Jane Foley Fried - The Brearley School

BULLETIN
SUMMER 2012
A Warm Welcome to
Jane Foley Fried
BREARLEY’S 15TH HEAD OF SCHOOL

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SUMMER Bulletin 2012
With a Passionate Commitment
to Teaching and to Learning,
Jane Foley Fried
Takes the Helm at Brearley
“I am a student of the personal story,” Jane
Foley Fried told assembled Brearley Middle
and Upper School students on a visit to the
School this winter. “I learn about students
through the stories that they share with me,
and of course I am very eager to learn about
you.” She paused, smiling at the girls, taking
in the moment together. “I look forward to
our adventure ahead.”
By Georgia Levenson Keohane ’90

photo © Michael Malyszko 2012 5

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ane Fried’s own story is decidedly post-Sputnik. Born
in Mount Holly, New Jersey, she moved with her family
when she was very young to Washington, DC, where her
father, a mathematician turned engineer, worked for the
country’s nascent space program. Jane’s father was one of
the few in his cohort with young children, and his colleagues—men
with short cropped hair, Ray-Bans, white
shirts with pocket protectors—would set up shop in the
Foley living room. Jane remembers how, as a toddler, she
would sit on her father’s lap, slip on his glasses, and squint
up at the blackboards. “I would try to imagine a man on the moon,”
she says.
When Jane was in first grade her family moved to Framingham,
Massachusetts. Jane and her three brothers were all athletes, and
many of their adventures occurred in the New England outdoors.
For Jane, formally competitive sports had to wait until high school,
where there were organized programs for girls. As an undergraduate
at Bowdoin, she studied philosophy and history, played varsity
lacrosse and spent much of her time working with children in the
local community. Often Jane’s expeditions took her from campus;
she helped found and coach the first girls’ lacrosse team at Brunswick
High School and the Mt. Ararat Middle School field hockey team in
the nearby town of Topsham.
After college, Jane’s love for teaching led her to Suffield Academy,
where she quickly learned that life as an educator required prodigious
dexterity—and a good sense of humor. Jane’s first job included
teaching history and political philosophy, coaching field hockey and
lacrosse and advising high school girls with whom she lived as a
house counselor. “I was very fortunate to begin my career with a
position that allowed me to explore all of my interests and at a
school that provided wonderful mentors,” she says. “I remember
well the challenges of being a new teacher: preparing for class, developing
strategies to address individual students’ needs, responding
to parent concerns, creating a sense of boundaries and trust with
students in the dorm and developing first-rate girls’ teams. It was
at once all-consuming and terribly exciting!” At the Dana Hall
School in Wellesley, Massachusetts, Jane continued to teach and
coach and joined the Admissions staff. In her last year there she led
the residential program. Jane’s skill in admission—a passion for the
personal story, a vision for how each individual contributes to the
larger whole—brought her to Andover, where for the last twenty
years she has shaped that school community, both the experience of
each student and the arc of the institution itself. Most recently, Jane
has worn two distinct but related hats: Dean of Admissions and the
Assistant Head of School for Enrollment, Research and Planning.
Beyond these titles, however, and over two decades, there are few
roles Jane has not played, from house and day student counselor to
academic advisor, coach, strategist, capital campaign spokeswoman,
colleague, mentor, friend and blogger (and yes, the woman tweets!).
A Strong Connection to Students
Jane knows the personal stories of every student she has ever
admitted, and follows their travels long after graduation. Jane draws
her energy, she says, from these bonds, which she often forges with
students and their families. “I am part of their experience from the
beginning,” she says. “I know their previous schools, as well as the
communities and cultures from which they come.” Parents confide in
Jane, she believes, because of this unusual role. She listens, and when
she responds it is as much as a parent as a school administrator. “I’ve
seen it all!” she laughs. “And I think when parents and students come
to know this, it puts them at ease.” Jane concedes that she didn’t
always heed her own counsel. “Being a parent is hard,” she says. “I
finally realized that the advice I was giving—about nurturing children,
creating the best possible foundation and opportunities for them
and then trusting them to find their own way—was actually pretty
good, I just needed to try it myself!” Jane and her husband, Stephen
Fried, a lawyer, raised their own two children on campus. They are a
close-knit foursome: Mason, their son, is a research assistant in glaciology
at Portland State, Oregon; Hope is a junior at Smith (and yes,
the Frieds are unreconstructed Red Sox fans!).
“Jane’s warmth, intelligence, sense of humor and compassion
shone from the moment we met her. She is passionate about
girls’ education and truly understands Brearley’s mission,
what ‘Truth and Toil’ means to Brearley and equally how
important Trust and Thoughtfulness are in our community.”
–Samara Epstein Cohen ’88, Co-Chair, Head of School Search Committee
SUMMER Bulletin 2012

In 2006, Jane created Andover’s institutional research program,
formalizing the evaluation, assessment and planning work that
she had undertaken in admissions, where so much data about the
school’s past, present and future resided. Jane’s experience in admissions—building
a team, working alongside nearly one hundred faculty
members to review applications, learning how to ask the right
questions and how to put to good use the answers, both quantitative
and qualitative—prepared her to address any number of strategic
issues related to the school’s work, mission and values. These have
ranged from the basic (what are our admitted student perceptions
of the school? What about parents? Alums?) to the profoundly existential
(what is the longterm impact of an Andover education? How
does the experience influence our students’ values? Do we have the
student body we want? Is our school today the place we would like
it to be?).
Such investigation requires the kind of adventurous intellect that
Brearley aspires to inculcate. It also, Jane notes, means getting the
research frame precisely right. For Jane this process begins with
insights from faculty, staff, students, alumni and parents, which she
gathers in any number of ways, including meetings, focus groups
and surveys, to hone the line of inquiry. Then there’s the discovery
itself. “It’s not just research,” remarks a long-time colleague. “It’s
photo © Michael Malyszko 2012
Jane and her husband, Stephen Fried, and their children, Hope and Mason, at a special farewell party held in her honor at
Phillips Academy, Andover, this spring.
what Jane finds through the research, and what she does with it.”
It is here that Jane’s moxie, and her patience and persistence, shine
particularly bright. Her work has resulted in, among other initiatives,
a summer program to help close the “preparation gap” for
incoming students, a gradual reduction in the size of the student
body to improve the quality of residential life and a ten-year transition
to need-blind admissions.
An Emphasis on Girls’ Leadership
As much as she likes data, Jane also trusts her instincts, which are
rooted in a deep sense of fairness. For her master’s thesis, “Choosing
to ‘Make a Difference’: a Study of Girls’ Leadership,” Jane examined
the significance of leadership development for all students, and
found that girls in particular sought out and thrived in leadership
positions that enabled them to make a significant impact in their
communities. Jane’s commitment to ensuring that girls find these
opportunities takes a number of forms.
Last fall, Brearley’s search committee for the new Head of School
received an e-mail from an Andover student from the Class of 2011.
“My name is Jackie Lender,” she wrote, “I am presently studying in
Kazan, Russia, as the recipient of a State Department grant. Only 18
months ago I was invited to a mentoring group at Andover called
SUMMER Bulletin 2012 7

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Jane Fried in Action
For Jane Fried, the opportunity to lead Brearley offered a natural culmination of her passions, talents and experi‑
ence—and the adventure of a lifetime. “I am deeply honored and humbled to follow the legacies of Brearley’s
former Heads of School. The faculty, staff and girls with whom I have met are so impressive and could not be more
welcoming. I look forward to joining them, and to getting to know parents and alumnae soon, too. Each time I visit
the School I grow even more excited about the opportunities before us and for our students.”
Sea kayaking on a NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership
School) expedition in Prince William Sound, with the Nellie
Juan Glacier in the background.
Horsepacking in Wyoming’s Wind Rivers with NOLS.
Photo by Jane, an enthusiastic wilderness adventure
photographer.
SUMMER Bulletin 2012
Returning to Whittier, Alaska, after a kayaking trip with
husband Steve and son Mason, a graduate student in
glaciology.
Snowshoeing in Vermont with family dogs Lewis, left, who
has since passed away, and Strider, the family’s adopted
chocolate Lab who is looking forward to becoming a
four‑footed New Yorker.

the Women’s Forum . . . where we talked about what it was like to
run for an elected leadership position as a woman in a school that had
only become co-educational 30 years before.” Jackie wrote that Jane,
a Forum speaker on girls’ leadership, supported her in a campaign
for School President. “Ms. Fried offered to listen to and critique the
speech that I was to present to 1,200 of my peers. She came to the
chapel after hours with her energy, input and wisdom. I recall being
quite surprised because she was not my advisor or someone obligated
to help. She mentored me because she felt deeply about encouraging
women to seek out their full potential. She believed I could do the
“Jane is the ideal combination
of smart, collaborative and
joyful. Her warmth, enthusiasm
and passion are infectious.
I can’t imagine anyone more
perfect to inspire and engage
our daughters as she takes the
helm of our school”
–Deborah DaviS Ascheim ’82, Co-Chair,
head of School Search Committee
job well.” Jackie placed second in the election and went on to serve
as Vice President; she wrote of her initial disappointment, but also of
how much she valued the experience. She included the e-mail Jane
sent her immediately following the election.
“We are very proud of you,” Jane wrote. “There is no doubt
that the girls seated in the audience were inspired by you and will
remember your efforts and performance when the next election cycle
begins. You have set a standard for all those who follow. Elections
are more about inspiration than winning. You inspired a lot of
people, male and female, over the last few months.”
“I saved that e-mail because it meant so much to me,” Jackie
said. [In the year and a half since, Jackie has deferred her acceptance
to Harvard for the chance to study in Russia, and was recently
awarded a second fellowship for public health work in Africa and
Asia.] “I will never forget who helped me develop into the person I
am today,” she said. “I will always be thankful that I crossed paths
with Ms. Fried.”
Jane’s devotion to her work is balanced by time with family. The
Frieds enjoy going to museums, plays and concerts, and there is
always music on in their home—from opera and Philip Glass to
the Grateful Dead. They also spend time in Vermont, where they
avidly hike, ski and snowshoe. In recent years, Jane’s love for the
outdoors has brought backcountry adventure. She serves on the
board of the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), an organization
that takes students of all ages on remote wilderness trips
and in the process teaches technical outdoor skills, leadership and
environmental ethics. Jane’s own NOLS expeditions have included
horsepacking in Wyoming’s Wind Rivers, rafting on the Salmon
River and sea-kayaking in Prince William Sound. These trips are
legendary for their exceptional beauty and physical demands. Jane
is struck by the teamwork and humility they teach. “In a classroom
that guarantees adversity and uncertainty,” she explains, “NOLS has
inspired me to embrace a more collaborative leadership style and the
understanding that women and girls, especially, grow in unexpected
ways through the adventure.” Jane cherishes what she sees as the
commonalities between NOLS and Brearley: “The shared values of
teaching thoughtful and ethical leadership, instilling a passion for
lifelong learning and building confidence through ‘doing the thing
that you think you cannot do,’ as Eleanor Roosevelt often encouraged.
These are the habits of mind and heart that we learn through
great institutions and that sustain us in all aspects of our lives. I
look forward to continuing this tradition at Brearley.”
Extraordinary Opportunities Ahead
For Jane, the opportunity to lead Brearley offered a natural culmination
of her passions, talents and experience—and the adventure of
a lifetime. “I am deeply honored and humbled to follow the legacies
of Brearley’s former Heads of School. The faculty, staff and girls
with whom I have met are so impressive and could not be more
welcoming. I look forward to joining them, and to getting to know
parents and alumnae soon, too. Each time I’ve visited the School I’ve
grown even more excited about the opportunities before us and for
our students.”
Jane officially assumes her responsibilities at Brearley in July. In
the meantime, she is busy learning as much as she can about the
place and its people. Jane has asked each student to share something
about herself that she would like Jane to know. Younger girls have
crafted their notes; older girls are uploading their tales. Jane has also
invited faculty to write to her over the summer. The Fried family,
which now includes Strider, a recently adopted chocolate Lab, have
already moved and Jane, Steve and their children cannot wait to
explore the city. When asked how they feel about their foray into
Yankees territory, she beams. “Setting aside their loyalty to Boston
teams, they are over the moon! Not only are they proud of me but
they think moving to New York is pretty cool!”
Georgia Levenson Keohane ’90, a fellow at the
Roosevelt Institute, writes and consults about
social policy. She lives in New York City with her
husband, Nat, and their daughters, Eleanor, a ris‑
ing member of Class II, and Frances, who will be
in Class V.
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