HALLOWEEN PARADE!

From The Head Of School

There is always a special feeling on a school campus in the early fall. The faculty, the staff, and all the students return from their summer so excited to start a new year. In my over 30 new school years, this has undoubtedly been one of the best! Our return to school—unencumbered by masks, social distancing, and limited in-person celebrations—has made me appreciate even more the magic of our community as we return to a pre-pandemic level of joyful engagement.

To be back in-person for our Annual Meeting, WalkathonHomecoming-Reunion weekend, the Halloween Parade, the book fair, and back-to-school nights has been nothing short of wonderful. These traditions mean so much to us and it has also been really exciting to start some new traditions, such as winning our first FAA championship in soccer this fall—the first of many, I’m sure!

In this issue we also celebrate our faculty and staff—our approach to cultivating teachers new to the profession and how a growth mindset is encouraged for all faculty and staff; elementary science teacher Beth McDonough, who reinforces that learning is never done; Upper School faculty, who collaborated to make the fall play, Radium Girls, a truly interdisciplinary endeavor; coaches and trainers for their holistic approach to supporting student athletes; Distinguished Faculty & Staff honorees for 25 years of service; and a true GCDS legend— Debbie Blake Kerrick—on the occasion of the dedication of the Performing Arts Center Theater in her name.

I hope you enjoy this edition of the GCDS News as I think it does a great job of capturing the excitement and the enthusiasm of learning at GCDS!