Anonymous wrote:
I’m writing to let you know that, after 16 years, I’ll be concluding my tenure at Friends School on June 30, 2021. Beginning last spring, I shared with the Board my desire to explore new challenges and together we have decided I will depart at the end of the school year. This is a bittersweet decision. The many years I have spent at Friends have been some of the happiest and most fulfilling of my professional life.

So he wanted to leave as of a while ago ... and "together we have decided" ... interesting timing for all of it. I agree, short notice of a departure is unusual. For the Board to want an interim, as opposed to starting the search last spring, is curious.

Any new insight on this?

Anonymous wrote:Any time a school head leaves with 6 months or less public notice, something is going on. No school wants to have to conduct an expedited process to find an interim head.

Agreed. Typically if the head is retiring or moving on to something other than other headship, he/she will announce in the fall or winter that the next school year will be their last giving the school ample time to find a permanent replacement before they leave. If they accept a new position as Head of another school, that usually happens in the fall for a June 30th departure and the school finds an interim to take over on July 1 for a year while they complete a search for a permanent replacement. He's finishing out the year so it's unlikely anything salacious. Most likely, he and the board decided it was time for him to move on (whether that was more his decision or more the boards is anyone's guess).

Anonymous wrote:Any time a school head leaves with 6 months or less public notice, something is going on. No school wants to have to conduct an expedited process to find an interim head.

SSFS head said a two year notice is standard.

Any time a school head leaves with 6 months or less public notice, something is going on. No school wants to have to conduct an expedited process to find an interim head.

The school’s black@ page was pretty brutal about him. I wonder if that played a role.

He was not removed. Not sure if this is forum worthy. He's moving on, no scandal behind it.

Anonymous wrote:I know not DC news, but hoping someone has some insights on this.

https://friendsbalt.myschoolapp.com/podium/push/default.aspx?i=398354&s=593&snd=5e727d1f-04c6-494e-9ca8-549c56c0e68d&fbclid=IwAR2Vay5jHzleU0LvAejFHjK_BiwZhKhYFMHMf2SYFSzERvmXbOXvg8weYIcjavascript:void(0);

Not sure there's much insight to be had. 16 years is a good run and he's probably ready for something different, particularly after the challenges of COVID.

This is pretty typical timing for this kind of announcement - either this, or at the very start of a school year, which sometimes enables a new head to be in place for the start of the following academic year.

Dear Friends,

I’m writing to let you know that, after 16 years, I’ll be concluding my tenure at Friends School on June 30, 2021. Beginning last spring, I shared with the Board my desire to explore new challenges and together we have decided I will depart at the end of the school year. This is a bittersweet decision. The many years I have spent at Friends have been some of the happiest and most fulfilling of my professional life.

I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished during those 16 years, including; two strategic plans, multiple building projects, significant growth in the school’s endowment for financial assistance, a substantial increase in our demographic diversity, enhancements in teaching and learning, and other achievements. I’ve been fortunate throughout this time to be surrounded by a talented and dedicated administrative team, who have been the engine behind so many of these accomplishments and who have provided me with wise counsel and steadfast support.

I’ve had the benefit, as well, of Board members that have devoted tremendous time and energy to their voluntary service to the School. The success of any Head rests on strong collaboration with the Board and its Clerk. I have worked with seven Clerks during my tenure, and each has been a thought partner and listening ear.

It should go without saying that nothing can be accomplished at our School without the diligence and dedication of our teachers. It has been a true honor to call this remarkable group my colleagues during the past 16 years. As parents, Frances and I will always appreciate the care and love these educators unfailingly showed to our children. And I know from so many conversations through the years that, when our families or our alumni think back on the impact the School has had on their own lives, they always start by invoking the deep and powerful relationships they developed with their teachers as the most important piece of their experiences.

On a personal level, our family is profoundly grateful for all the love that we have felt during our time perched on the edge of the Friends School campus. This is the house to which we brought two of our three children home from the hospital, and we will always feel a meaningful connection to this special place. We have fond memories of entertaining students, faculty, staff, alumni, and parents in our home, all of whom spoke of their deep love for Friends School and their appreciation for what it had done for them and their families.

I’m looking forward to the next few months as an opportunity to finish the journey that started for me at Friends in 2005. I know that a new leader will bring fresh eyes and new ideas to this position, and I’m eager to work with the Board, the administrative team, and my successor to ensure a smooth transition this summer.

In friendship,

Matthew Micciche
Head of School

Dear Friends,

Friends School of Baltimore has been incredibly fortunate to have Matt Micciche as our Head of School for the past 16 years. The entire community has benefited from the caliber of his leadership, intellect, integrity, and warm spirit. Therefore, it is with sadness that I inform you that Matt has decided to explore other opportunities and will be moving on to the next phase of his career, leaving Friends at the close of the 2020-2021 school year. Matt plans to pursue long-delayed education-related writing projects, engage in some educational consulting, including advising the School on some strategic-oriented projects, volunteer, and take advantage of the opportunity to refresh his perspective by being a student himself.

We are grateful for all he has accomplished. To name just a few of his many successes, Matt:
Created and enacted two strategic plans: Foundations for the Future and Friends Connects
Enhanced professional development through GROW (Growth & Renewal in Our Work), PLUSS (Professional Learning to Uphold Student Success) Sessions, and CTTL (Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning)
Hired the first Director of Diversity, supported the substantial enhancement of diversity, equity and inclusion initiative, and directed the launch of the School’s first ever racial equity strategic plan
Led our largest capital campaign ever, raising almost $26 million
Oversaw the renovation and construction of the Forbush Building and Auditorium, Upper School Academic Building, Dining Hall, and Maker Spaces
Developed deep partnership programs with Baltimore community organizations including the McKim Center
Founded the School’s University Partnership Program and Extra-disciplinary Certificate Program along with other curriculum innovations
Matt will continue to lead the school through June and there will be time and occasion to celebrate his tenure at Friends in the coming months. We will share more information on plans to fete Matt in future communications.

Most immediately, the Board has created a small search committee to hire an Interim Head to join the school in July and serve throughout the 2021-2022 school year. The Interim Head Search Committee is made up of current trustees Norman Forbush ’78 P’21, Meredith van den Beemt P’19, P’20, P’22, Brandyn Hicks P’31, P’33, Lester Davis P’28, P’30, and Larry Clements. This condensed search process should lead to naming an Interim Head in April. Simultaneously, we are creating a larger search committee that, with the assistance of an educational consulting firm, will conduct a national search for a new Head of School in time for the 2022-2023 school year. Choosing an Interim Head for the coming year will provide us with the time and space necessary to engage – in the manner of Quakers – in a thoughtful, deliberative process in choosing a permanent Head.

In our search for a permanent Head, we will be asking faculty, staff, students, current and former parents, alumni, donors, and friends of the school to participate and provide feedback. The Board and search committee look forward to engaging with all of you during this important process that will shape the future of our school and we will update you regularly on our progress.

We know you will join us in wishing Matt well in his future endeavors and ask that you hold us in the Light as our search gets underway.

In peace,


Norman Forbush ‘78
Clerk, Board of Trustees

Copy and paste please!!

Folks outside the school community cannot see messages posted through Blackbaud.

Did he say why?

I can’t access that

I know not DC news, but hoping someone has some insights on this.

https://friendsbalt.myschoolapp.com/podium/push/default.aspx?i=398354&s=593&snd=5e727d1f-04c6-494e-9ca8-549c56c0e68d&fbclid=IwAR2Vay5jHzleU0LvAejFHjK_BiwZhKhYFMHMf2SYFSzERvmXbOXvg8weYIcjavascript:void(0);