The Gavel: Thoughts from the Board Chair
Source/Author: Tom Andrews, MD, Shorecrest Board of Trustees Chair
January 16, 2015
The authors Connors, Smith and Hickman, in their best-selling book The OZ Principle, speak to the incredible power that organizations and individuals can achieve by being accountable, operating “above the line” and not slipping into playing the “victim.” (By the way, The OZ Principle is a great read for any parent and your Upper School student.)
You will be happy to learn that the individuals who make up the Shorecrest Board of Trustees practice accountability in the many decisions they must make to ensure Shorecrest is the best independent school it can be!
The Board is composed almost entirely of parents, which is typical for independent schools according to the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS). It is important to realize that each and every one of these individuals takes off their “parent” hat and becomes a Board member – making decisions for the good of the entire school, not their individual interests.
We have varied professions represented in Board leadership, including Fortune 500 executives, bank CEOs, tech industry CFOs, attorneys, investors, entrepreneurs, people who build their own companies, purchase others and know a great deal about making good decisions. As I’ve told others, this is not a group in which you try to be the smartest person in the room.
We’ve had an extremely busy and interesting year thus far. Starting with a retreat in August, we tackled recalibrating the Strategic Plan, reviewing the community survey, exploring the generative discussions of school size and diversity as well as reviewing the findings of the recent feasibility study.
The feasibility study pertains to the completion of the current master plan for the Shorecrest campus. Moving forward, we are compiling proposals from architects in the area and gathering enough data to make the right decisions for Shorecrest.
We are extremely fortunate to have such a strong and well-respected Headmaster in Mike Murphy. His peers respect him nationally as a person who cultivates leaders in his faculty and staff.
I have been a first-hand witness to the excellence of the faculty. They are developing a seamless curriculum that will keep Shorecrest on the cutting edge of education. It is our job as the Board of Trustees to ensure that Mike and his team have the support and resources necessary to carry out these goals.
From classroom to drawing room, we have the opportunity to make Shorecrest the example of 21st Century education in Tampa Bay and the West Coast of Florida. Paraphrasing Peter Thiel, co-founder of PayPal, in his recent book Zero to One, we don’t want to be the best copy of contemporary education at Shorecrest, we want to create something new, something experiential, and go from zero to one, bringing true 21st Century education to the area for the first time!
Tom Andrews, MD
Chair, Shorecrest Board of Trustees
