4:45 A.M. First light. My 16-year-old sons, Jake and Ty, rise at the crack of dawn so they can get in to school for early workouts—swim and basketball. Lydia, my wife, sneaks out at the same time to run before the day gets going.
6 A.M. Alarm sounds. I wake up, jump in the shower and get dressed for school. Quincy, my 9-year-old daughter, does the same. We eat breakfast together, and, with Lydia’s assistance, load up the truck with various backpacks for the ride in.
7:25 A.M. Greet the students. Every morning, I welcome all students in grades K through eight to school with a handshake. Thanks to such an intimate setting, all kids at Phoenix Country Day School (PCDS) are well known. My favorite student nicknames: A-Train, The Godfather, Ice Cube and Brooklyn 99.
8 A.M. Construction meeting. Having recently completed a new state-of-the-art tennis and aquatic center and second gymnasium, PCDS is currently in the middle of a third facilities project: the creation of a unique center for art, science and innovation. The details around these projects are endless, and the team we’ve assembled to keep everything moving in the right direction is top-notch.
9:30 A.M. Walk the campus. Spread over more than 40 acresat the base of Camelback Mountain in Paradise Valley, PCDS enrolls 750 students in grades pre-K through 12, and employs more than 160 faculty and staff members. The most enjoyable part of my job is interacting with all ofthem. Today, I stop in the auditorium to catch two senior speeches and cruise the Upper School quad to ask a few students if they’ll help me interview an English teaching candidate.
10:15 A.M. Meet with President of our Board of Trustees. Weekly meetings with my Board President are geared to help us keep focuson our strategic initiatives. This morning, we lend particular attention to our efforts to bring greater socio-economic diversity to our student body with the help of Arizona’s Student Tuition Organizations.
11:30 A.M. Lunch at Chelsea’s Kitchen. Just down the street from school, I get to spend some time with a middle school parent who is considering a significant contribution to our THRIVE campaign, which is helping us pay for all of our construction projects. Our overall goal is $22 million, and this gift will take us to nearly $19 million after three years.
12:30 P.M. Meet with Division Heads. Each of our three academic divisions is led by a principal—we call them Division Heads. Together, we consider curricular initiatives and chart the course for the progress in our classrooms. Key topic: our growing relationship with Stanford University’s Challenge Success program.
2 P.M. Final campus walk. One more lap around the grounds. This time, I bump into rehearsals for our state champion speech and debate team; they’re working on a piece from John Irving’s “A Prayer for Owen Meany.”
3 P.M. Final goodbye to the kids. More nicknames.
3:30 P.M. Catch up on e-mails. Back in my office, I dig into the requests from the day. We’ve just announced the hiring of a new Learning Specialist, and parents are eager to meet her.
4:30 P.M. Exercise. With the e-mails answered and campus quieting down, I sneak out for a run around the neighborhood before it’s time to pick up my daughter from dive practice, and head home.
6:30 P.M. Dinner. While the kids are getting homework started, Lydia and I handle dinner. Burgers, hot dogs and chicken are on the grill, along with asparagus so we can feel like we’ve eaten something healthy. We all gather at the kitchen table and tell stories about our days before the kids head back to their rooms to finish their homework.
8:15 P.M. Gearing down. The kids slowly roll backinto the family room, where we talk and passively watch the end ofthe Coyotes game—or maybe an episode of “Property Brothers” or “Island Life.”
9 P.M.: Lights out. Everyone is in bed fairly early on weekdays; sleep is a big deal in our house. Once the kids are settled in, Lydia and I take in a few minutes of “Shameless” or “Game of Thrones” before falling asleep ourselves—generally with the TV still on.
