Chevalier leaving FA for Switzerland

Chevalier

Emily Adams
 www.sunburyexchange.com

DOVER-FOXCROFT — Mark Chevalier, Foxcroft Academy communications, varsity baseball and filmmaking point man, will be leaving the community to take a job in Europe. His last day on the job is July 30. The new Director of Communications will be Graham Pearsall of Dover-Foxcroft.

Chevalier and his wife  Stephanie, both in their mid-30s, will relocate with their son, 3-year-old William, and their daughter, 5-month-old Penelope, to the Italian border of Switzerland near the city of Lugano.

He was hired as associate director of communications for The American School in Switzerland (TASIS) during a visit there in late March. The K-12 school has a student body of about 700. It was founded in 1956 and has affiliates in England and Puerto Rico. William Chevalier will be able to attend the school free of charge in a year, which was a huge benefit for the couple.

Chevalier will mostly do writing and work with a school photographer and webmaster under the director of admissions and closely with Lynn Aeschliman, the board chair of TASIS and daughter of the school’s founder.

Stephanie Chevalier, who taught ESL and filmmaking at Foxcroft Academy, will be a stay-at-home mom and continue to teach psychology courses for Foxcroft Academy online through iTunes U. Chevalier expressed gratitude to her for all she does.

“Looking back, I think the decision to move up here and work at FA was absolutely the best thing for us,” said Chevalier on July 6. The couple grew professionally, enjoyed campus life, got to know other families, and were pleased by the easy access their son had to fields, playmates and exposure to kids from all over the world.

“It’s been really just the perfect place for us for six years and we’re very happy here. We were happy with the status quo, but I just kind of wanted to look around and see what else could be out there,” said Chevalier.

The couple’s long-term goal, before the kids get too established in school, has been to relocate closer to southern New England where Chevalier has family and friends and to have easier access to Stephanie Chevalier’s family in Iowa. In the meantime, the TASIS opportunity was simply too good to pass up. “We certainly don’t have a single bad feeling or thought about Dover-Foxcroft or FA and we’ll always remember our time here very fondly.” He thanks Head of School Arnold Shorey in particular for his support of the family during their time here. The couple plans to stay in touch with friends here and return to visit.

“Of all the things I’m going to miss, coaching baseball is probably at the top of the list,” says Chevalier. “Memories from coaching here are going to stay with me forever.” He had an overall varsity record of 71-22 in the past five years.

Prior to coming to FA, the Chevaliers taught English as a Second Language (ESL) abroad. They learned about FA through Carney Sandoe & Associates, a faculty-recruitment service for independent schools. They arrived in the fall of 2009, the first year FA’s first dormitory Herd Hall came into use, and they have been dorm parents there since.

He started as an English teacher and she as an ESL teacher. The next year, they co-founded the filmmaking program with former computer science teacher Glenn Hodgkinson. Chevalier transitioned from English to director of communications the 2011-12 year. He was also the public address announcer for football games.

Chevalier served on the board of directors of Pine Tree Hospice for two years until a year ago. He enjoyed meeting “some of the really good people around here who do incredible work for those in need in the community.”

The couple expressed gratitude for a great experience using the facility and making friends at the Piscataquis Regional YMCA. The tot watch made it possible for Stephanie Chevalier to restore fitness after the two childbirths and the preschool there helped his son’s development tremendously, Chevalier said.

After a year as the junior varsity baseball coach, Chevalier became the varsity coach and worked with his brother in 2011, the final year FA was in Class C. The Ponies were the only undefeated team in the state at 16-0, and got to the Eastern Maine title game and lost.

The team won the Eastern Maine title in 2012, the first year in Class B. In 2013, the team went 14-2, got a bye, won one playoff game, and lost to Winslow. With the loss of 10 strong seniors, 2014 was a rebuilding year and Foxcroft was 10-6 and lost to Caribou in the playoffs. This year, the Ponies were 12-4, won one playoff game and lost to Winslow again. Chevalier was named PVC Coach of the Year in 2011 and 2015.

The new FA Director of Communications, Pearsall, is a graduate of FA (2009) and interned under Chevalier the summer before his senior year at Bates College. He earned a B.A. in English from Bates (2013) where he excelled in cross country and indoor and outdoor track. He has coached all three of those sports at FA. He was hired as an ESL teacher at FA for 2013-14 and then became the school’s first External Affairs Officer for 2014-15.

Chevalier has worked closely with him doing videos and design projects together. “I’m really happy that my departure creates this opportunity for him. I’m sure that he’ll do a great job.”