Friends Select School

10/09/2026

Congrats to Friends Select lower school student Garrett ’35, who was recently nominated for a Young Innovator of the Year TAGIE Award (Toy and Game International Excellence) for his game, Baseball Card GM! Some of Garrett’s classmates had a chance to play Garrett’s self-published game last year at Friends Select, as part of a lesson on probabilities in Tr. Bianca’s third grade class, and Garrett plans to share his game with this year's third graders too.

10/08/2026

On Friday, October 16, Friends Select will hold an FSS Community Pantry Drive as part of our Falcon Fest and celebration of the Falcon’s birthday! Items for the pantry should be placed in brown- and gold-colored bins at the entrances to our Parkway Building. The team color that has the most donations for the pantry by 11 a.m. will receive an extra point toward their Falcon Fest score.

This FSS Community Pantry Drive is a partnership between the Friends Select Family Association’s Social Justice committee and the Falcon Fest committee. Thank you to all the students, families, and employees who are helping support those in need by contributing non-perishable items—including canned goods with pop tops, grab-and-go snacks, and toiletries—to restock our pantry shelves!

Poster by James Olstein P'37 ().

10/08/2026

Earlier this week, Friends Select’s upper school leadership—Catherine Murray, director of upper school, Natalie Mayer, dean of academics, Sarah Kelly, interim dean of students, and Rachael Polton, 9th grade lead advisor and senior associate director of college planning—officially welcomed the class of 2030 into our community. The evening included dinner with students and families, lively photos with friends and family, and inspiring remarks from Alyssa Spiller ’16. Wishing the class of 2030 all the best as they embark on this meaningful journey!

10/07/2026

Last week, we once again welcomed fellows and program directors from the University of Pennsylvania’s Independent School Teaching Residency (ISTR) Program to Friends Select. ISTR () prepares aspiring and early-career educators from independent schools across the country as they earn their master’s degrees and complete intensive teaching fellowships.

Guests had the opportunity to hear from head of school Michael Gary, our esteemed upper school faculty and administrators, and to tour our newly expanded Parkway campus. Their visit to Friends Select was an opportunity to step outside of their own school communities and experience Friends Select as it truly is: the relationships between teachers and students; the thoughtful work happening in classrooms; and the ways our Quaker values show up in our approach to teaching and learning.

10/07/2026

Good people and LOTS of big ideas! Our South Asian Families Happy Hour was a blast—and we’re dreaming up what’s next. Bollywood Night at FSS, here we come! Thanks to co-chairs Varsha Devnani P‘32, ’35, and Vishal Dutta P'36, '38 for getting us together.

10/06/2026

As we look forward to our October 16th celebration of the Friends Select community on the Falcon's birthday, we are proud to highlight alumni making a difference in their communities and the world. Today’s alum spotlight is Alyssa Spiller '16, who was our keynote speaker at last night’s Convocation, addressing Friends Select freshmen as part of an annual tradition marking the start of the upper school educational journey.

Read about how Alyssa’s years at Friends Select led her to a role as a clinical research coordinator at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and a post-baccalaureate program at the University of Pennsylvania, with the goal of applying to medical school.

We hope you will join in on Friday, October 16, for the Falcon’s birthday celebration! Throughout the day, we’ll be hosting a friendly giving competition online for the entire Friends Select community. We can’t wait for this joyous annual celebration of our community.

https://www.friends-select.org/alum-spotlight-alyssa-spiller-16

10/05/2026

Bring your whole family to our annual alumni Thanksgiving Classic: Friday, November 27, from 12-4 p.m., in our Parkway Building! Cheer on our current Friends Select basketball players vs. FSS alumni, as they take the court in a basketball showdown.

Following the Classic, Friends Select alums (ages 21+) are invited to join us for an alumni Happy Hour from 4-6 p.m. at City Tap House, 100 N. 18th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103. Go Falcons!

10/05/2026

This morning, Friends Select School will join Quaker schools across the country in a collective moment of silence to mark World Quaker Day. At 9:35 a.m., we will all pause for five minutes of quiet reflection.

The theme of this year’s World Quaker Day is “Let Peace Be Among Us.” This collective pause is an opportunity to bring the spirit of Quaker values into our school day. By stopping together, we connect our school community with other Quaker schools around the country that will pause at the same moment.

10/02/2026

Read a great Hidden City article about our current exhibition, "Friends Select on the Parkway: Continuity and Change," which was curated by historian and alumna Amy Cohen ’82!

This Wednesday, October 7, at 5:30 p.m., we will be hosting a reception for this exhibition, followed by a film screening at 6:30 p.m. of "Becoming American: Philadelphia’s Story," by creator and co-executive producer Oliver St. Clair Franklin, and a Q&A at 8 p.m with Amy Cohen, Oliver Franklin, and Jennifer Gray, education & museum manager at the Arch Street Meeting House. Please join us!

Quaker values and education for all illuminate the Benjamin Franklin Parkway

10/02/2026

Interested in learning more about what the Friends Select community has to offer?

Save your spot at our upcoming open house! Attending an open house on campus is just the first step in our family-centered admissions process.