The Search Committee will be primarily responsible for designing, coordinating and executing our plan to identify and hire the next Woodlynde Head of School. The Committee's charter includes selecting a professional search consultant firm, obtaining input from parents, faculty and staff, developing an ideal candidate profile, assessing qualifications and suitability of prospective candidates, and interviewing candidates.
Throughout the process, the Committee's work will be supplemented by the involvement of the Woodlynde Community at large. Committee members were chosen based on their demonstrated commitment to our School and their individual talents and experience. Committee members are representative of the various stakeholders in the Woodlynde Community, and include parents, faculty, staff, and trustees.
The Chair of the Search Committee is Sarah Houston. Sarah has been a member of the Woodlynde - Board of Trustees
since 2015 and.ls the mother of a fifth grader. Sarah is a Principal at Vangua!d, has held various leadership roles within its Institutional, Retail and Finance divisions and currently serves as its Chief Audit Executive. She brings a wealth of leadership success and experience to the Committee.
The Search Committee members joining Sarah are:Rick Hinckley,
Upper School Parent and TrusteeJennifer Hitt,
Lower School Parent and TrusteeElizabeth Maglio,
Assistant Head of School (K-8)
Tom Malecki, Upper School Parent
Abe Prontnicki, Upper School Science Teacher
John Schmader, Alumni Parent and Trustee
We are very fortunate to have assembled such an exemplary group of Committee members to ensure that we select the very finest individual to lead our School in the years ahead. Within the next few weeks the Search Committee will interview and select a search firm to assist us in our selection process. Our chosen consultants will then visit Woodlynde to meet with various constituencies (parents, faculty, staff, students, and trustees) in a number of different forums to develop an appreciation of our mission, values and goals. Your participation in this phase of the process is instrumental to ensure that all voices in our community are heard.
Once a detailed candidate profile is created, the Search Committee will review both internal and external potential candidates. We anticipate that final candidates will spend multiple days on campus for meetings and interviews with parents, faculty, staff, students, and trustees. The Search Committee will then make its recommendation to the Board of Trustees.
I am confident that our search process will allow all interested members of our community to participate in the selection process, and we will keep you fully informed as we journey to find our next Head of School.
MaryAnn O'Conor, Board Chair