What is the best thing about being a Head of School?

It is such a joy to support great teachers and great teaching. I cannot think of a more important role for a head of school than providing the resources and atmosphere where great teaching can take place.

What good books have you read in the last year?

Personal History by Katharine Graham
A Whole New Mind by Daniel Pink

How and when do you find personal time to keep things balanced?

Exercise is key! Even when it doesn’t feel like I have enough time, I find it is always time well spent to go for a run or a bike ride after work. It clears my head and helps me put things in perspective after a busy day.

Also, nothing is more important than family! I work very hard to be “present” for my family in the evenings and on weekends. A trip to Maine in the summer doesn’t hurt either.

What characteristics, in your experience, distinguish great teachers from good teachers?

Great teachers are not defined by creating great lesson plans or by being great technicians. Great teachers truly know their students. They take the time to know how each child learns, each child’s interests, each child’s strengths and challenges, and each child’s family. When you observe a teacher who has built a classroom atmosphere in which each child is known and in which each child is loved, it is absolutely magical!

Talk about a project or innovation at your schoolthat you’re excited about.

Recently, Community School launched the NAIS Assessment of Inclusivity and Multiculturalism (AIM). It has been a fabulous tool for us to evaluate our diversity programs and make plans to enhance diversity and inclusivity in the years to come.
In addition, the School is now under construction on a new 7,200 square-foot “Leadership Wing” which will house our 5th & 6th graders and support the programs afforded to those grades – rigorous academics, technology, public speaking, and character education.

How have your school community and programs been affected by – and reacted to – the current economic environment?

Community School has been fortunate to maintain a 95% retention rate for current families and is looking ahead to full enrollment for the 2009-2010 school year. However, in a year in which our endowment dropped over 30%, in which financial aid requests increased 35%, and in which fundraising has been a challenge, the economy has been on the forefront of everyone’s mind. We have been evaluating every aspect of our budget and looking for ways that we can be more efficient. But where we are not willing to cut is on those aspects of our budget directly related to students’ experience in the classroom – faculty salaries, technology, books & supplies, and faculty professional development. The School’s finances are a delicate balance; it is an area where I am spending more of my time than ever before.

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Attention Heads of School:
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