From the kickoff of preseason sports to the bull-riding contests on Saturday night, Brooks’ first week of activities made for a high-energy start to the new school year.

Contributing photography credit to Leo Charlamb '26.

Athletes in cross country, field hockey, football soccer and volleyball rolled in to Great Pond Road on September 2 to start practicing together for three days before all students moved in on September 4.

That arrival day offered an array of activities (above), including new student panels, welcome gatherings, class and advisor meetings, as well as orientation programs.

Student-athletes heard from Director of Athletics Andrea Heinze in the Athletics Center on September 2.

For the first time, sixth-form students ran the orientation for third formers, leading new Brooksians through team challenges and giving group tours. “It starts to build the relationships between the seniors and the freshmen,” said Student Government President Grainne Rolfe ’26.

“It definitely helped just bring the community together, and you can already see that the third formers are more comfortable on campus and they already have friends and friend groups through that experience,” Lorenzo Johnson ’26 reflected on September 9 after classes began.

See an album of photos from Brooks School 2025 Opening Week
 

Fourth-form students (above) ventured to Gordon College’s outdoor education center La Vida in Wenham, Mass., for their orientation activity, while the fifth form enjoyed amusements at Kimball Farms in Westford, Mass.

“New students aren’t scared to go up to people or ask some questions and hang out with them, which is exactly what we need, what Brooks School needs as a community, because there are four different grades, but, really, we are like one community on campus,” Johnson continued. “So, I think [the student-run orientation] led to the success of the field day that we had before ‘Western Weekend’ and everything in total.”

Friday’s field day celebration was held the evening of students’ first day of classes on September 5. Instead of breaking teams down by class years, the challenge activities were organized around students grouped by dorms (below) and day students.

“It was a lot of fun,” reported Niki Shoko ’26, who most enjoyed the tug-of-war contests. “It was really fun to bond as a dorm and I think all of the dorms did great. We got to see a lot of participation, especially from the day students. I don't think there's ever been a field day where there were that many of them!”

Saturday night’s western-themed party, though, was the highlight of opening weekend. “Every year it's the first event where the whole school gets together and people bring the energy,” said Julian Wei ’26.

The bash was held in the athletic center due to rainy weather, yet that didn’t dampen any excitement.

“Even with it being inside, it was an amazing experience,” Johnson reported on Tuesday. “The inflatables and everything went really well. The [decal your own] bandanas were a really big hit. Even the temporary tattoos — some people are still rocking them today.”

Members of student government took the lead on decorating and helping to transform the wrestling room into a dance club with a rainbow of pulsing lights and blasting music. “I think, overall," he said, "it was a success!”