The Powerhouse of the School: How Jimmy D’Andrea’s Devotion and Spirit Energizes the AHS Community

• June 5, 2026

Samin Faiz & Areeta Faiz || STAFF WRITER AND SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER

“Good mornin’”

“Helloo!”

“Heyyhowyoudoin’?”

A familiar, vaguely Southern cadence breaks you from your stupor. It’s 7:45 a.m. Groggily, you daydream about all the things you’d do to get back under the covers as you draw nearer to those dreadful blue doors.

“How are you?”

You take out an AirPod and offer the principal a friendly nod. You don’t consciously think about how you’re doing, but the smile you thought you forced seems to warm you up inside. He turns to greet the next student without losing an ounce of enthusiasm.

Over the rustle of chairs and sleepy murmur of your classroom, the voice of Andover High School Principal Jimmy D’Andrea recites the pledge. Cheerily, he goes through his usual announcements, praising the recent accomplishments of your peers—just as he did on his Sunday call the night before.

After Chemistry fries your brain, you decide to open Instagram and fry it some more. Before you can feast your eyes on Korean street food, four new stories from @andoverprincipal catch your eye: A comprehensive victory for the basketball team, upcoming state band competitions, an eventful show choir season—and now he’s in Houston with the robotics team?

At long last, the lunch bell rings. You’ve barely scraped the last of your meal when a bubbly “Hello! Trash, anyone?” drifts into earshot. You look up, puzzled, to see D’Andrea—wait, wasn’t he just in Texas?—pushing a garbage bin as he navigates his way through the cafeteria.

After school, he even set time aside for the two authors of this very piece—the ones who badgered him for an interview—minutes after hanging up from a meeting.

You’re not even wondering how he does it anymore. The only question you have left to ask yourself is why?

“Over February break, I spent one day at UMass Amherst with Science Olympiad. The following day, there was the state swim meet, followed by the state track meet. The following Monday, there were a couple of basketball games,” said D’Andrea. “On Tuesday, I was with robotics getting ready for the trip. Wednesday, we had basketball, and Thursday through Sunday, I was in Washington, D.C. with one of our robotics teams.”

Somehow, the most difficult adjustment for him has little to do with his demanding schedule: “I will say, the biggest challenge is that this is the furthest North I’ve ever lived in winter.”

D’Andrea is aware that things can get hectic at times. “But if you love what you do, then you really enjoy it;the students give me energy,” he beamed.

His efforts are most notably documented on his Instagram page. Students, faculty, and families are fascinated all the same.

“It’s super cool that he updates the accounts every hour of every day—I’m all for it,” said senior Kian Keyhan, the captain of the science team. “I know a lot of people outside of the Andover community who also follow the school, like AHS alumni or kids from other schools.”

His active presence—both inside and outside the building—serves to make every student feel respected, valued, and seen. From the start, D’Andrea has devoted much of his time to turning that goal into reality.

“My first impression was that he was genuinely excited to be here,” said Assistant Principal Alicia Linsey. “He took the time to listen, ask questions, and … all summer he held office hours to meet members of our community and learn more about AHS.”

Engineering and math teacher David Strong, who is also a parent at AHS, notes D’Andrea’s efforts at making sure athletic, academic, musical, and artistic achievements are all adequately represented: “He’s very equal opportunity in terms of trying to provide a visible power.”

One pattern D’Andrea noticed early on was that while students felt deeply connected to their extracurricular communities, they rarely ever felt that connection with the school. As a result, helping students feel part of something greater remains one of his top priorities. Encouraging a first-name basis plays an instrumental role in doing so.

“He wants to really … build that connection with the new generation, with us teenagers,” Keyhan added.

“It’s funny because I would say that has happened at every school where I’ve been,” D’Andrea said, though it initially started because students struggled with his last name, which wasn’t uncommon early in his teaching career.

With his approachability, a truly special student-principal relationship blossoms at AHS. Try as you might, however, you can’t get D’Andrea to take credit as he humbly tilts the spotlight to the student body instead.

“I’ve been extremely impressed,” he said. “I think our students are amazing. There are so many incredible things that are happening on a daily basis.”

As a student-centered decision-maker, D’Andrea brings a high level of enthusiasm everyday, whether it’s in meetings, classrooms, or school events. In a school powered by the energy of its community, he is determined to create an atmosphere of compassion and keep pace as a catalyst for student ambition.

“I’m sure all students would agree,” said Linsey. “What really makes Mr. D’Andrea stand out is his presence.”

Capstone Pass System Carries On

• May 7, 2026

JANAESA MACASAET || ARTS EDITOR

Principal Jimmy D’Andrea has confirmed that passes that allow Capstone students to leave campus for research purposes will remain for the next year, denying rumors that they would be completely eliminated. 

Seniors in the Capstone Research class spend the year answering a question through both qualitative and quantitative methods. These passes allow students to leave campus for primary research. They may interview professionals, complete case studies, run experiments, or utilize outside resources such as Memorial Hall Library using these passes. 

Entering the school year, the status of the passes were initially unclear, concerning a number of students. 

“Multiple students have met with me because there were rumors circulating that I wanted to get rid of the CAPS passes, which was not accurate,” said D’Andrea. “I just want to make sure that we knew if a student was leaving, and then making sure that they were getting back.”

According to Capstone teacher Rebecca D’Alise, the passes were under review at the start of the year as school administration and staff worked through logistics. 

“The status at the beginning of the year was ‘To Be Determined,’” said D’Alise. “As a CAPS team, we were asked to work with administrators to make sure that there were strong protocols put into place to make sure that students [were] able to utilize this unique experience while also adhering to school expectations and safety requirements.”

Senior Kari Belson explained that at the start of the year, many students believed they would not have access to the Capstone passes at all. Belson’s project is focused on menstrual health education in elementary schools, which is greatly eased by the passes. 

“For some people, it was an issue to not have those Capstone passes,” Belson said. “A lot of research, especially observational studies, can only happen during the school day.”

After deliberation, passes were later made available, but the delay made it challenging for students such as herself, whose topic is focused on elementary schools, to start their primary research. “It was really important for me to have that opportunity,” she said. 

Other students echoed the idea that Capstone passes are essential. Senior Claire Woodring emphasized that these projects benefit from real-world interaction that cannot be done inside the classroom.  

“If a student can’t continue their research until they do an interview, or something similar that can’t happen in the school building, arguably more time is wasted by Caps students not doing anything in class because they can’t make any progress on their work in the classroom,” Woodring said. 

Woodring added that while misuse may occur, the removal of passes would limit opportunities for meaningful research. “I think it’s important to keep in mind that this is a senior-only class,” Woodring said. “The people taking it are, or are about to be, adults, who are going to have to be responsible for themselves, and a special privilege like the Caps Pass is an opportunity to work on that.”

The passes remain available, with a few changes made to the system. The process to request a pass has not changed—students and teachers have their own personal conversations if there is a need for a pass, often requiring the student to be in good academic standing in the class. 

Otherwise, passes can now only be used during long blocks or last blocks to ensure that students come back to school on time; students must ensure that their interviews are held within safe locations; students must retrieve all of their items before signing out to leave. 

“We just want to make sure that we know where students are and that they’re getting back to school,” D’Andrea said.

D’Alise mentioned that another significant change involves the use of Memorial Hall Library during the secondary research phase. Previously, students were able to use the library for both primary and secondary research—now, passes can only be used for primary research, such as observations and interviews. 

D’Andrea emphasized that the review process was for the system to be improved and for students’ safety to be maintained. 

“I think the program has always been great. I had some questions about the process for the passes, and I think the collaboration with the teachers has been really positive,” said D’Andrea. “I’m a big supporter of the program because I think it’s great to give students an opportunity to do deep research in something that they’re interested in.” 

D’Alise emphasized that the pass system enriches the Capstone course and has lifelong benefits. 

“I would be extremely disappointed to see the [Capstone] pass eliminated from this class as it presents students with the opportunity to develop a number of skill sets beyond primary research, such as maturity, accountability, and responsibility,” D’Alise said. “These are skills that students will need as they leave AHS.”