Jamie is a former tree worker and English teacher with a bad reading problem; he’s got so many ideas jangling around in his head every night he dreams the encyclopedia. The whole thing. And while that may be an exhausting nightly ordeal, there are some advantages to having read every book too: Jamie is expert at examining things from multiple perspectives, and he’s sensitive to nuance – very valuable qualities indeed for a Self-Directed Model staff member.
Jamie is a “different” type of staff for Zena Democratic School – a former teacher. Yet he feels at home at ZDS. He says, “I like that every day is different…also the freedom of expression. For myself and for all the students. It doesn’t feel like an average school – it feels real. And I love seeing so many kids engaged in such a variety of activities, learning from what they’re doing and being themselves.” Perhaps the best thing about Jamie is his Great Good Cheer – he has this warm, joyous, generous energy that makes me smile without fail. If I was going down on the Titanic, I think I’d like to be with Jamie, because he’d make me feel ok about it (thanks dude). He is like a fat mug of delicious, thick, creamy hot chocolate on a snowy afternoon. These days Jamie oversees our Staff and Chairs our Resolution Committee.