Such a “Girls’ School Moment”: Head of School Shares What Makes Girls’ Schools Truly Different

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by Andrea Kassar, Head of School, Westridge School for Girls
photos by Kambria Fischer Photography, courtesy of Westridge School for Girls

One of my favorite things to do each day at Westridge is to set aside specific times in my daily schedule to “walkabout” campus. There is always an inspiring bustle and an adventurous adolescent energy, and yet somehow, there is simultaneously a sense of perspective and calm and purpose.

There are also many moments in my walkabouts, when I see or hear something, and I think with admiration, “This is such a girls’ school moment.” As someone who has been in girls’ schools for 35 years (as a student, English teacher, administrator, and parent), I know these moments when I see them. It can be difficult sometimes to put words to what I mean. But if you attended Westridge, or you have ever been to a girls’ school or women’s college or even girls’ summer camp, you may already know what I mean. I’ll describe two recent moments that capture it.

The first moment: On a recent walkabout, I passed a 4th grader and we said hello to each other. A few seconds later, she turned around and said, “Oh, Ms. Kassar, I have been meaning to ask you something. I’m wondering… how is it going running the school?” (How wonderful is this?!) I said, “Thanks very much for asking, it’s been really fun—I love running the school.” She nodded in understanding and said, “That’s great to hear.” She turned back and went about her day.

The second moment: The seniors have a special outdoor area of campus that is all their own, which also happens to be right outside my office. They have set up a hammock in this area, and one Friday afternoon after school, I saw a senior lying in the hammock reading. From my vantage point, all I could see was the very top of her head, the tips of her sneakers, and her arms holding up Ellison’s “Invisible Man” (a text they read in English—one of my all-time favorites). Near her, two other seniors were sitting at their senior table having an afternoon snack and laughing together.

Both of these moments feel very “girls’ school” to me. The sense of confidence, the sense of ease and comfort in one’s own curiosity, one’s own voice, one’s own sense of space and home on campus, one’s own choice to be quietly intellectual or chatty on a Friday afternoon. Profound independence, profound community.

“Being in an all-girls school has enabled me to really focus on me and my learning. I feel empowered each day as I know I am finding and building on my inner strength, finding my voice, becoming more confident and preparing myself for success.”
Avani L. ’26

At our recent admission Open House, I spoke with many wonderful families who asked me lots of thoughtful questions—and the number one question I received was about the importance and power of girls’ schools. This is exciting because I have always loved talking to families about the power of girls’ schools. I often share something a colleague said to me when he moved from years of coed teaching to a girls’ school: “Since in a classroom, girls tend to be more mature than boys, you really can get down to the business of learning much faster in a girls’ school.” Of course, this is a generalization, but still, it struck him how much further he was able to delve into the material—particularly in the middle school years—compared to what he was able to accomplish in a coed classroom.

Another comment I like to share is one that was said to me a few years ago from a mother whose daughter had just begun 7th grade at a girls’ school after many years in a coed school: “My daughter just throws up her hair in a ponytail and comes to school now. I know every girl is different about this, but for my daughter, she’s not constantly feeling she has to act or look a certain way—she can just focus on her learning and the things she loves at school.”

Finally, I share an idea that may seem obvious in the abstract but is, in practice, I believe, utterly life-changing: girls are the most powerful voices in the advanced math or rocketry class, the most honored athletes, the first to raise their hands in class, the funniest people in the room—this is just how it is here. There is no mirroring of gender inequities that (sadly) continue to exist in the world; and therefore, our students gain practice and confidence doing all the things they want to do here, and then go on to college and beyond to continue doing the things they love. Despite barriers, despite gender inequities—these exist, yes, but they have the practice and confidence learned here to do them anyway.

“The supportive all-girls environment at Westridge has helped me develop a strong sense of myself. I have become more self-aware and confident in my capabilities both in and out of the classroom.”
Isabella K. ’23

Last week, I was at a lunch with six Westridge alumnae. They all said that—even after college and graduate programs galore—their number one most valuable, important, and life-changing educational experience was, without a doubt, at Westridge.

This may sound surprising, but actually, it wasn’t to me. As I’ve met numerous alums over the last few months, each one of them talks about the importance of Westridge in their lives—and specifically on the “trajectory” of their life (many of them use that exact word). They have all felt that Westridge has fundamentally impacted the trajectory that their lives have taken—that they would not have accomplished the things they were able to accomplish had it not been for their years at Westridge.

This is inspiring. And it connects deeply to my understanding of girls’ schools and what exactly they are.

Recently, the Westridge student newspaper “Spyglass” asked me how I would define a girls’ school. I said, “To me a girls’ school means a school that stands for empowering the trajectory of women’s educational progress through time and is therefore committed to gender equity in the fullest sense. It is also a place that cares deeply about each student and making sure the school fosters a deep sense of belonging for every student.” So coincidentally, I too used the word “trajectory”—but in this case, not for an individual life path, but for the collective. The aspiration, the ultimate mission, of gender equity. Of Mary Ranney founding Westridge in 1913 to give girls the opportunity to have the same education the boys were getting. Of striving to rise. Of a commitment to progress, to a path, and to forward-momentum.

This is why I have committed my life to girls’ schools. Because the trajectory of girls’ schools is in my DNA as a human being, woman, and citizen, as it is for so many of our students and alums; and the trajectory of women’s educational progress through time is in the DNA of girls’ schools.

And as for Westridge specifically, to me Westridge stands out in its comprehensive understanding that girls/women are both profoundly intellectual and also profoundly human. It stands out in the systems and culture that align to know and appreciate each student in all her depth. It stands out in the intellectualism and dedication of the faculty. It stands out in the “all-in-ness” of students as they skip into homeroom, as they write code, as they mold their ceramics bowl, as they stand up on stage to make announcements, as they lose themselves in peals of laughter with a group of friends over a picnic on the grass. Westridge unfolds and stands out in new ways to me each day during my cherished walkabouts.

I can’t wait to see what students ask me about tomorrow.

“I like going to an all-girls’ school because it can show how powerful girls can be.”
Lily F. ’30