Sometimes the busiest weekends are the ones where our community shines most brightly. The past 72 hours were packed with games, activities, races, and moments where the best of Proctor was on display. 

As a school, we can become so focused on “doing” that we do not take the necessary time to listen to our parents, to our students, to our colleagues, and to those who share in this grand experiment in building an intentional community at Proctor.

With a busy schedule of advisory breakfast, assembly, conferences, immersion blocks, more conferences, and games on tap for Spring Family Weekend, Head of School Brian Thomas shared a simple piece of advice to visiting families: be present with your child over the next 24 hours. 

As parents of young children, we were often reminded not to blink, reassured that while the days were long, the years were short. In the midst of sleepless nights, incessant changing of diapers, and tantruming toddlers, this advice fell on largely deaf ears. But now that our kids are older, well, we blinked. 

Later this week, Proctor’s campus will begin to bustle with students arriving for the start of the 2021-2022 school year. The majority of these students will be returning to Proctor, while 117 new students will be commencing a journey at Proctor with Wilderness Orientation. As we prepare for the arrival of our students, we share thoughts on what it means to be a Proctor parent because we all know the transition for parents is far harder than our students! 

Birds are chirping, music is playing, and it is currently 64 degrees and sunny with a slight breeze coming from 200 degrees south of Vauvengares. The bright, fluid aquamarine colored pool appears so inviting… until you jump in, which our entire group did on Monday after our somewhat sweat breaking body pump with Dave. Did we regret it? No. Would we do it again? Potentially.

Fall Family Weekend 2019 kicks off with the 29th Annual Proctor Invitational Golf Tournament at Lake Sunapee Country Club Thursday morning, followed by an open house at Mike and Betsy’s home for all parents later that evening. On Friday, parents are invited to attend two classes followed by all-school assembly, athletic practices, and Parent/Teacher conferences before a two Friday evening games. On Saturday morning, boarding families and day families are invited to gather for socializing and breakfast in the Brown Dining Commons before Parent/Teacher conferences and athletic contests round out the weekend. Parents, click below for a complete schedule for Fall Family Weekend and read on for advice on how we believe you can get the most out of the weekend ahead.

From the earliest moments of welcoming our first child into the world, my wife and I realized parenthood would be filled with contradictions. We desperately needed sleep, but craved those moments of solitude when our son would finally stop crying. Eleven years later, we know he and his siblings need independence, but feel hardwired to protect them from the unknown. This dichotomy of parenthood we experience daily pales in comparison to the emotions our incoming families experience on Registration Day. Even when you know Proctor is the right school for your child, saying goodbye is far from easy.