I am pleased to share the following announcement, sent on behalf of the co-clerks of the Upper School Head Search Committee.
Dear SSFS Families,
With many thanks to the members of the Upper School Head Search Committee (listed below), as well as to all members of our community who participated in meeting and talking with candidates for the Upper School Head position, we are pleased to announce that we have recommended SSFS Middle School Head Jonathan Oglesbee to be our next Upper School Head at Sandy Spring Friends School. Jonathan has accepted the position, which will begin in July 2017.
As noted in prior communications from the search committee, the School attracted a national, diverse, and talented applicant pool. All applicants expressed appreciation for the warm and welcome reception they received from students, parents, faculty, and staff, and we are grateful to each of them for taking the time to visit with us over the past eight weeks. With so many qualified candidates, it is a testament to Jonathan's qualifications and interview process that we have recommended him to lead our Upper School.
Jonathan joined SSFS as Middle School Head in 2014. As Head of our Middle School over the past three years, Jonathan has been a model change agent: a leader who listens and who respects and values Quaker values. Jonathan cares deeply about the education and growth of the whole child and the importance of Sandy Spring Friends being a school where collaboration, creativity, transformation, and challenge are embedded in the curriculum. We are excited that he will be bringing his enthusiasm and grace to the Upper School.
We recognize that Jonathan's move from his current Middle School Head position will, of course, mean that we now have another position to fill. Head of School Tom Gibian is working with Middle School Dean of Student Life Francis Zell to put together a Middle School Head Search Committee. The Middle School Head position will be posted immediately, and the committee will interview candidates throughout the month, with the hope and expectation that the position will be filled by mid-March. The clerks of the Middle School Head Search Committee will provide additional details as soon as possible.
We'd like to close with an excerpt from the cover letter from Jonathan in which he expressed his interest in leading the Upper School in the coming years:
"One of my greatest joys is in creating or improving things. As a gardener in an urban setting, my wife and I enjoy the yearly opportunity to tend and nurture our courtyard garden. That metaphor is apt for my professional work as well. Everywhere I have worked, I continually sought to improve existing programs, and when and where appropriate, endeavored to institute new initiatives. From the all-school chapels at St. John's and the curricular design and instructional improvement at each school, to the housing sustainability initiative at Key School and the Immersion Week at our own Middle School, I derive great professional satisfaction by engaging others in the work of enhancing programs. The simple fact for Sandy Spring and all independent schools is that we must be relentless in our pursuit of excellence, not just for our current existence, but for the long term as well. I welcome the challenge of having an even broader impact on the life and legacy of Sandy Spring Friends School by shepherding the Upper School toward further excellence."
(Note: you can read Jonathan's full cover letter here.)
In Peace,
Johanna Modak '07
Laurita Portee
Co-Clerks, Upper School Head Search Committee
Upper School Head Search Committee Members:
- Johanna Modak '07 (Co-Clerk), Upper School Global Languages Teacher
- Laurita Portee (Co-Clerk), Former Clerk of SSFS Board of Trustees, SSFS Alumni Parent
- J. Cole, Assistant Head of Upper School for College Counseling
- Julie Crooke, SSFS Upper School Parent
- David Hickson, Assistant Head of School for Academic Innovation
- Bob Hoch, Upper School History Teacher
- Bill Mena, Director of Boarding and International Admissions; Director of Auxiliary Programs
- Carolyn Miller, Human Resources Manager
- Francis Zell, Middle School Dean of Student Life
