featured – Page 5 – AHS NEWSPAPER

Ninth Grade Coordinator Ganci Steps Up to Assistant Principal Gap

October 4, 2024

By Eva Liss
EXECUTIVE EDITOR

The absence of previous assistant principal Rebecca Perry, who was recently hired as Doherty Middle School’s principal, left a gap in AHS administrative staffing. Ganci, who was uniquely positioned as the ninth-grade coordinator to connect with students, families, and staff across many middle schools in the district, was hired as Perry’s replacement in late August.

Initially, Ganci said she was hesitant to give up her position as ninth grade coordinator, as she loved her job—especially the student-facing aspect, which enabled her to get to know over a quarter of the AHS population extremely well. Ganci said she applied rather late to the position because of this, and expressed that weighing the benefits of the ninth-grade coordinator job with the needs of the greater AHS community made her reconsider the impact she could have within the school. She also said she valued the opportunity to further aid the AHS community in being a supportive space for all.

“I developed a skill set through [ninth grade coordinating] to do this job,” said Ganci on her motivation to apply. “It felt like the next logical step—the right move for the school and the team. I care very deeply… about this school [and] the students… it just kind of made sense to… take that leap.”

Ganci worked as the ELA program coordinator for six years, before transitioning to the ninth-grade coordinator job at the start of last year, and though the positions’ responsibilities are different, she expressed that she wasn’t fazed. She said she was originally “absolutely intimidated” at the more disciplinary aspects of the assistant principal job, but that her work with last year’s freshman class prepared her more than she expected. In addition, Ganci considers herself driven by a strong sense of care and responsibility for her students, which aids her in overcoming her nerves.

“We’re advocates for students, even on their worst day,” Ganci said. “Just because [a student] had a bad day or… made a bad choice doesn’t mean… we’re not going to have faith in them. That’s what was really appealing to me.”

With all these staffing changes, the AHS community has been under continuous pressure to adapt to and incorporate new members of the administrative community. But both Ganci and new principal James “Jimmy” D’Andrea expressed gratitude for their reception to their new positions, and confidence that the students and staff would propel the school year in a continually positive direction. Ganci has aided with the ninth-grade coordinator role in the interim, as interviews were conducted during September and into early October.

“We’ll be fully transitioning once we hire a new person, but I think she has done an excellent job,” said D’Andrea. “We aim to build on that foundation in the coming year.”

The ninth-grade coordinator search was expected to end in the first week of October, after interviews from AHS staff, students, and families, as well as Andover Human Resources and Superintendent Parvey. The filling of this position marks the first time the AHS administrative staff has been complete, without any interim positions, since the 2022-2023 school year. Ganci is glad to be a part of it and feels that her main goal is to continue supporting the students and “rolling with [the changes.]”

“All students deserve somebody who’s going to advocate for them,” she said. “We’re able to help struggling students and make everyone feel welcome here. When we have these bumps… I just hope… students feel respected and understood.”

Andover Debuts in Hollywood Industry

May 6, 2024

By Lojyn Elkotory
STAFF WRITER

Andover stepped into the spotlight of the movie industry as Marvel chose its picturesque locations for filming “Madame Web.” Released on February 14, 2024, the movie showcased familiar Andover settings, adding a touch of local charm to the screen. Andover locals shared their experiences of seeing their town on the big screen.

The movie starred actresses Dakota Johnson, Sydney Sweeney, Isabela Merced, and many more. Andover had the honor of providing the setting for the filming of the movie.

Ella Vidoni, a senior at AHS, said she enjoyed the movie. “I’m not very good at sitting through movies, but this one was kind of interesting,” she said. She expressed her amusement with the movie being filmed in Andover, saying, “I thought it was cool. I’ve never really seen Andover in a movie before.”

A local witness of the production, Jackie Salvesen, a Health Education teacher at AHS, shared her firsthand experience of witnessing the transformation of Chandler Road into a movie set. As she drove her husband to work along River Road, a retro diner built on top of Deyermond Field, which is built on a landfill, caught her attention.

“We would [go to] his job through Chandler Road, and we both noticed that there was the structure going up,” Salvesen said. However, to ensure the safety of the production, the film company had to secure its surroundings. Salvesen said, “[she] would… drive by that way and then at some point, they completely shut down that section of the road. I was no longer able to see anything that was going on.”

But why Deyermond Field?

Although Deyermond Field has no previous cinematic history, the field has witnessed multiple changes and usage. According to Jennifer Timpko, a Special Education teacher at AHS and a long-time resident of Andover, in the late 60s, the field was known to be a dump where Andover residents would leave their trash. “It was a field trip every Saturday to dump trash there,” Timpko emphasized. It was later on that the field was transformed from a dumpster into a sports field. The public used it for sports teams such as the baseball and soccer teams. However, in 2016, Deyermond was no longer used.

With all of its rich history, how did Marvel know about Deyermond Field?

Michael Lindstrom, Deputy Town Manager, explained that Andover was approached in May 2022 by a location scout for Sony, one of the world’s largest technology and entertainment companies. “They wanted to film a couple of specific scenes on Chandler Road over by the Deyermond Field, out in the woods around there, and also by the greater Lawrence Technical school on River Road” Lindstrom said. The collaboration between Marvel Studios and the town of Andover not only brought cinematic magic to local streets but also provided economic benefits. According to Lindstrom, the film crew paid close to $70,000 to the town for the privilege of filming in Andover.

Interested in checking out Andover in Madame Web? The film will be released on DVD and Blu-Ray and available for streaming starting this April!

Articles Community Education

Foreign Exchange Program Returns to AHS

January 25, 2024

By Saarvi Deshwal
PHOTOGRAPHER

A group of students from South Korea is currently visiting AHS from January 19 to 30, and a group of students from Vietnam will visit from February 3 to 13.

The Global Pathways program at AHS works with the Academy at Harvard Square (TAHS) to make the exchange program possible. The organization collaborates with the non-profit Educational Divide Reform (EDR) to promote global education, with a focus on Asian students learning English. One of the major goals of Global Pathways is to foster cultural and academic diversity through enriching experiences.

“In Global Pathways, one of the components is to have an immersive experience, whether that’s by travel or looking at more in-house opportunities like this,” said Global Pathways advisor Rebecca D’Alise. “So we’ve been trying to encourage our students in Global Pathways to host these students so they can have an immersive experience that way.”

Since early November, students have had the opportunity to register to host exchange students from South Korea and Vietnam in their homes, regardless of whether they are a part of Global Pathways or not. It’s an excellent opportunity for students from other countries to learn what it’s like to be a student in the United States. It’s also a chance for AHS students to explore and learn about different cultures. “You just never know how things are different until you have to turn and explain something to them that is normal for everyone else around you,” said librarian Mary Coombs, “and now you know that this is a special thing, and we didn’t know it was special.”

The program hopes for AHS students to be able to share their lifestyles with those coming from abroad because “that’s what this program’s all about; experiencing those cultural differences, finding similarities, finding differences, and celebrating those differences. I only see upsides,” commented D’Alise.

This is also an opportunity for exchange students to practice their English language skills, and for host families to get a chance to learn something new. “Part of learning a language is figuring out how to communicate when you don’t speak the same language,” added World Language program coordinator Peter Hall. “That is a critical part of the learning process. It sometimes includes gestures, rephrasing using simple language, drawing, or using technology apps for assistance.”

COURTESY PHOTO / Lana Huynh
Sophomore Lana Huynh prepares a guest bedroom for her foreign exchange student. AHS families have been asked to host exchange students from South Korea and Vietnam.

The school is still looking for a few more families to host male students and the visiting teachers. Hosts are excited to show foreign exchange students what it’s like to be a student at Andover High and get to know them. “I’d love to have friends from [Vietnam],” shared sophomore Lana Huynh, who is hosting two Korean students in January and one Vietnamese student in February. “The only Vietnamese people I know are my family, and I’d love to get to know someone from there who has a different lifestyle from me. I was raised in the United States, so I’m excited to share our differences.”

Prior to COVID-19, students from foreign countries had come to AHS for many years. Another goal of Global Pathways was to get this program back up and running again after having been shut down for three years. This is the first year our school has been able to run the program since the pandemic, with students having come from Korea, China, and Vietnam in the past.

Global Pathways also hopes for similar opportunities to be available for AHS students in the upcoming years. Currently, Hall is running a trip to France for French students to have an experience where they’re living with somebody in the country and going to their high school. “I can’t imagine that this is not going to, in some way, gain some attraction,” said D’Alise. “Hopefully, in the next couple of years, we [will] see [a similar] exchange with South Korea and other host schools.”

Articles Education

Five AP Exams to Go Online This Spring

January 25, 2024

Jill Slotnick and Brandon Nguyen
CORRESPONDENT EDITOR AND LAYOUT EDITOR

The AP exams for AP European History, AP Computer Science, AP English Language Composition, AP English Literature, and AP United States History classes are to go online this spring.

According to the College Board, all Advanced Placement Tests available in the digital format will be completely online by 2025. The option for these digital tests became available during the 2022-2023 school year. AP Coordinator and Head of Guidance, Aixa de Kelley, said the AHS administration had been discussing this change for the last few years but had ultimately decided they should wait until it was proven the tests could be administered online successfully. The choice to go digital this year was approved by de Kelley.

AHS Administration decided to go through with the switch after feedback they received nationally and locally. “From our experience last fall with the digital PSATs, offering the exam in the digital format streamlined the process. We received only positive feedback from students at AHS who took the digital PSAT exams,” said Dr. Magda Parvey, the Andover Public Schools superintendent. The administration also took into account feedback collected by the College Board, which stated that “students nationwide who participated in the digital exams [preferred the digital] format, especially when it comes to the long essays. Typing the responses was much easier and more familiar for them than handwriting the responses.”

In regards to the actual content of the tests, the digital exam itself has the same number of sections, the same amount of questions, and has a parallel format for writing as well, said de Kelley. Students will also be using school-provided laptops which takes away the stress of having to remember a computer and charger, and downloading a lockdown browser in addition to an already nerve-racking exam.

With the decision coming out only a week before Thanksgiving break, many teachers were caught off guard by the decision. For the better part of three months, teachers had been preparing their classes for a paper exam. Michelle Chachus, an AP US History (APUSH) teacher for over ten years, expressed her discontent with the switch. “I’m not a huge fan of digital testing because it’s really hard to interact with documents. In my class we focus on annotating documents and highlighting key ideas, and I think that becomes a lot more challenging [with] a digital test. I know there are digital highlighting tools, but I feel like I need to really process what’s in the document.”

Some teachers also had concerns regarding College Board’s previous digital AP Exams. Jennifer Percival, an AP English Language Composition (AP Lang) teacher, brought up the AP digital exam during the pandemic. “The platform that College Board is going to use should be more user-friendly than it was in the past to accommodate COVID. During the test, people had trouble with multiple choice questions and going back to questions they’ve already answered, so I hope problems like that don’t happen with this exam.” Percival also questioned the equitability of the digital exam. “I think it would be better if [the exam] was on paper,” she explained. “This switch affects not only our community of learners but also many other communities where digital learning isn’t as prevalent or easily accessible.”

The school seems divided on the issue of online testing, de Kelly admitted. “Some teachers were a little nervous; some teachers were happy about it,” she said. “They realize that computers are what kids are used to writing on, instead of with paper and pencil. There’s [also] a lot of resources on the College Board, and teachers can use AP Classroom.” AP Classroom is a nationwide website used to register students for their AP exams at the end of the year. It also provides resources for studying.

STAFF PHOTO ILLUSTRATION / Brandon Nguyen
Junior Ewan McCrimmon angrily tears a paper APUSH test.

For students, the announcement seems to have also caused disagreement, leaving some excited for a modern upgrade and others scrambling to adjust. Ewan McCrimmon, a junior taking APUSH, welcomed the move. “It’s a lot less paper, and it’s accommodating to the new way the world works online. Not that many people write stuff down on paper anymore,” he said. He appreciated the convenience and speed of typing, and stated that he will “be more focused on comprehending the question than focusing on spacing out [his] writing.” But McCrimmon also had some concerns about the school’s technological readiness: “Last year’s MCAS was a shame… [the school’s wifi] was struggling to keep up with everyone logging in all at once.”

Magdalena Phelps, a junior taking AP Lang and APUSH, was more opposed to the change: “I’m just more of a visual person, so being able to really interact with the text helps me a lot.” Worried about the late announcement and lack of resources, she added, “In APUSH and AP Lang, there isn’t much digital work. It’s very much on paper, so [it’s hard to know] how they’re going to transition.” Both Phelps and McCrimmon agreed that students should be able to choose whether or not to have their exams be paper or digital. “It’s unfair that we don’t have those types of accommodations for AP testing,” Phelps said.

Articles Education

Time Management and Study Strategies: Students Tackle Stressful Midterm Season

January 15, 2024

By Samantha Sun and Melody Tang
STAFF WRITER AND ONLINE EDITOR

AHS students are preparing for midterms, a series of academic tests that mark the first half of the year, falling in a four-day period between January 16 to 19.

Midterm exams are meant to be a tool for teachers to better examine the progress of students during their time in class, but many students find it stressful to prepare for so many tests at once.

Freshmen this year are taking midterms for the first time, and there is some nervousness arising from it as a new concept entering high school.

Freshman Kiera D’Angelo added her thoughts on how intimidating midterms seem. “I have never had any sort of test like this before and I don’t quite know what to expect,” said D’Angelo. It is different from the middle school experience, which may contribute to the pressure freshmen feel.

One of the struggles freshmen like D’Angelo had was where to begin. “I had no idea how to effectively study and learn how to have long-term memorization,” said DAngelo, and she wishes underclassmen could receive advice from upperclassmen or counselors.

Luckily, seniors have already completed the midterms process three times, and have plenty of advice to give to underclassmen. Senior Ellen Chou assures that there are plenty of options to help you get started studying for midterms if you’re having trouble. She suggested, “If your teacher has made a study guide, then definitely study everything on that. For other topics like science and math, watching videos to review, like The Organic Chemistry Tutor, Khan Academy, and Amoeba Sisters, are helpful if you feel like you need to re-teach yourself something.” Chou also recommended keeping an organized binder or folder so that students can look at in-class material while studying.”

Chou additionally finds the Pomodoro method helpful while studying, a technique that breaks your studying session into 25-minute intervals of continuous work and 5-minute breaks in-between. “I used this method a lot during AP exams and I found it really helpful,” said Chou.

Because midterms encompass testing for every class, it requires a lot of time management, study material, and concepts. This causes a lot of stress for those who do not know how to study for multiple tests at once.

“Last year…I wasn’t used to it and it was something new for me,” said Razan Hawat, a sophomore who was also nervous [about] taking it for the first time last year. “But I realize[d] if you have the time to study for it, it’s not too bad.”

One of the mistakes Hawat made as a freshman was not managing her time well. “I think I learned from last year that I shouldn’t wait for the last minute,” Hawat noted. Stressing out the night before and cramming information last-minute is a mistake many people make.

“I do find that my phone can be a real distraction when I study,” said D’Angelo, as she described the occasional obstacles. Procrastination is also another factor that students struggle to deal with, not just freshmen. D’Angelo agreed that it is difficult to overcome the temptations of social media, and talking to friends is also a distractor.

Chou agrees to “time yourself well and don’t procrastinate.” She recommends the Notion app to organize and plan for midterms. “I find it helpful to be able to visually see the work that needs to be done so I would recommend making a checklist of assignments,” stated Chou. Chou also believes that everyone learns best in their own ways and suggests testing multiple methods—like watching videos, re-reading textbooks, or self-testing—to see what works best.

Many students believe midterms are not a measure of success or intelligence. Although the results do contribute to a percentage of a grade, it isn’t necessarily an accurate representation of a student’s learning capabilities. Sophomore Zoe Roberts stated that “determining whether this learning was done in class, over a reasonable period, or independently crammed in days before the test, is where a midterm falls short.” Chou added that, because there is such a large amount of information to study, it is “an okay reflection of [a student’s] progress.”

Roberts finds that putting excessive stress on midterms isn’t worth it and that as long as students try their best. It’s difficult to get A’s on everything, which may be why so many freshmen are worried about the midterm exams.

Articles Events Fundraisers Sports

AHS Hosts its Annual Charity Football Match

December 11, 2023

By Sanjith Kalpat
STAFF WRITER

Andover High School’s annual Charity Football Match occurred November 31, raising money for this year’s local charity, Neighbors in Need.

As a longstanding tradition, the Charity Football Match, referred to by students as the Powderpuff game, is organized yearly by the Senior Board. The board brings together senior girls, coached and cheered by senior boys, for a friendly game of football. This year’s matchup featured two teams: Bikers versus Surfers.

Every year, the charity match is held to raise money for a specific charity. According to Laura Jordan, AHS Latin teacher and head of the Senior Board, while the total funds raised are yet to be calculated, the profits generated from collections of ticket sales and T-shirt purchases pitched in by all year boards (Freshman, Sophomore, Junior, and Senior) was directed towards the local charity Neighbors in Need in Lawrence, which supports at-risk families and youth facing food insecurity.

This year’s matchup saw the Bikers top the Surfers, 32-8. However, Jordan mentioned, “It’s funny because this tends to happen every year. [The] team that dominated in the scoreboard was the Surfers, but the team that dominated according to their cheer and pep seemed to be the other team, the Bikers. That always seems to happen.”

Despite the blowout score, Jordan and many others saw the event as a success. Breaking with tradition, the match had an early start time of 4:30 p.m. “We think that kind of drew in a lot of students who were still hanging around campus and didn’t have to go home, kill time, and come back later,” Jordan said.

STAFF PHOTO / Sanjith Kalpat
The Surfers celebrate their halftime performance.

Leading the Surfers were captains Brian McSweeney, Connor Lebrun, Chris Dessin, Jamyl Figueroa, and Johnny Enman. The Surfer cheer captains were Gabi Millien and Maya Smith McPherson. On the Bikers’ side, captains Ryan Zannoni, Brian Hnat, Patrick Cote, and Liam Finn led the team, while Tatum Ahearn and Alyssa Desfosse rallied the Biker cheer squad.

Articles Sports

Hnat Your Average Athlete: Senior Brian Hnat Leads the Warriors as a Talented Captain

December 5, 2023

By Carissa Dessin
SPORTS EDITOR

Number sixteen on Lovely Field might be insignificant to some, but to coaches, scouts, and fellow players, all that can be seen is natural talent and leadership. This number 16 is Brian Hnat, a senior at AHS, and one of the captains of the Warriors football team.

The senior describes becoming captain as “definitely something that [he’s] had to get used to.” Luckily, Hnat said, he’s “had very good role models in the past and it’s definitely given [him] a good idea of what’s expected of a captain and what needs to be done.” He was heavily inspired by his predecessors and set out to continue the trend of being an essential piece in this team’s pursuit of excellence. During their season, the Warriors proved to be a force to be reckoned with within the Merrimack Valley League, thanks to the dedication of their coaches and captains.

COURTESTY PHOTO / Lindsey Reeves
Brian Hnat leaves defenders grounded with an athletic catch against Saint Johns Prep.

In difficult circumstances, a team needs a captain to help them keep going. The Warriors definitely had this support during their slow start against Central Catholic during their Homecoming game. “It wasn’t really that they were better than us, it was just that we were struggling in executing our own [skills],” Hnat explained, showing a clear familiarity and understanding of his fellow teammates. Despite the odds being stacked against them, Hnat said the Warriors managed to “rally together and get the ‘W’,” beating their Central Catholic rivals for the second year in a row. Leadership and motivation make or break a game, but in this case, they made it and led to a satisfying 22-20 victory.

Hnat discovered his love for football in the fourth grade when he started playing in the Andover Junior Football League (AJFL). He said that the sport “impacted [him] in huge ways” by creating many long-lasting friendships and connections. Some of these have even allowed him to use football to connect with colleges, an opportunity that he described as “huge for him.” The journey that Hnat will continue to take in pursuing his passion promises to be an inspiring and successful one.

While his stats prove him to be a great athlete, it is also his behavior off the field that makes him an exemplary person and student. “He comes to practice early and leaves late,” said Coach EJ Perry. Perry continued to compliment Hnat, saying he is “a role model to the freshman and sophomore players.” Hnat, with the help of his fellow captains, Brian McSweeney and Ryan Zannoni, leads and organizes many community service projects for the team to participate in, truly embodying the attributes of a well-rounded leader on and off the field.

The childhood that Hnat had was shared with many other football-loving kids, which included loving the Patriots and believing Tom Brady “[to be] the GOAT,” as Hnat put it. However, some of his favorite memories as a kid were “watching little EJ Perry playing quarterback against St. Johns.” Little EJ Perry is son of Coach EJ Perry, Ernest Joseph Perry IV, who is currently a free agent quarterback in the NFL. Hnat remembers always “watching him play and [him] being a huge role model.” Clearly, based on his performance, Hnat’s goals and aspirations should not be too hard to achieve.

Articles Events Opinion

OPINION: Homecoming Revival Faced with Mixed Spirit

December 5, 2023

By Melody Tang and Grace Wang
ONLINE EDITOR AND STAFF WRITER

AHS’s first homecoming in over 20 years took place this October. From Monday’s Color Wars to Friday’s Andover Gear Day, people participated to show their AHS spirit. On Friday, October 20, AHS took home a close victory by two points at the homecoming football game against Central Catholic. Amidst it all, two divisions emerged. Although some thoroughly enjoyed themselves during the week of festivities, the overall absence of school spirit made homecoming week disappointingly lackluster.

The spirit was missing from the general student population. When compared to the overwhelming spirit and participation of other schools, AHS just doesn’t measure up. However, the lack of school spirit isn’t a problem generated by poor execution of homecoming. Instead, the subpar homecoming results are created by the culture culminating over the past few years at AHS. Students lack AHS pride.

Except, it doesn’t have to be all negative. Many students and teachers did participate in celebrating homecoming. Though it may not have been overwhelming, it’s definitely a step up from the past. This homecoming could be the gateway to bringing back AHS pride. People did participate, and people did have fun. But how can we make the experience more universally enjoyable?

Kicking off the week, we had class colors on Monday. Then, we had Adam Sandler Day on Tuesday, Country versus Country Club Day on Wednesday, Tropical Day on Thursday, and Andover Gear Day on Friday. Each day was unique and creative, garnering mixed opinions.

“I thought spirit week was pretty cool…we haven’t had a school-wide one like that since I’ve been at AHS,” said junior Shreya Desai. “It was a fun way to have some school spirit…I did love Country versus Country Club Day…I liked Spirit Week and hope we can do it more often.”

“The themes were definitely different from what I’ve seen in the past,” said Senior Sanchita Swamy. “Country versus The Country Club was so odd, and class color didn’t work because people either didn’t care or wore the wrong thing.”

“Spirit Week was boring and stupid. No one in the grade–even our teachers–did anything for Spirit Week. Maybe 12 out of 400 freshmen participated,” stated freshman Alex Nguyen.

“Not a lot of people dressed up for Spirit Week, mostly just seniors did, but even then, it wasn’t the majority,” said Senior Board member Anton Shvets. “I don’t think it had a staggering impact.”

On the bright side, we cannot forget to mention the proud victory against Central Catholic at the homecoming football game. AHS beat Central Catholic by two points, and the tight victory should be celebrated.

Still, homecoming just didn’t feel special enough. “It was HOCO, but, to be honest, there was nothing special about the game. Like, I wouldn’t have known it was HOCO if it wasn’t on the board,” said Senior Anton Shvets.

How can we generate more excitement? How can we create a more united atmosphere? How can we make our high school events even more special? With AHS’ dwindling spirit, it’s all the more important for events like this to bring the school together.

The well-known dance celebrated by high schools nationwide was planned with a Hollywood theme for a grand reintroduction, complete with a DJ from Boston’s Kiss108 music station.

The idea of re-establishing homecoming was mostly suggested by current juniors and seniors. “We’ve been here the longest without one, and we wanted (to have it) one year… so that the freshmen and sophomores could continue that legacy,” said Aeyah Elbasiony, one of the student coordinators who planned the event along with the help of a group of parent volunteers.

“I expected a lot more people,” said senior Raghav Tewari. “I thought there would be more seniors coming too… I mostly saw sophomores and freshmen.” While Aixa Hilario De Kelley stated over 300 tickets were sold, it is difficult to confidently say that over 300 attended the dance. The cafeteria was far from packed, and it is ironic how the grades that were most excited about the event ended up having the lowest turnout.

If all the students who purchased tickets did show up, the mood was severely lacking for an over 300-strong army of students. “It felt very separated like everyone was just in their own groups,” remarked Shvets. Students huddled separately in small bunches, and dancing was minimal. Even with the blasting music, most attendees seemed to be at a refined banquet rather than a raving dance.

STAFF PHOTO / Melody Tang
Members of all grades attend Homecoming in the school cafeteria.

Nguyen commented, “Less than 20% of freshmen went to homecoming–I knew maybe four people who went. I’m telling you, no one was excited.”

“Some people were really excited,” said Desai. “Most were not fans of the fact that it was every grade, so that’s why they didn’t go.”

While the return of homecoming was indeed a monumental event to celebrate, the lack of school spirit lessened the grandeur of its return. The overall participation for Spirit Week and turnout at the football game and homecoming dance revealed AHS’ biggest challenge: spirit. In preparation for future school events, let’s try harder as a student body to craft more vibrant and unforgettable experiences that truly capture the wonders of Andover High.

Articles Faculty

Q&A with Principal Taylor

December 5, 2023

By Eva Liss
COPY EDITOR

COURTESY PHOTO / Betty Taylor
Betty Taylor poses for a photo.

As AHS settles into the new school year, it also has new leadership: Interim Principal Betty Taylor, who is well-situated and eager to help the school where she can.

Q: Just a little background on you— where were you before coming to Andover?

A: I just retired this past June at Beverly High School. I’d been principal there for eight years. But I’d actually been there for a long time. I started teaching English and theater there in 1985, I was an assistant principal for about 7 years, and then I was principal, so I’ve been lucky there. It’s where I spent most of my career.

Q: Did Andover seek you out or did you go looking for a job?

A: I spent the whole summer walking my dog and cleaning the house and saying ‘Oh, I have to get a part-time job.’ I was looking in September for one, maybe teaching in college, and then a former superintendent of mine called and said you were looking for an interim principal. It’s full-time, but it’s only a year, so the short burst makes sense. I have to admit I didn’t plan my retirement very well, but I do like the fall, and I like kids, so it’s been nice.

Q: More on that—how has the experience been so far?

A: I’m still learning some stuff, learning new traditions at Andover that are different from the way I used to do it or Beverly did. What’s impressed me about Andover is there are actually a lot of great academic programs and a variety of extracurriculars. I have to say I’ve been very impressed with the students because the majority I’ve met have been very well organized, well prepared, very good public speakers (which isn’t an easy skill) and very courteous. The teachers have been great to talk to also. I know some routine stuff that makes up every school, so now I’m just trying to get a sense of what makes Andover unique.

Q: Has anything been difficult to get used to?

A: I hate Outlook because I’m used to Gmail, so I’ve been cursing my computer. The schedule’s very different—in Beverly, we had an every-other-day schedule—so that’s something I’ve had to get used to, but it’s not that hard. I just check my chart all the time. And then I’d like to do a better job with communication both to students and parents. I hope to have that up and running [soon].

Q: Do you have any other goals?

A: In a way, it is to just make sure that the school can keep running. Whatever they need a principal to sign off on, I’m there. I’m also interested in making sure I support anything going forward without blowing things up. It’s really the next principal’s job to decide where the school goes next so it’s my job to make sure everything stays on track for them and it’s all set up. I have a short-term goal—I’d like us to throw a really fun pep rally. I’ll probably have more short-term goals as the year goes on. I’m trying to improve communication with students through all types of formats, like Instagram or Outlook, because I think if there’s something I need to share I want to make sure more people are getting it and engaging with it.

Q: Tell us about yourself. What are some fun facts?

A: Let’s see. I’m left-handed, I have three kids, my dog Ranger, and my cat Auggie. I’m not really a big hobby person, but I like to read and go to the theater.

Articles Community Events

Town Meeting Votes on New AHS Building

December 5, 2023

By Julia Rodenberger, Anushka Dole, and Vismay Ravikumar
STAFF WRITERS

ANDOVER – Nearly 1,900 Andover residents voted on the future of the AHS building at the special town meeting on November 20, electing to renovate the existing building rather than construct a new one.

Attendees gathered in the crowded AHS Field House for 3.5 hours to address the seven articles on the ballot. Article 7 was the article concerning the future of the AHS building. It contained two distinct proposals, entitled 7A and 7B. Article 7A proposed allocating $1.3 million from Andover’s free cash reserves to purchase services for the schematic design of the proposed new $451.5 million building. Article 7B would approve a $500,000 study that explores interim upgrades for the existing building until the town has the financial means to fund a new school.

After an hour of fiery debate, of the 1860 participating voters, only 395 voted “Yes” on Article 7A, with 1,404 voting “No” and 61 abstaining. Article 7B passed through a hand vote; the exact voter count is unknown due to a technical issue regarding the electronic voting system.

Town Moderator Sheila Doherty addressed voters before opening the discussion for Article 7. “People are very, very charged on this on different sides,” she said.

An Andover resident at the “CON” mic questioned the necessity of the $451.5 million proposal, referencing the inclusion of $3 million artificial turf fields. “This design is excessive in ways the project team hasn’t sufficiently justified,” she stated. “The project team should be able to explain and justify the design, especially when that design can cost the average taxpayer an additional $2,000+ per year.”

STAFF PHOTO / Julia Rodenberger
Adults of Andover vote on a new AHS building.

Mary Robb, an AHS history teacher, emphasized the need for responsible spending in the current high school building. “We do not need the Taj Mahal,” she said. “There have been numerous times that I’ve received equipment that I didn’t ask for, that I don’t use, and that actually takes up space in an already limited classroom… When somebody gives you a smart board, and they place it right over your whiteboard that you use every day, and then they say, oh, don’t write on that, they’ve taken up the majority of our teaching space.”

Nonetheless, Robbs expressed support for a new school building. “It’s really frustrating trying to do your job and give your students the best things you can when you don’t have the basics that you need to do that.”

Christopher Shepley, a senior at AHS running for school committee this coming election, spoke at the “CON” mic. “There are issues [with the building] for sure, but the outcome that we need starts at the top. It starts at leadership,” he stated.

Attendees debated whether the new school building was intended to benefit students or raise property values in a town with some of the most expensive real estate in the Merrimack Valley. A speaker for the financial committee noted that “Andover has both the most expensive school proposal and zero state grants, which means that Andover taxpayers would pay for the entire cost of construction.”

In response, Andover resident Andrea Desonier spoke of how her high school was renovated during her junior and senior years. Desonier claimed it was merely a “change of scenery” and that the plan for the new school building is “not just about the student’s education, but perhaps more about property values.” Desonier pointed out the importance of teachers and staff and called for investment into educational programs for art, math, reading, and other subjects; she was met with applause from the audience.

Andover resident Claire Piesza spoke out against article 7B. Piesza pointed out that multiple other avenues have been explored but have failed to address the physical and educational deficiencies of the current Andover High School building for under $100 million. Piesza claimed that “[Article 7B] will get us nothing more than temporary trailers in a parking lot,” and called for the town to stop delaying the construction of a new building.

This special town meeting arrived less than a week after Andover Education Association members went on strike, prompting schools to close for three days. Following days of tense negotiation, the AEA reached an agreement with the School Committee to raise teacher salaries by 15.5% over four years for cost-of-living adjustments and IAs’ salaries by 34% over that same period to provide them with a living wage, among other demands.

Article 3, which proposed that health care premiums should be divided equally for retired and active town employees, failed 1,508-359 in an electronic vote, with 69 abstaining. Holly Currier, an instructional assistant at Andover High, voiced her support for the unpopular article, stating that “despite many of our actively working IAs now approaching a living wage, our retired IAs are facing relative poverty.”

Other notable articles included Article 1, which asked whether voters favored or opposed keeping open town meetings. The article called into question the logistics and structure of open town meetings as Andover’s principal form of legislation in a town of 36,569 residents as of the 2020 census, seeking to explore alternatives such as representative town meetings. The vast majority of the 351 Massachusetts towns retain open town meetings.

Many voters assumed that the article was a ballot question when, in actuality, the vote was to decide whether the question should be added to the ballot of the next town meeting and would serve only as an advisory vote. Town officials have stated that the Town Governance Study Committee settled the issue last year, which recommended that Andover retain open town meetings. Voters decided to keep it off the ballot in a 1,181-692 electronic vote with 32 abstentions.

Article 2, which proposed a limit on the annual property tax increase for Andover residents over 65 at 2.5 percent, failed 1,433-479 in an electronic vote. Even if voters approved the article, it wouldn’t have affected change because it would be preempted by the state of Massachusetts; the adoption of a fixed tax limit is not legal.

Yellow signs dotted front lawns across Andover last year, advocating for a 25 MPH speed limit in thickly settled districts townwide. This measure passed, and Article 5 sought to extend this speed limit to several major roads, including Chandler Road, Dascomb Road, Harold Parker Road, Jenkins Road, Lovejoy Road, North Street, River Road, and portions of Main Street. Town residents voted overwhelmingly against this measure, with an electronic vote of 1,508-359, with 69 abstaining.