I’m just home from a very enjoyable last school day of 2018. Two wonderful CA traditions intersected today and underscored the best community aspects of our PK-12 school. Grandparents Day, a long-standing event that recently moved from Thanksgiving week to the last school week of December, allows grandparents to attend a music assembly, visit their grandchildren’s classes, and finish their day with an outstanding holiday lunch served by our food service crew. The popularity of this decades-old tradition is well documented, and our Advancement Office does a fabulous job of organizing the whole day. So many grandparents attend this event that we have to add extra parking and seating in our classrooms and campus center. I always enjoy meeting grandparents and love to have them visit my classes, offering their thoughts on the lessons.

 

The second tradition that was on display today is a much sillier one, but equally beloved in the community. Every year before winter break participating faculty work together to create a showcase of “talent” and skits, all of which poke fun at themselves and the school year. In the best tradition of Monty Python’s Flying Circus or Saturday Night Live, the faculty performers have a great time making fools of themselves and of course the students love that too. In fact, many students regularly identify these Faculty Follies as one of their most memorable moments of their school year or high school career. No one can quite recall when this tradition started but it certainly pre-dates my sixteen-year tenure and probably goes back at least 25 years.

 

In the last several years, the performances have become more polished and faculty work hard to top their efforts year to year! I have performed a recurring “Thank you note” skit, imitating Jimmy Fallon’s bit on his show; other regular features include a spoof of the students’ fall play, Carpool Karaoke or a lip sync battle, funny videos or songs, and Mike Davis performing a rock song with the support of Phil Jones and others. (Unfortunately, Dr. Davis could not play this year because of a conflict.) So it’s a lot of fun and a great way to show we don’t always take ourselves seriously. We can send students off to break in an even better mood!