Chatting With Kai Bynum, Next Head of School

Q. Did you feel comfortable at Assembly this morning?
I did, I did, I felt comfortable. Part of that was it wasn’t the first time I’ve been in that gym during Assembly. And the other part is I like the school, and I respect the voices and opinions of the people I was engaging with. And so any time you’re entering a level when you’re willing to engage, and you’re assuming they’re also willing to engage you, there’s no pressure, you know. There’s a conversation. And I felt this morning we were having a conversation, There were some good questions that I appreciated. I really liked them I could talk about literature and philosophy all day long. That’s where my house is. As people asked those questions, we could have been standing there all morning. I felt really comfortable. I hope the students felt comfortable. Actually, that’s the goal. 

My family always valued education and the notion of thinking and being a good thinker and exploring the values in a classroom, which meant not always taking for granted the information in front of you and also realizing how the information in front of you applies to you as a person. So that’s something that was a part of me at a very very young age...loving knowledge. 

Q. That’s an interesting point. You said that you worked mostly boys public schools, so how do you expect the transition will be going into a coed school. Do you think your philosophy of school administration changes with the school?
I don’t think it changes at all because the first few schools I worked at were coed, obviously the public school was coed, the boarding school was coed, and I was a dorm parent…..I feel I have a pretty good experience of a co-ed environment. 

Q. You talked about your transition from public school to private. What, in the end, prompted that decision? Was there something about public schools that you didn’t like or was there something about independent schools that you valued or found attractive?
Two things. I was disheartened by the inability to be all in. I would say that I wanted to teach; I also wanted to be an administrator. I wanted to advise, I wanted to coach, I wanted to do a number of things. And I felt in the public sector either you’re this, or you’re this, or you’re this. I didn’t feel that I had the flexibility to be a part of all the school as I wanted to be. The other side of that answer is the openness and the total flexibility of the independent school. I mean, everybody’s all in. And that was a huge benefit for me to get into the environment. It’s a lifestyle, it’s not a job. And I love that. 

Q. And how did that mindset impact your decision to come to Hopkins, specifically?
It was the all-in philosophy. When I was here a couple of years ago I was able to visit with a number of students. I sat with a group of middle school students and had a conversation with them about their time at school; I had lunch with a number of upper school juniors and seniors for all three days, asking about their experiences, so on and so forth. And with faculty, as well - you get the sense that we are all doing something, and we are all doing a lot. So as the opportunity emerged to now be a part of it, to be charged with the opportunity to help lead it; it was a good reason to take it. It was a palpable thing. 

Q. We know through the press release and through the Administration, that you have been particularly involved in STEM innovation, so how does that fall under your first year plans at Hop?
Well I’d love for us to talk about it, for sure! I want to get a sense for what the appetite is. STEM is an interdisciplinary field, and I know there are a lot of good things already happening, in our math, science, computer science programs and art programs. From robotics to computer science to actually having a course that blends science and math, and a project-based course as an elective - those are many of the ideas we have. but again, those ideas will grow through the consciousness of the school . 

Q. I’m curious about the studies you’ve done at UPenn about student wellness, religion, and spirituality. How do you think that will apply to Hop students in creating that happy student body that you just mentioned?
The motivation behind my desire to look at spirituality and emotional intelligence was very simple. I was interested in helping students locate meaningful significance in their lives. And as educators—teachers, advisers, coaches, whatever your roles is—if we can be mindful of how we help students locate meaningful significance in their lives, they’re probably more likely to be happier students. So for me that’s a critical component—whether that’s realized as an advising group or in a course or in an activity. 

Q. Hopkins clearly has a commitment to diversity, and you have extensive experience leading programs in that field. So our question is: what will a truly diverse school look, act, and feel like?
It looks and acts and feels like a lot of things. On one hand there is this notion of cultural diversity. This notion of religious diversity, gender diversity, gender identity, sexual diversity, and sexual orientation. Any sort of demographic-cultural in that regard is one important factor in diversity. You could look at areas of intellectual diversity. I think where the term is grounded traditionally is more in the cultural sense, so the ways in which our student body reflects the demographic of the population, and the way in which our faculty reflects the demographic of our population as well. How do you know when it’s accurately reflected and when you’re satisfied? It could be realized in many different ways. For me as I have led efforts in the past, it’s focused on a particular context. So if you’re looking at your student body, what does the demographic of your student body look like? If you looking at sexual orientation, do students feel open enough at a young age to be whomever wherever they want? The notion of religion or spirituality in general, including atheism, is the room open enough to have a broad and open discussion about those things? So I think it really depends from one interaction to another. I think too often historically that discussion has been soiled, you know, because we try to put the notion of diversity in boxes. It’s harder to define it by those boxes. The definitions are evolving with us. 

Q. In The Razor, we noted that in the school profile (which goes out to colleges) we have an approximate 30% students of color benchmark. And I’ve always looked at that and thought “That’s funny, that’s the third thing on our list that characterizes our school.” Although I certainly do think it is something to take pride in, when you really see the diversity, the real diversity of the school is in the classroom, when you have people with really contrasting ideas and different philosophies. Especially when we read the Bible we read it as a piece of literature. And I have a different perspective than a lot of other people do. It really varies, and I think that’s really where you see the diversity.
Yeah, that’s the intellectual diversity I was talking about. Often times in other contexts I did sense that people all over the world tend to focus on one type of diversity. While I don’t want to discredit the importance of having cultural diversity and ethnic diversity, I think it is also important to just take a broader perspective on it. 

Q. That being said, especially the diversity part, what do you have in mind to bring Hopkins to the forefront of the secondary school innovation? What do we do that different from what’s done at Hamden Hall?
That’s a great question, I don’t know if I can completely answer that yet. I’d have to get to know all of you more, better than I do know. I’d have to get a better sense of the teachers, I have to learn a lot more about the community to provide a recipe for improvement, and to know what the ingredients are first. While I know what Roxbury Latin does well, I don’t really know what Hamden [Hall] does well. So I have to get a better understanding. Ask me that question a year from know, and I’ll give you a better sense of the answer. 

Q. Speaking for myself, I absolutely love the school and everything about it. But there is this one thing, which I’m curious what you think about, which is our mascot: the Hilltopper. It’s a goat. I don’t really feel that it represents the academic fortitude of this institution. How do you feel about that?
That’s a great question. It’s funny—some people say that goat really means the “greatest of all time.” So obviously you have to be careful and not seem as though we’re going ahead of ourselves. If we desire to be one of the best institutions in the country then it’s not bad for our mascot to represent that desire. 

Q. And in this next year, how often do you plan to come back to Hopkins, and what do you have in mind to build relationships with students, faculty, parents? What’s the plan?
The number of visits to campus is still being ironed out, but the goal is to meet as many people as I possibly can. To develop relationships within the community to learn the school, learn the customs the traditions, the habits, what are the rituals, what are all those things. I came out with a good sense of the community, a good sense of the academic integrity, a good sense of the feeling that the students, the faculty, and the staff are “all in,” and that was enough for me, so now it’s time for me to put more stories behind that feeling, you know, to put more of your experiences behind those feelings. So when I come in July and the transition is over with Mrs. Riley, I would have a better sense of how we can all work together. You know, the one thing that I’m sure you know, you’re editor-in-chief, to be a good leader you have to know your people, you have to know the people you’re working with, how they work, you have to know the desires, the wants, the wills, the won’ts, the frustrations, all those things. And so a lot of this year is going to take some steps to do that. If I begin to develop those relationships this year, I feel better about the transition coming in July.