April 29, 2022

Congratulations to the Middle and Upper School Chorus and Band members last night for an outstanding performance! A fun and powerful selection of music excited the audience and filled the theater to capacity. Having our instrumentalists and singers perform live on stage once again was spectacular! Next week, the Upper School band also will be performing at The Street at 4:00 in the afternoon on Thursday. Please come over and listen to a full hour of them playing for the public. In two weeks, I look forward to the Lower School’s Spring Concert, which I hear is going to be great!

When our student instrumentalists highlighted a segment of a piece and when a vocalist came forward to solo a part of a song, I was amazed both by their talent and courage. Being able to perform under pressure certainly builds on a life skill we all need from time to time. The beauty and inspiration we gain from having the arts in our lives sit alongside the practical function they play in building lifelong skills. It feels great to have a full program once again, and as our students consider their many course options for next year, I hope they will find time for the arts.

The CRT continues to monitor the slight uptick in cases both at School and in the Boston area. Please note that when there is a positive class within a grade, we will ask the students in that grade to mask for five days. When a student has been out with COVID, they must remain masked for an additional five days upon their return to School. We will make an exception for any student who has had COVID in the last month and has fully recovered. Those students can choose not to mask based on parental choice. Please continue to rapid test your student if they have any symptoms and keep them home if they are sick. Rapid tests are readily available at most pharmacies. If you are in need of a test and are not able to secure one, please reach out to Nurse Beth. We appreciate your continued efforts to keep the Brimmer community healthy!

We had an incredible night at the Lawn at Brimmer Auction on April 23! It was wonderful to host our first live auction since 2019. Families and friends joined us under the tent on the Brimmer field for food trucks, a photo booth, dancing, and our silent and live auction with auctioneer Bill Jacob. All proceeds support faculty professional development and financial aid. A huge thank you goes out to our community for donating their time and talents and their unwavering support of Brimmer! Click here to view photos by our professional photographer, David Barron.

Wednesday, May 25, at 6:30 p.m.

Thursday, May 26, at 5:30 p.m.

Free admission - no tickets required!

Dear Upper School Families,

Congratulations to the Upper School Band and Greenline for a wonderful performance last night!

Spring is always a time of transition as we begin to close out the current academic year and plan for the upcoming school year. Today marks a major transition for the Class of 2022 as they complete their academic journey at Brimmer. These wonderful young people have led the Brimmer community through the past year by keeping the Core Values at the center of everything they do. Over their time at Brimmer, they have modeled how to engage in intellectual debate and a strong work ethic while also finding time to laugh and enjoy their high school experience. While many will be around campus the next few weeks as they complete AP exams, thesis defenses, and independent projects, we will immediately begin to see the void they will leave starting Monday.

We also know that the Class of 2023 is ready to step into the role of the eldest students on campus and lead our community over the next year. Some of these leadership torches already have been passed through programs such as Gator-Aides, Admission Ambassadors, and club leadership. Last week, our students voted on new Senate leadership and elected new executive board representatives. I want to congratulate everyone who ran for a position. The following people were elected by their peers (pictured above, clockwise from top left):

President: Daniel Murray '23

Vice President: Rowida Kassim '24

Treasurer: Owen Williams '23

Secretary: Stephanie Altschul '25

In a few weeks, we will host class representative elections, and this new group of leaders will begin planning for fall programs, such as US Camp.

While our 12th grade will not be in classes starting Monday, they are still participating in after-school activities such as the student-directed play and athletics. Our 12th grade student-athletes will be honored with Senior Days by their coaches and teams on the following dates:

Thurs. May 5: Varsity Girls Lacrosse

Fri. May 6: Varsity Boys Lacrosse

Fri. May 6: Varsity Softball

Mon. May 9: Varsity Baseball

Tues. May 10: Varsity Boys Tennis

Thurs. May 11: Varsity Girls Tennis

I am looking forward to celebrating the Class of 2022 throughout the spring and seeing the culmination of all our student work and projects during these final weeks of school.

Sincerely,

Joshua Neudel

End of Semester II (Gr. 12)

Progress Reports (Gr. 6-11)

AP Exams

Gr. 12 Project Begins

Rising Grade 9 & New Family Info. Session

Parents Association Meeting

US Band performs at The Street

"College Knowledge” Event

9th Grade A Midsummer’s Night Dream Field Trip

10th Grade Six Flags Physics Field Trip

11th Grade Project Adventure

12th Grade Six Flags Field Trip

Student Directed Play

Alumni Day Events & Dinner

Brimmer Admissions Walk-In-Wednesday

May College Coffee

Pre-Prom Reception at the Head's House

Junior/Senior Prom

All-School Celebration of the Arts

Gr. 12 Project Ends

Upper School Field Day

No School - Memorial Day

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Located in Chicago, DePaul University is the nation’s largest Catholic university with almost 15,000 undergraduate students across two campuses. Students take full advantage of the Chicago location, with opportunities for museum trips, art exhibitions, and a multitude of guest speakers on campus. DePaul is known as a highly diverse campus, with 1 in 3 students identifying as the first in their family to attend college. Both arts and athletics thrive at DePaul, with Division I sports teams and their own art museum! Learn more here.

The National College Reply deadline is Sunday, May 1. Most of our seniors have already committed to a college and sent in their enrollment deposits, but a few are keeping us in suspense down to the wire! Please be sure to check out the updated list of college acceptances and enrollments!

This past Sunday, the Boston independent schools hosted their annual college fair (back from hiatus after two years of Covid) and it was a huge success! Most of our 11th graders were able to attend and speak to a variety of college representatives in person; we watched them emerge triumphant from the fair with arms full of brochures, excited about the conversations that they’d had.

Meanwhile, back in school this week, we moved on from the main college essay to talk about Supplemental Essays. While most of the schools our students apply to take the Common Application, almost every school has additional add-on questions that applicants need to answer. Some of these questions are short and factual, but many schools include an additional essay.

These supplemental essays are frequently used to learn more about the applicant and/or gauge student interest in the college itself. We talked about the fact that even if says an essay is optional, it’s really not! Students should always take advantage of this opportunity to showcase more of their writing, interests, thoughts, story, or demonstrated interest, depending on what the question asks.

Unlike the main body of the Common App, which will roll over to the new admission cycle, the supplemental questions and essays won't be updated until August. While many colleges keep the same supplemental questions year after year, it’s not a guarantee. In order to wrap their minds about the work to come, students were asked to look into which supplements they might have to write based on schools on their list, but they were reminded that they shouldn’t start writing supplementals until August at the earliest.

The next two weeks we will not have formal class due to AP Exams. For students who are not currently taking an exam during class period, we will meet in the classroom for further “college workspace” time and one-on-one meetings with counselors.

May 1 – National Reply Deadline for College Enrollment

All seniors must deposit at and enroll in a college by this date at the latest!

May 12 - 6:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. – College Knowledge Night 

Hear from a variety of admissions professionals about various aspects of the college application and college experience. Attendance is mandatory for 10th and 11th grade students. Parents/guardians are welcome!

Our last College Coffee for the year will be held in the tents outside of the Upper School.

Do you have questions you would like to be addressed at the upcoming College Coffee?

Submit your questions here!

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Congratulations to the Middle School Band and May Chorale for a wonderful performance last night! The ensembles sounded fantastic, and I want to commend Mr. Holman and Mr. Antonucci for their incredible work with our young musicians. It was also wonderful to see so many of you at this morning’s Middle School Parent Coffee. It is such a joy to be able to come together once again as a community for these events.

As this school year begins to draw to a close, we are beginning to prepare for 2022-2023. We are planning for an overnight experience for all Middle School students to open the school year on September 8-9. While our previous camp will not be able to accommodate us, we are working to secure other locations for this important experience. We will update you on these plans later this spring.

After three years of not being able to travel to Washington, D.C, we are planning to bring back this trip next year. We are tentatively planning to send both the 7th and 8th graders to D.C. on two separate trips, with some time for both grades to come together. We will let you know more details about these trips in the fall.

Next Friday is our spring Outdoor Education Day. 6th graders will visit the Natick Community Farm, 7th graders will hike Mt. Wachusett, and 8th graders will hike Purgatory Chasm. All students will need to bring a lunch.

The Middle School Semi-Formal, which all students in grades 6-8 can attend, will take place on Friday, May 6, from 6:00-8:00 p.m. Fun, festive, semi-formal attire is encouraged! The evening is sponsored by the Middle School Senate, and any questions can be directed to Andrew Beal.

Today marks the end of the Progress Report period for Quarter IV. Grades will be released next week.

Carl Vallely

End of Semester II (Gr. 12)

Progress Reports (Gr. 6-11)

After School Music Program Recitals

Rising Grade 9 & New Family Info. Session

Parents Association Meeting

Middle School Semi-Formal

Student Directed Play

Alumni Day Events & Dinner

Brimmer Admissions Walk-In-Wednesday

MS Musical – Beauty and the Beast

All-School Celebration of the Arts

MS Musical – Beauty and the Beast

No School - Memorial Day

Dear Lower School Families,

It was such a pleasure to see so many of you at Saturday’s Auction. What a wonderful celebration of students, families, and the Brimmer spirit. With this year’s theme in mind, it was a great way for the community to reconnect with one another and have some fun!

Similarly, last Friday, as the Lower School celebrated Earth Day and closed out a week of environmentally focused activities, I was reminded of the power of community connections and the absolute joy it brings to our students, particularly as our Buddies joined one another for a neighborhood walk and clean-up.

Tagging along with the kindergarten and fifth grade, I was struck by the fifth graders sense of responsibility for their “little buddies” and the genuine care they took to keep them on task and to ensure they had fun. It was a beautiful day and illustrative of students' inherent curiosity and their readiness to be “informed, engaged, and ethical citizens and leaders in our diverse world.”

One of my greatest joys as an educator and administrator has been the opportunity to be a fly on the wall, so to speak, and to listen and observe students engage in authentic and meaningful work in an environment where they are honored and celebrated for the unique individuals they are. I had a few chuckles listening to the conversations between buddies, including one in which a fifth grader was teaching a kindergartener about Greek and Latin roots, and in the spirit of reciprocity, the kindergartener shared with her buddy that she knew every shade of blue (which she proceeded to list) and how she must teach them to her family. What a gift it is for us to bear witness to the musings of young people!

As the last months of school approach, please continue to review the Bulletin each week, as well as the email correspondence from classroom reps. In them, you will find a great deal of important information regarding school happenings. We are excited to welcome lunch volunteers back to the Dining Commons (and tents), and we continue to ask that volunteers remain masked when working indoors with students. Please be in touch with Courtney if you are interested in volunteering at lunch.

A few reminders:

We look forward to seeing you on May 18 at the Parent Coffee with the Head of School. We will welcome Kimberly Formisano, our new Head of Lower School.

Have a great weekend.

Warm regards,

Emily Miller

After School Music Young Musicians Recital

PK-Grade 2 Early dismissal

Professional Development

Gr. 3-5 Early dismissal

Professional Development

Parents Association Meeting

LS Choral & Band Concert

Upper School Student Directed Play

Alumni Day Events & Dinner

Brimmer Admissions Walk-In-Wednesday

MS Musical – Beauty and the Beast

All-School Celebration of the Arts

MS Musical – Beauty and the Beast

No School - Memorial Day

The All School Celebration of the Arts needs you! Please sign up to assist Mrs. Clamage on May 24 with preparation or on May 26 to help guide projects, serve snacks, or clean up. This is a fun event and a great volunteer opportunity. Click here to sign up!

In celebration of community wellness, Tatyana Souza, 4th and 8th grade Brimmer parent, has generously offered to lead a yoga class for the Brimmer community. It will be a gentle class for all levels on the Brimmer Field, May 5th at 12:00. Yoga mats will be available or bring your own.

We know your days are busy, but if you have time, we hope to see you there! For more information on Tatyana's yoga classes, please visit coolidgeyoga.com.

Please join us each Friday at 8:00 a.m. in front of the Hastings Center for a walk around the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

Charlotte Dixon P ‘25

Stella Rupia P ’26, ‘32

Tenzin Dengkhim P ’27, ‘34