In his book entitled “Community,” Peter Block argues that in order for a community to succeed, each person within it must feel a sense of belonging. For this sense of belonging to be authentic, it should come from the actions we take as stewards of our communities. This idea of nurturing healthy, positive relationships in order to achieve a sense of belonging can have a profound impact in school settings, inspiring students to be stewards of their communities both big and small. In 2006, a group of independent school leaders gathered at the George Lucas Foundation in San Francisco to find ways their schools could benefit from and contribute to the greater community. Thus creating the PSPP consortium.

These “private schools with a public purpose” (PSPP) valued the significance of community as well as their individual responsibilities in nurturing and sustaining that community. Service learning initiatives, summer programming, and institutional partnerships were prevalent at these schools, but leaders felt more could be done. They also wondered what other schools (public, private, and charter) as well as nonprofit organizations were doing in the pursuit of community stewardship. Since then the PSPP conference has built momentum over the years. Though locations change, the goals of the conference remain the same: share effective or promising practices, exchange knowledge and ideas, and explore ways to work together and strengthen our respective communities. This spring PSPP 2015 returns to San Francisco from March 13-14.

Creating a sense of belonging is vital for successful communities, and schools can play a crucial role in this work. The more schools work together and nurture relationships with each other, the stronger our communities will become. PSPP helps make this vision a reality, and we welcome your involvement in advancing this movement.

For more info please visit: privateschoolspublicpurpose.org