By Dina Drogin ‘23, Editor in Chief 

During the first month of IB Philosophy HL, I sat around the Harkness table in Room 2 in awe of Dr. D’s ability to explain complex philosophical concepts with a piece of yellow chalk and a couple of circles. After reading excerpts from the Tao Te Ching, he drew a Yin Yang on the chalkboard behind my seat. “Who knows what this is?” he asked the class. Almost every student knew what the symbol was, but very few knew what it meant. “Good and evil,” “light and dark,” “right and wrong,” students responded to his question, attempting to explain the significance of the Chinese philosophical symbol. However, Dr. D had a completely different answer. 

The Yin Yang represents conflicting energies. As Dr. D puts it, the Yin energy is like “the top floor of a library, the underside of a rock or the middle of the desert,” while the Yang energy is “the basement of a frat party, a three-year-old after eating two ice cream cones and the bottom of the ocean.” These two energies are not always separate. In fact, they often work together.

Leaving the doors of philosophy, I immediately started thinking about the Yin Yang as a symbol for my time at Newark Academy. NA is filled with Yang energy: barging through the double doors to avoid arriving at morning meeting at 8:21 for the third time in a row, flipping through one of Dr. J’s math tests with five minutes left in the period knowing you’ve only answered two questions or spotting Ms. Galvin in the hallway realizing you have 30 seconds to pull down your crop top and take out your ID badge before receiving detention. At Newark Academy, the Yang energy can often feel overwhelming.

But, as Dr. D explained, the Yang doesn’t exist without the Yin: sitting on the chairs outside of the library while looking through the glass windows that reach the ceiling, spending time in the college counseling office eating candy from Ms. Speck’s jar that magically keeps refilling or taking a walk on the cross country trail with a friend during a free period.

The weeks, days and classes at Newark Academy are filled with both Yin and Yang energy. NA has a reputation for their Yang: tough academics, piles of homework and chaotic schedules. But, I’d argue that the Yin is just as prominent, though less recognized. 

As I reflect on my sophomore year chemistry experience, I overwhelmingly think about the late nights browsing Khan Academy, filling pages of notebook paper with illegible symbols and frantically watching hours of time pass in seconds. Nevertheless, the serenity of walking down the stairs from the science labs after a test, coupled with the pride of knowing I had persevered, was unparalleled. The two feelings were not separate. They worked together. 

It is no secret that NA is looking to change its culture. The administration has made it clear that one of their main missions is to prioritize student’s mental health and “reimagine rigor.” Seniors no longer have to take exams and the four assessment rule has been implemented this year. I support any attempt to make Newark Academy a more enjoyable place. But, I hope the NA community recognizes that Yin and Yang energy are created together, exist together and work together. Waiving exams and creating more lenient deadlines won’t relieve students’ stress completely. The key to a successful, enjoyable NA experience is finding balance and learning to embrace both the Yin and Yang. As a senior, I haven’t mastered it yet. But, I hope, with a couple more classes filled with yellow circles on a chalkboard, I’ll better find balance.