The Shipley School proudly announces that Erica Cipolloni has been named our Varsity Softball Head Coach. After an extensive search, we are delighted to have Erica take the helm of our Softball Program.
Erica brings a wealth of knowledge, and experience as a player, trainer, coach, and leader in the softball community. Best known as “Coach E,” Erica is a softball training and development coach with 20 years of softball experience - 10+ of those years coaching elite travel softball teams. She has spent the last decade sharing extensive game knowledge, college recruiting guidance, and mentorship for aspiring athletes looking to play at an elite level.
Erica is originally from Northeast Philadelphia. She attended high school at Nazareth Academy where her softball number was retired in 2010 and she was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2022. In 2010, she was named Female Athlete of the Year by the Philadelphia Inquirer and was 1 of 42 players selected to try out for the USA Softball Junior Women’s National Team in Chula Vista, CA. Erica fulfilled her dream of earning a full athletic scholarship to the ACC conference at the University of Virginia and completed two highly successful seasons as an infielder/pitcher before career-ending injuries.
Coach E owns a softball training performance company, EC Elite Softball, after having coaching stints with the Newtown Rock & NJ Cheetahs softball organizations.
Coach Cipolloni stated, “I am beyond excited to be named the next head softball coach at Shipley! I would like to thank Michael Turner, Justin Cooper, and the search committee for this amazing opportunity and for entrusting me to continue the success of the softball program. I look forward to meeting the team and creating a culture that steers our student-athletes into achieving their goals on and off the field. Go Gators!”
Shipley would also like to thank the search committee for the time and energy they devoted to this process. Additionally, Shipley would like to thank former coach Maria DiBernardi for her leadership during this transition.
Shipley's Upper School Boys' and Girls' Varsity Squash teams competed at the National Squash Championships in Philadelphia, finishing 34th and 64th in the country, respectively.
Since Dr. Roberta Brandao’s arrival to chair Shipley’s STEAM department in the fall of 2022, she has created a learning environment that fosters creativity, provides relevance, and pushes students to think critically. Learn more about Dr. Brandao's approach and how she makes students feel comfortable about taking creative risks.
This year’s Upper School Spring Musical is Mean Girls, a modern adaptation of the classic movie from 2004. Shipley theater star and Beacon writer Colin Harkins ’23 tells us why audiences should be excited to see the show March 2-4, 2023 in Riely Theatre.
Shipley’s theater program is excited to announce that it will partner with Broadway Green Alliance, a corporation that tries to bring more sustainable and environmentally friendly practices into theaters all around the country. Read more in this article originally published in the Beacon student newspaper.
View a performance of the Lunar New Year Overture by Shipley's Chamber Orchestra, in an arrangement by Richard Liu ’25 and Bambi Tang ’23, and conducted by Mr. Jhonnatan Mata. The performance was organized by the Asian Student Alliance and the Chamber Orchestra in celebration of Lantern Festival, or the end of Lunar New Year.
After an extensive international search, Head of School Michael G. Turner announced the appointment of Chantra Reinman as Shipley’s next Head of Middle School, effective July 1, 2023.
In the Lower School Student Council, fourth and fifth graders hone leadership skills like collaboration, public speaking, and planning as they help with divisional assemblies and other student-led initiatives, while serving as student representatives at admissions events and more. Though the group is diverse, they all have one thing in common: a desire to give back to Shipley.
Shipley's Middle School Boys' and Girls' Squash teams competed at the National Squash Championships in Philadelphia, finishing ninth and 20th, respectively.
Congratulations to Shipley senior Zion Alexis ’23 for receiving numerous awards in the 2023 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, presented by Philadelphia Writing Project, including a Gold Key for his poem, "black boy, PREP SCHOOL." Read the poem and learn more about Zion, his interest in creative expression, and how Shipley has pushed him to grow as a writer in this Q&A.
Head of School Michael Turner announced that Rebekah Adens will be Shipley’s next Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, effective July 1, 2023.
Middle School science teacher Ace Schwarz was one of 10 educators selected to participate in the 2023 NASA/IPAC Teacher Archive Research Program (NITARP), which partners small groups of educators with a research astronomer for original, year-long, authentic research projects.
On Saturday, December 3, Shipley’s Upper School Science Olympiad team participated in the 2nd Annual Dick Smith Memorial Invitational. Competing in the B Division, Shipley’s Upper School team finished 31 out of 74 teams. Several students also placed in individual events.
Chess team members Srijan Velamuri ’23 and Adithi Srinivasan ’25 earned first and second places, respectively, at the Interscholastic Chess Tournament, hosted by Shipley on December 9, 2022.
What happens when you combine passion, professional learning, and appreciation of beauty and excellence? You get a teacher who brings enthusiasm and energy to her classroom and students who learn while doing. Learn more about how Middle School Latin teacher Anne Smith shares her passion for mosaics, Roman history, and the Latin language with her students through multiple modalities.
Dr. Harley Givler asked his third grade students to imagine what a storybook's characters would sound like as a musical composition. The third graders performed the composition for their PreK Book Buddies, sharing lessons in emotions, tolerance, and being an upstander, as well as inspiring a love of music.
On Friday, December 2, Shipley hosted the Philadelphia Area Math League for Independent Schools 2022 Playoffs. As a result, the Gators finished fifth out of ten teams in the group category and Bambi Tang ‘23 finished first in the individual category.
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.