"We prepare students to engage in the world that is and to help bring about a world that ought to be."
Mary Lou Sunderwirth
Minute of Appreciation
Mary Lou Sunderwirth
Lower School Head Emerita
Friends Seminary is deeply appreciative of the many contributions Mary Lou Sunderwirth made over her 16 years as Head of the Lower School. Her tireless leadership, indomitable initiative, and absorbing interest in the good of the student have been a gift of incalculable value. During her time here, Mary Lou committed herself to carefully studying and revising the Lower School curriculum. She favored a more "hands-on" approach to educating students and invited outside speakers and consultants to Friends to keep our faculty, and herself, informed of the latest teaching methods. Mary Lou is proud to say that she helped write a Lower School curriculum revolving around the vital philosophies of a Friends Seminary education. She also established the traditions of Grandparent's Day and the Pen Pal Project, a correspondence between the 50th Reunion Class and fourth graders at Friends. Both of these activities still occur today. One of Mary Lou's traits most appreciated by her colleagues is her overwhelming energy, indisputably contagious to those around her. Mary Lou never walked down the halls of Friends. She bounced. She hummed. She laughed; and when she laughed, if you were within earshot, you were laughing too. Mary Lou's spark transferred to those she worked alongside. Her bright energy made tough situations tolerable. With a confident smile, she convinced her faculty that problems would find solutions. Her joyful demeanor uplifted the spirits and expectations of those around her. An irreverent leader and incredible team player, Mary Lou said it was a joy working with a gifted and dedicated faculty and administration; such people included Joyce McCray, Ted Rockwell, Pam Wood, Helen Trapasso, and Viola Canovas. Her generosity of time, attention, encouragement, and spirit has been invaluable to the Lower School and the Friends community at-large. We express heartfelt gratitude for the breadth and depth of service Mary Lou has given to Friends Seminary and are proud to honor her as Lower School Head Emerita.
Mary Lou Sunderwirth
Lower School Head Emerita
Friends Seminary is deeply appreciative of the many contributions Mary Lou Sunderwirth made over her 16 years as Head of the Lower School. Her tireless leadership, indomitable initiative, and absorbing interest in the good of the student have been a gift of incalculable value. During her time here, Mary Lou committed herself to carefully studying and revising the Lower School curriculum. She favored a more "hands-on" approach to educating students and invited outside speakers and consultants to Friends to keep our faculty, and herself, informed of the latest teaching methods. Mary Lou is proud to say that she helped write a Lower School curriculum revolving around the vital philosophies of a Friends Seminary education. She also established the traditions of Grandparent's Day and the Pen Pal Project, a correspondence between the 50th Reunion Class and fourth graders at Friends. Both of these activities still occur today. One of Mary Lou's traits most appreciated by her colleagues is her overwhelming energy, indisputably contagious to those around her. Mary Lou never walked down the halls of Friends. She bounced. She hummed. She laughed; and when she laughed, if you were within earshot, you were laughing too. Mary Lou's spark transferred to those she worked alongside. Her bright energy made tough situations tolerable. With a confident smile, she convinced her faculty that problems would find solutions. Her joyful demeanor uplifted the spirits and expectations of those around her. An irreverent leader and incredible team player, Mary Lou said it was a joy working with a gifted and dedicated faculty and administration; such people included Joyce McCray, Ted Rockwell, Pam Wood, Helen Trapasso, and Viola Canovas. Her generosity of time, attention, encouragement, and spirit has been invaluable to the Lower School and the Friends community at-large. We express heartfelt gratitude for the breadth and depth of service Mary Lou has given to Friends Seminary and are proud to honor her as Lower School Head Emerita.
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.
