Dreaming Big

This introduction to “The Dream That Drives Us: A strategic vision” is adapted from Head of School Karen Cumberbatch’s strategic vision introduction to the community on January 9, 2020.

I can vividly picture my first presentation to the Carolina Friends School community, when I was interviewing for the role of Head of School. One particularly memorable moment was when a Middle School student asked me a question she had explored in her social studies class - if you could change what the Statue of Liberty holds in her hands, what would you change?

That night, I was immediately struck by the fact that she not only attended an event that was not likely to be fun or entertaining for your average 11 year old but also felt empowered to stand up in front of a room full of adults to ask her question clearly and articulately. Based on her question, it was clear that what she did in her classes was dynamic, encouraged reflection, and incited real intellectual engagement. I left my visit impressed with the way Carolina Friends School was growing phenomenal young leaders and thinkers.

Here in my third year, I see examples of this manifested every day in our classrooms, and my optimism about the future for our school continues to grow. We are in a great place — we have an amazing student body, highly committed families, an extraordinary, talented staff, and a visionary board.

I’m so excited that we are working toward “The Dream That Drives Us,” a strategic vision for our school that will not only serve our students today, but will secure the future of CFS for generations to come. This vision reimagines our fundamental and enduring principles to realize a future where what we do here will impact not only our students and community, but literally the world. Yes, friends — we are dreaming big!

The concept of a dream that drives us is in our DNA; it connects our past, present, and future. While our founders have consistently said they did not set out to create the School we now have, their vision was a grand one, nevertheless.

By refusing to send their children to the segregated schools of Durham and instead choosing to create a school grounded in the equal and ethical treatment of all students regardless of race or identity, our founders were dreaming big.

By placing the highest priorities on understanding and responding to the needs and desires of students, by authentically and unapologetically putting the children at the center of every aspect of the school, they were dreaming big.

By using Quaker principles as a foundation for meaningful education and the creation of a just, loving, and purposeful community, they were dreaming big.

By founding a school where the central question consistently asked was “are we serving a useful and beneficial purpose in society?” they were dreaming big.

And make no mistake it was not easy. There were hostile neighbors, shots fired into the Lower School, and financial uncertainty. One founder, Peter Klopfer, engaged in and ultimately won a 1967 Supreme Court case that helped set precedent for the application of equal rights at the level of the individual states. There was the court fight in the 1980s to defend Carolina Friends School from state-mandated standardized testing — a battle we won.

It was not an easy path, but CFS has never been guided by the path of least resistance. Our goal has always been to do what is right and best for children, educators, schools, and society.

“The Dream That Drives Us” is the vision that will drive us toward our big dreams for more fully embracing Carolina Friends School’s potential to change the world. To achieve this, it is going to take collective effort and community support.

I know that energy will come from what is fundamental to our dreams — our children. We exist only to fulfill our desire to serve their needs. If love is their super power, then our love for them empowers us to strive for the highest heights of excellence to achieve our mission. They deserve nothing less.