Susannah Wolf ’81 to be Miquon’s Next Principal
It is with great joy that The Miquon School announces and welcomes Susannah Wolf ’81 as its 18th Principal, beginning July 1, 2015.
The Board of Directors and the search committee see Susannah as an inspiring leader who will guide Miquon forward toward realizing its vision for the future. Following a national search process that solicited numerous applications and yielded three exceptional finalist candidates, the Board unanimously accepted the search committee’s recommendation to hire Susannah as Principal. With an extensive background in Progressive and elementary education, demonstrated leadership skills and potential, and a deep understanding of Miquon and its approach, Susannah easily emerged as the natural choice for Miquon’s next leader.
From the time she was a Miquon student in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, Susannah was inspired to teach. She has since dedicated herself and her career to Progressive education, earning her master’s from Bank Street College of Education, and serving various progressive schools, including Manhattan Country School. For the past decade, she has served in an administrative capacity at The Park School of Baltimore (a nationally recognized Pre-K through Grade 12 Progressive school) as math resource teacher, overseeing the mathematics curriculum. For a portion of that time, Susannah also was the Lower School Assistant Principal. With her strong background working with students, teachers, and parents to support math learning and instruction, we feel Susannah will use her collaborative skills to help bring energy and innovation into Miquon’s curriculum across all grade levels.
During her campus visit, Susannah’s deep understanding and thoughtfulness surrounding Progressive teaching and learning was evident. She places tremendous value on holding children at the center of their own education, making very real and genuine connections with Miquon students naturally and immediately. Her connection with the staff and the parents was equally strong, engaged, and communal–demonstrating her ability to lead with vision and inspiration. Her skill at communicating complex ideas in a simple, yet rich manner was evident throughout the search process, and we have the utmost confidence that Susannah will be able to articulate Miquon’s mission with passion and authenticity to prospective families, staff, and donors alike.
Moreover, Susannah’s own experience as a Miquon student in the late 1970s and early 1980s, which she describes as one of the most formative experiences of her life, provides an added significance to her becoming our school’s next head: She is the first graduate of Miquon to be its Principal. As a product of a Miquon education, and a strong believer in and exemplar of Progressive education as a result, Susannah’s vision and educational priorities naturally blend with the existing culture at Miquon. Moreover, she has demonstrated a commitment to community, equality, diversity, and society throughout her career. She has leadership training in Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity (SEED), and she has led SEED discussion groups. Additionally, Susannah has participated extensively in numerous projects relating to race, sexual orientation, and gender in education and society.
The school is thrilled to hire a principal who embodies all that is a Miquon education: Susannah is a leader who asks challenging and insightful questions, and is guided by her intrinsic motivation to seek answers. This is the passion Miquon hope to ignite in all its students, both now and in the future.
Miquon is in the fortunate position of bringing a very strong leader to a very strong school. The Board, staff, and families look to the future with great anticipation as we journey together toward realizing Miquon’s vision in the years ahead.
