Head of School Letter: Spring Has Sprung!
Source/Author: Nancy L. Spencer, Head of School
March 29, 2024
It’s the end of March, which here in Florida means that spring is underway. For a few weeks, we have had beautiful weather: low humidity with cool mornings and comfortable afternoons. This week is also the opening of the Major League Baseball season, another happy sign that spring has arrived. To support Opening Day for our Tampa Bay Rays, Middle School students proudly wore Rays team jerseys and attire on Thursday. Many faculty members will have the chance to see and support the Rays throughout the baseball season, thanks to the generosity of a Shorecrest donor family who provided tickets for all interested faculty and staff.
The spring athletic season for Shorecrest Chargers is well underway with competitions featuring Middle and Upper School track meets, baseball and softball games, along with Varsity and JV tennis matches taking place, both on and off campus. Our student-athletes are demonstrating impressive teamwork and sportsmanship, as they compete for victories and exemplify hard work. There are still opportunities this spring to come watch our Charger athletes in action, so I encourage all spectators to attend as many events as possible.
The Performing Arts are gearing up for spring as well, with the musical "The Drowsy Chaperone" (with 8th graders in the cast as well!) just around the corner. In addition, our musical groups will shine in spring concert performances, featuring grades 3-12 Concert Bands, the Upper School Rock Band, the Upper School Recording Arts Class along with select student ensembles.
Spring is also robotics competition season. For the past two years the Upper School has taken a robot to compete in the CREATE US Open Robotics tournament in Council Bluffs, Iowa, for a national competition. This year Shorecrest was invited to bring two teams to this competition. CREATE is a variation of VEX Robotics which allows students to use any materials they would like to build a robot and choose any electronics they would like to program. Six students and two faculty members were in Iowa for three days to participate in this exciting robotics competition. They earned two awards. In addition, team 6104G will be one of 820 teams out of 23,000 to compete in the VEX World Championships next month in Dallas, Texas. Congratulations to the Chargers who represented Shorecrest so well!
In other spring-related events, we are back with another series of night classes for adults called “Evening Charge.” This program is an opportunity for Shorecrest faculty members, many of whom have a wide range of interests, to bring these passions into the classroom and provide short-term classes for adults. We have had numerous Shorecrest community members take advantage of learning more about a topic or developing a new skill during these four-week sessions. From art lessons and cooking, to chemistry and history topics, Evening Charge has been a wonderful opportunity for Shorecrest parents and faculty members to meet, connect and enhance our sense of community.
And lastly, a new event this spring is a student-initiated campaign called “Be the Match.” This effort is a Bone Marrow Registry Drive set to kick off in early April, using the Weiss Family Pavilion as its site. Students in Lisa Peck’s medical sciences course welcomed a variety of healthcare providers to discuss their respective fields. One such guest was Taylor Olafson-Brown, APRN at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, a pediatric oncology nurse who spoke about the challenges of children undergoing bone marrow transplants and the difficulty in finding appropriate matches. This guest speaker’s insights prompted the students to take action and facilitate the process for adults in the Shorecrest community to register as potential bone marrow donors for individuals awaiting a life-saving bone marrow transplant. Inspired by her words, the class took it upon themselves to launch this bone marrow registry campaign to spread awareness and make a difference. Truly these students represent the essence of our Core Value of compassion.
With such a busy and exciting season upon us I invite you to get involved in the life of the School and students in the ways that are most meaningful to you and your family.
Happy Spring!
All the best,
Nancy
