Lower School News Archives | ��ԭ��

��ԭ�� Launches the 2026–27 School Year with a Milestone Moment

��ԭ�� — Wed, 26 Aug 2026 14:30:20 +0000

The Upper Campus gym was dark, and the screens on either side of the stage played a video in front of a crowd, which began with Emma Neal (Class of 2029) on the cross-country trail writing a note, then folding it into a paper airplane and launching it into the air. The plane flew over campus with views of our newly turfed baseball/softball fields, the new Streck Family field, and the Wood Family track. The plane met up with Luca Renner (Class of 2034), who Emma Neal said, “it’s your time, you gotta go” which set him off running towards the gym, through the doors of the Middle School, and ending with his hands on the gym doors. Then, in real life, a spotlight shown to those same doors. They flew open, and Luca came sprinting in, a paper airplane in hand, a student-operated spotlight chasing him across the gym floor. He ran straight to Head of School Kristy Lundstrom and handed her the plane. She unfolded it, looked up at the crowd, and read the message: “WE DID IT.”

The cheers that followed set the tone for everything that came after.

On August 21, ��ԭ�� gathered twice, once for Lower Campus and once for Upper Campus, to open the 2026–27 school year with Convocation, the annual tradition that calls the whole community together to set the purpose and spirit for the year ahead. And this year, that spirit had a name: Creativity.

The Lower Campus Convocation kicked off at 8:50 am after students from PK4 through Grade 5 made the walk across the street to the Upper Campus Gym. Cecelia Rogers (Grade 5) and Ada Rogers (Grade 2) led the community in the Pledge of Allegiance, followed by the Invocation delivered by eighth-grader Liam Ireland. Livi Zelickson, also in Grade 8, then welcomed the younger students with warmth and clarity: “Convocation is not just about starting school; it’s about starting strong, dreaming big, and helping each other along the way.”

Head Prefect Eli Diaz took the stage next, and what he said was anything but ordinary.

The Upper Campus Convocation followed at 10:20 am, with the same electric energy. After Luca’s now-legendary entrance, the same student voices carried the program: Cecelia and Ada Rogers again led the Pledge, Liam Ireland delivered the Invocation, and Livi Zelickson welcomed the crowd.

Then Eli stepped up again and challenged his peers to rethink everything they thought they knew about creativity.

“Creativity is a choice,” he began, before leading the community on a journey that was equal parts art history and personal storytelling. He introduced the infamous artwork Comedian, a banana taped to a wall that sold for over $5 million, and used it to reframe what it means to be truly creative. But the heart of his speech was his own story: a community garden he built at ��ԭ�� that was overtaken first by fire ants, then ravaged overnight by rabbits. Rather than walk away, he regrouped, designed a fence, and eventually watched vegetables from that garden make it into the Upper School lunch line.

“I used to think creativity was about being the one to come up with the idea,” Eli told the crowd. “That it was a talent, something that you either have or you don’t. But I don’t think that anymore. Creativity isn’t about the idea. It’s about what happens after the idea.”

Kristy Lundstrom’s address carried that thread forward for every age group. Drawing on the faculty’s summer read, The Creativity Choice by Dr. Zorana Pringle, she brought the science of creativity to life through two unforgettable stories: Dr. James Naismith’s invention of basketball (and the ladder required to retrieve the ball from a solid peach basket) and Greta Thunberg’s 251 consecutive Fridays of showing up alone outside the Swedish Parliament before millions joined her. Student actors Reid, Juliet, Janae, and Oliver brought the Naismith story to life in a live vignette, with Charlotte, CC, Matthew, and Nora embodying the Thunberg story.

“You are already creative,” Kristy told students. “Creativity is not something only a few people have. Creativity is a choice.” She closed with two MV commitments that will anchor the year: Start with Questions and Be brave to try and try again.

Both Convocations closed with a benediction from Stacey Lee and a performance of “Unwritten” by The Stangs, a fitting anthem for a community ready to write the next chapter.

With a completed capital campaign and a theme built for the moment, ��ԭ�� is starting the year exactly the way it finishes: by choosing to create something worth showing up for. The idea is just the beginning.

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While You Were Away: A Summer of Transformation at ��ԭ��

��ԭ�� — Wed, 19 Aug 2026 12:26:50 +0000

Every summer, ��ԭ�� gets to work. But this summer? This one was different.
From the upper campus athletic complex to the Lower School hallways, this has been a season of meaningful change, the kind you can see, feel, and be proud of when you walk through our doors this fall. Here’s a look at what’s been happening.

The Wood Family Track and Streck Family Field

The centerpiece of this summer’s work is the stunning new athletic complex on the upper campus. A brand-new, six-lane track, named the Wood Family Track, now surrounds the Streck Family Field, a beautiful new turf surface built for football, lacrosse, and soccer. The complex also connects to expanded cross-country trails, making it possible, for the first time, to host a full 5K race entirely on campus.

“Walking out there for the first time, I got chills,” said Athletics Director Scott Cain. “This isn’t just an upgrade, it changes what’s possible for our student-athletes and for this community. We’re going to make some memories on that field.”

The Let’s Do This Campaign: Done. What’s Next: Even Better.

Here’s some news worth celebrating: the Let’s Do This Campaign is complete, thanks to the incredible generosity of our ��ԭ�� community. Three support buildings will begin construction in the weeks and months ahead — two near the baseball and softball fields at the upper campus entrance, and a field house within the track and field complex. These aren’t small additions. They’re the finishing touches on a vision our community made real.

“The generosity we’ve seen is humbling,” said Head of School Kristy Lundstrom. “Every gift, every single one, moved us closer to something extraordinary. What’s been built this summer, and what’s still coming, is a direct reflection of how much this community believes in our students.”

A Refreshed Gym, Inside and Out

Step into the Upper Campus gym and you’ll immediately notice new lights, fresh paint, and a brand-new floor that make the space feel completely transformed. The refresh, made possible by 2025–26 Annual Fund dollars, maximizes both the main basketball and volleyball courts and the practice courts. It’s a brighter, better space, and a great reminder of what Annual Fund giving makes possible every year.

Still to Come: The Frontier

On the lower campus, the Frontier is still taking shape. It remains one of the most anticipated projects we’ve undertaken, and the wait is almost over. More soon.

The Details You Might Have Missed

Not everything this summer came with a ribbon-cutting. The Lower School received a completely new intercom system, a meaningful upgrade for both communication and security that ensures every student starts their day in a safe and connected environment.

“It’s the kind of thing you don’t notice until it’s there,” said Kristy. “And then you can’t imagine being without it.”

Welcome back, ��ԭ��. We think you’re going to love what you find.

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Ready to Move Up: Grade 5 Students Transform Hallways Into an Immersive Fashion Experience

��ԭ�� — Wed, 20 May 2026 15:16:52 +0000

The Lower School Activities Hall has become an immersive celebration of creativity, collaboration, and student agency thanks to a Grade 5 fashion and design installation led by Lower School Arts teacher Dianne Johnson and Lower School Maker teacher CeCe Tahtinen.

What began as a reflection on students’ growing interest in fashion design evolved into a fully student-driven creative production blending visual arts, engineering, storytelling, sound design, fabrication, and filmmaking, all skills that reflect ��ԭ��’s commitment to innovation, collaboration, creativity, and learner agency.
Students organized themselves into 13 fashion houses, including Petite Pearly, Pink People, Sweatshirt Bros, Velvet Vogue, Fantasy’s Real, and Chill Spray Productions. Each group developed its own aesthetic vision through mood boards, color palettes, clothing collections, and installation concepts.

But the experience extended far beyond fashion design.

Every Grade 5 student held a role within the larger production ecosystem, participating on teams including:

Set Design Team
Graffiti Crew
Documentary Crew
Sound Design Team
MCs (Masters of Ceremony)

Students collaborated across homerooms and schedules, navigating timelines, creative pivots, and production challenges together. The result is a hallway filled with oversized mushrooms, sculptural pearls, painted backdrops, wearable art, spray-painted fashion, and documentary storytelling, all designed and built by students.

“This project was so kid-centered,” said Tahtinen. “It’s almost middle-school centered, because they showed us that they’re ready for Middle School, the conversations, the socializing, the problem-solving, and the independence.” “There was a lot of jumping in,” Tahtinen shared. “If someone was working on something, another student would just jump in and help.”

For Johnson, one of the most powerful aspects of the unit was watching students grow in confidence and leadership.

“There were students that blossomed during this process,” she said. “The way they swooped in to support each other was absolutely amazing.”

The project also highlighted the power of student choice and trust, core components of ��ԭ��’s strategic vision for learning. “We talk a lot about student choice,” Johnson said. “I asked students: If y’all want to do this, how are we going to execute it? Can we able lock in and get it done? They trusted themselves. They trusted us.”

As Grade 5 students prepare to cross campus into Middle School, the installation stands as more than an art showcase. It is evidence of students developing the collaboration, communication, creativity, and self-direction needed for what comes next.

“We can really see that they are ready to move on,” said Tahtinen. “This project shows what happens when you trust students, give them independence, and set high expectations.”

Come Experience the Installations

Grade 4 students also contributed handmade accessories as part of a “moving up” project connected to next year’s Grade 5 experience.

The Grade 5 fashion and design installations will remain on display in the Lower School Activities Hall through Friday morning. Families and visitors are encouraged to stop by and experience the creativity, collaboration, and craftsmanship behind the work before the installations are taken home.

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Arts in Action Day 2026: A Celebration of Creativity, Connection, and Purpose

��ԭ�� — Wed, 06 May 2026 12:53:17 +0000

The arts are more than a discipline; they are a catalyst for connection, expression, and impact. That belief came to life in a powerful way during last Friday’s Arts in Action Day, a thoughtfully designed, Lower School experience that immersed students in the transformative power of the arts, and has become an annual springtime tradition.

From the opening moments of the day, it was clear this would not be a typical arts showcase. Instead of a traditional end-of-year performance, students in Kindergarten through Grade 2 participated in a collaborative performance experience led by Ericka Shannon, Early Childhood Performing Arts Faculty, who reimagined what early arts engagement could look like. Through intentional teaching, planning, and conducting, she crafted an opening ceremony that invited young learners not only to perform but also to understand themselves as artists.

“My goal was to shift the focus from performance to experience,” said Ericka Shannon. “When students see themselves as creators, capable of expressing ideas and emotions through music and movement, they begin to understand the arts as a language, not just an event.”

Her vision centered on process over product, giving students the opportunity to explore rhythm, movement, and voice in a way that was both joyful and deeply meaningful.

Beyond the opening, Arts in Action Day unfolded as a Lower School-wide exploration of creativity. Designed and led by Shay Jones, Director, Lower Campus MV Studios, the day brought together a diverse lineup of visiting artists and immersive sessions, exposing students to a wide range of artistic disciplines and perspectives. From visual arts and music to movement and design, each experience was intentionally curated to expand students’ understanding of what art is and what it can do.

“Arts in Action Day was designed to help students experience the breadth and relevance of the arts in real, tangible ways,” Shay shared. “By bringing in practicing artists and creating space for hands-on exploration, we wanted students to see how the arts connect to community, culture, and even future pathways.”

Throughout the day, students engaged with ��ԭ�� arts teachers and visiting artists, including:

(Phil Hannah and Loren Hannah) – Instruments Around the World
– Schools & Educators – “Rhythm and Thread”
(Twix) – Thriller Dance Workshop
Jillian McLendon – Hieroglyphics Exploration
Sterling McClary – Musical Theater Movement
– Paper Making
Morgan Harrell – Jazz Dance
– Traditional Indian Dance
(Kaitlin) – Yoga and Mindfulness
Nicole Campbell – Jazz Dance
Jerry G. White –
– Animation (Design/STEAM)
– Improv
Cady Jean Walls – Jazz Dance
Cheryl Bruno and Amy Lee Starr – Froot Zoo (Animal + Food Drawings)
Dianne Johnson – Crowns

Each session offered a unique lens into the creative process, allowing students to engage directly with professionals and explore new mediums and ideas.

Behind the scenes, the day required careful orchestration. From securing and coordinating guest artists to designing a schedule that maximized exposure across grade levels, every detail was built to ensure students could engage with multiple forms of artistic expression. The goal was not just participation, but perspective, helping students see how the arts shape culture, tell stories, and drive impact in communities around the world.

Arts in Action Day reflects ��ԭ��’s broader commitment to experiential learning and real-world connection. By elevating the arts as a vehicle for inquiry and innovation, the school continues to create opportunities for students to explore their identities, collaborate with others, and engage with the world in meaningful ways.

Most importantly, the day served as a reminder: when students are given the space to create, they don’t just make art, they make meaning.

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Building What Comes Next: Let’s Do This Approaches the Finish Line

��ԭ�� — Wed, 29 Apr 2026 02:07:42 +0000

After nearly three years of vision, generosity, and collective momentum, ��ԭ��’s campaign is approaching its finish line. What began in October 2023 as a bold idea is now on the brink of becoming reality, setting the stage for new spaces that will serve students for years to come.

What comes next

This summer, ��ԭ�� will break ground on the next final piece of the Let’s Do This campaign:

A new field house adjacent to the new field
Locker rooms, restrooms, and concessions to serve the baseball and softball complex

These additions are more than facilities; they are spaces designed to support student-athletes, foster community, and elevate the everyday experience of being a Mustang.

“This campaign has always been about more than buildings,” said Kristy Lundstrom, Head of School. “It’s about creating environments where students are known, challenged, and inspired. These final projects ensure that every student, on the field, in the stands, or simply gathering with friends, experiences a campus designed with purpose.”

For student-athletes, those spaces represent something deeply personal.

“Having spaces built for us, locker rooms, a field house, it changes how it feels to show up every day. It tells us that what we’re doing matters, and that we’re part of something bigger than just our team.”
— Class of 2026, Softball

“Right now, we make the most of what we have. But knowing these spaces are coming, it’s exciting. It’s going to bring our teams closer together and make game days feel even more like home.”
— Will Curry, Class of 2029, Soccer

Finishing Strong, Together

To carry the campaign across the finish line, ��ԭ�� has launched the , a limited-time opportunity for families, alumni, and supporters to become part of the school’s physical story, in addition to finalizing outstanding major gifts.

For a gift of $1,500, supporters can reserve one of just 200 commemorative bricks, permanently installed on the MAC patio, a central gathering place and gateway to the Upper Campus expansion.

Each brick represents more than a name. It is a visible, lasting expression of belief in what ��ԭ�� makes possible.

“��ԭ�� shaped so much of who I am. Having a chance to leave a permanent mark on campus feels like coming full circle.”
— Beau Reinking, Class of 2025

What Your Gift Makes Possible

A new gift of $1,500 is both a contribution to the future of ��ԭ��, and a permanent place within it.
Each contribution helps:

Fully close out the Let’s Do This capital campaign
Bring the final campus projects to life
Ensure every space is ready for students in the coming school year

As part of their gift, supporters receive a custom-engraved brick permanently installed on campus, with the option to be recognized as a campaign participant.

Donors of $5,000 and above will be listed on a permanent donor wall commemorating the LDT Campaign.

A Place That Lasts

Positioned at the corner of the MAC, the patio will serve as a central hub of campus life—a place where students gather, families connect, and milestones are celebrated.

In the years ahead, it will also tell a story.

A story of a community that came together to imagine more, invest boldly, and follow through—right to the very end.

“These aren’t just facilities, they’re environments where students build confidence, resilience, and connection. Having spaces that match the level of commitment our students bring every day is incredibly meaningful.”
— Jennifer Brown, Athletic Director, Engagement & Experience

“Moments like this define a school,” Lundstrom added. “Not just what we build, but how we build it, together.”

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Designing Tomorrow: Grade 6 Reimagines Sustainable Cities Through Real-World Exploration

��ԭ�� — Tue, 21 Apr 2026 19:40:39 +0000

For the past four years, each spring, Grade 6 students step into the role of urban planners through the Future Cities Project-Based Learning (PBL) experience, an immersive, inquiry-driven journey that challenges them to answer a powerful question: How might we design a sustainable city of the future?

This signature Grade 6 experience has evolved into a dynamic, interdisciplinary project that blends research, design thinking, and real-world application. Under the guidance of Humanities teachers Mary Ann Stillerman, Lisa Bijit, and Jeff Frantal, along with the Grade 6 team, students are not only imagining the future, they are actively designing it.

Learning Through Discovery

This year’s approach introduces a new layer of depth and intentionality. Students begin in specialized research teams, diving into the three pillars of sustainability: environment, society, and economy, focusing on:

Architecture & Agriculture
Energy & Transportation
Water, Waste Management & Green Spaces

Through curated resources, inquiry routines, and guided questioning, students build foundational knowledge before taking their learning beyond campus through a series of expeditions.

These experiences are more than field trips; they are opportunities to engage directly with experts and environments that are shaping sustainable innovation today.

In Midtown Atlanta, students met with urban planners from the Midtown Alliance, exploring how energy and transportation systems are evolving in a growing city.
Within the Office of Sustainability at Kennesaw State University, G6 students partnered with Living Learning Lab Program Manager Lauren Hughes, Engagement Coordinator DaJawn Williams, and an architecture student Madison Wall, to explore food forests and urban agriculture systems through a design sprint.
Students worked with Liberti Gates, an Environmental Education Coordinator for the City of Roswell, who led them through a recycling center, water treatment facilities, and riverfront parks in the midst of redesign, where they witnessed sustainability in action.

“These expeditions deepen the experience,” shares Stillerman. “Students aren’t just learning about problems—they’re seeing them, questioning them, and beginning to design real solutions.”

From Research to Design

After the discovery phase, students transition into design teams, where collaboration becomes the cornerstone of innovation. Each student brings expertise from their research team, teaching peers, and advocating for ideas that will shape their collective city.

Using tools such as the Innovator’s Compass and the Iceberg Model, students center their work on a critical principle: designing for people.

“They start to realize everything is connected,” says Stillerman. “A student focused on agriculture begins to see its relationship to green space, or transportation, or energy. Those ‘light bulb’ moments are where the real learning happens.”

Teams then create large-scale city blueprints, modeled after the size and scope of Sandy Springs, before developing prototypes of key features. Whether through physical models, digital platforms like Minecraft Education or Tinkercad, or coded designs with micro:bit sensors and LEDs, students bring their ideas to life in tangible ways.

Building Skills That Matter

While the final product is impressive, the process is where transformation occurs. Students practice:

Collaboration and consensus-building
Critical thinking and systems analysis
Empathy and human-centered design
Creative problem-solving and innovation

Before each work session, students adopt a new mindset, declaring: “I am an urban planner.” It’s a simple phrase that reframes their role and their responsibility.

“They learn to anchor their decisions in what matters most,” Stillerman explains. “Who are we designing for? What do people need? That’s what guides their work.”

A Celebration of Innovation

The journey culminates in the Mock Future City Summit on May 18, where students will present their designs, prototypes, and vision for a more sustainable future to a panel of experts.

What began as a classroom idea has grown into a defining ��ԭ�� experience, one that continues to evolve, deepen, and inspire.

“This project pulls together everything they’ve learned all year,” says Stillerman. “It’s where content meets creativity, and where students realize the impact they can have.”

As we celebrate Earth Day, ��ԭ��’s Grade 6 students remind us that the future isn’t something we wait for; it’s something we design.

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Inspire Brands x Innovation Diploma: When Students Become Strategists

��ԭ�� — Wed, 15 Apr 2026 15:36:22 +0000

What happens when students are given not a prompt, but a problem?

In ��ԭ��’s Innovation Diploma (iD), that question is not theoretical. It’s the foundation of learning. And in Mod 3, through a first-of-its-kind partnership with Inspire Brands, students stepped into the role of brand strategists, navigating ambiguity, uncovering insights, and delivering solutions that resonated at the highest levels of a global organization.

For Krista Fancher, Innovation Pathway Co-Leader, the partnership was years in the making. “I had been trying to get in with Inspire Brands for at least three years,” she shared. “It was one of those situations where you’re always one connection away—but never quite there.”

That changed with a single introduction and a bold ask. Rather than waiting for a perfectly defined project, Krista flipped the script: Give us your time, your people, and your challenges, and our students will do the rest.

It worked.

Within weeks, ID students found themselves inside Inspire’s Innovation Center in Dunwoody, meeting with executives and listening, not for instructions, but for opportunity.

The Power of Not Knowing

Unlike traditional assignments, this was an “advanced design brief,” one where the path forward wasn’t clearly defined. “At the beginning, one of the students said, ‘We don’t even know what we’re supposed to do,’” Krista recalled. “And I said, ‘That’s exactly the point. You’re going to have to listen for it, find it, and build from there.’”

That ambiguity became the catalyst.

Students conducted interviews, observed customer experiences, and explored brand perception across Inspire’s portfolio, including Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, and Buffalo Wild Wings. What they uncovered wasn’t just data. It was insight.

Rethinking Arby’s: A Generational Divide

One of the most compelling discoveries emerged around Arby’s. Students quickly identified a disconnect: while older generations maintained loyalty to the brand, younger consumers, especially those under 30, often viewed it through the lens of social media jokes and outdated perceptions.

So they tested it.

In a simple but powerful act of field research, students visited an Arby’s location together. What they experienced contradicted everything they expected: welcoming staff, a clean environment, and surprisingly strong menu offerings.

“That moment was everything,” Krista said. “They realized how narratives, especially online, can shape perception more than reality.”

From there, the team developed a refreshed positioning strategy, one that honored Arby’s iconic “We Have the Meats” campaign while expanding its relevance for a new generation. Their concept? Keep the core identity, but broaden the story: we have the meats, and more.

Designing for Experience

Across brands, students approached each challenge with the same rigor:

For Baskin-Robbins, they explored new experiential offerings, including “After Dark” concepts aimed at older audiences.
For Buffalo Wild Wings, they focused on the in-restaurant experience, prototyping table games and engagement strategies to enhance wait times and group interaction.

They weren’t just solving problems. They were designing ecosystems.

Phia Calvo, Class of 2027, said, “Exploring the brand identities of Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, and Arby’s felt like assembling a complex puzzle, especially as we worked to deconstruct the negative perceptions Arby’s often holds among younger generations. Our firsthand experience at a local site shattered those stereotypes; despite our large group of 12, the service was impeccable, the environment was pristine, and unique touches like the “service bell” and secret menu left us genuinely impressed.”

Eight weeks after their first conversation, students walked into Inspire Brands’ headquarters to present their work. The setting: a 12th-floor boardroom. Long table. Executive audience. High stakes.
“The day before, rehearsal was rough,” Krista admitted. “But we knew they were ready.”

And they were.

Led by students including Phia Calvo, Brooke Nazarian, Madison Dunn, and McKinley Tann, the team delivered a presentation that was both polished and deeply informed. They fielded questions in real time, adapted on the fly, and spoke with the confidence of seasoned professionals.

McKinley Trann, Class of 2026, shared, “The work we did felt different than ever before, spending time learning and researching Inspire from our point of view, and speaking to every person possible gave us a deeper understanding than if we were just given a goal.”

Just after the presentation, an executive, responsible for the Arby’s Foundation, paused the room.
“I have to tell you,” he said, “we sit through a lot of these. And this was one of the best we’ve seen.”

More Than a Project

For Krista, the success of the Inspire Brands brief wasn’t just about the final presentation. It was about transformation.

“These students take ownership in a different way,” she explained. “There’s no senioritis when you know you’re presenting to real executives. They care. They prepare. They rise to the moment.”

And something else happens, too: loyalty.

“When students work on a brand, it becomes their brand,” she said. “They advocate for it. They challenge perceptions. They tell a new story.”

Perhaps most importantly, the experience reframed what it means to partner with students. There was no heavy lift for Inspire Brands. No need to craft the perfect brief. Just time, access, and openness.
“Our students don’t need everything defined,” Krista said. “They need a starting point, and the freedom to discover.”

It’s a model that not only benefits learners but delivers real value to organizations seeking a fresh perspective, especially when navigating generational shifts.

In a world where brands are constantly evolving, the ability to listen, interpret, and respond to changing audiences is critical. ��ԭ�� students aren’t waiting to learn that skill someday. They’re practicing it now, inside boardrooms, alongside executives, and in partnership with brands shaping the future. And in the process, they’re proving something powerful: Given the opportunity, students don’t just rise to expectations. They redefine them.

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Building Connections Through Purpose: A Grade 5 Summit Experience

��ԭ�� — Wed, 08 Apr 2026 12:13:43 +0000

More than 100 pieces of donated soccer equipment. Cross-divisional collaboration. A student-designed experience that connected Lower School learners with Upper School athletes through a shared sense of purpose; this is what’s possible when students are empowered to lead.

For Finn Douglas, a Grade 5 learner, the inspiration for his Summit experience began with a simple idea. After watching a fellow Mustang organize a charity baseball game the year before, Finn saw an opportunity to design something of his own, this time centered around the sport he loves.

“When it came to Summit this year, I knew I wanted to create a soccer charity match,” he said.

What started as an idea quickly evolved into a thoughtfully planned real-world experience. Finn invited fourth-grade students to participate, along with fellow Grade 5 Summit collaborators Lion Durden, Oliver Martinez, Weezy Garges, Addie Burda, Mason Evans, and Ashwin Meleth, on the condition that each player donate at least one piece of soccer equipment.

The response was immediate and generous. Nearly 20 students joined, bringing cleats, soccer balls, and shin guards, totaling more than 100 items to give back to the community.

The Grade 5 Summit is a culminating experience in which learners design and implement projects rooted in their passions. Through research, expert interviews, fieldwork, and reflective storytelling, students engage in meaningful problem-solving that extends far beyond the classroom.

For Finn, that process opened the door to an unexpected and powerful connection.

After interviewing Coach Howard, an MVXpert (��ԭ��’s network of expert partners), Finn was encouraged to think bigger, which led to a collaboration with the Upper School girls’ varsity soccer team and its team captain, Elizabeth Hall. What began as a conversation about pregame routines and nutrition quickly transformed into a shared experience on the field.

“A lot of the time, the varsity team is so focused on performance that we forget to just have fun,” Elizabeth shared. “This experience reminded us why we started playing in the first place. It brought us back to the joy of the game.”

In that moment, Finn’s work extended beyond its original scope, creating a ripple effect across divisions. Younger students experienced the excitement of teamwork and giving back, while varsity athletes rediscovered a sense of play and perspective.

Through the process, Finn developed skills in leadership, organization, and creative problem-solving, learning firsthand what it means to take an idea from concept to impact.

“I learned a lot preparing and putting everything together,” he said. “If you have an idea, stick with it. Even when it’s challenging, just keep going.”

Reflecting on the intentional design of the Summit experience, Head of Lower School Molly Hudson emphasized the deeper purpose behind the work:

“We began the year by summiting Kennesaw Mountain together, and now our students are reaching a different kind of summit. Through projects like this, they discover how their passions—when paired with research, curiosity, and action—can create meaningful impact in the world around them. Most importantly, they begin to understand that their ideas matter and that they have the ability to make a lasting difference.”

The Grade 5 Summit experience is more than a single project; it’s a reflection of what happens when learning is amplified through real-world application and meaningful connections. By designing with purpose, engaging with experts, and collaborating across communities, students don’t just complete assignments; they create impact.

Even the simplest idea can grow into something greater: a catalyst for connection, a platform for generosity, and a powerful reminder that joy and purpose often go hand in hand.

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Interim 2026 Expanding Possibilities Across Campuses

��ԭ�� — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 14:53:36 +0000

This year’s Interim program demonstrated what is possible when students connect across divisions, bringing Lower and Upper School learners into shared experiences that are both purposeful and deeply engaging. At the center of this work was Helen Hudgens, Lower School Floating Faculty member and ��ԭ�� alumna (Class of 2016), who, in partnership with Molly Hudson, Head of Lower School, and Trish Bogdanchik, Head of Upper School, recognized an opportunity to create more connections between campuses.

What began as a small pilot last year, primarily within Kindergarten, expanded into a Lower School-wide experience. Nearly every Upper School Interim trip was paired with a Lower School grade level, aligning destinations with existing units of study.

The result was a more connected learning experience, one that strengthened relationships across campuses while grounding global travel in meaningful, real-world context.
Rather than layering on something new, Hudgens embedded collaboration into existing curriculum.

“I started by connecting with Lower School teachers to understand what units they were in during that time, then matched those to Interim trips that would naturally align,” she explained. She started with the driving question: How might we create meaningful connections between Lower School and Upper School students through shared learning experiences based on national and international Interim trips?

The result was intentional, relevant, and often immersive learning:

Kindergarten + Vietnam, Malta, Costa Rica, Peru (Communities): As students explored how countries are shaped by culture, geography, and values, Interim partnerships brought those differences to life. These experiences informed a culminating project in which each student designed their own country, drawing inspiration from global perspectives.
Grade 1 + Zanzibar (Space, Light, and Sound): Students examined how light and sound function as tools for communication, comparing how people in Zanzibar and the United States use these elements to share information and connect. While in the country, the Upper School students zoomed with Grade 1 and sang them a traditional Zanzibarian song.
Grade 2 + New Zealand (Early American History and Exploration): Learners investigated how people connected across distances in the 1700s to 1800s, exploring trade, shipping routes, and the realities of long-distance travel, enriched by insights from students preparing for global exploration.
Grade 4 + Galápagos Islands (Structures and Functions of Living Things): Students explored how organisms adapt for survival, growth, and reproduction, then generated questions for Upper School travelers studying the Galápagos’ unique ecosystems. Those questions are now being answered through student-created presentations following the trip.
Grade 5 + Italy (Renaissance Studies): Learning came to life as students experienced the Renaissance firsthand, painting “Sistine Chapel-style” while lying beneath their desks, mirroring Michelangelo’s process and deepening their understanding of art, innovation, and human achievement.

Beginning about six weeks before Interim, Upper School students visited Lower School classrooms multiple times to engage in student-led discovery experiences.

“Upper School students joined Lower School classrooms for discovery lessons that were largely student-led,” Hudgens said. “Because Upper School had already been studying their destinations, Lower School students could ask thoughtful questions, add context, and deepen the learning when curiosity sparked.”

In many cases, the learning extended beyond the trip itself. Fourth graders, for example, not only posed questions to Galápagos travelers, but will also receive answers through presentations delivered in a variety of formats during the Interim showcase.

This kind of learning invites students to ask better questions, make meaningful connections, and engage with authentic audiences beyond their own classroom.

Beyond academics, the impact is personal. For many Lower School students, these interactions made future opportunities feel real and attainable.

“Lower School students were asking, ‘Are they really going to these places?’ and ‘Will we get to do that one day?’” Hudgens shared. “It was exciting to tell them that those opportunities are ahead of them in Upper School.”

Drawing from her own experience as a student, Hudgens helped younger learners see what lies ahead.

“I shared my own experiences, from traveling to Peru to participating in internships and service learning,” she said. “There are so many different pathways available to students as they grow at ��ԭ��.”

In those moments, students begin to see what their own journey might look like as they grow, explore, and take on new challenges.

What began as an idea has quickly become a model for what is possible when a school operates as a connected ecosystem. Cross-campus collaboration expanded the reach and meaning of Interim, creating shared experiences that are both relevant and lasting.

From Kindergarteners designing their own countries to Upper School students presenting research from the Galápagos, learning became more visible, more relational, and more real. Most importantly, students experienced what it means to be part of a connected community, one that grows with them every step of the way.

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Cultivating Digital Citizenship in the Lower School

��ԭ�� — Tue, 10 Mar 2026 15:53:19 +0000

The intentional integration of technology begins long before students receive their first personal devices. In the Lower School, digital learning is carefully sequenced to align with developmental readiness, blending hands-on, tactile learning with thoughtful digital exposure.

“Since COVID, we’ve been very intentional with how students use screens in the classroom,” says Katie Cain, Head of Learning and Innovation. “Young learners manipulate pencils, paintbrushes, and Play-Doh because the connection from brain to hand to paper reinforces learning. Typing and screen time gradually increase in fourth and fifth grades, often after ideas have been drafted on paper first.” Technology is deliberately introduced through adaptive math programs, coding, and e-portfolios, allowing students to develop digital fluency while reinforcing traditional learning methods.

This gradual, purposeful approach is coupled with ��ԭ��’s commitment to digital wellness and citizenship.

Digital wellness focuses on balance and healthy use, ensuring screen time does not displace sleep, physical activity, or in-person interactions. Digital citizenship, by contrast, emphasizes behavior and ethics online: how students represent themselves, advocate for others, and engage respectfully in virtual spaces.

Elisse Hayes, Dean of Students for the Lower School, explains how this plays out in practice: “We teach students the power of their words, whether in person or online. Even in a digital setting, what you type can cause real harm. We help students recognize unsafe situations, encourage them to seek adult guidance, and foster empathy in all spaces.” Students engage in exercises exploring scenarios in chat threads and online communities, learning how to be upstanders—actively supporting peers and responding to exclusion or unkind behavior.

��ԭ�� also partners with families to extend these lessons beyond the classroom. The MVPN group TechWise provides guidelines for device use at home and encourages families to delay giving students smartphones when possible. This partnership is complemented by the school’s collaboration with Bark through the Connected Communities initiative. As part of the initiative, students in Grades 4 and 5 will participate in two in-school sessions with representatives from Bark, including activities using secure, highly restricted Bark Phones. These sessions will help students navigate:

Group texting etiquette
The social media landscape and risks
Privacy settings best practices
Media literacy
Online relationships and conflict management
Healthy digital habits

Research shows that this age is a turning point when most kids are starting to get devices or are surrounded by peers who have them. “That’s why this moment is so important,” Cain notes. “Teaching digital responsibility before risky behavior becomes habitual can make all the difference. It’s early enough to be proactive, and just in time to be relevant.” Bark will lead these student sessions on March 25 and 26.

Prior to the student sessions, Bark will host a Parent University on March 24 at 8:00 am in Fellowship Hall, offering tips and tools for navigating the digital landscape. Families also have the opportunity to take one of the restricted devices home for a week and complete brief guided activities together to reinforce learning.

“The goal is a shared understanding,” Cain notes. “It’s not just about devices, it’s about creating a family and school environment where kids learn how to navigate technology responsibly.” Through structured instruction, community partnerships, and consistent reinforcement, ��ԭ�� equips Lower School students with the skills to thrive both offline and online. By fostering ethical, balanced, and mindful engagement with technology, the school ensures that students not only become competent digital users but also thoughtful, responsible digital citizens, ready to navigate an increasingly connected world with confidence and care.

Everyone is invited to the on March 24 at 8:00 am in Fellowship Hall (targeted at Grades 4 and 5, but open to all). Following the Parent University session, Bark will host a hands-on Bark Phone workshop for parents from 9:00–10:00 am.

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