Leadership
JUNE 2024
Dear Friends,
I am delighted to let you know that the Board of Trustees has unanimously decided to remove the term “interim” from Bodie Brizendine’s appointment. There is no need for us to initiate a search. She has agreed to extend her tenure beyond the originally contemplated two years, and she is now our Head of School.
In the past four months, each board member, like many of you, has had the opportunity to spend time directly with Ms. Brizendine, both to share our vision of Collegiate with her, and to learn of her observations regarding our school. The Board also had a lengthy meeting with Ms. Brizendine last week, to hear her assessment of our notable strengths and her sense of opportunities for growth and improvement.
When she left the room, after an incisive analysis of her time so far at Collegiate, the sentiment among us was overwhelming. With her vast experience and gift for connection she has quickly earned the trust of our families, faculty, administration and staff; and, she is excited about engaging with our alumni. She brings such joy to this work: it is clear that she appreciates our diverse and devoted community, and is a champion of both boys’ education and the academic rigor on which we pride ourselves.
This appointment provides the steady grounding necessary for our students and faculty, and places our community as a whole in the strongest possible position as we look forward to our 400th birthday in 2028.
Below is a letter from Ms. Brizendine accepting the appointment. We are in excellent hands.
With gratitude,
Jonathan Youngwood '85
President, Board of Trustees
Dear Board of Trustees,
It is with immense honor and excitement that I accept your offer be the Head of Collegiate School, a school which I have, in short measure, come to love, a school of deep promise and historic significance as well as a school full of wonder, joy, and academic rigor of the highest order.
Collegiate has forever believed in the life of teaching and learning, and it continues to develop today, as it did in the past, extraordinary intellectual passion and scholarly appetite: in action, in how it lives, and in what it does. As with Emerson, at Collegiate, “character is higher than intellect,” but the deep relationship between the two is irrefutable. Mission-strong, Collegiate has a wide embrace, and I am delighted to be in its fold.
Collegiate sits poised for a very big birthday ahead, and I look forward to leading this fine school toward its remarkable 400th anniversary. In the meantime, I pledge my full dedication in the collective work for our future, with the faculty and staff, with the Board of Trustees, with parents, with alumni and, most importantly, with the students. I thank you for this wonderful opportunity.
Warmly,
Bodie Brizendine
Head of School
Owen Boynton
Director of Professional Development and Student Support
Joe Cheeseman
Director of Advancement
Melanie Hutchinson
Head of Lower School
Dr. Hassan Jones
Head of Middle School
Jared Lister
Head of Upper School
Doug Odom
Chief Financial and Operating Officer
Rekha Puri
Assistant Head of School for Admissions and Enrollment
Stacey St. Rose
Interim Director of Community, Belonging, and Outreach
Raymond Voelkel
Director of Physical Education and Athletics
Board of Trustees
Collegiate’s Board of Trustees operates in accordance with the Principles of Good Practice set forth by the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS). The Board works to further the School’s mission and enables the School to provide an extraordinary education for all of its students. Board members serve a three-year term, with the opportunity to be reappointed for an additional consecutive term.
Jonathan Youngwood ’85, President
Victor Amoo ʼ01
Heather Baker
Prashant Bhuyan
Jerry Bright ʼ93, Vice President
Nick Brown ʼ04
Dana Coppolino, Parents Association President
Christa D'Alimonte
Karin DeMasi, Vice President
Lewis Hart ʼ01, Treasurer
Andrew Hoine
Chris Kojima
Mason Lecky
Chris Lee
Amie Rath Nuttall
Gregory Ostling
Jessica Peña
Alejandro Przygoda
Anna Quindlen
Judy Rubin
Jessica Tisch
Wayne Titus ’98
Peter Wallach ʼ00, Alumni Association President
Board Secretary, Timothy Rattray