Gilfillen, Seth Daniel (Dan)

I am an experienced international educator and school leader with specialties in secondary school English, History, Social Studies, and Technology. I earned my BA in History from Ohio University in 2004, my M.Ed in Curriculum and Instruction with a K-12 TESOL emphasis from the University of Cincinnati in 2013, and my Educational Doctorate (Ed.D) in Leadership from the American College of Education in 2021.

Born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, I attended Anderson High School from 1996-2000. After my undergraduate studies in Athens, Ohio, I worked as a childcare worker at the Mercy Health Plex before deciding to travel extensively. After some Spanish language immersion and travel around the Iberian Peninsula, I jumped at the chance to combine my passion for traveling with my love of working with children by taking the opportunity to help run an English language summer camp in Kurdish Iraq. Following an exciting summer working with Iraqi refugee students and adult learners, I began my international teaching career at the International School of Choueifat- Erbil. I taught English/ Language Arts and English as a Foreign Language for grades 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, and 10. My first two years of teaching provided immense challenges yet re-emphasized my love of education and removed any doubts about education as a career.

In September 2011, I seized upon the opportunity to teach my first love: history. That opportunity came through Dushanbe International School and the rigorous International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) program through the University of Cambridge. Simultaneously, I began my postgraduate studies through the University of Cincinnati Master's of Education distance learning program. This combination of postgraduate study and practical daily application provided a unique learning experience with the most up-to-date pedagogical approaches at hand. My research project focused on teaching history content to English Language Learners (ELLs) through Sheltered Instruction and the immense amount of challenges which exist in learning such a complex subject within a second language. 

In 2013, I decided to take an opportunity which best combines my teaching experience, my educational background and my most recent research interests through teaching content-based EFL (English language learning through history content) at the secondary department of Clifford School in Guangzhou, China.  I have been able to develop the trust and respect of students, colleagues and supervisors while helping to develop a student-centered curriculum and implement education technology.

In April 2015, I began my Educational Doctorate (Ed.D.) in Leadership studies and online learning at the American College of Education. My two years of course work included a wide range of course subjects including human and financial capital management, ethical leadership, applied statistics, grant writing for school leaders, and research and writing. My dissertation, titled "International Secondary Principals’ Leadership Traits and Personal Resources in Guangzhou: An Exploratory Case Study," used quantitative and qualitative data to explore traits and personal leadership resources (PLRs) of international school principals and how those resources help them overcome the diverse challenges of leading secondary schools in China. After 6 years of nights, weekends, holidays, lunch periods, and constant communication to my professors and dissertation Chair in the US, I successfully defended my dissertation on June 18, 2021.

In August 2019, I moved to Beijing to become the secondary school EAL coordinator at the Canadian International School of Beijing, my first IB experience. There I led a team of 14 co-teachers through a co-teaching journey including an in-person training with Gloria Wilson, co-teaching professor at Hofstra University, regular English language learners (ELLs) training sessions, observations and feedback. I also taught MYP I&S years 2, 3, and 4 as well as a grade 10 academic writing course focusing on DP writing preparation. As the Covid pandemic was coming to an end, I found an opportunity for professional growth at Keystone Academy where I became the Assistant Director of Student Support Services as well as the lead EAL specialist, K-12 (1700 students). In this challenging role, I continue to learn more about SEL and Learning support as well as instructional supervision and evaluation, cross-divisional collaboration, change making, MTSS, staff and student peer mediation, data-based decision making, and AI for education. I was a high school girls’ volleyball coach for two years before starting the High School Keystone Golf Team in 2024.

In my free time, I enjoy music, astronomy, technology, cycling, sports, language learning, reading and writing, traveling, cooking and spending time with my three beautiful daughters.