Founders' Day is a Poughkeepsie Day School tradition, established in 1994, to celebrate the school's 60th anniversary . Over the years, this special event has been used to inaugerate heads of school, honor individuals and to bring the community together.

This year, a special celebration in honor of veteran English teacher Don Fried and his thirty years of inspiring PDS students (don't worry: he's not retiring!) will bring alumni and alumni parents back to campus for a reunion. View schedule.

Founders' Days of yore
New head of school Josie Holford was innaugerated at Founders' Day in 2006. Previous Founders' Day celebrations have featured speakers in the Elizabeth C. Gilkeson lecture series, inaugerated in honor of the school's founding director. They included: Ellen Gallinsky, co-founder and co-director of the Families and Work Institute in New York; Christina Hoff-Sommers, professor of philosophy at Clark University; Peter Relic, president of the National Association of Independent Schools; Sheila Sadler, founding director of Village Community School in New York; John Agresto, former present of St. John's College in Santa Fe, NM; and Leon Botstein, president of Bard College.

It has also served as the occasion for honoring veteran faculty members (1997) and dedicating new buildings (Kenyon House in 1995 and Gilkeson Center in 1999). A special memorial service for PDS director Tony Buccelli was held at Founders' Day in 2001. And in 2004, PDS celebrated its 70th anniversary on Founders' Day.

For more information, contact the development and communciations office.