From the Desk of the Head of School- November 1, 2019
Dear Parents,
I saw one of the most eye-opening pieces of data the other day. Donna Orem, President of the National Association of Independent Schools was presenting to the Tennessee Association of Independent Schools about the future of independent schools and about halfway through her presentation showed us this set of graphs:
This astounded me. How is there such a disconnect? What does that mean for schools that are college preparatory? What does it mean for elementary and middle schools?
Later, I was sitting with about sixty other elementary school Heads of Schools from across the country at the recent Elementary School Heads Association retreat here in Nashville listening to a Vanderbilt professor on Leadership discuss the top five most desirable future work skills for citizens in 2030. They are:
- Judgment and decision making
- Fluency of ideas
- Active learning
- Learning strategies
- Originality
As these two ideas came together in my mind, I was excited to be an educator in the PreK-8 model. This is what we do - and the PreK-8 model is the best way to execute on it. To reiterate: I can’t think of a better model of education to deliver on the kind of future work skills our children will need in 2030 than one that has its mission to educate and inspire young people to become thoughtful, creative, lifelong learners and self-disciplined, responsible, caring citizens during the ten most formative learning years of their lives. And so, the investment you all are making in your children’s lives now will pay huge dividends well into their future. As we continue on in our strategic planning process, I am excited about the recent conversations that we had in our Parent Think Tanks and encourage you to join the conversation. If any of the above resonates with you, please let us know.
Have a great weekend and see you all Monday as we start the second trimester and continue to deliver on our mission - a critical one for our children’s future - through our PreK-8 model.
Inspiring The Mind • Nurturing The Spirit