Viewbook

Letter from the Head of School | Four Stories
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Values and Leadership

Every community has a culture, a sensibility, a tone. Ours is rooted in a longstanding set of core values, a belief in the value of enlightened leadership, and a commitment to service.

Academic and social life at Fay are shaped by the School’s five core values: academic excellence, earnest effort, honorable conduct, dedicated service, and wellness of mind, body, and spirit. We infuse them into our curriculum; we celebrate them at morning meetings, family-style meals, and a weekly non-denominational chapel service; we reward students who exhibit them in the classroom, on the playing field, and in the social life of the School. They are, to us, the markers of an engaged citizen, a meaningful scholar, an enlightened leader.

Fay’s leadership curriculum runs from first to ninth grade. In the Upper School, students enroll in a leadership class that meets once a week. In small groups, guided by faculty, students talk frankly about the issues that confront every leader: how to earn trust and respect, how to understand the needs of others, how to communicate effectively. The classes gradually expand and deepen students’ awareness of their role in the community, the value of service, and the meaning of leadership.

Every Fay student has a chance to lead. We offer leadership opportunities large and small. Students become captains of sports teams, class presidents, - mentors and supervisors who assist faculty - or color officers, leaders of the School’s two spirit clubs, the Reds and Whites. They also lead in quiet ways: they’re the anchor of a class discussion, the coordinator of a group project, the stage manager of a play. And they lead by example: their effort, their enthusiasm, their consideration serve as models for their peers. Adults in the Fay community encourage students to think of leadership in these broad terms, and to find a leadership role that suits their temperament and their ambition. We expect students to take an active role in the life of their community. We offer service opportunities on and off campus. Students can serve as library assistants and tour guides, members of the dining room set-up crew and the recycling team. And the School maintains ties with a number of local and regional service agencies and regularly sponsors service projects that are open to the Fay community. Recent projects include fundraising for hunger relief, visiting and performing for senior citizens, working in soup kitchens, joining the town clean-up day, and making quilts for infants with AIDS.