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This Week
No St. Mark's Saturdays Classes This Weekend
SM Saturdays classes are NOT scheduled for this weekend. As a reminder, Saturday classes meet from 9:00 to 11:30 a.m., and School Meeting begins the day at 8:40 a.m. The remaining spring SM Saturdays dates are: April 29, May 6, and May 13.
No Classes Monday, April 17
A reminder that there will be no classes this Monday, April 17.
Academics
Reminder: Feedback From Window Three Now Available
Grades and comments from Window Three were posted to the Parent Portal on Tuesday, April 11. For help accessing the portal, please reference this email.
Admission
Reminder: Re-Enrollment Contract Update
Over the past few weeks, most parents of current III, IV, and V Formers received a 2023-2024 contract for next year. However, if the contract(s) for your family is 'On Hold' by any of the School's departments, it will not be sent until the hold has been lifted. Additionally, if a family was late in completing a financial aid application for next year's re-enrollment, but has submitted all required materials to the FA Office since our last communication in March, your contract will released on April 15.
Re-Enrollment Timeline:
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Contracts released March 13—April 15: re-enrollment contracts have been, and will continue to be, sent out in waves during this period. Contracts are released online via email from info+stmarksschool@schooladminonline.com (with a unique invitation link). Please make note: the subject line of the email you will be receiving for this is "Accessing St. Mark’s School’s Online Enrollment Portal." Important: in order for each parent to sign the contract(s), you must use your own authentication code sent to you in the email generated from our database on behalf of Admissions. Each code is unique to each parent and is tied to each parent's email address. Trying to access in other ways simply will not work.
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Ongoing: as deposits are confirmed with submitted contracts, the Admission Office will periodically send out countersigned contract copies to your family. We appreciate your patience with the countersigned copies, as our offices are trying to process a large volume of these as quickly as we can! This includes processing both new student and returning student contracts at the same time. Even if you choose to submit your deposit via credit card or electronic check, there are still steps we have to take in our offices to confirm and process these deposits.
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By April 20: completed re-enrollment contracts and deposits are due by the end of this business day. Reminder: deposits are separate from tuition.
If you have any questions or do not receive your contract by April 15, please contact our admission staff at admission@stmarksschool.org.
Arts
Cutler Jazz Festival
Come and enjoy a wonderful evening of jazz! The concert is free and open to the public, and will take place on Sunday, April 23, at 6:30 p.m. in the Putnam Family Arts Center’s Class of '45 Hall. A reception will follow for an opportunity to greet the artists.
The Cutler Jazz Festival is an annual event that features and celebrates the St. Mark’s Jazz Band and St. Mark’s musicians who perform in the jazz and popular music areas. Each year, the group hosts bands from area schools as well as esteemed professional players. Jazz bands from BB&N, MIT, and Canton High School have joined us in the past, as well as esteemed guest artists such as Bill Pierce, Ralph Peterson, George Garzone and the Fringe, and the BT/ALC Big Band who have performed and conducted master classes for St. Mark’s students.
This year St. Mark's welcomes the world renowned saxophonist and percussionist Yosvany Terry, who also conducts jazz ensembles at Harvard University. According to The New York Times, “Mr. Terry, a Cuban-born, conservatory-trained musician who moved to New York in 1999, has centered his career on such multilevel fluencies. In recent years, along with a few other bandleaders of similar background, he has helped reframe the sound of Afro-Cuban jazz in New York, reaching for a flexibly cerebral, harmonically advanced and culturally resonant kind of fusion.” St. Mark's will also welcome a group of musicians from the MIT Jazz Band under the direction of Keala Kaumeheiwa.
Athletics
Spring Schedules and Updates
The spring athletic season is off and running with our first full slate of spring games on Wednesday, April 11! We have been fortunate with the weather this week, but please continue to check your student's game schedules on the website if/when inclement weather comes our way: https://www.stmarksschool.org/athletics/teams. Game scores and updates will also be communicated through our SM Athletics social media accounts. Twitter: @SMSSports Instagram: @SMAthletics
Team of the Week: Girls' Varsity Tennis
The girls' varsity tennis team has had a strong start to the season! Last Wednesday, the girls defeated Worcester Academy 7-0. All three doubles teams won all three matches. Ali Grenon '23 had an exciting comeback in the first set to win her match in 2 sets. Ivy Li '23, Riya Sulur '23 and Katelyn Yang '24 also won their matches in 2 sets. To finish the week, the girls defeated Middlesex 9-0. Once again, the doubles teams won all three of their matches. All six singles won their matches, but the most exciting match was Sulur beating her opponent in a tie breaker 11-9 after dropping the first set. Tennis now prepares for matches against Rivers and BB&N!
Thank you to Mia Overbye ‘24 for writing the Team of the Week!
Alumni Spotlight: Sophie Student '20
Sophie Student is off to a great start at the University of North Carolina as a member of the women's lacrosse team! Student is in her first year as a Tar Heel after spending her freshman and sophomore years at Virginia Tech. Student has made an immediate impact for the defending NCAA DI national champions as she has started in 11 games with 10 goals and 1 assist for the 11-2 Tar Heels. UNC currently sits at #5 in the most recent NCAA DI national rankings with an 11-2 record. At St. Mark's, Sophie was an Under Armour All-American, U.S. Lacrosse All-American, and ISL MVP. She helped lead St. Mark’s to ISL championships in 2018 and 2019 and was also awarded the William G. Thayer Prize on Prize Day.
College Counseling
Paying Less for College Parent Webinar on April 25
Parents of III, IV, and V Form students, please join us for an introductory SMARTTRACK webinar, What Parents Need to Know Now about Paying Less for College, on Tuesday, April 25, at 8:00 p.m. EDT. Save the date now! We'll send webinar access information closer to April 25.
Community and Equity
Weekly Reflection
As we make our way through busy and pressing final months of school, Rick DaSilva and Lizzy Jones invite the community to participate in a more focused exercise utilizing the weekly prompt.
At St. Mark’s, we celebrate personal, academic, and social growth, but we sometimes lose sight of the weight we carry as we navigate our lives. May the words and perspective selected this week, inspire self-reflection, empowerment, and meaningful conversations.
This week's prompt: Nelson Mandela once said, “Do not judge me by my success, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.”
Reflecting on this statement, think about the ways you have met resistance and have possibly fallen down in regard to challenges faced in any aspect of your life. What helped you push through? What helped you get back up?
Community Life and Student Engagement
Weekend Activities
Want to know what's happening this weekend? Check out the Weekend Activities Google Doc for on-campus events and trips to off-campus locations.
Leadership Selection Information
We are in the midst of leadership selection for next year. Following the announcement of the 2023-2024 Monitors, the leadership selection process will continue with interviews for House Prefect, Peer Discussion Leader, Pathways Prefects, and SDC positions.
As you work to support your student through this process, we look for your partnership in encouraging strong self-reflection and clarity with regard to motivation. Our process is designed to help students think critically about seeking leadership roles as opposed to simply casting the net wide for the purposes of padding a resume. Our leadership information session, which was held prior to March Break, allowed students to hear from current leaders and advisors regarding the specifics of each role and applicable skill sets. We held group interviews and training sessions, which engaged students in role plays and problem-solving, allowing candidates to practice skills and explore their level of interest in serving the School community.
In addition, it is critical for students to think about their vision for the next academic year. This is especially important for rising VI formers. Housing choices, academic schedules, personal workload, study habits, and hopes for recreational time are all items we ask students to consider before completing the application process.
In short, it is our hope that the leadership selection process allows students to seek leadership roles that are in line with their desire to serve. Outside of the dedicated leadership roles, we are careful to remind students that we need all students to prioritize St. Mark's school work. Students who elect not to seek one of the dedicated roles are encouraged to stay tuned for information on how to contribute to the community through opportunities such as serving as a Pathways affinity group leader, admission tour guide, library prefect, Quad Games captain, peer mentor, and more.
Thank you for partnering with us to help students discover their goals and develop meaningful skills beyond the classroom. We will communicate leadership selection decisions for Pathways Prefects, House Prefects, Peer Discussion Leaders, and Student Discipline Committee representatives at the end of April.
2023-2024 Housing Information
The 2023-2024 student housing process will begin after the conclusion of the leadership selection process. For returning boarding students, housing is selected and assigned through a lottery system by form. A housing information session will be scheduled and announced in the coming weeks; during this meeting, students will be introduced to the process, and they will have an opportunity to ask questions.
For the time being, students are encouraged to think about a peer in their same form who would be a good roommate. Students should think about what is most important to them in a roommate, and they should consider sleeping habits, room atmosphere, and levels of socialization in the room. Please ask your student for their thoughts about housing and rooming preferences, and remind them that their closest friend may not always be their ideal roommate. Single rooms are extremely limited, so students should begin by thinking about potential roommate pairings.
The number draw, a required first component of the housing lottery process, will take place on Monday, May 5, 2023, during the evening hours. Questions about the housing process can be directed to Maggie Caron, dean of student engagement at margaretcaron@stmarksschool.org
Reminder: Prize Day 2023 is Saturday, June 10
The 158th Prize Day ceremony will be held on campus Saturday, June 10, 2023, at 10:30 a.m. under a tent on Belmont Field. For more information about Prize Day, as well as answers to frequently asked questions, please visit our Prize Day webpage.
Advancement
Giving Thanks
Thank you to all who participated in this year's Giving Day! The results of our community coming together in support of the School, including all that parents did through their volunteer and philanthropic efforts, will be shared over the next couple of days. Kudos to all, with deep appreciation.
Please Save the Date for These Upcoming Events
Speaker Series for Parents: Artificial Intelligence in Education
Presented by the Parents’ Association
Saturday, April 29, from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. EDT (in person and virtually)
Forbes Presentation Room, St. Mark’s School
Join Dean of Academics Nat Waters for an important and informative discussion about the role of artificial intelligence in education. Partner with the School, and hear how St. Mark’s educators are thinking about the implications of AI for our students' coursework, as well as their preparation for life and careers. Register here to attend in person or virtually.
State of the School for Parents with Head of School John C. Warren '74 Wednesday, May 10, at 7:00 p.m. EDT
Join Mr. Warren as he reflects on the current state of St. Mark's. This on-campus event will also be offered via livestream for those unable to attend in person.
Around the Quad
The Search for our Next Head of School
The Head of School Search webpage provides information for our community on the search for St. Mark's next Head of School. Please stay tuned to this newsletter for future updates on the search as it progresses.
SALE at the Online School Store
Looking for a St. Mark's gift and can't make it campus? Shop the online St. Mark's School store here. For the month of April, receive 20 percent off grad signs and banners. Plus, orders totaling $50 or more receive free shipping. Happy shopping!
For More on What's Happening Inside the Pride
View photos from campus on our School's SmugMug page.
Read the latest news stories on our website.
Watch videos from St. Mark's on YouTube.
Enjoy the latest issue of St. Mark's Magazine.
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