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- Not sure how to provide professional development—for you and your staff? Learn ways to develop and fund a successful professional development strategy. You can improve teacher-centered satisfaction and growth, which in turn strengthens student-centered learning.
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See the articles from our latest issue of Ideas & Perspectives.
The Growing Importance of Technology in Parent Communications
Volume 35 No. 3 // February 18, 2010
ISM conducted a survey of private-independent school parents from 37 schools, and 7,986 families responded. One of the survey questions concerned satisfaction with the use of technology at their schools. The survey results indicated that: 77.59% of the respondents were satisfied or very satisfied with their school’s “use of technology in the classroom”; and 81.38% of the respondents were satisfied or very satisfied with their school’s Web site.
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When Is a Volunteer Not a Volunteer
Volume 35 No. 2 // February 2, 2010
Mrs. Smith, who has been the Administrative Assistant for the School Head for the last 10 years, is overseeing the sign-in table on “Parents Night” for the ninth year. Once again, she will not be paid for this activity. It began innocently in 2001, when the school was much smaller, and she said, “I can help out tonight.” Since then, there has developed an expectation by the Head and the faculty that she will continue to “volunteer” each year for the event.
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Faculty and Staff Use of Social Media: Sample Policy
Volume 35 No. 1 // January 7, 2010
Social media—including sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, blogs, and other online discussion forums—has extended its reach into many areas of modern life, including (or especially) the lives of students, as well as teachers and administrators. While the origins of these services are social in nature (i.e., not job-related), they have evolved to the point where certain uses of these outlets may impact the reputation and well-being of your school and its members (for example, if they inadvertently serve as a conduit facilitating inappropriate relationships between students and faculty/staff). Due to this possibility, the use of social media resources becomes part of the school’s appropriate purview with respect to employees.
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Baker's Study of Vouchers: Implications for Private-Independent Schools
Volume 34 No. 16 // December 15, 2009
Rutgers University professor and school finance expert Bruce D. Baker conducted a recently published study titled Private Schooling in the U.S.: Expenditures, Supply, and Policy Implications. Here are three of the major findings.
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The 21st Century School: Budget
Volume 34 No. 16 // December 15, 2009
The question of fair, competitive compensation is a primary concern when developing your school’s budget. Your school’s ability to attract the best candidates is a prerequisite for excellence in the classroom, and compensation is a piece of that puzzle.1 As we continue our discussion of the 21st Century School, it is clear that private-independent schools must not only provide financial support and appropriate time for ongoing and effective professional growth and renewal, but also compensate faculty competitively.
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Why the Worst (and Best) Teachers Matter
Volume 34 No. 15 // December 2, 2009
For several years, ISM has pushed academic administrators (typically Division Directors, Department Chairs, and School Heads) to recognize that faculty culture (defined as the pattern of customs, ideas, and assumptions driving the faculty’s collective set of professional attitudes and behaviors) is the critical determinant of a school’s “excellence.” The contention is that the top of a culture cannot escape the bottom.
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Anchor Your Case for Support to Your Purpose and Outcome Statements
Volume 34 No. 15 // December 2, 2009
Your Case for Support is one of the core elements of any fund-raising campaign, whether it is for annual, capital, or major gifts. This marketing tool communicates with donors and prospects, and begins the process of matching their values and interests with your school’s mission and guiding principles. Donors give and continue to give when they know that their gifts will make a difference and that their gifts are used as intended.
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The 41st Annual Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll: Implications for Private-Independent Schools
Volume 34 No. 15 // December 2, 2009
Every September, Phi Delta Kappa releases its poll on the American public’s attitudes toward public schools. Reviewing the poll results is enlightening. As School Head, be mindful of how parents view public education and how their opinions may affect your school's competitive advantage. The 41st Annual Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public Schools offers several general conclusions, three of which will be discussed in this article.
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School Head and Board Roles in Shaping an Effective Employee Handbook
Volume 34 No. 14 // November 20, 2009
ISM has long held that the proper role of the Board is to attend to the strategic viability of a school for future generations of students, while the role of the School Head is to manage the day-to-day operational needs of the school. With that core principle in mind, the question arises as to who is properly responsible for ensuring that the school has an effective, up-to-date employee handbook.1 As employee handbooks are primarily comprised of day-to-day operating policies, we believe that the answer clearly is “the School Head.”2 At the same time, however, there is an important strategic oversight role that the Board can and should play in ensuring that organizational risk is limited—but always showing deference to the Head on the operating details.
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The 21st Century School: The School Calendar
Volume 34 No. 14 // November 20, 2009
In the 19th century, education in schools in the city was year-round (although it is unlikely that attendance was). At the beginning of the 20th century, the calendar moved to its present orientation—nine months on and three months off in the summer. For city dwellers, the change came about because summers were unbearably hot, disease was easily spread, wealthy people went on vacation, and too much education was considered bad for frail minds. The situation was different in rural areas where, in the 19th century, children went to school for only six months (summer and winter), leaving them free to help with the crops and animals in the spring and fall. For them, the schedule changed because the experts thought that children were not taught enough, and they wanted to come into line with changes happening in the city.
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