Head of School Search

Shan and her husband Mike Byrom are parents of two Seacrest students and have been with the school since 2018 when they moved to Naples. Shan is a lifelong volunteer and believes the work she did as a teen shaped a strong spirit of volunteerism which she now happily shares with the Seacrest Community. Since joining the school, Shan has co-chaired the Annual Gala for four years and has been involved in many other initiatives around campus. As current Board Chair, she is actively involved on all trustee committees. Born and raised in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Shan attended the University of Calgary, graduating with a Bachelor of Commerce degree. Shan’s career took her into corporate learning & leadership development with WestJet, a Canadian airline, where she developed and facilitated leadership courses and coaching programs for frontline leaders through C-Suite executives. Shan left the workforce to spend time with her family. When she isn’t on campus, you will find her at a soccer field supporting her sons or training for her next triathlon.

Nick Gialamas is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Forest Capital Management, LLC a registered investment advisory firm (RIA) focused on retirement investment services for institutional clients. Forest Capital Management, LLC has been operating since 2014.  Nick is also the Area President of HUB International, a global insurance brokerage firm headquartered in Chicago, IL. Before joining HUB, Gialamas served as Chief Executive Officer of Forest Financial Group, Inc., an employee benefits consulting firm he founded in 1998. During his tenure, Gialamas led the company through a period of transformation and sustainable growth. Forest Financial Group, Inc. was acquired by HUB International in December of 2015. Nick earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Business and Marketing from Northern Illinois University (NIU). He is loyal to his alma mater and stays personally involved with the University, including guest speaking engagements at the College of Business. The NIU College of Business Department of Marketing has recognized Nick’s contributions by presenting him with the Alumni of the Year Award.  Nick is the Founder and Chairman of the Vaughn McClure & Jeff Dickerson Foundation, and serves on the NIU Executive Club Board of Advisors, the NIU College of Business Board of Advisors, ACS Athens Board of Trustees, as well as the Board of Advisors for the Retirement Savings Foundation in Washington D.C.

Amedeo Andrea Savoretti was born in Geneva, Switzerland, and lived there until the age of 10. He then split time between Switzerland and Naples where he attended Seacrest Country Day School through high school. Deo has 3 daughters ages 4, 2 and a half, and 4 months old with his wife whom he first met at Seacrest in the 4th grade. Their oldest daughter is currently attending Seacrest as they both did. Their middle daughter will begin Preschool this year. Deo's professional background is mainly rooted in wealth management and finance. He was exposed to the business world at a young age by three main influences, two of which are his grandfathers, one who was a prominent industrial/commercial developer and entrepreneur, the other a long time Caterpillar Inc. executive, and an operator in the oil business. Lastly, the main influence on his professional career was his father who worked primarily in private banking. Deo studied business at DePaul University in Chicago, where he co-founded and operated a foreign spirits import and distribution business. He was responsible for the development of their product line and the negotiations of import terms, pricing, as well as managing the sales relationships. Deo then stepped away from that business to join a Naples-based family office that specializes in commercial real estate and real estate development as their financial controller/CFO. Deo is multilingual in 3 languages and loves to travel as much as possible with his wife and children. His main passions outside of travel are sports such as skiing, golf, tennis, fitness, and hunting. 

Susie and her husband Rodd joined the Seacrest community in the fall of 2022 when their son Zane began kindergarten at Seacrest. Susie, Rodd and Zane moved to Southwest Florida from Chicago in 2021.

While Susie is most proud of her role as a mother, her professional background is as an experienced financial services executive, investor, and strategic advisor. She invests in and provides strategic advice to innovative early-stage companies. Susie previously served as a partner with Valor Equity Partners, a Chicago based private equity firm. At Valor, she led firm-wide management and strategic planning and served on the firm’s investment committee.

Prior to joining Valor, Susie was a partner at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP. During her nearly 20-year career with Skadden, she
specialized in M&A transactions and corporate governance matters for companies ranging from Fortune 500 to emerging growth stage.

Susie is active in philanthropic and not-for-profit work. She currently serves as the Co-Chair of the Board of Directors of CARE, one of the world’s largest poverty relief organizations. She formerly served as Chair of the Board of Trustees of Equality Now and on the boards of The Clean Energy Trust, the Women's Sports Foundation, and the Chicago Public Library.

In 2009, the Aspen Institute named Susie a Henry Crown Fellow. She received her B.A. and J.D. from the University of Michigan.

Trustees comprise the Search Committee.

The Committee announced completion of their first task—retaining RG 175—on January 5. Going forward, Committee members will stay updated on the general applicant pool, participate in anti-bias and DEI training as well as educate ourselves using materials from NAIS and other sources, review candidates' application packets that will include notes from interviews with Mr. Hudnut and Ms. Reed and writing samples, interview semifinalists, and work closely with RG 175 to select the candidates who will tour campus and meet our community in person.

The Committee intends to ensure that the search process fulfills Seacrest's commitment to be thorough, fair, transparent and inclusive.

The Committee will coordinate opportunities for the community to meet the leading candidates and then, following additional reference and background checks, submit a recommendation for Head of School to the Board of Trustees.

Founded in 2002, Resource Group (RG) 175 specializes in assisting schools with leadership searches. Former heads of schools themselves, the firm’s search consultants partner closely with schools to identify needs, clarify expectations and recruit highly qualified candidates. RG 175 named Deborah Reed and Thomas Hudnut to lead Seacrest’s search efforts. Between them, Ms. Reed and Mr. Hudnut have more than 50 years of head of school experience.

"Our Board of Trustees has engaged RG175, a national search firm with deep experience and a proven track record in identifying and attracting exceptional independent school leaders," said Shan O'Fee Byrom, Chair, Secrest Board of Trustees. "We intend to engage directly and meaningfully with our faculty, staff, and parents throughout the search process. Our goal is to find a new Head of School who shares our values, is strongly aligned with our mission, and is committed to the successful growth and development of Seacrest."

Those interested in submitting their names for consideration should contact Ms. Reed or Mr. Hudnut via email. Ms. Reed may be reached at dereed2014@gmail.com, and Mr. Hudnut may be reached at tom@tomhudnut.com.

Throughout the search process, the Search Committee will seek community input, both via meetings and surveys and via feedback from Search Advisory Committees of students, parents, employees and alumni who are available for lengthier conversations.

Voting members of the Board will vote to approve the recommendation. If the recommendation is approved, the Board will extend an offer to the candidate.

Once the new Head of School is hired, the Search Committee will invite all members of the community to help Seacrest's new Head learn about our school and its people, and get to know as much as possible about our aspirations, challenges and sources of pride.