THE OLDEST SCHOOL IN AMERICA OPTS FOR STRUCTURAL ELEGANCE
Roxbury Latin School is a college preparatory day school enrolling 290 boys in grades 7–12. In 1927—just 282 years after its founding—the school was moved to a new, 50- acre campus in West Roxbury, Massachusetts, into a building designed by the eminent architect William Perry. Perryʼs firm would later—in part due to its success at Roxbury Latin—be entrusted with the restoration of Colonial Williamsburg. The beautiful campus reflects the ethic of high expectations that is a hallmark of the school. The website story begins this way:
Welcome to The Roxbury Latin School. Founded in 1645 by The Reverend John Eliot, Roxbury Latin is not only the oldest school in continuous existence in North America, it is also, by my reckoning, the oldest boysʼ school on the continent. For all of our 363 years we have offered a program explicitly designed for the boys in our care. Our work has been steady and sure...
Of Roxbury Latinʼs singular qualities, however, none contributes more powerfully to the life of our school than the background and nature of our boys. Long before other schools decided that their integrity depended on their demonstrating some semblance of “diversity,” Roxbury Latin pursued and welcomed a student body strikingly reflective of Greater Bostonʼs broad demographic. We offer admission without concern for a familyʼs ability to pay, and we provide whatever financial aid is necessary in order for a family to be able to send their son here....
It makes for a dramatically democratic student body in which boys are measured by and appreciated for their talents, their character, their contribution to the life of the School, and their vibrant, eclectic personalities. 1
Roxbury Latin has recently launched a new databridge between its website and KEYSTONE, iRʼs registrar database, which required a collaboration between inRESONANCE and Silverpoint. Director of Technology Alex Rhinelander conceived of and directed the groundbreaking project. We called to ask for Rhinelanderʼs reflections on the process. Our conversation began with his description of the school. “It struck me when I first came to Roxbury Latin,” Rhinelander remembered, “that we really are who we say we are. We are clear about the mission of the school. Often school missions are statements of aspiration, but at Roxbury Latin, our mission statement really says ʻthese are our priorities.ʼ”
“At Roxbury Latin,” Rhinelander emphasized, “ʻWhat kind of person a boy isʼ is a mantra more than a motto. As Director of Technology, Rhinelander has developed and implemented a technology plan across the curriculum. Every academic department and most extracurricular activities incorporate useful technologies. Each classroom is equipped with an LCD projector, and four large computer/multi-media labs are available throughout the campus. The Director balances the competing goals of keeping current with emerging technologies, training faculty, and managing growth.
“Roxbury Latin is a place that does a wonderful job of getting the most of out of the people who are involved in it. Everyone works really, really hard, both students and adults. You get a sense of accomplishment from having been drawn to work above what you thought you might have been able to do. Itʼs an atmosphere where you find yourself saying, ʻWow, I didnʼt know I could do that.ʼ”
Rhinelander has been at Roxbury Latin for eight years. The depth of his involvement becomes clear when he tries to step back for a summary look: “Itʼs hard to look objectively when youʼve been somewhere long enough, especially a place you love.”
“Love” is a word not commonly found on school websites, but it is found repeatedly in the Roxbury Latin philosophy. “Who We Are,” a web page that summarizes the mission (“to prepare students intellectually, morally, and spiritually for service in the world as leaders of integrity and conviction”) and high expectations of this “democratically gathered community” with a need-blind admissions policy, ends with the statement:
Rhinelander confirms this core value, repeating, “Our Head (Kerry P. Brennan) makes a promise to parents: ʻYour son will be known and loved.ʼ”
Alex coaches lacrosse and also teaches two different courses, black and white photography for the art department, and computer science, which is a java-based programming class for juniors and seniors. It is one of three computer courses offered. In Class VI (7th grade), boys meet daily for an interdisciplinary class (“Trivium”) to explore design/perspective in art, project development/Internet research in computer science, and the scientific method/microscope use in science. For instance, the topic of Vision & Perception would examine eye anatomy, multi-stability, and digital imagery. An elective in three-dimensional modeling is offered to Class IV (9th grade), and Rhinelanderʼs AP computer science class is available to Class II and Class I students.
Rhinelander explained that the core of his computer science class is more about theoretical concepts than end products. “At iR Developer Camp, Kevin talked about the process of developing software, and making a choice between what he describes as ʻstructural eleganceʼ and ʻdeliberate non-normalization.ʼ Kevin used the example of the difference between architects and carpenters, and their various competing interests. A carpenter will lack certain knowledge if he tries to design a building. These are the same differences that exist between actual programming and computer science—computer science is closer in a lot of ways to abstract mathematics than to programming. In those discussions at Developer Camp, I found myself on the side of structural elegance.”
iRʼs Developer Camp took place in February. Rhinelander was one of 21 participants— iR clients, iR contractors, and iR developers—who gathered in order to establish an open, collaborative developer community that will create shareware productivity tools for independent school administrators. Rhinelander demonstrated his new data synch bridge to the group.
“Itʼs a great project,” he began. “There is a tension in all schools, involving databases, and communication between them. There is an understandable wish for a single, integrated, unique database that serves all needs for all people in a school. “It just doesnʼt work. Kevin writes about this, he has always said ʻit just doesnʼt work.ʼ I do agree with him on this.
“As a school tech person, I often get asked to fix that problem: ʻWe want an integrated system in our school, we donʼt want our data to get out of synch.ʼ I understand the wish for an integrated data system, but it certainly doesnʼt work in a school. A school is not that monolithic corporate structure you would need in order to make a single solution work. It doesnʼt really fit.
“At DevCamp, Charlie showed slides of the iR solutions and how the various databridge shuttles link the data silos. Thatʼs the conclusion I had come to here. Instead of trying to make one single database that would serve all users, we looked around and decided on the model of having separate databases and using automated tools to bridge them. This gives you the best of both worlds: you have the right database for each office and you donʼt have the issues of the data being out of synch.
“If there were one single application that would be able to do what everyone wanted it to do, it would be too complex to maintain from the programming side; it would be immense. It just doesnʼt work. Smaller apps that talk to teach other are a better way to go forward.
“This collaboration with iR and Silverpoint was a long process, very long. It was more complex than we realized it would be, including the challenges in managing the project itself, so that everyone could work well together. But we had looked carefully before selecting our partners. We are very happy with Silverpoint and inRESONANCE, they are both great companies to work with, and do what it takes to make their customers happy.
“For a successful collaboration, itʼs important to assign responsibilities. Charlie Bailey suggested that the new Developer Community have an annual face-to-face meeting and monthly virtual meetings. Now, with hindsight, I see it would have been helpful for our project if we had planned to have a weekly conference call or virtual meeting. Whenever we spoke to each other, progress was made quickly.
“The overall goal for the project with iR and Silverpoint was to move us toward a more integrated data system. We chose not to put all of our data into one database, but we were not happy that the only way to move data was the import/export function.
“We knew there was a much better way to get the changes from one database into another. We already had PWS and PORTAL; we saw those products move data from the web into the school database. We knew our new web site would have a lot of data in it. We wanted to make sure the data was integrated, and we wanted the process to be as automated as possible.
“The system we ended up with is semiautomated. Ultimately, we came to the conclusion that the bridge should not be fully automated. We ended up with a tool that requires you to put your eye on the change during the data synch. Youʼre the one who is making the changes, but you donʼt have to type the data.
The desire for structural elegance was a compelling reason to opt for a major customization. Rhinelander explained that the solution he needed just wasnʼt available on the market. “Several database companies offer modules that are a portal on your web site that can present data on the web site. The data is self-contained as part of the web site. If you want to actually present data from your internal database, there are fewer options.
“Most of the website companies these days will do quite a lot more than just static web pages, including classroom management tools. Silverpoint does an excellent job of leveraging the power of the website, and KEYSTONE works the way we need it to for the registrar functions. By choosing the best company for each of these functions, we were able to pick and choose bits and pieces of the functionality of both and integrate them with a bridge.
“Itʼs working perfectly.”
One final note: Ironically, we telephoned on the very day an announcement appeared on the ISED listserve announcing a search for a new director of technology at Roxbury Latin. Yes, Rhinelander would be leaving in June. “I am leaving because I love Nova Scotia, and I have an opportunity to live there, in a little fishing village,” he explained.
Life is short.
1. Roxbury Latin School web site, “Headmasterʼs Welcome” http://www.roxburylatin.org/about_rl/headmaster.aspx back
2. ibid “What We Value Most” http://www.roxburylatin.org/about_rl/value.aspx back
3. ibid back
Learn more about Roxbury Latin School.