By Julia Conway '05

Four hundred people, fifty schools, and five days of new friends, ideas, and experiences. The Round Square Conference and the international spotlight descend upon the Deerfield valley beginning this evening and ending Saturday. Delegates will hear speakers and discuss global issues as well as cruise the valley and dance the night away. Students and teachers from the U.K. and continental Europe, the Middle East, India, Australia, Thailand, New Zealand, Africa and North America come together for one week to celebrate and experience the Round Square I.D.E.A.L.S.

In the aftermath of World War I, German teacher Kurt Hahn founded Round Square to fulfill his educational vision, preparing students not just with academics, but for leadership and service in a democracy. His I.D.E.A.L.S. strove for international understanding, democracy, environmental awareness, leadership, and service.

Now, the Round Square schools throughout the world work toward his goals through student and faculty exchanges, international service projects, and programs within the schools for environmental awareness, outdoor adventure, and community service. The annual, five-day conference discusses the previous year's efforts, plans new projects, discusses topics related to the theme of the conference, and fosters friendships through experiencing new cultures.

After a year of careful planning for the conference, school will carry on as usual but with slightly shortened class days. All the delegates will be staying in either the volunteer boarders' rooms or day students' houses. There will also be shuttles to the Red Roof Inn for faculty and Round Square executives. Deerfield students will have a chance to meet the foreign students during evening socials.

The Round Square Steering Committee chose "Exploring Our Frontiers" as the conference theme. Therefore, the speakers and discussions will address frontiers: past frontiers and present ones, like terrorism and biogenetics.

At tomorrow's opening ceremony, Senior Class President Jett Fein '05 will welcome the delegates and conference co-chair Julia Conway '05 will introduce the keynote speaker, Deerfield history teacher Thomas Heise. In the afternoon, Louise Richardson, executive dean of the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard College, will speak about terrorism as a frontier. On Thursday, delegates will hear Dr. Michael Gazzaniga P'05 speak on bioengineering.

A panel of speakers, Tiffany Franke '02, Lisa Pinslev '93. Steven Porter '99 and Peter Ellis '93 will share their past experiences and plans for the future. Franke currently attends Yale University, but before attending Yale worked in Peru with the Nuevo Amanecero Andino (New Dawn of the Andes) Center for domestically abused women and their families. Pinsley is currently the program advisor of the United Nations Development Program in Afghanistan, which is responsible for the design and implementation of the countrywide Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) program. Porter, graduate of Princeton and recipient of the M. Taylor Pyne Honor Prize, works throughout the world for HIV/AIDS research and as a marine wildlife field researcher.

After each speaker, all conference participants will convene in discussion groups, traditionally called Barazzas. Led by Deerfield delegates, participants in the Barazzas share their thoughts on the speaker and the current issue. Charlie Straut '05 and a small group of Deerfield delegates will come up with questions and points of consideration for the Barazza meetings. There will also be Round Square International Service Project presentations and plans for new ones. Deerfield delegates on the Technology Committee will arrange the presentations and other technical aspects of the conference.

There will also be a Multicultural Evening, a comedian for entertainment, a day for excursions, and a final ball. At the Multicultural Evening, students from around the world will sing, dance, act, or give any traditional cultural performance. Friday will be a day of excursions. Delegates will do everything from biking around the valley and hiking the Appalachian Trail to working at the Food Bank Farm and with children at local schools. There will also be cultural excursions to places like the Shaker Village and the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art. Deerfield delegates, along with Deerfield faculty, will lead each excursion.

There will be a final, formal ball on Saturday evening. All Deerfield students are invited to a gala of dinner and dancing, with entertainment provided by the Down Five Motown band.

Deerfield delegates on the transportation committee will be gathering delegates at the airport on the opening day, and led by Kylie Stone '05 there will be delegates organizing conference merchandise for people to buy as memoirs. The Steering Committee is made up of Killian Clarke '05, Julia Conway '05. Jett Fein '05, Kylie Stone '05 and Charlie Straut '05. Art history teacher Lydia Hemphill is the director of the conference and Associate Head Martha Lyman is assistant director for the conference.