In Good Hands

This spring, five members of the Peddie community close chapters that span a combined century of service. Each career took its own shape, but all were defined by the same thing: staying, and making it mean something.

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• Catherine Rodrigue
• Ray Cabot
• Joe Murtaugh
• Bonnie Murphy
• Jan Loughran

Catherine Rodrigue

Before the Bell

For nearly 25 years, Associate Head of School Catherine Rodrigue has helped shape The Peddie School through patience and relentless attention to detail. She has strengthened the academic program, nurtured professional culture and left an imprint that will outlast her tenure.

At 7:30 a.m., before the first bell and before the day gathers momentum, Catherine Rodrigue slips into the Annenberg Library café for tea with Brian Dubrule.

The associate head of school and the head librarian sit across from one another. They talk SEC football (she’s a University of Georgia alum; he attended the University of Alabama). They talk about students. They talk about the future of the library. Dubrule stocks the café fridge with mini cans of Coca-Cola and keeps Little Debbie Oatmeal Cream Pies and Nerds Gummy Clusters on hand for whenever she stops by — small rituals that reflect the kind of attention Rodrigue has always paid to the people around her.

“She absorbs everything you tell her,” Dubrule said. “She’s very thoughtful, very kind. And everything she does is for the kids.”

It’s an easy thing to overlook, a half-hour of conversation before work begins. And yet it’s an accurate picture of Rodrigue’s leadership: steady, deliberate and built on accumulated trust.

“I think I was dependable,” Rodrigue said of her Peddie tenure. “And I listened.”

Catherine Rodrigue arrived at Peddie in 2001 with a clear purpose. John Green, newly appointed head of school, had been tasked with strengthening the school’s academic program and brought Rodrigue with him — the two had worked together previously at St. Paul’s School in New Hampshire. The role she stepped into didn’t quite exist before her arrival: part academic dean, part strategist, part steward of culture.

“Catherine immediately established herself as the academic program’s champion, conscience and voice,” Green said. “She modeled the standards in her own classroom and set a tone on campus by visiting hundreds of classes.”

“There was an unevenness in the quality of instruction,” Rodrigue said carefully. “And you don’t want that. You don’t want one teacher who is weak and another who is super strong and have those comparisons being made.”

One of the earliest changes was structural, tightening the schedule to ensure instructional time was fully used. It was controversial, and it took years for the community to absorb it. Rodrigue learned early that meaningful change moves at the pace of human trust.

“It’s always a mistake for someone to come into a school and think within two to three years you’re going to do something that changes it for any length of time,” she said. “To really embed something takes much longer.”

Her approach was incremental: “More tortoise than hare.”

Over time, she led two accreditation studies, chaired the Curriculum Committee with precision and developed professional growth systems that encourage teachers to observe one another and collaborate across departments. Green said Rodrigue reinforced those standards not just through policy but also through constant presence in classrooms.

The hiring, Rodrigue, said, was everything.

“You have to hire people who buy into the culture of the school.”

Current Head of School Jim Hamilton said Rodrigue’s influence on the faculty is difficult to overstate. “She’s always present, and she has been an incredible mentor to many people — including me. I think her legacy will be the standard she set for what it means to be a teacher at Peddie.”

Former Head of School Peter Quinn witnessed Rodrigue’s impact firsthand. “Catherine always had a clear sense of Peddie’s culture, identity and ‘sweet spots,’” he said. “More than anyone else, she was everywhere all the time. When she spoke about the student or the adult experience, she spoke from first-hand observation.”

One visible marker of her work is the Signature Experience Program, which grew from a handful of students to roughly half of each graduating class across disciplines: science, Asian studies, creative writing, the arts and more. The program evolved from an earlier academic initiative called Principio, and Rodrigue proposed multiple versions before the current model took hold.

“At first it was too radical,” she recalled. “So we modified it. Gradually, we found a workable model.”

The programs matured because faculty believed in them — and because Rodrigue believed in the faculty who built them. The science department overhaul. The growth of contemporary texts in English. The embedding of collaborative teaching teams. The renovation of arts spaces. None of these, she insists, belongs to her alone.

Anne Seltzer, former interim head of school, described a specific quality in Rodrigue’s work with faculty that set her apart. “Faculty come out of those meetings feeling seen and heard, with their heads full of new ideas,” Seltzer said. “I have never seen a change agent as effective as Catherine in working with students and faculty.”

“I don’t think schools need to look outside themselves for the next great thing,” Rodrigue said. “If you immerse yourself in your own school and you have smart people, you’re probably going to do the next great thing anyway.”

Throughout her administrative career, Rodrigue continued to teach, most recently English 10, and she served as a student advisor, hosting advisee dinners at her campus home. Around the dinner table, she listened as students talked about school, pressure or nothing in particular.

“When you bring them together around a table, they just go,” she said. “You’ve created a scene where they can interact. That’s part of being in a boarding school.”

She also spent years assisting with the novice cross-country team after a colleague fell ill. Green noted that she attended most athletic contests, every drama production, every concert and every art show for 25 years.

What gives Rodrigue the most satisfaction is student engagement: walking into a math classroom and seeing students quickly on task; watching a freshman perform in chapel before 500 peers; hearing laughter in a space where risk feels safe.

“The courage of those kids to stand up there,” she said. “That makes me feel so good about this community.”

One of Rodrigue’s first days at Peddie was September 11, 2001. She remembers sitting in the Masland Room, watching events unfold on television. Over the next two decades, there would be accreditation cycles, campus expansion, cultural shifts and, most recently, a global pandemic.

Quinn observed her composure throughout it all. “Catherine was always calm, helpful and supportive,” he said. “During COVID, she was a phenomenal resource for department chairs and individual teachers as they made the instant transition to synchronous remote classes.”

That steadiness was tested in a more personal way when Rodrigue underwent cancer treatment. Rather than stepping back, she leaned into work. “The classroom was enormously helpful in getting me through that,” she said. “Having a bunch of kids to be in front of was invaluable.” An administrator who had spent two decades advocating for the centrality of the classroom found, in one of her hardest seasons, that she had been right all along. She has been in remission for several years now.

In crisis, Rodrigue noticed something about leadership. “I was always impressed with how calm John and Peter remained,” she said. “And with how thoroughly they wanted to understand a crisis before acting.”

In Athens, Georgia, home of her football loyalties and the University of Georgia, and with siblings nearby, Rodrigue has bought her first home as a retiree. She is already drawn to a university program that pairs coursework with field trips across the state: study something, then go see it. She recognized the model immediately.

“It’s kind of the Principio model, right?”

Some things, it turns out, don’t change.

Over 25 years, Rodrigue has watched Peddie’s culture remain remarkably cohesive. Students, she believes, are more serious now — perhaps more anxious, but still supportive of one another in ways that strike her.

“There’s a strong community feel,” Rodrigue said. “Kids do their own thing, but they’re not competitive with each other.”

Asked about her influence on that culture, she seemed genuinely surprised by the question.

“I don’t think I came in with any sort of grand vision. I just tried to identify good ideas and help the school go forward with them. I did the best I could.”

Every morning in the Annenberg Library, Brian Dubrule has had a front-row seat to Rodrigue’s routine of tea, conversation and thoughtful attention.

“Catherine shows up, she listens, and she’s always thinking about how to make the school better for the kids,” he said. “Those quiet mornings, just talking about the students — that’s her leadership, right there.”

Ray Cabot

All in, all along

Ray Cabot P’09 ’12 will remain on campus with his wife, Amy, who continues in her role at Peddie as director of gift planning and membership giving officer. He is looking forward to fishing, golfing and spending time with his grandson, Daniel.

In His Own Words

You thought you’d be here for two or three years. When did you realize you weren’t leaving?

I don’t think there is any one moment. That’s kind of the surprising thing about it. Both of my boys were born here and grew up on campus. Their babysitters were students, girls who lived in the dorm, players from the girls soccer team or boys on campus. They were really happy here and were eventually students here. And then I’ve done so many different things. I’ve been at Peddie for 40 years, but I haven’t been doing the same thing for 40 years.

What did coaching teach you, beyond wins?

The first task is to establish the right team culture — try to put team goals ahead of individual goals, try to have kids see that they’re part of something bigger than just how many goals they score or even how many wins the team gets. And I think the same approach applies in an academic department or in the admission office. What are the goals? What’s our culture? The idea that we’re all in it together. I feel incredibly fortunate to have had all the opportunities I’ve had at Peddie, with the people I’ve been able to work with. This really is a pretty remarkable place.

In your Founders Day speech, you said leadership creates culture. When did you come to think about it that way?

I think I came to it more through experience. Culture is as important in driving behavior as instructions, dress code or rules. At a place like this, you have to create the culture you want first, which gives you credibility when you say, “This is what we’re going to do.” And then that’s what gets you to a state championship, or gets you to an enrollment number at the end of the season.

What makes a great Peddie colleague?

They teach students first, not history first. They’re committed to the growth and development of kids as the most important thing — and if students learn some history in the process, that’s great. The most successful adults I’ve seen at Peddie are those who are good at building connections with kids that go beyond the classroom.

What are you most proud of having helped shape?

I’ve always tried to leave things better than I found them. When I became the head of the history department, the faculty was all white men, and the curriculum was mostly focused on European or American history. When I left, we had some women and some teachers of color, and we had brought in more diversity of voice and topic. More globally, I hope what I’ve done has embodied trying to make Peddie a place where we respect the dignity and worth of each individual, and cultivate students with a range of talents, interests and backgrounds.

Joe Murtaugh

Teaching on and off the water

English teacher and rowing coach Joe Murtaugh P’23 reflects on a 16-year Peddie career.

When Joe Murtaugh joined Peddie in the fall of 2010, he thought he was agreeing to be a part-time rowing coach.

But soon, an opening in the English Department opened up and Associate Head of School Catherine Rodrigue glanced at his resume. She realized he held a master’s degree in English education, and asked if he’d like to give teaching at Peddie a try.

After 27 years away from the classroom and as a stay-at-home dad, returning to full-time teaching was a daunting task, but Murtaugh agreed. He started covering a few classes and teaching one class per term before joining the English Department as a full-time faculty member in 2011.

In his return to the classroom, Murtaugh leaned on the support from tenured teachers, such as Jan Loughran, and former English teachers, Pat Clements and Alyssa Morreale, absorbing what he could through classroom observations.

“Day after day, you’re really supported and appreciated here, and it’s been a pleasure,” Murtaugh shared. “The kids are motivated, they work hard, they’re fun to be around. So it’s been a joy. I feel lucky to have been a part of it.”

Although coaching came naturally, Murtaugh shared that once he started teaching, he became a stronger coach. Teaching gave him the opportunity to learn more about the students’ personalities and to develop more meaningful relationships away from the boathouse.

“A lot of what we did on the coaching staff was to teach kids how to be good athletes, teach kids how to be good teammates, and if you get lucky, you create a team culture where the whole exceeds the sum of its parts,” he explained.

Murtaugh, who had coached at the collegiate level for 22 years, was recruited to Peddie by Girls Head Rowing Coach Barb Grudt; Grudt and Murtaugh had been friends for years, as they were both active members of the rowing community.

“Joe has been and continues to be a trusted colleague, friend and advisor,” shared Grudt. “Overqualified to coach high school rowing, Joe brought a steady, collegial expertise to the boathouse and our program when he joined us over a decade ago. He held his teams to a consistent standard of behavior and performance, spoke up about what he thought was right and wrong and was always there when someone needed help.”

On the horizon for Murtaugh is to take some time for himself. “My short-term goal is to have fewer deadlines than I have right now,” he half-joked. “With coaching and teaching, there’s always something you could be doing and dates you have to make and so forth. I am ready to not have that kind of schedule anymore.”

He shared that he will spend his days volunteering where he can make a difference, finding time for travel and staying active, as that’s always been an important part of his life. But he also said he will miss the Peddie culture.

“Peddie gives as much as you put in. And it sounds kind of cliché, but I don’t recall a bad day here when I was not looking forward to going to work,” Murtaugh said. “Peddie has really enriched my life in ways that I would not have predicted.”

Bonnie Murphy

Every two weeks, without fail

A steady hand behind the scenes.

When Bonnie Murphy P’09 joined Peddie in 1998, the campus was just beginning a transformative era following the Annenberg gift. Nearly 28 years later, she retires having processed an estimated 672 payroll cycles — missing just two along the way.

“My husband is so excited,” Murphy said with a laugh. “We don’t have to plan around me doing payroll.”

Murphy was hired to manage payroll and, for many years, also handled human resources responsibilities as a largely one-person operation. In recent years, the office structure evolved, additional staff joined the team and an HR director role was added.

One of the biggest operational changes she experienced was the transition from payroll management system ADP to UKG, a complex shift that modernized payroll and how employee records are managed. Over nearly three decades, Murphy worked under four heads of school — Tom DeGray, John Green, Peter Quinn and most recently, Jim Hamilton — and watched the campus evolve. “Every year, there was something amazing happening at Peddie,” she said.

She also remembers the steady support of Controller Christopher Van Wyk, with whom she worked for 12 years before his retirement in 2022. “He was a huge mentor to me,” she said.

Jan Loughran

A Peddie Original

Jan Denise Loughran ’77 P’09 ’10 ’12 ’16 has been a student, a coach, a trustee, a teacher and a dean at Peddie — a five-decade relationship with a school she first walked into as a ninth-grader in 1973.