Shaker has always had a very
engaged parent population.
What opportunities, moving
forward, does the District have
in working with parents?
The Family and Community
Engagement Center has been
instrumental in channeling the
efforts of our parents and our broader
community and engaging as many
people as we can in the education of
our young people. We still have a lot of
room to grow in terms of working with
parents side by side to meet the needs
of our kids. We’ve also been working
to shift parents’ mindsets so that they
consider not just what’s best for their
child, but what’s best for all children in
Shaker Heights.
How has having your own children
engaged in IB learning shaped your
thoughts on the philosophy?
I felt validated this year when my wife
and I were at conferences for both of
our kids. In both conferences, their
teachers told us that our kids are not only
mastering their lesson objectives but
they are caring. That meant a lot. Because
I really believe that if you have a heart,
if you have compassion, then you can do
anything in the world. Our children have
taken advantage of the opportunities
here and they’ve grown tremendously
both academically and in terms of
exploring who they are as individuals.
Photograph by Kevin G. Reeves
46 SPRING 2018 | WWW.SHAKER.LIFE
/WWW.SHAKER.LIFE