Alzar School Instagram

Following winter break, Prep welcomed back three members of the junior class who each spent the fall semester participating in immersive Semester School programs. Lily Scott '25 was on the coast of Maine at Chewonki, while Linnea Farrell '25 was at the Alzar School, which splits its program between Idaho and Chile. Ndezolth Sauceda '25, who traveled to The Outdoor Academy in North Carolina, says "My favorite part about taking a semester away is that I got to meet so many new people and explore my independence. I loved being out of the traditional classroom setting, learning outside, and going backpacking." 

The Semester School Network is made up of nine schools, each offering semester-long educational opportunities for high school students in the US and abroad. (Isabel Dolan '25 is spending the spring semester at The Island School in the Bahamas!) If you're curious about the programs, the application process, or their personal experiences, reach out to Lily, Linnea, or Ndezolth!

Thank you and congratulations to 12th grade parents for having the highest level of participation in the 2023-2024 annual fund, with 48% of senior parents participating so far! In December, more than 50 parents made a donation to Prep's annual fund. Please join them by making a gift here!

New this year, the Elder Connect TAP group has spent their days of service with residents at the Brookdale Senior Living Center. Students help the residents with all manner of activities, from holiday decorating and playing games to helping residents make phone calls or answer emails. Leanne Lawson, Brookdale's Activity Manager, was especially grateful to our students for their tree decorating work in December, which helped make the lobby of Brookdale look and feel more festive. Faculty sponsor Ellee Cook loves chaperoning the group. "You can see the impact of the work you're doing in real time, while knowing that you're growing meaningful relationships between the students and residents." We are grateful to our students for serving this need in the community, and look forward to a lasting relationship with Brookdale and its residents. 

Following its founding at Prep last year, our school's DECA chapter is in the middle of a second consecutive successful season. The club has 21 members, nearly double from its first year, and every student has qualified for the state competition! Additionally, Grace Canfield '25 will receive an award for her high scores on two qualifying tests. If our students do well well at state, they will have the opportunity to travel to the national competition in Anaheim, CA. Congratulations to the entire team and to faculty sponsor Bruce Sachs!

SFP Monthly News is distributed August-June to all school parents, students, and faculty and staff. Please send story ideas to news@sfprep.org. 

Community Book Read

New date! Thursday, February 8

Join us in the library on Thursday, February 8, from 5:30-6:30pm for a community discussion of Land of Milk and Honey by C Pam Zhang, led by Christian Nardi (Cash '28 and Olive Nardi-Keyes '26). Copies are now available at Prep's front desk and Bee Hive Books!

Rummage Sale

Are you interested in volunteering for the Rummage Sale Committee? Contact co-chairs Leza Lowitz or Anna Hastings to volunteer for Team Rummage! The Sale will be held Saturday, April 20.

Monthly Meetings

The next regular PA meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, January 17, at 9am in the Library Classroom. All parents and guardians are invited to attend!

Please note these upcoming events sponsored by our College Counseling department. All events are scheduled to start at 5:30pm.

—TODAY Wednesday, January 10

Junior Parent/Guardian Launch (Library)

—Wednesday, January 24 

The Standardized Testing and Test-Optional Landscape (Founders' Room)

—Wednesday, February 7

UK and European Admission with Sara Cavalieri (Zoom)

—Monday, February 12

Winter Book Club, discussing the "super-connected kids" of the iGeneration (Library)

—Late February date TBA

Gap Year Options and an alternative first semester program called Verto Education (Zoom)

Next week, Santa Fe Prep will host its annual Martin Luther King Jr. Forum. Through film presentations and workshops led by Prep faculty, students will explore such topics as "Untold Stories of the Civil Rights Movement" (7th & 8th grade), "Cite Black Women" (9th & 10th grade), and "Native-Black Solidarity" (11th & 12th grade). Thank you to the DEIJ Committee for organizing this program for our community.

The Two Beanies Art Initiative TAP group is raising funds for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society (LLS) via a donated art sale, to be held during the Upper School musical in the spring. Two Beanies is requesting donations of any art (paintings, prints, sculptures, photography, etc.) from students, teachers, relatives, or friends to sell this March! If you have any art you would like to donate, drop-off days are Monday, January 29 and Monday, February 12, from 1:30-3:30pm at the front office. Contact sponsors Sarah Meghan Lee or Brad Fairbanks with questions or to set up an alternate drop-off time.

Prep alum Rachel Noll James '04 will present a one-night-only screening of her new film, Ingress, at the Jean Cocteau Cinema on Thursday, January 25. Written, directed by, and starring Rachel, the film is about a woman traveling through parallel realities of the multiverse to find a reality in which her late-husband is still alive. A Q&A with Rachel will follow the 7pm screening (doors at 6pm). Watch the trailer here and click here to purchase tickets!