Head of School Blog

This week, we have had the privilege of honoring Mr. Abel Maldonado, a member of the facilities team who is retiring after 36 years at All Saints’.

In April, the Memorial Garden came alive with laughter, hugs, and familiar chatter as we welcomed back the All Saints’ Class of 2021 for our annual Alumni Party. It felt like a homecoming and a great party. 

Last week, a community member shared the departing message of the Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy. I read it on the same day the California wildfires started, as we were all working urgently to find ways to support those impacted and comprehend the scale of such devastation.

One of my favorite things about All Saints’ is our commitment to continuous growth and learning. Truly exceptional schools view the constant pursuit of knowledge through a growth mindset lens as essential to success. A core driver in our work as educators is the belief that the craft of teaching and learning is constantly evolving—there is always more knowledge to explore and expertise to be gained. We teach students to be lifelong learners and get excited knowing we are walking alongside them on the same journey of evolution and growth.

At All Saints’ our mission is our greatest strength: it defines who we are, what we do, and where we are going. Although we’ve grown and evolved throughout the years, our mission has always remained at the center.

Every word of our mission provides profound direction for our community, including the closing line, “to serve a world in need.” We want our graduates to have a well-developed desire to take action to help others and make the world a better place. 

However, it is important to reflect on what service truly means at All Saints’. It’s more than the act of gifting—it’s about giving of yourself and understanding. Service learning is about exploring, perspective-taking, and understanding. Service learning is about engagement.

In the past 100-plus years, we have made great strides in understanding child development—what kids need to learn and how kids learn. However, one thing is certain: the world will never stop changing. Students need skills that transcend time and change. As part of the All Saints' mission, we believe this includes educating children in mind, body, and soul. It is our role as educators, parents, and the community to provide opportunities for our children to play, take risks, and even make mistakes in a supportive environment. They need the ability to think, inquire, problem-solve, and collaborate. Most importantly, they need joy.

One of my favorite parts of every new school year is connecting with our youngest and oldest students. I visit with our youngest students to read a couple of books—usually one about friendship and one with plenty of funny voices to bring out a few giggles, and we talk about being a good friend and the excitement of school. This is also the time of year when Mrs. Miller and I visit eighth-grade students to discuss what it means to be a leader at All Saints’, how they can enjoy their final year, and how to prepare for high school and beyond.

Today we welcomed our All Saints’ community back to campus for the first day of the 2024–25 school year! The energy was extra special this year—parents and kids were hugging, teachers were smiling at their doors, and everyone was talking about their summer explorations and the quick transition back to being together.

One of my favorite things about the field of education is that every year is on a cycle. Every year, students evolve and change, faculty members refine their practices, and the flow of the school year begins with celebration and ends with reflection. Traditions and community hold us together in this constant pattern of evolution and growth, which helps us feel excited about the future and appreciative of the past. 

Every summer, our faculty and staff read a few suggested books, and here are this summer's picks:

Working with a team to create a restaurant. Writing and performing a commercial. Designing a menu and presenting it to peers. Writing recipes. Creating a cooking video. Competing to win a salsa competition. All in Spanish. 

As part of our mission to serve a world in need, our Spanish department strives to build a foundation for global citizenship through the study of language. Studying a world language is so much more than vocabulary and syntax. It teaches empathy, understanding, cooperation, and appreciation of cultural diversity and inclusivity. Completing hands-on and collaborative activities like the salsa competition and restaurant project are great opportunities for the language to come alive for students. This is certainly not how I learned Spanish in middle school!

I can hardly wait for the premiere of our Theater department’s spring musical this week, Into the Woods Jr! Over the past few months, Ms. Balogh and several of our middle school students have spent countless hours working on the production. I am so proud of their hard work and dedication. The students are all very excited to share their work with the All Saints’ community this weekend.

Last Thursday night, Manning Hall was packed with supporters of the Challenge Foundation. All Saints’ alum, Mariana Acevedo, was the keynote speaker. As she spoke about her experiences with Challenge, an important line from her speech stood out to me. She shared, “You have always helped me feel seen,” as a person, a learner, and a leader. Both the Challenge Foundation and All Saints’ strive for all of our students to feel this way. 

Every day I walk through the Shaver Learning Commons and see learning come to life. I love the moments when I see our middle school students sprawled on the lawn talking and working in groups on a project, and our younger students reading with their buddies on the swings. I can even hear the band practicing their instruments on the stage from my office (and they have made so much progress!). 

I wanted to share some exciting news about the recognition the Shaver Learning Commons is receiving outside of our community, but the most important thing about this space is the impact it has had on our students and faculty. That is why we built it—for our community.

In the past few years, the All Saints' community has come together to accomplish extraordinary goals—creating both the Christopher Ray Milisci Academic Building and the Shaver Learning Commons—a process two decades in the making. Please read on for a few highlights of the momentous work we have recently accomplished, and join me in expressing collective gratitude for our faculty, our staff, our leadership, ASPA, all of our parents, All Saints' Church, The Challenge Foundation, and most importantly, our amazing students. I am beyond proud of who we are as a school and all we continue to accomplish.