Next Head of School

The board of trustees is pleased to announce the appointment of Paul A. Burke as the seventh head of the Nightingale-Bamford School, effective July 1, 2012.

Letter from the Board President

It is with great joy that I write to tell you that Paul A. Burke has accepted the invitation of the Board of Trustees to become the next head of the Nightingale-Bamford School, effective July 1, 2012. Mr. Burke was the unanimous first choice of the search committee, and his selection was ratified by the full board at a special meeting last night.

Mr. Burke is currently head of Nightingale's Upper School and in his three years here has brought extraordinary new energy and innovation to the division while upholding Nightingale's traditions and embracing its mission. For students, parents, administrators, and faculty, he has been that rare leader whose passion inspires passion and whose ideas inspire ideas. His intellect, judgment, vision, and humor have earned him respect both within and beyond the blue doors. He is a truly remarkable educator, and he understands Nightingale's past and its potential on the deepest level.

Mr. Burke will be the seventh head of school in Nightingale's 91-year-history, succeeding Dorothy A. Hutcheson, who last year announced her plans to step down after an illustrious 20-year tenure.

An American history teacher for more than a decade, Mr. Burke began his career in 1996 as a college counselor at the Salisbury School in Connecticut. In 2000, he joined the Packer Collegiate Institute in Brooklyn, where he was college advisor for three years before becoming a dean of students. A 1996 graduate of Williams College, he earned a Masters degree in Educational Administration from Columbia University Teachers College, where he was inducted into the Kappa Delta Pi honor society. Mr. Burke is married to Christine Rowe Burke, a senior marketing executive; they have twin five-year-old sons and a three-year-old daughter.

The selection of Mr. Burke was the culmination of a national search that involved the entire Nightingale community. Working with consultants from Educators' Collaborative, the nine-member search committee, chaired by Patsy Gilchrist Howard '62, reviewed the credentials of dozens of candidates with a wide range of backgrounds, educational philosophies, and experience. Three extremely qualified finalists emerged from this process, and each spent several days touring the schoolhouse, meeting with members of our community, and being interviewed by parent, alumnae, and faculty committees. The feedback that followed was invaluable to the search committee, and I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who participated in what was an exciting but demanding process.

The selection of the head of school is one of the great responsibilities of trusteeship, and I know the rest of the board joins me in feeling privileged to have exercised that responsibility, and to have arrived, with Paul Burke, at the threshold of an exciting future.

With best wishes,

Nina Joukowsky Köprülü '79
President, Board of Trustees