From the Principal

It is a pleasure to welcome you to the Pierce School community. We take great pride in the richness of our diversity and in our strong commitment to building effective home/school partnerships. It is the essence of what makes our students feel safe, confident and ready to learn. 

Out experience tells us that children are most likely to succeed when there is collaboration between home and school. Clear and consistent communication and cooperation creates an environment which fosters the greatest possible social, emotional and academic growth. 

This Web site will help familiarize you and your child with our school's structure, programs, policies and procedures.  We hope you find many opportunities to participate as active members of our school community.  The PTO offers many avenues throughout the year for you to stay informed and involved.  The staff and I are happy to talk with you at any time. We look forward to working with you so that all of our students will realize their greatest potential. 

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions, suggestions or concerns. Again, I am delighted to welcome you to Pierce.  I look forward to your support and participation as together we continue the tradition of excellence at Pierce School. 

Sincerely, 

Dr Pipier Smith-Mumford 
Principal 

Pierce School Mission Statement

Pierce School is an educational and social community based on the collaboration of students, faculty, staff, and parent/guardians. We promiote the four core values of the Brookline Public Schools. These include:

• High Academic Achievement
• Respect for Human Difference
• Excellence in Teaching
• Collborative Relationships

Learning as we grow

Dr Pipier Smith Mumford and Joshua Frank have written a new article, "Learning as we grow" about the intellectual, social, moral and community development of Pierce children beyond teacher assessments, term grades and standardized test scores.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
Fifth-Eighth Grade Assembly:
Witnessing History

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. would have been 80 years old on his birthday this year. He was killed when I was 11 years old. I knew he was an important man in the civil rights' movement because of the active participation of my family in this cause. Last year I spoke of the conflict between my sisters on how they each chose different ways to be active in the movement. The assassination of Dr. King unified my family in facing this tragedy together. I knew his death was a tragic moment in our history as a nation because of the reactions of my family, family friends and neighbors. I also knew the day of his death was a tragic moment in our country's history because of the anger that was expressed by many in the black communities across the country. I remember vividly the violent images that were shown on TV. Two things happened outside of my home that also helped to shape my memories of that time. My whole school, the William Lloyd Garrison Elementary School in Roxbury, gathered together to sing "We Shall Overcome." That moment taught me the power of music and song to communicate both idealism and determination. Then, I saw his "I Have a Dream" speech, not for the first time, but for the first time that I really listened carefully. The power of Dr. King's oratory gifts and inspirational words made me realize the magnitude of our loss. The part of his speech that jumped out to me was when he said, "My four little children will one day live in a nation where they will be judged, not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." Those words moved me. I thought, "Yes, that's how the world should be."

Today, those words are even more meaningful to me, as the first African American female principal of Pierce. I am proud of the diversity of our school. Thinking of Dr. King's words and Barack Obama's achievements, I believe we have moved closer to this being more of a reality for more people. Let our remembrace of Dr. King and our being witnesses to history today serve as reminders that if you work hard, respect others and serve your community, the color of your skin, your first language, your religion, your socioeconomic status, your physical challenges, your place of birth, your sexual orientation or your gender, will no longer keep you from realizing your dreams.

Other words from Dr. King also moved me. In "Letter from a Birmingham Jail," King wrote, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." Your first response to these words might be, "Why should it matter to me if others are mistreated, as long as I am strong enough, smart enough, cool enough or popular enough, to be treated well by others?" Dr. King's words tell us an important truth: If we let some people be mistreated, it is only a matter of time before we ourselves are mistreated. On the other hand, if we seek to protect those who are vulnerable, we in some way protect ourselves, because we are all vulnerable at one time or another.

So now we are about to witness a historical moment, Barack Obama's inauguration as our 44th president, and our first African-American president. Let's take a few minutes to consider what this means to our country. It means a very important part of Dr. King's Dream has come true, and that it has come true, partly through the power of words and music. It means that we live in a great country, where even those who opposed Obama in the presidential campaign celebrate his achievement. In The Boston Globe the day after the election one columnist wrote, "As a politician, Obama distresses me . . . As a symbol-a son of Africa elected to lead a majority white nation that once enslaved Africans and treated their descendents with great cruelty-Obama's rise makes me proud of our country." So the historical moment we are about to witness is not reserved for Democrats or Republicans, or for blacks as opposed to whites or others. It is for all of us to witness and celebrate.

Barack Obama has also been inspired by Dr. King's words. In talking to students, he quoted King's words just after four black girls were killed in a church bombing in Birmingham in 1963. Many black Americans, and many of their white allies, were understandably feeling despair over this tragedy. Dr. King told them, "The arc of history is long, but it bends toward justice." In 2008, Obama took this idea a step further. He told students at George Mason University, "It doesn't bend on it own. It bends because you put your hand on that arc . . . and you bend it in the direction of justice."

So what does this mean to you as students? I hope that it means that you will be prepared so that you will be proud to be judged by the content of your character. If in fact, you were to be judged today, would you be proud? Would your parents be proud? Would your teachers be proud? I hope it means that you will treat others justly in the understanding that you want others to treat you justly. Most importantly, I hope that just as our country is bending toward justice, you will understand and guide your own growth as individuals toward justice. Put your hand on the arc of your own growth, and bend it towards building a sense of justice. You might do this simply by learning to think more carefully about how you treat others at school. You might do this by becoming more involved in community service or politics. You might do this by learning to see those who are different from you in a new way, as people you might learn from, and reach out to. You might do this by learning to better appreciate what you have.

You won't succeed all the time. None of us do. Living up to these ideals requires idealism and determination, something the civil rights movement, led by Dr. King, brought to us so powerfully through music and song. That's why we observe Martin Luther King, Jr. Day by remembering his legacy, committing ourselves to continually strive to be our best selves, sharing some of those songs, and the meaning they hold for us.

Thank you for being an attentive audience as we witness history together.

Pipier Smith-Mumford
January 20, 2009