Shaping up to be Famous: Ceramics Students’ Work could be Published in Action Research

Articles, Community, Education
December 6, 2023
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By Minati Thota
STAFF WRITER

“I feel like even if you aren’t an art person, Ceramics class could be a really fun part of [your day],” claimed Emily Ross, the instructor of the class in question. She believes that students could unexpectedly enjoy ceramics just as she did as a teenager.

Ross began her journey with ceramics in a high school class, but couldn’t incorporate her passion for ceramics into a career as smoothly as she could fix a crack in clay. She was met with many roadblocks. Being accepted into a top ceramics school did not prove as magical as she thought. She describes the city as one having “more cows than people,” which left her searching for a new school and a creative avenue that fit her best.

When she finally found her love for teaching ceramics and finished her undergraduate degree, she was ready to move into the workforce. Getting back into teaching ceramics led her to pursue a master’s degree in Art Education.

An exciting path for art students and curious learners in general, Ceramics and 3D design has become a popular course at AHS. Students get to work with clay and create functional, artistic designs as they learn essential skills of construction, carving, smoothing, and more along the way. Taught by a student herself, this class is made authentic by the shared perspective Ross offers to her students. Student and teacher, to her, are “two sides of the same coin.” Her experience in a studio as a student helps create the perfect environment for her own students at work. She has now incorporated the work of her two worlds into a project many students are curious about.

Ross is pursuing her master’s degree at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth, and her coursework involves reflective practices around her teaching work at AHS. “The course I’m taking is called Action Research,” says Ross, “and the class is really an extension of everything that we do as effective educators.” Collecting and recording her students’ diverse ideas, creative processes, and studio work isn’t a new process, but this time Ross plans to showcase this work and data in her class of art educators at UMass. Everything from the first idea to drafts to impulsive changes in plans is documented. “[It is] a great way to study the effectiveness of my teaching on our students because it leaves so much room for interpretation and exploration,” Ross said.

This project, of course, required consent from both students and families, which led to some “very official-looking” contracts being sent home to parents and guardians. “Because I’m doing it [for] an outside source… they need to have that official process,” said Ross, smiling about the students struggling with the contract’s heavy language.

Ross says she didn’t want anyone to worry or feel pressured by it, but student response has been quite positive. People have chosen to offer their work as a part of the research, where their names will be held confidential. Some have also consented to allow photographs of their work to be included, which Ross truly appreciates. Her data includes statements from the students and in-progress reflections, which are interesting reads even for other students. Ross loves the way students take creative risks and incorporate their various other interests into their work; biology, activism, music, pets, and all kinds of ideas have been crafted in clay in her studio.

The student’s work will be unaffected by the research. So students with and without their work being showcased have been working on their clay as usual. It doesn’t change much in the Ceramics studio: only a few moments when the instructor is quietly walking around trying to capture hands working on shaping and sculpting clay. Sparking conversations about identity-driven stories, Ross loves hearing about the students’ varied academic and creative passions coming together in their sculptures.

Ross encourages students to engage with the arts. “We can be so focused on honing in for, like, a career path these days.” Even for students who aren’t ‘art kids’, or think they aren’t like Ross did, “It feels like a place of rest. And also of self-discovery, and comfort.”

Andoverview

AHS Class of 2026 Graduation: A Sentiment of Gratitude

June 11, 2026

Abby Chachus & Kendall Murphy || STAFF WRITERS

A hush falls as a sea of navy gowns, a rising tide of Andover High School graduates enters the Tsongas Center just before 5 o’clock on June 1, 2026. There is something distinct about moments like these. A goodbye that is bittersweet among both the audience and the seniors.

According to Graduation Committee member Ella Murphy, it is a goodbye to “Halloween costume competitions that never disappoint, lunches, wrap lines and vending machine trips,” seemingly inconsequential things, but the memories will stick with all of the students as they move on to their future endeavors.

The graduation speakers shared the value of these moments and their gratitude for the people that helped them along the way. As the ceremony commenced, the opening speakers Zachery Pan and Murphy welcomed everyone and encouraged them to acknowledge their shared experiences at Andover High School. “These moments, these memories, these faces. None of us got here alone.” said Pan.

Their speech gave time to deliver some truly meaningful thank you’s, “beyond the formalities” as Murphy put it, to the teachers and staff that showed up each day with “patience, support, and dedication.” Furthermore, they recognized that this gratitude is not solely meant for the significant ceremonies.

“Gratitude is kind of strange. We tend to save it for the big moments. The ceremonies, the stages, the audiences,” said Murphy.

“But let’s be honest—the people who actually changed your life probably weren’t standing on a stage when they did it,” continued Pan.

They concluded the speech with a request to the graduates to thank those who changed their lives in both the big and small moments, even if it feels unnecessary.

Before graduation, other seniors expressed similar thoughts, like reflecting on the journey that got them to where they are today.

“To all my teachers: thank you for everything. I would not be here without any single one of you.” said Christopher Reardon.

Thomas Enman advised underclassmen to “just enjoy every little minute you get at AHS.”

Vignesha Jayakumar, class essayist and valedictorian, echoed this same sentiment of appreciation, reinforcing Reardon’s message about the lasting impact of teachers and support systems. “We were galvanized from a community of supportive teachers and staff who didn’t just teach us subjects, they taught us how to think, how to question, how to care,” said Jayakumar.

He also mentioned the importance of one learning from their fellow graduates. “We learned as much from each other in the hallways and the bleachers as we did in the classroom,” he said.

After Jayakumar, Graduation Committee members Ben Pelt and Kari Belson spoke. First, Pelt announced the Class of 2026’s class gift to AHS. Next, Belson named Scott Armstrong the 2026 Distinguished Citizen (see page 4).

When Principal Jimmy D’Andrea took the stage, he, like all the other speakers, expressed the value of gratitude, a central theme that resonated throughout the ceremony. He began by thanking each group that got each member of the graduating class to where they were standing in the Tsongas Center, about to leave the comfort of being an AHS student and moving onto becoming alumni, highlighting the strong support system and sense of community that defined the graduating class’s journey.

He also encouraged each graduate to “personally reach out and thank those individuals who made a difference in [their] lives,” reinforcing the ceremony’s message of appreciation, reflection, and recognition for the people who helped shape their high school experience.

Interim Superintendent Keith Taverna encouraged graduates to continue to make the community proud with the positive impact they will bring to the world.

To conclude the ceremony, Graduation Committee members Chloe Ahn and Margaret Farabaugh brought everyone together one last time. “Tonight we stand together because of the strong and spirited community we have built,” said Ahn.

Ahn concluded, “As we become graduates of Andover High School, we step into the world with purpose, passion, and pride… Congratulations class of 2026!”

Students, Faculty Travel to Scandinavia Over Spring Break

June 11, 2026

Samin Faiz || STAFF WRITER

Forty-two Andover High School students and seven chaperones visited Scandinavia this April.

After a six-hour flight from Boston to Reykjavík, Iceland, followed by a two-hour flight to Oslo, Norway, the group began their ten-day-long tour the Thursday before spring break. Through a combination of bus rides, overnight ferries, and countless miles on foot, the group made their way through five Northern European countries: Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, and Estonia.

“I’ve been traveling with students since 2005, so this might be my 17th tour,” said Brian Shea, English teacher, organizer, and chaperone of the trip. “We’ve now done all of Europe, so Northern Europe was sort of our last frontier.”

Apart from the chaperones, the group was accompanied by a tour director named Yulia, whom Shea worked closely with to structure the daily itinerary and ensure a smooth trip.

In Scandinavia, English is widely spoken, so the language barrier was never a problem for the group. Sometimes, however, the students made connections in ways that transcend the spoken word.

“I played soccer with a bunch of people in Sweden,” recalled Hannah Arnold, a junior who participated in the trip. “That was probably the highlight of the trip for me.”

Arnold is no stranger to international travel. Just two months earlier, in fact, she joined her classmates on another school trip to Peru over winter break. However, for her twin sister, Grace Arnold, this was a brand-new experience.

“I met a lot of new people that I’ve never met before, especially people not in my grade,” Grace said. “It was really nice because I met a lot of great people through that and got to spend time with people I wouldn’t usually get to spend time with.”

The trip offered a flexible balance of group tours and independent exploration. “We had a lot of free time,” Grace noted. “We got to explore cities on our own and shop where we wanted. As long as you stayed in groups of three or more, you were free to roam the city.”

Students observed the region’s distinct economic models. Through agreements within the European Union and the Nordic Council, higher education is heavily subsidized or entirely free for regional citizens.

“It’s really interesting. They tax wealthier people a lot more and their overall tax rates are a lot higher,” one student observed. “The way they reinvest money back into infrastructure contributes to stronger public infrastructure. Education and health care are free, and they even offer stipends to cover the cost of living. Essentially, you pay a lot of taxes, but you get a lot in return.”

Students also noticed the societal impact of these safety nets. “Their unhoused population is significantly lower. If you want help, those systems are available to support you.”

The travelers’ curiosity and maturity left a strong impression on the faculty.

“These kids were wonderful,” said Shea. “All of the students were engaged. They were paying attention. They were enjoying it. They were wonderful travelers. To me, that was the biggest thrill.”

With the preparations for next year’s destinations already underway, the future of travel programs at AHS seems to be brimming with opportunities.

“Next year, we have two tours,” said Shea. “We’re running one tour to Barcelona and Madrid in February, and then we’re running another tour to Greece in April.”

Such opportunities are often highly selective at other schools, but luckily, these trips remain open to the entire student body at AHS.

“There’s no application process,” Shea emphasized. “We’re not looking at grades. We’re not looking at behavioral records. Anybody can sign up when we offer these tours. I put them out there, and I’m like, ‘If you want to go, come.’”

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Shaping up to be Famous: Ceramics Students’ Work could be Published in Action Research

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