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June 13, 2022

By ECFS Communications Team

As the 2021–2022 academic year at the Ethical Culture Fieldston School comes to an end, we’re taking a moment to reflect on the joyful, community-oriented — and at times — challenging year. Students engaged with new projects, cherished time-honored traditions, and celebrated another year of ethical, progressive, and experiential learning. Here, we look back at 10 highlights from an extraordinary year.

Orange Pride Abounds at Homecoming

Group of students pose and smile with eagle mascot at homecoming

Homecoming 2021 marked a triumphant return to campus as students, families, alumni, faculty, and staff gathered to reconnect and show their Eagle pride while supporting our student athletes. Everywhere you turned, community members were showing their school spirit in ECFS orange.

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How We Build Community at Ethical Culture

Poster of sticky notes with community norms

“Community building translates through everything that students experience in the classroom,” Radhika Hira says. “Even their schedule was designed around building a sense of community. They know which tasks they need to complete in the morning so that the rest of the day will run smoothly for everyone in the room.”

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Fieldston Upper Assembly Honors Latinx Heritage Month

Students participate in Latinx Heritage Month assembly on auditorium stage

On a Thursday morning in late September, Fieldston Upper students gathered in the auditorium for a very special assembly honoring Latinx Heritage Month. In-person assemblies came to halt in March 2020, and when the School returned to 100% in-person learning in the fall of 2021, students, faculty, and staff were eager and excited to gather once again.

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Fieldston Lower Pre-K Uses Seeds to Learn About the World

Student holds up seed to camera

Nature plays a large role in a Fieldston Lower education in part because of the scope and scale of the Fieldston campus — there are seemingly endless trees and flowers and grasses for students to enjoy and explore. For Pre-K students — much like nature itself — it all begins with a seed.

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How Literature Comes Alive at Fieldston Middle

Students discuss book in classroom

Winter sunlight pours through the wide windows of the Fieldston Middle classroom. Two students sit at the front of the room, a wooden gavel resting on the desk between them. In the minds of this 7th Grade class, these are no longer their fellow students.

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Fieldston Upper Performs Chicago (student reflections)

Student actors pose on stage during Chicago production

On Friday 3/4 and Saturday 3/5, Fieldston Upper students performed a special production of “Chicago” on the Fieldston auditorium stage. Over the course of several months, nearly 50 students worked together — both behind the scenes and on the stage — to make this production a reality.

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Fieldston Lower Library and Reading Culture are Strong as Ever

Student reads by window in Fieldston Lower library

This academic year, it has been wonderful to have students returning to the library! The excitement on their faces the first time they were able to come in was unforgettable. With hand sanitizing, physical distancing, and book quarantine protocols in place, students can once again enjoy browsing and reading surrounded by books.

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Overjoyed Ethical Culture Runners Return the ECS-a-thon to Central Park

Students run together in Central Park

Crowds of supportive parents and guardians called out cheers of “Let’s go!” and “You got this!” when the Ethical Culture community joyously gathered in Central Park on an unseasonably warm and sunny fall day for the ECS-a-thon.

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Theatre is Thriving at Fieldston Middle

Student plays guitar on stage during theater performance

Theatre is thriving at Fieldston Middle this year, with multiple in-person performances having already taken place and plans for spring productions underway. In November, 6th Graders performed the play “Myth Adventures,” which was the first production held on the Auditorium stage since before the pandemic began.

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Get to Know Joe Algrant, Incoming Head of School

Joe Algrant speaks from podium

Joe Algrant has been appointed as our next Head of School. Joe will begin his work at the School on July 1, 2022. Get to know Joe in this interview hosted by Fieldston Upper students Alex B. ’23 and Yadna P. ’24.

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