The Breck Institute:
Leading for Social and Academic Belonging
Join us for a small-group independent school experience for educators who want to connect academic leadership and equity in meaningful, lasting ways.
At Breck, we know that the strongest learning environments emerge when instruction and belonging work together. The Institute empowers schools to design for their intersection—bridging research, theory, and practice to build leadership teams’ capacity as instructional leaders.
A School Visit, a Team Retreat, and Professional Learning - All in One.
Participants will see Breck’s leaders, teachers, and students in action during the day, exploring how social and academic belonging reinforce one another across classrooms and community life. Visiting teams will also have dedicated time and space to reflect and strategize for improvement in their own contexts through facilitated discussions and breakout sessions led by faculty from the Melrose Center for Leadership and Equity and the Peter Clark Center for Mind Brain Education. To round out the experience, there are social gatherings such as off-campus hosted happy hours and dinners to build connections across schools and communities.
This is an opportunity for you and your team to see and deepen your understanding of how instructional leadership can create the conditions for every student to thrive—academically and socially.
A Team Experience
The Breck Institute is intentionally designed as a collaborative learning experience. Participating schools are required to send a team of at least 3 but no more than 5 people who bring diverse perspectives and areas of expertise.
Teams should include at least one equity or belonging practitioner, one academic or instructional leader, and one teacher-leader. Participants may come from any division or grade level.
*The Breck Institute is capped at 10 school teams.
Event Hosts
The Institute is hosted by Breck’s two distinctive centers, the Melrose Center for Leadership and Equity and the Peter Clark Center for Mind Brain Education.
The Melrose Center
for Leadership and Equity
Building belonging to support learning.
The Melrose Center for Leadership and Equity at Breck is a cross-divisional, brave space where students and faculty can explore crucial issues of equity, leadership, joy, and restoration that shape the daily health of our school community.
The Peter Clark Center
for Mind Brain Education
Bridging the gap between research and practice.
Operating at the nexus of psychology, cognitive science, and education, we bridge the gap between research and practice for faculty, students, and parents in a variety of educational contexts around the world. The goal? For students to thrive in the classroom and beyond.
Why Attend
Integrate Belonging and Learning
Learn how to bridge instruction and equity to foster thriving academic and social environments for students.
Learn how to bridge instruction and equity to foster thriving academic and social environments for students.
See Breck in Action
Observe Breck students, teachers, and leaders in real time to explore how social and academic belonging extends across classrooms and non-curricular campus life.
Observe Breck students, teachers, and leaders in real time to explore how social and academic belonging extends across classrooms and non-curricular campus life.
Leave with an Actionable Plan
Work in your teams to develop a theory of change to address a real challenge in your organization.
Work in your teams to develop a theory of change to address a real challenge in your organization.
Expand Your Professional Learning Community
Join a collaborative network of peer independent school leaders to share successes, navigate real-world challenges, and learn alongside one another.
Join a collaborative network of peer independent school leaders to share successes, navigate real-world challenges, and learn alongside one another.
Build Systems-Level Leadership
Equip teacher-leaders and administrators with the systems perspective needed to drive meaningful, lasting institutional change.
Equip teacher-leaders and administrators with the systems perspective needed to drive meaningful, lasting institutional change.
Prioritize Time & Space to Strategize
Work through facilitated discussions and structured breakout sessions with your team to turn insights into actionable strategies tailored to your school context.
Work through facilitated discussions and structured breakout sessions with your team to turn insights into actionable strategies tailored to your school context.
At Breck, we know that the strongest learning environments emerge when belonging and instruction work together. We call that personalization and press. The Institute empowers leaders to grow their schools' capacity for high-quality learning experiences for every student, every day.
- Dr. Natalia R. Hernández, Head of School
The Breck Institute Faculty
The Breck Institute Faculty have a combined 70+ years of instructional leadership
Sarah Flotten: Director of the Peter Clark Center
Sarah Flotten is the Director of the Peter Clark Center. Sarah began teaching at Breck in 1990 and has worked in the Center since its opening in 2016. Sarah is a Breck Master Teacher, an honor bestowed on select faculty who have demonstrated outstanding pedagogy and teacher leadership. A graduate of Breck, Sarah has taught 6th- and 8th-grade history, Project Adventure, coached girls soccer and basketball, led the Washington, D.C. trip, and has been the Dean of Students for 5th & 6th Grades; she currently teaches 6th grade history. Sarah earned a Bush Leadership Fellowship to complete her Master’s degree in Teaching and Learning at Harvard University. She enjoys helping faculty implement research-informed practices into their classrooms.
Dr. Chéleah Googe: Director of the Melrose Center
Dr. Chéleah Googe is a passionate educator, facilitator, and equity advocate. As the Director of the Melrose Center for Leadership & Equity, she is committed to advancing inclusive leadership and practice. Dr. Googe's research focuses on Black women educators, examining the complex ways in which race, class, and gender intersect to shape educational experiences and outcomes for both students and adults. This blend of critical theory and practical, hands-on support for learners across the spectrum defines her work. She earned her B.A. from the University of Richmond, an M.Ed. from Virginia Commonwealth University, and her Ph.D. in Higher Education from Old Dominion University.
Dr. Julie Kallio: Lead Researcher
Dr. Julie Kallio is the Lead Researcher in the Peter Clark Center. She supports educators through research to practice translation, curriculum and instruction, and process improvement. Julie graduated with her PhD in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, studying participatory design and improvement science. Her research interests include research-practice partnerships, systems design, innovation and improvement, social networks, and physical learning spaces. Julie previously taught in outdoor education and has experience in independent schools leading technology integration, teaching science, and dorm parenting.
2027 Breck Institute Info Session
Registration
The Breck Institute Experience Team
Senali Dias Abeygunawardena
Dean of Equity
Ben Friesen
Innovation Specialist
Kelsey Hans
Community and Global Engagement Coordinator, Head Girls Soccer Coach
Halle Huff
Event Planner
Catherine Pearson
Innovation Specialist
Sam Polk
Dean of Learning and Instruction
Frederique Schmidt
Dean of Community Engagement / World Languages Teacher
Justin Toliver
Dean of Leadership