Dear Friends of GVS,
Last week was a big week. I welcomed current families back from spring break with this video message. (Students were quick to notice a few things they don't usually see me doing!) Our current community made GVS history as the first students, teachers, and parents joined together in a new way: online learning. The School's preparedness and ability to adapt to new technology, even in Early Childhood, has been nothing short of remarkable.
Administratively, our focus has been to ensure that the educational and community aspects of a Green Vale experience are being replicated in all grades as much as possible. In our contingency planning back in February, we devised these Principles of Online Learning to guide the design of our remote curriculum.
Community & Spirit Activities The Parents Association and administration are getting creative with new ways to connect, including virtual parent coffees, book clubs, yoga, and even a shared playlist on Spotify so far. The 8th Grade will be collaborating to launch a community outreach program in support of local hospitals. Both online learning and community-building efforts will be chronicled daily on our popular Instagram feed; please follow @greenvaleschool.
GVS Events & Traditions Circumstances have caused us to reimagine many of our signature events this spring, including the State Fair, Grandparents Day, Book Fair and Blue-Gold Day. While we may not be able to celebrate these milestones in person, we are committed to finding innovative ways to continue to honor these traditions this year. More will be announced in the coming weeks.
Marketing & Admissions These efforts are as robust as ever, with new adaptations in how we attract families and escort them through the admissions process. We have already hosted our first-ever Virtual Open House and have seen new interest from parents frustrated with the online program at other schools. We have also just launched a Virtual Campus Tour, available on our website for self-guided exploration through all of our buildings. For those who have not seen the Bacon-Biondi Building and significant renovations throughout the School, this is pretty close to the real thing.
Jesse Dougherty, Ed.D. © 2017 The Green Vale School |