Joan Countryman

Joan Countryman is the former Head of Lincoln School in Providence, Rhode Island, a position she held for 12 years until her retirement in 2005. From August 2006 until March 2007 Joan Countryman was a consultant and Interim Head of the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa. From August 2007 until June 2008 Countryman led the Atlanta Girls’ School in Atlanta, Georgia. Previously, Countryman had served as Assistant Head for Academic Planning and Director of Studies at Germantown Friends School in Philadelphia where she taught mathematics from 1970 to 1993.

Joan Countryman recently completed a 12-year term as member of the Board of Managers of Haverford College where she also served as President of the Corporation. She is a member of the Board of Trustees of Sarah Lawrence College, a member of the Board of the Providence Journal Company, and of the Board of Trustees of the Paul Cuffee School, a public charter school in Providence. She has served on the boards of the Women’s Fund of Rhode Island, Women and Infants Hospital, the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools, the National Association of Principals of Schools for Girls, and the National Association of Independent Schools. Joan Countryman’s approach to teaching and learning mathematics is described by William Zinsser in a chapter of his book, Writing to Learn. Her own publications include Writing to Learn Mathematics (1992), “Is Gender an Issue in Math?” in Math and Science for Girls (1993) and Black Images in American Literature (1977).

Joan Countryman grew up in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and was the first African-American graduate of Germantown Friends School. She received her B.A. from Sarah Lawrence College, a Master’s from Yale University, and studied at the London School of Economics as a Fulbright Scholar. She and her husband, Edward Jakmauh, an architect and Principal with Ballinger Associates, live in Providence and Philadelphia. They have two children and four grandchildren.

Beautiful in the Light of Freedom: Education and Democracy 

Mission, Money, and Moxie: Creating and Supporting Successful Schools 

Who is in the Room: Gender in Math and Science

Writing to Learn Mathematics