Students catch quick glimpses of partial eclipse

K-12 students gathered on the Back Lawn to witness a partial solar eclipse on Monday, April 8. Clouds may have dampened the view but not their excitement.
By Ian Dinkins, Assistant Director of Marketing and Communications 

It’s a rare occurrence for all 1,076 members of University School of Nashville's student body to be simultaneously in one place. It’s an even rarer occurrence for the moon to pass in front of the sun, creating an eclipse effect that we can see from the Earth. However, both things happened on Monday, April 8, as USN (and most of the United States) stopped to gaze up at the sky to view an eclipse.

Nashville was fortunate enough to experience another eclipse in 2017.  Pera McMillan ‘26 was in fourth grade the last time an eclipse occurred and has fond memories of the sight.

“I just remember how interesting everything was for the few minutes of the eclipse,” said Pera. “ As I experienced totality. I still have the memory of the streetlights turning on and animals starting to sleep.”

During the 2017 eclipse, Nashville was in the path of totality, and students were able to see a total eclipse while on USN's Back Lawn. Unfortunately, the forecast for the recent eclipse called for clouds, which dampened students’ view of the eclipse but not their excitement. 

“This time around, I had anticipation, but the eclipse itself was anticlimactic, as the clouds were covering the show, and I still could remember the totality during my first eclipse experience,” he said.

Lower School students, who may be too young to remember the 2017 occurrence, were excited to see what all the commotion was about. With glasses donned and anticipation at an all-time high, you wouldn’t have known that there were clouds in the sky or that Nashville’s forecast for the day may throw cold water on the occurrence. When clouds briefly parted as the moon passed in front of the sun, the screams of students could be heard across the Edgehill Campus as the sky darkened and students saw the partial eclipse.

Students in fifth grade, fresh off their annual trip to Land Between the Lakes, had a field trip on Monday and just made it back in time to view the eclipse with the rest of the school. Like many of the students and teachers who experienced an eclipse for the first time, Middle School Science Teacher Tobey Balzer ‘02 said she still enjoyed our view of the eclipse from the Back Lawn of 2000 Edgehill Ave.

“Even though it was overcast, it was still an amazing experience. I liked that you got glimpses of the eclipse through the clouds every now and then,” said Balzer. “Personally, it was extra special for me this time because both of my children (Steve ‘34 and Rhea '36) are students at USN, and I was able to spend some of the eclipse time with them.”

As a science teacher, Balzer said she also takes pride in the whole school coming together for a scientific phenomenon.

“I love how the eclipse draws in so many people and gets them interested in science," she said. "That was evident in seeing the excitement of the Lower Schoolers.”

The USN community will have to wait a little longer for the next celestial celebration, as the next eclipse in Nashville will occur in 2044.
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