When Dr. Renata Williams learned that some students were waiting from the start of school until winter vacation to get a haircut, she wanted to know why.
Williams, Mercersburg’s former director of diversity, equity, and inclusion, listened to students, parents, and alumni. She learned that the students needed access to barbers and beauticians experienced in the styling and cutting of Black hair.
“There was a market need in our community,” Williams said. “After doing a little digging, I figured out that I might be able to help resolve some of that.”
She responded by arranging for barbers and stylists to come to the students, initially in an office adjacent to the Simon Student Center, and then in a newly renovated space in the basement of Tippetts Hall.
The Shop was something parents of color had championed for several years.
“Knowing that there is a place for their child to go is a relief for parents,” said Lucy Short P ’23, who was instrumental in the establishment of The Shop on campus. “Hair is part of who they are. It tells the story of who they are.”
Established in 2023, The Shop at Mercersburg Academy is a hair salon that is open on an as-needed basis. For example, appointments are available prior to prom or other special events.
“The next phase is to nail down when are those key points in time?” Williams said. “Is it senior pictures? Is it after we’ve been in school for about a month?”
Toward the end of fall term last year, Zoluntu Radebe ’25 needed to take out her braids, which had been in place since the summer, three months earlier.
“I am fairly good at maintaining my natural hair, but I ended up losing a lot of it during the next few weeks,” said Radebe, who is from Johannesburg, South Africa. “I think the colder weather temperatures that I wasn’t used to and stress just made my hair fall out. Diving season was coming, and I refused to deal with my hair. I reached out to Dr. Williams, who helped me set up an appointment with a hair stylist the day before exams started. The stylist was really kind and treated my hair with a lot of care, and we had a nice conversation together.”
Jonathan Trichter ’89 said it’s important to have access to trusted stylists and barbers.
“Without a stylist close by who knows how to do hair for a diverse student body, a part of each student’s individualism and selfexpression may be lost,” said Trichter, who purchased the ethnically diverse Astor Place Hairstylists in New York City during the pandemic to keep it from closing.
While the impetus for The Shop was the need for barbers and stylists skilled in working with Black hair, The Shop is open to all students, faculty, staff, and Academy family members.
“If you can help our students who are most in need, it’s generally pretty safe to say that everybody else benefits from that as well. It’s the curb-cut effect,” Williams said. “Typically, if you can cut African-American hair, you can do anybody’s hair. The reverse is not true.”
Emails are sent in advance to alert the school community when a barber or stylist will be on campus. Appointments are made through a Google form, and if time permits, drop-ins are allowed on a first-come, first-served basis.
Kene Olusanya ’24 said he used The Shop several times when it was open. “It’s efficient for me and usually opens in parallel with when I need a haircut anyway,” said Olusanya, who is from Lagos, Nigeria. “The emphasis on bringing in barbers who are able to work well with Black hair also helps me a lot, especially since we are in an area where that may be harder to find. It is also a good price compared to elsewhere, and I would be saving the cost of transportation as well.”
Costs vary per stylist, who charge customers their standard rates, said Jamar Galbreath ’05, assistant director of diversity, equity, and inclusion. The DEI Office also pays stylists a flat rate to cover mileage for traveling to the school.
The barbers and stylists have been asked not to accept tips so that extra fees don’t prohibit access for those with limited resources.
A Message of Inclusion
Alumni have shared how much it would have meant to them to have a space like The Shop when they were at Mercersburg.
The ribbon cutting for The Shop was held during Family Weekend last fall. Paula Smith ’83 said a salon that supports and cares for naturally curly and coily hair sends a message about inclusion.
“It signals that there is a place for students who come from an African heritage, that they belong on Mercersburg’s campus, that their unique cultural expression–hair, in this instance– is a valued part of the Academy, that they can bring and be their whole selves, including hair. They don’t have to change or straighten their hair just to feel a sense of belonging at Mercersburg,” Smith said. “I would have loved to have it as an option.”
Smith said that perhaps money could be set aside from donors, which would allow all students to get their hair cared for, even when they don’t have resources to do so. Last summer, Williams gave a sneak peek of the space to three Black alumni who were on campus for Reunion Weekend.
“They talked about how it was really hard for them, being Black women, at the time,” Williams said. “It wasn’t popular to wear your natural hair, so pressing or having a relaxer was the thing to do.”
Because it was fashionable, Black women would use a flat iron press or a chemical relaxant to straighten their hair.
The hairstyles of the time were difficult to manage, particularly for the swimmers, especially since formal dinner was more frequent than it is today, Williams said. Their peers from other ethnicities didn’t always understand the struggles they faced with their hair.
The hope is that The Shop will be a place where students feel comfortable chatting with friends, faculty, and staff members while partaking of the services offered.
- Campus Life