Elli and David Basner P'14 Host Alumni Parent Gathering

Last week we had the pleasure of catching up with former Parkside parents at a cocktail party hosted by Elli and David Basner, whose son Ben graduated from Parkside in 2014. This Alumni Parent Cocktail Party has become an annual tradition, and is a very special opportunity for us to hear about the many paths our alumni have taken, and the immense impact Parkside has had in the lives of our students and their families. Ben popped into the party just long enough to tell us that he is now at the Cooke School and enjoying his time in The Meeting House’s teen program. Mark Cole ’16 plays basketball in a community league in New Jersey. Andrew DiPerna ’00 has just moved into his own apartment. Harish Ahilan ’14 is now at Winston Prep enjoying an active social life. Tatum Unterberg ’13 is doing well at Eagle Hill School in Massachusetts. Alexander Soiefer '13 is in his junior year at Stuyvesant High School and has started touring the Ivy Leagues including Harvard and Swarthmore. Robbie Olsen ’12  just successfully completed his first semester at SUNY Purchase and is becoming very active in politics. Gunner Gostigian’s '14 dream has come true as he is currently doing  an internship at The Museum of Natural History. 

It's always great to hear about our more recent grads as well. Mateo Pai, Hannah Freeman and Daniel Visceglia, Class of 2019, are half way through their first year at Summit, adjusting well, advocating for themselves, and enjoying new friends and experiences. Rajan Kang ’18 continues to enjoy Summit, and Cameron Cox ‘18 is thriving at the Aaron School, where her parents say she has made a lot of new friends and continues to explore her creative side in Parkside’s alumni drama class with Teddy Ryan '14 and Patrick Bowers '15.  Rebecca Sidi '17 is actively applying to high schools and is thriving academically in The Computer School. It is always wonderful to hear how our first Parkside student, Colin Fiedoreck '91 is doing in southern California.

Alex Inglese ‘08

We also recently had an unexpected visit from alumnus Alex Inglese ’08 who has a degree in Music with a concentration in Guitar Performance from Five Towns College. Melanie Beck ’07 is about to finish her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and is planning to apply for an internship at Parkside this summer, before going on to do volunteer work with children in South America, and Stephen Mulhauser ’91 recently had three paintings featured in a gallery show by Pure Vision Arts on Madison Avenue.

These are the stories and achievements that fuel our motivation to do our very best work for our students, and to ensure Parkside’s future as a school for children from all walks of life. As we begin parent conferences this week, the event was a wonderful reminder that the smallest achievements as we progress through the school year are the building blocks on which our students launch themselves on meaningful, life-long journeys.