Welcoming 2025-2026

Penn Charter rang in the new school year on Sept. 4, 2025, welcoming 1,021 students — the largest student body in Penn Charter’s 336-year history.

Head of School Karen Warren Coleman addressed students in grades 1-12, faculty and staff, and members of the Board of Trustees at the traditional opening assembly. 

"This year," Coleman said, "we center our attention on the themes of integrity and justice. Integrity asks us: Do my actions reflect my values? Integrity requires us to be honest with ourselves and others, and to follow the light that leads each of us. This light may be different than the one the leads your neighbor or friend, but is the light that reflects your own values. In other words, integrity calls each of us to walk our talk, to have our actions reflect our values. 

"Justice asks: How do I cultivate justice in my community and the world? This ties so beautifully to the prevailing mission of Quaker schools: to educate students for society — as it ought to be — and not for society as it is. Each of you has a role in shaping that better world, beginning with the way you live, learn and lead right here at Penn Charter."

In his remarks, Jak Kramer, senior class clerk, compared the rapidly evolving society in which we live to the constancy of our values. 

"Penn Charter will be Penn Charter because of its grounding in Quaker values," he said. "As we approach the opportunities and challenges of the ever-changing world of cell phones and AI, our values and morals must remain consistent. This very moral consistency is the definition of integrity. ... Justice helps us to deal with the inevitable breaks in moral consistency.

"Embarking on a year in which we live with integrity and justice means accepting accountability for one’s actions, and honoring that of God in other people. It means accepting the reality of destructive behavior while offering opportunities for individuals to regain their good."

Marking the end of the assembly, the a cappella Quakers Dozen performed "Make Them Hear You" from the musical Ragtime, written by Stephen Flaherty (music) and Lynn Ahrens (lyrics).

See photos of the All-School Assembly and the first day of school, including our youngest students in the new Richard A. Balderston OPC '69 Lower School.