On behalf of the Board of the American School of Douala (ASD), Cameroon, Search Associates is very pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Mark Dempsey as Director, beginning in August 2024. Mark says,
I'm tremendously excited about meeting the students, teachers, staff, parents, and board members so that we can get the 2024-25 school year underway. I'm eager to learn from them so that we can sustain and build on the school’s tradition of success while also exploring ways to grow the school. I'm interested in seeing if the innovations initiated by my current school community in Conakry lend themselves to the school culture of ASD. I'm also excited about the relationship ASD has with the West African International Schools Athletics League (WAISAL). Finally, I'm thrilled for my own children to take advantage of the larger facilities.
For the past five years, Mark has successfully led and managed the American International School of Conakry in Guinea and, prior to that, the Nathaniel Woodhull Public School in New York for 13 years. This seasoned leader shares what works for him:
During tough times, I pray, “Quick to think, slow to anger.” And I also repeat what I tell my own children: “You have good people around you who can help you to do anything.”
Mark earned a master’s in educational administration from Baruch College in New York and a master's in intercultural management from the School for International Training in Vermont. He started his teaching career as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Benin. Cameroon will be his 22nd sub-Saharan country in which he has worked or visited. He says,
I'm thrilled about moving to Cameroon, a francophone-anglophone country in Sub-Saharan Africa, to discover the similarities and differences from previous countries in the region I've visited.
Joining Mark in Douala will be his wife Winnehl Tubman and their children Maxton (9) and Grace (5). Whenever they can, the family loves to explore new places. In his free time, when he isn’t running after the children, Mark can be found swimming in a pool or the ocean, typically his happy place. In fact, he is teaching a high school swim elective this year and "absolutely loving it."
Search Associates would like to thank all the candidates who applied for this position and to everyone who assisted and supported the successful search process for ASD.
