Robert W. Hill III, Head of School and John Hazen White Jr. ’76, Chair, Board of Trustees

The world has changed dramatically since 2014 when Williston Northampton adopted its last comprehensive strategic plan: Innovation and Purpose. Despite the massive disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Williston successfully accomplished the goals set forth in that plan—establishing a positive and unified boarding school culture, expanding the Williston Scholars program, and transforming our campus through the new Residential Quad and innumerable campus renovations. With the plan’s completion, we now look to the future, and have embarked on a strategic planning process designed by Trustee Strategic Issues Committee Chair, John P. Booth Jr. ’83, with assistance from John F. Green, former head of the Peddie School, and a consultant for RG-175.

Beginning in the spring of 2022, Mr. Booth and Mr. Green conducted interviews, in-person focus groups, virtual meetings, and surveyed our many constituencies to gather key quantitative and qualitative feedback. They also established an ad hoc steering committee on campus, led by Academic Dean Kim Polin, and charged that body to use these findings to identify possible priorities and goals. After further refinement by the Board’s Strategic Issues Committee, the final plan of Our People, Our Purpose was approved. This comprehensive process was affirming: Williston’s path for the future was supported by the united commitment and support of so many in our community—alumni, students, parents, trustees, faculty, and staff.

Our Board of Trustees has set forth in Our People, Our Purpose a roadmap to guide the school through to the end of the decade. The plan ultimately centers on Williston’s people because we know that it is our community—our students, faculty, and staff—who are the school’s beating heart and soul. Our People, Our Purpose honors the spirit and legacy of all those who have come before, while pointing the way towards a sustainable future for all who will follow. Our ultimate goal is to make Williston a place where everyone can live lives that are purposeful in direction, passionate in commitment, and guided by our enduring virtues.

Williston Northampton is a school that puts its people first. We are a thriving, diverse, and inclusive school that welcomes students from across the United States and around the world, distinguished for their talent, authenticity, and spirit. Working intentionally, we have created a culture like no other, one that allows students to be ambitious and their authentic selves while embracing respectful and enduring relationships. The special feeling one gets at Williston springs from our warm community of motivated, open-minded, and caring people who practice what they preach.

Throughout its history, Williston has paired deeply dedicated faculty and staff with genuine and eager students, so that the whole exceeds the sum of its parts. We understand that creating this special community cannot be left to chance, and so we strive to be a school where all employees feel valued and supported so that they are prepared, capable, and eager to help our students become the best version of themselves.

Williston is a school that faces its future with courage and conviction. We acknowledge the privileged position we hold as a premier educational institution and the responsibility that position places on all those who pass through. In furtherance of our mission— to inspire our students to live lives of purpose, passion, and integrity—and to be able to pursue our mission for generations to come, we have identified the five strategic priorities and attendant goals below.

Williston students have access to an enviable breadth of academic and co-curricular opportunities. We understand, however, that our students’ determination to excel must be grounded in a sense of balance, support, and well-being. We commit to the goals below. Click the arrow, below right, to see specific subgoals.

The single most important factor in shaping students’ experience is the quality of the faculty and staff who work in multiple roles in service of the school community. We recognize the evolving demands that working at a boarding school entail and the importance of rewarding and retaining our people. We commit to the goals below. Click the arrow, below right, to see specific subgoals.

Williston will build upon the specific goals outlined in its stand-alone Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Strategic Plan (2021-26). We vow to be a community where all students and employees feel welcomed, respected, supported, and valued. We commit to the goals below. Click the arrow, below right, to see specific subgoals.

Our academic spaces should mirror the quality, flexibility, and innovation of our distinctive programs—while preparing students for their academic and work experience beyond Williston. We commit to the goals below. Click the arrow, below right, to see specific subgoals.

Increasing the school’s financial resources is key to Williston’s ability to sustainably deliver an inspiring and unique education for generations to come by providing access, supporting our people, and preserving and enhancing the physical campus and its culture. To this end, Williston must be forward thinking and rigorous in planning. We commit to the goals below. Click the arrow, below right, to see specific subgoals.