Alan Vann Gardner

Alan is an elementary school principal at Apple Blossom School is Sebastopol (Sonoma County), CA., nearing the end of a long career in K-8 public and independent school education. Roles have included classroom teacher, principal and superintendent. He has collaborated with Stanford University's Challenge Success program for ten years, designing meaningful learning experiences that integrated project-based, social/ emotional learning and leadership development. Alan has orchestrated restorative approaches to student discipline, digital portfolios of student learning, ways mindfulness helps staff and students be more resilient and successful at school. What has informed and sustained Alan's work: over 40 years as practitioner/teacher of aikido, non-violent martial art whose mission is self-cultivation and reconciliation of diverse and conflicting interests; being in the process of a rigorous mindfulness teacher certification training program; and co-facilitating Forum groups through TEL.