Sisters Explore Shared Experiences, Different Paths Forward

Ellis: My favorite classes were AP Biology with Leslie Pressel and a pharmacology elective with Margaret Cannady. They solidified my love of science and helped me to develop confidence by encouraging active participation and hands-on experiences. Ravenscroft taught me to think outside the box, how to confront challenges and persevere, and inspired me to pursue teaching. I’ve enjoyed educating patients, caregivers, students and residents throughout my career and have thought often of the dedication and enthusiasm of the fantastic teachers at Ravenscroft who taught me so much both inside and outside the classroom. A major highlight outside of the classroom was studying abroad in Spain with my classmates and Señor David Kates!

Tuttle: Ravenscroft has such a strong science curriculum, and each class I took influenced my choice of college major. Sustainability is a lot of problem solving — how can I make something better for the environment, at an affordable cost, with an equitable supply chain? In order to do that, it’s critical to understand how things work, and the science classes at Ravenscroft helped to lay that foundation. From the interactive labs in Susann Heckman’s chemistry class, to the dissections in Leslie Pressel’s AP Biology, to Zoe Welsh’s Biotech class, where we took a field trip to the National Institute of Health in Washington, D.C., each syllabus was so thoughtfully planned and enabled the students to pursue our curiosities.

Knight: Field hockey with Coach Norman was one of my favorite activities; I was fairly new to the sport, but she welcomed me and helped me quickly learn and improve. I also really enjoyed math classes with Charles Benoit and Spanish classes with Sandy Coats, David Kates and Steve Swaim. I enjoyed Spanish classes so much that I took my love of studying Spanish on to college, where I minored in it — and even went on job interviews conducted solely in Spanish!

Ellis: Having two younger sisters close in age while attending Ravenscroft was a blast! Lauren and I were both cheerleaders but didn’t overlap, as we are four years apart. We enjoyed practicing the same cheers when I came home from college during the holidays, though! I always enjoyed seeing Megan in the halls and watching her play volleyball. We all had and continue to have different interests, but that’s what makes our bond so strong.

Tuttle: Being in the middle, it was so comforting to have a sister ahead of me who had already gone through all of the high school experiences and could offer advice and also have a younger sister to pass that advice along to and help along the way. We each are quite different in our interests and hobbies, but with such a close-knit community at Ravenscroft, it was nice to know each other’s friends and their siblings; that helped to make us feel closer despite the two-year age gap and differing interests.

Knight: Although Katie had graduated by the time I was a freshman, I enjoyed having both of my sisters show me around campus and give advice on Upper School life. We’re all two years apart, and I have always looked to my sisters for ideas and am thankful they paved the way for me. Megan and I enjoyed seeing each other in the halls and supporting each other during our own sporting events; I followed in Katie’s footsteps to become a cheerleader and also played field hockey, while Megan was a volleyball star.

Ellis: I will always remember her kindness. We were new to Ravenscroft beginning in my ninth-grade year, but Doreen was welcoming of our family, and it wasn’t long before Ravenscroft felt like home. I will cherish the friendships and connections made during my time at Ravenscroft, and I believe Doreen played a large role in that. She fostered a positive environment where I felt comfortable learning and growing.

Tuttle: Like Mrs. Kelly, I went on to play Division I college volleyball, and as a young athlete it was so inspiring to have someone with a similar college trajectory as our Head of School. She has always been such a strong female leader who led with empathy and joy and embodied so many of the qualities that I aspire to today. Congratulations on 21 years!

Knight: Mrs. Kelly reminded us as students that we are all leaders, whether that’s with a formal leadership position or not.

While I was an Upper School student, I worked summers as a counselor at Camp Ravens Nest and, after graduating, at Camp Hollymont for Girls in Asheville, where I was also a camper as a child. Although it felt like I didn’t have much experience as a counselor, I was able to remember that the young campers would look up to me as a role model and that our words and actions mattered. Even as a sophomore, I would lead prospective students around campus for a day, where they would shadow me in my classes. It wasn’t a formal leadership role, but it was my job to guide the new students and lend a hand to make them feel welcome at Ravenscroft.

Mrs. Kelly showed us that no matter where we are in school or work, we have the ability to be a leader.