Alumni Friendsof School of the Madeleine
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Berkeley’s Dominican Elementary School • Since 1937
A Green Space for 21st Century Learning
Check Out Our New Classrooms!
Our Dominican Heart
Welcome Fr. Carl Schlichte!
Remembering Jerry Harvey
In Memorium: Sr. Mary Hilary Miller
Madeleine Parents Transform Classrooms
MAD Class of 1968 Reunion
MADbook Alumni Updates
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by Heather Skinner, Director of Children's Faith Formation and Vice Principal at School of the Madeleine
As we ap-proached the twenty-fourth anniversary of the East Bay Hills Fire, (October 18th) I was reminded of a very difficult day at the Madeleine.
It was the “day after” the devastating fire in which nearly 3,000 homes were lost in Berkeley and Oakland. Most schools in the area, including the Madeleine, closed so that families could re-group and offer support to neighbors and extended family members affected by the fire. Our staff was at school that morning to work on some pressing accreditation paperwork. What began as a somber morning, then took another turn. The Dominican Sisters of Mis-sion San Jose shared that they had come to the painful decision that they would have to reduce the number of schools they were serving. The Madeleine was on the list. While the sisters were very sad to go, they firmly believed that they could leave the Madeleine knowing it was well positioned to carry on the Dominican mission. The strong staff and partnership with the parish would see them through.
At the end of that school year, we said goodbye to the sisters, but fortunately it wasn’t quite the goodbye we thought it would be. The sisters had decided that they would keep their community house next door open, and that they would continue to have an active role in the life of Saint Mary Magdalen parish. We were overjoyed that they would still maintain a strong presence in the community, which they did for many years!
Fifteen years later, in 2007, a few of the sisters from the Motherhouse “came home” to the Madeleine with a very special invitation. They asked the administration and staff if we would consider be-coming an “affiliate school.” This meant that the sisters would re-establish the former connection in the form of outside support for regional staff days, school visits, principals’ meetings, and an an-
Our Dominican Sisters Are Leaving, But This Isn't Goodbye!
Some of the many sisters who have contributed so generously to the Madeleine: Sr. Mary Hilary Miller Sr. Mary David Brennan Sr. Jennifer Daniels Community house at the Madeleine
nual administrators’ conference. Of course, we enthusiastically accepted! Today, Sister Carolyn Marie Monahan, the Coordina-tor of Affiliated Schools, is in constant communication with the Madeleine and other regional affiliate schools, guiding us on how we can continue to bring the Dominican spirit and charism to life in our schools. How blessed we are!
This year, we are faced with another goodbye. With the reno-vations nearly complete at the
Motherhouse, our little community of Saint Mary Magdalen Sisters, including Sister
Mary Liam, Sister Marie Chuc, and our own Sister Jennifer Daniels, will be moving to new community homes at the Motherhouse or at Saint Elizabeth’s Community in Oakland. Watch the church bulletin and email from
School of the Mad-eleine for information about an upcoming farewell celebration for the sisters.
Yes, our awesome neighbors, our beloved sisters, are leaving us, but remember…we’re not really saying goodbye. The Mad-eleine bond we have sealed with the sisters over nearly eighty years is simply too strong for that!
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Newsletter Staff: Debbie Dinneen, Advancement Director; Connie Dillon, Editor; Chris Amado, design. Contributors: Susan Ashworth, Katie Dillon, Lisa Ihnken, Euna Lee, Gisele Nagel, Heather Skinner, Linda Yaris.
The Madeleine’s Alumni & Friends Newsletter
21st Century learning is no longer confined within the classroom walls. The digital age has virtually removed those walls, bringing into our classrooms instant access to new information from across the globe and foster-ing multicultural communication and collabo-ration. Nevertheless, authentic 21st Century learning is so much more than what technol-ogy has to offer. With the ‘walls’ down, we can now venture outside the classroom!
The outdoor classroom is the learning space that research states can improve students’ attitudes, behaviors, learning experiences and academic outcomes. Ac-cording to a study by the State Education & Environment Roundtable (SEER)* on schools with an environment-based curriculum,
the benefits are compelling: 100% had students with improved behavior; 77% had improved standardized test scores; 73% had improved grade point averages. And did you know that our students will spend between
A Green Space for 21st Century Learning
If this newsletter is addressed to a child who no longer lives at your home, please advise us of the correct address by mail, phone (510-526-4744) or email ([email protected]). Thank you!
PRINCIPAL'S LETTER
20%—25% of their time outside the class-room on the playground over the course of a school year? With statistics like that, it’s no wonder we’re looking out the window for our next 21st Century learning improvements!
The next 21st Century transformation that could enhance learning and beautify our campus is the greening of our existing asphalt ‘desert’ (our playground) into a sus-tainable and tranquil learning ‘oasis.’ Imagine the portion of our yard we currently refer to as the ‘garden’ and the area of the playground that runs east from there to the Henry Street fence as a natural landscape and sustainable garden. Now imagine the adjacent hillside as a terraced, amphitheater-style space shaded by a beautiful canopy, with seating to accom-modate all our students.
Our 7th graders planted these seeds through their STEAM assignments (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math). After a visit to Bishop O’Dowd High to learn more about environmental science and how to create a ‘teachable green space’ as a part of their curriculum, the students have been working on projects around irrigation and the design of a new garden area, among others, to help bring these ideas to light.
Help Us Green the MadeleineWill you help us turn this vision into a real-
ity? Our intention is to take this opportunity to honor our Dominican Sisters who will be leaving our convent in January after so many years. The garden and greening project would be dedicated to the Dominican Sisters of Mission San Jose and serve as a living reminder of their presence. What better way to honor the sisters’ years of service nurturing and growing our school than by creating a sustainable garden and green space in their memory?
Sincerely,Kenneth Willers
*(Lieberman, Gerald A. and Linda L. Hoody. Closing the Achievement Gap: Using the Environment as an Integrating Context for Learning. State Education and Environment Roundtable. 1998.)
7th graders are learning and think-ing about greener designs and uses for the planter beds, blacktop, and hillside areas of this eastward-looking section of the play yard.
7th grade students are reimagining the 'greening' of this portion of the Madeleine play yard―stretching from the kinder-garten canopy to the fenced hill at Henry Street (shadowed foreground).
A Green Space for 21st Century Learning 3
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Dominican Sister Donna Marie taught 4th grade from 1990—1992.
photo ©1992 David Eichler
The Dominican sisters celebrated their 800th anniversary as an order in 2006.
The Sisters' legacy of Catholic educa-tion is a gift to the Diocese of Oakland and guides our mission at the School of the Madeleine.
―Ken WillersPrincipal
Charism(n.) /'ker izem/ Gifts from the Holy Spirit that empower a person to serve and help others.
―Dominican Sisters of Mission
San Jose
Check Out Our New Classrooms!
Even the little things were considered in classroom redesign. All classrooms have little alcoves known as media stations, where teachers can easily access and digitally project Internet-based lesson plans.
In many cases, storage has been hidden in plain view. The newly installed whiteboards slide from side to side to unveil hidden storage units. Storage for students is right at their level: books and papers can be placed in individual cub-bies underneath the new whiteboards.
In addition to improvements in storage and lighting, two classrooms received new desks and ergonomic chairs.
Our Dominican Heartby Susan Ashworth
So much of the Catholic identity at the School of the Madeleine is bolstered by the religious sisters in our midst. And at the Mad-eleine, it’s the Dominican Sisters of Mission San Jose who have impacted the school so powerfully.
When the school was opened in May 1937, four Dominican sisters were teaching fewer than 200 students. Ten years later, as the school continued to grow, a convent was added and the Dominican sisters’ long-standing presence at the school was cemented.
In the 78 years since, the Dominican sisters have made many contributions, but most importantly, they have helped the School of the Madeleine commit to the pillars of Dominican spirituality: study, prayer, community and ministry.
Next year, our community of sisters will move to different locations when the convent at the school closes. But the con-nection between the Dominican sisters and the Madeleine will remain. The school will remain part of the Dominican Sisters of Mission San Jose Affiliate Schools Program, a program that establishes a formal relationship with the Mission San Jose in an effort to teach and nurture the Catholic faith through the Dominican charism.
“We want to nurture that Dominican spirit and deepen it for the staff and families and sisters,” said Sister Carolyn Marie, the manager of the affiliate schools program. “The School of the Madeleine has been one of those key schools for us because our relationship goes back so far,” she said.
Our much beloved Sister Jennifer, who serves as a teaching aide in the Kinder-garten classroom, will be continuing in that ministry. Sister Jennifer, like so many of the Dominican sisters before her, continues to embrace the tenets of the faith: preaching the truth in love, and sharing special concern for the young, the poor and the vulnerable.
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Remembering Jerry Harveyby Susan Ashworth
The Madeleine commu-nity lost a vital member of its family this fall after the passing of Jerry Harvey.
Jerry was the devoted husband of Betsy Harvey, the dedicated School of the Madeleine secretary who served Madeleine families for 33 years before her retirement in 2014.
The Harveys' commitment to the School of the Madeleine was long-standing. Betsy and Jerry’s two children, Patrick and Erin, attended the Madeleine from K to 8th grade, and during those years both Betsy and Jerry
were active participants in the Parents As-sociation, volunteering for social, fundraising and athletic events. Jerry and Betsy were also faithful participants in Saint Mary Magdalen’s Hogars Community, a group that met and raised funds monthly for an orphanage in Mexicali.
Jerry was a builder―he founded his own construction company―and built relation-ships that would last: with parents at the Madeleine, with church members, with mem-bers of his collegiate class, with his fraternity brothers.
The seaside was a second home to Jerry and Betsy, who both loved the ocean and loved to sail.
Jerry is remembered for his warm sense of humor, his deep generosity and his kind
mannerisms. “He was always so gentle and warm,” Betsy said.” He was never the kind to harbor a grudge or speak a mean word about anyone.”
Gerald Allen Harvey was born in Columbus, Ohio, as the oldest of three boys. He gradu-ated from Aragon High School in San Mateo, California, in 1967 and graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1971. He met Betsy in 1969 and they married in 1971. They've celebrated 44 years of marriage. Jerry is survived by his wife, Betsy; their chil-dren, Patrick and Erin; and four grandsons.
The School of the Madeleine community offers its deepest condolences to Betsy and her family. We continue to keep them in our prayers.
Jerry Harvey
Welcome Fr. Carl Schlichte!by Lisa Ihnken
The 8th Grade Student Council had a chance to catch up with St. Mary Magdalen’s new pastor, Father Carl Schlichte. Enjoy the highlights of what the students learned during their interview:Claire Durney: What inspired you
to become a priest? Fr. Carl: My uncle was a priest,
and he was such a wonder-ful role model for the ways of community life, like eating together and praying together.
Michael Steele: Did you go to Catholic schools?
Fr. Carl: Yes, I went to De La Salle High School and St. Mary’s College.
Augustina Santa Cruz: What was your favorite year of school and why?
Fr. Carl: My college years were my favorite because of all the close friendships I made during them.
Lucy Ihnken: What is your favorite animal?
Fr. Carl: I really like dogs, but un-fortunately don’t live in the kind of space or have the kind of lifestyle you need to keep one.
Aidan Jacobs Walker: What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
Fr. Carl: Running! I have com-pleted two half marathons and hope to run in a full marathon in the Spring.
Giuliana Sorbi: What is your most inspiring experience so far in your life?
Fr. Carl: Celebrating Mass in St. Peter’s Square at the Basilica.
Talyn Mitchell: What is your favor-ite part of your job?
Fr. Carl: Listening to confession.
Helen Bell: If you could only eat one dessert for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Fr. Carl: That’s a very unfair ques-tion―but it would have to be made up of chocolate and caramel.
Fr. Carl with Vice Principal Heather Skinner at this year's Fall Festival
In Memorium: Sr. Mary Hilary Millerby Lisa Ihnken
Sister Mary Hilary Miller, O.P., former School of the Madeleine teacher and principal, died peacefully at the Dominican Sisters’ Moth-erhouse in Fremont, California, on September 7. She was 90 years old. She was born on October 20, 1924, in San Francisco, California, and was a Dominican Sister for 71 years.
In 2012, Sr. Mary Hilary addressed a gathering at the School of the Madeleine's 75th anniversary luncheon on her years at the Madeleine as a teacher and director of the school band (1948—1950) and 8th grade teacher and principal (1954—1959). She recounted that this was during the opening of the convent in 1949 and the years the Mad-eleine accepted students from St. Jerome's and St. John's parishes before they built schools of their own.
"The Madeleine has always been close to my heart. It's a very special place for me," she remarked at the luncheon, and mentioned that after her visit in 2009, "I was overjoyed that, 50 years after I'd left, the same spirit of dedication to educating the whole child was still here." She also ministered at different Bay Area locations, including at St. William's in Los Altos and at St. Elizabeth's in Oakland.
Sr. Mary Hilary is survived by her grandnieces, grandnephews, other family members, many friends and her former students. Her work touched many lives, and those she taught at the Madeleine and elsewhere will fondly remember her.
Sr. Mary Hilary
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Madeleine Parents Transform Classroomsby Susan Ashworth
Jed Daoust tests a new installation. (In the new 4th grade classroom, left to right): Jed Daoust, Basak Cakici-Adams and TJ Mark have collaborated tirelessly for the last three years, artfully incorporating 21st-Century technology to foster 21st-Century learning in Madeleine classrooms.
We're Almost There!
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A small but talented team of volun-teers were instrumental in transform-ing the School of the Madeleine classrooms. And for that, the whole community is enormously grateful.
Led by Jed Daoust, a Madeleine parent and owner of Daoust Design and Construction, the team included Basak Cakici-Adams, a Madeleine parent and member of the facility advisory board who served as a de-tail and color consultant during both design and build phases; TJ Mark, a Madeleine parent and advisory board
member who worked with Basak to get the initial conceptual design off the ground; and Fred Schmidt, a Madeleine parent and owner of FJS Associates, a commercial painting company who donated the painting labor for the project.
As team leader, Jed was immersed at every turn: from the earliest discussions about revamping the school’s classrooms to the final touches that appear in the classrooms today. “We spent hundreds of hours pouring over every possible detail to ensure we were maximizing our investment and providing a world-class, 21st century learning environment for our chil-dren,” Jed said. “It has been an awesome collaboration.”
The final classrooms are a triumph. There’s additional stor-age, with whole cabinets hidden neatly behind new movable whiteboards. With the old cloakrooms removed, students and teachers alike have more elbow room. Even the precise loca-tion of the projectors, fans and window shades was consid-ered, resulting in an intuitively thoughtful teaching environment.
At the same time, Jed and his team made sure that the alterations were respectful of the long-standing traditions of this 78-year-old building.
"Jed’s stewardship from the beginning gave us all confidence that the 21st Century Classroom project would exceed all of our expectations, be done in time, and would remain on budget―and Jed accomplished all three,” said principal Ken Willers. “I am tremen-dously grateful for [the team’s] expertise, gener-ous spirit and commit-ment to the mission of the Madeleine,” he said.
The School of the Madeleine community offers a profound thank you to Jed, Basak, TJ and Fred.
Drawing by Katie Dillon, 5th grade
What is the common thread that ties an unusually close group of teenagers together? For us, it was the Catholic grammar school experience at the School of the Madeleine back in the 1960s. We grew up together, got in trouble together, made our first communion together, took social dancing classes together, and had our first crushes together.
On the evening of July 11, 2015, 32 graduating and past mem-bers of the School of the Madeleine’s awesome Class of 1968 met in the Church Hall for a long overdue and much anticipated 47-year- old class reunion. The occasion? WE ALL TURNED 60!
Madeleine Class of 1968 Reunion
There were plenty of hugs, tears, laughing, talking, crying, eating and singing all mixed together in one very emotional night. Although some classmates live locally, remained friends, and stayed in con-tact with each other, some members of the class had not seen each other for over 40 years. There were 42 members of the Class of ’68; 3 have passed away, and of the 39 students left, 33 made it to the reunion!
Since that time, classmates have been scattered across Califor-nia and the world, living in Chile, the Virgin Islands, North Carolina, Idaho, Washington, and Oregon. Sadly, three members of the Class
have passed away. But, with an amazing turnout, all but 6 members of the Class came to the school that evening and reminisced about old times, caught up on what we’re all doing now, and generally just enjoyed being together again.
Among the attendees from the Class of ’68 were:
George (Buddy) Rose, brother of the late Sister Kathleen Rose, who taught 8th grade at the Madeleine in the '70s and served as principal in the '80s;
Ellen San Souci Diamond, sister of the late acclaimed children's author Robert D. San Souci, who wrote the story for the Disney film "Mulan" and more than 100 books for young readers; and Dan San Souci, illustrator, artist, and author of 80 children’s books himself.
Rene Hanlon Gilbert, daughter of the late Janet Hanlon, mother of 11 children and very active in St. Mary Magdalen Parish and the infamous house across the street with the crabapple trees in the backyard.
Elaine Colombatto, daughter of Louise Colombatto, owner of Carbone’s Orchids, also very active in the school and the church; and three generations―mother, daughter, brother, and nephew―were all married at Saint Mary Magdalen.
Peggy Gardella Grant, daughter of the his-toric Gardella’s Pharmacy on Solano Avenue in Berkeley.
Mary Jo Turner Lloyd, daughter of the late Eugene Turner, an American Champion Figure Skater and occasional stand-in for Carey Grant.
by Linda Yaris, Associate Director of Admissions, St. Mary's College High School
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The Class of 1968: then and now
CLASS OF 2011 REUNITE before going off to college. The Madeleine hosted its first college send-off reunion, honoring the Class of 2011's advancement from high school to college.
CHET GRYCZ was CEO of Octavo for nearly ten years. Octavo specialized in digitizing rare books and manuscripts with ultra-high resolution digital cameras, and published digital versions of these works. Oc-tavo’s specialized cameras were permanently installed at the Rare Book Room of the Library of Congress and the Bodleian Library in Oxford, UK! Octavo digitized extraordinary works from numerous libraries across the US and Europe.
After closing Octavo, Chet es-tablished a project called Great Libraries of the World (GLOW). GLOW created and produced a non-profit documentary series of PBS-TV programs to honor the librarians, curators and subject specialists Chet came to know. Their passion and work focus on two goals: preserving the stories of our culture, and invigorating society by encouraging enquir-ing minds. They inspired the formation of the series. GLOW’s mission is to cast light on the many ways librarians inspire us to be curious, creative and capable. DVDs of each of eight current GLOW programs are available for checkout from the Madeleine Library―contact Sheila Ring at [email protected].
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More information about GLOW can be found at: www.greatli-braries.org
Chet is a past parent of the Madeleine (children Stefan and Krysia are graduates). He and his wife, Monica, are St. Mary Magdalen parishioners. Chet also cantors at our 8:00am Mass!
CAROLINE CARR ('05) is working as an English teacher for the Tushita Foundation, a program that provides after-school tutoring for children in Amber, India, a village outside of Jaipur. As a finalist for the Princeton in Asia Fellowship Program, she was recommended for the position because of her passion for religion, teaching, and children. Starting in September, she will be working with boys and girls, ages 5—14, from both Hindi and Muslim backgrounds for the school year. In addition to teaching English, Caroline will be creating programs for the chil-dren to learn about geography, history, and art.
GEORGIA WHITE ('11) is the senior class president of St. Mary’s College High School―
congratulations, Georgia! Her brother Blake just started as a freshman and is on the football team. Her father, Dave (‘77), runs the Jail Division for the Professional Standards for the City of Berkeley. Dave recently played in the SMCHS Golf Tournament with Madeleine classmates Jay Lawson & John Forte!
MELANIE JACOBS ROMERO ('05) has just moved home after a year in London, studying for her Masters in Museum Studies at University College London. She even had a chance to work at Windsor Castle! Her sister Katie (‘10) is now a sophomore at Sonoma State studying Com-munications. She is also starting her second year on the Sonoma State Women's Lacrosse team.
A New Madeleine Website is Coming to You Soon! We’ll be sharing breaking Madeleine news stories and event announce-
ments and providing an easy way for you to sign up to get more informa-tion. In the meantime, please send your email to [email protected] so we can keep you updated on MAD events. Also be sure to follow the School of the Madeleine on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube!
Stay Connected
The Class of 2011 relive the Madeleine tradition of the parachute ceremony―but, this time, to mark their advancement to college!
The highlight of the Class of 2011's College Send-Off Reunion was visiting with their former teachers: Mrs. Gina Gamble, 7th grade (2nd row, far left), Ms. Sydney Peck, kindergarten (2nd row, 2nd from left), and Mrs. Heather Skinner, religion (2nd row, far right).
Caroline Carr (fourth from right) received a warm welcome to India.
Events at the Madeleine 2015—2016
You are cordially invited — Please join us!For more info, please call (510) 526-4744.
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If this newsletter is addressed to a daughter or son who no longer lives at your home, please help us stay connected. Please mail, e-mail, or phone in the correct address.
Thank you!
Email: [email protected]: (510) 526-4744
Dec. 1, 2015
Apr. 23, 2016
Jan. 23, 2016
Jan. 31, 2016
Jan. 8, 2016
Berkeley’s DominicanElementary School
Since 1937
School Tour − 8:30am
Spring Auction
Crab Feed
Open House − 10:30am
Alumni Reunion at Brennan's Restaurant − 6:30pmNo-host bar/dinner. All invited.
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