The Distinction Between What We Are and What We're Not
Last Friday I went to a concert featuring John Prine, a performer reminiscent of Bob Dylan. For me, whose adolescent and formative years were during the seventies, the sight of a band dressed in creased suits and plain ties was certainly unfamiliar. Now, although I love acoustic rock guitar, rural-Kentucky country music is something of a cultural challenge but then, of course, we all need to be culturally challenged. As he was singing one of his ballads, a refrain caught my attention and the AIS strategic plan sprang into my head. Not a usual occurrence, I must admit, during a concert; but for two or three minutes, my attention was drawn away from his performance as I pondered other things. He sang:
You have no complaint
You are what you are and you ain't what you ain't
This is precisely what the Strategic Plan is all about. We are an international school focused on the International Baccalaureate (IB) academic program, and our values are centered on mutual respect and understanding. With the implementation of the IB Middle Years Programme this year, the academic transitions and continuum from Kindergarten to Grade 12 is in place. We join the ranks of only three other schools in the United States with the full IB program. With the creation of the "Respect" committee last academic year, comprising faculty, staff, parents and Board members, we are formulating policies and procedures related to this important aspect of the school's credo. To define what makes a school more truly international is also being explored, but its interpretation will rest on student admissions, diversity of faculty and staff, and curriculum issues.
However, as these concepts of respect, internationalism and IB curriculum become more refined in the AIS context, and their importance communicated to our own as well as the wider community, we must also say with greater certainty what we are not. We are not all things to all people; neither do we aspire to be an elitist school for a select group of students. We strive for excellence in student learning through our curriculum and teaching practices, but our program will never be perfect. An AIS education is not the only way to achieve an excellent education; we think, however, it gives our students a wonderful preparation for life beyond AIS. So as we start this new academic year, we need to think about not just what we are, but also what we ain't.
We will have another great year.