Behind the Scenes of Spring Visit Days

Newly admitted students arrived at Deerfield on Fridays, March 27 and April 3, for the 2026 Spring Visit Days. Both days opened with a reception in the Hess, where Head of School John Austin delivered remarks on important information about the Academy. Following that, prospective students attended classes with a selected student host, and parents had the opportunity to visit classes and attend multiple panels about life at Deerfield.

Senior Associate Director of Admission Dana Emerson shared how the Admissions Office views Spring Visit Days as of high importance. “These days can make or break a student’s decision to attend Deerfield,” she said. Following this idea, Mrs. Emerson noted that planning Spring Visit Days is a team effort that requires considerable preparation.

Mrs. Emerson and Events Manager Tessa Doubleday explained how the process starts one year before actual Spring Visit Days, when members of the Admissions Office select dates for the upcoming year, considering factors such as religious holidays and other school schedules.

As the dates approached, Mrs. Emerson noted that the Admission Office, Academic Affairs Office, and the Student Life Office worked together to design panels and choose speakers from all facets of Deerfield life. The Community Life and Academic Life panels, held throughout the day for parents, brought representatives from student support offices and academic support offices, respectively, to discuss their involvement in Deerfield. 

The Student Life panel, held after fifth period in the field house, gathered current students to answer questions about their time at Deerfield, including experiences with athletic commitments, dorm life, and homework. Mrs. Emerson explained how the office tried “to represent where our families are coming from” when choosing student speakers. She mentioned that many parents expressed how Deerfield’s panels “are really informative.” 

Beyond information panels, the Admission Office paired current with prospective students. Mrs. Emerson mentioned that prospective students “have an opportunity to list three subject areas that [they're] interested in seeing,” and they pair them with current students by interest. Audrey Tjoeng ’29, who participates in the Deerfield dance program, noted that she was paired with another dancer who also took similar classes. “We could relate with each other…and I had lots of fun keeping the conversation going,” she said.

Behind the scenes, members from around the school also worked together to support a smooth event. Ms. Doubleday explained that the Admissions Office created the program and schedule for the day, and her role encompassed communicating with staff from various supporting departments to compile the logistics. 

She said that her job often starts with questions, including: “Here's a schedule for the day. Can you help me figure out how to make this happen? Can you work with dining? Can you work with it to sort of bring everything together to showcase everything that we want?”

She noted the difficulties of planning Spring Visit Days: “While a lot of the logistics and even the program remain the same every year, you always have new people.” As opposed to Family Weekends or Reunions, where most participants are returning members to Deerfield, Spring Visit Days bring new faces to the Academy. “You’re acting like it’s your first Spring Visit Day, because it’s their first Spring Visit Day,” she expanded. 

Ms. Doubleday also noted the importance of the catering services that the dining hall team provides. On top of the regular responsibilities of providing three meals in the dining hall, the team is in charge of supplying snacks and beverages for receptions and hosting a buffet-style lunch in the multipurpose room for parents. 

Director of Food Services Michael McCarthy described his experience: “It's a busy, busy day…we bring in extra staff so that we can run the event and still operate the dining hall… Usually we start at five o’clock [in the morning]…[and] it’s right up until dinner ends.”

Nevertheless, Mr. McCarthy emphasized the importance of catering to retaining prospective students: “For a boarding school, food service operation is one of the deciding factors, and I think that Deerfield has a really solid reputation.” 

Mrs. Emerson concluded, saying: “The feedback in general that we get from parents is that [Deerfield] has one of the best days.” She added how the Admissions Office considers Spring Visit Days as their version of the Super Bowl.