Dear Davis Family,

The Davis Academy will always be our home. Our family’s story at Davis began back in 2009 when we chose Davis for our oldest daughter, Emily. At the time, we considered several private schools in the Atlanta area and just felt that Davis had something unique. We could feel the love while touring the school and the smiles on the students’ faces were evident. Emily quickly fell in love with Davis and our youngest daughter, Daryn, followed her to Roberts Drive just a few years later. Now, here we are, with both daughters in high school and after thirteen years, moving from Davis parents to Davis alumni parents.  

What an amazing journey it has been.

It is not the incredible, eighth grade Israel adventure, that culminates nine years of a Davis education. It is not the moments on the tennis, volleyball and basketball courts or on the stages hosting Broadway-like musical theater productions that create life-changing experiences. It is not the all-school Kabbalat Shabbats, students adorned in blue and white, or the Siddur ceremonies in second grade and Torah readings in fifth, as parents proudly beam with tears in their eyes. It’s not the algebra equations or “To Kill a Mockingbird” or science projects or presidential biographies. And it is not the Young Authors Nights, spirited field days, longingly anticipated overnight trips, musical instrument recitals, visiting authors, Mystery Readers or even recess.

Rather, what we will remember most about The Davis Academy are the values instilled in our children and the people who shaped their lives. Our two children each spent nine years at Davis, with millions of moments that made each of their experiences so memorable and unique and we could not be prouder of the education they each received.

Davis’ core values are espoused in the classrooms, hallways, fields of play and in our greater community, centered on kavod, spirit, kindness and giving back, which align with our family values. During the school week, our children spent more of their waking hours under the Davis roof than under our own. It will always be meaningful to us and to them that those values effortlessly flowed between home and school and back again. While each of our children had her own amazing academic, athletic and extracurricular experience at Davis, together with their classmates, they learned how to treat others, how to advocate for themselves, and how to engage in the greater community.

The driving force behind the values and in our deep appreciation and love for Davis are those who make it all happen. The people. From the warm and inclusive experience during the admission process to the welcoming hugs and giant smiles on the first day of school in kindergarten. The teachers and administrators were there for all of the small but important milestones of our children’s growth and development, academic and athletic successes, and all of the moments in between. The holidays, the celebrations, the friendships, the fun and, ultimately, the discovery that teachers are really “fun people” on overnight field trips and in Israel. From teachers who knew when our kids needed some extra TLC to the administrators who truly cared about each individual student and constantly worked to make their unique experiences a better one. The people at Davis made a school not just a place to learn and grow but a second home—a true Kehillah.

The Davis Academy will always be our home and this is our story.
 

Tamara & Brian Mand
Alumni Parents