The Curveball

The Gemmell Era also included an immense curveball that no one saw coming: the COVID pandemic. He led with clarity and action, pulling together close advisors who regularly assembled to not only meet the requirements of the state and federal government, but often to exceed them in an effort to create the safest environment for students, employees, and surrounding town neighbors. Gemmell asked everyone to be patient, vigilant, and—using one of his favorite words—nimble. In an affirming message to all Brewster constituents at the time, he said, “We opened our doors in September 2020 amidst a landscape filled with uncertainty…simply opening and operating during COVID could be considered a victory. But we’ve been inspired by the work of those who preceded us in leading this school, by current successes, and the bold objectives we laid out in our vision: an approach to learning with the exponential power to transform education, communities, and the lives of students in our care. Thus, we have dug deep as an institution to ensure that even in the face of much uncertainty, we continue to make strategic decisions and investments to ensure Brewster grows ever stronger.” And in what is a Gemmell trademark, he deflected the credit for the school’s perseverance during the most frightening months of the pandemic with these words: “This was not the work of a team of administrators. Nor teachers. Nor experts from afar. This was the work of a team composed of all who are actively involved with Brewster: employees, students, parents, grandparents, friends, and Trustees. Our students embraced a yearlong mantra—make lemonade! Without question, the positive energy of students inspires all of us to seek ways for positive change.”

Sharing The Love

unwavering belief in the importance of educating cognitively diverse learners.

That first year sluiced by, and supported by Ballentine, then Director of Institutional Strategy & Advancement Kristy Kerin, and Trustee Art Coviello, Gemmell began seeking solutions to a serious challenge the Board had made clear was to be squarely on the new Head of School’s plate once he had his feet on the ground: navigating Brewster around the difficult financial hurdles all secondary schools like Brewster faced. “Increasing costs were slowly but steadily pushing the cost of a private secondary school education beyond the reach of most families without significant financial aid,” Ballentine shares, “we had to find a solution.” The team also had a desire to expand the education landscape using Brewster’s unique approach. Gemmell and a growing team set to work and their brainchild, BA International, was born.

But there were almost five more years for the Head of School to develop the team’s revolutionary idea while steering the campus community in Wolfeboro. Asked about Gemmell’s evolution as a leader, Ballentine says, “The first thing that comes to mind is it was fun. Which is not what you probably hear in response to that question in a lot of places. It’s not like Craig and I are best buddies,

LIMITLESS Craig is a lifelong runner. It’s so important that he gets in a run every day, in fact, that former Director of Integrated Outreach Kris Light recently noted goodnaturedly, “If he can’t make that happen, he starts to lose it a little bit, and you can tell. He’s kind of like a border collie in that way.”

SOLIDARITY On June 5, 2020, Gemmell stood with more than 500 demonstrators during Wolfeboro’s Black Lives Matter rally that lined the town’s main thoroughfare and extended onto Brewster’s campus.