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As I prepared for the start of the school year, along with summer reading and dorm shopping, I spent far too much time worrying about blazers and what they would represent. Despite this concern, I still failed to recognize the true problem within Deerfield dress, which surprisingly has nothing to do with lapels. Contradictory to what I had presumed, I found myself immediately engulfed in a sea of navy blue and black blazers whose prices were indistinguishable from each other. I don’t know exactly what I had expected, but I had some obscure idea that blazers would be a huge defining factor here, especially since they were new to Deerfield. I had thought that it would be easy to distinguish between blazers based on the brands and prices, when in reality, they all look fundamentally identical. At first I was relieved that I wouldn’t have to worry about any kind of judgement regarding blazers, but soon realized that there were so many other things to base socio-economic status on. I had been so focused on what blazers would represent, that I overlooked the actual differentiating clothing: what people wore under their blazers. I began to notice obvious patterns in what girls were wearing, often seeing the same skirt or dress on multiple people in one day. Undoubtedly, there will always be popular trends anywhere you go, but there is one clear difference at Deerfield. Here, though these clothes seem like just another fad or style that girls just happen to like, they also manage to connote wealth based on their high prices. Prior to the school year, Deerfield Academy shared a page on blazer shopping with parents and students. It contained a list links of stores selling blazers sorted by price. The page also included a short introduction asking that girls refrain from buying extremely expensive blazers that would unintentionally exclude others without the same resources. I would argue that this advice applies so much more to the rest of the Deerfield dress code than blazers. A $50 and $250 blazer are almost impossible to tell apart. In contrast, there are innumerable pieces of clothing or accessories on campus that clearly display certain brands associated with major wealth. Because these items are such a staple here, it is clear who is wearing them and who isn’t. Whether it is because they simply decide not to buy into certain trends or because they lack the money to, there are many Deerfield girls not partaking in these fashions. Obviously, there is absolutely nothing wrong with not having specific brands. Despite this, the environment here makes these certain items seem like things you just have to have and implies that those who possess them fit in better or are somehow superior. This kind of atmosphere is practically universal, but specifically at Deerfield, trends are almost always the most expensive or high-end version of an item. Whether it’s Van Cleef necklaces, LoveShackFancy skirts, or Golden Goose sneakers, there are clear markers of wealth found in a girl’s everyday clothing. These kinds of clothing create an unofficial uniform for the Deerfield girl. While no one will be dress coded for not having these items, there is a definite unspoken status that comes with the ability to buy and wear certain clothes. Naturally, many communities experience similar things, but why are we allowing our school to conform to such toxic patterns? Deerfield should able to prepare its students for their futures without adopting the most harmful habits of the real world. I am certainly not suggesting uniforms for Deerfield, but we can begin to encourage this improvement by considering what kind of environment we are contributing to when choosing what we wear. We should be buying clothing because of how it actually looks, not the status or ideas it will portray. Sure, trends are trends for a reason, but also we must be sure that we aren’t dressing the way we do solely because everyone else is. These kinds of changes can not only encourage individuality in dress, but also relieve pressure from Deerfield students to conform to certain styles and trends. The culture at Deerfield connecting socio-economic status to the clothing a girl wears is one of the school’s biggest flaws. In some aspects, such an atmosphere is inevitable while still allowing freedom of dress. The school can’t simply limit the amount of money spent on an outfit. However, it is clear that the pressure and negative influences created by clothing are extremely detrimental to our school’s famously welcoming community. If our choices of how to dress continue to resemble wealth and status competitions, Deerfield will no longer be the school we all fell in love with. We as students are the only ones who can make a major change in our culture.

This November, as the end of the fall term approaches, the Deerfield community will have a few opportunities to de-stress by enjoying performances hosted by various music groups on campus and exploring the artwork of Tim Trelease. On November 15, the highly anticipated “Women in Music” concert will be presented at the Hess Wachsman Concert Hall at 7:00pm by the Deerfield Orchestra, Deerfield Vocal Program and CODA. The program features music by great female artists of the last four centuries including Beyonce, Clara Schumann, Lizzo, Lili Boulanger, Joni Mitchell, Hildegard von Bingen, Aretha Franklin, Caroline Shaw, and Sara Bareilles. The evening will end with a DJ dance party in the Hess Lobby. Kate Landino ‘20, a member of CODA, said, “Coming together to celebrate the power of women and why we need them in music is something everyone should do as women have been historically underrepresented in the music industry.” See the “Women In Music” article to get a better understanding of the importance of this concert to those who worked to prepare the event. On November 17 in the Hess Wachsman Concert Hall at 4:00pm, there will be a Fall Chamber Music Showcase. Students from the Advanced Chamber Music and Band classes will perform their Fall Term repertoire. The music in this performance includes pieces by Ludwig van Beethoven, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Robert Schumann​, and Zoltán Kodály. “These talented musicians have been working extremely hard on some of the most advanced repertoire in the classical canon,” said Head of the Music Department, Thomas Bergeron. “It’s nice to see that these end-of-term chamber showcases have become a preferred Sunday afternoon activity for students as they seek to sharpen their focus in anticipation of exam week. It’s nice to see students get the recognition that they deserve.” Starting from November 3 to December 2, the Von Auersperg Gallery will be featuring works by Art Teacher Timothy Trelease. Representing a deep connection to the richness of the natural, agricultural, and post-industrial New England landscape, his works range from pencil and ink drawings, paintings, constructions with found objects, silver prints and short digital film. Mr. Trelease focuses on the art of synesthesia (reinterpreting one art form with another art form) as some of his pieces were inspired by music and poetry, including poems by T.S Eliot, Walt Whitman, and William Blake, and a song by the contemporary band The Avett Brothers. “I feel at one with the universe during these painting sessions, absorbing the sights, sounds, and smells of the natural world,” Mr. Trelease reflected. “I hope that the array of abstract and representational pieces will be inspiring for a community like Deerfield’s, which is imbued with so many different interests.”

Yusuf Mukhtar ’20 is the well-deserved athlete of the issue. The 6’2, 270-pound offensive lineman came to Deerfield three years ago as a sophomore and has had a strong impact on the team and community ever since. Mukhtar was named Yusuf after his great-grandfather. He traces his family’s roots back to Nigeria and described being Muslim as a big part of his life. Mukhtar credited his success in life thus far in large part to his mother. “She took me to a bunch of camps over the summer. She’s always supporting me and checking up on me to make sure I’m alright and well enough to play football. She’s really important,” he said. Mukhtar is a big presence on the field, both as a physically strong player and as a supportive teammate. Captain Will Savage ’20 said, “I remember the first day I came down to football, he just had a bright energy. I got to know him better, he loves talking to people and is super open. He’s an old-school football player, puts the grit in, I love how he plays.” Under Mukhtar’s leadership, boys varsity football has been able to get off to a solid 5-2 start. Two of his offensive line teammates, Marcus Romboli ’20 and Chase Stadtler ’20, could only say positive things about Mukhtar’s game and character. Romboli was a new junior last year and met Mukhtar at the beginning of the football season: “I’ve known Yusuf the last two years, and he’s a good kid. He takes care of his academics…so he’s doing the right thing.” Stadtler, who met Yusuf on his visit to Deerfield back in December 2018, added, “He’s a hard-working kid, he’s always going to give his best to make the play and play his hardest the whole game.” Romboli applauded Mukhtar’s development as a player over the course of his time at Deerfield. “I think he was pretty new to football and he’s already taken it to another level I’ve seen him improve a lot since he started getting some reps last year, and he can only go up from here,” he said. Along with being a starter for Deerfield football, Mukhtar is also a sophomore boys proctor on Louis Marx. His fellow proctor Sim Bethel ’20 is very grateful for their friendship. “He is definitely a chill person. He likes to have a good time and have fun and joke around, but he’s also down-to-earth and knows how to get his work done when he needs to. I think the sophomores are really lucky to have him as a proctor. If I could describe him in one word it would be ‘homie.’” Varsity football managers Jason Hutchinson ’21 and Emma Kimble ’20 agreed that Mukhtar possesses a particularly amiable personality. Kimble, who noted Mukhtar’s lighthearted personality, said, “He’s just a great guy, super funny, I always say he’s one of the funniest guys on the team, always making people laugh,” she said. Mukhtar recalls that his favorite DA football memory was last season’s game against Cheshire. “No one thought we would win. We didn’t even think we would win, but we just came out and smacked them, so it was fun,” he said. After Deerfield, Mukhtar plans to continue his football career at Middlebury College. When asked about why he committed to play at Middlebury, he said “I felt like it was the right fit. It was a good environment and a beautiful campus. They were one of the few schools who recruited me; they’re a good football team: doing really good this year especially, too.”

We all know that feeling when our stomachs demand food at the strangest hours of the day. For most, this time comes in the middle of the night when you are trying to finish up that last subject of homework. You search every corner of your room only to realize that you allowed your friend to finish your last bag of popcorn the other night. You desperately walk into the common room, sort through the fridge, and find plenty of tasty food, but no means to actually cook it. It’s time to get creative… Here are five dorm hacks to get you through a hungry night: 1. After three weeks without a functioning microwave in the dorm, you are desperate for some frozen pizza pockets. You then remember that clothes steamer your mom bought for you that you claimed you would never use…think again! Fire that baby up and use it to thaw yourself a quick tasty snack. 2. You find that perfect sandwich meat in the fridge with that fresh sourdough bread in the cupboard, but you cannot bring yourself to eat a cold sandwich. Use your hair straightener as a makeshift panini press. 3. It’s quite a chilly night and you could use some soup to warm you up. The coffee pot your hallmate left in the common room will do just fine. Let’s hope that your tasty tomato bisque does not stain their tip top white machine. 4. You could really go for some s’mores and there just so happens to be leftover ingredients from last night’s feed. The only problem is that you have no source of heat with which to cook this art form. Just whip out your handy dandy iron and press that s’more to perfection. Life hack: you can also use the iron to cook bacon. Get your Deerfield spirit on and have a tasty treat, all without leaving the comfort of your dorm. 5. A half-eaten bag of tortilla chips remains in the common room, but you want to add a little kick. The cheddar cheese in the refrigerator is exactly what you are looking for. You spread the cheese out evenly amongst the chips and dig through your room until you find that hair dryer which finally found its purpose.

Choate week, full of rivalry and eccentric costumes, is the highlight of the fall term. In anticipation of this whirlwind of fun, students eagerly prepare coordinated outfits and themes for each day of the week. But with all the spirit and hype, many students have trouble thinking of outfit ideas. Here are some suggestions: Monday Twin Day: Find a friend that has similar or matching clothing as you, such as sweatpants or a sweatshirt, then wear a basic white t-shirt or leggings to complete the outfit. This is a good day to take some fun Instagram photos with one of your good pals. Commit to the character by acting as each other or even attending each other’s classes. Tuesday Meme Day: This day of the week is always the most difficult. There are so many memes out there but it is so difficult to accurately depict the humor of one in an outfit. One basic outfit is a blue hoodie with sunglasses to be the popular ‘she doesn’t even go here’ meme from Mean Girls. A notable outfit from the past few years is ‘let’s get this bread’ with one person dressing up as Wonder Bread and one person with a net. Another idea is to print out a piece of paper in the shape of a traffic sign that says ‘road work ahead.’ Coordinate with your friends to say “I sure hope it does” in unison. Wednesday Team Day: This is a fun day to get dressed up with your whole team and show the rest of the school your team spirit. The opportunities are endless: a school of fish, a room of doors, anything but a pack of boars. Thursday Grade Day: This day’s outfit is picked by your class representatives and is usually something that can include a wide variety of outfits. Last year, 2021 did sports and most people just wore sports jerseys. Have some fun with your grade today! Friday Green and White Day: Finding an outfit that has green and white in it should not be hard. White pants always work. The Hitchcock House and Athletic Store have plenty of last-minute options, as well. Saturday Choate Day: The alums are back! Get a pom-pom from the spirit booth to accessorize with your Deerfield beanie. If you aren’t wearing a white sweater, green jeans, and a Barbour jacket, what are you even doing with your life? Enjoy Choate Day!

The Deerfield Academy Disabilities Alliance, more commonly known as the DADA, was established last year but is growing quickly in prominence. Leader of the alliance Izzy Hamlen ’20 said: “There wasn’t a proper student support group for students with disabilities, visible and invisible before this alliance.” Last year, the leaders of the DADA had lunch with Dr. Oluwaferanmi Okanlami ’03, a physically disabled Deerfield alumnus, in order to hear his perspective. Hamlen said, “He told us the one entrance into the dining hall that day was blocked, and it was the only handicap entrance. It just shows how unaware Deerfield is about abilities.” She added that she hopes the alliance can improve Deerfield’s understanding about disabilities. The alliance was also responsible for modifying the ‘Welcome’ stickers put on each student’s door. It spoke to the Student Life Office and was able to include the phrase “Deerfield welcomes…all abilities” this year. Hamlen said, “I hope that the stickers will help students understand that they don’t have to go through something like this alone.” The DADA also started doing Friday Doughnuts at the end of each month in the Health Center for students who are picking up medication. In addition, it worked with academic faculty to change the current location for testing study hall, which is in the basement of the library, and can be noisy and distracting. The location is set to change over winter term. The alliance also hopes to bring puppies to campus later in the year. Hamlen said, “We’re trying to do puppy therapy before exams because I think exams are…really tough for everyone but especially for kids who don’t do well under stress or have to have accommodations.” Despite their successes, both Hamlen and Luther expressed the hope that the DADA will grow bigger. Luther said, “The alliance is still pretty new and has much room to grow. However, I see that it has still made an impact on the community by raising awareness.’’ Hamlen added, “We’re still in that building stage so we need to get the ball rolling and hopefully in a couple years it’ll be a much bigger group.” Above all, the alliance has created a support system for students with disabilities and their allies. Luther said that, with the club, she “gained a safe place to talk about and resolve issues and stereotypes that can arise in the world of disabilities.” The school administration has also tried to provide support for the alliance. Ms. Koyama, Director of Academic Support, discussed the various academic support systems available on campus. She said, “If students, and by that I mean any student, feel they need assistance succeeding in their classes for any reason, they should reach out to their teachers, advisor and/or anyone in the Office of the Academic Dean.” She added that students can also meet with peer tutors or a learning specialist in order to adjust to any academic needs or complications. Hamlen said that the club is working to destigmatize different learning abilities. “I really hope that, in a few years…when [I] visit, the alliance will be a lot bigger and learning disabilities will be more normalized,” she said.

Growing up, politics was a subject rarely talked about in my family. Having lived in China for all of their lives, my parents are ingrained with the belief that issues concerning the government are left to the hands of experienced politicians who have dealt with similar issues in the past: issues that common people would not understand — a political norm promoted by the fear of chaos and propagated by centuries-old thinking. Coming to America at a young age, I was both shocked and amazed by the way my peers talked about politics and by how freely they expressed their stances and debated issues concerning national policies. To me, America’s political strength revolves around active participation in the politics of the people, particularly those who do not shy away from expressing their beliefs to help the country keep up with the fast pace of the world. Thus, with the upcoming 2020 election rapidly approaching, it is more important than ever to reconsider the process in which we elect our next president: the Electoral College and what it stands for. Controversies surrounding the electoral college arise from whether or not the system under-represents the majority, especially given the chaos around the 2016 election that marked the pinnacle of partisanship in America. In the status quo, candidates can win all of a state’s electoral votes by plurality, not the majority. Trump, for instance, managed to convert several traditionally blue states to red, collecting more electoral votes than predicted and winning the presidency without the popular vote. The result of this has led to people who do not live in swing states to feel disempowered because, as much as one vote counts, there will be places where others’ votes count more. I will say this: the system may have worked in 18th century America, but it no longer fits into the polarized political climate that currently dominates the country. Having a “winner-take-all” system in America accomplishes nothing but discouraging conservative Californians and liberal Texans to vote. However, just simply talking about reforms without addressing the deep-rooted misrepresentation of the people by how we vote is simply not enough. Finding a way to address that is the hard part. The divide in American politics stems from its fixation on the polarized parties that control the voices of the people. In an ideal world, opposing sides would work together to reach a middle-ground that reflects the needs of the people and pass legislations that get things done. Yet the reality is this: parties are not united by one cohesive dogma, and even within the parties there are drastic ideological differences. The Democratic Party, for instance, suffers from the extreme division of its moderate and progressive constituents. And as the party moves further left with no end in sight, moderate Democrats are left behind, feeling ostracized within their own party. Words such as “left” or“right” and “blue” or “red” are thrown around to characterize ideas and group people, splitting the country between the two parties. The ideals of modern liberalism, for instance, are often conflated with the ideals of the Democratic Party and the ideals of conservatism are often conflated with the ideals of the Republican Party. While the conservative and liberal ideas tend to overlap significantly with their respective parties, these words lack the precision necessary to describe someone’s entire ideology in depth. Furthermore, the status quo provides no incentive for uninformed voters to vote and apathetic voters to cast their ballots in favor of the party with which they are affiliated without fully understanding what their candidate stands for. Voters often lack understanding of what exactly it is that their parties represent, let alone a candidate’s set of beliefs. To truly understand a politician’s agenda, voters must educate themselves on individual candidates rather than make generalizations based on party affiliations. The current electoral college hinders this because independent voters, who are far more sparsely located throughout the country than either Democrats or Republicans counterparts, stand little chance of winning any elections—further perpetuating the idea that there is no point in voting Independent. Other independent voters regard voting as throwing away one’s vote, and thus are unlikely to vote for their preferred candidate because of this. In turn, they are also less inclined to learn about a politician’s agenda, feeding into the cycle of lack of understanding and apathy in voting. The crazy thing? Independents make up 42% of the United States population. Rather than bringing people together in both their agreements and arguments, the current political environment promotes a sense of “self” against “other.” People vote for the sake of voting for their party amid a polarized political arena. But there is something we can consider. Ranked-choice voting—also known as instant-runoff voting—is a possible election method that can reinvigorate democracy. The voting process allows voters to rank candidates in an election on their ballots. If no candidate receives a majority of first-choice votes, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated. The second choice votes are then distributed to the appropriate candidates. This process is repeated until one candidate reaches a majority. Ranked-choice voting is more democratic than the current plurality system of the electoral college where it encourages voters to vote for the candidate they dislike the least rather than for the candidate they want, which may be a marginal third-party candidate. Ranked-choice voting also requires presidential candidates to appeal to a larger part of the population and allows voters to support marginal third-party candidates without worrying that their vote won’t matter. However, I recognize that ranked-choice voting can be logistically complicated. Maine implemented the ranked-choice voting system for its Congress election, and it was put up to test when the votes had to be recounted. Nonetheless, if ranked-choice voting is used in the 2020 presidential election, it could push a moderate, centrist, broadly appealing candidate into office. I am not an expert on politics, nor do I think that ranked-choice voting is the only solution to this issue. However, I do believe that if we hope to come together as a country rather than cater to parties that do not properly represent the people, we need to find a way to address the polarization affecting our government. At Deerfield, we strive to mirror the real world in numerous ways and yet sometimes we fall into the trap of closing in our beliefs. As the upcoming election approaches, I invite the Deerfield community to consider how we talk about the candidates and see for ourselves the person behind the party they represent. As President Obama famously quipped, “There’s not a liberal America and a conservative America; there’s the United States of America.

On Nov. 15, the Deerfield music program will host a concert featuring pieces solely by female composers. The recital will begin in the Concert Hall with performances by the Deerfield Orchestra; chamber, chorus, and vocal programs; and a duet including cellist and Deerfield alumna Amy Kang ‘05. After, the concert will move to the Hess lobby where CODA will take the stage featuring a DJ dance party. The showcased music ranges from classical to jazz to modern pop and contemporary music, from Hildegard von Bingen of the eleventh century to Lizzo of the twenty-first century. Director of Chamber Music and Orchestra Thomas Bergeron hopes that such a broad range of music genres introduces student musicians to a variety of styles, while also diversifying the audience’s exposure. By exposing the students to diverse genres of music, he hopes to broaden the students’ view of music at Deerfield and break down the stigma often associated with it. “We’re trying to produce more music events on campus that are more varied in terms of how we define music,” explained Bergeron. “There’ll be something for everybody, but everyone also has the opportunity to hear something they otherwise might not have listened to.” In addition to diverse styles of music, the concert also draws specific attention to women in music. The inspiration for this concert arose when Bergeron, after hearing many conversations about the disproportionate representation of men in music, particularly in classical music, decided something should be done. Bergeron recalled how when he saw an ad for a major music publisher, Alfred Music, with a photo of the newest composers to be on the company’s roster, all the composers featured were male. This ad, along with recent discussions in the professional music world about representation, inspired Bergeron to hold the concert. “It felt like the right time to intentionally feature female artists. Historically, music institutions, including the Deerfield music program, have disproportionately represented music by men,” said Bergeron. By showcasing different genres of music across the centuries, the Women In Music concert not only brings attention to the lack of female representation historically, but also shows the progress the world has made in terms of women’s rights. In fact, music is one primary expertise in which women participation has grown immensely in the recent years. “Female musicians represent how far the profession of music has come in terms of inclusion and modernization, since music was historically a male-dominated profession but now the talents of women are being recognized as much as men,” explained Joe Wang ‘20, a violist in the Deerfield music program. Music is a universal language, and this concert’s showcasing of female composers will educate and inspire both the musicians and the audience. “I think it is immensely beneficial for the arts program to explore, recognize, and raise awareness of the diverse range of works composed by women,”said pianist Helen Feng ‘20. “This can not only broaden the horizon of student-performers, but also spread the ideas of female empowerment and embracing diversity to the wider community—messages that can hopefully inspire Deerfield students given its relevance and applicability to different areas of interest.”

The Deerfield-Choate rivalry is as old as time. The games, the spirit, and the cheers all tie together at the beginning of November to form the perfect head to head battle for which everyone’s been waiting. But what about all the other schools in our league? Deerfield has a proud history with Choate, but many schools have tried (and failed) to take its place. Just fifteen miles north of us lies the campus of Northfield Mount Hermon; similar in size, location, and student body, NMH seems to be optimal for an all-school rivalry. The only problem is that we are their rivals, but they aren’t ours. In describing an old game, the NMH website boasts, “the Mount Hermon football team was hosting arch-rival Deerfield Academy.” Since then, NMH has stopped their football program, but Deerfield field hockey, soccer, and cross country teams continue to compete against NMH. Typically, Deerfield teams have been successful in its rivalry with NMH. Boys varsity soccer is yet to play them this season, but girls varsity field hockey has already walked away with a 9-0 win. When describing her team’s history with NMH, girls cross country captain Grace Russell ‘21 said, “We beat them every time.” Athletically, the Academy stands strong against NMH, but how do we stand culturally? Of forty students asked whether they considered NMH a rival, only two said yes. Lilly Berry ‘21, when asked about this rivalry, said, “It’s clearly a one-sided relationship.” Unfortunately for the Hoggers, it looks like they won’t make the cut.This fall, nine Deerfield teams traveled to NMH, and ultimately Deerfield conquered the day with five wins, three losses, and one tie. Next up on the long, contested rivalry list are the mighty Pelicans. Our relationship with St. Paul’s started in the fall of 2017 with the birth of St. Paul’s Day. After the Pelicans left the Independent School League, St. Paul’s Athletic Director Richard Muther was on the hunt for a rival. Munther had a close relationship with Deerfield Athletic Director Mr. Robertson Howe, and thus St. Paul’s Day was born. When asked about why St. Paul’s was chosen, Mr. Howe said, “We’re very like-minded schools, similar in size. They’re very similar to Deerfield.” Many students view the Academy’s rivalry with St. Paul’s as one-sided, similar to that of NMH. Sam Bronckers ‘20 said, “We don’t really know about St. Paul’s. It’s not a thing for us.” Though St. Paul’s is generally neglected by many students, the importance of St. Paul’s Day extends beyond the rivalry. “I don’t think it will ever be as hyped up as Choate, but I do think it’s the first weekend that kicks off our fall athletically: the first real school event. It gives our newer students a little taste of a rivalry weekend,” said Mr. Howe. In addition to NMH and St. Paul’s, Deerfield holds rivalry days with a number of other schools, including Andover and Exeter, in the lead up to Choate Day. On the last weekend of October, Deerfield hosted Andover Day, despite the less than optimal rainy weather. Commenting on the Andover rivalry, girls varsity field hockey player Talbot Von Stade ‘21 said, “The rain added another element of intensity to the game and made us want to win more.” Though the weather conditions led to the cancellation of several games, eight Deerfield teams faced up against Andover. With big wins from volleyball, football, field hockey, and boys soccer, Deerfield proved that it was willing to fight for the win through any weather obstacles. A tallied six wins and two losses showed that Deerfield won the day. Although Andover and Exeter have a fierce rivalry, much like the one between Deerfield and Choate, that doesn’t reduce the significance of Andover Day. “I think our Andover rivalry will always be there,” said Mr. Howe. Yet, this year it appears the Gunga Gorillas just couldn’t fight back against the wave of green that came their way. Rivalries are a long-standing tradition and a proud part of Deerfield’s history. While rivalry days in the lead-up to Choate Day are exciting school events for the athletic teams on campus, unfortunately for the Hoggers, Pelicans, and Gungas, it looks like Deerfield remains focused on beating the Boars this fall.

An important aspect of Deerfield life is community spirit. As students, we express our spirit in many different ways, and we use the phrase “we bleed green” to express the individual ways we can celebrate. Many students want to learn new ways they can express their love for the Academy, so here are 10 ways you can “bleed green”. 1. The Friday before Choate Week grab your friends, head down to the Kravis, and paint some banners! Your work will be displayed outside of dorms, in the dining hall, and in the Koch all week. So, think of some clever ways to roast Choate or cheer on DA. 2. In the week leading up to Choate Day, there will be themed costumes for spirit days. Buy in with your outfit everyday: there’s no such thing as too much spirit. You can’t forget to wear your green and white on Friday! The complete list of Choate Week themes will come out on The Bulletin, so look out for that! 3. Bacon will be grilled outside the Hess. Pick up a tasty snack on your way to class or just stop by to watch the bacon sizzle and take in the sweet smell of cooked boar. If you have time, you can even join in on the fun, manning the grill and bringing joy to all. 4. The Dining Hall is an exciting place during Choate week. During meals, you will hear students battle crying one another. This entails one or more people yelling “Mary Blake, Mary Blake, don’t be shy, do the Deerfield battle cry!” and the ideal response would be that person standing up and yelling “V-I-C-T-O-R-Y! That’s the Deerfield Battle Cry!” The spelling can get a little confusing. Make sure you practice and don’t forget to battle cry your friends! 5. Get ready to escape your studies when the cheerleaders come for dorm runs. You get to scream at the top of your lungs with your hallmates right next to you. This will get you pumped for the upcoming days. 6. Burn everything you have that’s blue or yellow. Yes, that does include your blue jeans, sorry. The best part–you don’t even have to make your own fire because there is a bonfire at the end of the week. The Friday of Choate Week, after dinner, paint your entire body green to get ready for the pep rally and bonfire. If you aren’t that committed, there is also green and white face paint in The Hitchcock. Whatever the case may be, wear your best green and white and head to the pep rally. After that, get ready to cheer as the Choate ‘C’ gets swallowed by the massive bonfire. 7. Record yourself singing “The Fight Song” and set it as your ringtone or alarm clock. What a fantastic way to wake up. 8. Politely request less homework from your teachers so you can focus your energy on the week’s activities and supporting Deerfield teams! 9. Go to every game on Choate Day! Wake up bright and early, throw on your Choate Day attire, then head down to the fields. Bring all your spirit and hatred for Choate, and whether you will be crushing Choate on the fields or cheering on your friends from the sideline, make sure to give it your all. Get rowdy. Get so rowdy you lose your voice and can’t speak for the next week. 10. Be loud. Be proud. And most importantly, don’t forget to be worthy.

When prospective families are introduced to the “cool tunnel” connecting the library and the Koch, they learn about the connected classroom and lab, flexible science curriculum and impressive higher-level electives; but rarely mentioned is the Bio/Chem prep room. With its varied apparatus and mysterious purpose, the prep room is uncharted territory for most students. Yet, it is exactly that prep room that enables the Biology and Chemistry classes to host labs and conduct experiments efficiently within the Deerfield schedule. But the room is nothing without the efforts of Robin Lempicki, the Laboratory and Research Supervisor, who manages all of the labs for the fifteen science disciplines within Biology and Chemistry at Deerfield. For over twenty years, she has been the backbone of the lab science program, creating and testing out new labs while preparing current ones for students. As Heidi Valk, chair of the Science department, puts it, “We could not do what we do without her.” It doesn’t stop there. On top of preparing labs, Ms. Lempicki also keeps stock of all the supplies and budgets for the entire Science department. Ms. Lempicki’s work is much appreciated by Deerfield science students such as Ryan Welch ’20, who said, “I love her, and we are all so thankful for everything that she does.” It all started when Ms. Lempicki decided to tour Deerfield after fourteen years at the University of Massachusetts. Funny enough, Deerfield was the “practice” interview for her. And yet, ever since she stepped foot on campus, Ms. Lempicki said, “It just clicked, because the people made me feel very welcomed and I haven’t ever regretted it.” While one might imagine the job to be stressful, Ms. Lempicki regards it in an entirely different light. Coming from a background of stressful grant writing at the university, she says that working at Deerfield has been “fun because the job changes every day.” For Ms. Lempicki, change is a key part of why she loves science. “It’s kind of funny. It’s always changing, but not.” While there are advancements in technologies that are reflected by courses such as Experimental Neurology, taught by Dr. Teutsch, the “foundation always stays the same for me. [That’s why] I think I would go crazy if I had a desk job.” The changing nature of the sciences has also inspired Ms. Lempicki outside of the classroom. “Life goes fast!” she said. “You don’t want to regret anything.” She advises that even though it may feel like time to “pull out your hair,” it’s time to “be kids” and not to worry about “the little things.” Jokingly, she added, “It’s okay to not go to Harvard.” To the seniors, Ms. Lempicki offers a few words of advice rarely heard in competitive academic environments: “Although it’s cliché, don’t go with the norm. When you go to school, you really don’t know what you want to be. I mean, you don’t. If I were to go back, I would totally be a forensic scientist out on the field. You’re young, you don’t know what you really really want to do.” For her, work is ultimately about passion. “Like most people, you’re going to be working for a good portion of your life, why not do something you like?”

Boys’ junior B soccer is the paragon of a Deerfield sub-varsity sports team. The fourth and lowest soccer team in terms of level of competition, frequently nicknamed “Quad Squad,” brings to Deerfield Athletics a fun yet success-driven attitude like no other. The team is composed of twenty four underclassmen, most of whom returned from last fall. This group has improved over the past year, and so has its record. One of only two undefeated teams remaining this season, Quad Squad has six wins and two ties. This recent success, especially considering its .500 record last fall, points towards the program’s success in fostering its players’ basic soccer skills. The team’s success extends beyond the field: its players feel a strong sense of brotherhood and have even welcomed girls’ thirds players to join in on a co-ed game. Returning for his fifth year, Architecture Teacher David Payne is leading the team alongside first year coach Classics Teacher Geoffrey Moseley. Rather than instilling a victory-centric mindset, Mr. Payne has told his team from the beginning to have fun and be good sports above all else. The two coaches have seen their fair share of bad sportsmanship from opposing teams which have tarnished their school’s reputation. Stressing the importance of being gentlemen on the field, Mr. Payne said, “Whether we win four-nothing or lose four-nothing, we want to make sure we represent Deerfield well.” “You really get an impression of another school from the way their teams act,” Mr. Moseley said. The members of Quad Squad are proud to be a part of the team behind the label. Casey Smith ’22, a first-time player this fall, said Quad Squad is “the truest representation of what it means to ‘buy in’ as a Deerfield student… even at the lowest level, everybody’s all in.” Although a team’s genuine competitiveness is not necessarily a given at the fourth level, this team certainly possesses it. For a team where the focus is not intensively on soccer, brotherhood is crucial. “Quad Squad’s a family. We might not be a team of the highest caliber, but we are a close-knit group of guys,” returning player Hugo Nutting ’22 said. Boys have not been the only ones representing Quad Squad this season. Five members of the Girls’ Thirds team, Jazz Baker ’22, Annalisa Fang ’22, Lila Nottage ’22, Jenelvis Rodriguez ’22, and Ismay Anderson ’22, joined the boys for a game against the Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Public Charter School’s co-ed team on October 4th. While the game ended in a 0-0 tie, it was the first time in recent years that a Deerfield soccer team had played a co-ed game. Rodriguez, while reflecting on the unfamiliar but rewarding experience, said, “When you’re challenged and working outside your comfort zone, you’re forced to play better, and I did. It was really fun.” Quad Squad has made history on more than one front this season, from its almost-perfect record to its gender barrier-breaking game against PVPA. They close out their season off with a home game against Cushing Academy. Support the squad as they hope to round out a near perfect season!