SPOTLIGHT: Ms. Ellman; A Career to Remember

As we enter 2025 and soak up the final months of the school year, we also think about all that Beaver has to offer. The amazing faculty and staff, programming, and all the opportunities we are granted. Ms. Ellman has been a pillar in all of these. As she reaches her fortieth and final year at Beaver Country Day, I was able to sit down and talk to her about her long career.

Though she is most well known as a college college, Ms. Ellman has left her mark on several areas of the school. From starting as the Dean of Students for her first two years, then to eight years as the Director of College Counseling, next to the Head of The Upper School for over a decade, and finally

to the Associate Director of College Counseling. Amidst all those changes and adaptations, she has consistently taught English to a lucky few students every year. 

Beyond the memories she has made with students in the classroom, her favorite has to have been producing with students a fund-raising concert called “Teen Aid” during her first few years. Long before the Hiatt Center came into existence, Beaver was a school focused on helping others and benefiting the world. Ms. Ellman recounted how a group of students decided to raise money for the organization Bridge Over Troubled Waters, a nonprofit supporting homeless, runaway, and at-risk youth. To do so, the students put together a concert at a local venue that combined well-known bands and local, teenage bands. The way she described watching the whole process come together was quite remarkable and in the end, the fundraiser gained $13,000. 

In all her years, Ms. Ellman has impacted so many people. The relationships she instills have stayed with people for years and will continue to do so. Ms. Ellman’s love for others is apparent in every interaction she has. Ms. Hanig, new to the college counseling team this year, describes Ms. Ellman as someone who “loves BIG with her whole heart, in ways both big and small” and that her “kind thoughtfulness is baked into who she is.” The adoration doesn’t stop there, Ms. Samson recalls the time Ms. Ellman hand-painted a picture of her beloved dog, Riley, in front of her new campus house. As a brand new member of the community, she described how she has been forever touched by that thoughtful gift. Ms. Brown, our current Head of the Upper School, reflects on the “thoughtfulness, creativity, warmth, and critical thinking skills” Ms. Ellman expressed in the position. In her first year, with Ms. Ellman leading the Upper School pack, Ms. Brown has learned from the years of watching and has taken many things into her role as the Head of Upper School. With her advisory of seniors, they have all felt thankful to not only have her as an advisor since freshman year but also as a counselor navigating them through the long, grueling college process. Her advisee, Anna Patterson, said “Ms. Ellman has always been there and supported me through the ups and downs of the past few years.” 

On behalf of the whole Beaver community, Ms. Ellman’s retirement will leave a big hole in the hearts of all who have been lucky enough to talk with her, learn from her, or receive a painting of their dogs.