The Last Writes of the 138th Board
Executive Board
We started our tenure having already realized—and having been partly inspired by—the general truth that The Exonian is the definitive historical record of the Academy. But ours was a board where this truth held more steadfast and more consequentially than for most others. It seems the nature of history to progress in a subtle manner, noticed only in retrospect. And yet, we feel we can claim that in the course of our board’s stint, history—the dynamic kind that fills the pages of our textbooks—really occurred before our very eyes.
In particular, a former real estate magnate acceded to our country’s highest-ranking office, the candidates for which passed through the town’s very streets and worked their way into the pages of our publication. That’s just one example; on a level narrower in scope but one certainly of no less importance, our school community reeled in response to its own kind of phenomena. Louis N. Browning ’50, objecting to the composition of the Academy’s student body, requested that his family’s name be stripped from Browning House. A senior seminar led by Fred Grandy ’66 was canceled after students protested his alleged Islamophobic sentiments. Stories of sexual misconduct on the part of former faculty members came to light. With all these occurrences came perceptible changes in campus-wide culture and discussion, and those shifts pushed our journalistic skills beyond belief.
Replete with heightened cortisol levels and harried nights, the experience of servicing the newspaper has held true to our inceptive maxim; we came, we saw, we reported, sensibly and thoroughly, notwithstanding administrative pushback, logistical difficulties, emotions ran rampant. We documented history at a level more intimate than others could manage. And while doing so, we acted as an organ for students, faculty and alumni alike.
So we end our tenure calling upon our successors to keep on seeking those stories of consequence; to continue putting them into print; to carry on, not without humility, the storied legacy of the oldest continuously running preparatory school newspaper in the country. We wish the 139th board well.
-Hannah, Philip and Alan
News
Hello to readers, writers, friends, family and new editors!
We came into our editorship just over a year ago and the time since has been one of the greatest, most interesting and most challenging journeys of our Exeter careers. While we were just pawns to the almighty masters above, we quickly developed a method and rapport that we’re proud to say has been unmatched by any other sections. We have discussed life, bylines, layout and article angles for hours on weekends, Tuesdays, Facebook Messenger and so many Wednesdays. So many Wednesdays. We are so grateful to have grown with each other, to have learned how to better speak up and problem solve, especially interpersonally and to help young journalists understand the passion that we three feel so strongly.
Our community has faced several challenging issues. Throughout the year, The Boston Globe reported on a series of alleged sexual misconduct cases that occurred in the 70s and 80s and later, revealed an allegedly-mishandled sexual misconduct case between students. As we struggled to make sense of these events, we found ourselves in The Exonian office, working in our News section, the place where we first found our voices. Each week, we provided unbiased investigation and reporting to our community. We pursued an all-school sexual misconduct survey to provide volume to all student voices and strike at the root of our issues. As editors of the paper, this is our commitment to our community, and it is one in which we have taken great pride and will continue to uphold in our lives beyond our roles as editors as they now come to a close. We are confident that the 139th board will continue this important role, this legacy of service. We are so proud of the work they have done already as writers and are excited to see the work they do and the challenges they meet as they grow as editors. We hand off the baton with trust, excitement and a great sense of nostalgia.
-Joonho, Melissa and Henrietta
Opinions
So ends our tenure as Opinions editors: having overseen both the most cataclysmic political victory in the history of the Republic, and on the home front, the turbulent wake of sexual misconduct. A year ago, we three acceded to this office by pledging our section to an intellectual activism. Future readers be willing, the fruits of our labor—not to mention that of our contributors—will be remembered as such. Though swells and tides may have rocked our fickle hearts, Opinions remained an altar to reason and rhetoric, and her writers their devotees. As goes the maxim, it is one thing to feel, another to argue.
And we have indeed argued. Our writers argued in their columns, contributors in their letters and the board in its editorials. We three even argued amongst each other in the office—though always in the service of Opinions. It is comforting to think, and perhaps it can be granted by our current readers, that all our arguing produced a section that provided a valuable digest of all the happenings that our sister sections reported on this year.
Should our reader not be so generous as to agree, they must still concede our more tangible accomplishments. We found Opinions as it was then, and have left it a section with letters-to-the-editor, columnists, board editorials and a new overall layout. Such is the spread that we bequeath to Année, Eleanor and Jack. We are proud of it, but even more so of these next Opinions editors.
Through their submissions, all three have demonstrated their talent and commitment to the 138th board’s ideals. Now comes their chance to pursue theirs. And there is no reason to doubt that they may well succeed our watch not only literally, but in terms of literary merit. Further progress, whatever the direction, shall be made.
Of course, this all paints quite the halcyon picture. To our new editors, therefore, we tell that nothing in this world worth doing is easy—and let us simply state that this work is extremely worth doing. And that is all we three will say so that one day, there may come a time when Année, Eleanor and Jack may look back on their fair share of hardships, and know in the end that those too were the good times.
-Ellena, Ahmad and Eugene
Life
The Exeter Life section has had an eventful year! While keeping the classics such as movie reviews and senior spotlights, the Life section has had some updates. We have added a weekly Green Corner article to give insight into the activities of the environmental clubs on campus, as well as ESSO in Action to keep Exeter up to date with the happenings of our school’s very own community service organization. With Jenny away in the fall, upper Sophia Zu stepped up to fill an interim editor position. We are really grateful for her help and look forward to seeing her work as a News editor. We wish the new board a wonderful year and can’t wait to see how they will make the Life section their own.
-Jenny Hunt and Bella Edo
Humor
“KACHOW” -RC
“Salami?” -Majestic
“Ctrl+Z.” -Elizabeth
Sports
The 138th board was proud to cover Exeter’s teams for the duration of our tenure. Through the winter, spring and fall, we were there to experience Big Red’s highs and lows with the help of our wonderful writers. We wish the 139th board great success, along with all of the winter team sports! Go Big Red!
-Nolan, CJ and Christine