The Habitat for Humanity student group is raising money for those who were affected by the South Carolina floods. They are selling candy canes that Milton students can purchase and address to their friends with attached messages. The sale is a great way to spread awareness and holiday cheer throughout campus.

The Jewish Student Union hosted their annual Chanukah Holiday Party on Tuesday. “We played Chanukah music, served jelly donuts and latkes with applesauce, and played dreidel with gelt,” says Jacquie Golden, a junior. The entire student body was invited to the party. Stopping by was a great opportunity share in the Jewish holiday traditions.

Each year, the Milton boarding community gathers for a semi-formal Boarder Dinner. The students enjoy delicious food and listen to Milton’s several a capella groups perform holiday tunes. After Boarder Dinner, boarding boys partake in the annual holiday caroling tradition. “We sing three songs as a whole dorm and then we sing one song as just a senior class to a specific girl,” explains Nat Deacon, a Forbes House senior. “The senior song is usually the most special because we are singing to a girl we have been with the last four years.” Many Milton students would say this event is a highlight of their year. The night is full of laughter and joy!

As winter break approaches, the students are excited to return to their families for a few weeks of rest. Everyone is already eager to see what the New Year will bring!

The whole school, K-12, comes to the gym in the morning to get fired up for the weekend games. Every year, the pep rally consists of a performance from the Step Team, a relay race, and other fun activities led by senior student hosts. The event unites the whole school and allows everyone to get involved. The energy in the room gets all the athletes ready for their games and everyone else in the Milton spirit to cheer them on.

Milton is incredibly supportive in all aspects of the school, whether it be for athletics, academics, or arts. Pep rally is just one way that shows how much the Milton community cares for each other.

Milton is one of the many ISL schools that maintain a Varsity level ski team. We practice three times a week (Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday) at Blue Hills, a ski “hill” that is just 15 minutes away from campus. On Wednesdays, our team travels to Nashoba Valley to compete in races alongside ISL schools such as Nobles, Belmont Hill, Lawrence Academy, BBN, and many others. While the races are no doubt competitive, the attitude that skiers bring to these races is far different than one would find in other sports. These skiers come together driven by the desire to win races, but possibly more important than any sense of competitive spirit is each skier’s appreciation representing their school while simultaneously pursuing their passion for skiing.

My time on the Milton Ski Team has truly been special. I have had formed strong friendships with members of the team as well as with skiers from other schools, as skiers from different schools tend to intermingle during the races at Nashoba. I am sorry that this will be my last season on the team, but I look forward to younger Milton students discovering the amazing experience that is the Milton Ski Team.

Boarding students will tell you that the boarding experience is incredibly rewarding and one reason is because each dorm has its own traditions. A home away from home, your dorm is an environment that is conducive to making incredible friends and having fun!

As the New England weather slowly transitions from summer to autumn, some of my favorite boarder traditions begin. In the dorms, the dorm monitor (a senior who works alongside the dorm parents) creates small groups called “families.” During pumpkin season, the dorm monitor invites the entire dorm to sit in “families” and carve pumpkins! Robbins House, one of the four girls’ dorms on campus, carved pumpkins last weekend. In our “families,” students cleaned the pumpkins and roasted pumpkin seeds, while others carved the pumpkins! This year, the girls went a step beyond the traditional pumpkin carving activity; they built and decorated haunted gingerbread houses!

Boarding at Milton Academy is very special, for you have the opportunity to fully immerse yourself in a tight-knit and inclusive community. Whether its participating in dorm events or forming new friendships, Milton creates a kind, welcoming, and enthusiastic atmosphere where living at school is special because it is a home that you share with your closest friends. The friendships that you make at Milton will be ones you will remember for life.