WORKSHOPS OFFERED

For anyone contemplating a move to an administrative position, this workshop explores the inherent challenges and skills necessary to be successful. An introduction of temperament type will reveal the strengths and weaknesses that participants may bring to different administrative posts. In addition, we will address the process for applying to become an administrator.

This workshop is designed both for aspiring administrators and for newly selected first-time administrators. Participants explore administrative tasks such dealing with conflict, holding others accountable, working in a team, communicating effectively with different constituencies, and so on. In addition, we discuss the impact of an administrative position on one's personal life and identify strategies for balancing both.

This workshop focuses on the importance of aligning one's vision with the larger vision of the school in order to lead while also being led. Issues addressed will include working within the administrative framework of a school; negotiating personality differences; handling multiple constituencies; using emotional intelligence; mediating differing agendas; and understanding the fine art of delegating responsibility.

Anyone in an administrative position will benefit from this workshop. Strategies for eliciting feedback about one's leadership are explored, including a discussion of what works best for a variety of situations. Equal emphasis is placed on how administrators can respond to feedback and how forthcoming they can be about their own growth and development.

In this workshop we explore possible approaches to confrontational situations by using real-life case studies that reflect typical sources of conflict in school communities. The goals are 1) to realize the potential value of addressing conflict openly, and 2) to develop strategic questions that can be used in thinking through most situations involving conflict.

As independent schools choose to embark on change initiatives, so do they encounter resistance to these changes. We consider underlying reasons why people resist, learn how that behavior is tied to "type" and to issues of adult learning, and address techniques for respectfully approaching those who pose the greatest barriers to moving forward.

Laurent Daloz notes that mentors "play a key part in our transformation, reminding us that we can indeed survive the terror of the coming journey and undergo the transformation by moving through, not around, our fear." As beginning teachers enter our schools filled with the fears inherent in stepping into a classroom for the first time, increasing numbers of schools are assigning them mentors. Buy why is mentoring important? What aspects of the mentoring relationship are most helpful to the new teacher? What does it take to be an effective mentor? And what models currently exist in schools? This workshop will address these questions and more, with an eye on issues of adult leaning and the skills inherent in creating "transformative experiences."