Originally published in The Pillar, Athenian’s student newspaper, March 2015 by Nicole Thrower ’15 Sweatpants and bare feet, floral print dresses and wedges, Paul Frank pajama pants, boyfriend jeans and Birkenstocks, Odd Future ball caps and distressed denim vans: you name it, Athenian has it. Anyone can take a look around and notice the variety […]
By Eric Niles, Head of School As another college admissions season comes to a close, I was so pleased to see this article about Frank Bruni’s new book, Where You Go Is Not Who You’ll Be in the New York Times. I watch the anxiety of our students—and I think we are calm and balanced compared to […]
Reflections on Bogota by Mark Friedman, Director of Community Service and Round Square Update 1 Greetings from Bogota! It is cloudy and cool here at 8,600 feet in the Andes. Bogota is a beautiful city, nestled in a valley of green mountains. The Athenian students are doing home stays with Colombian families and the host […]
Rahul Arockiaraj ’17 has been inspired by Gandhi since he was in 4th grade and first learned about him. “I might not be where I am today if not for Gandhi,” writes Rahul. Because of the violence we are seeing both internationally and abroad–Rahul cites ISIS and Ferguson–generating conversations around nonviolence and peace is important. […]
“All children deserve an excellent education, and we urge you, our educational leaders, to ensure that OUSD can attract and retain excellent teachers.” This is the last sentence in 10th grade U.S. History teacher Stephanie McGraw’s petition to Oakland Unified School District administrative leadership calling on them to raise teacher salaries. After just five weeks […]
by Grace Brown ’17 One of the most talented speakers that have yet presented during my years at Athenian took the form of a man by the name of Shareef Nasir. He came to speak in honor of Black History Month regarding issues many people view controversial and sensitive. However, his approach towards these matters […]
For the third year in a row, Athenian students have won the New York Times‘ Year in Rap Contest (inspired by Flocabulary’s annual rap; 2014’s rap video is above). This year, two entries by Athenian students were among the top six winners from hundreds of entries. What makes these feats particularly impressive is how the students wrote […]
By Eric Niles, Head of School Yesterday, I had the pleasure of starting the new year by presenting to the Athenian Parent Association about innovative programs at Athenian. Among the things we discussed was the work of the Bay Area BlendEd Consortium. This, you will recall, is a consortium of five Bay-Area schools that are offering […]
Freshman Peyton Freeman ’17 qualified to compete in Hunt Seat Nationals at the Interscholastic Equestrian Association Championships to be held in West Springfield, Massachusetts, May 16-18. Peyton is one of two riders in California to qualify in the Varsity Intermediate Over Fences Class which requires riders to jump up to three feet on their usual […]
Athenians in the Upper School–Make sure you exercise your democratic muscle and vote for Town Meeting officials tomorrow at lunch! Faculty and staff, remember that you can vote too. Vote for your representatives for Town Meeting President, VP, Moderator, and Secretary. This year’s candidate pool is notable in that two freshmen are running for positions […]
By Sajia Bidar ’16 Once upon a time, there were only a few things in my life that I really, truly cared about: my family, my friends and occasionally, school. When I first came to Athenian, I looked to thrive and grow as a person, not only academically, but also socially and physically. I figured […]
The Class of 2013 wanted to honor their Athenian Wilderness Experience with a lasting class gift of a decorative gate for Athenian’s traditional Run-In. To complete their 26 day backpacking adventure, students run the last eight miles back to campus, where the entire community welcomes them back on the field. Previously, students ran through a […]
by Alana Brown ’15, Modern Chinese History Seminar Friday, March 8, 2014 – It’s late afternoon, last class of the day, and some sixteen students and one teacher gather around a clay oven behind the Main Hall of Athenian. The oven has been cooking up heat since lunch time, and a few more students gather some […]
The adventures continue! Murealism: Examining and creating murals in the Bay Area. Green Gulch Meditation Center in Marin: Working on an organic farm, soaking in nature, and meditating. The Art of Everyday: Seeing and Making Art In the Circus: Acro-yoga and trapeze! The Crucible: Welding
Before Spring Break, Athenians scatter the Bay Area and the globe to immerse themselves in 3-10 day experiential adventures. Themes explored range from U.S. history in Washington, D.C. to learning to surf in Santa Cruz, to exploring the Bay Area food scene. Students are travelling internationally to New Zealand, Kenya and Tanzania, Belize, and Costa […]