An inspiring memoir of one international educator's journey across the Middle East, Asia, and beyond, shaped by influential role models and a commitment to putting students first.
Her Story
About Denise
Denise Sullivan is an educator with 36 years of experience, including more than three decades as an international educator. Her career has focused primarily on multilingual learner and English language education, with experience teaching students across elementary, middle, and high school settings. She has worked in international schools in countries including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, China, and Kuwait and is currently in her third year at Noblesville East Middle School in Indiana, where she serves as a Multilingual Learner Collaborative Teacher supporting sixth-grade multilingual learners. Throughout her career, Denise has combined classroom teaching with professional development and educational writing. She has taught English language learners, English as a Second Language, and English Language Arts, while also conducting staff development workshops for educators. She has contributed to publications focused on multilingual education, including work addressing linguistic diversity in classrooms. Denise holds a Bachelor of Arts in Arabic Language and Literature from Indiana University Bloomington and a Master of Arts in Teaching English as a Second or Foreign Language/ESL Language Instructor from The American University in Cairo. She also holds teaching licenses in Indiana and New Mexico. Beyond her work in education, Denise is pursuing a transition toward full-time writing, including poetry, children's picture books, and professional development consulting. She is currently working on a children's picture book and continues to write both personally and professionally. Her international experiences and commitment to multilingual education have shaped her belief in kindness, service, respect, integrity, and honesty. Denise also supports Children of Promise, a nonprofit organization that helps children living in poverty through support for food, medicine, and education.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Denise
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to allowing life to guide me while remaining committed to moving forward, even when circumstances became difficult. My career has taken me across different countries and educational settings, and I have embraced the opportunities that came along the way. My husband and I are both international school educators, and we raised our family overseas while building our careers in education. I believe that perseverance and being open to where life leads you have been important parts of my journey.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I have ever received is to keep students at the heart of everything we do. As educators, we make a multitude of decisions on a daily basis, whether they be minute by minute instructional and assessment decisions in the classroom, or collaborative decisions around instructional moves. Teachers also influence educational practices and policies. Sometimes these decisions are made for the convenience of adults or are driven by test scores or economic reasons. While these are legitimate concerns, children should always come first and be at the center of every decision made.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Education is an extremely rewarding career for those who genuinely have a heart for students, teaching, and learning. My advice is to understand that teaching requires passion, dedication, and a willingness to continually give of yourself. It is not a career for the faint of heart, and the work extends far beyond traditional school hours. However, if you have a genuine passion for helping students and supporting their learning and growth, education can be an incredibly rewarding career.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
One of the realities of education is that teaching requires constant work, dedication, and commitment. Educators face many challenges, not the least of which is under-funding. While the profession can offer more vacation time than some other fields, the demands of teaching can be significant, and inequitable compensation can contribute to educators leaving the profession. At the same time, there is a meaningful opportunity to make a lasting difference by supporting students, particularly multilingual learners, and helping educators develop the skills needed to serve diverse student populations.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values that are most important to me are kindness, service, respect, integrity, and honesty. I believe in treating everyone with respect regardless of their background and in serving others whenever I can. I also value standing up for what I believe in and remaining true to these principles in both my professional and personal life.
Her Content Hub
Articles by Denise
Learning to Lead in International Education
How Role Models and International Experience Shaped a Career in Global Education
Learning to Lead in International Education
By Denise Albrecht Sullivan
9/22/2026
The Importance of Role Models
We all have role models who have inspired us to pursue or extend our careers in ways we could have never imagined we would go. My career as an international educator is no exception.
I started out as a Near Eastern Languages and Cultures (Arabic) and Religious Studies double major, graduating from Indiana University in the early 1990s. As a college senior looking forward to graduation, I really had little idea what career I wanted to pursue. I planned to go to graduate school, possibly Georgetown, to extend my studies and see where that path led me. I thought I might become a career diplomat or perhaps a college professor. I had no interest in becoming a national security advisor, though they were the only agency actively recruiting me at the time. Now that I look back, it might not have been such a bad career choice after all.
Instead, my missionary father sent me an application for employment at Schutz American School (SAS) in Alexandria, Egypt. Although I had grown up in Egypt from the age of 10, I had no idea this would be the move that would change the course of my life forever. My now-husband was finishing his BA at the American University in Cairo (AUC), where I later ended up pursuing my master's degree in Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL). Teaching in Alexandria didn't seem like such a bad option.
As it turned out, the headmaster of the school did a phone interview and decided to hire me as registrar and part-time religious studies teacher in the high school. I had no training for either position, but he assured me I would learn on the job, which I did. I had wonderful role models who guided me along the way and taught me everything I knew about teaching and learning up to that point. I fell in love with international school education, having attended one of the best international schools in Egypt (Cairo American College - CAC) and now working at SAS. I decided to apply for the MA in TEFL program at AUC, and the rest is history.
Fast-forward a few years, and I managed to land a job at CAC in Cairo, where my husband already worked and where I graduated from high school in the mid-1980s at the foot of the Giza Pyramids. I felt fortunate to become an elementary ESL teacher at such a prestigious institution, surrounded by experienced international school educators. Among the many inspirational leaders who guided me as a young teacher, one couple in particular stands out among the rest. Susan Young and Tim Boyer were my principals, from Minnesota, but having lived and taught internationally for many years.
Susan taught me a lesson I will never forget: Keep students at the heart of every decision you make. These words have been my compass point throughout my career, which brought me out of Egypt to Saudi Arabia, China, Kuwait, and now Indiana. This advice has guided me through my career as a teacher, team leader, department head, and program developer and coordinator. It has influenced my interactions with students, parents, and other educators and administrators. Always put students first, even when it is so tempting to let other considerations, such as budgeting, scheduling, or convenience, get in the way. After all, students are at the center of what we do. They are the reason we are here.
I feel blessed to have worked with amazing international school leaders, colleagues, parents, and students who have taught me so much throughout my career and life journey. It has not always been an easy path, and adults can be challenging to work with, but despite it all, the advantages of my career choice have outweighed the downfalls. I cannot imagine having ever done something else with my life because I have learned so much from those around me, not the least of whom are my students, who continue to teach me on a daily basis. I am learning Spanish from them as I teach them to speak English, and I continue to practice my Arabic on a daily basis.
Living Overseas
Living overseas taught me so much about languages, respecting differences, and life in general. The opportunities to travel opened a window to the world that I would not trade for anything. Our three grown children grew up overseas and received the gift of an international school education. They are Third Culture Kids (now adults), as are my husband and I.
Women in Leadership
Being a woman in leadership always has its challenges, no matter where you are in the world. Being a woman in leadership in some of the countries I have worked in is even more elusive. My husband became a high school principal and worked in the same schools that I did. At times, he was my "boss." I had thought I wanted to pursue a career as a principal at one point, but I soon realized this was not going to be possible when he was also part of the leadership team. The opportunities for me looked different when I took on other leadership roles.
Follow Your Dreams
As a college graduate of 21, I could not have dreamed my life would take me down this path, but I feel so lucky that it did. Despite the obstacles I encountered along the way, I owe my success to the teachers and administrators who came before me and influenced who I have become. My advice to young women: Never give up on your dreams. You never know where they might take you.
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