This time of year, it's a little difficult to stay focused. While not everyone celebrates the holidays, everywhere we go there is an undeniable feeling of festivity in the air and when there's work to do, it's sometimes easy to get distracted!

Here at Harley, we are excited about traditions like Candlelight and Elf Day, the comradery of Spirit Week, the goodwill of the giving tree in the Wilson Gallery, and all the auxiliary activities that provide the kids with some lighter days, but keep them busy. While every one of these activities is fun, why does it have to take so much work to put together?! Sometimes I think we all just want them to happen with a quick snap of the fingers (or a wiggle of your nose for those Bewitched fans).

I hope you find time this season to celebrate with family and friends. See you in 2024!

—Karen

Our Board of Trustees President, Ted Townsend '98, P '32, '33, and Transitional Head of School, Kathryn Kaiser, recently spoke with the Rochester Business Journal about our new strategic plan:

Brighton’s The Harley School rolls out new strategic plan for sustainability

Changes are underway at The Harley School, with a new transitional leader in place and an updated strategic plan — which focuses on the school’s sustainability — being rolled out.

Ted Townsend, Harley board chair, said the goal of the updated plan is to increase the comprehensive sustainability of The Harley School by 2025 in four areas: academic, community, environmental and fiscal.

Developing the updated plan was a multi-year effort, as well as a collaborative one, Townsend said, noting the school retained a consultant and turned to the Harley community, staff and students, as well.

Click here to continue.

The week of this year's Thankful was a beautiful tribute to our Harley School family, past and present. We put together a week to celebrate and acknowledge the hard work and dedication of all who make Harley such a special place.

Thankful brought in over $27,000 from alumni (including a non-graduate who was asked to leave Harley in the 1950's), current parents, alumni parents, grandparents, current and former employees, and friends. We doubled last year's participation with 175 donors and 221 gifts (that means some people gave twice!). The totals do not not include a wonderfully generous $15,000 match from our Board of Trustees!

Huge thanks to all who took the time to make a gift in honor of that special person at Harley!

If you have not had a chance to make your gift this calendar year, click here!

We had a fun employee challenge during the week of Thankful. If we collectively donated $1,000 toward the Harley Fund, our CFO, Hugh Higgins, said he would wear his elf costume to school the day before Thanksgiving break. You can see above that we did it!

Thanks for being such a good sport, Hugh!

Here are some photos from tonight's Candlelight and alumni reception:

Every November we invite grandparents and special friends of our students to join us for a morning at Harley. They arrive to treats in the Gallery, gather in the theater for a greeting and an update and then spend the morning doing activities or attending class with their special Harley student. This year we had over 400 guests and I wanted to share a few photos of members of our alumni community who attended!

Henry Townsend '32 and Jim Townsend '61, P '98, '01, GP '32, '33

John Allen P '90, '92, GP '20, '26, Lora Allen GP '20, '26, Liam Reader '26, Maura Allen P '90, '92, GP '20, '26 (Lower School Art, 1981-99), and Jay Stetzer P '88, '91, GP '20, '26 (Lower School Performing Arts, 1971-2018)

Melissa McGrain P '13, GP '33, '35, Andy Stern P '99, GP '33, '35 and Len Wilcox P '01, '03, GP '34, '37 (Upper School Math, College Counseling, 1969-1982, 1986-2020)

Jennifer Sands P '07, GP '26, '27, '32, '36, Knox Winslow '32, and Floyd Winslow GP '26, '27, '32, '36

Sawyer Hartman '24 and Laila Perovich P '93, GP '22, '24

Joyce Gilbert P '85, '88, GP '21, '24, '27

Finley Hamman '32 and Tom Anderson P '12, GP '32, '35

On the right, Holly Anderson P '12, GP '32, '35 with Finley Hamman '32

"My time at Harley was very impactful…I think I could name every single teacher I had."

—Carolyn Rumrill ’13

Carolyn Rumrill ’13 graduated from the Elizabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University in May with certificates in Environmental and International Law. She is now an assistant court attorney for the New York Supreme Court Appellate Division, Third Department, in Albany. This highly competitive clerkship is sought after by recent law school graduates because clerkships are a good way to learn the ropes and gain experience in a litigation context. She didn’t know it at the time, but she’d been preparing for this job since her days at Harley.

The teachings of Kim McDowell (English, History, College Counseling, and Head of the Upper School, 2000-2022) prepared Carolyn for undergrad at the University of Pittsburgh, where she earned a BS in Environmental Science with minors in French and Political Science, and her continued education at Haub Law. Litigation entails copious amounts of writing and oral argument skills, and she says while her writing skills were definitely grounded at Harley, she actually dabbled in the arguing part in Ms. McDowell’s class as well. One day Ms. McDowell used the word “unkempt” in class and Carolyn responded, “Don’t you mean unkept?” Ms. McDowell rebuffed her and Carolyn kept at it, arguing that Ms. McDowell was incorrect. Ms. McDowell gave her time to argue and counter, but in the end, told Carolyn that unkempt was in fact the appropriate word. Carolyn says this practice in oral advocacy has served her well. In fact, last Fall at Pace, she participated in the National Environmental Law Moot Court Competition at Pace where participants are tested in their appellate brief writing and oral advocacy skills. Carolyn didn’t advance, but she appreciated the court room experience. Carolyn says she is confident in her brief writing skills, but her oral argument skills needed a little fine tuning. She’s learned, though, that with the oral arguing, the more you do it, the better you get and she intends to practice as much as she can.

Carolyn’s interest in Environmental Science also started at Harley, with Peter Hentschke (Science 2009-present). In his class, she remembers studying the use of algae for bio-fuel cells, other types of renewable energy, and local deer population issues. Her interest in the sciences grew with physics with Richard Thorley (Science 1995-2012) and chemistry with DV (Dr. Betsy Vinton, Math and Science, 2001-present).

At the University of Pittsburgh, she continued her scientific studies and was able to participate in enriching internships and jobs: working in forest mapping for the Western PA Conservancy and collaborating with soil scientists; as a curatorial assistant at Carnegie Museum of Natural History's bird section; and assisting with a doctoral student in the ecology research lab in the university biology department researching functional traits for strawberries. Her work with the doctoral student was so inspiring that she considered pursuing a Ph.D., but she saw the stresses of a Ph.D. life and knew she was not cut out for it.

In college, through her political science minor, she was able to take several environmental law classes and learn more about policy work and writing. This gave her a little taste of law, but her interest kicked into high gear after college. For her first job following graduation, she joined fellow Harley graduates (Carrie Adams ’04 and Griffin Hagerty Anderson ’12) working as an intern in DC at the Office of Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand. Her various duties included attending Congressional hearings/briefings. She was exposed to the intricacies of law making and environmental issues and she noticed many of the DC representatives have law degrees. Following her internship, she worked with Alan Knauf P ’16, ’18 at his law firm, Knauf Shaw, as an environmental analyst where she learned more about practicing environmental law.

All signs pointed to law school, but keep in mind that Carolyn also has a minor in French. She says Amy Colosimo P ’23, ’23 (French 1999—present), created the Francophile in her and following her time at Knauf Shaw, she jumped at an opportunity to teach English in France. Unfortunately, her time in France ended abruptly due to the Covid-19 pandemic and she decided it was time to go to law school. Pace proved to be an outstanding fit and during her time there she was able to participate in an internship at the Westchester County District Attorney’s office, United States District Court in Rochester, Legal Policy Adviser for the Ambassador for the Costa Rica Mission to the United Nations, and research under multiple law professors.

What does Carolyn see in her future? Maybe practicing environmental law at a federal agency in Washington DC. Perhaps practicing international law and returning to the United Nations? She also knows that she’ll get some solid litigation experience at the appellate court and might want to move into policy work. She also wonders if she’ll go the direction of Judge Marian Payson P ’14, ’17. Judge Payson has given her some exposure to working with judges in the court system and the idea of running for a judgeship one day is not out of the question.

As of mid-October, Carolyn was anxiously waiting for the results of her bar exam. She sadly missed her 10 year Reunion from Harley because she was in study mode. However, she has since reported she has PASSED the New York bar exam and will seek admission in January, at her current place of employment, the Appellate Division, Third Department! 

Meghan Green ’19 began dancing when she was 5 years old. Like many youngsters who participate in dance, she tried out different styles including tap, jazz, and ballet. While she liked them all, she quickly decided ballet was her least favorite. Her pursuit of dance continued, but after many recitals and dance competitions, her childhood dream of being a professional dancer began to sour. However, a chance viewing of one of the most popular holiday ballets changed everything.

Meghan was highly involved in the dance world and by Grade 7, she had a lot of friends in various studios around town. She had one particular family friend who was part of the professional dance school, Draper Center for Dance Education. That December, Draper Center was putting on a performance of The Nutcracker, and the Green family went to support their friend. According to Meghan, the performance was so beautiful and inspiring, it changed her attitude about ballet, and the next year, she applied and was admitted to the Draper Center. “After watching that show, I saw such gracefulness in the dance that I knew that’s what I wanted to do.”

Most ballet professionals begin ballet in earnest when they are 9 or 10 years old, at 13, Meghan knew she was starting late and had a lot of catch-up work to do. She sometimes questioned her decision, but the feeling she felt while dancing outweighed any self-doubt. Meghan shared, “When I’m dancing, I have the ability to separate myself from the outside world. Dancing and performing can be stressful and, at times, painful, but you put your heart into the performance and you know that it looks good, and it makes you feel good.” Joining a professional dance school is a real commitment and Meghan said it felt like “a whole other day of school.” Meghan would do her full school day at Harley, 8am-3pm, then change into her leotard in the car to start dance class at 4pm. This was Monday-Saturday every week. Her dance curriculum consisted of ballet, stretch and strengthening, and point class. Point class is where the pain comes in. It is hard to train your feet to “stand on your toes” and takes a ton of practice. She was already a few years behind her other classmates, but she pushed herself, and by her second year, she was able to perform in her point shoes!

After Harley, Meghan went to the University of Cincinnati as a ballet major. She was a freshman in college when Covid hit and her spring performance was canceled due to the shut down. It was disappointing. She wasn’t sure what to expect come fall of 2020, but was excited to learn that her department was one of the few that was able to convene in person. It was a battle to make it happen, but they followed all the protocol rules, putting tape on the floor, staying 6 feet apart, and spraying the mats and bars on a regular basis. They never went remote. Their rehearsals were relatively normal, but when it came to performing, it was anything but normal. “We would perform to an empty theater. All the performances were recorded, which is good, but it’s not the same. Still, I’m thankful we were able to do it.”

Fast forward to the Spring of 2023, Meghan’s senior year. It was audition season and she was spending her time preparing and auditioning in-person and remotely for 4-5 different dance companies around the country, vying for a spot. It was a grueling time, but she found her spot at De La Dance Company in Cincinnati. She knew about the company from a friend from University of Cincinnati as well as a friend from her days at Draper Center. She loved that her home and school life were coming together and she said after the audition, it just felt right. She started in August.

At De La Dance, she is now preparing for their upcoming seasonal show, The Nutcracker and she feels her life has come full circle. This will be her first time performing The Nutcracker as a professional dancer. She said her past self would not believe it.

Where does Harley fit into this story? When Meghan was in Harley’s Lower School, Jay Stetzer (Music, 1971-2018) was a huge influence. Jay’s performing arts class was so fun and gave his students the opportunity to create their own story to his music of the day. He really helped her find her passion. At her Harley graduation, she was able to thank him for helping get her where she is today.

De La Dance is a smaller dance company and while it might not have the bright lights and glamour of the New York City Ballet, she knows the bigger the operation, the less they know you as a dancer and, she feels, the less they care. De La Dance is less competitive and she feels part of a supportive community that wants to get the best out of their dancers for each performance. Meghan isn’t sure where life will take her, but right now she is happy that her dream to be a professional dancer came true!

Richard Simon '20, a film student and senior at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, is doing some crowdfunding for his thesis film, Late and Crying:

Hello! My name is Richard Simon and I am a filmmaker from Rochester, NY, and currently wrapping up my final year at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. Film is my greatest passion and my thesis project is the culmination of all that I have learned and all that I have experienced in the pursuit of said passion. This project is incredibly important to me not only because it is my final project, but additionally because it is a story that is very close to my heart.



Late and Crying is a very personal fictionalized retelling of my great-grandmother Angelina’s funeral. It deals with the feeling of inadequacy of emotions and what is often our first time viewing a corpse. It is a dark comedy that follows siblings Richard and Maia as they drift through their great-grandmother’s wake. Richard is concerned that he will not be able to cry and is terrified to see the body and cannot cope with the prospect of his death. This story is based on real events inspired greatly by my sister and me and our usual attitudes when seeing family. Sweaty palms, a hesitant smile, but under it all a genuine and patient love for our sometimes difficult family. The event that inspired this story was my great-grandmother Angelina’s funeral. Dense with the dreadful, tragic, and hilariously dark interactions of a family funeral, it deals with the uncertainty of dormant emotion and the shock of seeing a loved one’s corpse.

To learn more about supporting his project, click here.

The Rochester Business Journal's Forty Under 40 celebrates the achievements of leaders in Rochester who are 39 years old or younger, acknowledging their professional accomplishments, dedication to community service, and commitment to driving positive change. These individuals not only excel in their careers but also contribute significantly to the betterment of the Rochester community. To date, the Rochester Business Journal has honored 1,120 remarkable young professionals with this prestigious award. Once again, we have a Harley alumna on the list. Congratulations to Caitlin Forsyth Kireker '04!

Caitlin is a senior associate at the law firm Harter, Secrest, and Emery.

The Class of 1981 got together! Left to right Friend of ‘81 Mark Redmond, Maura Toole, John Damico, Martha Cameron, John Morse, Scott Harrison, Lynne Stern, and Erinne Morse.

Sandy Foster P '19, '19 (History, 1997-2022) and John Dolan (Psychology, 1994-present)

Clara Costello '18 and Finn '24

In October, Julia Whitney '84 traveled from her home in London via the Eurostar train (through the Chunnel) to visit with Ron Richardson (Art, 1975-1984, 1985-1998) in Paris, to "reconvene the Harley 20th Century Art Class" at the Beaubourg/Pompidou Centre, and after a long lunch, traveled back to her family in London. They were able to see many of the original paintings and sculptures that were studied in class, as well as enjoying a most treasured Paris reunion!