James MacDonald is NIST’s new Head of School, taking on the role in August 2013. Prior to his appointment, James was Head of School at Yokohama International School in Japan, which holds the distinction of being the world’s second oldest international school. Besides Japan, James has worked in schools in Canada and Singapore and has held a number of teaching and leadership positions over the course of his career.

James holds a Bachelor of Education and Bachelor of Management from the University of Lethbridge (Canada), a Masters of Arts in Education from the University of Bath (UK) and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of British Columbia (Canada). James is also an active contributor to the development of international education and is currently Chair of the International Baccalaureate (IB) Asia Pacific Regional Council and was also recently the Chair of the East Asia Association of IB School Heads. He has published numerous articles on international education and is a regular presenter at educational conferences. Both James and his wife Corry are originally from Canada and their three children all attend NIST International School.