The US educational landscape moved into a new and potentially significant direction last week with the nomination of Betsy DeVos as Education Secretary in the new Trump Administration. Some in non-public (defined in various ways as parochial, or parent controlled, or private) education as well as those in charter schools were delighted with the choice, seeing the possibility that more … Read More
Amplifying Talent – Part I
The year was 1985 and I had just purchased my first car, paid for with a short lifetime of lawn-mowing, grocery aisle-stocking, bean-walking earnings that had been lying dormant for several years, anxiously awaiting this withdrawal. It was a two-door Chevrolet Impala, some shade of orange that could fit seven to eight teen-agers comfortably. It was quite an upgrade for … Read More
Why?
According to Simon Sinek (2011), great leaders and organizations have one thing in common that distinguishes them from their counterparts. It is this: their entire mission, company, or product begins with the WHY. It doesn’t start with what they do or how they do it. Instead, the focus from the beginning is on the purpose, belief, and sense of calling … Read More
Livening up the Blasé Work of Mission and Vision Revision
No matter the terminology used — mission, purpose, direction, core values, belief statements — each provides an opportunity for an organization to gain clarity about what drives decision-making in the short and long term. High-reliability organizations stay “tight” to their vision and mission, aligning their work in ways that help employees build belief in the processes and products. Extensive time … Read More
A Canadian Rocky Mountain High!
It was truly a great day of celebration, with the majestic Canadian Rocky Mountains as the backdrop in beautiful Banff, Alberta, when more than seventy-five Christian school leaders from Canada, the United States, and Australia gathered prior to the Christian Schools Canada conference to share efforts around Deeper Learning in Christian schools. At this September 21 pre-conference party, there was … Read More
Raising Exiles: Devotional from CESA 2016
Over the past year now, this idea of what it means to be a Christian school in a post-Christian culture has been on my heart and mind incessantly. I am excited to hear Barna Group president David Kinnaman speak during this symposium. I heard him speak last year to a group of us gathered for a Van Lunen Fellowship reunion. … Read More
Courage to Stand
What started as a single protest by Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers has moved from the NFL to college football, and now into the high school arena. On Friday night, our students and fans got to see first hand some of the protests that are popping up all over the country. In fact, Colin made his way to … Read More
Life Calling
During my years in college and graduate school, I pursued an interesting approach to career exploration—I studied them all. I studied history, pre-law, pre-med, Greek, journalism, religion, public health, dentistry, education, geology. What compelled me to pursue so many different fields? Confusion coupled with a determined search for meaning. At the heart of my actions and decisions, there was a … Read More
A New Perspective on Stewardship
My 5 year old grandson has a vivid imagination. Throughout a normal day he imagines that he and those around him are chefs, pirates, zookeepers, policemen, and a variety of other occupations. It is a fun game which requires no change in behavior, at least from his perspective! Reflecting on this causes me to consider the plight of many adolescents … Read More
Escape the Fundraising Treadmill
A treadmill is a great way to go for a five-mile walk without actually leaving the gym. But who would want to live on a treadmill? Too often we feel like we are running on a treadmill with our fundraising efforts. When one event is finished, it’s time to catch our breath and start the next one. Yet sometimes it … Read More