What helps students truly love their school? Is it the high-quality teaching, the depth of the friendships, the beauty of the campus, or the way faith and learning intersect? Every Christian school leader has pondered these questions, often relying on instinct, observation, or anecdotal feedback. But what if students themselves—across many schools—could tell us, with data to back it up, … Read More
What Parents Value Most: Strategic Insights for Christian School Leaders
Listening as an act of faithful leadership Christian school leaders often navigate competing demands. On one hand, we are called to remain deeply faithful to mission: to form students spiritually, intellectually, and relationally in ways that reflect the gospel. On the other hand, we steward institutions that depend on trust, enrollment, financial sustainability, and parental partnership. Wise leadership requires both … Read More
Thinking About Governance: Policy That Matters
Good governance requires good policy. A Christian school that has good governance will, of necessity, have good policy. Failure in governance is often related to a policy failure.
Steward Leadership and Christian Schools
As one considers a relationship between Steward leadership and experience within an organization, there seems to be a connection. Steward leadership approaches to decision-making is evidenced in the way school leaders operate with their leadership team and in leadership team meetings.
Initial Research Observations Post COVID at Christian Schools
Whereas satisfaction with Christian schools remains generally strong, there seem to be new negative pandemic impacts on various groups typically studied in satisfaction research at Christian schools. Trends among parents, students, and staff seem to be connected with one another and to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thinking About Mission Statements
Times of crisis and change often present organizations an opportunity to revisit their mission. Our current climate of pandemic and cultural conflict is just such a time. How ought our mission statement help us stay on mission and our mission drive our actions through these challenges?
Conflict and Teams
How can conflict increase creativity among teams? Teams are tasked with solving a problem (or problems), and creativity can provide the team with more options, and more viable options can solve problems. So, what is the relationship between creativity and conflict? Research literature discusses the impact that conflict has and whether conflict is positive or negative. So, the real question isn’t “is there a relationship?” But rather, “what is the relationship?”
Thoughts on Teams
Regardless of the purpose or setting, effective teams have certain things in common. A successful team is not only more productive and more likely to accomplish the objectives, but the task is more gratifying and more likely to draw people into teamwork again.
Leading as a Steward
If Christian schools require their leaders to act as stewards, it is useful to think about what exactly a Steward Leader is. It is easy to think that Steward Leadership is just a Christian version of Servant Leadership, a concept familiar to many of us. However, once explored, one can see significant and fundamental differences. What anchors Steward Leadership is … Read More
Favorability & Opportunity with Catholic Families for Christian Schooling: Are We Missing a Receptive Audience?
In April 2018, Charter Oak Research, conducted a national survey on Christian parents of school age children. The research explored favorability toward Christian school options. This research focused on evangelical protestant options and school profiles – descriptions were clearly noted as such for respondents. The sample included both protestant and catholic respondents and they were segmented by this self identification … Read More