Vol. LXXXVI, No. 1
JOHN REESE RESIGNS
DEERFIELD ACADEMY, DEERFIELD, MA 01342
April 27, 2011
IMAGINE DEERFIELD: Roadmap for the Future
By SARAH WOOLF Front Page Editor After 27 years, Theater Director John Reese will resign at the end of this school year. When he began teaching here, play rehearsals took place after classes and an afternoon of sports. That schedule proved too taxing for both him and his students, so Mr. Reese pushed for a co-curricular theater spot. The productions and students’ academic work improved dramatically. Mr. Reese came to the school in 1984 because former Headmaster Robert Kaufman wished to enhance Deerfield’s theater and music programs to offer a more fully rounded liberal arts education. Mr. Reese is now concerned that scheduling complications may edge out the value the school places on a liberal arts education. “It is becoming increasingly difficult for students to add performing arts to their schedules,” he said. During his first seven years, Mr. Reese taught five classes every term and directed extracurricular productions while being an associate in a dorm. He also contributed ideas towards plans for the new theater wing— the Reid Black Box. Mr. Reese hopes that, in the future, it will become easier for students to enroll in a performing arts course. “These classes give students confidence, and enhance their presentation and communication skills,” Mr. Reese said. He believes that “the arts cut across all disciplines and viscerally enrich students’ lives. They provide new ways of learning about themselves and the world in which they live.”
By SARAH WOOLF Front Page Editor
Another major initiative underway is the expansion of the faculty. “The more faculty As positive trends emerge members we have, the more time in the economy, the Imagine we can allocate for their own Deerfield strategic plan is back in learning and renewal,” said Dr. action with the recent publication Curtis, “ensuring that they remain and distribution of the first vibrant in the classroom, on the Ashley So set of implementation plans. playing field, in the studio, or in a Imagine Deerfield began dorm throughout their careers.” There are also tentative with the appointment of Head For a brief moment in time, the sun graces us with its presence. of School Margarita Curtis. plans to build another dorm “It was a good moment to and to expand global faculty take stock and get organized,” intiatives by sending members to said history teacher Thomas overseas enrichment programs. Some, however, feel that a Heise, co-chair of the Strategic Planning Committee. In 2009, strategic plan brings the school forever staining the Clinton when the board of trustees read too close to the corporate By JOSH MARX administration. Mr. Obama’s over the finalized plans, they world that is so different Contributing Writer critics suggest that fear of a were unanimously approved. from the world of education. “People view systematic “It’s an attempt to sustain What began as a peaceful similar humanitarian tragedy protest against a dictator, one of led America into the air strike. excellence, whether in the planning and focus on outcomes many recently in the Middle East, The president stated that he classroom getting a liberal arts as corporate,” responded Dr. evolved into a multi-national will take “all necessary measures education, at a sit-down meal Curtis, “but I don’t see the military conflict when United to protect the Libyan people.” building character, or partaking dichotomy. You can be a warm The Republican Party opposed in the DAPP program and nurturing community while States armed forces fired 120 Tomahawk missiles at Libyan the conflict in Libya, arguing that developing an ethic of service,” ensuring the delivery of a topground forces on March 19. its growing cost is unsustainable said Dr. Curtis. “We are quality experience.” In fact, In late February, President for the U.S. in light of the recent examining the core traditions of according to Mr. Heise, Deerfield Barack Obama abandoned his budget disputes. Many of the Deerfield, affirming the best of is one of the last of the major prep impartial stance on the conflict same politicians who resist our past, while preparing for the schools to implement such a plan. “A way to think of it is to in Libya and moved to freeze the American intervention in the exigencies of the new century.” “The world is changing rapidly, compare it to a classroom,” Dr. country’s assets in U.S. banks, conflict remain loyal supporters seizing over $33 billion. As world of the Iraq war, which has cost and in order to remain true to our Curtis continued. “The teacher leaders convened to discuss U.S. taxpayers over $900 billion mission, we must consider the creates a syllabus and course further action, Colonel Muammar dollars since September 11, 2001. definition of citizenship in the structure. Goals are defined The president met challenges 21st century. We want to ensure and students are expected to Qadaffi, dictator of Libya, announced that he would have in defending the Libyan that our graduates are morally achieve them. The teacher globally literate, puts into place a sequence “no mercy” on his own people. intervention. Each Tomahawk grounded, adept, and of activities and assignments Unable to risk waiting any missile fired costs an estimated technologically responsible,” that will get them there.” longer, Mr. Obama ordered $1.41 million, setting the total environmentally “In running a school, as in Curtis continued. an attack on Libya in order cost of the barrage on March 19 Dr. A major advancement running a classroom, we have put to establish a “no-fly zone.” at $169 million taxpayer dollars. Obama has yet to already in effect is a boost in forth a roadmap for our future in Seventeen years ago, America was blamed for allowing the publicize plans for the end financial aid. In the fiscal year order to achieve our goals,” she mass murder of 800,000 civilians of the conflict, while Qadaffi 2012, $300,000 was added said. “And because it’s a school, it’s in the Rwandan genocide, continues to cling to power. to the financial aid budget. ultimately all about the students.”
NEWS UPDATE: LIBYA
Balancing Gender on Student Council By CHARLES JONES Staff Writer The newly-minted Culture Club wrote and submitted three proposals that tackle the problem of genderimbalanced representation on Student Council. These plans range from establishing dual gender co-presidents with the elimination of the Chair position to a more moderate gender equality mandate that would maintain the current president/ chair system while requiring that each class’ representatives be gender balanced. Science teacher and Culture Club founder Brian Fry lauded the club’s stance. “I believe gender issues on campus are
Results from the April 18 Gender Proposal Survey
manifested in leadership roles,” he said. “Statistics show over the last ten years the breakdown has been roughly 70% male, and we’ve only had one female president in that time,” Mr. Fry continued. At a Culture Club meeting earlier this month, club advisor and health teacher Kristin Loftus commented, “Student Council is a representative body; perhaps its membership should more accurately reflect the equal gender breakdown of the student body.” Currently, the fifteen-member council is composed of ten boys and five girls. That imbalance
does not stretch into the highest level of leadership, however. “The President and Chair are on an equal plane, and are often gender balanced,” said Student Council Chair Ellie Parker ’11. “The two positions are differentiated by delegation of duties and not by prestige.” Parker continued, “I support the trickleup proposal, in which all classes elect both a girl and boy rep, while ensuring the presidential and chair elections remain organic.” Another, more restrained counterproposal came in light of the discovery that female students
are indeed elected despite representing only a small fraction of the candidate pool on election day. Council representatives are now working to encourage untapped yet qualified girls to consider running for election. “I would be really impressed if Council, leaders in the community, and adults could sustain an effort to encourage girls to run… but I realize it might be more effective to model a balanced council first,” said Parker. Some members of Culture Club and Student Council argued that socially engineering
student government removes the democratic element, and thus reduces its symbolic weight. At the Culture Club meeting, various versions of the claim “we want the best council possible, regardless of gender breakdown,” were heard early and often. This cry for meritocracy will need to be weighed against the nearly unanimous agreement of the Student Council with student body President Charles Giannini ’11, who said, “Gender equality must be a top priority in leadership positions. The question that remains is how best to achieve it.”
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Ties: Taste or Torture?
whomp whomp whomp
Tossin’ Some Disc