Head Reflections: Constructing a Bright Future

Summer at New Hampton School is not what some might imagine. While our students are gone, and faculty have no day-to-day responsibilities, the staff and administration are hard at work, albeit with some vacation time available! Administrative departments have a litany of tasks to complete to “close” one school year and prepare to “open” another. Similarly, staff are hard at work improving community spaces and executing projects that can only be done when the students are away.

This year we have several camp partners utilizing our facilities, bringing nearly 1,000 school-aged children to campus for hockey, soccer, basketball, and arts programs—relationships with mission-aligned programs we value.

This summer, we have several physical plant projects tied to our strategic plan and Bicentennial Campaign priorities designed to support students and faculty.

Renovating for Innovation

The Academic Research Center, known to most as the ARC, is being renovated to support three initiatives.

1. The World Language Department gains necessary classroom and office space on the third floor to allow for more effective delivery of the program.
2. On the main floor, the former library circulation space has been fully renovated to accommodate the College Counseling Office. A central location is important for visiting college and university representatives to be in the heart of campus as well as for student and parent access as they plan for the future.
3. What used to be “the stacks” of the old library is now home to our entrepreneurial studies program. This open-concept space will be available for classroom use while also housing our innovation equipment; it includes a conference room and a breakout room—a place for clubs, teams, and others to meet, for weekend activities to operate out of, and many other uses. This project is on schedule to be completed for the opening of school.

Updating Academic Row

Lane Hall, opened in 1913, houses our humanities department, a dance studio, and, for a period of time, a ceramics studio. A full renovation of this historic building on academic row began in May of 2021. The building is being fully renovated so that we can provide consistent classroom size and amenities, which include modern air handling, furnishings, and technology, along with proper entry and egress. Lane Hall will reopen for the 2022-2023 school year. Its completion will elevate Lane to the likes of Meservey and Pilalas as a state-of-the-art academic building to enhance the academic experience of students and faculty alike.

New Views

In 2019 the School purchased the home of Jane Smith–a 1-acre lot on the campus corner of Shingle Camp Hill and Dr. Child’s roads. Jane and her family have extensive ties to New Hampton School, and we are grateful to have been able to have purchased the property. The single-family home on the property, in need of extensive repairs, is being razed this summer as the first step in preparing this lot for a future project tied to our strategic priorities. The entrance to Dr. Child’s Road has become a second “Main Entrance” to campus for all arts and athletic events, along with day student and employee parking. As part of the development of the Smith lot, the School intends to improve the aesthetics of the entrance to serve as an appropriate front entrance to campus.

With the Board of Trustees, we are committed to honoring our past while planning for the future needs of New Hampton School so that we can remain a destination for talented and promising young students looking to grow and contribute to this vibrant community for years to come.

We welcome your visit to this wonderful campus and community so that we can share with you the magic of Husky Nation.

*At this time, all visitors to campus are required to wear a face covering.