Vail Hilbert, Ed.D., has worked in an international school in Mexico City for the last 17 years, filling a variety of roles, including early childhood education teacher, activity specialist, counselor, instructional coach, and dean of students. When she decided to pursue a Doctor of Education degree, she chose The Chicago School because she was able complete her coursework and dissertation without leaving her work and family life in Mexico.
Dr. Hilbert studied international schools, gathering information about what teachers around the world were experiencing while teaching remotely during the pandemic. She focused her dissertation on what she learned about students from kindergarten through fifth grade in 13 international schools, including in Egypt, the Philippines, Myanmar, the Dominican Republic, Brazil, Mexico, Kosovo, and China. Among her key findings was the recognition that one could not gauge the quality of remote technologies in education without considering the emotional and physical conditions of the students who are using them.