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View a recording of the ceremony at the end of this article.

By Darryl Gangloff

On a beautiful fall morning overlooking Lake Wononscopomuc, the Hotchkiss community gathered on the Harris House lawn on Friday, Oct. 2, for a special and historic celebration: the investiture of Dr. Anne Bruder as the 16th head of school.

Bruder, a dedicated teacher and academic leader, began her tenure as head of school on July 1, 2026. Today’s event formally welcomed her as head of school.

The last time Hotchkiss held a ceremony for a new head of school was 30 years ago, in 1996, for Skip Mattoon. At the time, the event was called an “installation.”

Following a beautiful performance by the Hotchkiss Orchestra and flutist Isabella Deng ’27, Assistant Head of School and Dean of Admission and Financial Aid Erby Mitchell P’21 opened the “joyous and inspirational occasion” by calling for a standing ovation for Bruder.

“We are here today to celebrate a historic moment,” Mitchell said.

Reflecting on the School’s founding and evolution, he noted the significance of installing Hotchkiss’s first female head of school 135 years after founder Maria Bissell Hotchkiss secured the land and endowment that made the School possible.

“Today is the beginning of a new chapter in the life of our School, and all of us here will play a pivotal role in ensuring Anne’s success,” he said. “Each of us will want to look back on this moment with pride that we were here to see it and experience it, while building an even better future for Hotchkiss.”

Immortal Autumn

All-School Co-Presidents Isis Fenner ’27 and George Ferrarone ’27 helped set the tone for the morning with a reading from Immortal Autumn by Archibald MacLeish, Class of 1911. “I praise the fall: it is the human season,” Isis read.

The duo then presented Bruder with a glass apple engraved with a Hotchkiss “H” and the year 2026 on behalf of the student body. “It is a symbol of our excitement for the future of the Hotchkiss community,” George said.

Guided by Each Other

Board of Trustees President Tim Sullivan ’81, P’13,’16 welcomed all of the guests in attendance, including Bruder’s family and four former heads of Hotchkiss: Rusty Chandler '53, P'82,'85,'87, GP'10,'14,'16,'22,'27, Skip Mattoon, Malcolm McKenzie P'10, and Peter O’Neill. In addition, he acknowledged John Austin, head of Deerfield Academy, and Peter Becker, head of the Taft School, also in attendance.

Sullivan reflected on the meaning of investiture itself. “Investiture comes from the Latin for ‘to clothe,’ he explained. “Centuries ago, it meant dressing a new leader in the robes of office. Today, what we place on Anne’s shoulders is something even more essential than such a symbol of authority: the trust of this entire community.”

That trust is represented by the Hotchkiss seal and the School motto inscribed around it: Moniti Meliora Sequamur, which means, “Guided by each other, let us seek better paths.”

“Our motto asks us to listen to each other, to learn from each other, and to change course when we need to. And it asks us to do this together,” he said.

Sullivan recalled the curiosity and work Bruder brought to Hotchkiss before her tenure officially began. During the months preceding her arrival, she met with students, faculty, families, alumni, trustees, and School leaders, asking questions and refining her understanding of the community.

He also emphasized Bruder’s aspiration for Hotchkiss to become the most deeply connected school in the nation. “These are not just nice words. She really means them,” Sullivan said. “It won’t be built by a policy or a program. It will be built by all of us.”

Sullivan concluded, “Dr. Anne Bruder, we are lucky you are here to lead The Hotchkiss School. Thank you for taking on this challenge and this responsibility. We are all here to support you, to help you, and to seek those better paths with you.”

A Friendship of 24 Years

Armistead Lemon, head of school at North Cross School and Bruder’s dear friend, offered remarks on behalf of the academic community. The two met as graduate students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Lemon offered a warm portrait of Bruder as a teacher, leader, reader, artist, gardener, and friend.

“I believe that in addition to being a strong leader, Anne’s authentic way of moving through the world will make her such an extraordinary and unforgettable head of school here at Hotchkiss,” she said. “I can tell you that her greatest desire is to know all of you. That’s what I mean when I say that she is a teacher at heart, and why she is already a wonderful head of school.”

Lemon recalled the books and poems they have exchanged over the years, Bruder’s habit of sketching flowers, making ceramics and quilts, and her love of gardens and the outdoors. Those qualities, Lemon suggested, are connected to the way Bruder builds relationships and communities.

“Her deep interest in how you spend your time here, the rhythm of your days, is directly connected to the kind of intentional community she aspires for you to create together,” she said.

Lemon concluded by telling students to cherish their time with Bruder. “She will add color to your world, just as she has mine,” she said. “What I know, what I have learned, is that a form of home is always wherever Anne is, and that she will make Hotchkiss a beautiful home for all of you.”

The Ground Beneath Our Feet

Bruder began her acceptance speech by thanking the many people who have shaped her journey back to Lakeville, including her family, colleagues, friends, and the entire Hotchkiss community.

“To the students, faculty, and staff of Hotchkiss: thank you for welcoming us. This ceremony may have my name attached to it, but the work it marks is ours. A school is made together, day after day. I am so grateful to share that work with you,” Bruder said.

Her remarks explored the long and historic relationship between Hotchkiss and the surrounding landscape, including the woods, hills, and lakes. “Maria Hotchkiss looked across these same hills and saw something different,” Bruder said. “She saw children growing up not amid urban excess but amid farms, workshops, and small villages, their prospects narrowed by the schooling available to them. What this landscape represented to Maria Hotchkiss was not escape but opportunity. Her gift would create a school for those young people.”

She reflected on students' full schedules, ranging from classes to practices, as well as the distraction of cell phones. “Hotchkiss should be the place that draws it back: back to our learning, to our friendships, to the shared life of our School, and to the ground beneath our feet," she said. "But even here, with green ridges rising toward Mt. Greylock, the woods gathering behind us, and the lake flashing below, beauty alone does not secure our attention. We have to choose to look, and then choose again. Sometimes that will mean closing your book, leaving your cello in its case, putting the hockey stick back in the locker, and going outside."

Drawing on stories from the School’s past, Bruder invited students to pay close attention to the land they now share and to bring their own curiosity to it.

“Go looking,” she told the community. “Carry your questions with you. Let this place complicate them, sharpen them, change them."

A New Chapter

Sullivan returned to the stage to present Bruder with the Hotchkiss seal, made in the Class of 2017 EFX Lab by Bill Fenton P'26,'26, Lufkin Prize recipient, director of the Observatory, director of the EFX Lab, and instructor in physics and astronomy.

“Anne, earlier this morning, I said that what we place on your shoulders today is the trust of this entire community. This seal is the symbol of that trust,” Sullivan told Bruder. “On behalf of the Board of Trustees and the entire Hotchkiss community, I present to you the seal of The Hotchkiss School, and with it, our heartfelt and enthusiastic support.”

The ceremony concluded with music and celebration, featuring a performance by a cappella groups Blue Notes and Calliope, followed by the singing of Fair Hotchkiss.

Bruder offered one final thought. “I am so excited for what the future holds for this incredible community,” she said.

Waving pennants and pom-poms, the community followed its 16th head of school toward Main Circle into a new chapter for Hotchkiss.

 

View a Recording of the Investiture Ceremony