Shop Talk | Kathryn Fitzpatrick, Ed.D.

Shoptalk Kathrynfitzpatrick

What does your job for St. Andrew’s entail?

As Head of School I’m responsible for ensuring the continued academic, financial, operational and spiritual health of the St. Andrew’s community. Every day I’m moved and inspired by what I see, and I marvel at the incredible faculty and staff devotion to utilizing their unique abilities to teach and inspire our children. I believe that the success of our school is built on a foundation of mutual respect and inclusiveness.

How has the pandemic impacted the school’s education process?

FWe opened the 2020-2021 school year on August 12 for in-person learning as planned and are taking extraordinary measures to keep everyone safe. Since St. Andrew’s has one class per grade, each grade is socially distanced from all of the others. If one person in a grade – teacher or student – tests COVID-positive, then the entire grade will quarantine and learn from home. So far, we haven’t had to quarantine any classes or move to distance-learning.

What’s new?

St. Andrew’s has recently renovated the play yard at the corner of Short and Zimpel streets thanks to the generosity of our donors, friends and the hard work of our Director of Development Dominique Chauvin. Not only is this play yard a crucial element of our preschool students’ experience, it also serves as the “front porch” of St. Andrew’s.

What are some of the core beliefs of St. Andrew’s?

St. Andrew’s Episcopal School is the oldest Episcopal school in New Orleans, with 63 years of experience in educating the mind, body and spirit of young children. We enroll boys and girls from 12 months through eighth grade, offering a nurturing yet challenging education that focuses on cherishing childhood, developing character and cultivating leaders. St. Andrew’s is unique not only for its intimate size (we’re especially proud of our student-to-teacher ratio of 5-to-1), but also for creating an educational environment in which every child is known and loved by experienced faculty and staff. At St. Andrew’s we strive to build on each child’s individual strengths, interests and abilities while fostering teamwork within the greater school community.

 

St. Andrew’s Episcopal School
8012 Oak St.,
866-6553,
StAndrewsEpiscopalSchool.org

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