Upper School Students

From Club Block to Office Hours to Upper School meetings, this page highlights the intentional programming, time, and space created for our students to grow their community, explore their interests (and find new ones!), give and receive feedback, and simply enjoy being a high school student.

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The Beaver Upper School Experience

What’s it really like to be a Beaver Upper School student? Let our students tell you!

student playing volleyball

Meet Allie Chisholm '27

Highlights from Allie’s freshman year include all the community activities planned by Student Council as well as her BVR Accelerator, Engineering Empathy, where she used her engineering skills to modify toys for differently-abled kids.

students at a standing white board

Meet Harris Kader '25

Harris—a senior—says that there lots of things that make Beaver “awesome” but the top factors are definitely the teachers, communities, and opportunities available to students throughout their time in both the Middle and Upper schools.

Students working in the classroom

Meet Emma Shub '24

Emma graduated Beaver in 2024, and during her time here, she shared that the gift of a Beaver education is invaluable and that Beaver is “busting at the seams with niche opportunities” that wanted to explore and absorb.

Community Times

Every day offers opportunities to come together, whether in advisory, by grade level, as an Upper School, in affinity spaces, or in clubs. From listening to student bands to hearing outside speakers to engaging in dialogue and reflection to joining a student vs. faculty volleyball game, these moments connect us as a community and create a sense of belonging.

Upper School Meeting

A weekly community meeting with the entire Upper School to announce upcoming events, share important information, and listen to guest speakers on key topics. 

Class Meetings

A grade-level meeting for students to bond as a class by engaging in activities led by the class representatives. Students gather as a class twice a month. 

Advisory

Consisting of 6-8 students and an advisor, students meet once or twice a week. Advisories are designed to stay the same for all four years of the Upper School experience.

Want to catch-up on what happened in the Upper School this week?

Affinity Groups

To support all students in these endeavors and build an inclusive community, we host gatherings of different affinity groups throughout the year. These voluntary meetings provide students with a safe place to explore identity, discuss and share current events, and encourage and challenge one another. For those who attend, gathering with a group of students who share an important part of their identity while engaging in thought-provoking activities helps frame their experiences at Beaver and the outside community. This cultivates confidence, a sense of belonging, and often translates to engaging in other aspects of school life: academics, sports, the arts, civic engagement, and clubs.

Affinity Groups meet once a week in the Upper School.

Upper School Affinity Groups
In the Upper School, we have affinity groups for:

Adopted

Asian, Asian Pacific Island Heritage

Black, African Heritage

Children of Single/Divorced Parents

Exploring Christianity

Hispanic, Latinx Heritage

Jewish Heritage

LGBTQIA+

Middle Eastern Heritage

Multiracial Heritage

Muslim Heritage

White Students Against Racism

South Asian

Recent events

Student leaders of the Jewish Cultural Club and Jewish Affinity Group plan Shabbat Lunch for community

Image for Student leaders of the Jewish Cultural Club and Jewish Affinity Group plan Shabbat Lunch for community

Iftar Night Celebration: Muslim Affinity Group leaders plan community gathering

Image for Iftar Night Celebration: Muslim Affinity Group leaders plan community gathering

Day of (no) Silence: Students plan event in solidarity with LGBTQ+ Community

Image for Day of (no) Silence: Students plan event in solidarity with LGBTQ+ Community

Get excited for the Students of Color Mixer!

Image for Get excited for the Students of Color Mixer!

Clubs

The Club experience is designed to empower young people to develop into engaged, thoughtful, and motivated leaders. Students regularly call on the New Basics—creative problem solving, collaboration, iteration, visual communication, empathy, tech & media literacy, and presentation skills—for their ideas to come to life. Faculty advisors help create the conditions in which students can explore their interests and delve deeper into their ideas.

All Clubs meet once per week on Tuesdays from 10:10 to 10:35 a.m. and often outside of that time to work on additional projects. If you were to stop by during Club block you might see students planning trips, preparing speeches, advocating for change, presenting to large audiences, or collaborating with other Clubs. Club leaders attend workshops designed by the Hiatt Center to strengthen leadership skills, set achievable goals, and support the overall development of the individuals and Club. Staff in the Hiatt Center are also available to students for regular consultation.

24-25 Clubs

Acoustic Coffee House

Beaver Environmental Action Team

Beaver Gives Back

Beaver Spirit

Black Student Union

Book Club

Business and Economics

Car Club

Card Club

Cooking

Crafting for Good

Criminology

Debate

Distributive Educ Clubs America (DECA)

Female Activist & Allies

Film

First Generation

Interior Design

Jewelry Making

Jewish Cultural Club

Leftist Students' Union

Math Club

Mental Health Aware & Psych

Model United Nations

Music Discovery & Analysis

Music Production

National Art Honors Society

Neurodiversity Club

Philosophy Club

Pre-Med Club

Robotics Club

STEM Club

The Beaver Reader

Trivia Club

Veterinary Club

Woodworking Club

Yearbook

Upper School students at Dam Jam.

Students celebrating the kick-off to the school year with Kona Ice.

US Meeting in Gym A kicking off First Friday with Head of School, Kim Samson.

Annual Aaron Hoffman ’93 Memorial Softball Game.

Springfest Pep Rally hosted by Student Council.

Girls Varsity Soccer at US Harvestfest.

Springfest Pep Rally hosted by Student Council.

Senior Night

A few of our favorite Upper School events

First Friday

On the first Friday of September, each grade starts the school year by connecting and bonding with one another as a class—typically off-campus—for the day.

Senior Sunrise

To kick off senior year, the senior class comes together on the first Friday of the school year at Larz Anderson Park to watch the sunrise as they embark on their final year as high school students.

HarvestFest

Harvestfest is an annual athletics event for the entire Beaver community held in early October. Featuring an afternoon of JV and varsity games and matches—and a special night game under the lights on Upper Field—it’s a chance for Beaver fans to come together and cheer on our athletes at the start of the school year. (Not to mention all the food trucks and limited-edition swag!)

Senior Halloween Parade

This is a tradition for Beaver seniors, where they plan a skit for the entire school, dressed up in costumes. It is a day we truly look forward to each year.

Senior S’more Night

To celebrate the end of the fall term—and the end of the college application process—the seniors come together as a class to express their gratitude for one another and the Beaver community.

BVR Bowl

A junior vs. senior flag football game in the fall for female-identifying students to celebrate and highlight women in sports.

Dam Jam

To start the new year, the Boys’ and Girls’ Varsity Basketball teams compete in back-to-back games. This highly anticipated community event attracts students, families, and alumni home from college for winter break to cheer on the teams and connect.

Springfest

When the weather begins to warm up, the community comes together to cheer on our varsity spring athletes in back-to-back games. The Beaver Upper School Student Council holds a Pep Rally during the day to build excitement among students, and in the afternoon, there are food trucks, spring swag, and live musical performances.

Student Leaders & Publications

Student Council

Student Council Representatives are elected leaders who serve as a liaison between the student body & the administration and plan fun events for their class and the Upper School.

 

2024-2025 Student Officers

 

Executive Board

Priya DuBois

President

Timmy Brown

Vice President

Neal Mahidar

Representative to the Board of Trustees

Trey Walters

Director of Communications

Piera Lebed

Treasurer
12th Grade Representatives

Lily Wong

Sienna Proctor

Alex Chang

11th Grade Representatives

Jasmine Idehen

Henry Davidson

Leili Singer

10th Grade Representatives

Cesi Kaplan

Serenity Mingoes

Andrew Adamic

9th Grade Representatives

Tariq Kasrawi

Addie Marsh

Reid Bugbee

Student Body Advisory Council

SBAC (Student Body Advisory Council)

Students in SBAC meet with the Associate Head of School weekly to share their perspectives and work to make changes to life at Beaver.

Admission Ambassadors

Admission Ambassadors

Admissions Ambassadors help with Admission Events, give tours, and act as Classroom Greeters. They share their enthusiasm about Beaver with prospective students and parents.

BVR Connects: Student Edition

BVR Connects is a program that pairs incoming freshmen with current BVR sophomores and juniors. These BVRConnects Partners welcome 9th-grade students to the community and serve as an informal point of contact. They help new students navigate life in the Upper School—from understanding the schedule to finding their way around campus to learning about the different clubs and groups available.  Ninth grade students will meet their BVRConnects Partner during the August advisor conferences for a tour of campus, using their first-day-of-school schedule as a guide. From there, throughout September, students and Partners will check in weekly during 9th Grade Flex Time.

The Beaver Reader

Beaver students produce an online newspaper called The Beaver Reader with new articles published on Thursdays.

The Heliconian

The Heliconian, Beaver’s student-produced art and literary magazine, is published once a year in the spring. Coinciding with its release is the Heliconian Coffee House, an open-mic evening of student and faculty readings, music, and art displays.