UNDERSTANDING THE WORLD OUTSIDE THE CLAS SROOM THROUGH

pandemic was to be able to return to the original idea of teacher planned and teacher taught experiences for groups of kids who opted into a specific area of focus, as opposed to a one size fits all approach,” Bolton said.

THE RETURN: BACK TO THE ORIGINAL VISION FOR CIVIC ENGAGEMENT SEMINARS

see where they were. There were tweaks and changes, so that is how it came back to what was originally planned,” said Francis, who stepped down from the position of director of experiential learning to focus on his nonprofit work. He remains at Seven Hills as an Upper School health teacher.

answered students’ questions over lunch and did improv with theater teacher Marc Raia’s improv class. Students ended the day by filming video reflections of their takeaways of what they learned.

For the third day on mental health, students learned about reducing mental health stigma and ways they can support their own mental health and that of their peers. Active Minds, an organization aiming to change the culture around mental health for young adults, led a lesson about mental health stigma and how talking about mental health should be as easy as talking about physical health.

“Those days were a powerful and valuable substitute, but what we really hoped all along and through the

The 2022-23 school year was finally the right time to return to the original vision for the Civic Engagement Seminars for which the E.E. Ford Foundation grant had been awarded.

Karen Glum, former director of the Middle School’s Innovation Lab, was tapped for the position and oversaw the first year of Civic Engagement Seminars, which included 17 seminars under the categories of social justice, environment, politics and government, public health, and global issues. Students got to choose which one they took part in.

“A lot of the work had been done but it had been dormant for a year and a half. People had to go back and look at it and

“It was really interesting,” Bolton said, “because we had the idea of the focus on public health that was part of our plan before there was a pandemic, and it got some interest from students. And then after the pandemic, there was much more interest. It has become something that is part of their formative experience.”

Sophomore Erin Jackson picked Black Joy for her seminar.