Dear St. Michael’s Parents and Families—
Happy 2020 to everyone!
It’s good to be back on campus with the teachers and students after a nice long break, and it’s been great reconnecting with a number of you these past few days. I hope you all enjoyed the time away. My family trip to Asia—my first time ever—was quite the experience. We had the aide of a local guide to recommend places of cultural interest, and to help us navigate and avoid the protests in Hong Kong, which seem to be heightening in intensity with each passing week. We can only hope the city finds peace soon enough, as we hope is the outcome in a number of parts of the world.
There are a few important events coming up. Next Wednesday, we will honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by participating in our annual upper school St. Michael’s city-wide day of service (for grades six through eight; students in grade five will participate in an on-campus activity with Ben’s Bells ). One of the traditions we hold dear, one integral to our identity as an Episcopal school, is this day of service. In partnership with a number of local non-profits, our participation as a school community in helping make Tucson a better place is something I am proud of, and service is a value that will remain integral to our future growth as a school. I appreciate the good work of our school chaplain, Mother Clare Yarborough, and our upper school director, Alex Hawes, and the upper school faculty in planning for this day.
Please know you are invited—and encouraged—to attend our annual marquee musical-theatre performance on the weekend of January 24-26. Please connect through our website to purchase tickets for the performance, or visit with our parent volunteers (or with Dr. A himself!) during the morning arrival time or afternoon dismissal time. This year, Dr. Antista and his theatre staff—and, above all, our very talented student actors and singers—are proud to present the junior version of Steven Sondheim’s Broadway blockbuster, Into the Woods. This annual event is another longstanding tradition at St. Michael’s, and we hope you join us.
Parent conferences are also taking place this month. If you have yet to do so, please schedule your time with your child’s teacher at your earliest convenience. Among a number of important topics, teachers and parents will have an opportunity to review the more recent results of our Renaissance assessments in reading and math. These results provide a snapshot of progress for individual students, and they provide a good sense, writ large, of how we are progressing academically as a school. Teachers in turn are able to respond more quickly throughout the year with their instruction to best support the changing academic needs of our students. Our transition to Renaissance, after months of thoughtful benchmarking and research last year with our faculty, was done with this central goal in mind—to strengthen teaching and learning. I have been encouraged by these more recent results school-wide and am grateful to our wonderful faculty for their thoughtful and diligent work in the classrooms.
Dr. Teller and I are also grateful to all of you who took the time to respond to our self-study parent survey. Your feedback and comments will provide me with essential data as we take a close look at our areas for growth. These responses, your collective voice, will also help lay the foundation for a compelling strategic vision for 2021 and beyond. I look forward to your participation in that process this coming summer and into the fall.
As a final note, I am excited about the office and restroom remodel and air-conditioning work underway in our lower school, to be completed by the end of this month. These upgrades are a welcomed change to our lower school and a good start to the facility work that lies ahead for the remainder of the campus. We are very grateful to the Tankersley Foundation for their generous financial support of St. Michael’s and this project especially.
Next week, we will be sending to each of you a re-enrollment letter and the enrollment agreements for the 2020-2021 academic year. As always, I encourage you to engage in conversation with our classroom teachers, division directors, or with me, if you have any questions or concerns (e.g., financial or otherwise) about re-enrollment.
I look forward to seeing you in the coming days and weeks. Please know that I and the rest of our administrative team are available as well to meet and chat with you for any questions or concerns you may have.
Happy New Year again, and welcome back!
Brendan Sullivan
Head of School
bsullivan@stmichael.net