NAIS Annual Conference, Day One

The National Association of Independent Schools' annual conference is an extraordinary opportunity to get inspired, connect with old friends, and take time and space to reflect on the work that I do at TBS. I feel very fortunate to be supported by the school to attend this conference on a yearly basis.

Though Wednesday is a pre-conference day, with optional three-hour workshops available for an additional price, day one was fully taken up by the concluding meeting of the Fellowship for Aspiring Heads in which I am participating.

The morning consisted of two ninety-minute sessions. Session one was lead by Mark and Judy at Triangle Consulting, who lead the fellowship work this summer in Atlanta. The agenda covered time management, mastering the school environment, resilience and patience, and staying calm in crisis. Session two was a conversation among four sitting heads about meeting the needs of various school constituencies: internal, external, self and family. The heads included Donald Brace at The Blue School (NY), John Barrengos at Independent Day School (CT), Rafael Castillo at Seattle Country Day (WA), and Kate Windsor at Miss Porter School (CT). After an overview from each person about one thread, we broke out into small groups for focused discussions on a specific thread. I joined the group lead by John, which quickly veered to the topic of navigating the search for a head position.

After lunch, three one-hour sessions provided a crash course in various topics. Session three, lead by Debra Wilson, NAIS’s in-house lawyer, focused on the legal issues and tax ramifications to understand when negotiating a salary and benefits package as a new head of school. Session four was a discussion of Boards and governance by Donna Orem, NAIS staff. And session five was an overview of the responsibilities of a business manager by Paul Ibsen, Business Officer at Providence Day School (NC).

Though there was a huge amount of information to capture and digest, the best part of the day was seeing the other members of my cohort, hearing the stories of their lives and work, and having the chance to slow down and think about how I have been using the ideas that I’ve learned in this fellowship to aid my work this year.