The Buzz

Is it the friendships or the relationships that make for a healthy community?

This question came to me when I was on a run the other morning, an early one, when I paused at the western edge of the hayfield near the Nordic start area, the snow guns poking like fragile insect legs into grey morning. The sound of Route 11 traffic to the north and to my left pressed against the deeper quiet of Kearsarge slopes rolling south and to my right. I kept my eyes to the east, on the bright notch between Beech Hill and the ski hill where the sun would rise. I watched the mist sift over the field.

We know from the business world investing in a team is as important as investing in an idea. So how do we ensure our ‘team’ is as solid as our ‘idea’? No one will argue with the efficacy of our educational model of hands-on experiential learning infused through authentic relationships with teachers into classrooms both on- and off-campus. The success of Proctor’s educational model, however, is entirely contingent upon its successful implementation.  

As I write this, Roseway has finally entered the trade winds and is making way towards St. Croix, with an expected arrival sometime later this week. The passage from Cumberland Island to St. Croix represents the longest offshore leg of our Ocean Classroom program (anywhere from 12 – 14 days) and encompasses so much of what voyaging is about. 

Malcolm de Sieyes is in constant motion. As he whisks around his commercial kitchen at the Silverado Cooking School in Napa, California, it is clear that he is a man on a mission. While preparing for an evening class during which students will create and experiment with four different pastas, fillings and sauces, Chef Malcolm needs to ensure ingredients are on hand, the kitchen is immaculate and his staff is ready for their incoming student-guests. His attention to detail has garnered Silverado significant regional press, as well as notice from the likes of Wine Spectator and other national food publications. Although only three years old, Silverado Cooking School has become well known in Napa for providing guests with memorable experiences.

Proctor en Segovia traveled to Portugal's Alto Douro region and second city, Porto, for the first time, and students were captivated.  Porto is, of course, still on the Iberian peninsula and only a half day's drive from Segovia, but we felt as if we had entered another world.  Students were captivated by the richness and contrast of the colors, and the contrast of modern and ancient, land and water, world languages, and Spain and Portugal.  Enjoy selected journal entries from Jaz and Eva!

It’s been a long week at school, one of those tough weeks that tests the mettle of individuals and community. It’s been a week of introspection and community reflection, and at the end of it I found myself in the office Thursday night looking at a collection of writings, old favorites by Antoine de Saint-Exupery in a book called Airman’s Odyssey. I was thinking about mountaineering and rock climbing and those experiences of impasse when you find a way forward. Tempering moments.

Each of the blogs we post to The Buzz attempts to capture the power of a Proctor education through written words and powerful images. We know these blogs help current  families stay in touch with life at Proctor, and from time to time, parents spot their son or daughter in one of the images used in a blog post. We also know prospective families need to get to know us as a community, and our blogs are an important part of that process. 

At first, the title of this blog post was going to be Innovation at Proctor, but then Robotics and Engineering teacher, Josh Norris ‘92, corrected me by saying, “I’m not sure that’s right, Proctor IS Innovation”. A trend at independent schools around the country is to build centers of innovation and makerspaces that afford students the opportunity to experiment, tinker, and develop prototypes of ideas. We, agree these makerspaces are critical to learning. We just have a slightly different approach to integrating these spaces into every student’s daily life at Proctor.