532 Magazine - Fall 2020
Sandia Prep's "532 Osuna Road Magazine" - Fall 2020 issue
Sandia Prep's "532 Osuna Road Magazine" - Fall 2020 issue
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<strong>532</strong><br />
osuna road<br />
MAGAZINE<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2020</strong>
<strong>532</strong><br />
osuna road<br />
MAGAZINE<br />
is published by<br />
Sandia Preparatory School,<br />
an independent college<br />
preparatory school for students<br />
in grades 6 through 12.<br />
Bill Sinfield<br />
Head of School<br />
Cheryl McMillan<br />
Assistant Head of School<br />
for Upper School<br />
Susi Hochrein<br />
Assistant Head of School<br />
for Middle School<br />
Scott Jeffries<br />
Dean of Students<br />
Dacia Card<br />
Business Manager<br />
Julie Cook<br />
Director of Development<br />
Jenny Davidson<br />
Director of Information Technology<br />
Laura Fitzpatrick<br />
Assistant Head of School for<br />
Enrollment Management<br />
Melissa Morse<br />
Director of College Counseling<br />
Melissa Jo Stroud<br />
Director of Marketing<br />
& Communications<br />
Managing Editor<br />
Melissa Jo Stroud<br />
Graphic Designer/Editor<br />
Alexis Magaña-Jaggli<br />
Copywriter/Editor<br />
Patricia Gabbett Snow<br />
Contributors<br />
Melissa Besante Dineen ’97<br />
Julie Cook<br />
Susan Walton ’72<br />
Sandia Preparatory School<br />
<strong>532</strong> Osuna Rd NE, Albuquerque, NM 87113<br />
505.338.3000 phone • 505.338.3099 fax<br />
sandiaprep.org • info@sandiaprep.org<br />
In February, Prep's fourth annual Girls in Engineering workshop,<br />
run by the Society of Women Engineers, challenged middle school<br />
girls with activities that examined chemical processes, structural<br />
integrity, teamwork, and recovering from mistakes.
IN THIS ISSUE<br />
Highlights<br />
2<br />
Prep Responds to Pandemic<br />
17<br />
A Path to Prep<br />
Wildfires and roots lead California family<br />
back to New Mexico<br />
21<br />
Critical-Thinking Club<br />
Black Student Union empowers students<br />
to tackle challenging issues<br />
15<br />
Creating Critical Consciousness<br />
In Every Issue<br />
1 From the Head of School<br />
3 From the Archives<br />
5 Alumni Recaps<br />
9 Prep Community Profiles<br />
23 Smart Giving<br />
35<br />
Class of <strong>2020</strong> Send-off<br />
33 Sundevil Sports<br />
f<br />
c<br />
t<br />
@sandiaprep
HELLO FROM THE HEAD<br />
When COVID-19 interrupted plans to redesign the 300<br />
Building into a collaborative space among engineering, art,<br />
entrepreneurial studies, and design, our faculty stepped in and<br />
put their skill sets to work to make sure the DesignLab was ready<br />
for students. Hammering, spray painting, building, demolishing<br />
-- whatever it took, they did.<br />
“The secret of change is to focus all of your energy,<br />
not on fighting the old, but building on the new.”<br />
(Socrates)<br />
For much of <strong>2020</strong>, Sandia Prep has been building on the new<br />
reality imposed by COVID-19. But the virus hasn’t been our<br />
focus. Our community has.<br />
To ensure that our students have the best learning<br />
opportunities, even in these peculiar times, our faculty has<br />
worked nonstop. They learned how to stream their classes<br />
online while simultaneously teaching the small groups of<br />
students that we welcomed back onto campus this fall.<br />
They created kits for everything from science labs to art projects<br />
for students to pick up to enhance their virtual learning. They<br />
developed (and then reworked and tweaked and redeveloped)<br />
their distance learning programs as they gained expertise in this<br />
new hybrid approach.<br />
They rearranged their classroom spaces and then took on<br />
extra sections so we could keep students socially distanced<br />
and engaged in those spaces. They sought out professional<br />
development opportunities and continually brainstormed ways<br />
to make their lessons relevant and engaging for every type of<br />
learner.<br />
Despite their heavy load and their own concerns, they are true<br />
professionals committed to their students. And our students<br />
and parents have responded to these Herculean efforts with<br />
appreciation and enthusiasm. Community is the heart of Sandia<br />
Prep, and I am proud and humbled to be part of it.<br />
In this issue of <strong>532</strong>, you’ll meet many other members of this<br />
incredible community, such as Jacob Gutierrez, whose unfailing<br />
kindnesses on our campus have made him a special and muchloved<br />
embodiment of Prep’s culture of kindness.<br />
You’ll also learn about student Ramona Delyser’s path to Prep<br />
after escaping the California wildfires of 2017. You’ll meet the<br />
Gunderson family (including Wheezy, the state’s only arson dog),<br />
and find out how Prep’s Black Student Union and Empower Prep<br />
affinity groups are building unity and offering safe spaces for<br />
students to address difficult topics.<br />
I hope you’ll find this issue especially uplifting and affirming. It’s<br />
the strength and resilience of the Sandia Prep community that<br />
will get us through this rough patch.<br />
Bill Sinfield, Head of School<br />
1
Still Inspiring Students.<br />
No Matter What.<br />
Sandia Prep is known for its strong sense of community. Now, more than ever,<br />
we are here to support our students, families, and community.<br />
As Sandia Prep headed into spring break last March, with<br />
no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in New Mexico, the school<br />
already had precautions and plans in place to deal with a<br />
possible pandemic. When, indeed, the pandemic erupted,<br />
faculty prepared over the break and launched smoothly into<br />
remote teaching as soon as students returned.<br />
Since then, faculty have pivoted as needed. When the <strong>2020</strong>-21<br />
school year kicked off in August, teachers took on extra class<br />
sections and responsibilities to enable small groups of students<br />
to return to campus in a safe and gentle manner.<br />
Families have been able to choose from on-campus/in-person<br />
learning or virtual at-home learning. Faculty have been<br />
simultaneously teaching in-person students while streaming<br />
and/or recording their classes for students who are at home.<br />
It’s taken a lot of planning, patience, and willingness to<br />
experiment, and both faculty and students have responded<br />
with unparalleled enthusiasm. The cohesiveness of the Prep<br />
community has never been more evident.<br />
2
From The Archives<br />
From our beginnings, Sandia Prep has seen the need to be a part<br />
of the larger world and to work to engage in areas new to us.<br />
1<br />
In our early days, students<br />
were encouraged to spend<br />
summers working in the<br />
Amigos de las Americas<br />
program. Our community<br />
service in the late 1990s and<br />
early 2000s led students<br />
to host Foster Children<br />
Christmas gatherings in our old gym<br />
and offer a Turkey Trot at our neighbor<br />
Albuquerque Public School (APS)<br />
Mission Avenue Elementary School.<br />
We also took students from Mission<br />
Avenue Elementary to buy shoes at a<br />
local store. Our National Honor Society<br />
members went to APS' Los Ranchos<br />
Elementary School to mentor young<br />
students in reading and writing with<br />
visits and journaling.<br />
One of our early school gatherings<br />
was the Christmas Hanukkah evening,<br />
a schoolwide performance. Later<br />
assemblies and visits brought us<br />
African dancers and a traveling Welch<br />
choir.<br />
As we enrolled students who brought<br />
culture, religion, and expressions that<br />
were new to us, we learned about the<br />
festival of lights and the beauty of<br />
Bharatanatyam dance. We learned of<br />
Chinese New Year, Mardi Gras, and the<br />
Día de los Muertos. Our middle school<br />
celebrated Africa Day and Harvest<br />
Festival. We moved beyond the<br />
traditional travel programs to Europe<br />
and North America to the exploration<br />
of new areas, as travel to Russia,<br />
China, and Bhutan became possible.<br />
Our Foreign Exchange program has<br />
been a part of us since the beginning,<br />
enriching our awareness of the world<br />
through friendships.<br />
In this decade, we have begun<br />
activities and clubs that help us learn<br />
about and support fellow students with<br />
our Black Student Union and LGBTQ<br />
groups. We have been enriched by<br />
our college counselor Danielle Yepa<br />
Gunderson as she and her family have<br />
hosted the Sandia Prep Pow Wow,<br />
attracting participants and drum circles<br />
from as far away as North Dakota and<br />
Idaho.<br />
Starting as a girls school, we have<br />
continued to broaden our horizons<br />
and seek inclusion and diversity as<br />
opportunities arise. We started with<br />
our founder, Barbara Young Simms'<br />
concept, "When you teach a boy, you<br />
educate a man; when you teach a girl,<br />
you educate a family," and we continue<br />
to explore our world and expand our<br />
experiences in it.<br />
- Susan Walton ’72<br />
2<br />
3<br />
3
1 One annual community<br />
service event was the Turkey Trot<br />
at Mission Avenue Elementary<br />
School. One of our Jr. Civitan<br />
members dressed as a turkey, let<br />
the little kids chase him, as part<br />
of the Thanksgiving interactions<br />
between our schools. (Early<br />
2000s)<br />
2 Assemblies brought the<br />
richness of the world into the<br />
"Old Gym." Guests from the<br />
World College showed their<br />
traditional dance to our students<br />
who embraced the culture of<br />
dance and drums. (Late 1980s)<br />
3 In the 1970s to the present,<br />
events and assemblies like<br />
Earth Day created opportunities<br />
for our community to come<br />
to campus to share family and<br />
cultural traditions. (Mid-1990s)<br />
5<br />
4 With a 1996 grant from the<br />
US Fish and Wildlife Foundation,<br />
Karen Lyall's biology students<br />
hosted students from Our<br />
Montessori School, to teach them<br />
the biology of the pond and<br />
wetland the Prep students had<br />
created on the western edge of<br />
campus. (1996)<br />
4<br />
5 The 7th grade's crossdisciplinary<br />
learning of New<br />
Mexico included its October<br />
Harvest Festival. Celebrating<br />
the school's garden (started as<br />
an Anasazi Garden) and New<br />
Mexico culture, speakers like<br />
Pearl Sunrise came to visit and<br />
teach. (1998)<br />
4
Alumni Recaps<br />
Looking back at the 2019 - <strong>2020</strong> academic year<br />
FALL 2019<br />
1969 Class Reunion - Celebrating 50 Years<br />
Janet McCanna ’69 hosted a small reunion in early September<br />
to celebrate the 50th reunion of her Sandía School<br />
graduation.<br />
2009 Class Reunion - Celebrating 10 Years<br />
In September, Sandia Prep's Class of 2009 celebrated their<br />
10-year reunion. A special thanks to Evan Dixon ’09 and<br />
Larissa Lozano ’09 for organizing the various reunion activities.<br />
Alumna Guest Speaker at NHS Induction Ceremony<br />
Dr. Tasha Serna-Gallegos ’07 was the guest speaker at Prep’s<br />
2019 National Honor Society Induction Ceremony. She<br />
shared, "Sandia Prep prepared me for the rigors of medical<br />
school and helped give me the foundation that I needed to<br />
succeed." She added, "I don’t believe I would be where I<br />
am today without Prep's ongoing support both during my<br />
schooling there and beyond. Prep will always mean more to<br />
me than just the place I went to school.”<br />
Golf Tournament<br />
Alumni in Houston were treated to a cookie<br />
decorating Meet & Greet hosted by professional<br />
baker and Prep alumnus Allan Hursig '07.<br />
Alumni helped raise $20,000+ for Prep’s financial aid program<br />
during the School’s 11th annual golf tournament. The<br />
tournament began with a”Quick Fix Drop-In Golf Clinic" hosted<br />
by Joey Schalk ’04, an instructor and a PGA Apprentice with<br />
Barton Creek Golf Academy in Austin.<br />
Golf Tournament<br />
Alumna Dr. Tasha Serna-Gallegos ’07<br />
Alumni helped raise $20,000+ for Prep’s financial aid<br />
was the guest speaker at Prep’s<br />
2019 National program Honor during Society the School’s 11th annual golf tournament.<br />
Induction The Ceremony. tournament began with a”Quick Fix Drop-In Golf<br />
Clinic" hosted by Joey Schalk ’04, an instructor and a PGA<br />
Apprentice with Barton Creek Golf Academy in Austin.<br />
A Refresh for Prep’s OLP Larry Hanley Complex<br />
Sandia Prep’s Young Alumni Committee spent a couple of<br />
hours on a sunny afternoon in November working to refresh<br />
the Larry Hanley Outdoor Leadership Prorgam Complex.<br />
Committee members painted and added mulch to the center<br />
A Refresh for Prep’s OLP Larry Hanley Complex<br />
Sandia Prep’s Young Alumni Committee spent a couple of hours<br />
on a sunny afternoon in November working to refresh the Larry<br />
Hanley Outdoor Leadership Prorgam Complex. Committee<br />
members painted and added mulch to the center planter,<br />
sanded and repainted a trash can, removed an older bench, and<br />
repainted the steps leading into the 300 building.<br />
Houston Meet & Greet: Sundevil Cookie Decorating Class<br />
In early November, a small group of alums sipped on sangria<br />
while learning how to decorate cookies like a pro. A special<br />
thanks to our event host, Allan Hursig ’07, aka The Bearded<br />
Baker. A few weeks later Allan was featured on the Food<br />
Network show, “Christmas Cookie Challenge.”<br />
5
Prep Receives Banner Donation from Sparks Estate<br />
In early January, Tina (Sparks) Duncan ’78 and Anne Sparks ’80<br />
met with Bill Sinfield, Prep's Head of School to pass along a<br />
generous check from their family estate. We truly appreciate the<br />
Sparks family and their continued support of Sandia Prep.<br />
Young Alumni Committee members<br />
refreshed the Larry Hanley OLP Complex.<br />
Rosé & Clay<br />
A group of alums met at Prep's Clay Studio to learn how to<br />
use a potter's wheel while enjoying boutique favorites from<br />
Sheehan Winery.<br />
#GivingTuesday<br />
Thanks to a generous matching starter gift by Ali Hashemian<br />
’01, Sandia Prep had a record-breaking #GivingTuesday! In less<br />
than 24 hours, Prep community members rallied and raised<br />
$117,425 for Prep's students, faculty, and programs. Alumni<br />
from the past five decades made contributions to our 2019<br />
#GivingTuesday campaign. We continue to be inspired and<br />
thankful for their support.<br />
WINTER 2019<br />
Bike Transport Trailer<br />
History teacher and Outdoor Leadership Program staff member<br />
Scott Crago ’00 helped to add a mountain biking team to the<br />
School's athletic program — it’s the first competitive school<br />
team in Albuquerque. The Sandia Prep community rallied and<br />
helped raise $3K to purchase a custom trailer to transport the<br />
students' mountain bikes to various competitions, as well as on<br />
OLP sponsored car camping trips.<br />
SPRING <strong>2020</strong><br />
Sundevil Stories<br />
Sandia Prep’s Alumni Office created the “Sundevil Stories”<br />
photo series to acknowledge and thank Sundevils from across<br />
the world who found creative ways to make a difference in<br />
their communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The series<br />
featured an alumna who distributed 2,000+ sew-at-home fabric<br />
mask kits; a group of recent grads who launched a website<br />
to connect ABQ-based volunteers with front line medical<br />
workers and hospital staff; an alumna who participated in the<br />
“Front Porch Project” to take professional and socially distant<br />
photographs of families during quarantine; and more. The full<br />
series can be found at sandiaprep.org/sundevilstories.<br />
Santa @ Sandia Prep<br />
In December, dozens of Prep community members gathered<br />
for the Alumni Association’s annual “Santa @ Sandia Prep”<br />
event.<br />
The Newest Members of Sandia Prep’s Alumni Association<br />
In May, 86 graduates were added to Prep’s collection of 2,100+<br />
alumni who live and work around the globe. Welcome and<br />
congratulations, Class of <strong>2020</strong>!<br />
The Prep community raised $3K to<br />
purchase a custom bike trailer for the<br />
School's new Mountain Biking club.<br />
6
Sundevils ALUMNI around RECAPS the world are doing their part to<br />
help during the COVID-19 pandemic. Read their<br />
stories at sandiaprep.org/sundevilstories.<br />
Dear Sundevil Senior<br />
In mid-April, the Sandia Prep Alumni Association worked with<br />
alums to create and send "Dear Sundevil Senior" messages to<br />
Sandia Prep's Class of <strong>2020</strong>. The messages arrived in waves,<br />
and graduates shared that they loved the personalized mail.<br />
We appreciate the five decades of alumni who sent notes, gift<br />
cards, and painted/sketched postcards. Sandia Prep truly has<br />
the BEST alumni!<br />
distant tie-dye party to personalize fabric masks for Sandia Prep's<br />
Class of <strong>2020</strong>. The masks were mailed to recent grads in time for<br />
their college departures.<br />
Caps and Gowns<br />
Sandia Prep formally announced that the School's Class of<br />
<strong>2020</strong> elected to wear caps and gowns at their graduation<br />
ceremony. The <strong>2020</strong> Senior Class President Austin Tackman '20<br />
and Senior Class Officer Samantha Jeffries '20 helped organize<br />
the students who presented the idea of caps and gowns to<br />
faculty and the student body. “We did a lot of research into<br />
the meaning behind caps and gowns, the significance, what it<br />
means to Prep,” Jeffries said. “Some of the main reasons were<br />
equality, formality, price, and academic achievement.”<br />
SUMMER <strong>2020</strong><br />
Tie-Dyed Creations for Sandia Prep’s Class of <strong>2020</strong><br />
In July, Sandia Prep’s Young Alumni Committee held a socially<br />
Tina (Sparks) Duncan ’78 (right) and Anne Sparks ’80 (left) met with<br />
Bill Sinfield, Prep's Head of School to pass along a generous check<br />
from their family estate.<br />
7
Alumni Legacy Fund<br />
Sandia Prep alumni benefit from “The Prep Experience” long past<br />
graduation. Alums have shared that their time on campus was invaluable<br />
and that their Sandia Prep diploma not only led to their college admission,<br />
but to their eventual career success.<br />
Despite more than 50 years of students, our alumni<br />
population continues to be small, and only recently have we<br />
begun to experience a wave of second-and third-generation<br />
Sundevils. Sandia Prep is able to award financial assistance to<br />
210+ students each year, but private education is expensive,<br />
and a Prep tuition package is not feasible for all. Last fall, a<br />
small group of alumni worked to create and launch the Alumni<br />
Legacy Fund to help make the Sandia Prep experience<br />
financially attainable for legacy Sundevils with limited<br />
financial resources. A majority of the funds will be placed in<br />
an endowment, and we’re happy to share that five secondgeneration<br />
Sundevils joined Sandia Prep in August <strong>2020</strong> as a<br />
result of the fund.<br />
We’re proud<br />
to share<br />
that within<br />
months, alumni<br />
contributed<br />
$175K to the<br />
new fund.<br />
Alumni Legacy Fund Founding Members • Donors<br />
Anonymous Alumnus - Class of 1992<br />
Melissa Besante Dineen ’97<br />
Jakob Gale '16<br />
Ali Hashemian ’01<br />
Julie Langheim Jackson ’99<br />
Kris Kite ’93<br />
Jessica Korber Montoya '88<br />
Amy (McCoy) Pettigrew ’79<br />
Jenny Pitchford ’01<br />
Lydia (Jones) Pizzonia ’99<br />
Dominic Serna ’01<br />
Amy (Otten) Staples ’91<br />
Vahid Staples ’91<br />
Avery Volkman ’96<br />
Sage Volkman ’99<br />
To learn more or to become a charter member,<br />
please visit sandiaprep.org/alumnilegacyfund.<br />
Fun side note: Alumnus Ryan Hunter ’15 designed<br />
our Alumni Legacy Fund logo.<br />
8
ALUMNI PROFILE<br />
U.P. Nguyen<br />
Graduated from Prep<br />
2015<br />
Studied<br />
BS in Computer Science<br />
Lion or Unicorn?<br />
Unicorn<br />
yen-Phuong "U.P." Nguyen is flourishing in her career and<br />
personal goals, expanding on outdoor and leadership skills she<br />
Ulearned during her time at Sandia Prep.<br />
When she started at Sandia Prep in 7th grade, Uyen-Phuong<br />
“U.P.” Nguyen was a self-described “shy, self-conscious, new kid”<br />
and “unathletic egg” who’d never done anything outside her<br />
comfort zone.<br />
settling on Computer Science as a major. “I dove headfirst into<br />
everything I found interesting: classes in Machine Learning, User<br />
Interfaces and Experience, Urban Agriculture, and Buddhism<br />
were among the 30-plus that I took,” she explains.<br />
By the time she graduated in 2015, Nguyen was the Student<br />
Body President and two-time class president who began every<br />
all-school assembly in front of hundreds of people with a corny<br />
joke, someone who’d played soccer for the first time and fell in<br />
love with backpacking.<br />
Fast forward a few years, and Nguyen is a first-generation<br />
graduate of Brown University with a job as a software engineer at<br />
Bose Corporation in Boston, working on projects across a wide<br />
range of disciplines, such as security and health.<br />
She spent some time exploring her options at Brown before<br />
Inspired by her experiences in Prep’s Outdoor Leadership<br />
Program (OLP), Nguyen became the manager of the university’s<br />
outdoor program.<br />
“I was in charge of training over 30 sophomores and juniors<br />
to lead a five-day backpacking trip through White Mountains<br />
National Forest in New Hampshire,” she says. “It's a program<br />
that serves over 200 students. I basically became the Mr.<br />
(Larry) Hanley of Brown, because not only did we have to train<br />
new leaders, we had to iron out logistics such as food, gear,<br />
and transportation. It felt like I had come full circle - I'd never<br />
backpacked (or hiked, really) until my freshman year OLP<br />
9
ALUMNI PROFILE<br />
backpacking trip, and I had no idea what I was doing at the time.<br />
Now, I'm using the outdoors and backpacking as a medium to<br />
help develop people who are more confident in themselves and<br />
their leadership ability.”<br />
In addition to Wilderness First Responder and CPR certifications,<br />
Nguyen became a Certified Personal Trainer in November 2019.<br />
<strong>532</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong> caught up with Nguyen recently to learn more<br />
about what she's been doing.<br />
Tell us about some of the activities in which you participated<br />
in college.<br />
"Brown Outdoor Leadership Training; Teaching Assistant for intro<br />
and upper-level Computer Science classes; Brown Outing Club;<br />
Women in Computer Science; Brown Taekwondo Team."<br />
What are you doing outside of work?<br />
(Before the COVID-19 pandemic) "I've helping others achieve<br />
their health and wellness goals as a personal trainer. In my spare<br />
time, I can be found cooking or reading."<br />
How did your time at Sandia Prep help or influence you?<br />
Think about favorite classes, teachers, activities and how they<br />
shaped the person you've become.<br />
"I've done quite a bit of reflection on the person that I've<br />
become. Without a doubt, I would not be the person I am today<br />
without Sandia Prep. I started at Prep as a shy, self-conscious<br />
7th grader, the new kid. I'd never really done anything outside<br />
my comfort zone, but I knew I had a great thirst for knowledge<br />
and to play sports for the first time. One of my favorite humans,<br />
Sarah Wilson, was a geology teacher, OLP faculty member, and<br />
the middle school girl's soccer coach. She was so welcoming, and<br />
didn't mind that I was an unathletic egg. I tried soccer because of<br />
her, and I went backpacking for the first time because of her.<br />
Fast forward a decade, and I've been on over two dozen<br />
backpacking trips, trained over 80 students to lead their own<br />
backpacking trips, and have run two marathons and 10 halfmarathons.<br />
This former shy, new kid also does not hold back from<br />
striking up conversations with strangers in subways or on planes.<br />
Sarah Wilson taught me to go after life full-force, to not let<br />
anything hold me back. She taught me to believe in myself, to<br />
make leaps of faith and trust that I'll land on my feet, no matter<br />
where that may be.<br />
Sandia Prep definitely prepared me for the academic rigors of<br />
Brown University. But, as I go through life, I'm realizing that life is<br />
more about the people and the experiences than it is the material<br />
things, the credentials I may or may not earn. I'm thankful to<br />
Sandia Prep for many things, but mostly I'm thankful to Prep for<br />
introducing me to so many wonderful mentors and experiences I<br />
wouldn't have had in my life otherwise."<br />
- Patricia Gabbett Snow<br />
“<br />
Without a<br />
doubt, I would<br />
not be the<br />
person I am<br />
today without<br />
Sandia Prep.<br />
I started at<br />
Prep as a shy,<br />
self-conscious<br />
7th grader...<br />
but I knew I<br />
had a great<br />
thirst for<br />
knowledge.<br />
“<br />
10
FACULTY PROFILE<br />
The Gundersons enjoy camping,<br />
backpacking, and skiing together.<br />
Danielle Yepa Gunderson,<br />
Prep's Associate Director<br />
of College Counseling and<br />
Director of Native American<br />
Studies helps Native and<br />
Indigenous students to feel<br />
supported and a part of the<br />
Prep community.<br />
Growing up as an urban Native American<br />
in Albuquerque, Danielle Yepa Gunderson’s<br />
connection to her heritage consisted of<br />
occasional visits to Jemez Pueblo to visit<br />
relatives and to watch traditional dances.<br />
Danielle Yepa Gunderson<br />
Education<br />
BA in Psychology • MA in Counseling<br />
(Working on) PhD in Native American Leadership in Education<br />
Lion or Unicorn? Unicorn<br />
Her parents -- citizens of the Chickasaw<br />
Nation and Jemez and Laguna Pueblos --<br />
allowed Gunderson and her two siblings to decide for themselves<br />
how involved they wanted to be in the pueblo life. Her father had<br />
been raised with Native traditions, but her mother had not.<br />
assemblies throughout the year, including Indigenous Peoples<br />
Day, National Native American Heritage Month, Earth Day, and<br />
an annual pow wow, which draws participants from around the<br />
region for ceremonial dances, grand entries, contests, and more.<br />
It wasn’t until she was attending Fort Lewis College in Colorado<br />
with many other Native American students that Gunderson<br />
decided she wanted to immerse herself in her Indigenous<br />
heritage.<br />
Gunderson graduated from Del Norte High School in<br />
Albuquerque, where she met her future husband, Ron. She<br />
earned a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from Fort Lewis, and a<br />
master’s degree in counseling from the University of New Mexico.<br />
Now, that ancestry is a source of pride that she shares with her<br />
own daughters and the Sandia Prep community. “High school<br />
was not an easy path to navigate, being urban and not raised<br />
on traditional homelands. Complicated,” Gunderson explains.<br />
“I believe this is where I empathize with our Native SPS students<br />
who are coming from different backgrounds and experiences.”<br />
After working at several other schools, Gunderson landed a job at<br />
Prep in 2012 as an Assistant Director of Admission and Assistant<br />
Director of College Counseling. “As a first-generation scholar,<br />
I have a passion for guiding students and parents through the<br />
ins and outs of the college application process,” Gunderson<br />
explains.<br />
The Native American Sandia Prep Alliance (NASPA) was founded<br />
in 2011, a year before Gunderson starting working at Prep.<br />
“NASPA students support one another, collaborate, and the<br />
time together allows the students to be who they are with one<br />
another,” she explains. NASPA organizes presentations for school<br />
Gunderson’s father, Kemp Yepa, became an important part of<br />
the Prep community as well, both as a proud grandpa and as<br />
someone eager to share his traditions during appearances at<br />
assemblies throughout the years. In October 2019, Yepa honored<br />
11
FACULTY PROFILE<br />
Prep by giving a blessing in Towa to the school during an allschool<br />
assembly. Towa is the traditional tribal language of Jemez<br />
Pueblo. He passed away five months later.<br />
Gunderson and her husband are taking the same path as her<br />
parents in allowing their daughters - Claire ’23, a sophomore,<br />
and Hailey ‘25 an eighth grader - to decide for themselves how<br />
much they wish to be involved with tribal dances. “Looking<br />
back, I understand why my parents made the decision they did,<br />
and I value and appreciate more than ever who I am as a Native<br />
American,” Gunderson says.<br />
Gunderson hopes to further support Prep’s Native students.<br />
“Sandia Prep is undoubtedly a community that welcomes and<br />
encourages initiatives to serve our students, and I am excited to<br />
share with the SPS community,” she says.<br />
Gunderson has spent 18 years helping to organize the Rocky<br />
Mountain Association for College Admission Counseling New<br />
Mexico College Fair in Albuquerque. She also volunteers<br />
with College Horizons Summer Program, which helps Native<br />
and Indigenous students across the country with the college<br />
application process to Ivy League and highly selective<br />
institutions.<br />
In 2018, Gunderson helped kick off the National Association<br />
for College Admission Counseling national conference with a<br />
land acknowledgement, a formal statement that recognizes<br />
and respects Indigenous peoples as traditional stewards of the<br />
land. Education and community service are paramount to the<br />
Gunderson family.<br />
“My daughters are taught it is not about them, and to seek how<br />
to best serve others. As a parent and educator, I have done<br />
my utmost best to lead by example, be genuine, and practice<br />
humility.”<br />
Claire’s activities include Prep’s Outdoor Leadership Program<br />
(OLP), dance, chorus, and Prep Performers, an extra-curricular<br />
ensemble group that performs at various school events.<br />
She hopes to attend Stanford University to study electrical<br />
engineering. Hailey is a competitive gymnast who enjoys dance,<br />
musical and theater productions, guitar, and sewing. She hopes<br />
to attend Yale University to earn a degree in English and perhaps<br />
become an editor.<br />
NASPA members present at a 2019 all-school assembly.<br />
Among her many activities, Gunderson serves as a leader for<br />
the National Association for College Admission Counseling<br />
(NACAC) Native Indigenous Peoples Special Interest Group.<br />
Last April, Gunderson and several other staff members helped<br />
collect donations for the Navajo Nation during the COVID-19<br />
crisis. Even the family dog is dedicated to community service.<br />
Ron, an arson investigator with Albuquerque Fire Rescue, is the<br />
trainer for Louise, known as “Wheezy,” the state’s only arson<br />
dog. The friendly black lab is trained to detect even small traces<br />
of accelerants. She responded to 21 investigations in her first<br />
year on the job. “The SPS community absolutely loves Wheezy,”<br />
Gunderson says. “The students immediately are drawn to her<br />
when she comes to visit.”<br />
Prep is working diligently on inclusion and diversity, but there is<br />
always room for improvement, Gunderson says. She would like<br />
to see the school implement cultural competency workshops and<br />
utilize faculty who are experts in their fields.<br />
“SPS supports their students wholeheartedly and is open to ideas<br />
and suggestions,” Gunderson says. “Students are valued for the<br />
rich backgrounds they come from and surround themselves in a<br />
school community that embraces differences by acknowledging<br />
and celebrating those backgrounds.”<br />
- Patricia Gabbett Snow<br />
12
STUDENT PROFILE<br />
Jacob Gutierrez<br />
Class of<br />
2024<br />
Years at Sandia Prep<br />
4<br />
Interests<br />
Kindness, bow ties, knitting, and music<br />
Lion or Unicorn?<br />
Unicorn<br />
J<br />
acob Gutierrez '24, might be one of the most recognizable students<br />
on the Prep campus. Between his trademark bow ties and the scarves<br />
he weaves and often gives away -- not to mention his friendly smile and<br />
knack for engaging everyone he comes across in amiable, articulate<br />
conversation -- Jacob made an impact soon after arriving in sixth grade.<br />
“Jacob is a very caring person, more interested in the needs of<br />
his friends and classmates than in himself,” says History teacher<br />
Thomas Gentry-Funk. “As a member of the Middle School GSA<br />
(Gay Straight Alliance), Jacob welcomed members to the group,<br />
made them feel cared for and heard. He was and is one of the<br />
most gentle souls I have ever met, and his willingness to listen to<br />
sixth graders tell their stories was remarkable.”<br />
An Albuquerque native, Jacob landed at Prep after participating<br />
in SummerPrep theater productions and getting to know teacher<br />
and director Louis Giannini. He says he was drawn to Prep’s small,<br />
close-knit nature.<br />
“The people care,” he explains. “Prep is a community. At other<br />
schools I’ve been to, it was everyone for themselves. Not at Prep.<br />
It’s a second family for me.”<br />
Jacob began what he calls “his adventure with wool” in third<br />
grade. His teacher at the time taught him to knit and allowed<br />
him to create and give away scarves to those in need. “I like to<br />
craft other things in my spare time, but I like scarves for their<br />
fashion and ease of construction,” he adds. By fifth grade, Jacob<br />
adopted bow ties as his signature wardrobe accessory. “I wear<br />
them every day. I believe that bow ties are the perfect mix of<br />
casual and professional.”<br />
By the end of sixth grade, Jacob was recognized for the Positive<br />
Presence Award by the Student Relations Group (SRG) and the<br />
Aaron Kwak Memorial Award, an award named for a former<br />
Sandia Prep middle school student. The award honors a student<br />
who shows courage and humor in his or her interpersonal<br />
relationships.<br />
13
STUDENT PROFILE<br />
Spanish teacher Bambi Otero nominated Jacob for the Kwak<br />
honor. “Jacob gave me a piece of paper in 2017 that I made into<br />
a magnet, I liked it so much. It says: ‘What I love most about my<br />
classroom is who I share it with!’ This act of kindness sums it up<br />
with Jacob,” Ms. Otero explains. “He is keen to notice what is<br />
meaningful to others, and he actively supports others in what they<br />
themselves value. He is an encouraging soul in this daring and<br />
accepting way that is a rare form of kindness.”<br />
“<br />
I think<br />
kindness is<br />
vital to this<br />
world.<br />
“<br />
Quince in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. It has been a wild ride!"<br />
How would you describe yourself as a student?<br />
"I find learning to be a great joy in life. I like to be submerged in<br />
knowledge whenever I can."<br />
What are some of the day-to-day challenges you face with<br />
your busy schedule?<br />
"With so much to do, I must sleep well. Things to see. Work to do.<br />
There’s no room for a foggy brain. Being at Prep is demanding,<br />
but it’s absolutely worth it!"<br />
Have any specific teachers, classes, or programs at Prep<br />
influenced you?<br />
"I have yet to meet an adult at Prep who is anything less than<br />
brilliant! Just to list a few: Everyone in the drama department, all<br />
of the historians, the musicians, the mathematicians, the scientists,<br />
the language teachers, the librarians, even the people in the office<br />
make my day when I see them."<br />
Altruism is central to Jacob’s being, along with using words such<br />
as “fantastic,” “supreme,” and “lovely.” “Kindness should not<br />
be because you want to be popular or well known,” he says.<br />
“Kindness should come from the heart because that's who you<br />
want to be. Sometimes being kind is not easy, but it is always<br />
worth it!”<br />
By eighth grade, Jacob devoted much of his time to being the<br />
vice president of Prep’s GSA. For the <strong>2020</strong>-21 school year, he<br />
takes on the roll of president. He also ran for Student Body<br />
President. His favorite quote encapsulates his philosophy: “If you<br />
want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”<br />
Science teacher Joelle Shaw says one of Jacob’s gifts is that “he<br />
remembers small details about people and checks in, making<br />
others feel special. In addition to Jacob's lovely personality, he is<br />
incredibly insightful and intelligent, but he never gloats about this<br />
or acts superior.”<br />
<strong>532</strong> staff asked Jacob, now a freshman, to tell us more about<br />
himself and his experiences.<br />
If you could offer advice to beginning students at Prep, what<br />
would you say?<br />
"Think Big! Sandia Prep is the place to start when changing the<br />
world! Never ever give up and dream big dreams!"<br />
Jacob recently traveled to Australia with<br />
his grandmother, Theresa A. Kestly,<br />
who presented at the International<br />
Childhood Trauma Conference.<br />
Do you have a favorite Prep memory (so far)?<br />
"I’ve done a lot in three years, but there are a few things that<br />
come to mind, like my vocal performance of 'Defying Gravity'<br />
by Steven Schwartz or when I gave a recitation of 'The Raven' by<br />
Edgar Allan Poe. The LGBT+ Pride events and my role as Peter<br />
Where do you see yourself five years from now?<br />
"I will not settle for small potatoes. I want to sing melodies in the<br />
Sydney Opera House!"<br />
- Patricia Gabbett Snow<br />
14
Empower Prep with Global Ties<br />
guests in October 2019.<br />
Empower Prep took part in a Global Studies event where they spoke with<br />
women state representatives from the Middle East and Africa.<br />
Empower Prep hosted a lunchtime<br />
teach-in on homophobia last year.<br />
Empower Prep Creates<br />
Critical Consciousness<br />
Sandia Prep students who wanted to have a place to talk about<br />
racism, sexism, and homophobia launched Empower Prep during<br />
the 2018-19 academic year.<br />
15
"Empower is<br />
a space where<br />
we don't have<br />
to be alone."<br />
- Diego Tenorio '20<br />
Tell us about an impactful memory with the group.<br />
"Empower has been one of my biggest sources of joy on campus.<br />
My favorite memories of Empower have always been when<br />
someone during a presentation asks a particularly complicated<br />
question and multiple Empower Prep members are ready to<br />
answer it. I also love the moments before presentations where we<br />
were just getting out nerves and reaffirming that we have each<br />
others' backs."<br />
Dr. Amanda Parker<br />
Prep Teacher and Empower Prep Sponsor<br />
Recent alum Diego Tenorio ’20, one of Empower Prep's founders,<br />
says the group provides peer education and emotional support<br />
for students of color and LGBTQ+ students. “Through educating<br />
ourselves and each other, we can better understand what<br />
marginalized groups are going through on campus and better<br />
provide the support they need,” he explains. “Empower focuses<br />
on deepening the understanding of complex issues and how<br />
these systems are affecting students.”<br />
Dr. Amanda Parker, Prep teacher and Empower Prep sponsor, and<br />
Tenorio answered <strong>532</strong>’s questions about Empower Prep.<br />
Diego Tenorio ’20<br />
Recent Grad and Empower Prep Co-Founder<br />
Why did you get involved with Empower Prep?<br />
"I started Empower Prep with a few other students and Dr. Parker<br />
because there wasn't really a space like it on campus. We were<br />
a very small group when we got started, but we were always<br />
focused on improving the school and helping each other in<br />
various ways. Since then, I couldn't imagine my Prep experience<br />
without it."<br />
Why do you think this affinity group is important to the Prep<br />
community?<br />
"We focus on peer education and spend a lot of time learning<br />
about the subjects beforehand. We also have a large emphasis on<br />
emotional support and building the Empower community. It can<br />
be hard being a student of color at Prep because you're not often<br />
represented in the curriculum or even amongst the teachers."<br />
How did Empower Prep come to be?<br />
"Empower was started by students who wanted to have a place<br />
to talk about racism, sexism, and homophobia. It is a space that<br />
welcomes students from all backgrounds who are committed<br />
to learning about these problems, supporting each other, and<br />
educating peers. Critical consciousness is everyone’s responsibility<br />
at our school."<br />
Describe some of the group’s projects/efforts.<br />
"Empower Prep has developed student-led seminars that educate<br />
faculty and fellow students about oppression in society and at<br />
the school. With sponsor support, students create presentations<br />
that take place at lunch, during ninth-grade health days, and<br />
grade level meetings. They have learned how to effectively<br />
communicate the issues and to field questions."<br />
Why is Empower Prep important to the Prep community?<br />
"Students have been able to have an impact on the school<br />
culture that is undeniable. It is also collaborative with other affinity<br />
groups. Empower Prep not only provides space for students of<br />
color and LGBTQ+ students, it invites white students who want to<br />
become allies in the struggle for social justice. We have plans to<br />
expand our collaboration with BSU this year to confront some of<br />
the urgent issues that our community is facing."<br />
Is there anything you’d like the Prep community to know?<br />
Future plans for the group?<br />
"The group is a dynamic space. These conversations are difficult<br />
to have, and these students have struggled to make this space<br />
what it is at Prep. They are excited to see other affinity groups<br />
develop and begin to become more vocal too."<br />
16
17<br />
Ramona explores the landscapes<br />
of New Mexico at Tent Rocks<br />
National Monument.
Path to<br />
prep<br />
The morning of October 8, 2017, eighth-grader Ramona Delyser and her<br />
parents looked out the window of their home in Petaluma, CA. It wasn’t light<br />
yet, but the sky glowed an eerie orange. Firestorms were sweeping through<br />
their North Bay community. The series of blazes would eventually kill 43<br />
people, force 90,000 to evacuate their homes, and destroy 8,000 structures.<br />
School was canceled for a couple of weeks. Petaluma became a safe haven<br />
for surrounding communities.<br />
After 17 years in California, the family had just begun thinking of moving back<br />
to Albuquerque, where Ramona’s mom, Nicky Ovitt, had grown up and where<br />
Ramona’s grandmother still lives.<br />
The wildfires ignited those plans.<br />
18
As the fires burned, the family sat down with a realtor, who said<br />
she’d help – “if there’s anything left to sell,” she added.<br />
“It was a very unknown time,” Nicky explains.<br />
They listed the house in mid-October. They were swamped with<br />
offers and letters of pleading to sell to families who had been<br />
displaced or who had been looking for a home for a long time,<br />
because the market was so tight.<br />
The family made their move in February of 2018. Starting a new<br />
school more than halfway through the school year in eighth<br />
grade was less than ideal. “I was really nervous on my first day,”<br />
Ramona recalls, “but everyone was really, really nice.”<br />
“The school we were choosing was always very important to us,”<br />
Nicky adds. “Ramona has an exceptional brain, and we really<br />
wanted to nurture that.”<br />
Nicky Ovitt grew up around art. Her late father, Wesley Ovitt,<br />
was an artist. Her mother, Helen Lucero, was one of the first<br />
Hispanic women art curators in the nation. While working on her<br />
doctorate in art education and art history from the University of<br />
New Mexico, Lucero worked at the Museum of International Folk<br />
Art in Santa Fe. In 1999, Lucero became the founding Director of<br />
Visual Arts at the National Hispanic Cultural Center, from which<br />
she retired in 2006. Lucero was co-author of the book Chimayo<br />
Weaving: The Transformation of a Tradition. She worked on more<br />
than 50 exhibitions and spent her career helping to promote<br />
and educate the public about Hispanic arts and culture. In 2017,<br />
Lucero was recognized with a Governor’s Award for Excellence in<br />
the Arts.<br />
Ramona has blossomed at Prep. She’s involved in track and field,<br />
volleyball, mechatronics and engineering, the Refugee Alliance,<br />
and Empower Prep. “Prep has been a really good opportunity to<br />
challenge myself,” Ramona explains.<br />
Ramona says she hopes to go into environmental engineering or<br />
policy. Like her mother, Ramona also is a talented artist who loves<br />
to draw, paint, and work with clay.<br />
When the COVID pandemic struck in March <strong>2020</strong>, it was strangely<br />
familiar to the Delyser/Ovitt family. Just as time stopped during<br />
the wildfires, suddenly, from one day to the next, nothing was<br />
quite the same.<br />
Ovitt and Roland Delyser met and married in Albuquerque.<br />
Roland is from Los Angeles, and Nicky had lived in San Francisco.<br />
In 1993 they met at UNM and in 1999 decided to move back to<br />
California for better job opportunities.<br />
Ovitt, a designer and illustrator, found success creating concepts<br />
and styles for brands like Levi Strauss & Co. and Speedo. Roland<br />
had been a Union Journeyman, independent contractor, and<br />
project manager/estimator for a home building contractor.<br />
And Ramona '22, now a Sandia Prep junior, was thriving in a<br />
charter school that offered a competitive arts-and-project-based<br />
curriculum.<br />
But as the years passed, they missed being close to Lucero, the<br />
only surviving grandparent. And their little agricultural town had<br />
turned “very boutique,” Ovitt says. “The sweet hometown feel<br />
was being replaced by lots of Teslas and attitude.”<br />
If they were going to move, it was a good time to leave before<br />
Ramona started high school.<br />
In early November, the family traveled to Albuquerque to visit<br />
schools, take admission testing, and look at housing. Friends had<br />
told them that Prep was probably the best fit for Ramona, and<br />
after her visit day and attending a senior night volleyball game,<br />
Ramona enthusiastically agreed. “I had a great shadow day. Prep<br />
felt the most comfortable,” she says.<br />
“The level of<br />
difficulty of classes<br />
I’ve chosen has<br />
gotten greater. It’s<br />
nice that Prep gives<br />
you the option of<br />
doubling up on<br />
science and math.”<br />
- Ramona<br />
19
Track and field is one of the activities Ramona,<br />
right, has tried in her time at Prep. Her teammate,<br />
Sidney Harenberg '22, is at left.<br />
Ramona at her grandmother<br />
Helen Lucero's art show at<br />
University of New Mexico<br />
Hospital’s Jonathan Abrams<br />
MD Art Gallery, summer 2016<br />
Ramona painted a portrait of Australian<br />
actress and singer Maia Mitchell for<br />
Ms. Mary Nakigan's art class.<br />
An encouraging<br />
sign hangs in<br />
Ramona's former<br />
neighborhood<br />
in Petaluma,<br />
CA, during the<br />
wildfires of 2017.<br />
Nicky, Roland, and Ramona at DeLoach<br />
Vineyards in Santa Rosa, CA<br />
Overnight, Nicky’s bandanas that she sells online and to shops<br />
around the country were in high demand, even featured in a Vogue<br />
magazine article about scarves as facial coverings during the<br />
pandemic.<br />
Delyser/Ovitt clan has happily returned to familial roots, and the<br />
rich art and culture of New Mexico. Prep recently commissioned<br />
an illustrated campus map from Ovitt, which you can view at<br />
sandiaprep.org/campus.<br />
As the pandemic dragged into the summer, the family managed<br />
to find the silver linings in a challenging time. Lucero joined them<br />
for coffee almost every afternoon. Ovitt continued to buy groceries<br />
for her mom to limit Lucero’s exposure to COVID, and the family<br />
started a social justice movie night.<br />
“I am so grateful to be here during COVID,” Ovitt explains.<br />
“My mom, who is a social butterfly, would have become very<br />
depressed. And I would have been terribly worried.”<br />
While some of their friends in California have only recently moved<br />
back into homes repaired or rebuilt after the wildfires -- and<br />
the <strong>2020</strong> fire season continues to rage and break records -- the<br />
Ovitt now serves as vice president of the Hispanic Women’s<br />
Council. She is helping a friend to create a website for the nonprofit<br />
Dakota Tree Project, which will plant and maintain trees in<br />
high-heat, low-income areas of Albuquerque. Since Ramona’s<br />
summer job working with horses at a Girl Scout camp in the Jemez<br />
was canceled because of COVID, she began interning with the<br />
project.<br />
Just as burn areas regenerate with new growth over time, this<br />
family has thrived in formidable circumstances.<br />
- Patricia Gabbett Snow<br />
20
BSU Builds Unity,<br />
Deepens Understanding<br />
It started as a place where students who identified as Black or African American<br />
could feel supported and comfortable coming together and talking about their<br />
experiences. Now, Sandia Prep’s Black Student Union has evolved into a<br />
space where students can take action and reach out to the Prep community to<br />
begin to manifest change and a greater awareness on campus.<br />
“The BSU is important to the Prep campus because it gives<br />
those students like me a place to express themselves and tell<br />
their story to others who feel the same way,” says student<br />
Destiny Archibald, ’21, who co-founded the group during<br />
the 2019-20 academic year with Maryah Burrell ’21. “We also<br />
want to spread the idea of Black culture into the community.<br />
I personally, want to learn more about my roots and where I<br />
came from, and this group I feel accomplishes that.”<br />
As racial issues and social unrest continue to top the news,<br />
Prep’s BSU is giving students an outlet for their emotions,<br />
Archibald adds. “With the recent events happening in the<br />
United States, we as a group have found comfort in having<br />
others we can talk to about these tragic times.”<br />
BSU sponsor and teacher Mary Nakigan says the Prep group<br />
hopes to get involved with other Black student affinity<br />
groups around Albuquerque to build unity and coalition<br />
while finding ways to stand up for the Black community<br />
at Prep. “When we strengthen our relationships with one<br />
another, when we learn from the work that has been taking<br />
place for years, and when we stand in solidarity, we can lift<br />
all of our students up,” Nakigan explains.<br />
Archibald, Burrell, Nakigan, and BSU member<br />
Tati Dalton '23 answered <strong>532</strong>'s questions as a group.<br />
Why did you get involved with BSU?<br />
"Being at Prep since 6th grade, I had a hard time fitting in,<br />
and oftentimes felt ostracized from those around me. I felt<br />
alone, and there was never someone I felt safe enough to<br />
17 21<br />
2019 - <strong>2020</strong> Black Student Union members
talk to. I also noticed that there wasn’t a group that supported the<br />
individuals that looked like me, and I wanted to change that. In the<br />
middle of junior year, I came together with Maryah Burrell, and we<br />
decided it was time Prep had a group that would support African<br />
American students on campus." - Destiny Archibald<br />
What would you like people to know about the group?<br />
"What has happened to Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and even<br />
going back to Tamir Rice in 2014, is not okay, and change needs to<br />
happen."<br />
Tell us about an impactful memory for the group.<br />
"In February, the group had several events planned for Black<br />
History Month. Guest speaker Matthew Barkley came to campus<br />
and told his story of how it was for him growing up as an African<br />
American. We had also planned on several Step Teams from UNM’s<br />
fraternities and sororities coming to campus and performing.<br />
Unfortunately, this did not happen with quarantines and the closure<br />
of school. We truly do hope this year we are able to continue<br />
with events on campus as well as outside, because this group is<br />
something special."<br />
disproportionately affects communities of color. African Americans<br />
make up 6.5% of the American population but 40.2% of the prison<br />
populace. While a white male has a 1 in 17 chance of ending up<br />
behind bars, for Black males it is 1 in 3. (Ava DuVernay, 13th). The<br />
reality is that racism permeates every facet of American culture, not<br />
just the privatized prison industry or the institution of policing - and<br />
these systems of oppression affect our students of color every day.<br />
The BSU wants to foster change in the Prep community by talking<br />
with students and teachers about racism, and creating real dialogue<br />
about ways that Prep can educate our students with integrity and<br />
cultivate anti-racist individuals who are prepared for the world<br />
we live in. We are incredibly fortunate to have student leaders in<br />
Empower Prep who have been working on deepening a critical<br />
consciousness amongst the student body for three years now. The<br />
BSU wants to acknowledge the work that Empower Prep has done,<br />
for this group has paved the way for the Black Student Union. We<br />
look forward to working with Empower and other groups at Prep<br />
who are working towards positive changes on our campus."<br />
Describe some of the group’s projects and efforts.<br />
"During Black History Month last February, the BSU had a weekly<br />
presence at all-school assemblies and read quotes and poems that<br />
embraced Black experiences and Black history. We also brought<br />
in speaker Matthew Barkley to discuss his experiences as a young<br />
Black man and why affinity groups are so important. The Prep BSU<br />
hopes to make Black History Month assemblies an annual tradition<br />
at our school. When we transitioned to online learning last March,<br />
the BSU continued its weekly meetings via Zoom, and students<br />
expressed interest in finding ways to give back to the local Black<br />
community in the midst of a pandemic that disproportionately<br />
affects communities of color across the nation. We decided to<br />
support Powdrell's Barbeque by getting takeout and sharing a<br />
virtual meal together. We are looking forward to continuing our<br />
efforts this year. The BSU would like to reach out to middle school<br />
students to make connections, provide support, and offer guidance<br />
for younger students. The BSU also wants to do some fundraising,<br />
so that we can continue to support our community while fostering<br />
connections and solidarity within the group."<br />
Why is BSU important to the Prep community? Have George<br />
Floyd’s death and the Black Lives Matter movement affected<br />
the group's efforts?<br />
"The student-led BSU has a very important role to play in the Prep<br />
community. While it is easy to avoid talking about racism, it is vital<br />
for everyone in our community to acknowledge racism, to support<br />
Black students, and to recognize how they are affected by racism.<br />
What happened to George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor,<br />
and countless other individuals affects students and reinforces the<br />
need for change in our society and on our campus. Incarceration<br />
Head of School Bill Sinfield acknowledges<br />
that the school still has work to do to ensure<br />
students of color do not have the same<br />
experience that the BSU founders initially had.<br />
“A recent graduate of Sandia Prep and a<br />
member of BSU once told me that when she<br />
came to school, she had to be a different<br />
person,” he says. “Her comments broke my<br />
heart and opened my mind. That's why we<br />
fully endorse this program, and we hope that<br />
we can learn from these students and become<br />
better human beings."<br />
Prep’s efforts include paying for numerous<br />
students and faculty to attend an upcoming<br />
National Association of Independent Schools<br />
(NAIS) People of Color Conference. In<br />
addition, a faculty reading group is studying<br />
books on race and social injustice and creating<br />
ways to incorporate equity and justice into the<br />
curriculum and everyday life at Prep.<br />
22
SMART GIVING<br />
Donors Provide<br />
Life-Changing Experiences<br />
for Students<br />
Generous donations have made an independent education possible for<br />
more than 210 Sandia Prep students during the 2019 - <strong>2020</strong> school year.<br />
23
SMART GIVING<br />
1<br />
2<br />
3 4<br />
1. Sandia Prep Golf Tournament - September 27, 2019<br />
Sandia Golf Club welcomed 130 players for a fun afternoon on the<br />
course to raise $20,000 for Sandia Prep’s financial aid program.<br />
We thank the generosity of our sponsors and participants for<br />
supporting all aspects of this popular community building event.<br />
2. Grandparents’ Day<br />
Sandia Prep faculty, staff and students welcomed grandparents<br />
and grandfriends to campus on October 2 for the School’s annual<br />
Grandparents’ Day celebration. They participated in many activities<br />
including science experiments, book discussions, art projects,<br />
concerts, and even a French cooking lesson. Mark Your Calendar:<br />
Our next Grandparents’ Day celebration will be held on<br />
Thursday, April 1, 2021.<br />
3. And the winner is…<br />
Sandia Prep held its second annual Tuition Raffle in late fall 2019<br />
raising $39,200 for Science, Math, Engineering and Technology<br />
programs. The lucky winners were Grade 9 parents William and<br />
Amy Thompson. We thank the 229 community members who<br />
supported the raffle!<br />
4. Alumni Legacy Fund<br />
A new fund was created by alumni specifically for second-and<br />
third-generation Sundevils who need extra financial assistance to<br />
attend Sandia Prep. Read more about this heartwarming initiative<br />
on page 8.<br />
24
SMART GIVING<br />
Funding the Student Experience<br />
2019 - <strong>2020</strong> Annual Fund<br />
“Prep gave me a place where I could grow, develop<br />
lifelong friendships, and dream of a future I never would<br />
have imagined on my own,” says Austin Tackman ’20.<br />
All day, every day, through every season of the year, and<br />
in every single corner of Sandia Prep’s campus, annual<br />
gifts make a difference. That’s because annual gifts make<br />
it possible for Sandia Prep to take care of the immediate<br />
needs of students, faculty, and facilities.<br />
“My cross country and track coaches have helped me<br />
develop into a better athlete and have strengthened my<br />
enthusiasm for running,” reflects Nahom Zerai ‘22.<br />
ANNUAL FUND<br />
IMPACT on Austin<br />
Digital Media &<br />
Communication<br />
Athletics<br />
Student Leadership<br />
Whether it’s stepping in to help an outstanding student<br />
with financial need, providing technology to faculty and<br />
students for virtual classes, or funding start-up costs for a<br />
new program, annual support helps make it happen.<br />
“Prep supports me as a person. We have an amazing<br />
atmosphere and teachers who are always willing to help,”<br />
says Lauren Staples ‘24.<br />
ANNUAL FUND<br />
IMPACT on Nahom<br />
Performing Arts<br />
Athletics<br />
WHAT’S YOUR<br />
IMPACT?<br />
Engineering<br />
'19 - '20 Annual Fund Impact<br />
577 donors<br />
Raised $716,042<br />
Restricted Donations: 78%<br />
Unrestricted Donations: 22%<br />
ANNUAL FUND<br />
IMPACT on Lauren<br />
Small school feel,<br />
big opportunities.<br />
Language Immersion<br />
Enthusiastic Teachers<br />
25
SMART GIVING<br />
The tennis court expansion and remodel includes<br />
two new courts, resurfacing, new spectator<br />
walkway and seating, and bathroom facilities.<br />
Campus Improvements<br />
New Tennis Facility Celebrated<br />
Last year, on a crisp October day, students and members of the<br />
Sandia Prep community gathered to celebrate the long-awaited<br />
renovation and expansion of its tennis facility. The four original<br />
courts, built in 2000 and made possible by the Woltil family, were<br />
resurfaced, and two new courts were added along with bathroom<br />
facilities and spectator seating.<br />
Briley Commons with a Modern Twist<br />
In January 2019, students enrolled in our Entrepreneurial Studies<br />
(ES) class were presented with a challenge: To redesign the existing<br />
Briley Commons that would be a comfortable yet contemporary<br />
environment for studying and gathering.<br />
Students envisioned a space with comfortable laptop seating at a<br />
long counter space equipped with computer outlets; club chairs<br />
with built-in power and arranged in a circular fashion; larger tables<br />
for students to sit together as they work, and a coffee kiosk.<br />
The School took the students’ vision to the Slomo and Cindy<br />
Silvian Foundation. In turn, the Foundation responded with a grant<br />
of $26,000 to execute their plan.<br />
“The Slomo and Cindy Silvian Foundation is proud to support<br />
an opportunity for young entrepreneurs to integrate theory and<br />
practical experience to demonstrate their learned skills,” says<br />
Daniel Komansky, Executive Director of the Foundation. “The<br />
Silvians were not only known in their community for their business<br />
leadership but also for their friendship. The Briley Commons<br />
project touches upon both of these attributes through the<br />
students’ application of concrete business skills to create a space<br />
for friends to connect and learn.”<br />
The coffee shop will be run by Prep students. They will earn an<br />
elective credit, and their time will be treated as a business class<br />
while they learn the ins and outs of running a business.<br />
26
SMART GIVING<br />
The Prep Experience<br />
Virtual Auction Supports Student Experience<br />
COVID-19 could not keep the Prep community from bidding<br />
for good! On May 2, <strong>2020</strong> Sandia Prep hosted its first-ever<br />
virtual auction in lieu of its large hotel-based gala, Noche de<br />
Celebración. From a garage opener system to fine wine and<br />
spirits baskets and restaurant gift cards to a pallet of sod, there<br />
was something for everyone. More than 130 participants<br />
helped raise nearly $15,000 for Prep’s student experience,<br />
including athletics, Outdoor Leadership Program, student clubs,<br />
theater and dance productions, modern languages field trips,<br />
and so on.<br />
Mark Your Calendar: Noche de Celebración, our biennial<br />
community auction and dinner, has been moved to<br />
Saturday, April 24, 2021 at Hotel Albuquerque. For ticket<br />
and table reservations, event sponsorships or general event<br />
information, visit sandiaprep.org/noche.<br />
Small Business Directory<br />
Sandia Prep is a community, first and foremost. To help Prep's<br />
small business owners get the word out about their products<br />
and services, we compiled a list of small businesses on the<br />
School's website at sandiaprep.org/businessdirectory.<br />
This initiative is open to all community members.<br />
Experts shared their advice with the Prep community during<br />
a COVID-19-focused "Ask the Experts" webinar.<br />
Upcoming Events<br />
Tentative dates<br />
Grandparents' Day<br />
Thursday, April 1, 2021<br />
Sandia Prep<br />
Noche de Celebración<br />
Saturday, April 24, 2021<br />
Hotel Albuquerque<br />
Ask the Experts Webinar<br />
Sandia Prep's "Ask the Experts: Strategic Planning During<br />
COVID-19" webinar was a success! Participants said they<br />
appreciated the timely information and personal access to several<br />
of Albuquerque's most influential business leaders. The webinar<br />
was an extension of Sandia Prep’s Board of Trustees and was<br />
sponsored by Ali Hashemian ’01 of Kinetic Financial. A special<br />
thanks to our panel moderator, Doug Clark, Sandia Prep’s Board<br />
Chair, and to our panel experts:<br />
• Linda Cooper, Consumer Delivery Director for the<br />
Bank of Albuquerque<br />
• Ali Hashemian ’01, President at Kinetic Financial<br />
• Dale Maxwell, President & CEO of Presbyterian<br />
Healthcare Services<br />
• Dominic Serna ’01 of Dominic J. Serna’s Luxury Real Estate<br />
• Ed Street of REDW LLC<br />
• Patrick Westerfield of Westerfield Law Offices<br />
27
SMART GIVING<br />
"The Family Relief Fund<br />
hasn’t just provided tuition<br />
Family Relief Fund<br />
With the arrival of COVID-19, 50+ of our families<br />
suffered sudden furloughs, job losses and the<br />
closure of their businesses. The timing of these<br />
circumstances coincided with final tuition payments<br />
for the 2019-<strong>2020</strong> academic year and the decision<br />
to re-enroll their children for <strong>2020</strong>-2021.<br />
As Sandia Prep’s highest priority is to keep our<br />
school community intact, the School established the<br />
Family Relief Fund to provide temporary assistance<br />
to families who demonstrated financial hardship due<br />
the impact of COVID-19.<br />
From current parents to alumni to grandparents,<br />
the community response was immediate and<br />
heartfelt. In just 12 weeks, more than $126,000 was<br />
contributed to the Family Relief Fund.<br />
assistance; it has enabled my<br />
child to remain in a community<br />
that supports his full potential<br />
as both a student and a<br />
person. I will never forget how<br />
the Prep community was there<br />
for us in our time of need."<br />
- Parent of Prep 6th-Grader<br />
2019 Sandia Prep Golf Tournament Sponsors<br />
Noche de Celebración Sponsors<br />
G IA<br />
Maintenance Service Systems<br />
Kim Crismore<br />
Peak Motion Physical Therapy<br />
Phil & Laurie Baca<br />
Todd ’91 & Cristie Sappington ’90 Sandoval<br />
Billy's Long Bar<br />
Dean Holtrop & Faith Begay Holtrop<br />
Todd ’91 & Cristie Sappington ’90 Sandoval<br />
Crystal Carrasco<br />
ERA Sellers & Buyers Real Estate<br />
28
John and Mary Lee Sparks<br />
Sparks Family Honors Sandia Prep with Gift<br />
E<br />
arlier this year, Sandia Prep received a<br />
tremendous gift from the estate of John and<br />
Mary Lee Sparks. Their contribution will support<br />
the School’s general endowment. The couple’s<br />
four girls, Mary Aleta "Molly" Sparks '71, Barbara<br />
Sparks Federico ’75, Christina Sparks Duncan ’78,<br />
and Anne R. Sparks ’80, attended Sandía School/<br />
Sandia Prep.<br />
John and Mary Lee were active with St. John’s<br />
Cathedral Church and in numerous other<br />
community and philanthropic activities.<br />
Mary Lee (née Lumpkin) was a member of the<br />
Lumpkin Family Foundation, which has been a<br />
consistent contributor to Sandia Prep’s library in<br />
memory of Molly Sparks. The Foundation’s and<br />
Sparks Family's support of the School spans more<br />
than 40 years. Mary Lee was also active on the<br />
board of Accion. John felt a strong desire to help<br />
others and served as a volunteer of St. Martin’s<br />
Hospitality Center, the Rehab Center, and he<br />
helped found the Rio Grande Nature Center.<br />
29
f<br />
c<br />
t<br />
Show Your Spirit!<br />
Get your Sundevil Spirit Wear today at sandiaprep.org<br />
and share your selfies with #sandiaprep.<br />
Thank you to all of our students who shared their spirit photos with us!<br />
30
Lynn McColl,<br />
20 years at Prep<br />
Karen Lyall,<br />
30 years at Prep<br />
Debi Kierst,<br />
17 years at Prep<br />
Prep Powerhouses<br />
We recently said thank you and good-bye to treasured faculty members<br />
Karen Lyall, Lynn McColl, and Debi Kierst. These three amazing women<br />
retired from our school after a combined 67(!) years of service.<br />
To honor these faculty favorites, the Sandia Prep Alumni Association is asking Prep community members<br />
to share messages of gratitude and/or favorite memories. You can share your messages by emailing<br />
alumni@sandiaprep.org. Below is a sweet send-off from Prep alumna and teacher Lucy Kozikowski '91.<br />
Ode to Karen<br />
Karen, oh Karen, it seems you’ve always been there<br />
Even when I was a student, with your thick, long brown hair<br />
Your loving touch throughout our school can been seen<br />
Outside the labs, in our garden, and in our hearts, is what I mean<br />
A Coordinator, I think, counselor and science teacher, too?<br />
That’s so many mornings of traffic to travel through<br />
Your impact on our students stretches years, is it really thirty?<br />
At this rate, I’m not sure any of us are going to outlast Ernie<br />
But I realized I do have some questions to ask<br />
Don’t be modest, just think, it’s not a hard task.<br />
Tell us,<br />
How many seeds did you plant in that garden up there?<br />
How many shovels of dirt did you turn over per square?<br />
How many times did you call Pearl Sunrise for us?<br />
Over how many Harvest Festivals did you fuss?<br />
How many lab notebooks did you grade?<br />
How many parents did you call?<br />
How many tough conversations did you have after all?<br />
How many pats did you give and smiles did you share?<br />
How many times did you promise you’d always be there?<br />
How many salads did you serve? How many tomatoes did you send?<br />
How many weekends and summer hours did you spend?<br />
How many mud bricks in that horno you built up there?<br />
How many logs did you light in the early morning air?<br />
How many cups of flour in that recipe for bread?<br />
How many sleepless nights with students in your head?<br />
I think when I add up all of these things in a row,<br />
We can’t live without you, you really can’t go.<br />
But then there is Ruby and Kayla, the apples of your eye<br />
And your own garden and doggies, so without you we’ll try<br />
To fill your huge shoes, and without too many tears<br />
We’ll miss you sorely for your great work all these years<br />
You built Sandia Prep by watering this tree<br />
But you are the root, the trunk, the branches, and its leaves<br />
Did we ever say thank you for the progress you made?<br />
For the sweat and tears and laughter you bade?<br />
Well thank you, and thank you, and thank you, again<br />
Our school won’t be the same without you, my friend.<br />
31
Faculty<br />
Fine-Tune<br />
Approach<br />
to Distance<br />
Learning<br />
“<br />
What a lot of people<br />
do not see is just<br />
how hard it is to<br />
move classroom<br />
instruction to hybrid<br />
or distance formats.<br />
The average time it<br />
takes to move one<br />
hour of classroom<br />
instruction online<br />
“<br />
is 18 hours.<br />
- Boye-Lynn<br />
Sandia Prep faculty members built<br />
on their initial spring success with<br />
distance learning by fortifying their<br />
skills with a series of professional<br />
development seminars.<br />
Facilitated by Sandia Prep parent<br />
and instructional system designer<br />
Susan Boye-Lynn, (Cal Boye-Lynn<br />
'21) teachers learned everything<br />
from sequencing material to creating<br />
effective assessments.<br />
Special emphasis was paid to<br />
creating and maintaining the<br />
community for which Prep is known,<br />
Boye-Lynn explains.<br />
“Instructors are learning how to set<br />
up courses to have multiple points of<br />
contact each week, so that students<br />
are getting the feedback they need,”<br />
she says.<br />
Over the course of several seminars,<br />
the faculty worked together “to find<br />
learning solutions that will allow<br />
them to keep the independence and<br />
quality of the Sandia Prep education<br />
at the highest possible levels,” she<br />
adds.<br />
College instructors usually have an<br />
entire semester to prepare a single<br />
course, and Prep faculty managed to<br />
get all of their classes online in less<br />
than two weeks during the transition<br />
in March, says Boye-Lynn, owner<br />
of Pepper and Pear Instructional<br />
Design, LLC.<br />
Managing those classes behind<br />
the scenes also takes significantly<br />
more time than classroom courses,<br />
so “Prep is taking steps to make<br />
sure that whatever organization<br />
and support the teachers need is<br />
available to them,” she adds.<br />
Feedback from students and<br />
parents to Prep’s launch of virtual<br />
at-home learning, necessitated<br />
by the COVID-19 pandemic, was<br />
overwhelmingly positive.<br />
Prep science teacher Amy James<br />
said she appreciates the support<br />
faculty members are receiving<br />
through the seminars so they can<br />
fine-tune their approach.<br />
“It took me about an hour of prep<br />
time for 10 minutes of Zoom class,”<br />
James explained. “The lack of inperson<br />
labs is pretty frustrating to<br />
a science teacher. Trying to re-work<br />
materials that I have loved using in<br />
person so they can be used online<br />
takes a lot of time.”<br />
Through Boye-Lynn’s training,<br />
James says she’s picked up “some<br />
great ideas on how to schedule the<br />
week in online class as well as good<br />
ideas on how to establish rapport<br />
when you aren’t meeting the kids in<br />
person.”<br />
The professional development<br />
means that Prep teachers are ready<br />
for whatever method of instruction<br />
they’ll need to deliver.<br />
Boye-Lynn has built online training<br />
for Presbyterian Healthcare Services.<br />
Her expertise is in connecting<br />
content, media, and audience for the<br />
purpose of learning.<br />
32
Athletes Prevail in<br />
Shortened Season<br />
Despite losing most of the spring season to COVID-19, Sandia Prep’s Athletics<br />
Department posted a successful year. Among the highlights was capturing first<br />
place among 3A schools in the coveted Subway Director’s Cup for the second<br />
consecutive year. The award is given to top New Mexico Activities Association<br />
member schools based on excellence in activities, athletics, and sportsmanship.<br />
33
SUNDEVIL SPORTS<br />
Sandia Prep’s 2019-20 year<br />
included a 3A championship in<br />
Girls Soccer, as well as Runnerup<br />
finishes in Boys Basketball<br />
and Coed Bowling. Prep also<br />
earned third-place finishes in<br />
Boys Soccer and Girls Volleyball.<br />
In addition, The Albuquerque<br />
Journal named Sandia Prep<br />
Senior Samantha Jeffries '20<br />
its metro female Athlete of the<br />
Year, the first ever chosen from a<br />
smaller school for the award.<br />
She led the 3A division in goalsagainst<br />
average and helped<br />
lead the Sundevils to a state<br />
championship last November.<br />
As noted in the Journal story,<br />
"Sandia Prep didn't lose a<br />
single state tournament game<br />
during the last four years with<br />
Jeffries in the net."Sam landed<br />
a Green and Silver Presidential<br />
Scholarship to attend and play<br />
soccer at Eastern New Mexico<br />
University.<br />
Here’s the recap:<br />
• A-AAA Girls Soccer State<br />
Champions<br />
• Boys Basketball 3A Runner-up<br />
• Boys Soccer A-AAA 3rd place<br />
• Coed Bowling A-AAA State<br />
Runner-up<br />
• Volleyball 3A 3rd place<br />
• 2019-<strong>2020</strong> Director's Cup<br />
winners for the second year<br />
in a row<br />
Samantha Jeffries '20 named Athlete of the Year<br />
Photo credit: Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal<br />
24 34
CLASS OF <strong>2020</strong><br />
Seniors celebrate Color Day in September 2019<br />
Photo credit: Kirschtin Kinberger '21<br />
In A Class of Its Own<br />
Sandia Prep's Class of <strong>2020</strong> experienced a senior send-off like no other.<br />
Sure, things looked a bit different, but that didn't stop us from celebrating<br />
our seniors' time and accomplishments.<br />
86 100% 2<br />
33<br />
Number<br />
of Seniors<br />
Graduation<br />
Rate<br />
Number of<br />
Odyssey Scholars<br />
Number of<br />
Distinguished Scholars<br />
35
CLASS OF <strong>2020</strong><br />
August 19, 2019<br />
A "Senior Sunrise" kicked off<br />
their last year at Prep.<br />
April 24, <strong>2020</strong><br />
Zooming on the Quad: The Class<br />
of <strong>2020</strong> tuned into the Senior Hill<br />
as they virtually counted down<br />
their final bell as Sundevils.<br />
May 9, <strong>2020</strong><br />
Personalized yard signs were<br />
delivered to all 86 graduates to<br />
celebrate their accomplishments.<br />
May 11, <strong>2020</strong><br />
With in-person classes and<br />
projects cut short in March, seniors<br />
took their Capstone Projects<br />
online. They were asked to create<br />
something meaningful, something<br />
to be proud of, and something<br />
which allows for individual<br />
creativity. Maria Merritt '20 sewed<br />
150 masks for farmworkers and<br />
their families while Angelica<br />
Adams '20' focused on the study<br />
of the Bel Canto style of opera.<br />
May 23, <strong>2020</strong><br />
The "Drive-Thru Graduation<br />
Celebration" was full of cheers,<br />
honks, and Sundevil spirit!<br />
June <strong>2020</strong><br />
Graduates proudly displayed<br />
the next step on their<br />
educational journey.<br />
36
<strong>532</strong><br />
osuna road<br />
MAGAZINE<br />
<strong>532</strong> Osuna Road NE<br />
Albuquerque, NM 87113