Purpose Project

As Independent Schools, we need to communicate our resonant and relevant purpose as a means of reinforcing the valuable work that takes place in our schools and of identifying ourselves accurately and compellingly for the next generation of communities, families, and students.

It is not enough for independent schools to be "defensible." We must show that we are purposeful and necessary contributors to the lives of students and families, as well as our communities.

Through The Purpose Project, a partnership between John Gulla, Executive Director of the E. E. Ford Foundation, and Ross Peters, Managing Partner of EXPLO Elevate, participants will help develop language that makes this purpose explicit. The Project will also seek to examine and better articulate the purpose of independent schools, while embracing the vast diversity of independent schools who each seek under their mission statements to impact student experience for the better.

Resonant and Relevant

by Ross Peters, Managing Partner, EXPLO Elevate

It’s not enough for independent schools to be “defensible” in the larger context of education. They must show they are purposeful and necessary contributors to the lives of students, families, and communities. Schools need to be able to name their shared purpose – or else they will continue to be disappointed by how others define them.

Read the Article

Penny Evins Head, Holton-Arms School

Dr. Nicole Furlonge Executive Director, Klingenstein Center at Columbia University

Dr. Stuart Gulley President, Woodward Academy

John Gulla Co-founder, The Purpose Project + Executive Director, Edward E. Ford Foundation

Rev. Dan Heischman, D.D. Associate Director, ELM Program, Yale Divinity School; + Former Executive Director, National Association of Episcopal Schools

Donna Orem Former President, National Association of Independent Schools

Ross Peters Co-founder, The Purpose Project + Managing Partner, EXPLO Elevate

Dr. Meera Viswanathan Head, Ethel Walker School

What's the value for society at large?

Develop leaders and engaged citizens
To love your neighbor as yourself
Creating an intentional community that helps students develop the tools to be citizens and leaders of a diverse democratic society
To cultivate thought
Cultivate talented, empathetic, engaged, and responsible citizens
developing humans who know how to engage in messy and difficult problems within pluralistic communities
Enrich and diversify voices in education and the future
Providing a mission-driven school option to state-driven/board of education driven schools
To support democracy: to try, even imperfectly.
Educating for excellence and with moral purpose
Our independence, agility, and responsiveness mean we can iterate and evolve quickly
Making the public a better society
Students learn to be better citizens, supporting the future of the society at large.
To empower the next generation to lead, educate, and challenge the status quo.
We are often incubators and R&D for K-12 education writ large.
Develop engaged citizens and leaders who will act to fight injustice
Developing change makers who need a distinct type of learning
Our graduates are independent thinkers who challenge the status quo
To share innovations in teaching and learning with all educators
Meaningful and informed contributions, cultivating and supporting future engaged thoughtful citizens, ensuring our schools reflect the community where it
Our students realize the importance of adding value to the community around them....both at the boarding school and where they reside the rest of the year.
To give parents compelling options for partnership in raising their children to be the people they're intended to be
Developing future power brokers who will not leverage it for evil.
Engaged citizens who share their greatest gifts and talents to contribute to our community
To be a thought leader as an education institution
The values lived by indy school community members impact their communities.

What's the benefit for our students?

To partner with families in helping to grow a fully self-actualized human being by always focusing on what is in the best interest of the student
Learning in a safe intellectual community so that failure is ok, disagreement is ok, curiosity is ok: teaching students to manage their minds.
Experiential opportunities, application based learning, authentic connections, exploration and understanding of their personal learning
They are ready to shape a better world in a future that is uncertain and fraught
the space and permission for their voices to matter in their classrooms and lives working with supportive adults who take time to hear and mentor them
To meet peers of "class" who will potentially affect their future in positive (I.e. class and $$) ways.
develop a social conscience
Develop voice and confidence to become global leaders
To learn to share their voice and to listen authentically to the voices of others
To be thoughtful and engaged citizens
To become the best versions of themselves
A space to be curious, to make mistakes, to experience joy, and to grow
To be confidently equipped to navigate the future that lies ahead
Agency
To create life long learners
To connect with others
To understand their agency and their responsibility to live fully in relationship to others
Personal Transformation
They will be able to advocate for themselves and others
Teach them to think and express clearly
To build the leaders we need
To learn their potential and to be accountable to use that for good
Discover themselves and learn more about the complex and interconnected world we live in
Prepare good citizens
Experience, opportunity and values.
To know their place in the history of the school and community
To discern
Personalized and designed around their needs
Personalized instruction that empowers students to grow independently.
To understand learning and themselves as learners.
Individual attention and nurturing
To help them find their voice
To be known deeply and to know themselves and others

What's the value for our communities?

Creating a space where children and childhood are held sacred and kids can reach their full potential as intellectual and spiritual beings
potential for access to programming as in college town model
Meaningful and informed contributions, cultivating and supporting future engaged thoughtful citizens, ensuring our schools reflect the community where it
inspire students to reach beyond themselves to make a difference in the world.
School innovation
Access to privilege
Partnership
Strong school leadership should engender a symbiotic relationship with the community where both school and community benefit from opportunities to learn
"From ChatGPT: Independent schools provide a wide range of advantages over public schools. These advantages include smaller class sizes, personalized instruction...
Creating the leaders our communities need to drive the changes our society needs
a space for and model of civil discourse
Developing future community leaders
To become the best versions of themselves
Connection through shared values
Make life-changing opportunities for children and families who might not otherwise have them
To be of service
For parents to network.
Children in a mission driven environment, living, learning and sharing together.
A body of people with purpose who can help
To prepare individuals who will wrestle with the challenges of the community
Independence from limitations of public education .
That they will be infused with people who advocate for themselves and others.
Choice in schools

How do we tell a better story?

Create an amazing "We are independent school in" campaign that shares myriad stories.
We are not an elite school but we help create elite learners and leaders.
Part of the challenge of telling a better story is that we are so different from each other in many ways
We are often education as it should be/can be.
Acknowledge our challenging histories
Acknowledge the contradictions and nuances in our schools' existence/work and tell the stories of our schools' work towards growth, improvement, and chan
Fact: We've never turned a stud at away base on tuition needs.
Change our tuition model so we are not elitist.
insist there is a place for mission driven education in healthy communities
All children deserve an exceptional education and there should be many options for our nation's youth
Highlight the transformational experience that we offer and that puts students in position to transform the lives of others
First listen to the criticisms of our community so we can better tell our story.
Invite productive interrogation about why we do what we do - start a dialogue
What research says
We first HONOR ourselves with flexible tools (mindset/emotional) to tell our stories.
We need to better understand our own impact before we can tell the stories we need to.
We need to firmly know our abilities, recognize our weaknesses, understand our communities and identify the misconceptions
Don't tell the story in contrast to public schools
Celebrate outcomes from a human perspective.
Define a good life
Connect positive impact to experiential education through compelling storytelling
Tell the human story of the school, through students an alumni
Give voice to our students, families, and teachers to tell their stories.
Stories of alums.
Focus on how we can ensure schools are serving all students within a community
We have to use the same pedagogical practices that reach diverse learning styles--telling the story with words, images, voices, experiences, etc.
We should be telling many stories.
Stories of alums
We foster a love of learning.
Give our students the microphone
Through student work and in their voice
Embrace the many stories that make up "our" story
Don't begin w/ an apology
Many diverse perspectives
National mar-com.
Start with the why
Start with our unique gifts, and how we use them to contribute to something bigger
The best storytellers are first and foremost excellent listeners.
Ensure it's not a single story

The Purpose Project Webinar

Hear John Gulla, Executive Director of the E. E. Ford Foundation, and Ross Peters, Managing Partner of EXPLO Elevate, opening remarks from our April Webinar. In this webinar, we asked participants to respond to a series of prompts. Many of their responses are featured in the table below.

Watch the Webinar

What will it look like for our schools to be good partners with our families?

The families entrust their children in our ability to help develop well-rounded, productive citizens
To create a community of ideas that causes families to flourish, and move into new ways of learning, living, and contributing to society
Our purpose is to remind families of the higher purpose of an independent school education: we older folks are prophets of a future not our own. We are developing students to live flourishing (!) lives not just for the next four years, but the next 8 decades of their lives.
To families— to personalize your educational journey and light your fire for life.
A good partner with families is to truly accept how a family is defined and not be judgmental as seems to be more the case than not.
One of our key challenges is that few members in the independent school community have spent significant time— as students, parents or employees in other settings— public, international, IB, etc. There are plenty who have done, but those folks are not leading the conversation. This one or others. Thus our perspective is looking from this inside out, and hard to see the water we are swimming in.
Providing context for families to better understand the development journey of their child and the role of the school in this.
Need to address the way “parents” and “families” are increasingly being seen not as partners but as obstructionists.
Our purpose for families is to honestly offer the most ambitious, mission-driven program possible - families can determine if it is a direct match for them by entrusting us with their children.
Can you be "Partners" with parents or have a "Covenantal relationship" AND treat parents like "customers?" Does the transactional relationship of customer service seem to be in conflict with partnership?
I have seen a shift to a transactional nature of the relationship. I would like to see more of a shared commitment to something larger… the school community. I look to David Brooks and his chapter on community in The Second Mountain.
To partner with families, we need to be accesible to all of them. Speak their language, be available, reaching out and maintain the lines of communication open.
It feels like more and more, schools are charged with helping impart soft skills, values that was once the domain of families. In that light, I would offer something about partnering in the raising of children of character and values, along with the nourishment and expansion of a student's intellectual life.
We have the opportunity to be empathic partners, lean into the consumer business that we are in and offer educational pathways for parents, who might push back, but we can’t do this without them. In addition, our professionals need training in parent relations and perhaps this aspect of the roles of educators should become more visible and required in teacher training/staff training programs. The way it has been and was during my time as a child is not working. Judging is not going to help any of us. What if we lean into the judge less with a desire to understand more. Perhaps building more community within our communities for parents.
In order to truly partner with families, the school needs to be A PART OF the community/communities those families live, work and play in. We can’t know them without knowing and being a part of their context.

Read the following description of independent schools by Chat GPT. What does it get right? What's missing?

Independent schools, also known as private schools, are educational institutions that are not affiliated with the government or public school system. These schools operate independently and are funded by tuition, donations, and other private sources.

The purpose of independent schools is to provide an alternative to public schools and to offer families and students more choice in their education. Independent schools often have smaller class sizes, more individualized attention, and more rigorous academic programs than public schools. They may also offer specialized programs in areas such as the arts, athletics, or STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math).
Independent schools may also offer a particular educational philosophy or religious affiliation that appeals to families who want their children to receive a specific type of education. Additionally, independent schools are often able to provide a wider range of extracurricular activities, including sports, music, and drama programs, than public schools.

Overall, the purpose of independent schools is to provide families with a choice in their children's education and to offer high-quality academic programs and extracurricular opportunities.
- We find this to be quite accurate
- I do like lots of this, but I would edit, “independent schools also over a “wide” range of… (not wider range)—because school programs are varied.
- The purpose of independent schools is to develop critical thinkers that can navigate an ever changing world.
- to offer families choices in education that my more closely aligned with their values and goals (JTBD framework idea).
- Independent schools aspire to inspire individual students to consider themselves as agents of positive change and growing the good the greater world.
- This definition did not mention the word Mission
- I don’t think we ONLY exist to provide an alternative to the public system. I believe our purpose is our own. We exist to serve the development of the whole student, staff, and community. We are more than just a collection of features and benefits.
- One new purpose of independent schools is to explore, incubate, assess, and refine new concepts, pedagogies, frameworks, programs, etc. for future-facing learning that can be scaled to public school systems. In this sense, independent schools have a responsibility to think about “innovation transfer.”
- I’d remove the consistent comparison to public schools.
- The statements starts with what they are “not.” I’d start with what they are - Independent schools are organizations founded to serve children, with each school having their own unique mission and philosophy.
- Provide a sandbox/laboratory for educational practices and experiences, thereby being of greater service to the field of education.
- Agree with…”wide” versus “wider range”
- Overall, the purpose of independent schools is to provide families with a choice in their children's education and to offer a variety of academic programs and extracurricular opportunities.
- I’d edit the purpose—not just about choice…It’s about best fit, serving as an education laboratory, serving a public purpose and, of course providing an excellent and relevant and joyful education for all students…
- ..and to offer innovative and relevant programs and opportunities.
- To offer families additional opportunity to align their family values with the values of the school
- Independent schools do not need to adhere to state testing mandates which gives them more freedom in building curriculum
- to offer parents a place to thoroughly embrace their child with language-based learning differences.
- The purpose of independent schools is to form young people who will contribute to the common good, act as effective citizens, and live fulfilling lives.
- I question the use of the word “rigorous”
- Not a bad response totally. "The purpose of independent schools is to provide an alternative to public schools and to offer families and students more choice in their education..." -->this is framed in terms of what independent schools are not (ie not public schools) instead of what they are (which is undefined.) This seems aligned with how often we define ourselves against our competitors instead of based on our own values, contributions, and opportunity.
- Would strike sentence about offering a wider range of extracurriculars.
- Historically, it should be that public schools provide an alternative to independent schools. :)
- Suggested edit: Independent schools often feature space for greater teacher initiative
- The purpose should focus on making the world a better place.
- I think that if we don’t, as part of efforts to clarify our purpose, address the reality that our schools have enormous privilege when compared to the public schools, we will appear disingenuous.
- Independent schools aspire to inspire individual students to consider themselves as agents of positive change and collectively strive to grow the good in the greater world.
- The key here is to focus on what we ARE rather than what we are not (e.g. we are not affiliated with…). The purpose of independent schools is to improve the quality of human life and the world around us through education.
- Kill “rigorous,” and replace maybe “challenging and broader”—but it needs more
- To shape leaders who embody integrity, ethics, empathy and a sense of their obligation to making the world a better place, including helping the less fortunate and addressing global environmental concerns, striving to fix what previous generations have so thoroughly screwed up.
- There is a need to clarify that independent schools are not the same as private schools.
- Additionally, independent schools are entwined in the fabric of their local economies. Each school, regardless of size and scope, is connected to its local community in a myriad of ways, namely by employing teachers, professional staff and hourly support workers, and by working with local businesses to procure goods and services.

On the Purpose project website, what are you glad to see on that page, what surprises you, what challenges you?

Independent schools are fertile laboratories for experimentation. Our best ideas & practices can and should be shared for the greater good of all teachers and learners.
We put the student FIRST
Interesting point by Karina Baum: This definition ommited the “why” they were created. Their “original” purpose.
Wonder if you might address that?
I am glad to see the many comments on disruption, innovation, and incubation. I am disappointed to not see more focus on governance. If we are going to have a more public purpose, we will need more community representation (not just parents), including youth members. We can cultivate more just models.
Words that were used more than 3 times in the comments above: Sandbox, range, individual, change, learning, values, wider, think, response, laboratory, new, alternative
Someone points out needing to clarify the difference between “independent” and “private” schools. Might be worth talking about.
Glad to see curiosity and future focus. Would like to see more about a call to cooperate, not expect a marketing campaign to do this for us, and collaborate with each other, despite competition.
Glad to see: We are often incubators and R&D for K-12 education writ large.
I was happy to see the idea of “creating a space where children and childhood are held sacred” and I was surprised to see that one of the values was “access to privilege.” Also surprised by the idea that independent schools helps students “become the best versions of themselves.” That strikes me as a low bar . A higher bar is to help students “discover their deepest gifts and use these gifts to contribute to something bigger than themselves”. This is purpose in a nutshell.
Happy to see “To be thoughtful and engaged citizens” there. Meeting peers of "class" who will potentially affect their future in positive (I.e. class and $$) ways” may be a reality yet it is feeds the privilege narrative that creates negative perceptions of independent schools, especially among those who have had limited access historically.
I like this: Under the question “how do we tell a better story?”, one response suggests “First listen to the criticisms of our community so we can better tell our story.” This is essential.
I’m glad to see a focus on the value for society as a whole and the value to the community – these strike me as very significant. Social returns on the investment in education are keys to the future.
"To support democracy: to try, even imperfectly" --> Loved this, as a benefit to society as a whole. It encompasses so much, is aspirational. It will/may be seen as being in tension with ideas around privilege, wealth, etc. Also liked "independent thinkers who challenge the status quo", as it pushes on some boundaries we might experience.
Glad to see: community as central to our work, interwoven, not an extra.
I thought it was interesting to note the very few references to “rigor” and “academic excellence” in the Benefits for our Students section. The comments are more about who our students are and less about what they know (from a curricular perspective).
Like emphasis on citizenship
I am surprised one of the questions isn’t, “what is the value to parents/guardians/families?” I’m glad to see the first question is benefit to students. I am surprised to see the long list of replies - will we be able to cull it/theme it? I am challenged to see whether can can truly have external (society) responsibilities when our supporters are often there for their own children’s’ benefit.
Glad to see someone say that independent schools give parents compelling options for partnership in raising their children to be who they are supposed to be!
I like that the “benefits to students includes: helping to grow a fully self-actualized human being; develop a social conscience; to learn their potential and to be accountable to use that for good.
“To be a thought leader as an education institution” Glad to see this…I would add that the institution also functions as a “citizen” Indy schools should lead and model
I appreciate the focus on helping students "navigate" - I would add "and build" - the future. Yes to the expectation that students use their learning to positively influence and develop their world.
Glad to see value for society on the page. That is a great point for independent schools to share. Love the notion of involving the students in the conversation. Surprised to see support of democracy because there is such differing opinions.
Challenged by "access to privilege" I do think we provide access to power, perhaps that's the same thing?
I attended an independent school in high school and taught in independent schools for my first 5 years of teaching. I spent 22 years as a public school teacher. What is challenging me is that public schools would say that same things as what is on this site. Is the only difference small classes and teacher autonomy? I am surprised by the number of times I saw the term “incubator” how is that knowledge then shared beyond the independent school network? I also think there is a benefit in the fact that students apply and or chosen.
Interesting: I am challenged to see whether can can truly have external (society) responsibilities when our supporters are often there for their own children’s’ benefit.
I appreciate the last section on “how do we tell a better story” and would add that based on my experience reading independent school missions, the minimum should be to hold each school accountable to their mission. Are we all walking the walk, or talking the talk.A lot of our systems and structures do not allow us to fulfill our current missions and therefore, our purpose.
Small, Safe, Superlative.
More than two name Love the notion of involving the students in the conversation.
the word "Disruptors" under Role/Purpose in conversations about education in general tab
Talk about how to include students in this? Are there students here today?
Lots of literature (mostly in developing nations) on social vs private returns to higher levels of education.
Interesting to see that the threads from the ‘value for society as a whole’ are not mirrored or expounded in the. ‘How we tell our story.’ The value bucket is especially rich.
John, I am glad you called out the need for more voices in the conversation, but I would urge to you add more facilitators with skill, gravitas, and intersecting identities for next time.
Gulla already spoke to this (hi, Gulla!) but I am wondering if families of various identities (race, ethnicity) would agree with these guidelines.
“Define a good life” is challenging and aspirational, but I’m not sure what to make of it.
celebrating the wonder of children and emerging adults in safe and supportive ways.
You can invite participants to speak. They just need to raise their hands. (If you want other voices)
I was surprised by the statement on the website: "To meet peers of "class" who will potentially affect their future in positive (I.e. class and $$) ways." That statement certainly rubs me the wrong way, and yet, I do wonder how much that is saying aloud something that many alumni and parents who are investing in our schools think - that they want our students to be connected to a network of peers who will open doors throughout their lives and lend ease and benefit to competition - capitalizing on this and for common good seems like a component of our schools' purpose.
In line with DK’s “social returns” —yes, there needs to be a return to a democratic society that permits indy schools to operate as nonprofits on land that is worth, probably, kajillions in forgone taxes to the communities they are in.
Surprised to see: “We are often education as it should be/can be.” Surprised because so many independent schools are still operating under a century old schedule of 45 min classes, weighted down by APs, siloed curriculum, etc. Is that really education as it should be? Few (although more and more) are really getting outside the box pedagogically.
I am struck that there are very few (if any) explicit references to the college advising process that is a part of a private school experience for the vast majority of their students. That isn’t about that private schools grads go to “better”/more elite schools but rather the focus that most private/independent schools place on that part of the value that these schools provide. I also recognize that my comment may not be directly relevant to the “purpose” of these schools, but it is a critical reason why families take into account when choosing to have their children attend one!
I like the language about voices in the classroom, but I would suggest more detail about independent schools welcoming and encouraging diversity of thought and learning from a variety of perspectives
Though 1% in totality, our community is large and valuable networking exists in a big and impressive way. It feels we are all in this together. Therefore, I appreciate the references to “sharing” throughout - research, innovations, strategies, outcomes and more.
The “internal work” Ross just named is step one, before any external messaging. Who is the “we” of independent schools? Who are we and how do we handle our own points of agreements and our differences?
I'm curious about our role in building student's social capital...seems we care more about this than large publics? I assume you've reviewed this: https://www.christenseninstitute.org/publications/measurement-report/
Yes, it was a privileged seat and the pandemic allowed us to be independent and therein allow for continuity of care and community. Let us not forget or be shy about the independence and therein terrific wind in our sails that should lift and inspire us to do all that we are able in easy and complex circumstances. Keeping students at the center was visible and central during that time and shed light on our ability to do so.

Purpose Project

Help us celebrate and clarify the purpose of independent schools for a new day.

Join the Purpose Project

Featured in Independent School Magazine

Resonant and Relevant

Purpose Project Advisory Committee

The Purpose of Independent Schools

Participant Responses

The Purpose Project Webinar

Webinar Responses