Chapel Hill-Chauncy Hall School Blog: Take Charge

Cheyenne Bates’ father taught her early on never to say, “I can’t.” If something was hard, he helped her shift from “can’t” to “can”, going so far as disallowing the word. Years later, Cheyenne, a CH-CH alumna from the Class of 2016, has returned to campus in a new role as the Middle School Performing Arts Teaching Fellow, where she’s adapted this lesson for her students. She helps them switch from “can’t” to “I can’t do this… yet.” It’s apt advice, because right now she’s manifesting several things that might not have happened… but only not yet.

On the heels of his win for a regional Heartland Emmy® Award in the category of Best Documentary, Topical, the Alumni Office had the chance to catch up with Ryan Gates ‘98, President & CEO at PANO Marketing. Ryan gave us the backstory to his award-winning film and all that brought him to this moment, a story that extends all the way back to CH-CH.

Allen is a last name that appears across campus; on buildings, in yearbooks, in the school’s history, and seen through sculpture. David Allen (DA) '93, son of Margaret Allen, is a sculptor who created two pieces as part of the Campus as Canvas initiative, The Core and The Sphere. In an interview, Allen gave insight into his work on campus, The Core on the island by South Hall and The Sphere in the courtyard at the Learning Commons. 

Cinematographer and documentarian Daniel Hedges '02 has moved from the CH-CH campus to the sets of TV and film projects. Hedges continues to draw on the creativity and inspiration he gained at CH-CH as he tells stories that reach across the globe.