Dear Maharishi School Community,
Our newly appointed Head of School, Brett Potash, wanted to express some thoughts in advance of his visit this next week. I’m happy to share those with you here (and a beautiful family portrait):
It is with great excitement and humble spirit that I accept the role of Head of School at Maharishi School. From the moment my family stepped on campus, we were so warmly welcomed by this generous community; it’s the sort of thing that stays with you, and gets inside you. It is therefore truly an honor to join the students, parents, faculty, staff, alumni, and Board members who make up Maharishi School.
I began teaching 20 years ago at a small Friends School in rural Ohio. We began and ended each day with “Collection,” a 10-15 minute period in which we sat in silence together. Whether teaching Humanities and Algebra there, or developing a mindfulness program later, my focus has centered less on what students are learning and more on the process of learning itself: the opening up to the wonder of our world, and the search for meaning and purpose within it.
The fact that we learn better when our mind is clear and rested is now common knowledge. Despite that, shockingly few schools have designed their curriculum or programming with that in mind. Maharishi School’s clear commitment to elevating student consciousness, thus allowing the connections and layers that animate life to become apparent, stands as a model in our fractured educational system.
Though I’m not an experienced practitioner of transcendental meditation, I carry with me over 30 years of meditative practice. And my recent work has centered on the primacy of a deceptively simple skill: attention. Indeed, our attention may be the most valuable gift we can give to others and to our work. The ability to bring our full consciousness to a person, to a problem, to a place: that is the central challenge of our time. And while this challenge is an historical one, we are living in a pivotal moment when this capacity – to pay attention – is being quantified and consumed on a global scale, eroding not just our own ability to focus, but threatening our collective ability to relate to each other and sustain just, equitable societies. The role of a place like the Maharishi School is more important than ever.
I’m excited to get to work in Fairfield, and my family is excited to join the Maharishi community. Betsy, a former educator and my loving wife of 17 years, now develops curriculum designed to foster student creativity. Nate, our 13-year-old son, will be entering 8th grade, and can solve a Rubik’s Cube in under 20 seconds. And Lucy, our 9-year-old daughter, loves horses and runs the family. Please don’t hesitate to introduce yourselves to us; we look forward to getting to know you all.
With gratitude,
Brett Potash