SFIHS is currently building its team for the 2009-2010 school year.  Typically, most staff members at Internationals schools are passionate about working with recent immigrant students and their families, and for promoting the academic success of under-served students.  Our teachers often have a wide variety of international and domestic experience working with adolescents, and are usually bilingual.  They are interested in developing and implementing standards-driven, interdisciplinary, project-based curricula, and they are experienced in incorporating ESL methodologies and continuous opportunities for language development in their classroom practices. 

Sonia Geerdes is the founding principal of San Francisco International.  She recently completed the New Leaders for New Schools program while spending a year in residence at Leadership High School, a college-preparatory charter school that serves low-income students in southeast San Francisco.  Previously in her career in education, she has served as a literacy coach and curriculum developer in the Denver Public Schools.  She also taught 9th - 12th grade English at a continuation high school in Denver and at a small school for students with learning disabilities in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  Sonia earned a BS in elementary education from Oklahoma Baptist University and a Master’s degree in Educational Policy and Organizational Leadership from Stanford University. Research projects have included studying district reform initiatives for equity and access in Mapleton, Colorado with the Stanford School Redesign Network.  Sonia also loves to travel and volunteer in schools around the world, and was excited about advancements in educational equity she recently witnessed in Nepal.  Her experiences growing up in a multi-cultural, multi-lingual home inspired her commitment to advocating for immigrant students and families.