GSL School News

www.gslschool.org

News from GSL School By Thor Kvande, Head of School

The 2021-2022 school year is underway at GSL! We are so excited to welcome new and returning families to our campus.

While we are all more than ready to put COVID behind us—a goal that seemed reachable in June—the more recent surge in Shelby County cases due to the Delta variant underscored the importance of maintaining certain layered protections to ensure we get our school year off to a safe start, with children in the classroom where they can learn best. For now, we continue measures such as social distancing and masking indoors with the hope that as vaccinations increase, COVID cases will decrease, allowing us to move back to “normal” school life as soon as possible.

We enjoyed a fantastic SummerFest 2021, offering some 75 camp options for boys and girls in PK through 8th grade. We also welcomed the Class of 2017 back to campus for a fun college sendoff lunch, complete with cornhole games and a delicious lunch by GSL family-owned Fuel Catering Food Truck. And of course, we made time this summer for painting walls, waxing floors, refreshing classrooms, reorganizing our beautiful Anchor Center Library, and checking off all the other tasks that precede the start of a new school year. A dozen new teachers join our team as faculty members this fall; that list follows below. We are excited to welcome them to the Saints community!

Christine Anes, Pre-Kindergarten Caroline Canon, Senior Kindergarten Katherine Consola, 7th/8th Latin and 5th History West Ellis, 7th Social Studies Abby Hensley, Senior Kindergarten Assistant Deven Jackson, Little Lukers Assistant Kam Johnson, Pre-Kindergarten Assistant Carmen Navarro, Preschool and Lower School Spanish Brittany Smith, Little Lukers Assistant Amzie Williams, 6th Bible Ellyse Woolard, 6th Math Lab, 7th Honors Pre-Algebra, 8th Algebra I Abigail Wright, 3rd Grade

Finally, we share an enrollment update: We are starting this year with 451 students, and we are still fielding calls and conducting tours now! There are a few spaces left in selected classrooms, so please direct any inquiries to Director of Enrollment Shelly McGuire at 901-278-0200.

Calendar Events

First Day of 2021-22 School Year: Monday, August 16 Labor Day Holiday: Monday, September 6 Parent-Teacher Conferences Holiday: Friday, September 24 Fall Break Holiday: October 6-8

We were delighted to welcome members of GSL’s Class of 2017 back to campus in August for a College Sendoff Lunch. Pictured from left, front row: Eva Claire White, Abby Fogerty, Mary Gara Nix, Sophie Mansour, Madeleine Hays, Macy Pisahl, Grace Goodfellow, Georgia Brown, Julia Comes, Lauren Stephens, Maxine Engel, and Grace Garrett; back row, Joseph Barnes, Stephen Cates, Reese McMullen, Cooper Hough, Emilio Lachica, Chip Eason, Max White, Miller Pisahl, Holden Brown, Paul Jones, Gray Nix, and Leo Campbell. SummerFest 2021 ended with extra fun—plus an appearance from some of our cheerleaders AND our Saints Mascot Luke—on the last day in August. Pictured from left: eighth grader Maggie, Camp Director Emily Merrell, eighth grader Cate as Luke, Assistant Camp Director Carter Strickland ’18, and eighth grader Harper.