News
BUA Earns Accolades at Clark Model UN Conference
On March 28, 16 BUA students attended ClarkMUN, a Model United Nations conference hosted by Clark University in Worcester. They engaged in debate on a variety of topics, ranging from the collapse of the Arab Spring to capitalist exploitation in the popular video game Animal Crossing. Four delegates received awards in their various committees:
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- Best Delegate: Nikki Hadar '27
- Outstanding Delegate: Em Dobre '29
- Outstanding Delegate: Clair Wang '28
- Honorable Mention: Aanya Chakravarthy '27
Congratulations to the whole team on their impressive showing!
Ethics Bowl Season Recap
This year marked an exciting milestone for BUA's Ethics Bowl program: for the first time, we fielded two teams — and both had a lot to be proud of.
Our newly-established second team made their debut at TKE's Ethical Olympiad on April 11, finishing 24th out of 34 teams from across the nation. For a group of freshmen and sophomores competing on the national stage for the first time, this is a especially impressive result. The team — Em Dobre '29, Bronwen Hay '28, and Jaina Mukherji '29 — was led by senior Nick Kohl '26, who deserves special recognition for stepping up to mentor and guide them through their first competition.
Our first Ethics Bowl team, meanwhile, had a historic weekend at the National Championship Bowl, hosted by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Parr Center for Ethics on April 10-12. BUA was one of just 22 finalists from a field that began with roughly 400 teams across 34 states. We are proud to share that the team finished 10th in the nation. Leo Barabasi '27, Margaret Brown '28, Leone Levi D'Ancona '27, Hana Kaneko '27, Geneva Kelleher '27, and Tessa Rice '28 represented BUA with distinction, tackling challenging topics such as whether endangered species should be used for medical research when no alternatives exist, and whether there is a meaningful moral difference between a pastor using AI for administrative writing versus using it to craft a sermon.
Thank you to our students' families for their enthusiasm and support throughout the season. We look forward to the 2027 bowls!
Across Cultures and Continents: BUA Global Travel 2026
Over March break, 28 students and 6 adults traveled to Andalucía, Spain and New Orleans as part of BUA's Global Travel Program.
In Spain, students explored the cultural, religious, and linguistic cross-pollination of the region through visits to Islamic mosques, Catholic cathedrals, Jewish quarters, and spectacular palaces built during the height of Muslim rule in southern Spain. Students observed exquisitely-preserved examples of Islamic geometric forms at the Alhambra and Alcázar palaces, and then had the opportunity to recreate their own at plaster and tiling workshops. The group took in a flamenco performance and then tried their hand at the form at a dance lesson later in the trip.
In New Orleans, students explored how art, music, and culture shape identity and belonging and engaged with themes of creativity, resilience, and social justice through visits to the Lower Ninth Ward and the Whitney Plantation. They dove into the roots of blues and jazz with a workshop led by local musicians and a visit to the New Orleans Jazz Museum, and even took in a performance at the storied Preservation Hall.
BUA extends its sincere gratitude to all trip leaders and chaperones whose dedication and care made these exceptional experiences possible.
BUA Slam Poets Impress at Teen Spoken Word Festival
On March 28, BUA's first-ever slam poetry team — Petra Jones-McKeon '27, Tessa Rice '28, Dora Mou '27, and Jack Despujols '28 — took the stage at Mass Poetry's Teen Spoken Word Festival at Emerson College. At their debut performance, one of the team's poems earned some of the highest marks of the competition. Congratulations to all four poets on a remarkable first outing!
Beyond the Classroom in Spain and New Orleans
Over March break, 28 students and 6 adults traveled to Andalucía, Spain and New Orleans as part of BUA’s Global Travel Program.
In Spain, students explored the cultural, religious, and linguistic cross-pollination of the region through visits to Islamic mosques, Catholic cathedrals, Jewish quarters, and spectacular palaces built during the height of Muslim rule in southern Spain. Students observed exquisitely-preserved examples of Islamic geometric forms at the Alhambra and Alcázar palaces, and then had the opportunity to recreate their own at plaster and tiling workshops. The group took in a flamenco performance and then tried their hand at the form at a dance lesson later in the trip.
Thank you to all the trip leaders and chaperones for creating these meaningful and memorable experiences for our students!
BUA Athletes Earn All-League Honors in Basketball
Congratulations to our student athletes selected for All-League Honors, as well as their coaches, teammates, and parents for helping them achieve this recognition for the BUA athletics program:
GIL Girls Basketball All-League Selections
Lisa Zhou '26
Lauren Sadka '26
Skye Connor '28
Lizzie Elliott '26 (Honorable Mention)
Savannah Conway '28 (Honorable Mention)
GIL MVP: Skye Connor '28
MBIL Division II Boys Basketball All-League Selections
Giorgos Asikis '26
Nathan Capellan '28
Jack Conway '26
Vir Mehta '26 (Honorable Mention)
Mason Chung '27 (Honorable Mention)
MBIL Division II MVP: Giorgos Asikis '26
Math Teacher Zane Ranney Presents at Math in Action Conference
On February 28, math teacher Zane Ranney presented at the Math in Action conference hosted at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan. Mr. Ranney's presentation, entitled "Reimagining Secondary Mathematics: A Problems-Based, Integrated Approach," built on his experience implementing BUA's new problem-based math curriculum, and offered participants an opportunity to solve sample problems in small groups, engage in student-centered discussions, and leave with practical strategies for implementing integrated sequences and designing problems for conceptual understanding in their classrooms.
BUA Students Curate Art Exhibition as part of Boston Lunar New Year Gala
On February 15, Boston City Hall hosted its 4th-annual Boston Lunar New Year Spring Gala. BUA juniors Dora Mou '27 and Cici Ye '27 were invited to curate an art exhibition within the gala, and put together a show entitled "Identity in Transformation" featuring artworks from 40 young artists, including several from BUA -- Dora Mou '27, Cici Ye '27, and Maya Chen '28 -- as well as from schools in Reading, Weston, and Brookline. The show was on display within and outside of Boston City Hall and showcased the diversity of Asian American arts and culture. Congratulations to Dora and Cici on this impressive undertaking!
Bringing Your Full Self to School
To all of our families celebrating the Lunar New Year, we wish you health and happiness. It was lovely to celebrate with so many of you on Thursday at the event organized by the students in the East Asian Student Association (EASA) and their families. I extend warm wishes to our Muslim families who mark the start of Ramadan this week and am grateful to the students in our Middle Eastern and North African Student Association (MENASA) for decorating the lobby and greeting their classmates there this morning with dates and other sweet treats. For some of our families, this time marks the start of the Lent, with Ash Wednesday falling just a few days ago. I was glad to see students in the halls having received ashes on their foreheads earlier in the day.
The way our students marked this confluence of cultural and religious moments – and many others throughout the year – says a lot about the community. I’m so grateful to be at a school where students are not only comfortable bringing their full selves but also proud to share their identities with their friends. Part of the reason for that is the way those friends respond. They show up for each other, as evidenced by the throng of students who packed the Black Box Theater yesterday for the Lunar New Year celebration or the Tu Bishvat seder earlier in the month. They are curious – like the students who lingered to talk with their peers from MENASA or others who paused at the video screen in the lobby offering information about Ramadan. Those habits create an environment where folks want to share and feel like they belong. And we are a better school as a result.
BUA Ethics Bowl Team Wins MA Annual High School Bowl
This week, the BUA Ethics Bowl Team competed at -- and won! -- the Annual High School Ethics Bowl at Tufts University. This year's team is comprised of Hana Kaneko ' 27, Geneva Kelleher '27, Leone Levi D'Ancona '27, Leo Barabasi '27, Margaret Brown '28, and Tessa Rice '28, and is coached by Dr. Jim Davis.
The team not only won this year's bowl but went undefeated through five rounds of competition against schools including BB&N, Philips Academy, the Winsor School, and Deerfield Academy -- a testament to all their hard work and preparation. Among the questions discussed were “should courts permit AI-generated victim statements” and “does offering sentence reductions in exchange for organs count as coercion in a prison context”? The team now goes to the regional competition. If they win this round, it's off to nationals in Chapel Hill. Kudos to all on an impressive competition!