Viewbook

Letter from the Head of School | Four Stories
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Letter from the Head of School

It begins - as every school begins - with students. We present a school culture in which parents and faculty work collaboratively to further a child’s intellectual, physical, and social growth. It is a culture that emanates from our five core values: Academic Excellence, Earnest Effort, Honorable Conduct, Dedicated Service, and Wellness of Mind, Body, and Spirit.

We offer four stories documenting the lives of Fay students. Each story describes not only the actions of a single child but the workings of a community: a network of friends and family, teachers and coaches, mentors and advisors. Together, the stories capture not simply the experience of children at Fay, but the experience of children at a crucial stage of their development.

That stage - that long moment between early childhood and early adolescence - is Fay’s abiding concern. For over 140 years we’ve offered children a nurturing, structured environment during the time when their habits are formed, their character is forged, and their selfhood comes into focus. Importantly, we’ve offered families an essential resource: a partnership with a caring, dedicated community.

Our experience tells us that this is how children become active, purposeful adults: with the support and guidance of a community. When schools and families work together, when they attend to every aspect of a child’s life - physical and intellectual, spiritual and social - then the child grows from a firm, full foundation.

At Fay, we strive to be a model partner with parents during the defining moments in their children’s lives. The stories that follow - like the story of any child, any family, any school - aren’t seamless or simple. But by telling them we hope to honor those moments, pay close attention to them, give them their full due. That work is our purpose and our pride.

Stephen C. White, Head of School