Ian Krouse recently joined the Mastery family, serving as the Apprentice School Leader of Instruction at Mastery Frederick Douglass Elementary in North Philadelphia. Originally from Bucks County in Pennsylvania, Ian has spent the last decade working in education in New York. Learn more about Ian and his journey to Mastery in this Move to Mastery interview.

Tell us more about yourself and your background in education.

My undergraduate studies at Penn State in secondary education helped me realize that kids deserve to have an equitable, high-quality educational experience and that I can help in providing that. After graduation, I worked at the Council Rock School District in Bucks County, PA. However, I consider my move to NYC as the true start of my career in education. There, I joined a prominent charter school network. I ended up working as a bit of a jack-of-all-trades there: I taught and served as the assistant principal of instruction, served as a dean and head of culture, and led operations.

Why did you choose Mastery?

I had first heard about Mastery during a leadership retreat I attended as an assistant principal. What stood out to me the most about Mastery was its set of values and how they closely aligned to my own beliefs. There was a clear emphasis on equity – from authentically uplifting Black and Brown kids to the inclusion of the LGBTQ+ community – that was embraced from the leadership at the top and trickled down to the schools. Inclusion and equity is something that is near and dear to my heart; now more than ever, we’re seeing people listening and changing, and Mastery is providing a platform for that. I was immediately drawn to that.

What are you looking forward to in this role?

I’m excited to be part of the Mastery Douglass team, and I already feel supported by everyone there. One of the things I was nervous about in starting was the transition into a new role and learning the new systems and routines, especially with the added challenges of this year – how do we support our students successfully? But I quickly saw that there’s a strong leadership team there at Douglass and a great mix of seven- and 20-year veterans, teachers and staff, with a lot of knowledge and experience.

I’m excited to get back into the building; seeing real humans and having real, in-person conversations makes a difference. Most importantly, our staff knows that we care about them and their development. That authentic, personal connection empowers our staff support our students confidently, and ultimately serve as gap closers in education and in equity.