Happy New Year and Welcome Back:

I hope that you all had a fantastic winter break. For me, it was a time to see my parents and one of my brothers, as well as spend some amazing time with my own family.

I put together a lot of toys. Our guest speaker this fall, the roboticist Dr. James McLurkin, apparently inspired Santa to deliver a programmable robotic kit to our house on Christmas Eve. I learned some rudimentary programming skills and played with this toy more than my children! Like so many of you, I also spent a lot of time reading and reflecting about life in general. I usually do my best thinking when I am outdoors, and this break was no exception.

While skiing last week, I put my skins on to hike into some back-country terrain. As I surveyed a beautiful bowl between two high peaks in Summit County, I was struck by the responsibility we all have to care for each other and the world. The year 2010 was a year rocked with some challenging situations such as the earthquake in Haiti and the oil spill in the Gulf. It seemed like every time I opened the newspaper this past year, there was a celebrity or public person who was apologizing for his or her own bad behavior. However, there are many uplifting stories that we should not overlook.

We saw the triumph of the human spirit in the wonderful story of the rescue of the Chilean miners. From my own class I am teaching on The War on Terror, I am reminded daily of the sacrifices American men and women are making as they put their lives on the line standing up for American values. Last year, we saw our own students step up in incredible ways to make a difference in this world through their volunteerism and outreach.

Before skiing down, I was optimistic about our future because I know there are schools like ours that are producing the kind of leaders capable of making our world a better place.

As we embrace our school values in the coming year, I hope that we (faculty, families, and students) all recognize the power of education to transform our world. With our global focus and our ambition to be an innovative school of the 21st century, Colorado Academy has the ability to create something that very few schools can: critically thinking and independently minded young adults with the moral framework to navigate an increasingly complex world.

I wish you all a Happy New Year and look forward to seeing you next week. Welcome back.

Mike Davis, Ph.D.
Head of School
Colorado Academy