Head of School's Message: February 7
On Friday I gave a campus tour to a family applying their son to sixth grade. We did not enter any classrooms, but we got brief glimpses of teachers and students hard at work in the middle school.
The family was particularly impressed with the students in the Innovation Lab, the high standards of the Spanish program and the quality of the students’ art work. As we walked around, the parents talked about wanting their son to be in a challenging academic program with value added opportunities to study art, participate in theatrical productions and join sports teams.
They heard good reports from friends who have a daughter at Chandler. During the current admissions season Chandler received 315 applications for places in next year’s classes. Over the past decade we consistently receive four applications for each opening. This year has been no different. Many of those applications are from families referred to the school by current parents. Word-of-mouth marketing is by far the most effective way of promoting Chandler in the community, and we are grateful to all of you for taking the time to do that. Director of Enrollment Management Gretchen Lurie has a lot of applications to process, and Chandler’s admissions committee has much to discuss before families are notified of decisions in March.
Details about this year’s outdoor education program for Grades 4-8 will be coming out shortly. Trips for all students in those grade levels will take place in May. The Boojum Institute, the company that led middle school trips for the past thirty years, had to close in January. We have researched alternatives, and we will be offering a full slate of outdoor education experiences this Spring. More information will be forthcoming from the Division Directors.
I will not be in school this week. I will be the chair of a CAIS committee visiting a K-8 school in Berkeley. As a member of CAIS (California Association of Independent Schools) Chandler along with all other independent schools in California goes through an accreditation process every seven years. After reading through a self-study, teams of administrators from member schools spend a few days at the school site meeting with members of each school constituency. Following the visit, the committee produces a report with commendations and recommendations that can help the school with future planning. That is what I will be doing this week.
Most sincerely,
John Finch, Head of School
