Head of School Craig Bradley sent the message below to current students, families, faculty, staff, and trustees on June 30. 

Dear Hotchkiss Students and Families,

The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling on affirmative action policies in higher education admissions carries great emotional, political, and historical significance. I write to affirm Hotchkiss’s steadfast commitment to each and every Hotchkiss student, a commitment that begins with the process of admission to Hotchkiss and continues through college matriculation.

At this moment, I believe it is important to emphasize the School's deep and abiding commitment to creating and safeguarding a pluralistic community of learning. Hotchkiss is, and will remain, a place in which talented teenagers and adults from myriad backgrounds come together in the spirit of community, learning and growing collaboratively in ways that prepare our graduates to thrive in the magnificently diverse world that awaits them beyond the Scoville Gate.

The Hotchkiss School Mission reads: 

Hotchkiss seeks to inspire a diverse range of students who are committed to the betterment of self and society, and to cultivate in them at the highest standards of excellence: imagination and intellect, openness and personal integrity, empathy and responsible citizenship that they may discover and fulfill their potential as individuals fully engaged in our world. 

Core to our mission is ensuring that every student in our care learns and grows in a community that is fair and equitable. Such a community deeply benefits every one of its members.

The college and university admissions officers with whom we have spoken in the months leading up to yesterday’s ruling remain committed to building learning communities on their campuses that are diverse and pluralistic. They will continue to select a diverse range of Hotchkiss students, confident that those students will be well prepared to succeed and contribute meaningfully to their communities.

As always, Hotchkiss will support students through all aspects of the college admissions process. This will continue to include all opportunities to showcase differentiating aspects of each student’s lived experience. As Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in his majority opinion, “...nothing in this opinion should be construed as prohibiting universities from considering an applicant’s discussion of how race affected his or her life, be it through discrimination, inspiration, or otherwise.” 

Students and parents of the Class of 2024, please look for an invitation coming soon to attend a College Office webinar later in July. During this webinar, we will discuss in greater detail how to approach a college application environment that, while changed, need not be daunting. We will navigate these new waters together. 

Sincerely,

Craig W. Bradley
Head of School