Services
HEAD/BOARD ADVISOR
Since 2011, Al has consulted with and/or led retreats for twenty-five independent school boards of trustees and their heads – several on multiple occasions. Areas of focus have included governance, strategic thinking, institutional positioning, fiscal sustainability and diversity/access/indexed tuition. In addition to the deep knowledge and experience that Al brings to the larger world of independent schools, he offers particular insight to progressive schools – including their historical lineage, the special turf they occupy in the educational landscape and their potential “Achilles Heels.”
RETREAT LEADER*/ADVISOR
GOVERNANCE, INSTITUTIONAL POSITIONING, FISCAL SUSTAINABILITY
DIVERSITY/ACCESS/INDEXED TUITION
- Almaden School (San Jose)*
- Blue Oak School (Napa, CA)*
- Branson School (Ross, CA)
- Cathedral School for Boys (San Francisco)*
- Children’s Day School (San Francisco)*
- Children’s School (San Diego)
- Chinese American International School (San Francisco)*
- Drew School (San Francisco)*
- Gateway School (Santa Cruz, CA)*
- Georgetown Day School (D.C.)
- Head Royce School (Oakland, CA)
- Hillbrook School (Los Gatos, CA)*
- Mark Day School (San Rafael, CA)*
- Milken Community School (Los Angeles)*
- Millennium School (San Francisco)
- Mulberry School (Los Gatos)*
- Pacific Ridge School (Carlsbad, CA)*
- Park Day School (Oakland)*
- Peninsula School (Menlo Park, CA)*
- Sea Crest School (Half Moon Bay, CA)*
- Shady Hill School (Cambridge)*
- St. Matthews Episcopal School (San Mateo, CA)*
- Tahoe Expedition Academy (Lake Tahoe)*
- Trinity Episcopal School (Charlotte)*
- Westland School, (Los Angeles)*
- Wornick Jewish Day School (Foster City, CA)*
HEAD/BOARD ADVISOR REFERENCES
- Olaf Jorgenson, Head, The Almaden School, San Jose, CA
- Richard, Board Chair, The Almaden School, San Jose, CA
- Sam Cuddeback, Head, Drew School, San Francisco, CA
- Russell Shaw, Head, Georgetown Day School
- Zaq Roberts, Head, The Gateway School, Santa Cruz, CA
- Joe Harvey, Head Mark Day School, San Rafael, CA
- Bob Ogle, Pacific Ridge School, Carlsbad, CA
- Amy Fox, former Board Chair, The Peninsula School, Menlo Park, CA
- Kathy Koo, former CFO and Interim Head, The Peninsula School, Menlo Park, CA
- Board Chair The Westland School, L.A.
- Scott Moran, Head, The Westland School, Los Angeles
ADVISOR TO HEADS
Al works 1:1 with school heads on Entry process design/implementation and as a regular sounding board and advisor. His clients include:
- Almaden School (San Jose), Olaf Jorgenson
- Archer School (Los Angeles), Laura Konigbsburg)
- Bush School (Seattle): Dr. Percy Abrams
- The Children’s School (San Diego): John Fowler
- Millennium School (San Francisco): Chris Balme, co-founder
- Mt. Tamalpais School, Mill Valley): Andrew Davis
- Peninsula School (Menlo Park): Dr. James Benz
- Presidio Hill School (San Francisco), Kevin Jacobsen
- Sacramento Day School (Sacrameneto): Lee Thomsen
- San Francisco Day School (San Francisco): Mike Walker
- San Francisco Friends School (San Francisco): Mike Hanas
- St. Paul’s Episcopal School (Oakland): Josh Stern
- Sugar Bowl Academy (Norden, CA): Tracy Keller
DIVERSITY/ACCESS
Al regularly works with heads, trustees and faculty/staff on issues related to the arc of their school’s diversity journey, applying the four lenses framed in his 2012 Independent School Magazine article, “Four Roads Converge”: access, inclusive community, student success, public purpose.
PUBLIC PURPOSE
Having coined the term “Private Schools With Public Purpose” in 1988, Al is viewed as a national leader in this realm. The foundations of this work are outlined in his two articles, “Private Schools With Public Purpose,” that puts forth the moral imperative of this focus and “Good Work, Good Karma: The Intersection of Public Purpose and Institutional Advocacy,” that highlights the good things that come to schools for being “a part of, rather than apart from, the larger community.”
AlAdams.org 