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ALICIA YIN/DEERFIELD SCROLL Before the new school year kicked off, Deerfield athletes began preparing for the upcoming fall athletic season. From volleyball courts and football pitches to soccer fields, teams have prepared for the season through preseason trips that were designed for skill development and team building. On the girls varsity volleyball team, bonding between new and returning players happened both on and off court. Girls varsity volleyball team captain Zora Fenton ’27 said the team’s preseason trip helped build team chemistry before the season started. For example, on the first night, the captains intentionally paired new players with returners to share pizzas in the same room as part of a longtime team tradition. “I think that’s where most memories are made,” Fenton said. “It’s time off the court that we get to know each other.” Fenton noted that on the fourth day, she has seen significant improvements in team chemistry since day one. After returning to campus, she said that closeness continued to matter, adding that “our teammates have done a really good job of holding each other accountable.” The girls varsity soccer team pursued a similar initiative. Before school started, the team spent time at Camp Lenox for team-bonding and preparation. Girls varsity soccer coach Emma Theriault explained that the foundational key to a strong team is “understanding that each player comes from different backgrounds, but share the same singular goal of striving for the better.” In addition, Ms. Theriault mentioned that team improvement not only comes from “continuous training,” but also from “holding each other to a higher standard, whether that’s how we communicate when we’re frustrated, or when we need assistance from each other and we’re able to communicate those kinds of things without being upset when approached.” Unlike soccer and volleyball teams, the football team held its preseason on campus. “A six-day stretch held before classes began gave the team a rare chance to focus on a singular initiative,” boys varsity football captain Barrett Adams ’27 said. “Having everybody in the same place for so long doing the same thing over and over again, it’s just like a recipe for bonding,” he added. With no tests or quizzes to worry about, Adams believed the team could devote its full attention to football in a way the regular season does not allow. For Adams, the biggest challenge was learning a new defense under the new Assistant Coach and Associate Director of Admission Chris Bowers within a week. However, the team’s energy at the first defensive practice turned this obstacle into a rallying point when “everybody was so ready to learn this defense.” “It felt like it’s an actual team,” Adams added. Furthermore, he noted that the intensity of practices rose throughout the week and that, while the team “still has a long way to go,” staying on the same page has kept them on track. The preseason trip bridged the gap between new and returning players. Adams said that before preseason, he was still learning names and faces. However, by the end, there was no difference between the old and new players, and everyone understood their role on the team. “I feel like there’s just one collective,” he said. All fall sport teams have officially kicked off the regular season, with schedules posted on the Student Bulletin.

Novig campaign sparks discussion over portrayal of women in athletics In an advertisement promoting the sports betting platform Novig, Hollywood actress and Emmy Award nominee Sydney Sweeney sparked controversy. Sweeney launched the viral “Just Sports” campaign — a “fun idea” to “put the focus entirely on sports,” according to one of Sweeney’s press statements. However, the Novig advertisement and Sweeney’s near nudity in it elicited heated discussions about much more than just sports. Like previous controversial advertisements in which she participated — including American Eagle’s “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans” denim campaign that drew backlash for wordplay which critics argued suggested eugenics — the Novig advertisement sparked discourse online. The “Just Sports” tagline of Sweeney’s recent commercial distinguished Novig’s business model from its competitors in sports betting. While larger platforms create betting opportunities on a variety of markets like politics and cryptocurrency, Novig specializes strictly in sports. Created in August of 2022, Novig operates as a peer-to-peer sports prediction market, allowing users to trade on outcomes such as futures and player statistics. According to Novig, Sweeney’s appearance was meant to reinforce the platform’s unique identity of focusing entirely on sports. Instead, the imagery prompted criticism from viewers who argued that her suggestive imagery through nudity is a perpetuation of harmful sports advertising focusing on female athletes’ sexuality. Many female athletes were among those criticizing Sweeney’s portrayal of women in sports. NCAA Championship medalist and American artistic gymnast Gracie Bruins commented on social media. “This ad is frustrating,” she wrote. “It reduces women’s role in or association with sports — whether they’re an athlete or not—to their bodies. Over-sexualizing athletes is already a clear issue in women’s sports, and this exacerbates the issue.” The controversy surrounding the “Just Sports” campaign has also prompted many reactions at Deerfield, home to a community of varsity and future NCAA D1-level female athletes. History and Social Science Teacher Molly Lyons expressed her frustration with the Novig advertisement and its portrayal of women in sports advertising. “I think the purpose of looking at an athlete and talking about whether or not they are aesthetically appealing is focusing on something that isn’t related to what they can do,” she said. Ms. Lyons suggested that advertisements in the sports industry can represent women well by accentuating their athletic ability and the range of races, backgrounds, and body types in competitive women’s sports. Referencing Nike’s “Dream Crazier” sports campaign, she said, “I think there’s an empowering aspect of acknowledging a stereotype against women and turning it into something positive.” Varsity soccer and alpine skiing athlete Eliza Todd ’27, who grew up playing both sports, emphasized the same Nike advertisement as significantly more empowering than Sweeney’s Novig portrayal of female athletes. Todd underscored the idea of physical appearance existing separately from measures of athletic accomplishment. She noted that although “promoting an athletic body positively can be empowering to people,” these benefits are dependent on the context of surrounding conversations. Specifically, in the case of Sweeney’s commercial, she said, “ I don’t think using her body to promote athletics … was effective or beneficial for viewers.” Commentary against Sweeney’s Novig advertisement has been publicized and reported by The New York Times, The Washington Post and Cable News Network. From a financial standpoint, supporters of the campaign have pointed to the strategy behind Sweeney’s advertisement. Forbes attributed the advertisement’s success to outrage marketing, a strategy that has accompanied Sweeney’s previous controversial campaigns, such as her partnership with American Eagle. Following the advertisement’s release, Novig has seen a 900% spike in engagement across social media platforms, and the app climbed from No. 50 to No. 11 on Apple’s App Store sports rankings. Novig’s trade value also jumped from $37 million to $69 million. According to Forbes, social media algorithms are coded to prioritize content that has received high engagement, and controversial advertisements like the Novig advertisement push viewers to engage by commenting and sharing their disapproval online.

COURTESY OF DEERFIELD COMMUNICATIONS New York Times bestselling author and President of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) Greg Lukianoff visited campus at School Meeting on September 9 to present his advocacy for free speech on college campuses. For two decades, Lukianoff has supported the First Amendment’s rights through his work on mob censorship, cancel culture and the consequences of refraining from honest discourse. In his speech, he covered the history of free speech, which he described as an “eternally radical idea.” He explained that free speech has never been a straight-forward concept and stressed the importance of dissent. Lukianoff argued that it’s important to question those in power, challenge old ideas and suggest new ones, especially in a society that loves being right. Lukianoff emphasized the importance of preserving freedom of speech in educational and democratic systems. He explained to the audience that the human brain is designed to think the majority of the information we receive is factual — a phenomenon known as “unwarranted certainty.” Additionally, Lukianoff argued that governments shouldn’t rely on a single person’s thoughts and ideas to lead the country. He clarified that this feature of the brain helps humans survive but does not play a role in our pursuit of the truth. As his presentation came to a close, Lukianoff left the audience with two conditions under which free speech flourishes: a space where people are genuinely curious and want to listen and a space where people are fully honest with each other. Co-leader of the Legal Journal Club Anthony Ortega ’27 said he was surprised by the content of Lukianoff’s presentation. He agreed with Lukianoff’s approach to free speech; “I think when we talk about free speech, we should think about how it was created and the reason for why we have free speech protections in this country,” Ortega said. However, Ortega hoped Lukianoff would have transitioned to how students can practice their free speech rights now. “I thought he was going to talk a little bit more about how free speech works at public schools and how we can utilize that as a parallel for private school expressive freedom,” said Ortega. Although he resonated with the discussion, he thought Lukianoff did not make a “direct call to action for the student body.” Director of the Center for Global and Civic Engagement (CGCE) Jason Kelly, who helped organize Lukianoff’s visit, said that he had been excited for the scheduled Q&A session which would have happened the day before school meeting that was unfortunately canceled due to Lukianoff’s health. “The Q&A the night before would have been a great way for [Lukianoff] to get a better sense of who the students were and then how to approach the school meeting the next day,” Dr. Kelly said. Similarly, Natalia Northover ’28 said that Lukianoff was “a great storyteller” and his non-technical language was good for “an audience our age.” She inferred that “a lot of people disengaged because he was solely focused on the public school system.” Northover believed that Lukianoff’s alleged use of artificial intelligence (AI)-generated images during his presentation sent contradictory messages to the Deerfield population: “I think it’s hard to listen to Dr. Austin give speeches now about [how] we’re so anti-AI because you got a speaker to show up and use AI the whole time.” Dr. Kelly added to this sentiment, describing similar student reactions in his U.S. and China Relations class. “That’s useful to reflect on … that temptation to use AI for work because it seems convenient,” he said. He also saw student accusations of Lukianoff’s AI use as a conversation starter around AI and free speech. Ortega believed that the discourse concerning Lukianoff’s presentation was important for the student body. He said, “We shouldn’t have guest speakers that don’t have an impact.”

COURTESY OF DEERFIELD COMMUNICATIONS Beginning in 2027, Deerfield Academy will begin transitioning to a full boarding school, requiring all future students to live on campus. Faculty children are exempt from the policy and may choose not to board. The policy shift, explained Associate Head of School for Student Life Amie Creagh, aims to “enfold the full student body into the vibrant residential life of the school.” According to Ms. Creagh, one aim of the decision is to maximize student involvement in campus activities. Scheduled daytime activities remain highly integrated for boarding and day students. However, Dean of Residential Life Lina Samawi noted that commuting constraints often cause day students to miss vital moments of the residential community such as “brushy washy,” or spontaneous moments such as inviting a friend to the gym in the morning. These gaps in after-school hours can create a distinct social hurdle for local families, certain day students share. “At first it was difficult to adjust to an environment where everyone was spending all their time together, and I was outside of that,” said Willa Anhalt ’28, a day student who entered Deerfield as a sophomore. “What really helped me to feel more integrated was joining clubs and getting involved with co-curriculars while trying to meet all the girls in the dorm I was associated with. Now I definitely feel more comfortable and like I have a real place at Deerfield.” Rooted in the Academy’s core value of a “shared experience,” explained Ms. Samawi, the adjustments also aimed to ensure everyone has the same residential-life experience. “It’s not like if you live in this place, it’s one experience, and if you live in another place, it’s another; but really, just by virtue of being a Deerfield Academy student, you are part of the shared experience of an exceptional residential life program,” she said. Despite the transition, current day students will remain day students until they graduate, and employee children will remain day students regardless of where they live. The Student Life Office is actively seeking student feedback to ensure this cohort feels deeply connected to campus life. They established two Student Advisory Groups, the West Campus Advisory Group and the Day Student Experience Advisory Group, which meet several times throughout the year to discuss initiatives for the new dorm and boarding transition. “Hopefully they feel that we truly care about them; and usually, if [a student] is a part of something that is new, [they are] more likely invested in the outcome that comes of it,” added Ms. Samawi. To accommodate the growing residential population, the Academy reconfigured the underclassmen housing. To avoid constraining the admissions pool for future classes, the ninth-grade village will expand beyond Johnson-Doubleday to include John Louis, a current sophomore girls’ dorm. John Louis will be repurposed into a coeducational dorm. To maintain the shared residential experience during the expansion, students in John Louis will live in double rooms instead of singles, consistent with freshman housing in Johnson-Doubleday. A new West Campus Dorm next to Barton is currently under construction and will see completion by the start of the 2027 or 2028 school year. At the same time, behind the scenes, the Admission Office is ensuring that enrollment priorities are met without turning away robust candidate pools. They have been actively communicating the policy shift to local schools such as Bement and Eaglebrook and to families since last spring. “Deerfield has the wonderful luxury of [having] lots of kids who want to come here, and [for admissions] to turn away wonderful young people because the building won’t fit them … felt like a compromise,” said Ms. Creagh. Looking to the future, Ms. Creagh and Ms. Samawi emphasized that while this policy is a long-term commitment, the Academy will remain adaptable. Eighteen years ago, Ms. Creagh noted, Deerfield had made the decision to construct the underclassmen village, which has undergone further changes since. They view the shift not as a rigid final step, but as part of Deerfield’s ongoing mission to best serve the student body. “We wouldn’t undertake it if we didn’t think it was a long-term solution … or a long-term benefit to [Deerfield] students,” said Ms. Creagh. As the Academy moves toward full-residential in the fall of 2027, the Student Life Office remains cognizant of areas for improvement. They plan to constantly evaluate the program’s impact by remaining reflective and actively seeking areas of improvement. Ms. Samawi expressed her outlook on the transition, saying that the Academy “[has] real confidence in this model.”

“Every adult on this campus is a teacher,” is a quote from Head of School John Austin that the new Assistant Head of School for Academic Affairs Brian Hamilton holds dear. From teaching history full time to taking on new leadership roles in the Academic Affairs Office, Mr. Hamilton’s experience at the Academy consistently adhered to the definition of being a teacher and educator, a feeling related by many other faculty members. This fall, the Academy has seen major faculty shifts in response to the large turnover from the last school year. A total of 27 new faculty members have joined the Academy for the upcoming year. Senior members undertake leadership roles in addition to existing teaching positions. Previously a History and Social Science teacher, Mr. Hamilton defined times in the classroom and in the Academic Affairs Office as two “challenging” dimensions. One aspect of the challenge happens in the history classroom. Mr. Hamilton devotes himself to teaching and learning simultaneously. “I’m still a student,” he said, describing the subject of history itself as “an endless cascade of questions, and answers that beg more questions and you end up kind of buried. The more you learn, the more you don’t know.” Always learning, Mr. Hamilton encountered his second challenge of how to be a good teacher and still find a work-life balance. Fortunately, many mentors at the Academy reached out to help. Recalling a busy time when he received support from Athletic Director Bob Howe, Mr. Hamilton said, “I remember [him], in my first year. ... He could tell that I was about to fall over. And he just walked into the room, and he closed my laptop and he [said], ‘I got this, go home to your family.’ And I’ll never forget that.” Similarly, the new Dean of Residential Life and 10th Grade Class Dean Lina Al Samawi mentioned how she appreciated learning from female leaders. “Ms. Creagh [is], from day one, someone I even remember from my interview. She’s been absolutely supportive … Working also with Ms. Brown, the three of us in that office … that, for me, is so special.” Mr. Hamilton noted how he aspires to pass on the kindness he received from more experienced faculty by welcoming newer faculty members. “I was feeling seen and supported by everyone. And so when I look out at the 29 new folks and my colleagues this year, I try to think about ways that I can help,” he said. To this end, Mr. Hamilton worked with the Academic Affairs Office on devising a new project meant to create mentorships between more experienced and new teachers within each department. The program involves teachers visiting the classes of others and coming up with suggestions for improvement. “Department chairs pop into your classroom for 15 minutes. … Every year all of our new teachers and a third of our returning teachers have worked with their department chairs across the year as a mentor, ” Mr. Hamilton explained. Shifts in positions not only facilitated communication between newer and more experienced teachers, but also among faculty members of all expertise across campus. Mr. Hamilton said, “The job asks me to be working in and offering advice and support in areas of the program that are new to me.” He mentioned that he now works “with the technician for our labs and … Dr. Pfitzer with the music adjuncts, whom I had no contact with before.” Interactions with more adults and students spawn new views and ideas of bolstering the Academy for the faculty. Campus leaders shared how their new position gave them a different perspective on student life. Ms. Samawi shared, “[As a class dean], you actually look at their academics, you look at their mental well-being, … their involvement in the school beyond the classroom … it appeals to me to think about the student experience as a whole.” In order to better understand the experience of all students, Mr. Hamilton stressed the importance of seeing each student as a separate entity, each with their own unique educational journey. “We need to be flexible and responsive to that and serve them well as individuals,” he said. Assuming new leadership positions opened up new opportunities for faculty members to meet more people and gain new perspectives on the campus. Yet, this shift did not change teachers’ visions on their careers and what being an educator means to them. Mr. Hamilton described his educational career as “challenging, humbling and thrilling” three words that have not changed since the start of his journey as a teacher. To both Ms. Samawi and Mr. Hamilton, the change in position provided them another opportunity to continue their mission as a teacher and contributor to education, aiming to support the student body in all ways. This process, in the end, is about constant learning, as Ms. Samawi put it: “If you’re in the field of education, you’re a learner for life.”

50 years ago, former curator of the Deerfield Memorial Hall Museum Tim Neumann proposed the idea of holding an annual craft fair in the town and hosted the first Old Deerfield Craft Fair in June of 1976. Memorial Hall Museum primarily showcases the Arts and Crafts movement, a design trend in the early 20th century distinguished by colonial heritage and hand-crafted workmanship. The movement had strong roots in Deerfield, according to the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association (PVMA). According to Jennifer Fay, Event Coordinator for Old Deerfield Crafts Fair, the fair began as a gathering of traditional artisans and eventually became a fundraising event since it “lends to the mission” of the museum itself. Since then, the fair has expanded from 10 exhibition stands to over 100 this year, reaching over 200 vendors. At its peak, Fay reported that the entirety of Main Street and surrounding streets would be filled with cars and people. “There was not a square inch of space,” she remembered. Although the fair originally only hosted a small number of traditional artisans (weavers, spinners, etc.), it now hosts a wide variety of local artists, from woodworkers to photographers to jewelers. The craft fair also brings food trucks, a small petting zoo, and interactive craft demonstrations. Organizers of the fair work to make the event as family-friendly as possible; no sale of alcohol is allowed, nor are any offensive or obscene messages on anything sold at the fair. Fay noted that these elements are meant “to bring them in where it’s not just a commercial gimmick to keep them.” She also noted that their ultimate mission is to bring kids in and educate them “to create awareness of how these [crafts] are done, how long it takes and why it's worth it.” All of the proceeds from the fair go to the PVMA, which operates several museums and libraries in Deerfield. Earnings support the non-profit organization’s historical and educational programs.

JONATHAN XU/DEERFIELD SCROLL Q: Is there an interesting fact that people would be surprised to know about you?! A: Well, of course, being a classic English teacher. I mean, to be honest, most students probably don’t know most things about me. Q: Tell us the real truth about teaching ninth graders. A: Ninth grade is the most fun class to teach because they grow the most. You get to see so much improvement over the course of the year. Genuinely fun. Q: What’s your favorite tradition at Deerfield? A: I’m very interested in the way that Deerfield is so fixated on traditions… The tradition of traditions is the thing that is most interesting to me. Q: Would you rather smell with your right foot or your left? A: Probably left… I think my right foot takes more of a beating. I think my left foot is probably a little more available for that kind of sensory experience. Q: What’s your favorite word in the English dictionary?! A: This is not actually my favorite word, but it’s a word that I was delighted by today. My daughter is two years old now, so she’s acquiring language very quickly. She said “also” for the first time, rather than saying “two,” which she’s been saying for ages. I’m interested in “also.”

Our time usage at Deerfield has been dangerously inefficient. A typical student needs at least five minutes to walk from the Koch to the MSB, and students who live in the eight dorms across Main Street need another five minutes to walk from the MSB back to their dorm. Even then, seven times a week, students take around 10 minutes to make it to the Dining Hall in time for sit-down dinner. This is simply exhausting. Throughout the day, almost all students have to trek from one end of campus to the other. This exhaustion poses a major hazard to the community, as everyone is in no mood to study by the end of the day. Thankfully, students have come up with an optimal solution: a zipline. By installing a zipline from the Village to the Dining Hall, students can save up to ten minutes of walking time. In the fall, the zipline would make transitioning to Deerfield so much easier for new students. In the winter, it would relieve everyone of the pain of trekking through ice and snow. In the spring, when the weather is a little warmer, the zipline would provide a perfect breeze to enjoy on the way to class, cheering students up before they have to face daunting exams and in-class essays. Freshmen and new students aren’t used to the large amounts of walking. Ahana Bhansali ’30 complained, “I have to walk, and my legs really hurt after walking.” The pain from walking too much can result in dire and undeniable consequences, including physical and mental fatigue building up throughout the day. This can lead to a sub-par performance at co-curriculars, an inability to focus on homework and studies and not enough energy to socialize with friends and peers. Meanwhile, careful consideration shows that a zipline is an all-in-one solution. Many students happen to advocate for this new addition to campus, such as Sydney McNeil ’30, a freshman who walks from her dorm to the gym and back every day. “A zipline would make Deerfield life so much easier,” she said. Sophomore living in John Louis expressed a similar sentiment. Millie Huang ’29 commented, “I sprained my ankle yesterday, and walking to the dining hall took me 15 minutes. Having a zipline would be very much appreciated.” Due to these concerns, it would be much appreciated if the school could come up with a plan to install a zipline by the end of the term and a potential plan for further expansion over the winter.

Following the departure and sabbatical of several faculty members, Deerfield’s Visual and Performing Arts (VPA) Department welcomed three additional faculty members, bringing changes to the theater, film, photography and fine arts programs. Among the new arts faculty are Fine Arts Teacher Christopher Vivier, specializing in film and photography, Early Career Teaching Fellow in VPA Julia Hioe ’22 and VPA Teacher Michayla Robertson-Pine, working with theater. Describing her arrival to Deerfield, Ms. Robertson-Pine said, “I was really drawn to Deerfield as a place that’s really people-forward, and I think it values students as full complex humans.” As a teacher filling former Director of Theater Catriona Hynds’ role, Ms. Robertson-Pine aimed to maintain the trajectory of her theater classes while bringing in the idea of physical exploration. “I hope that, for my students, it is exciting to have a different teacher who has a different skill set and a different background … to add depth and color to their training,” she said. By cultivating a “deep set of observational skills that allow [students] to empathize with people that are different from them,” Ms. Robertson-Pine hoped to build the students’ confidence as actors while enabling them to understand themselves better. “I think that’s what theater is,” she said. “The reason I love theater is the reason I love people.” Alongside Ms. Robertson-Pine, the department also welcomed Mr. Vivier, who will replace former VPA Teacher Timothy Trelease in teaching film and photography. Mr. Vivier explained that he has long been drawn to boarding school environments. “I’ve always found them to be vastly more fulfilling, not only because they are communal places by nature … teachers and administrators and students and families really get to work with each other on so many levels,” he said. For him, the close-knit community and the multi-faceted relationships between students and teachers are extremely crucial for arts education: “It’s really essential for the students to have a deep sense of trust, and support and sort of a sense of being known.” Mr. Vivier explained that, at the heart of his teaching, he hopes not only to empower students’ technical skills but also prioritize the building of students’ confidence and their own unique and creative voices. “There are always infinite possibilities as far as how one can express themselves,” Mr. Vivier stated. As a new faculty member, Mr. Vivier has spent time learning the existing photography curriculum before targeting specific directions to explore. He explained how he observed student abilities and gathered information about the current program. Looking ahead, he aspired to incorporate new courses that typically involve darkrooms. “I would love to expand what we do in the photography program in order to create a space where students have an opportunity to have a much broader sense of what’s possible within photography, because it really is a much broader creative space than people typically think of it as,” he explained. Julia Hioe ’22 described being an arts teacher as her dream job. A filmmaking and Spanish major at Tufts, Ms. Hioe looked for ways to balance artistic pursuits while being able to financially support herself. While applying to jobs and graduate programs, her former art teacher at Deerfield, VPA Teacher Mercedes Taylor notified her of an open arts faculty position. After that, “things did magically kind of just fall into place for me,” she said. Ms. Hioe took her first art class during freshman year and found a place for herself within Deerfield’s visual arts program. She described that whenever she struggled at Deerfield, “the studios were always like an escape for [her].” She described the studio as a place where she can fully be herself. This environment is one that she attempts to recreate in her classes today, saying, “studio comfort is number one.” Looking forward, Ms. Hioe said that her goal is to “make art more applicable to all types of people.” To do so, she will try to “relate art in ways, make analogies and metaphors that people who are athletic will understand [and] people who are related to music will understand.” For Deerfield Academy’s Arts Director Mike Pfitzer, one of his duties is to work with new faculty. “One of the hardest things about being a new person at Deerfield — student or faculty member — is that you’re trying to learn all about the community,” he said. Dr. Pfitzer believed that the changes presented an opportunity to introduce new programs. “I think we are always open to … adjustments to our offerings and our programs, and our faculty leaders are very experienced as teachers and as program leaders.And so we lean on them to understand their programs and make the best choices possible for our students. It’s all about what the students need.”

As fall term commences, Deerfield athletes return to campus ready for another season. Along with practices, matches and meets, another set of pressures emerge at this time of the year: rigorous academic schedule, limited recovery time and, for many upperclassmen, the college recruitment process Mental health, therefore, plays a key role in athletic performance. Just as Deerfield athletes are expected to take care of their physical health by resisting colds and other sicknesses, “staying mentally strong and having the ability to be patient through the process of becoming better is [equally] important,” said Assistant Dean of Residential Life Trevon Bryant. The single most common mental performance hurdle Deerfield athletes face is comparison. “They compare themselves to other athletes and their successes,” Mr. Bryant observed. In addition, he noted that athletes often struggle to find “the ability to stay patient and trust in their skills.” For instance, comparison between Deerfield athletes and others in the recruitment process is common. They “look at stats or how many offers another kid has, and sometimes they even look at a person’s physical development,” Mr. Bryant added. This comparison can become more noticeable during the recruitment season as athletes feel they are constantly being evaluated. Varsity boys hockey Head Coach Tim McVaugh, who has 19 years of coaching experience, noted many players would often “worry so much about the college process that it would actually negatively impact their play, influencing their chances of playing in college.” Mr. McVaugh advised players to “[focus] on what you can control, [because] you can’t control who’s going to be in the rink, who’s going to play.” He added that stressful moments are further exacerbated as athletes get treated differently by their peers. Mr. Bryant echoed Mr. McVaugh’s observation by suggesting athletes to focus on themselves everyday. He explained, “The reality is that you won’t always show up your best. But within that, you have to give your best every single day. So even if that 70% is all you have for the day, as long as you’ve given that 70%, you’ve given 100% of what you have.” Other than balancing recruitment process, academics and athletics, having adequate recovery is also an important factor in the mental health of athletes. Harvard womens ice hockey commit Nicole Sciarretta ’28 said she focused on “time management and prioritizing [her] free time and making sure [she] get [her] work done when [she] can.” For Sciarretta, enjoying the sport is as important as the recruitment process. “Make sure you’re always having fun no matter what you’re doing,” she said, highlighting the importance of mental recovery and relaxation in sports. Mr. Bryant echoed this sentiment, explaining that working hard and enjoying do not necessarily contradict. “Someone’s definition of fun, it could be working hard, right? The day-to-day grind that comes with it. That is the fun,” he said. University of Virginia mens lacrosse commit Lucas Ward ’28 shared his athletic journey, mentioning that in order to care for his mental welfare, he would dedicate “an hour every day to socialize with [his] friends” and forget everything around him. This, in his opinion, helped him manage his time without being overwhelmed by stress. Mr. Bryant recommended one habit for all Deerfield athletes: gratitude. He recognized that sports do not last forever, whether that be a result of graduation, injury or a spontaneous end to an athlete’s playing career. Specifically, he underscored the importance of athletes practicing gratitude on a daily basis.

In an effort to introduce artificial intelligence (AI) into Deerfield coursework, eight classes this year have been designated as AI-integrated courses. Assistant Head of School for Academic Affairs Brian Hamilton explained that the vision of integrating AI was “to adopt intentional use of frontier tools for students working in, especially our upper-level courses, where they’re really deploying some of the methods and the practices of practitioners in the field.” Instead of using AI tools to shortcut academic endeavors, the initiative focuses on what educators termed “the impossible assignments,” assignments previously out of reach for high school students due to mechanical limitations such as manual speed and technicalities. Mr. Hamilton emphasized that the initiative is designed to preserve the struggle and friction in the authentic learning process — necessary steps not only to learn the content but also to sharpen learning skills. The initiative spans eight designated courses, with a heavy concentration in STEM subjects. These courses are designed to let students apply the actual methods of modern practitioners and investigate their chosen topics at a deep level. According to Mr. Hamilton, in Honors Biology 2, AI allows students to “pressure test” changes to lab protocols before actually conducting them. In Honors Environmental Science 2: Research, the models are used to parse through large, unwieldy data sets. In humanities courses, AI integration is less common due to distinct concerns regarding plagiarism and intellectual property in the field. Nonetheless, in Honors Historical Research — the only humanities course included in the initiative — students apply large language models (LLMs) to transcribe 300-year-old manuscripts that would otherwise be illegible. While most AI-integrated courses operate at an advanced level, AI tools have been used in introductory courses. In Introduction to Computer Science, where the primary aim is to build programming intuition instead of honing specific coding skills, students directly prompt LLMs to generate code, then “reverse engineer” these results to understand how the models arrived at their results. Currently, this initiative remains mostly teacher-driven. For a course to be eligible for AI integration, teachers must submit proposals that outline the specific AI tools and explain how they enhance the learning experience. The Academic Affairs Office then approves the petitions that form the actual foundation of a class. “We want to make sure it’s in line with the goals of the class and the curriculum more broadly,” explained Mr. Hamilton. After Academic Affairs’ approval, the office places certain restrictions on the use of AI models within these courses. Mr. Hamilton identified two key guidelines for AI use: students must only use AI with explicit approval from their instructors, and students need to clearly identify all uses of the technology in their coursework. In handling boundaries of AI usage, Academic Affairs and faculty strive to “start from a position of trust” in students’ maturity and responsibility, according to Mr. Hamilton. When infractions do occur, he intended to directly speak with involved students, expressing “empathy and understanding of the many pressures on students.” To put these guidelines into practice, teachers provided explicit instructions specifying when students are permitted to use AI. With targeted usage, students are able to examine the efficacy of the technology together. Math Teacher Donald Marshall shared how students in his Data Structures & Algorithms class “started off the year with a unit on data science and ethics … before [they] even made it available.” In the process of experimenting with the tools, the class also discovered certain Google Gemini features appropriate for the coursework are blocked from students under 18 due to age restrictions. As the school year has just begun, the AI integration approach still remains experimental, and it is “too soon to say” what improvements and fixes could be made in the future. Yet, thinking ahead, Mr. Hamilton indicated that with the incorporation of AI into existing courses being the primary focus right now, the next step may be the development of fully AI-centric courses. “What would it look like,” he wondered, “if we designed a new course, whether it’s a computer science course or an English literature class, with AI at the heart of it?”

With the rollout of the 2026 to 2027 Student Handbook, Deerfield Academy updated its dress code to require academic dress year-round. In previous years, the Student Handbook allowed casual dress for January and February of the Winter term. Academic dress is described in the Student Handbook as “a blazer or sportscoat (with lapel) … an appropriate top layer … [and] an appropriate bottom layer.” Written restrictions are present or “clothing inconsistent with a formal academic atmosphere … [including] blue denim pants, denim jackets of any color, sweatpants, yoga pants, and athletic attire.” According to Associate Head of School for Student Life Amie Creagh, the decision-making process began last spring, when the Academy recognized the importance of aligning school policies with its mission. Students first found out about the policy change in Head of School John Austin’s Families FYI email on August 14. In the newsletter, Dr. Austin explained, “Academic dress at Deerfield is too important and too distinctive to be a ‘sometimes’ policy.” The announcement sparked conversation amongst students as they arrived back to campus. Many expressed concerns with both the method and timeframe of the announcement. Anne Kelly ’27 said, “You need to communicate changes sooner.” She added, “They did it during the summer so that nobody could complain in person.” In response to student concern, Ms. Creagh, on behalf of the Student Life Office (SLO), said, “The clarity on this being a likely policy outcome was not there until this summer.” Student Body President Justin Wang ’27 said that student council members were not informed of 2026 policy changes prior to the student body. Reagan Warren ’27 added, “This is just a statement that they don’t want student opinions.” Kelly described this policy as being “too big a leap” for the SLO to take without student opinion. The student body largely showed support for enforcing a dress code, but opinions differed on rule application. Allie Peterson ’28 expressed a desire for “dress down days,” saying that “it gets kind of tiring” when academic dress is required year-round. Devon Celli ’29 agreed, finding the winter term extension “unnecessary.” Some students expressed difficulty finding warm clothes for winter term. Hera Agirbicean ’28 explained that the winter policy left her with few options for seasonally appropriate clothing. “A lot of nicer clothes don’t work for cold weather,” she said. Ms. Creagh responded, “There is not an adult on campus who wants a child to be cold,” adding that “students should be able to wear the same outfits they wear in December in January and February.” For some students, as Linnea Knox ’27 explained, the practical challenges of winter academic dress outweigh the need to “uphold the tradition” and the SLO’s “impulse” for consistency, citing Deefield’s varying co-curricular schedules during the winter and lack of weekday sit-down dinners. Students also mentioned the unequal application of the dress code being a problem. Both Adannia Okpokwasili ’27 and Knox attributed their relationship with academic dress to the fact that none of their teachers “enforced the blazer rule.” Knox elaborated that female students don’t see the blazer rule enforced to the same extent as their male counterparts. Students advocated for more flexibility and communication in the policy. Warren said that “an extremist approach never works in anything. I think [the SLO is] underestimating how much we’re willing to find a middle ground.” She recommended the SLO provide guidelines on what to wear over explicit direction, saying, “I think there’s more repercussions to making it a strict academic dress in the winter instead of being like, don’t show up to class in PJs, which is really what they’re trying to communicate. But you can say that without saying full academic dress.” Kelly, Warren and Noah Bennett ’27 recommended the SLO take communication more seriously. In her announcement during School Meeting, Dean of Students Heather Brown explained that students should give feedback regarding the dress code to their class deans. However, Kelly thought it was intrinsically easier to talk to a student than a teacher about opposition to a policy. Overall, Kelly, Warren, and Bennett recommended that the SLO involve the student council more when making decisions. Ms. Creagh said, “Both Nate and Justin meet regularly with Ms. Brown. So there is an avenue for collaboration, partnership, and discussion.”