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William Russ Elgin, who served for three decades as Senior Master and as a faithful and dedicated faculty member for 39 years, passed away on July 2, 2024, in Las Cruces, New Mexico, according to his sister, Lynn Brown-Quick. Known to his students as “Señor Elgin,” Russ had a deep passion for the Spanish language and culture, and he dedicated himself to inspiring others to become lifelong learners. 
 

The Frederick Gunn School has named Benjamin Kang of Middletown, Delaware, a distinguished educator with experience in shaping inclusive school communities as the new Dean of Belonging and Inclusion. 

The Gunn community is saddened by the news that Trustee Emeritus Steve Bent ’59, who served on the Board of Trustees for nearly 20 years and was a loyal friend and supporter of the school, died in a tragic accident on July 11. 
 

Members of the Class of 2024 were officially inducted into the Gunn Alumni Association, and received their seniors letters, class mugs, and Red and Gray yearbooks, at a dinner and pinning ceremony held May 22 in the Norman R. Lemcke Community Room of the Thomas S. Perakos Arts and Community Center. Former Head Prefect Andrew Byrne King ’20 was the evening’s guest speaker. He will graduate this summer with a degree in international relations from the University of St Andrews in Scotland. 
 

The Frederick Gunn School celebrated the Class of 2024 for its strong sense of community, growth, and Highlander pride at its 174th Commencement Exercises, held May 26, This year, the school graduated 93 students, representing 17 states and seven countries. In his Commencement Address, Trustee Damien Marshall P’24 encouraged the graduates to think boldly, continue to be people who are always learning, and be a force for good. “The Core Values of the school are exactly the skills and values that are going to serve you throughout your life,” Marshall said.
 

On May 21, the Gunn community gathered at the First Congregational Church of Washington for Baccalaureate, a solemn service that began a weeklong celebration of and collective reflection on the Class of 2024. Athletic Director Mike Marich P’23 ’24 delivered this year’s Baccalaureate Address and helped to compose the service, selecting readings from Wallace Stegner’s 1987 novel, Crossing to Safety, and the Bible, including The Beatitudes and Salt and Light from the Book of Matthew, as well as the poem, “Dreams” by Langston Hughes. 
 

Outstanding performances in the Gunn Athletics program during the 2023-24 school year were celebrated along with this year’s team captains and three-sport athletes at the annual Athletic Banquet, held May 22, 2024 in the Thomas S. Perakos Arts and Community Center. Among this year’s highlights: Boys Varsity Lacrosse won the Colonial Cup Tournament Final on May 18, beating Pomfret 13-4 at home, and scoring the final point to win the Gunn-Canterbury Cup. 
 

Congratulations to the cast and designers of the fall play, Silent Sky, and the winter musical, Urinetown, who together have been nominated for a total of 16 Halo Awards, including eight individual best performance nominations and Best Contemporary Play.

On Sunday, May 26, 2024, The Frederick Gunn School will celebrate the Class of 2024 at its 174th Commencement Exercises. This year, 93 students, representing 17 states and seven countries, will graduate from the school, founded in 1850 by Frederick Gunn, a pioneering educator, courageous abolitionist, and rugged outdoorsman, who is recognized by the American Camp Association as the founder of recreational camping in the United States.
 

The Frederick Gunn School Music Program will present a spring concert featuring String Ensemble, Vocal Ensemble, Jazz Band and special guests under the direction of Ron Castonguay P’27, Director of the Arts and Music Director. Family, friends and the community are invited to attend the performance one night only, Wednesday, May 15, at 7 p.m., in the Tisch Family Auditorium of the Thomas S. Perakos Arts and Community Center. The concert is free with general admission seating. No registration is required. 
 

The Frederick Gunn School will host the 64th annual Founders Day Regatta at Lake Waramaug on Sunday, May 5, 2024. Morning heats will begin at 9 a.m., with the last morning race at 11:15 a.m. Racing will resume at 12:15 p.m. following lunch, and will conclude by 2 p.m. Alumni, current students, families, faculty, and friends are welcome to cheer on Gunn Rowing at the finish line, located at Lake Waramaug State Park in Kent. 
 

On April 27, The Frederick Gunn School community celebrated Lizzie and Jonathan Tisch ’72 and 13 other generous donors, many of whom were in attendance, at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for The Lizzie & Jonathan Tisch Center for Innovation & Active Citizenship. Students and faculty were joined on the Quad for the celebration by Trustees, alumni, parents, and friends of the school, to acknowledge and thank all those who helped to make this transformational new building possible. 
 

The Frederick Gunn School Music Program will present, “A Chamber Concert: An Eclectic Mix of Music Solos & Small Ensembles,” at 7 p.m. on April 28 at St. John’s Episcopal Church, 78 Green Hill Road, Washington. Admission is free.
 

A retrospective exhibition, "Cleve Gray: Towards an Art of Hope," opened April 10 in the Perakos Family Cares Art Gallery at The Frederick Gunn School, featuring works by American Abstract Expressionist painter Cleve Gray.

An opening reception will be held on Thursday, April 25, from 5:30-7:30 p.m. in the gallery, which is located in the Thomas S. Perakos Arts and Community Center on campus. The gallery is open to the public free of charge, Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Parking is available in the Upper Parking Lot off Kirby Road, with a limited number of accessible parking spaces outside the Thomas S. Perakos Arts and Community Center. Please see the Campus Map for details.
 

U.S. Navy Commander Adam Farber ’00, who trained and served as an instructor in the U.S. Navy Fighter Weapon School (TOPGUN), returned to campus March 22 as part of the school’s 2023-24 Speaker Series and shared with students and faculty his “fighter rules to live by.”

A native of New Jersey, Farber’s dream from a young age was to fly an F-14 Tomcat, the supersonic, twin-engine fighter aircraft featured in the 1986 film, “Top Gun.” He didn’t get into the U.S. Naval Academy on his first try, and at the age of 18, enrolled at The Frederick Gunn School for a postgraduate year.
 

Three students from the Gunn Music Program will perform at the Connecticut Music Educators Association’s All-State Music Festival being held this weekend, April 4-6, at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford. The students were selected by audition after qualifying for the CMEA Northern Region Festival in February. 
 

The Frederick Gunn School student group Hearts for Action is supporting an American Red Cross Blood Drive on April 14, 2024, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Thomas S. Perakos Arts and Community Center on campus. Qualified students, faculty, parents, and community members are all invited and encouraged to participate in this annual event, honoring the late Margaret P. Addicks for her 45 years of service to the school and the Town of Washington. Walk-ins are welcome but appointments are strongly encouraged. Please use the link below to schedule an appointment online. 
 

Gunn will face #1 seed The Rivers School in the 2024 NEPSAC Boys Ice Hockey Tournament Semifinals this Saturday, March 2, at 2 p.m. at The Rivers School in Weston, Massachusetts.

To catch the Highlanders in action, view the Live Stream here.

The winners of Saturday's semifinal matchups will advance to the New England Championship Finals, which will be played on Sunday, March 3, at noon at Harvard University.