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50 Years Of Homecoming. Look for updates about special alumni events in the alumni section below.
DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI and ATHLETICS HALL OF FAME
The first inductees to our new Athletics Hall of Fame and Academic Hall of Fame were honored at a dinner ceremony on Friday, Nov. 28th at Rome Ballroom on the UConn campus. Honored were:
ATHLETICS HALL OF FAME
Sally Nelson (Coach and teacher)
Michael Fitzgerald (Class of 1966)
Thomas Nevers, Jr. (Class of 1974)
Kevin O'Keefe (Class of 1978)
Abby Ames (Class of 1998)
DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI
Harold Schwenk (Class of 1959)
Thomas Duffy (Class of 1973)
Ray Sidney (Class of 1987)
Emily Christison-Lagay (Class of 1993)
Nelson Walker III (Class of 1996)
Sally Nelson taught physical education at E. O. Smith from 1963-1986. She also coached a number of girls’ and boys’ teams at both the JV and varsity levels, including field hockey, basketball, tennis, volleyball and softball. Her field hockey teams, in particular, were renowned for their many conference and state titles, and a number of her players were all-conference and all-state. In 1985, she was honored by the Friends of Field Hockey for her many years of dedication to the sport in Connecticut. Sally lives in Mansfield.
Harold Schwenk graduated from E. O. Smith High School in the first class of 1959. He went on to get an undergraduate degree in applied mathematics from Brown University (1963) as well as a Masters (1964) and a PhD (1972) from Harvard University. He served as a computer consultant to Honeywell Information Systems. In 1975, he founded his own computer software company, BGS Systems, Inc., from which he retired in 1998. In 1997, he and his wife established a Distinguished Chair in Chemistry named after his father, Professor H. Schwenk, as well as a fund for Innovative Education in Science to support research efforts of individual students. He lives in Weston, Massachusetts.
Michael (Mickey) Fitzgerald graduated from E. O. Smith High School in 1966. While here, he played soccer for four years as a mid-fielder on the team as well as baseball. At Eastern he continued to play both sports playing mid-field in soccer once again. He is in the Eastern Athletic Hall of Fame. He then went to Norway several times over a period of eight years, where he played and coached at the International School of Stavanger. In 1986, he returned to teach and coach at E. O. Smith. He has coached girls’ soccer and boys’ track and field, and currently coaches the boys’ cross country team. He lives in Mansfield with his wife, Tuula. His two children also graduated from E. O. Smith.
Thomas Duffy, who graduated in 1973, played in bands both at the high school and at UConn. He received a B. S. and a Master’s of Musical Arts from the university, and then attended Cornell where he received his Ph.D. in Musical Arts for composition. He has taught at Yale University since receiving his PhD, and has served as Director of Bands and held a number of administrative positions as well. In addition, he was a visiting music director at the Hart School of Music for four years. He has a number of musical publications, has written extensively for various journals, and has contributed chapters in various books. He also works with student bands statewide through the Connecticut Music Educators Association. He lives in Hamden.
Thomas Nevers graduated from E. O. Smith High School in 1974. He was an outstanding soccer player for four years and on the winning Class M championship team in 1972. He was selected as an NSCAA High School All-American. He earned varsity letters in baseball, golf, and track as well. He went on to play soccer at UConn, and played in the 1977 Senior Bowl game. After graduating from UConn, he played soccer professionally with the Chicago Sting in the NASL, and then went on to play with other teams, including the Hartford Hellions, over a five year period. He lives in Mansfield.
Kevin O’Keefe graduated from E. O. Smith High School in 1978. During this time he ran cross-country and track all four years. His teams won several class titles; as well, he was the State Cross-Country Open champion his senior year. His Manchester Turkey Day Race – Schoolboy Record stood for 25 years. He attended Auburn University on a running scholarship, and earned his B.A. in journalism. He then went to Ohio University for his master’s in sports administration. He has since worked as a management consultant for various sports organizations all across the U.S. He is also well-known as the author of “The Average American” (who turned out to be a former E. O. Smith employee). Kevin currently lives in New York City.
Ray Sidney graduated from E. O. Smith High School in 1987. Ray was always interested in mathematics, and he took a number of math classes at UConn while he was at E.O. Smith. He went on to Harvard for a bachelor’s, and then to M.I.T. for a doctorate. He was the fifth person to join Google after working at RSA Labs and D. E. Shaw. He has since retired from Google and is an eco-friendly real estate developer near Lake Tahoe. His various philanthropic efforts include the areas of environment, education and health. He lives in Nevada.
Emily Christison-Lagay graduated from E. O. Smith High School in 1993. She went on to get her undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia, and her M.D. from Harvard Medical School in 1997. She then entered the five year General Surgical Residency program at Massachusetts General Hospital. During this time she took two years off to conduct research in the area of angiogenesis as well as to help to set up a web-based international tumor registry to assist with data collection and the streamlining of treatment efficacy. She is currently finishing her surgical residency and will begin a fellowship in Pediatric Surgery in Toronto. She lives in Boston.
Nelson Walker III graduated from E. O. Smith in 1996. He went on to graduate from Brown University and earned an MFA in film directing from Columbia University School of the Arts. He began his career writing for various documentaries for the Discovery Channel, the History Channel, and the NOVA series on PBS. His first film, iThemba/Hope, chronicling an HIV+ choir from South Africa, aired on the Sundance Channel in 2005. Lumo, his second film, chronicles the lives of Congolese women at a hospital for rape survivors. He has worked extensively in Tibet as a visiting instructor at Tibet University in Lhasa, and is the co-founder of the Kham Film Project. He lives in New York City.
Abigail Ames was an outstanding runner for E. O. Smith, in both cross-country and track and field, from 1994-1998. During her four years, her teams won a number of championships, and she competed in the New England Championships for Track and Field (1996-98) as well as for Cross Country (1997-98). She was also a member of the All–State teams for both track and field (1997, 1998) and cross country (1996, 1997). She attended UNC-Charlotte on an athletic scholarship, and was named Academic All-American and All-Conference USA. She is still an active runner, and last year completed the San Diego-Boston marathon. |
Commemorative Book: ORDER NOW!
We have an active history committee that has been working on compiling a commemorative book that is for sale at $25 each (+ $5 shipping if it cannot be picked up). IT IS IN and it is a true walk back in time! A limited number have been printed, so you want to be sure to have this special publication that is full of E. O. Smith memories. Please send your NAME, contact information including phone number and email address, to
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(please put commemorative book in the subject line) or call 860-487-2236 and leave your information.
Commemorative 50th birthday t-shirts are now ready! They are black, with a red birthday logo on the left side, designed by student Desiree Bassett. Only $8, they make great gifts for family and friends of E. O. Smith. To place an order, simply email Nancy Silander (
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) . T-shirts can be picked up at the school during school hours.
ALUMNI FIELD DAY AND BATTLE OF THE BANDS
Friday May 29th
 50th Anniversary Weekend Flyer
Field Day/Evening for Alumni
Remember Field Day? Alumni and community members and their families came to E.O. Smith on Friday May 29th, to have fun with the Field Day equipment and festivities that the E.O. Smith students enjoy. After was the ...
Alumni Battle of the Bands
Six alumni bands "battled" it out and we all had a great time with the memories. Hope to hear you all again soon! ROAD RACE
Saturday, May 30th
The first Angus Wootten Memorial Race had great weather and was a huge success. Ninety-nine participants registered for the 5K event. Both E.O. Smith Alumni, community members, and friends of Angus Wootten (many who were all three), gathered in the parking lot behind E.O. Smith prior to the start which took participants around a tour of UCONN. (The route map can be accessed at http://www.mapmyrun.com/view_route?r=575124361437537580) People of all abilities completed the event and then stayed around to chat, share memories, and catch up. Detailed results are available at The Last Mile Racing at http://thelastmileracing.com/results/results2009/09eosmith.html. Proceeds from the race are being proposed to be given to next year’s male and female scholar athletes from E.O. Smith in the form of an Angus Wootten Student Scholar Athlete scholarship. Male and female scholar athletes are currently recognized from each Connecticut High School and honored at the Annual CIAC Scholar Athlete Awards Banquet. Each year Connecticut high schools nominate one male and female student athlete for this award. Student athletes must demonstrate outstanding academic achievement, strong leadership skills and excel in their sports. The addition of a scholarship to reward those who can balance their academics with the rigors of training and competing while setting an example for their peers would be a fitting tribute to Angus Wootten. We hope to have a lot of repeat runners next year and for them to each bring a friend. To get on a list for an announcement of the date for 2009, e-mail
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GOLDEN GALA - DANCING UNDER THE STARS
Saturday, May 30th
This year's Red & Black Ball was the Golden Gala: Dancing Under the Stars. It was held on May 30 at the Rome Ballroom on the UConn campus. We'll see you next time!
Lobby Facelift: Many other special events are being planned and the E.O. Smith Foundation has pledged $50,000 in this birthday year to support the ongoing celebration. One very enduring gift the Foundation has pledged is the installation of floor to ceiling trophy cases in the lobby so that the school’s rich history of success will be visible to visitors and inspirational to students. As well, the plaques honoring the 2008 inductees will be mounted in the LMC part of the lobby.
There will be a rededication of the lobby on Tuesday, September 1, at 7:00 p.m., just before the regularly scheduled board meeting.
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In September, 1958 (back when school began after Labor Day), the towns of Ashford and Mansfield, and under the auspices of the University of Connecticut, opened up the Edwin O. Smith High School. Students who had attended Windham High School now had their own regional school. The Mansfield state representative, Edwin O. Smith, brought together the stakeholders to craft a school that would be an example of excellence and would help to draw faculty to the university. The school opened with nearly 600 students. Today, Willington is also part of the region, and there are over 1100 students in grades 9-12.