Mark Wentzel

Al DURRAH INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL, Sharjah, UAE

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2019-June 2022: Head of Well-Being & Inclusion, Head of Boys Section, Special Assistant for Strategic Partnerships.

• Restructured and lead the Boys Section, transforming the  behavioral re-registration block list to a behavioral development program, and a mandatory "Take Back Control" behavioral modification program that transforms "repeat offender" into student leaders. This was achieved through the development  and internal training of a pastoral and inclusion intervention team comprised of supervisors, social workers, pastoral leads, SEN lead, designated Inclusion Teachers, parent counselor and student leaders under my direct supervision.

• Led the inclusion intervention services for SEN, Gifted and Talented, English as Additional Language,  and SEL "at risk" students; serve as university and career guidance counselor for boys and girls high school; and oversee the teaching and learning environment for Boys Grades 5-12.

• Prepared for the last phase of our NEASC US accreditation process, led the school's NEASC Inclusion & Well-being self study, which led to full accreditation December 2021.

• At the time of the first mandated social distancing due to COVID-19, while students where still in school, developed the school's infection prevention protocol, based on a modification of Washington State's corona-virus response and in accordance with WHO guidelines. Prior to live streaming for Term 3 2020, submitted a 'white paper' to the SLT, on the impact of COVID-19 and distance learning on student well-being, which resulted in the approval of the first live streaming PE and well-being classes in a Sharjah private school. 

• During live stream distance learning, also developed and managed virtual homeroom advisory classes from Grades 8 - Grade 12, created and managed a virtual student center, and a virtual teachers room for both the Boys and Girls Sections.

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2016-2019:  Head of Planning, Finance & QA

•  Led the development of the school's quality improvement strategic planning and implementation with the goal, as a new school, of achieving NEASC US Accreditation candidacy status within 5 years  Developed HR and Finance policies and procedures strictly aligned with NEASC standards.

• Led IT needs assessment based on a 5 year build out plan, which resulted in a fiber-optic based infrastructure built to support 3,000 simultaneously engaged students in active eLearning.

• Led the Governing Board's partnership vision, with the development of a 'sphere of influence', that included induction to the American University of Sharjah's Sharaka program of 23 national high schools, Rochester Institute of Technology Dubai partnership, and a consortium of 3 Florida Tier I research institutions currently under development.

• Served as NEASC Accreditation lead, developed the school's first detailed operating budgets based on a 5 year strategic financial plan, mentored the PE Coordinator to lead PE Department conversion of its local curriculum to a US common core PE curriculum, integrated with the Search Institute's 40 developmental assets and  Shape America standards for our total-well being based PE curriculum.