I recently was fortunate enough to attend a presentation by Daniel Pink. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia Office of Catholic Education hosted the presentation for administrators from our elementary and secondary schools. It was a great event and an indication of the vision shown by the office.
Having read A Whole New Mind, I was really looking forward to the day, and I was not disappointed. Pink’s talk was outstanding and got me thinking about many things, one of which is the subject of this post. I am sure that I have been driving family, friends, and teachers crazy with my energetic response to this book. So I thought it was time to share an idea that came to me through it.
One of the ideas that is deemed important in the book is that of story. Pink asks the reader to recall two facts from earlier in the book. I will not spoil this for those who have not yet read the book, but I can elaborate a little. There were 2 questions. I could not remember the answer to the first one, but could the other. This was what the author expected. How did I recall the answer to the second? Because the answer sought was part of a story told. That cemented the “story” idea for me.
So here I am a Catholic High School administrator. Increasing enrollment is always a goal. It is always a challenge, and the current state of our economy does not make it any easier.
But our mission is clear. We have a long tradition of outstanding education embedded with Gospel values. We have a storied history. We are starting to embrace the great shifts in teaching and learning. So what’s our story?
Recruitment has become a major part of our efforts. Would story help? Facts, stats, and statements are no longer enough. Think of all of the grads we have who have tremendous stories that began in our schools. How can we gather them and use them to tell our story? If Daniel Pink is right, and I truly believe he is, this could really help to get the word out on our schools and help us to continue to grow so that these great stories will continue.
I welcome comments, suggestions and ideas,
