In December, the Board of Directors of Pioneer Valley Christian Academy in Springfield, MA announced the appointment of Dr. Josh Keegan as Head of School effective July 1, 2023. He will succeed Timothy Duff, who has led PVCA since 1980.
For the last 16 years, Dr. Keegan, along with his wife Christine and their six children, has been serving with LifePlus Worldwide, a consortium of seven Christian international schools located in China and the United Arab Emirates. Since 2019, Dr. Keegan has been on the executive leadership team for LifePlus as the Superintendent of seven schools, leading 2,500 students and 800 employees. He began his international tenure teaching Social Studies and serving as department head while coaching soccer and basketball. He then moved into a secondary principal role for 5 years, overseeing the middle and high school programs, and supporting and supervising more than 40 faculty and staff. From there he became the Head of School, leading 350 students and 100 faculty and staff until he became Superintendent 4 years ago.
Of his appointment, Dr. Keegan shared, “PVCA is a school with a rich history of Christian education and faithful leadership focused on serving the needs of its students and families. I am thrilled to continue along this path and to partner with PVCA in raising up the next generation of students to use their gifts and abilities in service to the surrounding community, as a reflection of the goodness and love of God.”
Dr. Keegan earned a Doctorate of Education in Organizational Leadership from Northeastern University, a Master of Education from Indiana Wesleyan University, and Bachelor of Science degrees in Secondary Education and Biblical Studies, both from Cairn University. Having spent his childhood in New Hampshire, coming to Springfield will be something of a New England homecoming for Dr. Keegan.
Dr. Keegan was chosen from an extensive list of candidates after a very thorough process led by our Search Committee and consultants from JobfitMatters. The Search Committee unanimously recommended him for consideration by the Board of Directors who subsequently voted unanimously to extend an invitation to become our next Head of School. Search Committee Chair Ryan Horn commented, “We appreciate having JFM come along side our community to truly understand it in all its uniqueness and how that might influence the qualities needed in our next Head of School. They led us through an international search process with care, professionalism, and extensive experience. Their track record speaks for itself, and they truly invested themselves in PVCA and in finding a great match in Josh to lead PVCA into the future”
Dr. Keegan and his wife Christine have six children (Ryley, Ari, Sadie, Quinn, Margot, and Zoe), four of whom will be students at PVCA. Thinking about the upcoming transition, Dr. Keegan remarked, “Everyone is excited about making our new home in Massachusetts.”