Alexander Roberts Serves As Headmaster for A Day – October 20

Wednesday, October 20 was not only Ranney’s 50th Birthday celebration but it was also officially Mario Day, named in honor of staff member Mario Perriera’s, who will retire from Ranney on October 29 after 24 years of service to the school. It was also a very special day for one lucky 5th grader - Alexander Roberts. Because for this one day Alex was Ranney Headmaster - an experience that Alex has wished for since he was a three-year-old Beginner.

Alex’s parents, Doug ’79 and Nancy Roberts, were the lucky winners in the Headmaster for A Day raffle, held last spring in conjunction with the Panther Ball Golden Gala. Said Alex, “Since I was first at Ranney School, I was dying to do this. After the Panther Ball, when my parents knew they’d won the raffle, they came home and woke me up to tell me. I was screaming ‘woo hoo!’ I was so excited.” And the day certainly lived up to Alex’s expectations. “I’m the Head of School,” commented Alex, “Not many people have done that and it makes me feel very special. As Headmaster for A Day, Alex had the chance to do a lot of headmaster types of things, like wear a “cool” Ranney navy blazer and tie, sit at the Headmaster’s desk in the Headmaster’s office, choose the menu for school lunch (pizza and chicken fajitas), and announce dress down days – October 22 for Middle School, in honor of his sister, Elizabeth ‘15, and November 5 for his fellow Lower School students.

During a special celebration on the sports track and field, where Mario was recognized and honored before the entire student body, and a huge birthday cake was unveiled, Alex stepped to the podium and welcomed students, faculty, Dr. Sykoff and Margaret Mahon, former Head of School, telling them how glad he was to be their Headmaster for the day. Alex wrote his own speech and practiced it in front of his parents, sister and grandmother, so his delivery was very polished.

When asked what he would change about the school if he were Headmaster every day, Alex mentioned several ideas, among them, putting air conditioning in the GPA and creating Kid’s Choice Day, where kids could vote online for their favorite food choices for lunch, such as pizza, buffalo wings or tacos.

Already Alex knows that he wants to attend Stanford or Duke after he graduates from Ranney School and work with computers and become an entrepreneur – maybe even inventing a super phone. If Alex’s success as Headmaster for A Day is any indication, he definitely has a bright future ahead of him.

For additional information on all Ranney School news, please contact the Communications Department at communications@ranneyschool.org.