Breakout Session H – 2024 ICGS Conference

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Breakout Session H
Wednesday, June 26
10:45-11:35 a.m.

Heads Panel on Institutional Sustainability
Running a school is like running a state: What resources do you consume in the present rather than conserve for the future? Join four heads (chairs) and a management consultant in institutional economics to explore challenges and opportunities in fostering long-term sustainable economics for their school—and all schools. Examine actions they took (in position, product, population, price, philanthropy, productivity and plant). Investigate the culture and indicia of sustainable and unsustainable schools. Investigate with depth, data, and honesty 10 vital signs of school health. Session includes sustainability analytics by region, scale and type for 50 girls schools and extended Q&A.

Presenters: William Kummel, Principal | Rational Partners (United States)

Audience: Early Childhood; Elementary/Primary/Lower School; Middle School; Upper/Senior/High School; Heads of School/Principals/Presidents/Headteachers; Senior Administrators; Board Members

Finish strong, finish fun: end-of-term interdisciplinary projects in Years 7-9
To enhance holistic learning and bridge academic disciplines, we have introduced an Interdisciplinary Project-Based Learning (IPBL) week at the end of each term in Secondary (Years 7 to 9). During this week, students collaborate on projects that integrate knowledge from multiple subjects, fostering creativity, critical thinking, and real-world application. This week serves as a dynamic break from traditional lessons, allowing students to take ownership of their learning, discover connections between subjects, and develop essential 21st-century skills. This week culminates in presentations or final products, enabling students to showcase their work and reflect on their interdisciplinary learning journey.

Presenter: Núria Tapias Nadales, Head of Secondary studies | La Vall (Spain)

Audience: Middle School; Upper/Senior/High School; Heads of School/Principals/Presidents/Headteachers; Teachers/Faculty; Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice Practitioners

InnovateHER: Fostering Wellness through Innovative Social Media Education
In this interactive workshop, we explore the dynamic realm of social media and its profound impact on the well-being of female students. Through immersive discussions and hands-on activities, school leaders, school counselors, and teachers will delve into the prevalent challenges and complexities encountered by girls in today’s digital landscape. By gaining firsthand insights into student perspectives on social media, attendees will be equipped with essential knowledge and effective strategies to navigate the challenges. Educators will have the opportunity to explore innovative educational tools and methodologies leveraging technology to enrich learning experiences and cultivate a positive school environment.

Presenters: Alyssia Green-Jacobs, Director of College & Career Success | Baltimore Leadership School for Young Women; Kiesha Hawthorne Jones, Director of Whole Girl Wellness and CEO of IT GIRLS of Maryland (United States)

Audience: Upper/Senior/High School; Heads of School/Principals/Presidents/Headteachers; Senior Administrators; School Counselors

Mapping the Family Journey: A full cycle tune-up of your admissions process
From top-of-funnel strategies for casting a wide but focused net, to nurturing prospects once they begin the application process, through to retaining families once they are enrolled, this session will cover practical topics to tune up each stage of the family journey.

Presenter: Angelo Otterbein, Chief Innovation Officer | Finalsite (United States)

Audience: Elementary/Primary/Lower School; Middle School; Upper/Senior/High School; Heads of School/Principals/Presidents/Headteachers; Senior Administrators; Admissions/Enrollment; Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice Practitioners

“Girl Math” Refigured: Challenging Stereotypes and Inspiring Critical Thinking
Explore ‘Girl Math’, a trend that playfully unveils the internal calculations of women. In this session, we will challenge stereotypes and highlight the power it holds for middle school classrooms. Challenging preconceptions, ‘Girl Math’ empowers girls to think critically and logically through problem-solving. You’ll leave with invaluable resources to seamlessly integrate ‘Girl Math’ into your lessons, fostering inclusivity and diverse perspectives. Walk away with strategies to amplify engagement, build camaraderie, and make mathematics relatable. Join us in reshaping the narrative, acknowledging the vibrant trend of ‘Girl Math’ as a catalyst that will inspire your math classroom.

Presenters: Camille Bridges, Middle School Math Teacher; Amy Mulron, Middle School Math Department Chair | Harpeth Hall School (United States)

Audience: Middle School; Teachers/ Faculty

How St Hilda’s built one of the world’s largest entrepreneurial school programs
In 2022, of the $8.8 billion raised in venture capital, only 3% went to all women founded startups. St Hilda’s Anglican School Principal Fiona Johnston believes we can do better, and that we must do better. As an initiative flagged in the schools strategic plan in 2021, our flagship ESSTEAM program was born. It is an ambitious Y5-10 program, that focusses on developing girls Entrepreneurial, Strategic and Sustainability mindsets through TEAM work, and STEAM work in a purpose built 500m2 studio.     This presentation shares the journey of Entrepreneurship at one of Australia’s top performing girls’ schools.

Presenter: Fiona Johnston, Principal | St Hilda’s Anglican School for Girls (Australia)

Audience: Middle School; Upper/Senior/High School; Heads of School/Principals/Presidents/Headteachers; Senior Administrators; Teachers/Faculty’ Student Life; Extracurricular/Co-Academic Programs

“Good is good enough”!: Dealing with perfectionism in high-achieving girls
One of the stereotypical characteristics of a high ability girls’ school student is a tendency towards perfectionism, which can have negative consequences for mental health, as well as restrict students from successfully achieving their goals. How can we, as girls’ school educators, encourage our students to accept that “good is good enough”, embrace their mistakes and increase their confidence? This will be an informative, research-based presentation with some practical advice to take away and try in your own setting.

Presenter: Kate Medley, Head of Spanish/Pedagogy Lead | Aylesbury High School (United Kingdom)

Audience: Middle School; Upper/Senior/High School; Teachers/Faculty; School Counselors; Student Life; Alumnae Relations

Using Evaluations to Impact Teacher Growth, Retention and Student Outcomes
In this session, we will provide an overview of our faculty evaluation system as a multi-evaluator, growth-focused system that is pedagogically aligned with the best practices of instructional coaching. SEM’s teacher evaluation system was built to more effectively address teacher’s needs in the classroom, improve student outcomes, and create a community of learning for everyone.  The evaluation system comprises multiple tracks that are differentiated to the teacher’s level and is highly focused on providing timely feedback, prioritizing teacher growth, and increasing teacher collaboration. This summer we also revised our staff evaluation to be growth-focused and in line with the teacher evaluation process.

Presenters: Amanda Melsby, Dean of Teaching and Learning; Natalie Stothart, Assistant Head of School | Buffalo Seminary (United States)

Audience: Middle School; Upper/Senior/High School; Senior Administrators

Reflections on 10 Years of Humanities Curriculum: Developing Global Leaders
Our session will cover the evolution of our humanities curriculum as we altered it to better align with our mission and the changing global landscape. In 2014, St. Paul’s School for Girls created an interdisciplinary humanities program that focused on the ancient world for fifth grade and early American history for sixth grade. A coordinated effort across many curriculum areas, the program encourages students to create connections across disciplines in a project-based learning environment. In 2023, we revised the 6th grade curriculum to focus on world cultures and geography. This aligns with the UN’s Global Goals and supports our mission statement of “inspiring confident leaders who serve in the world”.

Presenters: Anne Mickle, Sixth Grade Humanities Teacher; Joie Gill, Fifth Grade Humanities Teacher; Laura Philip, Sixth Grade Humanities Teacher | St. Paul’s School for Girls (United States)

Audience: Middle School; Senior Administrators; Teachers/Faculty; Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice Practitioners

Creating a Collaborative Learning Environment in STEM: Active/Flipped Learning
This session describes a method to make leadership, resilience, collaboration, and asking questions a natural part of the everyday classroom experience.  Active-flipped learning organically develops nurturing relationships, leadership skills, and perseverance for difficult problem solving.  Attendees will learn the positive impact this environment can have upon student growth and the key ingredients for making an active learning environment in the classroom that intrinsically develops student leadership, questioning, and small group conversations that give students many opportunities to explain their thought processes to one another.  Videos of students in active-flipped chemistry courses will be shared.

Presenter: Edye Udell, Science Teacher | Westridge School for Girls (United States)

Audience: Upper/Senior/High School; Teachers/Faculty