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S.W.O.T for Independent Schools - 2013. Patrick F. Bassett . bassett@nais.org. Independent School Strengths.
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S.W.O.T for Independent Schools - 2013 Patrick F. Bassett bassett@nais.org
Independent School Strengths Strongly-branded as the best & most successful college-prep schools: highest SAT-scores; disproportionately represented in the most selective colleges and universities (and in the honors programs of large universities: Hope Scholars in GA, Jefferson Scholars at UVA, Morehead Scholars at UNC, etc.) Best college matriculation and college graduation rates More diversity of every kind than other school systems Safe and achievement-oriented “intentional cultures” Good kids whose talents & strengths we find & nurture Independence in admissions, hiring, programming Constituent loyalty – demonstrated in the recession Independent schools leading innovation What else?
Independent School Weaknesses Persistent public perception as elite and inaccessible in every way – especially financially and socially Underinvested in marketing, understaffed in advancement, under-represented in social media Slow to change & history of resistance to experimentation Boards inexperienced in high level governance, leading to misdirected micromanaging of daily operations Administrators expected to manage more than lead Ineffective or immature processes for recruiting, training, and maximizing value of trustees and for diversifying the board Unsustainable growth in financial aid and too often too little strategic analysis of target and outcomes of it. Helicopter parents & Tiger Moms making life difficult Difficulty with “the difficult conversations.” What else?
Independent School Opportunities Converting the home schooled to independent schools Maximizing return on physical capital (plant) Redefining a “new normal” in terms of drivers for financial sustainability: workload; student:staff ratios Overseas Partnerships/ Sister Schools & Satellite Schools Online School Consortia (Online School for Girls & Global Online Academy) Public Partnerships (NNSP) Staffing up & sticky messaging for advancement What else?
Independent School Threats Declining percentage of families who can afford ever-increasing tuitions “Free and good,” well-marketed magnet & charter schools Less expensive “for profit” private schools Disruptive innovation of online schools Disruptive innovation of “competency-based” assessment Dilution of “independent” brand Desperate and broke local governments eyeing currently untaxed non-profit assets and seeking Pilots and Silots Weak and weakening pool of prospective teachers Growing sense of “entitlement” among all constituents Risk Management: More risks, longer tail, costly judgments. What else?
The End(game) Keep in Mind: Weaknesses and threats can and do paralyze organizations…but Every weakness can be converted into strength, and every threat can be transformed into an opportunity. See Related Slides in Appendix
Are your images and mottoes archaic, suggestive of a moat around the castle? Return
3 R’s of talent management: • Recruitment • Reward • Retention Return
Marketing Hyde Schools Portland, ME Elevator to Baggage Claim
Play See clips at… 0:00 – 6:06 Sir Ken Robinson Return
Breaking News Return
Loose steering wheel is to auto Fingernail is to blackboard Hamster is to wheel Three Levels of Board GovernanceSource: Bill Ryan, AISNE Governance Workshop, Oct 23. 2007 Analogies revealing some level of dysfunction: “Our board is to our school as…
Three Levels of Board Governance(Adapted from Board Member, May 2004, Chait et al.) Return Move from micromanagement is macroengagement.” Chait on level of involvement. Employ the 3 lens rubric to problem-solving: Rising benefit costs? Adding Chinese? Rightsizing?
1. Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Mostby Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton, and Sheila Heen Title You’re a jerk. I hate you. You’re holding me up. How’s the project coming? Fine, thanks. Levels: Stated vs. Implied. Business at hand vs. Threats to my image.
Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Mostby Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton, and Sheila Heen Title The Spouse/Partner Version She doesn’t get what my work demands.. You think you’re only busy one? You don’t love me. . Can it wait? I’m busy Fine. Return Puzzle: Mishandled conversations create the very outcomes we dread.
NAIS Strategic Planning: Breakout Groups (partnerships; school of future; sustainability, etc.) Return Why doesn’t anyone want to sit at the innovation table?
What Some Parents (5%) Need that Schools CAN’T Provide cf. Time, 2/21/05 “Parents Behaving Badly”; Wendy Mogel’s The Blessings of a Skinned Knee; Michael Thompson’s For the Sake of the Children: An NAIS Guide to Successful Family-School Relationships. 2005 MetLife Survey of The American Teacher: Public school teachers report very satisfied in working with students = 68%; in working with parents = 25% NAIS Parents Segmentation: 1. Parents Who Push; 2. Success-driven Parents; 3. Parents Whose Kids Are “Special”; 4. Character–driven Parents; 5. Public School Proponents Return
Safe Schools = A “counter-cultural” oasis from the corruptive and base popular media Return
College %Public %Private The Path to Highly Selective Colleges Source: WSJ, Oct. 2006 & CAPE Outlook, Nov. 2006 Note: Private schools in general educate 10% of students; independent schools, 1%. Need blind college admissions favors…whom? Return
Return Note: Data worse when consider all 18 – 24 year olds: Less than 40% of 18 year olds get to college; under 20% graduate within six years; only 28% of US jobs require a college degree (2012—US Bureau of Labor)
“St. Louis Magnet Schools offer an EXCITING, TUITION FREE alternative for students of all ages and abilities.”
Run Clip 5 Cs in the Best Public Schools Return