I am honored to be taking the helm at James River. This summer, I rolled up my sleeves to learn as much
as possible about this amazing community, and there is still so much to learn. As a naturally curious
person, this process has been personally fulfilling, and I look forward to getting to know more of you
over the course of this year and beyond. Our weekly Thursday emails are a great source of information
to help you plan for the week ahead, but I also plan to offer you a monthly recap from the Head of
School with a more in-depth overview of the month. Enjoy!
as possible about this amazing community, and there is still so much to learn. As a naturally curious
person, this process has been personally fulfilling, and I look forward to getting to know more of you
over the course of this year and beyond. Our weekly Thursday emails are a great source of information
to help you plan for the week ahead, but I also plan to offer you a monthly recap from the Head of
School with a more in-depth overview of the month. Enjoy!
July and August were packed for our administrative team and facilities staff. At the end of last school
year, we began replacing the roof over the library in what will be the first phase of a long-term plan to
replace all roof systems across campus. The roof was completed on schedule despite the summer
weather, and we were able to have summer enrichment camps and welcome faculty on time safely. The
new early-learning playground was also installed in late July/early August. Our phone system was an
unfortunate casualty of the summer storms. Fortunately, we had already planned to upgrade our phone
system this summer, which was finished in early August. Our phones are now better than ever.
In July, I led an administrative retreat for my team to help get to know them better and engage in deep
conversations about James River. Our topics were wide-ranging, from logistics of the school year to our
school-wide communication practices to thought-provoking conversations about best practices and
trends in independent schools. We also discussed the long-standing character education program at
James River to ensure that we are meeting the needs of our students. This was time well spent as a
team, and I am grateful for their genuine enthusiasm and curiosity, which also helped inform our
opening faculty meetings.
Throughout the summer, we hosted bi-weekly kindergarten playdates culminating in a new summer
camp called Kinder Connections. The events were designed to help our youngest students acclimate to
the school day schedule and get to know each other and their teachers. They even had the opportunity
to be the first children to use the new playground on their last day of camp. Kindergarten parents also
had the opportunity to practice the drop-off and pick-up procedures. As a result, our Kindergartners
were confident on the first day of school and eager to get to their classrooms. Thank you to our
Enrollment Management team, the Kindergarten teachers, and Mrs. Lemasters for their hard work to
support our youngest students. Sra. Taylor and her team also provided a rich experience for our older
students with record-breaking enrollment in our One-Room Schoolhouse. It was great to have all of their
voices in the hallways before the start of school.
We welcomed several new faculty members to the James River community. (Matthew Farley–Director of
Enrollment Management; Michelle Lucado–Kindergarten; Tifany Briggs–Fourth Grade; Miranda
Mitchell–MS English; Cindy Webster–MS Math; and Ashley Felder–MS Art). While they were all regular
campus visitors over the summer, their official orientation was on August 16 and culminated with lunch
with their mentors. Just like we ask our older students to model leadership, empathy, and support
through our Cardinal Buddies program, our faculty models these traits through a formal mentorship of
their new colleagues to ensure everyone has the support they need. Full faculty meetings began on
August 17. Our opening meetings were filled with a mix of professional development, team building, and
classroom preparations. I also asked all of our faculty to read Thrivers by Michele Borba. Our initial
conversations during in-service were only the tip of the iceberg. Informed by the book, a group of faculty
members are discussing ways to update our character education programming to ensure we meet the
needs of our current generation of students and their parents. I was already optimistic about the year
ahead, but after those thoughtful conversations with our faculty, I am even more excited about this
upcoming year.
Enrollment Management; Michelle Lucado–Kindergarten; Tifany Briggs–Fourth Grade; Miranda
Mitchell–MS English; Cindy Webster–MS Math; and Ashley Felder–MS Art). While they were all regular
campus visitors over the summer, their official orientation was on August 16 and culminated with lunch
with their mentors. Just like we ask our older students to model leadership, empathy, and support
through our Cardinal Buddies program, our faculty models these traits through a formal mentorship of
their new colleagues to ensure everyone has the support they need. Full faculty meetings began on
August 17. Our opening meetings were filled with a mix of professional development, team building, and
classroom preparations. I also asked all of our faculty to read Thrivers by Michele Borba. Our initial
conversations during in-service were only the tip of the iceberg. Informed by the book, a group of faculty
members are discussing ways to update our character education programming to ensure we meet the
needs of our current generation of students and their parents. I was already optimistic about the year
ahead, but after those thoughtful conversations with our faculty, I am even more excited about this
upcoming year.
As we wrap up August, our students will settle into a nice routine, and we look forward to September
community events. Look for information about Back-to-School Night and opportunities to discuss
Thrivers from a parent's perspective in the weekly emails.
Let’s fly!
Jenn