An important part of Town's Admissions process is the opportunity to connect with current members of our community, who can share their real lived experiences and answer your questions. Below are a few of our Parent Ambassadors, and you will soon see the option to sign up for an informal discussion with them in your Admissions portal. Questions? Reach out to us any time: admissions@townschool.org.
Meet our Parent Ambassadors.
Meet Lisa
What year did you join the Town community? Many years ago -- I'm an alum!
Child(ren)'s current grade(s) at Town: 3rd grade
Activities your child(ren) participate in: After-school Classes, Chorus, Community Action
How does your family commute to school? NYC bus and Town's West Side Shuttle Bus
What is a favorite part of the school day for your child(ren)? My son loves everything Town. He loves the community, the spirt, the type of family it attracts that have given him amazing friends and of course the teachers and Mr. Brophy !
Why did you choose Town for your child(ren)? It was my favorite educational experience . I still have my friends from Town and let’s just say I graduated a long time ago ! My family loved it.
What do you like about the N-8 model?
I believe in the K -8 model for a few distinct reasons.
1. You aren’t boxed into the wrong school for your entire educational career. By the time you get to high school you have a better sense of what kind of student you are and what you are looking for in high school. You end up at the RIGHT school for you, not what your parents choose when you were in kindergarten.
2. Your school experience is based on a community that isn’t focused on high school. Most public schools change from elementary to middle to high school. It allows each school to focus on what they do best.
3. When you are in 8th grade you are on top of the world and I will always treasure that feeling.
Why did you choose a co-ed school? I believe in co-education!
Why do you volunteer as an Admissions Parent Ambassador? Because I love the school and I want other people to know how special it is.
Fun fact about me: I won a bronze medal in the Maccabiah games in 2009.
Meet Zainab
What year did you join the Town community? 2015
Child(ren)'s current grade(s) at Town: 5th grade
Activities your child(ren) participate in: Dance Group, Chorus, Community Action
How does your family commute to school? Mass transit or car
What is a favorite part of the school day for your child(ren)? Math, Science, and play time on the roof!
Why did you choose Town for your child(ren)? Town fits my child so well as a learner!
What do you like about the N-8 model? What a wonderful opportunity for an 8th Grader to have a say in where they go to High School!
Why did you choose a co-ed school? A co-ed school encourages better socialization and communication while discouraging the development of harmful gender stereotypes.
Why do you volunteer as an Admissions Parent Ambassador? Searching for a school is nerve-racking...I want to, hopefully, help make the process easier for fellow parents!
Meet Jenny
What year did you join the Town community? 2016
Child(ren)'s current grade(s) at Town: 5th grade
Activities your child(ren) participate in: After-school Classes, Chorus, Team Sports
How does your family commute to school? We walk.
What is a favorite part of the school day for your child(ren)? Social Studies, and Roof!
Why did you choose Town for your child(ren)? We chose Town because of its strong academic reputation and community focus and we because admire the Alums we know!
What do you like about the N-8 model? I love that the students have the opportunity to be leaders throughout their time at Town - especially in 4th grade as heads of the Lower School and 8th grade as heads of the Upper School.
Why do you volunteer as an Admissions Parent Ambassador? I wanted the opportunity to share with prospective parents why Town and our community are so amazing!
Fun fact about me/us: We are huge NY Giants Fans!
Meet Elissa
What year did you join the Town community? 2019
Child(ren)'s current grade(s) at Town: 4th grade
Activities your child(ren) participate in: After-School Classes, Dance Group, Chorus
How does your family commute to school? Bus, walk, or car
Why did you choose Town for your child(ren)? The small, tight-knit community. Town makes NYC feel like a small city where you can still have a big voice.
What do you like about the N-8 model? With a 4th grader this year we are lucky to have her be a leader of the Lower School and have the opportunity to have a little buddy and be an example in the school to the younger community and feel like a leader.
Why did you choose a co-ed school? A wider perspective.
Why do you volunteer as an Admissions Parent Ambassador? I volunteer because I feel like Town has given so much to my daughter and I want to give back what I can to perspective students.
Meet Caryn
What year did you join the Town community? 2017
Child(ren)'s current grade(s) at Town: 4th grade
Activities your child(ren) participate in: After-school classes, Chorus
How does your family commute to school? We happily take the NYC ferry from Long Island City to the city and walk along the water to 76th street.
What is a favorite part of the school day for your child(ren)? He loves playing on the roof and organizing and participating in soccer, basketball, football and other sporting games. He said his least favorite thing about Town is that he can't have the same teachers every year (he says this every single year, by the way!)
Why did you choose Town for your child(ren)? As a pediatric dentist with an office on the upper East Side, I work with children and their families from many, if not all, of the independent schools in the area. About 15 years ago (before I was married) I had several families come to my practice around the same time and all of them were part of the Town community. I was struck by how "normal", down to earth, smart, polite, respectful and truly wonderful each of them were. I literally said to myself "if I ever have a child I would want him or her to be part of Town."
What do you like about the N-8 model? The one major reason I like this model is because of the one reason many people might not like it: the application to high school process. Being able to have the school's guidance through this process, being able to figure out what school might be the best fit for my child based on who he is at age 13 (instead of age 5) and being able to advocate for himself during this process gives me great joy. I also see through my patients who have gone through Town that they are given the opportunities to be leaders at multiple point during their time there: in K as leaders of the N-K div, 4th graders as the leaders of the Lower School, and finally 8th graders as the leaders of the entire school.
Why did you choose a co-ed school? I want my child to learn how to respectfully interact with females under the guidance of his teachers.
Why do you volunteer as an Admissions Parent Ambassador? I volunteer because I LOVE Town and want to make sure everyone knows what an amazing place it is!
Meet Alicia
What year did you join the Town community? 2015
Child(ren)'s current grade(s) at Town: I'm the parent of two Town alums: classes of 2018 and 2020! They started at Town in 4th and 6th grades.
Activities your child(ren) participated in: After-school Classes, Sports Teams, LEGO Robotics, Dance Group, Chorus, Band, Community Action, Sustainability Club, Student Admissions Ambassadors, Mathletes
How does your family commute to school? Car in the morning, subway in the afternoon.
What is a favorite part of the school day for your child(ren)? One daughter particularly loved Mr. Cook’s science class! It was her favorite subject that helped to shape her decision to go into medicine. She also absolutely loved the Washington D.C trip in the 8th grade. My other daughter's favorite memory is the 4th grade trip to the farm. It was her first year and really helped to cement long lasting friendships with her peers! She also loved the lego robotics after school! Collectively they both loved Clubhouse (after-school care) where they would stay on occasion when waiting to be picked up!
Why did you choose Town for your child(ren)? I chose Town for two reasons! It was the only school that our entire family agreed on. We wanted the kids to have a say in where they went, so to have a collective “yes” was mind blowing. The other reason is that it just had a feeling of home even though we only went there a couple of times before accepting. My suspicions were right, because since they graduated we still feel a strong sense of connection to the Town community.
What do you like about the N-8 model? I love that even though varying grades attend, they bridge the gap with the various opportunities for the older children to play a mentor role within the lives of the younger students. Because Town is so nurturing, it allows students to grow up before encountering high school, which is a completely different environment. It also is just the right amount of time before kids need to venture off and develop new skills from a new environment.
Why did you choose a co-ed school? I love that my girls had the opportunity to interact with the opposite sex. Town fostered a gender equal environment in the classroom. There was none of the intimidation that teen girls usually feel when answering questions or playing sports around boys. This gives them the opportunity to know that they can do anything in any environment that they need to regardless of their gender.
Why do you volunteer as an Admissions Parent Ambassador? I volunteer because I have always wanted to do more for the school that allowed my girls to thrive and become the well rounded, and smart individuals that they are now. I want to give my time and experiences to as many families in making such an important decision for their families.
As an alumni/ae parent, I feel that my daughters got the best possible academic and social experiences that enabled them to have a smooth transition to high school. They were prepared and did not buckle under the weight of high school because they had routines in place like using a planner, asking for help and prioritizing, and an overall strong work ethic. Something uniquely “Town” that I get from her new school is that the kids are so mature and poised!
My favorite memory from Town has to be Dance Day! Dancing like no one is watching with a group of people in your community and your kids is the best feeling before heading off to work! My second favorite memories are easily Science Nights! I am a teacher and it blows my mind to see the confidence students display in being able to present to the entire community. It is especially meaningful to me because before my girls came in they were extremely shy and I would have never envisioned that they would be able to stand up and do what they do on science night!