Our Wildwood, Volume 48

DEAR FRIENDS A Letter from Landis

Director of Middle School Jaimi Boehm and trustee Susan Olsen, mothers, respectively, to two and three sons at Wildwood, collaborated on the feature article, “A Legacy of Leadership: What I’ve Learned from the Women of Wildwood.” Jaimi and Susan zero in on the influences and contributions of just a few members of our school community, representative of thousands more women who’ve left a mark on the lives of our students over the years and the trajectory of our school. What they all share—what all of us who actively support the continued advancement of women and girls share—is the understanding that, although we may never know the scope of our impact, we will have made a contribution. The inimitable Dolly Parton is attributed to having plainly said, “If your actions create a legacy that inspires others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, then, you are an excellent leader.” Please join me in celebrating the Women of Wildwood, now and going forward, who’ve inspired the girls and boys, young women and young men in our care to dream, learn, do, and become all they might.

This issue of Our Wildwood, The Women of Wildwood, is near and dear to my heart, as colleagues will attest. Wildwood School has long had women in positions of leadership. From Board Chairs to department team leaders, from heads of school to student council leadership, Wildwood’s foundation has been built upon the strength and dedication of so many women who have contributed to its achievements. In the course of my 16 years here, I’ve had the privilege of getting to know six people serving in the role of Board Chair, half of them women. Cathleen Collins, Cynthia Berkshire, and Lisa Flashner all led our Board of Trustees. Our school’s three school directors and most academic and non-academic administrative staff are women. Education has long been a professional home for women, yet it’s only been in recent decades that women have increasingly become leaders in the world of education. While the story is still not one that points to gender equity in school leadership, Wildwood School has been at the forefront since its founding—by a woman—in 1971. It’s only been in the last decade that women accounted for half of all public school principalships in the United States. As a former trustee of The Heads Network, an organization whose mission states their commitment “…to the education of girls and advancing women’s leadership,” I am proud of that affiliation and of our leadership. Leadership is about far more than position or formal responsibility, of course. That’s why I’m particularly happy to see threaded throughout this important issue of Our Wildwood the stories of women who’ve left their mark on our school, its community, and our students and their families by contributing in myriad ways, all while bringing heart to the work.

Warmly,

Landis Green Head of School

OWW WINTER 2023

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