At Milton
Todd Bland Begins as Milton Academy’s Twelfth Head of School
R
ight outside the Bland family’s windows, a burgeoning steel structure steadily acquires its walls, windows and roofs. The Pritzker Science Center, taking shape by the day, sidles up to the head of school’s house. The view is new—for the Academy and the Blands. Living next to the emerging Pritzker Center is only one entry on a list of “new” for Todd and Nancy Bland, and their children—Nick, Maggie and Emily. As Nancy says, “We’re new on campus; new Upper School parents and new K–8 parents; new to the head of school’s job at Milton, to our home, our neighbors and our community.” Last June, the family moved into 127 Centre Street. Over the summer, Todd took the helm as Milton Academy’s twelfth head of school. Nancy Bland, a career teacher, coach and advisor, looks forward to an active role on campus this fall. Nick joins Class IV; Emily and Maggie join Grade 8. Todd and Nancy Bland have been educators since they graduated from college. In some ways, Todd’s role at Milton is more an evolution than a major change. Referring to his serving, over the years, as teacher, coach and administrator simultaneously, Todd says, “I enjoy being part of the rhythms of different parts of a school: working with a bigger picture of the school to help set its course for the future, while still vitally connecting with students.” Most recently Todd fulfilled that mix of roles at the Seven Hills School in Cincinnati, Ohio, and prior to that at the Belmont Hill School in Belmont, Massachusetts. “I have to be connected, day to day, with the heart of the school, the students and faculty. At the same time, I find the
Nancy and Todd Bland
challenge of helping a school evolve, and working with lots of people to do that, very rewarding. I like being busy.”
of excitement and eagerly anticipate making new friends, starting at a new school, shaping a new home.”
Nancy describes their transition: “It’s true that Milton is very new, but in many senses we’re coming home. We have a foundation of experience, family and friends that surround us. We are thrilled and excited.” Leaving the Boston area for Cincinnati eight years ago can be seen now as a preparatory leap of faith, Nancy explains. “We did not know the school nor anyone in the community. The whole experience was excellent: it was broadening, strengthening and enriching for our family.
“There’s a certain reality that comes with living in the community where you work,” Todd says. “We’ll find ways to be part of the community authentically. We’ll also need to settle into what’s comfortable for us and for our family. That will take time. Both Nancy and I have had such strong, positive, personal experiences in boarding schools; we are still connected to our institutions. My family lived at Lawrenceville for a time, also. So the concept of living within a boarding school community is certainly not novel to us. That excitement that you’re hearing in our voices is genuine. The community has expressed a desire to be very supportive of us as a family, too. That message has been consistent since my first connection with Milton.”
“Our children have learned what we have learned,” says Nancy. “We can all experience, and be comfortable with, totally opposite, intense sets of emotion at once. By that I mean, the sadness of saying goodbye to people in a community whom we love, and who loved us, at the same time that we are full
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