| | Dear Bancroft Friends:  I spent a portion of spring break in California, meeting with alumni and learning about their lives during and after Bancroft. One alum, Quanuquanei “Q” Karmue ’01, has an incredible life story that embodies so much of what we hope to accomplish at Bancroft. In a nutshell, Q’s family escaped from war-torn Liberia in the 1990s, Q attended Bancroft as a Worcester City Scholar, went on to find success as an artist, and eventually launched a non-profit organization to help Liberian children orphaned by war and disease. (Read more about Q in the latest Bancroft Bulletin alumni magazine.)
Meeting Q got me thinking about the many ways in which our students develop their understanding of the wider world and their role within it. Sometimes, it’s through travel abroad — such as the students who spent spring break in England, France, China, and Spain. But more often, it’s our local relationships that strengthen students’ worldview.
Our students are actively involved in service projects throughout their years at Bancroft. From mitten drives in LS to Community Service Days in MS, to the Senior Co-Op, which gives each graduating senior an immersive, real-world work experience in one of 20+ local non-profit businesses and agencies ranging from cancer laboratories to nature preserves to law offices. Our connections with UMass enable US science students to spend time in the Medical School research laboratories, as several did over spring break. Our sixth graders traverse the Blackstone Valley, visiting museums, touring historic sites, walking along the banks of the canal, experiencing for themselves how our region’s history, culture, and ecology gave birth to America’s Industrial Revolution.
As a good neighbor, Bancroft teaches by example. We have a strong relationship with the Greendale YMCA and the City of Worcester, partnering with them to maintain Shore Park. There’s the Worcester City Scholars Program, the Worcester Partnership with Elm Park Community School, the US CARE and Horizons programs for children with special needs, and our support of annual events such as the Scleroderma Walk, to name a few.
Bancroft students come from many different communities and backgrounds. Part of our role as educators is to open their eyes and nudge them out of their comfort zones, introducing them to people and circumstances that differ from what they know. Our local connections expand students’ horizons, broaden their thinking, and reveal new perspectives on their lives. We want to continue to partner with organizations and individuals locally that will support our students and empower their ability to have an impact on their community and the world. We are already doing a lot, but we want to do more.
Best,
Trey Cassidy
Head of School
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| In This Issue: Spring Break Education in the Labs of UMass Medical School
Bancroft Fund Class Participation
Junior Irvi S. Wins National Scholastic Art Award Gold Medal
Spring Break Trips Abroad 11 Students Quality for State Science Fair at MIT
Four Student Ambassadors to attend the VEX Robotics World Championship 2015 Alumni Award Recipients
Sophomores Organize Schleroderma Walk for May 3 Bancroft School Clothing & Yard Sale, April 9–11, 2015 Worcester Partnership's 11th Annual Golf Classic
Spring Fever on Campus
Upcoming Important Dates
Bancroft Fund March Madness Raised $22,000 — Thanks for your support! 
And the winner of March Madness participation challenge is... ERIC VIROSTEK, dad of Jennah in Grade 8! Eric, please stop by the Advancement Office at your convenience to pick up your Family Spirit Pack (pictured above).
Thank you to everyone who joined us for a little fun and showed support for The Bancroft Fund. The nearly $22,000 you helped us raise in the month of March puts us even closer to our Bancroft Fund goal of $400,000 – we're 79% of the way there, to be exact! Let's keep it going! The 2014-2015 Bancroft Fund ends on June 30. Every gift counts. Please give today!
Student Gallery
                   
| | Spring Break Education in the Labs of UMass Medical School
 Instead of sleeping late and watching Netflix, several US science students spent the first week of spring break working with mentors in the research laboratories at UMass Medical School and lunching with clinical researchers, thanks to Bancroft alum Nate Erskine ’06, an MD/PhD candidate at UMass. On a related note, the following week, nine students took a Bancroft minicourse titled “Biotechnology in Medicine,” which was taught by graduate and post-doctoral students from UMass. The course included lab work, research, a tour of the UMass labs, and a final presentation of findings to peers in the course. Brian Kondek, head of Bancroft’s science department, said, “This kind of real-world exposure can ignite a passion that steers a student toward a career in the sciences. We’re fortunate to have such amazing resources close at hand.”
Parents: Check Your Class Participation in the Bancroft Fund! The Bancroft Fund touches every part of your chidren's experience, and your gifts make a tremendous difference. Haven’t gotten around to it yet? It’s not too late! The 2014-2015 Bancroft Fund is open until June 30, 2015. Give today! Here's how the classes compare in parent participation:
Junior Irvi S. Wins National Scholastic Art Award Gold Medal
 Bancroft student-artist Irvi S. has earned a National Gold Medal at the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. Irvi’s visually arresting self-portrait, "Prismatic Pop," took top honors in the Drawing and Illustration category. Art Department Head Robert Dec, who has taught Irvi in Intermediate and Advanced Studio Art, calls Irvi “probably the most able high school student I have worked with in my 40-year teaching career.” Irvi's work will be featured in the National Scholastic Art Exhibition in New York City from June 10-12. The awards ceremony will take place at Carnegie Hall on June 11, and the Empire State Building will be lit in gold to honor Scholastic Art & Writing Awards National Medalists! Read more about it in this Telegram article.
Spring Break Trips Abroad Many Bancroft students and teachers traveled abroad during spring break, on Bancroft-led trips to China, England & France, and Spain.
MANDARIN TRIP TO CHINA:  Fourteen MS & US Mandarin language students traveled with MS Head of School Trevor O'Driscoll, Mandarin teachers Fanfei Kong and Jun Chen, and parent JP Onffroy to China. Highlights included hiking the Great Wall, getting lost in the vast Forbidden City, and seeing 2,200-year-old Terracotta Warriors, an expansive army of clay discovered in the 1970s! Read more in Mr. O’Driscoll’s blog. L ATIN TRIP TO ENGLAND & FRANCE: Drinking from a hot spring that the ancient Romans drank from. Holding a 500,000 year-old hand axe. Walking in the water channel of a Roman aqueduct — those are a few of the experiences shared by 12 US Latin students and teachers Robin Silverman and Karen Fuller on their spring break trip studying relics of the Roman Empire in England and France. STUDENT EXCHANGE TRIP TO SPAIN:  In the second half of our student exchange with Spain, nine Bancroft US Spanish students, along with teachers Nadine Telenson and David Connor, visited the Spanish students who had come to Bancroft in February. Our group first toured the famous Andalusian towns of Granada and Cordoba, then spent a week with their Spanish families in Málaga. “All was fantástico,” reports Ms. Telenson!
11 Students Qualify for State Science Fair at MIT
 Congratulations to all of the students who took part in Worcester Regional Science & Engineering High School Fair at WPI on March 13th! Seven of Bancroft's projects won awards and qualified for the Massachusetts State Science & Engineering Fair at MIT in May. Participants were:
Billy D. (2nd Place); Maggie S. & Vjola J. (3rd Place); Rachel W. & Katie E. (3rd Place); Sydney V. (3rd Place); Collin S. (4th Place); Mike L (4th Place); Sheel S. & Nikolay T. (Honorable Mention), and George D. To put it in perspective, there were 168 students representing 23 schools in Central Massachusetts, and only 42 awards were given out. Well done, all!
Four to Serve as Ambassadors at the VEX Robotics World Championship
 This year four Bancroft VEX robotics students — Matt C., Thomas C., Anqi S. and Alex M. — will represent their teams as Student Ambassadors at the 2015 VEX World Championship April 14–18 in Louisville, KY. The Robotics Education & Competition (REC) Foundation invites teams who have demonstrated excellence and exemplary student achievement during the VEX competition season to nominate their peers to act as Student Ambassadors. The goal of this Program is to develop a global cadre of exemplary students who participate in VEX Robotics programs, and are intent on expanding their technical robotics experiences to include leadership, community service, and networking with peers and adults engaged in robotics and STEM studies, programs, and careers. The Ambassador role includes greeting and guiding corporate and academic special guests, working with speakers and presenters, and welcoming and networking with rookie teams and teams from outside the U.S. At the 2014 World Championships, the Bancroft Robodogs were represented by Jessica Chang, who will be returning as an Alumni Ambassador this year. “This is a huge honor for our school and our students,” commented Elisa Heinricher, the team coach. “Very few teams are afforded this honor at Worlds. It is wonderful for our students to get this level of recognition for all of their hard work during the year."
2015 Alumni Award Recipients  Bancroft is pleased to announce the Alumni Award recipients for 2015.
Celestia Higano ’70: Esther Forbes Award for Distinguished Professional Achievement
Neil D. McDonough: Milton P. Higgins Award for Service to Bancroft School
Meredith Brooks ’00: Young Alumni Achievement Award
Maureen Gray: Robert Stoddard Award for Outstanding Community Service
The awards will be presented at the 33rd Annual Reunion & Award Dinner at the Beechwood Hotel on May 2, 2015, as the culmination of Reunion activities throughout May 1 & 2. Read about these distinguished recipients.
Sophomores Organize Scleroderma Walk for Sunday, May 3  The 13th Annual Worcester Stepping Out for Scleroderma Walk will take place at Bancroft School on Sunday, May 3rd. Founded by Bancroft student Eric Magnuson '03 in honor of his mother Debbie (former Bancroft receptionist) who has scleroderma, the Worcester Scleroderma Walk has become an annual tradition at Bancroft, organized by the sophomore class to raise awareness and research funds. Scleroderma is a chronic, progressive, autoimmune disease for which there is currently no cure. The walk is a great opportunity to connect with old friends, meet new friends, and support all those affected by scleroderma.
When: May 3, 2015
Where: Bancroft School, 110 Shore Drive, Worcester, MA
Registration Time: 10:00 a.m.
Walk Time: 12:00 p.m.
Learn More or Register.
Don't Miss the Bancroft Community Yard Sale — Happening NOW!
 The newest PFA spring event is taking place NOW — the giant Bancroft School Clothing & Yard Sale!
PFA volunteers have been collecting, sorting, and pricing donated items for weeks. The sale will be open to the greater Worcester Community. Please come, and spread the word to everyone you know! You'll find gently-worn clothing for the whole family, household goods, books, sporting goods, and so much more at super-low prices. Net proceeds benefit the Bancroft School Parent Faculty Association. Unsold items will go to charity. Click HERE for more information and for a link to the Facebook page to preview items.
Dates & Times:
Thursday, April 9, 4 – 8 pm
Friday, April 10, 8am – 8pm
Saturday, April 11, 8am – 2pm
Location:
Bancroft School’s Higgins Building
100 Shore Drive (across from Greendale YMCA)
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Worcester Partnership's 11th Annual Golf Classic
 Director Charlie Aleksiewicz will host the 11th Annual Worcester Partnership Golf Tournament at The Haven Country Club on Monday, May 18th. This year is extra special! The first Worcester Partnership students began in 2003. Now seniors in high school, they are hearing from colleges and making plans for the future. Your support through the years has helped make their successful academic journey a reality. Your participation in the Golf Outing will continue this record of success. In addition to 18 holes of golf, you’ll enjoy a luncheon, hors d’oeuvres, auction, and raffle. It’s a wonderful way to support a very worthy cause. Non-golfers are encouraged to join the fun, too. Download the Registration Form to learn more about the tournament and sponsorship opportunities.
Spring Fever on Campus It’s spring fever. That is what the name of it is. And when you’ve got it, you want — oh, you don’t quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so! ~ Mark Twain
 Mr. O'Driscoll captured this spring fever moment with his iPhone last week as MS students enjoyed basking in the sun on a rare warm day. The huge piles of snow on campus are finally meltng, making way for renewed growth on campus.
5th Grade Play—Coming Soon!
April 30 & May 1, 2015 Thursday, April 30 at 2pm (MS & LS)
Thursday, April 30 at 7pm (General Public)
Friday, May 1 at 11:45am (US)
Learn More
Electronics Recyling Drop-Off Event
Indie Cycle is coming to campus for a free Electronic Recycling Drop-Off Day. This is your chance to safely get rid of anything with a wire!
Click HERE for a complete list of acceptable items.
Thursday, April 22, 2015
7:30–10:30 am &
2:00–5:00 pm
Bancroft School Higgins Bldg.
100 Shore Drive, Worcester
Upcoming Important Dates:
Celebration of New Parents—Thursday, April 9, 7pm–8:30pm MS Parent Connection: Looking at MS Homework Survey Data—Wednesday, April 15, 8:00am
All-School Panoramic Photo—Monday, April 27, 9:15–9:45am
Patriot's Day, School Closed—Monday, April 20, 2015
PFA Faculty/Staff Appreciation Luncheon—Wednesday, April 22, 11:15am–1:15pm Alumni Reunion Weekend—Friday & Saturday, May 1–2
Scleroderma Walk—Sunday, May 3 PFA Spring Social—Friday, May 8, 7:30–9pm
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