6 minute read
MADEIRA’S 10TH HEAD OF SCHOOL INSTALLATION
GRETCHEN WARNER
ON APRIL 30, 2021, students, faculty, staff, parents, alumnae, trustees, and friends gathered—in person and virtually—as Gretchen Rupp Warner was installed as Madeira’s 10th Head of School. The ceremony focused on leadership, Madeira’s bright future, and fun! An impressive lineup of speakers gathered to celebrate Ms. Warner and the beginning of a new era at Madeira. Each speech was interspersed with video presentations created by students.
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A GREAT FIT FOR OUR SCHOOL
Board of Trustees Chair Gaither Smoot Deaton ’88 noted the legacy of the eight previous heads who have served since Miss Madeira and how these leaders have impacted the School. In celebrating Ms. Warner’s leadership, Gaither shared, “I think it’s important to note the reasons the committee and the Board knew she was a great fit for our School. The Madeira community wanted a change agent, a communicator, a fundraiser, a teacher, an administrator who understood all-girls education, and a visionary who could move Madeira forward and give our girls an even more secure launching pad. Most of all, we wanted a leader who understood and connected with the Madeira community and valued and appreciated Madeira’s culture and traditions. In Gretchen, we got all that we asked for and so much more.”
Installed as Madeira’s 10th Head of School
THE RIGHT PERSON FOR A NEW ERA
Sue Luangkhot Hoppin ’87, president of the Alumnae Council, spoke about Ms. Warner’s leadership and deep commitment to Madeira’s mission. “I’ve come to appreciate her passion for data-driven solutions, openness to hearing from all perspectives, commitment to social justice and equity, as well as her collaborative style of problem solving. In Gretchen, we have a fierce advocate of an allgirls education... Madeira has always launched women who changed the world. It just didn’t always seem like the world was ready for us.”
Sue noted as the world is moving toward greater gender parity—from politics to business—this moment is made for Madeira women. “The future looks bright for Madeira women, and, in Gretchen Warner, we’ve found the right person to bring us into a new era,” Sue concluded.
SUE LUANGKHOT HOPPIN ’87,
PRESIDENT OF MADEIRA’S ALUMNAE COUNCIL
MAYLYNN RODRIGUEZ ’23
STUDENT SPEAKER
EMBRACE THE UNEXPECTED
Student speaker Maylynn Rodriguez ’23 spoke of Ms. Warner’s impressive ability to lead in such challenging times and how she is already helping Madeira students change the world. “We are in a global pandemic with students from around our global community and we are in a global fight for justice, and as Head of School, Ms. Warner has had to balance her personal life with her job, which is her life. She continues to work with teachers and my student body, which is why there are students involved in this event, to continue establishing a foundation where we as students know we can change our world. Thank you, Ms. Warner!”
Maylynn wove Madeira’s unofficial theme of “unexpected” into her remarks and noted the silver linings of this unexpected time. “The unexpected leads to beautiful things like opportunities to generate positive change and try something that has never been done before... Let’s do what we love and embrace the unexpected as an opportunity to generate the greatness we bring into our world,” Maylynn challenged.
GRETCHEN AND HER MOM GAIL WARNER
GRETCHEN WITH HUSBAND ROBIN LAQUI COURAGEOUS CALM IN THE FACE OF TURMOIL
The ceremony also welcomed Elizabeth English, Head of The Archer School for Girls. A visionary girls’ school leader, Ms. English has been a mentor and colleague of Ms. Warner’s for many years. She spoke of Ms. Warner’s dedication, perseverance, and insight in a time of such uncertainty and how the fires in the Los Angeles area helped prepare Ms. Warner for a foray into school headship during a global pandemic.
“I have never known anyone who in the face of turmoil summons a courageous calm like Gretchen Warner,” said Ms. English. “When Madeira appointed Gretchen as Head of School, the Board could not have known the extreme circumstances of her inaugural year, nor could they have fully known how fortunate they were to have found Gretchen.”
SONGS, VIDEOS, AND CELEBRATIONS In addition to the many poignant speeches, the class presidents presented Ms. Warner with videos celebrating her installation as Head of School. One video included a recitation of the poem “Remember, Woman” by Reese Leyva, another a spin on Beyonce’s hit song “Run the World,” which included the updated lyrics “Who runs the School, Ms. Warner!”
Members of Madeira’s talented a cappella group, Sweet Ti, performed a special arrangement of the alma mater and the entire student body got together to assemble what can only be described as a “Mad Music Video” set to the song “F.E.M.A.L.E.” by Lady Bri.
During the ceremony, Ms. Warner was gifted with a custom-made pendant engraved with the Madeira seal which Board Chair Gaither Smoot Deaton ’88 presented before Ms. Warner stepped to the podium to address the audience both present and virtually.
GAITHER SMOOT DEATON ’88 BOARD OF TRUSTEES CHAIR PRESENTED A CUSTOM PENDANT ENGRAVED WITH MADEIRA’S SEAL
BE BRAVE, NOT PERFECT Like several of the day’s speakers, Ms. Warner referenced Madeira’s founder Lucy Madeira. “I like to think that Lucy Madeira embodies the Brené Brown quote that I love and live by: “Be brave, not perfect,” Ms. Warner told the audience during her speech. “I consider myself a fearless, ethical leader. But I’m not perfect. I believe that to be an effective leader I must be strong physically and mentally, but also vulnerable. I need to be open and transparent, but safeguard boundaries. I know that to be effective and make good decisions I must seek opinions and ideas that are different from my own. Great leadership is full of dualities and dichotomies, and in all endeavors, leaders must be brave, not perfect.”
She spoke to alumnae, faculty, staff, students, the administration, and all the constituencies that make up the Madeira community. She took care to speak to the students, telling them, “I am here because of YOU. You are why I get up every day. You are why I spend hours and hours each week reading research and articles from across the globe—about education, about leadership, but also about the future world you will inherit—to make sure you are confident, competent, and well prepared to tackle anything that comes your way,” she said. “Your learning, your growth, your joy is why I am here. Growing up is hard. It is. Anyone that says differently is not being entirely honest. We are here to support and guide you to make the right choices for yourself at the right time. We may not have all the answers, but we can help to guide you by empowering you to ask the right next question.”
To show spirit and rally around Ms. Warner’s favorite quote, students and adults wore shirts with “Be brave, not perfect” on the front and “Launching women who change the world” on the back. Looking out to an audience dressed in a sea of red and white, Ms. Warner concluded, “I am here today—brave, but not perfect—in service to this incredible mission and in service to you all.” Congratulations, Ms. Warner!
