2026 NEASC Leadership Conference: Full Schedule

November 16-18, 2026| Boston, MA, USA | Conference Website | Hotel | Contact us
Please note the schedule is subject to change. Details are updated regularly to reflect the latest information.

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10:00am EST

Building the Academic Commons: A Hub of Support and Belonging (Brooks School, MA)

Wednesday November 18, 2026 10:00am - 11:00am EST

TBA

In this session, participants will learn about Brooks School's journey to opening the Academic Commons in the Fall 2026. From the physical building construction to program expansion, we will discuss how we centered student learning, belonging and support. We have reimagined our learning center, library, and information and educational technology departments to become a new Academic Commons to benefit all students. This new version of a commons provides resources to allow every student to go further than they thought possible. This project has not been just about enhancing facilities; it has been about providing our students with the tools they need to excel in an increasingly complex academic world. By creating a dynamic Academic Commons, we have ensured that every student, regardless of their starting point, has the support and resources to reach their fullest potential.

Speakers

Currie Joya Huntington

Dean of Academic Affairs, Brooks School

Joanna McDonough

Dean of Teaching and Learning, Brooks School

Karina Moltz

Director of the Learning Center, Brooks School

Wednesday November 18, 2026 10:00am - 11:00am EST
TBA

Session

10:00am EST

Emotionally Intelligent Leadership: The Key to School-Wide Well-Being (Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence)

Wednesday November 18, 2026 10:00am - 11:00am EST

TBA

This interactive workshop explores how emotionally intelligent leadership can strengthen school climate, staff morale, student engagement, and family trust. Grounded in research from the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and the presenter's experience in working with thousands of school leaders over two decades, this session will offer practical strategies for leading through conflict, change, and day-to-day school life with greater emotional awareness and clarity. Designed for school leaders, this session offers concrete tools for embedding emotional intelligence into everyday leadership practices so well-being becomes part of the culture.

Speakers

Nicole Elbertson

Director of Training and Implementation, Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence

Wednesday November 18, 2026 10:00am - 11:00am EST
TBA

Session

10:00am EST

From Initiative to Identity: Making Inclusion the Default, Not the Program (Bangor School Department - Downeast School, ME)

Wednesday November 18, 2026 10:00am - 11:00am EST

TBA

This session explores how schools can shift from viewing inclusion as an initiative to embedding it as a core schoolwide identity. Participants will examine how the belief that all students are general education students can shape instructional planning, staffing, and scheduling. The session highlights systems changes that reduce pull-out services and increase push-in supports within inclusive classrooms. Presenters will share strategies for using an equity-based lens and how language and mindset shifts influence practice. Participants will move from asking, “Is inclusion working?” to “How can we redesign support to make inclusion successful?” Attendees will leave with practical strategies to strengthen inclusive design, collaboration, and shared responsibility for all learners.

Speakers

Sarah Vickers

Building Administrator, Bangor School Department/ Downeast School

Wednesday November 18, 2026 10:00am - 11:00am EST
TBA

Session

10:00am EST

From Parent Engagement to Learner Impact: Designing Family Partnerships (Leipzig International School, Germany)

Wednesday November 18, 2026 10:00am - 11:00am EST

TBA

Many learning communities invest significant time and energy into parent engagement through events, committees, volunteering, and communication structures. Yet leaders are increasingly asking a deeper question: What impact are these efforts actually having on learners?
Grounded in the NEASC Framework for High-Quality Learning, this interactive unplugged session explores how schools can move beyond participation and attendance toward family partnerships that strengthen belonging, coherence, and learner impact. Participants will engage in reflection, collaborative dialogue, and the redesign of a real family engagement structure through the lenses of voice, agency, and high-quality learning. Leaders will leave with practical next steps they can bring back to their own learning communities.

Speakers

Chrissie Sorenson

Head of School, TKonnect

Brandie Smith

Head of School, Leipzig International School

Wednesday November 18, 2026 10:00am - 11:00am EST
TBA

Session

10:00am EST

Seven Lively Paradoxes: Resolving the Unresolvable (Tabor Academy, Former Head of School)

Wednesday November 18, 2026 10:00am - 11:00am EST

TBA

This Session provides independent school leaders tools to recognize and resolve fundamental paradoxal realities of leadership. It articulates seven "lively paradoxes" and opens discussion of practical approaches to resolving them. These will include "Paradox of Leadership": Leadership requires confidence only gained by leading; "Paradox of Trustees": Trustees support the head but depend on the head for support; "Paradox of Mission": Missions, essential to accreditation, are usually incapable of measurement; "Paradox of Finance": schools expand to the limit of resources and resources are always insufficient; "Paradox of Technology" Technology creates educational possibilities while presenting enormous challenge; "Paradox of Professional Development": Adults must evolve; many adults resist change. "Paradox of Schedule": The daily and annual schedule never resolves demands.

Speakers

Jay Stroud

Former Director for NEASC Commission on Independent Schools; Former NEASC Board President; Former Head of School for Tabor Academy, Former Head of School at Tabor Academy

Wednesday November 18, 2026 10:00am - 11:00am EST
TBA

Session

10:00am EST

The Goal Was Never Dependence: Teaching in an AI World (Ridgefield High School, CT)

Wednesday November 18, 2026 10:00am - 11:00am EST

TBA

Students in my classroom have increasingly responded to offers of teacher help with a surprising phrase: “I’m okay--I already figured it out.” In classrooms shaped by generative AI, what happens when students no longer depend on teachers for immediate answers, feedback, or drafting support? This unplugged session invites educational leaders to rethink the role of the teacher in high-quality learning environments. Through reflective protocols, small-group discussion, and collaborative design work, participants will explore what remains deeply human in teaching: relationship-building, ethical guidance, discernment, meaning-making, and the creation of intellectually vibrant communities. Participants will leave with concrete ideas for leading thoughtful conversations about AI and instructional relevance--not as a story of teachers being replaced, but of teaching itself being redefined.

Speakers

Matthew A. Goetz

English Teacher & NEASC Accreditation Chair, Ridgefield High School

After a decade as an officer in the United States Navy, Matt transitioned into education, earning a master’s degree in Education from Harvard University before beginning his teaching career in the International Department of Beijing National Day School (北京十一学校), a 5,000-student... Read More →

Wednesday November 18, 2026 10:00am - 11:00am EST
TBA

Session

11:10am EST

Cultivating Excellence: Strategic Leadership for Principals (Hermon School Department, ME)

Wednesday November 18, 2026 11:10am - 12:10pm EST

TBA

In an era of rapid educational change, the role of the principal has evolved from operational manager to visionary strategist and instructional leader. This workshop explores the critical intersection of district support and school-site leadership, providing Superintendents with a framework to empower their principals as drivers of student success.

Participants will gain:

* Strategies to support new/inexperienced school principals;
* Evaluative models to support professional growth and promote student achievement;
* Leadership activities that build collaboration and wise decision making.

Join us to move beyond the day-to-day logistics of school administration and discover how to cultivate a leadership pipeline that produces high-performing, culturally responsive, and results-oriented school environments.

Speakers

Barbara Sargent

Superintendent, Hermon School Department

Barbara Sargent is the proud Superintendent of Schools for the Hermon School Department in Maine. A former New Jersey educator and leader, Barbara is widely published in areas of best leadership practices and women’s leadership. Her AASA Schools of Thought blogs provide practical guidance on driving student achievement, supporting school leaders, and navigating a long and successful career... Read More →

Wednesday November 18, 2026 11:10am - 12:10pm EST
TBA

Session

11:10am EST

Designing School Community: Restorative Justice from Policy to Practice (Halcyon London International School, UK)

Wednesday November 18, 2026 11:10am - 12:10pm EST

TBA

School leaders will be challenged to view restorative justice not as a disciplinary add-on, but as a whole-school framework that builds the human infrastructure for high-quality learning. Drawing on experience as Head of Student Wellbeing and Restorative Justice, I will explore the gap between restorative intent and impact—what it looks like in practice and why it persists, even in values-driven schools.

Participants will examine how restorative systems, when aligned with school culture and core values, become measurable drivers of belonging, safety, and engagement. Activities include an “intent to impact” reflection, case study analysis in groups, and discussion of common challenges. A student testimony provides an unfiltered perspective on impact. Participants leave with an audit framework and leadership questions to support equitable, lasting restorative outcomes.

Speakers

Nito Harvey

Director of Student Wellbeing, Halcyon London International School

I work with schools and organisations to build healthier cultures, strengthen wellbeing, and respond to conflict and harm in ways that are both human and effective.My work focuses on Restorative Practice, wellbeing strategy, safeguarding-informed leadership, and culture change. I... Read More →

Wednesday November 18, 2026 11:10am - 12:10pm EST
TBA

Session

11:10am EST

From Compliance to Commitment: Conditions That Drive Learning (Mount Saint Charles Academy, RI)

Wednesday November 18, 2026 11:10am - 12:10pm EST

TBA

School leaders often focus on improving instruction through new initiatives and accountability measures, yet implementation frequently becomes fragmented across classrooms. This interactive session reframes implementation through the conditions educators experience while carrying out reform. Drawing on research conducted in a large urban district under state takeover, participants will examine how leadership decisions shape teacher motivation, classroom experience, and student engagement. Through reflection, discussion, and use of the ARC Motivational Equalizer self-assessment tool, participants will explore how autonomy, competence, and relatedness influence whether implementation moves toward compliance or sustained commitment.

Speakers

Alan Tenreiro

President, Mount Saint Charles Academy

Wednesday November 18, 2026 11:10am - 12:10pm EST
TBA

Session

11:10am EST

From Tokenism to Partnership: Authentic Student Agency (Danvers Public Schools, MA)

Wednesday November 18, 2026 11:10am - 12:10pm EST

TBA

This interactive session transforms the intent of student voice into impactful shared governance. Participants analyze power structures and identify opportunities for students to serve as co-designers of the learning environment.We demonstrate how to move beyond tokenism toward inclusive Equity Advisory Boards. Attendees engage in a live Fishbowl discussion facilitated by student co-presenters, modeling real-time collaboration. We will employ breakout Design Labs where leaders draft a 90-day action plan for student-led initiatives.Participants leave with a Voice-to-Value toolkit featuring protocols for student-led faculty meetings and feedback loops aligned with NEASC Standards 1 and 2 (Student Agency). By the end of the hour, leaders will possess the practical framework necessary to elevate student perspective from a peripheral input to a driving force for school-wide transformation.

Speakers

Alan Strauss

Principal, Danvers High School

Wednesday November 18, 2026 11:10am - 12:10pm EST
TBA

Session

11:10am EST

The Impact of an Athletic Program Review (NEASC)

Wednesday November 18, 2026 11:10am - 12:10pm EST

TBA

Educationally-based school athletics are an important part of a school's program. The NEASC Athletic Program Review process provides schools with an opportunity to ensure that their programs are serving the best interest of students. In this session you will hear from an athletic administrator, school and district level leaders, and the leader of a state athletic association about the impact the NEASC Athletic Program Review process has had in the school.

Speakers

George Edwards

Chief Accreditation Officer, NEASC

Wednesday November 18, 2026 11:10am - 12:10pm EST
TBA

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