Victoria Spagnoli ’14M, ’22Ed.D. is continuing to pursue her passion for travel and education as the new Principal of the Niseko campus of Hokkaido International School in Japan. The school offers a Western-style education from pre-school through middle school for students of all nationalities. She began her new role on August 1.
Dr. Spagnoli is an accomplished educator and school leader with over 30 years of U.S. and international experience, most recently as Vice Principal at Burgaw Middle School in North Carolina.
“This past spring, I recognized that I had reached a point in my professional life where I felt due to travel and learn something fresh as an educator,” she said. “I am very interested to know how other regions of the world educate their children. There are often ideas, instructional approaches, and a philosophical stance that I can learn from and apply to my own practice. Traveling and working as an educator reflects one of my core values as a human, which is to honor my curiosity.”
Although this is Dr. Spagnoli’s first trip to Japan, she has traveled and worked abroad at various stages throughout her career. Her experiences have included teaching English at a large urban public school in London, living in Switzerland with her family, and work supporting the professional development of teachers within a network of schools in Kerala, India.
“Each of these experiences has deepened my respect for the work and commitment of educators in the United States and in the world,” she said. “Teaching and living abroad made me a better educator with more self-awareness and appreciation for ideological and cultural diversity. In many ways we are similar to each other and connected by our love for learning and our engagement with and commitment towards supporting students.”
As principal of the Niseko campus, Dr. Spagnoli will work with an international staff and multilingual students. In addition to administrative responsibilities, she will have an opportunity to work with young students just learning to read, and serve in the classroom for part of each day as the school’s art teacher.
“This will be an interesting challenge as I have not been a classroom teacher for many years, and working with young children will be new for me as well,” she said.
Dr. Spagnoli holds a bachelor’s degree from UMass, a MAT in secondary education from San Diego State University and a BFA in graphic design from Wichita State. A former N.C. Principal Fellow, she also earned her Master of School Administration and Doctorate in Educational Leadership from UNCW’s Watson College.
“The WCE’s MSA and Ed.D. programs provided me with the opportunity to deeply explore my own interests as an educator and to reach a point where I felt very knowledgeable and expert within my professional work,” she said.
In addition to learning and growing alongside Niseko students, staff and parents, Dr. Spagnoli is excited to share this chapter of her life with her daughter, Norah, who is currently studying Japanese language and culture at the university level.
“Norah and I have dreamed about living for a period of time in Asia for many years,” she said. “Norah is a transnational adoptee; living in Asia will be a shared experience for us as she explores identity, place, culture, and meaning as these ideas apply to her life. This is an exciting opportunity for both of us.”
Dr. Spagnoli is keeping a blog of her experiences in Japan. To learn more about her travels and work as an educator abroad visit The Quiet Eye.
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