DATE: 01 June 2006 Dear Parents, Guardians, Alumni/ae, and Friends of Good Hope,

While I have seen many of you during the past few months, it has been quite a while since my last letter.   Rather than look back at what has been happening at The Good Hope School, let's look forward to the end of this school year and plans for future.  Each of you has already received specific schedules for class trips, parties, exams, and more. I will look forward to seeing all of you sometime over the next two weeks and please feel free to join us at any of these community events.

• Monday, June 5 - East End Graduation at 11:30am.
• Tuesday, June 6 - Middle School Awards Assembly and reception - 11:00am - last day of school for all Middle School students except 8th graders who take French final on Wednesday - 1:00pm dismissal.
• Wednesday, June 7 - Lower School Assembly at 8:00am - last day of school for Lower School students - noon dismissal.
• Wednesday, June 7 - Upper School Awards Assembly and Convocation at 11:00am - last day of school for Upper School students. Dismissal after assembly.
• Friday, June 9 - 8 th Grade Celebration - 9:30am
• Saturday, June 10 - 2006 GHS Commencement at 5:00pm

* Please note that Middle and Upper School students may leave campus after the last exam each day.

Registration for the 2006-2007 academic year will be on Friday morning, August 25th .   Monday, August 28th is the first day of school.  We are now preparing for the possibility of the 2nd and 3rd grades splitting into two sections.   As soon as we receive 20 returned contracts for a Lower School classroom, the search will begin for a second instructor.  Depending on the student makeup, room sizes and options, and teaching preferences we may select a second teacher or a teaching assistant.

In Middle and Upper School, we use the same "magic" number of 20 returning students per grade as the signal for dividing classes and searching for additional instructors.   The older divisions have departmentalized faculty and a more complicated schedule; accordingly the initial hiring will often be a part-time teacher with one or two classes.

We have been very busy planning, scheduling, interviewing, and hiring for next year.   All our new hires have lived and worked on St. Croix for a number of years.   We have:

East End - Lin Thomas , Coordinator, and Carmen Santiago

Lower School -

• 2 ½ year olds through Kindergarten - Cat Austin Franks and Rita Bicette
• 1 st - Jean Buck
• 2 nd - Charlene McGowan
• 3 rd - candidate search in progress
• 4 th - team teaching by Pam Buckley and Cindy Mault
• 5 th - John Buckley

Middle School -

• Mathematics - Margaret Berggren
• Spanish - Vanessa Berg
• Science - Amanda Sackey, GHS '98, BA Hamilton College
• Social Studies - Mark Jackson, BA University of Minnesota
• English - candidate search in progress

Upper School -

• English - Ned Washburn and a candidate to be determined, search in progress.
• Math - Leslie Greene, Jim Kimble, and Michael Mongeau
• Science - Jane Coles and Jim Kimble
• Social Studies - Anne Ogg, Patricia Swan, and Ned Washburn
• Foreign Language - Ingrid White and Laurie Schill

Fine Arts - Phyllis Biddle and Pedra Chaffers

Music

• LS music, M.S & US choir - Tina Thompson, BA Univ. of Minnesota, MSW Univ. of V.I. (Many will remember Tina who taught music at GHS from 1993-2002)
• MS & US instrumental - candidate search in progress.

PE - Dion Christopher, Daryl Rodgers, and Deborah Phillips

Technology Instructor - Betsy Frimmer - BA Univ. of Salisbury State, MA Gywnned Mercy College

Library - The Librarian position will be shared between Ditty Layton and a candidate to be determined.

Administrative Staff

• Assistant to Director of Development - Eileen Hill, GHS '95.
• Admissions Coordinator and Office Assistant - Nancy Thatcher
• Receptionist and School Nurse - Carol Sanford
• Assistant to Director of Finance - candidate search in progress.

Administrative Leadership

• LS & MS Director - Raquel Boucher Cedano
• US Director & College Counselor - Patricia Swan
• Director Technology - Robert Freiburghouse
• "Interim" Director of Admissions - Richard Carter, BA Villanova Univ.
• Director of Development - Emily Walton
• Director of Finance - Kalila Quow
• Head of School - Michael Mongeau

If you or someone you know who might be interested in the remaining openings, please contact me as soon as possible.  All openings are listed on our Web site.

Last week, I was privileged to accompany our 8th graders on a four day trip to St. Thomas and St. John.  While there were many highlights, I would like to share a few observations from my experience.  Everywhere we went, our students were complimented and recognized for their maturity, respect, and consideration. The class trip provided a setting in which three family members who live on St. Thomas, could visit for a few hours, and expand the GHS community beyond our own island.  An octogenarian basket weaver at the Annaberg Ruins who captivated our students with riddles and puzzles summed up my first year at The Good Hope School - "No matter what you do and where you go, the most important thing that you can learn in life is to greet everyone you meet - no matter what their color, their religion, or how much money they got - with the respect and the kindness that you want for your own family."

See you soon with best regards,

Michael Mongeau

Head of School