Leading In

HEAD OF SCHOOL JENNY RAO

The Courage to Write

Since I began my tenure as the 17th Head of School at Emma Willard School, I have been focused on engaging our entire community in an extensive examination of the school’s strengths and challenges, exploring new opportunities and ideas to advance the school’s mission. Last May, that community-wide examination came to a milestone when the Board of Trustees approved An Imperative to Lead with Purpose, Emma Willard School’s strategic plan for 2021–2026.

One of the capstone experiences of this planning process was an intensive time of writing. There have been moments when I have felt unsure about my own ability to write key messages, much less write a document as powerful and important as a strategic plan. Luckily, I was working with the Emma Willard team—whose members are as committed to the work as I am—and our writing process was collaborative. Yet, just as we ask our students to lean into challenges in order to grow, I felt the need to engage and move past my writing trepidation. To that end, I began reading Anne Lamott’s book Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life. I have learned valuable lessons, which have helped me discover the power of writing this strategic plan together as a community.

My core take-away from Bird by Bird is that writing is a process of revelation, not dictation. Even the best of writers sit down staring at a blank screen or page and feel overwhelmed at the start. Lamott encourages us all to sit in that discomfort and begin to write, even if poorly at first, merely to start. Over time, clarity, connection, voice, and truth will emerge. This changed everything for me in my writing! When I sit down to write, I am in fact starting a process of revelation and discovery.

For our working teams writing the strategic plan, blank pages turned to brainstorms, which turned to revelations about the incredible opportunities ahead of us in the coming years. This comprehensive process of exploration resulted in paradoxical themes—how can we offer a rigorous program that also prioritizes student wellbeing; foster innovation and courage while honoring tradition; engage in teaching that starts with relationships while maintaining healthy boundaries? Our desire is to develop the “whole person” who matures to adulthood with sound judgement, character, interpersonal skills, understanding of community and relationships, and an energy for learning and discovering.

In writing An Imperative to Lead with Purpose, we were sensitive to the challenges our students face in this historic moment of cascading crises—a global pandemic, social injustice, and environmental challenges. Our vision is to anchor our work—and ultimately the lives of our students—with intentional focus on leading purposefully and courageously. More than a five-year plan, this strategic document provides a framework for many years to come, growing and changing as our school meets the challenges ahead.

In this edition of Signature magazine, you will get a glimpse of the strategic priorities and goals that make up this plan. Yet it is truly a glimpse. The depth of this plan was the fruit of many hours of labor by faculty, staff, students, alumnae, parents, and board members. You will continue to see and hear about actions we’re taking toward our goals in the coming months, and I look forward to seeing all of these dreams for our future become reality.