David Ottaviano

at WASC

Dr. David Ottaviano was appointed Director of International Accreditation Services after most recently serving as the Head of GEMS International School-Al Khail in Dubai.

David has extensive experience in school administration and ACS WASC. His doctorate was in School Evaluation and Psychology. His tenure as a school head includes 10 years as a public school superintendent in New Jersey and 21 years as head of private, international schools in Serbia, Italy, Japan, Romania and the UAE. With his years at the helm of schools, he has gained expertise in strategic planning, international recruitment, board training, as well as educational and operations management; he brings strong experience and an analytical perspective to the table to help schools in their quest for improvement. A psychologist by training, Dr. Ottaviano uses current psychological theory to inform his leadership approach.

He has had extensive experience with ACS WASC serving as a Commissioner, as a WASC educational consultant and on numerous WASC Committees as member and Chairperson.

In addition to his 31 years of experience as a school head he has held board leadership positions in the international professional development groups in Asia (EARCOS) and Central and Eastern Europe (CEESA). He has also served as President of IB North Asia, was Vice-President of EARCOS (East Asia Region Council of International Schools), and Chairman of CEESA (Central and Eastern Schools Association).

David received a BA from Grove City College in psychology, an MA in school psychology from Montclair State University, and an Ed.D. from Fairleigh Dickinson University in Educational Leadership and Psychology. David’s post-doctoral work was as a Klingenstein Fellow at Teachers College, Columbia University. He has written numerous articles on the adjustment of children, on psychology, and on the education of students. His hobbies are reading, bicycling, and golfing, traveling and flying a small airplane. He also enjoys carpentry.

He and his wife Cathy have been married for over 45 years. Cathy holds two master’s degrees in psychology and school counseling and is also a Certified Financial Planner. They have two children who were primarily educated overseas in the International Baccalaureate Programme. Kyle graduated from Dickinson College in Pennsylvania, has an MA in School Counseling and works in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Kate is a graduate of Wesleyan University, a former Fulbright Scholar in Macedonia and currently attends Rutgers Medical School in New Jersey.