The Deerfield Scroll: April 22, 2009

VOL. LXXXIV, N O .1

D EERFIELD A CADEMY , D EERFIELD , MA 01342

APRIL 22, 2009

Modern-Day Indiana Jones Swings into the Valley

Deerfield Admissions: More Selective than Ever

By Eunice Lee Staff Writer

By Francis Lauw Staff Writer What do 2,061 students from all around the world have in common?

Each contributed to Deerfield Academy’s pool of applicants–the highest yet in Deerfield’s history.

Applications rose 13.4% from last year, and a mere 16.8% acceptance rate allowed Deerfield to retain its reputation as one of the most selective boarding schools in the country.

Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid Patricia Gimbel revealed that 294 out of 1,987 boarding student applicants and 21 out of 74 day student applicants have been admitted for entrance in the fall of 2009.

“It makes our job easy and difficult at the same time,” said Associate Director of Admission Debra Dohrmann about this year’s diverse and well-qualified applicants. “If we had more beds, we would love them in our school.”

The average annual yield is 65%, and the admissions office foresees a similar number this year.

There were 1066 applicants for the new 9th grade class of 2013, a 12% rise from last year, of whom 144 have been accepted. Although the

E GIN IMA FIELD R DEE

Ellie Parker

Spring is finally here! Scottie Thompson ’09 and Miles Griffis ’11 soak up some sun while studying outside.

Forty-four percent of applicants gender ratio is evenly split amongst are.” Websites like Boarding School incoming freshmen, the admissions Review and powerful search engines have requested financial aid, a signifioffice is still waiting for yield results to have enabled people from thousands cant increase from last year’s 40%. confirm speculations about an unbal- of miles away to connect with The admissions office is pleased with Deerfield. the record-breaking number of applianced gender ratio.

Competition for acceptance con- cations, particularly given the ecoApplications came from all 50 states and 82 countries, including Iran, tinues to be rigorous. “The high-qual- nomic turmoil in the country and the Bangladesh, Bahrain, Hungary, the ity applicant pool is exciting for us,” world.

Mrs. Gimbel explained that a reaPalestinian territory, and Poland. said Mrs. Dohrmann, “but it is also International applicants made up 24% sad to say ‘no’ to so many great kids.” son for the increasing interest in Many applicants boast perfect test boarding schools might be attributed of the total applicant pool and of these 460 students, 41 received invita- scores and are recognized scholars. to families on the move due to changtions to join Deerfield’s global com- Musical, linguistic, and athletic talents ing or travel-demanding jobs. Families munity. possessed by these students also add place priority on stability for their chilUnderstanding that the power of to the difficulty of the selection dren and thus choose to send them to technology and the Internet has process. A developing trend among a school that ensures a stable environbrought the world closer together, it this year’s applicants is the spirit of ment.

“People are always seeking quality still is a surprise that the word of entrepreneurship. Students have Deerfield has traveled to all corners of strengthened their applications education, even with the economic the world. “China or Antarctica,” said through their involvement with inde- downturn,” said Mr. Briones. “That’s Associate Director of Admission Jose pendent online stores and charity why we’re beneficiaries of that kind of success.”

Briones, “It doesn’t matter where we organizations.

Sophomores Get Their Hands Dirty Around Campus

By Amanda Bennett Staff Writer

Whether mulching the crabapple trees by Plunkett Quad, typing up an essay from the 1964 archive, or rolling tables through the dining hall, sophomores are learning about the work that keeps Deerfield running beautifully through a pilot service initiative program this spring.

One-hundred-and-two sophomores are currently taking part in the

Green and White Program. Students involved in the program dedicate one period, or 45 minutes, each week to a job in one of fourteen departments, including the Dining Hall, Alumni and Development, Grounds, and the Athletic Office.

Sophomores signed up for their preferred assignments on a first-come, first-served basis, using the website Moodle.

The idea for the “Green and White Program” grew out of the

Deerfield Advising Survey Results 46.3 % of faculty and 67.0% of students (the highest percentages*) chose “flexibility to request the relationships that worked best for them” as their top priority for an ideal advising system.

31.6% of parents (the highest percentage*) ranked the current system’s “quality of communication with the advisor” as “strong.”

22.5% of faculty (the highest percentage*) ranked “equity in faculty advising workloads” as “weak” in the current system.

*Of several options offered, these categories were the most frequently selected in the survey taken by Academic Dean Peter Warsaw’s office.

Ingrid Kapteyn ’09 chassés into Juilliard page 4

strategic plan, “Imagine Deerfield.”

Dean of Sophomores Amie Creagh explained, “Every group surveyed for ‘Imagine Deerfield’ thought that involvement in the inner workings of the school had been lacking tangible contribution.”

Each department of the pilot program reviewed what tasks were challenges to fit into the day. Program Committee Member and Assistant Director of Food Services Michael McCarthy said, “We tried to figure out what we needed the most help with on what we do every day.”

Now students, working under kitchen crew member Bruce MacConnell, move furniture and mop the floors during the transition time between sit-down and walk-through meals.

“I’ve noticed the dining room is neater and the floors are cleaner,” said Mr. McCarthy, “and students really enjoy working with Mr. MacConnell.”

The program, developed by a committee with student, staff, faculty, and dean’s office representatives, has two main tenets.

“The program offers insight into work that typically just fades into the scenery”––Ellie Parker ’11 “Developing a relationship with staff is something that’s missing from the Deerfield experience. To not connect with that fundamental component of the community is to miss out,” Ms. Creagh explained.

Ellie Parker ’11, who has been helping Physical Plant Groundsperson Denise Dwelley, agreed. “It bridges a gap. It’s another way of making our Deerfield experiences more complete,” she said. Parker added, “The Green and White program offers insight into work that typically just fades into the scenery.”

Round Square talks global but stays local page 5

Justin Kwok ’11 has also been working with Ms. Dwelley. “I did enjoy getting to know my supervisor,” he said. “But I think a lot of sophomores are upset because we are the guinea pigs.”

However, as Committee Member and Science Teacher Julie Cullen said, “The community service program used to be much bigger than it is now, and it’s trying once again to find its way back in a way that makes sense.”

Ellie Carroll ’11 added, “It’s just work, and work isn’t fun, but it’s good to meet new people, and I like working with the staff.”

Parker said, “It takes up a free, but it’s more than worth it.”

Rumors have circulated that the program is tied to recent budget cuts.

These rumors are completely false.

“We presented the Green and White Program to the departments asking, ‘What do you always wish at the end of each year that you could have accomplished but weren’t able to get to?’ With these hands, we’re trying to get to that list,” said Ms. Creagh.

For example, in the spring, the dining hall becomes especially hectic organizing prom, spring day, and other special events including Commencement Weekend. “Having extra help will be a real asset for us, because when we get really busy, sometimes these jobs don’t get done,” said Mr. McCarthy.

“We teach students academics in the classroom, table manners at sitdown, how to be good teammates with sports, and we’re now trying to introduce to everyone the value of doing something for someone else,” said Ms. Cullen. “We are trying to educate young people to lead fulfilling lives, to be citizens of the future.

Hopefully with everyone doing community service, students will realize that it’s hard to have as good a feeling doing anything else.”

Mathletes put on their game faces page 6

Dr. Wade Davis presented The Lost Amazon at a school meeting, the first of a two-part Academy Event that included meeting with students during class periods. He offered his lecture “Light at the Edge of the World” to the entire Deerfield community in the evening of April 6, 2009.

Like his impressive lifelong journeys to all seven continents of the world and his particularly long stays in the Amazon and the Andes, Dr. Davis’ presentation was “awe-inspiring and an opening of different perspectives,” according to Yujin Nam ’11.

Dean of Studies Peter Warsaw, who arranged the Academy Event, described Dr. Davis as “a man who has cultivated the talents he needed and found a way to use them as skills, eventually creating an interesting journey for himself.”

Dr. Davis began his speech with the statement, “We are all brothers and sisters, literally,” due to the interconnected genes of the entire human race. Dr. Davis told about “the different ways of being” and the myriad cultures that exist in the world.

From this idea about the world’s diversity stemmed Dr. Davis’ main argument regarding the significance of culture: “Human beings are the cause of cultural destruction, which means humans can also be the facilitators of cultural survival. In a single generation, a cultural tribe has collapsed. The foundation of other ways of life is melting.”

In a much broader sense, Dr. Davis attempted to relate to the audience the bountiful capabilities of men. “In the end, it comes down to this: What does it mean to be human and be alive? You have to be true to your inner heart and change what you want to do.”

According to Mr. Warsaw, the entire planning process for the academy event took almost one year, through much communication between Mr. Warsaw and Dr. Davis.

Mr. Warsaw, explaining his choice, said, “Dr. Davis’ concern for not only the environment, but also for culture was very appealing. He is one that can help answer some of the most essential, yet most cryptic questions of life: Who are we, exactly? Who am I in the process of becoming? I thought for the Deerfield student body that it’d be helpful to have models and be awakened by possible paths that one might take in the near future.”

Dr. Davis considers himself as “more of an anthropologist.”

Although he has a degree in ethnobotany from Harvard University, he is most interested in human social relationships and their history and culture than with the “botany” component of his degree.

Having written for the National Geographic, published twelve books, produced ten films, lived within fifteen indigenous cultures, and made six thousand botanical collections, it is no surprise that he is often referred to as the “Indiana Jones of the 21st century.” Dr. Davis is currently working on a four-hour series of films for the National Geographic and will be shot in regions all over the world, from Mongolia to Colombia.

Sources: www.nationalgeographic.com

2

OPINION / EDITORIAL

The Deerfield Scroll

April 22, 2009

Letter From the Editor VOL. LXXXIV, NO. 1

APRIL 22, 2009

Dear Reader,

Editor-in-Chief

LUCY COBBS Layout Editor ELLEN SHIN Assistant Layout Editor SARAH KIM Photo Editor STEPHANIE OLIVAS

Front Page CAMILLE COPPOLA Opinion/Editorial JOHANNA FLATO

Photo Associate ELEANOR PARKER Business Manager WILL SCOTT

Arts & Entertainment TAO TAO HOLMES Features AMANDA MINOFF

Editorial Associates EMMETT KNOWLTON YU-JIN NAM GRACE MURPHY ELISABETH STRAYER

Sports CYRUS WITTIG

Advisors SUZANNE HANNAY, JOHN PALMER & JULIE SCHLOAT

STAFF REPORTERS: Audrey Cho, Daryl Cooley, Kayla Corcoran, Danielle Dalton, Ashik Desai, Albert Ford, Anna Gonzales, Miles Griffis, Alexander Heller, Jade Kasoff, Charles Kim, Francis Lauw, Eunice Lee, Theo Lipsky, Matt McKelvey, Sarah Oh, Julia Trehu, Christopher Wong, Michael Yang STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS: Arleen Chien, Jennifer Coulombe, Eliza Gentzler, Susanna Kvam

As Deerfield continues to adapt and evolve, it is crucial that there be a consistent source for students, faculty, and alumni to turn to for reliable information and a space for everyone to share his or her opinions and ideas. Building upon the high-quality reporting and managing that Jason Jung ’09 and his staff maintained this past year, I would also like to emphasize the importance of community involvement and communication in Volume 84 of The Scroll. In the coming months, I want The Scroll to serve as a tool for past and present Deerfield students to connect with each other and for different members of the community to share their perspectives. Already, two non-student readers have sent in opinion letters that are printed below, and The Scroll hopes to receive many more in the future. To generate feedback and reactions, I would like to pose one question to you in each issue, inviting your thoughts and feedback through letters. Some topics of discussion will include the fairness of the United States drinking age and the appropriate “reach” of a school.

In tandem with The Scroll staff ’s hope to open up the paper as a space for community discussion, Head of School Margarita Curtis will be holding “Manse Chats” regularly each Sunday to connect with students. I hope these meetings will give you a chance to formulate ideas and questions that we can put into print in The Scroll. In an effort to communicate the progress of the seemingly vast Imagine Deerfield, I would like to publish an article or graphic each issue focusing on smaller, more “bite-sized” pieces of the program to make it more digestible.

Unfortunately, due to economic factors, we will no longer be sending out hard copies of The Scroll to alumni and relatives of students. The web version of the latest Scroll issue on http://danet.deerfield.edu/ under “Student Life,” is currently the only way for off-campus alumni and family members to view The Scroll; however, we are currently constructing Scroll Online and hope to have an official website in the fall.

I look forward to working with the talented editors of the 2009-2010 staff, maintaining and adding to the legacy of The Scroll. To reach our goals for this volume, however, we need your opinions, ideas, and constant feedback. So, whenever you feel especially frustrated about a school policy or overjoyed at some progress on campus or in the world, instead of venting or gushing to a friend, put pen to paper and write a letter to the scroll@deerfield.edu. You’d be surprised how therapeutic this can be.

The Deerfield Scroll, established in 1925, is the official student newspaper of Deerfield Academy. The Scroll encourages informed discussion of pertinent issues that concern the Academy and the world. Signed letters to the editor that express legitimate opinions are welcomed. We hold the right to edit for brevity. The Scroll, published nine times yearly, is entered as third class bulk rate at the U.S. Post Office at Deerfield, Mass. 01342. Advertising rates provided upon request.

Lucy Cobbs Editor-in-Chief

Opinion articles with contributors’ names attached solely represent the views of the respective writers.

Opinion articles without names represent consensus views of the editorial staff unless otherwise specified.

Proctor Selection Confusion It seems as if this year’s revised proctor selection process, with its newly instated changes, created more of the usual controversy and confusion that it had originally sought to eliminate.

Some of the revisions from last year’s process included the incorporation of a peer-evaluation component as well as student-initiated conversations between proctor candidates and members of the selection committee.

The peer-review component, for which members of the junior class had to rate all their classmates on a one-to-five scale for various attributes, was impersonal and slightly chaotic.

Many students admitted to feeling rushed and, consequently, giving their peers arbitrary grades.

But it was after the class had gone through this process and candidates

had sent in their written applications that the disorder set in. Members of the selection committee had suggested that only those who were clearly undeserving of proctorship would be cut from the first round; however, after decisions were made, many students felt as if they had been unfairly judged.

We understand that choosing proctors is difficult in that it inevitably generates many hurt feelings and egos, but we would encourage members of the selection committee to keep in mind the value of communication. In future years, if students are clearly informed of all of the steps of the process and the specific credentials that the committee is looking for, much confusion and misunderstanding could be alleviated.

Keeping it Classy, On and Off Campus Most Deerfield students have immense respect for this school, this community, and their position here.

This keeps them from violating to a large degree our codes of conduct while on campus. This is a source of school pride: at Deerfield, we keep it classy. Deerfielders brush off comments about DA “snobbishness” because we know that our critics are simply mislabeling the high standards we hold ourselves to.

Yet it seems that many of these same students see vacations such as Long Fall Weekend, Christmas Break, Long Winter Weekend, and Spring Break as exceptions to this standard.

After months of holding themselves to standards well above those of many of their friends at home, Deerfield students take advantage of vacation settings, treating them as moments of “liberation” during which they can do whatever they want without fear of tarnishing their on-school reputation.

Keep in mind, however, that Deerfield maintains the right to take disciplinary action if, “whether under the Academy’s or your parents’ jurisdiction… your behavior jeopardizes the welfare or reputation of the Academy.”

For those who aren’t a part of or are new to the Deerfield community, these expectations may sound invasive and daunting. However, remember that DA to Z considers the core values of this community to be “respect for self, respect for others, and respect for the environment in which we live.” We must recognize the jeopardy in which our silly mistakes place the school.

Everyone has dismissed schools during the application process based on reputation. Don’t let this happen to Deerfield.

Whether on campus or in another country, when you find yourself in a compromising position, refrain from misbehavior and keep it classy.

We like Textbooks in Books!

While we admit that math textbooks are often thrown away at the end of each school year, online textbooks would only interfere with students’ individual studying methods.

While making math books available online aims to eliminate wasteful spending, a better budget-conscious solution is to recycle or exchange them. Web-based textbooks would limit the hours students could do their homework, let alone could potentially cause eye damage! Other subjects that require more annotations, such as English and history, should continue

to offer class materials in printed book form. Highlighting, writing notes in margins, and immersing oneself physically in a textbook enhances and facilitates students’ learning processes. We should not prevent students from learning in this traditional manner––through the printed word.

Words on a screen would teach us to write, read, and think through a device; hand-writing notes in a book allows us to be a part, physically, of the learning, and fosters individual thinking, free from technological and Internet-related distractions.

Letters to the Editor Re: “Israel’s Right to Defense,” February 4, 2008

With great interest, I read “Israel’s Right to Defense” in the February 4, 2008, issue of The Deerfield Scroll.

There are a few points worth addressing, as some of the commentary is slightly biased simply because of the circumstance in which many of us were raised: in an social ideology, heavily influenced by Christendom’s historical affirmation of the Hebrew Scriptures and, similarly, its rooted rebuke of Muslim expansion both in Islam’s Golden Age and, notably and more currently, in the policies of some of western Europe’s American allies.

This commentary is not a challenge to the complicated facts raised in the article, but rather an acknowledgment that we are innocent victims of the ideologies and influences of our places of birth.

Foremost, the Qur’an honors the people of The Book; those emerging from the story of Abraham: Jews, Christians and Muslims. These are known as dhimmi, and they are frequently addressed and honored in the holy Islamic text. Additionally, dhimmi included those non-Muslims in early Islamic history that were protected by the pluralistic ideology of the followers of Mohammed, the prophet of Islam. One of his many great, beneficent acts was to promote a religious tolerance generally unheard of in the years during his life; this expectation continued for many years following his death. The author of the commentary in The Deerfield Scroll identifies the Jew, according to Muslims, only as “the infidel,” a characterization less prevalent in original Muslim sources than that of an honored people, one whose prophets were as influential and instructive as Mohammed himself. Mohammed, however, became Allah’s final messenger, and that is the distinction worth identifying as we

sort out similarities and differences in theology.

Secondly, it is stated that “Jews are known to have had a continuous presence in Israel for the past 3,300 years.” What this judeocentric sentiment leaves out, however, is that the Jews had to battle the people of Canaan, among many others, in order to enter into the land. Though, according to the Tanakh, it was a “land flowing with milk and honey,” we must also remember that there were residents there that did not affirm a Jewish monotheism, and these people felt as deserving of the land on which their lives depended.

Relatedly, the people of Canaan, as Islamic history is understood, had a geneaological connection from Noah’s son Ham through to Ishmael, the son of Abraham from whom an ArabMuslim nation emerged. It is not ironic to recognize that Ham, in the Hebrew Scriptures, is cursed by his father Noah. In clear terms, this gave the Hebrews permission to persecute the people of Ham. Finally, the article claims that “Mohammed never came to Jerusalem.” It is a Qur'anic fact Mohammed himself was escorted to Jerusalem by God in one of the holiest moments in all of religious history, where Mohammed saw heaven and hell and had the opportunity to be in direct contact with God. One of the most beautiful structures in Jerusalem is the Dome of the Rock, a sanctuary enclosing the rock from which Mohammed went to heaven with God. Appropriately, a common Jewish understanding is that this event did not occur. It is not the only disagreement between these two traditions, but it is worth mentioning that Jerusalem, according to both traditions, holds a place of utmost esteem and reverence.

My interest in commenting on the well-written article is not to negate the important Jewish considerations in this eternal, seemingly unresolvable, conflict, but simply to continue to ask all members of this community to

first name and question our own biases before affirming them as fact.

Especially when it comes to religion, the human virtue of humility should be raised above others, and certainly a final claim of truth, in whatever form it comes, should forever be like the horizon, always within focus but forever out of reach.

Dean of Students Jan Flaska

Re: “The Mysterious Disappearance of the Koch Center Computers,” February 4, 2008 For our 50th reunion, the great class of 1954 focused our gift on being “worthy of and preserving our heritage.” With that as our vision, we dedicated part of our funds to the construction of an environmental classroom and lab in the Koch Science Center, and the remainder to establishing a faculty chair for the teaching of environmental science.

Over the past five years I have come to realize how prophetic our thoughts were. We were pleased to learn that this year Deerfield instituted the A.P. course in Environmental Science.

Consequently the recent editorial in your March 4th edition of The Scroll entitled “The Mysterious Disappearance of the Koch Center Computers” has me mystified as well.

Are we trying to cut costs in these challenging economic times or is this a matter of communication? To me, it seems only natural that the Koch Center have a space dedicated for student research with access to computers and printers.

We are returning for our 54th reunion this June. It would be nice if this student/faculty space conflict can be resolved and the study of environmental science be preserved in its natural environment.

Gordon R. “Zeke” Knight ’54

Should the United States lower the drinking age to 18?

The Scroll wants to hear your opinion on this topic.

Email lcobbs@deerfield.edu, scroll@deerfield.edu, or jflato@deerfield.edu with your comments.

Hard copies of The Scroll will no longer be mailed off campus.

The web version can be found on http://danet.deerfield.edu under “Student Life”

9 0

OPINION / EDITORIAL

The Deerfield Scroll

7 8

Coed Deerfield:

0 2

..................................................

Plea From a Day Student in Limbo

As a student who commutes daily between school and one of two separate households, and who has to keep track of three musical instruments, schoolbooks, and sports equipment, I am a student in limbo, burdened by the physical world.

My experience with physical things of all types––CDs, books, running shoes, videogames, clothing, backpacks, instruments, cell phones––is one of inconvenience and anxiety. Not that it is all bad, but I often find myself worrying about my possessions and whether I have everything that I need. While some of these things can be a source of pleasure for us, and indeed may be necessary in our lives, most of them are not and can only serve to bother us. We are distracted by them: worrying that they might break or be stolen, or spending time and energy in their protection.

The use of door locks would be unnecessary without belongings to worry about. Our possessions can dis-

rupt our peace of mind and hinder our aspirations.

We heard this fall that along with sayings like “Look to the hills,” Frank Boyden often spoke of the virtue of mobility. Both mental mobility, the ability to adapt to new situations and think clearly, and physical mobility, the ability to explore and move about the world, are inhibited by the objects which surround our lives.

This doesn’t seem to discourage us at Deerfield. The majority of our dorm rooms are filled to their capacity with personal possessions.

But this material indulgence is short-sighted; within the next few years, most students will attend a college or university in which the majority of the rooms are shared. Living with a roommate tests one’s ability to organize their belongings, and in this case “less” is almost always “more”.

I expect many Deerfield graduates will travel abroad during or after higher education, and they will find that the things they have accumulated over the years no longer fit their lifestyle. What would I do with my multi-colored plaid shorts in London?

Would my collection of 27 Vineyard

Vines ties be fashionable in Montreal?

What about Nairobi?

This is a trend: most things we buy we enjoy for only the first few weeks of our possession of them, and then they become obsolete. When that time comes around we regret their presence in our lives and try to cast them away.

If the future of our alumni is such, then why don’t we get ahead of the game and start trimming down our collection of useless things? Try what I’ve done: ask yourself, do you own those things, or do they own you? Will you use those things or will you worry about them? Use this questioning before you buy things and you could save a lot of money. This process has produced great results for me, and in hindsight I’m glad that I didn’t buy those stocks in AIG. I’m certain that with all of the responsibilities and worries we students have already, your life could be a little simpler. By ridding yourself of material objects you will live your life more freely and happily. The Dalai Lama said recently that if one is to be sane, “he won’t let himself be overwhelmed by the lure of technology and by the madness of possession.”

The Housing Lottery: Compassion and Consistency Clash

By PAUL PASCUICCO Contributing Writer Last year, after observing the number of student complaints over the housing system, Dean of Students Toby Emerson and his team dramatically changed the process. Stung by accusations flung by students and parents over the unfairness of the system, the deans worked to randomize the selection process, replacing the previous system of accommodation with an arbitrary but equitable alternative.

With complete fairness, there could be no complaints––no outcry over inequity.

While total equality is a worthy goal, it is completely unattainable.

Inevitably, this system just shifts the blame from the Dean of Students office to the number system. And manipulation remains, as the deans reserve the right to designate dorm rooms for new students and to move students based on diverse criteria.

This new system is consistent but not compassionate. In their quest for fairness, the deans threw out an old system that treated all student choices equally and tried to sort out the best combination of desires to determine who went where.

With the new system, roughly half of students receive their first or second choices, while others are placed in their last choice dorm simply because of number choice. Additionally, since only one housing partner is allowed per person, the new system jeopardizes chances of being with one’s friends, increasing the premium put on certain dorms.

The dean’s move is understandable, as it became increasingly hard to justify to complaining students their reasoning as it often involved an arbitrary decision over students’ competing interests. Personally, I have done well with both systems. However, on my hall last year, Scaife 2, I felt as if the deans created a motley confluence

of people who most likely wouldn’t have requested to live together. Under the new system, friend groups are increasingly fragmented and divided.

Instead of allowing the deans wider latitude, our complaints have forced them into a fair but less compassionate and arbitrary system.

Under the old system, students would (usually) be placed with friends or in the dorm of choice. By presenting the deans with more information––multiple friends one would live with, ideal dorm, previous year’s success in the lottery––the deans could form thoughtful dorms out of this

This graphic represented the entire editorial of the October 16, 1987, issue ofThe Scroll.

Along with the editors, 61% of the student body opposed coeducation.

Coeducation Twenty Years Later

..................................................

A Case Against Deerfield Materialism:

By NICK WHITTREDGE Contributing Writer

3

19 Twenty years after Deerfield readmitted girls, coeducation not only has managed to preserve the Deerfield Legacy, but has brought Deerfield unprecedented success.

..................................................

April 22, 2009

calculus. Under the older system, more students were happy, rather than the limited number of very happy students under the new system.

I call upon Mr. Emerson to reinstate the old system. Don’t let the few loud complainers yell over the crowd of happy students. We as students also need to learn that our complaints are unnecessary and antagonize the same deans who painstakingly sort out our competing desires.

There will be unhappy students under any system. Let’s return to the system that makes the most number happy: the old one.

By JULIA TREHU Staff Writer This coming September will mark the 20th anniversary of Deerfield’s return to coeducation after an all-male stint from 1948 to 1988. In retrospect, Deerfield’s success at coeducation is obvious. Still, it is interesting to look at the variety of opinions for and against this shift that were voiced here in The Scroll, only two decades ago.

In a 1987 poll, only 39% of students approved of coeducation if Deerfield remained at an enrollment of 560. Even if Deerfield increased to 600 students, only 45% supported the admission of girls. This poll came only a few months before the Board of Trustees voted affirmatively on the issue. So did the pros end up outweighing the cons?

When reading articles from 1980s issues of The Scroll against coeducation, I expected to find dated, chauvinistic opinions, wildly opposing female admission without any valid arguments except self-righteous postulations about the glory of “tradition” and “brotherhood.” However, while I found some quotes that supported my assumptions, others introduced opinions that had never really come to mind.

“Teenagers by nature are selfconscious beings,” states a 1987 article. “At Deerfield, because we do not have that more intense self-consciousness that comes with being observed by females, we can be more relaxed and more ourselves…No where else have I seen boys be so openly fond of each other.”

A similar article from November 1986 describes how “Girls would spark a new, unnecessary, and abrasive rivalry amongst us and create cutthroat competition for grades and extracurricular positions. Coeducation would polarize Deerfield, and we would become so preoccupied with impressing each other that every aspect would suffer.”

I find these worries about competition and self-consciousness intriguing. Were boys really afraid of showing their brotherly comradeship in

front of girls? Twenty years later, in a media culture filled with shows like MTV’s Bromance, essentially a “dating” show for heterosexual guys, it seems like males and especially “Deerfield Boys” still are just as “openly fond of each other.”

As for the “competition” that would be fostered among boys for grades, sports, and extracurricular activities, I also find this an interesting argument. Yes, no one wants to create unnecessary “abrasive rivalry,” but, in my opinion, healthy competition can often be a driving force behind success. Is it bad to want to work and achieve higher grades, or spend extra hours in the gym preparing for sports, or join a club that interests you?

Deerfield students’ level of academic success has jumped significantly since the admission of girls, perhaps due in part to this increase in much-feared “rivalry.”

Another argument I found remarkable was the fear that Deerfield would “transform from a closely-knit community to an institution, with the resulting bureaucratization and loss of flexibility and human response,” as laments an editorial from 1986.

Considering the fact that Deerfield was not planning on increasing enrollment by more than about 40 students, I find this opinion very narrow-minded. Often here at D.A, the word “community” is used as such a catchphrase that we forget what it really means. To say that Deerfield would become “institutionalized” with coeducation implies that only boys are capable of forming a close-knit community, which clearly has not been the case.

While I found these arguments against coeducation to be remarkable educational tools for examining the mindset of fellow D.A community members two decades ago, in the end, the pros of coeducation, visible to all of us, overshadow any perceived negativity.

As English teacher Frank Henry ’69 eloquently wrote in 1986, “If we are willing to let our traditional, romantic vision of Deerfield slip into the past, we place ourselves in a position where we may more completely examine how to live humanly.”

Driving Lessons: Knowledge From Behind the Wheel of a Car It’s 6:50 a.m. on a Sunday morning.

Much earlier than I wake up for classes.

My alarm clock screams in my ear. I hastily pull on sweats, grab my permit, and stumble down the stairs and out the door of my dorm knowing I am already late. I can see the red car plastered with stickers from Liberty Driving School waiting for me in front of the Main School Building. I know that Nekke, one of the most eccentric people I have ever met, is waiting for me. I pull open the door and slide into the back seat next to a boy about my age with greasy hair and the distinct odor of a habitual smoker. “I’m Haley,” I say. “Jake,” he replies. “Ian,” the boy behind the wheel says over his shoulder. “We thought we were gonna have to wake your ass up,” Nekke jokingly scolds me.

The car is filled by Nekke’s chatter as we pull out of my Deerfield, and into the Franklin County that my three companions know. Main Street quickly becomes the back roads that wind past road-side farm stands and old tobacco barns. The conversation turns to cars and suddenly the boy beside me, silent until this point, perks up. Nekke spits out a stream of car jargon and I am instantly lost. Jake, however, seems to know exactly what she is talking about.

“Yeah, we had to build a carburetor in shop this week.” He and Nekke go back and forth discussing the car he is building in his shop class. The fast pace at which this car is being built catches my attention. I ask him how he can get so much done by only working in class. He explains to me that he goes to Franklin County Tech, a vocational school. He tells me, with pride, that he only has classes every other week and spends the weeks in between working on his car. He can name every part of the car and can even build some of them himself. His dull green eyes light up when he begins to talk about his hope to be a mechanic. “You know all about trucks too, dontcha,” Nekke encourages. And he goes on and on about his father’s truck.

This boy is just one of the many faces i have seen, one of the many stories I have heard, inside a Liberty Driving School car. One girl enlightened me to the workings of the public school bus system. Another boy complained about how

By HALEY PATOSKI Contributing Writer

the cops had shown up at a party he was at the night before. And one girl said very little, but she voiced without words her complaints about raising her two younger brothers while her mother worked two jobs.

Sometimes I think Nekke forgets I am a DA kid. Once, as I turned the key, I could see in her face she was furious about something. Without prompting, she flew into a rant about a certain boy, I knew instantly who he was, who spoke to her with such a sense of entitlement that she wanted to, in her own words, “ring his neck.” She continued in her outrage to tell me about what a piece of work his mother was. I knew from experience that the best response to these stories was to smile and allow her to vent. I know these kids. And I know that they would never speak that way to a teacher or coach. But I guess Nekke is different because Nekke isn’t connected with their Deerfield. Nekke isn’t a part of their world.

Deerfield surrounds us with others just like ourselves. We come here, into a world of privilege, and most of us choose to ignore the roads we travel to arrive. Most of us make the journey with our heads bent over the screen of an iPod or cell phone, not noticing what passes by our windows. Yet this bubble of wealth and privilege lies in the middle of some of the worst poverty in the state.

Across America those of privilege seldom realize just how privileged they are.

Their attention is never drawn to the family struggling to get by or the children who might not get all of the toys on their wish list this Christmas. Most Americans, like the students arriving on campus, will bend their heads and pretend not to see. They rush by, hurrying off to their important lives.

Ironically, not until I came to Deerfield was I able to witness such poor neighborhoods first hand. Not until I came to a place of unimaginable wealth did I truly see poverty. And like many Americans, most students here don’t realize what they are seeing. But my advice to all of you is this: next time you get into the Liberty Driving School car, or take a cab into town, or even order food at Mesa Verde, take a moment to listen to what these people are saying to you.

Listen to their stories because the most important lesson I have yet to learn at Deerfield was not taught to me by a teacher in a classroom; it was taught to me by a kid behind the wheel of a car.

4

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

The Deerfield Scroll

INGRID KAPTEYN ’09 RAISES THE BARRE

By DARYL COOLEY Staff Writer This spring, Ingrid Kapteyn ’09 became one of only 12 female dancers to be accepted into The Juilliard School.

The highly selective school searches for the most dedicated and talented artists throughout the country. The dance division, of which Kapteyn will be a member next year, held eight separate auditions in six different cities. Each audition had approximately 60 applicants. Of 650 or so total applicants, only 12 female and 12 male dancers were accepted–– a 5% acceptance rate.

As Kapteyn explained, the application process “began on paper.” Like the other colleges and conservatories that she applied to, Juilliard requires a written essay, teacher recommendations, and a transcript.

However, unlike other colleges, the written application is followed by a live audition. “It’s definitely a very different admissions experience,” said Director of College Advising Martha Lyman. “Ingrid could see who she was competing against, rather than just sending in applications and getting word back three months later.”

The audition was an intense multiple-step process testing each dancer’s technique, versatility, and ability to learn new choreography. “The day began with a full ballet and abbreviated modern class,” explained Kapteyn.

After the two classes, first cuts were made on the spot.

Then, each dancer performed a prepared solo. After all the dancers finished, second cuts were made.

The remaining dancers were next divided into groups and taught choreography. As a “team,” each group had to perform the newly-learned choreography, showing each dancer’s ability to pick up a dance in a short amount of time, as well as how he/she could perform in a miniature “ensemble.”

Following the group performances, the third cuts were made. “The final leg of the audition,” said Kapteyn “was an interview, which was one-onone.”

At the end of a long day, the original group of 60 became a small group of six—Kapteyn included.

Kapteyn’s decision to attend Juilliard will shift her focus from aca-

Illse Kapteyn ‘12

Ingrid Kapteyn ’09 will join the dance program at Juilliard this fall. demics to dance. Next year, she will a Deerfield student.” With Deerfield’s only be taking one academic class per classes, sports, and extra-curricular day. Still, Kapteyn is confident in all activities, it might seem impossible for that Deerfield has taught her, remark- a student to focus so much on a speing, “Deerfield is like a small college, cific endeavor. Kapteyn’s rigorous and I feel that I won’t be at a loss for schedule and extra-curricular commitments, such as Albany Road and Round education.”

Kapteyn’s strong determination Square, only make her acceptance and excitement to “focus only on more impressive.

Juilliard, located in New York dance for the first time in [her] life” impresses those who know her. “I City, is a prestigious performing arts can’t think of anyone, in my twenty institute for drama, music and dance. years at this school,” said Ms. Lyman, The school is designed, as Juilliard’s “who was as serious about pursuing President Joseph W. Polisi said, “to help talented students harness their her performance interest as Ingrid.”

While the rest of her class applied dedication to become communicative to Ivy League universities and some of artists… [and to] prepare our students the top liberal arts schools in the for a life in the arts.”

Kapteyn is still in disbelief that country, Kapteyn ’09 auditioned at her dream has come true. “Juilliard prestigious dance conservatories.

“Even to apply to a conservato- was always a possibility, but it never ry,” explained Ms. Lyman, “is rare for seemed like it would be real.”

Illegal Media Downloads A Federal Offense but a Campus Life Norm

By AUDREY CHO Staff Writer “Did you see the new Gossip Girl last night?”

“Yeah, during study hall!”

Do you illegally download media (music, movies, TV shows) off the internet? yes 46.1%

no 53.9%

What type of media do you download the most?

Other: 1.6% TV shows 19.8%

Movies 3.2%

Music 75.4%

How often do you download online?

Once a month

Once a day 12.7

45.2%

Twice a week

Once a week

15.1%

27%

Conversations like this about the latest shows or movies are the norm on campus. But with limited access to TV, how do boarding students keep up with current broadcasts?

The answer is attributed to the rising popularity of illegal media downloading sites such as limewire and surfthechannel.com. These sites enable students to download music, movies, and TV shows, and keep up to date with their favorite programs.

Why do we download off the internet? According to a recent survey, a vast majority enjoyed the cost (read: free) and the convenience. Rose Pember ’11 also claimed, “Not everything is on iTunes.”

Downloading media from unofficial sources is a criminal offense, however, “It seems the school and ITS focus on it [illegal downloading]only because of viruses, not ‘artists’ rights,’” said Pember.

When questioned about the immorality of illegal downloads, Curtis Oh ’11 said, “They [artists] should choose a different job if they have a problem. Part of being an artist is being pirated.”

Still, there are a surprising number of students who stick to the legal system, downloading only from iTunes or purchased CDs. An honest music buyer, Palmer Quamme ’11 has purchased the majority of her songs. With her iTunes account hooked to her parents’ credit card, she admits the cost has added up over the years. Still, Quamme’s parents support her. “My parents think illegal downloading is like stealing so they don’t want me doing it.” As a plus, her computer is less exposed to harmful internet virus-

es. Another bonus is the quality of her media; downloading from iTunes assures music of prime caliber.

Even Quamme is guilty of the occasional legal transgression, however. Like other Deerfield students, she has a practical reason. “Being at school makes it harder to get movies legally––you can’t just go to Blockbuster!”

So is trying to prevent illegal media downloads on campus a hopeless cause? “Not exactly,” said Pember.

“If I were the school, I would just promote iTunes more.”

Many students like Quamme share what may be a more realistic point of view. “Unfortunately, the internet’s a hard thing to control,” she said. Ultimately, no matter how many security systems the school imposes and how much the school condemns illegal downloading on campus, “We’re always going to find a way.”

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL-STATE MUSIC FESTIVAL PARTICIPANTS: Andy Kang ‘10 Ellen Shin ‘10 Akshaya Avril-Tucker ‘11 Katie Yoon ‘11

April 22, 2009

KAYLA’S BOOK NOOK Book reviewer Kayla Corcoran ’09 offers a fresh perspective on a 1985 Colombian classic

By KAYLA CORCORAN Book Reviewer “It was inevitable: the scent of bitter almonds always reminded him of the fate of unrequited love.” From the very beginning, the sensuality of the language in Gabriel García Márquez’s novel Love in the Time of Cholera warmly invites the reader to contemplate the very physical nature of love—what it feels like, what it tastes and smells like—as Márquez guides the reader through the oftentimes sad, but beautiful lives of his protagonists.

Progressive yet eccentric Dr. Juvenal Urbino, unassuming and dedicated Florentino Ariza, and beautiful Fermina Daza collectively form the framework of Márquez’s story: three intricate characters caught in a complex web of love and circumstance.

Love in the Time of Cholera recounts Florentino Ariza’s patient wait for the love of his youth, Fermina Daza, as she passes the years married to the handsomely charming Dr. Urbino. The novel finds an unlikely hero in Ariza, a willowy, fragile man who possesses neither incredible wit nor charisma––just an ideological (and sometimes outrageous) sense of love that is capable of overshadowing all else.

Ariza remains “emotionally” loyal to Fermina Daza, though, in the course of his lifetime, he engages in 622 affairs with other women: widows, young girls, and even one escapee from a nearby asylum.

The near-endless accounts of Ariza’s trials and affairs, as well as Fermina Daza’s exploration of her marriage into the privileged class tend to slow the pace of the novel towards

the middle, but the most significant portion of the novel’s literary merits stem not from the pace or the plot, but from Márquez’s curiously vivid and haunting descriptions of the setting.

As the plot winds its way in and out of time, the one constant is the unnamed Caribbean island that serves as the backdrop for the story. The lyrical quality of the description is almost sickeningly entrancing; the reader must take caution not to fall too deeply into the streets “full of paper garlands, music, flowers, and girls with colored parasols and muslin ruffles” lest he forget the actual narrative of the novel. Still, the effect is dazzling.

Through contrasting descriptions of the “city of the Viceroys” and “the old slave quarter,” where “everything [looks] wretched and desolate,” Márquez brings a rich history to his fictional Caribbean island city that feels real enough to be a true historical account. The reader becomes “an easy victim to the charitable deceptions of nostalgia” as he experiences an inherent pull towards an island he has never known and that frankly, may only exist in the imagination of the author.

But the nostalgia works also as a literary tool, connecting the reader to the plight of Ariza, whose desire to return to the youthful days of his feverish and half-secret romance with Fermina Daza consumes almost every one of his thoughts.

Love in the Time of Cholera never moralizes; it only presents the reader with numerous situations that seem to represent the exception to every rule.

Along the sensual, eccentric, quietly humorous journey, the reader will catch himself defining and redefining the traditional ideas of love, fidelity, and the human experience.

Arsenic and Old Lace A Play to Die for

By ELISABETH STRAYER Staff Writer Just in time for spring, the theatre department is preparing to put on the comedy Arsenic and Old Lace. Director of the Theatre Department John Reese is excited to direct the play, known for its unusual plotline, for his first time.

Set in a Victorian house, it features two elderly ladies who enjoy typical grandmotherly activities such as baking, taking soup to the ill, and hosting the minister for tea. Meaning well, they take to poisoning lonely old men with the “kindly” intention of freeing them from painful lives.

Their nephew, convinced that he is Teddy Roosevelt, willingly rids the ladies of the men’s bodies by burying them in the basement.

Their other nephew, shocked by his aunts’ deathly doings, attempts to stop them, at the same time trying to romance the minister’s daughter. Mr. Reese described the show as a “crazy little play” and a “darker, black comedy.” Bringing laughter in dreary war times, it was a hit in both America and Europe.

Since the play’s initial success on Broadway in 1941, audiences have been delighting in its morbid humor.

“It’s a play that older people know,” Mr. Reese said. Nearly all the characters are older people as well. So how will this cast of teenagers visually create the illusion that they are several decades older, and from a different generation?

David Morales ’12, who will be making his Deerfield acting debut as the character Mr. Gibbs, said that some actors are cutting their hair for the production in order to better suit the time period.

Jake Barnwell ’12, another newcomer, added, “There will be different costumes of the era, many haircuts and wigs, and stage makeup to make wrinkles.”

Along with hair and makeup, Mr. Reese said that the actors will further the illusion of adulthood by practicing “the way they walk and the way they

get out and sit down from chairs.”

They are even preparing to watch local elders to learn to mimic their natural movements.

According to Sarah Woolf ’12, Mr. Reese suggested that she and Anne Jamison ’09, who play the two eccentric lead ladies, watch older women at the store on weekday mornings. “The next day we have a long weekend, being the day stud that I am, I’m going to the grocery store to watch old ladies,” said Woolf.

Mr. Reese added that the actors will practice speaking by shaping their mouths more vertically, imitating the way in which many older people talk.

But those won’t be the only unusual styles of speech onstage.

Among other characters, such as the doctor and policemen, the audience will be hearing New York, Irish, and German accents.

“The next day we have a long weekend...

I’m going to the grocery store to watch old ladies.”

––Sarah Woolf Some of the actors will be exploring their abilities even further; since the play originally had only three women’s roles, Mr. Reese gave female students the chance to appear onstage in the roles of men.

Of the 14 characters, eight are major, an atypically large percentage of the cast. The smaller roles are good too, making this a perfect production for all of the actors, including the four who have never before appeared in a Deerfield production––Morales, Barnwell, Lydia Hand ’09, and Dean of Students Toby Emerson.

Mr. Emerson’s excellent audition scored him the role of Lieutenant Rooney, a character that Mr. Reese said was better suited to be played by an adult.

Arsenic and Old Lace is “light but it’s got that dark edge,” said Mr. Reese with a grin. “It’s a fun way to end the year.”

FEATURES

The Deerfield Scroll

April 22, 2009

5

King’s Academy in Jordan Continues to Flourish in the Second Year of its Reign

By THEO LIPSKY Staff Writer

Beth Bishop Tao Tao Holmes ’10, Caitlin Cook ’12 and Hannah Wulkan ’12 work together to build a local family’s house.

Eleven Deerfield students traveled to the Dominican Republic over Spring Break as part of the Cambiando Vidas project.

Regional Round Square Conference Focuses on Finding IDEAL Environmental Solution

By DANIELLE DALTON Staff Writer This spring, four Deerfield students will be attending a Round Square conference hosted by the Hotchkiss School. The conference, titled “Balancing Act: Is Sustainable Attainable?” focuses on achieving environmental sustainability.

Round Square is an international organization which links schools around the globe by the shared belief in six IDEALS: Internationalism, Democracy, Environment, Adventure, Leadership and Service. Schools associated with Round Square strive to be more than just institutions of higher learning; they aim to help students can become educated, responsible, and globally aware citizens.

Unlike past international conferences that Deerfield has participated in, the Hotchkiss conference is a regional event, meaning only schools from the Americas will be attending.

Round Square Steering Committee Member Ellie Parker ’11 explained,

“The conference will be a little more focused on what we, specifically in North America, are facing in terms of sustainability problems.” Parker participated in the international conference in Vancouver earlier this fall and noted it “also had an environmental focus, but was more about the world in general.”

Associate Head of School and Director of College Advising Martha Lyman remarked, “I hope that students will become more educated and come back to Deerfield to share what they learned.”

“I hope that students will become more educated and come back to Deerfield to share what they learned” ––Ms. Lyman Parker, also an environmental proctor, added that “sustainability is particularly pertinent in 2009 because it not only draws on the environmental issues, but also the economy. Being

International Exchange Students Further Diversify Deerfield Campus

By Jade Kasoff Staff Writer

Steph Olivas

Mari Yamada Mari Yamada ’11 comes to Deerfield from a very different private school in Tokyo, Japan. Yamada described the academic environment of her school in Tokyo as being characterized by note-taking and memorizing and consisting of lecture-based classes which average thirty students. She noted that discussions between students and teachers at her school “are rare occurrences.”

Every year, two students from her school are selected, after taking a competitive test, to go to two different American schools. Yamada’s father and sister both participated in this program, and therefore knew that this would be a valuable opportunity.

“I’ve always wanted to come to America,” Yamada said, “I wanted to come here so that I could learn English better and experience a different culture.”

Her favorite class is Latin American History with Conrad Pitcher because she has never studied the subject before.

After school, Yamada participates in the co-curricular dance program. She has been dancing since kindergarten and has had training in jazz, hip-hop, and ballet. But even the language of dance varies geographically, so the experience is somewhat new for her.

Yamada expressed her excitement at being at Deerfield: “I like it a lot here. I think going to school here fulltime would be nice.”

Steph Olivas

Tabea Breternitz Tabea Breternitz ’10 hails from a Round Square boarding school in Germany which has many similarities to Deerfield. Like Deerfield, she explained, students live in dorms and have check-ins; however, like Yamada’s school, classes are less discussionbased. She remarks, “Sitting around a round table and just talking throughout a whole class is definitely new to me.”

Breternitz was inspired to apply for the exchange program after a friend made a presentation about his experience in a U.S. school last year.

Acceptance to this program in her school is based on class ranking, so her parents were extremely excited when she was admitted.

Although this is not Breternitz’s first visit to the U.S., she continues to be struck by the cultural differences. She reflected, “We have this idea that in America a beggar can become a millionaire… sort of the American dream thing. ” In Germany, Breternitz’s main sport is field hockey, but because she is only here for the spring term, she is trying dance for the first time.

Breternitz remarked that her favorite subject is history with Julia McCombs, describing her teacher as “very funny and enthusiastic.”

And indeed, Breternitz is adjusting to Deerfield life both inside and outside the classroom.

sustainable doesn’t just mean saving the Earth, but it also means reflecting on yourself, in the current economy and environmental situations, and seeing what you can do to change your ways.”

The typical Round Square Conference encompasses many components. Round Square Steering Committee Member Arleen Chien ’10 explained, “When I went [to the conference in Lima], we participated in barazza groups with faculty members and students. In addition, we discussed keynote speakers, service trips, and what our own schools did to fulfill the IDEALS of Round Square.”

The students going to the conference will stay in Hotchkiss dorms.

Keynote speakers will include Alice Waters, the founder of Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California, and Rick Duke of The Natural Resources Defense Council’s Center for Market Innovation.

Community service opportunities consist of removing invasive plant species in the Hotchkiss Woods, cleaning up local towns and roads, performing trail maintenance in the Berkshires, and working on an organic farm.

Ingrid Kapteyn ’09 who attended the 2007 conference in India added, “Just the experience of being on a campus with students and discussing, problem solving, and living all together is an incredible opportunity.”

Students Jason Jung ’09, Sam Gray ’10, Finn Leslie ’10, and Sarah Kim ’11 will attend the Hotchkiss conference taking place on April 20th.

As we approach the 2009 graduation at Deerfield, over in Jordan, another school year is coming to a close. The King’s Academy, founded by his majesty King Abdullah II ’80, will soon have completed its second full school year. The school has made tremendous progress since its start in the fall of 2007, proving that an academy modeled after a New England prep school can flourish in the Middle East.

Indeed, many facets of Deerfield life are reflected on the Jordan school’s campus. The class schedule is nearly identical, and the dining hall and school meeting routines resemble Deerfield’s own community-centered gatherings. Even the lawns, which English Teacher Suzanne Hannay noted as being “like grass on steroids,” mimic Deerfield’s pristine quads.

However, in spite of the school’s similarities to Deerfield, Ms. Hannay, who taught English at King’s last year, admitted, “It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life.” The experience required her to “rethink the whole idea of teaching.” She added, “It was a situation I thought I was prepared for, I thought I knew what I was getting into… But I had no idea. If you asked me in September if I wanted to go home, I would have said yes.”

Yet despite a somewhat discouraging start, Ms. Hannay “hated to leave” when the end of the 2008-2009 school year arrived.

A couple of members from the class of 2008 have also chosen to spend time at King’s Academy, working as gap year assistant. Joe Zych ’08, who has been coaching the debate team and helping out in the theater department and dorm, shares Ms. Hannay’s initial concerns about the school, but also recognizes its potential.

“The biggest obstacle the school seems to be facing is its age,” Zych remarked, “there are still kinks being worked out, both on a grand scale and in day-to-day life, but as each day passes, it seems there are fewer dress code violations and more students picking up litter around campus.”

Another major challenge that confronts King’s Academy students is what Ms. Hannay describes as “an effort to get into the competitive mode at the same level of Deerfield students.”

And if King’s Academy is in fact intended to meet Deerfield’s high caliber, it has a long way to go. When eight King’s students returned to Jordan from their day-long trip at Deerfield last year, Ms. Hannay

explained that “they came back with a sense of how it was done. They spread the word like wildfire, that if they wanted to compete, they would have to change the way they acted in class.”

With this incentive in mind, the school is in need of developing its own identity. Zych explained, “While there are certainly similarities to Deerfield, King’s is trying to move away from the notion of ‘Deerfield in the Desert.’ It is important to remember that while Deerfield is there for support, KA has very different goals than Deerfield, and therefore needs to be its own school.”

Still, regardless of the difficult tasks that may lie ahead, Zych noted

“There are still kinks being worked out, both on a grand scale and in day-to-day life” ––Joe Zych that “progress is definitely being made.”

And this progress is often the product of enthusiastic and inspirational characters like Zych and Ms. Hannay. Both attest to the fact that the opportunity to work there, while daunting and certainly different from life at Deerfield, is extremely rewarding.

Ms. Hannay remarked, “Just to get yourself to the region, to the Middle East, is crucial. You have to be a member of the world, you need to get there. You end up talking to country club kids from Amman as well as kids who live in Bedouin tents.”

Because King’s welcomes “students of any race, color, creed, special need or national origin,” Zych found that he has been able to immerse himself “in a culture so different from my own,” an experience which he noted, “will deeply impact my life for decades to come.”

It is this mix of cultural diversity and ambitious ideals that make the King’s Academy a challenging, but unique institution.

His Majesty King Abdullah II is currently in Washington, D.C. meeting with President Obama. Five of the King’s Academy students and several of Queen Raina’s Academy students traveling with the King will visit Deerfield briefly this Friday, April 24th.

Sources: http://kingsacademy.edu.jo

Deerfield 101 Midterm Quiz: Do You Know Your Teachers?

Which teacher lived in Italy for 2 years?

Mr. Freda

Which teacher got “slimed” on Nickelodeon?

Which teacher collects pens?

Ms. Ray

Dr. White

Which teacher seriously contemplated becoming a music major?

Mr. Anderson (Steve) Which teacher’s daughter was born in Rosenwald Dorm?

Ms. Cabral

Which teacher was on the cover of a catalogue with the Muppets when he/she was young? Mr.

Schloat

Which teacher worked with Mr. Heise in college?

Mr. Taylor

Which two teachers had summers jobs working on the railroad?

Mr. Marge and Mr. Thomas-Adams

6

SPORTS

The Deerfield Scroll

Dominating Down South: Boys’ Lax Takes Down National Powerhouse in Florida

By MILES GRIFFIS Staff Writer While most of the student body was lounging around on beaches, skiing on slippery slopes, or just relaxing at home, fifty-three of our lacrosse players headed down to Florida for a long and intense pre-season.

Head Coach Chip Davis was joined by Jan Flaska, Toby Emerson, and Tim McVaugh on the trip to watch over the players and help them improve their skills.

Kissimmee, Florida was the official location of the week-long trip, which took place during the second week of break. The weather was sizzling the whole week, in the upper seventies and eighties, and not a drop of rain fell.

During their stay, the players practiced three times a day: once in the morning, again around noon, and then finally in the evening. During at least one of the practices, the players completed difficult sets of conditioning to get them as fit and as agile as possible for the season.

In between the practices, the team played many top lacrosse schools.

Deerfield even took on the highlytouted Gilman School from Baltimore, MD who held the number one ranking at the time. Gilman was no match for the Deerfield boys, who defeated them 8-6 in their first scrimmage.

“We had a strong game against the number one team. Everyone played exceptionally.” said Drew Philie ’09.

The boys also beat Kent, Denver, Pomfret, and the Pingry School of

New Jersey. Playing many schools outside of the league certainly helped the team see where they matched up.

The boys did get the occasional break from the busy week, traveling to Universal Studios for an afternoon.

“Taking a break from the strenuous practices really helped to boost the team’s morale, and enabled us to get a lot of work done during our last days on the trip,” said defenseman John Zurlo ’10. The team even got to see a Cirque de Soleil show while in Florida.

Even though the trip was a valuable way to improve the team and sharpen their skills, it was also a perfect opportunity to have tryouts for the team. The entire trip helped shape the final roster for varsity. The skill level of the lacrosse players on the trip was high, and this year the program ended up taking thirty-five boys on varsity for the 2009 season.

“We had a strong game against the number one team. Everyone played exceptionally” –– Drew Philie The trip proved to be effective, as the team has already disposed of Berkshire, Westminster, and KUA. Through five games, the team scored 59 goals, while allowing only 23, including a 14-4 bludgeoning of Choate on April 11. Philie summed up the team saying “We have a great team this season. Everyone is on board to help the team to be the best we can be.

It should be a very exciting spring for the Deerfield lacrosse team.”

April 22, 2009

Mathletes Go for the Gold

By SARAH OH Staff Writer Under the guidance of Captain Jason Jung ’09, the Math Team continued its dominance in the Western Massachusetts Mathematics League, with the help of a handful of newcomers, and a Thai superstar.

Many new students joined the Mathletes this year. Among them are Michelle Ju ’10, who remarked that the Mathletes is “like JV to me,” and Henry ‘Cool as a Cucumber’ Lee ’12.

He is dauntless, despite being one of the few underclassmen on the team.

Jung believes Lee has the potential to be a Mathlete legend.

Possibly the most heralded Mathlete in recent memory, Ice Pasupat ’09 is money at math. One of the few students to win a gold medal at the International Math Olympics, Pasupat is a scholar and also a part of the national math team in Thailand.

The math department was forced to buy another trophy cabinet to accommodate all of the prizes won with individual and team efforts.

Some Mathletes carry lucky charms into battle. Assistant Captain James Lu ’10 carries a jade stone since legend has it that 2009 is a good year to carry anything green. Co-Assistant Captain Ellen Shin ’10 changes the color of her nails the night before any competition. She says the colors can help distract opponents. Jung wears a t-shirt won in a New England’s math

Stephanie Olivas Left to Right: Henry Lee ’12, Ellen Shin ’10, Jason Jung ’09 strategize their next key move. competition, designed to be especially ple, will study math for hours on end comfortable to maximize math per- to prepare for a difficult meet. Others, formance. such as Jung and Shin will sacrifice The stamina needed in a their summers for one-on-one coachmarathon does not compare to that ing in math. needed in a three-hour math competiThe hard work certainly shone tion. Pep-talks are unnecessary; they through in Deerfield’s first appearance just “go in there and do their thing in the Harvard-MIT Mathematics from start to finish” as Ju put it. If Tourney. With the highest individual five-minute breaks are provided, score, Pasupat placed first in two cateopposing teams bring in a picnic’s gories. worth of food, but the Deerfield “[The] incoming students added a Mathletes need only water, elec- lot of life and that, combined with the trolytes, and their brain muscles. Jung talent already in place, made the year easily slips into the zone, prepared to successful,” said Jung, “and at the face whatever is thrown at him. same time, it was a great group of The team knows that hours of people to be around this year.” As practice lead to good results. That is Jung said, the victories and broken why the team meets every Sunday at 2 records were all achieved only through p.m. for practice. Many of them also the great teamwork that is the study on their own. Pasupat, for exam- Deerfield Academy Mathletes.

DA Swimmers Sweep 50 Freestyle Softball Team Plays for

By ASHIK DESAI Staff Writer Varsity swimmers Oliver Lee ’10 and Julia Pielock ’10 achieved great success in their respective events at the 2009 New England Swimming and Diving Tournament hosted by The Hotchkiss School.

Oliver Lee placed first at New England’s in the 50-yard free style for the second year in a row with a time of 20.71 seconds. Julia Pielock defended her first place crown at the New England Championship this past March in the 50 yard freestyle with an impressive time of 23.99 seconds “I have never been more nervous than before that race.” However, during the race, Lee admitted there was no time to be nervous. “There is so much adrenaline flowing, you’re not thinking.” With this time Lee qualified for All-American while also setting a new record for the swim team.

Lee also placed first in the 100yard freestyle, achieving All-American status. Lee, a part of the medley relay team placed second with an AllAmerican qualifying time. During three years at Deerfield, Lee has received five All-American qualifying times, and three individual New England Titles.

Following the New England’s Championship, Lee traveled to Orlando, Florida, over spring break to compete in the Junior Nationals Tournament. On his trip, Lee placed first in the 50-meter freestyle making

the Love of the Game

By MICHAEL YANG Staff Writer

Oliver Lee ’10 gets in the zone before mounting the starting block. him one of the fastest under eighteen of her club coach Bo Tamner at the 50 freestylers in the country. After Eaglebrook School. This summer, Deerfield, Lee hopes to continue his Pielock plans to swim with her club swimming career in college, and team to train for the New England aspires to make the Olympic trials, a Opens in July, and for the Long realistic goal, considering his is only Course Junior Nationals in August. .09 seconds away from the Olympic Next season, Pielock will lead the girls’ Trials qualifying time. When asked varsity swim team as a co-captain, with what idea could inspire other athletes, Sally Storch ’10.

Lee remarked “anything is possible.”

After high school, Pielock also Pielock’s winning time was not wants to continue swimming at the only a personal record but also a new collegiate level. When asked what it is record for the girls’ swim team. With like to have a friend who is as compether record- breaking time, Pielock is itive as she is, Pielock responded, “It is also being considered for All- great. Oliver and I help push and American. motivate each other in order to keep Pielock commented on her improving our times.” achievement, “I have to thank Ms. Keep your eyes on these two O’Donnell for being a supportive, swimmers, as they are sure to keep helpful and energetic coach.” breaking records, dominating their Pielock began her swimming events, and making their imprint on career at the age of ten, with the help the swimming program.

Boys’ Varsity Baseball

Girls’ Varsity Lacrosse

Boys’ Varsity Lacrosse

Team League Record 1. Andover 3-1 2. Exeter 2-1 3. DA 3-2 4. NMH 1-1 4. Worchester 2-2 5. Cushing 1-3 5. Tabor 1-3 Game To Watch: Exeter 4/25

Team League Record 1. Greenwich 3-0-1 2. Loomis 2-0-0 3. DA 4-1-0 3. Andover 3-1-0 5. Taft 3-3-0 6. Choate 2-2-0 7. Hotchkiss 1-1-0 Game To Watch: Loomis 4/29

Team Nat’l Rank Gilman (MD) 1 West Islip (NY) 2 Delbarton (NJ) 3 G’Town Prep (MD) 4 Calvert Hall (MD) 5 LaFayette (NY) 6 Yorktown (NY) 7 DA (MA) 8 Game To Watch: Avon 5/9

Girls’ Varsity Tennis Team League Record 1. St. Georges 3-0 2. Brewster 2-0 2. DA 2-0 3. Hotchkiss 1-0 3. Pingree 1-0 3. Williston 1-0 3. St. Luke’s 1-0 Game To Watch: Choate 5/9

Boys’ Varsity Tennis Team League Record 1. Milton 2-0 2. Taft 1-0 3. DA 2-1 4. Groton 1-1 5. Choate 0-1 5. Kent 0-1 5. Exeter 0-1 Game To Watch: Andover 4/25

By The Numbers 16- Amy Simmonds Long Jump Distance (Ft) 10- Losses by Boys’ Varsity Lacrosse 2001-2009 27- Goals by Britt Westerman ’09 in 5 games 22- Straight Varsity Girls Wins in non-tournament play 330- Length Of Sterling Wardwell’s ’09 first At-Bat (HR)

The softball team has started this season with three losses, but the girls are confident their enthusiastic play will translate into a successful 2009 season.

This year the softball team is relying on a balance of veterans and young guns for another exciting season.

“The team has a number of strong returning players including seniors Jackie Barajas ’09 at shortstop, Dani Moncion ’09 catching, and Jane Kundl at second base,” said English teacher and Softball Coach Elizabeth Buron as she explained this season’s lineup.

“Softball may not get as many people or wins, but we have a lot of fun” –– Courtney Murray “With some strong new talent, we are looking forward to a strong season. We will rely on the veteran pitching of Catherine Schopp ’10 and new pitching skill in Jackie Tavella ’11.”

The softball program has gone through demanding seasons due to shortages of players and fan support.

However, the real strength that lies

beneath the team is the positive attitude and the players’ enthusiasm for the sport of softball.

“Softball is not a marquis sport,” said Ms. Buron, “but we always get a group of talented and enthusiastic girls who are eager to play hard and have fun during the spring term.”

Although the softball team underwent two losing seasons in the past two years, they also had a fantastic 103 in 2006.

“We had one of the two best pitchers in the league in 2006,” said Ms. Buron. “That helped us to a fantastic season.” One of them happened to be Ellen Scott ’06, the older sister of Robbie Scott ’09, the current starting shortstop for the boys’ varsity baseball team “Softball may not get as many people or wins,” said Courtney Murray ’11, “but we have a lot of fun while building friendships and improving our skills.”

This season, thirteen enthusiastic softball players will play hard and also learn the most important lesson of sports, “to enjoy it to the fullest.”

And as Ms. Buron added, “Softball is a great spring sport and people should always come out and support all the DA teams!”

Maybe the element that the softball team has been missing out on is the support of their classmates.

mailing label