REFLECTING ON OUR FUTURE HEAD OF SCHOOL THE REV. JOHN H. FINLEY IV, FOUNDER Dear Friends, A year ago, the Barr Foundation chose me out-of-the-blue to be one of their Fellows. In addition to a very generous gift to the school, the Foundation requires each Fellow to take a three-month sabbatical. Mine is set for July 1st through September 30th so I am writing this letter months before the Annual Report goes to press. When I return in October, I expect to have grown and changed, and the school will have grown and changed too. Pull a plant out of the garden, and all the plants around it have a chance to spread out. What will not change, however, will be our commitment to “never give up on a child.” It’s an audacious challenge, and I am proud to be part of a community that does not divide the world between winners and losers, us against them. I believe everyone is sacred — every student, every parent, every teacher, and every single one of you reading this report. Together, we have accomplished so much, and together there is so much left to enjoy. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart for all you contribute to make Epiphany all that it is. Your Grateful Fan, The Rev. John H. Finley IV 2 PRINCIPAL DR. MICHELLE SANCHEZ, FOUNDING FACULTY MEMBER Last summer when the construction of our beautiful new building was complete, I remember being very excited about the idea of opening the doors of Epiphany’s Early Learning Center (ELC) that coming September. After all, the building was ready, the needs in our community were urgent. Why wait? Anyone who knows me will tell you I don’t do well waiting. I have come to appreciate, however, that our choice to pause — to take a year before officially opening our doors — has been a true blessing. We are undoubtedly stronger as a result. This additional year has allowed us the time and bandwidth to carefully and more thoughtfully establish the foundation of our unique and groundbreaking program. We have been able to recruit and hire phenomenal teachers, including my extraordinary ELC Co-Director, Natacha Shillingford. We have worked to foster meaningful reciprocal relationships with our new families, build programming that targets the specific needs of our community and capitalizes on its talents and strengths. We have also had the time to research the holistic and child-centered Reggio Emilia approach. We are excited to be a Reggio-inspired center that will help our youngest learners to understand themselves as infinitely capable, intelligent, and creative humans with a strong sense of self and develop the critical thinking, problem solving skills, and curiosity that will serve them well for a lifetime. This past year has also allowed us to learn more about the many great organizations in Boston and to build smart partnerships and connections in ways that collectively help the city’s most vulnerable populations. Codman Square Health Center, Room to Grow, Parenting Journey, Baraka Wellness, Jewish Vocational Services, and Jeremiah are our key program partners. Like Epiphany, they are committed to creating systems that work for our families, not against them the way so many current policies do. Thanks in large part to these robust and varied partnerships, my hopes for the families we serve are boundless: stability in housing, food security, alleviated stress, health and wellness, academic and career successes, and a strong sense of community and belonging. We are well-equipped to help our families grow and learn. Five years from now, our first class of ELC students will matriculate into kindergarten. Our hope is that these aspiring kindergartners will arrive in their K-1 or K-2 classrooms ready for all school and life has to offer them. They will find themselves at a fair starting line — not yards behind so many of their more affluent peers. They will be confident and secure in their own ability to take on new and challenging endeavors. They will have parents who are thriving in their own self-development and who are fierce and effective advocates for what they and their children need on an ongoing, multigenerational journey of upward mobility. We are thrilled we opened our doors on September 4th and we are ready for this important new Epiphany School endeavor! Dr. Michelle Sanchez, EdD Reflecting on Our Future 3 STARTING YOUNGER, OUR FUTURE IS BRIGHT: EPIPHANY’S EARLY LEARNING CENTER OPENS MEET OUR CO-DIRECTOR Natacha Shillingford comes to Epiphany with a passion for helping the youngest of learners discover who they are and how they learn best. She is amazed by the way children develop and firmly believes that children are fully capable and in charge of their own learning. Ms. Shillingford’s life purpose has always been to teach. Natacha grew up on a farm in Barbados where life was simple and describes her early childhood as “idyllic.” It was the sort of place where you could walk home surrounded by beauty and pick fresh, organic bananas on the way home. Imagine the culture shock she experienced when at ten years old she and her family moved to a not so idyllic neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York. From her earliest days, she knew she wanted to teach and while experiencing NYC as a youngster, she grew passionate about serving those from communities such as her own. We were thrilled when Natacha accepted Ms. Sanchez’s offer to become our ELC Co-Director. Natacha comes to Epiphany from the Harvard Yard Child Care Center where she served as the Infant Toddler Program Manager. She holds a Master’s degree in teaching from Lesley University, where she studied at the Reggio Emilia Institute. She also has a Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Education & Social and Cultural Studies from the same institution, and is a Department of Early Education and Care (EEC) Certified Center Director, and a Certified Lead Preschool, Toddler and Infant Teacher. The Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education was created after World War II in the small Italian city of Reggio Emilia. It focuses on fostering relationships between children, teachers, parents, and community. It builds on the idea that each child has the desire to connect with others, engage in learning, and enter into a relationship with his or her environment. The hands-and-minds-on exploration of materials and media is essential to the Reggio approach. This approach to early education is directly aligned with Natacha’s core values as an educator. She also knows that while she and the infant teachers will support the babies through their earliest developments, mom and dad are the true experts when it comes to their children. Natacha hopes to instill in our parents a deep sense of trust and partnership, and will help them understand the unique approach Epiphany has to providing the whole family with wraparound love and support. Natacha is excited about nurturing, and in some cases stabilizing, the whole family through Epiphany’s partnerships with organizations such as Room to Grow and the Jeremiah Project. She is optimistic that our partnership model will work to alleviate the many life stressors our families face. Ultimately, as we welcome our first class of babies and their families, Natacha looks forward to working with staff to help our infants develop into confident children ready and eager to learn and explore the world around them, and to ensure our families thrive. Babies are born believing they can do anything and our ELC team is ready to provide them with the space and tools that will help them soar. 4 We envision the Epiphany Early Learning Center will stand as a model for what can happen when the youngest learners are equipped with a strong educational foundation, and their families are provided with targeted, tangible support. Our long-term goals are that our ELC children are school-ready by the time they move on to kindergarten, performing at the highest levels of academic achievement, and their mothers and fathers are succeeding at home and in life, moving out of poverty and into self-sufficiency. MEET ONE OF OUR MOMS Che’Rey Rise and her family are thrilled to be part of Epiphany’s inaugural class at the Early Learning Center. Che’Rey and her partner, Tahj Harvey, have three children: Vegas (6), Vania (2) and Veyce (12 weeks), and the whole family is now part of the Epiphany community. Che’Rey heard of Epiphany’s Early Learning Center during one of her prenatal visits at the Codman Square Health Center. After her initial visit with Emily Centeio ‘02, our Director of Student Support, Che’Rey instantly felt a connection to Emily and to Epiphany, and her final step in the application process was to visit the ELC. It didn’t take long for Che’Rey to be amazed by our new building. It reminded her of a camp she attended when she was a high school student at Codman Academy. “I love the beautiful classrooms, the Reggio Emilia curriculum, the constant connection to the outdoors, and having access to all the resources provided by the program’s partners. This is very exciting for me and my family,” said Che’Rey. Of all the aspects of our program, what stood out the most to her was the support we offer to the whole family. “The program is goal oriented and doesn’t just focus on the children, and I love that the most,” she reflected. Che’Rey is committed to her own development and will start an internship at a program that helps with finances, employment, and education in the fall as she works to complete her education and pursue a career in social work.