Friends,
The theme of this year’s ISACS Heads Conference was “Through a Different Lens: New Views in School Leadership.” The conference ended last Friday afternoon, and I took a long walk to reflect on my learning and my discussions with other Heads during the conference (including Tom Hoerr and Billy Handmaker). I left this conference feeling connected to my fellow Heads of School, excited by what I learned, and confident about all we do at Crossroads.
Here are a few of my thoughts based on my experiences at this conference:
- I am confident that Crossroads College Preparatory School is well-situated to respond to trends facing independent schools today. Creating a school community that is smart and good is responsive to a market that includes many delivery options for learning. It is not only that we offer a rigorous curriculum at Crossroads, but that we offer experiences in community and service as well.
- Our Good Work partnerships are good examples of strategic engagement, clarity of purpose, and reciprocity of value. I learned this language from the executive director of The National Network of Schools in Partnership, Claire Leheny. Situating Crossroads in a network of mutually beneficial partnerships is valuable to our students, to our school, and to our partners.
- The conference ended with a great presentation by Scott Barry Kaufman on the nature of inspiration and engagement. At Crossroads, our emphasis on the whole person contributes to a “harmonious passion” between both the executive and imaginative networks in the brain. I think our schedule reflects a whole-person approach to the learning week, and I am looking forward to reading Scott Barry Kaufman’s book Ungifted.
As I drove home Saturday morning, I wondered: What’s the next best step for Crossroads? What might we do for our students and for our community? What might we do to leverage what we already do so well? I’m looking forward to discovering and acting upon the answers to these questions with you.
With great expectations,
Jason