Given the current situation in America, with protests calling for social justice reforms, there is a real need for change. In an age of selfies, “look at me” social media, and an all-about-me mentality, teaching the next generation about empathy for others can be a real challenge. By their very nature, children are self-centered – an innate self-preservation tool that makes them seldom aware of their surroundings or the needs of others. It is up to adults to model and teach children how to love others as Jesus did through empathy and a genuine desire to want to help.

 

Writing and/or speaking about diversity is never easy. In some ways, I feel as though I will never satisfy everyone who reads or hears what I have to say. However, to remain silent about such issues, especially as the head of school at a good-sized Christian independent school would be wrong. It would be cowardly. Now, I know I do not have all the answers. I may not even have a lot of the answers, but I am always seeking them. Likewise, I am hopeful that you will come to this blog desiring to learn, to understand others’ perspectives, and to better exemplify the kindness of God here on earth.

 

Strategic planning is a process that independent schools, non-profit organizations, and for-profit businesses and industries typically undertake on a regular basis to ensure they are meeting their mission, acting upon their core values, and appropriately setting goals around those strategic initiatives. As such, over the course of the 2019-2020 school year, MPCS is engaging in the strategic-planning process. This process is meant to be comprehensive and allow every stakeholder (students, alumni, parents, grandparents, board, faculty, and staff) to provide input into the direction of the school over the next five years. By engaging our people, our goal is to inspire and unite our community through the process, allowing us all to be a part of something bigger, so that our students may flourish.

 

Over the past sixteen months, the Mount Paran Christian School Board of Trustees and Executive Council have spent extensive time discussing the mission of the school, the culture of our community, and the direction we are going in the future. As we head into the winter and spring quarters of this school year, we will engage the entire community in the strategic planning process (my next blog post will explore this process).  However, before we get there, we knew we would need to first examine the school’s mission as it was written years ago and determine the core values that will help us consider and make decisions about every area of the school for the coming years.