Ethnographic Research Allows St. Margaret’s to Understand and Prioritize Student Needs

By Anne Dahlem

St. Margaret’s announced to parents at the PTF General Membership Meeting in late January that the entire professional community would engage in a new round of school-wide ethnographic research this spring to inform and fuel future innovations to the school program. Self-selected design teams focused on several strategic priorities prepared for this research at the March In Service Day dedicated to school’s Innovation Strategy. Ethnography is impressive scientific-sounding lingo, yet what exactly is it, why does St. Margaret’s do it, and how is it unique? 

As a data-driven institution, St. Margaret’s administrators and teachers make critical decisions about curriculum and teaching informed by sound and reliable metrics and data sets. Grades, standardized test scores, survey results, and college admission rates are some of the school’s valuable measurement tools. As Upper School Principal Jeneen Graham recently shared with other leading California private schools, the St. Margaret’s mission-centered approach to data analysis and data-driven decision making is unique and leading.

There is another important way St. Margaret’s collects and analyzes data to gauge the performance of the school and its programs, as well as student experience, outcomes, growth and well-being. Ethnography is a qualitative method for collecting data often used in the social and behavioral sciences. It combines immersive observations in real-world settings and open-ended one-on-one interviews.

Assistant Head of School for Strategic Initiatives Ryan Dahlem says, “Ethnographic research is an incredible opportunity for the adults on campus to deepen their understanding of our students through interviews about their perspective and shadow days where we live the St. Margaret’s school day from their vantage point.”

Mr. Dahlem brought ethnographic research to St. Margaret’s during the implementation of the last strategic plan as a part of employing the design thinking methodology. Design thinking is a human-centered, empathy-driven design process that was created at Stanford University’s d.School and has been at the heart of some of the most impactful innovations to come out of Silicon Valley.

With empathy a central component and critical first step of innovation at St. Margaret’s, ethnographic research is the perfect pairing. “We often quote the advice of Stanford d.School professor and IDEO founder David Kelley, who says to truly innovate and make a difference you must ‘fall in love with your end user’—which couldn’t align more perfectly with the heart of St. Margaret’s educators,” Mr. Dahlem said.

To tap into this innate love and care for students and propensity to authentically connect with young people, St. Margaret’s professional community has been trained in ethnographic research methods, skills and steps through outside experts and dedicated professional development days. They apply this intentional process of listening to and observing the student experience through a student lens and thoughtfully analyzing and deriving meaning and conclusions for institutional strategic goals and priorities.

There are two main components of St. Margaret’s ethnographic research: need-finding interviews and shadowing students throughout their day.

The interview process consists of one-on-one conversations asking open ended questions about the student’s experience in areas of strategic priority for the school, letting students talk and share their thoughts, and simply listening and documenting their comments to analyze later. The researcher does not offer ideas, solutions or what-if comments in the conversations, rather listens to identify possible “friction points” in the student experience and prompts further conversation with additional questions to learn more. Friction points are the holy grail of these conversations; ripe opportunities for innovation. The insights are often unexpected and can be more revealing than quantitative tools, such as a Likert scale survey, to inform design and innovation. St. Margaret’s has expanded the use of interviews to include professional community members and families as the school designs for the entire community.     

Listening to Students Leads to Meaningful Student Programs

Director of Equity and Inclusion Victor Cota engaged a two-year design thinking process, which centered on empathizing with students through ethnographic research, to explore and develop Upper School student affinity groups based on student interest and needs.

“Our professional community Equity Team wanted to ensure that student voices and hopes were at the forefront of this effort. We conducted over 100 ethnographic community interviews, comprising mostly of Upper School students, alumni and parents,” Mr. Cota said. “In fact, when we started the process in 2020 of asking students about their experiences, we had not determined if affinity groups were a good fit for our community. Enlisting ethnographic research ensured that the process was student-centered, student-driven and answered real and specific student needs.”

Student insights determined much more than just establishing the need and interest. This valuable information informed the structure of the program—that affinity groups would be optional and student-led, as well as which groups would be offered at the start and the logistics of how often, what type of spaces, and how the format would take shape.

“Launched in the fall of 2022 in the Upper School, by the end of the first semester, over 90 Upper School students had chosen to participate in at least one affinity group. Clearly the voice of our community had well guided us to design groups that were meaningful and impactful for students,” Mr. Cota said.

The intentional and direct outcome of ethnographic research is to identify needs of the student around strategic priorities. The “researchers” document notes from interviews and shadow experiences, identify themes and write needs statements capturing the lived experience of students.  Need statements become the centerpiece and the road map for unbounded ideation sessions to generate solutions to meet the needs identified, intentionally connected to institutional goals and priorities.

The innovation process continues with prototypes and testing tangible ideas with actual “end users,” gaining even more feedback to incorporate with additional testing and pilot programs that make their way into the St. Margaret’s program. It begins, ends and continues with empathy for the needs and experience of students.

Walking in A Student’s Shoes Reveals Untapped Insights

Shadowing a student through a class, an experience or a full day of school allows the researcher to go deeper in empathizing with students, by experiencing St. Margaret’s through their eyes, to walk in their shoes, to sit in their seats.

“This is so critical to design work; to experience the school through the eyes of the student. To be side-by-side with them through their day, completing classwork, understanding the pace and the demands of their day. There is so much to be learned from walking in another’s shoes,” Mr. Dahlem said.

“To be side-by-side with them through their day, completing classwork, understanding the pace and the demands of their day. There is so much to be learned from walking in another’s shoes.”

— Ryan Dahlem

Administrators, including Head of School Will Moseley who has shadowed in Middle School, and many other educators across the school intentionally spend time shadowing students, who eagerly volunteer for the experience to provide this glimpse into their world to school leaders.

Lower School Principal Jennifer Blount has shadowed students on several occasions, and commits her leadership team to engaging in the activity at least once a school year. She has learned valuable insights that allow for immediate tweaks and pilots to the program through her days shadowing students, like recognizing a few years ago that there was a need for more unstructured time in the school day resulting in more recess time and increased outdoor provocations.

Mrs. Blount shadowed a grade 2 student earlier this year to specifically observe if and how the pandemic might be impacting her students on a daily basis. “We use various methods, like our Faculty Growth and Support protocol, to formally observe and assess progress of our educational programs toward teaching and learning goals. Shadow days provide me a view through the lens of a student, in this case a 7-year-old child,” she says. “Shadowing allows me to not only experience the academic setting first-hand, what works well for me as a student and what may need adjusting. It also allows me to see what life is like for the student from the non-academic side. The experience of walking in the shoes of our students changes your perspective as an educator and informs every decision in unparalleled ways.”

Ethnographic research has a beneficial byproduct as well. “It is a sticky learning experience for adults. Living a full day as a grade 9 student, for example, is a very different experience than stopping by a classroom for a traditional observational visit,” says Mr. Dahlem. “Spending time with students in these ways stays with you and you take away incredible appreciation for the responsibility and expectation placed on our students and the ways they rise to meet daily challenges. You also develop a better understand the structure and pace of their days, and the subtleties of peer and student-teacher relationships.”

Conversely, students say they feel heard, seen, respected and validated in their experience, and appreciate that the school really means what it says about valuing their voice and input. 

The insights have flowed and the process has also become routine to stay tuned in to how students are doing. “We take these new understandings, from our collective ethnographic research, into decisions we make to advance the student experience. The extraordinary engagement and creativity of the professional community have led to significant outcomes.”

Much like the innovation strategy process itself, the mindful act of empathizing with students has influenced everyday experiences and interactions. “This is incredibly valuable across the school, and we foresee immeasurable benefits as we lean even deeper into the entire student experience including belonging, meaning, physical and mental health and well-being,” he said.

 St. Margaret’s Innovations Stemmed from Ethnographic Research

• Later School Day Start (previously 7:45 a.m.)

• Balanced, Consistent Daily School Schedule with intentional breaks

• Innovation Exploration and Life Skills Mini-Courses

• Expanded Advisory time

• Redesign of Service Learning Program

• Additional Lower School K-1 Outdoor Classroom time

• Cross-Divisional Learning Opportunities

• Expanded Upper School and Middle School Elective Course Offerings

• Student Affinity Groups

From Plants to Creatures Big and Small, Life Sciences Abound in the Early Childhood School

By Ryan Wood

St. Margaret’s youngest learners don’t have to go far to see Earth’s abundance of life. In the Early Childhood School, life is all around.

On a typical day for the young students, they have the chance to interact with snails, ladybugs, rabbits or chickens. They can observe and even taste apples growing on Outdoor Classroom trees, berries growing on bushes, or grapes growing on vines. They can watch vegetables sprout from seed to harvest, all the while asking questions about the development they are observing. 

Life sciences is an essential part of the academic experience in the Early Childhood School, and it is evident wherever students play and learn.

“It is important to make science fun for young children,” Early Childhood School Director Cris Lozon said. “Children construct knowledge through playing with their environment, from swinging on the swings to finding the smallest creature in the Outdoor Classroom. When a child finds a worm in the compost bin or a grub in the wood chips, they begin to question or inquire about them.

“With the teachers, children focus on the observations, engage in discussions, and begin to look for patterns and relationships for these live creatures.”

 Nowhere are those tiny creatures more abundant than In the St. Margaret’s garden. There, students find fun critters all around the soil and plants, and learn how all the living things work together as part of a much greater ecosystem. 

 “As they observe roly polies, earthworms, ladybugs and caterpillars, we talk about their ‘jobs’ in the garden,” Outdoor Classroom teacher Jennifer Hardison said. “Even when a child may be frightened by a spider or bee, we take the time to explain why these creatures are necessary and beneficial. Some might help pollinate our plants so we continue to have flowers, fruits and vegetables; some eat bugs that are harmful to our plants; some help keep the soil healthy so our plants grow.

“As children dig, plant and water in the garden, they understand the importance of give and take, and of caring for something other than themselves. These experiences lead to feelings of empathy for others, which is carried over into interactions with their peers.”

As the students observe that “give and take” between plants and animals, it leads to another layer of understanding and another opportunity to problem solve. On a typical garden visit, teachers and students try to figure out what might eating the leaves of a plant, or why one plant may grow taller than another, or why some plants have thorns while others don’t.

“These inquiries encompass the science principles of cause and effect, patterns, and structure and function, just to name a few,” Dr. Hardison said.

Those interactions with fellow creatures extends into the school’s individual classrooms, as well.

This year in teacher Lore Fredette’s room, two rabbits named Dill and Stella are popular companions to the early-childhood students, who assist in caring for them in a variety of ways. Recently, that even encompassed giving the rabbits a bath in the Outdoor Classroom. 

“They water and feed them each day, along with grooming and taking them for rides in their bunny carriage,” Mrs. Fredette said. “There are many learning experiences involved when children provide their love and care.”

As the school year progresses, students will further grasp the seasonality of life on Earth. They will plant various crops, and watch as beets, cabbage, carrots, kale, radishes and spinach go from seed to harvest. In the spring, St. Margaret’s will continue its partnership with a local farm to bring more than a dozen chicken eggs to the school for students to observe throughout the 21-day cycle and eventual springtime hatching of baby chicks, and all the wonder and amazement it brings.

“It is this abundance of life,” Dr. Lozon said, “that leads children into scientific thinking of exploring, observing, and investigating.”

Meet Elizabeth Eusebio, the New Director of Breakthrough SJC

By Ryan Wood

Elizabeth Eusebio

When meeting with the families of Breakthrough SJC students, new director Elizabeth Eusebio chooses to be vulnerable.

She shares everything. In her eyes, she owes it to these families.

“I want them to see,” Ms. Eusebio says, “that their story is my story.”

Ms. Eusebio started as the new director of Breakthrough SJC last summer, and her first few months on the job has been immersed in, as she puts it, “eating and sleeping” Breakthrough SJC.

A tuition-free program supporting local motivated students whose backgrounds are underrepresented in higher education, Breakthrough provides academic programming and guidance from middle school through college graduation for students primarily from low-income households. Breakthrough is hosted and sponsored by St. Margaret’s, and serves students in and around the San Juan Capistrano community.

Alongside her diligent work learning the ins and outs of the program, Ms. Eusebio also has led meetings with students and families who are part of Breakthrough—and that’s where her own story provides a connection.

Ms. Eusebio was born in Southern California to immigrant parents, and raised in a Santa Ana home with five siblings where Spanish was the first language spoken. Her parents did not have a higher-education background, but they stressed the value of education and encouraged her to pursue all of her academic goals.

She did just that, while often recognizing that she was driving without headlights. She knew little about important college essentials like financial aid, but plowed forward nonetheless. After starting at community college, Ms. Eusebio earned her bachelors degree at Cal State-Fullerton, then her masters degree from Chapman University.

She started her career as a behavioral therapist in the Garden Grove Unified School District, before moving to a charter school in Riverside as an educator and inclusion specialist.

Education was her calling, but deep down she felt she had more to give. When she learned about the opening at Breakthrough SJC—former director Alex Serna accepted a new role in the national Breakthrough Collaborative office, of which Breakthrough SJC is an affiliate—Ms. Eusebio visited the summer program at St. Margaret’s and immediately found her home.

“I fell in love right away,” she said. “The energy of the students, and the support that Breakthrough received from the St. Margaret’s community, I have never been in a job where I felt that. These students’ lives where being transformed. Breakthrough was giving students like my younger self the opportunities they needed.”

Director of Equity and Inclusion Victor Cota hosted Ms. Eusebio on her visit, and was equally struck.

• 359 Students Served*


• 86% are the first in their families to attend college


• 94% identify as a student of color


• 91% qualify for free or reduced lunch


• 89% English is not the primary language spoken at home


• 100% of 2020 high school graduates are attending college


• 88% were admitted to a four-year college or university

“I was overwhelmed by her ability to connect with them,” Mr. Cota said. “I could tell she was going to have a profound impact on Breakthrough’s students, families, and community.”

That community has grown extensively in size and scope over the last several years. While the mainstay summer program for middle school students is now in its 17th year, it has been complemented by programs that increase the number of students served. That includes weekly tutoring sessions for high school students, college counseling support for students and parents, and even a career readiness series for current Breakthrough SJC college students.

Today, the program assists more than 300 students from the local area in middle school through college graduation. The program supports students from Marco Forster Middle School, San Juan Hills High School, Dana Hills High School, Capistrano Valley High School, JSerra Catholic, and St. Margaret’s, as well as at colleges throughout the country.

Breakthrough SJC does its work in partnership with the community, including an advisory board, donors, and volunteers.

Ms. Eusebio sees Breakthrough solidifying their programs and the number of students served in the short-term.

“There is a great foundation in place,” she said. “We need to continue building upon that, maybe not grow in numbers but grow in what we provide. More tutoring, more partnerships…how can we provide more to our current students? How can we support Breakthrough students currently in college?”

The Breakthrough team is currently starting preparations for the 2022 summer session, which they hope can be a full-time, in-person program. The current health climate requires an abundance of planning, protocols and backup plans. The team consists of Ms. Eusebio and assistant director Samantha Geary with the support of an executive management team comprised of St. Margaret’s school leaders.

In the end, though, the mission of Breakthrough SJC remains: Breaking the cycle of poverty through the power of education by serving students from underrepresented backgrounds starting in middle school through college education.

“We’re striving to make our programs stronger, more accelerated, more impactful,” Ms. Eusebio said. “I’m excited to see where we can take this.”

St. Margaret’s Leads California Independent Schools in Mission-Centered Data Analysis

By Anne Dahlem

Academic assessment and measurement tools, like ERB, AP or SAT, endeavor to inform schools about the effectiveness of teaching, and ensuring students are learning and growing at an appropriate rate. That’s the extent that these tools are typically applied.

St. Margaret’s uses these data sets in similar ways, yet goes further in its analysis by adding a diverse group of tools in a mission-specific dashboard and enlisting a broader, holistic review. For several years, this unique, institutional approach has been recognized by the California Association of Independent Schools (CAIS) as a leading practice that can help other institutions improve as well.

Recently, Upper School Principal Jeneen Graham was invited to present this data analysis method for California private school leaders at the 2022 CAIS Trustee/School Head Conference to help other schools measure and improve on the most essential aspect of their institutions: their missions. Dr. Graham partnered with The Branson School Head of School Chris Mazzola to share “Measuring Your Mission and Vision: Systems of Data Collection and Analysis.”

“As independent schools, we all have unique mission statements, visions or core values that guide actions and aspirations. It is incumbent on us to hold ourselves accountable to these words that guide us,” said Dr. Graham. “If we can ask the right questions that lead us to a set of metrics that are mission-aligned, we can track that progress over time.  It is critical that we can answer the question, ‘how are we doing?’ As a school, we can answer that question every year through a variety of lenses.”

Dr. Graham, who led St. Margaret’s creation of its student academic performance data analysis program when she served as Academic Dean, is a co-chair of the CAIS Data-Based Program Improvement Think Tank helping schools improve through gathering, tracking, and analyzing qualitative and quantitative data over time.

About St. Margaret’s Mission-Centered Data Analysis Approach

The St. Margaret’s approach is different in several ways. One difference is the intentional tracking of student cohorts annually and over time for longitudinal analysis of their learning and growth, rather than taking the same annual data and comparing different student groups as they move through the school program. This significantly improves the analysis of the effectiveness of the school’s teaching and programs.

“Think of it as measuring the distance traveled over time,” said Dr. Graham. “Yes, knowing how a class of students performs on measures of reading or math is important, but tracking each cohort over time and comparing them to other cohorts of students helps us gauge the effectiveness of curriculum and program, not just individual or class level growth from year to year. If our mission is dedicated to lives of learning, these longitudinal analyses are the best match for our values.”

“Importantly, we know how we are doing in educating our young people in the areas that matter most to us and our families, and that is the best measurement of our success in student learning and growth.”

— Dr. Jeneen Graham

Importantly, St. Margaret’s enlists a host of different assessment tools that measure culture, belonging and connection, enabling the school to ask questions about essential institutional promises made in its mission, vision and core values.

An essential part of St. Margaret’ mission is the focus on educating students’ “hearts and minds.” In response, St. Margaret’s utilizes assessments that demonstrate aggregate academic growth (minds) over time that is comparable to other like schools. Additionally, the school tracks how well students seek growth opportunities, engage with their community, feel a sense of belonging, and are equipped with social-emotional skills (hearts).

“At each division, we have identified metrics that measure and help us understand how we are doing daily, annually and longer term across all facets of the promises we make in our mission. Every tool we use is developmentally appropriate and mission-aligned,” said Dr. Graham. “As a leadership team, we work together to make sure that we are always interrogating our data and adding and subtracting measures depending on the needs of our community.”

“Importantly, we know how we are doing in educating our young people in the areas that matter most to us and our families, and that is the best measurement of our success in student learning and growth.”

St. Margaret’s Comes Together to Serve Young Families Through New ‘Infant Pantry’ Program

A new service program organized and run by St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church is helping Orange County families with infants and young children—and the St. Margaret’s school community has rallied around the effort.

The Infant Pantry launched last summer, after St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church leaders brainstormed new ways to help the local community. The Reverend Canon Robert Edwards, head of chaplains at St. Margaret’s, as well as Church vestry members John Harms and Cheryl Famili, met with several organizations, including Father Serra’s Pantry and Family Assistance Ministries, to observe and ask questions about needs in the community.

The Church leaders then thought about Padres Unidos, a St. Margaret’s-affiliated non-profit group of community workers who are committed to serving low-income families in Orange County through a variety of child, youth and family services.

“Padres Unidos families have children that are around 3 or 4 years old when they come in here,” said Mrs. Famili, who is also a parent of a St. Margaret’s alumna. “Father Rob asked, ‘What could we do for these families at earlier ages?’ The idea took off from there.”

The program started by assessing the needs of families with infants—namely diapers of different sizes, formula for different ages, wipes, nursing pads, diaper rash cream and more. “We just looked at what needs were out there for these families,” Mrs. Famili said.  

Once the Infant Pantry program officially launched and prepared for its first distribution event in September, St. Margaret’s Episcopal School’s service-learning team was quick to adopt it as an official service partner, and students and teachers in all divisions reached out to offer assistance. The program will be the centerpiece of St. Margaret’s all-school service-learning project in the spring.

Four advisories—one in each Upper School grade—designated the Infant Pantry as their yearlong service partner, and have spent their service-learning blocks organizing donations, labeling inventory, and even promoting the program through the creation of signage, social media posts and other communications.

In addition, an Innovation Block mini-course taught by Jackie Swaidan is dedicated to learning the skill of knitting, and students are making stocking hats, blankets and scarves to distribute to Infant Pantry families.

The outreach goes beyond the Upper School, too. The Middle School service-learning elective classes have hand-written prayer cards that are distributed with donations, and grade 3 families put together Thanksgiving food boxes which were distributed with other Infant Pantry donations in November.

“We are extremely excited and grateful for the support of the St. Margaret’s students,” Father Rob said. “They have brought ingenuity, enthusiasm and creativity that has helped us grow this program and reach even more families.”

In addition, St. Margaret’s organized a schoolwide donation drive in December, as those attending the Lessons and Carols extravaganza were encouraged to bring blankets, hats, mittens, books, food and formula. The St. Margaret’s community delivered with much-needed donations ahead of the pre-holiday December distribution, including more than 80 containers of formula, 40 containers of baby wipes and 70 blankets.

St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church has seen an uptick in the number of families that have been served since starting monthly distribution events in September. In the program’s first four distributions, more than 250 families and close to 400 infants were served, including many active-duty military families stationed in Camp Pendleton.  

You can learn more about the Infant Pantry program, including ways to help, by visiting the St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church website.

The Gift of Community

Lessons and Carols in December was one of the largest community gatherings in school history.

By Ryan Wood

It was a magical night at St. Margaret’s Episcopal School. A chill in the air gave the evening a wintry feel, as attendees curled up under blankets, hands stuffed in coat pockets. Lawn chairs faced north, where the front of the Performing Arts Center glowed with streaks of holiday green and red, and where talented students of all ages were ready to put on a show.

Off to the side, there was a donation drive benefiting Infant Pantry, the school and church’s newest program serving local families. Tables of Christmas-themed sugar cookies awaited the guests upon their exit. Professional photographers and videographers were on hand, as were hundreds of amateurs capturing the moments on their smartphones.

Lessons and Carols has taken place in all 43 years of St. Margaret’s existence, yet never had there been a night like this. Upper School students, with years of refinement and experience under their belts, singing renditions of classic Christmas favorites. Middle School students, quickly developing their musical chops, playing band and string instruments. And the Lower School students, kindergarten through grade 5, singing carols, reading lessons and Bible passages, and telling the story of Christmas under the backdrop of the St. Margaret’s Christmas tree, lit earlier in the evening by the Parent Teacher Fellowship.

Christmas is always a special season at St. Margaret’s, but never has all of the school’s favorite holiday traditions come together in one night. More than 500 students took part, with hundreds of family and friends watching from Chalmers Field. It was one of the largest gatherings in school history, a herculean effort involving school leaders, the PTF, maintenance and facilities, security, communications and more.  

“Current times call for creativity and innovation to carry on these important traditions, and our students and professional community really put on an unforgettable show,” Head of School Will Moseley said. “It is always wonderful when our community is able to come together, and this was a special evening none of us will soon forget.”

When the ripple effects of a global pandemic took all of our lives down a path we never imagined, it was on that path where we recognized what we hold dear.

At St. Margaret’s, it was this: proud parents watching their young child deliver a Christmas reading flawlessly with hundreds looking on. Seeing the joy as students saw their favorite teacher outside of the normal school day. Lower School students sharing the stage with the Upper School students they idolize, unable to comprehend, as adults can, that they are not far away from being the ‘big kids’ themselves.   

It was all this and more. Tartans with Tartans. Sharing the commonality of a vibrant St. Margaret’s education, and the love of one another that comes with that shared experience.

“The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of social interactions in a person’s overall health and well-being,” said Patrick Bendzick, St. Margaret’s director of student wellness. “Although we were able to connect with people on a variety of digital platforms, nothing replaced the emotional benefits of interacting with friends and family in person. It’s something most of us took for granted, but it is refreshing to see how St. Margaret’s has emerged with a profound appreciation for this simple gift.”

“Although we were able to connect with people on a variety of digital platforms, nothing replaced the emotional benefits of interacting with friends and family in person.”

— Patrick Bendzick

Community is an essential strength of St. Margaret’s. Alongside pillars like academic excellence, opportunities in athletics and arts, strong college matriculation, and a world-class collection of educators, community is a valuable part of the Tartan experience, every single day.

All of those pillars of St. Margaret’s continued on, but maintaining strong community connections is the glue of the transformative Tartan experience, and perhaps the most challenging to achieve when pandemic guidelines hamstrung the ability to just be together.

During the 2020-2021 school year, St. Margaret’s PTF—a driver of many important community-building events—had every reason to eliminate all expectations of community togetherness in their events. Instead, they forged ahead with the guidelines in place, hosting virtual get-togethers, cherished fundraisers and, near the end of the school year, the PTF Library Luncheon with tables decorated in backyards across Orange County. Speaking at the New Board/Old Board recognition at the end of the year, Mr. Moseley noted that “each of you have made what could have been a very quiet year for PTF activities into a year full of connections and programming.”

Heading into the fall of 2021, it was such connections that were a priority of school leadership. The community touchpoints must soon return. It is a key ingredient to the health, well-being, learning and growth of St. Margaret’s students.

One welcome return was in athletics, which is set to enjoy a full school year of competition. While the student-athletes bonded with one another during team practices, strength and conditioning sessions, and most of all, games, in the crowd were their peers—taking on an important role of their own. 

The Kitchen, the Upper School’s spirited student cheering section, has been ranked favorably by local media as one of the most passionate student sections in Orange County. They have themed costumes at home games, lead timely and respective chants, dances and antics, and make sure that Tartan student-athletes have a home-field advantage when they play at St. Margaret’s. 

More than ever, the Kitchen has enhanced the atmosphere around athletics this year, in its long awaited return to a normal schedule. They have made games at Tartan Field or Pasternack Field House can’t-miss community events, and contributed mightily to making St. Margaret’s a fun and spirited place that means so much to all St. Margaret’s students.

“The Kitchen provides a platform for every member of our student community to support our athletic teams,” said Chris Nordstrom, St. Margaret’s Upper School director of athletics. “Whether it is on the field or the court, this group demonstrates true Tartan spirit every day.”

Beyond Upper School student life, though, there is a uniqueness to St. Margaret’s preschool-grade 12 campus that invites an aspect of community which can’t be replicated elsewhere. School leaders have long valued the importance of bringing Tartans of all ages together for activities like all-school events. Yet such events were a logistical challenge considering the guidelines in place—a goal that required creativity, hard work, new solutions and doing away with almost all preconceptions of how things previously had been done.

With that, the Homecoming Pep Rally in the fall was a significant milestone. It was the first time the entire student body gathered since March 2020, and students of all ages watched as Tartan Field was transformed into Olympic Stadium befitting the Homecoming theme of “Tartans Go for Gold.” Organized and run by the Upper School ASB, there were performances by the Upper School cheer squad and the Tartan Dance Company, skits, fun Olympic-themed activities including a 50-yard dash with Early Childhood School students, a water balloon launch with willing faculty as targets, the introduction of the homecoming court and an inspirational speech by head football coach Kory Minor. Though the Pep Rally was limited to students and professional community, the parent community was able to tune in via live stream.

“It was such a moment for the entire school community,” said Lora Allison, Upper School director of community life. “I’m so proud of ASB and everyone involved, and we’re so happy we were able to bring the entire Tartan community together.”

The success of the Homecoming Pep Rally made all things possible, it seemed. As the school year moved along and more community-uniting events loomed on the calendar—events that were relegated to online presentations during 2020-2021—it made sense that the Homecoming Pep Rally would serve as a blueprint.

If 1,240 students could come together for a spirited pep rally, why not for November’s St. Margaret’s Day, an annual Eucharist celebrating the school’s namesake and reflecting on a theme tied to the school’s roots?

So on a beautiful Southern California day about a month later, the student body returned to Tartan Field. Maintenance and facilities stepped up to turn the field into a powered stage, where Director of Choral Music Adela Kwan performed on the keyboard, where St. Margaret’s chaplains and student leaders offered prayer readings, and where Mr. Moseley encouraged the student body to embrace a life of gratitude, even during challenging times.

“It takes courage to have gratitude,” Mr. Moseley. “Life is hard, yet we strive for equity, justice, health and prosperity for all. It is in the striving that we can find gratitude.”

In that moment, Mr. Moseley and many others in the school community were feeling gratitude themselves. The student body was back together again. Siblings hugged one another, Peer Counselors said hello to their little buddies. Upper School students were flooded with nostalgia as they watched the Early School students sing hymns that they remember singing in their younger years.

That’s what community looks like in a preschool-grade 12 school. In late 2020, a group of 3- and 4-year old Early Childhood School students climbed on top of wood tables to peek over the division’s wall, where Middle School students were walking around the perimeter of Chalmers Field. The young Tartans had a simple request: Won’t you come visit us?

It was a reminder that the wholeness of St. Margaret’s cannot exist inside a cohort, or contained to one part of campus, forever. It requires community, and teachers from all divisions embraced and sought out such cross-divisional connections. For a few examples, In the fall of 2021 alone:

Grade 6 led a math lesson with Early School and kindergarten students.

• Grade 6 students dropped by the Early School as well as kindergarten classes to lead a math lesson.

• Upper School science students helped kindergartners make volcanoes in the sand pit of the Lower School Outdoor Classroom.

• Upper School astronomy students collaborated with grade 6 earth science students.

• Grade 6 students shared their health and well-being books with grade 4 students.

• Upper School students served as digital mentors to help younger Tartans make good choices with technology and social media.   

• Middle School technical arts students created a Halloween carnival for Lower School students to have an unforgettable holiday.

• Upper School students visited grade 6 world history class to help students with their archaeology interview project.

• Kindergarten students decorated pumpkins, and delivered them to the Upper School to bring a little extra joy to their school day, causing one senior to exclaim, “This made my whole week!”

Those little connections brought a little joy. The big connections created lifelong bonds and memories, such as Lessons and Carols where parents connected with parents, where they watched with pride as their children took to the stage, where they supported the Infant Pantry program serving others, and where they received a continuous reminder throughout the evening that the transformative Tartan experience is more than the importance of vigorous academics, teachers full of love and care, and opportunities to take the path of your choosing toward adulthood.

It’s also being in the presence of each other, forever bonded by St. Margaret’s and the unique and life-changing community in which it entails.