BUA 2030 Strategic Vision

School Sports vs. Sports School

As the winter athletic season comes to a close and the spring season is set to begin, I’ve been thinking a lot about sports and how proud I am of our athletic culture. BUA is not a “sports school” according to the conventional meaning of that phrase in New England independent schools. This is not a place students and families choose because our teams will face elite competition and be visited by scouts. We offer a limited menu of two or three interscholastic sports per season, competing against similar-sized schools in the sports our kids are most excited about. As our long-serving athletic director, Mr. Stone, likes to quip, our football team remains undefeated since the school’s founding – because we have never had one.

And I wouldn’t change a thing. What we have is precious and increasingly unusual. There is a vibrant and healthy sports culture characterized by joining. Students who have not played soccer since elementary school or have never picked up a foil take up those sports, often playing alongside classmates who have significant experience and skill. While we have no formal team-sports requirement, about two-thirds of our students play at least one team sport each year – with many playing two or three seasons. While it’s not how we measure the program, that culture of participation has actually led to a nice string of championships over the past few years.
Sports are also where some of the most important learning happens. We celebrate the sportsmanship, teamwork, grit, and work ethic young people pick up along the way. Sports are one of the few places kids can learn from failure. They build self confidence and lifelong healthy habits. Plus, sports are fun and build community spirit, both for the players and those of us on the sidelines.

What’s troubling is how increasingly unusual this is. The drive for specialization and professionalization of athletics at earlier and earlier ages is understandable, particularly given the unfortunate incentives built into admissions in this country’s selective colleges. But it is taking a toll on the mental and physical health of our young people – and in some cases taking the joy out of something that’s supposed to be fun. We are a better school for our sports program and sports culture, and I hope we see a shift in this direction more broadly in the coming years.

Celebrating our Cultures – Together

This morning, we were all greeted in the lobby by students in the Middle Eastern and North African Student Association, who had brought dates, figs, and other treats for the community in celebration and anticipation of Ramadan, which begins next Friday. Last week, students from the Black Student Union hosted a fun, cookout-themed evening event, which was open to the whole community and featured personal testimonials by students and some excellent food. In the same week, the Jewish Students Organization organized a beautiful Tu Bishvat seder – an important moment for sharing and connection. All of this was fresh off some lovely and well attended cultural events through the fall and early winter: a Lunar New Year celebration sponsored by the East Asian Students Association, where the gym was filled with a delicious buffet, games, and good cheer; a school-wide breakfast hosted by the Latin American Student Association; a garba in celebration of Navratri sponsored by the South Asian Students Association. And there is more to come.

In our experience, sharing our cultures, traditions, stories, and identities builds community. It creates space for students to bring out parts of themselves that are important. It promotes belonging, especially when the doors are open wide to all members of the community. Our experience with events like these runs counter to the growing worry in our society that focusing on an individual’s identity is Balkanizing. Our identities are complex, multi-faceted, and central to who we are. When shared, they can bring us together.

I am grateful to the student organizers, their families, Dr. Alvarez, and Ms. Petertam for bringing us together in these moments.

What You Do, Not Where You Go

I was talking with a BUA alumnus who is now well established in his career in the world of finance. We spent some time talking about hiring and the market for talent. At one point, he shared that his firm used to hire almost exclusively from the most highly selective colleges and universities in the country through on-campus recruiting programs. His firm stopped that practice recently. When I asked why, he explained that in part it was because they had been missing out on so many really strong applicants at the top of their classes at colleges outside that rarified set of schools, and that some of those applicants have turned out to be the rising stars at the firm. A look at the wide range of colleges that America’s top CEOs attended seems to confirm our alum’s observation.

Of course the country’s most selective institutions have a lot to offer and can be a great fit for some students. But what makes a college the right fit for a given student has vanishingly little to do with where a school falls on a ranking list and everything to do with how well that community matches the student. What kind of classmates do you learn best with? What kind of setting makes you happy and motivated? What do you want to study, and does the college have a particular strength in that area? Are there professors you would be excited to work with, labs you want to work in, archives you want to explore, clubs you want to join? We are so fortunate to have college counselors who take the time to get to know each student, help them discover what they are looking for, and work with them to identify colleges that could be a great fit.

And if you do find a great fit, it makes it much more likely that you will make the most of the experience. What does that look like? Excelling in rigorous coursework in a field you are passionate about. Refining your interests. Engaging in original research. Founding or leading a campus organization. Making deep connections with one or two professors who become mentors and advocates through graduate school and career. Making friends who will form a powerful network and support system for life. Those are the things that are the best predictors of fulfillment and success after college. After two decades working with high schoolers, I have seen that pattern play out many times over.

For more on this topic, I’d recommend Frank Bruni’s 2015 book “Where You Go Is Not Who You’ll Be” or his accompanying New York Times opinion piece, “How to Survive the College Admissions Madness” as good starting points.