January 6, 2025
Dear Odyssey School Community,
We hope you had a relaxing winter break and have time to enjoy the beautiful snowfall! On behalf of the Search Committee, I am thrilled to introduce our first finalist, Ben Thompson. Due to the snowfall, the decision to host Ben on Tuesday is PENDING, so please check to see if Odyssey is open tomorrow. If Odyssey is closed tomorrow, Ben’s visit will be rescheduled to January 15-16. We appreciate his flexibility with the plans!
Ben Thompson has been Head of Lower School at Gerstell Academy in Finksburg, MD (PK-12, 391 total student enrollment, 114 students in the Lower School) since 2021. As Head of the Lower School, Ben is responsible for planning faculty professional development, focusing on classroom management and teaching methodology, and performing classroom observations for the quality of instruction. Ben has a leadership role in the admissions process by evaluating candidates and safeguarding student transition and retention. Additionally, he forecasts yearly building operations of a shared lower and middle school facility, establishes the divisional budget, monitors classroom and cross-divisional department budgets, participates in all school budget discussions and decisions, and develops and implements PreK-12 systems, policies, and procedures including scheduling, grading scale alignment with learning outcomes, and chairing the school’s DEI Committee, which includes faculty from the Lower, Middle, and Upper School divisions, as well as all-school staff and Upper School students.
Other positions Ben has held include diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) coordinator, assistant head of middle school, middle school classroom teacher, middle school leadership instructor, mathematics learning specialist in the upper school, director of athletics, dormitory supervisor, health instructor, and coach. Ben served on an AIMS reaccreditation team in 2023 and was awarded the Gerstell Academy President’s Award (2020) and the Leadership Award (2017).
Professional History and Education
Head of Lower School, Gerstell Academy (MD), 2021 – Present
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Coordinator, Gerstell Academy (MD), 2020– Present
Assistant Head of Middle School, Gerstell Academy (MD), 2016-2021
Middle School Leadership Instructor, Gerstell Academy (MD), 2014-2018
Mathematics Instructor, Learning Specialist, Christchurch School (VA), 2012-2014
Director of Athletics, Dormitory Supervisor, Health Instructor, Coach, Christchurch School (VA), 2008-2012
M.S. Educational Leadership, Virginia Commonwealth University (VA)
B.S. Management with Minors in Education and Communications, Virginia Commonwealth University (VA)
Ben will be on campus Tuesday, January 7 and Wednesday, January 8 and will participate in a number of individual, small group and open forum meetings. Key meeting dates and times are listed at the end of this message for your reference. The Search Committee is excited for you to meet Ben and asks that you participate in our communitywide survey to provide your impressions of him for us to consider. The survey must be completed by 12:00 p.m. on January 9, 2025.
Use this link to access the survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/OdysseyThompson
On behalf of the Search Committee, I would like to thank in advance the entire Odyssey School family for what I know will be a warm welcome for Ben. Please try and take advantage of the opportunities to meet and hear from Ben and to participate in the community survey. Your feedback is a critical piece of what the Search Committee will consider in making its final recommendation to the Board of Trustees.
Warmly,
Terri Smith, Chair of the Search Committee
Search Committee Members:
Dr. Yael Allen
Cheryl Bernard-Smith
Crawford Hubbard
Janice Lepore, Psy.D
Kevin McAllister
Corey Paige
Chris Pope
Suzy Riedel
Michael Weinfeld
Candidate Meeting Schedule
Wednesday, 1/8/25
8:10 a.m. - 9:10 a.m. Forum with current parents
4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. Forum with alumni, parents of alumni, and friends of Odyssey
RSVP here for sessions