Safety and Support

High school students, no matter how smart or accomplished they are, need reliable and consistent adult guidance. There are approximately 600 adults on the Andover campus. Many of them will see your child on a near-daily basis, providing academic guidance and support and helping your child balance studying, athletics, extracurriculars, socializing, and fun.

Your child’s core support team will be in frequent communication with one another about your student’s academic progress and physical/emotional wellness. Most importantly, your child’s primary adult contact—the house counselor for boarding students and the advisor for day students—will be in touch with you at regularly scheduled times.

A large and important foundation of support for your child is the Andover student body. These young people aren’t just smart. They’re nice. All students—including dorm prefects and proctors, dormmates, teammates, club members, and classmates—look out for one another, providing study support, tutoring, and friendship.

House Counselors

Focused on day-to-day issues related to a boarding student’s well-being, house counselors live in the dorms, where they create a warm, home-like environment, maintain safe conditions and a good study climate, a make sure the rules are followed.

Advisors

Every student has an advisor who offers guidance on a variety of topics, including course selection, and helps students manage homework and activities. Students and advisors meet weekly, as well as at individually scheduled times, to talk about challenges and successes.

Instructors

Students interact with five or six different teachers each term. During regular 30-minute conference periods, students are encouraged to visit teachers in the classroom to review coursework, ask questions, or just talk about how things are going.

Coaches

Student-athletes often develop close friendships with their coaches. The same genuinely caring relationship can form with faculty members who advise a student’s favorite club, help them in the library, lead their musical ensemble, direct a dance or theatre performance, and so on.

Peers

Prefects, proctors, day student mentors, cluster presidents, and other selected student leaders support and mentor their peers. Proctors, for example, are like older siblings. They help make dorm life fun and act as liaisons between house counselors and students.

Academic Skills Center Team

Learning specialists from the ASC meet with individual students as needed and host workshops throughout the year to teach time management, organizational, and study skills.

A Commitment to Student Well-Being

Guided by our shared community values and the expectation of respect for self and others, we strive to foster a supportive and healthy learning environment that nurtures each student’s personal growth and intellectual development.

Learn More

Sykes Wellness Center

The Rebecca M. Sykes Wellness Center is open 24/7. Students can drop in anytime for medical care, guidance, or information.

Campus Safety

Friendly faces seen all across campus, the Academy’s Campus Safety officers patrol 24/7. They can be reached quickly at 978-749-4444 and are always ready to assist.

Staying Connected, Getting Involved

Keeping families in the loop is an Academy priority. If your child is accepted to Andover, you will learn more about:

The Hive: an online portal and information exchange
Parent Bulletin and Andover eNews: biweekly enewsletters
Parent Directory: a helpful listing of fellow parents & guardians
Family Weekend: an October gathering on campus
Parents of Students of Phillips Academy (PSPA): a volunteer organization that helps families from around the world connect with the Academy and their students