Community Meeting

Community meetings are one of our most treasured traditions. Held weekly for each division, every meeting is anchored by a reading, story, or activity that examines an aspect of the School Creed and emphasizes the habits most critical to students’ success. Our meetings also include commendations, where teachers recognize a student’s action that lived up to our pillars and Creed or demonstrated growth. This positive recognition serves as a strong driver of our values and sets an example for other students’ growth. Each meeting also includes a recitation of our School Thanksgiving and School Creed, as well as a guided mindfulness reflection and informal greeting time.

Every community meeting begins with our School Thanksgiving and continues with a weekly message presented by a staff member that examines a part of the School Creed. These reflective messages bring our Creed to life in a different way each week, inspiring students to live as caring members of a community.

Another central component of every meeting is the giving of commendations. A teacher from each grade commends one or more students for a specific action they observed that connects to a line of the School Creed. This is an opportunity to put a stamp on demonstrations of growth that are replicable by all students. To close the meetings, everyone shakes hands, recites the School Creed, and then shares a quiet moment of reflection. 

Students in the highest grade in elementary and middle school have a chance to lead a community meeting on a topic of their choice, with subjects running the gamut from Latinx culture, to African-American inventors, to issues such as bullying. Working in small groups, students develop a message about how to incorporate the Creed and pillars – initiative, integrity, compassion, determination – into our daily lives. They share the message with their audience through performances, selected readings, or guided discussions – an experience that develops leadership and presentation skills.