On Friday, Sept. 6, the Kingswood Oxford Upper School held its inaugural Upper School Service Leadership Day. This event was brand new to the Upper School this year and will hopefully occur in years to come. The focus of the day was for students to participate in various leadership development activities and workshops beyond the classroom. This included going out into the Greater Hartford community as well as serving our very own KO community on campus.
While Form Three was off at Camp Merriwood, the other forms participated in their own programming as well. Form Four traveled to the Howard Preserve at Granbrook Park in East Granby to work with the Traprock Ridge Land Conservancy and Nourish My Soul Farm. Form Five stayed on campus and worked on activities that centered around what it means to be a leader, and specifically, a leader at KO. Form Six traveled to multiple off-campus worksites to volunteer. These included the Community First School, the Elderly Nutrition Kitchen with the Community Renewal Team, the Habitat for Humanity Habitat ReStore warehouse, the Miracle League of CT, and more.
Service learning is a big part of the KO mission, as the school is working to shift from the mindset of community service to one of service learning and leadership. “Service learning has a component of you making sure your knowledge and perspective on the world and the communities you’re serving grows alongside the service you’re doing,” Form Five Dean Matt Waldman said.
Recognizing the privilege each and every student has to be at such a special place like KO is also part of the reason why service learning is so important. Students are taught to immerse themselves in other communities, be fully present in their work, and learn something new. Service Learning Coordinator Kathleen McLean, who spent the summer reaching out to different nonprofit organizations to make these events happen, spoke to the significance of this idea. “Understanding that you’re part of a wider community, understanding that we’re very privileged to be here, and that we have something to offer, can establish partnerships that are mutually beneficial,” she said.
The inaugural Upper School Service Leadership Day was truly a testament of one of KO’s core values, “care beyond self.” This day was a great way to get students thinking about how they can be the change in their communities and the importance of giving back to people who need it most. While this may have been the first time the Upper School has done something like this, it certainly won’t be the last.
