By: Cassidy Russell ’25

This photo was taken in the fall, for my photography class. At the time, we were working on composition and learning how to operate our cameras. This was one of my early pictures, and it displays “fill the frame”. Filling the frame is achieved by composing an image with its subject taking up most of the space on the photo.

By: Cotton Strong ’23

During the last two weeks of September, five Hebron students, accompanied by Mrs. Bonis and Mrs. Gaug, traveled to the United Kingdom to attend the round Square international conference. Round Square is a group of almost two hundred and fifty schools that meet annually to discuss and work for their six “ideals”: internationalism, democracy, environmentalism, adventure, leadership, and service. 

The Hebron Academy student delegation participated in a variety of activities throughout the trip. But arguably the most important part of Round Square goes beyond just the designated activities. Besides just working to understand the ideals of the conference, the point of round square is to have students from all over the world meet each other. The Hebron students met many people of many different backgrounds and cultures.  First and foremost, there were a lot of British people in the United Kingdom. We quickly learned that they think our accents are as dumb as we think theirs are. The other English speakers like Australians also had things to say about the way we talk. Everyone was surprised that we don’t call McDonald’s “Mackies” or “Mackers” or sunglasses “sunnies”. Non- Native English speakers like students from Peru and South Africa were shocked to learn that most of the American students only spoke one language since they were all at least bilingual. Students from Peru also brought some food to share, including a caramel-milk thing I can’t remember the name of, but it was very good, I promise. At the end of the day, even though Round Square is about learning to work for a better world, the stuff that takes away is the experience of meeting new people from so many unique cultures, and making new friends, even if you might never see them again. In summary, the real international student conference is the friends we made along the way.

By: Hannah Sullivan ‘24

On August 20th, Erin Keville and I conducted a survey that went out to forty people. The basis of the survey was to scale students’ progress on the summer reading assignments, with only two weeks to go before the start of classes. The survey was as follows: 

Have you a) finished your summer reading (including the work that goes along with it, b) started the readings but not yet finished them yet, or c) not started the reading(s) or the work yet? 

Out of 40 responses, 8 students answered a, 26 answered b, and 6 answered c. 

Fifteen percent of students had not started the summer reading by August twentieth, Sixty-five percent of students had only started by then and not yet finished, while twenty percent had completed it all. 

Dr. Oakes, the chair of the English department, gave her thoughts on these results:

“Based on what I see in my classroom each fall, I’m not surprised to learn that more than half of the students surveyed hadn’t finished their summer reading so close to the start of the school year. As a parent of students and as a person who cherishes downtime myself, I realize that summers can be full of family obligations, summer jobs, and travel. And I know that not everyone’s ideal summer day is like mine, sitting as close to the ocean as possible and reading from dawn to dusk!

I do find it concerning, though, that so many students wait so long to turn to their summer reading. In part, this is because one of the reasons Hebron teachers assign this work for the summer is to encourage students to see reading as a habit that happens all year long. We hope that students can make time to read in a favorite place and at a pace that works for them and, in doing so, realize that a little reading can make for a nice meditative or relaxing moment. I’d like to feel that we are helping students cultivate a stronger appreciation for reading. Another reason I assign summer work is because my students are usually in my Honors or AP classes. These classes are designed to move at a speed and at a difficulty level similar to a college course; thus, the day classes begin in the fall I want to start setting expectations for intellectual discussion and jump right into a conversation about the (what I consider!) intriguing texts from summer reading. We don’t have time in these classes to read a few chapters at a time and gradually gather enough context and content to discuss. So if students haven’t done the summer work for my class, they can be at a disadvantage right from the start. This goes for students in other teachers’ courses, too: Waiting too long to do the reading—or not doing it at all—makes it harder for a student to connect to the class material from Day One.”

Whether Dr. Oakes’ stong suggestion to keep up with your summer work-for your own benefit- influences you to change your mind about reading on vacation or not, I think many students can agree with us on the fact that while we may say now that we’ll be more productive this summer, in reality, it will still probably get left to the last minute.

By Calvin Grover ’22

I am very proud of the fact that I am a nerd. I also love to take road trips. So when one of my favorite faculty members, Dr. Swenton, offered a science nerd road trip, I was immediately interested. This road trip was a part of a new tradition at Hebron Academy, known as Winterlude. Winterlude consists of three days of experiential learning outside of the classroom, taking place in January, several weeks after students return from winter break. Though the history of Winterlude only spans two years, it has included fantastic activities such as ice climbing in Grafton Notch, watching musicals on Broadway, backcountry skiing in the foothills of Western Maine, and of course, a science nerds road trip to northern Vermont. 

Winterlude provides an excellent opportunity for students to try something completely new with their friends, removed from the stresses of the classroom. In January of 2021, the first ever Winterlude celebrated the ending of an extended period of online classes, letting friends reunite in person for the first time since the fall term. During this time I had the opportunity to pursue ice climbing, trying a new sport and pushing myself outside my comfort zone, all while documenting the adventure in a short video.

When Winterlude returned in 2022, I chose the road trip to Vermont, hoping to see a different part of New England with my friends. Again, I brought my camera along, but this time I primarily focused on photography. Visiting the Living Shores Aquarium in North Conway, New Hampshire, our group interacted with various aquatic and avian creatures, such as stingrays and lorikeets. Further north, our party visited the ECHO Leahy Center for Lake Champlain in Burlington, Vermont, where we learned about the ecological history of the region, through fossil displays, interactive exhibits and a documentary film. 

For me, this trip was a much needed break from the constant pressure of classes and college applications, and still managed to be educational. Winterlude affords students the opportunity to try out new things, visit new places, and learn without expectations or stress. This may be my final year at Hebron, but I have no doubt that Winterlude will continue to enrich student’s experiences for years to come.