I am honored to present the primary outcomes of our strategic planning work this fall – our revised mission statement (why we exist) and our new core values statement (what we stand for). These statements were developed with input (core values sessions and our survey results) from members of every stakeholder group at BFS, drafted […]

170 community members representing 9 * stakeholder groups worked in 15 committees to articulate 15 vision statements and over 180 strategies.  They then came together to build consensus and to provide the significant and much-needed input to support student success, the School’s mission and vitality, and the achievement of our dreams and future goals. (* […]

Dear BFS Community Members, The deadline to register to attend Visioning Day and to participate in planning for the future of our beloved school is upon us! I write to invite everyone who has not yet registered to join with the over 125 members of the BFS community who have already registered for an all-day […]

I am grateful for the spirit of the Buckingham Friends School community and for all that we have shared and accomplished together this year.  Thank you for sharing your children and your dreams for them with us.  As the members of our vibrant community reflect on and/or prepare to recognize the many traditions that define […]

It has been meaningful for me to witness the many ways that teaching, learning, and connections have come alive at Buckingham Friends School this fall thanks to our talented, dedicated teachers and the generous contributions of love, time, talent, and gifts to our school by members of the current and extended BFS family. The following […]

Philadelphia pediatrician and author Kenneth Ginsburg asserts that “young people live up or down to expectations we set for them. They need adults who believe in them unconditionally and hold them to the high expectations of being compassionate, generous, and creative.” Dr. Ginsburg has identified “Seven C’s of Resilience” as a road map for helping […]

What do George School, Solebury School, Pennington, Blair Academy, Abington Friends, Berkeley Carroll, Grace Church, Lawrenceville Academy, German Academy, and many other leading secondary schools all have in common? They all want students from Buckingham Friends School to enroll and contribute to the quality of their educational environment and community next year. It is clear […]

“The spirit of cooperation and the tradition from which this grows are integral parts of the life of the school.” (George Rowe, BFS teacher and principal, 1950-1981)     The value of “community” is expressed every day, and through every season, at BFS in countless ways. It is no surprise that this value was affirmed […]

In a recent issue of Language Arts, Mary Ann Cappiello and six colleagues shared the winners of the annual Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction: Grand Canyon by Jason Chin (Roaring Brook, 2017) – A fully illustrated exploration of the Grand Canyon from the rim to the deepest depths. Chef Roy Choi and the Street […]

One of my favorite books, first shared with me by a third grade teacher at Moses Brown School in Providence, RI, is Choice Words: How Our Language Affects Children and Learning by Peter H. Johnston.  Published in 2004, this 86-page book quickly rose to the top of many of the top-books-for-educators lists.  Although the primary […]