Ava Roberts ‘24 | Mahika Ralhan ‘26
When returning to campus this fall, students found classrooms reconfigured around long tables, and upon entering the Athletic Center, they were greeted by refreshed modern floors. EA made alterations to the campus this past summer and pursued them for two main reasons: to transition back to normalcy after the COVID-19 pandemic and to refurbish older aspects of the campus. The most notable changes are the reinstallation of the Harkness tables in classrooms and the new flooring in the Dixon Athletic Center.
As the EA community returned to campus in 2020 in the midst of the pandemic, the school initiated adjustments, taking into account public health policies such as social distancing, to ensure the health of the faculty and students. These changes included the implementation of the courtyard tent for distanced dining; the use of the wrestling room, Chapel, theater, and library as lounges; and the removal of the Harkness tables.
The long-awaited Harkness tables returned to classrooms this fall. Chief Operating Officer Mark Notaro explains EA’s decision to bring the tables back, saying, “We went back to the way the Harkness tables were set up originally because we were definitely getting a lot of requests from faculty to have those tables put back.”
Photo courtesy of Gianna Trala ’23
Many members of the EA community approve of the school’s shift back to normalcy. Regarding the reintroduction of the Harkness tables, Anthony Herman, Upper School English teacher, states, “I am incredibly happy that the Harkness tables are back. [Instead] of having a class where the teacher is up front and the students are at desks, we’re all around a table, and all of us are dissecting and analyzing the literature as a team. They allow us to have these really complex, nuanced, sophisticated conversations about the novels we read.”
Saige Forbes ‘24, a student in Herman’s Honors American Literature class, shares Herman’s view of the Harkness tables and believes that “the aura of the Harkness tables fuels insights and perspectives on the present topics.”
In order to preserve the functionality of the school, EA has also renovated the Athletic Center floor. Students have mixed opinions about this renovation. Elizabeth Hershey ‘25 says, “I personally love it. I’m in Key Club, so when I’m touring people around it’s just a clean, pristine place, and it matches everything else. I think the old floors were really dirty and messed up, so I think this definitely gives EA a better look.”
Some found the new change unnecessary and were unaware of its purpose. Athanasia Dimopolous ‘26 argues, “They put so much money into the Athletic Center when they could have put it into better equipment for the students or something that needed it a little bit more than just the look of the Athletic Center.”
Despite the controversy surrounding the new floor, EA asserts that the renovation was necessary to ensure the safety and stability of the building. In fact, the school has been planning this particular renovation for several years. “In the Athletic Center, the tile flooring had been cracking in some areas, so we had replaced [it] over time,” states Notaro.
Photo courtesy of Gianna Trala ’23
The EA administration believes all of the changes are critical for sustaining the well-being and longevity of the campus. Summarizing the overall significance of these changes, Notaro adds, “I would say the flooring in the Athletics Center was really part of how we try to get ahead and do either renovations or replacements of things in the buildings just to make sure that they don’t get to the point where they’re going to fail. The other project [involving the Harkness tables] was really in response to coming out of COVID and just getting us back to operating how we have in years past.”EA community adjusts to renovations around campus