List of 1 items.
-
Head of School Transition
List of 19 news stories.
-
Rivers Holds Second Annual State of the School Update: Imagine 2035
Read MoreOn Tuesday, February 11, The Rivers School held an evening event for parents, caregivers, and alumni titled “Imagine 2035: A State of the School Update.” The program provided an inside look at the current state of the school from various perspectives—strategy, governance, finance, development, and academics—along with a special focus on the past year’s strategic planning efforts aimed at shaping a bright future for Rivers.
Click here for an executive summary highlighting key information shared during the presentation. -
The Power of Teams: Head of School Ryan S. Dahlem Participates on PIN Panel
On January 15, the Parents’ Independent School Network (PIN) hosted a virtual heads of school panel to discuss the topic of teams: “Being Our Best Selves: A Team Approach.” In addition to Rivers’ Head of School Ryan S. Dahlem, the event featured heads of school from three other Massachusetts independent schools: Derek Boonisar from Fenn School in Concord; Judith Guild from Brimmer and May School in Chestnut Hill; and Mark Stanek from Shady Hill School in Cambridge.Read More -
Renowned Neuroscientist Mary Helen Immordino-Yang: Understanding Adolescent Brains
We may think of the world of emotions as very separate from biology or the process of learning and the brain, but Mary Helen Immordino-Yang would have you know that those processes are deeply linked. Following the winter break, The Rivers School welcomed back Mary Helen Immordino-Yang, a distinguished neuroscientist and professor of education at the USC Rossier School of Education, as a guest speaker for a day of professional development, and in a later session for parents, caregivers, and alumni.Read More -
“Rivers on the Road” Admission Tour Brings Science to the Harvard Museum of Natural History
The Rivers School admission team recently stopped at the Harvard Museum of Natural History for the second annual “Rivers on the Road” event. The museum’s newly renovated Earth & Planetary Sciences gallery, an expansive space that houses thousands of rare minerals and sparkling gemstones, was a perfect setting for forging new connections and talking about science programs at Rivers.Read More -
Veterans Day at Rivers: Service and Sacrifice
Read MoreThe Rivers School held its annual Veterans Day assembly to recognize and honor members of the community who have served in the military. This year, a new dimension of this 42-year tradition offered students the chance to give back and serve veterans in various community organizations throughout the Boston area. -
Strategic Design Summit: Imagine Rivers 2035
On Saturday, November 2, more than 100 members of the Rivers community—parents, alumni, trustees, and professional community members—came together for an exciting and important task: Imagining the future. Specifically, they were asked to spend the morning discussing, pondering, and creating a vision for The Rivers School of 2035, 10 years down the road. The Strategic Design Summit, convened by strategic planning co-chairs Head of School Ryan S. Dahlem and Trustee Alison Hall P’19, was a milestone along the path that will lead to the creation of a new strategic plan, targeting approval in June 2025.Read More -
Rivers Welcomes AISNE Visiting Team to Campus
A team of educators representing AISNE (Association of Independent Schools in New England) arrived on the Rivers campus on Sunday, September 29, for a three-day visit, as part of the school’s re-accreditation process. The team comprised independent school colleagues, representing a variety of positions and institutions, including nearby Dana Hall, The Winsor School, Walnut Hill School for the Arts, and Milton Academy, among others. The visit marked the next step in the re-accreditation process, following a year of work that included internal reflection, focus groups, and the drafting of a self-study report, which was submitted over the summer. On Wednesday, the visiting team shared initial findings with a small group of senior administrators to conclude the visit; Rivers will receive a detailed team report in several weeks.Read More -
“The Reason We’re Here”: Students Return to Campus for First Day of School
A perfect September morning—blue skies, mild temperatures—set the stage for a joyful first day of school on Tuesday. Returning students embraced one another, greeted their teachers, and launched into the year ahead with aplomb.Read More -
HOS Ryan S. Dahlem Inspires Students to Finish Strong
With campus in full bloom, The Rivers School held one of the last all-school meetings of the 2023-2024 academic year on Monday, April 29. Head of School Ryan S. Dahlem challenged and inspired students to finish the year strong by asking: What will you make of May?Read More -
An Evening of Community and Connection: Charting the Path Forward at Rivers
The Rivers School held an evening event for parents and caregivers, “Community and Connection: A State of the School Update,” on Wednesday, February 7, providing an overview through a range of lenses: strategy, governance, finance, development, academics, and more. The speakers painted a picture of an institution on an upward trajectory, building on the momentum of Head of School Ryan S. Dahlem’s first six months at the helm.Read More -
Cold Comfort: A Head of School’s Lessons from an Antarctic Adventure
Climbing Antarctica’s highest peak—where average temperatures hover around -20F and base camp is reached by taking two unusual flights from Punta Arenas, Chile’s southernmost point—might not be everyone’s idea of a good time. But for Head of School Ryan Dahlem, who scaled the Vinson Massif years ago with a team that included his father, John, the challenges of the climb were part of what made it a life-changing experience for him.Read More -
The Fall Riparian Arrives!
The fall issue of the Riparian is here, with a fresh redesign and a lineup of exciting stories. This issue covers Head of School Ryan S. Dahlem’s journey as an educator, investigates the impact of AI in the classroom (and what Rivers is doing about it!), and takes a look at our travel programs, back bigger and better than ever post-COVID.Read More -
Celebratory Welcome for Ryan S. Dahlem Ushers in Friday Night Lights
A celebration for Head of School Ryan S. Dahlem and his family brought excitement and fanfare to Rivers on Friday evening. More than 300 members of the Rivers community gathered in Kraft Dining Hall to officially welcome the school’s ninth head, Ryan S. Dahlem, and his family to Rivers, preceding the season’s inaugural Friday Night Lights game.Read More -
Looking Back and Forward: A Student-Centered Vision for the Future of Rivers
Head of School Ryan S. Dahlem shared a bright and exciting vision—for students and members of the Rivers professional community alike—highlighting the future of The Rivers School at Monday’s all-school assembly. Dahlem opened with an extended moment of silence in honor of the victims of 9/11 and their families on the 22nd anniversary of the tragic event. He went on to thank the community for an “amazing first week of school...the energy, the excitement, the engagement were so inspiring for me to see.”Read More -
First Day: Dahlem’s Tenure Gets Under Way on Opening Day
“Happy New Year!” The calendar may still read 2023, but that was the greeting offered by Head of School Ryan S. Dahlem at an all-school assembly on the first day of school this past Tuesday, underscoring the excitement of launching into both a new academic year and Dahlem’s tenure as head.Read More -
Ryan Dahlem, Ninth Head of School, Begins Tenure Tomorrow
On July 1, the next chapter for The Rivers School begins as ninth Head of School Ryan S. Dahlem arrives on campus, ready to assume his new role. In anticipation of this pivotal moment, Alan D. Rose Jr. ’87, president of the Board of Trustees, shared the following letter with the Rivers community.Read More -
Incoming Head of School Ryan Dahlem Returns to Rivers
It was back to school last week for students—and back to Rivers for incoming Head of School Ryan Dahlem, who paid his second extended visit to campus to meet with various constituencies in the community from March 27 to 29. Dahlem was accompanied by his wife, Anne, and the Dahlems took the opportunity to further acquaint themselves with the community ahead of their July move to Weston. Dovetailing with a busy admission session, the visit advanced Dahlem’s immersion by broadening the focus to current and newly admitted families.Read More -
Getting Acquainted: Incoming Head of School Ryan Dahlem Visits Campus for Two-Day Immersion
Incoming Head of School Ryan Dahlem visited The Rivers School on February 2 and 3 for a two-day immersion in the life of the school that included classroom visits and meetings with students, trustees, faculty, staff, deans, and department chairs. The itinerary, mapped out by the Heads Transition and Support Committee, was designed to give Mr. Dahlem an opportunity to experience the culture and community of Rivers firsthand before his official start in July.Read More -
Ryan S. Dahlem Named Ninth Head of School
Last week, after an extensive and rigorous search process, the Board of Trustees, acting on the recommendation of the Head of School Search Committee, voted unanimously to appoint Ryan S. Dahlem as Rivers’s ninth head of school, succeeding current head of school Ned Parsons. Ryan will officially join Rivers on July 1, 2023.Read More
Head of School Transition Planning
Dear Rivers Community:
On behalf of the Board of Trustees, we are excited to provide some details about transition planning for incoming Head of School Ryan Dahlem, who will be joining The Rivers School as our ninth head on July 1, 2023. This is an exciting time for everyone in our school community, and we enjoyed welcoming Ryan for two campus visits in early February and late March.
The goals of these visits was simply to allow us to get to know Ryan better and allow him to get to know Rivers and the members of our community better. The first visit on February 2 and 3 focused on our “campus community” (students, faculty, deans, and staff) and trustees. The second visit, on March 28 and 29, focused on the broader school community (alumni, parents, past parents, and prospective parents).
Some highlights of Ryan’s February visit included Upper School and Middle School class visits, Upper School assembly, and meetings with faculty, staff, deans, and department chairs. In March, Ryan met with the parent community, addressed prospective families, and spent time getting to know our campus and the local area.
By way of background, in late October, the Board of Trustees appointed a Head’s Transition and Support Committee (HTSC) consisting of three trustees and three administrators:
–Sheila Hiatt P’21, ’22, ’24, Trustee and HTSC Chair
–Andy Delinsky ’93, Trustee (Head of School, The Peck School, Morristown, NJ)
–Alan D. Rose, Jr. ’87, President, Board of Trustees
–Melissa Anderson P’25, ’25, Head of the Upper School
–John Bower, Head of the Middle School
–Krissie Kelleher P’22, ’25, Associate Head of School for External Relations
The HTSC has reviewed materials from our consultants on successful transition planning for heads of school and has set up a transition portal for Ryan that provides information on Rivers and the community. In addition, Head of School Ned Parsons has provided Ryan with detailed operational reports prepared by his senior administrative team. We have also provided Ryan with some historical information about Rivers. Over the past several weeks, the HTSC has met with Ryan over Zoom and in person to work on transition planning. Ryan is now in weekly communication with Ned Parsons and regular communication with me as we move toward his July 1 start date. In addition, as you know from Ned’s recent announcement, Ryan was directly involved in hiring Jenny Jun-lei Kravitz, our new director of DEI. Overall, we are working hard to strike a balance that allows Ryan to hit the ground running on July 1 while respecting his current duties at St. Margaret’s Episcopal School.
We look forward to a successful leadership transition for Rivers. Please join me in offering Ryan a very warm welcome to campus when he arrives in July.
Regards,
Alan D. Rose, Jr. ’87
President
Board of Trustees
Head’s Transition and Support Committee
List of 6 items.
-
Sheila Hiatt P’21, ’22, ’24, Trustee and HTSC Chair
Sheila is a co-founder and managing partner of Hiatt & Hoke LLP and oversees all of its practice areas. Additionally, she is responsible for managing the day-to-day administrative and operational functions of the firm. Sheila joined the Rivers board in 2019 and serves as a trustee at Dedham Country Day School, where she was president of the board from 2014 to 2017. Sheila and her husband live in Milton and have three children, one of whom is currently attending Rivers. -
Andy Delinsky ’93, Trustee (Head of School, The Peck School, Morristown, NJ)
Andy Delinsky ’93 has served as a trustee since 2019. The Delinsky family has deep ties to Rivers: Andy’s older brother, Eric, graduated in ’87, and their father, Steve Delinsky, served as board president during Delinsky’s years at the school.After Rivers, he earned a BA in English at Franklin & Marshall College and an MA in English from the Bread Loaf School of English at Middlebury College, as well as an MA in leadership from the McDonough School of Business, Georgetown University. He has spent his career in education, teaching at the Fay School and St. Albans School and serving as an administrator at the Bullis School. In July 2014, Andy was chosen to lead the Peck School, a co-educational K-8 school in Morristown, N.J. He lives in New Jersey with his wife, Julie, and their three young children. -
Alan D. Rose, Jr. ’87, President, Board of Trustees
Alan co-founded Rose Law Partners (then Rose & Associates) in 1995. Alan’s practice focuses on civil and criminal trial and appellate litigation in federal and state courts and in arbitration, with an emphasis on commercial litigation, employment litigation, defense of state and federal government and regulatory investigations, and college and university law. Alan served on the Rivers board from 2007 to 2021 and was re-elected in June of 2022. He lives in Weston with his wife and two sons. -
Melissa Anderson P’25, ’25, Head of the Upper School
Melissa Anderson has a BA in politics from Princeton University and a PhD in political science from the University of California, Berkeley. Prior to joining Rivers, Melissa spent 16 years at Greenwich Academy, where she had extensive experience in both teaching history and administrative roles. In addition to teaching Upper School history, Melissa assists with special projects that support curriculum and strategic planning. She has twin daughters in the Rivers Class of 2025. -
John Bower, Head of the Middle School
John Bower joined the faculty in 2008 and has served as head of the Middle School since 2020. During his time at Rivers, John has taught Middle School and Upper School French and Middle School chorus; he has also served as music director for the Middle School and Upper School musicals. He was the school's director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion from 2009 until 2019. In 2017, he received the Walter Family Community Award recognizing his "commitment to cultivating a caring community through extraordinary contributions to the school." John holds a BA in music theory & composition, with a minor in French language, from Haverford College. -
Krissie Kelleher P’22, ’25, Associate Head of School for External Relations
Krissie Kelleher has worked in development for more than 15 years, having started her career in the Harvard College Fund office before moving to Loomis Chaffee, where she was an integral part of the development team. Krissie worked at Loomis as associate director of development and major gifts officer before being promoted to director of major gifts and then director of the school’s Centennial Campaign. A native of the South Shore, she earned a BA in communication from Boston College and an MA in public relations from Boston University.
© 2021 The Rivers School. All Rights Reserved
Rivers admits academically qualified students and does not discriminate against students or families on the basis of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or ethnic or national origin in the administration of its educational programs, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, athletic programs, and other school-administered programs.