Head of School Notes

     Over my career as a head of school, I have enjoyed reflecting on the job and writing about my impressions on being a head of school.  I wrote articles for The Head's Letter and The Trustee's Letter, which are monthly publications for heads and trustees of independent schools.  Here is a library of those articles.  You can click on the article link to read the full article.


"Education Voucher System" (June 1994) - While offering opportunities, pursuing vouchers should be handled with care.  
"Effective Heads of School" (March 1995) - Klingenstein Fellows list their thoughts on qualities of effective heads.
"The Head Outside of the School" (November 1996) - The head's job often goes beyond her/his own school community.
"Head 'n Hand" (March 1998) - The best part of the job, greeting students, teachers, and parents each morning.
"Words Work" (October 2000) - Hearing a sermon on giving up summer time to helping others can inspire.
"Choices, Changes, Transitions" (February 2003) - Insights about moving on to the next opportunity.
"A Turn in the Barrel" (April 2004) - At some point every head is on the firing line.
"Transference Revisited" (December 2004) - A look into the mysteries of transference as presented by Dr. Ned Hallowell.
"A Head of Eeeshmail" (October 2005) - The challenges and nuances of using email can be daunting to school leaders.
 "Learning and Living Leadership" (January 2007) - Heads at an annual conference sharing their thoughts on leadership.
"Taking Care of Employees" (April 2007) - When trying to balance budgets, we cannot lose sight of taking care of faculty and staff.
"Whose Decision Is It?" (December 2007) - Board or head's decision?  Written with my Board Chair.
"When is it Time to Leave?" (January 2010) - Is there a perfect time when heads should leave their school?
"30% . . . Really?" (May/June 2010) - 30% of a head's time should be devoted to caring for the board?