Educator, Clare Trafford: Empowering Future Generations
In her “Meet a Scientologist” video, Clare Trafford shares her belief that education should empower children to accomplish their dreams. Her profile is one of 150 “Meet a Scientologist” videos available on the Scientology website at www.scientology.org.
For Clare Trafford, teaching is not just a job—it’s an investment in the future. In a video on the Scientology website, she describes her life as principal of an independent school in Sydney, Australia, and the joy she derives from equipping generations of students with the skills they need to accomplish their dreams.
Unimpressed with status, Trafford is as comfortable teaching in the classroom and driving the school bus as she is seeing to the legal and corporate requirements of the school and attending the obligatory meetings. “I enjoy my friends and I enjoy my family and I enjoy being with people,” she says.
Trafford came to work at the Athena School, an independent primary and high school, when she learned about the technology of study developed by L. Ron Hubbard and discovered it was used there. She wanted it for her children.
Athena School takes a very personalized approach to education. If a child falls behind, he gets help catching up. “It is not a matter of marching them into the next grade because the end of the year came,” says Trafford. The teachers work out what each student needs, students are put into the correct class for their ability and they are tutored to bring them up to the level of their group.
“We can take a child who is willing and teach him whatever he wants to know, because our product here is students who are able to go out into the world and pursue their dreams,” says Trafford.
The school also uses The Way to Happiness, a non-religious moral code based wholly on common sense. “Everyone works together as a team and looks after each other, with few if any issues amongst the staff,” Trafford says.
This philosophy carries over to their attitude toward the children. “One of the most important things is treat others the way you’d like them to treat you, and try not to do things to others that you wouldn’t like them to do to you. I think if everyone lived by that rule, we’d do very, very well. And that’s what we teach them right at the start.”
“The kids at the school know it is safe to tell the truth,” she says. “When people know it is not dangerous to be honest, they don’t become embroiled in covering things up, afraid of what will happen if they are found out.”
Trafford’s decision to work at the school and educate her own children there has paid off. “My children are teenagers now and we have a great relationship,” says the mother of three. “I wanted my family to be raised the way I wanted to be raised. Scientology has given me the tools to be able to do that.”
“You don’t want to miss out on today,” says Trafford, “but you also want to be looking forward to the future and making plans.”
Trafford’s future included turning over her functions at Athena School and taking on a new career. Trafford is now Executive Director of the Church of Scientology of Sydney, through which she can help her entire community as she and her family have been helped.
The popular “Meet a Scientologist” profiles on the Church of Scientology International Video Channel at Scientology.org now total 150 broadcast-quality documentary videos featuring Scientologists from diverse locations and walks of life. The personal stories are told by Scientologists who are educators, teenagers, skydivers, a golf instructor, a hip-hop dancer, IT manager, stunt pilot, mothers, fathers, dentists, photographers, actors, musicians, fashion designers, engineers, students, business owners and more.
A digital pioneer and leader in the online religious community, in April 2008 the Church of Scientology became the first major religion to launch its own official YouTube Video Channel, which has now been viewed by millions of visitors.