Looking Towards the Future

Our campus is fully buzzing again as the majority of students are back on campus. While we need to continue adhering to our pandemic protocols, it does look like we can start planning to move past the pandemic. We have been very fortunate to have access to vaccinations for our faculty and staff, and the majority of our staculty have already received the first dose. There is more research coming out about the carrying and spread of COVID-19 and as we review the results of these along with government requirements we will consider how we can modify our practices. I want to thank all our community for how supportive you have been through these tough months. Our faculty has been stellar in adapting practices and adopting new strategies to keep our students engaged and challenged, whether they are on or off campus. Our coaches have been doing their best to have students hone their skills in spite of not knowing what we may have in terms of a season. 

All of this effort on the part of adults has had a positive impact on our students. In many ways, the pandemic has been toughest on them, as their development during school is so tied to socializing and socialization. There has been a lot of media attention on rates of depression rising in the college age group amidst these these times, which initially surprised many because it was assumed that digital natives would not really feel a difference if they needed to stay at home. We have certainly seen otherwise since last March. 

The more opportunities we can give our children safe ways to interact and model for them how we can constructively deal with these less than ideal conditions the more we help them grow and learn how to have the courage to keep a sense of optimism. These times will have a huge impact on the temperament of this generation. My hope is that at Sage Ridge, our collective effort and care for our students will cultivate the character that is needed to take on adversity, find the fun and focus on success. The laughter I hear and joy I see around campus tells me that this is true. 

PS - Hope to see our parents and grandparents at our book club sessions for Best Friends, Worst Enemies: Understanding the Social Lives of Children next Tuesday or Wednesday and our live online session with Dr Michael G. Thompson on 4 February. Our community is welcome to share this sign up information with extended family and friends.