May 6th, 2009
The list of subjects (apart from religion) taught in a New Church school is much like the list of subjects taught in any other school. The question is, does the way they are taught in a New Church school differ from the way they are taught elsewhere? The answer is to be found in passages in the Writings such as number 330 of Divine Love and Wisdom.
There we read that since the final end or purpose in creation is a heaven from the human race and thus the human race itself, everything else that has been created serves an intermediate purpose. And that purpose relates either to a person’s body, a person’s rational mind, or a person’s spiritual character.
It compares these three with a house with the body like the foundation, the rational faculty like the superstructure, the spiritual character like the furnishings within, and conjunction with the Lord like living in it.
The following numbers go into more detail about things that sustain the body, perfect the rational faculty, and make possible the reception of a spiritual character from the Lord.
The ones for perfecting the rational are said to be all the subjects that deal with sustaining the body, and we find these subjects in the curricula of most schools. However, only in the curriculum of a New Church school would we expect to find the teachings about the true purpose of creation and about the things that prepare a person to be conjoined to the Lord by the development of a sound body as a foundation for the rational mind, and the rational mind as a home for a spiritual character received from the Lord.
Donald Fitzpatrick, Headmaster
April 29th, 2009
Hearing the reports from the school at last Friday’s Annual Meeting of Bryn Athyn Church might lead some people to think that the year is just about over and not much more will be happening between now and when school closes.In reality many more things will happen in May and during the first week of June. In May, the Primary Grades will have their May Day, the 1st Grade will present its Winnie-the-Pooh play, the 6th Grade will hold its Country Fair, and grades 4 through 8 will present their Spring Concert.During the final week of school, the 5th Grade will hold its Colonial Day and School Closing will take place. Each of these events will be the result of a great deal of study and practice by the students who are involved. And many of them are things that younger children look forward to being part of as they move up through the grades. So although much has already happened thus far, the year is really far from over at this point. Donald Fitzpatrick, Headmaster
April 2nd, 2009
Dr. Reid Prichett, who will become Headmaster on July 1st, is already taking time to learn about the Bryn Athyn Church School and the Bryn Athyn Church Preschool. At a meeting with the faculty and administration on Monday, March 23rd he told them something about himself and heard from them about what they believe is most important about the schools. He will visit again on Wednesday, April 1st, to meet with individual administrators and learn about their various responsibilities.He also hopes to have a chance to get to know the teachers better soon and to meet and talk with parents as well. The chance for him to learn more about the details of the schools’ workings will come at meetings with the administrators this coming summer after the end of school. Donald Fitzpatrick, Headmaster A New Headmaster
Friends, I am pleased to announce that I have appointed Dr. Reid Prichett as the new headmaster for the Bryn Athyn Church School, beginning July 1st of this year. He is unusually well qualified to be head of the elementary school and preschool at this exciting time in our history. Dr. Prichett grew up in Boston, where his family members are active in the General Church congregation. His father is Dr. Gordon Prichett, faculty member and former Provost of Babson College and longtime board member and advisor to the Academy. His mother is Jill Pendleton, daughter of Bishop Willard Pendleton. Reid and his wife Helen moved to Lawrenceville, New Jersey in 2007 with their three children: Bailyn (8), Clay (6), and Cary (4). The family regularly attends Young Children's services at the Cathedral. Reid has been a member of the Academy Corporation for a number of years and serves on the Education Committee. Reid attended Bryn Athyn College in 1990-91 and received a B.A. from Williams College (Economics 1995). He earned an M.A. in both Curriculum and Instruction (Mathematics Education), and Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2005. He went on to complete a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis at UW in 2008. His research examined how elementary school leaders use data to inform student learning. During his career he has worked in K-12 schools in a variety of capacities. Dr. Prichett is currently a faculty member at the Lawrenceville School where he teaches mathematics, serves as the head wrestling coach, and has been working on the schools ambitious curriculum reform. Dr. Prichett was particularly impressed by BACS's strong commitment to its mission and the schools potential to serve as a model for New Church elementary education. He is eager to better know the BACS students and their families. Dr. Prichett comes to BACS at a time of real opportunity as we look forward to developing the new preschool, are planning the construction of a new elementary school, and are working alongside the Academy to welcome new families into the church and community. I believe that Dr. Prichett is uniquely equipped to be an outstanding leader for our school and I am very happy to welcome him and his family to Bryn Athyn. I want to thank Nick Rose and the selection committee of Lee Allen, Jennifer Allen, Greg Henderson and Brett Buick for the work that they have done over the past year in conducting the search and interview process. Sincerely, Jeremy F. Simons, Pastor February 25th, 2009 Thinking back on our own school days, we remember hearing the deafening sound of the fire alarm bells and marching quietly out of the building to wait for the signal to go back into our classrooms. Sometimes we even hoped for a fire drill so that we could escape, at least briefly, from having to do our school work. While schools continue to hold fire drills regularly these days, they must also prepare to deal with the kinds of dangers that have made headlines in recent years, the dangers presented by intruders carrying weapons and planning to harm students or staff members. For this reason, BACS held a lockdown training session after school on February 4, to show the staff what our borough law enforcement personnel would do in response to a report of an armed intruder. Teachers are already aware of what they should do to keep the children in their classes safe, but they were not aware of what would be happening outside their classrooms as police officers worked to apprehend the intruder and make sure that the teachers and their students could safely leave their classrooms. This demonstration, planned, organized and led by our school’s safety coordinator, Steve Irwin, with help from Academy Security personnel and all the members of the Bryn Athyn Police Department, will be followed up by further training in response to feedback from teachers and other staff members. We hope, of course, that we never have to use what we learn through such training. Donald Fitzpatrick, Headmaster
February 11th, 2009 The Writings speak of heaven as a kingdom of uses where the angels' love of serving others images the Lord's love of bringing the greatest possible joy to every human being. The BACS mission statement speaks of providing children with an education that prepares them to be come confident, caring, and useful citizens of this world and of that heavenly kingdom. Of course, much of what children do in school is intended to teach them what they will need to know in order to gain more advanced knowledge and skill in the later years of their education. But teaching them things that they can do to practice being of service to others is also an important part of their education. For many years (as some readers will remember) even the younger students at BACS have practiced being of service by doing things for their classes such as putting the "Worship" sign on the outside of the classroom door to let others know that the class is about to begin worship. Older children have done things that serve the whole school: raising the flag outside, holding the doors as the classes move through the hallways and into Heilman Hall for worship there, serving as chancel guild, and leading the Pledge of Allegiance. And at times the whole school has been involved in a service project for people outside the school such as making cards to be sold to benefit the orphanage in Kenya. This year a new committee has been formed to look at service learning that is already taking place and to propose a signature service project for each grade that children can look forward to as they progress from year to year. Kiri Rogers and Greg Henderson are leading the committee with the goal of making service learning a stronger part of our students' school experience. Donald Fitzpatrick, Headmaster
Letter to Parents, January 28, 2009
Dear Parents, During my years as a teacher and administrator at BACS, I have favored the idea of having a dress code rather than uniforms for our students. The aim of the BACS dress code has been to insure that our students are dressed modestly and that their clothing is appropriate for school-wear and the age of the students. Unfortunately, current fashions and the limited availability of appropriate clothing selections are making it more and more difficult for us to maintain the dress code. This situation has created an immediate need to move to some type of uniform or a standardized dress code. A few years ago, when Brian Keith was principal, BACS did an extensive survey of parents and teachers to consider the concept of a uniform. The results indicated that about half of those polled favored the idea while the other half did not. At that time a decision was made to stay with the dress code and renewed effort was made to enforce it. However as mentioned above, the current trends, just a few years later, are making it very challenging to stay with our current dress code. From experience in trying to enforce the code and from parent and teacher comments, we have come to the conclusion that something must change. I will be forming a committee of teachers and parents to consult with in the creation of uniform guidelines/standardized dress selection. The goal is to complete the guidelines by mid-spring of this year and for the students to begin following them this coming fall. The committee will consider such things as school and age appropriateness, cost, style, durability, comfort, flexibility, availability, etc. so that the best possible choices are made. I know that in the current economic climate, cost will be a major concern for many families. We will keep this very much in mind, and though there will be some initial investment, one benefit of having uniforms/standardized dress can be reduced cost for school clothing overall. Other benefits often associated with uniforms/standardized dress are equalizing of social pressures and a sense of school pride. If you are interested in serving on the committee, please give Liz Childs your name by February 9, 2009. From the list of those who volunteer we will form a committee, making sure to have representatives for various ages, and boys and girls. If you want to discuss this with me in person, please call or make an appointment. Sincerely, Gail Simons, School Director January 28th, 2009 Because of the historic significance of the event, the school's administrators decided to try to arrange for all of the BACS students and staff to watch the new President take the oath of office on Tuesday, January 20th. Thanks to the efforts of Lucas Mergen, our Director of Technology, and the cooperation of our classroom teachers, everyone in school that day was able to see either the live television coverage or the live-streamed Internet broadcasts of the proceedings. Some of the younger students watched only the swearing in ceremony. Older students saw that and also heard the President’s Inaugural Address. We imagine that years from now some of our current students will remember this experience and tell their children about the inauguration of the first African-American President of the United States. Donald Fitzpatrick, Headmaster January 14th, 2009 The Elementary School and Preschool are back in session after the Christmas Recess, and although 2009 is only a few weeks old, we must start thinking about the 2009-2010 school year. We hope that a new Headmaster or Headmistress will be on hand then and that work will be under way on the construction of a building for the Preschool. But our thinking must go beyond these kinds of hopes and include preparing a budget for the new fiscal year that begins on July 1. News stories from around the country are reporting the financial challenges that schools and school districts are facing because of the state of the nation's economy and the uncertainty about how severe the recession will be and how long it will last. Some public schools are having to make cuts in programs and staff because tax revenues have fallen off. Some private schools face the need to cut their budgets because the contributions and tuition payments they depend on are not as large as they were in the past. Over the next few months we will learn more about exactly what effect the recession will have on our own school budget. And while our endowment will continue to provide income, we know that we will need to plan carefully to make sure that every dollar we receive from it and from contributions is used as wisely as possible. Donald Fitzpatrick, Headmaster December 24th, 2008 When you read this, the elementary school and preschool will be closed for Christmas Recess, and the students will be enjoying a break from the usual routine (and possibly playing in the snow if the weather cooperates). We on the staff will either be rushing to complete our preparations in the few days remaining before the holiday or enjoying a bit of rest after it has passed. We hope that you and your families will have or have had a Merry Christmas. And we wish you a happy New Year as we prepare for the reopening of school on January 5th. Donald Fitzpatrick, Headmaster
December 12th, 2008
This year the Bryn Athyn Church School and Preschool have 338 children enrolled. Together with their teachers, aides, tutors, and other staff, they form one of the largest communities or congregations in the General Church. Fortunately for them, there is now a full-time School Pastor, the Rev. Phil Schnarr. Mr. Schnarr teaches seventh and eighth grade religion classes, shares responsibility for morning worship services with the Revs. "Mac" Frazier, John Odhner, and Jeremy Simons, and periodically e-mails to the faculty and staff passages from the Word together with thoughts on their application to the work of New Church education. In addition, he works with a Religion Team made up of the other pastors and several classroom teachers to improve the worship experience of our students and to provide for the spiritual life of the school as a whole. The goal of the Religion Team is for all aspects of the religion program be an exemplary experience for BACS students. Mr. Schnarr's experience as a teacher, school principal, and Director of the General Church Office of Education enables him to understand the school and the many things that affect its life. Donald Fitzpatrick, Headmaster
November 26th, 2008
On October 30th the 8th grade boys traveled with their teacher, Greg Henderson, to a West Philadelphia Salvation Army facility to do a service project. The day began with a talk by the pastor about what is done there and how the boys were going to help them in their cause. He then declared them "Atmosphere Changers" and put them to work.
Greg and the boys cleaned some of the after-school facilities, picked up the yard, and repainted the entrance way. They also sorted out a room full of donated clothes and food. It was especially rewarding for them to see that as soon as they left, the staff began distributing the food that earlier, due to the condition of the room, they did not even know that they had.
The day was important to the boys because it showed them a part of the world that they might not have been familiar with. It also gave them the opportunity to focus their efforts outside of themselves. Several of them said that they wished that they could have done more. While part of this reaction came from the fact that their efforts impressed the Salvation Army's workers so much, it also speaks to the spirit the boys were in that day.
Greg noted that he and the boys were indebted to Kiri Rogers for organizing the trip.
Below are some of the boys' comments about the trip:
". . . it felt like we were really helping. Also we got to see what it is like down there."
"The people there were very nice and made me feel good about my work.. I think you should keep doing this trip because it is fun and rewarding."
"I think it was really great . . . I definitely recommend doing it again. It was enlightening, enjoyable, and it made me feel really great about myself. I would do it again in an instant. I loved it."
Donald Fitzpatrick, Headmaster
Read more at 8th Grade Boys Trip (291Kb)
November 12th, 2008
As Pastor Simons noted in his "Pastor"s Box" column last week, the Board of Trustees has determined that replacing the present BACS building would be better than trying to renovate the present one. This suggests that we need to ask questions about what the school's programs might be like in the future and what would be needed to house and support them.
But we all know how easy it is to become so busy with the things that happen each day that we have no time to look ahead and consider what we might be doing next year or even next month.
The same is true of the people who work in our school. They do need to plan for the next school year while the present one is unfolding, but finding time to look ahead five or ten or twenty years can be difficult.
But taking time to look ahead lets us raise our thoughts from the here and now and look forward to new possibilities. So looking ahead to a possible new school building could be compared to looking ahead and imagining what it will be like to live in a new house that has been designed especially to provide a home for the things we want to do there. Imagining what it might be like to live in that house can inspire us as we take the steps needed to make it a reality.
The people who work at BACS will have a chance to feel that sort of inspiration when a new school building becomes a real possibility.
Donald Fitzpatrick, Headmaster
October 30, 2008
During a recent Friday morning worship service, the whole BACS student body attended a religious assembly. The program consisted of a Powerpoint presentation of quotations from the Lord's Sermon on the Mount, illustrated and narrated by seventh grade students. The program was a moving one with a powerful sphere of worship present throughout during its presentation. A number of teachers commented afterward on the affirmative responses of their students.
Assemblies like this one offer older students an opportunity to be more directly involved in planning for and preparing presentations of teachings from the Word than they could be in the planning and preparations for a whole-school pageant. And this can serve to increase their interest and their learning.
Several more religious assemblies are scheduled for later in the school year.
Donald Fitzpatrick, Headmaster
