Experienced school administrator Ari Betof earned an EdD from the University of Pennsylvania, where he received an award of distinction for his dissertation on the financial and organizational sustainability of Friends Schools. Dr. Ari Betof serves as president of Organizational Sustainability Consulting in Brookline, Massachusetts and an expert speaker.

Dr. Betof’s most recent presentation focused on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on independent schools. The presentation, titled “Navigating the COVID-19 Independent School Financial Crisis,” was hosted by the Southern Association of Independent Schools, a professional membership organization that was founded in 1903.

The COVID-19 presentation provided an overview of the financial challenges independent schools currently face, and the importance of strategic decision making. These challenges, which range from ongoing expense obligations to declines in auxiliary income and tuition revenue, threaten to weaken the position of independent schools across the United States. To face these challenges, the presentation provided school leaders with strategies such as mission- and data-driven decision-making.