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| Dear Friend, I receive many newsletters and Sahil Bloom’s always stands out. In a recent one, he honored his grandmother who passed away last year, reflecting on the simple dash between her birth and death dates. He wrote, “That dash holds everything… Every hope, dream, success, failure, heartbreak, struggle, fear, stress and joy.” Those words made me think about my own dash—and the dashes of those around me. Each day, I strive to make my dash count, though some days it may be more challenging. As 2024 comes to an end, how will you make your dash meaningful? At Pollyanna, we Build Stronger and Kinder Communities—a truly vital priority as we step into 2025. Please consider supporting our dash. Warmly, | |  | | |
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PTC December Meetup We need our teens! Join us on December 8 for our next Pollyanna Teen Council meetup with Dr. Tricia Rose, Metaracism author and Director of the Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in America at Brown University. Our PTC School Membership program provides 13-to 18-year-old students with an unforgettable journey of discovery and connection through meaningful dialogue on important topics. Each monthly meetup on Zoom features a new special guest. Click here to register for PTC and learn more about this program. | | | |
NAIS PoCC Sponsor Pollyanna is excited to once again be a sponsor and exhibitor at NAIS People of Color Conference. This year’s theme—Meeting the Moment: Anchoring and Enriching Our Education Futures—draws inspiration from our ancestors' resilience and youth's imagination, uniting these forces to eliminate injustice and foster thriving individuals and communities. We hope to see you in Denver, December 4-7. Be sure to stop by the Pollyanna table in the Hub and say hello. | | | |
New Workshop! Your Values Are Not Partisan: Honoring Your Mission Within a Divided Community The results of the election reveal a sharply divided country––with people managing that division in increasingly hostile ways. Join Jan Abernathy and Jason Craige Harris on January 14, 2025 to learn how to reinforce your community values and maintain civil discourse regardless of what students see in the wider world. Learn more and register here. | | | |
Joy-Raising Sponsors Pollyanna Workshops We are thrilled to welcome Joy-Raising as a 2024-25 Pollyanna Workshop series sponsor. Guided by founder and CEO, Tesha McCord Poe, Joy-Raising helps organizations address unique fundraising and DEI challenges, from spearheading landmark capital campaigns to unearthing and addressing subtle biases in hiring. | | | |
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PTC Highlights from Coming Out Again and Again At the November 17 Pollyanna Teen Council meetup, Coming Out Again and Again, Head of School Frank Patti shared how cultural thinking and amplifying student voices in decision-making can foster critical thinking. The discussion also highlighted the value of an "emerging curriculum," where educators adapt to students' interests and actions, and the importance of empathy and compassion in shaping policies that promote justice and effectively serve students and their communities | | | | | |
Thank You, Far Brook We were grateful for the opportunity to spend an incredible day at Far Brook in Short Hills, New Jersey. They hosted their 9th annual Pollyanna Conference on November 16 exploring Beyond the Binary: Honoring Individuality, Identity and Expression in our Communities. Author Jodie Patterson offered an insightful keynote that set up the day for important conversations and the student panel was as important and honest as ever. | | | |
Building Stronger, Kinder Family Engagement Thank you to everyone who joined us for Building Stronger, Kinder Family Engagement with Shernice Lazare on November 13. Together, we explored how to rebuild connections with families and foster authentic engagement that’s inclusive and equitable. It’s time to reimagine how schools and families can work together to create a culture of trust, mutual accountability, and joy. | | | |
NAIS Hosts Election Webinar Series Following the recent presidential election, Pollyanna contributed to the 2024-2025 NAIS Election Webinar Series with Creating Dialogue Across Difference to Bring the Community Together led by Pollyanna speaker Jason Craige Harris. This webinar offered tools and strategies to foster understanding and unite school communities amid heightened polarization. The recording is available for NAIS members seeking to bring these approaches to their own communities. | | | |
| | | | | | The Power of Listening | Elizabeth Rosner’s Third Ear In Third Ear: Reflections on the Art and Science of Listening, Elizabeth Rosner blends personal narrative and scientific insights to explore the transformative power of deep listening. Drawing on her multilingual upbringing as the daughter of Holocaust survivors, Rosner examines how sounds and silences shape our empathy, relationships, and connection to the world. Featuring perspectives from neurolinguistics, psychotherapy, and creativity, this thought-provoking book invites readers to embrace "third-ear listening" as a tool for understanding and social change. Learn more. | | | | | | “Small groups like this at schools can push for change.” — Jodie Patterson, keynote at Far Brook’s Pollyanna Conference | | | | | | | | | |
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| | | | | Pollyanna, Inc. is a not-for-profit corporation 501(c)(3). © 2024 Pollyanna | New York, NY 10075 | | | |
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