CA Magazine Stories
A Therapist Finds Her Niche in Nature
Outdoors, CarmenLeah Ascencio ’01 is helping people embrace themselves. Though drawing emotional sustenance from nature wasn’t part of her own upbringing, she now specializes in ecotherapy.
Leader, Mentor, Advocate
Trelane Clark ’92, P’22 knew from the age of 14 that she wanted to be a principal. Now this alumna holds that role at Hooks Elementary School in Chelsea, Mass., and she is passionate about pursuing equity for students, teachers, and families.
CA Presents “Baltimore”
CA’s winter 2021 mainstage production, Baltimore, was presented virtually on May 22 and 23. Written after the 2014 shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., and inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, the play tackles a racist incident on a predominantly white college campus and the 12 hours that follow. Playwright Kirsten Greenidge worked with the cast during rehearsals and took part in a pre-show discussion.
Finding the New Normal
This year, CA’s mascot, the chameleon, feels more appropriate than ever for a school that values adaptability. In this photo essay, we share the changes our academics and student life underwent throughout this year of shifting COVID-19 precautions, along with views of our campus and students and words from two members of our senior class.
I Am CA: Dat Le ’06
Dat Le ’06 co-chairs the Concord Academy Young Alumnae/i Community (CAYAC) Committee to stay connected with his classmates and the school, and to help foster that connection for others.
2021 Davidson Lecturer Helen Suh ’81 Speaks Virtually at CA
During her 2021 Davidson Lecture on April 14, Helen Suh ’21 urged CA students to explore widely. The environmental epidemiologist discussed her research on air pollution and how she has responded to the pandemic in her work.
Fond Farewell
We say goodbye to faculty and staff who have served CA for more than 20 years: Deborah Gray, Amy Spencer P’13, Abby Laber P’16, Diana Thompson, and Eve Fraser-Corp.
2021 Centennial Hall Fellow Mallika Chopra ’89 Grounds the CA Community in Living with Intention
CA’s 2021 Centennial Hall Fellow, entrepreneur, author, and public speaker Mallika Chopra ’89, spoke about her personal journey and her experience teaching meditation and speaking about living with intention, balance, and purpose. As part of the Centennial Hall Fellow series, she shared a brief meditative practice — a simple yet powerful tool for charting a course according to our deepest desires and values.
2021 MLK Day Program Asks the CA Community to Imagine a Future of Black Liberation
The 2021 MLK Day program featured a panel discussion with local BIPOC community activists, several workshops — including one by CA alumna Daysha Veronica ’10 — and a Q&A and keynote reading by celebrated poet Danez Smith. The CA community was asked to focus through a specific lens: imagining a liberated future that uplifts and centers Black people, communities, and culture.
CA Environmental Symposium Features Sunrise Movement’s Audrey Lin ’19
Advocacy was the topic of this year’s Environmental Symposium, a one-semester evening course open to all Concord Academy Students. The final speaker in the three-part series was Audrey Lin ’19, who walked students through the advocacy approach of the Sunrise Movement, organized by young people to stop climate change and create millions of good-paying jobs in the process.