Ted Fish, PhD, Executive Director, Gardner Carney Leadership Institute
Welcome to the first installment of gcLi Quarterly. The story of how this arose is a reflection of its vision. Jay Parker LL ’11 initiated the idea when he told me about some of the exciting leadership initiatives he was building at Calvert School and with the Association of Independent Schools of Maryland (AIMS) community. One of these was the creation of a newsletter. “A newsletter?” I said. “I’ve been thinking it was time to expand ours.”
And so this quarterly resource was born: under his leadership. Increasingly, that’s how we run at gcLi. One of our graduates has a good idea, they tell us about it, and together we collaborate to push our organization forward, helping teachers to systematically develop leadership in their students.
Please don’t be fooled by appearances. This isn’t really a newsletter. It’s the latest portal for the bustling exchange of ideas we already have and ideas we want to perpetuate in this organization. It’s a hub for learning, thinking, and sharing thoughts and practices pertinent to the pedagogy of leadership.
To that end, I encourage you to read these pieces by Heidi Kasevich, Kelsey Schroeder, Jay Parker, Mia Franz, and Chris Howes. They are on the front lines of this work. They have developed extraordinary pedagogy. Read their words. Enter their minds. Try out what they say. Use it as the edge against which you sharpen your own practice.
And consider writing for us, as well. If you are developing an extraordinary course, program, or initiative, contact Jay with your idea. If you are revitalizing a pre-existing club or function or refashioning school life to turn over more of the work to students themselves, then we want to hear from you. Perhaps you have read an article or attended a talk which speaks to your heart? Perhaps you know someone who is a maverick in developing leadership initiatives and you can nudge them our way? Perhaps you have a galvanizing question or topic you’d like explored?
This is your hub, your forum. Dive in. Enjoy. Help to create it, so together we help as many educators—and students—as possible.
Ted Fish has served as the Executive Director of the Gardner Carney Leadership Institute since 2009. He is an experienced teacher, educational consultant, and speaker. Dr. Fish holds a doctorate in Educational Leadership and a master’s in Philosophy and Education from Teachers College, Columbia University, as well as a master’s in business administration from the University of New Mexico.