"We prepare students to engage in the world that is and to help bring about a world that ought to be."
Principal Bo Lauder Honored as Outstanding Principal
Robert “Bo” Lauder, Head of School, has been named “Outstanding Principal” by the Blackboard Awards, sponsored by the Manhattan Media group.
Bo was honored for his achievement at a ceremony at the New York Institute of Technology on December 3, where he accepted the award on behalf of the Friends Seminary community. “I didn't go into education to be recognized, but receiving this award was affirming, especially since this is my 30th year in the field of education,” he said. “What the Blackboard Awards are doing — honoring educators — is a model for what our nation should do — celebrate educators and the work we do.”
Manhattan Media, which publishes New York Family, established the awards 15 years ago to “pay tribute to the schools, teachers and students who are succeeding, every day and in every way… and salute the professionals who work so hard to create and sustain successful learning communities.”
An advisory board, including representatives from independent, public and religious schools, selects the winners each year, after polling parents, students, educators, and educational consultants.
“Our focus throughout has been on identifying those New York City institutions—public, independent and religious—where a vibrant, caring and challenging learning community has been created,” the awards’ website states. “By spotlighting these excellent schools, we hope to inspire greater dialogue and positive developments across New York City's educational community.”
This is Friends’ third Blackboard Award. The Middle School received the “Diversity Efforts Award” in 2010 and the Lower School received the “Outstanding Elementary School” honor in 2006.
Friends Seminary actively promotes diversity, equity, inclusion, and anti-racism in all its programs and operations, including admissions, financial aid, hiring, and all facets of the educational experience. To form a community which strives to reflect the world’s diversity, we do not discriminate on the basis of race or color, religion, nationality, ethnicity, economic background, physical ability, sex, gender identity or expression, or sexual orientation. Friends Seminary is an equal opportunity employer.
Friends Seminary — the oldest continuously operated, coeducational school in NYC — serves college-bound day students in Kindergarten-Grade 12.
