On the heels of a snowy day and freezing temperatures in the northwest corner of Connecticut, the sun finally beamed down over Butternut Mountain in the Berkshires where the IMS Upper Campus gathered for its annual Winter Carnival.

This celebrated tradition is more than a day off from classes, it is a chance to pause and appreciate our community and the connection we have with our surroundings.

Whether students learned to ski on the bunny hill, skillfully mastered black diamonds, barreled down the hill on a snow tube, or drank hot chocolate and played games in the lodge, smiles were abundant throughout the day.

Missing from this year’s Winter Carnival was the Academic Bowl, a spirited competition in which Maroon and Gray contend for points in a number of increasingly challenging trivia questions. Due to recent cold and icy weather (and subsequent schedule changes), the Academic Bowl will be rescheduled in the coming weeks, giving Maroon and Gray more time to study up!