Letter From the Head of School

“We are all at our best when we are known and valued, and I hope you feel – as I do – that Prairie’s relationshipbased approach to the pursuit of excellence has played a significant role in shaping our lives for the better.” – Nat Coffman, Ed.D.

Dear Prairie Families:

Home is usually a word that evokes an array of feelings and memories. It calls to mind familiar locations, sounds, foods, or experiences that connect us to our past and fill our daily lives. There are also people who inspire the feelings of home: family, friends, colleagues, teachers, and mentors who both support and challenge us as we continually grow and evolve into better versions of ourselves. I hope that all of you reading this today recall elements of your Prairie experience that involve positive feelings of home.

While we have a spectacular facility in a beautiful location, it is the people who make Prairie, Prairie, and our commitment to one another is directly reflected in how we approach teaching and learning, how we build community, and how we pursue excellence. We have each taken unique paths through our time at Prairie, but our experiences all share an array of impactful relationships. A teacher who challenged you to be your best or supported you through a rough patch. A coach who helped you master a new skill and understand what it means to be part of a team. A classmate who encouraged you to dig deeper into a topic you loved and built a lifelong friendship with you. We are all at our best when we are known and valued, and I hope you feel – as I do – that Prairie’s relationship-based approach to the pursuit of excellence has played a significant role in shaping our lives for the better.

This June, we are proud to host a weekend of events designed to bring our alumni, retired faculty, and friends back home to Prairie – and we hope you will join us, not only to see new and familiar spaces, but to rekindle cherished connections. Whether it’s been months or years since you were last on campus, you will see that the school has continued to change and improve. We are proud to have been fully in-person since August 10th, 2020; to have opened the Leipold Johnson Early Childhood Center in the fall of 2021; to have put on amazing performances and won athletic championships throughout the pandemic; and to have continued to welcome interesting new families and faculty to our community. We think that even in our new spaces, you will feel right at home – we can’t wait to celebrate with you the first weekend in June.

Although our school has evolved and expanded over the past fifty-seven years, what remains constant is more than the light-filled, red-brick halls and the green fields. It is the values of respect, trust, and community — the relationships and the people that connect our present to our past. You are an important part of Prairie’s past, present, and future, and we look forward to welcoming you back in June.

Sincerely,

Nathaniel W. Coffman, Ed.D. Head of School & President