A Celebration of Service: Fay Honors Retiring Faculty and Staff This spring, the Fay community had an opportunity to say thank you to a group of faculty and staff who retired in June after many years of dedicated service. These individuals, from many disciplines and departments, have each in their own way made an indelible mark on Fay and contributed to the life of the School. This past fall, Fay’s Board of Trustees announced that, in considering how the School might ease the transition to retirement for senior faculty and staff while honoring their many years of dedicated service to the School, it unanimously approved a voluntary early retirement incentive plan for senior members of the Fay faculty and staff. This option was offered to eight employees with twenty or more years of full-time service with the School, and all eight chose to participate in the plan and to retire at the end of the academic year. Members of the Fay community gathered at a number of events throughout the spring to celebrate the retirees’ achievements, including receptions at Founders’ Weekend and a party on June 3. The three most senior faculty—Bob Parsons, Chips Norcross, and Carole Naumes—were further honored at the 2011 Commencement Exercises with the title of Faculty Emeritus. At the June 3 event, which was attended by nearly 400 members of the Fay community, Head of School Rob Gustavson remarked, “When taken together, the personal qualities and professional talents of these individuals represent the best of Fay.
Collectively, this group embodies dedication and genuine care—for the subjects they teach, for the students and families they serve, for the colleagues they respect, and for the school they love.” Rob also thanked Director of Finance and Operations Gary Reed, who retired this year after twelve years of service to Fay, noting that he “has shown how much can be accomplished in a relatively short period of time when key initiatives are guided by a talented person with a constructive mindset, an optimistic attitude, and a service-oriented approach.” Rob said of all the retirees, “They have dedicated their careers in service to the belief that an outstanding education in elementary and middle school can change the course of children’s lives in fundamental and transformative ways, and the results of their excellent work have proved that this is true. Each of us is here today because we share their steadfast commitment to this belief, and we are profoundly grateful for gifts they have provided to us, to our children, and to our School.”