Horace Mann Magazine - Fall/Winter 2010-11 - (Page 36)

alumni council corner The Horace Mann School Alumni Council Builds Bonds With HM—and Among Alumni From Across the Ages Horace Mann School Alumni Council former president David Jacoby ’72 participated in a Service-Learning Day at Horace Mann along with his daughter Miranda Jacoby ’12. This and other events throughout the year bring members of the Alumni Council to Horace Mann to be part of the life of the School today. hat does a Horace Mann School alumnus from the Class of ’42, ’52 or ’65 have in common with alums from the 70s, 80s or 90s? Memories of the education they experienced at Horace Mann, the teachers who guided them, and the friends they made—no matter which era was theirs at the School. Equally common to so many is how these combine into a shared love for Horace Mann, and result in a call to “give back” to their School. For Justin Lerer ’95 it was this devotion to Horace Mann School that drew him to become involved with its Alumni Council not long after he moved from Boston back to New York following college and law school. Today he is president of the Horace Mann Alumni Council (HMAC)—the governing body of HM’s Alumni Association, which “essentially includes everyone who graduated from Horace Mann,” Lerer explained. The W Alumni Council provides Horace Mann School alumni with a vehicle through which they can maintain relationships with the School, their former classmates and teachers, and promote common interests, raise funds, and participate in social and educational events. “These are just some of the reasons to participate in Alumni Council activities, and I sincerely invite more alumni to become involved.” Lerer speaks of his unabashed affection for his alma mater in extending this invitation, and says he would like to see alumni from different generations and geographical regions become Council participants. “To put it simply, I love Horace Mann,” Lerer said. “I think that sentiment is shared by everyone who participates in Alumni Council activities, or becomes involved with the Council’s work. I went to Harvard College and Harvard Law School and I keep coming back to the fact that, while I had a wonderful education there, the best part of my education was at Horace Mann. Being involved with the Alumni Council gives participants a chance to continue to connect with the School, and to connect with alumni from different generations. You learn what’s going on at the School today, in its classrooms, about new policies, and new directions the administration is considering. “The Alumni Council has members from the Class of ’42 through 2002. That’s a 60year span. No matter when we graduated, what profession we’re in, or what stage of life, all of us have a powerful bond, and it’s gratifying to explore that,” said Lerer. “One of the most rewarding things about being involved with the Alumni Council is the chance it provides to give something back to our School.” During the past year Alumni Council members “gave back” to Horace Mann School by bringing alumni together for a winter party at Moran’s in Manhattan where the cozy, fireplace-appointed setting warmed the conversation. Springtime saw the Alumni Council Benefit Committee working around the clock to put together its eighth-annual benefit, which raised over $58,000—a record—for Horace Mann’s Student Assistance Fund. The Fund helps students pay for such expenses as trips to Model UN conferences or other social, cultural or academic activities that round out the Horace Mann School experience. The Alumni Council is also responsible for designating the Horace Mann School Distinguished Alumnus each year, conferring its Award for Distinguished Achievement at an annual dinner. “It is an honor to be part of recognizing the contributions a Horace Mann School alumnus has made to the world, and to bring those contributions to light within the HM community,” said Lerer. The Council also participates in Homecoming and reunions annually. More events to bring alumni together are planned for the coming year, said Lerer. Over recent years the Alumni Council has become involved with the School’s Women’s Issues Club (WIC), an initiative instituted by Alumni Council member Wesley Mittman LePatner ’99. Alumni are regularly represented as speakers at WIC meetings and as panelists at the Club’s annual spring dinner, providing “students with a larger pool of mentors, and alumni with the opportunity to give back to the School while having the ‘excuse’ to visit the campus and 36 Horace Mann Magazine Fall/Winter 2010-11

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Horace Mann Magazine - Fall/Winter 2010-11

Horace Mann Magazine - Fall/Winter 2010-11
Contents
Letters
Greetings from Dr. Tom Kelly, Horace Mann School Head of School
Greetings From Melissa Parento, Horace Mann School Director of Development
Horace Mann School Today
Dr. Tom Kelly Looks Back, and Forward, with Appreciation
Patricia Zuroski Launches New Diversity Initiative
Marcia Levy is New Head of Nursery Division
News of the School
Alumni Council Corner
Bookshelf
Class Notes
Memorials
Philanthropy and You

Horace Mann Magazine - Fall/Winter 2010-11