On Monday, February 25, 2019, the University High School Board of Trustees announced their unanimous decision to name Alicia LaMagdeleine the next Head of School at University High School.
LaMagdeleine, currently an Assistant Head of School at University High School, will assume the Headship on July 1, 2020, and she will transition into a Head-Elect role for the 2019-20 school year.
The announcement was made in person for students at the day’s community meeting, and the news was delivered concurrently via email to the greater University community. The announcement included messages from the Chairman of the University High School Board of Trustees as well as LaMagdeleine.
A Message from Jeff Lewis, Chair of the Board of Trustees
Monday, February 25, 2019
Dear University Families and Other Members of the University Community,
When founding Head of School Chuck Webster announced his plan to retire at the end of the 2019-20 school year, the Board of Trustees began the process of finding his replacement by asking some questions.
Who are we as a school? Who do we want to become? What do we value most? How do we sustain who we are and build on what we have?
We asked these questions first of ourselves, and then we took these questions to you — University students, parents, faculty and staff, alumni, donors, and friends. Our search committee, ably led by University parents and Trustees Mike Klemsz and Marcy Bandick, listened carefully to what you had to say, and what you shared was remarkably consistent. The school’s culture is key, you said, and the next Head of School should sustain the sense of community, the focus on core values, the commitment to inclusion and diversity, and the educational excellence that have been hallmarks of University High School in these first 20 years.
We also had conversations with experts outside of University High School — leaders of NAIS and ISACS (independent school associations to which we belong), as well as consultants from Head of School search firms that our peer schools have used. These experts shared that the best untapped resource for a new Head of School is an internal leader who has been developed and prepared from within.
What quickly became clear to our search committee and our Board was that the next Head of School was already with us.
Last week, the Board of Trustees unanimously voted to name Alicia LaMagdeleine, current Assistant Head of School, as University High School’s next Head of School. Alicia will assume the Headship on July 1, 2020, and she will transition into a Head-Elect role for the 2019-20 school year.
As part of the formal interview process, Alicia shared with us her personal statement on the importance of the story in education. I encourage you to read it. “I believe in the transformative power of narrative, and this tenet is present in every aspect of my teaching and leadership,” Alicia writes. As University High School’s Head of School, Alicia will be our chief storyteller. She will be a passionate, persuasive, and powerful voice for our school. She will be a guardian of our culture and our values. And she will be an articulate voice for the advancement of pedagogy in the service of our students.
In the coming months, you will have a chance to hear more from Alicia and get acquainted with her in this new role. Additionally, you will have opportunities to thank and pay tribute to Chuck Webster as he begins his final year as Head of School in 2019-20.
Finally, I want to thank the search committee — chairs Mike Klemsz and Marcy Bandick, Cathy Hurst, Michael Mervis, Rohun Rangnekar ’04, and Nancy Toombs — for the many hours they devoted to this process and for their immense thoughtfulness and care in making the right decision for University High School.
The Board of Trustees is confident about the future of University High School in Alicia’s capable hands. We ask that you please join us in congratulating her on her new role as Head of School.
Jeff Lewis
Chairman of the Board of Trustees