Where do new schools come from? Our research and guest insights reveal that new schools are regularly emerging, with many others planned for construction in the near future. What does this mean for you as you seek to be an informed international educator while navigating the recruiting process?

What are some “under the hood” aspects of startup schools you should be examining? What are the advantages and potential disadvantages of working at a newly-established school?

With these questions in mind, we reached out to Greg Parry, an expert in starting schools. Greg leads Global Services in Education (GSE), a company he founded that collaborates with investors, developers, and school management providers to design, build, and manage new schools.

Greg is a visionary leader, educator, and acclaimed author with an exceptional track record in the field of international education. From his home country of Australia to the United States, India, Africa, Myanmar, China, South America, South Korea, Japan and the Middle East, Greg's insights have transformed education systems and elevated learning outcomes. He has trained teachers and principals worldwide, focusing on critical thinking, language development, and leadership. Greg's expertise in school start-up projects, curriculum development, and effective leadership strategies has solidified his authority in the field.

For this episode, we focused on a few guiding questions:

1. What do international educators need to know about the rapid growth of new international schools?
2. Who are some of the major players, and what criteria should educators consider when evaluating these schools?
3. What are some current trends in international education?

Resources mentioned in the episode:

Global Services in Education (GSE)

Global Services in Education Blog

Greg’s TEDx Talk

Steps to Setting Up a New School

Five Trends That Will Redefine International Schools in 2025

Educators Going Global: Profiling Schools, Cities and Countries

Greg's Contact Information:

LinkedIn

This episode was recorded on April 9th, 2025.
Categories: Recruiting | Leadership | School Life | New Schools

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Music: YouTube. (2022). Acoustic Guitar | Folk | No copyright | 2022❤️. YouTube. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOEmg_6i7jA.

How can schools integrate Social-Emotional Learning, Belonging, Global Citizenship and Creative Expression in one beautiful package? By prioritizing a crucial aspect of schooling: The Arts. And yet The Arts are often relegated to “encore” status, underfunded or even dispensed with duiring budget crunches.

For this show, we assembled a talented panel of guests who represented years of experience and an array of artistic disciplines: Film, Theater, Art and Music.

David Gran has developed and taught film programs for 20 years in the U.S., Shanghai, and Chile. He was a co-founder of SAS’s Innovation Institute and Nido’s Changemakers program, the Shanghai Student Film Festival and the InThinking site for IB Film. David is also a former columnist for School Arts Magazine.

Tina Casey is the HS Theater Teacher and the Performing Arts Director at ISKL. She has been working overseas for over 30 years, including 15 years in Malaysia. This year marks Tina’s final year at ISKL, after which she will return home with her husband to Northern Ontario for a "nap year" before deciding on next steps.

Nick Stonehouse is an art and design educator currently working in HCMC, Vietnam. He has taught in multiple curricula at a range of ages, from Early Childhood to Secondary. At present, Nick is thoroughly enjoying teaching grades 2 and 3 art. Nick is also an avid photographer, artist, art enthusiast, and world traveler.

Scott Rogal has taught in Canada, Hong Kong and Vietnam. Currently, he teaches Band at the American School of Bahrain and conducts the Jazz Orchestra of Bahrain, a semi-professional ensemble featuring many of Bahrain’s top musicians. He is also an active composer who writes and publishes through ApRo Music in Canada.

Our guiding question for the show was “What are some characteristics that describe international school arts programs?”

Our panelists shared many insights around implementing an arts program while also sharing specifics about their individual domains of music, theater, film and art.

Here are a few of the topics covered:

• What a standard K-12 arts program from a holistic perspective can look like
• Unpacking the components of an arts program including mission/vision, infrastructure, curricular outcomes, etc.
• Painting the picture of what music, theater, film and art look like in ES, MS and HS

This was a rich discussion with each participant chiming in with their takes while sharing experiences from their careers. We has so many questions that plans are already being made for a follow-up recording!

This episode was recorded on March 29, 2025.

Categories: The Arts | SEL | Life Skills

Remember to access our Educators Going Global website for more information and consider joining our Patreon community at patreon/educatorsgoingglobal!

Email us with comments or suggestions at educatorsgoingglobal@gmail.com

Follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram or YouTube.

Listen on your favorite podcast app: connect from our share page.

Music: YouTube. (2022). Acoustic Guitar | Folk | No copyright | 2022❤️. YouTube. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOEmg_6i7jA.

We enjoyed our first interview with Dave McMaster so much that we spoke with him a second time! If you missed the first interview on what it is like to start an international school, definitely check it out – it’s Episode 74. Dave also recorded two Going Global Stories for us. Head to our information hub to enjoy those.

Dave has 35 years of K-12 education experience, primarily in leadership roles in Canada, Hong Kong, and Bahrain. He joined the Esol organization in Bahrain in September 2018, and led the founding team in establishing the American School of Bahrain, which opened its doors to just over 100 students amid the COVID-19 Pandemic and has grown to nearly 800 students in its first five years of operation.

Prior to this role, Dave served as Principal and Head of School at the Canadian International School of Hong Kong. During his tenure, he spearheaded the authorization process for the full slate of International Baccalaureate (IB) programs. Within six years, CDNIS DP students ranked in the top 10% of IB schools worldwide, and CDNIS was recognized as the top international school in Hong Kong for seven consecutive years. Dave has founded three schools, including the American School of Bahrain.

Dave’s authenticity as an educational leader motivates the entire school community to continually improve, ensuring excellence in educational provision. He strongly believes that cultivating a school culture based on mutual respect, happiness, and high yet realistic expectations will lead to a fruitful educational experience for students. He emphasizes the "smile index" as a key barometer for assessing a school's success. Dave also has extensive experience in recruiting, hiring, and retaining top educators, which he considers crucial to the success of founding ASB.

Dave holds a Bachelor of Education from Queen's University. He also earned a Master of Arts in Educational Leadership from San Diego State University.

Our Guiding Question was, “What is it like teaching and living in the Middle East?”

Here are a few of the topics covered in this episode:

• What teachers can experience teaching in a fairly typical Middle Eastern international school
• Some advantages of and expectations for living in the Middle East as expats, particularly in Bahrain

Resources mentioned in the episode:

American School of Bahrain

Dave's Contact Information:

LinkedIn

Instagram

The show was recorded on February 16, 2025.

Categories: School Life | Travel | Recruiting | Bahrain

Remember to access our Educators Going Global website for more information and consider joining our Patreon community at patreon/educatorsgoingglobal!

Email us with comments or suggestions at educatorsgoingglobal@gmail.com

Follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram or YouTube.

Listen on your favorite podcast app: connect from our share page.

Music: YouTube. (2022). Acoustic Guitar | Folk | No copyright | 2022❤️. YouTube. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOEmg_6i7jA.