Meet the Head of School
Find out more about Casady School from Nathan Sheldon, Head of School for the last seven years.
What is your background and how long have you been Head of School? My background is in business and finance. Until I came into K-12 education, I would not have guessed this would be the place I would love. However, in my second year at the school, our Headmaster Charlie Britton asked me to teach a section of Algebra I, coach middle division soccer and tennis and be willing to be a student advisor. Before the year was over, I realized my calling was to help kids become their very best selves. I am currently in my 17th year at Casady School, with this being my seventh year as head of school, and I couldn’t think of a better place to be or better colleagues to work alongside. What is your educational philosophy and how does that impact the students at your school? For me, the hallmark of an excellent education is creating opportunities for students to develop durable skills. I firmly believe that hiring outstanding faculty who understand that student learning should be durable, engaging, authentic, relevant and customized provides the best opportunity for students to be ready for whatever path life takes them down with confidence. What has changed in education the most since you started? What are the current trends and where is education going? Right now is an inspiring time to be in education. We are learning so much more about the brain now with improvements in medical technology that allow us to better understand what a child’s brain responds to best in teaching pedagogy. Additionally, I believe that with the advent of social media and the immediacy of information, we need to focus more on students’ social-emotional wellness. Academics are important, but at the same time, we must pay attention and not let them become prioritized at the cost of a healthy social-emotional child. We know that children are responding well when the teacher has high rigor but also has high engagement. When these two come together, you will find confident, well- rounded and all-around healthy students.
What makes your school stand out among all the education choices parents have? I think many private and public schools are doing their very best to allow their students to continue learning during the pandemic. For me, what stands out about our school is our faculty. Faculty makes the school and our faculty care deeply about their students and foster a genuine love of learning. During this pandemic, we have hosted a drive-in movie theater event that allowed our students to showcase their robust work in the performing arts for family and friends. Additionally, we have been able to compete in all our athletics, and we have maintained the quality of academics that for nearly 75 years our families have come to expect. Tell us about your STEM programs. Our STEM programs are impressive. Our small 2A school competes with the 6A schools in Oklahoma through Science Olympiad. We have successfully won state now for at least the last five years and our students have the opportunity to compete nationally. Additionally, we have relationships with schools from other countries that allow our students to better understand the richness of the world around them and prepare them for their college experiences to come.
9500 N Pennsylvania Ave, OKC 405-749-3100 casady.org
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