We Can Do It, GA!
$75 million goal
As we rally around the ambitious work ahead of us, this year’s theme, We Can Do It, GA!, inspires us to move forward toward the finish line. We are in the midst of the largest capital campaign in the school’s history, which has led to extraordinary changes to GA’s physical landscape. At this year’s annual dinner we were honored to announce that we reached the $60 million mark committed toward our $75 million goal, and we are now over $65 million! As you will read in this newsletter, we have broken ground on our new Lower School building, completed several key construction projects, and chosen an architect for Phase II of the Master Campus Plan, which includes several projects on the south end of campus.
We are excited, encouraged, and motivated by this momentum to ensure that GA remains at the forefront of education for girls. GA is special in that when an opportunity arises to enhance the girls’ experience, our full community readily steps forward to help. We have come a long way, but our work is not done. We need everyone to come together to make our collective vision a reality for GA girls of all ages…for girls of today and tomorrow. With your support, We Can Do It, GA!
Andra Winokur Newman ’95 P’28, ’32 and Bart Osman P’15, ’18, ’22
Campaign Co-Chairs
Richard Chilton P’10, ’14, ’18
Honorary Chair
Construction Begins
New Lower School to Launch Futures
Ridgeview Transformed
For Youngest GA Learners
Architect Announced
Phase II Takes Shape
Faculty Housing
Rallies Community Support
Speaker Series
Shows How GA Leads the Way
Maximizing Options
Relocating Cowan Center and Adding Green Space
More Information
Construction Begins:
New Lower School to Launch Futures
As construction on our new Lower School began in August, soon after the 50th anniversary of the Apollo moon landing, I was struck by the parallels between these two events. Both are inspiring stories of vision meeting unbridled ability and leadership. Both reflect impressive commitment to teamwork, resources, and innovation. We are on track to open this new building next fall, and I like to think of it as the launching pad to put GA girls in the White House, the CEO’s office, the US Olympic Team, the nonprofit Founder’s office, and the Head of School’s chair. GA girls are capable of flying any mission the world needs flown, and we are proudly giving them resources to speak up and lead when no one else can. GA has been helping girls launch their futures for nearly 200 years. Thanks to your support, we are putting in place the foundation to help future generations launch dreams as big as the moon.
Tim Armstrong P’22, ’24, Chairman, Board of Trustees
Click on green Image Gallery bars to open slideshow
Image Gallery: Construction is underway.
We have begun moving massive amounts of rock and dirt to make room for the expansive new Lower School building, which will also include the new Young Auditorium. Thoughtful planning allows us to build with no disruption to classes, with a planned opening in the fall of 2020.
Image Gallery: View architectural renderings.
Architect Announced:
Phase II Takes Shape
GA has chosen the award-winning Peter Gisolfi Associates to design our new Visual Arts Center. With offices in New Haven, Connecticut, and in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, the firm has designed many arts venues and demonstrates understanding of the importance of arts curriculum in the life of a school community. GA’s Visual Arts Center will integrate with the Wallace Performing Arts Center to create a hub for Upper School arts and strengthen the connections between buildings and outdoor spaces on our campus.
Construction of the Visual Arts Center is planned to begin next fall and finish in 2021. Other elements of Phase II include: a renovated Upper School/Middle School courtyard, new Upper School STEM labs, a second Engineering & Design lab, a teaching kitchen, and a renovated cafeteria and café.
Speaker Series
Shows How GA Leads the Way
Alongside this busy time of construction, GA has unveiled the Leading the Way Speaker Series to highlight the vision and depth that our educational program delivers. The inaugural panel last spring, titled Technology & Culture: Disrupt, Innovate, Lead, featured Lisa Utzschneider P’27, CEO of Integral Ad Science; Stephanie Benedetto ’98 CEO and co-founder of Queen of Raw; Tim Armstrong P’22, ’24, CEO and co-founder of dtx. Our second event in October was titled Unpacking Entrepreneurship: Mindset, Motivation, Ingenuity. This panel brought together Edith Cooper P’08, former Goldman Sachs partner and co-founder of Medley Living; Max Cartellieri P’24, ’25, CEO and co-founder of AlphaSights; and Annie Day Thorp ’02 P’31, ’33, founding chief marketing officer, M.M.LaFleur. Both events were well attended, drawing interest from Upper School students, families, and alumnae. Panelists generously shared advice, anecdotes, and observations about what it takes to be successful in the ever-changing economic landscape. Being a community of impactful leaders from so many arenas positions GA well to help girls prepare for their futures. Stay tuned for future events.
Ridgeview Transformed For Youngest GA Learners
GA first purchased the Ridgeview Campus in 1929 with money raised from a student vaudeville production and used this property as an athletic facility. After being sold to and then reacquired back from Brunswick School in 2004, the campus has been home to the Pre-Connecting and Connecting Classes. Today this site is where our youngest GA girls are feeling the first impacts of the Leading the Way campaign. In the spring we cut the ribbon on a new PC building large enough to house two classes that are connected by a gathering space inside and a courtyard outside. As a result, last fall GA welcomed two PC classes of 15 students each, rather than one class of 20. Next door, our CC students were delighted to start this school year in classrooms—in what was the original field house on the property—that had been renovated over the summer.
Image Gallery: CC Enjoys Renovated Classrooms
Image Gallery: Ribbon-Cutting Celebrates New PC Building
Faculty Housing
Rallies Community Support
In the past year, the Leading the Way campaign has created four new or improved housing options for faculty families: an apartment in the new Pre-Connecting building, two apartments in the new Cowan Center, plus renovations to the existing house at One Maher Avenue. Faculty housing maximizes teacher availability for campus activities and is crucial to GA remaining competitive with other area schools. The Class of 2018 and the Class of 2019 are each being honored for their dedication to raising important funds for faculty housing with plaques at the PC building and One Maher Avenue.
Image Gallery: Dedication of commemorative plaques for faculty apartments
Maximizing Options:
Relocating Cowan Center and Adding Green Space
Construction crews worked steadily through the summer to prepare 96 Maple Avenue, an historic building a few blocks from campus, for the busy toddlers of the Cowan Center daycare. This summer also saw the demolition of houses at 172 North Maple Avenue and 2 Patterson Avenue. Together, these changes brought new green space to our core campus, which was critical for zoning requirements as we embark on new construction. This allows GA to maximize how indoor and outdoor space on our main campus support curricular and co-curricular programs for GA girls.
Image Gallery: View new Cowan Center
With your support, WE CAN DO IT, GA!
The Leading the Way campaign is truly an historic moment for Greenwich Academy. This visionary investment in the future of GA will enrich the school life and education of every student, from PC to Group XII and beyond. Already we have made tremendous progress toward our goals, and we are grateful to the GA community for all this campaign will make possible for GA girls.
For More Information:
Amy O’Reilly Rizzi ’91
Director of Advancement
arizzi@greenwichacademy.org
Campaign Committee 2019-2020
Andra Winokur Newman ’95, Co-Chair
Bart Osman, Co-Chair
Richard Chilton, Honorary Chair
Tim Armstrong, Chairman of the Board
Valerie Wayne, Annual Fund Chair
Michael Behringer
Erin Bingle
Paul Cappuccio
Alex Captain
Brian Carroll
Rex Chung
Kirsten Dzialga
Alexandra Hudson
Marianne Cholnoky Kay ’75
René Kern
Susan Lehman
Alexa Raether Maddock ’92
Fayez Muhtadie
Joe Osnoss
Craig Packer
Greg Rogers
Heather Johnson Sargent ’92
Lauren Berkley Saunders ’92
Michael Schaftel
Alex Steel Scott ’00
