Regina "Reggie" Groves ’76

Talented, insightful, competitive, and driven, Regina E. Groves, or Reggie as we know her, arrived for her junior year at Foxcroft in 1974 from Miami, Florida. A field hockey and basketball player, a CAP, a member of the Riding Officers Club and the Cum Laude Society, a winner of the Math Award and the Haythe Science Award, and a Soggie Cheerio, this determined Fox took full advantage of every opportunity as a student. Her two years at Foxcroft should have been an indicator to all who knew her, of her life of impact to follow. 

After graduating from Foxcroft in 1976, Reggie received her BS in Pharmacy with high honors from the University of Florida before matriculating to Harvard Business School where she was awarded her MBA with distinction. For the next 45 years, she would alternate between her love of science and her keen interest in business, specifically strategic business consulting, strategy development, and finance, by working in various management positions for companies and organizations including Medtronics, Kaiser Permanente, Egleston Children’s Hospital, the Florida Pharmacy Association, McKinsey & Company, and Scient.

During all this time, Foxcroft was never far from Reggie’s mind or heart. In the years since her graduation, she supported her School generously, served as a Class Representative and on the Alumnae Association, Co-Chaired her reunion, participated as a Career Day speaker, and served as a Trustee during two different times in the School’s history. First, she served during the recession of the 1990s, a financially challenging time, especially for  Foxcroft. During her second tenure on the Board, she co-chaired the Search Committee that brought Cathy McGehee to the School as Foxcroft’s 9th Head in 2014 and served as Chair of the Board during this important transition in the School’s leadership. Today, she continues to lend her expertise as an ex-officio member of the Investment Committee.

Reggie once wrote that her goal for Foxcroft was, “Financial stability and educational excellence.” During her first term as a trustee, Reggie led the School in the development of its most comprehensive strategic plan; a plan that has served as the basis for future strategic plans. In her second round of service on the Board, she served as Chair of Finance, Treasurer of the Board, and then Board Chair when Foxcroft received Ruth Bedford’s extraordinary bequest of over $40 million. Knowing that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the School, Reggie led the Board in financial modeling, generative discussions, and careful deliberation so that this transformational gift would address the current and future needs of the School while honoring the woman whose legacy ensured Foxcroft would survive for many generations to come. These are but two of the many intangible gifts that Reggie has given the School over the last four decades. 

And lest you think that Reggie is all work and no play, just ask a loyal Foxcroft Hound about the time Reggie short-sheeted her bed in retaliation for finding Hound towels in this Fox’s bathroom at Spur and Spoon!

When asked about her hopes for the School’s future, Reggie wrote, “I would like to see Foxcroft continue its traditions yet keep up with the changing world in which we live. I believe it is important for each student to graduate with self-esteem and a will to achieve, for it is only through one’s image of oneself that they will be able to strive for those ultimate goals.”

In all she does, her work, her service, and her care for her family, son Robert Gelly, parents Una and Asa, Reggie embodies the qualities of a Foxcroft graduate -  intellect, voice, and character. 

For her leadership, loyalty, and outstanding service to Foxcroft, the Board of Trustees and Cathy McGehee, Head of School, honor Reggie Groves by presenting Foxcroft’s highest award, the Anne Kane McGuire Distinguished Service Award.