Leading with Fidélité: Brian Jacobs Honored for Loyalty

This year, Lawrenceville faculty members have honored colleagues who embody the values that define the School community: commitment, courage, enthusiasm, friendship, honesty, initiative, kindness, leadership, loyalty, perseverance, responsibility, and thoughtfulness. These values guide daily work in the classroom, Houses, and programs across campus, shaping a culture built on shared purpose. Brian Jacobs, chair of the language department, was recognized for loyalty, a quality reflected in both his leadership and his steady presence for students and colleagues.

Jacobs described the loyalty award as meaningful not just personally, but as an affirmation of how others experience his work. “It’s an honor,” he said. “And it’s always nice to be recognized for the hard work we put in each and every day.”

He teaches French, advises the Gender and Sexuality Alliance (GSA), the Songwriting Club, and the French Club, and is a Faculty Interviewer for the Admission Office. He holds a bachelor’s degree in French and music from Dartmouth College, completed a Fulbright teaching assistantship in France, and earned both his master’s and doctorate in French from Princeton University.

For Jacobs, loyalty is rooted in consistency. “Loyalty is giving your all, supporting students, supporting faculty and colleagues, no matter what else is going on,” he said.

That commitment often appears in small, everyday moments. “I think about my student consultations and I’d say that about half the time we’re probably not talking about French,” Jacobs said. “The students just come and sit down to chat. Sometimes they’re looking for advice. Sometimes they want to talk through a problem. Sometimes they just need someone to listen.”

Those conversations, he said, are central to building trust. “Just being there for people, them knowing that I’m somebody that they can trust and that I have their backs, is important to me,” he said.

As the Language Department Chair, Griswold House duty team member, and former Head of McPherson House, Jacobs sees loyalty as equally important in his work with adults. “I think that my department members would see me as a very loyal leader,” he said. “I am somebody who stands up for them, stands up for the department, stands up for language learning at Lawrenceville. I also work to foster a sense of community in my department where each and every member feels seen and valued for all the hard work they do.”

That steadiness includes a willingness to address challenges directly. “If I see a problem or something that needs to change, then I will call that out and I will work to make that change,” he said.

For Jacobs, loyalty does not mean overlooking mistakes. Instead, it means remaining committed to growth in himself and in others. “I think it’s easy to still support people – colleagues and students - even when they make mistakes,” he said. “Part of my job in working with students is to make sure that they understand their mistakes and how to change in order to become better people, better learners.”

Loyalty also means, he said, “leading by example, being somebody who cares about and wants to listen to them…being somebody who will always support them no matter what.”

Ultimately, Jacobs hopes students carry that mindset with them beyond Lawrenceville. “It doesn’t cost anything to be loyal,” he said. “I think that you’ll get a lot more out of your lives by being loyal to people than by being disloyal. You’ll build stronger relationships, become better leaders, and be the kind of people that others know they can count on.”

For more information, contact Lisa M. Gillard H'17, director of public relations, at lgillard@lawrenceville.org.