One of the emerging threads of this journey that defines schools that are making progress along the path of change is trimming away what is not critical and focusing on a core set of values. This post is about a great process of building change capability in the faculty and success with a new technology [...]
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Some large independent schools are the size and complexity of a small school district and often describe themselves as a Titanic when it comes to changing course from successful traditions to a more innovative future. But we have seen that many are indeed changing, with fascinating nodes of intense creativity. Innovation takes time, but the [...]
1. Distribute the blog posts from my school visits to individuals or teams of faculty, staff, and trustees. Ask them to think of a bunch of questions that fit the simple form: “What if our school did _______________________just like ____________________ (fill in the name of the school they are reading about) is already doing.” I [...]
I got to St. Stephen’s and St. Agnes School latish in the afternoon; most of the students had left for meetings with college admissions reps, but I had a quiet chance to meet with long-time Head Joan Holden, long-time CFO Beth Chase, and two art teachers. Most schools don’t roll out the art teachers for me [...]
Thanks so much to WhippleHill and founder Travis Warren for their support on my journey. Here is a video chat that I did with Travis when I visited their offices in October. It is a pretty good summary of the journey as of mid-October.
I had a pretty high opinion of Sidwell Friends School before I visited this week, and was not disappointed. Head Tom Farquhar freely admits they are not “the most progressive school”, but I brought away some important lessons regarding both process and product. I had put this school on my visit list not due to [...]
If you are in range of Atlanta on Nov. 6, I am honored to be with SAIS for their monthly Lunch and Learn from 11:30-1:30. According to regional director Holly Chesser spaces are filling up quickly, so contact her to reserve a spot. I will give a summary of my journey to date and then [...]
As we have seen before on this journey, schools are at different places on the path toward a new learning paradigm, and it is not so much where they are, but the fact that they are on the path that labels them as innovators. Alexandria Country Day School is in this category. They have a [...]
A few quick notes, then I will be posting from my exciting visit at Cushing Academy today: A big thanks to NAIS and President Pat Bassett for mentioning me and providing the link to my blog on the NAIS E-Bulletin today: "HOW INNOVATIVE IS YOUR SCHOOL? Join Grant Lichtman as he visits 60 schools to report [...]