This post originally appeared on my humor-devotional Lessons Learned in the Little Red Schoolhouse.
Well, I did it again. I started another school. This one is called Grace Academy of North Texas. I have to say, it’s a wonderful school.
The school is Classical, Pre-K through 8th, and located in Prosper, TX. We have two full weeks under our belt so far, and I feel that great things are in store for the future of this school.
But the question I’m concerned with here is, what have I learned from my past that I can apply to Grace Academy?
Most educators are never involved in a start-up school. Those who do, usually only do it once and rarely twice, and certainly not as many times as I have done over the past 40 years.
Grace makes six for me. So obviously I haven’t learned that lesson!
What I want to know, though, is if I’ve learned from my past experiences with school start-up. I originally began this blog – before I got consumed with starting another school! – to help other educators learn from my experiences.
But have I learned from them?
Starting a school is hard work. I mean hard work! So before you associate “hard work” with mowing a large lawn on a hot Texas day, let me give you a different analogy: it’s like giving birth…with an extra long labor. All while simultaneously mowing the lawn on a hot Texas day! Just kidding!
Each school has had its own unique ‘birthing’ story. For the other schools, I was there from its inception, named the ‘baby’, gave it a mission/vision, and brought it from inception to a fully accredited institution.
Yet even the birth analogy fails because giving birth to a school is not a solo job.
Grace Academy of North Texas came together from the combined efforts of many wonderful and dedicated founding families and an extraordinarily gifted faculty.
So what is my role? I love to come in and offer the experience and wisdom I have obtained over the years. I provide a vision and philosophy that have continued to resonate with the parents and faculty of the schools I have started. Or, as the teachers and parents frequently tell me, I create the culture for the school.
What I do not love to do is put in 15-18 hour days. But that’s the reality of starting a school. There’s no way of getting around it. That’s why I want to write a School Whisperer Guide to Starting Schools and talk about the real difficulties of starting a school. Even one as nice as Grace Academy is a major challenge. So the reality is that a “Dummies’ Guide for Starting a School” will simply not suffice.
Let me be clear:
There is no easy formula or even a simple list of things to do that can begin to prepare someone for what it takes to start a school.
That would be like giving the next President the following list – stabilize economy, protect national security, and balance the budget – and expecting that to be enough to help them get the job done!
(By the way, have you ever noticed how quickly our presidents’ hair turns gray? There’s a reason for that. And personally, I wish gray hair looked as distinguished on me as it does on men!)
Hair aside, the analogy works to a degree. The President not only has an agenda that is a mile long, but he has various voices and requests coming at him all day long. The work of a Head of School is not nearly as complex, but it can feel that way at times and I praise God that it isn’t under international scrutiny like the president. As Head, the desire to satisfy the people you serve is always on your heart and mind, and many situations are not easily resolved.
At least I don’t have to deal with Congress! Although, I might add that some Boards have come close at times.
Perhaps the word picture I am trying to create is that starting a school is like giving birth while mowing a lawn during a triple-digit Texas summer and trying to get Congress to come together on economic reform at the same time. Get the picture? It’s not easy.
With this being my sixth term in office as Head of School, I hope I have learned some key lessons.
The first would be to listen to my body. I know I should start with something more spiritual, but this one actually is in a way (as are all of life’s lessons; there is no special category for “spiritual” – they all are). While I receive praise for my work ethic, I also receive many words of wisdom from loved ones to ‘slow down’. I have learned that God gave me a body that can withstand 60 hour work weeks and I praise Him for that. But when I abuse it and go over that boundary too often, and start-up schools will do it, my body responds with a big Norwegian ‘Uffda’ and simply shuts down. For example, when we moved into our new campus for Legacy, I was in the hospital after several major surgeries and was very ill. I’m healthier now than I used to be, and that I consider a blessing, even if I still need reminders from time-to-time to slow down. And yes, I’ve accepted the fact that I’m not 25 anymore.
The second lesson would be to rely on others more. This past year with starting my new School Whisperer consulting business, I have had the privilege of working with my son, Christopher. I can actually lean on him, and I do because I trust him completely. At Grace Academy, I have people I know I can rely on and trust, and that is also a welcome blessing.
Trusting God often means trusting those that He puts in your life. Because it’s easy to trust God if He’s going to do it all Himself; it’s quite another thing to trust Him when He asks you to let go of some control and rely on others. I’ve often wondered what it must be like to have God’s capacity to fix things and yet to continually rely on mankind. Now thatwould give me gray hair!
Finally, I hope I have learned to carve out time for the things I love to do. Don’t get me wrong, I love being at school, loveeach and every one of my students (whom I probably hug too often but will never ever stop), and love all the amazing parents and teachers I get to serve with every day.
But I also love to read, to swim, to garden, and of course, being a grandmother.
My daughter, Angela, and her family just moved here from New Jersey. That means that for the first time ever all my grandkids will be in the same city. And there’s one more coming in a few weeks! I am over-the-top with happiness!
Grace Academy has been kind enough to allow me a couple of weeks with reduced hours to spend helping my daughter recover after her upcoming C-section and caring for her two pre-school boys. Beyond that, though, it is up to me to provide balance. I guess this is also a trust issue, a “let go and let God” situation. Once again, the lesson is spiritual. And once again, I hope I’ve learned it.
What lessons are there for you today? Perhaps you find yourself in a similar situation and may need to work on balance, giving up control, and trusting more.
It’s times like these when I wonder if I’m the right person to give such advice. I’m still on the learning curve!
But then I remember it’s not me giving the advice; it’s God working through me. Just as He has with the past five schools and will continue to do so as long as He calls me to start Christian schools dedicated to teaching His children about how much He loves each and every one of them. For that job, I know what my answer will be every time: “Yes, Lord!”
