THE VILLAGE SCHOOL OF NAPLES ANNOUNCES APPOINTMENTS TO ACCOMMODATE GROWTH

THE VILLAGE SCHOOL OF NAPLES ANNOUNCES ASSISTANT DIVISION HEAD APPOINTMENTS TO ACCOMMODATE CONTINUED GROWTH

The Village School of Naples, an independent Christian school serving students in Preschool through 12th grade, today announced three Assistant Division Head appointments aimed at accommodating the current and future growth of the institution.

“We are excited to announce these key leadership appointments which will support the school’s growth,” said Dennis Chapman, Head of School for The Village School. “Over the last five years, total enrollment has increased from about 425 to more than 600 students. Much of this growth has coincided with the addition of our Upper School.”

Erin Kolakowski

The new Assistant Head of Upper School is Erin Kolakowski., whose experience ranges from being an Early Childhood Lead Teacher to Post-Secondary Adjunct Professor and Student Success Coach. Kolakowski holds a Master’s Degree in Human Development Counseling from Florida Gulf Coast University and plans to pursue a doctoral program this Fall. In addition to her new role, she will continue to serve as a School Counselor.

April Butler

April Butler has been named as Assistant Head of the Middle School. Butler has worked in education for 15 years, including working as an international teacher through the U.S. Department of Defense in countries such as Germany, Italy, Japan and South Korea. She has been a teacher at The Village School since 2018 and has taken on several leadership roles in various organizations. Butler holds a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership.

Erin Murphy

Erin Murphy has been appointed Assistant Head of the Lower School. Murphy is a certified reading specialist with more than 20 years of education experience both as a teacher and administrator. She holds Master’s Degrees in Curriculum and Instruction and in Literacy Instruction from George Mason University and Virginia Tech. Murphy joins The Village School from the independent Ravenscroft School in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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 100 upper school students and is adding its largest ever incoming freshman class (44 students) this fall. For more: www.villageschoolnaples.org.