Posts about Meet School Leadership
January 14, 2023
Leadership Spotlight: Associate Head of School Rose Miller-Sims
As the Associate Head of School, Ms. Rose Miller-Sims focuses on how to best support students and faculty to achieve at their highest level in a joyful environment. Ms. Miller-Sims first joined our faculty as a Learning Expert Teacher for the Primary School, because she wanted to be an integral part of a community with a strong culture of learning and curiosity. She loved the BASIS Independent approach to challenging students in ways that inspired autonomy and encouraged creativity.
From teacher to Student Affairs Director, Ms. Miller-Sims has proven to be a star within our network, finding new professional growth across Student Affairs during her six-year tenure at BASIS Independent Brooklyn Upper School.
Ms. Miller-Sims graduated magna cum laude from Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio with a Bachelor of Arts degree. She was a modern language major studying both Italian and French. While an undergraduate, she studied abroad in Padua, Italy. Ms. Miller-Sims later attended the Steinhardt School of Education at New York University where she received a Master of Arts degree in foreign language education. Ms. Miller-Sims received a Master of Science degree in general and special education from Touro College.
“While it is always a difficult choice to leave the classroom, I was excited for the new challenges that moving into an administrative role provided. During my time as a teacher, I saw how crucial having an excellent, supportive admin team is to the success of a school, and I am excited to bring a fresh perspective from my roles in the classroom and years as a Director of Student Affairs to my role as Associate Head of School.”
August 5, 2022
Leadership Spotlight: Director of Lower School Ms. De Leon
As Director of Student Affairs for BASIS Independent Brooklyn's Lower School, Samantha De Leon's goal is to cultivate productive and positive relationships with teachers and families so that all students can achieve at their highest levels.
“At our Lower Campus, every moment that the kiddos are working in their classrooms they are deepening their curiosity, building their resiliency, and thinking critically about their world. This strong foundation sets them on a path to not just be personally successful but also to be a part of the success of their global community. I am eager to be a part of their journey and support them at every stage of accomplishing their goals.”
Ms. De Leon was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. She received the Gates Millennium Scholarship and attended Brown University, where she received her bachelor’s degree in biology and master’s degree in elementary teaching. After twelve years of teaching and curriculum consulting, Ms. De Leon decided to transition to administration as the Director of Student Affairs at the Lower School Campus.
September 24, 2021
Leadership Spotlight: Director of High School Ms. Forde
Five years ago, Ms. Forde joined our History Faculty and quickly demonstrated her incredible dedication and innovation as an educator, which also made her a favorite teacher among students. This summer Ms. Forde accepted the role of Director of our High School Program, which was just recognized as the Best Private College Prep High School in Brooklyn according to Niche.com and ranked #16 in the category in New York overall.
Ms. Forde graduated from Williams College with her bachelor’s degree in history and classics, and she
was honored as a Mellon Undergraduate Research Fellow during her years on campus. She received her master’s degree from the University of London and her post-baccalaureate from Bryn Mawr College. She also pursued coursework ranging from anatomy to cellular and molecular biology at the University of Maryland, Baltimore Medical School, and Georgetown.
Similar to many BASIS Independent Schools educators, Ms. Forde started in academia. After obtaining her degrees, Ms. Forde worked in clinical research at the University of Maryland Center for Integrative Medicine. She co-authored two research publications on anxiety while at the university. After a few years in the clinical research setting, Ms. Forde decided to switch careers to education. Before coming to BASIS Independent Brooklyn, Ms. Forde worked directly with elementary and middle school students on their reading literacy and mathematics ability in preparation for the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth Program.
August 10, 2021
Leadership Spotlight: Director of Middle School Mr. Mandeville
From the very first day BASIS Independent Brooklyn opened to students, Michael Mandeville stood apart as a leader
among our faculty. He shaped our French program from the middle school years through high school, including a very popular Senior Capstone class exploring French literature. For the past several years he also served as the French Subject Expert Advisor across all BASIS Independent Schools. Now he is excited to lead our Middle School program in collaboration with Dean Holly Goodin.
Mr. Mandeville received his Bachelor of Arts magna cum laude with a double major in letters and French from the University of Oklahoma in 2010. In 2014, he received his master’s degree in French literature from the University of Oklahoma, and he was formally recognized for excellence in teaching by the University Provost. During his master’s program, he received a scholarship to participate in Middlebury College’s summer Russian program.
January 24, 2020
Leadership Spotlight: Our Head of Operations Dave Carty
Many of you have already met Dave Carty, who at 6'4" quite 
literally towers over our other faculty and staff on campus. He signed on as our Head of Operations this summer and quickly become an integral part of our community, overseeing all operations from facilities to bus service. Mr. Carty also happens to be a former college basketball player and stepped up to be the assistant coach of our Gr. 6–8 CONSAT basketball team!
Driven by a focus on his own three children, Mr. Carty followed an interesting road to a career in education. We wanted to share his perspective as our Head of Operations as well as a parent of three who all attended independent schools from PreK through high school.
September 21, 2018
Meet Ms. Golka, Dean of Students for Our Primary Program
Ms. Golka is the Dean of Students for the Primary School Program (grades 1–4) at BASIS Independent Brooklyn. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in theater performance from Winthrop University where she was a part of the theater honor society Alpha Psi Omega. After starting out in the book industry and then shadowing with a school in Brooklyn, she discovered her passion for teaching. She started her Masters of Early Education (Birth–2nd Grade) degree at Hunter College at CUNY.
Ms. Golka started as a grade 2 Learning Expert Teacher (LET) at BASIS Independent Brooklyn, and she is very excited about moving onto the Student Affairs team. She believes it is very important to not only help students grow academically, but socially and emotionally as well.
Ms. Golka feels strongly that BASIS Independent Brooklyn shares the same values for education and teaching as she does, especially the belief that every student is important and has potential to excel. She enjoys reading, doing improv, and traveling with family and friends.
August 11, 2017
Meet Our Faculty and Staff: Lauren Fisher, Dean of Students Gr. 5–7
We are proud to announce Ms. Lauren Fisher recently joined our BASIS Independent Brooklyn team as Dean of Students for Grades 5–7. Ms. Fisher brings a wealth of experience to this new role supporting student academic and social-emotional growth at our growing middle school.
After attending our network-wide training in Arizona in July, Ms. Fisher had a chance to settle into her new office and meet up with our communications team. We had the chance to ask her some questions, so our families could get to know her better.
Welcome!
Inspired by the blissful feeling of uncovering connections, our blog Eureka! Brooklyn is about sharing moments that capture the essence of what it is to be a BASIS Independent student, teacher, administrator, or family.