Nonprofit Strategic Planning

Letter of Recommendation

The Episcopal Academy is a leading independent day school for boys and girls, grades K-12, located in the suburbs of Philadelphia.  With a long and deep heritage tracing back to the American Revolution, Episcopal always faces the need to balance its rich traditions with the needs and opportunities of contemporary education.  This became especially true when the entire school relocated in 2008 to a completely new campus in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. As soon as we had settled in to our new facilities, the Board of Trustees saw the need for a Strategic Plan which would guide the school in taking the utmost advantage of our move.

To guide us in the Strategic Plan process we researched dozens of consultants and interviewed five.  In the end, we felt that Edes Gilbert best matched up with our needs and we certainly were right. Further, we had a brisk timeline that we wanted to follow and we believed that Edes would best be able to move us along in ways that our Board would accept and, in fact, welcome.   

We quickly saw that Edes has a very clear understanding of the evolving world of independent schools.  Her experience and knowledge were crucial in helping us identify the most important opportunities and challenges facing Episcopal.   

As the process unfolded over the months that we worked, her clear grasp of what a Strategic Plan should be, and what it cannot be, as well as her ability to help us remain focused on the important Board-level issues and not get bogged down in the details proved to be invaluable.  She led us through the entire process, from identifying the key issues to establishing committees and delegating responsibilities to setting timelines and guiding approval processes.  

In the end, the Plan we have written has been enthusiastically embraced by the Board.  The process was smooth and efficient. Disagreements were aired candidly and resolved.  Major strategies were clearly defined.  And so much of all of this was due to the intelligence, diligence, experience and wonderful human nature of Edes Gilbert.   

- Edward Vick  

Chairman, Strategic Planning Committee 

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