A Moment of Fun

As we head into the second half of our first semester — and we turn the clocks back this weekend (always a sign of deep fall for me) — I find myself reflecting on the start of our school year together. At Convocation this year, I stressed to our students that our school is meant to be fun. Some of you may have noticed from your child’s Quarter 1 comments that a few of our students took my advice a little too literally, but we will always take on that enthusiasm instead of having our students bored or disengaged. The main current of my message is that SA is a place for lively, spirited, joyful, passionate, and engaged learning. And I have seen evidence of that joy throughout our first semester, and here are just a few recent examples:

Last weekend, our student performers, musicians, tech crew members, and production team put on an incredible show. Watching The Ballad of Barbara Allen was a moving and inspiring experience. It was such a privilege to be part of a packed audience of parents, students, staffulty, SA alumni, family members, and friends, all experiencing the laughter, pain, and wonder that the show inspired for us as a community. I am always in awe of our students’ creativity, talent, and hard work. While it was a bittersweet moment, as this was the last play staged in the Fitz, it was an exceptional tribute to that space and all of the amazing theater performances that have been featured in it.  

And, of course, Halloween at SA is always a completely joyful experience. I truly appreciate the enthusiasm and energy that our community pours into this holiday every year, and I am always a spirited participant (this year as Cowboy Ken). It was especially fun to gather in the gym together for a parade so that everyone could have a good look at the many creative costumes and hilarious ensembles. A special shout out to some of the creative group costumes: the cast of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, the crew from Sesame Street, a whole slate of Pixar characters, the Tech Team as Tetris pieces, and a huge crew of staffulty Barbies and Kens! 

The joy of learning is also present even when our students engage with serious subject matter. Over the past two days, our Humanities faculty have hosted a lunchtime learning series for students and staffulty, providing historical context and political background information on the tragic conflict happening in Israel and Gaza. Yesterday, Brandon Spars, who teaches an Advanced Studies Comparative Religions course, informed the group about the ancient history of the region, while Jaime Murray provided information on the Jewish Diaspora leading up to the 20th century and rise of Zionism. Today, our dynamic Humanities II team —  which includes new faculty member Sourash Amani, who teaches a Middle Eastern Studies seminar this semester, David Hyde, and Kerry Hanlon — guided us through a 20th century exploration that included the founding of Israel, the Six-Day War of 1967, and the various peace accords that occurred toward the end of the century. It has been an honor to participate in these sessions and I am so thankful to our teachers for providing our community with such thoughtfully prepared presentations on this profoundly complicated situation. I look forward to our third session, which will guide us through a thoughtful discussion about more current events and the ongoing conflict.  

And, finally, our student athletes and fans are savoring the joy of victory and the satisfaction of teamwork over the past two weeks. Wednesday was a big night for both our Cross Country team and Varsity Boys Soccer. We honored our Cross Country seniors at a Senior Night celebration, and then kicked-off the first game of the NCS soccer playoffs. Under the lights and the awesome new scoreboard at Ziemer Field, the #1 seed Coyotes picked up a huge 3-0 win. Tonight they take on the Athenian School at 7:00 pm in the NCS semifinals. Win or lose, we are all so proud of all of our student athletes, who demonstrate such great sportsmanship, teamwork, and Coyote pride in all of our sports. Come out to support them tonight and throughout the next two seasons of SA athletics. 

As we enter the busy holiday weeks before the end of the first semester, I hope our students, staffulty, and community members will continue to find these moments of joy at SA. We are all so fortunate to have a school environment that produces such fun and joyful experiences for our students, and you do not want to miss the opportunity to see them in action. That is what brings me the greatest joy in my work, and I am so thankful for that every single day.