Building a thriving auxiliary program requires more than operational expertise—it demands leadership, diplomacy, and resilience. This session explores the real-world challenges one auxiliary director faced in establishing credibility at a new school, including the work of educating faculty and staff on what auxiliary actually does and navigating resistance from colleagues. We'll examine strategies for driving meaningful and strategic change and how to audit existing programming through a mission-alignment lens to ensure every offering reflects the school's core values. Add to this an unexpected departure at the Head of School level and a construction project that eliminated 25% of campus overnight, and you have a true stress test for any auxiliary program. Come ready for an honest conversation about leading through ambiguity.
