News & Weekly Letters

I’m writing to you this week from San Francisco, where I’m attending a conference with heads and coordinators from French-American and French-Canadian schools. During the workshop sessions, I had the pleasure of presenting the way we do things at The École–an exercise that is always fascinating, allowing, as it does, for feedback on our practices from external perspectives.

Over the past few months, I’ve obviously been thinking a lot about how we can continue to improve our pedagogical program next year. Attending conferences, lectures, meetings, and discussions (and snooping online!) is a means of ensuring that The École is always up to speed with the latest innovations and approaches. Our expertise in bilingualism is well established; nonetheless, we relentlessly strive to ensure that we remain at the top of our game. It’s the same for our flexible classrooms–another area in which we excel, and the same can be said of our sports and arts programs.

In schools in France and New York, there is an ongoing emphasis on students with special educational needs. At The École, we already have many systems in place. Our School Psychologist, Stéphanie Antoine, and her team do an admirable job every day ensuring that our most fragile students (whether the fragility is short- or long-term) are supported as best as possible. Our processes are increasingly better defined and more efficient at finding the right solutions for everyone.

When it comes to leading a school, there are several indicators that a head must keep on their radar. These indicators vary according to context; in many schools throughout the States, one of the most crucial gauges is the amount raised through fundraising. Michael, Coco and Gala’s dad, told me recently that the majority of my counterparts in New York (aka fundraisers-in-chief) spend their evenings soliciting fat checks from families—I don’t envy them for a second.

I mentioned last week that I haven’t been spending enough time in Maternelle lately. And yet wonderful things are happening there and it is always a huge pleasure—as Laurence will concur—to drop into the classrooms and watch the children learning, playing, and growing. 206—as insiders refer to it—is a unique place where kindness, generosity, and respect are imbued with a special meaning.