Dear Upper School Families,

Thank you for supporting our Blazers during Homecoming Week! The girls had a wonderful time donning clothes to reflect the Star Spangled Blazer theme and our athletic teams had much success during Homecoming Sports Night, giving us much cause for celebration. If you are looking to check out some upcoming events, I encourage you to come out and support the class of 2026 at the various senior nights scheduled for the next two weeks. See the athletics calendar for schedule information. 

This past week, I had the chance to address the ninth-grade students. As the girls walked into DeChantal Auditorium, I said a quick prayer that I would find words that would resonate with them. Working with high school girls for nearly two decades, I have come to understand how what I say matters and can be the difference between them having a good or bad day. Vis girls are smart and they know when the person in front of them is being genuine. Today, my topic was academic buoyancy, a student’s ability to successfully navigate the academic setbacks and challenges that are typical of the ordinary course of school life, whether it be poor grades, competing deadlines, exam pressure, or challenging coursework. Just like a muscle that gets stronger with specific exercises, academic buoyancy improves with targeted strategies. The students were quick to engage in conversation, and my hope is that the lessons that they learned will prove helpful not only this school year but beyond their time at Visitation.

This week marks Visitation Upper School’s first progress report, and I encourage you to check in with your daughters about how they are doing and feeling in their classes. Schoology pages and grades will be up to date, on Monday, September 29 at 8 a.m. If you are not sure how to access Schoology as a parent or guardian, please reach out to Emily Beckmann. I would also ask that you mark your calendars as we will host Upper School Conferences on November 5 (via Zoom) and November 6 (in-person) from 3:30 to 7 p.m. More information will be made available as the dates approach.

Please let me know if and when I can be of support to you and your daughters. In the meantime, I wish you a blessed fall season.

Sincerely,

Anna Bachman Barter, PhD
Director of Upper School