Leadership

Kevin Glass, Head of School

Committed to creating globally-minded students poised to shape the 21st century, Kevin’s vocation and calling is international education. His career in education includes leadership and teaching positions in South and West Africa, Central and North America, and Central Asia. Prior to joining Atlanta International School, Kevin was Director of Tashkent International School in Uzbekistan for five years.

Kevin serves on various local, national and international Boards, including the Association for the Advancement of International Education (AAIE), the Academy for International School Heads (AISH), the Center for the Advancement and Study of International Education (CASIE), Horizons Atlanta, the Atlanta Area Association in Independent Schools (AAAIS) and the Buckhead Coalition.

Kevin has a Master of Arts in Educational Leadership from Framingham State College (USA), a Post Graduate Certificate of Education in Biology and Chemistry from Cambridge University (UK), and a Bachelor of Science (Hons.) Degree in Bacteriology and Virology from Manchester University (UK).  

Kevin is married to Stefani, a career diplomat currently on family leave from the German Foreign Service. They have three children all of whom attend AIS, in the German language program.

Matt Hajdun, Head of Primary School

Matt fell in love with international education, language learning, and Latin America while studying abroad focusing on sustainable development and organic agriculture in Costa Rica, while earning his Bacherlor's degrees in Biology and Elementary Education.

He also earned a Masters' degree in Reading Instruction and Intervention as well as an additional endorsement in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL). 

Since 2005, Matt has been working in education, where he started as a volunteer teacher and principal at a small, rural school for orphaned children in Honduras. Additionally, he has worked in the USA, Brazil, Belgium, and Colombia as a classroom teacher, instructional coach, English as an Additional Language (EAL) teacher, and Curriculum Director.

In 2012, Matt received the Milken Educator Award for his work in supporting more inclusive policies and embedding service learning into the curriculum. 

Multilingual education is Matt's primary passion.  His partner, Emily, and their son, Asher, enjoy family time out in nature, and their two dogs. 

Dr Erin Robinson, Associate Head of School & Head of Secondary School

Erin is "all in" at Atlanta International School because the mission, values, and aspirations speak to who Erin is as an educator. Prior to joining AIS in 2021, Erin led school communities in Singapore, Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Colorado. She had the pleasure of leading school-based, regional, and global efforts in Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging. Her passions also allowed her to support the development of social and environmental entrepreneurship curriculum. 

Erin holds a PhD in educational leadership and her doctoral work focused on cultural competency in education with additional research interests in student voice, student engagement, and outdoor education.

Throughout her career, Erin has sought to support students, staff, and parents to thrive in an inclusive school environment where learning is at the center. As a third culture kid herself, Erin appreciated the opportunity to grow up in diverse environments. Outside of school, Erin loves spending time exploring with her family, local and global service, and reading. 

Dr Marsha Maxwell, Head of Technology, Innovation & Research

Dr Marsha Maxwell is a neuroscientist, teacher and technology specialist. With over twenty-three years of strategic, tactical and operational technology experience, Marsha creates innovative environments and applications that harness the power of new technology and neuroscience to enhance a teacher's reach, better engage students and foster a culture of innovation in an organization. Her work has been used in projects for institutions as varied as NASA and Sony.

Her areas of specialization include data science, mixed reality, artificial intelligence, space exploration and machine learning. She holds a BS from Spelman College in Chemistry and an MS (Biology) and a PhD (Neuroscience) from the California Institute of Technology.

Reid Mizell, Head of External Relations

One of the founding board members of the school, Reid brings extensive expertise in brand development, marketing strategy and planning, strategic alliances, sponsorship and integrated marketing execution.

She began her consulting career developing export marketing programs for French and American firms. She honed her organizational leadership skills as VP of Marketing for a US technology firm and as CEO of marketing agencies in the U.S. and Australia.
 
Reid holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies from Emory University (USA) as well as a Bachelor of Arts in French and a Master of Business Administration in International Marketing from Georgia State University (USA). She spent one year of graduate study in the Marketing Group at the Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Paris (France).

Paul Saeger, Associate Head of School & Head of Finance and Operations

Paul brings a depth and breadth of experience to AIS that encompasses 28 years as a professional and manager in accounting, finance, cash management, investments and analysis.  

Paul worked with Stonewall Insurance Company for 15 years, where he rose from Junior Accountant to Officer to Treasurer in ten years. More recently, he served as the Senior Financial Manager for the Vesta insurance companies.

Paul graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Business/Accounting from the University of Alabama, Birmingham (USA). He earned his CPA in 1990.

Helen Muñoz, Early Learning Center Principal (Grades 3K & 4K)

Helen Muñoz has been an international educator for over 15 years, the majority of them in leadership roles, stretching across 3 continents. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Primary Education from Bristol, England.

Before joining AIS as a Grade 1 English teacher, Helen was a Grade Level Leader at the International School of Panama and prior to that Primary Deputy Principal of the British International School in Phuket, Thailand. She is now returning to a Leadership role as the ELC Principal and cannot wait to be back where her passion lies in the awe and wonder of Early Years.

Throughout her career, Helen has nurtured students from 18 months to 11 years, building positive relationships with them, their families and teachers as they pursue their learning journeys. She is driven by cultivating student agency and is an advocate for play-based learning.

Carmen Baker, Lower Primary School Principal

Carmen has been a primary school educator for over 20 years. Since 2006, she has worked as an English Primary School teacher and Grade Level Leader at Atlanta International School (AIS).  She holds a bachelor's Degree in Sociology and a Masters Degree in Child Education.

Currently, she is working towards obtaining her doctorate degree in teaching and learning. Carmen is dedicated to fostering the joy of learning and inclusivity of all learners within the AIS community. She also believes it is also important to build positive relationships with students, families, and teachers to ensure that everyone feels safe, have a sense of belonging, and have fun being an AIS Eagle!

Alain Poiraud, Upper Primary School Principal

Between 1986 and 1993, Alain worked in France and also taught French in a pilot immersion program in Louisiana. Alain joined Atlanta International School in 1993.

Alain holds a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education and a teaching certification from the École Normale de la Roche-sur-Yon (France). He also has a National Coaching Degree (BE 1er degree) from the University of Nantes (France).  

From the University of Caen, France, he obtained a Bachelor of Arts, with honors, in French as a Foreign Language and is currently pursuing a postgraduate degree in International Education Administration.

Tina Santilli, Interim Middle School Principal

Tina is dedicated to the joyful pursuit of excellence in diverse and inclusive learning communities. She believes in the power of relationships and, as a student-centered leader, knows a child’s natural curiosity and desire to learn has no limits. Tina understands that it is the job of educators to nurture and stretch these natural inclinations of their students.

Tina holds an MA in Education and Human Development from George Washington University, a BA in Special Education  from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, and is currently pursuing her doctorate in Transformative School Leadership from Bay Path University. Her experiences as a teacher and leader in education have taken her to East Africa, East Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and most recently India where she was the Head of School at a three programme IB school in Mumbai. 

Tina has already felt the warmth of the AIS community and is excited to join a school with such an illustrious history and an amazing reputation for excellence. Her hope is that she can add value to an already outstanding team.  

Outside of school, Tina enjoys traveling, exploring new places and cultures, scuba diving, kayaking, community service, and curling up with a good book. 

Gary Paterson, Upper School Principal

Gary has a BSc (Hons) in Pure Mathematics from the University of St Andrews and a Postgraduate Certificate of Education from the University of Bath. During his 20 year career in education he has taught in public and private schools in Scotland, England, Mexico and the US including AIS, where he worked as IB Diploma Coordinator between 2015 and 2017. 

A process-orientated educator, Gary places a strong emphasis on using data as an evaluation tool and has been on the leadership teams of several schools, most recently consulting for six secondary schools in the UK. His experience includes working on the Royal Society of Art’s ‘Opening Minds’ pilot and being a long term contributor to the International Baccalaureate curriculum design.

The author of Professional Development Plans for a range of schools, Gary recently trained in the use of Collaborative Operating Systems to facilitate problem-solving in educational settings, became an Apple Educator and has an MEd in Educational Leadership.

Officers

Scott Britton , Chair

Shelley Giberson, Treasurer

Josh Moffitt, Secretary

Chiara Visconti-Pervanas '95, Vice-Chair

 

Members

Neerja Breja

Heidi Deringer

Carrie Doyle

Jeremy Faa

Peter Guan

Aaron Hackett 

Sarah-Elizabeth Langford

Matthew Mazzawi

Fasil Muche '93

Linda Pak Bruner

Susannah Parker

Barbara Quiroga

Stacy Shailendra

Farah Spainhour

Bahns Stanley 

Rick van Nostrand

Joyce Yamaato

 

Ex Officio

Kevin Glass, Head of School, Ex Officio Trustee

Olga Plaut, Trustee Emerita, Founder

Roy Plaut, Chair Emeritus, Founder

Monique Seefried, Chair Emerita

Deb Sudbury, Chair Emerita