March 31 Highlights

Sweet Sounds | Commencement | College Q&A

From the Registrar’s Office

PA transcripts for summer programs: 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. Your student can download a copy of their unofficial transcript via Blue Link.

Verification of enrollment letters: Families request verification of enrollment letters throughout the school year for various reasons. Please email the Registrar’s Office to obtain a letter.

RMV requirements for learner’s permits/driver’s licenses: The Registry of Motor Vehicles in Massachusetts requires two forms of identification for students obtaining their Learner’s Permit/Driver’s License. Our office provides a verification of enrollment letter and copy of your student’s unofficial transcript. Some states have a form that simply needs a signature and/or school seal. If you need assistance with this process, please email the Registrar’s Office.

Working permits/papers: Andover does not provide working permits. If your student needs a working permit, they should contact their local public high school’s guidance office. Questions? Email the Registrar’s Office.

Academic Integrity

At the start of each trimester, students engage in programming to help them better understand the principles and practices of academic integrity. Programming includes discussion of academic integrity in each class and advising group, and it concludes with each student confirming their understanding of the parameters of doing good intellectual work in an academic community.

While each student is responsible for adhering to the rules and guidelines governing academic integrity, there are three ways parents/guardians can help:

1. Please wait until your child has submitted an assignment before discussing it, reading it, looking at it, listening to it, etc. Every idea, piece of data, word, punctuation mark, etc., must be the student’s own. Students may not receive help on any assignment from family, friends, tutors, or the internet, except as part of peer-editing and workshopping in class or as an explicit part of a collaborative assignment.

2. Please note that, as The Blue Book states, each student is the only person permitted to use the student’s Phillips Academy credentials. No one else, including parents/guardians, may access a student’s Phillips Academy email, PAnet, or Canvas sites.

3. If your child is uncertain about the parameters of an assignment or is feeling overwhelmed, please encourage them to contact their teachers for help, which may include requesting an extension. It is always better to receive a lower grade on an assignment or receive no credit for completing it than to violate the Academy’s rules regarding academic integrity. Throughout the year, all students have access to a range of great resources, including their teachers, who are available during conference periods; the Academic Skills Center, located in Pearson Hall; the evening Writing Center, located in the library; and the Math/Science Center, located in the Gelb Science Center.

Health & Wellness Update

As of Wednesday, March 30, more than 99% of PA students have received 1+ vaccination dose(s) and more than 98% have received a booster (2% have received a religious or medical exemption). Two students have tested positive in the past seven days. To see the complete data from Dr. Amy Patel, Sykes Wellness Center medical director, please visit COVID-19 Updates & Information.

Annual physical examination reminder: If your child has had a recent physical exam, please upload the documentation to the Sykes Wellness Center Health Portal. Remember, your student must have a current physical on file at the Sykes Wellness Center. (“Current” means the exam must have taken place within the past 13 months.)

Enrollment Agreement Due Tomorrow

Friday, April 1, is the deadline for parents/legal guardians to complete their returning student’s online Enrollment Agreement. If you have not already done so, please log in to your SchoolAdmin account and complete this process.

Please note that your student will not be considered enrolled for the 2022–2023 academic year until you have set up your 2022–2023 account and the Enrollment Deposit has been paid in FACTS. (Both actions can be accessed via your SchoolAdmin account checklist.)

Once you complete the online enrollment process, please visit The Hive (on or after May 3) to complete all remaining 2022–2023 registration requirements. Questions? Please send us an email.

Music Lessons Add/Drop

Students have until tomorrow, Friday, April 1, to add or drop private music lessons for spring term. Lessons began this week. Questions? Please email Jessica McCormack.

Piano Recital Friday

Please join us for a solo piano recital performed by adjunct instructor Stephen Porter. This event will take place in Cochran Chapel on Friday, April 1, from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. Program: Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827): The Final Piano Sonatas, Op. 109, 110, 111. Visitors must be fully vaccinated; masks are required indoors.

May 7: History in the Making!

The Board of Trustees invites the Phillips Academy community to the investiture of Head of School Raynard S. Kington, MD, PhD, P’24, on Saturday, May 7, at 11 a.m. on the Richard T. Greener Quadrangle. Board President Amy Falls ’82, P’19, ’21, will lead the ceremony to formally “charge” our 16th head of school. Refreshments will follow in Flagstaff Courtyard.

We hope you can join us for this historic event. Throughout its 244 years, Phillips Academy has had just 16 heads of school. Its most recent investiture ceremonies were held for John G. Palfrey Jr. in 2012, Barbara Landis Chase in 1994, and Donald W. McNemar in 1981.

Please click here for more information and to register.

2022 Commencement News

We are excited to welcome the families of seniors to campus in June to celebrate Phillips Academy’s 244th Commencement. In the coming weeks, an invitation will be sent to your home, and seniors will receive four additional “keepsake” invitations in their student mailboxes. Please note that invitations are not required for attendance.

We hope the following information will assist with planning. For a complete schedule of events and FAQs, please visit the Commencement webpage.

These two events that are open to families involve tickets:

Candlelight Baccalaureate—The Baccalaureate service is held in Cochran Chapel on Saturday evening, June 4. Due to fire code capacity, this event is restricted to seniors and ticketed guests. The Baccalaureate will be simulcast in Kemper Auditorium for all additional guests.

Each senior will receive four Baccalaureate tickets (three guest tickets and one ticket for the student) in their student mailbox on June 1. Seniors need one of these tickets to attend this event.

Commencement Exercises—Commencement is held Sunday morning, June 5. We are strongly committed to holding Commencement outdoors, because if held outdoors, tickets are not necessary and all guests are welcome. However, if severe weather forces Commencement to be moved indoors, seating will be limited and admission will be restricted to ticketed guests. The ceremony will be simulcast in an adjacent venue for all non-ticketed family members and guests.

Each senior will receive three guest tickets for Commencement in their student mailbox on June 1. Seniors do not need a ticket for the indoor ceremony.

During Commencement Weekend, all on-campus events, including meals, are complimentary for all guests. Please note that only service dogs are allowed on campus during Commencement.

If you have questions that fall outside of the resources on the Commencement webpage, please connect with Crystal McGuire via email or call 978-749-4282.

Summer Guide Now Available

The PSPA’s all-new online guide—the 2022 Virtual Summer Opportunities Fair—is the perfect place for you and your student to start exploring exciting summer opportunities across the country and around the world. You’ll discover nearly 100 independent programs, including college experiences, languages, arts, outdoor adventures, foreign language immersion, tutoring, test prep, and more.

Help spread the word: Please forward the link to your friends and family—and share it with your local schools and any other institutions where students may find the information useful. Be sure to email us with any questions.

News from the PSPA

Please plan to join us for our PSPA General Meeting on April 7, which will be followed by a collaborative program brought to you by the PSPA and College Counseling Office. Whether joining us in person or remotely, please submit your questions for the college counseling directors in advance via this form.

PSPA General Meeting & Collaborative Program—Thursday, April 7

6:15 p.m. ET—PSPA General Meeting: A light dinner will be served at 5:45 p.m. Underwood Room. Zoom link. Passcode: 1WDcGc
7–8 p.m. ET—PSPA Speaker Series with Directors of College Counseling: All PA parents and guardians are invited! A Q&A will follow. Kemper Auditorium. This speaker series will explore “A Holistic Approach to an Andover Education”—the value in engaging fully in the Andover experience and the ways you can support your student’s time at Andover and lay the foundation for a healthy, balanced approach to the college application process. If joining remotely, here is the Livestream Link.

PSPA Book Club—Sunday, May 1: All are welcome! Join us at 8 p.m. ET for our spring term book club meeting. We will be discussing The Last Flight, by Julie Clark. Please email us to receive the Zoom invitation.

Campus Closet extended hours: Campus Closet WILL be open this Friday (tomorrow) from noon to 5 p.m. and on Monday, April 4, from 2–5 p.m. to welcome newly admitted students to PA during Spring Visit days. Remember, you can always shop online 24/7. On-campus delivery is free!

This Week’s Religious Gatherings

Campus visitors must be fully vaccinated; masks are required indoors.

Friday, April 1

1 p.m.—Muslim Student Association (MSA) Jummah Prayers: Led by Noureddine El Alam. Meditation Room, lower level of Cochran Chapel (side entrance)
5:30–6:30 p.m.—Jewish Shabbat Service and JSU Meeting: Led by Rabbi Michael Swarttz. Paul’s Room, upper level of Paresky Commons.

Sunday, April 3

6:45–7:30 p.m.—Roman Catholic Mass: Overseen by Dr. Mary Kantor, Catholic chaplain, with priests of the Archdiocese of Boston presiding. Reception will follow. Kemper Chapel, lower level of Cochran Chapel (side entrance).

Curriculum Corner

Highlights of the Academy’s extensive course offerings

The impact of human activity on the behavior of the earth’s climate has become one of the overriding concerns of the modern world, making climate change the central environmental problem of our time.

Did winter weather protect Russia from both Napoleonic and Nazi invasions? What role did climate play for the Maya culture and the Tang Dynasty? In Natural Causes: How Climate Change Wrote History—open to uppers and seniors—case studies reveal climate change’s potential effects on specific moments in history as well as the longer-term repercussions of climate shifts on regional and global populations. Students also ponder how past climate change might offer clues and consequences for the future of modern civilization. Natural Causes can be taken as a history, science, or interdisciplinary course.

You Are Invited!

March 1–31 : Rosie’s Place Food Drive Non Sibi Project, with Rosalina Feliciano ’81
April 6: Peabody Diggin’ In Series: The Archaeology of the Japanese Diaspora in the United States, with Dr. Stacey Camp
April 1–30 in Dallas and Hybrid: The Family Place Non Sibi Project, with Mimi Crume Sterling ’95
April 15 in Washington, D.C.: Meals on Wheels Non Sibi Project, with John Patrick ’65
April 21 in New York: Excellence at Our Core, with Head of School Raynard S. Kington, MD, PhD, P’24
April 23 in Concord, MA: Gaining Ground Non Sibi Project, with Jeff Hunt ’82, P’25
April 23 in New York: Flushing Meadows Corona Park Earth Week Non Sibi Project, with Candace Douglas ’00
April 23 in Chatsworth, CA: Operation Gratitude Non Sibi Project, with the Southern California Regional Leadership Team
April 24 in Andover, MA: Ironstone Farm Non Sibi Project, with Lynne Hunter ’90
April 26 in Washington, D.C.: Excellence at Our Core, with Head of School Raynard S. Kington, MD, PhD, P’24
April 30 in Atlanta: Whitehall Terrace Community Gardens Non Sibi Project, organized by Gabe Wardell ’89 and Chrystal Akor ’00
May 1 in Cambridge MA: Transition House Non Sibi Project, with Tiffany Horne Noonan ’99
May 7 on Campus: Investiture of Raynard S. Kington, MD, PhD, P’24
May 12: A Conversation Between Ai-jen Poo ’92 and Dan Koh ’03
May 14 in New York: Andover Family-Friendly Day at the Park
May 16 in Denver: Excellence at Our Core, with Head of School Raynard S. Kington, MD, PhD, P’24
May 17 in Los Angeles: Excellence at Our Core, with Head of School Raynard S. Kington, MD, PhD, P’24
May 18 in San Francisco: Excellence at Our Core, with Head of School Raynard S. Kington, MD, PhD, P’24

Many events are now in person. Join us whenever and however you can!

Please check the Events Calendar on Andover’s website regularly for additional in-person and online events that may be open to families. The Weekender is the Academy’s one-stop guide to weekend student activities, opportunities, club-organized events, guest speakers, performances, and athletic contests.

Family Bulletin Archive »

Phillips Academy
180 Main St.
Andover, MA 01810

You received this message because you are a valued member of the Andover community. We are obligated to communicate with you, and require you to be on our email list while your student(s) attends Phillips Academy. For more information contact the Dean of Studies Office.