Phillips Academy

Phillips Academy’s Constitution charges the faculty to teach “youth from every quarter” to aspire equally to knowledge and goodness. This obligation challenges students to develop what is finest in themselves and others, for others and themselves. Phillips Academy is committed to nurturing an intentionally diverse, inclusive community that encourages students and adults to respect, inspire, and learn from one another. Guided by the ideal of non sibi, leading lives “not for self,” the Phillips Academy community promotes a balance of intellectual curiosity, engagement, leadership, and service in the pursuit of excellence: academic, civic, and moral.

As we chart Andover’s future, we are asked to foresee trends in education and in the world at large. We aspire to act with creativity and courage in our work. Today’s society, driven by advances in technology and limitless access to information, presents vast opportunity. Now is the time for us at Andover to generate new possibilities.

Academic excellence is the hallmark of an Andover education. Our students, curious and eager to take intellectual risks, secure an exceptional foundation in the arts, humanities, mathematics, and natural sciences through rigorous study in a dynamic residential setting. They are guided by educators who foster independent learning, critical thinking, creative collaboration, and personal well-being.

Andover’s commitment to an intentionally diverse learning community dates back to our constitutional mission to educate “youth, of requisite qualification, from every quarter.” Today, the Academy’s need-blind admission policy allows us to remain “ever equally open” to talented students from different cultural, geographic, racial, religious, and socioeconomic backgrounds.

Andover has long served as a resource for students and as a partner to educators nationally and worldwide, from Outward Bound and A Better Chance to (MS)², IRT, PALS, and Andover Bread Loaf. Building on this history, we prepare our graduates for active and ethical civic engagement. Phillips Academy is almost as old as the United States. (We are, in fact, the oldest incorporated boarding school in the country.) Let that sink in. It’s pretty cool.

So yeah, we have a bunch of old brick buildings and a ton of stories about how our campus and program have evolved over the years. We’re very proud of our history. We draw inspiration from the past, frequently question it, and honor those who have come before us. Andover is no doubt steeped in tradition, but legacy is not what we tread on. We embrace our history so that we can define the future of Andover.