Landmark names new head of school

Jul. 15—BEVERLY — Landmark School has named a new head of school to succeed Bob Broudo, who announced in January that he will retire from the school he helped found 50 years ago.

Josh Clark, the head of The Schenck School in Atlanta, has been selected to lead Landmark from a field of nearly 200 candidates, the school announced.

Clark will serve out a six-year term at The Schenck School and will begin at Landmark on July 1, 2022. Broudo will remain as head of school for the 2021-2022 academic year.

Landmark School is a private boarding and day school for students in grades 2 to 12 with dyslexia and other language-based learning disabilities. It serves about 460 students each year at its two campuses, an elementary and middle school in Manchester and a high school in the Prides Crossing section of Beverly. The school has students from 20 states, five other countries, and 115 cities and towns in Massachusetts.

Clark has served as head of The Schenck School and also at the Bodine School in Memphis, Tennessee, which are both schools for students with dyslexia and other language-based learning disabilities. He began his career in education at Lausanne Collegiate School in Memphis, where he worked as assistant head of the middle school and as a middle and high school English teacher for seven years. He is the chair of the International Dyslexia Association.

Clark said in a press release that he was "honored and humbled by the privilege of being named Landmark's next head of school."

"I have long admired Landmark for its rich history and amazing reputation for serving, supporting, and celebrating students with dyslexia and other language-based learning disabilities," he said. "The opportunity to continue that legacy and to follow in the footsteps of the great Bob Broudo is truly a remarkable honor and I am so excited to be joining the Landmark community."

Clark and his wife Melanie, who is also an educator, have two children, ages 9 and 11. They will be moving from Atlanta to the North Shore where they will live in the head-of-school residence on the Landmark School Prides Crossing campus in Beverly.

The search was conducted by trustee emeritus Nicholas Lopardo, a committee of faculty, staff, parents and trustees, as well as the Spencer Stuart search firm. Landmark said the search committee reviewed nearly 200 candidates from around the globe, ultimately narrowing the number down to four finalists.

"Josh has a proven track record as a collaborator, fundraiser, consensus builder, and an inspired leader eager to raise awareness about dyslexia and advocate for the rights of those with learning disabilities," Lopardo said.

Broudo has been head of school at Landmark since 1990 and is one of the longest-serving heads of school at any of New England's independent schools, according to Landmark. Broudo helped found Landmark School in 1971 under the supervision and tutelage of Charles Drake.

In announcing his retirement plans in January, Broudo said, "Helping to build this school into the respected institution that it is today has been the greatest honor of my life."

Staff writer Paul Leighton can be reached at 978-338-2535, by email at pleighton@salemnews.com, or on Twitter at @heardinbeverly.