Community
On August 5, CIC held its 2026–27 Campus Leadership Conference online, bringing together the CIC central team and leadership groups from Ningbo, Haishu, Wuhan, Pinghu, Jiangxi, Shenzhen and Zhengzhou.
Centered on continuous improvement and innovation, the conference gave school leaders space to exchange ideas, compare practice and consider new ways to strengthen their communities.
Highlights from the CIC 2026 Leadership Conference
Why leadership matters
As CIC’s school network continues to develop, strong leadership is essential to academic quality, effective management and sustainable growth at each campus.
Education is changing quickly. School leaders need time to keep learning, reflect on evidence and refine their practice. The conference brought together perspectives from several fields shaping the future of education.
Expert perspectives
Andrea M. Kane, a professor of practice at the University of Pennsylvania, examined how school leaders can help teachers put social-emotional learning into practice and create supportive environments for students and educators.
Jeffrey Lai, who leads work in artificial intelligence education at Northern Valley Regional High School District in New Jersey, discussed how emerging tools can support teachers, classroom practice and student learning.
Teresa Atwa, Vice President of International Services at Cognia, shared perspectives on accreditation and the role of sustained reflection in school improvement.
Together, the sessions gave CIC leaders practical ideas to consider in their own school settings.
From strategy to practice
A strong school rests on academic foundations, capable leadership and close collaboration. CIC’s management team shared current work in strategic planning, campus governance and continuous improvement.
Jane Smoudi outlined CIC’s strategic direction and discussed leadership development and evidence-informed practice. Cici Jiang presented updates on faculty support and organizational systems, emphasizing the role of strong operations in enabling schools and teams to do their best work.
Liam Gan, Principal of the Ningbo campus, and Alex Russler, Dean of Faculty and Students, shared the campus’s experience with evidence-informed education. Their examples ranged from schoolwide strategies to practical initiatives such as Teacher Corner, showing how professional learning can become part of everyday school life.
Discussion across campuses helped leaders learn from one another and strengthened the sense of a shared CIC community.
The conference connected international education perspectives with the realities of local school practice.
Continuous improvement is not a one-time project. CIC will continue to create opportunities for leaders to share resources, examine practice and build more valuable learning experiences for students.
Keep reading
From Wuhan to Shenzhen, students and educators returned to campus with new faces, familiar smiles and shared expectations for the year ahead.
The school joined the KLESA network and announced Cognia accreditation in August 2026.
Ningbo, Cixi, Pinghu, Wuhan, Shenzhen, Jiangxi and Zhengzhou celebrated the Class of 2026.
