Roots and Wings- Voices of Independent Schools

In this special episode of Roots and Wings: Voices of Independent Schools, we are delighted to feature Donna Orem, President of the National Association of Independent Schools. The National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) is a nonprofit membership association that provides services to more than 1,800 schools and associations of schools in the United States and abroad, including more than 1,500 independent private K-12 schools in the U.S. Prior to joining NAIS, she was the vice president for products and services development at the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). In her fifteen years at CASE, she also served as the vice president for independent schools. In that role, she managed all services for the independent school advancement community, including the annual CASE/NAIS Conference. Ms. Orem speaks frequently about leadership, governance, trends in independent school education and workforce development.

In this episode, Ms. Orem reflects upon what brings her great optimism about the future of independent schools. She shares ways in which independent schools are reimagining themselves and speaks to the notion of a third educational revolution in which we find ourselves. Ms. Orem’s insights are important for listeners who are parents as well as practitioners in the independent school world.

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In the words of Brendan Schneider, “I began as the Director of Admission & Financial Aid at Sewickley Academy in the Summer of 2008. In October of 2008, the stock market crashed, and our interest indicators (inquiries, applications, and visits) seemed to be a one month trailing average of the stock market. What were we going to do? We initially ran to traditional outbound marketing techniques that we had never tried before. We used billboards and placards in the airport which proved to be a huge waste of money and didn’t help our admission efforts. Next, we turned to social media and launched our Facebook Page, and Twitter account thinking that by utilizing social media alone it would drive hundreds of mission appropriate, full-pay families to our doors. We were wrong. I then picked up a copy of Inbound Marketing: Get Found Using Google, Social Media, and Blogs (New Rules Social Media Series) by Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah and our journey with inbound marketing began.” In this podcast, Mr. Schneider reflects upon his journey at Sewickley and provides proof points and ideas for taking independent school marketing to the next level.

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Lisa Lau Aquino is a proud graduate and parent of an alumna of The Hamlin School. She attended Lowell High School and U.C. Berkeley, and has done graduate work in Multicultural Education at University of San Francisco. Ms. Aquino has taught primarily Science and Health at The Hamlin School for 16 years prior to becoming the Director of Admission in July 2002. She is a member of the Senior Administrative team at Hamlin. Ms. Aquino is also the leader for Hamlin’s Lower School Affinity for Girls of Color group, a California Association of Independent School (CAIS) Accreditation Team Member, President of the Board for the Bay Area Directors of Admission (BADA) and a Board Member of Holy Family Day Home, a preschool in San Francisco's Mission district that serves primarily low income and homeless children and families. Int his podcast, she reflects upon the unique value of single sex education and the importance of considering independent school culture through a lens of inclusivity.

In July of 2014, Peter Anderson began his work as Director of Enrollment Management at Episcopal Academy in Philadelphia, PA. Mr. Anderson secured his undergraduate degree from Middlebury College and his MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business. Following his work as an Institutional Derivatives Broker for Gottex Financial Services in Lausanne Switzerland, Mr. Anderson returned to education in the summer of 2000. Between 2009 and 2014, Mr. Anderson worked as Director of Admission at Lancaster Country Day School and he has served as Director of Financial Aid at Loomis Chaffee School and as an Instructor in U.S. and South African History at St. George’s School in Newport Rhode Island. In this podcast, Mr. Anderson reflects upon strategic and tactical thinking for the seasoned admission professional.

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Improving financial sustainability, recruitment and retention, and parent satisfaction using data is the goal of the company, Measuring Success. In his independent school work, Dr. Bloom has developed and implemented a number of marquee programs, including the Atidenu Recruitment and Retention program, the Recruitment and Retention Academy, the Governance & Fundraising Academy, and the Day School Financial Benchmarking and Reengineering program. These programs have helped well over 100 independent schools enhance revenue, increase efficiency and strengthen their financial vitality.

Bloom has conducted and published independent school and nonprofit governance research that has identified practices that predict financial and educational success. Dr. Bloom has been a featured presenter at conferences for the National Business Officers Association (NBOA), the Independent School Association of the Central States (ISACS), the New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYSAIS), the Association of Independent School Admission Professionals (AISAP), and the California Business Officers Association (CALISBOA). Dr. Bloom has a Masters Degree in Business Administration from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business and a Doctorate of Education degree from Yeshiva University’s Azrieli Graduate School of Education and Administration. In this podcast, Dr. Bloom reflects upon the importance of using data to help shape and guide success in the area of independent school admission.

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Dr. Amy Parish is a Biological Anthropologist, Primatologist, and Darwinian Feminist. She has taught at the University of Southern California in the Gender Studies and Anthropology departments since 1999. She is recognized as being a world leading expert in bonobo studies. Parish completed an undergraduate degree at the University of Michigan in 1989. She received her Masters of Science from the University of California-Davis in 1990, where she completed her PhD. Her dissertation focused on sociosexual behavior and the female-female relationships of bonobos. In this podcast, Dr. Parish reflects upon her research and thoughts as a professor and teacher at La Jolla Country Day School.

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John Edman joined La Jolla Country Day School in 1998, and he is constantly reinvigorated by the sense of family and camaraderie as faculty and students alike strive to make the world a better place. He loves that students have the chance to experience a wide variety of academic, athletic, artistic and service opportunities while also being encouraged to pursue their passions and become excellent in areas of special importance to them. Mr. Edman graduated from Williams College with honors, earning a Bachelor of Arts in economics with a concentration in mathematics. After four years of teaching math and coaching baseball at his alma mater, Cranbrook Kingswood, in Michigan, he went on to earn his Master of Science in statistics from the University of Michigan while also serving as an assistant coach for the University of Michigan baseball team. He moved to San Diego in 1999 with his wife and three children, all of whom have been proud lifers at LJCDS.

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Susan Nordenger never believed that teaching is a job but rather a calling. From the first day she stepped into her La Jolla Country Day School classroom, she knew she found the place she wanted to call home. After 10 years of teaching in the Middle School, Mrs. Nordenger worked with students to create an all-school community service program. This 19-year endeavor has been the most rewarding phase of her career. Mrs. Nordenger began teaching in St. Helens, Oregon. Those first six years were split between teaching in a self-contained sixth-grade classroom and teaching eighth-grade American history, English and literature. Mrs. Nordenger fell in love with student activities, learning to work and lead students out of the classroom. She began teaching sixth grade at LJCDS in 1987. She also taught seventh-grade English for eight years and the Upper School public speaking course for 17 years. In 1997, she became the community service director, and in 2004, the school implemented its global service program traveling to India, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Ghana, Thailand, Tanzania and Kenya.

The year 2016 brought another chapter in Mrs. Nordenger's LJCDS story as she took on the role of assistant head of school for philanthropy. She is excited to work with parents, grandparents and alumni in securing the future of the school and cultivating a culture of giving. Gratitude defines her life and experiences, and she finds there is no greater privilege than to stand side by side with community members as they realize their potential to make a difference in the life of this school and the surrounding community.

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The New Children’s Museum is a new model of children’s museums whose mission is to stimulate imagination, creativity and critical thinking in children and families through inventive and engaging experiences with contemporary art. The intention is to address a critical need in our society and become a leader in engaging children through contemporary art in order to develop the skills needed for the 21st century. La Jolla Country Day School has engaged in a unique partnership with the Museum to heighten the greater San Diego community’s awareness of our shared love of children and their holistic development. In this podcast, Ms. Fox and Ms. Kuta reflect upon the upcoming season at The New Children’s Museum and La Jolla Country Day School’s partnership with the museum.

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After 25 years working in the biotech industry, founding and running her contract development and manufacturing company, and being a global leader in single-use technology for the production of biologic medicines, Leigh Pierce sold her business. After the sale, she realized she had a unique opportunity to make science come alive for students.By creating a new course that offers a hands-on educational experience with the same techniques used in industry to make medicines, students will be able to take the theoretical and make it practical by utilizing different fields of science to make a biological medicine from live cells. Her goal is to challenge and inspire students by teaching them how to make a medicine and create that “A-HA” moment when a connection is made between a student and a new idea.

Ms. Pierce is a native San Diegan and graduated from San Diego State University with a Bachelor of Science in biology. Her career has included gene discovery, cancer and infectious disease research, process and technology development, biologics manufacturing for human clinical trials and the founding of two companies. Ms. Pierce has two daughters at LJCDS.

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