The Board of Trustees and the Head of School Search Committee are delighted to announce the appointment of Dr. Priscilla G. Sands as Marlborough’s next Head of School.
Dr. Sands joins Marlborough from the Springside Chestnut Hill Academy, where she has served as President since 2011. Dr. Sands began her independent school career teaching drama and English at her alma mater, the prestigious Agnes Irwin School in Philadelphia, where she rose quickly through the ranks, overseeing the community service program, serving as Director of Admissions and Financial Aid, and eventually being named Assistant Head of School. In 1996, Sands was tapped to lead another highly respected girls’ school in Philadelphia, Springside School, and in 2011, when Springside merged with the all-boys Chestnut Hill Academy, the new Board appointed Sands President of the combined institution, Springside Chestnut Hill Academy.
Among many other notable accomplishments, during Dr. Sands’s 19-year tenure at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy enrollment grew 63%; a fully transformed and unified campus was unveiled; extensive sustainability initiatives earned the school “Green Ribbon” status from the U.S. Department of Education; and, most recently, she established the Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership, a standout program that enhances the school’s core curriculum and has garnered national attention.
“On behalf of the entire Marlborough Board of Trustees, I am delighted to welcome Dr. Sands and her family into our school community,” said Christine Ewell, President of the Board of Trustees for Marlborough School. “Her strong commitment to the education of girls, deep understanding of the changing landscape of 21st century education, and thorough knowledge of the expectations of highly selective colleges and universities make Dr. Sands an ideal fit for Marlborough.”
“I am honored and excited to have been chosen as the next leader of Marlborough,” said Dr. Priscilla Sands. “As a strong believer in the power of all-girls education, I look forward to working with the talented and dedicated administration, faculty, and staff to further the important mission of the School.”
School History
In 1888, a young teacher from Maine, newly widowed and accompanied by her young daughter and niece, traveled across the country to relocate to California and start a new life. Within two months of her arrival in Los Angeles, Mary Caswell founded what would soon become Marlborough School, now the oldest independent girls' school in Southern California.
Over the century that followed, the school has grown and changed in many important ways. Today's student body is representative of the talent and diversity of greater Los Angeles, academic and athletic programs have expanded, college matriculation is highly competitive and distinguished, and campus facilities have kept pace with the educational innovation taking place inside the classroom.
- 1889 – Marlborough School, originally called St. Margaret's School for Girls, is founded by Mary Caswell.
- 1890 – Marlborough moves to a new location at the corner of 23rd and Scarff Streets.
- 1924 – Miss Ada Blake becomes the second Principal of Marlborough School.
- 1942 – Miss Ada Blake is succeeded as Principal by Georgia Caswell Overton, daughter of Mary Caswell.
- 1948 – Mrs. Helen Mitchell becomes Principal, focuses on preparing Marlborough graduates for college.
- 1958 – Helen and Kenneth Mitchell purchase Marlborough School.
- 1962 - Marlborough ushers in a new era as a non-profit foundation with its own Board of Trustees.
- 1968 – The “new” School is completed, and two years later, Robert Chumbook (1970-1990) becomes Headmaster.
- 1989 - Barbara Wagner joins Marlborough School.
- 2014 – Marlborough Celebrates 125 Years.
- 2015 – The Arden Project breaks ground as the final phase of a campus expansion envisioned in the 1960s.
- 2015 – Dr. Priscilla G. Sands becomes Head of School.
- 2022 – Jennifer Ciccarelli appointed as Head of School.