WINTER 2002Andy Leonard
Middle SchoolAndy Leonard, Middle School teacher and Quaker, recently interviewed Nancy van Arkel and Phil Anthony, two members of the Friends School Board of Trustees, who are also Quakers. He asked them to reflect on the influence of Quakerism on their work and the school.
hil Anthony, coordinator of Salem Quarterly Meeting, and Nancy van Arkel, director of library services at Westtown School, joined readily in a discussion of how Quakers do things, and what they believe about a number of educational issues. Two concepts that emerged from the discussion are community and continuing revelation. Phil and Nancy agreed that both are important elements of education and life in general.
Community is important in a school for many reasons, but for Quakers it means a place where all are comfortable enough to grow, learn, take risks, and participate in the administration of the community.
Continuing revelation suggests that truth is revealed gradually in many different forms, that we need to be open to it, and willing to take the risks necessary to grow.
Asked how their board work may influence the lives of students here, Phil and Nancy’s responses centered on the spiritual energy that is at the heart of what happens at Friends School. Citing the importance of both the individual and the corporate body, Nancy and Phil described a Quaker school as an example of how people can live and work together, with an emphasis on human relationships not always seen in the larger world.
The Hanshi Deshbandhu Building demonstrates the influence of Quaker values here, they said. The building’s position between the Meetinghouse and the campus connects the spiritual center of the Meetinghouse and the school. Inside, the building is designed to foster community, with large, open spaces for staff and students to gather.
Phil and Nancy then turned the conversation to the dynamic between co-operation and competition. Both are important, but we are not solely individuals, we are part of a community. What is emphasized is that Quakers believe we often do better work and are more satisfied when we work together.
The answer to the co-operation/competition question shouldn’t be either/or, but rather, which is stressed. The goal is an environment in which all are valued, expected to participate, and to speak and listen to each other.
The last part of the conversation with Nancy and Phil addressed one of the most important features of a Quaker education. If children have opportunities to take risks in relatively safe environments, they will be less likely to engage in high-risk behavior as they mature. For Quakers, taking risks is an avenue to growth.
Learning to live according to one’s beliefs and values are at the heart of Quaker education. We are not free to do whatever we please, but we do have the responsibility and opportunity to decide what is right, and then to act on that decision.
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