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See articles for School Heads, Business & Operations, Advancement, Academic Leadership, and Trustees, in addition to Private School News.
Target Hardening
Business and Operations // March 28, 2011
Target hardening, including CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design) is an approach to making your school a less attractive target for anyone with “bad intent.”
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Reduce Stress and Increase Memory
Advancement // March 28, 2011
Your job is stressful. Private school administrators are among some of the hardest-working, devoted professionals out there. You work long hours, you’re constantly on the move from one project to the next, and your busy season seems to never end—there’s always something on the rise.
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Garden Safety Guidelines
Business and Operations // March 28, 2011
Although March is leaving Delaware like a lion, with chilly rain and rumors of one last snowstorm, spring has sprung. With warmer days promised, many schools are preparing to start planting their gardens—some have already begun using their patches for student exploration and learning.
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Delegation Helps You Develop Leaders—and Use Your Time Wisely
Academic Leadership // March 24, 2011
As a Division Head, you have a group of faculty members that you guide and support every day. You also have a plethora of duties that keep you running day in and day out. By effectively delegating some of those duties, you not only help your teachers’ professional growth, but give yourself the time to focus on the duties that only you can do.
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Faculty Contract Language: Don’t Paint Yourself Into a Corner
Business and Operations // March 24, 2011
As winter hits much of the country with a few final blasts and springtime comes to the fore, many schools are in the midst of faculty contract renewal decisions. It is always a good idea to review your contract language each year to make sure that it still meets your needs. To aid in this effort, we’re happy to suggest a few tips and reminders.
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Watergate Maxim of “It’s Not the Crime, It’s the Cover-Up” Comes Back to Life in Rising Level of Retaliation Claims
Business and Operations // March 24, 2011
The Watergate scandal taught us that a bad idea (a burglary) can be made infinitely worse by doing something else stupid (covering it up) in response. The modern-day equivalent is seen in the issue of retaliation—where the bad thing is an illegal act (such as employment discrimination) and the “made worse” part is retaliation (such as in firing the person who raised the issue, or the person who gave “testimony” in the investigation, etc.). This would seem to be obvious—but statistics (and recent legal cases) tell us otherwise.
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Sir Ken Robinson: Education is Not Fast Food
Academic Leadership // March 24, 2011
Addressing the 2010 TED Conference, Sir Ken Robinson said that education for the 21st century needs to move away from the standardized to the personalized—away from McDonald’s to the Zagat. Robinson delivered a funny and refreshing look at education today, and how it needs to change.
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Ask Michael
Business and Operations // March 24, 2011
Q: We have some non-exempt employees who are misclassified as exempt. Is summer the best time to make the change? What communication method do you suggest? Is there better language than the DOL’s “primary duties do not include using discretion and independent judgment in matters of significance” (which will offend those employees who think their status is being downgraded)?
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Ask the Development Expert
Advancement // March 22, 2011
Q: How do you count divorced families? As one household or two? Meaning, if one gave and the other did not, do you have a 50% parent participation or 100%?
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Fund Raising. Development. Advancement. What Does it All Mean?
Advancement // March 22, 2011
As Development Director, you hear all these words describing your function. What’s the difference?
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