Head of School's Letter - First Week Reflection & Rosh Hashanah

Dear Families,

There is something wonderfully deceptive about the first week of school. Everything feels new: new teachers, classrooms, routines, sneakers… and yet there is also the unmistakable feeling of returning.

For some children, that return is literal. Familiar hallways come back quickly, and trusted adults greet them by name. For others, this week has been a true beginning: learning where to sit at lunch, finding their way through the building, meeting classmates whose names are still new.

I have been struck by how quickly those first threads of belonging begin to form. It’s an invitation to join a game, a classmate showing someone where to go, a teacher making room for one more question, laughter shared between children who did not know one another a few days ago.

At our New Parent Gathering, I found myself thinking about another kind of beginning. I was struck by how many of our newest Brookwood parents are themselves alumni. Years ago, they sat in these classrooms and ran across these fields; now, with the benefit of distance and reflection, they have chosen Brookwood for their own children.

And in the same room were families encountering Brookwood for the first time, choosing this place not because of a memory, but because of a hope for what it might become for their child.

There is something deeply meaningful in both.

Schools are always carrying the past and creating the future at once. Programs evolve and the world changes, but the spirit our alumni remember: being known well, challenged to think deeply, encouraged to be curious, and taught to take responsibility for a community is still very much alive. For our newest families, that spirit is only beginning to become their own.

That feels especially fitting as Rosh Hashanah begins for our Jewish families. The Jewish New Year is a time of both reflection and renewal: an opportunity to look back thoughtfully and consider how one hopes to live in the year ahead. To all in our community who observe, I wish you a sweet and meaningful new year.

A new school year offers its own version of that invitation. We carry forward what matters, make room for what is new, and pay attention to the people we are becoming.

After this first week, I am grateful for what I see taking shape. Welcome back,  and, to those joining us for the first time, welcome to Brookwood.

Warmly,
Jon