My 106 classmates and I have just a few days remaining in our Proctor experience. Collectively, our families will have paid almost $20 million in tuition to Proctor over the past four years. Staggering, I know. Before beginning my communications internship with Scott Allemby I had little exposure to the financial model of independent schools like Proctor Academy. I thought our school must have money to burn and I know my classmates share that assumption.
In the final weeks of the spring 2015 term, Proctor en Segovia hits the road, first traveling from Segovia to Barcelona via high-speed train and then north along the Catalan Costa Brava. Next, on the final long excursion of the term, the group leaves from Segovia in rented vehicles, driving southwest along the Sistema Central mountain range, and then crossing into the Spanish region of Extremadura and Portugal’s Alentejo region. Finally, students traverse eastern Andalucía, visiting Sevilla, Cádiz and rural sections of the Costa de la Luz on the Strait of Gibraltar!
I get a strange feeling when I think about how the eight most fun weeks I have ever had are coming to an end. This final week of European Art Classroom felt like the perfect conclusion to our experience. It is nearly over as our group takes its final breath of Provençal air, and our eyes take their last snapshots of the beautiful scenery here to remember. We hope that the scent of fresh baguettes, lavender sachés, and noisettes will last in our minds forever, or else we must visit again whether it be part of a college, with family on vacation, or later in life.
After leaving Rosebud, South Dakota a little bit over a week ago, it seems that we haven’t stopped driving. While going through Nebraska, we met a retired farmer local to the area who pointed us in the direction of a CAFO, a concentrated animal feeding operation. We tried to visit but were asked to get back on our bus and leave almost immediately. Although we were disappointed at not being able to learn about the advantages of this technique, we were all slightly relieved to be leaving the pungent smell and unnatural cattle scene.
Proctor's spring athletic season has come to a close! In assembly on Friday, we recognized Marvin Award winners and outstanding team accomplishments. Among those notable performances were Varsity Baseball's best record in 10 years (10-6), a Lakes Region Championship for Girls' Tennis in #1 doubles, and strong showing by our cycling team throughout the league series this spring including Scott Johannen winning the boys' Class B season title!
The awards season. It arrives every year with graduation, and on Monday we moved through our underclass awards. In a week, many more will be handed out. So much goes into wrangling the names of the winners, and each year I am reminded that the only award that’s easy to determine is one calculated by GPA: do the math, pick the winner. Simple. But do the numbers ever tell the whole story? No. Do they tell the story of character and grit, of intrinsic drive? Sometimes. Maybe. Not always.
In the eight short weeks of the Spring Term, Proctor’s drama department holds auditions, learns hundreds of lines, builds an intricate set, organizes dozens of costumes, and performs a full-length musical. It’s a miracle, really.
Almost exactly two years ago Jacob Dombrowski ‘13 (Middlebury College) gave a senior speech in assembly. During his eloquent delivery, he shared, “If there is one bit of advice I can offer you all before I end my time here it is this: Do not be afraid of who you are. You’ll never make a difference in the world until you find out what truly sets you apart.”
