Every school’s journey depends on a shared map — when the Board and Head lead together, strategy turns into meaningful progress.
Michael Christopher, ISM Consultant and Editor, Ideas & Perspectives
Every journey begins with a little confusion — and a lot of faith.
I grew up in Colorado when “going somewhere” meant negotiating a landscape that didn’t care about your plans. The mountains hid their paths, the forests tangled their routes, and every creek seemed to mock your sense of direction. Progress was never in a straight line.
Our survival kit? My mother’s relentless backseat navigation and a paper map with more creases than accuracy.
No GPS. No voice telling you to turn left in 200 feet — just trust, teamwork, and trial-and-error.
It’s a simple truth that still applies, especially in schools: the right team and the right map can get you through almost anything.
In the schools I have worked with, I know even before getting started which ones are poised to find the right path to the future, and which are not. The difference doesn’t lie in the determination to write a beautifully worded and visionary strategic plan.
Success lies in a purpose-built partnership among the board, administration, faculty, students, alumni, and parents. It’s grounded in empathy for one another’s challenges and successes, robust communication, and a shared belief in the school’s mission.
This community of believers is led by a strategically minded board and a head of school who tells the school’s story with passion and unwavering credibility.
Where Schools Lose Their Way
Too often, though, those relationships break down. The head and the board find themselves on different pages. The story of the school becomes muddied. The board often fails to understand that its role is strategic, not operational, and therefore becomes embroiled in operational issues that should be entrusted to the school head. Likewise, the school head can fail to communicate clearly with the board and neglect to provide them with the necessary data to make informed decisions, or the respect required for them to fulfill their strategic mandate.
The result?
A dysfunctional team that can’t even unfold the map.
How Alignment Creates Real Progress
Effective strategic planning requires the board and head of school to work together — truly as a team — to align strategic and operational priorities in service to students and in an authentic expression of the school’s mission.
When that alignment happens, your plan doesn’t just sit on a shelf. It becomes actionable, accountable, and rooted in your school’s core identity. The goals and tactics resonate with your community and keep your school moving forward — steadily and confidently — even when the next curve in the road takes you by surprise.
Are your board and school head navigating from the same map—or driving in different directions? What conversations, data, or habits would bring your strategic and operational priorities back into alignment?
#IndependentSchools #StrategicPlanning #SchoolLeadership #BoardGovernance #EducationLeadership #MissionDriven
About the Author
Michael Christopher offers expertise in every facet of school advancement, from strategic planning and board operations to development, enrollment management, and marketing. As a co-organizer of ISM’s Advancement Academy, he works closely with school leaders to design strategies that align mission, resources, and community support. Michael is also the editor of Ideas & Perspectives, ISM's flagship publication for members.
Before joining ISM full-time in 2020 (after serving as an adjunct consultant since 2002), Michael led advancement at Lausanne Collegiate School (TN), Greensboro Day School (NC), and Holland Hall School (OK). In these roles, he rebuilt development programs, launched alumni engagement initiatives, created planned giving programs, instituted major gift efforts, managed successful capital campaigns, and coordinated image and identity projects that elevated each school’s profile.
