Leadership and Strategic Plan

Head of School

Elizabeth “Bessie” Cromwell Speers joined Tower Hill as Head of School in July 2015, bringing nearly 25 years of experience in independent school education. She previously served as head of school at The Ethel Walker School in Simsbury, Connecticut.

A search committee of current and past parents, faculty, staff, trustees and alumni unanimously recommended Speers to the school’s board of trustees. Based on feedback from the school community gathered through meetings, surveys and interviews, the committee sought a collaborative leader with a deep understanding of independent schools and broad knowledge of all aspects of a liberal arts education.

“Bessie emerged as the candidate best qualified to lead Tower Hill today and in the future because of her warmth, intellect, vision and commitment to continuous learning, combined with the creative, effective leadership she has demonstrated most recently at The Ethel Walker School,” said Earl Ball, immediate past board chair.

Speers formerly served as assistant head of school, dean of faculty, English teacher and coach at Episcopal Academy near Philadelphia. Her prior positions include director of placement and strategic planning at Calvert School in Baltimore; director of admission and financial aid, teacher and coach at The Bryn Mawr School in Baltimore; and associate director of admission, coach and adviser at The Loomis Chaffee School in Connecticut. She began her career working with the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS).

A graduate of The Bryn Mawr School, Speers holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from Middlebury College and a Master of Liberal Arts degree from Johns Hopkins University. She received a Klingenstein Fellowship at Columbia University’s Teachers College in 2014 and has been active with various professional organizations including the Connecticut Association of Independent Schools (CAIS), The Center for Spiritual and Ethical Education (CSEE), The National Coalition of Girls’ Schools (NCGS) and The Heads Network, of which she currently is serving as President. She serves on the board of Middlebury College and the Association of Delaware Valley Independent Schools (ADVIS). Speers is the tenth Head of School, and first woman to hold the position, in Tower Hill’s 95-year history.

“I am honored to join the Tower Hill community,” Speers said. “The school’s longstanding tradition of excellence and the upcoming centennial provide an extraordinary opportunity to think boldly and collaboratively about Tower Hill’s future as a local and national leader. I look forward to working with the entire Tower Hill community to ensure that our students are well prepared to become engaged citizens in a world that needs their talent and leadership.”

Head of School Messages to Parents

List of 79 news stories.

Thank you, Home and School
1/31/2019
Hope Our Children Bring
12/6/2018
Much for Which to be Thankful
11/15/2018
Standing Together Through Challenging Times
11/1/2018
A Time for Hope
10/4/2018
A Diverse and Inclusive Community
9/13/2018
Happy New Year!
9/7/2018
Teacher Appreciation Week
5/4/2018
Conversations after Parkland
3/1/2018
The Road to Character
2/1/2018
Hygge - and Happy New Year!
1/4/2018
Happy Holidays!
12/15/2017
Winter Concerts
12/8/2017
Head's Council
12/1/2017
Happy Thanksgiving
11/17/2017
Fall Sports
11/10/2017
Forum Series
11/6/2017
Homecoming
10/27/2017
Season of Harvest
10/20/2017
Lifelong Learning
10/13/2017
Challenging Times
10/6/2017
New Students
9/29/2017
Parents' Nights
9/22/2017
A Great Start
9/15/2017
Opening Days
9/8/2017
Courage
9/5/2017
Welcome Back
8/28/2017
Thank You, Faculty and Staff
6/16/2017
Have a Wonderful Summer
6/9/2017
Recognizing Accomplishments
6/2/2017
Baetjer Retirement
5/30/2017
Engaging Speakers
5/19/2017
Musical Performances
5/12/2017
Thank You, Parents
5/5/2017
Time to Reflect
4/28/2017
Celebrating Tradition
4/21/2017
Delight in the Good
4/14/2017
Kindness
4/7/2017
Environmental Stewardship
3/31/2017
Rigor and Balance
3/10/2017
Faculty Development
3/3/2017
Strategic Planning
2/22/2017
Making a Difference
2/10/2017
Thank You Parent Volunteers
2/3/2017
A School of Opportunity
1/27/2017
A Week of Service
1/20/2017
A Bittersweet Announcement
1/13/2017
Happy New Year!
1/6/2017
Happy Holidays!
12/16/2016
A School-wide Lens
12/9/2016
Getting in the Holiday Spirit
12/2/2016
We are Thankful
11/18/2016
A Balanced Education
10/28/2016
Founders Day and Homecoming
10/21/2016
A Schoolwide Conversation
10/14/2016
Faculty Development
10/7/2016
Strategic Planning
9/23/2016
A Warm Greeting
9/16/2016
Cheers to a New Year
9/9/2016
New Faculty
9/8/2016
Welcome Back!
9/8/2016
Have a Wonderful Summer
6/17/2016
A Few Words of Advice
6/10/2016
Winding Down
6/3/2016
A Time-Honored Tradition
6/2/2016
Give the Gift of Learning
5/25/2016
Summer at Tower Hill
5/13/2016
Spring is in the Air
5/6/2016
Celebrating the Arts
4/29/2016
Hosting International Students
4/22/2016
College Admissions - An Impressive List
4/18/2016
A Global Focus
4/8/2016
Preparing for the Future
4/8/2016
Spring Break
3/11/2016
Teaching Life Skills at School
3/4/2016
Innovation as a Mindset
2/26/2016
Project-Based Learning
2/19/2016
Recent Successes
2/12/2016
When Not to Intervene
2/5/2016

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Strategic Plan

Tower Hill embarked on an ambitious, community-wide initiative in 2016 to fully embrace and engage in a thorough and bold strategic planning process. Committee members met to contemplate the future of education, the changing global workplace and Tower Hill's strengths and opportunities moving forward. Approved by the board of trustees in May 2017, the plan reaffirms Tower Hill's mission and sets a framework for outlining differentiators as a leader in independent schools locally and nationally.

Three major areas of focus are outlined below, along with examples of emerging and possible initiatives. Periodic updates on progress in each area will be shared with the Tower Hill community.

Learn More

Board of Trustees

List of 21 members.

Michelle Shepherd
Bio
Board Chair
Appointed: 2010

Michelle D. Shepherd retired from Bank of America in 2008 as the company’s east division executive. In this role, she managed 2,400 bank branches holding $130 billion in deposits, staffed by 25,000 associates in key markets such as Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Atlanta and Miami. She served as the company’s Senior Privacy Executive and sat on the Management Operating Committee and the Global Diversity and Inclusion Council. She has served as a director of the American Heart Association, Delaware Affiliate, and as a trustee of Delaware State University. Currently, she serves as a director of the Mary Campbell Center in Wilmington and chair of Georgetown University’s Alumni Admissions Program in Delaware. Her daughters—Isabel '20 and Ella '22—attend Tower Hill.
Ellen Kullman 74

1974
Bio
Board Vice Chair
Appointed: 2007

Ellen (Jamison) Kullman '74 is the former chief executive officer of DuPont. Ellen began her career at DuPont in 1988 and served in a number of leadership positions until 2008, when she was tapped to lead the company's emerging international markets. She is a member of the U.S.-India CEO Forum, the Business Council, and the executive committee of SCI-America. She is co-chair of the National Academy of Engineering Committee on Changing the Conversation: From Research to Action. Ellen is a member of the board of directors of United Technologies Corp, the board of trustees of Tufts University and serves on the board of overseers at Tufts University School of Engineering. Ellen became a member of the board of Change the Equation (CTEq), a national coalition of more than 100 CEOs committed to improving science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) learning for U.S. Pre K-12 students. Ellen's three children—Maggie '08, David '12 and Stephen '12—are graduates of Tower Hill.
Marna Whittington Ph.D.
Bio
Board Treasurer
Appointed: 2017

Marna Cupp Whittington, Ph.D. was the chief executive officer of Allianz Global Investors Capital from 2001 until her retirement in January 2012. From 2002 to 2011, she was chief operating officer of Allianz Global Investors, the parent company of Allianz Global Investors Capital. Prior to that, she was managing director and chief operating officer of Morgan Stanley Investment Management. Whittington started in the investment management industry in 1992, joining Philadelphia-based Miller Anderson & Sherrerd. Previously, she was executive vice president and CFO of the University of Pennsylvania, and earlier, deputy secretary of education for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and secretary of finance for the State of Delaware. She is a trustee and vice-chair of the Salk Institute of Biological Studies. She currently serves as a director of Macy’s, Inc. and Phillips 66. She holds an M.S. degree and a Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh, both in quantitative methods, and a B.A. degree in mathematics from the University of Delaware. Her daughter, Marna Whittington McDermott ‘95, attended Tower Hill.
Jon Abramczyk
Bio
Board Secretary
Appointed: 2014

Jon Abramczyk is a partner in the corporate litigation practice at Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell LLP, specializing in litigation in the Court of Chancery and the Supreme Court of Delaware. His practice includes advising boards of directors and special committees of directors on all aspects of Delaware corporation law, including internal investigations. In the community, Jon has served as a trustee, director and chairman of the Delaware Symphony Association, as president of the Arts Consortium of Delaware and as a member of the board of the St. Francis Hospital Foundation. His wife (Jennifer Sinex Abramczyk ‘86) is a graduate of Tower Hill School and recently served as president of the Home and School Association. They have two children — Raley ’15 and Annie '18.
Ted Ashford
Bio
Appointed: 2007

Theodore H. Ashford serves as president and chief investment officer of Ashford Capital Management. Prior to joining ACM, he worked for International Management Group where he developed and managed corporate services throughout Latin America. He is currently on several corporate and community boards including Miller Industries, Genesis Today, Friendship House and Mt. Cuba Astronomical Foundation. His daughers, Caroline '11 and Elizabeth '14, previously attended Tower Hill.
Earl Ball, Ed.D.
Bio
Appointed: 1997

Earl Ball is a Senior Fellow on the faculty of the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania, where he is director of the School Leadership Program and the director of the Penn Residency Masters in Teaching. For three decades, he was the head of the William Penn Charter School in Philadelphia. He also serves as a Senior Search Consultant for Carney Sandoe & Associates, an educational placement firm.
Kimberly Wright Cassidy, Ph.D.
Bio
Appointed: 2017

Kimberly Wright Cassidy is the president of Bryn Mawr College, a position she has held since 2014. She served as the college's provost from 2007 to 2013 and as interim president from July 2013 to February 2014. During her tenure as provost and interim president, Cassidy was instrumental in leading a number of important initiatives, including facilitating curricular renewal in collaboration with faculty leaders, the development of the college’s interdisciplinary 360° courses and the introduction of new academic programs. Cassidy has led a program, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, piloting the use of blended learning—a combination of computer-based and classroom learning—in a liberal arts setting.

Prior to serving as provost, Cassidy served as chair of Bryn Mawr's Department of Psychology from 2004 to 2007. She earned her master’s degree and Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania and earned a bachelor’s degree with distinction in psychology from Swarthmore College. A developmental psychologist with a focus on cognition and education, Cassidy maintains a keen interest in the development of children's theories about the minds of others. She has won research grants from the National Institutes of Health and the Guggenheim Foundation, among others. Her research has appeared in numerous journals including Cognition, Child Development, Developmental Psychology, Journal of Experimental Psychology: General and Psychological Bulletin and Review.
Anthony Cucuzzella, M.D. 82

1982
Bio
Appointed: 2014

Tony Cucuzzella is one of the founders and CEO of the Christiana Spine Center in Newark, Delaware. He attended Duke University and Tulane Medical School and completed his residency at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. He has served on the board of directors of the YMCA of Delaware and as a council member of Christiana Care's medical-dental staff. He is currently the president of the Tower Hill Alumni Council, and has three children — Carter '16, Cameron '18 and Will '22.
Regis de Ramel
Bio
Appointed: 2014

Régis de Ramel serves as Chief Executive Officer of flyADVANCED and Aero Ways, Inc. a group of aviation services companies with multiple locations throughout the Mid-Atlantic region. Prior to founding flyADVANCED, Regis was Director of Sales for Cirrus Aircraft, where he led sales efforts throughout the Mid-Atlantic area. He currently serves on several educational boards, including that of his alma mater Washington College and the Oliver Hazard Perry Tall Ship Education at Sea program. His children, Jacques ’22, Emma ’24 and Henri '30, attend Tower Hill.
Benjamin du Pont 82

1982
Bio
Appointed: 2007

Ben du Pont '82 is co-founder and Managing Partner at Chartline Capital Partners. Chartline Capital Partners has 26 portfolio companies, and invests in ‘structured’ stage venture capital – with a focus on Digital Health, Retail Analytics, Telecom Infrastructure, Digital Industrial and Food Supply Chain. He has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Tufts University. He is married with two kids and lives in Wilmington, Delaware.
Charles Elson
Bio
Appointed: 2008

Charles Elson is the director of the Weinberg Center at the University of Delaware. A leading authority on corporate governance issues, Charles' fields of expertise include executive compensation, corporate compliance, securities regulation, corporate legal matters and Delaware issues. He has written extensively on the subject of boards of directors and is a frequent contributor to various scholarly and popular publications. He is vice chairman of the ABA Business Law Section's Committee on Corporate Governance. He has two children—Caroline '18 and Chip '21.
John Flynn, M.D. 81

1981
Bio
Appointed: 2018

John M. “Jack” Flynn, M.D., ‘81 is chief of orthopedics at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). A nationally recognized orthopedic leader, Flynn’s primary clinical and research focus is scoliosis care for children. Flynn joined CHOP in 1996 and became chief of orthopedics in 2014. He holds the Richard M. Armstrong, Jr. Endowed Chair in Orthopedic Surgery and is a Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Flynn earned his B.A. in natural sciences from Johns Hopkins University and his M.D. from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. After residency in the Harvard Combined Orthopaedic Surgery Program, he completed a fellowship in pediatric orthopedic surgery at A.I. duPont Hospital for Children. He has been president of the Pediatric Orthopedic Society of North America and is a director on the American Board of Orthopedic Surgery. In 2014, he and his family established and endowed the Flynn Family Scholarship Fund at Tower Hill.
W. Whitfield Gardner 81

1981
Bio
Appointed: 2010

Whit Gardner '81 has served as chairman and CEO of Gardner Lewis Asset Management, an equity based investor with interests in more than 100 companies, since its founding in 1990. Previously, he held positions at Friess Associates, a U.S.-based investment firm; Orange Nassau, a Dutch-based venture capital firm; and MBank, a U.S.-based merchant bank. He began his career at Lehman Brothers. He currently serves as a board member or advisor to a number of entities, which include public, private and not-for-profit institutions. He has three children—Eliza '14, Gregory '17 and Jay '24.
Laird Hayward 02

2002
Bio
Appointed: 2015

Laird is the co-founder and COO of Foxspring Labs Inc., a mobile app development company. He previously served as vice president of Integrated Home LLC and vice president of Robert Downs Nature Conservancy in Wilmington. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Delaware and lives in San Francisco, California.
Eric Johnson, M.D.
Bio
Appointed: 2013

Eric T. Johnson, M.D. practices with First State Orthopaedics. He attended Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, where he also completed his internship and residency. Currently the associate chief of the Dept. of Orthopaedic Surgery and the director of Orthopaedic Trauma Services in the Christiana Care Health System, Johnson is an adjunct associate professor in the physical therapy program at the University of Delaware. He has two children—Spencer '16 and Malcolm '18.
Henry Mellon
Bio
Appointed: 2012

Henry Mellon is CEO and President of Mellon Group LLC, a seed-capital firm. He has been active over the past decade in early-stage companies across a range of industries and has been involved in over 90 startup ventures. Mellon Group's main investments focus on medical breakthroughs, distressed real estate and Internet service based companies. Henry currently serves on the board of Christiana Health Care. He served as former chairman and board member of the Southeast Florida chapter of the Lupus foundation and is a former board member of the Cross Roads Club. He has two children—Gwendolyn '21 and Stokes '25—at Tower Hill.
David Nowland 85

1985
Bio
Appointed: 2018

David Nowland ‘85 is the head of media for Latin America for Kimberly-Clark, a global Fortune 500 company that manufactures personal care products. Nowland worked at The Coca-Cola Company from 1999 to 2013, promoted through various advertising and media planning roles culminating in integrated marketing communications director for the South Latin Business Unit. He served as international media manager at McCann Erickson from 1995 to 1999. Nowland graduated from William & Mary in 1985 with a degree in economics and earned an M.B.A. from IESE Business School – University of Navarra in 1995. He lives in Atlanta with his wife, Cathleen. Nowland’s family had numerous ties to Tower Hill: His late sister, Blair, graduated in 1984; his late brother, Philip C. Nowland, graduated in 1982 and worked in the Middle School from 1992-2001; his late father, Philip J. Nowland, graduated in 1948; and his grandfather, Paul J. Nowland, was a Tower Hill trustee from 1936-1970.
Isabella Timon 92

1992
Bio
Appointed: 2018

Isabella Speakman Timon ‘92 is a trustee of Brooks School in North Andover, Massachusetts, a co-educational secondary day and boarding school. She was until recently a director of the Speakman Company, a plumbing manufacturing business based in Wilmington, Delaware. She is the president of the Curran Foundation, which aims to positively impact the lives of children and young adults in the Delaware Valley. Previously Timon worked for Lavinia Lemon Interiors in Washington, D.C., before starting her own design business in the Philadelphia area. She also worked for six years on various political campaigns and lobbying projects before returning to school for her master’s degree in interior design from the Corcoran School of the Arts & Design in Washington, D.C. She began her career in New York City’s publishing and marketing industry after graduating from Trinity College with a B.A. in history in 1996. Timon currently resides in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, with her husband, Philip, two children and four step-children, four of which attend Tower Hill currently: Peter Timon ‘20, Catherine Timon ‘21, Isabella Johnson ‘24 and Jasper Johnson ‘26.
Carmen Wallace 93

1993
Bio
Appointed: 2015

After graduating from Duke University, where he studied history and sociology and captained the men’s basketball team, Carmen became one of the founding members of Athletes First. He has 15 years experience in the representation field, having assisted with contract negotiations for NFL clients such as Carson Palmer, Aaron Rodgers, Ray Lewis and Clay Matthews. He resides in Tustin, California, with his wife, Leigh, and son, Jayden.
Gina Ward
Bio
Appointed:2015

Gina is an experienced healthcare finance professional who worked in consulting in Illinois before serving on the boards of St. Francis Hospital, Nemours Children’s Health System and the Delaware Health Resources Board. She graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a degree in accounting. She has been active with the Rodney Street Tennis and Tutoring Association, Tower Hill’s Home and School Association, the Right Hands Initiative and many other community organizations. Her husband, Rod, is Tower Hill Class of 1983. She has three children—Carolyn '15, Julia '17 and Robby '19.
Vance Wilson
Bio
Appointed: 2017

Vance Wilson, a former Tower Hill teacher, has served as the headmaster of St. Albans School since July 1999 and plans to retire in July 2018. Wilson recently served as president of the International Boys’ School Coalition (IBSC) and is a former member of the governing board of Roxbury Latin School. He belongs to the Headmasters’ Association and the Country Day Heads Association. He has pursued a second career as a writer; he has co-authored two books on curriculum issues and an account of integration in Southern private schools. In 1986 he published a novel, The Quick and the Dead. He attended Berkeley Preparatory School and earned his B.A. in English from Yale University, where he played varsity basketball and was nominated for a Rhodes Scholarship. He went on to earn a diploma in Anglo-Irish literature from Trinity College, University of Dublin, and a master’s degree from the University of Virginia.