Dear Flint Hill School Families,

As we approach Spring Break, please continue to monitor news and updates about the coronavirus. At Flint Hill, we have been sharing regular updates and have created a tile on our Resource Board as a central location for information regarding the School’s response. It is also crucial for us to keep sending our best wishes to anyone who may be affected by the virus.

On a lighter note, the level of school activity continues to be high. Last Saturday, we hosted our International Festival, which could not have been more positive and exciting. There was a great turnout, and all of us learned a great deal from and with each other. Have you ever attended an Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony? Well, if you were here Saturday, you had a chance to participate in one. And I enjoyed sampling the incredible food that was available from around the world and learning about different cultures. The attendance couldn’t have been better, and the entertainment, which ranged from dances to an amazing storyteller, all added to the ambiance of the day. Please join me in thanking Kayla Edwards-Scott, Mia Burton, Ana Yarbrough, Ban Hameed and Sibel Unsal for their leadership and all the families who took the time to represent their home countries in such a thoughtful and powerful way.

Several weeks ago, I mentioned in my letter that one of our students who was hosting her own gala to support the Cerebral Palsy Foundation. The gala was also last Saturday, and it had an enormous number of student volunteers who helped welcome people, worked at tables, helped set up and take down the event, and even provided the musical entertainment. With the help of her fellow members of the Flint Hill Champions for Cerebral Palsy club, junior Isobel Matsukas put together a very successful event. We should all be very proud of what she was able to accomplish and the support that she has been able to give to others because of her hard work.

We also recently sent out our admission acceptance to families we hope will join us next year. At this time of year, I need your help in making sure we welcome, greet and embrace our new members of the School family. This has been an incredibly busy admission season. Every year, I have taken pride in how personal and meaningful our process has been to enroll new families. This year, the Admission Office re-arranged some of the previous events, came up with new ideas and truly worked, once again, as a focused and committed team. In addition, there were a number of referrals and recommendations from current families, and we are extremely grateful for your support. The end result was that we have seen an enormous increase of interest in all that is happening at Flint Hill. Inquiries were up 24%, applications were up 14%, shadow visits were up 34%, and our general attendance at admission events was up 22%. When admission decisions were sent out last Friday, families received an email, followed by a personalized video, and a phone call. An enormous number of students, parents, and school personnel all helped to make sure these families knew how much we wanted them to join us and that we were available to answer questions before they make their final decision. This week, we are hosting “Revisit Days” for all three divisions, when newly-admitted students and their parents can come back to campus to start making connections in the community.

It is an exciting time. We are constantly working to bring this year to a successful conclusion, all while looking ahead and beginning to get excited about the new families that will be joining us. So whatever we all can do to continue the momentum that is such a part of Flint Hill, let’s do it together, because that is the true Husky way.

I hope everyone stays safe, as you make your plans for spring break, whatever they may be, and we look forward to seeing everyone when we all finally return.

Best wishes to you!

Sincerely,

John M. Thomas
Headmaster