On the final Thursday before March break, seniors and faculty gather for one last night of goodbyes before embarking upon Senior Spring Project, and — through organized games and a notorious trivia contest — they get the chance to reminisce. Trivia has been the go-to activity for the last five years, but that hasn’t always been the case.
Faculty and students used to perform skits in which they impersonated one another, a night sources recall as full of laughs. Unfortunately, some impressions became dicey and unintentionally left either students or teachers offended; it rarely occurred, but it happened enough to the point where the skits were discontinued, according to Upper School Math Teacher Mark Fidler.
“It was a very funny, powerful evening,” he said. “But there’s a line. The closer you get to that line, the funnier it is. But you risk going over it. They wanted it to be a completely safe space for everyone, but you can’t make a totally safe space.”
While the concern surrounding these skits is inevitable, we here at The Vanguard can’t help but wish the tradition would return.
While trivia is undoubtedly fun, the skits are an intimate activity that show two strengths in our community: 1) we care deeply about each other, and 2) we pay attention to each other to the point where we can do impersonations. At a school in which the largest class size is 20 and a grade is just 140 students, it is a privilege that we get to know each other — and our teachers — so closely; skits highlight the very best aspects of this.
Perhaps there is concern over highlighting negative qualities of our peers. However, as students, if we are worried about being ratted out through these skits, perhaps we shouldn’t have done something wrong in the first place! Doesn’t this hold us accountable in a lighthearted way?
In the past, students were required to have their skits pre-approved but would often make last-minute, offensive changes. This time around, let’s have an adult equipped with a printout of the skit, and, the moment a student goes off-script, the adult must call to end it. This will ensure respectful, regulated impressions.
We understand the concern that comes with potential offense, but we believe that it is worth the risk. Seriously, we can take it.
Perhaps this connects to a larger theme, too: The school giving us too much “padding.” For example, teachers aren’t allowed to discuss politics or ask us anything college-related, extensions are given out like free candy and there isn’t the slightest fragment of a dress code. Our skin has become too thin. We pride ourselves on being an immensely rigorous institution, yet the hand-holding is getting a bit insane. We want to be prepared for life beyond high school by the time we leave, not perpetually protected by a fragile bubble that has been placed around us.
Thus, we say bring it on. To the faculty, facilitate difficult conversations in our classrooms, turn down an unnecessary extension and call us out when some of us choose to wear pajamas to school. We’re tired of being treated like we’re fragile, we’re tired of being soft and we’re ready to be offended — whether it be through skits or not — as we prepare to take on the real world.
