Head of School
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Board of Trustees

Dear families,

Independent schools are fortunate to have stewards who hold the school “in trust”: trustees. Strong schools such as Tower Hill have trustees who understand best practices in independent school governance, ensuring a strategic focus for the school. Serving as a trustee is indeed both an honor and a labor of love. Trustees do not oversee the day-to-day management of the school or related decisions; they have one employee in the Head of School to whom they delegate this oversight. In addition to the traditional responsibilities of a board, such as fiduciary oversight, setting policy and hiring, supporting and evaluating the head, a board also is responsible for a self-perpetuating governance and succession process, positioning itself as a board to ensure the success of the school for generations to come. To this end, strong boards have bylaws that outline these terms for board leadership and succession.

Tower Hill has a wonderful Board of Trustees made up of current and former parents, alums, an educator and college president, who devote their time, talent and treasure in extraordinary ways. Some of our Trustees travel at their own expense from California, Atlanta and other places, devoting time out of their busy lives to serve the school, offering their unique skill set for committee work and various strategic initiatives. As a head, it is a privilege to work closely with our Trustees and witness their dedication and stewardship. Tower Hill’s Board Chair serves one three-year term under school bylaws, and trustees rotate off the board after serving up to four consecutive three-year terms.

It has been a special privilege to work closely with Michelle Shepherd in her role as Board Chair for the past three-year term. We took time at a recent board meeting to thank her for her tremendous work as Trustee and Board Chair as she completes her term. In addition to a tribute signed by the school community, we gave her a Tower Hill director’s chair with her name and years of service, a book donated to the Tower Hill library in her honor (The Moment of Lift: How Empowering Women Changes the World by Melinda Gates) and a memento with our words for the year during her tenure — gratitude, kindness, courage and integrity — that certainly express our gratitude and exemplify exactly these qualities she has embodied in her role as Board Chair. There will be future occasion to recognize and thank Michelle for her extraordinary service.

Below please find the announcement of our Board Chair Elect, Eric T. Johnson, M.D., whom we are fortunate to have chair the Board at this exciting time for Tower Hill.

Sincerely,
Elizabeth C. Speers
Head of School
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