WINTER 2006Drew Smith
Head of School
On October 5th and 6th, the heads of more than fifty Friends' schools gathered for our annual conference and meeting. It is usually a time to relay news of our schools, to seek advice from our opposite numbers, and to strengthen the bonds around what we all believe to be our shared purpose in the world.
An important outcome of this recent gathering was a minute designed to clearly state the foundation upon which all of our schools, and their programs of learning, are based, and to share that mission with all who are open to hearing its message.
It reads as follows:
A Minute
From the Board of Directors of the Friends Council on Education
October 5, 2006As inheritors and stewards of the Quaker tradition in education, the Board of Directors of the Friends Council on Education seeks to share its vision of a global community that is guided by deep listening to the needs and aspirations of our children and of all children of the world. Let us, together, urge and actively work toward an end to all war and to the widely prevailing practice of seeking to resolve human conflict by violence, and rather, promote a lasting and unequivocal commitment to reason, trust, and justice.
As we further discern how to make Quaker traditions and testimonies visibly present, we draw strength and inspiration from the spiritual energy that moves in and among us and through all humankind. We, therefore, invite others to join in the sacred work of ensuring that young people everywhere have the inherent right to live in a world guided by peace, love and hope.
Our students come from four counties in New Jersey, representing over forty municipalities. More than a quarter of them (27%) are students of color. More than a quarter (28%) receive support through our financial aid program. And our students are evenly divided between boys and girls.
Most of these students are not members of a peace church. Friends School is the one institution in their lives that clearly advocates nonviolence through the development of trust in, and spiritual love for, one another. In the culture that surrounds their daily lives, Friends School is unusual in its mission and purpose.
I am grateful for the continued spiritual and financial support that the Salem Quarterly Meeting provides for our school and all of its students. Our connection to and with all of you strengthens our work and helps to direct our purpose.
I hope that this purpose, as stated so eloquently by the Friends Council, is evident to the Quarter, and that our presence here strengthens you as witnesses to the powerful work that nonviolence, and trust, and justice can do.
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Last modified:
Monday, November 20, 2006 at 06:08 PM
