PRE-CONFERENCE SESSIONS
Sunday, January 25
2:00 to 4:00 p.m.
The Risk Equation: Aligning Your Board and Culture to Accelerate Innovation
In today’s volatile and ever-changing landscape, thriving schools are led by strategic leaders who aren't afraid to embrace risk and innovate. Unfortunately, many heads today feel stuck, caught between legacy operating models and a Board and community that fear change. This session confronts that challenge head-on. We will first make the case for why structural and cultural shifts are essential for schools to thrive.
Next, we dive into practical action. We will review how to measure your Board's risk appetite and develop targeted methods to push them toward greater comfort with strategic risk-taking. We will then focus on institutional dynamics, exploring how to build a powerful culture that actively supports innovation. The session culminates in a collaborative group exercise to identify the specific fears and limitations hindering innovation in independent schools, followed by collective brainstorming on actionable strategies to shift and energize this culture within your own institutions.
Upon completion of this session, participants will be able to:
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Determine the current risk appetite of their Board of Trustees using practical assessment frameworks.
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Formulate a compelling case and strategy to nudge their Board toward a greater comfort level with strategic risk-taking and innovation.
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Identify and articulate common fears or systemic limitations that stifle innovation within independent schools.
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Design specific, actionable steps to foster a resilient, risk-supportive culture among faculty, staff, and leadership in their school.
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Presenter: Alanna Tievsky McKee, MSW, Founder & CEO, Scarlet Oak Consulting
Beyond Email, Board Minutes, and Pie-in-the-Sky Aspirations: A Practical, Hands-On Guide to AI for Heads of School
As a Head of School, you are tasked with setting the strategy for Generative AI on your campus. But for many leaders, there's a wide gap between understanding AI's importance and understanding its practical application.
This pre-conference workshop is designed to bridge that gap. This is not another lecture on the future of learning; it is a 2-hour, hands-on working session for current Heads. We will create a supportive, peer-to-peer environment where you can be vulnerable, ask the "silly" questions, and learn by doing.
Join us to get your hands on the technology, understand its real-world capabilities for school leadership, and gain the practical confidence you need to effectively guide your board, faculty, and community.
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This session is limited to Heads of School only.
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Presenters: Brad Rathgeber, President & CEO, and Erin Rehel, Chief Operating Officer, One Schoolhouse
No Time? No Budget? No Problem! AI-Powered Ways to Build Stronger School Teams
As a school leader, your days are already full—yet your success depends on how well your team works together. Research consistently shows that schools with strong, collaborative teams see higher student achievement, improved teacher retention, and healthier school cultures. Yet finding the time, structure, and tools to build those teams can feel nearly impossible amid competing priorities.
In this dynamic, hands-on session led by Jennifer Dulski, Founder and CEO of Rising Team, faculty at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, and former K–12 teacher, you’ll explore how forward-thinking schools are using human-centered, AI-powered tools to make collaboration and leadership development both scalable and joyful.
You’ll gain a high-level understanding of why structured collaboration drives results, see real-world examples from other independent schools, and experience a live team session yourself—so you leave with practical, ready-to-use approaches.
After this session, you will walk away with:
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Evidence-based insights on how effective teams improve learning outcomes and staff well-being
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Design principles that help create the trust, safety, and shared purpose behind high-performing teams
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Hands-on experience with simple, time-efficient tools that you can bring to your leadership and faculty teams right away
If you’re looking for a practical, energizing way to strengthen collaboration and connection across your school—without adding more to your plate—this session is for you.
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Presenters: Jennifer Dulski, Founder & CEO, and Willie Thompson, General Manager of Rising Team for Schools, Rising Team