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April 17, 2012 // Thank You Parents’ Association!!

Dear Trinity Community,

One of the blessings of my role at Trinity is that I get to experience every aspect of school life. I just returned to my office after attending our K-2 chapel service. The opportunity to spend time with students during chapel, at lunch or in class always provides me with a powerful reminder of the wonderful context in which we are educating our children.

In her sermon to us this morning, Emily Philips shared several interesting and humorous stories about the ways in which people look but often do not see. Emily’s message connected well with much of what we are trying to instill in our students, but I immediately found myself thinking about how this message is regularly experienced by our students when we ask them to notice the world around them and journal their “noticings.”

You may have noticed during a recent visit to our Dickson Dining Hall that we have new chairs and a few tables with attached stools. Thanks to a generous gift from our Parents’ Association we have been able to improve the school community for all of our students, faculty, staff and families. The chairs are more comfortable and safer than what we had been using, and the tables and stools provide us with a more efficient way to break down and set-up this space which is used for multiple purposes each day. We are fortunate to have such a beautiful and practical space, and now we have the furnishing to match it.

Parent volunteers provide the school with thousands of hours of support, many of which are behind the scene and go unnoticed by most people. There are a handful of crucial elements that allow independent schools to provide exceptional educational opportunities for children, one of which is a strong committed group of parent volunteers who support the teachers and administration in a way that allows the professionals to focus time and energy on working to provide the very best experience for our students. This very tangible gift by the Parents’ Association provides us all with a visual reminder, that we can see, of the incredible work of this group of volunteers.

Thank you to the Parents’ Association for this gift and to each of you who have volunteered to support this very special school! And, I want to extend a special thank you to Shyla Hasner and Carla Rosbrook for their dynamic leadership of PALT this year. I hope you will join us for the parent volunteer thank you gathering on Thursday, April 19, 7:45-8:30am, on Trinity’s front porch.

Peace,

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

November 4, 2011

I recently attended the Southern Association of Independent Schools (SAIS) annual conference of independent school administrators in Atlanta where I was able to learn about the latest research and best practices in ethical development, capital campaigns, board responsibilities, instructional innovation & technology and marketing. It was wonderful catching-up with old colleagues whom I have known for decades and meeting new colleagues who shared new ideas and perspectives.

Pat Bassett, president of the National Association of Independent Schools, shared with us trends for independent schools to consider, some of which provided me with new insight and some of which I already knew.

Pat Bassett’s Perspective

Six C’s for Education – values and skills important for kids today

1. Character
2. Collaboration
3. Communication
4. Cosmopolitanism
5. Creativity
6. Critical Thinking

The School of the Future
Pat posited a few questions for us to consider before articulating the shifts that schools need to make.

 Questions
Are we ready for the big shifts in education? – What will the curriculum be in the 21^st Century? – How will we teach? – How will we assess our students? – How will change occur in change resistant cultures? 

Shifts from

>> Knowing to Doing: We build castles in third-grade; run our own city in fifth- grade with Junior Achievement; release raptors back into the wild; plant, grow, harvest and eat our own veggies; swim and play with physically disabled students at Metro School.

>> Teacher Centered to Student Centered: Problem-based learning puts the onus of working through a difficult situation in the hands of the child. First-grade parade of cultures presents a situation where students must decide how to respond to a disgruntled neighbor who protests the parade. Our students choose books and book clubs around a common theme as part of Reader’s Workshop.

>> The Individual to the Team: Odyssey of the Mind, a team-centered problem-solving competition has been a centerpiece of our School since 2001.

>> Consumption of Info to Construction of Meaning: Our K-8 mathematics program values students constructing understanding around big mathematical concepts over memorization of facts and formulas.

>> Schools to Networks: We have joined the online community of Discovery Education for science and consult mathematicians through Math Forum with problems and solutions. Classes interact with online pen pals with a class in San Francisco; eighth-graders communicate online via teacher-created forums and blogs to share ideas and converse around a topic, book or problem.

>> Single Sourcing to Crowd Sourcing: Tribes (Grs. 3-5), single-gender groups of 10-12 students, had to collaborate using creative problem-solving skills to provide rationale and justification for keeping the program to the School’s administration.

>> High Stakes Testing to High Value Demonstration: Eighth-grade students choose a social impact issue, become experts on the topic and then journey to DC to lobby with decision-makers on Capitol Hill.

 As I listened to Pat Bassett describe each of these elements, I thought Pat must have heard Chris Weiss, our Academic Dean, and Joanne Tate, our Community Life Dean, describe how we do school. Trinity’s founders developed a philosophy and implemented a program that includes all of these elements with the exception of the technology (it was a different world in 2000), a decade before Pat Bassett shared his thoughts.

One of the factors that influenced me to join Trinity is my knowledge of how difficult it is to address Pat’s last question, “How will change occur in change resistant cultures?” Our approach to educating children has allowed us to accelerate the process of providing the best education for our students, while most other schools are trying to figure out what and how to change their current programs to reflect the practices that have always been part of a Trinity education.

At the end of Pat Bassett’s presentation, I was filled with pride to be part of such a terrific school community. When the applause died down, a colleague of mine who heads a school with a great reputation leaned over and said, “I feel like we aren’t doing anything right.” My time at Trinity has me feeling quite the opposite. We are doing so much right and we continually work to deliver the most effective educational experience for our students.

Peace,

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

October 28, 2011

Last week I attended my first Trinity alumni event. While the night was billed as an opportunity for alumni and alumni parents to meet the new head of school, it was clear based on the smiles, hugs and laughter that they were really here to see each other. This is exactly what a new head of school loves to see because their interactions reflect the deep connections they developed during their years at Trinity. It was a pleasure for me to meet so many parents and students who were here during the first days of the school and to hear stories about the founding of the School.

I was particularly pleased to learn that our students feel well prepared for their high school experiences at local independent schools and public schools. Almost all of the students noted that the academic transition has been relatively easy, particularly those in I.B. programs.

It was also nice to hear that they genuinely miss Trinity, and even after only a year or two in high school, they have gratitude for their teachers and the experiences they shared here.

My time with the alumni and alumni parents provided additional affirmation for my decision to join this wonderful community, and I look forward to meeting more alums and their parents at our holiday alumni reunion on December 17.

Peace,

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

September 9, 2011

It was great to see so many of you at the Back-to-School Nights on Tuesday and Thursday. Those nights seem to reflect the level of involvement and interest from parents, and I was thrilled that we had a full house. We tried to provide you with a glimpse into the experience your child is having each day at Trinity; the adults with whom they work, the values we seek to instill, the approach to engaging students in learning, and the high expectation we set for them.

I would like to provide you with another glimpse into their daily lives by sharing the following/attached prayer that was read by Mr. Grady Smith, one of our middle school social studies teachers, this morning in Chapel. Part of the prayer referenced the events of 9/11, and I wanted you to see how we have addressed this, particularly for our youngest children. Our older students may be discussing these events in a developmentally appropriate way in some of their classes. We sent a note about 9/11 in this week’s Good News and included this link to an article that we thought provided some helpful guidance about how to talk with children about this tragic event.

Finally, let me say that I am truly blessed to be part of this community where prayer offerings are an important part of the educational experience of our children.

Thank you for entrusting us with your children.

Peace,

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

August 26, 2011

As I write this blog post, Trinity middle schoolers have just returned safely from a three-day retreat and service learning experience in Montreat, NC. The safe return of students after a few days away is always a highlight for a school administrator. One student rated the trip a 9.5 out of 10. Those of you who have or have had middle school-aged children know that this is quite an impressive accomplishment. After viewing the news stories that included our students, I sent an email to the faculty in which I said, “As I watched this video, I was impressed by many things, but mostly that this is really old hat for our kids…. It makes me thankful to be here and grateful to be working with all of you.” Trinity is blessed to have such a committed and dedicated faculty who understand the value of taking kids off campus for service learning opportunities.

Other noticings by the new head during the first week of school:

- The power of sharing a common message during community worship
- The leadership of the eighth-grade Koinonia when pitching me for a $5,000 loan to front the money
for the supplies to package more than 16,000 meals for Stop Hunger Now
- The joy of being invited to lunch by three adorable first-graders
- The fun of trying to jump rope with a group of fourth-graders and making a fool out of oneself
- The desire of second-graders to help me learn the rules for the games in Healthful Living
- The appreciation for helpful ideas about how to solve fifth-grade math puzzles
- The ease of building relationships between reading buddies in third-grade and kindergarten

Although my days are filled with many other activities, I am blessed to be able to find instant joy in interacting with a group of students or by observing the outstanding teaching that takes place here each day.

I really have a great job!

]]> http://tescharlotte.org/blog/feed/ 0 http://tescharlotte.org/musicman/ http://tescharlotte.org/musicman/#comments Mon, 16 Apr 2012 19:01:53 +0000 trinity09 http://tescharlotte.org/?p=3681

Trinity middle school students, teachers and parents presented their photos and videos from their recent WOW Week trip to Haiti in February. Each described what they experienced, captivating the audience with their life-changing stories and revelations of a journey that took them out of their comfort zones and exposed each to lives outside their own. Below are photos from the evening at the Mint Museum and from their trip to St. Joseph’s Home and Wings of Hope:

“I will always have a special place in my heart for Haiti and the kids at Wings of Hope. I hope to go back to Haiti very soon.”  - Jackson Hill, eighth-grader

“I would love to go back to Haiti and see the amazing kids at Wings of Hope, especially Steven.” – Garrett Te Kolste, seventh-grader

“The kids at Wings of Hope were always so happy even though they didn’t have many things. We have all these material possessions and are not half as happy as the kids we met in Haiti.” – Wilson Caney, eighth-grader

“All they wanted was someone to love them. A smile and a hug meant more to them than anything we could have ever bought for them.”  - Ava DeVine, seventh-grader

“Going to Haiti was a life-changing experience for me. There were many things I had to overcome but learning how to and being okay with feeding the highly disabled children at Wings of Hope was the most challenging. I feel proud because by the third day, I was feeding many different kids and enjoyed doing it!”  - Kayla Holt, eighth-grader

“One of my favorite memories was at Mother Teresa’s home for the children and babies. I remember walking into the newborn baby room, hearing all these little cries of pain and there in the corner of the room was our Ava holding and rocking a feverish baby. Her eyes were filled with tears as she told me she could not help them all and the minute she put one down, she ran over to hold a different baby until it stopped crying. Covered in sweat from the temperature in the room and the feverish skin of the babies, Ava looks at me with despair in her eyes and said, “All they want is for someone to love them but I can’t love them all at the same time!” She did her best to spread a little love to every single baby and I know that everyone benefited from her giving heart and loving soul.”   -Mr. Piscitelli, second-grade Instructional Assistant

“We all witnessed the backbreaking poverty and despair inherent in a country ravaged by calamity, both man-made and God-made. Yet the triumph of the human spirit was abundant everywhere we went; most notably among our middle school students, who on a minute-by-minute basis displayed grace, poise and a generosity of spirit well beyond my wildest expectations.”  -Bryan Morris, TES parent

“Haiti is a life changing experience; you simply have to go too experienced the kindness and consideration of the people and culture to understand. Our Trinity kids where true ambassadors of God’s grace. I found myself in the position as the student and the kids as my teacher.”   - de’Angelo Dia, MS Language Teacher

Our students and faculty wanted to share why THEY love this place!