Thinking Out Loud

“If the others heard me talking out loud they would think that I am crazy.

But since I am not, I do not care.”

— Ernest Hemingway

Spring is springing, and with it optimism. We are basking in the freedom from protocols and welcoming events back on campus with a flurry.

It seems it was time for a fact-filled, top-of-mind message. A little thinking out loud highlighting where we have come from, where we are at and where we are going.

As I reflect back, it was almost exactly two years ago that the realization of the pandemic was taking hold. These two years have been a massive stressor and a significant growth experience for Currey Ingram. On the one hand, Currey Ingram, like all schools, seemed to become embroiled in the broader political conversation. On the other hand, the necessities of the crisis pressed us to explore and implement instructional variety (e.g., online, hybrid, outdoor), which we would not have done otherwise. Our success during the crisis has led to ongoing uses of those instructional approaches, as with our CORE Program.?

But the disruption was significant. Faculty and staff were asked to rise to the occasion, over and above the worry of the pandemic. The Health and Safety Working Group spent hundreds of hours responding to and contact tracing each positive case. The Medical Advisory Group volunteered their time and expertise to help us make the most informed decisions. The Board of Trust stayed balanced and governed well, keeping the best interests of the school at the forefront of their decision-making, setting aside their personal convictions. Especially this year, significant faculty and staff shortages, due to positive cases, close contacts, and a very lean labor market, left faculty and staff pulling extra duty to support each other and the students.?

I am hard-pressed to convey all that needed to be done and how well the community responded, but as I think out loud I could not be more proud.?

Although not capturing the same attention at the school level as the pandemic, my thoughts have turned somewhat to the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and what that might mean for independent schools like ours.?

At top-of-mind are:

• The impact on the markets and the economy more broadly. Heightened volatility in the market as well as the likelihood for continued inflation exacerbated by the conflict is likely. These two issues have the potential to impact the school’s investments, ongoing fundraising, parents’ ability to afford tuition, and the overall cost of running a school.
• There’s also the possibility that members of our community are more personally impacted.?
• Cyber Security was already a threat, but even more so now.?
• And finally, students often have questions when massive current events unfold. We will respond in developmentally appropriate ways to our students and their questions.

Strategically, our priorities include:

• Growing to our “right size.” This means continuing to enroll mission-appropropriate students until we are at capacity, while staying on-ratio. This gives us the best opportunity to maximize the academic opportunities, extra-curricular activities and social relationships of all of our students.
• We will continue to work on affordability and accessibility. Our endowment has grown from $4 million to $17 million in the past five years thanks to generous support from the community. Moreover, the percentage of families receiving some level of need-based aid has jumped from 30% to 44%. We are making progress and we have greater aspirations.
• We will grow the Residential Life program to capacity. Currently, there are 12 wonderful students, and we will continue our efforts to reach our capacity of 32 students.
• There are plans for an Outdoor Learning & Event facility that would become the focal point of our beautiful Frist Quad. In addition to being an outdoor classroom and lunch space, this project would be the centerpiece for the important Frist Quad events, like parent gatherings, Band Fest and graduation.
• An exciting and significant new concept that we are having conversations about is the possibility of creating an Ingenuity, Design, Exploration & Application (IDEA) Center. The IDEA Center is a new facility that houses a state-of-the-art expansion of our arts and technology programs K-12. Such a center would be an amazing complement to our campus, a deep and wide extension of our arts and technology offerings, and a perfect fit for our students.
• Recently, we secured sponsorship funding for a new scoreboard for the turf field. It is quite the upgrade from what we had...thanks to support from Nashville SC, Allard Ward, The Parent Company and SFM.

If you have questions or interest in any of our strategic priorities, I have regular Listening Sessions with parents and community members to share the vision and answer questions.?

As I think out loud, it occurs to me that central to the long-term vision of the school is to create a campus so wonderful and programs so good that our students (and parents) feel even more immense pride knowing this school is theirs. As this parent of a very recent visiting student recognized:

“Our son absolutely loved his visit and sees himself being successful at CIA academically and personally. He liked all of the teachers and smaller class size, which enabled him to concentrate better. Lunch was a hit; especially the chocolate milk machine. Our son commented that the dorms were "very impressive" and that "it was not his last time to visit the snack pantry.” In his free time he joined a group that was playing basketball. He was very impressed with the basket a teacher made....she made a 1/2 court shot while facing away from the hoop.” (This was Cecelia Garmer, who makes this shot all the time!)? When he hopped in the car at dismissal, he said his day was ‘awesome.’ I do not ever recall him describing his day as "awesome!"??

People may think I’m crazy because I talk out loud all the time about our amazing school, but like Hemingway, that’s okay with me. As always, thank you for your trust in us to provide the opportunities your children need to become the best versions of themselves.?