Dear Lower School Families,

Happy May! the month of the year named for the Roman goddess Maia, who oversaw the growth of plants. May is the last month of spring, a time of rebirth and new beginnings. May is also the last month of school for our students. As your gardens blossom and distance learning continues, may this also be a time for new beginnings for our country.

“At first people refuse to believe that a strange new thing can be done, then they begin to hope it can be done, then they see it can be done—then it is done and all the world wonders why it was not done centuries ago.”

- Francis Hodgson Burnett

Dr. Dan Scoggin communicated last week that a survey would be deployed this week to seek your feedback on remote learning, primarily on the use of Google Classrooms. With the frequency of communication we’re providing already and the balance of work we know our families are juggling, combined with the few weeks we have left of school, we’ve altered this survey plan. Instead, toward the end of the school year (mid-May), we will ask for your reflections on the entire remote learning journey.

May Timeline

Financial Assistance

We recognize that financial circumstances for many of our families may have changed recently due to the challenges facing our community. Great Hearts Irving is honored to offer financial assistance in many areas to families who qualify. If you have recently experienced changes in your income, your living situation, or the number of people living in your household, you may now qualify for financial assistance and are encouraged to fill out an application online. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Thomas.Beyer@greatheartsirving.org.

Field Day Shirts

Our Field Day shirts this year feature a beautiful design by Coach Hess, and while it is a shame we were not able to celebrate Field Day on campus, we do still have a number of shirts available. If you did not order a shirt and would like one, they will be on sale for $10 in the courtyard each Monday during packet pick-up and drop-off between 8am and 3pm. Please bring exact change in cash, and reach out to Mary.Rogers@greatheartsirving.org with questions.

PSO Officers

The Great Hearts Parent Service Organization supports our school through a generous and passionate commitment. As a parent and/or guardian, you have joined a community of like-minded families dedicated to the success of Great Hearts Irving and its students. Please contact PSO@greatheartsirving.org to become involved or express interest in joining the PSO leadership team.

Marathon Challenge!

The marathon is a long-distance race instituted in commemoration of the fabled run of Pheidippides, the messenger who famously ran the 26.2 miles from the site of the Battle of Marathon to Athens to proclaim an Athenian victory. Coach Hess and Coach Taft have challenged our families to participate in a marathon challenge, and our amazing faculty have decided to participate as well. Families and faculty shall now see who will be the ultimate marathon champion!

We are grateful to all our families for all you are doing at home with our scholars. We long for the day the doors to school reopen and our halls fill with children. Until then, please continue to share your student’s art, letters to the teachers, singing videos, P.E. challenges, science discoveries, and more. Charles Dickens said, “Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.” We count our blessings of being part of our Great Hearts Irving community.

Sincerely,

Marcy Finn

Headmaster, Lower School

Great Hearts Irving