INSTITUTE FOR SOCIAL IMPACT
Preparing Girls to Lead Lives of Purpose and Impact
“Social Impact really focuses on students finding their purpose. It is about making sure that our girls build skills, knowledge, and relationships, and then use all of those to create systemic change in something that they care about.”
LAURA DAY, DIRECTOR OF INNOVATION AND COLLABORATION
SINCE ITS INCEPTION IN 2018, THE INSTITUTE FOR SOCIAL IMPACT HAS INSPIRED COUNTLESS STUDENTS TO FIND THEIR PURPOSE.
SO CIAL IMPACT CLUBS
Student-led clubs connecting interests and skills to needs in the communit y — including music, c onservation issues, tutoring, and small businesses.
INDEPENDENT STUDIES / PROJECTS
Students identify problems and build creative and sustainable solutions to local and global problems they identify.
5 OUTCOMES
THEMATIC PROGRAMMING
Each grade level (Pre -K – 12) engages in programming based upon their grade level theme. These programs are designed to build student skills and understanding around the five outcomes.
1 BUILDING EMPATHY 2 ADVOCACY SKILLS 3 REALWORLD EXPERIENCES 4 DESIGNING SOLUTIONS 5 EXPLORING PURPOSE
SO CIAL IMPACT COURSES AND CO- CURRICULARS
Rigorous courses connect academics to real-world applications and teach problem-solving skills
STUDENT- LED RECURRING PROGRAMS
Students lead programming, such as tutoring at local schools, working at animal shel ters, volunteering at homeless shelters, and much more.
PARENT PROGRAMMING
Parents are invited to experience Social Impact work through educational field trips to community partner sites.
The Dr. William B. Dean Institute for Social Impact is built on core values that serve as its principles and beliefs, guiding every decision and action. Designed as an expansion of the School’s service learning program, the Institute allows students to engage with diverse partners, learn from civic leaders, and make a direct impact on the community around them. The key differences between a traditional community service model and the Institute for Social Impact are found in both the focus of the program and the ways in which programming and core values are integrated throughout a student’s experience.
“Through the Institute, we try to integrate the values and goals of Social Impact through every aspect of our students’ day and build on skills as they get older,“ said Laura Day, Director of Innovation and Collaboration.
A DAISY’S PATH THROUGH SOCIAL IMPACT EXPLORING PURPOSE
LEADERSHIP
We recognize that today’s students have the potential to be leaders, not just in the future, but now.
EMPATHY
We seek to understand others and do so by working to abandon our assumptions and participating in honest, open dialogue.
COMMUNITY
We are committed to supporting all members of our community in reaching their greatest potential.
INNOVATION
We keep a pulse on emerging practices and trends and believe in pursuing creative ideas that have the potential to change the world.
As a Hockaday girl grows and learns, she builds on skills developed through the Dr. William B. Dean Institute for Social Impact, which are incorporated into all aspects of her Hockaday experience. By the time she graduates, she is ready and inspired to lead a life of purpose and impact.
PRE-K
Our Community
Students learn about our Hockaday community and focus on connecting with and showing kindness to all the different people who help them.
• Meet and thank our support staff
• Spread joy through a special Valentine performance for staff
• Plant flowers and deliver them
KINDER / PRIMER
The Elderly
Students learn about ways to connect with the elderly in our community.
• Create decorations for senior housing centers
• Work with Meals on Wheels to create holiday cards
• Collect essential needs items and assembling into bags
• Take PE and Art classes with seniors
“Watching students have the opportunity starting in Lower School to explore their purpose and then seeing graduates go off to college with a firm understanding of their purpose is inspiring.
”
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The Dr. William B. Dean Institute for Social Impact is an important pillar in our community, educating students today in the ways they can lead now and inspiring them to do so in the future, no matter their professions. Students have the opportunity to pursue ideas that change the way our communities work—for the better.
JENNIFER SAMPSON MCDERMOTT-TEMPLETON PRESIDENT AND CEO, UNITED WAY
WAYS TO ENGAGE
CAMPUS VISIT
COMMUNITY SERVICE CLUBS
DESIGN THINKING DRIVE
FUNDRAISER
INDEPENDENT STUDY
INTERNSHIP
PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP SERVICE PROJECT
SKILLS-BUILDING
SIMULATIONS & IMMERSIONS
SOCIAL IMPACT COURSE
STUDENT-RUN SERVICE PROJECT
LOWER SCHOOL
Each grade level in Lower School features a Social Impact theme that directly aligns with the four pillars that define the Dr. William B. Dean Institute for Social Impact: community engagement, community service, service learning, and social entrepreneurship. These lessons and activities emphasize real-world experiences and outcomes, including advocacy skills, community interactions, and hands-on practice in designing solutions, while at the same time, exploring purpose and building empathy.
Students at each grade level take part in an impact field trip, a campus visit, and a service project according to their grade’s theme. Families are also offered optional weekend projects, grade-level party projects, and projects specifically for parents. “We empower the girls to believe they can achieve anything, and that limitless potential authentically shines through when they see the impact they are having on the community,” said Taylor Miller, Lower School Curriculum and Instruction Specialist. “Whether that’s learning about social entrepreneurship, supporting local food drives, or raising money to provide PPE to kids all over the world, they are making a difference.”
LEARN MORE
About Social Impact in the Lower School
FIRST GRADE Animals
First Graders partner with local organizations, including Operation Kindness, the Dallas Zoo, Joppy Farm, and Canine Companions, to see ways animals affect our daily lives.
SECOND GRADE
The Environment
Second Grade students focus on ways to sustain our environment and begin learning about how to start a social enterprise business.
• Partner with Trinity River Audubon Center and 12 Hills Nature Center for river cleanup
• Prepare the Lower School garden for planting
• Meet with businesses like Frost Bank and Hari Mari about the process of applying for a loan and starting a business
• Raise chickens from eggs to donate to a local farm in a food desert
• Learn about therapeutic animals
• Create penguin habitats in conjunction with experts from the Dallas Zoo
• Collect items for dog shelters and reading to animals in shelters to reduce their anxiety
• Collaborate with the Dallas Aquarium to create personalized stationary through social entrepreneurship, with proceeds going toward sponsoring an aquatic animal
• Build an air pollution detector and tracking carbon emission data during carpool times
SPOTLIGHT: EMPATHY AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
After hearing about the threats facing endangered African penguins — and the Dallas Zoo's efforts to save them in the wild through the artificial nesting project — First and Fourth Graders got to work on their own projects to inspire and educate others about these topics. The First Grade students crafted educational posters to illustrate the challenges that penguins face in the wild due to loss of nesting habitats; the Fourth Graders designed and built their very own artificial nest prototypes that they presented at an exhibition, attended by penguin experts from the Dallas Zoo.
Both classes also had the opportunity to meet with people at the Dallas Zoo who work with South African penguins in Dallas, but also work with a group of penguin experts in South Africa via Zoom. They were able to hear from and ask questions of experts about the problem and about some of the unique challenges faced by the South African penguin.
THIRD GRADE Hunger
Third Graders learn about the process of food production and what a food desert is, and use design thinking to direct food toward those who need it.
• Take part in a Social Entrepreneurship unit where students create their own business in partnership with an Upper School Biology class
• Learn about UNICEF and participate in a “trick-or-treat for good” to raise money
• Visit Bonton Farms and Feed My Starving Children to learn about food production and food deserts in Dallas
• Lead and organize a grade-wide food drive to make backpacks for local elementary school partners who are on the waiting list for the weekend food programs
FOURTH GRADE Community Engagement
In Fourth Grade, students build empathy by partnering with homeless shelters, head start programs, and reading groups.
• Learn about homeless shelters and create blankets for children at Jonathan’s Place
• Partner with To Be Like Me to discover different kinds of inclusion, including a two-hour simulation about learning differences and physical disabilities
• Visit a DISD school, donate books, and read to students. Learn about the purpose of head start programs and the 20-million-word gap
PRE-K MEETS THE COMMUNITY
Pre-K Daisies start Social Impact as soon as they step foot on campus!
Their focus is our community – throughout the year, they learn about different people on campus, and spread kindness and gratitude for the amazing helpers at school. They go on a special search for pictures of Ms. Ela Hockaday and learned about her special place in Hockaday history; heard from the grounds, facilities, and housekeeping staff about how to keep Hockaday’s campus beautiful and sang love songs to staff for Valentine’s Day. “Making an impact is only possible if you learn early social skills, so it is critical to teach these alongside the core academics,” said Stephanie Snell Stone ’02, Pre-K teacher.
STATISTICS IN ACTION
Upper School Statistics, a Social Impactdesignated class, collected and studied data from animal shelters and presented it to First Grade students so they could learn about animal rescue in Dallas. First Grade’s Social Impact theme is Animals in the Community, and the Statistics class focuses on issues of choice through data collection, visualizations, analysis, and interpretation to develop the tools to raise awareness and instill empathy within the individual and the community.
SCIENCE + SOCIAL IMPACT
Science and Social Impact is a Third Grade course designed to merge the Third Grade social impact theme of food insecurity with the sciences connected to the topic. The course is team-taught by science, social studies, and social impact faculty. The class explores the topic of food insecurity by delving into topics such as hunger versus food insecurity; what happens when your body eats food; how lack of food affects growth, how it feels emotionally to experience food insecurity, where food comes from, what a food desert is, how calories are used as fuel, food preparation and safety, and what actions are being taken about food insecurity.
“It’s a great theme, mostly because it’s something that the kids can readily empathize with,” said Amy Banks, Lower School science teacher. “It’s easy to imagine there’s no food – they’ve all been hungry at some point. But most haven’t experienced food insecurity, so this is a new thing for them. It’s more than packing food – sympathy is one thing, but empathy is another.”
The class visits the dining staff to talk about food preparation, work with social studies faculty to learn about food deserts on maps, and hear from the school nurses about why your body needs food. Students also plant fresh produce in the Giving Garden to donate to a food bank, and visit Bonton Farms and the Marcus Elementary food pantry set up by Hockaday students.
SECOND GRADE ENTREPRENEURSHIP
During their Social Entrepreneurship unit, Second Grade students learned how to create a business plan! They heard from a team of women at Price Waterhouse Cooper about business loans and financial literacy. Madre Dallas, a design team run by Hockaday moms and alumnae, came to talk about female-run businesses and how to make smart, sustainable products. Students learned how to create a brand, market a product, sell the product, and the different models of using business to create social impact. They worked with Dallas Aquarium to create personalized stationary, and proceeds from the sale went to support an aquatic animal.
MIDDLE SCHOOL
Students in Middle school build the leadership skills outlined in the five outcomes and engage in authentic real-world opportunities for impact through Social Impact-designated courses, Social Impact clubs, leadership opportunities, and class projects. Each grade level offers a rigorous course connecting academics to real-world application and problem-solving. “Our Daisies recognize their capacity to identify problems and use Design Thinking to work to solve them,” said Head of Middle School Nicole Escudero Christenson. “They are learning to be powerful agents of compassion and empathy.”
Beyond class themes and projects, Middle School students can engage with the Dr. William B. Dean Institute for Social Impact in other ways. This year, Close Up and the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools will bring together Middle School students, including Hockaday girls, from around the world to build inclusive communities, develop the skills needed for active citizenship, and learn from the stories, the successes, and the setbacks of other young changemakers. Seventh and Eighth Graders can join the Social Impact Club, where they engage in design thinking to build leadership skills and create impact within Hockaday and the greater community. Fifth through Eighth Grade students are part of Social Impact Leaders, and attend four sessions throughout the year designed to build leadership skills in students and help them develop the five outcomes. In addition, the Middle School Robotics program has a Social Impact slant, as students take on a problem that impacts the world and meets with experts to make their vision a reality.
LEARN MORE
About Social Impact in the Middle School
FIFTH GRADE
Theme: Homelessness
Social Impact Course: World Geography
Fifth Graders begin to explore the different facets of homelessness and learning what our city does about homelessness. After talking through different issues, students begin to think about solutions.
• Connect with Jonathan’s Place, a nonprofit offering a comprehensive array of social services that address four key areas related to the persistence of poverty: hunger, health, housing, and hope
• Tour Family Gateway, a nonprofit that provides stability and life-changing supportive services to children and families affected by homelessness
SIXTH GRADE
Theme: Water
Social Impact Course: English
Sixth Grade students study issues facing our oceans, rivers, and local water sources, and work on ways to advocate for cleaner water in our community.
• Learn about issues surrounding global access to water
• Create advocacy posters for the Hockaday campus about water
• Partner with Texas Conservation Alliance to participate in environmental design challenges and education
SPOTLIGHT: MIDDLE SCHOOL MAKERS
Middle Schools students work in mixed-grade groups on a Social Impact Makerspace project each spring. Last year, girls were tasked with designing bee hotels, which aid native bees without a hive in nesting, laying eggs, and pollinating. The teams worked together to ideate, design, and construct their own hotels, which they presented to a larger group upon completion. Students in all divisions learn about bees throughout the year through Hockaday’s partnership with Alvéole, which manages Hockaday’s own beehive on campus. “Giving students a challenge and then using curriculum and real-world data build empathy, and solving the problems deepens learning,” said Laura Day, Director of Innovation and Collaboration.
SEVENTH GRADE
Theme: Food Access Social Impact Course: Science
Seventh Graders go deeper into food insecurity in Dallas, and work with local nonprofits to create solutions and learn more.
• Create a human map of food deserts in Dallas
• Partner with Joppy Momma’s Farm to support the community garden through water and soil analysis
• Pack snack bags for DISD after-school programs
Hockaday taught me the importance of connection and contributing to one’s broader community.
AYLA SUMER ’23
EIGHTH GRADE
Theme: Community Engagement Social Impact Course: English
Eighth Grade students prepare to enter Upper School by focusing on ways to engage deeper in their community.
• Partner with McShan Elementary to co-create graphic novels with newcomer students
• Listen to Upper School Social Impact panel
• Focus on finding an issue and purpose that is personally meaningful
WELCOMING NEW STUDENTS
Sixth Grade students took the lead on welcoming new Hockaday students but creating a guide to Middle School life! They wrote, edited, and illustrated a “New Kid Handbook” which explains Hockaday’s traditions, uniforms, expectations, social life, clubs, and how to ask for help. The project allowed students to think about how a new student might feel coming in to Hockaday, and helped them draw on their empathy skills to decide what knowledge to share.
SPOTLIGHT: DISCOVERING OUR SUPERPOWERS
Eighth Grade students participated in a Social Impact project through their English class called “Discovering Our Superpowers with McShan Elementary.” In November, Hockaday students interviewed McShan Elementary newcomer students. “Because many of McShan students are non-native English speakers, these conversations offered them an opportunity to practice their English and build their confidence,” said Dr. Lauren Miskin, Middle School English teacher.
The students were also encouraged to ask questions that would illuminate the McShan students’ “superpowers” – talents, skills, or traits that set them apart. Then, students worked in groups to design graphic novel pages celebrating each McShan student by creatively depicting his/her unique superpower.
After collecting pages from each group, teachers published the pages in a book to present to the McShan students. “We wanted them to see themselves represented in an empowering, positive light,” said Dr. Miskin. In February, the girls presented the final book to the students at McShan Elementary.
“Many of the students are recent immigrants, some are refugees,” said Dr. Miskin. “By hearing these young people’s stories in an open dialogue, our students achieve a new level of understanding for the challenges they face.”
McShan students enjoyed seeing the final project. “My students loved the graphic novel,” said Arianna Zeb, McShan Elementary teacher. “It was the highlight of our class party. My students couldn’t stop talking about how amazed they were to see themselves in these stories.”
FIFTH GRADE EXPANDS THEIR HORIZONS
Following courses in US and Texas History, World Geography aims to expand how students think about the world. “Teachers ask the girls to go into the course with two questions,” said Laura Day, Dirctor of Innovation and Collaboration. “How do we engage with the world, and how does the world shape us?” That philosophy makes this course a perfect fit as a designated class within the Institute for Social Impact. “The class really focuses on empathy throughout our studies,” said Ms. Day. “We understand who we are, but there is a big wide world out there. When we interact with people, how does that come across? We learn empathy through understanding choices other people make, and how their history and culture determine their choices.”
The girls participate in activities such as a balloon map, which teaches them about distortion and map projections, and a food review video with their family, where they try a different culture’s cuisine and describe it objectively. The class also looks at current issues and learns how humans have come together to solve problems in the past. Teachers try being positive and enable them to find solutions. “These are the girls who are going to be running the world someday,” said Ms. Day. “It’s important to walk away with an understanding of how to be a global citizen and understand someone else’s perspective.”
SEVENTH GRADE AND FOOD INSECURITY
As part of their theme of Food Insecurity, Seventh Grade students from Hockaday and St. Mark’s visited Paul Quinn College. During their visit, students learned about the school and heard from Hockaday Board of Trustees member Dr. Michael Sorrell, President of Paul Quinn College. Students visited We Over Me Farm, which is a converted football field on campus located in a federally recognized food desert, that has produced and provided more than 30,000 pounds of organic produce since its inception in March 2010. No less than 10% of this produce has been donated to neighborhood charitable organizations. The rest supports community members, the College, and restaurants and grocers throughout Dallas.
Courses with the Social Impact designation directly align with the four pillars of community engagement, community service, service learning, and social entrepreneurship that define the Dr. William B. Dean Institute for Social Impact. These courses emphasize real-world experiences and outcomes such as strong advocacy skills, increased community interactions, and handson practice in designing solutions, while exploring purpose and building empathy. Throughout each course, students will complete alternative assessments to evaluate 21st century skills such as empathy, creativity, collaboration, and purpose and measure the overall impact experienced by our community partners.
COMPUTER SCIENCE
AP Computer Science
Partner with SMU and AT&T to become certified in data science and Artificial Intelligence while leading a Middle School Data Science and Artificial Intelligence club at Hockaday
ENGLISH
Fashion in Literature
Address fashion’s economic and environmental costs by designing a project of social impact
Rhetoric
Analyze ways that writers and artists express their perspectives about world issues
UPPER SCHOOL
Students in Upper School can take Social Impact-designated courses, which fulfill graduation requirements in a variety of subjects. Hockaday has repurposed a portion of the school day to allow students to volunteer off and on campus through recurring programs, such as tutoring and volunteering with local nonprofit organizations. Students attend a recurring programs assembly in September to learn about the opportunities and then can choose to participate throughout the year. Students can also engage with social impct through Athletics and Fine Arts partnerships. Many graduating seniors cite their Upper School Social Impact work as some of the most meaningful experiences they have at Hockaday.
“ I want students to understand that history matters to the way individuals and communities define themselves. People think that learning history just means memorizing a set of known facts. In fact, real historical work is about interpreting facts and making a coherent explanation that helps us understand the past and serves to guide our path forward.
”
DR. ELIZABETH BENNETT, UPPER SCHOOL HISTORY TEACHER
FINE ARTS
Chamber Orchestra
Apply musical knowledge and skills to design and teach a weekly music enrichment course for a local public elementary school without access to music education
Hockaday Theater Company: Drama
Perform and teach the art of drama and storytelling at a local public elementary school without access to performing arts Dance Theater
Share the joy of dance throughout the Dallas community with performances and student-led dance projects with partner elementary schools
HISTORY
Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Economics and Social Entrepreneurship
Develop and pitch a culminating socially conscious business plan that addresses a current world issue and compete for funding
U.S. Government
Propose mock legislation to local government officials and use advocacy skills to take action
Global Issues
Collaborate in a current events seminar and grapple with major socio-political issues facing our world today.
SPOTLIGHT: ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Students in Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Economics and Social Entrepreneurship visit Howdy Homemade Ice Cream to hear from founder Tom Landis. Mr. Landis started the business when he became aware of how quickly those with special needs were overlooked as employees after hiring a man with Down syndrome at a restaurant. Students learn how Tom created a space where teens and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities could find meaningful employment, and how companies can put a social mission first.
Anika Kapoor (Class of 2025) is working with Parkland Hospital to kickstart a program that would allow new mothers in Parkland Hospital to easily access the services of Texas’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). “Texas has one of the highest rates of child hunger in the nation, with over one in five Texan families experiencing food insecurity,” she said. “To help alleviate these problems, I am working to create a program that would involve assigning Parkland Hospital’s social workers to aid new mothers, providing in-hospital guidance and support while helping them complete the entire complex WIC application process in-hospital. Parkland’s social workers would be trained to help the women navigate the application process, understand eligibility requirements, and gather the necessary documentation to complete the application after giving birth, enabling new mothers to begin receiving benefits without any complication or delay.”
SPOTLIGHT: UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIPS
Continuing Hockaday’s partnership with the University of Pennsylvania’s Social Innovators Academy, students meet with representatives to talk through social entrepreneurship and how they can make their ideas come to life. Using real-world examples and prompts, Hockaday students engage in small group discussions and individual meetings to talk through change making. “Hockaday stands out because they integrate empathy, community, and innovation into all aspects of the school’s culture and curriculum,” said Rich Sedmak, Senior Fellow and Social Entrepreneur in Residence at the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Social Impact Strategy. “This thoughtful model responds to the rapidly changing demands of our world by preparing their students to be resilient, courageous, and purpose-driven leaders who can navigate and drive change.”
MASTERING MATH
Form I students in Integrated Math III Enriched class have the opportunity to make an impact through numbers by partnering with Thomas C. Marsh Middle School. At Marsh, Eighth Grade students take Algebra, and Hockaday Form I students help them on their math journey by creating activities like online games and apps that inspire students to find algebra in the real world, and practice these skills to deepen their knowledge and mastery of the material and increase college readiness. “Using math to show how it is connected to the real world is game-changing,” said Laura Day, Director of Innovation and Collaboration.
Whether it was volunteering at a local elementary school or cheering on my teammates during a soccer game, Hockaday has taught me how to foster teamwork and support my community.
OLIVIA BURLS ’24 ”
MATHEMATICS
Applications of Pre-Calculus
Enhance problem solving and critical thinking through higher-level math concepts
Integrated Math III Enriched
Establish a working partnership with Marsh Preparatory Academy, a local public school serving students from low-income families
Statistics
Address social issues through data collection, visualizations, analysis, and interpretation to develop the tools to raise awareness and instill empathy within the individual and the community
SCIENCE
Advanced Genetics
Explore the nature of inherited diseases and connect with medical practitioners/researchers in area hospitals to learn about new techniques and the role of genetic counselors
Biology, Impact, and the Zoo
Collaborate and apply design thinking to solve environmental issues in partnership with experts from the Dallas Zoo, and produce a culminating pitch to area industry leaders in a “shark tank” setting that addresses an identified environmental problem and competes for funding
Conservation Biology
Use our campus to transform and rehabilitate our local habitat through research land and beehives.
Environmental Chemistry
Work with community partners in Dallas to test water and soil to share with local residents and elected officials
AP Environmental Science
Engage in a yearlong impact study focused on creating and implementing change within native species at Trinity River Audubon Center
Neuroscience
Complete a culminating synthesis project through a neuroscience lens
WORLD LANGUAGES
Spanish in the Community
Partner with the Dallas Spanish-speaking community through practicum work in education, geriatrics, and healthcare and community engagement and storytelling
WRITING CENTER
Social Impact Writing Internship
Practice and share their communication skills with elementary school students in the community
SPOTLIGHT: WRITING CENTER
Hockaday’s Writing Center, which launched in 2019, helps students become effective critical thinkers, analytical writers, and persuasive communicators so they are prepared for the writing demands of all academic disciplines and of life. Lisa Fisher, Director of the Writing Center, has been working to expand the reach of the Writing Center beyond Hockaday.
“Sharing our passion for writing with the community outside of Hockaday aligns with the Writing Center’s purpose of encouraging an appreciation of writing as a skill and way of learning for everyone,” she said.
The Writing Center partners with the Institute through a mentorship program with Foster Elementary School. “I worked with a fifth grader to develop his writing skills,” said Libby Warren ’23. “We discussed pillars of storytelling such as character development, plot, and setting. No matter our neighborhood, age, or background, each of us has an innate love for storytelling.”
SPOTLIGHT: HOCKADAY’S HIVE
Hockaday students in all divisions gain real-world experience through Hockaday’s on-campus beehive and bee hotels. “Having the beehive on campus gives our students the chance to get outside and connect what they are learning in class to the natural world,” said Science Department chair Peggy Cagle. Located near the Field Research Station behind the softball field, the beehive features Italian honey bees, who are mild tempered and perfect for urban environments. The bee hotels, located near the Lower School garden, are a space for native bees to lay their eggs. Native bees are gentle and are mostly nonsocial, so they feel no need to protect the bee hotel. Middle School students work on a culminating project to design and build their own bee hotels, which they will take home to provide a hospitable area for local bees to lay eggs.
RESTORING NATIVE PRAIRIES
Upper School’s Conservation Biology class hopes to make an environmental impact by restoring native plants on the 2,500 square foot prairie lies behind the softball field. The class partners with the Trinity River Audubon Center (TRAC). During monthly field trips to the nature reserve, specialists at TRAC teach students about the restoration process of a prairie. Science teacher Jessie Crowley created the course to delve deeper into questions students have and the resultant projects rather than being restricted to AP curriculum. Students began by researching the flora that inhabitants a Blackland prairie, the ecosystem that existed before Hockaday.
They visited the Clymer Meadow Preserve, an intact Blackland prairie, and talked to specialists about how they manage their property. Students propagated plants and placed them back into the habitat for restoration, removed invasive species to increase plant diversity and introduced native plants. These plants are pollinated by the nearby Hockaday beehive.
My hope is that students walk away more informed consumers and also have an appreciation for the natural world. Because if you don’t have that appreciation, you’re not going to be interested in saving it.
JESSIE CROWLEY, SCIENCE TEACHER ”
SPOTLIGHT: A CHANCE TO DANCE
Hockaday dancers volunteer with “A Chance to Dance,” an outreach program run by the Dance Council of North Texas. Classes for neighborhood children, who otherwise would not have access to dance, are held at T.R. Hoover Center in South Dallas once a week at no cost to the students. Fine Arts Department Chair Christie Sullivan ’95 teaches ballet, and Hockaday dancers help demonstrate, lead warmups, rehearse with the kids, and perform solos for the students.
Dancers from the program perform at the South Dallas Dance Festival in the fall and on the Hockaday stage during the Dance Planet festival in April.
“Arts programs are often the first to be cut in public schools and community spaces, so it is imperative that those of us who have access to the creative and fine arts share with as many people as possible as often as possible.”
FINE ARTS + SOCIAL IMPACT
Fine Arts classes pair with the Dr. William B. Dean Institute for Social Impact to integrate elements of social responsibility into their work and share talents with other communities. “The arts are such an integral part of our society,” said Charlsie Griffiths ’98, Hockaday’s Director of Orchestral Studies. “We are educating students for careers that do not even exist yet. Arts assist with creative thinking, problem-solving, and some of the softer skills that are important in all fields. By introducing and cultivating the arts in our community, we are setting up not only our students but all students, for a brighter future.”
• The Fine Arts Board partners with the Institute for Social Impact to create a food pantry at Marcus Elementary School. The students cleaned, repaired, and decorated a purposeful space and then problemsolved how to fill it with food. brighten the space, and students run a food drive each year to stock the shelves.
• Upper School Orchestra members prepared music to help Fourth Grade students at David G. Burnet Elementary learn Texas history according to the state curriculum guidelines. Hockaday musicians played pieces that reflected the rich cultural history of our state and answered questions about musical influences throughout Texas’s history.a curriculum for Fifth Grade students to teach drama skills, language, and storytelling in local elementary schools.
• Upper School’s Introduction to Drama class created a live theatrical version of the book “The Day the Crayons Quit.” for young audiences. The students created personalities for the characters described in the book and encouraged the young audiences to pick their favorite color.
OLIVIA PARK ’23
ATHLETICS + SOCIAL IMPACT
Each Varsity team repurposes one of their practices to serve the community. Teammates work together to lead the practice and create activities to share with the community. Our teams:
• Share why the sport has been impactful in their lives and why playing sports is meaningful
• Model what the sport looks like through demonstrations
• Run skills clinic by breaking the students up into smaller groups to rotate through targeted stations
• Create a scrimmage for the students to try playing the game in an exciting setting with lots of cheering
• Donate equipment needed to continue to play the sport
SPOTLIGHT: SPREADING THE LOVE
The Varsity Volleyball team headed to Marsh Preparatory Academy in the fall to run a clinic for girls interested in the sport. They explained basic techniques and rules to the girls, many of whom had never played or seen a game. The team donated equipment to the school for their coach, who hopes to spark interest in the sport at the school.
SPOTLIGHT: SETTING GOALS
When Leena Mehendale and Jules Johnson (right) started volunteering at Foster Elementary, they realized that the students there were as passionate about soccer as they were. As members of Hockaday’s Varsity soccer team, they had partnered with DISD schools as part of their Institute for Social Impact work through repurposing practices and holding clinics. But in order for the kids to really thrive, they decided to fill a desperate need at the school – soccer goals!
“We looked into purchasing goals, but they are really expensive,” said Leena. “So we sent an email out and asked if any students wanted to participate in a STEM project!”
Leena and Jules researched the best way to build a soccer goal and had to consider multiple constraints. “We had a limited budget, so we had to figure out a way to do it economically,” said Leena.
The duo headed to Lowe’s (six times) to experiment with PVC pipe and different types of nets. Jules’s interest in engineering kicked in to figure out the best way to design the goals. “I drew out three different designs, and we worked with the school so they could pick which one they wanted,” she said.
It took a while to nail down which net worked the best. “We tried deer netting, because we thought it would be strong,” said Leena. “It ripped a week later. Now we have real soccer nets on the way that we bought online.” The project totaled about $300 for each regulation goal. For comparison, new regulation goals cost around $4,000. Leena and Jules also mowed the lawns and painted the regulation lines so the kids could play and practice.
“This was the perfect project for us because we have different experiences,” said Jules. “Leena handled the soccer part, and I was interested in the science and engineering. We had to problem solve and work together. We are really proud that our skills came together to build something.”
To continue the partnership, students collect shin guards and other equipment to donate to the school. Class of 2024 members Teva Goldstein and Estee Phaneuf started a girls’ soccer team at Foster Elementary. “We want to make an impact on these students by teaching them everything we knew about the sport,” said Teva. “We enjoy speaking in both English and Spanish as it allowed us to practice using Spanish in our daily lives, and teach girls everything we know about a sport we love!”
“This was the perfect project for us because we have different experiences. We really had to problem solve and work together. We are really proud that our skills came together to build something.”
JULES JOHNSON ’22
PROFILE OF A SOCIAL IMPACT STUDENT
Zoya Haq ’23 was named an Ashoka Young Changemaker, and details her journey through Social Impact at Hockaday as she heads to Yale University.
My first experience with the Dr. William B. Dean Institute for Social Impact was in Eighth Grade. A group of Upper Schoolers visited our class and discussed their experiences with Hockaday-based Social Impact. I remember feeling immediately inspired; these girls seemed to have accomplished so much, and I found myself counting down the days until I could start my own high school journey. That day, I made a mental note to try and incorporate the impact work I was doing outside of Hockaday into the Institute during my freshman year. My first week of high school, I did just that — I visited Ms. Day, talked to her about a project I was working on, and immediately felt the empowering embrace of the Institute.
I developed a close relationship with the Institute my freshman year. That year, I worked closely with Ms. Day and her Dallas-area partners to scale a project that I was working on to sell and donate books, and the mentorship I received helped me to scale my project to multiple local area schools. The summer before my sophomore year, I attended a CloseUp program — one of the Institute’s partners — called IMPACT, where I got the chance to develop and scale my project, HiStory Retold. That winter, I participated in another CloseUp program where I worked with a team to address high recidivism rates in prisons. When I took U.S. Government (a Social Impact Designated Class) that spring, I took the lessons learned from my winter CloseUp program and worked on a research paper that explored the intersection between legislation and prison recidivism. As a part of my capstone project in the class, I reached out to local legislators to encourage the passing of “Ban the Box” laws in Texas.
That class has been my favorite Social Impact class so far. The intersection between government and Social Impact is one that intrigues me — legislation, after all, is integral to systemic transformation. In Government, we explored this intersection firsthand by taking action on policy issues that connected to our passions. I truly believe that this class imbued necessary and important skills into all students who took it — it showed them that, no matter how young you are, you can stand up for change.
Through my work with the Institute, I’ve discovered the power of my voice to make concrete change. I came into high school as a shy kid. I had never been told that my ideas could make an impact. But through my work with the Institute and with Ms. Day, I was treated like an equal, like someone whose opinion had value.
I connected with people in Dallas who could actually help me to transform my ideas into reality — and who didn’t see my age as a barrier to my potential. My work with the Institute has helped me to build confidence not only in myself, but in what I put forth into the world: my work, my thoughts, and my actions.
My work has taught me how to think critically about social issues, how to delegate leadership, and how to deal with rejection. Scaling a project like HiStory Retold requires the support of external partners and national affiliates. Every week, I send about five blind emails to potential supporters. Maybe three lead to a conversation, and even fewer end up blossoming into a true partnership. I’ve learned that rejection is a necessary part of success. Re-evaluating the way that I view rejection has revolutionized the way that I approach my work.
Last summer, I stumbled across the Ashoka Young Changemakers program. Struck by how much I resonated with Ashoka’s values — creating a Changemaker world, valuing stories, and empowering communities — I decided to apply for the program in May of 2021. The selection process culminated in a panel interview this November, where I got the chance to discuss my change-making pitch with a wide range of pioneering changemakers on Ashoka’s senior staff. I was so excited to find out two weeks later that I had been selected as an Ashoka Young Changemaker.
I had the privilege of joining 10 other Americans in becoming a part of Ashoka’s global cohort. Over the course of the next few years and beyond, I will collaborate with Ashoka’s partner organizations, learn from young pioneers, scale my project both nationally and globally, and work to create an “Everyone a Changemaker” world. I cannot wait to embark on this journey, and I am so appreciative of the Hockaday Institute of Social Impact for helping me every step of the way.
“My work with the Institute has helped me to build confidence not only in myself, but in what I put forth into the world: my work, my thoughts, and my actions.”
ZOYA HAQ
’23