Design Thinking / Innovation / Innovation / Inspiration / Leadership / Learning / Project Management / Space Configurations / Strategic Planning / Teamwork / The K12 School Experience in America Posted on:

Designing A Better World

In August 2019, over 2,200 schools will open doors to students in the state of Georgia. A small number of those schools will be brand new. None like this. Mount Vernon Presbyterian School opens the doors to a brand new Upper School (Grades 9-12) building after a year of construction and years of planning, dreaming, and designing. The building is the physical expression of the School’s mission and vision; innovative, flexible, and relational. Everything is on castors. All desks are stackable and nest-able. Writable walls move up and down allowing disciplinary classes to combine and become interdisciplinary or trans-disciplinary. Smart […]

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Dr. William Houston, Sr.

Dr. William Houston, Sr. by W. Michael Golnick, Jr., 1988 D. Ca. 1795 William Houston, Sr., was a physician, apothecary, and local political leader of Duplin County. His early life is obscure until he arrived in North Carolina about 1735 from County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Houston was the nephew of Henry McCulloch, a wealthy London merchant who financed many colonizing expeditions to theCape Fear region, and served as his uncle’s partner, trustee, and agent. In 1742 he built a home, Soracte, on the Northeast River, eight miles from Kenansville. In 1749, when Duplin County was formed, Houston was an integral […]

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Stamp Master’s Hand Forced, 1765

On November 16, 1765, North Carolina’s stamp master, William Houston, resigned his post amid demonstrations against the Stamp Act. The Stamp Act of 1765, the first direct tax placed on the American colonies by Great Britain, was intended to raise revenue to defray Britain’s national debt. The measure, however, was met with great disdain throughout the colonies. Houston, a Duplin County physician and early Irish immigrant, was selected as the stamp distributor in 1765 after Parliament passed the Act. His appointment led to public demonstrations and Houston being hanged in effigy in Wilmington, New Bern and Cross Creek throughout October […]

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The Stamp Act Crisis in North Carolina

The Stamp Act crisis in North Carolina Harry McKown, “November 1765: The Stamp Act Crisis in North Carolina,” This Month in North Carolina History, November 2006. Provided by UNC Libraries / North Carolina Collection. The courthouse in Wilmington was the site of one of the first Revolutionary conflicts in North Carolina. Image source. About the photograph On Saturday, November 16th, 1765, Dr. William Houston, a respected resident of Duplin County, arrived in Wilmington, North Carolina for a short visit. Houston had recently been appointed — to his great surprise, since he had not sought the position — distributor of stamps […]

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Interim Reflection

Before – what are your expectations or anticipations as you look forward to Interim? What are you uncertain about? What question do you have going in? What do you hope will happen? I was very excited to travel to Germany because a) I took German as my foreign language in high school b) I taught WWI, WWII, and the Holocaust for many years, and c) I had never been to Europe before. I was anxious about flying over the ocean and being on a plane for such a long period of time. I was anxious about how the students would […]

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Germany 2018 – Feb 25

Day 3 Berlin – Dresden 2 hour drive. Played the “name game” on the bus. Driving tour with Heidi – most kids fell asleep. 96% of Dresden was destroyed in WW2 bombing. The blueprints were saved and they rebuilt, mostly after collapse of Berlin Wall. (Soviets wanted East Germany in part because of the treasures of Dresden – it is an underestimated city in terms of historical value and sights). Ate lunch at restaurant called Alex. Dresden museum was amazing with armory and collection of clocks, figurines, green diamond, etc. Second tour guide was exceptional. Later learned that Kurt Vonnegut […]

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Germany 2018 – Feb 24

Day 2 Berlin Started day with bus tour led by “Matty” who worked for 80s radio station Berliner Rundfunk. He took us to another remaining section of the Berlin Wall where artists painted murals in sections – famous image of Brezhnev (Soviet) kissing the East Berlin leader on the mouth. Heard a local man playing an accordion and saying “Hallo! Danke!” Matty told us about famous escape attempts during the Cold War including a family who secretly built a hot air ballooon only to land just short still on the east. They had to rebuild even more secretly, but eventually […]

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Germany 2018 – Feb 23

Amsterdam – Berlin Sat next to a guy who was sick, coughing, and taking up with arm chair – he was by the window, I was in the middle. Luckily, the flight was only one hour. Arrived in Germany and our baggage claim was small and immediately outside the plane in the airport. Got our stuff and was immediately greeted by our guide Dionysia. She greeted us with kisses and was very enthusiastic and clear with her instructions. We boarded the bus and headed through Berlin to our hotel. It was about a 30 minute drive and she gave us […]

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