Last February, Washington College (WC) senior Ellie Byers interned with Dr. Sarah Lipchock at The Gunston School in Centreville, MD and worked with 10th grade students to test a lab she designed for her senior capstone experience (SCE) —a green chemistry experiment involving blue cheese slurries and biomimicry.

Tenth grade Gunston students during a green chemistry lab in February 2020. (l-r) Danielle Simmons, Daniel Dang, Leo Santoboni, Ellie, and Ben Cunningham.

Ellie recently got in touch with Dr. Lipchock to send an article and lab based on her SCE that was published in the most recent issue of Chemistry Solutions, the peer-reviewed periodical from the American Association of Chemistry Teachers, entitled “A Green Chemistry Guided-Inquiry Lab: Designing Biomimetic Songbird Preen Oil from Waste Cooking Oil” by Eleanor (Ellie) Byers and WC professor Anne Marteel-Parrish.

“I want to thank you again for all your help as I was interning at Gunston and your openness to trialing my SCE in the spring. I am halfway through my student teaching and master’s program and I often draw from my experiences at Gunston,” said Ellie who graduated WC in the spring of 2020 with a Bachelor of Science in chemistry and is currently working toward a master’s of education in curriculum and instruction from the University of Maryland.

“Ellie’s SCE project aligned perfectly with some of Gunston’s key initiatives with regard to educating for sustainability and Mind Brain Education,” said Dr. Lipchock. “As part of her internship, Ellie read Neuroteach: Brain Science and The Future of Education and I was really impressed with her ability to internalize MBE strategies and help guide students as learners in my classroom. She connected with students of all levels and they really enjoyed learning about biomimicry in a hands-on way.”

“Green chemistry is a relatively new field in chemistry and is not covered by textbooks or as part of the national high school standards,” explains Dr. Lipchock, “but it serves as a great real-world application for students and it dovetails nicely with Gunston’s goals for educating for sustainability.”

Ellie with 10th grade Gunston students Colin Lang and Daniel Dang in February, 2020.

Green chemistry asks not just “What can I do with chemistry?” but also “How can I do it in the most sustainable way?” Last fall, Dr. Lipchock’s honors chemistry class completed a green chemistry lab, so at the time of Ellie’s activity, students were already familiar with the 12 principles of green chemistry.

According to the article’s summary, “in this guided-inquiry lab, students will design and test a procedure reacting waste cooking oil in a blue cheese slurry to create a substance that mimics songbird preen oil, which is both antibacterial and hydrophobic. Students will convert the fatty acids in waste oil to methyl ketones, thought to be the principal antibacterial component of preen oil, using the P. roqueforti mold found in blue cheese. Students will expand their knowledge of biomimicry, inherent properties of preen oil, and chemical synthesis by applying the principles of green chemistry. They will also assess their own process through higher-order problem solving and building on their scientific research skills.”

“Adding this activity allowed students to see the green chemistry principles in action and provided a tangible application for the concepts we had learned. Having them design their own experiment to use repurposed cooking oil from the Washington College dining hall made those sustainability principles stick in a way that reading an article or watching a video cannot. Guided-inquiry and real world applications are great examples of MBE strategies that help students be more effective learners,” adds Dr. Lipchock.

Founded in 1911, The Gunston School is an independent, nonprofit, nonsectarian, coeducational, college preparatory high school located in Centreville, Maryland. Visit gunston.org for more information, or register for our upcoming open house on January 31, 2021.

The Gunston School is pleased to welcome 34 students to the National Honor Society. Each fall, membership to NHS is offered to those students who meet the required standards put forth by the national office in four areas of evaluation: scholarship, leadership, service, and character. For the scholarship criterion, a student must have a  cumulative grade point average of 88 (B+) or higher.

Students who meet this criterion are invited to submit a comprehensive resume that outlines their activities, achievements, leadership, and service. To evaluate a candidate on the national criterion of character, a student’s school records are reviewed, and each candidate selects four members of the faculty to provide their professional reflections on the candidate’s citizenship, leadership, activities, and personal conduct.

Head of School John Lewis shared, “Induction into the National Honor Society is an enormous honor, and it reflects a multi-year dedication from these students to some of society’s most important values.”

This year’s newly selected members for Grade 12 include Hannah Beckman, Maxmillian (Max) Brady, Yongah (Jonathan) Choi, Hyunseok (Luke) Lee, Ethan Nuessle, Jack Pigman, Marion Riddle, Sean Riley, and Emily Ryon.

Photo: (Top Row, L-R) Hannah Beckman, Maxmillian (Max) Brady, Yongah (Jonathan) Choi, Hyunseok (Luke) Lee, Ethan Nuessle, Jack Pigman, Marion Riddle, Sean Riley, and Emily Ryon. (Second Row, L-R) Sofia Angarita, Lucy Bamford, Gracie Callahan, Charlotte Cook, Benjamin (Ben) Cunningham, Isabella (Bella) De Leon, Ashley Escobar, Jimmy Fraser, Nina Friedman. (Third Row, L-R) Georgia Gillespie, Evie Hagan, Paige Holmes, Colin Lang, Neva Lawrence, Samantha LeCrone, Rui (Spencer) Liu, Abigail (Abbey) Miller. (Fourth Row, L-R) Magdalena (Maggie) Miller, Alexandrea (Lexi) Norman, Summer Salos, Leo Santoboni, Matthew Sharpless, Danielle Simmons, and Jude Smith. Lillian (Lilli) Ward.

New members for Grade 11 include Sofia Angarita, Lucy Bamford, Gracie Callahan, Charlotte Cook, Benjamin (Ben) Cunningham, Isabella (Bella) De Leon, Ashley Escobar, Jimmy Fraser, Nina Friedman, Georgia Gillespie, Evie Hagan, Paige Holmes, Colin Lang, Neva Lawrence, Samantha LeCrone, Rui (Spencer) Liu, Abigail (Abbey) Miller, Magdalena (Maggie) Miller, Alexandrea (Lexi) Norman, Summer Salos, Leo Santoboni, Matthew Sharpless, Danielle Simmons, and Jude Smith. Lillian (Lilli) Ward ’21 was selected in the fall of 2019, but was studying abroad at the time and will be formally inducted this year.

“The inductees are to be commended for their dedication and their success in maintaining the highest level of performance while navigating the challenges of attending school during the pandemic,” said Assistant Head of School Christie Grabis. “We look forward to the time when we can share their accomplishments in person with their families and the school community.”

A formal induction ceremony will be held on campus at a date later to be determined, depending on COVID restrictions and guidelines.

Founded in 1911, The Gunston School is an independent, nonprofit, nonsectarian, coeducational, college preparatory high school located in Centreville, Maryland. Visit gunston.org for more information.

The Gunston School’s Heron Hustle 5K/1M Virtual Run was held on November 21 & 22 with more than 140 participants hitting the pavement (or their treadmills) to raise more than $7,000 for the Heron Annual Fund and compete for fun prizes and accolades.

The top three winners for the men’s 5K include Woody Granger (17:50), Bobby Stephenson (19:26), and Aidan Trautman ’23 (21:09). Women’s top three placements for the 5K  include Katherine Rene, P’23 (24:25), Georgia Gillespie ’22 (25.22), and Zoe Buzzelli ’24 (25:45). The men’s mile winner was Aaron Sanderson ’23 (6:15) and the women’s mile winner was Jennifer Runz, P’24 (8:57). Special recognition goes to Victoria Windmiller, who completed a 15 mile run.

Additionally, recognition for the fastest freshmen went to Zoe Buzzelli ’24 and Colin Hallmark ’24 (23:59), the fastest sophomores were McKinsey Brown ’23 (29:28) and Aiden Trautman ’23, the fastest junior was Georgia Gillespie ’22, and the fastest senior was Charlie Shifrin ’21 (25:40), with the titles for fastest male junior as well as female senior going unclaimed (for now!).

Gunston’s Head of School John Lewis with his family (from left) Millie, Laurie, John and Bea.

Prizes for top overall winners include personalized Gunston merchandise and medals. For Gunston students, prizes include breakfast/snack cards and (for eligible drivers), the opportunity to snag Head of School Mr. Lewis’s parking spot for the rest of the year.

Participants received a limited edition Heron Hustle t-shirt designed and individually hand-pressed at Skybridge Studios by Gunston alumna Alison Hansford ’96 who volunteered her time and services.

“A huge thanks to everyone who participated in the Heron Hustle — the event raised thousands of dollars for the school, and it helped to connect us virtually across the region and multiple states,” said Head of School John Lewis. “We are so grateful for our event sponsors, parents, past parents and alumni who continue to support Gunston.”

Gunston’s Heron Annual Fund bridges the $4,000 gap between tuition and what it actually costs to give each student the highly personalized experience Gunston is known for.

The Heron Hustle’s premier sponsor included Oath Pizza and the Kellogg Family, P’20 & ‘23, awards sponsor Wise & Blitzer, Attorneys at Law, and Mara Schmittinger, P’16 & ‘19.

Founded in 1911, The Gunston School is an independent, nonprofit, nonsectarian, coeducational, college preparatory high school located in Centreville, Maryland. Visit gunston.org for more information.

The Gunston School recognized 150 students for earning High Honors and Honors for the first quarter of the 2020-2021 academic year. To earn a place on the High Honors list, a student must have a 93 percent or above and effort grades of satisfactory, “S” or above. To earn Honors, a student must achieve an 88-92.99 average and effort grades of “S” or above.

“Gunston students have worked very hard in and out of the classroom, online and offline, during our phased reopening of campus this fall,” said Dean of Students Mark Wiening. “We are all very proud of their individual academic achievements, as well as the Gunston Together mindset that has enabled the majority of our community to come together and stay together on the physical campus in these opening months.”

(Beginning top row, left to right)

High Honors Grade 12: Isabella (Bella) Adams, Avy Aubin, Brianna (Brie) Barrett-Kennedy, Lily Berntsen, Maxmillian (Max) Brady, Kayla Flood, Glynis Gardner, Olivia Hersey, Erika Lee, Emma McClary, Orion (Rion) McCluskey, Ethan Nuessle, Joseph (Brennan) O’Connor, Addison (Adie) Parish, Campbell Parkhurst, Lydia Periconi, Jack Pigman, Marion Riddle, Emily Ryon, Severin Schut, Charles (Charlie) Shifrin, Henry Shifrin, Christian Walker, Lillian (Lilli) Ward, and Hannah Worth. (Not pictured: Hyunseok (Luke) Le)

Honors Grade 12: Hannah Beckman, Kenneth Bonuccelli, Helen Boone, Yongah (Jonathan) Choi, Lydia Davis, James Fordi, Reagan Gessford, Aidan Myers, Sydney Nittle, Connor Reichardt, Sean Riley, Kylee Rushton, Henry Sheets, and Colin Ward. (Not pictured: Suah Choi and Yi (Lily) Zhang.)

High Honors Grade 11: Sofia Angarita, Lucy Bamford, Joshua (Josh) Campbell, Anastasia Clair, Charlotte Cook, Robert Crow, Benjamin (Ben) Cunningham, Jian (Daniel) Dang, Ashley Escobar, Nora FauntLeRoy, James (Jimmy) Fraser, Nina Friedman, Paige Holmes, Samantha LeCrone, Juyoung (Ju) Lee, Abigail (Abbey) Miller, Magdalena (Maggie) Miller, Adam Papadopoulos, Ainsleigh Pocock, Summer Salos, Leonardo (Leo) Santoboni, Matthew Sharpless, Danielle Simmons, and Jude Smith.

Honors Grade 11: Gracie Callahan, Isabella (Bella) De Leon, Georgia Gillespie, Sheila Groz, Aidan Ireland, Kallena Kemp, Zachary (Zach) LaFleur, Colin Lang, Neva Lawrence, Rui (Spencer) Liu, Alexis (Lexi) Meiklejohn, Alexandrea (Lexi) Norman, Alec Sanderson, Tessa Schut, Nicholas (Nick) Scribner, and Andrew Steele.

High Honors Grade 10: Nicholas (Nick) Abell, Madilyn (Maddie) Algier, Olivia Amygdalos, Tom de los Reyes, Charles Evans, YaXin (Angelina) Lin, Julia McClary, Zacharia (Zach) Mozher, Elizabeth (Lane), Parkhurst, Damian Rene, Isabelle Requena, Autumn Watson, and Yining Wei. (Not pictured: Jiacheng (Jason) Ye)

Honors Grade 10: Zachary (Zack) Adams, Kelby Booth, McKinsey Brown, Julia Buchanan, Nicholas (Nick) Ceruolo, Sadie Cloud, Tori Copper, Xuanyao (Henry) Feng, Jenna Frederick, Natalie Henry, Sarah (Eli) Ireland, Thomas (Cy) Johnston, Paget Kellogg, Paige Kroncke, Jennie LaTorre, Christopher (Bates) Nittle, Grace Anne Phillips, Nathan Porter, Julia Reed, Andrew Rich, Mekonnen Sahle-Selassie, Aaron Sanderson, Finnegan (Finn) Theeke, and Liam Thomas. (Not pictured: Brielle Tyler.)

High Honors Grade 9: Turner Day, Allie Fitzgerald, Colin Hallmark, Jessica Hammond, Samantha Jayne, Lucas LaFleur, Madison (Madi) Lutz, Anna Jayne Murphy, Caitlin Myers, Kayla Raley, and Joanna Riley, and Zoe Buzzelli. (Not pictured: Trevor Green)

Honors Grade 9: Quinn Baughman, Michael Billings, Macie Brock, Caeden Harrison, Abigail Houseknecht, Samantha (Sam) Keith, Maren Kneeland, Arnold (Ben) Lutz, Frederick (Wil) Mertes, Tilghman Overton, Katherine (Kate) Porter, Luke Roser, Ava Runz, Jonah Smith, Isabella Taylor, Jessica White, and Jackson Wood.

The Gunston School in Centreville, MD recognized 150 students for earning High Honors and Honors during the first quarter of the 2020-2021 academic year. 

The Gunston School recently received three hand-crafted wooden picnic tables from senior Aidan Myers, as part of his Eagle Scout service project. The new tables are situated near the waterfront under a cluster of trees, offering shade and a great place to eat lunch or have outdoor class.

“When I was first planning my project, I had to think about an organization that could use some form of help and one that meant something to me,” Myers explains. “Around this same time, the COVID-19 pandemic was starting to cause the world to shut down. The more I thought, the more I realized that Gunston could really use extra outdoor seating due to the pandemic, and as a current student, working with the school obviously meant something to me.”

Myers joined the Scouts BSA in first grade and has spent the last ten years moving up the ranks, with each advancement requiring the completion of a different skill set and level of community service. According to the Scouts’ website, in order to become an Eagle Scout, applicants must amass 21 or more badges, propose, plan, and carry out an Eagle service project, write several essays, be in a leadership position for at least six months, gather five recommendation letters, and undergo an Eagle board of review before their application is approved at the national level. According to Scouting Magazine, only 6.49% of eligible Scouts earned Eagle in 2018, and only 4% overall since the organization’s founding.

Aidan Myers ’21 recently donated three hand-crafted wooden picnic tables to the Gunston School as part of his Eagle Scout service project.

With the service project officially completed, Myers is working to gather all of the necessary paperwork and schedule his review with the board. “The hardest part of the process so far though, was definitely moving in the middle of trying to complete this process,” said Myers. “For nine years, I lived in Annapolis, so the troop I’m a part of is also located there, Troop 366. Over the summer of 2019, we moved from Annapolis to Centreville and it has been difficult trying to continue to work with my troop when I don’t live near them anymore.”

However, Myers took this obstacle in stride and still managed to construct and deliver the picnic tables, despite the logistics (and a pandemic) with a little help from friends. “Friel’s Lumber, a fellow Gunston family, donated the materials for one of the tables,” said Myers, who raised the money for the other two tables.

“We are grateful for Aidan’s donation and impressed with his carpentry skills,” said Head of School John Lewis. “It requires a lot of commitment and dedication to meet all of the Eagle Scout requirements, and we are delighted to have more outdoor space for students and faculty to use.”

Founded in 1911, The Gunston School is an independent, nonprofit, nonsectarian, coeducational, college preparatory high school located in Centreville, Maryland. Visit gunston.org for more information.

The Gunston School is pleased to announce that seniors Sean Riley and Ethan Nuessle have received letters of commendation from the National Merit Scholarship Program (NMSC).

Commended students placed among the top 50,000 scorers of more than 1.5 million students who entered the 2021 competition by taking the 2019 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®).

From left: Gunston students Sean Riley ’21 and Ethan Nuessle ’21 received letters of commendation from the National Merit Scholarship Program.

“Those being named Commended Students have demonstrated outstanding potential for academic success,” commented a spokesperson for NMSC. “These students represent a valuable national resource; recognizing their accomplishments, as well as the key role their schools play in their academic development, is vital to the advancement of educational excellence in our nation.”

“Sean and Ethan have worked very hard to get this recognition and Gunston is extremely proud of them,” said John Lewis, Head of School.

The Gunston School is an independent, nonprofit, nonsectarian, coeducational, college preparatory high school located in Centreville, Maryland. Learn more at gunston.org.

The Golfing “fore” Gunston fundraiser on Friday, October 9 at the Chester River Yacht & Country Club welcomed 83 golfers on a warm and sunny fall day. The sold-out event began with a 9 a.m. shotgun start, with teams competing for prizes while enjoying food, drinks and fun give-aways.

“We couldn’t have put on such a wonderful event without the help of the Gunston Parent’s Association and the volunteers on the Board,” said Director of Advancement Tricia Mooney. “Every time we ask, they are there, ready to roll up their sleeves and help.”

Head of School John Lewis welcomes the crowd and kicks off the day’s festivities.

The day’s winners include: First Place with a gross score of 56,  Jon Mellinger, Crystal Wilson, Rhett Wilson, and David Landskroener. First Place (Net – 45 MoC) David Henry, Brad Dean, Thomas “Buddy” Raley, and Ryan Severs. Second Place (Net– 45 MoC) Mary Ways, Jen Batchelder, Dane Ways, and Chuck Batchelder. Third Place (Net – 47 MoC) Donnie Quinn, Drew Lane, Chris Wagner, and Bobby Smith. Closest to the pin on 4 was David Landskroener, closest to the pin on 12 was Chuck Batchelder, most accurate drive on 7 was Erin Gillespie, and longest drive on 14 was Brad Dean (men) and Janell Frederick (women).

“Today is special for two reason—one, it’s the first event we’ve had since graduation and the first fundraising event we’ve had since the start of COVID and what we’ve found is just having people together as a community is so meaningful. The other reason this event is so important is that it is raising really necessary and needed funds for our students. If you could see the difference in our students’ faces and attitudes now that they’re back on campus, it is a palpable difference every single day. It has cost us about $300,000 to get our campus up to scratch to be able to serve the students this year. So events like this make such a big difference,” said Head of School John Lewis in his opening remarks.

Sponsorship and golf registrations raised a little over $30,000 for the Heron Annual Fund, which allows Gunston the ability to offer more than 60% of its students financial aid, provide additional enrichment and hands-on opportunities that extend beyond the classroom for both students and faculty, and perhaps most importantly, help to cover the unexpected costs of PPE, tents, new video technology, and more.

The Anti-Pandemic sponsor was Delaware Podiatric Medicine (Dr. & Mrs. Jacob Hanlon, P ’22). The Golf towel sponsor was Dogwood Acres Pet Retreat (The Reichardt Family, P ’21).  Eagle sponsors included The Hatten Family, ’73 and What’s Up? Media. Golf balls were sponsored by Horace K. Wood, DMD, PA Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery (Leigh & Horace Wood, P ’24). Golf tees were sponsored by Chesapeake Press Repair, Inc. (Randy & Aly Meiklejohn, P ’22) and The Kent School.

Refreshment sponsors included IT Tech Direct (The Riddle Family, P ’21), Astech Security (The Miller Family, P’15), 360 Automation (Christine & Evan Evans, P ’20), The Country School, Callahan’s Gas & Appliance (Mark & Dana Callahan, P ’22), and Moorhouse Electrical Services (Les Moorhouse, P ’14, ’15). Reception sponsors include Dr. & Mr. John Lewis and Whitehall Digital Systems (The FauntLeRoy Family, P ’22). Golf team sponsor was The Ceruolo Family, P ’23.

Heron Heroes include Patrick Shoemaker ’03, The Everdells, Mara Schmittinger, P ’16, The Parkhurst Family, P ’18 ’21 ’23, Jill and John Caron, P ’17, and Kurt Gray, P ’18. Hole sponsors include the De Leon Family, P ’22, Sanderson Family, P ’22 & ’23, Shifrin Family, P ’21, Keith Family, P ’24, Myers Family, P’21 & ’24, McCluskey Family, P ’21, Reliable Pest Control, Attraction Magazine (The Periconi & Roger Family, P ’21 & P ’24), The Peoples Bank, O’Shucks Irish Pub (Brown Family, P ’23 & ’24), Sugar Doodles Sweet Shop (Brown Family, P ’23 & ’24), Kommercial Kitchens, Inc. (Bell Family, P ’24), Impressive Printing, Nanticoke Fence, North Shore Restoration (The Redding Family, P ’17), and Centreville Self Storage (The Cusimano Family, P’10, ’12).

Jim Shifrin gets a few practice shots in.

Avon Dixon Insurance Agency and Dogwatch of the Eastern Shore (The LeCrone Family, P’22) had a double sponsorship of hole and cart.

Cart sponsors include the Papadopoulos Family, P ’18, ’22, Duvall Family, P ’22, Chesapeake Holistic (The Salos Family, P’22), The Bay Pediatric Center (The Cook Family, P ’22 & ’24), Irene & John Hansen, P ’23, and the Holmes Family, P ’20 & ’22, and the Talbot Spy.

Founded in 1911, The Gunston School is an independent, nonprofit, nonsectarian, coeducational, college preparatory high school located in Centreville, Maryland. Visit gunston.org for more information.