Members of the Board of Trustees visited campus last week for their annual Winter Trustee Meeting, stopping by numerous dorms, classes, and athletic practices. According to Dianne Domenech-Burgos, Chief of Staff and Assistant Head of School for Strategic Planning, many Trustees arrived on campus as early as Wednesday evening or Thursday morning. This was a noticeable shift from the Board’s typical Thursday evening arrival in previous years.
Trustee Keith Flaherty ’89 P ’23 said the Board opted for an extended stay this year to have more time to engage with the current campus community and create a better future for Andover. Flaherty also recognized that as not all Trustees have the firsthand experience of being an Andover parent, this visit provided the entire board the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of current student life.
“The trustees want to keep their fingers on the pulse of what is going on on campus at the individual level. With the exception of Dr. Kington and Tamara Rogers [AA ’70], the trustees are all alumni and attended Andover when it looked similar but felt very different. Therefore, we felt it was important to better understand a typical day in the life of an Andover community member, which is why we prioritized arriving earlier than past trustee weekends. The trustees are always looking to gain insight into what the ideal Andover looks like for future students, as well as what aspects to preserve and protect,” wrote Flaherty in an email to The Phillipian.
He continued, “Additionally, as a local parent, I [have] had a unique vantage point into ‘modern’ Andover life. Some of our trustees don’t have that perspective; so this past weekend was an opportunity for everyone on the board to peer into Andover life.”
Amy Falls ’89, P ’19, ’21, President of the Board of Trustees, highlighted the importance of demystifying the role of a Trustee by sharing information with students and engaging in campus life. Additionally, Falls shared how this weekend, the Trustees sought to experience the nuanced parts of student life, from dorm life to passing periods.
“There’s a lot of mystery around [being a Trustee] that doesn’t have to be that way. My job is to make sure we disseminate information amongst students about all these different important things that contribute to Andover. That’s one thing I’ve appreciated about sitting down with students to take away that mystery and pull back that curtain,” said Falls.
Falls continued, “We [as trustees] think we understand [the campus experience], but we probably don’t. We felt like it was good to at least go to a couple of classes, an athletics practice, and [final] sign-in. It’s not going to replicate the whole experience, but it’s trying to get as close as we can to what it feels like to walk across campus in a snowstorm or go from classes right to practice.”
Allegra Lee ’27 recounted the trustees’ visit to her dorm, Johnson Hall, on Thursday night, describing it as an opportunity to put faces to a group she usually only hears about in a formal context.
“The trustees were all hanging out in the common room with the house counselors. They actually set up a whole table of treats for me and all my dormmates, and they were little bags of cookies, and there was a hot chocolate bar. It was really sweet. [The Trustees] introduced themselves and told us a little bit about their lives. From what I understand, they were coming to see what life was like in a typical dorm, and just get to know us. [The Board of Trustees is] kind of this faraway entity that no one knows about, but we know they do a lot of work for the school. To see them in person and to have a better sense of who they are, not just what they do, is significant,” said Lee.
Takunda Basvi ’28, another student in Johnson Hall, detailed some aspects of her conversation with the trustees who visited the dorm. She spoke with Amy Falls in particular about the experiences that shaped her career.
“We talked about the career that they were in, and what they were doing, and the path that they took to get there, and it was really interesting. I was talking to Amy Falls and she manages the money for Northwestern University, which is a 15 billion dollar endowment. It was really interesting to hear her talk about the logistics of that and the [journey] to getting there,” said Basvi.
Domenech-Burgos spearheaded preparations for the weekend. She shared how the extended weekend came to fruition and her hopes for the new format in future Winter Trustee weekends.
“We decided that we wanted to try this back in November when the [Trustees] came. I talked to Amy Falls, then she presented it to the board and said ‘This is what we’re thinking’.
We had attempted [an extended weekend] in the past but this time the response was wonderful on behalf of the Trustees. Almost all of them raised their hands [and said] that they’d be available to come. The planning started right away. It was Christmas break in between. but we managed to get it all together,” said Domenech-Burgos.
Domenech-Burgos continued, “I would love for them, at least for the winter terms, to come early, so that they could do more things.”
Editor’s Note: Four members of The Phillipian contributed to this article, including Editor in Chief Micheal Kawooya, News Editor Prisha Shivani, and News Editor Jeanne Kosciusko-Morizet.
