April 2026 Signals

Hello there!

The sun is out. Summer is near. The energy has shifted. And seniors are not the only ones with “itis.” There is nothing quite like this time of year wrapped up in joy, fatigue, and anticipation.

In the midst of busy, chaotic community life, I want to offer you a simple but powerful thinking tool introduced by Donella Meadows in Thinking in Systems: A Primer. Meadows gives us a four-question framework for recognizing when a true system is at work around you.

The Tool: Is This a System?

Meadows asks us to pause and ask four questions about whatever we’re observing (i.e., a divisional schedule, a strategic initiative, a fundraising program, a student behavior pattern, a problem that keeps coming back).

• Can you identify the parts? Who or what are the distinct elements involved?
• Do the parts affect each other? Is there real interaction (feedback, influence, dependency) between them?
• Do the parts together produce something none of them could produce alone? Is the whole genuinely greater or different than the sum of its parts?
• Does that behavior persist across different circumstances? Does this pattern show up again and again, in good times and hard ones?

With your team, identify something that has been quietly persisting, whether it is a recurring conflict, a culture issue, or a program that underperforms. Dialogue about the four questions and see what emerges from the voices around the table. Is it a systems issue rather than a people issue? That single reframe can open up an entirely different set of solutions.

As you consider this analysis, I also encourage you to explore this month’s Trend Tracker and Pulse Perspectives, offering timely insights into your systems.

In this edition of the Trend Tracker, we highlight the following signals and trends. Within each area, a number of clickable resources are available. 

01 AI Job Market
02 AI Fluency
03 Brain Skills
04 Employee Engagement
05 Employee Compensation
06 Attention & Intention
07 Leadership Clarity
08 Adoption & Adaptability

Trend Tracker, April 2026 (Web Version)

Reflecting real-time perspectives representing the voices in our association, we solicited feedback from SAIS Ed Tech Professionals to complete a pulse survey focused on top challenges, priorities, and constraints. Some key findings include the following:

• AI integration is accelerating but governance lags behind. Schools are broadly using AI for teacher planning (66%) and researching opportunities for implementation (60%), yet the top AI priorities are supporting responsible student use (69.8%) and developing/refining policies (62.3%), signaling that adoption has outpaced guardrails.
• Cybersecurity remains the #1 tech priority. Enhancing cybersecurity topped the list of technology priorities, and reported incidents increased notably year-over-year (6% in 24-25 & 13% in 25-26), even as most schools have multi-factor authentication and cyber insurance in place.
• Budget constraints and staffing pressures are the dominant operational challenges. Budget constraints led all departmental challenges (47%), followed by balancing innovation with stability and security (32%) and the need for additional staff (30%), suggesting ed tech teams are being asked to do more with limited resources.

See slide deck for full results.

Pulse Perspectives, April 2026 (Web Version)

As you look toward the summer, SAIS is offering a series of experiences designed to strengthen leadership capacity and deepen capabilities across every role in our schools.

• Institute for Early Career Heads: June 15-17
• Surviving & Thriving in School Administration: June 15-17
• Independent School Leadership Forum: June 22-24
• Institute for Heads: June 28-July 1

As you enter the final chapter of the year, we are here for the challenges in front of you and the investments worth making next.

Take care,

Dr. Brett Jacobsen
SAIS President