Congratulations to (from left) Jack O’Brien ’22, Alex Tobias ’22 and Adam Jac ’22 who each earned National Merit Scholarship Program commendation for outstanding performance on the PSAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test in 2020! |
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Schedule Alert
On Saturday, Oct. 2 there will be no classes. The SATs will be administered on campus but we will have afternoon athletic competitions.
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Safety Reminder!
Pedestrians and cars share the roads at Brooks, so please be aware of your speed, especially along Chapel Road (the lane between the tennis courts and the Center for the Arts and the Chapel). Driving to and from campus, we also advise you to use our new Main Entrance: It is labeled on our updated campus map. Thank you!
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New REACH Permission/Sign-Out System
As Associate Head for Student Affairs Andrea Heinze recently emailed, we are excited to roll out our new student life management system, REACH. This system will begin to replace our paper weekend permissions and e-sign out system. We are going to start slowly and will only be using REACH for weekends to start. Eventually, we will increase its use to other day leave requests. Please click for details about utilizing REACH and access their customer support.
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Parent/Guardian OnBrooks Sign-In Requirements Update
Parent/guardian sign-in requirements for our community information system, OnBrooks, have been updated with new password requirements to increase security. All parent/guardian account passwords must meet the following minimum standard of 12 characters, one special character, one upper case character and one lower case character. This security enhancement will be in effect for all accounts on Oct. 12. Any parent/guardian account that does not meet these minimum requirements when they sign in on or after October 12 will be prompted to reset their password.
To change a parent/guardian OnBrooks password in advance of October 12: At the OnBrooks sign-in screen, click the "Need Help" button, enter the associated email address for the account, select the password box, and click "Send." Retrieve a password-change link from the associated email account and follow the link to update the password. For questions or additional assistance, please contact Registrar Lisa Saunders.
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Student Flu Vaccines Coming Soon!
We expect our shipment of flu vaccines later this week. Although the flu vaccine is not required this year, it is strongly encouraged to keep our campus healthy this winter. Once our shipment arrives, we will send out details about walk-in flu clinics for students. These vaccines are free of cost and any student who has their Flu Consent signed in Magnus is eligible for a vaccine. If you have questions, concerns or want to make sure you completed the appropriate consent forms for your child please reach out to the Health & Wellness Center.
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Activities on Campus This Weekend
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Sixth-Form Parents Reminder
On Oct. 1, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) will be available to send to colleges. If you haven’t already, we encourage you to start this process as soon as possible. To begin registration, visit fafsa.ed.gov. If you have any questions, please be in touch with members of Brooks’ college counseling office: Dean of College Counseling Andy Campbell, Associate Director of College Counseling Wendy Brennan, Associate Director of College Counseling Brenna Kelly and Assistant College Counselor Christine Jackson.
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New Deans' Den Blog
This week for her Deans' Den Blog, Associate Head of School for Academic Affairs Susanna Waters visits English III, where students are learning to contextualize work from the Romantic and Transcendentalist periods using an online tool that enables participants to "engage in social annotation," she writes. Learn more in her blog!
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Spectator Protocols for Other Schools
As the sports season is now in full swing (see the athletics schedule), we anticipate more families attending school athletic events both here and away. If you are planning to attend any away competitions, we strongly encourage you to visit the website of the school where your student will be competing. Every school has crafted its own spectator protocols, so prior to your visit to another school please review their guidelines so you can prepare what to bring and so you can be informed.
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Save the Date: Family Weekend is Oct. 22-23!
We are thrilled to be hosting an in-person Family Weekend in October. Our goal for this event is to balance the safety of our community with a chance for our students, families and faculty to come together and learn more about Brooks and your student's experience. Please contact Director of Advancement Gage Dobbins or Director of the Brooks Fund and Family Engagement Mary Merrill with any questions. (Opportunities to meet with your child's advisor will be scheduled directly with that advisor). A more detailed schedule and registration details will be shared in early October, but areas of note include:
Friday, October 22
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College Counseling event: Demystifying the College Search and Application Experience. Andrew N. Carter, Interim Deputy Director of Admission at College of the Holy Cross, will share his insights about the college search process, including current trends in admissions, and will offer advice about how to make the experience a positive one. This session is particularly relevant for families of fifth-form students.
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Games: Afternoon and evening athletic events
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A gathering: We'll host an evening, all-family reception and a "Center for the Arts Works in Progress" showing!
Saturday, October 23
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Academic Open House and school presentations
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State of the School from Head of School John Packard
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Afternoon athletic events and hospitality tents
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Collaborative Art Installation
Brooks' 3D design class is working with the Ipswich, Mass., “Illumination” art installation project — a public celebration of light, live music, food and participatory activities supported by the ReCreation Department of Ipswich — on Oct. 16 and Oct. 30 from 6:30 to 10 p.m.
This site-specific install has an underwater theme and is located on the River Walk (shown below), a public space featuring the Ipswich River. The students were introduced to the site with photos of the space and plans of the components to the install, then asked to create giant fish modeled from chicken wire and covered in translucent fabrics. They had artistic license to create a new species and were encouraged to play with color, texture and shape. They chose the idea of the fish as a metaphor for community (a school of fish) and because the location is specific to fish counting, an activity in which the community members participate regularly.
Their fish will be hung in the main open space of the River Walk on lighting that zig-zags across in a line of movement toward the river — appearing almost floating. The fish will have lighting inside the bodies to illuminate them. Other features of the installation are lighted water effects using fabrics on the fencing surrounding the space, a mermaid that flanks the corner and two architectural bays with hanging “jellyfish” sculptures made from umbrellas and fiber optic lights. We will share more images from the project as it progresses on brooksschoolphotos.com.
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Stay in touch: Follow Brooks on social media for news, photos and more!
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