I hope you and your children’s first week has been as enjoyable as mine! I have seen faculty, staff, students, and parents working in harmony to execute a strong start. Let’s keep it up!
This letter’s epigraph is an abridged formulation of St. Paul’s admonition in Chapter 4 of his letter to the Philippians. It also emerged during in-service as an informal motto among faculty and staff. Whatever is excellent. What does this mean for us as a new year begins?
We could go in a few directions, all profitable. What I would like to highlight in this letter, however, is how this motto applies to something that may have been on many minds for some weeks now. “A new head of school; what will this mean?” Serious students of my weekly letters may have noticed certain themes, but would have searched in vain for five-year plans, rollouts, or restructuring. Prudence dictates that a new head of school who joins an institution that will be celebrating its twenty-fifth year do so in a spirit of humility. What is it that makes the Academy so special to so many people? What do the Academy’s families see as its strongest points? I certainly have much to share from my experience working in schools, but my first year among you is a time set apart for gaining a thorough understanding of my new context and its people. Where attention is needed, attention shall be applied, but where all is well, even mostly well, “watch,” “listen,” and “learn” will be my watchwords.
In the three points below, I offer a sketch of where I anticipate directing attention in the coming year:
1. Building a Team
• Administration - Define administrative responsibilities
and grant corresponding authority; cultivate a corps of
teacher and staff leaders
• Staff Culture - Provide guidelines for virtuous,
professional communication; initiate a cycle of
information sharing and activity coordination;
introduce annual goal-setting and evaluation
• School Culture - Assign responsibility for school
practices and traditions so that they can be nurtured and
executed with excellence
2. Moving Toward Good Order
• Communication - Establish school-wide communication
expectations as well as protocols, practices, and checklists
to support internal and external school communications
• Discipline - Establish clear discipline processes; introduce
a Love & Logic philosophy of discipline and character
education
• Governance - Clarify division of responsibility and
channels of appropriate communication at the
governance level; work with the Pastor and church staff
to ensure harmony between church and school
operations; clarify the means by which parents may
contribute to building up the school community
3. Learning the Community
• Openness - Administration is visible and accessible;
administration communicates Mission and Vision
regularly; faculty and staff are actively building
relationships with Academy families
• School Plan - Developed with faculty and student leaders,
pastor, school council, and parents; Plan articulates the
unique charism of an Ordinariate school
• State of the School Address - Evening event in January;
announce mid-range goals and defines attendant
timelines and resource needs
No headlines perhaps, but I imagine devoted parents and those with professional experience in successful organizations will resonate with this approach. Greatness is our tradition, and greatness lies ahead.
Whatever is excellent. After twenty-five years’ labor in this vineyard, we must ensure that the good fruit remains.
Whatever is excellent. The rubric by which we must assess all plans for the future.
Thank you for your prayers; we have truly felt them this week.