Letter from Chair of Visiting Accreditation Committee

Last month a team of eleven outside educators from some of the top schools in New England (including three from ISL schools) spent three days on the Rivers’ campus - sitting in on classes, talking to students, teachers, administrators, trustees, alumni, and parents, examining programs, reading critical documents - all for the purpose of validating the self-study Rivers had completed the year before.  The committee left as “huge fans” of the school.  Below is the letter Molly King, the chair of the committee, wrote to the Rivers community, followed by the list of visiting committee members:

November 6, 2013      

Dear Rivers Community,

The past few days have been a remarkable example of who you are as a community. From the moment the Visiting Committee stepped on campus last Sunday, we were warmly welcomed by all---students, faculty, staff, trustees, administrators and parents. 

- Students: Your spirit is infectious. From tours, class discussions, practices and games, announcements, speeches and musical performances, all of us left Rivers not only in awe of your talents, but also of your connection to your school, to your teachers and to each other. You seek to make a positive difference and you do. Keep up the great work. 

- Faculty: We are mightily impressed. Your expertise in your subject areas is matched only by your total commitment to the wellbeing of your students. They notice. Every Visiting Committee member heard stories from students about what a difference you are making to their lives. Excellence with Humanity. Your motto. There it is. 

- Administration and Staff: Talk about a can-do attitude! You collaborate at every turn, whether it's making an event happen (like hosting us), covering for each other in a time of need without regard for self, supporting families in need or finding innovative solutions to challenges big and small, you are all in for Rivers. 

- Trustees, alumni and parents: From dinner together on Sunday night to meetings in Willis House, your thoughtful reflections upon and affection for Rivers were the signature aspects of our conversations. All of you go above and beyond to share your talents and your generosity with Rivers and particularly looking at the exponential increase in your engagement over the last fifteen years, there is much for which you should be proud.

And to Tom Olverson, who is probably tempted to delete any words of praise from us, please know how much the entire Visiting Committee respects your leadership and profound affection for Rivers---both of which have had a transformative effect on this wonderful school during your tenure. 

On behalf of all of us who have had the privilege of serving on the Rivers Visiting Committee, thank you to all and know that you have eleven huge fans sprinkled across the landscape of New England schools.

Warmly,

Molly King
Chair, NEASC Visiting Committee
Head of School, Greenwich Academy

NEASC Visiting Committee Members

Molly King, Chair
Head of School
Greenwich Academy
Greenwich, CT

Theodorick B. Bland, Assistant Chair

Head of School
Milton Academy
Milton, MA

William Clapp

Mathematics Department Chair
Berwick Academy
South Berwick, ME

J. Bradley Faus

Instructor in Art
The Hotchkiss School
Lakeville, CT

Heather Flewelling

Director of Multiculturalism & Community Development
Milton Academy
Milton, MA

Tucker Hastings

Junior Class Dean, French Teacher
Brunswick School
Greenwich, CT

Maureen Keleher

Latin Teacher
Thayer Academy
Braintree, MA

Jennifer Kenerson

Mathematics Teacher
Taft School
Watertown, CT

Mark McLaughlin

Associate Head of School
Providence Country Day School
East Providence, RI

David Rost

Dean of Students
Concord Academy
Concord, MA
 

Thomas Sullivan

Head of Upper School
Greenwich Academy
Greenwich, CT

Why Rivers Implemented a New Schedule

This year Rivers introduced a new schedule, one that is significantly different from schedules of years past. With this new schedule, each course meets three times a week. On Monday each class meets for 45 minutes. On Tuesdays and Thursdays half of the classes meet for 80-minute blocks, and on Wednesdays and Fridays the other half of the classes meet for 80-minute blocks. 

So, why did we change the schedule?  What difference does a new schedule really make? 

For Rivers, the answers to these questions are in the values that define the school – specifically, our commitment to excellence, quality of experience, and innovation. 

The new schedule promotes excellence by forcing students to go deeper, gain greater insight, and revise their theories and assumptions. Longer periods mean deeper, more sophisticated thinking. Science teachers appreciate the extra time for labs and demonstrations. Teachers have had no problem varying activities within the 80-minute block to ensure students are engaged. 

Moreover, the new schedule reflects Rivers' commitment to quality of experience. We are no longer herding students from one class to another without suitable breaks and time to decompress. Students report that homework is much more manageable, and the pace of the day is not so frenetic. 

And finally, the new schedule illustrates the spirit of innovation that is a hallmark at Rivers. This is a school that is constantly looking for more and better ways to live its mission and values. The drive to find a better schedule that fosters both excellence and quality of experience emanates from this spirit.

Both students and teachers praise this schedule change! Click here to read more about the new schedule and to see some feedback from faculty members and a student.

Rivers' "Innovation Engine"

When I step back and look at the innovative environment we have developed and continue to cultivate here at Rivers, I think of our 21st Century Education focus group. Many of our recent innovations can be traced back to this group of faculty members. I affectionately call this group our “innovation engine;” it comprises faculty members who participate on a volunteer basis. They meet several times during the school year to discuss topics that are on the forefront of education. As they explore these topics, they come away with ways in which we can better live our mission at Rivers – ways in which we can innovate. One major addition to the curriculum that was originated by a member of this focus group is our Interdisciplinary Studies Department. Please take a moment to watch the following excerpt from a speech I recently delivered to a group of parents, which describes how this department started and how our Annual Fund helps support innovation at Rivers: 

If you are having trouble viewing this video, please click here.

Expressing Our "Life Force"

This summer, I had the opportunity to read Walter Isaacson’s biography of Steve Jobs. The story prompted me to think about Jobs and Apple, and the question "What makes an organization great?"

I've spent a lot of time throughout my career thinking about this question and reading books and articles about the essential ingredients that make up great organizations – leadership, technical expertise, collaboration, management techniques, marketing, strategic planning, and execution.

But the biography of Jobs gave me a new slant. I came to the conclusion that perhaps the most significant reason for an organization's greatness is the passion to bring an idea to life and the ability to find a means of expressing that idea.

Apple's greatness stemmed from Jobs' obsession with bringing the marriage of technology and humanity to life – the functionality and practical work of computers married to a belief in creativity, elegance, art, design, and experience – the human dimension so antithetical to technology before Jobs. He was committed to finding ways to express this idea.

In this regard, he had so much integrity that he demanded even the inside of the Mac be elegantly designed. This demand was the truest reflection of his passion for making incarnate his idea of the need to combine functionality and elegance in technology.

Yes, Jobs wanted to beat Microsoft and other competitors, but the genius of Apple did not arise from that desire. Rather, it came from this passion to birth an idea. It was Jobs the artist, not Jobs the businessman or computer expert, who was the essential element in Apple's greatness.

The great dancer and choreographer Martha Graham wrote a poem that captures this concept so perfectly, and I quote in part:

There is a vitality, a life force, an energy
A quickening
That is translated through you into action
And because there is only one of you
In all of time
This expression is unique.

And if you block it, it will never exist
Through any other medium,
And be lost.
The world will not have it.

During the past year at Rivers, we have spent a great deal of time reflecting on what Excellence with Humanity means to us. What are we most passionate about at Rivers? We’ve distilled our thoughts down to five attributes that we use to define Excellence with Humanity - five areas that illustrate the "life force" of this idea:

• Excellence: We’re committed to maintaining high standards in and out of the classroom. 
• Quality of Experience: It matters to us that our students are happy - that they gain a sense of self-efficacy and autonomy by facing the challenges we give them.
• Relationships: When we know and care about our students as multi-dimensional human beings, they will stretch for excellence and be willing to take risks. 
• Innovation: We’re continually looking for better ways to live our mission. 
• Character: We want to graduate great academicians, artists and athletes, but we also want to graduate great human beings.

At Rivers, Excellence with Humanity is OUR collective art - it is our creation and it demands that we seek its expression in the work we do.

This is the mission and the promise we are committed to at Rivers.

A Spirit of Innovation at Rivers

One of the defining values that has emerged in the last several years at Rivers is a spirit of innovation. Innovation at Rivers does not mean chasing the latest educational fad. Rather, it means teachers and administrators using their imaginations to find new and better ways to live our mission. Critical to living this value is the extensive professional development Rivers provides its faculty. New knowledge sparks the creative juices of our teachers as they look for ways to apply this knowledge – not to solve problems – but rather to build new programs.

The list of new programs started by teachers at Rivers is astonishing. The creation of summer science internships led to the establishment of summer business internships. The nationally recognized middle school leadership program, invented entirely by the middle school faculty, led to the establishment of the upper school leadership program. Even students get in on the act. Four years ago a senior approached a math teacher and asked if he could be her assistant in one of her classes. Four years later Rivers has a well developed teaching assistant program. Rising seniors have to apply for this program, attend every class, and can actually earn half of a credit.

Several years ago one of our physics teachers organized his classes in small groups or pods, in which students helped one another, debated, and learned from both the teacher and their pod-mates. Today, this method of organizing classes is used throughout our program. We consider it essential for preparing students for the new workplace where teamwork and communication skills are so vital. A few weeks ago I asked an upper school math teacher why she uses pods: "Because there is so much learning that takes place going down the wrong road and this forces students to articulate why they are doing what they are doing." I loved her response!