Relentless and vibrant spirit defines Deerfield Academy, despite the many traditions sacrificed this year for safety and well-being. Still, the school’s spirit proved to be stronger than ever when the community reached above and beyond to find new ways to connect.
This winter, Deerfield Academy’s extended winter break, which started Nov. 21, will last just past the second week of January. To make up for the usual two weeks of academic instruction time in mid-December, the administration initiated D-Term with grade-specific scheduling. Alongside assigned work, the school arranged virtual activities and events to keep the community engaged.
“Our intention was to make D-Term very flexible and let students guide their own journey,” noted Heather Brown, associate director of the school’s Center for Service and Global Citizenship. “We created many asynchronous offerings to balance with students’ academic schedules, college prep and assignments, and let them take ownership over their learning and things they are passionate about.”
On Deerfield Academy’s website, a Virtual Campus now includes a D-Term category showing clickable icons in each building with embedded links corresponding to events. For example, the Hess Center for the Arts has an icon redirecting viewers from a link to the Fall Arts Extravaganza featuring student artwork and performance recordings from the orchestra or Fall Nutcracker. Similar to the Hess, a plethora of offerings are available in the Athletic Center and many academic buildings linking a range of activities, including a new film series from the Eco-Reps, global book lists, standardized test-prep resources, TED Talks and more.
In regards to student life, the D.S. Chen Health Center recommends several resources for mental and physical wellness. Even the Greer Store — a popular café and hangout area for the student body — links Jackbox games, trivia and other contests. Student Alliances also frequently host meetings with interactive and informative plans to boost student morale.
“As an international student, I’ve been remote for a very long time, and it has definitely been hard,” said sophomore Mandy Xiang. “But in winter D-Term, with everyone remote, I feel grateful for the even closer connection, especially with the Virtual Campus. It is an amazing way to feel as though we were still at our Deerfield home.”
Deerfield Academy is also upholding the Wednesday school meeting tradition with a Vimeo recording of announcements and virtual performance recaps. Most juniors also had the opportunity to re-immerse themselves with the profound tradition — somewhat reimagined — of virtual sit-down meals and meet with an alum to discuss their pathways beyond the academy.
Reflecting on the alumni sit-downs, junior Tony He said, “I found this especially useful in helping me envision what my future could look like, by hearing alums’ stories on how they utilized their Deerfield experiences to make decisions in their college and work lives. However, the central focus wasn’t getting a career talk; rather, it facilitated us on how we could think about maneuvering post high school. … It was almost like getting insight into what our five-year or 10-year plan could be after graduating from Deerfield.”
Keeping with Deerfield Academy’s 2020 to 2021 theme of “Engaged Citizenship,” the school proposed an oral history and ephemera project to preserve the experience of students, employees and the community during the pandemic. The Center for Service and Global Citizenship will also award micro-grants of up to $150 to fund student-built community projects.
“With the virtual campus, we wanted to encourage students’ participation in being engaged citizens in their family life, local community and Deerfield community by taking advantage of the variety of opportunities that may cater to different interests,” Brown explained.
Although many students miss the Pioneer Valley, Deerfield Academy has aimed to fill the void of not being on campus during the holiday season through the numerous offerings and events planned for D-Term, keeping spirit alive.
Neha B. Jampala is a sophomore at Deerfield Academy. She writes for the school newspaper, The Scroll; is the head writer for Company Roots, an online entrepreneurial blog; and also explored publishing a novel outside of school. As an intern for the Greenfield Recorder, she hopes to grow her skills in journalism and delve deeper into her passion for writing by sharing stories while also contributing to the community.