Jennifer Craig has been appointed an interim associate head of school at Mercersburg. She brings three decades of experience as an independent-school teacher and administrator, including 14 years on the faculty at Hotchkiss School in Connecticut and service to schools on four different continents; most recently, she was the deputy head of school for community life at Broadstone Academy, an international school in Shenzhen, China.

“We feel very fortunate to have Jen joining us in this critical role,” says Head of School Quentin McDowell P ’25. “Jen’s strong independent-school experience and background, combined with her kind and thoughtful approach, will be a welcomed addition to our community.”

Craig will oversee the Office of Student Life and the Rutherford Health and Wellness Center, serve as a key liaison between the faculty and senior leadership, and assume management of some of the duties previously handled by departing faculty members Christopher Howes and Rick Hendrickson P ’03, ’06, ’19.

Howes was Mercersburg’s assistant head of school for student life and culture and is now at Tabor Academy in his native Massachusetts, while Hendrickson retired from education after 37 years—29 of which were at Mercersburg in a number of roles (most recently as dean of experiential programs)—to take a position with DLR Group, which merged with Bowie Gridley Architects (an architectural firm that has partnered with Mercersburg on a number of campus projects).

“When you’re working with students in an independent-school environment, you’re not just working with a person, but a family,” says Craig, who holds a bachelor’s degree from Amherst College and a master’s degree from Yale University; she is also completing a master’s in educational leadership from University College London. “That sense of connection across students’ lives not just in academics but in their entire lives is really special.”

Craig’s husband, Ken, is also joining the faculty as a member of the English department.