Students, faculty, and staff eager for a fresh start fueled a palpable energy during Tuesday’s registration—which included lines of cars and rolling suitcases, selfies with family, and lots of masks and hand sanitizer. Despite the masks, it was easy to see their happy, smiling faces! We look forward to a similar day Wednesday, March 31, when we welcome day students for registration. And we are counting down to the end of arrival quarantine on Saturday, April 3, when we hope to be together on campus.

With more than 700 students now in the dorms, we are excited for a spring that will look markedly different from fall and winter terms. Testing is in full effect, tents and fresh air options are back, and classrooms are being modified to accommodate in-person learning. Thank you to the teams in Sykes, the deans’ offices, dining, admission, facilities, Central Services, and technology, and to our faculty, many of whom are headed to their classrooms to try out the technology in preparation for Hyflex teaching and the integration of remote students.

As our campus population increases, we must remain vigilant in protecting the health and safety of our community. In addition to managing logistics around things like meals, classrooms, and student activities, we continue to review public health data, consult with our medical advisory board, and monitor test results for students and employees who access campus. (See below for a summary of Day Student expectations.)

Many of our faculty and staff have already received their first vaccination—both of us included—and we are hopeful that all who are eligible will soon receive their shots.

To think that one year ago our world was just beginning to grasp the widespread and devastating impact of COVID-19. We are proud of what Andover has accomplished under extraordinary conditions, and remain grateful for your support and generous spirit. Whether your child is on campus or with us remotely, let us move forward together and make the next 10 weeks of spring term as rejuvenating and joyful as possible.

Raynard Kington, MD, PhD, P’24
Head of School

Jenny Elliott ’94, P’22, ’24
Assistant Head of School for Residential Life and Dean of Students

We are delighted to have so many boarding students back on campus and, as of Wednesday, all students learning together remotely. Be sure to watch this welcome video, which was shared with students last week.

Watch the latest health update from Medical Director Amy Patel, MD. Andover remains at a red risk level during our arrival quarantine. If COVID-19 numbers are in an acceptable range, arrival quarantine will end the morning of April 3. Updated data for our campus community can be found on our testing dashboard. Currently, we have 0 positive cases in the past seven days. 

We’ve successfully welcomed and tested over 700 boarding students this week. Up next are day students! We look forward to the added energy they will bring to campus.

Day student families, please check to be sure your student has completed the following:

This Student Welcome Letter—with details about schedules, daily wellness habits, textbooks, and more—was sent to students earlier this week.

Spring Term Textbooks
Detailed information about spring term textbooks was sent to students on Tuesday. In summary, textbooks will be placed in all classrooms for the start of in-person teaching on Monday, April 5. If your student is not coming to campus, books will be sent via Federal Express for delivery by April 5. International deliveries may take longer.

Due to challenges encountered in this pandemic year, it was recently decided that selection for the Cum Laude Society will be suspended for the 2020–2021 school year. For those who may be unfamiliar with this process, seniors are selected for induction into Phillips Academy’s Cum Laude Society chapter each year based on academic achievement as measured by three or four terms of a student’s cumulative GPA (grade point average) in upper and/or senior year.

Given the range of difficulties faced by many families as well as the altered grading scale in spring 2020 and this school year, it was determined that our selection process that prioritizes GPA would not be an equitable or fair measure.

Happy spring! By now you should have received an email from SchoolAdmin regarding the Academy’s online enrollment system for the 2021–2022 academic year. Please click the link in the email sent on March 15 to complete the process; note that enrollment is not considered complete until all required forms are signed, the $2,500 nonrefundable deposit is paid, and a payment plan option has been selected in FACTS by following the link provided in SchoolAdmin. The deadline for completing the enrollment process is Thursday, April 1. Questions? Please email Tina Rioux, bursar.

This Friday and Saturday, the Brace Center for Gender Studies and the Office of Community and Multicultural Development (CAMD) will host an abridged version of the Data for Social Justice Symposium. Originally slated for spring 2020, the symposium has shifted to a virtual experience, but one that is no less urgent in the topics it aims to address. From the micro realm of personal data and privacy to the use of data to both justify and expose problematic policing practices in communities of color, we use information in a variety of ways. This symposium will examine the role that data plays in our lives.

Friday, March 26, at 7 p.m. EDT: Keynote address, featuring Catherine D’Ignazio and Lauren Klein. The two professors are co-authors of Data Feminism, a 2020 book published by MIT Press that charts a course for more ethical and empowering data science practices. Zoom link.

Saturday, March 27, at 1 p.m. EDT: Join us for an alumni panel discussion that includes Brittany Kaiser ’05, Alba Disla ’15, Miles McCain ’19, and others. Zoom link.

Join the Addison Gallery of American Art on Zoom to celebrate and close the exhibition Aphrodite Désirée Navab: Landmines of Memory on Wednesday, March 31, 3–4:30 p.m. EDT. After a conversation with Allison Kemmerer, the Addison’s interim director, Mead Curator of Photography, and senior curator of contemporary art, Navab will be joined virtually by fellow artists Nicholas Galanin and Curtis Talwst Santiago for a live drawing session during which the three friends will chat about their inspirations and practices while making art together. Welcoming us into their studios, this live session offers a dynamic window into the distinct ways in which each artist mines the past to inform the present. Zoom link.

Passover begins Saturday night, March 27. While many students will be on campus, they may be participating in a family Zoom Seder or holiday gathering. Following are some resources selected by our Jewish chaplain, Rabbi Michael Swarttz, to enhance your Seder experience: 1) ADL Haggadah Supplement—contemporary and challenging, 2) How to make your online Seder lively, engaging, and meaningful, and 3) a few of the many online Haggadot (Haggadahs) available—A Zoom-Gaddah: Passover in the Pandemic; Next Year in a Just World: Passover Resources from the American Jewish World Service; and HIAS (Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society) Haggadah, which focuses on support for refugees and immigrants and reflects this mission.

All are welcome to join any of these services, which will be led by the Reverend Gina Finocchiaro, interim Protestant chaplain, or Dr. Mary Kantor, Catholic chaplain.

Palm/Passion Sunday (March 28)

Maundy Thursday (April 1, 5:30 p.m. EDT)

Good Friday (April 2, 11:15–11:45 a.m. EDT)

Easter Sunday (April 4)

If your student needs a PA transcript for summer program applications, please have them email the Registrar’s Office well in advance. Reminder: official transcripts must be sent directly from the Registrar’s Office to the organization requesting it.

Registration for Andover Summer’s newest two-week program, Andover Summer Advantage, opens Thursday, April 1. Visit the Andover Summer Advantage website for information about course offerings, dates, rates, and more. We also continue to accept applications for our traditional five-week on-campus boarding and day programs. Your child—or perhaps the child of a neighbor or friend—will be enriched by this transformative and exciting in-person summer experience!

Phillips Academy class rings can still be ordered online. Order by Thursday, April 1, to guarantee delivery before Commencement. Please email our ring vendor, Mike McCann of Herff Jones, with any questions.

Pot Pourri yearbooks—which cover the 2020–2021 school year—are available for purchase for $125 each. Please order online using school code 3591. Yearbooks will be shipped to the school in mid-May. 

PSPA Speaker Series: How to Talk to Your Teen About Sexual Ethics, Healthy Relationships, and Intimacy—Thursday, April 1, 7–8:30 p.m. EDT: We are excited to invite you to a special presentation by Natasha Singh, Andover’s sexual literacy educator in residence. Singh will talk about the kinds of conversations that Andover teens want and need to be having with their parents and will be sharing frameworks and strategies that can help parents open up the lines of communication about sexuality and keep them open. Topics will include how to talk to your teen about sexual ethics, sexual harms, pornography/sexual scripts, agency, pleasure, gender, consent, and decision-making. Zoom link. Passcode: GH6PQz

For more about Singh and this event—which is cosponsored with the Brace Center for Gender Studies and the PA Wellness Collaborative—please visit our website.

Improved Campus Closet Website
Thanks to our amazing team of parent volunteers, we are happy to announce the launch of the new and improved PSPA Campus Closet website. Check it out—and happy shopping!

Would you like to be featured on our Campus Closet Instagram? We like to show our Andover Pride and share photos of students, alumni, parents, faculty, coaches, and staff (and don’t forget your pets!) wearing our clothing and gear. If you have photos you’d be willing to share and have posted on Instagram, please submit them here.

Book Club—Eleanor Oliphant
Our next Book Club meeting is Sunday, March 28, 8–9 p.m. EDT. The book choice is Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman; discussion questions can be found here. Please email us to learn more, to get on our mailing list, or to indicate your preference for a different book club meeting time.

March 31: Addison Gallery of American Art “Live Artist Jam Session,” with Aphrodite Désirée Navab, Nicholas Galanin, and Curtis Talwst Santiago
April 1: Operation Gratitude Letter Writing Non Sibi Project, with Brandon Stroman ’97, Steve Matloff ’91, and Jim Donnelly ’82
April 1: Atlanta-based Non Sibi Project Free99Fridge, with Chrystal Akor ’00 and Gabe Wardell ’89
April 7: Entrepreneurship in a Time of Societal Change, with Valla Vakili ’91
April 9: “Magic Kingdom? Deconstructing the Politics of Citizenship and Memory in Disney’s America,” a CAMD Scholar Presentation by Sophia Hlavaty ’21
April 14: A Conversation with Julia Alvarez ’67 on her novel Afterlife
April 19: A Conversation with Andy Housiaux, Currie Family Director of the Tang Institute
April 22: Community Discussion on the Future of Race Relations
April 27: Yoga with Tobi Gold ’70

All events are virtual unless otherwise noted. Please join us!