Torch - Fall/Winter 2019-20

Message from the Heads of Schools

The Power of Belonging Our Orientation Process Ensures that Every New Girl Feels Known, Valued and at Home

By Lindsay Norberg, Jennifer Patterson and Kate White

generate a strong sense of belonging. To belong is to feel that we’re not alone, that our human journey is shared and that our joys are greater and disappointments smaller together. Generating a sense of belonging begins well before a new girl shows up for the first day of school. First, our Admission team works closely with families to determine each prospective girl’s fit for Havergal (and vice versa). Then, once admitted, we include new families and students in a series of events to familiarize them with their new community, well before opening day. The last thing we want is a girl starting classes in a strange place, with mysterious customs and unfamiliar faces. So we make sure she knows more about what to expect in the coming days and weeks as she begins her Havergal journey. New families tell us there is so much they need to know as the entire first year unfolds. No matter how many touchpoints we provide as a school, questions pop up at the dinner table or during the bedtime routine that experienced parents are delighted to field. Is that special event tomorrow Number One Dress? How does pizza lunch work? What time is band rehearsal? Conversations and connections between homes are as valuable for creating the family feeling we have at Havergal as everything that happens on the school grounds. Speaking of buddies, setting up our new girls to make personal connections before classes start is an important part of the Havergal welcome. In the spring, new Junior School students are invited to attend a JS New Family event; for smaller entry years, students have an opportunity to visit their new classmates. In the Middle School, new and returning Grade 7 students meet for a special lunch, where they sit in their House groups and learn their House cheer. On this occasion, future classmates have a chance to share food, stories, songs and laughs—and work off some of those new-girl jitters. In the Senior School, students are contacted by their House leaders in June as a welcome to the community. Last, before stepping into the classroom for first lessons, all of our new students enjoy an exciting event just for them: Orientation Day, which occurs the day before returning students arrive back at school. Designed for their age and grade, the girls enjoy exclusive access to the Junior, Middle or Senior School buildings and resources. They take tours, find their classrooms, meet their teachers, ask questions, play relationship-building games and, best of all, spend time with each other. They begin to forge those special friendships that will last throughout their schooling and even beyond graduation as Havergal Old Girls.

From left: Head of Senior School Lindsay Norberg, Head of Junior School Kate White and Head of Middle School Jennifer Patterson. E ach of us is an “I” and a “we.” We are individuals with unique traits. We are attached to others through close personal relationships, and we identify with social and cultural groups much larger than ourselves. When the needs of our individual, relational and collective selves are well met, we have confidence in who we are and strength in the face of new challenges. When new girls arrive at Havergal College, we attend equally to these three selves. We want to know and nurture each girl’s distinctive identity, while also helping her establish new friendships and a larger bond to the whole school. What researchers call “belongingness” has a powerful impact on emotional well-being, cognitive development and the ability to manage stress. 1 A new girl who is seen for who she is and wholeheartedly welcomed into a community feels valued, performs academically at her best and shows resilience when working through the inevitable setbacks of life. The school’s approach to welcoming new families and students holds these truths in mind. Our ultimate goal is to help girls build the connections they need to thrive individually and through their attachment to others—their friends, teachers, coaches, counsellors and so on. That is why we are deliberate about the ways in which we engage students and their families when they join our community. Our programs and interactions are designed first and foremost to

1 Baumeister, R.F. and Leary, M. “The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation.” Psychological Bulletin , Vol. 117 (3), May 1995, pp. 497–529. Accessed via https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.117.3.497.

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