There is a great deal of mythology and expectation surrounding senior spring in the world of independent schools. As someone who has worked in these schools for over 20 years, it is hard to avoid viewing senior spring without some kind of nostalgic reverie. Surely part of that is taking me back to that same time in my own life: accepted to college, mostly done with academic responsibilities, prom on the horizon, and finally having a chance to exhale after 13 years of fairly structured and demanding education. One realizes in middle age that these moments of exhale – where the routines take a pause for an extended period of time – are incredibly rare in one’s life. One also realizes just how special friends are in one’s life. While the past decade probably hasn’t left as much time for my own friends as I may have liked, my closest ones remain people with whom I shared some time on the quad during my own senior spring.
We have finally been rewarded with some good weather in recent days. With the turning of the calendar to May, seemingly the beach chairs and volleyball nets have arrived on Fogg field. I happened to be walking from my house to my office a few days ago and could not resist asking a few seniors “Are we running a school or a beach club at this point?”. To put this all in perspective, the activity on the quad seems relegated to lunch period and common free times, and the nets do come down for the bulk of the academic day. Sometimes as teachers, who remain focused on the intense academic nature of the end of year for most students, it is easy to become annoyed or frustrated with this time period. At some point in the next few weeks, I will start to hear phrases like “Thank God senior projects are starting,” or “they are so done.”
And yet springtime on the Hilltop is so focused on these seniors, who represent our best attempt at bringing our mission to the world. They step forward into college campuses to become leaders and scholars in new ways. From there, we hope they are able to take their remarkable foundation in both virtue and useful knowledge to make the world a better place. So while my role requires that I do things like send letters to parents of seniors in the spirit of keeping them safe for the weeks ahead, I also don’t begrudge them a few beach chairs on the quad. This is a special place built on incredibly special relationships, and these students have made it so.
Admittedly, springtime always brings a few headaches for the Head of School; I am sure this year will be no exception. Usually there are a few unfortunate situations and decisions in all three divisions, as students and adults generally start becoming a touch frayed. But walking past the quad a few days ago in 80-degree sunshine, I could not help but reflect upon just how lucky we all are to catch a little taste of senior spring by osmosis. It reminds us that hard work deserves respite and that friendships can be more enduring than knowledge.
We have finally been rewarded with some good weather in recent days. With the turning of the calendar to May, seemingly the beach chairs and volleyball nets have arrived on Fogg field. I happened to be walking from my house to my office a few days ago and could not resist asking a few seniors “Are we running a school or a beach club at this point?”. To put this all in perspective, the activity on the quad seems relegated to lunch period and common free times, and the nets do come down for the bulk of the academic day. Sometimes as teachers, who remain focused on the intense academic nature of the end of year for most students, it is easy to become annoyed or frustrated with this time period. At some point in the next few weeks, I will start to hear phrases like “Thank God senior projects are starting,” or “they are so done.”
And yet springtime on the Hilltop is so focused on these seniors, who represent our best attempt at bringing our mission to the world. They step forward into college campuses to become leaders and scholars in new ways. From there, we hope they are able to take their remarkable foundation in both virtue and useful knowledge to make the world a better place. So while my role requires that I do things like send letters to parents of seniors in the spirit of keeping them safe for the weeks ahead, I also don’t begrudge them a few beach chairs on the quad. This is a special place built on incredibly special relationships, and these students have made it so.
Admittedly, springtime always brings a few headaches for the Head of School; I am sure this year will be no exception. Usually there are a few unfortunate situations and decisions in all three divisions, as students and adults generally start becoming a touch frayed. But walking past the quad a few days ago in 80-degree sunshine, I could not help but reflect upon just how lucky we all are to catch a little taste of senior spring by osmosis. It reminds us that hard work deserves respite and that friendships can be more enduring than knowledge.
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