About Us

Head of School Search

Northwest Academy

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  • Head of School Search

    Under the capable leadership of our Interim Head of School, Brock Dunn, who is serving Northwest Academy during the 2024-25 and 2025-26 academic years, the Board of Trustees has begun the search process for our next permanent Head of School to begin in July 2026. This is an important moment for our community, and we are committed to ensuring that all stakeholders – faculty, staff, parents, and alumni – are informed and engaged throughout the process.

    While the final decision rests with the Board of Trustees, community input is essential to finding the right leader who will understand and advance Northwest Academy's mission and values. Your participation and perspective will help ensure we find the ideal candidate to guide Northwest Academy into its next chapter. While some aspects of the search must remain confidential to protect candidates, we are committed to being as transparent as possible about the process itself.

    Throughout this process, we will provide regular updates via email to keep the community informed. Additionally, we will post information on this page of the Northwest Academy website.

    You can reach the search committee at HOSsearch@nwacademy.org
Update: December 20, 2024

Dear Northwest Academy Community,

As hard as it is to believe, Winter Break is already upon us. On behalf of the Board of Trustees, we want to wish you and your loved ones a joyous holiday season and a wonderful start to 2025!

Looking ahead, the Board is moving forward with the search for a permanent Head of School, which will officially kick off in early 2025. In October, we committed to providing you with an update before the new year, so here’s where things stand.

A few key points for context:
  • Brock Dunn, our outstanding Interim Head of School, will remain in place through the end of the 2025/2026 school year (June 2026).
  • We aim to have our new Permanent Head of School hired by this time next year, with the successful candidate starting in July 2026 for the 2026/2027 school year. We also want to ensure ample time for a smooth transition between Brock and the new hire.
In early January, the Board’s Permanent Head of School Search Committee, led by our Board Secretary Heidi Hardman, will begin mapping out the search. This will include setting milestones and identifying key stakeholders, including representation from
teachers, staff, and parents. We want to ensure this process reflects the voices and perspectives of our entire community.

As we finalize these details, we will keep you informed and engaged in this important work. We’re excited to embark on this search and grateful for Brock’s leadership during this transition. Brock, our senior leadership team, and the Board all share the same goal: to find a Permanent Head of School who will further our mission with optimism and skill while
building on the strong foundation already in place at Northwest Academy.

Thank you for your ongoing commitment to Northwest Academy. We look forward to updating you further on the Head of School search in the new year.

Sincerely,
Shane Wolfsmith
Chair, Board of Trustees
Northwest Academy
Northwest Academy seeks an inspiring and visionary leader to serve as our next Head of School. 

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  • About the Search Committee

    The Board of Trustees has formed a Search Committee comprised of trustees who bring both board experience and parent perspectives to this important process:

    • Heidi Hardman (Trustee, Parent of 12th grader), Search Committee Chair
    • Marilyn Beach (Trustee, Parent of 10th and 12th grader)
    • Stefanie Silverman (Trustee, Parent of 12th grader)
    • Dana Kurtin (Trustee, Parent of alumni)
    • Cheyenne Jones (Trustee, Parent of alumni)
    • Brock Dunn (Interim Head of School)

    We are fortunate to have Brock Dunn's experienced leadership on our committee. His extensive background with head of school searches and firsthand experience as a candidate brings valuable insight to our process.

    You can reach the search committee at HOSsearch@nwacademy.org

Diversity Statement

A commitment to equity and inclusion lies at the heart of Northwest Academy’s culture, and we strive to carry it out through our arts and academic partnerships. We value the uniqueness of each student, family member, teacher, and staff member; their diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives create a culture rich with mutual respect and authenticity. The Northwest Academy community values all ethnicities, races, cultures, religions, economic backgrounds, family structures, sexual and gender identities, and abilities. Ongoing efforts related to diversity, equity, and inclusion are essential to our staff and to our students’ abilities to develop into thoughtful and creative global citizens. Reach out to the DICE team at dice@nwacademy.org.
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