Dear Reader,

Graduation is nearly upon us. The tents are coming up, the grass below them browning with melancholy. Soon, we will bid farewell to one Head of School, 15 faculty members, eight staff members, and the entirety of the Senior class. We mourn these departures. But we also know, come fall, we will return to greener grass. These people have left their mark on Deerfield — and we are all the better for it.

In this way, our May issue is about celebration. It includes features on departing faculty, news about gender inclusivity, a 90-second interview of Dylan Skov and Matt Shea…  We look back upon this year, commemorate the initiatives and relationships we have formed.

Simultaneously, we recognize this time as one of change. We leave you with editorials on the STEM curriculum, student pressure, and AP courses, all of which emphasize Deerfield’s imperfection. We need change. We crave change. There is beauty in that; a healthy community is one that continuously strives for improvement.

We included our “Matriculation/Future plans” spread with the same intention. On pages eight to nine of the Scroll, you’ll find the self-reported future plans of nearly eighty percent of the Senior class. I acknowledge the concerns, as articulated in our Board editorial, about publishing this spread. My intention is not to dilute a student’s experience to the name of their college. Instead, I see it as a way to celebrate the work of our seniors and the futures they’ve forged. I hope that the continued awareness about the potential sensitivity of this page, as well as the optional nature of these submissions, will convince you further of our goal. I also urge you, as part of a community, to improve upon your reaction to this information. The seniors who are included chose to share a deeply personal decision; respect their openness. Do not use it as means for judgment or gossip.

Moving forward into this next year, I am excited to announce a new section, in conjunction with the Op-Ed page: a “Letter to the Editor.”

In this, I invite all members of the community–staff, faculty, and students alike – to write in reaction to any article in the previous issue. Our peer publications, including Phillip Andover’s The Phillipian and Phillip Exeter’s The Exonian, have implemented this initiative to great success. My objective with the “Letter to the Editor” is to prompt greater interaction between the Scroll and its readers. You can use this space to express support, discomfort, or dissent. Mr. Ferrer’s “In Defense of Deerfield Asian Cuisine” is a great example of this (find the article in the 2018 May issue of the Scroll).

That being said, I welcome disagreement and controversy — as long as they are rooted in a genuine desire to understand. I urge you: keep reading, keep talking. Do the crossword. Write a letter. It is only because of your involvement that the Scroll holds meaning.

Lastly, and most importantly, I’d like to thank Josh Fang and Orlee Marini-Rapoport for their leadership of the Scroll. Throughout this past year, they’ve demonstrated an unparalleled drive for truth. They’ve sought to publish diverse, relevant, and credible information. They’ve pushed the Deerfield community to think deeper and engage in meaningful discussions.

From Josh’s reporting on the O’Donnell case to Orlee’s letter in the Boston Globe, both have proven that journalism can have a far-reaching and important impact. I thank them endlessly for leading by example and for entrusting me with this publication.

With Jae Won Moon and Maggie Tydings as Managing Editors, with Ms. Schloat and Ms. Cornelius as advisors, I hope that the Scroll Vol. XCIV can uphold and further their legacy.

Cheers,

Claire