Dear Upper School Families,

Our first week of class—both online and on campus—is officially a wrap! Well done to everyone.

We were so happy to see kids on campus in classes and other programming events. And clearly, the kids were, too. I know starting with one day a week has been a surprise for many (and has earned me a few emails); we really want to be thoughtful about our back-on-campus plan, and the incremental approach reflects that. It means that we can refine and make adjustments quickly before moving to more days on campus, which we are looking forward to doing.

On Monday, Upper School President Nick Reisner kicked off the week by welcoming all Upper School students at our first US Meeting. Nick also introduced Head of School Kim Samson, who shared her hopes and vision for the year. Watch the meeting.

On Wednesday, during advisory, students heard presentations of different clubs and were asked to sign up for a club. Watch the student-created video of the club options.

On Thursday and Friday, during programming, 9th, 10th, and 11th grade students participated in community-building activities led by advisors and Student Council (such a fantastic group of student leaders we have!). Our seniors gathered on the Cohn Terrace for a safe, physically-distanced ice cream truck celebration, hosted by Ms. Samson.

The switch to Zoom was pretty smooth and the feedback from teachers was that it helped with teaching, especially the functionality of creating breakout rooms and being able to move between them. The improved video and audio quality were also helpful. Other elements of Zoom are making their ways into the classroom, like the whiteboard. For kids, it seemed like a seamless transition, too. Students can review best practices for using Zoom in the classroom here.

We are all adjusting to our safety protocols. Kids need reminders to keep physically distant, but they are partnering with all of us and want our community to thrive. As a reminder, here are the protocols for students to remember.

🖨Here is a printable version of the schedule.

Thank you all for your continued commitment in filling out the Daily Attestation Magnus form. Yes, the site was down (great timing) but the app works. Click here for more information.

That’s it from me. Have a great weekend.