A passionate edupreneur, school leader, and prolific author, Dean was recently appointed lead delegate for the inaugural 2023 GSEP Colloquium on youth social entrepreneurship in Hong Kong. He is a recipient of prestigious fellowships from EE Ford, the National Endowment of the Humanities, and the Klingenstein Foundation at Columbia University. He is an exemplar of a ravenous growth mindset earning a Masters in Education from Columbia University, a Masters in Teaching from the SIT Graduate Institute, a Proactive Leadership Certification from Cornell University, and a two-time selection in Harvard Graduate School of Education programs including “Redesigning American High Schools.” To date, he has authored six books, published essays and briefs, and has appeared on over 25 expert panels and national podcasts.
His passion for developing youth leaders and building bridges of understanding between cultures has taken many forms including the founding of the Dominican Republic Orphanage project, the Center for Global Youth Leadership, and TLL Global. He service on boards and ambassadorial roles includes the Council for International Visitors, NAIS Global Ambassadorship, TABS-NABI, and delegate to St. Lucia for the World Chamber of Commerce. In his career, he has established over 50 unique international partnerships, agreements, and exchanges with schools and businesses in China, Vietnam, Korea, Dominican Republic, Spain, Serbia, Bermuda, Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, and more.
Currently, Dean serves as the Executive Head of School for two historic campuses in New York City, and his career as an educational leader has included decades in boarding schools and PK3-8 day schools throughout New York, New England and the southeast. In 2014, he founded the www.teachlearnlead.net professional development edu-library and built a globally engaged audience who utilize the vast curated resources. He credits his parents with instilling in him a love for social entrepreneurialism, service, community partnerships and civic impact. In their honor, he founded the Therese A. Fusto Micro-Grants to provide philanthropic seed money to promote youth leadership development of social and community impact projects.
At a young age, an adventure in Spain as a homestay student transformed my worldview and made me hungry for more travel and perspectives. The idea of learning was amplified and no longer confined to some event that happens in a classroom. I knew that although I liked a good lecture now and again, my soul was seeking experience. Kohl and Dewey and Lewin became part of my reading lists and their work always led me to another writer, poet, filmmaker, and artist. When I was honored with a National Endowment of the Humanities Fellowship for a residency at the University of Puerto Rico, my attention turned to immersion in Spanish-speaking and indigenous cultures of the Caribbean. Again, my worldview was rocked and inspired me to write the book Windows and Mirrors: Reflections and Trainings on Cultural Understanding.
The most transformational and trajectory shifting event, to date, was my partnership with a family of orphanages throughout the Dominican Republic. A relationship that not only lasted two decades, but also integrated my love for service, experiential learning, and youth leadership. In 2014, I was hungry to build a platform online that would serve as a comprehensive, resource-rich, epi-center of learning and exploration. In fact, www.teachlearnlead.net was initially a selfish act because I wanted everything I loved to learn at my fingertips, but gradually I learned that there was a network across the globe that sought the same thing and had similar unquenchable love for learning. The site grew in scope and reach. Learning never stops and I hope when you visit the platform, you are led down new avenues and meet luminaries and confront ideas that were not part of your initial search.
“What you seek is seeking you” -Rumi
(2022, November) The Face of the School Out in the Community, West Side Spirit, Chelsea News, and Our Town Publications
(2021, September) VoyageATL Daily Inspiration Feature
(2020, November) CBS TV –How Some Metro Atlanta Schools Are Handling COVID 19
(2019, April) Students from Four Continents to Attend Summer Programs at Brandon Hall School,
(2019, January) The Future is Bright for Young Leaders, Bermuda Royal Gazette
(2017, January) Making the Grade: Boarding School Puts Students on the College Path, Atlanta Journal Constitution
- Strategic Planning & Execution
- Boarding and Day School Leadership
- Advancement and Enrollment Management
- Start-up Schools
- B2B, B2C Partnerships
- Revenue Stream Design
- Governance and Fiscal Planning
- Crisis Management and Operational Continuity Planning
- Global Relations- Consulates & Delegates
- Marketing & PR
(2021 September) The Youngpreneur Podcast
(2021 September) Building Your Company’s CQ, The Shrimp Tank #1 Business Podcast
(2021 August) Empowerment – ROR (Results Oriented Recruiting) Magazine for Admissions Professionals
(2021 July) Chat With Leaders Podcast – Episode 89 – Youth Leadership, Scholarship, and Service
(2021 July) Students in Summer Program Master Leadership Skills, Atlanta Journal Constitution
(2021 June) Your Company Health Podcast: Dean J. Fusto on the Center for Global Youth Leadership
(2021 April) The 10 Minute Teacher Podcast: Dean J. Fusto on Youth Leadership
(2021 March) Full Stack Educator Podcast: The 5 Pillars of Leadership
(2020 November) The 5 Pillars of Impactful Leadership. SEEN Magazine.
(2018 March) Navigating the Independent School Landscape: A Webinar Sponsored by Teachers College, Columbia University. (Available on request)
(2017) Making Global Education Local, and Vice Versa, with Innovative Teaching and Learning. Huffington Post, April 18, 2017.
(2017 February) Global Education as a Transformative Experience
(2016 January) Teacher Tech Trials: Interview of Dean J. Fusto by Corey Engstrom
(2017 January) Featured in Interview for Atlanta Journal Constitution. “Making the Grade: Boarding School Puts Students on the College Path” by H.M. Cauley
(2016 October) Featured in Interview for National Association of Independent School Blog. “How Schools are Modernizing the Parent, Teacher Conference” by James Paterson
Connecting Character, International Service-Learning, and Curriculum. Published In Middle Ground Magazine. Association of Middle Level Education.
The Next Best Thing To Being There – A Multi-Sensory, Experiential Approach to the Teaching of Culture in the 21st Century Classroom
Circo, A Teacher’s Guide, Carlex Publications
Devil’s Miner – A Teacher’s Guide, Carlex Publications
Gringuito, A Teacher’s Guide, Carlex Publications
Which Way Home, A Teacher’s Guide, Carlex Publications
(2023 January) The 8 Essentials to Thriving as a Boarding School Student, Expert Panelist, Vancouver Visa
(2020 October) How to Engage Our Youth and Educators in International Education During Pandemic
(2020 October) Reframing Resilience (Pendleton Group Panel)
(2020 February) Managing the Expat Experience: A Presentation for Global Atlanta
(2019 November) Youth Leadership and Social Entrepreneurship- World Chamber of Commerce Trade Mission to St. Lucia
(2018 April) Managing the Expat Experience: A Presentation for Global Atlanta
(2018 March) Navigating the Independent School Landscape: A Webinar Sponsored by Teachers College, Columbia University. (Available on request)
(2017, October) SAUPO Shanghai – Expert Panel on U.S. Education
(2017 June) Global Minded Conference Speaker and Panelist, Denver, CO
(2017 February) Boarding Schools: A Primer. Presented to Kennesaw State YSEALI scholars, Atlanta, GA
(2017 February) “Vision to Action: The Center for Global Youth Leadership and Social Entrepreneurial Studies” Presented to Kiwanis International, Atlanta, GA
(2017, January) “Global Education as a Transformative Experience”, Presented to International Women’s Associates, Atlanta, GA
(ADDITIONAL PRESENTATION TOPICS)
-Alumni Panel for Prospective Students, Presented at SIT Graduate Institute, Brattleboro, VT.
-Navigating the Independent School Network, Presented at Career Connections, SIT Graduate Institute, Brattleboro, VT.
-Tips for Teachers: New Teacher Panel Discussion, Presented at SIT Graduate Institute, Brattleboro, VT.
-Designing Student Self-Directed Experiential Learning, Presented at TABS UnConference, Boston
-Designing and Implementing an Effective Information Literacy Program, TABS3D Online Conference