MEET OUR HEAD OF SCHOOL
Sara Rubinstein
Sara Rubinstein came to CDS in 2017 with a strong background in curriculum development and academic leadership having previously served as Assistant Headmaster for Academics and the Head of Upper School at Saint Andrew's School, a day and boarding school in Boca Raton, FL. In April 2019, she was appointed Assistant Head of School for Academics at CDS and was promoted to Head of School in August 2020.
The three years of Sara Rubinstein's tenure as Head of Upper School at Carrollwood Day School were transformative for the capstone division of our school. Determined to ensure that all students are given opportunities to find and develop their own particular talents, she worked with her academic leadership team to broaden the curriculum offerings in the upper school. She built a strong innovation, entrepreneurship, and engineering program as well as added a non-IB college prep path to graduation. Just two years after her arrival, CDS became a member of Cum Laude Society, the most prestigious academic award a secondary school can earn and CDS graduates are now matriculating to Ivy League schools and other top tier institutions. Guided by her lifelong commitment to social justice and diversity, equity, and inclusion Sara supports powerful programs and initiatives that raise awareness about pertinent social issues, inspire action, and create positive change. From thought provoking performing arts productions to the Student Leader Action Planning Team – SLAP(T), students are given opportunities to explore and advocate for social change.
Recognized nationally as an allostatic academic leader, Sara was invited to participate in and was included in a publication of The NAIS 2025 and Beyond Initiative: An Invitation to Participate in Co-Creating Our Future, an NAIS project in response to the coronavirus pandemic. In 2020 she was a presenter at the NAIS Speed Innovating program. Sara also participates in The NAIS Strategy Lab events and represents CDS as part of the Mastery Transcript Consortium®, a network of private and public schools who are building a mastery transcript that authentically and holistically captures student learning, progress, and interests.
When CDS, along with the rest of the academic world, was forced to implement an immediate response to the novel coronavirus pandemic, Sara had the lead in developing the framework for Carrollwood Day School's Distance Learning Plans. Making the rapid switch to a digital learning platform required unprecedented agility, innovation, and collaboration. CDS proved to be a leader in our community with our distance learning program, the outreach efforts to keep our community connected, and the personal and memorable graduation celebrations created for our seniors.
Sara is a leader who genuinely appreciates CDS's treasured traditions, holds our mission in high regard, and is ready to build on our outstanding school's legacy of excellence and character. Sara shared these thoughts about taking on the mantle of leadership as Head of Carrollwood Day School:
"I am beyond honored to serve as Carrollwood Day School's next Head of School, an opportunity that is truly a professional dream come true. To me, Carrollwood is more than just another school. It is a second home for me and my family, a community of inspired and inspiring students and faculty, and an exemplar of what education should be.
Now more than ever, our CDS mission meets this moment in history. I firmly believe we offer the most authentically preparatory education for tomorrow's world, developing entrepreneurial thinkers and creative problem solvers, capable of tackling the challenges of an increasingly complex and global society. And we do it all in an atmosphere that creates strong character, teaching our kids to be not just great scholars, but great people.
I look forward to connecting with each and every one of you in the months ahead as we move towards the completion of the Center for Innovation and the beginning of what I will work tirelessly to ensure are our school's brightest days."