Walk the Walk: Planning and Running a Leadership Conference and the Positive Impact on Your School

1. Walk the Walk: Planning and Running a Leadership Conference and the Positive Impact on Your School Presenters: Dana Hall School - Liza Cohen, Director of Communications and Corinne Daniels, Director of Alumnae Relations Chelmsford County High School for Girls - Katharine Adams, Year Leader Year 11 and Richard Wilkes, Asst. Head of Sixth Form Marymount High School - LyndseyDeMuro, Academic Advisor /Student Activities Coordinator and Sarah Jallo, Director of Admission/Director of Summer Programs National Coalition of Girls School Annual Conference 2013

2. She Sails: Inspiring Dana Hall Women

3. Statement of Purpose She Sails: Inspiring Dana Women creates connections among all Dana Hall women and provides a forum to learn from each other, share our stories, and encourage one another to be bold and dream big.

4. The Basics • Inaugural event 2012 • Second annual 2013 • Students, alumnae, parents, faculty and staff invited • Full-day, Saturday event (9 a.m. to 4 p.m.) in late April • On campus • Free • 450 attendees in 2012 • 570 attendees in 2013 • $20k in sponsorships in 2012 • $35k in sponsorships in 2013

5. Alumnae Engagement Goals: Bring alumnae back to campus; connect with alumnae beyond reunion and annual giving; leverage rich talents of alumnae. • Focus groups • Survey • Planning • Presenters

6. Alumnae Engagement • 28 alumnae presenters in 2012; 44 alumnae presenters in 2013 • Classes of 1957 to 2009 represented • Varied disciplines and experience levels • Varied prior engagement with the school

7. Alumnae Engagement Alumnae Board Involvement • Sub-committee • Alumnae hub • Networking breakfast • Volunteering • Marketing

8. Extension of the Dana Brand • Dana Hall stands for an unwavering commitment to developing leaderships qualities in girls • We back that up with our rigorous curriculum, our dedicated faculty, our supportive environment AND: • Countless leadership opportunities: Workshops, mentoring, skill-building, networking, Career Day, Girls Summer Leadership Program

9. She Sails: Walking the Walk in One Full Day • Keynote speakers as role models • Model different leadership styles • Professional mentoring and guidance • Range of opportunities • Promote ideals within internal community (include newly accepted students) • Generate buzz beyond the Dana campus

10. Event masterminds devised a theme, and planned and executed a memorable, unique day for all attendees. She Sails 2013

11. Lessons Learned • Survey to get volunteer alumnae presenters • Choose carefully who will work with alumnae presenters • All things to all people • Know your school and community, be yourself

12. WALK THE WALK Devising and Running a Student Leadership Conference in Your School NCGS Annual Conference Boston: June 2013 • Katharine Adams and Richard Wilkes • Chelmsford County High School for Girls, UK

13. Chelmsford County High School for Girls • Selective girls Grammar School • Strong academic standards • Publicly funded • IB World School • Ranked 10th in UK by ‘The Times’ • Successful entrants to Oxford and Cambridge Universities Our school context

14. CCHS Past and Present Miss Vernon Harcourt Headmistress Mrs Nicole Chapman Headteacher Founded 1907 : 76 students 2013 : 900 students

15. Inspiration! • AMGS Annual Conference October 2011 • NCGS Annual Conference Washington 2012 • WOW Conference 2012 International Influences

16. Inaugural CCHS Leadership Conference Friday 26th October 2012

17. Conference Aims • Promote and develop Leadership Skills • Develop the “whole student” beyond academic results • Encourage risk taking • Promote public speaking • Promote ‘Learning through Action’ Developing the Leaders of Tomorrow

18. Conference Outline • Conference breakfast • Key note speeches and panel session • Speaker-led workshops • Conference lunch • Student-led workshops • Plenary session Creating a professional feel to the day

19. Student Teams • Over 60 girls involved in teams for • Planning • Workshops • Conference materials • Hospitality • Catering • Administration Decisions led by students

20. Speeches and Panel Session Mitra Janes Rachel Elnaugh Sarah Hendry Heather Katsonga-Woodward Speakers from all walks of life

21. Public Speaking Roles • Conference Chair • Introductions • Leading workshops • Vote of thanks A chance to shine

22. Networking Seize the moment...

23. Speaker-led Workshops • Intimate interactive sessions with small groups of students • Manifesting prosperity • Preparing for the world of work • Leading and influencing • Women and leadership: Gender differences Thought-provoking discussion

24. Student-led workshops • Discussion sessions devised and run by students • Eradicating gender inequality, • Coping with failure • Independent travel • Cooking on a student budget • Mental and physical well-being Students take command

25. Plenary Session: Reflecting on the day Opportunity to reflect

26. Outcomes • Impact on individuals – students and staff • Enhanced relationships with local schools • Increased uptake for languages • Work experience opportunities • Press interest • National charity award Whole school “buzz”

27. Working together

28. Impact on Individuals • “I wanted to thank you for the conference and particularly for letting me run a workshop. I found it really enjoyable and I've noticed that as a result of it I've become much more confident when speaking to people, so thank you for giving me those opportunities.”  Students transformed

29. Outcomes • Impact on individuals – students and staff • Enhanced relationships with local schools • Increased uptake for languages • Work experience opportunities • Press interest • National charity award Whole school “buzz”

30. What did Delegates Enjoy? • “The atmosphere of the whole day and speaking to such inspirational women” • “The incredible workshops that have given me so much confidence for the future” • “Leading my workshop and being given the opportunity to lead others” • “Everyone being part of the making of the conference” Positive feedback

31. And what did they learn? • “Don’t make set plans, dream big and go where life takes you” • “Failure is sometimes a blessing in disguise” • “There are lots of different types of success and perseverance is the key” • “When I left I was buzzing with energy and possibilities for the future. I felt I could achieve anything and I hope that feeling never goes away” Important messages

32. Where Next? • October 2013 conference is in the planning! Huge enthusiasm for this year. • Yr 12 Model United Nations Conference March 2014 • Development of Whole-school Student Leadership programme Try it yourself!

33. Thank you • Katharine Adams • kadams@cchs.essex.sch.uk • Richard Wilkes • rwilkes@cchs.essex.sch.uk

34. Additional Material

35. Feedback from our Guests • “...They have come back to school full of enthusiasm and have been incredibly motivated by the experience...” • “My colleague and I spent the whole day smiling because it was just a joy to behold all of the young women conducting themselves so impeccably. “

36. Feedback from a School Governor • “The Inaugural conference was a great success… The girls found it exciting and thought-provoking, and it has given them the appetite to grow the skills and mindset needed for their future success, after they leave the shelter of CCHS……” • “I have seen many changes over my long association with our school……the Leadership Conference was, in my opinion, the best thing yet.”

37. Marymount High School, Los Angeles

38. Who Is Marymount? • 9-12th grade • All-girls • Catholic, Independent • 72 zip codes across Los Angeles • 18 religions • 25% receive financial assistance • Our goal

39. The Birth of “BSBW” • What do we do well as a school? • Current students: Marymount empowers us to be confident woman leaders who care about making a difference in the world. • We want to inspire and empower middle school girls in the same way Marymount has done for us • If we did a conference, what would it look like?

40. The Vision and Purpose • Leadership opportunity for our Marymount students • Empowering and inspiring leadership and confidence in middle school girls • Admission outreach and showcasing the best of Marymount to a larger audience. • Alumnae engagement • Teaching girls the value of giving back

41. Our Marymount Girls • Approx. 55 current students and alumnae • Executive Team made up of six student chairs and three faculty chairs

42. Student Involvement • Executive Team • Small Group Leaders • Speakers • Service Project Leaders • Photographers • Assistants • Mentors

43. Our Guests • 2012: 70 rising 6-8th grade girls from 25 different schools • 2013: 97 rising 6-9th grade girls from 39 different schools • $10 fee, includes breakfast, lunch, snacks, and a BSBW memento

44. The Schedule – “Better Self” • “Kindness & Girls Supporting Girls” • “Friendships” • “Girls Have a Voice” • “Confidence” • “Trying New Things” • “Ethics and Values”

45. The Schedule – “Better World” • “Leadership” • “Women Serving Others Around the World” • “Making a Difference” • “Life-changing Community Service” • “How to Help One’s Community”

46. Service Projects • Packed lunches for the homeless • WAPIs • Beauty bags for women’s shelter • Cards for Meals on Wheels • Placemats for Children’s Hospital • Blankets for a local animal shelter

47. Why You Should Do It • Opportunity for faculty/staff to work with students in a more personal way and on a different level • Approx. 3 months of planning – 1 week of intense training for small group leaders and speakers • Budget = $3900 – we spent around $3200 and brought in $1,020 in income • A conference that makes a big impact, but is small-scale