In the Spring of 2020, the federal government rolled out the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) to help provide support for businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The initial round of the plan was based on the desire to maintain employees on payroll regardless of the impact of COVID closures, rather than laying people off and...Read More

One of the hallmarks of an authentic Montessori school is the “three-year cycle.” We have students in the same program with the same teachers for three years to progress as Youngers to Middlers to Olders. We see so many benefits to this. Here are a few: Allowing for students to learn from and be leaders...Read More

We were devastated to learn that a white man attacked and murdered eight people in Atlanta,six of whom were Asian American women. We want to express our solidarity with the families ofall Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders from our community and in the country.We condemn these actions of hate and violence fed by white supremacy...Read More

Like every week, last week I talked to my family who lives in New York. My older brother, whohas been in this country for 24 years, has two kids who go to the public elementary school neartheir house. Usually my nine year old nephew and seven year old niece like to share the coolnew things...Read More

During the last two weeks, the staff has been having conversations aboutthe importance of celebrating Black History Month and how to integrate thiscelebration mindfully into our curriculum. We have discussed sensitive partsof our pasts and come face to face with the racist narrative that many of uswere taught in school. This “official American history” that...Read More

“Get in good trouble, necessary trouble” -Representative John Lewis On January 6th, the most representative expression of white supremacy in this countrywas carried out and witnessed by millions. I can’t say how this horrible action impactedmost people, but I can say that I was frightened and scared. At the exact moment thatthe Capitol, in Washington...Read More

The snow is finally here, just in time for the much-anticipated winter break. The effortsand challenges that Hilltop staff have experienced during this first part of the year havebeen both remarkable and heartbreaking. Working in the middle of a pandemic will be,for many of us, one of the biggest achievements and challenges in our careers...Read More

Our lives are constructed by multiple stories, but sometimes we can’t, or aren’t, allowedto tell them all. Sometimes we have the power to lock up the stories that we don’t wantto remember, or simply can’t remember. Sometimes we hold on to the stories that helpus continue going with our days, or sometimes we tell the...Read More

I remember that my first Thanksgiving in this country was celebrated in agas station in New Jersey, eating a turkey sandwich with a can of ginger ale.Of course, that didn’t mean anything to me – neither the food nor theholiday. I was not from this country, this culture, this history. Later on, Iunderstood that Thanksgiving...Read More

Last Friday, during our In-Service Day, faculty and staff participated in the zoomworkshop “Capoeira as Cultural Competence Builder” with the Brazilian CapoeiraMestre, Fuá Nascimento. Mestre Fuá and the Hilltop staff discussed the history andphysical movement of capoeira, considered one of the largest Black resistancemovements. Capoeira is a cultural ritual practice that involves fighting, dancing, singing,rhythm,...Read More