Acting Head of School

Ann V. Klotz joins Chatham Hall in May 2026 as a consultant and Acting Head of School. A graduate of The Agnes Irwin School in Rosemont, Pennsylvania, Ann knows the transformative power of girls’ schools. She earned a B.A. in English from Yale College, an M.A. in the Individual Study of Drama from the Gallatin Division of New York University, and an MFA in Creative Nonfiction from Bay Path University.

Ann has dedicated more than forty years to girls’ education as a teacher, administrator, and school leader. Throughout her career, she has remained deeply committed to the intellectual, social, and emotional development of girls.

Ann was named Laurel School’s tenth Head of School in 2004 and concluded her tenure there in 2025. During her leadership, she also taught Upper School English and Primary School drama. Particularly interested in the public purpose of independent schools, she was instrumental in establishing the NorthStar Collaborative and Laurel School’s Center for Research on Girls, both founded during her headship. She also helped launch the Environmental Justice Semester, a first-of-its-kind immersive academic program for high school students that combine place-based learning, ecological restoration, and policy studies to explore the intersection of social justice and environmental health. As Chair of the Board of The Heads’ Network, Ann is deeply committed to supporting women through the arc of their independent school careers.  She also serves on the boards of One Schoolhouse, The 1911 Group, and her alma mater, The Agnes Irwin School. 

Ann is actively involved in her community in Eagles Mere, Pennsylvania, where she serves on the church committee of St. John’s in the Wilderness and as a trustee of the Eagles Mere Museum, the Eagles Mere Association, and the Eagles Mere Conservancy. Since retiring from Laurel, she has launched an executive coaching practice focused primarily on supporting women aspiring to leadership roles in independent schools and providing professional development workshops for schools and educational organizations.

A writer whose work often explores the intersection of motherhood and school leadership, Ann is the founder and editor of Well-Schooled: The Site for Educator Storytelling. Her essays have appeared in Independent School Magazine, the NAIS Independent Ideas blog, Yankee Magazine, The Huffington Post, the Brevity blog, and numerous literary journals.

More of Ann’s writing can be found on her website: www.annvklotz.com.