Dr. Jessica Flaxman, RCDS’s Dean of Faculty & Employees and Director of The Center for Innovative Teaching & Learning, was featured in 2023-2024 Education Guide’s “Culture of Connection” summer edition.

The article summarizes Dr. Flaxman’s doctoral research, which looked into the various skill sets possessed by women serving as heads of large, K-12 independent schools. Studying the gender gap in independent school leadership during the 2020-21 school year, Dr. Flaxman interviewed women Heads of large, K-12 independent schools about their emergence as leaders and their experience during the pandemic year in particular.

Dr. Flaxman’s six months of mixed-method research identified two leadership literacies, or competencies, that paved the way for women leaders in large, K-12 independent schools. The first was networking and connecting with role models, mentors, sponsors, and executive search professionals. The second was adaptability, as the heads of school shared similar experiences of wearing many hats, as well as being nimble and willing to consider and implement new ideas.

Read the full article, “Women in Education: Networking and Adapting Forward,” here.