School News
Considering & Including Multiple Perspectives
Welcome to October! September was a time for building community, reconnecting with familiar faces, and getting acquainted with new ones while settling into our routines, expectations, and rhythms. In my last note, I shared with you how we developed Community Agreements during our opening staff meetings. These agreements were designed to foster transparency and create a shared understanding of how we can build relationships and more effectively work together. The staff enthusiastically suggested inviting the entire community to join this practice. Over the coming weeks, I will write more about how we are living these agreements and ways we work together to support each other in adhering to them. For those interested, the framed Community Agreements can be found in the vestibule to the right as you enter the school.
Today, I want to address the first agreement: Consider and Include Multiple Perspectives. This aligns with one of our mission’s pillars: Learning in Community is Complex. In our initial staff meeting, we discussed a new Decision Making Protocol designed to enhance clarity in our collaborative leadership model and give us a clearer perspective on our roles and responsibilities within our school and organization. The protocol outlines four roles in the decision-making process: Approver, Decider, Consulter, and Informed. Below is a brief description of each role:
Approver (The Final Say)
This individual holds the final authority over a decision, giving the definitive "yes" or "no."
Key point: There can only be one Approver per decision.
This individual holds the final authority over a decision, giving the definitive "yes" or "no."
Key point: There can only be one Approver per decision.
Decider (Makes the Decision)
This person makes the decision, but approval from the Approver is required before moving forward.
Key point: The Decider cannot approve their own decisions.
This person makes the decision, but approval from the Approver is required before moving forward.
Key point: The Decider cannot approve their own decisions.
Consulters (Give Advice)
These individuals offer advice or information to assist the Decider in making an informed choice. While there may be several Consulters, they do not hold final decision-making authority.
Key point: Consulters do not have approval power.
Informed (Kept in the Loop)
These individuals are updated after the decision is made but do not participate in the decision-making process.
Key point: The Informed group is updated on the outcome, but their role is informational only.
These individuals are updated after the decision is made but do not participate in the decision-making process.
Key point: The Informed group is updated on the outcome, but their role is informational only.
In our discussions, we applied this protocol to a hypothetical case study on safety and security at FSS. We asked staff to assign board members, administrators, and staff to decision-making roles, which sparked valuable insights into how our positions within the school shape what we see, perceive, and understand about decision-making in general. Our discussion highlighted how positionality—our roles, identities, and backgrounds—influence what we see and understand about our Fayerweather community. Some staff described feeling a strong sense of safety and belonging, while others navigate these concerns differently and feel less safe, less of a sense of belonging and safety in their worlds.
As we delved deeper, it became clear that this framework offers a more transparent process for managing expectations, clarifying roles, and fostering accountability. It helps define who is responsible, who should be consulted, and who must be informed. At the heart of this process is trust, transparency, and a shared commitment to dignity, respect, and belonging. These enable us to embrace multiple perspectives and an awareness how our positionality influences what we see and understand, as well as what we might not see or understand about ourselves or another person’s experience.
The case study revealed the collective strength of our diverse viewpoints while clarifying different responsibilities in our decision-making process. It reminded us that considering multiple perspectives is an ongoing practice. While we cannot control every situation, we can choose to respond with thoughtfulness, empathy, and compassion. Above all, our shared purpose—Fayerweather’s mission and the care and well-being of our students—guides us. As things unfold, may we continue to support each other toward that common perspective and goal.
Fayerweather Street School | 765 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138 | 617-876-4746
Fayerweather is a private PreK, kindergarten, elementary and middle school. We engage each child’s intellect.