Barbara Coulter Liston ’75

Beloved educator Barbara Coulter Liston died Aug. 2, 2018, in Beverly Farms, Mass., after a long illness. Born in Waterbury, Conn., on Feb. 24, 1953, she attended St. Margaret’s School (now Chase Collegiate) in Waterbury and earned her Princeton A.B. degree in English. She went on to receive an M.Ed. degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education in 1978.  She taught English and coached at Westover School in Middlebury, Conn., for several years before moving to the North Shore of Massachusetts.

It was the Brookwood School, a K–8 school in Manchester, Mass., to which Barbara dedicated 38 years until her retirement in 2017.  Starting there as an English teacher, varsity coach, and student advisor, she became head of upper school, and then assistant head of school. A tribute said she became a “visionary who shaped the philosophy, policies, and programs that defined the mission of the school and its day-to-day practices.” Affectionately known as “Queen” by students and colleagues alike, she was described as “a tireless champion of students and faculty, especially those who most needed her distinctively wise and compassionate guidance and support.”

Barbara was devoted to her son, Coulter Chute, who grew from a one-pound preemie to become the strapping first responder he is today. His recent graduation from Dickinson College was a joyful landmark for Barbara, as was his enrollment in the Massachusetts reserve police academy. She was proud of his passion and his determination. 

Barbara had great zest for life. She was gregarious and engaging, always wanting to learn more about whomever she met. She traveled widely when she was young and later with Coulter.

For all her joie de vivre, Barbara was also described as thoughtful, contemplative, and deeply intellectual. She was a voracious reader and a writer, a lover of words and metaphor, a sought-out grammarian. She was known for her irreverent humor and was fond of the well-placed expletive. 

A talented athlete, she had been a highly ranked New England women’s doubles tennis player. She was a self-taught gourmet cook, a sensitive gardener, a forever self-deprecating artist, and a lover of the beautiful and the literary. 

In addition to Coulter, Barbara is survived by two sisters and two brothers; her former husband, Rick Chute; and many loving friends and relatives. She was predeceased by Coulter’s twin sister, Amy Dowling Chute.