Aspirations

We are now within one year of beginning Brooks School’s 100th year and the excitement about this milestone in the school’s life continues to grow. As the date nears, our attention turned to charting a course that would position the school to begin a second century confident in its ability to strengthen the student experience. This thinking began with focus on our mission aiming to provide the most meaningful educational experience our students will have in their lives. With this enduring purpose leading the way, our sights have been set on doing all we can to grow the likelihood of realizing this mission well into the next 100 years.

The Centennial Campaign we are now in has been centered on three pillars we believe are foundational to our mission: Immersive Learning, Culture of Exploration, Genuine Belonging. In this edition of the Brooks Bulletin, we highlight the outcome of the strategic thinking we have been doing with these pillars in mind — an academic facility master plan we believe will dramatically improve both the classroom experience and academic space in which our faculty and student body spend most of their time.

As we have moved this work along, with an eye on earning support for what will ultimately be a series of capital projects and accompanying steps aimed at deepening and broadening the school’s academic program, the initial opportunities we have had to socialize our thinking have been affirming. The academic program is a universal experience for all Brooks School students and faculty members. We are all engaged in this central purpose of the school and focusing on improving it has resonated with those we have been able to share our thinking with to this

point. Indeed, we know well the difference platinum-standard academic space makes by virtue of what our Science Center and Center for the Arts have yielded during the past 17 and seven years, respectively. To lift all of our academic space to this standard in ways that deliver mission, further our pillars and leverage the beauty of this 270acre campus is the goal.

The centennial year presents a distinct opening to reflect on the many ways in which the school has reached and impacted generations of students dating back to the 1920s. This singular year also allows for what we are doing on the pages that follow — sharing our highest aspirations for a school that we believe can and will need to be better still.

As I reflect back and forward all at the same time, I am reminded of the fact that everything we enjoy at our school has been given at some point in time. Richard Russell’s gift of an exquisite piece of land overlooking Lake Cochichewick, his most prized possession, he once wrote, was the first gift. Through the decades that have since passed, we have all been the beneficiaries of countless additional gifts that have built upon the foundation of Richard Russell giving Brooks School a start. As we look to the school’s second century, grateful for the leadership, stewardship, and deep care and investment of Brooksians past and present, our determination to do all we can to ensure future Brooksians feel the same reflexive inclination to hold the school close to their hearts only grows. I wish all of you a pleasant finish to your summer and a terrific start to your fall. We could not be more excited about the growing number of opportunities we will have to celebrate 100 years of Brooks School with all of you.

All in the Family

Two brothers recently won Brooks’ oratory competition created by another set of Brooksian brothers.

In March, Jack Rousmaniere ’28 joined the long list of Wilder Speaking Prize winners, from inaugural recipient Frank Blake ’67 to last year’s awardees, Kiara Rivera Valdez ’26 and Charlie Rousmaniere ’25 (Jack’s big brother).

Head of School John Packard H’87, P’18, P’21 said he was “incredibly moved and impressed” by all four Wilder Speaking Prize finalists — Mary Adams ’25, Lauren Puglia ’25, Veronica Seok ’25 and Jack Rousmaniere — a sentiment echoed by Chair of the English Department Danielle Coriale, who publicly told the four students, “You put your heart and soul into your speeches and we are all the better for it.”

This year’s prompts for the students’ two- to three- minute minute speeches were based on one of the school’s core values: integrity, which Associate Head of School Nina Freeman discussed in her Opening Chapel back in September 2024.

“Integrity was an incredibly difficult topic, but it became easy for me to write about due to the fact that I have a person in my life who completely represents what integrity means: my brother. My whole life he’s shown me to be myself no matter what and that is what I tried to embody in my speech,” Jack Rousmaniere said. “I’m incredibly honored to have won this award, especially with the amazing finalists this year. But what makes it so special to me is that I get to share it with the person I do my best to try to make proud every day.”

Established by another set of brothers, H. Todd Cobey Jr. ’61 and John Cobey ’62, in 1966, the allschool oratory competition honors

former Director of Admission F. Fessenden Wilder, who also served as the Archbishop editor and taught both English and Bible classes.

“We both thought conveyance of information through speech was terribly important,” John Cobey explained as the impetus for the endowed competition, noting that both he and his brother served as presidents of Brooks’ debating society, while he had served as yearbook editor and his brother, Todd, served as the Brooks Shield editor. “By naming the contest in his honor, Mr. Wilder’s memory and ideals might be transmitted to other students who do not know him.”

On March 9, Todd Cobey passed away after a long illness stemming from COVID-19, just three days after Jack Rousmaniere was named this year’s prize winner during Chapel. The 82-year-old New York resident originally resided in Galion, Ohio, when he arrived on campus in the fifth form. During his two years at Brooks, Todd Cobey also played football and wrestled, sang in the choir, was a prefect-at-large and fifth-form dormitory prefect.

After obtaining his bachelor’s degree from Harvard College, a master’s degree from Ohio State University and an MBA from Harvard Business School, Todd Cobey worked in finance. He served as a vice president at Goldman Sachs before starting his own firm, Cobey, Jacobson and Gordon.

John Cobey, 81, continues to practice law for Cohen, Todd, Kite & Stanford LLC in Cincinnati, Ohio, focusing on estate planning and charitable foundation formations. He previously taught law classes at the Northern Kentucky University Salmon P. Chase College of Law and the University of Cincinnati.

John Cobey attributes former Headmaster Frank D. Ashburn and his belief in “service to others” as to why he has sat on 40 charitable boards of directors. He currently chairs both The Cincinnati Health Network and the Hamilton County Law Library Resource Board, in addition to being the clerk of The Cincinnati Library Club.

In addition to John Cobey’s family (wife Jan, and sons Max and David), Todd Cobey is survived by his wife, Peggy Ellsberg, and his two children, Tucker and Rose. The family suggested memorial contributions be made to Brooks’ Wilder Speaking Prize (brooksschool.org/giving) or to a charity of one’s choice.

“We would not be the same people had it not been for Mr. Wilder and the other students and administration and masters at Brooks,” John Cobey said. “We loved the experiences at Brooks. It was more than a formal teaching of our culture and our culture’s hopes. It was a teaching of how to conduct a life so that it is meaningful and happy.”

“We would not be the same people had it not been for Mr. Wilder and the other students and administration and masters at Brooks.”

JOHN C OBEY ’62

Honoring Excellence in Teaching

The campus community celebrated Mathematics Teacher and Crew Program Director Tote Smith P’18, P’20, P’22 on March 6 when Head of School John Packard H’87, P’18, P’21 named him the new Prince Charitable Trust Endowed Chair.

Calling Smith an “exemplar of what faculty members at Brooks should aspire to be,” Packard revealed the honor in Chapel, before Kathy Palmer Smith ’88, P’18, P’20, P’22 and two of the couple’s three children, Nate Smith ’18 and Tobey Smith ’20, gathered with family and faculty for a surprise luncheon in Smith’s honor in the Keating Room.

“It’s very difficult to bring the depth of his commitment to students, the school and all that is on his plate to light in a way that does that commitment justice,“ said Packard. “For scores of students, he is a devoted and talented teacher who knows his stuff inside and out. He is a coach who not only knows the X’s and O’s, but seems to have written them. He is an advisor who epitomizes any trusted adult definition and has been an exceptional port in the storm for students needing that space.”

Quoting one of the recommendations that a colleague had offered on Smith’s behalf, Packard added, “‘He holds kids and colleagues to a high standard and never gives less than 100 percent to all he does.’”

The honor of receiving this recognition is especially sweet for Smith, who spent his early career in a completely different field. A Yale University economics major, he worked in corporate finance for more than a decade before a season coaching Brooks’ girls 2nd crew with longtime head coach Sally Morris P’86, P’89 — and a heart-to-heart with Faculty Emeritus Doug Burbank H’98, P’11 — led Smith to teaching at Salisbury School for 13 years.

The educator returned to Brooks in 2016 with his family in tow, earned his Master’s degree in private school leadership from Columbia University’s Teachers College during downtime, and has been making his mark in teaching, advising, dorm-parenting and coaching on Lake Cochichewick ever since.

“This is a really wonderful honor,” Smith reflected in his remarks to the group gathered for his lunch post-ceremony. “The gift of being in this profession, and I have a sense of this because I did something else first, is, we’re very lucky to do what we do. …[It is] the most wonderful, meaningful profession, I think, that you can have.”

50 YEARS OF DIPLOMAS

Lynn McLoughlin P’11, P’16 has been teaching visual arts at Brooks for more than a decade but this year marks a unique milestone: It’s the 50th year she’s inked the calligraphy for Brooks’ diplomas. “I never even thought of how long I’d been doing it until figured it out this past year and I’m like, ‘Whoa, that’s a long time,’” McLoughlin admitted. Since she was just 15 years old (set up with the project through her father, late biology teacher and Faculty Emeriti Faculty Emeriti Nick Evangelos H’77, P’74, GP’11, GP’16), she has spent every April hand painting each letter of every Brooksian’s name and their distinctions, estimating she’s completed 5,000 to date. Putting that fountain pen to paper “keeps me connected to my father, but also to all my students who have come through here,” she said. “When see a student holding their diploma that I’ve done, it makes me feel proud.”

Beloved Community

The Brooks community gathered to celebrate Asian Pacific Islander culture during this year’s Beloved Community Day held in May and organized by Brooks’ Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging and the Asian Student Alliance (ASA) affinity group. Putting students’ regularly scheduled schoolwork on hold for the morning, Beloved Community Day provided opportunities for all members of the Brooks campus to engage in activities and discussions that foster a deeper appreciation of Asian Pacific cultures, specifically highlighting Chinese, Korean and South Asian cultural values and traditions.

The day began with a festive flair as the Wah Lum Kung Fu and Tai Chi Academy kicked things off with a traditional Chinese Lion Dance performance. Accompanied by the resonant beat of a “tanggu” drum, the lion, joined by a comical Buddha figure, danced through the theatre, delighting students by tossing oranges — symbols of longevity and good health — into the crowd. The troupe’s leader shared the cultural significance of the dance, and as part of the ceremony, the lion showered student leaders and Head of School John Packard H’87, P’18, P’21 with lettuce, a gesture meant to bestow wealth and good fortune.

Students then participated in workshops delving into various aspects of Asian culture. Kevin Kahu ’27, a beloved community ambassador was spotted intently learning new Kung Fu skills and refining his K-pop dance moves. He appreciated the “meaningful demonstrations of Asian culture” and how the Asian community “shared their culture with me through enthusiasm and openness.” Other workshops provided insight into traditional South Asian dance, tai chi, Asian storytelling, the Korean language alphabet Hangul, traditional Korean games, Hindu yoga and meditation, and Chinese calligraphy.

Mai Du, a social justice activist for the Boston area Asian community, was the event’s keynote speaker. Named one of @getkonnected Boston’s 50 Most Influential Asian-American Pacific Islanders for her work with community coalitions and education initiatives, Du shared an inspiring talk in Chapel about her journey as a refugee from Vietnam in the 1980s, balancing assimilation while embracing pride in her heritage. She also provided a primer on touchpoints in Asian American history. “Understanding what another

person’s culture means to them, and what they do as a part of defining who they are as a global citizen, helps them make connections,” Du observed. For Cheng Zhuang ’25, a member of the plan ning committee and Asian Student Alliance leader, Beloved Community Day was a mean ingful and memorable representation of Asian culture: the day helped to “burst the Brooks bubble … I saw so many smiles and laughs. I think that’s important, because students clearly were eager to appreciate and receive a new cultural understanding. Asian students also enjoyed seeing their non-Asian friends participate in activities and experiences that reflected their heritage. It created a sense of pride and belonging, like their culture wasn’t just being observed, but genuinely celebrated.”

A Special Day on Campus

Brooks welcomed nearly 125 grandparents and special friends of students to campus on May 10. Guests had the chance to sit in on classes with their students, hear remarks from Head of School John Packard, enjoy musical performances from students, and eat lunch in Wilder Dining Hall before cheering on Brooks teams in their athletic contests.

Celebrating a Legacy

The school took a day in January to celebrate and dive into the legacy and impact of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Students and faculty met in Chapel to hear readings from the school’s DEIB prefects and Beloved Community Ambassadors, and performances by the Brooks Gospel Choir and outside group The Choral Majority. The Rev. Dr. Theodore Hickman-Maynard (pictured) delivered the keynote address. Hickman-Maynard is the associate dean for ministry studies at Harvard Divinity School.

For more Brooks News, use the QR code:

BOSTON MEDFLIGHT VISIT

On May 13, Boston MedFlight visited campus to talk about its emergency services. Invited by Wakeman Gribbell ’26, the entire community also had the opportunity to see — and sit in! — the medical helicopter.

IN THE LEHMAN

A Proud History of Trusteeship

As Brooks approaches its Centennial celebration in the academic year 2026–2027, the school wishes to recognize and thank all of its school trustees, past and present. The board lends its care, guidance, expertise and support to the school in ways large and small, and the collective effort of the trustees over time has shaped Brooks into the institution it is today.

A CALL FOR ASSISTANCE

The list of school trustees shown here reflects our most updated records. If you have additional information you would like to share with the school, please contact communications@brooksschool.org.

The Rev. Endicott Peabody

1926–1944

Richard S. Russell*

1927–1951

Frederick W. Allen

1927–1933

The Rev. Sherrard

Billings

1927–1933

James Jackson*

1927–1951

Robert A. Lovett

1927–1933

Roger B. Merriman

1927–1939

The Rt. Rev. Charles Lewis Slattery

1927–1930

John Hay Whitney

1928–1957

Edwin C. Jameson

1929–1930

Henry Lyman

1929–1934

Frank D. Ashburn H’73*

1930–1973 Ashburn served as Brooks’ founding head of school. He guided Brooks for 46 years.

Joseph H. Plumb

1930–1932

Bishop Henry Knox Sherrill

1930–1947

Helen Belknap

1932–1935

Belknap was the first woman to serve on the school’s board of trustees.

Henry S. Grew

1932–1944

Elizabeth Peabody

1932–1933

James D. Regan

1932–1933

Dorothy Carpenter

1933–1937

Eugene du Pont

1933–1935

William A. Parker

1933–1942

Henry R. Shepley

1933–1947

Arthur Woods

1933–1936

Helen Metcalf Danforth

1935–1957

Edward F. MacNichol Jr. ’36

1935–1936 MacNichol was the first Brooks graduate to serve on the board of trustees.

Phyllis Tuckerman

1937–1940

Elinor Janeway

1938–1946

Reginald C. Foster

1940–1945

George F. Plimpton

1941–1942

John M. S. Allison

1942–1943

William D. Beal

1942–1951

Samuel Hoar

1942–1948

Richard A. Kimball

1944–1957

Wilmarth S. Lewis

1946–1949

Roger B. Merriman Jr. 1946–1959

Alexander B. Royce

1946–1962

Hayden N. Smith 1946–1961

Sidney F. Tyler 1946–1948

Bishop

Norman B. Nash 1947–1957

Robert G. Goelet ’41* 1948–1975

Charles B. Hall ’36

1948–1950

Robert Saltonstall 1948–1952

Kenneth W. Marriner

1949–1959

Edward N. Carpenter ’37 1950–1952; 1957–1965

George B. Blake ’35 1951–1981

Albert J. Hettinger Jr.* 1951–1975

Theodore G. Kenefick

1952–1954

Charles Haven Ladd ’35 1952–1962

Harold d’O. Baker ’38 1954–1956; 1957–1966

Eugene M. Geddes 1954–1963

Richard W. Breck Jr. ’42 1956–1958

Murray S. Danforth Jr. ’42* 1957–1984

Louis S. Weeks Jr. ’36 1958–1971

Stephen C. Eyre ’41* 1959–1987

Waldo H. Holcombe 1959–1986

Chandler Hovey Jr. 1959–1969

Eric Pierce ’40 1959–1962

Arnold Cogswell ’43 1962–1965; 1971–1973

Charles H. W. Foster ’45 1962–1971

John P. Morgan II 1962–1969

Robert L. Wolff 1962–1975

Peter F. F. Kissel ’45 1965–1973

Edward S. Moore III ’49 1966–1968

Alexander M. Laughlin 1967–1981

John R. Fell Jr. ’52 1969–1971; 1976–1989

Morgan H. Harris Jr. ’50 1969–1978

H. Anthony Ittleson ’56* 1969–1998

Thomas C. Platt ’43 1969–1982

Henry C. Scott Jr. ’45 1970–1973

James O. Stack ’68 1970–1973

Daniel G. Jay ’70 1971–1974

Walter J. P. Curley Jr. 1972–1974

Peter V. N. Philip ’42 1972–1980

David T. Schiff ’54 1972–1990

H. Peter Aitken H’49 1973–1986

Peter W. Nash ’51* 1973–1992

Ralph Bradley II ’72 1974–1979

Quentin H. Warren ’73 1974–1975

Henry W. Bragdon 1975–1980

Joan Cave 1975–1988

Michael L. Laughlin ’62 1975–1982

Trevor A. McC. Potter ’74 1975–1980

Charles W. Chatfield 1976–1980

Michael B. Keating ’58* 1976–2005

W. L. Lyons Brown Jr. 1977–1981

James G. Hellmuth* 1977–2000

Vincent P. Morton Jr. 1977–1987

F. Wisner Murray ’75 1977–1980; 1987–1993

Ernest B. Wright Jr. ’34 1977–1981

Steve Forbes ’66* 1978–1998

Eliot Chace Nolen

1978–1986

Felisa Vanoff 1978–1984

Warren N. Ponvert Jr. ’78

1979–1982

William C. Broaddus ’78 1980–1983

Robert L. Gerry III ’56 1980–1988

Van R. Milbury 1980–1983

Charles H. Hood 1981–1994

Roy R. Plum ’56 1981–1986; 1987–1992

Barbara T. Barnes 1982–1987

Lolita Echavarria Roosevelt ’81

1982–1983

Kenneth W. Washburn ’55 1982–1990

Orrin S. Wightman III ’58 1982–1987

David R. Williams III ’67* 1982–2005

Virginia Walsh Cobb ’83 1983–1986

Stephen W. Mapel ’82 1983–1985

Standish Meacham Jr. 1983–2001

Eleanor R. Seaman* 1984–1999

Peter W. Stroh 1984–1988

Hugh K. Foster ’46

1985–1987

Gordon Abbott Jr. ’45

1986–1990

Lawrence W. Becker H’96* 1986–2008

William S. Weil ’84 1986–1988; 1998–2006

Othar Zaldastani 1986–1995

Lucius A. D. Andrew ’57* 1987–2007

Francis S. Blake ’67 1987–1990

Mark J. Hamel ’86 1987–1989

Mary Ellen O’Hara 1987–1992

Herbert P. Dane 1988–1996

Jennifer B. F. Foster Walton ’88 1988–1990

Charles C. Haffner III 1988–1995

Cera B. Robbins* 1988–1999

E. Maxwell Geddes ’53 1989–1994

Andrew S. Gundlach ’89 1989–1991

David B. Livesey ’60 1989–1997

Henry M. Buhl ’48* 1990–2002

Robert C. Fisk 1990–1998

Bethany N. Golden ’90 1990–1992

Peter A. Nadosy ’64* 1990–2005

Murray S. Danforth III ’72 1991–1997

Craig N. Melzer ’91 1991–1993

Rachel O. Clapp Smith ’92 1992–1994

William M. Matthews ’67 1992–2002

Miriam A. McDonald 1992–1999

Elizabeth Loomis Norton 1992–1996

Christopher C. Abbott ’75 1993–1996

Mary Kay Crain 1993–1996

Jeffrey D. Patterson ’93 1993–1995

Blakely Fetridge Bundy 1994–2004

Caroline J. Pennington Haines ’94 1994–1996

Frank A. Kissel ’69* 1994–2009

Allen W. Sinsheimer ’73 1994–2005

W. J. Patrick Curley III ’69* 1995–2022

Elizabeth Kilgour Lalor ’83 1995–2001

Adam N. A. Stevens ’95 1995–1997

Lisa F. Bottomley ’96 1996–1998

Robert T. Hall ’68 1996–1999

Joseph W. Hammer ’60 1997–2005

John A. McKallagat ’66 1997–2001

Peter G. Schiff ’70 1997–2004

Robin G. Senior 1997–2001

Michael J. Wanyo ’97 1997–1999 Brad Zervas 1997–2002

Evelyn A. Addo-Wallace ’98 1998–2000

Barbara Savitt Pearson 1998–2006

Harold F. Starks Jr. ’82 1998–2003

Eleanor C. Armstrong 1999–2004

John R. Barker ’87 1999–2005; 2010–present

Joseph A. Giallanella ’99 1999–2001

Irving E. Rogers III ’79 1999–2007

Nina DeJesus Bowman ’85 2000–2009

Michael J. Doyle ’76

2000–2009

John Davis Leland Jr. ’52 2000–2009

Andrea J. Melnikas ’00 2000–2002

Antony M. Merck 2000–2003

Donald D. Stanley 2000–2004

Diane P. Atwood 2001–2007

Elizabeth M. Lee 2001–2004; 2007–2012

William L. Perocchi ’75 2001–2005

Scott H. Thoms ’01 2001–2003

Alessandro F. Uzielli ’85 2001–2008; 2014–present

Arthur S. DeMoulas ’77 2002–2003

Frank P. Magliochetti Jr. 2002–2006

Roslyn M. Mays ’02 2002–2004

Elizabeth W. Raymond 2002–2005

Lammot duP. Copeland Jr. ’50 2003–2014

John E. Petzold ’03 2003–2005

Charles E. Bascom ’60 2004–2015

Malcolm G. Chace III ’52 2004–2011

E. Gannon Hunt Cooper ’94 2004–2006

Anette Goelet 2004–2009

Bethany A. Gostanian ’04 2004–2006

Francis X. Knott 2004–2012

David A. Rountree 2004–2013

William N. Booth ’67* 2005–2017

Paul L. Hallingby ’65 2005–present

Laura A. Langer

2005–2009

Diana D. Merriam 2005–2012; 2020–present

James V. Miragliotta ’82 2005–2007

John Richards II 2005–2009

Edwin A.D. Clark ’05 2006–2007

Carmine A. Martignetti 2006–2011

Huntington Sheldon ’47 2006–2009

H. Lindsay Turner ’06 2006–2008

Anthony K. Baker ’62

2007–2008

Deane H. Dolben

2007–2012

DooHyun Brandon Park ’07 2007–2009 Ginger Bailey Pearson ’99

2007–2015

Craig J. Ziady ’85

2007–2012; 2016–2024

Anthony H. Everets ’93

2008–present

Steven R. Gorham ’85* 2008–2022

Ashley N. Hutchinson O’Connor ’08 2008–2010

John R. Packard Jr. H’87 2008–present

Letitia Wightman Scott ’84 2008–2018

Thomas E. Shirley 2008–2015

Samuel C. Eisenman ’09 2009–2011

Donald R. Peck 2009–2016

Lynne A. Sawyer ’83 2009–2016

Isabella Speakman Timon ’92 2009–2020; 2023–present

Carol W. Geremia 2010–2014

Charles C. Platt ’71 2010–2014

Appalonia E. Tankersley ’10 2010–2012

John R. Hartigan ’11 2011–2013

Pamela W. Albright 2012–2019

Elizabeth C. Donohue ’12 2012–2014

Belisario A. Rosas 2012–2022

Joseph F. Trustey III 2012–2015

David E. Berroa ’13 2013–2015

Booth D. Kyle ’89 2013–present

Timothy McCoy ’81 2013–2019

Ramakrishna R. Sudireddy 2013–2020

Valentine Hollingsworth III ’72 2014–present

Zachary S. Martin 2014–2021

Daniel J. Riccio 2014–2023

Whitney Romoser Savignano ’87 2014–2024

Kamilah M. Briscoe ’96 2015–2017

Jonathan F. Gibbons ’92 2015–2020

Robert Hughes 2015–2019

Zachary McCabe ’15 2015–2017

Albert D. Nascimento ’10 2015–2017

Shawn Gorman ’84 2016–2022

Brian McCabe 2016–2023

Juliane Gardner Spencer ’93 2016–2024

Cristina E. Antelo ’95 2017–present

Ronald Dixon ’06

2017–2019

Peter V.K. Doyle ’69 2017–present

Caroline E. Trustey ’13 2017–2019

Peter J. Caldwell

2018–present

Nancy C. Ferry 2018–2024

Meredith M. Verdone ’81

2018–present

William E. Collier ’11

2019–2021

Cheryl M. Duckworth

2019–present

Iris R. Bonet ’90 2020–2023

Sally T. Milliken ’88

2020–present

Ikenna U. Ndugba ’16

2020–2023

Alysa U. James ’11

2021–2023

Vivek Sharma 2021–2025

Christopher T. Wood ’85 2021–present

Charles F. Cornish ’06 2022–present

Catalina Dib 2022–present

Julia Saltonstall Haley ’88

2022–present

Sathvik R. Sudireddy ’15

2022–2024

Phillip W. Field ’05 2023–present

Kevin R. Hendrickson ’04 2023–present

Sunit Mukherjee 2023–present

Matthew B. Nash ’14 2023–2025

Monique Y. Johnson

2024–present

Russell T. Pyle ’87

2024–present

Aron (Songruo) Xie ’15

2024–present

Darkly Delightful!

Theater students’ behind-the-scenes talents took center stage in the winter play, “Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors,” and spring musical “Hadestown.”

DRACULA

“It was definitely not a version of ‘Dracula’ anyone’s seen before,”

Director of Theatre Meghan Hill said of “Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors,” performed in the Center for the Arts

February 27 through March 1. The 90-minute, tongue-in-cheek production, which she describes as “very quirky,” was full of pop culture references and slayed sold-out audiences each night.

Ten cast members and another seven in the crew brought the winter play to life under the direction of Abby Derderian ’25, who also designed the set as their theater Independent. “It feels amazing to have had this experience and led the show from idea to final performance,” said Derderian. “I am really proud of how it turned out.”

With all of the responsibilities involved — from casting to running rehearsals, advising classmates and collaborating with the adult production team — the actor-turned-director could have easily become overwhelmed. Yet Derderian embraced it all. “As someone who has spent a lot of time in other roles, onstage and backstage, I was more empathetic and aware of the needs and challenges of the people I was working with,” they said.

That background will serve Derderian well in the future: after a gap year following graduation, they plan to enroll at Syracuse University to study theater design and technology..

“I am really grateful to have had the space to share and grow my ideas at Brooks,” Derderian reflected. “Every moment spent on ‘Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors’ was a joy and an honor and I am so proud to have collaborated with all the great minds who took a bite out of it!”

with professional

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HADESTOWN

The magic of Brooks’ next production came from behind the scenes, too. Nearly a dozen students in the stagecraft class and afternoon activity tech crew toiled together to build an impressive 36-wheel, fully automated platform stage on which the underworld musical, “Hadestown: Teen Edition,” literally spun from May 15 through 17.

“They learned a lot about precision layout, motor controls, automation programming and power,” said Technical Theater Director Sarah Spollett. Not to mention tools, including saws and screw guns, that Arden Sartori ‘27 said, “I would have never been exposed to outside of stage crew.” For Jill Hamilton ‘26, the project was a challenge of focus and patience. “If any wheel was off by just an inch, it could have messed up the whole table!” she said.

“But it’s been worth it,” Maanya Tailam ‘25 insisted. “The turntable and the weathered pipes… We put so much work into bringing this to life and I know it made a big impact on stage.”

Learning from professional set designer Eli Singer and lighting designer Emily Bearce, who worked on the set and served as mentors throughout the process, gave the students next-level experience not typically available in high school.

“I think it’s cool how I can be a part of a crew like this, working on such an advanced project,” said Alex Colvin ’27. “It’s extraordinary. I mean, Brooks is a leader in the arts programs, and this shows that.”

Academic Achievers!

“Your dedication to your studies is impressive and we celebrate all the work you have put in,” Dean of Academic Affairs Currie C. Joya-Huntington told 18 students honored at our Cum Laude Society induction on April 23. The new members (listed below) were recognized in the special Chapel ceremony, demonstrating the school’s commitment to honor scholastic achievement.

Class of 2025 inductees:

Leah Chen

Aiden Crott

Lauren DuBarry

Ximing Ivy Gong

Henry Hebert

Thomas Lacoste

Francesca Maitino

Adrianna McClintock

Meghan McSwain

Seho Min

Harrison O’Connor

Charles Rousmaniere

William Sanders

BuGyeom Seok

Serena Trojer

Ella Whelan

Jacob Yutong Zhao

Cheng Zhuang

Moira Goodman Named Faculty Emerita on Prize Day

During this year’s Prize Day celebration, the Brooks School community celebrated Moira Goodman’s P’15, P’17, P’18, P’23 designation as Faculty Emerita, recognizing her 22 years of extraordinary service to the school. Hired in 2003, Goodman quickly became known not only as a gifted math teacher but also as someone deeply committed to every aspect of boarding school life. “We were looking for much more than a math teacher,” recalled Head of School John Packard. “One candidate stood out above all the others for her expertise as a teacher, her appreciation and enthusiasm for all that comes with living and working in a boarding school, and a desire to fold what was then her very young family’s life into a community like ours.”

Goodman’s contributions have been vast: from the classroom to the squash courts, from the dormitory to

the advising program. In recent years, her leadership of the Learning Center solidified her lasting impact. “The technical support she provided was important,” said Packard, “but the ways in which she has helped students believe in themselves has been the real gift.”

Her legacy at Brooks is also a family affair. All four of her sons are Brooks graduates, and her husband, once skeptical of campus life, became part of the school’s fabric alongside her.

Though retiring from Brooks, Goodman continues her work with young people through Serving Stars and Bellesini Academy in Lawrence. Her influence will ripple well beyond the edge of Lake Cochichewick where she first said yes to Brooks.

“A simple thank you for all she has given to Brooks feels insufficient,” said Packard. “ Thus, I am honored to designate her faculty emerita.”

GRATITUDE

The school wishes to thank the following volunteers, who are among those who assisted with Winter Term this year:

Xander Schwartz

Nicola C. G. Savignano ’87 and Whitney Romoser

Savignano ‘87

Hannah Latham ’17

Kathy Palmer Smith ’88

Justin Hayes ’93

Faculty emeritus

Leigh Perkins ’81

Ian Davis P’26

Eliza Sullivan P’27

Alice Pearce ’81

Alyson Donlan ’81

Gus Taylor ’65

What do you LOVE about Brooks?

Brooks will celebrate its centennial in 2026–2027 and this incredible milestone is all about celebrating YOU — the Brooks School community that has made these years so memorable. As we gear up for our Centennial Celebration, we would love for you to be part of the journey.

Here’s how you can get involved:

Winter Term

Write Us a Love Letter: Share your favorite memories, milestones or how Brooks shaped your life. What makes Brooks unforgettable to you?

Share Your Brooks Memorabilia:

Photos, old programs or cherished mementos from your time here — we’d love to see it all!

Every memory and keepsake you share helps us reflect on our rich history and brings the Centennial Celebration to life. You can learn more via the QR code or submit your love letters and photos at centennial@brooksschool.org

Once again, students developed new skills, explored potential career options and had a lot of fun during our annual Winter Term in January. Winter Term’s one-topic courses are categorized in one of three immersive learning skill areas: inquiry; in which students explore topics by asking questions, researching, making connections and reflecting; adventure; in which students move beyond their comfort zones and learn through action; and service; in which students learn to understand their role in the community beyond Brooks. WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!

SAVE THE DATES for these Brooks alumni events! Visit www. brooksschool.org/ alumni/events for more information and to see additional event dates — we are always adding more to the list! JULY 24 York Harbor, Maine Reception AUGUST 22 East Hampton, NY Reception OCTOBER 9 Boston Reception OCTOBER 25

Winter Athletics

Brooks 1st teams raked in the recognitions for their action on the ice and mat but especially for their milestone moments on the courts.

What a winter for athletics! Brooks wrestlers earned two ISL first-team honors (Aiden Crott ’25 and Harrison Kucharski ’28, who won his weight class at the Graves-Kelsey Championship), three honorable mentions plus two NEPSAC honorable mentions and a trip for three to Prep Nationals (at New Englands, the team finished 14th out of 42 in the Coed Division).

Meanwhile, ice hockey players skated to two ISL first-team honors (Griffin Bucci ’25 and Harry Jackson ’25) with three honorable mentions, while the girls’ team standout, Kyleigh Matola ’25, was awarded honorable mentions from the ISL and NEPSAC. And in basketball and squash, our athletes were, literally, triumphant.

BASKETBALL SEASON TO REMEMBER

Going into the playoffs with an under-500 record and players injured throughout the season, hopes weren’t too high for Brooks boys basketball, who’d been seeded sixth in NEPSAC’s Class B tournament this March. So, the win was especially sweet when they triumphed in the championship vs. Rivers School 64-61 with a buzzer-beater by Class B Player of the Year and All-NEPSAC honoree Alex Wilkins ’25.

“To dethrone Rivers, who’s going for their fourth title, under those circumstances? That’s big. That’s huge,” says head coach Kenya Jones. (Girls basketball finished with a balanced win-loss record and two ISL first-team honorees who were also named NEPSGBCA All-Stars: Jules Giordano ’26, Summer Warren ’25 [also All NEPSAC], plus two honorable mentions).

“This championship run was truly special,” he added of his squad’s steamroll, beating No. 3 seed Pomfret School in the quarterfinals by just four points and upsetting No. 2 seed Canterbury School in the semis, making up a 20-point deficit, to win 79-77.

“The magic behind our comefrom-behind victories was our team’s unwavering resilience,” Jones says. “All season long, we searched for an identity and when it mattered most, we realized that our identity was our ability to embrace adversity.”

The players “never backed down, no matter the situation,” he says. “Every game in the playoffs, we faced double-digit deficits but our belief in one another never wavered. We stayed together, we fought and we found a way.”

It helped that Brooks students, teachers, adults and friends never doubted the team’s talent. Roughly

Coach of the Year!

Following his team’s championship win, boys 1st basketball head coach of three years, Kenya Jones earned a new title of his own: NEPSAC Class B Co-Coach of the Year. “It’s surreal,” Jones says of the news announced on April 3. “It’s indescribable.” Currently associate director of admission, he has been leading Brooks teams since 2006 and coached for 15 years with former coach John McVeigh, under whom the team had an 84-game win streak. “I am simply adding my own touch to the foundation that has already been laid,” Jones says of his “never quit” approach. With three players moving on to college he acknowledges that the 20252026 season will look different but says that his returning players “understand what we’re doing, what we want to do and where we’re going.”

150 Brooks students bussed more than an hour down to Connecticut to cheer on the team in the quarterfinals at Pomfret School on March 5.

“At the end of the day, this group of kids — every single player, coach and manager — deserves all the credit,” says Jones. “They showed heart, toughness and an unbreakable will to win.”

SQUASHING THE COMPETITION

Similarly surprising in their success, girls squash turned a losing season into triumph, taking second place in the Division 5 High School National Championship and then winning the NEPSAC Class D Championship. (Boys squash, for their part, celebrated two ISL

honorable mention winners, Thayer McClintock ’25 and Tom Pan ’28, who also earned a NEPSAC honorable mention).

Coach Kihak Nam ’99, P’26 admitted that the squad’s regular season was “really tough,” because they only won two matches. “I’m really proud of our girls because instead of focusing on wins and losses they were really working on how to improve their skills and get better after each match,” he says.

“Towards the end of the season, they did a tremendous job … That’s a testament to their hard work throughout the entire season.”

At Nationals, held in the Arlen Specter US Squash Center in Philadelphia, February 22-23, the team decidedly beat Seven Hills

School and Greenwich Country Day School before falling short 3-4 against Concord Academy in the finals.

The tables turned at NEPSACs when they beat Concord Academy 4-3 during the tournament’s first round on March 1. The squad continued on to best Miss Porter’s School and then Pomfret School in the finals the following day with a 5-2 finish.

In addition to their titles, the team can also claim an ISL and NEPSAC Honorable Mention winner in Adrianna McClintock ’25.

“Coach Nam always knows how to give us the support and advice we need to persevere through the toughest matches,” said Ella Whelan ’25. “In the end, everyone left the season a better squash player and having had fun.”

Spring Athletics

Softball and crew continued making Brooks proud with milestone accomplishments in 2025.

While we’re proud to share that our female golfers won the ISL All-Girls Invitational at Ould Newbury Golf Club, and that the entire golf team was honored with the ISL Sportsmanship Award, individual athletic accomplishments were impressive this spring, too.

Six sixth-formers earned ISL First Team awards, including Shayne King ’25 for baseball and Mason Malouf ’25 for golf (who also qualified for the Mass Open). A slew of lacrosse players earned honorable mentions, four for boys and five for girls, while the baseball and tennis teams both scored two. It was crew and softball, though, that set the bar.

SERIOUS SPEED FROM CREW

For the first time in the history of Brooks’ crew program, both Brooks’ boys and girls first boats qualified for the A finals at the USRowing Youth National Championships in Sarasota, Florida.

Representing Brooks School at the event, held June 12 to 15, they each competed against the top 32 crews in the country, with the boys 4+ taking fourth place and the girls 4+ capturing seventh place. (This is the fifth straight year Brooks has competed in nationals.)

Overall, Director of Rowing Tote Smith P’18, P’20, P’22 says,

Points for the Prefect

Brooks’ crew “had a very, very good season,” noting that three varsity boats went into their regular season championships undefeated.

At the annual NEIRA regatta on May 24, Brooks girls’ first boat was seeded No. 1 and the boys first boat was seeded second.

“It’s the first time in a long time that we’ve had this impressive of a ranking,” says Director of Athletics Andrea Heinze P’19. All eight of Brooks’ boats made it to the grand finals at NEIRA and Smith was happy to report that “six of our eight boats brought home hardware:” a silver medal and a bronze for the girls, and one silver and three bronze for the boys.

Celebrating the crew’s success during the spring afternoon activities awards on campus, May 29, Heinze shared, “It was the best overall finish in decades at Brooks School.”

On April 16, lacrosse captain and head prefect, Lydia Tangney ‘25, scored and then surpassed her 300th career point while also approaching 400 draw controls, prompting coach Julie Duffy to marvel at the time, “This is unreal!” Soon after, Tangney was named All-NEPSAC, All-ISL and recognized at graduation with two awards, including the Head of School’s Prize. “Her stats — at Brooks: 294 goals, 65 assists, 359 points, 424 draw controls and her commitment to play Division 1 lacrosse at Ohio State next year — are impressive but what truly sets this student-athlete apart is the intangibles,” said Heinze before presenting Tangney, who also played basketball, with The Frank D. Ashburn Athletic Award. “...She is not only one of the most talented athletes to come through Brooks in recent memory, but also a leader whose presence has elevated every team she’s been part of.”

SOFTBALL STAR

Brooks softball finished second in the ISL with an impressive 8-1 record (11-4 overall). The squad made it to the semifinal of the annual Big East Tournament only to fall to Noble and Greenough School 3-1. Yet, looking back on the season, specifically at the pitching circle and all that flame thrower Jackie Giordano ’25 gave to the team, there is little to disappoint.

The 2025 “ISL Softball Player of the Year” threw 60 innings in league games, allowed only six runs total and logged three no-hitters,

two one-hitters, one perfect game (4.5 innings) and five shutouts.

“She dominated game after game,” says coach Heinze, noting that Giordano recorded 571 strikeouts during her time at Brooks. “She is an all-around skilled, talented softball player. From pitching to hitting to running the bases, Jackie is among the best in her craft. She’s led the team in batting, hitting in the clean-up spot for multiple years, and dominating opponents. She is a leader in everything she does, on and off the field, and is as humble as they come, always going out of her way to help a teammate and do what she could to make our team better.” And her efforts paid off.

Giordano was named to the ISL First team, along with teammates Sophia Florencio ’28 and Kyleigh Matola ’25, with whom she also shares All-NEPSAC honors. Honorable mentions went to Finley Cronin ’27 and Kaylie Feldberg ’27 from the ISL and to Feldberg and Florencio for the NEPSAC.

Graduates CONGRATULATIONS

The class of 2025 was honored with three days of joyful events on campus.

With a flourish of tent flaps whipping in strong wind, and warm sun breaking through clouds as the class of 2025 approached the lawn, the school celebrated 91 students who began their Brooks careers masked, post-COVID, during a fittingly moving Commencement Weekend.

“They are ready for whatever is to come in their lives, and we want all of them to know and feel both our pride in what they are and our excitement about what they will still be,” said Head of School John Packard H’87, P’18, P’21 during our 94th Prize Day to a rapt and, at times, tearful audience assembled under the graduation tent on the lawn overlooking Lake Cochichewick.

“There are so many gifts, talents and passions seated before me,” he continued.

“So many who have added in their own way to this community. How fortunate those

yet to know them as we do will be over the years ahead.”

Brooks celebrated these impressive graduates — representing 12 states and eight countries —on May 31 with a Donning of the Stoles and Symbols Ceremony, Lawn Ceremony and Boo-Hoo Service followed by Prize Day festivities on June 1.

The Donning of the Stoles and Symbols Ceremony kicked off the first weekend event on Saturday morning in the Frank D. Ashburn Chapel. (Two days prior, parents and guardians of the class of 2025 gathered with graduates for the annual Sixth-Form Parent Dinner and Slideshow.)

“Each of you is stepping forward, solid and strong, into a world that is waiting for your voice, your vision, your courage and your creativity,” guest speaker Nina DeJesus Bowman ’85 said during her talk at the ceremony, which recognizes sixth-formers who’ve been active members of affinity groups and acknowledges their courage, leadership and cultural pride.

The celebrated groups included Alianza Latina; the Asian Student Alliance; Black Student Union; Gender and Sexuality Alliance; International Student Association; Jewish Student Organization; Sisters in

Spirit; Students with Interracial Lives; and Women Supporting Women.

“Recognize that whatever age you are, you have something to offer and you don’t have to wait to share it,” advised Bowman, co-founder and managing partner of The Mariswood Group, who is also a contributing author to The Harvard Business Review.

Three hours later, those talents and skills were celebrated in detail during Lawn Ceremony.

Chair of the Arts Department Babs Wheelden P’22 presented nine awards to students for their achievement in the arts, and Director of Athletics Andrea Heinze P’19 bestowed awards on eight student athletes, before Dean of Academic Affairs Currie Joya Huntington presented 22 students with academic prizes and John Packard awarded an additional 15 with school prizes.

“Through capstone presentations, amazing final projects and so many honors earned and bestowed this weekend, we learned of the exceptional academic strength in this class of 2025,” the head of school said praising the graduates during the weekend. “They are ready to take on college classrooms by storm.”

And on June 1, with a cheers-filled farewell, the sixth formers officially graduated and began that next chapter, taking some advice along with them.

“Be that close friend in the front row of the Chapel for communities and people yet to know you,” Packard urged the class during Prize Day, when graduates were awarded their diplomas, after a pair of faculty honors given to English Teacher Ian Speliotis ’14 and History Teacher Laila McCain (as well the conferring of faculty emerita on former math teacher and Learning Center Director Moira Goodman P’15, P’17, P’18, P’23) and three Prize Day awards.

“Believe in your ability and capacity to impact your community in ways that will ripple,” he said. “You know what Brooks School looks and feels like at its best because you have lived it. Bring that with you and what a difference you will make.”

DONNING OF THE STOLES AND SYMBOLS CEREMONY Commencement Weekend at Brooks began with the Donning of the Stoles and Symbols Ceremony, which recognizes the achievement of graduates who have participated in affinity groups during their time at Brooks. Nina DeJesus Bowman ’85 served as the speaker for the event.

[6] Nina DeJesus Bowman ’85 spoke to attendees.

with a stole for her work with the Asian Student Alliance.

[2] Brooks School Gospel Choir performing during the ceremony.

[3] Samson Nwobi being donned with a stole by faculty member Kenya Jones.

[4] Samaya Lovett is donned with a stole by faculty member Shami Bery.

[5] School Minister, The Reverend James Chapman addresses the group.

[7] Faculty member Laila McCain receives the DEIB Champion Award award during the ceremony.

[8] Faculty member Gage Dobbins presents Serena Trojer with her stole.

[9] Brooks School Gospel Choir participates in the ceremony.

[10] Emerson Davis, Raphael Odubanjo, Samson Nwobi, Samaya Lovett, Shelley Osafo-Grant, Dri McClintock and Alex Wilkins, all members of the Black Students Union, after the ceremony.

LAWN CEREMONY, BOO HOO SERVICE AND RECEIVING LINE

On May 31, Brooks held its traditional Lawn Ceremony. The school welcomed reflections from student speakers on the arts, athletics and academics at Brooks and awarded dozens of prizes that touched on areas across school life. Following the Lawn Ceremony, the student body congregated in Ashburn Chapel for a student-led service that included a sing-along. Following the service, the sixth form lined up on Chapel Walk to receive wellwishes and farewells from faculty, the younger forms and each other.

[1] Eva Karoly, BuGyeom Veronica Seok, Amaia Gomez and Jiyu Park on the morning of Lawn Ceremony.

[2] Maanya Tailam and Mithaniel Diaz in the Boo-Hoo Service receiving line.

[3] Charlie Rousmaniere speaks on academics and learning from his classmates at Brooks.

[4] Graduates await their embraces in the Boo-Hoo receiving line.

[5] Incoming Senior Prefect Tristan Yepdo ’26 accepts the Leonard S. Perkins Prize, awarded by the faculty to a member of the fifth-form who makes an outstanding contribution to the life of the school.

[6] Mary Adams addresses the Lawn Ceremony audience about how her athletic career influenced her time at Brooks.

[7] Prizes were awarded for academic, artistic and athletic achievements to students in all forms.

[8] Emilie Pratt, Frankie Maitino, Lauren Puglia, Kata Clark, Nina Pagliuca, Bella Mondolfi, Eva Karoly, Brooke Battaglia, Lydia Tangney and Emily Haley.

[9] Madeline Byrnes accepts the Music prize awarded in recognition of dedicated, long-term study of voice.

[10] Brooks’ ceremonial tent.

[11] Jacob Zhao accepts the Robert Lehman Art Prize, awarded to the most accomplished artist in the annual student exhibition.

[12] Eseose Maureen Ologbosele ’26 accepts the Columbia University Club of New England Prize.

[13] Student speaker on the arts, Cheng Zhuang.

Prize Winners 2025

THE WILLIAM DUNNELL FACULTY PRIZE recognizes an early-career faculty member for excellence in teaching and notable contributions to community life. The Chair of the English Department, Assistant Head of School, and Head of School determine the recipient. In this second year of awarding the William Dunnell Faculty Prize, we are pleased to present it to: Ian Matthew Speliotis ’14

THE REVEREND GEORGE F. VOUGHT PRIZE awarded by the Head of School to honor a member of the faculty in their first few years of teaching who has made special contributions to the School and has exhibited notable professional growth: Laila Simone McCain

THE TRUSTEES PRIZE awarded by the faculty to any member of the school community who has served beyond the call of duty: Zachary Michael Amato ’25

THE FACULTY PRIZE given by George C. Haas and awarded annually to a student who has made outstanding contributions to the life of the school: Cheng Zhuang ’25

THE HEAD OF SCHOOL’S PRIZE given in memory of George B. Case, Jr.: Lydia Lydon Tangney ’25

ART AWARDS

THE GEORGE A. TIRONE PRIZE awarded by Mrs. Randolph Muto, in memory of her father, to a student who shows unusual promise in the Visual Arts: Ava Jin Marinaro ’27

THE HENRY M. BUHL PHOTOGRAPHY PRIZE awarded to an upper school student who is dedicated to the practice of photography and skilled not only in technique but in creative artistry: Nenzwirashe Kudzai

Shoko ’26

THE RUSSELL MORSE PRIZE awarded to an upper school student who has made distinguished contributions to the visual arts at Brooks: Ella Corrine Whelan ’25

THE PARKMAN PRIZE IN DRAMA given in memory of Terry Parkman to a student who has worked long and hard backstage with no thought of any reward: Mithaniel Louis Diaz ’25

THE KNOWLTON DRAMA PRIZE given in memory of Warren Knowlton ’67 and awarded to a member of the Brooks community who has shown those qualities of loyalty and devotion to drama, and versatility and enthusiasm in work before and behind the scenes, that were typified by Warren Knowlton: Abigail Anne Derderian ’25, Kayla Grace Gutkoski ’25

THE MUSIC PRIZE awarded in recognition of dedicated, long-term study of an instrument or voice that has resulted in the highest level of musical performance in the graduating class: Madeline Judy Byrnes ’25 (vocal), Cheng Zhuang ’25 (instrumental)

THE ROBERT LEHMAN ART PRIZE is for the most accomplished artist in the annual student exhibition: Jacob Yutong Zhao ’25

ATHLETIC AWARDS THE INDEPENDENT SCHOOL LEAGUE AWARD OF EXCELLENCE recognizing a female athlete and male athlete at each ISL school for exhibiting the ISL ideals of integrity, sportsmanship, fair play and good citizenship while participating as a multi-sport athlete during their ISL career: Kyleigh Marie Matola ’25 and Derek Cloutier Yamatani ’25

THE ATHLETIC PRIZE an annual award to sixthformers who, in the opinion of coaches, have distinguished themselves in sportsmanship and athletic ability, and whose achievements have demonstrated an outstanding record in the athletic life at Brooks: Mary Boylston Adams ’25 and Zachary Michael Amato ’25

THE KERRI ANN KATTAR PRIZE awarded annually by the faculty to that female member of the graduating class who, by her warmth and generosity of spirit to others, by her outstanding contribution to Brooks athletics, and by her presence alone, has added that precious quality of kindness for which we remember Kerri Ann Kattar: Ella Corinne Whelan ’25

THE FRANK D. ASHBURN ATHLETIC AWARD given by Mr. and Mrs. Arnold Cogswell to honor an outstanding individual or team performance in which intangible, extra qualities have added a special flavor to the school: Lydia Lydon Tangney ’25

ACADEMIC AWARDS THE PUBLICATIONS PRIZE awarded to a student whose diligence, devotion and skill have contributed significantly to the successful production of a Brooks publication, given this year to: Emma Lee Nagle ’26

THE WILDER SPEAKING PRIZE given by John G. and H. Todd Cobey Jr.: John William Rousmaniere ’28

THE EDMUND SAMUEL CARR PRIZE IN LATIN Gage Oliver Blevin ’25

THE EDMUND SAMUEL CARR PRIZE IN BEGINNING LATIN Yutong “Tom” Pan ’28

THE SPANISH PRIZE

Lucas Macklin-Dib ’25 and Isabella Milagros Soto ’25

THE RENE CHAMPOLLION FRENCH PRIZE

Lauren Renee DuBarry ’25

THE CHARLES C. COTTINGHAM CLASS OF 2008 CHINESE PRIZE to be awarded annually to a student who has exhibited an enthusiasm and appreciation for the Chinese language and culture: Junho Chung ’25

THE A.G. DAVIS PHILIP PRIZE given by the science department to an individual who has demonstrated an interest in and who shows considerable promise in science: Shujin Liu ’27

THE JOHN J. CABRAL PRIZE given to the Brooks student who has shown a high degree of interest in physics and for the depth of involvement in the subject: Jacob Yutong Zhao ’25

THE RENSSELAER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE MEDAL for excellence in mathematics and science: Emma Lee Nagle ’26

THE JOHN B. MELVIN COMPUTER SCIENCE PRIZE Kaden Robert Almaraz ’26

THE NICHOLAS J. EVANGELOS SCIENCE PRIZE BuGyeom Seok ’25

THE MATHEMATICS PRIZE Jacob Yutong Zhao ’25

THE HOWELL VAN GERBIG, JR. PRIZE given for the best essay on the development of political institutions for their essay titled, “The Chinese Civil Service Examinations and Evidential Scholarship: The Legitimization of an Alien Dynasty,” goes to: Emma Lee Nagle ’26

THE RICHARD K. IRONS PRIZE for the best essay on a pressing problem in American history or international relations for their essay titled, “Flipping the Skirt: The Topsy Turvy Doll and the Psychology of Segregated Play,” goes to: Adrianna Lynne McClintock ’25

THE MICHAEL W. MCCAHILL PRIZE IN HISTORY awarded to a sixth-form student who has demonstrated a love for the discipline by taking a wide and rigorous program in history, a mastery of analytical thinking and writing, an enthusiasm for the craft of historical research, a delight in the exploration and exchange of ideas, and an empathy for the human condition goes to: William Braden Sanders ’25

THE E. GRAHAM WARD ENGLISH PRIZE awarded to a student who has demonstrated a love of literature in all of its forms. This student is a talented reader and writer gifted with the ability to respond to literature both analytically and creatively: Michelle Ohenewaa Araba Grant ’25

THE HARVARD CLUB OF THE MERRIMACK VALLEY PRIZE awarded by the Harvard Club of the Merrimack Valley to a fifth-former nominated by the faculty for high academic achievement, leadership, and active participation in school affairs: Giada Renee Musto ’26

THE COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY CLUB OF NEW ENGLAND PRIZE awarded to a fifth-former who has demonstrated an ability to combine academic achievement, personal character, extracurricular contribution to the school, and accomplishment in and dedication to a field of interest meriting personal recognition: Eseose Maureen Ologbosele ’26

THE OSCAR M. ROOT PRIZE given by Morgan H. Harris, Jr. is awarded to a member of the Brooks community who, during the year, has exemplified certain characteristics with which Oscar M. Root for many years enriched life at Brooks. These characteristics include excellence in the sciences, devotion to nature study, and a sense of humor which provided a rare overview of life: Charles Joseph Rousmaniere ’25

THE JOLENE AND STEPHEN C. EYRE PRIZE FOR SCHOLARLY ACHIEVEMENT this prize is awarded each year to the ranking scholar in the sixth form: Charles Joseph Rousmaniere ’25

SCHOOL PRIZES

THE MALCOLM G. CHACE III PRIZE awarded to a third-, fourth- and fifth-former who, in the judgment of the head of school, has made the most personal progress during the year: Avery Grace Melly ’28, Riley Grace Gallup ’27, John Francis Zaccaro ’26

THE ST. LAWRENCE UNIVERSITY BOOK AWARD designed for high school juniors, the Book Award Scholarship program honors students who have distinguished themselves in their communities by making a significant commitment to fostering inclusivity: Angeline Benjavitvilai ’26

THE LEONARD S. PERKINS PRIZE awarded by the faculty to that member of the fifthform who makes an outstanding contribution to the life of the school: Tristan Barry Yepdo Kwagheu ’26

THE GEORGE B. BLAKE PRIZE awarded in recognition of extended voluntary and generous service to others: Meghan Avery McSwain ’25

THE HARVEY P. HOOD PRIZE awarded in recognition of special interests such as working with young children, making things with one’s hands, and in memory of a lively, gentle view of life: Michelle Ohenewaa Araba Grant ’25

THE PHILLIPS BROOKS PRIZE donated by the Phillips Brooks Society, is awarded by the school minister in memory of the Reverend George Frederick Vought to a sixth-former who, during their time at the school, has followed in the path of Phillips Brooks by offering constant love, exemplary service and good humor to the community and by setting a high standard for others: Benjamin James Pettorelli ’25

THE THOMAS PERKINS BROOKS, JR. PRIZE given in memory of Ensign Brooks who was lost in the Battle of Leyte Gulf and awarded annually by the faculty to a member of the sixth-form who, during their career at Brooks, has met certain requirements of development, leadership and responsibility: Francesca Elle Maitino ’25

THE KILBORN BOWL given by Mr. and Mrs. John W. Kilborn for the greatest all-around improvement: Amaia Danielle Gomez ’25

THE RUSSELL PRIZE given by the late Richard S. Russell and awarded by the faculty for an outstanding single contribution to the life of the community: Kayla Grace Gutkoski ’25

THE DUNNELL PRIZE given by the faculty in honor of Jacob Dunnell and William W. Dunnell III, who jointly gave 57 years of dedicated service to their students and the school, is awarded to a sixthformer who has worked without fanfare to better the school: Samson Chibuikem Nwobi ’25

THE WILLIAM R. FERRIS, JR. PRIZE given by Howell van Gerbig in honor of William R. Ferris ’60, and awarded to a sixthform student who stands out among their peers on account of the depth and range of their intellectual curiosity, energy and creativity. A nominee for this prize is presented to the faculty by the six faculty members who hold endowed chairs: Jacob Yutong Zhao ’25

THE HEADMASTER EMERITUS PRIZE given by the faculty for any reason it considers appropriate: Adrianna Lynne McClintock ’25

THE ALLEN ASHBURN PRIZE given by the late James D. Regan and awarded each year by the faculty for any purpose it deems suitable: Lauren Elizabeth Puglia ’25

Destinations

The class of 2025 has an exciting future in store. Members will matriculate to colleges and universities across the country. The following is a list of colleges and universities the class plans to attend as of June 2025.

Babson College (2)

Barnard College

Berklee College of Music

Boston College (3)

Boston University (3)

Bowdoin University

Brown University

California Polytechnic State University

Carnegie Mellon University

Colgate University

College of the Holy Cross

Columbia University

Dartmouth College

Denison University

Duke University

Emmanuel University

Endicott College

Furman University

Genesee Community College

Johns Hopkins University (2)

Lake Forest College

Marquette University

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

McGill University

Merrimack College (2)

New Jersey Institute of Technology

New York University (2)

Northeastern University (8)

Ohio Wesleyan University

Providence College

Queen’s University

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Rice University

Roger Williams University

Skidmore College

St. Lawrence University (4)

Suffolk University

Syracuse University

The Ohio State University

The University of Tampa

Trinity College (2)

Tufts University (2)

Tulane University (2)

University of California

Berkeley

University of Delaware

University of Massachusetts Amherst

University of Miami (2)

University of Minnesota

University of New England

University of Nottingham

Ningbo China

University of Pennsylvania

University of Richmond (3)

University of Southern California

University of St. Andrews

University of Virginia

University of Wisconsin (2)

Virginia Polytechnic Institute

Washington and Lee University

Washington University in St. Louis

Wellesley College

Wesleyan University

William and Mary Yale University

Renovations to the Henry Luce III Library are the first in a series of improvements to Brooks' academic spaces.

While Brooks’ current academic spaces have served the school well during its first century of education, careful analysis and planning has gone into a multi-prong, academic master plan to renovate and rebuild our academic buildings and better provide upon our mission of meaningful education during the next 100 years. Phase I will commence in 2026 by transforming the main and second floors of the Henry Luce III Library into an expansive learning area consisting of classrooms, breakout rooms and welcoming common areas, as well as an Academic Commons staffed by supportive faculty offering support, enrichment and engagement of all our students.

Director of the Learning Center

Karina Moltz P’28 hopes the planned renovations to the Henry Luce III Library will capture the warm, inviting atmosphere of one specific room in any home: the kitchen.

“I keep having this thought that some kids like to work with an adult presence around, like they're doing homework at the kitchen table while a parent makes dinner. Even if the adult isn't directly interacting or giving help, they are there for support as needed and can be a reassuring presence,” Moltz said. “I see the new space as being closer to that model than our current library is.”

The bulk of Brooks’ current academic space dates back to the 1950s and 1960s. They have served the community well for decades, but as teaching and learning has evolved it is clear that modern, dynamic

classrooms and academic hubs are needed for our humanities teachers and academic support teams to best support today’s students. Thus, an internal team of educators, trustees and architects have created a multi-phased approach to enhance existing spaces and create new ones that support how our students learn today and will continue to in the future.

Renovations to the Luce Library are the first in several project phases approved by the board of trustees to renovate current academic spaces similarly to our dynamic Science Center, built in 2008, and Center for the Arts, built in 2018. Roughly two-thirds of the entire proposed project utilizes existing buildings, while new construction is limited to just one-third of the academic project. In addition to classrooms with rearrangeable furniture and technology to suit teaching needs, project plans include hub spaces designed to foster collaborative learning and provide accessible

In 1937, a decade after Brooks opened its doors to 15 young boys, a temporary wooden structure, now known as the Link, was erected for classroom learning. The wooden structure was replaced in the 1950s when the Johnson Building, where the Dean’s Den currently resides, was built (and a third floor was later added in the 1990s). The connected Kingsbury Building, which was built in the 1960s as a library and later operated as a technology center and language lab, has also served the community well for decades. The adjacent Henry Luce III Library was built in 1995 and will be the first phase of renovations associated with the academic master plan.

With completion set for fall 2026, the $6 to 7 million Henry Luce III Library renovation will repurpose 15,700 sq. ft. into a vibrant academic hub that blends quiet and collaborative areas. The redesigned main and second floors feature five new classrooms, an academic commons with faculty offices and learning centers, enhanced study and technology support areas, as well as a staffed library circulation desk. The basement will house a culled collection of books and preserved archive space that better utilizes the current footprint.

areas for students and faculty to connect, whether for academic guidance or informal meetings.

“Credit goes to our faculty, who have found ways to infuse creativity and inspiration into these current spaces through the years, but they would all agree that out of all areas of the school, this is one that could use immediate attention,” said Associate Head of School Nina Freeman, who is facilitating the internal academic master plan committee. “The new designs provide more flexibility in classroom sizes, natural light, and adaptability. With new desks, white boards, and technology, we're setting up our students for decades. This is the one area of the school that impacts the most people in our community, and it makes sense that we turn our attention to our academic and learning spaces to continue to inspire generations of Brooks learners.”

PHASE ONE

LIBRARY RENOVATION

The first phase of the academic master plan is to add new functionality to the Luce Library, which was beautifully built in 1995. With completion set for fall 2026, the redesigned main and second floors will feature five classrooms, an Academic Commons with faculty offices, writing and quantitative centers, enhanced study and educational technology support areas, as

Schematics for the first floor. “We are transforming a building that was designed to house and protect books from light, and in doing so I believe our community is going to have a new and positive perspective when engaging with the Luce. The new learning spaces are not just inward facing, they will engage some of the most sublime parts of the campus, with two new classrooms in the bay window facing directly up the Main Street hill and the Academic Commons to the south, facing the pastoral views of Observatory Hill,” said Hale Everets ’93, a trustee since 2008 who is serving as the board of trustee’s primary liaison for the project.

Associate Head of School Nina Freeman, who is facilitating the internal academic master plan committee, says of teaching in the current academic building, “We’ve been able to provide an exceptional education to our students for decades, but our academic spaces in the Link are outdated and too small. I have taught in spaces that were overcrowded and that was even with a small class size of 12. We don’t have central air, so the classrooms upstairs become overwhelmingly hot in the early fall and late spring months, which impacts everyone’s ability to fully-engage in learning. Credit goes to our faculty, who have found ways to infuse creativity and inspiration into these spaces through the years, but they would all agree that out of all areas of the school, this is one that could use immediate attention.”

lower level will house the majority of our library collection, quiet study space and preserved archives that better utilizes the current footprint.

Faculty and students access information and research documents differently than when the library opened 26 years ago. Taking a cue from the successful building of the Science Center in 2008 and the Center for the Arts in 2018, the aim of the renovation is to dramatically increase foot traffic with students seeking support and enrichment.

well as five classrooms of various sizes and moveable furniture that will be available to teachers based on class size and discipline.

Head of School John Packard H’87, P’18, P’21 is quick to note that Brooks is not doing away with the library. A library staff member and circulation desk will remain on the first floor, visible upon entry. The

“Our feeling is that we can do a better job leveraging the beautiful and vital space Luce Library has proven to be for 30 years,” Packard said. “To build a space that allows for programmatic expansion in ways that draw all of our students to it; a space that has a magnetic pull because it buzzes with energy and is filled with students and faculty members working together. I love Karina Moltz’s notion of a family kitchen table, which is squarely in line with our school’s mission and ethos, and has been for some time. It is very exciting to think about.”

“To build a space that allows for programmatic expansion in ways that draw all of our students to it; a space that has a magnetic pull because it buzzes with energy and is filled with students and faculty members working together.”

JOHN PACKARD

ENRICHING A BROOKS EDUCATION

The Luce Library renovations will feature four breakout rooms and a plethora of open seating options, providing meeting space for students like AP Studio artist Jacob Zhao ’25 who are looking to enrich their educational experience outside of traditional classes.

Last year, Zhao worked all around campus with six different teachers from a variety of academic principles to create a dynamic art installation that required an understanding of plant and human cell movement, computer coding, motor building, wood cutting and crocheting. Known as “The Wall,” Zhao’s independent project was selected as a 2025 National Gold Key Scholastic Arts and Writing Award (along with just the top 1 percent of all 310,000 contest participants).

“Without the help from the teachers here, Mrs. Wheelden, Mr. Dobbins, Mr. Gorton and others, I would not have accomplished this,” said Zhao, who plans to study architecture next year at MIT. “I felt a great sense of achievement after finishing this project last year and the teachers who lended me a hand along the way were more excited.”

Director of the Learning Center Karina Moltz P’28 and Eloise Bertrand ’26 work in the functional but cramped Learning Center situated on the second floor of the Johnson Building.

“Our new space will have a much more fluid connection to classrooms and our presence in the library – without thresholds to cross – will provide easier access to all students. see the new Academic Commons as normalizing seeking support and also providing opportunities for enrichment. As the Writing Center has been doing, a Quantitative Center will facilitate participation in math competitions, or even just be a space for students to come work on areas of interest, in addition to getting help from faculty or peer tutors stationed there,” Moltz says.

PROGRAMMING BENEFITS IN REIMAGINED SPACE

Most of the library’s second floor will house the Academic Commons, comprised of a newly-created Quantitative Strategies Center, staffed by a dedicated mathematics skills specialist rotation of math teachers; the Writing Center, through which English faculty and student writing assistants work with other students on structure, clarity and organization of their pieces; and Learning Center, whose team of learning specialists presently provide academic coaching in areas like executive-functioning skills.

“The goal at the Learning Center is to be a resource to everybody at Brooks who needs some support and our feeling is that everybody will need support at some point,” says Moltz, whose team has standing appointments with roughly 25 percent of the student body in currently cramped quarters. “It's largely academic coaching, I would call it. It's not content-specific support, but it's more time management planning. A big goal of ours is to help students learn to break tasks down into smaller and more manageable parts.”

One of those students is Eloise Bertrand ’26, who first sought out help in managing her workload at the Learning Center in the third form when she was struggling with the transition from middle school to high school. She quickly saw value in working with a learning specialist, typically twice a week, on study plans, strategies to stay organized and reduce stress. She also appreciates teachers who spend time in the Learning Center during scheduled blocks throughout the year, helping students of all levels and grades with subjects they specialize in. Having just wrapped up her fifth form, Eloise already has three honors level classes and two AP level classes under her belt.

“The Learning Center isn’t just for when you're struggling, it’s a place to build strong habits and get support,” Bertrand says. “The personal attention, the tools available, and the encouragement they provide really make a difference.”

For Packard, this type of support in addition to a wide-range of enrichment opportunities is what Brooks does best — and soon will have better space in which to do so.

“Our exceptional faculty goes well beyond traditional levels of support, often outside of the classroom, to both help students navigate academic challenges and pursue the upper reaches of our curriculum more aggressively,” Packard says. “We see this step as an opportunity to enhance that work by continuing to provide platinum-standard academic support across all disciplines and ensure that skill-building and learning strategy and enrichment work also allow students to realize standards of academic excellence they strive for. To broaden and deepen the terrific work our Learning Center team currently does is the goal.”

FUTURE PROJECTS IN THE ACADEMIC MASTER PLAN INCLUDE:

1. The Kingsbury Building which Brooks has used as a library, computer lab, language lab and houses Rooms X and Y, will be completely rebuilt on the approximate current footprint, providing a large number of classrooms.

2. Space in the Johnson Building, which currently houses the Learning Center, Writing Center and Dean’s Dean, will become classroom space. It will still connect to both the Science Center and Kingsbury Building.

3. The basement of Gardner House which is presently used for history classes, will once again be part of the dormitory space.

4. The Link which currently encompasses three floors of classrooms for mathematics, humanities and foreign languages, will be taken down, creating new green space and vistas of the lake.

5. With the removal of the portico, the spaces beneath Merriman dormitory will be turned into a large classroom and multipurpose space for students and faculty that faces the new academic quad.

“One of the features of the master plan that I am most excited about is opening up the view to the lake where the Link is currently located. The new quad will anchor the academic buildings on campus, unifying the academic experience while better leveraging the campus’s natural beauty. It’s going to be transformative, not just for the school pedagogy but for the community experience as well,” said Hale Everets ’93, trustee. The timing of all phased projects is dependent on funding. Should you be interested in learning more, please contact Director of Institutional Advancement Gage Dobbins at gdobbins@brooksschool.org or (978) 725-6288.

Exposing the Garbage Trade

Alexander Clapp ’09 uncovers the second life of our garbage.

Earlier this year, Little, Brown and Company published the book, “Waste Wars: The Wild Afterlife of Your Trash,” by Greece-based journalist Alex Clapp ’09

“It is about the global garbage trade – the strange, and deeply unjust, business whereby rich countries ship their trash to poor countries,” Clapp said. “It started in the 1980s and, even though many at the time acknowledged that it was wrong, it never stopped.”

Clapp spent two years traveling the world to report on what happens to the millions of tons of garbage generated every day. Disputes about what to do with trash have given rise to “waste wars” that only few people know are happening.

“So much of what I learned at Brooks went into the book in one way or another.

Teachers like Ms. Perkins, Mrs. Davies and Mr. Baker taught me to approach the world with intellectual humility and unapologetic curiosity,” Clapp said. “And there’s no better preparation for a life of traveling or living abroad than boarding school.

I feel very grateful for my time at Brooks.”

Clapp’s reporting has appeared in the New York Times, The Economist, the London Review of Books and The Guardian Long Read. He’s won several journalism awards, including a Whiting Nonfiction Grant, Matthew Power Literary Reporting Prize, Robert B. Silvers Reporting Grant and a Pulitzer Center Breakthrough Journalism Award. He has also been a visiting fellow at St. Antony’s College, Oxford, as well as the Berggruen Institute in Los Angeles.

BROOKS WORKS

GLENN STEWART ’75

“Columbo Explains the Seventies”

Columbo, arguably the most popular detective in television history, has held enduring popularity over the decades. The character took down the rich and famous and became a beloved fixture in worldwide popular culture. In “Columbo Explains the Seventies: A TV Cop’s Pop Culture Journey,” Glenn Stewart ’75 argues that Columbo struck a powerful chord with the viewing audience because the social and cultural issues of the era were reflected in the show’s plot. What could the original 45 episodes of the show explain about class conflict, power struggles, feminism, race relations, sex, technology, media, psychology, politics and violence? Stewart unpacks the ways in which Columbo was a product of his time.

Stewart notes in the book’s acknowledgments the lasting effect that former Brooks faculty Paul Keaney had on him. “Paul taught history at Brooks for many years and his demanding standards in both research and writing raised my own game, although I may not have realized it at the time,”

Stewart reflects. “I like to think that PJK would enjoy this book.”

“Columbo Explains the Seventies” is available through Amazon.com.

Have you recently published a book? Has your album just dropped? Tell us about it. We want to hear about your creative successes, and we want to highlight your work in an upcoming issue of the Bulletin To have your work considered for inclusion in a future installment of Brooks Works, please send a review copy to: Editor, Brooks Bulletin 1160 Great Pond Road North Andover, MA 01845

The magazine does not purchase the materials listed in Brooks Works. The materials we receive will be donated to the Luce Library or another appropriate outlet. The Bulletin reserves the right to reject works that, in the judgment of the editorial staff, do not promote the mission or values of Brooks School or the Bulletin

Athletics After Brooks

Two graduates join the ranks of Brooksians who are elite athletes.

Brooks soccer standout and current University of Washington defender Harry Bertos ’23 was selected with the 31st overall pick in the 2025 MLS SuperDraft by San Diego FC in December 2024. He joins a class of five picks by the Major League Soccer expansion team, which will make its MLS debut this year. He joins several other alumni playing professionally, including Christian Garner ’18, Marcelo Lage ’18 and recentdraft Andrew Kempe ’19. Bertos was a key member of the Huskies in 2024, playing in every match and starting in all but one. As a defender, he scored a goal and an assist. At Brooks, Bertos racked up multiple honors en route to the squad’s New England championship his sixth-form year, which he cites as his greatest soccer memory to date.

Per MLS rules, Bertos has the option to continue his collegiate career, with his professional career rights held by San Diego.

“The community at Brooks has really helped shape me into who I am today and who am still hoping to become,” Bertos says. “From day one at Brooks, felt accepted by my teachers and coaches and always felt that I was able to be myself. They inspired me to grow as a person, student and soccer player.” Bertos thanks former head coach and faculty emeritus Willie Waters ’02, and continues.

“Without my years at Brooks both on and off the field, could not be where am today. Brooks is such a close and supportive community and will always remain a huge part of my life. My decision to attend Brooks for high school was one of the best choices I have made. The relationships, memories and lessons I learned at Brooks will always hold a special place in my core.”

In January, Brown University junior Lucy Adams ’22 was named to the 2025 United States Women’s National Field Hockey team, just in time for the 2025 FIH Hockey Nations Cup. Wrapping up last week in Chile, Adams and her teammates placed fourth out of the eight international participants. Adams, who previously competed with the United States Under-21 squad and whose sister Mary ‘25 was just named to that same team, has racked up numerous honors for her stellar athletic performance at Brown. At Brooks, Adams received both the Athletic Prize at Lawn Ceremony and the Faculty Prize at Prize Day. A four-year, trifirst team athlete, Adams captained the 1st field hockey team in her fifth- and sixth-form years, leading Brooks to a New England championship in fall 2021. “I feel like Brooks set me up for success in so many ways — being in an environment where you feel like you can take healthy risks because you’re so supported and it’s so nurturing,” Adams said. “I think those baby steps that I took along the way at Brooks, that when left, had this mentality of ‘I can take risks’ and go for things that seem scary or out of reach. And I think having that mentality was a huge part of putting myself in a position to even be considered or have exposure — or just be in the process to end up where I am now.”

Winning Words

ISL softball MVP Brittany “Britt” Hart ’09 led teams to victory at Brooks before coming back to coach and share, on April 10, how teams led her out of depression. “To me, sports are about more than just games,” she said as the featured speaker during the school’s annual Kippy Liddle Day, when the campus community celebrates female athletes in honor of Katherine “Kippy” Liddle, a faculty member who died in 1984 during a crew practice. “They are a testament to the human spirit, a celebration of teamwork and a powerful tool for mental well-being.” Hart knows this firsthand. When the marketing professional’s marriage ended before the start of Brooks’ 2022 spring season, “the thing that got me up and out of the house every day was Brooks softball,” she said. “As an athlete, it was ingrained in me to not give up on my team.” Hart decided to speak about her mental health struggles as a way to encourage students to identify a passion that could help them heal in the same way that softball and coaching had helped her. “If anyone here has experienced any sort of anxiety or depression, you know it’s hard to escape your own thoughts,” she said. “Showing up to practice, hearing about [the players’] days, watching them work hard and really coming together as a team was good for my soul.” Find your passion, Hart advised. “Engaging in activities you love allows you to take a break from your problems … maintain a sense of balance and perspective and can be a powerful tool for coping with anxiety, depression and other mental health issues.”

2025 Giving Day

BY

THE NUMBERS

“I believe in Brooks because it is where I formed lasting relationships that helped shape my life.”

WILLIE WATERS ’02, FACULTY EMERITUS

CHALLENGES MET

•Young Alumni Challenge •New/Renewed Donor Challenge •New Family Challenge

•Current Parent/Guardian Challenge

$550,233

RAISED for the BROOKS FUND

BRAGGING RIGHTS

Top Alumni Classes by Participation Percentage

1: 1975 (70%)

2: 1985 (54%)

3: 2006 (46%)

4: 1973 (42%)

5: 1963 (40%)

by Donor Count 1: 1985 (45 donors)

2: 1975 and 2006 (38 donors) * 3: 2010 (27 donors) 4: 2002 and 2018 (24 donors)* 5: 1973, 1996 and 2019 (19 donors)*

*Tie

Top Current Parent Donors by Class

1: 2028

2: 2026

3: 2027 4: 2025* Top Current Student Donors by Class 1: 2025 2: 2028

3: 2026 4: 2027

Thank you to everyone who volunteered and donated!

COME TO AN EVENT

Brooks School hosts numerous events throughout the year. Some events are here at Brooks, but others could be closer to you. Please visit www.brooksschool.org/alumni/ events to find out more.

A NIGHT AT THE LENOX

Brooks held its annual Boston Reception at the Lenox Hotel in February. Current and past faculty, parents and graduates mingled in the breathtaking space.

Special thanks to Gary Saunders ’73 for the use of the space at The

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2025 Reunion

During the first full weekend of May, we were thrilled to welcome back the classes of 1975 and 2020 for their 50th and 5th reunions. With near-perfect weather, both classes were able to enjoy reconnecting with each other and the Brooks School of today.

50th Reunion

THE CLASS OF 1975 kicked off its milestone celebration Thursday evening with a festive dinner at Andiamo Restaurant in Andover. Classmates traveled from across the country to reunite, setting the tone for a weekend full of reflection, laughter and celebration. Thanks to hardwork from the reunion committee, lead by Chris Abbott ‘75, P’10, P’14, the turnout was strong. Chris shared that “our 50th Reunion was a big success due to a dedicated Reunion Committee and the superb staff at Brooks. We had classmates from across the country who came back to Brooks to enjoy a welcome home and see and hear about Brooks today. We were joined by past faculty and celebrated the place and the people we so enjoyed.”

Friday morning began with a special invitation to join our all-school meeting. The class experienced a high-energy assembly featuring the inaugural Brooks Oscars, where students were recognized with humor and heartfelt applause. The Class of ’75 cheered from the audience, soaking in the spirit of today’s Brooks. Head of School John Packard closed the meeting with a moving tribute to the class, recognizing their extraordinary leadership and consistent support — they’ve won our annual Giving Day participation challenge for eight consecutive years. In their honor, three auditorium seat plaques were unveiled to thunderous applause. “I ask all of you students, our sixth-formers in particular, to remember this moment when you come back for your 50th reunion in 2075—and I’m 107 years old,” Packard added with a smile.

When the students departed the auditorium, the classmates took time to honor and remember classmates who have passed away since their Brooks School graduation. The class chose to dedicate their seat plaques in honor of these classmates. There were some somber moments during the remembrances but also plenty of laughter as they shared stories of their great friends who sadly weren’t able to be there to celebrate their 50th reunion with them. The weekend continued with time spent in the Chapel, our annual FDA luncheon at Packard’s house, a campus tour, a Woodman’s lobster bake in the Demoulas Family Boathouse, classroom visits, time with school prefects, a visit to the archives and plenty of time spent enjoying the spring weather around campus.

A highlight of the weekend for both reunion attendees and spectators alike, was time spent on the shores of Lake Cochichewick by both the 50th and 5th reunion classes. Friday night the class of 1975 was surprised with an opportunity to participate in the christening of a new shell aptly named the F.D. Ashburn. Wisner Murray ’75 honored FDA

during the ceremony sharing some thoughtful sentiments about Mr. Ashburn. “In preparation for our 50th reunion, I re-read “Brooks at 50 - Yesterday” by FDA. In talking about athletics at Brooks he said that we have mixed success in most sports except in squash and in rowing. He was particularly proud of the success the school had at the lake. To my knowledge, never an oarsman himself (pitched at Yale), he knew to pick great coaches starting with Ox Kingsbury and continuing in our time with the likes of Doug Peterson, Bill Dunnell and David Swift (here with us tonight). I think FDA would be extremely pleased with what is happening here at the lake today under the leadership of Tote Smith and keeping and growing his legacy alive with the naming of this shell.” Jim Chapman concluded the ceremony by blessing the boat with thoughtful prayer.

At dawn the next morning, under ideal conditions, a few brave members of the class took to the water in the Barbara and Michael McCahill shell. “We hadn’t seen conditions this perfect all season,” said Director of Rowing Tote Smith. With 6th former Leah Chen coxing, the alumni rowers glided down the racecourse, laughing and sweating together fittingly closing out a weekend full of camaraderie and spirit.

Throughout the weekend the class of 1975 shared memories and stories from their time as students on campus. Although campus might look a bit different than it did 50 years ago, the feeling of “coming home” resonated amongst the attendees. Chris Abbott recalled the lasting impact great teachers had on him when he was a boarding student. From Andrea and David Swift treating their dorm to baked alaska, to Doug Peterson teaching them to value a life of service and Bill Dunnell’s lasting impact on generations of Brooksians it is clear that these figure heads transformed the lives of the class of 1975.

5th Reunion

As the 50th reunion class departed campus on Saturday afternoon, we welcomed the class of 2020 back to campus for an evening of celebrating. Starting with a cocktail reception at the Head of School’s House, nearly 40 members of the class of 2020 reconnected with each other and many of the current faculty members that knew them as students. “I feel so lucky to have opportunities like this to reconnect with past students, athletes, advisees and dorm residents,” said Spanish Teacher Chelsea Clater. “This year, it felt even more special to be with the class of 2020 in-person and on campus — finally!” The class continued their evening with dinner at the Demoulas Family Boathouse, spending time reminiscing about their time at Brooks and catching up on the paths everyone followed after graduation. “It was an amazing time - even with the rain that came through as we made our way down to the Boathouse! I had a blast, as I am sure the rest of my class did. It was great getting back on campus and seeing friends and faculty.” shared Jon Carafotes ’20 To wrap up the night, the group enjoyed cookie dough cups and other desserts, channeling memories of Open Houses at the Packard’s from years before.

[ 1 ] Casey O’Neill ’20, Quin Healy ’20 and Maddie Hesse ’20.

[ 2 ] John Fritz ’20, Science Teacher Pete Moccia, Herbert Liu ’20, Parker Sondag ’20 and Charlie Alcorn ’20.

[ 3 ] Matt Costantino ’20, Associate Director of Admission Kenya Jones and Olu Oladitan ’20.

[

4 ] Head of School John Packard H’87, P’18, P’21, Kim O’Neill Packard ’87, Claire Ziady ’20 and Molly Boltin ’20.

[ 5 ] Class of 2020, First row (left to right): Claire Ziady, Quin Healy, Casey O’Neill, Molly Madigan, Annie Serrao, Anoosha Barua, Morgan Arakelian, Maya Neckles, Maddie Hesse, and Alec D’Orio. Second row (left to right): Nick Carabatsos, Maddie Abraham, Sydney Robinson, Caroline Sheehan, EB Plumeri, Molly Boltin, Jen Connolly, Becca Cami, Vanessa Shipley, Kelsey Moody, Maddie O’Brien, and Brian Barker-Morrill. Third

Reflecting on Brooks and Looking Ahead to the Centennial

AS BROOKS SCHOOL prepares to celebrate its 100th year, there’s a new face leading the alumni board. We sat down with Adam Smith ’07, alumni board president to reflect on his time as a student, what the school meant to him then, and what he hopes to achieve during this milestone moment. Smith is a member of the class of 2007. After graduating from Brooks, Smith studied classics and linguistics at the University of Virginia. He returned to Brooks in 2012 to teach in the theology department and coach 2nd soccer and 3rd squash. Since then, his career has centered on hospitality technology and real estate investment, where he’s known for his commitment to community-building, mentorship, and strategic leadership.

A proud Haverhill native, Adam now lives in Savannah, Georgia, with his wife and two dogs. As Alumni Board president, he draws on his experience as both a student leader and former faculty member to deepen alumni engagement and strengthen student-alumni connections.

Can you share a bit about your time at Brooks? When were you here and what stands out from your experience? I started at Brooks in 2003 when I was just 12 years old. I had a September birthday and I also skipped fourth grade. That’s pretty young by most standards, and I think everyone knew me as “the 12-year-old” for a while!

One of the most defining parts of my experience was living in Thorne House all four years. That’s rare, and it gave me a real sense of continuity and community. Dorm parents like Judy Beams and John Quirk created a home away from home for me. That kind of stability, when you’re growing and figuring out who you are, was invaluable.

Sports were also a huge part of my life at Brooks. I played soccer all four years, and I actually chose to stay on the 2nd team for the rest of my time, including senior year. People probably thought I was nuts, but for me, it wasn’t about prestige. It was about leadership and playing the full 90 minutes. I knew I could make a bigger impact and enjoy the game more that way. Our 2nd team had a great run that year, and I wouldn’t trade that experience for anything.

It sounds like Brooks was a place that really let you define your own path. Did that shape your growth in other ways too? Absolutely. Brooks helped me develop a real sense of self. I came from Haverhill, where most people I knew lived in a

similar 30-mile bubble. Suddenly, I was surrounded by kids from all over, international students, people from across the U.S., and it opened my eyes in a huge way. That diversity of background made a lasting impression. I had a friend from Hong Kong who invited me to visit one summer, and I remember thinking, “Wait, people do that?” It was totally outside my norm, but my parents made it happen, and I went all by myself at 14 years old, without a cell phone, half-way around the world. It changed how I saw the world. I also had a great friend from South Korea who’d come to my house for the weekend and we’d go hunting for Korean restaurants and groceries in nearby towns. Those experiences expanded my worldview and stayed with me.

Music was always something I loved, but at Brooks I was exposed to so many different genres through my friends. You start absorbing all these little pieces from the people around you, and you realize you’re building your own identity, too.

What excites you most about serving as president of the Alumni Board? Taking on this role as we head into the Centennial makes it feel especially meaningful. It’s a powerful opportunity to bring people back into the fold and tell the story of Brooks in a way that

celebrates its past and shapes its future.

I’m also honored to serve not just as president of the Alumni Board but also as a member of the Board of Trustees. That allows for a deeper level of impact.

One of my biggest hopes is to strengthen the connection between current students and alumni. There’s often this idea that alumni engagement starts after graduation, but I think we can do better. I want students to understand the power and value of the Brooks alumni network while they’re still on campus.

Are there specific initiatives you’re looking forward to launching?

Definitely. One initiative I’m especially excited about is creating a

more direct link between the Alumni Board and students. I’d love to identify one to three student liaisons who could serve as bridges between the board and campus. It would keep the lines of communication open and give students realtime insight into what it means to be part of the alumni community.

Beyond that, I’m thinking a lot about strategy and structure. We’ve

started reorganizing how the board operates by streamlining roles, refining communication, and making sure people are matched to the right tasks. We want to move beyond just meeting every few months. It’s not glamorous, but those logistics are what make meaningful programming possible. Of course, the Centennial is the big one. It’s a once-in-a-generation chance to re-engage alumni. Whether through events or storytelling, we want to leave behind something that people feel proud to have been part of.

If you could give one piece of advice to current students, what would it be? Stay connected. I get that when you graduate, there’s a natural instinct to leave Brooks behind and step into a new world. But don’t completely close that door. The relationships you built here matter. The shared experience matters. You might not realize it now, but years later, that network can play a major role in your personal and professional life. And remember, people grow and change. Someone you barely knew in high school might become an important connection later. We shared this intense, formative experience, and that bond doesn’t just disappear. So stay in touch, and don’t be afraid to reach out, even years down the line.

IN RECOGNITION OF THE CLASS OF 1975 FOR THEIR OUTSTANDING PARTICIPATION IN GIVING DAY 2018, 2019 AND 2020

ON FRIDAY, MAY 2, Brooks School had the privilege of recognizing the philanthropic contributions of the Class of 1975 on the occasion of their 50th Reunion. In a packed theater during school meeting, Head of School John Packard took a moment to highlight the class’s unwavering support over the years. For the past seven years, the Class of 1975 has led the way in alumni participation for the Brooks Fund on our annual Giving Day — an achievement made possible by the dedicated efforts of their class agent, Chris Abbott. Mr. Packard expressed deep gratitude for their continued commitment, noting, “This Class of 1975 has won the participation event, meaning a higher percentage of their class gives to the school on an annual basis. We are returning here to make sure they know how much we appreciate the support they are giving the school.”

As a gesture of gratitude, Brooks dedicated three chairs in the theater in memory of members of the Class of 1975 who are no longer with us, a tribute to their lasting impact on the school. Thank you to the Class of 1975 and all those who support the Brooks Fund.

SCHOOL

BROOKS BROOKS FUND

YOUR GIFT TO THE BROOKS FUND makes a transformational Brooks education possible for today’s students and for generations to come. Donate at www.brooksschool.org/giving or scan the QR Code. For questions or more information, contact Director of the Brooks Fund Lauren Marquis at lmarquis@brooksschool.org or (978) 725-6243.

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SAVE THE DATE JUNE 11–13, 2027

Cheers to 100 Years !

Brooks School is turning 100 — and you’re invited to the celebration of the century! Throughout the 2026–2027 school year, we’ll be honoring 100 incredible years of community, connection and tradition with a series of exciting events on and off campus.

The grand finale? Our Centennial Celebration on campus on JUNE 11–13, 2027. Mark your calendars, rally your classmates and get ready for a once-in-a-lifetime party.