Deep in concentration, a Grade 3 student works on her main lesson book.
Photography by Leanne Pedersen

CONTENTS

• CONTENTS
• WEEK AT A GLANCE
• NOTICES & ANNOUNCEMENTS
• CHOOSING THE VWS
• RED DOOR STORE
• DIVERSITY & EQUITY RESOURCES
• WALDORF 101: WHY WALDORF REVIEW

Dear <<First Name>>

Hello! The Board of Trustees recently determined that we would like to share more around what we’re working on and select topics that might be of interest in order for the community to have more understanding of our role and intentions.

We thought it would be a good idea to discuss the functioning of the Board and what we do. The Board is currently made up of 13 voting members, three of whom are appointed by the VWS faculty, eight of whom are appointed by VWS society members, and two of whom have been appointed by the Board of Trustees. It is a group with a diversity of views and experiences and consists of teachers, staff members, parents and former parents of students at the VWS. In addition to the 13 voting members, the Business, Pedagogical and Development managers are appointed as Ex-Officio members who have a duty to report between their respective realms and the Board but are not voting members. (Board Trustees List)

Most broadly speaking, the trustees are responsible for ensuring the VWS complies with all legal and regulatory requirements applicable to it in our operations. Although we are ultimately responsible for compliance, functionally, we delegate the day to day responsibility for fulfilling our legal requirements to management, and we engage in more of an oversight and advisory role. Important decisions affecting the school are brought to the Board by management for approval, but the regular operating decisions are made by the Management Team. We work to help advance the financial and institutional health of the school and provide the infrastructure through which both faculty and management can effectively function and fulfill their important roles.

In terms of what we have been doing recently, there has been a focus on COVID-19 and its effects on our operations. Management has been handling it very well, and we continue to provide our support where needed. We have also been spending a great deal of time on our Strategic Plan and looking at how we can keep up the momentum and meet the goals set out in it. In addition, we have been focusing on embedding board study into our meetings – a discussion on how we function as a Board and how the Waldorf pedagogy influences and can guide our work.

We will be contributing to The Current on a monthly basis, and if you have any topics you would like us to address, or if you have any questions about the Board or its work generally, please feel free to reach out to any member of the Board. Thank you!

Eric Doherty & Chloe Gow-Jarret
Board of Trustees, co-Chairs
chairbot@vws.ca

WEEK AT A GLANCE

Tuesday, February 2

Parent Education: Waldorf 101: Thinking, Feeling and Willing Meet the Three ‘R’s’ 7:30 pm, Zoom

On the Horizon

HS Whistler Winter Day February 12
Family Day BC Holiday February 15
February Break/HS New Skills Experience February 16-19
High School Virtual Information Session February 23
End of Term March 19

NOTICES & ANNOUNCEMENTS

COMMUNITY CONNECT - HAPPENING TODAY! - Thank you so much to everyone who provided feedback. The first session in our series of virtual presentations from the Development Office will be on Strategic Planning and Governance. Register below to attend our first Community Connect today, Friday, January 29, at 10:00 am, then join us with a hot beverage for presentation and discussion. REGISTER HERE

INCLEMENT WEATHER - In the case of school closure due to inclement weather, we would like to remind you that an email would be circulated, and a message will be put on the website and the Grade and High School reception lines, communicating the school closure for that particular day before 7:30 am.

PARKING - All Grade School parking spaces are reserved for staff, visitors (by pre-arranged appointment), and those with mobility limitations. Many of our faculty and admin travel between campuses in Edgemont and Lynn Valley, while others begin their day at various times throughout the day. The four spots designated for ECC and Grade 1 families are for those with infants only. ECC parents may also park for 15 minutes at street level south of the fire hydrant.

SCREENAGERS - The Sunrise Waldorf School has extended an invitation to join them for a screening of the film Screenagers: Growing Up in a Digital World. The film reveals how technology impacts child development and offers solutions to empower kids to find balance navigating the digital world. The reduced fee is $10 (available until Feb 10), and registration is online at eventbrite.com/e/screenagers-growing-up-in-the-digital-age-tickets-135881520285. Not recommended for children under 12.

RED DOOR STORE

Cozy up with your kids and a new book. The Red Door Store has many titles on sale. Check it out. vwsrds.square.site/shop/book-sale

DIVERSITY & EQUITY RESOURCES

WALDORF 101: WHY WALDORF REVIEW

On Tuesday evening, the first presentation in the "Waldorf 101" series was made. There were some technical difficulties with screen sharing which eventually got sorted out. In the future, we plan to have assistance to take care of all such matters. Thank you to all who attended for your interest and patience.

The presentation dealt with the pertinence of Waldorf education in our time and into the future. Although Waldorf education was begun a hundred years ago, it is still relevant to human development now and for some time to come. Just as a tree seed develops into the full tree over time, taking various forms as it grows from the seedling to flower to fruit, so too Waldorf education. Waldorf education is based upon a deep understanding of the spiritual-physical development of the human being from birth through high school. It is the development of consciousness from the deep sleep of the infant to the fully awake consciousness of the adult.

Today we hear a lot about "the Fourth Industrial Revolution" which concerns "the internet of things" and the ever-accelerating development of artificial intelligence and its impact on the socio-economic structure. Basically, it concerns the development of the mechanical world, including green energy sources that are used to produce electricity, the effective energy. Behind that lies the evolution of sources of energy from the living world of nature to that of the electromagnetic world that actually makes AI possible. The question is: are there other sources of power that go beyond the mechanical realm?

Yes, there are. That's where Waldorf education comes in. Waldorf is concerned with the healthy development of consciousness and the importance of age-appropriate teaching and environment concerning the three soul powers - Willing, Feeling and Thinking - and the three styles of learning during childhood - Imitation, Authority and Judgment. The child's changing consciousness proceeds from "the world is good" to "the world is beautiful" to "the world is true".

Consciousness guides cultural development. We are currently in an intellectual culture that has its roots in the Renaissance and is primarily concerned with the physical world and with natural scientific understanding. This intellectual culture will be superseded by one of "imaginative intelligence", i.e., the ability to behold the world and its processes in pictures or imaginations. Another way of saying that is to begin to see the "living pictures" that lie behind all natural and all mechanical phenomenon.

Gideon Weick
Pedagogical Manager
gweick@vws.ca