Dennis Chapman VILLAGE SCHOOL LEADER APPOINTED TO FLORIDA BOARD

VILLAGE SCHOOL OF NAPLES LEADER APPOINTED TO FLORIDA COUNCIL OF INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The Village School of Naples, an independent school serving students in Preschool through 12th grade, announced that Head of School Dennis Chapman has been elected to the Florida Council of Independent Schools (FCIS) Board of Directors.

Driven by a passion for educational excellence, the FCIS works to both set the standards and advance the quality of independent private school education in the State of Florida.

Founded in 1954, FCIS is the premier accrediting body for independent schools in Florida. It is one of only 10 state associations in the U.S. whose accreditation process has been recognized by the National Association of Independent Schools, the international authority on independent school accreditation representing schools in over 100 countries.

“I am honored to have been elected to serve with this prestigious group of professionals who are deeply committed to supporting a solid and thriving independent school community in Florida,” Chapman said. “At The Village School of Naples, we have adopted a visionary approach to education and passion for empowering and inspiring educators that will contribute to the advancement of independent schools across Florida.”

A native of Miami, Chapman has more than 20 years of independent school leadership experience and 25 years of non-profit experience. He joined The Village School in 2018 after serving as President and Head of School at The New School in Fayetteville, Ark. Before that, he was Associate Head of School for The Out-of-Door Academy in Sarasota.

Chapman holds a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communications from Trinity International University and a Master of Education in Educational Leadership from the University of South Florida. He is currently pursuing his Doctorate in Education at The University of Pennsylvania in Educational Leadership. Chapman presents annually at independent school conferences nationwide and has earned awards for his work in school marketing.

Founded nearly four decades ago as a private institution for pre-school students, The Village School of Naples introduced an Upper School division for high school students in 2017. Since then, the school’s leadership has been aggressively renovating and expanding the academic, arts and athletic facilities to accommodate current and future growth.

Located at 6000 Goodlette-Frank Rd., The Village School of Naples originally began as The Caring Place Preschool in 1985 as an outreach at North Naples United Methodist Church. In 2000, the church relocated to the present campus location and added The Village School, beginning with K-2 and 37 students. In 2006, the school was accredited by the Florida Council of Independent Schools and the Florida Kindergarten Council.

In 2009, parents asked The Village School for a middle school to be added and soon after added the middle school one grade a year to complete the eighth grade. Four years later, the Board of Directors voted to add an upper school with 17 students in the fall of 2017.

In June 2020, The Village School celebrated its first-ever graduating class of seniors. The school currently has over 135 upper school students and will graduate its largest senior class (35 students) this spring.

For additional information: www.villageschoolnaples.org.