Friends campus is buzzing with activity! To view more photos of campus events, visit the School's website, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin.
Meet Friends Seminary's Technology Department
Pictured (left to right) Winston Johnson, Ed Lim, Alex Moquist, Ryan Howard and Alisha Clarke
Name and number of years at Friends?
Ed Lim - 9 years
Ryan Howard - 9 years
Alex Moquist - 6 years
Alisha Clarke - 4 years
Winston Johnson - 2 years
What is a fun tech fact about you?
Alisha - Does drone photography (and regular photography).
Alex - Likes using old operating systems from 30-40 years ago.
Winston - Likes miniature tech items, like a TV that's only 3 inches wide.
Ed - Used to play Super Breakout on an Atari 2600. Makes guitar pedals.
Ryan - Owns every Nintendo video game system.
Please describe your role and the work that your department does to keep Friends' technology up and running?
Ed Lim - Database Administrator. Ensures the student information system and other critical databases are operational.
Ryan - AV Systems Administrator and Senior Tech Support Specialist. Ensures all AV systems, including those in every single classroom are up and running. Handles troubleshooting for student, staff and faculty devices.
Alex - Director of Technology. System administration and strategic projects. Managing networking, servers and critical infrastructure as well as leading academic technology projects and improvements.
Alisha - Helpdesk Administrator and Senior Tech Support Specialist. Manages the helpdesk ensuring all trouble tickets are handled appropriately. Handles troubleshooting for student, staff and faculty devices.
Winston - Tech Support Specialist. Handles troubleshooting for student, staff and faculty devices. Administers and repairs Chromebooks and assists with system administration.
What has been your favorite project to work on?
Ed Lim - Migrating enrollment contracts from paper to digital
Ryan - Upgrading smart boards to short throw projectors, freeing up valuable whiteboard space for teachers.
Alex - Leading the transition of MS and US student device programs.
Alisha - Device recycling and donation programs
Winston - MS Chromebook Rollout
Are there any updates or new programs that your department has created for the new school year?
Alex Moquist, Director of Technology
We upgraded the school's wireless system throughout the main building, doubling wireless speeds for students, faculty and staff.
We installed a new print system allowing for a more reliable wireless printing experience.
We configured new iPad charging carts for grades 2, 3 and 4.
We installed new backup battery systems for critical server equipment.
We completed all routine maintenance and operations such as onboarding new faculty, updating all laptops and ipads, refreshing all school accounts, etc.
What are you most excited about for the new school year?
We're always excited to see what surprising new tech challenges the Friends community and the tech world has in store for us. There's always a novel problem to solve!
Science and Storytelling: Dr. Shayri Greenwood presents the 15th Annual Teri Hassid Art of Teaching Lecture
On Thursday, November 2, Friends Seminary held the 15th Annual Art of Teaching Lecture presented by Science Department Chair Dr. Shayri Greenwood. Titled, “The Joy of Discovering the Story,” her talk delved into her unique approach of teaching Science through the art of storytelling and her belief that students can truly connect with and understand the intricate workings of the natural world by exploring it as a captivating narrative.
Dr. Greenwood’s lecture provided a window into how she teaches life science concepts to Grade 8 students such that they build scientific connections with confidence through a myriad of inquiry-based, dynamic and interactive learning experiences focused on having her students tell what she likes to call “their science story.” She explained: “I encourage our students to grapple with questions, create hypotheses, work through reproducible procedures and undercover data that tells the story of the overarching theme of their experiments. I also encourage students to make claims, justify their discoveries, but most importantly to practice telling their audience the story behind their work. My main goal as a science educator and as a scientist is to inspire my students to see the world around as one unique intrinsic system whose story is still unfolding and to empower my students to seek the answers to questions yet to be told.”
Her passion for education is clear and has a demonstrated positive impact on Friends students. Her work encouraging students to investigate and build scientific connections through storytelling demonstrates that the complex tapestry of life and its processes can be unraveled and understood in a profoundly engaging way. To view more photos visit, www.friendsseminary.org/greenwoodphotos
Lower School Students Participate in Nature's Palette
Buddy classes 3C and KJE donned their ecologist hats as they practiced their skills of observation by exploring the many colors of the fall season in Stuyvesant Park in an investigation entitled, "Nature's Palette."
Six research groups of several buddy pairs each hunted for and collected items in nature that closely matched the color chips on their "palette" board. Students then sorted their nature items and attached them to their boards next to their corresponding paint chip colors. Afterward, each research group had an opportunity to display their poster and share their discoveries with the entire group.
The Center For Peace Equity and Justice And The History Department Join Together To Provide Aid To Migrants And Give Context To Students
Last month History Department Chair Stefan Stawnychy is known to offer insightful lunchtime discussions throughout the year on topics that tie to politics and the US History curriculum. In partnership with the Center for Peace, Equity and Justice, he hosted a lunchtime discussion to provide Upper School students with context and history around the recent influx of migrants to New York City, alongside concrete ways to help them.
Stefan provided a detailed overview of the human rights issues and reasons why people are leaving their homelands due to the instability within foreign governments and consistent threats of violence. As the perception of migrants continues to decline in the face of political upheaval, he worked to clarify the terminology, stating “when we default to labels, we disregard humanity.” He continued, “These people are not the problem. They are fleeing problems.”
It is an intrinsic human responsibility to make people feel welcome and safe. As a Quaker school, we called to action to assist those in need within our city. New York has seen a large influx of migrants into our communities. As of September, 60,000 migrants are living in NYC’s shelters; two-thirds of them are families with children. This year, our annual Coat Drive, led by CPEJ and the PA, is dedicated to helping them. Coat donations will go directly to a community of migrants located in Bushwick who come from Venezuela, Haiti, and Mauritania. Anne Pearson, Grade 5 Advisor and Math Teacher, has been working with this group since the summer and will be distributing approximately 250 coats to them. Students also led a drive to collect technology for Ukraine as well as a Thanksgiving food drive where over 350 items were collected.
The Owls Sports Roundup
Girls Tennis Champions
The Girls Varsity Tennis Team are ACIS Champions! Friends defeated Avenues on Friday afternoon at the USTA Tennis Center in Queens to capture the title. Isabelle ’25 and Anika ’24 won their singles matches, but the Aviators brought the match to a 2-2 tie with two wins in the doubles matches. All eyes were on the third singles match as the tournament title hung in the balance. Eighth grader Georgie delivered with a comeback victory! The Owls earned the #1 seed going into the tournament, and defeated Berkeley Carroll in the semis last Wednesday to advance to the title match. The Owls finished the season as champion of both the regular season and the league tournament!
Click here to view more OWLS Sports Roundups. For the most up-to-date sports news, follow Friends Athletics at www.instagram.com/friendsathletics for weekly team and senior features!