A River Town Goes Global

Abstract

AS THE designated photographer for this special moment, I felt a lump rising in my throat as I watched the group of three arrange themselves on the bench in our high school courtyard. The trio included two tall, handsome, Chinese teenage boys and the president of our board of education, who appeared very tiny situated between them with their long arms across the back of the bench behind her. The boys had requested one final picture before they boarded the waiting bus after a two-week stay in Croton-on-Hudson, our small town on the banks of the Hudson River. As I adjusted the camera so the image was clear, I could see tears about to brim over in the board president's eyes as well. Once the picture was taken, she turned to the young men and said, Now, boys, don't forget to call me from Los Angeles so I know you're okay. Since that day, I have reflected a great deal on the past year and our district's experiences as a learning community. In the fall of the 2006-07 school year, an unexpected opportunity came our way when the Westchester County government asked if we wanted to send a delegation of professional staff to China to build relationships with educators there. This opportunity has had a major impact on our district and community, broadening our views, expanding our minds, and opening our hearts to new colleagues, students, and families. Over the next two years, Croton-Harmon School District sent separate delegations of staff and students to visit China and hosted similar visits by Chinese teachers and students. Through the forward thinking of Andy Spano, the county executive, and Daisy Yau, the director of Asian-American affairs and business development for the county, Westchester County had begun to forge business relationships with China. County leaders wanted to expand these initiatives to include education. Although the invitation to visit China came long after our budget process ended, the board of education recognized the potential of such a trip, and district staff and the district's educational foundation cooperated to cover transportation costs of flying four teachers, the high school principal, and me, the superintendent, to China. We also welcomed to our group a teacher of English as a second language who taught in a neighboring school district. The Chinese schools that we visited would be our hosts and cover the costs of our lodging, meals, and travel to cultural and educational points of interest. And so began an adventure that would impact our school community profoundly. Identifying teachers who would make the trip was the first challenge. High school staff learned about the invitation at their opening day meeting. Interested teachers were invited to apply with a written explanation of their interest and how the trip would impact their teaching. Brett Bowden, a social studies teacher contemplating such an experience, wrote: I suppose, I would fully realize what it's like to be a stranger in the Middle Kingdom ... and see firsthand the China we studied in textbooks. History, geography, culture, the changing free-market economy ... what an experience. I'd be able to describe the Great Wall from touch--and compare it to our Croton Dam. I'd walk the streets of Tiananmen Square and secretly wonder how the American Revolution might have been quashed had King George III put down the rebellion before the Sons of Liberty picked up momentum. I might enter a Wal-Mart store in China and see if Tom Friedman is right about globalization 3.0 and whether the world really is flat. And from art teacher Jennifer Moore, we received this: From the beginnings of paper making to the traditions of Chinese Shadow Theater, I try to give my students an idea of the diverse cultures we share around the globe. Exploring the landscapes so often seen in Chinese paintings, viewing the jade and ivory carvings in their traditional settings, and touring the architecture of temples and palaces will educate me on how to directly incorporate East Asian influence into my curriculum. …