Gnu Stories Podcast

After an extended time in virtual mode, SSFS is opening its campus to students for in-person learning. From dealing with an array of emotions to building new habits, hear from our counselors about how you and your student can get ready to come back to school —whether at SSFS or another community.

Come and celebrate the winter break with us as our community shares some of our favorite winter holiday traditions! First, listen to our play How the Grinch Stole the Holidays, a rendition of the Dr. Seuss classic, How The Grinch Stole Christmas. This play is an annual tradition at SSFS during our winter assembly in which our faculty and staff perform for our preschool-12th grade students. Then, hear from TORCH members – our upper school student body government – as they share some of their favorite traditions during the winter holidays and what they are excited about for the 2020 holiday season.

In November, David Ayala ’96 met with SSFS Head of School Rodney Glasgow about his transformational experience at SSFS and his journey to his current role at School Leader Lab.

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David Ayala is the Senior Director of Program at School Leader Lab, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C. that partners with schools to support their organizational capacity for school leader development. At the heart of School Leader Lab is its School Leader Cohort, a two year program that, grounded in the principles of equity and local context, develops participants in instructional and adult leadership. As a Senior Director of Program, David designs and manages the School Leader Collective in Kansas City, drives instructional leadership work, leads school projects, and coaches.

Join Rodney as he invites our SSFS students to reflect on the 2020 election, what it has meant to them and their classmates, and the role of social media in civic engagement. Further, the group discusses how we, as citizens and community members, resolve conflict and how we all work together to make our school, our country, and our world a better place.

As an educational institution, how do we prepare our students to be civically engaged citizens while also practicing civility? What lessons from history can help guide our students as they learn about democracy and find a way to use their own voice for change? What is the role of school in civic engagement? Hear from faculty members Pinki Shah and Mao Wang as well as Director of DEI Nicole Lee as we explore these questions.

WATCH/LISTEN: Recorded in September 2020, Head of School Rodney Glasgow spoke with Shoshanna Sumka, SSFS alumna and Executive Director of ISEEN, about experiential education, creating connection in a virtual environment, and her time as a student at SSFS.

See the video of the interview

With stress and anxiety levels raised, fun is more critical than ever. Join Rodney as he speaks with Jenai Bell (Cross-Divisional Learning Specialist Admin. Assistant), Joel Gunzburg (LS Counselor), and Shannon Needham (Upper School Learning Specialist) as they discuss the importance of fun for learning, community building, and stress-relief and how they are infusing fun into everyday activities. 

As we near the year mark of the SSFS Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI) Audit publication, hear from Rodney Glasgow (Head of School), David Hickson (Assistant Head of School), Nicole Lee (Interim Director of DEI), Candice Ashton, (Clerk of the All-School Diversity Committee) and Julie Méndez, (Co-Clerk of the Audit Oversight Committee) about where we've been and where we're going to ensure the school becomes a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive place.

In the second episode of the "Gnu Stories: Highlights from the SSFS Community" podcast, hear two recorded sessions from our Head of School Rodney Glasgow. The first recording is from his presentation at the All-School Welcome on September 1, 2020 during the SSFS Virtual Orientation Day for parents and guardians. The second recording is an interview conducted by Brenda Crawley, Head of Plymouth Meeting Friends School and former Lower School Head of Sandy Spring Friends School. The Interview was conducted in June 2020, prior to Rodney's first official day as the new Head of School.

In the first episode of the "Gnu Stories: Highlights from the SSFS Community" podcast, our Head of School Rodney Glasgow interviewed Bela Meghani, Rasha El-Haggan, and Sara Oestrich about this summer's professional development for SSFS faculty and administration, and how this training—in conjunction with the ongoing Mind-Brain Education training—will allow SSFS to provide a robust program during online learning through virtual school, and when we return to in-person learning on campus.