RGS Board Selects Dave Genger as Head of School

March 29, 2010

Greetings!

I am delighted to report that from the finalists chosen by the Head Search Committee, the Rio Grande School Board of Trustees unanimously voted to appoint David Genger as the next Head of School beginning on July 1, 2010.

Dave has been successful both as an award-winning science teacher and an effective Upper School Division Head at one of the finest independent elementary schools in the country, Lake Forest Country Day School in Illinois, where Dave currently supervises 192 students and 24 faculty members.

In the Position Statement, we described a general desire at RGS "to do more and, wherever possible, to do better." That also describes Dave's work at LFCDS, where his mark can be found on the School's strategic plan, support for diversity, and many reforms in teaching and learning. Because of his background as a scientist, Dave will be instrumental in helping us to build a world class science classroom for our students.

The Board of Trustees was impressed by so many of Dave's personal qualities, including his quick and curious mind, strong character, and excellent work ethic as well as his warm, straightforward, and outgoing manner. We were also captivated by his student-centered approach and genuine love of children--as a teacher, administrator, and parent. In addition, we think you will find Dave to be very accessible and an exceptionally good listener. In sum, he is a great fit for RGS.

I want to extend special thanks to the Head Search Committee, who worked diligently throughout the process, reviewed applications from a nationwide search that resulted in more than 60 candidates, and did an outstanding job from start to finish.

Going forward, I have appointed a Transition Committee, who will work to make sure that Dave's transition is a smooth one and to properly welcome his wife Vanessa and their youngest daughter, Allyson, to Rio Grande School as well as to the greater Santa Fe community. The Transition Committee will be chaired by next year's board president Will Halm and former board president Mary Amelia Howell. The other members of the committee are Bill Bennett, Kelsey Daly Brown, Elicia Montoya, Maureen Devlin, Kerri Cottle, Mary Ann Pound, and Kirsty Mitchell as well as Lisa Darling, President of United World College, and Jim Leonard, Head of Santa Fe Prep. It is an all-star cast and we are grateful for their willingness to serve.

Finally, please join me in extending a warm Rio Grande School welcome to Dave Genger and his family!

Sincerely,

Fred Nathan

President, Board of Trustees and Chair of the Head Search Committee

Please read the message from David Genger below.

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To the Rio Grande School Community,

I am humbled by your individual and collective interest in me and truly honored to become the next Head of the Rio Grande School.

The search process was very thorough and professionally executed, and yet it was imbued with a sense of warmth that seems to pervade the RGS community. I am at a loss for words to fully describe what the most recent visit meant to me, Vanessa, and Allyson. Collectively, we had only spent one day in Santa Fe prior to our recent visit and yet if felt like home. Once the offer to become the next Head of School at RGS was tendered the decision to accept was made without hesitation.

As I said in one of my interviews, the root word minist- means "in service to" and as the Head of the Rio Grande School it will be a distinct honor to be "in service to" such an engaged and dynamic faculty, board, administration, staff, and most especially the students and their families at RGS.

There is a palpable sense of community at the Rio Grande School. Community, by my definition, means "unity based on a common purpose." The bond that appears to unite the RGS community is a mutual love of the school and the very evident joy in learning that so many find there. I am very anxious to begin what I hope is a very long career at RGS, providing leadership as we collectively navigate through the challenges and opportunities of independent school education in the 21st Century.

Sincerely,

David L. Genger, Jr.