Fran McInnis
Student Activities Office, 1980–2016
For 36 years, Fran McInnis has played a critical role at Milton. She has managed more information, essential to the functioning of the Upper School, than one can measure. From budgets and the all-School calendar, to student mailboxes and the quarter-filled graduation sock, nothing was too broad—or too narrow—a focus for Fran. She has been situated in two buildings and four different offices, always at the epicenter of student activity. She has seen three heads of school—and an interim; nine Upper School principals—and an interim; six deans of students; nine student activities directors; and countless Milton Academy appearances in the Boston Globe. Fran has survived it all.
Every community has hearts—hubs through which essentials of daily life pass: entering exhausted, leaving refreshed, with renewed purpose. Beyond the tangible, these hearts provide a constant rhythm that keeps the community in step. Fran is one of Milton’s hubs. Her thoughtful advice, contagious laughter, and sharp wit are undergirded with an amazing memory, affinity for detail, the abilities to make it happen, and the wisdom to say, “No.” At some point in each of our careers, someone has advised, “You should ask Fran.”
And when we arrived, we were greeted by students hanging out on couches, or their pictures hanging on the wall, a short line of colleagues, and Fran perched (or standing at her Varidesk) under the “The Witch Is In” sign. In our turn, we each received the information that we sought (and maybe some we didn’t), shared information that we intended (and maybe some we didn’t) and left with new purpose. Or at least a piece of candy.
For more than three decades, Fran has supported members of this community in our ever-evolving work of educating children. Forging relationships as a trusted colleague, a sage counselor, a comforting friend, Fran was a source of what we needed, when we needed it. The rhythm of Milton beats strong in Fran. For all she has done for our School, her greatest gifts have been the relationships she has built and the support that she has given to us all.
As Fran heads off to her next set of adventures, the beats of Milton’s rhythm will continue, though they will never sound the same.
André Heard ’93
Associate Dean of Students