Dear Freshmen Grade Council,

Thank you for this response. The whole point of our editorials is to spark conversation, so hearing your opinions on our writing, even if it’s a call to challenge what we wrote, is important and healthy. First off, and this is my most important message, we, and I speak on behalf of the seniors here, love you guys. We are really glad you are in the Upper School. How can a community feel energized and imaginative without fresh(men) perspectives? How can an athletic team win without new talent? How can we, as seniors, take on a role model persona without having people to whom we are role models?

And this brings me to my second point. I stand by what was said. I am not going to apologize for what we wrote. It was meticulously edited, thought about, and crafted. It was ironic, heavily sarcastic, and like most editorials, exaggerated to get a point across. While poking fun at you, it pokes fun at us, the seniors, too, since we create this “letter writer” as some high-strung, preachy senior who somehow has the right to tell others what to do (which we in truth do not). However, I apologize for not adding a section making it clear this is not an attack towards the Class of 2026; it is a critique on the bothersome freshman habits that happen each year at BB&N. We, the Class of 2023, modeled the same habits when we were freshmen, and this editorial could have been written any other year. Yes, we chose this year because from what we see, some of your habits are a bit exaggerated compared to past years, but what do we know? This is the first mask-less and hybrid-less year we have had in high school. And you were coming from middle school in a pandemic, so we don’t blame you for still figuring out your role along with us.

And to address your point about COVID, we went from freshman spring to the summer before senior year wearing masks and having hybrid school. We did not feel your same trauma, but we felt our own trauma, too. I felt ready to poke fun at my own, so I felt it was appropriate to talk about yours, too. But it appears the wound is still more raw than I anticipated, and I apologize for making humor in a topic you’re not ready to laugh at. Now, speaking from my personal point of view, I am really glad you are here. I have deeply enjoyed getting to know you guys from track and cross-country, interactions in the halls, and sometimes as new Vanguard writers, too. I care about you guys, and I hope you keep making BB&N your own because what’s the fun of a new grade if they’re just going to roll over and be dull without adding fun, joy, intelligence, laughter, and a little bit of chaos, too.

Sincerely,

Ford Legg, Editor-in-Chief of The Vanguard, Volume 51