Friends, Teammates... Rivals?

Best friends often go their separate ways when it comes time for college. Lindsey Glennon '02 and Heather Jackson '02 will do just that next year. But seldom are two people as intertwined athletically as Jackson and Glennon. "We'd probably still be friends, because we have a lot in common," said Glennon, "but athletics is a huge part of our friendship." The two have known each other since before grade school and grew up in Exeter playing sports together. "It definitely brought us a lot closer together," Glennon said. "Most of the time, we were on the same teams."

This year at Exeter, Glennon and Jackson were captains of the girls' soccer and ice hockey teams. When they skated in a recent 3-1 win over Andover in the season finale, it was the last time they would play together. Two years ago, they had helped Exeter win a New England championship on the ice. "I think the natural competition between us pushes us to work harder than we would if we weren't playing together," Glennon said. "I enjoy it, because it makes me go harder." This spring, Glennon is a captain and returning All-America in lacrosse. Jackson will be captain of the softball team. "They do take a vacation from each other," joked Bill Glennon, Lindsey's father and Exeter's football coach.

This athletic vacation is permanent, however. Next year, Jackson will play hockey for Princeton. She will line up against lifelong friend Glennon, who will be at Ivy League rival Brown. "I haven't really thought about it," Jackson said. "It'll be strange to see different uniforms on each other." For a time, it appeared that the two friends might actually continue playing together at Harvard. But it wasn't by design, and it didn't happen. "We talked very little with each other about what we were thinking about schools," said Glennon, "because all of our friends just assumed that wherever I go, she's going to go, or wherever she goes, I'm going to go." In the end, the two old friends fooled everyone. -Bob Reinert

Goodbye, Old Menus;
Aloha, Jazz Brunch

The Academy dining services has recently reworked its entire six-week menu cycle in an effort to better serve students' tastes and general eating habits. According to Head of Dining Services Walter Griffin, one significant change is that the kitchens are now serving lighter entrees at dinnertime -- more fish and vegetarian dishes -- as well as "pick up" foods like plain pasta, pizza or hot dogs. The kitchens have also been trying out new recipes, and student suggestions have led to such changes as the recent efforts to increase the protein content in vegetarian offerings. Griffin says, "We now have a lot of students who have grown up in families that are vegetarian -- it's what they are used to and it's the way they eat all the time." He also notes that because the dining halls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on class days, students tend to graze during the course of the day, eating several small meals instead of three larger ones -- except, perhaps, at the annual Jazz Brunch.

This year, the entire school was invited to a February 17 island feast that featured dishes like barbecued mahi mahi, mango chicken, vegetable sushi, orange ginger beef, and special salads, pastries and dessertsÑin addition to more traditional brunch fare. Elm Street dining hall was decorated accordingly, with tiki-like ice sculptures, grass matting and flowers flown in from Hawaii. It wouldn't be the jazz brunch without the jazz; longtime music instructor Jim Howe and his band, which included a vibraphone for an authentic island sound, played to an appreciative audience. Sara Cunningham '02 of Hilo, HI, danced an impromptu hula to Don Ho's "Tiny Bubbles," the Jazz Brunch 2002 theme song, much to the delight of all. -lsc

College Counseling

The Academy hosted over 40 college counselors from 10 boarding schools in December as part of the Eastern Independent Secondary School College Admissions Personnel (EISSCAP) fall meeting. Discussion topics included how college offices inform their communities about national admissions trends, methods for advising students about their educational choices and ways to stay current with scholarship and merit award information. Exeter will also host the event for spring business meetings.

Elizabeth Dolan, managing associate director of college counseling, presided at the meeting. Dolan will serve as acting director next year while the Academy undertakes a national search for a new director. Current director Mark Davis will become the head of school at St. Luke's School in New Canaan, CT. Dolan has worked at Exeter for five years and was honored last year with a Class of 1964 Faculty Prize for her innovative work with the new college office website. Before joining the Exeter faculty, Dolan was a senior member of the Tufts University admission staff.