In a senior class meeting on Jan. 29, Senior Grade Deans Leah Cataldo and Cecile Roucher-Greenberg announced the establishment of a “Senior Holiday,” which took place on Feb. 24 and replaced the typical “Senior Skip Day.” In the same meeting, it was announced that “Senior Stealth Tag” would be changed. With two traditions altered, concern grew among the senior class about the latter half of their final year at the Upper School (US).
Previously, Senior Skip Day unofficially took place annually on the Monday following the Super Bowl. A large portion of the senior class would not attend school or athletic practices, instead taking the day to see friends and catch up on sleep.
In an email sent to senior families on Jan. 29, the senior grade deans wrote that Senior Holiday aims to bring relaxation to the grade, just as Senior Skip Day did in the past.
“We hope that the Senior Holiday provides some time for our seniors to catch their breath as they head into the final two weeks of the winter trimester and the last stretch of their traditional high school schedule before Senior Spring Project.”
Although Senior Skip Day previously accomplished relaxation, not all students could participate, the deans said. The school’s “10:30 rule,” which requires that a student be in school by 10:30 to attend afternoon commitments, posed an issue for seniors on varsity athletic teams. Various seniors were required to come into school on the skip day for academic conflicts, as well.
To combat these issues, Senior Holiday excused all seniors from school while mandating participation in all afternoon commitments, such as athletic practices, play rehearsals, and musical ensembles.
In a joint statement, Dr. Cataldo and Mme. Roucher-Greenberg explained the holiday allows for increased participation.
“We are totally in support of the Senior Holiday as a replacement for the Senior Skip Day. It is a more equitable approach to celebrating our seniors, as well.”
Senior Class Vice President Eddie Jiang ’25 acknowledged the benefits of the new holiday.
“We would see 10 to 20 seniors in school because they had to make varsity sports. Now, they are able to skip school and still come to practice after.”
The Senior Grade Council had little input in the planning process, Eddie said.
“We didn’t have much say in whether this was going to be carried out. It was mainly the deans.”
In early January, Dr. Cataldo and Mme. Roucher-Greenberg informed the Grade Council of their idea for the holiday, and the school’s administration approved the plan to hold the holiday on Feb. 10. Just a few weeks later, the deans reported that because Dajae Williams was scheduled to speak at the US on Feb. 10, the holiday would be pushed to Feb. 24. The Grade Council was initially unaware of the date change when they approved Senior Holiday.
Senior Student Council Representative Eliza Cohen ’25 emphasized the lack of impact she had on the final date, she said.
“We didn’t know a lot about the logistics, mainly the fact that they switched the day, which turned out to be something that people took issue with a lot,” she said. “The deans didn’t come back and say it wouldn’t be on the typical day. That was out of our hands.”
Some seniors proposed skipping Feb. 10 in addition to Senior Holiday, a suggestion that US English Teacher Wes Williams heard in both his senior class and advisory. However, choosing to skip both the days was unreasonable, he said.
“I understand that seniors might feel especially exhausted nearing the end of the term,” he said. “However, they get the entire spring off, a gift unlike any other school I’ve ever worked at. To not keep that in mind and to be so short-sighted as to complain about not having yet another ditch day seems less mature than I’d hoped.”
Mr. Williams’ concern did not play out, however. Fewer than 10 students were absent on the day after the Super Bowl, possibly due to Dr. Cataldo’s announcement during the Jan. 29 class meeting that senior prom would be canceled if a large number of students were absent on Feb. 10.
In the same class meeting on Jan. 29, it was announced Senior Stealth Tag would not occur as it had in the past due to an incident last year (See Volume 53, Issue 1: “Students shatter door, threaten senior tradition”). The Senior Grade Council subsequently began working to brainstorm potential alternatives. Despite the Grade Council’s early attempts, Senior Student Council Representative James Constan ’25 believed it would be difficult to come up with a solution, he said.
“My guess was that nothing would happen because people would be very resistant to it,” he said. “I think this is like an injustice. Our class didn’t do anything wrong, but now we’re being punished for it. People are just so caught up with that, so they would find it impossible to compromise and produce a fair resolution. Life isn’t fair.”
In collaboration with the Senior Grade Council, Dr. Cataldo, Mme. Roucher-Greenberg, US Director Jessica Keimowitz, and US Dean of Students Rory Morton decided that Stealth Tag would be shortened from the typical five-day event to just two, a source close to the process said. If student behavior meets expectations during those two days, it may continue the rest of the week. The news was announced in a senior grade meeting on March 5.
Communication between involved faculty was unorganized, according to an anonymous senior.
“There’s definitely a disconnect from the deans and administration,” they said. “Compared to other years, the grade deans have much more of a footprint in senior year. A lot of times it feels very controlling as opposed to helpful.”
Josh Curhan ’25 felt frustrated by the change, he said.
“The school sometimes struggles to feel like a community,” he said. “This is one of the traditions that students actually love to play, and it creates community among the seniors during their last weeks of school. This tradition works, but they’re getting rid of it.”
Naomi Hammerschlag ’25 was disappointed with the lack of an already-established replacement for Stealth Tag, she said.
“It seemed like they didn’t come in with some sort of backup plan. It was just, ‘Oh, we’re taking this away from you, and you don’t get to say anything right now.’ You just feel so powerless.”
Naomi feels the Stealth Tag and Senior Skip Day alterations are negatively coloring her final months at the US, she said.
“It’s just so much at once, and they keep piling things on,” she said. “It’s just kind of sad. It feels like they’re being so strict this year about a lot of things. I want senior year to be fun.”
