SAES NOTES - OCTOBER 2023 | |
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After a record breaking 74 days of temps in the triple digits in my hometown of San Antonio this year (compare this to the historical average of 10 days of triple digits temps!) October and the idea of Fall comes as a much anticipated and extremely welcome friend. As the long, hot days of summer begin to fade into the crisp coolness of Autumn, we celebrate with sweaters, college football, MLB playoffs, and an over-abundance of pumpkin-spice.
One of the most amazing expressions of the beauty of the Fall season is captured in the work of my photographer friend Tony. In Aspen Mist, the handiwork of Mother Nature is reflected in the shimmering golden hues of an aspen forest in early October. Scarred white sentinels standing firmly and flexing gently in the breeze as the morning mist slowly dissipates reveal a gorgeous golden glow cast by shimmering leaves dancing and singing in unison as they reflect the radiance of the rising sun. This ritual revealing of God’s glory through the changing of the season is enough to take our breath away, and it reminds us of how the power and promise of our Father in Heaven can penetrate the fog of our human condition.
The beauty of the aspen in Fall becomes even more amazing as we begin to understand the unique characteristics of their holy design. The very nature of these resilient trees makes a strong statement about the power of family and community, which is how we so often view ourselves as Episcopal schools. Aspen trees do not exist as solitary trees. Aspen co-exist as a grove or colony (known as a stand) that originates from a single seedling that can grow to cover a very large area. The stand is made up of many individual trees, each a unique expression of God’s design but all sharing one common root system, one original source of life. They are simultaneously one living organism and one living community, communicating with and sustaining each other. In addition, aspen frequently appear where avalanches, mudslides, and fires have scarred the earth, demonstrating God’s design for resilience through relationship and the power of resurrection. Because of this common connection through their root system, the strength and beauty of the entire stand is reflected in the natural resilience and resurrection qualities of its individual trees. Perhaps the most famous community of aspen is known as Pando, which is Latin for “I spread.” Comprised of around 47,000 individual stems, covering 106 acres, weighing an estimated 6,600 US tons, and estimated to be over 80,000 years old, this network of quaking aspen growing in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah is considered the world's oldest and most massive plant.
Like this community of amazing trees, Episcopal Schools, at our core, are a family of individuals springing up from and sustained by the root of Christ, standing to demonstrate and proclaim the beauty of resilience and resurrection in a scarred and broken landscape. Across the SAES, we are 100+ individual expressions of a common root that is found in the love of Christ, and our shared mission is to spread this love through the ministry of education.
Warmest blessings this Fall to all the members of the SAES, and may the morning mist dissolve with the rising sun to reveal the gorgeous golden glow of God’s handiwork in your community.
LGLO,
Rob
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HEADS MEETING & LEADERSHIP SYMPOSIUM
OCTOBER 27, 2023
Trinity Episcopal School, Austin, TX
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Featuring
Dr. Beth-Sarah Wright
Author of DIGNITY: Seven Strategies for Creating Authentic Community
Atlanta-based author and speaker, Dr. Beth-Sarah Wright writes to make a difference. She writes to develop the courage for transformation and change, in our communities, institutions, and lives. Her work strategically addresses the insidious challenges we face, either in our individual lives or in our communities- be they corporate, educational, religious, or otherwise-that require identity shifts and increases in capacities and competencies to bring about sustainable and meaningful change. Wright advocates for authenticity in our communities, no matter what our context, by aligning our aspirational identities with our lived realities.
Beth-Sarah is the author of seven books. Her most recent book, The DIGNITY Lens Workbook: Implementing the Seven Strategies for Creating Authentic Community is a companion to her book DIGNITY: Seven Strategies for Creating Authentic Community. DIGNITY is a comprehensive lens through which to view and solve insidious barriers to authenticity and narrow the gap between who we say we are and who we are in reality. For Wright, stories are the currency for dignity.
A former college professor at NYU and Spelman College, she currently serves as the Director of Enrollment Management at Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School in Atlanta and an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Emory School of Medicine. She holds a PhD in Performance Studies from New York University, an MPhil in Anthropology from Cambridge University, and a BA (magna cum laude) from Princeton University in Sociology and Afro-American studies.
Beth-Sarah is originally from Jamaica and has lived and studied worldwide, from Edinburgh, Scotland to San Juan, Puerto Rico. She is married to Robert C. Wright, the Episcopal Bishop of Atlanta and they are parents to 5 children.
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PREFERRED SOLUTION PROVIDERS & SPONSORS | |
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“Smarter Security, Safer Schools”
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School-centric, competency-based approach to leadership searches and consulting
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Providing SAES schools with a better financial
aid solution
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Helping independent schools in the South
hire talented teachers
and leaders
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Proud family-owned business driven to provide high quality school uniforms at a fair price, delivered quickly year-round, and backed by unparalleled
customer support
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Helping SAES schools with innovative finance automation solutions that improve efficiency, accuracy, and security | | |
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Contact: Clayton Crawley
Supporting clergy and lay employees
of The Episcopal Church
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Curated Resources for Continued
Thinking and Learning
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Creating Clarity on Equity
Higher Learning
Wendy Fischman (Harvard Graduate School of Education) reports on a ten-year study she conducted with Howard Gardner about the purpose of college.
Four Stands of a Learning Community
Why does your school exist? What makes it unique? What you would never want your school to lose and what is the most important work you do?
Sprocket
A free website with a number of full-year project-based learning units, including grade 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 science, 9th grade ELA, AP environmental science, AP U.S. government and politics, and AP physics.
Remarkable Leaders
5 Factors for a Great Employee Experience
Finding and keeping great employees is a critical issue for schools. Consider these five factors to recruit and retain the best!
Leading as Coaching
7 steps for Successful Meetings with Upset Parents
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The last week of September marked our first On-Site Visit of 2023-24. October and November will each bring one as well, and by the end of this school year, eight SAES schools will have hosted On-Site Visits. These visits are an essential element of the accreditation process by bringing volunteer school leaders onto the host campus to observe all aspects of school operations and not only ensure member schools are striving to adhere to SAES Standards but, more importantly, make recommendations for continued improvement. The members of the Visiting Team also intentionally call attention to all that is going well at a school, including those things that often go unnoticed or underappreciated. The report of the On-Site Visiting Team can often serve as the outline of the school’s next strategic plan and as a confirmation of mission alignment. | |
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Chris Carter
SAES Director of Accreditation
[email protected]
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Recently I attended a meeting of Directors of Accreditation from over a dozen accrediting associations where we had a panel discussion with local Heads of Schools. One head commented with a grimace that he considered accreditation visits to be the institutional equivalent of having a colonoscopy–perhaps not the most flattering comparison for a room full of accreditors! Another head then said she thought that was a great and helpful comparison, noting that it just makes good sense every ten years “to clean everything out and have a good look inside to make sure everything’s healthy!”
I don’t think the members of our On-Site Visiting Teams have ever thought of themselves as providing colonoscopies, but I do think they have always felt that the work of the Visiting Team is to affirm and improve the health of the schools they visit. As I review our SAES Core Values of “Community, Faith, Integrity, Leadership, and Support,” I am struck by the way these values completely reflect the work of our SAES Visiting Teams. I feel blessed to be able to participate in the important work of our Visiting Teams and look forward eagerly to the seven remaining visits of this year!
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SAES SPONSOR PARTNER HIGHLIGHT | |
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Contact: Clayton Crawley
Supporting clergy and lay employees of The Episcopal Church
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