The Brookstone Mission Statement has seven Core Values in it that we hold dearly as a school – Loyalty, Courage, Wisdom, Honor, Service, Respect, and Leadership. This year, our Upper School has held a special assembly once a month to focus on those values with guest speakers. We have held two thus far, one focusing on service and one on loyalty, with more planned throughout the school year.

The first panel on service was moderated by Head of School, Henry Heil, and our students heard from a fantastic group of speakers that included Mrs. Meghan Blackmon, Class of 1999 and Director of the Blanchard Leadership Institute and Servant Leadership, Mrs. Katie Krieg, Class of 2000 and Brookstone Board of Trustees, and Mr. Hunter Chapman, US history teacher. All three of them spoke passionately about what service means to them and how it plays out in their everyday life.

 The second panel on loyalty was moderated by Meghan Blackmon, and our students heard from speakers that included Coach Rance Gillespie, Athletic Director and Head Football Coach, Mrs. Catherine Trotter, Class of 1973 and Distinguished Alumni, and Mr. Jacob Crowder, Director of Counseling. These three spoke about both the positive and the more negative side of loyalty and helped our students understand and navigate the difference.

Imparting these values to the next generation is more important than ever. We are so grateful for each of these speakers and for how they model service, loyalty, and all of our core values for our students. It matters!