By Jeremy Goldstein and Barbara Beachley

Jimi Purse, Assistant Head of School at Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart, is a longtime Folio user and administrator who saw an opportunity to use myFolio as the foundation for a new approach to professional growth in the 23-24 school year. As sights were set on the year ahead by the leadership team, Jimi and Dr. Alex Sundeman, Head of Middle School, designed a plan to support Stone Ridge educators—putting people first and promoting clarity (two of our core values at Folio!). 

Over the summer of 2023, the teams of Barbara Beachley and Mike Gwaltney from Independent School Management (ISM) and Meredith Monk Ford and Jeremy Goldstein from Folio, met with Stone Ridge leadership to plan for a new approach to supporting faculty growth and evaluation. ISM conducted virtual and in-person workshops on faculty evaluation and led training sessions for faculty growth coaches. Simultaneously, Folio worked with the leadership team to customize the myFolio platform for the Stone Ridge faculty and staff. This vital preparation helped frame the school’s new growth and evaluation program for the 23-24 school year.

Here are some key takeaways from the Folio team:

• Alignment and transparency are essential in the design of professional growth programs. Stone Ridge made a conscious effort to put Folio and ISM in front of their entire faculty during the week prior to school- ensuring that this would be an enduring, ongoing professional growth journey. Folio thoughtfully redesigned our implementation support for the first year of membership, and our team will be meeting with all new members during key touch points all year long. 
• Faculty are excited and eager to set goals. The Stone Ridge faculty were given time to reflect (another Folio core value!) on their own journey as learners and contribute to the conversation around great coaching and growth. 
• Evaluation and growth are important and separate conversations. Through all that Folio has to offer, from coaching relationships to goal setting, educators continue to experience growth and feel a sense of belonging in their schools. And evaluation is essential for keeping a standard of professionalism in a school community and promoting successful outcomes for all students.. 

We’re here to help!

If you’re looking for a helpful way to organize and plan your professional growth strategy, try our Folio Method Canvas.  

Reach out to us, we would love to have a chat about supporting your school as you use myFolio this year!