The Esol Education team is pleased to welcome new (and returning) members of our educational family, collectively bringing over 100 years of educational leadership experience to our schools.

Mr. Jeff Smith joined Dunecrest American School as School Director at the beginning of the 2021-2022 school year, bringing to the role over 18 years of leadership experience in international education spearheading high-performing schools in the UK, UAE and Bahrain. With a firm belief that the most important person in a school is the student, and the most important asset is the teacher, Jeff is also a strong proponent of STEAM. His appointment at Dunecrest marks his return to the Esol Education family, having served as Director of Deira International School in Dubai from 2011 to 2018.

Also in August 2021, Mr. Edward Pearce joined Fairgreen International School as Director this year. A passionate educator, has over 20 years of experience in international education, having served previously as a leader at prestigious schools in the United States, China, Malaysia, Dubai and the United Kingdom. Mr. Pearce works actively to build teams committed to delivering outstanding learning experiences for students. With a proven track record of developing high performing, results-focused education teams, Mr. Pearce is dedicated to leading the Fairgreen community with a future-forward outlook, positive energy, transparency and inclusivity.

After successfully establishing Esol Education’s American School Hong Kong (ASHK) in 2016 and leading ASHK for five years, Mr. John Jalsevac is relocating to Egypt in the 2022-2023 academic year to take over the helm at Esol’s American International School in Egypt – West Campus. With over 35 years of experience in the educational sector, John views his occupation more as vocation than profession. A keen advocate of a balanced, holistic approach to education, he places great value on academic excellence as well as on pure and applied arts programs, clubs, leadership activities, community service initiatives, and sports. 

Mr. Christopher Coates is the incoming Director at American School of Hong Kong, starting the 2022-2023 academic year with over 30 years of experience in public, private, and international education. He has served in leadership positions for over 20 years and has a solid track record of developing and implementing leading-edge academic programs including the prestigious International Baccalaureate Diploma^® Programme (IBDP) in Hong Kong and beyond.  As a passionate IB educator, Christopher is always focused on student success and wellbeing. He advocates for a holistic approach to education, which includes a rigorous academic program at its core, supplemented by pastoral care, ethical leadership development, global citizenship, and service to the community. 

UCA’s Interim Deputy Director, Ms. Rola Malaeb, will be promoted to the position of Interim Director as of August 2022. As an indispensable member of UCA’s leadership team since 2016, Ms. Malaeb has served UCA as Upper Elementary Principal, Middle School Principal, High School Principal, and most recently as Interim Deputy Director. She has proven herself to be a highly capable educational leader, and through the breadth of her experience at UCA she has become deeply familiar with all phases of the school and well acquainted with its community. 

We are honored that these leading educators have chosen to serve our school communities and are excited to see how our schools develop under their headship.