The Safeguard of Democracy

Last month, I cast my first ever vote for President of the United States.  In January 2011, after twenty years as a permanent resident, I became a citizen of the U.S.  This was not a decision I took lightly. It was not an easy thing to turn my back on the United Kingdom, where I had grown up, received a college degree, and where my family still lives.

However, influencing my decision more than perhaps any other factor was the importance of my right to vote. As a nineteen year old at the University of York in the U.K., I voted in a general election for the first time.  For a few years after I moved to Colorado, I voted in British elections from afar, but there seemed something disingenuous about having a say in a place where I neither lived nor paid taxes.

Finally, after far too long, and after acing the citizenship test that twenty years of teaching fifth grade American history and geography had so graciously prepared me for (one of the questions they asked me was “Which ocean is off the west coast of the United States?”), I found myself in the suburban offices of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in Centennial, Colorado.  In a meaningful and surprisingly emotional ceremony, I stood up with seventy five brand new Americans of every stripe, from thirty six different countries, and swore allegiance to this country.  One of the vows I promised to myself was never to miss out on the right and the privilege to vote.

It is perhaps the most important act that we can perform as a citizen.

The role of good citizenship is something I have been proud to teach my students over the years.  In the words of our newly re-elected President in his victory speech in the early hours of the morning following the election, “What makes America exceptional are the bonds that hold together the most diverse nation on earth. The belief that our destiny is shared; that this country only works when we accept certain obligations to one another and to future generations. The freedom which so many Americans have fought for and died for come with responsibilities as well as rights. And among those are love and charity and duty and patriotism.” To that I would add showing up fully, pursuing a quality education, learning to manage conflict, and showing respect to all.

Citizenship Day, January 26 2011

When the elementary students at Friends’  School in Boulder took to their own polls in the school’s library on Election Day, the teachers urged them to show respect for each other and for divergent viewpoints.

In a note I received from one of the parents, “it is imperative that we show our children how many things connect us rather than the things that separate us. To show the children that respect for each other is more important than the issues that we think divide us. In a nutshell, we as a school must seek to be the change we want to see in the world.”

I couldn’t agree more. Those are among my school’s strongest values.  It is part of our mission: “Our students acquire a strong academic foundation while developing creative expression, social responsibility, and respect for diversity and the individual”.  

It’s what I signed up for when I arrived at Friends’ School and when I raised my right hand and took the oath of citizenship as a United States citizen. 

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt once said, “Democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely. The real safeguard of democracy, therefore, is education.”

It’s good to be here. It’s good to be in education.  It’s good to be able to choose wisely.

It’s good to have a voice.

Gratitude from the Third Grade

Last day of school today.  The third graders at Friends’ School sent me home with a collection of thank you notes they had written after I helped them with their end-of-year play, Roald Dahl’s James and the Giant Peach.

As a head of school, I don’t have as much contact with students as I once did during my twenty years in the classroom, so I cherished my time in rehearsals with the third grade.  They did an outstanding job and the play turned out wonderfully.  The thank you notes contained some great lines:

“Thank you for helping me with the play.  I learned a lot about being loud!”

“Steve, you really can direct.  You showed me how to change in my costume really fast.”

“Thank you so much for hepping me with all my lines and were to stand and when to talk. You heped make me a akter.”  (We’re still working on spelling in 3^rd grade.)

“Thank you for helping me with my accent.”

“I learned what stage left and stage right is.”

“Dear Steve, Hey Steve, Thank you for making me the best silkworm ever.”

“What I learned is that you don’t want to talk too fast because the audience won’t understand you.”

“Thank you soooo much.  It was my favorite play ever.”

And my two favorites:

“Thank you for being a good person.” (Wow!)

And this one from a girl who was at a different school last year:


“Dear Steve, you rock.  Sorry I just HAD to say that.  Thank you so so much for helping us with the play!  You the best directer and your way nicer than my old princable Mr Neil.  He’s all gloomy but your all nice and chill.”

So now you know - I’m one chill princable.  Happy summer, kids!

Rainy and Inspiring Days In Seattle

I am grateful to have attended the National Association of Independent Schools conference in Seattle last week.

It was an amazing opportunity to re-unite (and empathize) with first-year colleagues from the Institute for New Heads, the conference I attended in Atlanta last summer, and to be inspired and educated by great speakers.  

Several friends have been asking me about my experiences so I thought I would share for all.

The theme of the conference was innovation.  As I wrote in my Among Friends' blog last week, it was inspiring to learn about all the incredible innovation that is happening in independent schools across the country.

In a nutshell, I attended talks by: 

Bill Gates (Microsoft), who spent more of his time talking about how his foundation is funding teacher assessment programs - I would have loved to have heard his thoughts on personal innovation.  Too bad - I didn't get close enough to hit him up for a donation!   I thoroughly enjoyed finding a spelling error in one of his slides (learing instead of learning).  Not only that, but I and hundreds of others around me were taking notes on his talk on an Apple computer product.  It’s nice to know that nobody’s perfect.

Pat Bassett (president of NAIS), who highlighted the big shifts on education over the last ten years.  Not just the 5 'C's of 21st century skills (creativity, communication, critical thinking, collaboration, and cross-cultural competency) , but the way the internet has presented amazing ways for teachers to share ideas and use resources.

Amy Chua (The Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother), who was far more charming and personable than the media portrays.  She talked a lot about the humor in her book and remains convinced of the importance of holding kids to high standards.

John Hunter (subject of the forthcoming movie World Peace and Other 4th Grade Achievements) This is a movie that will be shown on PBS in May - and we should all watch it. He's a humble gentle 35 year veteran teacher who has literally invented a superbly complex game for helping kids understand world politics.  He got by far the longest standing O of the conference - minutes longer than Bill Gates!

John Medina (Brain Rules) Many of you know the book.  An amazingly gifted presenter on the latest brain research and what we know about parenting.

Dan Savage (Savage Love and the It Gets Better project), a Seattle humorist, columnist and gay rights activist who's youtube channel has gone viral in helping GLBT teens feel heard and supported.  A sensationally inspiring presenter.

I also attended seminars to help me learn about successful strategies for asking for gifts for my school and for hiring well.

In between, it was wonderful to network with heads of schools and other independent school people from Colorado and across the country, to visit with Jim Bonney (Educators Collaborative, Friends' head of school search firm) whom I had never met in person, even though we have talked on the phone many times, and to sneak in a lovely lunch with my friend and marketing guru Monique Davis.  

All in all, apart from the incessant rain, (c'mon Seattle I was expecting better and did you really have to put your schools on a two hour delay because there was sleet in the air?!) I enjoyed a hugely busy and successful three days.  Great seafood too!

I'm grateful to everyone at Friends' School and Steph Bruno (who's also a great blogger by the way!) for keeping things running so smoothly in my absence. 

It's good to be back!

Published!

A nice inclusion in The Head's Letter.  They picked up a brief article I wrote on the solar array at Friends' School. The Head's Letter is published by Educational Directions Incorporated for the independent school world.  It includes articles by educational leaders that address major issues of school leadership that apply to all independent schools.

"de Beer settles in as Friends' head of school"

A big thanks to writer Michelle LeJeune and photographer Peter Wayne from Boulder County Business Report for the great article on Friends' School and my role as Head of School.

Michelle and I talked for an hour and I thought her questions were interesting and well thought out.  She had taken the time to read parts of this site, as well as Among Friends', and we had an enjoyable conversation.

Peter and I could not work out our schedules within the deadline to photograph me with students, which was my preference.  Instead, I donned the coat and tie and drove up to Boulder over winter break. This photo was taken in the school library, overlooking the playground.

The article is reprinted with permission here.

"The Greenest School in Boulder"

While this website is principally intended as a place for me to park a wide range of personal thoughts, once in a while a work-specific topic comes along that is too good not to share. In the spirit of "finding the good in this crazy world", I offer the following news from Friends' School (while also conveniently and not so subtly parading the amazing new branding look we've adopted at the school, created by the wonderful people at Thinking Davis).

Friends' School has exciting news – the solar panels project that we have been working towards for a number of months now is about to become reality.

Friends' School is soon to be “the greenest school in Boulder” according to Eric Hinckley, the engineer and system designer for Solar Resource Consulting.  A whopping 93% of the energy needs for the school's elementary building will be provided by our solar array.  It is a system comprised of 144 solar modules which together will generate 33,000 kilowatts of power a year.

The installation crew will begin work this week, with an estimated completion date of November 1^st.  In early November we will have a “Flip the Switch” opening ceremony and we will send out more details nearer the time.  In the mean time, we are excited to tie everything we are learning about solar energy into our curriculum and we will host a gathering, giving the students opportunities to touch and learn about the solar array.  There will also be a web-based portal which will allow us to see how much power the system is generating and how much we are using.

We are indebted to many people both in and outside of our school community for getting this huge and amazing project off the ground, in particular Tom Cohen, Carol Hampf, Ryan Martens, Fred Marienthal, Jen Greene, Ryan McIntyre, Mandy Best, our Community Board, and the good people of Renewable Energy Ventures, Solar Resource Consulting, City Electric, and the City of Boulder for their generous grant.  Installation of the solar panels on the school roof has allowed us to meet one of the major goals of our Strategic Plan, that of environmental stewardship.

Let the sun shine in!

From the United States Senate

I was pleased to receive this letter from Mark Udall, U.S. Senator from Colorado. I thought it was a classy personal touch that he included a hand-written note and I'm feeling somewhat pleased that he may be one of the few people around whose handwriting is worse than mine! I wonder when we'll catch up in person....

What do a head of school and a theater director have in common?

This summer, as I prepare to take on a new role as a head of school, I realize that I must take a hiatus from one of my great loves – directing theater. For many years, I have loved working with groups of kids, from age 8-18, bringing plays to life. I’ll be too busy this summer getting to know my new school community and preparing for the new school year. I’ll miss my theater camps – all the amazing people and the breathtaking creativity. And, as I was contemplating this change, a question emerged:

What do a head of school and
a theater director have in common?

I wonder if the two roles are so very different, because I believe that a theater director and a head of school both:

➢ ensure everyone feels good about their role

➢ bring together a vision and a script

➢ rely on the diverse strengths of others

➢ pay attention to casting

➢ challenge people to stretch beyond their comfort zone

➢ allow everyone’s voice to be heard

➢ juggle many balls in the air at the same time successfully

➢ manage their resources and budget

➢ keep a sense of humor

➢ share expectations with parents that the kids will be stars

➢ listen to the opinions of others

➢ honor everyone involved in the production

➢ wear lots of different hats

➢ do frequent sound checks

➢ work together on a unified goal with the cast

➢ take care of the details

➢ make the best of the inevitable slip-ups

➢ spend lots of time preparing

➢ appreciate those working behind the scenes

➢ know when to step out of the limelight

At Friends' School, I’m looking forward to getting to know all the amazing people and being part of the breathtaking creativity.

Break a leg!

On Books and Integrity

There’s a man living in Boulder, Colorado by the name of Thatcher Wine. He sounds like he should be selling malbecs and chardonnays. But an oenologist he is not. He’s a bibliophile, you might even say a bibliomaniac. He has a passion for books. Collects them. He started out binding books for people, but now runs a business helping the wealthy build their private book collections and libraries. He makes a good living from it too. They say that if you have to ask him what his fees are, you can’t afford him.

Some of his clients are collectors of books themselves, seeking rare first editions or leather bound complete works. Many don’t care what’s inside the book and won’t ever read them. They just want something to look snazzy in their home, a professionally designed attraction to go along with their collector art and their collector antique furnishings. Thatcher selects just the right books for their space – the perfect height, width and color – to enhance at maximum effect their multi-million dollar mansions. Most people he charges by the book – the more rare, the more pricey. But he has a few clients he charges by the foot. People buying books like they buy rope at the hardware store.

He has one client who wanted more books than he has shelves for. A double set. This is a client with a big home and a big checkbook, who regularly holds fundraisers for candidates on both sides of the political spectrum. A client who likes to hedge his bets, sits on both sides of the fence. And he plays his bookshelf cards accordingly. One set of books by the religious right for one set of visitors – Rush Limbaugh, Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck; a completely different set for the liberals – Molly Ivins, Teddy Kennedy, Hilary Clinton. Thatcher Wine has designed opposing sets of books for opposing occasions. I wonder if the books are glued together for ease of transportation. And no one quite knows what this client’s actual tastes in reading are because he keeps the books he actually reads in a private corner of his house. He doesn’t want his guests to find out.

I think this is appalling. It reminds me of an insecure middle school child who is desperately trying to fit in with his friends. He works so hard to buy the right clothes, wear his hat at just the right angle in the misguided and futile hope to fit in. As adults we like to think we’ve outgrown that sort of silliness, but it isn’t always true. How often do we show our true colors? Are we always comfortable putting all of ourselves out there for others to see?

When I was a boy growing up in England, I was a big fan of Arsenal Football Club in London, the team that others loved to hate. It was hard to stand up sometimes and tell new acquaintances which team was mine, in fear of mockery. Now, here we all are on Facebook, presenting one very thin slice of our lives to our ‘friends’. At the beginning of the year in which I got divorced, I Facebook-friended an old buddy from grad school. We followed each other’s postings for many months before taking the time to really write and fully catch up. I was living through a rough year of grief and loss and my friend had no idea. It wasn’t stuff I was putting out there for the world to see. I was only showing one set of books. Is this any different from the client who switches out his bookcase?

Another case. About five years ago, I had the opportunity to apply for a big job that I’d had my eye on for years. I knew a lot of the people on the search committee and did my best to tell them what I thought they wanted to hear. I’m not sure I ever presented myself as ‘me’, and I felt out of alignment and disingenuous. I didn’t get the job. I was disappointed and it led to a serious amount of soul-searching on my part.

Now a few years later, integrity is a quality I value most highly in myself. I don’t want to present myself as something other than I am. Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote “To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you someone else is the greatest accomplishment.” I read that quotation every morning while I’m brushing my teeth. I was recently asked to apply for what might well be my dream job as head of a fabulous school. They conducted a national search and had more than fifty applicants. I knew I could only present myself as ‘me’. There were some tough questions asked at various points along the selection process, but I never once worried about how my answers might be perceived. I gave answers according to my own values and beliefs. And I got the job.

The job is in Boulder. I’m wondering about whether to invite Thatcher Wine to put together a collection for the bookshelf in my new office. Probably not. For one, I’m pretty certain I can’t afford him. But most importantly, I know that every book on that shelf will have personal meaning to me. The dog-eared and torn thesaurus my grandmother gave me for my confirmation when I was 13; some of my Dad’s childhood books, printed in Cape Town, South Africa in the 1930s; collections of some of my favorite essayists; books of inspiration and spirituality; a few outstanding tomes on education and school governance; humorous books; books about baseball. Every one will have been read and loved, several of them read fifty times or more.

A New Appointment

I am honored and grateful to have been appointed Head of School at Friends’ School in Boulder. The announcement was made last month. I am thrilled to have been given this opportunity and I am excited to be joining a school community which is such a caring, supportive, challenging place for children and adults to learn.

Friends’ School is committed to educating the whole child – “head, hand, and heart”. It has an educational philosophy that is wonderfully aligned with my own. Although I have known the school for a number of years through my work for the Teacher Preparation Program, my visits this fall truly helped me to see the amazing work being done at the school by gifted educators and committed parents. I am so impressed at how everyone at the school believes in the vision and mission that they have laid out. I am happy to be in a place where together we will continue to uphold that vision and mission and where we will work to meet the challenges set out in the school’s five year strategic plan and to build a school that is financially sustainable while losing none of the personality and charm that makes it what it is today.

I am thankful to Community Board Chair Fred Marienthal, all of the Search Committee members and the entire Friends’ community of Board members, teachers, staff, parents, students, and alumni, as well Jim Bonney and Jean Lamont of Educators’ Collaborative who participated in the national search. They dug deep, thought hard, and, I believe, trusted their gut. I am also profoundly grateful to retiring Head of School Polly Donald, whom I’ve known and respected for years, who is committed to teaching me and helping to make this transition as smooth as possible.

In addition, it would be remiss of me not to thank my ‘family’, friends and colleagues, at Stanley British Primary School, the school I’ve known and loved for twenty years. They have taught me well, supported me in this process, and prepared me for this next phase of the journey. Lastly, I am so grateful to my own family for walking every step of the way – to Laura, to my parents, to my daughters Emma and Leah, and to my loving partner, Steph.

To my new community at Friends’, I am looking forward to getting to know you all, working alongside you, and continuing to create a school that is like no other - one where children are challenged to know themselves, where subjects are taught in experiential, fully integrated ways, where creative and critical thinking and children’s natural curiosity are celebrated, where we all become an integral part of a caring community, where everyone is challenged and honored in a lifelong journey of learning.

I’m posting the letter that the Search Committee sent out to the Friends’ community. It is truly a privilege to be here. Thank you.

Steve


ANNOUNCING OUR NEW HEAD OF SCHOOL


The Community Board is thrilled to announce that Steve de Beer will be our next Head of Friends’ School.

As a well-organized master teacher with administrative responsibilities at a progressive independent school, Steve has an excellent foundation to become our next Head of School.

Steve brings many qualities to our community as a Head of School, including:

• A deep understanding and commitment to the vision, mission, and educational philosophy of Friends’ School;
• Engaging and collaborative leadership skills
• Strong working relationships with parents, faculty and administrators;
• Direct involvement in our Teacher Preparation Program and respect of those who worked with him;
• Enthusiastic support of the arts, plus experience directing and producing children’s theater; and
• A wonderful sense of play, meeting children at eye level, supported by 20 years in the classroom and comprehensive knowledge of child development.

While visiting Friends’ School, the children were openly excited about Steve. Not surprisingly, they met him with great enthusiasm during his time in the classrooms.

Steve is very enthusiastic about the opportunity to lead our school. Please help us welcome Steve to our community!
We will continue to keep you updated with news regarding our new Head of School.

The Friends’ School Community Board