Brimmer Blog

What makes a school special is both who its people are and what they believe. At Brimmer, you will find educators who embrace new ideas, respond with dynamic programming, and adjust to the needs of each student. You will find students who are encouraged to be inquisitive, confident, and open with their ideas and beliefs. We are a PK – 12 community that models what it means to be lifelong learners. In Brimmer’s school blog, our educators and administrators share their unique perspectives. Come learn how our students are inspired to learn, encouraged to explore, and empowered to lead.

2025

  • September

    Brimmer Lower School students enjoy reading together

    Starting the Year with Purpose: Routines, Responsive Classroom, and Our Core Values

    Carl Coombs, Assistant Head of School, Head of Lower School
    The beginning of the school year is a time filled with excitement, possibility, and energy. For all our Lower School students, it is also a moment of transition—new classrooms, new teachers, and new friends.
  • Brimmer Upper School students at work

    From a Zero Sum to a Win-Win Educational Mindset

    Joseph Iuliano, Assistant Head of Academic Affairs
    Back in mid-August, Tom Keene of Bloomberg Surveillance, had a conversation with a guest analyst about the zero sum approach that seems to guide the operating rules and goals of our current business and geopolitical environments. Their brief discussion started me thinking about a zero sum conceptualization in education. 

  • Building for a Greater Purpose

    Judith Guild, Head of School
    The team of educators at Brimmer are well educated and ready to offer an outstanding year in the classroom. Your teachers have each pursued their own education and have strong capacity for questioning, imagining, creating, and responding to change. 

  • How to Learn with Intention: Habits that Shape the Mind

    Matt Gallon, Head of Middle School
    At the beginning of the school year, it’s worthwhile to ask yourself a fundamental question: How will I learn? Not just what classes will I take or what assignments will I complete, but how will I approach the act of learning itself?

  • Lead with Integrity

    Joshua Neudel, Head of Upper School
    Leading with integrity isn’t about being flawless. It’s the steady habit of taking responsibility, aligning conduct with conviction, and choosing the right thing, especially under pressure.

  • Learning With Intention

    Carl Coombs, Assistant Head of School & Head of LS
    We all know we come to school to learn; however, learning isn’t just about gathering facts or completing assignments—it’s about applying knowledge to make a difference, influence how people think, and sometimes even send out a ripple of change that could transform the world.

  • June

    This I Believe

    Kimberly Formisano, Head of Lower School
    As I began thinking about a book to reference in my remarks today, I found myself returning to the titles that have stayed with me—books that have spoken to me as both a classroom teacher and a lifelong lover of picture books. 

  • Class of 2025 by the Numbers & Then Some

    Joe Iuliano, Assistant Head of Academic Affairs
    Through its educational aesthetic, applied during the past 1 to 13 years, depending on the grade of enrollment, for the Class of 2025, Brimmer has been preparing the canvas, choosing the colors, and arcing its paint brush in purposeful paths to create a tableau that is personalized, student-centered, and mission driven for our 45 graduates and 350 PK-12 students.

  • May

    Exhibitions of Knowledge

    Carl Coombs, Head of Middle School
    Imagine walking into school to find that the Dining Commons has been transformed into a medieval village, where students transport us back to England in the 14th century. This immersive experience is what brings our Exhibitions of Knowledge—vital, signature pieces of a Brimmer and May education—to life.

  • March

    The Importance of Practice

    Kimberly Formisano, Head of Lower School
    Practice is at the heart of building confidence and driving the progress we celebrate at this point in the year. Throughout the Lower School, students engage in a variety of meaningful practice opportunities.

  • Going Global, in a Nutshell

    Joe Iuliano, Assistant Head of Academic Affairs
    Travel is on my mind, as both the domestic Middle School trips and the Upper School Winterim excursions launch this weekend or early next week—we are ‘getting out of the house’ for some exciting experiential learning and life adventures.

  • 4th Graders Exemplify Guiding Principles

    Kimberly Formisano, Head of Lower School
    I would like to share some ways in which our fourth grade students recently exemplified Brimmer’s guiding principles—being inspired to learn, encouraged to explore, and empowered to lead. 

  • February

    Fostering Globally Minded Citizens

    Carl Coombs, Head of Middle School
    Fostering globally minded citizens and leaders lies at the heart of our school’s mission. This principle is seamlessly integrated into the Middle School curriculum, enriching every grade and subject area. Here are three standout units that illustrate how we bring this vision to life.

  • Sunita Williams Visits Brimmer and May

    Joshua Neudel, Head of Upper School
    The 12th grade and STEAM Diploma students recently had the unique experience of video conferencing with American Astronaut Sunita Williams while she was orbiting the Earth 250 miles away aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

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Brimmer and May School

69 Middlesex Road
Chestnut Hill, MA 02467
617-566-7462
As an inclusive private school community, Brimmer welcomes students who will increase the diversity of our school. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, sex, gender, gender identity and expression, disability, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, or any other characteristic protected from discrimination under state or federal law, in the administration of our educational policies, admissions practices, financial aid decisions, and athletic and other school-administered programs.