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December 2010 Headlines |
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December 15, 2010 Dear Friends,
Active listening is a central element of Friends education, and I am
happy to report that I have endeavored, since Day One of my return to
BFS, to persevere in the practice of this fine art. Thus far, I have
engaged in one-on-one or small group discussions with more than 350
faculty, alumni, students, parents, and members of the Religious Society
of Friends. Participants in such discussions have expressed remarkable
unity in the recognition that BFS' most significant strength has been,
and continues to be the warm, vibrant, stimulating, diverse and deeply
friendly nature of our learning community.
All of us at Brooklyn Friends thrive in an environment in which teachers
and students build powerful, intellectually challenging, emotionally
supportive, and mutually beneficial mentoring relationships with one
another. Quaker values of leadership, service, the search for
non-violent solutions to urgent human problems, and participation in
Meeting receive widespread celebration as sources of the school's
enduring success.
All constituencies appreciate the steps that have been taken over the
past decade to strengthen the academic program, particularly the
adoption of the International Baccalaureate program in the Upper
School. My clear sense of the community's future aspirations is that
they center on continuous curricular strengthening in such areas as:
- expanding global perspectives in the humanities, languages, and social sciences;
- nurturing excellence in quantitative, scientific, and digital literacy, mastery and creativity;
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understanding the scientific, political and economic dimensions
of threats to environmental sustainability and exploring innovative
solutions;
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ensuring that the arts remain central to creative experiential
explorations of the beauty and possibilities of human experience; and
- encouraging the ongoing development of community service
projects, after-school activities, and independent studies that provide a
real-life awareness of the challenges of service and leadership.
Brooklyn Friends School recommits itself to achieve significant progress
in each of these crucial areas of teaching and learning.
Last week you received a letter from me encouraging your participation
in the Brooklyn Friends Fund. Annual Giving helps provide the resources
to sustain our unique learning community and to invest in the growth and
development of its curriculum. To those who have already contributed, I
thank you again. To those who have not yet made a gift, I ask you to
please participate at whatever level is right for you. All gifts --
large, small, and in-between -- help to reach our goal of maximum
community participation.
I wish you and your families a joyous holiday season and look forward to our continuing conversations.
In friendship, Larry
P.S. Please visit the giving section of the website to view a holiday video featuring our students, with music from the Upper School Jazz Band. |
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