Admissions decisions were sent to accepted students at 12:01 AM this morning! Proctor had another record setting admissions cycle, but when asked why there is such strong demand for a Proctor education, we often struggle to articulate a concise answer. Proctor’s educational model works not because of a single program, but because of the unique combination of programs and culture undergirding each student’s experience.
I have been looking forward to this term since my application to Proctor. Finally being here closes my time of being a student at Proctor. I sit with my peers on this final night I am truly happy with what this term has given me. Dave always lectures us about living in the moment, and I think those are words that everyone should live by. European Art Classroom has been everything I hoped it would be and more.
Bryan Stevenson gave the keynote address at the annual NAIS conference in San Francisco this past Friday morning. His hour long address passionately wove his life's story with narratives of injustice that permeate our society. Each of us in the audience were moved not only by the power of his oratory skills, but by his challenge to help our schools get ‘real’ with injustice.
The New York Times published this article discussing the frustration of parents dealing with feigned incompetence in their children. We each struggle with this challenge with our own children, but at boarding school we have the unique opportunity of serving as in loco parentis to 360 Proctor students who are not immune to this phenomenon either.
Curious George is one of my children's favorite shows. Maybe it is the way that silly monkey always gets himself into trouble, or perhaps it is how the man with the yellow hat loves George regardless of the mischief he has caused, but there is something wonderful about how George consistently thinks outside the box. Unfortunately, the curiosity that fuels George’s insatiable desire to learn is an attribute we too often teach out of our students as they progress through school.
This week was an adventure as we traveled to London and Brighton, on the coast, south of London. London was exciting and new for me and I fell in love with the city.
We talk to our athletic teams about mental toughness all the time; the ability to face adversity with confidence and determination. The same conversations echo through our classrooms. During this final stretch of the Winter Term, classes work toward culminating projects. Students synthesize research, thesis statements, and body paragraphs into term papers, conduct labs in science courses, and begin to prepare for final exams. Challenges abound.
The New Hampshire Primary is finally here! It is a day to celebrate for many reasons, not the least of which being our phones will stop ringing at all hours from pollers looking to get predictive data on the election. It is incredibly exciting to live in New Hampshire as the first Presidential primary votes in the country are cast. Of course, the Proctor community is taking full advantage of the learning opportunities that accompany the Presendital primary process.
