Headmaster's Address

Each new school year is unique in terms of the spec i al events , significant changes, and new developments which distinguish it from precedin g years This year prom i ses to be an unusual one in the history of S t. Martin 's. It has been traditional for our school to provide a high quality , well rounded educational program in a Christian environmen t. T his year has been characterized by a number of inno vat ions, designed to further enhance th e quality of that program. There is evidence , fo r instanc e , that recent changes in th e religion curr ic u lum and instructional practices have resulted in making this aspect of th e school's program more mea nin gful in the li ves of our students. The new Frenc h program and the open classroom experiment are most promis in g in th e pri mary grades. The new m i d dle school program for seventh and eighth grade rs, with its own curriculum and faculty, separate from the hi g h school prov ides greater opportunity to meet the special needs of students in their early teens. The conversion of the school year from a semester system to a trimeste r - or three-term year , in both the middle and high schools, g i ves stud en ts grea t er flexibility in th e ir schedules and provides more la ti tud e for elec ti ves These are some of the things that prom i se to make this year something of a mi l estone in our school's history.

A very special climaxing eve nt of considerable magn it ude this year was the school 's comprehensive ten-year evaluation which was conducted by a visiting team of educators, r epresenting both the Sou th ern Associa ti on of Colleges and Schools and th e Independ e nt Sc hools Association of the Sou thw es t. S tud ents and faculty alike were indeed pleased with the comm itt ee 's pos iti ve and reassuring report

Ellsworth 0. Van S l ate