Summa Cum Laude

Anxiety is a growing problem for students of all ages and backgrounds. Fortunately, many are helping to educate students and others about the causes and potential solutions for this nervous disorder.

In addition to the work being done at the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital (see June, 2015 issue), there are others who are working specifically with students to support them and others in the community.

Dr. Nada Milosavljevic (a.k.a., “Dr. Milo”) is a Board-certified physician and faculty member at Harvard Medical School. In addition to conventional medicine, Dr. Milo practices Integrative Medicine (e.g., acupuncture, herbs and supplements, etc.) to help with cognitive and behavioral conditions. As the founder of the Integrative Health Program at Massachusetts General Hospital, the former attorney works with a set of school-based clinics to help high-school students who suffer from anxiety.

 As the obesity issue in America continues to (er-) grow, people are starting to realize that the answer cannot be found in limiting options or forcing compliance to dietary guidelines but most instead come from the inside out. Where better to begin, then, than in schools?

Such is the philosophy of award-winning food writer and savvy businesswoman Louisa Kasdon, founder of Let’s Talk About Food (www.letstalkaboutfood.com).

With her MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a background that includes work in the artistic, financial and marketing sectors, as well as in award-winning restaurants, the proud BPS alum combines a love of food with a strong business sense and also a sense of morality that has encouraged her to take her broad background and focus it on this latest venture.

The world of Jazz has been illuminated by such legendary locally-sourced lights as Gary Burton, Joe Lovano, Kurt Rosenwinkel, and Marlena Shaw. No matter how brightly they shine, however, all stars need a darker background on which to sparkle. For all of these artists and many more, that bass relief has been provided by award-winning bassist, composer, producer, and Berklee professor Bruce Gertz.

Growing up in a family of piano players and a whistler who knew the melodies of many of the Great American songbook tunes that would enter his early repertoire, Gertz began playing the piano at age six, but soon lost interest.

With an almost daily onslaught of high-stakes tests and the challenges that come with a lack of funding, school is challenging enough these days. How much more so, then, for those who have trouble seeing the chalkboard or reading their books?

Fortunately, many districts and communities are doing what they can to support these students in particular in an effort to minimize another potential “gap” among students.

In April of 2014, educators and administrators from the Peabody Federation of Teachers (PFT) got together with Peabody Mayor Ted Bettencourt and members of the Peabody Lions Club (including current interim Superintendent Herb Levine) and Peabody Access TV to establish Beyond Vision: A Tribute to Peabody’s Sight Impaired Community.