New SSFS Head of School, Tom Gibian routes to their intended campsites – not on purpose, but because they regularly got lost. And they just as regularly returned with their campers recounting tales of the interesting people they’d met and wonderful adventures they’d had along the way. • We were raised by parents who nurtured our individuality at the same time that they taught us the importance of family (both close and distant) and community (embracing friends, the Friends Meeting, the greater Sandy Spring community, and, through ever-expanding circles, the world). Each of us has embodied what we learned in a unique way, shaped by temperament, personality, and life experiences. Tom has evolved from sheriff to pathfinder, to family man and business leader, and now the Head of Sandy Spring Friends School. Congratulations, Tom!
Tom strikes a more reflective pose in his older years.
Fall 2010
Thomas R. Gibian comes to Sandy Spring Friends School after 10 years as chief executive officer, managing director, and founding partner of Emerging Capital Partners (ECP). ECP is the largest fund manager working across the African continent with offices in Johannesburg, Tunis, Casablanca, Abidjan, Lagos and Douala as well as Washington, DC. Tom managed the daily operations of the firm and oversaw its rapid growth from its beginning in 2000. Prior to returning to the Washington area, Tom was Executive Director in the Asia-Pacific Region of Goldman Sachs (Asia) Limited from 1992-1995. Tom joined Goldman Sachs in 1987 as vice president. Prior to 1987 he was with Salomon Brothers, beginning in 1983. Throughout his career, Tom has focused on staying true to his Quaker values and using them in the business world. Having served on the boards of both Sandy Spring Friends School and Sidwell Friends School, he has dedicated his volunteer efforts to the governance of Quaker schools. Tom has a keen appreciation for the enormous importance of practicing and being known as a person of high personal and professional integrity. Through his work in Africa and Asia, Tom has learned how to advance a collective venture in many dimensions simultaneously by building strong teams where trust and commitment are high; expanding institutional relationships through outreach and imagination; and communicating extensively with stakeholders, including current and prospective clients. He also handled vital responsibilities from budgeting and supervision to crisis management, and inspired outstanding results by
modeling visionary leadership that does not call attention to itself. Tom grew up in Sandy Spring and is a member of Sandy Spring Monthly Meeting, where many of the School’s faculty, staff, students and parents have been part of the community. He graduated from Sherwood High School, received a bachelor’s degree with honors from the College of Wooster in Ohio, and received an MBA in finance from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. Tom’s college senior Independent Study at College of Wooster was entitled “Dissent and Experimentation in American Schools, 19001960.” He taught at Wooster High School and received a secondary school teaching certificate. After college he was a community organizer and, later, administrator in a local anti-poverty agency. Tom has shared with the community, “I do not know of anything more important that I can do over the next ten or so years than to draft a vision of what the School can become and to lead it to reach its full potential... to offer a balanced world-class educational program to a diverse and energetic group of youngsters while, perhaps most importantly, to hold tight to the unmatchable ethos that has characterized the School ever since Brooke Moore’s vision led to its founding in 1961.” Tom is married to Tina Grady, a graduate of Sandy Spring Friends School. They have a son and a daughter, both of whom have attended Quaker schools.
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