Finding Meaning in Fall

Posted by Waynflete Communications

The following editorial appeared in the Waynflete Flyer, the Upper School student newspaper.

I find this time of year to be particularly difficult. Fall means my birthday, sweater weather, and the collection of firewood, but it also means dark afternoons, schoolwork, and seeing 250-plus teenagers everyday (which, if you’re an introvert like me, is incredibly daunting.) Fall is a time for growth and evolution, but it is also a reminder that the flush of summer always fades, slivering away so slowly one hardly even notices. But I have decided that this year I will finally embrace a transition that has always been the black cloud looming over me come August. I will find meaning in the season that conjures stress and anxiety from the pit of my stomach, by reconnecting with nature.When I was little, change in seasons used to represent purely a change in surroundings. Winter to spring had nothing to do with the end of school, and everything to do with purple crocuses sprouting in our gardens, a warm sun following me home from the bus stop, and the emersion of monarch butterfly cocoons preparing for their metamorphosis. Fall to winter brought a kaleidoscope of reds, yellows, and oranges, twisting into white. Every morning I would stand at my front door, bleary eyed, clothed in dark blue pajamas, and literally say “Hello!” to the world. And then I became a 12-year-old, and slowly stopped greeting nature, my mind too intertwined within itself to drop my worrying for one moment and acknowledge that something greater than my own thoughts was around me. So now I will travel full circle back to being a little girl again. Every morning before school I am going to literally stand at my front door and say “Hello!” to the awakening day before me. I will wander through marshes and woods and fields on Saturdays like I used to, meditating on the fullness of life in nature, and face my fear of rabid, nocturnal animals by taking walks on Sunday nights, just to feel nature through other senses besides sight. I will do my best to view everyday as a gift given to me by nature, and not as yet another 24 hours spent slogging through small talk, school, and other responsibilities.

And what meaning do I hope to absorb from these actions? The realization that nature will always be bigger than what is inside my head, and takes up my time. The ecosystems and beauty and spirituality surrounding me are so complex, and so hidden that my own life and contemplations pale in comparison. That is not to say that I am not important; rather, there are just some things that rise above the web of human existence. I hope to be humbled by this realization, and enlightened in a way that empowers me to reconnect with the roots of my life.

Editor’s Perspective

Posted by Waynflete Communications

The following editorial appeared in the Waynflete Flyer, the Upper School student newspaper.

 

As most people probably noticed, there was a photographer on campus on Wednesday. Presumably her pictures of class discussions, frisbee in Waynhenge, and students walking into Emery will eventually appear on the website or in the viewbook, replacing the pictures of middle schoolers who have graduated. After being photographed, I heard many people wondering about the shots’ portrayal of Waynflete. Is it really a Waynflete norm to smile while doing homework?

A day or two later, having been let out of class early, I did not rush across campus to my next class as I usually would. Instead, as I sauntered out of Emery en route to Cook-Hyde, I reflected upon my perception of Waynflete. Though I knew that hordes of students would gush forth from Emery in less than five minutes, the well-treaded path by Waynhenge was deserted. I looked at the trees separating the path from the parking lot, and remembered the community service day when my homeroom planted flowers between those trees. I crossed Storer Street carefully–attentive not primarily because of the danger of cars, but because I recalled a memorably slushy day freshman year when I ended up sprawled on the road, unhurt but soaked. I smiled as I passed the Sanctuary, thinking of an enjoyable Latin class earlier in the week during which we had worked outside.

Next time that you’re walking through the halls or across campus, think of everything here that has meaning to you. Think about what being a Waynflete student means to you–it’s different for all of us. No matter how awkward people may have felt while being photographed, we are Waynflete. Thinking about this the other day, I walked into the library during PA. The library was relatively quiet save for the sound of typing and of pages being turned. Believe it or not, several people were smiling as they worked.

What A Day on the Kennebec With the Class of 2014 Taught Me

Posted by Waynflete Communications

I have been thinking a lot about the value of teamwork and how that applies to a broad spectrum of experiences. The genesis of these thoughts was the glorious day I spent riding the Kennebec waves with the senior class as part of their Outdoor Experience trip.

 

After willingly subjecting ourselves to a screening of Jaws, our bus arrived at The Forks in Somerset County, ME. The Forks is the point of convergence for the Kennebec and Dead Rivers and is the home of Three Rivers Whitewater. We piled out of the bus, received our cabin assignments, and quickly unloaded our gear. It was 4:00 in the afternoon and we wanted to check out Moxie Falls before dinner.

 

Moxie Falls has one of the tallest single drops in the State of Maine.  After an easy 10-minute hike, a series of steps and handrails brought us to the edge of the Falls and a gorgeous view of the river, falls, and forest.  After 15 minutes, we headed back up the trail in search of the apparently elusive swimming hole.

 

The swimming hole turned out to be easy to find and a handful of brave souls, led by Carol Titterton, went for a swim.  It was not a particularly wonderful day, with overcast skies and cool temperatures, and the water temperature was chilly.  Most of the senior class chose to hang out on the bank of the river and watch the swimming from the warmth of their dry clothes.

 

In addition to the glorious views, our group received a great compliment from another group of hikers.  We were told that our students were remarkably polite, friendly, and helpful.  I had to agree.

 

We returned to The Forks for an evening of all-you-can-eat tacos, karaoke, and games.  The most athletic event was Twister and boy! was it athletic.  It combined a little Sumo wrestling, yoga, chess, and teamwork.  The winning teams were able to force their opponents into impossible positions.

 

After the evening’s events were concluded, we returned to the cabins to go to bed.  Actually, to be more accurate, we returned to the cabins at least.

 

The next morning, a tired group of seniors managed to get themselves to breakfast in time for our safety briefing.  It was a glorious day already and temperatures were predicted to be in the 80s and sunny throughout our rafting time.  The lead rafting guide walked us through all of the risk factors that could appear during our trip and the ways to avoid them.  We then donned our life vests, grabbed paddles, and climbed aboard buses to the start of the whitewater course.

 

Because the Kennebec is a dam-controlled river, the whitewater fun is created by water releases.  Our guide explained that the river is usually flowing at about 2000 cubic feet per second, but the whitewater release brings that up to 5000.  He described one cubic foot as the size of a chicken and had us envision 5000 chickens going by per second.

 

I was assigned to a great raft and had Emily Wasserman as my bow mate.  She and I were the only ones brave enough to take on the river first.  I would have been happy to give up my seat, in fact, I begged to give up my seat.  I had no takers.  So down the river we went.

 

Kenny, our guide, taught us the correct paddle strokes and encouraged us to paddle in sync.  This would provide us the greatest maneuverability and speed.   Before we entered a series of rapids, Kenny would tell us how we would maneuver the raft and then would begin yelling out his commands.

 

The first half of our rafting trip was the most exciting with a mixture of Class 3 and 4 rapids.  Kenny’s job was to position the raft in such a way that we would feel like we were in a giant flume with water spraying everywhere.  The thrill combined all the elements of a great amusement park ride: adrenaline pumping, nerves energized, and hysterical laughter all rolled into one experience.

 

After completing the upper part of the river, we were permitted to float through series of Class 2 rapids and swift water.  Just imagine our good fortune: the air temperature registered 84 and the water temperature was 69.  It was a cloudless sky and bright sun beating down on us.  It could not have been more perfect.

 

Since I am never one to miss an opportunity to draw a lesson from an experience, this rafting trip did not disappoint.  It was one of the rapids that made me realize that the teamwork aspect of rafting is like so many things in life.  If a rafting team doesn’t work all that hard, they will have a perfectly pleasant and fun ride down the river.  However, if a rafting team works really hard and concentrates on staying in sync, they will have the most thrilling ride possible.  I think this lesson can be applied to a lot of things in life.

 

Our day ended with a mellow float down the Kennebec followed by a picnic lunch.  It was a great way for me to get to know a bunch of the senior class and to spend a few days in the Maine outdoors.

Multiple Sports Leads to Multiple Benefits for Waynflete Athletes and the School

Posted by Waynflete Communications

With a one goal lead just into the second half of a recent game against Class B Gray-New Gloucester, the Flyers needed to take advantage of a free kick from inside the offensive zone.  The two teams had battled evenly since an early Waynflete goal so all of the players knew that the next goal of the game would be critical to determining its outcome.  Ninth grader Isabel Canning looped the kick into the crowd gathered in front of the net, where Leigh Fernandez broke loose from her defender to get her head on the ball and redirect it past the goalie into the net. With a two goal lead, the momentum swung to the Flyers, who continued in their defense of the Class C state title by going on to win the game 3-0.

 

Leigh is in a unique position this fall.  Besides working hard with her teammates to defend their title, she is also hoping that for the fifth time in a row, her season will end in a state championship.  Leigh and Rhiannan Jackson, who graduated last spring, began the streak as teammates on the 2012 state champion lacrosse team.  Their teams then ran the table last year, winning state titles in soccer, basketball, and then lacrosse again.

 

With Rhiannan off in college, where she is planning to play basketball and lacrosse, Leigh is alone in pursuing a fifth athletic championship.  But she is not alone in changing sports with the seasons.  In fact, nearly all of her teammates play more than one sport and most play on three school teams.  In an age when individual sports are offered year round and young athletes are under increasing pressure to specialize, this phenomenon seems counter-cultural.  In fact, it is.  The path to success at many schools is to encourage athletes to specialize.  But when asked what he thinks of three season athletes, Athletic Director Ross Burdick candidly replied, “We are a small school. We depend on them. Without them, we couldn’t field our current slate of 18 varsity and multiple junior varsity teams, much less enjoy the success they have been having.”  To express it gratitude, Waynflete recognizes three sport athletes each year and gives an award in the spring to seniors who have played on three varsity teams for all four years.

 

But while students playing multiple sports benefits the School, does it benefit the athletes themselves?  The answer, according to Ross, is an emphatic “Yes.  One of the many benefits of kids playing multiple sports is that they learn how to compete, how to play as a team, how to play for different coaches, and how to be successful.  They learn how to handle pressure, how to come from behind, and how to have fun.”

 

Ross could point to the four championship girls teams to illustrate his point, as each team had faced the clear prospect of defeat before gathering itself and ultimately prevailing. While the 2012 lacrosse champions won the state final easily, they came back from multiple goal late game deficits in both the regional semi-finals and finals for two of the most dramatic victories in the already storied history of the program.  In the fall, the soccer team fell behind before striking with two goals in less than a minute to pull ahead in the final.  The prospects for winning the championship in basketball seemed particularly dim as the team fell behind by 14 points midway through the third quarter to perennial champ Calais before a packed crowd on the last evening of basketball ever at the Bangor Civic Center.  Unfazed, the girls in green pressed ahead with tenacious team defense, timely rebounding, and a stunning fourth quarter rally behind the red-hot shooting of Martha Veroneau to pull away to a 59 to 55 victory and the first Class C basketball championship in the School’s history.

 

The multi-sport phenomenon is not limited to the girls teams, nor is the success it yields.  Also populated by multi-sport players, the 2012 boys soccer team defended its 2011 State Championship by winning the conference title before losing on penalty kicks in the regional final.   The boys basketball team also won the conference and advanced to the regional final for the first time ever in Class C.  Sportsmanship is paramount at Waynflete and both the boys and girls basketball teams were presented with the “MPA Good Sportsmanship Award” for Class C West, showing that our teams know how to play hard, play well, and play with class.

Besides enhancing their athletic acumen, involvement in multiple sports benefits the athletes physically as well. Single sport athletes risk developing injuries through over-training.  The American Academy of Pediatrics Council on Sports Medicine and Fitness recommends two to three months off per year from any one sport in order to give the bodies of young athletes time to recover from the strains placed on them through the repetitive motions required of that sport.  Another one of the benefits is increased athleticism.  By playing multiple sports, athletes learn to move their bodies in more ways, and being able to move in a variety of ways makes for a better athlete. The physical pay off of playing multiple sports is no doubt another reason for the School’s continued athletic success.

 

While some coaches might be tempted to encourage an athlete to specialize, the Waynflete staff is not.  A veteran group of successful coaches, they understand the benefits of their athletes competing in multiple sports. Assistant Athletic Director Brandon Salway has coached the boys soccer team for over twenty years and has coached basketball for many years, currently the girls.  Rich Henry has coached the boys basketball team for nine years and encourages his boys to play many sports.  “I don’t encourage the boys to play AAU basketball” says Henry.  “I would rather see them compete on the soccer, baseball, and lacrosse fields.  They can play basketball in the summer to prepare for the winter.”  Girls soccer coach Todd Dominski regularly attends basketball games and lacrosse games to watch his athletes compete.  Long time girls lacrosse coach and Waynflete faculty member Cathie Connors is the biggest fan of her girls during the fall and winter seasons, as is eight year veteran cross country coach Brian Gillespie.  Math teacher Zak Starr is an assistant on the boys soccer team, the girls basketball team, and the baseball team.  He also coaches in the middle school, where he conveys the multiple sport benefits to all future varsity athletes through word and deed as he was a multiple sport athlete himself at Colby College.

In the competitive athletic world of Southern Maine, a successful defense of their title is by no means guaranteed to Leigh and her soccer teammates.  But one thing is assured; the players will draw on their vast and varied athletic experience to play at their best, both as individuals and as a team.  At Waynflete, multiple sports has lead to multiple benefits, for the School and for the athletes themselves.

CSA Volunteers at Twilight in the Park

Posted by Waynflete Communications

A traditional honoring, Twilight in the Park is an event sponsored by Hospice of Southern Maine that occurs every year in which people “celebrate life” by lighting a candle for a loved one who has died. The candle is placed inside a white bag with sand that bears the name of the individual being remembered. The bags are placed in Deering Oaks Park, and as the sun grows older, the candles are lit, creating a beautiful and touching memorial, showing love and compassion for “someone who has brought light into our lives.” To support this event, volunteers from Waynflete’s Community Service activity (CSA) and the parent community helped to fill and place each bag and later cleared them away.

In an email thanking the volunteers, CSA faculty advisor Breda White reflected on the event this way:

“Your efforts contributed directly, by all accounts, to the success of the event as a vital fundraiser for Hospice’s work. More important, however, was your role in helping grieving families and friends honor the life and memory of loved ones and /or to show appreciation for the caregivers who supported them through the end-of-life journey. As an Upper School community service maven, I was particularly delighted to see such a rich collaboration of Waynflete parents and students in the service of others. I hope we can have many more such joint efforts.”

All in all, a very beautiful way to spend a Saturday.

A.S.K. – ACADEMIC SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE

Posted by Waynflete Communications

“It’s not how smart you are that matters; what really counts is HOW you are smart.” Howard Gardner

Waynflete is offering a new program for Upper School students which will make academic coaching accessible to anyone wants or needs it.  Students who come to A.S.K. – Academic Skills & Knowledge – will have an opportunity to practice and master learning strategies using their own coursework, will identify personal learning styles, strengths, and challenges, and will set short and long-term goals for improving academic performance across the curriculum. In A.S.K., students will receive feedback to build on already-existing strategies and work habits.  Students will choose their own focus, with opportunities to strengthen organization, note-taking, time management/planning, memory, reading, writing and/or study and test-taking skills.  Students will be encouraged to take an active role in their learning through increased self-advocacy, self-reflection and metacognitive (learning about learning) skills.

Students may participate in A.S.K. on a voluntary, drop-in basis. They may come alone, or as a small group of peers who have similar goals. They may come once, or once a week for a year. Advisors and teachers may recommend that students participate. The Upper School Director or Dean of Students may require participation. There are many ways to benefit from A.S.K., but the most powerful results will come when students are self-directed, manifesting their own future success!

LOGISTICS
A.S.K. is run by Stacey Sevelowitz, Director of Academic Support. A.S.K. is being offered six times per week: all A-F blocks, each once per week, in the College Counseling room of the Student Center. Students will be expected to arrive with a specific task, question or skill to focus on.

The schedule is as follows:
A block: Mondays
B block: Thursdays
C block: Wednesdays
D block: Fridays
E block: Fridays
F block: Thursdays

From the Deadwaters of the Penobscot River to Middle Jo Mary Lake

Posted by Waynflete Communications

I stood on a rock at the outlet of Lower Jo Mary Lake, watching Leah Grams and Chloe Williams wrestle with lining their canoe up the last section of the outlet stream. Three of our six boats were already safely secured behind me, and Leah and Chloe were almost there. So far it had been relatively easy, and they had obviously enjoyed the challenge of guiding their boat by hand against the current of the outlet stream that flowed from Lower Jo back into Pemadumcook Lake from where we had come.

But it seemed that Leah and Chloe were looking for more adventure than came with staying on the side of the stream and using the painters to guide the boat upstream. So, in the last section, they had waded out into the deeper water, where the current had grabbed their boat and turned it sideways. And there they stood, frozen in place, trying not to be swept downstream. With a mixture of excitement and uncertainty on each of their faces, Leah gripped the bow from the upstream side and Chloe held tight onto the stern from the downstream side. We called out instructions to them, which they could not hear due to the water rushing past them. After a few moments of uncertainty, they managed to overcome the force of the current and maneuver the boat back in line with it and then guide their boat into the shallow water and over to where their comrades and I waited.

As their faces relaxed in triumph, I looked past them to where James Jujaroen and Cecilia Pacillo were using their painters to maneuver their canoe upstream. James had hold of the bowline and leaned at an angle against the boat to hold it with his body weight. Just then, much to James’s surprise, Cecilia let go for a moment, and James toppled backwards into the stream. While keeping the canoe from slipping away, he pulled himself back up, flashing a big smile, and he and Cecilia moved the rest of the way up the stream without further incident.

Back in our canoes, we paddled a short way to a nearby island and pulled over to have lunch. Over more cheese, peanut butter and jelly, salami, carrots, and hummus than we would ever eat at school, the stories of each canoe’s journey upstream were enthusiastically told, some concurrently. Although they had all just made the exact same journey, each person related his or her unique perspective on what the experience had been like. They all agreed that it had been a highlight of the trip, and the two pairs that had had the most challenging journeys up the stream became the loudest proponents for going back down and doing it again.

Lining the canoes was just one part of my Outdoor Experience trip, on which Waynflete graduate Jason Chandler and I were fortunate enough to lead 10 high-spirited, fun-loving, and incredibly kind 11th grade students that journeyed from the deadwaters of the West Branch of the Penobscot down the river and across four lakes. We ran some light rapids. We portaged our canoes around the Debsconeag and Passamagamet Falls and paddled amidst gentle raindrops that literally danced over the otherwise still surface of the lake. We told stories and meditated by the lakeside at night, we camped on beaches and watched a remarkable lightning show way off in the distance that lasted nearly an hour. We explored deep into the ice caves above First Debsconeag Lake and afterwards jumped from the big boulders that line the lake into its refreshing water on a day that reached 85 degrees F.

We started the day of our canoe lining adventure by breaking camp, paddling the last few miles of the Penobscot River into Ambajejus Lake, and stopping off at the Ambajejus Boom House. There we had the pleasure of talking with Chuck Harris, who in the late 1960s had dropped out of art school to come north from Pennsylvania to work the log drives. When the river drives stopped in the early ‘70s, the workers all left except Chuck, who stayed and has lived in the foreman’s cabin ever since, dedicating his life to preserving the memory of the drives by turning the Ambajejus Boom House into a fascinating loggers’ museum and traveling the backwoods of Maine to paint as many of the old boom houses as he could reach. Chuck showed us around the museum and his cabin, and he even took out his guitar and played.

It turns out that there is nothing like a slide blues guitar riff in the morning to get you pumped up for the rest of the day. We left Chuck and the boom house behind and paddled 12 miles and crossed three lakes as the students sang songs from Les Mis and numerous other musicals. We arrived at our destination in the late afternoon. We had enjoyed a blazing campfire, eaten, and cleaned up before storms chased us into our tents. There, accompanied by the falling rain and howling wind, Cecilia told an unforgettable ghost story that was made even more haunting as we listened to her disembodied voice emanating from inside her tent.

You see, when we open the school year with outdoor experience trips, as we have for longer than anyone can seem to remember, we hope for beautiful views, adventurous exploration, the formation of new friendships, the deepening of existing connections, resiliency in the face of appropriate challenge, and a lot of fun. On this trip, all of that happened, and much more in our four days together. While our tents were wet on Friday morning, our spirits were un-dampened as we paddled across the last stretch of water to meet the bus that would take us home.

As we boarded the bus filled with ninth graders fresh off their own experiences at the Chewonki Wilderness Camp on Fourth Debsconeag Lake, we were treated to one last entertainment. With the gear stowed on the bus and most of the canoeists on board, Upper School Director Lowell Libby, who had been with the ninth grade, stooped over to pick up a single boot that had been left aside. When he asked whose it was, Jonas Maines, one boot on and one boot off, burst from the woods and regaled Lowell with a dramatic telling of a tale about being captured by ice cave bandits and his harrowing escape. As I watched Lowell laughing as he filmed Jonas telling his tale, I couldn’t think of a better way to have spent our first week of school.

See his next performance in The Franklin Theater as Reverend Hale in Waynflete’s production of Arthur Miller’s classic, The Crucible, which runs Thursday through Saturday, November 7, 8, and 9.

Important Parent Information from Lowell

Posted by Waynflete Communications

Now that we have all returned from Outdoor Experience, I want to highlight some  information that you will find useful as we open the school year.  In the body of this letter, I have reviewed upcoming events.  In the information sheet that follows, I have summarized some important procedures and expectations.  Pay particular attention to your role with attendance.  Parental attention to the attendance procedure helps to ensure that our system is both accurate and efficient, which is essential to a school.  As the year goes on, information will be provided to you on the website and in the Waynflete Weekly.  In addition, I am writing to highlight information that you will find useful as we open the school year.
Open House
Open House for the Middle and Upper Schools will be held on the evening of Wednesday, September 25, running from 6:30 to 9:00.  This program is an important opportunity for parents to meet teachers and advisors and to learn more about the academic and advising programs.  By now you should have received a mailing on this event.
October Break
There is no school on Monday and Tuesday, October 14 and 15.  Seniors who do not have athletic obligations may wish to take this opportunity for college visits.
Calendar Reminder
As you make your plans for December break, remember that exams run through Friday, December 20.  In the event of bad weather, exams may be rescheduled to run as late as 3:00 that day or later for extended time exams.  Please make your plans accordingly.
I had a great time with the ninth grade on Outdoor Experience, which fuels my excitement for the new year.  I look forward to seeing you all at Open House.  Remember to review the enclosed handout carefully.  Call your child’s advisor, Lydia Maier (Dean of Students), Cathie Connors (Upper School Assistant), or me with any questions.

Highlights of Important Procedures in the Upper School
Parent/School Communication: Strong communication with families is fundamentally important to the School.  For matters pertaining to your child’s program, contact the advisor first.  The advisor will facilitate additional communication as needed.  For more general matters, contact Cathie Connors in the Upper School Office at ext. 1233.
Arrival at school:  Homeroom begins at 8:00.  All upper school students, except seniors with privileges, must report to homeroom by 8:05.  Seniors with privileges and first period free are due by 9:05.  Students arriving late must sign-in in the Upper School Office before going to class.
Attendance: When a student will be absent, late, or excused early, the parent calls the School or the student brings a note to the Upper School Office before 8:10.  If a student will be absent for an anticipated reason, s/he completes an Excused Absence Form and submits it to Cathie Connors.  Students missing school for a religious holiday should be called in absent, but they do not need to complete excused absence forms.
The School Day: Once students arrive at school, they are expected to remain on campus.  The bus is considered campus.  Seniors with privileges may leave during free time by signing out in the Upper School Office.   Other students may leave only to attend a school function or with permission from Lowell, Lydia, or Cathie.
The End of the School Day: Seniors with privileges may sign-out after their last obligation, even before the end of the academic day if they do not have an after school activity.  Other students must stay on campus at least through the academic day, even with last period free.  The duration of after school activities varies depending on the activity, the day of the week, and the season.  Please contact the faculty person supervising the activity for a schedule.  Students in a sport or play may have a time gap between the end of the academic day and the beginning of a rehearsal, practice or game.  Such students may leave campus and return for the rehearsal, practice, or game, unless their parents request in writing that they remain on campus.  Students with an I.A.P or who have completed their sport for the season may leave school at the beginning of the gym block on Tuesday and Friday, unless their parents request in writing that they stay on campus.
Student Messages: It is best to make arrangements for the day before school starts.  If you must contact your child through the School Office, call early so the message can be posted on the Message Board.  If you communicate by cell phone, remember that students may only check for messages during free time as otherwise they are asked to keep their phones off.  Please refrain from calling or texting your child during class time.
Driving Policy: If your child is in 10th grade or above, you should have already have completed the US Student and Vehicle Registration Form mailed this summer and linked here, whether or not your child will drive to school this year.  Update it as needed throughout the year.  Students must park as designated in the Handbook.  Students are not allowed, except with permission from the School or if they are seniors, to ride with or transport other students during the school day.   Students are allowed to transport each other to sports practices unless their parents have stated otherwise in writing to athletic director Ross Burdick.

Expectations for Behavior & Consequences for Misbehavior in the Upper School

Philosophical Assumptions: Waynflete’s approach to setting expectations for behavior and responding when expectations are not met follows from the belief expressed in the School Mission that responsible, caring, and contributing behavior “is most effectively encouraged in our students by according them trust and respect.”
Expectations for Behavior: Daily life at Waynflete is guided by the assumption that all members of the community will treat each other with mutual trust and respect.  Students are expected to behave respectfully and appropriately, attend school and class on time, and adhere to campus boundaries.  In the event that a student does not meet such basic expectations, the School responds with a problem-solving intervention.  Some behaviors, however, are so incompatible with fundamental community values that corrective strategies may not be appropriate.  In such an event, the offending student may be suspended, expelled, or placed on probation.   Such behaviors include but are not limited to:
  • Physical or verbal harassment
  • Possession of weapons
  • Acts or threats of violence
  • Use, possession, or distribution of alcohol or other drugs at school, during school events, or on school property
  • Stealing or intentional destruction of property
  • Academic dishonesty
  • Violation of probationary conditions
  • Repeated violations of basic expectations

Consequences for Misbehavior: The following outlines the School’s typical responses to misbehavior:
Violation of a Basic Expectation:
If a student violates a basic expectation, the faculty most closely involved engage in a problem solving process with the student to ensure that the behavior is not repeated.  Logical consequences are assigned as needed.  The plan and consequences are communicated as needed.  Parents may  or may not be involved in this process.
Violation of a Major Expectation:
If a student violates a major expectation, the first step is usually for the student to be suspended from school until a meeting can be arranged to include the student, the advisor, the student’s parents, the Upper School Director, and the Head of School.  The purpose of the meeting is to determine whether or not the student will be allowed to continue at Waynflete and, if so, under what conditions.  That decision is made at the sole discretion of the Head.  If a student is allowed to stay, s/he is placed on probation and the conditions of probation are spelled out in writing.

Opera Comes to the North Woods of Maine

Posted by Waynflete Communications

An illustrated synopsis of 9th Grade Outdoor Experience 2013
By Lowell Libby, Upper School Director
It was an unlikely place and a less likely circumstance for Leah Israel, Waynflete ninth grader, when she took to the stage last Thursday evening.  By then, Leah and her classmates had already had a busy week.  Waynflete’s ninth graders left Portland early Tuesday morning and headed north to the Nahmakanta Public Reserve.  The Reserve, which is part of a giant swath of preserved wilderness in north central Maine that also includes the Appalachian Trail Corridor, The Nature Conservancy’s Katahdin Forest Project, and Baxter State Park, is home to the Chewonki Foundation’s Debsconeag Lake Wilderness Camp on Fourth Debsoneag Lake, which serves as base camp for the ninth grade Outdoor Experience program.  Divided into six groups that will meet weekly throughout the upcoming year for the ninth grade seminar, the students began their Upper School experience with four days of building outdoor and mindfulness skills and awareness, getting to know each other and faculty outside regular school activities, and having lots of challenge and fun in the process.

 

The Thursday of her performance, Leah and her seminar group woke up in their tents on the banks of Nahmakanta Lake, where they had paddled the day before.  After breakfast they broke camp, paddled back down the lake, and were joined by a second group of campers.  They then settled into an orienteering lesson lead by a Chewonki staff member and your faithful reporter.  The lesson began by asking students to look for clues in their environment to determine which way is north.  When asked to point north, the students’ vividly demonstrated why an orienteering lesson was in order as their theories varied widely.  Motivated by the news that they would be navigating the two miles back to base camp where lunch would be waiting, students paid close attention to the lesson and poured attentively over the maps as they learned the basics of how to navigate without a GPS.

 

Having arrived at base camp, the two seminar groups moved their gear into the yurts where they would staying and reported to the main lodge where English teacher turned master chef Lorry Stillman had prepared yet another nutritious and delicious feast.   After lunch, the orienteering lesson continued with a climb to the bald top of the steep cliffs that rise 800’ above the lake level to study the spectacular surrounding topography.  Back at the lake after their strenuous ascent, they were joined by two other groups that had been out on a day long hike, relaxed by swimming, and then reported to the lodge to help Lorry prepare dinner for the students and staff at base camp.

 

After dinner, two of the groups met with Dean of Students Lydia Maier for the evening program.  Each evening during the week, groups took turns circling up in a yurt and taking the time to consider the poignant moment of transition into the Upper School.  After role-playing various parts of the brain, students reflected on how fear can motivate or hold back active engagement with their lives and relationships.  Sitting in silence allowed the students to tune into their body signals for stress or relaxation.  They explored how awareness of emotions expands their options for positive and empathetic responses.  On that final night, the students sat in mindful silence for fifteen minutes as the first rain of the week fell and lightning lit up their circle in memorable intervals.  As they embark on their journeys into the Upper School, it was inspiring to hear how many students already practice self care, enhancing the likelihood that they will contribute to making a resilient Upper School community built on shared experience.

 

Meanwhile, the other two groups, including Leah’s, met in the lodge after dinner clean-up was complete for a hotly contested game of Minute to Win It hosted by science teacher turned game show host Neil Rice.  The competition included such events as juggling balloons, flipping and catching pencils, and moving Oreo cookies from the eye socket to the mouth without the use of hands.  The evening was filled with the thrill of triumph and the anguish of defeat.
The final event featured each team’s choice to show off a special talent.  The first contestant tried stand-up comedy, the second danced the Cancan (which we suspect hadn’t happened in the north woods for quite some time).  And then Leah stepped onto the stage, a modest cleared space amidst the dining hall tables. Accompanied only by rain pounding on the metal roof, she belted out an aria that filled the lodge, blew away the competition, and then, when she had finished and was high-fiving with her triumphant teammates, rolled through the surrounding hills and forest to the heavy clapping thunder.

 

And so ended another highly successful week for a ninth grade class in the north woods.  We returned to civilization the next day, carrying with us new skills and confidence, fresh and freshened friendships, strengthened connections to the natural world, and happy, vivid memories as we head into the school year.

Lowell’s Opening Address to Upper School Students

Posted by Waynflete Communications

The other day my wife Melissa was going through a pile of papers that my mother had collected and found a couple of my high school report cards.  She couldn’t wait to read the comments aloud to me, to my kids, to my nieces and nephews, to my neighbors, really to anyone who would listen.  While she seemed to be amusing herself, I was reminded of a reality that I rarely bring up and generally try to not to think about too much, which is that for much of my high school career, I was a distinctly mediocre student.

 

I am going to read you a couple of samples of my teachers’ comments to give you an idea of what I mean by “distinctly mediocre.”  At my school, at the end of each marking period, teachers submitted grades and comments to the guidance counselor, who then created a report card that listed the grades and summarized each teacher’s comments.  Here are a couple of comment highlights:
  • Mr. Rogers feels that Lowell put forth a steady effort in English but really wasn’t interested.  He did a rather poor job on the grammar section of his exam.
  • Mr. Reeve states that he believes Lowell will improve in his science work next year.  He could have done a better job this year.
  • Mr. Teerlink compliments Lowell on having an exceptional talent in mathematics.  He hopes that Lowell will use it more to his full ability.
  • Mr. Beauchamp comments that Lowell wrote one exceptional paper for him, but the rest were average or below.  He did not participate very frequently in class discussion.
  • Mr. Blackburn comments that he has been delighted to know Lowell this year and have him as a student, in spite of the fact that the two of them never came to a sufficient meeting of the minds such as might have produced a happier result.

 

Other than academics, I actually functioned pretty well in high school.  I was captain of the basketball and football teams and senior class president.  I had lots of friends. It turns out that I actually have a reasonably well functioning brain, so that eventually I became a pretty good student.  But now reading these comments and looking back on myself, I know the reason why for such a long time there wasn’t what Mr. Blackburn called “a meeting of the minds” between me and any of my teachers.  I made sure of it.  I didn’t want such a meeting.  I carefully avoided it. In simplest terms, I was afraid I might fail.  Now I know from experience that speaking up, putting myself on the line, leaning into my discomfort are the ways I learn best; back then I routinely stymied my own potential for growth because I feared that doing any of that might result in embarrassing mistakes or failure.  I wasn’t willing to take that risk.

 

Some of you may indeed be fully functioning right now, but I wonder to what extent fear or anxiety of some kind holds some of you back from getting everything you could from your Waynflete experience.  Maybe some of you are afraid to put yourself out there for the same reasons as I was.  Or maybe you have received the message that it isn’t cool to be too smart in school, so you hold yourself back.  Or maybe you are trying as hard as you can but are terrified that even your best won’t be good enough to get into the college of your dreams, or to please your parents, or to impress your teachers, or to keep up with your friends.   Such fear may keep you working hard at school but it will make you pretty miserable in the process.  True learning is ultimately an invigorating and even joyful experience, not a miserable or debilitating one.

 

We have an an exceptional cast of capable and caring teachers at this school who have been busy creatinig an incredibly rich array of opportunities for all of you.  Contemplating the start a new year, I wanted to find a way to get you to think about ways that you might be holding yourself back and then to inspire you to overcome them.  With that in mind, I came across a video that I am going to show you. It is a video of a graduation speech delivered last spring by Susannah Parkin, a student at Hamilton College.  She was the recipient of the school’s community service award; as part of the honor, she was invited to speak at graduation.  I don’t want to say anything more by way of introduction except that I find her speech to be incredibly inspiring.  Put yourself in her shoes as you watch and listen, and I think you will find her inspiring as well.

 

 

“… do things because we are afraid… to see fear as an opportunity for growth… to seek out challenges.” Doing so, she says “makes us stronger because it puts us in control of the fear.”

 

Through her words and example, Ms Parkin inspires us to “… do things because we are afraid… to see fear as an opportunity for growth… to seek out challenges.”  Doing so, she says “makes us stronger because it puts us in control of the fear.”

 

Eleanor Roosevelt, a former first lady of the United States and a powerful force in her own right, made the point even more succinctly when she once advised her audience to “Do one thing every day that scares you.”  That is great advice for us to carry into our Outdoor Experience week and to hold throughout the school year.
Thank you for your respectful attention this morning.  I wish you all a fun day, a productive week, and a meaningful start to our new year.

Rich Henry Surpasses 100 Wins

Posted by Waynflete Communications

Congratulations to Waynflete Varsity Boys Basketball Coach Rich Henry who has recently exceeded 100 wins while at the helm of the Waynflete program.  Rich reached the milestone with a 75-35 win over North Yarmouth Academy on January 11th.  The Waynflete boys have continued to play well and are currently 12-2 and ranked fourth in Class C West.  Rich now has 105 wins for his career.  Taking over the program to start the 2004-2005 season, Rich Henry has built the Flyers into one of the top Class C programs in Maine over his ten year stay.  His teams go to the post-season consistently and in 2013 the boys had their best season ever, going 17-2 and reaching the Western Maine Championship game.  Rich credits the success of the program to the great players and leaders he has coached and the strong support from the parents and the entire Waynflete community.  However, Coach Henry, who captained the University of Maine team in 1986, has been the catalyst for the success.  His focus on strength training, team play and defense have earned the program more and more wins every year and several conference championships.  Congratulations to Coach Henry and Waynflete Boys Basketball.   Good luck to the team in this year’s post season.

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