Welcome from the Head of School Welcome to The Barnesville School! Here you will find an outstanding school that holds true to its mission of joy, support, and excellence. Our mission is demonstrated daily in the faces of our students.
What sets Barnesville apart? Our students derive joy from their authentic learning experiences, feeling the thrill of excitement that comes from meaningful educational opportunities. Our dedicated faculty supports these students by providing individual attention as children strive to reach their true potential. Our excellence comes from an academic experience that shines for all its students, from our prekindergarteners learning their letters to our eighth graders preparing for entrance into select secondary schools. The key to our mission is an emphasis on community and responsibility. This sense of interconnectedness and caring comprise what we call the "Barnesville Way".
Who will you find at Barnesville? Here students of solid academic ability learn in small classroom settings. Flexible groupings between homerooms allow our faculty to meet the needs of each student, accelerating those who need additional challenge and supporting those who benefit from extra attention. Our teachers possess a wealth of experience and knowledge, taking part in professional development opportunities that result in an enriched classroom environment. Our faculty and staff greet students in car line each morning, and we take delight in knowing everyone by name.
What will I see when I visit? You will find a beautiful 50 acre campus and buildings permeated with natural light. We are idyllically located in the rolling hills of country fields, only 15 minutes from Germantown and Frederick. It is a point of pride for us that Barnesville is the only accredited independent school in Montgomery County’s beautiful Agricultural Reserve. We seek to maintain our roots in this rural tradition by involving our students both in our local community and the great outdoors. As Richard Louv writes in his book Last Child in the Woods, "through nature is the rebirth of wonder, and even joy."
Please explore our website, but better yet, come and visit The Barnesville School to see for yourself the benefits of a Barnesville education for your child. We look forward to your visit!
John Huber
Head of School
John Huber was appointed as Barnesville’s fourth head of school in 2006. He began his career in education as a Latin teacher in 1992, and he has been an independent school teacher and administrator for over fifteen years. He received his M.A. in Educational Leadership from Villanova University and his B.A. in Classics from Cornell University. He is the parent of two middle school boys who attend Barnesville, and one three-year-old who will be attending in Fall 2010. His LinkedIn public profile is available here.
November 19, 2009 - Apples and ImpermanenceReprinted Jan. 22, 2010 on pg. 4 of the Monocacy Monocle
This week marks the last week of the school year for us to give away locally grown apples. Kingsbury’s Orchard, just down the road on Peach Tree, shut for the season last week, and Lewis Orchard will be closing for the winter at the beginning of next week.
I always find this moment to be a little sad, the last fresh apples of the season. From time to time, I consider extending this program by bringing in non-local fruit in order to encourage our students to keep thinking about healthful snack choices into the winter months. I recall a few years back when we gave away bananas purchased at CostCo on a cold February day. Needless to say, it didn’t go over as well as the apples.
But despite my feelings of melancholia at the season’s end, I believe it teaches our students an important lesson about seasonality and impermanence. These apples are so wonderful because we know that they won’t last forever. We need to enjoy them now, not just because they are sweet and fresh, but precisely because they are a special treat that can only be enjoyed in the fall.
This lesson may contradict our parental instincts to provide for our children the best of everything always. If something is good for our children, shouldn’t they get it all the time? We certainly live in an always-on world, when watermelons can be purchased in January, and entertainment of any sort can be carried around on our iPhones. Yet as we debate how sustainable these practices are, few of us would volunteer to have fewer choices. That is why it is good for our students to learn this simple lesson of seasons. There are times of bounty, and there are times of scarcity.
And so. Thanksgiving is just around the corner, my favorite holiday of all. Please take this moment to appreciate the impermanence of our most special things, and give thanks that we may enjoy them when we can, for so long as we can.