Opinion
Education Letter to the Editor

A Look Inside Whole-Child Education

February 13, 2018 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

To the Editor:

I agree with the viewpoint of Jill Berkowicz and Ann Myers regarding the courage to change how we educate our students (“Educating the ‘Whole Child’ Requires Courageous Leaders,” Jan. 16, 2018). As the president of Milton Hershey School, a tuition-free, private boarding school serving low-income students—one from which I myself graduated—I know firsthand how important it is to adapt curriculum, schedules, and extracurricular programs to meet the needs of the students we serve.

Our whole-child approach to education aims to help our students break the cycle of poverty. With more than 100 years of experience, we have learned what children need to succeed in school and become productive members of society. We have evolved and grown to help students overcome poverty’s impact, including by introducing social-emotional-learning curriculum and providing physical and behavioral health services on our campus.

Like every other school, with each change we must evaluate budgets, staff training and time commitments, and feedback from alumni and our local community. This takes time and courage. However, my experience has been that when you place students at the center of every decision you make, the courage to act follows naturally.

Pete Gurt

President

Milton Hershey School

Hershey, Pa.

A version of this article appeared in the February 14, 2018 edition of Education Week as A Look Inside Whole-Child Education

Events

Jobs Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff
Find teaching jobs and K-12 education jubs at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.
Mathematics K-12 Essentials Forum Helping Students Succeed in Math
Student Well-Being Live Online Discussion A Seat at the Table: The Power of Emotion Regulation to Drive K-12 Academic Performance and Wellbeing
Wish you could handle emotions better? Learn practical strategies with researcher Marc Brackett and host Peter DeWitt.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Quiz What Lowers Teacher Turnover? Take This Weekly Quiz
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read
Education Quiz Which State Is About to Pass a ‘Science of Reading’ Law? Take This Weekly Quiz
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read
Education Quiz What is a Project 2025 Author Doing at the Education Department? Take This Weekly Quiz
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read
Education Briefly Stated: June 11, 2025
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
5 min read