Without a sense of caring, there can be no sense of community. ~Anthony J. D’Angelo
It was good to see and hear about what it means to join together as a community of learners and celebrate the true soul of #CARDNATION as we celebrated Homecoming last week. When we take time to recognize each other’s strengths, to celebrate our ability to navigate troubled waters or tough times, when we all pull together for the success of our students – we live in the world of CARdinal Excellence – we are #CARDNATION!
“In communities, writes Thomas Sergiovanni in Building Community in Schools, ‘we become connected for reason of commitment rather than compliance’ (p. 58). ‘People are bonded to each other as a result of their mutual bindings to shared values, traditions, ideas, and ideals’ (p. 61). His thesis: that we might better understand, design, and run schools as social rather than formal organizations and, in particular, as communities. His reasoning: the universal need for a sense of belonging, of being connected to others and to ideas and values too often goes unfulfilled in schools as they are currently conceived. His prescription: reformers and theoreticians alike should recognize that schooling is first and foremost about relationships between and among students and teachers, and that community building must be the basis for school reform efforts that seek to improve teaching and learning; all else will come more naturally when authentic communities flourish” (p.1).
It’s important that we continue this path of excellence. The foundation has been set, and we are seeing the fruits of our labors. Stay the course and be there for our students and for each other. We are…Southside!
Week 23 — A Look Ahead
Monday – ACT Academy (AM)
Tuesday – ACT Academy (AM)
Wednesday – ACT Academy (PM)
Thursday – ACT Academy (PM); Earthquake Drill (10:15 a.m.)
Reminder: District Walkthrough is February 14th.
~Excellence is a journey not a destination.~
Images are available CC on Flickr: “Strawberry Heart” photo credit here; “Yes You Can” photo credit here.
Westheimer, Joel. (1996). “Building Community in Schools.” Harvard Educational Review. Winter 1996. Accessed http://www.hepg.org/her/abstract/251; 2 February 2013.