Name: Christopher Herman

Title: Head of School

Organisation: Garden School NYC

Christopher Herman is Head of School at Garden School in Jackson Heights. He previously served as Head of School at AIM Academy in Philadelphia and as faculty at St. Joseph’s University. Chris is an independent school enthusiast and is drawn to educational models that bring high quality independent education to communities who might otherwise have access to dynamic and personalized programs. Chris is founding board Chair of Revolution Me Media, board member of the Guild of NYC Independent Schools, board member at Academy of the City, and board member of Queens Community Board #5. He has served on several other boards focused on Education, Humanitarian work, and Mental Health. Chris holds an MEd from University of Pennsylvania, a BA from Long Island University, a Certificate in Photography from the Photographic Institute of Paris, completed post-grad work in Psychology at Temple, holds Dual MEd from Chestnut Hill College, and is completing a Head’s Fellowship at Columbia’s Klingenstein Center. Chris, his wife, and two children live in New York City.

Thank you to the 2,000 leaders who’ve generously done the 7 Questions on Educational Leadership!

I hope Christopher's answers will encourage you in your leadership journey. Enjoy!

Cheers,

Jonno White

1. What have you found most challenging as an Educational Leader?

Balancing needs and hopes of multiple groups at once can be among the more challenging aspects of educational leadership. Sometimes those hopes and expectations conflict, so figuring out how to balance decisions and communicate the thought that went into them requires a lot of care and precise communication. For example, parents might be in favor of a longer school year so their children can benefit from more instruction. However, students typically do not. Each year, as we consider how the calendar reflects our values and priorities, we must make choices that will please some and disappoint others. Tuition is another prime example. It is a growing burden on families and so I am certain, many would understandably like tuition to decrease. However, the salaries of educators and staff needs to increase to reflect their needs.

2. How did you become an Educational Leader? Can you please briefly tell the story?

It wasn’t necessarily on purpose. When I left high school, I swore I would never step foot in a school again. I did not like school and did not make a habit of going to school either. Years later, as I was trying to launch my career as a photographer, I ended up taking a job as an assistant in a classroom for children with some significant challenges. I discovered that I loved working with kids and switched gears, becoming a teacher. Over time, I gradually took on more and more responsibility. I always had an eye on systems I thought could be more efficient, so I ended up overseeing some curriculum projects, then running a department, then a division, and eventually became a Head of School as it was the next logical step.

3. How do you structure your work days from waking up to going to sleep?

I would like to say that my days are well structured, but with two kids, a busy job, and a lot of other community and family obligations, I do not have a great answer for this question. I am up early every day and quiet time alone is important given how stimulating the days at work can be. I spend just about every morning at the gate welcoming students. This is a high point of my day. It is reaffirming to see happy children and families coming in, but also provides for informal meeting time with parents. I try my best to balance time in my office and time out of it so I can tackle the day to day but also see and spend time with students. Honestly, it is never enough time out of my office to be as present as I want to be, and never enough time in my office to be as on top of things as I want. I think this is a nature of the job though. After school is when I hold administrative meetings and I always try to be at as many home games and after school events as possible. I usually leave around 6pm. In past jobs I would bring home an immense amount of work and work late into the night. I try not to open the computer or let work spill over into the evening unless it is truly necessary and instead focus on my family for those few hours before bed.

4. What's a recent lesson you've learned for the first time or been reminded of as an Educational Leader?

There are good ideas everywhere and I am reminded of this all the time. Our school model is unique – modest tuition in the most expensive city in the country. We do this through multiple auxiliary revenues, many partnerships, and very careful financial planning. Not only is it unique, but is fragile and it requires good ideas, new ideas, and lots of ideas from all corners of our organization all the time. Recently, a great idea came from front desk security. Another recent great idea came from a classroom assistant and another from a bus driver. These might not be the places where organizations often go looking for great ideas, but when you have staffed the place with talented people, you’d be foolish not to look for good ideas around every corner. It also turns out that the solutions that come from the people most impacted by the problem are often the best solutions available and the most effective. Recently, we even started a tri-weekly forum for surfacing issues and sharing ideas and solutions. It’s been terrific.

5. What's one book that has had a profound impact on your journey as an Educational Leader so far? Can you please briefly tell the story of how that book impacted you?

I cannot pick just one. Sorry. As a leader, I would have to say Multipliers by Liz Wiseman. This is something I have read a few times both on my own and with leadership teams. It has helped transform the way I engage with and think about my colleagues and support and elevate the next generation of teachers and leaders in my school. As an educator, though, the book Why Don’t Student Like School by Daniel Willingham is an important book by a remarkable psychologist who I have followed for a long time. It has everything to do with rethinking how we engage with students and the powerful shift that can happen if we personalize school to make the learning matters and to make it stick.

6. If you could only give one piece of advice to a young educator who aspires to be an Educational Leader, what would you say to them?

Fit matters. Do not be lured by leadership roles, be lured by communities and missions that reflect your values – these are the places where you will be most successful. If the right fit has not presented itself yet, wait for it. Jumping into a leadership role that is not the right fit will be harder and the obstacles you encounter may not be as satisfying. Waiting for the right fit will mean that who you are will be most valued and appreciated. I have worked with and coached lots of educators eager to take the next step in their careers, so they job search for roles like Division Head or Principal and not for cultures, missions, or values. They want the title badly enough that they don’t spend time digging in to make sure they are very aligned with the school culture. Almost 100% of the time, if the values do not align, the job will not last.

7. What is one meaningful story that comes to mind from your time as an Educational Leader, so far?

Probably because it is recent, I’ll talk about navigating COVID. I accepted my position a month and a half before schools closed. By the time March rolled around, my house was already on the market, my school community had been informed of my pending departure, and there was no turning back. As I continued to lead my school, I linked arms with the outgoing Head at my new school and we worked in tandem to reassure staff and families. It was quite an introduction to the community. The day after I started, we opened camp in person, and this served as our proof of concept for the fall. I worked closely with many teacher committees all summer until we felt we had perfected our re-opening plans. We opened in the fall in person and never closed through the pandemic. This was so meaningful for me not because of the historic nature of it all, but because of the way our community – teachers, students, families, administrators, trustees –worked together. When it was time to mask or test, we all did it. When it was time to spend money on a new testing protocol, to learn a new technology, or time to offer support and encouragement, we all did it. It was a remarkable showing of what trust and cooperation looks like and was unlike what many of my peers Heads were experiencing. Many of them left school leadership after that, but I left that period even more reassured of the decision I had made to come to Garden School.