As we begin what will undoubtedly be another school year full of moving performances, thrilling sporting events, and an abundance of day-to-day hilarity, it’s important to remember that there are routinely people who join our community either as new members or in changed capacities.   Mrs. Wetherbee- Test Prep By Deon Custard As a part of a new initiative to make test prep more readily available to our students, Ms. Wetherbee was brought in. After leaving business school to work on a tech start-up with her brother, Ms. Wetherbee started standardized test prep tutoring for extra money, and eventually found herself working for Academic Approach, leaving her familiar with Latin School students. When asked how she eventually found herself a more permanent part of our community, Ms. Wetherbee said that “[Ms. Pleshette] actually called her” and that several parents of students currently at Latin recommended her as well. Ms. Wetherbee’s schedule consists of six classes that meet twice in the eight-day cycle, but she also “encourages students to meet with [her] one-on-one.” In addition to being “excited to bring a sense of diversity to those whom test prep is available to,” Ms. Wetherbee is looking forward to leading eventually leading shorter, more focused seminars on topics that may be covered on standardized tests. Outside of the classroom Ms. Wetherbee is enthusiastic “to finally be able to see [her] students perform or play sports” as well as grow her own test prep company “Mindletica”.   Mr. Dunn- Chemistry Teacher By Annabel Edwards Mr. Dunn discovered his interest in chemistry in middle school, and it has been a part of his life ever since. Mr. Dunn defines chemistry as “the study of understanding macroscopic phenomena through microscopic interactions and behavior.” He explained how chemistry “mirrors the essence of keeping an eye on the big picture while attending to the details, which together creates the full experience.” He brings this idea of chemistry to both his classroom and everyday life. Before coming to Latin, Mr. Dunn spent five years living and working on the campus of an all-boys boarding school in Connecticut. Along with teaching Honors, AP, and regular Chemistry, he served as the Dean of Students for his last three years there. He said that he had heard rumors and great things about Latin, so he came to “check it out” for himself and ended up working here. In the classroom, Mr. Dunn has only two pet peeves. His first one is grades. He explains that he prefers students to be focused on solving the problems rather than worrying about their grades. He says “sometimes you need to step back from a problem and revisit it later, perhaps from a different mindset.” He not only gives students opportunities to do this, but also structures his class in a way that lets students take risks without the worry of their GPAs. His second pet peeve is disrespect, (a very reasonable thing to dislike in a classroom). Mr. Dunn is always excited for what tomorrow will bring in each class that he teaches. ]]>