Castilleja School

Castilleja turned into a Middle School learning gala this afternoon! We welcomed our Middle School families to show them their kids’ accomplishments. The guests were treated to a live concert with a ca****la and 8th Grade Rock Band performances. They also visited the classrooms and saw robots, art creations, foreign language projects, monuments inspired by the 8th grade Washington, D.C. trip, and even a live bottle rocket launch.

“Today we get to celebrate how you have used your unique talents to make our community brighter, kinder, and infinitely more creative,” said our Head of Middle School Laura Zappas. “Thank you also to our dedicated teachers, staff members, parents, guardians, and siblings for everything you contributed to making this year possible.”

Our rising seniors made their epic Drive Around the Circle this morning! ❤️🚗✨They had decorated cars, flying candy, costumes, festive dress whites for the whole school, music, and lots and lots of cheering by the students, teachers, and families. Go Class of 2027! You are ready for senior year!

Classes are wrapping up for the year, and it’s an opportunity to reflect and celebrate. In Mr. Callahan’s poetry class, our graduating seniors wrote letters to next year’s seniors and perused the work they created over the course of the semester. They also organized a surprise breakfast potluck--because a pastry doth a perfect poetry party make.

Our student Mixed Affinity Group hosted a potluck in honor of Loving Day this week. ♥️♥️♥️ Loving Day commemorates the historic 1967 Supreme Court case of Loving v. Virginia, which made state bans on in*******al marriage unconstitutional. To celebrate, the students brought treats: matzo ball wonton soup, matcha cookies, macarons, churros, and more.

Have you heard?? Castilleja’s Gator mascot got a makeover! 🪞🐊 We sat down with Allie the Gator to learn about her cheering aspirations, favorite boba and fashion, and more. Read the full Q&A: https://bit.ly/4e8YJmp

Thanks to our student initiative, Castilleja held a series of paw-some workshops to turn used clothing into dog beds. Did you know that an average American generates over 80 lbs of textile waste each year?

Students collected 200 lbs of used clothing, and last week, they gathered to shred the textiles and sew paw-sitively fluffy dog beds to be donated to a local shelter. When shelters suffer from overcrowding, dogs often sleep on cold concrete, so this workshop was a win-win: for the planet and for the pups. 🐶➕🌏

Congratulations to our Track and Field student-athlete Brooke O. ‘27, who came in first in the 1600m race for a time of 4:47 at CCS Championships over the weekend, breaking a school record! Brooke will be representing Castilleja in the CIF State Meet this next weekend in the 3200m race. Go Gators!

🌟 Come celebrate our seven graduating Gatorbotics seniors tonight in Good Court! Chomp! 🤖🐊

We spoke with our alumna Sandhya “Sandy” Pillalamarri Banerjee ’05 about her pioneering career in artificial intelligence and the importance of staying humble in her line of work. Sandy credits Castilleja for teaching her the habits of mind to tackle this new frontier. Read to learn more! https://bit.ly/4dACRPp