Name: Carly Currently Attending: University of Pennsylvania Years at Shipley:4 Activities & Positions Held: Glee Club (4 Years), Shipley Singers (3 Years), Upper School Choirs (President), All Theater Productions (4 Years,) The Compass (3 Years, Editor-in-Chief for 2 Years), Positive Paws (3 Years), SpeakUp! (4 Years), Varsity Swimming (2 Years), Baseball Photojournalism (3 Years).
Reflections on Shipley My parents travel for work, so before coming to Shipley in ninth grade, I had been homeschooled along with my four siblings for my entire life. Having never gone to a traditional school before, I was terrified walking into my first day of high school; I was scared I wouldn’t make friends, scared I wouldn’t be able to keep up academically, and scared of not being able to do all of the many different things I wanted to do in high school. However, I quickly found Shipley to be an incredibly welcoming environment: every student was warm and sincere and so many of them were interested in me and where I had come from; all of my teachers genuinely cared about not only my academic success but also my personal wellbeing; I found an opportunity to delve into the activities I had always loved such as science, music, theater, and service, and even get a taste of some I had never really tried before.
Although of course, I had failures throughout my four years of high school, I have truly found those struggles to be some of the most important learning opportunities I have experienced. Being able to fail whilst being surrounded by people who want more than anything to help you get back on your feet makes you really want to, too.
Who was your most influential teacher and why? My most influential teacher throughout my time at Shipley was Dr. Gillin. History has never been my strongest suit, and I never thought that anyone could spark a love of history in me like Dr. Gillin did as my U.S. History teacher in my junior year. An incredibly vibrant and interesting teacher, Dr. Gillin made me understand why we study figures of the past and, more importantly, made me want to. If you had told me two years ago that I would be doing an independent study in history during my senior year, I wouldn’t have believed it; Dr. G, a hardcore feminist, inspired me to do an independent study on the history and science of women’s studies this year. Not only this, but she came to one out of three of my class periods every rotation to use her historical and feminist expertise to help me learn more about my passion for women’s rights and history. While I may have always been a feminist, I don’t know if there is anyone who could have brought the feminist out in me like Dr. Gillin.
What was your most memorable experience at Shipley? At the culmination of my independent study on the history and science of women’s studies, I decided to hold a gallery walk for a number of faculty members to share my findings and to do a little more data gathering from the adult generation. I extended invitations to more than a dozen adults in the Upper School; I think it is very significant and a wonderful representation of Shipley’s community that almost every single person, however well they knew me, attended my gallery walk. Shipley’s message, from teachers and students alike, is to form a community of people who genuinely care about and support each other; the fact that so many teachers, including our Head of School Dr. Piltch, came out to learn about my study and to help in my research is exactly what Shipley is all about.
What are your plans for the fall of 2019? I will be starting school at the University of Pennsylvania this fall as a Biological Basis of Behavior major on a pre-veterinary track.
What is your future ambition and what led you to this ambition? Throughout my life, I have always had a deep appreciation for animals; not only did I always think that they were cute and cuddly, but I have also always been amazed by the bonds animals form with each other and the bonds we form with them. I think that there is so much that we as humans can learn from other animals. I am also fascinated by science, so I hope to combine my interest in science with my passion for animal wellbeing as a veterinarian.
What does Courage for the Deed; Grace for the Doing mean to you? Courage for the Deed to me means be strong, be confident, and be brave. The first part of Shipley’s motto inspires me to believe in myself, to take the risk, and to never back down. However, you have to remember to do it with dignity and respect for yourself and others. Grace for the Doing demonstrates how crucial it is to be humble.
What impact or contributions do you think you have made at Shipley and in the larger community? I think that the biggest differences I have made at Shipley are in the music and theater programs. I feel like I have helped the theater and music communities at Shipley grow and thrive not only as a leader in my upperclassmen years but also as a freshman and sophomore simply by making the communities even more diverse and unique.
Complete this sentence: Shipley has prepared me to… pursue my wide range of passions with determination and enthusiasm.
The Shipley Sprouts, Shipley's Upper School horticulture club, won two second-place awards at the 2022 Philadelphia Flower Show for their Tablescape exhibit. In addition, students in the Upper School STEAM Department won third and second-place awards for their Garden Gate exhibit.
The Shipley School is proud to announce that Don Draper has been appointed as Director of Tennis. In his capacity as Director of Tennis, Don will oversee the growth, continuity, and strategic vision for tennis at Shipley.
Originally published in the May 2022 issue of the Upper School student newspaper, The Beacon, this article shares insights from All School President Griffin Chulik ’22 about his student government experience and some final thoughts as he departs from the Shipley community and prepares to head off to college in the fall.
Helping students identify their strengths and weaknesses is an essential goal for any educator guiding them on the path to success. This is especially important in sixth grade, as students make the transition from elementary to middle school. One cornerstone of the sixth grade SEED curriculum is having students explore their own learning styles and apply this knowledge to forming relationships.
On Thursday, May 26 the Upper School held its annual Closing Awards Ceremony. During this ceremony, Shipley recognized the outgoing and incoming student leadership officers and presented students with academic, athletic, and leadership awards.
Shipley's Middle School Latin students took the 2022 National Latin Examination with over 100,000 students from around the world. An impressive 26 students earned Latin Award prizes and recognition for excellence. Middle School Latin students also competed in The Philadelphia Classical Society's 83rd Annual Latin Week Competition - Traditional Artistry & Literary Projects on Classical themes. A total of 55 Middle School students won Latin Awards and recognition for excellence.
The Shipley School is proud to announce the appointment of Harry Green as the School’s new Director of Track and Field. This new position will oversee all running programs. Coach Green will be Head Coach of the Varsity Indoor and Outdoor Track & Field teams and the Cross Country team.
What do Coke and Pepsi have to do with statistics? The seniors in Matt Frankel’s interdisciplinary statistics class can tell you! After studying the statistical problem-solving process all year, students ran a large study with 300 subjects to see if they could differentiate between Coke and Pepsi with a greater accuracy than random guessing would provide.
Shipley Middle School science teacher Ace Schwarz has been selected to participate in its 2022 National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Landmarks of American History Workshop, The Space Age on the Space Coast. "I am hoping to bring back what I learn so we can really develop the space exploration aspect of our curriculum," commented Mx. Schwarz.
Shipley’s Middle School Science Olympiad team earned an overall ninth-place finish at the Pennsylvania Science Olympiad State Tournament held at Penn State Altoona on April 30.
The Shipley School is proud to announce that after an extensive search, Eva Winiarski has been named Head Varsity Girls' Lacrosse Coach. She brings a wealth of teaching, playing, and coaching experience to Shipley, most recently as the Assistant Lacrosse Coach and Defensive Coordinator at The McDonough School in Maryland. In the classroom, Eva will join Shipley’s exceptional English Department as an Upper School teacher.
On April 24, 2022, three groups of Shipley’s Upper School students presented research at a roundtable presentation of the Student Participatory Action Research Collaboration (SPARC). “Our students were passionate, thorough, confident, and genuinely enthusiastic about their research topics,” said student advisor and Shipley’s Interim Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Sheri Rider Jobe.
Shipley sixth-grader Jordyn Colbert '28 won first place in the 17th Annual Charlotte Miller Simon Poetry Contest, presented by the Ardmore Free Library.
Shipley’s Middle School and Upper School Science Olympiad teams participated in the Southeast Pennsylvania Science Olympiad Tournament. Combined, the teams earned 18 medals and qualified for the State tournament.
The Shipley School’s DEI Strategic Plan goal 3 is to ensure an equitable experience for all members of the community. One initiative of that goal is to create and support affinity spaces for students, colleagues, families, and alumni. Affinity spaces speak to the efforts of not just ensuring equitable experiences, but also creating experiences that foster belonging in our community. Learn more about our efforts to create these spaces.
The Shipley School is a private, coeducational day school for pre-kindergarten through 12th grade students, located in Bryn Mawr, PA. Through our commitment to educational excellence, we develop within each student a love of learning and a desire for compassionate participation in the world.