Weekly Newsletter Emailed Each Sunday During the School Year.
May 17, 2020 Celebrating the Class of 2020 The weekend of May 9-10, every senior living locally and in the United States received, either by hand-delivery or by mail, a senior gift package that included a commemorative yard sign, Post-Prom gifts, and a senior photo. Our international students living outside the United States will be receiving theirs soon, along with their diplomas and graduation programs. To see some of the photos of seniors with their signs, please log in and visit the Vidigami album here, or see this Google folder. Upload photos of your own senior, too!
Dive Into This Week's News Read The Latest News Across Our Divisions On The SSFS Website.
News At Your Fingertips Your Mobile-Friendly Email Digest of our Weekly Must-Know Information And More. All-School "Must-Know" Info for May 17, 2020
The calendar information below is for all-school, multi-divisional, and/or Parent Association events and activities in the coming weeks. Please see the Lower School, Middle School, or Upper School sections for division-specific "must-know" info, or visit the Calendar web page to see the full calendar.
Our annual fundraiser for financial aid is happening! We will launch a week-long online auction opening May 25 and culminate with a shortened "live" event held remotely on May 30. Visit our PA Auction page online for all the event details and for how you can participate. While we've been away from campus, construction on the new Upper School building has been proceeding. See all the progress and take a floor-by-floor virtual tour with David Hickson and Julie Mendez. It's looking great! Please join us for the last INTERSECT meeting of the year on Saturday, May 23, 2020 at 10:30 am via Zoom. INTERSECT is the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Initiative for SSFS Parents and Guardians. We are all juggling so much right now. We want to be careful in not asking too much of you, but also build on what we started this year. Thank you to all of the incredible parent volunteers this year! You have made our community brighter and stronger. We thank you, and appreciate all of your contributions, no matter how big or small. As we transition from one school year to the next, the PA Clerks would like to thank the outgoing members of the Executive Committee – Allison Gilbert, Patrice Simms, Kathy Dalton, Shruti Jain Purnam, and Lauren Deichman. We extend heartfelt thanks to you all for your commitment and leadership.
Thank you for your willingness to be part of parent leadership and your dedication to our school. Grounded in experiential and project-based learning, and with inquiry, reflection, and action at the core of its mission, the Senior Projects Pilot Program for 2019-2020 is a selective, elective, independent, learner-centered and self-directed passion project that affords qualified and approved participants the opportunity to let their lives speak beyond the traditional high school environment by sampling a potential career, serving the community, or exploring a deep personal interest that culminates in a formal and reflective presentation to a panel of faculty, staff, alumni and Trustees on the expectations, challenges, lessons and rewards of said experience. Please join us on Wednesday, June 3, 6:30-8:45 PM (EST) for a Virtual Project Presentation Program. See the Senior Passion Project web page for program information, which includes brief presentations from each of our 12 seniors, as well as questions from panelists. It looks to be a special and entertaining evening! We invite everyone to help us celebrate the culmination of this very special capstone program. An email with Zoom information will be sent soon. The SSFS Auction Committee is asking for short videos of students answering one or two questions that help shine a light on our great community. Please share with your children, ask them to participate. Details on how to submit videos available HERE. Join the whole SSFS Athletics Department as they take on this week's challenge — Wall Sits! Be sure to watch all the way to the end to hear Franny's advice! As always, remember to invite a friend to participate in this challenge, and share your photos using #ssfsbeestworkout. ICYMI: As we continue to celebrate Ben Uzzell’s life, members of the senior class have created a ‘YeahBen4L’ t-shirt. The idea of this shirt was to create something that Ben himself would wear, thus giving everyone who purchases a piece of Ben to hold with them forever. That very idea aligns with the print on the shirt ‘YeahBen4L”. The “#10” on the back of the shirt was his jersey number in basketball. Ben was extremely passionate about basketball and consistently excelled in it. The t-shirt provides an opportunity for those who purchase to donate to The Ben Uzzell ‘20 Scholarship Fund. Five dollars of every purchase will go to the The Ben Uzzell ‘20 Scholarship Fund (but note you are always welcome to donate directly to the fund). This t-shirt not only supports the scholarship, but allows for Ben’s legacy to live on. Sending a big thank you to all who purchase. The SSFS Parents Association and LS Counselor Joel Gunzburg are looking out for our wellbeing during this difficult time! They have graciously gifted our community with 3 months free access to the 10 Percent Happier App, with different guided meditations, talks, and courses. It is a great app for those who are just getting started with a mindfulness practice as it gives great direction and suggestion for beginners. As an added benefit, Joel Gunzburg will be offering weekly zoom meetings to facilitate discussion about best uses of the app and how parents are putting the app into practice. See the email from Joel with more information about the weekly parent virtual meetings here. ICYMI: Associate Dir. of Communications Julie Mendez has created a landing page to help the SSFS community stay connected as we navigate our off-campus Virtual Learning experience. See the landing page here, and check out the "Virtual School in Action" web page, which features stories of how our community continues to thrive, find their passions, connect, and live up to our School’s motto, “Let Your Lives Speak.” Be sure to check out the 'Beest message board, showing notes from community members! See a list of links to our virtual learning environment, FAQS, and resources here.
Lower School "Must-Know" Info for May 17, 2020 Below is information about upcoming LS and all-school activities and events in the coming weeks. For questions or more information about an event, please contact Pam Gilmer, LS Administrative Assistant, at ext. 112 or pam.gilmer@ssfs.org, or visit the Calendar web page to see full calendar.
When we began this distance-learning journey, it became apparent early that it was going to take a lot of effort to try to recreate some of the rich connection and tradition that exists in our community. We have been trying to restore as many of these connections and traditions as possible in this virtual learning platform. To that end, this week we held a “Mix it up Lunch” that included 90 of our K-5 students and SSFS faculty, and we also held a “Young Friends” playdate where 50 students from PK3, PK4, K, a number of Middle School Students, and SSFS LS and MS staff gathered to re-create their weekly playtime. Next week, the Lower School will hold another virtual Meeting for Worship on Thursday, May 21st from 1:45 – 2:00 pm. Please be on the lookout for more opportunities for students to connect with each other and staff as we get closer to the end of the school year. Please remember to complete the LS Parent Survey that was sent out to you via email on Friday (please contact Pam Gilmer if you need the link). The survey will close on Friday, May 22 at 3:00 pm. Your input will be greatly appreciated as we work on our plans for the future. Thank you!
Middle School "Must-Know" Info for May 17, 2020 Below is information about upcoming MS and all-school activities and events in the coming weeks. For questions or more information about an event, please contact Erin Ryan, MS Administrative Assistant, at ext. 160 or erin.ryan@ssfs.org, or visit the Calendar web page to see full calendar.
The Middle School has now incorporated a couple of “Non-Zoom Days” into our calendar. The first was this past Wednesday, May 6th, and the second will be on Wednesday, May 20th. Students will receive assignments on Non-Zoom dates, but faculty have been asked to refrain from hosting any synchronous Zoom meetings in order to provide a periodic reprieve from this technology. Additionally, the school calendar has been updated to reflect May 27th as a Professional Day for Middle and Upper School Teachers. Students will not be provided with assignments on the 27th, and no synchronous classes will be held on this date. We know this time has presented us all with many challenges, and we appreciate the flexibility and partnership of our families as we continue to find our way forward. We just finished Week 4 of Virtual Electives, and the students who have chosen to participate in Baking have been having a great time. Our projects so far have included Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies, Salted Caramel Fudge, Super Crumb Coffee Cake, and Brownies. A number of students have already reported repeating the projects at home to share again with their family members. Students will be making Cake with Vanilla Frosting next week, and the elective will conclude on May 28th with students selecting and making their own recipe for a “show and tell.” All recipes will be compiled and shared so students can continue to expand their confectionary skills over the summer. We may not be on campus, but we can still show our Sandy Spring spirit! Stay tuned for dates and details about how we will continue this tradition at home this year. Go 'Beests! ICYMI: The Middle School Virtual Mixtape continues to grow each week. Students are still encouraged to contribute (right now, the faculty is crushing it!), and may choose to share an original piece, or suggest a song or artist or style that they enjoy listening to. Students can also provide some back story about their piece. Click here for more details and to see the current submissions.
Upper School "Must-Know" Info for May 17, 2020 Below is information about upcoming US and all-school activities and events in the coming weeks. For questions or more information about an event, please contact Kerry Foley, US Administrative Assistant, at ext. 109 or kerry.foley@ssfs.org, or visit the Calendar web page to see full calendar.
Grounded in experiential and project-based learning, and with inquiry, reflection, and action at the core of its mission, the Senior Projects Pilot Program for 2019-2020 is a selective, elective, independent, learner-centered and self-directed passion project that affords qualified and approved participants the opportunity to let their lives speak beyond the traditional high school environment by sampling a potential career, serving the community, or exploring a deep personal interest that culminates in a formal and reflective presentation to a panel of faculty, staff, alumni and Trustees on the expectations, challenges, lessons and rewards of said experience. Please join us on Wednesday, June 3, 6:30-8:45 PM (EST) for a Virtual Project Presentation Program. See the Senior Passion Project web page for program information, which includes brief presentations from each of our 12 seniors, as well as questions from panelists. It looks to be a special and entertaining evening! We invite everyone to help us celebrate the culmination of this very special capstone program. An email with Zoom information will be sent soon. While we've been away from campus, construction on the new Upper School building has been proceeding. See all the progress and take a floor-by-floor virtual tour with David Hickson and Julie Mendez. It's looking great! Head of School Tom Gibian recently sent an email to all Upper School students; in it, Tom stated that "these times demand an SSFS Virtual School Soundtrack Project, where faculty and staff join me in sharing songs that alert us to the common bond we share, that have opened our eyes. We'll be sharing out videos on a weekly basis via Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube." See the video submissions from Tom Gibian, Kwame Darko, and Bob Hoch here. See the Spotify playlist here. The US LRC has expanded their team to help support all of the Upper School students with the challenges of virtual classroom learning. Shannon, Ebe, Jenai, Kerry, and Sunshine are available daily to help all students with organization, study strategies, and content area support. Go to this link to schedule a consultation session with a team member. LRC Tip of the Week – Take a Deep Breath ICYMI: As we continue to celebrate Ben Uzzell’s life, members of the senior class have created a ‘YeahBen4L’ t-shirt. The idea of this shirt was to create something that Ben himself would wear, thus giving everyone who purchases a piece of Ben to hold with them forever. That very idea aligns with the print on the shirt ‘YeahBen4L”. The “#10” on the back of the shirt was his jersey number in basketball. Ben was extremely passionate about basketball and consistently excelled in it. The t-shirt provides an opportunity for those who purchase to donate to The Ben Uzzell ‘20 Scholarship Fund. Five dollars of every purchase will go to the The Ben Uzzell ‘20 Scholarship Fund (but note you are always welcome to donate directly to the fund). This t-shirt not only supports the scholarship, but allows for Ben’s legacy to live on. Sending a big thank you to all who purchase. ICYMI: The Student Community Connections Group has created both a Cat and a Dog Club for pet owners (and lovers). It's an opportunity to decompress and hang out with some of our furry friends via Zoom once a week. The students miss seeing all the lovely pets around on campus and would love to see all of them there. If you do not have a pet but want to see some dogs, or cats, you are also welcome to join! Their first Zoom meeting was Friday, May 8. Interested in joining? Contact Sunshine Klein for more info. ICYMI: May is mental health awareness month. Mental health awareness month began in 1949 by Mental Health America. The purpose of this month is to increase awareness and decrease the stigma around mental illness. To help in these efforts, there is an article where students share their answers to common questions about mental illness HERE (Note that this is a Finalsite page, so you'll need to log in to access it.) Additionally, more information about mental health can be found at https://www.mhanational.org/about and https://www.nami.org/home. ICYMI: Upper School Head Jonathan Oglesbee sent an email on April 24 to all Upper School families with important information regarding
Click here for a web page with this info, and a link to the full letter.
Sandy Spring Monthly Meeting invites all SSFS families for Meetings for Worship at SSMM, and other community events and activities throughout the year. Please see the May 17 Silent Announcements for information and details about SSMM goings-on in the coming weeks. Questions? Please contact the SSMM office at ssmm.rsf@gmail.com. Thank you! Bella Vita Farm in Brookeville, MD, is continuing to take online orders. Click here to order fresh pastured eggs, fresh lettuce, micro greens, kale, herbs, and more! "Olney Together" is a grass roots effort founded by an SSFS parent to help families in the area facing challenges due to the COVID crisis. Olney together: 1. supports existing organizations with people power and 2. Fills in the gaps when other organizations are overwhelmed. Families in need who can usually get food/diapers/formula through other channels (or could pay for it themselves before being laid off) now need support. For more info, to volunteer, or to express need, please visit the website. Contact Joslyne directly with questions. This is an optional, opt-in virtual bulletin board for all members of the SSFS community to share resources and announcements about topics not part of the traditional school day or school related events (think: finding babysitters, repair service recommendations, hiking groups, etc.) Please fill in this quick online form to opt in.
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