Notice, dream, connect, do.
–Monika Hardy
Friends,
Happy New Year! Since I was hired last year at this time, I have invested time and energy in noticing, dreaming, and connecting as I learn about Crossroads and my role as Head of School. I will continue to notice, dream, and connect as I believe this is honoring to our mission as a school and to our students and community as well. Noticing, dreaming, and connecting feeds my leadership as well.
Leaders are also called to do, and it is in the doing that the greatest risk and opportunity reside. Crossroads achieves great things and has even more potential as a network of mutuality among our faculty and staff, students, and community. This network of mutuality benefits from a network of shared teacher leadership as well, whether this be leadership by example through masterful teaching practice or by leadership that is explicit in title and power. Currently, teachers may lead through three specific roles: grade group leader, department chair, and dean.
Beginning next school year, 2015-2016, to provide new opportunities for teacher leadership and to reduce the number of administrative roles, I have decided to combine some of the administrative work of the three deans into one School Director. Martha, Sarah, and Mark have served as both administrators and teachers over the past five years. They have dedicated time, energy, and planning to the students in their classrooms and to the students, faculty, and community of Crossroads as a whole. Martha’s work to expand student leadership and involvement, Mark’s development of the Good Work program, and Sarah’s work to hire talented teachers are just a few of the ways they have helped to improve our school. Each of them cares deeply about our students, and they will continue to have opportunities to lead and to contribute. Some aspects of the deans’ jobs will remain with them, those about which they are the most interested or passionate.
I shared this decision with the faculty and staff on Monday, and any faculty or staff interested in the role of School Director will have an opportunity to apply for the role first. This represents a shift in how work will be distributed at Crossroads, and I invite your thoughts.
With great expectations,
Jason