Uppers and Seniors gathered in Rebecca M. Sykes Wellness Center for the “Nupper and Snupper Supper,” an orientation tradition that allows new Uppers to have dinner with Seniors who were new Uppers the year prior. Featuring icebreaker activities and human bingo games, the dinner held on September 8 offered a unique opportunity for new Uppers to connect with each other and familiarize themselves with the Andover community.
Lela Paultre, Assistant Director of DEI Outreach & Assistant Director of Admission, organized the event with Sara Parker, Assistant Director of Admission, as a way to help incoming Uppers feel comfortable with the campus culture around them. Paultre described the origin of the custom to help new Uppers transition to the Andover community.
“The ‘Nupper Snupper,’ originally just the Nupper program, was a brainchild of Latasha Boyd and Sue Kinney of the College Counseling Office. So they decided to submit a proposal through the Abbot Grant in order to support the new Uppers that were coming into Andover, realizing that the PGs and the Seniors had a program already instituted and they wanted to make sure that they were able to support students who were coming to Andover midway through their high school year, helping them with academics, the culture and community of our space,” said Paultre.
Paultre continued, “The new Uppers have a very short runway here. By doing this program, we want to make sure that we have the tools and the resources available to them. So maybe the coordinating of the new Uppers and the [Snuppers] might’ve been something that would have been great to do a little bit earlier, but I think the timing that it happened [was] at the appropriate time. We were able to give those students that opportunity, the first meeting to meet with their mentors. So hopefully they’ve established that communication and that connection so that throughout the year that they have that sort of cohort to work through and to work with at Andover.”
Kanori Koto ’26, a new Upper in attendance, appreciated how the event enabled her to talk with more people who had similar experiences to her at Andover. She noted that it was especially enjoyable to become acquainted with more people outside of the tight community of new Uppers.
“It was definitely nice getting to know other people who went through the same experience as me last year. I was able to talk with my mentor and hear about his experience settling in. I think the Nupper, or new Upper community is quite tight, since there’s only a few of us. And it was nice to get to know everyone,” said Koto.
Edouard Lord ’26, another new Upper who attended the event, reflected on his mixed feelings for the supper, but expressed his gratitude for the special moments he encountered during the event.
“At first, I was kind of indifferent about [the supper]. We had a lot of activities over the first few days. At first, I thought it was just going to be one amongst many, but it ended up being pretty fun. One of the funniest moments of the night was when we did introductions, and we each said our name, where we’re from, where we live on campus, and then a fun fact about us. We went around [for] everyone. And one of the funniest moments was when it was Zachary Fidele, who’s a new Upper and he plays hockey. He told [us] that his fun fact was that both of his older brothers went to [Phillips Academy] Exeter. And the reaction was super funny. Everyone was flabbergasted,” said Lord.
The program’s cohort of new Uppers during this year’s supper was much larger than last year, allowing for a much livelier atmosphere. Nurul Khairunnisa ’25, a previous new Upper and mentor for the new Upper orientation program, appreciated the improvement over last year’s supper, allowing a more comfortable bonding experience with her mentees.
“I would say that this year’s cohort for new Uppers is much larger than last year’s. There’s around 29 new Uppers this year, compared to last year’s 18, if I’m not mistaken. So it’s a much bigger group, whereas last year we [were] all in a room, sitting in a circle, silently, [and] now it’s an actual big event. I think this year’s cohort is a lot more comfortable with each other, maybe because it is such a big one. In terms of all the bonding events, or even just ones where us mentors talk to the mentees, everything [went] a lot more naturally, whereas last year, I remember there were a lot of awkward silences in terms of what kind of questions I should ask because I don’t even know. This year, it was all just really just casual conversation,” said Khairunnisa.
