Michael Soulé

Forming a Spiritual Organ in a School: LeadTogether Highlight #10, 10-27-14

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The question of collegial leadership

We had a board/faculty meeting this week, a regular event to build good relationships between the two groups. One activity we did (highly recommended) was to split into threes (one board and two teachers) and explore one of the core principles of Waldorf education developed by the Pedagogical Section Council.

Our group chose #7 Spiritual Orientation. In our conversation we came to the sentence talking about the development of a spiritual organ in the faculty.

My experience with this is that the ability to develop a healthy spiritual organ in the faculty is founded on three things: the ability of each individual to practice his/her inner work and alignment with the light of anthroposophy; the ability of each individual to be successful at putting the results of his/her inner work into action in teaching; and the ability of the group to work together in meditative and social ways in developing a healthy working with spirit. Without these three the formation of a true organ of perception for spirit is not possible.

So what do schools do when the faculty is not experienced enough or trained enough or socially adept enough to create such an organ, our insightful board colleague asked? I described to him the practice schools have of forming a smaller group of dedicated, experienced, pedagogically successful, social and inwardly active teachers that can bring insight, hold the place of spiritual connection and provide a deeper foundation for the school.

His first question was: Wouldn’t that automatically create a stratum in the faculty and a set of consequent problems? We pondered this question for a while and realized that this is the basic social question that we all as individuals are faced – that when two people meet, one has more capacity than the other to consciously connect with spiritual insight and, to create a harmonious working with the other, must exercise true collaborative leadership in a way that the equality between them and the freedom of each is nourished. Otherwise, without the social capacity, the one with more capacity easily is perceived as arrogant or condescending.

This is the same dynamic that we have been challenged with in the movement for a long time – that the college of teachers has a difficult time exercising leadership in such a way that they work in harmony with the entire faculty. What is needed is for college groups to understand that their capacity for collaborative leadership is essential to their success alongside their capacity to be a spiritual organ.

Michael Soule

 

Michael Soulé

The Virtue of Each One: LeadTogether Highlight #9 10-20-14

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Dear Colleagues,

Last week our highlight focused on a central aspect of a Waldorf school, supporting the conscious development of each individual in the community. By nature, the students, parents and teachers all practice their development every day in their respective roles. But how can a community work towards supporting each person, whether they are working on staff with a salary or as a one day volunteer? There are a few keys to supporting everyone in the community in their development. From experience, we know that individuals are more successful when:

  1. There is a clear description of their role and how it relates to the whole.
  2. They receive a thorough orientation to the community and their task.
  3. They have someone with experience (a supervisor, guide, mentor, coach) who can help them along their path.
  4. They have a regular opportunity for reflection, review and evaluation.

All four of these areas are worthy of exploring on their own – What makes a good job description? What is the best way to create job descriptions for volunteers? How can one keep all the job descriptions focused on the mission and clear about the culture? How do we best orient people who are drawn to our community to the core values that make it work? How can one best establish personal support processes for every position, paid or volunteer? How do we support mentors and guides in being consistent and working with integrity? What is the appropriate review and evaluation of volunteers?

At the heart of all these questions is the need to take an interest in each individual, not only for what they can do, but also for who they are, for the gift they bring to the whole and for the unique relationship and perspective they have on the core values. This is what Rudolf Steiner offered as insight when he referred to the motto of the social ethic – “that in the community the virtue of each one is living.”

Because many schools are financially challenged (like many non-profit organizations), we rely on the enthusiasm, involvement and skills of volunteers. How we support them, from having clear job descriptions for board and committee members, to having mentors for volunteers, to giving opportunities for review and evaluation at all levels will determine how successful the community is.

Keep in touch,

Michael Soule

 

Michael Soulé

Supporting Conscious Development: LeadTogether Highlight #8 10-13-14

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Dear Colleagues,

One of the things that sets a Waldorf school apart is the conscious understanding that everyone in the community is on a path of development and our development is connected with each other. The school is first and foremost a place where children are nurtured and guided in the development of their whole being. Behind this is the imagination that the child/student has a spiritual nature, has their own individual capacities, and that these capacities are unfolding over time in both a general and a unique way. This is the heart of the education. It is why standardized tests, programmed instruction, textbooks and over use of media make no educational sense. That the teacher needs to be striving, growing and developing on their own and in relationship with their colleagues, is also clear. What is sometimes less clear is that the life of the school depends on the reality that all staff including volunteers and any adult who participates in the school, be it in a festival, a committee, a faire, a field trip etc. are growing and developing. With the teachers, the ways that they agree to grow and develop are often well documented, in handbooks and professional development plans. But how can we learn to be conscious of the growth and development of each individual in the community? Many organizations are very successful at this – they go to great lengths to orient, select, train, reward and review every volunteer. The extent to which we in our schools pay attention to this is immensely important in the culture and success of the organization. For the school’s development rests upon the ways in which we consciously support the development of each individual involved at whatever level they are able to participate. Whether it is a healthy enrollment process, a clear job description for board members or a support system for those who volunteer, it is one aspect of our work that, in a hurry to get things done, is often overlooked or set aside and one that often creates a considerable amount of confusion that can be avoided. It is important for us to be diligent in this area in everything we do. In the end, how we support each other in our development to be more fully realized human beings is the most important thing, for us and for our children and students.

Keep in touch,

Michael Soule

If you have a particular practice in your school that you think is successful at supporting the individuals in their development – whether it is a successful orientation program, a volunteer rewards program, professional development plans for trustees or anything else, click here to go to the post and add a comment telling us about your success. We would love to know. (Go to the post)

Michael Soulé

AUTONOMY, ACCOUNTABILTY AND INTENTION: Publicly Funded Charter Schools Using Waldorf Curriculum and Methods by: George Hoffecker

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In the spring of 1996 I was hired to be the first on-site principal of Yuba River Charter School (YRCS) in California, the first publicly funded charter school using Waldorf methods in the country. The school, without a name at the time, was simply referred to as “the alternative charter school”. I was fortunate that the teachers at the school were all trained Waldorf teachers, a significant factor in getting the Waldorf charter movement off on a solid footing. As principal, I was heavily influenced by my studies in Rudolf Steiner education and what I had experienced organizationally and as a class teacher for many years at a successful, mature, independent Waldorf school. Collaborative leadership and a threefold governance structure emerged to help us create a vibrant school community that earned the respect of our authorizing district and the “Innovations for Excellence in Education Award for Governance” given by the California Network of Educational Charters (precursor of the California Charter School Association) and the Pacific Research Institute in 2002.

 

In 1993 many of the same people who founded YRCS were operating a long- standing small independent Waldorf school in Northern California. As populations shifted, the school experienced extreme budget shortfalls do to insufficient enrollment and had to close its doors, a crisis that a number of other independent schools have faced over the years. At about the same time, California passed legislation approving the establishment of publicly funded charter schools. This was partially in response to a populist call in the state for “parent choice” in public education. It was also widely recognized as a political strategy to provide an alternative to the growing “voucher” movement of the late 1980s. The voucher movement was very unpopular with both the California Teachers Association and the California School Board Association and created perhaps one of the few times in their histories when they united around a common cause!

 

Soon after the Waldorf school referred to above closed, a few parents and teachers from the school got busy, wrote a charter document just a few pages long (typical for the times-now they are a few hundred pages!) and got it authorized the following year in1994 by a local elementary school district. When I became principal, the urgent task was to help the school fully embody its Waldorf curriculum and methods as stated in the charter within the context of the local school district, rapidly evolving charter regulations and applicable the sections of California Education Code. Fortunately our local superintendent and school board saw in us an opportunity which had benefits for both the charter school and the district.

 

The authorizing district was experiencing “declining enrollment” at the time and saw the charter as a way to “challenge” its traditional schools by providing a “choice” for parents and to capitalize on the new funding stream opened up by charter law. The financial “cut” the district took the first year of the charter’s operations was a whopping 50% of the annual per pupil revenue (PPR or Average daily attendance ADA). The PPR for YRCS was about $5000. Although the district’s percentage was reduced to 9% within 5 years, unlike the traditional schools, the district did not provide YRCS with a site, utilities or supplies. However, with a few of its original Waldorf- trained teachers and their core group of “veteran” Waldorf parents, the YRCS founders gratefully signed the memo of understanding. They opened the school with a kindergarten, a first and second grade and a few specialty subjects, happy to be “alive” as a school again and providing a Waldorf education for their children, even if it meant being a “step-child” of the district The school was free to institute the Waldorf curriculum and developmental model described in the charter document, hire and fire its own teachers, govern itself according to its own “threefold” design with faculty, parent council and charter council working largely through collaborative leadership model. The charter council (similar to a school board or board of trustees and the “final” site-based authority) worked mostly through consensus complying with state “open meeting regulations’ and incorporating “Roberts Rules” to document proceedings. The Waldorf charter school movement had begun.

 

What are charter schools and why were they established?

The National Center for Educational Statistics, an arm of the U.S. Department of Education in 2012 defines charter schools as follows:

“Charter schools are publicly funded schools that are typically

governed by a group or organization under a legislation contract or

charter with the state or jurisdiction such as county offices of

education, school districts, and in some cases universities. The

charter exempts the school, from selected state or local rules and

regulations. In return for funding and autonomy (author’s italics)

the charter school must meet the accountability standards articulated

           in its charter (author’s italics). A school’s charter is reviewed period-

ically typically every 3 to 5 years by the group or jurisdiction that

granted the charter and can be revoked if guidelines on curriculum

and management are not followed or if state educational standards

are not met.

At their inception, in most states that have charter law, charter schools were intended to be a contract between the state departments of education and parents of the state who want a choice as to where they send their children within the public school system. From the start, parents were joined by teachers and other professionals who together developed their charter petition which included a description of the desired curriculum, rubrics which could measure student learning, and a governance and financial structure along with a plan for implementation.

 

Over the last 15 years, charter petitioners have also included businesses. For- profit charter management organizations (CMOs) using “economies of scale” rationales have in some cases authorized hundreds of charter schools existing throughout whole regions of the country. And, most recently, some charter “schools” are virtual with “no there, there”. This author agrees with those critics who argue that large CMOs and for-profit corporations moving into public education pose a potential threat to the positive “reform trajectory” charters have enjoyed thus far as they tend to be less local, less personal and less responsive to specific community needs.

 

Along with offering “choice” for parents within the public schools system, charters were seen by leading educators and policy makers as a way to bring innovation and systemic reform to public education within local districts and to ultimately have a positive effect on national educational policy. Since 1994, many studies have been conducted and have shown that charter schools have, in fact, provided choice for parents and have also given birth to a variety of curricular approaches while at the same time being held accountable to the same student standardized state testing procedures as traditional schools. Waldorf methods charters in particular have enjoyed a high degree of success and perform as well or better than traditional public schools of similar demographics on state standardized tests. (Oberman: 2000)

 

Although there are many more laws regulating charter schools today than there were in the 1990s, charters could be revoked then as they can now for:

  • Not meeting measurable pupil outcomes
  • Fiscal insolvency
  • Illegal operations (including not having “highly qualified teachers” in the classroom)
  • Not meeting terms of the charter document

They were accountable then as now to:

  • Federal and state government
  • Charter-granting agency(district, county, state board, now also to universities in some states, and charter management organizations or CMOs)
  • Public/community at large
  • Parents and students

 

Minnesota and California led the way in the charter school movement, passing the first charter school legislation in 1991 and 1992. Now all but 8 states in the U.S. have charter legislation in place serving approximately 2 million students nationwide in nearly 6,500 charter schools (source: National Charter School Resource Center; 2013). It is clear charter schools are here to stay.

 

As of 2012 there were 6 public schools and 44 public charter schools using Waldorf curriculum and Waldorf teaching methods in the United States and serving nearly 6000 students (source: Alliance for Public Waldorf Education 2013).

 

How are charter schools funded? :The “stepchild”

Typically charter schools receive less per pupil revenue (PPR- the amount of money spent in one school year on each pupil from federal, state and local funding streams) than traditional schools. In one of the most comprehensive studies done on public charter school funding, comparing PPR in traditional schools and charter schools, the 2010 report from Bell State University, Charter School Funding: Inequity Persists (Batdorff, Maloney, May, Doyle, and Hassel; data FY 2005-06) shows that average PPR for traditional public schools in the 25 states in the study who have the most charter schools was $11,708. For charters within those same states PPR it was $ 9,460 or a $2247 disparity between traditional and charter schools on average in states with charter laws. The reasons for the disparity discussed in the study go beyond the focus of this paper but occur mostly with how “local funding” is generated and allocated (local property tax revenue).

 

As of 2014, the average yearly per pupil revenue (PPR) for the 44 Waldorf methods charter schools spread throughout the country is approximately $7500, below the national average PPR for charter schools in general. Most of the schools fundraise each year to supplement their budgets to include the many specialty subjects associated with Waldorf Schools, such as handwork, woodwork, music, and movement classes. Special education services are subsidized from state and federal revenues, but only cover a portion of the need, so schools also usually pay a percentage from their general fund (total PPR) to cover special education costs.

 

Charter schools also frequently assume financial responsibility for their physical settings, although some districts do provide facilities such as in the case of some charters in California. Many of the 44 charter schools also buy services from their authorizing districts such as payroll and accounting services, insurance and technical support paid from their general state allotment per pupil and amounting to an average of 6-7% of the school’s budget. Most charters also pay their authorizers a 1 or 2 % “oversight” fee. Payroll for the charters usually averages about 70% of the schools’ annual budget with most of that allocated to teacher and staff salaries. Based on interviews conducted by the author, monies spent on administration in the Waldorf methods charters are generally below administrative costs for traditional public schools serving similar numbers of students.

 

Waldorf values and methods alive in public schools

 

When, in 1994, Yuba River Charter School was authorized as the first charter school using Waldorf methods in the U.S. it joined a few other non-charter public schools also using Waldorf methodology at the time: one in Milwaukee, and two more in California. Until then, Waldorf Education in the U.S. was enjoyed mostly by middle and upper class families in “independent Waldorf Schools” with a tuition-based funding model. Now, twenty years later, public school children across the U.S. are being given the opportunity to experience programs inspired by Waldorf education in “start-up” charter schools with as few as 70 students to large inner- city charters with nearly 500.

 

Charter developers, with intentions to establish a publicly funded Waldorf-methods school, expect to be able to carry out a child-centered, developmentally appropriate approach that finds its roots in Rudolf Steiner’s vision of how best to educate children. School leaders throughout the country, who have been working to bring to life Waldorf- oriented public school programs, are finding that even with the additional burdens such as state- mandated standards and assessments measuring student academic progress as well as management practices many essential values and practices characteristic of a Waldorf school are discernable, such as:

  • the primacy of the student–teacher relationship
  • the Waldorf arts integrated academic curriculum
  • an array of traditional Waldorf specialty subjects
  • a threefold plus one (the administrator) collaborative governance model
  • a faculty well-rooted in Waldorf education and Rudolf Steiner’s pedagogical indications, including a commitment to cultivating the “inner life”
  • an enthusiastic parent body ready to exceed all expectations in order to make the school succeed

 

In one case, when a required site visit was conducted by a “skeptical” authorizing district, the district superintendent went away inspired after witnessing: the joyful singing of the children; engaged and enthusiastic teachers; supportive parent volunteers; raised garden beds emerging from concrete parking lots; and “hungry” learners”, even in the upper grades. He said to me, “I always believed a public school could be like this. I just never saw it before!”

 

It is true that the public charter schools founded on Waldorf Education need to be established solely for secular purposes. Religious practices from various cultures can be studied but they can’t be practiced. Verses and songs used in the lessons must have secular applicability, neither promoting any one religion or spiritual stream nor systematically excluding any. Main lessons, specialty subjects, holidays, assemblies, seasonal celebrations and even Eurythmy (when a Eurythmist can be found!) can all be included in the life of a charter school using Waldorf methods. Because the PPR alone is not adequate to support the rich curriculum associated with a Waldorf program, parent councils, charter councils/boards, parent guilds or even separate 501(c)3 educational foundations raise the extra money needed each year to supplement the general fund, with some schools raising 100-200 thousand dollars each year.

 

As mentioned above, most charters are not given free facilities from their authorizers. They rent space from the local school district, commercial realtors or from private landowners. One well-established school has secured federal funding that, when matched with private donations, has raised hopes of building their own facility incorporating aspects of “organic functionalism”, Rudolf Steiner’s architectural approach. That will make a statement!

 

Test –obsessed education: facts and fads

Most educators, as well as parents, (even children for that matter!) in the United States have heard of the “No Child Left Behind” Act. Diane Ravitch, a former Assistant Secretary of Education was the leading architect of the George W. Bush administration’s No Child Left Behind law. She is also one of the few educational leaders in the U.S. to acknowledge publicly that the policies she promoted with all of their “ties that bind” were wrong! A growing number of politicians and educational professionals seek an end to “high stakes testing”. According to an article appearing in the recent issue of “YES” magazine, Ravitch wants to “see an end to high stakes standardized testing and other tools of the accountability era.” Now there is even a great divide growing in Washington D. C. concerning the wisdom of Common Core Standards and the testing materials and methodology affiliated with them that many states are adopting. Educational fads come and go but it is my belief that Waldorf education in all of its manifestations is here to stay!

 

 

 

Michael Soulé

Engaged Community: A new book by Jon McAlice

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“All education is self-education and, as teachers, we can only provide the environment for children’s self-education...where children can educate themselves according to their own destinies.” —Rudolf Steiner (1923)

Based on many years working in Anthroposophy and in Waldorf schools, and drawing extensively on Rudolf Steiner’s words, Jon McAlice’s radical, thought-provoking book opens the ­ field for a new vision of the collaborative possibilities available in schools that are established and sustained by parents and teachers for the sake of students.

Seeking to shift the conversation concerning school governance from a structural to a dynamic approach, McAlice emphasizes learning as a multileveled process of becoming. As he puts it, “a school is a working community dedicated to the art of becoming”—a community in which students and adults participate in the ­difficult task of creating a free, self-governing ecology of learning. For this, the adults must learn to trust one another and develop confidence in collegiality. Understanding the guidance of their common task, they must ­find the humility and honesty to listen without judgment and to speak with authenticity. To create a context in which “children can practice the art of self-education,” educators must themselves become examples of self-governing, creative, responsible human beings, committed to learning and self-development through encounters in which content and process merge in an experience of absolute freedom. Thus something new becomes possible.

McAlice shows how such an ideal can become a reality when parents, teachers, and students all work and learn together for the common goal of becoming more fully human within a dynamic, engaged, participatory learning community.

Engaged Community provides anyone involved in Waldorf education with the appropriate tools and language to take the hard work of dialog and conversation to a higher level.

"This is not a book with a recipe for governance in Waldorf schools. Jon McAlice has written a book about the "challenges" of governance in Waldorf schools in the context of the "mission" of Waldorf education. His book is a meditation on this relationship, and urges us to embrace the challenge free from our preconceived notions of how Waldorf schools "should" be run: to look at what is needed now, in our current situations, in our individual schools. At the same time, he shines a light on the manifold opportunities for growth, change, and development that are possible when we embrace this challenge." —Kevin Hughes, Waldorf teacher (26 years at Kimberton Waldorf School—as a class teacher, art teacher, and now member of the “governing team”)

 

Michael Soulé

Leadership and Self Administration: LeadTogether Highlight #7 10-6-14

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Dear Colleagues,

How does one exercise leadership and leave colleagues free in their own development? Having some insight on this question is central to our being able to shape our schools in healthy ways. Connie Stokes, Pedagogical Chair at Highland Hall, recently shared an article from 1998 by Michael Harslem from Paideia Journal for Waldorf Education in the UK that has been very helpful to her over the years on this topic. In the article, Michael explores the question of the levels of leadership in the individual human being and the levels of leadership in a school. It is a helpful guide for anyone who has taken on leadership in the school. Read the article here.

Keep in touch,

Michael

Michael Soulé

The Call of Michaelmas – LeadTogether #6, 9-21-14

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Dear Colleagues,

In this season of Michaelmas, we have a lot to be grateful for and a lot to stand up for. While we all strive to do our best, to reach for the highest in ourselves and to recognize and support the highest in our colleagues, students and their parents, at the same time we are called to take initiative and pursue the highest in our work in a growing culture of materialistic thinking.

As the educational community endlessly debates the effectiveness of high-stakes, standardized testing at all levels, we move forward with effective individual qualitative assessment for all our students.

As schools buy into founding their curriculum upon, and spending millions of dollars on textbooks, we practice every day the art of living, teacher-led inquiry and real-life experience.

As the nation embraces ever more and more technology in the classroom bumping out the essentials of art, movement, and manual arts, we tread the path of a fully integrated artistic and physical education rich with opportunities for all students.

As the educational process becomes more and more programmed and mechanical, we leave the teachers free and responsible to connect each handcrafted lesson to each individual student.

This education philosophy was in the beginning, and continues to be every day, revolutionary. It is truly an education for the future. It is not old and it never will be. Each day teachers across the globe recreate it and make it new.

The impulse for this comes not from following a curriculum, but from doing the hard work of continually growing and developing ourselves inwardly, socially and in our work.

It is not an idea. It is a path of learning to think with our hearts. It makes perfect sense and yet it is illogical. It works beautifully and yet it is impractical. It is disconnected from much of the educational world and yet deeply connected to the future of humanity. It is simple and profound each day and yet it is complex and difficult. It asks us each day to go further in our imagination, our courage and our sense of responsibility.

May we all be renewed this Michaelmas as we work, as we practice, as we stand in the world for what is good. This is the call of the spirit of Michael. And this is worth celebrating.

Keep in touch,

Michael Soule

Michael Soulé

Healthy Communications in a Young School

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Conversation Guidelines

These are the guidelines one school works with to create healthy conversations. When things are not going well, emotions are high, and so on, it is likely that one or more of the fol- lowing is not occurring.

1. Speak from your experience only, therefore the “I.” Be clear whether you are speaking about actual occurrences or things you have made up, conjectured or projected.

2. Connect your comment with those of the previous speakers, thereby building a cohesive conversation.

3. Paraphrase the previous speaker’s comments, if there is unclarity or when the con- nection is not obvious.

4. Address your comment to a specific person in the circle.

5. Leave pauses between comments.

6. Make one point only, thereby allowing others to contribute to the conversation.

7. It is the aim for all people in the circle to contribute to the conversation.

My commitment to the group:

• I will speak to what is important to me (thoughts, feelings, observations) in a timely manner and in a non-accusatory or non-judgmental way.

• I will be direct and specific in all my communications by using recent examples based on my experience.

• I will speak from my experience only, (not from hearsay or interpretation) and therefore speak from the “I.”

• I will paraphrase the main point of the previous speaker, especially when there is emotional content, or when I seek further clarity, or when I intend to change the subject.

• I will not interrupt when others speak.

• I will only ask questions for clarification or when I need more information.

• I will use appropriate self-disclosure to share my feelings and thoughts.

• Whenever possible, I will disclose the assumptions and motivations that underlie my ideas, comments, and actions.

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• I will actively and in a timely manner solicit feedback from others on my behavior, comments and ideas.

• I will only provide feedback after given permission from the intended recipient.

• I will honor each member of the group, and leave that person free to accept or reject any or all aspects of the feedback.

• I will honor confidential information.

• I will be punctual and honor the meeting times.

Conceptual Guidelines on Healthy Written Communication

• All communication (facsimile, telephone, written, e-mail and oral)
shall be direct, factual and honest, timely, helpful and kind. It is
the responsibility of both parties to insist that the information pass these simple guidelines. It is also the responsibility of both parties to keep the content clear of the third person, i.e., he said, she said.

• If someone has a complaint with someone and does not get satisfaction from an interaction directly with that person, he is encouraged to get mediation help from the office or another party. If that does not satisfy both parties, there are three people to call: College Chair, Faculty Chair and Board President.

• Communication coming to the office will be given directly and only to the one to whom it was intended.

• Information with third party concerns shall not be disseminated from the office. There will be no memo gossip.

These helpful guidelines are from the Young Schools Guide by AWSNA which can be found in the Resource Section of the LeadTogether site and at the Online Waldorf Library.

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Michael Soulé

Communication by Connie Starzinski, from The Art of Administration, AWSNA

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Communication is the key element in any relationship – personal or professional. How we speak to each other, listen to each other, understand each other, determines how well we live and work together, whether it is a friendship, marriage, working relationship, parent to child relationship or teacher to child relationship.

My friend and I are going out to dinner; she hasn't been out of the house for six weeks since she had her new baby. She has her heart set on a restaurant where I don't particularly like the food. Serious dilemma? Not really. I can always find something to eat, and my friend is a happy person.

I am irritable and nervous. The book chapter I promised to write is due in a week. The children have music lessons, Halloween is almost upon us, and everybody has to eat. My husband is a busy person as well, but he "hears" my unvoiced cry for help. He takes the children out for the weekend and leaves me free to meet my deadline.

A colleague comes into my office to discuss a complicated issue. I can see that he is not having a good day. Is this the time to discuss it? No! It is not

fair to him, myself or the issue. I suggest that we talk tomorrow over coffee and cake. Sharing a meal or dessert adds warmth to the process of communication. Does this mean that we will agree on the issue? Maybe not, but we may more easily come to a compromise.

My children are nine and twelve years old. During their early years we were very conscious and conscientious about diet, medical advice, clothing, toys and the media, but as they grow, can we keep reflexively saying no to all their requests? Probably not. So we begin regular family meeting sessions discussing allowance, limited TV viewing, their responsibility around our home. We come to a compromise having discussed the issues together. Everyone is happy until the next meeting when a new issue comes up!

It is important that we are sensitive to the other person or people in a working group. It is so convenient for us when all we can see is our own agenda. It requires consciousness and skill to actively listen. In reading a newsletter from the Green Mountain Waldorf School, I came across a statement by Carl Rogers:

"The major barrier to interpersonal communication lies in our very natural tendency to judge; to approve or disapprove of the statements of the other person, or to evaluate them from our point of view. "

Every chapter in this book addresses communication in some way. The successes and difficulties of any of these groups or processes, all depend on how we relate to one another, how we truly hear what our colleague is relating to us as individuals, in a group and how we speak to each other. For the purposes of this chapter, however, we will focus on the office staff and their relationships to the other working groups in the Waldorf school.

The Role Of The Staff:
As a school grows from a small kindergarten to a full grade school, later adding on a high school, administrative needs grow as well. The work may begin on and around a kitchen table, but soon the need arises for a real office with a desk, file cabinet, telephone, copy machine, etc., and all the human beings that go along with it.

The members of the office staff hold a unique position in the Waldorf school. It is important that they communicate effectively to other members of the community and that they support the communications of others. They have both a special ability and a special responsibility to keep lines of communication open among teachers, among families, between teachers and families, between the school as a whole and the outside community.

In a young school, the office staff may be one person. This person may be receptionist, secretary and bookkeeper all in one. As the school grows, the need for office staff expansion grows so that in a school of 260 children there may be a need for four full time office staff. The Chicago Waldorf School currently has a full time receptionist/secretary, bookkeeper, development officer and administrative chairman. (See appendix for outline of job descriptions.) Each of us has specific responsibilities, but there are times when those are shared.

The fact that we employ four full-time people in non-teaching roles might seem to depart from Rudolf Steiner's intention for school management. He said,

"The nature of the art of education demands that the staff divide their time between teaching and school administration. This ensures that the running of the school will be thoroughly saturated by the whole spirit arising from the attitude that exists when every individual teacher unites to form a teaching community."

Do we, perhaps, undermine this school spirit that Steiner envisioned when we exempt teachers from administrative responsibility and employ administrators who have no teaching responsibility? I believe that we do. I think therefore that not only should every faculty member participate at some level in major administrative decisions, but every staff member should have regular connections with the children. In our school, the office staff often serve as substitute teachers. It is also the case in other Waldorf schools that office staff have a part time class responsibility such as handwork teacher, handwork assistant, maybe some skill classes with upper grades.

Telephone Communication:

"Good morning, Waldorf school, this is Mary. May I help you?"
These words, repeated dozens of times daily, form an essential strand in the web of communications that supports the life of a school. Spoken in a friendly tone, they invite callers to frame their questions, state their business, express their concerns. At the same time the greeting is professional, clear and informs the caller who is receiving the call. It is so very important that people answering the phone follow this protocol.

The caller might be a prospective parent making a first contact with the school, or it might be a regulatory agency calling to check fire safety or immunization records. A parent might be calling to suggest a fundraising idea. Perhaps it is a parent calling to relate a tangled tale of misplaced lunches or carpools gone awry. It could be someone from another school seeking information, or inspiration, or support. Or it could be a local newspaper reporter responding to a press release. Personal calls come in for teachers, and messages must be relayed. The number and variety of calls reflect the complexity of the communications network that the school office must maintain.

Of course the receptionist has primary responsibility for answering the phone, but there will be times when each one of us needs to respond to a persistent ring. It is important that the person answering the phone is friendly and has some relationship to the Waldorf school. If the receptionist cannot fully respond to the caller, he or she needs to direct them to the proper person.

Many schools expedite this process with an information request form listing common questions and requests and with a space for comments. These can be easily routed to the proper person for a response. (See appendix for an example.)

School receptionists also keep a logbook where all messages for teachers and staff are recorded. Teachers and staff are then encouraged to form the habit of checking "the log book" several times a day. Some schools feel that a logbook is too public for teachers' messages and prefer the privacy of placing messages in teachers' mailboxes. A more complete phone log that records all calls received can also be a useful tool for keeping track of the many types of calls and insuring that each has been responded to properly.

Another minor but essential aspect of telephone communications is the phone tree. We have a school wide phone tree for quickly disseminating emergency information such as school closings. We also have a room parents' phone tree to quickly relay requests for services (bakers, drivers, sewers, etc.). Individual classes usually have their own phone trees for conveying information about class business.

Printed Communication:
The most tangible forms of communication involve the printed page. Many schools publish some or all of the following: weekly bulletins, monthly calendars, quarterly newsletters, annual reports, a parent handbook, and a faculty handbook.

A weekly bulletin is typically typed and Xeroxed in the office and sent home with the children. Often it is, as its name implies, a "bulletin board", notifying parents of upcoming events, calling for volunteers, reminding of school regulations, perhaps carrying classified ads. In some schools, the weekly bulletin might also be a vehicle for letters, reaction and discussion. The weekly bulletin is usually staff written, but volunteer help is welcome in collating, stapling and distributing.

A calendar most often comes home with the bulletin at weekly or monthly intervals. It is a convenient visual reminder of upcoming events and also insures that events don't overlap or conflict. Keeping the calendar up to date and making sure events are scheduled appropriately are important office tasks.

Quarterly newsletters often carry longer articles by parents or teachers. They may report school events in more detail, describe an aspect of the curriculum, address issues of interest to the whole community or show examples of students' work. They usually contain photographs or artwork. Newsletters occasionally reprint articles from other schools, forming a valuable communication link with the wider Waldorf community.

Volunteer parents typically take a large part of the responsibility for producing a quarterly, and sometimes for that reason it may flourish one year and wither the next. Newsletters are not usually produced "in house". Schools may pay for outside printing and layout, or these services may be donated. A staff or faculty member may have a large or minimal responsibility for overseeing the newsletter, suggesting content and approving articles.

An annual report is often an integral part of a fundraising drive. Some are brief pamphlets giving only a financial picture of the school and listing donors. Others are longer, giving a broad picture of school life as well as presenting economic information. Virtually all are professionally produced and printed under the supervision of a member of the administrative staff.

The parent handbook appears each fall, in most schools, slightly updated from the year before. It is an important communication tool, as it lays the groundwork for community life. (It would be a more effective tool if it were more widely and carefully read.) It addresses the school's expectations of its families in areas ranging from media viewing to dress to tuition payment, explains the organization of the school community and suggests opportunities for involvement. Some schools incorporate community addresses and phone listings into the parent handbook; others publish these separately.

Most parent handbooks are faculty or staff written. Often there is substantial parental input. At least one school issues the handbook to new parents in a loose-leaf binder, then issues only those pages containing revisions or additions to returning parents each year. Some handbooks are typewritten and Xeroxed in house; others are professionally printed.

The Chicago Waldorf School may be unique in that we also have a Room Parents' Handbook. This booklet written by and for room parents stresses their important job of listening and occasionally mediating in the school communications network. It also gives a chronological review of the year, listing all the occasions when a class teacher might need the room parent's services. The office staff needs to work closely with the room parents to be constantly aware of issues that arise among the parent body.

The Faculty Handbook , like the Parent Handbook, lays down guidelines for teachers and staff. It addresses salary and contract issues and delineates what is expected from all staff in the area of meeting attendance, school involvement, continuing education, etc. Ideally, the Faculty Handbook should be teacher-written, but often this responsibility devolves upon a member of the office staff. Or, at least, the office staff often must take on the yearly job of revising and updating a faculty-written original.

Then there are the written communications to the community outside the school: the prospectus or information packet, the press release and the advertisement.

The information packet is sent to inquiring parents and creates an important first impression. Some schools describe themselves in detail with a professionally produced prospectus. Others have only a brief pamphlet describing their school and then add to it material describing Waldorf education in general.

A typical information packet might include a general letter welcoming the inquirer's interest, a pamphlet or booklet describing the school, a tuition schedule with scholarship information, a calendar or flyer listing upcoming events, and a reprinted article describing Waldorf education.

Depending on the receptiveness of local media, press releases can alert the public to the school's existence, to upcoming festivals, workshops or lectures, to newsworthy developments such as a change of location or a new building. A feature article in a newspaper or a short spot on the evening news can stimulate local interest in a school. Press releases are most often written and sent by a development director. In the case of a special event such as the Holiday Fair a volunteer parent may take on this responsibility.

Advertisements can be similarly useful. They have the advantage that the message can be closely controlled, and the disadvantages of higher cost and lower credibility than news coverage.

Meetings:

As important as written communication is, human contact most surely integrates our feeling and will life. Face-to-face discussions, whether it is one-on-one or group may be regularly scheduled or impromptu, community-wide or for select groups, but meetings, with their attendant discussion, dissension, compromise and consensus, are essential for the community to thrive.

Most of the following meetings are familiar to all Waldorf schools: faculty meetings; staff meetings; college, board and committee meetings; all-school meetings; parent/teacher association meetings; class nights and orientation mornings. Administrative support is essential for the schedule of meetings to run smoothly.

As a cornerstone of Waldorf school administration, the weekly faculty meeting has its own chapter in this book. For the purpose of this chapter, however, we should add that it is most helpful to the communication network for the administrative staff to attend and contribute in faculty meetings. In this way they can better promote understanding between parents and faculty.

Furthermore, while it is well accepted that Waldorf teachers need to work out of an ever-deepening understanding of anthroposophy, when it comes to the office staff, a grounding in these principles may be viewed as less important. I believe that at least a basic sympathy with the anthroposophical outlook is essential for the office staff to communicate effectively within the school and to represent the school to the public. One way of deepening staff understanding of anthroposophy is for them to attend faculty meetings and participate in faculty group study. In some schools the office staff presents the preview of events for the week ahead. Administrative reports to the full faculty describing the nature of the ongoing work is also important.

There should also be separate staff meetings on a regular – perhaps weekly – basis. Many daily nuts and bolts decisions about school operation need to be coordinated. And, more important, regular discussion helps over time to build a constellation of people who work together smoothly and share responsibility easily.

Each school will have its own distinctive roster of Board Meetings, College meetings, and many and varied committee meetings. At many of these meetings it will be helpful to have a representative of the administrative staff. The administrative staff can also enhance the functioning of committees by typing and distributing minutes, reporting decisions and developments in the weekly bulletin or other appropriate channels, and by monitoring the calendar to be sure meetings are scheduled appropriately.

Many schools hold all school meetings one, two or three times a year. Some of these meetings are almost purely social; others are more informational, reporting on financial issues, for example, or discussing concerns of the moment. Whether or not a great deal of information is formally transmitted at all school meetings, they are an important element of a posture of openness and sharing. They also provide valuable opportunities for informal sharing and communication. Staff members may or may not have an important role to play in running the all school meetings; however, it is essential that office staff attend these meetings.

Another forum for a general meeting might be offered by a school parent teacher organization. Parent-teacher organizations, associations, or forums often host quarterly, bi-monthly or monthly meetings. In some schools these are well attended, in others not. It is important to make them vibrant and alive.

They may be settings for wide-ranging discussions; they may stick to a featured topic; they may host a guest lecturer. Many variations on these themes are possible. For many parents, meetings of a parent/teacher organization offer a way in to deeper involvement with the life of a school.

The class night, where teachers meet the parents of their students in the classroom, is a highly effective setting for communication. It is usually held two or three times a year in each grade. Here parents and teachers learn from each other and the class as a whole gains a sense of itself and is strengthened socially. In contrast to other parent evenings, class nights are nearly always well attended.

Many schools also regularly hold a sort of "open meeting" for the outside community. These are orientation mornings or open houses, often held monthly, for prospective parents, teachers from other schools and interested members of the community. They hear a short presentation on Waldorf education, tour the classrooms, have an opportunity to ask questions, and tour the classrooms. In some schools a member of the administrative staff may conduct the orientation; in others it may be taken by a faculty member. In either case, the administrative staff generally carries responsibility for publicizing and facilitating these mornings.

Informal Communication:
Both the printed word and the formal meeting are, in a sense, "controlled" communication. Every school is also familiar with the power of the "uncontrolled" communication of informal social interaction, the chat outside the school doors in the morning, the spur-of-the-moment phone call, the "meeting after the meeting."

Such communication can be a wonderful strengthening force in a community. As ideas are shared, friendships form and deepen, and the social fabric of the community is more closely knit. For this reason, it is important to provide many arenas for social interaction – from the doll-making workshop to the spring picnic to the kindergarten tea. The opportunities are endless, and the administrative staff can play a crucial role in supporting them.

However, "uncontrolled" communication can also be a weakening force. We are all familiar with the potentially devastating effects of the "rumor mill". Here the administrative staff is in a unique position, by a posture of openness and accessibility, to defuse harmful communication.

Listening is an important part of the administrators' job. The office is an easy and accessible place to drop in to share an idea or voice a concern. Sometimes a sympathetic ear is all that is needed or wanted. Other times some simple clarifications may be in order. When the issue is more complex, it is important for the office staff not to usurp the role of the faculty, the college or the class teacher. Sometimes our role is simply to put the concerned party in touch with the person they really need to talk to.

It may be difficult for the office staff to balance work pressures and deadlines with the needs of the unexpected visitor or caller. It is important for us to remember that communication, both planned and unplanned, is our job. As one administrator puts it, "People tell me I should close my door. I don't think I'm here to close my door. I'm here to listen." Another administrator told me, "You should never be too busy to listen.

If we are able to truly listen and to faithfully and responsibly act on what we hear, we members of the office staff will most effectively help our schools to grow and flourish.

Although we are all guided by Rudolf Steiner's indications, a Waldorf school each has its own unique way of working. As a teacher, parent and administrator, I have found it most valuable to visit other Waldorf schools observing classes, faculty meetings and to just informally chat with office staff. Consider the following example: In a recent visit to the Waldorf School in Lexington, MA., the primary purpose being a meeting with other colleagues to discuss the content of this book, I took the time before the meeting to visit a kindergarten class, speak with their office manager, and attend a faculty meeting. In that short period of time, I brought home new ideas from each experience:

1) The kindergarten teacher had so wonderfully arranged her play stands in such a way that the children were surrounded by the rainbow colors. I most certainly felt as a visitor held by the warmth and color in this environment.

2) As I sat in the office observing the comings and goings, I noticed several three-ring binders artfully covered with children’s' paintings. Each binder displayed various articles of a particular theme: Newsletters, curriculum guides, samples of children’s' reports, articles on Waldorf schools, Waldorf education, family life and parenting. Such a simple task! I spent years trying to figure out what to do with articles and newsletters from other Waldorf schools aside from leaving them on faculty room tables or loosely displayed on rack in the school entrance.
I immediately implemented this idea at our school happy to know these valuable pieces of information are protected and available to visitors.

3) It was a relief to sit in another school's faculty meeting and objectively observe the dynamics. I felt quite at home and chuckled inwardly at times during the discussions. It was all so familiar. The experience
gave me the opportunity to reflect on our own faculty meetings and a new perspective.

Every school needs to constantly analyze and review its communication patterns in the professional meetings at the end of each year. We must ask the question; How can we do it better? We must realize that we create the role model for our children who are being guided and formed by the manner in which adults around them communicate.

Connie Starzynski is the Pedagogical Chair at Highland Hall Waldorf School in Los Angeles and the Summer Conference Coordinator for AWSNA. Connie was also the Administrator at Honolulu and Chicago Waldorf Schools.