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Andover to Welcome All Students to Campus for Spring Term

Students must decide whether to remain remote or to return to campus by Friday, February 5.

Andover plans to invite all students to campus for the Spring Term, according to an email sent to students and families from Head of School Raynard Kington; Jennifer Elliott ’94, Assistant Head of School for Residential Life and Dean of Students; and Raj Mundra, Dean of Studies, on Monday. Additionally, the administration announced a widespread return of in-person classes for the Spring Term, a departure from the largely virtual classes from Fall and Winter Term. 

“Looking ahead to Spring Term, we are eager to welcome all students to campus. And we are pleased to share that as many classes as possible will be held in person with safeguards in place. For various reasons, including student choice and required accommodations for some faculty, there will remain a need for some hybrid (or ‘HyFlex’: in-person and remote students in the same class at the same time) and some remote teaching and learning. If, at any point, new data and public health guidance deem it unsafe to conduct in-person learning, we will reconsider our approach,” wrote Kington, Elliott, and Mundra in the email. 

Boarding students will return to campus on Tuesday, March 23, and day students will be allowed on campus on April 2. Boarding students must remain on campus for the duration of the term, and visitors will not be permitted.

“Knowing that the vaccine rollout will likely extend into the summer, we do not anticipate allowing visitors to campus this spring,” wrote Kington, Elliott, and Mundra.

According to the email, all faculty members will be expected to teach in-person classes in the Spring Term with some exceptions. The Spring Term will return to the daily and weekly schedule used in the Fall Term, with 45-minute synchronous classes in three time-bands. The grading scale will remain the same for the midterm (pass, low pass, and fail) and final Spring Term grades (6, 5, 4, P, 1). 

The administration is continuing to design options and solutions to ensure that all students will be able to study and eat indoors. The Snyder Center, the Oliver Wendell Holmes Library, Samuel Phillips Hall, and George Washington Hall will serve as open spaces where students can engage. Tents will re-emerge as soon as the weather allows. Student activities will be offered on the weekends, following local and state guidance for safe gatherings. Additionally, remote options will be available for students who are unable to join their peers on campus. 

Boarders will undergo a mandatory arrival quarantine scheduled to end seven to ten days after arrival or upon their third consecutive negative Covid-19 test result, according to the email. Day students will be welcomed to campus after they quarantine at home and receive a negative test. Additionally, on-campus testing will be conducted twice a week for students, faculty, and staff. 

Throughout the quarantine period, the Paresky Commons team will deliver meals to dormitories. After quarantine ends, the entire community will be allowed to pick up meals in Paresky, and contactless food deliveries from local food establishments will be permitted. Students will be able to eat together in designated areas on campus while honoring expectations.

Spring sports tryouts—including all non-interscholastic sports—will commence immediately following the Spring Vacation quarantine period. During all athletic activities, students, with the exception of swimmers, will be masked. Andover’s participation in Spring Term interscholastic competition is yet to be determined. Unlike the Fall Term, any student participating in club sports, including outside dance classes/programs, must enroll as remote students.

To plan for the Spring Term, the Andover administration held focus groups last week to connect with parents and guardians.

“We are grateful for their partnership, feedback, and creative thinking on ways to make the student experience as engaging as possible this coming spring. We will continue to learn, adapt, and improve.”