Fifth-grader Shaan Patel's local contest essay on teamwork earned him and one other winner a "coach for a day" position with the Princeton University Men's Basketball Team and Head Coach Mitch Henderson at Jadwin Gym. The two winning essayists and their families were also invited to the Princeton-Cornell home basketball game, where they were acknowledged and presented with a signed game ball during a spectacular halftime ceremony. The contest was sponsored by the Princeton Police, Princeton University Department of Public Safety and Princeton University Athletics.

Sandy Wang will join the PDS Leadership Team this summer as Head of Lower School. In accepting her position as Lower School Head, Sandy stated, "I am thrilled to be joining the PDS community and looking forward to participating in the magic that happens as young children discover their place in the world around them. From my visits to the School earlier this winter, I know that PDS is a special place, filled with joyful children, talented educators and families who care. I look forward to being a part of the PDS story and am proud to be a Panther!" Prior to her appointment at PDS, Sandy built an impressive career in school leadership through her educational focus and her work as a teacher and administrator at some outstanding independent schools in New York City. For more details, see the full story.

In appreciation for longtime Princeton Day School community member John Wellemeyer's many efforts on behalf of the School, on March 7, 2019, the Upper School STEAM space was officially named The Wellemeyer STEAM Center. The transformative, 2,000 square foot space is dedicated to innovative, hands-on exploration and real world problem-solving that integrate science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics. Since it opened in 2017, course offerings taking place in the Center serve approximately half the Upper School and are among the best and most extensive among independent schools in the northeast region. Enrollment of female students in Upper School STEAM electives this year almost doubled, with 42% female and 58% male enrollment.

A cast of 51 performed in this year's 4th Grade Operetta for an enthusiastic capacity crowd on Wednesday, March 6 in the McAneny Theater. The Superetta! tells the story of a group of comic book devotees, known as The CBC, struggling to create a comic book of their own and determine which super powers their new characters should possess. They get to meet the greatest superheroes and villains in the universe, with the goal of creating original "super" identities of their own.

Just the facts, please: Season summaries of PDS Varsity Winter Sports teams and the Varsity and JV PDS Winter Sports Award winners! For more photos of the teams in action, see our Flickr album of Winter Sports photo highlights.

For Senior Peer Group Leaders, last weekend's retreat with the freshman they mentored this year underscored their own journeys as well as the individual and collective growth of the Ninth Grade. As the Seniors observed how the freshmen built on relationships the Peer Leaders played a role in cultivating, the retreat experience proved both humbling and powerful. In their own words, some Peer Group Leaders provide a lens for the rest of us, describing how everyone who participated shared in a growing sense of success and an appreciation of the value of an intense year learning about leadership, building trust and exploring character.

For photos of the Peer Leaders and their freshmen 'classes" see our Flickr album!

This season's Princeton Day School Girls Ice Hockey team embodies the grit, talent and promise of PDS varsity sports programs. Varsity Coach Lorna Cook recaps their season here, which culminated on March 2 at the NJ Girls High School All Star game, where five varsity teammates were selected to play on hallowed ground at the Barnabas Health Hockey House in Newark, NJ. Coming next: Winter Sports Awards Round-Up for all PDS winter sports teams. Stay tuned to your pds.org homepage!

Did you know that almost every month, a group of about 20 PDS Climate Scholars meets with grad students from Princeton University to share resources and discuss urgent issues related to climate change and sustainability? In addition, each year our Climate Scholars spend countless hours organizing one of the most distinctive high school student conferences in the state: newly dubbed the NextGen Student Climate Summit, this nexus of NJ high school student presentations and sustainability experts on site to share their resources is happening on May 11 at The Watershed.

In their first appearance at the prestigious North American Invitational Model UN (NAIMUN) conference in Washington DC, the 17-member PDS Model UN delegation netted numerous individual "Best Delegate" and other awards. Faculty advisor Stefanie Santangelo reported that, as always, the students put a tremendous amount of time and care into preparing for their respective roles and committees. Their passion for and commitment to this work is truly impressive!

At the five-round New Jersey Elementary & Junior High Chess Championship tournament in Linwood, NJ last Sunday, the PDS Primary Team K-3 placed second and the Elementary Team K-6 placed fourth in the overall standings. Several PDS players won or placed near the top in their segments, including PDS's sole Junior High representative, Eric Wu '24.

Congratulations to the following Princeton Day School students for Scholastic Gold Key Awards for writing and/or art: Nina Ajemian '19, Allison Liang '22, Audrey Liang '20, Jessie Lin '21, Lydia Pamudji '19, Bolin Shen '22, Vibhu Singh '19, Hannah Su '20, Elsie Wang '19, Yishi Wang '19. See the full listing of the 20 Gold Key Awards and 60 Silver Key and Honorable Mention Awards won by PDS students!

PDS students Alex DiNovi '20, Krista Caasi '20, Luigi Soriano '20, Fechi Inyama '20, Sachin Patel '20, Andrew Ciccarone '20 and Madison Izzard '20 plan to pursue their independent studies further this summer at leading-edge university-affiliated labs across the country. They students were selected for the REx program, a signature STEAM extracurricular opportunity for juniors chosen by application each year. The program includes independent study and collaboration, faculty advising, student-led summer internship identification and outreach, and multiple presentation components both before and after the internship experience, culminating in the fall of senior year. You can learn more about STEAM at PDS here.

PDS third grader Val and her sister Maxine Chen, in Sixth Grade, are a dynamic violin duo, having begun their violin training in Shanghai. Since moving to the Princeton area, they have continued lessons locally and on weekends in New York City. The sisters both performed solos at Carnegie Hall on February 24 after winning a recent violin competition. In addition, Maxine recently auditioned for CJMEA and was accepted into Chamber Orchestra. You'll surely be hearing a lot more from the Chen sisters!

Congratulations to the following Princeton Day School students for Scholastic Gold Key Awards for writing and/or art: Nina Ajemian '19, Allison Liang '22, Audrey Liang '20, Jessie Lin '21, Lydia Pamudji '19, Bolin Shen '22, Vibhu Singh '19, Hannah Su '20, Elsie Wang '19, Yishi Wang '19. See the full listing of the 20 Gold Key Awards and 60 Silver Key and Honorable Mention Awards won by PDS students!

Last weekend's performances of Little Shop of Horrors showcased the impressive professionalism, and heart, of the entire student cast and crew along with the faculty and staff theater production team. We reached out to them so we could share their reflections and insights about the show and their experience. Read what they had to say and check out our Flickr album of fabulous photos taken by Matt Pilsner!

Princeton Day School students, families, and faculty came together to observe Black History Month with a multifaceted program of performances and presentations, along with a keynote by Rev. Dr. Theresa S. Thames, Associate Dean of Religious Life and of the Chapel at Princeton University, that explored race, identity, activism, community, and more.

An extraordinary gift of $5 million, the second largest in Princeton Day School's history, allows the School to turn its attention to a long-anticipated and critically needed facility: a 30,000 square foot, LEED-certified Athletic Center. The new Center will adjoin the Lisa McGraw '44 Skating Rink and contain a field house with two indoor courts for multi-sport use, four international squash courts with a spectator viewing area, and a common gathering space. The field house, squash courts and community gathering spaces will be joined within the Athletic Center, providing a new and expanded space on campus for students to meet, compete, study and socialize. "We are confident at the prospect of breaking ground in May 2019, knowing the many ways this essential campus facility will allow our entire community to thrive," Head of School Paul Stellato stated.

Princeton Day School seniors Nina Kanamaluru, Rakesh Potluri, Angela Talusan, Rebecca Tang, Jacob Tharayil, and Elsie Wang are finalists in the 64th annual National Merit Scholarship Program! These accomplished students are now vying to be named later in the spring as Merit Scholars and National Merit scholarship winners.

Tinkering, Aaron Schomburg says, is a stepping stone for the more complex innovations and problem-solving kids will face in STEAM maker spaces, innovation labs, fab labs, or science and engineering courses in higher grades and in college. "Tinkering is not just a physical activity; it is also a way to develop thoughts and ideas that lead to the next step, whether that is a more detailed drawing or prototype, or even pure scientific research," he writes in his February 20 blog, "The Value of Tinkering" published in Scientific American. Read his blog here.

Each year, the Mini-Course "Exploring Our Own Back Yard" dreams up a week's worth of fantastic day trips for 5th-8th graders as one of about a dozen unique course offerings during this special week of Middle School programming. Here are some photo highlights to accompany this year's itinerary, developed by faculty co-leaders Amy Beckford, Jack Madani, Tara Quigley, Cloey Talotta and Katy Terry!