Dear Michael,

I'm writing you this letter in regard to my decision to leave Thacher's employ and events that have happened since.

When I left my employment with the school it was under the pretense that I wanted to start my own business. While this is true, I have always wanted to start my own design business, there were factors in and around my job that moved me in the direction of separating myself from the school. Since my departure there have been changes in regard to some of these issues and that has caused me to wonder and now write you this letter.

So some background. While working for the school for six years it had been one of my primary goals to establish the relevance of communications in promotion and marketing of the school. The establishment of the position of “Director of Communications” as an administrative position and a communications office were my ultimate goals. I even stated this on a performance review three years ago. It was important to me for the school to recognize the importance of good design and communications in furthering the message of the school to all constituent groups. This wasn't for my benefit, it was for the benefit of the school. If Thacher truly is one of the best boarding school's in the nation, should not its communications, its message—the look and feel of everything generated from this campus for public consumption—have the feel of a first rate operation? That was my goal and as evidenced by the current Thacher web site I succeeded.

So why, when completing the launch of this site and coming to realize what I was after, did I decide to leave? While there were small steps made over a long period of time the school failed to recognize the overall importance of communications and create the position of “Director of Communications.” Any organization the size of Thacher that is promoting its good name should surely see the importance design and communications play in its mission and ultimately its survival It's not a nice add-on if you can do it--it's central to compete with school's looking at the same applicant pool Thacher is.

Now seven months after my departure the position of “Director of Communication” exists as an administrative level position. This causes me to wonder about my time spent at the employ of the school. What did I do to prohibit the creation of this position while I was employed? I said for a long time that if this position were to be created I was interested in applying. What has happened in the seven months since my departure to create this position that didn't happen during the six years I worked for the school? Basically I'm left wondering what I did or said. I have 16 years experience in the communications field in the advertising, publishing, graphic design, and education environments. I have the chops it takes to do the job. I'm just wondering why it was never offered to me and why, now, communications is seen as so vital to the school that an administrative position be created? It's tough to see everything I was working for, for over six years suddenly come to pass in just over six months since my departure.

No need to reply unless you feel you need to. Just want to get this out of my head.

Thanks.

Bert Mahoney

2006-04-04T12:53:49

Bert Mahoney