Saint David's School

📍A Saint David's education encourages the pursuit of uncovering passions and talents; fulfilling that very potential is a mission-centric theme for our graduates to carry forward. For years, Michael Kourakos '20 has held an appreciation for photography, one that is rooted from his days at East 89th Street. Now a high school junior, his interests are vast - he has even joined a crew team, and his boat placed 2nd overall in a state competition. However, the versatile talent has found that it is his hobby behind the camera that has spurred his artistic interest as a visual storyteller. "This past Christmas, I was able to visit Kenya to take photos of animals and tributes in their natural lands," Kourakos shared. "The Massai people (as featured in our photo gallery) are the most prominent tribe in the region." A Nilotic ethnic group, they are entirely nomadic. "I witnessed them wandering in bands...they follow the rains, so they are never settle in one place for very long...A remarkable fact about them (the Massai) is that although they have the choice and agency to incorporate technology into their lives, they choose to stay with nature and only rely on their surroundings because it is in line with their traditions." He also expressed that in communicating with people of such cultural differences, he was able to find commonalities through patience and showing care. "In one instance, I shared a cookie - it was amazing to see their faces light up as they tasted it, and in return i could see them trust me." In conclusion, Kourakos was struck by the day-to-day expectations of teenage boys within the tribe. "To see how they handled their responsibilities was fantastic. I can't imagine taking on what so many of them have to do."

Cover photo: As seen on top of a 14,000-foot peak, in full gear, Kourakos completed an 11-day hike. "A great shot is almost entirely dependent on being in the right place at the right time." Where will the next journey take this young explorer? Stay tuned.

📍Saint David’s Honors Tradition ➡️ We are all still thinking about the overwhelming outpour of love and admiration that our community showed for our five retirees (Kim Davidson, Paul Ondreicka, Gisele Rappaport, Jorge Roman, and Miriam O’Regan Roman). Indeed, last week’s ‘Spring Gathering’ is one which will be remembered forever. Representing nearly 140 years of service to Saint David’s School, each of them has made an indelible mark that will carry on in within the fabric of Saint David’s for decades to come.

📍Saint David’s Spring Gathering is only TWO weeks away! Can you imagine the alumni turnout to follow? 🔥

On this ‘preview’ occasion, we to the 2019 wedding of Christopher Wirth ‘04, as seen in this photo from Saint-Jean-de-Luz. Did you know that nearly a dozen SD classmates were on hand for the celebration? Indeed, several faces we hope to see return to campus on the 16th are right here! Text a friend tonight and RSVP for your Saint David’s return.

Photo: Special Class of 2004 shoutout to our Alumnus of the Year Luke Jenkins, John Amodeo, John Bloemsma, Russell Frelinghuysen, Nicholas Williams, Amir Sharif-Emami, Burke Wendt, Will Keesee, and Mark Eck. See you all very soon. 🎉

https://www.saintdavids.org/sd88

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The Acquisition of 15 East 88th Street - The Fourth and final Cutting Townhouse

May 26, 2022

Dear Saint David’s Community,

They say that luck is the residue of design, and throughout the history of Saint David’s, our boys have benefited from those with the wisdom to make the best of both. The confluence of luck and design propelled our first expansion in 1953, from our single building at 12 East 89th Street, the first of four townhouses comprising the Delano and Aldrich-designed Cutting Family compound, into the two adjacent Cutting townhouses, Numbers 14 and 16. Inspired design struck again in 1972 when, anticipating that the school’s needs would once again evolve, the school had the foresight to acquire Graham House, which now provides our boys with a STEAM suite, performance space and athletic facilities second to none in our City.

Fifty years later, unprecedented opportunity and prescient foresight have converged to launch the next exciting chapter in Saint David’s history: the acquisition today of the fourth and final Cutting Townhouse, 15 East 88th Street. In this latest stroke of luck, the opportunity to acquire contiguous, adjacent property was met with design in the form of swift, decisive action by our board, enabled by the prudent fiscal stewardship that has long been a hallmark of our institution. As a fortuitous aside, given the classical tradition of balance around the four pillars of Academics, Athletics, Arts and Spirituality that has guided the school since its beginning, there is a fitting completeness to reuniting all four Cutting homes within the Saint David’s family. Perhaps more fitting still, our boys’ good fortune is now made manifest by the school’s horseshoe footprint that encircles Madison Avenue from East 89th to East 88th Street.

Just as with Graham House a half century ago, this capital undertaking positions Saint David’s for the kind of success that will benefit generations of boys to come. The addition of 15 East 88th (a gracious twin to 12 East 89th, best observed now from Hume Library) will create 12,000 square feet more space to enhance the school’s academic curriculum and address future programmatic endeavors. The addition of an adjacent back yard also increases the school’s outdoor play space by a third, providing a critical outlet for our growing boys’ physical, social and most importantly, emotional well-being and development. Interior backyard space of this magnitude is a rare gift to any educational institution in New York City. Also, the possibility of extending Hyman Hall beneath the new building presents exciting new opportunities for our boys.

With zoning permitting all of these anticipated uses and more, how we deploy this exceptional gift of space to best support our boys on their journey to becoming good men is limited only by the reaches of our imagination – and our willingness to rise to meet it. Not surprisingly, what was once a personal home cannot be used in its current form as it must first be converted for optimal school use, as well as retrofitted for regulatory compliance. But having once again strategically looked beyond our current needs to anticipate future opportunities that may not yet exist, as the school’s programmatic needs evolve, 15 East 88th will be ready and able to meet them.

Although we are in the earliest planning stages of this strategic initiative, we will keep you informed of our thinking and progress at various intervals along the way. In the meantime, grateful for the visionary leadership that allowed us to realize this rare opportunity to benefit our boys and our teachers, and inspired by the strength of our community that compels us to think ahead to who we will be in service to their best selves, we are proud of all this move does to position Saint David’s as the premier learning institution in New York City for decades to come.

Ut viri boni sint,

David O’Halloran
Headmaster

Daniel S. Connolly ’77
President, Board of Trustees

***Saint David’s Alumni and Alumni Parents: To keep up to date with all news and updates, join our Saint David’s community of 2,000+ members on Instagram ***

📍A Historic Day for Saint David’s School ➡️ They say that luck is the residue of design, and today’s news celebrates the strategic ambition of our future. We are thrilled to share that the acquisition of 15 East 88th Street secures an adjacent space to complete Saint David’s contiguous campus: One for the history books: May 26, 2022, the fourth and final Delano and Aldrich-designed Cutting Townhouse is now officially within the Saint David’s family.

🍁 SCO Family of Services Thank you from all at Saint David’s!

📍🚀 The Saint David’s Rocketship is ready for blast off! 💥… ➡️ With the theme of ‘Inquisitive and Innovative’ at the forefront, our community is rallying together to support the 2021-22 Annual Fund!

This year, we celebrate our mission’s call for our boys to be scholarly and creative in service of the good. Annual Fund participation supports COVID mitigation measures and helps close the gap between tuition revenue and yearly expenses within all program areas of our four pillars.

📌 Please click the link below to make a difference! We appreciate your support! 😊

https://www.saintdavids.org/giving

📍Essential to Saint David’s Success: As we anticipate the start of the 2021-22 academic year, we remain optimistic, nimble, and strategic in safely delivering an in-person Saint David’s education for our boys, faculty, and staff, in accordance with our mission and values.

Objectives:
📌 Provide clear expectations, clear communication.
📌 Provide boys with continuity of mission, program, and our quintessential defining experience.
📌 Follow the guidelines set out by the CDC and local government agencies.
📌 Protect the health, safety, and well-being of boys, faculty, and staff.

🎖 Classic Saint David’s - An iconic moment for the ages: Our six distinguished retirees gather to capture the occasion during last week’s Alumni Spring Gathering. (left to right: front - Joe Kilkeary, Phyllis Clark, Nancy Iannicelli, Mike Imbelli; back - Gary Kessler, Alan Fishman).

📍✍️ Thank you for your expertise and insights.

Click the link below to view our brand new ‘Headmaster’s Blog’ entry ➡️ Saint David’s Alumnus Billy Hult '83, president and board member of Tradeweb Markets, a global leader in electronic trading, led our Saint David’s Networking event on Wednesday evening.

Billy credited Saint David’s, which he said, “leads with empathy and compassion, while also being results-driven,” with having inculcated in him recognition of the importance of balancing the two in business. “I learned at an early age what it takes to succeed.”

https://pdohalloran.blogspot.com

You are invited to attend the annual Saint David's Networking Event!

Wednesday, May 19, 2021
6:30 PM

Billy Hult '83, Featured Speaker
President, Tradeweb Markets Inc.

Billy Hult is President of Tradeweb Markets and also serves on the board of directors. Mr. Hult is a central figure in electronic fixed income trading having led the development of several new and innovative marketplaces connecting liquidity providers and consumers. Appointed President in 2008, he has been instrumental in working with clients, partners, and investors. Additionally, he was named to Institutional Investor's annual Trading Tech 40 for five consecutive years. A member of the Saint David's Class of 1983, Billy later attended The Browning School and received a bachelor of arts from Denison University.

Click below to register:

https://forms.gle/NrGZzF6eQ84etPsx5

Zoom details will be sent to registered attendees.

The Saint David’s Networking Event is an occasion for alumni, current parents and parents of alumni to network together. Whether it is for professional, academic or social purposes, this is an opportunity for us to help and support those within our extended community while seeking to enhance our own professional development.

“My barn having burned down, I can now see the moon.” –Mizuta Masahide, 17th century Japanese poet and samurai

📍It was a reassuring sight. Live from the OBT for the first time this academic year, Dr. O’Halloran addressed the Saint David’s Class of 2021 with a message of hope, resilience, and gratitude - core traits that have propelled us forward over the past year.

“When there are massive changes that happen suddenly and throw us off course, you are presented with a choice: you can either hold onto what doesn’t exist, or you can see the moon, you can adjust, and move in a new and even more exciting direction - and that’s exactly what you (the Class of 2021) did...You led us through this pandemic with style and grace. Thank you for being resilient, optimistic, and leading by example.” -Dr. O’Halloran

🏆 Celebrating Accomplishment: We are proud to share that Saint David’s Modern Languages Chair Victoria (Tori) Gilbert has received the New York State Association of Foreign Language Teachers’ Ruth E. Wasley Distinguished Teacher Award. (This honor is given to a NYSAFLT member who demonstrates excellence as a K-12 and/or post-secondary teacher).

According to NYSAFLT, “The winner of the Wasley Award is, in essence, NYSAFLT’s "Teacher of the Year."

She was also named a regional finalist in the Northeast Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (NECTFL)'s 2021 Teacher of the Year competition.

Congratulations, ‘Doctora’ Gilbert!
Saint David’s is so proud of your work.🏅

📍The annual tradition of Saint David’s Seventh Grade Father-Son Dinner continues ➡️ Discipline, mentorship, creativity, teamwork, and loyalty are five of the “Ten Commandments of a Chef” that world-renowned, award-winning restaurateur and Chef Daniel Boulud discussed during our special evening event on Wednesday, April 14. As these characteristics and traits directly connect with Saint David’s mission, this occasion also celebrates the vital connection between father, or any paternal influence, and son at a pivotal moment as our boys prepare to enter their graduating year at Saint David’s.

https://pdohalloran.blogspot.com

To learn more, click above to view our latest ‘Headmaster’s Blog’ entry. 📝 ☑️

📍Throughout our program, especially in Sophrosyne, we are committed to strengthening, within the context of our mission, a culture of inclusion, belonging, and respect for all. Only in doing so, can we fulfill our school’s ultimate aspiration - ut viri boni sint.

“Our boys are watching in moments like these, learning through our words and actions what we value, what we want our school community, our world to be...It’s our responsibility to help them reach higher, learn more, and thereby fear less.” -Dr. O’Halloran

(photo: Saint David’s OBT: January, 2020).

📍The connection will always be here at Saint David’s...

A glance at morning drop-off reminds us that although masks have been a temporary inconvenience of the 2020-21 academic year, they have been a necessity which has enabled Saint David’s to thrive in-person, without interruption, since September.

Let’s continue to do our part in ensuring our full return to normal is in fact right in front of us. One final push ➡️ Let’s find the finish line together:

To Do List:
Masks 😷 ✔️
Social Distancing ↔️ ✔️
Cohorts 🙋🏽🙋🏼‍♂️🙋‍♂️
Hand Washing 🧼 ✔️
Vaccinations 💉 ✔️

📍Saint David’s is grateful to be in good hands - We are elated to share that 95 members of our faculty and staff have received their first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, with 78 having received a second dose...As seen in our photo from Mount Sinai Hospital, Ms. Thorpe and a heroic healthcare worker (who happens to be one of our wonderful Saint David’s parents!) also remind us that even after being vaccinated, our preventative measures and protocols to eradicate the virus remain the same:

we wear masks 😷 ...
we socially distance ↔️ ...
we wash our hands 🧼...
we remain within pod and cohort groups 🧍🏼‍♂️🧍
we lead by example with responsible actions 💯

The finish line is in sight - let’s take care of each other.

📍Saint David’s Week 22 in session, and on campus...One day, we will be able to fully reflect on this feat with awe. Fact is this: our community has risen to the occasion - and it is your own selfless acts and sacrifices that have led us. And now, we collectively raise the bar one final time to push forward for six winter weeks. Safety first. Let’s be heroic.

“Stay vigilant, remain resilient.” -Dr. O’ Halloran, Headmaster

📍Saint David’s 70-Year Legacy Continues - Founders Day marks an annual community celebration and opportunity to connect past and present. Now and forever, our tradition continues with your support. This evening, we welcome you to make a gift to Saint David’s.

All contributions are meaningful - and yours will make a direct impact to the success of our program. Join us today for a most worthy cause and click the link below.

We sincerely appreciate your support, always. Happy Founders Day!

https://giving.veracross.com/sds/give/alumnigiving_21 -amount-step

📍 Iron sharpens iron - As we shape our promising future ahead, Saint David’s core mission has never been more vital in nurturing the leaders of tomorrow. Through our curriculum, our boys learn that cultivating a strong character is essential to effective leadership: work ethic, honesty, empathy, loyalty, integrity, and courage will always shine through. Be a leader and align yourself with those that embody these traits, your course to success will follow. (photo: Saint David’s Young Alumni. 2019).