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April 11, 2008
From the Director 4-11-2008
April 11, 2008
Dear Families:
Spring Break is finally here and we want to wish you a very restful break (to come) with your families, friends, and loved ones. Spring is not only a time for renewal, but it’s also a time to take stock of what is essential and important in our lives. Presidio Hill School has been a place where many of us have found a unique sense of community for ourselves and for our children. Each person—parents, guardians, children, staff, and community member—represents a valued and valuable part of what makes PHS so special and different.
One reason for writing this letter is to inform you of some news that is hard to frame even in a letter. Adra Valentine will be leaving PHS at the end of the school year to work at Marin Country Day School. It goes without saying that Adra has given so much of her time and talents to Presidio Hill School—parents, colleagues, and children—that it will be very difficult to imagine the school without her. As many of you may know, Adra has given so much to the community over the last 10 years—as a Board member, as the chair of the safety committee, and in other seen and unseen ways that demonstrate her desire to continue to stretch herself and grow, sadly even beyond the walls of Presidio Hill School. (Please see Adra’s letter to the community, which follows my letter.) As with the other positions, the deans and I will be looking for an experienced art educator to fill the art position that Adra will be vacating. Adra has also agreed to help us in that search. Adra will be dearly missed.
The second reason for this letter is to tell you that we have hired a 3rd Grade Teacher for next year. Sarah Weidman will be teaching one of the two 3rd Grade classes—along with Emily Koch. Sarah comes to us from the Saklan Valley School in Moraga where she currently teaches 3rd Grade. Sarah has taught 3rd Grade at Fred T Korematsu Elementary School in Oakland, she has been an environmental educator for the AIM HIGH Program, and she has also been a 1st and 5th Grade Teaching Intern at Live Oak School. Sarah received her BA degree from Sarah Lawrence College and her Multiple Subject Credentials from the Bay Area Teacher Training Institute at San Francisco State. Please join me in welcoming Sarah Weidman into the community when you see her.
If you have any questions, comments, or feedback about the hiring process or anything else, please don’t hesitate to call or email me. I will be checking and responding to messages over the break.
Sincerely,
Brian Thomas,
Director
Dear PHS Community,
I am writing to let you know that I will be continuing my education practice/career at Marin Country Day School next year. I will miss my PHS family, and wanted to have a chance to let you all know how much you mean to me. It is hard to believe that it has been 10 years since I started at PHS. I feel enormously fortunate to have spent so much time with all of you. I also want to let you all know that I firmly believe PHS is an amazing school, and that the community will continue to thrive for the next 90 years. I know that some of you may be concerned that there are a number of changes in the staff this year. Although I certainly cannot speak for my colleagues, I do want to let you all know that having Brian, Lisa and Ann settled into their administrative roles has helped me feel more able to focus on my professional life. While working on my master’s degree through Klingenstein at Columbia I have been able to prioritize career objectives and working in a larger environment will allow me to focus on those objectives. And so I find that the time has come for me to embrace the next phase in my life. I will still be in San Francisco, and will definitely visit and stay in touch.
Much love, Adra