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Beliefs Mission Parameter  

Welcome Message from the President

Dear AAIE Friends and Colleagues,

It all sneaks up on you. While in the company of young people our lives pass so quickly.  In the midst of too many circling urgencies, the unexpected and even the untenable, it sometimes happens that a revelation or two and a sense of growing and being a better self surprises us.  And this in an environment where on certain days loneliness is palpable and where wanting a peer who understands good intentions borders on the desperate.  Maybe, just maybe the courage and many good ideas we find to better do our work come less from books or articles, and more from a kernel of truth or inspiration from a peer or someone we hold dear as a friend and mentor.  The story or insight from someone living a similar existence makes you  think deeply or to see a common issue through a different lens.  You are given the gift of someone else’s experience. 

This year’s AAIE meeting reminded me that I can’t go it alone.  The quality of my work life and the joy of my profession have so much to do with what I’ve learned from the caring and unselfish teaching of my colleagues.  Who would you call out as your mentors within the world of overseas schools?  For me, names come quickly.  Guy Lott shepherded me through my first hiring conference and taught me about new doors opening when I missed out on a job in Kenya.    Darryl Russell gave me religion when it comes to strategic planning.  Jackie Turner and Les Landers believed in me and as long as I was willing to take a very early morning walk, always listened.  Frank Anderson and Keith Miller have taught me all about grace and “gentle.” Bob Sills taught me that optimism keeps people focused.  David Chojnacki  has been  my librarian for the latest books that provide a handhold on the complexity of our lives– and not just work.  He is captured by ideas.  The best part, you need only ask.  And Bob Gross teaches the importance of leaning on your experience, finding wisdom within by being genuine, focusing first on people.  With Bob it goes something like this– when in doubt about what to do with a sticky school problem,  place the heat of the spotlight on the needs of the child.  Simple sounding, maybe.  Profound?  Yes. 

Here’s the thing.  Thousands of miles separate us for most of the school year.  We can email and pick up the phone all we want, but the quiet reflections between two people, a hand on the shoulder, the tears over the passing of a friend or the laughter from a story told within a group will always be most important.  High touch.  We need each other.  We need to gather in a manner that confirms we are not alone in our worries, frustrations and indeed, the glory of our life with kids. Without question, this is the avowed purpose of our AAIE.  The place where each year the miles no longer separate, where for three days we see new possibilities and a picture of our best selves because the world comes to a big hotel.

I went to my first AAIE meeting 22 years ago.  This is when I first met Dr. Ernie Mannino.  He was like a god…and to me, he still is.  Just as remarkable are Tom Hawkins,  Carol Kluznik, Bill Gerritz, Kevin Bartlett, Monica Greeley,  and Paul Chemlik, to name a few.   They know excellence and each have a story to tell.  AAIE is a place where great stories are told.  A place to learn.

In the coming months AAIE is going to look back to look forward. Many of us remember a time when heads of school, principals, curriculum coordinators and university professors all gathered at AAIE, shoulder-to-shoulder. Retired overseas administrators have always brought their years of experience too. We were a bigger group not too long ago.   We need to reinvent, with a twenty-first century twist,  an AAIE for all…with the quality of each meeting worthy of everyone’s anticipation.  With Elsa and Everett, we’re going to build the bridges to AISH, the regionals, the Office of Overseas Schools, the recruitment agencies and most importantly, to your school.  Tell ten people that this is where we are going as an organization, make sure they join us in New York.  We are planning a celebration of people and our life in overseas schools.  AAIE is on the move and is going to be something more because life does sneak up on you, our days pass too quickly and we can’t go it alone. 

All Good Wishes,

Mark E. Ulfers, Head of School
Frankfurt International School