Hard Work and Excellence

Congratulations to the scores of students and faculty whose talent, and seemingly limitless energy, created the spectacular that was LREI’s production of Hairspray! We are so proud of your hard work. Along these same lines, please join me in congratulating our 7th-12th grade basketball teams—all of which had fantastic seasons. Special congratulations to the players and coaches of the 7th/8th grade and varsity girls’ teams who won league championships! The 7th/8th grade team had an undefeated season. What an achievement! For those who have not had enough of exciting LREI roundball, the last two games of the middle school intramural basketball league will be played on Friday (tomorrow) at 3:30 and 4:15 in the Thompson Street Athletic Center. Come on out and cheer for your student athletes. Whether actors or athletes, or both, our students work hard in the classroom and in so many other ways in the community. We congratulate you and thank you!

Just as producing a play or a championship basketball season requires practice, so to does excellent teaching. Your LREI faculty is dedicated to on-going professional development. This focus on teaching practice can take many forms. Weekly faculty meetings are essential to our examination of what is happening in classrooms. At times these gatherings are focused on the students and their participation in the community. Sometimes the discussion is about procedures and protocols. Often, faculty share strategies, ask for input, review resources and engage in activities that allow the adults to better understand the students’ learning. At times these are informal conversations while often there is a more formal presentation and feedback process. The middle school teachers, for example, participate in a practice called “Critical Friends Groups” that requires structured classroom observations and feedback. The majority of faculty meetings happen by division, though full school faculty meetings happen throughout the year, as do the academic departments. I spent a terrific hour with the lower school faculty earlier this week in a math workshop led by Rose Reilly, lower school math specialist, and Ana Chaney, middle school math teacher and math department chair. The adults grappled with sophisticated math concepts embedded in an elementary math challenge and discussed how best to open these up to our students. A great afternoon. There is a lot of conversation about practice at the meetings of the committee that is looking ahead 10 years at the future requirements for the high school program. (To hear more about this, join me for a discussion on March 8th at 8:45AM in the Sixth Avenue building.)

In addition to in-house opportunities, there are many offerings in the wider educational community. Among the conferences and workshops that LREI faculty members have participated this year include:

• We sent 13 teachers and students to the National Association of Independent School’s People of Color Conference.
• Ana Chaney, math department chair, and Rose Reilly, LS Math Specialist, attended a national math leadership conference.
• Four early childhood teachers attended the 92nd Street Y’s Wonderplay Preschool Conference, at which LS librarian Stacy Dillon was a presenter.
• High School teachers Mark Bledstein and Amy Chang attended a workshop at the China Institute.
• Teachers from all three divisions attended a conference focused on educating girls. High school English teacher Ileana Jimenez (currently on a Fulbright scholarship in Mexico) was a presenter.
• A number of middle school teachers attended workshops on literature and history offered through the New York Public Library.
• The New York Association of Independent Schools hosts dozens of workshops throughout the year. Our teachers attend many of these, including the annual diversity conference organized by Chap, our Director of Diversity and Community.
• The senior administrators attend their statewide affinity conferences—gatherings of people in similar positions from around NY State. Namita Tolia, Ruth Jurgensen, Michel de Konkoly Thege and I are members of the planning bodies for our conferences.
• Cari Kosins, Director of Afterschool and Summer Programs, Clara Campos, Associate Director of Afterschool, attended the National Association of Independent Schools’ Annual Conference, where I was a panelist discussing the head of school’s role in a school’s diversity efforts.

Combine all of these experiences with ongoing school-wide conversations about our diversity themes and progressive education, the topic of our two full day professional days, and you have a rich educational experience for LREI’s faculty and staff. Our faculty is dedicated to ongoing reflection and discussion of how best to serve LREI’s 600 students. Asking questions such as, “How can we provide the most intellectually challenging progressive education, each and every day,” or “How best to respond to new challenges and possibilities?” is an essential to our success. A faculty focused on growth, as ours is, is indispensible. I am continually impressed with the thought, creativity and sharp thinking that come out in these discussions. Thank you teachers!

Finally, two opportunities for the wider LREI community to experience the faculty’s expertise:

• The third term of our adult classes, Adult r(ED), begins after Spring Break. Click here to see a listing for these courses. I highly encourage you to participate. Whichever class you choose, you will have a terrific experience.

• Participate in a book discussion with one of our four nationally recognized librarians by attending Well-REaD, on Thursday, April 7th from 6:00PM-8:00PM. Choose a book, read it, attend the discussion. This is an adult event. Learn what it is that makes your children love the books they read (and the librarians who help to choose them.) All four books are fantastic; the discussions will be as well. If you want to participate and have not ordered a book, stop by the Well-REaD table in the Sixth Avenue lobby on Friday, March 4th and Tuesday, March 8th-Thursday, March 10th.