Joanne Petro Hoffman

Joanne P. Hoffman, 69, of Bryn Mawr died July 12, 2017. She was born in Corinth, NY to Ruth and Joseph Petro. She has one brother, Richard Petro, who lives in Eastsound, WA. She was educated in the Corinth public school system and later attended Marymount College to achieve her BA in English and continued on to Trinity to obtain her Masters in English.

She went on to take her first job in education as a high school English teacher at East Catholic High School in 1969, on to Rocky Hill High School in 1974, and then to Kingswood-Oxford School in West Hartford, CT in 1975 where she began as an English teacher and ultimately entered administration serving as the Assistant Dean of Students until 1984. She then transitioned to The Ethel Walker School in Simsbury, CT as the Director of Admissions and the Academic Dean until 1990. Her academic trajectory then continued upward to Concord Academy as the Associate Head of School in Concord, MA from 1990-1994 until she assumed her tenure as the Head of the Moses Brown School from 1994-2009. Her career at Moses Brown was punctuated by significant advancement of the school’s academic program, a strengthening of its Quaker identity, and unprecedented capital improvements focused on excellence in teaching and learning. She was the first woman to lead MB in its two-century history. Following her retirement from Moses Brown, she continued her contributions to the academic community through volunteering at Beacon Academy in Brookline, MA from 2009-2011, serving as interim Head of School at Friends’ Central School in Wynnewood, PA from 2011-2012, and finally as acting Head of Upper School at The Agnes Irwin School from 2013-present. Her career was also defined by significant involvement and contribution to academic institutions focused on furthering diversity and innovation within education to include The Headmasters Association, The Head Mistresses Association of the East, National Association of Principals of Schools for Girls, Joint Research and Planning Organization (JRPO), NEASC – Commissioner, Commission on Independent Schools, AISNE (12 school consortium to recruit professionals of color).

Joanne met Richard Hoffman during her time at Kingswood-Oxford School and the two were married in West Hartford, CT on February 16th, 1979. They have one daughter.

Joanne is survived by her husband, who lives in Bryn Mawr, PA, as well as her daughter, Caitlin Hoffman, who currently lives in New York City with her husband, Mark Souweidane, and their two boys, William and Miles. She is also survived by her brother, Rick, her two step-daughters, Christine and Lynda Hoffman, and their children Livia, Will, Emily and Ben. She is also survived by her cousins William and Patrick Cromie, and her nieces and nephews, Dan, Clare, Gin, Bill, and Heather.

A Memorial Mass will be held at 11a.m. on August 5th, 2017 at St. Thomas of Villanova Rosemont Chapel.

Arrangements are being handled by the Alleva Funeral Home, Paoli, PA.