By Sabrina Merold `13, Staff Writer

It was a common sight many mornings at 7:20 in Room 7 to see Mr. Jacoby, Dr. DiBianca, Ms. Hamm, Mr. Griffin, Mr. Morelli, Ms. Baccash, Rachel Greene, Arjuna Siva and me spread out around the Harkness table. Who were we? We were the June Term Committee. What were we doing? We were discussing and debating the logistics of this intensive academic experience and the proposals associated with it,  all with the goals of June Term in mind. Thus, in order for a course to become a part of this intensive academic experience, fine attention and detail were put into ensuring that each course embodied the principles of June Term.

June Term is a nine-day period that exemplifies intensity, experiential learning, engagement, fulfillment, and rigor, in a plethora of learning experiences. Created by Newark Academy faculty members, the classes are designed to engage students’ passions and expand their interests. Last year, Newark Academy successfully completed its first June Term. The response: 91% of Newark Academy students who partook in June Term would recommend their course to others. This overwhelmingly positive data speaks for itself.

It was clear each morning during the Term that the Newark Academy atmosphere was different. Students were no longer discussing a variety of their courses; instead, they were specializing and discussing the hands on experiences and in depth learning of their one course. Students were excited to show off new found talents in their courses or talents that they have always possessed through morning meeting presentations. No longer was stress present in the room because students had the freedom to be in a relaxed, yet rigorous, academic environment: where they could just learn for learning’s sake. 92% of students believed their June Term encouraged them to be creative, 91% believed their June Term encouraged them to collaborate with others, 96% believed their June Term was interactive, 93% of students learned a lot in their course, and 98% of students felt their teacher was enthusiastic.

Although the data itself speaks volumes to the successes of these courses, students’ experiences in their classes are the most powerful way to showcase the benefits of June Term. Shreya Srivastava `13, a member of the 3D Printing June Term, thought at first, “How am I supposed to figure out how to do 3D modeling in 2 weeks? But since June Term was so concentrated, I was able to do that and we actually completed a good amount of projects.” Further, Kasey Iverson ‘14, a member of Page to Stage, felt “Mr. Jacoby and Mr. Scerra seemed to be having as much fun as all of us in the class were, which really made the experience wonderful and collaborative.” Other students championed the relaxed learning environment of June Term, the first hand experiences they were able to have during the two week period, and the diverse student make-up of their classes.

Despite all of this positive feedback, the committee is still working to improve. Mr. Griffin is in charge of future planning and progress. He explained that he hopes to makes changes that are “more logistical than philosophical…Philosophically, the community seems incredibly supportive of June Term based on the feedback we have received.” That being said, the committee is still looking “to develop new ways for the community to come together and appreciate everyone’s work.” After nine days of intensive focus and laborious work, it is important that the community has a time to share products and projects. Hopefully with these changes in mind next year’s June Term will be even more outstanding.