Viking Voice

A Message from Our Principal

Dear Families,

1) You may recall that last year's school calendar carved out a number of half-days for School of Faith. The fact that our current calendar features none of these half-days may be cause to wonder whether our staff still participates in the School of Faith program. 

Yes, we do! (No, fear not, we're not bringing back the half days. We have shifted most of our sessions to after school.)

I have shared with you before what School of Faith is. But it's been awhile.

So...School of Faith is a program that, among other goals, helps us become better ministers of the faith to our students. During our sessions, we usually work in small groups doing lectio divina ("holy reading"). An especially lovely characterization of this practice comes from The Oblate Life by Gervase Holdaway: 

i.)   Take a nibble from the Word (lectio),

ii.)  Chew on it (meditatio),

iii.) Pray on it (oratio), and

iv.)  Make it part of you (contemplatio).

And, while this all sounds very serious, there are plenty of opportunities along the way for informal conversation and more.

2) On Tuesday of this week, our students in grades 2 to 8 will participate in a Lenten penance service. We will have several priests on hand to hear confessions. Father Walling and Cheryl Hunt provide worship aids for the structured service, and Mr. Hoffman plays the piano during confessions to ensure privacy. 

3) We want to remind everyone that our Book Fair starts next week! We shifted it from May to March to relieve some of the congestion in the early May calendar and to avoid clashing with the annual Lane Library book sale that takes place in our school gym. 

4) Did you know that "Big Tech" is currently on trial? As we speak, there is a major lawsuit playing itself out in a Los Angeles courtroom. A plaintiff alleges that Facebook, Instagram, and other social media platforms are built on algorithms purposely designed to addict users. A core argument from the plaintiff is that young people do not have the brain development to resist these addictive features in the same way that adults do. The defense is arguing that the maladaptive mental and behavioral states associated with addiction (eating disorders, depression, anxiety, etc.) can't be conclusively blamed on social media use or platform design. 

One of the ways we know this is a big deal is that Mark Zuckerberg himself gave in-person testimony recently.

At least some of the evidence being cited by the plaintiffs is similar to the evidence that has compelled schools to prohibit or strictly limit cell phone use during the school day. 

The trial involves a lot more nuance than what I have presented here, but as a summary it gives you a basic framework for understanding. 

This trial is a big deal since kids spend so much time on social media. It may end up having transformative repercussions for how social media platforms are designed. Whether accurate or not, some are comparing this trial to the legal assault on Big Tobacco in the late '90s that led to a huge settlement, new rules around marketing of tobacco products, and a multi-billion-dollar payout to states. 

5) Every once in awhile, we'll be asked why we have a 7-point grading scale instead of 10. The short answer is that we like the tougher scale for the rigor it represents. This is not to say there aren't some very good reasons for the 10-point scale. There are. But as you may have seen from the recent posts, we have no shortage of students receiving Honors recognition on our 7-point scale. 

Christ in Self. Christ in Other. 

Sincerely,

Josh

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