Happy New Year! I was delighted to welcome our students and faculty back this week after the holiday break. It is such a comfort to be back in the routine of school and to see all of you again. I am confident that the new calendar year will bring us more comfort and joy, as well as the inevitable challenges that are part of life. What better place to appreciate our good fortune and to tackle our challenges than at James River Day School?!
Over the break, I reflected on how well our school community has weathered the pandemic storm. I am exceedingly grateful for our dedicated and creative faculty and staff, who are there for the students, every single day. I also know we would not have been able to hold school in person during the first semester if it weren’t for the commitment of our families to stick with our pandemic protocols. Someone told me we had been “lucky” to not have a single case of transmission at school this year, but I know that luck had little to do with it. Every one of you who agreed to follow the protocols (masks, social distancing, no large gatherings) made it safe for us to hold school in person.
In the coming months, I exhort you to continue to follow those same protocols, so we may continue to return to campus each day. I am confident that what kept us safe prior to the holidays will continue to keep us safe this month and until school’s end. Despite the conditions in the Lynchburg area, the risk of in-school transmission has not been affected and remains extremely low.
As a teacher, I can attest to how much more meaningful instruction is when we sit in the room together than when we meet virtually. Since a James River Day School education includes so much about learning how to be a decent person, so much that is above and beyond learning academic, athletic, or artistic skills, I want to remember how fortunate we are that we can come to school and learn from each other, each day.
We have so much to look forward to this spring:
- Celebrating the 100th day of school
- Shopping at the Kindergarten Valentine’s store
- Holding the middle school Spelling Bee
- Presenting for grandparents, and
- Having daily face-to-face interaction with each other
It’s an honor and a privilege to work with the James River Day School community. Thank you.