As we are now deep in fall and preparing for GrandFriends’ Day and Bread day in the near future, the year seems to be flying by! It’s been a whirlwind first few months of school, as we return to a relative “normal” year. While so much is the same, we find ourselves in a moment of reflection, more closely examining not only who we are but who we want to be.
Read MoreI was reading an article in NAIS’ Independent School Magazine that talks about long-serving headship. In the article, the author discusses the idea of schools as seasonal, cyclical communities in a state of perpetual becoming. This idea spoke to me deeply, and highlights why I love the start of a new school year and the profound sense of hope that it brings.
Read MoreThere is a reason spring is everyone’s favorite time in schools. Flowers pop up, the weather is warmer, the smell of freshly cut grass fills the air, everything about springtime suggests exciting changes are coming.
Read MoreGrowing up is hard. Skinned knees, monsters under the bed, clothes stained beyond recognition, childhood can be scary, messy, and sometimes painful. As parents, we cringe when they ride a two-wheeler for the first time. Full of pride and scared to death that they’ll hurt themselves. We buy goldfish, weekly if need be, to protect their young hearts from the pain of loss. We want them to grow up, but we also want to protect them. As someone who has worked with many families with children from pre-k through high school, I can attest that these feelings never go away.
Read MoreIn the Scottish tradition, it is customary at important celebrations to don your family tartan, celebrations including the winter solstice.
Read MoreIn my family, Thanksgiving is a favorite holiday. When I think about why that is, it’s not about yummy food or holiday hooplah, it’s about the simplicity in how my family celebrates. For us, this is a time to slow down, come together, and take a moment to be grateful for life’s many blessings. Every year, there seem to be more reasons to be thankful. Over the last few years, the reasons to be grateful keep multiplying, especially here at GUS.
Read MorePerhaps because it’s fall and my mind always goes here. The leaves are falling and field hockey season is in full swing, and the words, “nothing worth getting was ever easy” ring in my head. These are the words I would say to my teams, usually yelling at them while they were running sprints or shared with passionate conviction during a halftime talk.
Read MoreWhen school starts, I am always pulled to a poem by an unknown author called Dream Big. There are many aspects of this poem that appeal to me, but this year, the part that I am focused on is “Persist. Because with an idea, determination, and the right tools, you can do great things.”
Read MoreAs most of our upper school students know from Latin, commencement, though considered a goodbye, is actually the word for beginning. This duality explains why it is often so bittersweet.
Read MoreFor our graduates most of all, the reality of the end of the year is setting in. Evening with the Graduates and graduation rehearsals are starting, and with the play over, most of the other milestones of their eighth grade year are now behind them. It's exciting and terrifying all at once.
Read MoreDiversity, equity, and inclusion are not new concepts at GUS. For me, the head search really made that clear. So far this year, you’ve heard from a number of our faculty members about their journeys with this work, and I think it is important to also share a bit about my own.
Read MoreIt’s been almost a year since a pandemic came out of the likes of science fiction and movies and into our reality. I recently reread the March 2020 letter to the community delaying the return to school, we were so hopeful it would be a week or two. Well, we all know that weeks became months and next thing we knew we were reimagining graduation, summer camp, the start of school, and nearly every aspect of school life.
Read MoreWhat a year 2020 has been! Faced with adversity, the GUS community once again came together to trust and go forward and forward we did. While there is still a long way to go, here at GUS, we find hope in the promise of a new day and the warmth of community.
Read MoreThis is a strange time, and yet we have found comfort in what has always been at the center of the GUS experience: relationships and community.
Read MoreAs we watch our students skipping into school every morning, we can almost forget these are extraordinary times. Our days are feeling more “normal” and we can almost forget that we have been through trauma and are still experiencing the effects of an unprecedented global event. Hard to believe it’s been over half a year. I can vividly remember coming to school to pick up some things last spring.
Read MoreIt was a start of school unlike any other and yet, just like every other. Weeks of planning, furniture rearranging, and policymaking, led to an early opening of school in late August.
Read MoreOur school is built on a mission and philosophy that guides us to shape young people who will make the world a better place. Starting now, we commit not only to Mean Well, Speak Well, and Do Well, but to Do Better.
Read MoreTrust and Go Forward is not our school motto. People often confuse our motto, Mean Well, Speak Well, Do Well, with our school battle cry.
Read MoreThese words have echoed in my head a lot these last few weeks. The dream of flowers gets many of us through these tough April days when the rain and the gray seems to linger. This year the days have been especially difficult, as we are isolated from loved ones and that warmth that friendship brings. Still, the idea of May flowers gives me hope.
Read MoreMany people dislike Valentine’s day. Oftentimes dismissed as a Hallmark holiday, I see value in taking a day to reflect on who and what you love. For me, Valentine’s Day was extra special this year. My day began at breakfast with former trustee members from as far back as the early 80’s. It was a wonderful testament to the power of the GUS experience and to the value of connection around shared experiences.
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