Vol. 10, No. 9 Tappahannock, Virginia, April 2008

Dear St. Margaret's friends and families,

We become the people we are because of the ideas, experiences, and people we allow into our lives and hearts. No time is this more evident than in April, as the St. Margaret's School community reunites after Minimester and Spring Break and our students and their families make decisions about the next step in each girl's education. Each of us has left and returned with a story to tell about what we have learned about the world and about ourselves.

I have always believed that exposing ourselves to cultures different from our own is an essential step toward learning to understand and define what we value and believe. That can take place right here on the St. Margaret's campus where our school culture is very different from even the nearest other educational community or as far away as Morocco where some of our students experienced a non-Western, non-Christian culture for the first time. Initially the differences make us uncomfortable, but the longer we stay and the more deeply we experience the values and beliefs of the "foreign" culture, the more clearly we can understand and articulate what is important to us.

This month, I've heard this new confidence in the voices of the seniors who are presenting their Independent Studies and making their college choices, our juniors as they are debating opportunities for senior leadership here and summer internships around the world, our younger students as they are selecting roommates and advisors for next year, and our faculty as they research their own summer plans as well as next year's course offerings and school travel options. I am grateful that while implementing the mission of St. Margaret's we make time for this aspect of learning.

I, too, am grateful for the opportunity to continue to learn! While our students and faculty were away, David and I took a long- awaited trip to Asia to immerse ourselves in a culture that has captured the heart of our son and inspired his life and travels. On a National Geographic Expedition to Bhutan, we experienced a culture in transition, committed to preserving its heritage and values as it moves thoughtfully and deliberately into the 21st century. There were powerful lessons for this head of school! I'll enjoy sharing a few of them through journal entries and David's photos. Whether hiking to a monastery on a mountain top or sitting next to the leader of the national dance troupe at dinner, we were challenged to see the world and ourselves a little differently and have come back refreshed and inspired.

Sincerely,
Margaret R. Broad,
Head of School


 

International Festival 2008: -
Students celebrate music around the world.....

College Options for Seniors: -
It's decision time........

Students Learn Fi$cal Responsibility: -
Personal finance class teaches life lessons......

ISPs Show Students Have What it Takes: -
SMS has prepared them well.......

THE CURRENT

Pack up the car, Bring the family, And come home to St. Margaret's. Join Us for Reunion Friday 6 to Sunday 8 June, 2008 Register online today at www.sms.org/reunion Questions? contact Director of Alumnae Relations Mavora Donoghue at 804-443-3357 x3014 or mdonoghu@sms.org