Headmaster's Blog

Yesterday, attending the wake and funeral of a beautiful child, I remembered this poem entitled "Slow Dance" by David L. Weatherford.  It speaks for itself. Have you ever watched kids on a merry-go-round Or listened to rain slapping on the ground? Ever followed a butterfly’s erratic flight Or gazed at the sun fading into the night? You better slow down, don’t dance so fast, Time is short, the music won’t last. Do you run through each day on the fly? When you ask, “How are you?” do you hear the reply? When the day is done, do you lie in your bed With the next hundred chores running through your head? You better slow down, don’t dance so fast, Time is short, the music won’t last. Ever told your child, “We’ll do it tomorrow,” And in your haste not seen his sorrow? Ever lost touch, let a good friendship die, ’Cause you never had time to call and say hi? You better slow down, don’t dance so fast, Time is short, the music won’t last. When you run so fast to ge...

Washington University in St. Louis played host to the 1904 World's Fair and Brookings Hall , pictured at left, served as its administrative center.  Just behind Brookings is Holmes Lounge, where last week the university played host to an annual conference of headmasters. In 1904 Holmes housed the Convocation of Arts and Sciences for the World's Fair.  It was said at the time that all the knowledge known to man was presented in this hall. It was in this hall that I met Mark Wrighton, Chancellor of Washington University.  He spoke with conviction about the greatest issue he felt confronts us--clean, renewable energy.  With a population of the planet expected to reach 9 billion by mid-century, the chancellor argued, combined with industrialization of underdeveloped economies in China and India as just two examples, energy use will double and the need for clean, reliable energy will be the defining issue of this new century.  It is directly tied to our se...

Town Hall at Plaza Mayor The boys and teachers continue to enjoy great weather and stimulating experiences in Salamanca, Spain.  Below is a recent update on their adventures from trip co-leader, Dr. Gilbert: Segovia Alcazar "Wow!  What a weekend it has been--first a jaunt to the medieval city of Segovia where the boys were amazed at the engineering skill of the Romans. They climbed the aqueduct of 158 arches and 22 columns--all without mortar--Ask them to tell you the legend about the devil building it --it is such a wonder.... you ask yourself...just may be? Then, the "Alcazar" or fortress of Segovia, a seat of power for the Catholic Kings, Fernando & Isabella, and other monarchs who travelled from province to province to hold court for their subjects before the modern capital city of Madrid. The boys were especially impressed with the holdings of armor and arms which they could see up close. We went onto Avila, with a 2 km walk along from turret to turret o...

In the school's continuing efforts to broaden the minds and experiences of our boys, we have for the first time, a group of rising 8th grade boys in Salamanca, Spain for a two week immersion Spanish language program.  They left on Saturday, June 11 and will return next week.  Joining the boys are four faculty members each of whom is also immersing him/herself in the language and culture.  It is an exciting trip.  Below is a recent communication I received from the group. We chose Salamanca, Spain for its history, culture, size and prominence in the teaching of Spanish.  It is a beautiful Renaissance town just a little north and west of Madrid. Salamanca is the first of two new travel experiences recently incorporated into our curriculum.  Salamanca joins our existing Ramapo overnight, Cape Cod week-long, and 10-day Italian Study Tour.  The second new addition, a three-day trip for the 6th grade to the nation's capital, will be introduced this comin...

May 17th saw a visit with Saint David's alums on the West Side.  We have 7 boys from the class of '09 at Trinity, Jeffrey, William, Daniel, Serge, Christopher, John and Garrett; 4 from the class of '10, Jonathan, Jorge, Ryan, and Jon; and one, Nicholas, graduating Trinity this year from the class of '07.  It was an enjoyable and productive visit with the boys. They are doing well, and happy.

Spring, 2011 Dear Saint David’s School Community: Traveling widely and moving often, St. Ignatius Loyola had no real definitive plans when he left the castle home of his family, Loyola, in 1522. In keeping with the founder of his order, our beloved Chaplain, Father Steve Katsouros is leaving us, but unlike Ignatius, he has a plan. The Jesuit superiors and Father Katsouros have discerned and decided it’s time for him to put to use his doctoral studies, and so in August 2011, Father Katsouros will become the Director of the Institute of Catholic Educational Leadership in the School of Education at the University of San Francisco. USF is one of the 28 Jesuit institutions of higher education in the United States. This is obviously an exciting move for Father Katsouros, even though a sad one for us. Father Katsouros succeeded Monsignor Thomas Leonard as the school’s Chaplain in 2003 and has served these past 8 years with distinction. He was as much at home judging the Nightingale-Bamf...

SPQR, The Senate and People of Rome , referred originally to the government of the ancient Roman Republic. It appeared on coins, at the end of official public documents, in dedications of monuments and public works, and it was emblazoned on the standards of the Roman legions.  In a letter I received this week from Mary Washington University in Virginia, this ancient initial appeared blazoned across the letterhead surrounded by laurel.  My interest, obviously, was piqued. Each year, for the past several, Saint David's boys have participated in what's know as the National Latin Exam. They have always tended to do very well.  This year, however, was a little different.  Of the 18,100 students from across the world--the United States, Australia, Canada, England, New Zealand, Italy, Poland, Bulgaria, China, Guam, Japan, Malaysia, Virgin Islands, Iran, and Zimbabwe--who sat for this exam, only 328 students scored a perfect paper.  In and of itself this is quite rem...