Observations:
Faculty children at Deerfield hop—a lot. The slate walkways, brick paths, and two-tone parquet floors invite hopscotch and any number of games that require catlike agility. Years of avoiding cracks and navigating only the green tiles in the Dining Hall make Deerfield “fac brats” more dexterous than others their age. We have yet to see what effect the new Dining Hall floor will have on dexterity . . . but up until this point, testing found that Deerfield faculty children have seven percent more fast-twitch muscle than their non-fac brat counterparts. Research also shows that fac brats are quicker and more nimble, no doubt due to the proximity of pole vault and long jump mats. I spent countless hours flipping, somersaulting, and scissor-kicking while my parents ran around in circles on the big, blue track at Andover. That time was well spent: in the final race of my eighth grade track season, I was able to clear four of the six hurdles! Fac brat coordination and agility are coupled with Kenyanlike endurance. Capture the Flag on the Lower Level spans acres and sometimes days. At the bus stop in front of the Main School Building, Deerfield children begin and end their elementary school days with competitive base tag where “puppy guarding” is strictly prohibited. To wit, eight-yearold Declan Cullinane, son of science teacher and track coach Dennis Cullinane, recently set an age group record in the heptathlon, his second in as many years.
56 47
Deerfield faculty have children under the age of 18
are under 12
11 *
average age
*bona fide statistics courtesy of the Deerfield Academy Human Resources Office
deerfield.edu
33