In the Age of Coronavirus

The level of disruption taking place in American society due to the coronavirus pandemic is unprecedented. The scope of the current situation is already such that students are learning remotely and most adults who are able to do so are working from home. The bigger issue and concern is where it goes from here. There are projections that some of the protocols in place now could last six months to a year and there are models for the spread of the virus that has 50-60% of the U.S. population being infected over time. Actually, unprecedented doesn't do this current situation justice.

Catholic schools, like all schools, have had to move to remote instruction and learning in a rapid fashion. Many are rising to the challenge and are doing incredible work. Social media has a mixed reputation, and I am one who has gone on 'fasts' in the past because of the level of distraction it provides. But for teachers during this time there are countless resources available to educators about how to move classes online. You have to separate the wheat from the chaff a bit but there are really credible, high level resources that can impact what you are doing today. 

For school leaders, communication must be the focal point, especially in this early period of transition. Communication is an important component of leadership in the best of times but during times of crisis it is absolutely essential. Leaders need to communicate calm while also delivering the true reality of the situation. It reminds me of the Stockdale Paradox which balances optimism and hope that better days lie ahead while confronting the brutal facts of your current situation. 

The Irish Prime Minister, Leo Varadkar, gave a speech to his country on St. Patrick's Day that is a template for all leaders. It was honest but hopeful, true to the brutal reality but inspiring at the same time. Those who have the responsibility to lead and guide others should look to such examples for ideas in how best to balance those two different aspects of reality. And that is an accurate description - one reality is that our current situation presents unique and extremely daunting challenges but the other reality is that we will get through this at some point and our belief, especially as faith leaders, is that we will be better because of the experience. 

That is the aspect of the Stockdale Paradox that always amazed me the most. That Jim Stockdale realized, while he was a prisoner at the Hanoi Hilton being tortured nearly daily, that his current experience would be something he would look back and value to the point where he would be glad that he went through it. That the experience itself would be transformative for him and make him a better person. 

I have used this for years with Catholic schools that have faced the brutal fact of potential closure while at the same time hoping that growth was possible. The message centers around the idea that the challenging times are what shape you and form you to become the school you are meant to be. So when the growth does come, you look back on the challenging times with gratitude because they forged the community in a way that led to the growth.

In the current reality of coronavirus, more Catholic schools are faced with this dire prospect. And I know it is hard to see where the growth or future success lies in the midst of such uncertainty. However, the best advice for schools to address the current reality is to look in an honest and transparent way at the core facts, whether it is low enrollment, financial strain, confidence with online learning, technology infrastructure or something else and own that reality. Then view the challenge through the lens of the long term - what path gets the school to the point of sustainability? 

The hard fact is that crisis reveals the truth - who we are as leaders and what we bring to our communities. My prayer is that each of us can rise to the challenge we face today and realize it will be something we look back on as event that helped shape a future for Catholic schools that will be better than ever before.