History was made at EHS last Friday. Due to the approaching blizzard Jonas, a snow day was declared, a first, and classes were cancelled. Who said they don’t have snow days at BS’s? Actually, Friday was the last day of the first semester, a half day, and many students were already scheduled to leave in the afternoon to enjoy their long weekend/winter break. Fortunately in their wisdom, EHS Deans cancelled classes and allowed students to depart on Thursday/Friday am. DS and DD’s original Friday pm flight was cancelled. Thanks to quick reaction by yours truly, I was able to reschedule them onto an early am Friday flight out of D.C. on JetBlue, but had to wait for JB to announce a weather waiver.
With the end of the second semester, it’s a good time to provide an update. DD is still adjusting, trying to stay focused on academics and to not let outside issues distract her. She’s doing very well, enjoying all that EHS has to offer, but has moments when she is quite homesick. Fortunately she will see us more in the second semester between breaks and mutual visits. She loves her teachers and facilities, is luke warm about the food, and is making the most of weekends by visiting sites around D.C. She is running indoor track for her winter activity and can’t wait for spring LAX. I think part of her struggle has been the void created by not dancing. She wanted to try new activities and sports and the trade off has been more difficult than she anticipated.
DS continues to soar in every which way. He’s so happy with his classes, classmates, and teachers. He is so relaxed. Even though his course load is more advanced than 9th and 10th grade, academically having his best year by far. he especially loves Advanced (AP) Physics 1, Honors Pre-Calc, and Advanced US History. He is singing a solo with the a Cappella group. Named one of three captains for next years boys’ XC team. He formed a new student group called Military Appreciation Club which has over 60 members and has already provided community service at Arlington National Cemetery. He’s in the process of coordinating another service event to help with the “Honor Flight Network” to D.C veteran memorials. He’s in the middle of varsity wrestling season now and he and the team are enjoying one of the best seasons in many years. And although he will take the ACT in the spring, he’s done with his SATs.
Tomorrow we fly down to pick up DS. He was invited by USNA for a “Candidate Visit Weekend” or CVW. He will arrive Thursday pm and stay over until Saturday am. This is an invitation only opportunity that will give him a bird’s eye view of Plebe life and academics at USNA. DW and I will enjoy the parent session on Friday, pick him up at 07:00 Saturday morning and head to a wrestling tournament in D.C. EHS has excused him from Friday classes as this is considered a college visit.
Additional update from the “Holy Hill.”
- Shane Claiborne visited as Theologian-in-Residence. Shane is a social activist who advocates for nonviolence through service to the poor. His ministry has taken him all over the world from Calcutta, India, where he worked alongside Mother Theresa, to Baghdad, where he served on the Iraq Peace Team. Shane spoke to the school about how to make sense of the demands of a vibrant Christian faith in the light of modernity.
The Theologian-In-Residence Program was established in 1993 through the generosity of Dick Rutledge '51. The program is designed to provide EHS students the chance to establish and/or reinforce a foundation of faith to light their path. This program is aimed at inviting Christian preachers, teachers, and theologians to campus to speak to the school community and work with students.
- The EHS community engaged in the third Leadership and Ethics program of the 2015-16 school year. DS's class was broken up into three parts. First, the assistant head of academics, introduced them to the study of ethics. She taught the students about the difference between duty-defined ethics and consequentialist ethics, analyzing the different ways one might think about “doing the right thing.” Armed with some new vocabulary, the juniors broke into small groups to face a real situation. They were presented with five salespeople, and, imagining him or herself as team leader, each student had to decide which salesperson he or she would fire. Of course, the decision was not easy. The top salesperson had shady morals; the bottom salesperson is your best friend! The discussion made the students think about which values they prioritize in their decision making. Finally, the juniors received the results of their Myers Briggs Type Indicator tests. They had the opportunity to reflect about how their types shed light on appropriate leadership opportunities. DS's personality type was "The Architect", Role = Analyst, strategy = Confident Individualism. He was excited to see who else (Beethoven, Colin Powell, Gates, Einstein) shared this personality type until he saw Vladimir Putin on the list. :-)
- A senior was chosen as a regional finalist in the Siemens Competition, the nation's premier science research competition for high school students.
- A senior and caption of the varsity football team was selected to play in the 5th annual Semper Fidelis All-American Bowl. He was joined by EHS head coach who was selected to be the running backs coach.
- During spring break both DS and DD will attend a MarineLab STEM trip in Key Largo, FL which will include coral reef restoration.
- EHS is planning a return service trip to Kenya in June. DS would love to go, but will have a conflict.
- Boys varsity basketball is ranked in D.C.'s All-Met top 15.
- Construction has begun on a new student center which will be completed by school return fall 2016.
- Admissions indicates this has been the busiest fall on record.
- The Damon, EHS's student literary magazine won the Highest Award for Excellence in Student Literary Magazines from the National Council of Teachers of English.
Finally the school gathered on January 17th to celebrate the life of Abel “Shadow” Sebele '09, who passed away tragically on January 7, 2016. Abel’s story takes him from a village in Zimbabwe to EHS, West Virginia University, and then professional soccer. Last fall he served as the assistant coach for the EHS varsity boys soccer team. While at EHS he was a member of the indoor 4x400 state record-holding relay team. He was also a captain of the soccer team, including the 2009 state championship team. In soccer, he holds the EHS record for single season goals (31) and assists (23), and he remains Episcopal’s all-time leading scorer, with 70 goals in 71 games. It’s always difficult to read about the loss of any friend or alumni of EHS, but his passing was especially painful to the EHS community.
As always if you have any questions about Episcopal High School, please feel free to PM me.