Letter from Head of School

Dear Friends,

A wonderful tradition at Norwood School occurs each year in October— the annual Multicultural Festival, when the Norwood community gathers to celebrate the diverse world in which we live, as well as the variety of cultures represented among our own families. Members of our school community serve as “country captains,” sharing educational material, displays, native dress, art, music, dance, crafts, and food from the country they represent. The whole school is able to “take a trip around the world” in just 90 minutes! To watch our community—students, parents, teachers—come together in joy and celebration always makes for a truly magical experience.

But the Multicultural Festival is not just a great event. It symbolizes key elements of the Norwood School philosophy and represents important core values that we hold so dear. First and foremost, the Festival highlights knowledge. Our students learn about the various countries in depth. They come to understand the language, food, climate, customs, major religions, geography, and influential people of each particular region. Depth of understanding is a hallmark of Norwood School education and this certainly plays itself out each year at the Multicultural Festival.

Another key component to a Norwood School education is creativity. Creativity abounds at this particular event. Food, performances, clothes, displays—each one brings a country to life and no two are the same! Creativity is incredibly important at Norwood as we believe it will be a crucial mindset for our students to carry with them into their later school years as well as into the future workplace. Creative minds are successful minds.

Anyone who has been involved in the planning of a large-scale event such as this one understands the importance of positive and productive collaboration. This year’s leaders—Jonathan Beninson, Lida Beninson, Ashley Piraino, and Ikneet Sethi—brought together nearly 100 volunteers to make this community event a phenomenal success. When our student see adults model collaborative behavior, melding different perspectives and ideas, they begin to understand the infinite power of many minds working together.

The Multicultural Festival brings to life the power of our very unique school community. I am always delighted to see so many family members attend the event because I know how important it is for the children to see their parents at school. The home-school partnership that is created at Norwood is genuine, and it is truly evident at this annual event. It speaks to the wonderful diversity that exists within our school and how appreciative our families are of the rich diversity that works and plays together in this community. Finally, an integral part of Norwood’s program is its emphasis on global education. With our country becoming more diverse and with our world becoming more interconnected, it is incumbent upon our school to appropriately prepare our students for life in this ever-changing world. The Multicultural Festival, I hope, helps to open our students’ eyes to the vast human diversity of our planet and broadens their perspective to a global one.

Whether they are on display at a community event like the Multicultural Festival or imparted by our talented teachers during a classroom lesson, these core values— knowledge, creativity, collaboration, community, and global education—guide our students throughout their Norwood experience and beyond, inspiring confident, compassionate, independent, and creative thinkers who embrace lifelong learning.

Yours sincerely,

Matthew A. Gould, Ph.D. Head of School