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Assistant Head of School

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Upper School

Upper School

A Message from the Assistant Head of School

Dear BFS Families,

Welcome to the 2022-2023 school year! I hope that the summer has allowed for meaningful family time and that you were able to engage in activities that brought you joy and happiness.

This past month, as a yoga teacher trainee, I reflected daily about pedagogy, curriculum, Quaker education, and the important work we all do at BFS. No matter the location—a yoga mat, the stage, a science lab—the most expansive learning provides multiple points of entry for students and empowers students to be active authors in their education. In a yoga class, no two people will embody a pose in exactly the same way, and this adds to the connective tissue of the shared experience. Likewise, each of our students this year will have a unique experience in Meeting for Worship, the art studio, or math class, thus collectively creating our living, thriving BFS community.

Being a student and a learner always brings me joy, whether I am in a formal classroom setting or not. Each summer, our Colleagues engage in a shared reading. This spring, after soliciting suggestions from Colleagues—and receiving so many good ideas—we decided on Liza Talsan’s The Identity Conscious Educator as our common read, which we will use throughout the upcoming school year. In addition, each Colleague selected a second work from the following options: bell hooks’ All About Love, Quian Julie Wang’s Beautiful Country, and a documentary about the Silk Road Ensemble, The Music of Strangers. This fall, in small groups, colleagues will discuss the works in the context of our mission and values as a school. Please see Page 10 for information about each selection.

Many of our colleagues also engaged in professional development this summer, including: graduate school courses; an International Baccalaureate Conference; literacy workshops, such as the Reading and Writing Institute at Teachers College; the NAIS Diversity Leadership Institute; and workshops with the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater and the Folger Shakespeare Theater.

It has also been wonderful to be back at school and see the preparations underway for the school year. In my position, I am so fortunate to witness the tremendous work of those who care for your children every day and who see the divine light in each of them. In particular, I want to highlight our four division heads, who have built strong teams that move our mission forward, as you will see in this manual.

Finally, I hope that your summers have contained rest and recharge. The final pose in a yoga class, one of rest, can be considered the most important pose. Rest also has important implications for learning and the consolidation of memory. As we collectively enter into this school year, I am so excited for your children and families. The new year stretches ahead with so many possibilities. It is an honor to share it with you.

In peace and joy,

Suzie Matthews Assistant Head of School

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