CARSON LONG FAMILY NEWSLETTER

ISSUE #04, DECEMBER 2013

Dear Parents and Friends: Can it be that the Thanksgiving Break is over already with the holiday season just around the corner? In truth it seems as though my wife Mary Anne and I only just arrived on campus and unpacked, although if the truth were known, I have only just finished hanging up the final paintings at home in time for a faculty potluck supper! The simple reality of the matter is that life at Carson Long moves along at an exhilarating pace, and you dare not close your eyes for more than a few seconds or risk missing something of utmost importance. This leads to a second fundamental truth, and perhaps one of far more significance than simple time management: the irrefuta-ble fact that so varied are the operating demands of an independent boarding school that no one person can alone control or shape the destiny of the academy.

President’s Message: Best Wishes and Happy Holidays! Carson Long Military Academy is very much a team effort, and we are blessed with a dedicated faculty who go above and beyond the call of duty each and every day (and often at night) in order to ensure that the needs of the cadets are met fully in the dormitories, in the classrooms, and on the athletic fields. Administrators labor long hours to guarantee that the academy is pop-ulated, staffed, and resources deployed suffi-cient to achieve the school mission. A tre-mendous debt of gratitude is owed daily to the small maintenance team of Mr. Bob Stehman and Mr. Bruce Miller, who together work miracles to keep every aspect of the school plant fully operational. In the most literal sense, Bob and Bruce are indispensible and responsible for the school staying open! Nor should Chef Joe and the Flik catering team be forgotten as they prepare freshly made delicacies each breakfast, lunch and dinner. Quite simply, we are a family who daily depend upon each other in order for the full spectrum of operations to work and progress forward.

Moreover, and like any other family, we recognize that we are not perfect. Professionally, we are committed to continually reviewing our policies and procedures in order to improve with a maxim that this year should be better than last and next year should be better still. In this life-changing work, we all deeply appreciate the support of the parent body and look forward to always working together in order to support your son’s education to the very best of our ability in a safe environment. It is truly a great honor to serve as the President of Carson Long Military Academy with such dedicated colleagues at my side. On behalf of the entire faculty and staff, I’d like to wish you all a very happy holiday season and a prosperous new year.

David Pearson, President & CEO

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(L-R) Parents Association Leaders Michelle Yourth, Amanda Durkin, Lisa White, & Rachel Kelly

PARENTS ASSOCIATION

MEETING DATES The Carson Long Parents Association holds a monthly conference call, usually the third Wednesday of the month, to discuss how the Association can help fulfill its mission to support student activities and provide a “soft touch” for cadets at the Academy. Moving forward, the conference calls will be held using the Go To Meeting virtual platform. This platform will allow us to share documents, agendas, and other items, as well as to call into the meeting using a regular phone connection or VOIP. The contact information for all Parents Association calls will be provided in advance of each meeting.

December 2013: Wednesday, December 18, 2013 January 2014: Wednesday, January 22, 2014

February 2014: Wednesday, February 19, 2014 March 2014: Wednesday, March 12, 2014

April 2014: Wednesday, April 23, 2014 May 2014: Wednesday, May 21, 2014 June 2014: Wednesday, June 18, 2014 July 2014: Wednesday, July 23, 2014

August 2014: Wednesday, August 20, 2014

CARSON LONG ATHLETICS & ACTIVITIES For current information on Carson Long Athletics & Activities, please check out the website, www.carsonlong.org. Click on “About Us,” and the bottom option on the

drop-down menu is “calendar.” If it’s a typical activity-packed day, click on “agenda” and you’ll see a detailed listing of all the day’s events.

As the holidays approach, we would like to remind parents to be sure to finalize cadet travel plans. The round-trip cost is $150.00 and can be deducted from the cadet’s incidental account. Carson Long will provide the necessary bus transportation for train departure for and Christmas break. Train Departure Schedule Train 666 on Saturday, December 21, 2013 Departs Harrisburg, PA at 11:20 a.m. Arrives in Philadelphia, PA at 1:05 p.m. Arrives in New York, Penn Station, at 2:58 p.m. Train Return Schedule Train 667 on Sunday, January 5, 2014 Departs New York, Penn Station, at 3:13 p.m. Departs Philadelphia, PA at 4:55 p.m. Arrives in Harrisburg, PA at 6:42 p.m. *Other travel arrangements must be coordinated through LTC Mark Sommerville, EM: mark.sommerville@carsonlong.org.

CHRISTMAS TRAVEL

ARRANGEMENTS

3 The Carson Long Mil-

itary Academy Parents Association organized a VERY

successful raffle fund raiser for the Fall

2013 Family Weekend. Some of

the donated items are shown in the photo, right, taken in the

Museum Room of the Maples.

CLMAPA NOVEMBER 2013 MEETING MINUTES The November CLMA Parents Association meeting was called to order at 7:33 p.m. on Thursday, November 21, 2013. In October, at the Parents Association meeting in the Maples, there was a motion passed to move to an online meeting platform for the Parents Association meetings. As such, a subscription to GoToMeeting was purchased by CLMA and the Parents Association. As is often the case, there were technical difficulties with LT Pray’s computer microphone, which resulted in the meeting being moved to the old conference call number until the bugs can be worked out of using the new technology. Attendees: 1. Ralph Estep 2. Barbara McGeoghean 3. Lisa White 4. Karen Ryan 5. Kim Blouin 6. Jessie White 7. Randi Hertzman 8. Robert Wood 9. Diane Wszolek 10. Julie Coughlin 11. Abu Koroma 12. LT Pray Agenda Family Weekend ReCap & Review Although covered in the November Parents Newsletter, the floor was opened for comments about Fall Family Weekend 2013. For the most part, the comments were positive, especially given that parents could eat with their sons in the dining hall, and that the event was actually a “weekend,” with two days of activities, as opposed to coming on campus for only a couple hours on Saturday morning.

The largest area of opportunity for CLMA in the future will be holding the Parents Association meeting earlier in the evening, as the meeting in October didn’t begin until 8:15 pm and concluded around 10:00 pm. The suggestion was made to move the College Financial Aid presentation to Saturday morning/afternoon to alleviate the amount of time for scheduled events on Friday evening. Family Weekend Raffle Results Fundraising at Fall Family weekend was a tremendous success, as the Parents Association brought in much more money in one weekend than in the previous year from raffle fundraising. LT Pray thanked all parents for contributing to the raffle, and reported that there are still gift cards available for future raffles or other CLMAPA events. Thanksgiving Break 2013 Information Thanksgiving Break begins on Saturday, November 23, and ends on Monday, December 2. The break ends on Monday, not Sunday, because of the busy travel that occurs on the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Parents were reminded that students are not permitted to stay on CLMA campus during the break, nor may they return to CLMA PRIOR to Monday, December 2, after 12:00 noon. Thanksgiving Break 2013 Train Information The Thanksgiving Train departs Harrisburg at 11:30 a.m. and arrives at Penn Station in New York around 3:30 p.m. An officer always accompanies the boys on the complete trip from Harrisburg to New York. Thanksgiving Break 2013 Leave and Return Policies Brief review of CLMA travel policies: students MUST be back at school on Monday, December 2, by 8:00 pm. Being late can result in disciplinary action. Students must also travel from and return to campus in the prescribed uniform.

CLMAPA NOVEMBER 2013 MEETING MINUTES, CONTINUED 4

CLMAPA President’s Report (given by LT Pray, since Rachel Kelly’s flight was delayed)

Proposed structure of Parents Association for 2014-15 and beyond. LT Pray mentioned that Rachel Kelly had begun work on a formal governing document for the Parents Association. Mr. Pearson provided a few examples, and Mr. Pearson, Rachel Kelly, and LT Pray are currently working out details of governance for the P.A. in the future. Officers and positional responsibilities. President: responsible for running Parents Association meetings, planning agenda, working with CLMA Liaison, and setting strategic vision for the organization each academic year. Vice President: responsible to support President in all aspects, will coordinate committee meetings and special projects by the Parents Association. Treasurer: responsible for generating the annual Parents Association budget and help to coordinate all fundraising activities. Secretary: responsible for taking meeting minutes, tracking attendance, and helping to draft official correspondence between the Parents Association and parents. Time commitment for each position. As has been mentioned in the past, monthly time commitment for the Parents Association is about 10 hours/month. Committee Structure. Committees will be determined by the Parents Association and will likely include the following committees: Student Activities, Fundraising, Executive Committee. As the organization continues to grow and as the need arises, more committees can and will be added to the organization. The Executive Committee will consist of the 4 elected P.A. officers, the CLMA President, and CLMA Liaison and will meet monthly to plan meeting agendas for the Parents Association.

Timeline for electing officers. LT Pray mentioned that in order for a person to become an officer in the P.A., they must secure a nomination for the position. The tentative deadline for the Parents Association officer nomination for 2014-15 is next month’s conference call date, December 18, 2013. However, LT Pray also mentioned that since this is the first year for elections, we’re not confined to one date and can be flexible if some parents need more time to decide if they want to seek an office in the P.A. Elections will be tentatively held in January 2014. Parents Association Financials LT Pray reported that given the raffle fundraising and dues payments in October, CLMAPA financials are currently flush. At present, the Parents Association has $2,537.26 in its account. The only outlays that have occurred in November were the standard water payment to Sweet Arrow Springs and the first payment to GoToMeeting for the conference call/webinar service.

DECEMBER 2013 CONFERENCE CALL

The December 2013 Parents Association Conference Call will be held on Wednesday, December 18, 2013,

at 7:00 p.m., using the GoToMeeting platform. Information will be provided via email in advance of the meeting. Highlights of the call will include a discussion of the proposed governance structure

and election of officers for 2014-2015.

DRILL

TEAM

INFO CDT LJ Yourth

The Carson Long Drill Team has begun to practice for the upcoming competition season. The Drill Team annually competes in two drill meets, one on Saturday, December 14, at William Penn High School (York, PA), and one on Saturday, January 25, at Red Land High School (Lewisberry, PA). The CLMA Drill Team has had tremendous success at the Red Land Drill Meet in 2012 & 2013, having won the event both years. These wins at the League level earned the team the right to compete at the brigade level competition, hosted at Francis Lewis High School (New York, NY) against some of the top high school level drill teams in the Northeast.

SIGN OUT, TRAVEL, & RETURN POLICIES 5

Day of Departure: 6:30 a.m. Inspection 7:00 a.m. Reveille 7:45 a.m. Inspection in rooms and inspection of Uniforms, Haircuts, and Shaves by building officers. *8:30 a.m. “Check-out” by building officers for Cadets going home by train or bus only if building and the uniforms are in Inspection-order. *8:30 a.m. Cadets report to office to get tickets and/or money before boarding bus to Harrisburg. *8:45 a.m. ”CHECK-OUT” for cadets going home by car. *9:00 a.m. Bus departs for Harrisburg to AMTRAK/Bus Station. Train/bus station. *9:05 a.m. Cars depart front gate (After ALL the buses depart)

Return Check-In: 8:00 p.m. Return on the day that vacation ends. Uniforms: Class “A” (Dress, with Overseas Cap). All cadets of the Corps will leave, travel, and return in proper uniform to include nameplates and shoulder boards on white shirts. Cadet Officers may wear black barracks caps. Berets are not authorized. When seated on the train, bus, or airplane, cadets may remove their coats; but when cadets get up out of their seat, they will put on and button up their coats. However, cadets will wear their coats at all times in the Train Station, Bus Station, and Airports. (All cadets may get new overseas cap if necessary from the Uniform Supply Room to wear home for vacation). Uniforms for Reveille, White shirts, (Peacoat and Jacket in suitcase-optional).

Carson Long will celebrate its 178th commencement exercises on May 29, 30, and 31, 2014. Saturday, May 31, 2014, at 10:00 a.m. will be the Class of 2014 Commencement Ceremony.

COMMENCEMENT 2014

For Pennsylvania resident students returning to Carson Long in the 2014-15 Academic Year, you’re reminded that you may complete and submit an EITC Scholarship application for next year, beginning in January. EITC is a state tax credit program that allows businesses to donate tax dollars to educational institutions like Carson Long. There are income eligibility guidelines to qualify for the funding. If you have questions, please contact Ms. Jairee Counterman, Director of Advancement & Alumni Relations, jairee.counterman@carsonlong.org.

EITC 2014-2015

APPLICATION REMINDER

FAFSA REMINDER As the new year approaches, so too does tax season for 2013. After you have completed your 2013 tax return, you are eligible to complete the FAFSA, which is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The FAFSA is needed to apply for government funding for your son to attend college. In February 2014, at Spring Family Weekend, a PHEAA representative will be on hand to present information about college financial assistance.

Building upon the success of the Boston regional open house in July 2013, Carson Long is again returning to New England on Saturday, January 11, 2014, at the Best Western Royal Plaza Hotel and Conference Center from 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. The Open House will be hosted by John and Barbara McGeoghean. In addition, Carson Long is looking to host regional Open Houses around the country during the spring and summer of 2014, and we already plan to hold an event in Pittsburgh in the spring. If you’re interested in hosting a regional Open House, please contact LT Pray, michael.pray@carsonlong.org.

JANUARY 2014

REGIONAL OPEN HOUSE:

BOSTON

IPAD INSURANCE &

OWNERSHIP

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A common question about whether or not the students own their iPads has come up recently. The answer is, yes, all students own their iPads upon the successful completion of one semester at Carson Long. The cost of these devices is part of tuition. In addition to the cost of the device and folio that holds it, CLMA purchased an insurance plan for each iPad which covers damage and breakage. Therefore, students are encouraged to take their iPads home with them and to use them freely.

YEARBOOK ADVERTISING If you would like to place a tribute ad (or a business ad) or some combination in the 2014 Carsonian, here is the information you need: Deadline: March 1, 2014. (Deadline for payment, ad copy, photos to be scanned and/or pdf).

2013-14 Ad Rates Business Card: $35.00

1/4 Page: $75.00 1/2 Page: $150.00 Full Page: $300.00

Other: you may supply your own pdf of the final ad, or if you prefer, you may submit jpegs, original photos that we will scan, and your ideas and we will create your ad for you. Checks should be made payable to Carson Long with “Yearbook” on the memo line. For more information, please contact Jairee Counterman at jai-ree.counterman@carsonlong.org or 717.582.2121. For all other Yearbook questions, please contact Yearbook Advisor Carolyn Pio at Carolyn.pio@carsonlong.org or 717.582.2121.

Carson Long Military Academy will continue to offer the Ski Club for 2013-14. There will be six Ski Club trips for interested cadets on Friday nights this winter to Ski Roundtop in Lewisberry, PA, which is about 40 miles from the campus. The first Ski Club trip is scheduled for January 10, 2014, if weather permits. If parents are interested in allowing their cadet(s) to participate, we provide two options and what is included with each price: Rental Ski Option $482.00 Bus fare for 6 trips Lift tickets 4 lessons Ski rentals The cost of the Ski Club cannot be charged to cadet accounts. Ski Roundtop will not refund any money for any reason (withdraw, illness, injury, confinement). No ski tickets are transferable to other cadets for any reason. The total cost must be prepaid and must accompany the Ski Club application. This is due to a discount received for buying a ski-trip package. Four lessons (all skiing levels) are required by Ski Roundtop and Carson Long. Written permission and a release to Ski Roundtop will be emailed to all parents and a passport- style photo must be returned to Carson Long no later than December 13, 2013. There is a limit of 40 cadets, who will be chosen to participate in Ski Club by December 16, 2013. No late applications will be accepted. Cadets will not miss any academic classes to go skiing. Carson Long will provide cadets with a boxed dinner every time the Ski Club meets. Parents may place additional funds into the student account for extra food or ski equipment items. The money will be disbursed by Mr. Bassett from the Business Office. If you would like to speak to the Ski Club Advisor, please contact LTC Mark Sommerville at 717.582.2121 or mark.sommerville@carsonlong.org.

SKI CLUB

General Ski Option $440.00 Bus fare for 6 trips Lift tickets 4 lessons