Reins Change Hands
School Chair transition as a rite of spring.
The inevitable arrived on the Pergola at a recent Assembly, that sad-happy moment in a short season of much bittersweet: School Chair 2011-12 Joe Bell (Gloucester, Massachusetts) handed over to Paul Cresanta (Parker, Colorado) all the power, rights, and responsibilities of the highest elected position in the student body.
A few day hence, Joe wrote, “This year has been truly magical and has only reaffirmed my love for this school and the beautiful community that we live in. As School Chair, I hoped to foster a sense of love and appreciation for this amazing place each and every day. The uniqueness of our school lies in its core values, and many of my goals have been centered around remembering and appreciating these values. The advent of the hog and bee projects as community-driven and -supported initiatives have been huge successes. But most important, this year we have been able to create a new camping weekend that will take place in mid February without homework and sports, giving students and faculty the opportunity to relax and once again take in our [natural] surroundings and understand how lucky we all are. I am truly thankful to the entire community for such a great year and my love for The Thacher School has only grown and will, I know, continue to grow as I move into the future.”
As part of his accepting the virtual mantle, Paul made a point at Assembly of thanking Joe for “all the care he took of our school and community. It’s a legacy,” he said, “I hope to carry on, one of appreciation for the place that we have.”
Further, Paul ventured, “Thacher's community is at a point where communication and celebrating diversity are what will strengthen it. Much of my involvement with this especially tolerant environment has stemmed from my own experiences of identity-building and developing integrity; it's my hope that I can inspire students to connect with themselves to bond more genially with each other. And it speaks to the school's [values] that the students have chosen to move forward with me and that mindset. We are on our way.”
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A college preparatory boarding school for grades 9-12
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