Neither Scott nor Suzie started their education at Shipley. Suzie transferred in Fifth Grade from a Montessori school after her family moved to the Main Line from Philadelphia. Scott arrived in Eighth Grade from a small Waldorf school a bit further away. "It was a very big change for me coming to the Main Line," he says. "I was very athletic, and I was strong academically, so Shipley was a good fit for me. Later, I found the theater and music programs and enjoyed performing on stage at Shipley."

At Shipley, both Suzie and Scott participated in many extra-curricular activities, enjoying the well-rounded experience for which the School is known. Suzie sang in Madrigals, performed in musicals, among them Guys and Dolls and South Pacific, and played multiple sports. Scott received numerous academic and athletic awards, including The Richard L. Maack Father’s Association Bowl, played clarinet through his junior year, and also performed in many of the Theater Department’s productions. “My experience at Shipley was a very well-rounded experience, and touched on a lot of different aspects, from academics to athletics and the arts,” he reflects.

Growing up, their families both shared an appreciation for the arts.  “My mother was very involved in the arts in Philadelphia, and she took me to many performances and fundraising events at The Mann Performing Arts Center, The Curtis Institute, The Academy of Vocal Arts, The Academy of Music, and The Kimmel Center, to name a few. This led to my continued support of these organizations, along with being a Trustee at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, the Arthur Ashe Youth Tennis Center, and Broadway Dreams Foundation. It’s why I am so passionate about arts education and an advocate for the performing arts at Shipley.” 

When it came time to choose a school for their own children, the Rehls let their daughters take the lead. “We let them drive the process of selecting where they wanted to go for Middle and Upper School,” Scott says. “We didn’t push them to choose Shipley. But the more we learned about what had changed at Shipley over the years, and the more our daughters got to know Shipley, one of the things that really drew them here were the theater and the performing arts departments, led by Carlos Casilla.”

For Avery, who started at Shipley in seventh grade, the decision came down to a few key people in the performing arts, in particular, Theater Director Phillip Brown. “Mr. Brown was a huge reason I came to Shipley,” she says. “He’s so incredible, and I can really say he’s helped shape who I am as a performer.” She credits the School’s emphasis on being well-rounded for preparing her for college. “Shipley has so much to offer and is strong in so many different aspects. Students don’t have to let themselves get pigeonholed into one area – they can explore everything it has to offer.”

The Rehls were intentional about keeping academics at the center of their daughters’ education, even as their theatrical talents emerged. “We made a decision that academics were still the most important,” Suzie explains. Even when Nickelodeon called Avery for an audition, the Rehls kept their focus clear. “We did take her to New York, but we didn’t want to let her academic studies become secondary. Our focus was on how she could get really great theater training while keeping academics a priority.”

That balance has paid off. “Shipley’s an incredibly rigorous school,” Avery notes. “There is a very high standard for academics, and I think that has served me very well in college. The Shipley teachers are so incredible, and they hold you to such a high standard. One of the things my teachers did so well was teaching me the intermediate steps – how to break down a big assignment, what to tackle first. A lot of kids really don’t even know where to start.” 

The Rehls believe deeply in what theater teaches young people about compassion and leadership. "It's a group of people that all have to do their job and work together to pull it off," Suzie observes. Avery agrees: "Theater gives you the skill of building empathy. When you have to become somebody else on stage, it’s such an incredible lesson being able to put yourself in their shoes without judgment or bias against them.”

"Theater is about community," Suzie adds. She recalls watching Sutton's Sixth-Grade drama class, under the direction of Middle School Theater Director Ozzie Jones, perform while students from the other drama class came and cheered them on. "They were all doing something scary. But they had such great support from their classmates that they were able to overcome the fear and focus on stepping into somebody else's shoes." Reese sees it similarly: "Theater is one of the rawest forms of human connection, because it's taking someone's story and passing it along."

Looking at Shipley today, the Rehls see a school that has evolved while maintaining its core strengths. “The teachers are still what’s most important, and they are phenomenal,” Suzie says. They're impressed by the quality of educators their daughters have encountered – from Dr. Gillin's powerful history classes, to Matt Frankel's ability to bridge mathematics with theatrical passion, and, most importantly, Phillip Brown’s commitment to helping students grow through theater and performing on stage.

For the Rehl family, Shipley has meant a love of learning, a commitment to the arts, and a deep appreciation for the community that has shaped two generations – and counting. As Avery reflects: “The environment that Shipley cultivates is just so special, and the theater program really builds and supports the community there.”