Teach Abroad: Founding Principal - (Primary/Middle School) opening in

The Demand in Hanoi:

For the past decade Vietnam’s economy has burgeoned, experiencing unprecedented rates of growth. Vietnam now represents a major hub of trade and investment attracting high levels of foreign investment accompanied by an influx of international professionals and associated family members.

The capital, Hanoi, is currently under-served in terms of high-quality internationally orientated educational facilities. T&D, an internationally successful company has garnered the support of the Vietnamese government to address this demand by establishing an exemplary school within the capital. This challenge represents an incredible opportunity, accompanied by even greater responsibility.

The Vision:

Inspiring Inquiring Minds

ISV is committed to providing a vision and a model for excellent, progressive education in Vietnam. The International School of Vietnam is an amalgamation of business and benevolence intended to provide foreign and local students with an education of international standing. ISV will provide exacting educational and pastoral care allowing individuals to realize their potential.

The ISV-designed curriculum will be formed upon four research-based pillars: differentiated instruction; enduring understanding; experiential learning; and innovative change. Every student’s learning style will be acknowledged and nurtured. Assessment of student learning will inform decisions. Instruction will focus on environmental, social, and economic issues.

ISV will be truly student-centered, where students will take an active role in many aspects of the school’s operation. Students will truly “learn through doing” as they are engaged in appropriate and relevant experiential activities both inside and outside the campus.

The Position:

The Principal will work in collaboration with Robert Landau, the Founding Director. One school year (2011/2012) will be used to plan and establish every facet of the school. The Principal will then directly administer the primary school, and possibly also the middle school program, starting with the opening of the school in August, 2012.

The Founding Principal has the responsibility to:

• Oversee and provide leadership for all programs in the School.
• Supervise, support and evaluate faculty.
• Assist in recruitment of faculty and staff.
• Assist in preparing and managing the annual school budget.
• Collaboratively plan professional development programs.
• Communicate effectively with various constituencies.
• Formulate annual school goals with faculty and staff.
• Implement the strategic plan and annual school improvement process.
• Manage change smoothly.
• Monitor the effectiveness of school practices and their impact on student learning.
• Ensure that faculty and staff are aware of the most current theories and practices and make the discussion of these a regular aspect of the school’s culture.
• Additional specific responsibilities will be assigned as needed by the Director.

Preferred Qualities for the Founding Principal:

• Empathic, trustworthy, open-minded, approachable, dedicated, energetic.
• Demonstrated leadership skills.
• Sense of humor is a must.
• Strong academic background (at least a masters degree is required).
• Experience as a principal/director.
• Teaching experience.
• Creative problem solver.
• Demonstrated experience in improving instruction, program development, faculty development and faculty evaluation.
• Ability to work collaboratively with school constituencies from multi- cultural backgrounds.
• Strong consensus building skills.
• Experience with programs such as IBO, UbD, MAPS, Atlas Rubicon
• Experience with experiential education
• Change agent who is willing to and actively challenges the status quo.
• Demonstrate flexibility by adapting his or her leadership behavior to the needs of the current situation and being comfortable with dissent.
• Communicate and operate from strong ideals and beliefs about schooling.
• Be knowledgeable about current curriculum, instruction, and assessment practices.
• Be an optimizer who inspires and leads new and challenging innovations.

Salary and Benefits:

• A competitive salary commensurate with experience and qualifications.
• Furnished housing provided.
• Annual home leave airfare for principal and dependents.
• Shipping allowance.
• Health plan, retirement, sick leave.
• Initial three year contract, renewable

Application Process:

John Ritter, Senior Associate, is assisting the International School of Vietnam in recruiting and selecting its Founding Principal. Susan Ritter, John’s wife, will assist with communications. Interested candidates should send an application to John Ritter at the earliest possible time but no later than November 15, 2010. (The review of files will actually begin as soon as applications are received.)

Initial inquiries regarding the School’s Mission, Philosophy, vision, and strategic plan can be addressed to Robert Landau at robertlandau@isvietnam.org.

Candidates should note that, in the event an outstanding applicant is identified early in the search process, ISV reserves the right to make an appointment before the deadline mentioned above and to bring the search to an early close. For this reason it is very important that interested candidates apply at the earliest possible time. Candidates should send the information requested below. It must be submitted exactly in the form and manner requested. Please do not send any information other than that which is specifically requested below.

1. A letter of application, no longer than two pages, explaining your strengths as a candidate and why you are interested in this particular position.
2. A current résumé or CV not to exceed two pages.
3. A one-page statement outlining educational beliefs and leadership style.
4. The names, current email addresses, current telephone numbers, and current Skype addresses (if available) for at least four current or recent supervisors. These should include supervisors for the candidate’s current position and the position immediately prior to the current position. Supervisors will normally be members of a Board (of school governors, directors, or trustees), and should include the Board Chair whenever possible.
5. A maximum of four letters of reference which may already be in your possession, scanned at low resolution. These may be from the referees cited in 4, above, or they may be additional. This item is optional.

Please note that all the above materials must be scanned into a single pdf attachment and sent to both of the two e-mail address listed below, in the same transmission. Also, please note that it is important to limit the size of your single PDF to 5MB (no photos, color, etc):

REMINDER

Consultant’s Comment:

As many potential candidates may know, Robert Landau was a member of a small group of principals at international schools in the early 1990’s that initiated the International Schools Curriculum Project, which was later transferred to the International Baccalaurete Organisation to become its Primary Years Programme. The IB has, of course, become widely adopted by international (and national) schools and, in that sense, is now part of the “status quo.”

Robert and a network of like-minded international educators are now, once again, looking beyond the status quo. Here is an opportunity to join Robert in designing and creating a model program that can contribute to the next generation of curriculum for international education.

I have known Robert for 20 years and I have been assisting the Founding Board of the International School of Vietnam for the past 20 months. For the right educator, working at this school and working with this Founding Head will be a special opportunity to contribute to the future of international schools.

-- John Ritter, Senior Associate, Search Associates