Slinn Soundbites

Welcome to the first post from Interim Head of School Tara Slinn, containing pieces from week one of the 2026-27 school year.

Lower School Convocation

Good morning, Lower School, and welcome to a brand-new school year! Look around you – there are a lot of people here! Some of you already know many of the students and faculty in this room. Some of you are brand new and are still learning names. Some of you are starting kindergarten, and some of you are already the big kids of the Lower School. But every single person here has something in common:

You belong here.

That is especially important at our school because we are an inclusion school. It’s also important to know that inclusion doesn’t just mean all people in the same classroom or the same building. What does inclusion mean? What could that look like?

Our differences are part of what makes our school so special.

We have five really important values at our school: I-D-E-A-L

Inclusion. Diversity. Excellence. Acceptance. Leadership.

Inclusion means: You belong.

Diversity means: Our uniqueness or differences make us stronger.

Excellence means: We try our best, even when something is hard.

Acceptance means: I respect you for being you.

And leadership means: I can help make things better.

This year, I have a challenge for all of us. I want us to get really good at working together.

I hope you learn so many things this year. I hope you read books you love, solve hard problems, create things, ask a million questions, and discover things about yourself that you didn't know before. But I also hope you learn something just as important: How to take care of the people around you. Because we all have a job to do to make this a great school. Every one of you can help make our school a place where people feel safe, respected, included and happy to be themselves.

So let's start today. Let's help each other, let’s be our best selves, let’s celebrate together, let’s work to find solutions when we need to, and let's cheer for each other. And most importantly, let's make sure every person in our school knows:

You belong here.

Welcome to the new school year, Lower School. Let's make it an amazing one – together!

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Upper School Convocation

Good morning, Upper School, and welcome to a brand-new school year! For some of you, this school has been part of your life for many years. For others, yesterday was the beginning of something completely new. For some of our oldest students, this is one of your final school years before you move on to whatever incredible chapter comes next. Wherever you are in that journey, today we begin again – together. We have five really important values at our school. I-D-E-A-L. The first letter representing Inclusion. We talk a lot about inclusion here. It's part of our mission, part of our identity, it’s who we are to our core. But inclusion is not simply putting different people in the same classroom or the same building. Being together is not the same thing as belonging together.

Belonging takes work. It requires us to notice one another. To listen. To be curious about people whose experiences are different from our own. To make room for different strengths, different challenges, different identities, different perspectives and different ways of moving through the world. Each of you belongs here. We all belong here. 

Our core values are: Inclusion. Diversity. Excellence. Acceptance. Leadership.

Inclusion asks: Who is being invited in – and who might be getting left out?

Diversity asks: Are we willing to learn from people who are different from us?

Excellence asks: Are we willing to challenge ourselves, work hard and keep growing?

Acceptance asks: Can I respect someone without needing them to think, act, or be like me? And leadership asks: What am I doing to make this community better?

One of our biggest goals this year is working better together.

Working together requires respect, communication, patience, curiosity, flexibility, trust, and collective responsibility. School culture belongs to all of us. Our choices shape our culture, and our culture shapes our school community. Every person in this room has influence over what kind of community this becomes. Let’s ask ourselves:

Are we striving to be our best selves?
Are we helping others be their best selves?
Are we celebrating the good?
Are we working together?

Is this community better because of the way I am showing up in it?

Those aren't just questions for students. They're questions for all of us – including me.

Because inclusion isn't something adults teach students – it's something we all practice together. My hope for you this year is that you accomplish things you're proud of. That you take some risks. That you challenge yourself academically. That you discover new interests and new strengths. That you make mistakes and learn from them.

Be a part of making sure that every person can walk through our doors knowing:

I belong here. I matter here. I have something to contribute here.

That's the community I want us to build this year. And we build it one choice at a time.

Welcome to the new school year, Upper School. Let's make this a year we're proud of together!

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9/11 Morning Announcement

Today marks 25 years since the tragedy of September 11, 2001 – a day that profoundly affected New York City, our country, and people around the world. September 11th has particular meaning for us because our school is here in Lower Manhattan, just a short distance from the 9/11 Memorial. Many of you were not yet born, while others in our community remember that day and were deeply impacted by it.

Today you may notice more people in our neighborhood, additional security, and special ceremonies. Some are family members of those we lost, first responders, survivors, and others who have come to remember. As we move through our neighborhood today, I ask everyone to lead with kindness and empathy, recognizing that this may be a difficult and emotional day for many people.

Yesterday at Convocation, we talked about kindness, belonging, and working together – about taking care of one another even when things are hard. Those values are especially meaningful today. When this tragedy happened, New Yorkers came together. First responders showed extraordinary courage, and ordinary people helped neighbors and strangers alike. They showed us the power of community and what can happen when people take care of one another. Twenty-five years later, we can honor that legacy in the way we treat each other and the community around us – with empathy, kindness, respect, and a commitment to making sure everyone belongs.

Thank you, IDEAL. Let’s carry that spirit of care and community with us today and throughout our school year.