As planning continues at school and at home for next year and beyond, we are pleased to share the upcoming Pingry key dates calendars with families, faculty, and staff. Several additions have been made to the previously released key dates calendar for 2026-27, and the forward guidance for 2027-28 key dates is brand new. Each calendar includes the opening and closing dates of school, observed holidays, Winter and Spring Breaks, and other related specifics. Please be sure to bookmark the Key Dates page of our website for ongoing access to these important 2026-27 and 2027-28 academic year calendars.

Whether you’re searching for a gift or planning to slow down and tackle some long-awaited reading for pleasure over Spring Break, our Head of School Tim Lear has got you covered. Check out his updated reading list of books that he’s enjoyed over the past several months. Happy reading and best wishes to you and your family for a fun and relaxing Spring Break.

It’s time to order your heirloom-quality, custom-made Pingry blankets! These make excellent Commencement gifts or special gifts for any Pingry alumni. Blankets are made to order and can include the year or be left plain. Check out the flyer below for details and be sure to place your order before 03/15/2026.

The brackets are set, the energy is high, and the swag is... legendary. Starting on March 23, we are launching Merch Madness! 

If you have not made a gift to The Pingry Fund this year, now is the time! Parent participation in The Pingry Fund supports all aspects of your child’s education, including technology, faculty development, athletics, and the arts! Make your gift to The Pingry Fund, show your Big Blue pride, and be entered to win some awesome swag.

How to participate:
1. Make your gift (of any size) to The Pingry Fund
Already made your gift this year? Then you’re entered into Merch Madness!
2. You will be entered into our daily drawings between March 23–27!

The sooner you give, the more chances you have to win as we move from the Sweet 16 all the way to the Championship! Make your gift online at pingry.org/give.

Don't get benched—get in the game!

Questions? Contact Margaret von der Linden at mvonderlinden@pingry.org or 908-647-5555, ext. 1299.

LOWER SCHOOL
Short Hills Campus | Chen Dining Commons
Thursday, March 26
8:15–8:45 a.m. Coffee
8:45–9:45 a.m. Conversation

MIDDLE SCHOOL
Basking Ridge Campus | C.B. Newton Library
Monday, March 30
8:30–8:45 a.m. Coffee
8:45–9:45 a.m. Conversation

UPPER SCHOOL
Basking Ridge Campus | C.B. Newton Library
Tuesday, March 31
8:30–8:45 a.m. Coffee
8:45–9:45 a.m. Conversation

As part of the celebration of the 100th anniversary of Pingry’s Honor Code, the PSPA invites parents to join us for division-specific casual conversations focused on the Honor Code and the important role it plays in shaping our students’ character. The Honor Code gives language to the values our community strives to live by each day, encouraging self-reflection and accountability. 

For our casual conversations, Divisional Leadership, Honor Board student representatives, and members of CAST (Counseling and Academic Support Team) will lead the discussion and share insight into how the Honor Code is taught and upheld. Together, we’ll explore real-life, age-appropriate scenarios that students may encounter in school and discuss how the Honor Code can guide thoughtful decision-making in everyday situations. These interactive conversations are designed to spark meaningful dialogue, deepen our shared understanding, and support our partnership in helping our children grow as ethical, caring members of our community.

Please note that the event will not be recorded, as we hope to foster an interactive environment that encourages open discussion and meaningful participation. If you are unable to attend, but would like to engage and learn more, we encourage you to reach out to Divisional Leadership.
We hope you’ll join us for this engaging and reflective conversation! 

Division-specific scenarios:
Lower School
Middle School - will be available in a future edition of the BBB
Upper School

RSVP: Lower School by March 24, Middle School by March 26, Upper School by March 27.

Check out the latest edition of our PSPA Volunteer Newsletter! Featured in this edition are photos from some of our January and February events, as well as a list of upcoming volunteer opportunities.

In the new year, we’ve continued bringing our community together through outstanding events made possible by our dedicated volunteers.

Thank you to the nearly 700 members of our community who participated in our MLK Day of Service! 
We’ve also hosted Faculty & Staff Appreciation events, Lower School Bingo Night, an Arts & Beautification event, parent socials, Big Blue Pride celebrations honoring our MS and LS Math Team and the US Winter Musical, and our signature Pingry on Ice event. Parent-focused programming has included AI-centered Casual Conversations and a Book Club featuring Tim Lear.

Looking ahead, we are excited for our upcoming Casual Conversations on the Honor Code, as well as Conversations with Divisional Leadership.

Please Save the Date for our spring All-Parent/Guardian Meeting on April 21, featuring our three Division Heads and various key administrators, an update on PSPA activities, and the presentation and vote for the 2026–27 PSPA Executive Board.

Mathematician, educator, and social entrepreneur Po‑Shen Loh will be at the Basking Ridge Campus on Tuesday, April 7, presenting and speaking to Upper and Middle School students and faculty and staff. Mr. Loh has graciously agreed to offer a session for parents/guardians on the Basking Ridge Campus from 3:45 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. (Note: this event was previously scheduled for January 27 and was rescheduled due to weather.) 

Three years ago, ChatGPT thought 1/3 was smaller than 1/4. Today, college professors have started disallowing bathroom breaks during exams, to stop students from using AI to instantly solve the problems. AI recently beat all human teams at the International Collegiate Programming Competition (including Harvard and MIT), can write better than most people, and can create videos that are hard to distinguish from reality. Soon, robots will even be better at plumbing. Meanwhile, a vast mental health crisis is on the horizon, as kids become weaker at communicating with other real people, and fall into the trap of preferring to communicate with AI companions. The traditional parenting playbook is obsolete. What, then, should parents do?

Po-Shen Loh travels to over 100 cities per year, learning, observing, and sharing novel strategies with diverse audiences. He draws from experience as the former national coach of the USA Math Olympiad Team, as a Carnegie Mellon professor, and as a social entrepreneur who hires directly from the current job market. He is also a parent himself, facing this uncertain world with three children.

Website: https://poshenloh.com

Please RSVP by Friday, April 3.

Socialize with other Pingry parents and laugh like you’re at recess with “The Mom Coms present “This Pingry Parent Social: Punchlines from Parenting.” The event is a hilarious stand-up comedy event featuring professional comedians who identify as moms, one of them being our own Pingry mom! They’ll get the dads laughing, too! Open for all members of the Pingry community. 

Don't miss an evening filled with mingling, laughter, and light bites. Space is limited to the first 50 registrants, so don't wait! Ventura Sparkle, a lab-grown-diamond pop-up boutique owned by a Pingry parent will have items on display and raffle a door prize worth $200 to one lucky audience member. Tickets are limited; advance purchase required. Ticket price $50.

Venmo payments only: @Tania-Shehzad.

Click here to register and reach out to pspa-vp2@pingry.org with questions! If registering more than one person, please put in both names in the first name, or register twice.

Please join us on Friday, May 8 for a special evening on the Basking Ridge Campus. Beginning at 7:00 p.m., the event will bring together students, families, alumni, and friends for a casual night of connection and community. (The celebration takes place during Reunion Weekend, so you may also see alumni back on campus!)

The evening will include food trucks, music, lawn games, and a featured performance by our Taiko drummers, along with a welcome from the Head of School. The Bear Pause Pop-Up Shop will also be open for anyone looking to pick up some Pingry gear.

We will close the night with a fireworks display around 8:45 p.m. — a fitting way to celebrate our community together.

Give your child a summer full of adventure, learning, and fun! Whether they want to make lifelong friends at Pingry Day Camp, sharpen their athletic skills with varsity coaches, take on new academic challenges, or explore their creative side, Pingry Summer has the perfect program. Browse our camps and programs to find the best fit for your child.

For any questions, contact our Camp Staff at campstaff@pingry.org

Our next Faculty Collaboration Morning is Wednesday, April 1. Faculty Collaboration Mornings follow regular morning drop-off procedures (students of Grades K–2 + siblings at the back circle; students of Grades 3–5 in front). 

Buses will run at their regular times. Before-care will be available from 7:30 to 9:45 a.m. The school day begins at 10:00 a.m. 

Students arriving by bus may attend free of charge. Families who need early-arrival drop-off will be charged a $25 fee. Space is limited, and all students must register online through Campbrain, even if they are taking the bus.

Please join us after drop-off for a Casual Conversation with Lower School Director Dr. Alyssa Johns and members of the Lower School Leadership Team as we reflect on the current school year and look ahead to 2026-27. During this session, we will preview several important updates, including the introduction of our new Assistant Lower School Director of Academics.

While we encourage all Lower School parents/guardians to attend in-person to hear these updates firsthand and engage in a thoughtful discussion with the Leadership Team, we understand that not everyone can make this time work. Rest assured that all information shared will also be communicated in  upcoming editions of The Latest at Short Hills newsletter.

If there are specific topics you would like addressed or questions you would like Dr. Johns and her team to consider, please feel free to submit them in advance.

Please register here to join in the conversation.

Dear Lower School Families,

At Pingry, we believe in the value of fresh air, outdoor play, and movement, even in winter. To ensure recess remains safe, consistent, and fun, we have developed a winter recess protocol that will be in place for the entire season.

Temperature:
Students will go outside for recess whenever the “feels like” temperature is 20°F or above and conditions are safe. If the temperature falls below that threshold or icy conditions make play unsafe, recess will be indoors.

Daily Preparedness:
Please send your child with a warm coat, hat, and gloves every day. We recommend keeping an extra pair of socks in your child’s backpack during the winter months.

Snow Play:
When snow is on the ground, and temperatures are safe, children may play in the snow if they have:

Waterproof boots
Waterproof pants
Hat and gloves

Students without this gear will participate in outdoor recess in designated non-snow areas.

To ensure safety and manage space, please do not bring personal sleds or snow toys from home.

If your family needs assistance securing winter gear, please reach out. We’re here to support.

We look forward to a season of healthy winter play.
 

In the event of a delayed opening for inclement weather, there will be no Before Care or morning activities. 

The next round of student-led conferences will be held on Friday, March 27, the Friday after break. The purpose of these conferences is for students to discuss their progress, their academic strengths, their areas for continued growth, and more. Please note this date, as it was published incorrectly on the Key Dates document. It is correct on the All-School Calendar. Families received communication from advisors in February with directions to sign up for a conference time that day. Because Upper School will have regular classes that day, families should enter through the Middle School doors. We also encourage families to check out the displayed artwork from Trimester 2 art students!

Calling all Middle School chess players! If students would like to represent Pingry in this year’s New Jersey Chess Championship, please fill out this form (including a parent/guardian signature). The form also contains more information. If you have any questions please contact Chess Club Advisor Karsten Niehues.

What happened to Pompeii after Mt. Vesuvius erupted and buried the city in 79 CE? How do we know what life was like there? Join us on this overnight adventure when we will discover the secrets of Pompeii! You will learn not only about the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius and its impact on the surrounding area, but also about the art, architecture, and customs of the ancient Romans—you will even make (and eat!) your own Roman road. Join us!

Transportation will be provided from the Basking Ridge Campus on Friday after school. Parents will pick up students on Saturday at 9:30 a.m. at Pottersville.

The cost of the program is $35. Feel free to reach out to Director of Enrollment Management Christy Welborne at cwelborne@pingry.org for questions about Financial Aid.

Sign up using this link!

If you have any questions, please contact Dean of Residential Life L.J. Scurfield or Latin Teacher Margaret Kelleher ’01.

What if you could spend a week exploring the kinds of questions philosophers have debated for centuries?

• When should you stand by your beliefs?
• Do we have a moral obligation to put the group ahead of ourselves?
• Should rules always be followed?
• Should loyalty to a friend always come before honesty?
• Should a person get a second chance?
• What makes a life good?

This summer, Middle School students are invited into a week-long residential experience designed specifically for rising Grade 7 and 8 students who are ready to think deeply and speak boldly.

The Reason & Rationality Institute is launching its first Ethics Summer Program for Middle School students on Pingry’s Pottersville Campus. In small, discussion-based seminars, students will explore foundational ideas in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, often known as PPE, under the guidance of Peter Bach-y-Rita (B.A. Princeton, J.D. Stanford, Ph.D. MIT) and doctoral-level philosophers from institutions such as Princeton, Harvard, UC Berkeley, and Oxford.

This is not a lecture-based camp. It is a conversation. Students read closely, question assumptions, test arguments, and practice articulating their own reasoning. They learn how to disagree thoughtfully, listen carefully, and refine their thinking in real time.

Each day includes at least four hours of rigorous seminar discussion, balanced by residential life and community-building activities, including the Pottersville ropes course and structured evening programs that connect intellectual themes with real-world leadership and decision-making.

By the end of the week, students often discover

• Greater confidence in their own judgment
• A sharper ability to analyze complex issues
• A deeper comfort engaging in serious intellectual dialogue
• A new vocabulary for ideas they have long sensed but never fully expressed

Students arrive July 26 and depart the morning of August 1, 2026. Rising Grade 7 and 8 students, as of Summer 2026, are eligible to apply.

Learn more and apply here: https://www.reasonandrationality.com/pingrymiddleschool

Questions may be directed to info@reasonandrationality.com.
 

A beloved Pingry tradition returned this year as six sophomores and juniors took the stage for the annual Robert H. LeBow ’58 Memorial Oratorical Competition. Each student delivered a thoughtful speech, between four-and-a-half and six-and-a-half minutes, on a topic of their choosing, showcasing the power of student voice, preparation, and public speaking. Coordinated by Upper School Latin Teacher Judy Lebowitz and judged by a panel of faculty and students, this year’s competition recognized Samaya Shah ’27 as the winner and both Mia Gulati ’27 and Sophie Schachter ’27 tied as the first runner-up.

Established in 2005 by the Class of 1958 in memory of their classmate Robert H. LeBow ’58—an accomplished physician and public speaker dedicated to global health care reform—the competition continues to honor his legacy by celebrating the art of thoughtful, persuasive speaking. Watch the video from this year’s competition here.

Gish Jen is the author of six novels, many short stories, and two works of non-fiction. On Wednesday, March 25, she will come to Pingry to deliver the Justin Society lecture.

Brilliant, funny, and ever-surprising, Gish Jen tackles the issues of our time with originality and heart. Of her latest book, the genre-bending autobiographical novel Bad Bad Girl, Junot Diaz, author of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, wrote: “What an amazing novel, wild like love and twice as revealing. Gish Jen has written the multigenerational mother-daughter epic of our new century. Bad Bad Girl spans decades, oceans, continents, generations, languages, showing us we can escape almost anything—except the voices of our parents. Intergenerational mother-daughter mayhem of the absolute best smartest vexing most moving kind.”

Gish Jen will read from her debut novel Typical American, her short story collection Who’s Irish? and Tiger Writing: Art, Culture and the Interdependent Self. She will conduct workshops with students in Creative Writing, The Contemporary Short Story, Gold Rush, and Literature of the Common Good.

It’s time to start planning for Commencement! 

We are offering high-quality diploma frames featuring a navy blue and silver double mat with silver embossing. Each frame is approximately 17 x 19 inches. The Bear Pause has a limited number of these frames available both in-store and online. To guarantee your order, we are offering a pre-order from February 25 to March 25. Frames will be ready for pick up 4–6 weeks after the ordering window closes.

Please note: Due to their size, frames are available for in-store or curbside pick up only; shipping is not available.
 

Members of Form III (Grade 9) and Form IV (Grade 10) interested in being considered for honors science courses will take a placement test. Freshmen will take the Biology and Chemistry placement tests and sophomores will take the Physics placement test. Students should bring a number 2 pencil. Calculators are not permitted. These are aptitude, not content-based, tests. The only preparation necessary is to get a good night’s sleep, eat a healthy breakfast, and come with a number 2 pencil. Students with conflicts or other questions should email Science Department Chair Emeritus David Maxwell.

One Wednesday per month begins with Faculty Collaboration Time, which pushes back the school day start time by one hour. Therefore, on April 1, the first class will begin at 9:30 a.m. Busses will run at their regular times, and students are still welcome to enter the building as early as 7:00 a.m.

Each day will feature student presentations during Flex and CP from many of our research programs, including Independent Research Teams (IRT), Humanities IRT, Robotics, Green Team, SMART Team, Journal Club, FYI Sci, Anatomy Club, PCR Journal, and more. Students will present their work throughout the building.

Form V Pre-prom and Parent Social
Friday, April 24 at 5:30 p.m.
Short Hills Club

Hello Form V Families, 

Please mark your calendars for Friday, April 24 when we will celebrate the Class of 2027.

We are looking for host families to help fund this milestone event. If you are interested in making a host family donation, please contact Kristin Shea at kristin.shea@pfizer.com or Mathangi Srinivas at mathangis@yahoo.com by February 28 for details.

This is a festive opportunity for families and students to mingle and take photos before the Pingry Junior prom. Students will go to the prom directly from the club. Parents are invited to stay and enjoy further conversations, cocktails, and hors d’oeuvres at the parent social.

Invitation and more details to follow. We look forward to seeing you there!  
Kristin Shea & Mathangi Srinivas 
 

Form VI Pre-Prom and Parent Social
Friday, April 24 at 5:30 p.m.
Hamilton Farm Golf Club

Hello Form VI Families, 

Please mark your calendars for Friday, April 24 when we will celebrate the Class of 2026.

We are looking for host families to help fund this milestone event. If you are interested in making a host family donation, please contact Lois Fitton at Lois.Fitton@gmail.com by February 28 for details.

This is a festive opportunity for families and students to mingle and take photos before the Pingry Junior/Senior prom. Students will go to the prom directly from the club by bus. Parents are invited to stay and enjoy further conversations, cocktails, and hors d’oeuvres at the parent social.

Invitation and more details to follow. We look forward to seeing you there!  

Maria Ruffer, Melissa DiTosto, Sarah Smith, and Lois Fitton