Upper School Student Leadership Retreat Builds Skills and Connections

The Upper School Student Leadership Retreat takes place at the start of each school year to help prepare club officers for the year ahead. Held on campus, the retreat aimed to equip student leaders with the tools and insights necessary to succeed in their roles throughout the academic year, while making connections between classes that span different grades and interests alike.

Student Government and Class Officers worked with Dr. Maguire, Dean of Student Life, to create an engaging and informative day of addresses and workshops, giving students an opportunity to dive deep into their planning for the year.

The event kicked off at 8:30 AM with a check-in at the Main Lobby, where Student Government officers welcomed attendees with enthusiasm and anticipation. This retreat is an important part of the club certification process, as is the upcoming Club Fair on Friday, September 6.

The day officially began at 9:00 AM with a keynote address in the Lower School Gym, setting the tone for the retreat. Head of School, Mr. David Frankenberg, delivered a personable and impactful speech on leadership, and how students might imagine and re-imagine leadership now that they are taking on key roles in their respective clubs. In conversation with Student Government leaders, Mr. Frankenberg took questions from the audience about how to boost school spirit, how to motivate club members, and how to use conflict constructively to both grow as a leader and to take in new ideas.

Following Mr. Frankenberg, Ms. Burns from TAS Communications shared a presentation on how clubs interact with school communications tools like social media, TAS news, and newsletters. Packed with information to help clubs plan their communications and pitch the mission-driven content that TAS is known for, this gave students an opportunity to reflect on their processes and goals for sharing their club activities.

Finally, Dr. Maguire gave a presentation full of the key must-do’s for clubs, from essential planning timelines and paperwork, to the reasons that clubs are asked to work with so many different adults around the school to support their activities on and off campus. TAS offers extensive support for clubs, with important guardrails in place to make sure that club activities are well-managed and planned. From reserving space on campus to ensuring proper support from IT/AV and Facilities, the frameworks provided by the Office of the Dean of Student Life help students tackle event planning down to the finest details.

Following the keynote, students split into five groups to rotate through interactive workshops led by Dr. Chen and Dr. Fagen, Upper School Assistant Principals, Mr. Haynes, Upper School Counselor, Ms. Brennand Hamre, Upper School College Counselor, and Ms. Read, Upper School Principal.

Mr. Haynes led workshop focused on "What Makes a Good Leader," where students explored the essential qualities and characteristics of effective leadership. This session gave students a moment to reflect on their own leadership styles, and the opportunity to brainstorm how they could both grow as leaders this year and use their skills to inspire others.

Ms. Hamre’s workshop on college counseling and clubs gave students an opportunity to discuss the intersection of academic planning and extracurricular involvement. An important aspect of club leadership is learning how to balance leadership roles with college preparation, and how to create deep learning experiences for themselves and their club members. Ms. Hamre emphasized the importance of aligning club activities with college goals, and going beyond the idea of being a leader on paper. The deeper a club leader’s experience, the more valuable it will be to them as they consider how to prepare their college applications and share about their leadership journey with prospective schools.

Dr. Chen’s workshop dove into conflict management, and how to resolve disagreements, to learn from conflict, and how to restore harmony within groups when big differences arise. With a focus of learning from each other at every opportunity, including conflict, Dr. Chen guided students through strategies to handle conflicts constructively, a crucial aspect of leadership.
Ms. Read facilitated a session on different leadership styles, during which students worked more deeply to understand their own behaviors and identify their leadership styles. What assumptions do they make when working with other students? How might their assumptions create blind spots, and when can adopting different leadership styles produce better results? Knowing oneself as a leader is an essential part of the student leadership experience at TAS!  

Finally, Dr. Fagen worked with students on fundraising strategies for clubs that go beyond food sales. While this is certainly a tasty and popular way to raise money for clubs, this session was particularly valuable for students looking to create more meaningful fundraising opportunities for their club and for the students getting to know their causes. Dr. Fagen challenged participants to think beyond traditional methods, inspiring innovative approaches to resource generation that will surely reap rewards this year.

As the workshops concluded, student leaders left campus with a better understanding of the different skills and strategies to help their clubs have a fun and successful year of activity at TAS.  When our students are prepared to lead with confidence and purpose, we know that they will go on to do great things, both at school and beyond!