Q& A
With FWCD Board President
Russell Laughlin
Since the founding of Fort Worth Country Day, the Board of Trustees has been a vital part of the structure of the School. They ensure that FWCD continues in its role as a nationally recognized college preparatory school; striving to provide the finest community, culture and experience for the best possible preparation of its students. Every great governing body must possess a leader. The past 21 elected FWCD Board presidents embraced the mission and vision for the School and each helped guide Fort Worth Country Day over the last half century. russell Laughlin, the 2011-2012 and 22nd board president, is no exception. His dynamic leadership qualities coupled with his passion for the school that he, his wife, Kathryn, and children, russell ’08 and Kate ’15, call home, has elevated him to this important position during a pivotal time for the School.
FWCD matched what we were looking for and then some. While the academic side of FWCD was without question, it was seeing students comfortable in their own skin, who could speak well, interact, critically think and at the end of the day, be good citizens and strong leaders that helped us in our decision process. And when our son, Russell, graduated, we were able to say FWCD provided an outstanding education and helped develop a good, well rounded, young man. He was definitely prepared for college.
When you and your wife were searching for a school for Russell and Kate, what drew you to FWCD? We lived in Dallas for 18 years. Both Kathryn and I were educated by the public school system and were great supporters. We began looking at moving to Fort Worth in the late 1990’s and were interested in finding a school that was comparable to the education that we both experienced. We found that the quality of education at FALCONER
was in Upper School, Kathryn and I were Falcon Club co-presidents. We had been watching the energy around athletics and wondered if there was anything that the Falcon Club could do to jazz things up a bit. We went to band director Chuck Kraus and asked what was needed to get his band to be loud and large for football games. With Chuck, we came up with a plan to have the TCU Band and Drum Corp come out to the first game and perform with his band members. It was awesome seeing the energy and excitement created when the Falcon band joined the TCU band. Now it’s great to see Chuck at the games with students who are dedicated to supporting athletics and the School through their musical talents.
You mentioned that your mentor is Ross Perot. What are a couple of key lessons you can share that you’ve applied to your career? The first thing would be, there’s no such thing as a free lunch. There are no short cuts. There’s no easy way to do it. It’s hard work; it’s a grindstone; it’s consistency. [You have to] have a plan; execute it; stay with it; and at the end of the day you’ll succeed. You can apply that to everything business, personal life and education. The second thing is, you give back more than you take. If you are in the business world for many years and you’ve given back more to your community than you’ve taken, you’ve succeeded. More importantly, if you reverse that, your success will be short-lived. Ross Perot, Sr., and Jr. lead by example and have instilled this into
every employee. I hope that the FWCD community can see this through my family’s interaction with the School. In August, you addressed the faculty and staff at our all-staff meeting. You spoke not only on what’s on the horizon for the next two years, but also on how the Board was preparing for the next 50 years. How do you see the Board contributing to the future, advancement and sustainability of FWCD? The Board’s success is a result of great vision and years of hard work from past leadership. Our first priority this year was to validate the appropriateness of the Strategic Plan for the coming years. We review the plan regularly to ensure it continues to be relative and aligns with the mission of the school. As FWCD approaches its 50th year, this board is focused on the next 50 years and linking the visions and plans of the school to the community. This board is challenging itself to evaluate long term financial needs, campus and facility requirements, external influences, such as adjacent development, and continuing to attract, develop and retain great faculty and administrative personnel. As a mature school we are mindful of where we’ve been; drawing upon past success and failure. Short and long term goals, master plans, strategic calendars and financial models have been developed and updated to be used by this and future boards in guiding FWCD into the future.
At FWCD we instill in each student, from kindergarten to graduation, the concept of leadership. As a parent, Hillwood senior vice president and FWCD Board president, how important is it to you to convey the message of learning how to be a leader? It is absolutely the number one requirement from my perspective. There aren’t enough leaders being developed in our schools today. However, FWCD stands out in that regard because it encourages, if not demands, leadership at all levels and in many types of activities. Here our children are provided opportunities to stretch beyond their capabilities. This, of course, means learning how to deal with difficulties, challenges and failure – all of which teaches leadership. As I mentioned before, young men and women comfortable in their own skin can and will be leaders. When my son Russell graduated, he left with the ability to lead, and Kate is learning that now. 2011-2012 Board of Trustees Front row (l-r): Evan D. Peterson, Marshall Boyd ‘85, Michael Dike ‘88, Scott Sankary ‘86, Russell Laughlin, Mike Waltrip, David Ekstrom ‘75, Tom Purvis ‘77, Karen Davis, Shannon Young Ray ‘80, Dorriss Morrissette, John Smitherman Back row (l-r): Jim Hubbard, Judie Greenman, Rosalind Evans, Cynthia Rimmer Prince ‘87, Frasher Hudson Pergande ‘81, Alicia Rattikin Lindsey ‘78, Laura O’Brien, Reed Pigman, Doug Bratton, Ann Barksdale House ‘82, John Geesbreght, John Fant Not pictured: Randy Gideon and Amy Robinson
As the senior vice president of Hillwood Properties, what does your position entail and how do you use your professional expertise in your FWCD roles?
In a recent interview, Laughlin shared some thoughts on his career, leadership and the reason he and Kathryn chose FWCD.
6
an undergraduate degree in landscape architecture and city planning as well as an MBA in real estate finance. My background is rooted in preservation of land through good stewardship and master plans, so I felt comfortable working on the FWCD strategic and campus master plans. That’s the sort of thing that I love. Water resources, open spaces, the right mix of new and old improvements, how to get there, infrastructure, utilities ... everything that affects this campus is exactly what I do. So when I volunteered for the Buildings and Ground committee, I thought I had the skill set to help the School move forward.
Kathryn, Kate’15 and Russell Laughlin
Do you have a particular FWCD memory as a parent that you would consider your favorite? Absolutely! Kathryn and I grew up in Midland where football is king, and a big part of that experience is the large student band participation. So when we came to FWCD we were taken aback by how different things were here. When Russell
Hillwood, a Perot company, is a real estate development company. I’m responsible for land development activities which encompasses acquisition, planning, preparation, entitlement and development of approximately 20,000 acres. While my work entails traditional real estate development activities, it also requires extensive partnering with federal, state, county and local officials in the regulatory world which affects Hillwood’s ability to develop land and execute a master plan over many decades. I have fwcd.org
FALL/WiNTER 2011
FALCONER
7