From the Head of School

One of the best parts of my job as Head of School is to stand at the front door each morning and greet our students as they begin their day. Town School for Boys is anchored in more than 80 years of educational excellence, and our daily morning greetings are a longstanding and beloved tradition. Grounding our days from a place of connection enables faculty and students alike to bring our best selves each day. People, not buildings, make a school—and our classrooms and hallways are alive with our school values of respect, curiosity, belonging, integrity and joy.

At Town, learning is prized, love of school is essential and boyhood is celebrated. Our outstanding teachers design curricular experiences that promote critical thinking, creativity and collaboration. We are intentional about providing opportunities for boys to explore their own identities, build self-awareness, develop empathy, moral courage and care for others—and in the process, they co-create new definitions of boyhood. Town is a place where every boy can flourish and share a strong sense of belonging, and we seek to graduate boys whose personal ambitions are equaled by care and respect for others and the community.

As a boys’ school, Town is uniquely positioned to direct its excellent academics and focus on developing emotional intelligence to each stage of development in K-8 boys, to help students understand themselves and to recognize perspectives and experiences that may be beyond their own. At Town, we believe that boys become the best versions of themselves when they can connect across difference, cultivate humility, and engage fully within their communities. Through academics, service learning, outdoor education, arts programming, and athletics, Town boys develop these crucial skills. Our strong emphasis on relationships extends to a close-knit faculty and highly dedicated parent community. We are a school that puts people at its center, is committed to the work of building an inclusive community, and appreciates the powerful learning and fun we can have together in the process.

I have had the pleasure of working with the Board of Trustees, parents, faculty, administration and alumni to develop Town's Strategic Plan 2020-25. I am proud that the planning process mirrored the inclusive and collaborative spirit that make this community so extraordinary, with the majority of parents and faculty contributing through surveys, focus groups and community brainstorming. Our strategic plan centers around five key pillars, which you can read much more about across our website: Designing Learning Experiences for Tomorrow, Raising Boys of Character and Impact, Cementing a Community of Belonging, Investing in our Faculty and Staff, and Bringing our Best in Athletics and Wellness. We also established a values-oriented Portrait of a Graduate to illustrate how our graduates might embody our values as they depart Town for high school and beyond. As we move into tomorrow with bold aspirations, our founding objective endures: to celebrate boyhood and instill boys with a lifelong love of learning.

It is a pleasure to lead Town School and to spend time daily with students, parents and faculty in a community that is alive with our school values. Through the pages on this website, I invite you to explore Town’s educational philosophies, programs and curricula. If you are considering Town School for your son, I encourage you to take our virtual tour and reach out to our Admissions team to learn more about what makes Town special, and I hope to have the opportunity to meet you soon.

Warmest regards,

Lorri Hamilton Durbin
Head of School

Read More about our Head of School

Read More about our Head of School

Prior to coming to Town School for Boys in July 2017, Lorri Hamilton Durbin served as Middle School Director at The Dalton School in New York City, where she oversaw curriculum and program for 500 students in grades 4 through 8. She has worked in academic schools with distinct missions, where the emphasis has been on teams working together to create an outstanding educational program for the growth of every student. With her varied leadership experience, she has strengthened the traditional elements of successful schools by furthering curricular innovation, fostering student and faculty leadership, extending best practices and cultivating inclusive communities.

Lorri served as the Associate Director at The Klingenstein Center for Independent School Leadership at Teachers College, Columbia University; Head of the Middle School at The Nueva School in Hillsborough, California; Director of Admissions and Financial Aid at San Francisco University High School; and Alumni Coordinator, Admissions Counselor and teacher at her alma mater, Midland School, in Los Olivos, California. Lorri has served twice as a member of the Board of Directors of the Secondary School Admission Test (SSAT) Board.

Along with her distinguished career in education, Lorri has worked at Cambridge Associates, L.L.C. and Goldman, Sachs & Co. She has a B.A. in Government from Pomona College, where she was the Varsity soccer captain and member of the All-League Teams and played women’s lacrosse. Lorri holds a Master’s in Educational Administration from Stanford University and a Master’s of Business Administration from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of the International Boys School Coalition and the Common Sense Media Regional Council.