Andover 101

Andover 101

An unofficial guide for new students written by current students

1

Andover 101

An unofficial guide for new Andover students

Andrew J. Cortner ‘17 & Nikolas A. Skrivanos ‘17

Editors in Chief

Phillips Academy Andover, Massachusetts Created by Dear Sam

A team of students committed to peer health education

2

Copyright © 2015

Andrew J. Cortner ‘17 & Nikolas A. Skrivanos ‘17 All rights reserved First published at Phillips Academy Cover Design by Andrew J. Cortner ‘17 Cover Images Copyright © Phillips Academy & The Phillipian Page 27 Copyright © The Phillipian Pages 19-21 Copyright © Phillips Academy Editors: Andrew Cortner ‘17 & Nikolas Skrivanos ‘17 Layout Managers: Andrew Cortner ‘17 & Nikolas Skrivanos ‘17 Contributors: Dear Sam Editorial Board and Staff Andrew Cortner ‘17, Nikolas Skrivanos ‘17, Katherine Sweetser ‘17, Michelle Koh ‘17, Lovisa Romander ‘17, Akhil Rajan ‘17, Kalina Ko ‘17, Rebecca Marrow ‘17, Kayleigh Bishop ‘16 Wendy Zhang ‘17, Indiana Sobol ‘17, Sarah Al-Mayahi ‘17, Jenna Kim ‘17, Margaret Davis ‘17, Morgan Kuin ‘17 Andrew Cheng ‘17, Laurel Wain ‘17 Faculty Advisors: Dr. Carol J. Israel PhD and Dr. Amy Patel MD 180 Main St Andover, MA 01810

3

For the Andover Community Special dedication to Dr. Carol J. Israel PhD and Dr. Amy Patel MD Who helped make all of this possible Thank you both for all your support!

4

After reading several personal commentaries from Phillips Academy students, attending forums and discussions that were held, and analyzing what has been at the heart of discussion on campus, it is clear to us that student health is an issue that students feel strongly about, and it must be recognized. Our mission at Dear Sam is to provide all Phillips Academy students with accessible resources that will allow them to fulfill their greatest potentials in and out of the classroom. We strive to be a trustworthy and valuable resource, and we wish to assist each and every student, through the lens of mentorship, with the support, guidance, and direction that they may need.

Disclaimer Andover 101 was created by students and meant for student use. It is not an official document sanctioned by Phillips Academy, and it was not thoroughly reviewed by faculty.

Phillips Academy should not be held responsible for any factual errors that may be found within this document.

5

Table of Contents PART I: GENERAL INFORMATION

Campus Buildings The Cluster System School Presidents Do you speak Andover?

Department Chairs Administrative Assistants Academic Resources on Campus Schedule Information Vacation Dates 2015-2016 Course Sign-Ups BlueCard Information Phillips Academy Public Safety

PART II: ADJUSTING TO ANDOVER

Advice from Current and Former Students

Places to Study on Campus

How to Study Effectively?

How to Survive Finals Week?

How to Find Friends?

How to Manage your Time?

Dorm Life Information

10 22 27 28 36 37 39 42 46 47 48 50

52 69 71 73 76 77 79

6

PART III: AFTER SCHOOL ACTIVITIES

Fall Sports List

Winter Sports List

Spring Sports List

Sports Information

Music

Visual Arts

Club List

Theatre & Dance

PART IV: WHO WE ARE

83 84 85 86 89 99 102 106

Masthead

Upper Management

Physical

Mental

Academic

Diversity

Relationships

Sexual Health

Final Remarks

109 110 113 115 117 119 121 123 125

7

7

PART I GENERAL INFORMATION

8

Campus Buildings

Old Abbot Campus The

Old Abbot Campus is comprised of McKeen Hall, Abbot Hall and Draper Hall, and these buildings used to be the cornerstone of life at Abbot Academy. They are located on School Street, and they are fairly far from the main quad. The Children’s Place, which is a day care center, is located on Abbot Campus. Other departments have their offices on the Abbot Campus including Offices of Physical Plant, of Academy Resources, and of Information Technology. Also, the Brace Center for Gender Studies is located inside Abbot Hall. McKeen Hall will often be utilized for events and receptions.

Part I: Campus Buildings

9

Phillips Hall

Phillips Hall houses the offices of Phillips Academy Public Safety, or PAPS, as it is commonly referred to

by Andover students. PAPS is on duty 24/7 and is accessible during emergencies through their phone number: 978-749-4444. If you lose your keys, you can go to Phillips Hall, which is located right next to Graves Hall, to access your dorm.

Graves Hall Graves Hall houses Phillips Academy’s music department. It is located across the intersection of Main Street and Chapel Avenue. Inside, there are many practice rooms located in the basement, a performance hall, and classrooms that are located upstairs. It is also home to the Clift Music Library, an invaluable resource to musicians on campus. All music classes, bands, ensembles, and private lessons meet in Graves Hall.

Andover Inn

The Andover Inn, located across from the Elson Art Center and next to the Chapel, is the on-site hotel for Phillips Academy. In addition to hosting many visiting parents, There is also a restaurant called Samuel’s inside the Inn. The entire Inn is open to the public for use.

10

Part I: Campus Buildings

Cochran Chapel Cochran Chapel has many roles on campus. The building, which is located opposite to George Washington Hall on Chapel Avenue, is probably best known for the weekly All-School Meetings that take place in the pews. However, the Chapel also holds many religious services. The Chapel is also home to the Philosophy and Religious Studies Department, the Office of Community Engagement, and several practice rooms for musicians. Lastly, the offices for the Chaplaincy is a hub for spiritual life

Elson Art Center

The Elson Art Center is the home of the Art Department and is attached to George Washington Hall and the Addison Gallery of American Art. Elson, as it is most commonly referred to

by Phillips Academy students, houses the school’s art classrooms. Other notable attractions include the Art Store, located on the first floor, a space to purchase art supplies, the Polk-Lillard Center, an electronic imaging computer lab specifically designed for photography, the Underwood Room, and the Kemper Auditorium, two rooms that play host to club events, speakers, and many other community gatherings year-round.

Part I: Campus Buildings

11

Addison Gallery of American Art

The Addison Gallery of American Art, of the Addison, is a fascinating and wonderful resource on campus. Boasting a world renowned collection of American art, the Addison Gallery is arguably one of most notable institutions on campus. In addition to its art collection, the building contains a library on the first floor and a library in which students can study.

Samuel Phillips Hall Samuel Phillips Hall, often referred to as SamPhil by the majority of Phillips Academy Students, is where all history and social science courses and foreign language courses, excluding Ancient Greek and Latin, on campus are held.

History classrooms are situated in the left half of the building, and language classrooms are situated in right half.

SamPhil is also the meeting site of many clubs and other extracurricular activities. In the basement, the building contains its own computer lab known as the Language Learning Center, or LLC, which is utilized by many language classes for conducting oral assessments or watching foreign films. SamPhil can be spotted due to its stature, iconic faรงade, and the blue clock that lights up in the night.

12

Part I: Campus Buildings

George Washington Hall George Washington Hall, or GW, is the student center on campus, as well as home to many administrative offices. In the basement of GW is the mailroom, where all packages and letters on campus are sent.

Also on this floor are the day student lockers. On this floor, every student has a mailbox, and every day student has a locker to store items during the day. This floor also has the Theatre Classroom, the photography dark room, and the Dean of Students Office. The first floor contains the Dean of Studies, the Office of the Head of School, and the Tang and Steinbach Theatres. The Dean of Studies Office is home of the scheduling office, and students can go there to add courses, drop classes, or they can even request section changes. The Steinbach and Tang Theatres hold many of the campus’ Theatre productions throughout the school year.

Additionally, GW is attached to Elson through the Gelb Gallery.

Part I: Campus Buildings

13

Shuman Admissions Center Shuman Admissions Center is home to the admissions office on campus. All on-campus interviews for prospective students will take place in Shuman. Beginning in lower year, many students will sign up to give tours as their work duty, so several current and prospective families will come in and out of Shuman each day. Shuman is located in a yellow house next to Borden Gym surrounded by a parking lot for prospective families and visitors.

The Memorial Cage

The Memorial Cage, which is usually referred to as simply The Cage, is attached to the Borden Gym through a short walk-over bridge. The Cage is home to many recreational events that occur throughout the school year including a night walk to raise money against cancer, and the annual dodge ball tournament hosted by the student activities office. In addition to being used for these recreational activities, many sports teams throughout the year will practice in the Cage by running around either the upper or lower level track.

The Cage is also where the track team runs during their indoor season.

14

Part I: Campus Buildings

The Memorial Bell Tower When many people approach campus, they see the prominent image of the The Memorial Bell Tower ever looming in the distance. Donated by Samuel Fuller, Class of 1891, the bell tower serves as homage to the dedicated members of the Phillips Academy community that died during their military service for the United States in World War I.

Paresky Commons

Located in the heart of Campus, Paresky Commons, which is usually referred to as Commons, is Phillips Academy’s dining hall.

Commons is divided into four main dining halls, and they are: Lower Left, Lower Right, Upper Left, and finally Upper Right.

Generally, uppers and seniors will likely sit in Lower Right while freshmen and lowers sit in Upper Right. The two other dining halls, Lower Left and Upper Left, are typically used by students to meet with teachers or do work during meals. However, students are free to sit in whichever hall they want. In addition, there are larger meeting rooms on the second floor, where clubs will hold meetings, lowers will have PACE, and campus events will take place.

In the basement of Commons is the office of Student Activities as well as Susie’s. Susie’s is home to a shop that sells snacks, and it is also a recreational space in which students can eat, watch TV, play board games/air hockey, or hang out. Commons is located directly opposite to Morse and Pearson, as well as parallel to Gelb.

Part I: Campus Buildings

15

Pearson Hall is home to the school’s Classics Department. All Greek and Latin classes take place within the building. Additionally, Pearson is home to the Tang Institute, which is Andover’s own organization for innovation in teaching and learning. Pearson is located between Morse Hall and also the Library.

Bulfinch Hall

Morse Hall is the destination for campus Math and Computer Science classes. Math is spread across the three floors while Computer Science classes take place in the lab on the first floor.

Additionally, the basement hosts many campus publications and organizations, which include the offices of The Phillipian and the Philomathean Society CAMD is also located in Morse.

Pearson Hall

Bulfinch Hall is the home of the English Department. The basement is also home to the Tirana Room, the site of various club meetings including those of the Philomathean Society.

Bulfinch is across the street from Commons and in between Shuman and the Borden Gym.

Morse Hall

16

Part I: Campus Buildings

The Oliver Wendell Holmes Library

The Oliver Wendell Holmes Library is one of the most visited buildings on campus. Home of the Phillips Academy Computer Center, the Archives, the Academic Skills Center, various study spaces as well as one of the largest book collections in any high school, the OWHL is an incredible resource for everyone on campus. The basement of the library is home to the PACC, the office of Information Technology, and the Writing Center. The PACC is a computer lab that is accessible to students most times of the day. IT Office is the place to go if you are having trouble with Wi-Fi or a technology-related problem of any kind. Finally on this floor, the Writing Center is an invaluable resource to any student working on an essay or paper in any class. It is home to various senior peer-editors, who give feedback on essays of any kind at any stage in the drafting process. The basement of the library also contains various seating areas and whiteboards for studying.

The first floor is divided into three rooms, as well as a lobby and circulation and check out desks. The largest room is

Part I: Campus Buildings

17

the Garver Room, which most students call Silent Study. It is a no-noise zone in which students can study without any exterior interruption. The next room is the Dole Room, often site of many classes and a space for group collaboration and studying. The last room is the Freeman Room, or Comfy Chair Room, where students blend studying and socializing in a space conducive to both.

On the second floor, the OWHL hosts a series of open desks and tables as well as specific rooms that are often used for club and board meetings, such as the China Room. This floor of the library also contains the Academy Archives, the Academic Skills Center, and the disability coordinator.

Finally, running through all three floors are the stacks. The stacks are a series of shelves housing most of Andover’s book collections.

Additionally, students can do work in the stacks, which offer a calm and relatively quiet environment for studying and homework.

The Gelb Science Center

Newly renovated, The Gelb Science Center, or Gelb, is the home of all science classes.

It is separated into three floors: the first is mainly for biology, the second is Physics, and then Chemistry.

Additionally, there is an observatory on the very rooftop of Gelb.

It also contains various seating areas for studying and arguably the best bathrooms on campus. Gelb is the glassy, modern building, which is located adjacent to SamPhil and behind Paresky Commons.

18

Part I: Campus Buildings

Smith Center is primarily used The Smith Center The for standardized testing, including

finals as well as the SAT, PSAT, ACT, and SSAT. However, when not used for these purposes, both sites serve as training grounds for various teams and meeting places for different sports. The building is located right down the road from Borden Gym.

Borden Gym houses the campus’ athletic facilities. Inside is a pool, squash courts, a weight room, and many other exciting opportunities for both exercise and physical activity in the gym.

Borden is located across from Shuman and beside Bulfinch.

Benner House

Borden Gym

Benner House is home to several architecture and pottery classes on campus. Located down Salem Street from Commons, Benner House is a great space to get work done, specifically related to various art projects. There is a classroom for drawing courses, the ceramics studio, and the architecture studio.

Part I: Campus Buildings

19

The Isham Health Center

Isham Health Center provides acute and chronic medical care, comprehensive health maintenance and preventive medicine, health education, and many other health-related services for all students at Phillips Academy throughout the academic year. Isham is open 24 hours a day while school is in session.

A nurse is always available to see students. Students should try to come to Isham before or after classes or during a free period.

Students should not come during a class with a test or a paper that is due, except for emergencies or significant illness. Students are highly encouraged to come to Isham for any illness, injury, emotional difficulty, or other health related condition that is of concern. The school physician and the nurse practitioner are available for individual appointments. Referrals can be made to a group of 60 consulting medical and dental specialists in the local area. Please call the health center at 978-749-4455 to make an appointment with the doctor or if you have any questions.

20

Part I: Campus Buildings

The Graham House Counseling Center The Counseling Center, located in its very own building on Wheeler St. directly behind the Cochran Chapel, has two primary roles: to serve both the personal psychological needs of students, faculty and staff and to stimulate the psychological health and well-being of both our students and faculty.

Graham House services include individual and group counseling, psycho-educational programs, specialized training programs and consultation services to parents, teachers and departments. The staff consists of three licensed PhD clinical psychologists and a master’s level counselor. The Counseling Center is open Monday through Friday from 8:00am until 5:00pm. Counselors are available in the evenings and on weekends for emergencies or by separate appointments. All our services are provided without any charge.

Appointments should be scheduled through the Graham House secretary (978-749-4360) or through an individual counselor. Drop in visits are also welcomed. For more information please contact Carol Israel, PhD Director, Graham House Counseling Center at (978-749-4364). Graham House is located behind Cochran Chapel and next to French House. It is only about a 6 minute walk from many of the central buildings to campus on Flagstaff courtyard.

All students are highly encouraged to take a visit to Graham House if they want or need to talk to a counselor about anything.

Part I: Campus Buildings

21

The Rebecca M. Sykes Wellness Center

In the upcoming winter of the 2015-2016 school year, the Rebecca M. Sykes Wellness Center will be open and available.

The upcoming Rebecca M. Sykes Wellness Center will be the heart of a program focused on each student’s individual growth and intellectual development—a facility fully integrated into both the educational and residential life of the school. It will be designed for the future, with sustainability features and the flexibility to allow the Academy to adapt to the changing needs of the community. For nearly a decade, Andover has been reviewing the effectiveness of its support services and co-curricular programming. With the guidance of the Health and Psychological Services Visiting Committee, an independent group of medical and psychological professionals, Andover has been focusing more attention on a comprehensive health education curriculum. The wellness center will offer both the medical and psychological services that are crucial to maintaining the health of Andover’s students. It also will be a center for collaborative learning with multipurpose spaces for classes, meetings, and training sessions. Each room will include multimedia features, resource libraries, and lastly settings for great interactive learning.

22

The Cluster System

Pine Knoll Ashley Scott & Jen Kim

Presidents of PKN

Pine Knoll is comprised of five dorm along with its assigned day students. It is located next to the Bird Sanctuary, and is centered around “the Knoll,� which is a field surrounded by pine trees.

Pine Knoll has an annual volleyball tournament, a block party, and co-hosts the Halloween Dance with Flagstaff during the fall.

Disciplinary Committee Representatives

Sarah Schmaier & Mike Demsher

Cluster Dean

David Gardener 978-749-4552 or x4090

Dormitories Fuess House Nathan Hale Stuart House Stimson House Stevens House

Part I: The Cluster System

23

West Quad North Max Kim & Dylan Norris

Presidents of WQN West Quad North is comprised of six dorms of varying sizes, including half of Rockwell, which is the largest junior boy’s dorm on campus, as well as its assigned day students. It is located on the side of Main Street across from the rest of campus. West Quad North also hosts the new West Quad North Comedy Night and co-hosts Quad Day with West Quad South cluster.

Disciplinary Committee Representatives Alex Dziadosz & Maddie Murphy

Cluster Dean

Martha Fenton 978-749-4815 or x4079

Dormitories

Isham Hall Bishop Hall Bancroft Hall Andover Cottage Pease House Pemberton Cottage Eaton Cottage Rockwell Hall North

24

Part I: The Cluster System

West Quad South Peter Hahn & Vienna Kuhn

Presidents of WQS West Quad South is comprised of seven dorms, which include the other half of Rockwell, as well as its assigned day students.

It is located next to West Quad North across Main Street from the other half of campus. It co-hosts Quad Day with West Quad South and also hosts the West Quad South Casino Night.

Disciplinary Committee Represensitaves Julia Donovan & Will Humphrey

Cluster Dean

Kate Dolan 978-749-4552 or x4090

Dormitories

Taylor Hall Thompson House Rockwell Hall South Moses Stewart Tucker House Blanchard House Adams Hall Moorhead House

Part I: The Cluster System

25

Flagstaff

Gordon Coulter & Sloane Sambuco

Presidents of FLG Flagstaff is the cluster directly in the center of campus. Its dorms are in between buildings like the OWHL, Commons, and Gelb. It is comprised of eight dorms, as well as its assigned day students.

This includes Paul Revere Hall, which is the biggest girls dorm on campus. Flagstaff co-hosts the Halloween Dance with Pine Knoll.

Dormitories

Disciplinary Committee Represensitaves Olivia Pincchione & Payton Jancsy

Cluster Dean

Matthew Hession 978-749-4555 or x4555

Paul Revere Hall Allen House Day Hall Bartlett Hall Burtt House Smith House Hearsey House Foxcroft Hall Newman House

26

Part I: The Cluster System

Abbot

Josephine Pandji & Michael Shen

Presidents of ABB Abbot is located close to downtown Andover, which is near where the original Abbot Academy used to be. Abbot has many small dorms, and is in fact comprised of fourteen dorms, as well as its assigned day students. It hosts Abbot Cabaret as well as an outdoor movie night.

Disciplinary Committee Represensitaves Krishna Canning & Anna Dear

Cluster Dean

Theodore Parker 617-304-3747 or x4222

Dormitories

Stearns Hall Carriage House Flagg House Clement House

Draper Cottage Double Brick House Morton House Stowe House Whitney House French House Carter House 158 Main Street Bertha Bailey House Alumni House Samaritan House America House

School Presidents

27

Annette Bell and Theo Pérez

“I really enjoy people, and I enjoy interacting with people, and I enjoy helping people.”

“We should really look at having many more options for sports, whether it’s more slides or more changes for you to do what you love. Not everyone loves to do sports all the time – maybe it’s music, maybe it’s theater or maybe it’s they just want a break.”

“I think having a strong community, which also stems a lot from mentorship, can guide everyone’s path and make them happier here.”

“[We] touch on some really interesting points [during our platform], like Prefects for day students…things that people don’t really think of or talk about but that should be acknowledged by students.”

28

Do you speak Andover?

ASM

Every Wednesday, the school meets in the Cochran Chapel for its weekly All School Meeting, which is normally referred to by most students as ASM.

February Frees

Since there are no All School Meetings during the month of February, the block of time where ASM would usually meet is called, “February Free.”

The Den

Formally called Susie’s, the Den is a student hangout spot, which is located on the bottom floor of Paresky Commons. There are two TVs, games, booths, couches, and also a small place to buy food and other necessities.

CCC

Community Conduct Council. The CCC acts to determine whether a major rule against bullying, hazing, harassment or discrimination has been broken. Most cases lead to counseling and mediation instead of discipline.

Siberia

The group of fields located beyond the tennis courts next to the hockey rink.

Part I: Do you speak Andover?

29

Lower Left

The dining hall in Commons to the left of the main doors. Lower Left is good for getting work done while you eat.

There is also an espresso bar and smoothie station located in Lower Left.

Lower Right

The dining hall in Commons to the right of the main doors on the first floor. This dining hall is frequented mainly by Uppers and Seniors as well as sports teams eating dinner together.

Upper Left

The dining hall in Commons on the second floor above Lower Left. Many faculty members eat here so it is a very good place to meet with a teacher during a meal. This is a good place to go if you really need to get work done.

Upper Right

The dining hall in Commons on the second floor directly over Lower Right.

Upper Right is generally frequented by both the Junior and Lower Classes.

Juniors

Ninth grade students that most high schools usually refer to as, “Freshmen.”

Lowers

Tenth grade students that most high schools will refer to as, “Sophomores.”

30

Part I: Do you speak Andover?

Uppers

Eleventh grade students that most high schools refer to as, “Juniors.�

PG

Post Graduate Students. Students who have already graduated from high school but are attending Andover for a gap year between high school and college. Often PGs will be involved with athletics at the varsity level.

RelPhil

This is the name for the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies.

RelPhil is a graduation requirement that is taken lower year for returning lowers, and it can also be taken during lower, upper, or senior year for new lowers.

Sam Phil

Abbreviation for Samuel Phillips Hall.

GW

An abbreviation used by students to refer to George Washington Hall.

Elson

Short for Elson Art Center, which is the primary art building on campus.

Weekender

The email that contains the events of the coming weekend. It is often sent to students on Thursday afternoons.

Part I: Do you speak Andover?

31

Polk

Short for the Polk-Lillard Center, which is a computer center located on the second floor of the Elson Art Center.

There is a Mac Lab, which is used for photography and film courses. It is also a resource if you need to use a computer or do work. You can rent a camera and recording equipment here simply by using your BlueCard.

PACC

Short for Phillips Academy Computer Center, which is located right in the the basement of the Oliver Wendell Holmes Library. If you are having tech or other computer problems, there are people in the PACC that can help you. Also, if you need to use a desktop computer, there is a large computer lab for students to use daily.

Red-Dot

The free period on Monday or Tuesday given to select classes that use a double block later in the week, usually RelPhil and English classes. Almost all juniors typically will not have red-dots in their schedule unless they are enrolled in specific art courses or other electives.

Stacks

Floors of bookshelves in the OWHL.

32 DramaLabs

Part I: Do you speak Andover?

Student produced and directed short plays that are performed every Friday night in the Theater Classroom in the basement of George Washington Hall.

Senior Fac

An event at the end of senior spring that seniors typically will attend with their favorite member of the faculty.

Extended Period Week

The last week of each trimester in which each class typically holds final assessments. It is commonly referred to by most students as Finals Week.

Sadie

A dance where the girls ask the boys. Also called the Sadie Hawkins Dance, Sadie is the first formal dance of the year in fall term, and it is on the Saturday night before finals.

IP

This can have one of the following two meanings. 1) Illegal Parietal: When permission was not given for a parietal or when a parietal happens during hours that are not allowed. Having an IP can result in disciplinary actions.

2) Independent Project: IPs are projects usually for seniors and occasionally uppers to pursue a topic or idea on their own that is not offered as a class.

Part I: Do you speak Andover?

33 Parietal When two people of the opposite sex are

in one of their dorm rooms together.

Permission must be given for this to

happen, and it is always only allowed

to happen during designated hours.

Cluster

The school is divided into five clusters based on a region of the campus. Day students are also assigned clusters.

They are Flagstaff (FLG): central campus. Pine Knoll (PKN): behind Gelb and GW. Abbot (ABB): behind the Chapel and the downtown are and farthest from campus. West Quad North (WQN): across Main street on the north side of quad region and down the vista. West Quad South (WQS): across Main street on south side of quad region.

Cluster Munches

On Wednesday nights, each cluster will have a small gathering for its cluster members with a different kind of food each week. This can include brownies, doughnuts, buffalo chicken, cereal, etc.

Lawning

Spending time on the Great Lawn.

Lawning comes in many forms, such as sunbathing, playing spikeball, doing homework or studying on the lawn, and also spending time with friends.

34

Part I: Do you speak Andover?

Cut

Formally called an unexcused absence, cutting is missing or skipping class without attaining a proper excuse.

Pro

The abbreviated term for probation.

See the Blue Book for a more detailed explanation of Probation.

Silent

Formally referred to as The Garver Room, Silent is good for students to get their work done with no distractions.

Fac brat

“Fac brats� refer to any child of an Andover faculty or staff member.

Personal Time

Once every term you can request to get one period off in each of your subjects, in addition to sports and community service commitments.

Blue and Silver

A semi-formal dance for all students at the end of every winter term the Saturday night before finals week.

Den Dance

Small and informal dances, which are often held in the Den on Saturdays.

Comfy Chair Room The Freeman Room in the library,

known primarily for its comfy chairs.

Part I: Do you speak Andover?

35

Fourth Meal

A service all dorms can request, from which you receive snacks including yogurt, granola, peanut butter, fruit, etc.

Catboner

Something that local kids passing by in cars scream at Phillips Academy students. It is not certain as to why this is their insult of preference.

DC

Stands for Disciplinary Committee. If you break any major rules on campus, you will have meetings with the DC.

Sanctuary

This can have one of two meanings.

1) Bird Sanctuary: 65 acres of woodlands and ponds at Phillips Academy. Also, the sanctuary is surrounding the Pine Knoll Cluster. 2) The Sanctuary Policy: You can sanctuary yourself or a friend if you or the friend have broken a school rule involving drugs and alcohol. In the Sanctuary Policy, you talk to an adult on campus about your/their behavior in order to receive help instead of a disciplinary action. This function exists to ensure that students who think their or someone else’s health might be in danger do not feel discouraged to reach out for help. Read more in Blue Book.

36

Department Chairs

Art Therese Zemlin (tzemlin@andover.edu) Biology Leon Holley (lholley@andover.edu) Classical Studies Elizabeth Meyer (emeyer@andover.edu) Chemistry Brian Faulk (bfaulk@andover.edu) Chinese & Japanese Lixia Ma (lma@andover.edu) English Stephanie Curci (scurci@andover.edu) French Eugene (Gene) Hughes (ehughes@andover.edu) German & Russian Victor Svec (vsvec@andover.edu) History & Social Science Christopher Jones (cjones@andover.edu)

Mathematics, Statistics, & Computer Science William Scott (wscott@andover.edu) Music Christina Landolt (clandolt@andover.edu) Philosophy & Religious Studies Andrew Housiaux (ahousiaux@andover.edu) Physical Education Leon Modeste (lmodeste@andover.edu) Physics Mika Latva-Kokko (mlatvakokko@andover.edu) Psychology Carol Israel (cisrael@andover.edu) Spanish Clara Isaza-Bishop (cbishop@andover.edu) Theatre & Dance Judith Wombwell (jwombwell@andover.edu)

35

Administrative Assistants Academic Skills Center Janet Casey (jcasey@andover.edu) Addison Gallery Anna Gesing (agesing@andover.edu) Admissions Josephine Labelle (jlabelle@andover.edu) Theresa Layton (tlayton@andover.edu) Valerie Mack (vmack@andover.edu) Madeline Minahan (mminahan@andover.edu) Irene Tucker (itucker@andover.edu) Athletics Lisa Buckley (lbuckley@andover.edu) Cochran Chapel Gail Ralston (gralston@andover.edu)

College Counseling Kimberly Adams (kadams@andover.edu) Theresa Nartowicz (tnartowicz@andover.edu) Kara Norris (knorris1@andover.edu) Cheryl Knight (cknight@andover.edu) CAMD Mary Jane Lewis (mjlewis@andover.edu) Dean of Students Office Vimala Mohammed (vmohammed@andover.edu) Karen Morrissey (kmorrissey@andover.edu) Claudia Scofield (cscofield@andover.edu) Dean of Studies Office Cynthia Stewart (cstewart@andover.edu) Julie Powers (jpowers@andover.edu)

37

38

Part I: Administrative Assistants Dean of Faculty Office Dianne Fields (dfields@andover.edu) Noemy Pita (npita@andover.edu) English JoAnne Fallon (jfallon@andover.edu) Graham House Catherine Starr (cstarr@andover.edu) Isham Health Center McKenna Montenegro (mmontenegro@andover.edu) Rebecca Verney (medical) (rverney@andover.edu) Head of School’s Office Belinda Traub (btraub@andover.edu) Melissa Dolan (scheduling) (mdolan@andover.edu) History & Social Sciences Tamara Skwierczynski (tskwierczynski@andover.edu) Office of Physical Plant Rachel Vega (rvega@andover.edu)

Office of Academy Resources Mary Corcoran (mcorcoran@andover.edu) Susan Conroy (sconroy@andover.edu) Peabody Museum Lesley Shahbazian (lshahbazian@andover.edu) Music Elisa Martyn (emartyn@andover.edu) Science Division Ann Hamilton (ahamilton@andover.edu) Summer Session Gale Catanzaro (gcatanzaro@andover.edu) Jolene Croteau (jcroteau@andover.edu) World Languages Maria Schleicher (mschleicher@andover.edu) (MS)2 Carolyn Zimmer (czimmer@andover.edu)

Academic Resources

39

Academic Skills Center – On the second floor of the OWHL from 9:00am to 5:00pm. Faculty are available to provide assistance with study skills, time management, note-taking tips, organizational skills, etc. If you are looking to make an appointment, you can reach Mrs. Davison with ext. 4365, Ms. Olander ext. 4358, Ms. Ysalguez ext. 4481, and Ms. Casey ext. 4360. The Academic Skills Center can provide you with their Essential Study Skills, which can help you maximize your efficiency while studying.

Disability Services – Call Mrs. Davison at ext. 4365 for disability accommodations. Mrs. Davison’s office is located right on the second floor of the OWHL inside of the McLean Gallery.

Peer Tutoring – Peer tutors are available to provide assistance with math, science language, and other diploma requirement courses on a 1-to-1 basis. All peer tutors must have taken the course they tutor.

Language Learning Tables – Mural Room, Wednesday from 5:00pm to 7:00pm. Faculty from the language department and students have dinner together and speak in Spanish, French, German, or Chinese. This emphasizes real-world speaking skills and can be helpful in gaining confidence or experience speaking a language.

Language Partner – Students are paired up based on their desired learning preference. For example, a native English speaking student trying to learn a modern language is paired up with a student who speaks that particular language and is trying to learn English.

40

Part I: Academic Resources

Math Study Center – Gelb 201, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 8:00pm to 9:15pm. Math faculty and peer tutors are available to help students with math homework, studying, and any other questions they have. Open when classes are in session.

Polk-Lillard Electronic Imaging Center – The Polk is located directly above Kemper Auditorium. In addition to arts classes, the Polk Center is used for student video, photography, and printing.

Sunday

1:30pm – 9:15pm

Monday – Wednesday

8:00am – 4:30pm 6:00pm – 9:45pm

Thursday

8:00am – 4:30pm 6:00pm – 9:15pm

Friday

8:00am – 4:30pm

Saturday

Closed

Science Study Center – Gelb room 206 & 207. Science faculty and many peer tutors are available to assist students with science homework and test preparation (similar to Math Study Center).

It is open Monday through Thursday from 8:00pm to 9:00pm.

Tang Institute – In Pearson C, The Tang Institute aims to provide a very mutual learning exchange between the Andover community and the rest of the world. It is dedicated to supporting efforts to explore and advance innovative approaches to learning.

41

Part I: Academic Resources

Science Study Hall – In CAMD each week on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday sometimes during the day, Science faculty help any students who are confused and have some questions.

Writing Center – PACC (ERDL) ext 4351. Open on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 8:00pm – 9:15pm. Faculty and peer tutors are available to assist all students with essay writing in any class.

OWHL – ext. 4230. The library has many books, primary sources, maps, and documentaries that will be helpful in many assignments involving research. In addition, the librarians are available to help students with finding the book that they need, coming up with a research topic, and also bibliography writing.

Sunday

11:00am – 9:15pm

Monday – Wednesday

7:30am – 9:45pm

Thursday

7:30am – 9:15pm

Friday

7:30am – 5:00pm

Saturday

11:00am – 5:00pm

42

Schedule Information

Double Periods/Super Doubles Double period classes meet for 75 minutes instead of the usual 45 minutes. These take place on Wednesday or Thursday, so there are fewer classes on these days to accommodate the longer periods.

Some classes including English and RelPhil may only meet for 45 minutes of the double period. Teachers often use these periods for giving tests or longer in-class assignments like lab experiments.

If you are taking a more rigorous course like BIOL/CHEM-580 or a theatre class, you will likely have a super double on either Monday or Tuesday. Since these classes need to cover a lot of material in-depth, they may use two regular periods, using the period from your lunch, red dot, or free period. Keep this in mind when deciding your courses, because you will have to be very conscious with managing your time.

Weekend Classes Despite the fact that Phillips Academy used to have Saturday classes, students no longer have classes on Saturday during the year. You will never have any weekend classes during the school, and there will not be classes on the Grandparents’ Day of Family Weekend.

Three Major Assignments If you have three major assignments due on the same day, you are allowed to ask for an extension for one of them (this means that you postpone the due date to later). Try to keep in mind that your teachers may have to rewrite the test or the assignment for you if you take it later than everyone else in your class. It also may simply not work with your teacher’s schedule, so be understanding if this happens.

Also, plan carefully for which assignment you move back. You may have even more possible conflicts later or more time commitments.

Part I: Schedule Information

43

Conference Periods Conference periods are 30 minute blocks which take place between second and third period on Mondays and Tuesdays, and between third and fourth period on Thursdays. During this time, your teachers will usually be available in their classroom or office to answer questions or to discuss the class material with you.

You do not have to attend conference with your teacher, and and many students use this time to get ahead on homework or even meet for group projects. Although you will have a similar 30 minute time block on Friday, most advisors will use this time to hold advising sessions with his or her specific advising group.

Wednesdays/Thursdays Due to the longer double periods, fewer classes meet on Wednesdays and Thursdays. On Wednesdays, classes officially end at 1:00pm (your class may not use the full double period and end at 12:30pm instead).

The early end of the day allows athletic teams to go to games at home or at other schools. Many community services also use this extra time to meet. On Thursdays, classes start later at 8:50am and end at the usual 2:45pm time. Departments will meet during this time as well as other groups such as Student Council.

Red Dots Many classes at Andover, such as a math, science, or language classes, meet four days a week with three regular periods (M/T/F) and one double period (W/Th). Some classes, like RelPhil and junior year English classes, will also meet four days a week but use only 45 minutes of the Wednesday/Thursday allotted double period. If you have a red dot in your schedule, this means that your class will meet for three days a week, using the two regular periods and the full double period. Therefore, you will have a free on your red dot day, which will be either a Monday or a Tuesday depending the class you are taking.

44

Part I: Schedule Information

Personal Time

Other than fall terms of Junior Year and Lower Year, you will be able to take personal time for your classes, some sports, and ASMs. This means that you can take the time off to catch up on your work or rest with an excused absence. You can only take one personal time per class/sport per term and for ASMs once a year.

Prefects and proctors do receive personal time and additional prefect/proctor time. You cannot take personal time for a double period class. In order to take personal time, you must email your teacher/supervisor 24 hours in advance. You will not necessarily be granted personal time when you ask for it, so try asking in person so that you can discuss why you need the time off with your teacher.

Also, if you have a cut in the class, you will likely not get personal time.

ASM

ASMs or All-School Meetings take place every Wednesday. During this time, all students are required to go to the Chapel; there are sign-in sheets arranged by cluster and class, for example like Flagstaff Juniors or Pine Knoll Seniors. If you miss or purposely cut ASM, you will receive one cut on your academic record. For most of these ASMs, Phillips Academy hosts speakers on various topics, such as medicine, environmentalism, history, and social issues; many people of these are PA alumni. Other ASMs may have student speakers or an address by the Head of School John Palfrey. Other events include the school president debates

Part I: Schedule Information 1

1

1

8:00-8:45 2

8:00-8:45

8:00-8:45 2

8:50-9:40

1e

3

9:55-10:40

4

ASM 7

5

8:00-8:45 2

3e

2e

1

8:50-9:20

9:25-9:55

11:15-12:00 11:15-12:00 5

3

2

10:20-11:05 10:20-11:05 4

8:00-8:45 Department Meetings

8:45-9:15

8:50-9:40

9:45-10:15 9:45-10:15 Conference Conference 3

45

9:20-10:05 10:10-10:40 Conference

8:50-9:40 9:45-10:15 Conference 3

10:20-11:05

4

4

4e

5

5

6

5e

7

6

Athletics and Community Engagement

10:45-11:30 11:15-12:00

12:10-12:55 12:10-12:55 11:45-12:30 11:30-12:00 12:10-12:55

6

7

1:05-1:50 2:00-2:45

6

7

1:05-1:50 2:00-2:45

Athletics and Athletics and Community Community Engagement Engagement

4:50-5:35

4:50-5:35

5:35-6:05

5:35-6:05

7e

12:30-1:00

12:10-12:40 12:40-1:25 1:35-2:20

Athletics and Community 6e Engagement 2:20-2:50 Athletics and Community Engagement

5:35-6:05

1:05-1:50 2:00-2:45

4:50-5:35 5:35-6:05

46

Vacation Dates 2015 - 2016 Thanksgiving Vacation

Friday November 20th - Wednesday December 2nd

Winter Vacation

Wednesday December 16th - Sunday January 3rd

Spring Vacation

Thursday March 3rd - Monday March 21st

Fall Long Weekend

Friday October 23rd - Tuesday October 27th

Winter Long Weekend

Saturday February 6th - Tuesday February 9th

Spring Long Weekend

Saturday April 16th - Monday April 18th

Course Sign-ups

47

In the beginning of the school year, all students will meet with their advisors. Most advisors will ask you to write out a rough draft of which courses you want to take during all your terms at Andover.

Together with your advisor, or by yourself, you will need to consult the Course of Study, which can be found on PAnet. There, you will have access to descriptions of all the courses offered that year as well as the graduation requirements for your grade. Next to the Course of Study link, you should also be able to find the Master Schedule (which courses are being taught during certain periods and by whom) and the High Demand Course List (courses that might be harder to get placed into because of their popularity). In the end of the process, you and your advisor will have compiled a list of normally five courses that you would like to take that term.

In certain circumstances, you might want to take a different number of courses. You are able to take four courses each term only if you are struggling with your academics, or you have another good reason to take four classes. You are also able to do six if you want to be more challenged, or if you are taking several subjects that term with a somewhat lighter homework load. A six-course load is approved if: (a) the sixth course is Music 900–910 or Physical Education 200, (b) the student has earned at least a 5 average in the previous term and has no incompletes, or (c) the sixth course is Theatre 900, 901, 902, 903, or 920, and the student has the approval from the chair of the Theatre and Dance Department.

48

BlueCard Information

Your BlueCard is your identification and personal funds card: you need it for personal identification, access to campus buildings, and access to your personal PA financial account.

Each student is given a separate BlueCard username and password, which is different from your PAnet account details. Placing funds onto your BlueCard from a credit card can be done by logging into your own account at bluecard.andover.edu.

When you, a family member, or the school places funds on your BlueCard, this money goes into one of three accounts:

. Bookstore Fund: This money can only be used to pay for textbooks online through the Follet bookstore.

. PA Campus Fund: This money can be used at

any location that will accept BlueCard on campus.

. Blue Bucks: This money can be used anywhere that accepts BlueCard, which includes Follet, locations on campus, and many other areas in downtown Andover.

The following on-campus locations accept BlueCard for payment.

Art Store - Elson Art Center Athletic Equipment Room - Athletic Complex Berkshire Natural Vending Machines - Located around campus

Part I: BlueCard Information

49

Central Services (the Mail Room) - George Washington Hall Music Office - Graves Hall PA Computing Center (PACC) Printing - Library basement Polk-Lillard Center (PLC) - Elson Art Center Susie’s - Paresky Commons The Skating Office, Pro Shop, Snack Bar - Harrison Ice Rink The following off-campus locations in downtown Andover will also accept BlueCard (exclusively Blue Bucks funds).

Andover Bookstore Bruegger’s Bagels CVS King’s Subs Mr. Takeout Papa Gino’s Subway BlueCard lost or stolen? You can get a new card right away by talking to Ms. Scofield in the Dean of Students Office, located right in the basement of George Washington Hall for a $10 fee. This will deactivate your original card and and transfer your account details to your brand new card.

You can get assistance with your BlueCard account by emailing any of your questions or concerns to bluecard@andover.edu.

50

Phillips Academy Public Safety

PAPS: 978-749-4444 or x4444 from a campus phone

In an Emergency: 911 Phillips Academy Public Safety, or PAPS is an essential aid on Phillips Academy campus. Public Safety serves a plethora of roles related to student wellbeing and is accessible at any hour of the day through their phone number, 978-749-4444. PAPS has many functions on PA Campus and should be called whenever you are in a situation that could be potentially dangerous or injurious. In terms of student health, if you cannot make it to Isham or have sustained an injury that makes movement impossible or hurtful, PAPS can drive you to Isham. Additionally, if you are hosting a club meeting, it is important to call PAPS to unlock the specific room before hand.

Often, academic buildings get locked at night or over the weekend, so it is important to call ahead and confirm details with PAPS. PAPS is also the place to go for various, more minor incidents, such as the loss of keys. If you lose your keys, PAPS will replace them for a fee at their home in Phillips Hall, near Graves.

Finally, if you ever are in a situation where you feel uncomfortable or threatened on campus, PAPS is there to help you reach safety.

Every student should keep the PAPS number in their phone contacts and call it for any emergency or dire situation that they may face.

51

51

PART II ADJUSTING TO ANDOVER

52

Advice from Students

We asked the graduating Class of 2015 and the rising lowers in the Class of 2018 ten questions to reflect on their perspective experiences at Andover. Here is what they had to say...

What’s one thing you wish you knew as a new student?

“It’s not all going to be handed to you.”

“Start assignments early.”

“Andover offers a lot of opportunities but only to those who actively seek them. You have to talk to teachers and you have to be proactive when looking for summer opportunities. Always be aware of the opportunities around you and choose to embrace them.”

“The trainers are easily used for sports injuries.”

“I wish I knew about the different study areas besides the library like all the academic buildings and places like the Addison.”

“Everything will change.”

“You should really push for any and all opportunities that you feel excited about.”

“Remember that those who smile the most get the most smiles in return. Don’t be afraid to initiate that exchange.”

Part II: Advice from Students

53

“M​aybe it should be obvious, Andover can be like the very sunny, picturesque moments in admissions videos— but most of the time it isn’t. That is not a bad thing. You will flounder, and you will learn how to survive.”

“Andover can make or break you. Don’t let it be the latter.”

“You can’t do everything.”

“I wish I knew how distracting the place could be. While it’s good to delve yourself into this great place, you have to streamline your vision, set goals, and hunker down if you don’t want this place to eat you alive. As this year’s sleepless senior, I think I can proudly say I have been an authority on this topic.”

“It’s difficult to do well in class if you don’t practice interacting with the material in the same way that you will be required to when demonstrating your knowledge on a test. Do practice problems for every single class and study for every single test by practicing, not but just reading the chapters.”

What was your biggest challenge when transitioning to Andover? What did you do to overcome this challenge?

“Getting rejected from everything I tried out for. I just kept on trying until I found something.”

“Being away from everything that was familiar to me. I am an international student, and I only knew one person when coming to this school, so everything seemed very foreign.”

54

Part II: Advice from Students

“Having to make everything happen for myself, and I overcame it by gaining confidence as I became more independent.”

“The work load. I’m still adjusting, but time management and planning ahead is very important.”

“Making new friends by talking to people.”

“As a day student, I had to leave campus a few hours before the day was over for most people. I overcame this by asking my parents to pick me up later and getting my homework done earlier, so I could hang out.”

“Finding a place where I felt secure. Surrounded by all new people, both friends and adults, it’s hard to know immediately who you can really trust. For the most part, there’s not much that can be done other than get to know people and make tighter connections, but it’s nice to keep in mind that even though you might feel a bit of loneliness and it may seem like all your relationships are slightly superficial, so does everyone else. It will pass.”

“My biggest challenge when transitioning to Andover was managing my workload. Sports, clubs, activities, and homework took up a lot of time. To overcome this, I learned to prioritize things.

This has helped me a lot with managing my time.”

“Limiting my activities and finding personal time. I overcame this by finding alone time after lowering my course or extracurricular load.”

“Homesickness was difficult for me, but if you make sure to plan activities in your free time Andover will feel like home, not the other way around.”

Part II: Advice from Students

55

“You learn to adapt.”

“Don’t think you’re ever stuck with a particular group. I thought I had boxed myself into a group I felt I was not a part of. What I didn’t realize was that there is always a table to sit at if you are sitting there to know them, not just to have a place to sit.”

“Social aspect, adjusting to people not being as close and connected as friends back home.”

“In general, the intellectual environment was a shocker. I was so used to being the best at my old school, that I came into this place with this sort of dominant and arrogant attitude. Not necessarily degrading oneself but also humbling oneself is something that takes time to do.”

“Making lasting friendships was definitely difficult. In the beginning, most friend groups form out of proximity. You tend to group up with other people within your dorm, but these friendships often fall apart. To find a more constant network of friends, it is often a good idea to make friends through sports, music, arts, or clubs.”

“Figuring out how to study. It’s hard.”

“Balancing my workload, social life, and sports. I spent time doing homework in little pockets of time that I had. For example, I did work during the second half of my lunch period.”

What has been one of your favorite classes? Why?

“Spanish because the entire class is based off of conversation.”

56

Part II: Advice from Students

“Either Art 225B or weaving class. Personally, Arts courses are a great way for me to de-stress and express myself.”

“Biology 580 pushed me to go way farther with my thinking than I ever thought possible. I didn’t do well in the class at first, but I will always remember it as the class that really improved my thinking.”

“Spanish because my teacher is so engaging and always asks such provocative, interesting questions.”

“Physics 550. In what other class can you use an atlatl on a Thursday morning?”

“Definitely economics. It’s been one class where I’ve been given the reigns to do almost whatever I want. To have that much freedom at such a young age is something I have taken for granted.”

“Russian class. Mr. Svec is a phenomenal teacher and person who makes class fun.”

“My favorite class has been Theatre 920 because I just get to have fun. Singing and acting comes easily to me, so I literally get graded for doing what I love.”

“Art 225A. It became a solace in the dreariness of winter.”

“One of my favorite classes has been math. I have always had a passion for math, even before I came to Andover. I like my math class because we get to explore things beyond the textbook.”

“Math! It just makes sense to me. I love Ms. Buckwalter!”

Part II: Advice from Students

57

“Creative Fiction with Paul Yoon, because it was a ton of fun and not structured like most classes. We had three pieces of fiction due at the end of the term and that was basically all the homework we had. Classes were either discussions about writing or workshops in which we critiqued each other’s pieces. It was great to sit down and do creative writing -- no guideline, some vague prompts if needed, nothing but the keyboard and the headcanon that starts to sprout in your mind.”

“English -- great teachers!”

“A poetry class I took with Mr. Yoon. We had a lot of liberty to write about whatever we wanted to. A religious philosophy class with Mr. Housiaux on human nature, it provoked a lot of interesting class discussions, and the books we read really helped me have a new outlook on life, and a deeper understanding for why certain things happen.”

What are you going to remember most about Andover?

“My classes. I learned a lot from such a different array of people.”

“The faculty members that have helped me and supported me throughout the past two years.”

“Those moments after I win a crew race, after I’m laughing so hard with my friends, and the beautiful sunsets I’ve enjoyed after I finished my homework.”

“My friends and rowing.”

“The people.”

58

Part II: Advice from Students

“Definitely weekends with my friends, hanging out in the Den, going to the Drama Labs, waiting in line for ANL, hanging on to one-another’s backpacks as the mob closes in around us, rehearsing for auditions in Graves, and lying under the piano panicking, sharing cookie dough while watching movies, and singing loudly to “oldies” in Commons but not caring what anyone thinks.

Some of my favorite memories are quite odd, but I don’t think my Andover experience would be just as wonderful without them.”

“My worst decisions and my best decisions.”

“I will remember the encouragement that everyone around me gave me to support whatever I was doing or wanted to do.”

“My friends.”

“The people. I’ve got a great group of friends, and they’re the best part about being here. I’m going to miss staying up until 3 talking about everything from walking into walls to existential crises to judgments on pop songs and celebrities. I’m going to remember making maple sugar candy in the snow and rolling down the hill outside the Addison and running across the Great Lawn at night, screaming and haphazardly pointing out constellations -- “is that Orion? That’s totally Orion!” I can’t really speak for the greater community of the school, but I’ve found a tiny little niche that’s absolutely perfect. I wouldn’t trade my four years with them for anything.”

“I think I’ll remember how tight the bonds you form are with different people over different things. My cast’s dynamic is totally different then my dorm dynamic and that’s awesome because I have two different but amazing groups of people who love me.”

Part II: Advice from Students

59

“I’m going to remember the sprints to make sign-in every weekend and many weekdays.”

“Probably dorm life. When else in your life will you be sitting in a hallway way too late into the night talking about the most random things; we vented about the work we were putting off, engaged in intellectual conversation regarding a myriad of social issues, and even settled for the classic girl talks.”

“Late nights in my friends rooms having weird conversations, laughing and eating junk food together.”

“The amazing resources that we have at our fingertips, no questions asked.”

“The people. How inviting they were and how I was never alone.”

What advice would you give to a new student who is nervous about living with a roommate?

“Your roommate is probably nervous too. Have no fear; you’re both newbies to Andover, and the shared experience of facing the unknown will bring you closer together.

Work out a routine and stick to it, so neither of you bother the other with your sleeping/working schedule.”

“If you respect them and their space they will do the same.”

“I’ve never had a roommate before, but from what I’ve seen, most roommate pairings work out fine whether you end up being best friends or just acquaintances, and if ever it’s really awful you can change rooms.”

60

Part II: Advice from Students

“Talk to them honestly. Don’t expect to be friends with them outside of the dorm, but you can try.”

“Don’t sweat it! It’ll be a little awkward at first, guaranteed, but over time, they can become one of your best friends at this school. Expect late night conversations about Harry Potter, inside jokes, nicknames, and a friend that will stand up for you no matter what. (I mean, it’s not 100% certain this will happen, but my roommate and I were the pair nobody thought would work out, and now she’s like my best friend. It’s going to be odd not living with her next year, but I don’t think that’s going to lessen our friendship).”

“Just be really, really open-minded and focus on the things you like about them, not the things that annoy you.”

“If you don’t hit it off and immediately become besties, it’s okay. Usually, you form an odd, quiet tolerance for each other. If things really don’t work out, eventually you can find spots to hang out or study outside of your room. At worst, it’s only a year.”

“Always, always have open communication. If you are annoyed about something, express that annoyance and explain why you are feeling that way.”

“Don’t worry they are probably just as nervous as you are.”

“Just be yourself, but be respectful. Treat your roommate how they would like to be treated. And just get a dust cover for your bed so you can push all your junk under your bed and no one will ever know.”

Part II: Advice from Students

61

“You and your roommate do not have to be best friends; in fact, in my experience it’s better if you’re merely friendly.”

“Don’t make any assumptions! There’s nothing you can do at this point. Who knows, that person may become your best friend.

If not, so be it. You’re only in your room for so much of the day.”

“Roommates rock! They’re an instant best friend and I wish I’d gotten a roommate my first year here.”

What is one activity that you think a new student should try at Andover?

“Community Service! Regardless of what activity you choose, Community Service was the most fun activity in my Andover education!”

“Joining a sports team or a club as soon as possible. It automatically provides you with a group of familiar faces and future friends.

It’s an immediate sense of belonging, which is crucial to your future success and health at Andover.”

“A competitive sport.”

“Definitely go to the library and Commons to eat and study with new people every day. Most groups are accepting and you’ll find friends quickly.”

“Please go to clubs because those are what make the Andover experience unique and those are what will define you.”

62

Part II: Advice from Students

“Definitely join clubs, audition for a Theatre 920, audition for an A-Capella group, try things you never would’ve tried. Try out for a team, try a sport you’ve never heard of. Get involved! Overall, just put yourself out there, take risks, make memories. Trust me, it’s worth it.”

“I don’t want to say any specifics, but they are encouraged to randomly try a club.”

“Stargazing! We have an amazing observatory with a 16-inch telescope, and there are so many cool celestial objects we can observe. Keep an eye out for the open houses!”

“Crew.”

“Try a new club. Any new club. Something unexpected.”

“Anything that interests them like a sport, instrument, or club.”

“Try a meditating in the sanctuary. Bring your homework and find a random spot on a good day. You can’t get distracted and nature is beautiful.”

“Go to club meetings. It is important to get involved and going to clubs is a great way to meet friends who have the same interests as you.”

“Talk to a favorite teacher outside of class for a really long time.”

“Salsa dancing during Wellness week.”

Part II: Advice from Students

63

“Write for The Phillipian. It’s probably the most legitimate thing I’ve ever done on this campus. People will tell you it’s hard and time consuming, but the experience you gain, whether that be completing something on a deadline, creating something that is uniquely yours, making a difference in a singular person’s life, or just meeting people you would have never interacted with, are ones that I valued most when I was at Andover. This was probably the one activity that defined, and continues to define who I am today.”

What advice would you give to a day student who feels secluded from boarding life?

“The divide does exist, but you will gradually befriend more boarders as you meet them through your classes and clubs. Don’t be afraid to hang out in their dorm rooms or even invite them to your house. Those bonds will eliminate the feeling of isolation.”

“Ask other students to study with you.”

“Reach out to boarders on your sports teams, invite them to your house, and they’ll probably return the favor.”

“I’d say that the trick is to remember that, “boarder life” usually just involves watching Netflix and being bored in the dorm. Also, remember that you can always invite boarders to your house.”

“Try to get adopted into a smaller dorm, but you’re not missing much.”

“Make friends with some boarders and spend some time in their dorms. You could even ask to sleep over one night!”

64

Part II: Advice from Students

“Go meet new people. You meet new people everyday - ask them if you don’t mind going to their dorm to hang out or do homework.”

“I’m not a day student, so I don’t think I have the best perspective for this, but from a boarder’s perspective, I love you guys. Ask to see people’s dorms -- I personally love bringing people back to the dorm, even though Whitney House isn’t exactly the prettiest building on campus. Come to the cluster munches.

Invite us to hang out in GW or Elson or the library or anywhere else you happen to be. Text/FB message/Skype. We’d love to be friends with you, and even better, you guys don’t have sign-in, so you can stay later and play video games and board games and other cool stuff.”

“Just talk to people! It really is that simple. At first, there may be a boarder-day student divide, but simple conversation goes a long way. Remember that you not living in a dorm doesn’t define you. Also, you can brag about your car privileges that you will realize very soon are as valuable as golden nuggets.”

“Don’t always hang out with other day students, boarders feel like they are secluded from you and not the other way around.”

“Spend more time on campus or talk to more people.”

“Make boarder friends. This might require some patience, but it’s worth the wait. Also, eat dinner at Commons when you can.”

“Sleepovers. Your friends already live with each other, so don’t be a afraid to just join in. Ask for permission every weekend ahead of time just in case.”

Part II: Advice from Students

65

“Go to the library basement.”

What advice do you have for students who are homesick?

“Talk about it with a friend or trusted adult, take a nap, and try something new.”

“Call everyone from home you can think of. I made a list of people I could call and choose a different one to call whenever I was feeling particularly homesick. Also, tell your family to send pictures, care packages, etc. and have them come often. Also spend lots of time outside of the dorm where you can think about things other than how this isn’t actually your room and hang out with friends.”

“Soon enough the friends you make here will feel like family. Of course you will miss your home, but once you have made one here it becomes a lot easier. When you return home for breaks/vacations, odds are that towards the end of your stay you will be counting down the days until you can come back to school.”

“Whenever I feel homesick, I go hang out with my friends for a little laugh, and remember that they are my family here.”

“Talk to people. Not everyone may relate, but definitely some will.”

“Skype your parents, hang out with friends, and also do something fun! Dorm munches always helped get my mind off things.”

“Two methods: call your parents every day, make a family group chat, etc. Or, totally disconnect yourself and forget about them.”

66

Part II: Advice from Students

“Call your parents. Even just hearing their voice will make you feel better.”

“I think talking to prefects, friends, Graham House, maybe even your parents could help.”

“Call home. Most of us have relatives we can Facetime or just dial up whenever we need it. They’ll love to hear from you and hearing from them is comforting. Also, go home for break. It’s fun to go on vacation, but what you’ll really want at the end of a long year at PA is sleep in your own bed and have homemade food.”

“I promise you campus becomes a wonderful place after a break from it all.”

“Set small goals for yourself and before you know it, you’ll be so immersed in Andover that you will forget all about missing home.”

“Make a schedule where you call your parents every so often.”

What are some challenges you faced when balancing your academics, athletics, and extracurriculars? How did you overcome these?

“Balance. I gradually figured out what activities were most important to me and pursued those along with my academics.”

“There are so many and people expect you to do so much.

When I say people I mean other Andover students. I overcame them by only doing what I liked: only clubs I liked, only classes with the teachers I liked, etc.”

Part II: Advice from Students

67

“Time management is something everyone learns here pretty quickly. There are nights when you are completely swamped with work and extracurriculars after coming home late from a sports game or practice, but you learn to balance your time for the most part. I personally don’t believe in all-nighters, no work is important enough to put your health in jeopardy. Send your teachers an email, most of them will understand and offer a helping hand.”

“Getting enough sleep to do well in life while playing varsity sports and taking six classes was challenging. I overcame this by using all of those little 10-minute pauses in my day to get work done, but still set aside time for me to take a quick walk outside, and not be working or stressed the whole day.”

“Sleep deprivation -- be careful with your time management” “I had to work into my free time and had to watch less Netflix on occasion.”

“Keep your goals in mind.”

“I got no sleep and was stressed out over nothing. I overcame this by Netflixing and remember that I am literally a speck in the universe and just one person in an inter dimensional timescape without linear form. Which basically means just chill.”

“For better or for worse, extracurriculars are definitely important but missing one meeting won’t be the end of the world.”

68

Part II: Advice from Students

“Time! There is never enough time here, no matter how on top of things I thought I was, it never seemed to be enough. But, despite the constraints of this man-made idea, I manage to complete my work, even if it means panicking during breakfast or conference. Basically, get your work done, ugh.”

“It’s really important to remember to do one thing at a time Whenever I was stressed out, that’s what I would tell myself one thing at a time.”

“I had very little time to do all the things I wanted. It is important to set priorities. I put academics before extracurriculars and athletics.

In order to maximize your time, do homework during all pockets of free time.”

“Do not do your homework in the basement of the library or surrounded by friends.”

“There was also a while where I felt the need to do certain activities because they seemed to be the big thing to do. But really, it becomes so much easier to balance your extracurriculars when they’re things you genuinely enjoy.”

“For me, the biggest challenge was realizing that I could not do everything perfectly all at the same time. There is always so much doing on everyday.”

Places to Study on Campus

69

The classrooms in the Elson Art Center After classes, the classrooms in Elson are generally available for student use. These classrooms can get really quiet, especially on the weekends, so it can be a good place to get work done.

There is also a lot of space with large desks, so you can spread out your work. During the weekdays, it may be more difficult to find an empty classroom, so you should try to get there early.

The Addison Gallery of American Art Learning Center The Addison Gallery closes early, so it might be a good idea to use this space on the weekends or during class hours. Since it is part of the museum, all students must be silent. It is open during the same hours as the museum: Tuesday through Saturday from 10:00am to 5:00pm and Sunday from 1:00pm to 5:00pm.

You can access it through the Addison Gallery’s front entrance or through the Elson Art Center. Also, remember that neither the Gallery nor the Museum Learning Center is open on Mondays.

The Basement in the Cochran Chapel There are desks and couches in the basement of the chapel. This space is relatively quiet and good for group work or studying. The couches are also very comfortable if you are working on a laptop.

Lower Left or Upper Left in Paresky Commons Though they may seem like some of the most unlikely places to get work done, these areas of the dining hall can get pretty quiet on Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday mornings. They can be especially helpful if you are working or studying with a group of students.

70

Part II: Places to Study on Campus

Your Dormitory There are likely plenty of places to work throughout your dorm.

During study hours, the common room will be relatively quiet.

If you do not have a roommate, your dorm room will typically be very silent as well. If you have a roommate that constantly makes noise or has other friends in the room when you are trying to work, talk to him or her and try to work something out.

The Lobby of Morse Hall The middle door of Morse will be unlocked at all times. Though the classrooms, similar to Gelb, get locked after a certain time, the desks in the lobby will always be available for student use. While people may brush in and out during the afternoon or at night, it is likely that you will not be disturbed on weekend mornings.

The Stacks in the Oliver Wendell Holmes Library Similar to Silent Study, the Stacks have a bit of ambient noise in the background. There are a few very isolated desks that can be great for getting done with no distractions. If there are no available desks, feel free to sit down on the floor and work.

The Garver Room in the Oliver Wendell Holmes Library The Garver Room, which many Andover students refer to as “Silent Study,� is one of the most popular, well-known places on campus to work quietly. It can also be a great place to study if you like working with ambient noise in the background. Just make sure that you grab a spot before it gets too crowded. It often gets more difficult to find a seat after dinner hours when many students begin their work.

How to Study Effectively?

71

. Rewrite your class notes. This may help you to remember things

more easily. Also, you remember much more when you write things down than you do when you just read them. Many teachers will often recommend reviewing material daily, which will make your extended period smoother since you will have been reviewing.

. If there is a textbook for your class, read or re-read the section and highlight as you go. After you finish your reading, go back and take notes or outline all of the information that you highlighted as important.

Writing chapter summaries is also helpful in preparing for exams.

. Identify sections that do not make sense. By doing this, you will know

what questions to ask during class or conference period. It will help you to easily address any confusion. Do extra problems in the textbook for that concept if possible or refer to online sources.

. Create a study guide/practice test. Outline information that you will have to know and solve practice problems from your textbook. If your textbook provides online resources, take advantage of them. Many teachers ask questions on tests that are similar to homework or textbook problems, so redoing these will help your preparation.

. Use flashcards. Flashcards are a great way to quiz yourself and

making them will help you to easily remember key definitions, concepts, and other important information. If you prefer not to use paper flashcards, online flashcard resources such as Quizlet provide great methods to memorize information.

72

Part II: How to Study Effectively

. Form a study group. Studying with other students in your class will give you many more opportunities to show what you know. Giving explanations will also show you gaps in your understanding and help you to know where to focus your attention while studying.

. Work with a peer tutor. You can talk to the Academic Skills Center and

your teacher to request a peer tutor. This peer tutor will be able to meet with you at least once a week and usually one-on-one. They can help explain concepts or lessons that you are having trouble with.

. Make sure that you are studying in advance. Cramming information

into your brain the night before a test will not help you to perform well. When you know you have a test or final exam approaching, make a schedule of when you will study and be sure to stick to it!

. Meet with your teacher. Conference can be a great time to ask

really quick questions. Before finals, a lot of teachers will hold a study session, which a something a lot of students find helpful.

. Watch videos. If you need a specific topic explained, there is a good

chance there is a Khan Academy video or YouTube video that can help you. CrashCourse (on YouTube) provides great overviews on a variety of topics including science, history, and literature. Another helpful tool is freelance-teacher.com, a website with videos on physics, calculus, chemistry, and biology. Some textbooks will also have online tutorials that are accessible with a code on your book.

Hopefully, some of these techniques will be help to improve your study habits. Often, using a variety of methods will be most beneficial. If you are continuously struggling, the Academic Skills Center is a great resource. They may have more suggestions that will be more personalized to your specific studying needs.

How to Survive Finals Week?

73 73

Finals week can seem like a daunting time to many students.

However, in fact, many students feel that finals week is one of the most relaxed weeks of each term, due to the large blocks of time.

. Check the Extended Period Week Schedule. Fairly early in the

term, you will get an email with the attached extended period week schedule. Check the schedule to make sure that you do not have more than two finals each day. If so, you must contact the registrar. A few weeks before finals week, review the schedule again. Enter the times for each final into your planner. Make sure that you pay attention when your teacher specifies the time block that your class will be using. By entering the times into your planner, you will be able to better plan out how to manage your time effectively. This will also help you see when your higher or lower priority assessments or assignments are due.

. Get a foot ahead by keeping all your class notes organized. You can

already begin preparing for the finals simply by organizing all of your class notes and papers. It will be easier for you to review for finals, and save you from much stress and panic.

Also, chronologically ordering all of your papers might help you.

. Decide which subjects to either study alone or group study. You do not need

to have a study group for finals, but if you feel that it will help you, arrange group study times with your classmates. However, many of these group study times can instead turn into group panic and stressing-out sessions. Try reviewing thoroughly on your own before maybe bringing questions to your peers at a study session.

74

Part II: How to Survive Finals Week?

. Budget your study time for each assessment. Arrange all of your

assessments from high to low priority. Note when they take place.

If you have a higher priority assessment that starts later than other lower priority assessments, start studying earlier. This does not mean that you should cram for lower priority assessments the night before!

Many math, science and language finals take place in the Smith Center.

Here are some things to note for your next finals at this location: Before the final, all students have to wait in the Cage until the doors of the Smith Center open. Here are some things to keep in mind:

. You can leave your bags in the Cage. Just remember to put your

belongings in a place where people will not trip over it.

. People will crowd around the doors during the five minutes before the start of testing. There will be a near-stampede into the Smith Center when the doors open, so just make sure to be careful.

. Come early and stand near the doors. If you want to be able to choose

a good desk, try not to be stuck in the back of the crowd.

During the final, keep in mind that the Smith Center will be much different than your classroom. Here are some things to know that may help you:

. Raise your hand if you need anything. If you need to go to the bathroom,

ask a faculty member in the room. Remember that some proctors will not let you get up in during the final, which is 90 minutes long with no breaks. Try to use the bathroom before the final begins.

Part II: How to Survive Finals Week?

75

. There will be limited desk space with maybe enough room for two sheets of

paper. Keep your extra belongings (extra pencils, water bottle, etc.) underneath your desk. In addition, your cell phone must be powered off. If your ringer goes off during the final, you may be asked to turn in your exam at the front and exit the room.

. If your half-desk is built for a right-handed person and you are left-handed,

do not worry. The teachers will provide you with a left-handed desk if you bring your current desk to the front. There are also many left-handed desks towards the very back of the room.

. It is a huge space with rows of hundreds of desks. Many students may find it disorienting or intimidating to look up to see so many desks around them. If you know that this will bother you, try to get a desk near the front of the room to avoid this issue.

. Bring a watch. Although there are two clocks in the Smith Center,

it may be helpful to bring your own watch or time-keeping device.

Though the teachers will give you time warnings, it can be very helpful to have the ability to manage your own time during the test.

After the final:

. If you finish your exam more than 15 minutes before it is scheduled to finish, you may turn in your exam early and leave the Smith Center.

. If you finish your exam within 15 minutes of the end of the testing period, remain seated. Do not go running out of the room after the time is called but rather wait for further instruction by the proctors.

76

How to Find Friends?

73

When first arriving at Andover, or any other new place really, it can definitely be overwhelming to try and make a friend when there are so many people. However, the first term of Junior year at Andover is structured so that you have more time and an easier transition since both English and History are pass-fail classes. Here are some general tips that will hopefully help you find some friends:

. Try and come out of your “bubble� and talk to people. Although this

will probably sound obvious, it is actually the only tried-and-true method to make friends. Being social can definitely be intimidating, especially if you are shy, but unfortunately talking to people is necessary for a friendship to form. Just try to leave your comfort zone for a bit and see what the people around you are really like.

In fact, they are probably going to be just as nervous as you are.

. Sit with different people at meals. If you have not found a group of

people that really resonate with you, meeting some new people would be really beneficial. Meals are an ideal time to forge these connections, as everyone is relaxed and looking to have fun.

Sitting with a group of strangers, essentially, is very scary, but most people would not reject someone from sitting with them.

. Study in the Library. The library is a central hub of student life on

weeknights. If you do not have a ton of homework, studying in the library outside of Silent Study is a great way to meet people.

Since you will see each other in your most stressed moments, bonds formed in the library can be some of the closest you will make at Andover. You might not be able to study in the library during fall term, but once you can, it is definitely a great place to meet people.

How to Manage Your Time?

77 73

When you first arrive at Andover, you are launched headfirst into a whirlwind of people, homework, tests, clubs, and all sorts of other things. The combination of all these factors is very scary and can cause a lot of stress, but good time-management can alleviate a lot of this fear and stress. Here are some tips on how to work more efficiently and to better manage your time:

. Try to do some work in Conference periods and at lunch. If you have free time then, getting ahead on some homework is a great way to reduce your stress later at night. Socializing may seem like a highly alluring alternative, but by doing some work earlier you gain time later on at night for more relaxed interactions and more free time.

. Take study breaks. As counterintuitive as it sounds, taking study

breaks is a great way to maintain productivity. In fact, studies have shown that taking a five minute break every twenty to thirty minutes of studying maximizes the efficiency since you are more likely to remember what you studied at the beginning and end of your work.

. Find a study space on campus that works best for you. In order to work

productively, it is crucial that you feel comfortable in your study space. To this end, try and experiment with working in different spaces such as the library, Gelb, CAMD, Morse, your room, or even GW (George Washington Hall). Remember that it might take a while to find a place that allows you to be most productive, and it is different for everyone. Some people might be very productive around their friends, whereas others might need to be alone to work.

78

Part II: How to Manage Your Time?

. Plan around extracurricular activities. Once you know what clubs and/or

activities you want to devote your time to, plan around their meeting times. It can be hard to keep track of these times at first, but it gets easier over time. If you work the times into your schedule, it will allow you to be most productive while still maintaining your interests.

. Tell your friends to leave you alone if you need them to. As previously

mentioned, not everyone can work well around their friends. If you have a ton of work that you must do, never worry about telling your friends not to bother you if you need to be productive working.

You should not let your friends impact your grades because at the end of the day, they are your grades. Additionally, your friends will most likely understand because they have work to do themselves.

. Have fun in addition to doing work. One of the most important factors

to being productive is to have fun as well. You might not necessarily have fun while you are doing work, but when you are at clubs or just hanging out with friends, try to release some of your stress and just enjoy yourself. Having fun refreshes you and allows you to go back to work both more focused and more efficient.

These are just some possibilities and guidelines to maximize your productivity and improve your time-management, and there are many other ways you might find that work better for you.

Remember that everyone is different, so try to find what strategies allow you to make the most out of each and every single day.

79 73

Dorm Life Information Strategies for learning how to live away from home: Moving away is hard. Those coming as freshmen are merely 14 years old. However, there are several things that may help you adjust:

. Call your parents, siblings, or close friends and relatives. This is a small

step you can take and will help you cope with homesickness and sometimes loneliness. You should dedicate some time in your day to catch up or talk through your struggles with parents.

. Get a Skype or video chatting account. It can be hard for international

students and students who live in different time zones to schedule times to video chat, but actually seeing the faces of the ones you love can be very comforting and lift your spirits.

. Seek the companionship and comfort of your house counselors. They

are there for a reason, and they are considered by many to be dorm parents. They are there to support you and help you when you feel lonely and homesick. Take advantage of them.

What makes a good roommate?

When coming to PA, it is very likely that you will have a roommate for your first year. Here are some tips for being a roommate as well as traits you might want your roommate to have are:

80

Part II: General Concepts and Information

Cleanliness. It might seem like a simple thing, but in the end of the day you do not want to live with a person in a relatively small space if they are messy and do not clean up after themselves.

Respect. If your roommate needs to work, do not run around laughing with your friends in the room. If your roommate decides to sleep early, do not have a parietal until 11:00pm on a Saturday.

Similar sleeping routines. It can be easier to share a room with someone if you have similar sleeping patterns. You might not want to live with someone who likes getting up super early to do their homework if you like sleeping in for as long as possible. If you are ever in a situation like this, try compromising with your roommate.

How do you get new keys?

If you lose your keys you can go to the PAPS office (the little house next to Graves) and buy new ones. They cost forty dollars, so try not to lose your keys too often. In addition, try to avoid becoming dependent on other people in your dorm to let you in.

Laundry Services If you purchase the E&R Laundry Service, you will receive a green laundry bag. Once a week, E&R will come and pick up your bag, filled with all your dirty clothes, and clean them. Three days later the bags are delivered back to the dorm with all your clean clothes in them and all your nicer clothes put on hangers. E&R dry cleans, removes stains, and reattaches buttons for you. All you need to do is to put the laundry bag in your common room before they come to pick it up.

81

Part II: General Concepts and Information House Counselors

House counselors are faculty that live in your dorm with you, and serve as a go-to person if you have any questions or concerns about anything. House counselors also enforce the school rules.

Parietal Rules Mon -Thurs

Juniors

No room visits

Friday

No room visits

Saturday

No room visits

Lowers 5-8pm 5-9:30pm 8-11pm Uppers Doors open Doors open Doors open Seniors and lights on and lights on and lights on

Sunday

Fall: No room visits After January 1: 5-8pm Doors open and lights on; Junior-Junior Only

5-8pm Doors open and lights on

Senior doors may be closed after January 1

82

82

51 7

PART III AFTER SCHOOL ACTIVITIES

Fall Sports Competitive Sports Boys Cross Country: One team, all levels welcome Football: Varsity, Junior Varsity Soccer: Varsity, Junior Varsity 1, JV 2, JV 3 Water Polo: Varsity, Junior Varsity

Girls Cross Country: One team, all levels welcome Field Hockey: Varsity, Junior Varsity 1, JV 2 Soccer: Varsity, Junior Varsity 1, JV 2 Volleyball: Varsity, Junior Varsity

Recreational/Intramural Sports Coed Crew Dance (All levels) Fencing Instruction Fundamentals in Training Intramural Soccer Morning Basics Outdoor Pursuits Pilates

Skating Instruction SLAM Squash Instruction Swim Instruction Tennis Instruction Volleyball Instruction Yoga

83

84

Winter Sports Competitive Sports Boys Basketball: Varsity, Junior Varsity 1, JV 2 Hockey: Varsity, Junior Varsity Indoor Track: One team, all levels welcome Squash: Varsity, Junior Varsity 1, JV 2 Swimming and Diving: Varsity, Junior Varsity (Coed) Wrestling: Varsity, Junior Varsity

Girls Basketball: Varsity, Junior Varsity Hockey: Varsity, Junior Varsity Indoor Track: One team, all levels welcome Squash: Varsity, Junior Varsity 1, JV 2 Swimming and Diving: Varsity, Junior Varsity (Coed)

Co-ed Nordic Skiing: One team

Recreational/Intramural Sports Cluster Basketball Dance (All levels) Fundamentals in Training Hockey Intramural Outdoor Pursuits

Recreational Nordic Skiing Senior Squash SLAM Squash Instruction Yoga

Spring Sports Competitive Sports Boys

Baseball: Varsity, Junior Varsity 1, JV 2 Crew: One team, all levels welcome Lacrosse: Varsity, Junior Varsity 1, JV 2 Tennis: Varsity, Varsity B, Junior Varsity Track and Field: One team, all levels welcome Volleyball: Varsity, Junior Varsity

Girls

Crew: One team, all levels welcome Lacrosse: Varsity, Junior Varsity 1, JV 2 Softball: Varsity, Junior Varsity Tennis: Varsity, Varsity B, JV Track and Field: One team, all levels welcome Water Polo: One team

Co-ed

Cycling: One team Golf: One team Ultimate Frisbee: Varsity, Junior Varsity

Recreational/Intramural Sports Cluster Ultimate Dance (All levels) Fencing Instruction Fundamentals in Training Girls Instructional Volleyball Instructional Swim

Instructional Tennis Outdoor Pursuits Pilates Senior Tennis Squash Instruction Yoga

85

86

Sports Information

How to change sports?

You are not required to do the sport that you originally signed up for. If you no longer wish to do the sport you signed up for, you can go to the athletic office and talk to the athletics director to sign up for a new sport. There is a period of time at the start of the term where students are free to change their sports. Students are given about two weeks to make a final decision about what sport they wish to participate in.

The deadline date will be posted on fliers around the gym, and it will also be listed in every student’s academic planner.

The Trainers Phillips Academy has a few certified Athletic Trainers, who are members of the Physical Education department. They are certified by the National Athletic Trainers’ Association Board of Certification (NATA-BOC), to heal and prevent athletic injuries. When walking into the Borden Gym, the Athletic Training Room can be found to your right. You are encouraged to go to the trainers if you have or may be developing an athletic injury. You can also simply go to use the ice machine or muscle rollers. The Training Room contains various modalities, such as electrical stimulation, ultrasound and laser machines, whirlpools, a hydrocollator and an ice machine used in the treatment of athletic injuries. There are also cardiovascular endurance and muscular strengthening equipment used for the rehabilitation of athletic injuries. The Trainers are available to help you with whatever you may need.

Part III: Sports Information

87

How to manage a sport?

If you want to manage a sport, you should start by going into the athletic office of the Borden Gym. From there, you will be told to email the coach of the team you want to manage.

If the team does not already have a manager, the coach will gladly let you manage the team. Remember that managing a sport is not an easy way to get out of a sport. You still have to put in the same time commitment that the players put in. Remember that juniors cannot manage sports teams.

How to get excused from a sport?

Generally, students are required to do a sport every term. If a student wishes to be excused from a sport for any reason, the student must speak to the medical director. Only under certain conditions may a student be excused from the sport requirement. During lower year, a sport is not required during the term that a student is taking physical education as a course, as long as the student is taking six courses that term. A student can also consult the athletics director if they wish to take part in independent exercise in place of their sport, which can be done once during a student’s upper and senior years.

Do dance, theatre, or community service fulfill the sport requirement?

While students are free to pursue theatre and community service, these activities will not excuse a student from their sports requirement. However, dance is one of the many sports offerings and can be done during any or all seasons.

88

Part III: Sports Information

What to do if you do not like the offered sports?

There are many sports and activities for students to pick from, and in most cases, it is most likely that a student should be able to find an offering that they would be interested in trying.

Athletic options range from team sports to LIFE sports, which can include things like Yoga, and Zumba. LIFE sports are generally a lesser time commitment than competitive sports.

Most of these LIFE offerings are only 45 minutes long, which will allow the student to have more free time each night.

As always, students are encouraged to try out a new sport.

How to find athletic fields?

Generally, on the first day of your sport, the team will meet in the gym and the coach will direct you to the location of your field. This field will be the meeting spot for your practices everyday. You can also go to the athletic office and ask for directions to any athletic field.

Where might home games be?

For each team, home games are typically held at their designated field, where the team meets to practice everyday.

For more information...

You can visit the new Phillips Academy Athletics website at www.andover.edu/athletics to find more information about the teams, the sports calendar, the coaches, the facilities, etc.

Music

89

Music Lessons The Phillips Academy Music Department offers lessons by skilled instructors for a wide variety of instruments. A student may sign up for lessons each term while doing course selections with their advisors, and no auditions are required.

All experience levels are welcome, so you can definitely try new instruments. Financial aid can also cover the cost of lessons. The pricing of which are as follows: 30 minutes for $39.00, 45 minutes for $51.50 and 60 minutes for $65.50. You can sign up for 30, 45, or 60 minute lessons. Keep in mind that absences from lessons cannot be excused, unless for a medical emergency or other special situations. Music lessons can be dropped within the first two weeks of the term.

Instead of taking lessons at Graves, some students will commute for lessons at the New England Conservatory, Boston Conservatory, and many other locations. Students must arrange for their own transportation because the music department does not provide any special arrangements.

Hours of Operation Times for Music Office: 8:00am to 5:00pm on weekdays Times for W.B. Clift Music Library: 8:00am - 9:30pm (M/T/W); 8:30am - 9:15pm (Th); 8:00am - 5:00pm (F), 12:30pm - 9:15pm (Sun) Times for Graves Music Building: Open all day

90

Faculty and Instructors

Music Faculty Department Chair: Christina Landolt Director of Performance: Holly Barnes Head Music Librarian: Carl Johnson Music Instructors Elizabeth Aureden Holly Barnes Charlyn Bethell Peter Cirelli Derek Jacoby Christina Landolt Peter Lorenzo Vincent Monaco Abbey Siegfried Christopher Walter David Zox Music Office Office Manager: Diane Sachs Administrative Assistant: Elisa Martyn Ensemble Conductors Corelli: Elizabeth Aureden, Christina Landolt Amadeus: Elizabeth Aureden, Christina Landolt Academy Chamber: James Orent Academy Symphony: James Orent Tuesday Band: Derek Jacoby Concert Band: Vincent Monaco Jazz Band: Peter Cirelli

Part III: Music

Part III: Music Fidelio Society: Christopher Walter Gospel Choir: Michael Belcher, Abbey Siegfried Handbell Choir: Abbey Siegfried Instrumental & Voice Instruction Composition

Christina Landolt

Derek Jacoby Conducting

James Orent Percussion

Wole Alade - African drums

Carolyn Chaplin - Percussion

Bertram Lehmann - Percussion Piano

John Adams

Bonnie Anderson

Robert Baughman

Diane Lim

Stephen Porter

Dolores Teplitsky

Christopher Walter Strings

Elizabeth Aureden - Cello

Holly Barnes - Violin, Viola

Peter Cicco - Guitar

Raleigh Green - Guitar

Quintan Hodges - Contrabass

Judith Lee - Violin

91

92

Part III: Music

Emily Lewis - Harp

Olga Kouznetsova - Violin, Viola

Jan Muller-Szeraws - Cello

James Orent - Violin

Michael Rosenbloom - Violin

Roksana Sudol - Violin

David Zox - Bass guitar, Jazz bass

Jesse Williams Voice

Barbara Kilduff-O’Farrell

Eve Kornhauser

Eric Perry

Susan Turner

Krista River

Donald Wilkinson

Winds & Brass

Charlyn Bethell - Oboe

Peter Cirelli - Trombone, Tuba

Neil Fairbairn - Bassoon

Peggy Friedland - Flute, Piccolo

Meghan Jacoby - Flute

Margo McGowan - Clarinet

Robin Milinazzo - Horn

Vincent Monaco - Trumpet

Joel Springer - Saxophone

Lezlie Webster - Bagpipes Organ

Abbey Siegfried

Part III: Music

Music Groups

93

The Phillips Academy Music Department offers students the opportunity to participate in various music ensembles.

According to previous Music Department Head Mr. Cirelli, as long as a student is “able to read music” and “produce a clear sound,” students of all skill levels are welcome.

Students must audition in the beginning of the school year to be placed and seated in one of these ensembles.

The strictly string ensembles are the Academy Chamber Orchestra, Amadeus Ensemble, and the Corelli Ensemble, with Academy Chamber requiring the most experience. You will be able to participate in these if you play the violin, cello, viola, or double bass. The Academy Symphony Orchestra combines members from these smaller chamber groups along with around fifteen band (woodwind, brass, percussion) players. Students will be required to attend the Academy Symphony Orchestra rehearsals on Tuesdays, and their respective chamber group rehearsals on Thursdays. Both of these rehearsals are from 6:20-7:50pm, so if you are a boarding student, be sure to sign out before you go to orchestra.

Woodwind, brass, and percussion players can play in the Concert Band, Tuesday Band, or Jazz Band. You will be able to participate in these if you play instruments like the flute, trombone, tuba, trumpet, clarinet, English horn, French horn, oboe, piccolo, bassoon, and etc. These groups generally rehearse once a week each; all players attend rehearsals for Tuesday Band, and then either Concert or Jazz Band on Thursdays. These rehearsals will also go from 6:20-7:50pm.

94

Part III: Music

There are also smaller chamber groups such as trios, quartets, quintets, and more for various instrument players and singers.

You will be placed in a group with other students by the Music Department faculty, and your group will be assigned a music faculty coach. This coach will help your group with learning the music and musical choices. Oftentimes, you will be assigned a piece, though you may suggest pieces if you have one in mind.

These chamber groups require weekly rehearsals/coachings.

Vocalists can participate in Academy Chorus (around 65 members), Fidelio Society (around 18 members), and Gospel Choir (around 15 members). No experience is necessary for Academy Chorus or Gospel Choir, while the Fidelio Society selects students through auditions. In these groups, all students are placed based on vocal range; for example, one might be put into the soprano, alto, tenor, or bass section (going from highest to lowest range). Academy Chorus meets twice a week from 6:20-7:50pm (T/Th), while the Fidelio Society and Gospel Choir meet once a week at earlier times on Thursdays.

There are also many student-run a cappella groups, some of which include the Yorkies (all-male), Azure (all-female), and Keynotes (co-ed). These three groups offer selective auditions yearly. They also perform at various school events, such as Grasshopper, ASM, Abbot Cabaret, and Coffeehouse.

All of these groups listed above will perform in at least one concert at the end of each term. Some groups may also perform in additional concerts throughout the year as well.

Part III: Music

95

Finally, the music department also offers any student the opportunity to play in the school handbell choir. No experience with handbells is necessary to be in the group, and the group rehearses weekly. The handbell choir will often perform at ASMs and at many other school events.

Some students do commute for outside music groups such as Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra, the NEC youth orchestras, and more. Andover does not provide arrangements for transportation, and students will have to find their own.

Music Tour The Academy Chamber Orchestra and select members of Band and Chorus participate in a yearly tour, during which they perform at several venues. The tours alternate between going to international and national locations, such as Washington D.C., Shanghai, New York, Montreal, and other cities in countries like Austria and Ireland. These usually go from around four days to over a week long. In addition to rehearsing and performing at concerts, participants also spend time sightseeing and visiting local museums and landmarks.

This opportunity is also open to members of other ensembles.

For example, members of the Jazz Band have gone on a tour of Spain and even accompanied PA dancers to South Africa.

96

Part III: Music

Practice Rooms Practice rooms are available in both the basement of the Chapel and the Graves Music Building. Most of the rooms are at Graves in the basement and the second floor, and most students choose to practice here rather than in the Chapel. All of the practice rooms provide upright, mini-grand, or grand pianos, and some of the practice rooms provide drum sets and electrical sound equipment. You do not need a key to open most of the practice rooms; some of the rooms with more delicate technical equipment are locked most of the time.

Music instructors will also use these practice rooms to teach.

Therefore, there are schedules posted on most of the practice rooms, which show when the room is signed out. Check these to make sure that you will not be interrupting a lesson.

The Pfateiccher and Timken Rooms can also be available for student practice when not in use. Though the Pfateiccher Room is left unlocked at all times, the Timken Room is locked for most of the time. You may sign out the Timken Room for recordings, but you must talk to the music office.

The Pfateiccher Room also cannot be signed out by students, except for special cases like Azure and others. Lessons do take place in both of the rooms, so be respectful when moving in and out of them. There are often performances in the Timken Room, so make sure that you enter the building quietly before checking to see if there is a concert happening.

Part III: Music

97

W.B. Clift Music Library and Computers The W.B. Clift Music Library provides students with music recordings (such as CDs) and music scores to check out. You can always ask for assistance if you are having trouble finding what you need. In the music library, there are computers, which students can use to access programs like Sibelius.

Many students use this program to complete composition homework for the MUSC-225, 235, and other music courses.

Instrument Rentals and Lockers

The music department provides student lockers and instrument rentals, which are located in the Pfateiccher Room, next to the Timken Room, in the basement, and on the second floor. There is no payment needed for student lockers, but you must sign-up for one at the music office and put in a $5 deposit. The music department provides instrument rentals for violins, cellos, violas, clarinets, guitars, basses, harps, etc. These cost $35 per term, and you also need to go to the music office to request a rental instrument.

98

Part III: Music

Student Performances Students can perform in recitals at the end of each term. There are typically two recitals during this time, which are each at either Cochran Chapel or the Timken Room. During the term, sign-up sheets for the music recitals will be posted next to the music office, so be sure to check for it. If you need accompaniment for your performance, you can ask one of the music department piano teachers for help. You may also ask another student to accompany you if they are willing. Some students may even have their own individual recitals, where they will perform wide variety of pieces. For more information on how to schedule your own recital, contact the music office.

Seniors can more easily have their own individual concerts, and many senior music students host such recitals during the year.

The music department also has the yearly senior concerto competition. All players or composers are welcome to apply and audition for the chance to perform with or have their composition performed by either the Academy Symphony Orchestra or the Academy Chamber Orchestra. Rising seniors can apply during their upper spring term. After having their application and audition pieces approved, they then audition in-person at the beginning of the next year (senior year fall term).

There are usually around four to five people selected, and these students perform in either the fall or spring orchestra concert.

They also have the opportunity to perform with the orchestra at the final graduation concert, during commencement weekend.

Visual Arts

99

The Phillips Academy Visual Arts Department offers classes studying drawing, painting, sculpting, printing, photography, ceramics, weaving, video, and mixed media mediums. Specific classes are also devoted to studying art and cultures of different countries. Visual Arts are primarily taught in the Elson Art Center, but also sometimes in the Addison Gallery of American Art and Benner House. The Elson Art Center includes an Art store and The Polk-Lillard Electronic Imaging Center. The Art store, which is under the steps leading to the first floor classrooms, often has supplies that are cheaper than CVS, so be sure to check that out some time!

The Addison Gallery of American Art is located in front of Elson, facing out towards Main street. The Addison Gallery holds new exhibits each term and also invites guest artists to speak. Both art related and non-art related classes occasionally use their class period to visit the Addison.

Benner House is located behind Commons, past Bulfinch and down Salem Street. Benner House is dedicated to ceramics.

Visual Arts Faculty

Ms. Therese Zemlin Mr. Samuel Zaeder Ms. Margaret Harrigan Ms. Emily Trespas

Ms. Elaine Crivelli Mr. Anthony Lawson Mr. David Fox Ms. Dominique Seltzman

100

Part III: Visual Arts

Courses to take: Foundation Courses (Open only to Juniors and Lowers)

Visual Studies 2-D Studio (Art-225A)

Visual Studies 3-D Studio (Art-225B)

Visual Studies Media Studio (Art-225C) Introductory Concentration Courses

Visual Culture: Discovering the Addison Collection (Art-300/3)

Architecture I (Art-301)

Clay and The Ancestral Pot (Art-302)

Drawing I (Art-304)

Painting I (Art-305)

Film Photography (Art-306)

Mixed Media Printmaking (Art-307)

Sculpture I: Clay, Plaster, Welded Wire, and Japanese Papermaking (Art-308)

Video I (Art-309) Digital Photography I: The Landscape (Art-310)

Weaving: When the Paleolithic Meets the Digital Age (Art-314)

Documentary Video: Make Change! (Art-319)

The Artist: Media and Meaning (Art-350) Advanced Concentration Courses

Histories of Art (Art-400/1, Art-400/2, Art-400/3)

Architecture II (Art-401/1, Art-401/2, Art-401/3)

Ceramics II (Art-402/2, Art-402/3)

Drawing II (Art-404)

Part III: Visual Arts

101

Painting II (Art-405)

Special Topics in Photography: Images of Resistance and the Social Documentary Tradition (Art-406)

Sculpture II (Art-408/2, Art-408/3)

Video II (Art-409/1, Art-409/2, Art-409/3)

Photography II (Art-410)

Weaving II (Art-414)

Cultural Perspectives, Global Connections (Art-465) 500-Level Studio Courses

Advanced Studio Art (Art-500/0)

Architecture III (Art-501/1, Art-501/2, Art-501/3)

Ceramics III (Art-502/2, Art-502/3)

Drawing III (Art-504)

Painting III (Art-505)

Photography III: Special Topics (Art-506)

Video III (Art-509/1, Art-509/2, Art-509/3)

Photography III: Self and Other (Art-510) 600-Level Studio Courses

Architecture IV (Art-601/1, Art-601/2, Art-601/3)

Ceramics IV (Art-602/2, Art-602/3)

Video IV (Art-609/1, Art-609/2, Art-609/3)

102

Club List Andover Art Society Andover Book Club Andover Economics Society Andover Film Club Andover Literature Poetry and Creative Alliance Andover Rock Climbing Society Andover Wordplay Society App Development Archeology and History Club Architecture Club Art Exchange Art for Expression Art Music Society Astronomy Club Babel Magazine Backgammon Club Backtracks Baking for a Future Big Idea Club Bird Club Blue Strut Cage Club Calligraphy Club Campuses Against Cancer Card Games Club Chess Club

Part III: Club List Classical Club Clutch Collaborative Comic Book Club Computer Science Club Constructed Languages Club Cooking for a Cause The Courant Culture, Politics, and Religion, Cyber Security and Forensics Club Disability Rights, Education, Activism, and Mentoring Disc Golf Drama Lab Drumline EAT Club EcoAction Explorer’s Club Fashion Club French Club Friends of the Orphans Frontline Magazine Gender and Sexuality Alliance German Club Global Health Initiative Global Nomads Global Society Gospel Choir Guitar Club History Club Illusionist Society

103

104

Part III: Club List JusticeNOW Linguistics Club Live Action Role Play Society Makers Club Math Club Mediation Club Mock Trial Modern Physics Forum Model United Nations More Than Just a Number Motorsports Club Movie Makers’ Club Music MDs Over the Hills and Farther Away PA Democrats PA Independents Club PA Republican Society Personal Health Information Team The Phillipian Philomathean Society Philosophy Club Photography Club Political Union Pot Pourri Psychology Club Quiz Bowl Real World Challenge The Record Resonate

Part III: Club List

Robotics Club Science Club Science and Medicine Journal Club Science and Technology Club Score Analysis Club Secret Life of Girls Sketchy South East Asian Club Spanish Club Spinning Club Sports and Games Club Sports Forum Stand Up 2 Cancer Student Anti-Genocide Coalition Students in Medicine Submarine Music Magazine Techmasters Under the Bed Voice The Wild: A Wildlife Conservation Club Women’s Forum Word WPAA

105

106

Theatre & Dance

The Theatre & Dance Department is based out of the first and second floors of GW. Steinbach Lobby, Tang Theater, and Steinbach Theater. Many performing groups will rehearse in either Steinbach lobby or the theatre classroom in the first floor of GW. In addition, the theatre classroom is home to the DramaLabs every Friday evening. With the Addison Gallery attached , GW is definitely a hub for performing arts, but there is also a dance studio directly above Borden Gym where many dance classes and groups will rehearse their choreography.

Grasshopper Night

Grasshopper Night is PA’s annual student-led talent show that is performed during Family Weekend in October.

Grasshopper Night welcomes all performing groups and acts including a capella groups, dance performances, theatre skits, slam poetry, and student bands. Grasshopper Night is based off of a different theme each year with 2015 being The 60s.

DramaLabs

DramaLabs are student-directed scenes, which are performed every Friday night in the theatre classroom. Prior experience is not required to direct a DramaLab. In addition to being advised by the entire theatre department, the DramaLabs are run by three student producers that are chosen from a select group.

Part III: Theatre & Dance

107

2015-2016 DramaLab Producers Erica Nork ‘16 Kieto Mahaniah ‘16 Foster Conklin ‘16

Theatre & Dance Department Faculty Mr. Allen Grimm Mr. Kevin Heelan Mr. Billy Murray Ms. Erin Strong Ms. Judith Wombwell

THDA 920’s for 2015-2016

Fall: Hairspray Directed by: Ms. Strong and Ms. Siegfried Winter: Proof Directed by: Mr. Heelan Spring: Black Gods of the Asphalt Directed by: Dr. Onaje Woodbine The previous plays are by audition only, and these auditions occur 2-3 weeks before rehearsals begin. THDA-920’s count as a class and are commonly taken as a sixth course.

108 51 7

PART III WHO WE ARE

Management and Editorial Board 2015

Dear Sam

Andrew J. Cortner & Nikolas A. Skrivanos Editors in Chief Katherine E. Sweetser Executive Editor Michelle H. Koh Managing Editor

Lovisa G. Romander Managing Editor Akhil V. Rajan Chief Operating Officer

Physical Health Margaret Davis Morgan Kuin

Mental Health Wendy Zhang Kayleigh Bishop

Academic Rebecca Marrow Kalina Ko

Sexual Health Indiana Sobol

Relationships Andrew Cheng Laurel Wain

Diversity Sarah Al-Mayahi Jenna Kim

110

Upper Management

Katherine Sweetser: Executive Editor Hi! My name is Katherine Sweetser and I am a three year upper from North Andover. I am currently the Executive Editor for Dear Sam. Before coming to Phillips Academy, I attended The Pike School, which is a small private school a few minutes away from Andover. I was very excited to attend a new school and meet new people. The hardest part about my transition to Andover was adjusting to the boarding school atmosphere and encouraging myself to try new things. During my junior year, I would leave campus in the early afternoon in order to attend off campus sports practices everyday, just as I had done since the first grade. I realized that I was not getting the full Andover experience. During my lower year, I joined two new sports teams at Andover and spent the entirety of my day on campus. I was much happier and felt much more connected to my classmates. I was able to spend more time with my friends and make new ones at sports practices. My advice to you would be to step out of your comfort zone and be open to all the opportunities that Andover has to offer you.

Lovisa Romander: Managing Editor

My name is Lovisa Romander, and I am a Managing Editor for Dear Sam. I came to Andover from Stockholm, Sweden as a new lower or 10th grader. It was my first time attending both an English speaking school and a boarding school. I had no previous experience with the American educational system. After attending a small private school in Stockholm for ten years, I was very anxious to see what it would be like starting Andover.

I tried not to have too many expectations of what it would be like,

Part IV: Upper Management

111

and I think that is something I definitely benefited from when I first came here. One thing I did struggle with in the beginning was selecting a few extracurricular activities out of hundreds. You will always be given many different options on how to spend your free time at Andover, and it is very important to understand that you cannot do everything. When you first come here, you will be asked to choose, and I think it is important to know that you will not be able to do all of the hundreds of fun activities offered at Andover.

Michelle Koh: Managing Editor My name is Michelle, and I am a boarding student in the Class of 2017 from Irvine, California. Currently, I am one of the two Managing Editors for Dear Sam. Before I came to Andover, I went to Rancho San Joaquin Middle School, a pretty large school in my hometown. The school went from seventh to eighth grade, and it had around four hundred students in each grade. Since class sizes ranged from thirty to seventy-five people, I could not communicate or develop connections with any of my teachers. Therefore, it was a real shock to attend classes at Andover, since these could only have a maximum of eighteen people. I was not sure how to reach out to my teachers or fully use to my advantage all the resources and support systems that Andover offered. Personally, I am still struggling with asking for help when I truly need it, but I strongly encourage you to become aware of these wonderful resources and to make meaningful connections with as many people as possible.

Akhil Rajan: Chief Operating Officer My name is Akhil Rajan, and I am a boarder from Mumbai, India/Chicago, IL in the Class of 2017. I am currently the Chief Operating Officer of Dear Sam. Coming in as a Junior, one of the most difficult things was dealing with the stress and sleeplessness that I initially faced. I had never done anything that came close to the

112

Part IV: Upper Management

level of stress, anxiety, and work that PA entailed. Additionally, I struggled to find my social niche at Andover. Throughout my life, I have moved through countless schools and school districts, but settling into a new place was never as hard as it was at Andover. While other freshmen were out socializing and lawning, I was studying for an upcoming test or struggling to keep up with the workload. It felt as though everyone else was sailing through the transition, and that I was the only one that had to work as hard as I could. Eventually, I was able to get myself organized and tackle the workload in an orderly fashion. I once again started to get nine hours of sleep, but I was constantly left with the feeling that I didn’t fit in. Sure—I had a group of close friends who I felt that I could turn to, but every time I was the first to sign-in, every time I would text someone “can’t studying,” every time I would sit in the library watching other people lawn through the back windows of silent, I felt a deep sense of loneliness exacerbated by homesickness. It was weird—on the outside I was happy, I liked my friends, I loved my classes and I enjoyed my clubs, but there was some part of me that felt like I was doing something wrong. It was only when I realized that any unhappiness I harbored was because of the way I thought other people might perceive me that I was able to let it go. Andover is a difficult place, that is undeniable, but often some of the biggest challenges come from within oneself. In this community, no one is alone in their loneliness. It is a pervading sentiment, a fear of missing out, which captures everyone at times. The best thing that you can do at Andover is to realize that you are not alone, that everyone else is going through what you are going through, and that it does not matter what other people might think.

Physical Health

113

Section Editors

Margaret “Meg� Davis & Morgan Kuin Hello! My name is Meg Davis, and I am in the Class of 2017 from Andover, Massachusetts.

On campus, I am a physical health editor for Dear Sam and the captain of the girls cycling team this year. Before coming to Andover, I went to Wood Hill Middle School, which is a public school in western Andover. I was very excited to meet people, take challenging classes, and try new sports. Personally, I found new student orientation to be kind of difficult because of all of the new faces and information being thrown at me. Eventually, I slowly became more comfortable with several aspects of the campus and learned to dabble in the things I was interested in.

My advice to you, whether you start as a junior or post-graduate student, is to take advantage of everything this school has to offer.

My name is Morgan Kuin. I am a day student from Andover, Massachusetts in the Class of 2017. I arrived as a Junior, and I am currently an editor for the physical health section of Dear Sam. The challenges I faced transitioning to Andover were both stress and time management as well as finding a good group of friends. Before coming to Andover, I went to a relatively small and very sheltered private school. Thus, as soon as orientation came around, I was overwhelmed with the diversity of the school and students. After a few days, people already created cliques, and it was hard for me to enter them. On top of that, the workload here left me exhausted

114

Part IV: Physical Health

and stressed most nights. It made me doubt that I could finish the rest of the year, much less the rest of my career at Andover since the workload only increases. However, through mandatory sports, I made a few friends, and from those friends I made a few more. I think homework is something everyone will continue to struggle with, but I have managed to become more organized. I have also learned to ask for help, as I used to avoid it because I thought it meant I was not smart. Asking for help actually saved me from some even worse test grades. My advice would be to not be afraid to reach out, do not worry too much on the little things.

Who We Are The Physical Health section of Dear Sam specializes in areas of health that pertain, but are not limited, to eating disorders, substance abuse, athletic injuries/sports medicine, illness, sleep deprivation, medication, etc.

Under the authority of the two section editors, as well as frequent correspondence with Dr. Amy Patel and other health professionals, the Physical Health section aspires to address student health complications thoroughly and empathetically, and to hopefully lead students towards adults on campus who are well suited to assist them.

Mental Health

115

Section Editors

Wendy Zhang & Kayleigh Bishop My name is Wendy Zhang, and I am a day student from Andover, MA in the Class of 2017. I am currently an editor for the mental health section of Dear Sam. On campus, I am involved in Mock Trial, The Phillipian, STAND, Women’s Forum, GSA, and The Democracy Project. The biggest challenges I faced as a junior transitioning to Andover were stress and time management. Before coming to Andover, I had never attended an academically rigorous school, so I immediately found myself overwhelmed by the workload here. On my first night of homework, it took me nearly two hours to complete my history reading, and I went to bed really late, completely exhausted and wondering whether I had made the right decision by coming to Andover. Overwhelmed and intimidated, I made the decision to not join any clubs during fall and winter of my junior year. Although this did give me more time to handle academic and social pressures, in hindsight, it is one of my biggest regrets. Every student finds a different way of settling in at Andover, and I found mine by joining several clubs junior spring and lower year that I am really passionate about. I have finally found a happy balance between things that I enjoy doing and things that I consider mentally and physically draining. My advice for anyone struggling at Andover is to be patient, find a balance that works for you, reach out for help when needed, and avoid worrying too much about anything!

116

Part IV: Mental Health

My name is Kayleigh Bishop, and I am a day student in the Class of 2016 from Tewksbury, Massachusetts. I love both biology and the arts, and on campus I participate in fencing, dance, orchestra, and the student-run literary magazine Over the Hills as submissions editor. I also peer tutor in math, and I am a mental health editor for Dear Sam. My transition to Andover actually went quite smoothly in the sense that nothing felt too sudden. I am sure that being a day student helped a lot with that. Still, it was a totally different lifestyle; I was suddenly spending twelve hours at school, and I would just come home and spend another four on homework. I was quite shy when I came to Andover and had only two good friends. Even though I am much more outgoing now, I am still an introvert at heart and ended up with just a few really close friends to whom I can tell anything.

In that way, Upper year made me see how the first part of my Andover career was figuring out an adaptable balance that worked for me. By Upper Fall, I knew how to cope with a large workload and still get a good amount of sleep. I knew how many extracurriculars I could handle, and when to take time off to relax with friends or on my own. Of course, every day is different, but knowing yourself and how you operate is half the battle.

Who We Are The Mental Health section of Dear Sam focuses on areas of health that pertain, but are not limited, to stress/ anxiety, substance abuse, self-harm, homesickness, anger, depression, etc. Under the authority of the two section editors, as well as frequent correspondence with Dr. Carol Israel and other health professionals, the Mental Health section aspires to address student health complications thoroughly and empathetically, and to hopefully lead students towards adults on campus for immediate assist.

Academic

117

Section Editors

Kalina Ko & Rebecca Marrow Hi! My name is Kalina and I am a day student in the Class of 2017 from North Andover. I am currently one of the Academic Editors for Dear Sam. Before coming to Andover, I went to The Winsor School, which is an all girls school in Boston. I was very excited to come to Andover because it was a bigger school, there were more opportunities, there were more clubs, etc. That concept was the hardest part of adjusting to Andover. Upon coming to Andover, I immediately wanted to sign up for everything and do everything. I was quickly overwhelmed by the amount of activities I did. I have since cut down on my extracurriculars and made decisions on what is most important to me as well as improved on my time management skills. It has been a really amazing adventure exploring all the opportunities Andover has to offer from clubs to classes to friends. I strongly suggest that you all step out and try just one new thing and see if you like it!

My name is Rebecca Marrow, I am a member of the Class of 2017, and I am from Andover, Massachusetts. I am one of the editors for the Academic section of Dear Sam. Prior to attending Andover, I went to The Pike School, which is a private school about five minutes away from campus. Fortunately, Pike prepared me extremely well for my time here at Andover. The hardest part of my Andover transition was branching out socially. I came

118

Part IV: Academic

into my Junior year knowing thirty or forty people from my grade at Pike, former sports teams, mutual friends, etc., but I still wanted to make sure that I made an effort to make new friends as well. Since I had gone to the same school for nine years and had become close with the same group of students, making new friends was an unfamiliar task. Nevertheless, it was important that I had this mindset despite already knowing many other people. Stepping out of my comfort zone and introducing myself to new people allowed me to foster incredible friendships! I have really enjoyed getting to know Andover students, so I would encourage you to branch out and talk to new people when you have the opportunity!

Who We Are The Academic section of Dear Sam specializes in areas of student life that pertain, but are not limited, to workload, time management, grading systems, academic pressure, sleep deprivation, academic stress, teacher related issues, etc. Under the authority of two section editors, as well as correspondence with Mrs. Patricia Davison and other faculty members, the Academic section aspires to address the academic issues of Andover students thoroughly and empathetically, and to hopefully lead students towards adults on campus who are well suited to assist them.

119

Diversity Section Editors

Jenna “Avery” Kim & Sarah Al-Mayahi My name is Avery Kim, and I am a boarder in the Class of 2017. I am one of the two editors for the Diversity section of Dear Sam. Currently, my family lives in London, but I am a third culture kid previously having lived in Ohio, Japan, and Hawaii. On campus I am a part of WoFo (Women’s Forum), Global Nomads Society, and also a prefect in Nathan Hale this year. My transition to Andover was very difficult. The first few months I got very homesick, and I struggled with meeting new people and feeling like I belonged at Andover. Along with these struggles, a few weeks into the term, I had to change my schedule due to getting dropped down a math level. The winter hit me hard. As the weather got worse, so did my homesickness. I never wanted to leave my dorm, and I got injured, which interfered with my sports. After a very rough first two terms, spring finally came. Spring term is when I really started to feel like a part of the Andover community. I made more friends who got me to go with them to different events on campus. I got involved with more clubs, and found things like feminism, and issues of diversity that I am strongly passionate about. I have learned that it is never too late to join a club. If it is interesting, then go for it! Always try to meet new people, and chances are most people are as just confused as you. I would encourage you to make the best of your first year at Andover. I hope it offers many memorable experiences!

120

Part IV: Diversity

My name is Sarah Al-Mayahi and I am a day student from Lynnfield, Massachusetts in the Class of 2017. I am currently an editor for the Diversity section of Dear Sam. Before coming to Andover, I was very uncomfortable talking about my diverse background. In my transition to Andover, I did not know what to expect, and I definitely didn’t feel like I would fit in with anyone else.

Since my dad is from Iraq and my mom is from Romania, it is difficult to understand how both cultures are defined by ethnicity and identity. Iraqi and Romanian cultures are completely different, expectations are dissimilar, and religion is entirely unalike. When I came to Andover, I realized that I could have the best of both worlds, and I learned to embrace every aspect of each my cultures with the support of my friends, peers and teachers. Class discussions have helped me come out of my shell and understand the importance of diversity in our society today. It was not until my junior spring that I understood that it was okay to be different; in fact, being different is encouraged at Andover, and I am happy that I have finally come to terms about my ethnicity and background. If there was one thing I could tell incoming students it would be to make friends that are a part of different cultures because learning about these cultures is an invaluable experience.

Who We Are The Diversity section of Dear Sam specializes in areas of student life that pertain, but are not limited, to gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, social class, identity, religion, LGBTQIA, etc. Under the authority of the two section editors, as well as frequent correspondence with Linda Griffith and other faculty members, the Diversity section aspires to address issues of equity and inclusion thoroughly and empathetically, and to hopefully lead students towards adults on campus for immediate assist.

121

Relationships Section Editors

Andrew “Andi� Cheng & Laurel Wain Hey! My name is Andrew or Andi Cheng, and I am a day student from Andover in the Class of 2017. I am currently a Relationships Editor for Dear Sam. Prior to attending Andover, I attended The Pike School, which is a small private school just a few minutes away from campus. Andover was a vast increase from my previous school: my graduating class there was made up of fifty nine students while my class at Andover has over 200 students.

This sudden increase was probably the most difficult part of my transition.

I have never considered myself to be an extrovert and as a result, suddenly having to deal with hundreds of students was challenging for me. However, I tried to come out of my shell and made some really amazing friends. Even though it was very hard for me at first, Andover helped me improve my social abilities. I would encourage you to try and take a risk with new people because Andover can really help you grow socially in addition to academically!

My name is Laurel Wain, and I am an editor for the relationships section for Dear Sam. I arrived as a new lower, and lower fall was a blast because I was able to make friends both inside and outside of my dorm. Classes were alright, and I realized from my first test score that I was not going to get the results I wanted without putting in a lot of effort. When midterms rolled around, I was not satisfied with my grades. That is because I spent my

122

Part IV: Relationships

nights in the dorm procrastinating and moving from one friend’s room to another. While this provided me with a strong social foundation, during my winter term and especially in the spring when I was spending three hours a day at my sport, I realized how to better balance the workload.

For me, it took a little dedication to completely finishing the homework I had that night rather than during the free periods throughout the day. This allowed me to work ahead during free periods. I know it may sound simple, but that is what worked for me. I felt less stressed at night, and I worked toward being able to better separate myself from distractions from my friends. While I do not think Andover has ever really gotten easier for me, I have learned to better balance athletics, academics, and my social life.

Who We Are The Relationships section of Dear Sam focuses on areas of student life that pertain, but are not limited, to roommates friendships, peer pressure, teacher-student relationships, cliques, intimate relationships, etc. Under the authority of the two section editors, as well as frequent correspondence with Dr. Carol Israel and other faculty members, the Relationships section aspires to section aspires to address interpersonal conflicts both thoroughly and empathetically, and to hopefully lead students towards adults on campus for immediate assist.

Sexual Health

123

Section Editor

Indiana “Indy� Sobol Hi! My name is Indiana Sobol, but everyone calls me Indy. I am in the Class of 2017, and I am from Danvers, Massachusetts. I am a very local boarder since I only live about half an hour way. I went to a small private day school called the Brookwood School, before coming to Andover. I had never had so many people in my grade, and I was scared to join a community that I thought I might get lost in. However, I realized that there are so many amazing things about being in a large school; you are forced to meet new people almost immediately. Because I was in a large dorm during my junior year, I met a lot of new students. After a while, I saw that everyone was just as confused as I was. I joined a lot of clubs my junior year, and I was able to meet a lot of people and find the people who understood me the most. It is important to make sure you keep meeting new people and keep in touch with your old friends. I really hope you have a great time here, and if you see me on the path, feel free to say hello.

Who We Are

The Sexual Health section of Dear Sam specializes in areas of health that pertain, but are not limited, to safe sex and contraception, the hook-up culture, sexual assault or harassment, specifically male or female sexual health, etc.

Under the authority of the section editor, as well as frequent correspondence with Dr. Amy Patel and also other health professionals, the Sexual Health section aspires to aid students thoroughly and empathetically, and to hopefully lead students to adults on campus for immediate assist.

124

Final Remarks

Hello, my name is Niko Skrivanos and I am a rising upper in the Class of 2017 from North Andover, Massachusetts. I am also one of two Editors in Chief of Dear Sam. On campus, I am involved with several health and wellness related projects ranging from Dear Sam, health and wellness publications, and peer health education, and I’m working on the online world map tool to connect the Andover community. I am also involved with many productions and performing in theatre including both acting and technical theatre and am very excited to be starting out as a Layout & Design Associate for The Phillipian. The biggest challenge I have faced at Andover so far has been learning what I can and cannot handle. For me, balancing my commitments and figuring out where my time is best spent has required an enormous about of trial and error and persistence. I would encourage all incoming students to have an open-mind when trying new things because problem solving and learning how to spend your time may not come easily to you at first. I would also encourage all students to try and find a faculty member who they feel comfortable talking with when things do not go as planned, because having support from people around you can be uplifting.

Part IV: Final Remarks

125

Hi! My name is Andrew Cortner, and I am currently one of the Editors in Chief of Dear Sam. I came to Phillips Academy as a day student from Andover Massachusetts. I knew some people from my town that were coming to PA, and two of my very good friends were coming with me as well.

Although I knew more people than most other Juniors, my transition to Andover was still quite difficult for me. I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity and make new friends, which was not something that came very easily to me. I have always been particularly shy, and I felt very nervous during orientation and the first few days of classes. I found it difficult to even participate in a room full of strangers. As I began meeting more people, it became easier to simply exist at Andover, an environment that was very foreign to me when I first arrived. What is important to remember as a new student is that every new Andover student is in the same situation.

Most friendships that occur early in the year are based on dorms, classes, or other organized groups. It takes more than a few weeks to find true friends. Once I found the people that I call my friends to this day, Andover became less scary, and I began to enjoy my time here more and more. So much of Andover is following a strict routine, and it is always my friends that make the routine more survivable. One piece of advice that I would have to give to a new Andover student is to find a way to break the routine occasionally, so that stress does not consume your life. By doing this, you will hopefully not find yourself too overwhelmed here.

2015-2016 School Year For the Andover Community