“Unity, Pride, Positivity.” This three-word slogan epitomizes the goals of this year’s student leadership group, Esse Quam Videri.
Esse Quam Videri, or EQV, brings together ten leaders of the Senior Class, all of whom were voted to their position by classmates and faculty last spring. “It is unique in that it is completely student run,” remarked EQV member Thomas Boynton ’13.
This summer, the group took part in a number of team-building exercises during a three-day retreat located on Episcopal’s campus. According to EQV member Nisha Meyer ’13, the time was primarily devoted to discussing “the biggest concerns of the students and the necessary changes that must be made.”
Boynton also indicated that EQV aims to “help our school relieve stress and spread joy, as well as promote friendlier interactions among students and faculty in such a competitive environment.”
To build on their principle of “positivity,” Boynton added that EQV “plans on giving pins and stripes cards to students who are not always recognized for their kindness.”
To promote unity within the school, the group has decided to institute what Boynton called “a trial year.” Over the course of the year, seniors will periodically meet with students in both fifth grade and pre-kindergarten and slowly integrate into the well-established Lower School buddy system. “We always see the Middle and Lower schoolers, but never actually interact with them,” remarked Boynton.
If this trial year proves a success, all students in the Upper School will begin to work with Middle and Lower School students, starting in the 2013-2014 school year. EQV hopes to lay the foundation for school-wide unity so that its initiative will be followed by Episcopal’s underclassmen. “The only time of the year during which spirit permeates through the entire school is in November during EA/Haverford/AIS weekend. EQV plans to recreate that sense of pride and appreciation by promoting cross-unit interaction throughout the entire year,” remarked EQV member Katie Wu ’13.
To instill pride in both the athletics and the arts, EQV has decided to split the Upper School into Harry Potter-esque houses determined by grade. According to Boynton, “There will be a featured sports game or artistic event, such as Open Mic Night, each week and the house with the most attendees will gain points toward a reward.”
The goal of the house system is to encourage students to be on campus after hours and to promote recognition of the many accomplishments of Episcopal students.
EQV faculty advisor and senior form dean Sarah Baker ’01 believes that the members have “realistic yet ambitious goals. They are not holding back or constraining themselves. The group is really trying to shift the culture of the school, and the students understand that it is necessary to harness the energy of the whole community to accomplish this important goal.”
According to Baker, the ultimate goal of EQV this year is “to help students who may not recognize their pride in the school to have a private realization of this pride at some point during the year.”

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