Harry Reinhardt: Comments on Board of Governors response/report

[Veronica]

Harry Reinhardt

Comments on Aiglon Board Response

I have to fully agree with the Board that the allegations are serious. Inaction would be damaging. I have been hearing these issues being discussed by parents, alumni and students for some years now. Some of the problems were brought to the Headmaster and the Board with little or no satisfaction to the petitioner. I felt it was time to compile some of the issues and have an open, honest, and transparent conversation to better our school. I think the Board now sees and understands that the Alumni are engaged in the school as an ongoing institution. We love the events that Rana organizes so well for us around the world, and we also cherish the camaraderie our common experience gives us. But that is not all, we care deeply about our school and how it is run. It is Our School.

There has been much discussion since my open letter was released. Almost all supporting positive change at Aiglon, therefore, I think it appropriate that I comment on some of the explanations given by the Board since I started this discussion.

The Board should understand that the anxiety parents, students, and alumni felt was already there. I did not create it. I appreciate the Board’s concern but they need to remember that it was their and the Headmaster's inaction which has prompted all of this.

Governance

I am not flexible on the conflict of interest regarding Aidan College. I think it a good decision Mr. Elliott removes himself from its Board. The idea that the Headmaster of Aiglon is the 100% owner, Chairman and founder of a startup school less than 20 miles away is ludicrous. I know startups. They take time, thought, money, support, marketing, and a figurehead to close the deal. Aiglon needs a Headmaster who is fully engaged and not building an alternative business.

The Board's response that it will now only happen after Board approval on a case by case basis is bizarre.

Edward Hutley ('80) a board member of FOAC UK said is best in his Facebook posting:

"I am saddened by its contents , however I feel that this special relationship between the chairman and headmaster is totally unacceptable.
This is a conflict of interest and should cease at once .
I am also concerned as to how a Headmaster can have two jobs , particularly as the reputation Aiglon is in decline ( tragic academic results ) and the decline in pastoral care .
I hope that the board react and deal with the situation immediately .
If it were my business (school ) i would make immediate and radical changes ."

The excuse that other independent schools have the Headmaster on the Board nominating committee does not fly. It is bad practice. We need independent Board members who are not beholden to anyone, especially someone over whom they have authority.

Here again we have the excuse that other schools do it. Parents on the Board. Their might not be evidence that favoritism exists but their is the perception that it does, especially with the students.

Pastoral Care

Physical violence. Big issue these days. Happened when I was at Aiglon, not often but it happened. When I was in the 2nd form three of my roommates and I were demoted to ‘No Rank” by JC for bullying (names will not be revealed). We were not violent, we were just mean. JC was very clear about it, he calmly told us what we were doing was unacceptable and that with effort and good behavior we would regain our ranks and privileges. We got punished and were given a pathway out. It was also announced at meditation. Back then if you did not get promoted from No Rank before the end of the following term you were not coming back.

Here is what a very recent Aiglon student (daughter of an alumni) stated :

" Tatiana Af Geijerstam You should be concerned if you are a parent of a student at Aiglon. I was at Aiglon for 3 years as a day student and at least I could go home at night away from the bullying - both by the students and the teachers. It was difficult to witness this on a daily basis and not be able to say anything as I might have been the next target. My parents went repeatedly to the Administration to express their concerns about the way students were treated and the lack of pastoral care -- they were told that there was no bullying at Aiglon.... My mom begged the Junior School Headmaster to implement PSHE which finally happened. Unfortunately, the school did not follow the curriculum. Luckily, I am now at a school where there is a true sense of community and where the teachers are truly passionate about teaching. I felt that Aiglon was an orphanage albeit a quite exclusive one at that "

Drugs, alcohol, and tobacco. We all know schools are fighting these issues. It is not tabloid journalism when I stated that the use proliferates at the school. Since 1996 I have given 5 meditations to the student body about substance abuse. It is not incongruous that I bring this subject up and the schools failings in this area. I know this subject. I have spoken to the students over the years and saw early on the schools failings. I make the journey to the school to do this little service because their is a need. I have never been asked to do it. PSHE program is ineffectual at best and useless if not done properly. Their are good schools out there, like The Thatcher School, that have a good, open and understandable program dealing with these issues. Its worth a trip to talk to their Headmaster.

It is correct that student(s) have been caught high and not punished because they confessed before being administered at drug test.

Random drug testing and staff members patrolling the streets. Here we go again, this is “recognized as good practice in comparable schools”. Who cares what other schools do, CYA anyone? What kind of message does that give a teenager except that he is not trusted? Maybe we need an honor code at the school. All students aught to be trusted. Personal honor and trust seems to me to be a vital part of character development.

Here is a response from another alumni Rob Dekker to the Chairman's response to my letter :

Rob Dekker
"the disciplinary........ and periodically it can appear that justice has been unevenly applied. This holds true in most legal justice systems designed to dispense equitable justice" NO IT CERTAINLY DOES NOT ! As for the rest they assure us it is very normal "all other schools are doing it" Well we are NOT discussing OTHER schools are we ? It AIGLON for f@# sake ! Aiglon sets the standards and other schools can copy us !

I stand corrected on the houseparent issue.

Academics

Education. I am happy to see that at the time of the Boards response the students who at first did not get into their UK Universities have now done so.

Aiglon is not and never was directed to focus on college entrances. But truthfully, that list of colleges and universities the graduating class will be attending is not impressive. Only 1 graduate in a top 10 ranked UK University. Not a single graduate in a top 10 ranked US University, and only 1 graduate in a top 20 ranked US University.

Here is the reaction of another alumni Carl Mitchell :
" Carl Mitchell Hard to comment on drugs, alcohol, tobacco except to hope that it's not as bad as it sounds. Boarding school can also be rough at times, and favouritism, well nothing's clearly changed there! However, I am stunned at how far the academic level seems to have declined. 20% failure rate! And wow, for all the tuition fees we just managed to beat the global average- that isn't exactly something to brag about. And , no disrespect to the latest graduates, but the list of Universities doesn't include ANY top rated institutions either side of the Atlantic- from my graduating class alone we had Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, Princeton, Yale, etc. What the hell has happened? "

The Boards response states they are disappointed that I did not make reference to the “ personal development of our students in expeditions, sport, art, theater, music, or any challenging activities.” That was not the point of the Open Letter. Suffice it to say my youngest daughter starts at Aiglon in two days.

I want to thank the Board for dispensing with rumors, taking actions on some of governance issues, and undertaking an analysis of the academic failings. The concerns raised are true. Some of the issues can be parsed with wrong facts but the underlying problems are real and need to be dealt with. I always like to read good news and upbeat reports and emails about the school. I want to read some in the future about actions and results from this exercise.