OUR COMMON PURPOSE
2013-2019
Mission Statement: The mission of Besant Hill School is the development of each individual’s intellectual
and artistic abilities. Through awakening the spirit of inquiry, we encourage each student to pursue integrity and
excellence. Our non-competitive community builds honesty, respect, compassion, and responsibility. Our goal
is to develop a lifelong habit of learning as embodied in our school’s motto, Aun Aprendo—I am still learning.
BESANT HILL SCHOOL
PORTRAIT OF A GRADUATE
Our Graduates Will
Think Critically and Synthesize Knowledge
Honor Their Individual Strengths and Be Resilient
Engage in Their Creative and Artistic Passions
Model Global Citizenship
Embody the Ideals of Environmental Activism
“Our purpose is to teach our students to wish to go on educating themselves. And for our
graduates our valedictory wishes can be summed up in a single phrase: May you go on learning!”
(Aun Aprendo - I am Still Learning) - Aldous Huxley, HVS Commencement Address 1951.
To Our Students, Faculty, Staff, Trustees, Alumni, and Friends:
“Let your life speak” is an old Quaker saying used to describe a precept that
one’s actions, not one’s professed beliefs, are of utmost importance. One could
also interpret it to mean that if we choose to live our lives with purpose, then
the result will be actions that are examples of that purpose. Eventually, those
actions will have an impact on others and hopefully change the world. For me,
this resonates with our school on many levels.
Seven years ago, our entire community of students, faculty, trustees, parents,
alumni, and friends came together to build the first strategic plan for our school.
Over the course of a year, many ambitious goals were laid out to help map our
“purpose” for the next six years. In July of 2007, we published that document, and it
became a guiding force in our everyday decisions. It was the common voice of the
community at that time, asking us to bring the school to a new level of excellence.
with purpose
we began by listening
Since July of 2007, we have reflected many times on that strategic plan and made
numerous advances toward the objectives that were presented. More than 75 percent
of the goals have been accomplished as we have made a tremendous amount of
progress in the past six years. We have lived by the mission, our purpose. This has
resulted in many actions that have helped produce wonderful graduates who will have
a positive impact on our global community.
As the first strategic plan was nearing the end of its term, we, in collaboration
with the Happy Valley Foundation Board of Trustees, began to take the necessary
steps to again begin the process of creating a plan to map out the next six years
of our school’s future. We began by listening. We gathered information from our
entire school and extended community about the dreams, aspirations, and worries
for our school’s future. Our Strategic Planning Committee then formed those
results into goals and strategies. After many hours of review and input on various
drafts by both members of the committee and the Happy Valley Foundation Board, the
result is a document for the future of our school.
As I prepared to distribute this document to our community, I grew increasingly
uncomfortable with the term “strategic plan.” Personally, “strategy” feels like a
military term — not a feeling that I would like to convey about our work at Besant
Hill. Thinking back to the Quaker phrase, my conclusion is that what we are really
doing is purpose planning. Our challenge, through this document and our mission, is
to show, operationally, why we exist — to be an example for the world.
As you read this document and see our goals for the next six years, please know
that it includes all of the voices of our community. It is our shared vision — not
strategic planning, but mission planning and vision planning. It is our purpose.
On behalf of our entire community, I am happy to present to you our work for the
next six years entitled “Our Common Purpose: 2013–2019.” May we be examples for
the entire world, letting our school speak . . . one graduate at a time.
Aun aprendo,
Randy R. Bertin
Head of School
THE SCHOOL’S PRIORITIES
Each of These Will Be Tackled with Equal Effort and Attention
TEACHING, LEARNING, AND LIVING
FACULTY DEVELOPMENT AND PEDAGOGY
COMMUNITY BY DESIGN
AN ENVIRONMENT FOR LEARNING
FINANCIAL STRENGTH AND STABILITY
GUIDANCE AND OVERSIGHT
PRIORITY I
Teaching, Learning, & Living
Goal: To educate our students by continuing the design and implementation of
a curriculum that develops intellectual and artistic abilities and builds initiative
in students, as they become competent and confident global citizens who serve and
lead in a changing world, as defined by the Besant Hill School Portrait of a Graduate.
STRATEGIES
Continue to examine the entire school program and determine how the basic
programs of fine and performing arts and environmental sustainability can be
better integrated as a central part of each student’s experience.
Explore the possibility of integrating a sustainable agricultural program
committed to green practices.
Utilize the opportunities offered by the Happy Valley Cultural Center to
broaden the arts and music activities through student participation as interns
and performers.
Monitor, in collaboration with the student government, how the school
assembly addresses present issues while maintaining important traditions.
PRIORITY I
Teaching, Learning, & Living
STRATEGIES
Investigate, in collaboration with the student government, a community
service program to increase awareness of social and global responsibility.
Determine which school traditions are fundamental and preserve them by
incorporating them into the curriculum.
Determine how each of our cocurricular programs (Outdoor Education,
Debate and Public Speaking, Experiential Learning, Advisor System,
Sustainable Agriculture, Capstone, Athletics, and Human Development)
supports the mission, philosophy, and the Besant Hill School Portrait of a
Graduate, and allocate resources accordingly.
Examine the best uses of technology and technology skills in the
classroom while developing and integrating information literacy skills
across the curriculum.
PRIORITY II
Faculty Development & Pedagogy
Goal: Nurture a highly skilled faculty by inspiring as well as appropriately
compensating teachers, including the creation of a professional development process.
STRATEGIES
Explore programs for faculty that will sustain teacher excellence in
academic programming and allow for even greater pedagogical enrichment.
Examine sabbaticals and grants that will allow faculty to take courses or
extended time off to become better educators in their fields.
Establish school tuition levels that will enable the school to recruit
sufficient faculty to uphold the school mission and continue the emphasis
on each student as an individual.
PRIORITY II
Faculty Development & Pedagogy
STRATEGIES
Conduct and conclude searches to fill the newly created positions of Digital
Arts Instructor and Design and Marketing Coordinator.
Develop a new hiring process that allows internal candidates the
opportunity to grow professionally within the school in order to promote
our culture of continued learning.
Commit to the possible expansion of Internet and technology staff as a
curriculum resource for faculty training and student instruction. Examine
the possibility of developing an internship program to fill this role.
PRIORITY III
Community by Design
Goal: To recruit diverse and promising students and then cultivate and support
the educational development of each individual as defined by our school mission,
the Besant Hill School Portrait of a Graduate, and the principle of lifelong learning
embodied by our school motto Aun Aprendo, I am still learning.
STRATEGIES
Enhance student recruitment by continuing to better utilize the admissions
application process to ensure that students demonstrate a readiness for a
college preparatory curriculum, which includes the fine and performing arts.
Carefully and purposefully increase the financial aid budget to better
accommodate students who are a good fit for the school but are
disadvantaged financially.
Continue to devote necessary resources to ensure that students excel in
the areas necessary for acceptance by the college or institution that is
the best individual choice for them, particularly in the areas of the fine
and performing arts.
“...To broaden the arts and music...”
PRIORITY III
Community by Design
STRATEGIES
Cultivate an understanding and self-reflection opportunities for the
Besant Hill School Portrait of a Graduate by incorporating the document
into the planning of cocurricular programming.
Utilize the Individualized Learning Plan as a key component of the advisor
system to support students as they progress toward graduation.
Continue to investigate new markets for the school, particularly
internationally, to increase diversity and fulfill the original intention of the
school to be a place of understanding between cultures around the world.
Continue to improve retention by offering the appropriate support to all
students. This will ensure that each program is understood by every student
and is communicated clearly and consistently.
PRIORITY IV
Teaching,
An Environment
Learning,
for Learning
& Living
Goal: To continuously maintain and improve the physical plant, infrastructure, and
Strategies
aesthetically cohesive environment while ensuring green practices for the success
and support of the Besant Hill School mission.
Investigate, in collaboration with the student government, a community service
program to increase awareness of social and global responsibility.
STRATEGIES
Determine
which
school
traditions
are fundamental
andtopreserve
Continue to
improve
Internet
infrastructure
in order
increase them by
incorporating
into the
reliability andthem
support
for curriculum.
the technological goals of the school.
Explore thehow
possibility
enclosing
the EOS (Outdoor
outside decks
in order
Determine
each ofofour
v v programs
Education,
Debate
to create
to allowLearning,
for an indoor
communal
and
Publica common
Speaking,space
Experiential
Advisor
System,gathering
Sustainable
space in theCapstone,
boys’ dormitory.
Agriculture,
Athletics, and Human Development) supports the
mission, philosophy, and the Besant Hill School Portrait of a Graduate and
Explorefocus
committing
financial
resources to proceed with a campus-wide
allocate
and resources
accordingly.
security upgrade.
Examine the best uses of technology and technology skills in the classroom while
Lay the groundwork to raise funds, after the faculty housing and pool
developing and integrating information literacy skills across the curriculum.
projects, for the building of a new dining commons and wellness center.
PRIORITY IV
An Environment for Learning
STRATEGIES
Complete the faculty housing and swimming pool capital campaign project.
Integrate facilities audit findings and recommendations into Plant
Maintenance Schedule and Campus Master (Physical) Plan.
Utilize the adopted Environmental Sustainability Strategic Plan as a
rubric for guiding and implementing green practices as they relate to
the physical plant, green space, and green energy sources.
Incorporate capital needs that fall into the school’s deferred
maintenance category into the long-term strategic and financial
plans, in addition to any construction or projects dictated by the
capital campaign or facilities audit.
Assess and determine facility maintenance needs and hire staff
accordingly to support these findings.
PRIORITY V
Financial Strength & Stability
Goal: To adhere to the school’s master financial plan in order to support the
school’s mission and programmatic goals of Our Common Purpose in an efficient and
environmentally sustainable manner.
STRATEGIES
Create a one-page financial plan (from our current plan) as an attachment
to this document, showing major quantitative/monetary implications of
Our Common Purpose. This will include planned increases in all expenditure
lines, unless noted otherwise, to ensure that all goals in Our Common Purpose
are financially planned for.
Build cash reserves to the recommended 10 percent of the operating budget
($500,000) by the final year of Our Common Purpose in order to better establish the
school’s long-term financial sustainability.
Implement a budgeting model that does not rely on soft income during the academic
year but instead has expenditures fully funded by planned hard income so that
yearly budgetary goals are based on “more predictable” revenue.
PRIORITY V
Financial Strength & Stability
STRATEGIES
Operate at full capacity of 84 boarders and 14 day students, and with the
construction of the additional student and faculty housing, investigate adjusting that
capacity to 88 boarders and 12 day students so that we may utilize the anticipated
new buildings.
Explore and expand opportunities to bolster revenues from auxiliary programs and
facilities rentals so that more soft income may be added to the school’s revenue.
Work to establish and develop an ETS testing center for academic year students
and summer program students to take the SAT and TOEFL tests on campus. The
development of this center would also be an ancillary revenue source for the school.
Investigate the financial feasibility of moving toward being a more paperless school
by incorporating electronic textbooks and tablets for classroom use, in order to
better accomplish our goal of becoming a more environmentally sustainable campus.
Implement one cohesive relational database that incorporates the needs of all areas
of the school so that administrative work and communication become more efficient.
PRIORITY VI
Guidance & Oversight
Goal: The Happy Valley Foundation will continue its commitment to support and protect
Besant Hill School, its mission, and the foundation land committed to the school.
STRATEGIES
Assess the current school facilities and feasibility study and determine the demands
of the next 10 years by updating the school’s master facilities plan.
Communicate with school administration regarding the creation of a long-term
strategic land use plan that purposely integrates and defines common intentions,
relationships, and responsibilities.
Explore the establishment of a deferred maintenance fund dedicated to the repair
and update of current and future facilities and infrastructure, encompassing all
activities of the Happy Valley Foundation.
Strategic Planning Committee:
Randy R. Bertin, Head of School* – Chair
Dan Call, Performing and Visual Arts Chair
Tod Cossairt P’96, ‘99, ‘07, Director of Environmental Sustainability
Terra Furguiel P’13, Associate Director of Admissions and Financial Aid
Kevin Henschel ’93, Director of Athletics
Tina Leslie, Director of English as a Second Language
Portia Pelow-Dickerson ‘00, Dean of Academics
Curtis Singmaster, Visual Arts Chair
James Sloss* ‘48, Chairman, Happy Valley Foundation
Radha Sloss* ‘49, Trustee, Happy Valley Foundation
Alex Smith, Business Officer
John Starrels* ‘61, Trustee, Happy Valley Foundation
Jennifer Stroud ‘97, History Department Chair
Megan Walton, Assistant Head of School
*Denotes – Member of the Happy Valley Foundation Board of Trustees
THANK YOU…
We thank you for your interest in our future. Should you have any questions, input or ideas about our
priorities for the next six years, please feel free to email us at: [email protected]