Author: JTMAT

In the context of a forthcoming Bank Holiday weekend at the time of writing, and just following the Easter break, I wanted to share with you an extract from a piece by American author Kurt Vonnegut.  Regular readers will be aware that I’ve referenced him previously – specifically, his dystopian science fiction story “Harrison Bergeron” which I found fascinating and “If this isn’t nice, what is? Advice for the young”.  Both are highly recommended.

I’ve more recently gone down a proverbial rabbit hole with his other fiction and non-fiction works.  I find his writing so insightful yet in no way impenetrable. 

So, without further ado, here’s the extract – from “A Man Without a Country” (2005) in Chapter 6 (entitled “I have been called a Luddite”):

“I work at home, and if I wanted to, I could have a computer right by my bed, and I’d never have to leave it. But I use a typewriter, and afterwards I mark up the pages with a pencil. Then I call up this woman named Carol out in Woodstock and say, ‘Are you still doing typing?’ Sure she is, and her husband is trying to track bluebirds out there and not having much luck, and so we chitchat back and forth, and I say, ‘OK, I’ll send you the pages.’

Then I’m going down the steps, and my wife calls up, ‘Where are you going?’ I say, ‘Well, I’m going to go buy an envelope.’ And she says, ‘You’re not a poor man. Why don’t you buy a thousand envelopes? They’ll deliver them, and you can put them in a closet.’ And I say, ‘Hush.’ So I go down the steps here, and I go out to this newsstand across the street where they sell magazines and lottery tickets and stationery. I have to get in line because there are people buying candy and all that sort of thing, and I talk to them. The woman behind the counter has a jewel between her eyes, and when it’s my turn, I ask her if there have been any big winners lately. I get my envelope and seal it up and go to the postal convenience center down the block at the corner of 47th Street and 2nd Avenue, where I’m secretly in love with the woman behind the counter. I keep absolutely poker-faced; I never let her know how I feel about her. One time I had my pocket picked in there and got to meet a cop and tell him about it. Anyway, I address the envelope to Carol in Woodstock. I stamp the envelope and mail it in a mailbox in front of the post office, and I go home. And I’ve had a hell of a good time. And I tell you, we are here on Earth to fart around, and don’t let anybody tell you any different.”    

This blog is sometimes (I hope!) beneficial to others but is also something for me too.  Vonnegut’s endorsement of finding a reason – however tenuous – to connect with the wider world and take pleasure in its many and varied trivialities is a valuable “note to self” as we draw to the end of a working week and toward the extended weekend. 

As a child, my friends and I were often on the receiving end of an injunction to “go out and play!” from parents who, in part, wanted us from under their feet but also wanted us to experience the same wonderful world where Vonnegut can get his envelope. And this is not the same world as one of Amazon deliveries to the door.  Propelled by bicycle wheels, we would embrace the day – without a plan other than to be home in time for tea, and without an objective other than to have fun. 

As the lockdown restriction of the Covid 19 pandemic becomes more of a historical event than a recent memory, in my opinion we would all benefit from remaining extremely grateful for the little things we can encounter beyond our own doorstep, which we all pined for during that time. 

So, I hope whether it was at Easter at this Bank Holiday weekend, or at some point in the summer, you take some time away from the pressing considerations in order to “fart around” for at least a brief time.  I know that when I do, I’m a better person for it. 

Thanks, as always, for reading.

Mike

As many readers will be aware, last week saw the official opening of John Taylor Free School by His Royal Highness the Duke of Gloucester. I have been asked by several of our guests that day to share the contents of my speech from the event, and so I thought I would take the opportunity to do so in this Blog post.

It was a real privilege to welcome so many of the individuals and groups who have supported us, and continue to do so, along the way. Here is the transcript in full:

Your Royal Highness, distinguished guests, colleagues, children, and friends.
“We believe in the power of education to improve lives – and the world.” Those here who know John Taylor well will be aware that this statement is the guiding principle of our Trust, and of the High School from which it emanates. Those here who know me well will recall that I have made much of this aspiration on many occasions and with many audiences. Typically, and perhaps predictably, I would focus on “the power of education”, or “improving lives” as a key theme for an assembly, a staff presentation or a prize giving address. But not today. Today is about belief. That “we believe”.

As we sit in such a wonderful new school, we are surrounded by so many individuals and groups who believed in us, and there are far too many to name all individually. As we prepared, planned, prioritised, and presented we were helped generously by many of you, with expertise and advice, practical help, and – equally important for an endeavour such as this – unwavering encouragement. Consequently, we transformed our dreams into a proposition that those with authority to make decisions about the school’s future could believe in. From the Trust board, through the Department for Education and the Education and Skills Funding Agency, to Staffordshire County Council, we thank them all for that belief in us – to deliver. Gareth Moss, Chair of the Trust Board for sharing and fuelling our dream, endorsing our strategy and steering our ambitions, Stuart Lane from Staffordshire County Council for his initial identification of a site, and a school, and devoting so much of his energies towards the project. Chris Nightingale from Entrust for his work to steer the building project along its two-year trajectory to completion. Andrew Baker, Jo Kemp and Julian Kennett from the ESFA, for ensuring that our local partnerships remained tuned in to the national programme of new school places. These individuals have always been utterly professional, always available, and totally committed to working collegiately with everyone.

Moving forward, we shared our ambitions with the community – to secure their support, and to build a team of staff that would be worthy of our school. Moving from successful positions in excellent schools, and sometimes moving house too, I cannot overstate the sheer bravery of colleagues who took a leap of faith with us – based on a vision, and a blueprint. Here I must commend our Head of School Sue Plant, for taking such a leap, and for working tirelessly to foster a culture of learning, firing the passions of her colleagues, and subsequently the children. I’m minded here of the French proverb that “If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.” We’ve done that, and you can see here just what it is we’re building. We thank them for that belief in us – to join our voyage.

Now open, I turn my attention to the young people here. They and their parents have believed in us too, choosing to be amongst the first students at a brand new school, in many cases not the school of their friends and, by definition, not the school of any older brothers or sisters. Their belief wasn’t based on spreadsheets, staffing models and demographic projections (important as those things are) – but on their passion to be the best they can be, and entrusting us to fulfil their potential in all they do. They have given us the most precious of gifts: their futures. We thank them for their belief in us – to commit their future to our care.

Finally, the path to get to today’s monumental occasion hasn’t been an easy one. It is our belief – in our vision for a great school and in one another – that has sustained us through these challenging times. I’m indebted to those who’ve worked towards today – each and every one of them. My thoughts in particular are drawn to Barbara Mahoney, the Trust’s Chief Operating Officer who, together with being the Trust’s presence on the project management board during the construction phase put together a financial model that works for the school, in a context when so many schools are encountering difficulties. There are arguably few COOs who would spend a dark winter’s evening in a village hall putting out trestle tables for a community outreach event – but she is one who willingly did so on several occasions. This she did in the company of Sarah Boyce – the Clerk to the Board, my personal assistant, and an invaluable travelling companion from day one of this adventure. Her local knowledge, organisational expertise, intuitive sense of timing and sage counsel contributed more behind the scenes than will ever be recorded in the school’s history. Thank you.

John Taylor Multi Academy Trust continues to grow as a community of schools, as does the positive impact it has on young people. We look forward with relish to further free school developments, including the primary and nursery school at Fradley Park. Moving forward here, in this hugely impressive building, is an equally impressive community of people, translating our belief into a truly remarkable school we can all be immensely proud of – lesson by lesson, day by day, term by term. The expertise and enthusiasm of Mrs Plant and her team should give us all great confidence in the future. A future for these wonderful young people to embrace with hope and vigour – essential in an ever-changing landscape. “We believe in the power of education to improve lives and the world.” We believe in John Taylor Free School.

Thank you all for belief in us.

The guests were hugely impressed by the facilities and the site, which are exceptional, but also by the staff and the pupils who conveyed great pride in their school and what it means to them. This feedback, for me, is the most pleasing and the most important of all.

Thank you for reading.

Mike