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Parent Bulletin
Phillips Academy
May 9, 2014
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A Message from John Palfrey, head of school, and Linda Griffith, dean of Community and Multicultural Development
To
ensure progress in meeting the goals of inclusivity and equity, an
emerging theme of the Strategic Plan, Andover will utilize the NAIS
Assessment of Inclusivity and Multiculturalism (AIM) survey tool. AIM is
a comprehensive assessment tool that engages our school community in
evaluating inclusivity and multiculturalism. It will deliver tangible
results upon which we can base future planning toward a sustained
inclusive school community. Our planning process began last year and
will continue this spring with a survey of the entire Phillips Academy
Community. Faculty, staff, students, alumni, parents and trustees will
be asked to complete a 20-minute survey beginning on May 16.
Part two of the AIM process will happen throughout next academic year,
and will involve numerous focus group (Discovery Committee) meetings.
Topics may include school governance, student life, faculty life,
teaching and learning, as well as athletics. Once the survey and focus
group discussions have been completed, the steering committee members as
well as trained faculty facilitators will write an Academy
self-assessment and then determine essential measures for planning
diversity initiatives to ensure progress where needed and that encourage
us to build on current successful programming.
The Campus-Wide Climate Survey is a confidential online survey
administered by an external vendor. Our goal is 100 percent
participation. Thank you, in advance, for taking the time to complete
the survey and for your willingness to help us create a more inclusive
school community.
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Thank You, PSPA!
Parents
of Students of Phillips Academy (PSPA) hosted a Faculty and Staff
Appreciation Breakfast on May 7 in GW Hall. Parent volunteers arrived
with tablecloths, platters, coolers and serving utensils to dress up the
Faculty Room in advance of the food deliveries. On the day of the
breakfast, we were treated to an array of fresh fruit, muffins, bagels,
and granola parfaits. Delighted PA employees enjoyed the treats and
conversation with our generous PSPA hosts.
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In Touch with…
Susanne Torabi, International Student Coordinator
Phillips Academy is seeking local families to host 77 new
international students who will join our community this fall.
Twenty-four countries are represented, including places like Albania,
Brazil, Czech Republic, Japan, Italy, Kazakhstan, Nigeria, Sweden, and
Ukraine. There will be new international students in all grade levels.
If you or your children have traveled abroad, you know the importance of
a warm welcome when visiting a foreign country. To welcome our
international students and support them during their transition to
Andover, we maintain a Host Family Program. International students are
paired with local families, who welcome them to Andover and provide the
occasional home cooked meal, a break from dormitory life, and even a
place to stay during long weekends or holiday breaks. The program is
both flexible and rewarding, and the bonds that are formed between the
students and their host families often last far beyond their days at the
academy. The number of local host families involved has tripled since
the program’s inception 22 years ago. This school year, 121 students
connected with 96 local families.
If you are interested in participating in the program next year, please read the Host Family Recruitment Letter, fill out the form and return it to Susanne Torabi. Matches will be made during the summer. Please contact Susanne at 978-749-4254 if you have any questions.
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Parents of Boarding Students
Spring
term is racing along. Before we know it, it will be the end of the
2013-2014 school year! Here is some useful information from the Dean of
Students:
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Housing:
Boarding students have begun the process of choosing rooms for next
year. Although this can feel like a stressful time, we assure parents
that students are quite adept at navigating the housing process and have
help and support from house counselors and cluster deans. |
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End of Year:
All students, with the exception of seniors and those participating in
commencement, must be off campus after their last academic commitment,
and no later than mid-morning on Friday, June 6. Students may not stay
in the dorms to take the SAT tests on Saturday, June 7. |
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Student Belongings:
Students have been encouraged to begin clearing out their dorm rooms.
Consider taking items home if you visit campus or your student comes
home for a weekend between now and the end of school. For boarding
students who need to store items over the summer, see the Collegeboxes
information below. |
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Parents of Seniors
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Senior Class Photo: Parents interested in downloading a free copy of the Senior Class photo can find several versions of it here on the Phillips Academy SmugMug website. |
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Faculty Appreciation Letters:
Teachers, coaches, and advisors challenge, inspire, and support our
students throughout their time at Andover. Senior Parents are invited to
write a letter of appreciation to faculty and staff members who have
had a particularly significant impact on their child’s Andover
experience. You may write as many letters as you would like. Only a few
words are necessary, though anecdotes and even pictures are welcome!
These letters are a special Andover tradition, which honors our
dedicated faculty and staff members in a simple, meaningful way. The
letters will be presented to the Dean of Faculty and proudly displayed
in the Faculty Room, and a copy of each letter is shared with the
individual faculty or staff member. Please email your letter(s) by May
16 to facultyappreciation@andover.edu in Microsoft Word format. |
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News from the PSPA
PSPA Parent Directory is live! Sign up for this password-protected
resource by going to PAnet and scrolling down to Parent Involvement.
Click the Parent Directory link and follow the prompts. The fields are
pre-populated with your information. You can edit and save the
information listed (e.g. change a formal first name to a nickname or
change a home phone to a cell). Please note, these changes will not
affect the school’s database. This is a PSPA initiative that allows
parents to search for parents by name or geographic area for ease in
connecting about student travel, etc. Please sign up today!
PSPA Campus Closet will be open for merchandise sales, in the lower
level of GW Hall, on Saturday, May 10, Grandparents Day! Store hours
are 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Also, select items will be on sale at Paresky
Commons (lower left) from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. “Shop” on by!
The video of last month’s Parents’ Meeting at Gelb Science Center is now posted online for you to view from the PSPA website: pspaandover.org. The password is: PAparent.
Senior families are invited to the PSPA Pre-Prom Reception on Thursday,
June 5, from 5 to 6 p.m., in Flagstaff Courtyard, outside Paresky
Commons. All senior families are welcome and refreshments will be
served. The Pre-Prom Reception is a wonderful opportunity to take
photos. This event will be recorded for the Senior DVD. To pre-order
your 2014 DVD, please visit our website: pspaandover.org
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A Big Brazilian Thank You to Host Families
The
Brazil PLACES program would like to thank the wonderful day student
families who kindly hosted our student visitors from the SESC School in
Rio de Janeiro from April 20 to 28. The Margoleses, Boudreaus, Alperts,
Lewises, and Paretos extended a warm Andover welcome to our guests and
made them feel completely at home. The SESC students are now looking
forward to hosting our PA group when we visit their school in August. As
we say in Brazil, "muito obrigada!"
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Welcome Grandparents!
On
May 10 grandparents are invited to spend the morning with their
grandchild, attend open houses at the Addison and Peabody museums, have
lunch at Paresky Commons, hear from the Head of School, and attend a
student showcase and various athletic events. Click here for more information or contact Robert Heath at 978-749-4303 or rheath@andover.edu.
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Dig with the Peabody May 10
Join
the Peabody Museum for our Campus Archaeology Project on Saturday, May
10, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the lawn in front of Bishop Hall. The
Peabody team is hoping to locate some of the early buildings that were
part of the Phillips Academy campus. For more information, call
978-749-4490, or check out the Peabody Museum’s Facebook page.
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Phillipian Commencement issue
The
weekend of June 6-8, the Phillipian will publish its annual
Commencement issue, a longer version of the paper that captures the
highlights of the school year and includes pictures and messages
submitted by parents.
Commencement
ads come in five sizes: small ($60), medium ($80), large ($90),
half-page ($180), and full-page ($300). Please add $25 per order if you
would like your ad printed in color. You can design your own ad and send
it as a jpeg to Noah Hornik at nhornik@andover.edu.
Or send your pictures and text, and our staff will help with the
layout! Please send payment to Jamie Chen at 180 Main Street, Andover,
MA 01810. Checks should be made payable to Trustees of Phillips Academy.
Questions? Please contact Eleanor Blum, the Phillipian’s chief operating officer. Submission deadline is May 26. Thank you for your support!
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Summer Storage Option
Phillips
Academy has partnered with Collegeboxes to provide a solution for those
who need to store their clothing, books, furniture, etc. Collegeboxes
will pick up items, place them in storage, and deliver them to the
student’s room just before the beginning of school. There are costs
associated with this service. Pickups are scheduled for June 4, 5 and 6.
Friday, June 6, is reserved for seniors and those participating in
Commencement. Go to the Collegeboxes website to sign up. Click on “Summer Storage and Shipping” and choose Phillips Academy Andover from the drop-down menu.
Collegeboxes also provides supply kits, which will be shipped to PA in
May. Students will be notified when their kits arrive and must be picked
up. The last delivery of supply kits is Friday, May 30, so be sure to
sign up well in advance. If an additional box is needed, one can be
purchased from the mailroom.
Additional information can be found on the Parent Portal. If you have
any questions, please contact Claudia Scofield at 978-749-4124 or cscofield@andover.edu.
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