Greetings From Epiphany!
Dear Friends,
As you probably know, the Early Learning Center runs year around, and the Middle School runs through July with our residential Summer Intensive at Groton School so a lot has happened since our last edition of Always Learning. I'd like to highlight the trip we make every year to Hurricane Island in Penobscot Bay. Freed from screens, our students study ecology and teamwork with a team of experienced educators in this special place. We discovered this program years ago thanks to some wonderful friends, and it’s been fantastic! We appreciate them, and we appreciate YOU!!!
Your Grateful Fan,
The Rev. John H. Finley IV
Partner Spotlight
MFS Investment Management
As part of our Corporate & Foundation Spotlight, we’re proud to recognize MFS Investment Management for its continued partnership with Epiphany School.
Over the years, MFS has been a valued part of the Epiphany community, supporting our Soirée and past gala events and helping us bring people together around our mission and the work we do with students and families. We are especially thankful for the relationships behind that support and for MFS’s continued connection to the life of the school. It means a great deal to have partners who not only support Epiphany’s work, but remain engaged in our community over time.
Graduate Support Spotlight
Euridio Evora ’01
For Euridio Evora ’01, Epiphany has been part of his life for more than 20 years. A member of Epiphany’s first graduating class, he returned years later to teach here for seven years. “Going back to Epiphany to teach was already full circle for me, but then seeing the younger siblings and children of some of the friends I made there and getting to teach them made it even more special. It was really cool to see those relationships continue,” he says.
Today, Euridio is an Assistant Principal at Boston Collegiate High School, where some Epiphany graduates continue their education. He is also pursuing an EdD in Education Policy and School Leadership at Boston University while balancing work and family as a husband and father to his four-year-old son, Santiago.
After 18 years in education, Euridio says returning to school has been challenging but rewarding. “It’s very refreshing to be back in the classroom as a student and learning new information.”
More than two decades after graduating, Euridio continues to learn, lead, and find new ways to make an impact in the lives of students.
Learning is Cool: Epiphany Curriculum Highlights
Hurricane Island Exploration
For Epiphany’s 7th graders, Hurricane Island offers something hard to find in everyday life: a chance to fully immerse in a new place away from familiar and away from screens. During their annual five-day trip to Hurricane Island in Penobscot Bay, our adventuresome students explored tidal pools, studied marine life, and even headed out on a lobster boat to learn more about the coastal ecosystem. With the island as their classroom, science became something they could see, touch, and experience firsthand—including getting to hold a lobster.
That hands-on approach reflects how Hurricane Island connects young people with science, research, and environmental learning. Its island setting encourages students to investigate the natural world, think about their role as stewards of it, and learn together—without the usual distractions of phones and everyday life.
Hurricane Island creates space for the kind of learning that stays with students—discovering
something new, seeing science in action, and making memories with friends along the way. We’re grateful to everyone who helps make this special Epiphany tradition possible.
Beyond the Pages
On September 16, the 7th and 8th grade went to the movie "The Odyssey" that was released this summer. First the 7th grade read a young student's version of the epic tale. Once they had encountered and made sense of Odysseus' desperation to get back home after the Trojan War and drawn the different encounters with the Sirens and the like, we journeyed downtown. As always, the excitement of the T and the purchase of numerous slurpees and giant bins of popcorn dominated our first hour of the excursion. But finally everyone settled down into their seats for the 3 hour epic.
It was extremely gratifying to listen to the students, on the day of the show and later in class discussions, wrestling with the director Christopher Nolan's interpretation of the different monsters, of the scenery, of Penelope's costumes. The students did a great job beginning the conversation about how movies change books, often inventing entirely new characters and themes. We felt like we had succeeded in our quest to get students writing about things that matter to them. Everyone enjoyed our first ELA field trip of the year.
Garden Roots
“We don’t just grow food. We grow people.” — Urban Farming Institute. That idea came to life this summer in Epiphany’s Garden. Our Garden gave us plenty to celebrate—and plenty to learn from. As our flowers, fruits, and vegetables grew, they created opportunities for students to experiment, create, cook, explore, and give back. Once again, the Garden became a place to build life skills, nurture curiosity, and discover how to flourish.
Epiphany is part of a large community of city gardens, and recently our 8th graders visited the Urban Farming Institute (UFI), whose mission is “to cultivate a city where diverse food cultures flourish and everyone can grow and share food in their own neighborhoods.” At UFI, students explored how urban farming can strengthen communities before rolling up their sleeves and getting to work in their garden, harvesting kale and tomatoes for a fresh salad, making pesto from garden-grown ingredients for sandwiches, and enjoying freshly picked raspberries in parfaits. All of this then came together as a delicious meal to share with UFI staff featuring produce from both gardens. Finally, they packaged seeds for UFI’s upcoming seed swap.
From growing and harvesting to cooking, sharing, and conserving, students experienced how gardens can nourish people and communities—and how the seeds we plant today can help others flourish tomorrow.
Early Learning Center Corner
Growing Wings
Students at Epiphany’s Early Learning Center got a front-row seat to one of nature’s amazing transformations. Recently, our toddler and preschool classrooms spent weeks caring for tiny caterpillars as they grew, built their chrysalises, and finally emerged as butterflies.
Each day, the children checked on their caterpillars, observed their growth, and shared what they noticed. Through the experience, they practiced patience, gentleness, and responsibility—and learned that living things need care to thrive.
When the butterflies were ready, the whole building gathered to watch them take flight. With cheers, waves, and more than a few “Bye, butterfly!” calls, the children celebrated their transformation—a joyful reminder of the power of nurturing growth.
A Place to Feel Seen
For Derrick, an Epiphany graduate and former Teaching Fellow, returning to the ELC while pursuing his master’s gave him the opportunity to offer young children what Epiphany had given him: a place to feel safe, be themselves, and grow.
“Being someone who comforted the children and gave them space to be themselves was always such a joy,” he says.
One moment especially stayed with him. After stepping away to wash dishes, a coworker told him, “Galaxi was just calling out your name when you were out of the room.” It was the first time Galaxi had said his name—and she was looking for him.
Epiphany News
Meet Emily Flores, Teaching Fellow
For Emily, education has always been connected to possibility. A recent graduate of Williams College, where she studied philosophy and global studies, she has explored education through research, community engagement, and work supporting students. As a first-generation college graduate, Emily knows firsthand how powerful it can be when someone helps you imagine a future you may not have considered for yourself.
That experience continues to shape her path as an educator. Emily was part of Thrive Scholars, a six-year program that supports underrepresented BIPOC students as they prepare for top colleges and pursue careers they are passionate about. After completing the program herself, she returned as a Teaching Assistant at Washington University in St. Louis, where she worked with new scholars in a writing course, helping strengthen their academic skills and prepare for the transition to college.
Now at Epiphany, Emily is continuing to grow through hands-on classroom experience each day. She appreciates having the freedom to be creative, explore her interests, and discover where they might lead. Her previous experience working with English language learners has also sparked an interest she hopes to continue exploring.
At Epiphany, Emily is finding room to grow, explore, and shape her own path while helping her students do the same.
Full Circle in the Garden
This summer, we welcomed back Epiphany graduate Sahmir Russell ’18 to our Garden team. As a student, Sahmir was an active member of our Green Club, and this summer he helped with a range of hands-on learning experiences that happen in the Garden. Today, he’s helping a new generation of students learn, create, and grow.
“It’s been a blessing to have the opportunities given to me at such a young age…and being able to then give that perspective of life back to the same people has just been an ultimate blessing.”
From cooking and career development to working with students across all four Middle School
grades, Sahmir is helping others discover the many ways the Garden can be a place to learn, create, reflect, and flourish.
We are Hiring!
We are always looking for dynamic people to join our community. All job openings are listed here, and if you know someone who might be the right fit, we hope you will pass that opportunity along.