I am deeply honored to step into the role of Head of School at Drew. I’m excited to embark on this journey together with you—students, families, alumni, community and colleagues. What an incredible year of learning, growth, and connection awaits us! 

You may, like me, look forward to the start of a new school year with eager anticipation mixed with a healthy sense of unease: What does this year have in store? Will I keep and forge new relationships? What new, hard things will be asked of me? Will I rise to the challenge – building confidence through both achievement and struggle?

A humbling truth my 25 years of experience as an educator has taught me is that while my best-laid plans absolutely matter, they must also be flexible enough to evolve and change to meet the needs of the moment—not a comfortable realization for a compulsive planner. The poet Mary Oliver invites us to “leave room for the unimaginable.” So, as I enter my first year of headship, I resolve to lead with purposeful intentions and to embrace the unexpected moments and complexities that will inevitably arise.

Yes, I have goals, designed in partnership with the Board of Trustees - which you can view below. I also have personal commitments that I want to make clear to you: I promise to be present in the moment and available to the people who are at the center of our work. I commit to being involved, invested, and always interested in learning as well as leading. In essence, I promise to stay true to the essentials of Drew’s educational mission. 

You can count on me to…

This coming year, a major project I will steward is the school’s accreditation. This involves a deep self-study to identify the strengths and opportunities of our program. The accreditation process invites all school constituencies – from the Board of Trustees to prospective families – to weigh in. As an incoming head, this presents a tremendous opportunity to truly engage with the community, evaluate our program within the competitive market landscape, hone our brand and messaging, and position the school for the future. There is already a talented team at work on this, and I can’t wait to launch the year with this project at the forefront. Looking ahead, I imagine that this year will involve us breaking a little bit of a sweat, and also laughing and learning a lot, together. What else is in store? Only the unimaginable. 

Saya McKenna
Head of School