Alexa Caldwell
Growing up in a family with a boarding school legacy, history instructor Alexa Caldwell finds the pace of life at Exeter very normal for her. She and her twin brother, English instructor John Caldwell, lived on a boarding school campus for 19 years where their parents taught, and have grandparents who attended boarding schools. As well as teaching history, Caldwell coaches the varsity soccer and junior varsity lacrosse teams. She currently resides in Webster Hall.After graduating college and before working at Exeter, Caldwell spent three years working at a boarding school in Asheville, N.C., as a coach, adviser and admissions officer. At the same time, her twin brother was working at Exeter and had found the school perfect for him. Alexa Caldwell ended up leaving the school in Asheville and moved to Boston to try something new. While talking with her twin brother, Dean Kim discovered that his twin sister wasn’t employed at the time, and coincidentally, in the spring of 2015, several history positions opened up at Exeter while she was still in Boston.Caldwell soon came to Exeter for an interview and after a fairly quick process, joined her brother at Exeter. “We've always wondered if we would have the opportunity to work at the same school. I don't think either one of us thought that it would be this soon!” said John Caldwell.
“She’s just really nice to see on the paths and I love how she truly values you as a student.”
Now in her second year as a part of the Exeter community, Caldwell loves the students, faculty and the atmosphere of the school. She described the students to be a great part of the joy she finds, living and working in Exeter. “The kids are what makes it fun and I think that coming to Exeter, it was refreshing to see how real the kids are,” Caldwell said. “My favorite moments are when the students can be happy and lighten up the mood. I love moments in the dorm, soccer/lacrosse fields and in the classrooms, when people are laughing and are enjoying themselves.”Besides being fairly new to the campus, Caldwell is loved and admired by students on the fields, dorm and in her classroom. Students who interact with Caldwell on the fields look up to her as a great mentor. Senior Hannah Gustafson appreciates Caldwell’s presence as an assistant coach. “Ms. Caldwell is a very competitive person which is a great thing for the team. She definitely helps keep all of us fully engaged during practice and games,” she said. Even outside of practices and games, Gustafson feels that she can always count on Caldwell if she needs somebody to talk to.Lower Liz Williams, a player on the JV lacrosse team, agreed. “I’ve always admired her energy and enthusiasm,” she said. “Her can-do attitude is very contagious and I aspire to be like her someday.”In the dorm, residents of Webster find Caldwell very comfortable to talk to, as she shares a love of sports and is always interested in how the boys are doing. Makinrola Orafidiya, a lower in Webster Hall, described her to be more like a friend. “If I ever needed something I know I could go to her. She always bakes us food and we [the boys in Webster] all love her so much,” he said.Fellow resident of Webster and Caldwell’s advisee upper Ty Deery added, “whenever you want to watch the Patriots game, she’s got it on in her apartment. She’s very easily the most relatable out of all the faculty members.”In the classroom, students find that Caldwell makes every individual feel important at the table. Senior Claire Dauge-Roth, a former history student of Caldwell, said, “She’s always been a very friendly and calming presence on campus for me. She’s just really nice to see on the paths and I love how she truly values you as a student.”Along with coaching sports and living in Webster, Caldwell enjoys being outside and active, and runs during her free time. She’s glad she is close enough to spend time with her brother’s dog and visit her grandparents who live close in Vermont.