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MARCH 2024

Dear Rachael,


There are smiles all around at LFA as students prepare for spring break, starting this weekend! Weve had a busy month, filled with plenty of opportunities for alumni-student engagement. Thank you to the many alumni who returned to campus to talk to students at the networking night and in the journalism and entrepreneurship classes. And we are grateful to our Alumni Advisory Board (AAB) members who returned to campus on March 8-9 for their annual meeting.


Read more below about upcoming events at LFA, from our Gala on April 27 to choir and orchestra concerts in April and events with two well-known authors.


Hope to see you on campus soon!



Ruth Keyso

Senior Director of Alumni Engagement & Philanthropy

847-615-3268 (office)

847-224-6072 (cell)

rkeyso@lfanet.org

www.lfanet.org/give

GALA 2024: The art of the imaginable

Saturday, April 27

6 p.m. – Lake Forest Academy

Our BIG night of the year is fast approaching. Join us for a spectacular evening with faculty and friends…a gala that immerses you in the art world, an event filled with surprises…


This ARTrageous evening will include a cocktail reception, Gala program, student entertainment, avant-garde dinner, and a paddle raise to benefit the Fine and Performing Arts Department at LFA.


See all details on the LFA website.


Register for Gala
Be a Sponsor

Bird Artist Series

The Bird Artist Series will host two community events in early April.


Join us at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 3 for a discussion with author Julie Otsuka. Otsuka is the award-winning author of the novels When the Emperor Was Divine and The Buddha in the Attic. Her newest novel is The Swimmers.


On Monday, April 8, at 7 p.m. Jonathan Eig will visit campus. Eig is the author of six adult books and four childrens books, and those books have been translated into nearly 20 languages. His most recent work is King: A Life.


These events are free and open to the public and will be held in The Cressey Center for the Arts on the LFA campus. Read more online.

Concerts on Campus

Join us on campus for one of the following student concerts this spring. All performances are free and open to the public:


Orchestra Concert: April 17

VOX Concert: April 24

Solo Concert: May 16

Choir and Studio Fest: May 21


All events take place at 7 p.m. in The Cressey Center for the Arts (or Reid Hall) on the LFA campus.

Girl Powered!

Students in LFA’s Women of Color Empowered club hosted a panel discussion with four alumnae on Tues., Feb. 27. This was an opportunity for members of the faculty and student community to come together to celebrate, amplify, and honor the contributions of women of color. Thank you to Felicia Edwards Houston 90, Alisha Bhutani Patel 96, Willow Walker 03, and Liz Peinado 08, for engaging with our students and serving as role models for them. Thank you for sharing your stories of unity, perseverance, community, and support. Your personal anecdotes and insights on life as women of color were motivating to our young people. Thank you.

seated, l to r: Willow Walker 03, Felicia Edwards Houston 90, Liz Peinado 08, Alisha Bhutani Patel 96; standing, l to r: Lily Botero 25, Gabi Stewart 24, Xitlali Ocote-Arellano 25, and Assistant Head of School and Academic Dean Nancy Nassr P24, 25

Alumni Networking Night Turns 10

LFA was thrilled to celebrate its 10th annual Josh Rothstein Young Alumni-Student Networking Night with 10 extraordinary alumni representatives on the evening of Feb. 29 in Reid Hall. Thank you, alumni, for joining our students to talk about college and careers and to share advice about your journey post LFA. More than 80 students in grades 9 through 12 attended this popular annual event. And we were honored to be joined by Nancy and Steven Rothstein, parents of Josh '05, for whom this event is named. Thank you, alumni representatives!


below, front, l to r: Piper Benjamin Schlafly 14, Allie Cedergren 13, James Padley 13, Rebecca Raudabaugh 09, Peter Corsiglia 17; back row, l to r: Ford Johnstone 16, Malcolm Chaka 15, Mbasa Mayikana 14, Head of School Chris Tennyson P27, Nate Chase 14, Shaopeng Frank Gu 21


View event photos.

Welcome Home, AAB

Alumni Advisory Board (AAB) members returned to campus (or Zoomed in) for the annual meeting on March 8-9. We enjoyed conversation with members of the Board of Trustees about strategic planning; took a tour of the athletic center construction site; and learned about the latest developments in the arts and plans for Gala 2024. The group also enjoyed a Saturday-morning discussion session with Head of School Chris Tennyson P27 about the state of the school. Some members arrived early to participate in classes at LFA and to take a tour with a Caxy Key. Thank you to our alumni ambassadors for their commitment to LFA! And thank you to Chris Tennyson, Trustees Gloria Harper P93, Katie Frekko P21, 24, 27, Margeaux McReynolds 02, Charlie Cooper 96, P28, Todd Altounian 86; faculty members Darrin Madeley P11, 14 and Jason Koenig P26; and construction manager Alan Woodyard for engaging with the group this weekend. Read more about the AAB on the LFA website.


below, l to r: Jaime Hermosillo 07, Athletic Director Darrin Madeley P11, 14, Construction Manager Alan Woodyard, Elizabeth Alicea 98, Jeff Konker 66, Allison Stankowicz 12, Leland Brewster 07, Charlie Cooper 96, P28, Trustee Todd Altounian 86, Peter Corsiglia 17, Mark Karstrom 80, P18, Jordan Wolff 15, Cecily Barnett Meers 69, P97,09, Artie Preiss 04, and Josh Brass 10.

Alumna Artist Featured in Evanston

Congratulations to Ferry Hall alumna Barb Curtis 70, whose paintings were recently showcased at the Evanston Art Center. Her exhibition, Swimmers, is on display in Evanston through March 31. An opening reception was held on Feb. 25, featuring remarks from Barb about her work, her education in the arts, and her sources of inspiration. Congratulations, Barb!

Alumni in the Classroom

Several alumni entrepreneurs visited the classroom recently to talk with students in our entrepreneurship class about the rewards and challenges of building a business: Adam Wisco 17 and Johnna Gross 03 (on zoom), Henry Cowie 08, and Cecilia Lanyon 06. In addition, sports journalist Dick Quagliano 75 visited the journalism classes to talk about his longtime career in writing, which started at LFA. Thank you, alumni!


pictured below: Matt Vaughn and Henry Cowie 08, CFO of Swag Golf

CEO Johnna Gross (J. Lynn) '03 zooms in from Seattle on March 1 to talk about creativity and persistence in starting her business, Copperpeace.

Adam Wisco 17 spoke with students on Feb. 16 via Zoom from Croatia, where he is playing hockey professionally. In college, Wisco started the company Biggabed.

Sports journalist and LFA alumnus from the Class of 1975, Dick Quagliano, spoke to students in our journalism classes on Feb. 29 about his work as a local sports reporter. Dick was recently honored in the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame

Local entrepreneur Cecilia Lanyon ’06 speaks with students in the entrepreneurship class about establishing her businesses, The Gallery and The Peanut Gallery.

College Dinner Series

Thank you to faculty members Marianela Gonzalez, Matt Vaughn, and Paul Makovec, who hosted college dinner series events at Washington University St. Louis and Indiana University on Feb. 29 and March 1, respectively. We are so proud of our college Caxys and the great work they are doing! Thanks for staying in touch with us at Dear Old LFA.

caption for photo above: Caxys gather in St. Louis on Feb. 29: clockwise from left: Alejandro Quiroz ’23, Mariana Quiroz ’22, LFA Spanish teacher Marianela Gonzalez, Ben Kolontyrskiy ’22, Bradley Ma ’23, Brooke Farrell ’22, former LFA science teacher Debbie Witmer, Sophie Waimon ’20, Gigi Taillon ’21

LFA alumni at Indiana University get together in Bloomington on March 1: clockwise from left: JJ Alexos ’23, Emily Meyer ’14 (MBA student), Alexandra Buric ’22 , LFA math department chair Paul Makovec, and LFA math and social sciences teacher Matt Vaughn P’27

Caxys join Vaughn and Makovec in Bloomington for coffee on March 2: clockwise from left: Maria Johnson ’21, Matt Vaughn P’27, Bella Martinez ’21, Paul Makovec, and Joanne Kang ’21

Do You Match?

If your employer matches donations, you can double or triple the impact of your gift! 


Support LFA students today! Visit give.lfanet.org and use the search field in the online giving form to find out if you or your spouse’s company has a matching gift program.


Giveaway opportunity! The first 10 people to submit a corporate matching request with their Academy Fund gift will receive a pair of Caxy spirit socks.


To participate in the sock giveaway:


  • Make a gift of $25 or more
  • Submit confirmation of matching gift request to Hannah Shallenberger at hshallenberger@lfanet.org

Summer Academy Registration Now Open

Registration for Summer Academy 2024 is live. Following a successful launch of the very first Summer Academy in 2023, the program will once again benefit high school students as well as middle school students. Read more on the LFA website.

Athletic Center Updates

Construction on the Athletic Center Expansion (ACE) is moving along smoothly. Read updates and view video on our YouTube page. Fundraising continues on this effort, the largest capital project in LFAs history. If youre interested in learning more and supporting this project, please contact a member of the Advancement team.


For more news about the sports teams on campus, visit the LFA Athletics website.

Class Notes and Death Notices

We plan to run class notes and death notices in the alumni enews as well as in the Review. Read recent submissions. Send your career/family updates and photos to classnotes@lfanet.org

Contact Info Updates

If you have recently moved, changed jobs or have a new email address or cell number, please let us know so that we can update our database. Send your data to updates@lfanet.org

Link In with Us

Alumni, stay connected with us through the LFA Alumni LinkedIn page.

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