Encouraging children to consider and care about the thoughts and feelings of others builds empathy, which promotes improved academic achievement and positive relationships.
Mission & Values
Our Mission
St. Matthew’s Parish School, an Episcopal day school, is an integral part of the Parish of St. Matthew, serving children and families of the parish and larger community. The School provides an excellent education through a challenging, caring, and balanced program. Our purpose is to affirm that we are all children of God and to nurture intellectual, creative, spiritual, and ethical individuals who serve, lead, and flourish in an ever-changing world.
Serve • Lead • Flourish
Our values are what both define and drive us, and we believe that cultivating humanity, altruism, and generosity in our students is crucial to achieving a true, complete, well-developed character that comprises both a strong mind and an open heart. These values are reflected in our School motto: “Serve. Lead. Flourish.”
The School’s motto states our desire to have each student at St. Matthew’s be a person who serves others, both within the School and the larger community. This goes beyond formal service learning to considering the needs of others before our own needs. Leadership is developed from the earliest grade levels where students are given the opportunity to work collaboratively with classmates and to take turns being in a leadership role. And from this work of service and leadership, we hope each will flourish and enjoy a fulfilling life.
Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging at St. Matthew’s
St. Matthew’s Parish School strives to be a welcoming and inclusive community that values diversity in all senses of the word. We are committed to making each member of the community feel that her or his whole identity is acknowledged, supported, and appreciated. We believe that an appreciation of diversity and inclusivity is essential to our mission, our goals to serve, lead, and flourish, as well as the five principles of our Character Covenant: respect, responsibility, empathy, honesty, and fairness. Building and sustaining an inclusive community will create the most powerful and effective learning environment, and will also help us learn and work as global citizens.
St. Matthew’s Parish School admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.
Character Covenant
Every student in the School community, Preschool – 8th grade, discusses and signs a Character Covenant that articulates our expectations on how we expect to be treated and will treat, care for, and support others in our community. The Covenant and our daily work at school promote the School’s motto – Serve Lead Flourish – through emphasizing the following five principles: Empathy, Honesty, Fairness, Respect, Responsibility.
Empathy
Honesty
Developing a sense of honesty is an important part of social-emotional learning and character education that forms the basis of trust in all relationships.
Fairness
Instilling a sense of fairness in children lays a foundation for empathy and sensitivity that will help them understand the needs of others.
Respect
Learning respect helps children to respond to direction and instruction in a positive way that will help them to succeed in academics.
Responsibility
Teaching children to take responsibility helps them build confidence in their decision-making and gives them a sense of pride and competence, which will help them grow into confident, capable adults.
