Andrew Wooden
EXECUTIVE COACH, SEARCH CONSULTANT
Andrew Wooden has dedicated his career to service within independent schools, leading top schools across the country through critical inflection points and propelling their growth. Serving in a variety of roles, including Head of School, Executive Director, Trustee, Senior Dean, Dean of Admissions, and teacher, Andrew brings a unique perspective to his role as an Executive Search Consultant identifying top talent to lead independent schools into their next chapters.
Most recently, Andrew has been honored to serve in several transitional leadership roles where he has utilized his Head of School and Board of Trustees leadership experience to navigate complex periods of change and contribute to the successful searches for new Executive Directors and Heads of School. His leadership positions included Interim Executive Director at Southwest Association of Episcopal School, Interim Head of School at The Buckley School in Sherman Oaks and St. James’ Episcopal School in Los Angeles, and Interim Upper School Head at Laguna Blanca School in Santa Barbara. Previously, Andrew served as Head of School at Marymount of Santa Barbara, leading the school to record-high enrollment and tripling the size of its endowment over his seven-year tenure. He was also instrumental in increasing enrollment from 70 to 550+ students as the first permanent Head of School at Bosque School in Albuquerque.
In addition to his school leadership roles, Andrew is an active board member in the independent school community and with nonprofit organizations. He is currently on the Executive Committee and serves as the co-chair of the DEIJ committee with the Bishop’s School Board of Trustees in LaJolla. He is also Board Chair of the non-profit, ASSIST Scholars based in Connecticut, which helps enable academically talented international students to attend American independent schools. Formally he served as a trustee on the California Association of Independent Schools Board of Directors setting standards for academic quality and ethical conduct for 200 independent school members across California.
Andrew earned a master’s degree from Yale Divinity School, an honorary doctorate from Berkeley Divinity School at Yale and a B.A. in English from the University of Maine. Andrew resides with his partner, Molly, in Sherman Oaks, California.
