GROUNDBREAKING NEWS

We are excited to share the following news related to the Capital Campaign for the Upper Division expansion. The Campaign has been underway for more than 3 years during very difficult economic times. Many of our families and friends have made significant contributions to help us realize our dream of both renovating the Upper Division campus and constructing the Arts & Athletics Center, which will benefit the entire NGFS community.

The financing for the Upper Division expansion has always envisioned a significant loan in addition to contributions. Rather than obtaining a loan from financial institution-no small feat in this time of tight credit and difficult underwriting-Bob Page & Dale Frederiksen will stand in the place of the bank and provide a loan to finance the project at a rate substantially below what is available in the market, and that also avoids significant bank fees.

This capital investment, funded by Bob & Dale, is the most significant in the school's history and will enable us to move forward in 2011 with the expansion. By sharing their resources in this creative way, Bob & Dale are enabling us to move forward with the expansioin now-during a time when market pressure has forced construction costs to record lows. This investment has also allowed us to purchase 12 acres of land adjacent to the Upper Division campus for future expansion-bringing our total land ownership to 27 contiguous acres.

Bob & Dale are making this significant financial investment to secure the future of New Garden Friends School. These actions reflect their tremendous love and support of our school community and the importance it plays in educating all of our children. NGFS is thrilled to accept this offer of generosity and to be associated with the Page/Frederiksen name, and that of Replacements, Ltd., which reflect the values of fairness, equality and justice in our community that we treasure.

Bob extends his deepest gratitude to everyone who has contributed to the Capital Campaign. "Moving forward with this important expansion wouldn't be possible without the many contributions of generous donors, past, present and future."

Does this mean that our Capital Campaign is over? No. We must raise an additional $500,000, and our goal is to raise approximately half of that prior to groundbreaking. The Capital Campaign team and our community leaders are working furiously to ensure this happens. By accepting Bob & Dale's gift, we galvanize our commitment to raising the necessary funds. We won't slow down on our fundraising efforts.

Bob & Dale's gift is a vote of confidence for the future of New Garden Friends School. We are incredibly moved by and grateful for the faith and generosity this investment displays. Groundbreaking is expected to take place in February 2011, and completion of the new facility is anticipated approximately nine months later.

In Peace & Gratitude,
David

Quaker Schools & Spirituality

I am fortunate enough to be at Pendle Hill with about 50 other heads of Friends Schools for our annual gathering. I have been coming to this event for close to 20 years and I always find it rejuvenating. I am always amazed at, though our schools vary in size, history, location, etc, we have so much in common.

During this trip I have been a part of conversations across almost all areas of administration. We have talked about making our education affordable, especially for our younger families in our preschools and kindergartens. We have talked about ways to have our older students and younger students be in the same places on our campuses and benefit from one another. We have talked about, no matter how elite each or our schools may be perceived to be, we don't get enough kids into the "right" colleges. And we talked about working diligently with colleges and students and families to get our kids into the RIGHT college for each of our students. We discussed what positions we need to add to our staff and which ones we need to let go. We discussed what education is going to look like in the next 5, 10 , 50 years regardless of what our economy does.

Most importantly, we discussed that when we are in the position to have these difficult conversations and we then proceed to make the best decisions our schools can make; we greatly benefit by bringing our sense of Quaker spirituality to the decision. It doesn't make these decisions easy, but we can then make them with more confidence and calm. It is a gift that we have as educators in Quaker schools. We beleive that listening to that still small voice within is worthwhile. Our students can use this, our teachers, our staff, parents and trustees. Again it is a gift and we must always be mindful of this.

A Day (& more) of Peace at NGFS

Last night we had our annual Community-wide Peace Picnic at our Pleasant Ridge campus. This has become a tradition at NGFS. It allows us to "lift up" for one day what we live throughout the year at our school. That is that resolutions, small and big, come best through peaceful methods. We stress throughout each day, and each year and our history the importance of thoughtful listening and reflection to work out solutions together, not by physical strength or majority rule.

We say in our Statement of Quaker Beliefs, about Peace: Friends are committed to settling differences in all human relationships in a peaceful manner.

So we do as a school community live this each day. Coming to non-violent resolution is not the easy way often, but we are convinced it is the right way. Therefore, we celebrate this Day of Peace as one component of the bigger picture at NGFS. We do encourage all in our community to take a moment next Tuesday, September 21 (the official International Day of Peace) to think about how you can create more peace in your life, in the life of your family and community.

Roots & Connections

Three events in the recent history of the school lead me to write this blog: a workshop I co-led at our staff retreat looking at the history of the school to help us build the curricular future, my first class with the upper division Quaker seminar students about the history of NGFS, and the work of the Diversity Action Group of the Board to connect with our first home, Persimmon Grove AME Church on Dolley Madison Avenue.

There are so many incredible people and places involved in the history of New Garden Friends School, but I would like to highlight the congregation of Persimmon Grove AME Church today. Back in 1971 when NGFS was just an idea, with many people trying to make it a reality, the congregation of Persimmon Grove AME Church opened its arms and its doors to provide NGFS with an initial home. Without this gift, who knows whether our school could have ever found its feet - to get to the place now where our students are able to soar.

What trust and faith the Persimmon Grove community had to welcome a new school into its facility and into its collective heart and conscience. NGFS was only there for a brief period, wanting at that time to be more centrally located in downtown Greensboro. But what a great start this provided the school.

Now, almost 40 years later, both communities are working to reconnect. On September 14th we will welcome friends from Persimmon Grove for a visit to our Guilford and Pleasant Ridge campuses and to have lunch with a group of our students. We are excited about this event. We hope to do more with the congregation in late October as a part of their "Friends & Family" celebration.

I want to thank the Persimmon Grove community for giving NGFS its start. Those roots are so vital now to our ongoing growth. I hope that our reconnection will be one that is long lasting, and that this part of our history will become a part of our future.

Gratitude and Grandparents

Today is our celebration of grandparents and grandfriends at NGFS. This is a tradition that goes back a dozen years or so at the school; I guess fairly new as traditions go. I have come to see this as one of the most special days in our school calendar.

Why? There are many reasons.

Every year, on this day, our campuses are so full of joy and appreciation for each individual: students, staff, parents, volunteers and our cherished grandparents and grandfriends. This year we had over 100 grandfriends spend the morning with us.

In American culture, where we seem to separate elderly adults from children, we have lost much of what can be given from a lifetime of wisdom. This day at our school symbolizes the importance of each day being a day lived intergenerationally -when you blog you get to make up new words =). There is so much to be learned from our grandparents and grandfriends. There is so much rejuvenation to be given from our students.

Mostly, though, is the value simply of the relationship itself between grandchild and grandparent. There is no other relationship quite like this one throughout one's life. It is one based singularly on unconditional love, incredible joy on just time spent together, with very little reason for stress and tension to ever enter the relationship. Well maybe that is too utopian, but that's how I remember my grandparents and it is the hope I have for our current students as they get to live their relationships with their grandparents.

Thanks to our community, all the volunteers and the students who led worship and the teachers who created special schedules and to our grandfriends for an exceptional day!

Where Has the Year Gone

I can't believe that it is already spring break. When we come back to school it will be April. Trips will begin, then graduation and Camp Carefee Day and Magic Penny and another school year will be complete.

However, what a school year it has been for us so far. From my perspective curriculum and vertical continuity have never been stronger. Our teachers are finding ways to balance the age old lessons of being a community member (citizenry) with the newest of skills needed for todays's world, ie, analyzing data, agility and adaptability, initiative, imagination, collaboration, etc.

Our community events have been outstanding, from the pancake breakfast and workday, to the Peace Potluck, Fall Unity Festival, Fiesta de los Ninos and the Lyndon Street Art and Music Exhibit. We are all looking forward to Many Friends, Many Voices on April 25th-this concert will be a new and exciting way for NGFS to provide the arts to our greater community.

We have a group of students and adults who are travelling to Cuba over Spring Break to do service work in that community. How many schools can offer that for its students! Many thanks to Robb for all the hard work involved in making this trip possible.

I could ramble on much longer, but in a nut shell that is where we have been and where we are going. With a quarter of the year remaining our enrollment is strong and the immediate future for the school looks great. Thanks to all of you: parents, staff, trustees, students and friends of the school for making NGFS the incredible learning community that it is.

I hope everyone has an opportunity to relax and rejuvenate over break, and hope everyone comes back energized so that we have a strong finish to the 09-10 school year. Safe travels to all of you on the road or in the air over break!

Celebrating and Honoring Diversity

Wow!, what a program that was put together for our annual Diversity Day celebration. Thanks so much to the staff and parents that worked so hard to put this together. This is such an important event for our school community. It is one outward manifestation of our commitment to creating a diverse and inclusive community.

This year the committee chose the topic, "Movement of Change-Overcoming and Moving Beyond Segregation in Our Society." In part, this was to honor the 50th anniversary of the Woolworth "Sit-ins" in Greensboro.

The committee even outlined goals for the day:
Students will understand difficulties other people in their own community might have experienced or are currently experiencing based on race, religion, gender, economic situation, disability, etc.
Students will have the opportunity to listen, discuss, ask questions and become involved in a workshop dealing with a specific topic related to the theme.
Students will be able to identify something they can do (at their own level) to make a difference in helping the lives of others.

We began this morning with the entire community coming together for meeting for worship. Logie Meachum, a dynamic storyteller and singer and also a long time friend of NGFS, shared stories and wisdoms around the theme of "A Long Walk in the Night."

After meeting for worship there were a series of age-appropriate workshops conducted for students either at New Garden Friends Meeting, our Guilford campus or our Pleasant Ridge campus.

I didn't, and couldn't, get to every workshop. But I did get to hear a few of them. One from the Horizon age group, one from Rainbow and two for upper division students. Each was incredibly powerful. One at the upper division was a presentation by a Tuskegee Airman. There are only a handful of these airmen still alive. His story was so moving, his drive to accomplish the goal of being a pilot was unweilding. I think all of us who heard him were moved.

The entire day was such a strong statement of the so many good things about our community. Again thanks to those who made today possible: the volunteers, the presenters, and our students who were so attentive throughout the day.