PRISCILLA ALFANDRE

ALFANDRE PRISCILLA BUCK ALFANDRE Of Washington, DC, passed away peacefully with her family and caregivers by her side on January 9, 2018. Her husband Robert N. Alfandre predeceased her in 2014. Born in Palo Alto, CA in 1927, Priscilla was the daughter of Philip and Barbara Buck. She graduated from Swarthmore College in 1949, did post-graduate work at London School of Economics and received a Masters in Teaching from George Washington University in 1966. She met Robert N. Alfandre at Swarthmore and they wed in 1951 at St. John's Episcopal Church on Lafayette Square in Washington, DC. They settled in Georgetown, where she lived for 54 years until moving to Grand Oaks Assisted Living. Priscilla Alfandre was renowned as a teacher of 3rd and 4th grades at Sidwell Friends School. She created the first open classroom at Sidwell Friends in 1970. The Blue Room, as it became known, encouraged sophisticated discussion, incisive writing and creative thought. Anyone who was lucky enough to have had her as a teacher will remember the huge map of the world on the wall, along with the declaration central to the Blue Room ethos: Everything is something. Everything is connected to everything else. There is no such thing as a free lunch. She is survived by her two daughters Dominique Palmer (Thomas) of Newport, RI and Nicole Halbreiner of Bethesda, MD as well as grandchildren Luned Palmer, Rosamund Palmer (Miles Portek), Carl Halbreiner and Claudia Halbreiner, as well as her nieces and nephews, Jane Wymark (Paul Howson) and Tristram Wymark of London, Rowan Wymark of Albequerque, NM, Dominic Wymark of Los Angeles, CA, Janaki Kuruppu of Baltimore, MD, Nalini Kuruppu (John Steadman) of Portland, OR. She is also survived by her sister Constance Kuruppu in Portland, OR, and her brother-in-law Jack Alfandre and his family. A memorial service is set to take place on Sunday, May 20, 2018 at Sidwell Friends School at 11 a.m. in the Robert L. Smith Meeting Room. It will be followed by a reception. Gestures of condolence can be made in the form of donations to Sidwell Friends School for the Faculty Enrichment Fund.A memorial service is set to take place on Sunday, May 20, 2018 at Sidwell Friends School at 11 a.m. in the Robert L. Smith Meeting Room. It will be followed by a reception. Gestures of condolence can be made in the form of donations to Sidwell Friends School for the Faculty Enrichment Fund.