on Education for life: Q&A with keith evans

As one who has been around independent schools as a student and teacher for the better part of four decades, I’ve heard over and over and over the importance of preparing young people for college. That’s why Keith Evans’ words near the end of his address to the faculty at an August meeting grabbed my attention.

Amidst the presentation of awards, update on summer work, and announcements about events of the new term, our head of school spoke excitedly about a point of emphasis presented in the new Strategic Plan. Collegiate, he said, isn’t just about preparation for college. It’s about preparation for life. 

Interesting concept, I thought, as I scribbled notes on the coffee-stained napkin I’d stuck in my pocket. We’ve talked about it for years. Maybe I’ve just never heard it articulated quite that way.

Intrigued, I asked Evans a couple of days later if he’d expand on the idea. Sure, he said, so with cassette recorder in hand, I stopped by his office, took a seat, pushed the “record” button, and asked my first question.

What do you mean when you say Collegiate is a life prep school?

The whole idea was inspired by two things. One was responses to alumni surveys.  Reading them, we became aware that during their time here, our alums had a particular set of values instilled in them not just for college but for life after college.

The reality is that when you have kids in this experience, as influential as it is and as long as you have them, you are forming elements of their character.

The other piece was getting a broader definition of what that means.  Where is it we need to focus?  A sense of honor, of course, and respect for other people.  A sense of engaging the world.  Being educated to be curious about the world and interacting with people of different backgrounds not only in this country but in their native countries.  

Having the resources we have, having the kids as long as we have them, and being philosophically where we are, Collegiate has the potential to be a powerful formative influence.

OK, so how do we do it? 

I don’t think there’s any question that the Petri dish for that formative experience has been relationships with faculty.  It’s the curriculum delivered through personality that’s shaping and forming our kids. 

Then, there’s that notion of looking at the academic and intellectual life of the school beyond narrow definitions.  That extends to opportunities outside the classroom such as assemblies and foreign exchanges.

Are we really doing something new or just clarifying what we’ve been doing? 

No question, the school’s always done it.  There’s been a lot of focus in the last few years about building the curriculum and putting in place support systems for students and probably less time spent thinking about ways we can interact in a broader setting.  The time’s right to do that.  I don’t think there’s any question that instilling core values is enough of a job for a day, especially with the influences out there in the world.

The question is, when you understand the impact you can have with kids and redefine what it is you’re about beyond just preparing them for college, it triggers your imagination, and that’s good.

It seems like we’re aiming very high.  Are our institutional goals attainable?

Any good school is constantly in a creative tension between holding onto its traditional mission and interpreting that mission for the circumstances it finds itself in.  That’s why a good educational institution is always changing but there’s some sense of familiarity about it.

The important thing is never to let the tension get too much but never let it be so little that you aren’t growing.