Dear Keys Community,
On behalf of the Head of School Search Committee, I am delighted to share this important update with you. Last weekend, the committee met for an intensive series of interviews with our semi-finalist candidates. We were incredibly encouraged by the pool of committed, energized, mission-aligned candidates who came to meet with us. We have selected three candidates to come to Keys as finalists, beginning Tuesday, November 27.
OVERVIEW OF SEMI-FINALIST INTERVIEWS
Over the past weekend, the committee invited our semi-finalists to campus for in-person interviews, beginning with a tour of both of our campuses, and concluding with a thorough, broad, and probing Q & A session. We were incredibly energized by our conversations with these deeply committed, passionately engaged, and experienced education professionals who are excited by what they have learned about Keys.
FINALIST SELECTION, CAMPUS VISIT STRUCTURE
On the afternoon of Sunday, November 11, the committee met to review and reflect upon the interviews we conducted over the weekend. Following a robust conversation, we arrived–unanimously–at a slate of three candidates whom we are excited to invite to Keys to meet and interact with our entire community.
During the upcoming finalist visits, each candidate will participate in a comprehensive 2-day series of observations, conversations, interviews, and discussion with the Keys community. They will hold one-on-one meetings with our senior administrators, as well as conversations with our Board of Trustees, students, faculty and staff. Each visit will also include a series of open forums, one for the full faculty and staff, and two opportunities for parents, to ensure that as many members of our community as possible have the opportunity to connect with our finalists.
We will announce each finalist’s name and background information two days before each visit, via e-mail. This timing follows best practices for this stage of the search, allowing for the interests of both the community and our candidates.
CAMPUS VISIT SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Our first candidate will arrive during the week of November 26; we will welcome the second and third finalists during the week of December 3. To help ensure that as many families as possible have the opportunity to meet the candidates, we will hold two parent forums during each visit--an evening and a morning session. We are delighted to be able to offer childcare (as available, details to follow) during the evening parent forum. Both forums will follow the same format, so please choose the session that works best in your schedule. We hope you will mark your calendars with the dates of these visits, so you can help to welcome our finalist candidates, and participate in the process of identifying our school’s next leader.
First Finalist Visit: Tuesday and Wednesday, November 27 - 28
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Parent Forum 1: Tuesday, November 27, 6:00-7:00 pm, Middle School Library
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Parent Forum 2: Wednesday, November 28, 8:30-9:30 am, Lower School Library
Second Finalist Visit: Tuesday and Wednesday, December 4 - 5
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Parent Forum 1: Tuesday, December 4, 6:00-7:00 pm, Middle School Library
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Parent Forum 2: Wednesday, December 5, 8:30-9:30 am, Lower School Library
Third Finalist Visit: Thursday and Friday, December 6 - 7
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Parent Forum 1: Thursday, December 6, 6:00-7:00 pm, Middle School Library
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Parent Forum 2: Friday, December 7, 8:30-9:30 am, Lower School Library
NEXT STEPS
Immediately following each candidate visit, we will request your feedback, via an online survey. We hope you will take that opportunity to share your thoughts and impressions with us. The search committee will include your input in our final deliberations as we prepare to make our recommendation to the Board.
After all three finalists have completed their visits, and the search committee has reviewed the feedback we have gathered from community survey responses and deep reference calls, we will make our recommendation to the Board of Trustees, who will vote to determine who will be the next leader for Keys.
We plan to announce the next Head of School in January, at which time we will begin to collaborate with Alona Scott to create a smooth, thoughtful transition process.
Thank you for your ongoing support during this search process. The opportunity to come together as a community to reflect upon our shared values, our hopes and goals for Keys, and our enduring desire to continue our strong mission has been deeply rewarding. We look forward to sharing the Keys experience with these finalists in the coming weeks.
Warmly, Amy Schneider, Chair, Head of School Search Committee |