The Phillipian’s annual State of the Academy survey showed a continuation of many trends from last year’s survey. More students perceived a rift between the administration and the students, and more positive trends emerged, as more students indicated they were happy attending Phillips Academy this year compared to last. The survey was grouped into several categories, including academics, biographical information, disciplinary issues, student opinions and college issues. 758 students responded, representing all classes relatively equally. Forty-eight percent of the respondents were male, while 52 percent were female. The respondents consisted of 71 percent boarding students, and 29 percent day students. 32 percent of respondents indicated that they spent 4-6 hours per week on extracurriculars, with the rest of respondents relatively evenly divided between ranges of 1-3 hours, 7-9 hours per week, and above ten hours per week. Slightly over two-thirds of the students who responded said that they got six to eight hours of sleep each weeknight, while 22.5 percent indicated between four and six hours a night. Over eight percent of students said that they received over eight hours of sleep each weeknight, while slightly less than two percent of students claimed to receive less than four hours. The hardest academic department, according to respondents, was the Department of History and Social Sciences, followed closely by the Department of Chemistry and the Department of Mathematics. The easiest department, according to respondents, was the Art Department, narrowly followed by the Department of Physical Education, and the Department of Theatre and Dance. An overwhelming share of those surveyed, 73.3 percent, indicated that there were “significant disparities in teachers’ grade ranges.” Only a small percentage of students, 9.7 percent, said that these disparities did not exist. The remainder of students called themselves unsure. Only 7.4 percent of respondents indicated that they had been in a DC, though within the survey a large group of students admitted having committed offenses, which could merit a disciplinary committee. Very few students admitted to academic dishonestly, as only 5.7 percent of students admitted having cheated on or plagiarized a major assignment. Only slightly more than one percent of all respondents admitted cheating on major assignments more than once per term. Slightly more students confessed to cheating on minor assignments, such as homework, as 10.8 percent of respondents explained that this behavior occurred about once a term or more, while 21.9 percent said that it had occurred, but less than once per term. Within the survey, over 22 percent of respondents said they had had sexual intercourse, while nearly 15 percent indicated having had sexual intercourse on campus. 26 percent of respondents said that they viewed pornography on campus. Over 37 percent of students said that they have had illegal parietals, with 16.5 percent of the total referring to the frequency as more than once per term, while the remainder indicated illegal pa-rietals occurring less than once per term. 51 percent of students said that they had consumed alcohol without their parents present, though only 15.8 percent of students said they consumed alcohol on campus. Use of marijuana and other controlled substances totaled 23.4 percent of respondents, although only 8.2 percent of students said that they had consumed these substances while on campus. 15 percent of students admitted to having used caffeine pills on campus, while only 7 percent of respondents said that they used ADD/ADHD medicine, a stronger stimulant, without a prescrip-tion. Only 5.2 percent of students who responded said that they had used hard drugs. Three percent of respondents indicated having used these drugs off campus, while the other two percent indicated using on campus. The most common disciplinary offense confessed to was illegal car permission, as 49 percent of students surveyed replied that they had at one point broken this rule. Andover students seemed to have a positive sentiment about college and further life after PA, as 46.2 percent of respondents indicated that attending Andover will have helped their prospects of attending a desired college, while only 29% of respondents believed that it hurt their chances. 65.2 percent of students said that they would attend a college in the Ivy league, if allowed to at-tend any college of their choice. Respondents, however, did express that college weighed on their decisions of what to pursue while at PA. The most common response for “to what degree do college admissions affect your extracurricular choices” was “somewhat,” though when the same question was posed regarding community service participation, the most common answer was “not at all.” 73.4 percent of respondents said that they would donate money to the school after graduation, and 91.8 percent of respondents were pleased that they came to Phillips Academy. 82.7 percent of those surveyed said that they would send their children here. Among other hotly-contested ideas on campus, Trayless Tuesday received the support of 62.9 percent of respondents, although only 54.6 percent of students surveyed believed that the DC system was fair. In a narrow vote, Student Council was believed to be an effective representative body by only 52.6 percent of the student body, while the remainder of those surveyed did not believe it was. A narrow majority of students surveyed said that it was their perception that statements made in Graham House are kept confidential, and an even smaller majority, 54.3 percent, indicated that they would send a friend to the counseling services there. Most respondents believed that the relationship between the students and faculty was good, al-though the majority of respondents to a similar question regarding the relationship between the students and the administration expressed that it was poor. The majority of students also per-ceived the relationship between the administration and faculty to be “O.K.” Only 56.7 percent of students claimed to be satisfied with the student activities offered on cam-pus, and 32.4 percent of students said they believed that there was an overemphasis on athletics at Andover.
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