School Leadership

List of 9 members.

• 

  Mike Peller 

  Head of School

  Columbia University - MA
  Harvard University - BA

  Bio

  Mike Peller began his tenure as Head of School at Vermont Academy on July 1, 2025, bringing more than two decades of leadership in purpose-driven education. A passionate advocate for experiential and place-based learning, Mike has helped shape several innovative school models rooted in purpose, engagement, and real-world impact.
  
  

  Mike’s leadership blends deep expertise in curriculum design with significant experience in advancement, admissions, and institutional strategy. He has participated in successful capital campaigns, enrollment initiatives, and development efforts while also designing pioneering academic programs built on immersive, interdisciplinary, and competency-based learning. His approach is entrepreneurial, rooted in a belief that schools thrive when innovation is matched with mission clarity and community connection.
  
  

  Before joining Vermont Academy, Mike served as the Founding Head of Upper School at Hillbrook School in California, where he launched a new high school emphasizing immersive learning, community partnerships, and student agency. Prior to that, he was Assistant Head of School for Teaching and Learning at The White Mountain School in New Hampshire, where he led academic redesigns, founded the Inquiry, Innovation, and Impact Lab, and guided the school’s transition to a competency-based learning model.
  
  

  Earlier in his career, Mike spent five years at The Nueva School in California as Assistant Head of Upper School, where he helped grow the division from its founding cohort of 77 to more than 400 students. He has also served in site director roles with Global Online Academy and the Mastery Transcript Consortium and is a frequent speaker at national conferences on assessment, innovation, and human-centered learning.
  
  

  Mike earned his B.A. in Environmental Engineering from Harvard University and his M.A. in Independent School Leadership from Teachers College, Columbia University.
  
  

  He lives on campus with his family and draws daily inspiration from Vermont Academy’s mission and landscape. A lifelong boarding school educator, Mike grew up on a boarding school campus as the child of two career teachers and school leaders. He is thrilled to raise his own children in a similar environment—where learning, community, and a love of the land are part of daily life.
• 

  Peter Ahlfeld 

  Director of the Center for Learning & Coordinator of the MAPS® Program / Math Faculty / 9th Grade Class Dean

  University of Connecticut - MA
  Clark University - BA

  Bio

  Peter Ahlfeld joined Vermont Academy as the Director of the Center for Learning in 2020. He came to VA from The Mountain School at Winhall where he most recently served as the Head of School. Peter has extensive experience working in education as well as serving students with learning differences. Previously, Peter was a Dean at The Long Trail School in Vermont and a math teacher and administrator at The Forman School in Connecticut.
  
  He graduated from the University of Connecticut with a Masters's degree in Educational Psychology and he received a B.A. in Mathematics from Clark University. Peter has over thirty years of experience in school communities where he has been dedicated to creating positive learning communities.
• 

  Kevin Driscoll 

  Director of Advancement

  Cambridge College - MEd
  Saint Michael's College - BA

  Bio

  Kevin Driscoll joined Vermont Academy on August 1, 2025, following several years in higher ed advancement, working as a Major Gifts Officer in Tufts University Advancement assigned to the Tufts University School of Dental Medicine in Boston. Passionate about independent schools, with a special love for small boarding schools and their important place in the independent school realm, Kevin felt the call to return to boarding school work, and at the same time also makes a return to Vermont, a state he calls his true north and second home. A graduate of Saint Michael’s College in Colchester, Kevin is not unfamiliar with Vermont, having also spent childhood summer vacations in Saint Albans with family on the shores of Lake Champlain, he is thrilled to return to the Green Mountain State.  

   

  Kevin’s independent boarding school experience began soon after college graduation at Eagle HIll School in Hardwick, MA, where he served as the school’s Weekend Duty Master. He fell in love quickly with life on a small boarding school campus. He then moved on to join the faculty at Phillips Academy Andover, (his hometown), which was followed by stints as a Dean of Students at the Dublin School, NH, Director of Young Alumni and Giving at Governor’s Academy (MA), Director of Admission at Austin Prep, a Catholic independent day school outside of Boston, and then a return to a small boarding school, High Mowing School in Wilton, NH, America’s oldest Waldorf boarding school, before transitioning to higher ed work at Cambridge College and Tufts University.   

   

  Kevin brings significant experience in external relations, including advancement, admissions, and institutional strategy. He has participated in successful capital campaigns, enrollment initiatives, and development efforts while also designing rebrands for two of his previous schools and assisting in the development of strategic plans, campaign initiatives, and creating new innovative ways to connect with alumni, near and far. He is a collaborator, and visionary in his leadership, and also draws on his sense of humor, that lead to a brief but exciting career in stand up comedy in his years just after graduating from college. 
   

  Kevin brings to VA a much needed capital campaign background, having helped lead campaigns at Austin Preparatory School, where he helped with two campaigns, the larger of the two saw the transformation of the former vacant St Augustine Hall Monastery into a robust and life filled classroom, performance, visual and media arts center. At High Mowing School he worked alongside his colleagues in Development to help secure the former Frye Farm, to serve as a conservation area for the campus, and secure the magnificent views and peacefulness of the campus hilltop for generations to come.  In his most recent work at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine, Kevin had a principal gift portfolio of 100 high level donors, and was involved in the successful completion of Tufts 1.5 billion dollar, Brighter World Campaign. Kevin was responsible for donor relations and major giving programs on the West Coast, Florida, and the Northern New England States. He was responsible for the creation of several endowed scholarships during his years at Tufts, and was also the primary connector to the Northeast Delta Dental Tufts Summer Interns Program which he helped develop at Tufts Dental to match dentists in northern New England with current students at Tufts Dental, where these students would spend 3-4 weeks in the summer observing dentistry operations. The goal was to introduce the possibility of living and serving in these rural northern New England regions after graduating as dentists.
  
  Kevin earned his B.A. in American Studies at Saint Michael’s College and his M.Ed. in Multi-disciplinary School Leadership at Cambridge College.
   

  Kevin has three adult daughters, Mackenzie, Grace, and Addison. He lives on campus in Wolcott House with his trusted canine companion Phoebe (he and his daughters are avid “Friends” aficionados), a rescue dog from Mississippi. He is excited to be back in the Green Mountain State and back on a boarding school campus. He is already engaging in meetings with alumni and friends of VA, and is excited to continue meeting constituents on campus and on the road to raise awareness and build support for this amazing school! 
• 

  Adrian Diaz Guerrero '14 

  Dean of Student Life and Athletic Director / Post Graduates Class Dean / Head Coach, Boys' Varsity Soccer

  (802) 869-6236

  Saint Michael's College - MEd
  Saint Michael’s College - BA

  Bio

  Adrian returned to his alma mater Vermont Academy in 2022 after working at Saint Michael’s College as an Admissions Counselor and Resident Director while pursuing a master’s degree in educational leadership.

  
  

  Prior to Saint Michael’s, Adrian worked in Spain as an English teacher and at VA as Summer Program Director, International Programs Liaison, and Spanish teacher. Other stops along the way enabled him to leverage his marketing and communications experience while working for Hope Happens Here and the Vermont Brewers Association. 

  
  

  Adrian is thrilled to be at Vermont Academy in the role of Dean of Student Life and also loves being able to share his passion for soccer (having played in Spain, as well as at the DII collegiate level in the US) with our students. He is an active runner, loves the outdoors, and enjoys watching sports and hanging out with friends and family. 
• 

  Nora Dock 

  Director of Admissions and Enrollment Management

  802.869.6258

  Drexel University - MS
  Mills College - BA

  Bio

  Nora Dock joined the Vermont Academy Admissions team in 2021 after spending several years in international student recruitment and programming at an independent school in Austin, Texas. With a passion for fostering academic excellence and personal growth, Nora has been instrumental in shaping the school’s enrollment management plan with an eye towards sustainable, mission appropriate growth. Her background in international education and commitment to student success have found a perfect match in the Vermont Academy community values.
  
  Outside of her professional role, Nora enjoys exploring Vermont’s natural beauty, knitting, and engaging in community outreach initiatives. Nora is the proud parent to three Vermont Academy Wildcats: Amalia '22, Cole '24, and YeHoon '28. Her husband Sean Allen is on the math and art faculty at Vermont Academy. Nora and her family live off campus with their elderly dogs (Petunia and Gerturde) and their even more elderly cats (Louisa and Charlie). 
• 

  Ben Gardner 

  Director of Vermont Academy Mount Snow

  (802) 365-8267

  University of Colorado Denver - MA
  Colorado College - BA
• 

  Greg Martin 

  Director of Strategic Initiatives / Humanities Faculty

  Drexel University - PhD
  Western Connecticut State University - MA
  Wheaton College - BA

  Bio

  Dr. Greg Martin became Vermont Academy’s Humanities Department Chair after a nine-year career at Perkiomen School, where he served as the Upper School Dean and History Department Chair. Before Perkiomen, Greg held positions at Porter-Gaud School, the Frederick Gunn School, and Rumsey Hall School. Greg has also taught History and Educational Policy at the college level at Western Connecticut State University and Mount Holyoke College. 

  
  

  Greg grew up in Stone Harbor, New Jersey, and attended the Peddie School, playing football and lacrosse. Greg graduated from Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts, with a BA in Political Science. He then earned his MA in European History from Western Connecticut State University and his Doctorate in Educational Leadership and Policy from Drexel University.

  
  

  Greg continues to research, write, and present on staffing models in American boarding schools. His work has been featured in the National Association of Independent Schools magazine. Greg is a regular presenter at the annual The Association of Boarding Schools Conference. Greg has also been a guest on the Enrollment Management Association's podcast several times and has contributed to The Trustees Letter on two occasions. Greg serves on the advisory board for the Independent School MA program at Mount Holyoke College. 

  
  

  Greg lives with his wife Glynis, who is an editor, and their two dogs, Bugg and Molly. He and Glynis enjoy travel, spending time in Charleston, South Carolina, watching British TV, and gardening. Greg and Glynis have three grown boys, all of whom are boarding school graduates.
• 

  Lorna Schilling 

  Academic Dean

  (802) 869-6649

  Tufts University - BA

  Bio

  Mrs. Lorna Schilling is the Academic Dean at Vermont Academy. She is on the Curriculum Committee, a member of the Cum Laude Society, recipient of the Brodine Teaching Award, and has been selected for Who’s Who Among America’s High School Teachers. Mrs. Schilling was first employed by Vermont Academy in 1981 and fulfilled a number of roles on campus. Under Head of School Bob Long, she became the first ESL teacher and international student advisor at Vermont Academy. Over time, she became a full-time English instructor and department chair.
  
  

  Mrs. Schilling enjoys working with young people. Her other interests are theater, history, and other cultures. An avid reader, some of Mrs. Schilling’s favorite books are The Secret Garden, The Lathe of Heaven, and Pride and Prejudice. Her favorite quote is “What’s the worst thing that can happen?”
  
  

  Mrs. Schilling was a dorm parent for ten years with her husband, former longtime Vermont Academy faculty member Falko Schilling. Together they produced The Saxtons River Playhouse for eighteen years. They now reside in Saxtons River village. They are parents of Vermont Academy alumni Falko Erich ’03, Nilsen '05, and Brian ’11.
• 

  Butch Schuck '94 

  CFO / COO

  (802) 869-6218

  University of New Hampshire - MBA
  Keene State College - BA

  Bio

  Vermont Academy was thrilled to welcome back Vincent “Butch” Schuck in the summer of 2024 in the role of CFO/COO. A member of the Class of 1994 and the fourth of his siblings to attend VA, Butch grew up on campus and began his professional journey here, working in residential life after college.

  
  

  Butch holds a B.A. in history from Keene State College and an MBA from the University of New Hampshire. His diverse experience includes serving in the Marine Corps, working as COO of an insurance company, and most recently leading Holy Trinity School in Laconia, NH as Head of School.

  
  

  Returning to VA, Butch is eager to bring fresh perspectives and collaborate with the talented staff. His focus is on building upon the school’s strategic plan and discovering new opportunities to ensure every member of the VA community succeeds. Butch lives on campus in Roux Cottage with his wife Stephanie, son Andrew ’28, and their dog Brick.