When our son was applying, Ed Shanahan was Choate’s HOS, and our brief knowledge of and interaction with him gave us a very warm feeling about the school. However, by the time ChoatieKid matriculated, Ed had retired and Alex Curtis was installed. Neither the students nor (most) parents found him to be very personable, but I agree with the comment that the HOS is as important as the board of director’s wants. Though Curtis never filled Ed’s warm shoes, he has transformed the physical plant and built the school’s reputation for being at the intersection of arts, science, and sustainability. The current campus is almost nothing like the one our son stepped onto in 2011, and that was by design. The board got what it wanted, and the students have benefitted tremendously from spectacular new spaces, cutting-edge technologies, and a healthy endowment increase. Curtis was not hired for rhetoric but for transformation. I’m sure the board considers him a great success.