CAO Cohort Alumni Spotlight: A Conversation with Efrat Kussell, CAO of Explore Schools of Brooklyn

The Chief Academic Officer role comes with unique challenges—balancing strategic vision with day-to-day execution, developing others while managing your own workload, and often feeling isolated in a position where few truly understand the complexity of the work. That’s exactly why Hendy Avenue Consulting created the CAO Cohort: to bring academic leaders together in a community of practice where they can learn from trusted colleagues facing similar challenges.

Hendy sat down with Efrat Kussell, Chief Academic Officer at Explore Schools of Brooklyn, to talk about her experience in the cohort and how it’s shaped her leadership. Efrat’s insights offer a candid look at what makes this professional learning community so valuable—and what prospective participants might miss if they don’t join. 

Hendy: Let’s dive into your cohort experience. What was the most unexpected benefit you gained from participating? 

The individual coaching and its relationship with the work we did in the cohort sessions were really well dovetailed. I was able to take the learning from the cohort sessions and apply it to our bigger picture organizational thinking during personalized coaching…I was even able to bring my drafted work back to the whole group for feedback and presentation practice.

Additionally, I was able to look at the models of strategic planning from our sessions and think, “That’s cool, that’s interesting—I want to use that,” or “That’s something I could save for future initiatives.” That integration was really powerful. 

Hendy: That interplay between individual coaching and group learning sounds really valuable. What’s one strategy, resource, or approach you learned in the cohort that you’re still using today? 

Time management, definitely. We did a great module on how CAOs spend their time. Coming into the work of a CAO assumes that you’re really good at managing your calendar—and you have to be because the job has so many technical and systematic elements. You also need to get on the ground, interact with people, present in various contexts… there’s so much personal time management that goes into it. 

The cohort gave me exposure to multiple options for how to structure time use. It added structure and helped me ensure that I am always spending my time in service of developing others. Before, I was probably pretty good at making sure everything I did took care of the things that everyone needed, but I wasn’t as intentional around making sure the way I was spending my time was also in service of developing other people. That learning resonated. 

Hendy: Is there anything else from the cohort that’s stuck with you? 

Yes—messaging. Messaging and re-messaging the same ideas using clarity and simplicity. That’s really taken hold, currently, in the design of training. Our summer trainings were more effective this year because we spent a ton of time on: how is our staff hearing the message? How can we message priorities with clarity and consistency? And does our messaging uplift our organizational values and hallmarks? As a result, our main priorities and our main tactics for achieving those priorities were better woven throughout and connected to the fabric of who we are as an organization 

I also think about this in terms of feedback I have gotten around the level of information I share with various stakeholders. As a CAO, one of my responsibilities is to be able to speak the headlines while also keeping track of all the details. Depending on the audience, I need to provide just the right level of detail to tell a compelling story or make a convincing argument. The CAO cohort helped me be more intentional around how to deliver headlines while bringing an audience along with the right details. 

Hendy: If you were talking to a CAO who was on the fence about joining, what would you tell them about what they’d be missing if they didn’t participate? 

For the time commitment and the cost, it really works. I know when you’re signing up for a year-long commitment on top of your year-long commitment to improving student outcomes, you’re thinking, “How much will this take out of me and is it going to be worth it?” 

I feel like it was totally worth it! I came away with several enduring understandings that I can now transfer over to essentially all the work I do—that’s one thing. 

I’d also say that Erica and Jon were very skilled facilitators and worked well together. They created a community of practice online very impressively, considering that we didn’t meet each other in person—so shout out to them! 

Last but not least, the coaching was, as I mentioned, truly great. It was very unexpected. When I joined the cohort, I knew there were going to be these sessions and we’d be going every month, but I didn’t realize how helpful the coaching would be. The differentiated work products we were sharing afterwards—that was excellent. 

Hendy: It sounds like the combination of group learning, individual coaching, and peer feedback created something really powerful. 

Absolutely. It’s rare to find a professional learning experience that delivers on all those levels. 

Thank you, Efrat, for sharing about your experience in the cohort! We look forward to staying connection and hearing about the great work you’re supporting at Explore Schools!

Ready to join a community of practice that will transform your leadership? Applications for the 2026-27 CAO Cohort will open soon. Connect with Hendy Avenue Consulting by emailing Rachel Modica-Russell (rachelmodicarussell@hendyavenue.com) to learn more and be notified when applications launch.