 Jenny Rowe took over the summer as head of the Friend School of Portland. She is a community-minded leader and she spoke with Leslie McVane about her plans to build on the success of the school's first six years. Well Jenny, welcome. Welcome to Maine, brand new. So you've had a history in working with children and being head of school or teaching in a school. Most recently the community school in Tamworth, New Hampshire. But before that you had experienced in friend schools. Tell us a little bit about your background in the friend schools. Well I really didn't know very much about Quakerism at all until my husband and I had the opportunity to go to Monteverde, Costa Rica. And that was a good 25 years ago. We went to the friend school there which had been founded 30 years before that. And we came as volunteers. The school was quite small. And after our children were born in New Hampshire we thought what a great community to go be part of. And so we moved back as a family. And I worked part-time as a teacher and then I became director there. So I had six really great learning years working with Quaker teachers and working with families who may have been Quaker but mostly were not and many Costa Ricans and Costa Rican families have joined the Monteverde friend school community. So that's where I did a lot of learning. Well the Quaker history is all about education as well as the peace movement. From the days of George Fox and working in the prisons, teaching the prisoners. Tell us why you were attracted to the opening here in the friend school in Portland. When I was in Monteverde at the end of my time there I knew that the friend school of Portland was opening. And I just kept it in the back of my mind and thought that would be a great place to go visit. But when I first came back I became the director of the community school and it was exactly at the same timing. So it wasn't till last year when I met one of our friend school teachers at a course at Antioch and I started asking him more about it and then got an email and just thought this is something I would really like to explore. I'm so delighted to be part of the Friends Education Network. It's a wonderful thing to be part of the Friends Council on Education which connects all schools that are Quaker to the teeniest schools and international schools like the Monteverde Friends School to the most well established big name Quaker schools. And it's great to be part of a larger, linked to a larger group of schools with the same philosophy. Well you're taking on some challenges as well because the Friends School needs to expand, needs to grow, needs to move. And so that's one of the challenges you'll be faced with. Right. Fortunately the school is in a really good place in its life as a young school. It's been recently accredited with the highest of accolades by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges last year. I think the school, even though it's young, has many well established practices. Faculty who've been there since the beginning and very talented faculty. Families who adore the school. So we're fully enrolled. We've got some great support behind us. And now it's navigating those waters of can we stay on Macworth Island? It's a wonderful place. Is there a room for us long term as you alluded to? So we're in the exploration stage. And if we can go elsewhere, that might open the opportunity for us to grow in size as well. So those two issues are really linked. Well I think it's wonderful you're here. And I know that the programs aren't just during the school year. They go through the summer. Right. We've had some of the kids in here. Right. But their movie can't. Right. So we have all the new programs and messages coming from the school about what's going to happen. It's very exciting. Well thank you for being tuned in to that. Welcome here and let us know how people can contact you if they want to know more about the school. Right. So if people go to Friends School of Portland.org, they can find out about admissions and summer programs and events that we hold at the school during the year. And our phone number is 781-6396 is my number. That's fantastic. You know that. Thank you for being here, Jimmy. We'll get you back when you're a little older in the program. That's right. Thanks a lot.