Also, African-American students outnumber White students, yet have zero representation on the faculty or administration. Many of these students arrive without English fluency and lack the support system needed to fully integrate into student life. Another example of poor leadership: the school recruits heavily for international Chinese students who can pay full-tuition, yet have not hired a single Chinese-speaking faculty member.
Students quickly perceive that things are amiss, and they feel less safe as a result. This type of admin behavior destroys confidence and betrays trust, creating a somber tone and low morale on campus. The students ultimately suffer the most, as they have to endure rapid student and faculty turnover, often out of the blue, as when the school decided to fire the assistant head of school within the first month of classes in order to recoup their salary to cover deferred maintenance expenses. The boarding school industry is growing more competitive each year, and WNA has not been able to keep pace as other schools increase their endowments and commit to new facilities and academic programs. However, this important work threatens to be undone by shady managerial decisions, along with the impulse to hide important facts from the students and faculty, notably the school's financial standing and enrollment prospects. The school has made it a priority to recruit heavily for non-white students in order to create a progressive and global learning environment. The best feature of the school is the diversity of its student body. I think anyone looking to get their start in teaching or boarding schools - more. It doesn't hurt that the breaks are long and generous. So while it's not an easy job, it's one of the most rewarding jobs I have ever had. You become a true mentor and guide for the students you work with in all areas, not just the classroom. You are very busy and sometimes it's stressful but the reward is developing relationships with students that allow them to grow and blossom into their potential. You live on campus, do weekly and weekend duty (on rotations), and coach sports. Working at WNA or any small boarding school is a different life style, there's no doubt about that. I don't know that I would have gotten that opportunity anywhere else and I will always be grateful to WNA for allowing me to grow and blossom and to find my true calling. The teachers and students are wonderful to work with! I have loved working there! I have been able to grow in my career, take chances, and lead projects and departments that allowed me to develop the skills and knowledge to take on a senior level administrative position at another school. This school is such a special place, it's hard to explain and describe. The forward momentum will carry WNA well into the future. The ship is being right and while that will continue to take some time, it has been such a positive experience being part of the work in the last few months.
But fortunately, WNA has had a recent change in leadership that has quickly shown the wonderful possibilities of this gem in rural Maryland. WNA has had a rocky few years, that cannot be denied. Pressure is off the charts with the demands of non-teaching duties. So many complaints from the parents that could have had simple fixes, but upper management would exhaust the silence until parents gave up on trying to communicate. They offer a lot to the parents, but they do not deliver. Moreover, the constant fear of not having enough budget to run the school created low morale and threatened job security. The most stressful part about working at West Nottingham Academy was seeing the students suffering from mental health issues. What is the most stressful part about working at WNA? Hearing the alumni would keep the school afloat, was disheartening.
Further, constantly being told there is a ZERO budget took a mental health toll on the team and the students. The Head of School is disengaged she is 100% disconnected from the students and the staff. When a team member would leave throughout the year, they would not hire someone to fill the position that meant others would consume the high levels of work. They are a non-profit, so check out the Finances yourself. Due to the high turnover rate, programs did not effectively run. You are required to drive the school bus for students even if you are not comfortable driving. In addition to duty commitment, you must coach two sports even if you have never played the sport. Uneven work-life balance duty requirements are off the charts-within one week, you will work about 60 hours if you have a duty that weekend: (Friday from 8:30 am to 11 pm, Saturday-11 am- 11 pm, Sunday 11-5).
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