'Raising children with purpose' is shared goal at Lower School Back-to-School Night

"We are in partnership with you about raising children who will let their lives speak," imparted Friends Academy's Interim Lower School Principal Alfred (Rik) F. Dugan III to a crowded room of parents and caregivers, as he and Lower School faculty kicked off Back-to-School Night for grades Play Group to 4th.

As attending parents gathered in the newly renovated areas of the Lower School, including bright open corridors, a gleaming lobby, and polished classrooms, they had the opportunity to sit in their children's seats and view school through their eyes. "If you have a five- or seven-year-old, you are not just raising a five-year-old," shared Principal Dugan, "you are raising a 35-year-old who happens to be five today. What we can do here is make sure they grow into that adult they need to be," he added.

The evening began with a formal welcome in the Kumar Wang Library, which was also renovated over the summer, with a greeting from Head of School Paul J. Stellato. Then, family members either headed to their child's classroom or to the Lower School Library to experience an exposition-style presentation of the Lower School special area subjects such as Science, Math, Music, Art, Dance, and PE where attending faculty presented curricular overviews, answered questions, and offered interactive handouts.

"When we say we see the light in each child, we mean it," remarked Principal Dugan, as he praised the efforts and expertise of Lower School faculty. "By seeing, hearing, understanding, knowing, and cherishing our students, we want to ensure that they grow up to be whole, not hollow; that they have a sense of self and identity; and that within and around them, we honor the beauty of our diverse community," he said.

This fall, all Lower School classrooms feature newly installed Promethan Boards, which offer simultaneous multi-touch (multiple students can work on the screen at the same time), wireless screen sharing from student devices with easy switching between them, and numerous interactive built-in teaching activities. "The screen-sharing feature will make it very easy for students to show and present their work in real-time to classmates and their teacher," explained Director of Technology Ken Ambach.

"Inspiring joyful, academic excellence is our main pursuit and we are challenging our students to reach beyond their grasp," said Principal Dugan. "Our faculty does this by focusing on the core of our curriculum – our new 10-day schedule helps with this – while maintaining a space for wellness and a focus on the programming that makes Friends Academy different."

While excellence in teaching and learning permeated the evening with vibrant displays of children's work thus far in the year, Principal Dugan emphasized the critical importance of the work of a Quaker educator. "We focus on how we live our mission every day and our world is calling for this. Our school gives us the opportunity to raise our children with compassion, purpose, and Quaker values."