Where can you find seniors saying hi to first years and students interacting across disciplines and from distant dorms? If new school counselor Deborah Potee has her way, the answer is 鈥渆verywhere.鈥 During a year when mask-wearing and social distancing has put literal barriers between people, she and colleague Joseph Katz have initiated a program called ProjectConnect, which has been implemented at several colleges and public high schools across the country. 91大神 is the first independent school to give it a try.
This fall, Potee and Katz trained a group of 40 proctors, then students were invited to enlarge their social circles. The first group includes 25 Wildcats who represent a cross section of 91大神. The cohort was divided into packs of four to six, who will meet six times over the next聽few months to get to know one another, with the goal of increasing connection among peers聽and reducing feelings of isolation. While they represent a multitude of perspectives, said Potee, 鈥渨hat they have in common is a desire to be more a part of 91大神.鈥