News & Weekly Letters

More than 10 years ago, I was living a relatively carefree life in Shanghai. During the hot, humid months of fall, I filled my lungs with the scent of street food wafting from the carts dotted around the old town. Andria sat behind me on my knockoff electric Vespa, and we zipped, helmet-free, around the Former French Concession, pinching ourselves at our good luck and relishing our adventurous lives.

This evening an annual tradition is taking place–we are hosting a reception to welcome the parents who will be joining our community in September. Our Director of Admissions Mireille Desalm and I are looking forward to seeing them again–we already met every new child and parent as part of the admissions process–and to giving them a taster of our legendary social gatherings on the rooftop of the Maternelle Building.

Every school tells its own story. We all talk about it – kids, parents, colleagues, and even people who have a limited view from the outside. All of these narratives combine to form the story of The École. I hear that story just as often as I contribute to writing it, and I add to it just as much as it informs my decisions.

After a record number of reactions and responses to my letter last week, I intend to keep things a little lighter today! For example, I plan to talk about the trip to France I am about to embark on (I am literally on the plane as you read this). My destination is Reims, the unofficial capital of the Champagne growing region. And although I’m headed there for the annual MLF Congress for heads of French schools throughout the world, I expect I’ll be holding a glass of bubbly in all the photos!

It is a little hard to believe considering the weather outside, but the end of the school year is coming hard and fast! It’s a festive moment when we get to celebrate everything that’s been learned all year long. It’s also a bittersweet moment because we’ll be saying goodbye to some of our current students, and our new students – those who are waiting to join us – are probably feeling a little anxious right now at the idea of starting in a new school and finding their place among new classmates.