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Welcome Fall 2014
The Island School is thrilled to welcome Fall 2014 to campus. Having arrived a little under three weeks ago, the whopping 51 students who make up the class of FA’14 are well on their way to fully settling in and making this new environment home for the next 100 days. With three-day kayak trips and SCUBA week completed and the first academic week drawing to a close, students are beginning to get into a regular routine. And with that regular routine will come the start of regular blog posts from our resident students this semester. Kicking off our first blog post, students reflect on their initial impressions during the first two weeks here.
Cheers to Fall 2014 and a fantastic semester ahead.
Having finally arrived at The Island School, I’ve realized the importance of the opportunity we all have. High school can be hectic. For many people it’s the most confusing time of their life. We ask ourselves, “What should I do with my life?” and “Who am I really?”. These are questions that, for me, are always hanging over my head. In a place like New York City, my hometown, there is a lot of pressure on high school students to succeed in their academics so that they can go to school and earn a good living. At The Island School, it’s very different. We are all equal. We share similar goals. We wear uniforms. We are a community. And for the next 97 days, we have the opportunity to give everything our all, make every moment count, and, most importantly remove ourselves from that overwhelming pressure we can sometimes feel. I’ve never been more at peace with myself and nature then when I rolled out of bed on day one, walked 20 feet to Boys Dorm Beach, and snorkeled my way to a ship wreck 100 yards off shore. All before breakfast.
Devin Gilmartin
Waking up in complete darkness can be very disorienting if you aren’t used to it. Personally, I am not familiar with this and I am in no way a morning person. At home, when I don’t have school, I wake up at noon and even when I have school, the sun is up by the time my alarm goes off. I’ve been at the Island School for two weeks and I still am not entirely fond of waking up before sunrise, but I have found silver linings. As soon as the first alarm goes off, my eyes dart open and I come face to face with nothing because it is pitch black in the bunk room. And every single morning I think there must be some mistake. The moments following my realization that I actually do have to get up are not the high points in my day. But once I’m outside, doing yoga, swimming, or running, I feel completely at peace as I watch the glowing orange orb of light emerge from the clouds. The Bahamian sunrise is nothing like anything I’ve ever seen; it’s the type of thing that would be the default screensaver of a Macbook or the cover of a National Geographic. In the moments I’m watching the sky light up, I forget about the fact that I’m about to do a run-swim, or about all the Marine-Eco reading I have to do. Seeing the Bahamian sunrise is a once in a lifetime opportunity if you’re lucky and I get to see it everyday.
Téa Valette
It has been difficult adjusting to “the land of the sun and sea” for a kid from a cold, land locked state. I am not used to this type of heat. In Vermont it gets hot but not as humid as down here. The salt water is also different because when you get out you are still covered in salt. My one savior to all this is the outdoor shower. It is cold and rinses the salt and sweat off, leaving you feeling refreshed enough to run to bed. The outdoor shower also has the best view on campus. You can look into the horizon and sometimes the line gets blurred enough that the sand and sea look like one. The boys dorm north outdoor shower is the place to be.
Max Porter
Remembering Pioneer Faculty Member George Miller
We are sad for the loss of the great George Miller who served The Island School as our first literature teacher 1999-2000. George, who had come out of retirement as a Headmaster returned to what he loved most, working with young people and sharing his passion for good prose. George helped students navigate the awesome challenges of Walcott’s Omeros with humor and an “everyone-pulling-together Pirate mentality”. George even looked a little like a pirate as he often ran in the heat of the day with a bandanna protecting his head. We will all miss George and yet his great stories that he told and was a part of will live on in the hearts of his many Island School friends.
Bahamas Lacrosse
Island School alumnus, Eliott Wellenbach (F’11) wanted to come back to Eleuthera after his semester to share his passion of lacrosse with the community of Deep Creek. Today, the summer lacrosse camp he started on his own with his sister has grown immensely and has run for three consecutive, and successful, summers! Read more about Eliott’s experience and the successful summer 2014 lacrosse camp:
“This was International Sports Education’s third annual lacrosse clinic in Deep Creek and it was the best experience by far! Upon arriving at DCMS, we were ecstatic to find two of our previous students not only passing using the sticks we provided them with last year, but also wearing the “Bahamas Lacrosse” t-shirts we designed the previous summer. From there, we received unsolicited, enthusiastic help from the two boys passing in the street as we worked together to repair a weathered lacrosse goal.
The clinic itself was a huge success – we had 24 students overall, 14 of which were third year returners. We were not only impressed by the enthusiasm and progress of the new students throughout the week, but also blown away by can-do attitude sported by the veterans. These third year students excelled tremendously but not only with their raw lacrosse skill – they also became leaders by teaching the new students the techniques they had mastered over the past two years.
Our goal is to promote the game of lacrosse, while fostering character development through leadership, teamwork, and sportsmanship on and off the field. It has been exciting for us to see this unfold over the past three years and we are even more excited about what the upcoming ones will bring.
We were thrilled to find out that one of our 3rd year veteran students will be going to boarding school in Pennsylvania and playing on their lacrosse team this coming school year. We are very proud of him and all the hard work he has put into the classroom and also on the field!
We are looking forward to see each students’ progress at next year’s clinic!”
Summer Term 2014 Reunion!
Just 1 month after they left Eleuthera, the Summer Term 2014 semester got together for a reunion in the Boston area over Labor Day weekend. Over twenty Su’14 alumni made the trek to the east coast and they had an absolute blast! Did you get together with your semester this summer? Send pictures to alumni@islandschool.org.
IS Alumna Looking for Part Time Intern
Fall 2013 alumna, Krissy Truesdale, has been working hard to get her non-profit, Solar for Our Superheroes off the ground. She is now at the point where she is looking to hire a part-time intern to help with marketing, communication and fundraising. If you are interested in applying or learning more about the position and organization, please email alumni@islandschool.org.
Deep Creek Middle School Summer Programs
Summer may be a time for relaxation, but the Deep Creek Middle School and Resource Center had one of its busiest summers yet. There was a new camp and opportunity to explore Eleuthera during almost every week of the summer.
The programs kicked off with he Marine Debris & Me Plastic Pollution Camp taught participants about one of the major issues affecting the island. They took part in scientific research and helped create solutions to the problem, one of which was making beautiful art from beach plastic. Along the same idea of how to live sustainably in The Bahamas, the Sustainability Camp taught campers about water conservation, permaculture, aquaponics, biodiesel, renewable energy, and waste management.
This summer’s sleepover option was the South Eleuthera Kids Camp. This popular program offered kids the opportunity to experience outdoor adventure, such as boating, snorkeling, and swimming. They experienced hands-on learning in marine ecology, conservation, sustainability and “green” living. After full days of adventure, campers spent the night at the Island School.
Students in Grades 9 – 12, as well as their parents and teachers, were invited to join College & SAT Boot Camp at the Rock Sound Mission. The aims of this camp were to provide study tips and content knowledge for the SAT. In addition to offering a practice test, participants also received information on college and scholarship planning.
In its third year, International Sports Education’s Lacrosse Camp was a great success. Of the 24 students, 14 were back for their third summer in a row. Camp Organizer and Island School alumnus Eliott Wellenbach (F’11) said, “Our goal is to promote the game of lacrosse, while fostering character development through leadership, teamwork, and sportsmanship on and off the field. It has been exciting for us to see this unfold over the past three years and we are even more excited about what the upcoming ones will bring.” The skills learned at Lacrosse Camp stay with the athletes. Zachary Carey (DCMS ’14) has enjoyed the camp for all three years and will be attending Perkiomen School in Pennsylvania this year, with the goal of playing on the lacrosse team.
We thank everyone who organized and participated in our summer programs. Big things are already being planned for next year!
Teachers Conference Reflection at Morning Circle
Every summer, The Island School welcomes a group of talented and motivated educators to their annual Teachers Conference. One of our attendees from this past summer, Mark Dewart, a science teacher at Park Tudor School in Indianapolis, shared some beautiful remarks at morning circle one morning:
“Reading “The Rediscovery of North America.” and being at the Island School leaves me thinking that we not only need to “rediscover” North America but we also need to “reinhabit” the continent. All of the teachers here come from communities that have thousands of inhabitants but how many of these inhabitants are living sustainably and joyfully in our home towns? There are currently 7 billion people on the planet with another 2 billion on the way before our students reach our age. We aren’t even close to figuring out how we are going to do this. How do we build communities that are sustainable and joyful to live in AND protect the wild places we have seen this week and the beings that live there? The important work of “rediscovery” leads to the important work of “reinhabitation.”
At the Island School we experienced first-hand what it looks and feels like to live in a joyful and sustainable community . We were comfortable and well-fed by food, energy and water producing systems that ran off of massive amounts of cleverness and ingenuity rather than tons of coal and barrels of oil. We spent a week on an island where, in the last 500 years, the people have had everything thrown at them from recurring hurricanes to the calamities of guns, germs and steel that the voyages of “discovery” brought to this part of the world. In the people living on these islands, around the hydroponic and tilapia tanks or in the ocean creatures we saw or held, all week we have felt the drumbeat of the universe beating strongly in Bahamaland. As we return to our home communities, like propagules falling from a mangrove tree, that drumbeat will animate our efforts to help our students and communities “rediscover” and “reinhabit” North America and the planet. “
Introducing our Summer 2014 City Bridge Scholars
City Bridge partnerships connect inner city students to The Island School. We find that providing transformative growth opportunities to these deserving students, we expand their worlds while immeasurably enriching our own. The City Bridge program continues to inspire young people to make a difference and emerge as leaders within their home communities. This year, 67% of our total financial aid budget was allocated to support our City Bridge program. This summer, we welcome 10 City Bridge Scholars to our campus.
Sahara Lewis: Horizons
Sahara is a passionate break dancer from Connecticut. Her dedication and discipline to overcome challenges has lead Sahara to The Island School. The Tourism and Development course includes traveling around the island and several adventurous activities, such as jumping from a cliff into a Bahamian ocean hole and descending far into a limestone cave system. Her teachers have noted an amazing flash of emotions that passes over Sahara’s face – from a moment of stepping out of her comfort zone, to her grinning and bearing the challenge, and then to her enthusiastic “jumping in” – all in an instant. Sahara has been fearless at The Island School.
Abraham Martey: African Leadership Academy
Abraham joins us at The Island School from Ghana. This trilingual student is currently enrolled in the African Leadership Academy and was nationally recognized as the “Most Innovative Student in Ghana”. He has already established himself as a leader at home by founding and managing a self-sustaining student-run poultry and rabbit farm in Ghana. Abraham’s farm helps fund a NGO he founded, “Reach the Children”, which provides school infrastructure and supplies to underprivileged students near his home. At The Island School, Abraham hopes to gain more skills on how to establish environmental protection policies in his home country. His teachers have all noted his ability to step up as a leader on campus and have been impressed with his dedication to learn to swim while taking detailed his field notes in Marine Ecology class.
Adrian Gutierrez: College Track
Adrian’s first trip in an airplane was from his home in San Francisco to Eleuthera for our Summer Term program. In San Francisco, Adrian’s life is centered around basketball, school and church. He is strongly committed to community service and has helped build a prenatal center, works at his local food back, and even started a petition for Darfur. Adrian has carried his ability to care for others with him to Eleuthera. All of his teachers have expressed that he is perfect example of how to be a community member at The Island School.
Celeste Adderley: Long Island Scholar
Celeste is a native Bahamian from Long Island. As a role model in Long Island, she received the Governor General’s Youth Award for her outstanding talents in science and desire to understand the world around her. Her current teachers at The Island School describe Celeste as a future marine biologist who helps provide a strong local perspective in class. She is continuing to learn more about her world underwater as she dives for the first time ever!
Elijah Banks: Eagle Academy Foundation
Coming from New York City, Elijah was eager to jump right into things that were completely unknown to him. As an aspiring marine biologist, Elijah was especially excited to scuba dive and learn more about the world underwater. At home, Elijah is a dedicated community member. He tutors middle school students and provides entertainment and activities for residents at a senior home. At The Island School, Elijah redesigned a plot of land on campus to include edible plants and a Hibiscus arrangement spelling “Summer 14″.
Rebecca Stratchen: BREEF
Rebecca is an exemplary Bahamian student from Abaco who has earned a government sponsored academic scholarship to attend Acadia University in Canada. When in high school, Rebecca developed her passion for the science and hopes to contribute to current research on alternative energy sources. At The Island School, Rebecca brought a unique local perspective to discussions on fishing and marine conservation. She is especially excited to bring her permaculture site design back home to her mom. Rebecca left The Island School a few days early to compete in a Judo Championship in Florida. We wish her the best of luck!
Kaven Marte: Quest for Excellence NYC
Kaven’s journey to The Island School began when he left his small hometown in the Dominican Republic to pursue better educational opportunities in NYC. Kaven’s curiosity in his academics have led him to want to pursue a career in engineering. At The Island School, Kaven is the most enthusiastic student during early morning circle and greets everyone with a warm welcoming each day.
Loth Oltukai: Hidden Hearts
Loth has made the long journey to The Island School from his home in Tanzania. In the wake of his father’s passing, Loth has stepped up to assume family responsibilities for his 8 siblings. While caring for his family, Loth also serves as an African Leadership Academy Global Scholar Ambassador with an avid passion for aviation engineering. At The Island School, he continues to push his curiosity and challenges himself to do things he has never done. His teachers use swimming as an example of his determination: having never been in clear water, Loth continues to push himself to learn to swim, snorkel, and enjoy the marine environment around him.
Marquis Rolle: BREEF
Marquis is a local student from the island of Inagua. He has grown up working on his grandfather’s farm and volunteering with the Bahamian National Trust. At The Island School, Marquis is learning more about these skills and how to care for the environment around him. He has been an invaluable voice in his class discussions with his personal knowledge of the Bahamian culture and local plants. His comfort with classroom materials and topics allows Marquis to take the lead and guide his peers to dive further into the local Bahamian environment.
Malik Simon: KIPP Houston
Malik is a student who is constantly pushing himself. As a young boy, he would steal his mom’s friend’s law school books which has giving him his own desire to become a lawyer. He has challenged himself to play basketball at a higher level, plays chess against himself, and is teaching himself guitar! He carries this dedication with him at The Island School. He was the first leader of the day to be chosen by his classmates. He has been noted to be one of the most welcoming students and makes an effort to explore every person within community.
If you are interested to learn more about the City Bridge program, please contact Mary Assini at maryassini@islandschool.org. If you would like to support our City Bridge program, please visit our giving page here.
Alumni Give Back Working at IS and CEI This Summer
The Island School stays busy all year round–especially during the summer. This summer we were excited to welcome back a number of Island School alumni who are working with The Island School Summer Term as alumni mentors, as well as over at the Cape Eleuthera Institute as research interns. Meet them and hear what they have been up to all summer:
Ami Adams (S’11) is working as a Marine Ecology teacher for the summer term and is so excited to be back on Eleuthera for the first time since Spring 2011. This summer, she has been able to bring her love for the marine world and field experience into the classroom while leading various experiential lessons on topics such as mangroves, food webs, and fish. Aside from Marine Ecology, Ami also took part in leading all of the sea kayaking trips during orientation week where she provided students the basic skills needed for sea kayak expeditions and taught lessons in the field including moon phases and Bahamian archaeology. Some of her other responsibilities include participating on the medical team, acting as a personal advisor to four students, and keeping everyone’s stoke levels high!
Patrick Lamontagne (F’08), as part of the Summer Term faculty, has been helping to teach the Tourism & Development course. His position has involved leading down island trips for the three groups of students. Not bound by the traditional confines of the classroom, Patrick has been able to teach students through experience. Remembering the importance of the down island trip as a student, he has been thrilled to be able to come back as an alumnus and see the logistics behind these trips as well as help the students bond through the challenges it presents.
Hadley Dawson (F’08) is helping teach Food Systems, a course that integrates farm work, permaculture principles, and sustainable systems. She has greatly enjoyed working with such a fantastic group of faculty, many of whom are also alumni (she and Pat Lamontagne were in the same advisory!). Two of her favorite things here are sharing meals with students and seeing their improvement in morning exercise.
This summer, Whit Powel (S’09) has returned to Eleuthera to teach The Island School Summer Term students. Last summer, she served as a human ecology teacher, focusing specifically on food systems and waste. This summer, the curriculum has shifted and is now a Sustainable Food Systems unit that focuses on the principles of permaculture, methods of sustainable agriculture, and the various ways farmers on Eleuthera deal with the climate, poor soil, and lack of agriculture on this island. The students’ final project in the Food unit is a site design sketch of a space on campus that has the potential to be more productive. With the use of the 12 permaculture principles and the knowledge and information from the Food class, farm visits, and field work, the students are creating designs that could be utilized in the future to make Island School’s campus more productive. In addition to teaching the Food unit, Whit has an advisory and is co-head of the Girls Dorm. Whit is loving being back for her second summer as a Summer Term faculty member and is looking forward to an awesome rest of the term with these students and faculty!
Sarah Allison was a student at The Island School during Spring 2012 and has returned as an intern on the Shark Research and Conservation Team this summer at CEI. The research she has worked on this summer has revolved around sharks, stingrays, and deepwater isopods. Sarah has immensely enjoyed coming back to Eleuthera on the CEI side of campus and being able to apply her experience and knowledge that she gained as an Island School student into a professional and research-intensive setting.
Jane Drinkard attended The Island School in Fall 2011 and is down on Eleuthera this summer as the Communications Intern. Jane manages the Instagram accounts and photo sharning pages for CEI and Island School, as well as document the Summer Term student’s semester. Jane is excited to be back and has been enjoying watching the Summer Term students experience this place for the first time.
Claire Davis was a student during Summer Term 2012. This summer she is working at the Cape Eleuthera Institute as a Flats Ecology and Conservation intern helping out with current research projects. Claire says It’s awesome to be back and see some of her Island School teachers again, and she can’t wait to come back soon!
Carter Brown (S’09) is on the Shark Team this summer as a Shark Research and Conservation Intern and so far has been able to study sharks, rays and deepwater isopods. Carter says it has been absolutely incredible to return to Island School/CEI and discover this place all over again with an amazing group of people. The pace at which the place is changing and expanding is crazy to see but the fact that all of the core values from when he was a student at The Island School five years ago are still in place is great to see because to Carter, coming here feels just like returning home!
This is Nick Lanza’s (S’10) third summer returning to teach Marine Ecology for summer term. This past May Nick graduated from Prescott College with a degree in Environmental Studies and Adventure Education. He will be staying through this summer into the fall and spring semesters as the new full time Marine Ecology teacher. For Nick, Island School has been a place of continuous growth. First discovering and devoloping leadership qualities as a student here in Spring 2010, Nick has worked hard to return as a faculty member during the summer, and he is very proud to be joining the team full time. This organization has allowed Nick to grow as a learner and a teacher. Now, he looks forward to growing as a professional.
This summer, Catharine Pirie (F’10) is working as a Summer Alumni Mentor at The Island School. Her main focus is on working with the Tourism and Development unit that spends four days traveling up the island. Ever since her IS semester in Fall 2010, she has been looking forward to coming back. This summer Catharine is presented with the opportunity of working with secondary level students. In college, she is working towards graduating with her certificate in secondary education, and any hands on experience is invaluable. Catharine is having a great experience working with students and getting to know them through class as well as advisory. It is awesome to watch their love of the school grow the same way Catharine’s did as a student. She is most looking forward to Parents Weekend to see how kids share this unique experience with their families.
Griffin Hunt (F’11) is working as a Summer Term Alumni Mentor. As such, he is teaching the Tourism & Development course, which includes a 3-night down-island trip and a 24-hour solo. This is his second summer at The Island School and he is excited to be working with many of the same teachers again.