This week's blogger, Stan Flower, might be the new principal at the School for Creative and Performing Arts(SCPA), but he is no stranger to arts education. Flower has worked for close to 40 years as a teacher and administrator, including a stint as principal of Schiel Primary School for the Arts which merged with SCPA to form the first K-12 performing arts high school in the country. Flower is overseeing SCPA's move from its original historic location in Pendleton to a brand new, state of the art facility on Central Parkway this fall. He talks about the move and Cincinnati's important tradition as an arts education innovator in this week's blogs.
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A once in a lifetime opportunity
Posted By: Stan Flower
7/14/2010
Last December, I was informed that I had been chosen to be the principal at the School for Creative and Performing Arts beginning June 1, 2010. I want to thank those who made the decision for their confidence in me. I also want to acknowledge that this is a once in a lifetime opportunity with great challenges ahead.
Any school administrator will tell you that opening a new school is a tremendous project in and of itself. Administrators will also tell you that merging two schools into one is a major challenge by itself. Doing both at the same time is an undertaking of enormous proportions.
The School for Creative and Performing Arts and Schiel Primary School for Arts Enrichment are both respected institutions within the Cincinnati Public Schools system, however, they are both schools that have operated independently of one another. Each school has had its own culture, its own set of processes and procedures, and its own philosophies which have been alive and well in each school. The challenge is to bring both schools together in the common mission of doing what is best for students.
To begin this process we have had staff members from each school working on a variety of committees to begin to build relationships that will continue on as we move toward the opening of school in August.
Communication has also been identified as a focal point of my efforts as we move toward August. Throughout the budget development process in January and February when I worked with both staffs, to the identification of classroom spaces for all staff, and continuing currently as we plan for the opening of school, I have made it a point to communicate accurate and up to date information as often as possible so that all stakeholders know what is happening and feel that they are part of the merging process.
What will help the merging of the schools is that I was the principal at Schiel for five years. The time I spent at Schiel, as well as the time spent at SCPA since December meeting staff, working with the Instructional Leadership Team and some committee members, has given me insight into the two schools. With that insight I am confident that we will successfully merge the two schools and be ready when students arrive for the first day in August.