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we've achieved. I haven't achieved it, Trevor has achieved it together, over the last nine years. I look at where we were, and where we have come. I recognize how well everybody worked together. To experience the excitement around our biggest transitions, like the opening of the East Campus and the renovation of our Lower School, was a professional highlight. I've learned what a really good team looks like and the impact we can have, together. JW: What was your secret for getting us through pandemic? SR: I have a motto. It's more than a motto, actually, it's a commitment. I state and restate to the faculty whenever I can that in order to be a healthy person, you need to have three priorities in your life. The first priority is your health. The second priority is the health of your family, however you define family. And the third is what you do here at school. Number three should be very close to priorities one and two, but the order is important. So any decision that we made had to take that into account. Always. What's in the best interest of our community's health? What is in the best interest for healthy families with whom our community interacts? And what is in the best interest of educating our students? I made the best decisions I could with the best information I had at the time. I might not have made those decisions quite the same way today, with the information available today, but they were the right decisions then. And we made sure we were consistently communicating, even more than we normally do. I was on videos and Zoom and webinars, talking to people, telling them 'here's the reason we're doing this.' When I think about the people who helped to facilitate our educational transition so quickly, like the genius Stan Golanka, I am so proud. I said "Stan, looks like we might be in this for the long haul; what are we gonna do?" And Stan went to work! And myself, the division heads, the administrators, none of us stopped for even a second over that Spring Break, and we prepared for the most difficult periods of time for faculty and students that I have ever experienced as an educator. One afternoon I was sitting with Morgan Porzio, who is our Director of Marketing and Communications, and I said we need a mantra to keep us moving forward, and above all other things, we need to keep this community together. And thus, Trevor Together was born. Trevor Together says it all. JW: From a student's perspective, my time in Middle School, a portion of which was remote learning, went very smoothly, so all your hard work really did pay off. I remember after one of the Zoom meetings at which you were speaking, my dad said, 'We're lucky to have him as the Head of School.' SR: Thank you, that is such a lovely memory to share. JW: On a lighter note, if you were stuck in the movie Groundhog Day, the Trevor Edition, which day or which few days in your career here would you pick to relive over and over again? SR: Oh, I've got several. My first couple of days at Trevor, when we were still at The Church of the Heavenly Rest, and the big kids were at 88th Street, I would walk back and forth from one campus to the other through the park. And I constantly thought to myself, "Somebody pinch me! These kids are beautiful. This school is beautiful. Look at the opportunities we have here." I would also be happy to relive the day that we walked from the East 90th Street building for the last time, and over to the new West Campus Lower School. I led everyone across Central Park; all of the construction workers were outside the building, and we celebrated them for working so hard on our school. It was wonderful. I also remember the day we opened the East Campus. I remember that day so well. We did that in May 2015, and we had a big assembly. We had the history of the school displayed, former trustees were in attendance, and Board Chair Sally Rocker and I both said a few words. I couldn't believe it. We were FINALLY in our new home. And we've had so many beautiful Commencements in my time at Trevor. Each one perfect in its own right. I could happily live each one of those over again. JW: So, speaking of this building, one of my favorite things about Trevor is all the beautiful common spaces to connect with friends and faculty and get work done. What is your favorite Trevor spot? SR: It's the roof of 95th Street, actually. Acclaimed designer Maya Lin P'16 P'17 told me she had an idea for the roof. She presented her drawings to a group of us, and we were blown away. Our rooftop garden is a marvelous place to be. I also love to hang out with students whenever I can. I like to be in the classroom. I also love my office on the west side, which is on the 3rd floor, right next to Kindergarten, Pre-K, and Nursery classrooms. Every single day of the week I have kids who knock on the door and walk in. And I don't care what I'm doing. Whenever the little ones knock on the door I say, "Come in!" They are never an interruption. JW: Your legacy will live on here at Trevor. Which of your many accomplishments would you like us to hold in our hearts, and remember as we move forward? SR: The emphasis upon creating a community embedded in kindness, compassion, and decency. You know, Juliet, the buildings don't matter. It's always the people. I learned a long time ago that the most important thing to value is kindness. It doesn't matter if you're the very best student, TREVOR DAY SCHOOL / 35 INSIDE TREVOR TREVOR TRANSLATES FEATURE AR TICLES ALUMNI

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