Message from the Executive Director

There is a shared sense of guarded relief as the end of the school year arrives. True, there is no shortage of issues awaiting just around the corner, but finishing the 2020-2021 school year is a major milepost in and of itself. It has been some year!

There is not enough space here to recognize all who have joined in on every EARCOS school campus to make it to the finish line. But, above all else, we must recognize the enormous challenges overcome by the 164,000 students in our schools, perhaps none more than the members of the Class of 2021. Their commitment to learning, their willingness to adapt, their patience, their resilience and their undying optimism during a year choked by ambiguity, are a lesson to the rest of us.

For all the upheaval the pandemic has inflicted, there were some silver linings. Boards, school leaders, faculty, staff, parents and students were bound together against a real and present danger, bringing a new sense of openness and trust across school communities. And, of course, the ability of technology to support new approaches to learning cannot be overstated. And who among us has not marveled at the new levels of shared inquiry that brought educators from every region together for conversations about exciting possibilities to rethink the possibilities in for a post-pandemic education?

For EARCOS, one very real silver lining has been a webinar series that featured scores of sessions on topics ranging from leadership in crisis, to school finance, assessment, understanding cultural gaps, DEIJ, child safeguarding, faculty recruitment, the change process, school safety, innovative curricula, and so much more. While our annual conferences were postponed, there was instead a series of rich on-line events involving individuals from nearly all of the 196 EARCOS schools. Deep discussions about the future of teaching and learning have taken on a new level of excitement and a redoubled sense of urgency. I thank everyone who joined us and especially offer my gratitude to the many individuals who led the webinars throughout the year.

Throughout the past 14 months, issues related to mental and social-emotional well-being have risen to a level far beyond anything our schools have previously experienced. In response, EARCOS has worked closely with the Truman Group to support two groups that have been asked to carry exceptionally heavy burdens this past year: counselors and Heads of School. Next year, we will expand those two programs. Report after report indicates that the need for on-going socio-emotional support is greater today than ever before. It is so very important that we all take care of ourselves and one another during these extraordinary times. We are eager to receive your recommendations for programs and initiatives that have a proven track record of fostering wellness in your schools.

I will close by offering my congratulations to each of you--our teachers, school leaders, board members, staff, and students--for carrying the torch of resilience, innovation, international understanding and unparalleled teaching and learning through the uncertainties of the past 14 months. Better days are on the horizon, of that we should all be assured. In the meantime, please take time to enjoy this issue of ET, rest up over the summer, and take good care of one another.

With all best wishes from all of us at EARCOS,

Edward E. Greene, Ph.D. Executive Director East Asia Regional Council of Schools