Breakout Session G — 2025 ICGS Conference

Breakout Session G
June 25, 2025
9:40-10:30 a.m.

Where Have All the Teachers Gone?
Every year, 500,000 educators leave the profession, with 41% departing within the first five years. This poses a significant challenge for schools in retaining qualified staff, which directly impacts their ability to achieve goals. Teacher retention relies on schools meeting employees’ motivational needs and expectations. In today’s age-diverse workforce, developing effective retention programs and strategies that appeal to the varying needs of the generations within the organization can be complex. This session will examine the motivations and expectations of different generational cohorts, helping school leaders create programs that foster greater teacher retention.

Presenter: Dr. Rhashad P. Atkins, Chief Operating Officer | Elizabeth Seton High School (United States)

Schedule Innovation as Reputation Game Changer in Girls School: Transforming Constraints into Competitive Advantage

Can your daily schedule build your school’s reputation? In this fast-paced session, explore how innovative time design can serve as both a learning enhancer and a market differentiator. Dr. Andrew Taylor shares global insights on how progressive schedules contribute to parent decision-making, faculty engagement, and student well-being—ultimately shaping your school’s reputation. Participants will leave with tools and messaging strategies to make schedule innovation both visible and valuable to your community.

Presenter: Dr. Andrew Taylor, Ed.D., Senior Consultant | The 5Rs Partnership

The Sisterhood Experience: Exploring Caring Relationships and Community in All-Girls Catholic Schools
Anecdotally, alumnae of all-girls Catholic high schools speak of how they find a shared sense of sisterhood amongst themselves: a milieu that promotes a sense of confidence, engagement, collaboration, agency, and empowerment. The concentration of all-girls Catholic schools in the Philadelphia suburbs made it an ideal location to conduct an academic study to explore and explain this phenomenon. A recent academic study of alumnae from the classes of 2012 to 2020 from seven area schools looks at 1) the role of student/teacher relationships and 2) the role of a faith community in fostering this sisterhood experience and its positive impacts on recent alumnae.

Presenter: Paul Clementi, Director of Student Programs | Merion Mercy Academy (United States)

Cultivating a School Culture: Building the Office of Student Life
The Office of Student Life at The Chapin School has designed a holistic approach in educating young women by supplementing academic rigor with a well-rounded experience outside of the classroom. We empower our students through collaborative extracurricular roles, elevating the student voice and restorative justice practices. This approach strengthens their advocacy skills and encourages them to be thoughtful citizens of the world. This presentation is designed to share the best practices from Chapin’s intentionally constructed department dedicated to tending to the relational, operational, and cultural lifeblood of our upper school.

Presenters: Kristina Kalaw Joyas, Upper School Equity Coordinator; Liz Solis, Associate Head of Upper School for Culture and Community; Tremaine Monshizadeh, Director of Student Life | The Chapin School (United States)

The Artist and Historian

How do we integrate the arts into our teaching of History? Drawing on decades of K-12 teaching experience, we will focus on how art can enrich the teaching of twentieth-century global women’s movements. Participants will explore classroom techniques that use the artist as historian to deepen students’ critical engagement in complex subjects. Participants will use these techniques to understand the Black Arts movement, the intersection of arts and activism in the Middle East, and Ballroom Culture on New York City’s Lower East Side. Participants will leave energized and empowered to use art to teach difficult subjects in accessible and developmentally-appropriate ways.

Presenters: Georgina Emerson, Teacher; Marcos Rosales, Head of the Visual Art Department | The Spence School (United States)

Transformative Leadership Lessons from the Springbok Rugby Team
“If you want to achieve something you’ve never achieved before, you have to do something you’ve never done before.” – Rassie Erasmus (Springbok Rugby Coach) The South African Springbok Team may seem unrelated to leadership development in an all-girls school, yet Coach Rassie Erasmus’ innovative and transformative approach emphasizes player agency and the ability to make crucial individual decisions for the team’s success. This same philosophy can inform leadership strategies in girls’ schools, fostering students as empowered change agents.

Presenter: Anné Du Plessis, Leadership Director | St Stithian’s Girls’ College (South Africa)

Unlocking Nexus: Shaping Future-Ready Learners Beyond Grades
Unlock the future of education with ‘Nexus’, Wilderness School’s groundbreaking framework that reimagines achievement beyond grades. Built around four core competencies —Citizenship, Agency, Collaboration, and Quality Thinking— Nexus empowers students to create a personalised learner profile through 14 developmental dimensions, including iterative action, empathy, and growth-driven feedback. Through innovative, high-quality learning design, students gain agency over their educational journey, choosing the evidence that showcases their unique strengths. This session unveils how Nexus moves beyond traditional measures, engaging students in deeply personalised learning experiences that equip them with adaptable, lifelong skills. Discover how this pioneering approach prepares future-ready young women through a transformative, student-centered model.

Presenters: Brad Snell, Deputy Principal – Teaching and Learning; Shane Hill, Head of Learning Analytics; Liana Rossi, Head of Interdisciplinary Studies | Wilderness School (Australia)

Empowering Global Citizens: Collaborative Programming in Girls’ Education
Explore how interdisciplinary, mission-driven programming can transform girls’ education, empowering young women to become ethical, bold global citizens. This session highlights Miss Porter’s School’s AIS Global Intensive, a program that fosters critical thinking, civic engagement, and cross-cultural understanding through collaboration across disciplines. Attendees will learn practical methods for breaking down departmental barriers, adapting institutional structures, and engaging students in essential global competencies. By focusing on identity, agency, and complex global challenges, this approach equips young women with the confidence, skills, and ethical grounding to shape a changing world.

Presenters: Elizabeth Simison, Academic Dean; Nelle Andrews, Director of Curriculum and Instruction | Miss Porter’s School (United States)

Digital Classroom
This session showcases material from the book, The Kinderchat Guide to Elementary School Projects, and details how the digital classroom can be seamlessly integrated into the curriculum helping girls (2nd grade and up) become more independent and fluid in navigating technology, with examples of individual digital math portfolios and presentations shared.

Presenter: Heidi Echternacht, Teacher and Author | Stuart Country Day School of the Sacred Heart (United States)

Using Evaluations to Impact Teacher Growth, Retention and Student Outcomes
This session provides an overview of a faculty evaluation system as a multi-evaluator, growth-focused model aligned with the best practices in instructional coaching. Developed at SEM, this system effectively addresses teachers’ needs in the classroom, improves student outcomes, and fosters a community of learning. The evaluation framework includes multiple tracks differentiated by experience level and emphasizes timely feedback, teacher growth, and increased collaboration. Additionally, the staff evaluation process has been revised to align with this growth-focused approach.

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

Adapt, Create, Thrive: Empowering Young Women Through Applied Improvisation
How can we prepare girls to lead with confidence, adaptability, and collaboration in an unpredictable world? Applied improvisation offers a dynamic and transformative approach to education, helping students develop essential skills like creative problem-solving, resilience, and effective communication. This interactive session will introduce participants to the principles of improv as a teaching tool, with a focus on fostering trust, reducing stress, and creating a culture of mutual support in the classroom. Gain actionable strategies to inspire your students, enhance classroom dynamics, and help girls build the confidence to thrive in any situation.

Presenters: Will Dennis, Teacher; Rachel Heuckroth, English Department Chair and Teacher | Villa Joseph Marie High School; James Bender, Education Technology Coordinator | Gwynedd Mercy Academy High School (United States)

More Than Words: 8th Grade Capstone Projects as the Culmination of Experiential Learning in Middle School
Deep, meaningful, and lasting learning occurs when students engage in cross-curricular, hands-on projects throughout their school years. Eighth-grade Capstone projects serve as a culmination of this process, showcasing students’ progression from concrete to abstract thinking, the development of intrinsic motivation and executive functioning skills, and increasing independence during the middle school years. This session examines how to guide and support students in applying their skills and knowledge to self-designed, year-long projects. The evolution of a Capstone program will be explored—from an initial pilot to a dedicated, timetabled eighth-grade course. Key components of building a successful program, the value of Capstone projects, and essential support structures for both students and teachers will also be discussed.

Presenters: Catherine Roy, Health & Wellness Curriculum Coordinator; Emily Horwitz, Sixth Grade Lead Teacher | Newton Country Day School of the Sacred Heart (United States)

Student Learning Growth & Well-Being: Tying Outcomes to the Independent School Value Proposition
This session explores how student learning growth and well-being data can be utilized to reinforce the distinct value of an independent school education. Drawing on recent research from a national sample of ICGS schools, we’ll examine key trends and insights that help illuminate student progress academically, socially, and emotionally. Participants will learn how to use these findings to communicate impact more effectively with families, boards, and broader school communities. Opportunities for interactive discussion around strategies for integrating data into your school’s storytelling, strategic planning, and improvement efforts will be included. This session is ideal for academic leaders and enrollment professionals.

Presenters: Molly Green, Senior Director – Admission Programs, and Mark Hastings, Member Solutions Director