Stephen Gould

During his years of active association with the Center, Stephen Gould was assistant professor at Lesley University, where he ran the Educational Leadership Program — in which practicing K-12 school leaders pursue doctorates in educational studies. In addition to his more than 30 years experience as a teacher, principal, and assistant superintendent, Dr. Gould has worked as a musician, songwriter, and composer of film scores. Dr. Gould’s wide-ranging engagement with the Center included participation in: a 2011 seminar on global citizenship; the 2012 Ikeda Forum for Intercultural Dialogue, on the topic of interdependence; a 2014 seminar called “Creativity, Peace Building, and Education”; and a 2019 seminar on the art of classroom dialogue. Upon the Center’s 20th anniversary, Dr. Gould offered a reflection on the Center’s core convictions.

What a wonderful world it would be if we committed to understanding some essential things: interdependence versus competition; dialogue rather than war; respect and support as opposed to castigation and marginalization; imagination rather than replication; the embrace of the potential in others for good rather than the creation of protective walls of mistrust; reform of self before focusing on others. As a humanist educator, I reflect on these core convictions regularly and try to shape my behavior accordingly. I try to be the change I want to see. I find consolation that there are others whose behavior is also guided by these convictions. Committed to these convictions as individuals and as a community we can make the world a better place.