Maine news, sports, weather | Kennebec Journal, Augusta, Maine

LONGTIME HEADMASTER

'Rist' Bonnefond stepping down at Kents Hill

Will remain in emeritus post

By Matthew Stone mstone@centralmaine.com
Staff Writer

KENTS HILL -- The approaching academic year at Kents Hill School will be the last for longtime headmaster George "Rist" Bonnefond.

click image to enlarge

Headmaster Rist Bonnefond

Contributed photo

Select images available for purchase in the
Maine Today Photo Store

Bonnefond, who has led the private school on Route 17 for 20 years, said on Wednesday he's stepping down at the close of the 2010-11 school year.

He'll stay on staff as headmaster emeritus, he said, to aid in fundraising for future capital projects on campus. Bonnefond said he won't work full-time as he transitions into retirement.

"I just felt it was time for some fresh, new leadership and some fresh ideas," said Bonnefond, 61. "Being the head of a school is a demanding job, and I've loved every bit of it, but I thought it was time for a change for me and for the school."

Bonnefond arrived at Kents Hill in July 1990 after a five-year stint as director of college counseling at Loomis Chaffee School in Windsor, Conn. Before that, he worked eight years as admissions director at the Dublin School, a private school in Dublin, N.H.

He taught history at both schools and during his first few years at Kents Hill.

Bonnefond's wife, Joy, will continue to work in Kents Hill's learning center, which offers students academic support.

Bonnefond said he's proud of the school atmosphere that's taken hold during his Kents Hill tenure.

"I think Kents Hill is a most caring, respectful school community," he said.

Mercy Palamuleni, who graduated from Kents Hill in 2004 and spoke to the 2008 graduating class, said Bonnefond was a key part of that atmosphere.

"I just remember waking up, just waiting for that greeting from him," said Palamuleni, a native of Malawi who first traveled to the United States to attend Kents Hill. "He made me feel like I'm part of the Kents Hill community."

Palamuleni attended Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C., after Kents Hill and is now working toward her Ph.D. in economics at Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kan.

When Bonnefond arrived at Kents Hill in 1990, the boarding school enrolled about 120 students. Today, the student body is about twice as large, with 230 students from 25 states and 18 countries. About 35 percent are from Maine.

Full tuition for boarding students is $44,650. Some 40 percent of Kents Hill students receive financial aid, according to the school website.

Students start arriving on campus this weekend for the start of school.

"Over the past two decades, Rist has helped the school achieve a series of ambitious, far-sighted and balanced improvements that have transformed the campus and have enhanced the Kents Hill experience for every student and teacher," Steven Akin, the board of trustees president, wrote in a letter to the Kents Hill community.

Bonnefond's new role on campus -- fundraising for capital projects -- builds on one of the headmaster's specialties from his 20-year tenure.

During Bonnefond's stint at top, Kents Hill's campus has taken on a drastically different look. The 50,000-square-foot Alfond Athletics Center, a new dormitory, a new woodworking studio, two artificial turf fields and several faculty residences have transformed Kents Hill's footprint.

Those projects became reality largely as a result of large donations from a handful of deep-pocketed alumni and relatives -- including 1964 graduate Ted Alfond and his father, Harold -- and matching funds from other donors.

"I think it all comes down to trying to bring onto the board of trustees people who are altruistic and have the means to be helpful to the school," Bonnefond said.

A committee is taking shape to conduct a national search for Kents Hill's next headmaster. The school hopes to have a new head of school hired by mid-December, said Jason Hersom, Kents Hill's communications director.

Matthew Stone -- 623-3811, ext. 435

mstone@centralmaine.com