Head of School Derrick Willard announced today that Director of Enrollment Management Margaret Mills ’76 will retire on June 30, 2025, after 25 years of dedicated service to Ravenscroft.  

“Margaret’s impact on our school community is great,” Willard wrote in an email communication to the school community. “During her tenure as Director of Enrollment Management, she has worked to achieve steady growth in our enrollment and increases in our student diversity to better reflect our broader community. She has also built a top-notch Admissions team that will help us continue to attract and enroll the Triangle area’s best and brightest students.” 

Mills will continue in her role through the end of the school year. During that time, the school will conduct a national search to hire the next Director of Enrollment Management.

“Members of my team and I are very aware that we are often the first people that interested families meet. We are the front door,” Mills said of her work in Admissions. “How we engage with families represents the hundreds of people who make this school such a special place. We take that job seriously and know that our most important role is to represent the school well and establish a relationship built on care and trust.”

Mills’s Ravenscroft roots run deep. As a member of the Class of 1976, she was among the first students to attend Ravenscroft at its new North Raleigh campus, and she has remained actively engaged — as an alumna, employee and parent to Baker ’11 — in the years since. She has held a number of critical roles since joining Ravenscroft’s faculty and staff, serving as both Director of Alumni Affairs (2001-2003) and Director of Marketing (2003-2007) before becoming Associate Director of Admissions and Marketing in 2007. She has been in her current role since 2012.

A member of the school’s Senior Leadership Team, Mills has served on the Academic Committee, all three division’s Admissions Committees, and the Board of Trustees’ Diversity, Equity and Inclusivity Committee. She has also been a member of the executive team of the Triangle Independent School Consortium. 

In May, Mills was recognized by Ravenscroft’s Alumni Council with the Distinguished Alumni Award.

Former Head of School Doreen Kelly, who worked with Margaret throughout her tenure, praised her approach and impact. “Margaret’s commitment to our legacy is equally balanced with her commitment to making sure current students are meeting their potential in a complex world,” she said. “Margaret has dedicated an important part of career by bringing her immense heart and professional talents to ensure her alma mater is poised to thrive well into the future. She has touched a generation of families and colleagues with her warm heart and welcoming spirit.” 

Former Director of Admissions and trustee Pam Jamison said of the news, “I’m happy for Margaret! She has completed a stellar tenure as the Director of Enrollment Management and has laid an impressive foundation at Ravenscroft for years to come. She has represented Ravenscroft with an authentic and dedicated voice of an alumna, a parent and a senior staff member and has been a compelling advocate for the school’s mission.”

Mills emphasized that she has always been inspired by her connection to Ravenscroft — and by its mission.

“Ravenscroft has been part of my life since I was 10 years old. I loved it from the first day, and I have many friends today whom I met in those early years,” she said. “What continues to amaze me is the big vision this school has exhibited throughout its history. We’ve educated thousands of students and touched their families’ lives. Is there anything more important?”

In sharing the news, Willard noted that he himself had a “front door” experience with Mills, meeting her for the first time a decade ago on a group tour of schools in China. “I was immediately impressed with her quiet professionalism and Southern charm. When I arrived for my interview last fall, seeing her again made for a lovely reunion,” he wrote. “When I took the job as Head of School here last fall, I was thrilled to know Margaret was leading our recruiting efforts.”

Noting that she shared her retirement plans with him in March, before his tenure at Ravenscroft began, he added, “Through her love and commitment to Ravenscroft, she wanted to ensure we had a seamless year in Admissions during my first year in the position. For that, I am very grateful.”

Mills called being able to serve her alma mater for 25 years “one of the greatest joys of my life.”

“I’ve worked with some of the kindest and most dedicated people I've ever met,” she said. “I’m proud that I’ve had a part in Ravenscroft’s success.”