Volume 11, Issue 5
DARNELL HEYWOOD LEADS NATIONAL COUNCIL

Darnell Heywood, the director of college counseling at Columbus Academy since 2008, recently attended her first Board of Trustees meeting for the College Board in New York City. Later this month, she will return to the Big Apple as the new chair of the Guidance and Admission Assembly Council at the College Board Forum, the preeminent annual gathering of K-12, higher education and college access professionals from all areas of expertise.
GOLF PROGRAM WINS EIGHTH STATE TITLE

Our golf program won its eighth team state title this past Saturday with a Division II record score of 596 (previous low was 617)! The Vikings' second-day score of 295 also broke the state tournament record for a single round that had been set by runner-up Chardon Notre Dame Cathedral Latin in Friday's opening round (297). The squad enjoyed a celebratory walk-through of our Lower School with the state trophy yesterday and will raise the state championship flag during next Monday's assembly.
SHAKA ARNOLD NAMED NEXT MIDDLE SCHOOL HEAD

Columbus Academy announced Shaka Arnold as its next Head of Middle School last week. Shaka's 16 years of independent school experience includes leadership roles at Pine Crest School in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Gilman School in Baltimore, Maryland, as well as a five-year public and community relations stint with the NFL's Baltimore Ravens.
FALL PLAY SLATED FOR REUNION WEEKEND

Columbus Academy Student Theatre will present its fall play at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 26, and Saturday, October 28. This will allow more alumni to attend a performance in conjunction with Reunion Weekend activities and not conflict with next Friday's final home football game. Told through the eyes of a teenager, "A Voice in the Dark: A Salem Story" is a thrilling and poignant tale from one of the darkest eras in American history. The cast includes Sidney Edson, Mira Bhasin, Julia Leet, Peter DiMaggio, Anna Shuff, Michael Hoffman, Taylor McGowan, Claire Budzik, Yas Salon, Jack Reifeis, Jay Whitney, Abby Jeffers, Sejal Jindal and Emily Munster. According to English teacher Beth Reifeis, this show about the Salem witch trials correlates well with the Upper School's curriculum. "This production will give us a visual layer to what we teach in our American Literature classes." 
ANNE HORTON EARNS 500TH CAREER WIN
 
Anne Horton, who began our field hockey program when Columbus Academy became coed in the early 1990s, earned her 500th career victory last week when her varsity squad defeated Lancaster 9-0. With two more wins since then, her career record now stands at 502-59-37. In her 27 seasons guiding the Vikings, she has compiled a 428-33-27 overall record with 10 state championships and five state runner-up teams as well as 21 district titles and Final Four appearances. During last Wednesday's postgame ceremony honoring her milestone, Head of School Melissa Soderberg read an official proclamation from Governor John Kasich recognizing Coach Horton as the winningest field hockey coach in the State of Ohio.
ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL VIKING RAMPAGE RUN

Thank you to course designer Ryan Yeoman '90 and all of the volunteers and participants in Saturday's second annual Viking Rampage Run and also to pro triathlete Meredith Keeran Kessler '96 for coming out to inspire our courageous young Vikes!  
ACADEMY HOSTING TASTE OF GAHANNA

Columbus Academy's dining hall will host the 20th Anniversary Taste of Gahanna on Thursday, October 19. This upscale community networking event, which is open to all, allows you to sample delicious specialty items from the area's top restaurants and catering firms. Additionally, the GACC is offering sponsorship opportunities that showcase your company's talents and services to the public. Please click on the link below for more information regarding the opportunities available to you and for ticket details.
CA CELEBRATES HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH

 
This past Sunday, Columbus Academy celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month with a special event hosted by our ¡HOLA! (Hispanic Outreach for Latino Awareness) parent group. In addition to a Latin American art exhibit, guests were treated to a presentation titled "La Cultura Cura: Latina(os) as Borderlanders" by Dr. William Calvo-Quirós, a professor in the American Culture department at the University of Michigan. "I was excited to see so many people from CA and the Central Ohio community who joined us for this event," said Dr. Beckett Broh, Academy's director of diversity and community life. "Everyone enjoyed the food, live music, art and Dr. Calvo-Quirós' presentation. His imagery of murals and other art that reflect creativity and resiliency were amazing! It was a great afternoon of celebrating, learning and connecting."
GIRLS LACROSSE ALL-AMERICAN & ALL-OHIO HONORS

Two players from last spring's Columbus Academy lacrosse team earned big-time postseason honors: Karina Walter '17 was named an Academic All-American in addition to Second Team All-Ohio, and then-sophomore Lexi Leader '19 was one of only four players from Central Ohio to make the Division 2 All-Ohio First Team!
ANNUAL BOOK FAIR OPENS OCTOBER 25TH

Academy's annual Book Fair will be returning from Wednesday, October 25, through Tuesday, October 31, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in our Dining Hall's Huntington Room. Anyone interested in volunteering can sign up at the link below, which can also be used to order books between October 20 and November 2. Also, the Viking Corner spiritwear store will be open after the Halloween parade on October 31, so parents can come shop at the book fair and the Viking Corner in one visit!
A SPECIAL TRIBUTE

An anonymous donor gave an incredibly generous and most unexpected gift of $30,000 to Columbus Academy during The Big Give last week in honor of CA parents Ann and Ron Boeckman (parents of Mike '18, Katie '16 and Will '10). The gift was one parent's way of saying "thank you" for the volunteer time and energy the Boeckmans have put into supporting Viking athletics, from Ron serving as co-chair of the Charlie David Dinner to both Ann and Ron doing whatever is needed for their children's teams. The donor hopes that this gift will encourage other parents to get involved in the life of the school and follow the lead the Boeckmans have shown as being "all in" for CA and giving of one's time in addition to treasure. Thank you to our anonymous donor, and thank you to Ann and Ron for your terrific service to the school! More details on The Big Give will be coming after results are shared by The Columbus Foundation in the coming weeks.
ARTS SCENE

Some exciting news to share about members of our band program! Academy senior Abhi Ramaswamy is in his fourth year with the Columbus Jazz Arts Group's Youth Jazz Program, where he plays solo trumpet. Fellow senior Sarah Morris is principle french horn of the Columbus Symphony Youth Orchestra. Seventh-graders Griffen Meyers and Arya Narayan are members of the trumpet section in the Capital Cadet Band, an honors ensemble run through Capital University's Conservatory of Music (CA's Susan O'Rourke is a woodwind coach with this group). And freshman Ethan Zochowski is a member of the Columbus Symphony Youth Cadet Orchestra's french horn section.
SERVICE LEARNING

Starting at the end of next week, our Parents' Association and Service Board will begin collecting clothes and food for Columbus Academy's Kids-4-Kids schoolwide community service project. We will be helping 32+ families in Central Ohio with donations of children's clothing, toys, books, bikes, blankets, canned food and more. Please click on the link below for more details, including how to volunteer, trick-or-treat for food on Halloween and fill specific wishes from families. Thank you for your help! If you have any questions, please contact Tricia Seline at [email protected] or 614-738-9992.
SPORTS REPORT

 
This past weekend was quite a successful one for Academy's fall sports teams! In addition to our golf state title (see above), Academy freshman Sydni Ratliff won the district singles title and will be joined at this weekend's OHSAA state tennis tournament by our district doubles championship tandem of Georgia Tuckerman and Himaja Reddy (photo courtesy of Frank DiRenna at ThisWeek Sports). Our boys cross country team won the MSL-Ohio title at London (watch for more cross country coverage on social media in the coming days). And our middle school girls soccer squad avenged its only loss of the season by beating Worthington Christian 1-0 on a first-half goal by Georgia Gross to claim the Central Ohio Middle School Soccer Championship!
Fall Sports Senior Nights
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