Communications provides input to the weekly Deerfield Families FYI electronic newsletter; and reviews and updates the DPN web pages. For more information and to get involved please contact:
VP’s:
Events is focused on campus events—such as tours of Historic Deerfield and group hikes to the Rock during Fall and Family Weekends, regional welcome gatherings for new students and their families during the summer, and the Friday night year-end Senior party for all graduating students and their parents and guardians. For more information and to get involved please contact:
VP’s:
First Link is a mentoring program that welcomes and integrates new families to the Academy. For more information and to get involved, please contact:
VP’s:
Travis Acquavella P’25
Julia Cuddihy Van Nice P’25
Leslee Mackenzie P’21,’24
Mary Read P’24
The Inclusion Committee collaborates with the Academy’s Dean of Inclusion and Community Life and others on campus to create a community that is supportive and inclusive of all Deerfield parents and guardians. Some of these efforts include:
VP’s:
The Nominating Committee thoughtfully and carefully considers potential Steering Committee candidates. For more information and/or to share suggestions for candidates, please contact:
VP’s:
Schools such as Deerfield no longer serve “in the place of parents,” but rather, “alongside parents.” The goal of our Parents Network is help enhance the Deerfield Experience for all students and their families through several initiatives. As a Deerfield parent, you are already part of the DPN. If you would like to help with any of the initiatives described here, or with new projects as they develop, please email the Deerfield Parents Network. Thank you!
The DPN’s signature program is the First Link, which organizes contacts between current Deerfield parents and the families of newly-enrolled students each spring. Experienced parents offer words of welcome and share their knowledge of the workings of the school. The First Link program also encourages and helps to organize gatherings of current and incoming families as one step to ease the transition to campus life.
Specific content varies, but every edition of the FYI contains important (and helpful!) reminders and notices for parents and guardians, announcements and information, and links to photos and videos that give everybody a fun glimpse into “life on campus.”
Accidentally deleted last week’s FYI? Just can’t find it in your inbox anymore? See below for an archive of editions for the current school year. Enjoy! (And please feel free to reach out to the Deerfield Academy Communications Office if you have any questions. Thank you.)
These newsletters are a great vehicle for sharing information and inviting informed parent involvement in the life of the Deerfield community. They are also the Academy’s primary means of sharing official “news and notices” with parents.
Past DPN-authored articles have included parent perspectives on the DA experience, tips for dealing with common challenges students might encounter, and information that helps parents understand the array of supportive services that Deerfield offers. Parent suggestions for topics of interest and parent perspective pieces are welcome; please contact DPN Vice Presidents for Communications, Carlos Fierro P’22,’23,’25 and Steve Harrick ’89 P’23 with your suggestions.
The DPN Steering Committee holds annual meetings during Family Weekends, usually early on Saturday mornings, and all current parents and guardians are welcome to attend. If you would like to get involved in any of our programs, just ask! We welcome your participation. Go Big Green!
Please view the full academy calendar for the official and most up-to-date list of events, vacation start/end times, future year events, and more. You can download and print out an important-dates reminder card for the 2023-2024 school year.
| August 28-29, 2023 | Students Arrive on Campus |
| August 30, 2023 | First Day of Classes |
| September 3, 2023 | Convocation |
| October 20-22, 2023 | Fall Family Weekend |
| October 23-24, 2023 | Fall Term Holidays |
| November 17, 2023 | November Break (starts at noon) |
| November 27, 2023 | Students Return (by 7:45 pm) |
| November 28, 2023 | Winter Term Begins |
| December 14, 2023 | Winter Break (starts at noon) |
| January 2, 2024 | Students Return (by 7:45 pm) |
| January 3, 2024 | Winter Term Continues |
| February 1-5, 2024 | Long Winter Weekend (starts at noon, students return by 7:45 pm) |
| March 1, 2024 | Winter Term Ends Spring Break (begins at noon) |
| March 17, 2024 | Students Return (by 7:45 pm) |
| March 18, 2024 | Spring Term Begins |
| April 19-21, 2024 | Spring Family Weekend |
| May 26, 2024 | Last Day of Classes |
| May 26, 2024 | Commencement |
| May 27, 2024 | Students Depart (at 2 pm) |
Note: For vacations and long weekends, students may not leave prior to their last regularly scheduled class, assessments, or cocurricular assignment; schedule changes should not be requested to accommodate travel plans. Dormitories close the day after school vacations begin and all students should arrange to be off campus by that time.
The First Link program is part of the Deerfield Parents Network geared towards building new relationships among parents within the Deerfield community. Over the years, it has become an important and valuable tradition.
The Deerfield Parents Network (DPN) is an organization aimed at building partnerships among Deerfield parents, and between parents and the Academy. Schools like Deerfield no longer serve “in the place of parents,” but rather “along side of parents.” The goal of the Parents Network is to improve the Deerfield experience for all students and their families through several initiatives.
The Deerfield Parents Network does not have a formal office. The network of parents, staff, and volunteers spans the globe.
Sending an email to dpn@deerfield.edu is a good first point of contact for general inquiries. We’ll help you get in touch with members to answer your questions or help you to get involved.
There are many ways for a parent to volunteer. You can join the First Link program; you can attend student performances or athletic events; or make a contribution in programs that benefit students and the Academy’s efforts to create the best environment for learning.
7 Boyden Lane, PO Box 87, Deerfield, MA 01342
NOTICE OF NONDISCRIMINATORY POLICY AS TO STUDENTS: Deerfield Academy admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.
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