Kate is Peddie A beloved longtime teacher, Higgins called the school home for 21 years before returning to Connecticut. By Patricia O’Neill Ask Kate Higgins what jobs she has held at Peddie since her arrival in 1988, and she’ll breeze through the list: dorm supervisor, director of residential life, history teacher, advisor, admissions officer, coach — those are the obvious ones. Here are just a few of the not-so-obvious: graduation coordinator, prefect program co-coordinator, faculty party organizer and, perhaps most often, unofficial advisor to students, faculty and administrators. below Kate Higgins, mingling with students on Headmaster’s Day last May, had an easy way about her that endeared her to members of the entire Peddie community.
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As numerous as her roles were, none of them meant much to her on their own — their impact lay in the relationships she developed while fulfilling these roles. Admittedly, this is what Higgins, who left the school in June after 21 years, said she will miss most about Peddie. “Those personal, casual relationships with kids this age — that’s something I’m not sure I can find somewhere else,” she reflected. Feeling the need to be closer to aging parents, Higgins made the difficult decision to move back to Connecticut. It’s hard for Peddie to lose Kate Higgins. Biking across campus, hanging out in Potter lounge, walking black labs Rosie and Toby, teaching in the History House — she was such a part of the fabric of this community that it’s difficult to get used to campus without her. “Kate is Peddie,” said Erik Treese, former student and colleague. “Peddie is not about buildings, academic programs or signature experiences — it is about the people who work here. Kate epitomized what makes Peddie special.” It’s hard for Higgins to lose Peddie, too. In many ways, they have grown up together. Accepting the job shortly after completing her master’s degree, Higgins began her career at a Peddie that was in something of a state of turmoil. Hired by former Head Ed Potter the previous April, she was greeted upon her arrival by interim Head Anne Seltzer, who filled in following Potter’s sudden and shocking death in July 1988. Jumping into her first boarding school experience, Higgins served as dorm supervisor in what was then Longstreet dorm. Though the job was challenging from the start, she soon grew attached to the residential component of boarding school life and has been involved in it in some capacity ever since.