About
Leadership
Long renowned for educational excellence, love of learning, and compassionate participation in the world, Shipley has taken bold new strides to ensure students are prepared to thrive in a dynamic and frequently challenging world.
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Shipley Community Letter from Michael G. Turner
"It’s been a brutal week, after a historically difficult few months. Let’s look on that as something that unites us, not divides us. Let’s do what friends and family do when they’re tired. Let’s lean on each other. Let me toil while you rest, then you can help me. We’ll each do our part, together."Read More -
Shipley Community Letter from Michael G. Turner
This month’s community letter traces a conversation among three of our leading social activists. In this exchange about service learning, we see some of what makes the human condition so profoundly challenging, rich, and rewarding, as well as some of the very best of what makes Shipley special.Read More -
Shipley Community Letter from Michael G. Turner
This month’s community letter highlights how we intentionally tend to the intellectual, emotional, and physical lives of our colleagues so they can be at their best to meet the needs of our students.Read More -
Letter from Michael G. Turner
Shipley's Head of School Michael G. Turner expresses gratitude and appreciation. Read Michael's August letter and learn how you can share your Shipley story.Read More
Michael G. Turner was named Shipley’s 10th Head of School by the Board of Trustees in October 2018 and officially joined the Shipley community on July 1, 2019. He is a graduate of Germantown Academy and the University of Pennsylvania, has earned a Master of Education from Arcadia University, and expects to complete a Doctorate of Education at The College of William & Mary. Michael came to Shipley from St. Michael's Episcopal School in Richmond, VA, where he served as Head of School.
In a letter to the Shipley community announcing Michael’s appointment, Board of Trustees’ Chair Brooksley Wylie said: “Michael is a forward-thinking, compassionate, and experienced Head of School. Building on an impressive range of administrative positions, Michael will bring outstanding leadership and management to the School, as well as a strong personal commitment to diversity and inclusion, educational excellence, and student well-being. The committee was impressed with Michael’s transformative leadership at St. Michael’s, where he laid out a clear and innovative vision for the School, developed a comprehensive strategic plan to advance that vision, and successfully executed against the strategic plan. The committee was also impressed by the strong rapport he enjoys with St. Michael’s administrators, faculty, families, and students. Michael’s demonstrated commitment to the student and family experience at St. Michael’s, as well as his personal warmth and engagement, make him an excellent fit at Shipley.”
Prior to serving as the Head of School at St. Michael’s, Michael was the Director of Upper and Middle School Admission, as well as a teacher, advisor, and coach, at St. Christopher’s School in Richmond. Prior to moving to Richmond, he was a classmaster, teacher, advisor, and coach at The Roxbury Latin School in Boston. He began his career in independent schools at his alma mater, Germantown Academy, where he was a teacher, advisor, and coach. Before transitioning to education, Michael held a variety of roles in the private and public sectors, including serving as an Assistant Managing Director for the City of Philadelphia and a management consultant.
Michael has observed that it is rare for a school of Shipley’s caliber also to possess so much potential. He said: “Shipley's strategic plan, Vision 20/26, wisely recognizes we cannot predict with certainty everything our students will need to learn, do, and be. Yet, it also courageously plots a course into that future, confident the values which have defined Shipley for well over a century position the School to pursue sustained and sustainable progress.”
Shipley welcomes Michael, his wife Meredith and their three children to the Shipley community.
On the first day of school, Shipley's new Head of School, Michael Turner, visited Lower School students at recess to get some advice and find out what they think a Head of School does.
The Shipley School is a private, coeducational day school for pre-kindergarten through 12th grade students, located in Bryn Mawr, PA. Through our commitment to educational excellence, we develop within each student a love of learning and a desire for compassionate participation in the world.
