The Buzz

Over the last week we have been relatively busy processing discipline infractions: a dismissal, an appeal of another dismissal, and other blips on the discipline front that kept Drew Donaldson busy. I addressed the school in last Friday’s assembly prior to the weekend and spoke to the needs of the community, the need to collectively step up. Ours is not simply a community of rules, overly prescriptive, and we know relationships create the fabric of community and give it texture. So what does this last week say about Proctor in February?

Ten Proctor students will have their artwork on display at the AVA Gallery’s 9th Annual Best of the Upper Valley  High School Exhibition from February 17 - March 10. For the third consecutive year, Proctor's art students submitted a wide array of pieces, from all visual and industrial arts disciplines, to the exhibit. An opening reception and awards ceremony will be held on Friday, February 17 for all exhibiting artists from the 18 high schools represented. We encourage anyone in the area to attend this opening reception as well. To learn more about the exhibit, visit the AVA Gallery site.

When asked to write a piece on how Proctor prepared me for college, I couldn’t help but chuckle because I couldn’t think of just one way Proctor helped me. I look back at my three years at Proctor and realize that everything I experienced made me grow into a person who would be successful at a university. It might sound corny, but being a day student actually prepared me to live far away from home in college. I was able to see my boarding student friends live alone, some of them for the first time. Because I watched them grow as people through dorm life, I wanted to engage myself in residence life in college. I saw Proctor dorm parents building a community within the dorms and creating a family where people felt safe to speak their minds. Seeing that made me realize that I wanted something similar out of my college experience. Of course, there are no dorm parents in college, but being an RA is pretty close!

With another week around the corner, excitement for what is coming ahead starts to grow. The time for reflection on this week's adventures has come though and in the wake of my mother's visit I'm happy to have this week's blog. 

The athletic schedule for Proctor Academy during the winter gets very hectic with all the winter sports happening. One place that gets especially busy is the Proctor Ski Area. With ski practices and races happening several times a week, the Ski Patrol team carries a large amount of responsibility to care for the ski hill and teams. As Proctor’s USSA/FIS, Nordic, alpine, and freeride teamsrace, compete, and practice, often capturing most of the athletics headlines during the winter months, a dedicated group of ski patrollers are quietly supporting Proctor’s 200 on-snow athletes and their endeavors at the Proctor Ski Area.

It’s good to have a thought for the day, something to turn and twist like a Rubik’s cube to unlock some life pattern. Ian Hamlet gave us one in Thursday’s assembly and I’ve been turning it over ever since. Thursday’s was a reflection about identity: How do we come to the labels that we affix to ourselves? How many are put there by others? How many do we put on ourselves? And are they healthy?

Four Proctor Academy sophomores are enjoying a term abroad at the Cloud Forest School in the Monteverde region of Costa Rica. Last weekend, program director Brooks Bicknell traveled to meet up with students and hear about their adventure off-campus thus far. Check out a video update from the Cloud Forest School, student writing, and images below!