50th Timeline: Spring 1982 – Creating the Middle School

In the last entry we discussed the appointment of a new Head of School, Alex Horsley.  One of his early initiatives was to task Hanshi Deshbandhu with the creation of a separate Middle School.  Up to this point in time, students had either been in the Lower School (up to 6th grade) or in the Upper School (7th to 12th grades).  Horsley and Deshbandhu recognized that the challenges of the “middle” years had always been significant but that the modern world, from computers to increased alcohol and drug use, was only making these years more difficult.  As Hanshi wrote in a letter to parents of sixth grade students, “Sixth grade is a very important as well as a very difficult year for students…. The Middle School is the proper place to give support to these young adolescents who are making the transition both academically and socially from childhood into adolescence…. The teachers will help the students learn skills and proper behavior in school, and you as parents will help them develop good study habits and to learn to be responsible at home.”  One of the most important elements of the Middle School under Hanshi, one that has continued ever since, is an emphasis on field trips both to local and international destinations. During the 1980s, Hanshi led students to England, France, Spain, Italy, and Switzerland.