Staff:SAR

This page is a record of well-known, beloved, and/or despised Saratogan staff and the many stories collected about them.

Residential Staff

Will

His last name may not come to mind, but Will made a huge impression on the boys of Rounds 3, as well as the Skidmore community at large, during SAR.05.2. He was a free spirit who kept a box of condoms in plain sight in his incense-filled room and who let students stay up past curfew, roam the halls, and have illegal sleepovers (ISOs). His first hall meeting involved passing around a decomposing half-eaten apple, which he deemed an "alien brain." He ran a weekly activity, "The Pen Is Mightier," which was a stream-of-consciousness writing workshop where he would play music and speak into the microphone of a mini karaoke machine (with multiple voice effects), usually repeating the words "syphillis, syphillis, fetus, fetus." He also ran a daily activity entitled "DOOM," involving dark rooms and the same small karaoke machine. Will was influenced greatly by the book "Beyond the Brain" by Stanislav Grof (a study of altered states of consciousness and psychedelic drugs), which he would often discuss with students. Will also had an idea for a restaurant, "Will's Beautiful Buckets," where full meals (in his words, "chicken, gravy, corn, and mashed potatoes") would be mixed in a bucket and served to customers (other meals included meatloaf and ice cream sundaes). This was a full year before KFC announced their "Famous Bowls," an identical product that led many to wonder if his idea had been stolen. (It seems to be a coincidence.)

His frequent partner-in-crime was his girlfriend and fellow RA, Yon. Their relationship was not allowed, but his residents would often see her going into or coming out of his room late at night (during the aforementioned hall-roaming). Will and Yon believed in following "the letter of the law," finding loopholes in the rules that prevented boys on Rounds 3 from going onto the girls' halls and vice versa. They organized cookie parties and other social activities across the doorway, so no one would cross the threshold, but the two groups could still interact.

Will got along with the other RAs, and was even quite good at dealing with higher-ups, so little if any of his not-so-legal exploits made their way back. His residents were also fiercely loyal, covering for him if they or he got caught violating curfew or other rules. When three of his residents were caught in an ISO, they and Will denied that he knew anything about it, despite the fact that he had often hung out with them in the same room (and had left prior to the discovery). Will did not come back the next year, and according to returning RA Randall, he and Yon were last heard of living in Thailand, a place he had talked about often.

Flava Flav

Flava Flav is one of the most beloved of the RAs at Saratoga Springs, especially during SAR.06.2. His real name is Zachary Heath, and he is also a singer like the complimentary pop icon for which he is nicknamed.

No one is quite sure how the name originated. However, Zachary's RA group quickly realized that with a few adjustments (clock, bullhorn hat, darker skin, and grill,) he looks like Flava Flav. The rapscallion group of name-changers blurted out "Flava Flav" every time they saw him for the next couple of days, and after a week, the entire campus was chanting his name, even in the stands during the CTY Talent Show.

He is well known for, among other things:

• "Thanks, you're wonderful!"
• Singing performance at talent show
• White hair (happened after losing a bet)
• Straight hair (happened after the white hair went away)

This is a picture of him

Note: Flava Flav is unrelated to Lancaster's Flava Flav (Dan Estrada), affectionately nicknamed by a group of students in 07.2.

Stefan

Stefan is one of the coolest RAs to have ever come to Skidmore. His first year was in 2008 and his last session ever (as of now) was session 1 2010. He was a huge soccer fan, he DJ'd the dances, he did talent show, and he didn't give a flying f*ck. He first made the history books by being one of the RA's on the floor on which 'fight club' occurred, and later masterminded the "Strawberry Shortcake Plot" during session 2 of 2008. Though he developed a following after his sketch at the whole campus meeting on the first day session 1 2009, saying "I'm Shtefawn" in the most bizarre accent while wearing antlers. Stefan is also constantly singing some random song, so if you ever run into him do not be surprised if he's serenading you.

He was also famous for being injury-prone. During his first full day of CTY with students, Stefan was playing soccer as part of the weekly and fell into a hole on the lower fields, spraining his ankle. The next year, during another game of soccer, Stefan managed to break his nose on Patrick, who was the smallest kid on campus and also a beast at soccer. The year after, which was Stefan's last session, Stefan avoided becoming injured, though he did injure SRA Phil during a practice session for soccer. From what was told to certain students, there was a 50/50 ball and Stefan got to it and kicked it straight into the side of Phil's head. This later led to Phil getting an ear infection. Phil, we commend you for taking the fall for one of your workers.

His patrols were also some of the most hilarious of all time. Ranging from his PDA patrol pranks to his last night antics, which including finding Sam Stansell out on the quad, letting a guy into Howe/Rounds and busting a certain sleepover (room 217, Wilmarth 2, S1, SAR '10, with eight people in the room, and ten eventually - it's a single) and he found a can of cashews. He disappeared from the crowd of RAs he arrived with. We have no idea where he went. If you don't understand why this is so funny, you never will.

Speaking of Sam Stansell, during the human chess game at Carnival, when the group yelled out, "Saaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaam STANsell," he burst out into one of his trademark laughs in front of the whole campus. Later, Stefan asked one of the members of the group why they kept saying his name. They responded, "Because he's annoying," to which Stefan replied, "Say no more."

As of now, many people across the country will recognize this man's wonderful face due to the fact that he was on national television. That's right, this is the Stefan who was a part of the Yale Whiffenpoofs on the NBC program "The Sing-Off". Known for killer conducting and "inventing A Capella" (Although he swears the producers made him say that), his awesomeness has spread all over the country like hot margarine over an English muffin.

RA Matt

He's kind of short, kind of tall. Brownish-blondish-redish hair. Kind of fat, kind of skinny. Kind of active, kind of lazy. Kind of everywhere, kind of nowhere. Awesomely average.

RA Colin

Cool, relaxed guy. As the song "We Fly High" was popular during 2008.2, it was common to hear kids modify to lyrics to: "We fly high/no lie/COLIN!" to show their love. He was well aware of the numerous ISOs occurring under his watch, but as their participants were all nevermores/forevermores, he allowed them to continue.

Alex Hart and Shira Hecht

Together, they are an awesome team. Hilarious in many a fashion and winners at leading activities, Alex and Shira make a dynamic duo. Session 1, 2010, they hosted dance parties in the Rounds 3 lounge whenever Quad Time was canceled. Add more antics.

At the end of the intermission Alex was at the mic trying to get everyone back in their seats when she started to beat box. She is also known to spontaneously rap.

Caroline Cusick

Caroline is a short half-asian RA who is always bubbly and energetic. She is an epic dancer and knows the lyrics to any pop song Stefan could play. She was also voted as the unanimous crush of David Grimes Hall Sarartoga Session 1.

One of the more hilarious incidents involving Caroline was when she had the brilliant idea of putting blue cellophane on the lamp of CTYers Joanna's and Natalie's room and have a dance party. This later led to the light breaking and having to call Kenny over to fix it in exchange for fruit-roll-ups.

Also on the nevermore route Joanna and Natalie stole her phone and made her dance for it to the tune of Tik Tok, attracting many Saratogans' attention and even holding up traffic, which goes to show how good her dancing is. RA David Grimes joined in and made $2.07 with his dancing.

She is so small that while taking a girl to take morning meds during the hottest week of the summer, Caroline decided to cut through Howe/Rounds to walk through the air conditioning. While this was happening Stefan saw them and, not noticing the black lanyard, in his head said "Yes!!!" as he spotted his prey. When he did pounce and said "excuse me miss-" fully prepared to embarrass the unsuspecting girls only to realize it was Caroline walking a girl through the halls.

On the last night, Caroline was on the last Wilmarth shift, and it was around 4 AM when boys started to leave their rooms in preparation for Passionfruit. According to her, this was not supposed to be happening, but as soon as someone offered ramen to her, she forgot what she was doing and went on a mad search for a fork. She later sat down in the Wilmarth 2 lounge to eat her ramen, while many a boy walked by wondering why she was there, sitting in an opposite-sex dorm, eating ramen. While eating and relaxing in Wilmarth, she decided to start a walkie-talkie sing-along, with 6 or so RAs trading off lines of "Break Your Heart," causing everyone in the Wilmarth 2 lounge at the time to sing along. During this strange occurrence, one CTYer, Peter Lu, when coming face to face with Caroline, confusedly remarked "You're a girl" and kept walking with Reuben Mathew.

Jeremy Strege

Jeremy is a young and attractive college student who is notorious for his hair-style, which resembles that of the ever-infamous Justin Bieber. No matter how many achievements or other memorable things he is remembered for, the majority of the campers will hear the name "Jeremy" and be reminded of his great Bieber hair. He is a forevermore, being a previous camper at Lancaster.

In 2011.1 Jeremy started his time as an RA and quickly became "the cool guy", or as some others say, "the epitome of coolness". This meant that many of the Nevermores would hang around him during quad time, and that much of the female population of the camp would fawn over him during sleepovers (some of these girls were squirrels, meaning they were around thirteen when they caught Jeremy's brand of Bieber Fever).

Aside from the hair, Jeremy was also a renowned glowstringer/raver (which makes sense taking his previous camp experience into account). He was the only RA to take part in the raver circles at the dances, and introduced the Meltdown, which is a difficult move that involves 360 degree alternating planes, to the campers in 2011. Now, the Meltdown is one of the most prestigious moves known to the site.

Like all of the popular RAs, Jeremy was deeply involved with camp activities. He was one of the RAs at the Gauntlet for 2011 and 2012, and performed at both the Lip Sync and Talent Show for both years as well. In 2011.1 he lip-synced "Baby" along with Kenny (named below), Dan, and Peter. In the same year/session, he performed "The Most Beautiful Girl in the Room" (by Flight of the Conchords) with RA Peter. In 2012.1 Jeremy lip-synced "What Makes You Beautiful" with Kenny, Geoff, and Mike. In the Talent Show 2012.2, he performed the same song as in 2011 with Alex Libby.

He also took part in a cool project in 2015 and is "all about, like, experiences" (Video here: https://vimeo.com/123681016 )

Mike Schilling

Mike is a tall white guy who plays sidekick to cool people like Jeremy and Kenny. He is chill but also has a competitive streak as he found his absence (on this page) borderline intolerable.

One notable attribute of Mike is his laugh, which does not match what one would expect from seeing him in person. You see, when Mike starts laughing too hard, his throat "closes up," which results in an amusing and repetitive squeaking.

He is also known for creating the "Bulletproof Dance" which has become popular at Skidmore during the dances.

Evan Patel

In 2008 and 2009, Evan Patel was a camper at CTY on Skidmore Campus. He was commonly recognized for his ridiculous height and ability to play soccer, basketball, and most importantly, Frisbee. After aging out of CTY, Evan went on to spread his love of CTY throughout his family, and eventually got hit brother to attend CTY as well. However, the dynasty that is Evan Patel does not end here. After graduating High School, Evan was determined to continue his involvement in the CTY program. He hoped to be an RA in Saratoga Springs, however it proved impossible for in order to be an RA you must have completed at least one year of college, which Evan had not done at the time. But after a grueling year at Yale University, (this proves that he was a former CTYer) Evan applied again, and given his overwhelming ability to 'woo' any administration, JHU gladly placed Evan as an RA at Skidmore College, where he had previously attended as a camper.

The first session that Evan was an RA, Evan showed his dominance as an athlete, being a major reason why the staff was able to secure two of the three Student-Staff games (Frisbee and Basketball). However, even though Evan thrashed the attempts of many Nevermore's to win a Trifecta, it still seemed that many kids forgave Evan and continued to respect his intelligence and athleticism. In fact, Evan was so athletic that on an RA 'Fun Day' when the RA's went bowling, he and his alter-ego "Kevin" were able to dominate the bowling alley when he bowled over a 160! It was even more astounding that all of these amazing character traits did not cause Evan to be aloof from the kids. In fact, as a casino night prize, Evan allowed the choosers of his prize to be able to shave his head into any design they chose. Not only did Evan let the random hall shave his head, but he continued to rock the Mohawk that was placed on his cranium for the next five weeks. He even gelled his hair everyday to ensure that the Mohawk was perfectly made. But anyways, Alex Libby, a camper at the time, recognized Evan's well-roundedness and decided that it would not be fitting to address this man as "Evan." Without hesitation, Alex gave Evan the title of Renaissance Man, and from that day on, Alex Libby, a handful of kids, and some RAs called this idol the Renaissance Man; however, it was mostly Alex Libby who referred to Evan by this title. This was because it was often considered rude for a non-Renaissance Man to call a Renaissance Man "Renaissance Man."

Even more impressively in session two, Evan proved himself to be even more dominating. In the Frisbee game, the height of this Renaissance Man gave him the ability to consistently score against the students. In the Student-Staff soccer game, the one goal that was scored against the students was a through ball, to which Evan quickly sprinted to and was able to secure the victory that day. Most impressively, Evan's assistance in the Basketball game was proven when he constantly blocked shots by the kids and due to his 12 points in the second half. However, luckily this man was able to talk to students. In fact, Evan was thought of to be one the most chill RA's, and on the last night he chilled with the kids. Luckily, another fellow Renaissance Man was able to secure his black lanyard, showing hope that the Renaissance Man Dynasty shall continue through thick and thin, in sickness and in health.

Kenny Akinnagbe

Kenny Akinnagbe is said to be one of the coolest, tallest, and most athletic RAs on Skidmore campus. It is difficult to identify which of his amazing qualities he is most famous for, but he has a wonderful personality and truly makes an effort to befriend as many CTYers as possible, from Royalty to squirrels. He loves CTY as much as a camper, which makes him so unique.

Kenny first came to Skidmore in 2010 as an RA on Wilmarth 2. He was known for making campers he caught having an ISO form human pyramids or sing Lady Gaga songs with the promise of leaving them be (although he would still break the ISO up afterwards). What makes Kenny amazing is his ability to perfectly balance enforcing the rules and letting students be. When he was a RA, Kenny was known to to conduct rounds with a a plastic baseball bat as a means of harmless intimidation. He also occasionally used Nerf guns during rounds.

In 2012, he became an SRA and was busier than ever, but was still widely loved by Skidmore campers. While he was not quite as fun compared to when he was a RA, he still maintained his charm and made it a point to be completely open and fair in regard to discipline.

Kenny embraces and encourages traditions at Saratoga to the extent where, in 2012, he took a picture of sidewalk chalk writings (which are banned at Skidmore) and posted it on Facebook with the caption "R.A.S.K. is one of my favorite activities." Traditionally, Kenny also performs in the Lip Sync during Casino Night and the Talent Show. When he was an RA in 2011, he could occasionally be seen riding his scooter around campus. He was also known for being a good dresser. When asked why he put so much effort into his wardrobe he would reply "I gotta stay fresh to death" or "I gotta look the part."

One of Kenny's defining characteristics is his athleticism. According to Kenny, he played on his school's basketball team in college. While this claim has been widely debated amongst campers, Kenny has demonstrated his athleticism time after time. This was especially true in soccer. While Kenny couldn't pass, his speed alone made up for it on defense. In 2013.1, during the Students vs Staff Ultimate Frisbee game, while stalling a player, he took a Frisbee to the throat at close range. He was able to walk off the field on his power and was fine afterward, leading his team to victory. Under his leadership, the staff was able to complete a trifecta in 2012.2 and a double trifecta in 2013.1 and 2013.2. Even with these feats, Kenny never once rubbed it in the students' faces, and instead went out of his way to congratulate the students on playing a good game.

Kenny is also talented at coming up with unique and engaging activities. In 2010, he came up with "Competitive Clapping," in which students had to form teams and invent elaborate clapping routines. He also ran the activity Spicy Spanish Dancing with SRA Liz.

In 2011.1, Kenny started the epic activity "Man Talk," where he showed awesome videos, demonstrated the "Man Walk," spoke about Chuck Norris, and answered questions in a hilarious manner. He has run this activity every year since during both sessions, even after becoming an SRA.

In 2011.2, Kenny set up an activity called "Run For Your Life," which involved RAs pretending to be monsters and chasing kids around the Skidmore track while trying to tag them. (Sidenote: Later that year, in October, another Run For Your Life event was held in Baltimore, Maryland, where volunteers dressed up as zombies.)

In 2013.2, Kenny showed off his musical skills by performing a rock version of Tunak Tunak Tun along with RA John, RA James, and Site Director Dave during the Talent Show. He, along with RA Geoff, Site Director Dave, and RA Dan Bell, also lip synced and danced to "What Makes You Beautiful" on Casino Night amid wild cheers and laughter. They also lip-synced "My Heart Will Go On," complete with interpretive dance.

Unfortunately in 2015, Kenny did not return to RA at SAR.

Geoffrey Baltera

What can CTY SAR say about RA Geoff?

• "I hear his hair is insured for $10,000" - Griffin Badalamente, 14.1
• "I hear he does CTY commercials. IN JAPAN" - Aric Zhu, 14.1
• "I heard he met John Stamos on a plane" - Andrew Cheng, 14.1
• "And he told him he was pretty" - Joseph Chavez, 14.1
• "He yelled at me once. It was awesome" - Gaynor Norcott, 14.1

Geoffrey Baltera once consumed 5 lbs of dry ice in a single bite, but he was reported to have serious indigestion later that day due to the fact that the dry ice wasn't as chill as him.

Geoffrey Baltera invented the word chill.

The reason it is so cold in Antarctica is because Geoffrey Baltera stood there for too long.

After Geoffrey Baltera joined the SAR Residential Staff, all male attendees were required to bring sweaters in case they were placed in Geoff's Hall, lest they get "chill-bite."

Since Joff has warmed up to the temperature of my mix-tape in SAR 15.1 after becoming SRA, the true Joff attempts to show his true colors through his responsibilities, even though his beard has him under mind-control.

Good one, Geoff.

RA Dan

He lost the game.

Dan's Hall Best Hall

bit by a squirrel 15.2

RA Quanah

Quanah is widely believed to be perpetually born yesterday, as well as 12 years old. "Hit the Quanah"

Site Admin

Marty and Chris Hazzard

Marty was the Site Director in 2008 for Saratoga Springs and Chris Hazzard was the Dean of Residential Life. Both of them were all around great guys who partially got the idea that CTY was a place to be happy, not to be burdened by rules and unjust punishment. Their administration was a breath of fresh air for Saratoga after the evil rule of Tim in 2007. Unfortunately, they did not return for 2009.

Chris was known to often play guitar for kids when a lesser DRL would have been yelling. According to him, his "crazy great-uncle" drew a weird symbol, which is now known as the biohazard symbol.

Campus Staff

Chef Guy

Chef Guy Joey Cavalier works in the Dining Hall at Skidmore College in Emily's Garden, a salad bar. He often interacts with the CTYers sitting at the circle, or "captain's table"; posting signs, banning rulebreakers from the table, and offering melon (to the delight of many). He also hosts his own YouTube series, under the name chefdad2000, which can be found here.

This may be the same chef that reported a few students to the Baltimore rep for having a "salt war" before the last dance in 09.1, nearly losing them the dance (they were freed from prison half an hour into the dance).

He also happens to be related to someone in the band Cobra Starship, unless he was totally screwing with us.

Instructors

Art Frankel

Art Frankel has been the beloved instructor for FPHS Chemistry for a number of years (does anyone know how many?). He has an excellent sense of humor, command of the material, and approachability. He is candid, understanding, truly encouraging, and enjoys working with students. Art remembers students who return years later, despite working with hundreds of students every year, because he makes a great effort to connect with them. He has allowed many students to excel and has inspired a love of chemistry among many CTYers, some of whom go on to pursue careers in chemistry-related fields. Beyond the classroom, he is an avid cribbage player, and is also Canadian. As of SAR.13.2, FPHS Chemistry has been split into two classes by age due to large numbers of students signing up for the class. Art typically teaches the younger class. He is a great teacher who makes chemistry both memorable and exciting through his unexpected demonstrations (e.g. eating chalk during a lesson on calcium carbonate) and relatable jokes.

Mike Martin

The well-known teacher of Advanced Fiction, this man is the legend that taught Lady Gaga. He is known for his bellow of "Fiction Force, Assemble!", which entails the frantic sprinting of his students from all corners of the quad, the striking of a superhero pose, and his shout "We read and we write!" to which his students respond "Because it's in the course description!" Mike's class failed to return to campus in 15.1, but it was incredible and will be greatly missed.