Profile Tony Flatley
Perfect head for business
International Heads Representative Committee chair Tony Flatley has found that his first love, mathematics, has stood him in good stead during his 34 years of teaching, says Pam Upton.
She’s going to cost me a fortune!” The ‘she’ in question is Elizabeth, a final-year student at Canadian Collège Esther-Blondin in Saint-Jacques, Quebec. The parody of the prudent Yorkshireman comes from Tony Flatley, school principal and chair of the International Heads Representative Committee (IHRC). He chuckles as he describes how the 17-year-old called into his office.
“She introduced herself,” he recalls, “told me she was on the basketball team and helped coach years one and two. Then she asked if I knew the price of a tuba. I said I didn’t. ‘Well,’ she said, ‘the music department is getting four new tubas, while the sports centre badly needs reflooring.’”
Humour gives way to pride as Tony recalls the clear, confident and respectful way Elizabeth had spoken. She’d already been on the internet and checked her figures.
“She hadn’t just come with criticisms,” he says, “but with potential solutions. She’ll go far.”
Esther-Blondin is a Middle Years Programme school, whose 1,100 students travel in from scattered farming communities across the beautiful Lanaudière region of Quebec, Canada. The head describes the pace of life as much slower than in the city.
“Students arrive here aged 12,” he explains. “Most of them haven’t even visited Montreal, just 50 minutes away. So an international education really opens their minds. It means that wherever you’re from, there’s nothing to stop you exploring the world and meeting its challenges.”
Tony’s curriculum vitae testifies to his own love of a challenge. A maths teacher who emigrated to Canada over 30 years ago, he won his first headship at the age of 32, and has since managed private and state facilities, in elementary and high-school sectors, in cities and in the country. It was this breadth of experience which, six years ago, made him an ideal candidate to chair the IHRC.
The committee meets twice annually, usually in Geneva, Switzerland. Its 16 members
are elected from four regional committees (RHRCs) and it makes up a third of the Council
of Foundation, reflecting its importance to the organization.
For Tony, the IB’s strength is that it is a ‘bottom-up’ body, which relies on teachers’ judgement and experience. Schools play a major role in promoting the IB, and most of its funding comes from school fees. Heads bring a diverse range of perspectives to IB debates. They also bring their financial expertise.
“The IB is a business,” states Tony. “Some people don’t like to hear that. They prefer to highlight the educational mission or the family ethos. Of course these are what the IB is about, but ultimately our success depends on giving value for money.”
A recent example of IHRC involvement was to provide valuable insight and input to the management of the increase in fees. There was a general feeling the IB Diploma Programme was subsidising the other programmes, so the fee structure had to change. The IHRC consulted heads across the regions and facilitated the problem solving and establishment of some key principles.
But Tony admits some of the “more interesting” IHRC debates happen after six o’clock in the bar.
“Heads are a jovial bunch,” he laughs. “You can’t take yourself too seriously when you’re dealing with young people every day. Yes, we fall out sometimes. You need to argue things through. But what makes it work is mutual respect and the shared goal of making the IB as good as it can be.”
The Bangkok communiqué underlines the importance of heads’ involvement in the IB. A distillation of wide-ranging discussions at last year’s Heads of Schools Conference, it illustrates the two-way relationship between schools and the organization. Starting with a Statement of Beliefs, it then lists the things schools ask of the IB. The final section recognizes the schools’ responsibilities and what they can do to support the IB.
“The Heads Conference was incredible,” recalls Tony. “Three hundred heads came to Bangkok from IB schools all over the world. The communiqué is testimony to their enthusiasm and commitment to the future of the IB.”
Tony’s own enthusiasm and commitment are clearly undiminished, so it’s something of a shock to hear that later this year he is planning to take his leave of Esther-Blondin. At the same time, his term as IHRC chair comes to an end. After 30 years of professional decision-making, Tony is strangely undecided as to what he’ll do next. But he’s simply taking his time time before making a move.
“I have lots of projects pending,” he says. “I want to take time out, relax with the family and decide what interests me.”
Whatever comes next for Tony Flatley, he’s certain to tackle it wholeheartedly, with humour, tolerance and good sense. True Yorkshire qualities, but also those of a lifelong IB ambassador.
CV
Teaching and educational Administration
1950 Born in Leeds, England
1972 Graduated in maths and physics at the University
of Liverpool, UK
1973 Gained Post-Graduate Certificate in Education, Christ’s College, Liverpool, UK
1973-6 Taught secondary maths and science in England
1976 Moved to Canada. Within three years made deputy head at Katimavik High School in Quebec
1982-3 Taught maths to Moroccan Air Force, Marrakech
1983 Gained first headship at Katimavik School. Following restructuring, appointed deputy, and subsequently director of elementary section
1988 Returned to secondary management with mandate to start new international school, École Secondaire de Rochebelle, in Quebec
1997 Gained masters in public administration
1997 Moved to Collège Esther-Blondin, Quebec. Introduced MYP programme. Principal since 1999
IB positions
1993-6 Member of working party for the IB Personal Project
1994-2000 IBO conference workshop leader
1996-present IB schools authorisation and evaluation visitor
2000-03 Member of the IB North America board
2001-03 Chair of committee of MYP schools
2000-present Member of Council of Foundation
2001-present: Chair of International Heads Representative Committee (IHRC)IB Heads of schools conference 2006
The Bangkok communiqué
We believe:
IB schools can be beacons to inspire the next generation to be humane, creative innovators
IB programmes should be available to all
Positive partnerships between the IB, schools and other organizations add value for open-mindedness in the community
The IB community is one of givers rather than receivers
To learn is to think; to reflect; to communicate; and to act
It is more important to understand than to be understood
We call upon the organization to:
Always be true to its mission
of international-mindedness
Have the courage to be flexible, to adapt and to develop
Promote and support
cross-cultural links
Find ways to enable schools
to access IB programmes
Give due emphasis to the quality strand of the strategic plan
Continuously monitor and improve the programmes
We will assist by:
Working in partnership with the organization for growth and improvement
Giving of our friendship, energy, integrity, knowledge and mutual respect: the mark of a world teacher’s courage and flexibility
Reflecting on culture, values, beliefs and links between people
Acting in ways so that no one should feel excluded
Strengthening effective communication between schools, the RHRC, IHRC and the organization
Promoting and supporting the learner profile
