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By far the most viewed articles on NetAssets.org this year were related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Needless to say it has consumed all of our professional lives, and these pieces call up key moments in our schools’ responses to the crisis: operations considerations, closure considerations, passage of the FFCRA and CARES Act, PPP loan applications, the reopening dilemma, campus space planning, HVAC considerations, remote hiring, budget and operational impacts, and much more. We continue to update our COVID-19 resources page as well as collated resources in the article, “You Asked, We Answered.”
The following articles should be more evergreen pieces that will provide insight today and through the next year, which we hope will look very different from 2020. To everyone who has been working so hard this year, we wish you a restful holiday season – perhaps the first break you’ve gotten since late 2019 – and a healthy, productive and joyful new year ahead.
Game Changers: Driving Change Management
Changes large and small don’t come easily at independent schools. Collaborative processes and continuous communication help everyone get on board.
5 Minutes with Derrick Gay: Mirrors and Windows
How can schools frame diversity so that everyone feels included in the term, not just selected groups?
Risk & Compliance: Out of Sight, Top of Mind
Strategies for preventing and addressing cyberbullying and other internet-based student misconduct.
Double Take: Preventing Financial Cybercrime
No school is immune from the rising threat of financial cybercrime. Accounting, tech and legal insights help keep everyone on their toes.
Strategies: Maximizing Vaccination Rates
How to phase out vaccine exemptions to protect community health, regardless of state law requirements.
5 Minutes with John Gulla: Private Schools, Public Purpose
Opportunities are ripe for independent schools to collaborate among themselves and others in their community.
Digitally Communicating Your School’s Value
With campuses closed at the height of admissions and advancement season, independent schools need to communicate more clearly than ever via digital channels.
Risk & Compliance: Mandatory Paid Leave Is Coming
New leave laws are likely to arrive in your state or city if they haven't already. The time to prepare is now.
Safety & Security: The Hidden Costs of School Safety
When developing safety strategies, consider best practices as well as your school’s liability.
Impossible Is Off the Table: Lessons Learned During COVID-19
Like their colleagues in the classroom, business officers turned on a dime during the first phase of the COVID-19 pandemic and adapted their approaches in surprisingly nimble ways.
Risk & Compliance: Everyday Bias and Liability
Microaggressions may be brief and commonplace, but they are damaging and pose a liability risk in independent schools.
Branding Your Best Efforts
Branding may not be top of mind amid pandemic considerations, but honing it now is crucial to your school’s long-term sustainability
The Lives of Others: Student Data Privacy
Many tools used in online learning this spring — along with new ones to track student, faculty and staff members’ health upon return to campus — raise a new set of privacy concerns.
More Than Words: A Board's Commitment to DE&I
Beyond crafting a statement, what steps can we take to ensure the workplaces within our schools are diverse, equitable and inclusive?
The Healthy Building Movement
Prioritizing the wellness of occupants in facilities management standards can help schools understand long-term sustainability goals more clearly and reduce energy consumption by 30%.
The Rise and Reinvention of Merit Aid
As financial aid for families without demonstrated need increases, so should strong guiding principles in awarding it.
An Ethical Framework for Financial Aid
Pressures on the financial aid budget aren’t just financial. Agreeing upon values and sticking to them help make every dollar count — and the school community stronger.
Metrics for the Multiverse: Measuring School Financial Health
How strong is your school’s financial bulwark? Some data points mean more than others in a changed environment.
