Grandparents & Special Friends Day, beloved by those both in and out of the Circle, was greeted by a warm welcome again this year. The pouring rain couldn’t stop the embracing of this tradition, which kicked off with musical and dance performances for the special audience of grandparents and friends.
For all guests, the highlight of the day was simply getting to spend more quality time with their students. “I love being with Sierra and all her friends,” said Crystal Jones, who is the grandmother of Sierra Verma ʼ26.
It also gives grandparents a chance to reconnect with the rest of the family. A favorite part of visiting for the tradition every year “is actually coming to California and just spending time with family,” said Jan Rajeck, Cali Scolnick ʼ26’s grandmother. This year, Rajeck attended her third Grandparents & Special Friends Day.
Grandparents loved classes where teachers offered them chances to participate and engage. “I like the fact that we were, as a visitor, engaged in part of the class work,” Rajeck said. “In the first class, English, reading Raisin In the Sun, we were playing Walter and we had to analyze him.” Jones shared this sentiment: “My favorite class was biology because there were the posters, and she made everything very interactive.”
Grandparents & Special Friends Day is an exciting event for both ends too. Students were eager to show their grandparents their classes at Castilleja and introduce them to their friends. “I was most excited to show my grandma how my classes operated and the interactiveness of the classes and just kind of what my day-to-day life looks like as a student here,” Verma said.
“I was excited to show them my classes and all my great classmates and teachers and how a class normally runs,” Scolnick said. The unique nature of classes at Castilleja made them an exciting experience for students to share with their grandparents or special friends.
Rajeck noted that she found Castilleja to be a truly special school. “I so admire all of you who go to school here… you have to come in and be engaged. One of the joys is that you
all step up and have a responsibility in every class and rise to the occasion,” she said. Scolnick’s grandfather, Merill Rajeck, added that “a good question is, would you rather go here or teach here?”
Bringing a grandparent with you through your day at school and showing them a different side of your life can feel a little daunting at first. But when asked if anything surprised them about seeing how their grandchildren were at school, most grandparents were actually surprised by how few differences they noticed between their students at home and at Castilleja. “Sierra’s actually the same at the house and at school. The one thing is she’s a lot more tidy here,” Jones said.
Most students attributed this to how much they are able to simply be themselves at Casti, even with their teachers.
Even students who didn’t bring a special guest appreciated the tradition. “I think it’s so cute. I genuinely have the best time ever with my friends’ grandparents. And I think it’s so sweetly designed how all the teachers kind of make their curriculum that day around the fact that there’s visitors,” Candy Fu ʼ26 said.
Grandparents & Special Friends Day warmed the hearts of everyone on campus amid the rainy weather, and will continue to be a treasured part of Castilleja tradition for many years to come.
