Senior Associate Presents at the Ignite ’16 NASSP Conference

This February 25-27, Senior Associate Ralph Jahr and Regional Education Officer Thomas Shearer were privileged to attend and co-present at the annual National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) Conference and 100^th anniversary celebration in Orlando, FL. The event, named Ignite ’16, was a testament to, as www.nassp.org says,

“NASSP’s commitment to supporting middle level and high school principals, assistant principals, and school leaders across the United States and around the world by promoting high professional standards, focusing attention on school leaders’ challenges, providing a national voice for school leaders, building confidence in public education, and strengthening the role of the principal as an instructional leader for the next 100 years and beyond.”

The conference delivered on its promise to ensure participants made valuable connections and took back to their schools proven leadership techniques and practical solutions. Participants chose several one to two-hour sessions to attend each day. On Friday, the second day, participants enjoyed the 100th Anniversary Lunch, featuring international authors and consultants Todd Whitaker and Rick Wormelli, who spoke on the most pressing issues of modern education.

On the third day, Ralph and Thomas Shearer, Regional Educational Officer from the U.S. Department of State, Office of Overseas Schools, co-presented a session about working in American Overseas Schools and how the Office of Overseas Schools (O/OS) supports them. Tom spoke of the mission of the O/OS: leveraging human, financial, and information resources to create quality American education overseas. Currently 95 schools on five continents receive grants from the O/OS, which support 134,867 students from all over the globe. Ralph and Tom’s presentation featured photos and profiles of exemplary schools on many continents while they spoke of the enormous personal and professional advantages of working in international schools. They also included evidence of high student achievement in overseas schools, by comparing SAT scores of international schools with U.S. averages and those of a high-ranking public school district in the U.S. Finally, Tom and Ralph discussed the qualities needed by administrators in international schools and the steps interested candidates should take to pursue a career as an administrator in an international school.

Search Associates is thrilled to know that the secondary school principals who attended Ignite ’16 departed rejuvenated and empowered and that those who met with Tom and Ralph were inspired to consider that leap into the joyful and rewarding career in international schools.