Patrick Schuermann is fortunate to have a 25-year career cultivating leadership in individuals and organizations that span Kindergarten through Doctoral level initiatives in both the public and private sectors. He has worked as a Founding Director of a National Center for the U.S. Department of Education, worked globally with the U.S. Department of Defense Education Agency, and has worked with high-level international leaders on programs to support leadership development in educators, schools, and students across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.
Patrick has authored numerous articles, commissioned reports, books, and movies on leadership. Successful School Leadership: Planning, Politics, Performance and Power is the anchor text in the Peabody Instructional Leadership Series, and Leading Schools to Success: Constructing and Sustaining High-Performing Learning Cultures is used in schools, districts and graduate programs across the country, and Data Fluency: Empowering Your Organization with Effective Data Communication helps leaders better understand how to leverage effective data visualization and communication approaches within their teams and organizations.
Patrick served as the worldwide founding co-editor of the Oxford Encyclopedia of Education Online and in 2014 won an Emmy Award for Best Educational Piece for his documentary “A Matter of Principals” – a piece that brought leadership lessons to life in a contextual manner. This commitment to capturing the nuance of context, and to building programs with deep respect for local cultures and expertise, have been a hallmark of Patrick’s career as a practitioner, professor, and professional development program designer and facilitator.
At Vanderbilt University, Patrick founded the Peabody Professional Leadership Institutes and he developed, and for 8 years directed, the Independent School Leadership Master’s Program. In addition to these university-based initiatives, Patrick has collaborated on the design and delivery of programs and resources in support of the independent school community with NAIS, NBOA, AISAP, ERB, SAIS, ESHA, WLSA, ICAISA, INDEX, ISAnet, and a host of state and regional associations. Patrick is on the board of Harding Academy in Nashville, TN and has prior independent school teaching, coaching and leadership experience at Christ Church Episcopal School in Greenville SC, and Lake Highland Preparatory School in Orlando FL.
Presently, Patrick serves as the Director of Strategy and Impact for Optima Independent – a team dedicated to developing leading-edge immersive teaching and learning experiences for educators and students leveraging VR & spacial computing platforms.
Originally from Winter Park, Florida, Patrick holds B.S. and M.A. degrees from Furman University and a Doctorate in Education Leadership and Public Policy from Vanderbilt. Beyond words on a page can adequately express, Patrick is deeply grateful for all of the people who have made each of these experiences possible by their partnership, guidance, and grace.
