1

May - 2012

In this issue:

From the Head of School – pg. 2

Upcoming Events – pg. 4

Headlines – pg. 5

Arts – pg. 8

Athletics – pg. 9

WAPA Notes and News – pg. 10

For the College Bound – pg. 11

Healthful Hints – pg. 13

Links

School Calendars

Scenes from School

2

From the Head of School

Dear Westchester Families and Friends,

Many of you, as I do, stand on the shoulders of those who came before

you, living each day as a beneficiary of their legacies of love, wisdom,

and service. Over my years as a teacher, leader, and now a parent in

independent schools, I have come to understand that schools like

Westchester Country Day thrive today in large measure due to the

selfless, tireless work of former teachers, trustees, parents, and school

leaders. We do our best to remember them on our campus through

named spaces, endowed awards, memorials, plaques, and the like.

Being relatively new to WCDS, I have sought out opportunities to learn

all that I can about the families, teachers, leaders, and other supporters whom we have

sought to remember on our campus. In this endeavor I have come to understand that the

love, passion for, and commitment to Westchester that flows through our school community

each day have always been here; in fact, when I meet alumni, their parents, former trustees,

and former members of the faculty, we almost always in our conversations wind our way back

to the very powerful community that is WCDS.

A figure from the school’s recent past who clearly exemplifies this spirit of love, family,

community, and service is Chuck Hamblet, who served as head of school from 2006 to 2009. I

regret never having the chance to know him personally, but in more ways than I can name, I

feel his legacy on campus—in the people whose lives he touched, in the outstanding work he

did to move the school forward, and, most importantly, in the deep and powerful love that he

had for Westchester and all that it sought to do for the children in its care. In many ways, I

strive each day to love and serve the school as Chuck did.

Last spring, at our annual Blue and White Gala, we named a key portion of our annual auction

“Chuck’s Fund” to recognize Chuck’s deep and lasting contribution to the school. For the last

several years, our school family has come together at the auction to raise our paddles to

provide the head of school with funds to support special endeavors, meet particularly

challenging needs, or provide that “value-added” that makes a child’s experience at school

extraordinary. All too often, a teacher or staff member will come to my office excited about a

great idea for his or her classroom, division, production, program, or team, only to hear from

me that the school doesn’t have the money to make it possible.

The funds raised during this portion of the auction, now known as “Chuck’s Fund,” give me the

ability to say “yes” to that teacher, to fund innovation, improve our campus, and invest in our

mission. This effort has, over the years, funded SmartBoards, Harkness tables, and computer

3

labs. We have invested in our faculty, providing them with additional professional

development, special teaching materials, technologies, and other resources.

As a long-time head of school, Chuck knew all too well the frustration of having to say no, so

each year at auction, when the moment came to begin this effort, he would stand before the

crowd, wrists crossed in front of him, and tell them that, despite all of the wonderful

opportunities he had to give the faculty what they needed, his hands were tied. Like me, he

was energized by the faculty’s ideas and wanted nothing more than to give them what they

needed to see them through.

This coming Saturday, we will gather again in the Finch Center to celebrate this year’s Blue

and White Gala, and I hope to see all of you there. I hope as well that all of you will raise your

paddles for Chuck’s Fund and join in our annual effort to remember Chuck Hamblet and all

that he did to make our school the wonderful place that it is today. If you are unable to

attend on Saturday, we have set up an online donation form.

Cobb Atkinson

Head of School

4

News of Note - Upcoming Events

Spring Concert, Grades 6 - 12

Tuesday, May 1, 7:00 p.m.

Blue and White Gala Auction, "Once in a Blue Moon"

Saturday, May 5, 5:30 p.m.

Westchester's largest annual fundraising event featuring live and silent auctions, dinner,

dancing, and more! See page 4 for more information.

Disney’s “The Jungle Book Kids”

Friday, May 11, 7: 00 p.m.

Saturday, May 12, 7:00 p.m.

Sunday, May 13, 2:00 p.m.

Cafetorium

Admission is $5/person at the door

W-Day 5K

Saturday, May 12, beginning at 7:30 a.m. Events include a 1-mile fun run, the 5K, 50 Yard

Diaper Dash, and Little Cat Lap! This is a great event for the whole family. Click here to sign up

today!

Awards Assemblies

NHS Induction – Thursday, May 3, 8:00 a.m.

Upper School Academic Awards – Thursday, May 17, 8:15 a.m.

Varsity Athletic Banquet – Tuesday, May 22, 5:30 p.m.

Middle School Athletic Awards – Wednesday, May 23, 2:15 p.m.

5th Grade Step-Up – Wednesday, May 30, 8:15 a.m.

Middle School Academic Awards – Thursday, May 31, 8:15 a.m.

(all above events will be held in the Cafetorium)

Dance, Guitar, and Violin Recital

Thursday, May 24, 6:30 p.m., Cafetorium

Graduation

Saturday, May 26, 9:30 a.m., Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church

Last Day of School

Friday, June 1, 11:30 dismissal

5

News of Note – Headlines

Blue and White Gala May 5

Join us this Saturday, May 5, at the Blue and White Gala Auction, Westchester’s largest and

most fun fundraising event! Watch your email this week for the online catalog featuring many

of the items available for bidding on during the live and silent auctions. Many thanks to our

sponsors: Diamond:

Sapphire:

6

Mathletes on the Road Again

Eight Westchester students attended a state preliminary competition held at Wake Forest

University on Saturday, April 14. Students competing in Algebra 1 included Carter Gay, Jack

Crouse, Paige Hetley, and Miranda Bryson. Those competing in Geometry were Savannah

Lewis, Kess Hendrix, Kayla Watson, and Will Misenheimer. Congratulations go out to these

students for being selected to participate and for representing their school in a positive way.

Chamber Singers Perform in Williamsburg

Several members of Chamber Singers went to Williamsburg the weekend of April 20 for the

Heritage Festival of Music and received a gold ranking from the adjudicators - the highest they

could get! The members who went were: T.J. Baber, Jessica Barker, Sarah Catto, George

Heath, Julia Ormond, Abbey Perdue, Sydney Richards, and Patrick Williford.

Attention Rising Seniors!

Senior portraits must be taken this summer! The portrait and five additional photos are due to

Mrs. Tuggle by October 1.

Board Member Receives Recognition

Board of Trustee member David Couch was profiled in the March 2012 GOLD RUSH Magazine

published by Wake Forest Athletics and had some nice things to say about WCDS! Click here

to read the article.

Ms. Cunningham Accepted into C-Span Conference

Every year C-Span invites middle school and high school social studies teachers to apply to

attend their Summer Educator’s Conference and our own Ms. Cunningham was accepted to

attend! She will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, DC to learn about C-Span's

classroom resources and to work with other educators to develop projects using those

resources.

Kindergarten Pump It Up Party

Kindergarten students were treated to a

Pump It Up Party because 100% of

kindergarten families participated in this

year’s Annual Fund. Fourth grade

students will also be treated to a Pump

It Up Party (the two grades tied!), and

sixth grade students head to Carowinds

on May 4. Thank you to everyone who

has supported this year’s Annual Fund!

There’s still time to make your gift or

pledge through the Support WCDS link

on our website! Payment is not due until

June 30, 2012. Thank you!

7

NCAA Event Draws Huge Crowd

Westchester’s “So You Think You

Want to be an NCAA Student-

Athlete” event was a huge

success, attracting more than 100

current families as well as families

from around the state to hear from

the experts on what it takes to play

sports at the collegiate level.

Keynote speaker Tom Walter, head

baseball coach at Wake Forest

University, delivered a great

message, and guest panelists held

a lengthy question and answer

session with audience members. In photo, from left are Kenny Herbst, professor at WFU and

former WFU basketball student-athlete; Doreen Kelly, Head of School at Ravenscroft in Raleigh,

N.C.; Tom Walter; and Jared Micklos, assistant athletic director for compliance at High Point

University. Also in attendance were WCDS Academic Dean and College Placement Advisor

Betty Flythe, former WFU quarterback Riley Skinner, and current Duke University basketball

player Ryan Kelly.

Mrs. Hawley Inducted into Women’s Educators Society

Blair Hawley was recently inducted into Delta Kappa Gamma (DKG) Society International, an

honorary society for key women educators. DKG provides opportunities for professional and

personal growth in an environment that promotes excellence in education. The society is

made up of women educators at all levels of education. The vision of DKG is to lead women

to impact education worldwide.

Science Camps Wind Up for This Year

Final dates for Frizz n’ T’s Science Camps for 2nd, 3rd, and 4th graders have been announced!

Click here for more information and to register.

Visit “Scenes” for Lots of Photos!

Be sure to visit the Scenes from School link for recent photos and

videos from school events, including the spring concerts,

Celebration of the Arts, Spring Fling, and more! We’d like to extend

a big thank you to Rick Forester for videoing each of our concerts

and the Celebration of the Arts so we will have these memories to

share as well as to archive for many years to come.

8

Fine Arts News

Many thanks go to those of you who came out to Celebration of the Arts. Because of your

support of the arts at Westchester, we raised over $1,200 for Friends of the Fine Arts and their

sponsorship of art scholarships and guest artists.

It’s a jungle out there…at least it will be the weekend of May 11 –

13, when we present Disney’s The Jungle Book for Kids, our K-8

drama production. It is an exciting ensemble cast of over 40

students whose singing, acting, and dancing will totally entertain

you. Please come support our efforts! The production will be at

7:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 2:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Admission is $5 at the door.

Our final recital of the year on May 24 at 6:30 p.m. will feature our

dance, violin, and guitar students. Their progress this year will amaze you.

You will also be amazed by the changes in the stage and cafetorium that will happen in June.

Our rigging will be replaced, new lighting positions added, new sound equipment installed,

and our white tile floor will be no more! These upgrades will make our space much better

functioning and safer. Starting June 1 we really need help clearing the stage to get ready for

the contractor and, as of June 4, we need daily help assisting with the renovation. The process

is expected to take three weeks. If you can give a few days or even a few hours, please

contact Ann Parks by email: ann.parks@westchestercds.org. By using volunteer labor we were

able to reduce our total cost by over $8,000. Please help us make this happen.

Remember to sign up for our fun summer camps and have a creative summer!

Footnotes Sing at Dash Game

Footnotes was honored to be asked to

sing the national anthem on April 25 at

the Winston-Salem Dash baseball game.

After their performance, Westchester’s

Footnotes group, along with over 30

parents, family members, and friends,

enjoyed the game at BB&T Park in

Winston. They did a wonderful job and

everyone had a fun afternoon watching

baseball!

9

Westchester Athletics

Another great year of Westchester Athletics is winding down, and the last three weeks are sure

to be full of great memories for our spring student-athletes. Please make sure you come

support the Cats as they compete for Conference and State Championships!

The TAC Conference Championships will be held at the following venues:

Varsity Girls Soccer – Trinity School of Durham – 5/4, 5/7

Varsity Baseball – Westchester – 5/4, 5/7

Varsity Boys Tennis – Elon University – 5/11-12

Varsity Golf – Willow Creek – 5/7

Varsity Track – American Hebrew – 5/10

The State Championships will be held at the following venues:

Varsity Girls Soccer – Final Four - Caldwell Academy – 5/18-19

Varsity Baseball – Final Four - Rocky Mount Academy – 5/18-19

Varsity Golf – Mid-Pines in Southern Pines – 5/14-15

Varsity Track – High Point University – 5/18-19

Varsity Tennis – Wilmington, NC – 5/18-19

Varsity Athletic Banquet

Please join us on Tuesday, May 22, at 5:30 p.m. in the Rives Cafetorium as we recognize our

varsity athletes and present individual awards. All varsity athletes and their families are invited

to attend. Dinner will be catered by Company’s Coming for $10 per person. Dinner will be your

choice of chicken salad on a croissant or turkey sandwich, served with pasta salad, chips, a

cookie, and a drink. Please click here to make your reservations by Friday, May 18. Coaches

and their spouses may attend compliments of the Booster Club. Coaches should contact

Dawn Frank to make their reservations. Reservations are required by all. Contact Dawn Frank

at 869-2128, ext 200 or dawn.frank@westchestercds.org with any questions. Thank you. We

look forward to an enjoyable evening.

Sports DVD

Available at the great price of $20, all varsity sports are featured on this DVD. Pre-orders are

required. Click here to order yours today!

10

WAPA Notes and News

Book Club: The WAPA Book Club will meet in the library on May 8 at 8:15 a.m. to discuss Double Whammy

by Carl Hiassen. All parents are welcome.

Box Tops for May:

Please continue to turn in any Box Tops collected to your child's teacher or to the office until

the end of the school year.

Remember over the summer, if you are making online purchases, please go through the Box

Tops website Market Place. It doesn't cost you anything more, and we get Box Tops for your

purchases. Even Dell Computers, Apple Computers, most clothing brand stores, and just about

anything you could purchase online has a link from Box Tops.

Your patronage of Box Tops this year is very much appreciated. Thank you!

11

For the College Bound

The musical Children of Eden features a song entitled “The Hardest Part of Love,” a song that

compares raising children to planting an acorn and watching it grow into a sturdy oak tree.

Once that maturation process begins, no matter how much we might want to slow it, we

can’t, and we suddenly find that our children are on the verge of taking flight and making

their way in the world without us. Often letting go is much harder for us as parents than for our

children. Perhaps we are more aware of the obstacles and challenges that lie ahead than are

our idealistic children, but perhaps some of what we feel is our own profound sense of loss,

knowing that our family unit will never be quite the same again. Listed below are some

suggestions that parents might want to consider as they prepare to send their son or daughter

off to college (or summer camp).

Communicate your confidence in your child’s ability to succeed without your daily

involvement. Be supportive but firm in encouraging independence.

Be a good listener and know that sometimes you may be a sounding board for immediate

responses to bumps in the road. Often just being able to verbalize emotions allows an

individual to move to a more reflective, rational response to a situation.

Avoid hovering by encouraging regular, but not daily (or even hourly), updates and

communication. Contact that is too frequent will only serve to hinder the process of learning

to be independent and may even result in your child avoiding your calls and emails.

Don’t let technology take the place of voice-to-voice contact. You can tell much more about

the state of mind of your child from a conversation than you can from a text message or

email.

Don’t fly in and redecorate your child’s room at home immediately after she or he heads to

college. Regardless of how much your child insists he wants to leave home, it is important that

home remain the same for a while.

Trust your own instincts when it comes to assessing your child’s frame of mind. If you sense his

choice of schools is not proving to be a good one or that his mental distress needs professional

attention, encourage your child to speak to an advisor or a counselor on campus.

No matter how close to home your student has chosen to attend college, remember that

finding a package notice or a letter in his campus mailbox will always be a thrill!

The following seniors have been offered college acceptances since our last newsletter:

Brian Ball – UNC Chapel Hill

McKelvey Bump – Duke University

12

Zack Cloniger – East Carolina University

UNC Greensboro

Western Carolina University

Sunam Dhakal – Appalachian State University

Dan Goldman – Appalachian State University

Harrison Keefe – Wingate University

Kristen McDowell – Appalachian State University

Caroline Muir – NC State University

UNC Wilmington

Virginia Tech

Adam Niner – Virginia Tech

Rachel Nulty – UNC Chapel Hill

Virginia Tech

Sean Ormond – UNC Greensboro

Kelly Patram – Winston-Salem State University

Katie Rice – Elon University

Furman University

NC State University

UNC Wilmington

Jessi Stockinger – UNC Chapel Hill

UNC Wilmington

Tyler Thompson – Wofford College

Luke Vandeplancke – Clemson University

Grey York – Wofford College

As of April 23, 2012, the 31 members of Westchester’s class of 2012 have been offered over $1

million in academic and merit scholarships.

Betty Flythe, College Placement Advisor

13

Healthful Hints from the School Nurse

Happy Spring!

I need to remind you about some important matters.

All grades: Please remember to complete and have your pediatrician sign the Health

Information Sheet if you happen to be in the doctor’s office getting other things done this

spring.

Middle and Upper grades: We will have free sports physicals offered toward the last week in

May. Please take advantage of this free service! Click here for the form.

Rising 6th grade students: Please remember that all 6th grade students must present a

certificate of immunization that shows a recent Tdap immunization.

Graduating seniors: Did you know that most colleges require a meningitis immunization? You

might want to schedule that college physical early so you can complete this requirement.

Now on to other things…

Our students appear to have shed their heavy wraps and have donned their spring clothes. I

watch the Lower School students on the playground talking to their classmates, running,

jumping, racing and playing tag. This is the brightest part of my day. I must offer a note of

safety…flip flops are not a shoe designed for the rigors of the playground. Help your Lower

School make an informed shoe choice each day.

Although it is only May, children still need to take the sun seriously. Sunburns can happen

anytime of the year, especially on skin that has been covered all winter.

The following are some reminders to protect your skin:

Try to avoid being in the sun too long, especially in the middle of the day.

Remind everyone to don sunscreen before going outside.

Wear a hat.

If it is especially sunny, sunglasses are a good idea too.

Apply sunscreen with a protective factor of 15 or more to block out the harmful rays of

the sun.

The American Cancer Society says that a simple way to practice safety in the sun is to

remember the “slip, slop, slap” rule:

Slip on a shirt

14

Slop on sunscreen

Slap on a hat

Let’s keep our school community healthy during these spring months. Wash your hands often,

eat a nutritious diet, and drink plenty of water. In the blink of an eye school will be releasing

for summer. This last month of school will fly by!

Beth Kennedy, Director of Health Services