On Monday, Carr Young stood in the carpool line, welcoming students and wishing them a good day at Jackson Academy. He then moved to the Administration Building, where he made sure he had greeted everyone present, handing out his business cards and shaking hands with each person while looking them squarely in the eye. He then participated in an 8:30 a.m. division heads meeting.
These activities may seem typical for the leader of an independent school. But Carr Young is a third grader. And this was his first, and only, shot as head of school…at least for now.
Carr’s day as head of school came about through the Jackson Academy Association’s event, A Blue & White Night, where JA constituents bid on items in a silent auction. One auction item is the experience “Head of School for the Day.”
JA Head of School Palmer Kennedy created a series of experiences with input from Carr. Besides interacting with faculty, staff, and students throughout the day, Carr observed how meetings are run, visited classrooms, and cast a watchful eye over the facilities. He even took a little time for rest and recreation.
He brought two of his buddies, Alec Dier and Reed Miley, to The Brickyard, where the three threw the football with senior scholar-athlete Marcus Harris. The students met the Raider Network team and toured the production trailer. They rode via golf cart with Associate Head of School for Student Life Jimmy Messer to Raider Park to view the athletic facilities, where they practiced track and field events such as long jump and hurdle. Carr then had lunch in the cafeteria with Palmer Kennedy.
After lunch, they visited Cliff Powers’ STEM classroom to observe Powers teaching first-graders the science behind making lava lamps. This experiment brought back fond memories for Carr.
Along the way, teachers played the part, asking Carr questions that they might have asked the actual head of school. One answer: If he were head of school in reality, Carr would offer free iPad time from 1 to 1:30 p.m. every day. Even as head of school for only one day, Carr did what every great head of school does: He thanked the faculty he met along the way for what they do for JA.
