Upon graduating from Vanderbilt University, Carolyn took her first job teaching English and French at a public school outside of Chattanooga, Tennessee. After teaching for four years, she took time to immerse herself into full-time motherhood and involvement in community volunteer work. 

Carolyn returned to the workforce and entered the world of independent schools as a teacher of upper school mathematics at Girls Preparatory School in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Fourteen years of teaching brought local and regional awards as Carolyn rediscovered the great joys of teaching. Under protest and only on the condition that she could continue to teach three upper school math classes, Carolyn joined the school’s administration in the newly designed position of Director of Studies.

Having quickly learned that she enjoyed the creativity afforded by administrative work, Carolyn left GPS after 19 years at the school to assume the position of Assistant Head of School at Metairie Park Country Day School in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 2003. In the fall of 2005, shortly after Katrina made landfall devastating the Country Day campus, Carolyn was named Associate Head of School, charged with managing all day-to-day school operations, restoring the ruined campus, effecting painful but necessary faculty layoffs, and reworking school finances after the sudden loss of 25% of the student body. Maintaining the character and spirit of the school became paramount. Months later, in the spring of 2006, Carolyn was appointed Head of School, stabilizing the school and returning it to a path of growth. She chronicled the lessons she learned in the article “Katrina and Disruptive Innovation” in Independent School, the NAIS magazine. 

In the growth years that followed for Country Day, Carolyn  participated in local, regional, and national associations culminating in leadership positions; among these were service as Vice-Chair of the ISAS board, service on The Heads’ Network faculty and Council, and election to the NAIS Board where she chaired the Engagement Committee and served on the Executive Committee, the Equity and Justice Committee, and the Presidential Search Committee. Involved with the Klingenstein Center at Columbia University since 2010, she has participated in their Heads’ Program, acted as a Klingenstein Field Instructor, and currently serves on the Center’s Advisory Committee. Carolyn’s involvement with five New Orleans charter schools has also been extremely meaningful for her, including serving as short-term Interim CEO for one of these schools, Bricolage Academy. She is on the boards of Madison Country Day School, in Madison, Wisconsin, and Girls Preparatory School in Chattanooga, Tennessee. In November of 2023, Carolyn was invited to join the board of the Edward E. Ford Foundation. 

Carolyn was drawn to Strategic School Leadership by the firm’s emphasis on character-based leadership and by the founding partners’ reputation for excellence. Since joining the firm in 2021, Carolyn has earned certification as a Return on Character® Provider from KRW International, as a Team Management Profile Practitioner from TMS Americas, and as a Leadership Forecast Series Practitioner and Provider for both individuals and teams from Hogan Assessment Systems.

Carolyn has enjoyed serving as the thought partner and executive coach for heads and upper-level administrators in a variety of schools. A partial list of clients includes the Oak Hill School (TN), Jewish Community Day School (LA), Deerfield Academy (MA), St. Michael’s Catholic Academy (TX), St. Luke’s School (CT), Girls Preparatory School (TN), and the Episcopal School of Baton Rouge (LA).

Carolyn offers her extensive leadership experience to groups as well as to individuals by leading board retreats and conducting team-building workshops. It has been Carolyn’s particular privilege to lead five school leaders through the Return on Character® leadership assessment. 

Since 2022, Carolyn has presented at NAIS, SAIS, ISAS, and NWAIS conferences.

Articles

• Dodging Potholes: An Open Letter to New Heads of School in an SAIS newsletter
• Working Toward Better Head-Board Alignment in Independent School