Stay current with the latest private-independent school news.
What are the latest trends impacting private-independent school enrollment? How can you be the most effective in your role as an administrator? How can you help your school meet its mission and best serve your students?
Sign up to receive Community Corner, a free newsletter from ISM.
We cover such topics as how to communicate with your constituencies, work with your fellow school leaders, leverage new technology trends, utilize recommended reading and resources, implement new strategies—all to better serve your school's mission.
Join more than 30,000 private-independent school administrators and have Community Corner delivered right to your inbox.
Search
See articles for School Heads, Business & Operations, Advancement, Academic Leadership, and Trustees, in addition to Private School News.
Take It Outside
Advancement // June 7, 2011
June is Gardening and Great Outdoors Month! What can you do to make the outdoors a welcome haven, even if the school isn’t in full swing? Prepare for the summer session with outdoor learning—fresh air will better engage enthusiasm! Inspire your faculty to get creative and bring the indoors out to spark their students’ imagination. Have a summer session class under the trees, go on a nature walk, or have an art class with students drawing what is around them. Remind your faculty to find little ways to sneak in a little teaching all summer so kids are always learning.
Read More
Filling Your Seats When Parents Don’t Promptly Re-enroll
Advancement // June 7, 2011
As you close out the school year, no doubt you are preparing for next year and processing applications. Some families at schools are quite slow to return their contracts or re-enrollment documents. So, what to do? Especially, since schools depend on every classroom having filled seats. And there is always the school with the exemplary student whose parents are lax in re-enrolling and paying the fees. Do you give up her seat to a wait-listed child? Do you put the current student on a wait-list? How many hoops must you, as Admission Director, jump through to fill all seats?
Read More
ISM Summer Reading Recommendations
Private School News // May 31, 2011
Have you given any thought to what books you’re going to dive into this summer? We’ve come across a few you might want to add to your wish list.
Read More
How Schools Are Helping Tornado Victims
Private School News // May 31, 2011
On May 22, Joplin, Missouri, was hit by a devastating tornado. The F5 tornado tore through the community leaving houses, schools, and businesses in piles of rubble. A week later, efforts to rebuild are well underway, and schools, both private and public, are a major part of the efforts.
Read More
Improving Your Facility With Living Roofs
Business and Operations // May 31, 2011
If you’ve been looking to expand your school, or update your facilities, you may have heard about living roofs. Some states are requiring new construction to incorporate efficient roofing and building design to help reduce the demand of natural resources for heating and cooling. (Maryland is one example of a state that is mandating new building design to be green.) But, even in states that haven’t changed their requirements, there is still a movement happening within American schools.
Read More
Social Media Disasters: Costs, Dangers, and Quagmires
Private School News // May 31, 2011
As with any business practice, using social media has its benefits as well as its dangers. Your first line of defense against the unspeakable (insert your numerous employee-related concerns here) is to have an updated social media policy in your employee handbook—and to ensure that everyone has received a copy, AND read it. However, even with clear expectations and guidelines, staff and faculty members can engage in online behavior that can cause concern. Since social media is still a relatively new phenomenon, legal principles and court decisions are still evolving. Here are three recent cases of note.
Read More
Keeping Parents Informed on Facebook
Business and Operations // May 31, 2011
As a Business Manager, your first concerns may have little to do with your school’s social media efforts. You’re more concerned with your school’s budget, employee benefits, facility upgrades, the database, and the millions of other projects your Head has passed down to your office. However, if you’re part of your school’s Risk Management team, then you might want to take another look at social media platforms as a way to keep parents, students, and even faculty and staff connected.
Read More
Smart Phone Apps for Teachers and Students
Private School News // May 31, 2011
Does your cell phone play a major role in your daily routine? Have you become as dependent on its apps to keep connected while on the go as you have your computer while you’re in the office? Here are some apps that are dedicated to making the lives of educators a little easier:
Read More
Green Corner
Business and Operations // May 31, 2011
No Child Left Inside ®—Planning Low-Impact Day Vacations Memorial Day marked the unofficial start of summer. Pools, parks, and beaches that were closed for the winter season all opened their gates and welcomed the flood of eager tourists. For many families, it was a weekend packed with outdoor events.
Read More
Stay Inside, Get Outside, Safely!
Academic Leadership // May 25, 2011
As Division Head, you need to keep children safe and healthy while getting a stellar education at your facility. Inspiring your faculty to support the children to grow and learn is a top priority, so keeping your students safe while having fun is a never-ending lesson.
Read More