Rawson Declares Principal's Day, Campus Rejoices
In a peculiar message delivered to the student body yesterday, Principal William Rawson—dubbed “Rawz, the Great and Powerful” for this special occasion—urged the student body to find him the broomstick of the Wicked Witch of the West. Upper Sophia Rosati located the hidden broom near the Goel Center for Theater and Dance shortly after and Rawson, to the delight of many Exonians, declared Thursday, May 2, to be Principal’s Day, relieving all students, faculty and many staff members of their normal duties.
According to Rawson, Principal’s Day festivities will include a showing of “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” in the Elizabeth Phillips Academy Center and a barbecue at 4:30 p.m. at Elm Street Dining Hall featuring lawn games, a disc jockey and s’mores. Though appointments will be canceled, regular operations will resume at 6 p.m..
This year’s Principal’s Day marks Rawson’s first; it is also the first time the majority of adults are getting the day off. “I am particularly pleased that, for the first time ever, Principal’s Day applies to the entire adult community, though some will have to take their day off later,” Rawson said. Campus operations will cease or be minimally staffed as a result.
Dining Services will streamline its operations in addition to serving a barbecue. The Grill and Wetherell Dining Hall will not be open on Principal’s Day. “Dining Services Management Team are working tomorrow to provide food services for our Community. Most of our staff will have the day off,” Director of Dining Services Melinda Leonard said.
Some expressed concerns about Thursday’s dreary weather forecast. “Several members of the administrative team tried to find a day with the fewest conflicts that would work best for the community as a whole,” Rawson said. “The day is chosen far enough in advance that, unfortunately, we cannot work around bad weather.”
Despite these setbacks, Rawson hopes that the community will enjoy the day off.
Rawson’s broom challenge generated much excitement among students and many joined the hunt. Rosati took up the challenge with upper Ethan Rosenthal, upper Angus Scott and lower Allison Hanlon. While they were searching, she recalled a familiar mantra: “Follow the yellow brick road.” By chance, she stumbled upon one. “I trudged along toward the gym, and what do I see? One of the stone bricks in front of Goel has yellow chalk covering it. I walk toward it and see two more, so I keep going,” she recalled. Eventually, the chalk led her to a lampost with the broom attached to it. Hanlon recorded Rosati as she discovered the broom. The footage is available on the Academy’s Instagram page.
Many Exonians were eager to take some time off. “I have no structured plans, but I will not be working,” lower Colin Vernet said. “I’m going to sleep until about noon—anyone reading The Exonian knows the pressures faced by Exonians on a daily basis. We’re stressed out people, but you’ve heard that before.”
Despite the short notice of the Principal’s Day announcement, some were still able to plan last-minute outings. Upper Jasmine Liao planned a shopping trip to Boston “within minutes” of the announcement. “I got a call from a friend, who said we were going to Boston,” she recalled. “I didn’t have an Out of Town… so I ran to [the Academy Center] to get a signature and dropped it off.”
New students in particular are looking forward to the experience of Principal’s Day. “I went to a public middle school, and there couldn’t be much deviation from the general timeline,” prep Kendrah Su said. “If we had a snow day, we had to quickly make it up… It’s pretty exciting for this to be such a spontaneous and Exeter thing.” Su was eager to fill her day with memorable experiences, such as dinner with friends.
While Rawson is uncertain how he will spend his own Principal’s Day, he is eager to engage with the community. “I will enjoy seeing the school community enjoying a much needed day of rest and fun tomorrow,” he said.