March 20, 2020
Dear St. Andrew’s Parents,
Chaplain Isaacs begins our weekly Middle and Upper School Chapels by asking the students and faculty in his booming voice: “ARE YOU HERE?” With our older students leading the way, we roar back at him: “HERE AM I!” After all, school is about showing up, being present, and being together.
During the past three days, from their homes and offices our teachers and administrators have reached out each day to teach class, to hold office hours, to welcome us to Morning Meeting – to ask: “Are you here?” And from their kitchen tables and desks and backyard Adirondack chairs, our students have connected and learned and responded: “Here am I.” I know that it has been a strange and different experience, and so hard not to be physically together. But watching our Lions of all ages adapt and grow and achieve together makes me so proud!
As we begin our well-deserved Spring Break, it has become clear that for the good of our society we will not be able to gather together as a community for at least several more weeks. Therefore St. Andrew’s has determined that
the earliest date we would reopen the Postoak Campus to students and resume in-person classes and activities will be April 27
.
As we collectively accept and live into this unfamiliar time apart, I celebrate the creativity and agility of our faculty and staff who have so quickly transitioned from in-person learning to high-quality distance learning – a massive shift that has stymied many other schools. I celebrate the collaboration and expertise of our administrators for guiding St. Andrew’s wisely and transformatively through this turbulent time. And I celebrate the spirit of Lower, Middle, and Upper School Lions – and their parents! – for joining in so positively as St. Andrew’s moves boldly forward together.
Enjoy your time off from school, my Lions. And remember: We are here, and still we roar!
Faithfully,
