O L D R O E D E A N I A N S ’ A S S O C I A T I O N N E W S L E T T E R
THE QUADWinter 2011 - Issue no:5
Lois Johnson, our Year Rep and new ORA Membership Secretary, contacted me out of the blue to invite me to the ORA Networking Event last November. Lois explained that the 125th Anniversary of Roedean was the perfect excuse for me to reconnect with my peers. Despite living less than 3 miles from school, I had not been back since I left (except to take my sons swimming there) so it was quite a big leap for me! I attended, realised no one had changed except for the better and after one too many glasses of wine and lots of laughter, I was inspired to go to the Ball.I have felt very lucky to have been surrounded by such a wonderful group ofamazing friends with our one very special and unique connection.
Over the course of this year, my involvement with the ORA has snowballed. I have been roped intodesigning the special 125th Anniversary edition of the ORA magazine. Apparently, I did such a good job that it was decided I should take on the QUAD as well! I have attended many formal and informal OR events, the House Plays and spent hours poring over your fascinating news and stories - all of which should inspire and encourage you to get back in touch with each other and the ORA. I really hope you enjoy this taster and if so, please subscribe to the magazine to enable future issues to be produced (please see back cover for details).
This has been another busy year for the ORA and Roedean. Since the last issue, we have celebrated our 125th Anniversary with ourspectacular Gala Ball and other special events.
I particularly enjoyed Roedean Day this year. The highlight for me was the chance to walk down the tunnel. The tunnel itself is very evocative and brought me back to my first term at Roedean – the summer of my Lower III year, when the staff would take us down to the beach to spend the weekend rock pooling.
It also gave me the opportunity to spend some time with Karyn Kelley, our new Alumni Relations Officer. Karyn has already made an impact and has kindly made time to answer some questions about herself and her role for us in this
I offer a multi-skilled design service from concept through to artwork,both print and digital with a wealth of experience, having worked with corporate,
retail and start-up companies across the board.
www.thefoundryworkers.com
Younger members of the Roedean Family who were disappointed that the pier to pier swim as originally envisaged was off – they raised a lot of money for RNLI though!
Do you recognise your Maths or Chemistry teacher in any of these children?
P R E S I D E N T ’ S R E P O R T
What could be better than celebrating
Roedean’s 125th Anniversary with nearly
600 people including ORs, Roedeanians
and Staff who between them spanned and
covered the years 1937-2011? There were
nearly 75 years of history in one room
celebrating all the wonderful things about
our school and the Roedean family.
A huge thank you to all who attendedand in particular to everyone on theBall Committee.
This year’s OR Magazine contains news from 100s of ORs. We decided to delay its publication so as to let you have a taste of the new look colour OR Magazine in this edition of the QUAD and to give you a chance to subscribe. I would like to thank Lorna Wallis (Hall, No. 3, 1981-87) for grasping the challenge and transforming our appearance in a most positive and appropriate way.
There is plenty to look forward to in 2012 and the ORA Committee are hoping you will attend some of the unique events we have planned this year. You can read more about the “Who Wears the Trousers in 2012?”; the Centenary of the Art Studio special OR exhibition; and Reunion@Roedean Day in here. I hope to meet some more of you in person this year.
Thank you for all your contributions and to those of you who have taken the time to look around Roedean or recommend your friends to Roedean. Now we just need a few more ORs to choose Roedean for their children. Perhaps the new bursaries might be of interest? Please take a look at www.roedean.co.uk for more information. The dates of the next few Open Days are in the OR calendar (please see OR website).
If Tara’s article about Mentoring inspires you, please contact me and I will try to find an OR for you to mentor. If you would prefer to mentor a current girl, please contact Karyn Kelley([email protected]).
If you would like more timely news, please join the Old Roedeanians’ Association group onFacebook - we now have more than 850members. We wish you and your families all the best for 2012 and hope you will share your news and stories with us so that next year’s Magazine will be as fantastic as this one.
What had you heard about Roedean beforeapplying for the job?
Roedean was always spoken about with a sense of awe and respect. Although the girls had quite a reputation for their ‘lively spirit’, this only served to uphold the legends of the fictional ‘Mallory Towers’ as being based on Roedean.
What was your job before joining Roedean?
I was a Regional Fundraising Manager for Heart FM, managing a team who organised fundraising events across the six Heart radio stations in the South East. For once, I got to be ‘Cool Mum’ as my daughter got to meet JLS! Before that I was a Marketing Director at American Express for 20 years, latterly heading up the marketing team for their Franchise Division across Europe, Middle East and Africa – so I am very well travelled with a truly global outlook.
What is the most challenging part of your job?
Initially, I felt a bit of a fraud and an ‘outsider’. But having read extensively about the history of this great school, taken part in current school activities – (Hand Shaking, Sports Day, D of E, House Plays and Concerts) and listened to the diverse stories of many ORs. I have become more and more immersed in the spirit and ethos of Roedean and now feel like I belong.
I N T E R V I E W W I T H K A R Y N K E L L E Y
R O E D E A N ’ S N E W A L U M N I R E L A T I O N S O F F I C E R
What are your aims and ambitions for the job?
My role is to help facilitate the ORs to supportthe school in achieving its goals – so myimmediate aim is to ensure I fully understand and respect the needs of both the school and ORs and work closely with both to create plans that everyone can invest their full support and energy behind.
The biggest challenge is to find the right
balance between engaging the support of
ORs in assisting the evolution of the school
and getting the school and ORs working
together effectively.
I have been amazed at the diverse range oftalent and success amongst ORs and my goal is to bring these women back together to create a positive and powerful Super-Network who can offer support and encouragement to their peers and contemporaries at every life stage: acting as role models to our current girls, offering careers advice, help with university selection andapplication, offer work placements, speak at the school, promote women in business, participate in business networking, promote their business, support business start-ups – the potential is boundless.
Karyn Kelley, Sasha Glynn, Julia Mackworth (N0:3, 1978-86)
“I wish to engage as many
ORs as possible to help
the school and our current
girls and I hope to inspire
renewed pride and
interest in the school.”
A vampire has just walked past my office door; there are trees eating supper in the dining room and I am quite sure that a nun just held the door for me in the main corridor. Blood drips from the front hall and a perfectly formed miniature church (built from cocktail sticks) sits in front of the fire place. It is the first performance of the House Plays this evening and the Roedean family prepares to share in the creativity, ingenuity, fun and drama of the four seasons. At the end of a demanding first half of term I am reminded of why this is such a very special school.
A week ago this evening seemed impossible. The 6.1s were exhausted, berating their extras fortexting whilst in the wings and hence forgetting their cues. But then, as always happens here, the heart of this community began to emerge in the kindness of individuals, in the support for theolder girls shown by the younger ones whopainted and stuck and searched out props. House staff rushed out to Asda to buy Blu Tac and face paint; friends reassured each other that work would be done and a disparate group of weary individuals became a single organic force with a common aim: to celebrate the achievements of each other (and hopefully to win the competition).
Being a teenager today is far from easy and in a recent lecture staff and guests were reminded to educate our pupils for the future and not the past. This means that, as adults, we have toacknowledge the pressures that young people face: the prospect of working - assuming they can get a job - until they are 70, repaying huge loans as a result of a university education and beingimmersed in information overload (for the digital age offers everything, seemingly, except thepower to choose).
Educating our girls for the future means giving them the tools to develop resilience and an inner core of strength; this enables honest self appraisal so that they can face these challenges with confidence and good humour.
What better example of the chance to do this than the annual House Plays? But it goes on every day here and we are constantly working to support, encourage and inspire the girls more effectively.
The kindness of the girls begins with their attitude to each other. At the beginning of this academic year we completed our transition back to four mixed age houses so girls from U3 to 6.1 areliving and working together. Recently a 6.2 Oxbridge candidate has been mentoring a L5 girl because, whilst coming from opposite sides of the world, they share a universal passion for the protection of Human Rights. Our new group of 6.1 Peer Listeners has just been appointed and will shortly receive training from the School Counsellor which will be supported throughout the year with regular supervision.
The example that members of staff show in ourinteractions with each other and with the girls is also critical to ensuring that the community grows with integrity. Thus we are working on a simpler and more targeted system of staff appraisal which will be supported by training. Roedean staff are aspirational, so the girls will not fail to share that vision to make a difference to the world they inhabit where compassion and energy can go hand in hand.
S C H O O L R E P O R T
S Y L V I A B R E T T - D E P U T Y H E A D M I S T R E S S
1 2 5 T H A N N I V E R S A R Y B A L L
2 A P R I L 2 0 1 1 , L O N D O N H I L T O N
How do you start to organise what was to become the biggest OR social event in Roedean’s illustrious history? The first thing I needed was a strong committee, so that we could work together to achieve what we all wanted to be an amazing evening.
Having got one organised, we had our first committee meeting in January. The Ball date was already contracted with the Hilton Hotel forSaturday April 2, less than 12 weeks away.
More than 600 guests (ORs, their guests and present Roedeanians) came to the Hilton in Park Lane, London on Saturday April 2 for our ‘Black Tie Dinner and Dance’. The evening started with a champagne reception, followed by a delicious dinner, live auction, cabaret, caricaturist, roulette table and dancing to a live band until the early hours of the morning.
The Ball was a tremendous success (judging by the amount of emails and letters the Committee received afterwards) as a social event to bring hundreds of ORs together again, in many cases after a long break.
Annie Sheaf (Clowes, No. 2, 1968-74)
You can read more about this in
the special 125th Anniversary edition of the ORA Mag.
Many thanks to Julia Chamberlain (Pollock, No.2, 1974-80)www.juliachamberlainphotography.co.uk
R O E D E A N D A Y
2 5 J U N E 2 0 1 1
Roedean Day was a great success with close to 200 ORs and their guests in attendance. We were welcomed to School with champagne, sparkling elderflower and canapés in the classroom next to the Cloisters. There was an opportunity to celebrate the work of the current students (and compare it with our memories of the past) with the exhibitions and shows in the Theatre and Art Studio. After a delicious lunch in thedining rooms, we had the option of a tour of the boarding houses or a trip down the tunnel to the beach. Many of us made our way over to the sports pitches to watch the houses compete at Sports Day. The ORA Golden Mile team, who were leading all the way, managed a very close 2nd to the Staff Team. It must be our year to win in 2012?
The weather may not have been ideal but it was apt for a reunion – blustery and cool but sunny – much like the days we all remember.
The super 2nd Placed ORA Golden Mile team 2011
A R E W A R D I N G E X P E R I E N C E
A R T F O C U S W E E K E N D 2 0 1 1
When I attended the fabulous 125th Anniversary Ball
earlier this year, I was hoping to catch up with some
old faces and meet some new people, which I did.
One of the highlights was chatting with the old staff,
some of whom I was astonished to find remembered
me despite having taught me for only a year or two
- over 20 years ago. It goes to show how dedicated
the Roedean teachers are since I certainly didn’t
distinguish myself in the classes of the people I’m
referring to!
One of the staff I spoke to was Sue Stanway, my art
teacher in 1988, who told me about her Art Focus
Weekends, this year dedicated to Fine Art. After
the Ball she contacted me to ask whether I would
be one of the ORs she wanted to recruit to help
organise and attend the trip in October. I’ll admit I
questioned my suitability for the task, but Sue was
so encouraging I signed up! And I’m so glad I did.
We guided the lovely Izzy and Jane through three
and a half days of an immersive art experience.
The idea behind the Focus Weekends is to give
VI2 girls who are serious about a career in art an
insight to many aspects of the art world outside the
classroom. They can then use this special experi-
ence to enhance their personal statements which
I understand are of vital importance in university
applications these days. They will also have some
wonderful material to discuss in interviews as well
as the unique personal experience they enjoyed.
It was great to see the girls enjoy themselves so
much and to be inspired by what they saw. To quote
Izzy, ‘it’s one of the best days of my life, I’ve never
been to a REAL artist’s studio before!’. We’re staying
in touch, and I’m looking forward to hearing which
courses they choose and how they get on.
I found the whole experience incredibly rewarding,
as well as thoroughly enjoying the weekend. I can
honestly say that after three intense days discussing
art, the way my brain perceives things has altered
for the better. I would strongly recommend other
ORs say yes if they’re asked to become involved
with a similar project and I’m sure you’ll enjoy it as
much as I did.
Bryony Allen (No.1, 1988-93)
When my daughter Sophie told me that she had agreed to swim from one of Brighton’s piers to the other to support the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, my competitive instinct came out and I decided to swim with her! I wanted to prove that an OR could still swim distances even if age was not on their side.
Sophie and I presented ourselves with our‘buddies’ Sasha and Imo (all swimmers had been told that they needed a ‘buddy’ on the shore). There were around 30 swimmers, mostly current Roedeanians, a few energetic staff . . . and me. A heavy mist had come in from the sea, and no-one was prepared to let us swim in dangerousconditions. We could not even see the other pier that we were meant to be swimming to!
Eventually, the mist began to lift, but not enough to risk a ‘pier to pier’ swim. Rather than cancel the whole event, a different route was set. There were a couple of lifeboats out at sea which we
swam to one by one. I am sure this way the swim was much, much longer than if it had only been from pier to pier! The sea was freezing, and we were all grateful that we had been told to wear wetsuits. When we had finished our swim, we were given hot chocolate and bars of KitKats (which for me was the best bit of the day).
There was fantastic support from the beach; so many friends had come to watch and cheer us on, although I am not quite sure why they were not in the sea with us! I am told the money we raised for the RNLI was in the thousands of pounds.Sophie and all her friends returned to Roedean and I returned to London; tired but happy.
Annie Sheaf (Clowes, No. 2, 1968-74)
P I E R T O P I E R S W I M
2 6 J U N E 2 0 1 1
Mrs Jane Chandler (PE) Mrs Jane Carnaghan (PE)
H O U S E P L A Y S
1 4 O C T O B E R 2 0 1 1
The pupils worked hard to stage a typicallyeclectic mix of House Plays. House 1 chose a tale of coincidence and misunderstanding in ’14 October’. House 2 chose ‘Heatwave’ portray-ing the psychological effect of war. House 3’s ‘Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter & Spring’ followed an orphan through the key seasons of her life. House 4 won Best play with ‘Frostbite’, a tale of heroes, vampires and the triumph of love. All the productions were described as ‘truly outstanding’ by judge Ros Adler (Ashley, No. 4, 1965-1971) the adjudicator and current TV and West End actress. She was proud to declare that she was pleased to be back and discover that there was still anelement of “bonkerness” in all of them!
Shikha Punj (No.3, 2001-2006), Sheila Fowler-Watt (Beynon, No.3,1947-1955); Kate Armes (Head of Drama); Ros Adler (Ashley, No. 4,1965-1971); Sasha Glynn (No.1, 1980-87), Lorna Wallis (Hall, No.3,1981-86) and Abra Reid (Head of Careers and No.1, 1984-86)
Closing Date for entries is 31 January 2012.
Calling all OR artists, architects, photographers, designers and illustrators! Sue Stanway, Head of Art, is keen to celebrate the Centenary of the original Art Studio with a retrospective exhibition of artworks at Roedean by former pupils. It would be wonderful to give The Studio a centenarybirthday gift of an exhibition by its former pupils.
A significant number of ORs have alreadyconfirmed but we need more to make thishappen! You do not need to be a professional artist to be part of this unique event. Former staff are also more than welcome.
If you are in touch with any ORs you think might like to loan one of their works please pass this on to them or to let Karyn know if you know ofanyone that should be part of this.
Please register your interest by emailingKaryn Kelley: [email protected]
A R T S T U D I O C E N T E N A R Y
R E T R O S P E C T I V E E X H I B I T I O N
O R M E N T O R S I N A C T I O N
O V E R T H E P O N D
You can recognize a Roedean girl from
a block away.
I could never understand this when I was still at school and was always astonished whenever a passer-by in Brighton made a comment as we walked down the street. But nearly thirty years later, I find myself at Blue Smoke, a popular New York restaurant, waiting to meet Joy Crane (No.4, 2007-11), who at 19 years old, straight from sitting A-Levels, has been given the extraordinaryopportunity to do a summer internship at the Manhattan office of the Financial Times.
As anticipated, amidst the crowds of people coming and going, I know which one must be Joy. There’s a confidence and warmth that seems familiar and I am immediately at ease. I feel like I’m reuniting with an old friend. Joy and I sit down to eat (a lot!) and four hours later, we’re still talking. We have a lot in common besides our education and our memories of school—the plays, the pranks, and the people. Both of us were born here in the US and have families that have been based in both the US and UK. We discover shared experiences, characteristics, and ideas that draw seamlessly from both sides of the pond. Ourfathers worked in the same professional field, again with common stories to tell.
As editor of Boudicca Bulletin, with a place to study Economics at the prestigious University of Chicago, and an internship at the FT, all driven by a clear ambition to explore journalism and politics as a future career, it seems to me that Joy hasalready accomplished more than most 19-year-olds. But I was thrilled to have a chance to support Joy in her New York adventure and share what I’ve learned about a career in US media and public policy.
I’ve worked in different areas of publishing and media for 20 years first in London, and then for the past 13 years in New York. For the last eight, I’ve been working as a Director at Consumer Reports a large nonprofit advocacy
organization that publishes one of the most widely-read magazines in America and thebiggest subscription magazine website. Through our investigative journalism, we’re able to explain and influence policy in all kinds of areas ranging from food safety to personal finance to health care. Our work was recognized by President Obama as contributing to the passage of health reform, for example. So my experiences seemed relevant to Joy’s interests.
As I told Joy my story of how I got my first step up the media ladder. I tried to illustrate thatserendipity, chutzpah, the willingness to serveothers, making friends, and pure endurance have as much to contribute to a satisfying career as good grades and “doing the right thing” all the time. It’s okay to have fun, rebel a little, and to change your mind if you’re not happy where you are.
I learned a lot from Joy as well. Today’s ORs are much more worldly than we were 25 years ago and in that way, better prepared for the real world. I am full of anticipation for what Joy will go on to do in life and I hope that our connection via the ORA will lead to a lifelong friendship.
Tara Montgomery (No.2, 1981-87)
If there are other students and ORs in the New York area who want to get in touch, I’d love to hear from you!
“Who wears the trousers in 2012?”4 successful and award-winning ORs from the Art, Health, Charity, IT and Business worlds will take part in a
‘Question Time’ style debating panel.
This will be a unique opportunity to pick the brains of a genuinely talented group of ORs.They have all promised to let us in on some of the secrets of their successes and provide us with many pearls of wisdom. We encourage you to join us for this very special event because we know you will be inspired by them. The event will be Chaired by Adela Hussain (No.2, 1997-99 and Vice-President ORA) who is a Management Consultant so has had exposure to all types of businesses and charities during her career.
• Seema Sharma (Bahal, No.1, 1983-85)Seema runs an a multi-disciplinary dental centre as well as setting up a successful Charitablefoundation in a life changing appearance onChannel 4’s “Slumdog Secret Millionaire”. Seema has won several awards for the rapid growth of her dental practice in Docklands, receiving a busi-ness award from Richard Branson at only 28.
• Kirstin Duffield (Cropper, No.2 1984-89)Kirstin is CEO and MD of her family IT businessMorning Data. This years’ Women in the Citycategory awards saw Kirstin collect a specialawarded for her work in the technology sector.Kirstin is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of ITand a Freeman of the Worshipful Company of IT.The 2011 Compliance Register’s Platinum Awardsceremony, recognises excellence in Complianceand Regulation within the Financial Servicesand Insurance industry. Morning Data wonTechnology Provider of the Year and & Kirstin herself was Runner Up Best CEO.
• Jennifer Harris (No.3, 1993-98)Jennifer is the MD and Founder of BoardIntelligence. In 2005 she was named The Times’ ‘Young Business Woman of the Year’ and in 2007 she was listed in Management Today’s 35 under 35. Jennifer is also a mentor for Hera, a charity that supports trafficked women and is a member of the European Corporate Governance Institute.
• Rebecca Osborne (Long, No.4, 1982-91) Rebecca is a feature film producer, financier, MD and Founder of Quicksilver Films. She recently produced the award winning film “Forget Me Not” which won a slew of awards including Best UK feature 2010 at the London Independent Film Festival and is now available on DVD.
O R A A G M A N D D I N N E R W I T H A F T E R D I N N E R D E B A T E
M O N D A Y 6 F E B 2 0 1 2 , T H E L A N S D O W N E C L U B
It is anticipated that this will be a very popular event so we suggestyou book your tickets as soon as possible.
Refreshments from 5:30pm; AGM 6:00pm and Dinner 7:30pm
R E G I S T R A T I O N F R O M 9 A M , L U N C H A T 1 2 : 3 0 P M .
We will be welcoming all ORs but especially the 60, 50, 40, 30, 20 and 10 Years On groups (1952, 62, 72, 82, 92, and 2002 Leavers) and all those who left in years ending in “7”.
The success of recent reunions has made it clear to us that ORs seem keener than ever for an excuse to get together and some years are making
it an annual event. Every year there are a number of impromptu reunion groups that join in the fun and if you would like some help from the ORA to gather a group of your peers then please get in touch. Jackie Sullivan, Roedean’s archivist, may even be able to put together an exhibition of your era if you let us know a group of you plan to attend.
Drama, Dance, School Lunch, Friends, The Golden Mile:Roedean Day is always a great day out for ORs and their families.
Please contact: Lois Johnson, Membership Secretary for more [email protected]
This issue contains a brief summary of all the wonderful events heldto mark Roedean’s 125th Anniversary and a glimpse of
those planned for the coming year.
A big thank you goes to all those who contributed to this issue of the Quad.
If you would like more detailed news especially of your friends
