2026 SPARC National Conference

Turn the tools you already have into powerful, low-cost systems for managing your conferences and programs. This interactive roundtable explores how Google Workspace—especially Google Sheets—can be leveraged to streamline data management, improve organization, and automate workflows, helping you scale your programs more efficiently and accurately. Facilitators will share real-world systems and examples that leverage formulas, data connections, automation tools (such as Apps Script), and communication workflows (including mail merge strategies with Google Education Plus) to reduce manual work and improve accuracy. In addition to Google tools, the conversation may also touch on complementary platforms and emerging approaches such as AI-assisted (“vibe”) coding to extend functionality.

The format will be collaborative and discussion-driven. Presenters will guide the conversation through structured subtopics with tips & tricks from our experience and create space for participants to share their own tools, challenges, and solutions.This session is best suited for participants with a basic familiarity with spreadsheets. Those already highly advanced in Google Workspace automation may find the content more foundational, and we would love to hear your input & perspective through the discussion. Attendees will leave with new ideas, practical strategies, and adaptable frameworks to make their program data management more efficient and accurate.

Most strategic planning starts with a vision and works backward, often without a clear picture of the underlying business model needed to sustain it. Revenue streams, cost structure, market position, and institutional capacity are too often treated as assumptions rather than as the foundation for innovation. In this session, the speakers will introduce a business model-first approach to innovation and strategic planning and apply it directly to auxiliary programs and other entrepreneurial opportunities. Using the “RIPL” framework (Research, Innovate, Play, and Learn) you will explore how to test new ideas, understand their financial and strategic value, and build case studies and proposals to bring to your Head of School and CFO to get them on board. Expect a practical, working conversation grounded in frameworks, real data, and real school examples, with time to examine your own program portfolio. You will leave with sharper questions, a clearer understanding of how innovation fits into the school’s broader financial model, and a more compelling way to move a good idea from concept to sustainable strategy.

Are you looking for a way to energize your camp, support your staff, and meaningfully engage your middle schoolers? Join us for a dynamic session on how to build and implement a strong Counselor-in-Training (CIT) Program that does more than just keep tweens busy, it develops leadership skills, fosters responsibility, and lays the foundation for future job success. In this session, we’ll explore how to effectively train middle school students to become capable, confident, and committed junior leaders by:

- Structuring a CIT Program that aligns with your camp’s culture and goals
- Providing age-appropriate leadership training that sticks
- Creating real, valuable roles for CITs that support your instructors and enrich the camp experience
- Promoting mentorship, teamwork, and a clear path to future employment

Whether you're launching a CIT program for the first time or looking to improve an existing one, this session will provide practical tools, proven approaches, and real-world examples to help you empower your middle schoolers and transform your camp community.

Building on the recent success of Pop Ups at Pine Crest School, we launched "Maymester Pop Ups"—a month-long series of Pop Ups in May. This initiative served a dual purpose: internally advertising our summer programs and acting as a concrete example of pivoting on success. The school has consistently found Pop Ups, which are single events requiring minimal time commitment, to be highly effective for encouraging faculty and students to explore new activities.

In today’s fast-paced educational environments, leadership cannot live in an office—it must be visible, relational, and responsive. Boots on the Ground Leadership challenges leaders to move beyond theory and into daily, intentional practices that strengthen culture, increase staff commitment, and improve operational flow.

This interactive session is designed for early childhood, auxiliary and school leaders who are ready to lead alongside their teams, not above them. Participants will explore what it means to be a present, people-centered leader while still maintaining high expectations and operational excellence. Through real-life scenarios, reflective moments, and collaborative discussion, attendees will leave with practical strategies to build trust, reduce staff burnout, and create environments where both children and adults thrive.

You've claimed your seat at the table. Now what do you do with it?

This session picks up where advanced leadership conversations leave off–moving beyond the mechanics of institutional influence and into the harder, quieter work of sustaining it. Designed for auxiliary professionals who have already begun operating at a strategic level, this workshop confronts challenges such as maintaining credibility through leadership transitions, advocating for your division when the institutional winds shift, and deciding what kind of leader you actually want to become.

Together we will wrestle with the ambiguities of senior leadership: when to push and when to hold, how to protect your team's culture while absorbing institutional change, and how to build a professional legacy that outlasts any single program or position.Because the most sophisticated leadership skill isn't getting to the executive level. It's knowing what to do once you get there. During this session we will explore how to:
- Sustain strategic influence through administrative turnover and shifting institutional priorities
- Lead auxiliary divisions through organizational change without losing program integrity or team trust
- Translate auxiliary program outcomes into language that resonates with boards, heads of school, and accreditation bodies
- Navigate the tension between division loyalty and institution-wide responsibility
- Define and communicate your own leadership identity beyond your program's metrics
- Build a professional legacy through intentional mentorship, knowledge transfer, and field contribution

You’ve built programs, scaled revenue, and navigated the complexities of auxiliary leadership. Now what? This session is designed for seasoned auxiliary professionals (10+ years) ready to move beyond operations and into deeper strategic impact. Together, we’ll explore what the next chapter looks like—for you and for the field. We’ll dig into questions around professional growth without clear advancement paths, redefining the value of auxiliary programs within schools, and sustaining innovation and energy over time.

This session will function as a facilitated think tank, not a presentation—bringing experienced leaders together to share candidly, challenge assumptions, and explore new ideas. Through guided discussion and reflection, participants will surface common challenges, exchange insights, and co-create forward-thinking approaches. You’ll leave with fresh perspective, actionable ideas, and a renewed sense of purpose in your work.