a letter from our head of school

dear friends

a letter from our head of school

Dear Friends,

The theme of this issue is “Getting Back to the Heart of Friends,” and I couldn’t think of anything that’s been more of a focus, indeed a mission, for our community at Valencia Street this fall. And I think we’ve done just that: we’ve returned

to our regular classrooms and left our smaller cohorts behind; we’ve gathered for division-wide assemblies and special occasions like Winter Celebration and Probability Day; we’ve restored our magical library and Learning Commons to their previous glory, where eager Friends line up to take out a dozen books at a time (parents, I know how you feel as I find myself stunned by the weight of backpacks and bags I help unload on the carpool island at drop-off.)

And we have many hopes for the months ahead, hopes that see us welcoming parents, GrandFriends, and dear friends of our SFFS

community back to campus, that see us gathering, in-person, for the next iteration of our beloved Blue Party and Year-End Celebration. I also hold high hopes of celebrating Pankti Sevak, our Incoming Head of School, on campus, in a community-wide event that brings together students, faculty, staff, families, alums, trustees, and friends of Friends. Though we are hopefully rounding the corner on Omicron, only time and what we learn next about how this pandemic continues to evolve will inform our decisions—but for now I feel grateful that we have had the opportunity to reclaim so much of who we aspire to be at Friends over the past few months—and I

know I, and the rest of us at Valencia Street, are ready for more.

thinking sffs,

“And we have many hopes for the months ahead, hopes that see us welcoming parents, GrandFriends, and dear friends of our SFFS community back to campus, that see us gathering, in-person, for a next iteration of our beloved Blue Party and Year-End Celebration.”

Mike Hanas Head of School