St. John's welcomes new Dean of Students
As the 2021 school year began, SJC welcomed Mrs. Bastow as its new Dean of Students for the Class of 2025,
Mrs. Bastow is a Maryland native, having grown up in Potomac, Maryland. She was an accomplished student-athlete – playing both varsity and AAU basketball as well as earning a varsity letter in lacrosse. She earned her bachelor’s degree at Loyola University Maryland, a Master’s in Secondary Social Studies Education at Johns Hopkins University, and a further certificate in School Administration and Supervision at Hopkins. Mrs. Bastow is currently working on her doctoral degree at Hopkins.
Mrs. Bastow always had a love for teaching, which led her to become an educator. She says that the lyric by Jordan Davis: “do what you love but call it work” influenced her decisions to become an educator.
Ms. Barstow began her career in the classroom, teaching middle school religion, language arts, and history at Blessed Sacrament for ten years. She went on to teach freshman English, AP Literature, and Western Civilization at Connelly School of the Holy Child, where she also coached basketball.
More recently, Mrs. Bastow stepped away from the classroom first as St Andrew’s Episcopal School where she spent last year serving as the Assistant Director of Admission. While she loved the classroom dynamics and lesson planning that came with teaching, Ms. Bastow decided to become a Dean because she “wanted to be able to be a part of weaving the fabric of a school and also to be involved with students and teachers in a more holistic way.”
What drew Mrs. Bastow to SJC was the school’s excellent reputation and that she had many friends that had attended SJC and still talk about their experiences. Mrs. Bastow also says that she is “drawn to the community at SJC, the energy of the study body, and the dedication of the teachers to think creatively about their content areas.”
Outside of school, Mrs. Bastow loves spending time with her husband and three sons. She can usually be found at a Wizards game. She also enjoys Disney World and visiting Bethany Beach. If you ever see Mrs. Bastow in the halls, say hello, get to know her, and welcome her to the St. John’s community.
