The Language of Leadership
Dear Supporters,
You would have noticed over the last 24 hours that, in addition to our own statement, we have posted statements about the PMSA’s apology to Flo Kearney by both the Somerville House Foundation and the Somerville House Old Girls Association. There is a very clear reason for us doing so.
Why, we hear you ask? Well, because, quite bizarrely there has been NO effort made by the PMSA to broadcast the apology to the community in the Somerville House Newsletter this week. There has also been no email to the Somerville House community at all. This should have been a given!
Some might argue that this is harsh criticism. We don’t think so. When it suits the PMSA to use the communications architecture within the schools to communicate its own “good” news, initiatives or “governance updates” it does so. Over the past 18 months, we have all had PMSA communiques shoved down our throats via school newsletters. So now that there is an important announcement that directly impacts the very interested Somerville House community (an issue that people have been screaming about for 19 months) - somehow that’s not worthy of the same attention? Really? Were the PMSA that childish in arguing their terms of settlement for the apology that they wouldn’t agree to a reasonable basis for publication to the very community that was directly affected by its actions? How is this fair to Flo? How is this authentic?
A short post on the PMSA Facebook Page and an apology at the bottom of the PMSA webpage isn’t enough. PMSA electronic media is hardly a high traffic area. Let’s face it, it has 198 followers and no one visits it for recreation! How many of you bother to visit their Facebook Page any more after its 2018 censorship debacle??
If not for the Beyond PMSA Facebook Page, even fewer people would know about the existence of an apology that convenient timing ensured ended up running second to the royal baby news.
Yet again, this approach to authentic community engagement by the PMSA on a matter of HUGE importance to the Somerville House School community goes right to the issue of TRUST.
The apology should be emailed to EVERY member of the Somerville House community, including the parents and students of the 2017 senior cohort who were adversely affected in their final year. And it should set specific details for the holding of a formal farewell for Flo and thank you for her service.
Furthermore, this should be a matter that the P&F is empowered to deal with. The P&Fs at all schools represent the voice of the community don’t they? In any NORMAL school structure where P&Fs actually have the ability to freely communicate with their community without being censored and dictated to by the governing body under a delegations structure, it would be. Somerville House has a great P&F team that works hard. Let them do their job! (Oh for a school that doesn’t feel like a throwback to Orwell’s 1984).
This isn’t trivial! Come on PMSA - do something properly for a change. If your apology is “really” genuine and heartfelt then be authentic about how you broadcast it. Flo deserves that respect. The community deserves the same.
That’s how you start to re-build trust.
We are not going away.
Beyond PMSA
