EQV launches initiatives for 2025-2026 school year

Myra Rahlan ’29

The Esse Quam Videri (EQV) Society is a student-led senior leadership group at Episcopal Academy. This year, they have created and started to implement various initiatives within our school, such as fostering relationships between upper and lower classmen, reinforcing quiet spaces in the library, and helping freshmen better adapt to the intense upper school environment. Through these initiatives, EQV aims to develop authentic leadership, uphold the stripes, and inspire others through a sense of integrity and purpose within the EA community. 

Members of EQV are chosen through a thorough vetting process and are recognized by their classmates and faculty members as individuals who demonstrate strong leadership skills in their everyday lives. After being elected last spring, this year’s EQV team kicked off the year with a 3-day retreat in August designed to help them connect and strengthen their bond as a team. During their retreat, along with a number of bonding activities, members of EQV set out to create initiatives targeting certain parts of student life where they saw room for improvement. With the help of EQV faculty advisors Michael Whalen and Kris Aldridge, they discussed, in small initiative-driven groups, what they hoped to achieve for the year. “This EQV team has identified several new initiatives that they’re really excited about,” explains Aldridge. Being students themselves, members can gather feedback from their peers or even draw on their own experiences to identify what needs to be changed, improved, or added within the EA community. During discussions, EQV members found two common themes in what they wanted to bring to the community in the 2025-2026 school year: inclusivity and unity. 

To start the school year, EQV implemented its first initiative: a senior-freshman pancake breakfast. The goal of this was to make the transition for freshmen to the Upper School easier by having an opportunity for them to interact with the seniors. Bennett Newman ’26, a member of EQV, remarks, “As upper school students, it is so busy that we rarely interact with younger students, but sometimes we see them walking around campus and wish we could get to know them better.” At the pancake breakfast, the seniors cooked and served pancakes to the freshmen, promoting a friendly environment. Newman explains that the point of this event was “to help the freshmen get acclimated to the community.” This initiative helped integrate the freshmen into the Upper School and give them a familiar face to see in the hallways, promoting a sense of school unity. 

Another area that members of EQV saw a need for improvement was in the library.  The Annenberg Library is a space where students can go to complete their work in a quiet area. EQV recognized that the atmosphere in the library did not always provide a quiet space for students, contradicting its initial intention of being a calm environment. “The lounges tend to be social spaces, and that’s great, but they’ve made it a priority to create quiet areas. They’ve been working with the librarians to make the library a true study space during the school day, and they’ve had great success so far,” explains Aldridge. EQV has partnered with the librarians and Mr. Letts to make the library an effective place to study and focus again. Even though one subgroup created the initiative, all EQV members go during their free periods because, as member Charlotte Franklin, ’26  shares, “We’re still all working together.” The library initiative has been running smoothly and has had a positive impact on students’ ability to study in the library and in students’ daily lives.

Furthermore, in efforts to connect the Upper School with the Lower School, EQV has come up with a way to involve upper school students in the Halloween Parade. One initiative group has been talking to Dr. Malone and Mr. Letts about the possibility of having the lower schoolers walk through the Upper School in their costumes during their Halloween parade. “The idea is for lower schoolers to walk through the upper school in their costumes, and for upper schoolers to decorate their lounges. Lower school teachers could even vote on the decorations. This allows both divisions to see each other and connect,” reflects Newman. Despite these initiatives not being official yet, they reflect on EQV’s goal of uniting the school community and bridging the gap between grades. 

Coming into a new school can be intimidating, and that’s why another group wants to create a buddy system initiative. The sophomores can be paired with incoming freshmen, and incoming freshmen get paired with a current eighth grader at EA who will be in their class freshman year. EQV’s Nola Parsons ’26  helped come up with this idea from her own experience as a new freshman to EA, remarking, “I thought about how I didn’t know anyone when I was a freshman. Even small things, like what polo shirt or shoes to wear, were confusing. Having someone to text or talk to would make the transition into freshman year easier and help students feel more welcome.” This initiative draws on EQV’s goal of inclusivity as it helps the incoming freshman class, even if the students have attended  EA in past years, feel welcome and part of the community. They are hoping to implement this initiative starting this spring and continue it for many years to come.

As ninth graders begin the transition into Upper School, some have the opportunity to take the workshop class where they learn effective study skills, how to manage time, and understand the moving parts of how the Upper School works. Franklin adds,  “Workshop classes tend to include new freshmen, and it can be hard to enter a tight-knit school without knowing people. Our initiative focuses on helping these students feel more comfortable and connected.”  This group wants to offer advice to the freshmen in those classes on managing homework, adjusting to new expectations, or even just giving them a friendly face in the Upper School. By connecting with the ninth graders, the EQV plans to make the transition to Upper School easier and show that support is available from people who have experienced the same thing. 

All of these initiatives are focused on the same goals of uniting and fostering an inclusive, welcoming environment in the EA community. The EQV takes its role very seriously, planning each initiative with great thought and consideration for its impact on the community. The team strives to create initiatives that connect all grades, foster new connections, and promote a sense of belonging throughout the campus. The EQV continues to develop a more supportive and collaborative environment, rooted in the school’s core values and stripes.