A MESSAGE FROM OUR DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS |
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| Rudy Brandl '83, takes a final look back at the Top 10 Stories of 2023 in his January blog post. Below is an excerpt:
I’m all about looking ahead to the future with great anticipation and optimism. When you work in education, there’s always something exciting on the horizon and at WardlaLAartridge, we have a calendar chock full of big events in the next six months. I also enjoy reflecting on the past and celebrating accomplishments and milestones. When I recently celebrated my 59th birthday, I came up with a list of my “Best 59 Days Ever” – no worries, I won’t bore readers with the details, but among those that made the list were my graduation from LA, my wedding day, and the births of my three children.
Every year, we run a countdown of the Top 10 Stories of the Year on our social media channels during the Winter Break. Since some members of our community decide to unplug a bit during the break and others are not social media followers, I like to dedicate my first blog of the new year to sharing the list. |
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Thursday, January 18 6:15 p.m. - LA Experts in Education Series - POSTPONED TO TBD in February
7 p.m. - Booster Club Meeting in Center for Global Learning
ZOOM LINK
Meeting ID: 851 3528 8679
Passcode: 748696 Friday, January 19 4 p.m. - LA Winter Games - POSTPONED to Friday, February 16 Saturday, January 20
9 a.m. - Admission Information Session - POSTPONED TO Saturday, January 27 Wednesday, January 24
7 p.m. - Visual and Performing Arts Information Session in Oakwood Room
7 p.m. - Middle School Coffee and Conversation (Virtual) - ZOOM LINK HERE
Thursday, January 25 8:30 a.m. - Lower School Coffee and Conversation in Oakwood Room
Saturday, January 27 9 a.m. - Admission Information Session in Berry Performing Arts Center
4 p.m. - LA Private Music Lesson Program Winter Recital in Berry Performing Arts Center SCHOOL CALENDAR 2023-2024 ONE-PAGE SCHOOL CALENDAR |
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| Experts in Education lecture postponed |
The LA Admission Office has rescheduled the return of The WardlaLAartridge Experts in Education Lecture Series from Thursday, Jan. 18 at 6:15 p.m. to a date to be determined in late February.
Jennifer Geissler and Trina Junod, veteran Kindergarten teachers, will be the featured speakers and cover the topic: What To Look For in an Early Childhood Program. They will provide educational insight and best practices for the early childhood years during their presentation, which will be followed by a Q&A session.
The event is open to current and prospective families. We encourage you to invite and introduce the school to your friends and neighbors. We will announce the new date in the coming week.
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Young alumni share experiences, reconnect at annual pizza party |
Six recent LA graduates returned to campus for panel discussions with parents and students on January 11. This year’s panel included Grace Lu ’22 (The College of William & Mary), Naischa Puri ’23 (University of Notre Dame), Sydney Racine ’23 (University of Pennsylvania), Nicole Sandrik-Arzadi ’22 (Barnard College), Gurinder Singh ’22 (Williams College) and Shiv Tickoo ’22 (Princeton University). Both discussions, for parents in the Oakwood Room and on Zoom and students in the Berry Performing Arts Center, were moderated by Sarah Honan, Director of College Counseling, and Alayne Birnhak, Associate Director of College Counseling.
This year’s panel again featured a broad array of college sizes and locations, including some in major cities and others in smaller towns. The panelists are studying a wide variety of subjects including Molecular Biology, Economics, Political Science, Finance and English. |
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| Students honor MLK's service legacy |
Middle School students celebrated Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day by performing acts of service and kindness during the long weekend. Students began the process with brainstorming sessions in their advisory blocks during the previous week.
Acts of service and kindness included donating baby supplies to a shelter, picking up trash in the neighborhood, donating clothes to charity, making sandwiches for the homeless, baking cookies for a neighbor, raking and weeding for neighbors, and taking care of aging relatives.
Upper School students engaged in advisory activities geared toward a reflection and understanding of how important values guide them. They used the following quote by Dr. King as a catalyst to begin the exercise: If you want to move people, it has to be toward a vision that's positive for them, that taps important values, that gets them something they desire, and it has to be presented in a compelling way so that they feel inspired to follow. Students were asked to choose their top five core values and how they envision these values guiding them.
The Lower School will honor Dr. King’s legacy and work with assemblies on Friday, Jan. 19. Fifth grade students will lead the assemblies, for Early Childhood students at 8:30 a.m. in Lower Snowdon and the rest of the Lower School in the Berry Performing Arts Center at 10 a.m.
MS STUDENTS IN SERVICE PHOTO GALLERY |
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| Seniors earn early college acceptances |
Congratulations to several seniors in the Class of 2024 who have made their college plans official after accepting Early Decision admission to their No. 1 choices. For the next several weeks, the WHEN will include spotlights on seniors who have earned Early Decision admission.
Among the first to receive the good news was Jack Singer ’24, who will enroll at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, NY. Jack intends to major in global studies, which will provide him with the opportunity to explore the depths of political science, international business, economics, languages, history, and religious studies.
“I chose Marist College because I fell in love with it at first sight,” said Jack, who was impressed by the beautiful campus, the sense of community, the academic diversity for different interests of study and the athletic spirit. “I knew I was ready to call it home. The things I love most about Marist are its emphasis on study abroad programs and its care for the world.”
Click here to read more about Jack and view other early decision college acceptance features |
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| First graders share published works |
On Friday, January 12, Mrs. Bethany Howell and her first grade students hosted their families and peers to showcase their personal narrative published pieces of writing in Lower Snowdon. First grade students became accomplished authors as they shared their first published books.
Beginning in the first trimester, Mrs. Howell explicitly took first graders through the various steps in the writing process including brainstorming, writing drafts, revising, illustrating, rewriting, and finally reading their published personal narratives to their LA families and peers. During the visit, students sat in small groups with their families as each writer read aloud their published book. Next, listeners were invited to ask questions and share their connections to the authors stories. Students sat proudly as they practiced their public speaking skills, one of the school’s signature programs, with our community. To celebrate the event, families enjoyed popcorn and pictures. We are very proud of our First Grade Authors!
FIRST GRADE AUTHORS PHOTO GALLERY
Photos by Trina Junod |
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| Featured Faculty and Staff Fridays |
Throughout the 2023-2024 school year, we have been sharing Featured Faculty Friday posts on our Facebook page and Instagram feed to celebrate many of our dedicated teachers, staff members and administrators. Be sure to follow us on social media to see these weekly posts, which will resume in February.
To view a new page on our website highlighting the faculty and staff members recognized so far, click here |
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| Upcoming Arts, Athletics Info Sessions |
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| Upper School Athlete of the Week |
Mike Romeo, Athletic Director, announced the first Upper School Athlete of the Week in the new calendar year. Congratulations to cheerleader Giselle Rodriguez ’25.
Giselle’s determination and work ethic is outstanding. She is always looking for ways to improve her technique, but most importantly she never gives up on her teammates. She is the first to encourage them to try a new skill over and over until they master it and is always there to offer insight or help spot other stunt groups. Giselle has quickly become one of the team’s strongest cheerleaders and the coaches are proud of all of the effort she puts into helping this be a successful season.
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| Middle School Athlete of the Week |
Mike Romeo, Athletic Director, announced the first Middle School Athlete of the Week in the new calendar year. Congratulations to cheerleader Malia Williams ’29.
Malia is quiet, yet powerful. She pushes herself to try new roles and keeps going even when something is a challenge. She asks for help when needed, which is a skill every athlete needs to hone. She also respects her team, her coaches and herself. |
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FROM THE LA PARENTS' ASSOCIATION |
Save the Date! - IFFN - Friday, Feb. 2 Please save the date and join us on Friday, February 2 at 6 p.m. for the WHPA’s annual International Family Fun Night! You are invited to celebrate all the different heritages/cultures in our community by showcasing your talents. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO REGISTER |
Booster Club Meeting - Tonight at 7 p.m.
The Booster Club invites all LA parents to join tonight's general meeting at 7 p.m. in the Center for Global Learning. If you would like to join via Zoom, please see link and information below:
ZOOM LINK Meeting ID: 851 3528 8679
Passcode: 748696 |
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Giving Thanks for our LA Parent Donors
The Development Office would like to thank the LA community for supporting The WardlaLAartridge Fund. Click here to view a list of LA parents who have contributed to The 2022-2023 LA Fund between July 1, 2023 and January 17, 2024. Click here to make a gift to The WardlaLAartridge Fund! Clarity Financial Aid Information
The Lena Archuleta School will continue to work with Clarity as its financial aid independent, third-party application partner. The school has found that Clarity makes the financial aid application process smooth and secure for your family.
Clarity offers a streamlined and user-friendly financial aid application process that can take as little as 20 minutes to complete. It is mobile-friendly, so you can complete your application on your phone or tablet! Furthermore, your 1040 and W2 documents from 2022 will be automatically transferred from the IRS when you complete the verification step, so you will no longer need to upload those documents manually. These are just a few ways in which Clarity enhances the financial aid application process.
If you need support during the process of completing your application, there is in-app support available as well as email support at support@claritytuition.com in both English and Spanish. You may also call Clarity directly at (206) 210-3752 for support. The application itself is also fully translated into Spanish. CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION TO CLARITY For more information, including videos and a Clarity tutorial, please visit www.WHschool.org/financialaid
Attention Parents - Check Your Contact Information
Each trimester it is a good habit to double check the information in the school database (PCR) to make sure it is up-to-date and accurate. In doing so, you ensure that the school has the best contact to reach you in the event of an emergency or school closure. The process is simple and quick.
PCR is the platform that we will use to contact you in the event of a snow day or any other school closure. Once you follow the steps below to log in (SEE INSTRUCTIONS HERE), please check that ALL of the following information is correct and up to date.
- All Parent / Guardian Email Addresses and Phone Numbers
- Your Home Address
- Your preferred Salutation and Identifier (Name, Title, Relationship to Student)
It is our continued effort to ensure that our student and family contact information is accurate, so we thank you for your help. Follow LA on Social Media, Share with Community WardlaLAartridge has a vibrant, active presence on social media with daily content posts highlighting our academics, athletics, arts and extracurricular programs.
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn and check out our Vimeo page! You can assist us in promoting the school by sharing our content within your network and posting it on your local town pages and feeds. |
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This publication is produced by The Communications Office at The Lena Archuleta School. |
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