On July 1, 2027, lifelong educator Nina Freeman will become the Brimmer and May School’s head of school. She will be the first African American woman to steward the private pre-K-12 school, known locally as Brimmer, based in Chestnut Hill.

Over the last year, a search committee conducted a nationwide effort to fill the position before narrowing in on Freeman, who is currently associate head of school at the independent Brooks Academy in North Andover.

Sheila McElwee, who was a faculty member at the Noble and Greenough School while Freeman was a student and is close to her and her family, said that she last saw Freeman at a Nobles event while she was preparing to assume her role as interim head of Brooks while the current head, John Packard, left for sabbatical.

“She seemed so ready for the job, and I am sure it was great training for her appointment as head of Brimmer and May,” McElwee said. “Nina was a very strong and positive leader whose capacity to include and motivate others was truly magical. She’s always had profound social-emotional intelligence and a keen ability to connect with people.”

Freeman told the Banner that she considers this appointment as a continuation, not a shift, in her career. She has wanted to be a head of school for 15 years.

“I’m a huge believer in an independent school education, and so being a part of that at the top is something that is just a huge honor,” she said. “I get really excited by the systems, the people involved, the mission of schools and the school values.”

She noted that she values the ability to interact with many students that heading a school offers.

“If you’re having a bad day, all you have to do is visit the lower school and hang out with some pre-K-ers for five minutes, or go see a show, and you’re like, ‘This is why we’re doing this.’ That fulfills me. As a head, you have more flexibility to be able to be in all of those different spaces,” she said.

Freeman highlighted Brimmer’s positive culture, diversity, student body size and wider student grade range as reasons why she is excited about the school and felt the role was the right fit.

“Faculty are so proud of the work they’re doing, and really happy to be teaching at the school. For me, that says so much,” she said. “I’ve taught at the Noble and Greenough School, Greenwich Academy and Brooks School. Everything I loved from each of those places was evident at Brimmer.”

In terms of the impact Freeman seeks to have on Brimmer, she wants to maintain the school’s stability and prosperity and will perhaps explore more specific changes once she assumes her the role and begins to understand Brimmer’s needs.

“I’m not somebody who comes in and makes huge sweeping changes. I listen, I learn and then I step in and figure out what to do.

My vision is for enrollment and programming to continue to be strong. I want us to be a prominent, well-known school in the New England area,” she said.

She does know, however, the manner with which she will lead colleagues and students. As a Black queer woman, Freeman intends to “empower others around me to lean into who they are.”

“I represent a lot of different people. Hopefully, I can make students feel comfortable in who they are by seeing me be my authentic self. I will do that for every student, not just ones who are like me,” she said. “All of my identities are part of my leadership. I carry them with me all the time.”

Outgoing administrator Judith Guild plans to retire at the end of the next school year, having served 18 years in the role. The transition feels natural, not a “rocky” one where someone is pushed out, which was important to Freeman.

At Brooks Academy, she coteaches an interdisciplinary African American studies course.

Freeman, who has a background in English, instructs the arts and literature dimension of the class, while her colleague Laila McCain brings in the historical piece.

“We come together in this really creative way to talk about this country’s history. We don’t shy away from it because it’s facts,” Freeman said. “We try to focus on the joys — obviously the trauma, you can’t avoid — but we really want to celebrate the Black experience. Students are really hungry for that history, so our numbers continue to increase.”

While she is not expected to teach classes at Brimmer, Freeman said she’d encourage a similar offering if there’s student and teacher interest.

This 2026-2027 school year marks Freeman’s fifth and final year at Brooks, during which she will continue to fulfill her duties while increasing involvement at Brimmer across various trips to the Chestnut Hill campus.

“Then it’s off to the races,” she said.

This marks a veritable transition period for Brooks Academy, which, in addition to losing its associate head of school, will have to replace its current head, John Packard, once he retires in two years. Brooks has not named a replacement for Freeman.

“I am very proud of and grateful to my family and ancestors, who made it possible for me to be able to be in a role like this because they had to struggle quite a bit,” Freeman said. “That’s something I don’t carry lightly.”