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Alumni
Review #2, Class of 2000 |
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| College
Enrolled |
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Trinity College (CT) |
| Home
Town, State (Country) |
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New Haven,CT |
| Years
Attended Boarding School |
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4 |
| Activities
During Boarding School |
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Campus Players (theatrical group) - Co-Head, senior year. Directed a full-length production of "The Crucible."
Wrote for the Literary magazine and the student newspaper
Participated in Choir, all four years - selective small choral group freshman year.
A variety of roles in many theatrical productions.
Assisted in planning the Dance Company tour of Baltimore and D.C., senior year.
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| 1.) What do you think makes your school unique relative
to other boarding schools?
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| Emma Willard provides a supportive and nurturing atmosphere, close relationships with faculty, challenging academics, and opportunities for student leadership. But what makes Emma unique are the traditions - Revels, May Day, Ring Week, etc. These provide a sense of community, meaningful rituals marking period in the academic year and each girl's progress through the school, witness comings-of-age, and connect students to the institution and to each other in a way that is difficult to describe, but which is lasting and profound. |
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| 2.) What was the best thing that happened to you in boarding school? |
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| I learned how to handle an adult friendship, to be accepting and tolerant of opinions different from mine, how to lead a group and make them excited about a project, how to focus that group towards a goal, how to write coherantly, how to discover what interested me, how to follow an obsession, how to manage money, how to get out of a relationship that's gone bad, how to make myself do something that needs to be done whether I want to do it or not, how to put together an argument and back it up, how to look in the mirror and not tear myself apart, how to hit a pianissimo high A, how to listen to a friend without having to jump in and fix everything for her, how to plan time, how to play the man's part in dance and theatre, how to organise space, how to cook ramen in a microwave, that I was capable of taking over the world, that I had good and worthwhile ideas that grownups wanted to hear about, that responsibility and conscientiousness are as important as competence, and never to let my roommate cut my hair. |
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| 3.) What would you have done differently during your boarding school experience? |
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| I would have been more open during my first two years. I was very scared and insecure, and this kept me from terminating several relationships that were extremely damaging. |
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| 4.) What would you never want to change about your school? |
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| Revels REVELS REVELS REVELS. Ring Week. May Day. Vespers. The senior triangle. The "us"-ness about it. The fact that it's taken for granted that being a nerd is cool. The architecture. |
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| 5.) What things could be improved about your school? |
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| The counseling service was minimal at best, and there was a pervasive attitude of distrust about it ("oh, they'll just turn you into the administration!") The constant tabs being kept on you, as well as the three or four expulsions per year (whose reasons were subject to a graphic and efficient gossip network) bred a culture of paranoia; a constant sense of being watched, fear of doing something wrong without knowing it, etc. |
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| 6.) Do you have any final words of wisdom for visiting or incoming students
to your school? |
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| 1. Get to Sage early on chocolate chip cookie day and HOARD them throughout Assembly. They will be gone when you get back.
2. Your Revels part doesn't matter as much as you think it does.
3. Keep your roses. Or at least the ribbons. You'll want them someday.
4. Get to know your RA and housemother.
5. Korean pop rules!!!
6. When in doubt, a good club activity is getting T-shirts made.
7. Get something OTHER than pizza for tea once in a while!
8. Do your own college research
9. You're not going to miss boys as much as you think you will. |
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| 1.)
What did you like best about your school’s academics? |
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| The teachers were incredibly dedicated and cared about you. I had teachers ask me to stay after class because they could tell I was upset about something, and put in a good hour or so listening to me cry and helping me feel better. They always made it clear that they had very high academic expectations and that they were sure you could meet them. They were available for extra help, involved in other parts of your life (going to plays, games, concerts, etc.) and I credit them with much of my academic competence and personal confidence. There was an excellent selection of classes across all disciplines, and the Science program was very much emphasised. Teachers often communicated to create interdisciplinary units. |
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| 2.)
What did you like least about the academics in your school? |
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| There is an intern program for recent college graduates, and the skill of these women as teachers varies greatly. I'm not sure how much supervision they received, but having one's GPA be at the mercy of a 22-year-old with no experience or certification can be nervewracking. |
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What did you like best about your school’s athletics? |
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| I didn't really participate in athletics. However, I know the school was very supportive of athletes, and friends of mine who were on teams reported positive experiences. We built a new gym my sophomore year, which was excellent. |
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| 2.)
What did you like least about the athletics in your school? |
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| Not really a participant - unable to respond well. |
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What did you like best about your school’s art program? |
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| The school took artists seriously!!!! The plays were well attended, we had visual art exhibits on campus frequently, the Orchestra was excellent, and the Choir - under the direction of Mr. Locke and his 48 years of experience at the school - was an EW institution. I was in at least half a dozen productions during my time there, and directed two more; we had a huge wardrobe and prop closet to work from (not the greatest condition, but it was there), and the facilities were excellent. |
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| 2.)
What did you like least about your school’s art program? |
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| The amount of time outside class that you were expected to put into visual arts courses was staggering. I would have liked to take more, but each course basically took over your life, so it was impossible. Also, much of the theatre supplies were old and beat up. |
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| 1.)
What did you like most about the extracurricular activities offered
at your school? |
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| Fantastic opportunities to learn leadership. I grew into myself as a leader at Emma Willard - you were never told that you were too pushy or too bossy if you wanted to make something happen. Student activism thrived. There were a few girls that were completely apathetic or just too cool, but in general, Emma attracts women who are passionate about something and gives them the opportunity to build on that passion and discover how to channel it. |
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| 2.)
What did you like least about the extracurricular activities offered
at your school? |
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| Perhaps a little TOO much freedom? I often felt as though I had so much independence that I had no help ... but that could just be my stubborn refusal to seek help when I needed it. |
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| 1.)
What was the best thing about dorm life in your school? |
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| Wide hallways with alcoves off them encouraged a genuine sense of community. Housemothers were generally warm and inviting; I have many fond memories of movie nights, watching ER, or just hanging out with a group of girls at my housemother's flat. Weekend activities were generally good, and hall tea once every week forced you out of your room and onto the hall. Rules about visitors in dorms were well-enforced, so you were usually comfortable on your hall. The rooms are GORGEOUS; I was thoroughly spoiled, and it's been hard to adjust to the vermin-infested, tile-floored University with its inconsistent hot water and dreadful lighting. |
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| 2.)
What did you like least about dorm life? |
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| Very rigid time schedule. Also, you often tended to feel trapped on weekends. There was no difference between curfew and meal check-in rules until you got to October of your senior year - this does not accurately reflect an adolescent's constantly developing responsibility. During my time there, the phone system was archaic and impossible to deal with, but I hear that's changed. |
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| 1.)
What was the best thing about your dining arrangements? |
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| Gorgeous dining halls, a liberal guest policy, and, in general, good food. |
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| 2.)
What did you like least about your dining arrangements? |
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| The scheduling of club meetings during meal times often made it so that you could grab five minutes of lunch at 11 and five more at 12:30, then grab dinner in the twenty minutes between the end of Choir and the start of play rehearsal. |
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| 1.) How welcome did you feel by the other students when you first
arrived at the school? |
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| It took me a few years to settle in. I had some seriously toxic friendships my first few years, which made it difficult for me to be accepted by the mainstream EW culture, and I think the counseling staff and the dorm staff could have been much more perceptive and proactive in helping this situation. There were definitely cliques, definitely a few "cool" crowds, but the students overall were fairly happy and didn't mind not being one of the "cool" kids as long as they had their own friends and their own group. There was a higher than expected level of interaction between the groups - everyone knew everyone else, and was generally friendly. |
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| 2.)
Describe the level of diversity and integration of students in your
school: |
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| There was a wide variety of interests and styles, though the school was predominantly white. However, for a private boarding school, we did VERY well. There was a wide range of socioeconomic classes represented. The overwhelming culture was feminist and left-wing, but this was definitely not unanimous. It was a very tolerant, inclusive, and accepting environment. Nobody snickered at you for wearing weird clothes, people were encouraged to express themselves in all sorts of ways without fear of embarrassment, and my impression is that most students felt comfortable without feeling complacent. |
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| 3.)
Describe typical fun activities you did on a weekend: |
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| Slept till ten or eleven, wandered into brunch, was homesick, maybe rented a movie or ordered pizza, stressed about how much work I had, stressed about how little money I had, missed my day student friends, did some work, went to church, had a play rehearsal, wandered down to CVS, tried to get a group together to do "something fun," failed to get group organised, etc. etc. |
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| 4.)
What was the town like? |
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| There were a few shops within walking distance, some interesting local businesses, a Chinese restaurant, etc. Troy, in general, is not a student town, and we were fairly isolated. Going to CVS often constituted "weekend plans." There was a mall nearby, and there were frequent trips to it. I guess I'm abnormal in that this failed to constantly excite me. |
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| 7:00 AM | Wake up, get ready, check into breakfast | | 8:00 AM | Morning reports (whole school hears announcements, etc. - mandatory) | | 11:00 AM | Morning classes end - lunch, club meetings, assembly, class meetings, etc. | | 12:30 AM | Afternoon classes begin | | 3:30 PM | Afternoon classes end - afterschool gym begins, also sports practice | | 5:30 PM | Choir rehearsal (about 1/6 of the student body) | | 6:30 PM | Play rehearsal, club meetings, special events, a cappella rehearsal, etc. | | 7:30 PM | Study Hall begins for boarding students - mandatory | | 9:30 PM | Study Hall ends. One day/week - hall teas. Otherwise, phone calls, socialising, etc. | | 10:30 PM | All students must be on their halls. | | 11:00 PM | All students must be in their rooms. | | 12:00 PM | Second-semester seniors with roaming privileges must be in their rooms. | |
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| 10:00 AM | Wake up | | 11:00 AM | Finally get it together with friends - go to brunch | | 12:00 AM | Avoid doing work. | | 1:00 PM | Order pizza. Complain about being broke. | | 2:00 PM | Call to ask where pizza is. | | 3:00 PM | Pizza arrives. | | 5:00 PM | Rent movie with friends. Search for unclaimed television. | | 6:00 PM | Check into dinner. | | 6:30 PM | Find unoccupied TV room or break into classroom with TV. Watch movie. | | 9:00 PM | Ride around assembly hall on ottomans with scooter wheels. Check email. Make popcorn. Give each other makeovers. Call home. Halfheartedly read a chapter of Huck Finn before bed. | |
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