NOW WHAT ? REBUILDING TRUST ber feel a sense of belonging . How do we teach race in history and literature ? Do we have a point of view on developmentally appropriate content for issues of gender and sexuality ? ( We should , and we should state it clearly .) What are our guidelines and practices for keeping partisanship out of classrooms and ensuring that all students feel comfortable expressing their opinions ? By answering each of these questions in the context of the school mission , we give ourselves confidence in the rightness of our work . More importantly , we give everyone else clarity about who we are and where we ’ re going . For most , that will feel reassuring , perhaps inspiring . For those who don ’ t like the direction , there will be a choice about whether the school is right for them and their children . No matter what , everyone will have the clarity they need to trust the school .
Coming out of crisis , emotionally resonant leadership offers the second key to inspiring trust . Emotionally resonant leaders connect authentically with their communities in several ways . They give their audience transparent glimpses into their thinking . They raise others up by listening deeply and sharing credit for successes . And they are curious and humble , always questioning their assumptions and avoiding stubborn certitude . Curiosity and humility should have been forged last year in the fire of the COVID-19 pandemic , and even now when circumstances change every week and keeping school open again requires interdependent
“ Curiosity and humility should have been forged last year in the fire of the CO- VID-19 pandemic , and even now when circumstances change every week and keeping school open again requires interdependent teamwork , adapting to new information , and a willingness to change well laid plans .”
teamwork , adapting to new information , and a willingness to change well laid plans . We have learned not to be too certain about anything , a quality urgently needed in polarized times that call on our capacity to bring people together .
Finally , we inspire trust by learning from the crisis and applying what we ’ ve learned to move forward , stronger than we were before the pandemic . Yes , we move forward rather than return to normal . We look back only to learn , to grow from our experiences , to re-examine our strategy for the future , and to ask ourselves , “ How might we go forward stronger ... more grateful and compassionate ... more unified ?” While acknowledging the reality of Post Traumatic Stress
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CSEE Connections Fall 2021 Page 11