Networking & Continental Breakfast

Welcome | NCAIS | Lecture Hall

How to Benchmark and Build Reputation in Independent Schools | Stephen Holmes, 5R’s Partnership
The reputation of an independent school constitutes its single most valuable asset! Yet, there is still a genuine lack of robust evidence and coordinated responsibility in schools to build, manage, and evaluate reputation. All too often, we see in schools that interest to shape reputation only comes formally onto the radar when a crisis occurs!

This interactive session gives a schoolwide framework for reputation benchmarking and development. It will provide a robust and proven approach to shaping reputation and, importantly, build word of mouth (advocacy). A school’s reputation constitutes its most valuable asset – nothing is more important than building, managing, and evaluating reputation. Yet, there is a genuine lack of robust measurement and coordinated responsibility in schools to build reputation.

Break

Breakout Session I | Select 1 

Retention Isn’t a Single Point in Time: A Game Plan for Tackling Attrition | Colin Wyenberg, Finalsite & Lauren Gentile, Assoc. Director of Admissions at Cardinal Gibbons High School | Middle School Library
We’ve all tried to save a family who has decided to leave our schools, looked at their exit survey (if they completed it), and were still left with an empty seat. But that’s not retention. When you really think about it, retention is EVERY touchpoint from EVERY office across the entire student lifecycle. Join us to talk about how each office plays an essential and year-long role in solving your attrition woes.

Developing Your School’s Rubric for Right-fit Families: How Clarifying Your “Who” Advances Your Pursuit of Healthy Enrollment | Andy Lynch, Northstar Marketing | Upper School Library
How do you define a right-fit family? It's a question that many school leaders and advancement team members answer from intuition rather than documentation. Whether your school is sort of full, nearly full, or overflowing, there’s no time like the present to get real about your school’s definition of a right-fit family. In this case study, Andy Lynch will guide us through the narrative featuring Anita Brek, admissions director at Generak Christian School in Boomtown, Ohio. Following in her footsteps, you’ll explore a framework for developing a Right-fit Family Rubric and consider ways to apply your thinking to marketing, admissions, and retention. And along the way, you’ll make significant strides in your pursuit of healthy enrollment.

Breakout Session II  | Select 1

Campaign 101 | Clare Jordan, Cap Development, and Andy Clifton, Forsyth Country Day School | Middle School Library
Using lessons learned from the FCDS campaign that is now finishing up, we will discuss how FCDS built the case, built their capacity for campaign and ongoing annual giving, developed the donor pool and campaign leadership, and how the campaign plan was successfully executed, with lots of good anecdotal stories and data points to share.

A Schoolwide Approach to Admissions | Nathan Battle, Associate Head of School for Advancement & Carolyn Sutton, Director of Admission | Niblock Center

Admission professionals love to tell the faculty and staff at our schools that every member of a school community is on the admission team. A schoolwide approach to admissions means equipping all of the members on our team to understand their agency, value, and role in admissions and enrollment management for the school. Faculty participation can include understanding the admission process, welcoming visiting students, and participating in admission/enrollment events, among other opportunities. We will share specific strategies for positive communication with faculty, as well as ways to involve faculty in the admission process and enrollment management.

Breakout Session III | Select 1
Strategic Insights: Unveiling Forsyth Country Day School's Philanthropy Playbook | Aaron Craven, Forsyth Country Day School | Niblock Center
Explore Forsyth Country Day School's Philanthropy Playbook, a detailed 12-month guide decoding our team's Events, Planning, Solicitations, and Data & Reporting. Learn how this tool keeps us focused, aids monthly planning, steers strategic solicitations, and ensures consistent data reporting. Uncover firsthand how the Philanthropy Playbook instills intentionality, shaping our philanthropic impact strategically. Whether you lead a small team or navigate broader philanthropic landscapes, this session promises insights that transcend the playbook, offering valuable lessons for optimizing your own philanthropy strategy.

Storytelling for Impact | Brook Wingate, Center for Creative Leadership | Middle School Library

Storytelling is an important part of any advancement work that, when done well, keeps current supporters engaged and both informs and attracts new advocates for our schools. In this session, we will discuss the power of stories, use CCL’s model of influence to consider the stories we want to tell, and spend time engaging with each other to examine and revise our current storytelling.

Discussion about the opportunity scholarship with Allison Doby & Shannon McCoy (Salisbury Academy) and Jez McIntosh & Lindsay Roseborough (Trinity School of Durham and Chapel Hill) | Upper School Library

This session will cover our experience with Opportunity Scholarship sharing a brief history of the program, our challenges and growth opportunities.  We will also cover how the program has changed and answer your questions.

Admissions and Development Best Practices with Lisa Gordon Stella | Lecture Hall 

This session will cover areas currently impacting independent schools. Topics will include enrollment contracts, policies, anti-discrimination laws, and North Carolina specific trends. Audience participation and questions are strongly encouraged.