Ellisian Times interviews Robin Newham
On Friday, January 8, Mrs. Newham, the Head of School, announced her intentions to retire at the conclusion of the 2016-2017 academic school year. The Ellisian Times had the opportunity to sit down with Mrs. Newham and reflect on her time at Ellis, as well as her plans for the future. As a member of the Ellis community for 32 years, Mrs. Newham has been a part of the school for more than a third of its history. As a former Upper School Studio teacher, she instituted the current AP Studio Art program, among many other accomplishments.
As a person who has been with the school for so long, she very happily expressed what she hopes to see within the Ellis community in the future.
When asked what characteristics are important to look for in a new Head of School, Mrs. Newham emphasized interpersonal skills, authenticity, and a good sense of humor. She also realizes that there are many facets to finding someone who will be a perfect fit, saying, “It’s a big task to determine that. And so, I’m sure that is going to be probably the first task of the search committee.” She thought that, in her case, there were advantages to an internal hire, as she was already familiar with the community and understood the inner workings of the school: “It is a challenge for a new person coming in to be able to instill that same kind of confidence.” While she thinks that these advantages served her well, and that the school needed a familiar leader, it is time for a new person to take the helm. She believes that our remarkable team of administrators will be most important to attracting good candidates, and with the right process, Ellis will find the right person for the position.
The process of selecting the new Head of School will involve a search committee, as mentioned above, comprised of several members of the Board of Trustees, a few administrators and faculty members, and at least one student. “There should be student involvement, definitely at the interview process. There would be students who would be invited to the interviews for those candidates that would be brought to campus,” Mrs. Newham remarked. They hope to name the new Head of School by spring of 2017.
Since Mrs. Newham will continue to serve as Head of School for the next 18 months, she discussed her goals for her remaining time at Ellis. She hopes to work with the members of the administrative team, which will include a new Head of Marketing, Karen Oosterhous, who will be joining us on January 25th. She will also revisit strategic initiatives launched in 2013, for she thinks that “we need to always refresh and make sure that we’re moving the school in the right direction.”
Mrs. Newham shared her prediction for the direction that Ellis will take in the coming years, stating, “I think that being an all girls’ school is so embedded in who we are. I don’t see that ever changing, but certainly how we interact with the world is going to change.” She sees Ellis creating far more connections to the community through programming that will combine Ellis students with other student bodies or institutions.
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When asked what characteristics are important to look for in a new Head of School, Mrs. Newham emphasized interpersonal skills, authenticity, and a good sense of humor. She also realizes that there are many facets to finding someone who will be a perfect fit, saying, “It’s a big task to determine that. And so, I’m sure that is going to be probably the first task of the search committee.” She thought that, in her case, there were advantages to an internal hire, as she was already familiar with the community and understood the inner workings of the school: “It is a challenge for a new person coming in to be able to instill that same kind of confidence.” While she thinks that these advantages served her well, and that the school needed a familiar leader, it is time for a new person to take the helm. She believes that our remarkable team of administrators will be most important to attracting good candidates, and with the right process, Ellis will find the right person for the position.
The process of selecting the new Head of School will involve a search committee, as mentioned above, comprised of several members of the Board of Trustees, a few administrators and faculty members, and at least one student. “There should be student involvement, definitely at the interview process. There would be students who would be invited to the interviews for those candidates that would be brought to campus,” Mrs. Newham remarked. They hope to name the new Head of School by spring of 2017.
Since Mrs. Newham will continue to serve as Head of School for the next 18 months, she discussed her goals for her remaining time at Ellis. She hopes to work with the members of the administrative team, which will include a new Head of Marketing, Karen Oosterhous, who will be joining us on January 25th. She will also revisit strategic initiatives launched in 2013, for she thinks that “we need to always refresh and make sure that we’re moving the school in the right direction.”
Mrs. Newham shared her prediction for the direction that Ellis will take in the coming years, stating, “I think that being an all girls’ school is so embedded in who we are. I don’t see that ever changing, but certainly how we interact with the world is going to change.” She sees Ellis creating far more connections to the community through programming that will combine Ellis students with other student bodies or institutions.
Click here to continue reading this article on Ellisian Times.
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