Lower School students and faculty showing their Philly Spirit! Go Eagles!!

Lower School News

The Lower School is "Feeding Friends in February"!
We're asking families to help support the Media Food Bank by bringing in non-perishable items from our Top 10 food list. Most needed: breakfast cereals, pancake mix, canned fruit, crackers, rice, peanut butter, jelly, condiments (ketchup, mustard, BBQ sauce, mayonnaise, salad dressings, olive/vegetable oil, syrup, salt & pepper), coffee & tea, powdered or soy milk. Donations can be brought in from Monday, Feb. 5-Thursday, Feb. 15. The Service Committee chose the Media Food Bank because it was so important to former librarian Jean Taranta, who recently passed away. Your donations will make a difference to many local families. Questions? Contact Sue Borrero or Janet Bowker.

LS Parent and Special Friend Mornings & Principal Coffees

Parent & Special Friend Mornings will begin at 9 am in the classroom, followed by participation in one of the special classes (art, music, science, Spanish, and physical education), Meeting for Worship, and activities with your child's teacher. Refreshments will be served in the cafeteria throughout the morning.

• Grades 2-5 - Tuesday, Feb. 6, 9-11 am, preceded by coffee with the Principal starting at 8:15 am; Kelly Pierre will give an update on the exciting things happening at Lower School. 
• Pre-K, K, and grade 1 - Tuesday, Feb. 13, 9-11 am, preceded by coffee with the Principal starting at 8:15 am; Kelly Pierre will give an update on the exciting things happening at Lower School.
• Nursery parents are welcome to join us for coffee with Kelly Pierre at 8:15 am on Feb. 13

Marley Dias Gets It Done (And So Can You) - Tomorrow, Feb. 3, 2:30 pm, Shallcross Hall, Doors Open at 1:45 pm 
Come hear 13-year-old Dias discuss her book Marley Dias Gets It Done – And So Can You, where she shows kids how to make positive changes in their communities. Recommended for grades 3-8. Click here for more information and to buy your ticket. In an effort to help Marley with her mission to bring books featuring black female protagonists to school libraries, we will be accepting donations of new children's books that will go to Anderson Elementary School in West Philadelphia.

No Saturday PM Swimming Tomorrow - Saturday, Feb. 3.
Please note, there will be NO Saturday Afternoon Swimming on Feb. 3 due to Marley Dias author event.

An Evening with Chill Moody and Hardwork Movement - Feb. 8, 7:30 pm - Family Friendly and suitable for all ages!
Join us on Thursday, Feb. 8 at 7:30 pm in Shallcross Hall for a conversation with hip-hop artists and poets Chill Moody and Dwight Dunston '06, FCS Coordinator of Equity & Justice Education, and Hardwork Movement, followed by a performance by Hardwork Movement and Q&A session with the musicians. Click here to register. Click here to read about Chill Moody, named "Best Rapper" by Philadelphia Magazine; click here to read about Hardwork Movement, a 9-piece hip-hop collaborative featuring four outstanding alumni/ae musicians.

Grade 1 & 2 Movie Night Tonight at 6 pm!

Drop off pillows and stuffed animals in the Meeting Room then come up to the cafeteria for dinner. Movie time is at 6:30 pm. See you tonight!

Grade 3 Movie Night next Friday, Feb. 9, 6 pm, movie at 6:30 pm

All grade 3 students, parents, and siblings are invited to Movie Night & Pizza Dinner! Children can come dressed in PJs and drop off their sleeping bags, blankies, favorite stuffed animals, etc. in the Meeting Room, come up to the cafeteria for pizza dinner, then watch Despicable Me 3. Siblings are welcome. Parent dinner is a potluck. Click here to sign up to volunteer or bring a dish/dessert. RSVP to Traci Kiss or Lula Tadesse.

LS Book Fair is Coming Feb. 26-28; Family Night Tuesday, Feb. 27

During the three days of Book Fair, the Meeting Room is transformed into a colorful, fun pop-up bookstore. Each child will have the opportunity to visit the Book Fair with their class for 30 minutes to select books to buy. Parents are strongly encouraged to visit with their children to help guide them through the Fair. Click here for the visiting schedule. If parents are unable to visit with the class, children are able to set aside the books they've selected, and a list of these books will be sent home to parents. Parents then select which books they will purchase and send cash or a check with their child to school the next day.  Parents can also purchase the books during Family Night!

The Book Fair relies on Parent Volunteers to setup the bookstore, be cashiers, and finally breakdown the fair on Wednesday.  Please consider being a volunteer it is fun to see our children and fun to be together!  Click here to volunteer. Questions? Contact LS Book Fair Co-Chairs Julie Ragatz-Norton or Emma Staton.

LETTUCE FEED YOU 

Monday, 2/5: Vegetable chili with homemade corn muffins & tossed salad

Tuesday, 2/6: Ground turkey tacos w/ trimmings galore & sliced veggies

Wednesday, 2/7: Broccoli & cauliflower alfredo w/garlic bread, salad
Thursday, 2/8: Sloppy Joes w/ organic roasted sweet potatoes, salad 

Friday, 2/9: Pizza Day, tossed salad, fresh fruit

Congratulations to Dev, Alec, Emilio, and Theo, who qualified for the Middle School National History Bee Regional Finals, which take place at FCS on April 19!

Middle School News

Message from Alexa Quinn

Many thanks to the MS Book Fair Committee and to Children's Book World for organizing the Book Fair, which begins on Monday, Feb. 5 and goes through Wednesday, Feb. 7. As a community filled with avid readers, this event is always one that delights and inspires our students and teachers, introducing us to new authors and familiar favorites. Students will hear previews of featured books, in addition to visiting the fair with their Language Arts classes.

Speaking of authors, I hope to see many of you and your children at the event with Marley Dias tomorrow at 2:30 pm in Shallcross Hall. Marley's inspiring story of starting the #1000BlackGirlBooks campaign and empowering message for young people is certainly appropriate for any and all Middle School students.

Next week and the following week, we will be having revisit days for students who have been admitted to FCS. We look forward to hosting these prospective students, as well as to having our current 5th graders join us for the day in Middle School and to our 8th graders "moving up" to 9th grade for their visits.

Finally, congratulations to our four students who have qualified for the regional finals of the National History Bee, which will be held at FCS in April.

And let's hope that we can congratulate another Philadelphia team very soon! Go Eagles! (If there are any changes to next week's schedule related to celebrations, we will send a communication.)

Don't Miss Marley Dias Tomorrow at 2:30 pm! 

With Children's Book World, we are thrilled to host author Marley Dias tomorrow, Saturday, Feb. 3! In 2015, when she was just 11 years old, Marley launched a campaign called #1000BlackGirlBooks. A voracious reader, her goal was to collect and donate 1,000 books that feature black girls as the main character. Come hear from Dias about her book Marley Dias Gets It Done – And So Can You, where she shows kids how to make positive changes in their communities. The event is recommended for grades 3-8. We will be accepting donations of new children's books that will go to Anderson Elementary School in West Philadelphia. Click here to reserve your space.

Middle School Book Fair! Feb. 5-7

From Monday, Feb. 5 through Wednesday, Feb. 7, MS Room 10 becomes a pop-up bookstore! This year, we will be going crazy for Hamilton! We still need parents to help set up, cashier, and break down the Book Fair. Click here to sign up to volunteer. Again this year, students can charge their Book Fair purchases to their student account. See your inbox for the form. Please contact Christine Giordano if you have any questions.

FCS MS Swimming Breaks Records!

Congrats to the Middle School Swimming Team, who broke two more school records this week in their meet against Waldron Mercy: 200 Medley Relay and 100 Freestyle Relay! Great job 8th graders Holden Kopcsik, Ethan Cohen, Hugh Shields, and Spencer Thorne!

Congrats to our Middle School History Bee Qualifiers! 

Congratulations to Alec Plante, Dev Gupta, Emilio Ovalle, and Theo Dankoff, who qualified for the Regional Finals of the National History Bee, which takes place at FCS on April 19! 

Congrats to our FCS Mock Trial on winning their first round trials at the Montgomery County Courthouse in Norristown this week! Next up - district playoffs in a few weeks!

Upper School News

Message from the Upper School Office

Students are settling into their new classes well, winter sports teams are heading into playoffs, and it is a good time to highlight several co-curricular programs. The Quaker Youth Leadership Conference takes place this weekend at Carolina Friends School, exploring the theme of Growing Communities through Service and Storytelling. Our delegation of five students (Taylor Brizill '18, Satori Chin '18, Noah Condiff '19, Nina Saligman '19, and Mingyu Zhou '19) and two chaperones (Betsy Katzmann and Anna Schall) will participate in service projects, worship experiences, and student-led workshops, including one co-led by Mingyu entitled "The Asian-American Experience." This annual conference brings together students from Friends schools across the country, and our delegation looks forward to bringing back ideas about how to lift up Quaker values in our community. The flourishing Mock Trial program has begun regional competition (two of our four teams competed on Tuesday, notching two victories). Co-captains Carmella Saia '18 and Anjali Gupta '18 work with advisor Brad Morris and volunteer attorney coaches Steve Chawaga and Anthony Cianfrani (parent of team member Catherine '20) to prepare students to argue both the plaintiff and defense sides of the annual case. This year's case deals with whistleblowing, and Carmella noted that the team is now very well informed on employment law. We wish them well in their quest to move on in this national competition.

In academic news, report cards will be released a week from today (Feb. 9).  Students may add new courses until that date as well. Classes may be dropped without appearing on transcripts during the first twenty days of the semester (until Feb. 27); after that date, a notation will appear on the transcript that the student has withdrawn from the class. Parental permission is required for all schedule changes.

We hope many of you will join us next Thursday evening, Feb. 8, at 7:30 pm for a conversation about the role of hip hop in American life with Chill Moody, followed by a performance by hip hop collective Hardwork Movement. Click here to register. Philadelphians know them as the group that opened for Bernie Sanders on the campaign trail and performed at XPNFest; we're proud to claim the group, which features four FCS alums, as our own. Also, we wanted to let you know that the date of a winter Upper School highlight, the popular indie-vibe "Coffee House" of student performances, has been postponed to Feb. 10. Now nothing should interfere with our wholehearted focus on the Eagles this weekend. Go Birds!

Phoenix Update Week 2
The second edition of the Phoenix Update is out. Click here to check it out.

A Cappella Sing-Off - Sunday, Feb. 4 at 1 pm, Haverford School

The members of the FCS Foxtones, Grace Notes, and Spicetones will be participating in the 6th Annual A Cappella Sing Off, sponsored by Ardmore Rotary, on Sunday, Feb. 4 at 1 pm at The Haverford School (Centennial Hall). Tickets are available at the door and are $15 for adults and $10 for students. Each school will receive $500 for the charity of its choice. Come and support the FCS US Vocal groups as they sing to raise money for AIDS Fund Philly. 

FCS is this year's partner school for the Philabundance "Spread the Love" campaign! 

From now until Friday, Feb. 23, Upper School homerooms will be collecting jars of peanut and other nut butters, plus non-nut protein packed spreads such as SunButter (made from sunflower seeds). Homerooms that collect the most will receive a special treat! If you wish to donate jars of nut/non-nut spreads not associated with a particular homeroom, please bring them to the donation drop in room FCC 101. The student Service Committee will also be raising money for Philabundance at a bake sale to be held at the Feb. 10 Coffee House. Students who bring a jar of a spread to Coffee House will receive a free snack from us there! Help us spread the love!

Upper School Coffee House - Feb. 10 at 7 pm

Student Council will host the annual Coffee House for Upper School students on Saturday, Feb. 10 at 7 pm. This showcase night will feature student performances of music, poetry, dance, and comedy, along with hot chocolate coffee and baked goods. ​This event was postponed from Feb. 3. 

Looking Ahead to College for Grade 10 - Feb. 13 at 7 pm 
Tenth grade parents are invited to the College Counseling evening program, Looking Ahead to College on Tuesday, Feb. 13 at 7 pm. Please join Ryan Coffey Keaton and Grant Calder in the Shallcross Hall Meeting Room for a presentation about college admission.

Laurie Fox Scholarship Bake Sale - Wednesday, Feb. 14

On Feb. 14, Valentine's Day, the Upper School is holding their 7th annual Laurie Fox Scholarship Bake Sale. Laurie Fox first worked at FCS in the business office and was the Upper School secretary in 2011 when she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer which proved to be fatal. Laurie loved Friends' Central and its students, who gravitated toward her warmth and generosity. She was especially aware of the hidden costs of full participation in the world of the Upper School: prom tickets, yearbooks, field trips, art supplies … and much more. At her death, she left her retirement funds to Friends' Central, where they form the nucleus of the scholarship her family established in her name.

The Upper School community has embraced the Laurie Fox Scholarship Bake Sale as a chance to honor her memory, support her vision, and express our commitment to equal access to all FCS programs as a way of living the Friends testimony of equality. Singing Valentines are also a long-standing Feb. tradition, ordered by students and teachers for delivery during the day to lucky recipients by members of our vocal groups; those proceeds will also go to the Laurie Fox Scholarship Fund. We encourage everyone in our community to bake something for the event (contributions can be sent in with your child in the morning) and to patronize the sale, which takes place in the Rexeteria and the OPA room.

Grade 11 Parent Gathering - Feb. 23

Please save the date for the Gr. 11 Parent Gathering, Friday, Feb. 23, 7 pm