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Blessed Sacrament vs Stone Ridge for K
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Anonymous
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First, it was announced that the LS Head was moving out BEFORE offers were mailed to families and, therefore, well before contracts were due back to the school. IMO, that was not only the fair thing to do, it was the smart thing to do as it communicated that the LS is going to get a face-lift.
Second, to say that there will be 26 children in one room can be deceiving. The "room" is actually a double room that can be turned into two rooms (by pulling one of those walls that folds to the sides). When my older children were in K there were about 35 children in those rooms with 4 teachers and there was more than enough elbow-room for everyone. And the excellent extended facilities added to the school day. Third, it would be nice to be able to predict how many families will accept offers but it would just be a guess. Given that the enrollment has been in flux for more than a few years I don't think anyone wants to risk setting expectations that fail to materialize. My sense is that the Head has been very clear in communicating that her goal is to get the LS enrollment back up near capacity, as it was in the early 2000s. That will mean adding children as they come and adding teachers to maintain the advertised ratios. I don't know how else they can manage the situation except to improve communications which could, no doubt, have been handled better. Hopefully a new LS Head will understand this. Fourth, one of the K teachers (she's been at the school for decades) is nearing retirement and is moving to be in charge of LS music. It's a wise and compassionate move that I think was handled with the appropriate delicacy. The other teacher has two small children and has decided that the demands of the job are more than she wants to handle at this point in her life --- can't fault her or the school for that. Fifth, those questions are excellent questions to ask of any school that is new to you. And they highlight the importance of the school leaders, in this case the Head and next year the Head and the LS Head. They have to earn and keep the trust of the parents so that families can trust in their judgement to make tough decisions in this state of flux. They have a challenging job ahead. If they can increase and stabilize the LS enrollment and hire good, experienced teachers, they will set the school on the right track again. Sixth, if you are already in the school (or are interested in SR for the future), keep asking good questions so the new team doesn't repeat the mistakes of the last decade. And as your girls move on from the LS, don't dismiss it from your mind as it is one of the engines that drives enrollment throughout the rest of the school. |
Anonymous
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I'm afraid that it is true that returning families were asked to sign re-enrollment contracts before it became public that the LS head was moving on, or that the kindergarten teacher who is moving on into a role in LS music wouldn't be teaching the K class. The announcement that the second K teacher won't be returning to teach K next year is more recent. For new families, they found out about the LS head and the one K teacher moving on before their contracts were due.
But I think the PP makes an excellent point - in the end, you've got to ask whether or not you trust the school's administration, and to repeat what so many others have said about head of the entire school - she is excellent and makes people feel immediately comfortable about her level of competence, etc. Also, for what it's worth, her son will be in the K class next year (the school is co-ed up to K), so I can't imagine she'd leave her child with anyone who isn't both capable and good with children. We're not comfortable with 26 children in the K space, but our DD is in pre-K - we're new to all of this so we recognize that alot of sending a first child to school is uncomfortable, and it's really difficult to know what the exact right fit is going to be. So, with all of its challenges right now - and to be sure, there's always some room for improvement, though we've been happy there - we still think SR is a great school. |
Anonymous
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Yes, returning families submitted their contracts before the announcement was made about the LS Head. But I think the writing was on the wall: she was not very visible throughout the school year and her communications with the LS parents were sparse, to say the least. I suspect this decision, too, was handled delicately because she is an alum of the school. But there was a huge sigh of relief from families who had watched in disbelief as the LS declined on her watch. Our experience with her was troubling and we know other parents who use much stronger adjectives.
In any event, I don't envy the people who run schools their jobs. Making the right calls when families have entrusted their children to your care can't be easy. I hope your child has a good experience and stays on through the US. The US Head is a quiet force-of-nature who hopes to make the US into one of the best schools in the DC-area and to whom I hope to entrust one more daughter. |
Anonymous
| Stone Ridge announced today that they have hired the new Lower School Head. Interestingly, it's a man. He seems to have a wealth of experience in elementary education. |
Anonymous
| Is it unusual fir an all-girls' school to have a male Head of School or Division? I know Holton's LS Head is man and I've heard nothing but good things about him. I don't think it's a problem. |
Anonymous
| I think a girls' school should have a woman as the Head of School but as long as that's the case I would go for the best qualified candidate, regardless of sex, for the other positions. This is a first for Stone Ridge though. |
Anonymous
| Interesting. I also heard that SR recently gave away the job of a young woman while she was out on maternity leave. That surprises me about an all girls school if it's true. |
Anonymous
| Highly unlikely that this last post contains accurate information. |
Anonymous
| Visitation has a Head who is a man. Supposedly he married a substantially younger (ex student) graduate. |
Anonymous
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Make that two votes for "Highly unlikely."
I have had children at SR for 10 years, in all three schools, and am aware of many teachers/administrators taking maternity leave and returning without a hitch. Also, not surprisingly, I have known a few who made the choice not to return to work. |
Anonymous
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[quote=Anonymous]Stone Ridge announced today that they have hired the new Lower School Head. Interestingly, it's a man. He seems to have a wealth of experience in elementary education. [/quote]
Seriously - this has got to be a post from the school itself. Transparent. |
Anonymous
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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Stone Ridge announced today that they have hired the new Lower School Head. Interestingly, it's a man. He seems to have a wealth of experience in elementary education. [/quote]
Seriously - this has got to be a post from the school itself. Transparent. [/quote] Why is that a problem? There's pages and pages here about the problems that SR has had because of the Lower School head. One would think that it's good news that might help parents make an informed decision about which school to choose for their child. No more transparent than a press release, right? And you get an awful lot of visibility on DCUM. If it is SR's administration, good thinking to get the word out this way. |
SAM2
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I don't understand why you'd assume this post came from the school. It does not sound that way to me. |
Anonymous
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The post was just reporting facts (and one slight opinion that he "seems" to be well qualified) about a subjevt much discussed on this blog. Seems logical to me that someone would note the announcement here.
As long as the information is accurate who cares who posted it? And I agree that it would smart for the school itself to see to it that the news gets out. |
Anonymous
| I wrote the post in question. I do have girls at SR but I don't work for the school. Honestly, I was just reporting news that I thought would interest families looking at SR. I don't think it would be wrong for the school to post the information, though. |