St. David’s Episcopal School in Wellington has new leadership with fresh ideas and bold ambitions. The new head of school is Catherine Terwilliger, who assumed her new role in mid-July.
Terwilliger has been well-received by the teachers, staff, students and parents. She is excited to be leading the school.
“I am delighted to be a part of the growth of the school,” said Terwilliger, 52, who lives in the Acreage/Loxahatchee area with her husband and seven children. “Everybody has been very welcoming, and I am excited to be here. Everybody has been very helpful and giving grace to me. I’m looking forward to implementing new ideas.”
Terwilliger added that the atmosphere at St. David’s Episcopal School is very comforting. “Working here feels like I am at home,” she added.
While Terwilliger was born in Geneva, New York, she feels like a Floridian.
“I have lived in Florida for more than 30 years, and I have been living in Loxahatchee for 27 years,” she said.
Prior to her new post at St. David’s, she worked in the public education sector, specifically in early childhood education. She was the director of the Little Chiefs Academy at Santaluces High School in Lantana. She worked there for five years.
Terwilliger’s academic credentials were earned at the State University of New York at Brockport, where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in psychology in 1996. She earned her master’s degree in early childhood education from the American College of Education in Indianapolis, Indiana, in 2001.
St. David’s Episcopal School currently accepts children as young as three years old, and it teaches young students through the second grade.
“Right now, we have 85 children enrolled in the school, and we have room for as many as 90,” Terwilliger said.
According to Terwilliger, one of the school’s next major goals is to expand the instruction up through third grade.
For Terwilliger, one of the exciting aspects of her role at St. David’s is the diversity of every day. She starts with a to-do list, but it changes based on the flow of the school day.
“I always have a daily game plan, but that often changes quickly,” Terwilliger said.
She is on campus no later than 7 a.m. and usually heads home by 3 p.m.
“I have my own children to pick up at the bus stop,” Terwilliger explained.
As soon as she arrives on campus, she is on the go, constantly communicating and working with teachers, students, parents and members of her staff to ensure that the day is filled with enlightenment and education.
Terwilliger is so connected to the daily heartbeat of the school that if you call the school, she may well answer the phone and respond to your inquiry. And she will gladly share with you the specifics of her fresh ideas and bold ambitions.
St. David’s Episcopal School is located at the corner of Forest Hill Blvd. and Wellington Trace in Wellington. To learn more, call (561) 793-1272 or visit https://stdavidsepiscopalschool.com.
