As the Covid-19 pandemic fades into the past, life at Andover has slowly returned to normalcy. Despite this, some of the pandemic’s impacts on the Andover community still remain embedded in daily life, classes, and campus culture.
Allison Fish ’23 described off-campus trips prior to Covid-19, which gave students the opportunity to socialize. Fish noted that with the risk of the Covid-19 pandemic, regulations on leaving campus were strict, limiting the amount of weekend trips.
“[Andover] used to have pretty frequent shuttles to the mall, Salem, Target, or sometimes Boston. That shut down during Covid[-19]. They didn’t want people to leave. During [my] Lower year, as people were starting to go back to campus, they wouldn’t even allow us to go downtown. That’s probably why they stopped that. I don’t think it’s something that would start up unless students express their desire for those trips again,” said Fish.
Weekend activities, which are announced in The Weekender every Thursday, are an important part of students’ social lives at Andover. Louis Bernieri, Instructor in English, spoke about how detrimental Covid-19 was to the lives of students and expressed the importance of socialization to the development of one’s identity.
“Human beings have always been drawn to large celebrations and gatherings. One, because we want to celebrate together, but also because we have our own identity, but so much of our sense of self comes from other people, particularly when you are an adolescent. It was really damaging for adolescents to be cut off from each other the way they were… On the positive side, we are much more aware of our health. It seems like in that way Covid[-19] has been a positive because it made us more aware of the mental and emotional health struggles that people have,” Bernieri said.
Somin Virmani ’22 also touched on the fact that while Covid-19 does continue to have a lasting impact on the community, it doesn’t solely mean the disappearance of traditions, as both new traditions and changes to pre-existing ones have developed.
“In some ways, it just took what status quo existed and forced people to think about new ways to approach things. Before Covid[-19] they always had one big dance show every fall that was always the Nutcracker or a ballet thing. I think the department itself had to go online and there was a lot of thinking of what can we do about being separated. There were a lot of creative projects, [and now], I think they’ve veered away from having the Nutcracker every year,” said Virmani.
Christopher Capano, Director of Student Activities, described that the transition back to normal life after Covid-19 was initially challenging because people were accustomed to being online. He added, however, that campus life and activities have returned to near full-swing.
“I feel like when we first came back from Covid[-19], everyone had spent so much time on their own, with the online world and Zoom. Now that we’ve put some distance between the Covid[-19] time and us, people seem to be coming back to the way it was, wanting to gather in groups and go out and do things,” Capano said.
Amanda DiNatale ’21 spoke about Non sibi Day, an opportunity for students to participate in a day-long volunteering outreach project. While this tradition was not possible during Covid-19, DiNatale expressed her hope for the program to return.
“I strongly believe that Andover’s Non sibi influence empowered us to make a difference. While I am not sure if the Non sibi Day program has yet returned since I left Andover, I sincerely hope that it will. Non sibi Day is a time for Andover to reflect on one of its greatest values and remember that we are a force for good. This is a lesson that should be emphasized and amplified, and I hope that it continues to be passed on by prioritizing the restoration of Non sibi Day,” said DiNatale.
Alexa DiCenso ’21 expressed the importance of Andover’s traditions in making all students feel included and connected to the larger community. She stressed that traditions mirror the principles of the academy, making it important to continue these traditions for years to come.
“As a day student, I definitely appreciated school-wide traditions because it made me feel more connected to my boarding student peers. Although the specifics of traditions change and adapt over time, the presence of traditions allows any institution to reflect on the foundations and values with which the institution was established, so it is crucial to preserve and revive these traditions,” DiCenso wrote in an email to The Phillipian
