Several years ago, I wrote a piece entitled, “Preparing our Students to be Community Leaders: An Initial Brainstorming.” After attending TEDxMemphis this weekend, I remembered the piece because I was reminded again and again during the TED talks of the vital importance of developing an interest in civic engagement and community leadership in our students. My thinking […]
Luncheon Speech to The Germantown Chamber, August 20, 2015
(The text here is edited in minor ways from the speech I gave last Thursday to the Germantown Chamber of Commerce.)Thank you for the invitation to be here today. I am especially grateful for the opportunity to speak to this group because a good school and a successful Chamber have important characteristics in common. A […]
Doers Not Hearers Only–Opening of School Year Student Convocation Talk
(The author with the Senior Prefects from St. George’s Independent School August 17, 2015)(Below is my welcome back to school Chapel Talk from St. George’s Independent School in Memphis, Tennessee on August 17, 2015. The school has over over 1100 students JK-12 on three campuses. I delivered the talk that follows to students, families, faculty, and […]
Big Success, Small Scale: Westminster’s JanTerm Internship Pilot
Westminster’s first experience with JanTerm was not an end unto itself. It was always part of something larger. As the final part of a two-year rollout of a new daily schedule and school calendar, the JanTerm represents the single biggest curricular step forward in the Upper School since its founding–45 new challenging and varied electives, offered […]
Won’t You Be, Please Won’t You Be The Helper: A Cum Laude Induction Talk
Good Evening!It is a pleasure to welcome parents, family, and friends to the Cum Laude Induction Ceremony. And most importantly, it is a pleasure to welcome our honorees, accomplished members of our senior class—congratulations to each of you! The praise we offer you this evening is well-deserved. The challenges you have faced that led you […]
JanTerm Debrief #3–Smart Logistics and Keeping the Temperature Low
In three weeks… 370 separate buses traveled off campus as part of JanTerm and traveled more than 17,000 miles. Westminster students visited Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, California, and Guatemala. Westminster students enjoyed 790 cupcakes, 690 snow cones, and 500 ice cream sandwiches. Logistics. Success in any complex step forward in a […]