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Darlington Goes Global in its Second Century
Jul 6, 2012 10:15 AM
By Joe Montgomery - FF/S
As we embark on our voyage of discovery in Darlington's second century, I believe the school is at a manifest-destiny moment at this time in its history.
Darlington's first century saw the institution grow from a local school serving hometown boys, to one that boarded students from the southern states, to a school dipping its toe in the international community. As our second century begins, we are becoming a national institution with an emerging international presence.
We can no longer think of ourselves as just "Atlanta's boarding school" (we are that, but we are much more than that). Half of our alumni live and work outside of Georgia, many west of the Mississippi, north of Virginia, and across the oceans. Our $90 million Second Century Campaign has been supported by donors from 49 states and 30 foreign countries. And with the onset of social media, we are seeing record levels of engagement, not inhibited by time or distance. We have as many Facebook friends in Jakarta, Indonesia, as we have in Chicago, Ill. Our page is being read in Spanish, German, Portuguese, Turkish, Arabic, French, and 13 other languages.
But this idea of Darlington as a "global village" goes well beyond alumni and external relations, penetrating the school at its very core. In 2011-12, our student body represented 17 states and 38 countries. Our annual international fair put on by our students has grown from an Upper School gathering to a school-wide and Rome community event. Upper School students are visiting Lower School classrooms to talk about their cultures and traditions. In fact, this year's kindergarten class was actually international in scope, representing five different countries. And when one of the students traveled to India with family this winter, his classmates were able to Skype with him and learn more about his experience.
The big question is, how do we navigate this institution in a new national and global reality? How do we capitalize on increasing levels of two-way communication to mobilize an army of ambassadors to create a stream of student referrals, and generate direct support from across the country and the world?
These are some of the many conversations that are happening at Darlington right now and the next couple of years will be incredibly exciting as we navigate these challenges and opportunities together!
Darlington's first century saw the institution grow from a local school serving hometown boys, to one that boarded students from the southern states, to a school dipping its toe in the international community. As our second century begins, we are becoming a national institution with an emerging international presence.
We can no longer think of ourselves as just "Atlanta's boarding school" (we are that, but we are much more than that). Half of our alumni live and work outside of Georgia, many west of the Mississippi, north of Virginia, and across the oceans. Our $90 million Second Century Campaign has been supported by donors from 49 states and 30 foreign countries. And with the onset of social media, we are seeing record levels of engagement, not inhibited by time or distance. We have as many Facebook friends in Jakarta, Indonesia, as we have in Chicago, Ill. Our page is being read in Spanish, German, Portuguese, Turkish, Arabic, French, and 13 other languages.
But this idea of Darlington as a "global village" goes well beyond alumni and external relations, penetrating the school at its very core. In 2011-12, our student body represented 17 states and 38 countries. Our annual international fair put on by our students has grown from an Upper School gathering to a school-wide and Rome community event. Upper School students are visiting Lower School classrooms to talk about their cultures and traditions. In fact, this year's kindergarten class was actually international in scope, representing five different countries. And when one of the students traveled to India with family this winter, his classmates were able to Skype with him and learn more about his experience.
The big question is, how do we navigate this institution in a new national and global reality? How do we capitalize on increasing levels of two-way communication to mobilize an army of ambassadors to create a stream of student referrals, and generate direct support from across the country and the world?
These are some of the many conversations that are happening at Darlington right now and the next couple of years will be incredibly exciting as we navigate these challenges and opportunities together!
