Today’s School Spotlight features Charlotte Latin School, located in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Charlotte Latin’s mission is to encourage individual development and civility in its students by inspiring them to learn, by encouraging them to serve others, and by offering them many growth-promoting opportunities.
The Situation: Breaking Down Advancement Silos
Charlotte Latin School has focused on breaking down silos to better serve its students. The Head of School made thoughtful efforts to empower the Admission, Marketing, and Development Directors to collaborate, allowing them to better share information and align their messages.
But as is the case with most schools, these Directors are busy running their individual departments. To give these leaders time to work together, Charlotte Latin School sent them to ISM’s 2019 Advancement Academy to discover “all that is out there” in the world of private school advancement.
The Solution: Learning and Growing as a Team
“The Academy was great for many reasons,” Charlotte Latin School’s Director of Admission, Mary Yorke Oates, shared. “And while the sessions were good, it was our response to the sessions that opened up all kinds of ideas.
“To have a week carved out to focus on integrating our strategies was great. My team walked away with practical concepts to implement immediately. We also developed a fuller understanding of how all the constituents play a role in advancing the school.
“I personally loved being in sessions with Heads of School and Trustees. As Directors, we rarely get to work shoulder to shoulder with them. I liked thinking about ways to grow such opportunities for the future.”
The Benefit: Growing Together in New, Collaborative Ways
When Mary Yorke and her fellow Directors returned to campus, they created a learning community with the goal of continued alignment throughout their departments. They aim to educate one another about the highs and lows of each department while sharing ideas and collaborating.
Mary Yorke sees new and continuing growth on the horizon for her school. She hopes to send the team that works under her to the Academy in the future. “Many leaders fall into a trap of thinking they’re too busy, but strategic thinking takes work,” she shares. “The Academy has helped us come together and align our efforts to better serve our school and our community.”
