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Director
International School of Luxembourg (Luxembourg)

 

Dear Colleagues,

On behalf of the Board of Governors of the International School of Luxembourg ( ISL ), their former Board Chair and Chair of the Search Committee, Robert Deed, we are pleased to announce that DAVID J. CONDON has been appointed School Director, effective August 1, 2021.

David, widely known as DJ, joins ISL following an extensive career as teacher, division head and curriculum leader, and Head of School in public, independent, and international education across the world. Deeply experienced as an English teacher, DJ brings his understanding of the craft of teaching to all aspects of his leadership. After teaching in Florida’s Pinellas County Schools for 10 years, DJ began his international teaching career at the American International School of Rotterdam, followed by teaching and IB coordinating at Taipei American School where he also held multiple middle level positions culminating in the  position of K-12 Principal for Curriculum, Research, and Program Development. Successive roles at the International School of Yangon as Secondary Principal and Hong Kong International School first as Associate Head, then Head of School prepared DJ for the headship at Canadian Academy in Kobe, Japan. Most recently DJ took on the Head of School post at Le Jardin Academy in Hawaii, a full continuum IB World School. 

Since completing his tenure at LJA, DJ is completing his studies for a PH.D. in Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development at the University of Minnesota where, at his journey’s start, he had earned a B.A. in English, followed by an M.A. in English Education at the University of South Florida. Throughout his career DJ has been a contributor to international education as a writer, conference speaker, participant in accreditations, and Board membership in regional associations. 

DJ Condon will follow the long-serving and distinguished tenure of Director Nicki Crush who has been an integral part of ISL as teacher, Upper School Principal, and Director since first joining ISL  in 1995. Nicki will retire at the conclusion of the 2020/2021 academic year.

The International School of Luxembourg, its search committee, and Search Associates would like to thank all the excellent candidates who expressed an interest in the Director position and everyone who supported and assisted the search process

Dr. Gunther Brandt

Senior Consultant

Search Associates

 

The International School of Luxembourg

Seeks a new:

Director of School

Start Date August 2021

The International School of Luxembourg (“ISL”) seeks a visionary educational leader with the ability to unite the community behind clear and structured processes that implement the School’s mission across the continuum from early childhood to the IBDP.

The next director will be a positive, solution-oriented leader able to execute strategic plans, build connections and trust, and shape innovations that further enhance ISL’s role as a leading international school at the heart of Europe.

Required qualifications

•  an advanced degree in educational leadership or related credentials
• experience as a director in international schools or similar establishments
• visible and engaged leader with exceptional communication skills
• dynamic and strategic, clear in design and decisive in execution

Highly preferred experience/capacities

•  extensive experience as pedagogical leader
• familiar with issues in teaching/learning in the digital age
• hands-on classroom experience
• a track record in recruitment and staff development
• collaborative: a team builder and effective people manager
• unafraid of difficult decisions and positive in conflict resolution
• respects faculty and the School community’s academic and social capital
• able to shape and differentiate the ISL identity internally and in the market
• extensive management and organizational skills
• financial understanding, budget-building experience
• clear and systematic in delegation and accountability
• experience in marketing and networking
• understanding of working effectively with a Board of Governors

Professional/personal attributes

•  leads with integrity and transparency
•  international mindset, in language and culture
• Embodies and projects the School’s values both internally and externally
• good listener, sees strength in diverse views
• appreciates and builds cultural openness and diversity
• visible in the life of the school
• values the parent-school partnership
• cares deeply about student development and well-being
• relational, brings people together
• confident and inspiring
• a “hands-on" mentality, “can-do" attitude

 

Founded in 1963, ISL is an independent, non-profit, university-preparatory day school situated in the City of Luxembourg, capital of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. ISL offers a quality English language education for children of both international and local families living in Luxembourg and the surrounding area.

ISL is proud of its international character. With a student population including more than 50 nationalities and staff from over 20 countries, the school emphasizes inspiration, resilience and passion as fundamental to the future. These words are the heart of the Mission Statement.

The school is housed in modern facilities provided by the Luxembourg government on a centrally located campus and is organised in two divisions of similar size.

The Lower School extends from pre-school (age 3) through grade 5. The Upper School includes both middle school (grades 6-8) and high school (grades 9-12) programmes. Total school enrolment is almost 1380.

The academic year runs from late August to late June and classes are in session between 8:25 am and 3:30 pm, Monday - Friday.

ISL is accredited by the Council of International Schools (“CIS”), the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (“MSA”), and the International Baccalaureate Organisation (“IBO”).  The School was initially accredited by CIS and MSA in August 1987 and has been continuously successfully accredited in May 1998, June 2008 and most recently in March 2018.  The School was initially accredited by the IB in 1994 and has been continuously, successfully accredited every five years since.

 ISL adheres to the CIS Code of Ethics.

 

Everyone in our community becomes inspired, resilient and passionate about achieving what matters, anywhere in the world.

 

 

Statement of Philosophy 

The International School of Luxembourg believes knowledge and skills are essential to function successfully within both the community of our school and the multilingual, multicultural societies in which we live. We provide our students with the opportunity and motivate them to develop skills to become lifelong learners, enabling them to take responsibility for their own learning and well-being.

We recognise the importance of intellectual, physical and emotional challenges by providing diverse learning, creative, social, active and service opportunities.

We offer world-recognised programmes of achievement and differentiated instruction to support the needs of our diverse community.

We do not accept any form of discrimination. The school offers an environment where children of different backgrounds, genders, nationalities, cultures and beliefs can learn to know, understand and respect each other.

Parents are predominantly from the expatriate and local business and diplomatic communities who seek an English-based education that can be easily transferred to their home country or to another international setting.  In addition, there are families who refer to Luxembourg as home; however, many of these families have some international dimension such as two or more passports or a previous expatriate experience.  Finally, there are a growing number of Luxembourgish families who choose to send their children to the School because ISL is seen as providing a viable educational alternative to the local public school system.

 

The Staff

 We can count on 290 outstanding staff from all over the world.

ISL’s faculty, in most cases, are recruited at international recruitment fairs. The majority of our faculty hold a Masters and/or Doctorate degree.

Our faculty are highly dedicated and loyal to our school, averaging 18 years’ experience in education and 8 years of commitment at ISL.

Typical Class Size: 16-18 students

Student/Teacher Ratio: 8:1

The majority of the staff are employed in accordance with terms of employment negotiated under a Collective Bargaining Agreement.

 

The School is governed by the “Association” (the parents and guardians of students enrolled at the school) who elect a 15-member Board of Governors to oversee the strategic direction of the school.  The Board of Governors is composed of 15 voting members and 5 non-voting members.  The voting members are all elected by the members of the “Association”.  It is the responsibility of the Board of Governors to establish (and revise as necessary) the vision of the School, its mission statement, strategic plan and strategic objectives.  The Board is also responsible for the School’s financial condition and facilities.  The Board of Governors in turn hire a Director who is responsible for the day-to-day management of the school.

The school’s relationship with the Luxembourg government is very positive.  It is evident that the Luxembourg government believes it to be in the economic interest of the country to support international education for the children of the many expatriates who come to work in Luxembourg.  The school’s upper school facilities were built by the Luxembourg government and are provided to the school free-of-charge.  In addition, the Luxembourg government provides a per capita subsidy to the school which is calculated as a percentage of the amount budgeted by the Ministry of Education to educate a child in the public school system.  Finally, the Luxembourg government supports ISL by providing 80% financing for expansion projects such as the new Lower School, the “Hillside”, the Upper School wing extension and refit.

 

Located in the centre of Europe & very well connected, Luxembourg is one of Europe’s leading financial centres, a European Union Capital and a country in which almost half of the population are foreigners and speak a variety of languages.

Combined with an efficient health & social security system, attractive to families, and outstanding natural beauty, Luxembourg is both vibrant and a pleasant place to live and work. 

The thousand-year old capital and five regions each have their own unique flavour and discoveries to be made. Experience contemporary and historic culture, explore the hiking and cycling trails, and taste world-class cuisine and local wine. Luxembourg offers a full range of qualities: a convenient location, personal safety, an exceptional quality of life, multilingualism, and instinctive openness.

 

 

Role Summary:

The Director of the School functions as the chief executive officer responsible for the administration of the school and its general welfare.  The Director also advises the Board of Governors on all policy matters.  The Director of the School carries out his/her duties with the close support of the members of the Senior Leadership, Leadership and Operational Teams.

 

Responsibilities:

The responsibilities of the Director include:

1. School Leadership:

• Non-voting member of the School Board of Governors
• Member of the Senior Leadership Team (“SLT”) along with the COO and the Upper and Lower School Principals;
• Recommend, develop and ensure the implementation of the overall educational policies, goals and objectives of the School;
• Actively promote good relations with the external community including various public ministries;
• Lead all Accreditation processes;
• Communicate to the School community, internal and external, the philosophy, policies and objectives, as well as decisions made by the Board of Governors;
• Ensure parental interest and participation in the School is encouraged;
• Promote and enhance the reputation of the School in the community at large, ensuring a visible, approachable and welcoming profile for parents;
• Represent the School with organisations of which the School is a member;
• Promote a positive and professional learning culture for all;

2. Strategic Planning:

• Develop, with input from the Community (Staff, Students, Parents, Board), and manage the Strategic Plan for the School and specifically assist the Board of Governors with the review, on-going development and management of the plan;
• Promote and reinforce the vision of the school with all participants in the learning process at ISL;

 

3. Educational Leadership:

• Provide professional leadership for the School, ensuring the highest possible quality of education for the students;
• Provide active leadership in the on-going development of a sound educational programme;
• Promote and foster positive relationships with students;
• Recruit a competent, qualified faculty and provide the support needed to enable them to carry out their functions effectively;
• Delegate the day-to-day management of the Upper and Lower Schools to the Principals;
• Evaluate the Principals; review and approve the Principals’ evaluations of the faculty, and make all decisions concerning their contracts;

4. Operational Leadership:

• Ensure the organisational structure of the School is effective and efficient so that it supports the teaching and learning;
• Ensure professional and personal support and direction is provided to all staff in order to optimise the effective carrying out of their duties;
• Ensure the recruitment of a competent, qualified professional support staff and ensure the support needed to enable them to carry out their functions effectively;
• Ensure that the budget is properly planned and managed, once approved by the Association, by the COO;
• Ensure staff are educated in budget discipline to facilitate a balanced budget.
• Participate in the Collective Bargaining Agreement negotiations process
• Ensure that all school facilities are maintained at an efficient level to support the full range of educational and extra-curricular activities
• Provide for the safety of both staff and pupils;

 

5. Other:

• To actively seek personal professional development opportunities and to participate, in a personal capacity, in the ISL professional growth programme.
• Comply with School policies and procedures relating to child protection, health, safety, welfare, security, confidentiality and data protection, reporting any concerns to the appropriate person;
• Such other duties as may be requested by the Board of Governors.

The salary will be competitive and commensurate with the chosen candidate’s experience and qualifications.  The employment contract will be for an indefinite period of time and begin with a 12-month trial period.

 

 

To apply:

The Board of Directors has appointed Search Associates as its partner in its search for a Director, with Dr. Gunther Brandt as the lead consultant.

 

The deadline for applications for the position is November 8, 2019.

 

Suitably qualified candidates should send the following information listed below as a single PDF File attached to an email to arrive as soon as possible, and no later than November 8, 2019:

 

• A letter of application, explaining your strengths as a candidate and why you are interested in this position at ISL.
• A statement describing your leadership and educational philosophy, not to exceed two pages.
• A current résumé not to exceed two pages.
• A one-page list of references with current addresses, phone numbers and email addresses.
• A maximum of three letters of reference (scanned at low resolution) that may already be in your possession.

 

Applications should be sent to:

 

Dr. Gunther Brandt of Search Associates:

gbrandt@searchassociates.com and admin@searchassociates.com

 

Interview process timeline

13-22 November 2019: First online interviews with the Board Search Committee via Zoom

11-13 December 2019: ISL site visit, information sessions and panel interviews

 

For further information about ISL, please visit our website: www.islux.lu