T H E W I L L I STO N N O R T H A M P TO N S C H O O L
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FOST E RING COM M UNITY CLASS BY CLASS Finding your place—even in a community as welcoming at The Williston Northampton School—can feel overwhelming. In September 2008, the Ninth Grade Advising Program began with a simple but clear goal: to provide extra support to students as they make the sometimes stressful transition to high school. Knowing that strong academic and social support creates the foundation for a successful secondary school experience, the Ninth Grade Program strives to help students understand the safety net that exists for them, and how best to use that support to be successful at the school. It also aims to foster powerful and lasting friendships among ninth graders and to strengthen the relationships between day and boarding students. C.O.R.E. (Curiosity, Organization, Reflection, and Empathy) is the foundation of the program. These qualities apply to the classroom, dormitory life, the Williston community, and beyond. Before school begins, the class goes on a two-night orientation trip where they are introduced to C.O.R.E. Throughout the year, teachers and advisors refer back to the lessons learned during the trip. Along with the orientation trip, study skills workshops, special assemblies, and community service projects, the Ninth Grade Program ensures that communication between students, teachers, and advisors is efficient and timely. The program is a purposeful exercise in fostering connections among the students, but also between the adults who work closely with the ninth grade
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class. That includes the faculty advising team that is organized by the program’s coordinators, Allison Marsland and Matt Sawyer. Ms. Marsland, who is a Senior Associate Director of Admission at the school as well as a Dorm Head in 194 Main Street (not to mention a softball coach), and Matt Sawyer, who is an English teacher and a football and baseball coach, work together closely with each other and a team of dedicated faculty to support the Class of 2015. The many roles Ms. Marsland and Mr. Sawyer play at the school also allow them to see the many facets of Williston that ninth graders experience. “The key word is support,” Ms. Marsland explained. “As students make the transition to Williston, we need to be focused on helping them.’That involves being cognizant of the diversity of students represented in the first-year class.” The challenge is to build community. That is helped by finding adults who are ready to commit to the ninth graders not just this year, but year after year. Mr. Sawyer added, “Good communication between adults and students, and between adults about those kids, is the most important thing. We begin by identifying kids who need extra support, and we’re proactive about reaching out to them as early as possible.” Building community at Williston is a thoughtful enterprise; it doesn’t happen overnight or by itself.
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This year, the Class of 2015 arrived on campus from across the country and around the world. There are 45 boys and 44 girls; 65 percent are boarding students, and 35 percent are day students. Like the school as a whole, 16 percent have self-identified as students of color, and approximately 45 percent are receiving some financial aid to attend the school.
Ms. Marsland and Mr. Sawyer, along with a dedicated group of faculty, make that possible, and the result is a first-year class that stands on a foundation built to last throughout their Williston experience and beyond.
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