From the Head of School

This website is a great first step to learn about our school, and I hope that it inspires you to visit us in person to experience for yourself the authentic and inclusive community that lies at the center of a GSB education.

 

Your time here will also give you a real appreciation for our beautiful collegiate-style campus, which has grown alongside GSB's academic and extracurricular programs over the past decade and a half. Underlying this period of planned growth is our deeply-held belief that young people need plenty of space and a variety of opportunities to grow.

 

 

Many schools offer a wide range of opportunities in academics, the arts and athletics. However, I have yet to find a school in which students are more genuinely supported—not simply by faculty and administrators—but by one another, as they explore their individual interests. I have seen our varsity athletes win a championship game and head from the field, still muddy in their cleats and uniforms, to watch their classmates perform in a concert. I have witnessed juniors and seniors stay after school to help Middle Schoolers with their homework, and I have watched our youngest learners light up when they read a book to a Middle or Upper School student. That spirit is on display here every day at Gill and it makes an incredible difference for students who are just beginning to find their way.

 

When we think about courage, it usually involves dramatic moments of heroism—the risking of life and limb—that come foremost to mind. More important is the everyday courage that over time can be equally powerful and transformative. This is the courage to take a risk, to venture an answer in class, to share an untested opinion, to appear on stage, or to try something you may not excel at right away. Courage is the first among our core values at GSB, and while we recognize and celebrate those extraordinary acts of heroism, our focus with young people is on the everyday moments in life in which courage inevitably creates the conditions for learning and growth.

 

 

With over 600 students in preschool through grade 12, the simple ratio of students to offerings in academics, arts, athletics and extracurricular activities invites our students to try something new. At GSB, you will find writers who never realized that they liked to write, actors who never imagined themselves on a stage, members of student government who never saw themselves as leaders, Division One athletes who first tried out for their sport here, mathematicians, artists, scientists, filmmakers and doctors all for whom a passing interest took root, grew and blossomed at GSB.

 

All of us are to a certain extent, a "work in progress." At Gill there is room for that work to take place and for students to become the best version of themselves. The realization of potential is but one compelling reason I hope that you will come and see for yourself.