The Ukrainian conflict, which has been ongoing for over a thousand days, has cost both Russia and Ukraine, as well as various other nations, great loss in capital and human life. In May of 2023, now-president Donald J. Trump pledged to be able to end the Ukrainian conflict within 24 hours due to his relationship with both Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, a major point in his campaign for the presidency. However, in the month since the inauguration of President Trump, no immediate peace has been achieved.

In the winter of 2024, a conflict which ended with a ceasefire has reignited the flames of war. The conflict in question is the Syrian civil war, which stopped for four years from 2020-2024 as a result of a negotiated peace between various factions within Syria negotiated by Russia and Turkey. On November 27th of 2024, the various Syrian forces commonly referred to as the Opposition launched an offensive from the city of Idlib towards Syria’s second largest city Aleppo, ultimately resulting in a shocking overturn of the Assads’ 50 year regime in Syria.

On a normal day in the Downer Fitness Center, one will find an array of things and people, from students working on their fitness to athletic teams running lifts. It is a place where all types of people on Exeter’s campus can get in a workout. Recently, “Coach” Zacharia Marhamo, has joined as a very special addition to Exeter’s strength and conditioning program.

For many Exonians, March 10 signifies accomplishment: the day in which preparatory school applicants worldwide were first informed of decisions that, ultimately, would extend out to shape the course of their high school careers. Admissions Day brought closure to months of application revisions, essay drafts, and long nights leading up to this moment. For us, as members of the Exeter student body, our acceptances into the Academy were met with a sense of triumph, pride, and relief. However, five weeks into the 2024-25 school year, and, coinciding with the release of midterm grades, our initial impressions of life here on-campus have been cemented in stone. How do the expectations of the applicant differ with the experiences we forged firsthand?

Exeter Compliments is a unique space, one of love and appreciation, one of humor and laughs. Yet at the start of this school year, a new and peculiar side of the student population has revealed itself within the Exeter Compliments Instagram space.