NBOA President and CEO
One of my favorite musicals of all time is “Rent.” And one of the most poignant songs from its score, “Seasons of Love,” posits this question: “How do you measure a year in the life?” The chorus’s answer, which many of you will know, is “love,” and while I don’t disagree, my answer here takes a different tact.
As NBOA President and CEO, I measure a year in terms of how NBOA served you, your peers and NBOA member schools across the board in new, different and exciting ways that fulfill our commitment to develop, deliver and promote best business practices to advance independent schools. Each year inevitably brings new challenges for every organization and school, which you navigate in ways guided by your mission, strategic plan and operations that serve the students and families within your learning communities. The same is true for NBOA.
When I look back on 2024, the following initiatives rise to the top. They strengthened our community, demonstrated our ability to innovate, maximized our impact and ensured the vitality of your professional association for many years to come.
#1 The 2024 NBOA Annual Meeting in Atlanta, Georgia
If you were in attendance — and eventually made it through the check-in line at the hotel — you know this meeting demonstrated the pandemic was behind us once and for all. 2024 was our first year hosting this must-attend event in Atlanta, and the vibrant community of business leaders from this region of the U.S. and around the globe arrived in force to take advantage of NBOA’s one-of-a-kind professional development, networking and celebration of the profession. Bertice Berry, our awards luncheon speaker, was a clear standout, with a room full of business leaders wrapped around her finger. Inspiring, funny and personal, she was one of the best speakers I have seen in recent memory. She will be hard to top at the 2025 NBOA Annual Meeting, at the Marriott Marquis in New York City, February 23-26, but we will certainly try.
#2 NBOA Research
Our research also took center stage this year, as the DASL-BIIS data collection partnership with NAIS continues to pay dividends to NBOA members and the entire independent school community. Our 2024 Tuition Discounting Report illustrated this best. The research report is unique in two significant ways. First, it provides analysis of three years of data from the same 400+ schools and reveals trends in financial aid, including need-based, merit and tuition remission. The report helps school leaders benchmark their practices and ensure that their school’s discounting is driven by mission and managed within their financial resources. Second, this report includes a supplement especially for independent schools with a boarding component, a first for NBOA research reports. This customization is critical, as discounting practices at boarding schools differ in many ways from those at day schools.
#3 Boarding School Connect Community
Speaking of boarding schools, on November 4, 2025, we launched a new NBOA Connect community for business leaders from boarding schools, and to say it has taken off is an understatement. The community has more than 2,400 subscribers and more than a dozen posts and replies in just the first few weeks. The community was made possible by the dedication of our boarding school ambassador group, which has been actively engaged with thought-provoking questions as well as proven solutions for their boarding school colleagues. It’s exciting to see this dynamic community coming to life, connecting boarding school business leaders, and providing a valuable forum for NBOA members to share ideas and insights.
This new offering is the most exciting one for me because it has given me a platform to do what I like to do most in my role: share your stories, successes and innovations.
#4 The Net Assets Podcast
This new media offering is the most exciting one for me because it has given me a platform to do what I like to do most in my role: share your stories, successes and innovations to help all independent schools employ the best business, finance and operational practices possible. My first few guests have included business officers, of course, but also heads of schools, tech leaders and national speakers. I’ve heard and learned so much in every episode. Sincere thanks to my friend Howard Teibel, founder of Teibel Educational Consulting, for helping launch this new NBOA program. Please consider subscribing (scroll down on the podcast webpage) so you don’t miss any episodes. Because there are so many individuals I want to speak with, new episodes will drop each month starting in January 2025, giving us more opportunity to dig into stories of business leadership at independent schools.
There is so much to be thankful for, and all these efforts are only possible because of the supportive leadership of the NBOA Board of Directors, the amazing NBOA staff and our incredible member volunteers. By any measure, this is world-class talent serving a world class membership!
Happy Holidays!
Follow NBOA President and CEO Jeff Shields on LinkedIn.
