Letter from Head

Dear Friends:

Why St. Anne's-Belfield School?

It is a question I hear often, from prospective families, friends of mine from out of the area, and even a current parent or student every now and then. It is a fair question and one that has an easy answer.

St. Anne's-Belfield School stands for something. It is a school of clearly stated and uncompromising core values, with a program defined by its academic integrity and quality as well as its commitment to these values. Our belief system, developed over nearly a century of educating students for success in college and beyond, is evident in our statements of philosophy, core values, and most recently, our vision for the school in the coming years.

This vision, recently announced to the community and based upon the rich tradition and history of this nearly century year-old school, represents the timeless values associated with St. Anne’s-Belfield and why thousands of successful graduates are proud to call this their alma mater. It also blazes a trail to our future, grounded in tradition and mindful of our changing world and the school’s responsibility as an educational leader. There are five components to this statement, and each is important and the product of over a year of community-wide discussion. They do not replace, but rather augment, Headmistress Mary Hyde DuVal’s simple, but poignant, words to her students in 1913. To a certain degree, she said all that needed to be said about the purpose of this school: to develop boys and girls who are “strong in body, broad of mind, tender of heart, responsive in soul.” It is comforting to know that the words of our former Head continue to inspire what we do nearly a century later.

There is also another “simple” purpose of our work at St. Anne's-Belfield School that I want to emphasize: we aim to know, understand, and support the success of every boy and girl in our school. I know that much is made of the rigors of our academic program. All of the platitudes are deserved; there are no better teachers and not a more challenging and enriching program available. The program, however, is merely the framework for what is most important—that every child is known and connects with teachers in a meaningful, formative way. This will always be our goal, and it is what separates good independent schools from great ones.

While our values and the quality of our program remain timeless and unwavering, this is indeed a uniquely exciting time to be a part of the St. Anne's-Belfield community. Our vision statement is providing a blueprint to the future and giving our students the best preparation for the new opportunities and challenges of the 21st century. In addition to a fierce commitment to college preparation, we remain deeply invested the personal development of our students, through small classes; individual attention; concern for the person, not just the student; and an investment in nurturing the spiritual dimension of life. We are eager to investigate ways to augment the superior classroom experience of St. Anne's-Belfield School with experiential opportunities, including service learning, cultural immersion, and an ongoing role in our community—local, national, and global. The School is also embarking on what will be a transformative moment in our history: a $40 million Campaign for Our Next Century that (1) will provide financial security in perpetuity for our school’s mission and insure that the most talented students, regardless of ability to pay, have the opportunity to attend our school; (2) will construct a sustainably-designed PK-8th grade academic village that will provide the best and latest resources to our youngest students and their teachers; and (3) will improve our high school experience by creating a dedicated Upper School campus on Ivy Road and providing a new Center for the Arts and Sciences, giving our college-bound high schoolers the best and latest resources and equipment.

This letter is just the beginning of your thorough investigation into St. Anne's-Belfield School, one that will yield discovery of a program that is well-conceived, of the highest quality, and led and implemented by the best and most dedicated teachers I have ever known. I am confident you will be impressed with not just our programs, but the meaning behind our work with the children of St. Anne's-Belfield School. We take the education of your child seriously and personally, and we are eager to partner with you in creating a future for your child with endless possibilities.

With all best wishes to you,

David S. Lourie
Head of School