Democracy Day

What should be done in a JK-12 school environment in the context of a contentious political environment? You might think we should just push through the distractions that come from beyond our berm and focus on “school things”: future tense verb conjugations in Spanish and applications of the Pythagorean Theorem in math. We disagree.

Under the direction of Colin Douglas ’06, James S. Garvey Chair for Distinguished Teaching in History and History Department Chair, a team of FWCD faculty have used parts of the last two summers to set the stage for a unique experience celebrating our democracy. These Summer Fellows funding recipients have prepared age-appropriate experiences for September 25 to help all of our students gain a better understanding of what makes democracy in the United States special. 

In the end, our theme on the 25th is not only democracy but also civil discourse. While adults (especially on television) do not always model civility when talking politics, on FWCD's inaugural Democracy Day, we will be putting our attention on just that civility. It is healthy to disagree, we will say, as long as that disagreement is consistent with our core values of respect and kindness. If their day jobs (mostly in politics) do not interfere at their appointed hour, our speakers will give our students the opportunity to witness respect for different opinions. 

In the big picture, we are working with you as parents to create good citizens in each of our Fort Worth Country Day graduates. Our Democracy Day is meant to be a special occasion highlighting the expectations of a good citizen, to participate in democracy as informed opinion holders and as respectful humans. I look forward to your students reporting home on what they learn on this auspicious day.