WILL SMILEY
Mr. Smiley has a dream. His dream is that one day our students will be part of the generation to find solutions to the great problems of the world - species loss, change in global climate, energy complications, economic catastrophes, the uneven use of resources. For now, he teaches them lessons in sustainability and stewardship.
The solutions to the great problems, he says, will come from problem solvers with entrepreneurial spirit who are capable of thinking in new ways. Mr. Smiley takes very seriously his role in teaching students to be the ones with innovative ideas and skills.
As our headmaster Jeb Byers likes to say, "Mr. Smiley walks the walk."
As our headmaster Jeb Byers likes to say, "Mr. Smiley walks the walk."
He sponsors the Sustainability Task Force, collects secondhand bicycles for classes to ride to the waterfront, cultivates a “no mow zone” and oversees the school’s renowned “Cans for Oysters” project. To date, students have raised money to buy and farm more than one million oysters in an effort to save the Chesapeake Bay (did you know? Each oyster filters 50 gallons of water each day. That’s 50 millions gallons of water filtered before entering the bay, courtesy of Mr. Smiley and his students). Mr. Smiley constantly creates opportunities for Christchurch students to become intimate with and knowledgeable about the vast resources surrounding the school.
According to Mr. Smiley, Christchurch School took the most remarkable and foreward-thinking step by developing Great Journeys and re-writing the mission to include institutional sustainability. “Stewardship is written on the walls around us!” he exclaims. Experience shows him that Christchurch graduates continue to make the connections in their colleges, homes and countries.
Mr. Smiley recommends books for those interested –
Myth of Progress: Toward a Sustainable Future by Tom Wessels
180 degrees South: Conquerors of the Useless by Chris Malloy, Yvon Chouinard and Jeff Johnson
From the Bottom Up: One Man's Crusade to Clean America's Rivers by Chad Pegracke
As Mr. Smiley reminds his students every day, by word and action – “we are all responsible for future generations.”
His daily motto? “What waste did I make today? Is there a way I can reduce or recover it tomorrow?”
