Dear Mrs. Hill and Harpeth Hall Board of Trust,

We are writing to you today on behalf of a significant number of current parents, former parents, and alumnae. The past week has been challenging for everyone, regardless of viewpoint. One thing on which we all agree is that, you, the faculty and the board, care deeply about our girls and Harpeth Hall as an institution. With that in mind, nothing can surpass a parent’s love and concern for a daughter. Adopting a policy that invites application to Harpeth Hall by anyone other than females is a critical change in the structure of the school, and by extension, has a major impact on our daughters.

We understand deeply the need for each and every child to be supported and to find the best environment for each stage of their development. We also admire every parent that seeks to find the very best environment for their unique child. Nashville presents many options, including schools spread across every social and educational dimension – who accept and develop children without consideration of sex/gender. But we chose Harpeth Hall intentionally because of its educational excellence, its many traditions, and, yes, its focus on girls. As much as many see issues of sex/gender as very complex, there is also a simple approach for our school: that Harpeth Hall selects and develops girls across a wide spectrum of backgrounds, but only girls, girls at birth who also identify as girls today. We feel strongly that this is ideal for our daughters and granddaughters, and will allow them to develop and grow, compete, and thrive without the distractions and complexities of boys, born or declared, in the classroom, and on the fields and stages.

A significant number of families and donors in the Harpeth Hall community, including those copied on this message, feel that the administration and board at Harpeth Hall have failed to include us in the process of considering such major change. Harpeth Hall’s reputation is damaged and we would all like to be part of the process of fixing it.

We respectfully request a live, open-forum town hall, with all school administrators, committee members, and board members involved in the creation and adoption of this policy.

Given recent damage to the Harpeth Hall brand nationally and internationally, the matter is urgent. We submit the following dates and times to you to be held in Harpeth Hall’s main gym with no media, crisis management, or PR teams present:

Wednesday, 8/17 at 7:00pm Thursday, 8/18 at 7:00pm

On behalf of all Harpeth Hall community members that have consented to CC on this message, we thank you for your consideration as we seek to restore trust in The Harpeth Hall School.