The Importance of Traditions

I enjoyed being part of important Foxcroft traditions during the opening of the new school year. Fox/Hound Choosings and the Sunrise Service are examples of traditions that bring our school community together with a common sense of purpose. We join together to welcome “New Girls,” we cheer together, we sing together and we raise the flag together. Our events are led entirely by students. The symbols surrounding these traditional events represent intangible organizational values, and they are expressions of our mission: to educate young women who will lead and inspire with integrity and responsibility. Terence Deal and Kent Peterson write of the importance of strong symbols and traditions that bind a school together, helping to create a strong sense of school culture. For more information about the importance of symbols and traditions in a school culture, see their work, Shaping School Culture: Pitfalls, Paradoxes and Promises (2009).