马特·科森蒂诺写，郊区生活杂志- 2024年5月

Many people become inspired to pursue a career in education based on their own positive experiences in school, or perhaps because they witnessed the personal fulfillment that a friend or relative received from being a teacher or administrator. 这两种情况都适用于 苏Szczepkowski, 十大体育外围平台排名(GA)低年级校长, 尽管她在最不经意的时候发现了自己的使命.

An aspiring lawyer during her undergraduate years at the University of Pennsylvania, Szczepkowski was also a standout player on the Quakers’ field hockey team and had such a passion for the sport that she started coaching children while still in college. 这个角色最终改变了她的人生道路.

“One day I was on Penn’s campus and I saw a group of elementary-aged kids going into the communication school for a theatrical performance,她回忆道。. “They were about 7 years old, and I loved watching them interact and I loved their energy. 我只是发现自己更倾向于和年幼的孩子一起工作. 所以我在大四的时候决定进入初等教育领域.”

Szczepkowski went on to earn a master’s degree in elementary education from Penn and later added a second master’s degree in educational leadership and her Pennsylvania principal certification from Gwynedd Mercy University. Her decades-long career has included various teaching and administrative roles in both public and independent schools, and through it all she has leaned on the lessons she first learned as a hockey player and coach.

就像学生运动员一样, 她解释说, 教室里的学生都有独特的才能, and it’s the job of the teacher to put them in position to get the most out of their gifts.

“Being flexible and creating an environment where everybody belongs and can grow at different rates is how I always approached my teaching,她说。. “I see myself as selecting good talent—people who will meet children where they are, 欣赏他们, 爱他们, 即使他们是棘手的，一路上有颠簸. 团队中有这些人可以帮助每个人成长并感受到快乐.”

Szczepkowski previously spent four years as 较低的学校 Head for Chestnut Hill Academy. She “pressed pause” on her career to start a family and raise her three boys before returning to education in 2012, 当时她接受了GA现在的职位.

“我真的被学校的使命所吸引，”她说. “There are five points to the mission: It inspires students to be independent in thought, 表达自信, 合作行动, 精神上富有同情心, 行为高尚. 我只是觉得我能在这里打得很好, and that my approach of building a strong culture for learning and teaching, and then hiring great people and allowing them to do their work collectively and not micromanaging, 会接受我作为领导者的优势吗.”

监督从学前班到五年级的学生, Szczepkowski has stayed true to the principles that have made GA a premier independent school for more than 260 years. 同时, 她帮助进一步发展以游戏为基础的教育, 体育活动, 户外学习. 她很享受与老师密切合作的机会, 倾听他们的想法, and give them the tools needed to put those ideas into everyday practice.

Szczepkowski is proud of how GA prepares children academically for middle school, 高中, 及以后, 同时教给他们基本的生活技能.

Szczepkowski is no longer involved with her first passion: field hockey. After previously working with Penn’s team and with the United States Field Hockey Association’s Olympic youth development program, 她现在通过费城女子跑步赛获得了自己的教练定位. Her work with the nonprofit enables her to help young girls develop physical and emotional confidence and bring out their competitive spirit. 

她还担任EQuipt People的顾问委员会成员, 一家由她的前曲棍球队友创办的公司, 克里斯汀英里. EQuipt People strives to help organizations and their leaders create cultures of understanding through listening. Szczepkowski已经在她在GA的工作中看到了这个概念的共鸣. 

“Christine has worked closely with me and our teachers on emotional intelligence and team building, 我认为这体现在我们的孩子和老师身上,她说。. “We’re going to be doing deeper work on specific game-based listening for students that is going to be revolutionary, 所以我对未来一两年的发展感到非常兴奋.”