Mark Your Calendars!

#GouldGivingDay

The culture of philanthropy at Gould, both past and present, allows students to benefit from an engaging educational experience within an intimately scaled, caring and diverse community where opportunities abound and meaningful relationships inspire transformative learning.

The breadth of Gould’s contributions to society is truly astounding. Every day, world-class faculty, exceptional students and distinguished alumni around the globe are advancing our world in the areas of research, the humanities, athletics and the arts.

A big BIG thank you to Gould’s supporters!

The post Why Is Gould So Excited About February 23? appeared first on Gould Academy.

Dear Gould Community,

A few thoughts on the impact of the recent executive orders regarding immigration.

Gould is a community that seeks to reflect and celebrate our national and global diversity. We are fortunate to be the home—and we use the word home because that is what Gould has become, and will remain, for all who attend—of faculty and students from twenty different countries spanning five continents. It is our duty to support our students and their families who cannot help but feel threatened by the message these orders, and the accompanying commentary, send.

We, as a school, are deeply concerned about the national tone being set and its impact on the well-being of our students and community. We are following the court proceedings regarding the legality of the orders closely, but felt compelled to make our position known to our community.

Gould Academy is a global community. Our Core Principles call on us “to prepare students for successful and responsible global citizenship,” for which a culturally diverse student body is essential. International travel and the development of our students as global citizens are embedded into our curriculum as early as ninth grade, when our students travel to China, Tanzania, and Ecuador and follows students through their time in Bethel. Gould alumni live and work in dozens of countries.

Gould students and faculty maintain a strong connection with the Somali immigrant community in Lewiston, Maine. Each weekend, members of the Gould community travel to assist members of the refugee community to learn English, prepare for citizenship exams, or work with young children. We believe in welcoming this community to our state and our country, not in shutting them out.

The recent executive orders do not impact our students specifically. They do, however, affect us all and create uncertainty for all international and domestic families about students returning from future international travel. Any Gould student or parent who has concerns about their ability to travel to and from Gould should contact Martha Whittington, Director of International Student Programs.

Finally, regardless of the turmoil beyond Gould, we will adhere to our Code of Conduct which calls on us to maintain a school climate “that supports diversity and the free exchange of ideas” and that we “act in a manner that fosters civility, mutual respect, kindness, and tolerance.”

Our commitment to national and global diversity, inclusion, and global travel are central to Gould’s core principles and high academic standards. Thank you to the students, faculty, staff, parents, alumni, and friends who support this work everyday.

Sincerely,

Matt Ruby
Head of School

Wendy Penley
Chair, Board of Trustees

The post Gould’s Position on Executive Orders Regarding Immigration appeared first on Gould Academy.

Get an inside look at boarding school life, a glimpse at the rigorous daily schedule of a competitive alpine skier, and hear about the transformative moments that Sophie has experienced at Gould.

Boarding School Life:

The day could not have been more picturesque. The snow started to fall around 7:00am, just in time for Sophie ’19 to start her Tuesday. The fresh powder provided ideal conditions for Sophie, a competitive alpine skier at Gould, to train throughout the morning at Sunday River.

“I started out doing the Winter Term Program in the 8th grade. Ski racing is what brought me to Gould, along with the strong academic balance. Soccer and lacrosse are a big part of my life at Gould too!”

After her morning training Sophie heads back to campus to get ready for the academic day. Sophie’s current Winter Term class schedule consists of:

• Chemistry with Mr. Cho,
• Honors Algebra 2 with Ms. Whittington,
• Spanish 3 with Ms. Quinatoa and
• European Literature with Ms. Hood.

“Mr. Cho working with Eddie and me on the five basic reaction types.”

Throughout the class day Sophie continues to be a leader in the classroom, a “go-to” when teachers need an answer to the tough question.

After classes Sophie is off to an Advisory Dinner with Ms. Gadd and the crew. A great time to relax and recuperate with some of her closest friends.

“Love these girls like family.”

Q&A with Sophie:

What brought you here to Gould?

I initially came to Gould in 8th grade for the winter term program. I had the opportunity to train 6 days a week while still completing the curriculum from my school at home. The strong academic program, along with time on snow and the friendships I developed, led me to want to come back full-time as a freshman the following August!

What do you love about your schedule as a student?

I love skiing in the mornings when the snow is untouched. The feeling of skiing fresh tracks on a cold morning with your teammates is indescribable. My training schedule allows me to free my mind for half of the day, but then get back to campus to focus on academic learning in the classroom for the other half of the day. I’m definitely always busy, but I like it that way!

What are your goals while at Gould?

One specific goal I have been working on since coming to Gould is to become more confident, especially during public speaking. Another one of my major goals is to explore my varied academic interests in preparation for college and then a future occupation. Of course, I want to improve my skiing, but I also want to help us win during soccer and lax seasons.

What are your top five best moments so far?

1.  Orientation

Orientation was nerve-wracking since I had NEVER been camping before. The trip ended up being one of the highlights of my freshman year. I loved sitting around the campfire getting to know new friends and summiting stunning peaks.

2. Springtime and sunsets

During the spring, you can find students all along the upper field playing soccer, flying kites, or just enjoying the day. It’s great to see everyone socializing outdoors during their free time. When the sun starts to go down, the majestic colors over the hills shine right through the pine trees on campus making for a breathtaking view. Sunsets at Gould are memorable.

3. Winter Carnival

Winter carnival is an afternoon filled with friendly games between the dorms and day students. We all dress up in our dorm’s assigned color, and there’s an energetic atmosphere across the whole campus. The intensity level at Winter Carnival is not quite like a ski race, but the team building among friends makes this a memorable event.

4. Snowball

I always look forward to Snowball each December. What makes this event so special is the old-fashioned swing dancing, the live band, and the beautiful formal dresses and suits we all wear. Walking onto the dance floor under the lights with your friends is most memorable.

5. China Trip and other international adventures

I had the opportunity to travel to China and stay with a host family for a six days as part of Freshman Four Point. This experience was sometimes challenging due to the language barrier, but I was able to learn about cultural similarities and differences. I have also been on two trips to train for ski racing. I traveled to La Parva, Chile and to Austria. Being in a different country with teammates, classmates, coaches, and teachers makes your bond with them even stronger.

The post Boarding School Life with Sophie ’19 – Competitive Alpine Skier appeared first on Gould Academy.

There’s no substitute for consulting a professional boot fitter like the ones at Sunday River Sports.

A Boatload About Ski Boots

Torture boxes, dancing shoes, foot binders, call them what you will. We all know that your ski boots are the critical link between your feet and your skis. Any movement your body makes is transmitted to your skis through your ski boots. The best boot fitters use a combination of experience, science, and voodoo to come up with the ultimate connection between the skier and ski. Once the boot is chosen the work continues as the fit is tweaked with padding, cutting, grinding, “blowing out”, and canting. All to create a precise, supportive, flexible, interface that matches your unique foot shape and leg geometry.

Let’s begin with some basics:

1. Style

A simple 4 buckle race boot is what we’re looking for. Even for younger athletes.

2. Shell Size

A race fit is one to two fingers. For younger athletes who are growing, perhaps a little more, but this is critical. Last width and cuff height matter too. This is where the experience of a boot fitter will help identify the type of foot the athlete has and recommend the brand shell that is most likely to fit. It pays to go to a shop with a good selection so your fitter has some options.

3. Flex

Another critical factor, dependant on the athlete’s height, weight, strength and skill. The boot must be stiff enough to support the energy and forces of skiing fast and racing AND… still be flexible. An athlete must be able to flex the plastic of the boot in the shop, not just move the hinge. If the plastic does not move, ankle movement is lost. If you make a mistake in boot buying make it too soft! Never too stiff. I’ve taken many athletes to championship races with boots that may be a bit on the soft side, I’ve never taken one with boots that are too stiff.

4. Customizing

In a perfect world the plastic of the boot shell matches the contours of the athlete’s foot. Sure, boot manufacturers try to create a shell that matches their idea of the average foot, but who among us is average? It is the rare athlete that does not need or benefit from custom boot work. Race boots are build to accommodate some grinding or stretching of the shell, to make room for the oddities of our feet. The goal is to make the smallest shell possible, as comfortable as possible. My race boots are quite small for my foot size, but with some grinding and stretching they are quite comfy.

5. Stance Alignment (Sometimes known as canting)

The best boot fitters can get you close in the shop, but to get your alignment correct, it has to be done on the hill. On the hill we start with duct tape under your boot to act as a shim. Once the correction is determined, it can be finalized in a shop by grinding or adding shims to the boot sole.

Final thoughts

For younger athletes, focus on finding a boot that fits correctly, gives support and allows flex. Customizing becomes more common as athletes get older and their feet stop growing. Stance alignment is typically done at U16 and up, although I’ve had a few younger athletes who were so far out that we worked on them at the U14 age.

As always, your best resources are your coaches and trusted shop personnel. Will Tole at Sunday River Sports is very knowledgeable and in tune with Gould’s fit preferences. Contact him here, or send me a question!

Wondering what it’s like to have access to expertise like this all the time?

Check out the Competitive Alpine Program at Gould

The post 5 Tips to Get the Best Fitting Ski Boots appeared first on Gould Academy.

Faculty Spotlight: Brooke Libby P ’17, ’19, ’21 – Director of College Counseling

The click of high heels on tile is an almost universal symbol at Gould that Brooke Libby, Director of College Counseling, is on the way. Though she is known for dressing to impress today, she holds close a memory of her very first year here when she was sent home for being out of dress code.

Ms. Libby working one-on-one with Ray ’18 in the College Counseling Center.

When she arrived in 1998 as the spouse of new English teacher, Dave Bean, she was pregnant with her first child, Zoe ’17. Hungry, and in need of some lunch, she ventured to the dining hall in jeans.“Back then, you had to be in dress code no matter what. Mac Davis pulled me aside and told me I had to go change out of my jeans. Maybe Mac talking to me was the catalyst.”

Brooke spent her first five years at Gould literally growing her family. Zoe was born in January, and Lilo ’19 and Utah ’21 followed. Soon after Utah was born, there was a big shift in the College Counseling program. 

“Bonnie Pooley had been doing it by herself while teaching four English courses.” Near the end of Bonnie’s tenure, Kathy Kunkle was brought on board in a conscious choice to dedicate more resources and more people to the program. Gould also hired Kirk Daulerio, who had experience on the college admissions side, as director. “My first year in College Counseling I worked part time, running all the testing and managing a small caseload. I really used that time to get my feet wet. Kirk was a great confidence booster, always encouraging me.” It was a dream team, with Kathy and Kirk serving as Brooke’s lasting and “true mentors.”

College Counseling was new territory for Brooke. While she certainly had the necessary skills to do the job, she needed to develop field-specific expertise.

“For a while, I went to every conference I could. I collected as much information possible and in the meantime built up my professional network.”

Brooke also pursued some unconventional professional development.

“I asked admissions directors if I could sit in on their admissions committees. I ended up being a fly on the wall at MIT, Holy Cross, Wheaton, and Kenyon during sessions of their admissions committees.”

Just a few years after dipping her toes in, Brooke was hired as Director of the College Counseling Center in the 2008-2009 school year. Since becoming director, Brooke has revolutionized the College Counseling curriculum – designing resume and grade specific workshops, supporting the Career Conversations series, evolving College Awareness Day, developing workshops for parents and families, as well as revitalizing the school profile.

Ms. Libby leading a College Admissions panel discussion during Spring Parent & Family Weekend.

In 2013, Brooke came to an important realization: “I’m a professional now, not a newbie.” She was asked to be a faculty mentor for the NEACAC (New England Association for College Admission Counseling) Rising Leaders Colloquium. This opportunity gave her the chance to zoom out from focusing just on Gould’s program and look at programs elsewhere. In 2014, Brooke was named NEACAC Professional of the Year and in 2016, she led the high school portion of the Fitzwilliam Conference.  

In 2017, Brooke’s initiation into the world of College Counseling has finally come full circle. This year, she went through the process as a parent for the first time.

“It was a great experience to be on the receiving end and not the production end. It was cool to know my child had a great mentor in Carrie Lynch.”

After developing so many programs for parents and families, did she take her own advice? Mostly. “I took the advice of taking her on tours. We went to a variety of schools in a variety of locations. We really tried to listen to her about what she liked and what she was getting excited about.” Brooke is also known for her liberal use of red pen but in this case she “really took a back seat on the essay and the application.”

Whether about the college process or social justice issues, Brooke says, “the best part about raising kids is that they take up what you say and take it even further. Now our kids are at the point where they push back on us a little and keep us thinking. They’re pulling me along in their wake.”

Ms. Libby and her daughter Zoe ’17 at the Women’s March on Washington.

Brooke Libby Q & A

High School: Pequannock Township High School (Pequannock, NJ)

College/Grad School: Yale University (undergrad) Tufts (grad)

Proudest Achievement:
Raising a beautiful, boisterous family with Dave Bean — those four humans are my everything.

Left to Right: Utah ’21, Dave Bean, Lilo ’19, and Zoe ’17

Last book I read: Rule of the Bone (Russell Banks)

My soundtrack is: Anything Jay Z

Movie I would recommend: The World According to Garp (but first, read the book)

Favorite food: Sonoran-style stacked red enchiladas with a fat egg on top.

One word that describes me: Nasty!

Best advice I ever received: She was warned. Nevertheless, she persisted.

Why Gould?
A number of years ago, I was offered a job at another school. It was a good opportunity for me and my family. But as I looked around and met the students there, I became less and less interested. That sounds terrible, I know. But our students are smart, real, optimistic, gritty kids who know how to put their backs into it. They aren’t fully formed “little professionals,” but real and aspiring and hopeful. I love them. They make all the hard work, difficult conversations, and long hours worth it.

What’s the last thing you crossed off your bucket list?
Poaching the perfect egg. After many years of trying, I finally figured it out. Poached eggs are more important than you think.

The post Brooke Libby – Adventures in College Counseling appeared first on Gould Academy.

The Gould Board of Trustees added two members to its ranks when Matthew Karatz ’90 and Laura Ordway ’89, P’20 officially began their terms.

“The board is thrilled to have Laura and Matt join us,” says Wendy Penley, President of the Board of Trustees. “They bring new perspectives and energy to our work which will support Gould as we continue to be ahead of the curve in education in the 21st century.”

Matt Karatz ’90

Matt Karatz ’90

Matt Karatz is a Southern California native and is excited to return to his alma mater and serve on the board. Karatz is the co-Managing Partner of Quarter Group, a private real estate development and investment firm located in Los Angeles focused on redevelopment of commercial and residential properties across Southern Californa. Karatz also served as Deputy Mayor, Office of Economic and Business Policy for the City of Los Angeles and was Los Angeles Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa’s most senior economic advisor.

Karatz received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Studies from Pitzer College, a member of the Claremont Colleges, in Claremont, CA.

“I had an extraordinary experience during my three years as a student at Gould,” says Karatz. “It is only fitting that nearly three decades later, I have the opportunity to give back to this extraordinary school so that future students and families can also be a part of Gould for at least another 180 years.”

Laura Ordway ’89 P ’20

Laura Ordway

Laura Ordway, also a Gould alumna, is proud to continue the Ordway family tradition of service to Gould. Her father, Al Ordway, served on the Board of Trustees for 31 years, 24 of them as president.

Ordway is the co-director, along with her brother Spencer, also a Gould Graduate, of Winona Camps of Bridgton, Maine. After Gould, Ordway graduated from Bates College. Ordway is a former NOLS instructor, wilderness medicine educator, and international climbing guide, with ascents of Aconcagua and Denali. Laura and her husband, Stefan, live at Winona year round with their two daughters. Stefanie, their oldest, is a current ninth grader at Gould.

“I feel the most important ‘hat’ I wear as a new trustee is that of current parent,” says Ordway. “Gould’s partnership with parents is key to the school’s success. Any insight I bring to the Board will hopefully help to support, and also improve, this relationship.”

The post Gould Board of Trustees Welcomes Two New Members appeared first on Gould Academy.

Gould Freeskiers compete in slopestyle events all winter, but we only get a few opportunities to host at our home slopes of Sunday River.  Our 2017 calendar included both USASA and USSA Slope events at our “Happy Place”.

The USASA Maine Mountain Series is our grassroots slopestyle series, where athletes compete in age groups and alongside our snowboarding friends.  The USSA EastFree Tour is our regional slope series, where all athletes compete in the same open class and include a round of finals.

Regardless of affiliation, hosting requires a lot more than showing up and participating.  Lucky for us John Kimble wears many hats well!  He’s the conductor behind the scenes when it comes to these events.

The schedule isn’t always exact, but “hurry up and wait” is often the name of the game.  Morning of comp day is always a hustle to figure out run orders, reacquaint ourselves with familiar faces and focus in on last minute strategies.

Athletes get down to business as soon as practice starts.  There is a limited amount of time to warm up, familiarize themselves with the course and calculate their best runs.  The course is constantly occupied by multiple athletes simultaneously, only seized for required safety holds.

Being present for their drop can be exhausting.  It can take all day for a competition to run its course and athletes may only take a few runs.  It can be tough to stay focused, loose and prepared…

Last minute adjustments are made to their gear, maybe they throw on they’re favorite pump-up track, the starter relays, “Rider on course” and it’s on!

For the next 45 to 90 seconds each athlete does their best to impress the judges and crowd to achieve their goals.  Maybe the results will qualify a trip to nationals, maybe today wasn’t their day.  In any case, chances were taken, progress is made and hopefully fun has been had by all.

The presence of family and friends always enhances the competitive experience.  They pick us up when we fall and celebrate our victories!

Check out all the action photos from the USASA event here:  Maine Mountain Series

And you can find photos from the USSA event here:  EastFree Tour

Thanks to our partnership with Sunday River, both events went off without a hitch!  We have a strong ski culture in Bethel, Maine.

Weather it’s 3D or T72, Sunday River is holding down the park scene this year.

Big props to Ryan MacCallum and his park crew for making sure we have awesome terrain for our courses, be it sunny skies or snow squalls! And special thanks to Brent Grygiel and the events crew for all the hard work!!

The post Slopestyles @ Sunday River appeared first on Gould Academy.

We’re proud to announce competitive boardercross racers Richie Hoge ’17 & Adalia Flores ’18 have been named the Athletes of the Month for February. See what Coach Gandee had to say below.

Richie Hoge ’17

Snowboarding
Boardercross (SBX)

From KC Gandee
Snowboarding Program Director:

Adalia Flores ’18

Snowboarding
Boardercross (SBX)

From KC Gandee
Snowboarding Program Director:

The post Boardercross Students Sweep Athletes of the Month – February 2017 appeared first on Gould Academy.

At Gould, many of our international students have come to the United States to improve their English in preparation for enrollment at an American university. One of the many challenges for English learners coming to the United States for high school is developing their academic literacy so that it matches that of their American peers.

Misconceptions 

There is a consistent and pervasive misconception that the most effective way for English learners to achieve desired proficiency levels is through complete immersion and corrective teaching. Grammatical and syntactical mistakes are focused upon in hopes of teaching English learners to not make similar errors in the future. However, these types of strategies ignore the two connected facts that many English learners are not only learning English, they are learning both academic literacy and adolescent social literacy not just for the first time, but in new language.

English Learners at Gould

At Gould, we teach a population of English learners from a variety of cultural and linguistic backgrounds. Their learning differences from domestic students are many, both in the sense of English academic literacy and in how their primary language and/or English proficiency affect their ability to succeed academically in an American high school like Gould. These cultural and linguistic differences, as well as students’ academic histories, impact their development; there is little-to-no consistency of experience for English learners at Gould as there are for our domestic students. They come from various backgrounds, both socio-economically and educationally depending on where they are from, as well as their family histories and relationships with education.

In Gould’s English Studies Program, we have taken these differences into account and designed a curriculum aimed at preparing our international students to succeed at the college level as English learners. This means a focus on self-reflection and American academic and cultural understanding. Many of our students are unaware that going to college in the United States will consist of regularly assigned reflective writing and peer group discussion–skills they have not necessarily practiced in their home countries’ educational systems.

Ms. Barstow working with students in the English Studies Program.

Stress-Free Learning Environment

In the English Studies Program, Nancy Barstow and I work with our students in a learning environment where they do not need to worry about their processing time in English being slower than their American classmates. They are able to speak up in class without being thought of as ignorant of American culture or having to worry about making a grammatical or vocabulary mistake. Students are encouraged to participate frequently in ESP classes in class discussions, on their blogs, and with interactive reading assignments. In fact, students present weekly on assigned readings and lead a class discussion or activity related to that reading for 25-30 minutes. Everyone is required to participate and they do, especially with the understanding that it will be their turn to present at some point.

Artun ’17 takes his turn leading the class discussion.

BICS & CALP

Jim Cummins, an expert in the field of bilingual education, argues that basic interpersonal communication skills (BICS) can develop to a high level of proficiency in as little as 1-2 years. In my experience, this is true even in non-immersive environments, such as cities in central China. For English learners in an immersive environment such as Gould, this can occur in even less time. However, Cummins argues that CALP (cognitive academic language proficiency) takes 5-7 years to develop. In the English Studies Program, we focus on improving American-style “CALP” in the sense that our students are learning to use academic strategies and skills which they are generally not expected to have developed before arriving in the United States.

By working within a curriculum that focuses on filling in the gaps of CALP, and does not penalize English learners for neglecting to already be academically proficient at the same level as their American peers, our students are encouraged to open up in English Studies classes and, hopefully, feel more comfortable and confident doing so in their other classes and beyond.

The post Building Confidence for English Learners appeared first on Gould Academy.

Over the past few months, we have fielded lots of questions about Winter Term. The questions have come from faculty, past parents, potential families, and alums; they have ranged from what is the objective, and future of Winter Term, to how old do students need to be and where do they live. All of the questions have been great and highlight the fact that Winter Term is a program people care about and want to know more about.

Both academically and athletically, the years spent in Middle School are critical in a student athlete’s development. High quality training, paired with a large volume of purposeful training, is important for success in high school and beyond. The skills acquired and mastered at this age will be valuable for years to come.

Gould is fully committed to ensuring Winter Term is an integral part of the Gould community and remains the premier winter experience for On Snow Athletes. In order to ensure that Winter Term student athletes are being provided exemplary educational experiences coupled with unparalleled training and coaching just six miles from Sunday River, we are excited to announce a few modifications to our already rigorous academic program.

Winter Term Q&A

What is the mission and vision of Gould’s Winter Term program?

Gould’s mission is Winter Term’s vision, “to prepare students to lead lives of purpose and action.” More specifically the primary purpose of Winter Term is to provide students with an introduction to life at Gould while equipping them with the best on snow coaching in the country and providing them with an unparalleled academic experience. As a result, Winter Term students enhance their academic aptitude, abilities as on snow athlete, and personal potential as a human being.

We envision Winter Term continuing to be recognized as the best academic and athletic pre-high school experience for snow sport athletes.

Who at Gould is in charge of the Winter Term program?

Kurt Simard and Andrew Bishop lead the Winter Term Program and are the point of contact for any family that is interested in learning more about Winter Term or have questions.

Kurt is responsible for overseeing all components of the On Snow experience; Andrew is charged with overseeing the academic and residential parts of Winter Term.

Additionally, we will have a Winter Term Program Coordinator who will serve as advisor to winter term students and is the point person in the center of all aspects of program delivery to include exit and re-entry to all students home school.

How many students are in Winter Term? What grades are students in and what On Snow disciplines can participate?

As a school we are committed to ensuring the composition of Winter Term athletes promotes academic, athletic, and social growth.

We can provide housing for up to fourteen students; for 2017-2018 we are anticipating that 14-18 students will participate in Winter Term. Students are in grades 7 & 8. We are accepting applications for the following snow sport disciplines: Alpine, Freestyle, Nordic, and Snowboarding.

What are the dates of 2017-18 Winter Term program?

November 27, 2017 – March 4, 2018

We will also have a November pre-season option as well as a March Championship prep period.

Where do Winter Students live?

Winter Term boarding students will live in Vogt and Park house, both are located on the Gould Academy campus. Park and Vogt are New England style homes with attached dorm space and have full time dorm parents that are residents of the homes.

What is the academic philosophy of Winter Term? Who teaches Winter Term students?

Winter Term academics fall under the leadership of Gould Academy’s academic program and are taught by Gould teachers. Oversight of Winter Term curricula as well as teaching and learning is directed by Dr. Brad Clarke.

Winter Term students will take the following classes:

• Math
• Language (continuation of the language and level of their current school)
• Humanities (English & History with a focus on writing)
• Science (Skill based)

In addition to core academic subjects, Winter Term students also experience classes in the arts, IDEAS Center, and about health and nutrition.

Who is responsible for coordination with Winter Term Students’ home school?

The Winter Term Program Coordinator (WTPC) in conjunction with the Assistant Head of School for Enrollment will handle all coordination with home schools and families as it pertains to academic coordination. The Winter Term Program Coordinator will facilitate multiple checkpoints throughout the winter.

We are excited to announce that the Winter Term Program Coordinator for next year is Deb Costello.

How do I apply or learn more about Winter Term?

The best way to learn more about Winter Term is to schedule a visit to campus. During your visit, you will be able to see Park & Vogt House, academic classrooms, and other facilities; you will also be able to talk with Andrew Bishop, Kurt Simard, and other people affiliated with the daily operations of Winter Term.

The Winter Term application can be found here; the priority deadline for applications is April 15th.

Students that complete the application prior to April 15th will be informed of admission and financial aid decisions by April 17, 2017.

Students that start the process after April 15th will be considered on a rolling basis and accepted if spaces are still available. Given the interest in Winter Term coupled with the quality of the program, we anticipate a very limited space being available after this date.

How much does Winter Term cost? Is there financial assistance for Winter Term participants?

Tuition for the December to March 1 program is $22,000 for boarding students and $15,000 for day students. The Thanksgiving and March training camps are an additional fee that is still being finalized.

Merit Scholarships are available to offset the cost of tuition for the December 1 to March 1 program. Merit Scholarships, and the amount of tuition assistance provided is determined by three factors:

• On Snow results (times and podium finishes),
• Academic aptitude (standardized testing, GPA, and teacher recommendations),
• A commitment to community and personal growth (recommendations, student application, interview, and personal references).

For families desirous of receiving need based financial aid for grades 9-12 must complete the financial aid application now.

Additional fees to Winter Term are: Ski equipment, entry fees, season pass, overnight travel to any races and membership to Speedworks tuning facility.

The post Winter Term Q & A with Kurt and Andrew appeared first on Gould Academy.

Tenth Grade Four Point in Review

At Gould Academy, we value learning by doing. We believe that classrooms don’t always have walls and they certainly don’t always include a teacher standing in front of neatly aligned rows of desks. The best learning comes from experiences, from action, and from exploration. While this runs through everything we do at Gould, it is most clearly on display during our Four Point activities.

Kirsten ’19 is focused during an oil painting workshop.

This past week students took part in their Tenth Grade Four Point experience and it was a week full of community, connection, and creativity. The goal is to teach students to experience the community around them and the creativity inside them by pushing them out of their every day comfort zone.

Community Service

The week starts with a day of community service. The class disbursed to eight locations for twelve separate activities around western Maine. Groups worked to prepare and serve a lunch to Bethel-area senior citizens, while other groups traveled to Lewiston to work with the Maine Immigration and Refugee Services Center, the Martin de Porres homeless shelter, the Good Shepherd Food Bank, and other community organizations.

Jaxon ’19 volunteering at the Maine Immigration and Refugee Services Center in Lewiston.

“Community service day is an opportunity that our students seize not only to further their experience in our community,” says faculty member Adam Leff. “It is a time focused on meeting people, creating and fostering connections, and offering a little of what each of us has to others. Every single one of our students made a personal connection to a community member, be it a young child of refugee origins, or an adult who may have come into our orbit on that wonderful day. Our students gave willingly of their time, their intelligence, and most importantly their hearts.”

“Every single one of our students made a personal connection to a community member, be it a young child of refugee origins, or an adult who may have come into our orbit on that wonderful day.”

-Adam Leff | World Language Department Chair

Artists Workshops

After returning from their community service activities, the students spent the rest of the week in workshops with artists from around Maine and across the country. The artists workshops are designed to help students explore a craft, skill, or medium that they may not have the opportunity to dive deeply into during the academic year.

Kat ’19 on the bandsaw in the Physical Lab during a woodworking workshop.

Students can choose from seven workshops ranging from Metalwork to Circus Arts, Oil Painting to Fashion Design. The instructors are world class and include Alexa Stark ’07, a successful fashion designer and Gould alumna based in Portland, Oregon. Alexa just came off of showing her work at New York Fashion week, but has come back to campus to serve on the faculty of Tenth Grade Four Point for each of the last three years.

Other faculty include:

• Bruce Bulger, a master woodworker from Deer Isle, Maine
• David Wolfe, a printmaker with a studio and press in Portland, Maine
• Eric Ziner, a master metalsmith from Deer Isle, Maine
• Philip Frey, a painter from Sullivan, Maine
• Erin Lovett Sherman, Artistic Director at ARTSFEST, dancer, choreographer, and director from Laconia, New Hampshire.
• Dustin Holzweiss ’02 – Chef at Michaels Harborside Restaurant in Newburyport, Massachusetts.

Students hand carve their own stamps in printmaking.

“We have an exceptional array of artists, experts in their field, who come to impart their knowledge and share their love of what they do,” says visual arts faculty member Lauren Head. “They teach, they inspire, they get kids thinking and doing.”

Students spend four days immersed in the workshops. The results are spectacular. Some can go from having never having seen an anvil or set foot in a woodshop to having created their own piece of functional art from metal or wood and learning the skills and techniques required along the way.

Andrew ’19 working over the coals in Ziner’s metalsmithing workshop.

“When creating with your hands, there are no mistakes, just learning opportunities,” says Ziner. “Students are challenged in new ways to create, and the vision they choose draws interest from and inspires their peers. Once they solve the mystery of the wires and sparks and fire, you can see the gears turning as they figure out the possibilities. The learning goes far beyond the skills themselves.”

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“Once they solve the mystery of the wires and sparks and fire, you can see the gears turning as they figure out the possibilities. The learning goes far beyond the skills themselves.”

Eric Ziner | Master metalsmith

Lily ’19 is a fashion designer in the making.

Exhibition

The week ends with an exhibition of the work created by students. Student pieces from oil painting, metalwork, printmaking, woodwork are on display while the circus arts workshops perform aerials, acrobatics, and juggling. A fashion show of student work kicks off a dinner prepared by students who spent time in the cooking workshop with Gould alumnus Dustin Holzweiss ’02. It is an impressive display of what teenagers can accomplish when given strong guides, the freedom to try and to fail, and the time to experiment and create.  

Circus Arts workshop rehearsing for the greatest show on Earth.

“Using one’s hands to create is something mankind has done since the beginning. Hands on work and learning is empowering, “ says Head. “You can sit around and watch a video or a demo to learn something, or you can have the direct experience of trying it for yourself – which would you choose? Making something is powerful, it can even be a bit magical.”

Kat ’19 shows off her fine woodworking product, a custom dove-tail box.

The post Tenth Grade Four Point – The Magic of Making appeared first on Gould Academy.

This past week nine Gould students travelled to Colby College to compete in the Maine State Science Fair, the largest such fair in the state with 175 competitors from 26 schools. All the Gould students who competed are part of the Science Research Methods course and have been working on their projects since at least the start of the academic year. To say that Gould was well-represented would be an understatement.

David Song ’19 displays the app he developed in the McLaughlin Science Building.

David Song ’19 carried the day with a first place prize in the Computer Science division, a $500 award from Intel, and first place overall for the entire fair. This means that David will be traveling to the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in Los Angeles for a week in May to represent the state of Maine. David’s project, “Can Smart Road Signs Improve Pedestrian Safety?” is an app that aims to decrease the number of pedestrian injuries by generating a smartphone alert when a pedestrian approaches a crosswalk equipped with a Bluetooth Low Energy transmitter. David has been working on improving pedestrian safety at Gould and human-centered design since his ninth grade year. This is the fourth year in a row that a Gould student has won the Maine State Science Fair and gone to the Intel ISEF.

Moon Jang ’18 was the third place finisher in the Physics and Astronomy category, with his project focused on improving the design of rocket engine nozzles. Moon used the 3D printers in Gould’s Marlon Family IDEAS Center to print various rocket nozzle designs and then created a test platform that allowed him to test the thrust of the nozzle designs using compressed air. His project could lead to the design of more efficient rocket engines for use in the aerospace industry. Moon was also awarded a four year renewable scholarship at the University of Southern Maine.

Zoe Kim ’19 was awarded a certificate of achievement from the United States Air Force for her project on the toxicity and mutagenicity of Polyhexamethylene Guanosine Phosphate (PMHG) as it relates to Pulmonary Fibrosis. A potentially lethal lung degeneration, Pulmonary Fibrosis may be linked to the use of PMHG as a disinfectant in room humidifiers. Zoe will continue work on her project and hopefully observe how PMHG impacts human lung cells.

We could not be more proud of the work David, Moon, Zoe, and all of our students put into their projects. Along with David’s involvement in the Intel ISEF Fair, Moon, Zoe and other students will be competing in further fairs around New England this spring.

The post Gould’s Winning Streak Continues at the Maine State Science Fair appeared first on Gould Academy.

Artist rendering to scale of the proposed and funded Gould sign project.

Gould Academy is pleased to announce the installation of a 45 foot tall, 125 foot wide “Gould” sign on the back side of Barker Mountain, facing campus.

“That iconic view of the Mahoosucs from campus is just going to get better with this gigantic sign,” says Matt Ruby, Head of School. “Everyone is trying to advertise their schools in different and unique ways, we thought this would really set us apart.”

“Everyone is trying to advertise their schools in different and unique ways, we thought this would really set us apart.”

– Head of School Matt Ruby

Construction on the sign will begin immediately and likely take a year to complete. The sign was paid for through a fundraising campaign called “The Really Big Campaign to Build a Really Big Gould Sign on the Side of a Mountain.” (TRBCTBARBGSOTSOAM) A final ribbon-cutting is set to take place on April 1, 2018.

“This started as a ‘pie in the sky’ conversation, and escalated quickly. I was astonished at how much TRBCTBARBGSOTSOAM resonated within our community.” says Gould Chief Advancement Officer Jeff Candura.

“We are going to need a really big ribbon,” Ruby quipped.

The post Gould to Construct Giant Sign appeared first on Gould Academy.

While Gould spends much of March focused on Four Point activities and on break, our on-snow athletes are often just hitting their strides. The two student-athletes we are honoring as Athletes of the Month for March were at the top of their game in some of the biggest ski racing events of the year.

Maxx Parys ’20
Ski Racing

Maxx has been a consistent performer all year long for Gould Academy, but his performance at the Eastern U16 Championships bumped it up a notch. Maxx finished 11th in the field for his first Slalom Run and then 3rd in his second run. This qualified him to move on to U16 Nationals. Maxx also finished 10th in Super G. At U16 Nationals at Sugarloaf, Maxx finished 18th, but was the fifth fastest first year U16 competitor. The month of March also saw Maxx participate in Ninth Grade Four Point with the rest of his classmates spending two weeks in China as part of a cultural exchange.

Ashley Humphreys ’18
Ski Racing

Ashley closed her strong 2016/17 alpine season with a stellar month of March. Ashley entered the start gate at FIS Eastern Cup Finals at Sunday River and went toe to toe with a field packed with college skiers. Ashley finished 30th in the Giant Slalom and 29th in her first Slalom run, but was the 3rd fastest time among athletes born in the year 2000. Ashley then moved on to the Eastern Development Championships where she posted the 5th fastest time for her age in both runs of the Slalom.

Congratulations to both Ashley and Maxx for a great season and for making Gould proud! Go Huskies!

The post Ski Racing is the Sport of the Month for March 2017 appeared first on Gould Academy.

The Freeride Gang at Stop 1: Mad River Glen

The Ski The East Freeride Tour is the east coast’s first and only Freeride Competition Circuit. Before Ski The East founded the Freeride Tour in 2010, there were some individual Freeride competitions held at various mountains in Vermont, but they were completely independent of each other. They sought to integrate each event into a collective tour, which became STEFT. This year five Gould students, from Ninth Grade to Twelfth Grade, competed in the tour. Here is a run-down of how the season went.

Stop 1: Mad River Glen

Fayston, VT | February 18

We left Bethel and headed over to Mad River Glen on Friday morning. With some recent snowfall at home and in Vermont we knew we were in store for good snow conditions. A necessary stop was The Waterwheel Diner in NH, a place coaches, athletes and the locals really enjoy. After a Mt Jefferson breakfast we hit the road and headed toward the Mad River Valley, arriving around noon. Half-day lift tickets and a quick stretch and we were off, exploring the double chair first, to get our legs warmed up before heading over to the famous single chair. The gang and I explored around the mountain, finding some untouched snow here and there and eventually made our way to the competition venue. Took a run or two on the course so they could familiarize themselves with the trail before the competition on Saturday (You only get one inspection run on comp day, so this is why we go a day early). Then went off and continued to explore the challenging terrain that Mad River Glen has to offer.

Finding snow at Mad River

The competition day was beautiful, with blue skies and temps in the 20’s building into the 30’s as the day went on. It being a Saturday, and the beginning of Feburary vacation for many people the lift lines were out of this world (especially when everyone is waiting for a single chair). Despite that everyone made it to the start for their runs on time, and even got some free Cabot cheddar in the lift line. We saw some really strong skiing from all of the competitors, with awesome airs and equally as brilliant crashes. Everybody on our team skied well, and had stand up runs. We all lounged in the sun at the bottom of the course and enjoyed the show as we waited for our fellow competitors to take their runs.

Mad River course and the famous single chair

Stop 2: Smugglers’ Notch

Jeffersonville, VT | March 12

Even thought it’s been a good winter for snowfall, the beginning of March was a bit of a dry spell for the northeast. Despite less than ideal snow conditions, the snowmakers at Smugglers’ Notch pulled it together and held the comp on a very brisk Sunday in early March. As usual, we headed over the night before and stayed in an AirBnB not far from the mountain.

The competition day was one of those beautifully sunny but terribly cold days, where you don’t want any exposed skin. The course was on a challenging groomer trail that had quite a bit of snow blown on it the night before. It wasn’t quite whalebacks, but it was interesting, with a few jumps built here and there for the competitors to launch.

Rider’s meeting at Smuggs

After inspection it was right into the lodge to warm up and get breakfast sandwiches. With some time to kill before our guys’ runs we braved the cold to do some exploring around the mountain, make some turns, and keep legs warm. The competitors threw down some impressive runs on the course, making it look easy without mogul fields to manage. All had lots of airtime, and multiple 360’s were thrown on the course’s platform senders. Our athletes; Colby Snow ’17, Luke Hayward ’19, and Dylan Rivard ’20 all had a good time despite the cold, along with stand up runs and solid results.

Stop 3: Magic Mountain

Londonderry, VT | March 18

Winter storm Stella came through the northeast March 12-15 and left us with a much-needed blanket of snow. Everybody (myself included) was really excited to head over to Magic Mountain for their competition. None of us had ever been there before and they haven’t had enough snow to host this competition for a few years. We headed over to the Snowdon Chalet in Londonderry on Friday evening, grabbing dinner on the way and crashed out for the night.

The comp day was seriously unreal; we were very lucky with the weather on the tour this season, Sunny and warm started to seem like a common theme. The Magic competition venue was on a long, and challenging trail. The comp went of without a hitch, with athletes sending it in the sunshine and showcasing their skills.

Start area at Magic

Colby Snow ’17, one of our freeride athletes (and recent alpine convert) who competed in every stop of the tour, had a really good showing at Magic. Putting down a solid run she earned herself a 6^th place finish, which was her best result of the season. Noah Grammas ’18 also earned himself a 6^th place finish in the men’s field.  He is a strong skier in any discipline and while he doesn’t always pick the most technical line, he skies with a certain grace and creativity that can’t be missed. Aidan Ryan ’20 came along on this trip, and he was a welcome addition to the crew. Aidan is a mogul skier with very strong legs and while spending the majority of his time training on the mogul course; he still enjoys other aspects of the sport. He was stoked to be doing something different and we were happy to have some fresh energy within the team. He ended up having a solid result finishing 13^th in the men’s field.

Top of the Magic course

Stop 4: Sugarbush

Warren, VT | March 19

After the Magic competition, we hit the road and headed north to Montpelier where we had some awesome burritos at the Mad Taco and then spent the night. Sunday we headed up to Sugarbush for fourth stop of the tour, once again we were fortunate with weather, and had sunny skies and relatively warm temps.

Noah and Colby at the top of Castle Rock

The competition was held underneath the Castle Rock Chairlift, which was exciting because we haven’t had the snowpack for that in years. The trail was as challenging as it was long, with huge moguls, exposed rocks and cliff drops to navigate. With a huge field of competitors, we were there for most of the day watching the craziness ensue. Colby, Noah, and Aidan all had stand up runs, making it to the bottom of the course in one piece, which was impressive all on its own. This course was more of an endurance test than anything, with competitors collapsing after they crossed the finish line.

Aidan inspecting the Castle Rock course

Stop 5: Jay Peak

Jay, VT | March 25-26

Jay Peak was the final stop of the tour, and a two-day event. Athletes competed on Saturday to qualify for the finals on Sunday. Colby, Aidan and I headed over to Jay on Friday evening to spend the night before the comp. We hustled right to the resort to catch some waves at the indoor water park at Hotel Jay. After getting totally pitted on the artificial wave, and raging some waterslides, we headed down to Newport to have dinner and spend the night. Saturday we woke up to cloudy skies with 6 inches of new snow on the ground.

The comp venue was on a trail called Green Beret, which is just past the Face Chutes off the top of the tram. The trail resembled a wide snake run with lots of technical lines and airs. The fresh snow made for poor visibility, and after a few course holds due to fog, the competition went smoothly. Aidan and Colby both had strong showings and qualified for finals on Sunday. STE cut about half the field of competitors to make the finals more manageable for the judges, and to ensure the course wouldn’t be completely skied off.

Colby and Aidan at the top of Jay Peak

Sunday was one of those bluebird days that you dream about. After fresh snow the Face Chutes were in amazing shape. The Face Chutes are directly underneath the top of the tram, and offer seriously challenging and technical terrain. Skiing these lines is a right of passage for serious skiers and riders who come to Jay and we were lucky to be able to enjoy this venue for the finals.

Colby dropping in at Jay

Colby dropped first for the girls and had some of the best snow. She picked a technical line navigating the tougher terrain up top and had to traverse across a good portion of the course while still controlling her speed. She had a tough time controlling speed on her traverse, due to it being very narrow with trees on one side and rocks on the other. Her legs got away from her, and she ate it pretty hard on her transition from the traverse into the next part of the course. Luckily she was fine, didn’t lose a ski (if you lose a ski you’re automatically disqualified) and finished her run with a smile on her face.

Aidan before his Saturday run at Jay.

Aidan had a solid stand up run, he picked a medium difficulty line, which was still technical. He got a little squirrely in the top section when he sent a ten foot cliff into the middle of the course, but kept his composure and continued down to the finish, finding stuff to jump off on the way.

Unfortunately, neither Aidan nor Colby made the cut for super finals. Ski The East made the call that they had time to make another cut and run the top five females and top ten males for another run. We grabbed some food and then made our way back to the bottom of the course to watch a truly insane level of competition ensue. Afterwards we took some runs exploring some of the terrain and tree skiing that Jay has to offer and shortly thereafter headed home.

The Tour was an amazing experience for all of our students, and I am really impressed with how they pushed themselves and took every run hard. Already looking forward to next season!

The post Five Stops on the Ski the East Freeride Tour appeared first on Gould Academy.

The Gould Snowboard Team  just returned from the USASA National Championships in Copper, CO; the largest snowboard event the world. As usual, our riders attained some incredible results!

Henry McCarthy ’18 (red bandana) never lost a heat on his way to the National Championship

For the 2nd consecutive year, a Gould rider brought home the National Championship in Boardercross for Junior Men (16-17). Last year it was Richie Hoge ’17 and this year it is Henry McCarthy ’18. Tenth grader Aerin Young ’19 landed just off the podium with a 5th place finish in Boardercross for Youth Women (14-15) in only her first year racing. Aerin also notched top 14 finishes in Giant Slalom and Slalom.

Aerin Young ’19 powers a heelside turn in GS

The future continues to look bright as eighth grade winter term athletes also stood on podiums during the week. Theo McLemore ’21 came in second for Boardercross for Youth Men (14-15) and Aidan Mahoney ’21 nailed a third place finish in Boardercross for Breaker Boys (12-13). Mahoney also finished in 16th for Slopestyle.

Aidan Mahoney ’21, red bandana, qualified 3rd fastest on the day and was seldom not leading in heats…sometimes by a lot.

In all, Gould Academy’s eight riders made 16 total starts in four separate events. Those 16 starts resulted in:

• three podiums,

• seven top ten results, and

• 14 top twenty results.

Theo McLemore ’21 (green bandana) won his first 2 heats.

The snowboard coaches and I could not be any more proud of our riders. We trained hard and had a ton of fun this season. We focus on controlling what we can and on our own performances. We’re very happy that results followed! We owe a tremendous thanks to Sunday River as well for providing us with top notch training facilities that can’t be duplicated!

A big day for the team! Henry McCarthy ’18 1st in BX, Tyler Hamel 2nd in SL and Theo McLemore ’21 2nd in BX.

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Matt Bennett ’17 and Aidan Lear ’18 begin their presentation on game design and their project Seppuku.

“Imagine you are in 17th century Japan. You wake up in a prison and you don’t know who you are.”
– Matt Bennett ’17

Gould twelfth grader Matthew Bennett had his audience spellbound as he introduced the story line to the video game Seppuku that he and Aiden Lear ’18 created as part of their “Topics in Computer Science” class. Bennett and Lear gave a public presentation in McLaughlin’s Trustees Auditorium to Gould community members including Head of School Matt Ruby and CFO Beth McWilliams.

As part of their “Topics in Computer Science” class, the boys created a video game called Seppuku which is set in 17th century Japan. Seppuku is a top down arcade style game for which they had to learn an entirely new computer language. According to the boys, they had twelve weeks to design and build the game. They estimated that they spent 192 hours coding and planning and wrote 1832 lines of code. Matt and Aiden drew concept art for the player, for the rooms, and borrowed ideas from other games.

A screenshot of the game play in Seppuku

One fun part of the whole process was involving their friends. Aiden and Matt had many of their friends act as play testers, such as Noah Carrier ’18. Bennett said that the role of the testers was to find bugs in the program.

They grew to appreciate each other’s contributions to the project. Aiden appreciated Matt’s creativity. According to Aiden, Matt pushed the envelope from the first day of class. “Aiden is very good about getting things done. Aiden would be my tether back to the ground,” said Bennett. “Neither of them could have pulled it off on their own. Together they made a great team. They bring different strengths to the project, ” said Computer Science Department Chair Jason Chase.

Bennett explains the strategic plan for their game design.

According to Chase, Avery Rossow ’13, now a senior at UMaine majoring in computer science, was the genesis of the “Topics in Computer Science” class. As a senior at Gould, Rossow did an independent study on game design. “I realized we needed another level of advanced computer science. It started as an independent study and then grew into this class,” said Chase.

In developing their game, Lear and Bennett had to draw on both their math skills and historical knowledge. The boys said they used calculus to develop algorithms so that the characters could shoot in any direction rather than just the cardinal directions. Furthermore, Aiden Lear said that the idea idea for the game came from talking with friends about it. “A lot of inspiration was our knowledge of 17th century Japan. The samurais would actually carry two swords one for fighting and one for seppuku. Our historical knowledge came into play in designing this game,” said Lear.

A look at the game during development in the Unity Game Engine.

“Doing something like this is very helpful to see all the work that goes into game design,” said Bennett. Matt noted that he is planning on majoring in computer science and minoring in game development at Grove City College. “I’ve always been interested in making my own game. I’ve always liked creating storylines.”

“I am very proud of the work they have done,” said Chase as he introduced his students.

The Samurai of Seppuku

The post Game Design in 17th Century Japan appeared first on Gould Academy.

Softball VS. Kents Hill | WIN 25-16 | Wednesday, May 3, 2017

The Gould Huskies traveled to MAISAD conference rival, Kents Hill, today securing a 25-16 victory. Facing cold and windy conditions, GAS showed grit by focusing for all seven innings. In a back-and-forth battle, the Huskies took the lead in the bottom of the fifth and never looked back despite being down by as many as seven runs. Kim Drew had a solid defensive performance, knocking down every ball that came her way at the hot corner. Serving as a relief pitcher for the day, Brenna Myles threw a consistent game, striking out four Kents Hill batters with help from Ashley Humphreys, a steadfast wall behind the plate. On offense, the Huskies had a great day at bat. Caroline Gray, Aerin Young, Grace Schierwagen, Ellie Bailey, and the dynamic sibling duo of Little and Big Mac found lots of green space on the turf tundra. GAS would like to thank the Varsity Baseball and JV Lacrosse teams for their support during the last two innings. The Huskies take on non-conference opponent, New Hampton, at home on Friday afternoon. Game time is set for 4:30 pm.

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Sunday, May 7, 2017
Varsity Softball VS. Brewster Academy | WIN 10-4

On a cloudy Sunday morning, Gould Softball hit the road and headed to Brewster Academy for a non-conference matchup, winning 10-4. As the Huskies pulled into the parking lot of Nick Field, the sun radiated down on the diamond, a good omen that foreshadowed what was to come. Gould took an early two-run lead in the top of the first after Ashley Humphreys ’18 started the game with a base hit. Brewster battled back, earning one run in the bottom of the inning. For the next two innings, both teams remained scoreless due to a back-and-forth pitching battle lead by Ellie Bailey ’18 on the mound. The Huskies pulled ahead in the top of the fifth 7-2. Kim Drew ’17 scored the game-winning run after stealing an extra base off a walk due to heads up base running. The opposing team refused to give up, scoring two in the bottom of the inning, keeping the game close at 7-4 after five. Gould earned some insurance runs in the top of the seventh, scoring three off of two hits. The Gould girls’ closed out the game with solid defense, earning the 10-4 victory.

After a well-played seven innings, the Huskies congregated in right field to give a ball to the player of the game. Ellie Bailey, who pitched all seven innings and had three hits, earned this award for her consistency and hard work throughout the day. Other noteworthy performances included Amelia “Little Mac” McMillan’s ’20 two hits and three RBI’s. Brenna Myles ’18 played solid defense, turning a beautiful double play in the bottom of the first inning and rocketing a ball to center field during the top of the seventh to close out the game. Karizma Baez ’20, a freshmen new to the game, stepped up to the plate (pun intended) in place of an injured Aerin Young ’19. Baez had an excellent debut, making a timely catch in right field and walking twice. The Huskies look forward to Tuesday, May 9th as they take on conference rival, Kents Hill, at home. Game time is set for 4:30 pm.

Final Score: 10-4 WIN
Gould Stats: 10 runs, 12 hits, 2 errors
Brewster Stats: 4 runs, 5 hits, 2 errors

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Colby Snow ’17 came to Gould as a member of the 8th grade Winter Term Program, excited about the potential of blending her love for the mountains with a school that would support her passions. Her trimester went so well she enrolled at Gould in the Fall of 2013. Colby has been active on the Field Hockey and Lacrosse fields. Her leadership and personality led to her being nominated to a dorm proctor of Gehring. Her skiing career faced injury and a tremendous come back on the hill.

Colby cutting toward the goal vs. Kent’s Hill.

Colby will be graduating from Gould in less than a month, and moving on to the College of Charleston in South Carolina. Before she leaves we got a chance to follow her around, and ask a few questions. Check out her answers below!

Student Spotlight Q&A

What brought you to Gould?

I had been skiing at Sunday River since the age of two, and had been racing for the Gould Academy Competition Weekend Program since I was seven, so Bethel, and Gould have always felt like a second home to me. When I discovered Gould had strong academics, a strong ski program, and other sports I knew that it was right fit for me.

Throwback to the 2012-2013 season, Colby’s Winter Term year.

How would you describe your time here as you approach the end?

My time here at Gould has been amazing. Looking back at myself in eighth  grade, to the end of my freshman year, until now, I have developed into a young adult that I am proud to be. From four point experiences, community service projects, and being involved on campus as a proctor, I have been able to push myself out of my comfort zone, take on leadership roles and try new things. Gould has afforded me many opportunities that I don’t think I would be able to get anywhere else.

Top 3 Moments at Gould so far?

1. Freshman Four Point
For my Freshman four-point I traveled to Beijing, China for one week, and Kunming, for another week. In Beijing I stayed with my entire ninth grade group in a Hostel. We visited the Great Wall, Forbidden City and the Temple of Heaven. I was my first time traveling outside of the United States and was truly an eye-opening experience. My favorite part was when the ninth grade class was separated into smaller groups, and I traveled to Kunming for one week, where I stayed with a host family. I got to live with my host, Mandy, for a week and go to school with her. It was an amazing opportunity to gain a new cultural experience first hand.

2. Marine biology trip to Islesboro
In the fall of my Senior year, I was enrolled in Marine Biology, a senior elective, taught by Mr. Siekman. Throughout the trimester we learned about marine life and why certain organisms thrive in certain zones of the ocean. Towards the end of the trimester, Mr. Siekman brought the entire class to Islesboro, Maine where we stayed at his house. We spent the day on the rocky shores uncovering organisms and identifying them with a guidebook. This class was interesting, and this trip gave me the opportunity to apply what I was learning inside the classroom to real life.

Colby collects data on the coast of Maine during a Marine Biology research trip.

3. Junior Four-Point
Junior Four point was by far one of the best experiences I’ve had at Gould. As I prepared for my nine day winter camping excursion, I was apprehensive, and a little nervous. When I went out into the woods with a group of nine other amazing junior girls, I faced a lot of challenges, mentally and physically and a leadership opportunity. Despite the difficult days where we thought we wouldn’t make it to camp before dark, my group and I had endless laughs that led to amazing memories. I came out of the woods after nine days with a more positive outlook on life, more confidence in my leadership skills, and memories I will never forget.

Thanks Colby, for taking the time and sharing with us, and thanks for making the most of your time at Gould, and being the best possible version of yourself. We’ll be proud to call you an alumna.

Colby made the jump from Alpine racer to Freeskier this season!

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