School News

The Classroom Expanded: Why We Are Voyaging to Puerto Rico

2/5/2026

Kim Ridley, Head of School

As we approach Monday, February 9th, there is a palpable energy in the hallways. Just yesterday, I was speed-walking to a meeting when a Unit student intercepted me. "Kim," they asked with genuine enthusiasm, "Are you excited about the trip?" I paused. For a microsecond, my brain didn't go to tropical breezes. It went to my inbox, the logistical challenge of leaving the office for a week, and the weight of ensuring dozens of children are safe across the ocean. But I shoved my internal "To-Do" list into a mental drawer, smiled, and said, "Of course I am." And the funny thing is, as soon as I said it, I realized it was true. I am excited for our school and students to have this opportunity!

While the packing lists are being checked and the sunscreen is being bought, I want to take a moment to pause and frame exactly why we are about to board planes for Puerto Rico, and why this trip represents a critical piece of Fayerweather's academic vision. From February 9th through the 13th, our students will not merely be "visiting" a Caribbean island; they will be engaging in a rigorous, immersive case study of history, ecology, and culture.

This trip is a cornerstone of our strategic initiative to expand Place-Based Learning. We believe that the most profound education happens when the walls of the classroom dissolve. While textbooks can describe the environmental challenges of a rainforest or the complex colonial history of a United States Territory, standing on that soil changes the nature of the inquiry. It transforms abstract concepts into a tangible reality.

Our students have spent months preparing for this journey into a different place and culture. They are not landing as tourists, but as student-researchers who have studied the island's history, examined its environmental opportunities, and practiced the language. Next week, the island becomes our learning lab, and students will delve into a deep exploration of perspective-taking, which I know will expand their knowledge of themselves and the people and experiences of Puerto Rico.

We know that human beings are far more likely to retain information that carries personal significance. By removing students from their routine and immersing them in a new, sensory-rich environment, we are creating "emotional anchors" for their academic knowledge. When a student discusses climate resilience while standing in a mangrove forest or navigates a language barrier to buy fruit at a local market, the learning is encoded differently in the brain. It sticks. It becomes part of their life story, not just a fact to be recalled for a quiz.

For many of our students, this voyage to Puerto Rico marks the first time they have ventured this far from home, for this length of time, without their parents and caregivers. I know that this represents a significant developmental milestone for all of us! I want our community to know that we feel the weight of this responsibility and that we honor the trust you have placed in us. We are grateful to partner with Global Works, whose expertise in safety, logistics, and educational travel will enable our teachers to focus entirely on facilitating the student experience.

My hope for next week is simple but ambitious. I hope that our students return with more than souvenirs. I want them to return safely to our Fayerweather community with a nuanced understanding of Puerto Rico that challenges their previous assumptions. I hope they return with the confidence of travelers who have navigated the unfamiliar, along with an ignited curiosity and a realization that learning is not something that happens only at a desk, but something you do with your whole self, out in the wide world.

Let the journey begin.

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