Academy names new school head

East Academy, the private K-6 school in East Nashville, has hired a new head of school, Fred Pisano.

The founding head of school, Rick Seay, "just realized that his true love is teaching" and took a job teaching at Montgomery Bell Academy, said Director of Development Michelle Conn.

Pisano has taught physical education the past 11 years in Tampa. He married one of East Academy's second-grade teachers, and while deciding whether to return to Florida, the head of school position opened up.

"We went through a pretty extensive interview process," searching locally and nationally, Conn said.

Pisano holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Florida with a focus on Exercise and Sports Sciences-Physical Education. He holds a Master of Education with an emphasis on educational leadership from the University of South Florida.

East Academy is adding fifth and sixth grades for the 2004- 2005 school year and expects an enrollment of up to 130 students. Last year, the school enrolled 90 students.

Despite the growing enrollment, East Academy plans to stay at its current location on Chapel Avenue, Conn says.

"We've done extensive renovation and construction to it," said Conn. "For all intents and purposes, it looks like a different building."

This year, physical education, lunch and other activities will likely be held at the Y-CAP facility of the YMCA of Middle Tennessee, which operates programs for at-risk children and which often has space available during the day, Conn said.

At the end of June, East Academy took out a loan, making a large down payment, to buy its Chapel Avenue building.

Tuition at the school is $3,900 a year per pupil, though the school offers some scholarships. Its Sponsor the Education of a Child program asks for donations to help pay the tuition for economically challenged students.

The school subscribes to a theory called Multiple-Intelligences, which identifies "eight areas of intelligence" such as verbal/linguistic, mathematical/analytical, visual, bodily/kinesthetic and musical/rhythmic. Teachers vary their approach to fit the individual student.