Our Team

Welcome to Nex̱wlélex̱wm! (Bowen Island)
Island Pacific School sits on the unceded and ancestral territory of the Skwxwú7mesh-ulh Temíx̱w (Squamish) Nation. We are deeply grateful to share this beautiful land.
I have very recently returned from living three years abroad in Tokyo, the biggest city on earth, to become the next head of school at Island Pacific School on Bowen Island, a community about 9,000 times smaller than Tokyo. And I get asked two questions everywhere I go these days. The second question is always the more interesting one.
The first thing people ask is, “How was living in Japan?” If they know that I raised my own children on Bowen Island and that my father took me hiking across the North Shore mountains when I was a boy, they will ask instead, “How does it feel to be back home?” But that is really the same question, just asked the other way around. Either way, I tell people that Japan is an extraordinary country. It is generous with its cultural and natural beauty and, a lot like Howe Sound, green and rugged, especially along its northern coasts. Nine-year olds ride the Tokyo trains all on their own. The food is better than you can imagine.
If I think they like to know about secret spots, I might also tell people about the Zen rock garden in the Ryoanji temple, in Kyoto. Surrounded by an earthen wall are fifteen rocks cleverly set out in small clusters on a sea of raked gravel so that no matter where you stand, one rock always remains hidden from view. Mie gakure is the expression: seen and unseen, appearing and disappearing. All of Japan is like that and I am sad to leave it, to be sure. But I am also tremendously excited and happy to be back home, among my family and friends, to hug my granddaughter, and to be working in a school with young people again.
The next thing they will ask–quite directly–is usually something like, “What do you think the future of work looks like?” or “What do you think about children using AI in school?” Some ask what children should know about the climate crisis or diversity and justice. Quite a few ask about academics and grades. Those questions about what and how we teach children do matter. (For the record I think the future is positive, AI is great, climate and social issues are what define us, academic study is a noble pursuit but while grades might get you into university they won’t get you through it and I’m happy to meet for coffee to talk about any of these.) But just as there are different ways of asking the first question, these are all ways people ask the second one, which sits behind everything like the fifteenth rock at the Ryoanji temple garden: “The world seems so unsettled–will my child be ready for it?”
I think so, as long as we work towards equipping and inspiring children over their school years to take on that uncertainty, rather than try to eliminate it for them. The future is inherently uncertain. That’s what Yogi Berra meant when he quipped, “The future ain’t what it used to be.” While that can be scary it is also the thing that makes life interesting. How we face it gives us the measure of our humanity. I want our students to have the knowledge, skills and the disposition to take on their careers, their home lives–the world–with wisdom, courage and integrity.
Should you have any questions or an interest in visiting our school, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We would be thrilled to show you around our beautiful school and island home.
Read more about Brad here.
Our Middle School Team
At IPS, our motto is Learning. To Make a Difference. Because Island Pacific School is small by design, our faculty and staff can make direct connections with each and every one of our middle school students. Our middle school team believes this is how education should be done and this is how we can recognize the unique potential of every student at IPS.
Island Pacific School’s faculty and staff are selected with an eye for creating a team that shares in the school’s mission and core values. The middle school teachers at Island Pacific School come from diverse backgrounds and bring a wealth of world experiences which are shared as part of the collaborative effort to achieve the school’s open/responsible environment. And they are middle school experts.
Book an appointment to discuss our distinctly different approach.
Or find out more about each member of our middle school team, below.

Adrian van Lidth de Jeude
ARTS GR 6-9, DESIGN GR 6-9, SENIOR SEMINAR
Growing up on Bowen Island, Adrian developed a deep love for the Island: its community, ocean and forest. He is passionate about the outdoors, horticulture, theatre, music, and history. He is constantly curious about the world and cares deeply about how to make it better.
Adrian started teaching at Island Pacific School in 2009. Since then, he continues to endeavour to build authentic relationships, pique curiosity, and foster fun in and out of the classroom.

Alison Sturrock
SCIENCE, DESIGN & ECO CLUB
Alison eagerly anticipates joining the IPS superhero team this coming school year. Though Vancouver born and raised, she has been teaching at international schools in Hong Kong, Sweden, the Dominican Republic, and Türkiye since graduating from UBC. She enjoys exploring and immersing herself in nature, and can’t wait to return to the beautiful West Coast for new adventures. Her other passions include dancing, board games, tackling cryptic crosswords, and snuggling her rescue cat Mu.
Alison is ready to rock and roll, and engineer experiences together!

Amanda Szabo
LEARNING STRATEGIES LEAD
Amanda moved to Bowen in September of 2000 and started her career in education. Since the turn of the century, Amanda has been a classroom and learning support teacher, run an ESL school, been an instructor at the Down Syndrome Research Foundation and completed a master’s degree in Special Education. She’d also like to mention the three boys (Oliver, Arthur and Leo) that have joined her family since then.
Amanda loves reading, music, theatre and ragdoll cats. In her spare time, she is likely to be watching a soccer game or exploring the trails of Bowen with her boys.

Barbara Bingham
DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS
With a background in sales, distribution and marketing, Barb joined IPS in 2002. She brings a wealth of knowledge to her varied portfolio, with expertise in the insurance, real estate and information technology industries.
Her son Alexander is an IPS alumnus, graduating in 2012.
In her spare time Barb loves cooking and trying out new recipes. She has a small business making Hot B: Jamaican hot pepper sauce and U Jerk: Jamaican jerk seasoning. She and her husband Michael love sailing around Howe Sound, the Gulf Islands and Desolation Sound.

Casey James
DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS
Casey James has over 20 years of entrepreneurial experience in the luxury retail and hospitality sector. Her experience in brand and marketing, digital and community engagement and leadership has led to her professional role as a Marketing and Communications Director for a global luxury brand, Consultant, Podcast Host and Founder of Thryve.
Casey was one of the first thirteen students who joined Island Pacific School in 1998. She shares fond memories from her three year experience which has made a profound impact in her personal growth and educational path. Casey lives in West Vancouver, Canada with her husband and two children, Caiden and Sadie.

Cheryl Messier
FINANCIAL CONTROLLER
Cheryl joined IPS in 2018, with a background in the mining and exploration industry as the CFO for several companies.
Her expertise is in setting up and managing finance systems, together with managing corporate governance.
Cheryl enjoys the outdoors, spending time with her nephews, playing tennis and getting out in the waves at Ambleside on her stand up paddle board.

Dylan Gromen
ATHLETIC DIRECTOR / OUTDOOR LIFE / HEALTH & WELLNESS / DESIGN / ULTIMATE / FIELD HOUSE MANAGER
Meet Dylan, an educator with a global perspective who has been teaching internationally since 2015.
When he’s not in the classroom or working towards joining the Travel Century Club, you’ll find Dylan knitting, crafting paper, or brewing homemade kombucha. An avid camper and outdoor enthusiast, with a love for all kinds of games, Dylan is excited to embark on his next adventure at Island Pacific School.

Jennifer Henrichsen
ASSISTANT HEAD
MATHEMATICS GR 6 – 9
MASTERWORKS CO-ORDINATOR
With a background in wildlife biology and nature interpretation, Jennifer earned her B.Ed. at the University of Calgary. She taught in the middle school program at IPS for three years before taking a break to raise her two children and live internationally. She and her family spent three exciting years in Ghana, West Africa before they happily returned to Bowen Island in 2011.
Jen has taught all of the science and math courses at IPS and both her children have attended IPS and has the exceptional honour of winning the 2019 Prime Minister’s Award for Teaching Excellence.

Julia McCaig
DIRECTOR OF ADMISSIONS & MARKETING
Described as a connector, Julia’s passion for her community led her to working as a director for both the Caring Circle Health Resource Centre and the Bowen Island Community Foundation. In these roles, she discovered a love of not for profit work, including planning, organizing and directing many fundraising events and initiatives and building and nurturing donor relations.
Julia has extensive experience as an entrepreneur in small business management, communications, marketing and web design, in addition to teaching technology at Capilano University for several years.

Kari Marentette
LANGUAGE ACQUISITION FRENCH GR. 6-9, INDIVIDUALS & SOCIETIES GR. 6 and HOMEROOM GR. 6
Kari is a lifelong learner who is passionate about teaching the French language. She began learning French in school at age five and hasn’t stopped since! After graduating from Queen’s University, she moved to Australia to teach Grade 7 – 11 French and Science, then made her way to Bowen Island. She is currently working on her Masters of Second Language Education through the University of Ottawa.
Her wide range of interests include camping, hiking, kayaking, swimming, skiing, reading, pottery, cooking, playing board games, and planning her next road trip. Being passionate about living with intention and being outside, she spends most of her free time exploring this beautiful province.

Lily Webber
LANGUAGE & LITERATURE AND INDIVIDUALS & SOCIETIES
Lily is thrilled to be moving to Bowen Island to teach Language & Literature and Individuals & Societies this September. Currently, Lily teaches Grade 5 at a small independent school in the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia.
Prior to this, she spent several years teaching English as an Additional Language and is passionate about sharing and instilling a love of language in the classroom. Over the past decade, Lily has dedicated time to working with youth in various capacities, including experiential education.
Nature has always been Lily’s greatest inspiration, and she is excited to incorporate outdoor exploration into the learning adventures on Bowen Island!

Sara Bryant
SCHOOL COUNSELLOR
In 2019, Sara returned to counselling, becoming a Registered Professional Counsellor (RPC) with the Canadian Professional Counselling Association (CPCA) after a 12-year hiatus. Her journey began in 2007 when she pursued the path to becoming an RPC-C with CPCA, following prior studies at Rhodes College and Conflict Resolution and Mediation at the Justice Institute.
Sara’s focus shifted towards teaching Yoga and embracing motherhood. She has accumulated over a 1000 hours of Yoga training across Canada, India, and the UK, where she lived with her family for five years.
Upon her return to Canada, Sara decided to merge her counselling passion with her Yoga expertise. She returned to the CPCA and completed a 300-hour Yoga Psychology certification, enriching her holistic approach to well-being and counselling. Her Yoga background is invaluable in aiding clients with nervous system regulation, she also often uses evidence-based practices like CBT, Emotion Focused Therapy, and mindfulness.
Sara’s ability to connect, relate and empathize allows her clients to feel heard and understood. Her approach, firm yet gentle and infused with humour, helps clients view their situations as more manageable. She’s genuine, compassionate, and creative, empowering individuals to access their own resilience when facing challenges.