Broadwater Academy Appoints Head of School

The Broadwater Academy Board of Trustees has named Dr. Joseph A. Spagnolo to serve as the Head of School. As most of you know, Dr. Spagnolo worked for the past eight years as the oceanography teacher and has served as Interim Head of School since July 2015.

According to Gus Gustafson, “Joe brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the position. His fresh new outlook and energy will ensure that Broadwater’s next fifty years are as successful as the past fifty years. As a longtime resident of the Eastern Shore of Virginia, Joe knows and appreciates the factors that make both Broadwater Academy and our community so special.”
Mr. Spagnolo earned his Ph.D. from the University of Virginia in Educational Administration and was Superintendent of the Lynchburg public schools for seventeen years. Before coming to Broadwater, Joe was appointed by the Governor as Superintendent of Public Education for Virginia, a position in which he served for five years. He was then appointed Superintendent of Education for the State of Illinois where he had direct responsibility for 3,800 schools, 140,000 teachers, and 2.1 million students.

Since July, a Search Committee has worked with the nationally-known academic search firm IES Consulting to identify individuals who have the skills and experience to lead our school. The worldwide search considered candidates from as far away as Switzerland and the Virgin Islands and as close as Accomack County. During this process, Joe let the Committee know that he was interested in assuming the position of Head of School and he was added to the list of potential candidates for consideration.

When the evaluation process concluded, it was determined that Spagnolo, due to his “academic and management skills, proven leadership, compassion, and commitment to Broadwater and the Eastern Shore was down the hall in Broadwater’s Oceanography lab,” was the best candidate for the job.