TALKING TO ONE ANOTHER

With the theme of “Building Community Through Conversation and Communication,” the Office of Diversity, Community, and Inclusion, led by Wayne Jones and assisted by Jess Adams, is working to get us talking to one another. Well-loved former senior dean and varsity lacrosse coach Jess Adams has returned to EHS this year to teach English and to serve as Associate Director of DCI. With her open mind and upbeat attitude, Jess is always willing to listen and to share. And it’s in the one-on-one and small group conversations that we get to know one another, hear and respect varied perspectives, work through the differences, and build trust, in service of our mission to respect the dignity of each individual. The real work of building community is done through conversations.

With that in mind, DCI led community-building activities at Freshman Orientation, Freshman Retreat, the Mix and Mingle, and quarterly Community and Conversation opportunities for faculty and staff. The student organization Diversity in Action, open to all students and led by a 13-member steering committee of students from all grade levels, will continue to host a number of all-welcome meetings for students to get to know one another through small-group conversation.

During January Interim Term, DCI will for the second year run the Freshman Grade Level Learning class in Civil Discourse, developed by English and Debate teacher Evan Harris and assisted by Librarian Kate Hall, to help students understand themselves and one another and engage in respectful conversation both in person and online.

Please see the course outline on the next page.

– Nancy Laufe Eisenberg