step inside spring 2011

Because no one is restricted to being a part of just one group,

great collaborations happen here all the time, both inside the

classroom and out. You could find yourself with your geometry

class at an art gallery along with your friends who are taking

drawing, because your teachers work closely with each other. You

could collaborate with your sister on a website about a topic that’s

really important to you, like Olivia and Abbie Foster have. Or you

could find that your very best friend is someone who comes from

a completely different background than you do, but he or she still

knows you better than anyone.

In a great community, everyone knows each other and genuinely

cares about each other. That’s what you’ll find here at Williston.

Here, everyone wants everyone else to succeed—and every day,

our students experience the joy of not just having succeeded, but

being able to share that success with people who care.

The Williston Northampton School 19 Payson Avenue, Easthampton, MA 01027 | 413.529.3000 | www.williston.com

Step Inside

Abbie Foster ‘16, Olivia Foster ‘14,

Ashley Wong ’11, Ross Ewing ‘11,

and Tony Alvarez ’11

Read about them inside!

Meet WILLISTONwww.facebook.com/wi l l i s tonnorthampton Follow us on

What does it mean to be a part of a community? At Williston it means that you’ll find a lot of great

people who do a lot of interesting things and who are really interested in what you are all

about. Here people don’t see themselves as just one thing or one “type” of student. Our foot-

ball players act in the play, our soccer players sing with the Caterwaulers or Widdigers, our artists are good

at geometry. One of our best math students also climbs mountains.

WIL

LIS

TON

LEX

ICO

N Insider’s Guide to Some of Williston’s Daily Chatter

Sammy Card & Button Bucks Named for Samuel Williston, button manufacturer and founder

of Williston in 1841, these cards are more than identification

cards. They are also swipe cards for keyless dorm access and

they allow students to purchase items on and off-campus, with-

out using cash.

ProctorStudent proctors lend peer support. Living in the dorm that

they are assigned to, they provide friendship and advice to

students every day.

ECBIn the Reed Campus Center, the StuBop (student snack bar)

offers quick food including the popular and tasty egg, cheese,

and bacon (ECB) on your choice of bread.

WillyNetAn intranet for students, parents, faculty, and alumni that acts

as an information hub for the school.

111586p2 SprStepIns:March 2011 3/24/11 12:42 PM

Olivia decided that creating a website would be the best way to spread

the word about how the law and judicial system affect teens, since not

everyone can travel to the Supreme Court as she was able to. “I wanted a

way to both use my knowledge and to spread knowledge,” she says. To

keep up with what’s happening in the courts, she researches legal issues

regularly, writing and posting 2-5 articles per week.

The goals of TeenJury.com are the same as most Web publications: to

grow readership and to educate readers; and the Fosters have found suc-

cess with both. Visitors to the site can learn interesting facts about cases

ranging from alleged discrimination against religious organizations at a

state university to alleged price fixing of music downloads. The site has

already received several thousand visits from readers in over 50 countries.

Of her Williston experience, ninth grader Olivia says that when she was

looking at schools, “Williston looked perfect.” She was intrigued by the

extensive campus, “which felt like a college.” She was attracted to the

many athletic options and the strong academics. Additionally, she says,

“everybody looked so friendly.”

Now she loves being a part of The Williston Northampton School com-

munity. “I love the sports program here at Williston,” she declares (she

plays field hockey, squash, and golf). Not surprisingly, her favorite class is

World Civilizations, in which students explore major historical themes

through close examination of several of the world’s distinct civilizations.

Seventh grader Abbie enjoys Williston’s Middle School and is already

looking forward to joining her sister in the Upper School. “Williston seems

like the best fit for me,” she says. “Everybody fits right in, and the teachers

are so nice and understanding.”

The sisters agree that maintaining their website is both challenging and

fun. That’s what they have found in their Williston educations as well. “It

has helped me grow as a person,” Olivia says. “I have learned so many

things here, and have made friends from all over the world. I love to be

challenged. Being at Williston gives me that opportunity, along with so

many more.”

Educating Their Peers about the Law INITIATIVE

Henry Wheeler ‘11 Alan Lipp Sarah Hubbard ‘12

Diversity Each year during the annual Diversity Conference, students, faculty, staff, parents, and alums share their experiences with

diversity through workshops. This year Advanced Photography students photographed many members of Williston’s com-

munity throughout the day and recorded their thoughts on diversity.

{Passions & Interests} Theater

{Can be seen} On stage in the spring play, Macbeth, and in

Ford Hall (dorm), where he is a proctor

{Passions & Interests} Teaching and all things math-related

{Can be seen} Autographing his newly published book, The Play's

the Thing: Mathematical Games for the Classroom

and Beyond

{Passions & Interests} Fiddler and tune-writer extraordinaire

{Can be seen} Riding her unicycle to class or winning national

music contests

After their school day, athletics,

and homework are done, sis-

ters Olivia and Abbie Foster

are still not quite ready to

relax. The two run their own website,

TeenJury.com, which aims to educate

young people about how law and the

judicial system affect teens. The site sum-

marizes current U.S. Supreme Court cas-

es and other notable legal issues that

have importance for younger Americans

so readers can more easily understand

how the courts work.

Olivia conceived of the project after hear-

ing Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer

give a talk in nearby Springfield. She was

able to meet with the justice after his talk,

and he invited Olivia and her father to sit in

on Supreme Court arguments when they

visited Washington, DC, last November. “We

saw two totally different cases,” Olivia says.

“That’s what I love about law. Lawyers and

courts work on so many different things.”

TeenJury.com is always changing as well—

the sisters update it several times per week.

Abbie, who is interested in a graphic design

career, takes care of the site’s look and feel,

while Olivia writes many of the articles.

Sometimes Abbie or other young writers

contribute articles as well.

ABBIE FOSTER ’16

Hometown: Longmeadow, MAInterests: Law & graphic designKudos: Teenjury.com Extracurricular: Art

OLIVIA FOSTER ‘14

Hometown: Longmeadow, MAInterests: Law & writingKudos: Teenjury.com Extracurricular: Golf,field hockey, and squash

“To me diversity means the world. You, me, all of us.” – Alan Lipp “Diversity is the uninhibited self-expression o

www.wi l l i s ton.com



WORK & PLAY

Lindsay Lee ’11

Williston DecisionRoss: I am actually the fifth member

of my family to come to Williston.

So when I was applying to school, I

applied to a bunch of other places

because I didn’t really want to be

another legacy kid. When I got in, I

re-visited and I fell in love with it

and liked it a whole lot more than

anywhere else that I checked out.

What first struck me about Williston

was just how friendly everybody is.

It’s an open, accepting community.

Tony: In Chicago, there is a scholar-

ship foundation called the Daniel

Murphy Scholarship Foundation.

The scholarship is really based

around getting kids into private

schools. When I applied for the

scholarship and got it, I did not

want to leave home. Then I got into

Williston. My parents thought it

would be good to apply since my

sister was here too. And they were

like, “Why don’t you go take a vis-

it?” I stayed here overnight and it

was great. I fell in love with dorm

life. I think coming here helped me

to become my own person.

School Spirit Ross: Last year we went to this

girls’ basketball game and I don’t

know why but …

Tony: … we got into it.

Ross: Yeah, we got into it. (laughter)

And now that we are seniors we

feel like we need to be the really

loud, way-too-into-it fans.

Ross: My favorite fan moment was

during girls’ volleyball. They were

playing this big rival team. I

promised a bunch of people on the

team that I would go but we had

football practice. So we were com-

ing off the field late and I remem-

bered the volleyball game. From the

field, I just took the whole team and

we ran into the stands in our full

pads and we were cheering and

really fired them up.

Four-Year EvolutionTony: I’ve gotten better grades,

that’s for sure. I gained a greater

work ethic. Also, I learned how to

enjoy everything I could about the

school. I especially took advantage

of that this year, like going out for

the play. This is a great community

where you can open yourself up to

anyone and anything. I think I grew

to become a better person by

immersing myself in the school.

Ross: I was the opposite. I always

got really good grades. But the only

sports I played were a little basket-

ball and tennis. I came here and had

to choose three sports and I always

wanted to play football. I was

always that kid who thought, Ahh

man, I’d be a really good football

player if I tried. I wasn’t. (laughter

from both) But I tried it and I strug-

gled for three years. This year I

found my niche in football as the

really small fullback who somehow

manages to block the big guys. I

ended up being a football captain. I

started wrestling my sophomore

year and was a captain this year. I

would say Williston has really

helped me round out who I am and

fill areas that I was missing before.

When Tony Alvarez and

Ross Ewing met during

their ninth grade year

at Williston, they instantly became

good friends. Over the past four

years their paths have coincided

due to their many shared interests

and experiences. As roommates

they became dorm proctors and

guided younger students to better

work habits; they have played on

the football field together and

cheered on their schoolmates as

fans in the stands; and they both

have been Gold Key guides, wel-

coming families visiting the school

and giving tours to prospective

students. Now, as they make their

plans for future years in college,

they reflect on how they came to

Williston and how their experi-

ences at the school shaped them

as individuals and friends.

TONY ALVAREZ ‘11

Hometown: Chicago, ILInterests: Football, politics & government, lacrosse, wrestlingKudos: Cum LaudeExtracurricular: Acting, proctor, Gold Key, WritingCenter tutor, ultimate bleacherspirit builder

ROSS EWING ‘11

Hometown: Keene, NHInterests: Football, creative writing, lacrosse, wrestlingKudos: Cum LaudeExtracurricular: Acting, proctor, Gold Key, WritingCenter tutor, ultimate bleacherspirit builder

Four-year friends talk about Williston

Marcia Reed

{Passions & Interests} Painting, collage, and teaching

{Can be seen} At an art opening with her canvases hanging in

a NYC gallery

Timi Onafowokan ’11

{Passions & Interests} Student government and football

{Can be seen} At the podium addressing fellow students as senior

class president

{Passions & Interests}

Languages: Chinese, French, and English

{Can be seen} In Logan (dorm) where she is a proctor

“Diversity is Williston.” –Lindsay Lee ’11on of individuals in a collective community.” –Sarah Hubbard ’12

Watch a video of Ross and Tony talk aboutWilliston in the next issue of the Wildcat!www.williston.com/wildcat


IMAGINATION

ASHLEY WONG ‘11

Hometown: Hong Kong, ChinaInterests: All things visually creativeKudos: 2010 MVP for squashExtracurricular: Dance and choreography

Rae Underberg ‘11

{Passions & Interests} Emma (daughter): Opera & theater tech

Edward (father): Photography & teaching

{Can be seen} With a group of Williston students in India this

summer

{Passions & Interests} Education, family, and literature

{Can be seen} All over campus!

{Passions & Interests} Volleyball, basketball, and tennis

{Can be seen} Accepting her Cum Laude certificate

Edward ‘77 & Emma Hing ‘14

When Ashley Wong ’11 came to Williston from Hong Kong three

years ago, she didn’t know that art would become her pas-

sion. However, it didn’t take long for her to figure it out during

her first fine arts class, Beginning Elements of Design. Since

then, Ashley hasn’t looked back. She has filled her class schedule with art

history and painting classes along with her calculus and English courses; she

attended an intense pre-college summer program at RISD (Rhode Island

School of Design) with a focus on interior design; and now she spends her

extra hours in the art studio focusing on the final project for her Directed

Study in Studio Art with faculty member Marcia Reed.

This semester Ashley has encountered a new creative experience. Ms.

Reed and her advisees joined art classes at Riverside Industries—a non-prof-

it organization that serves people with disabilities. Riverside Industries is

located in Easthampton in a renovated old mill building a few blocks from

Williston’s campus. The organization offers art classes to clients, giving them

the opportunity to explore and express their creativity. In this semester’s

classes, the students of Williston and Riverside worked together to create art-

work as they talked about their processes and interests. During the final class

preceding spring break, Williston students worked with Ms. Reed and Denise

Herzog, art director at Riverside Industries, to select individual pieces for an

exhibit in the Grubbs Gallery that will open in April.

Ms. Reed explains, “All of my advisees this semester are art students. I

thought this could be a good community service project and a way for them

to interact with Riverside. I thought that it would be a great opportunity for

them to curate the show, select the art, and help to hang it. They could be part

of that whole process.”

During the class at Riverside, a client named Jen turned to Ashley and

asked what color she should use next on her drawing. Instead of telling her

what color to pick, Ashley encouraged her to pick a color that she liked. Since

the group began visiting Riverside, Ashley has been enthusiastic about the

program. She says, “All the students have their own style. They are very inde-

pendent. There is a student named Tony, his work is amazing! He captures so

much detail.”

“Ashley responded to the program. She is good with the students and so

patient,” says Ms. Reed. “This may be her calling.”

And maybe it is, but Ashley isn’t narrowing down her future prospects just

yet. Now in her senior year, she has applied to Parsons, RISD, SCAD

(Savannah College of Art and Design) and other competitive art schools. In

developing her portfolio, Ashley has been working with a concept inspired by

the ancient Chinese allegory of the frog in a shallow well. “It’s about a frog

who lives in the shallow well and all he sees is the sky and he thought that

was everything.” Creating upon this tale, Ashley’s paintings captured an

extreme perspective as if seen from a well. She portrays the view of the sky

of places she has lived including the skyline in Hong Kong and Easthampton,

MA.

Pointing to the final piece that she created for the project, Ashley says,

“The last piece shows another city skyline … New York City … one that I don’t

know yet!” Expanding her studies in perspective: this is one view Ashley is

anticipating following graduation.

New Perspectives in Creativity


Robert W. Hill III, Head of School“Diversity is knowing who you are, accepting it, and accepting others for who they are.”– Emma Hing ’14


step inside spring 2011

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