For decades, two schools stood across from one another, educating their students within each one’s enriched academic atmosphere, on either side of 246^th Street in the Bronx, N.Y. Nearly 40 years ago, in 1972, the two schools merged, uniting the 86-year-old-Barnard School for Boys with the 85-year-old Horace Mann School, and combining each school’s tradition of educational excellence into Horace Mann, a School whose strength is built upon the foundations of both powerful legacies.

            An arrangement of Barnard “Bric” yearbooks and Barnard School trophies greeted the guests on their way into the dining room, giving them a chance to pour through the pages and pick out faces of old friends and former teachers. Several alumni brought their own Brics, and tried to match the faces of those 17 and 18-year-old graduates with the alumni who had come to the reunion – all of whom appeared to have faired well in the face of the passage of time. A number of alumni brought their own books, and some sported Barnard pins or class rings. Still others wore purple ties or shirts to acknowledge the Barnard purple and white colors.

           

           

 

With literature, love, music and a lot of laughter members of the Horace Mann School community celebrated the life of their longtime friend and colleague Dean Randal Castleman in a memorial at the School on May 16, 2010. Castleman passed away on February 20, 2010 following an extended bout of pneumonia.

            Randal Castleman was a vital part of Horace Mann School since his arrival here in 1978 as Head Librarian. Over the years he also taught English and eventually chaired the Upper Division English department, served as Head of HM’s Summer School, and, in 1992, as Head of HM’s Upper Division. He also participated in the life of Horace Mann as a coach. Most recently he also held the position of Dean of Students, grades nine through twelve. In each of these positions he distinguished himself as a strict but deeply-caring educator whose love of and expertise in the English language and breadth of his knowledge of literature he enthusiastically shared with others.

            The sunny Sunday in May when Castleman’s family and friends gathered in the Gross Theater at Horace Mann to listen to “Randal Stories” before sharing even more at a yellow-lily bedecked reception on the lawn outside HM’s Mullady Hall which houses the deans’ offices, provided a picture of a man dedicated to getting the most out of life, while teaching others to do so as well. An image of Randal Castleman emerged as a true American hero, who loved baseball, cherished his wife Cornelia Locher Castleman and children Matthew ’04 and Laura ’08, as well as his extended family, enthusiastically observed every significant holiday on the calendar with close neighbors and friends, and raised his children under the influence of poetry. Born in California, and looking as if he did with his tall physique and laid-back walk, he and his two brothers all chose to become educators. Settling eventually in New York he combined his love of literature with his love of learning, becoming a librarian as well. One after another among those who spoke about Castleman described his encyclopedic knowledge of the HM library, or any library. If a student asked for help in finding a book for a research project, Randal had an encyclopedic knowledge at his fingertips. When a colleague asked for a good book to read, the same was the true. Randal Castleman’s love of the library was, no doubt, the reason he demanded such respect for it of his students, as alumni Alex Counts ’84 and teacher Dr. Deborah Kassel ’89 recalled, describing the zero-tolerance response their teacher had to students who abused their library privilege by talking or fooling around. Both alums also remembered the guidance their teacher gave them that they treasure and use in their work today – Counts in his writing as Executive Director of the Grameen Foundation, and Dr. Kassel as a member of the English faculty at Horace Mann.

            As a teacher of English Randal Castleman not only knew how to impart the how and why of grammatical construction, he celebrated its beauty and inspired others to do so as well. Longtime teaching colleagues, including Bernard O’Toole, took the occasion to read from some of Castleman’s favorite authors – James Joyce among them. Music of all kinds was another passion for Randal Castleman, particularly jazz, and his friend and English department colleague Harry Bauld did the Dean’s memory proud with a hauntingly beautiful rendition of “Over the Rainbow.” Other colleagues spoke of how the former coach introduced them to his own loves, like running cross country in Van Cortlandt Park. HM Upper Division Head Dr. David Schiller and physics teacher Dr. Jeffrey Weitz were among those who Castleman invited along on his runs through the park, and who recalled sweating to keep up with his long loping pace – yet hearing only encouragement from their friend. They were joined in their reflections by Dr. Larry Weiss, Head of School at Friends, and a former HM Upper Division Head. Dr. Weitz brought the house down with laughter when he told of phoning Randal one summer’s day and asking what his friend was doing. “I’m multi-tasking,” came the response. “Sitting and reading.”

            Tears touched the audience only toward the end of the ceremony, when they heard from Castleman’s wife Nili, who thanked the Horace Mann School community for making its life their family’s life, one that included enjoying all the musical and theatrical performances they attended here, to outings to the School’s John Dorr Nature Laboratory. She thanked everyone also for their caring kindness during Randal’s recent years of illness. Delores Busby, Randal’s “HM wife”, was particularly significant as she walked with him through HM’s halls when the Dean’s purposeful stride was slowed by sickness. Matthew Castelman ’04, an actor, turned to Shakespearean soliloquy to capture his father’s legacy. And Laura Castelman ’08 told of the hundreds of letters she has written to her father since his passing, reading one aloud. Her return to college in Oregon after weeks of absence around the time of her father’s death was met with questions by fellow students about where she had been. It was hard for her to respond that she had missed school because of the death of her father, she explained, because her sadness was no ordinary sadness, but rather an extraordinary sadness – for an extraordinary Dad.

            The Horace Mann School Class of 2010 echoed Laura’s summation of her father’s personal graciousness. Including him among the traditional “appreciations” in the annual Mannikin the editors wrote: “A genuinely caring man, Mr. Castleman is the reason so many Horace Mann alumni, faculty and current students have an interest in learning, reading and education….His legacy at Horace Mann will never be forgotten.” 

 

 

Dr. Simon Parisier ’53 is known as a “Hearing Hero” by hundreds of hearing impaired children and adults whose lives he has changed for the better. He is a pioneer developer of the cochlear implant – a device that effectively restores hearing to those able to benefit from its use. For hundreds of others with hearing impairments that preclude implants Dr. Parisier’s work as a surgeon, researcher and hearing advocate has enhanced their engagement with the hearing world.

            Dr. Parisier is also a Horace Mann School Distinguished Alumnus – the latest HM alumnus to be honored with the Alumni Association Award for Distinguished Achievement. The award was presented on November 10, 2009 at a dinner at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City, where Dr. Parisier was feted by family, colleagues, members of the Horace Mann School Alumni Association and HM administration, and by longtime friends from his HM Class of 1953. Active members of the Horace Mann School community, where Dr. Parisier’s wife Elaine Parisier, chaired the Parents Association, the Parisiers are the parents of three Horace Mann School graduates: David Parisier ’83, Nicole Benardete ’85, and Lauren Weiss ’87. They are also aunt and uncle to alumnus Charles Stam ’08 and current student Elisabeth Stam ’12 and the proud grandparents of six grandchildren.

            The Distinguished Alumnus Award is bestowed annually by the Horace Mann School Alumni Association and recognizes HM alumni who have distinguished themselves through their professional achievements. During the 52-year history of the award honorees have included Pulitzer Prize-winning author Robert Caro ’53 and Edward Koren ’53, Dr. Parisier’s classmates.

           

            Forty-eight years ago I graduated Boston University School of Medicine. During my residency at Mt. Sinai Hospital, Arthur Aufses Jr., the 1992 Horace Mann Distinguished Alumnus Award honoree, was an important mentor. At that time, antibiotics and the control of infectious diseases were the hot things.

The Fall 2009 issue of Horace Mann Magazine highlights the humor of Horace Mann School, and reflects on the history of students and faculty incorporating humor into their experiences at Horace Mann throughout the ages, and presenting information about alumni who have contributed and continue to contribute to the world of humor. The issue features an interview with “Curb Your Enthusiasm” co-executive producer and writer David Mandel ’88, whose previous credits include writing and producing numerous “Seinfeld” episodes. The magazine also includes guest columns on humor by cardiologist and healthy life-style adviser Dr. Seth Baum ’77, humor-writer Bill Shein ’85, and comedian and producer Page Hurwitz ’86. Horace Mann Magazine also covers news of the School today. You can read it all on NXTBook at http://bit.ly/2aHLYA. And, please don’t forget to read stories about interesting HM alumni on Alumni Interactive on this website. In this World Series season, check out Dr. Glenn Fleisig ’80, and expert on the biomechanics of pitching, who has been an advisor to World Series starting pitchers Cliff Lee and CC Sababthia!  

The outpouring of excitement at Horace Mann School’s Homecoming 2009 made downpours during the day only a minor inconvenience to HMers of all ages who took part in the festivities.

The day’s sports events were marked by a sad and solemn moment at the start of the football game. Before taking the field the players and the entire Horace Mann community paused to honor the memory of Jonathan Kleier ’01 who passed away in September 2009. Jon was a captain of the football team and a devoted Lions player in his days at Horace Mann and the team dedicated the Homecoming Day game in tribute to his spirit and the passion he showed for football, his friends, and his life at Horace Mann. Gathering his family members, former teammates and friends onto the center of the field the current Lion captains presented football helmets with Jon’s number 32 to his parents  Michele and Ian Kleier, and to his sisters, Samantha Kleier Forbes ’90 and Sabrina Kleier Morgenstern ’94.  Throughout the season team members had been wearing the number 32 on their uniforms. The day provided an opportunity for the HM community to share memories of their beloved brother, son, teammate, friend and former student.

 

Changing the World,

One Horace Mann-er at a Time

To some these are days of uncertainty. To others, these are days of challenge. Still others see this time in history as one of opportunity—a time to answer the questions of our day with innovation. This has always been true for members of the Horace Mann School community—for students who whose learning adventures here were profound, and for the alumni who went on to address the needs of society through their ideas and intellectual pursuit. It has been this way for the teachers who inspired these alumni, and continue to inspire today’s exceptional students. This issue of Horace Mann Magazine reflects on some of the great ideas HM’s alumni have pursued in recent decades, and new ones among younger alums. Their stories are fascinating; their work significant. All share in common their dedication to striving for and attaining a goal. We hope you enjoy reading about these Horace Mann-ers, and about recent news of the School.

Spring 2009 Horace Mann Magazine PDF

•                     Horace Mann Magazine Fall 2008