Celebrating Country Day's Newest Alumni

Stephen S. Lazarus '81 to Receive Distinguished Alumni Award

At its May meeting, the CCDS Alumni Council unanimously selected Steve Lazarus ’81 to be the recipient of the 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award.

Steve Lazarus is completely committed to Country Day. A lifer who attended Country Day from kindergarten, Steve dove right back into the Country Day community after completing his collegiate and professional education. As a young lawyer only recently out of law school, Steve joined the Alumni Council in 1989 to champion the interests of alumni and to advance the school. Between 1989 and 2023, Steve gave 16 years of service to the council, helping to mold the council into an influential vehicle for alumni voices. For 14 of those 16 years, Steve also served as an alumni representative on the school’s board of trustees, and for the last three of those years, Steve was chair of the board’s finance committee. As a trustee and as chair of the finance committee, Steve has been integral to planning the school’s future and guiding it to its current position of strength. While Steve has been one of the school’s longest-serving trustees and one of its most dedicated alumni, his service to the school is not finished: Steve will continue to protect and promote the interests of the school as an at-large member of the board of trustees and as chair of the finance committee for another three-year term.

Steve’s dedication to Country Day and his love for the school are also reflected in his decision to send all four of his children to the school from their earliest years. Allison ’10, Meg ’13, Sam ’22, and Gertrude ’27 are all lifers.

In his professional life, Steve is a principal in the law firm of Lazarus & Lewis, where his practice focuses on the representation of public employees and their unions. For more than 30 years, Steve has been a powerful advocate for public employees, negotiating their labor contracts and protecting their rights in arbitration proceedings, disciplinary hearings, and court cases. Widely acclaimed as an expert in these fields, Steve is much in demand as a speaker, as a teacher, and as a panel participant throughout Ohio and Kentucky.

The school will celebrate Steve and present him the Distinguished Alumni Award on Saturday, September 23, during Homecoming Weekend.

Join us in celebrating some incredible milestones of our dedicated faculty and staff! These 14 people have inspired generations of students through a collective 270 YEARS of service to the Country Day community. They continue to make a difference in our students' lives every day and have positively impacted the lives of countless alums. We are grateful for their inexhaustible passion and unwavering commitment to our community, their profession, and each other.

Elissa Michalski and Joann Reaves -

10 years

Greg Faulhaber, Shelly Salter, Kathi Bagnoli, and Malena Castro - 15 years

Aaron Kellenberger - 20 years

Nancy Osborne and Carole Lichty-Smith - 25 years

Molly Murray Petre and Brock Miller -

 30 years

Merle Black - 35 years

We are grateful to ALL our faculty and staff for their incredible service!

To celebrate the strong and vibrant tradition in the arts at CCDS, the Arts Hall of Fame recognizes former Country Day students and community members for their contributions in the fine, musical, performing, and literary arts. We are pleased to announce that the following individuals have been selected as the 2023 Arts Hall of Fame honorees:

A faculty member at New York University and a Grammy-winning writer, music critic, and music historian, Ashley is widely recognized and honored for his books and other writing on jazz and rock and roll.

As managing director and CEO of The Children’s Theater of Cincinnati (TCT), Kim has overseen the growth and expansion of TCT into a top-ranked and award-winning theater and academy inspiring a love for the arts in children of all ages.

Guitarist, keyboardist, songwriter, producer, and curator of music festivals, Aaron is best known as a founding member of the Grammy-winning band The National, as the co-founder of the indie rock duo The Big Red Machine, and for his Grammy-winning collaboration with Taylor Swift, but his musical interests are wide ranging and his projects extend far beyond these efforts.

Guitarist, composer, producer, curator of music festivals, and a founding member of the Grammy-winning band The National, Bryce is a curious and adventurous musician whose work spans many genres and has earned much international acclaim.

An Emmy-winning champion of the arts in Cincinnati and a former CCDS teacher, Barbara has long showcased the movers and shakers of the Cincinnati arts scene on her TV show, SHOWCASE with Barbara Kellar, and has worked tirelessly to promote the arts in Cincinnati and at Country Day.

We hope you will join us in celebrating these incredible individuals at the Arts Hall of Fame Induction on October 28, 2023. Stay tuned for more information about the event over the coming months!

Please join us as we represent CCDS in Indian Hill's 4th of July parade! 

The parade takes place on July 4, starting from the south parking lot at Cincinnati Country Day School, traveling south along Given Road, west along Shawnee Run Road, and finishing at Stephan Field (a total of 1.5 miles). We will gather in the school’s south parking lot at 9:30 a.m. to assemble in parade formation. It is very casual and always lots of fun! The parade will be followed by food, activities, and music at Stephan Field, and a Country Day community gathering on the front lawn of the home of Dirk and Lisa Schneider and Will Deimer '24 at 6500 Wyman Lane. Everyone is welcome!

RSVP below if you are interested in joining us. We will provide students with bags of candy to throw along the parade route and have 2-3 trucks available for our youngest students to ride.

We hope to see you on the Fourth!

Trustee Reunion Highlights

On Friday, June 10, trustees and former trustees gathered to celebrate the conclusion of a successful year.

Gordon Wright '85 and Head of School Rob Zimmerman '98

Ashley Ward, Kevin Ward '74, and

Holly Mott '95

Anne Maier and Julie Lazarus

John Hauck '69, John Hassan '61, and Bill Culp '65

Steve Lazarus '81 and Dr. Aparna Shah

Dr. Ted Jones '53 and Louise Head

Homecoming and Reunion Weekend 2023

Friday, September 22 and Saturday, September 23

ALUMNI RECEPTION

Friday, September 22

5:30 p.m.

Wright Family Tennis Complex

All alumni gather for a special evening featuring dinner and drinks.

HOMECOMING FOOTBALL GAME

7:00 p.m.

Brian J. Bortz Family Stadium

ALUMNI BREAKFAST

Saturday, September 23

10:30 a.m.

Carey Family Amphitheater

Alumni breakfast honoring the class of 1973 and 50+ year alumni. All alumni are welcome. Includes the presentation of the Virtue in Action and Distinguished Alumni Awards.

All events are gratis, courtesy of the CCDS Alumni Association.

Mark your calendars and join us!

It's Time to Start Planning 2023 Class Reunions!

This year, classes ending in '3 and '8 will celebrate their reunions over Homecoming Weekend. Whether it's your 5-year reunion or your 50th, you do not want to miss this opportunity to reconnect and reminisce with your CCDS classmates!

Class of 1943 - 80th Reunion

Class of 1948 - 75th Reunion

Class of 1953 - 70th Reunion

Class of 1958 - 65th Reunion

Class of 1963 - 60th Reunion

Class of 1968 - 55th Reunion

Class of 1973 - 50th Reunion

Class of 1978 - 45th Reunion

Class of 1983 - 40th Reunion

Class of 1988 - 35th Reunion

Class of 1993 - 30th Reunion

Class of 1998 - 25th Reunion

Class of 2003 - 20th Reunion

Class of 2008 - 15th Reunion

Class of 2013 - 10th Reunion

Class of 2018 - 5th Reunion

If you are interested in planning your reunion, please contact Peter Fossett '80, associate director of alumni and legacy giving, at fossettp@countryday.net or 513.979.0283 or Casey Santi, associate director of annual giving and alumni relations, at santic@countryday.net or 513.979.0281.

Head of School Rob Zimmerman '98 presented the Country Day Award, the highest honor the school bestows upon a student, to Jourdan Jones '23 at the Upper School award ceremony.

Bike Day was full of adventure for our young riders as they explored open spaces and enjoyed the freedom of riding. By encouraging a love for cycling from a young age, we're nurturing their confidence, independence, and the spirit of exploration!

The Class of 2027 wrapped up their time in Middle School at the 8th grade graduation ceremony. Congratulations to Country Day's newest Upper Schoolers!

Talk about virtue in action! On their last day of school, some Upper School students spent the day working with Habitat for Humanity to help build a shed and do some touch-up painting. Proud of them for discovering their own abilities to better the world around them!

There is no brighter way to spend the eve of the last day of school than a color run! From start to finish, it was an explosion of colors and laughter for our Lower School students and families.

Students, faculty, and staff lined the halls to clap out Merle Black after his final history class. Thank you for 35 incredible years, Mr. Black!

Student Council President Nick Watts '23 delivered his final speech to his fellow graduates at Commencement.

CCDSummer is in full swing! From building roller coasters to practicing sports to enjoying the great outdoors on our 60-acre camps, the first week was incredible! We can't wait to see what the rest of the summer has in store!

Thank you!

Thank you to everyone who has supported the school this year with gifts to the Country Day Fund. You have made a tremendous difference to the experience of our students and teachers!

If you have yet to make a gift, but would like to do so before the school year ends on June 30, please click the button below.