A Message from TJ's 5th Head of School

To our TJ Community, 

I write to let you know I will be leaving TJ as of January 2023. Undoubtedly, this comes as a surprise to many. Allow me to share more information with you regarding this decision. 

I can already hear a natural first question: why? For the past two years—really, my twelve years at TJ—I have been incredibly proud of what we have accomplished together. However, I can no longer ignore how the past two years have impacted my physical (and mental) health. Frankly, I ignored early warning signs because I did not want to believe I was being impacted. Months ago, my favorite person and partner, Ashley Troutman, helped me understand the impact these past two years have had on my life, at and away from TJ alike. At this time, we must do what is best for us and our future. Sadly, at this time it is not continuing at TJ past 2022. 

Many will know the envy I have for those who were able to experience TJ as a student. This school became a place I wish I had attended when I was a young learner, which is why TJ so quickly became our home. To recognize at this point that the best path for us is to leave a place I care deeply about is incredibly difficult. In one way, this experience is similar to a TJ senior who, after years in this community, must move on to what comes next. 

Where are the Troutmans going? We will be going overseas, and I will return to the classroom at a school where the academic calendar starts in January—this is why I am not remaining at TJ through the full school year. I’ll be teaching science and mathematics again, a move to be closer to what made me love education (and TJ), but our future is a story for another day. 

What comes next? Appropriately, individuals are not the whole of TJ. Instead, we all contribute to our shared community. TJ is in a great position for the future. From an operational standpoint, we have very healthy enrollment numbers, our endowment is the strongest in the school’s history, our board members are incredible partners, and our annual fund raised more last year than we ever have in the school’s history. We are lucky to have the most amazing group of staff, alumni, parents, friends of the school, and—most importantly—our students.  

It feels obvious to state, but TJ is also lucky to have someone in Jane Roth who will continue as Acting Head of School for the remainder of the year. Jane clearly has my full support and confidence. We have worked closely for the past twelve years, and I can emphatically share that TJ is in great hands.

I will move forward from TJ with plenty of memories full of pride. Clearly, there is no way to truly capture what will be twelve years of emotion and memories. Ashley and I don’t have family in the St. Louis area, so TJ has become our family in St. Louis. While we will be going physically away from TJ, we hope to stay active members of the community that we have built together. 

I don’t think I can avoid mentioning some specific memories that have flashed through my mind recently. Each day of teaching, robotics, advisory and soccer; each alumni conversation; and, yes, even on-calls and duty shifts bring a smile to my face. Similarly, I will look back with pride on things like: bringing the school’s past to the light of day with the Board’s full partnership, elevating student voices in the community, helping to form an incredible leadership team, “quarantining” in Mexico City with Mr. Burgos to bring six students to campus, being selected as a partner site for a Columbia University/Teachers College practicum experience to kick off our recent DEIB initiatives, accidentally naming “Titan Time,” and—of course—the Earthquake Debate in Earth Science. 

Outside of the memories, I have learned more at TJ than all of my other schooling and life, combined. Not only have I learned about learning, I’ve learned to better appreciate and understand humanity (for the last time: no, I am not a robot). I learned about teaching, sentence diagramming, I read books I would have never read if it weren’t part of our curriculum, experienced more theater than I would have ever thought, and kept up my very poor and limited French. Where else can one learn so much about so much? 

Ashley and I have an immense sense of pride in having been a part of this community for more than a decade, and we will continue to cheer on everyone from afar.