Oscar Mike

"Oscar Mike" is a military radio transmission that means "on the move" or "on the march."  It literally means "we are ready to move out and accomplish our mission."

We are Oscar Mike in the Upper School right now.

We are moving out.  We are not stationary.  New schedule.  New teachers.  New students.  New head.  New this, new that.  May be hectic, but at least we're moving.  And we are moving forward.

Fort Worth Country Day is not afraid to self-evaluate.  That makes me proud.

Here are some of the exciting things going on...

Career Conversation Series.  The Career Conversation Series provides our kids the opportunity to learn about life after college through discussions with industry professionals.  In an effort to tap into the vast professional knowledge of our parent and alumni community, we’ll be hosting monthly discussions about various careers.  Each month’s program will have an industry focus (such as law, the arts, banking and finance, oil and gas exploration, etc.) and feature guests who will share their experiences and reflections on the field. The program is open to all Upper School students regardless of class and will meet during our announcement period.  The first program is scheduled for September 3 and will address the field of law and feature Judge Melody Wilkinson and Mr. Mo Sheats.

Principal's Council.  The purpose of this committee of ten students is to promote student-US Head communication and to facilitate action toward solving school challenges.  I’ll pick the students this first year and we will meet monthly at my home on selected Sunday evenings.  At our first meeting we will focus on “co-creation,” discuss collaboration techniques, and develop the meeting norms that will guide our discussions.  The primary mechanism for our meetings will be the Harvard Protocol for Consultancy.  Each meeting will focus on one challenge articulated by a Problem Statement.  I believe our students have many great ideas and this is one venue for them to learn to creatively problem-solve.  They'll also learn about me and what my job entails.

Engineering Design Class.  Students in Jordan Hampton's engineering design class are discovering how modern engineers design and build new technologies using math and science.  They are already beginning to understand the relevancy and application of mathematics, science,  and technology to electrical, mechanical, environmental, and biomedical engineering.  The US Commons, hallways, and Science Building are full of "engineering stuff" - duct tape, metal shards, Legos, skateboards, sails, weights, and I even saw a rubber mallet attached to fishing line.  It looked like some kind of booby trap.  It is wonderfully chaotic, but watch your step!

Faculty Working Groups.  US Faculty Working groups are busy studying  US-specific school problems and recommending solutions. Right now each group is looking into the challenges of our new block schedule and discovering ways to address them.  The groups (which average five teachers) meet during common free periods and will make monthly reports to the Upper School faculty.  We have an incredibly caring, resourceful, and imaginative faculty.  I can't wait to see what they come up with.

Upper School Class Deans.  Upper School class deans are responsible for class-wide programming, seeking out and supporting new programs for class-wide advancement, working with me on class-specific conduct issues, working with PFA representatives when necessary, coordinating advising activities with grade-level advisors, and providing professional feedback and counsel to me.  Our deans are Molly Risewick-Zeno, Kendall Davis, Christy Alvear, and Maggie Philpot.

Debating Society.  I believe that schools of our caliber – with our noble mission – need debating societies.  Debate programs are fun, allow our students to build friendships while developing critical public speaking skills.  Most students naturally avoid public speaking -- and debate provides a non-threatening environment to practice these skills so that down the road when they’re called on to speak in college or on the job, they will have the skills necessary to do it well.   Debating also develops analytical skills - the ability to critically analyze a problem and propose workable solutions is invaluable.  Debate also teaches students to become world-class researchers.  (Ask any college student and they’ll tell you how valuable this is.)

We are Oscar Mike in the Upper School.  

Dinner table question of the week:

If someone tells an offensive joke, is it my responsibility to speak up about it?

I am a Falcon

Several weeks ago I had a heartfelt conversation with one of my sons.  He is a remarkable young man.  Introspective.  Kind.  Thoughtful.
We were simply talking about life in general.  We eventually got around to the topic of education and I explained how much I enjoyed being a teacher.  He said, "Are you successful at it?"  What a great question.  I hadn't really thought about it in those terms.  Success is pretty hard to define sometimes.  It made me question how I defined success.
I want you to know how I answered his question.  I answered it by telling a story.
Here goes.
Once upon a time a Country Day student was walking down a country road.  After about ten minutes of walking the student was approached by a stranger who was heading the other direction.  The stranger asked the student: "What did you learn at school?"  The student responded in this way...
"I see education as an act of enchantment.
I understand that the cultivation of a healthy body and spirit is fundamental to a productive life.
I accept that progress requires action.
I possess the courage to ask questions and offer opinions even at the risk of being wrong.
I possess the capacity to forgive people's mistakes because I make plenty of them myself.
I am an engaging dinner companion.
I have a reasonable sense of my own capabilities because I have received regular, actionable feedback from adults who care about me.  However, I understand that learning is a lifelong process and many of my strengths have yet to be cultivated."
"Wow!," the stranger said.  "Who are you?"
"I am a Falcon," the student said.
(Can our students answer the stranger's question this way?  Maybe not yet.  But when they can, I'll know I'm a successful teacher.)
Dinner table question of the week:
How do you define success?

Mindless Fanaticism

I have a pet peeve.  We all do.

I watch a lot of television news.  Lately there has been a lot of coverage about the deteriorating situation in Iraq.  This morning the story broke about the beheading  of American journalist James Foley.  I find the situation terribly depressing for many reasons.  But,  I get quite irritated when I hear someone on television refer to the IS fighters in Iraq as "mindless fanatics."

Yes, they operate under a very different set of rules.  Clearly a different set of values. They don't seem to be adhering to tactics or techniques considered to be conventional or legal by any standard.  I understand this.  I would never defend what they do.  I find their actions abhorrent and against my own personal ethics.

But they are not mindless fanatics.

I know this because I fought against men like them in al Anbar in 2004-05.   I found the Sunni insurgents in Fallujah to be resilient, tough men.  Their bravery was quite extraordinary at times.  They were a shrewd adversary. They were - and are - very committed to their cause.  They are not "devils with horns and a forked tail."

To call this "mindless fanaticism" is just lazy in my opinion.   Those who use this term  simply don't know any better or - probably the case - haven't taken the time or effort to learn about these people.

If  an American soldier or Marine - armed only with a rifle, pistol, or grenade - rushed an enemy position without regard to his own life, we would give him a medal.

We wouldn't flippantly dismiss it as the act of a mindless fanatic.

Room With A View

I have a great view from my office.

Green athletic fields.   An American flag in the distance.  A memorial tree to a treasured alumnus.  A pond with geese and ducks.  Trees.  Courts for play.  Not a fire ant in sight, though I know they're out there.  I don't like fire ants.

One of my favorite things to do is look out my window and see all the activity.  Just yesterday I watched the cross country team's interval training, the quarterbacks working on the "three-step drop," and the field hockey girls practicing their shooting drills.  The kids were sweaty, but they looked happy and resolute.  The coaches were focused and organized.  Trainer Ed taped an ankle.

Everything was exactly as as it should be.

Stop by sometime for a visit.  You're always welcome in the Upper School.  I'll give you a bottle of water or a cup of coffee.  Then we can visit about your children, Country Day, or whatever you want.  I'm really busy these days, but I try never to be too busy to get to know you.  The better we know one another, the better we will understand one another.  I suspect we have the same goal in mind - your children.

Then I'll show you the view from my window.

Dinner table question of the week:

Is it ever ethical to Wi-Fi piggyback?  If so, under what conditions?

A Vital Link

Last Saturday evening I spent time with the Upper School Link Crew at their annual retreat in Midlothian.

Twenty-seven great kids and two positive, dedicated, and caring adult leaders.  Lots of positive energy.  I found the entire experience very invigorating.  A fell asleep with a smile on my face.

Please take note of the the attached photo.  You will notice a box of snacks and a water bottle.  Beside them you see a binder marked "Lead by Example."  Lead by Example.  I really like that motto.

Energy food and a noble mission.  Think on that for a moment.  In a sense that's what we really need most.  Sustenance and a raison d'etre.

Much has changed since you and I left high school.  It is a different world in many ways.  The traditional ways of providing guidance to children - while still very sound - need augmentation from time to time.  We as parents need help sometimes.  (I know I do.)  One of the many ways FWCD helps families like ours negotiate the murky waters of parenthood is through our Link Crew program.  We believe that peer guidance is very effective if done correctly.  Our goal is to do it correctly.

Our Link Crew has a dual mission, both noble:

Develop and reinforce healthy habits in our 9th graders.  We want to help our newest members strengthen communication with their peers, teachers, and families.  We want to help them improve their ability to identify and solve problems.  We hope that they will appreciate people who are different from them.  And we want to increase their confidence in fulfilling their academic and social responsibilities at FWCD and beyond our gates.

Leadership development for our Link Crew leaders.  I like to think of the Link Crew as a "leadership laboratory" for our LC members.  They run the program with adult guidance and supervision, they learn to address and manage conflict, they explore cultural diversity issues, and they learn to serve as positive role models, mentors and facilitators.

Lead by Example.  That's what they do.  I like that.



Dinner table question of the week:

Have you ever heard of Aung San Suu Kyi?  Google her.  Extraordinary woman.  Inspiring.  Talk about her with your children.  We all need heroes.



Aung San Suu Kyi

The Academic Village

Relationships take time. They have to begin sometime, however.

Ours starts today.

This blog entry begins what I hope will be a weekly correspondence. My intent is to create the ongoing conversations that I believe are vital to any learning community.

Sometimes these blog entries will be commentaries on books I have read or news events that affect us all.  Sometimes they will be serious in nature. Other times they will be humorous.   I just believe that it’s very important for you to know who I am and what I stand for.  I hope that you will enjoy reading them and take advantage of the comment box if you wish.

Each Friday Musings will conclude with a Dinner table question of the week.  This is a single question that I hope you will generate meaningful discussions within your own family.

___________________________________________________________________________

Those of you who know me well understand that I have long admired Thomas Jefferson.  What has drawn me to him over the years is his active mind, breadth of interests, and spirit of optimism.  His home, Monticello, nestled upon a mountaintop in Albemarle County, Virginia, is one of my favorite places to visit.  It is beautiful, but what I like most is that it personifies the man and his many interests.  As you walk thought the entry hall to the parlor,  through the dining room and into the sitting room, you begin to get a sense of his passions.  But it’s his book room, cabinet, bedchamber and greenhouse that really tell his story. (More on that later. Jefferson will be a frequent subject of my Friday Musings. I plan to devote an entry to each of these rooms and what they mean to me.)

It was in these rooms – Jefferson’s sanctum sanctorum – that he envisioned and planned the “academical village” that would become America’s first secular public college, the University of Virginia.

I am no Jefferson scholar, but I like to think he envisioned his academical village to be a safe, beautiful place, bustling with inquisitive students who accept the responsibilities of service within our democracy and the trials of academic rigor.  These students are welcomed each morning by professional teachers, lifelong learners who embrace their role as mentors and scholars who welcome and encourage lively debate.  Administrators accept their roles as problem-solvers and are devoted to freeing students and teachers from the unnecessary distractions that keep them from their teaching and learning tasks.

Jefferson’s village is progressive without deviating from established core values, and it is committed to the ideal that the moral and ethical development of young people is a fundamental responsibility.

Sound like a place you would want to go to school?  Me too.

Can you envision this school in Fort Worth?

I can.

Let’s build it together.  Starting today.  Today.

Before we can do that, I want to explain what I believe are the three key components to the village.

1.  Our Physical Space.  It is safe and quiet.  Conducive to reflection.  Beautiful.  Lots of trees.  Its buildings are clean and comfortable.  The environment matters.  Learning spaces are well-equipped and pleasant. The fields and facilities are to be admired.  It makes you want to think and create.

2.  Our Students. They are selectively admitted.  They take full advantage of what we offer.  Need-based financial assistance is provided for deserving students.  Honorable conduct, energy, and service required.  They are committed to one another and their school. They see education as an exciting act of enchantment.  They believe they are in it together and the effort is worth it.

3.  Our Adults. We believe in the mission of the school and exhibit its core values.  We are genuinely interested in our students’ well-being.  We articulate and enforce clear expectations based on reasoned judgment. We are the village elders.  

Over the course of the year I'll visit with you, your children, and the Upper School faculty about ways we can create our academic village at Fort Worth Country Day.  This will be a theme this year.  If we all understand and embrace the roles we play in our village, we can ensure that our school - the place where we spend so many of our waking hours - remains one of the finest independent schools in the United States.

Dinner table question of the week:

"Courage is rightly esteemed the first of human qualities...because it is the quality which guarantees all others." (Winston  Churchill)

Do agree with this statement?  Why or why not?

Sacred Spaces

We all have sacred spaces.

A library.  A car.  A place of worship.  A garden.  A vacation spot.  A cemetery.  A baseball field.  A recital hall.  A golf course.

I find internal peace reading quietly in my office, walking alone in rural Normandy,  touring the battlefields of southern Pennsylvania, camping in Big Bend, visiting with loved ones on Cape Cod, and backpacking the southern Appalachian Trail.  These are places where I find refuge, where I do my best thinking, and where I feel safe.

Being there makes me a better person.

It seems these days that we have to work harder and harder to find time for our sacred spaces.  We complain of being busier, about all the demands on our time, about being tied to our smartphones and about the stresses of the modern world.  We worry about our weight, if we are wearing the latest fashions, and if we belong to the right club.  We obsess about our cars and about where our kids will go to college.

But that's no excuse.

We need to reorient the way we think about our sacred spaces. They are as necessary as air, water, and food.

Time spent in our sacred spaces refreshes us.  It is transformative.  We will be better people - and more at peace with ourselves - if we can visit our sacred spaces.  We will be kinder, more patient with others, more reflective, and more tolerant of one another's differences.  That makes us better parents, spouses, and teachers.

Where are your sacred spaces?

Can you get there sometime soon?

I hope so.