MVS Homecoming and Visiting Author Series

Friday, 18 September 2009

Greetings Upper School Parents:

What a glorious day to accompany the Freshmen for part 2 of Freshman Orientation! Led by Freshman Dean Deb Spiegel, the Class of 2013 was accompanied by a robust group of Seniors and faculty members. Christie Kemper, Health and Wellness Coordinator, led us through an interactive group dynamics exercise, after which, we took to the river for a pleasant afternoon paddle. Although some canoes returned “more damp” than others, the spirits of the entire group was outstanding; a great start to the weekend, to be sure!

On Tuesday and Wednesday, 22 & 23 September, we welcome Selden Edwards, author of THE LITTLE BOOK (MVS shared summer reading selection) on campus as part of the MVS Visiting Authors Series. Mr. Edwards will address the entire upper school on Tuesday, following Morning Announcements and will attend classes and speak with students throughout his visit. Lunch with the Author, sponsored by the MVS Parents Association, will be held in the Lofino Atrium.

Next week also brings Spirit Week activities, supported by Student Government. We will have “theme” dress-up-days in the Upper School to further inspire MVS spirit, with the daily descriptions as follows:

Monday – “Marti Muffin Madness Monday” (decades/throwback day)
Tuesday – “Tropical Tuesday”
Wednesday – “When I Grow Up Wednesday” (future profession)
Thursday – “Jersday” (favorite sports team jersey)
Friday – “Red & Blue Day” (show your MVS pride!)

Friday concludes with the all-school pep rally at 2:15PM in the Lane Gym, including the parade of athletes, MVS Drumline, Jazz Bands, and Marti the Ram!

Description and registration details of the full array of Homecoming events can be found on the MVSchool website at: http://www.mvschool.com/homecoming.

Saturday evening is the Upper School Homecoming Dance, from 8-11:PM in the Alumni Theatre, sponsored by the Student Government. The Homecoming Dance is open to all students in the Upper School; tickets will be on sale next week for $15 per person; tickets will not be available for purchase at the door the night of the event. As with most MVS dances, the majority of students attend in groups or individually, rather than formally “asking dates.” My accustomed “Homecoming dance expectations letter” will be sent to you mid-week, encouraging parents to openly discuss any questions or concerns with your children (and their friends, as well as perhaps other parents) in the hopes of keeping all of our students safe.

As an alternative to my PDF archives of past letters and details sent to upper school parents, I have created Wagner’s MVS Blog http://wagnersmvsblog.blogspot.com/ as a running collection of letters and e.mails sent during the 2009-10 academic year. In the interest of encouraging active communication, I hope you will follow along and add your comments and suggestions, as you see fit.

With sincere regards,


Sam Wagner
Head of Upper School