NAPSG representative to The Girls' School
Association (UK)
Deborah Richman: NAPSG representative to
CAIS
(The Canadian Association of Independent
Schools)
Claire Sumerlus
CAIS representative to NAPSG
Sunday, February 24, 2008. Opening
Dinner.
MS. FORD: We have two sister associations, one in
the UK and one in Canada, and we have a reciprocal arrangement
with them for sending members of NAPSG to their annual conference
and their coming to our annual conference. I would like to
call upon the two most recent members of NAPSG who have gone to
either the UK or to Canada, to their annual conference. I
would like to call upon Woody Price, if he would come and just
give us a report about his visit to the UK.
MR. PRICE: It's really awful to interrupt your
drinks to talk about a report about going to England in November
from southern California, mind you. It's probably not what I
would have considered, with the temperature differential.
But it was my pleasure to represent you all at the Girls School
Association in Leeds, Yorkshire, last November, where dynamo Pat
Langham served as president of that organization, and hosted a
terrific meeting.
The real issue that I took away from that meeting was that the
degree of autonomy that we have as independent schools in the
United States is much to be envied. Lead tables, or scores,
for kids are published around the country, and the purpose of the
meeting was really to talk about how to broaden the support for
independent schools in Great Britain, which is being given a great
deal of scrutiny.
A couple of observations: One of the speakers was the
Minister of Schools for Great Britain, who called on independent
schools in Great Britain to do more to help top students in the
state-run schools. This is done because the tax status, the
charity status, of independent schools in Great Britain is under
great jeopardy. So much of the meeting was justifying the
existence of independent schools in a sector where there's not a
great deal of support in the public level.
One other thing I took away from this is how terribly
underdressed I was in every event. To one meeting, I went in
what I'm wearing now and was the only man not in a suit. So
I pulled out my suit the next day, thinking that I was in very
good shape, only to go to a dinner where the suit would have been
appropriate for the night before, and they changed the rules the
next night, and everyone was in black tie.
The other thing I would tell you is that our program here,
very nice, is quite tacky by Girls Schools Association standards,
glossy photographs sponsored by uniform purveyors and hymnal
purveyors. So I didn't represent us well in my dress, and while
NAPSG is probably a little shabby on a superficial level, our
sister schools in Great Britain would love to have the degree of
independence and the relative lack of public scrutiny that we
enjoy. And I think the message that I took away was that we
need to be more disciplined and more cognizant of how fragile that
might be, and perhaps to be more aware of how we might be vigilant
to protect our independence. But I'm grateful for having
represented you, and I'm sorry I embarrassed you with my
clothing.
MS. FORD: Thank you, Woody. Next time we'll
include sartorial instruction. And now I'd like to invite
Debra Richman, if she would come and make a report about the
Canadian Association of Schools.
MS. RICHMAN: Don't worry, I didn't embarrass
you. I was very well-dressed. It was an honor to
represent NAPSG in Ontario at the annual meeting of the Canadian
Association of Independent Schools. I was there in November,
Niagara-on-the-Lake, where it was picture-perfect. Leaves of
autumn grazed the town with color, the lake on one side, Fingers
on the other. No wonder that Winston Churchill said Niagara
Parkway was one of the prettiest Sunday drives he knew of.
Dr. James Christopher, the executive director of the
association, and his staff were so gracious. They were such
wonderful hosts. I thoroughly enjoyed my visit.
The program included an expressive and impressive group of
keynote speakers, way too many to mention. But they spoke on
the topics of leadership, sustainability, technology, parent
relations, stress, and balance. And I think you'll all
appreciate the wisdom of speaker Dick Forrest, who spoke of the
challenges of leadership, urging the trustees who were in
attendance -- because they have trustees attend their meeting --
"Trustee. Do not sap the energy of or distract the head from
key work."
Then Dr. David Posen -- I loved him. He underscored
developing healthy habits of nutrition, sleep, and exercise while
avoiding the vices of caffeine and alcohol. He did, though,
insist that caffeine was worse and that probably imbibing a glass
of wine or two at night was okay.
Speaker Michael Sabia, president of Bell Canada, presented
this paradox. "While we've been thrust into a global world,
we're becoming disconnected. Internet, Blackberries, iPods,
iPhones, et cetera, we choose what we hear, when we hear it, and
how we hear it. Therefore, we risk building a world based on
'me' instead of 'we.'"
But then there were the helicopter parents, as only speaker
Michael Thompson can describe them. Unaware that I was in
the audience, Michael used many California sightings as examples
of those that hover. But I should point out to my New York
colleagues, there were a few New York sightings, as well.
The conference ended on a beautiful note, with choral evensong
at Ridley College Chapel performed by Ridley students. But I
must say that the true added value was the opportunity to spend
time with my colleagues from Canada. It was a wonderful
trip, and thank you, NAPSG, for sending me.
MS. FORD: And lastly, a member of our Council who
is, in fact, from Canada, who's going to bring greetings from that
part of the world where it's 25 below, and if the wind is blowing,
it's 40 below. We told Claire that if it gets a little
too warm, we'll just turn on the air-conditioning. Claire
Sumerlus.
MS. SUMERLUS: It's a great honor to bring
greetings from Canada, from the great white north. I can only tell
you that I have set my air-conditioning at 66 because I find it
really hot here.
It's always a pleasure for me to come here. I really
cannot tell you what a wonderful group of people you are and how
warm and welcoming you are to us Canadians, and I look forward to
the rest of the conference. Thanks.
MS. FORD: Thank you, everyone, for the Canadian
and UK reports. Enjoy the rest of your dinner.