AISA 2017: Aspire, Learn, Soar

Senior Associate and Search Associates representative in Africa Gez Hayden traveled to Nairobi, Kenya for the 2017 Conference of the Association of International Schools in Africa (AISA). Teachers from all over Africa met at the Radisson Blue Hotel October 14-17^th to enjoy camaraderie and professional development centered around the theme “Aspire, Learn, Soar.”

The conference allowed educators from diverse institutions to share experiences and insights during presentations. Of particularly interest was the series of Innovative Practices sessions in which teachers in Africa introduced and shared their school-based work on a wide range of inspiring topics: Inclusion in International Schools; Introducing UN Sustainable Development Goals into the Classroom; Blended Learning Classroom Design; Mindfulness in the Classroom; Making your Classroom a Healthy, Happy, and Fit Place to Learn. Gez called it “a highly-beneficial opportunity for teachers to learn from other teachers.”

More formal morning and afternoon institutes were offered by presenters invited to the conference by AISA: Jennifer Swinehart, Sonny Magana, Tara Barton, Ryan Harwood, Laura Manni together with Aquil-li Comellas, and Karen Boyes. All sessions were enthusiastically received by an active and vocal group of delegates!

For Search Associates and Search Associates candidates, the AISA Educators Conference was not only an opportunity to share and to learn. It also provided the possibility for Search candidates to discuss their career plans, ambitions, and strategies with Gez. Mary Agbor, a participant from Nigeria, has attended three AISA Conferences in the past. She says,

“One of the reasons . . . this one is my sure best is because of my encounter with [Search Associates] for the first time. . . I got a clear welcome and explanation about how they work. The reception and the warm welcome by the representative Gez Hayden at this time was . . . explicit, and the helping hand rendered was very much appreciated by me and my colleague Funke. We will surely recommend to our friends who are ready to take on a teaching adventure elsewhere outside their own country. . . Search Associates is the way forward. Keep doing the work!!”

It’s that kind of encouragement that keeps our Search Associates on the road, eager to support, in any way possible, our schools and candidates at job fairs, campuses, and conferences around the globe.