Summer Session 2006 at Phillips Academy in Andover is underway! Almost 700 students are participating in a variety of programs during the five-week Summer Session at the Academy. With an international student population of approximately 50%, this summer at Andover is a melting pot of many cultures, languages, interests, and life-experiences.

Because Summer Session is very short, and comprised of a student body of brand-new students not familiar with the school, the staff at the Oliver Wendell Holmes Library knew that it was essential to develop a way to efficiently transmit important information to the students. We decided that digitally transmitting information to our user community would make it easy for students, parents, and faculty to quickly and easily access the information they need from anywhere. We decided that the best way to do this would be through blogging! The Phillips Academy Summer Session Blog andoverblog.typepad.com/summer2006 features all of the important Summer Session announcements and news stories relating to the OWH Library, as well as the entire Phillips Academy community. The blog links to a companion blog organized around the daily calendar of the summer session.

Our goal was the rapid transmission of important information. It soon became apparent that the blog offered us an exciting educational opportunity. Teachers working with groups of ESL (English as a Second Language) students have assigned those students to be "reporters," practicing writing in English by producing articles for the blog. Soon, the Summerblog will feature articles discussing their experiences participating in the many activities on campus and around Andover.

Andover's Summer Session program gives students the opportunity to improve their skills in a specific subject and experience dorm-life before heading off to college. Students will also participate in college counseling, take tours of local university campuses, and go on day-trips to area beaches, amusement parks, and historical sites.

One hundred four of the 661 Summer Session students are participating in (MS)2, Math and Science for Minority Students. (MS)2 gives economically disadvantaged students, who are often underrepresented in math, medical, and scientific fields, the opportunity to immerse themselves in an intense math and science program for three consecutive summers, preparing them for college and a successful career in a science-based field.