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A Click Away: Mission Statement

Watch the video to learn about how a collection of students, teachers, and alumni got together on a cold Saturday morning to try to memorize the school’s mission and to recite it in unison. The documentary reveals the playful nature of George School.

About the Performers

Learn more about the performers and the production team. Find out what they like about the mission statement and why it rings true to them.

Faculty

Jackie Coren
Arts Department
“On first hearing, I was immediately drawn to the word ‘touchstone’ at the beginning of the statement.”

Nancy Culleton
College Counseling
“I like to think the words ‘touchstone’ and ‘treasure’ work together to suggest that GS can transform people in an almost magical way.”

Terry Culleton
English Department
“Quakers are always hopeful. Seeing that of God in others is the ultimate optimism. Seeing God in anything is exactly what it means to be cheerful. Quakers say ‘Yes’ to this life.”

Kevin Davis ’77
Arts Department
“I’m particularly pleased that George School has made such a clear commitment to stewardship.”

Ralph Lelii
English Department
“I believe that the unique combination of a rigorous academic program and a gentle, informal, and egalitarian environment makes us unique among independent schools.”

Paul Machemer ’65
Math Department
“I like ‘academic excellence at its core’ and the last two sentences, ‘We want our students to treasure learning for its own sake and to use it to benefit a diverse world. Above all, we want them to ‘let their lives speak.’”

Nancy Starmer
Former Head of School
“I love ‘cheerfully committed.’ These words capture the tone of George School—we take our work seriously but we don’t take ourselves seriously.”

Students

Tim Darby ’10
New Market, MD
“It is not the kind of place where students want to just take the minimum amount of classes to graduate. They take classes that interest them to expand their knowledge.”

Kevin Hang ’09
Shanghai, China
“George School has such a great community that all the students and faculty are connected together like a big family. At George School, we listen to everyone’s voice.”

Khadydra Hazzard ’12
Philadelphia, PA
“I love how open-minded George School is. It is very diverse in ways more than just race. People are different in what they believe and what country they are from.”

Haydee Lara ’12
Bronx, NY
“ ‘Above all, we want them to ‘let their lives speak.’ This sentence shows that our teachers want us to become our own person, and while we’re here they want us to figure out our life paths.”

Jake McNichol ’12
Ewing, NJ
“This school doesn’t just want kids to get good grades. It actually wants them to stretch and to learn more, maybe more than they even thought they could. This school encourages kids to use their knowledge to make the world a better place…”

Miranda Tarlini ’09
Bensalem, PA
“I think my class especially has made good use of…and even facilitated…new ways of being involved. This is a life skill that should be taken and used everywhere.”

Tingting Yu ’10
Nanjing, China
“This year we have students from thirty-four different countries. It’s interesting to meet people with different cultural backgrounds here.”

About the Production Team

Lisa Collier
Head of School Office
“This was a wonderful experience. I met several people I didn’t know before, adults and students. We all came together once, the day of the videotaping, and everyone meshed together as if we had known each other for years.”

Alec Gross ’00
Media Producer
“I was pleased to see the final product and I think it achieves its goal of communicating the school’s message.”

Odie LeFever
Communications Department
“Over the years I have observed that George School is a delightfully quirky place where both students and teachers are unpretentious, kind, playful, and inclined to see the good in others.”

Cori Seraydarian ’91
Lunch Productions
“As a graduate it was great to be back in the fold and to reconnect with George School through this, thank you.”

Scott Seraydarian ’90
Arts Department
“I look back and feel fortunate to have been inspired to love learning at George School. Learning is a treasure, but I also believe it is a responsibility. I believe that the more you learn the more you should share it to benefit the world.”

Nick Thomas Jr.
End of the Roll Films, Inc.
“It was a great day and I believe the video will represent the school well.”

Maureen West
Arts Department
“The wonderfully unique blending of students, alumni, faculty, and staff and the way in which they view and live the values of George School; their cooperation and mutual passion for learning in a cohesive community.”

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