During my nearly seven years of headship, I have been proud to promote leaders from within my institution. This has felt like a personal priority for me: ensuring that the next generation of independent school leadership is poised to take on greater responsibility, thereby ensuring that our schools continue to thrive.
As the first woman to lead my school in its nearly 90-year history, I am particularly sensitive to the development of women leaders and have sponsored a number of my colleagues to attend The Heads Network Women's Leadership Seminar over the past few years. We are a large school, and we enjoy the ability to send a few women to the seminar at the same time.
There are now 11 women at Miami Country Day (aside from yours truly!) who are graduates of the Seminar. To the last one, they have come to tell me in person how transformative and inspirational the experience has been for them. That this was the impact of the seminar didn’t surprise me. What is a surprise, however, is how the graduates continue to gather regularly for dinner and conversation. After a new cohort returned from the fall session, this group, too, was incorporated into the dinner gatherings.
We are a large enough school that the coming together of colleagues from different departments, divisions, and, yes, different parts of the physical campus for social gatherings is truly extraordinary. Among them are senior leaders seriously considering the next step to headship, middle management professionals contemplating whether the timing of promotion is right for them, and young, talented teachers who want to grow, but aren’t quite sure which path to choose.
A few weeks ago, I met with these wonderful women and asked them how the seminar changed their perspectives. The following themes emerged from the conversation:
- There is no single timeline for leadership. The seminar teachers who shared their journeys—heads with decades of experience—spoke candidly during the seminar about nonlinear paths, pauses, pivots, and moments when life demanded their attention elsewhere. For my colleagues, hearing that was profoundly reassuring.
- Leadership opportunities do not vanish when you slow down or say “not now.”
- The seminar teachers did not present curated success stories. They spoke openly about self-doubt, failure, burnout, divorce, parenting, and the emotional cost of leadership. They shared the parts that are usually hidden—and in doing so, made leadership feel accessible to my colleagues.
- Equally powerful, the women at my school felt, was attending as a group. While the learning that occurred during sessions was meaningful, some of the most impactful moments took place between sessions—over meals, through shared laughter, and even in moments of tears. Those conversations created space for reflection and connection, helping them see each other not just as colleagues, but as whole people. Returning to campus, many noticed a quiet shift: a deeper sense of trust, shared understanding, and ease in dialogue. They were “in on something together,” and that mattered.
One of the group members spoke beautifully, not just about how the seminar expanded her own perspectives on leadership, but also about how it inspired her to uplift other women with whom she interacts. I think it is fitting to end this post with her own words:
"I learned a lot, but I felt different about myself when I came back. I felt like I could stand more in my authenticity for so many reasons. You can honor the journey, the point at which you are, and there is strength that rises up from that. And the more that each of us as women stands in the complexity and authenticity of what our journey and our skill set and our talents and our goals and our wishes are, the better the world is. It was the structure [of the seminar], but the fact that women go: “ You, you, are a person who can honor the journey and the light in other people, and that really helps us as women, bring more of that out. I want to be that person. I want to be that person who brings out the light in the world, because it's really special. It's really, really special."
Mariandl Hufford has held the position of President and Head of School at Miami Country Day School since July 1, 2019. During her tenure, she has led the school through a period of growth, despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Highlights include: a revision and adoption of the mission statement of the School, a bold and dynamic strategic vision to lead the School into its future, steady enrollment growth, a strengthened reputation in the South Florida market, and a new integrated visual identity.
Prior to MCDS, Mariandl was the assistant head of school at The Agnes Irwin School in Bryn Mawr, PA, an all-girls preK-12 school. She has also worked as a director of student support services, director of academic affairs, director of the Center for the Advancement of Girls at Agnes Irwin, a school counselor, and Latin teacher. Mariandl holds an A.B. in Classical Studies from Bryn Mawr College, an Ed.M. in Teaching and Curriculum from Harvard University, and two M.S.Ed degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, in Psychological Services and Educational Leadership respectively.