Discernment by Design

On February 17 faculty and staff gathered for Professional Development Day with a clear purpose: strengthening curriculum work by grounding it in Quaker pedagogy, Diversity, Equity & Belonging (DEB), and the Portrait of a Learner. The morning began by centering shared values and naming the strong practices already present across divisions. Interim Head of School Rich Nourie and Director of Diversity, Equity & Belonging Kirsti Peters presented Quaker Pedagogy and DEB Goals and Practices, with a core goal of growing the community’s collective capability to seek deeper understanding through the discernment tradition. The session framed curriculum not simply as content coverage, but as an expression of what a learning community believes—about students, about belonging, and about the responsibilities of teaching.

From that foundation, K–12 Dean of Studies Hassan Wilson presented the Portrait of a Learner, underscoring that its elements were informed through last year’s Professional Development Day and grounded in faith and practice. Positioned as both a statement of purpose and a practical guide, the Portrait served as a shared reference point for curriculum decision-making—clarifying what students should experience, demonstrate, and carry forward as learners and community members, and how those aims connected to Quakerism and DEB commitments in everyday classroom life.

Later in the morning, educator and consultant Allison Zmuda joined the community to introduce curriculum documentation and storyboarding as tools for designing coherent learning journeys. The session invited faculty to think of curriculum not only as a sequence of lessons, but as an intentional narrative—one that made learning visible, aligned outcomes with experience, and helped students connect knowledge, skills, and meaning over time. This work was supported by the Core Curriculum Team—Chris Cincotta (Kindergarten), Olivia Elliott (Grade 3), Elena Hartoonian (Upper School Mathematics), Leana Phipps (Middle School English), and Stefan Stawnychy (Upper School History and History Department Chair)—who helped anchor the approach in the lived realities of teaching across divisions and disciplines.

The afternoon shifted into departmental breakouts, creating dedicated collaborative time to begin applying the day’s shared language and structures to course work and departmental goals. With a common framework established—rooted in Quaker practice, strengthened through DEB commitments, and articulated through the Portrait of a Learner—departments used the time to align, draft, and begin shaping curriculum documentation that reflected both academic rigor and a mission-driven vision for student growth.