Kindergarten Students Interview Our Head of School, Noah Reinhardt

At the end of last year, our Kindergarten students were curious to learn more about Noah, what he does here at school, and what his life is like outside of school. They came up with interview questions to find out more. Read on to learn some things you didn’t know about Noah. 

Why did you want to work at Blue School in the first place? 

I had heard about Blue School for a long time and knew a number of people who worked here. To me, it always seemed like an exciting, interesting place to be, where teachers thought really carefully about what their classrooms looked like, how they created community, supported their students, and helped them to do beautiful, important work.

What floor of the building do you work on? 

My office is on the fourth floor, next to the fourth grade classroom and diagonal from the fifth graders. I’m in the front of the building and have a balcony that looks out over Water Street. Sometimes, if I can’t make it down to dismissal, I’ll pop out on the balcony for a moment to make sure everything is going okay.

Do you work on a computer? 

I do. A lot. Especially now with the pandemic, a lot of my meetings are on Zoom, and I do a lot of work with Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides. Sometimes in meetings, I take notes on the computer, but sometimes I take them in my notebook. I write with a fountain pen, and have four ones in different colors - red, yellow, green, and of course, blue.

Is your office big or small? 

My office is pretty big. It’s a little fancy and has windows along one side, and a wooden bookcase along another. In the middle of the office, I have a big white conference table where I have meetings with people. When a lot of people are meeting together, there’s a secret extension to the table that can make the table even bigger.

Do you use a walkie-talkie sometimes? 

Yes. I like to use the walkie-talkie because I can reach a bunch of people all at once. Because it’s for emergencies, I don’t use it just for fun, though sometimes I say things like “Copy that” and “Roger” because it sounds official. Those walkie-talkie words that mean, “I hear you” or “Message received”. Sometimes, I forget to bring my walkie-talkie with me, and then I borrow one from the security desk.

Is it your job to keep everyone in the school safe? 

It is. Keeping everyone safe is one of the most important things I do. But, it’s not just my job - there are a lot of adults who are responsible for safety - Jose, our Facilities Director, the whole Facilities team, Allison, our Nurse, all of our teachers and staff - pretty much everyone who works at Blue School has safety as part of their job.

Do you help tell people where to go if they get lost at school? 

Yes. I’m very good at giving directions and helping people find the right place to go. Sometimes, if someone is lost, I’ll tell them how to get where they need to go, and sometimes, I’ll take them there myself - to give them company on the way. Sometimes people get nervous when they are lost, and it helps to have someone go with you until you get where you want to go.

Do you help give people reminders about what to do at school? 

I do. Everyone needs reminders sometimes about what to do at school and if I see something that doesn’t feel right, I’ll try to help. Sometimes people appreciate getting feedback, and sometimes they don’t - so it’s important for me to figure out what’s the best way to let people know if I need them to do something they’re not doing or stop doing something they are. What’s really important is not yelling, unless it’s an emergency and something isn’t safe - nobody likes getting yelled at and it doesn’t make people feel good.

What country do you live in? 

What a great question! I live here in the United States. Like many of you, I live in New York City, in Brooklyn.

What language do you speak? 

Another great question. Mostly, I speak English. But I also speak a little Spanish and French and so sometimes speak those languages. When I was younger, for a few years, I also studied  Russian, Hebrew, and Latin - but I don’t speak those languages very much.

What’s your family like? 

I am married and my wife and I have four children, who are9, 11, 13, and 15 and a dog, who is 1 and a half. Because we are a lot of people (and a dog) who live all together in a small apartment, it can often feel very noisy and busy - there are always a lot of things going on, and lots of noise, and talking, and laughing, and making messes, and cleaning them up, and trying to have fun, and going on adventures, and of course, complaining about all of those things. We like to eat together, and play games, and watch TV, and go to the beach. Sometimes we argue and fight, but we love each other very much and I feel very lucky to have all of them in my life - I couldn’t imagine it any other way.

Do you get a break on the weekend? 

Sometimes, I get a break from work (and sometimes I don’t), but if I do, I usually have a lot to do with my family, or a lot to do around the house. I spend a lot of time running errands, making breakfast, making lunch, making dinner, cleaning up, doing laundry, etc. and so it doesn’t always feel like I get much of a break. Sometimes I go for a run or a walk with friends, which is really nice.

Do you ever work when you aren’t at school? 

Yes. Every day I do at least a little work in the evening or first thing when I wake up in the morning. Some days, if I have a lot to do and had a lot of meetings during the day (adults sometimes have a lot of meetings) I may have to do a lot of work at night, and then I might have to stay up really late. Often, even if I’m not working, I’m thinking about things at school, or trying solve problems I may be working on - sometimes that can be fun, and sometimes that can be stressful.

Do you get to do anything you want at school? 

You would think that as Head of School, I get to do anything I want, but it’s not quite like that. Sometimes, it would be fun for me to walk down the halls and ring a loud bell, or ask everybody to cheer everytime I walk into a room - but those things would interrupt learning and would make things more about me than our students - which isn’t the point of school. But, I do get to decide which adults work at the school, and what we’re going to focus our time and energy on, and what’s okay and not okay to do. And if I want to paint a wall a different color, or start a new tradition, I can do those things and it’s okay.

What’s the best thing about Blue School according to you? 

The best thing about Blue School is that every person here gets to be exactly who they are and bring the best pieces of themselves into school every day. This is true for the adults who work here and also, for every Blue School student. Sometimes, it may not feel easy to bring all of yourself to the places you live and work and learn - but it’s really important to me that everyone can do that here.

When is your birthday and how do you celebrate it? 

My birthday is in the beginning of May. To celebrate, I usually just get a cake and have it with my family, but sometimes I like having a party. What I really like are surprise parties - where I don’t expect anything - and then, surprise, it’s a party! Even though I like to think that I’m really smart, I never, ever know they’re happening until they do, and then I always am so happy I start crying. To me, that’s the best feeling.

Do you drink coffee? 

I do. I love coffee. It’s one of my very favorite things and I have it every day. It makes me feel very grown up.