Katie Powell '02

Soon the third floor of the Main School Building will no longer be filled with music and dancers hard at work.

The construction of the new dance center is almost completed, and is expected to be in full use by September, 2000.

Member of the advanced dance class, Anna Edwin '03 said, "Every dancer needs her space to practice and perform. Now, finally, the facilities we need are being provided. I'm really excited!"

The studio, located directly behind the large auditorium, will include office space, restrooms, a costume closet, dressing rooms, and audience space that the previous center lacked.

The studio will provide forty by sixty feet of usable floor space, compared to the thirty-two by thirty-two feet of the old center, and will more than suitably accommodate the dancers and instructors.

Though dance instructor Jennifer Whitcomb is enthusiastic about the new center, she is sad to leave the old studio which introduced dance to Deerfield Academy just eleven years ago.

Though she will miss the little things like the pigeons on the skylight that used to watch classes, Ms. Whitcomb said of the new center, "It is not only a vote of confidence in dance at Deerfield, but also a manifestation of years of dreaming about a top notch studio."

Colleen Bowen '01

Over $50,000 worth of stolen paintings and electronic equipment, missing since February 26, was recovered Friday, March 31, by Massachusetts State Police. These items, stolen from Deerfield's Behrend Room in the gymnasium, were found in the Worcester, MA, home of Stuart Nelson.

Mr. Nelson is currently being held on $20,000 bail. Charged with felony, larceny from a building, and breaking and entering, Mr. Nelson "could be facing a sentence of 5-7 years," said Deerfield Security Director Dave Gendron.

Mr. Nelson entered the gymnasium mid-day Saturday in what were described as normal clothes. The girls' varsity basketball noticed Mr. Nelson with a few of the paintings and assumed he was either a custodian of the school or sanctioned to restore the artwork.

One girl ironically jested as to Mr. Nelson's intentions, which inspired others to take note of his appearance. A later identification of Mr. Nelson authorized a warrant to search his apartment under probable cause.

Police recovered items from the academy, which Mr. Nelson intended to sell, as well as items from Smith College, the University of Massachusetts, Holy Cross College, Dartmouth College, and other nearby schools.

Mr. Gendron, along with other members of the Deerfield security team, has been working hard to emphasize an increased awareness of other such problems. His suggestions included locking windows at night, locking doors when leaving one's room for an extended period, and keeping locks on bikes. Mr. Gendron emphasized a heightened awareness and community effort to make Deerfield a safer campus.

Erin Turban '02

Imagine being given the opportunity to design and perform your own long-term science experiment. Imagine having computer technology resources fully accessible in all mathematics and science courses. These learning options may all be available in the future through the construction of a new mathematics, science, and technology complex.

The campaign for a new mathematics and science center began two years ago, when a campus planning committee, with help of Berkshire Design, a professional planning group, conducted a study of the school's facilities. The study recognized the school's impending need for additional mathematics and technology space, as well as an eventual upgrade of the technology, heating, and ventilation systems in the Helen Childs Boyden Science Center.

The new complex would be built as an addition to the existing science center and planetarium and would include new mathematics classrooms, technology labs and offices, a medium-sized auditorium, and extra science laboratory space.

The additional laboratory space would provide students and faculty with the room to perform long-term, in-depth, and personalized experiments. Additionally, the integration of technology services with the mathematics and science departments would provide the opportunity for more computer analysis and internet use in classes.

The new auditorium would seat approximately two hundred people and attract guest teachers and speakers from surrounding schools to conduct group lectures and joint classes.

At present, the academy's steering Committee as well as the mathematics and science advisor chairs are discussing potential designs and funding for the project. Although, the planning is still in the preliminary stages, David Koch '58, who donated money for the pool and track, has funded the planning process. Over a year of designing and research of similar complexes would precede any design decisions.

No matter what the future may hold, the administration is keeping the best interests of Deerfield students at heart. As Mike Sheridan. Academy business manager, said, "We are looking to put Deerfield in the best position for the future."

Chad DeLuca '01

The first day of practice has come and gone, and the hard work of those at Deerfield who constructed Headmaster's Field has come to a close for the season. The new field features a new electric scoreboard in left-center field and a removable four-foot-high fence surrounding the outfield. It is 330 feet down the left and right field lines and 400 feet to dead center. Each team has its own bullpen near the bench, featuring backstops and raised mounds. Recent additions include bleachers with room for 200 people. According to James Dunning '01 and Tyler Hassen '01 future plans include a flagpole, and dugouts are under consideration.

As published in the April 19, 2000 issue of the Deerfield Scroll, the monthly newspaper of Deerfield Academy.