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  Timothy W. Johnson |
November 1, 2011 |
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Freshman Seminar - The Foundation of a Bay School Career 
How can I fit in and make friends? How can I discover my interests and passions and find ways to pursue them?
These are just a few of the questions on the minds of ninth graders as they begin their high school career. The move up from middle school to high school is a significant transition for most teenagers—and it involves a number of new experiences across the academic, social, and emotional realms. At Bay, our commitment to educating students pays attention to guiding and supporting both their intellectual and personal growth. Bay's life skills curriculum spans all four years and encourages students to examine a number of educational, technological, personal, interpersonal and societal issues that affect their lives both in and outside of school.
Next comes a unit that asks students to think about the ways that they learn best. Led by Courtney DeHoff, Director of Learning Services, students discuss a number of different learning modalities. Some students are visual learners; some better understand information that is presented in an auditory format, while others are tactile/kinesthetic learners who learn best by doing. Each freshman takes an online quiz to investigate what type of learner s/he is. Students create an online folder system to organize their work and various resources and organizational tools are discussed. Time is also spent considering the powerful role that a positive mindset plays in achieving better learning outcomes. Toward the end of the first trimester, Project Center Director Brad Niven introduces students to a methodology for problem solving called Design Thinking, a way of thinking strategically as a foundation for both design and academic endeavors during their careers at Bay. Design Thinking involves the process of considering the context of a problem, creatively generating ideas and solutions and then testing the solutions, making refinements as necessary. Using video and in-class hands-on projects, each freshman will practice the methodology while utilizing the facilities at Bay's new Project Center. Finally, during trimesters two and three, Bay School librarian Rachel Shaw guides freshmen through an investigation of the world of 21st century research which includes learning how to evaluate web sites using Google search tools, finding articles in subscription databases and creating "works cited" pages within the context of their Humanities Africa research project. Freshman Dean, Matt Hannibal meets with the freshmen in groups to consider the broad questions "Who am I" and "What do I value" in the context of various cultural identifiers including race, gender, and socioeconomic group. Through class discussion, activities, and film, students examine social norms within their families, their communities and American culture and reflect upon how they are perceived as individuals and how they perceive those they interact with—all against the backdrop of the Bay School mission and philosophy. | ||||||||||||||
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Introducing New Members of the Bay School Faculty - 2011-2012 According to the Vedas, one of the Hindu holy texts, a teacher is only as good as the student, and the student only as good as the teacher. This recognition that learning is a mutually collaborative exercise lives at the Bay School. Each of us, adult and child, is both a learner and a teacher, and so the relationship between student and teacher is not hierarchical but, rather, a circle of collaboration. In this circle, one finds inquiry, respect, expertise, generosity, humility, discovery and passion. This year, in addition to the new freshmen and transfer students whom we have welcomed to our community, several teachers have joined the circle.The Bay community welcomes seven new members to our faculty in the 2011-2012 academic year.  All are deeply experienced in their fields and share a commitment and passion for the school's future-focused mission brought to life through hands-on, collaborative learning. Lise Shelton - Dean of Faculty, History Lise brings more than twenty years of school experience to Bay as a teacher, academic dean, college counselor, admissions director and executive coach at a broad range of institutions including The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Deerfield Academy, San Francisco University High School and most recently at Sonoma Academy, where she served as a member of the founding faculty and administration. In addition to teaching core history and literature courses to students in grades seven through college, Lise has developed integrated Humanities curricula and electives in religion, philosophy, sociology and psychology. Beyond the classroom, she has coached both boys' and girls' varsity athletic teams, served as multicultural dean at two schools, and directed Summerbridge San Francisco. Lise graduated cum laude from Wellesley College with a BA in History and Chinese studies. Her joy in working with teachers is the same joy she has in working with students: she loves helping them cultivate mastery of skill and vitality of voice. In addition to her role as dean of faculty at Bay she teaches history courses. Lise adores dogs, travel, cooking, and humorous footwear. Andy Shaw - Academic Dean, Mathematics Andy joined the Bay School faculty in 2005 as one of the early architects of the school's math program. After taking a one-year hiatus during 2010-2011to earn his master's degree in Education Leadership from the Klingenstein Center at Columbia University's Teachers College, Andy has returned to serve as academic dean and teaches mathematics, having designed and taught core and elective math courses including Game Theory and Seminar in Independent Mathematics Research. He is passionate about guided-discovery and problem-based learning, about the importance of interdisciplinary connections, and about the cognitive science underlying the educational process. Andy earned his BA from Bowdoin College, where he majored in Math, minored in Chemistry, and was the captain of the varsity swim team. Andy co-founded Bay's Outing Club and has served as a class dean. Prior to his work at Bay, Andy taught, coached, and designed curriculum at Northfield Mount Hermon School, in western Massachusetts. Ascha Drake - Fine Arts Ascha is a devoted arts educator, collaborator, and developer of arts-integrated curricula employing Project Zero's Studio Habits of Mind to guide her teaching practice which is grounded in exploration, personal voice, and reflection. Ascha balances teaching art with her studio practice as a painter and printmaker. You can see her work at www.aschadrake.com. Ascha received her BA in Studio Art and Art Education from Skidmore College and her MFA in printmaking from Cranbrook Academy of Art. Interested in museum art education, Ascha currently works with the de Young Museum, the Contemporary Jewish Museum, The Oakland Museum, and the Legion of Honor. Christopher Kuszmaul - Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics Chris teaches a range of computer science, mathematics and physics courses at Bay. Having earned his BS at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Computer Science and Engineering, and a master's degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana, Chris worked in the field of high performance supercomputing for fifteen years, participated in several startup companies, and served as a senior research scientist at the NASA Ames Research Center. Chris transitioned from a career as a scientist and engineer into teaching, and has taught mathematics, physics, computer science, creative writing, and Aikido at the elementary through graduate school levels at schools in the Bay Area, in Illinois, at MIT, and in the former Soviet Union. Practicing the art of teaching with many different types of learners in many different settings inspired him to earn teaching credentials in Mathematics, Physics, and General Science. Chris is certified as a fifth-degree black belt, and has taught Aikido on a regular basis at Stanford University. Feroze Munshi - Assistant Director, Senior Signature Program During his nine years of experience as a math, physics, and digital media arts teacher, Feroze has developed and taught curricula that incorporated project-based learning; serving as a teaching partner on interdisciplinary projects and exhibitions. Feroze earned his BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Miami and began his career in education teaching mathematics on the high school level. Moving west to California, he was a founding member of the faculty at two small high schools: a high tech, media arts focused school in San Diego, and an arts and tech charter school in Hayward; both focused on developing innovative pedagogical models that centered on project based learning in disadvantaged communities. Outside of school, Feroze is an avid bicyclist and NPR junkie, and spends a lot of time in his kitchen, cooking and learning. Brad Niven - Director, Bay School Project Center, Engineering and Design Brad earned his BFA degree in Industrial Design at California College of the Arts, and has worked in the design and product development industry for twenty years while simultaneously pursuing parallel vocations as a professional jazz pianist, composer, and audio engineer. His engineering and design career has included designing medical devices, developing research tools for a Silicon Valley think tank, working at the renowned design firm, frogdesign, inc., and at the Exploratorium. Teaching students who are interested in the fundamentals of design and engineering has been by far the most rewarding part of his career. He served as a consultant to develop the research and design of the Bay School's initial engineering program in 2008-2009 and taught Conceptual Physics and Humanities at the Athenian School from 2009-2011 where he directed Athenian's award-winning robotics program. Being able to connect design thinking in myriad ways is the common thread to everything he does, from physics projects to musical composition to robots. Inspiring students to become lifelong learners is Brad's goal, regardless of the subject. Jane Uyeda - Humanities, Literature A deeply experienced educator, Jane has taught Humanities, history and literature at Cate School, San Francisco University High School and the School Year Abroad program in Beijing during her twenty-year career as an educator. As a founding faculty member at The Oxbow School in Napa and at Blue Oak School, Jane developed integrated curricula and taught Humanities programs. She received her BA from Columbia College and is currently pursuing a master degree at Columbia in the Klingenstein Center for Independent School Leadership program. Jane believes that process is at the heart of education. By staying open to new and different ideas, constantly examining them from different perspectives, and being tolerant of differences, she believes that people can undergo a continual process of growth and renewal. Jane's interests include a love of reading and writing, playing music, and spending time outdoors. She has been teaching and practicing with Shotokan Karate of America for 30 years and continues to pursue the art.  |
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 Brad Niven Project Center Director |
Celebrating the Opening of the Bay School Project Center On October 26th members of the faculty, board of trustees, current and alumni parents and friends of Bay gathered to celebrate the opening of the Bay School Project Center, the new home of Bay's engineering and design programs. Located just steps away from the main campus, the 4,000 sq.ft. Center is a flexible, well-equipped, learning laboratory—encouraging creativity and collaboration in a wide range of pursuits. Its facilities, programs, and highly qualified faculty provide Bay School students with unique opportunities to investigate and apply theory and knowledge through the process of creating hands-on projects.
The Project Center brings the Bay School curriculum to life. From freshman to senior year, students are challenged to think in new ways and persevere toward solving complex problems across academic disciplines. In Freshman Seminar, 9th graders are introduced to the fundamentals of Design Thinking, a paradigm developed at Stanford and MIT, that builds their creative capacity to work as members of a team, employing a "think outside the box, fail early and often" approach to solving real-life problems. As students progress through their academic career at Bay, they will experience numerous opportunities to apply these important critical thinking skills through hands-on work in the Project Center. |
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Spotlighting the Fine Arts at Bay The ground floor galleries on campus currently showcase outstanding collections of student work that represent the broad range of media employed in Bay's visual art courses. In painting and drawing, sculpture, digital photography, videography and publication arts classes, Bay School students learn and practice the creative skills that enable rich artistic self expression. Visit us on campus to experience and appreciate these wonderful works in person.
Portraits in Wire is a 3D Foundations Class project inspired by the work of Alexander Calder as exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in spring 2011. After studying their own facial features, details and proportions, students worked to capture the essence of their self portraits. First they executed quick gesture drawings, continuous line drawings and sketches from photographs of themselves. They then developed initial concept sketches for their self-portrait sculpture. Students then learned how to manipulate wire to construct forms using a variety of tools to create distinct visual effects. They focused on using the element of line to expressively convey an aspect of themselves. Intentionally, some students demonstrated an economy of wire usage creating their portrait from a single, continuous piece of wire. 3D Foundations Class, Spring 2011 Instructor: Laura Anderson
Panorama Photography demonstrates a digital photography technique that joins multiple images to create a single image in wide view. For this project students located landscape-oriented scenes. Using manual exposure control on a Canon digital single-lens reflex camera they took a series of photographs by panning a selected focal area , being sure to overlap each image by approximately 1/4th of the composition. Using Adobe Photoshop CS5, they seamlessly connected the separate images into a single photograph, with images flattened and saved as JPEG files. Enjoy!
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  Steve Glass Athletic Director  Erica Kajdasz Asst. Athletic Director |
Fall Season Breakers' News
 It seems like the first day of school was just yesterday, however Breakers teams are already nearing the end of our fall athletic seasons. Fall highlights include new soccer coaches, vying for the girls' varsity volleyball league championship, advancing to the Girls Golf North Coast Section playoffs and placing in the top 10 at sailing regattas. This fall the boys' soccer program welcomed two new varsity coaches that took over the program from beloved coaches Matt Hannibal and Will Goodson. Head Coach Blair Smith joins the Bay community bringing a plethora of playing and coaching experience. He played at Serra High School and then earned a collegiate soccer scholarship to UC Santa Barbara where he was a member of the 2006 National Championship team. Following college Blair played professionally in Europe before returning back to the States. Blair's positive impact on the Bay Soccer program was felt immediately, and both players and parents have great respect for his coaching approach. New Assistant Coach David Yount grew up in Seattle and played in high school and on various travel teams in addition to the Olympic Development Program. David earned a college scholarship to play at USF and is currently working toward his degree. The Bay volleyball program is thriving this fall with thirty-five girls playing on both the varsity and JV teams. Once again the girls' varsity volleyball team is in the thick of BCL-Central league play and focused on winning their 4th consecutive league championship. The team recently hosted its seasonal Breaker Bash, Senior Night and "Blackout" all-school spirit rally at Letterman Gym which was attended by more than two hundred fans cheering them on from the stands. The team is scheduled to compete for the league championship during the first week of November. Please check their schedule online and join Bay fans in cheering them to victory! The girls' varsity golf team competed in the Bay Area Conference League Championship match on Tuesday October 11th at Lincoln Golf Course. Six of the thirteen team members played in the championship and led our team to victory! The girls won the team championship and won the automatic bid to move on to the North Coast Section tournament. The Bay School Sailing teams are having their best seasons ever with many more regattas to come through the end of November. There are twenty sailors on the varsity and JV teams and all sailors continue to improve their competitive skills each week. Recently the freshman boat placed sixth in the Sea Otter Regatta and the sophomore boat placed fifth at the Pumpkin Regatta. The Bay sailing program has a very bright future. Be sure to check Bay athletics schedules for all fall sports online and come out to support our teams as they enter the playoffs and league championships. GO BREAKERS! |
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  Will Sano, Class '12 |
Looking to the Stars at the Aardvark Observatory By Will Sano, '12
Over the weekend of October 14th Bay Astrophysics teacher Miles Chen, accompanied by Athletic Director Steve Glass, led a group of twelve Bay School students on a three-day overnight observational astronomy field trip to the Aardvark Observatory in Groveland, CA. Gary Bengier, a real space enthusiast and eclipse chaser, (and father of Blake, '15) constructed the Aardvark Observatory back in 2007 to pursue his passion as an amateur astronomer. After learning about Miles' astrophysics classes, Gary generously offered Miles and his students a trip to the Aardvark Observatory as an opportunity for us to experience being amateur astronomers for a weekend, not to mention the chance to take some amazing images of space. In the weeks leading up to the trip Miles and Gary instructed the class in the skills necessary to be an amateur astronomer: how to select targets for observation, how to operate a telescope, and how to take images with a telescope. Students were divided up into four separate teams, each with our own set of tasks to perform in the operation of the telescope.
Between sleeping and operating the telescope in the Aardvark Observatory, several students took a day trip with Steve Glass and Gary into nearby Yosemite National Park. At just an hour's drive from Groveland and the observatory, Yosemite provided the perfect setting for students to appreciate the natural beauty of the Sierra Nevada. Students took a short hike to Sentinel Dome, from the top of which they could observe the entire Yosemite Valley, including the majestic El Capitan, Half Dome, and Yosemite Falls. Before returning to observing, the hikers sat down to a large meal of dumplings and Chinese chicken salad, which, like all the meals on the trip, had been cooked as a collaborative effort by all the students on the trip under Miles' guidance.
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A Gathering Conversation with Author Richard N. Bolles
On October sixth the Bay School Community warmly welcomed Richard N. Bolles, the award-winning author of the career counseling book What Color is Your Parachute and grandfather of Bay student Christian, '14. Recipient of the 2006 National Samaritan Award, the Library of Congress has named Bolles' book as one of 25 that have shaped reader's lives. Updated annually, What Color is Your Parachute has appeared on The New York Times best-seller list for more than 280 weeks since its initial commercial publication in 1972 and has been translated into 14 languages worldwide.
 Speaking informally to an audience of high school teenagers, Richard Bolles began by discussing the importance of looking inside ourselves to become aware of who we are, how we think and learn, what we value, and what our unique intuition tells us. The value of learning, as he described it, is being able to apply knowledge in a given context, giving it true meaning. He encouraged Bay students to take full advantage of their time in high school and college to explore and come to know themselves, their passions, and the world that surrounds them saying: "It's not what you see—it's what you notice" and "We hear what we are listening for." This kind of awareness and self understanding is the best guide to lead us along the path of life in the future. Mr. Bolles also encouraged his listeners to focus on learning important lessons from the inevitable failures that each of us experience in life. Suggesting that man is the only living being designed from the beginning to be able to learn from failure and adapt, our ability to "rise from the ashes" is a true measure of success in life, he said. |
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Outdoor Club - Fall Adventures
Enjoy these photos of the Outing Club's Backpacking Leadership Training Trip to Yosemite in September
The 2011-2012 school year is off to a blazing start for the Bay Outing Club. One of the school's largest and most active clubs, membership this year includes almost thirty students spanning the 9th through 12th grades, supported by drama teacher and experienced outdoor enthusiast, Katherine Riley. The club meets weekly during club time on Fridays and sponsors four to five weekend trips to wilderness locations throughout Northern California. In addition to the weekend overnight excursions this year, members of the Outing Club have suggested ways for the group to get outside more often and to encourage others to play and learn in the outdoors. New this year are Friday hikes (during designated meeting time the group heads out into the Presidio to explore the beauty of the Bay School campus) and planned weekend day trips for surfing and hiking. Student leaders have suggested and spearheaded these and other efforts, including the return of sea-kayaking. Whether we are sleeping under the stars in the Sierra or marveling at the bioluminescent dinoflagellates in Tomales Bay during a nighttime paddle, we are grateful for the opportunities the outdoors provides us with to reflect on our place in the world. Outing Club activities also include educating our members about a wide range of outdoor pursuits, teaching outdoor safety, and promoting environmental stewardship through increasing awareness of the richness, interconnectedness, and fragility of the natural world. Outing Club members aspire to becoming confident leaders, wise risk-takers, and responsible teammates, practicing the self-reflection borne of challenge, interdependence and solitude. All Bay students are invited and encouraged to take part in Outing Club trips and programs. Join us! |
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On Stage at Bay—Anatomy of Gray October 27, 28, 29 in the Great Room
The fall play, Anatomy of Gray, by award-winning playwright Jim Leonard Jr. took the Bay stage on October 27, 28, and 29. Leonard describes his newest play as "A children's story for adults." Set in Indiana during the 1880's, the play deals with death, loss, love and healing in a unique coming of age story. When June's father dies, she prays for a healer to come to the small town of Gray; the next thing she knows, there's a tornado, and a man in a balloon blows into town claiming to be a doctor. It's a fable for all ages.
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Bay School Team Swims to Raise Funds for Women's Cancer Services By Eva Geisse, '13
The Bay School of San Francisco participated in the annual Swim-a-Mile for Women with Cancer event for the second time in October. All the proceeds from the event go to the Women's Cancer Resource Center—an organization that provides information, resources, support services, and advocacy for all women with cancer, focusing on women of color, as well as women from low-income communities and/or those who lack access to quality health care. The WCRC helps improve their quality of life through education, supportive services and practical assistance. The Swim-a-Mile event helps ensure that WCRC's programs and services continue and remain free and available to all who need them. This year marked the 16th swim, and the 25th anniversary of WCRC.
Our Bay School team of nine students and three teachers raised more than $5,000 for the Women's Cancer Resource Center. This is more than twice the amount required of a team our size—quite an achievement! Everyone on the Bay team completed the mile in under an hour, and most of our swimmers from last year were able to improve their times. We would like to thank the entire Bay School community for supporting our swim and helping us surpass our fundraising goal! |
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Congratulations to the following members of the Bay School community
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November 2011 Events Calendar
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Congratulations to Bay School senior Daehan Vasquez who has qualified as a semifinalist in the National Achievement Scholarship Program competition sponsored by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. The 1,600 semifinalists were chosen from a field of 160,000 black high school juniors who applied from across the country. The program was initiated in 1964 to recognize and support academically promising black students by providing college scholarships. Finalists will be announced in January 2012, and scholarship winners will be designated in March.
Bay School senior Andreis (Dre) Bergeron recently took 18th place in a field of 177 rock climbers in the open-age division of a climbing competition held at Planet Granite in the Presidio. Dre began climbing as part of the Bay School activities program during his freshman year and it has become his passion. He featured climbing as the subject for his college application essay: "Countless nights, hours, minutes I spend every bit of free time climbing. After soccer, then before lacrosse, till 10 at night on week days, determined to improve my abilities. Climbing is unique—no other activity is so physically and mentally demanding. When you climb, only you can push yourself, only you can decide to strive for that last hold, and only you can decide to pick yourself back up again when you fail. Self-motivation is what it takes to improve. Climbing has taught me never to give up and to always bounce back from failure."
Bay alumna Gaby Gucho-Oliva, Class of 2008, was recently featured in the 
The Bay "Baby Breakers" team has recently expanded with the joyous arrivals of Garrett Warren Glass to Athletic Director Steve Glass and his wife Donna on July 3rd followed by the birth of Madlyn Annabel Simmons Hannibal to Associate Director of College Counseling and Freshman Dean Matt Hannibal and his wife Betsy. The entire Bay community shares their great happiness!
On Saturday, July 30, 2011 Nancy Wheeler, Bay's first very first employee and founding director of admission, married Elliot Dickson. With friends, family, and cows from a nearby pasture looking on, the ceremony took place on the banks of a small pond, beneath a weeping willow on the grounds of the Round Barn Farm in Waitsfield, VT. On hand to witness and bless the event on behalf of Nancy's many Bay School friends were Founding Head of School, the Ven. Malcolm H. Manson and his wife Sandy, longtime friend and Associate Director of College Counseling Matt Hannibal and his wife Betsy, and Bay Academic Dean Andy Shaw.