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Departmental Leadership Institute

Driving school change from within.

Effective departmental leadership is the key to implementing any curricular change initiative, yet many department chairs have little or no formal leadership training. During this five-day residential institute, participants will learn and practice skills for using departmental time effectively, facilitating meaningful and productive feedback conversations, and guiding organizational change. In the evenings, we'll provide opportunities for informal conversation, fun activities, and great food! Ultimately, chairs will emerge with a mission statement and strategic plan for their department that aligns with their school’s mission and strategic vision.

This year, we're offering two sessions of this popular institute:

Session 1: Monday, June 12 – Friday June 16, 2023

Session 2: Monday, June 19 – Friday June 23, 2023

Pomfret School | Pomfret, CT
$2,750 with dorm lodging | $2,500 commuter option

"It's good. It's really good. I left this program with a clear vision of my departmental goals and how to achieve them. This was an outstanding week. You should do this."

— Neil Chaudhary, Science Department Chair, The Loomis Chaffee School

Monday

Arrival

You’ll register, get set up in your dorm room, meet the cohort for some goal-setting, then head to a cocktail hour and gourmet dinner at Pomfret's dining hall.

Tuesday

Challenging Conversations

You’ll spend the day learning the skills to navigate the toughest of conversations — giving feedback, coaching colleagues, and offering meaningful praise.

Wednesday

Middle Management

You’ll dig into the challenges of middle management — navigating your role in the hiring process, guiding and inspiring your department, and making the most of your relationships with senior administrators.

Thursday

Alignment

You’ll work in discipline-specific small groups to identify key priorities for your next 3–5 years as chair and craft language that aligns those priorities with the mission and vision of your school.

Friday

Planning

You’ll spend the morning finishing up your strategic plan and reflecting on your experience. Before parting ways after lunch, we’ll present our plans and celebrate the good work we’ve done together!

Gwyneth Connell
Jim Moore

Gwyneth Connell

Gwyneth is the director of the Grauer Family Institute for Excellence and Innovation in Education at Pomfret School. A veteran of independent school education, Connell brings a breadth and depth of experience to the position. Over the course of her career, she has taught history at Millbrook School in New York and Packer Collegiate Institute in Brooklyn; served as dean of faculty at Berkshire School in Sheffield, Massachusetts; and most recently, worked as dean of teaching and learning at Blair Academy in New Jersey. She holds a master's degree in private school leadership from Teachers College, Columbia University (2007) and a bachelor's degree in American studies from Amherst College (2000). Connell is a 1996 alumna of Peddie School.

Jim Moore

Jim Moore is the chair of the Blair Academy English department, directs the school’s yearlong squash programs, is head coach of girls’ varsity squash, and coordinates the school’s All-School Read program. Since joining the faculty in 1990, he has also served as dean of college counseling, director of the summer school, academic monitor, housemaster, director of capital giving, head coach of boys’ varsity squash, assistant coach of varsity baseball, and instructor of AP Microeconomics. He completed his undergraduate work in English at Cornell University in 1985 and has since studied literature at Georgetown University and Drew University and business at the University of Rochester. Prior to working at Blair, Jim taught at The Hill School in Pennsylvania and the Savannah Country Day School in Georgia. In 1997, a career move took him to Rochester, New York, where he worked at the William E. Simon Graduate School of Business Administration at the University of Rochester and as a management consultant; he returned to Blair in 2006.

Ready to change your school from within?

Departmental Leadership Institute

Session 1: Monday, June 12 – Friday June 16, 2023

Session 2: Monday, June 19 – Friday June 23, 2023

Pomfret School | Pomfret, CT
$2,750 with dorm lodging | $2,500 commuter option

Questions? Contact Gwyneth Connell at 860.963.5990.

Set on a stunning hilltop in rural Northeastern Connecticut.

Pomfret has been called one of the most beautiful schools in the world. Studded by maples and ringed by stone walls, our 500-acre Hilltop campus exudes New England charm. The original buildings were designed by the celebrated Beaux-Arts architect Ernest Flagg and the grounds were laid out by world-renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted.

Your home away from home will be the dorms overlooking the heart of campus. During your stay, you'll have access to the school’s fitness center, wooded trail system, tennis and squash courts, and yoga studio.

Learn MorE »

Covid Vaccine Requirement

All conference faculty and staff will be fully vaccinated, and all conference participants are required to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19.

Please Note: Specific activities are subject to change, based on State of Connecticut requirements and Pomfret School health and safety protocols.