The Students are Coming! The Students are Coming!

For decades, the first day of school came and went and I never gave it another thought.  When I was a student I just showed up and the school year began, as a parent I just sent my child and the school year was underway, however this year, I had the honor of seeing the start of the school year from behind the scenes (to be honest the school year has not started yet for the kids) and all I can say is wow! I never really thought about how much preparation it takes, about how many small details need to fall into place and how much pride the teachers and staff take in making sure everything is just right for when the students arrive.

Teachers actually started planning for the start of this school year before last school year even ended.  They needed to submit certain maintenance requests regarding what desks may need fixing, what equipment they might need and what colors they may want their room.  Over the summer, our amazing maintenance team did everything they could to prepare and there is still more to do.  The natural wear and tear takes its toll but everyone does the best they can with the equipment they have available to them.   It is also wonderful that our building is in use 11 months per year and that demands that every part of the building receives proper attention.

That is just the physical pieces.  Throughout the summer, the school leadership team has been working hard to enhance the protocols for the entire staff regarding social media usage, professionalism, enhancing our communications with each other and parents and the community.  The leadership team also reviewed new curriculum and evaluated the best way to educate and prepare the teachers and staff to implement these new creative and critical methodologies.  There were numerous conversations had that seemed mundane but each one was carefully approached with care and intention.  In a facility with limited space, coordinating schedules is proves difficult but not impossible.  Communicating with parents so that we receive all the proper forms, working with teachers and parents to make sure their needs are addressed and making sure every staff members has a parking assignment are just some of the items that need to be addressed.

All this work and then the teachers are back and it is now truly crunch time, just two weeks until the students arrive.  The new staff arrive first, nerves and butterflies abound, not sure what to think, but eager to jump in and explore policies and procedures and implementing curriculum.  Then the returning teachers appear, there are warm greetings, hugs, tears of joy celebrating simchas and tears of sadness consoling friends that had very difficult summers, but overall, each person is glad to have their network back.  Then it is time to jump right in, discussing the theme for the year and how it will permeate every aspect of our school.  The teachers approach and address the theme with intention, which is wonderful because that is our theme, Kavanah, intention. 

The teachers and staff spend two full weeks learning and growing together.  They spend time preparing their rooms so that they are warm and welcoming when the students arrive in a few days.   I am in awe of the joy, the care and the intention with which the teachers approach each and every task.  They are fully aware that the more they invest into staff week(s) the greater the impact they can have on their children (and they do treat them like their children). 

The words above do not do justice to what I observed and what I was a part of this past week (and few months).  From the maintenance team to the Head of School, from the parking valet to the teachers, from the security team to the administrators, each person completed their tasks with care and with intention.  They understand the importance of what they are doing and also the potential impact it has.  I will never look at the start of the school year the same, for even before the first child steps into the room, the teachers have already put their heart and soul in framing the students' experience from day one through the end of the school year.  It is a wonderful experience to be a part of and I look forward to hearing amazing stories this coming year but for now, I tip my hat (or my tie knot) to the amazing work of all those involved with making sure our children have the greatest possible experience that fosters their growth and love for education. 

It takes a unified effort of a whole team working hand in hand together

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Preparation HHD

Trompa Knot - The French Horn
Preparing for the Blast of the Shofar

We are less than 48 hours from the first blast of the shofar, announcing the start of the month of Elul, the month preceding the High Holy Days.  The sound of the shofar calls on us to prepare ourselves for the seriousness of the High Holy Days.   Yes, in Judaism there is a whole month of preparation, a whole month of repairing ourselves before we stand before G-d on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur asking for forgiveness for our transgressions.  Having 29 days of preparation and being reminded each day by the blast of the shofar that we must prepare ourselves seems at first a little over the top.  Why can't it just be one week or the 10 days from Rosh Hashanah through Yom Kippur?  There is a lot of prep time.

Then I think about preparing for an ask (solicitation), a serious ask where we are asking the prospect to make perhaps the largest gift they have ever made.  Preparation for a solicitation like that could take years before it formally happens.   Taking the time to invest in a prospect, learning more about them, their passions, their interests and the importance of your community to them is a critical and does not happen overnight or in a week.  In addition, finding points of connection between you and the prospect is important in building trust and developing their belief in you, knowing that you will handle and treat their generosity with care and with respect. 

Approximately one week before Rosh Hashanah, there is a service called Selichot, it is a night where we begin the final preparations before we stand before G-d.  We have been preparing ourselves, but now it is time to take the focus to the next level.  As an ask approaches, we begin the final preparations, making sure we have the proper documents to share in place, making sure we have the best people to make the ask and the right people will be in the room for the ask.  We must be prepared, organized and ready to be judged.

After Selichot, Rosh Hashanah is observed, we present ourselves to G-d and enter into the 10 days of Repentance.  We make sure to present ourselves correctly, evaluating if there are loose ends that we still need to address and prepare ourselves for final judgment on Yom Kippur.  As the solicitation process continues we meet with the prospect make the ask and then after the meeting there is still follow-up.  Expressing gratitude, securing "Letters of Commitment" and confirming how the gift will be given, via check, stock, credit card or another method.  Once the ask happens, the process is not over.

As we move past the High Holy Days, it is important to do check-ins with ourselves, making sure we are still dedicated to the promises we made during our preparation and repentance.  We continue to enhance ourselves as people. Just as we continue to work on ourselves, the relationship with the donor does not end with a gift. The stewardship must continue.  The donor must know that they are appreciated and the relationship was never just about securing the donation.  A gift is only part of building the relationship, just as the High Holy Days are only a part of our relationship with G-d and us.

So over the next month, not only spend time reflecting on the mistakes you made over the past year and how you can be a better person moving forward, evaluate how you can enhance relationships and develop more meaningful connections with others.

I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles!

Every week I try to post something about fundraising and share my thoughts on some topics that I had been thinking about the past week, but this week I am going to focus on only a personal item, the English Premier League!

Dignified with the
Corsage Knot

Tomorrow, English Football launches the 2015-2016 season.  Every team has set their goals for the year.  While every team would like to win the title, the honestly reality is that only five teams (probably only 2 or 3) really have a chance to win the title.  The other 15 teams set other achievable goals, from finishing in the top four to quality for the UEFA Champions League, the most prestigious club soccer competition that puts the best teams from all over Europe against each other regardless of their home country.  Others have a goal of finishing in the top seven to qualify for UEFA Europa League (the second tier tournament of the best clubs in Europe).  Still for others, it is a top half finish and for a few, it is just to remain in the Premier League.  One of the things I like (or hate when my team is relegated) is that there are multiple tiers of competition in British Soccer.  The top 2 teams from the second tier (The Championship) automatically move up to the Premier League and then there is a mini-tournament between the 3rd - 6th place teams for the final promotion spot.  The bottom three teams in the Premier League are relegated to the Championship.

My team is West Ham United, probably their fans are best known as the inspiration for the movie the "Green Street Hooligans" or that they are the team that won the bid to play in the London 2012 Olympic Stadium as their future home, are poised to make a nice run this year.  My hope is a top seven finish, but I would be happy with a top 10 result.   Big Sam Allardyce and his snoozer style football are gone from Upton Park as he was relieved of his managerial duties and in comes Slaven Bilic, who is charged with adding excitement to West Ham's style and more impressive results. His impact was felt right away with the signing of Dmitri Payet, a midfielder who was playing in France.  Last year, Payet was one of the most active assist men in the world creating over 150 chances for his team (making great passes to put teammates in position to score goals).  West Ham also brought in Angelo Ogbonna who will be a strong central defender, replacing the aging and unfortunately injury prone James Collins.  In addition to these two high potential players, they also brought in midfielders Manuel Lanzini and Pedro Obiang.  These additions have me very excited for West Ham's potential this year.

At the beginning of the year, everyone makes predictions about what the starting eleven should look like.  Mark Noble is the captain and has been a fixture for West Ham for as long as I can remember, but personally, I am not a fan.  He is definitely a great clubhouse leader, but his impact does not translate to the pitch.  In addition, Kevin Nolan who has been solid in the past, just does not have the talent to maintain his role with these new young guns who joined the team.

My preferred starting eleven is as follows:

Goalkeeper: Adrian

Defenders: Jenkinson -RB, Reid - CB (c), Ogbonna - CB, Cresswell - LB

Midfielders: Kouyate - CDM, Amalfitano  - R, Lanzini -L, Payet - CAM and Obiang - CAM

Striker - Sakho

If they were healthy, I would put Andy Carroll or Enner Valencia up top with Sakho, but neither is at the moment, so instead Obiang gets the start in the midfield.

"Come on You Irons"