Hamish Brewer

Hamish Brewer is a New Zealand–born educator, school leader, and author best known as the “relentless, tattooed, skateboarding principal” of Title I schools in Northern Virginia. He earned a Bachelor of Education from the University of Auckland and a Master’s in Educational Leadership from Virginia Commonwealth University, later completing an Ed.D. in educational leadership at Virginia Tech. Brewer moved to the United States in 2003 through a teaching cultural exchange program and has since served as a classroom teacher, principal, international education director, and educational consultant.

Brewer is the author of Relentless: Changing Lives by Disrupting the Educational Norm, a book that draws on his experience turning underperforming schools serving high‑poverty communities into high-achieving, nationally recognized campuses. His leadership at Occoquan Elementary School and Fred Lynn Middle School has earned honors including the NAESP Nationally Distinguished Principal Award, the National Title I Distinguished School designation, the Virginia Association of Elementary School Principals School Bell Award, the ASCD Virginia Impact Award, and recognition as a Northern Virginian of the Year.