Meet Blair’s Dorm Heads

History teacher Anna Raley holds a bachelor’s degree from Huntingdon College and a master of arts degree in liberal studies from Dartmouth College. A former resident of Insley Hall, Ms. Raley is now head of Annie Hall, a dormitory for 42 junior and senior girls. She also coaches the girls’ volleyball and basketball teams and is joined by her wife, Ashlyn, Blair’s Director of Testing Services.

Dr. Abascal joined Blair’s science faculty as a chemistry teacher in 2018. A crossfit enthusiast, she coaches softball at Blair. This is Dr. Abascal’s fourth year living in a Blair dormitory and her first as dorm head of Flight Deck, where 18 first-year boys reside.

Associate Athletics Director Rhett Moroses ’13 oversees internal and external operations of Blair athletics and serves as head coach of the JV boys’ basketball team. A proud member of the Class of 2013, Rhett was a postgraduate basketball player and went on to earn his BS in sport management from Endicott College and his M.Ed. in athletic administration. Rhett serves as President of the New Jersey Independent School Athletic Association (NJISAA), where he leads a statewide organization representing over 30 independent and private schools. In this role, he collaborates with athletic directors to guide policy development, coordinate championship events and support the mission of independent school athletics across New Jersey. Rhett is joined by his wife, Margo, and their daughter, Ophelia.

Math teacher Eamon Gara Grady holds a 2023 BA in statistics from Williams College. As a student, Eamon served as a research assistant for Williams’ mathematics and statistics department and worked as a sportswriter for the college’s office of sports information. He also captained the men’s soccer team, leading the team to the 2022 NCAA Division III championship game. He is the recipient of Blair's 2024-2025 Hardwick Teaching Fellowship.

Assistant Dean of Admission and assistant wrestling coach Chase Palanca ’15 earned his undergraduate degree from Johns Hopkins University and a master’s degree in education from the University of Pennsylvania in 2021. He is joined in Insley by his wife, Haley Chrobock-Palanca ’15, who coaches the field hockey and ski teams, and their chocolate Labradoodle, Yogi.

Mr. Facciani and Ms. Wang joined Blair’s faculty in 2007 as Chinese teachers. In addition to their work in Blair’s language department, Mr. Facciani teaches an advanced course in Microeconomics and Modern European History classes and serves as Blair’s international monitor. Ms. Wang is also a yoga instructor and advisor to the after-school dance activity. Since its opening seven years ago, they have served as dorm heads of Kathryn Hall, where they live with 45 junior and senior girls, their daughter, Angela, and dog, Buddy. Prior to moving to Kathryn Hall, Mr. Facciani and Ms. Wang spent six years as dorm heads of Locke Hall and a year as heads of Davies Hall, which formerly stood on the site of the Chiang-Elghanayan Center for Innovation and Collaboration.

Matt Smith joined Blair’s English faculty in 2025 and serves as head varsity baseball coach. He began his career as a journalist at ESPN before transitioning from television to education, where he spent over a decade teaching high school history, most recently at Brophy College Preparatory in Phoenix, Arizona. A passionate baseball coach, he has led elite basketball and baseball programs to championship titles and earned two state coach-of-the-year awards. He earned his BA in French and Francophone studies from Union College in 2007. Matt and his fiancee, Theresa, are joined by their Boston terrier, Kona.  
 

Mackenzie Maguire joined Blair in 2022 as an admission associate and head girls’ varsity lacrosse coach. Prior to working at Williams College as an assistant women’s lacrosse coach, Mackenzie earned her BS in 2019 in business marketing from the University of Mary Washington, where she served as a collegiate team captain, made four NCAA appearances and was named a 2x All-American. 

With a Buccaneer family lineage too long to detail, Bridget Hodakowki ’99 worked for many years in the advancement office before returning to where she started her career as a member of Blair’s admission office. In 2024, she was appointed to the faculty as admission counselor and coach to the JV volleyball and JV girls’ lacrosse teams. A former member of the Board of Governors, a current rep for the Class of 1999 and proud Blair alum, Bridget holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Dickinson College. She is joined by her husband, Marc, and their children, Jack ’29 and Drew.

History teacher Valerie Lohr came to Blair from San Antonio, Texas, where Valerie pursued her doctor of education degree at Baylor University. She currently holds a JD from Pennsylvania State University’s Dickinson School of Law and BA in political science from Lehigh University. Over the course of her career, Valerie has coached a number of highly ranked field hockey and women’s lacrosse teams, and at Blair, she serves as head coach for varsity girls’ field hockey and assistant coach for varsity girls’ lacrosse. She is joined by her husband, Corey, and daughter, Catie ’28.

Biology and environmental science teacher teacher David Uhlig, a 2024 graduate of Temple University, holds a BA in psychology. At Temple, David majored in psychology and minored in cognitive neuroscience, and he recently completed a teaching fellowship at the Hun School of Princeton, where he taught psychology and leadership seminars in addition to serving as an assistant strength and rowing coach. A four-year varsity rower at Temple, David serves as an assistant coach to crew at Blair.

Susie Antonelli serves as Blair’s Senior Associate Dean of Admission, Director of Financial Aid and Day Student Coordinator. Susie earned her bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from Towson University in 1996 and worked for several years as an elementary school teacher before joining the admission team. She lives on campus with her husband, Director of Athletic Facilities and Security Brian Antonelli ’93, and their children Kate ’20, Sammi ’22, Topher ’24 and Mikey ’26.