Sometimes it is a simple piece of paper, a skittering scrap blown across a walk or lodged in the taller grass. Sometimes it is the tape at the end of a game, rounded up and tossed under a team bench, or an orange Gatorade top hovering on the green grass, or the water glass left on a table after a meal. We notice these bits of community flotsam, and each time there is that mini-debate inside: Should I pick it up? Will it make a difference?
Near record temperatures settled on campus over the weekend with highs in the upper 80s, and even warmer weather forecast through tomorrow. In the midst of this late September heatwave, we check in on all that happened over the weekend and marvel at how many different activities are available for students to plug into each weekend. This morning's assembly was filled with announcements of appreciation and highlights from the weekend.
We all know the Harry Potter series, and most are familiar with the beginning of the school year at Hogwarts when new students find themselves placed in houses like Gryffindor or Slytherin with all the attending alliances and associations, reputations and personalities. The “Sorting Hat” places the new students at Hogwarts. The choosing is not their own. And in some way a similar process has played out across Proctor this week as afternoon team activities ramp up and coaches work towards roster decisions. And now, at the end of the week, cuts have been made, and teams have started to coalesce. Roles have been determined. It's not quite the Sorting Hat, but it can feel that way.
After nearly two weeks of unofficial starts to the school year, the first day of classes has finally arrived. All 371 students are in classes (except Ocean Classroom students who depart a week from Friday), we’ve had our first assembly of the year, have met with advisories, held our first dorm meetings, and gathered with our athletics/afternoon activity groups for the first time. As we begin to settle into a rhythm this fall, we recognize the opportunity a new year provides to define ourselves both as individuals and as a community.
About a month ago, a mother robin built her nest directly above the entrance to Proctor’s Admissions Office. For days on end, I lugged a ladder out of the closet and tried to snap the perfect picture of the nest full of chicks. Alas, I was never able to capture a good enough of picture to post. Late last week, when I checked the nest on my way into the office, it was empty. Mama robin had done her job. She fiercely protected and successfully raised four babies until they were able to fly out of the nest and into a life of their own.
Crossing campus today, mindful of the shifting weather and some of the trees that have caught the slightest tinge of fall, the arrival of new and returning students over the next 10 days is much on my mind. You will come in waves: early wilderness orientation, sports camp, regular wilderness orientation, and returning students a week from Sunday. Some of you will walk onto the campus for the first time, put on a pack, and head into the wilderness. Others will come for their senior year, pulling together a final college list and starting to tinker with applications. But no matter the length of time at the school, no matter whether student, faculty, or staff, we stand on one piece of common ground that we collectively share: Proctor.
As late August arrives, a complete faculty and staff meeting in the Wilkins Meeting House officially kicks off the coming school year. Given the complexity of our respective schedules, rarely are all of the adults in the community in the same room, but this start of year meeting halts all other responsibilities on campus as we gather together to recenter ourselves on Proctor's educational mission and the individual roles we play as we seek to fulfill that mission. During this morning’s meeting, we recognized faculty and staff who have surpassed the 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 year milestones working at Proctor and celebrated the retirement of two iconic members of Proctor Family who have been the ultimate stewards of community over the past four decades: Edna Peters and JoAnn Hicks.
When Mrs. Eliza Butterfield gathered with a group of women in the her livingroom on Main Street in the spring of 1848, she shared her strong conviction that the village of Andover needed a school for its growing population of children. Throughout the 20th century, Proctor’s student population shifted to serve primarily boarding students, however, today, more than 90 day students (roughly 25% of the student body) are enrolled for the upcoming school year. Being a day student brings with it obvious benefits, and a unique set of challenges, so we asked our Day Student Leaders for 2017-2018, Sage ‘18 and Lance ‘18, to share insights into the world of being a day student at a boarding school.
