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WYVERN TALES
A Newsletter for the Alumni Community
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LOOKING FORWARD WHILE HONORING 50 YEARS OF HISTORY
On Friday, December 2nd, KO hosted a celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Roberts Theater.
The concert was a journey through and celebration of the 50-year history of the theater featuring pieces of music that have been performed there in the last 5 decades - some were played as they were originally performed, and some were completely reimagined.
Performances included KO alum Jake Kulak '18 with his blues/jazz band, who played a medley of songs that he'd performed with the Jazz Band while he was a student, Day by Day from Godspell, performed by KO staff member, Lindsay Perkins and accompanied by KO alum and faculty member Dave Zucker '88, bass player Nat Reeves led a Faculty Jazz Ensemble through a couple of jazz standards, local musicians, Ariana Strings, played Mozart's Oboe Quartet in F Major, and Savana Jones choreographed and danced to Dave Brubeck's Take Five.
The highlight of the evening was a performance by the show's headliner, two-time Tony nominee Kate Baldwin. who sang Before the Parade Passes By from Hello, Dolly before being joined on stage by the KO Concert Choir for the concert's finale.
All in all, the concert paid respects to the history of the theater while giving a glimpse at the exciting future of KO and The Roberts Theater.
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Deke Green '81 has had a busy couple of weeks as a KO alum. First, the retired Lieutenant Colonel with the Air Force was invited to be the guest speaker at the Upper School and Middle School Veterans Day assemblies. He shared stories of his time in the Air Force, his training to become an astronaut, and the secrets of his success. Ultimately, his message to the students was that determination only works when paired with hard work, and those two qualities don't mean much without connecting to the people around you. Always personable and engaging, Colonel Green ended the assemblies by taking questions from students and faculty.
Later, Green led a discussion with a smaller group of students as part of the Margaret E. and Henry R. Roberts Center for Leadership's Lunch and Lead program. Read more about this visit here.
Finally, on November 18, Green was presented the 2022 William Souders Award for Excellence by NEPSAC. The award is given to individuals who have displayed academic and athletic excellence while in high school and have then gone on to distinguished careers after graduation. Previous awardees have included President George H.W. Bush, Bill Belichick, and General Mark Milley. Green is the first honoree from Kingswood Oxford. The full story on his award can be found here.
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Congratulations to Ben Tauber '19, a senior at Middlebury College, who was named to the NESCAC All-Sportsmanship Team this fall.
The NESCAC All-Sportsmanship Team recognizes student-athletes from each varsity sport who have demonstrated outstanding dedication to sportsmanship. These student-athletes exhibit respect for themselves, their teammates, coaches, opponents, and spectators. They display sportsmanship, not only as a participant in their sport, but also as a spectator and in their everyday lives. Through their positive actions and example, these student-athletes inspire others to adhere to the quality of sportsmanship that the NESCAC and the NCAA endorse.
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Hobart College senior forward Jackson Meshanic reached the 1,000-point club and was named the Liberty League Men's Basketball Performer of the Week by the conference office today.
The Statesmen headed into Thanksgiving break on a high note, defeating preseason No. 11 Rochester 73-72 on Tuesday. Meshanic led the Statesmen with game highs of 24 points, nine rebounds and four assists.
Meshanic leads the Liberty League and is sixth in the nation with four double-doubles. He also leads the conference in total points (47th in the nation), field goals made (30th), total rebounds (21st) and rebounds per game (31st). Meshanic is second in the Liberty League in total assists and fifth in assists per game.
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Fifteen students experienced two hours of hands-on medical training at a trip to UConn Health on Monday of the Thanksgiving break organized by Health Ambassador Club members Jenna '25 and Jack Kannan '25 (with the help of their mother and pulmonologist Dr. Jennifer Papa Kannan '87). Although the trip involved plenty of paperwork, an arduous process for the Kannan twins, and a health screening of the students before entering the facility and simulation center, the trip served as an excellent test drive for students considering a career in the health sciences.
Upper School science teacher Dr. Alexa Tzanova, who accompanied the students on the trip, said the impetus of the idea was to allow students to experience the real workings of what medicine is actually like. “Let’s get them to a place where doctors train and see all of these things they could not see otherwise,” she said.
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Middle School Leaders
On Tuesday, Upper Prep students had a chance to visit the Margaret E. and Henry R. Roberts Center for Leadership, where they worked with upper school students and Upper School teacher and Director of the Leadership Center Stacey Goss, on interactive initiatives focused on communication.
Goss talked about the key components of communication, like active listening, being attentive, asking good questions, and working through conflicts effectively. Next, in small groups, she led the students through a series of exercises on communication components such as active listening, being attentive, asking good questions, and working through conflicts effectively.
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Speaker of the House in the House
Connecticut Speaker of the House of Representatives Matt Ritter ’00 spoke at a recent Lunch and Lead in the Margaret E. and Henry R. Roberts Center for Leadership about his experience and journey as a politician and answered questions. Ritter wears many hats as a politician, a lawyer, a husband, a father, and a proclaimed expert on UConn basketball, and makes it look seamless.
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Choreographer Showcase Wows |  | |
Kingswood Oxford Choreographer Showcase on November 18 captivated the audience with 10 dance performances ranging from ballet, modern, hip-hop, lyrical, and jazz. KO’s Theater Director Kyle Reynolds and several local dance troupes and individual choreographers, including IMMIX, NEBT, Sinque Tavares, Brandon Gregoire, and Chantal Edwards-Matthews choreographed the works. One of KO’s strategic pillars is to build partnerships with the local community, and the Choreographer Showcase is an exemplar of how the school is attaining that goal.
KO students, from the novice to the seasoned performer, displayed impressive and artful skills as they fearlessly conveyed the motifs of each of the dances. Over several weeks, the students practiced tirelessly, and the performance showed the result of their efforts. As Reynolds said in the Playbill, “The arts should be recognized as both an accessible opportunity for all skill levels and a practice that requires dedication, sacrifice, and hard work.” It paid off.
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ARCHIVISTS CORNER
with Brenda Semmelrock
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Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of The Roberts Center
Named in honor of Edward C. and Ann T. Roberts, the construction of the Roberts Science Arts Center was a priority back in 1969 due to limited science laboratories space, art classes confined to dark basement rooms, and a music program that had no facilities of its own. With the merger of Oxford and Kingswood, came a need for larger and improved facilities to accommodate not only the increase in the number of students on campus but the need for new educational opportunities. After a successful capital campaign, construction began in 1970 and was completed in the summer of 1972. The Roberts Foundation not only gave a significant amount of funding toward the construction of the Science Arts Center but also funding that would allow the Mark Twain Masquers a permanent home for its Hartford area amateur theater productions on a beautiful stage in the Roberts Center in a 600-seat auditorium. Edward and Ann were long-time members of the Masquers.
In the summer of 1972, in anticipation of the opening of the Roberts Center, the curriculum was expanded to include facilities for the arts-drama, art, photography, music, laboratories and classrooms for the sciences, a typing room, a computer center for math and an auditorium for lectures and school assemblies.
The dedication of the Roberts Center took place on September 21, 1972. The programs included a special assembly for students in the afternoon and an evening gathering for special guests. The keynote speaker was Dr. Margaret Mead. Presentations were given by Kingswood Oxford’s Headmaster, Robert Lazear, and the Mark Twain Masquers of Drama, Instrumental, and Vocal Music.
Kingswood Oxford School has seen many events take place in the Roberts Center Theater through the years, such as our amazing musicals, fall, and spring plays, senior class nights, and concerts highlighting our talented musicians and singers.
KO has opened its doors to the community by offering the stage to outside performances, including the Mark Twain Masquers, ballet recitals, and the West Hartford Orchestra, to name a few.
On December 2, 2022, the school, along with the Roberts Foundation, hosted a very special anniversary celebration. Guests were treated to a walk down memory lane with a special archive exhibit in the KO gallery. The show opened with Day by Day (Godspell), which was performed at the original dedication, sung this time by KO’s Lindsay Perkins. Other performances included a selection of jazz standards played by KO faculty, alum Jake Kulak ‘18 and his band, bass player Nate Reeves, dancer/choreographer Savana Jones, and a special appearance by two-time Tony Award-nominated singer and actress, Kate Baldwin, who performed together with KO students in front of a full house. It was a night to remember!
Please feel free to share your memories/stories with me!
Brenda
semmelrock.b@kingswoodoxford.org
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KO is incredibly grateful to the alumni, parents, grandparents, faculty/staff, and friends who have donated to the
KO Annual Fund this fiscal year.
By giving back, you have joined
a long line of loyal and generous individuals who have supported the school throughout its 114 years.
If you were waiting to make your
tax-deductible gift, now is a perfect time as the tax-year ends on Dec. 31!
Thank you for your support and
Happy Holidays!
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KO Big Thinkers Blog
KO Faculty, Administrators, and Staff are passionate about helping students to succeed and become stronger, more confident individuals. The KO Big Thinkers Blog shares their thoughts on how they navigate that path with their students.
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A Note from Admissions
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Help us spread the word about our school - refer a Wyvern to us here in this form!
For more information on KO and the Admissions process, visit our website!
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