Leadership Team

Richard Thornhill

I regard it as a privilege to be Head of School of The British School of Boston. To have the opportunity to lead such a wonderful international school community in a city with rich culture is something I cherish every day.

Before coming to Boston, I served as the Head of School in Beijing, Shunyi. Prior to joining the Nord Anglia family of schools, I graduated with a Bachelor of Education (Honours, QTS) at Nottingham Trent University. I have been a Headteacher, Executive Headteacher and most recently Chief Executive Officer of a federation of schools in London for over twenty years. This experience has involved the full school age range and the delivery of the highest quality educational provision.

I was appointed one of the first National Leaders of Education in the UK and have served on the Boards of the Training and Development Agency for Schools and the National College for School Leadership, both in the UK.

Above all, however, is my passion to see young people succeed. There is no greater joy for a professional educator than to see students, grow, develop and blossom. All of us at BISB are committed to provide the highest quality of education and thus turn our students dreams and ambitions into reality.

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Andrew Gillhooly

It is a pleasure to join the British International School of Boston. I join the BISB community most recently from my 14-year tenure in Chicago where I first served as a math teacher and was then appointed as the Head of Secondary in 2013. I graduated from University with a Master’s in Mechanical Engineering from Warwick University, I also completed a PGCE in Secondary Mathematics from Sheffield University and I’ve completed a Master’s in International Education from King’s College London. I grew up in Sheffield, England on the edge of the Peak District and enjoyed rock climbing and mountain biking. After I graduated from University, I spent a year working in industry before I decided to retrain and become a teacher. I worked in schools in the north of England before joining the British International School of Chicago, South Loop in the summer of 2007. I am most excited to continue my journey within the Nord Anglia family of schools as the Deputy Head of School in Boston working with the amazing community of students, staff and parents of Boston.

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Anna Vangel

I began my teaching career in 1998 after  graduating from Newman College in Birmingham with a B.Ed with Honors in Geography. I then spent three years teaching in a Primary school in Macclesfield, Cheshire. During my third year, I decided I wanted to teach overseas so I joined the VIF program and taught Kindergarten in North Carolina. 

After my time overseas, I returned to the UK and taught in a Primary school in Congleton, Cheshire. In both UK schools I quickly became part of the school communities and was very involved in events with the school’s parent teacher association and leading curriculum areas, including Geography and Religious Education.

After working back in the UK I still wanted to work overseas and the British Schools of America appealed to me because it was a young group of growing schools. I wanted to be part of the team taking the schools forward.  I joined the BISB team in 2004 and have taught in Year 2, Year 1 and Reception.  I am also the Head of Lower Primary and a member of the Senior Leadership Team.

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Jane O'Hare

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Lisa van Horne

 

 

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Susan Burke

Originally from Boston’s north shore, I joined the British International School of Boston as the finance business manager in 2016 with experience that comes from living and working overseas in Europe and Asia for many years.

With over 20 years of financial services industry experience at leading financial services corporations, my career has been specialized in international finance, taxation, human resources, and operations management with extensive focus on strategic development for offshore start-ups and turnarounds defining and implementing process improvement and change management in both US and international contexts.

I recently transitioned back to the US hoping to build on that strong foundation in education management.  Combining my passion for education and business management, with the sheer variety of activity that this role entails and the stimulating challenge it poses, holds great appeal for me striving for continuous improvement, innovation and embracing change to meet the needs of the BISB community.

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Stephen Higgins

My desire to teach stemmed from my experience spending five summers in the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania working at a traditional co-ed summer camp. This experience of combining education with the natural environment occurred both during and after my time at the University of Liverpool where I studied a BA in Geography.

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Lucy Ripman

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