|
THE COALITION CONNECTION
October 21, 2016
|
 Dear NCGS Community,
Women are driving philanthropy in unprecedented ways. They are achieving higher levels of education and women today are more likely to have a college degree than men. Women are also amassing $5.15 trillion in earnings and assets and will be inheriting an equal or greater amount due to the intergenerational transfer of wealth -- an estimated $22 trillion by 2020. This confluence puts women in an increasingly powerful position to make and impact philanthropic decisions as never before. And yet, women giving to their alma maters routinely falls down the list of giving priorities. What do advancement and development teams need to do differently to encourage women to thrive as donors to our girls' schools?
NCGS will be focusing on this question and trends in women's philanthropy throughout 2017 with several professional development opportunities.
I am facilitating a panel session at the CASE-NAIS Independent Schools Conference in Austin, Texas, on January 22-24, 2017. Women in the Philanthropic Driver's Seat: How to Steer Funds to Your School will feature Kathleen Loehr, Principal of Kathleen Loehr & Associates; Andrea Pactor, Associate Director of Women's Philanthropy Institute at Indiana University's Lilly Family School of Philanthropy; and Elizabeth Zeigler, President of Graham-Pelton Consulting. These industry experts will offer their perspectives on women's philanthropy globally and share research findings that account for various trends. Participants will have the opportunity to hear how all-girls schools are blazing new trails in women's philanthropy and will come away with practical action steps to implement at their own institutions.
On January 23, 2017, Graham-Pelton is generously sponsoring a reception at the JW Marriott Austin for representatives of NCGS member schools. Connect with girls' school heads and advancement officers as well as gain further valuable insight from Graham-Pelton, a global fundraising consulting firm. To attend this complimentary evening exclusive for NCGS member schools, please contact Eliza McGehee. 
The Women's Philanthropy Institute is hosting DREAM. DARE. DO. Women, Philanthropy, and Civil Society on March 14-15, 2017, in downtown Chicago. This two-day symposium will be a mix of interviews, panel discussions, breakout sessions, and networking. Topics covered will include continuity and change -- how organizations can reframe messaging through new language and bolder thinking to stay vibrant and relevant; creativity -- reimagining ways to maximize impact; community -- how networks contribute to deepening women's civic literacy and engagement; and collaboration -- leveraging partnerships and amplifying voices. Click here for more information and to register.
NCGS is hosting three professional development gatherings in 2017 that will include sessions dedicated to women's philanthropy:
Multiple sessions on fundraising at all-girls schools and trends in women's philanthropy will be offered at all three events as well as the opportunity for a deeper dive into this subject matter during a pre-conference workshop at the 2017 NCGS Conference.
Finally, it is my pleasure to highlight a prime example of how women in philanthropy are making a difference. Please take a moment to read below about the first-ever recipients of the Moulton Student Global Citizenship Grant. This recently established annual prize would not be possible without the generosity of NCGS co-founder Meg Moulton. Thank you, Meg, for exemplifying giving back to our girls' schools! Megan Murphy Executive Director
|
First Episode of PEP Talks Podcast Now Available
|
|
 The first episode of PEP Talks: Podcast on Educational Possibilities is now available on the NCGS website, iTunes, the Apple Podcasts app (search for National Coalition of Girls' Schools), and in The Coalition Connection (see Quick Links in the left hand column). PEP Talks will soon be available via Google Play for Android users.
Share PEP Talks -- a 30-minute or less professional development resource -- with your school communities, in particular your faculty, administrators, and trustees. Episode one, Innovations in School Scheduling, is a conversation with Andrew Sharp, History Department Chair and History Teacher and Kate McGroarty, Assistant Academic Dean and English Teacher at The Madeira School.
New episodes will be released on the third Thursday of every month. As we lead up to the 2017 NCGS Conference, Education Innovation: Building Cultures of Creativity, PEP Talks conversations will cover innovations in girls' schools in the areas of health and wellness, maker spaces and innovation labs, admissions and communications, assessment, community involvement, advancement and alumnae relations, and global programs.
|
Moulton Student Global Citizenship Grant Recipients Selected
| |
A group of students from The Agnes Irwin School (AIS) has been named the first-ever recipient of the Moulton Student Global Citizenship Grant. NCGS co-founder Meg Moulton established the annual prize in honor of the Coalition's 25th anniversary for a faculty-led team of NCGS member school students. The grant will help engage girls in leadership, fortify their strategic thinking, and enhance their global mindfulness by developing empathy and respect for others. The AIS group will work to take its Lower School Leadership Tool Box to girls in underserved regions of the world. Under the leadership of the Center for the Advancement of Girls, the toolkit was designed by Agnes Irwin teachers and researchers from the Bryn Mawr College Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research.
|
| |
Moulton Grant recipients and their faculty advisor, Sarah Kinder, Director of Service Learning and Special Projects at The Agnes Irwin School
|
Rather than simply recreating the Leadership Tool Box, the student group plans to develop ways to share the concept and process of creating a toolkit with girls in partner schools so they can adapt its components to best fit other school environments and needs. "The symbols in the toolkit are significant to Agnes Irwin and to our larger culture," explained Sarah Kinder, Director of Service Learning and Special Projects at Agnes Irwin. "Our students recognized that these symbols may have little significance in other schools or cultures, and therefore plan to co-create a tool box with girls in partner schools, who would include symbols that are personally significant to them."
Kinder and the AIS student leaders will present on their project during the 2017 NCGS Conference, Education Innovation: Building Cultures of Creativity, June 25-27, in Washington, DC.
|
NCGS Members Celebrate International Day of the Girl
| |
October 11 marked the 5th annual International Day of the Girl (#IDG2016), a day to stand up and take action in solidarity with girls around the world. NCGS celebrated all week by participating in Girl Up's #GIRLHERO campaign dedicated to recognizing those who champion, inspire, and empower girls everywhere.
NCGS member schools also recognized this important day in their own unique ways. Here are just a few highlights:
Kent Place School (NJ) held a variety of activities in honor of #IDG2016. Students in the Upper School led workshops for their peers on the following topics: perception of oneself, privilege, Beyond the Basics of Barbie: Looking at the Remake of the Classic Barbie Doll, examining the gender binary, female stereotypes in Disney princesses, feminism, the impact of literacy in the developing world, women in media, women in politics, Title IX, the rights to an education in Amish communities, feminism in the film industry, women in STEM, and much more. In the Middle School, students created friendship bracelets that were distributed so each girl could wear a bracelet made by their peers. Primary School students designed "Inner Star Power" shooting stars on which they wrote what their inner star power was, such as, "being a good friend."
St. Catherine's School (VA) students in the Lower School went "the extra mile for girls" by raising money for an 11-lap campus fun run on October 11. Collected pledges went to two girls who attend the Kopila Valley School in Nepal. Girls in the Middle School participated in a variety of events including hearing from parents who grew up in Cameroon and learning traditional Indian and contemporary dances. Upper School students packed more than 50,000 meals for Stop Hunger Now in honor of #IDG2016. Many of the meals were used to help people impacted by Hurricane Matthew. All grade levels collaborated to create the below "I am a girl. I can do anything." video.
Nora Murphy, librarian at Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy (CA), assembled a list of eight "must read" books to celebrate #IDG2016. "As the librarian in an all-girls school," she explained, "I'm particularly interested in how storytelling plays a critical role in empowering girls and giving voice to the voiceless among them." Click here to check out her recommendations, which make for great reading any day of the year!
|
Highlights from the NCGS "Listening & Learning Tour"
| |
Last week, Megan attended the Canadian Accredited Independent Schools annual conference for school heads and board chairs where along with NCGS Board Chair Martha Perry, Principal of St. Clement's School (ON), she hosted a breakfast meeting for NCGS Canadian member schools. They discussed the Coalition's programs and services along with key issues for girls' education in Canada. Here's what she said from the road:
"Among the many thought-provoking sessions at the conference, I enjoyed hearing from a panel of Ottawa-based Ambassadors to Canada describe emerging educational issues in Finland, Turkey, Jamaica, and Ireland, which included refugee education, apprenticeships, and student anxiety. Additionally, I attended a speed session hosted by Nancy Sweer, Head of School at The Study (QC), who shared her work to inspire teacher innovation. The results were exciting ideas for a Grade 5 passion program and 'Francozone' for girls to immerse themselves in French-Canadian culture, history, and language.
While in Ottawa, I visited Elwood School. Among its many innovative programs, I learned about the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme. Its curricular framework is guided by six transdisciplinary themes of global significance and incorporates five essential elements: concepts, knowledge, skills, attitude, and action. Beginning with its youngest students, Elmwood fosters lifelong learning, global citizenship, and caring leadership."
|
|
