On behalf of the Country School Board of Trustees, we are thrilled to announce its unanimous decision to appoint Jay Parker as the next Head of The Country School, effective July 1, 2024.
Following an extensive national search, facilitated by the search firm RG 175, Jay emerged as the leading candidate from a pool of fifty-five applicants. Key factors in the Search Committee’s unanimous recommendation to the Board of Trustees were Jay’s relationship-based leadership style, his educational experience in pre-K to 8, his commitment to professional development and the positive feedback received from The Country School community: faculty, parents and friends of the School. The shared conclusion that Jay is the best fit for our TCS community prompted the unanimous decision by the Board of Trustees.
Jay will join us from the Dawson School in Boulder, Colorado, where he has served as the Middle School Director since 2020. An educator for over 20 years, Jay spent 2010 through 2020 at the Calvert School, a pre-K to 8 independent school in Baltimore. At Calvert, Jay was a science teacher, Dean of Student Life and ultimately the Director of the Institute for Leadership and Purpose, a nationally recognized program that he helped establish to create vibrant and collaborative community partnerships. Previously, Jay served as a middle school science teacher at Boys’ Latin School from 2005 to 2010. Jay began his educational career as an outdoor educator in the White Mountains of New Hampshire and on the coasts of Cape Cod. In addition to classroom teaching and his various leadership roles, Jay has enjoyed coaching middle school boys’ and girls’ basketball, boys’ lacrosse and girls’ soccer. Jay also has a strong commitment to outdoor education and entrepreneurship as demonstrated by his founding of Mountain Element, an outdoor adventure program for middle school students, which he owned and operated from 2007 to 2019.
Jay’s educational philosophy aligns with that of the Country School where the focus is to “develop confident students who strive to do their best always.” Jay notes, “ Independent schools have made an aspirational promise to build scholars, leaders and global citizens who have the possibility and probability to reach their potential. We have the resources to do so when we have a devoted caring community of passionate faculty and parents. When we all work together to create a common language of success, where academic achievement is celebrated as much as moral and personal development, we have discovered a beautiful intersection where our children will thrive amidst high expectations.”
Jay will relocate to the Easton area with his wife Carolyn, their sixth grade daughter Calvi, and their third grade son Whit. Jay and Carolyn are looking forward to living life to the fullest on the Eastern Shore of Maryland and quickly becoming part of The Country School community.
We are grateful that The Country School is on stable footing under the dynamic direction of Jean Brune, who will continue her interim headship through June 2024. Thanks to Jean’s energetic leadership, diligent effort and commitment to a seamless transition, the School is in a position of strength for Jay to assume the Headship.
Our sincere thanks also goes to the dedicated Search Committee members and the RG 175 search consultants. The search process involved countless hours reviewing candidate resumes, participating in meetings, candidate interviews, survey reviews and communication planning.
On behalf of the Board of Trustees and the Search Committee, we would like to thank everyone who worked so diligently to help us complete the search process. A transition team will be formed to work with Jay as he familiarizes himself with his new School community.
Sincerely,
Lakshmi Vaidyanathan Blenda Armistead & Justin Nonemaker
Chair, Board of Trustees Search Committee Co-Chairs