The IVA Family

Jacquie Bryant is a veteran educator and IVA's founding principal. Ms. Bryant regards personal formation and character growth as a primary goal in education for both students and staff. Ms. Bryant is IVA's second employee and arrived shortly after IVA's Charter was written by its founders and authorized by LBUSD in 2013. Ms. Bryant has systematically implemented an intellectual character educational model in curriculum selection, hiring for teachers and staff, professional development and strategic planning with the board, and all aspects of our academic program grounded in IVA's mission and vision.

Ms. Bryant previously taught all levels of English Language Arts for ten years at the comprehensive high school, San Pedro HS in LA Unified. As a teacher she appreciated classrooms where students engaged with rigorous learning and metacognitive awareness at the same time and was super excited to see the connection of these in intellectual virtues. At San Pedro High, Ms. Bryant also worked as an instructional coach, helped lead school-wide professional development, and participated in the WASC accreditation process. While Ms. Bryant was teaching at SPHS she earned a a single subject clear credential in English from Cal State Long Beach, a Master's in Rhetoric and Composition, and an Administrative Credential from Cal State Dominguez Hills.

Ms. Bryant finds transformation and flourishing in the language of virtues and intellectual character and is eager to apply all of these deep and profound human goods into creating the adult community of educators and families that support student growth. She believes that intellectual character growth is personally meaningful for everyone involved at the school, and specifically seeks to support the culture of adults at a school as it has a direct impact on the culture of thinking that students experience. She finds meaning and purpose in the language of the virtues and its impact on teaching and learning and on her own continued intellectual character growth. Over the years, she has partnered with university-based researchers to train other teachers and leaders in virtue education. She finds joy in hosting visiting educator teams to observe classes in session and experience a pedagogy seminar grounded in intellectual virtues education.

Ms. Bryant is currently enrolled in the University of Birmingham's Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues studying for a Masters in Character Education.