Donna's Dispatch

December 07 / January 08 

A message from Donna Bernard

Superintendent of Schools

 

Greetings to you during this season of reflection.

 

I find the winter months to be especially conducive to “going inward” and using the outside cold as a motivator for introspection. We can benefit in the area of personal growth when it’s blustery outside and cozy inside.  May your time of reflection serve you well.

 

However, the winter also provides a wonderful opportunity to come together as community members to share thoughts and opinions regarding issues of mutual concern. To that end, I would like to announce the second in a series of Community Conversations with the Superintendent.  These Conversations center on books that are meaningful to developing the young people in this community.  This January’s Community Conversations will focus on the book Raising Cain, Protecting the Emotional Life of Boys, by Dan Kindlon, Ph.D. and Michael Thompson, Ph.D.  In this book the authors share what they have learned in their experience working with boys and their families.  They reveal a nation of boys who are hurting – sad, afraid, angry, and silent.  Kindlon and Thompson set out to answer the question:  What do boys need that they are not getting?  They shed light on the destructive emotional training our boys receive.  They identify the social and emotional challenges that boys encounter in school and show how adults can give them the vital connections and support they need to navigate the social pressures of childhood. 

 

This Community Conversations will be held at my home on Thursday, January 17 between 4:00-6:00 p.m., and will include a light dinner. The first fifteen people to contact my administrative assistant, Kimberlee Michaud (kmichaud@coventryct.org or 742-7317 x102) to register will receive the book for reading and sharing.  I look forward to our dialog in the interest of improving the ways in which this community develops its young people.

 

Donna

 

PS – Our first winter session of “Donuts with Donna” is scheduled for Friday, January 18 from 10:30 – 11:30 a.m. (location to be determined).