Welcome Upper School Students

Dear Upper School Families,

I hope this summer provided you and your family some much needed time for reconnection, exciting vacation activities, and new experiences that created lasting memories. This summer was especially relaxing and restorative for me. I’ve logged many miles overland driving the last few months (which is a great way to see our country), read several books that have been gathering on my growing collection on the nightstand, and I was able to mark a few items off my bucket list like attending the Indianapolis 500 and learning how to fly fish. Mrs. Jones and I also enjoyed a lovely week in British Columbia, Canada. 

However, as the days draw closer to the beginning of the year, I find myself getting increasingly excited to welcome everyone back to campus and to re-engaging with our work of ambitious teaching and learning. I appreciate the slower pace and the quiet space to work in the summer, but frankly, the Upper School is pretty boring when everyone is gone. The daily interaction with students and teachers is what makes this work meaningful. 

This school year will feature the completion of the first compilation of completed Seek and Find Academic Research projects. I’ve been very impressed with the topics presented by the Class of 2025. I look forward to our students sharing their work with you toward the end of the year. 

You have likely seen, heard, or read about new warnings around student cell phone usage,  interruptions to learning, and associated challenges to teens in terms of anxiety and depression. Anecdotally, I have observed cell phones and associated technology usage negatively affect our person-to-person interactions in the Upper School and impede the focus of our students in the classroom. Merely asking students to put away their phones in pockets or backpacks has not helped curtail usage. In fact, research suggests that the presence of a smartphone in close proximity to a person limits their ability to focus. As a result, we will be asking students in grades 9 and 10 to place their cell phones in a specifically designated cell phone storage cabinet at the beginning of the day and during class periods throughout the day. Students in grades 11 and 12 will have the ability to maintain control of their devices, but the expectation is that cell phones will not be present or used during the school day. Students who fail to store their devices as expected will be issued infractions and will be subject to consequences according to our policies.

We have much to look forward to and be excited about for this school year. Mostly, I am looking forward to seeing everyone, watching the halls and the classrooms come back to life, and seeing  what we can accomplish individually and together as we charge forward.

All best wishes for a wonderful school year,

Timothy A. Jones, M.Ed.

Head of Upper School 

Associate Head of School for Strategic Initiatives