All School FACULTY AND CURRICULUM REVIEW IN PROCESS

Afirst-of-its-kind collaboration between RAND education researchers and Andover faculty has resulted in a comprehensive report aimed at strengthening teaching across the curriculum and providing a thorough review of academic departments. “Andover’s Teaching and Departmental Reviews: Findings and Recommendations” was completed this winter and is publicly available at www.rand.org.

The report addresses the question “How can Phillips Academy update its processes for departmental and teacher reviews to develop a more coherent instructional system?” and was based on findings from a recent New England Association of Schools and Colleges self-study in preparation for reaccreditation as well as initial findings from the Andover Anti-Racism Task Force. Both noted a need for a more explicit and coherent curriculum plan.

A faculty task force has been meeting this year to discuss recommendations on how to improve the teacher review process starting in the 2023–2024 school year. As a framework, they are using the 10 guiding principles adopted in 2017 for Andover’s teaching evaluation system. In particular, the task force has focused on providing opportunities for

the BUZZ

A breathable antipollution mask developed by Richard Gordon ’74 and his wife, Min Xiao ’88, has won several awards, including an innovation honor from Johnson & Johnson and the U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority. The Airgami® mask was developed by Gordon and Xiao after they lived in Suzhou, China, and had to deal with high levels of air pollution for three years.

faculty professional growth and development and clarifying faculty job expectations annually in writing. Academic departments are also working with Nicole Furlonge, professor and director of the Klingenstein Center at Columbia University’s Teachers College to draft student competencies that are observable, measurable, and transferable across the curriculum.

This spring, the departments of English and mathematics, statistics, and computer science have started a new review process designed to identify strengths and areas of growth, gauge alignment with institutional priorities, determine opportunities to build on the competency work, and identify department-specific professional development. This process will incorporate suggestions from the RAND report and include consultation with the dean of studies, interim deputy head of school, department chairs, and Academic Council.

In the exhibition Los Hilos de Mi Manta visiting artist McLaughlin displayed her mixed-media sculptural installations, which combine ceramics with fiber, embroidery, and weaving. McLaughlin draws on her Mexican American heritage to create her pieces, many of which have been exhibited nationally and internationally. She also has works in several private collections.

“RAND’s extensive research resulted in meaningful recommendations about the ways in which our community can gather data and simplify processes,” says Raj Mundra P’18, ’20, interim deputy head of school. “Unlike public schools, independent schools have minimal relevant research to inform their design of teaching and departmental reviews. By making the RAND report publicly available, we hope that it will serve as a resource for other independent schools facing similar challenges.”

This work has required collaboration from numerous faculty, staff, and external partners. Heather Schwartz ’94, director of Pre-K to 12 education systems at RAND, has provided thoughtful guidance and support along with her colleague, policy researcher Elizabeth Steiner. At Andover, Mundra, Jeff Domina, dean of faculty, and Dianne Domenech-Burgos, chief of staff and assistant head of school for strategic planning, have helped coordinate and organize this process.

Next steps include reviewing competencies from across the entire curriculum, identifying broader themes, and engaging in discussions about feedback, assessment, and grading.

Dolgon presented on the history of service learning and social movements in America and how to effect meaningful change. A former president of the Society for the Study of Social Problems and the Association for Humanist Sociology, he has won awards for his writing and social justice activism. Dolgon is the author of five books, including Kill It to Save It: An Autopsy of Capitalism’s Triumph Over Democracy

A Mexican American writer and professor at Middlebury College, González tells stories about race, class, gender, and environmental justice. Her debut novel, Arribada (Cynren Press, 2022), features a Juilliard-trained pianist who must return to her hometown in Mexico, where she faces a family mystery and discovers that over development has led to a demise of beaches and sea turtle colonies.

Bennett is best known for her New York Times best-selling book The Vanishing Half, which explores the complex identity issues of a pair of twins—one who passed as white and one who didn’t. Bennett will be the executive producer for an upcoming HBO series based on the book. After her first novel, The Mothers, became an NYT best-seller, she wrote a screenplay that Warner Bros. plans to develop into a feature film.

Fresh off a 24-hour shift at Massachusetts General Hospital, Rolle spoke to students at All-School Meeting, explaining how his philosophy of making small improvements helped open the doors to Oxford, the NFL, and, eventually, a career as a neurosurgeon. His new book, The 2% Way, discusses the importance of focusing on education, service, support, and spirit.

Producer, Director Hidden Letters is an award-winning and Oscar short-listed documentary that follows two millennial Chinese women who are connected by their fascination with a secret language of sisterhood called Nushu (ancient script) that bonded generations of Chinese women. Born in Shanghai, Feng, who earned an MA in journalism at University of California, Berkeley, directed Hidden Letters and has produced films on topics ranging from a secret Christian choir in China to the illicit jaguar trade.