Philanthropic Impact: In Gratitude for Rivers

 

“It was our goal to provide help for our students in a challenging world, to provide skills, and to understand their emotions and the pressures and stressors,” said Nikki Bartlett P’21, ’25, ’27, ’29. She and her husband, Marshall Bartlett P’21, ’25, ’27, ’29, established The Bartlett Family Fund for Wellness in 2021. “Initially, our focus was on students—now, five years later, we are also looking to support parents and professional community members,” she said. Through the fund, Rivers has brought mental health literacy education to students, faculty, and families in partnership with McLean Hospital’s School Consultation Service. In addition to this program, Rivers has provided parent support and education by bringing in specialized clinicians, such as Daniel Crump, a therapist and co-founder of The Be Center, who has led a number of workshops over the past four years.

In 2018, John and Amy Slavik P’18 established the Slavik Family Fund for Wellness. They were motivated to support wellness initiatives in light of new stressors for children in the age of technology and social media, which can affect adolescents’ mental health. 

“Things are very different today than when my wife and I were in high school,” said John Slavik. “There were no phones and no social media—everything was face-to-face. Problems are now getting magnified online. It puts pressure on kids that we didn’t have.”

Academic support also plays a pivotal role in overall student wellness, and it often goes unseen. Out of gratitude for their own son’s experience with the learning services team, John and Gina Dineen P’24  established the Dineen Family Fund for Learning Services in 2025. The fund supports the learning services team, which provides one-on-one executive functioning and academic skills support, as well as tutoring in specific areas.

“When we were looking at Rivers, learning that academic support was offered during the school day was reassuring,” said Gina Dineen. “This program helps students with different learning styles to thrive at Rivers and beyond, and we hope the program continues to expand and serve the needs of the student population at Rivers.”

John Slavik also emphasized the importance of visibility for the breadth of wellness resources at Rivers. “These resources exist and are actively being used,” he said. “They give the students the tools they need to develop into stronger people as they approach adulthood.”

For Nikki Bartlett, who is a member of the faculty teaching French and Spanish, the caring campus community is of prime importance.

“Rivers is making a difference with Excellence with Humanity,” she said. “The Rivers humanity piece is what we’ve loved for 26 years. That humanity piece is what makes Rivers different from other schools.”