Class Acts

Luke Dalton ’95 & Alissa DeJonge, Mercy ’95

A few months ago, Mercy President Alissa DeJonge ’95 and her husband Luke Dalton ’95 went looking for DeJonge’s high school diploma.

The couple, who met at a Xavier football game in the fall of 1994, never found the diploma, but they did find something else they recognized – DeJonge’s valedictorian speech from senior year.

“When I read it, I realized I could still say this now. It was a simple message, it was not very long, but it was poignant,” DeJonge said. “As a high school student I was just beginning to realize what was important to me and it has continued.”

Plenty has changed in DeJonge’s life, but some things will always remain, like her love for Mercy High School, and her loyal editing partner.

As class valedictorians, DeJonge and Dalton got together to help each other as they drafted their speeches. Now 25 years later, the couple, and their fouryear-old son Pierce, have returned to the place that brought them together.

In July, DeJonge, who had previously worked as an economist for Advance CT, took over for Sister Mary McCarthy, R.S.M., as the first lay president in the history of the school.

“As we were going through the process, I couldn’t help but think that it was a perfect fit,” Dalton said about his wife getting the job. “She knows the mission of Mercy and the culture, and she has this outside knowledge of how to carry it forward for the next generations. I never had any doubts that this was the right move and the right fit for her, and for Mercy.”

From their first date (a trip to the movies to see “Outbreak” in the spring of 1995) to that trip to the Cromwell Ruby Tuesday to review their valedictorian speeches, the couple, who have been married for 13 years, has always shared an appreciation for the same values. Family, education, community – they matter deeply to both DeJonge and Dalton. So in some ways it is no surprise that they’re back on Randolph Road helping a new generation of students.

“Luke supports me with anything I want to do – and that is when I thrive. I think that is why our connection runs so deep.”

At Mercy and Xavier, they both embraced every opportunity they were given.

They loved their classes, they loved their teachers, and they loved their schools.

Still, they never imagined this. The fourth head of school in the history of Mercy High School? A return to Mercy with an opportunity to give back and lead? At first, DeJonge did not know if it could be her, but as she did a little more research and thought more about the job the more she started to realize this was the opportunity she wanted.

“I would not have applied to any other jobs than Mercy – I was only applying to this job,” DeJonge said. “I was looking for a way to impact the community more directly. Then this came up and it kind of clicked at the right time.”

After previously serving on the Mercy Board of Directors for 15 years, including three years as the chair, DeJonge had an idea of what Mercy needed in a leader after the retirement of Sister Mary, but she also brought a different perspective to the position.

“I thought I could take my expertise understanding economic trends and data analysis and public policy and non-profit ideas and apply them to a school,” DeJonge said. “In today’s world, especially private education, you really need to sell the school and tell the story of the school. Having gone through Mercy and understanding what Mercy High School in Middletown means, and then applying this non-profit business experience, I thought it could be a nice combination.”

On March 31, 2020, she got the call. She was hired.

“There were tears of joy for sure,” DeJonge said. “I could not believe it was actually happening.”

More than nine months later, she still has to pinch herself when she sits in her office and watches as the buses roll into the school. For more than 45 years, this was Sister Mary’s office. It was Sister Mary’s view, but now it belongs to DeJonge, and she is doing everything she can to follow in the footsteps of Sister Mary, while also making her own impact.

“Sister Mary really laid this foundation and set this culture, and I was part of it,” DeJonge said. “I feel that I understand that foundation and where we come from, and now I want to take that and help it to grow and take it to the next level. I want to take all the gifts I have received and give them to the community.”

Her husband believes she is ready to do just that.

“She is very dedicated,” Dalton said. “She is not afraid to look at things differently and adapt to the current environment, but also carry that common thread of Mercy traditions through different times. Right from the beginning, what I recognized in Alissa was that she was not going to do something just because someone else wanted her to do it or because that was the thing to do. If she was going to do something, it was because she could see a clear path that made sense to her.”

Through high school and college graduations, new jobs, and everything else life throws at you, the one constant for both DeJonge and Dalton has been each other. They are each other’s biggest supporters, and when the time calls for it – motivators.

“Luke supports me with anything I want to do – and that is when I thrive,” DeJonge said. “I think that is why our connection runs so deep.”

That type of support has always been evident in the relationship, especially at the start. After going over their speeches together, both DeJonge and Dalton gave each other a ticket to their graduation.

“I think we just realized that we kind of liked each other and it grew from there,” Dalton said.

As college students, they encouraged each other as they attended top academic institutions. Dalton went to Dartmouth for his undergraduate and graduate degrees, and DeJonge went to Boston College as an undergraduate and Yale as a graduate student.

“We both knew our priorities were to do the best we could with our education, and we supported each other through that,” Dalton said. “We both enjoyed learning and valued education a lot.”

For Dalton, his love of science and math led him to engineering, where he now has five patents to his name and helps make equipment that enables the generation of hydrogen gas from renewable energy like wind and solar. Along the way, DeJonge has been there as his rock.

No matter what comes next, they work together. Whether it is a new job like the return to Mercy, or simply preparing dinner, they represent a united team.

“Whatever we are doing, whether it is just sitting around reading a book or a magazine, or going to the beach, we always have fun together because we are just on the same wavelength,” DeJonge said.

When it comes to this new chapter in their lives, both DeJonge and Dalton feel the timing is right for their family. From the moment they both chose Xavier and Mercy, the combined community has been good to them, and now they are ready to give back.

“To me if I can provide some support to this next generation like the way I was provided support that is very meaningful to me,” DeJonge said. “I think I am at a point now in my career where I really want to make a direct impact on my community, so getting up at that podium on my first day and being able to say what I wanted to say to them, really started me on that journey.” Gratitude. Community. Support.

Over 25 years ago, Dalton and DeJonge addressed the same themes as Xavier and Mercy valedictorians. Now they are ready to spread the message once again.