Sam Niu ’15: Community Connections, a progtram that strives to connect the Upper, Middle and Lower Schools, will resume this year under the leadership of Upper School History teacher Lynn Hay. The program’s goal is to “foster relationships between older and younger students,” and this year will be “picking up where it left off” says Hay.
Community Connections seeks to “enhance a sense of community among the three units and has been around for many years,” recalled Hay. Hay said, “In the 1990’s it was called Big Brother/Sister – Little Brother/Sister and its purpose was just to provide an older ‘friend’ for a younger student. When my daughter began attending EA in 3rd grade there were very few new students admitted into her grade. She was assigned a 10th grader ‘Big Sister’ and this Upper School-er helped my daughter acclimate to EA – and made her feel pretty special.”
Delvin Dinkins, Head of the Upper School, elaborated, “The Upper School students came to all of Mrs. Hay’s daughter’s events, [as well as]…to [the] Lower School to help with reading groups…Mrs. Hay’s daughter, in turn, loved being on the sidelines of the Upper Schoolers’ games.”
On the one-year break of Community Connections, Hay stated, “The only year it didn’t really run was last school year. There was [a] transition in [the] Lower School administration, and the program never really retained its momentum.” However, together with Terry Malone, the new Head of Lower School, Hay and the Community Connections’ leaders “will be working [out]…specifics [for new activities] in the very near future.”
Previously, an Upper School student was paired with a same-gender Lower School student. The two would eat lunch and play together during recess and the Upper School student would assist with homework as well. A major facet in the program will be commitment. Hay pointed out, “The problem is that when a younger student is involved, and is so…eager to see [his or her] Upper School friend, disappointment and hurt feelings can develop,” making commitment of the utmost importance to participating Upper School students.
Other teachers have also been taking steps to strengthen cross-unit connections. Dinkins recalled an “[Upper School] teacher [who] had [had] a…partnership with a Lower School teacher [and her class]. The [teachers’] students were pen pals, and…shared their writing over lunch once or twice.” Dinkins continued, “While we could plan a number of events, bringing the school community together need not always happen under such defined circumstances. Sometimes…opportunities emerge more organically…Pen pal programs, Upper School mentoring, teacher aides, Upper School-ers as guest speakers, and helpers for the after school programs are some examples.”
Dinkins explained, “We want to emphasize that we are one school. The relationship between the units [should] to reflect this.” Specifically, the heads of the three schools are pushing for more community interaction at individual school functions. Dinkins stated, “We are trying to find additional ways to showcase Upper School arts, [like] The Witches, to Lower School students…We would like for Lower School and Middle School students to attend Upper School concerts, and vice-versa. We’d like for there to be a greater presence of Upper School students at middle school functions, such as the fall drama.” Meanwhile, the administration, in conjunction with the Student Council, will “[continue] thinking about [how to bring] the school together in different ways, big and small.”
Delvin Dinkins, Head of the Upper School, elaborated, “The Upper School students came to all of Mrs. Hay’s daughter’s events, [as well as]…to [the] Lower School to help with reading groups…Mrs. Hay’s daughter, in turn, loved being on the sidelines of the Upper Schoolers’ games.”
On the one-year break of Community Connections, Hay stated, “The only year it didn’t really run was last school year. There was [a] transition in [the] Lower School administration, and the program never really retained its momentum.”
In years past, Community Connections would pair an Upper School student with a Lower School student and they would eat lunch, play together and the Upper School student would assist with homework as well. Hay pointed out, “The problem is that when a younger student is involved, and is so…eager to see [his or her] Upper School friend, disappointment and hurt feelings can develop.” Hay said that making a commitment will be of the utmost importance to participating Upper School students.
Other teachers have also been taking steps to strengthen cross-unit connections. Dinkins recalled an “[Upper School] teacher [who] had [had] a…partnership with a Lower School teacher [and her class]. The [teachers’] students were pen pals, and…shared their writing over lunch once or twice.” Dinkins continued, “While we could plan a number of events, bringing the school community together need not always happen under such defined circumstances.”
Dinkins explained, “We want to emphasize that we are one school. The relationship between the units [should] to reflect this.” He stated, “We are trying to find additional ways to showcase Upper School arts, [like] The Witches, to Lower School students…We would like for Lower School and Middle School students to attend Upper School concerts, and…for there to be a greater presence of Upper School students at Middle School functions, such as the fall drama.” Meanwhile, the administration and Student Council will continue “thinking about [how to bring] the school together in different ways, big and small.”