Craft beer entrepreneurs Mariah and Sam Calagione to speak at Northfield Mount Hermon commencement

GILL, Mass., March 3, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Mariah Draper Calagione and Sam Calagione III, founders of Dogfish Head Brewery, will be the keynote speakers at the 142nd commencement ceremony at Northfield Mount Hermon, an independent boarding school in western Massachusetts.

The Calagiones both attended NMH — Sam in the Class of 1988 and Mariah in the Class of 1989 — as did their two children. The couple met in the dishroom of NMH's dining hall, where they were fulfilling the school's work requirement for all students. After college, they married and founded a brewpub and commercial brewery, Dogfish Head, in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.

The company quickly took off, with the Calagiones enlarging their brewing operation, adding a distillery, and opening several new pubs. Along the way, Dogfish was recognized with numerous industry honors, including a James Beard Award. Integral to their work was a focus on philanthropy and community partnerships, through Dogfish Head's "Beer & Benevolence" program. In 2019, Dogfish Head merged with Boston Beer Company, maker of Samuel Adams beer. Sam now sits on Boston Beer's board, while Mariah recently retired as head of the company's social impact team.

"Northfield Mount Hermon is truly the centerpiece of my family's life," said Sam Calagione. "It is certainly the place where I figured out who I wanted to be and how I wanted to interact with this wonderful, challenging, creative world we live in."

"We look forward to congratulating and saluting the Class of 2025, sharing a bit of our story of what Mariah and I have learned along the way as we've juggled our life's awesome adventures between our heads, our hearts, and our hands."

Mariah Calagione recently completed 13 years on the NMH Board of Trustees, six of them as chair. The couple serve as honorary co-chairs and members of the steering committee of This Place, This Moment: The Campaign for Northfield Mount Hermon. The campaign seeks to raise $275 million for financial aid, faculty support, and other programs at the school.

The Calagione family has been generous donors to NMH, including gifts that allowed the construction of the Draper Riverhouse and the Calagione Fitness Center and the establishment of scholarship funds. The Calagiones' community service and philanthropic work also includes community-based projects in Delaware, where they live. In 2023, Mariah received a Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Award, a national honor that recognizes outstanding local public service.

"We're thrilled that Mariah and Sam have accepted the Class of 2025's invitation to be this year's commencement speakers," said NMH Head of School Brian Hargrove. "They exemplify all that is special about Northfield Mount Hermon: a resolute commitment to serve and to lead. Their journey as entrepreneurs models our educational principles — they learn by doing, they embrace a creative and collaborative process, and they make sure their choices reflect their values."

About Northfield Mount Hermon: Founded in 1879, Northfield Mount Hermon is a boarding school with 630 students in grades 9 to 12, plus a postgraduate year, from 30 states and 60 nations. NMH's mission is to educate the head, heart, and hands of students, engaging their intellect, compassion, and talents and empowering them to act with humanity and purpose.

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SOURCE Northfield Mount Hermon