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Campers enjoy "Grier Summer" camp programs!
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The following was written by Lizzie, from California:
As a 3rd year student at Grier, I can truly say that Grier has made a positive difference in my life. Where I live in California, the schools are either highly academic and competitive private schools or super huge public schools. Grier offered something better than that. It is a small school, with great teachers, support, and a caring atmosphere. When I first stepped into the halls of Grier, I was very shy and scared because I had never been away from my parents for such a long time. Grier made that transition easier. At Grier there are caring counselors, faculty, and staff who put 150% into what they do. Never have I been to a school were they made learning math fun! Or made learning about politics interesting! Not to mention before I came to Grier I used to despise English, and by my 3rd year here I am loving English, to the point where I am thinking about even majoring in it! The dorm life can be rough at times, but overall Grier is a great school. There is always going to be ups and downs at any school that someone goes to, and that is the same for Grier. Grier offers more than just academics. It offers arts, dance, horseback riding, and an opportunity to do something different. The whole school has a good mix of people who are from the U.S.A and from all over the world, which I believe is something that is incredible about the school! Where else can you make friends from Asia and the middle East, it is awesome. Not to mention that here at Grier, the students get to know the teachers on a personal level, and the teachers with the students. I, from the bottom of my heart, have enjoyed my experiences at Grier. I have grown so much as a person and a student at Grier, better than any other school I would have gone too.
-Lizzie (Class of 2009)
(The following was written by a student entering her second year at Grier.)
Why did I choose an all-girls boarding school?
The education at an all-girls school allows for more participation. Girls who would normally be quiet in a coed classroom (..because they don't want to be embarassed by being wrong in front of the boy that they like!) are given more confidence because there are no boys around. Girls at coed shools tend to fret a lot about their appearance, but at an all-girls school, there is no reason to be extravagent in one's apparel. One simply needs to adhere to the schools dress code. Time spent getting ready to present oneself at a coed school can also take away from valuable studying time. The teachers at all- girls schools, or at least at Grier, are more sensitive to the needs of young women, so they can understand if a problem arises and find an appropriate solution. At an all girls boarding school, the sports are more appropriate to those that young women would enjoy, which makes the classes more fun. Girls participate actively in these sports classes because they have an interest in the class. Education is much better in an all-girls school because there are fewer distractions and more time to focus on classwork.
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Iman Latif (Class of 2000) married Farukh Javed on November 5, 2006. They are living in Mississauga, near Toronto, Canada.
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Participation in Morning Assembly is encouraged of all Grier students.
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Sarah gives "Tina" a warm hug.
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Boarding school offers you life-long memories!
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Clarissa Aleman (Class of 2001), with her mother Sarah Schoen Echevarria (Class of 1964) at Grier's reunion in June, 2007.
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LESSONS FROM BOARDING SCHOOL
Three Muslims, two Christians, a Jew, and a Mormon all live in a house... and the world waits for the punch line, because everyone knows that in this day and age, no one actually lives in such harmony anymore... or do they?
Welcome to Grier, a haven for some–home to nearly two hundred girls grades seven through twelve. We represent, in a single corner of America, over fifteen different countries and twenty-two states of the U.S. We’re not here to intimidate each other, to convert each other, or to ridicule each other's faith. We're here, either by our choice, or by someone else’s, to learn—both academically and socially.
We study, we cry, laugh, and live together, here at Grier, for eight months out of the year. I share kitchen horror stories with my roommate from Pakistan, and play childish games of hide-and-go-seek with my suitemates from Poland and an American compound in Saudi Arabia. I sit with my classmates in math class from Japan and Korea and bemoan our latest quiz results.
We shop at Wal-Mart for groceries together, and stand at the barre with each other. We deal with religion and morality on a daily basis. We hug and wave goodbye for summer break, and board our various planes and cross through every time zone, back home to our native lands.
We turn on the TV, read the newspaper, and hear of racist acts committed against our fellow countrymen; and we read of war between radical groups vying for domination–of land, of religion, of what does it matter? The same, silly old things. The Grier School is not a utopia, and its students are not all best friends. We have our differences and disagreements. And we solve them. We move out of dorm rooms, work things out with counselors, and learn tolerance.
Ask yourselves, you great leaders of countries, and citizens passing by each day in the street: what can you learn from Grier? You say that we are just one small place, set on a hill surrounded by nowhere, and trees? You say that there are only two hundred girls here—add five, six thousand more and you've got yourself a budding war? It’s not the real world, just a sliver of wishful life?
Softly, listen. Believe in the power of one—one's ability to influence others with her experiences and her beliefs. At Grier, we are imbued in a learned and lived respect for people of other cultures. Those seeds of tolerance in every man, woman, and child are not dormant here, but upright and breathing.
Why should the “real world” be different? No two people are exactly alike in tastes and face. Even your own dearest husband, he a Democrat, you a Republican, does not agree with what you say. If this is so, why believe that others, of differences far more severe, of religion and culture, will all one day conform to your molds and casts?
So, remember us, the few, the young and malleable, on islands such as Grier. While we are here learning how to share bedroom and bathroom, children elsewhere are learning from school to hate, and to fear.
Listen to us, we are not the voice of the future, but the voice of now, the voice of the past that should have been. We are the answer to your dilemmas and to your laments, we are the butterfly-created tsunami, the deus ex machina of this world, its stage and players!
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Alejandra has an unusual response to catching a rainbow trout!
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(This email was received by the admissions office on January, 30, 2005.)
Hello Mr. Wilson!
I often go to Grier's website to look at pictures and read up on the latest happenings at Grier, of course, it makes me "homesick", but I do this quite often (once a Grier girl, always a Grier girl). Tonight I came across "Lessons From Boarding School", written by an Esther Otis, and was completely captivated by it. In fact, I was so touched by it, that I forwarded the link to many friends and relatives. Please tell Miss Otis how impressed I was by this essay she wrote. One of the many things Grier taught me was to be tolerant of so many different people, and I cherish that value. So many times during the last 15 years, I can't help but think of the girls at Grier whenever international issues arise, and I remember how we all managed to get along regardless of our different beliefs. political and religious. I really do think the worlds' leaders could learn something from Miss Otis!
Hope everyone is staying warm in PA! Spring will be here before you know it!
Love,
Polly Johnson Edwards - class of '91
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Mrs. Borst at the end of the Spring Rock Band Concert.
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Green & Gold Online Student Newsletter
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Some friends decided to gather outside on a nice September Saturday evening.
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Sara, dressed up for a performance.
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Sophie is happy to receive a package!
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The Making of a Student Council President - 2004-2005 School Year.
When I was a little girl, my family went camping quite often. At the end of our vacation, before we could leave, my dad made us clean up the campground, insisting that we leave it better than we found it. I have been campin' out here at Grier for two years now. Before I leave, I would like to spend my third and final year making Grier better than I found it.
I won't stand here and tell you allof my ideas, because your ideas are the most important. As President, I want to represent the students and your ideas. I won't promise you the world, but I will promise you that if I am elected President of Student Council, I will do my best. I promise you that I will do all that I can to make Grier a better school, and a better home away from home.
Diligence and determination are two of my best traits. I hate the feeling of knowing I could have done something better. When I have a task at hand, I plan how I am going to solve or accomplish it instead of just rushing into it. When a task is difficult, I put more effort into it. Next year, when something you want is difficult to obtain, I am not going to dismiss it as "too hard." I will do my best to get it done. If I am elected President, I will do my best to leave Grier better than I found it.
Becca Armstong - May 19, 2004
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"WHERE DO GRIER GIRLS COME FROM?"
Grier girls come from all over the map. My roommate will fly back from Cyprus following Christmas vacation, and my suitemate will arrive back to school having spent time at her hometown in Japan. Members of the riding team will return from Korea, Pennsylvania, and Georgia. Students in creative writing class will bring stories from Pakistan, South Carolina, and Montana. I myself will return from Maryland, a three and a half hour drive to the hills and classrooms of Grier.
I was born and have since lived in the same one story, brown house in the suburbs of Baltimore. My room, as many of my friends’ are, is filled with reflections of who I am. My bookshelf is stacked with everything from Garfield cartoons to Plato’s Republic. Currently, there are piles in desperate need of sorting, residing on the roofs of the two dog crates in my room. Pictures of summer vacations and parties with friends remain stacked on my desk – yeah, I’ll need to sort those also.
Aside from the dog crates, my room at Grier feels pretty much the same as the one in which I am now sitting at home. Of course, my roommate’s side of the room is also a reflection of her room in Cyprus, and though I have not personally witnessed her room, the side at Grier would tend to offer visions of extreme clutter. However, we get along great, and our rooms aren’t an assessment of who we are as students. They simply represent our different passions and activities. My roommate has her yoga mat, and I’ve got my riding boots.
So, as I continue to run away with my writing, as I often do, I glance back to the actual question at hand. Where do Grier students come from? Well, like I said, I’ve lived in Maryland all my life. And I’ve attended a private religious day school for the majority of it. Last year, however, when I decided I needed something different, my family and I looked at Grier as one option. Boarding school is different, that’s for sure. However, I have friends who have gone to other boarding schools before arriving at Grier. They, too, think Grier is different.
There’s no one way to explain how Grier is different. Mostly, though, I’d say it’s the people who reside on campus. The friends you meet your first days, the ones you continue to contact throughout your Christmas break, because even one day without them is too long. It’s the housemoms who check in with you every night, the teachers who stay after classes are finished to coach sports teams. It’s everyone together, one community of differences from around the globe, all here, all at home, at Grier.
Our backgrounds are different. That’s for sure. We’ve grown up with different foods, different languages, different religions. We’ve all attended other schools before Grier, and now we all go to a different school, different from any in which we’ve ever set foot. Together, our differences blend, creating in Grier a different atmosphere, with the ability to change every day, as we continue to learn from all those around us.
Judith - Grade 12
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Annalee and Ellis sing "Ying Huacao," a Chinese song.
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YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE!
Each year, the Grier School faculty get together for an assembly in May to honor the senior class of the school as they begin the last stretch before graduation. It is a time when faculty can express what it is they admire in a student and to let her know that she has, in fact, made a big difference here. The teachers give the seniors three blue ribbons, one to wear and two to pass on to others who have made a difference in their lives. The following are some of the presentations made by faculty in recent years.
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I first met this student in the fall, just before classes started. Like many students, she was using the library computers to print pictures from her summer vacation. Later, I would get to know her more when she would hang out in the library before dinner and at Book Club meetings.
I learned that she has undying affection for all things cute, a great sense of humor, and a love of reading. She regularly finishes 500-page novels overnight! Despite this habit of reading library books instead of doing her homework, I know that she does well in her classes and makes friends with just about anyone, including the school librarian.
For these reasons, and many more, she has made a difference at Grier. Knowing that she plans to study social work at Elizabethtown College and wants to help children at an international level, this student will surely continue to make a difference wherever she goes.
Heather, can you please step up to the podium to receive your ribbon.
Rebecca Alberico, Librarian
FILO
My first encounter with this student was on my first Grier bus trip to the mall. This student challenged me, in her cowboy hat, for being in her seat at the front of the bus. Looking her in the eye, I challenged her back and said something like, “is your name on it?” She looked startled and gave me a puzzled look. From the start, I recognized her strength of spirit. Secretly, I admired it…. The next challenge she presented to me was the fact that she had a borderline disgust for English. Even though she isn’t in my own English class, through our time together, I hope I have convinced her that English isn’t so bad.
I’ll describe the girl who has made a difference this year to me in an acronym: F for friendly, I for innovative, L for loving, and even sometimes, O for outrageous. Filo has got a powerful heart and a spirit of fire. She is dedicated to things she is passionate about and to people she cares about. She has made me laugh on days that I’ve needed to, leaving notes on my board and chocolate on my desk. I’ve been lucky to know her and truly, she has made my year lighter. She’s always telling me that she isn’t ready to be a grown up and that she’s still a kid. I really like that about her. But, Filo, when you’re ready, I got you a book entitled “A guide for grown-ups.”
Kara Lawler - English Department Chair
I have been so impressed by the senior who always seems focused on where she is going and how quickly she needs to be there. In fact, watching her pass my office has caused me to consult a chiropractor about possible whiplash! Always on the move, always with a purpose, Elizabeth Pennington has made a difference in my life at Grier.
- Andrea Hollnagel - Head of School
SUSIE
Teaching AP English isn’t always an easy task--especially at 9:00 am on a sunny day at the end of April to a group of high school seniors who are showing signs of senioritis. This student made it easier. She has seen us through on our journey of what is literature on days when it’s raining and some of us (me) are yawning and nursing our coffee. She has truly made a difference to me this year and has reminded me, without her even knowing it, of why I teach English. Her positive qualities seem to me to be, in the words of the Dali Lama, “limitless like the ocean.” Always the one to volunteer to read aloud or to analyze a piece of work, she not only takes the initiative to excel, she also inspires her classmates to do so, as well. On a daily basis, I can see how she inspires her peers and I can tell that, like me, they admire her creativity and individuality. She is very confident and yet, she is never afraid to ask questions or to go beyond the literal meaning of a piece of literature. She truly thinks outside of the box and this ability to look beyond the literal, making her own connections to the text, is beyond her years.
Suzie Deutscher truly has a mind for English. She’s asked me what books she should read in her spare time (which she seems to have so little of), and I’ve recommended a few titles to her. She borrowed Catcher in the Rye a few months ago and before she had time to start, I realized that I needed it for class. This book is one that pushed me towards majoring in English. While I know she is majoring in business, it just might convince her to add an English minor. Or, Suzie, always remember, you can change your major.
Kara Lawler - English Department Chair
“You Make A Difference”
There once was a young girl in health,
In Knowledge, integrity, and compassion she has wealth
Many talents she does possess,
In riding, music, and her style of dress.
From a foreign land she came and touched our hearts,
And now she is getting ready to depart.
In college, many more friends she will win,
But never forget me, Min Ah, Ja Young, and Hye Lim Shin!
Who has made a difference for me?
Well, of course, that’s Miss Jeong Hee Lee.
Connie McElgin - Science Department Chair
To: Isra Arif
From: Mrs. Silverman
I met this person two years ago in my Study Hall. In that Study Hall we had Spanish, Mexican, Korean, American and Pakistani students. This is not unusual for Grier, but what was unusual is that, when there were a few minutes left before the bell rang, we all would sit, talk, and experience a wonderful cultural
exchange!
Last year, I had her in class. We continued our cultural discussions, she and I. Her intelligence as a student amazed me! Her sensitivity to her family and friends touched me. Her adherence to her cultural beliefs inspired me. I was in awe with this beautiful, bright young woman who was so devoted to her heritage, her cultural demands and her vision for her future in the 21st century.
She has inspired me to be curious about everyone I meet. She has taught me there is always a hidden treasure in a person when you take the time to ask questions about that person and truly LISTEN. We all seem to try to talk at people, not with them.
Now, I am enamoured of her culture, her customs and most of all, HER!
Toom nay mary zingawgee mey difference banaya hay!!
You Make a Difference, Isra!
Mrs. Silverman
Click the photos below to find out what some of our students are saying about the Grier School.
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