Congratulations to Upper School Principal Stephen Kolman who completed the St. Luke’s D&L RaceFest Marathon on Sunday, 9 November, from Allentown to Easton, Pennsylvania, in 3:32:07! He finished 2nd in his age group and 18th out of the 108 participants in the masters’ division over the age of forty. The St. Luke’s D&L Marathon is a USATF-certified, Boston Marathon qualifying race. D&L refers to the scenic and historic Delaware and Lehigh Trail which runs along those rivers.

Congratulations to Lower School Associate Teacher Madeleine Espy and Assistant Director of Admissions Jaclyn Evans who both completed the 2025 TCS New York City Marathon on Sunday. Ms. Espy was cheered on by her students near the finish line!

Teacher of Visual Arts Gregg Emery has paintings featured at the SCOPE International Contemporary Art Fair in Miami Beach, from Tuesday, 2 December through Sunday, 7 December.

For more information visit: https://www.dcolabellafineart.com/show/dcolabellafineartcom-scope-international-contemporary-art-show

https://scope-art.com/

Teacher of Visual Arts Gregg Emery has paintings featured in the two-person exhibition Color Intensive with Darren Jones at the D. Colabella Fine Art Gallery in Ridgefield, Connecticut, from Thursday, 20 November through Sunday, 11 January.

For more information, visit: https://www.dcolabellafineart.com/show/dcolabellafineartcom-color-intensive

Teacher of Visual Arts Gregg Emery has published the article “Artist/Educator: AKA ‘My Two Full-Time Jobs’” in Art21.

Read the article at: https://art21.org/read/artist-educator-aka-my-two-full-time-jobs/

Students from each grade have questions for Assistant Head of School Melissa Kantor...and she has answers!

Watch the video at: https://vimeo.com/1101693792

Teacher of Visual Arts Thomas Holton is featured in the “New Yorker” article “Picturing a Chinatown Family Across Twenty-Two Years,” which is about Holton’s photography project “The Lams of Ludlow Street” and his relationship with the family he photographs.

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/photo-booth/picturing-a-chinatown-family-across-twenty-two-years

Teacher of Visual Arts Gregg Emery has artwork featured at the Affordable Art Fair New York, which takes place Wednesday, 17 September through Sunday, 21 September at the Starrett-Lehigh Building, 601 West 26th Street, 4th Floor. Emery’s work will be in booth D15.

For more information, visit: https://affordableartfair.com/fairs/new-york-fall/

Trinity School proudly announces that Upper School Teacher of French Vandana Gupta has been selected as the recipient of the 2025 Distinguished Teaching Award.

Ms. Gupta, a beloved member of the Trinity community since 1998, was recognized for her exceptional dedication to teaching and her transformative influence on students.

Colleagues praise how “students in her classes not only learn to love to speak and write French, but also to love language and to approach the material with a special curiosity and verve.” Beyond the classroom, Ms. Gupta has made invaluable contributions to Trinity’s global education initiatives. Her colleagues note that “Vandana is an extraordinary student travel organizer and leader, and her contributions to the global travel program since its beginning have been stupendous.”

Incoming President of the TAAA Board Katherine Haves Malitzky ’08 presented the award to Ms. Gupta.

The Distinguished Teaching Endowment was created in 1983 as a tribute to Clarence Bruner-Smith, Dudley M. Maxim ’32, and Frank G. Smith. The Trinity Alumni and Alumnae Association awards the honor and a $10,000 prize each year to a teacher who has worked at Trinity for ten years or more and exemplifies the history and traditions of the school.

Teacher of Visual Arts Thomas Holton has a mid-career retrospective, The Lams of Ludlow Street, at Baxter Street at the Camera Club of New York. This body of work chronicles the lives of a single Chinese American family over two decades in Manhattan’s Chinatown.

An opening reception will take place on Wednesday, 4 June, from 6:00pm to 8:00pm, at 154 Ludlow Street.

The exhibition is on view from Wednesday, 4 June through Wednesday, 13 August. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 12:00pm to 6:00pm.

For more information, visit: https://www.baxterst.org/events/the-lams-of-ludlow-street/

Freedom Braids, Lower School Learning Specialist Monique Duncan’s children’s book of love, liberation, legacy, and hope that is inspired by the true story of enslaved African women in Colombia who braided maps to freedom, is featured on ABC News.

https://abc7ny.com/post/nyc-based-elementary-school-teachers-book-freedom-braids-illustrates-how-hair-led-enslaved-women-colombia/15942410/

Assistant Head of School Melissa Kantor publishes her new book, Biology Lessons, today. Biology Lessons is a contemporary young adult novel about the strength and importance of female friendship in a time when bodily autonomy is outlawed.

For more information, visit: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250334053/biologylessons/

Assistant Head of School Melissa Kantor’s forthcoming young adult novel, Biology Lessons, is featured on “The 10 Best Books To Read In 2025 If You Want To Diversify Your Reading List” on the blog Missing Perspectives. Melissa’s new book will be released on 14 January 2025.

https://missingperspectives.com/posts/best-books-of-2025/

Lower School Learning Specialist Monique Duncan's picture book of love, liberation, and legacy that is inspired by the true story of enslaved African women in Colombia who braided maps to freedom, is featured on Oprah Daily, which is dedicated to helping people live their best lives by delivering the latest in beauty, wellness, culture, news, and more.

https://www.oprahdaily.com/entertainment/books/a62751244/kids-books-on-race-and-racism/

Lower School Learning Specialist Monique Duncan's new children's book "Freedom Braids" will be displayed in Times Square for fifteen seconds on the fifth minute of every hour for twenty-four hours today, Tuesday, 10 September, at 1560 Broadway in Times Square. The best place to view it is in Duffy Square, near Dos Caminos, above the Pelé Soccer store.

For more information about Monique's book, visit: https://lernerbooks.com/shop/show/24477#tabs-contributors

Teacher of Visual Arts Merav Ezer-Shniderman has a solo exhibition, "Pillars of Light: Ancient Forms, New Life," at Brooklyn Art Haus. An opening reception will take place on Thursday, 12 September, from 5:00-8:00pm at Brooklyn Art Haus, which is located at 24 Marcy Avenue, Brooklyn, New York.

The exhibition is on view is on view from Thursday, 12 September through Saturday, 2 November. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Sunday from 11:00am to 10:00pm.

For more information, visit: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/brooklyn-art-haus-presents-pillars-of-light-ancient-forms-new-life-tickets-1008518966377?aff=oddtdtcreator

Teacher of Mathematics Narjis Ali is the winner of the 2024 Distinguished Teaching Award. A member of the Upper School faculty, Ms. Ali has worked at Trinity since 2005. Colleagues describe her as someone who has a “personal magic all her own that makes her luminous in the classroom” and praise her “enthusiasm, energy, creativity, intelligence, insights, dedication, and hard work as highly commendable and contribute to her effectiveness as a teacher.”

Edward "Ed" Remache ’95 and Kim Vinnakota '98 presented the award to Ms. Ali.

The Distinguished Teaching Endowment was created in 1983 as a tribute to legendary teachers Clarence Bruner-Smith, Dudley M. Maxim ’32, and Frank G. Smith. In 1988, the Alumni Association decided to establish an annual award to a teacher who has taught at Trinity for ten years or more, exemplified the history and traditions of the School, and demonstrated excellence in teaching.

Since its inception, thirty-seven teachers have received this honor, their names displayed prominently on the Greenberg Family-Alumni Association Distinguished Teaching Prize plaque in the Great Hall. Narjis Ali’s name will now be added to this distinguished list.