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The Net Assets podcast delves into the most pressing issues in independent school business and operations. Delivered by NBOA, the only national nonprofit membership association focused exclusively on fostering financial and operational excellence among independent PK-12 schools, each episode is based on a popular article in NBOA’s Net Assets magazine. Chief financial and operational officers alongside other leaders of school business share what inspires and challenges them as well as their approaches to problem solving and innovation. In each lively exchange, host Jeff Shields, NBOA president and CEO, teases out the human stories behind the printed story.
That ability to be self reliant, to have that independence, that individual thought ingrained in what you're doing every day, how do you problem solve, that's the skill that really is going to carry them forward. And so I think there is an absolute place for boarding schools in current times and in many ways even more so in the years ahead.
Speaker 2:Hello, and welcome to the NetAssets podcast. I'm Jeff Shields, MBUA president and CEO, and I'm really looking forward to the episode today. I'm speaking with an individual who has served her boarding school for over three decades. She began as controller before transitioning to her current role as assistant head. She's had prior experience in dining services at independent schools and universities, including her current school, Kate School, Thatcher and Pepperdine, and she really brings a wealth of expertise to her work.
Speaker 2:Not only that, she's a really accomplished volunteer and leader. She served on the MBUA board, I'm proud to say, from 2012 to 2018, the CALAZBOA board, 2019 to this year, and she's currently a member of the TABS board, which is the association for boarding schools. I'm so happy to welcome Sandy Pierce to the NetAssets podcast. Welcome, Sandy.
Speaker 1:Thank you so much, Jeff. I'm thank you for the lovely introduction. I'm very excited to be here today.
Speaker 2:It's really a pleasure to have another boarding school business leader as a guest on the NetAssets podcast. You know, our summer staff retreat for MBOA was at the St. George's School, and it was really special having the entire MBOA staff together in that boarding school environment. Now I saw that you're a dorm parent and a student adviser on top of all of your other responsibilities at Kate. I'd love to hear what's a crazy thing that's happened as a dorm parent for you during your tenure.
Speaker 1:There are many. The dormitory environments for boarding schools, you know, the dorm is an extension of home. So many moments in a boarding environment that you don't get to see in other schools, and the dorm is certainly one of them. And sometimes the most impactful moments or the fun moments are that collective fun when you have dorm lip sync competitions and the whole school is there, or that wonderful spontaneity that exists when you're making quesadillas at late night dorm snack and a dance party, just impromptu dance party breaks out in the middle of that common room. But the flip of that really is those are the sort of the crazy and fun things, but you get that individual moment when you're checking in with kids, and you get to talk about what's on their mind.
Speaker 1:Know them as individuals and hear their perspective, and that environment makes meaningful connections. And I chose to be a dorm parent and an advisor because that window into the student experience really helps me better understand the impact of the decisions that we're making on those who are serving every day.
Speaker 2:That's so interesting. One of the things I remember being on campus earlier this year was when the head of school said, working at a boarding school is really a choice around lifestyle. Yep. And you've certainly embraced that. What do you think it takes to be and let's shift.
Speaker 2:Obviously, you're very immersed in the community, but you chose to be a CFO at a boarding school. What does that take for folks that might be thinking about working at a boarding school maybe in the future for them? What do you think it takes from the individual to be a successful administrator in that environment?
Speaker 1:Describing it as a lifestyle choice really is a wonderful way to describe it. As you noted, we lived on campus for thirty four years. Our children were raised on that campus. My husband actually taught at the boarding school as well. Not necessarily a requirement, that's for sure.
Speaker 1:But really, it takes someone who's interested in the life of the community, not just the financial overarching management of the school. And when that resonates for you, it's a beautiful thing. I will say it affords you the opportunity to live, to learn, to work, and to play with colleagues and students who are just amazing humans. And so you're surrounded by a lot of really rich thinking. And when we're looking at boarding environment or schools in general, that evolution, the complexities in our schools have grown so much over the years.
Speaker 1:And so you get to problem solve collectively. And, yeah, again, when it's a good fit, it's a beautiful thing.
Speaker 2:I'm really struck by the idea that your coworkers are your neighbors in that environment. And I started thinking about that. And I wouldn't mind being neighbors with some of the MBOA staff. I don't know if they'd wanna be my neighbor, but I just think that's such a powerful idea. And, really, when you think about community, and that's really what I think is the strength of independent schools in general, I haven't been to one that you didn't immediately feel like you were walking into a community, whether it's a day school or a boarding school.
Speaker 2:You step on that campus, and you can really feel that energy, and that must be really palpable for you every day. And plus, you have a great commute to work. Right?
Speaker 1:We have yeah. The walking commute to work is actually really quite lovely.
Speaker 2:Yes. Especially where Kate School is in Carpinteria, California. I'm not sure if I told people that, but it's very close to Santa Barbara and just a beautiful environment. That's really interesting. I don't wanna go much further until I congratulate you on the recognition you received earlier this year with MBOA as the 2025 Ken White distinguished business officer award recipient.
Speaker 2:What was that experience like for you, especially at this part of your career? Because I remember seeing all your California friends and colleagues clustered in the front row. They had buttons with your face on it. But what was that experience like, and what does it mean to you after your service to Kate School? And I know it's ongoing, but at this point in your career.
Speaker 1:It's really interesting. I am rarely at a loss for words. But I will say when I received the call from Duncan, I truly was. I was so deeply honored to be a Ken White recipient and all that award represents. And as I've thought about it, really, it leads me to the word grateful.
Speaker 1:I couldn't be more grateful to have landed in a profession that's so deeply rooted in the collective collaboration, the out of the box thinking, the strategic understanding of the complexities of our school, and that recognition was a highlight of my professional career. I will say when I'm thinking about it in terms of my school and our industry, we're all so interconnected. And that award represents an interconnection for all of us. And in many ways, I feel like it's much less about the individual and much more about the collective environment that we all have the great opportunity to work in.
Speaker 2:Yeah. That collegiality that I think is so unique to independent school business officers and part of MBOA's DNA was certainly on full display with your colleagues. They were so proud of you. And to see that recognition, thought, was really special. And speaking of recognition, I guess you have a job change of sorts.
Speaker 2:Same school, but a job change of sorts starting with the year ahead. Tell me about that. I didn't introduce you as assistant head of school for finance and operations or assistant head of school and CFO. You're really making a transition again at this part in your career to assistant head of school. What's the transition like, and what are those responsibilities going to be?
Speaker 1:That's really interesting. I'm entering my thirty fifth year at my school. It gives you a little context. And I feel the role really has evolved the whole time So that I've been the big picture has always been overseeing financial management, construction facilities, IT, HR. And then as time has gone on, it really has morphed to include much broader, just overarching support of the school's full program in place, serving as that strategic partner with the head of school and the board of trustees.
Speaker 1:And at the end of the day, yes, we're a business. Like, our business is people. We're business with a heart. You can decide how you wanna describe it.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:But really, people, program, and place, that's the core of what we do. I think what's kept me is that collaborative, forward thinking innovation. And so this movement into assistant head of school really, in some ways, is taking my role and dividing it in two, allowing more time to focus on those strategic partnerships, drawing together those pieces of the puzzle that are that allocation of resources to help support. It's not just financial. It's people.
Speaker 1:It's time. It's putting everything together. And by dividing the role into two, I now get to step into that more strategic, forward thinking pathway. And I get the unique opportunity to help support someone transitioning into really focusing on the long term financial management of the school. And I'm super excited for however that transition that transition taking place.
Speaker 2:Yeah. So that's I all also agree. We are in the people business, and sometimes I think of it as the ultimate people business. We deliver what we do through people, which is our faculty and administrators, and we're trying to create amazing people of the future. What is more people centered than that?
Speaker 2:But I have to ask you, I know you're not going to be overseeing finance and operations anymore. That's gonna be a different person in a different leadership role. What advice are you gonna give that person as they come in? I know you're not supervising them, and I think it could be a little intimidating, by the way. But what advice what's the best advice you could give that person as they step in to a role that you did for so long and so well?
Speaker 2:They're obviously gonna seek you out.
Speaker 1:And I will do all I can not to make intimidating. I don't want it to be the case at all, because they will bring their own ideas and perspective, fresh lens. That's such a healthy thing to have happen for our schools. But my advice would be to encourage them to use that fresh lens. They're gonna see things that I'm sure I don't see.
Speaker 1:I will defer to that perspective because it's new, it's fresh, it's seeing something that maybe we've been doing for a long time that we can be doing much better. Let's do it better.
Speaker 2:Yes, Yes.
Speaker 1:And so I'd love to be that support for that transition and help support that growth in the way that they're gonna be doing the job.
Speaker 2:That speaks volumes for your leadership qualities and just your willingness to say, you know what? I gave it my best shot for a long time. I did my very best, and it's your turn. It's your turn to make it your own, and I'm here to advise support any way you need me, but this is yours. And you're gonna have your own portfolio to really manage, so you'll have your hands full as well.
Speaker 2:And I wanted to mention, we, earlier this year did a cover story on the LA wildfires and how independent school leaders responded. Really remarkable getting everyone else safely. The commitment to business continuity, taking care of students and families. Now I know years before that, Kate experienced a similar, really scary, natural disaster that you had to manage. What were the lessons learned, and what did you observe among your colleagues going through the most recent turn of events earlier this year in the summer?
Speaker 1:That's a really interesting question. You're right. We did have fires and floods come through Kate's school several years ago. And the decision making that had to happen in support of the people within our immediate community, you didn't have time to have a long conversation. What is the best support of these people?
Speaker 1:How are we gonna do that? And that same thought process expanded to our colleagues in independent schools. So when we were going through our circumstance, I can't tell you how many people in the independent school community reached out and said, what do you need? How can we be hopeful? Do your people need a place to stay?
Speaker 1:They knew we were avoiding. And I know when we reached out within our own community within under ninety minutes, we had a place for every student, faculty, pet, everything.
Speaker 2:Take care of those dogs and cats.
Speaker 1:All of them. But I will say the independent school community was a tremendous support for not only our school as a whole, but I will say for people in my role and for our administration. And this past year, I feel like we saw that again for the LA fires. And in many ways, it was far worse. We were fortunate.
Speaker 1:We had a lot of ash cleanup, but we didn't lose any buildings. That is not the case for many of our colleagues. And the support from the independent school community for the schools that are really managing the most losses is profound and is ongoing. And certainly the initial outreach of, what can we do? Can we help support your students?
Speaker 1:How can we help you? That ball started rolling very quickly, and it continues today, because these schools are in the process of rebuilding. We need all of our schools. We all serve students in our areas. We wanna help each other to come back in whatever way is gonna work for our own institutions.
Speaker 1:And so that support is ongoing, and it was even at the annual meeting. Yeah. So it was support outside of California.
Speaker 2:Yes. For sure. That I appreciate hearing that. And that was my observation as well. It seemed like everyone's collective instinct was, let's take care of our people.
Speaker 2:Let's take care of the faculty, the staff, the families in surrounding communities that were displaced. Can you actually plan for that? Can you put a plan in place that prepares a school to meet that type of unexpected, really scary challenge? You went through it. You've had lessons learned from that.
Speaker 2:But can other schools put plans in place that help them prepare to do as well as so many schools seem to have done in that similar circumstance?
Speaker 1:That's a really good question. Can you prepare for the exact circumstance? No. Yeah. But I will say, thinking about tabletop exercises and what they would mean for your school.
Speaker 1:So the way that we, as a boarding school, had to manage our own scenario would be different from a day school, which would be different from a school that was in the middle of a big city. And so doing those tabletop exercises to think through, okay, we have to evacuate everybody. Where are we gonna go? Who are we gonna call? Who are gonna be our partners in this?
Speaker 1:And make sure that those relationships are in place. And then if a building is not usable anymore, thinking through strategically, how can we live without this space? Who do we call to help us move to the next step? Again, it's thinking in advance of who those partners are gonna be to help manage the unknown. Because it could be a fire.
Speaker 1:It could be a flood. It could be anything.
Speaker 2:For sure. And you really believe, and you're advising that the exercise of really thinking through and go to the unimaginable. Right? Go to the areas where, oh, wow. If this really happened, what would we do?
Speaker 2:And at least have a short list at the ready. But you really think thinking through those things in advance and just saying, what do we have at our disposal? And let's make sure that we draw from that is really beneficial for schools. And do you think enough schools do that? Do you think all schools do that exercise?
Speaker 2:Because risk management's daunting for a lot of schools.
Speaker 1:And I don't know that all schools do that, but I do think with the recent natural disasters, more schools are thinking about it. I think the other thing I would say is call your colleagues who have gone through it.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:They will have resources that can help you. They will have things that they may have had to manage that you might not be thinking of. You mentioned just a minute ago, supporting community. So that could be our families, not even necessarily our students. And I know for us, and certainly some of our colleague schools in LA, we talk about sometimes the school is that connector for a family that might be going through a similar loss within their home, or helping them find housing by using our greater independent school community in the area.
Speaker 1:And so don't underestimate the power of that collective thought and that experience of our colleagues.
Speaker 2:Yeah. I just remember so vividly. It feels that Kate just went through this not that many years ago, and to see it happen on such a large scale. But I agree. It was that collective thinking and the willingness of so many schools to help others.
Speaker 2:And you do a lot of helping others in your board work. You serve on a lot of boards. I know there's other roles that you play, but I had the pleasure working with you at NBAA. You had great track record at Kalisboa and and now at TABS. I'm always interested, and it's important to me from where I sit that MBOA board members after that experience, that it's meaningful to them.
Speaker 2:They feel like they've been able to make a contribution. And more often than not, they learn things about governance and board work that they apply in their staff liaison role to their trustees or in other ways at their school. Do you have that experience? Is that why you're so willing to serve on boards?
Speaker 1:I think I really do believe at my core that the best work we do is collaborative. Our organizations support the spaces and the ideas that allow us to share this work collectively. Yeah. And given the ever changing environment of independent schools that we are operating within, I think time has shown us that this collective wisdom, this collaborative spirit, our willingness to share what we've learned, and the openness to continually learn from our colleagues, it makes all of us stronger. I think I serve because I hope I can add in some way to our collective toolboxes supported by our industry organizations.
Speaker 1:And honestly, I learn at every single meeting. I wanna be a part of helping to build innovative, healthy, well informed communities and connections. And I feel very strongly about the benefits of independent education. And so the organizations themselves help provide the backbone for our entire community to gather and collaborate on the issues that are most topical at that moment in time, which over thirty five years have changed through evolution. And I will also say, I learn all the time, and I am able to bring back to my school not only our our small school perspective, but also what's going on in the world around us.
Speaker 1:What is that greater independent school landscape looking like? What legislation should we be looking at, trickling down to us over the next couple of years? And so I really I feel like it's service that goes both directions.
Speaker 2:I really get that because in the times I spend with boards of independent schools, what I try and do, and I think it's what you're describing, is that one thing I can give them is context. I can give them there is a larger environment. Sometimes being that close tight knit community can create some blind spots that you really think you're operating independently. Excuse the pun. But I think creating that context is so important for our trustees so they understand that some of these issues are common.
Speaker 2:Some of the solutions are also common that they could benefit from, but it sounds like that's what you have been able to bring back to Kate in these numerous volunteer roles.
Speaker 1:And I really do think that greater perspective of impacts is significant on all of us. And we don't always have the time in our schools to assess them out on our own, and really do rely on MBOA and other industry wide organizations to look at that bigger picture. And it could be political. It could be financial. It could be demographic.
Speaker 1:It could be natural disasters. It could be anything that has broad impact on all of us. And so helping to bring those things to the forefront so that we're able to look at those things that might be most impactful for us.
Speaker 2:Another volunteer role that you're really helpful with was our boarding schools working group that we had over a year ago, and that was a really great opportunity for us to hear from peers, people like yourself, about what the boarding school experience really is and what are the financial challenges, business operations challenges, all that comes with that that twenty four seven environment. You're on the TABS board. What's your assessment of boarding school education today? And can you look in your crystal ball and see where it's going in the future?
Speaker 1:Oh, I wish I had a crystal ball for so many things. That would be wonderful. Yeah. My boarding school education, it is unique. There's such a small percentage of students that actually attend a boarding school.
Speaker 1:And it is that it's a school, and it's actually an extension of your home. It is that twenty four seven scenario. And the typical thing that you'll see is the school part having classes or athletic competitions or things of that nature that are in all of our schools, and that home piece, that dormitory and community, and they combine both. One of the benefits, many of the benefits of boarding schools include being in those small classes with strong academics, that ability to have a more personalized instruction in many ways because the opportunity to see students both inside of school and outside of school exists, the typical school day, and that ability to invest broadly in a range of activities that might be going on on the campus or designing them on your own. And I think one of the other benefits of that boarding world is the opportunity for a student to build one's own level of independence, personal responsibility, and social maturity.
Speaker 1:They have the opportunity to live, learn, and work in close proximity with peers and supportive adults. And that transcends, in many ways, being prepared for a class or being on a team, but it's really learning about oneself and manifests itself in ways that they can navigate within the community for their own contributions and collective connections, and serves them well when they move and do whatever they're gonna do after they leave that school. I think those skills really are important now, and they're gonna be important in the future.
Speaker 2:For sure.
Speaker 1:Our children today are being educated in a world that is gonna be very different by the time they hit the job market, if that's what we're looking at, or whatever they're gonna be, and they're adults. And that ability to be self reliant, to have that independence, that individual thought ingrained in what you're doing every day, how do you problem solve, that's the skill that really is going to carry them forward. And so I think there is an absolute place for boarding schools in current times, and in many ways, even more so in the years ahead. And when it is a fit with a student that really wants that level of independence and engagement in the boarding community, wants to try new things, wants that 20 fourseven time with students and adults, It's a beautiful thing.
Speaker 2:You are a really powerful representative of boarding education, and that's why I wanted to talk to you, and I wanted to talk about your professional journey, which I think is so interesting. And we're gonna have to leave it there. So thank you, Sandy Pierce, assistant head of school at the Kate School, and I wish you continued success in your leadership within independent schools. Thank you so much for being on this episode of NetAssets Podcast.
Speaker 1:Thank you so much for inviting me, Jeff. It's been a wonderful conversation, and I very much look forward to seeing you in the months ahead.
Speaker 2:Be sure to subscribe to our podcast on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. For more information on MBOA, visit us online at mboa.org. I'm Jeff Shields, MBOA president and CEO and your net assets podcast host. Tune in next time.