Pete Sniffen Named as New Sieck Endowed Teaching Chair in Environmental Studies

Science teacher and environmental studies coordinator Peter Sniffen has been named Northfield Mount Hermon’s new Margaret J. Sieck ’72 Endowed Teaching Chair in Environmental Studies.

The appointment was announced during Convocation on August 27. Sniffen succeeds inaugural Sieck Chair holder Mary Hefner, who retired last year after four decades of teaching.

“Pete has established himself as a leader in the classroom and on campus since he arrived here early in 2023,” said Head of School Brian Hargrove. “He brings tremendous expertise in environmental sciences, passion for teaching high school students, and a deep commitment to collaborating with his colleagues across campus. As our environmental studies coordinator, he has helped drive NMH's commitment to incorporating environmental studies across our curriculum, including robust experiential learning opportunities. As the Sieck Chair, he will continue to lead in the field and on campus."

Sniffen called his appointment “a real honor and a gift,” noting that the position offers an opportunity to build lasting programs.

“To have a large chunk of money to devote to programs and professional development is a big grant of autonomy and creative exploration,” he said. “Three years is enough time to actually build, grow, and implement something of significance. So it’s an honor, but it's also something that can be actionable.”

Since arriving at NMH, Sniffen has been at the forefront of campus sustainability efforts. He works closely with the Ecoleaders student group and is a key voice in the school’s ongoing development of a Sustainability and Climate Action Plan. Sniffen was also instrumental in helping to organize interscholastic initiatives like the Connecticut River Student Coalition Outdoor Expedition, in which students from NMH, Deerfield Academy and the Loomis Chaffee School spend ten days exploring and learning about the Connecticut River, and the NMH EcoSummit, which brings students from nearby schools together on the NMH campus to discuss ecological issues facing our shared region.

Endowed chair positions provide teachers with resources to pursue professional development and travel, while also funding initiatives that reflect NMH’s mission. The Sieck Chair is awarded in three-year terms and appointed by the head of school.

The position honors former NMH trustee Margaret J. Sieck ’72, P’03, who established the chair with her husband, Bob Baldwin P’03. The couple, longtime advocates for water quality and climate change education in central New Jersey, said they were excited to support Sniffen’s work at NMH.

“After kicking off our environmental chair with Mary Hefner, a notable teacher of everything from biology to the science of farming and a seasoned veteran of the NMH community, we are thrilled to have relative newcomer Pete Sniffen step into the role going forward,” Sieck said. “Like Mary, Pete has dedicated his career to getting kids outside and into the environment we are working to understand and protect. From his time in Alaska and Antarctica to Wyoming, Maine, and Massachusetts, Pete is sharing his knowledge and enthusiasm with the next generation who will be critical to building the energy systems of the future and to providing a healthier world for our kids and grandkids.” 

In addition to professional development, Sniffen hopes to use the chair’s resources to broaden NMH’s sustainability curriculum and bring more voices into the conversation.

“The fact that we offer 12 sustainability-related courses on our course list already is really, really good,” he said. “One thing that I tell students is I don't think there's any career on the planet that couldn't be contributing to the environment. Over the next stretch of years, I really want to work on that messaging — that there are multiple pathways through their interests that incorporate environmental work."

For Sniffen, the Sieck Chair also represents a statement of institutional values.

“When I think about the significance of Margaret and Bob’s support, I think they have created the underlying conditions for NMH to be quiet leaders in the environmental space,” he said. “We are not perfect, but there is a real commitment to doing environmental work, a consistent pushing to improve and make better. 

“When I hear Brian say we are working to create people who will live their lives with humanity and purpose, I can’t help but think about environmental sustainability, which is much larger than just environmental crises,” Sniffen continued. “Social justice, politics, poverty — all these things come together in environmental work. I see it as a core tenet for living within this community. We've done really good work and been part of the movement in schools since the very beginning. I want to continue to grow and expand that good work.”

Photos by Todd Verlander and Matthew Cavanaugh Photography.