Brian O’Connell is proud to join the Executive Leadership Institute as a coach, consultant, and mentor. With over 30 years of experience, Brian served as a public school elementary, middle, and high school principal with student enrollments ranging from 800-1500 students. Brian also worked as a headmaster of Lawrence Woodmere Academy, a 3K-12th grade independent school accredited by the New York Association of Independent Schools. A seasoned professional, Brian has a coaching and mentoring approach that will Engage, Assess, Support, and Empower school leaders of any grade configuration to reach their respective next levels of performance.
Over the years, Brian’s leadership has spurred numerous innovations as a school leader. Specializing in designing flat organizational systems that empower accountable teams, schools led by Brian O’Connell earned the highest ratings possible School Quality Reviews, while Brian consistently earned Principal Performance Reviews of Outstanding. As a result, Brian earned multiple Educator of the Year Awards for School Leadership, including two Big Apple Awards. Furthermore, while leading schools in both the public and private sectors, he received two Hometown Hero Awards for his efforts during the Hurricane Sandy Recovery and the Covid Pandemic, respectively.
In addition to completing doctoral course work at Concordia University Chicago, Brian holds an undergraduate degree from Columbia University, a Masters in Elementary Education from Adelphi University, and a Sixth Year Certificate in School Administration from the College of Staten Island. Brian loves coaching school leaders how to design innovative and collaborative goal driven organizations to unlock the potential of students and their respective school communities.
Brian’s expertise includes: All School Levels: Elementary, Middle, and High School, as well as 3K-12th grade schools. Specialty Areas: School Start Ups, School Restructuring, Budgeting, Investigation Management, Observation Support, Cooperative Learning, Marketing and Community Relations, etc.