Institutional Leadership Through Governance Conference
Silver Cloud Hotel Tacoma at Point Ruston Waterfront
Sunday, November 5, 2023
Sessions and Speakers
Announcing Keynote Speakers
Opening Keynote
 Embark on an illuminating journey exclusively tailored for Heads and Trustees by NWAIS. In a world characterized by swift change and interconnectedness, this workshop provides a unique platform to decode the language of the future by harnessing insights from the World Economic Forum Global Risks Assessment. Delve deep into the world of futurist thinking as we decipher the intricate tapestry of signals and trends that shape our global landscape. Uncover how these factors resonate within the realm of independent schools, engaging in dynamic discussions to unearth innovative strategies for seizing opportunities, navigating challenges, and bolstering institutional resilience. This session offers a collaborative space to explore how these trends impact areas such as enrollment, curriculum development, student growth, and administrative processes, empowering you to adeptly steer your school towards a prosperous tomorrow. Join us to embrace uncertainty with open minds and forward-looking perspectives, as we navigate the currents of change together, ensuring our schools not only adapt but thrive in the face of the unknown.
About Antonio Viva
This
summer Antonio Viva officially joined the Leadership+Design team
after serving as a board member and a long-time collaborator on projects and
programs. Before L+D, Antonio spent 12 years as the Head of
School at Walnut Hill School for the Arts in Natick, MA. Last
year, Antonio served as the Executive Director of Artisans Asylum,
one of the oldest and largest maker-spaces in the United States.
A child of
immigrants and a first-generation college student, Antonio has
dedicated his life to promoting diversity and inclusion. His passion for this
work began during his undergraduate years at Union College in Schenectady, NY,
and continued throughout his career as a public school arts
teacher. Antonio is a sought-after speaker where he addresses topics
such as understanding global risks, fostering creativity, design, and effective
leadership. Antonio has been featured by numerous regional
independent school associations across the United States and has worked as an
executive coach and advisor. Antonio resides in the Boston suburbs
with his family and two cats and maintains his personal art studio at Artisans
Asylum.
Closing Keynote
In today's fast-moving and ever-changing world, schools play a central role in their communities, serving as places of learning, community, networks, and employment. However, the existential challenges faced by schools, their leaders, and their Boards, have evolved significantly, with continuous disruptions arising from the aftermath of the pandemic, growing concerns about mental health and well-being, attraction and retention of faculty and staff, the implications of artificial intelligence for teaching and learning, and more. Old models of leadership are insufficient for today's school leaders.
Kate Ebner, founder of The Nebo Company and the Institute for Transformational Leadership at Georgetown University, along with Anne Foley, VP of Nebo's Education Practice will lead a workshop called "
Transformational Leadership for Boards and Heads: Leading with Vision in Times of Change" This program places school leadership in the modern context, illuminating the new capacities needed for effective, adaptive and resilient leadership and highlighting a leadership approach that blends practicality and a vision for the future.
The presenters will share a new model, called the Nebo Transformational Leadership Framework, designed to assist school heads and boards of trustees in learning how to navigate intricate conditions and thrive in challenging, complex environments. This framework highlights a new paradigm of leadership, equipping you as a leader to grow in your capacity to lead more effectively and address real-life goals and challenges while fostering personal and institutional growth and development.
About Kate Ebner
Kate Ebner believes that, given the opportunity, everyone can be visionary. Over the past two decades, she has worked with numerous groups, companies, organizations and communities to guide them through the creation of a compelling vision. She is the creator of Nebo’s proven visioning process. As a result of her work in this area, countless leaders have succeeded in translating vision into action leading to results. Kate blends deep experience as a change leader with a lifelong commitment to helping people and organizations to make their visions real. After more than two decades of leading organizations first hand, she knows the challenges that leaders face. Kate’s clients appreciate her strategic perspective, empathetic style and the positive sense of accountability that she provides as they travel the path towards realizing their goals.
As a coach, Kate typically works with senior executive leaders and C-level leaders in a range of industries and especially enjoys working with people who face significant challenges. A thought partner to her clients, Kate taps into her knowledge of transformational change, drawing upon what she has learned in her role as Founding Director of
Georgetown University’s Institute for Transformational Leadership (ITL) and her role as a leadership faculty member there. AboutAnne Foley Anne Foley is Vice President, Client Experience at The Nebo Company, where she leads Nebo’s education practice with a focus on independent schools. With 18+ years of experience as an independent school leader, she brings deep expertise, perspective, and compassion to her work with Nebo's education clients. Through her varied leadership roles, including Interim Head of School and Trustee, Anne hasdeveloped a unique and well-rounded perspective on School and Board leadership and governance. Through her work with Nebo's education clients and her own Board service, Anne remains immersed in the world of independent schools and education leadership. Currently, Anne is a member of the Board of Trustees at Lowell School, an independent pre-K through 8 school in Washington, D.C. In her work at Nebo, Anne blends her firsthand knowledge of strategic, organizational leadership, culture, Board/School relations and educational experience to create a transformative impact for Nebo's clients.
Breakout Sessions
11:00-12:00 - Breakout Session A
A1. School Leadership &
Institutional Advancement
Katlyn Torgerson, Executive Vice President, CCS Fundraising, Elaine Christensen, Head of School, Open
Window School, William Kennedy, Board Chair, Open Window School, Elizabeth Welden-Smith, Director of Institutional Advancement, Open Window School
The best fundraising outcomes occur when
Trustees and the Head of School fully own the institutional vision and
recognize the important role they each has in advancing the mission of the
school through active fundraising. In this session, we will explore how they
can effectively partner in building a culture of philanthropy and educating
parents and alumni about the importance of giving to annual fund, events,
campaigns, and planned giving appeals.
A2. Integrating Principles
of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion into Board Governance
Alexa Z Carver,
Consultant, Inspire Impact Consulting and Mahtab Mahmoodzadeh M.Ed, Director of Diversity
& Inclusion, The Overlake School
As individuals and as boards, trustees and Heads of School have
been embarking on learning journeys to understand Diversity, Equity and
Inclusion in the Independent school context. In this session we will explore
ways to effectively integrate equity into your board processes. By sharing
concrete examples and tools for participants, the presenters will model
pathways to creating meaningful shifts toward equitable practices and
participation by a broader group of voices. At the end of this session you will
have actionable ideas about how to:
- Make your board room a more inclusive space
- Broaden your scope for board recruitment
- Improve your culture of belonging at the board
level
- Center equity in decision making
A3. How to Build Trust When Everyone Is a Skeptic
Ari Betof,
Co-Founder and Partner at Mission & Data
Independent School Boards safeguard mission,
steward resources, set strategic direction, and support the Head of School.
Despite the passion and commitment of every person working in and for schools,
trust is sometimes elusive. Join Dr. Ari Betof, Co-Founder and Partner at
Mission & Data for this interactive session that provides practical
strategies and actions to foster reciprocal trust, effective collaboration, and
purposeful communication within the Board and beyond. Topics discussed include
creating an effective partnership between the Board and the Head of School,
clarifying roles and responsibilities, establishing communication norms, and
assessing Board committees – all in service to building and maintaining trust
in our school communities.
1:00-2:00 - Breakout Session B
B1. Assessing Your School’s Financial Health
Brenda Stonecipher, Stonecipher Consulting Group
You are entrusted with the financial vitality and sustainability of your organization, yet you don’t always know how to assess your school’s financial health. In this session, we will explore the independent school financial drivers, highlight key financial information and metrics you should be tracking, and explore any signs of financial distress you may encounter. Whether you are a seasoned leader in independent schools or new to your leadership role, you will benefit from this examination of school finance. You will leave this session confident in your understanding of the independent school business model, knowing where you should focus your attention, and understanding what questions to ask so that you can capably perform your fiduciary duties.
B2. Measure What Matters: Best
Practices for Board Reporting & Dashboards
Ari Betof, Partner and
Co-Founder, Mission & Data, LLC
Peter Drucker is credited as saying, “What gets measured
gets managed.” With this caveat in mind, what data is included in board reports
or on a board dashboard is critical in directing the board’s attention and
focusing the work of committees. While the interface is important, the true
power of these tools comes when they are used to engage board members at all
levels of data literacy in dynamic and strategic discussions about the past,
present, and future of the school. Join Mission & Data’s Ari Betof to
dive into best practices for board reports and dashboards, including key
indicators of financial health, enrollment strength, and student success, and
how to build early warning systems to address trends before they become crises.
B3. Using Trends to Seed Generative Strategic Board Conversations Alexa Z Carver, Consultant, Inspire Impact Consulting Though acknowledged as both critical and transformative, data tells us nonprofit boards spend little time in the generative mode. For many independent school boards it is hard to know how to integrate this important work into the board calendar and workflow, and difficult to know where to begin. In this session we will start by building a shared understanding of the importance of the generative governance mindset, and then work with concrete examples. We will explore several different trends, then break into small groups to engage in generative discussion as a possible model for board meetings. Leaving this session participants will understand the importance of generative work for independent school boards and have several sets of trends data and a process to use with their own board.
Breakout Presenter Biographies
 Ari Betof's consulting work draws upon fifteen years of leadership and governance experience as Head of School, Chief Advancement Officer, Director of Enrollment Management, and Director of Strategic Planning and Trustee. His experience includes working at day and boarding schools; schools as small as 170 students and as large as 1100 students; single campus and multi-campus schools; single and multi-division schools; and religiously affiliated and nonsectarian schools. Ari has been an instructor in University of Pennsylvania’s Penn GSE Mid-Career Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership and Leadership Master’s Program. He has served as a mentor in Harvard University’s School Leadership Program, faculty member in the NAIS School Leadership Institute, and judge for the CASE Circle of Excellence Awards. Ari's governance experience includes serving two terms on the Board of Directors of the Friends Council on Education (FCE) and as a member of FCE’s Development Committee and the National Friends Education Fund Working Group. He has also been a trustee of Newtown Friends School (Newtown, PA) and Cambridge Friends School (Cambridge, MA). Ari graduated with a B.S. in physics and mathematics from the Guilford College honors program. He earned his doctorate in educational leadership from the University of Pennsylvania with a focus on financial and organizational sustainability. Ari graduated with his MBA from Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management.
Alexa Carver is a Seattle based nonprofit consultant who specializes in governance, identity and strategy consulting for nonprofits. She works with nonprofits across all sectors to center equity while using strategy and inclusive governance to co-create opportunities for nonprofit organizations to thrive. Alexa has a special passion for working with schools as she started her career as a teacher and school administrator in NWAIS schools. For the past 25 years she has shifted her work to play an active role in a wide array of nonprofits as a consultant and board member, founding her own consultancy, Inspire Impact Consulting, in 2013. Alexa has her BA from Harvard University and her Masters in Not-for-profit Leadership from Seattle University.
 Mahtab Mahmoodzadeh M.Ed, holds a Master’s in Education and another in Educational Leadership and has been teaching and leading equity work in schools since 1996. She has taught in K-12 at all levels, and teaching and leading in equity work as a classroom practitioner. She currently serves as a Director of Diversity and Inclusion at the Overlake School. She has a background in African American history and international relations and adaptive leadership for equity and from Leadership Eastside. She has worked in a variety of settings in her work, from strategic planning for equity and inclusion, hiring for diversity and cultural competency, to training and consulting in with independent, charter schools, school districts, and international schools on equity and inclusion practices and non-profits, primarily assisting organizations to integrate equity work as mission critical to their advancement. Mahtab is Iranian American, first generation immigrant, and a proud mom of two children who are the light of her life. She enjoys yoga, dancing and all things hip hop.
Brenda Stonecipher is a native of the Pacific Northwest. She holds a BA (English Literature) from the University of Washington and an MBA from the UW Foster School of Business. She is a Certified Public Accountant. Brenda has three decades of financial and executive leadership experience in education, healthcare, arts administration, and government. She has served in the role of CFO, Interim CFO, and Interim Head of School for many NWAIS schools. Brenda founded Stonecipher Consulting Group in 2018. Its mission is grounded in the belief that arts, education, and culture are the bedrocks of our society. Brenda and her team strive to make great leaders and great organizations even better. Over the past five years, Stonecipher Consulting has worked with more than 30 independent schools in Washington, Oregon, California, and Nevada. In her free time, Brenda enjoys hiking with her dog, skiing, watching college hockey and staged bike races (e.g., Tour de France).
 Katlyn Torgerson joined CCS in 2011 and has partnered with dozens of visionary non-profits to plan and implement the fundraising initiatives essential to their missions. A Pacific Northwest native, Katlyn leads our office in Seattle and spearheads our PNW partnerships. Her client engagements span all major nonprofit sectors, and her expertise includes campaign planning and management, development planning and assessments, and major and principal giving initiatives. She has planned and advised on campaign goals ranging from $2 million to $600 million. Katlyn regularly presents on fundraising trends and strategies both locally and nationally. A graduate of Johns Hopkins University and Arizona State University, Katlyn began her career as a High School English teacher and is a Teach for America alumna. She is proud to be a founding board member for Mobile Pathways, an organization facilitating justice for immigrants and refugees.
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