News
Individual, Joyful, Creative: The Andreoli-Culver Family's Shipley Story
Katie Culver works in education. When it came time to look for a school for her own children, Collin ’23, Mae ’25 and Tanner ’28 Andreoli, she knew exactly what she wanted. “I had heard that Shipley was a progressive school and I had been working in the city studying progressive schools,” she says. “When we visited, we loved everything about it.” The family was particularly taken with the Middle School. “We loved the space! There was natural light and creativity everywhere. There were beautiful collages on the wall that have to do with values and identity. I’m very involved in race and equity work, and I was thrilled that Shipley had committed to that.”
Shipley’s emphasis on academic rigor with support was particularly appealing. “Shipley’s academics are unparalleled and the teachers are the heart of it. They are qualified, personable, and hard-working. Both of my kids are so different and they both thrive in the environment,” says Katie. She particularly appreciates the creative nature of the assignments. “Everything is so interactive. In STEAM classes they get to use the Maker Space. It’s not just one-size-fits-all. That’s definitely the major reason why we chose private over public.”
Katie is also a huge fan of Shipley’s advisory program. “I love the model – you need to have a small group of kids who all connect with one adult. My children have their ‘person.’ In the beginning of the year, they each sat with their advisory for lunch. Shipley builds community that way. For new kids coming in, it’s so key.”
Each sporting season during middle school, students rotate through the various sporting options before they get to choose where they’d like to focus. “All of the coaches are terrific,” says Katie. “They make the kids feel comfortable and welcome. You really feel like you’re part of the family there.”
News
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From Seed to Plant: Lessons in Sustainability Start in Shipley’s Pre-K
The Pre-Kindergarten’s “From Seed to Plant” interdisciplinary spring project centered around the questions, “How Do We Take Care of Nature?” and “How Does Nature Take Care of Us?” Ecology lessons in the classroom were complemented with hands-on learning and gardening experiences in the Lower School’s courtyard and newly-installed vegetable beds.Read More -
Where Does Your Lunch Waste Go?
Waste sorting benefits the environment and saves money. Taking a few extra minutes at lunch to decide whether something goes in the compost, trash, or recycling bin can significantly reduce the amount of waste Shipley produces. By properly sorting waste, we can meet our sustainability goals both as a country and a school. Here at Shipley, you can easily do your part to help reach a clean, green future.Read More -
Paving the Road Ahead: Examining Shipley's DE&I Efforts
Vision 20/26 compelled Shipley to “Cultivate a diverse and inclusive community” as a means of “increasing our ability to work across differences in our school, in our communities, and in the world.” Five years later, Shipley has taken great strides with its DE&I efforts. Are we doing enough? Too much? How can we work together as a community to advance this important work? Our panel explores these questions and more.Read More -
Shipley Welcomes New Colleagues for 2021-2022 School Year
Shipley is proud to welcome many new colleagues to the community for the 2021-2022 school year. Read more about Shipley's newest colleagues across all divisions and departments.Read More -
Sowing Seeds of Excellence: Shipley's Horticulture Program
Horticulture programming at Shipley is growing, with deep roots in the School’s history and aspirations that move us closer to fulfilling Vision 20/26, Shipley’s Strategic Plan. Read to learn more about why and how Shipley is expanding horticulture education beyond the Upper School Sprouts Horticulture Club to students at every grade level.Read More -
Big French Dance: Cajun and Zydeco Music 1972-1974 Photographs by Ron Stanford
Big French Dance: Cajun and Zydeco Music 1972-1974 Photographs by Ron Stanford is on display in Shipley's Speer Gallery from September 13 - October 21.Read More -
Shipley Sprouts Earn 1st Place in Philadelphia Flower Show Design Challenges
In its 45-year history, the Shipley Sprouts horticulture club has received countless ribbons (including many first-place Blue Ribbons) for their competitive entries of bulbs and succulent container gardens at the Philadelphia Flower Show. The Sprouts, led by advisor Sarah Sterling, have branched out in recent years to win accolades in other areas as well. Learn about their first place entries from 2020 and 2021.Read More -
Using Data to Support Well-Being
Vision 20/26 pushed Shipley to “advance its position as a recognized leader in social, emotional, and ethical development education” as part of its drive for Educational Excellence. Since then, the School has become a pioneer in the field of Positive Education. It is now pushing the boundaries around what it means to educate for flourishing by incorporating DE&I and pedagogy principles into its evolving, science-based framework.Read More -
Learning about 9/11 in Prohibition to Pop History Class with Chuck Amidon
Where were you when the Twin Towers fell? What do you remember about that day? If you’re the seniors in Chuck Amidon’s Prohibition to Pop: 20th Century American History course, then you weren’t even alive. On the eve of the 20th anniversary of 9/11, students shared their parents’ memories of that history-altering day, kicking off the 2021-2022 school year and a unit of study about the Iraq War.Read More -
Kathy Guy Dawson ’78: Creating a Safe Space for Shipley’s LGBTQ+ Community
Kathy Guy Dawson ’78, an Alumni Council member and former Trustee, became an inaugural co-chair of LGBTQ+ Alumni Association in 2021. She was the first black student in her class and the first member of her family to attend private school. Learn more about this Shipley Changemaker and how she's supporting the LGBTQ+ community at Shipley.Read More -
Shipley Announces Next Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
The Shipley School is proud to announce Dr. Reginald “Reggie” Davenport has been selected as the next Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Read more about Reggie in a letter from Head of School Michael Turner.Read More -
Rik Morris ’80: Giving Forward to Shipley’s LGBTQ+ Community
Rik Morris ’80 is a strong example of the Shipley spirit and the School’s commitment to supporting everyone in the community. “I don’t believe in giving back,” says the 2020 Alumni Service Award recipient. “I believe in giving forward.” Following his retirement as a Trustee a few years ago, Morris is serving as inaugural co-chair of the newly formed Shipley LGBTQ+ Alumni Association,Read More -
Shipley Announces Next Director of Enrollment
The Shipley School is proud to announce Rafhia Foster has been selected as the next Director of Enrollment. Rafhia will begin her work at Shipley on July 1, 2021. Read more about Rafhia in a letter from Head of School Michael Turner.Read More -
Peyton Turner '22 Named Main Line Student of the Week
Shipley Junior Peyton Turner has been named Main Line Student of the Week for the week of June 6.Read More -
Hakiem Coles ’07: Raising Funds for Shipley’s Black Students and Teachers
“Shipley was life-changing for me. It opened up my world," says alumnus Hakiem Coles ’07. His belief in the power of education to positively impact the lives of other black students inspired him to join Shipley's Black Alumni Association and establish a named endowed fund, the Black Alumni Association Fund, to support the curricular and cultural needs of Shipley’s Black students and teachers.Read More -
Latin is Alive at Shipley: Teaching Classics Using Innovative Methods with Matt Wellenbach
Though Latin might have taken its place among other languages that history has left behind, Dr. Matt Wellenbach is using innovative learning methods to help shift that perspective and equip his students with the tools they need to read and understand Latin texts. Students increase their proficiency in Latin and along with it, they develop a willingness to take intellectual risks while learning the material.Read More -
Students Find Their Voices through Motivational Speeches
Coaching students on their path to personal discovery is an essential part of Shipley’s multi-pronged approach to building individual and collective well-being. In Emma Gibson's public speaking class, students were asked: What do you care about? How does telling that story become a gift to your audience? They then delivered speeches to their classmates, sharing compelling personal stories with great aplomb, to their teacher's delight.Read More -
Eighth Graders Recognized at Annual Middle School Awards Ceremony
Shipley’s Middle School held its annual Awards Ceremony for eighth-grader students on Monday, May 24. View the list of awards and recipients.Read More -
Upper School Students Recognized at Annual US Closing Awards Ceremony
Shipley’s Upper School held its annual Closing Awards Ceremony on Thursday, May 27. View the list of awards and recipients.Read More -
Think, Care, Act: Planting Seeds of Kindness in Shipley’s Fifth Grade Social Emotional Learning Classes
In the fifth grade’s social emotional learning SEED class at Shipley, teacher Betsy Leschinsky reads her students Emmanuel’s Dream: The True Story of Emmanuel Ofosu. Mrs. L uses it as a springboard to inspire her fifth graders to think about how they might raise awareness about issues and topics that mean something to them for their capstone Think Care Act projects.Read More
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The Shipley School is a private, coeducational day school for pre-kindergarten through 12th grade students, located in Bryn Mawr, PA. Through our commitment to educational excellence, we develop within each student a love of learning and a desire for compassionate participation in the world.
