Stories on Giving

The renovations and technological upgrades to The Cetrulo Family Fencing Center during the summer of 2019 made the NA facility one of the finest fencing centers in the United States. The installation of new, specialized flooring and five state-of-the-art “strips” that provide electronic scoring top the list of improvements within the new center. The upgraded center was opened prior to a historic season for the Minuteman Boys’ Varsity team, which brought home its first-ever State Championship banner in 2020. In addition to clinching the Boys’ New Jersey Interscholastic Fencing Association (NJIFA) Team Tournament title for the first time, the Minutemen also won the District 3 and Prep B championships. The team’s successes also resulted in individual accolades. Sophomores Michael Pyo and Konrad Czyzewski were named USA Fencing All-Americans. Michael was named to the First Team in Foil, while Konrad was named to the Second Team for Saber. The team was led by Head Coach Dan Bailey-Yavonditte, in his second year at the NA helm. Coach “BY”, as the student-athletes call him, was named 2020 USA Fencing National High School Coach of the Year. Renovations to the fencing center were funded by donations from the Cetrulo Family, including Newark Academy Trustee Lawrence G. Cetrulo ’67.

March 12, 2020 was one of very few unhappy days at Newark Academy. The announced closure of the campus due to the coronavirus pandemic left both students and faculty with great uncertainty. Yet just a few weeks later, after a Spring Break filled with skill-building and lesson-plan revisions, the NA faculty and staff were back, delivering educational excellence remotely. Drawing on the expertise of some of the most tech-savvy educators, including Instructional Technologist Stephanie Hammond, Newark Academy faculty members leaned into innovation to ensure that students could continue to learn and to fully engage in all aspects of the NA experience. From live-streamed science lab demonstrations and online art projects to work-out videos, online choral performances and remote school council elections, NA’s faculty and staff met the challenges of creating a “new normal” for students during the nearly three-month long shutdown.

 

To recognize and express appreciation for these efforts, parents and students made gifts to the NA Annual Fund as part of Teacher Appreciation Day on May 7. While several of the gifts honored the entire faculty and staff, most of the gifts were given as a special “thank you” to one or more teachers who were making an impact on the lives of the donating student and his/her family. Teachers and staff members who were honored with such gifts received personal notes of appreciation. As one NA faculty member noted, “There is no better gift to receive from a student or parent than hearing them say ‘thank you for your efforts.’ It really means the world to us.” Teacher Appreciation Day contributed a total of nearly $25,000 to the Annual Fund – and a year’s worth of smiles on the faces of the faculty.

Newark Academy hosts a wide range of noted educators, scientists and writers throughout each school year, giving students the opportunity to hear significant voices and connect their ideas with their work in the classroom. Donor support of the NA Annual Fund makes these lectures and programs possible. This includes Black History Month which was celebrated at Newark Academy throughout the month of February 2020. Student presentations at Morning Meeting, club meetings and class discussions took place throughout the month as students and faculty celebrated the Black diaspora. An evening program, co-sponsored by NA’s Equity & Inclusion Team, Umojaa (now named the Black Student Union), featured historian Don S. Polite, Jr. speaking on “The Burden of Respectable Behaviour: Race and Gender Under the U.S. Jim Crow Empire.” The event, which took place in the Wilf Middle School Commons, brought together members of the NA community to have a facilitated discussion with Mr. Polite.

Regardless of the challenges, Newark Academy’s generosity of spirit and commitment to service never falters. Participating in national and regional events including Clean Ocean Action’s Fall Beach Sweep at Sandy Hook and the annual MLK Day of Service, NA students, faculty and staff serve the broader community through a variety of direct and indirect service efforts throughout the school year.

Even as the COVID-19 pandemic upended NA’s usual full slate of service and service learning programs, the Community Service Council quickly adjusted to a “new normal” by offering weekly community service challenges to students of all ages and their families. Each Monday, during the Spring 2020 campus shutdown, Director of Community Service Sarah Fischer and the 13-member Community Service Council posted a new opportunity for NA students who wanted to serve others and each one of those opportunities could be done from the comfort (and safety) of their own homes. “The challenges were based on the recognition that we were all in this (COVID lockdown) together and were designed to help create community despite being apart from others who needed help or support,” Sarah said. “The hope was that we could see service as a means of taking action even when we were forced to be inactive and stay home.”  Among the weekly challenges was a partnership between NA and the local organization Front Line Angels to make face masks for healthcare workers. “I haven’t done any sewing since 7th or 8th grade when I first learned, so seeing this challenge from the Community Service Council was pretty interesting to me. It gave me a chance to reignite the excitement I used to get from sewing,” Stella Gilbert ’22 said, adding, “I’m grateful for the opportunity to make these masks, to feel like I’m a part of something bigger than myself, despite the pandemic being out of my control.”