5RS PARTNERSHIP IN USA INDEPENDENT SCHOOL MARKET
After formally entering the USA market in 2023, The 5Rs Partnership’s unique blend of education and market perspective and expertise to inform and build reputation, strategy, identity and marketing has quickly caught the attention of leading independent schools and associations nationally.
USA Office Opened in Philadelphia April 2024:
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1500 Chestnut St. Suite 2 Philadelphia, PA, USA 19102
2024 MAJOR PROJECTS
5Rs Partnership has already been commissioned for major projects with a range of leading schools right across the USA. Below is a sample of feedback received from our USA major project client schools:
ANNE T. WESTON, PhD, Head of School
Ashley Hall, Charleston, South Carolina, USA
“Ashley Hall has been privileged to work with Stephen Holmes of 5Rs Partnership in our strategic planning process. What attracted us to Stephen’s work is his focus on building reputation, a concept that is easily understood by every member of a school community. Through his desktop analysis of all of the materials that we use to represent Ashley Hall both externally and internally to his time on campus with large numbers of our constituents to a well-crafted survey digging deeper on salient issues, Stephen has developed quickly a deep understanding of our school and presented with clarity those areas on which to continue to build and those where we need focus and discernment. Our team is excited about the emerging direction and the possibilities he is helping us discern and articulate.”
Courtenay Brown, Co-Chair of Trustees
La Scuola International School, San Francisco, California, USA
“At the beginning of this strategic plan, I was not sure what to expect having never participated in one before, but Stephen and his team set out a road map which was essential. Then, he set to work really getting to know the school, its stakeholders, views, goals and dreams, as well as its blind spots. In the end, Stephen offered a detailed plan based on what he heard and saw, combined with insights from his wealth of knowledge of other local and schools from around the world. For any school, new or old, I see now how important it is to do a strategic plan especially under the direction of Stephen who is a genuine expert, hard-working and good person making the whole process thoroughly enjoyable.”
Scott Patridge, Board of Trustees
Saint Marks School, Los Angeles, USA
“Dr. Holmes’ presentation on reputation management provided extremely valuable insights that led to strategic changes at our school. His emphasis on benchmarking and building authentic evidence enabled our Board to make more informed decisions to shape our school’s future.”
Patrick Hennessy, CFO Lansdowne Friends School
Philadelphia, USA
“Stephen Holmes recent work with us represents the rare consultant that understands both the financial and managerial data, as well as the perennial driving goals of the client organization. His research uncovers hard to find trends that encompass market capture, pricing determinations, essential family values that are at the core of what independent schools need to deliver, and a host of other factors vital to consulting intelligence.”
Mr. Burns Jones, Head of School
Cathedral School for Boys, San Francisco, California, USA
“Dr Holmes’ extensive evaluation of our reputation and market analysis, community research and strategy development for our school in 2023/24 has been simply outstanding.”
USA CONFERENCE GUEST SPEAKER
In 2024, 5Rs Partnership has been selected to speak at major school conferences and commissioned to deliver stand-alone workshops and extended programs right across the USA including for: California Association of Independent Schools (CAIS), North Carolina Independent Schools Association (NCAIS), Cleveland Independent Schools (CCIS), Association of New England Independent Schools (AISNE), New Jersey Independent Schools Association (NJAIS) Pennsylvania Association of Independent Schools (PAIS), International Coalition of Girls Schools (ICGS), Association of Independent School Admission Professionals (AISAP), National Smalls Schools Conference (NSSC) and Association for the Advancement of International Education (AAIE).
PAIS (Pennsylvania Association of Independent Schools)
1 day workshop- October 2024 Reputation Management and Strategy Planning
“Stephen provided both a comprehensive overview of reputation management as well as clear and concise actions to take to instantly assess school reputation.”
“I intend to run through some of the breakout discussion questions with the rest of our Leadership Team at some point in advance of our next Strategic Planning launch.”
“Great communication, location, and reminders!”
“Using Reputation for strategic planning is so valuable! Awareness of what reputation truly looks like and how it can be determined.”
“Fantastic- targeted strategies for improving word of mouth references, expanded and strategic pursuit of community partnerships.”
“I intend to run through some of the breakout discussion questions with the rest of our Leadership Team at some point in advance of our next Strategic Planning launch.”
“Great communication, location, and reminders!”
“Using Reputation for strategic planning is so valuable! Awareness of what reputation truly looks like and how it can be determined.”
“Fantastic- targeted strategies for improving word of mouth references, expanded and strategic pursuit of community partnerships.”
Charlotte Avery, Member, Board of Directors for The International Coalition of Girls’ Schools (ICGS) – Headmistress
St Mary’s School, Cambridge, UK
“Dr Stephen Holmes presented a hugely impressive data-driven workshop at the ICGS conference in Cleveland Ohio in June, attended by heads of school and marketing managers from girls’ schools from the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the UK. His messages were of absolute and vital relevance across these educational jurisdictions. Stephen’s years of professional and unique practice as regards placing reputation in a highly nuanced framework of marketing were generously shared in a compelling yet compressed delivery of radical marketing and reputational strategy. He rightly had many of queuing to engage him for further bespoke work in our schools.”
Jen Evers, Director of Strategic Initiatives & Professional Development
International Coalition of Girls’ Schools, Charlottesville, Virginia
“Dear Stephen, I wanted to reach out and thank you for sharing your time, energy, and expertise with our educators and school leaders during the Educating Girls Symposium in NYC. You provided so much food for thought and brought a fresh perspective around everything from strategic planning to reputation building- brilliant!.”
The Association of Independent School Admission and Enrollment Professionals (AISAP), Annual Institute 2024
Salt Lake City, USA
“Stephen had deep knowledge and wasn’t afraid to point out what messaging has been doing wrong and where there is room for growth.” “Such a great session and gave me so much to think about.”
Alison McCloskey
CCIS (Cleveland Council of Independent Schools) Director, Cleveland USA- April 2024
“CCIS had the pleasure and honor of hosting Dr. Stephen Holmes for a well-attended and compelling workshop on Reputation today. His depth of knowledge and engaging delivery style made complex concepts accessible and thought-provoking. It’s clear he is an expert on the subject matter! Dr. Holmes adeptly navigated the intricacies of reputation management, blending theoretical insights with practical advice. There is much interest in collaborating for additional work within our regional consortium. I look forward to working with Dr. Holmes again!”
Meghan Hilleboe, Director of Programs
North Carolina Association of Independent Schools, USA
“Dr. Holmes was an excellent keynote speaker for our Advancement & Admissions Conference! He was engaging and provided implementable insights with high value to our attendees. Based on attendee feedback, his presentation was a highlight of the conference. I highly recommend Stephen Holmes for your next event!”
2024/25 UPCOMING CONFIRMED CONFERENCE SPEAKING
Confirmed major conference and workshop speaking engagements include:
| Event | Presenter | Focus | Date | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ICGS Annual Conference & Pre-conference Workshop 2025 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA |
Dr. Stephen Holmes | Building a Compelling Future Positioning in ICGS Girls Schools: Enacting a Reputation Led Strategy Process | 23 – 25 June, 2025 | Click here |
| NJAIS Trustee Enrichment Day Online |
Dr. Andrew Taylor | Future-Proofing Schools: Generative Strategies for Visionary Leadership | Saturday, January 25, 2025 | Click here |
| California Association of Independent Schools (CAIS) Heads and Trustees Conference Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach Resort, California, USA Contact us to meet at CAIS |
Dr Stephen Holmes | School Reputation: The Ultimate Responsibility and Measure of Trustees and Heads | Saturday, February 1, 2025 | Click here |
| Association of Independent Schools Admission Professionals: 2 Day Program 2024- Admissions and Marketing Professionals Online |
Dr Stephen Holmes | How to Stand out in a Competitive School Market | 5-6 February 2025 | Click here | International Coalition of Girls’ Schools (ICGS)- Educating Girls Symposium Marymount School of New York, NYC |
Dr Stephen Holmes | Reputation: The Ultimate Responsibility and Measure of Girls Schools Heads | 7 February 2025 | Click here |
PAST CONFERENCE SPEAKING
Major past conference and workshop speaking engagements include:
| Event | Presenter | Focus | Date | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Association for the Advancement of International Education (AAIE) – 2024 Global Leadership Conference The Marriott Marquis — New York City |
Dr Stephen Holmes | TBC | 5-7 February 2024 | Click here |
| New Jersey Association of Independent Schools (NJAIS) Online Workshop |
Dr Stephen Holmes | Dr Stephen Holmes Reputation Management: A New Lens for Independent School Trustees and Heads | Tuesday 6 February 2024 at 4:30pm US Eastern Time | Click here |
| International Coalition of Girls’ Schools (ICGS) Educating Girls’ Symposium 2024, Los Angeles, California, USA |
Dr Stephen Holmes | Reputation Management: A New Lens for Strategic Planning for Girls School Heads | Thursday 15 February 2024 | Click here |
| Association of New England Independent Schools (AISNE) Online Workshop |
Dr Stephen Holmes | New Evidence Based Tools and Strategies: How to Stand out from the Crowd in a Competitive Independent School Market | Tuesday 2 April 2024 | Click here |
| ICGS Educating Girls Symposium Melbourne, Australia |
Dr Stephen Holmes | Creating a Compelling Identity in Girls’ Schools through Impactful Strategic Planning | Friday 26 April 2024 | Click here |
| Post-Symposium Workshops – ICGS Educating Girls Symposium Melbourne, Australia |
Dr Stephen Holmes | Reputation Management:A New Lens for Girls’ Schools to Stand out from the Crowd | Saturday 27 April 2024 | Click here |
| North Carolina Association of Independent Schools (NCAIS) Advancement Conference 2024, Lewisville, North Carolina, USA | Dr Stephen Holmes | How to Build and Benchmark Reputation in Independent Schools | Thursday 2 May 2024 | Click here |
| International Coalition of Girls’ Schools (ICGS) Annual Conference 2024, Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel, Maryland, USA |
Dr Stephen Holmes | The 8 Key Steps to Build and Benchmark School Reputation | Monday 24 – Wednesday 26 June 2024 | Click here |
| AISAP Annual Institute Salt Lake City, UT, USA |
Dr Stephen Holmes | Creating Distinctive Marketing Messages for Admissions | Sunday 23- Wednesday 26 June 2024 | Click here |
| National Small Schools Conference 2024 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
Dr Stephen Holmes | Case Study – Lansdowne Friends School, Philadelphia: Reputation Review for an Impactful Positioning Strategy in a Small School | Wednesday 26 – Friday 28 June 2024 | Click here |
| 2024 International Boys’ School Coalition (IBSC) Annual Conference Harrow School, UK |
Dr Stephen Holmes | Case Study CSB: Reputation Analysis for an Impactful and Innovative Strategic Plan | Monday 1 – Thursday 4 July 2024 | Click here |
| ICGS Webinar Online |
Dr Stephen Holmes | In Search of a Valued Proposition: Elements of a Whole School Strategy for Heads | Tuesday August 6, 2024 | Click here |
| Pennsylvania Association of Independent Schools (PAIS) Devon, Pennsylvania USA |
Dr Stephen Holmes | A New Lens for Impactful School Business and Reputation-Management Strategy Planning | Tuesday 8 October 2024 | Click here |
| ICGS Educating Girls Symposium Wimbledon High School GDST, London, UK |
Dr Stephen Holmes | Building School Reputation through Physical Habitat | November 8, 2024 | Click here |
For more, please contact us directly- Dr Stephen Holmes s.holmes@5rspartnership.com