One of the goals of The Hill School (Pottstown, PA) is for the school to be recognized as both the most traditional and most innovative boarding school in the country, according to Headmaster Zachary G. Lehman. The key to such an inspiring educational environment — and one that truly prepares students well for college, careers, and life — is, of course, its teachers.

To that end, Board Chairman-elect Preston G. Athey, Hill ’67, and his wife, Nancy, recently made a transformational $10.25M gift to The Hill School, directing their benevolence to the endowment to support Hill’s teaching faculty.

“The Atheys’ incredibly generous and thoughtful gift will help to distinguish The Hill for generations to come by ensuring that our teachers are those whose high expectations for themselves are matched only by their expectations for their students,” Mr. Lehman said at a recent event to announce the gift. (Read more about this occasion here: http://bit.ly/1myxQK6.)

Mr. Athey has credited much of his career success with learning to write well, an achievement that occurred largely under the tutelage of beloved Hill School masters, he said. “Our gift is intended to make it possible for The Hill always to be able to hire and retain exceptional master teachers,” he continued.

“We can all identify those aspects of The Hill School that give it character, that define it as The Family Boarding School: Chapel, seated meals, dress code, Honor Code, small dorms or halls, and an emphasis on collective effort for all students in athletics, art, music, drama, and community service. But none of these is as critical to the attainment of our core mission — and to our students’ future — as the classroom teacher.”