Still, sometimes numbers can paint a picture of a person or a place. Some of our numbers tell a story of who we are, where we’ve been, and where we’re headed. Thus, without further ado and in no particular order, we present Spring Street by the Numbers.
7: The Number of Buildings on Campus
Or at least, we think there are seven buildings! The campus has grown dramatically over the years, sprawling into nooks and crannies and evolving as it goes. The original building, the historic Nash House pictured below, once housed the entire school. Now, the Nash House is mainly home to our administrative offices, but it also has our copy room, the student kitchen, and two classrooms. It’s also known as “the house with the flags.” It’s nearly 100 years old!
Another building, dubbed The West Wing, is at the far western end of our campus. It’s also an old building and is home to two classrooms, the faculty kitchen, and multiple faculty offices. The staircase has been featured in many students’ horror films for its spectacular “haunted house” creepiness.
Our other buildings are the art studio, the music shed, and two sets of classroom buildings. We also have our student dorm, named the Hope House after Spring Street’s founders, Peg and Ted Hope.
1: The Number of Cats in Residence
Toothless became our official Dorm Cat in August 2021, but he has quickly shown he is talented in multiple areas of campus life. He helps with lunch, facilities, administration, admissions, counseling, and more. Recently, he has been found teaching music, Spanish, humanities, and math.
Toothless has gained a bit of a cult following on campus among students and staff. He is particularly beloved by Becca in the Main Office and Becca in the Academic Dean office, and can frequently be found stealing Becca’s office chair. (It’s alright. She’ll stand.)
You can follow him on his quest for food and pets on his Instagram.
343.5: Number of Years of Combined Teaching Experience
With an average of 17 years of teaching behind them, our faculty has deep expertise to design exceptional educational opportunities and learning environments. Even better, our teachers come from a variety of backgrounds. Some have taught internationally. Some have taught at colleges. Some are veterans of public schools. Some are brand new to the field and bringing with them enthusiasm, creativity, and innovation.
Our faculty keeps learning–from outside experts, from our community, from our students, from each other. Teachers model the same humility, curiosity, and open-mindedness they seek to foster in our students. They identify problems, seek solutions, collaborate, and support each other. The result is 343.5 years of experience fully realized.
50: Number of Pounds of Trash Collected from Local Beaches
Our middle school science classes spend more time off campus than on. This year, they have made multiple trips to our local beaches, where they see firsthand the impact of single-use plastics, littering, and climate change.
But the lessons don’t stop at cleaning up the beaches. Once back in their classroom-lab, students analyze what they find, practice graphing and representational math, and do deep thinking on what they found, why it might have been there, and what to do about it.
277418: Number of Miles Traveled by Spring Street Vehicles
Our school may be known for traveling to the far sides of the world–our seniors traditionally travel to India and Nepal–but we also travel heavily locally, regionally, and nationally. This mileage total just represents the distance traveled by our four vehicles (Agatha, Bertha, Celeste, and The Bus), not the numerous vehicles we have rented over the years!
3: Number of Alumni on Staff
At first glance, having only three alumni on staff might not seem all that impressive. Then you remember that Spring Street is a relatively young school and a very small one; even our earliest graduates are still quite young! So, we are thankful and proud to have two alumni on staff as teachers and another on staff as our dorm chef.
Both Elena and Katya graduated from Spring Street in the 2000’s. After numerous adventures out in the wider world, they returned home to Friday Harbor to begin their teaching careers. Elena, currently out on maternity leave, teaches Spanish I and II as well as AP Human Geography. Katya teaches Chemistry as well as our Mind-Body Lab, which teaches mindfulness, yoga, and other facets of balanced, healthy living.
Natalia, who was one of Spring Street’s first students, serves as our chef in the dorm. She cites her travels with Spring Street as her culinary inspiration, and her cooking continues to travel the world. One day there might be samosa, another poke bowls, another kale-and-feta pasties. She also credits Spring Street with her ability to adapt, go with the flow, and be in the moment.
3: Number of Regular Canine Visitors
Dogs are also a regular part of campus life here at Spring Street. Our two most regular canine visitors are Moshi, whose human teaches chemistry and the mind-body lab, and Ruby, whose person teaches high school social students and math. We also recently welcomed Poppy to the canine support team.
And there you have it! A little taste of Spring Street by the Numbers.
