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MessageFromTheHead_banner
A aerial shot of the Lonsdale circle
Head of School Search
Welcome to the Head of School Search page, which provides The Bishop Strachan School community with information and updates regarding the search for the next Head of School at BSS.
A Message from the Chair of the Board
Dear BSS community,
After 20 years of bold and compassionate leadership at BSS, Angela Terpstra has informed the Board of Governors that she will be retiring in June 2026. Angela will continue to lead the school with the support of Meagan Enticknap, Deputy Head of School, and the rest of the Senior Leadership Team until the end of the next school year, and she will work closely with them and our next Head of School to enable a smooth transition. The Board would like to thank Angela for her unwavering commitment and the incredible impact she’s had on BSS. We look forward to many opportunities to celebrate her legacy before June 2026.
The Board has been diligently preparing for this important transition and is excited about identifying our next world-class Head of School. A search committee has been established, which includes myself, members of the Board of Governors and the Executive Director of Human Resources. Two long-term BSS employees will serve as Advisors to the Search Committee, sharing their insights and perspectives. Odgers Berndtson, an executive search firm with an expertise in hiring senior leaders for independent schools, will support the Search Committee in identifying a diverse pool of highly qualified candidates.
We believe that input from our community of employees, students, parents and alumnae is vital to ensuring the success of our next Head of School. On October 28, you will be receiving an email with a link to a survey. We encourage you to share your perspective on key leadership priorities as we continue to pursue our mission (Inspire girls to be fearless. Educate girls to be leaders.) in alignment with our values (Pursue Excellence, Take Risks, Be Creative, Learn From Our Differences, Honour Our Heritage, Embrace Change, Be Curious). All responses will be anonymous. Along with the survey, we will be running focus groups of students, parents and alumnae. This input will inform the development of the position profile and candidate evaluation criteria. Thank you in advance for your participation.
We hope to be able to announce the next Head of School by September 2025 and we will provide updates on our progress in the interim. If you have any questions or recommendations with respect to the search process, please email search@bss.on.ca.
Sincerely,
Devon KIRK ’01
Chair, Board of Governors
Search Committee
List of 8 items.
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Devon KIRK '01
Chair of the Board of Governors and Chair of the Human Resources Committee
Devon serves as Partner & Co-Head, Capital Solutions at Portage. Previously, she was Head of Capital Solutions at CPP Investments and before that, Managing Director, Direct Private Equity at CPP Investments, Associate at Linklaters LLP in London and Analyst at BMO Harris Nesbitt in Chicago. She has been on the board of BSS since 2019 and and has served on numerous private company boards in the financial services and technology sectors over the last decade. She is a CFA Charterholder and earned a JD from Harvard Law School (2009) and BCom from McGill University (2005). She graduated from BSS in 2001. -
Sarah MCLACHLIN Atkins '89
Vice Chair Designate of the Board of Governors, Chair of the Strategy Committee and Member of the Human Resources Committee
Over the past 25 years, Sarah has established herself as a proven leader of high-performing teams across several global, North American, and Canadian organizations. She has led through digital transformation, organizational restructurings, and periods of rapid growth, delivering results as a business leader and strategist for some of the most iconic brands in the world, spending 20 years at Nike most recently as CMO, and prior to that, PepsiCo. and Molson Coors. Her expertise lies in crafting innovative marketing solutions, strengthening a brand’s connection to society and its consumer base, leading multi-disciplinary teams, and capital raising. Her last five years at Nike were spent being part of the North American steering committee to re-set the strategy for Girls, successfully increasing participation and accessibility to sport across Canada and the US.Sarah has a brand consulting practice, Lighthouse Strategy, focused specifically on women and girls in sport, serves as strategic advisor to the founder of start-up Paume Inc., and mentors and coaches next-gen female talent. -
Sarah Morgenstern
Vice Chair of the Board of Governors and Co-Chair of the Development Committee
Sarah is Managing Partner of 100 Days North America, a leadership development and coaching platform for new managers, in addition to serving as a strategic advisor to several high-growth ventures. She has over fifteen years of management consulting experience with industry-leading firms Kearney and Deloitte, where she focused on enterprise transformation and performance measurement, and was the co-founder of a successful digital media company. Prior to joining the BSS Board in 2020, Sarah was an active member of the BSS Parent Association for over ten years. She serves on the boards of several not-for-profits and has deep expertise in not-for-profit governance and advancement. She is a member of the Ivey Advisory Board and Chair of the Ivey Annual Fund. Sarah holds a BA (Honours) in Economics and Political Economy from the University of Toronto and an MBA from the Ivey Business School and Western University and is a Chartered Professional Accountant. -
Nilam Ganenthiran
Member of the Board of Governors and Chair of the Finance and Audit Committee
Nilam is the founder and CEO of Beacon Software, a Toronto based firm that buys, builds and grows vertical software businesses. Nilam was previously a Partner at D1 Capital and the President of Instacart, the world's largest grocery e-commerce marketplace, which he helped scale from 12 to approximately 3,500 corporate employees. Outside of Beacon, Nilam serves on the Board of Directors of Discount Tire, Udaan, the Aviation Institute of Maintenance and the SickKids Hospital Foundation. He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BBA from York University's Schulich School of Business. He is a current BSS parent. -
Sam Blaichman
Member of the Board of Governors, member of the Investment Committee and Member of the Disbursements Committee
Sam serves as the head of North American Direct Private Equity at CPP Investments. Prior to joining CPP Investments, Sam worked as a management consultant at Bain & Company and in the Corporate Finance and Assurance groups at PwC.Sam holds a B. Comm. from McGill University and an MBA from Ivey Business School. He is a CFA Charterholder and a Chartered Professional Accountant. Sam currently serves on the boards of Ascot Group, Berlin Packaging and Wilton Re. He is a current BSS parent. -
Janet Duga, Ex-Officio
Executive Director, Human Resources -
Heidi Miller, Employee Advisor
Student Enrolment Associate, former biology teacher and Science Department Head -
Charlotte Fleming, Employee Advisor
Dean of Student Leadership
Updates
List of 3 news stories.
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An Update from the Chair of the Search Committee
Thank you for the valuable and thoughtful feedback shared through surveys and consultation sessions over the past weeks. The responses we received from parents, students, alumnae and staff have been instrumental in finalizing the requirements for the Head of School candidate brief. -
Head of School Search Survey
The search for our next Head of School is underway, and the committee is eager to hear from you. Your insights are crucial as we identify the opportunities and challenges ahead for BSS and determine the vital qualities of our next Head of School. -
Letters From Dr. Angela Terpstra & Devon KIRK '01
Please click here to read letters from Devon KIRK '01, Chair of the Board of Governors and Dr. Angela Terpstra, Head of School, sent to our community on October 21, 2024.
