Orientation Programs & Start of School

Friday, 19 August 2011

Greetings Upper School Parents:

Following a week of productive faculty meetings, the final preparations for the start of the 2011-12 academic year are now well in hand. You should be able to review your child’s academic schedule via MyBackpack, the link to which is available at the bottom of the MVS homepage. Please be sure to order the appropriate books, via MBSDirect or Amazon, so your daughter or son is ready for the first day of school. Regarding “supply lists” for the upper school, my advice is for students to bring their assignment books and a couple notebooks for the first day of classes; individual teachers will provide suggestions for course specific supply needs on opening day.

Adding to the comprehensive letter sent by Trey Adams, I wanted to remind you of the grade-specific orientation programs, led by grade-level Deans, all of which occur on Monday, 22 August.

• New Parent & Student Orientation; 8:30-9:30AM, US Commons
• Freshman Class Orientation; 10-11:00AM, Lofino Atrium
• Senior Class School Service; 10:30–2:PM, US Commons
• Sophomore Class Orientation; 1-2:30PM, Rooms 10 & 12
• Junior Class Orientation; 1-2:30PM, US Commons

Tuesday, 23 August marks the official first day of school! In the upper school, all class periods will meet for 40-minutes each, allowing for an extended Morning Announcements and a combined advisory/lunch meeting, with lunch being provided for all students, courtesy of the Student Government. Juniors and seniors (who qualify) will likely gain off-campus lunch privileges during the second week of school, so they should pack lunches for the time being.

There are a number of exciting and noteworthy start-of-school meetings and events, including: Parents Association, Distinguished Alumni Induction, Convocation, Parent Information Night (PIN), and MVS Visiting Author programs. Please refer to the MVS on-line calendar for dates; I will send along details as the events approach.

On behalf of the upper school faculty members and staff, we are excited to start the school year. I look forward to seeing you in the days and weeks to come.

With sincere regards,


Sam Wagner
Head of Upper School