Search this site

On April 15th, 2013, Patriots’ Day, the unexpected happened. At the finish line of the Boston Marathon, two bombs went off, leading to a manhunt for the suspects across the city. The chase lasted four days, as the nation watched, ending with one suspect dead and the other captured. Deerfield Academy’s own Associate Dean of Admissions, David Irwin, found himself near the site of the bombs that day. Mr. Irwin, who also teaches history, ran his first full marathon in Boston this year to raise money for the pediatric cancer patients of Mass General Hospital— where his wife, Science Teacher Mandy Irwin, underwent surgeries last year. “We wanted to find a way to give back to the hospital,” Mr. Irwin said. His training started in January for him to be prepared for such a lengthy event. Although he ran two half-marathons before, this was his first time running the full 26.2 miles. For the Irwins, Marathon Monday started at the crack of dawn. “We took a bus from Boston and they drove us out to Hopkinton,” Mr. Irwin said. “There was a lot of waiting around for about three hours before we actually ran, because all of the charity runners go at the end.” Everything was going smoothly until two bombs exploded near the finish line. “I was just getting my stuff,” Mr. Irwin said of his experience upon hearing the eruptions. “After you finish, they send you through a chute area where they have water and food, and they give you a medal. I was just collecting my bag of personal items when I heard the first bomb go off. I thought, like many others, that it was celebratory—it sounded like a cannon.” Mr. Irwin soon realized that it was no Patriots’ Day celebration. “When the second one went off, I felt it in my chest, so I knew that it was something serious, but I still didn’t quite know what it was,” he said. “Everyone was panicking around me trying to find out. We weren’t close enough to see what had happened, but we did see all of the smoke rising up. I was probably 300 yards from it.” As soon as people became aware there was a crisis, panic set in. The scene soon turned chaotic, with everyone desperately trying to contact his or her loved ones. “Because of the number of people that were on their cell phones,” he said, “it was hard for us to even get text messages through,” Eventually, he was able to reunite with his wife and parents, who were all at the race. Head of School Margarita Curtis remarked on Deerfield’s security in light of the tragic day. “Ever since the Sandy Hook events, which I think was another big jolt for us, we have added a security guard to monitor the people who access the school from public roads,” she said. “We want to shy away from armed guards by every building or anything that would create a paranoid culture here. We have increased our security guard presence, particularly on the public roads, and back in the winter, we also invited the chief of police to talk to students at a school meeting about safety measures.” As far as students’ safety: “We don’t control everything in life, in fact, we control far less than we think,” Dr. Curtis said. “I think the best approach is for all of us to develop a greater degree of attentiveness as individuals, to pay more attention to what is happening in our surroundings, and to report suspicious behavior. We need to develop a level of awareness and consciousness that perhaps was not as critical in the past.” Heidi Hunt ’15 said, “It’s sad to think that something as empowering as the Boston Marathon was tainted in such a terrible way. However, I think people will be able to overcome this and keep running.” Despite this horrible tragedy, Mr. Irwin had a positive experience running. “It was exciting,” he said. “I met a lot of great people, and the race itself was really fun. I felt great for about nineteen miles, and the last seven were pretty painful.” Mr. Irwin again reflected on the bombs that went off after he finished the race. “It was shocking,” he said. “It is still shocking for us. It is sort of surreal to watch the news coverage and think: ‘Wow, we were there.’ I’m sure it hasn’t totally sunk in yet, but it is definitely just surreal.” “It was an emotional week for us,” Mrs. Irwin added. Participating in another marathon sometime in the near future still seems possible for Mr. Irwin. “Besides the tragedy of the day, it was an uplifting day to be a part of and [there was] a great sense of accomplishment,” Mr. Irwin said.

For years, Captain Deerfield has been a hallmark of Deerfield Athletics. He can be found on the sidelines of most big sports contests, dressed in a white sports coat, lime green pants and majestic cape. A spray-painted broom shaft rests in his right hand, an embellished megaphone in the other. But for the coming 2013-14 school year, the position will undergo several changes as mandated by the administration. Captain Deerfield is currently the only public role for students elected not by peers, but rather named each year by his predecessor. This spring, current Captain Deerfield, Chris Merrill ’13, met with Dean of Students Amie Creagh and Head of School Margarita Curtis to discuss the fate of the position. “The school seemed very adamant about making Captain Deerfield an elected position,” Merrill said. “They have had this plan for quite a while now, so there was really nothing I could do about it.” “We thought it made the most sense to have Captain Deerfield be elected–just like other club officers and members of Student Council,” Ms. Creagh said. “This is another question of equal access and opportunities for all students, an important area of focus for Deerfield right now.” Ms. Creagh also pointed out that there has never been a female Captain Deerfield. The administration has not yet determined whether Captain Deerfield will be elected by the whole school or by the current cheerleaders. “Captain Deerfield should represent what the kids want,” said Brian Kagame ’16. “So if the kids come together and vote for one person, I think it’s better.” “I will not be passing down the Captain Deerfield outfit to the newly elected student, and I have chosen to remove myself from the election process,” Merrill said. “As far as I am concerned, it is not the same position. And the tradition of Captain Deerfield, as many of the school’s current students and graduates have known it, is over.” “Although I understand the reasoning why the administration has decided to make Captain Deerfield democratically elected,” Thomas Cowan ’13,concurred. “I think that his role and position in the school will change dramatically as a result.” Others feel as though Captain Deerfield’s current role is too limited and are hopeful that changes will extend the duties. “I feel like he is only involved until Choate Day,” Jason Bravo ’15 said, “and then he fades away.” Dr. Curtis acknowledged the feedback, saying, “My hope is also that Captain Deerfield’s role is not limited to generating school spirit and cheering on Choate Weekend, but that he or she can model great community spirit throughout the year.”

Rory Cowan ’71 will address the Class of 2013 as Commencement speaker. Mr. Cowan is currently the Chairman and CEO of Lionbridge, a company he founded in 1996. Following the modern technological trends, Lionbridge’s innovative business models have redefined the nature of “cloudbased” work by combining more than 100,000 at home professionals in over 100 countries. Before Mr. Cowan started Lionbridge, he was the Executive President and of the Management Committee at R.R. Donnelley & Sons, a printing services company. Mr. Cowan also serves on the boards of, and is an active investor in, Bostonarea technology companies that focus on the intersections of services and the Internet. He has also been involved with many philanthropic endeavors in Boston. Mr. Cowan currently lives with his wife, Dr. Charlotte Cowan, a retired pediatrician from Massachusetts General Hospital who has written several award-winning children’s health education books. “I think it’s great that he is the Commencement speaker,” commented Mimi Morsman, Director of Alumni Relations. “He has such a great sense of Deerfield via his involvement with the book A Sigh of Change, being a parent of three Deerfield graduates, and serving as a trustee. Besides, Mr. Cowan is loyal to Deerfield’s mission of educating global citizens, and he understands what is important for young adults to learn in today’s competitive world. His business has taken him all over the world, and it will be fascinating to hear his message to the Class of 2013.” Seniors also chimed in on their expectations for the speech. John Lee ’13 said, “I expect to hear about what course his life has taken since his graduation from Deerfield, and how his experience here has helped him chart out the course for his own life.” Mr. Cowan’s son, Thomas Cowan ’13, also responded to his father’s selection as his graduation speaker. “My dad came to Deerfield as a new junior,” Thomas explained. “Since then, my sisters (‘07 and ‘08) and I have gone to Deerfield as well. Deerfield’s definitely been a huge part of our family, and I know it always will be. Although I don’t know exactly what his speech will be about, I’m really looking forward to hearing what he has to say.” “I am really pleased that Mr. Cowan accepted the invitation to be our Commencement speaker for the Class of 2013,” Head of School Margarita Curtis said. “Mr. Cowan has witnessed the evolution of Deerfield over the past forty years, and contributed meaningfully to its growth and change while remaining a strong steward of its core values and traditions. His deep expertise in the hightech arena on one hand, and familiarity with the school’s founding ethos on the other, place him in a unique position to determine how Deerfield Academy can remain strong and relevant in a world of rapid technological change and constant connectivity.”

Dear Reader, The time has arrived when we can finally count on two hands the number of days till summer vacation. Now more than ever, it is imperative that we take a beat and reflect back on the past school year. Sometimes we find ourselves rushing in an all out sprint towards a point in the future, only to discover upon our arrival that we forget not only how we got there but why we wanted it so badly in the first place. Like it or not, our days here are numbered, as the looming graduation of the Class of 2013 this Sunday no doubt reminds many of us. The summer months provide simultaneously a much-needed relief from the stress of the Deerfield microcosm and a time for students to pursue their own interests outside the classroom. But as you all enjoy some sun and well-deserved freedom, I cannot emphasize more the importance of developing ideas to bring back to school in the fall. Every returning student will be stepping up to a position of higher leadership, and with this comes the responsibility of both preserving the legacy of those who will leave the school in a few short days and creating our own. As you read the following opinions of students and teachers on tradition and technological innovation, I urge you to formulate your own opinions and share them with us as well as the school. Memories are made when you take charge of your time here, and as long as four years might sound in the beginning, I promise they will fly by faster than you can believe. Charlotte Allen, Editor-in-Chief

As we bid goodbye to the 2012-2013 school year, by far the hardest thing to let go of is the senior class. A colorful collection of scholars, athletes, and artists, the Class of 2013 has provided the rest of Deerfield with amazing role models to look up to. Whether on the soccer field or in a Spanish classroom, returning students will miss the wisdom and personality the senior class has breathed into the student body. Through facets of Deerfield like community service and political activism, many members of the senior class have given us tools to use in the world beyond of Albany Road. In addition to these valuable resources, they’ve brought lighthearted humor when the atmosphere becomes too solemn, and a sense of dignity when the rest of the campus gets too unruly. We’ll miss you, Class of 2013. Go onward marching, and let the heart hold memory bright.

Summer days drifted away but oh, oh those summer nights . As we head into the carefree months ahead, The Scroll would like to stress one last time the incredible opportunities that Deerfield affords us. This summer we will become world travelers, volunteers, athletes, summer-campers, artists, writers, scientists and so much more, expanding our minds with each world-class program or internship we attend. Yet in the midst of all this, we must strive to remember that these opportunities are few and far between for the vast majority of the world. This three-month gap in an education often reinforces the gap between rich and poor; the rich send their children to elite programs and foreign countries while the less wealthy kids may have perfectly lovely summers, but without that element of extensive intellectual opportunity. So as we head into this blissful, youthful time in our lives, let us remember we have an opportunity and a responsibility to continue to develop our minds, expand our horizons and arrive back at Deerfield more eager to learn than ever.

The word “community” has been repeated so many times it often goes into one ear and out the other. We do not often appreciate the true sense of community that Deerfield provides. This school is not a collection of strangers; it’s a crew of six hundred diverse students who pride themselves, at least outwardly, on the openness and the inclusion that is supposed to define them and this institution. Albany Road, the charming main street that cuts through the heart of Deerfield’s campus, is the best example of this “sense of community.” We find this camraderie in the smiles (or the smizes) and the waves that are exchanged, and in the fact that every student here knows of, if not about, every other member of the community. In a changing world, where it is all too easy to be mesmerized by how a screen lights up than to stare into a pair of eyes that do the same, the school rule that students do not use their cell phones in public places is a quiet reminder of what is important (or of what should be important). When students tuck their phones away, it is not only a gesture of respect for school policy but also an investment in themselves, that they might look up and see more of a tree than just its trunk, that they might catch the eye of a fellow student and make a small but meaningful difference in his or her day with the simple word “Hi.”

The greatest threats to cultural diversity on campus are required bonding programs, specifically Connect4. These meetings restrict free time and fail to promote deep, vested relationships. Rather than organically learning about a peer, students are forced to bond under artificial circumstances. Instead of having candid conversations, students engage in awkward small talk and bond over cursory similarities, like rain boots. These forced interactions perpetuate the “dominant culture,” as they prevent students from genuinely getting to know each other. These superficial relationships are then substituted for true friendships. Furthermore, these meetings infringe on time that students could use to forge true relationships. “Because students are required to attend so many meetings, Connect4 is dreaded,” said Laura Quazzo ’13. “And I haven’t noticed any genuine bonding occurring. … It’s more of a race to get things done, not to take the time to truly get to know each other.” How can we minimize the effects of a “dominant culture” if students don’t have enough time Deerfield’s rigorous schedule, kids who have interests opposed to the mainstream culture don’t have the time to develop them and engender a counterculture. “At my old school, we had the jocks, hippies, artists, punks; you just don’t see that at Deerfield,” said John Deskavich ’13. In an attempt to integrate students, Deerfield promotes inauthentic relationships that perpetuate the “dominant culture.” By shuffling friends around in housing, Deerfield further promotes short-lived, superficial relationships. Every year, Deerfield tries with fervor to diversify halls. However, this means that students who naturally have an affinity to one another arenʼt allowed to bond in a sustained manner and are forced to switch dorms every year. Rather than allowing actors, or athletes, et al, to live together, Deerfield forces a heterogeneous hall that engenders a homogeneous culture. Preventing friends from living together for more than a year stifles the evolution of the culture of that group. For example, artists canʼt spend enough time together to form an artsy culture. The result is different groups bonding over superficial interests, inducing the “dominant culture.” Finally, the hindrance of specialization outside of athletics harms cultural diversity. Every year, teams return to campus early for preseason and athletes consequently form strong relationships with each other. Those students who are interested in athletics have a forum after school to bond with teammates and create a “bro culture”; debaters, writers, et al, donʼt have these same opportunities. Since extracurricular clubs arenʼt given the same priority as athletics, itʼs difficult for subcultures to evolve around these organizations. Although exemptions are offered, students are often deterred from this option, and pushed instead towards sports. Again, this is an institutional policy that prohibits students of similar interests from forming their own culture—unless of course theyʼre athletes. By prohibiting specialization outside of athletics, the administration has created a bland, “dominant culture.” When speaking at an NAIS conference, Bill Gates was asked how his high school helped him grow into himself. Gates replied, “They stayed out of the way.” If Deerfield allowed students the time to simply be themselves and hang with friends, there would not be a “dominant culture.”

Disclaimer: This is written by a girl who honestly thinks that if the dress code is going to be so strict, we might as well have a uniform. It would save every girl from the stress that apparently comes from trying to impress everyone every day. The Deerfield girls’ dress code is meant to be “classy” and conservative (because my shoulders and lower back are not classy, but rather deeply inappropriate). Saying that the only “acceptable” way to dress is a J. Crew sweater and a knee-length skirt only adds to the exclusive culture that we so often claim we are trying to ameliorate. Instead of shaming girls for wearing shorts to class in the spring, we should rather stop over-sexualizing a universally possessed part of the body. The Deerfield dress code implies that every girl should look more or less similar. Should it not be more important that a girl feels comfortable and happy and HERSELF in what she’s wearing? High school should be about finding yourself, not getting lost in whom everyone else seems to be. Deerfield is indirectly telling you who you should be through this dress code, and that’s simply not okay for us easily impressionable teens. I believe that either the dress code should be more free or we should officially become a uniformed school—it wouldn’t be much of a jump because it already looks like a uniform anyway.

Like many incoming Deerfield students, I loved the concept of a dress code. Who wouldn’t approve of students looking presentable at all times and appearing to take their education seriously? What I failed to realize at that point was the frustration and anxiety that Deerfield’s dress code would eventually cause me. Walking around campus today, we can easily distinguish the criteria for boys’ dress code, but it is nearly impossible to discern distinct rules for girls. Boys keep it classy in blazers and ties, but girls wear clothing infinitely less formal than their male counterparts. A quick peek at DA to Z reveals a reasonable-sounding, appropriate dress code for girls. It shouldn’t be too much to ask of 300 intelligent high school girls, but unfortunately, it is. At the beginning of this year, female students were implored to dress responsibly and follow the dress code. The fall term saw relatively few violations; this spring has been atrocious. Backless dresses, white jeans, blue jeans, and way too much skin in general have become commonplace. Two years ago, many DA students and parents fought hard against an untimely dress code change, propsed late in the summer after many families had already done their back-to-school shopping. The change had good intentions but unrealistic propositions. One proposal was to eradicate low necklines by requiring t-shirts under revealing dresses. This rather extreme proposal was vetoed, but our school is still in need of a change. A young Deerfield woman today must fulfill four clothing criteria: clothing she likes, clothing that fits, clothing in her price range, and clothing that adheres to the dress code. The last is unfortunately the one compromised most often. Because the girls’ dress code is not black and white like the boys’ is, there is room for girls to be influenced more by what is cute and fashionable than what is written in the rulebook, an issue only perpetuated by inconsistencies in faculty enforcement of the dress code. There is a viable, though not necessarily fashion-forward, option that could make the girls’ dress code airtight: conservative dressing that is of similar level to the boys’ attire. There do exist skirts long enough and blouses covering enough to be at the same formal standard as the boys’ conservative and professional look. Fashion should not be the main concern. Deerfield could benefit immensely by prioritizing the intellect and character of a student and de-emphasizing his or her appearance. Like many, I am tired of the dress code discussion. I know my last three years would have been much less stressful had there been more consistency with the faculty and better attitudes, leadership, and integrity on the part of the female students. As I leave Deerfield behind, I hope the tradition of class dress will remain, though we need a more transparent set of rules and a renewed respect of these rules from the female students.

In our generation, we live our lives at full speed. We use high speed internet and instant messaging so we can get information the second it becomes available. We have even changed the English language to suit our fast-paced needs. Words like “are” and “you” have been shortened to one-letter words “r” and “u,” making our communication that much faster. People have turned proper nouns into verbs, saying “Let me google it” or “I just instagrammed that.” This compromised English language is the lingo of Deerfield Academy. We are allowing our iPhones to take over our lives. For example, a group of students sit silently at a table, all checking the same Twitter or Facebook feed. A girl with her head down, thumbs moving a mile a minute, sends a text to a boy sitting on the opposite side of the room eagerly awaiting the “ding” of an new message. We are losing the sense of community that has been a cornerstone of Deerfield Academy for generations. The desire to be connected to one another is still strong; it is the way we go about doing so that is flawed. Instead of asking each other what we did over the weekend, we simply check Instagram, see a double scoop of moose tracks, and know our friends went to Richardson’s. Or we spot a mobile upload of a line of green helmeted boys following a bagpiper and know boys lacrosse had a home game. While technology does make our lives easier, we must ask ourselves: how much of our lives are we willing to replace with pictures, videos, and nonverbal communication?