From the Desk of the Head of School- October 7, 2022

10/7/2022

Dear Harding Academy Learning Community,

It has been a beautiful fall day here at Windsor Drive. It is days like these that motivate us to get up and out of our classrooms. It has been wonderful to see all the activity in and around campus. One of the most prominent events is the 5th through 8th grade play, Moana Jr., which debuted last night and runs through Saturday. So much goes into these shows and to see it come together over this last week has been incredible.

I had lunch with a group of 8th graders this afternoon who were deep in the preparation for tonight’s show. One of the highlights for me around these musicals is the way the plays are really leadership seminars wrapped up in a theatrical performance. One of these 8th graders was in charge of the lights - something he acknowledged as being work that would only be noticed if he messed up. He owned it and was very mature about his approach. In his case, practice made perfect and that meant he shouldn’t ever be noticed. Alternatively, one of the main characters was excited to perform again and refine the role and the other 8th grader was working on the stage management for the first time since she arrived at Harding.

All three were leading by example - pushing themselves to be their best, rooting for each other, excited about the common goal, discussing problems to which they were bringing solutions, adapting in the moment - in short, demonstrating leadership. I’m very proud of these 8th graders and of the program. I hope you all enjoy the show and as you watch can appreciate the depth of its impact on our students.

We’ve been busy on other fronts as well. Over the last couple of weeks we saw:

Second Grade headed to Honeysuckle Hill Farm on their first field trip of the year and engaged in nature studies,
PreK took their annual pilgrimage to Owl’s Hill, where they met some owl friends and hiked in the middle Tennessee landscape,
We had salmon on the menu in the cafeteria that was a huge hit and, yes, we’ve heard from some of you around our transition in the cafeteria. Please know you have been heard and we are addressing it on our end.
Our middle school early fall sports team concluded their seasons in their various HVAC tournaments,
Our families came out in force for our Spirit Night at our football game versus Ensworth (many thanks to chairs of that event, Rebecca Sheaff and Kimmy Peterson).

As I have said before, there is a lot that goes into a whole child program like ours. Every once in awhile I like to feature one aspect of that program, but I hope the above shows that each aspect of the way we live out our mission on a daily basis contributes to your children growing and thriving.

Have a great weekend!

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