Second grade students on the Bolles Lower School Whitehurst Campus presented a Thanksgiving play on Wednesday, November 19, in the McGehee Auditorium on the San Jose Campus. The play, titled “Thanksgiving: Then and Now”, featured pilgrims, Native Americans, turkeys, Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, and Franklin Roosevelt.  The play was about the history of America ‘s Thanksgiving holiday and included several songs.

The play was written and directed by Michael Fritton, with original music by Andrea Duke.

Bolles Lower School Ponte Vedra Beach Campus students, faculty, and their families were treated to an up-close experience with the landing of a Navy SH-60B Seahawk helicopter on Wednesday, November 19. The helicopter was piloted by Bolles parent Lt. Greg Anderson, along with his co-pilot and crewman. On the ground, they were aided by another pilot to ensure the safety of the landing.

The helicopter landed in an area on the southwest corner of the campus as the onlookers stood a safe distance away. Once the helicopter was shut down and it was safe to approach, the first person to greet Anderson on the ground was his daughter Haley, a kindergarten student at the Ponte Vedra Campus. Then everyone had the opportunity to meet the Navy pilots and crewman and get a tour of the helicopter.

The exciting visit from her father was not only a surprise to Haley, but to the entire student body. Anderson had discussed the possibility with Principal Fred Scott several months ago and then sought approval from the Navy. The date of the landing was not randomly selected as both Anderson and his daughter share a birthday on November 20.

The primary use of the Navy SH-60B Seahawk helicopter is anti-surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare, and search and rescue such as Anderson did with the Hurricane Katrina disaster. However, the mission on Wednesday was an extraordinary birthday present for Haley and an incredible educational experience for her schoolmates and teachers. Anderson and his crew took time to discuss their experience in the Navy and explain the details of the helicopter.

“This is very exciting,” Anderson said. “My parents are here from Texas for our birthdays, along with my wife. I think it’s great for the School, it’s great for the Navy, and it’s great for me. The kids enjoy it and I enjoy meeting with the kids.”

Six Bolles swimmers were honored on Wednesday, November 19, for committing to a particular college or university to continue their athletic and academic careers. This special occasion represents a very nice reward for the hard work, dedication, and commitment made by these student-athletes. The Bolles swimmers honored Wednesday were Caitlin Mumford (University of Pennsylvania), Casey Sandlin (Florida State University), Kylee Talwar (Rice University), Laurie White (University of Pacific), Oscar Aldabe (University of Alabama), and Bryce Bertoli (University of Hawaii).

2008-09 College Athletic Committments

Baseball
Niko Fraser- Elon University

Girls’ Golf
Amelia Lewis- University of Central Florida

Swimming and Diving
Oscar Aldabe- University of Alabama
Bryce Bertoli- University of Hawaii
Caitlin Mumford- University of Pennsylvania
Casey Sandlin- Florida State University
Kylee Talwar- Rice University
Laurie White- University of Pacific

It was with great success that the Bolles Spanish Study Abroad Program concluded this summer for the fourth consecutive year in San Sebastian, on the northern Basque coast of Spain.

This year, it was somewhat different for me, since as the coordinator, I tend to travel and stay with the Bolles students during the first part of the three week program. It is during this period, as a chaperone, that one has to oversee and amend every need and requirement of our students that may arise when they encounter a foreign culture on their own for the first time. To my delight, it was very gratifying when I arrived to take over as chaperone of the program, to encounter the 12 participants from the Bolles School (Sunny Chalam, Chris Ragsdale, Daniel Tom, David Aung-Din, Gaby Glassman, Claire Benton, Kanesha Johnson, Sarah Ussery, Katherine Progrebniak, Jennifer Neal, Ley Ley Francis, and Caroline Matthews) so well adjusted and acclimated. I have to highly commend the other Bolles chaperones, Mr. and Mrs. Steve and Adriana Stam (upper and middle school language teachers), for doing such a superb and remarkable job in handling the task of acclimating our students to their surrounding and foreign environment. They not only kept the group totally engaged in extra-curricular activities, such as hiking excursions and scavenger hunts, but also took them to France for a full day of fun and exploration. So well adapted were our Bolles students, that when I arrived, halfway through the program, they insisted that I go out to have dinner with them at some of their favorite restaurants, such as the one they dubbed “the Basque Cruisers” where we dined on outstanding Mexican fare. This was all new, and very impressive for me, since the last memory I had of them, was that of 12 apprehensive and worried faces at the airport, only to return to 12 well assimilated and self-confident individuals, praised by the faculty and administration at the school, as well as their host families. Kudos to the Stams for achieving this phenomenal feat!

The program at the renowned Lacunza Language institute was, again, exceptional. They feature an agenda that is well managed and balanced, offering an excellent academic program, Monday through Friday, combined with after school and day-long excursions as diverse as kayaking, a visit to the Guggenheim Museum, ice skating, and tours of Medieval villages, just to name a few.

San Sebastian is a beautiful and magical place, with its majestic architecture, magnificent beaches, and surrounded by an extraordinary lush mountainous landscape. It has yet to disappoint any of the nearly 50 students that have participated. It is no wonder that, as I am writing this, Bolles is in the process of selecting 12 students that will participate in the program next summer, which will undoubtedly again be a tremendous success and that hopefully will be continued to be offered every year.

The Bolles Bulldogs will be playing Jones High School of Orlando in a regional semi-final football game on Friday, November 21 at Bolles. Admission will be $7 per person. Since this is an FHSAA playoff game, all students, their families, faculty, and staff will be required to pay. Passes used for being a member of the Agnes Cain Painter and Glynlea Society can not be accepted during playoff games. FHSAA State Series Pass holders will need to sign in and show their card at the ticket booth. Thank you and GO BULLDOGS!

The Bolles San Jose Campus Book Club meeting originally scheduled for Thursday, December 4, has been postponed until January. More information will be available at a later date.

The Bolles football team capped off its second consecutive undefeated regular season with a 73-0 drilling of Creekside High School on November 14. Bolles posted an overall record of 10-0 and District 3-2A record of 7-0 to win the program’s 28th district title and 16th in a row.

Bolles opens the 2008 playoffs at home against Jones High School (7-3, 3-1 in 4-2A) from Orlando. Kick-off for the region semifinal is set for Friday, November 21, at 7:30 p.m.

***Admission will be $7 per person. Since this is an FHSAA playoff game, all students, their families, faculty, and staff will be required to pay. Passes used for being a member of the Agnes Cain Painter and Glynlea Society can not be accepted during playoff games. FHSAA State Series Pass holders will need to sign in and show their card at the ticket booth.

The Bolles girls’ volleyball team will make the program’s 18th Final Four appearance after defeating Pensacola Catholic 3-1 (23-25, 25-15, 25-14, 25-18) in the region finals on Saturday, November 15. Bolles will play Lake Highland Prep in the state semifinals on Friday, November 21, at 2 p.m. in Lakeland.

View the complete Class 3A playoff bracket here.

The Bolles boys’ and girls’ cross country teams both placed second at the Region 1-2A meet at Bartram Trail High School on Saturday, November 15. The boys were led by junior James McRae who placed third in a time of 16:49. The girls were led sophomore Rebecca Chandler and senior Kaitlyn Iselborn. Chandler placed fourth in a time of 19:03, followed closely by Iselborn who placed fifth in a time of 19:04.

The cross country teams will conclude the season at the state meet on Saturday, November 22, in Dade City . The girls race at 7:30 a.m. and the boys race at 8:20 a.m.

View complete region results here.

The Bolles boys’ and girls’ swimming and diving teams continued their dominant streak of state championship titles. At the Class 1A state meet held on November 14 at the Orlando YMCA Aquatic Complex, the boys brought home their 21st consecutive and 29th overall state title and the girls won their 18th consecutive and 22nd overall title.

The Bolles teams set several records at the meet as well. The girls’ 200-yard medley relay team set a new national record at the state meet. The team of Aubrey Peacock ’10, Caitlin Mumford ’09, Megan Fonteno ’11, and Dana Nessler ’10 clocked a time of 1:42.35, besting the previous record by .36 seconds. Bolles also broke its own 12 year-old state record in the girls’ 400 freestyle relay as the team of Peacock, Fonteno, Nessler and Casey Sandlin ’09 clocked a time of 3:23.97. The boys’ 200 freestyle relay team of Blair Schiller ’11, Chris Sadsad ’11, Bryce Bertoli ’09, and Tommy Gutman ’10 posted a state record time of 1:23.33, besting the previous mark established by Bolles in 1990. Individually, Peacock set the state record in the girls’ 100 yard backstroke with a time of 53.84 as she won the event for the second straight year.

Bolles swimmers claimed several other individual and relay state titles as well. For the girls, Peacock added the 200 individual medley to her title count. Fonteno (50 freestyle) and Mumford (100 breaststroke) won individual titles as well. The boys claimed additional relay titles in the 200 medley relay (Ryan Murphy ’13, Bertoli, Timmy Romano ’10, and Sadsad) and 400 freestyle relay (Schiller, Marcos Aldabe ’11, Romano, and Gutman). Gutman (50 freestyle), Schiller (100 freestyle), and Sergio Lujan-Rivera ’11 (100 breaststroke) claimed individual state titles.

Our first Book Club meeting of the year will be on Wednesday, December 3, at 8:30 a.m. in the library on the Lower School Ponte Vedra Beach Campus. School parent, Tina Jaeckle, Ph.D., will lead a discussion of Escape from Slavery: The True Story of My Ten Years in Captivity and My Journey to Freedom in America, by Frances Bok. This is a story about a young man’s escape from slavery in Sudan, eventual settlement in Iowa as a UN refugee, and work with an American antislavery organization. Dr. Jaeckle is an assistant professor in the Social and Behavioral Sciences at Flagler College and co-founder of Bridges to Sudan – an organization dedicated to helping Sudanese refugees in Jacksonville. The discussion promises to be interesting whether you complete the book or not! Please join us and bring a friend. All are welcome!

School pictures will be distributed to the students Friday, November 14, during lunch period.  Please follow these instructions from Cady&Cady for ordering:

Go online to http://www.cadystudios.com/portraits or mail the order form by November 28 to:

Cady & Cady Studios
Attn:  Order Processing
1015 Kings Avenue
Jacksonville, FL  32256

If you are ordering by mail, make sure to include your child’s proof, as well as the order form.

All orders placed by the due date above will be mailed to your home by December 15.

DO NOT RETURN TO THE SCHOOL.

Thank You

Students on the Middle School Bartram Campus commemorated Veterans’ Day On Tuesday, November 11. Students were permitted to wear red, white, or blue uniform shirts and gathered solemnly at the flagpole at the beginning of each lunch period for a ceremony honoring United States Veterans. The ceremony was organized by Bartram faculty members Caroline Milne and Captain Michael Benson, U.S. Air Force retired, based on ceremonies Benson conducted in previous years at The Benjamin School.

Benson began the ceremony with an explanation of the origins of Veterans’ Day followed by the recital of the poem “O Captain, My Captain” by Taylor Scott ’14, Ryan Putnal ’14, and Alexandria Acree ’14. Captain Jim Fossa, a math instructor on the Bartram Campus who recently returned from serving in the European Command in Germany with the U.S. Navy reserves, was in uniform and shared a few words along with a poem about the U.S. flag. Captain Gray Strum ‘36, U.S. Navy retired, Bolles’ oldest living alumnus, and a Pearl Harbor survivor, also attended the ceremony. Major Hank Kahler, U.S. Army retired, attended the sixth period ceremony as well. Kahler, grandfather of student Lauren Gibson ’13, served in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam.

Caroline Plapp ’14, advanced band member, played “Taps” as the flag was lowered to half-mast by Gray Houston ’13, Captain Strum’s grandson. The flag was then raised and students recited the Pledge of Allegiance.

An exciting day of vision screening took place at the Lower School Ponte Vedra Beach Campus on October 14. Everyone had fun reading the charts and working with the friendly volunteers. The screenings were courtesy of the Northeast Florida “Vision is Priceless” Council.

Two Bolles student-athletes were honored on Wednesday, November 12, for committing to a particular college or university to continue their athletic and academic careers. This special occasion represents a very nice reward for the hard work, dedication, and commitment made by these student-athletes. Niko Fraser signed with Elon University (baseball) and Amelia Lewis signed with the University of Central Florida (golf).

Due to a broadcast conflict, the Bolles football game against Creekside on Friday, November 14, will be tape-delayed, airing Saturday morning at 10 a.m. This also includes the streaming on the Internet.

Nearly one hundred Bolles band students from the upper and middle schools performed solos and small ensembles for adjudication at this year’s Independent Schools Music Festival held on Saturday, November 8.  Students performed and competed against a musical standard, not each other, established by the adjudicators at the event.  Judges this year were area music professors, navy band members, and professional musicians.  For their performances, 95% of the Bolles band members received the first division rating of “outstanding”.

At the middle school, the flute duet of Ali Talwar and Nahia Falkner received a perfect score along with the clarinet solo of Danielle Zentz.  Alicia Bishop, upper school band vice president, received a perfect score on her clarinet solo of the Poulenc Sonata.  Upper school violinist, Ho Bin Cha, also received a perfect score on his solo.

The most important aspect of the festival is that the adjudicators also serve as music educators in providing the student musicians with individual mini-clinics and tips after they perform.  Held this year at Mandarin Presbyterian Church, the festival has always been centered on education and in advancing the musical development of student musicians.

The Bolles Repertory Dance Theatre welcomes the second guest artist of the 2008-09 school year as Steve Rooks will visit the San Jose Campus November 15-16. Rooks will join the Bolles dancers from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. on November 15 and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on November 16 in Lynch Theatre. The rehearsals are open to anyone who would like to observe. Rooks will be setting a modern dance piece for the Bolles Repertory Dance Theatre, Dance Company.

Rooks is currently resident choreographer and associate professor of dance at Vassar College, and was a founding faculty member of the Dance Degree Program at Howard University. He is also a guest instructor at the Alvin Ailey and Martha Graham Schools of Dance. He was a 2001 artist-in-residence at the North Carolina School of the Arts, and has been a member of the International Association of Blacks in Dance.

Rooks has taught internationally at several dance festivals and as a guest instructor for the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, the Martha Graham Dance Company, Dallas Black Dance Theater, Florida Dance Masters, the Masterworks Festival, Ballet Nacional de Mexico, the American Academy of Ballet, the Houston Ballet, and the Symposium on Dance at Yale University.

Steve Rooks began his dance training in Washington D.C. with Jan Van Dyke and Greg Reynolds, after graduating with honors from Dartmouth College. He continued his training in New York City as a scholarship student at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center. Rooks has danced and toured with the Greg Reynolds Dance Quintet, the Mary Anthony Dance Theater, Peter Sparling, Dancer’s Eye, and the Alvin Ailey Repertory Ensemble, where he performed classic works by Ailey, Donald McKayle, Talley Beatty, and Ulysses Dove. He joined the Martha Graham Dance Company in the summer of 1981, and was a principal dancer with the company until 1991.

Rooks has appeared in the Metropolitan Opera House presentation of Martha Graham’s Diversion of Angels televised for “Celebrate! 100 Years of the Lively Arts at the Met”. He has appeared in television commercials, and as a featured dancer on the television special, “The Martha Graham Company in Japan”. In October 1989, Rooks’ solo, “Outside”, was selected to be presented in the New Choreographers series during the Graham Company’s fall season at the City Center Theater in New York. One of his works, “Cool River”, became a part of that company’s 1996-97 repertory after its world premiere at Lincoln Center in August 1996.

First Honors

Grade 6
Parker Andrews
Bradley Betros
Emily Cohen
Reeves Culliton
Grace Edwards
Grace Gronvold
Hana Hajda
Savannah Harris
Hannah Hart
Amelia Hartje
Paige Heinold
Emily Hogan
Amanda Howard
Grace Mathis
Peyton McDonough
Olivia McGurrin
Alexander Mostovych
Melissa Ozdemir
Andrew Pascual
Chris Rogowski
Kasey Schmidt
Toney Sleiman
Carly Stevens
Jaclyn Switkes
Steele Tarleton
Brenna Thanner

Grade 7
Lily Arnold
Natalie Barakat
Kenzie Buchanan
Joey Buss
Katie Carr
Charlie Cellar
Swetha Davuluri
Brian DiLoreto
Austin Eng
Hamilton Eng
Alyssa Ferlin
Samuel Fleisher
Lauren Franson
Bari Frohman
Christine Gaitanzis
Brenna Gehlen
Patrick Glover
Aaisha Gulani
Regan Hamilton
Grace Hayes
Christian Hicks
Jennifer Howson
Garrett Hudson
Emily Hume
Sana Husain
Hwajin Kang
Davis Lee
May Lee
Carolyn Margulies
Anna Catherine McCrary
Emma Newton
Graham Nichols
Shane Obi
Margaret Odom-Tomchin
Katherine Odom-Tomchin
Charlie Padial
McKethan Parker
Alexandra Pentel
Gabrielle Petito
Caroline Plapp
Roc Putman
Zereen Sarwar
Jonah Schiller
Bradshaw Steele
Robyn Sutter
Ailish Ullmann
Morgan Ungrady
Virginia Vasquez
Timothy Wallace

Grade 8
Kate Anderson
Megan Block
Ellie Boline
Jay Bolt
Andriana Bove
Joey Bove
Alison Brown
Collin Fracke
Alex Frias
Javi Garcia-Bengochea
Ellie Grewal
Lindsey Grubbs
Alex Hilf
Gray Houston
Cody Hutson
Joe Hyman
Leah Jimenez
Kalen Koch
Emma Kuehn
Cameron Makeever
Kat McLauchlan
Lizzie Meadow
Ryan Murphy
Al Muzaurieta
Naomi O’Leary
Diego Paz
Michael Pentaleri
Alex Pierson
Elizabeth Pilcher
Elizabeth Pogrebniak
Kendall Siewert
Virginia Skinner
Olivia Sleiman
Burgay Staley
Blake Steinberg
Elizabeth Surratt
Ali Talwar
Whitley Turner
Katie Wegrzyn
Danielle Weindling
David Wilf
Mia Zanghetti
Dani Zentz

Second Honors

6th Grade
Lauren Bishop
Anush Bostanjian
Logan Cabi
Rosemary Chandler
Martin Cohen
Josh Costa
Conor Dunn
Ian Fuller
Paul Garson
Maggie Glynn
Tim Gonino
Hailey Guyette
Travis Johns
Sam Kenney
Corey Levinson
Lexi Notrica
Eric Quinn
Lauren Quinn
Chase Robinson
Udit Roy
Jared Skinner

7th Grade
Mallory Abercrombie
Shereen Abubakr
Alexandria Acree
Diana Akabekjan
J.T. Alexander
Andres Arteaga
Brian Bagheri
Michael Blevins
Allison Boyd
Temp Broderick
Hunter Cabi
Bethany Clubb
Shelby Condron
Caroline Crouch
Ryan Das
Charles Deitschmann
Dave DeStephano
Anthony Elias
Sarah Griffin
Walker Hill
Rachel Honig
Mitch Horowitz
Merrick Isley
Sarah Jane Jones
Madisen Kemph
Helen Kostandarithes
Alec Lerner
Bender Middlekauff
McKenzie Mizell
Julia Monday
Daniel Noe
Ben Oates
Kayleigh Painter
Linae Parkinson
Salem Peacock
Ryan Putnal
Amberleigh Ray
Alexis Rhodes
Anne Chandle Ridley
Caitlyn Risley
Brooke Robertson
Jacob Rolison
Ashley Sadler
Nathan Sanders
Cheyenne Shrader
Morgan Smith
Zach Swain
Ricky Villanueva
Hunter Walker
Chris Ware
Taylor Watson
Lucas Wyckoff
Connor Wyckoff
Richard Zimmerman

8th Grade
Max Ackerman
Amy Angelo
Max Barry
Sarah Bates
Frances Beacom
Polly Blum
Marijke Boers
Abigail Brantley
Kate Bushong
Alex Cellar
Gabrielle Cu
Holly Cummins
Lily Donovan
Justin FitzGerald
Jacqueline Flynn
Catherine Foster
Riley Gainer
Kourtney Gavin
Drew Gibson
Lauren Gibson
Cole Hanna
Macy Hayes
Brooke Hutson
Nathan Jeffers
Cecil Jennings
Hannah Joel
Emily Johns
Joshua Johnson
Philip Kenney
Adam Kessler
Nathan Kostick
Coleman Lay
Amanda Lee
Michael Lee
Davis Lindsey
Elmar Lutz
Ryan Mahoney
Elana Maiman
Juli Marques
Grace Marrese
Matt McPhillips
Hannah Mizrahi
Nicholle Moye
Thomas Pascual
Jenny Peacock
Ashley Pilcher
Austin Price
Walid Quadri
Austin Richardson
Greg Rogowski
Ariana Roldan
Dylan Schreiner
Leanne Sheth
Zach Silverstein
Chandler Soapes
Emily Sprague
Marisa Suarez
Osborn Theam
Cami Trainer
Lindsay Turnbach
Jalea Turner
Austin Tygart
Andrew Ullmann
Craig Walker
Grace Wallmeyer
Scott Wittlinger
Jerry Woo