Before 2009, the majority of Americans polled said the Federal Government should take responsibility for ensuring that all citizens have health care. Now, as the January deadline for all persons to be enrolled in a health plan rings past, 56% of polled Americans say it’s not the government’s duty to get involved with health care.

Q: I am a small employer with less than 25 employees. Part of our employee contract says that we will provide health insurance. However, since only two people are participating in this plan, the insurance company will not renew our policy. What are my school’s options for these two individuals?

In your tight budget, finding money for Facebook advertisements that your Admission and Development Office request might be one of your creative (and financial) challenges. In fact, you might even doubt the need to pay for Facebook ads when the real power behind social media is found in the organic results generated by your followers seeing your messages and notices in their feeds.

There’s a noteworthy new documentary on the block, American Promise, that premiered at Sundance Film Festival 2013 and went on to air on PBS. The film follows Idris Brewster and Seun Summers, two African-American boys, when they begin their first year of kindergarten at Dalton, a prestigious private-independent school in New York City. Both boys struggle with learning disabilities, disciplinary problems, and failing grades, despite early indicators of high academic potential.

It was all over the news the last week of December, but just in case you missed it: Justine Sacco, now ex-communications director for huge parent company InterActive Corp (IAC), made an ill-advised racist tweet directly before her twelve-hour international flight to Africa. Sacco had to turn her phone off for the duration of the flight, so she was blissfully unaware of the social media maelstrom her 140-character message had generated: “Going to Africa. Hope I don't get Aids. Just kidding. I'm white!”

It’s New Year’s resolution time again, and since you finished the books from last year, we’d like to take the opportunity to compile some of the recommendations from educational professionals and leaders from all disciplines. These books should help all leaders in your school, from high-achieving faculty to the School Head.

The media and companies tout new and improved teaching strategies every year. Remember when everyone thought that MOOCs—Massive Open Online Courses—were the solution to slashed budgets? Now it seems that low completion rates and limited interaction have crippled the online course movement’s momentum, with only a 4% completion rate in some college courses. However, just because one new idea wasn’t fully vetted or properly implemented doesn’t mean that you should avoid trying novel programs.

Winter break is a time to recharge your battery, as well as reconnect with family and friends. But, how many times do you and your faculty come back feeling down and discouraged? January hits like a dump truck and everyone’s enthusiasm is as flat as week-old champagne sitting in those glasses you still haven’t cleaned. While others daydream of their immediate vacation plans, you as Division Head should make plans now to counter the seasonal malaise.

The New Year is right around the corner. For some of us, it's a time to reflect and make changes within ourselves for our greater good. As a School Head, your role is to lead your leaders to excellence. It’s a term you’ve probably heard more than once, especially if you’re an avid ISM reader. The phrase carries more weight than you may think. It’s not about simply being able to direct, or appointing tasks, or having perfected communication skills. It’s about being a mentor.

This time last year, the education community was rattled by violence that swept through Newtown, Connecticut. Our televisions broke through regular programming to bring us live coverage of an enfolding tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary. For days, new reports continuously scrolled through the photos of 20 innocent children who wouldn’t be celebrating the holiday season, as sobering music conflicted with joyful commercials announcing last day sales. On December 14, 2012, the holiday season stopped—everything stopped—as the world watched the second-deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history.