This week, we're joined by David Boxer, TLIS, CIO of The Blake School. David shares his intentional approach to building leadership capacity within his technology team and fostering a culture of collaboration. He details the school’s methodical, PLC-driven strategy for developing critical AI literacy and discusses the growing role of data governance.
Nick, welcome to Talking technology with Atlas,
Peter Frank:the show that plugs you into the important topics and trends for
Peter Frank:technology leaders all through a unique Independent School lens.
Peter Frank:We'll hear stories from technology directors and other
Peter Frank:special guests from the Independent School community,
Peter Frank:and provide you with focused learning and deep dive topics.
Peter Frank:And now please welcome your host. Kristina llewellen,
Christina Lewellen:hello everyone, and welcome back to
Christina Lewellen:talking technology with Atlas. I'm Kristina llewellen, the
Christina Lewellen:president and CEO of the Association of technology
Christina Lewellen:leaders in independent schools.
Bill Stites:And I am Bill Stites, the Director of
Bill Stites:Technology at Montclair Kimberly Academy in Montclair, New
Bill Stites:Jersey, and I'm
Hiram Cuevas:Hiram Cuevas, the Director of Information Systems
Hiram Cuevas:and Academic Technology at St Christopher school in Richmond,
Hiram Cuevas:Virginia.
Christina Lewellen:Good morning, gentlemen. How are you
Christina Lewellen:today?
Bill Stites:Living the dream. The dream can be a nightmare
Bill Stites:too. Just so you know, I'm finally
Hiram Cuevas:happy that the heat dropped.
Christina Lewellen:Yeah. I was just moving one of my daughters
Christina Lewellen:to her first big girl apartment in Washington, DC, in the last
Christina Lewellen:two days, the heat and humidity was not as brutal as it had
Christina Lewellen:been, but it was still pretty brutal. And there's nothing
Christina Lewellen:worse than a move, but then a move amplified with like 90 plus
Christina Lewellen:degrees and humidity like, that's a special circle of hell,
Christina Lewellen:is it not? 100%
Hiram Cuevas:Adam going to Disney World in August.
Bill Stites:Yeah, it's a matter with that. I do that all the
Bill Stites:time.
Christina Lewellen:I had to cut my trip to ISTE short this year
Christina Lewellen:because of that move, but I was able to pop down to San Antonio,
Christina Lewellen:Texas for a day and a half of ISTE. And then my teammate
Christina Lewellen:Ashley cross tag teamed me, and as I was leaving town to help
Christina Lewellen:with the move, Ashley rolled in, and it's so funny, because I
Christina Lewellen:love ISTE. I think it's great. I think there's a lot of cool
Christina Lewellen:topics, and I see some neat, cool people and all that. For
Christina Lewellen:Ashley, it's like her class reunion. That is her people. She
Christina Lewellen:has like things to do and people to see the entire time she's at
Christina Lewellen:ISTE, and she graduated from Pepperdine. And I don't know if
Christina Lewellen:you guys understand the level of cult that is Pepperdine
Christina Lewellen:graduates, but like they all meet up, so I have to say, I
Christina Lewellen:don't think she minded that I called her in to help me out
Christina Lewellen:with the back half of that event. I think she's pretty
Christina Lewellen:excited to take over.
Bill Stites:So Kristina, how was it with because they're tag
Bill Stites:teaming now with the conference at the same time with ASCD
Bill Stites:correct they're both running at the same point. Yeah, 100%
Christina Lewellen:I was not there long enough to see how
Christina Lewellen:that played out, so we'll have to have Ashley give us the
Christina Lewellen:report on how that went. But what I loved about the approach
Christina Lewellen:was that they co located it right, where both events had
Christina Lewellen:their own personality, but they were just in the same city at
Christina Lewellen:the same time. And so you could definitely see the ISTE 25
Christina Lewellen:branding as opposed to the other. And it just, I think that
Christina Lewellen:it was probably a really great experiment, and I can't wait to
Christina Lewellen:hear how it turned out.
Bill Stites:It was something I was very curious about. Given
Bill Stites:the fact that I've attended both, I've gotten value out of
Bill Stites:both, and the fact that they were both running together, I
Bill Stites:think provides a really unique opportunity for people that kind
Bill Stites:of bridge the tech and the academic space and having that
Bill Stites:there at the same time, because I remember them saying that the
Bill Stites:same admission would get you into both Was that correct?
Bill Stites:Yeah, I think so. So that'd be great. Best of both
Christina Lewellen:worlds. What have you guys been up to? And
Christina Lewellen:what's the start of your summer been like?
Bill Stites:So I went on a road trip and met Hiram. Oh no,
Christina Lewellen:I thought I felt a disturbance in the force
Christina Lewellen:here in Virginia. We were
Bill Stites:both in Virginia at the same time.
Christina Lewellen:Oh no. It was outstanding. Yeah, all
Christina Lewellen:right, what did you guys do? Like, walk us through a typical
Christina Lewellen:day when Bill and Hiram are in the same space? Well, it started
Christina Lewellen:off probably
Hiram Cuevas:a few months back, when Bill was saying, Hiram, you
Hiram Cuevas:know what's coming out on June 20. And he reminded me that 28
Hiram Cuevas:years later, which is the final installment of the 28 days, 28
Hiram Cuevas:weeks, and now, 28 years later, zombie flick. He's like, I'm
Hiram Cuevas:coming down to Virginia and we're gonna go watch it on
Hiram Cuevas:opening night.
Bill Stites:No, which is why we did so bill comes
Hiram Cuevas:down, and we start off by going AX throwing with my
Hiram Cuevas:youngest daughter, pretending that they're zombies on the
Hiram Cuevas:targets. It's a lot harder than we thought it was, but 100% we
Hiram Cuevas:now know that Kristina is an ax aficionado. And then that night,
Hiram Cuevas:we ended up going to watch the film. We both kind of left
Hiram Cuevas:puzzled, because we were just like, what did we just watch
Hiram Cuevas:100% it was not your typical zombie flick. And then the next
Hiram Cuevas:day, we shot zombie targets at the gun range.
Christina Lewellen:Wow. Okay, so there's a theme. You guys are
Christina Lewellen:like a bachelorette party gone wrong. There's a lot of theming.
Christina Lewellen:Is there a sash in the tiara? Is really what I want
Hiram Cuevas:to know? And Bill brings flowers to my wife. I.
Hiram Cuevas:Did that's
Bill Stites:nice. I bring tequila to Hiram and flowers to
Bill Stites:his wife. Oh, and
Hiram Cuevas:she comments, he always brings me flowers. All
Christina Lewellen:right, guys, we're gonna have to organize a
Christina Lewellen:pod weekend. It's gonna have to be an interesting combination of
Christina Lewellen:things that I find amusing and things that you find amusing.
Christina Lewellen:And we'll have to record the whole thing. We've
Hiram Cuevas:got to get Brooke grace and Richard all on. Yes,
Hiram Cuevas:yes. It
Christina Lewellen:would definitely round it out. I love
Christina Lewellen:it. And Bill, what have you been up to? How's the start of your
Christina Lewellen:summer been a lot
Bill Stites:of work. It's funny, I find that during the
Bill Stites:summer I put in more hours than I do during the school year. I
Bill Stites:get here at like 630 quarter seven, and I'm here until five
Bill Stites:o'clock at night for most of us in it. You know, I think the
Bill Stites:summers are some of our busiest times. We're flipping 1600
Bill Stites:devices between iPads and laptops. We did that since the
Bill Stites:last day of school, and today is our last day of it. So that's
Bill Stites:been a fairly large lift. We're replacing all of our Wi Fi. We
Bill Stites:just did a big data dump. You know, it's the time, because not
Bill Stites:everyone's here. You have the ability to get up in the
Bill Stites:ceilings. You have the ability to turn systems off. You have
Bill Stites:the ability to do different things that you don't during the
Bill Stites:school year, and you need to take advantage of that time and
Bill Stites:also provide time for those that report to you to get time off,
Bill Stites:because as much as this is our crunch time to get the work
Bill Stites:done, we also need all of those people here during the school
Bill Stites:year. So it's balancing schedules, it's balancing
Bill Stites:projects, it's balancing all of those pieces out so that you can
Bill Stites:get all of those things done. And I think I like most people
Bill Stites:that are in that director role, the buck stops with you, so you
Bill Stites:need to make sure that you're there and all these things are
Bill Stites:happening. And once all that's done, you can take your time and
Bill Stites:get away and do those things, but you need to make sure those
Bill Stites:that are reporting to you, they're getting their work done,
Bill Stites:they're getting their time before you can get out and do
Bill Stites:those things on your own.
Christina Lewellen:So it sounds like you have a lot of things
Christina Lewellen:that you're juggling already. We have a really special guest
Christina Lewellen:today, and I think that he probably has your experience
Christina Lewellen:going on this summer as well. So please, welcome to the podcast.
Christina Lewellen:David boxer. David, you are a T L, I S A T list, Certified
Christina Lewellen:Professional here in our space. I'm so glad that you're with us.
Christina Lewellen:Thank you for joining us. Thank you
David Boxer:for having me. It's exciting to be here, and I have
David Boxer:to say, I've been a big fan of the pod since it launched, and I
David Boxer:always look forward to each episode dropping
Christina Lewellen:love it. Thank you for being a fan.
Christina Lewellen:Thanks for listening, and thanks for coming on. So David, you are
Christina Lewellen:currently the CIO at the Blake school in Minneapolis. First
Christina Lewellen:tell us a little bit about the school. For folks who don't know
Christina Lewellen:the Blake school, they can get a sense of what kind of population
Christina Lewellen:you serve and all that fun stuff, and then we'll talk a
Christina Lewellen:little bit about your journey. The Blake
David Boxer:School is a school that serves pre kindergarten
David Boxer:through 12th grade students across two different campuses,
David Boxer:located in Hopkins in Minneapolis. We're a co Ed, non
David Boxer:denominational day school with about 350 faculty or staff,
David Boxer:about 1350 students. It's a school that has been in
David Boxer:existence well over 100 years now, and a really interesting
David Boxer:school, like many schools across the country in the 1970s school
David Boxer:that was originally a boys school, but in the 70s,
David Boxer:partnered with the Northrop school for girls and the high
David Boxer:Cross Country Day School and formed what we currently know as
David Boxer:the Blake school. And it's a school that I have to say, 14
David Boxer:years ago, if you had asked me, Would I still be loving and
David Boxer:adoring the community that I serve, I would have been like,
David Boxer:no. I you know, it's time for me to move on after about five or
David Boxer:10 years, and I find myself each and every year, enamored by the
David Boxer:faculty, our students and really, just like a really
David Boxer:committed group of teachers that have really come to adore,
Christina Lewellen:I do very much honor and recognize that,
Christina Lewellen:because here I am, and my time at Atlas is flying by, and I
Christina Lewellen:know firsthand how that can happen when you sort of fall in
Christina Lewellen:Love with your community, and the years sort of melt away. I
Christina Lewellen:really want to talk about your background, but what is
Christina Lewellen:interesting to me in terms of your education is that you have
Christina Lewellen:a Master's, you have a bachelor's, and in those
Christina Lewellen:degrees, you cover the subjects that include reading, Afro
Christina Lewellen:American studies, history, global, integrated studies. Can
Christina Lewellen:you help me sort that? So I want to hear about your journey, but
Christina Lewellen:in particular, help me understand this very diverse
Christina Lewellen:education that you have.
David Boxer:Well, you know, I think it's probably more simple
David Boxer:than it sounds. I am the kind of person who is a very curious
David Boxer:person by nature, and whenever I find myself really sort of
David Boxer:anchoring in with a community of learners in my bachelor's
David Boxer:degree, with a couple of professors who really took
David Boxer:interest and mentored me, or after working in the field as a
David Boxer:teacher and finding you know, what I really struggled to do is
David Boxer:I really struggle to serve students who struggle. And.
David Boxer:Terms of reading and writing, and I need to figure out how to
David Boxer:do that work better as a teacher, what I find myself
David Boxer:always coming back to is wherever I have the good fortune
David Boxer:of being around a community of learners who are really
David Boxer:passionate, that sort of ignites my passion. So I was really
David Boxer:fortunate in my undergraduate experience to have a couple of
David Boxer:professors who really mentored me and who are both situated in
David Boxer:the Afro American Studies Department, really loved the
David Boxer:ability to look at a trans disciplinary subject as the
David Boxer:history of black Americans in the United States. As you can
David Boxer:imagine, I'm very much connected to the work that was happening
David Boxer:in the history department. And I think one of the things that I
David Boxer:learned really early on, once I moved on to higher education,
David Boxer:was find people you love, find a subject that interests you, and
David Boxer:stick with it, because everything else in life will
David Boxer:continue to change and evolve, and so if you're willing to go
David Boxer:along with the ride, you can learn along the way. I
Christina Lewellen:love that. What's your career journey been
Christina Lewellen:like? So that's definitely your school piece of things, but you
Christina Lewellen:mentioned that you were a teacher, is that where you
Christina Lewellen:started? Have you always been in independent schools?
David Boxer:My experience as a teacher started when I first
David Boxer:visited a close childhood, a friend of mine, who was in DC,
David Boxer:who was teaching in a program that was formerly called Summer
David Boxer:Bridge. Now the breakthrough collaborative. It's a program
David Boxer:that is national has had a couple of international sites
David Boxer:along the way, and when I visited the program, she was in
David Boxer:college, she was serving middle school students, and what I felt
David Boxer:like I found for the first time, was this like beautiful
David Boxer:triangulation between a program of both young teachers and kids
David Boxer:who were intrinsically motivated. I always like to call
David Boxer:it sort of like the nerdy person summer camp, right? Because
David Boxer:college age students were teaching subjects that both
David Boxer:matter to them, but also teaching subjects that were
David Boxer:really going to be important for preparing students for high
David Boxer:school, students who were signing up for six weeks, but
David Boxer:also participating in a two or three year program, a year round
David Boxer:program, in some of the sites I had felt like for the first
David Boxer:time. I was like, Oh, this whole teaching thing sounds actually
David Boxer:kind of amazing. And had the good fortune of then going on to
David Boxer:work as a teacher at a summer bridge or a breakthrough site in
David Boxer:Denver, New Orleans, and then eventually New York. And in New
David Boxer:York, I had the really amazing experience of helping serve as
David Boxer:what they refer to as the dean of faculty, right? This was a
David Boxer:young person who was working with college age and high school
David Boxer:students, and the head of school offered me an opportunity to
David Boxer:teach in the middle school, work half time in the technology
David Boxer:department, and serve as the dean of faculty at the
David Boxer:breakthrough program there. And it was there where I realized
David Boxer:how much I had to learn as a teacher, where shortly
David Boxer:thereafter, I enrolled in a graduate program at Teachers
David Boxer:College at Columbia University. No surprise, found a role in the
David Boxer:Academic Technology Department, which was great because I had an
David Boxer:opportunity to both sort of flex those skills, but then pursue my
David Boxer:degree as a reading specialist, finally leaving graduate school
David Boxer:working in a nonprofit called Teaching matters in New York
David Boxer:City, and then eventually finding my way to a school that
David Boxer:I know that you all nearly love, with Jim bologna and Stacie
David Boxer:Munoz and others at the Windward school and had a really
David Boxer:incredible community where the head of school and the community
David Boxer:of teachers gave us A huge runway to start a program called
David Boxer:the Center for Teaching and Learning, and had an opportunity
David Boxer:to flex my love for libraries and research, working with a
David Boxer:really unique group of technologists, librarians,
David Boxer:Instructional Technology coaches, and then, most
David Boxer:importantly, faculty who were really curious about ways that
David Boxer:we could evolve our practice as practitioners and serving our
David Boxer:students to finally finding my way and eventually as a CIO at
David Boxer:Blake.
Bill Stites:Two things that I love about having you on the
Bill Stites:podcast, and if you think I'm going to be serious here, you're
Bill Stites:wrong. One is that Christine mentioned that you're probably
Bill Stites:as busy as most tech directors are this time of year. But for
Bill Stites:those of you listening to the pod that may be hearing birds
Bill Stites:chirping in the background, it's because Mr. Boxer here looks
Bill Stites:like he's up in a tree house somewhere out in the woods.
Hiram Cuevas:It's the 1000 lakes of Minnesota, and 1000
Hiram Cuevas:exactly.
Bill Stites:I mean the amount of work that is going on in that
Bill Stites:location that relates to it, I have to believe is very limited,
Bill Stites:my friend, Mr. Boxer. So wherever you are, I am envious
Bill Stites:of that. The other thing is, I just want the audience to know
Bill Stites:just what a complete rock star we have on the podcast today.
Bill Stites:Because I remember, at a Atlas conference a few years back, I
Bill Stites:was talking to Mr. Jim Bologna, and as soon as he saw Mr. Boxer
Bill Stites:in the room, it was like I didn't exist. He walked away and
Bill Stites:then spent the rest of the time talking to Mr. Boxer and left me
Bill Stites:high and dry, stranded there. So this is more a criticism of Jim
Bill Stites:than it is of Mr. Boxer here. But just to prove out how
Bill Stites:grateful we are to have you on the podcast. Because you demand
Bill Stites:the attention of only the best and the brightest Atlas has to
Bill Stites:offer.
Hiram Cuevas:But everybody does that to Bill,
Christina Lewellen:I was gonna say maybe he just wasn't that
Christina Lewellen:interesting. I don't know.
David Boxer:Definitely is not the case. Definitely is not the
David Boxer:case. Jim and I had the good fortune of a really unique
David Boxer:opportunity to innovate and create. And I think just like I
David Boxer:hear the three of you, I think as you plan your first pod
David Boxer:retreat at some point, one of the things that's really
David Boxer:wonderful about the Atlas community is when you get to
David Boxer:reconnect with current former colleagues, I think one of the
David Boxer:things that's really just beautiful about it is you just
David Boxer:pick up where you left off. It's like going to a family reunion,
David Boxer:where all of a sudden you're like, Oh, it's my first cousin,
David Boxer:Jim. I hadn't seen him in ages, and I think that's really more
David Boxer:of a sign of the kind of community and the need for the
David Boxer:community that Atlas has created over the last 10 years. And
David Boxer:that's in part because of folks like you and this and
Christina Lewellen:David, I think that what's interesting,
Christina Lewellen:you know, if I look in kind of shred the lines of your bio, you
Christina Lewellen:are also an Apple Distinguished Educator, a Google certified
Christina Lewellen:innovator, a Common Sense Media ambassador, and also an atlas T
Christina Lewellen:list. And you've been really active in the Atlas community,
Christina Lewellen:so clearly you have this lifelong learner thing going on.
Christina Lewellen:But tell us a little bit about how the T list in particular,
Christina Lewellen:sort of clicked into place now that you've been in independent
Christina Lewellen:schools for so long. Why did you decide to pursue that, and what
Christina Lewellen:do you think
David Boxer:about it? Well, I think the credit goes to a
David Boxer:colleague of mine here in Minneapolis who serves as the
David Boxer:Director of Technology at another gear school. And AJ said
David Boxer:to me, he's like, you know, I'm gonna take this T list thing,
David Boxer:and this was at a conference a year ago and just see what it's
David Boxer:like. And he described what his experience was, preparing for it
David Boxer:and taking the T list. And I have to say, you know, I was a
David Boxer:bit circumspect. I tend to be a little bit cagey, especially as
David Boxer:I get older, about things. And as I heard more and more from
David Boxer:AJ, I think one of the things I realized was this was a really
David Boxer:great opportunity, in a way, to sort of reflect on where I was
David Boxer:in my own professional journey, really hone in on areas I needed
David Boxer:to continue to grow and support, not just in terms of my
David Boxer:professional career, but I think more importantly, serving my
David Boxer:school and serving the institution. And I have to say,
David Boxer:Peter, who is here on the pod as a producer today led a great
David Boxer:programming and preparation for the T list in terms of bringing
David Boxer:a number of Instructional Technology directors and
David Boxer:educational technology directors and directors of technology who
David Boxer:helped really break the program into over four weeks as an
David Boxer:opportunity to take sort of scenario based approaches to
David Boxer:understanding what our strengths and Where are areas for growth?
David Boxer:And then taking the exam and getting the results helped me
David Boxer:identify areas that I, not surprisingly, were already
David Boxer:curious and had spent a lot of time and energy growing, and
David Boxer:areas that I still needed to continue to put more effort and
David Boxer:time into. And if you could imagine, like, the nerdiest way
David Boxer:you could take the T list, I really probably took it to the
David Boxer:extent which was, you know, in my fall goal setting, after
David Boxer:taking the T list, use it as an opportunity to identify the
David Boxer:domains that I wanted to focus some particular energy and goals
David Boxer:around. And then also, you know, as they work with our Head of
David Boxer:School, I use it as an opportunity to calibrate against
David Boxer:the domains within the T lists and sub domains, in part because
David Boxer:it helps me recognize, like, am I spending enough time on the
David Boxer:teaching and learning side of the house? Am I spending enough
David Boxer:time on the data governance side of the house? Am I spending
David Boxer:enough time in terms of institutional research and
David Boxer:working with colleagues on that side of the house? And so it's
David Boxer:also just an ongoing great mirror to know for myself areas
David Boxer:that I need to continue to support and grow the school, and
David Boxer:areas that I need to continue to learn and develop greater
David Boxer:expertise in.
Christina Lewellen:I love that. I love that you kind of use it
Christina Lewellen:to take your own temperature, especially because you've been
Christina Lewellen:in your role for a while, and that's something that we talk
Christina Lewellen:about here on the pod a bit, because Bill and Hiram have been
Christina Lewellen:in their spots for a while, and now you've been at Blake for
Christina Lewellen:more than 14 years, so I'm sure that a lot of change has
Christina Lewellen:happened in the last 14 years. Tell us a little bit about that
Christina Lewellen:evolution, because you are now the Chief Information Officer,
Christina Lewellen:but I would imagine that that has probably evolved over time
Christina Lewellen:as well. Yes,
David Boxer:yeah. I mean, I think one of the things I fell
David Boxer:in love with schools and spent the majority of my time doing
David Boxer:until I came to Blake, was really working directly in the
David Boxer:classroom or team teaching or helping colleagues develop
David Boxer:curricular based projects. So when I moved to Blake, my role
David Boxer:really became much more focused around supporting what I would
David Boxer:think of, more the traditional technology program at Blake, and
David Boxer:I had a wonderful predecessor who began the program at Blake
David Boxer:and had really offered a great stepping stone in terms of the
David Boxer:program that I was asked to shepherd, and wonderful heads of
David Boxer:schools and associate heads of schools and others who have
David Boxer:guided me along the way. I would say the things that have changed
David Boxer:a great deal. Than I would have never suspected 14 years ago
David Boxer:was, of course, the advent of the one to one programs, and
David Boxer:supporting those programs and supporting teachers in those
David Boxer:arenas, I think a great deal as should be a lot more time
David Boxer:spending on thinking about digital wellness in terms of
David Boxer:supporting both students and families and getting that work.
David Boxer:And then I think the biggest shifts have happened in a much
David Boxer:more quicker pace than I would have ever imagined. You know,
David Boxer:really thinking over the last seven, eight years, spending a
David Boxer:tremendous amount of time on both cybersecurity, of course,
David Boxer:most recently in terms of the event of generative AI and sort
David Boxer:of the shifts of cybersecurity, the pandemic, generative AI, I
David Boxer:have found myself immersed in topics that have really shifted
David Boxer:and disrupted schools in ways that are both healthy and
David Boxer:problematic for all the obvious reasons.
Bill Stites:So I want to throw another topic at you, because
Bill Stites:it's one of your colleagues I've seen on multiple webinars and
Bill Stites:meetups, is Denise Covington, and really where the work that
Bill Stites:you're doing with CIRIS and with institutional research is
Bill Stites:falling in in what you do at Blake, and how that's impacting
Bill Stites:things as well. So if you could provide some detail there, that
Bill Stites:would be great.
David Boxer:Yeah, so I have the great fortune of working with
David Boxer:Denise Covington, who serves as our Director of Information
David Boxer:Management, and Alicia barovich, her partner in crime, on the
David Boxer:information management side of the house, and Denise, for the
David Boxer:last 15 years, has led the program here at Blake. And a few
David Boxer:years ago, especially after doing some really important work
David Boxer:of transitioning to a new SIS system, we were finally poised
David Boxer:to have the opportunity to think about ways in which all of this
David Boxer:sort of a massive data could actually serve our institution
David Boxer:in different ways that it was much more challenging and
David Boxer:difficult to do so before and so CIRIS has been a great leader in
David Boxer:this field. Eric Houle man's work, Bill, the work that you
David Boxer:did around the institutional research handbook. You know, we
David Boxer:took literally a Year of Reading through that handbook, planning
David Boxer:our next steps this last year, really working through
David Boxer:developing a data, governance policy and building some small
David Boxer:but helpful pilot projects, working with different
David Boxer:departments and different individuals around the school to
David Boxer:where our goals for next year, which is two things, one, Denise
David Boxer:will serve as one of the CIRIS fellows this year, helping
David Boxer:develop the CIRIS data governance handbook, which I
David Boxer:think will be a huge help for schools across the Independent
David Boxer:School world, and then also launching a formal data
David Boxer:strategy, Data Governance Committee. And I think one of
David Boxer:the things that has been a joy and that work is really thinking
David Boxer:about ways that we are probably under utilizing the talent
David Boxer:across departments and across teams, and really trying to
David Boxer:break down the silos that just naturally grow over time in
David Boxer:schools. And so one of our goals in the state of strategy
David Boxer:committee, of course, is to serve the needs of teachers, but
David Boxer:I think the other is just to really help each other
David Boxer:understand and leverage the talent that exists across many
David Boxer:different departments, so that we approach this work in a much
David Boxer:more peer based way. And so that's been really exciting. I'm
David Boxer:even looking forward much more to the next step, because I
David Boxer:think this is where, by breaking down those silos, we're gonna
David Boxer:see things that we couldn't even imagined because we didn't even
David Boxer:know the problems of practice that people were trying to
David Boxer:solve. And this is, I'll just offer this as a tangental note.
David Boxer:You know, one of the things that I feel, I just like experience
David Boxer:guilt out all the time in my role, is I'll have a colleague
David Boxer:that will say something along the lines like, Well, you told
David Boxer:us seven years ago we couldn't do that. And I'm like, oh,
David Boxer:shoot, I did, but four years ago, we solved that problem. We
David Boxer:could do that, and we just didn't communicate that well
David Boxer:enough that people realized that we could shift right. And I
David Boxer:think part of the shift that can occur is by having people
David Boxer:literally in the same room, picking a problem of practice,
David Boxer:putting time and effort towards that problem of practice, and
David Boxer:then which, then, I think spirals in a recursive way of
David Boxer:helping others see opportunities. So really
David Boxer:grateful in the work that Denise and Alicia are leading, really
David Boxer:grateful in helping them support that work. And you know, we'll
David Boxer:have to have Denise and Alicia here on the pod in a year from
David Boxer:now to share their work, because I think they will be the ones
David Boxer:that will have some great stories to tell.
Hiram Cuevas:So David, you actually prompted this question
Hiram Cuevas:I have here, which is when you mentioned that seven years ago,
Hiram Cuevas:you had this question posed to you, and you said you couldn't
Hiram Cuevas:do it, but then four years later, you're like, oh yes, we
Hiram Cuevas:can do this. So as a team, as a school team, is this also coming
Hiram Cuevas:from the head of schools? This coming from you and your work
Hiram Cuevas:with the head of school is this the entire senior executive team
Hiram Cuevas:that is having this recognition so that you can evolve,
Hiram Cuevas:essentially the entire program at Blake.
David Boxer:You know, I think leading schools, when it's done
David Boxer:really well, it's a collaborative it's a give and
David Boxer:take, right? So, of course, at our Head of School will lead. A
David Boxer:strategic visioning process. And you know, the work that we do as
David Boxer:academic leaders and teachers will align to that. You might
David Boxer:sort of call that a traditional top down approach, but I also
David Boxer:think there's a lot of opportunity when you think about
David Boxer:a bottom up approach. And I would say the work around
David Boxer:institutional research, in part, because of the CIRIS program,
David Boxer:sort of opened our eyes what was possible for the first time,
David Boxer:probably going, I don't know, first time, attended what, maybe
David Boxer:four years ago, a Cirrus conference. And I think that was
David Boxer:then also a part of educating other senior leaders about what
David Boxer:was possible, and then creating proofs of concepts, right, like
David Boxer:particular projects or small problems of practice. And they
David Boxer:could be really like small things, what seems like small
David Boxer:things, like in the health office, are we starting to see
David Boxer:students who are coming back in a recursive way? Are we tracking
David Boxer:that? Are we starting to identify that maybe that's more
David Boxer:symptomatic of a greater need that we really need to be
David Boxer:working with that student, the counselor, the family? Or are we
David Boxer:looking at particularly like in the math department, like, what
David Boxer:does our course placement look like. How does that break down
David Boxer:in terms of socio economic or demographic identities? And so I
David Boxer:think one of the things that occurs in a school, and I think
David Boxer:it's the beauty of working in an independent school, is that it's
David Boxer:an in both, right? So you have opportunities that a school
David Boxer:leader will take you on, and then as a senior leader, making
David Boxer:sure that you're inculcating and creating opportunities to both
David Boxer:educate your head of school and then developing support across
David Boxer:the senior leadership team. So in this case, I would say the
David Boxer:work that Denise and Alicia are leading are really a bottom up
David Boxer:right. So like, this is something that we are passionate
David Boxer:about. This is something that we believe that will serve the
David Boxer:school in terms of much more long standing needs, and I think
David Boxer:this is partly like helping others understand why and what
David Boxer:the purpose is.
Hiram Cuevas:So David, have they always been part of those
Hiram Cuevas:conversations? Or were you instrumental in having them
Hiram Cuevas:provide the education for your senior leadership team?
David Boxer:I would say that organizations like schools,
David Boxer:they're like a layer cake, right? So, like the most
David Boxer:tangible, real work is what's happening in the classroom.
David Boxer:Spending time in the classroom. This is where you see where the
David Boxer:rubber meets the road. And so I think Denise and Lisa in the
David Boxer:work in information management, work with a number of peers,
David Boxer:both on the academic side of the program and on the operational
David Boxer:side of the program. And so having those relationships are
David Boxer:really significant for cross pollinating the need. And then,
David Boxer:of course, I have the good fortune of serving on the senior
David Boxer:leadership team. And so it's happening, I would say both,
David Boxer:like horizontally. It's happening vertically, sometimes
David Boxer:it's happening diagonally, depending on how you think of
David Boxer:it. And so my role is to make sure that when we've identified
David Boxer:a need within the department, that I'm making sure that I'm
David Boxer:putting oxygen the fire, leading it and lending my strengths, but
David Boxer:also, more importantly, like deeply listening and creating
David Boxer:space and runway for them to do the work that they will need to
David Boxer:continue to lead and sustain in the end. And so, you know, the
David Boxer:example that I offered earlier, a couple years ago, you know,
David Boxer:did Denise and Lisa want to read the CIRIS institutional handbook
David Boxer:to spend two months reading each chapter each week. You could ask
David Boxer:them, but I'm just going to go out on a limb and say, probably
David Boxer:not. But what I said, which was really important, was like You
David Boxer:two may feel like you have a lot of strengths in understanding
David Boxer:this area, but I don't, and so we're going to go on this
David Boxer:journey together to make sure that we are in agreement of what
David Boxer:we're trying to do, how it can be best supportive and really
David Boxer:using this opportunity to listen in so sort of like an informal
David Boxer:PLC, if you will, so that by the time we started working on the
David Boxer:Data Governance Policy, by the time we started looking at the
David Boxer:data strategy committee, that we had a solid foundation, and we
David Boxer:were taking both a strategic and tactical approach to being
David Boxer:successful in the long term. So probably, and I know they would
David Boxer:say this without a shadow doubt, like we're going too slow, and I
David Boxer:tend to be the kind of person who's like we might feeling like
David Boxer:we might be going too slow, but our goal should be to do it
David Boxer:really well, so that when we're ready to go fast, we know we
David Boxer:have a North Star, we have a series of both rules and
David Boxer:procedures, and that We're really helping guide others so
David Boxer:the messiness could potentially be avoided. It
Christina Lewellen:sounds like you've been pretty intentional
Christina Lewellen:in terms of your process for developing leadership capacity
Christina Lewellen:at your technology department. Slow steady, doing it the right
Christina Lewellen:way. How do you think that plays through in terms of fostering
Christina Lewellen:collaboration between the IT professionals at your school and
Christina Lewellen:teachers, because I know obviously there can be a lot of
Christina Lewellen:rub there.
David Boxer:I feel very grateful that we have a team.
David Boxer:And I tell fleet team to this all the time, like I wake up in
David Boxer:the morning I'm super excited to go to work, in part because I
David Boxer:feel like I am working with a team of superstars. And the
David Boxer:superstars aren't necessarily because they have technical and
David Boxer:expertise in every domain, or they can, you know, write a
David Boxer:script faster than anyone else, or we're the most efficient
David Boxer:department in every IT department in the Independent
David Boxer:School world? No, I think the part that I really love about is
David Boxer:that the team is very curious, very disciplined about their
David Boxer:approach, but also joyful and, like very much, focused on the
David Boxer:relationships that they've. Perform and sustain, and the
David Boxer:team will remind me all the time, like, well, how will our
David Boxer:end users feel about this? Like, what's the impact going to be
David Boxer:about them? Like, what do we make sure that we're
David Boxer:communicating in advance? And so I think one of the things that
David Boxer:has worked really well, of breaking down the traditional
David Boxer:stereotypes of an IT department, is hiring really smart people
David Boxer:who care about other human beings in themselves, and then
David Boxer:also, you know, taking very tactical approaches. So a few
David Boxer:years ago, at an atlas conference, I saw Ethan present
David Boxer:around developing a Kanban board and the importance that that
David Boxer:provides both tactical and strategic opportunities for
David Boxer:department and coming back to the team, and Jennifer, a
David Boxer:colleague of mine, was like, I can help you do that, and I'm
David Boxer:like, run with it, you know, and then let's then situate that
David Boxer:culturally within the team, so that we're all contributing to
David Boxer:it, but we all have, like, a common resource and a common
David Boxer:understanding that we're coming back to. So I think we haven't
David Boxer:encountered, and I would say, especially over the last five
David Boxer:years, I think people have really come to see the
David Boxer:department as someone that's helpful and not trying to stay
David Boxer:another way and making sure that we're, you know, whether that's
David Boxer:helping folks understand, like how we choose software, what
David Boxer:that process is like, whether that's around peer based
David Boxer:development and PLCs, around understanding the impact of AI
David Boxer:as well the social disruption tool and as a way to both
David Boxer:support teachers and students. I think one of the things we've
David Boxer:always tried to do is be very much available and be very much
David Boxer:like we're here to help you do what you do best in the
David Boxer:classroom. You know, we just did the 360 work that mission data
David Boxer:was partnering with you, and that helped sort of identify the
David Boxer:strengths of the program. We've do, like a 360 feedback loop
David Boxer:that I get periodically every couple of years. Next year,
David Boxer:we'll be surveying as part of the Isaac self study. So I think
David Boxer:there's lots of opportunities for both formal reflection, but
David Boxer:I think one of the things I get to see firsthand is like being
David Boxer:in the library with a member of our Help Desk team being in
David Boxer:whether it's a zoom conference or in a conference room with
David Boxer:information management team watching how our director of
David Boxer:infrastructure and network operation interacts with
David Boxer:colleagues and staff members across the department. I think
David Boxer:it's those like hands on observations, where you get to
David Boxer:really see what it looks like to be an IT department that cares
David Boxer:and serves the community. That's
Christina Lewellen:a cool culture, especially given that
Christina Lewellen:we have all this AI fun happening now. Tell us a little
Christina Lewellen:bit about that. Where are you at in terms of your school? And I'm
Christina Lewellen:sure it varies by grade level and all that. But what's the
Christina Lewellen:approach, or what's the philosophy around AI at the
Christina Lewellen:Blake school?
David Boxer:Well, that journey has been a wonderful ride and a
David Boxer:challenging ride in so many different ways. I felt very
David Boxer:fortunate with working with our pre K to 12 Chair of computer
David Boxer:science, Madeleine Burton, especially over the last year,
David Boxer:in particular with our senior leadership team a couple of
David Boxer:years ago. So like two years ago, as this was unfurling as a
David Boxer:senior leadership team, we sort of took a PLC approach of really
David Boxer:understanding, like, what AI is, what generative AI looks like.
David Boxer:What guidelines do we want to provide adults, the concerns
David Boxer:that we had of the potential for circumventing learning in the
David Boxer:classroom, what we were already seeing in terms of, of course,
David Boxer:academic integrity issues. And then this last year, we've taken
David Boxer:a PLC approach, working with teachers across the school who
David Boxer:are interested in really focusing on how AI can both
David Boxer:support them, sort of a teacher focused lounge, as well as
David Boxer:thinking about the impact it might have in terms of student
David Boxer:focus. Working with staff members, working with the
David Boxer:executive assistant to the head of school, of creating a PLC for
David Boxer:staff members this summer, we have about seven different
David Boxer:summer curriculum grants going so we are working through
David Boxer:developing a set of guidelines in a toolbox for teachers on
David Boxer:helping support the appropriate and responsible use of AI in the
David Boxer:classroom that will launch this summer. We will spend some time
David Boxer:working through another teacher ELC group, and then we'll offer
David Boxer:all the same opportunities again in the fall and this time this
David Boxer:year, once those guidelines launch, also launch a family
David Boxer:series and launch a student feedback loop across our middle
David Boxer:and upper school in particular, the goal is get folks there who
David Boxer:are intrinsically motivated get folks to show problems of
David Boxer:practice, and ways in which AI can support acknowledge the
David Boxer:problematic aspects of AI, and ways in which we guide students
David Boxer:and understanding both its benefits and its limitations,
David Boxer:and really just developing the capacities. And so we've taken a
David Boxer:very intentional like we need to develop a critical AI literacy,
David Boxer:and we need to sort of hit that tipping point. You know, I don't
David Boxer:know if that means like, 50% or 60% of faculty will self
David Boxer:identify. It's like, yeah, I have a pretty reasonable
David Boxer:understanding of what this is. But we need to get to the point
David Boxer:where, as adults, we feel comfortable in a really
David Boxer:transparent way of both talking about it in the classroom and.
David Boxer:In ways of listening to students really deeply, and I think we're
David Boxer:getting there. It's challenging, right? It comes on the heels of
David Boxer:a pandemic. It comes on the heels of a lot of like, change
David Boxer:management within schools, and I think it comes on the heels of,
David Boxer:like, maybe asking very fundamental questions as folks
David Boxer:get more familiar around assessment, instructional
David Boxer:design, the importance of process over product, and I feel
David Boxer:really lucky to be at a school where teachers already value
David Boxer:that, but also helping students understand, like why we do and
David Boxer:how we do it, and what role it has to engage in the learning
David Boxer:experience, and where AI I have, you know, a lot of hope and
David Boxer:aspirations where it can serve students in really creative ways
David Boxer:that I've seen teachers use it with students to help support
David Boxer:them, you know, developing deeper understanding in
David Boxer:particular subject areas, or being able to develop
David Boxer:opportunities for them to be able to practice and engage when
David Boxer:they don't have another human being next to them. So it's been
David Boxer:great, and it's been wonderfully challenging, and I would have
David Boxer:never would have thought I would have spent this much time on a
David Boxer:topic like aI three years ago.
Bill Stites:David, I want to pick on one thing that you said
Bill Stites:there when you're talking about AI, a lot of the things that you
Bill Stites:hit on were a lot of the topics that we hear from a lot of
Bill Stites:different leaders in schools. But the one thing that you did
Bill Stites:mention in there that doesn't often come up. It has come up
Bill Stites:for us here at MKA, and we're still wrestling with it. But
Bill Stites:it's that conversation with staff. You mentioned having a
Bill Stites:conversation with, I believe you said your assistant to the head
Bill Stites:of school. And you know, I think about when I'm in my development
Bill Stites:office. I was in there yesterday and I was talking to somebody,
Bill Stites:and I saw he was working on something in chat GPT. What are
Bill Stites:the conversations outside of the academic areas in terms of the
Bill Stites:way in which AI should be used in you know, admissions,
Bill Stites:communications, alumni and development, business office,
Bill Stites:what have those been like at school? So we've taken
David Boxer:in very much peer based approach, right? So we had
David Boxer:with our staff PLC this last year, a member from development,
David Boxer:two members from emissions, a member from the communications
David Boxer:department, Denise Covington from the information support
David Boxer:services, information management side, member from athletics. And
David Boxer:I think one of the things that we took as part of that peer
David Boxer:based approach was, of course, facilitating develop basic,
David Boxer:foundational understanding around what AI is, understanding
David Boxer:concerns around data privacy, talking and experiencing and
David Boxer:playing with tools that had in terms of the terms of service,
David Boxer:like Gemini or notebook as being a Google workspace. School
David Boxer:offers some degree of privacy talking through the processes of
David Boxer:a tool adoption. And so I think those problems of practice are
David Boxer:very much situated to each individual. It's the same thing
David Boxer:I'm seeing on the faculty side. So our communications member as
David Boxer:an example, walk through a problem of practice and working
David Boxer:with a freelance writer and designer as part of a magazine,
David Boxer:working through an iterative cycle as they were working on a
David Boxer:piece, working on that piece, and running through AI, seeing
David Boxer:around like, different ways that could be used, like creatively
David Boxer:and brainstorming for like title pieces, to getting pure
David Boxer:feedback, and then also really working to sort of, like, the
David Boxer:ethical dimensions of like, how transparent do we need to be?
David Boxer:Like, what are we communicating? And this was just a mock
David Boxer:exercise, right? This wasn't something that ended up coming
David Boxer:into, like a magazine or a piece. But I think what's more
David Boxer:important is like, what role will it play? What role should
David Boxer:it play? How can we be using it? Where should we have definitive
David Boxer:boundaries? And I think each department, each professional in
David Boxer:those departments, are working together as teams. But I think
David Boxer:the thing that I found most interesting is breaking down
David Boxer:those silos. So the executive assistant to the head of school
David Boxer:and I just presented the senior leadership team towards senior
David Boxer:leadership team towards the end of the year, proposing launching
David Boxer:a school wide staff initiative for next year where we would
David Boxer:have up to seven PLCs running across the two different
David Boxer:campuses, but very intentionally doing these PLC so that ideally
David Boxer:no more than one member of department is within Each PLC.
David Boxer:Because what I think is more interesting than sort of like,
David Boxer:solving the advancement problem or solving the communication
David Boxer:problem, is showing folks what the possibilities are, and each
David Boxer:person will sort of like lean into sort of where they are,
David Boxer:right? So for some folks, you know, I'm sure, for the three of
David Boxer:you, Mike, well, that sounds really basic, but for that
David Boxer:person, that's like, right where they need to be, and others are
David Boxer:doing much more complex and interesting things, things that
David Boxer:I'm like, Oh, I never thought about that. Like, that's really
David Boxer:interesting. So our goal next year is to offer the PLC
David Boxer:opportunity for every staff member, in part because I think
David Boxer:one of the things that at least at our school, that we've done
David Boxer:really well is we've done a lot of work around cultural
David Boxer:competency and making sure that staff are part of it, along with
David Boxer:teachers. But we haven't really done a school wide work in a
David Boxer:number of years around where technology can support the
David Boxer:entire staff. And I think obviously, because of the social
David Boxer:disruption that AI is offering, I think it's like more of a
David Boxer:calling and a need than ever before.
Hiram Cuevas:So Dave. What's interesting is, in your role as
Hiram Cuevas:a CIO, how are you governing what AI tools your school is
Hiram Cuevas:permitted to use, as opposed to everybody? Well, I'm using
Hiram Cuevas:Claude, I'm using Gemini, I'm using chat GPT. How is Blake
Hiram Cuevas:handling
David Boxer:that? I'm going to offer a big caveat the friend I
David Boxer:mentioned before, who I went visited at breakthrough in DC,
David Boxer:who is now an assistant principal in the DC public
David Boxer:schools, said something to me that has stuck with me for a
David Boxer:number of years. She said, you know, David policies, from the
David Boxer:district, when we have surveyed it make it to about 3% of the
David Boxer:classrooms right? So, like, there's the reality of what a
David Boxer:policy is right, and then there's the reality of what a
David Boxer:practice actually looks like in the classroom. And I think,
David Boxer:Hiram, you're asking a great question, right? So the senior
David Boxer:admin team two years ago worked through developing a guideline
David Boxer:set of guidelines for staff and for faculty, right, for all of
David Boxer:our adults, because all the senior leadership team
David Boxer:participated in that, right? We created, we had a general set of
David Boxer:guidelines, and then when we realized was that there was
David Boxer:different needs within each department. Not surprisingly, so
David Boxer:we had in dependency for each department around specific needs
David Boxer:and specific boundaries that we wanted to set, or different
David Boxer:department leaders wanted to set. Then we asked each of the
David Boxer:department leaders to make sure that they invited and had all
David Boxer:their department members participate, and really sort of
David Boxer:like deconstruct what the guidelines were, and then
David Boxer:develop a set of scenarios of like ways in which they're
David Boxer:applying what they're understanding the guidelines are
David Boxer:to like real life examples. And then we maintain a software
David Boxer:inventory across the whole school. We developed a looker
David Boxer:report around school approved tools for employees really
David Boxer:thinking around like data privacy issues, first and
David Boxer:foremost, that was embedded into the guidelines. And then I think
David Boxer:the reality is and so like lots of good work on the policy side,
David Boxer:feel very proud of what we did on the policy side. But I think
David Boxer:the whole point of developing some potentially seven PLCs for
David Boxer:staff members next year, in conjunction with continuing to
David Boxer:offer opportunities for teachers, is to really embed
David Boxer:those practices so that there's a in depth understanding of
David Boxer:like, here's why we've chosen this tool if you're going to use
David Boxer:chat, GPT or cloud, here's the ways that are permissible.
David Boxer:Here's the reason why it's not permissible based on the fact
David Boxer:that you have a free license or a pro license, or, you know,
David Boxer:because we don't have an enterprise or team license as a
David Boxer:school. And here's why. And helping folks understand the
David Boxer:same way that we all know that technology companies have
David Boxer:developed products, and when those products are free, the
David Boxer:products themselves aren't free because they're like, We're
David Boxer:doing this for the general good of humanity. We're offering
David Boxer:those products for free because we need humanity to be the
David Boxer:product so that we can make the product better, right? And so
David Boxer:just reminding folks that social media tools, free technology
David Boxer:tools are based on different revenue models, and we have to
David Boxer:be very thoughtful about how we interact with those particular
David Boxer:tools or platforms, depending on what our needs are. And if
David Boxer:you're going to use that third party tool that's not school
David Boxer:approved, make sure you're anonymizing the data. Probably
David Boxer:best yet to not even use those tools if you're using any sort
David Boxer:of like student data, because you know the tools, as I keep
David Boxer:saying, it's a rat race, right? And Gemini, six months ago,
David Boxer:might not have been as good as chat GPT, but today might be
David Boxer:better, like you probably won't get to that level of detail,
David Boxer:that one general, large language model will be that much better
David Boxer:than the other, better, just to develop best understanding
David Boxer:within a tool such as Gemini or notebook for a particular use
David Boxer:case or school approved tool. So I think that's where we are. We
David Boxer:have a process. We cultivate that with every division every
David Boxer:year talking about three tier levels of software support. AI
David Boxer:is only one part of that process, and we do that with our
David Boxer:department leaders and staff members as well.
Christina Lewellen:I like that, and it seems like that's a more
Christina Lewellen:sustainable approach, honestly, right? Because we are kind of
Christina Lewellen:building the plane as we're flying it. So that makes a lot
Christina Lewellen:of sense. Do you feel like this is capturing most of your
Christina Lewellen:attention this summer? You know, I started by asking the guys
Christina Lewellen:what they're working on this summer. You've now been at Blake
Christina Lewellen:for 14 years. So how do you approach your summers and making
Christina Lewellen:sure that you're stepping into the fall, into the school year,
Christina Lewellen:feeling ready to tackle these issues that you're tackling
Bill Stites:and outside of the tree house that you're in right
Bill Stites:now? That's right. I think it's
David Boxer:important for everyone listening to this pod
David Boxer:to understand that today is July 3, the day before the Fourth of
David Boxer:July. So if anyone is going to take a long holiday weekend in
David Boxer:this role, this is the weekend to take.
Christina Lewellen:This is the day we caught you on the day.
Christina Lewellen:Yes,
David Boxer:absolutely all right. So each year we literally
David Boxer:work through a summer Kanban board that exists in a tool that
David Boxer:you'll feel very familiar with within Asana, but also it exists
David Boxer:as a physical representation. I'm very old school, like,
David Boxer:you'll still see me with like, a pen and paper. All of my
David Boxer:colleagues will, like, make fun of me. They're like, you kill so
David Boxer:many trees. David, I
Christina Lewellen:mean, I'm kind of like that too. I think
Christina Lewellen:it's a marker of the generation, right? Like, I'm all about
Christina Lewellen:Asana, but. I also have pen paper. I write in different
Christina Lewellen:color pens depending on what the priority is, or whatever. And so
Christina Lewellen:I just, I can't let go of that,
David Boxer:yeah, and, you know, like, I'm really old
David Boxer:fashioned, like, so we work through the whole combat board
David Boxer:in Asana. We do some pre planning in early May. We launch
David Boxer:it right after the school. We meet each week as a team for
David Boxer:about 30 minutes talking about in the sin two foci, right?
David Boxer:Fosa. Number one is, like, things that happened last week,
David Boxer:like, went really well. Any lessons learned, right? We pull
David Boxer:that into the comments of the asana board, and then we look
David Boxer:for the week ahead. Like, what are the areas that are like,
David Boxer:most important focus for this week? But here are other areas
David Boxer:of time permits that we're going to get to. Obviously, we carry
David Boxer:it over from week to week. If we don't you know how they move
David Boxer:through both the planning stages, the doing stages and the
David Boxer:done stages, and always aligning, of course, to sort of
David Boxer:the swim lanes in the department. I think that ritual
David Boxer:has been really great because we have a sense of, like, when
David Boxer:we're going and where we're going, and what human resources
David Boxer:that we'll need to provide at any given week. And then if
David Boxer:there's any sort of, like potential conflict. You know,
David Boxer:we're working out that together been a huge help this year. In
David Boxer:particular, this summer, I keep mentioning to the team, like my
David Boxer:Kanban part of the board is like, I will be co facilitating
David Boxer:this summer curriculum grant this today, and then this one,
David Boxer:two days from now. And so I have felt in a really nice way, but
David Boxer:also like this, like sort of deep seated guilt, way that I'm
David Boxer:like, Wow, I feel more removed this summer from the day to day
David Boxer:operations, and I have in a long time, and I have more trust and
David Boxer:a real sense of like, what's happening
Christina Lewellen:based on the team, right? Sounds like you
Christina Lewellen:have a great team. I do.
David Boxer:I really feel very lucky about that. And I have
David Boxer:felt like I can put energy onto sort of the academic side of the
David Boxer:program in ways that typically don't happen in the summertime.
David Boxer:And I think part of the way that we go into refresh into the
David Boxer:school year is some folks, of course, are taking some summer
David Boxer:time, not everyone. But I think one of the things that we try to
David Boxer:do is we try to be really reasonable about what we can
David Boxer:accomplish. Because, you know, folks in the IT world, at least,
David Boxer:can sense this sense of like, but we didn't get as much done
David Boxer:rather than like. Let's celebrate the things that were
David Boxer:really important that got done and got done really well. That
David Boxer:puts us in a great position of having a successful start and
David Boxer:the school year, and I'm not having sleepless nights like
David Boxer:when I first started this job, 14 years ago, in this particular
David Boxer:moment, in part because of, as you just said, Kristina, the
David Boxer:team, the team itself, is really where the magic happens.
Christina Lewellen:And how about you? You're the CIO. So
Christina Lewellen:what do you do for yourself to be ready?
David Boxer:Well, there's a combination of taking and
David Boxer:enjoying, like how the summer shifts, right? So I spend a lot
David Boxer:more time biking between the two campuses than I can during the
David Boxer:course of the school year, I spend time on the weekends, like
David Boxer:canoeing, spending time with family, really trying to up my
David Boxer:cocktail game with friends. So lots of good ways of recognizing
David Boxer:that we have a busy summer, but I think much more focused and
David Boxer:well paced. And then, as you have already mentioned spending
David Boxer:a couple of days here over the Fourth of July with the family
David Boxer:and some close friends up north, here in Minnesota, and having
David Boxer:that time with family, for me is like a great recharge
Christina Lewellen:moment. That's really awesome. So as we
Christina Lewellen:start wrapping up our time with you today, one of my final
Christina Lewellen:questions, if you were to look ahead, and especially given the
Christina Lewellen:experience that you've had in your role for as long as you've
Christina Lewellen:been there. What does a great school year look like like? What
Christina Lewellen:would you hope for the coming school year? What does it look
Christina Lewellen:like if it's a good one?
David Boxer:I think if it's a great school year, most
David Boxer:importantly, I would say that students, as you get a chance to
David Boxer:talk with them, are like, ignited about what they're
David Boxer:learning in and out of the classroom, right? Like they feel
David Boxer:very much like they have caring adults who really know who they
David Boxer:are, that they feel like they're in a community where they can be
David Boxer:their full selves. I think then, of course, that's really
David Boxer:important. Then in order to sustain that, care is making
David Boxer:sure we're caring for our teachers. So like teachers
David Boxer:themselves, feeling really curious, growing feeling like
David Boxer:what they are leading in and out of the classroom is something
David Boxer:that they feel sustained and cared for on the staff side or
David Boxer:the IT side, team members will talk about feeling like they
David Boxer:have accomplished a goal that they had set out, let's say,
David Boxer:when we set our fall goals, and that they've been able to really
David Boxer:see them through as we have like a cycle of both performance
David Boxer:growth and performance management, where they feel like
David Boxer:they have both met a departmental or institutional
David Boxer:need, but also pursued potentially professional goal
David Boxer:that will help the school, in the long run, an area that is a
David Boxer:stretch goal for them. And I would say then, in terms of like
David Boxer:our families, that they are feeling very much like the
David Boxer:school serving the community in a way that each one of their
David Boxer:children has grown into a much different young person than the
David Boxer:start of the school year. I think really, when it comes down
David Boxer:to, you know, I like to think of like the root word of education
David Boxer:at akade, the root word and the definition of that. Is to come
David Boxer:from within. And I think, in this day and age where
David Boxer:information is more accessible than ever, helping students
David Boxer:develop knowledge dispositions and understandings in a way that
David Boxer:looks very different at the end of the year than the start of
David Boxer:the year, and that they feel like they have grown as a young
David Boxer:person or as a human being, that is, I think, the sign of a
David Boxer:really good mirror. Priorities will shift, needs will shift.
David Boxer:Things will come out of left field. That always will happen.
David Boxer:But the resilience of a community, I think, really comes
David Boxer:down to we're all very much mission aligned to what we do,
David Boxer:which is to help grow and raise a next generation of young
David Boxer:people who will grow and raise into good human beings and good
David Boxer:adults. I
Christina Lewellen:love that. Thank you for that. I want to
Christina Lewellen:know what you guys would say to that too. I love that answer.
Christina Lewellen:David bill and Hiram, what does a good school year look like for
Christina Lewellen:you guys?
Hiram Cuevas:I'd like to echo much of what David said. I think
Hiram Cuevas:we are often surprised with how the students come in and then
Hiram Cuevas:when they exit, how they've undergone this tremendous
Hiram Cuevas:metamorphosis at the various stages, and we're all part of
Hiram Cuevas:big schools. So we get to see the span across the Lower
Hiram Cuevas:School, the middle school or the upper school. Then when they
Hiram Cuevas:come back for alumni functions, it really is quite fascinating
Hiram Cuevas:to see the overall metamorphosis and then realize how they've
Hiram Cuevas:become just quality human beings
Bill Stites:coming off of the summer, how do I know that I've
Bill Stites:had a good school year? To be completely frank, is with all
Bill Stites:the stuff that we do over the summer, if I'm bored by that
Bill Stites:during the school year, I know it's going to be a good year,
Bill Stites:because that means that all the work, all the effort that went
Bill Stites:into, everything that we did during that time, this time that
Bill Stites:we have now paid off and paid off? Well, all the pre planning
Bill Stites:work, all the stuff that goes into it, left me in a position
Bill Stites:where it is truly ubiquitous. It is just there. It's like air.
Bill Stites:It's just happening. We're not thinking about it anymore. It
Bill Stites:just simply works. So for me, that's how I judge a good school
Bill Stites:year based on the projects that we've taken on, but you did
Bill Stites:mention some David that I think is really important in terms of
Bill Stites:a good school year is when we get to engage in those
Bill Stites:conversations that are truly mission aligned, that are going
Bill Stites:to improve teaching and learning and move the school forward, If
Bill Stites:we've got time to dig into and work on those types of problems.
Bill Stites:You know, I was really struck by the number of times that you
Bill Stites:said the words problems of practice, the amount of time
Bill Stites:that we can begin to then dig in on those things, because we're
Bill Stites:not worried about the operational things that can
Bill Stites:dominate what we do so frequently in this work, then I
Bill Stites:know that we've had a successful summer and a successful school
Bill Stites:year, is that when we're able to go deep on those questions and
Bill Stites:those things that are really going to bring the biggest
Bill Stites:meaning, I don't know any Latin, I don't know any root words to
Bill Stites:any of the things I've just said, but when you can get to
Bill Stites:That level of it, I think, is truly indicative of a good year.
Christina Lewellen:Well, I really hope for all three of you
Christina Lewellen:that your wishes and hopes for a good school year manifest. I
Christina Lewellen:think they will, especially with leaders like you at the helm.
Christina Lewellen:David, this has been such a pleasure to get to know you a
Christina Lewellen:bit better and to also hear about all the great work you're
Christina Lewellen:doing. What strikes me about this conversation is you just
Christina Lewellen:spend so much time talking about and celebrating and lifting up
Christina Lewellen:your team, and I really value that. So this has been an
Christina Lewellen:incredibly satisfying and informational conversation. I'm
Christina Lewellen:just so grateful that you carved out the time to do it. I have
David Boxer:had such a good rip and again, really a huge fan of
David Boxer:what the three of you are doing and learning so much from my
David Boxer:peers in and out of the Atlas community because of it. So
David Boxer:really appreciate the invitation to join.
Christina Lewellen:Well with that. We'll let you get back to
Christina Lewellen:the Fourth of July holiday. I hope you have a very lovely rest
Christina Lewellen:of your summer and keep in touch with us on all these incredible
Christina Lewellen:projects that you're doing.
Peter Frank:This has been talking technology with Atlas,
Peter Frank:produced by the Association of technology leaders in
Peter Frank:independent schools. For more information about Atlas and
Peter Frank:Atlas membership, please visit theatlas.org if you enjoyed this
Peter Frank:discussion, please subscribe, leave a review and share this
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Peter Frank:community, thank you for listening. You.