State of the School Addresses Building Community & Academics

After a postponement due to snow, the annual State of the School address occurred on Tuesday, February 11. The evening began with a reception in the Roberts Lobby, where parents chatted and caught up with one another over some light snacks from Sage Dining, including the hit s’more cookies and chocolate-covered strawberries.

Head of School Tom Dillow addressed the audience and thanked them for their commitment to the school. To surprise those gathered, he raffled off a $200 gift certificate to the Max Restaurant Group, and Laura Barash P’25, ’28 was the lucky winner.

And then it was down to business.

To ground the address, Dillow restated the school’s mission statement and reaffirmed that all we do at the school is rooted in that premise. This mission anchors us in our values and purpose, guiding every decision and initiative we undertake. He stressed the importance of the community and noted, “A strong, inclusive community requires effort, intention, and a shared belief that we are better together.” He acknowledged that the work of inclusion, particularly diversity, equity, and inclusion, has become a lightning rod in recent years and reaffirmed the school’s commitment to creating a community where everyone belongs.

Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and Belonging Rich Mutts introduced himself, and this was the first time many in the audience had met him since his start in September. He said, “Our community is only as strong as the sense of belonging we cultivate within it.” The word of DEIB, he said, is not about labels but rather  “ensuring that every individual at KO feels valued, respected, and seen.” To create this environment, Mutts said the essence of DEIB is about stepping outside our comfort zones, embracing different perspectives, unlearning biases we may not even realize we hold, and creating meaningful connections. He stated that DEIB is not about division, indoctrination, or politics but rather about our students and building empathy and understanding within and between them.

Following Mutts’s segment, Dillow shared some nuts and bolts of the school’s healthy enrollment – 503 – which has remained steady over the years. He reviewed the school’s finances and the operational budget, which shows that most of the school’s budget supports faculty and staff salaries. In the past 15 years, KO has invested over $22M in new construction and enhancements to existing facilities. However, he also noted that KO remains debt-free, a notable achievement in an era where schools leverage themselves to construct more campus buildings.

There was an interlude of the all-female Oxfordians singing an exquisite version of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” and a video reel capturing the academic, athletic, arts, and other campus highlights throughout the year.

The evening’s topic shifted to the school’s academic program, specifically regarding the new initiative called the IMPACT program. Dillow shared that Daniel Pink, in his book Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, identifies three key elements that foster intrinsic motivation: autonomy, mastery, and purpose. These also propel students’ learning. “By designing our curriculum around autonomy, mastery, and purpose,” he said,  “we’re not just teaching students what to learn—we’re helping them become active, engaged learners who take charge of their education.

Head of the Middle School Ann Sciglimpaglia, said the IMPACT program enriches the already exceptional education our students receive at KO, where our students master content, develop essential study skills, and learn to write with clarity, construct compelling arguments, and speak with confidence. “We wanted to create a program that would not only leverage these skills,” she said, “but also challenge students to engage authentically, think critically, and act meaningfully—in a way that is uniquely KO.” Two students, TT DePratti ‘30 and Xander Gingeleskie ‘30, described their experiences in a Skills Incubator course, “KO in the Neighborhood.” The students built relationships with the neighbors, asking how they felt about having KO next door and giving them copies of the KO News and goodie bags of KO swag. They said they grew in confidence, collaboration, and public speaking skills through the class.

Head of the Upper School Lisa Loeb described her own experience as a co-teacher in the Eco Design and Construction class and said that the students have already toured the Community Commons building, designed their toolboxes, applied eco-design principles to a campus space, and visited the Hope 4 Life Food Pantry to learn about the importance of client choice in food pantry design. Next week, the class will launch a project to eco-refurbish a van donated by Hoffman Auto, which will be donated to Hope 4 Life at the conclusion of the course. She said she recently spoke with a Savannah College of Arts and Design college representative about our IMPACT Program. “What you are doing here is special,” the rep said. “I don’t know of any school taking this approach to learning.” Since then, she has arranged for two Design for Sustainability professors from her college, Savannah College of Art and Design, to come to KO on April 4th to workshop with our Eco-Design students. 

Another student, Genesis Frimpong, gave her perspective on the “We the People” IMPACT class she took in the fall that digs deep into the U.S. Constitution. After the class, she understood how the Constitution was relevant to her life. Through the class, she said she can confidently share her viewpoints, understand current affairs more clearly, and overcome her fear of public speaking.

Jami Silver, director of college counseling, shared the office’s student-centered approach so students could find the best fit for them. In a selective college environment, she said, “Students need not just to know what they like and who they are, but also they need to communicate these ideas effectively.  They need to understand their “why.” 

She believes the  IMPACT courses will allow students to find genuine interests and explore hands-on, real-world issues. The students will be able to share more about what they do, how they study and why they are interested in the world around them.  However, she stated that this approach is not entirely new to KO. She cited that Ryan Sadowsky ’25 worked on a highly sophisticated independent project whose goal was to create a more energy-efficient Roberts Building. Another student interested in fashion created thread magazine and organized a fundraising fashion show.

Silver offered some stats about the class of 2024 and 2025. Last year’s class graduated 85 students who applied to 203 distinct colleges; 60% of all applications resulted in acceptances, and on average, students had at least four choices of colleges to choose from.  Ultimately, our 85 students enrolled at 66 different colleges.  

To wrap up, Dillow showed before and after photos of the Community Commons, which is on time and on budget and will be slated to open in the new school year. He mentioned that we have reached 88% of the Seize the Day capital campaign goal of $22,000,000, with recent donations in the morning bringing the total amount raised to $19, 384,974.

The evening ended with a raffle of two round-trip Avelo Airline tickets. Rosario Raffa P’31 took home the top prize!