I had the privilege of spending time with some chaplaincy & pastoral care leaders from our schools recently. What a beautiful group of passionate, engaged and wholehearted people. As we considered the question, ‘how do we build cultures of care?’, the trajectory of our inquiry brought us to a bigger challenge… we cannot give what we do not ourselves have. Brene Brown in her book, The Gifts of Imperfect Parenting, says it this way quoting Joseph Chilton Pearce, what we are, teaches the child far more than what we say, so we must be what we want our children to become.
It is owning this challenge as educators that we then return to the vision we have for our young people in Lutheran schools. How can we as teachers and leaders embody or live into this Lutheran Education vision? What skills, behaviours, knowledge, experiences, structures etc. enable us to live this vision of a good life, so that we can be what we want our children to become?
Whilst we know that we must return to our vision over and again, I have been reflecting on our social nature as human beings and what that means for me in my role, and for what that means for the way we seek to build our Lutheran Education cultures. Whilst senior leaders in schools provide a team with whom Principals work, I can see that folk who are champions for our essential practices are also a crucial team supporting the Principal’s role as spiritual leader. I believe these teams of essential practice champions can help enable us to reflect on, and live into, being what we want our children to become.
We all hear the cry for collaboration and team, my most recent encouragement in this direction was from Andy Hargreaves… Solidity with solidarity… and I would encourage you if you have not already done so, to bring your essential practice champions together. How could their teamwork be essential to the authentic life of Lutheran Education?
Below you will find some reminders about what is coming up on the calendar this term for leaders in our five essential practices. As you consider the involvement of your staff in the following opportunities, I would also encourage you to consider this team, and how they are enabled to work with you in the goals and tasks of spiritual leadership in Lutheran Education.
Outdoor Education Network Meeting: May 10
The purpose of this meeting is to gather our Lutheran School Leaders, Middle Leaders and Outdoor Education Directors in order to network, encourage each other in the wonderful work being done within Outdoor Education in Queensland and share ideas together on how we can further improve outcomes for students. Click here to RSVP for the meeting. You are welcome to invite other people from your school or other Lutheran schools that may benefit from our meeting. For example, Year Level Coordinators, Pastoral Care Leaders or other staff that liaise with our Outdoor Education centres. Please RSVP by 7 May 2019.
Equip 1 Trial: May 23 & 24.
We are looking to have Principals, CS teachers & CS leaders involved in this trial. Some TRS is available to support schools. As previously supplied, the registration link is: https://www.ivvy.com.au/event/E6QY8X/
Ministry Summit: May 28.
I am passionate about the opportunity this summit provides for folk in our schools to see themselves as an integral part of the ministry of the church, and to share their very significant experiences and learnings that have much wider application than just our schools.
Stephanie Maher
Director of Identity & Formation
