Tragic Events Taking Place in our Nation

Today, like so many around our country, I feel great sadness, despair, anger, and frustration. Violence seems to be unfolding at every turn, and it is truly a difficult time to be an American. I write to you today, first and foremost, with my deepest prayers and thoughts going to any and everyone who is hurting right now.

 

As you know, our School Prayer asks for "...Light in this place; Light to the mind; Light to the heart, and Light to the will." 

 

We are a community that aspires to excellence, in all areas of our lives, and we actively promote the following Values:

 

Spirituality...Learning...Dedication...Community...Service...Honor...Respect...Diversity...Balance.

 

These values drive our work and allow us to strive for a greater mission: one that leads us and requires us to help to spread that light. 

 

We are an Episcopal School, and within that identity, we are a community that places great emphasis on inclusivity, on caring for one another, and in the offering of love in all of our actions, to all people.

 

I am so very proud of our ongoing efforts to live within this identity, to practice its tenets, and to both communicate and foster this message as actively and as conscientiously as we can. 

 

As you also well know, we have worked diligently over the years to be a place known for such action, and we are a "School with a soul", as I have so often heard, and remarked, over the years.

 

With this mission in mind, I ask that we continue to place the highest value on this love for one another, and, consequently, shift our attention even more urgently to our nation during this challenging time.

 

We recognize the hurt of the families of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery.  We send our hearts and prayers to those families, and to the African-American communities across our nation.

 

We also proclaim that violence is not the answer.

 

To that end, I have asked our Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Coordinators, Ms. Ashley Armato, and Dr. Aldo Regalado, to organize support groups for anyone wishing to discuss these recent events. Details will be forthcoming, but these opportunities will become available after final assessments conclude. We remain committed to educating on these issues through our Mosaic program and its broader work in promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion.

 

Summer is nearly upon us, and the hustle and bustle of life will subside. I ask, however, that you continue to "spread" the guiding light, and know that I am grateful to serve in this good work we do. 

 

I continue to send you good thoughts and encouragement to stay safe and strong and carry the greater message of those values and the mission of our beloved School.