SAIS Webinar | Middle Matters: Essential Leadership Skills for Mid-Level Leaders

Thursday, April 23, 2026

4:15 PM - 5:15 PM (EDT)

Zoom

Event Details

Mid-level leaders play a pivotal role in every school, translating strategy into action while connecting senior leadership with faculty and staff. Leading from the middle requires a unique set of skills including influencing without formal authority, navigating competing priorities, and building alignment across teams. In this session, participants will explore practical strategies for strengthening influence, building trust, and advancing mission and strategy within their schools, leaving with tools to lead with greater clarity, confidence, and impact.

Series: This webinar is part of our Leadership series.

Speaker: Kawai Lai, Independent Consultant

Bio

Kawai is a culture transformation consultant with Aug.co and a designer and facilitator partnering with leaders to plan for a more equitable future. She brings an inclusion lens, deep industry expertise, and a visual practice to her work. She is a co-author of The New Team Habits © 2020, which provides practices for leaders to build better team habits. She co-founded VizLit to unleash the visual mind of every learner, formerly served as Vice President of Innovation at the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS), and helped launch and grow Education Elements. Prior to her career in education, Kawai was at Deloitte Consulting. She currently serves as a trustee on the boards of several independent schools as well as an advisory board member of Defy Ventures. She has an MBA from the University of California, Berkeley and a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Southern Methodist University.

Who Should Attend: Academic Administrators, Admissions/Enrollment, Advancement/Development, AHOS, Division Heads, Department Chairs, Deans of Students, Ed Tech, First-Time Administrator, First-Time Heads, HOS, and Inclusion & Belonging.