Reflections on Change

Reflections on Change

November 21, 2014

I know that when I was hired, one question people had (whether they asked me or not) was how much of The Academy was I going to try to change. I had a similar question: how much was I going to want to change? People tend to be nervous about change; some even fear it. Not good change or bad change; just change itself. To some people, change breeds instability and signifies a breaking off from the past which they hold dear.

The Academy did not present itself to me during my interviews at a school desperately trying to change. Many people loved the traditions and heritage of The Academy, loved that we adhere to our mission and founding principles, and continue to do things in the way they have been done. These kinds of patterns become rituals which give comfort and a sense of continuity. I told you during our earliest meetings, I love ritual and history, and I was not looking to tear down The Academy and rebuild it when clearly there is so much meaningful tradition here.

I still hold to that. There is so much fine history and love here; we do not need to tear down The Academy. The more time I spend here, and the more time I invest in knowing you all, the  more comfortable I am with ideas about what we might do to change the school, together. My goal is, and has been, to learn during my first year and try not to suggest large changes until we know one another well; I still hold to that, too.

The future of The Academy will look different than its past. Let us not fear change: it is the harbinger of greatness. We will continue to find comfort in the traditions which give us meaning and purpose and challenge in the changes we make together. We will grow the school and community together into something that we all continue to hold dear.

Dr. Brian Bloomfield
Head of School, Academy at Charlemont

Reflections on Change