Last year, the CAST nonprofit board encouraged me to participate in executive coaching, and at the end of the process, my coach encouraged me to craft a vision statement. It read:
I am a Torch Bearer for the wisdom of youth. My infection belief inspires others to believe, unite, & act. Having faith in our young people, we co-create a more caring community where they will lead and all will thrive.
One of the magical qualities about CAST is that we are an organization of Torch-Bearers. Even as I keep the flame for youth voice, Deputy Director Jen Maestas is a Torch-Bearer for Teachers, a stance that was also shared by one of our early employees, Sara Sherwood. We were so fortunate that when Sara retired, Anastasia Perez came in with a similar passion, thoughtfully centering the lived experience of our teachers in our decision-making.
Another of our first CAST team members, Carol Mendenhall, was the person who always reminded us: we cannot become a school district. I am not sure how to describe this particular torch, but whenever we veered too close to bureaucratic or compliance-based decision making, she reminded us that our role was to chart a new path while acting as critical friends to our school district partners.
This year, we asked Eddie Rodriguez, formerly the keeper of our brand, to take on a new role as Sr. Partnership Director. He has become a torch-bearer for our industry partners, a role that our industry-led nonprofit board also plays. When we were unable to move forward with our planned East Side expansion this year, it was board member Rene Dominguez who pointed out: “we have standards. It would be wrong for us to go to a community like the East Side and offer something less than we do at our other schools.
Our new Communications Director, Stephanie Gaitan, is now the keeper of our brand. We’re fortunate this year to have brought on two more folks who are fanatical about youth voice, our Student Experience Coordinator Eric Falcon, and our Development Director, Nicole Amri. We’ve also for the first time hired 2 apprentices as we seek to walk the journey we ask our employer partners to walk. Having Brooke Zepeda and Daniel Ruiz in the room where we debate our priorities and actions means they hold us to account from their perspective as recent CAST graduates.
We are also an organization of people who confront difficult truths, and that is reinforced by our Torch Bearer for data, Nayeli Gomez, who never lets us shy away from what the data is telling us.
Another one of our very first employees, Dr. Carol Harle, carries so many torches it’s a wonder she doesn’t catch on fire! Carol, our School Experience Director, operates from the heart, and not only does she deeply care about students, teachers, and principals, she always brings us back to the fact that we are first and foremost a human-centered organization. We have another amazing human in our organization, Josh Collins, our storyteller, who reminds us that every person has a story, and to quote his uncle, Lorenzo Gomez III, that story has the power to help at least one person.
Who carries the torches in your organization? And how can you make sure these flames are continuously lit and lifted aloft?
Jeanne Russell
Executive Director
CAST Schools
