Guiding Principles Reaffirmed: USM Self-Study Continues

I would like to share the School’s Guiding Principles with you. Together with our Mission Statement, our Common Trust, and our Diversity Statement, our Guiding Principles represent our School philosophy. 

Last January, the faculty began a process of reviewing and updating the Guiding Principles statement that was first developed in 2002. Changes reflect today’s educational landscape with references to “global communities” and “information literacy.”  

As part of USM’s re-accreditation process by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States (ISACS), the Guiding Principles will be reviewed by Visiting Team members during their time at USM this fall. The team will look for congruence between what we say we do and what they observe. (For background on the ISACS re-accreditation process, please see my blog post from February 10, 2012.)

Please take a moment to review our Guiding Principles, which clearly enunciate our teachers’ commitment to each student’s intellectual, social, emotional, ethical, and artistic development.

Our Self-Study is also a vital part of our ISACS re-accreditation process. During Monday’s in-service day, our faculty and administrators worked diligently in their self-study committees. (The School prepares a comprehensive report, referred to as the Self-Study, which addresses every aspect of academic and non-academic life.) Under the leadership of Judy Bloch, our self-study coordinator, the committees—ranging from PK-12 English to Financial Management and Operations —engaged in in-depth discussions to describe current practices and identify strengths and challenges facing the School. 

I am so impressed by the level of commitment and the thoughtful deliberations, as these committees move forward on their work on the report.

Voices Heard

In last week’s blog, I described how a student’s advocacy and research skills came to persuade me to close USM in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. I expressed the hope our students would respect the spirit of MLK and celebrate the day in service to others. While it’s rare for me to cover the same topic two weeks in a row, I would like to thank all our students who responded so positively. Our voices were heard throughout the Milwaukee community.

For coverage, please click here.

RESPECT is More Than a Hit Record by Aretha Franklin

The 1967 hit and signature song for R&B singer Aretha Franklin is often considered one of the best songs of the R&B era. As music of the 60s, this song provides an appropriate accompaniment to the theme of this week’s blog: the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.

While the Common Trust theme for this year is fairness, I would like to focus here on the tenet of RESPECT. As School parents, you may be wondering how the decision was made to close USM on Monday, January 21, to observe Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Certainly there is more than one way to honor the legacy and message of Dr. King. In previous years, School was in session, so that our educators could offer students appropriate programming and community-service opportunities to recognize the specific day. (Please note that, even though school will be closed that day, there are many service opportunities for older students* and special assemblies are being held around the time.) It is generally agreed, however, the work of Dr. King should not be confined to one day of recognition, but rather we should work every day to help make the world a better place.

Then, around this time last year, I received a request from an Upper School student saying that USM would demonstrate more respect for the life and dream of this great American by being closed on this federal holiday.

Now, respect is a two-way street, of course, and so I considered her request seriously. While appreciating her arguments, I was not totally convinced until I reached the end of her proposal. This young lady had used her initiative and USM training to research how MLK day is observed at my two previous schools and had discovered that both prior schools do close in observance of this day and, in fact, I had initiated this at my last school. USM students certainly know how to make a case! This is a great example of how our students acquire the skills necessary to advocate articulately and passionately.

In this way, the decision was made. I do hope all our students respect the spirit of MLK this coming Monday and celebrate the day in service to others. The legacy of Dr. King lives in each of us.

*To encourage Upper School students to make it a "day on, not a day off,” USM has decided that service performed on MLK day will count as double hours towards the community service requirement for graduation.

Students Learn It’s Not Easy to Balance a Budget

I’m extremely proud of the fact that we teach a full semester of economics to our seventh-graders. Educating young people on how businesses work, the principles of personal finance, and how they can invest in their future provides them with invaluable life skills.

Recently, our students had the opportunity to apply their personal finance skills in a “real-world” setting at a Junior Achievement Finance Park simulation. A four-week personal finance unit — including classroom lessons covering credit cards, taxes, and investing in the stock market — culminated in the November 19, 2012 simulation, where students were assigned careers, incomes, and specific family situations before visiting a series of businesses at the Park's virtual "city".

Seventh-graders investigate how to buy a car at the simulation.

Applying for loans, purchasing utilities, exploring housing options, and settling on cell-phone plans were just a few of the lifestyle choices our students made during the all-day event. Money was also allocated to cover items such as insurance costs, food, transportation, and stock market investments, while a few "unlucky" students were assigned unforeseen financial hardship penalty situations as part of their budgets.

This unique opportunity allowed our students to gain an understanding of the importance of making thoughtful financial decisions. I expect this experience and the life lessons they learned to serve them well in the years to come.

In case you missed it, click here to view the Fox 6 news coverage of our students at the simulation!

Welcome Back

Happy New Year and welcome back from Winter Break! I hope everyone had a relaxing and wonderful time off. As this has been a short week, check back during the week of January 7 for my next blog post.