Meet Our New VCS Secondary Principal, Michelle Reynolds | Inside the VCS Experience

Meet Michelle Reynolds, the new Secondary Principal at Vacaville Christian Schools! In this episode of Inside the VCS Experience, Head of School Ben Davis meets with Michelle, who shares more about her background, the experiences that shaped her as an educator and leader, and what drew her to VCS.

Drawing from her extensive experience with Christian education (and most recently with IB - International Baccalaureate - education), Michelle discusses the importance of academic rigor, critical thinking, and preparing students to engage thoughtfully with complex ideas. She also shares her vision for strengthening the secondary program holistically while continuing to pursue excellence across the entire student experience.

Michelle shares with Ben and families the strengths she sees in our middle and high school programs, what excellence looks like for students and teachers, and her vision for helping every student grow academically, spiritually, and personally. It’s a great opportunity for current and prospective families to get to know Michelle and hear her heart for students, families, and the future of VCS Secondary.

Learn more about Vacaville Christian Schools at https://www.go-vcs.com/.

Transcript

Introducing Michelle Reynolds, Our New Secondary Principal

SPEAKER_00 0:06

All right, Michelle Reynolds, our new secondary principal. Thanks for joining me today. How are you today, Michelle?

SPEAKER_01 0:12

I'm glad to be here. So glad to be here. Wonderful.

SPEAKER_00 0:15

Grateful to have you here today and grateful to have you as a part of the VCS community. So, you know, I know you know this, but uh our secondary program, Middle and High School, is so central to our vision for our school. And our families care deeply about who is leading that program. And so I'm excited, I've had the opportunity to get to know you. Uh, but I think it's special for families to have the chance to kind of get to know you and who you are as well. And so that's kind of what we're doing here today. So maybe you could just start by sharing just a little bit about yourself, um some things you want to share with our our families.

SPEAKER_01 0:49

Yeah, so I um have been a Christian my whole life. I grew up in a Christian household, so I really love Jesus. I just love him and I love sharing him with others. And so my husband and I have been married 35 years, raised our kids in Christian school. Um, love, I love Christian school. I have spent a bulk of my um time serving in Christian school. I've been in education for three decades, 30 plus years, most of which has been in Christian school. So I'm just uh just a proponent of it and am excited to be here to serve the kids and um yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:29

I love it. Yeah, you're for people who don't know your background, I think I hope that's an encouragement to them, right? Because um when we started to get to know each other a little bit, your background with leadership and education uh was just something that really kind of jumped out to me. Yeah. Your your experience and then getting to know you, your your expertise. And I think the more families get to know you, they'll learn that um you are, I think, in a very unique way, able to take that background, all that skill, all that experience, and to be able to really help move our our middle and high school program forward in in big special ways.

A Vision for Critical Thinking and Academic Rigor at VCS

SPEAKER_00 2:09

And so very excited about that. And for families who don't know, your most recent experience as well uh was in a uh a private school, and there was a lot of you know, one of the things that I talk about often is critical thinking skills. Yes, the importance of critical thinking skills. Yeah, and so maybe you can share a little bit with families about that program, your academic program that you designed, so changes you brought. Yeah. And uh yeah, and and uh I I just I love that story. Maybe you can share a little bit more.

SPEAKER_01 2:39

Yeah, so as I shared, most of my experience has been in Christian ed. So I've um 25 of my 30 years have been in Christian education, so I decided, God call me, to venture out. Um and to I took on a five-year contract and I'm a founding head of school with a a really innovative school up in Rockland, and it's a it's a STEAM-focused world language IB project-based learning school. So IB is international baccalaureate paired with the world languages that we taught there. So at the end of the program, the goal is for it's it's a um TK through eighth grade program. So at the end of the program, if kids go all the way through, the ideal is that they become global citizens. So in this particular program, um, kids were involved in two world languages, Mandarin and Spanish. Uh, culture was a huge part of what we undertook there. Uh, they had an amazing makerspace where they got to create and um develop their own projects. So it was very little paperwork and primarily hands-on um project creations with real-world learning, lots of guest speakers, lots of field trips. So it was the most innovative project I've ever been involved in. And I loved it. I loved bringing the kids to this environment uh where they got to actually do their learning. They weren't just told how to learn, they actually got to participate and do their learning, ask good questions, ask essential questions, and answer those questions through exploration. So, yeah, it's a really, really neat opportunity.

SPEAKER_00 4:13

Love it, and very central to who we are, wanting our kids to own their own learning.

Curriculum Rigor and Teacher Excellence

SPEAKER_00 4:18

And one of the cool things I want to just kind of dive into a little bit there is you know, academic rigor is a really important part of who we are at VCS. It's not every part of who we are. We care about developing our students holistically. Obviously, we're a school of faith. We want our students to know and love Jesus and be prepared to go out wherever God has called them to serve him and whatever, whatever that looks like, whatever that calling is in their life. And we care even more about academic rigor because we want them to be well prepared for whatever God has for them. And for people who don't know, an IB program is very academically rigorous and lots of critical thinking. And so how would you say that experience maybe shapes some of your ideas about educational excellence and what excellence academically looks like that you kind of bring to VCS?

SPEAKER_01 5:13

Yeah, I I would say that for me, I love academia in general. Like I love learning and growing. Um I'm in a program where I'm in a program right now where my my focus is on curriculum and instruction. And a lot of that was because of what I was learning in the IB program. I mean, I've always loved curriculum, I've always loved differentiated instruction and teaching um teachers how to have good educational practices. I've always loved that. But in an IB education, it's not optional. The IB is extremely rigorous, it takes uh almost three years to get authorized. So it's not like you can just say, I'm gonna be in IB education. You have to prove it. You have to prove it through a lot of vertical alignment, which is like taking one grade and and making sure they match up year by year by year in all the content that you're covering. So I had a lot of experience with making sure those grades flowed very smoothly through the six units that we had to create. Wow. And it just really made me look again and say, wow, this is amazing. Uh and I love curriculum and not just IB curriculum, I love all curriculum. Yeah, I really love the idea that we can take what we're doing and make it better. You know, and I and I I look at it like the teachers are the biggest part of the curriculum.

SPEAKER_00 6:35

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 6:35

You know, there's their curriculum is everything you do from the time your doors open till the time your doors close. That's your curriculum. And so when the teachers are in that classroom, ensuring they have excellent instructional practices is really important to me. It's really important in an IB education because the teacher is developing every single activity the student does in a very coordinated way through units. So they don't have you know textbooks they're drawing from. They have to actually create and develop all of their curriculum.

SPEAKER_00 7:03

Wow, it's really rigorous for teachers.

SPEAKER_01 7:05

It's rigorous for teachers and it's rigorous for the students. Wow.

Student Ownership and Critical Thinking

SPEAKER_01 7:09

It really is a really ideal education for students.

SPEAKER_00 7:12

I love that. How would you say, Michelle, your background with IB kind of shapes some of your perspective on what academic rigor looks like that you bring to VCS as the principal of the middle and high school program?

SPEAKER_01 7:25

I I would say the IB shapes that, but also my my understanding of curriculum in general, because I spent, you know, two decades really trying to understand that. But, you know, I believe, my belief is that students have a moral obligation to learn. You know, it is their, it is their when they're sitting in a classroom, I'll tell students all the time, if especially if they're struggling, I'll say, you're not just Isaac, you're Isaac the student when you come in here. And there's a certain expectation we have on students. There's a certain expectation you have to take ownership of your learning. So I would say one of the biggest things that I bring to any environment I go into that's really important to me is that I always ask the question, no matter what we're creating, if it's a program we're creating or we're looking at a new new curriculum or decisions we're making, I'll say, is it best for the students? Does that empower them to be learners, you know, and and to be able to operate it with those 21st century skills to be global learners? And so the IB education presses that out in a very unique way. So I bring all of that to the table, but I also brought that to that program. Like who I am and what I care about, IB matched what I already felt was really important. And I just got to exercise it at a really high level in this program. So I feel like I bring that same expectation to our campus. Even as we're preparing and planning for our students, um, my my desire for our students here is that they are thinkers and they are doers of their own education and that they learn to take ownership for their learning, no matter what teacher they have, what classroom they're in, what activity they're given. Their responsibility is to own their learning and to grow through that.

SPEAKER_00 9:14

I love that. So, first, that's amazing. Second of all, um, I'm gonna have you come to my house and give that speech to my kids.

SPEAKER_01 9:21

I'll give it to all the kids in middle and high school, so they'll get it then.

SPEAKER_00 9:24

That's that's that's wonderful, Michelle.

SPEAKER_01 9:26

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 9:26

Tell so really quickly, and then we're gonna step beyond academics. So many families, I think, are aware of the importance of all those pieces that you mentioned. But let's speak, maybe, maybe you can share with me uh for families that maybe don't understand the dynamics of critical thinking, curriculum, and instruction, and maybe just are curious, well, how does that affect my child? What does that mean practically? What are maybe a couple things that you could share that uh why that matters in simple terms that families can appreciate?

SPEAKER_01 10:00

Well, I think what matters is because students at some point, whether it's, you know, they're gonna have teachers that hold their hands and walk them through step by step, particularly our sixth graders will get more of that, you know, as they're coming in to their their education there. But as they grow, and particularly beyond their secondary education, they have to learn to think for themselves. Yeah. Because there's moral decisions they have to make and they have to make it based on something. So when we're talking to teachers and we're saying, How did you make your decisions? and they say, Oh, I'm doing fine, I'll say, What's that based on? Yeah. That's based on you know the annual planner, scope, and sequence you already put in place that you thought was really good. Right. Right. And so if students have, you know, tr been trained to think for themselves, to make decisions, to ask good questions. So we talk about essential questions. We should be giving those questions all the time, but not giving the answer.

SPEAKER_00 10:53

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 10:54

We should be ha asking them to grapple with the answers to those essential questions. And so good teaching and instructional practices, and even if you're at home with your own kids, you know, asking critical questions, but withholding just a minute for all the answers. So they have to actually think and make decisions, I think is really important for any subject matter they do. They have to be able to think, they have to be able to make decisions about uh how they're gonna come up

AI, Creativity, and the Value of Good Questions

SPEAKER_01 11:22

with that answer. And they shouldn't be, you know, in this generation of AI where AI makes everyone can potentially make everyone very similar. Sure. It can also express creativity, you know. I'm I'm a proponent of AI, but it can also make people very standardized. Sure. How they're gonna stand out beyond high school is they have to be able to think and and and create something different, have their own innovation within themselves rather than just to rely on someone else to give that to them. Those make the best employees, and I hire employees every single day. And there is a difference in the employee that has good questions, even for me when I'm interviewing.

SPEAKER_00 12:00

I think that's intuitive.

Explaining Critical Thinking Benefits to Families

SPEAKER_00 12:01

I think our families appreciate and understand that. And that so that's a fantastic point. And I love that you brought that up because I actually want to build on that. So when it's to me, it's like really sad. The majority of students who graduate high school from the United States, and this is especially true in the state of California, when they go to college, the first thing they have to do is they have to take remediation courses. They go right to school and they can't write, and have to take remediation courses in math, and writing, and reading. And what is gonna set VCS students apart with the vision you're talking about? And what I'm excited about is it's already happening, but you're gonna build on it, and I think take it to a new level. Is that students who go to the secondary level, and then when they leave college and they go out into the workforce, when they have that ability to think critically, like you mentioned, that is 100% gonna distinguish them from others, their peers. And that's crucially important. That's what parents want for their children, is that they are prepared to be successful. And I think that's exactly what what you're talking about.

SPEAKER_01 13:05

And and I think I was having a conversation with one of our English teachers last week, and she was discussing that very point, which is our students need to know how to write. They need to know how to think, they need to know how to get their ideas out in writing so they can it sparks their thinking, their creativity, their innate ability, which is already in them. God's already given it to them. It's not like we're, it's not like we're just here to fill them up, right? Just fill them up with a bunch of information. We're here to draw out the uniqueness that God already put inside of them. But if we're not giving them opportunities to do that, how are they ever going to develop that? That's what we're here to do for them here at VCS.

SPEAKER_00 13:42

Well said.

Beyond Academics: Whole-Child Development and Culture at VCS

SPEAKER_00 13:43

I love it. So we're gonna move out of academics. And before we close, um, what what are some things that you can share, Michelle, about your vision for a middle and high school program beyond academics? Maybe that's spiritual life, maybe that is student life and culture. Maybe just share some thoughts.

SPEAKER_01 13:59

Yeah, I I think one of the things that I would say about myself is my experience is very diversified and it's vast. So I've you know looked at preschool students all the way to high school students, and one of the unique opportunities we have with middle and high school students is we get to actually have influence on them.

SPEAKER_00 14:18

Well said.

SPEAKER_01 14:19

Where in in the elementary grades, you're teaching, you're training, but it really is a lot about influence and relationship. The older they get, you have to rely a lot on that they trust you. That they trust what you're saying is for their good and matters to them. So, one of the key things I want and hope to press that. We have a great foundation for that already, by the way. One of the things I'm finding as I'm here is there is a solid framework for this to happen,

Family Partnerships, Communication, and Trust

SPEAKER_01 14:46

right?

SPEAKER_00 14:46

That's encouraging to hear.

SPEAKER_01 14:47

It's not like I have to come in and create a whole foundation, it's already there. So, how do we build off of this and encourage our teachers, ourselves, um, and our families in partnership to build relationships with students where they go, ah, I trust what you're saying. Oh, I want to risk. Because a lot of education is about risking if you're doing it right. You know, you're risking, you're trying something, and you might fail. And failure is actually acceptable, right? That's an acceptable way we would look at ourselves and our students. And then how do you coach students through that failure to find their successes? So we provide a lot of opportunities here so they can say, Oh, it's not sports, maybe it's speech and debate, maybe it's uh our drama program, maybe it's art. I mean, our art teacher's phenomenal at this school. So kids can really find their um their passion there, but it's really providing, you said it at the beginning, providing many opportunities, or at least you've said to me, I don't know if you said it here, but um, for our students to to express themselves in many, many different ways. Yeah, it's not just academics, it's the whole child, it's the whole picture.

SPEAKER_00 15:50

That's right.

SPEAKER_01 15:51

And that's who we are and who we'll continue to be.

SPEAKER_00 15:53

Yeah. That's really fun. I love that. And you know, another thing that families will learn about you in time. So at the time of this recording, we've not yet launched into the school year, but it is right around the corner. And I think as families get to know you too, our families care deeply about all of what we've discussed and about very practical things too. Yeah. Good, clear, timely communication, building relationships with our students, creating an environment where our students feel safe. You know, you can't have critical thinking and risk if students don't feel safe.

SPEAKER_01 16:25

If they don't feel safe.

SPEAKER_00 16:26

And one of the things I've really come to learn about you is that you are a person of excellence and expect excellence in all of those areas. You're a clear, timely communicator. You have you you really desire and want to build relationships with our parents and um and and students as well. And so I'm I'm excited as our families get to know you. I think they'll have some of the same confidence that that I have. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 16:50

So I'm excited to do that. I've met a few families as they're you bringing in supplies for a project we're doing or different things like that. But I feel like my the place where I've grown the most in my leadership over many years is you have to depend upon, you know, we partner with our families, right? That's right. They're the first educators, they choose us to partner with them, not the other way around. And so I look at us as same team, same team. Like I used to say to my son when he's playing basketball when he's little and he's grabbing the ball from the same team member, same team, same team. Yep. I we're on the same team. We want the same thing. We want the best for students. So if we are in partnership, what even if we disagree, we can still be in partnership, right? We can still come to places where we can walk in agreement so their child can get the very best from our entire system. So I think relationship is critical. Um, and it's something I I value, and parents will know that as they get to know me and they and communication is really important to me because I want a lot. So if I want a lot, I have to make sure everybody knows, you know, what we're after and what we're looking for.

SPEAKER_00 17:58

So

Closing Remarks

SPEAKER_00 17:59

I love it. And as the school year starts to come on and some of those aspects of your vision start to become a reality, I'm looking forward to more conversations where we can talk and share with our families about some of the neat things we're we're seeing in our program. So thanks for joining me today, Michelle.

SPEAKER_01 18:15

Thanks for having me here, and I'm really excited to be working alongside of you as well, Ben.

SPEAKER_00 18:19

Wonderful. Well, welcome to VCS and uh yeah, thanks again for being here.