October 2025 Signals

Hello there! 

Turning the corner on the first quarter of the school year, I invite you to pause and reflect on a challenge your team is currently exploring, whether it’s a small improvement or a transformational shift. As you focus on one piece of the puzzle, be sure to step back to see how the whole system is working together.

Use the tool below to assist your team to zoom out and see the bigger picture. For each category (see below), rate how well it is currently functioning in relation to the challenge you have identified:

• This area is a contributing factor to the challenge we identified.
• This area is currently functioning well in our school.
• This area has some known issues that may be connected to the challenge.
• This area is mixed—some aspects are working, others need attention.
• This area is mostly functioning well with only minor concerns.

Categories to Consider:

Culture – The shared beliefs, values, mindsets, and behaviors that shape how people interact and make decisions within the school community

Communications – How information is shared and received, internally and externally, including tone, clarity, frequency, and accessibility

Programs – The formal offerings and structures that bring your school’s mission to life, such as academic courses, extracurriculars, advisory, or well-being initiatives

People – The individuals and teams involved in the work, including leadership, faculty, staff, students, and families, and how they contribute, collaborate, or experience the challenge

Places – The physical and virtual environments where learning and engagement occur, including classrooms, facilities, common spaces, and digital platforms

Processes – The systems, structures, workflows, and routines that guide how work gets done, how decisions are made, and how resources are allocated

By examining each of these areas, your team can uncover connections and insights that may not be visible when looking at the challenge from only one angle. Sometimes the smallest shifts in one area can create meaningful ripple effects across the whole system.

Also, be sure to explore the Trend Tracker, designed to offer timely insights and inspiration as you navigate the evolving educational landscape. Illustrated through slides, you will be able to incorporate the research and resources into a workshop, meeting, or presentation to build capacity with your leadership team and trustees and future-ready your school. 

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 Use & Attitudes
02 Teacher Collaboration
03 State of Counseling
04 Systems Thinking
05 Cyber Safety
06 Activating Strategy
07 Conflict Agility
08 Philanthropic Landscape

Web Version Trend Tracker, October 2025

Reflecting real-time perspectives representing the voices in our association, we solicited feedback from SAIS heads in September to complete a pulse survey focused on staffing, candidate pools, and employee attrition. Some key findings include the following:

• Schools continue to face significant staffing shortages, with unfilled positions across multiple categories including administration, teaching faculty, support staff, and paraprofessionals.
• Heads rate 49% of candidate pool rate at “very strong” or “strong” compared to five years ago.
• The number of new hires appears relatively stable compared to previous years, with most schools reporting “about the same” level of hiring.
• Retirement and personal/family decisions remain the leading causes of faculty and staff departures, while performance moved up to #3, an increase of six percentage points from last year.
• Schools are actively seeking guidance on AI implementation, with the highest priority areas being case studies and examples from peer schools (68%); developing clear AI policies and guidelines (67%); and building AI literacy for students (60%).

See slide deck for full results.

Web Version Pulse Perspectives, October 2025

Connecting with the data revealed from this month’s Pulse Perspectives, SAIS has designed an event focused on attracting and retaining top faculty and staff in independent schools. At the Timely Challenge Conference in November, attendees will engage in expert-led sessions, peer discussions, and case studies that address 

• Building a compelling employee value proposition
• Navigating generational shifts in the workforce
• Compensation and benefits beyond salary
• Community and belonging in faculty retention
• Creative pipelines for hiring and talent development

Thank you for investing in your staff to participate in our events, webinars, and roundtables.

Happy second quarter,

Dr. Brett Jacobsen
SAIS President