KIT
David Feldman Head of School
OUR YEAR OF VUCA We received a phone call recently from a woman who was driving down Adams Road, saw our students in the park, and witnessed mask-wearing Upper School Students maintaining physical distance and enjoying each other’s company. The woman said she just had to call the school to let us know how impressed she was with the responsible behavior she witnessed.
As we continue both our in-person and home learning classes, I am heartened by the seriousness our students and faculty are taking to be responsible community members. We know that it takes care and effort to maintain the health and safety necessary for in-person learning to continue. The pandemic is serious, present, and not very discerning when it comes to the impact it can have on individuals. Throughout Oakland County and the greater Southeastern Michigan area we are being challenged. We will both do our best to be safe, and to be prepared should we need to address cases of coronavirus within our community. Our families have agreed to a covenant, not a legal document, but rather a moral agreement, a statement that acknowledges our interdependence. We know that the health and safety of our community, and our ability to be together in-person rests on the behavior of each of us in school and out of school every day. Earlier this year I shared with our faculty and staff an acronym shared with me by independent school leaders to describe our times, it’s unique origin actually comes from the US War College and I think truly describes our world today. I said we are living in the days of VUCA — Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity. I think we can all viscerally feel this VUCA moment coursing through our veins, permeating our skin and leaping from our bodies. It is like some alien presence that has taken hold of us, reshaped our thinking, and overwhelmed our sense of perspective. I feel a little bit like my daughter sitting in the back seat of the car continuously asking, are we there yet, is this pandemic over, can we just go back to normal? I believe that we must reach a new understanding and a new level of coexistence with VUCA. Perhaps within a paradigm shift we can reimagine VUCA and take ownership of the moment.
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I challenge you during this year of the unknown future to see VUCA from a different point of view. A new VUCA — our own VUCA. Where the V stands for our Values — compassion, respect, and responsibility. The U represents Understanding — for each other — that we are all trying our best to do our best. The C is about Caring. I asked our teachers to spend more time in their classes and with their families thinking about Maslow (hierarchy of needs) and less about Bloom (taxonomy of questions). We owe it to each other — all of us — to lift each other up, acknowledge the work being done, and seek each other out when we need to problem solve. Our focus must shift to basic human needs and not dwell on constructing the perfect question necessary to deliver the ideal academic content. More Maslow and less Bloom. And the A must stand for Agility — we need to be nimble; school is not going to be the way it was when we started last year. Our lessons and teaching methods will not be the same as they were last year. We need to give ourselves and each other the grace to adjust, change, struggle, and to be fully present. Time feels like it is moving at a different rate during this pandemic. Everything feels faster, and the need to respond feels more immediate and pressing. Being nimble means taking action to address critical needs. We are a community that likes to take its time and ponder questions, issues, and decisions. The unknown future we are facing will not always give us that luxury. In the end, we have to have the trust in one another necessary to come through this pandemic stronger than when we entered. That’s the goal — that’s the vision. We will not be the same school we were last year, and we will not be the same school we are today a year from now. What will it take to be stronger — not how do we add more students, build more buildings, or create more programs — stronger. More committed to our mission and our values; clearer in our pedagogy; unified in our sense of purpose. Living as a community with respect, professionalism, and joy. That is our vision for this year of challenge and VUCA. F
We know that the health and safety of our community, and our ability to be together in-person rests on the behavior of each of us in school and out of school every day.
