Molly Schiot ’98 returned to New Hampton School for the first time since graduating to spend three days sharing her journey and reconnecting with the community. A Los Angeles based artist and filmmaker, Molly’s story is unique, yet it is one that resonates with many students today as they seek to find their own path and passions.
In recent years, Molly published her first book, Game Changers: The Unsung Heroines of Sports History, a photo chronicle of women that have helped paved the way and opened doors for females in athletics. The publication of her book is supported by Schiot’s Instagram account @theunsungheroines which has more than 52,000 followers.
Building on A Foundation
If you asked Schiot as a student at New Hampton what she thought she’d be doing in 20 years, her answer would likely be far from today’s reality. As a student at NHS, Molly was a three-sport athlete throughout her four years on campus. It wasn’t until she graduated, matriculated at Brown University, and dropped out of athletics to pursue other interests that she began to discover her true passions in life and what made her happy.
While Schiot found the courage to chart her own path in and after college, New Hampton School helped her establish a strong foundation. With this, Molly has taken risks throughout her career, and possessed the self-advocacy skills to press forward in the male dominated film industry.
Connecting with Current Students
Her calm, thoughtful presence resonated with today’s New Hampton School community. In the same ways that Molly was impressed by the outspoken, comfortable and confident students on campus, they appreciated her honest perspective of her own experiences.
Moesy Shumway ‘18, who visited with Schiot in her English class reflects, “When I first heard Molly Schiot would be attending English class, I was expecting a cliché lecture about how to ‘Never give up!’ Instead, I left English class feeling inspired, empowered and with Gamechangers on order for delivery to my house. Her lessons revolved around the concept of never taking no for an answer. Her tales of persistence and perseverance were empowering and something I will not forget.”
Understanding New Hampton Today
As an Alumna in Residence, Molly visited classes and had several small group sessions including a lunch with female faculty and staff, an evening with female students in O’Connor House, and a lunch gathering with the GSTA community. “One of my favorite parts was connecting with the kids from the GSTA,” Molly writes. “Listening to the kids be so open and comfortable about who they are made me have many sighs of relief. We live in such a challenging political climate at the moment, and listening to how the kids navigate through that brought me so much joy. They were so fearless and I felt really hopeful about the students and the big lives they have in front of them.” Additionally, Schiot committed time to meet one-on-one with students interested in learning more about what it takes to make it in Hollywood in numerous roles.
A unique story, Schiot provides a wonderful snapshot of the rich resources and role-models found in the greater New Hampton School community. We eagerly await Schiot’s next moves in the film industry as she works to launch her impressive book into film.
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