Along with husband Don, Dr. Sarah McMillan manages the team of McMillan Education counselors. In close collaboration with the practice’s leadership team, Sarah enjoys continually enhancing the best guidance practices of the group by developing and delivering regular in-house supervision and professional development trainings focused on education and child, adolescent and young adult development. Sarah’s experience and expertise as a long-time educator and psychologist align with her role as supervisor of the McMillan Education counselors working directly with the families and students who have a wide range of educational and developmental needs, particularly those with learning differences and emotional and behavioral challenges. Sarah and her team work across the educational continuum with these students in school, college, transfer, and therapeutic planning. She also spends a great deal of time developing and enhancing the practice’s technology, systems of service delivery and resources to ensure that all McMillan Education guidance is grounded in the educational and developmental philosophy that informs all of its work with families.
A teacher and administrator at both the college and independent school levels for over 25 years, Sarah held multiple positions in education and counseling during her career. Prior to McMillan Education, Sarah was Upper School Head at The Fay School, Director of Studies and Dean of Students at Boston University Academy, English Chair at St. Mark’s School, and English teacher, coach and dorm head at St. Mark’s School and Kimball Union Academy. Sarah’s educational planning practice and managerial goals are founded on her professional experience supervising or working in admissions and college counseling offices in each of her school roles.
Her longtime work developing curricula, school programs, and faculty professional development initiatives that meet the needs of local, national, and international students of a wide range of interests and abilities led Sarah to become a regular and sought-after speaker on a variety of educational topics at local and national professional conferences. In addition, Sarah’s training in psychology and experience in building successful school-based counseling programs has led to her repute as a consultant in developmental school guidance and counseling programs. It is also the foundation on which she provides counseling to students with emotional developmental, or learning challenges.
Sarah is a graduate of St. George’s School. She then attended Colby College, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in English and was a collegiate athlete and team captain. She also holds a master’s degree in English and history from Boston College and a doctoral degree in developmental and counseling psychology from Boston University. Sarah taught English at Boston College and has been an adjunct member of the clinical faculty at Boston University, teaching graduate-level courses in child and adolescent development, educational assessment and intervention, and young adult vocational and identity development. While at Boston University’s School of Education, Sarah gained experience in the graduate-level admissions’ evaluation process.
Sarah and her husband, Don, have spent time living abroad and continue to love travel. Along with Don and their two sons, Noah and Cameron, Sarah is an avid sports fan. Their now adult sons have provided Sarah and Don ample direct experience as parents of independent day and boarding school students and as parents of a recruited collegiate student-athlete and an Army ROTC cadet who went on to commission as a US Army field artillery officer. Along with their constant canine companions Crash and Socrates, Sarah and Don split their time between their homes and offices in Boston and southern Maine. When not working or taking long walks with her pups, Sarah is an avid reader of history and philosophy, a regular at the gym and a Spartan warrior whenever she can fit in a race.
