ROR Magazine Fall Issue 2021

ULEAD’S INSPIRING STORY

SIT-DOWN WITH IECA’S MARK SKLAROW

PLAN A TRIP TO THE SOUTH POLE!

MEET MEET TWO TWO AMAZING ARTISTS! AMAZING ARTISTS!

ENVISIONING A GLOBAL ENVISIONING GLOBAL CONNECTIVITY PROGRAM CONNECTIVITY PROGRAM

Meet the Team

Founder/CEO/President/Publisher Dartmouth Associates and ROR Magazine, A Division of Schenck Enterprises Corporation Tom founded Schenck Enterprises Corporation in 2020 and created Dartmouth Associates as a global consulting, training and promotional company that empowers independent schools and colleges. Other than issuing the ROR Magazine, the first of its kind lifestyle publication for Admissions Professionals, there are plenty of well-established offerings by the company. Our flagship product is ROR, The Results Oriented Recruiting System™, the world’s first sales Training Curriculum curated exclusively for Admission Professionals. We also develop national technology summits and promotional podcasts, giving key admissions leaders precious airtime. Additionally, Tom has pioneered the concept of “Dynamic Brand Enthusiasm” that introduces best-in class vendors to schools and colleges.

For 25 years, previously, Thomas held leadership positions such as Head of School, and Director of Admissions, Development, and Placement. He was a also founding trustee for Sisu Academy, a tuition-free school that promoted entrepreneurship to underprivileged students. He established Villain Crusher Marketing helping early-stage entrepreneurs find venture capital. While providing his various services, Thomas attained Presidents Club status and the top 1% national sales position for Yellow Book Media. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from San Diego State University and a master’s degree in Utopian Philosophy from Dartmouth College. As the first actor to portray Spider-Man for Marvel Comics in New York City, he has highly developed skills for vanquishing evil!

Rhodora O CHIEF EDITOR & ART DIRECTOR

M.Sc. in Psychology, Rhodora was in the middle of postgraduate studies in Educational Psychology, when she had to settle for a freelance career for the sake of her children and family. She writes short stories, poetry, screenplays and essays exploring the interface of technology and society.

As a POC, at-home mom, Rhodora envisions the ROR Magazine as a springboard for highlighting challenges, obstacles and achievements of independent schools admission professionals, while creating a flagship reading mix of lifestyle and culture.

Vice President and Artistic Director for World Branding He supervises all critical brand visual and content aesthetics for both ROR Publications as well as the universe of Schenck Enterprises including Dartmouth Associates Family of Services, such as ROR Training, ROR Consulting and ROR Promotions. He also reviews and stabilizes the aesthetic consistency of websites, social media, and all collateral promotional campaigns.

A New York trained artist and entrepreneur, he has contributed his talents to a broad range of creative and business endeavors including The Aware Wolf Collective, a branding and promotional agency, as well as developing a motivational and fitness system that promotes the All I Know Is Go training system.

A digital marketing expert, Chiranjeev oversees all areas of Schenck Enterprises global technology, strategy, marketing campaigns, product development, including product management, UX design and engineering. He brings extensive experience in building direct to consumer platforms and associated products and services for the digital economy.

Director of Global Media and Outreach Trey manages the production of the ROR Magazine aligned podcast, the Admissions Entrepreneur, A Day in the Life, across all audio and visual platforms. He has created a ground-breaking podcasting system allowing our admission professionals to be featured in sound and print around the world.

Previously he founded Hype Music Network in 2013 with the start of his first podcast “The G-List Show.”

Trey set out to give musicians and up & coming creatives and entrepreneurs an opportunity to share their talent globally, all the while creating high-quality content.

CHIEF PRODUCT AND TECHNOLOGY OFFICER Previously, his company, Dutt Media, designed dynamic marketing campaigns, consistently increasing client online revenue. He holds a BBA and MBA in Marketing and Finance.

Publisher’s Message Admissions professionals and supporting educators around the world, thank you for making our Summer Launch a global success! We had over 5,000 views, with readers spending over five minutes per viewing — unheard of numbers in such a niche market!

Our vision was to create an eloquent and diverse publication that appealed to the eclectic and dynamic backgrounds of admissions professionals everywhere. The key will always be quality content both in presentation and diversity, not a small feat given the vast tastes of our readership.

Every potential article, poem, cartoon and artwork was carefully reviewed to make sure that there was a consistent, visionary flow throughout the magazine. To those whose submissions made it in, I am eternally grateful to you for sharing your artistic and passionate gifts, and I look forward to enjoying more of your work in future editions.

Bringing all these talented people and their works in the correct sequence and format is an art itself. I have been both in awe and humbled, from the very beginning of our relationship, at the brilliance and literary insights of our Editor, Rhodora as the leader of ROR Magazine's success. Bravo, dear friend!

Lastly, thank you to our supporters who believed in our vision from the beginning and have invested their presence throughout the magazine. In future issues, it is clear that we will have to carefully review the merits of each potential advertiser, as we want all chosen to have a quality promotional experience.

Moving forward, I remind all of you that this magazine is your voice. We want to hear your suggestions as to how we can improve your reading experience. Get involved, write a letter to the editor, regale us with your short story, dazzle us with a picture of a recent pottery creation, or demand our reflection with your life's philosophy. We are waiting… I remind you to be grateful for each day and to seek, ever so slightly, to improve the life of someone near you.

Stay safe, dear tribe!

Yours in Excitement,

Tom Schenck Publisher & President

Editor’s Message PUBLISHER

Thomas Schenck, President Dartmouth Associates EDITOR Rhodora O COVER Hagan Schenck ART DIRECTION Rhodora O APPROACH US WEBSITE:

www.dartmouthassociates.com FACEBOOK:

RORMagazine LINKED IN:

DartmouthAssociates CONTRIBUTE/ COLLABORATE: rormagazine@yahoo.com ADVERTISE: dartmouthassociates@gmail.com SUBSCRIBE: rormagazine.com FOLLOW US: TWITTER:

RORMagazine

The flagship edition of this magazine was all about proving the need for space in the arena carved out specifically for the Admissions Professionals. In the independent schooling sector, all around the world, these professionals have a unique and gargantuan job that is rarely afforded the significance and appreciation it deserves collectively. Many schools operate without designated directors of admissions both in USA and beyond. Websites typically do not highlight officers of admissions among cited leadership, and they are merely listed as non-teaching staff. While degree and certificate programs focus on enrollment manager, they are more focused on a higher education scenario, whereas the needs of admissions for primary, middle and secondary schools can be different.

Mr. Schenck’s sole aim with this magazine is to become the voice and champion of this underappreciated field and to provide them with content they would appreciate in both the professional and personal sides of their lives.

With this goal in mind, we have strived to broaden the range of expertise writing for us.

Various accomplished practitioners of their craft have shared their creativity and experiences in this issue. Prominent leaders of the independent school community have also sent us invaluable thoughts, arguments and conversation.

We hope that in future editions, more admissions professionals will get on board with us and illuminate this community with their wisdom, insights, and invaluable contributions and achievements. Let us throw some well-deserved spotlight on you.

Rhodora O Rhodora O Editor

CORRECTIONS On the ROR Poet, page 80, we accidentally listed the author name as Olaf. It is actually Olan, as it was correctly used on Our Contributors.

INSTAGRAM:

RECTIFIED MISTAKES

ror_magazine

In the first iteration of Summer Issue 2021, later corrected,:

THE ROR PHILOSOPHY: Interventional Playbook Podcast

On Page 11, we accidentally printed “International” instead of “Independent” in ISCA’s full name.

On page 22, the name of the poem accidentally had “leach,” instead of the correct “leech.”

Disclaimer: ROR Magazine will not be held liable for any contents of the magazine attributed to a particular contributor/creator.

This applies to advertisement. The contributor will be liable for any copyright claims. Details behind the back cover.

Copyrights: No part of this magazine may be copied, reused or redistributed in any form. This copyright notice does not apply to images noted as Stock Photos or credited photographers who placed their work for royalty-free re-use on Unsplash, Pixabay, Wikimedia Commons and other Stock websites.

DAVID MCBREARTY

is a historical researcher, palaeographer and author who has taught early modern history and manuscript studies at third level. He has published widely and edited early modern manuscript material for publication for several academic presses and government bodies. His interests largely lie in modern European and American history, with an emphasis on state structures and political theory. He is based in Ireland.

IAN CRAIG Head | Rumsey Hall

Before Rumsey Hall, Ian has headed two other independent schools and been interim head at a third.

He has M.A. in Secondary Social Studies Education.

DEAN J. FUSTO Head | Brandon Hall

With a career in education spanning three decades, Fusto has founded Teach.Learn.Lead as a connecting network for teachers everywhere. As the head of his school, he also started the Center for Global Youth Leadership.

CHRISTINA WANG Founder | ULEAD

After many years of experience as an international education program coordinator, Wang founded her own company where she integrates her personal philosophy for supporting students inspired by her own daughter.

BETHANY DI NAPOLI Executive Director |ISCA

Bethany has served as Executive Director of ISCA since August of 2017 and has had the pleasure of connecting ISCA members with experts in respective disciplines.

Her previous experience includes working at the Rhodes Island Department of Health with her education in public health and nutrition.

RACHEAL KARIUKI is a dedicated scientists graduated from University of Nairobi. Besides research work, She has authored and contributed to various publications. She specializes in the field of health, mental health and psychology.

RONIT NATH has been working as a website developer and content writer for over a period of three years. He currently has an in house team of about 50 people working under the same roof. He has a masters in English Literature from Calcutta University.

Amanda Brown is a mom, lifestyle writer and poet. She is also finalizing a poetry collection for publication.

She maintains a blog on health and wellness at www.liminalwellness.com.

Serban Sorin Decebal is a Professional Content Writer with extensive experience of almost ten years in providing high-quality article writing services. He loves to play with words, and he puts all his passion and hard work into creating original content.

V. A. Luna was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, to a working class family.

He relocated to the United States in his early twenties, and his work as a writer has taken him to every continent, following their peoples and stories. FInd him on Twitter as @LordVictorLobos.

Biya Noor is a Freelance Writer from Pakistan who has just started and hoping for a long and viable career.

Freddy Rincon works hard as a full time welder and still finds the time to spend with his family everyday and then work away the late hours creating his next artistic masterpiece. He shares his work on Behance and https://frincon.myportfolio.com/

Ädiana Ross is an american author, performance artist, humanitarian and wellness coach.

She has assisted thousands of people throughout the world in transforming their lives, discovering their life’s purpose and activating their greatness. Her latest book “The Burning Mirror” can be found on Amazon.

Her work irrefutably inspires the limitless potential of all who engage. Get in touch with her at https://www.adianaross.com/

P. Stormcrow is an award-winning author who writes paranormal and contemporary romances with high heat and often with sprinklings of power dynamics. Born in Hong Kong and raised in Canada, she enjoys writing about both cultures. Find out more about her work at https://pstormcrow.com/

Martina Bulkova

Slovokhotov Kirill

teaches English and German in Russia and write, textbooks. He paints with oil in free time and uses Procreate on iPad for all of his marvelous digital art on Pixabay. He is always looking for new original ideas and trying to combine traditional and modern media and approaches to art in order to get desired results.

is a teacher from Slovakia. She studied glass design and her passions include painting, collages, sculpturing, and more.

She teaches piano play for living in a basic school of arts and does her art in free time.

Her biggest inspiration is nature. You can find her art on Pixabay.

Lucy Morningstar

is a Certified Life Coach and believes in the power of healing through art and creative expression. Her commercial art blog is not the first business. With her degree in Finance and Accounting, she has successfully established and sold a business before. Shop her art at https://lucymorningstar.art/

Heraldo Ortega

is a Chilean artist and musician, and a graphic designer who graduated from the Universidad del Bio Bio, Chile. He works as a freelance illustrator for various trendy card game platforms, and worked with various science fiction authors, publishing in Argentina and Chile. His art has been published internationally in magazines in Europe and America. He has held exhibitions of his traditional art in Chile. His preferred media are oils, watercolor and acrylics, and his primary inspiration is the diverse nature of his country, especially the countryside and the coasts.

Sara Liriano

is a multifaceted designer with accomplished projects in interior and content designing for events and complex digital designing of 3D, Augmented Reality and other virtual reality environments. She posts her work on Behance and has an extensive portfolio showcasing her breathtaking creations at www.sarahlirianoportfolio.com

In this

25

PROFILE Interview with Mark Sklarow, Executive Director, IECA

By Thomas Schenck

LEADERSHIP FEATURE A Global Connectivity Program for Teenagers

90

By Bethany Di Napoli

41 GLOBAL PANDEMIC FEATURE Rallying to the Cause: Private schools in Kenya and India.

EDUCATION FEATURE Why the K-9 Model Works

By Ian Craig

112

HISTORY FEATURE History of Independent Schooling in America

117

By Racheal Kariuiki and Ronit Nath.

75 CURRICULUM FEATURE Pandemic Pivoting & the Arts

By The Bolles School

By David McBrearty

issue...

Features.

LIFESTYLE GUIDES Hemp Milk

By Serban Sorin

47

Homemade Potpourri

TRAVEL GUIDE A Hop to the South Pole

By Rhodora O

115 142

By Colin Napier

79

CULTURE FEATURE Celebrating the Season: October, November

By Biya Noor

ART PROFILE Elena Kotliarker: Creating Wonderlands full of Color & Meaning

122

By Rhodora O

WELLNESS FEATURE Becoming Untangled: 133 Remaining Spiritually Sound in a Shifting Era By Ȁdiana Ross

October Gold, 1922. By Franklin Carmichael (1890-1945)

ROR INTRODUCTION ULEAD Education Consultancy

54

20

ROR MUSIC

Classical Music: Chopin’s Nocturne Op. No. 9

22Contemporary Music:

“Blue Weekend” by Wolf Alice

34

Departments 96

ROR STORY Underground Men By V. C. Luna

ROR SCREEN ROR INSPIRES Freddy Rincon’s Routines for Success

105

REVIEW: The Green Knight by Joel Coen REVIEW: Summer of Soul by Questlove

63 ROR BOOKSHELF Who is Maud Dixon

by Alexandra Andrews The New Climate War

by Michael E. Mann

ROR POET Hunger

By Amanda Brown

109

ROR RECIPE Teriyaki Chicken Casserole

69

Cascade Academy

148

ROR PROFILES A Family Affair: Introducing Admissions Professionals everywhere

57

ROR SCOOP Independent Schools News Spotlight

100

ROR SCHOOL Dean J. Fusto on Partnerships as a Marketing Strategy

127

150

65

The Gow School

ROR BUZZ A Foodie’s Love Letter to Vancouver

By P. Stormcrow

ROR HAPPENINGS Key Upcoming Events for Admissions Professionals

138

Ayia Napa Cyprus, Underwater Museum of Sculpture. Art by Jason deCaires Taylor

20

ROR Recommends

Nocturne Op. 9 No. 2 F

Musically, this nocturne in B-flat minor has a beautiful pattern to it, rolling in quietly at first in undulating waves. It builds up an inner tension into a climax of a sudden expression of passion, and plays out relatively in D-flat major. It’s like entering a strange and different world. We are encased in a strong melody softly repeating certain phrases until it is fully hypnotic or at least meditative.

This crest is abruptly followed by a chain of sixths and thirds that continue to echo for some time. Finally, the soft dolcissimo effect returns and ultimately bursts into a final swing and fades in B-flat major.

These musical variations draw the casual listener completely into a trance as you let the music wash over you.

Even when the music gets energetic, it is never wild and crazy. In fact, Chopin manages to make it even more simple and elegant. In the last section, Chopin lowers all the notes in small chromatic steps creating strange modulations and tones and connecting the ending to the beginning’s express sweetness.

The nocturne is a romantic and sensual journey and by the end you are left wondering if you really heard all that or it was just a reverie.

rederic Chopin is well known as a genius of the solo piano. Some of his memorable compositions, including Nocturne Op. 9 No. 2, hail from his twenties era. He was raised in Poland but exiled himself to Paris and died all too early at 39.

The Nocturne Op. 9 No. 2 is the kind of rare melody that can have two completely different effects on the listener depending on how you play it. Traditionally, Chopin's tender notes are played with complete emotional involvement. But this work is best played with a slight reluctance. You could open your heart to it, but the music sounds more interesting when the player holds back a bit. That’s because Chopin is walking a fine line between drama and melodrama in this composition.

Design for a Piano.

Met Museum, via Picryl

An artistic rendition of Other Dances, composition by Jerome Robbins & Frederic Chopin

By Artists Alexey Lyapunov and Lena Erlich on Behance.

17

Alice,

an alternative rock band of 20-something Londoners have achieved something

undeniable with their third album “Blue weekend.”

By their own claim they are more authentic, buoyed by their previous successes and have successfully emboldened their lyrics and style which audiences welcomed before.

Critics have unanimously earmarked this album, led

by Ellie Rowsell’s astonishing voice and words, as one of the best of the year. It is truly a birth child of our current times, as the band share anxieties of their age and era wisely and compellingly and worked an extra length of time to polish off this release when the pandemic hit.

You don’t expect lyrics such as these in a late 20s rock output; the words seem to come out of moving literature to lay bare your soul and transport you into a journey of self-discovery: “Every book you take that you dust off from the shelf/Has lines between lines between lines that you read about yourself.”

Despite occasional profanity, the maturity of this

group’s worldview is refreshing. They resist the glaze of glitzy rock glamour. Their documentary “On the Road” cemented how firm their feet remain planted on the ground: they are more about the hardworking, diligent channeling of their skillset than anything else.

In Delicious Things, they talk about the failure of hedonistic pursuit, and in Lipstick on the Glass wax lyrical on the necessity of compromise in romantic relationships to keep them going. But most of all, it is about the assertion of one’s individuality and essentiality as opposed to appearances, labels, and contemporary expectations of what a rock lifestyle should be. Two variations on the chorus of Smile capture the irony of pigeonholing: “And now you all think I’m unhinged/Wind her up and this honeybee stings” “Did you think I was a puppet on strings?/Wind her up and this honeybee sings.”

Musically, the album is full of heavenly moments, rousing pinnacles and peaks of Ellis’s assured singing.

The sound soars with astounding confidence springing from the complexity of their thought and outlook and the literary boldness of their writing.

Photo credit: Jordan Hemingway

Wolf

22

“Music Expanded,” a mural created by the collaborative partnerships between Little Kids Rock and Chicago Public Schools. Photo by Little Kids Rock, FEB 2017, Flickr.

A LIFELONG PASSION TO DO RIGHT BY EVERY STUDENT Interviewed by Thomas Schenck

26

Mark Sklarow with Chuck Todd at an official event.

I

had the delightful opportunity to sit down with one of America’s most beloved and iconic educational thought leaders, Mark Sklarow. He heads, as Executive Director, the Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA), one of the most respected associations in America today.

For over 27 years, Mark’s insights and compassion for others have guided an organization growing from 400 to over 2,500 members under his leadership.

Mark has won numerous awards including a volunteer board service award from the University of California extension and the AAU which is the Amateur Athletic Union. He was also Teacher of the Year multiple times. He has written numerous articles on college admission issues for the very successful Insights, the official magazine of the IECA. Additionally, he has contributed articles in various educational publications. Some of his writings have appeared in the Newsweek magazine. Like all good educational leaders he started out as a teacher instructing social science in Philadelphia.

Please enjoy his sage and approach to success in this interview.

lighthearted

Tom: Mark, I'm absolutely delighted to have you as my guest. I remember your warmth and kindness when I first met you early in my career as a young admission officer at my first IECA conference. Did you ever in your wildest dreams think that we would be sitting here 27 years later?

Mark: I had just come out of the classroom. I was really looking for something a little bit different.

When I applied for the job at IECA, I did not have a clue what an independent educational consultant was. There was no Google to help me. I went to the library and did a little bit of research trying to figure out what this group was and I really had mixed feelings to be honest. More than 600 people applied for the job but I was still unsure about my interest. I think I walked into the interview feeling that they'd have to convince me that I'd want this job more than the other way around which somehow worked in my favor.

When I first learned about educational consultants, it sounded like a bunch of rich people who helped other rich people find a school for their spoiled kids. I thought who would want to do that as a career. By the end of the interview, I had been sort of won over by the group. I think they appreciated my being candid about starting a foundation while making sure that educational consultants had a commitment to equity. I don't think I or the team that hired me ever imagined that I would still be here.

The reason I'm here after all these years is that I love what we do. I love helping kids find the right place where they're going to thrive. I love helping our members to stay up to date and educated and look for solutions for kids. The kids have become so much more complicated. We are finally viewing every kid as an individual which I don't know if we were doing 25 years ago. Every kid is a puzzle and I love the fact that our members’ job is “let's figure out this puzzle and let's figure out the place in the entire world that's the right for little Jamal or little Susie or or Fred to just blossom.”

Tom: Was there a point where you said I think I'm gonna stay longer than four years? What happened to change your mindset.

Mark: The field was changing so quickly. The day I arrived at IECA was primarily helping independent day and boarding schools. But it was so clear that the college field was growing; the therapeutic field was growing. Everything about our mission seemed to be changing even back then. I saw this field as being essential. I got the board to adopt the philosophy that every child deserves great advising, whether that comes from an IECA member or it comes from somebody else. We've grown every year that I've been there and part of that has allowed me to to keep expanding and offer more for our members. It just gave me the freedom to try new things and experiment.

If I didn't enjoy myself, I obviously wouldn't still be there. Every year you've got different programs going on. For instance, a great focus for me for the past couple of years has been figuring out how to harness the excitement of our members and their willingness to share the knowledge and teach it to their colleagues. Technology has allowed us to do that in new ways. We're running five or six webinars a week right now and that's not counting what our regional groups are doing. Before, we created these regional groups and we created affinity groups and all these other groups out there. Certainly our commitment to diversity, equity and

inclusion is an important thing going on right now in schools across the country. I'm just excited by the potential.

Tom: What is it that you feel admissions officers really need to do to help themselves, especially as they work with educational consultants?

Mark: Admissions officers need to understand their own school and what their school does exceedingly well. There are some schools that should be sharing about their environmental program. There are other schools that should talk about how they prepare kids with internships. Every school has something unique that they're doing and I want schools to own it. Working with a consultant is to help you find the right kid, but only if you are able to explain fully who you best serve. If the consultant doesn’t even have clear idea of who you are and who is going to be the right student for you in a way that's unique and different from everybody else. You want to give consultants that aha moment when they're sitting across from a family listening to the kid. The consultants should be able to say to themselves: “Oh my god, that's a Hillside kid right there. Or, that's a Cheshire Academy kid.” That can only happen if they have this clear image of your school and who you serve.

I have two things for admission professionals.

Firstly, be able to articulate your specifics. The second thing, with all due respect to my admissions colleagues, is to shut up and listen. Listen to the parents, listen to the students and find out what they are looking for, or else you're selling the wrong thing. I go on tours of boarding schools and colleagues spend so much time talking about cafeterias. Nobody cares that there's a buffet available every day. Substitute all that with listening to the family. Maybe this is a kid with a high anxiety level or it's a child who has been a loner and what they're really looking for is to make sure there will be connections drawn among the other kids in the school. You can't know what the selling point is for this family unless you hear it from the parents. So that's my second piece of advice for admissions folks: to stop selling right off the bat and listen. Figure out what it is that this family is looking for.

You're solving a problem for the family. The family's problem is that their local school isn't right or the child doesn't feel that they belong or the family dynamics suggests that they're looking for something else. If you don't first listen to find out what the problem is, how in the world could you possibly solve it? Imagine going to a doctor and

27

28 the doctor immediately starts telling you what medicine and what surgery is you before you've had a chance to say your elbow hurts.

New admission officers can't be thrown in to the process. There has to be a commitment to training, just basic, rudimentary training on an ongoing basis. If I were giving advice to a headmaster of a school today, I would say to value your admissions professionals and their huge impact on the future of the school. Many heads pay lip service but are they putting their money where their mouth is? Are they making sure these professionals are well trained on new technologies? Are they making sure they're trained in communications? Sometimes I think heads feel like, “I've got a great school. I just need someone to explain that and the kids will show up.” But that’s not how admission works.

There are a lot of great schools, but how can that best be communicated? I hate to use the term “sales,” but maybe a little training in sales would be a good thing for a head to offer to their admissions people, especially someone who's new into admissions.

We now must view that every kid is different and we teach kids differently. What we've learned about learning differences is that probably every kid learns differently. Now we have parents feeling that you may think you do a good job teaching... that doesn't mean you do a good job teaching my Johnny. That's part of understanding let's get back to listening. If you listen and you hear where's the parent’s anxiety is, you may find out, let’s say, this kid is a little too withdrawn and shy. Now you can talk to them about how your school has small class sizes.

That the kid will get to know the teacher and the teacher will be able to draw this student out.

A parent must feel like they and their child are the most important people of the day. They need to know that somehow you value their child as much as they do, and that's not an easy sell all the time, but it’s the name of the game.

Tom: What does a day look like for you and how do you remain sane with all your different responsibilities?

Part of a mural, Colorful Hands, painted by students from George Fox University, Newburg, OR. Photo Credit: Tim Mossholder, Unsplash

29 If I were giving advice to a headmaster of a school today, I would say to value your admissions professionals and their huge impact on the future of the school.

“ Photo Credit: Papaioannou Kosta, Unsplash.

Mark: I'm lucky that I love my work. I don't come home grumpy and tired. I've had those jobs where you walk in the house and the kids want your attention and you're like the last thing I need is anybody else needing something from me right now. What also helps is that my wife and I have work that overlaps. She's a speech therapist so she's dealing with LD issues. I understand what she is doing; she understands the work that I do.

Out of my two daughters one has always loved attending the IECA conferences. So, she went into planning meetings and is working for Marriott hotels. My other daughter became a social worker because she wanted to work with those kids that weren't finding an easy path. She saw at our conferences that there are people working with kids whose path to success is a little more circuitous than others. I know some people would say that the key is separation of work and home. But for us it was sort of the blending of it all together as a family.

Tom: You don't age. What is your secret?

Mark: Let me just say everything hurts except maybe the brand new knee but everything around

that hurts. I just enjoy what we're doing and that means you are full of energy.

Tom: From my observation, part of your secret sauce is your enthusiasm and you convey that enthusiasm, that trust to your staff.

Mark: I like to tell people that, over 27 years, I have hired about 13 people and fired two. If you find the right person, you train them the right way and you don't bring in anybody that you are not sure of.

Tom: Tell us about your passion for cooking?

Mark: I love doing a big meal at the Thanksgiving weekend and I don't let anybody prepare anything! And because you've got different sides of the family, it may mean doing three kinds of potatoes, different kinds of stuffing, and so on! To me the greatest thing in the world is to be so exhausted that when we sit down to eat, I can't even touch anything... I just sit back and watch everybody enjoying themselves.

Tom: It seems like you've got an energy and a passion for so many things in life. What were you like as an elementary school kid… as a high school kid?

30 Mark: This is going to sound funny but on the Myers Briggs, I test on the introvert side. That surprises everybody; but what introversion really means to me… it's how you recharge your batteries. As a student, finding a quiet spot in a library is something I would do all the time. Get out of my house and ride my bike to the library and and just sit and read. That's what sort of gave me a chance to recharge.

In high school, I was student council president. In fact, I wanted to run for student council president when I was in 10th grade and of course like every school in America that's something a senior gets to do. But I challenged that assumption based on the Philadelphia students Bill of Rights that I had every right to run for student council president. I won in the 10th grade so I got to serve for several years as that and, honestly, that was more important to me than anything that was happening in the classroom. In many ways I think I'm still the student council president. I'm still running special events and I'm running conferences, so in some ways I feel like I'm doing the same thing today.

Tom: Mark, you truly were in training for what you're doing now. You've got the same passion and skills to involve people and make people feel important.

You've been a national thought leader in this country in many ways. What would you say is one of the greatest social injustices that we face as a country today?

Mark: It's impossible to look at what's going on today and not see all the racial inequality and police actions as they relate to its citizens of color today. It shocks me that in the America of 2021, elderly Asians are getting pushed down on the street and being blamed for a virus. At this point,who would blame a young black man for being terrified of being pulled over by the police?

I think schools have to figure out how do we teach without indoctrinating. How do we make sure that empathy and understanding is part of the curriculum? We must be thinking what's going to lead us to a better place in 2031. What gets me a little depressed is if you would have asked this question in 2011, I would have said both things will be better by 2021. Because kids have friends that are multicultural and people are getting married and having children as mixed race, racial stratification should have become so unimportant by 2021.

And yet here we are. I think we have to resolve what role do schools play in that. I think it would be safe to say that schools above the Mason Dixon line at least have realized that it’s part of their responsibility of teaching; that kind of cultural understanding, peace and and appreciation for

multiculturalism. We are also kind of learning that wasn't going on, that wasn't being taught in schools in the South and and in fact the textbooks in Texas are different. It seems to me that half the country moves in the right direction and half the country just panics.

Tom: If there was one thing that you would put on a big billboard on the freeway of life, what would that be?

Mark: The importance of kindness, to act in ways that demonstrate empathy toward others, understanding what others are going through and and finding a way to help serve them. I just think that we'd be a whole lot better off if we could practice it in our lives at a national level. If we could all just live our lives letting kindness lead us I think we'd be in a much better place.

Tom: Thank you for your gracious time, Mark.

Mark can be reached at: IECA 3251 OLD LEE HIGHWAY • SUITE 510 • FAIRFAX, VIRGINIA 22030 | 703-591-4850 • FAX: 703.591.4860

“Are we really trying to conquer this again?”

“Every damn year…”

Punting boat in Oi River, Arashiyama, Japan Photo: @tawatchai07, Freepik.

“ANTI-RACISM PEAK” conquered 1963

Digital depiction of night fall in autumn, by Slovokhotov Kirill.

The Artist Who Escaped Gangster Life to Create AwardWinning Art

I

35 was born in Los Angeles on the east side.

Without a father, my family moved around a lot including my mother and brothers. Around the time I was 14, we moved to Omaha Nebraska. It was 1999.

Soon, we were very surprised to discover how deeply ingrained gangster life was in Omaha. Gangs were well-established and it was hard to avoid them entirely. Even today there are thousands of gang members, part of more than eighty different gang groups across the city.

I was Mexican, we were poor, and my mother was a single-parent. All we had was those poverty-stricken areas of the city, rife with gangster lifestyle. When you have such a background, like they say, you are destined to go that way.

However, at that young age, I knew I did not want to be dragged into it. That’s why, from the beginning, I and my brothers indulged in graffiti art. In the early days, we used to go into abandoned buildings and paint on the walls. We loved hip-hop and, for a time, we felt secure in it. We naively thought we would remain clear of the gangster culture around us. But when you are stuck in such a place, in the end you have to do what they tell you to do. And if you still insist on sticking to your own ways, you deal with the consequences. And that’s what happened to us as well.

When I was about 17 or 18, they came and shot up our house. My brother was sleeping in the living room just on the other side of the window. Thankfully, no one was hurt. When we went outside to check, there were about eight holes in our front wall. From that day on, we realized how serious it was trying to pretend the gang life was not for us.

So while we became ‘friends’ with those guys and let ourselves get dragged into it at night, I still kept following my dreams in daylight. I enrolled in college and chose graphic design as my major. My frist art professor was a great teacher and I enjoyed the techniques he was teaching us. He encouraged me to study art when he noticed I had a will to learn as much as I could. He emphasized that I needed to keep at it at all costs because I could have a future in it. He turned out to be right.

Painting started changing my life. I met the love of my life, married, and had a son.

There were many things that kept pushing me to make the big decision and escape the gangster culture for good. I had been heading that way for years not by actions but in my head. My family depended on me and made me feel responsible. The nightlife gets old. Your mind is never clear. You never feel free. You always need to have a gun at the ready.

I got a job as a welder and stuck to my art in the nights. Looking back at things, when I was running the street, I used to think I drew energy from that, like it gave me inspiration for the art. But at the same time it was a constant source of stress. As a gang member, you are always tense. And if your house has already been shot, it means you have enemies and you are constantly carrying all this anger around. The stress is relentless. I have never been in a war overseas but I bet soldiers must carry a similar feeling with them. The constant stress actually makes it harder to focus on the art when you are active in the gang. When I left that craziness behind, then I was able to draw from it.

I still have friends and family living that life. It’s what some want and it’s what some can’t escape; guns, meth, crime and all that.

I don’t judge anyone living that way as I have been there. It’s just not what I wanted anymore. I was blessed to have found love and support to keep me on the right track, but every day is a struggle, a battle where you must make good choices to the best of your ability.

I still keep my guard up but not the same way, I keep it up for my family to make sure they are safe and happy. That’s what I do one day at a time, not just being alive but enjoying life... really living it.

By 2010s, I had three kids, and I was working 50 hours a week. All my free time I was spending either with my family or on my art. We’ll go to parks, we’ll hang out as a family. We’ll talk, we’ll have dinner. So we put them to bed around nine o’clock. Then I can start painting. Lately it was hard, and I knew it was falling behind. I’ll come home and I’ll be tired. Sometimes I’ll be painting

and my eyes will be closing. It’s not rare I’ll be painting till one in the morning.

With encouragement from my friends and family and the art community here, I decided to participate in Omaha’s annual Entertainment Awards in 2014. It was a great honor for me when I was awarded Best Emerging Visual Artist. I felt proud. My mother, my whole family, my brothers and a lot my friends attended and were proud for me. Last year, the people who came to support me were far lesser in numbers, mostly strangers from the art community. But this year, nearly everyone I know here came out in support. It took me nearly an hour to finish my name in calligraphy style for my presentation, so many people came to check in with me.

This life’s harder than that life. It takes work.

It’s a mission. Dangerous situations and all of that is nothing compared to having to raise kids and raise them right and make them into good men. It’s a lot of work, keeping them all happy and healthy. It’s more than work. But it’s good, it’s worth it.

I think now living the way I do, with my family and at my own home in Los Angeles, it pushes me to do more, to achieve more. It’s a constant motivator.

Today, sometimes I put myself on the back burner. For years I was running off 3-4 hours of sleep. I used to pass out while welding.

When we work 26 days straight and get only 2 days off a month, how can you not get hit hard by exhaustion and lack of sleep? But I keep at it, give it my best. When I'm able, I hit the punching bag, do some pull-ups and run a little, but it's hard to find the time for myself or for my art sometime.

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My strategy to keep up my art in this gruelling schedule is as follows: I save half-an-hour every lunchtime to draw my ideas. There is so much that needs to be painted. I recently read a book called The Beast by Oscar Martinez. It has so many stories of the struggles people go through for the American Dream. There are many images that came to my head while reading it, to depict for people the themes and experiences with art. I’m inspired by Bob Dylan and his lyrics in his “Song to Woody,’ where he writes as if he wants to tell people of how he finds the world. That is the impulse in my painting, to show people how I see the things happening around me.

Freddy Rincon’s breathtaking and colorful artistic commentary on life.

In order of appearance: “Frida Havin a Smoke Under the Sun, Movimiento, “Ups and Downs,” “From the Third World Looking In,” and “What it Took to Make Us.”

Freddy Rincon’s Survive the Streets Keep Up the Flame for Learning Get Inspired by the Best Teachers Fill Your Life with People to Care For Distance Yourself from Troublesome Company Reach Out to Compete and Achieve!

“COVID-19 School Closures” Graph created at Wikipedia Commons, and updated with latest data from UNESCO.

Full School Closures Partial School Closures Academic Break Online Learning No School Closures No Data

is like a shockwave that still reverberates in the schools around the world. As of September 2021, World Bank data tells us that the global share of private education at both the primary and secondary levels is more than 27%. To get in touch with schools out there, we found two writers, who altogether visited four private schools, two each in India and Kenya. The discussion focused on the financial struggles of the schools since the start of the pandemic in their countries.

The takeaway from these reports is that the continued operating success of the school has directly depended on how resourceful they already were before the pandemic. Urban locations seem to have fared better with school leaders focusing on the technological challenges faced by the hybrid-format education. Orphanage schools, however, found their essential support severely cut off and needing to turn away students, for lack of resources.

Children walk to school in their uniforms in India..

All photos in this piece: Wikimedia Commons

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From Kenya, Racheal Kariuki focuses on one of the hardest hit category of private schools: orphanage schools.

Fund-raising activities hosted by concerned and charitable benefactors are trying to keep many of these schools afloat that have the dual duty of providing an education while also supporting the learners’ living. Racheal discussed with spokespersons of two schools to discuss how the financial situation has affected operations.

Hope Children’s Home, Bahati Constituency Hope Children's Home is a private institution that supports orphaned children here, especially those that have been orphaned due to HIV AIDS. It offers education and necessities like food, shelter, and clothing. The children are also supported in their spiritual growth. According to Simon Vidya, Manager, the institution depends on foreign funding (over 80%) from overseas offered by well-wishers and other international organizations with a shared vision. The institution also has income-generating activities.

Compared to before, the number of local and international volunteers allowed to come and deliver their support services to the private school and orphanages had to be diminished due to the pandemic. Especially, the visiting restrictions from overseas volunteers have greatly reduced the donations. Authorities have been in touch with some of the regular contributing donors. Some reported having been adversely affected by Covid-19 while some cited the travel bans causing their inability to extend more help.

The donors include non-governmental organizations that support orphaned and vulnerable children like Global Fund for Children (GFC). The network of Christian organizations and churches contribute a lot towards helping the children regain their rights and access essential services like health and education. Contributions are typically annual, while taking on expert volunteers also minimizes expenses. The institution receives local donations from neighboring communities in the way of food from their farms, clothes, and labor, whereby they assist in cleaning the residential areas of the children. The funds are used to pay the workers, teachers, fuel the vehicles, and the children's daily necessities. The money is also used to pay the electricity and water bills of the institution.

It has since become very difficult for the residential homes to accommodate children upto full capacity. There are only a few children in every room, with total numbers served reduced drastically from before. In some facilities operating under the Hope franchise, all the children had to be sent home at the advent of the pandemic by government order. Educational activities were conducted online, but the facilities did not possess enough computers to support that kind of learning, so that many children missed classes. In the first year, closure of banks resulted in disrupted access to the funds. As the pandemic routine has settled, the schools are seeing increased expenditure due to rising costs of food and other supplies.

__ Racheal Kariuki

Safe House Children’s Home, Nakuru County This school charges tuition fees from the students’ families. However, the cost of educating a student cannot be serviced by the fees alone. In fact, they cover around 85% of the true cost of educating a typical student, which leaves a deficit of 15%.

According to Franklin Mawira, Deputy Head teacher, sometimes the deficit is even larger, necessitating a constant reliance on donations to caution the risk of getting out of business.

The school relies on donations for facility maintenance, developmental projects such as acquisition of computers or building classrooms and boarding facilities to accommodate the rising student population, daily supplies and even food expenses. In the wake of the pandemic, new needs have also arisen, such as the acquisition of face masks for students and water to safeguard from the spread of Covid-19 in the school. This also requires donor financing.

Mawira said that the school is beneficiary to many donor types. Among them, there is the national government which avails financial support especially in the wake of the pandemic. International Non-governmental organizations like the USAID, Smile Foundation and UN have also played a critical role in ensuring the welfare of students. For instance, the organizations have come through to assist in completing structural projects, such as the building of classrooms and acquisition of furniture like desks to facilitate social distance among students. The school

45

has also successfully furnished dormitories and a school library with this aid.

Mawira cited loyal members of the society as also being helpful, such as local businessmen persons and wealthy patrons, who donate food, furniture, and stationary and sometimes offer to pay utility bills, like water and electricity. Many offer to pay fees for needy students.

This is not to say that the funding situation has not changed. According to Mawira, there has been a turnaround in donor behaviors since the beginning of the pandemic.” For example, donations from the local government bodies have reduced by about 40%.

Sometimes, the allocated grants are delayed disrupting operations. The school understands that state’s funds have been redirected to other critical functions enhancing public resilience to the pandemic.

Some local donors, such as businessmen have totally withdrawn, while donations from wealthy patrons are in a steady decline. The reasons cited by these donors include hard economic times and poorer returns.

As a result of the depletion in support, the school reports having lost prominent teachers and professional staff due to delayed payments. More importantly, needy students have been on the disadvantage and lack of funds has led to the hard decisions to turn out students back to their communities due to inability to support them.

__ Racheal Kariuki

Kolkata is one of the most densely populated and culturally vibrant cities of India. Schools were recently closed in large areas of India due to COVID surges. Private schools in Kolkata are looking to open in hybrid form, reports The Times of India, when the government allows reopening after November 16.

With the world reeling in from the devastation left in the wake of the pandemic, it was the schools and their pupils that had to suffer from this sudden change of online classes. Though many were able to cope with the growing demand for conducting online classes, many students were left behind in this tussle. We spoke with a couple of the private schools around the country to find out what were the challenges that they faced while making this digital transition and with many states deciding to open their schools, how have the schools adapted to this trend.

We talked to Mr. Ranjan Mitter, Vice Principal of The Future Foundation School, at a time when school openings had been delayed, in September: He said: “I have been teaching for over 25 years now and I have never encountered such a massive digital drive in the field of education. This massive shift slowed us down definitely at the beginning.

Most of our teachers were not well equipped with either the technology or the skills required to host online classes. Getting the students to join classes on time became much of an issue. This was more evident with children from the primary sections as we continuously had to keep in touch with the parents so they could get their children ready for the class on time. Upskilling our teachers was also a big challenge that we had to endure, and digital workshops had to be conducted to instruct our teachers on how to conduct classes effectively. Now

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it has been over a year, we have been following this digital format and classes have been smooth thanks to the brilliant efforts put forth by our teachers. We surely hope to make the opening day a grand success and welcome the kids back to their classes.”

Mrs Madhuparna Andrews, Headmistress of Purushottam Bhagchandka Academic School, expressed similar sentiments of courage in meeting another COVID-year head on. Her statement is below: “We did not let anything hinder our learning process and we were able to conduct daily classes during this pandemic. Zoom calls and whiteboards have become a standard and we have encouraged all our teachers to get familiar with such technology. Our management was kind enough to provide laptops to those teachers who did not have access to devices to conduct classes. I would say that the most difficult part of this digital trend is teaching secondary classes. With the boards approaching fast, practical sessions and lab classes are vital which cannot be conducted under such conditions.

As the government is considering reopening schools, we definitely welcome this step, and we would be taking care that the entire transition from home to classrooms become seamless. We are quite aware of the challenges that await us after reopening, but we are ready to face them all.”

— Rohit Nath

“”Celso y Sylvia,” Oil on Canvas, Heraldo Ortega.

ROR TRAVEL GUIDE

CREATE THE MEMORIES OF A

WITH A HOP TO THE

COLIN NAPIER, the GM of a travel company in South Africa brings us a unique travel guide.

Details Inside.

Spread: Stock Photo All other photos are by White Desert, provided by the author.

CAMP ACTIVITIES

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I am Colin Napier, the general manager of Trace Africa Safaris. My company provides great travel opportunities by collaborating with other companies in business with access to great locations.

★ Ice ★ Nunatak ★ Abseiling ★ Ice Climbing Tunnels Climb ★ Zip Lines ★ Skidoo Tour ★ Truck Safari ★ Camp-outs We combine our strong purchasing power with key partners to build quality programs for our clients. We specialize in supplying exclusive tailor-made travel services to high-end customers in Europe, the United States, Canada, Australia and China.

The company’s website is www.traceafricasafaris.com.

Send all your inquiries to info@traceafricasafaris.com.

The name of the company that operates the programmes from Cape Town to Antarctica is White Desert. Their website is https://white-desert.com. The tours we feature here are arranged in collaboration with them.

★ Science ★ Rock ★ Excursion ★ Rope Walks Bases Climbing Drives ★ Fat-biking ★ Skiing

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Your trip starts in beautiful Cape Town where, depending on your itinerary, you get to stay for two days and explore the city. We have the option to go on a 2-night safari at a private game reserve near the Kruger National Park, depending on your payment plan. The flight to Antarctica takes place on a Gulfstream jet with only 12 guests at a time to assure maximum luxury and leave only a nominal footprint of our adventures on Antarctica’s snow. There is a safety briefing before the flight where we also discuss the current weather conditions over the ocean and on Antarctica. Preplanned itineraries are always subject to weather changes.

After landing on the ancient blue ice of Wolf’s Fang Runway, guests are whisked away to one of the two camps. Both are equipped with world class, luxurious equipment to keep you cosy and safe. Our dining is known to be adventurous with a global sampling of culinary pleasures from around the world. There is a selection of guided activities available at both camps in addition to your selection of tour.

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Whichaway Camp

Wolf’s Fang Camp

Whichaway is a flagship luxury retreat with breathtaking views across the freshwater lakes of the Schirmacher Oasis. It consists of a collection of hi-tech polar domes set on the shores of a frozen lake and encircled by a magnificent 60-metre (200-foot) icefall.

Wolf’s Fang is a brand new camp in the imposing mountains of Queen Maud Land. Wolf’s Fang camp is made up of 6 guest sleeping tents, a large communal tent and a newly refurbished washroom facility.

EARLY EMPERORS TOUR - 5 Days

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Join us on an incredible adventure to one of nature’s rarest sights – an immense colony of 28,000 Emperor Penguins. Our ability to access the colony early in the season means you’ll see the chicks just as they are stepping off their parents’ feet. To capture this moment is to witness wildlife at its most extraordinary!

Flying in by Gulfstream jet, we first settle you at the main camp. The highlight is a two hour flight to the Colony, the site of Sir Richard Attenborough’s original, groundbreaking documentary Seven Worlds, One Planet. We maintain the minimum distance required with the birds in keeping with the IAATO’s environmental guidelines. This tour is offered at both the camps.

EMPERORS & SOUTH POLE TOUR 8 Days The flight to the lowest point on Earth is the first main highlight of this tour. We embark on a 5 hour flight from Cape Town and stop on the polar plateau to refuel, where you can walk around and explore. Then, it’s a two hour flight straight to the Geographic South Pole. Only a few steps around the path and you will have walked in three directions of the world at once. The East, West, and South have merged into a single point, while the Northernmost point is directly on the opposite side of the globe.

This tour is offered at both camps. The second highlight is one of the rarest wildlife events: a two hour flight from the camp to a colony of 28,000 Emperor Penguins. Both adult and baby birds are unafraid of humans and come out within a few meters of the visitors, for a full display of their naturally joyous interactions.

VIRGIN SUMMIT TOUR - 6 Days This tour is offered only at the Wolf’s Fang camp. The highlight of the trip is to summit a virgin peak in the Drygalski mountain range. This is pioneering adventure at the end of the world. There are a handful of unclimbed peaks here – a rarity in today’s world. The only skill you need with our fully equipped and supervised guided trek and climb is an appetite for adventure.

We camp at the base of the mountains and, after a night on the glacier, we trek and conquer one of the unclimbed peaks. Our comprehensive safety and environment protection policies, the experience of the pilot manning the company’s own aircraft, and the strenuous accredited training of the climber guides -- all of that has earned us the “safest travel in 2020 and beyond” label from Forbes.

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ROR Introduction of

M

y first job was working for the Head of the Chinese College Entrance Examination of the Ministry of Education where I was a translator. I still remember the moment when I interpreted for my boss and mayor from the Annapolis and they praised my work. I felt like I was the one running China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I was proud of myself that I could translate the official terms, policies, etc for them and even Chinese poems!

They also gave me helpful suggestions on how to improve my pronunciation. From that conversation, I found I needed to study abroad! This was the only way that I could make myself perform like a native speaker. Since then, even though I have been unable to realize that dream, I am still helping plenty others to realize their dream to go outside of China to broaden their horizons.

In 2009, I moved to Kentrex where I started to focus on overseas studies. My job over there was to promote summer schools to Chinese parents. In 2011, I happened to lead a group of parents visiting about 9 boarding schools (including Kent, Miss Hall, Berkshire, Choate, and Concord) in Massachusetts. It was my first time learning firsthand about these foreign boarding schools. I remember imagining sitting as a learner in such classrooms! Although it was a start to get to know the school admissions process, I changed my line to consulting management and got my MBA in

Beijing Normal University, one of China’s top schools. My postgraduate experience endowed me with the ability to make an in-depth analysis and overall assessment of students’ and families’ needs, taking into account each student’s personality and long-term goals.

After graduation, I was invited in 2014 by another company which runs an overseas studies consultancy service. Once I learnt it covered coaching and planning for students and families, I thought it was what I wanted to do, as I found those services valuable. More importantly, I made this final decision to be an education consultant thanks to my baby, Ashley! Her birth had been changing my life. I changed my judgement about working for an agency again. I came to believe that I will be assisting students’ growth, just like how I assist my daughter’s growth. Why not! I could leverage on the parenting philosophy of those excellent families, how they cultivate those lovely and outstanding kids. Since 2014, as main counselor, I led Sinoelite’s Beijing consulting operation from the ground up, where I was responsible for student enrollment and coaching.

By 2018, I felt the need for further development, so I left Sinoelite. The first thing I did was to apply for the membership of IECA. I met lots of independent consultants by attending IECA conferences. I learned their perspectives and I got to know more on a global platform. I learned it is important to lead students to have independent ability to push and deliver every step of the application by themselves and that the student must be the leader in this process, rather than relying too much on the consultant.

That’s how I decided to build up a firm called ULead, which means, “You lead your way to success.” U also signifies both you and union. Union means we work closely with our colleagues, with parents, with students and our partners. The vision of ULead is to lead students to make their own breakthroughs. For example, we encourage them to get started on additional curriculums, so that they could fit into their prospective campus alongside other accomplished students by being familiar with different learning activities and subject matters. Even when these students have had to drop their hobbies and interests because of the huge workloads at public schools in China, we encourage them to continue to develop those passions. We understand they love those pursuits and we know if parents allow, they could balance things well by learning effective time management skills.

Previous.

Founder of ULEAD and the author, Christina Wang; Remaining.

Stock Pictures/Art

In this process, if we hope to realize a student’s growth, we must devote more time. So almost every week, ULead sets up Zoom conferences and onsite meetings with different families to talk with the kids, to figure out their problems in the areas of English language learning, academic reports, MAP report, summer vacation plans, social events, as well as family relations, and more. In this way, calculating the time we spend on one family, it takes about 200 hours of consultancy work, including paperwork, meetings, coaching as well as additional educational assistance.

This year, we used Mindmap as a tool to promote their independent thinking ability, self-reflection ability as well as application management ability. The consultants ask students reflective questions. In response, they reflect retrospectively on their experiences by drawing a mindmap, so they would have a clear cut mind about who they are and where they want to go to lead their success.

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Being with my own child, I have found it is not easy for many parents to deal with the child-parent relationship. My child came across with some developmental delay, as she did not speak with others at her age, she did not play with others, and would only remain by the teacher. Once I realized I had some problems in parenting my child, I started listening to helpful audio books, reading print books, and registered in a certificate class on children’s innate intelligence with applied psychology. All this was to help me understand my child better.

Currently, Ashley is a positive, sunny and lovely girl with a passion for composing music.

In this process of striving to understand my daughter better, I finally discovered the passion of my life that I hadn’t figured out until then. I also discovered that what I learned in educating my child was also beneficial to my student clients. I could now relate to other children a little more objectively and have empathy for them. More successfully than before, I begin to treat those students just like I was treating my daughter! All those students are just kids. Everyone has a unique talent, which needs to be discovered. We need to help them get there. At ULead, we also ensure that our students not only smoothly meet their academic goals, but also become self-motivated persons. That is why indeed we need to spend 200 hours on our consulting services.

Today, as the founder of Ulead Education and a serving consultant, I have personally advised over 170 students on their applications to American boarding schools in the past 8 years. I have worked alongside both parents and American schools to support, inform, and encourage students on their educational journeys.

The difference between ULead and others is how we are responsible for our students’ growth rather than simply securing them coveted acceptance letters, We have taught students how to create realistic, detailed plans to render their goals attainable. We have guided them on how to continue pursuing their academic and extracurricular interests. We are invested in each student’s growth, and we give them tips on how to adapt to American life, both socially and academically. We pride ourselves on preparing our students for success after they arrive at their dream schools, rather than wrapping up at the point of their successful admission.

“Imagination is more important than knowledge” ALBERT EINSTEIN In a 1929 Interview to The Saturday Evening Post

Credit for profiles: Schools’ website,s and occasionally, professional bios on social media profiles.

58 Prior to Holderness, Erin was Associate Director of Admission at the Salter School and an admissions manager at Strayer University. She has also served as an advertising account executive at the Orlando Sentinel. She holds a B.B.A from Strayer University.

Erin Morales, Associate Director of International Admission, Holderness School

Erin brings an extra eye for detail and a keen sense of humor to the Admission team. She lives with her family on Stinson Lake in Rumney and is an avid mountain biker and windsurfer. In her spare time Erin also teaches stand–up paddleboard yoga—a sport which, she claims, is easy to master.

People who work in the admissions world are special individuals and we are delighted to introduce you to some of your colleagues.

Reach out to them as we can all learn from each other!

Aaron joined the Harvard-Westlake community in 2018. Originally from New York City, Aaron earned his B.A. in History from Williams College and his M.S.Ed. in Independent School Leadership from the University of Pennsylvania.

Aaron Mieszczański, Head of Admission and Enrollment, Harvard-Westlake School

Prior to Harvard-Westlake, he spent five years as the Director of Admissions and Financial Aid at San Francisco University High School and five years as the Senior Associate Director of Admission and Coordinator of Multicultural Outreach at the Thacher School. Aaron currently serves on the board of trustees for the Educational Records Bureau, and is a founding board member for the Los Angeles Administrators of Color in Independent Schools group. He is also a founding board member of Private School Axis, and is a member of the Caroline D. Bradley Scholarship selection committee. He has previously served on the Enrollment Management Association’s Admission Leadership Council.

59 Adrienne Forbes, Director of International Admissions, Lake Tahoe Prep

Adrienne is a career educator of more than 30 years and attended boarding school for high school. As an alumna of Western Reserve Academy, she shares the boarding school tradition with Lake Tahoe Prep.

Adrienne taught in formal classrooms and laboratory settings for thirteen years and then developed and implemented Conservation Education and teacher-training programs for the State of Nevada. She managed and led programs at three sites in the Sierra Nevada and Great Basin of Nevada. She presented her education model at the National Association for Interpretation Conference in 2003 and served on the Nevada Science Standards Revision Committee in 2004. In 2000, Adrienne received the United States Presidential Award for service learning.

She joined the Lake Tahoe Prep administration full-time in December of 2005. As the Director of International Admissions, Adrienne works with students, families, and agencies worldwide helping students enroll at Lake Tahoe Preparatory School. She holds BS in Education from the Ohio State University and ME in Learning & Technology form the Western Governors University.

Rebekah is a consummate education professional with significant experience utilizing marketing and communication strategies to develop, enhance, and evaluate domestic and international student recruitment and retention efforts. Rebekah has been with the Bryn Mawr School for the past 7 years.

After her BA in Media Arts & Design 2003, Rebekah completed her postgraduate studies in Education Policy from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, in 2009. She had served before at the same university as Admissions Counsellor and became External Communications Coordinator as she did her Masters. She was promoted to Assistant Director, Undergraduate Admissions and Orientation, a post at which she served until 2012. She also briefly served as Senior Associate Director for MBA Admissions at The Wharton School, before joining The Bryn Mawr.

Rebekah is recognized by her colleagues as highly skilled in public speaking and student development strategies. At her current position, Rebekah finds it both energizing and humbling to be surrounded by bright and curious students and witness the ways in which our faculty engages with them every day.

Rebekah Jackson, Senior Director of Enrollment Management, Upper School, The Bryn Mawr School

Asha is a native Seattleite who most recently worked at University Prep as the Associate Director of Upper School Admission and Community Engagement. She has a natural ability to build relationships and create connections; it is because of this she was drawn to the field of enrollment management. Asha is an avid sports fan and has coached youth track and cross country for the last 18 years. It was during her time as a college coach in both Arizona and Montana, when she unknowingly began learning the ropes of admissions as she recruited athletes. She was excited to join the SGS team and continue growing in the profession of enrollment management.

Asha Dean, Director of Enrollment Management, Seattle Girls School

Asha lives in Seattle with her husband Patrick and three school-aged children. She has a B.A. in journalism from the University of Arizona in addition to a certificate of leadership in Enrollment Management from the USC Rossier School of Education.

Asha believes that middle school is a sweet spot developmentally; students are learning to manage increased independence in addition to a whole new array of choices available. She feels fortunate to be an adult member at SGS to support the students during this time.

Angela is well-versed in educational opportunities in Greater Chicago. Prior to joining the team at Roycemore, Angela worked as an independent educational consultant and advocate in the Chicago area, helping families find the best school fit for their children.

After graduating from law school, she moved to Washington DC and clerked for the Senate Judiciary Committee. She also served as a Legislative Counsel for a Congressman of the US House of Representatives. After her time on Capitol Hill, she worked as a lobbyist.

In her free time, Angela enjoys spending time with her daughter Alex, her dog Murphy Murphy, reading, and exploring all that Chicago has to offer. She is inspired by this quote by Frederick Douglas: “Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.

Angela Murphy, Director of Admissions , Roycemore School

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Born and raised in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, Paul graduated from the University of Rotterdam, holding a Bachelor of Education. He holds a Postgraduate Degree in Management and Leadership (Netherlands) and an MBA from the Sejong University in Seoul, Korea.

Paul Chung, Director of Enrollment Management, Dwight School Seoul

Paul started teaching in Rotterdam more than 20 years ago and since then has worked as a Team-Manager for the Netherlands Maritime University, Vice Principal for Calvijn (a Dutch Middle School), Director for the World Expo Korea as the Dutch representative for the Netherlands Ministry of Economic Affairs, and as Head of Internal Affairs for the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Prior to the current role as the Director of Enrollment Management, Paul worked at Dwight as an MYP English LA Teacher, DP CAS Coordinator, Whole School Quest Teacher, and Crisis Team Manager, all with much love and dedication. Paul believes in working with a dedicated and service orientated mindset and a positive world view in order to create a society based on love, respect, kindness, and mutual understanding.

Paul is married and has one son. He loves reading and spending as much time as possible with his family. Furthermore, he enjoys Brazilian Jiujitsu, boxing, cinema, and old school Hip Hop.

Matt is an experienced educationalist with over 12 years of experience in senior management and executive positions in both academics and operations. He has been with the Australian International School in Singapore for over 10 years. He started his journey at the school as Head of the year, serving for 2 years. His skills with brand strategy and education management saw him serve as Data Development Coordinator, Quality Assurance Manager, and he was also appointed as Head of Secondary for some time.

In addition to his administrative duties, Matt has also been teaching for the past 17 years, in New Zealand, England and Singapore. Matt obtained his diploma in teaching from the Massey University and then went on to get a BEd from the same. He firmly believes that data should drive teaching and learning programs. He has predominantly taught in the middle years where he enjoys encouraging and supporting young adolescents on their journey to adulthood. Matt believes that every student has the capability to succeed if they have organisational skills, application and a positive outlook. Matt believes building positive relationships is key to getting the best educational outcomes for students.

Matt Hall, Director of Marketing & Admissions, Australian International School, Singapore

Seagull in a storm. Beautiful painting by Martina Bulkova

ALEXANDRA ANDREWS, Chapin Edu, ’02

graduated from Chapin in 2002.

She has lived in New York all her life. She worked as a journalist, editor and copywriter, before moving to Paris for a year to write her debut novel reviewed here.

mysterious murder novelist called Maud Dixon. Dixon’s recent work has generated speculation as to how real-life the murder depicted in it is, especially since the murderous character is also named Maud.

Her novel was already on the anticipated novels lists last year, especially since its production rights were scooped up by Hollywood. The novel debuted to raves this years with thrilled critics lauding it’s craft and cleverness, from the New York Times to the Washington Post.

Florence, the young assistant moves to Morocco for this job and what follows is a whiplash plot with great suspense and a delicious serving of turns. We are never sure who is the victim and who the perpetrator in Florence’s curiosity about the real identity of her employer and the reality of the murder depicted in the novel-within-the-novel.

It’s a contemporary story centering on a young, aspiring writer’s frustrations at her inability to have a break in her industry. She is a highly readable character in her own right, and the way she deals with the challenges of a yet-to-start career shows how driven and dark she could get if she needed to reach her goals.

She finds herself out of options and agrees to assist a

Critics have remarked how assured Alexandra’s writing is, hardly marking her as a debutante novelist.

Her descriptions are vivid, the settings are immersive, and the plot progression highly original and inventive. The novel is a study on the way our ambition can let the darkness inside see the light of day.

The exotic setting of Morocco is used stylishly to create a great mystery which arises from the flawed characters of two women writers in love with secrets.

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MICHAEL E. MANN Penn State University is well-known as a climatologist. It was his hockey stick graph in a 1999 research paper that showed how temperature changes, CO2 emissions, and other indicators of climate change were to rise dramatically heading into the new century.

Now, in his new book this year, Mann is warning us how the tactics of war against climate concerns of the planet have evolved over time.

Earlier, he has faced anonymous death threats over his claims. Now, with decades of research and data backing the predictions of that graph, “a kinder, gentler form of denialism” has taken root, he writes.

While this new fight may not outrightly dismiss the results from climate science, it still blocks any real efforts to stop the damage, through lobbying, funding and political strategizing.

Called “inactivitists” by Mann, their efforts range from blocking subsidies for companies producing renewable energy, while resisting major changes in carbon pricing that will discourage continued usage of climate destroying fossil fuels.

It is no surprise that the new lobbyists are often direct and always moral successors of the early warriors. Mann also worries about the despairists who, at

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times play into the hands of these warriors against the climate. As an example he cites Michael Moore’s documentary which took the stance that recent efforts at stopping the climate-related declines on the planet were doomed to fail. Mann shows how the American Energy Alliance — the biggest supporter of the fossil fuels industry — spent thousands to promote the film in an effort to stage the efforts and solutions offered by climatologists as ineffective.

In the book, Mann’s task is to disprove this doomsday thinking.

He is buoyed by the young green activists of today and by the rapid development of green technologies increasingly capable of permanently replacing fossil fuels.

For instance, Mann is hopeful that it is possible to reach a 100% clean electricity target, relying on the current state of the renewables alone.

Mann is especially wary of public messaging and other communications highlighting the role of casual citizen in helping with climate change. He argues that these communications tend to take the incriminating spotlight away from government policies and corporate agendas directly harmful for the environment. It is the major changes in law and policy, and not personal effort of the masses, that are necessary to turn around the very poor prognosis of planetary health that data has no longer left any doubt with.

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ROR RECIPE

INGREDIENTS ❏ ❏ ❏ ❏ ❏

¾ cu soya sauce ½ cup water ¼ cup brown sugar 1 tsp ginger garlic paste 2 Tbsp cornstarch

●

1 lb chicken breast, boneless, skinned

❏

1 12 oz bag of chopped stir-fry vegetables (broccoli, carrots, peas, etc)

❏

3 cups cooked brown or white rice

Teriyaki Chicken Casserole

PREHEAT ●

❏

Prepare the tray with parchment paper and cooking spray.

Preheat the oven to 350℉.

MAKE TERIYAKI SAUCE Simmer the soy sauce, ginger & garlic paste, and brown sugar with water in a pan over medium heat.

Dissolve the cornstarch in 2 Tbsp of water and pour it in the pan.

Stir well and turn off the heat when the sauce thickens.

● ● ●

PREPARE THE CHICKEN ● ● ●

Place the chicken breasts in the tray and pour one cup of the teriyaki sauce over it.

Bake until cooked to the inside.

Using a fork, shred the chicken to pieces.

PREPARE THE CASSEROLE ● ● ● ●

Steam or stir fry the vegetables.

Gently mix the chicken, vegetables, and the cooked rice in the casserole dish.

Pour most of the remaining teriyaki sauce and toss around to combine well.

Bake for 15 minutes.

ENJOY ●

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Drizzle the remaining sauce over the dish when presenting.

Cocholgue. Oil on canvas. Heraldo Ortega.

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ROR Introduction

The Gow School is a college-prep boarding school for students, grades 6-12, with dyslexia and similar language-based learning disabilities. Focusing on small class sizes, 3-7 students per class, and a low 4:1 student to faculty ratio, The Gow School offers a multisensory approach to teaching that enables dyslexic students to thrive. The Gow community has a sense of belonging, of equality, and of connection born on common trials and shared triumphs.

Gow has a start fast, finish strong mentality and students typically start to see progress soon after they step foot in our classrooms. Progress typically comes quickly, as they invest themselves in the program. At the School’s core is a structured program designed to help students navigate the academic day and a daily schedule designed to keep students busy. Between a packed class schedule, after-school sports, study hall and Saturday classes, there is little unprogrammed time.

Center and Bottom. Fulfilled students at The Gow School.

Facing. An aerial view of the school.

Photos: The Gow School.

The School is settled on a 120 acre campus which gives our students plenty of room to learn and play.

Boarding school life does not always allow lots of free time, but it has plenty of room for fun. Students are so involved – playing sports, going on trips, and hanging out with each other – that they get the most out of the rich residential experience.

In July, the School’s co-ed summer program is five weeks of learning and fun for ages 8-16! The Gow School Summer Program is for students who have been experiencing academic difficulties, or have been diagnosed with dyslexia or specific learning disabilities.

The Summer Program runs from the end of June to early August with morning academics, afternoon fun and games and weekend adventures! The Gow School Summer Program gives students academic tools and self-confidence they can take with them wherever they go; to the classroom and beyond.

By combining a structured program and environment with flexibility, individualization, and room for fun, Gow provides a rich school experience that is precisely what dyslexic students need to learn and to enjoy learning.

Stock Art by Olesya Karakotsya

“META”

“Did I catch that fish or is it catching me out?”

“I’m afraid I cannot ship you back any faster without a subscription plan.

Can you phone, sir?”

access

your

“PRIME”

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Pandemic Pivoting and the Arts Helping Shape The 2021-22 Arts Curriculum at The Bolles School When the global pandemic flipped the script on arts instruction in the spring of 2020, Bolles Director of Fine and Performing Arts Laura Rippel worked with the faculty to discover enterprising new ways to advance the arts both in-person and online. This flexibility and openness to new opportunities took the arts at Bolles into new dimensions of excellence during the ensuing school year. It continues to define the program’s 2021-22 season on all four campuses.

“In planning for this year, we wanted to take what we had learned from last year’s required ‘pivoting’ and continue to use the best bits,” Rippel said.

Some of the “keepers” born out of Covid constraints include: a larger online presence with the school’s virtual art shows and artist profiles; a popular Drumline program built from the frustrations of wind musicians who could not play as actively during the pandemic; and live-streaming performances when publishing companies allow in addition to hosting ticketed, in-person events. Some of the more normal arts activities that have re-emerged this school year include in-person, ticketed gallery receptions, artist talks, guest performances and live performances of all sorts.

All images in this piece by The Bolles School

76 Thinking outside of the box during the past two years has brought new vision to the program. One of the most exciting additions is Bolles’ new Global Design and Social Innovation course. It is rooted in the concepts of Design Thinking, a method developed at the Design School at Stanford University.

“It brings designers through a five-stage process of creative design and problem-solving: empathize, define, ideate, prototype and test,” Rippel explained.

“Students in this class are tasked with innovative projects such as Guerilla Advertising, Package Design, Advertising in the Digital Age and many more.”

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As their culminating projects, students are collaborating with local businesses to design solutions for their real-world needs.

This year also marks the inaugural season of the Randy and Tracy Skinner Endowed Resident Guest Musician program, Rippel said. The fund allows the Bolles Fine and Performing Arts Department to bring in a resident guest musician every other year to work with students. This year, Bolles will host professional percussionist and educator Hunter Gross, who is joining students weekly throughout the year to work with student percussionists on the Bolles Upper School San Jose Campus.

“We are excited to hear the fruits of his labors at the band concerts throughout the year,” Rippel said.

Also, a professional visual artist will be broadening students’ artistic experiences this year through an upcoming, biannual Peyton Endowed Guest Visual Artist workshop. The fund allows the department to bring in top visual artists in varied disciplines to work with students during the school year. Rippel expects to make an announcement about the visual artist selected to participate in the program this spring.

Continuing the School’s dedication to expanding learning opportunities for artists in all areas, Bolles Director of Dance Angela Blackledge hosted world-renowned choreographer Derrick

Mitchell for the second time at Bolles this fall. The choreographer for the Los Angeles production of “Hamilton,” Mitchell worked with students on a piece for their spring dance concert during a two-day workshop at the Bolles Middle School Bartram Campus. The second dance guest artist of the year will be a dancer from the Hubbard Street Dance company of Chicago.

Finally, the entire School community is over the moon and under the sea for the fourth-ever all-school musical, “The Little Mermaid.” More than 100 Bolles students in grades Pre-K through Grade 12 are part of the cast and crew.

Performances are slated for November 11-14.

“We have an amazing cast from all four of our campuses,” Rippel said. “After not being able to get together as an entire community last year, we felt this was especially important this year.”

Longtime drama faculty member Michael Fritton will join the cast. Also, for the first time ever, the school has invited alumnus David Gile ’78 to join the cast in an effort to really make it all-school. Gile is the CEO of Jacksonville engineering firm Gheelay Corp. and has performed in many local productions including “12 Angry Men” at Theatre Jacksonville.

In true All Things Possible spirit, the Fine and Performing Arts Department at The Bolles School has set the stage for a history-making 2021-22 year in the arts!

P

eople all over the world celebrate November and December in their own ways. Some traditions are countries old, and some as modern as a fun way to campaign against prostate cancer.

While it’s become customary to link these months to the colors of fall, autumn actually only visits the Northern hemisphere at this time of the year.

The tropical areas around the equator don’t even get fall in it’s full glory, while the Southern Hemisphere largely welcomes spring at this time. Finally, some celebrations fall on different months every year if they follow the lunar calendar.

“In the Ramapo Valley.” 1881, by Jasper Cropsey (1823-1900)

By Biya Noor

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To celebrate these months in a truly global sense, we bring you customs and festivals from around the world. Some are food festivals, celebrating seasonal harvests, some

stem from ancient folklore or history.

Needless to say, all are celebrated in their unique fashions, speaking to the vibrant tapestry of different peoples and nations on earth.

Korea: Chuseok This celebration of food and ancestors with one’s family fell just before October this year. It is a celebration of the beginning of autumn. Many Koreans go back to their hometowns giving thanks to their ancestors.

Traditional dressing and food are another highlight.

Above. A typical Chuseok feast. Michael Sean Gallagher. Wikimedia Commons.

Right. A family celebrates Chuseok with a traditional visit. Korean Culture and Information Service. Wikimedia Commons.

Left. A typical celebration in Germany.

Rita E. Pixabay

GERMANY: Oktoberfest Started as a royal wedding celebration in 1810, it became a beer-drinking festival. Lately, it has been a more friendly and family festival with music, games, and parades. Growing internationally, the cultural element is celebrated via authentic German sausages and pretzels.

One of the oldest Catholic traditions, the procession celebrates a painting of Christ.

It was made by an African artist who was taken as a slave to the country from Angola. It is one of the largest religious processions in the world, and national leaders also attend the occasion.

Peru: Lord of Miracles

Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

China:

Moon Festival

Photo: Shizhao. Wikimedia Commons.

This Mid-Autumn festival falls on the midnight of the full moon in September. It is celebrated in Chinese and Vietnamese communities and is marked by exchanging mooncakes, colorful lanterns and parades featuring traditional ornaments and customs.

The biggest celebration, in Beijing is known for its breathtaking beauty.

France: Chestnut Harvest The countryside of France celebrates its chestnut harvest all October. The nuts are harvested and people gather to roast them on bonfires and sell food products made from it.

Young people in Mourjou started the festival only in the 90s to revive the cultural significance of this sweet tasting nut.

Stock Photo

A hunter once found a yam in the forest and hid it in the ground. The locals at Asgoli, Ghana celebrate the discovery of yams after the harvest in September. This tradition was brought over with settlers from the Republic of Togo. The festival was revived in Ghana in 2004 by their incumbent president. The yam is hailed in traditional garb and song. Servings of boiled and mashed yams are offered to gods and ancestors, followed by a communal meal.

Ghana: Yam Festival

Above. A market of the fresh harvest.

International Institute of Tropical Harvest. Flickr.

Right. Asgoli State of the Volta Region, Ghana, hail the new yam.

Walter Shine Anani. Wikimedia Commons.

India: Diwali Hinduism and related religions celebrate the bounty of crops after monsoon, in the lunisolar month of Kartika, for five days in later October or early November. It symbolizes light winning over darkness. In addition to dressing and meeting up and great food, traditional diyas are lit and fireworks released.

New Zealand: Beltane

Photos: Wikimedia Commons

Maori celebrate the flowering and the rise of sap in plants on 31st October, the halfway point between Spring Equinox & Summer Solstice. The major custom is poi dancing, using burning torches. It comes from a long tradition of celebrating with the god of light and fire. The warming of the earth is celebrated with street gatherings, throwing festivals, and by engagin in activities that take us closer to nature. Photos: Stock Images

Patterns made in poi dancing.

Getty Images.

Above. A Poi dancer in traditional garb. Stock Photo.

Canada/USA: Thanksgiving

Ways to ward off spirits. A Welsh horse-skeleton (Wikimedia Commons; bottom left) and a lantern Right. Fall Colors in Canada. Wikimedia C.

It is believed that the Welsh celebration of harvest on November 1st and their avoiding staying out late the night before for fear of the spirits are the precursor of Halloween and All Saints Day in many Western countries. Many ancient rituals are associated with the night of October 30 to determine if one is marked to be taken away by the spirits through the next year.

November 1st is the harvest celebration with fun games followed by communal feasts.

Wales: Calan Gaeaf

A way to give thanks to the bounty of the harvest season, Canadians celebrate on the second Monday of October. The earliest pilgrims in USA, however, celebrated it as the anniversary of the day pilgrim ships arrived from England. The earliest US celebrations were done alongside Native Americans who had helped the arrivals survive the rough winter. A common tradition in European countries as well, the day is marked by a big family gathering and a feast featuring turkey as the main course. .

Mexico: Day of the Dead Catrina Mexicana. Wikimedia Commons

November 5, 1605 was the disarming of a murderous plot against King James I. After an eruption of celebration with bonfires, the day was made an official holiday. To this day effigies of Guy Fawkes, the criminal arrested that day, are burned and fireworks released. It is viewed as an attestation of Protestant sentiment against Catholic machinations.

Mexicans celebrate the return of ancestral spirits on the first two days of November by creating altars in their honor, stemming from centuries old Aztec traditions which considered mourning the dead disrespectful. Instead, adulation is showered through a colorful, life-affirming joy-making, dance, and singing, centered around skeletal ornaments to symbolize the dead.

Stock Photo

Celebrations near the War Memorial by the Bonfires Society of Lewes, Sussex.

Left. Fireworks at the Guy Fawkes Night.

Wikimedia Commons

UK: Bonfire/Guy Fawkes Night

“On the St. Annes, East Canada, 1863,” by Robert S. Duncanson (1821-1872)

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by B E T H A N Y D I N A P O L I -I S C A

91 and a rising junior in high school. I was a Class Officer, busy in many school activities, had great friends, and was happily embedded in my school community and family. Yet, I yearned for a different experience. In my sophomore year, I applied to the Rotary Club’s International Exchange Program. I was accepted and spent my junior year as an exchange student in Palermo, Italy. I was fully immersed in an Italian school and lived with an Italian host family.

There was no English spoken in the home or school, no internet or cell phones. And I barely spoke Italian. My experiences from that year were transformational and continue to inform my perspectives and how I engage in this world.

What did I learn 40 years ago that still might have some relevance for today’s educational leaders?

Perspective.

Let’s face it, US teenagers are probably the most self-absorbed humans on the planet. I say this with affection as a mother of 4 young adults. They usually only think about themselves, how they are getting along in their bubble world, how to be cool, their own interests and social circles.

You may say this is developmentally appropriate, but should we consider encouraging a different ‘teenage culture’?

Can we help our youth become more globally minded and find their humble place in the world? Studying Italian history during that year was different than my US history class. I still remember my Italian classmates joking about my ‘short’ US history in comparison to their own. Their long history shaped how they perceived the world, their place in the world, and ultimately themselves. There was a sense of humility and respect for all that came before them. They had a completely different perspective than I held as an American citizen.

But my perspectives changed too. After spending a year immersed in an entirely different teenage culture, I was able to return home and view my own high school experiences through a different lens. I had a broader perspective of what was really important and what wasn’t. A lot of the social drama that my peers engaged in didn’t seem to occupy my attention any longer. When I removed myself from the bubble I was in, I developed perspex-

-tive that would have been impossible otherwise.

Tolerance DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion) has certainly become a high priority in schools, especially recently. A lot of time and effort is often invested into DEI initiatives. We have good intentions and know this is important work.

But here is an experience from 40 years ago that I think still rings true today. When I was the ‘new’ student at my Italian school, my classmates were so eager to meet me, get to know me, and learn about what my life was like in the U.S. During the first ‘recess’ on my first day of school, all my classmates surrounded me with questions and introductions. When my Italian counterpart was at my high school back in the US, there was no such enthusiastic reception. In fact, most students ignored the two ‘foreign students’ who were spending a year. The home students were too busy, too focused on themselves, and already had their circle of friends.

Today, in US K-12 schools and even colleges, I feel that we are so concerned with helping international students assimilate into our school culture that we forget to take advantage of what we might learn from them if we made that learning a priority. How often do international students really get to talk about and share what their teenage lives are like in their country?

What are their observations about cultural differences, values and priorities? As school communities, do we formally encourage those conversations, reflections, and dive deeper into their significance? There is so much we can gain from having those conversations.

Acceptance My host mother would often take a nap in the afternoon after ‘lunch.’ I initially thought that was lazy and selfish and thought about my own mother who would never dare indulge herself with an afternoon nap; there was always too much to do. Living with a family in a culture that had very different values and priorities than my own was difficult at times. But I learned to accept that their ways were not necessarily ‘wrong.’ They were just different. I didn’t need to agree or assimilate those values and priorities for myself but rather just accept them as theirs.

This was a life lesson in tolerance and -accep-

Poster Art by Sarah Liriano

-tance.

So what’s the point of sharing these stories?

For all the advances in technology that have occurred since my student exchange 40 years ago, I am perplexed why we are not taking better advantage of that technology to connect our students with the larger world in meaningful ways.

A global connectivity would only help them gain broader perspectives, become more curious and develop tolerance and acceptance for people who hold different viewpoints and priorities. Why aren’t our students talking and collaborating with other students from all parts of the world to work on projects together, do research together, read the same books together and share their thoughts and experiences? This is all possible today.

We talk about how small the world is getting and how our students need to be prepared to engage in that smaller world, but what are we really doing to prepare them for that?

We should evision schools where: Students from an 8th grade class in both the US and South Africa read a book toget-

-her and discuss how the characters and plot would be different in each of the two countries.

Two 11th grade environmental science classes from schools in Massachusetts and Portugal, both with access to the ocean, partner in a research project involving water sampling from both sides of the Atlantic.

Foreign language classes include regular Zoom meetings with peer students who are native speakers in a foreign country. Not only do they practice their speaking skills but there is an exchange of culture by sharing a favorite recipe.

This list could go on and on. The idea is that if we are truly committed to the concepts of DEI and global citizenship, we must find a way to do a better job of bringing the world to our students.

The technology is there to make it so easy; we just need the educational leadership to think about what’s possible, about what’s needed. After all, it’s only the future wellbeing of our world and our children that is at stake.

“So, apparently, I’m now supposed to work on a code with this Belgian nerd over Zoom!”

“Why don’t you just tell them you watch anime… without the subtitles...?”

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Collage Art

by Martina Bulkova

The Son Doong Cave, the largest cave passage in the world near the Vietnam-Laos border.

By Doug Knuth in FEB 2014. Wikimedia Commons.

R O R Story I had come to Aurora from the south the year before. One of my old army buddies told me about an opportunity in a coal mine. He said that me being a veteran helped a lot, and the job was mine if I wanted it. No one was hiring where we lived, so we packed our bags and drove up north. Aurora was a backwater mining town near the Canadian border where no one seemed to be under 30 years old. As far as I knew we were the only young couple, and my wife was the only pregnant woman in town. I signed my papers and was given a schedule. It was brutal; I spent nearly all of my time working at that damned mine.

My wife was pregnant and going through recurrent medical emergencies.

We’d see a doctor a few times each week, and soon after we weren’t able to afford it. I had been home for a couple of years by then. The field meds checked us boys over, and not seeing any blood they sent us home, then they wondered why so many of us ended up with a .38 aimed at our heads. The image of so many of my brothers... face down, uniforms torn to pieces, dead in the beaches of Italy always kept me up at night. But now the war was over, and we were supposed to go back to our lives, so she insisted we should have a kid. She had told me of all those years she’d spent waiting for me, and we were given a new chance by God. She had been beautiful before I went to Europe, with golden locks down to her shoulders and deep green eyes against fair cheeks. But she had this sickly, frail constitution to her; she’d fall ill at the slightest change in weather.

Winters were particularly tough, even by southern standards. One night she woke up screaming that she could no longer feel the baby, so off we went at three o’clock in the morning, to the hospital. It was nothing of course, but she cried all the way back home. I had been missing shifts at the mine to take care of her, to drive her to the hospital, and she would nag all the time.

No wonder I took up drinking. One night I came home, I can tell I had the devil in me, and more than a few rounds of cheap whiskey. We spent all night fighting, well into the morning. I don’t remember much of what was said, but I know I told her I knew the kid probably wasn't even mine. She slapped me, and I think I hit her back. I was still pretty drunk. I do remember falling unconscious at some point. waking up in the morning and getting ready for another shift at the mine.

I met with my buddy, he was looking worse and worse by the day. The beer belly had escalated into an outrageous obesity in a matter of weeks, —or had it been days? And while he had only stubble a few days ago, he was

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97 sporting a beard a few inches too long now. And the hair, when had it gone so gray? Except for the yellow bits on his mustache from all the smoking he did, nearly all of his hair was white. His cheeks were red, and he seemed to be hanging by a thread, like those people you see on the streets with barely one foot on reality. His eyes were distant and dark, looking at some fixed point in the horizon.

“Morning,” he said to no one in particular.

“Mornin’... shall we?” I replied. Only then he seemed to notice me. He nodded and we started making our way down the mine’s entrance. It was an odd morning, the place seemed emptier than usual, and while I’d always meet many other miners on my way to work, the streets were empty today, and only my friend was at the entrance of the mine.

Inside, the place was deserted. It didn’t look at all the way it did when we left the night before. All of our tools seemed to be covered in a thick layer of dust. There were big spiderwebs along the support beams, and was it colder than it was outside? I could swear there was a draft of wind, cold as ice, coming from deep inside the mine.

“You should grab your pickaxe, boy,” my buddy said. I was older than him, I think. But I did as he said. No need to grab our lanterns; there were lights on the ceiling, illuminating the way into the depths. I realized minutes later that he did not take a pickaxe himself. A few minutes later we ran into the first miners, a couple of strange looking fellows that I’d never seen before. Granted I was new in town, but I thought I knew all of them already. These two looked… broken somehow. Like empty husks, they seemed to be made only of bone and leathery skin, and their eyes seemed too small in relation to their heads.

“Morning guys,” said my buddy. The men looked at him, but they kept on walking. I followed them for a little while and saw them kneeling down in front of an altar. When had they installed an altar down here? It occurs to me now that I only asked “when” and never why. I took a closer look. There was a figure in the center; it seemed to be a woman with several faces, holding a torch. The men were on their knees, eyes fixed in the dusty ground, muttering some prayer.

“Lets go, boy; long shift today,” my buddy said. He still seemed lost, barely awake. It may have been a trick of the light, but I could swear that his

hair was darker than before, the beard even looked shorter, too.

I felt this dread wash over me; something was wrong. I could feel the gaps in my memory where important milestones should be and I found nothing.

I tried to remember my parents, but their faces were a blur. When I looked for memories of my first kiss, nothing. I had no trouble finding the memories of the battlefield, of the gunfire and the explosions, the dead bodies, and my father’s breath always tainted by the booze. Those I did remember. I kept walking and more men came to meet us, bumping into us without really seeing us, without noticing us. They all looked alike, empty, broken. I started smelling something odd. It stank of cheap whiskey, like the one we had at the bar after our shifts. There was a sad melancholic music playing in the distance, and I realized my buddy and I were following it.

At some point we reached a door. It was a big wooden door, and its frame was carved into the mine’s wall. We walked through it and we were at a bar. It was full of men, many of them standing against the bar, many on tables, talking amongst themselves. The floor seemed to be made of gray ash. The men’s faces were dirty, covered in black from the coal, their uniforms were torn and dirty, and they seemed to have been down there for years.

Another door and we were walking down a sort of alley, many windows and doors built into the rock.

Entire houses, and places of worship for the same figure I saw at the entrance of the mine. Down this path there were more men, walking in and out of these houses that seemed to be carved into the stone walls. Some of these seemed to be businesses, small dead casinos and whorehouses full of horrible, dead-looking women. Miners were at the cards tables, coming in and out of different establishments, all with the same air of despair, the same short breaths, and the same empty, crying eyes.

I remember seeing a man, taller than everyone else, looking right at me. He almost reached the ceiling, and the tallest miners walking by him would only reach his waist. He had a large book in one hand. He smiled at me and opened the book, regarding me and my buddy. Then he said, “You’re both late,” in a cold, dead voice.

The temperature had dropped remarkably, and I nearly fell to the floor due to the shock.

“He got distracted along the way, sir;

97 Won’t happen again,” said my buddy. He looked so young now. The man smiled, and let us pass. “Grab that pickaxe and start with that wall over there,” the man said to me. I did as commanded. I had so many questions about what I’d seen, but as soon as I considered them in my mind, they made sense to me, and the need to answer the questions disappeared. I took my pickaxe, and I began carving a hole in the nearby wall. I seemed to be making no progress whatsoever. No matter how hard I picked at the wall, I wouldn't make a dent in it. My arms were sore after a while. My buddy kept doing the same, picking at the wall, but he was slower and seemed very much exhausted. Only then I realized how familiar he looked.

One more hit, and the tip of the pickaxe cracked the surface of the rock. Excitedly, I began hitting it again and again, until I felt something beneath the rock. Something soft. I took a step back, and the wall began to bleed. It was a slow trickle from the crack I’d made with my tool, but it was dark red. Something possessed me to hit the wall again, and again… and again. A small section of the wall came apart, and that’s when I saw it. Her. It was the same golden hair of her youth, the same vibrant green eyes.

“Do you remember now?” The voice of my friend was deep now, with a hint of sorrow. “Do you understand?” he asked. I started looking for the memories of the night before, the fight with my wife, why did it all seem so very distant?

“No…” I said. But my friend took me by the shoulder, turning me to face him. “Do you remember me now, boy?” In that moment, all those empty spaces in my memories were filled, and the face of the man before me matched with the image of the man who would come home drunk every night, and beat me and my mother.

“Remember what you did,” Father said, and I did as commanded. I remembered my hands wrapped around my wife’s throat… I remembered the light going out of her eyes. I remembered that final shift at the mine, bringing down the dynamite. “I remember,” I said. I could still feel the weight of the rocks falling on me, crushing me. And then I remembered waking up at home, and coming down here, every day.

All I know is that it’s been a very long time. And that I deserve it.

Uncredited Stock Art. Digital.

We Round Up Select News from Independent Schools Around the World

Oprah Winfrey, in commencement address, May 2021, Archer School for Girls, Los Angeles, CA Screenshot from School’s Facebook Video

“Don’t worry about your passions or your purpose for now, just follow your curiosity to find out what lights you up.”

Anna Navarro, was invited to present in the Speaker Series at October 25, Crossroads School for Arts and Science, Santa Monica, CA Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

Detroit Country Day School, MI, had a number of their middle and lower school students’ artwork selected for exhibit at the Michigan Art Education Association’s 2021 exhibition.

Screenshot of a mixed-media piece by a 8-grader.

Rachel

Havekost ‘07, Seattle Academy, released her book in May 2021: Where the River Flows.

Photos from Author’s website.

“If you are someone who has struggled with an Eating Disorder, sexual or developmental trauma, depression, anxiety, suicidal thinking, divorce, grief, or knows someone who has and you long to understand them better, then it is my hope you will find yourself and your loved ones in the pages of this memoir.” ____ Rachel Havekost

Julian Shapiro-Barnum ‘17, Friends Central School, Wynnewood, PA, has started Recess Therapy, a new online show, seeking positive, joyous wisdom, and the wacky solutions to world’s problems, from children out in the park, with, of course, parents’ permission.

The show on YouTube is gaining popularity. In an interview to Upworthy, Julian said children’s talk in his show is cathartic, creative, and they had better “coping mechanisms than we did.”

Photo: Screenshot from a YouTube episode of the show.

John Logan Pierson ‘06, Saint Andrew’s School, Boca Raton, FL, has won a Netflix contract after producing an award-winning documentary. Los Últimos Frikis is about the titular Cuban band’s struggle to be hear under the Fidel Castro’s regime.

Now, Pierson is in Thailand, filming a scripted series for Netflix based on the 2018 rescue of a boys soccer team trapped in the Tham Luang Nang Non cave system.

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Photo: IMDb

101 Kimball Union Academy, Meriden, NH, ran Take Three, an exhibition in September and October in their Taylor Art Gallery, featuring art from Phil Montenegro, teaching alum and painter, his father Ernest, sculptor, and grandfather Enrique, abstract painter.

Lucas Huang, a senior from the

Columbus Academy, Columbus, OH, became a Scholar with Honors, one of 30 winners of the highest scholarship prize ($30,00) in the competition hosted earlier this year by National Cyber Awards.

Corinne Laurey ‘25, Cary Academy, Cary, NC, has earned a National Gold Medal, for voice from the Royal Conservatory of Music.

Photo: School Website.

Tim Nadolsky ‘22, Greenhill School, Addison, TX, has earned a chair in the National Association for Music All-National Concert Band. The online concert will be conducted by an UCLA professor of music.

Roman S. ‘21, The Waterford School, South Sandy, UT, was selected as a senator for American Legion Boys Nation, in Washington, DC, held in July. It includes civic training and leadership development.

Photo: School Website.

The Oregon Media Group has awarded International School of Portland, Portland, OR, with The Oregon/Southwest Washington Top Workplaces Award, on October 5.

Jade Edwards ‘18, Latin School of Chicago, Chicago, IL, who is now women’s basketball senior at the American University has become the Patriot League Preseason Player of the Year, in October 2021.

Photo: Patriot League Website

Timo, prep school pupil, The King’s

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School, Rochester, England, became 2021 British Kart Champion after winning the Paul Fletcher International last month.

Photo: School Website

Brendan O’Keefe, Head of Digital Learning, Fulham School, London, UK, has started a successful partnership with LEGO® Education BricQ Motion and LEGO® Education SPIKE™ Prime to demonstrate laws of physics and teach practical lessons in creating mechanisms.

St. Michael’s Grammar School, in Victoria, Australia, has launched the first Reconciliation Action Plan endorsed by Narragunnawali - Reconciliation Australia. “[T]he School has committed to achieving 24 new targets which span across Narragunnawali’s three categories: Relationships, Respect and Opportunities,” says the school website.

Photo: School Website

St. Martin’s School, Johannesburg, South Africa, honored senior alumnus, Oliver Tambo, who co-founded the ANC Youth League with Nelson Mandela and Walter Sisulu, and died in 1993, with a memorial on the school wall, earlier this year.

“If apartheid is a crime against humanity, a crime against its victims, it is incapable of reform. It should only be ended and the issue is therefore again not how to amend, how to reform it, but how to put an end to it as a crime.”

— Oliver Tambo Speech at Chatham House, London, UK, October, 29, 1985

Avenues: The World School has announced an extension of its collaboration with Early Adopter, The Glimpse Group, for the company’s Augmented and Virtual Reality products for K-12 education, for all it’s campuses: New York (US), São Paulo (Brazil), and Shenzhen (China).

Specifically, the app Common Room allows students to work with teachers and create content for virtual rooms. Everyone invited to the room experiences the same content in the VR mode, no matter where they are logging from.

One Word International School has won gold as the best international school in Singapore in Most Affordable, Student Wellbeing, and Diverse and Inclusive Community categories, by the inaugural Honeykids Singapore Educational Awards.

Photo: School Website

EMA

Top. Digital banner announcing the event, EMA website.

Professional Courage with a Social Twist The Enrollment Management Association has been a respected organization in the admission world for many years and has always been expected by its membership to provide strong leadership in the area of admissions. This year, Seattle was no exception as Executive Director Heather Hoerle and her team took the bold step to offer a face to face option coupled with the expected virtual experience.

It was executed flawlessly and provided

the greatly missed personal experience that the admissions tribe desperately craved during the pandemic. While the agenda provided the expected well planned sessions and salient topics crucial to professional growth, it was clear that the social interaction among friends was equally enjoyed.

So hats off to my friends at EMA for your courage and correct instincts during these crazy times. __ Thomas Schenck

ROR Publisher, Thomas Schenck, in attendance. Credit: Dartmouth Ass.

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Have We Discovered a Ghost School?

Caroline Education International School PSA answered to the National Center for Education Statistics Private School Universe Survey, 2017-2018 school year. Per it’s NCES listing, it has 961 students, 55.4 Classroom Teachers (FTE), and a Student/Teacher Ratio of 17.3. It lists number of students by grade and the racial composition. It’s given address is 22759 Ann Arbor Trl, Dearborn Heights, MI 48127, and the listed number is: (248)667-1400.

Beyond this however the school has no footprint at all. Google search does not yield a knowledge panel entry on the school, like it does with nearly every other school, at least in the developed world. Niche does not have an entry on this school while all other online school directories repeat the NCES info and all other info panels on the school remain blank. A call on the number goes to an unformatted recording system, asking you to leave a message.

The given address is clearly a fabricated location as a simple satellite search on Google Map reveals. The building on the supposed location is a Dental Care and the postal codes cap at 22701. All surrounding blocks have different numbering systems as they fall along other roads.

Is this some kind of a scam? We respectfully request the relevant authorities to take interest and investigate.

Caroline Education International School PSA 22759 Ann Arbor Trl, Dearborn Heights, MI 48127

Listed number: +1 (248)667-1400.

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ROR SC David Lowery’s nature of courage and meaning and less a hero’s journey.

Atmospheric visuals set the right tone with a touch of surrealism from the beginning. The cinematography is sensual; the viewer’s mind responds with a simulation of the smells and chill evident in the foggy night. It is one thing to make such a start which instantly transports; but it’s another to keep that up for the rest of the viewing time and Lowry masterfully keeps up the tone. The director uses the classic tale to reexamine the themes of religion, masculinity, and heroism with a fresh lens.

The great feat of the movie is how deftly the film walks several lines between various dualities.

It’s a philosophical treatise inside a classic adventure, a poetic film with a structured narrative, and an assured technical mastery and direction with lots of room for interpretation by every viewer.

The star Dev Patel is the perfect vehicle in projecting Lowery’s explorations physical projection of thought and emotion rather than theatrical acting out.

The story begins when a young Gawain gets involved in The Christmas Game devised by King Arthur. He accepts a challenge by the half-tree/half-giant mythical creature, the titular Green Knight’s. In one strike, Gawain beheads the Knight, knowing full well that the creature will return in an year to deliver the same strike on the young man. Soon he is on his long journey to The Green Chapel to keep his fatal appointment to the Green Knight.

What follows is less the story of a physical adventure, though those are shown well involving a series of great supporting characters. The cinematography, the philosophical mindset of the director, and the poetic structure of the film’s narrative make it more a mental journey in which our emotions are deeply engaged.

Gawain faces existential truths about the fragility of man and the inevitability of fate, while at the same time being impressed with the infallibility and vastness of nature and destiny. Like the repeating stanzas of a structurally rhymed poem, Gawain’s journey is more a revisitation of the

From uncredited miniature artwork “Seige of Tyre (1187),” in Sébastien Mamerot manuscript “Les Passages d’Outremer.”

Movie is a thrilling and sublime work of art - a rarity in today’s film culture.

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CREEN

Or When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised

Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson

It’s not that this footage was never shown anywhere. Producer Hal Tulchin had recorded the entire proceedings and broadcast it over cable television of the era in weekly segments. But the way this culture, and its footage, was forgotten all these decades in the mainstream media and pop culture stands in sharp contrast with the iconic Woodstock Festival. You see Woodstock was taking place at the same time, with only a 100,000 greater number of attendees, and held only 160 kilometers away; the venue for both festivals being Harlem, NYC. As directed by Questlove of The Roots fame, the documentary around the original footage dutifully relays the social and political contexts of the time, the parallel histories of Black culture and music in American and New York, covering essential beats from the gospel music, to motown gloriousness, to the heroin epidemic in Harlem, and the high-profile assassinations of the 60s and 70s. .

The highlight of the documentary, however, remains the footage, where we get to see original performances of a young Stevie Wonder, B. B. King, Sly & The Family Stone, Mahalia Jackson and more.

The film earned praise for the technical acumen with which the original footage has been revived for today’s screens. The way Tulchin filmed them originally, capturing their sense of cultural urgency, vibrancy and vitality, has been left unblemished.

It is fascinating to realize how two different sets of audiences connect across time by falling in the groove of the same icons and their performances.

We don’t just give in to the hypnotic immersion generated by these great musicians. We also get to see their live audience react similarly, all the way back in the 60s. The differences between the two audiences couldn’t be starker. Those in live attendance are nearly exclusively Black (remembering the admissions were free), come away to support their own while the world’s attention is grabbed away by Woodstock. Today’s audience is composed of all colors, ethnicities and inclinations.

And yet, that is the sobering realization here.

The inheritors of that era are still fighting for the same values today as their past leaders and their younger selves were doing. It’s almost as if nothing has changed beyond appearances.

Partial Screenshot from the Opening Credits.

made this award-winning documentary about about the 1969 Harlem Culture Festival in 1969. Original footage from the festival, which took place in Mount Morris Park with free admission, sat in a basement all this time, until it was found and restored. The concert ran for a whole month with around 30,000 music lovers in attendance. Maxwell House served as the sponsor, while the iconic Black Panther Party itself provided the security.

Graffiti artwork in Bemmel, a town in eastern Netherlands.

Wikimedia Commons

She rose before the sun The scent of espresso and burnt hair clung to the air She stood before her vanity, humming to Billy Holiday, bludgeoning unruly strands into palatability for the men in sharp suits, Cheshire eyes gleaming in the fluorescent light, the men who stood before the door of opportunity.

She had carved away the brazen edges of her personality, the crust of a picky child’s sandwich.

She handled the men like she would chocolate, prone to melting beneath the brilliance of the sun’s rays.

She crossed her legs, sealed her overflow into pantyhose, softened her tone, a signal of fragility, stroking their egos, satiating their appetites for superiority.

Still her roots had grown beyond the vase of space they allotted her.

The men were too dim, drunk on power to see that she had an appetite of her own.

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A hunger for more than a husband, a home, children of her own, martinis at noon to get her through the house chores More than the American Dream pitched by men on Madison Avenue the straight rods that slipped into rigid straits.

She wanted the crust of that picky child’s sandwich; the roar of the beast, the jagged edges of her teeth, to tear into life to leave civility in her wake.

A hunger she planted in me.

To crave the crust, to have the audacity to demand the whole damn sandwich.

“Initiation” Art Print by Lucy Morningstar.

A Public Domain, Vintage Tourism Poster from China.

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Connecting Students to the Best Transitional Model

Why the K–9 Model Works

By Ian Craig, Head of the Rumsey Hall School

There is an

ongoing debate in education regarding the most appropriate configuration of grade levels in schools. What is the best model that will benefit most students? Is a K–12 school or a K–9 school the best fit? There are many school options, especially when considering other variables such as all-boys, all-girls, and coeducational prospects.

Experts have researched the benefits of many different frameworks of education. Ultimately, a significant amount of evidence confirms that the K–9 model of independent school education strongly supports the emo-

tional, developmental, and academic transitional needs of a child. Current research supporting the integrity of the K–9 model indicates that adolescents in this setting have improved grades and fewer disciplinary problems than their counterparts who transition into a new middle school.

The child-centered focus of the K–9 model strategically places teachers who understand the nuances of how a child’s brain and emotions develop at every grade level. This environment constructs an atmosphere where children feel safe to express how they best learn. In other words, students feel known by their teachers, peers, and administrators.

Subsequently, this model creates a thriving culture of connection — a culture that is, unfortunately, lacking in many aspects of modern society.

Connection is the key to prospering a child’s academic growth. Dr. Ned Hallowell, noted child psychologist and author of Connect, found that students who were connected “were the least depressed, had the highest self-esteem, felt most comfortable with their families, were the most positive about their education and had the highest grade point averages.” The two most important sources for connection among the adolescents in Hallowell’s study were, not surprisingly, family connections and school connections.

Quite often, students in K–9 schools have opportunities in the arts and athletics that may not be as accessible to them in high school. There are more opportunities to be involved in interscholastic athletics when the high school mentality to win-at-all-costs is not an added pressure.

Additionally, K–9 independent schools typically engage students in music, art, and drama at a time in their lives when they are eager to proclaim that they are not, in fact, a musician, artist, or actor. In K–9 independent schools, students are asked to tap into their inner creativity via art class, sing in choir, play an instrument in band or orchestra, and explore their identities in drama productions. When students are required to try things they otherwise wouldn’t, they are ushered into a creative culture that brings to light their hidden skills and talents.

Developmentally, there is possibly no other time in a child’s life when there is more happening for a student socially, intellectually, and physically than during the middle school years. Aside from infancy, no other phase of life is characterized by greater, more rapid, and diverse development than early adolescence. A familiar school with limited transitions — a school where a child is known by their teachers — establishes the opportunity to transition through a challenging time in adolescence with the

best chance of success.

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Middle-school-age children in K–9 schools have ample opportunity to empower themselves through leadership opportunities. In this notoriously self-conscious time in childrens’ lives, students in upper grade levels at K–9 schools are afforded meaningful outlets where they can model character values to their peers. Ninth graders, in particular, can courageously captain teams, perform in musicals, and address the entire student body in assemblies and programs. Students who are connected leaders in middle school tend to become young adults eager to be involved in student government, social justice movements, and community engagement initiatives when they move on to high school.

Choosing any school is a challenging decision for parents. From choosing the right kindergarten, the inception point of the academic journey, parents often make a decision on their instincts and how their life philosophy measures up to the school’s values. Though kindergarten students have the rudimentary capacity to verbalize their input on the school, much of the decision-making process is the responsibility of the parent. In the K–9 school, stu-

Ian Craig, Head of the Rumsey Hall School

-dents are given the opportunity to develop their academic and extracurricular interests. The unique time they’ve spent feeling connected in a foundational K–9 environment gives them the confidence and wisdom to collaborate with their parents to choose the best high school to matriculate to.

K-9 schools give students the gift of choice: students who are known are confident enough to figure out who they really are, trust their intuition, and, together with their family, choose a high

Kinemax, the most futuristic building in the unique theme park, Futuroscope, in Vienne, France. Architect Denis Laming.

Photos: Wikimedia Commons.

school that is the right fit for them.

Children and their individual needs are as varied as their educational choices. Whether K–6, K–9, K–12, public, independent, all-boys, all-girls, coeducational, in the end, there may not be one solution for the best way to educate all children.

However, a seasoned K–9 independent school rooted in intentionality and expertise — a school like Rumsey Hall — will nurture and guide children in a critical transitional stage as they navigate the rest of their academic journey.

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Stock photos showing hemp seed heads, the straining process, the strained milk, and milkshakes and other drinks made with hemp milk.

Facing. A shop logo.

By Damian Barczak, Unsplash.

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Hemp, the plant genus Cannabis, is grown chiefly for its edible seeds and hemp oil. Among the many benefits of its seeds and plant as a whole lies hemp milk. People have been making hemp milk for nearly as long as they have been making hemp cloth.

The hemp milk you will buy from the market is often fraudulent, made with rice and hemp seed oil. This guide gives you the downlow on how hemp seed is actually made and what are its benefits.

Making the Milk...

There is a straightforward process of making hemp milk consisting of only two steps:

Hemp seeds can be purchased online and at many specialty and health food stores.

They are becoming quite popular, so hemp milk is commonly available in most grocery or health food stores nowadays.

There are several brands of hemp seeds to choose from as well. It may be wise to buy hemp seed oil instead if you're vegan, but hemp milk is much cheaper to make yourself!

Soak raw shelled hemp seeds (also called hemp hearts) overnight in water. Next day, drain the dense, white milk that forms. You will need to blend with water until smooth. Add sweetener & flavorings such as vanilla extract if desired.

Add ground nuts or blend in fresh fruit to enjoy your dairy-free milk drink!

Pros and Cons...

Hemp contains up to five times more omega than fish oil! It has a perfect balance of omega 3/6/9 fatty acids. Hemp, kale, broccoli, and salmon are some of the best sources for optimal omega 3 levels.

It contains protein (up to 30% by dry weight), vitamin E, iron, calcium, magnesium, and ten essential amino acids. It’s low glycemic index is an added benefit.

A recent study confirmed that hemp has no phytoestrogens at all, putting the myths of potential risk from the natural chemical to rest.

Some people might have allergies to hemp protein, their bodies unable to process it causing an inflammatory reaction.

By Serban Sorin

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A Brief, Early History of Independent Schooling in America

By DAVID BREARTY, HISTORIAN Above.School Teacher, 1668, by Jan Steen (1626-1679)

During the colonial period in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries official, state-run schooling at primary and secondary level did not largely exist in the United States.

The ‘free’ grammar schools under crown patronage were neither truly free nor commonly available. There were plenty of areas where they were not serving. That’s how independent schools gradually took up the mantle of primary and secondary education. Thus, children in colonial Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia or New York would have typically attended independent schools if they were given some education at all.

These schools were usually run by private philanthropists, or established by religious groups such as the Quakers.

A bust of Horace Mann in Bronx, NYC. Photo: Jim Henderson, Wikimedia Commons.

The division between state-run and independent schooling in the United States can be traced to the nineteenth century efforts by educational reformers such as Horace Mann who began the drive to make primary education free for all Americans. Still, private education retained a very prominent place for the second half of the nineteenth century and into the twentieth century, much greater than in many European countries at the time.

118 This was owing to two key factors. The very large number of religious denominations in the country ensured that huge numbers of immigrants and other minorities wanted to send their children to parochial schools fostering various religious faiths. State-run schools back then tended to have a Protestant bias. For instance, the huge numbers of Irish and Italian immigrants who arrived to the East Coast between 1840 and 1920 were almost universally ardent Roman Catholics. They consequently favoured Catholic parochial schools in cities like New York, Boston and Chicago. These immigrants typically experienced severe prejudice from White, Anglo-Saxon Protestants in America, and their Catholicism was a particular source of criticism. The parochial schools were generally built with meagre funding from largely impoverished Catholics and were run by nuns.

Other religious denominations such as the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Missouri also have a long record of maintaining private elementary schools. The same applied to the large numbers of Nordic people from Scandinavia who settled in the Midwest in the early twentieth century.

The second major factor was the policy of Segregation in the southern states following the American Civil War. The state-run, segregated schools built for black children were often very poorly resourced. This eventually led to black educational reformers initiating campaigns to better-run and well-resourced independent schools for African American children. A good example was the Rosenwald Schools.

Julius Rosenwald was an American businessman and philanthropist who established the Rosenwald Fund in 1911 after meeting with the African American rights campaigner and educator, Booker T. Washington. The Fund was set up to improve the education of black children in America by building schools, primarily in rural areas of the southern states. These were to be financed through community donations and other endowments. More than 5,000 Rosenwald schools were eventually built.

Societal attitudes to independent schools for African Americans have largely been determined by political and social biases amongst various communities, with many white Americans in the south seeing them as hotbeds of political dissent, just as Protestants in the late 19th century did.

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The Roman Catholic parochial schools were sometimes regarded as places where ‘Popish’ conspiracies brew to make the US a Catholic country. Such views are now understood as the products of conspiracies or a result of racial and religious prejudices.

The political climate changed somewhat in the twentieth century as the legal basis for segregation was demolished in the case Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. The century also largely saw the collapse of any sectarian tensions concerning Catholics and other Christian minorities in the twentieth century.

Despite these shifts, independent schooling remains more common in the American education system than in almost any European country.

Catholic parochial schools continue to be major players in offering private education in certain parts of the country. The late twentieth and now the twenty-first century has also seen increasing numbers of other ethnicities and religious faiths represented in the private education sphere.

Overall, there are generally over five million children availing of private or independent schooling in America today, representing nearly 8% of the country’s eighty million or so primary and secondary school students. As America’s culture wars continue and the country becomes more polarised, one can only expect that the numbers of parents electing to send their children to independent or private schools of one kind or another will increase in the years to come.

Entered into the National Register of Historic Places, Mars Hills Anderson Rosenwald School was constructed in 1928, North Carolina. from the original fund from Julius Rosenwald, inset. Below: Rosenwald’s statue in the Merchandise Mart Hall of Fame, Chicago; photo: Terence Faircloth, Flickr.

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COLLEGIATE SCHOOL was established in 1628 in Manhattan, NY. Hence, it was the first ever private school in America.

The first foreign language school in USA was the German Saturday School in Boston, established 1874.

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Annie Wright School, Tacoma, Washington that opened in 1881 might have been the first ever all-girls school,

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Englands THE KING’S SCHOOL in Canterbury is the world’s oldest private school that is still running. It opened in 597 AD

A view of England’s famous The King’s School. Stock Photo.

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Q&A by RhodoraO

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Elena Kotliarker is an artist with such a mastery of color and motif that you would be swept enchanted and breathless in the worlds you visit on her canvases.

Born and raised in Ukraine, she moved to Israel as an adult and has since then has been endlessly creating contemporary masterpieces using ink, acrylics, oils and pastels. She has displayed her art in exhibitions both at home and in France. This is only her other great achievement in life, as she is also a proud mother and wife in a wonderful family.

of quite a decent income.

She recently graced the ROR Magazine with a brief Q&A about her work and inspiration.

Elena: Wow! I love so many artists. I’m in love with the artworks of Marc Chagall and Chaim Soutine. Very powerful inspirations come from the art of Claude Monet and Paul Cezanne. I dream to be able to draw flower bouquets like Paul Cezanne did and be able to portray the soft colors and sizes of Claude Monet's paintings.

ROR: I understand from your bio that you grew up in Ukraine then left for Israel. What are your memories of growing up in Ukraine and how did your birthplace contribute to your inspirations as a visual artist?

Elena: I was born in Kiev — a city with a history of more than 15 centuries. The fact that I was lucky to be born and spent my childhood in the very historical center, with its architecture and a large number of museums, most within walking distance from home, undoubtedly influenced me.

I first visited a museum at the age of four, and since then, my parents never got tired of taking me to different museums, almost every weekend. From the age of ten they allowed me to go there alone.

Obviously, it was very beneficial that the communist government did not censor the expositions of classical art, both local and European.

ROR: When did you realize that you were meant to be an artist and when did you make the conscious choice of pursuing it as your vocation? Also, did you receive formal training in the arts?

Elena: I realized that I wanted to be an artist at the age of six. Nevertheless, I received a higher education in pedagogy from a university. However, in the early 1990s, the economic situation was in a very bad shape. Representatives of budget-funded professions received very low wages, which were difficult to live on. But there were many places where it was possible to sell portraits painted on the spot or finished paintings, such as street art markets.

Fortunately, I started earning my first money as an artist, not as a teacher. Then, I worked as an art editor for an advertising magazine.

After moving to Israel, I froze my art classes for a while. There was a short period, where I worked in Israeli high-tech as a graphic designer, of which I have the fondest memories. Only in 2007, did I fully return to professional painting. Fortunately, eBay already existed and my husband started selling my artworks in the evenings and weekends. Since about 2008, it was clearly obvious that this can be a source

Like I said, I had dreamed of being a painter from my early childhood. I was very lucky that my parents have always supported my ambitions. So, from a very young age, I began to learn the art of painting. I was taught and trained at the Spiritual Art Academy of Kiev in 1993.

ROR: Does any classical school of art or painter inspire you?

I always prefer large canvases that give freedom of composition and accentuate color. After I saw the huge canvases of Claude Monet in Paris (which must be viewed from a distance of 4-7 meters), I promised myself to create a really big painting. Once, I had to climb onto the roof of our house to be able to paint as large an abstract painting as I imagined, splattering the paints and lacquers.

“The Spiral of Love” by Elena Kotliarker

ROR: What is the process like from your mind to the canvas?

Elena: This happens in different ways. There are pictures that I do not begin until they are completely formed in my head to the smallest detail, both colors and composition.

I draw sketches for most of the fragments with a pencil in a notebook. Then, I start sketching with black pastel chalk on canvas and only after that I start working with paints.

On the other hand, in my abstract series such as “Pure Abstract” and “Angel Wings”, I painted without sketches from scratch. In such cases, at the beginning, I have absolutely no idea how the final picture will look. I just imagine myself as a gateway between the universe and the canvas through which the picture splashes out.

Do not be afraid to experiment. There is no guarantee that every piece of art will be a success, but failure has its hidden secrets for future success.

You need to try working in a number of directions, concurrently. You never know where you will meet significant success.

ROR: I understand that many of your subjects come from your proud Jewish tradition. However, I would like to understand the choices of your motifs. For instance, you often use peacocks. What is the significance of that in your imagery?

Elena: I embed a number of Hebrew words into the picture – such as Success (‫)הצלחה‬, Luck (‫)מזל‬, Happiness (‫)אושר‬, Love (‫)אהבה‬, and Health (‫)בריאות‬.

Also, I add meaningful Jewish symbols such as: A pair of birds – for love and harmony, pomegranates – for joy and fruitfulness, five fishes – for fertility, and Hamsa (Hand of Fatima) that will protect the owner from evil eyes.

“Splash of Life” series is somewhat similar to the style of Japanese painting. There are many paintings with very clear motifs by Marc Chagall. I think that I am more of an artist of color than an artist of figures.

This, in my opinion, is the clearest answer to the question.

ROR: Who are the figures and institutions in your life that have played a direct role in teaching or encouraging your art?

Elena: I am very grateful to my first teacher and friend, Olga Bebco, for all her patience and love. My basement is absolutely credited to her merit.

We met when I was a child and we have kept in touch for more than 40 years. Thanks to her talent as a teacher and her patience, I have achieved a lot.

ROR: Finally, what life habits have played an important role in turning your talent into a successful career or vocation?

Elena: My main habit is to write down my dreams and thoughts upon awakening. It is like documenting a stream of consciousness.

At the beginning of my professional career in Israel in 2007, an iron-like self-discipline was required.

It was necessary to allocate time between work and childcare. Freshly prepared meals and transportation to workouts for my children took precedence over the art. For a while I rented a studio, where I worked while the children were at school, then I returned to work from home.

In addition to habits, it is very important to be optimistic and not get upset if some part of the plans failed to be realized. It is necessary to understand in advance that not everyone thinks the same way and do not expect people to have similar views on life and on art.

The peacock itself has no symbolism in Judaism, but it does have meaning in Jewish folklore and songs.

The Peacock serves as a symbol of the Jewish nation and its people. The peacock's cry is piercing and sad yet its tail is like a tale that is wonderful and glorious.

ROR: How would you label or classify your own art in terms of the classic or contemporary schools of art and artistic thought and technique?

Elena: A very difficult question. I have several art series that are quite different from each other, that when viewed from the outside, it is difficult to assert that they were created by the same author.

My series of "fairies and fairies of the zodiac signs" is, in my opinion, pure pop art. Part of the

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“The Tree of Desires” by Elena Kotliarker.

Elena’s artwork can be purchased at various online art stores including her own blog www.elenakotliarker.com. You can follow her work at her Facebook and Instagram profiles.

THE POWER OF PARTNERSHIPS

A NEW ERA OF MARKETING & BRAND IMPACT

By Dean J. Fusto

ROR SCHOOL

Head of the Brandon Hall School teaches us the key to cultivating successful partnerships for enrichment of student experiences.

P

ick any Saturday or Sunday afternoon on our beautiful, bucolic, 24-acre campus and you might be surprised by the high-octane level of creative activity that is buzzing. If you enter our iconic Great Hall and step into the auditorium, young thespians from grades six through twelve will be engaged in painting theater sets and rehearsing musical numbers. The uniqueness of this picture I paint is that these talented youth, many of whom achieve Broadway and screen notoriety, are not all our students. They, the Atlanta Workshop Players, are part of our school family thanks to a marriage born in the pandemic uniting Brandon Hall School with their storied organization.

In leadership, the most formidable challenges present the most transformational opportunities. Schools and their governing boards are wise to attune their radars to capture the blips of powerful partnerships. Brandon Hall is an exemplar in this respect because it was during the bleakest apex of COVID-19 that something revolutionary happened for our small day and boarding school. Instead of allowing the daily noise of global news reports to petrify us, we resolved to intensify our outreach and marketing efforts. The “new normal” was not going to define or deter us. Our focus shifted to exploring and embracing an often-misunderstood segment of a school’s potential growth proposition: partnerships.

Partnerships in secondary education are not new on the block, but nor are they the norm in our industry. To illustrate, in 2018, the head of Applewild School, Amy Jolly, penned an article for NAIS magazine stating, “Opening independent school doors, minds, and hearts to a range of partnership opportunities with neighboring schools, businesses, and mission-aligned nonprofits can help leverage expertise and

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facilities, and develop reach beyond our current constituents in a highly cost-effective manner. Partnerships are not a replacement for the admission team working hard to promote the core program or for the focused efforts of the advancement team, but they do represent one more tool that strategic heads of school can use to build name recognition, increase auxiliary income, and deliver deeper programs for the school.

3 Considerations in Forming Partnerships Haphazardly tossing two partner organizations into a salad will not result in a healthy and sustainable creation. Conversely, a true partnership takes intentionality and clarity of purpose. Before the first invite is extended, a school’s internal team needs to be artfully developed to include a mission-driven visionary, a finance guru, and a “rubber meets the road” systems person. This trio will complement and challenge each other to make game-changing decisions for their school.

Each prospective partnership should be viewed

through three distinct frames that are guided by essential questions and considerations. First, the “why” frame asks why are you seeking a partner organization? Is the goal to expand a potential student applicant base or broaden brand visibility?

The second frame includes alignment considerations.

Does your potential partner fully share your school’s missions and values? The third consideration is the legal frame. Legal counsel is critical to ensure mutual understandings of the rules of engagement with potential partners and to design ironclad, execu-

-table contractual templates. These relationships, once legally memorialized, are the foundation and launchpad to enduring success.

3 Ways to Optimize Partnerships Once a contract is signed and the partnership is formed, the work continues for the life of the union.

Similar to evaluations used for organizational quality in instruction and leadership, a set of criteria and performance-based tools are needed to routinely assess the “power” of a partnership. At Brandon Hall School, we developed two partnerships during the pandemic that have proved to be mutually beneficial. Our work with the Atlanta Workshop Players, who now have residency on campus, has brought a top tier youth theater, television, and film production organization into our performing arts spaces. Additionally, a partnership with the elite sports program, The Skill Factory, has resulted in expanding our brand and visibility to amazing athletes both domestically and internationally. The impact on enrollment and new mission-aligned revenue streams is indisputable.

Amongst the lessons learned over the past two years of these successful alliances, the most profound have been the three ways in which partnerships between schools and partner organizations can be optimized for win-win value: social media multiplier strategy, co-branding opportunities, and relationship building. First, social media multiplier strategy refers to the cooperative use of both the school and partner’s social media reach to bolster both organizations. A strong partnership will clearly include agreements around joint social media posts and boosts. When digital dialogues begin with new audiences, visibility and brand awareness triumphs.

Second, co-branding is a powerful way to optimize partnerships. Consider the idea of sharing expenses with your partner for a gala or performance. The use of a co-planned and orchestrated event can yield tremendous benefits to a school, especially if facilities are available on campus. The influx of new families means prospective applicants and leads seeing your school for the first time. Co-branding can also be a shared brochure with both school and partner logos. In addition, capitalizing on the talent and skills of both organizations to create joint marketing campaigns can result in some remarkable work. A final byproduct in optimizing partnerships is relationship building and the myriad ways a partner organization can serve as a networking bridge to many new communities. These optimization strategies rely on ongoing dialogue and planning between school and partner.

In an era when so many secondary independent schools have closed their doors forever, partnerships provide growth opportunities. A successful school understands that black swan events like COVID-19 can emerge at any time. Partnerships, when intentional and mission-aligned, diversify revenue streams and create buffers to repel unforeseen gale force winds. Our role as leaders, is to position our schools to deliver mission and impact student lives in perpetuity. Powerful partnerships get us one step closer to that charge.

Students run The Homestead farm, with grants from two partnerships: a Trout in in the Classroom Grant and the Whole KIds Foundation.

Previous. A joint production in which an AWP teacher is acting and choroegraphing the musical.

Facing. The iconic Great Hall is abuzz with creative activity, typically the fruits of mutually beneficial partnerships.

Photos Courtesy of the Author.

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“For profit or loss…

Till death do us part…”

“It’s Happened in November” (1990). Mural on the Berlin Wall by Kani Alavi depicting the scene on Checkpoint Charlie as East Germans pour into the West side. He watched it from his Berlin apartment on the day it happened: November 9, 1989

“Destruction of the Crystal Palace by Fire” (1936). Oil on Canvas by Arthur Stead (d.

1946) Built for the Great Exhibition (1851), it was dismantled and rebuilt outside London after the event and finally destroyed in a mysterious fire on 30th November, 1936.

Remaining Spiritually Sound In A Shifting Era 133

by ȀDIANA ROSS

Navigating new dynamics as we shift into the territory of a budding new era can come with a set of challenges. As dimensions of a reality you have always known transform, remaining surefooted is difficult with insurmountable levels of uncertainty. Each week, day or hour can present a desire to recoil back into what is familiar or safe.

However, it behooves you to stay centered in a grounded spiritual practice that not only calls you out of spaces in stagnancy, but one that promotes healthy inquisition in order to honor the tide of your own evolution.

Stock Art by Natalia Stepanovska

In any major and collective transition, you will experience a surplus of new ideas, movements and ways of life.

Navigating this with attributes of mastery begins with letting go. Where you are is not permanent. This is clearly indicated in your life since you are no longer where you’ve been. Let this assure you by relaying the fact that you are exactly where you need to be in the chaos of it all. When you tune into higher awarenesses that are not being presented to you through mainstream outlets or popular opinion, with a strengthened spiritual belief or practice, you can access a true sense of peace and order. It sets you apart from the noise or distractions that you have found a home in for so long. This is where you are gifted with the opportunity to become untangled. Sure the pursuit of obtaining such can be isolating (and we will talk about this in the paragraphs that follow) however, it is a necessary part of the journey in obtaining clarity and a truly sound mind.

What’s a sound spiritual practice look like? How do you get started?

The first thing you should consider is cultivating your “secret place.” This secret place is where you engage self care practices, prayer, worship, scriptural study, meditation and whatever else you may need in seclusion; away from the world. The secret place is where you develop intimacy with God and your own mind in ways other systems of the world may not offer. It’s where all is sacred and special; where new vision is birthed. It is the home you construct for the intimacy of your soul. We will discuss how you can create this for yourself in later excerpts.

As we cross over into a totally different performance of reality, creating spaces of specified isolation is an act of self healing and self preservation. The importance of this has a lot to do with maintaining systems that benefit components of your physical, emotional, mental, intellectual and spiritual bodies. Just as you would do to upkeep the condition of your motor vehicle, the same distinction of attention and care can be made for your spiritual practice. The time and space you allot for it has a profound influence on the direction of your well-being and overall life.

So with this said, you are invited to take more time in stillness and silence. Clear the clutter of external influences and tune deeply within. This is not only where greater insight and wisdom is gained, it is where the voice of God echoes through the chamber of your heart.

This space is so important to all you do. It brings colossal value to your life and changes it for the better. Many are able to speak to this from their own experience and hopefully soon will you. Think of it as a tiny vacation from the world; everything you know on a mundane level.

This tiny world that you create by strengthening your connection and relationship with God possesses limitless potential. It is where your greatness resides.

Photography Credits (Unsplash) in order of appearance: 1. Zoltan Tasi. 2. Ravi Pinisetti. 3. Chris Ensey. 4. Jared Rice.

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When you cultivated the space and time for your “secret place” in sacred intention, please make a point to incorporate it into your lifestyle. It should become a daily practice and part of your life moving forward in order to truly reap the harvest of the seeds you plant within it. Devoting yourself to it daily allows you to sustain a trajectory of elevation.

It will inevitably encourage re-direction when necessary, renewal when available and continued restoration as a response to your devotion.

How can you get started?

The secret place can be anywhere you can unplug and temporarily disconnect from it all. This space can be an extra bedroom in your home, your closet or even a corner in your room. Some people utilize their parked vehicle.

It is important to know that your secret place isn’t fixed on the physical. It can change as you move about and as you grow in your connection to it. Your secret place can be the lid of your closed eyes.

So take time to develop this space knowing that it first begins with the motivation for privacy and personal resolve.

As the era shifts, we are called to untangle ourselves from the clutter and confusion of the world and set up residence in sovereignty and clarity. This reintroduces truths that are unchanged through the years. Although we change and our world and surroundings change; the truth does not and never will. It is anchored but it is up to us to seek and find it. And doing so in designated quarters of spiritual soundness is the secret to its formula.

“Honey! Can you call someone for help?

I think we ordered the wrong pet.

It’s got me chained!”

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Free Seasonal Background Image: “Metallic Gold, Green Leaves, Textured Background” Courtesy RawPixel via Freepik

“Signing the Declaration of Independence” by John Trumbull, 1817.

Focus Group - Digital Marketing:

01-10 December, 2021

Online Course - Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: “Essential Partnership between Admissions

EMA USA

Financial Aid Symposium: “Learn how you can use

9 December, 2021

Meetup for LGBTQ+ Professionals:

ILA - USA

Intensive Session - Assessing & Addressing the Needs of Young Readers:: “Presenters will

30 November, 2021

7 December, 2021

13 January, 2022

ISCA USA

7 December, 2021

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“Join us to learn how to quickly (and inexpensively) understand your target audience, create digital ads to measure and benchmark your school’s top traits, and interpret the data to adjust your strategy in real time..”

and DEI Directors,” “Alleviating Bias in the Admission Process,” and “Examining your Admission and Financial Aid processes through a DEI lens.”

financial aid to boost enrollment, increase diversity, and meet the financial aid needs of your families all without sacrificing the bottom line. Members of ALC will be showcasing case studies.”

“Connect and gather your thoughts about how EMA can best support LGBTQ+ professionals in independent schools.”

share effective, evidence-based strategies for instruction, demonstrate how to differentiate based on the specific needs of each learner, and deliver highly practical resources school-based literacy educators should have in their toolbox.”

Webinar: Who Decides… And How Do You Who Decides? “Because the issues schools are facing are becoming increasingly politicized, charged with emotion, and potentially divisive, there has perhaps never been a better time to think about and discuss this issue.”

What’s Happening, ROR?

AISAP USA

Online People of Color Conference: “PoCC

30 NOV - 3 DEC, 2021 USA

Online Student Diversity Leadership Conference: “Led by a diverse team of trained

SAIS - USA 23-25 January, 2022

2022 Academic Support Conference:

9 February, 2022

Enrollment and Admissions Roundtable:

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equips educators at every level, from teachers to trustees, with knowledge and skills to improve the interracial, interethnic, and intercultural climate in their schools, as well as the attending academic, social-emotional, and workplace performance outcomes for students and adults alike. In an engaging virtual space, the Online 2021 PoCC will offer thought-provoking workshops, inspiring speakers, affinity group spaces, and more.”

adult and peer facilitators, participating students develop cross-cultural communication skills, design effective strategies for social justice practice through dialogue and the arts, and learn the foundations of allyship and networking principles. In addition to large group sessions, SDLC "family groups" and "home groups" allow for dialogue and sharing in smaller units.”

“Understanding the Impact of Anxiety on Learning.

Parent Education: Making It Stick. Executive Functioning Skills in the Classroom. Uncovering Dyscalculia and Math Learning Disorders. Executive Functioning: An Understanding and Practical Use. A Deeper Understanding of Psychoeducational Assessment Reports. Assistive Technology for Students With Learning Differences. Accommodations and Legal Issues for Students With Learning Disabilities.”

“Join admissions colleagues as we build community and connections. We will discuss best practices in school admissions and enrollment. This format will be an exchange of ideas and solutions to similar challenges.”

What’s Happening, ROR?

NAIS - USA 29 NOV - 3 DEC, 2021 -

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Digital Art by Brigitte, Pixabay.

By RhodoraO

Homemade

The Concept of Fall is Incomplete Without 143

potpourri today, but it may surprise some to learn that the original meaning of this French phrase was putrid pot.

They say potpourri was invented by the castle cooks in the 12th century as a method to counter the smells in palace rooms and wardrobes. Today potpourri continues to be the choice of fragrance for many people — a natural, aromatic and beautiful way to scent our living spaces.

Potpourri stops time by arresting the scent of withering petals and drying fruit for our benefit. It puts nostalgia for the passing scenes in a beautiful frame, by letting us enjoy a past season’s freshness in more withering, or frosting, days.

The ROR Guide to potpourri lets you in on some delightful secrets and tips for concocting this simple accent in the comfort of your home.

Rose petals are the classic choice for the majestic scent and the variety of hue. Half blooms or buds also do well for texture and shape. Other popular flowers include marigolds and sunflowers for the richness in

amber and gold. Dried daisy flowers are a great visual mix, while hummingbird flower adds a novel, tubular shape. Chamomile flowers with their small beady bulbs in different colors are also a great addition.

144 Fruits are popular for adding scents and variety to the mixture. Go with Pink Lady and Gala apples for aroma, and Cara Cara or Blood Oranges for an exotic look.

Pomegranate, pear and lemon slices are also commonly used, while peels of citrus fruits are included for color and the happy shapes.

Dried cranberries are also a popular choice.

Essential oils also function as fixatives; a few drops strengthen or rejuvenate the fragrance of a potpourri mixture for months or weeks. Popular choices included jasmine, balsam, cedarwood, sandalwood, and myrrh Finally, add wood shavings, straw balls, pine cones, and nut shells for an exotic looking blend.

These are added as fixatives. They anchor the scents making it last for months while enhancing it with their own pungency.

Popular choices include star anise, cloves, pine cones, cinnamon sticks, cardamom, vanilla beans, lavender and rosemary sprigs, basil sprigs in all its variety (chocolate, lemon & cinnamon), lemon grass, and juniper sprigs with berries.

TIP: If you are gifting the mixture, keep at least one day for the aromas to truly blend.

1.

Take two cups of petals torn off from your favorite fragrant flowers.

2.

Layer the petals (from largest sized to smallest, one after another, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper).

3.

Spread out the petals well in each layer so they can all dry evenly in the oven.

4.

Sprinkle your fixative ingredients on top of the layered petals.

5.

Bake for an hour at 275 degrees. You can experiment with different petals to see what results you get with an hour of baking in terms of the dried hues and fragrance.

6.

Cut round slices of fresh fruit and spread singly in another baking sheet. Bake until dry to your preferences.

7.

Place the potpourri in a vessel and mix in with two drops of your pick of essential oils.

TIP: Hold back a few small half-open buds, small-sized fresh flowers and fresh green leaves to mix in with the top layer of the potpourri display when ready.

TIP: Apple slices turn crispier over time after baking, but orange slices stay.

TIP: Dilute the essential oil with some drops of water to make sure it’s mixed in well with the whole mixture. Feel free to experiment with drops from different oils to create your own potent result.

TIP: You can also simmer the ingredients using 3-4 cups of water, but you will need a dehydrator later.

The wet, boiled mixture can also serve as the potpourri, but the scent and the fresh look only lasts a few days.

Two hand sculptures support the Golden Bridge for pedestrian crossing in the Bà Nà Hills resort, near Da Nang, Vietnam. Wikimedia Commons.

ROR Introduction

ascade Academy began with a dream of treating adolescent girls suffering with severe anxiety. Adolescent girls are three times more likely to experience anxiety than boys. This need presented an opportunity to serve students and families across the country. As with most dreams, there were many obstacles to overcome to keep hope alive. It took three years to make the dream a reality.

Cascade Academy was founded by John & Carol Probst, Caleb Cottle and Brad Gerrard in January 2020. With dynamic leadership forging the way, each partner has worked hard on their mission to help students and families to embrace life with courage and joy.

Having worked many years in the behavioral health industry, Caleb saw a need to serve adolescent girls with severe anxiety and began his search for the perfect location and the ideal team. Uninterested in a facility with an “institutional” feel, he began a search for something that felt like “home.” Through a series of fortunate events, he was led to John and Carol Probst, respected entrepreneurs and community members in Midway, Utah. They were interested

in selling their 13,000 square foot home. With nine bedrooms, ten bathrooms, two kitchens and plenty of office space, it was the “home” he had been searching for. Rather than sell their beautiful home, John and Carol offered it as part of a partnership agreement and Cascade Academy was born. Situated in the scenic Wasatch Back just outside of Park City, Cascade Academy is the perfect environment to promote healing for students and their families.

With the location established, Brad Gerrard, a well-respected and seasoned expert in the behavioral health field, was recruited and completed the ownership team, filling the role as Executive Director. Shortly thereafter Bekah Schuler joined the team as Clinical Director and quickly became specialized and knowledgeable in the treatment of adolescent anxiety. With over thirty years of experience in education, Jacki Burnham fills the demanding role as Academic Director, creating personalized education plans for each student. As the Admissions Director, LeaKae Roberts walks parents through the difficult process of placing their daughter in treatment. Porter Roe acting as Program Director makes certain that the needs of students and their families are met throughout the duration of treatment.

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By P. Stormcrow

f there is one thing I always like to boast about the city I call home, it's the food scene here. It's not that there is a particular dish or cuisine it's famous for but rather the sheer diversity available and how well each is executed.

Like any other parts of Canada, Vancouver is more a tapestry of many cultures rather than a melting pot and the food scene certainly reflects that. This means you'll easily find an upscale farm-to-table next to a sushi joint or even a Filipino food truck not far from a Lebanese restaurant. The sheer amount of choice is dizzying and can be overwhelming for the uninitiated.

Vancouver's vibrant restaurants have been featured in a number of shows including Guy Fieri’s Diners, Drive-ins and Dives on the Food Network and David Chang’s Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner on Netflix. Those are certainly great places to start from, if you want to get a taste of what the city offers.

However, there’s something to be said for going off the beaten path.

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A FOO DIE’S

e v o L etter L to

In fact, one of my partner’s and my favourite pastimes is to take advantage of how walkable the city is. We often pick a neighbourhood to explore, then walk into a random restaurant when we’re hungry. We have discovered many local gems that way.

I’ve been talking in the abstract but let me get down to business and highlight some of those favourites of mine.

Born in Hong Kong and immigrated at an early age, I’ve always had a special relationship with Chinese cuisine, especially given how meals are so central to our culture.

Memories of my place of birth are full of vague impressions gained more from hearing my parents retell stories than anything I remember concretely. Nostalgia arises from the from small intimate dinners every night at the kitchen table to large banquet dinners at fancy restaurants on special occasions that spanned numerous hours at a time. And there were so many of them! So for me, I’m grateful for the number of delicious Chinese restaurants that have not only established themselves, but have thrived in order to celebrate our culture.

I use Chinese as an overarching label but there’s no better way to describe Vancouver’s diversity than to dive into the nuances of such a label. In China, the cuisine from each province varies drastically. Much of westernized Chinese food derives from Cantonese cuisine, that is, dishes from the province of Canton. However, take Shanghainese food for example, which features a variety of dumplings, while its other dishes are more soy-sauce based. Or Szechuan dishes which are commonly the spicy ones. Or Chiu Chow’s famous vinegar based marinated tofu and duck breast and specialty sweet fried noodles with sugar and vinegar dips. Even Hong Kong cafes, a less traditional Western-Chinese fusion cuisine born from the British-colonized Hong Kong era, have found home in Vancouver. The list goes on and the fact that you can find not only restaurants but grocery stores carrying ingredients for all those specialties all in this city is a testament to the sophistication of this industry.

Of course, I can’t discuss Asian food without highlighting other cuisines as well. Vietnamese, Korean and Japanese restaurants are aplenty here, to name a few. Sushi and sashimi are commonplace. However, there may be less variety than in other places around the world due to simply what is available seafood-wise here.

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Two savory dishes the author found among her Vancouver ventures.

However, there’s no shortage of creativity. One of my personal favourites are the izakayas that have popped up over the years around town.

Although the definition of one is a Japanese bar that serves alcoholic drinks and snacks, the izakayas here have evolved to serving tapas-styled full meals that are to die for. From artfully displayed tataki or lightly seared fishes to braised meats, it’s a struggle to not want to order everything on the menu.

Before you get the impression that Vancouver is a satellite of Asian culture, let’s move on to another popular cuisine — brunch. Vancouverites take brunch very seriously and you’ll find many restaurants from diners and pubs to upscale restaurants offering their take on this especially on the weekends. Eggs, bacon, sausage of every variety, waffles, pancakes and french toasts are all just the beginning.

Some of my absolute favourite brunches have been of the fusion variety. Because Vancouver has such a rich mix of cultures, one of the added bonus is the new generation of chefs who are blending traditional cuisines, inspiring brand new takes to traditional dishes. Korean inspired Western brunches. French and Italian inspired pan-Asian share plates. The endless combinations can make every meal an adventure in itself.

And then, there are the bakeries. Oh the bakeries. Where do I even start?

If there’s one area of the food industry that seems to have thrived during this pandemic, it’s the bakeries, uniquely positioned for both take out and delivery. Every week a new one seems to pop up, ranging from dense, filling loaves of bread to pastries of every imaginable kind. Gourmet donuts?

We have two major competing brands. Pies? We even have a couple vegan ones. Then there's the festivals, like the hot chocolate festival every January where bakeries, chocolatiers, ice cream and gelato stores all jump in to participate, giving their own spins on hot chocolate.

I digress.

If I really had to pick a common, distinctive "West Coast" thread though, it would be the freshness of ingredients used. For instance, I have been to Shanghai and sampled the dumplings from one of its most famous restaurants. But somehow, the ones at home taste better, as if the flavour of each individual component is a little more vivid. And it’s not just in the eateries. I’ve brought spotted prawns off boats here, strawberries picked fresh from the fields, and produce grown from the field right next to the store all within fifteen-minutes drive from each other. I'm not sure if many places in the world can boast the same and I think that is part of what enhances the city's flavors and lights the food scene on fire.

Or maybe I'm just biased. If you ever get a chance to visit, you can be the judge.