FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Sue Wells, Head of School
413.458.4680
s.wells@pinecobble.org
Pine Cobble School Announces Assistant Head of School
Devin Wootton joins Williamstown independent school from Seattle, Washington
WILLIAMSTOWN, MA. Pine Cobble School is delighted to announce that Devin Wootton has been hired as the assistant head of school after a competitive nationwide search. He began work in August.
Wootton joins Pine Cobble from University Prep School, an independent middle and high school in Seattle, Washington, where he has been a dean and a language training teacher since 2013. “I loved the challenge at University Prep,” says Wootton. “It’s a terrific school, with a robust curriculum and a bustling enrollment of 530 students over seven grades. But I missed the heart and soul of a school like Pine Cobble, where intellectual growth goes hand-in-hand with lessons about integrity, empathy, and responsibility.”
Wootton grew up in rural Maryland, where he attended schools operating out of converted farmhouses. “In many ways,” he adds, “coming to Pine Cobble feels like coming home.”
Sue Wells, Pine Cobble’s head of school, says Wootton was the unanimous first choice among all who met him during the hiring process. “Everyone who had the chance to speak with Devin — faculty, administrators, students, parents, and alumni — commented on his thoughtfulness, commitment to intellectual inquiry, leadership, and positivity,” she says. “We’re absolutely delighted to welcome him to the community.”
John Strachan, chair of Pine Cobble’s board of trustees, notes that in recent years Pine Cobble has seen remarkable growth in academic programming, enrollment, financial security, and community relations. “We’ve accomplished all of this while holding fast to the founding vision of the school,” says Strachan. “The next phase of our history will cement this progress for future generations. Devin’s experience, enthusiasm, energy, and integrity make him an ideal fit to help lead the school as we do this.”
Prior to University Prep, Wootton spent five years at Wye River Upper School in Maryland, where he was the dean of students, an English teacher, a director of the theater program and was on the school support team. He graduated from James Madison University, in Harrisonburg, Virginia, has completed coursework for Certification in Secondary English, and has associate level training in Orton- Gillingham, a specialized instructional approach to reading. Wootton is in the middle of his M.Ed in Curriculum Instruction with a concentration in Education Leadership from Southern New Hampshire University.
Pine Cobble School is a co-educational day school for children in preschool through ninth grade. For eight decades, the school has nurtured creativity, curiosity, outstanding character, and love of learning. Based in Williamstown, Massachusetts, Pine Cobble School serves students in central/northern Berkshire County, southern Vermont, and New York State. Financial aid is available.