Search Hails New Senior Associate Julie Ryan

It takes a pretty impressive track record to join the team of Search Associates, nineteen specialists in the field of education whose goal it is to connect excellent candidates to the finest international schools. Search Associates is pleased to announce that Julie Ryan, after nineteen successful years as Lower School Principal of the American School in London, has joined the group as a Senior Associate.

In her long career, both in the U.S. and abroad, Julie has developed expertise in curriculum design, hiring, supervising, evaluating and training teachers and principals, as well as strategic planning and designing school renovation. She says:

“I am proud to have hired and mentored colleagues, who are now serving with distinction in schools around the world.”

Julie began her career as a classroom teacher after earning a BS in French and Education at Florida Southern College. She then earned a Master of Science in Reading from Northern Illinois University and was named the K-12 Reading Specialist at the American School of Paris, a post she held for three years. After returning to the U.S. she earned her Administrative Services Credential from San Jose State and became a Principal at elementary schools in the San Francisco Bay area, one of which was on the Stanford University Campus. In this role Julie distinguished herself in educational leadership. She was instrumental in hiring and mentoring many teachers new to the profession. She also developed an after-school tutoring program for students. Additionally, Julie collaborated with the university to offer research opportunities for faculty and students, which provided enormous benefit to the diverse population of international and second language learners.

Julie has contributed vigorously to the improvement of education as a principal, trainer, consultant, guest speaker, and conference organizer. In 1999, she was named “National Distinguished Principal” by the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) and the U.S. State Department. Julie led a ten-year effort, while at the American School in London, to support a local school in Tamil Nadu, India, which included sending a team of Lower School teachers to India each year, a project which continues today. During her tenure in Europe, she has provided professional development for over twenty international schools and has been a frequent speaker at annual conferences of the Mediterranean Association of International Schools and the European Council of International Schools. For the past fourteen summers, Julie has been a trainer for the Principal Training Center (PTC), a non-profit organization that trains current and prospective international school leaders. She spent five years prior to that training principals and prospective principals with the California School Leadership Academy. Now a Commissioner and a member of the Executive Board of the Middle States Association of Schools and Colleges (MSA), Julie was previously a member of the International Schools Advisory Committee of MSA, serving as Co-chair and member of accreditation teams for international schools.

Julie’s passion for ensuring that international schools have outstanding teachers and administrators makes her a perfect match for Search Associates.