Life Skills Curriculum
COMPASS
N
S A I N T
M A R Y ’ S
S C H O O L
COMPA
CURRI
1
SS
Mission.
The COMPASS Curriculum
equips the young women of Saint Mary’s School with life skills that move them
CULUM
toward independence and enable them to navigate their world. A complement to the academic curriculum, this program provides, at each grade level, a developmentally appropriate experience with expanded opportunities for ethical and spiritual development, leadership
Women Navigating the World.
Established in
2003, the COMPASS curriculum augments a rigorous academic program. At Saint Mary’s School, we know that important learning takes place both in and out of the classroom. We have thus been intentional in mapping out core life-skill subjects and expanded educational and experiential opportunities in the COMPASS program. Weekly COMPASS classes combined with COMPASS Week offer an array of enrichment opportunities. During COMPASS Week, 9th and 10th grade students
training, character education, community building, and social responsibility. The goal is to graduate young women who have found their “compass.”
Grade-Level Themes 9th Grade IDENTITY — Discovering Ourselves Women Building Character 10th Grade COMMUNITY — Exploring our Worlds Women Making Connections
engage in learning adventures on campus, such
11th Grade LEADERSHIP — Navigating our Challenges
as cooking, lifeguarding, photography, and an
Women Taking Responsibility
archeological dig. Juniors spend COMPASS Week visiting colleges while they are in session, and
12th Grade INDEPENDENCE — Mapping our Future
seniors intern in jobs throughout the U.S.
Women with a Voice
ETHI S
While Saint Mary’s School is Episcopal in tradition, students of all faiths are welcome.
3
ICS&
PIRITUALITY Exploring Mind, Heart, and Soul.
Integrity is
founded upon a young woman’s spirituality and her ethical responses to the challenges of the world. Our religious programs and honor code ask every student to examine herself and create a congruence of mind, heart, and soul. From such a wholeness of self, each young woman will be better able to stand secure and become a force for positive change. Opportunities for growth include • Chapel services • Bible study • Vestry (Chapel Leaders) • FOCUS — Fellowship of Christians in Universities and Schools • Guest speakers on world religions • Honor Week
Be in a place where it’s perfectly okay to explore spirituality and embrace an ethical lifestyle.
CU
5
ULTURE &
GENDER Understanding Culture and Gender.
To forge a
strong identity, young women need to learn to interpret the cultural messages that dictate what they should eat, what they should wear, what they should look like, and even what they should be. To lead lives of purpose in a diverse world, they must be aware of challenges encountered by both genders; recognize systemic forces that disenfranchise individuals because of race, ethnicity, and gender; and gain understanding of cultures other than their own. Topics include
Be your genuine, original self — not
• The “roots” of culture and our individual world views
an imitation
• Defining American cultural norms
of someone
• The effects of discrimination on individuals and groups
else’s ideal.
• Women, the media, and unreasonable expectations
RELATIO
H
7
Be Healthy, Be Strong.
Because girls rely heavily
on relationships to establish their identity, to fill their deep need to belong, to solve problems, and to manage stress, they must learn to form and negotiate appropriate and healthy relationships. Girls also need information specifically relevant to women’s health and well-being. Program topics include • Nutrition • Breast cancer • Stress management • Relationship violence • Cliques • Drugs and alcohol
NSHIPS &
HEALTH
Treat your mind and body like two priceless gifts you receive only once.
LEAD
DEV
9
DERSHIP
VELOPMENT Leaders in the Making.
At Saint Mary’s School,
every leader is a girl and every girl is a potential leader. Our leadership training program provides students opportunities to interact with positive role models, to learn goal-setting and time-management skills, to recognize leadership styles, and to develop decision-making strategies — skills to help our future leaders shape their world. Activities include • Leadership workshops for 9th — 11th grades • On-going training for senior leaders • Opportunities to hold positions in clubs and organizations • Team-building exercises
Find your own voice and lead others with confidence.
PU
S
11
UBLIC
PEAKING Find Your Voice and Use It.
Every young woman
needs the tools to speak effectively and to overcome the natural fear of public speaking. A critical skill, whether practicing a profession or leading a volunteer agency or speaking on behalf of a strongly held belief, public speaking is indispensable in advocating for a professional, civic, or personal cause. Opportunities for students to gain experience include • Junior public speaking requirement • Speech classes • Opportunities to speak in Chapel, at performances, and at formal dinners • Classroom training
Let the world hear what you have to say.
FIN
13
NANCIAL
LITERACY
Developing Financial Literacy.
It behooves
every young woman to have the skills for ensuring her financial independence. She must know how to earn, manage, save, invest, and give her money wisely. Ninety percent of today’s young women will be financially responsible for themselves when they are adults. Having a good job isn’t enough. Our students start learning now about the value of money. Topics covered include
Discover how you can take charge
• Personal finance: perceptions versus reality
of your
• Creating a budget for financial independence
financial
• Credit cards: the good and the bad • Planning and investing for the future
future.
ADVENT
15
TURE &
TRAVEL The World at Your Doorstep.
Today’s world
requires that successful women be confident, curious, and flexible. Off-campus travel, retreats, and outdoor adventures take young women at Saint Mary’s School beyond the normative and comfortable — providing them the opportunity to take appropriate risks and giving them confidence and knowledge about themselves and other people and cultures. Travel opportunities at Saint Mary’s School include • History and fine arts trips to Europe • Weekends in Boston; Washington, D.C.; and New York City • School trips to Camp Seafarer and N.C. Outward Bound
Push the limits
• Tours, study programs, and homestays abroad
of the world as
• Model U.N. and Close-Up conferences • Out-of-town mixers with other independent schools
you know it.
COM
SER
Community service is a way of life — and a habit SMS graduates continue for the rest of their lives.
17
MUNITY
RVICE
Giving Back Your Best.
Community service asks
students to extend themselves beyond the bounds of our campus community, to move outside themselves and the groups to which they belong. Making a difference in the lives of others through service nurtures the spirit and engenders in young women a sense of social responsibility, especially important for young people educated in independent schools. Community service initiatives include • Habitat for Humanity • Adopt-a-Highway • Food Bank of North Carolina • Tutoring elementary school children • Foundation for Hope
Make your world a better place.
CA
PRE
19
Cultivating Careers Now.
Women in today’s world
can expect to join the work force; consequently, young women should provide themselves the means to be independent. As traditional limitations diminish and glass ceilings crash, every young woman needs the tools to choose a viable profession that suits her gifts, talents, and interests. Through the COMPASS Curriculum, students participate in • Career Day • College visits for juniors • Hands-on college application/admissions workshops • Week-long Senior Experience internships • Semester-long Senior Pathways internships
AREER
EPARATION
Investigate career choices — before college.
SPO
FITN
PLUS programs help 9th- and 10th-grade girls develop a healthy, active lifestyle.
RTS &
NESS
Lifelong Fitness Begins Now.
21 The benefits of
participating in sports and fitness programs mirror the life skills needed in the workplace: teamwork, discipline, confidence, commitment, and leadership skills. Saint Mary’s School’s athletic and physical activity program encourages healthy habits that have life-long value. The School belongs to the North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association and competes regionally in the Triangle Independent Schools Athletic Conference. PLUS — Playing, Learning, Understanding, Succeeding
— happens every afternoon, Monday through Thursday, for 9th- and 10th-grade girls, who welcome this opportunity for release and relaxation after a full day of classes. Depending on the day and the weather, they take yoga, aerobics, and fencing classes; do strength and cardiovascular training in the fitness room; go running or walking with a faculty member; or enjoy outdoor games, like softball. Fitness opportunities include • 10 Varsity and 5 Junior Varsity sports • PLUS physical fitness program • Orchesis Dance Company and classes
900 Hillsborough Street • Raleigh, NC 27603-1689 • 1.800.948.2557 • www.saint-marys.edu