The Miami Valley School enrolled five new legacy families in the 2012-2013 academic year realizing a total of thirty children of alumni now part of the student body. Legacy enrollment has increased by over 200% in just two years since 2011 with 7% of current Miami Valley School families now being alumni. This is up from 2% just three years ago in the 2010-2011 academic year.

 

The new legacy children are Nikhil Buerk ’27, son of Raddha Reddy-Buerk ’90 and her husband Bruce, Max Holt ’25, son of Jon Holt ’89 and his wife Emily, Molly Van Kirk ‘25, granddaughter of Shelly Spears-Van Kirk ’83, Joel Wydman ’19, son of Chris Wydman ’87 and his wife Becky, and MC McGuire ’16, son of Mark McGuire ’86 and his wife Felicia. The decade of the 1980s is most heavily represented with children of seventeen alumni from that period in the school’s history.

“The rise in legacy admissions is an indicator of the on-going confidence that the local alumni have in the school,” said new Director of Annual Giving and Alumni Relations Nick Raines. “These alumni demonstrate tremendous service to the school through their time and talents, and we are proud to provide a new and unique journey for their children.” Raines will continue the tradition of active work with alumni as established by former director of development Eric McGrane and current director of development Colin Dunnigan.

Alumni Council President Dave Montgomery ’90 indicated that together, the council and offices of development and admissions have developed initiatives designed to increase legacy enrollment. ”One of the first charges given to the Council was to facilitate reengaging alumni with MVS and vice versa, and the Legacy Scholarship has proven to be a wonderful vehicle for such purposes. It has allowed many local alumni to ensure a similar exemplary educational experience for their own children, and I’ve personally  heard from many alumni who find being able to share the ‘MVS Experience’ with their children, to be a surprisingly emotional and positive undertaking.”

“For the alumni, to experience some of the school’s traditions through their children’s eyes, seeing familiar faces and in certain instances having their children share the same wonderful teachers, has reenergized them in their support of the school,” said Montgomery. “The diverse families and students, (past, present and future) who make up the MVS community, individually and collectively, lend themselves to the core strength of the institution and MVS exists on the shoulders of those who have embraced its mission and experiences. The legacy admissions initiatives support this dynamic and are truly a win-win.”

The current roster of legacy families is below:

• Jon Freeman ’86 (Heidi) – fourth grader Julia


Heidi Breidenbach-Freeman, center (1980)

• Heidi Breidenbach-Freeman ’88 (Jon) – fourth grader Julia
• Jeff Green ’79 (Esther) – tenth grader Adam
• Todd Harlan ’82 (Lisa) – eleventh grader Grant, eighth grader Chase
• Doug Jenks ’87 (Erin) – eighth grader Sam, fifth grader Henry
• Nina Lemus-Joshi ’85 (Ranulfo) – son Andreas in early childhood
• Serena Walther-Leventhal ’87 (Eric) – third grader Lucy, third grader Sam
• Katie Nutter-McCallum ’96 (Sean) – first grader Josie
• Dudley Mead ’76 (Monique) – seventh grader Elsie, sixth grader Angie


Kathy Setzer-Reid, right (1980)

• Jennifer Rhee-Moore ’89 – fourth grader Jake
• Raya Tabrah-Morehart ’86 – eleventh grader Rheanna, seventh grader Colton
• Katherine Setzer-Reid ’88 (Chuck) – second grader Addie, first grader Henry
• Jon Paul Rion ’88 (Megan) – ninth grader Ellary
• Danielle Rastetter-Knick ’90 (Steven) – seventh grader Tamir
• Chimene Mayne-Ross ’87 (Matt) – tenth grader Calvin, seventh grader Samantha, seventh grader Sophia
• Lisa Elliot-Shoup ’88 (Gary) – first grader Caroline
• Lalani Winston-Spain ’88 – tenth grader Annaleah
• Sam Staley ’80 (Susan) – eleventh grader Evan
• Sam Winston ’94 (Chanel) – second grader Nate