Ps 119's New Principal Considers the Possibilities with Next Jump, with Gratitude

Dear Next Jump Team: Thank you so very much for inviting me to add my voice and thoughts to the possibility – such a perfect, bountiful word – of your adopting PS 119/The Dr. Emmett W. Bassett School. As the busy-ness of the school year ends and I quietly consider my new role, I find myself brimming with gratitude for and inspiration from even the work we have done and what we have learned from you thus far. Gratitude for what kindred spirits you are, and even more for the work you have done and continue to do to make the spiritual seeking I have always been drawn to in the workplace concrete, doable.*************************************************

Possibility. What a freeing, inviting lens with which to evaluate and plan! When I spoke to the staff about your mission, I initially posed the guiding question as: what are we doing well and what could we do better? I realized, though, that that kept us thinking inside the box of our past actions, regardless, to an extent, of the underlying need that they were meant to address. I realized your phrasing, “What’s working and what’s not working?” moved us so much closer to getting to know ourselves and each other, considering our needs, then thinking clearly, honestly, and without limitations about the possibilities for addressing them. ******************************************************* I’ve been pondering the powerful parent workshop you led, because I have sensed that there are many possibilities in that. It has felt difficult for us over the years for us to empower our families to open up and have a strong voice in the leadership of the school, and we have often assumed it to be a cultural diffidence among many. But they opened up with you, and even more poignantly, they expressed a need for stronger community – the most crucial need I and many colleagues would have identified, and the very thing that was being strengthened by your simple but powerful session with them. It didn’t take a lot of complex thought and initiatives, either – all you did was ask. In that simple gesture to get to know them, you empowered them to open up and find their voice in the school leadership, and to begin to build the very trust they seek to strengthen our school. What a world of tremendous possibility you demonstrated there is in just getting to know ourselves and each other better, and in considering, simply but profoundly, how to help each be better people and a better school. *******************************************************As I mentioned, I have long been drawn to the life and health of the spirit, both personally and at work. Last summer Joan and I had begun to read The Power of Full Engagement, by Jim Loehr – speak of the teacher appearing when the student is ready! It has been a challenge to put this striving into concrete practice, though, especially in a large, diverse, and multi-faceted community such as our beloved school. The approach you have shared with us -- through the PEMS pyramid, Talking Partners, Situational Workshops, and so on – gives us solid legs with which to walk this very important walk as we go forward. Whether we realize our dream of an after-school community campus, with courses and activities for adults and children alike in caring for our physical, emotional, mental and spiritual health – we are grateful and healthier already for coming to know the Next Jump family. We are on the road to making a better world, and abrim with possibilities. Thank you, and please stay in touch. Michele

Family High-Jump

Yesterday a team from Next Jump came to meet with our parents, children, and teachers, in the next phase of their "adoption" process. In the midst of a dramatic and soggy thunderstorm at dismissal time, about 40 families gathered in the auditorium to hear an overview of Next Jump's approach to a healthy work enviroment leading to a better world, and how that dream might be realized at PS 119/The Dr. Emmett W.Bassett School. We so appreciated the way the Next Jumpers worked with our students, taking them off, while their parents conferred, for some sports, and exciting computer coding activities, to walk the walk regarding the physical and mental health levels of the PEMS quadrant. We trusted them with our students and that says something beyond words.We were especially moved by the natural collaboration by the guest instructors and PS 119 faculty. We already feel like a part of their team!******************************************************* The parents were the real stars, though. They discussed openly and articulately what works at PS 119 and what isn't working. They are ready to move to another level: good to great. They are ready to contribute to making things much better. This partnership, and all we are learning from Next Jump, could take us all from good to great, and that's what the Dr. Emmett W. Bassett School craves and deserves. We hope Next Jump will consider the magic of our third date and choose us. We know we will make them proud. Better yet, we will make us prouder and better. And we will make a better world, one school, one family, one child at a time.

Next Jump With Joy!

When the student is ready, the dazzling teacher appears, and sometimes from unexpected places! My school, PS 119 The Dr. Emmett W. Bassett School, has recently had the fascinating opportunity to get to know and learn from a tech company called Next Jump. They're a thriving, happy company with nearly 0% turnover, and are looking to "adopt" a NYC public school to provide resources and support aimed at building a school culture that fosters physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual health (known as "PEMS"). It's a practice they put into deeply committed play in their own organization. Teams from the four schools being considered for adoption visited their offices recently, and saw firsthand some of the rituals and practices that make up their culture, including an on-site gym for employees, lots of free healthy communal meals, "Talking Partners" who daily "meet, vent, [then get back to] work," and Situational Workshops where employees get advice on how to handle sticky situations from experienced colleagues. Next Jump is committed to the idea of taking care of ourselves so we can take care of each other, and make a better world. Even if we are not the school selected for support, adopting many of these practices would answer a host of urgent needs at PS 119 The Dr. Emmett W. Bassett School, in the Bronx. ********************************************** Don't get me wrong -- I love my school. How lucky I am to be a coach in such a strong neighborhood school, treasured by its community, led by an experienced, collaborative, truly awesome faculty. It's a big, sprawling multi-site campus, but we really do unite to provide the best for our children. Though the staff and Bronx neighborhood have undergone the same seismic shifts as the rest of New York City over the decades, one thing has been constant: our long-standing tradition of excellence continues to be deeply responsive to the needs of this ever-changing, diverse community. And it's a happy, safe place for children: growing up at P.S. 119 is marked by an array of joyful milestones and celebrations. In the words of our mission statement, we believe all children are special. ************************************************* But, like any large organization with such a heady mission, we have a few serious stress fractures. Our teachers -- many of whom are also parents -- work so hard, and typically put themselves last. They're exhausted, sometimes cranky, and often neglect their health. Direct, productive collegial communication can take a hit at times. There's never enough time for professional planning and growth during the day. The children do not have all their health needs optimally met, either. We don't have the staff to ensure they play outside every day. A few after school groups such as our basketball team are fabulous at beginning to address this, but we don't have the funds for an after school program. Though we provide popular workshops during the day, our parents need even more guidance in making sure the kids eat well, sleep enough, exercise and play outside of school, and in supporting their kids' academic growth. Unfortunately, we don't have the time or funds for an Adult Education program. Although we have a comprehensive positive behavior program in place, many of our students could benefit from more interpersonal skills and conflict resolution education and practice, but we lack the time and funds for classes and activites to address this. Even with our carefully chosen and planned instruction and extensive academic intervention, fewer than half our students -- 50% of whom are second language learners -- meet state standards in English Language Arts and Mathematics. We need more intervention, but we don't have the time and funds for adequate tutoring. **************************************************** As we brainstormed and prioriotized our strengths and needs at the Next Jump offices, our essential need became crystal clear. The support from Next Jump, the one bit of culture that would most powerfully address just about all of these significant stress fractures, is the creation of an after school program based in PEMS for all. We would love NJ's help with the founding of a kind of community campus with classes for teachers, parents and children, addressing the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual needs of our beloved learning community. The guidance in networking, fundraising, structuring, and mentoring such an initiative would nuture our already strong school culture powerfully. We are grateful for the insights we are gaining, and will surely implement many whether or not we are "adopted." As they say at Next Jump, a better me plus a better you means a better us, and together we can make a better world. And isn't that what schools are all about?