From the Desk of the Lower School Director - 21

Special thanks to David Powell, Melinda Holmes, Ann Glass, Ashley Evans, Patricia Ayer, faculty coaches and the 26 students who participated in the annual National GeoBee competition. It was an exciting event and we are proud of all of our participants. Congratulations to this year’s winner Ethan Pender, who will take the qualifying test to represent Georgia for the national competition in Washington, D.C., in May.

Preparations are underway for the 100th Day of School scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 1 (please note date change due to the snow days). Our annual Spelling Bee for grades 3-5 will take place Feb. 3 at 1:30 p.m. in the gym. Parents and friends are cordially invited to attend. Our winners will represent Darlington School at the Independent School Spelling Bee, to be hosted by St. Mary’s Catholic School in Rome on Thursday, March 3 at 9 a.m.

Tiger Pride is holding their winter meeting on Friday, Feb. 4, at 1:50 p.m. in Tiger Hall. All parents are welcome.

The Annual Fund is well underway. Gifts to the Annual Fund help Darlington School sustain its unique approach to education by funding student scholarships; purchasing classroom instructional materials; recruiting and retaining highly qualified faculty; and supporting innovative and challenging academic, athletic, and artistic programs. Leadership opportunities for students are also supported through the Annual Fund. Jason Turner, director of annual giving, reports that 74% of our families have pledged or contributed to date. Dr. Jim Shealy is the Lower School chairperson for the Annual Fund Leadership Team. Please consider supporting this endeavor. We are shooting for 100% participation from our families – remember, it is not the size of the gift that matters, but the participation of all of our families at Darlington.

Parent volunteers are still needed for Late Start days. To ensure a smooth transition for the children, a minimum of eight volunteers are needed on a weekly basis. This gives us coverage in each of the PK through second-grade classrooms and also coverage for drop-off in the Primary Circle and for grades 3 and 4 in Tiger Hall. Please contact Lauren Sklar if you can help us in this endeavor.