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Welcome to the 2011-2012 School Year
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Head Lines offers Dr. Michael E. Cooper's perspective on topics relevant to education and the Brewster community.
August 2011 -- It’s time again to celebrate the opening of another school year. Soon our seniors and postgraduates will walk onto campus focused on their own great expectations for their final year of high school that will culminate in their graduation and the excitement of beginning the next phase of their educational journey. Our juniors will arrive knowing they have a busy year ahead as they begin navigating the early stages of the college search. Sophomores will be confident and encouraged to begin their year strong, with some no longer as the newest members of the school community. And it’s always a delight to welcome the young freshman class, knowing of all the new opportunities and growth that await them. It’s always gratifying at the end of a school year when I recollect my first encounter with a certain student and see the personal growth that he or she has realized over the year or years at Brewster.
The 2011-2012 year is special in that we begin the celebration of 125 years since the founding of Brewster Academy. The “Academy” dates back to 1820 when it was founded as Wolfeborough and Tuftonborough Academy; however, it was in February 1887 that John Brewster endowed the school that would eventually become known as Brewster Academy. Born in Wolfeboro, John had attended Wolfeborough and Tuftonborough Academy before enjoying a successful career as a Boston businessman. John never forgot his roots and understood the value of an education and how important it was for young people to have the prospect of attending school to gain the skills and knowledge to pursue a career. It was John’s determination to make a difference in the lives of young people that led him to make a remarkable contribution to the field of education through his lasting endowment to the Academy.
Throughout this year special note will be made of these remarkable 125 years of teaching and learning at Brewster Academy.
Another Strong Enrollment Year
Revisit Days hosted in the spring were our most successful yet with a yield of more than 73 percent of those visiting families choosing Brewster over many options. In just two weeks we will welcome 144 new students to campus. This year’s overall student body represents 15 countries and 29 states. It is clear from the feedback we receive from parents that our commitment to educating the whole child through an intentional, proven, and personalized experience sets us apart from other schools.
In the Classroom
Our academic program continues to evolve so that we ensure that we are instilling in our students the skills needed to meet the challenges they will face as college students and professionals in a rapidly changing world.
Work completed on the curriculum this summer will allow us to expand the two-week project-based learning period that all sophomores and juniors took part in last year to include freshmen. For seniors, the project-based learning experience will take on an even more significant role. Seniors will have the opportunity to work all year on a capstone project that will be an engaging and stimulating way for students to integrate and express the range of skills that they have developed over their time at Brewster. This will be a constructive and authentic way for seniors to demonstrate their preparedness for graduation.
Additionally, we will pilot two significant enhancements to our use of technology as we continue to take advantage of new resources that can help us deliver our program. We will introduce Rosetta Stone into some of our foreign language classes as a way to bring more personalization to that learning experience. We also will pilot the use of the course management system Moodle in some selected courses as a way to support us in delivering our curriculum to students in a robust, uniform online environment. We are excited about the opportunities that these two tools will provide for making the classroom experience even richer for our students.
Emotional Literacy Curriculum
After a year of intensive training with faculty and administrators, this fall marks the beginning of the implementation of the RULER Approach within the Brewster program. Students will be developing their emotional literacy skills by practicing the four anchors of the RULER Approach – the Charter, the Mood Meter, the Meta Moment, and the Blue Print. On the athletic fields, in the dormitories, and in classrooms students will be engaged in strategies that assist them in Recognizing, Understanding, Labeling, Expressing, and Regulating their emotions. These emotional skills are essential and integral to learning, making sound judgments, and achieving success in school and beyond. Evaluation and monitoring of our progress also is a priority for the year ahead. We are confident that our commitment to emotional literacy will enhance our students’ experience and positive development in all they choose to do.
Learn more about our emotional literacy curriculum.
The Face of Campus
As I write this, work has been completed on four of the six residence halls scheduled for extensive renovations this summer. The last two will be completed the first week in September. Renovations include new roofs and windows; insulation upgrades; the installation of individual room heating controls, which will help tighten the buildings and increase their energy efficiency as well as the comfort of our students; and new carpets, furniture, fixtures, and painting throughout the dorms.
A section of the lower level of Hughes House was converted into a “quad” (a popular space) for four lucky boys assigned to this dorm.
The tuned track in the Smith Center was replaced with a more solid decking and a new generation of track surface material. This track surface is in use in several schools and colleges in the Northeast and will be the track material used in the 2012 London Olympics. Additionally, the lanes alternately incorporate Brewster colors adding to the Bobcat spirit of this showcase facility.
Welcome
At the end of the school year, we welcomed Kristy Kerin to our administrative team. Kristy is the director of advancement and brings to Brewster much experience in her work in development and college advancement at Middlebury College. She will be working with the alumni and development team initiating annual and capital giving opportunities to support the growth and enhancement of the Academy. I hope you have an opportunity to meet Kristy while on campus.
As always, Andrea and I look forward to greeting students and parents upon arrival at the new family BBQ and the Smith Center. Until then, enjoy the warm days of summer, and we will see you soon.
Best regards, Mike Cooper
Head of School
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