The ISM Members-Only Podcast

Create an Exceptional Digital Advertising Campaign

Are you curious about using paid advertisements to drive more traffic to your website, get more family inquiries, and boost enrollment? Or maybe you are using paid ads, but are hoping to improve your strategy. If so, you must know the new rules for paid advertisements.
Right now, the best advertising channels to help you achieve your marketing and admission goals are Google, Facebook, and Instagram. In this episode, Clint Losch will present the best approach to running highly targeted ads on these platforms—ads that generate interest from mission-appropriate families—all at a minimal cost.

Before You Make the 2024–25 Tuition Decision

It’s that time of year—time to muster all of your courage and tell families how much tuition will increase for the 2024–25 school year. School tuition-setting is a complicated process. Parents are often perplexed—even upset—over tuition increases that outpace marketplace inflation.
In this epidsode, Terry Moore will review the necessary cost variables to consider and provide strategies that will help you evaluate your options. You’ll leave equipped and confident to move forward with setting tuition for next year.

Create a Proactive Approach to Student Retention

Retention is not just about maintaining enrollment numbers. It is a key component of your school’s sustainability, health, and ability to deliver your mission.
The word “retention,” however, can imply a passive attitude, like something that doesn’t take much initiative or extra effort. The opposite is true—student retention requires a comprehensive strategy that includes data collection and analysis, and a school-wide commitment.
Re-recruiting current students and families is just as vital as recruiting new ones—if not more so.
In this episode, Casey Bell (ISM Consultant and experienced Director of Admission & Enrollment Management) will discuss strategies to engage your current families and students proactively to gain long-term commitment.

Beyond Faculty: Mission-Driven Growth and Evaluation for All Employees

Many schools strongly emphasize faculty evaluation and growth and with good reason—teachers deliver your school’s mission directly to students. But what about your evaluation and growth processes for the School Head, administrators, and non-teaching staff? Are these providing a predictable and supportive environment?
In this episode, ISM Consultant Barbara Beachley will explore how to amplify your efforts to foster a growth-focused culture with an aligned evaluation and growth process that invites all employees to take healthy risks, grow, and thrive.

The Power of Intergenerational Teams

Productive collaboration between your Leadership Team, teaching teams, and staff members is a key component to success and growth. On an intergenerational team, however, obstacles such as differing communication styles, preconceived notions, and varying work values and expectations can get in the way of efficiency and productivity.
This episode will address the crucial, yet often overlooked positive impact of harnessing the power of each team member’s experience. Discover how understanding generational diversity not only enhances your team but also enriches your school culture and student experience.

Curriculum Past Its “Best By” Date? How to Keep Your Academic Program Fresh

Most schools often assume that individual teachers and academic departments will keep curriculum up-to-date and relevant. However, for many schools (and reasons), other responsibilities take priority and suddenly the school discovers their curriculum is in need of complete revision.
An excellent academic program requires consistent renewal in small ways, delivering excellence across the school. In this webinar, we’ll identify the challenges schools face in keeping the academic curriculum fresh for each generation of students. You’ll discover how to ensure every division and department has an intentional system to evolve its program and result in ongoing excellence.

Implementing Your Strategic Plan—Tactics and Metrics

Creating a strategic plan can be an exciting and transformational moment for your Board and school. The process generates a vision for the future and outlines steps to ensure sustainability and enable the school to thrive.
No matter how carefully crafted, however, there's always a risk that a strategic plan will be put on a shelf and ignored while the day-to-day needs of the school take priority. This webinar will provide a roadmap for Boards and School Heads to design a practical, operational process for accomplishing the strategic plan’s goals.

Create an Effective Partnership: Your Admission and Learning Support Teams

Productive collaboration between your Admission and Learning Support teams is critical to ensure your school recruits, admits, and supports students who are well-aligned with your school’s mission, program, and outcomes.
This episode will address the crucial, yet often overlooked, alignment between these two teams, exploring how a well-orchestrated partnership can optimize the admission process and bolster your faculty culture and student experience.

Endowing Excellence Through Family Philanthropy

While a school’s primary funding sources are typically tuition revenue and annual giving, endowment income is more important than ever for delivering and enhancing a school’s mission. However, raising money for endowment can be difficult, especially when there are competing philanthropic demands.
In this episode, Phil Higginson will discuss how establishing a family endowment program will allow your school to grow the endowment and create permanent relationships with your most important constituents.

Constructs That Improve Student Well-Being: Connectedness, Joy, and Mastery

More than a quarter of middle and upper school students report being dissatisfied with life. Dissatisfaction is correlated with many outcomes, such as student well-being, interpersonal relationships, physical health, and academic performance. How can your school raise student life satisfaction, and thereby improve overall student well-being?
In this episode, Dr. Bryan Smyth will discuss three constructs to improve each student’s outlook: connectedness, joy, and mastery. We’ll examine ways you can link these constructs to actions that will increase every student’s assessment of the level of connectedness, joy, and mastery they feel.