The Blueprint for Connection: Why Every School Leader Needs a Cohort
For many of us, the reason we chose a career in independent schools is the community. We are drawn to that "family" feel—the tight-knit, supportive environment where we all look out for one another.
Alexis Stern, PCC, Leadership Coach & Consultant
Yet, for those in leadership, that same community can sometimes feel like a paradox. While you are busy building a sense of belonging for your faculty, students, and parents, it can also be lonely at the top. The "family" feel often stops at the door of the Division Head or the Academic Dean, replaced by a sense of professional isolation that is becoming a systemic problem in our industry.
The data bears this out: according to the RAND Corporation, over 70% of school leaders describe their work as frequently or always stressful, and research from Harvard suggests that 40% to 60% of school leaders report moderate to high levels of professional isolation.
Dr. Reanna Ursin, Executive Director, Malone Schools Online Network
At our recent February Huddle, Dr. Reanna Ursin, Executive Director of the Malone Schools Online Network and Alexis Stern, PCC, discussed a solution they’ve spent three years perfecting: The Leadership Cohort. They shared a blueprint for restoring that sense of community for leaders—turning professional development into a "functional family" and a survival kit for the modern independent school administrator.
Why Traditional PD Misses the Mark
Most professional development for senior leaders fails to address the isolation for three reasons:
Time Crunch: Leaving campus for a multi-day conference often creates more stress than it relieves. As Alexis noted, "Every time I left for a doctor's appointment, there was a crisis."
Budget Barriers: High-level support is often priced out of reach for many school budgets.
Competition Gap: It is difficult to be "radically transparent" when the person sitting across from you is a direct competitor in your local geographic market.
A Four-Part Blueprint for Stability
Alexis and Reanna shared the four design requirements that make their cohorts "sticky" and effective:
1. Structure: Diversity Over Hierarchy
For meetings that run for 60 minutes once per month, the "magic number" of participants in a cohort is four. It is small enough for equal airtime but large enough to remain effective if one person has a campus emergency. Don't match people solely by tenure. Putting a 20-year veteran Assistant Head with a first-year Department Chair creates a richer diversity of perspective. Psychological safety requires a "vault." No one from the same school (or same local market) should be in the same group to ensure total transparency.
2. The In-Person Foundation
While the monthly work is virtual, the foundation is built in person. The cohort starts with a summer workshop focused on Practice, Play, and Planning. You practice how to have hard conversations and establish group norms before the school year begins. By the time the summer session ends, the logistics—meeting times, topics, and discussion leaders—are already set for the year. This ensures the school year doesn't get in the way of the support.
3. Radical Organization
To make the experience "low-lift," everything is housed in one place. Don’t make leaders find their own articles. Provide a vetted list of high-impact readings to reduce cognitive load during a busy semester. Check-in midway through the year; ask the group what they need the cohort to "stop, start, or continue.”
4. The Discussion Protocol
To keep the time focused and balanced on immediate support needs and community learning, you need a protocol. First, check-in with each cohort member to establish presence and focus. Next, move to the resource discussion, and then an "Open Forum." The goal with the Open Forum is to move a leader from a place of defensive emotion to a place of strategic curiosity. Instead of offering unsolicited advice, the group offers "wonderings" that help the leader depersonalize conflict and look at the data. Every session ends with an Actionable Commitment: one small, measurable goal to achieve before the next meeting.
Normalizing Support
Whether you join an established cohort or build your own using this blueprint, the goal is the same: to ensure that the "family" feel we value so much in our schools extends to the people who lead them.
If you’re interested in the one-pager blueprint from this session, reach out to us at hello@leadteampartners.com.
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