Leadership
Acknowledging some of the people who served ISB in 2019-20.
A message from George Nazi
Bénédicte Rousseau • George Nazi
There is no doubt that 2019-20 was the most unprecedented year in ISB’s history. Looking back, despite the challenges we faced, it is clear we have much to be proud of and grateful for. Many of our school’s accomplishments are celebrated in the pages of this report. What stands out to me is the way we stood together and demonstrated, time and again, what an extraordinary community we are. The world has experienced considerable turbulence over the past year. Belgium was hit particularly hard by the Covid-19 pandemic, bringing added stress to our international community. The implications of Brexit, an increasingly competitive market, and rapid advancement of digital technologies are among the many forces demanding much of international schools. But these forces also present great opportunities. In the midst of the lockdown last spring, the Board embarked on an exhaustive international search for a bold, transformative new director who could identify and harness these opportunities to move our school successfully into the future. We found such a leader in James MacDonald, a world-class educator who started working almost immediately, bringing to bear his extensive experience leading schools during a crisis. These forces also require us to look in new directions — to push each other to ask and answer tough questions. It is in this spirit that in 2020, the Board established the Continuous Improvement Committee which, in keeping with ISB’s mission, will govern the quality and evolution of our educational offering, student transitions, and student outcomes. The Committee will support the Director on a number of strategic priorities, including the increased use of data to understand our students and inform our educational practices; programmatic offerings to ensure all students are challenged; and identification of opportunities to enhance curriculum, co-curriculum, well-being, and professional development policies. Together, with James and the Learning Leadership Team, the Board will work to uphold a common vision and set an ambitious agenda that will ensure ISB continues to be a leader in international education, where every student is included, challenged and successful. As I reflect on the 2019-20 academic year, I am humbled with gratitude for the leadership, faculty and staff whose dedication to our students helped our entire community weather the exceptional circumstances of Covid-19. A special thank you goes to Mike Crowley who stepped into the role of Interim Director not knowing the uncertainty that laid ahead. I am honored to take up the baton as Chair of the Board from Bénédicte Rousseau, whom I hope you will all join me in thanking for her years of dedicated service to the Board of Trustees and ISB community. I would also like to thank the many members of the ISB community who volunteered their time in so many ways in support of our endeavours. I look forward with excitement as we all continue to work together to make ISB the very best at creating a learning environment where students can challenge themselves as they build a deeper understanding of the world in which they live, and who will contribute to making that world a better place.
George Nazi, ISB Board Chair
ISB BOARD OF TRUSTEES • 2019-20
ISB is governed by a volunteer Board of Trustees that works to ensure the School is successful in fulfilling its mission. The Board’s responsibilities include oversight of an effective School strategy, development of policies, and accountability for the financial well-being of the School. The following individuals, from both our current and alumni community, served on our 2019-20 Board.