Thornton Academy Postscripts Alumni Magazine Fall 2010 | Page 2

From The Headmaster
Dear Alumni and Friends,

Photo courtesy of Bruce Haskell Photography

Maine educators received attention recently for “out of the box” thinking. The headline in the Portland Press Herald read, “School leaders look to recruit China students”; the New York Times announced, “Needing students, Maine
school hunts in China.” Both articles referred to a trip to China by four New England school administrators. Three
were from Maine and represented Stearns High School in Millinocket, Erskine Academy in South China, and John
Bapst Memorial High School in Bangor. The NY Times article quotes Millinocket’s school superintendent: “We are going full-bore. You’ve got to move if you’ve got something you believe is the right thing to do.”
I couldn’t agree more. As the steady decline in Maine’s school-age population continues, I feel fortunate that our
Board of Trustees already acted on what they believed was the right thing to do. The trustees forecast the depth of
the economic challenge approaching and paid close attention to the fact that other schools were considering reduction, even elimination, of some very important programs for students. Unfortunately, the kinds of programs in
jeopardy—music, theater, visual arts, extracurricular activities, athletics—are often those that are the most motivating for many students.
As I said, I feel very fortunate. Despite the economic downturn, Thornton Academy has been able to grow its program because we had the available resources to do so. Why is that? First and foremost, we enjoy meaningful connections with our alumni and our current families. Through the Thornton Fund, the annual Auction and other vehicles
for private financial support, our alumni and friends reliably demonstrate that they understand the positive impact
they can make on students’ lives, the influence they can have both now and into the future. Their strength of support is the foundation for everything we do.
I feel doubly fortunate because our trustees take an entrepreneurial approach to stewardship of this school.
Thornton Academy has the enviable ability to adapt to changing circumstances. For example, when the Maine legislature saw fit to cut in half the insured value factor percentage (funding beyond tuition that town academies like
Thornton are allotted for the use of their physical facilities), Thornton trustees had already begun to investigate
other sources of revenue. Associate Head Rene Menard ’88 and Class Dean Kevin Kezal worked with educational
consultant Douglas Cummings, formerly head of school at Maine Central Institute, to explore what it would mean for
Thornton’s identity and future stability if a significant boarding program was added. The trustees identified this idea
as the most promising option for easing the effects of a funding loss that will equal more than $5 million over the
next ten years.
The boarding program began serving students just a year ago, and thanks to the fine work of Admission Director
Mark Powers and Director of Residential Life Kelli Corrigan along with the support of the entire administrative team,
our first dormitory - Nelson Hall - was filled to capacity with 38 students in Year One. In addition, Shawn Rousseau
transitioned to the role of Academic Dean/College Counselor to provide dedicated support for boarding students
in the college search and application process. Now in Year Two, all slots are again filled with boarding students.
We have even added a home stay program that allows boarding students to live with a host family within the community. Construction is well underway on our second dormitory, and we are working hard to recruit students from
around the United States and the world. Although our boarding program is not even two years old, Thornton Academy is attracting substantial international interest, putting our southern Maine region in place to be a significant
player in efforts to attract new resources to the state.
What about Saco, Dayton and Arundel, who have entrusted their students to us throughout our 200-year history?
How does this benefit our local kids? Good news! By reinforcing our financial
stability, we are able to protect, strengthen and even expand our services while
schools around us will face very difficult programmatic decisions. We have added
academic services to support the students who find school hard; we have added
honors and AP classes for students who are able to meet academic challenges beyond our regular college preparatory curriculum. More information on new ways
that we are serving students is included in this issue of Postscripts.
At the end of the day, Thornton Academy continues to thrive because of the
foresight of our Board and our ability to be entrepreneurial. We wish educators
well who are in the exploration stage of inviting international students into their
schools. Our experience with this exciting new program has been overwhelmingly
positive on every level.

Sincerely,

Carl J. Stasio, Jr.
Headmaster