April 2025 Newsletter
PHILLIPS Gala a Major Success
This year’s gala, Ideas in Bloom: Together We SpringForward, was an extraordinary gathering filled with warmth, laughter, and camaraderie. We all gathered at Hilton McLean Tyson’s Corner to celebrate the remarkable difference that PHILLIPS and SpringForward are making in the lives of our young people.
The evening began with a cocktail reception, during which gala attendees enjoyed the open bar and hors d’oeuvres while catching up with old friends and making new ones. Attendees were then ushered into the banquet hall, where Shawn Yancy, News4 anchor and master of ceremony, kicked off the program with welcome remarks during dinner. The program featured remarkable performances from our student step dance team and a moving speech from entrepreneur and proud PHILLIPS graduate Ashley Graves. Later in the program, Agritecture's Henry Gordon-Smith was presented the 2025 Community Engagement award for his early leadership in helping design a vertical farm and hydroponic curriculum.
The live auction, always a crowd favorite, did not disappoint. Guests were involved in thrilling back-and-forths around coveted items, including a private dinner from world-renowned chef and gala co-chair Dan Giusti. The gala was capped by an after-party highlighted by the acclaimed DC dining house Pineapple and Pearl’s Sundae Bar and an open bar.
All in all, it was a magnificent night during which attendees learned about the fantastic things going on at PHILLIPS and our big plans for SpringForward Ventures this year, including the 2,000-square-foot indoor hydroponic farm and the three high-tech greenhouses that we are breaking ground on. Thank you to all our attendees, and a special thank you to our sponsors, for whom the event would not have been possible. Your generous support allows us to make a difference.
We hope to see you in 2027, our 60th anniversary!
PHILLIPS Takes Part in International Collaboration at the Library of Congress
Due to our staff's invaluable expertise and experience, PHILLIPS employees are often called upon to counsel and consult in providing services to neurodiverse populations. This year, PHILLIPS was honored to be invited by the Congressional Office for International Leadership to present to delegations from the eastern European countries of Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, and Georgia. This incredible opportunity focused on programming for students with Autism and strategies for working with neurodiverse populations.
Our "Dream Team"—Jeneen Moore, Sara Veley, Barbara McCollett, and Kristy Wright—presented "It Takes a Team: A Collaborative Developmental Approach to Children with Autism" at the Library of Congress. Topics include Communication strategies, Behavioral interventions and positive supports, Sensory processing, and Classroom-based interventions.
Later, our team was able to join the international delegates for lunch and learn more about how other countries program for students with special needs. PHILLIPS wants to thank our special group for quickly putting together an informative presentation, as the delegations received it well. PHILLIPS is so very lucky to have this expertise in our midst.
Forum Emphasizes Need for Education-to-Employment Programming
In February, our Executive Director of Programs, Zachary Haney, was invited to the inaugural Work-Based Learning Leaders Forum hosted by American Student Assistance (ASA) in Raleigh, NC. This professional learning experience convened a select group of educators, policymakers, and workforce development leaders to advance youth experiential learning opportunities; a space PHILLIPS has been operating in for over four decades.
The multi-format event featured salon-style roundtable discussions, expert-led sessions, and collaborative activities to identify policy gaps, foster partnerships, and reimagine work-based learning (WBL) models for high school and middle school students. A central theme of the forum was the expansion of career-connected learning pathways that integrate real-world experiences with academic instruction and education-to-employment programming.
The forum also highlighted the critical role of community-based organizations in supporting under-resourced communities and at-promise students. Key discussions addressed the necessity of systemic change to make WBL experiences more accessible and effective across all student populations and industries. Participants emphasized the importance of cross-sector collaboration, policy innovation, and the development of scalable models adaptable to diverse educational contexts.
Haney reflected on the experience "as an invaluable space for meaningful dialogue and enriching discussion between business leaders and educational organizations. The stories shared and the problems of practice we examined were a true testament to PHILLIPS Programs' status as a trailblazer in WBL for private-day school students in Virginia and Maryland. As the only school system represented among 25 participants from different states and geographic regions, it is an honor to be an inaugural member of this forum, and it won't be our last either, I'm sure of it."
Big Plans for SpringForward as it Continues to Make Impact
SpringForward continues to develop as a transformative business model aimed at changing lives by creating people-first work environments.
SF Feeds, an arm of SpringForward, creates high-quality meal production jobs while providing needed training to secure ServSafe certifications, gaining culinary skills alongside a professional chef, and assisting with menu planning, meal preparation, and service. It is rooted in the success of PHILLIPS Programs' culinary Career Technical Education curricula, which has educated more than 90 students in the past two years. Since 2022, SF Feeds has partnered with world-renowned chef Dan Giusti's Brigaid, providing our students with delicious and nutritious scratch-cooked meals while transforming their school meals experience. SF Feeds has prepared 2,000 meals a week in the last year while employing two new team members.
Another one of our business arms, SF Farms, consists of agricultural initiatives centered on hydroponic farming. SpringForward's goals for the year include expanding SF Farms' capacity by building three high-tech greenhouses. We are also scaling up SF Feeds' capacity by adding a few employees, including a chef and another kitchen. SpringForward will continue to create opportunities for student internships and community apprenticeships and transition businesses toward employee ownership.
