Holton brain drain?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want to add that most parents who seem wholly oblivious and tell you to "talk to other parents and the school" are mostly not involved in the issues causing discontent. It is mainly the Black parents that are affected. So unless a parent associates closely with Black parents, they are probably unaware.

Yes, Holton parent here. This is mostly true. We’re not expecting any change in academics or school standing. If anything, there will be old faces that will be missed and new faces to learn and build relationships with. C’est la vie.

This "c'est la vie" attitude is why people will leave. Neither the HOS nor the Board care about the concerns of families (mostly families of color) and we feel it very deeply. We do not feel wanted. So whoever wrote this is spot-on and very reflective of Holton's culture.

It's a "take it or leave it" kind of situation, and for $50k a year, many of us will leave it.

You're better off leaving because it's not going to get any better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why does every Holton thread turn into drama...if this is the kind of culture /environment that our girls will face at school because of these parents...yikes...

"These parents?"

I think you will fit in fine

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Channeling Oscar Wilde: To lose one parent may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose both looks like carelessness.

People with first-hand experience working with Holton’s head of school said she would impose her dictatorial style on employees and those who didn’t conform would either be fired or flee.

In less than one academic year, the directors of LS, MS, and DEI are gone and the director of communications has been replaced by someone who obviously conforms to Penny’s dictates (and who will soon be writing another anonymous post in response to this one, blaming disgruntled parents, as she has many times before). The first three have left for lateral moves - not promotions - to key rivals. If you think this is just normal attrition, I think you are ignoring reality.

If you don’t think the highly regarded LS and MS directors aren’t going to turn around and poach the best of their former colleagues as positions open up at their new schools, I don’t know what to tell you

+1 and not only poach the good teachers, these teachers will leave as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

It's not exactly easy to leave. Everything blew up after the application deadlines for most other privates. Unless Penny leaves, I predict the exodus will occur during the 2026 - 2027 school year. Most of her supporters and donors want a less "woke" environment. It will take a year, but they will see a less diverse campus in two years.

THIS! You can't leave now to a private school, it's too late in the process. Also harder to move if your kid is a rising 10th, 11th or senior.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honestly y'all...

I think it's time we took a stand and did what is right for our daughters. Holton has been going down the path of Wokeism for too long with Susanna, and Penny is nothing more than a punching bag- she might appear ready to help correct the course but she will buckle under pressure and give in to what the Radiacal Left parents want- we saw this clearly with the communications on the terrible attacks against Israel.

I personally will be pulling my DD out of school. I have decided it will be better if she stays at home and learns TRUE FEMININE values like sewing and piano. We will hire a governess who is NOT woke and recognizes the beauty in the feminine divine as appointed to us by GOD. I can only hope that other parents follow my lead so we can hopefully bring an end to the Radical Woke Left taking over our schools and our daughters' minds.

Bwahahaha!

[Anonymous]

For current parents, please check how many students will be in a class. A new move is to have more students per teacher. There will be 18 or more students per subject.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For current parents, please check how many students will be in a class. A new move is to have more students per teacher. There will be 18 or more students per subject.

Please push for smaller class size.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I assure you that many parents will be applying out this Fall if the current HOS is still at Holton. I suspect the majority of departures will come from LS because parents won’t want to commit to so many years with the current HOS.

LS parent here. So far we've seen no exodus among students for issues like this. There was one who left due to behavioral issues, and another due to family moving, that I know of. I'm doubtful there will be some mass exodus next year, based on my discussions with various LS parents. They rarely talk about the HOS at all. It's usually about teachers, sports, or other activities -- the very same topics they talked about when the previous HOS was there.

I think you hit the nail on the head. There were complaints with the prior HOS. There were departures. This happens at all schools. Sometimes the HOS is there too long. Sometimes the new one is too much of a departure from the old. I've lived through many a head of schools at Holton and other schools. If you are a prospective family and you have concerns, call the school and ask questions. The MS person leaving would have happened had the prior HOS still been there. The head of DEI said she was leaving no matter who came in after her. It always was her plan. That was no surprise. I don't know why the LS director left. Maybe she has a son and wants to be where her son is in school. I don't know. But, there are valid reasons why people leave that have nothing to do with the HOS. If you don't like the HOS, that's fine. But not everyone liked the prior one either. It's just the way that it is. I can't stand the head of school at my other kid's school, but I don't see him doing any harm.

This is not a Holton parent. The DEI director was not planning on leaving. In fact, she's broken up about it. And the LS head has a girl kid enrolled at Holton.

Lies. Lies. Lies.

The LS head also has a son (obviously not enrolled at Holton). At least that part of what the PP wrote is true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why does every Holton thread turn into drama...if this is the kind of culture /environment that our girls will face at school because of these parents...yikes...

Trolls and jealousy I think. No other school gets singled out as much on here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why does every Holton thread turn into drama...if this is the kind of culture /environment that our girls will face at school because of these parents...yikes...

Trolls and jealousy I think. No other school gets singled out as much on here.

You must be new here. Threads about tons of schools turn into drama and trash talk constantly. NCS, GDS, Field, Flint Hill, SSSAS…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why does every Holton thread turn into drama...if this is the kind of culture /environment that our girls will face at school because of these parents...yikes...

Trolls and jealousy I think. No other school gets singled out as much on here.

You must be new here. Threads about tons of schools turn into drama and trash talk constantly. NCS, GDS, Field, Flint Hill, SSSAS…

Agreed. Pretty much every thread about every school turns into some version of “people are leaving in droves, school is falling apart.”

And yet all of these schools have far more students who wants to go there than they have spots…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I assure you that many parents will be applying out this Fall if the current HOS is still at Holton. I suspect the majority of departures will come from LS because parents won’t want to commit to so many years with the current HOS.

LS parent here. So far we've seen no exodus among students for issues like this. There was one who left due to behavioral issues, and another due to family moving, that I know of. I'm doubtful there will be some mass exodus next year, based on my discussions with various LS parents. They rarely talk about the HOS at all. It's usually about teachers, sports, or other activities -- the very same topics they talked about when the previous HOS was there.

I think you hit the nail on the head. There were complaints with the prior HOS. There were departures. This happens at all schools. Sometimes the HOS is there too long. Sometimes the new one is too much of a departure from the old. I've lived through many a head of schools at Holton and other schools. If you are a prospective family and you have concerns, call the school and ask questions. The MS person leaving would have happened had the prior HOS still been there. The head of DEI said she was leaving no matter who came in after her. It always was her plan. That was no surprise. I don't know why the LS director left. Maybe she has a son and wants to be where her son is in school. I don't know. But, there are valid reasons why people leave that have nothing to do with the HOS. If you don't like the HOS, that's fine. But not everyone liked the prior one either. It's just the way that it is. I can't stand the head of school at my other kid's school, but I don't see him doing any harm.

This is not a Holton parent. The DEI director was not planning on leaving. In fact, she's broken up about it. And the LS head has a girl kid enrolled at Holton.

Lies. Lies. Lies.

I'm not part of the anti-Penny brigade (personally I think she deserves more time to prove herself), but the assertion that the DEI head planned to leave runs contrary to what she's shared with many people.

You don’t have to be a part of an “anti-Penny brigade” to raise your eyebrow at the volume of departures in just 10 mos. Just because it’s the case that many new leaders face challenges in the beginning of their tenure doesn’t mean they get a free pass to muck up what’s special about a school. So, yes she’s new. And, yes, some turnover is inevitable. But also, 2 out of 3 division heads making lateral moves is worth investigating. Not to mention the departures of 2 comms directors and the DEI Director. All direct reports to this new leader. I’d like to think the Board will be doing thoughtful exit interviews with these folks to make sure there are no concerning trends they could be overlooking. My employer's board would be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why does every Holton thread turn into drama...if this is the kind of culture /environment that our girls will face at school because of these parents...yikes...

Trolls and jealousy I think. No other school gets singled out as much on here.

+1. It certainly wasn’t this bad before. Ever since the new HOS joined, almost every post spirals into a debate from the same anti-HOS posters, about the HOS’ agenda to make the school less woke and how there will be an exodus. Let’s try to move along the change curve.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want to add that most parents who seem wholly oblivious and tell you to "talk to other parents and the school" are mostly not involved in the issues causing discontent. It is mainly the Black parents that are affected. So unless a parent associates closely with Black parents, they are probably unaware.

Yes, Holton parent here. This is mostly true. We’re not expecting any change in academics or school standing. If anything, there will be old faces that will be missed and new faces to learn and build relationships with. C’est la vie.

This "c'est la vie" attitude is why people will leave. Neither the HOS nor the Board care about the concerns of families (mostly families of color) and we feel it very deeply. We do not feel wanted. So whoever wrote this is spot-on and very reflective of the culture at Holton right now.

It's a "take it or leave it" kind of situation and for $50k a year, many of us will leave it.

+ 1 PP

As a white Holton parent, this laissez-faire attitude toward a possible exodus of families of color b/c they are feeling a lack of belonging is really alarming. I personally don't want to be associated with a school (or any organization) that triggers a mass exodus of any people of color AND then the response from boosters that think everything is fine at Holton is “c’est la friggin’ vie”!?

That doesn't align with my family's values or the ones Holton proudly touts on their website. Something isn’t adding up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why does every Holton thread turn into drama...if this is the kind of culture /environment that our girls will face at school because of these parents...yikes...

Trolls and jealousy I think. No other school gets singled out as much on here.

+1. It certainly wasn’t this bad before. Ever since the new HOS joined, almost every post spirals into a debate from the same anti-HOS posters, about the HOS’ agenda to make the school less woke and how there will be an exodus. Let’s try to move along the change curve.

Correct, it wasn’t this bad before. Remember how the previous Head hosted monthly coffees that were essentially an open forum with families? They were also RECORDED so everyone in the community had access to the same info. I imagine because that Head was steadfast in her convictions she also was not worried about her words coming back to haunt her. So when something did pop up on here she had a forum to address and nip it in the bud. MS Math comes to mind— there were plenty of families that were confused/upset and while not every family was satisfied with the direction, at least they had plenty of avenues for learning about the approach and why it was pedagogically sound.

Stop blaming the smoke for getting in your eyes and start asking yourself why the flame keeps burning.