The Head of School's Column

When I arrived at Old Trail School seven years ago, I was often asked why I thought diversity was important. My response then, as it is now, is two-fold. First and foremost, it is the right thing to do. Everyone deserves to be treated fairly and have an opportunity to learn. Second, our business is preparing students for secondary school and beyond. Our students will experience a wide array of diversity in high school, college and beyond and it is our responsibility to teach them things that will help them thrive in the future.

Old Trail has been undergoing a strategic planning initiative for the past few years. We have collected a great deal of data through the Independent Schools Association of the Central States (ISACS*) Constituency Survey and eight local focus groups involving approximately 150 members of our school community.

I have been struck by the incredible number of different ways in which diversity issues have arisen and are being viewed as critically important to our constituents. We have received overwhelming support to enrich the Old Trail School experience and enhance our overall excellence by emphasizing diversity.

This makes me extremely proud!

I believe the greatest exhibition of a diverse school is one that has diversity everywhere and is woven into the fabric of a school so it does not need to be a topic of discussion. And I believe it is important to create a more diverse OTS community. In fact, diversity is one of our hallmark accomplishments, as indicated in our planning analysis. During the planning process, the three words and phrases our community used most often to describe our school are academic excellence, nurturing community, and – for a lack of a better term – all of the “extras” that we provide. Diversity permeates all three of these areas. Old Trail offers such a rich experience that each student values. We react and teach according to our students’ varied learning abilities and life experiences. We embrace families who come to us from other countries and cultures. They often describe Old Trail as their extended family because distance separates them from their friends and family. As they learn from us, we, in turn, learn from them.

I have visited area schools - public, parochial and independent – and have been amazed to learn that we are one of the more diverse schools in the area. Examples of diversity are everywhere at Old Trail. The artwork displayed on our walls, diversity committee of students and faculty and in books in the Meyo Library are among many ways we incorporate diversity into the School. But most importantly, diversity is reflected in our faculty, staff, students and parents. Global awareness and understanding have become so important as our world becomes smaller. I hope everyone has had an opportunity to read Thomas Friedman’s bestseller, The World is Flat. Friedman reminds us that the world is getting smaller and we must educate our students about the world that they will be encountering. We must do this by providing rich experiences for them in different languages and world cultures. We will also continue to provide opportunities for world travel and hope to expand these to include more students.

As we evaluate our curriculum, we are of how much diversity-related information are providing on a daily basis. Our students are exposed to multiculturalism through studies of different countries and religions, and share in various cultural celebrations.

Thanks to the wonderful leadership of first Diversity Coordinator, Karen Patterson, and current Director, Gabriela DiSanto, learning, respecting and appreciating all various world cultures and the many aspects of diversity. We also learn that even though there are so many differences, we are much alike.

Our mission statement clearly reflects commitment to respect diversity and promote excellence. We must, as a School, continue advocate for understanding. Let us always proud that Old Trail is such a place.