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Gillispie Welcomes New Grades 1 and 4 Teachers
The Gillispie School is very excited to announce the hiring of two teachers for the 2010-11 academic year.
Joining the Grade 1 team of Mrs. Engelhardt, Mrs. Kerr, and Mrs. Smith is Stacey Shemanski. In addition to certification in both Illinois and California, Mrs. Shemanski received her bachelor of science degree from Western Michigan University with a major in Spanish and a minor in elementary education; she earned her masters in curriculum and instruction with a concentration on bilingual education from National-Louis University. In Illinois, she taught five years at the fourth grade level, and she's no stranger to Gillispie, having worked in Mrs. Engelhardt’s class starting in April 2010.
Gillispie also welcomes Josephine Shieh, who will join Mrs. Haas in teaching Grade 4. Mrs. Shieh was a fourth grade teacher at The Baldwin School in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, followed by three years at Cambell Hall Episcopal School in North Hollywood, California, where she taught fourth and sixth graders. She received her bachelor of arts in psychology with a minor in education at the University of California at Berkeley and her master of science in elementary education from the University of Pennsylvania.
The School considers itself fortunate to welcome two very talented and dedicated teachers who will share their experience and enthusiasm with Gillispie students.
Alison Fleming
Head of School
About Us
The Gillispie School is an independent, coeducational day school enrolling 300 students from age two through Grade Six. Our campus is located in downtown La Jolla, and includes a fine arts center, science lab, library and gymnasium. Two playgrounds provide areas for recess and physical education. Students benefit from San Diego's numerous natural and intellectual resources.
Mission Statement
The Gillispie School community is devoted to educational excellence for children in preschool through sixth grade. Our program serves as a springboard for children’s love of learning, creativity, and readiness for the future. We value kindness, respect, and individual commitment to the larger world.
Philosophy Statement
We believe that learning is a journey. Our early childhood and elementary programs are designed to guide our students’ academic, creative, and social growth. We strive to develop resiliency in our students so that they are prepared for whatever paths they may choose.
We believe that students, if they are to become positive contributors to society, must become articulate communicators and critical and creative thinkers. We are committed to a balanced approach of child-centered and teacher-directed activities to aid our children in their understanding of the world. Our teachers and administrators keep informed of best practices and recognize that good teaching is neither a science nor an art, but a skillful blending of both.
We believe in the dignity of each child. As children mature from preschool into early adolescence, we expect that even as they develop their own gifts, they will learn to appreciate the gifts of others. They will also come to recognize that their independence is bound by interdependence on one another and that they are more alike than different. In this way, children develop empathy, a sense of justice, and the realization that their collaborative efforts can solve problems and move mountains.
We believe the adults in our community—teachers, staff, and parents—should model a love of learning, strength of character, and kindness toward others. Thus, the School values a partnership between our faculty and families to promote our educational philosophy and goals.
Early Childhood Statement of Purpose
Young children are capable and natural learners, and our purpose as a school is to facilitate their social, academic, and creative development as they explore their world. We do so by:
Embracing an emergent curriculum. Teachers spend much time observing, questioning, and listening to the children, and frame many activities around their combined interests and knowledge.
Understanding that play is a critical part of learning in the life of a young child, and that it provides a wonderful medium by which children socialize and learn to take healthy risks. We aspire to have an accepting and loving environment that allows children to learn using their senses and whole bodies.
Recognizing that success in school—and life—requires the acquisition of basic skills and knowledge. Rather than rote memorization and drill, we offer experiences that will develop flexible rather than fixed mindsets in finding solutions, and encourage children to work through challenges.
We believe that children should enter elementary school with confidence about what they already know and can do, and excitement about what is to come.
A Brief History
We trace our roots back to the Great Depression, when philanthropist Ada Gillispie began raising funds to provide milk and food baskets for children in need within the La Jolla community. From the creation of a welfare shop that supported single mothers in 1931 to the groundbreaking of the School at its current site in 1950, Mrs. Gillispie worked tirelessly on behalf of the community’s children. Through the decades, the School went through various incarnations that included a boarding house for orphans, before- and after-school programs for children of working parents, and a preschool. In 1990, the Gillispie Childcare Association began expanding into the elementary grades, with the first class of sixth graders graduating in 1997. The Gillispie School, now accredited by both the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and the California Association of Independent Schools, continues to nurture and inspire children from their toddler years through early adolescence--an outgrowth of the love and devotion that began in 1931.
Accreditation
The Gillispie School, a non-profit corporation, is accredited by the California Association of Independent Schools (CAIS), the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).