Over the past few weeks, I have been thinking a great deal about joy.

That may seem like an unusual place for a Head of School to begin. After all, schools are often measured by things like test scores, college acceptances, budgets, enrollment, strategic plans, and accreditation. Those things matter. Excellence matters. Rigor matters. High expectations matter.

But I have become convinced that joy matters just as much.

Not because joy replaces rigor, but because it fuels it.

One of the books that has been sitting on my nightstand this summer is Joyful by Ingrid Fetell Lee. In it, she explores something surprisingly simple: joy is not merely an emotion we stumble upon. It can be intentionally designed into our environments and experiences. The spaces we create, the colors we choose, the celebrations we cultivate, the rituals we repeat, the moments of surprise and delight we offer—all of these shape how people feel and how they engage with the world around them.

One passage has stayed with me:

“The more energy we have, the more we are able to play, create, love, lead, explore, rejoice, and engage with the world around us.”

That idea has challenged me as an educator.

What if one of our responsibilities isn’t simply teaching students what to know, but creating a place where they have the energy, curiosity, and confidence to learn?

Joy has sometimes been misunderstood in education. It is not lowering expectations. It is not entertainment. It is not making school “easy.”

Real joy asks more of us.

It gives students the courage to raise their hand when they aren’t sure of the answer. It gives them resilience after a disappointing test score. It gives them confidence to audition for the play, run for student council, perform at a concert, compete in athletics, or try something they’ve never done before.

Joy makes challenge possible.

Research consistently shows that positive emotions broaden our thinking, strengthen creativity, deepen relationships, and improve learning. We don’t remember school simply because of the facts we memorized. We remember how it felt to belong. We remember the teacher who believed in us. We remember laughing in the hallway with friends, celebrating victories, cheering at pep rallies, discovering a passion, or accomplishing something we once thought impossible.

Those moments are not distractions from learning.

They are part of learning.

As we prepare to welcome students back this year, I find myself asking a different question than I have in years past.

Not simply, “How can we help students achieve more?”

But, “How can we create a school so full of life that students cannot wait to walk through our doors each morning?”

That means classrooms filled with curiosity.

Hallways filled with encouragement.

Traditions that unite us.

Faculty who know students deeply.

Parents who feel like partners.

Celebrations that remind every child they matter.

A school where excellence and kindness coexist.

A school where students are known, challenged, and celebrated.

Joy is not the opposite of hard work.

In fact, the healthiest schools understand that the two belong together.

The classrooms where students work the hardest are often the classrooms where laughter is heard most often. The teachers who hold the highest standards are frequently the same teachers who make students feel safest taking intellectual risks. The strongest communities know that discipline and delight are not competing values—they strengthen one another.

This year at The Independent School, I hope our students experience both.

I hope they are stretched academically.

I hope they discover new passions.

I hope they build resilience.

I hope they form lasting friendships.

I hope they learn to think independently and serve generously.

And yes, I hope they laugh.

A lot.

Because when students experience joy, they don’t just become happier learners.

They become more courageous learners.

More creative thinkers.

More compassionate friends.

More confident leaders.

Schools should absolutely prepare students for college, careers, and life.

But perhaps our greatest calling is something even deeper.

To create a place where every child is known, challenged, celebrated, and filled with the kind of joy that inspires a lifetime of learning.