Dear Members of the SSIS Community –
It is with great pleasure that the Board and Administration of Saigon South International School announces the appointment of Mr. Jacob Hendrickson to serve as our next High School Principal. Mr. Hendrickson brings with him nineteen years experience in education, both as a classroom teacher and as an administrator. He will move to Ho Chi Minh City this summer, accompanied by his wife and children.
Born in Alaska, Mr. Hendrickson attended both an international school in Mexico, and schools in the United States, during the course of his primary and secondary education. He spent his undergraduate school years in California, attending the University of California San Diego and majoring in political science.
After earning his teaching credentials, Mr. Hendrickson taught a combined English and Social Studies Humanities program in middle school. He later moved to the high school division where he taught AP US History and other social studies courses in both California and Washington. Mr. Hendrickson has served as a reader (grader) for the College Board AP US History exam.
In 2006, Mr. Hendrickson completed the respected Danforth Educational Leadership Program at the University of Washington in Seattle. (Member of the SSIS community may recall that Dan Keller, SSIS Elementary School Principal, is also a graduate of this exceptional program.) Following this completion, and earning his Principal Certificate, Mr. Hendrickson served as assistant principal at Inglemoor High School, which has a large and successful IB program and is consistently ranked among the highest schools in Washington State in mathematics, reading and writing. After several years at Ingelemoor, Mr. Hendrickson served in administration at Leota Junior High School, also in the state of Washington.
Most recently, Mr. Hendrickson has served as High School Principal at the American International School of Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) under Mr. Monti Hallberg. His work at AISJ has focused on instructional initiatives to improve student learning, mentoring programs for 9th graders transitioning to high school, and the college preparedness of graduating seniors.
Mr. Hendrickson will be accompanied to SSIS by his wife, Elizabeth (Liz), who will teach in our elementary school, and their sons, Jack (age 7) and Smith (age 3). As a family they share a love for both travel and board games with friends and family.
The Board and Administration would like to offer a “thank you” to the entire SSIS community for their participation during our search process. Teachers, students, parents, and administrators all gave generously of their time during the selection and interview stages. A special thanks to Ms. Tina Fossgreen, SSIS Curriculum Director, who led our search committee, which was comprised of Molly Burger (MS Principal), Jodi Federoff (HS English), Bill Fossgreen (HS Math), Erin Hawkins (HS Guidance), Tad Herrold (HS English), Alison Leathwood (HS PE), Kathy Manuel (HS Student Support), and Robert Mooney (HS History).
We look forward to welcome the Hendricksons this Spring as the plan is for the entire family to visit the school again during the month of March. We will arrange opportunities for the community to meet the Hendricksons during this visit and announce those at a later date.
Sincerely yours,
Gayle S. Tsien, Board Chair
Mark Iver Sylte, Head of School
