Phillips Academy

Parent Bulletin

Phillips Academy Head of School Office
Rebecca Sykes, associate head of school

November 2, 2012

Hurricane Sandy was not the way any of us would have wanted to mark the first anniversary of the 2011 Halloween Storm, but the weather gods had other ideas. To be sure, Andover had its share of tense moments. Nonetheless, we can count ourselves lucky to have sustained relatively little damage and disruption to the campus. It is true that one dormitory (Hearsey) was without power for about 24 hours and that a few of our faculty and staff families lost power for that long or longer. It is also true that a few trees wreaked havoc on the roof of one faculty home and to another couple’s cars. Still, it could have been much worse and we thank our friends at the Office of Physical Plant for all their efforts to prepare the campus for a severe weather event and to respond so quickly to reported problems.

The “Storm Team” has received many grateful messages of thanks from parents over the last several days and we appreciate the acknowledgement. It is our privilege and pleasure to work here with your wonderful children, as John Palfrey said at the all-parent assembly during Parents’ Weekend. Thank you for entrusting them to us.

In Touch with…

Chris Capano, Director of Student Activities

Campus is abuzz with Big Blue Spirit and the Student Activities Office is focused on the biggest event on our fall calendar: Andover-Exeter Weekend. Students, faculty and staff embrace this 134-year-old rivalry with our neighbors up the road in New Hampshire.

Andover-Exeter festivities will kick off Wednesday, November 7, when the junior varsity teams travel to Exeter for games. Thursday is “Geek Day” and the Andover community will dress up as their favorite “Exeter Geeks” (take a look at Geek Day 2011).

We will get all that red out of our system on Friday during True Blue Day and the Pep Rally. To get a sense of the energy, check out the Fall 2011 Pep Rally. Students will be fully decked out in face paint, head-to-toe blue apparel, and of course, the annual Andover-Exeter t-shirt! (Sorry no picture; that’s top secret until it goes on sale!) The Blue Key Heads will lead us through a program full of cheers and some good-natured mocking of the Exies. Varsity teams will perform skits and dances to get the crowd pumped up for Saturday’s games.

Which brings us to Saturday, Andover-Exeter Day! This year Andover will host the field hockey, boys’ and girls’ soccer, girls’ volleyball and football games. The excitement of the day is something that only a rivalry more than a century old can build. Win or lose, Andover-Exeter is a truly memorable part of students’ time on Andover Hill.

Travel over Thanksgiving and Winter Breaks

Phillips Academy will offer the following transportation options for Thanksgiving and winter breaks:

New York City buses

Roundtrip bus service to NYC, with stops in Hartford and Darien, CT. Students may sign up for one-way travel: $90 or roundtrip: $150.

Shuttles to Logan Airport

Shuttles to Logan Airport at the beginning of the Thanksgiving and winter breaks. The is $30. We will NOT offer return shuttle service at the end of these breaks.

In addition, there are taxi and limousine services to Logan and Manchester airports. Flight Line is offering a transportation special of $29-$34 to Logan and $35-$40 to Manchester for PA students.

Forms and further information are available on the Parent Portal, Student Life Tab under Dean of Students. If you have any questions, please contact Claudia Scofield at cscofield@andover.edu or 978-749-4124.

News from the Comptroller’s Office

Bills for the second half of the 2012-2013 tuition and fees will be sent next week. The comptroller’s office is excited to introduce a new online payment portal option, which will provide easy and convenient 24/7 access for making tuition and fees payments to Phillips Academy. The portal will accept the following online payment methods:

  1. Discover, MasterCard and American Express
  2. E-check from a savings or checking account
  3. International Currency Payments

The payment system is NOW available. Simply go to the Phillips Academy website and click Quicklinks at the top of the site and select Comptroller. The links for Online Domestic Payments and International Payments are located on the Comptrollers Office page or in the navigation to the left. If you have any questions, please contact Ann Pimentel at apimentel@andover.edu or 978-749-4504.

News from the PSPA

The next PSPA meeting is Thursday, November 8 at 7:00 p.m. in Kemper Auditorium. The topic is “Academic Support & Student Life” presented by panelists including Dr. Amy Patel, medical director; Paul Murphy, dean of students and residential life; Elisabeth Tully, OWH Library director; Patricia Davison, director of the Academic Skills Center; and Carol Israel, interim director of Graham House Counseling Center.

Volunteers are needed to staff the Andover-Exeter Merchandise Sale on Saturday, November 10 from 1–4 p.m. Sign-up on the PSPA website.

Deadline to Order Care Packs is Nov. 9

Help ease the stress of assessment week with a Care Pack full of edible goodies. Care Packs will be delivered to your child with a personalized note from you, just before assessment period begins. Sponsored by the Department of Theatre and Dance, the Care Pack effort is a fundraiser to support the Theatre and Dance Touring Scholarship Fund. The department takes a production on an international tour in alternating years. To order, please download a form and send it with your payment to:

Care Packs/THDA Dept.
Phillips Academy
180 Main Street
Andover, MA 01810

Please contact Amy Martin at 978-749-4429 or amartin@andover.edu for questions about Care Packs.

Upcoming Events

Friday, November 2

  • Theatre Workshops: Photographs from S-21, directed by Harry Wright ’14; Funeral Parlor, directed by Lane Unsworth ’15; and Forty Minute Finish, directed by Joey Salvo ’14 at 6 p.m. in the Theatre Classroom. Admission is free.
  • Academy Band Concert, 7:30 p.m. in the Cochran Chapel. This event is free and open to the public. For further information, please contact the Music Department at (978)749-4260 or email music@andover.edu.
  • Lesley Flanigan, an experimental electronic musician, will perform at 8:30 p.m. in the Timken Room, Graves Hall. This event is free and open to the public, and is generously funded by the Abbot Academy Association. For further information, please contact the Music Department at (978)749-4260 or email music@andover.edu.

November 7–10 Andover-Exeter Weekend!

  • Check the Weekender on Thursday, November 8 for a complete schedule of Andover-Exeter Weekend events.
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