Shannon Montague previously served as Head of the Learning Village at St. Anne’s-Belfield School, leading operational and curricular programs for students and faculty in preschool to 8th grade. In this role, she worked to build on the school’s innovative, inquiry-based programming called FabLab and Quest; helped to focus middle school faculty’s thinking and energy around best practices in coordination with the University of Virginia’s Remaking Middle School program; and relished opportunities for cross-divisional collaboration among students and chances for student leadership, voice, and agency.



Most recently, she served as the Director of Professional Development for the Virginia Association of Independent Schools. There, she brought national education thought leaders to the VAIS membership for professional learning focusing on current conversations and best practices in the areas of diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice as well as student and faculty health and well-being. She successfully moved the program to a fully-virtual platform and completed over 24 programs in her tenure, including the 40th VAIS Annual Conference, a first-ever virtual event.

Earlier in her career, Shannon worked at the Bullis School in Potomac, MD; St. Albans School in Washington, DC; and The Bryn Mawr School in Baltimore, MD. She holds a Bachelors in English from the University of Virginia and a Master’s in Education Leadership through the Klingenstein Center at Columbia University Teacher’s College.

Her background in teaching and administration includes a variety of ages, subject areas, and roles from teaching English, drama, and technology to leading in arts management; coordinating student life programs; creating advisory programming; and helping to implement a one-to-one laptop program. She was part of the founding team to draft and present the charter for approval for the Lillie Mae Caroll Jackson School, an all-girls, expeditionary learning, charter, middle school in Baltimore, MD.

Shannon also has served as a board member for the Lillie Mae Caroll Jackson School and the Edcamp Foundation. She currently serves as a board member and Finance Committee chair for Live Arts theater in Charlottesville.